|
Alone / Custom Heavy Viaje A 800
|
||
|
This eight-tracker from Spain's Alone Records / Custom Heavy is a veritable groove-doom fest, unusualy in their native Spanigh tongue. In fact, opener Roto Blues is so laid back, you'd be excused for falling asleep until it 'kicks in' for the first time over five minutes from the start. The nearest thing I can compare it to would be Sleep's Jerusalem, an album which despite the band's pedigree I never really managed to get into. The opener rolls straight into Cardio Limite, an altogether more Kyussy proposition full of hooks and groove. The rest of the album meanders between these two extremes and in turn captures the potential of neither, while providing some interesting sounds along the way. Largo Beso Recto for example shows what a slightly more laidback Leadfoot might sound like. The last three of tracks pick up the interest a bit, with the mammoth Vuelo Inferno weighing in at an impressive 10 minutes, and the foot-stomping charm of Humo De Mota leaving the album on a definite high. Verdict: A cool album worthy of your attention. |
|||
|
|||
|
Century Media / People Like You Various
|
|
||
|
Another great compilation from the gents at People Like You records, showcasing a whopping 25 bands ranging from stoner to punk. You really can't complain when over half the album of just fucking great, and the rest is pretty cool too!! Bands like Eternal Elysium, Solace, The Awesome Machine, The Mushroom River Band and Zebulon really do make this a top quality slab of groove. The punkier side of the album sometimes makes things seem to drag on a bit, but hey, that's just my personal taste - the songs are not actually too bad. Verdict: Great value sampler that lasts forever. |
|||
|
|||
 |
Alastis
|
||
|
I write this review, perhaps unfairly, while listening to the excellence that is Karma To Burn's 28. Against that backdrop, I have to say that Alastis bore me to tears. In fact, it may have been listening to Unity a few hours ago that made me go out to buy the album containing the aforementioned Karma To Burn song. I guess I have to be thankful to them for that at least. Thanks guys. Unity is just an album of miserable music. And no I don't mean that's why it's shit - I like a lot of miserable stuff - it's just that Alastis do it in a really dull way. Maybe I just don't understand it or something, but it's not my cup of tea. Verdict: Dull as hell. |
|||
|
|||
Wykked Wytch
|
|
||
|
I have to give WW their dues - since their last album they have apparently learned to spell. Vengeance is a long word too, lots of scope for error. I said in the previous review that the last two tracks held out promise for the future; it looked as though I might have been right. I don't want to listen to the previous album again, but I think Angelic Vengeance is a lot better. What we have this time around is basically mediocre demo-quality Cradle Of Filth, with late 80s style thrash lyrics. And I'm not the only one around here that thinks so. They appear to have improved a lot in the last year or so, but really I don't see them as a credible band and don't understand why a record company would want to take them on. Verdict: Amateurish CoF |
|||
|
|||
|
Morgul
|
||
|
Though I've had mixed dealings with them, I think I'm glad to say that this is one of the last Century Media releases I will ever have to review. They've sent me such great things as Arch Enemy and Strapping Young Lad, but they've also sent me a huge expanse of mediocrity. Oh yeah, and of course some shit too. From first glance this would appear to be from the mediocre pile, and at the end of the day that's where I place it. Morgul have a strange mixture of pummeling heaviness and soothing sounds, which at the end of the day tends to make the heavier bits sound a bit limp, and the softer bits sound just odd. I think they have a reasonable idea where they're trying to go with the music, but they just don't seem to quite get there. A bit of a shame really, because I think if a band with a bit more class came along and tried to do the same thing, it could be huge. I should mention also that the song titles are awful, ranging from The Dog And The Master to Dead For A While and Truth, Liars And Dead Flesh. Machine sounds kind of like a poor man's My Dying Bride. Verdict: Trust me, go for the real thing instead. |
|||
|
|||
Immemoreal
|
|
||
|
You guys will probably know by now that I usually slate this kind of stuff, but some of this album is actually not too bad - particularly the intro. Then again, if you can't even make a good intro, what hope do you have? The whole album is basically typical black metal stuff, but reasonably well crafted and with much more inventive drums than the usual pummeling fraternity. Triumphant Grasp is an awful title. Sorry, what I meant to say was Triumphant Grasp is quite a good melodic number with interesting rhythms - unfortunately it does get wearing after a while much like the album as a whole. Verdict: A pretty reasonable effort |
|||
|
|||
|
Wytchfynde
|
||
|
Wytchfynde used to be called Witchfinde. I wonder how they came up with the new name? These guys really are a bunch of pope-smikers - they just look awful. They even manage to look as cheezy as their music sounds - and that's no mean feat!! The album opens with Hell Hath No Fury, which is basically Judas Priest with slightly Evil Has No Boundaries-esque vocals. Death Of Innocence follows up well with an almost Alice Cooper edge moving into a chorus melody that I'm convinced came from Bruce Dickinson's excellent Skunkworks. The rest of the album moves around on similar lines - sometimes dull, sometimes inspired. There is even a moment of near brilliance in Ghost Dancer (until the bridge section at least), sounding uncannily like Paul Di'anno singing a Motorhead track - you know you'd love that!! Verdict: 15 years too late. |
|||
|
|||
Skyclad
|
|
||
|
Somehow I have managed to survive a whole 24 years without ever having to listen to Skyclad. They have always been a band I've seen mentioned and often adored, but my prejudices told me they sucked. And they were kind of right. Don't get me wrong - there is definitely a huge audience for this folk-cheeze-metal fusion, it's just not me. The tracks on this album, a mixture of live work and studio cuts, are at times almost interesting yet all manage to bore. The violin has a nice sound to it, yet just manages to ensure the cheeze quotient remains high. Basically there is about 1/5 of the CD that is probably quite cool and the rest is just overkill. And with lyrics such as "No my love's not an angel, it's merely a monkey with wings." (Sins Of Emission), how can you really listen with a straight face? Verdict: Probably exactly what you'd expect. |
|||
|
|||
