Review: Ca†hedra – 'Faithless'

CA†HEDRA
'Faithless'
SELF-RELEASED

Ca†hedra is perhaps one of the most interesting underground electronic producers around today. Blending rave, psychedelic electronics, and a penchant for thick and sticky bass-lines, he cannibalises genres such as hip hop, trance, acid house, industrial and witch house and spits out something unique and always stunning.

'Faithless' carries on his haunting and atmospheric dance vision with tracks such as 'Dead Inside', 'Buried', 'Alone', 'Sudden Death, Pt.2', 'Anxiety', and 'Desolation' providing a solid mix of hard dance beats, dark psychedelic atmospheres and cutting rave leads. The songs all draw from a similar sonic pallet which gives the album a nice sense of continuation without sounding repetitive.

However the defining tracks have to be 'Illusion' (featuring Bitwvlf) and 'Hopeless' (featuring Sensei), both of which shake-up the album's formula, and in the case of 'Hopeless' adds some beautiful vocals to accompany the sinister yet melodic backing track.

The production once again is strong throughout the release. Despite the low-fi sounds often utilised the overall sound of the EP is as slick and confident as you'd expect from any mainstream electronic release. There's no over-saturated distortion, noise for the sake of it, or anything else attempting to cover-up shortcomings. Instead it's professional and and high quality throughout.

Again, Ca†hedra may not have been around for a long time, but his body of work speaks for itself. Every release gets stronger and its easy to hear the skill and confidence growing. And with a pleasing combination of dark atmospheres, strong leads and addictive melodies, there's no reason why this project can't reach greater heights. 

Read More

Review: Beastmaker – 'Inside The Skull'

BEASTMAKER
'Inside the Skull'
RISE ABOVE RECORDS

Fresno, USA trio Beastmaker waste no time on capitalising on last year's ferocious début album 'Lusus Naturae' with another bludgeoning mix of blues grooves, psychedelic overtones and demonic Sabbath worshipping riffs. 'Inside The Skull' sees the band invoke the tried and tested doom mantra of “if it ain't broke, don't fix it”, instead they channel their energy into performance and songwriting quality rather than trying to shake their sound up for no good reason.

As with the last album, the band come out swinging with their opening track, 'Evil One', with it's hammering rhythms and hypnotic grooves. The album follows the same pattern for the most part with tracks such as 'Heaven To Hell', 'Of Gods Creation', 'Give Me A Sign', 'Nature Of The Damned', 'Psychic Visions', 'Inside the Skull', and 'Sick Sick Demon' providing particular highlights. To be honest there isn't really a bad track on the album. It delivers exactly what a stoner/doom metal/occult rock album should – monolithic riffs, heavy grooves, and some horror movie samples thrown in for good measure.

In terms of production, 'Inside The Skull' still enjoys that nice, fuzzy, retro analogue stoner doom atmosphere employed on their début. But is just a little bit more polished this time around. The production on their first outing was pretty sharp so it's no surprise this time round that they've continued to put the effort in there.

The shadows of the bands influences (Black Sabbath, Cathedral, The Zombies, Pentagram, Witchfinder General, Danzig, and Witchcraft) still proudly loom over the band, but this time round the songwriting feels more self-confident and identifiable as Beastmaker in their own right. Despite a strong début and follow-up, they are a band that are still coming to their own, but with such a high caliber song writing right from the start you'll be forgiven from thinking they're already veterans.  

Read More

Review: Rammstein – 'Paris' (Album)

RAMMSTEIN
'Paris'
UNIVERSAL MUSIC

Rammstein are a band, against all of the odds, in a league of their own. An international success story that A) play industrial metal, and B) sing primarily in their native tongue over the much more commercial English option. But certainly since their breakthrough album, 2001's 'Mutter' they have been on an unstoppable rise, and despite their last original studio effort hitting stores in 2009 they have continued to be an in-demand live act.

'Paris', the live album accompanying the brand new concert film directed by long-time video collaborator Jonas Åkerlund, documents the band's monumental 'Made In Germany: 1995 – 2011' tour. Rammstein enjoy a live reputation that can only be comparable to Kiss in their heyday. Half the fun of seeing them perform isn't just the bombastic strains of their NDH tinged industrial metal hits but also seeing what new pyros and effects they will employ to thrill their audience. As a result their live releases are as ravenously consumed as their studio albums. 'Live Aus Berlin', 'Volkerball', and 'In Amerika' are all classics in their own right, but cinematically 'Paris' goes further than ever before.

However, this review is for the accompanying two-disc live album, and while you can't expect the subtle nuances of the visuals and direction of the concert film to be translated to the CD, you can always expect a high quality release. And that's exactly what is delivered.

The album is a beautifully clear and well mixed live album with a nice balance of “band Vs audience noise” with the Parisian audience's enthusiastic applause and sing-a-longs faithfully mixed in. As for the content of the set list, the band cover the entirety of their back catalogue, even the better cuts from 'Herzelied' get a good airing despite having been glanced over on previous tour cycles. Tracks such as 'Wolt Ihr Das Bett In Flammehn Sehn', 'Sehnsucht', 'Feur Frei', 'Mein Teil', 'Ohne Dich', and 'Pussy' show off the full gamut of the band's prowess with Til Lindemann's voice sounding commanding and imposing against the meticulously and passionately performed music.

One thing that has always been a pain with “live” albums is when footage from across a tour ins condensed together to look like one show instead of being presented as a full tour document, or worse, when that footage is overlayed with the audio from one specific show. There are none of those issues with Rammstein though. Their live documents have always been a faithfully reproduced single show captured for posterity and 'Paris' quite happily sits within not only the live portion of the band's discography, but also the pantheon of great live albums.  

Read More

Speaking about Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose #103

Cover A

I started reading the indie comic Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose last year, and I’ve become a huge fan since then. Each issue has giving me something, a different and good lesson, along with great stories and amazing artwork, which is also filled with a high voltage of erotic scenarios. 

Tarot has become a project I’m more than eager to support and follow until it is done, may it be after many years! Its most recent issue, Tarot #103, follows a simple yet powerful script and idea, with an incredibly dynamic pace, light and easy to understand. Jim Balent, the creator, writer and artist, is also not afraid of using controversial ideas such as the inaction of the Divine in unfair situations. 

Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose has created its own mythology, but this issue expands it by adding a new creature and group to the world where the story is set: the Nameless Ones, a coven that is more than clear with their intentions, their point of view about the Gods and how they should be treated. You will also be surprised with the way things turn to be this time. I’m a strong believer that words are way more powerful than actions, in most of the cases, and this idea is loud and clear for the issue, exploring a different, passive  and effective side of Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose. 

Cover B

Contrary to the script, the art of this comic is pure marvel. The level of detail is as high as it can be, and the many different elements for each panel is worth a look, with some of them even adding more information about the plot with their own symbols and meanings. Feelings, emotions and thoughts are graphically reflected in many pages, with a semiotic meaning behind all of them, some obvious, others more hidden. I can also say that Tarot recovers her original dark fantasy look and matches it with its most recent moral-intended subliminal messages. 

You’ll be able to find that there’s hardly a single scene with one more present than the other, but both aspects are nicely used to be in perfect harmony. Also, Balent has taken a new step in the comic series: Jon Webb, the male protagonist, shows his private parts for the very first time, not as explicit as the female characters, but there’s nothing in there censoring male anatomy, which I consider to be good inclusive content for male readers of Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose.

As always, this comic deserves the best score. I haven’t find anything bothering on it and considering this a independent comic published by a small company, that says a lot about its quality and high standards. Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose, is published by Broadsword Comics, with script and art from president Jim Balent, and colours and lettering by Vice President Holly Golightly. Visit their website to buy this and other issues.

Read More

Review: Danzig – 'Black Laden Crown'

DANZIG
'Black Laden Crown'
NUCLEAR BLAST RECORDS  

The evil Elvis, Glenn Danzig and cohorts return with their eleventh full-length studio album, 'Black Laden Crown'. It's been seven long years since the last collection of Danzig originals 'Deth Red Saboath' was released to overall favourable reviews and saw a continuation of the return to form carried over from 2006's 'Circle Of Snakes'. Though the recent output hasn't matched the dizzying heights of the first four Danzig releases, it has been in keeping with his strongest works, and 'Black Laden Crown' shows a sharpening of focus back to what made those first albums great.

It's undeniable that Glenn Danzig is very protective of his image and art and that ever present self-consciousness may cause him to second guess a lot of his previous experimentation and as a result it has fallen short of the mark. 'Black Laden Crown' however feels very much like Danzig has come to terms with growing older and as a result has played to his strengths without exposing his limitations. The raw stripped back construction is reminiscent of 'Danzig I' and the the swampy blues metal riffs and rhythmic bludgeoning pace are the main focus and Danzig's unmistakable croon becomes more textual and more powerful when utilised.

Songs such as 'Black Laden Crown', 'Eyes Ripping Fire', 'Last Ride', 'The Witching Hour', 'Skulls & Daisies', and 'Blackness Falls' hark back to the hard blues of the first two albums and the sombre tenderness of 'How The Gods Kill' which will undoubtedly satisfy a lot of fans. With Danzig changing up his vocal delivery it is also helped that for the first time Tommy Victor's guitar style feels 100% compatible with the classic Danzig sound and isn't trying to pull back into his work with Prong.

The only real misstep on the album is the lead single 'Devil On HWY 9'. In it's current form it feels rushed and unfinished (which is unlikely considering the band spent three years on this album). The vocals don't sit right in the mix and it doesn't fully gel. 'Eyes Ripping Fire' or 'Last Ride' would have been a better choice to bring the right kind of attention to the album.

In terms of production it is raw, stripped back and very rough around the edges, but aside from the afore mentioned 'Devil...' it works with the more straightforward and focused writing and performance. Danzig's vocals sit a little lower in the mix and the guitar a little higher and the balance works really nicely.

'Black Laden Crown' shows a band that is on the right path. It may not have the youthful energy of his early work, but the subtlety and passion of the performances definitely work better than on any recent output. It's an album that fits in and compliments the highlights of his career, and will translate well into his live arsenal. Hopefully this will see a reinvigorated band turn round original material a little quicker next time around.  

Read More

Review: 3Teeth – 'Shutdown.exe'

3TEETH
'Shutdown.exe'
OMF RECORDS

LA's 3Teeth make their return with their eagerly anticipated sophomore album 'Shutdown.exe'. The band gained international notoriety with the release of their uncompromising self-titled début, and subsequent touring relationship with veterans Tool they brought some much needed light back to the industrial scene in the process. But with such a strong initial outing, can the band capitalise effectively with their follow up?

The band's esoteric-meets-cyberpunk imagery has kept their social media presence something to behold, especially with their budget stretching to music videos that further translate their anarchic ideals into likes and shares. But in this case the album art's 90s Playstation cyberpunk game design (which has been divisive for some) doesn't quite do the music within justice.

Touring with Tool seems to have rubbed off on the band in terms of musical ambition. One criticism of the previous album is that it stuck rigidly to its formula. And while 'Shutdown.exe' delivers plenty of the stomping, distorted industrial metal that endeared them, they have expanded things a little more with more time changes, experimental sections and, most importantly, put more in to the production.

Songs such as 'Divine Weapon', 'Pit Of Fire', 'Atrophy', 'Shutdown', 'Tower Of Disease', 'Slavegod', 'Insubstantia', and 'Away From Me' are utterly addictive with the metallic core of the songs crowned with industrial mayhem and Alexis Mincolla's more adventurous, if still somewhat self-conscious, vocal performances cutting through like a knife. The riffs are strong, the synths are savage and the songs are performed with convictions and vitriol. But its really great to hear new elements such as the esoteric chanting, tabla, and even piano coming through to add a little more scope to the band's sonic pallet.

But as said previously the production is another factor. On the band's début it did come off as though they were hiding their shortcomings with distortion which had a tendency to reduce some parts of songs to a wall of white noise and robbing them of deeper impact. Thankfully here there isn't that over-reliance. There still is distortion but it's much more managed and moulded this time, which gives Micolla more room to experiment with his vocal delivery and stop the synths and guitars swamping each other. It sounds less shoestring and more top shelf as a result.

'Shutdown.exe' is a great album, and 3Teeth have grown as songwriters and performers to fulfil the expectations that their début hinted at. It is authentic, and full of conviction. There is still plenty of room for growth to consolidate their musical identity and it would be interesting to hear how they can incorporate more experimental ideas in the future and try to beyond their mid-tempo comfort zone. But in the here and now this has to be a contender for album of the year.  

Read More

Review: Oceanwake – 'Earthen'

OCEANWAKE
'Earthen'
VICISOLUM PRODUCTIONS

Finland's Oceanwake are a wonderfully ambitious band. With one foot in doom metal and the other in progressive rock the band over the course of their album trilogy, of which new release 'Earthen' is the final installment, have crafted their own unique sound. Marked by adventurous compositions, straddling multiple genres and generally playing by their own rules they have quickly become a band to watch.

'Earthen' sees only two tracks, but they are of an epic scale, weighing in at over 20 minutes each. Rumbling and crashing like a storm hitting the shore, 'Storm Sermon' is epic in it's scale. A calm and melodic intro gives way to thunderous vocals and bludgeoning guitars before being swallowed up by sinister meandering progressive tinged doom and back again.

'In Amidst The Silent Thrones' sees the storm surge recede back into the crushing depths of the ocean with intense jarring guitars, sinister whispered vocals, and claustrophobic atmosphere giving way to bouts of crushing death doom. It's a stunning counterpart to the previous track and holds both your attention and imagination throughout.

The production is as stunning as the composition. With songs that have epic ambitions the production must keep up and it does. The result is something composed from rock and metal but shaped with the attention of a symphonic piece where the movements within each track blend to create the ambitiously epic scale they crave.

Oceanwake are a band that are constantly pushing themselves and achieving their ambitions. The music they create is hypnotic, heavy, and utterly masterful. With just two tracks they have created a strong visual narrative that pulls the listener in and unveils a great vision before them. With this musical trilogy over, it will be interesting to see where the band next set their sights. But if their development over the past three albums is anything to go by, the sky will be the limit for them.  

Read More

Now I Mostly Wear Black - A Goth Evolution

(Emily Strange, by Kiara The Random - Deviant Art)
Mostly, I wear black.

It started as a reaction to Life.
To the world, to its people.
To the bullshit you go through as you experience life.

Pop (and not so pop) culture brought the goth subculture to my awareness when I was a kid, and there you had it.
I was about 12, and I became goth.

And I was goth for a very long time.

Now I just mostly wear black.

People say:
Black's not a colour.
Black's all the colours.

Whatever.
I say:
Black's an easy colour to pair up with any other black.
Black is easy go-to straight-up fashion.
It's my colour, and that's not gonna change.
Whenever I wear white, I always end up staining it anyway.
It's never really a problem if you stain your blacks. You're likely not to even notice it yourself.

*

So what does it even mean anymore to be goth?
As mentioned in one of my previous editorials, it comes down to embracing your darkness within, letting it out, and making it shine.

When you're a kid, and faced with darkness, you either choose to run away from it, or face it.
And if you choose to face it, then you open yourself to everything the goth subculture has to offer.

Sure, you can look at the South Park goth kids and have a good laugh. It's caricature of course, but there is an underlying truth in that, somewhat.

A kid's goth phase starts off because yes, the kid is angry, sad, jaded and overall done-with-it, but eventually, you find your people. Like-minded people, who are also looking for a way to find themselves amidst everything that's not them.
You find ways to fight. You find ways to smile again.
Some people grow out of their goth phase quickly. Others take years or decades. Others revel in the subculture, and as delighted to be alive as they can be, never EVER grow out of it. It's not even a phase anymore, it's their lifestyle.

As far as I'm concerned, I believe in the freedom to build yourself as you damn well please.
As figures of alternative lifestyles, we get to explore, and inspire ourselves from all the marvelous subcultures that exist, so as to create a style for ourselves that's resolutely forever our own. Such is the beauty of the human creative potential.
And this is where evolution comes into play, and this is where one can experience the beauty of it.

Evolving means there's things you're happy to let go of.
On my end, I was very happy when my Victorian phase got over and done with.
I was even happier to realize the Steampunk wave, itself, was over and done with.
(As I realized this, I also realized my clothes would be costing me a lot less.
Meaning I can spend more money on upgrading my wardrobe to latex.
Which is, in itself, one of the wonderful aspects of my personal evolution.)

And then, there's things you'll cherish forever.
There's music I got into then, that I'm still into now. That's not gonna change.
Antichrist Superstar is still an incredible album.
The Downward Spiral remains one of the greatest albums of all time, as far as I'm concerned anyway.
There's a reason why Beetlejuice and The Craft are cult movies. Everybody loves Lydia, everybody loves Nancy.
And Emily Strange is my home girl.

It's all about balance, in the end, and finding out more about yourself everyday, thus discovering more and more treasures in every culture, and in the universe itself. I love to sunbathe as much as I revel in a clear night sky full of stars.

And Life's a lot more fun when you can laugh and dance along with it.

It's evolution, baby.

Read More

Review: Thus Defiled – 'A Return To the Shadows'

THUS DEFILED
'A Return To The Shadows'
SELF-RELEASED

25 years is an important milestone for any band, no matter how frequently they release albums or if there has been a hiatus in that time. If a band can still come together after a quarter of a century and create great music together, then that is worth celebrating. This is obviously what UK black metal veterans had in mind for their latest EP 'A Return To The Shadows'. Last year saw them condense an impressive legacy into a greatest hits collection, and this year's release see's them revisit some of their favourite cuts from their formative years.

The single original track, 'Armagedda In Rapture', opens the EP in typically bombastic Thus Defiled Fashion. A slow sinister introduction reminiscent of 'Of Shadow And Storm' erupts into a cacophony of searing guitars, blasting drums and demonic vocals which hints at great things to come. Cover song number one sees the band take on 'Evil Dead' by Death which capture the ferocity of the original but filters it through Thus Defiled's own unmistakable style.

Next up is Metallica's 'Creeping Death' with backing vocals provided by Donn Donni of Versprian Sorrow which gives a nice twist to the usual vocal attack employed by the band. A hellacious cover of Morbid Angel's 'Demon Seed' is up next with lead vocals taken up by Mike Browning of Morbid Angel/Nocturnus, which again adds a nice twist to the band's sound. Finally the EP closes with W.A.S.P.'s 'Hellion' which see's the band's attack return tot he thrashier end of their sound but altogether remains on point with the rest of the EP.

In terms of production it's great to see the band re-uniting with 'Daemonspawn' producer Tim Bartlett, who keeps true to the classic Thus Defiled sound. There are one or two points where the guitars seem to swamp the vocals or themselves sound a little muffled. But other than that it's a solid extreme metal sound throughout.

Covers albums/EPs are not to everyone's taste, but this one comes from a good place. To celebrate the music they love with the fans that support them. Dedicated to Chuck Schuldiner (Death), Cliff Burton (Metallica), and of course Grant Saunders (Thus Defiled) it is a heartfelt and passionate release that sees the band on brilliant form  

Read More

Review: Luxury Stranger – 'Darkness Falls Upon The Light'

LUXURY STRANGER
'Darkness Falls Upon The Light'
EARTH-TWO RECORDS / COLDINSANITY MUSIC

Luxury Stranger are one of those bands that are always a delight to listen to or catch live. They're one of the few bands that keep the original indie and post-punk spirit of the 1980s alive, devoid of pretence and posturing they ooze an authenticity that is sadly lacking from a lot of bands that aspire to the same ideals. The band's third full-length studio outing, 'Darkness Falls Upon The Light' is a vindication of a decade's worth of artistic integrity, channelling the melancholic vibe of indie acts such as Echo And The Bunnymen, Jesus And Mary Chain, and The Chameleons with the contemporary appeal of bands like Interpol without resorting to imitation.

Songs such as 'Another Intoxicated Release', 'Wash', 'A Triumph Of The Heart', 'When the Lady Takes The Blame', 'Side Of The Road', and 'Diver' are prime examples of the songwriting prowess of Simon York. The hypnotic rhythms, jangling melodic guitars and perhaps some of his best vocal performances to date come together to create a euphoric, tender and at times sinister energies that intertwine throughout the track list. But it is the piano led title track that provides the album with its coup de grace mixing a slow Mike Garson style melody, York's deep vocal performance, and Bowie-esque saxophone embellishment at the end.

Production-wise this is about as close to perfect as the band have sounded so far. Each instrument carries significant presence in the mix while York's vocals coral them into order. The atmosphere ranges between airy and near-claustrophobic as and when the music calls for it. And the whole album flows just like a classic album should.

'Darkness Falls Upon The Light' is an incredibly strong showing from the band. It ticks all the boxes for what a classic indie album should be. If it were released 20 years ago, who knows. But in 2017 it is an absolute gem that proves that if you dig below the so-called indie mainstream, you will find the really rewarding albums.  

Read More