Praeter Morte- Purifying The Oppressor

Offical Myspace
Released: 2009
Release Type: CD, Full Length
Label: Last Resort Records
Genre: Melodic Death/Deathcore

With the explosion of the whole deathcore/metalcore scene over the past seven or so years, we've seen a slew of awful bands making their way into the mainstream and giving metal a new face which I'm sure a lot of us don't appreciate. Unfortnatly with the whole scene there are a handful of good bands that are just watering down At the Gates and mixing it with Sick of it All and Hatebreed. Case in point Long Island's Praeter Morte find themselves in an odd place, while at times they execute very good melodic death metal, and at other times fall prey to stereotypical and painfully uninspired moments with their music which has epitomized the reason people hold bands like Waking the Cadaver, Black Dahlia Murder, White Chapel, Suicide Silence and Killswitch Engage as metal's death knell.

Not being the biggest fan of this recent trend, there are a handful of great bands, some who prexisted the trend and got pushed into it (Darkest Hour) as well as others who were important innovators (The Red Chord's first album is one of the best post 2000 albums I've ever heard, and Despised Icon aren't half bad), but for the most part it all sounds the same to me.

I'm at odds with this cd as it portrays the band being very competent musicians, and at times excellent songwriters, but unfortunately they fall into cliches and live up to the repugnant stereotypes of the genre. The first track starts off excellently, showcasing catchy guitarwork with obvious nods to At the Gates as well as more than competent drumming and climatic breaks and developments, yet almost on que as I was enjoying myself comes a completely unnecessary breakdown which repeats ad nasum (hur hur hur). "I Remain" continues this perpetual cocktease as it starts with an excellent and attention grabbing riff and then shamefully delves into a two-step mosh section for absolutely no reason. Now I understand the gimmick, the reason, as when played live breakdowns are awesome, but to throw them around like Monopoly money gets rid of any climatic value. Strangely enough the track continues and employs another typical metalcore gimmick of clean guitar, but here it actually works and segways into a very enjoyable riff. The second track acts an exemplar of a very competent and talented band, for whatever reason, giving into stereotypes and gimmicks.

I think Praeter Morte really act as a microcosm for the whole scene as they have some awesome parts but hide it, almost as if they're embarrassed about it, between cliches to appease braindead fans or the market. "The Culling" is probably my favorite track although the breakdown acts in a funny manner as it's utterly pointless and annoying but then leads into an awesome section and a dope solo.

To se the record straight, I love breakdowns. Suffocation is my favorite death metal band, and one reason being their excellent use of rhythm, accenting and structure. Their breakdowns are flawless and never unwelcome, and just like Mike Smith's excellent blast beats, they're all used in moderation and never sicking. Even moreso, black metal with breakdowns is one of my favorite things (Nefastus Dies combines melodic death metal with black metal flawlessly and does this, Leviathan has a few, and I'm sure there's others) I like my death metal with breakdowns (Decapitated, Dying Fetus, Dismember, Devourment, Aborted, Blood Red Throne, etc) but all those bands know the proper use and in the case of Devourment it's an enjoyable gimmick done right, there's no melodic harmonized leads and clean sections to mar the slam.

At the end of the day Praeter Morte is a group of great musicians and talented artists playing beneath their ability. If they were to drop the gimmicks of the genre and focus more on stuff like the epic harmonized guitars in "S.S.P," the midpaced catchiness in the beginning of "To Those Left Behind" and or the tremolo riffing in "The Culling" but unfortunately there's way too many breakdowns, two-step sections, bad and misplaced inhale vocals and not to mention low quality artwork to make me want to come back to this.

I would be more lenient if the hidden track at the end of "Bodies on Sunrise" wasn't a cover from the awful Adult Swim show "Tim and Eric Awesome Show" ( I looked it up hoping it'd be some old nyhc song) but i guess in the end metalcore and shitty tv shows aimed at stoners accomplish the same thing, cheap temporal enjoyment with little reason to come back.

If White Chapel, Suicide Silence, Hatebreed, Black Dahlia Murder, etc etc is your thing then check this out, it'd be nice to see a smaller band like this reap the benefits rather then the Hot Topic mainstays like Suicide Silence. You can listen to their tracks on their myspace, as well as buy the cd from them, or you can buy the cd on iTunes I believe.


-F

Review: Ancient Obliteration - Destruction From The Past

Ancient MySpace
Release: 2009
Type: Demo CD/download
Label: Unsigned

Ancient Obliteration introduced themselves as "Deathened Street Metal" which, if anything, means they should shoot their marketing director. After giving "Destruction..." its fair share of listens I believe the band play Power Metal influenced Death-Thrash. Either way, asking an old punk and life-long grind fan to review this is truly an attest to their masochism, because honestly, their asking for it.

I hold the firm belief that a Demo is all about a band displaying it's potential. The band does not need to write great songs; they only need to write great portions of songs - so that the listener gets the impression that through time and effort those moments can be expanded into fuller, complete offerings. In short, expect nothing, but hope for the best.

Each song on "Destruction from the Past" at least has that moment. Like the 58-second mark in Tokyo Tower when the riff switches up leading into a solo. The two-step movement two minutes into Of Wisdom and Madness. A creative riff variation introduced at 3:03 in Portal Beast. The bass work from 1:48 on in Defiler, including the bass solo finalizing the tune. And the intro of Shogun which crashes into a driving little number. In all, the bass work is probably my favorite from this demo. Serving as more than just a backbone playing off the drums (while having plenty room in the production to work with) the bass tends to accentuate the space between guitar notes in the slower riffing while providing much needed depth to the death metal bits. Much appreciated.

And as stated above, this is all they needed to do - show they can put together just enough moments. The next logical step is to take those moments and build proper songs around them. But how? For the most part, the riffs in each song tend to overstay their welcome. The band spends way too much time on verse-chorus-verse riffing - which is only as interesting as the riffs being used. This is not trite criticism from my "Short, Fast and Loud" mentality. A big omission is in transition from one riff to the next. There are very few bridge riffs, virtually no throw away riffs - you know, the death metal staples. Too often one riff simple becomes the next. It's little things like this which provide the variation essential to elevate a band above its peers. Also the structure surrounding solos seem like a combination of impromptu and after thought. Impromptu in presentation of the solo, after thought in the music leading up to the solo - like they knew where the solo should be but not how to make it fit with the song. In fairness these are all expected one-track-minded traits of younger bands. It is difficult to know when a good riff is being overused, and even harder to know when to set that good riff aside to be used later in a song.

The biggest issue I have with the demo comes from an area I am also the pickiest about: the drumming, namely the inclusion of blast beats. However brief they may be, they are completely out of place. Couple this with how sloppily and lightly they are played. In a few spots it sounds like the drummer is just mashing as many pieces of his kit as possible - all on the same count. It takes so much away from the listening experience. This is easy to fix though: either learn to play blast beats as they are intended, crisp and powerfully, or omit them altogether.

Ancient Obliteration can be a good band. This demo shows it. It's a question of whether they are patient enough to put in the time and persistent enough to make the effort. They were kind enough to make the demo available for download here, and if you would like to support the band, pick up a copy here. It's only 5USD.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. And if you're outside of the USA I, as an ambassador of goodwill and festive spirits, I extend my hand to you to partake in our hypocritical but fun holiday.

Turkey, of course being the centerpiece of Thanksgiving, might ostracize those who are limpwristed enough to avoid meat, but regardless of those said limpwristed individuals they make some damn good music.

So I give thanks to these bands, as silly as your vegan/vegetarian view might be, I love your music.

(No time to upload my own rips, as well as my parent's connection is quite shitty, so thanks to whomever I've taken these links from...)

Disrupt-Unrest (Thanks 206)
Excellent album, it's Disrupt, need i say more? If i do, I'll just say excellent pissed off and HEAVY crust, awesome male/female vocals.

Extreme Noise Terror- Law of Retaliation
Still more grounded in modern production and leanings towards death metal, but a much larger hint of their old school sound, so it's a nice change of pace from Being and Nothing.

Dystopia-Dystopia
Their final album, awesome shit. Now and Forever is one of the best Dystopia songs ever. A lot of filler with this release, but whatever.

Nausea- Punk Terrorist Anthology Vol. 2
It's Nausea...duh.

Attack of the Mad Axeman- Scumdogs of the Forest
206's review's spot on, heavy grinding madness from Germany all in the name of animal rights (the right to be delicious I say). Fun(ny) band.

Aus Rotten- The Rotten Agenda
Everyone whose anyone know who Aus Rotten are, and if you don't you do now. Awesome midpaced hardcore/crust. Vehement and great lyrics propel one of punk's most important albums.

Most Precious Blood- Nothing in Vain
One of the few bands from Trustkill that's actually good, Nothing In Vain was a favorite of mine in high school. Excellent and melodic hardcore in the American vain such as old Hatebreed and the like. Some of these guys were in the ill-fated Cannius, a supergroup of dogs and members of MPB. All bark and no bite...

-F

Playing the waiting game

Two years ago Power-It-Up announced a Nasum Tribute. I love tribute albums. One reason is that contributing bands tend to use their own sound and approach to the songs they cover. Another is that these compilations invariable contain a few bands I have either never heard or completely forgotten about. So tributes are a great way to rekindle interest in older bands while sparking interest in the new breed. And seriously, how can you fuck up a Nasum song? Seriously. Flash forward to last September, two years and five updates later, we get word that it's a double CD and the release date is November 2k9. Yet here we are, with seven days left in the month - and nothing is for sale. But the promos have been shipped out, and know what that means: it's out there, right now, in some lucky fuck's CD player. That also means you can download it. Sure enough, a quick search yields torrents and download links a plenty. But the point is that here we are, us Nasum fans yearning for a fix, playing the waiting game... Dear Power-It-Up, my credit card is standing by.


For the past six months, at least, on Inhume's Myspace page there is a message that makes every fan take notice: New Inhume Album in 2009 on War Anthem Records. Checking the War Anthem web page gives additional information: the new album is due in November 2k9. This is starting to sound familiar, isn't it? Well, here we are, with a week to go and there's only an cover and a few songs to drool over. I was not much for the early Inhume records. Brutal Death Featuring Blast Beats is not my style. But Chaos Dissection Order is the business. Here they not only incorporated proper grind but showed an understanding of the genre. Add to this that the split with Mumakil showed every indication that they are continuing down this path and you have my full attention. So where is it? Even an update along the lines of "be patient" makes the waiting game much easier than silence. Dear War Anthem records, my credit card is standing by.


In other news, Rotten Sound just signed with Relapse and will release an EP in March '10. This might be a good move for them. Already being established, they should be able to hit the studio and do things their way.

Thou - Kingdoms

Official Site
Label: Peasant Magik
Released: 2009
Release Type: 3 cassettes lmt. 300
Genre: Sludge

My excitement aside, this release offers a handful for collectors, enthusiasts, and even the casual listener. Packaged inside a small jet black box (roughly 4x4x4in.) you get three cassettes, each with a thick plastic like paper covered with beautiful grey/black artwork, a pin, a sticker, a patch, a vial of pine needles/cones, a small booklet with lyrics and pictures all on a bed of moss; quite the package, no?

The music contained in this beautiful little package is all of Thou's work from 2007-2008, not including their first two demos. You get two full lengths (Tyrant & Peasant), The Retaliation of the Immutable Force of Nature EP, To Carry a Stone EP ,We Pass Like Night, From Land to Land(split with Leech), Thrive & Decay (split with Black September), and Malfeasance-Retribution EP. There's a lot to take in, but it's all excellent. You can really appreciate a band when they don't have a single bad song.

Having heard most of this stuff on vinyl/mp3 I can say it sounds excellent here. I heard the Peasant album in my friend's car in mp3 format and we both commented how overproduced and weak it sounded, not here; the tape sounds excellent and carries that filthy heavy sludge sound that's damn near perfect.

So as far as the music's concerned I'll break it down by singular release.

Tyrant
Being the first release I heard by Thou I was an instant fan. Songs like "Tyrant" and "Fucking Chained to the Bottom of the Ocean" are stellar highlights (listen to that buildup around 6minutes in "Tyrant" holy hell that's awesome). With the previously mentioned songs we see vibrant sludge mixed with beautiful post metal sections (soaring guitars, build ups, huge sound). The more Eyehategod like sections are excellent mid-paced crashes of heavy riffs and monstrous drums all accompanied by venomously powerful vocals. In terms of the vocals, they sound much more like black metal vocals than anything else, yet they're still decipherable. Thou excel at what they do because they seemingly manage to mix that ugly, filthy, drug ridden vibe that we associate with sludge and mix it with the celestial sound that comes to mind with bands like Pelican and Caspian. Easily one of the best sludge releases I've ever heard.

Thrive & Decay
An excellent release in it's own right, as Black September plays an awesome brand of death metal akin to older Bolt Thrower, but here it's just Thou (as with the other split material included). The song from this release has a great movie clip at the beginning and the song carries out in a similar violent manner. Much more like Eyehategod (I hate to keep comparing, but it's true). Awesome song title as well, "Smoke Pigs."

We Pass Like Night, From Land to Land
Four Songs here, previously from the split with Leech. Things start softly with a calming acoustic intro which leads to the spacey and serene "Here I Stand, Head In Hand" which explodes into a brilliant cascade of emotive force, embodying itself in thick walls of distortion ravenous vocals and seeping bass. A much more atmospheric a offering from Thou. Much like the first track, "The Defeatist's Lament" ends with waves of distortion and clean guitars, as well as those ethereal female vocals present on "Here I Stand..." A very "whole" feeling ep, more like a mini album.

Malfeasance-Retribution
The two songs from the ep are phenomenal as we'd expect. Here they're sandwiched in between the Black September split and the Leech split. You gotta love the song titles, "The Severed Genitals of Every Rapist Hang Bleeding From These Trees" (although on the actual ep it's "bleeding genitals..." I don't know if this is a typo on Peasant Magik's part or not). Powerful and driving, both songs are full of rich textures and drift from pounding sludge, to rhythmic changes, to harrowing atmospheric passages. A bit more sludgy, but brilliant nonetheless.


To Carry a Stone
More of the same; first "They Stretch Out Their Hands" carries on a midpaced sludge affair until it breaks down to a harrowing slow section which it never seems to dig itself out of. "The Road of Many Names" begins with the ominous feedback we're all used to and dives in with a super thick and artillery heavy riff. The little haunting clean riff around the end really works well and is quite creepy. All in all I'd have to say this is thou's weakest work, but that's like saying "The Return" isn't as good "Under the Sign;" we're all winners.

Peasant
"The Work Ethic Myth" kicks things off perfectly, as it's one of the best tracks on the album and depicts Thou's sound perfectly. Peasant, an album which I'm not as well versed with as Tyrant, is still magnificent but doesn't hold the same place that Tyrant does for me. Sections like 5:10 into "Belt Of fire To Guide Me Cloak Of Night To Hide Me" and the first real riff of "Burning Black Coals And Dark Memories" are great and make up the weight of quality for this album. Not as strong as Tyrant, but remarkable nonetheless.

The Retaliation of the Immutable Force of Nature
Two songs again here. "What Blood Still Runs Through These Veins" crawls at a snail's pace yet carries a hippo's weight. The sound is giagantic and the guitars are as thicker than any football linebacker you can think of. They achieve a huge sound here and juxtapose the sludgy thickness with beautiful leads and powerful riffs. The track peters out to distortion and leads way to "Acceptance" which is one of my favorite songs. It's a post metal instrumental done better than any post metal band. The beautiful guitars weave back and forth in between lapses of reverb and accompanying drums. It all builds to a monumental crescendo with some of the most enthralling guitarwork I've ever heard around the six minute mark which luckily continues until around ten minutes. The progression and delivery is simply breath taking and proves that Thou are an exceptional band.

Beyond the excellent music, Thou create wonderful lyrics and have an absolutely magnificent image in their artwork and merchandise. Little epigraphs here and there on various releases depict a well read and versed band, as well as establish the morose atmosphere of the band. With all the releases I own of the band, each one was well worth the money as they all come with something special and have great artwork, Kingdoms is no different. The quote on the first page of the booklet,

"She used the ancient, long-forgotten "thou"- the "thou" of the master to the slave. It entered into me slowly, sharply. Yes, I was a slave, and this, too, was necessary, was good."

Taken from Yevgeny Zamyatin's book We is a powerful epigraph to this impressive body of work. The boxset is only $20 and well worth it; I'm a very happy camper with this one. Go to Thou's webpage and you can listen to every song of theirs i think.

-F

Joe Pesci - At Our Expense

Joe Pesci MySpace
Release: 2009
Type: CD
Label: Bones Brigade

I'm like a 3-way split when it comes to bands named after thespians. One part of me doesn't care, another doesn't get the appeal and the third is waiting for an all-female band called Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio. In the end it's all about the music, right? Joe Pesci the band has nearly everything we have come to expect from the actor: short songs, a pissed off attitude and an uncompromising approach. The only difference is that any project the actor signs his name to is going to have a production and marketing budget big enough to feed Sudan until the Mayan calendar ends. Conversely "At Our Expense" sounds like it was ripped from vinyl by holding a boombox to the output speaker. Like all poorly produced albums though you can increase your chances or enjoyment by turning it up a notch or three.

Just don't crank it up too loudly because, ironically, the few samples this album contains are actually mastered properly, i.e. twice as loud as the music - so you'll blow your ears if one of those pop up unexpectedly. That is really the only downer. Your ears adjust to the production just in time for a sample to fuck up your equilibrium and you have to adjust all over again. But let you be warned: any one who passes on this because it sounds like it was recorded in a caravan is a pretentious bastard.

The band serves up 17 helpings which is a solid number in most necks of the wood. Since the band's motto is Play Fast Or Don't, it should come as no surprise that this one is over mere seconds after the run time hits 15 minutes. It's quite a ride though. As the play list breezes by you get the impression that Joe Pesci could easily play any brand of extreme metal. They play throw-away slam riffs at light speed, crust at ridiculous speed and just to prove they have more than a cuisinart in the engine room, they twist out crossover riffs at ludicrous speed. The better riffs are of course subjective. For my cup of tea take for example the Assuck meets Discoradance Axis riffs in Sticking My Carbon Footprint Up Your Arse and at the end of Funkhouser. Or the wicked death metal riff that appears out of nowhere in the middle of Mindless Zombified Fucks. Not to be outdone, you can have both of those examples in one compact, 51-second helping that is Hyper-Real.

But don't stop there. Call it Fastcore. Call it Powerviolence. Call it as you see it. The whole point of At Our Expense is speed and attitude. Your best bet is to make full use of the 'repeat' button on your media device and go along for the ride. Check Joe Pesci out here, go buy it here or here, and then tell your friends about them while you wait.

Desolate One Interview

After checking out Desolate One's demo (you can read the review for the album here) the idea was sprung for an interview, which works out greatly because I've been listening to Conqueror and Teitanblood nonstop for the past week and am in the mood for more Desolate One. Checking in with us is Desolate One's crux, Nuclear Tormentor, as he handles all instruments and song writing.

-Can you give us a brief history of Desolate One? What got you guys to start making music? Is there anything beyond music that inspires you?

NT:Desolate One was formed (not so much formed as a concept that I started on my own) in 2008. I started making this kind of music because I was fascinated with the fire-spitting sound that is in black metal. Countless hours of listening to classic records made me want to give it a shot. Beyond music, I am inspired by ancient times, the future, occultism, death fascination, and the apocalypse.

-I know you're looking to expand your lineup, how is that going?

NT:Not very well. My area has next to nobody interested in extreme metal. There are a few people who can play and would like to be in Desolate One, just because they are bored. But I would only like to play with people who truly appreciate this music.

-The new tracks sound great, much more chaotic and heavier, can we expect more in this vein and less hardcore/thrash infused stuff like we saw on the S/T? The bass is noticable too, I think that really helps.

NT:Definitely. I think the first demo was a confused recording, though it was great for what it was. I really like the opening instrumental, and a few others like War to the Core (I'd like to redo Possessor's vocals, though). The new demo, "Desecrate the Night", is more of an exploration with the chaotic and crushing sound. I try to make the riffs collide into one another.

-As a band new to the public eye, what have you found most difficult? Do you have any goals in mind as to what you would like to do with Desolate One?

NT:Nothing's been really difficult. I'm not even sure we are in the public eye. Goals? I just hope to make a decent full-length album soon.

-What is the songwriting and recording process like?

NT:I write the songs on guitar. I then record the drums first all the way through while reciting all of the rhythm changes in my head. After that, I record guitar and bass. It's usually months before I actually get our vocalist in and finish the tracks.

-The influences are obvious, so I'll skip that, but what current bands are you listening to now?

NT:Newer releases that are actually decent? Well, I like Revenge, Proclamation, Morbosidad, Teitanblood, bands like that. Been listening to the newest Kraftwerk live album a lot. Beherit's Engram, Profanatica's Profanatitas De Domonatia, the new Pagan Altar albums, and Slayer's World Painted Blood are all great as well, but I still prefer the older material.

-How important is production for a band's release to you?

NT:Production does matter slightly, it demonstrates how the band wants the music to be heard (obviously). Though, production should always take a backseat to composition.

-What's your view on the current USBM scene?

NT:I'm not in contact with very many Californian black metal bands. I have no interest in them.

- Fallen Angel of Doom, INRI, The Oath of Black Blood, Angelcunt, The Return, or In The Sign Of Evil? Why?

NT:Toughest question yet. All of them are great in their own way. Angelcunt is probably my least favorite of the list, but is still a violent classic. The Return and In the Sign of Evil paved the way for extreme music. Probably a tie between INRI, The Return, and Fallen Angel of Doom for that indescribable esoteric aura that surrounds them.

-Any last words?

NT:Pre-order the Desecrate the Night tape, to be released in December on Darkness Shade Records. Fifty copies will be distributed through Darkness Shade with the cemetery fornication cover, the other fifty will be distributed through Thorn Laceration with a different cover. Support weapons, war, and black metal. Embrace the end times.

Both demos, as well as other goodies (check out those awesome Maniac Butcher rereleases) are available at Darkness Shade Records.