Kingcrimsonprog Q2K was the seventh full-length studio album by the Seattle based Progressive Metal band Queensrÿche. Released in 1999, Q2K was the band’s first album without lead guitarist Chris DeGarmo and it has long been criticized by fans and critics as being a low point in the bands career.

Queensrÿche love evolution, and so as with every album before it, Q2K sees a shift in musical direction. The band no longer write Heavy Metal, Prog-Metal, MTV Commercial Rock, dense Eastern-sounding Prog or jangly, primarily acoustic Alt-Rock material like on any of their previous albums.

The sound of Q2K is still influenced by the Alternative spirit, but in a different way than on this album’s 1997 predecessor Hear In The Now Frontier. There is a touch more distorted low guitar and a greater focus on percussion and texture.

In terms of highlights, most Queensrÿche fans can agree on the opener ‘Falling Down’ as well as ‘Liquid Sky’ and the single ‘Breakdown,’ which all fall in the spectrum of basic polished Rock, but are three good songs nonetheless.

The two semi-ballads ‘Right Side Of My Mind’ and ‘When The Rain Comes’ also both pick up quite a few compliments too, so that’s five out of the album’s eleven tracks that a lot of people seem to enjoy. If the entire album was as good as the highlights, and there was a little diversity in place too, then this would be a pretty great album.

Some of the songs aren’t as good as those highlights though. The rest are OK, but don’t really work well when played together. The problem with the album overall is that it all sounds the same more or less, so once you’ve heard a few tracks nothing can really surprise you all that much.

There are no instrumentals, no real fast songs, no really slow songs, no fully acoustic tracks, no spacey synth-driven tracks, no dynamic ten-minute tracks and not even any quick one-and-a-half minute interludes that deliver a message and then disappear. Rather, almost every song is mid-tempo, mid-heaviness, mid-length and so ultimately just end up provoking only mid-level excitement.

In addition; there aren’t any samples, there aren’t all that many guitar solos and there aren’t many additional instruments such as saxophones to mix things up now and again, so even within each song itself, there isn’t a lot of variety.

Still, even with those flaws, its not as if anything is actually bad. If you take any one song out of context, it won’t actually be bad (and may even be pretty good as in the case of the five aforementioned highlights), and of course Geoff’s vocals are still great the whole way through. Its just unfortunate that for some reason when they’re all sat together in one big row the album can just feel a little too grey, mushy and bland.

I feel that people are wrong just to reject the album out of hand because Chris DeGarmo isn’t playing guitar and people are similarly wrong to reject the album out of hand just because it isn’t very Metal sounding or Progressive in nature. That being said, the album does suffer from the aforementioned lack of variety and energy and so it takes a fair bit of patience to really enjoy. It isn’t as if Q2K is some massively underrated gem, its just that its not as bad as people make it out to be.

Buy it if you have an open mind and want a few more Queensrÿche songs to listen to, but don’t bother if you only wanted something that sounds like the old days or pushes a lot of boundaries.

Kingcrimsonprog Hear In The Now Frontier is the sixth full-length studio album by the Seattle based Progressive Metal Queensrÿche, it was recorded in Stone Gossard’s home studio, produced by Toby Wright and released in 1997. With every passing album from the beginning of their career up until the time when this was released, Queensrÿche had reinvented their sound every time, and Hear In The Now Frontier takes a similarly large change in direction, crossing over into Alternative-Rock territory.

The sound of the album isn’t so much the sound of Prog-Metal in the Dream Theatre, Blind Guardian and Fates Warning sense; but rather a stripped-down Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam and The Beatles inspired 90s-Alt sound with lots of jangly acoustic guitar and occasional down-tuned electric riffs.

Some fans took this to be a sort of betrayal or selling out, but in all honesty looking back from now it isn’t really any different from all of their huge stylistic changes before this album’s release and its just furthering the band’s mission to never make the same record twice.

In my opinion, this album isn’t the monstrous waste of space that it sometimes gets made out to be; tracks like ‘Saved’ ‘Reach’ ‘Spool’ and the single ‘Sign Of The Times’ all have some memorable moments. I actually like at least half of the album and don’t exactly dislike the other half in any legitimate way.

Ultimately, that just isn’t enough however and so this just isn’t all that amazing an album all things considered. There aren’t tonnes and tonnes of memorable riffs, the lyrics aren’t the sort of thing that stick in your head for days, the guitar solos aren’t as impressive as in the past and some of the material is just a little too forgettable. Luckily Geoff Tate’s voice is still very enjoyable, but then again he doesn’t take it to as impressive heights as he once did.

To be fair, even if this had have been the best Alternative album ever made, some people would still hate it just because the band changed to cash-in on the ‘in’ thing of the time. That thing is though, Hear In The Now Frontier isn’t the best alternative album ever made, it is just an average album. Its OK but it isn’t perfect, it isn’t something you’ll want to play in its entirety all that often and it definitely shouldn’t be the first Queensrÿche album that you buy unless you are a massive fan of 1990s Alternative Music and hate Prog or Metal.

Overall; if you hate change then avoid it at all costs, but if you can actually accept that the sound of the album isn’t all that Progressive or all that Metal, Hear In The Now Frontier is an OK addition to your collection that will deliver you a few more good songs to enjoy.

UMUR "Live on I-5" is the first live album by US alternative rock/metal act Soundgarden. The album was released through A&M Records in March 2011. The album was recorded at various shows during their late 1996 US West Coast tour supporting the "Down on the Upside (1996)" album. It was originally planned for release after the tour, but as Soundgarden disbanded, the live recordings were shelved. The decision to release the recordings now, is probably due to the band´s reunion in January 2010 and the subsequent select live shows in 2010 and 2011, which sparked interest in fans to hear new material from the band.

...even though the band were, at the time, touring in support of "Down on the Upside (1996)", that album is only represented with 4 tracks out of a tracklist of 17 tracks. The band´s arguably most popular albums, "Badmotorfinger (1991)" and "Superunknown (1994)", are each represented with 5 tracks. The remaining 3 tracks are "Nothing to Say" from Soundgarden´s 1987 debut EP "Screaming Life", the Beatles cover "Helter Skelter" and the Stooges cover "Search and Destroy". That means, that there are not a single track from "Ultramega OK (1988)" or "Louder Than Love (1989)" present on "Live on I-5".

The performance isn´t the most inspired thing I´ve ever heard. Especially lead vocalist Chris Cornell sounds tired and used. His voice often cracks and his pronounciation and delivery of the songlines are sloppy. The rest of the band don´t deliver the most exciting performance either, but it´s the vocals that drag my rating down the most. The sound quality is thankfully professional and well sounding. All in all this isn´t a very interesting release despite the good sound quality. Maybe the fact that the band were on the verge of disbanding at the time when the tracks were recorded has something to do with it, but I expect much more from such a high prolific act as Soundgarden. A 2.5 - 3 star (55%) rating is warranted.

Time Signature Ode to the bluetiful people...

Genre: Maximum the Metal

At the present moment, the most recent release by Japanese nu metallers Maximum the Hormone, "Greatest the Hits 2011-2011" is a three-track single. The band is known for their complete disregard of genre restrictions, a disregard that serves as the foundations of Maximum the Hormone's very own brand of nu metal. Thus, the album takes the listener on a journey through a landscape of heavy grooves, hardcore punk aggression, alternative metal funkiness, metallic brutality and then some.

The opening track "鬱くしき人々のうた" (officially translated by the band into "Ode to the Bluetiful People") is apparently a song about depression, which is interesting, because it starts out an uplifting happy hardcore tune, but quickly morphs into an aggressive groovy crossover/thrash affair, featuring vocal styles ranging from growls and screams over male and female rap to male and female clean vocals. After a couple of the different riffs of this more uplifting and aggressive series of riffs, a very melodic bridge kicks in which combines very soft female background vocals and ballady music with aggressive rapping. It might seem strange that a song about feeling blue combines uplifting and aggressive aesthetics, but - hey - what cures the blues better than some uplifting melodies and empowering aggressive grooves?

"Maximum the Hormone" starts out heavy and groovy, but takes on a more atmospheric character when the verse kicks in, which has the form of multi-harmonic chanting (which really utilizes the fact that all four members of the band can sing). After changing back and forth between this more atmospheric verse and more aggressive sections, things get brilliantly funked up for a while, building towards a burst of aggressive hardcore punk. And then the tempo drops again, as the band go back into the groovy opening. The entire sequence is repeated, but - true to the Maximum the Hormone ethos - with a number of variations.

The third track "My Girl" is an uplifting hard rocker which features a funky verse complete with raggamuffin style toasting and an extremely melodic almost poppy chorus as well as a more groovy and aggressive passage. Again, the band make use of their full range of vocal styles, including clean female and male vocals, rap, growls, and screams. Showing that they are the masters of making genre transgression seem like the most natural thing, Maximum the Hormone even include an pop/AOR-style section towards the end without it seeming forced at all.

Like the "Tsume Tsume Tsume" single from 2008, this single only contains three tracks but has enough variation in this three tracks to keep things interesting all the way through. The music ranges from being aggressive over uplifting to being almost introspective, and - not just for nu metal but for metal in general - it strikes me as being quite innovative. The songs are kind of complex because they feature a lot of different riffs, but the song structures - like the chorus melodies - are actually considerably simple and accessible.

Time Signature Nail nail nail...

Genre: Maximum the metal

With their avant-garde approach to genre transgression, Maximum the Hormone might well be the elusive progressive nu metal band that some people are looking for. In any case, I think they are one of the most innovative bands on the nu metal scene, which, I think, is quite well documented by this single release.

The opening track "爪爪爪" (or "Tsume tsume tsume" in Romaji) was the first song from Maximum the Hormone that I heard, and it remains one of my favorite metal songs ever. After a brieft drum explosion, it starts out with an uptempo aggressive dissonant riff accompanied by extreme metal growls and screams and a fast drums, changing to a more off-beat figure and then again to a more samba-like riff and drum beat, while a more rapping style of vocals (accompanied by riot background vocals). Then the tempo drops and a crushingly heavy groovy riff kicks in, as the vocals go back to a more extreme metal style, before an extremely melodic chorus that just compels you to sing along even if you don't speak Japanese. The entire sequence of riffs is repeated, and then a groovy percussive bridge kicks in, evolving around a Latin-type of groove. Giving you another chance to sing along, the chorus is repeated, and the dissonant riff serves as a coda.

The following track "「F」" is no less sensational It starts out with a simple aggressive figure, featuring some thrashy drums, a slapping and popping bass, and aggressive riot singing, and then morphs into a melodic section featuring both vocal harmonies and rapping in extreme metal screams and growls. This is followed by a nu metal groovy riff accompanied by the same type of aggressive rapping. A brief interlude is given in form of an of beat funky section which also combines the melodic vocal harmonies and aggressive rapping. This is followed by an extremely melodic sing-along chorus and complete with underlying guitar harmonies. The entire sequence is repeated but with a couple of variations in the vocal styles to keep things interesting. Then a guitar solo kicks in, and the chorus is repeated in different variations.

The third track "Kill All the 394" starts out a fierce hardcore punk song, complete with old school blastbeats, simple aggressive guitar riffs, riot vocals and extreme metal vocal styles. After a frenzied barrage hardcore passages, a coda kicks in which has the form of an uplifting sing-along-part (this time in English).

What I like about the songs on this album is the way that a lot of different genre elements are included without it seeming forced or artificial. In fact there is a quite fluid dynamic feel throughout the album, and it actually seems natural whenever Maximum the Hormone jump from one genre into another. I would say that this genre transgression is an, if not avant-garde, then at least a quite innovative trait. Still, the listener will notice that, despite the many elements that each song contains, the overall song structures are not too complex, but rather easy to follow. This ensures that the music is accessible at the end of the day.

I also like the many different vocal styles included - ranging from rap over clean vocals to growls and screams. Moreover, all members of the band contribute to the vocals-aspect of the album which definitely ensures variation. In addition, the drummer, Nao Kawakita, is a woman; apart from being a kick-ass drummer, she can naturally contribute to the overall sense of variation with the quality of her voice (just check her brief lead vocals section in "爪爪爪").

This is only a three-song single, but listening to it is almost like listening to a full-length album in terms of variation. And, well, to put it very briefly, it's fucking awesome!

Time Signature The eye of needle...

Genre: atmospheric sludge metal

French metal act Klone is perhaps among the internationally more obscure acts from the French scene despite the fact that they have several releases under their belt. Hopefully this EP will help them gain more status internationally and give them the spot in the limelight that they definitely deserve.

Described as an alternative metal band, Klone strike me as being more than that on this EP. The two tracks do admittedly sound inspired by the likes of Alice In Chains and, to some extent also Soundgarden, but there is a much more prevalent feel of both post-metal and sludge metal on this release, which is also much more progressive and even avant-garde than most other alternative metal acts.

"The Eye of Needle, Part 1" is a fairly mellow 10 minutes plus affair which emphasizes heavy beats and a dark atmosphere with plenty of emphasis on vocal melodies. Granted, there are distorted guitars on this track, but these mostly take the backseat serving primarily to help generate the dark and oppressive atmosphere that characterizes this track by providing slightly dissonant textures and heavy doomy riffage. Slowly working its way through its 10 minutes of song length, "The Eye of Needle, Part 1" may test the patience of some listeners, but if you like dark and atmospheric music to lose yourself in, then chances are that you will love this tune. "The Eye of Needle, Part 2" is, while stile atmospheric and dark, slightly more aggressive with its basic groovy drive and inclusion of more thrashy riffage in the second half – neatly countered by ambient synth effects.

Definitely an interesting listen across the board, perhaps the most attractive aspect of this EP is the use of a rather avant-garde saxophone courtesy of Matthieu Metzger, who also provides the keyboards and electronic effects.

The production is very professional, but there is a lot of reverb across the board. Now, while this might be annoying to some listeners, I am sure that the massive amount of reverb is the result of a conscious choice, because it does definitely serve the purpose of making the already atmospheric EP seem even more atmospheric and ambient.

Fans of post-metal and more atmospheric sludge metal along the lines of, say, Ghost Brigade should definitely not hesitate to acquire this fine piece of dark, heavy and expressive music.

(review originally posted as seaoftranquility.org)

UMUR "Engine" is the self-titled debut full-length studio album by US alternative/groove metal act Engine. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in September 1999. By the end of the nineties the band actitivies of Fates Warning had slowed down considerably compared the band´s activity level in the eighites and early nineties. Lead vocalist Ray Alder also wanted to try out a more direct, simple and groove based sound and found like minded musicians in guitarist Bernie Versailles and bassist Joey Vera, who had toured with Fates Warning on the tour supporting "A Pleasant Shade of Gray (1997)" (and in Joey Vera´s case he had also participated in the recording of the album). The three recruited Pete Parada to fill the drummer position. Besides Ray Alder being known for his work with Fates Warning and later Redemption, the other three members of the Engine lineup are known for their work with acts such as Agent Steel, Halford, Arch / Matheos, Armored Saint and OSI among others.

...and the high level musicianship is audible. The album is a very well played affair. The music on the other hand is a far cry from the generally progressive nature of most of the member´s main acts. The songs are formulaic vers/chorus structured and very seldom deviate from that form. The riffs are simple, heavy and groove based but some tracks like "Falling Star" and "Bear Your Cross" also feature soaring melodic chorus lines, that make them stand out a bit from the generally more aggressive nature of most of the material (add "Tree of Life" to the more melodic material too). I hear some strong Helmet leanings in the music and I think fans of that band might find the music on the album more interesting than progressive metal fans who are probably the ones who would purchase the album first because of the musicians involved.

When the most spectacular thing about an album is the musicians in the lineup, there´s something wrong with the music and that´s unfortunately the case with "Engine". Most of the material on the album is simply unremarkable. The above mentioned more melodic tracks stand out the most while it´s the more monotone groove based alternative metal tracks that are most forgettable. A track like album opener "Monster" is very repetitive and way too long for comfort and that unfortunately goes for many of the tracks on the album. Still the album comes off as a professional product with a well sounding production and strong musicianship and I´d say a 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Believe" is the 2nd full-length studio album by US, Chicago, Illinois based alternative metal act Disturbed. The album was released through Reprise Records in September 2002. "Believe" debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart and the album turned out to be a major commercial success for the band selling close to 300.000 copies in the first week after it was released. By January 2003 the album had sold over 1 million copies.

...listening to the album it´s pretty obvious why "Believe" had such a major commercial potential. While it´s certainly heavy at places with chuggin` downtuned riffing and relatively aggressive vocals, the tracks are very easy to get into and appreciate. They are all build on a classic vers/chorus formula and seldom deviate from that form. Most are energetic (the closing ballad "Darkness" is the exception) and groove based but all without exception feature very melodic clean sung sing-along choruses. That´s exactly how you create a major commercial success and make sure that your songs are played on the radio and your videos are played on TV. Sing-along choruses is the key element to commercial success and "Believe" features plenty of those. Lead vocalist David Draiman has a voice that reminds me slightly of a raw sounding Scott Weiland from Stone Temple Pilots and some of the melody lines also resemble melody lines written by that act, but Draiman and Disturbed are generally much heavier and more "metal" than the Californians.

The tracks are generally very vocal driven and the riffs and rythms often become backing to the vocals instead of delivering memorable riffs and sections. This too is probably also a great part of their mainstream commercial success and I´d say their formula is closer to commercial hard rock than "regular" metal. Personally I find the tracks way too formulaic to keep me entertained for more than a couple of spins, but I fully understand why the band appeal to so many. "Believe" is certainly both well written, well played and well produced, so all ingredients are here for a succesful release. I´d say a 3.5 star (70%) rating is fair.

RuneWalsh2112 I was excited by the initial announcement of a full length album release from Knives Out! The album was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2011 on the newly formed Razor To Wrist Records where Todd Smith and Jasan Stepp created a platform for all of their future Polkadot Cadaver/Dog Fashion Disco-related projects.

Even though it took the band another few month to complete the album and release it on February 14, 2012, I'd say that it was the time well spent. "Black Mass Hysteria" has managed to carefreely climb on top of my list of this year's best records and I'm pretty sure that it will remain in the top 5 for the remainder of this year!

Even though four out of these nine tracks have been previously featured on the band's 2010 "Rough Cuts" EP, I definitely can see how much these compositions have gained from a polished re-recording. "Surrounded By Demons" and "Pink On The Inside" sound even more brutal here than they ever did before while the rest of the new material doesn't disappoint either. I especially like "Hysteria", which reminds me a lot of Mike Patton projects like Tomahawk and really puts a great memorable edge to this album.

I can definitely recommend this album to fans of heavy groove metal with a twist of art metal added to the mix. I'm sure that the rest of you will at least find it memorable enough to mention it on your list over best releases from 2012, so you might as well give it a spin or two!

***** star songs: Hysteria (4:16) Surrounded By Demons (4:06) Blood Everywhere (3:32) Pink On The Inside (3:56)

**** star songs: Hide In The Sky (3:34) Eat Your Heart Out (4:57) Swollen Mistress (4:19) Robot Babylon (3:41) The First Time I Discovered A Dead Body (4:14)

RuneWalsh2112 "Rough Cuts" is pretty much what the title makes it out to be, a rough mix of material that would make up the bulk of the band's 2012 full length debut album "Black Mass Hysteria". I happened to stumble upon this EP back in the early 2011 when I was researching other side projects done by the two Polkadot Cadaver/Dog Fashion Disco masterminds Todd Smith and Jasan Stepp. This material seemed a lot heavier than any of the other projects with a clear focus on the metal groove while letting the experimental side of the duo take a back seat for this particular ride.

I found it quite interesting to compare these so called rough cuts of the four tracks with the re-recorded versions that made it to the full length studio album. Unlike many of the classic Dog Fashion Disco tracks that had the habit of re-emerging on later albums, "A Corpse Is A Corpse" made it to three out of the six studio albums in different shapes and forms. Unlike those classic tracks, "Rough Cuts" features complete versions of the compositions from the studio album but with a slightly different mixing done to the sound. This fact makes this EP a lot less interesting, especially after the full length album has been released. Still, one can always reverse the argument and say that the band felt that these compositions where good enough to begin with and thus no re-writes were needed. I'd definitely go for the latter and award this EP a status of excellence!

**** star songs: Surrounded By Demons (4:07) Pink On The Inside (3:46) Swollen Mistress (3:50) Eat Your Heart Out (4:23)

drgnlvr89 The EP starts off with "Love Bites (And So Do I)" and it kicks your ass into rock-gear. The song has a rhythm to it that just sticks with you and such an in-your-face attitude to it that makes you smile that wicked smile while you sing the lyrics. Definitely a great choice for the lead single! The fast pace definitely makes the heart beat a little faster and the head bang a bit harder. And that rock hand, yeah, perfectly normal. \m/

"Rock Show" is for the fans, about the fans. It's a mid-tempo "hit you in the heart" song that just speaks to those 'Stormers that make it their mission to support and elevate Halestorm. It's got a great melody to it, a catchy clap, and an insane breakdown. "...the words to every line, every time, and you know you gotta go and get some, get pumped, find yourself and lose it at the rock show..." Only if it's a Halestorm show. Because this song will be utter bliss live. There's no denying that. (Along with every other song they do live, but that's beside the point.) "Found your place in the world tonight" indeed. This record should make them soar!

"Daughters of Darkness" has that special something that just gets stuck in your head; but it's one of those that you don't want to get out. The "Naaa na na na na" just makes you grin with anticipation of seeing this song performed live. "Daughters of darkness, sisters insane, a little evil goes a long, long way" is the first part of the chorus. This is definitely a contributor to the "Hyde" part of "The Strange Case Of..." It speaks volumes to the darker side of the Eye of the Halestorm, Lzzy Hale, and I love it.

"Here's to Us" is another "for the fans, about the fans" song. It's a testament to how amazing this band is and how much they get off on us, getting off on them. It's utter vocal bliss, and the acoustic sound helps to ease the shame in ordering another drink and hitting repeat a few times over.

It's songs like these four that make me so proud to call myself a 'Stormer, to show off my Storm tattoo, and to share music like this that speaks to the masses with others.

Overall, "Hello, it's Mz. Hyde" is one hell of an EP, and it indicates great things from the other 8 songs on "The Strange Case Of..." out in April. Can. Not. Wait.

adg211288 I’m sitting here now listening to Italian metal act Lacuna Coil’s latest full-length, Dark Adrenaline, wondering what the hell happened to the band that at one time I considered to number among my favourite bands. Lacuna Coil started life as a gothic metal act and they were a good one. Then in 2006, after a four year break between studio albums they released Karmacode and their sound changed to a more alternative metal direction. Ironically it was Karmacode that first brought the band to my attention, with the quite addictive song Our Truth, but upon looking into their back catalogue I realised to my surprise that in 2006 Karmacode was actually their weakest album to date. When the band followed it up with Shallow Life in 2009 I wasn’t much impressed. The album was no worse than Karmacode but it was no better either, and went even further in the alternative metal direction. If two albums of lesser quality in a new style to their old style wasn’t enough to go by, Dark Adrenaline comes across as the final nail in the coffin. No new ground or no return to the style they were good at, and not even another Shallow Life in that it at least wasn’t worse than the previous album. Dark Adrenaline is Lacuna Coil’s worst album, no contest.

Like with the last couple of albums we’re dealing with fairly typical alternative metal riffs. I wouldn’t say the guitars play a very big part in Lacuna Coil’s sound at all, and the guitarists are rarely given the opportunity to shine due to leads being a rarity. The music does nothing really to reward the more demanding metal fan, in fact to be blunt I think it’s pretty obvious that ever since 2006 Lacuna Coil hasn’t cared at all about pleasing metal fans, they’re out to please fans of commercial music, which this is, and while I’ve always considered myself quite vocal to support that the equation ‘commercial + metal != bad’ is true, this is a pretty poor attempt at merging the two worlds. Lacuna Coil has proved capable of being good at it in small doses with Karmacode and Shallow Life, but the problem with Dark Adrenaline is that it lacks any sort of highlights regardless of which audience I try to review this review in perspective to. It’s an utter disappointment to say the least.

My reviews are normally longer and more detailed than this but ultimately with this one there’s just really not much that can be said. If you enjoyed Lacuna Coil’s earlier material and have been disappointed since Karamcode then there is no reason at all for you to even consider Dark Adrenaline. It’s a much weaker more of the same album. And if you do happen to enjoy their alternative metal direction there’s still not much point in you considering Dark Adrenaline, because it’s a much weaker more of the same album. It offers nothing that Karamcode and Shallow Life didn’t do better, and just makes me wonder why the hell a good band would throw away everything they had going for them like Lacuna Coil did. Even frontwoman Cristina Scabbia sounds like she’s having an off-day with her vocals on this one and the instrumentation leaves a lot to be desired. I really have nothing positive to say at all.

1.8/10

(Originally written for Heavy Metal Haven (http://metaltube.freeforums.org))

ChaosAngel Lacuna Coil's sixth studio album, Dark Adrenaline, is their best work to date. Not that their previous albums are bad at all. This one is just better.

Dark Adrenaline has all the slick production of Shallow Life (though it rocks harder), the heaviness of Karmacode (though it's on the whole prettier), and the dreamy, ethereal qualities of everything up to and including Comalies (though it has better production than any of those).

The songs themselves have the same internalized observations that the band has used throughout their career (including "My Spirit", which was written about Peter Steele, may he rest in peace).

There is one unfortunate low point, and that is the cover of R.E.M.'s "Losing My Religion". As a fan of both the original and (if you couldn't tell) Lacuna Coil, this would seem to be a match made in Heaven. As it stands, the song is less than the sum of its parts, and while it is by no means horrible, it interrupts the flow of an otherwise near-perfectly flowing album.

All in all, I have to give the album four-and-a-half stars, brought down only by the cover. Without that, I would have given it full marks.

Diogenes In Flames post-Clayman. Yuck. Probably one of the most criticized metal bands ever for their drastic change in sound, the once-proud Swedish melodic death titans find themselves in the middle of their confusing transition with 2006’s Come Clarity, an album I had long avoided because of obvious reasons. Alas, as fate would have it, it recently landed in my lap for free (read: got it from the library), and what better way to listen to a band that many people hate than without paying for it? So, with much hesitancy, I begin my review!

If you haven’t been scared off by the negativity surrounding In Flames since 2002, you will be pleased to find that this album is at least somewhat listenable. No, it isn’t The Jester Race or Colony (and if people are still expecting them to return to that style, then I don’t know what to say), but Come Clarity also doesn’t feature anything as offensively bad as In Flames had been putting out for the previous few years. I know, that’s pretty sparse praise. It’s just that this album deserves something beyond “Modern In Flames? Sellout bastards!” I mean, it’s worth at least a couple of listens…that’s something, right?

The music on Come Clarity is best summed up by In Flames injecting a good amount of metalcore into their alternative metal sound, with diminished riffs, shorter songs, and what have you. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as guitarist Jesper Stromblad sounds a lot more at home playing riffs that actually have some substance, and is much more effective when he isn’t hidden by various keyboards and samples. There’s no doubt that a group with this much talent should be able to pull this off without a problem, and sure enough, the instrumental portion of Come Clarity is very tight. Daniel Svensson is solid on the drums as always, backed by a pretty good production that brings the drums and the guitars to the front. The overall energy is also brought back up on this album, as it sounds like In Flames actually gives a crap about what they’re playing again, instead of simply going through the motions while being stuck in pop-land. This means harder riffing and the signature melodic leads that the band became known for; although neither are really out in full force, it’s a good compromise considering that the song structures are too watered down to feature anything virtuosic. Like, “Pacing Death’s Trail” actually kinda sorta sounds like In Flames, with the sexy lead in the chorus and whatnot. Joy!

What brings Come Clarity back down to the level of most modern metalcore is (surprise!) another lousy batch of vocals from Anders Friden. The guy could never sing, and yet someone in the band had the terrific idea of having him sing more. Now, there are a lot of layered vocals and distortion added to keep things tolerable on this end, and some of the choruses (“Vacuum,” “Take This Life”) are actually quite catchy despite Friden’s obvious shortcomings as a singer (title track notwithstanding-it’s tough to cover up a full song’s worth of bad singing). The real problem lies within the absolutely deplorable lyrics:

“I cut myself to sleep

I close my eyes for a second

And curse my fragile soul

I scream to hide that I'm lonely

The echo calls my name”

AAAH! Kill it! Kill it with fire!

Needless to say, this along with the Jonathan Davis-esque whining is easily the worst part about Come Clarity, and what I will readily agree with this album’s naysayers on. What happened to this band’s BALLS, for crying out loud?! Oh, and “Dead End”. When the chick you bring in to guest sing on your metalcore album is better than your full-time vocalist, that’s a problem. Skip this track.

So, if you’re looking for the elusive “new In Flames that doesn’t totally suck,” then consider your search over! Listen to Come Clarity and enjoy the next couple of hours until you inevitably get bored. It’s certainly not an album to buy, although it looks like a masterpiece sandwiched in the middle of one of the most infamous declines in metal history. Conclusion: meh, with slightly positive overtones.

Time Signature Fool you...

Genre: alternative metal

Dark, heavy, grungy and very 90s, "Dogman" is perhaps not the kind of release you would expect from a band that is heralded as one of the most important progressive metal bands out there.

Like so many other metal bands King's X took a grunge-turn in the 90s, but while many of the others failed, I think that King's X where quite successful on this album, and perhaps the reason is that the alternative element was always present in King's X's music - it has just been brought to the forefront on this album, while the more melodic and progressive elements have been placed in the background. So, what you have is basically still King's X - and recognizable King's X, but with different priorities, if you wish.

For instance, the funky element is still there, as exemplified by the riffage in "Black the Sky" and "Shoes" (both of which are quite heavy actually), and there are still many traces of the melodicism that characterizes earlier King's X releases - albeit in a more simplified form.

Fans of progressive metal who are unfamiliar with King's X, should perhaps not let this release be their introduction to the band, but rather go for some of their earlier stuff, while people who have already heard King's X should have no problem at least appreciating this album. Fans of alternative metal/rock and grunge will probably like it and should defintinely check it out.

ChaosAngel Life of Agony surfaced from the same musical scene (early 1990's Brooklyn) that birthed Biohazard and Type O Negative (with whom they shared a drummer, Sal Abruscato). Fittingly, the sound on their debut album, River Runs Red, is somewhere between the two bands, with the hardcore ethos of BH and the general mood of Type O Negative at their most self-deprecating (though in a much more serious vein).

Fair warning time: if you're looking for music that is at all happy, seek life elsewhere. This is far from that. What this is, is a slice of hard life, filtered through hardcore-derived metal. That being said, it is crushingly beautiful (or beautifully crushing, take your pick).

The album does contain a few well-placed "hell yeah" moments (in the vein of tough-guy brotherhood type stuff, very hardcore-style), which keep this from being a monotone of depression and anger.

To be honest, there is only really one thing that detracts a slight bit from this album, and that's the skits (the tracks named after days of the week). They serve as a framing device (and, ultimately, a finale) for the album, and they're not horrible. I just find them a bit extraneous for my tastes.

All in all, a firm addition to any metalhead's collection. Four and one-half well earned stars.

arcane-beautiful Nu metal can either be complete and utter joke, or at times it can be all right. To be honest, I like at least one song from most nu metal bands.

I was aware of these guys, and I vaguely remember one of their songs, but to be honest I had never heard any more of their stuff. I do like Dez's new band Devildriver...and to be honest...I hadn't completely given these guys any recognition or attention, so I thought, “hey, why not, what’s the worst that can happen?” Plus, the CD was only £1.

So was it any good? Well it's not bad...but it isn't good either.

The album does have a lot of filler and moments where I'm thinking “what the hell are you's doing” there are some great songs and great moments on the album, don't get me wrong, but its just the rest that puts it down, which is a shame to be honest.

The album is typical nu metal at times. Drop tuned riffs that sound like Korn, that weird bass slappy sound that sounds like Korn, and the tight as hell bass drum sound that Korn has. In fact, instrumentaly, the band sound a lot like Korn, although to be honest, everyone sounded like Korn in the 90s. The riffs are good at times, and the seeds of groove metal are still heard. The songs are simple, yet mostly effective.

Dez's vocals on the album at times are great. When he's rambling like a toad on acid, he is at his best. But at times, he can attempt some clean vocals, and they're not bad, but his vocals are better when he keeps to his strengths. His lyrics are very simple, and very monosyllabic at times, and to be honest, their might be some meaning in these lyrics that not even we know.

I also love the cover of the album as well. For some odd reason.

1. Loco – This was the song I had vague memories of when I was younger. I think it had a music video, and from what I remember it was a good one, but it was the hook of the song that I really can remember. I love this song, and it's their best in my opinion. 10/10

2. Bradley – The main riff is really good, but the song is ruined by the attempted clean vocals. The rest of the vocals I love though. 7/10

3. Oddity – Great chorus. There is some amazing riffs in this song. Dez's rambling vocals are a real highlight as well. 8/10

4. Unspoiled – Pretty good build up throughout. Love the screams in the chorus. The vocals really make these songs at times. 9/10

5. Big Truck – there is something funny about this song. Good chorus and some cool time changes. 7/10

6. Sway – I love the intro of the song but to be honest, it gets pretty generic after that. Chorus is good but it does go on a bit. Although I did find it funny at the end, because it sounds like he's shouting Flava Flav at the end. 6/10

7. First – Pretty boring. Trying to be Tool at times. This is the bands attempt at a song like System Of A Downs Mind, but it just doesn't work. Some cool moments at times though, especially the riff after the chorus.5/10

8. Maricon Puto – Cool odd intro. 6/10

9. I – Love the rambling in the verses. The chorus isn't the best. I do like the quite middle bit of the song. Build up at end is good. 6/10

10. Clock – There is something quite Metallica about this song. The chorus is a bit silly tho (a bit like Big Truck). Some cool riffs though. 6/10

11. My Frustration -A really generic boring song. 4/10

12. Amir of the Desert – I'm glad these guys have a sense of humour. 9/10

13. Dreamtime – Another generic song. Good way to put these at the end. 4/10

14. Pig – So they go out on a high. Why the album isn't more like songs like these I don't know. Love Dez's vocals in this song. 7/10

CONCLUSION: I will be honest, if your wanting to get a nu metal album, this is probably one of the best ones to get (along with Drowning Pool, System Of A Down, Linking Park and Korn's first albums). This album isn't terrible, their are good moments, and the band can play, it's just that at times they try and either copy other bands, or try and do something very different, which really isn't what they should be doing, especially for a first album. The sound these guys have most of the time is a good sound, and should have been used and experimented to its potential. As single songs, the album can work, and to be honest, they would work better on a compilation.

5.3/10

arcane-beautiful These guys are a bit of a guilty pleasure.

I have reviewed these guys before, with favourable comments as well, and I'm glad I haven't seen any backlash, because to be honest, I don't think people care about why these guys where popular once (and even then, having the brother of a Jackass member in your band will only get you so far).

The reason these guys have survived and are still making music, is because their fans (and people like me) still like them, and to be honest, thats the most decent way to go.

It seems to be this is the album where the mass atention of the band seemed to die down, and Bam's career was going into a more sleepy mode (he was getting married and all that) as did attention to this band. So what did CKY do? They made a more relaxing album to add to the calmness of the time.

Yea this album can be quite calm alot of the time. Everything is kind of relaxing. All the songs dont jump out at you. Theirs no real fast songs or confusing moments to make you wake up from sleep. It's just relaxing. In fact, this is almost the anti skater album at time. This album is great relaxing music, or background music.

It also has some really poppy moments on it at times. And it says theirs no keyboards on it, but I think I can detect a moog now and then (could just be effects pedals to the max). I think this is the album where they matured. I also think that comparing it to their last album (Carver City), it's a real showing of progression. In fact this seems to be the more calmer side to CKY, whilst Carver City was their more experimental side.

This album also saw the band working as a 3 piece, which to be honest, is mainly what the band is anyway (bass isn't really a prominent figure). The instrumental work on the album is as its always...very underlooked and underated. The way these guys compose and play their songs really is a wonder. I don't think these guys have ever used power chords ever. Everything is to do with melodic riffs. The album is drenched in a melodic 4/4 style, with harmony lacing through out it. Their is some hidden complications going on behind this band...so really listen with open ears. The guitar work on the album is also pretty fantastic, and Kirk Hammet should listen to these guys so he can learn how to use a wah pedal right.

Derons vocals really are shown to their full capactiy. This guy is a real underlooked vocalist. With lyrics in CKY songs, I never really dwell on the lyrics too much, because to be honest, it seems to be that the lyrics are only their to accompany the amazing vocal melodies. Although I do admit, their lyrics are really good. Whatever they are singing about...good on them.

1. Suddenly Tragic - Great start to the album. Great chorus. The whole song is a melodic thrill ride. Pretty cool vocals as well. 9/10

2. The Way You Lived - Like many songs on the album, this song has quite a soulful aproach. I really mean it, all I could think about during this song was how Stevie Wonder it sounded at like times. Love the guitar work. A very nice relaxing song. 7/10

3. Dressed In Decay - Again, a very relxing song...and another soul influenced song. The chorus is a very nice soul influenced chorus. 8/10

4. Familiar Realm - The single from the album. Yes this was the first song I heard from it, mainly cause it had a video. Probabbly one of my favourite CKY songs. The riffs in this song are really to be marvelled at. The guitar solos are pretty killer as well. Great chorus too. 9/10

5. All Power To Slaves - One of the best songs on the album. A beautiful composition with amazing guitar work throughout. Love the use of synths (or are they synths :D). The odd changes throughout do make the song more enjoyable. 9/10

6. Tripled Manic State - One of the most rocking and poppy songs on the album. Great catchy chorus. 9/10

7. Behind The Screams - A nice spanish acoustic instrumental. 6/10

8. Deceit Is Striking Gold - Some pretty killer riffs in the song. Great chorus and some interesting lyrics too. 7/10

9. As The Tables Turn - A filler song. Pretty standard CKY to be honest (well their had to be one) 5/10

10. Sniped - One of the best and most interesting songs on the album. Derons vocals are incredibly diverse on this song. I love the chorus on this song. 9/10

11. Don't Hold Your Breath - A cheesy ballad to end the album? Well it's not really a ballad, but its still a nice way to end the album. Very calm and pretty. 7/10

CONCLUSION: This isn't their best album, and to be honest, it's probabbly one of their weakest, but even then, it's still CKY. They aren't trying to be someone they're not. I wouldn't even say this album is weak, I just prefer the others to it really. This is still a great album, and it is an interesting listen, whilst also being very enjoyable as well.

7.1/10

Double-D This has to be one of the most controversial albums ever. One quick look on it's ratings shows reactions from total hate to adoration.

Well I have to agree that Limp Bizkit is not the most influential or original band but back there in the late 90's and the beginning of the century they were probably the hottest band on the earth. After it's groundbreaking predecessor "The Significant Other", the expectations for "Chocolate Starfish and The Hot Dog Flavored Water" were for another masterpiece. But did LB achieve that? My answer is Yes! Compared to SO, CSATHDFW is a bit more polished and commercial maybe but songs like My Generation, Full Nelson, Rollin' and Take A Look Around are still kick ass rockers. Alongside with them we have another bunch of hits - My Way, Livin' It Up and the great hip-hop tune Getcha Groove On. So let's put all the hatred aside. LB are great musicians and Fred Durst is really great vocalist. After all CSATHDFW is not composed to show complex songwriting or musicianship, it's all about partying.

The Angry Scotsman The second half of the band's double album, "Hypnotize" pretty much occupies the same area as "Mezmerize". Its short, schizophrenic songs are packed with thrash metal, mellow middle eastern tinged movements, whackyness and enough political/social rage to fill 10 punk albums. As usual, the album's lyrics are cryptic, multifaceted and open to interpretation, (though usually filled with biting social and political commentary). Like "Mezmerize" this album is heavy but not the heavy of old school System of a Down. Along the exact same lines, this album also features more varied songs and less adherence to "poppy" song structures in much of the band's older material. However, this album is not quite as strong as its counterpart. Partially due to a slight lack of originality, though it's still a very good album.

The album opens with "Attack" similar to "B.Y.O.B." in that it's a very intense, no real debate anti war song, (can't get anymore in your face then "Attack all the homes and villages, attack all the schools and hospitals"). Thrashy, blast beat laden song with a few moments to let you catch a breath.

"Dreaming" is another intense song varying from mid tempo thrash to blast beat intensity (John was always a decent drummer that could mosh out, but really lets it fly on these latest albums). Similar song to above, but with a maddening trio of vocals in the chorus and a display of how Daron's singing can be very nice when restraint is used.

"Kill Rock & Roll" is a good song really redeemed by the nice middle section. Also by this point you'll notice that even more so than before Daron has lead vocals and there is almost always there is a harmony with him and Serj.

Things pick up with "Hypnotize" a slower, cleaner song with great guitar/vocal work. More high soaring vocals from Daron, some really cool drumming from John, and an awesome Eastern section with 4 layers of guitar. Powerful song.

"Stealing Society" is not a bad song at all, but just nothing new. Which is fine, but a little uninteresting and it's just a rare example of a weaker song on a SoaD "major" studio album. The exact can be said of "Tentative".

"U-fig" changes things up, a stop/go chaotic song that hits you like a whirlwind and with some of the crazier Serj vocals out there!

"Holy Mountains" the five and a half minute epic (Yeah, for System 5 and a half minutes is an epic). A very powerful song about a topic close to the hearts of the band, the Armenian genocide. Focused on Mt. Ararat, a symbol of pride and nationalism to Armenia, (and also "holy" as it's the supposed landing place of Noah's Ark)it paints a movie like picture of the genocide. People fleeing to the mountains and running "back to the river Aras" to escape. The song chastises the Turkish government (presumably) for maintaining it was all part of the general chaos of WWI and an "act of warfare" started by the Armenians. Then asking if they feel the "haunting presence" of what I take as murdered souls "resting on the mountainside".

I also wondered if perhaps the song has a more outright political motive, such as retaking lost land or at least the mountains. Regardless, it's a moving song that has a great flow, awesome drumming, some of the best vocals on the album, (including passionate cries of anger). A song I used to not really like back in 05, but later grew to become my favorite on the album, and one of my all time favorites by System.

"Vicinity of Obscenity" follows and what a 180. A silly, whacky song that is impossible to make any sense of. Pretty cool, and the noisy feedback outro leads right into "She's like Heroin" another Daron dominated song that has one of the more humorous moments, progressively shouting "ASS" louder! Quick song that builds to a long thrashy ending. About doing anything to get some cash for heroin, I always thought there was a dual meaning about being in love and feeling like you'd do anything for that addiction...

"Lonely Day" a very nice, clean song that is again dominated by Daron. His vocals are more restrained so they are much nicer then his high pitched soaring ones (though even those aren't too bad). Features a rare System of a Down guitar solo. A beautiful, melodic and powerful song. Really nice. While generally criticized, (and occasionally praised) for it's simple message, a lonely day as usual I think there's some more to it. The last 2 albums seem to have a flow throughout, and given the song to follow I think this one may have to do with going away/being at war. Regardless, very moving song.

"Soldier Side" is another powerful and emotional song, dealing with war and the sadness of leaving for war. "Young men standing on the top of their own graves, wondering when Jesus comes are they gunna be saved?" and the wonderful Serj/Daron harmony singing "They were crying when their sons left, god is wearing black. He's gone so far to find no hope he's never coming back" can't help but move you. Another clean guitar driven song that builds to an epic climax. Another great vocal display, and it ends with the starting melody of "Soldier Side-Intro" from Mezmerize. Thus completing (or re starting?) the cycle.

Another great album from System of a Down that has no real faults or flaws, though a bit standard for them. This should not be taken as bad, (not at all) but just another System album makes it tough to distinguish from the rest and indeed, aside from Holy Mountains, Hypnotize and the final 2 songs...the songs from this album don't really jump out at me. Still, a very good album the band left us with before their hiatus.

Four Stars

The Angry Scotsman 2005. It was a good time to be an angsty American teen!

The George W regime was at its zenith, the war in Iraq was at the boiling point here, and System of a Down was releasing new material! A double album to boot! The first half of which was "Mezmerize". Man did I spin the hell out of this album, quite literally. Back when the easiest way to listen to music was on a CD player.

"Mezmerize" has the SoaD staples: heavy guitar, wild stop and go song structures, overall whackiness and multi meaning (what exactly are they talking about) lyrics. However, while undeniably their sound, things have changed quite a bit.

This album has everything they've done, but amplified. A progression. The music is more melodic, more intense, more progressive and aggressive, often all in one song! It's truly frenetic and chaotic, while still lovably accessible. The album borders on prog metal, crammed into mostly sub 5 minute songs.

"Mezmerize" is a lot more intense than anything the band's done before, with lots of thrash metal riffing and drumming, (including a decent helping of double bass). It's also more melodic with almost every song featuring a subdued section. Any desperate cries of "ew nu metal" have to be thrown away by now. Even the heaviness of the album is not the caliber of heaviness from prior albums... That bottom string, first 3 fret sound.

The other thing that really stands out from previous albums, Daron has a much bigger role vocally. In fact, the singing is pretty much an even contribution. It's not just all harmonized either, Daron has plenty of stand alone singing. Really shows off his weird, high pitched singing style. I like it, and while it almost wants to border on annoying it never does. Serj is of course brilliant, and all over the place.

Right off the bat we start with an...acoustic song. A lone, clean guitar melody plays while Serj and Daron sing a wonderful duet. Beautifully somber.

Then we're hurled into "B.Y.O.B." a thrashy song with a starting riff not like anything System has done before. There are some mellow parts and some absolutely explosive parts. They blow up the quietness of the song like a bomb blowing up the quietness of an Iraqi desert. Ooooooooo System of a Down I see what you did there. Its anti Iraq war lyrics are as direct as SoaD will ever be.

"Revenga" has an awesome machine gun riff that alternates with a simple riff under soaring vocals. A more singing oriented song that also has some cool drumming and powerful build to an awesome finish.

"Cigaro" is a crazy thrashy song with some of the more ridiculous, WTF lyrics on the album. Some really cool moments (what an interlude) and epic moshing. First heard this song when it leaked and was shocked to hear John's double bass drumming at one point!

"Radio/Video" contrasts with a more subdued song. Lots of clean, Middle Eastern guitar work and pretty sweet vocals. A long, Arabian Polka interlude (I think) that really builds in intensity is the best part. As usual, the lyrics are up to interpretation, but I do think part of this song is certainly about the band making it big and feeling like sell outs.

"This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm on this song" well that is probably the best way to describe this one! A whacked out song with crazy melodies, riffs, vocals and lyrics that I won't even take a stab at. Fun, silly, crazy song.

"Violent Pornography" is a catchy song with a crazy vocal duet and crazier lyrics. My stab at this one is the general degradation of society, like a non stop disco (it's just too much fun!) and how sickening the media is...as much as yeah, a violent pornography.

"Question!" is just an awesome song that is beautiful and powerful. The quiet sections are great and there is a great flow to the song, especially over the second half. Really moves.

"Sad Statue" is another thrashy, political song with some downright somber, bleak moments. Good music, but my god this is one of the most lyrically powerful songs I've hear. Early on I mentioned 2005 being the height of the Bush administration, and Iraq becoming a bitter taste and not just for fun. The whole album, but especially this song channels that time and feeling of anger so perfectly.

I took "Eloquence belongs to the conqueror" and "two pictures of time and space rearranged, in this little peace of typical tragedy" to mean that the reality of the War in Iraq (conquer)was twisted into a good thing (eloquence) to so many Americans. "Justified Candy" was the justification of taking candy from a kid...and that justified candy was "Brandy for the Nerves" so some could feel numb about it.

That, plus everything about the Bush administration and state of the countru, it will be known forever as a sad time for America. The line "You and me will all go down in history with a sad statue of liberty, and a generation that didn't agree" was always one that struck me hard.

"Old School Hollywood" has a dance feel mixed, (topped with some synth) mixed with its classic SoaD muddy feel. Another catchy song with a great structure and movement. It's about a celebrity baseball game Daron once attended and being a huge fan of baseball was just happy to hit around in the park, but realized he was with old school, washed up hollywood people and felt put off by their self absorbed, serious personalities. Leads perfectly into

"Lost in Hollywood" the most unique song made by System yet. Entirely clean, (yup not one heavy guitar note to be found), slow, melancholic and sung by Daron with Serj being the back up guy. A very mellow song musically, with Daron singing about Hollywood and how it's a dirty place that ruins people. A warning to the kids with dreams of being a star not to go, that they'll build you up and say nice things, just to use you and feed off you, as you slowly die. Like maggots would do.

To keep it SoaD style, some eye raising sillyness is thrown in "all you bitches put your hands in the air and wave em like you just dont care" which I know is a reference to some rap song...it's awkward and unusual and that's how they like it.

Amazing way to end an amazing album. Still SoaD though a bit different from their earlier work, another great display of the bands almost progressive metal, punk fueled yet always accessible style. This album has been called "schizophrenic" and there's no better way to describe it. Well, besides amazing.

Five Stars

Kingcrimsonprog By the time that Flaw released their second studio album Endangered Species in mid 2004, the Nu Metal wave had mostly dried up and the Metal Media were looking elsewhere for things to praise, as a critical mass of ill-feeling towards the genre made it an incredibly unfashionable thing to openly enjoy.

This, combined with reports that the band were rushed by their record company into releasing the album before it was ready, as well as reducing the heaviness of the guitar and vocals lead to many negative reviews and to the widespread ignoring or disapproval of the album by the public.

I think this was really rather unfortunate because Endangered Species is a completely enjoyable fifty minutes of well constructed, well produced and well performed music, from a greatly under-appreciated band who came out to late in a genre that was too overcrowded.

Endangered Species is unarguably a lot less heavy than their debut studio album Through The Eyes, with more melodic tracks and less screaming. If this is a problem, then by all means don't pick up the album. If however you really enjoy Chris Volz's clean vocals on Through The Eyes or with his other bands, then this is definitely an album that you should give a chance.

What the material lacks in heaviness, it does compensate adequately with emotive sections, an enjoyable and easily digestible formula and strong vocal performances. Occasionally they even wear their Tool influences on their sleeve for a few bars and create something interesting before returning to the aforementioned formula.

Standout tracks include the opener `Medicate' which is probably the closest track in style to the band's debut album, as well as the melodic `All The Worst' and the album closer `Not Enough.'

Of course, at the end of the day the album still is a Nu Metal album that came out long after all the genre's creators had made their definitive albums and that much can never change. If you don't like the genre at all or if you are only interested in the big radio tracks that are still played today then this won't give you what you are looking for.

Overall though, while Endangered Species is not the greatest album ever recorded, it is certainly nowhere near as bad as you may have heard and if you want more music from Flaw or Chris Volz don't let the negative reputation it has put you off from giving it a fair chance.

I personally enjoyed the album a lot, and provided that you aren’t the sort of person who will see the Nu Metal tag as instant evidence of poor quality, you may indeed enjoy it too.

The Angry Scotsman This is an album I have long avoided reviewing, not because I dislike it...but in fact because it has such a meaning to me I was not sure I could be fair, or do it true justice, (or write anything better than how awesome it is). System of a Down was the first band I truly listened to, they got me into music, and the rest is history. This was the first album I ever heard, (as well the first I ever bought)back as a 14 year old high school freshman. Back then this album was barely a year old and still hot, with "Chop Suey" playing all over the radio, especially in weight room where I and the other lazy kids would avoid doing gym and rocked out to this instead.

Today, almost 10 years later I listen to this album and SoaD, and while unsure how I would feel...I love it more than ever! What was a heavy, angsty, political album that was kind of odd I can now appreciate for its music and composition.

Onto the music itself, while too many hear the real heavy riffing and 3 minute songs and instantly yell "nu metal!" that is far from the case. I mean, have any other nu metal bands cited Frank Zappa as influence? Korn could not even dream of these unorthodox song structures, packed with a variety of instrumentation and vocal styles, often stop and go in nature, with wild, (often abrupt) changes in tempo and style. All jammed into short songs, usually with political/social commentary. Punk ethos meets alt metal.

However, not all the songs are energetic moshes, some are mellow, some melodic and powerful. The lyrics are also some of my favorite, ranging from straight out political like "Prison Song" about the US Prison system and war on drugs... to how "Science has failed our world, science has failed our mother Earth". Now that's a trip. The lyrics aren't always so straightforward and usually are multifaceted or open to interpretation (a la Tool and Deftones) and sometimes make use of humor.

Serj's vocal display really pulls it together. His voice is just amazing, and he covers the whole spectrum. Clean singing, non pitched "thrash metal" screaming, growls, a harsher yelling. They are not excessive or too harsh, generally accessible for a metal audience, and he just fits the music perfectly and can hit so many tiny moments so well. One of the better vocalists in metal.

Serj is the guy, but there are also melodies with Daron, with his unique higher singing style.

Musically, this album is a bit deeper than what appears on the surface. There is tons of no frills, heavy, angry guitar playing and I do mean lots of it. The riffing is drop C, muddy, and bludgeoning. However, that is just the tip of the iceberg. Often simple, the guitar work is just as often cleaner, melodic and even a lot of the heavy stuff is thrashier than the norm. There are some really sweet melodies and riffs to be found throughout. SoaD also uses acoustic guitars, 12 stringers, sitars, and mandolins.

The drumming is pretty straightforward, but also jazz tinged and with a real sense of groove and feel. Yes, jazz tinged...heard in a lot of John's unorthodox beats and especially at the end of "Shimmy". Just a great feel drummer that can surprise you, with either melodicism or the occasional blast beat! Always fitting.

Shavo's bass is almost always audible, but never too prevalent. Just right and, like John's drumming, is something I never noticed when I was younger. Not mind blowing with virtuoso skill, but always appropriate, with lots of cool moments. Sometimes just "bottom filler" for the heavy parts and sometimes stand alone his bass playing is solid and then some.

I mentioned the variety of styles, with some notable examples being the very thrashy "Jet Pilot" inspired by one of their favorite bands, Slayer, "Science" which has a really awesome middle eastern sounding interlude, "Shimmy" has some prominent jazz influenced rock drumming, "X" is an intense song with a weird second half, and "Psycho" a funny song to the cocaine fueled groupies with a guitar solo! Yes. A melodic, powerful solo backed with sitar and other gentle instruments and a light drum beat. Amazingly moving piece. "Bounce" is another funny, weird song. Very weird.

I'll finish with my 3 favorite songs, starting with its most famous song "Chop Suey!" An acoustic guitar riff starts off, quickly backed by mandolin, clean electric guitar and a scattering drum beat before the heavy kicks in. Alternates between a staccato, distorted riff and a mellow, clean movement filled with strings. A nice thrashing leads to an extremely powerful ending, punctuated with keyboard. The songs famously cryptic lyrics have been attributed to suicide, the bible, child/domestic abuse. Maybe it's none of the above, or a little of it all. Very powerful, moving song.

'ATWA" is another powerful song, switching between quiet, mellow parts and beautiful harmonized singing with heavy, pounding sections and yelling. Moving piece of music, with a title alluding to the philosophy of Charles Manson: Air, Trees, Water, Animals dealing with the unity of all living things and ecosystems of Earth in a spiritual context. Could never figure out what the lyrics mean but I always thought it was either about man ruining the environment, nature watching us go on with our lives, or a different angle on Charles Manson. Still not very sure.

"Aerials" is my favorite on the album. A beautiful song, no other way to put it. Over 6 minutes long but the last half is actually one of those hidden songs, a tribal sounding Armenian folk song.

More varied than the bands debut album, though still unmistakably them, this is not only a classic of alt metal, but in all of metal. Released on the cusp of the scene's transition to metalcore, the album is a breath of fresh air to the dying alt metal scene, and in general. The band's blend of accessibility and experimentation, is a huge success. If you want to rock out to its epic heaviness or chill to its moving beauty, then go ahead. Just realize that musically, while this album is not about technical skill so much, it is a great display. The song writing, texture, melodies and subtlety can easily be lost.

Masterpiece. Five Stars

Kingcrimsonprog Go For It… Live! Is a double disc live album from the Californian Stoner/Desert Rock band Fu Manchu, it was released in 2003 and features a career spanning twenty-two track set list that at least touches on almost every album and major EP that the band had released up until that point.

For Fu Manchu fans, this is a very strong release and the band put on a strong show, playing powerfully through many live favourites with a good sound quality and mix that manages to retain both the band’s trademark fuzz sound and convey their good-times attitude.

If you are to the band, this is a brilliant compilation to start with as it features a great many of the band’s finest songs all together in the one place.

Some fans don’t care for the polished production on the newer California Crossing album, or the rough production on their earliest two albums and on this album you can hear tracks from all eras of the band with a strong uniform production that really ties the whole career together nicely. Tracks like ‘Mongoose’ and ‘Squash That Fly’ sit seamlessly alongside tracks like ‘Ojo Rojo’ and ‘Tilt.’

Overall, Fu Manchu are a band that a sure to appeal to all fans of the Desert/Stoner sound, and this is a very well put together live album that is both a glorious affirmation for existing fans and a perfect starting point for newcomers.

progthrashheadbanger I bought this album on a whim at Barnes and Noble for only $7.99. The bold red on black packaging had caught my eye many times before, so I sampled the album, read the review, and was totally sold by the deserving comparisons to Rush and Queensryche. I got the album home, put it on, and had my mind blown for the next 70 minutes- though it feels like half that time.

Onto the music. The album starts out tranquil, with a classical overture and a gentle acoustic ballad with cryptic lyrics, but don't let that fool you. Together, these songs set the overall mood of the album. Next is "Welcome Home", arguably the best single song on IV:V1, and is flat-out epic, from the finger-picked intro to the haunting, heavy, strings-and-choir backed outro. The riff is absolutely gut-wrenching, and the lyrics are pissed off as hell. "Ten Speed" is a great follower, and is shorter and sweeter yet just as awesome as "Welcome Home". The next few songs pass by, but still leave a mark in your brain. "Wake Up" marks the halfway point of the album, and is a wonderful acoustic love ballad. The next half is just as awesome. "The Suffering" and "Lying Lies of Miss Erica Court" make a great hard rock one-two punch, and "Mother May I" is a perfect lyrical lead-in to the epic half-hour closing suite, "The Willing Well". It is an intense, musically diverse, and climactic ending to a heavy, loud, yet melodic album that warrants its own separate review. Bottom line: If you don't mind the occasional acoustic ballad or classical influences in your metal, if you like diverse, heavy, catchy songwriting, and don't mind a singer with a Geddy Lee-like vocal range, then do yourself a favor and check out Coheed and Cambria, starting with this album.

Stooge Album of The Year? I’d have to do some research to know if that was the general consensus in 1997, but no doubt this one would make a number of end-of-the-year lists of the time.

The first thing I noticed when listening to this album was how dark it sounded. Was it because they knew this would be their last studio album and they were upset by that fact? While I am more used to hearing Faith No More playing more high-energy music, I can say I am definitely a fan of the shift in tone and direction. Album of The Year contains much of the experimentation and variety that remained throughout the Patton years, plus it may be the heaviest album the group has released.

A good amount of these tracks are of the slower variety, giving Patton’s vocals much of the focus. “Last Cup of Sorrow”, “Ashes To Ashes”, “Path Of Glory”, and “Pristina” are among the songs that I think help set the tone of the album.

There are still numerous tracks on Album of The Year that maintain the band’s normally aggressive delivery. This includes the opening “Collision”, “Naked In Front Of The Computer”, “Mouth To Mouth”, and “Got That Feeling”. Tracks in this vein would not have been a stranger on their King For A Day album.

A few tracks in particular stand out:

“Stripsearch” musically is quite stripped-down. Some hard rock and metal fans might be turned off by such a song, but I loved this track right from the first listen. The song is uncharacteristically peppered with electronic percussion, and centered around a highly effective rhythm section groove. The main melody of the track is provided by Mike Patton bright falsetto delivery.

“Helpless” starts out as a rather dreary sort of ballad. The song builts in a strongly uplifting manner as it transitions to the powerful chorus with Patton’s layered vocals, getting heavier as it progresses. It’s one of those tracks that often gives me goosebumps.

“She Loves Me Not” is another out-of-character track for the band. It’s a bit of a doo-wap, 60’s R&B-style track that while not necessarily a favorite, is highly memorable. Definitely one of the more Patton-centric tracks, giving it the occasional feel of a solo effort instead of a full-fledged Faith No More album.

Album of the Year is an excellent release that I definitely recommend.

Kingcrimsonprog If you listen to Stoner Rock music regularly then chances are that you have come across or at least heard of Fu Manchu quite often, and heard kind words said about this album. If you are new to the genre or band, then this is among one of the best albums that you could start your collection with.

In Search Of… was the Californian Stoner/Desert Rock pioneer’s third full-length studio album and saw an improvement in terms of the production job, as well as in the guy’s musical chops and vocal abilities. It was their final album before the line up shift that saw Ruben Romano and Eddie Glass depart and form the band Nebula.

With this album the band were much more freed from the Grunge movement that inspired their record deal, they were now writing their most Fu Manchu sounding material yet (arguably ever) and many of the songs from this record are timeless live favourites.

Tracks like ‘Asphalt Rising,’ ‘Regal Begal,’ and ‘The Falcon Has Landed’ should convince any potential fan whether or not this is an album and by extension a band, worth pursuing.

The music is full of fuzzed out guitar, big heavy riffs and yet laid back slacker vibes. There are musical throwbacks to the 1970s all around but done in such a way that could only exist in the 1990s. If you like Kyuss, Monster Magnet, Clutch, Dozer or any of the less Sludge-influenced Stoner bands out there then Fu Manchu are something you will more than likely love.

Often considered one of their very best, In Search Of… is a very strong and fun album that anyone with an interest in this type of music should pick up a copy of.

Conor Fynes 'Temple Of Red' - Wetwork (3/10)

Before becoming the female-fronted death metal band that they as best known as, Wetwork was something quite different; a cross of grunge rock and thrash. 'Temple Of Red' is the debut album from this Canadian band, and being one those who first heard the band on their latest album 'Synod', it came as something of a surprise to hear the band playing such a different style of music. As I was expecting though, the music is roughly made and lacks much in the way of tact or aim, a weakness that the band has suffered from over the course of their three albums. A very loose concept piece, 'Temple Of Red' is an attack on deistic faith and religion that ultimately bores, and feels like a lukewarm rehash of other bands' ideas, rather than something new.

Although there are fourteen tracks here, half of these consist of interludes, pieces of dialogue that Wetwork have sampled in order to get some sort of running narrative going. Most of these dialogue pieces are from Christian evangelicals, and from what I can tell, I think that Wetwork is trying to underline their hypocrisy, or something. Really, the band's attack on religion feels superficial more than anything, and- need I even say- the whole 'religious criticism' thing has gone a little overboard by this point with metal. All the same, it does create a sense of flow to the album, and it makes it a little better than a mere collection of songs.

When it comes to the music itself, I was surprised, yet very underwhelmed. Parts of this (particularly the track 'Staining The Shine') gave me a Soundgarden vibe, while much of the rest had a distinct Megadeth feel to it, circa their 'Countdown To Extinction' album. The vocalist here (a male, not female) sounds like he's trying to emulate Dave Mustaine's nasal attitude-heavy voice, and while he does it well enough for a listener to easily draw the comparison, the actual singing here is lacking. It takes until the fourth track for there to even be a semblance of metal here, and when there is something 'metal' sounding, it's very poorly produced, and the distorted guitars suffer from a very muffled sound, as if they were jamming a room away from the actual recording equipment. Instrumentally, the most interesting thing here are the clean guitars, which are plain, but functional, and Wetwork uses these cleaner tones alot here. For anyone thinking they were receiving a heavy album here, think again; 'Temple Of Red' probably has more to do with alternative rock music than metal, and uninspired alt rock at that.

Wetwork give a disappointing introduction here, although it is interesting that they made such a drastic change in their sound. All the same, this is quite a weak release, and it fails to strike me in any particularly positive way.

UMUR "Seeing Eye Dog" is the 7th full-length studio album by US hardcore/alternative metal act Helmet. The album was released in September 2010 through Work Song Incorporated. It´s the first album release in four years since the release of "Monochrome (2006)" and the 3rd album release since Helmet´s reformation in 2003.

The music on "Seeing Eye Dog" is unmistakably the sound of Helmet. For better or worse. The combination of raw angular post hardcore riffing, shouting and aggressive vocals and softer and more melodic alternative rock/metal elements is something Helmet have more or less perfected over the years. They´ve carved a niché for themselves and they actually have a rather unique sound. Lead vocalist Page Hamilton is probably an aquired taste with his often monotone and at times almost sedative clean vocal style but this vocal style combined with his more raw and aggressive type vocals have always sounded pretty good to my ears. It´s not completely unlike what Jaz Coleman does in Killing Joke.

While the band have their basic style nailed, it´s unfortunately always been so and so with highlights and "Seeing Eye Dog" is no different in that respect. The quality of all tracks is high, but I´m not able to remember many tracks after the album finishes. With only 10 tracks and a playing time of 37:41 minutes that should have been quite easy. It gets better the more spins you give the album, but the songs never truly stick.

...so in the end "Seeing Eye Dog" is a bit too much of a "by the numbers" Helmet album. It´s enjoyable, professionally produced and performed with conviction, but it doesn´t set standards like their early releases did. A 3 - 3.5 star rating is warranted.

Time Signature Scream out...

Genre: hardcore punk

While excelling in crossover thrash and funk metal, Mike Muir decided to take Suicidal Tendencies back to its hardcore punk roots on this album.

This means the the album is full of uptempo and quite simple hardcore punk tracks with very little thrash metal elements on it (metal is present though), and perhaps most metalheads might not really like this album - I quite like it though, simply because it is upbeat and full of energy.

The slappy bass has taken the backseat on this album, as hardcore punk of course does not lend itself that well to funkiness - but, fans of the more funky Suicidal, despair not: there are some funky elements and there is some slapping and popping every now and then.

So, "Freedumb" is much more of a hardcore punk release, and probably not among those Suicidal releases that appeal the most to metalheads - still, if your looking for some upbeat punk to to ballistics to, then, by all means check this one out.

Time Signature Su casa es mi casa...

Genre: funk/alternative metal

While not totally up to scratch compared to more thrash-oriented releases like "Join the Army", "How Will I Laugh Tomorrow... When I can't Even Smile Today" and "Lights... Camera... Revolution", this is nonetheless a pretty good album which bears the Cyco trademark of lots of variation, containing funky tracks alongside heavy metal rockers and punked up tunes (and, of course, there are several tracks that blend all of these elements).

The album opens strongly with the uptempo heavy rocker "Self Destruct" and then gets all funky with the slap bass-ladden "Su Casa Es Mi Casa", "No More No Less" and the title track before turning towards punk territory in the anti-pop "Pop Songs" which combines melodycore with hardcore punk, while "Animal" is more punky which also applies to "Start Your Brain". "Public Dissension", "Bullenium", "Children of the Bored", and "Got Mutation" are a heavier funk metal tracks with loads of groove (the former also having some crossover thrashy elements in it, and the latter draws a bit on hardcore), while "Straight from the Heart" is more of a funk rock track. "Charlie Monroe" combines midtempo thrash riffage and funkiness, while "Home" is a heavy and melancholic alt. rocker. There is of course also the infamous "Cyco Speak" which is basically a monologue by Mike Muir himself which is fascinating but can perhaps be disturbing if you can't wat for the next track to start.

Not my favorite Suicidal Tendencies release, this is nonetheless a very good funk metal album with loads of awesome slapping and popping bass and, of course, lots of Cyco attitude.

Time Signature Angels with guitars...

Genre: alternative metal

Drawing heavily on grunge rock this Italian trio's "Life in Pills" might not appeal to to all prog- and metalheads, but I think it's a quite good alternative metal effort which is characterized by a fine equilibrium between 90s grunge rock and southern rock with a touch of sludge.

While having the same introvert shoegazing feel of grunge rock, the use of southern grooves and heavy guitars paired with mellow clean-guitared parts contribute a dimension of potency which was absent in a lot of grunge rock from the 90s.

It is straight rock music which is easily accessible, expressive and solid. Fans of early Soundgarden and Alice in Chains might like this.

Wilytank How much do I need to emphasize that the tough guy attitude in mainstream metal is really lame? Five Finger Death Punch really isn't ashamed to show it off though. Hell, the frontman looks like a John Cena wannabe. I've been wary on this band before, but I thought I ought to give 'American Capitalist' a listen if only to confirm my distaste.

Well, actually, the music ain't all terrible at first, but it does get old really fast and ends up becoming rather bland and mediocre. What really drags this album down is the vocalist and the lyrics. Moody's clean voice sounds generic of the mallcore style, and his harsh shouting is only made more pathetic by the lyrics he belts out.

"Generation Dead" and "Coming Down" are some of the most painful and generic sounding alternative metal songs. They've got that slow pace with the so-called "anthemic" refrains. Plus, those two songs feature some of the stupidest emotional lyrics that I'd expect from a band like Linkin Park, not from a band full of pseudo tough guys.

But the worst of it comes from "Remember Everything". The emotional lyrics are even worse here and it's dominated by clean vocals and slow paced pseudo heavyness so much that it actually does sound like a Linkin Park/Nickelback song.

It seems to me like they're try appeal to potential male fans with "Over and Under It", "100 Ways to Hate", and "Menace" AND even the artwork with the 'Woah! These guys must be really badass! I want to be just like them! One copy of 'American Capitalist, storeclerk bitch!' mindset; yet they also try appeal to potential female fans with the emotional songs assuming they have some sort of sensitive side. Screw all that.

Five Finger Death Punch, please get out of my ears. Try not to hit your muscleheads on my malleus on the way out.

Kingcrimsonprog California Crossing is the seventh official full-length studio album by the SoCal Stoner Rock band Fu Manchu, it was released in 2001 and was their last to feature Brant Bjork on the drums.

If ever an album’s artwork looked like how the music sounded, it was this. This album seemed to see the band attempting to take the music in a slightly more commercial direction but resulted in a good collection of memorable songs nonetheless. Some fans may act almost as if this was a departure for the band, but realistically the music throughout is a streamlined and catchy version of the existing Fu Manchu template; buzzing, fuzzed out guitars with retro sounds, a bit of cowbell and Scott Hill’s great lazy-fun vocal and lyrical style.

There is some diversity, such as on the album closer ‘The Wasteoid’ which adds Sabbathy riffing and a Brant Bjork drum solo to the proceedings and also ‘Bultaco’ which features guest vocals from Black Flag’s Keith Morris.

Although the album is pretty solid and indeed pretty similar throughout, the most memorable tracks include ‘Mongoose,’ ‘Squash That Fly’ and the Title Track. Even among Fu Manchu’s incredibly strong back catalogue, these are stand out tracks and go to show what a strong record California Crossing is. It is pretty great that the band are producing songs of this quality seven albums into their career.

Overall; California Crossing is a strong Fu Manchu album and while you may be suspicious of it because of its reputation as an almost “sell out” type of record, ignore this and you’ll find a wonderful “feel-good” Stoner/Desert Rock album that is enjoyable from beginning to end.

Andyman1125 Anyone with the desire to peruse the progressive hard rock genre can see a clear dichotomy in the genre. On one side is the classic 70s sound, with thick Hammond swaths, overdriven guitar riffs, and a blues-rock based sound. On the other side is the more modern style, made up of the post-hardcore, punk, alt-metal, and other "modern" heavy rock bands that dabble in more progressive styles, most notable Porcupine Tree and The Mars Volta. While both constitute "heavy" prog, it's almost amusing how different the two styles can be. Karnivool rose out of a Perth-based garage band formed by singer Ian Kenny in the late 90s. The band initially played a quite standard form of the nu-metal which had exploded over the past decade. The band, which gradually evolved over the years, released first the Persona EP in 2001, then the Themata LP in 2005, both displaying their rather average brand of alt metal. Finally, around 2008 something snapped. With the addition of Steve Judd on drums and John Stockman on bass, the band suddenly seemed driven to experiment with their sound. The masterful product of their mind-opening music adventure was their 2009 opus Sound Awake.

The sound of this album is hard to explain outright. The band, in their four year rest period from Themata, had obviously dabbled in countless different genres, ranging from atmospheric post rock and metal, jazz fusion, some kind of bass-heavy music, progressive metal, Porcupine Tree-esque psych-flavored hard rock and metal, and countless other experimental and progressive styles. On top of this, the quintet's chemistry as a compositional team exploded, as the album's fluidity and ease of transitions is expressed with ultimate grace constantly throughout the 75+ minute album. The crystal clear production and spot-on musicianship shines through the quintet's obvious passion and desire in their music. The harmonies, communication, and liquid nature of the music is perfect. Whether they are gently floating down melodically dense passages, cruising through aggressive sections of near metallic fury, the band is accurate in every attempt they make at composition.

Similar to the majestic Australian countryside, Sound Awake takes the listener on a musical journey, travelling across Outback plains of sand and stone, cityscape vistas of metropolitan chaos, and oceanic masses of majestic beauty. With dynamic like the beauteous soundscapes and post-rock inspired "New Day," the fast-paced and ferocious "Set Fire to the Hive," the epic grandeur of the 20-minute duo of "Deadman" and "Change," and every delicious second that lies out and in between, this album certainly has its share of masterful beauty. And while the band has technically been around for over a decade, this sophomore release certainly shows the band's alarming amount of maturity in music.

Speechlessness is most likely my first reaction on a simple perusal listen of the album. At first I thought a 76 minute album by this (at the time) unknown Australian band may have been a bit too daunting for one digestion, but I was quickly proven wrong by this breathtaking album. The consistent quality, constant pleasure, and commanding masterfulness of the album make it easily one of the best new releases by one of the "modern" heavy prog band. While at the time of this review's authorship Karnivool have yet to release a new album, many are eagerly awaiting more of this delicious formula, and understandably so. Highly recommended. 5 stars.

Time Signature Action...

Genre: alternative metal

Eskimada is slated as an alternative rock band with metal tendencies, but their eponymous debut album sounds more like alternative metal with rock tendencies.

Most of the tunes are built around heavy metallic and hard rocking riffs (just check the main riff of 'Lose Control' and 'Right Now' is an all out crossover metal song) - some being more of a grungy nature (and this is where the "alternative" label comes in) - and straight heavy drumbeats. And as alternative metal goes, I think this is a pretty good release (I mean, if Queensrÿche had gone more in the direction of the music on this release, I am sure that "Dedicated to Chaos" would have had a much more positive reception).

I quite like Raffaelle Pibiri's clear and almost volatile sounding voice, because it has a very expressive quality to it which goes extremely well with the vocal melodies. He also does a couple of growls and screams every now and then, suggesting that the band take inspiration from extreme metal as well. Most of the time his experiments with harsh vocals work pretty well - with the exception of an unfortunate Korn moment in 'All I need', but never mind that.

The production quality is a bit varied throughout the album. The bass is very dominant, which is not really a problem, but the guitars are, at times, very weak in the mix, which I think is a shame, as the power chord-based figures provide both depth and breadth to the music itself and also provides a good backdrop for the vocal melodies.

This is not a perfect album, but definitely a strong debut, showing that Eskimada is worth keeping an eye on in the future. They definitely could end up rivaling acts like Nickelback, Korn and post-"Dedicated to Chaos" Queensrÿche.

Time Signature My enemy...

Genre: alternative metal

Wolves Like Us have manged to put together a quite varied, yet very coherent and consistent album in their debut album "Late Love".

While anchored in the sound of the alternative rock scene, the album draws on a whole lot of different sounds and impressions from the alternative rock scene, and thus there are pointers towards alternative metal, grunge rock, post-rock, noise-rock, sludge rock, shoegaze (although the band are, as far as I understand, far from shoegazers in their live performances), neo-prog, post-punk and what not, plus a good dose of heavy rock, on this release.

While the musicianship is without doubt top notch, the main focus on this album is on expression, and the album is indeed a very expressive one. The vocals are unpolished, yet expressive, and many of the odd harmonies, chords, and at times dishamonies used on the album help generate an atmosphere which is both warm and cold at the same time, and has a certain melancholy to it.

Fans of alternative metal should definitely check out this debut by Norway's bid for the next big alternative rock name.

(review originally posted at seaoftranquility.org)

UMUR "Pitchfork & Lost Needles" is a compilation album released by US hard rock/metal/hardcore act Clutch. The album was released in July 2005 by Megaforce Records.

The 36:38 minutes long "Pitchfork & Lost Needles" features 10 tracks. The first 4 tracks on the compilation are from the band´s debut EP "Pitchfork (1991)". The next 4 tracks are demo tracks and unreleased tracks from the early nineties. Those 8 tracks are all in the groove based and aggressive hardcore style that Clutch practised in those years. Professional, powerful and kick ass hardcore tracks. As a bit of an oddity the band (or the label) have chosen to add two studio outtakes from the "Robot Hive / Exodus (2005)" sessions to close the compilation. Don´t get me wrong here because there´s nothing wrong with the quality of those two tracks. Both "What Would a Wookie Do?" and "Bottoms Up, Socrates" are in the warm hard rock style of post 2000 Clutch and quality wise they could easily have been included on "Robot Hive / Exodus". It´s more the blend of predominantly hardcore based tracks and then a couple of hard rock tracks to end the compilation that seems a bit odd to me.

Overall "Pitchfork & Lost Needles" is a very enjoyable compilation though and a great chance to hear some rare tracks from the early part of the band´s career (and a couple of rare ones from the later part of their career). A 3 - 3.5 star rating isn´t all wrong in my book.

UMUR "Pitchfork" is the debut release by US hard rock/metal/hardcore act Clutch. It´s a 4 track, 13:55 minutes long EP originally released on 7" vinyl only in October 1991 by Inner Journey Records. It wasn´t until 1999 that "Pitchfork" saw a re-release on CD. The 4 tracks from the EP are also featured as the opening tracks on the compilation album "Pitchfork & Lost Needles (2005)"

The music on "Pitchfork" is a far cry from the hard rock music style that Clutch are known for today and if you´re only familiar with their post 2000 material you might be in for a shock. Listening to "Pitchfork" you´ll be exposed to aggressive and groove based hardcore. The vocals by Neil Fallon are raw, shouting and aggressive, the rythms are hard edged and groovy and the riffs are at times crushingly heavy. Being a debut release it´s amazing how confident Clutch sound. They certainly don´t sound like debutants. The musicianship is excellent, the sound production is powerful, sharp and clear and the songwriting is of pretty good standard too. I like how catchy the tracks are and how the band incorporate little details to keep the listener entertained.

"Pitchfork" is an amazingly professional debut release by Clutch and if you enjoy groove based and well written hardcore, this is definitely not the worst purchase you could make. A 3 - 3.5 star rating is warranted.

UMUR "Opiate" is the official debut release by US alternative rock/metal act Tool. The 6 track, 26:54 minutes long EP was released in March 1992 by Zoo Entertainment.

Tool´s take on post alternative rock/metal is very unique. It´s a highly rythmic experience listening to the band´s music. Bass, drums and guitar are the simple foundation on which Tool build their music. On top of that Maynard James Keenan passionate vocal delivery almost act like an extra instrument. One moment aggressive and raw, the next minute sensitive and emotional. On "Opiate" he is mostly aggressive though. The more subtle vocals of later recordings are not that dominant here.

The EP features 4 studio and 2 live recordings which are more or less in the same vein. Pretty decent aggressive alternative rock/metal. "Opiate" isn´t necessarily a good place to start if you are new to Tool but the quality of the release is allright and a 3 star rating is deserved.

Time Signature All the way...

Genre: Cyco Miko madness

There are several different musical impression and influences on this album, but the one factor that provides the constant anchor point is the funk, as most tracks, regardless whether the draw on thrash, hardcore punk, hard rock, alternative rock, hip hop, industrial or whatever, contain funky elements - especially in the form of popping and slapping bass figures.

Some tracks are funk free, such as the opening 'M.M.M.' which is an all out metal track, while 'All the Way!' and 'Full of it' hearken back to Mike Muir's hardcore/crossover roots, and 'Slo Death' is a heavy doom-ladden track, while 'Got Feelings?' is a mellower ballady affair. Apart from those, Cyco Miko delivers an onslaught of mostly solid funk metal tracks straight in yer face.

The production is extremely professional, although I wish that the bass would be more dominant in the mix.

Fans of funk metal will definitely enjoy this album in all its slapping, popping and funking splendor.

Sheavy (Original review from ProgArchives.com)

I have never really understood the comparisons between this band and TMV. The vocals by Claudio Sanchez are just bad and cannot be compared to Cedric's. The music here also is nowhere near to anything TMV has done. That being said, this album is massive improvement of their first album, and, unlike their first album, I can find enough good things here to overlook the vocals ( kind of). There is a lot more Prog in the mix this time around, even if I still cannot get the thought out of my head that this is nothing more than a more Proggish version of Fall Out Boy.

The guitar is pretty good when he goes into a solo here and there, like in the closing song 21:13, which actually is probably my favorite song off this album. A lot of the songs are very boring and do not sound much more than the usual "scene" crowd song, but songs like the aforementioned 21:13 are true Prog songs, with a lot of interesting sections. Not to mention the songwriting has improved over the first album, even though about everything has improved from Coheed's first album.

Coheed and Cambria also proclaim themselves to be the first concept band ( which is wrong. Magma was the first). If they are, they must have one of the wierdest story lines ever, because I cannot tell any real relation from song to song here, let alone this album and their first.

If you are into this sort of music you will probably like this album, but for me, C&C play music that I do not have much interest in.

Stooge Introduce Yourself, as is the case for many of Faith No More’s fan, was not my introduction to the band. Being one of many who went from the Patton stuff and worked back, I’ll say that jump between this era of the band and the Patton fronted one isn’t terribly drastic. I could easily hear Patton’s voice on a large chunk of the material, and he’s performed “We Care A Lot” several times in his career. Stylistically, the material is very similar to The Real Thing album (though the band’s overall sound on this album is significantly thinner), the most obvious difference being the vocals of Chuck Mosely. Oh Chuck…

His vocals were the obstacle that kept me from buying this album initially, and they weigh down the album considerably at times. Mosely is definitely not a traditional rock or metal vocalist. I guess I’d call him more of a punk rocker. His shouting vocal style I can dig, but he’s not much of a melodic vocalist. I guess to put it best, his voice falls under the category of being an acquired taste.

On top of the popular and catchy “Annie’s Song” and “We Care A Lot” (both of which have music videos), I see the strongest songs on Introduce Yourself are the up-beat opener “Faster Disco”, the eerie atmospheric “Death March”, and both the shortest and longest tracks with “Introduce Yourself” and “The Crab Song”.

All things considered, this one sits near the bottom of the ladder of my favorite Faith No More albums, but it still makes for a fun listen. A good album that was followed by many great ones.

Sheavy (Original review from ProgArchives.com)

For a introduction to a band I have heard good things about, this seems like the worst possible place to start. I got this because it was just 99 cents at a second hand clothing store and happened to notice this and Manic Moonlight both for that price, so I decided not to pass up this chance. I am very glad I did not pay more for these cds. This really sounds like a very boring mix of hard rock, with some grunge like sounds. All of the songs sound very dull and uninspired, and the best thing about all these tracks is when a guitar solo comes in. Other than that the is nothing here that appeals much to me. It really sounds like a sub par Nirvana wanna-be band.

Sheavy (Original review from ProgArchives.com)

I am not a big fan of these "emo" bands, and i nearly fell out off my chair when I saw CC was on PA. "What? a emo band like Jimmy Eat World here on ProgArchives? This has to be a utterly terrible joke." That is what went through my head when I saw them listed here. Well I must say I am somewhat eating my words, because there are SOME Prog moments. However this does not make a band bad or good ( even though it does help hehe ). First off, the singer is absolutely terrible. I'm sorry, but wow. This is really, really bad. I do not mind bands with vocals that are challenging, I love Psyopus, The Number Twelve Looks Like You, and in that vein. This does not fit the music at all, and the vocals just serve to make you want to drive a spike into your ear. I for tried as hard as possible to ignore the vocals, but it is impossible for some parts. Like what on earth is at the beginning of the song Devil In Jersey City. That voice at the beginning is hands down the most annoying thing I have ever heard in my life. It sounds like a two year old talking. I have a very hard time seeing how this album, or band for that matter, has such higher ratings then other in this genre. About the only thing I can find good about this album is the fairly interesting guitar solo on Time Consumer, which is very dissonant and scratchy, but that is it. So okay, it does have some Prog in their, but it is cloaked in a terrible singer, boring song writing, and muscianship that does not sound much more inventive then Jimmy Eat World.

Terrible. I hear nothing to warrant them being on Pa at all. Just some occasional moments of prog, but without actually being Prog. This album might just be my least favorite album ever, and not just on ProgArchives. Actually it is tied with St. Anger. Maybe worse.

Kingcrimsonprog Five Finger Death Punch’s third studio album American Capitalist firmly continues the formula which the band had established on their previous two releases, especially their sophomore release War Is The Answer. This 2011 album is comprised primarily three minute tracks full of bouncy riffs, flailing double kicks and a mixture or hard verses with radio choruses.

If you are new to the band, the best way people have found for describing them is as a mixture between elements of Vol. 3 era Slipknot and Pantera, which does a fair job of describing the band’s everyman metal approach and mixture of commercial moments with stomping heavy sections.

It isn’t progressive, it isn’t extreme and it isn’t electronic; American Capitalist is pretty much just pure and simple American Heavy Metal with a lot of melody, perhaps a too little cheap or cheesy for some more discerning listeners, but wholly enjoyable for the rest.

At times the lyrics and artwork can be a bit hard to take and are the area for which non-fans will find most easy to criticize, but often they just add to the appeal of the band that has a certain infectious spirit that you will find yourself enjoying in spite of yourself.

The band also mix in some brilliant slower moments and furious virtuosic guitar solos courtesy of Zoltan Bathory which demonstrate a level of musicianship and songwriting skill far beyond the remit of most overly commercial radio approved metal bands.

This is their first album to feature Chris Kael replacing Matt Snell on bass and the second album to be produced by Kevin Churko and released on the record label Prospect Park.

Singer Ivan Moody’s range has expanded on American Capitalist and his strong harsh and clean vocals have never sounded better. The guitar solos too from the aforementioned Zoltan Bathory are even better and impressive than before and drummer Jeremy Spencer has perhaps improved most of all, adding in lots of brilliant fills and great kick patterns. Overall you just get the impression that the band are just perfecting their formula with this album. In fact the Title Track even goes so far as to name check their previous two album titles lyrically.

Standout tracks include heavier and faster ‘Menace,’ the stomping album closer ‘100 Ways To Hate’ and the groovy ‘Wicked Ways,’ as well as the very catchy lead singles ‘Back For More,’ and ‘Over And Under It.’

If you have always hated the band then American Capitalist will not change your mind, it covers a very similar territory to their previous work, which is great news for fans, but will more than likely not win over people who exclusively listen to Black and Death Metal for example, not that it should realistically be expected to.

Overall; American Capitalist is a very enjoyable record that any fan of the band’s previous work is sure to enjoy. The album is strong, confident and proud; If you have an interest in Five Finger Death Punch I highly recommend you check it out.

Valarius I was first introduced to Primus when a friend played me the classic 'Wynona's Big Brown Beaver', to which I reacted with complete hostility and confusion. But something about that song made me go back to it in my own time, and that confusion quickly turned into the knowledge that I'd stumbled upon a group of extraordinary musicians.

'Tales from the Punchbowl' has officially converted me into a Primus fan. Although it took a while to understand and appreciate the genius of this band, I'm glad I stuck it out. The odd music, the completely random yet intelligent lyrics, the humour... everything works here on some artistic level or another.

The main tracks here for me are 'Professor Nutbutters House of Treats', 'Mrs Blaileen', 'Southbound Pachyderm', 'Over the Electric Grapevine' and of course 'Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver' (a song that became so popular that the band would end up hating it). But the album flows so smoothly that even small, comedic, filler tracks such as 'Space Farm' and the infectious 'De Anza Jag' are notable songs in themselves.

As amazing as it is obscure, the best way to describe this album is King Crimson meets Rush, and how can that be anything but awesome?

arcane-beautiful Over my many years (19 to be precise), of listening, making, appreciating and studying music, I have come across some good music...and some not so good...some poor and some God awfully horrible. In fact some are so bad that I've decided to make a list of some of the blights of this music world. Now if you check out my reviews, the ones that I've rated with a 1 star are usually them (some people complain that I give really bad reviews one star instead of half a star, and to be honest when you see some reviews with only one star...your not really expecting much.) Some of these albums include Metallica's Death Magnetic, Creed's Full Circle, Queen + Paul Rogers' The Cosmic Rocks & Bleed From Within's Humanity. Now I really don't like giving bad reviews, but sometimes you just have to...and it's not my fault, it's the artists fault (I usually try and highlight as many positive points as possible.

The reason I bought this album was because it was a massive piece of nostalgia for me. Now I know it's kind of embarrassing, but I was brought up with nu metal. Now don't blame me, it was all I have.

Now these guys had a few songs out...and I liked them. They had catchy enough chorus, they had frequent play on music video channels, so you kind of either had to like it or not...and I did, although I was about 8.

Seeing this album, I kind of wanted to buy it as a joke, you know to see if they could be good enough for a full album. So I put it on, and with most bad albums, first track I went “meh could be worse”...but as it went on, it got worse.

I think the best way to describe this album is absolute filler. I mean it, not only are the songs bad, boring and repetitive...but even repetitive stuff should plant itself in your head. This is just totally forgetable.

Now I'm not saying it's all bad. The single The Way You Like It is still a decent enough song...but putting it in an album context, it still feels really bland, and not really adding anything to it.

Maybe this album is the only bad one. Maybe their other releases aren't too bad. Maybe in the future I will try and get my hand on another one of their albums, but after remembering this album, it's not something that I really want to jump upon right in this moment in time.

CONCLUSION: There are worse albums out their probably, but that phrase still doesn’t make this album any better. This isn't the worst band in the world, but I warn you to stay away from this album...unless your looking for a laugh...then this is perfect for you.

0.5/10

Kingcrimsonprog American Head Charge are a much overlooked and underrated band, who never fully got as big as it seemed they were supposed to, and never lived up to their full potential. If you are a fan of the heavier and more tasteful bands to arise during the Nu Metal era, then American Head Charge are definitely a band you should investigate.

Their second album `The Feeding,' came out in 2005, four years after their debut album `The War Of Art,' and featured the tracks `Loyalty,' and `Cowards,' both of which had music videos at the time.

While The Feeding could not fully live up to its predecessor in terms of power, impact and memorable songwriting; it did surpass it in other areas such as clarity, focus and was much more succinct than The War Of Art, as well as having a better production job.

Standout tracks include the astounding single `Loyalty,' which is one of the band's greatest moments, as well as `Pledge Allegiance,' `Dirty,' and `Take What I've Taken,' all of which are fine examples of the band's industrial tinged mixture of ferocity and melody.

On The Feeding, the band's influences were less audibly on their sleeves, and you can't so much pick out individual bits that sound like Ministry, early Deftones or whoever, the band have more thoroughly developed their own style and refined the formula they started years before.

While `The Feeding,' may have come a little too late at the tale end of a dying scene, it is still a superb album to listen to that on its own merits deserves to be thought of more favourably than just as the final album from a band that missed its window.

If you like American Head Charge, pick up a copy without hesitation, the album is a real grower. Now with the band finally reunited and creating new music, this is an excellent and overlooked record to revisit.

Kingcrimsonprog Most Slipknot fans won’t need very much convincing, a new live DVD has been released an you very probably plan t buy it, but for anyone on the fence about whether or not to get it, I highly recommend this package, on is own merits and not just out of blind dedication to the band.

‘(sic)nesses,’ is a pretty great package, documenting their 2009 headline performance at the UK’s Download Festival in front of 80,000 excited fans. Also included is a documentary (curiously on disc one, with the concert on disc 2) from Shaun ‘Clown,’ Crahan and all the music videos from the band’s ‘All Hope Is Gone,’ album cycle.

Performance wise, everything you expect to happen at a Slipknot concert is there, so don’t expect to be disappointed in that regard. One can expect to see people hanging off things, jumping off things and throwing things at regular intervals; in addition to a spinning in mid air drum kit, Different band members fretting the notes for the guitarists, different band members hitting a keg with a baseball bat, Clown and Criss’s strap-on marching drums during ‘The Blister Exists,’ and ‘Psycho Social,’ and of course Sid getting into the midst of everything, including the crowd whenever possible.

Without a doubt the entire concert is made on the strength of the crowds passionate reaction and that undefinable live energy that just makes the concert feel amazing. Seeing 80,000 plus people singing along to very heavy music is almost life affirming.

If you were dissapointed by the band’s live performances on their live album ‘9.0 Live,’ or the bonus live material from ‘Voliminal,’ specifically the mix, Corey’s vocals and the disjointed feeling caused from material being taken from various concerts and are unsure whether or not to buy ‘(sic)nesses,’ then I’d like to reassure you that it is of a much higher quality than the previously mentioned releases, the whole concert is much more impressive and intense, Corey’s vocal performance is noticeably stronger and the mix is a lot more suitable.

The audiovisual quality of the release is in absolutely no question, the tech crew behind it have done an absolutely sterling job recording, mixing, filming and editing it and the whole viewing experience is of as high a quality as you would expect from a band of Slipknot’s size, even considering that this was a festival performance which is where a lot of big bands release their weaker DVDs due to the reduced amount of control available. Put simply this DVD looks and sounds fantastic, better even than you’d expect.

The only negative things I have to say are mere nitpicking, such as a perceived shortage of material from the ‘Iowa,’ album and that the documentary is very much in the Shaun Crahan style (as seen on the main Voliminal film and the All Hope is Gone bonus DVD) which I don’t personally care for but of course, you could indeed love this style. These minor and circumstantial niggles do nothing to detract from the sheer quality of the release. It may sound cheesy, but ‘(sic)nesses,’ proves why people love Slipknot so much.