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The Dillinger Escape Plan
Calculating Infinity

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A long time ago in these hallowed pages I spoke about the role Death Metal had to play in the demise of such acts as Mr Big and Poison. Well I guess you can say the genre has been treading water since then, and I would argue its near as dammit extinct. Sure there may be some good bands out there (ask Peter!) but lets face it, Latin is still a staple of the British schooling system but hey its still dead!

Well what does this mean to The Dillinger Escape Project? Not much cause they’re not a Death Metal band. However I would say that they point in a direction which is a natural progression from that genre and which few seem to have taken. Fear Factory escaped by upping the technology, Carcass shone by rocking out, but Cannibal Corpse et al are still the same, but not as good or as hard hitting!

The Dillinger Escape Plan are a noise core band, in a similar vein to Soilent Green. Calculating Infinity is as heavy as fuck, but incorporates all sorts of added weirdness such as Jazz, and adds song titles like Weekend Sex Change. From a musical stand point I applaud them for not following the trend and exploring all that they want to. However from a personal view, which lets face it is what a review is about, they are not my thing at all. Ragged and disjointed come to mind, with their more experimental sections in particular highlighting their ineptitude. You see jazz ain’t easy to play at the best of times, never mind if for most of the time you’re a pedal to the metal grindcore band. I often found myself wondering what the album would be like live as the sheer lack of structure makes the songs near impossible to play. Yes I can see that there is some genuine musical talent on show but I don’t find it that accessible to the listener. I guess if this is your thing then this is a wonderful album, but for the rest of us, stay clear!

Rating: **********

Charger
Fuzzbastard

Charger are a name I’ve heard banded about recently, and being signed to the rock friendly Undergroove label I felt it my duty to check this EP out. Like the Tummler demo we have three tracks which go on for a good decade each. Megatron kicks in with a top stoner groove, setting the scene for songs about sunshine and sand, but instead we get a guy screaming in manner reminiscent of the noise a pig would make during a particularly nasty death. Death and Groove then.

Now although this is not a well traversed musical style, I have heard something similar on the Six Feet Under album, Warpath. However, unlike Chris Barnes and cohorts, Charger up the funkiness and lower the death producing a nice mixture of aggression and laid back swing. The bass is impressively low throughout the three tracks, especially in the rocking out end section of Brickshithouse, and overall the sound, although not amazing, is perfectly adequate for the job. Charger aren’t scared to experiment either and occasionally throw in more thrashy sections to their staple low groove. The vocals don’t wander from their anguished path at all and at times I wish the guy would just relax into the sound that the rest of the band are creating.

I’m going to sit on the fence over this one I’m afraid. Although musically excellent, I’m not sure if the two genres mix that easily. I guess a full length release would be the best ground to judge this. However extra points are awarded for originality and that bass sound. Go check it out!

Rating: **********

Century Media

Moonspell
The Butterfly Effect

The follow-up to their well received last album Sin/Pecado, which was full of majestic gloominess and dark atmosphere, this collection of songs sees the band take their sound in a different direction: notably heavier and more aggressive songs overall, with deathly vocals in many parts. Of course it isn’t a complete transformation in style, their miserable gothic vibe is still there in all its glory. But this is a different kind of miserable album from their last – that was more edging into goth territory in many parts. This is more a miserable album from a straight-on metal point of view, which may disappoint some expecting them to follow the direction of the likes of Type-O.

One thing that struck me upon listening to this was that it is noticeably less commercial, which makes it harder to get into. To be honest, I never fully got into the vibe on this album, in that no songs stand out right now as memorable. The songs seem less powerful and sweeping – they seem to be going for aggression in many parts here, and it didn’t really do anything for me (mind you, that’s just my personal taste). To its credit, it’s livelier and more varied in style than its predecessor, which pleasantly surprised me, and reminds me a touch of old style My Dying Bride (which can only be a good thing). It just tends to blend into the background for me when I put it on. Maybe if I listened to this non-stop for hours I’d feel warmer towards it, but I really can’t be arsed! Two or three years ago I would’ve, but these days, I’ve got too many other albums I actually like that I’d rather be listening to. Someone with more patience for uncommercial gothic tinged doom/death metal might rave about it more than me.

As it stands, after all I’ve said to slag it off in this review, I did enjoy this album (honest!), and it’s definitely worth checking out if you like doom metal – it’s got some fine songs - it just wasn’t what I expected it to be, and if, like me, all you’ve heard of Moonspell is their last album, it might well surprise you.

Verdict: A fine slab of heavy gothic doom metal, if you’ve got the patience to get into it!!

Scarlet

Adversam
Animadverte

Where do I start. Black metal, keyboards, speed, screamy growls. OK? Hmm, I suppose I'd better go a bit deeper than that. Animadverte kind of reminds me of Dark Requiems-era Hecate Enthroned, but not as enjoyable. For the most part it's well played, adequately produced, and reasonably OK - the only thing is they succumb to the downfall of most bands of their ilk, shit out-of-time drumming in the fast bits.

If you're an avid black metal fan then you will probably love it from start to finish, but if you only have a passing interest, I would have no hesitation in recommending the aforementioned Dark Requiems by Hecate Enthroned. There's too little innovation in this overly saturated market, which leaves many bands sounding like lame copies of each other. Animadverte may be slightly above the mire, but the band still have a lot further to go if they want to stand out.

Verdict: Reasonable, but formulaic