With so many newer bands playing technical death metal these days, it’s refreshing to find a band that infuses early 90’s styled song craft to their approach.  Metal Blade has just released Dying Vine, the debut album from Pennsylvania’s Aletheian and the young band definitely has done their influences justice.  All the usual ingredients that you would expect from a tech-death album are present.  The intricate rhythm patterns, hyper sped guitar lines and complex song arrangements are abundant throughout the length of the album.  The vocal lines float in and out of the chaotic tracks with a commanding presence that works wonders for the flow of the material.  Front man Joel Thorpe’s style ranges from screechy grunts to lower, more traditional death metal schooled vocal jabs.

While the songs certainly have a modern stylistic footing, some of the sections had a certain feel to them that looked backwards for inspiration.  There were aspects of the band that reminded me of older greats like Pestilence (Spheres era) and Atheist.  The combo even goes as far as to cover the mighty Cynic’s “How Could I” from their essential, Focus album.  Now when you dare take on a song of this caliber, you better know what you are doing!  Luckily for Aletheian, they not only live up to the lofty challenge, they also actually manage to inject their unique stamp on the1993 gem.  Dying Vine isn’t the kind of album you crank in your car on the way to the Slayer show but for those of you who love highly skilled death metal with plenty of structural twists and turns, I couldn’t recommend it enough. 

Rating: 8/10
Label: Metal Blade Records
Website: www.aletheian.com

 By Carlos Ramirez

Rate this review: (2 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
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This North Carolina band play the kind of melodic-rock that was just makes you want to get in your car, roll the window down and sing-along! In this day and age of metalcore bands screaming and growling their way through entire records, it is refreshing to find a band where the singer actually weaves melodies instead of deconstruct them. Secret Lives! of the Freemasons have been slugging it out in the VFW Hall and basement circuit for the past few years and 2008 finds them releasing their debut album for Victory Records. Hopefully the label’s considerable resources can help the six-piece get the kind of recognition they rightfully deserve.

Their carefree arrangements and hooky guitar refrains recall Hot Rod Circuit’s poppier moments. Their entire approach actually brings me back to 1999, when bands like this were more common. The band relocated to Winston-Salem and recorded Weekend Warriors with producer Jamie King who is known more for his work with heavier bands like He Is Legend and Between the Buried and Me. The move paid off in spades as his crisp mix fits the bouncy arrangements perfectly. The songwriting is also impressive with fully realized lyrical ideas and dynamic shifts around every corner. The dissonant chords that push and pull the verses of “Dirty Laundry” set up the kind of triumphant chorus that most bands would kill for! The award for most impressive track goes to “Why We Run.” From beginning to end, this one never lets up from delivering one earworm after the other! Time will tell if Secret Lives! of the Freemasons can reach the larger audience that Victory Records can help them reach but what is certain, they deserve it.

Track Listing:

01. Chug and Leave
02. Mascara
03. Dirty Laundry
04. The New Whack
05. Feels Like Home
06. Why We Run
07. Airplanes
08. There’s Wolves Out There
09. Painting Monsters
10. The Death of
11. Xanax
12. Life Begins at 40 oz.

By Carlos Ramirez

Rate this review: (2 votes, average: 4.5 out of 5)
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With the current old-school thrash revival in full swing, it’s great to find newer bands exploring other bands outside of the obvious influences.  Sure, most of the younger bands mine their inspiration from bands like Slayer, Testament and Exodus but there are a few bands cropping up who are casting their nets wider.  Indiana upstarts, Phantom Witch throw in vintage NWOBHM (Angel Witch, Tank) styled riffs into their speed metal attack showing off their great taste in the process. 

Newly signed to Heavy Artillery in the States, Phantom Witch will soon be releasing their 4 song mini LP and old-school metalheads should have this band on their radar.  The power-trio gets the mood right with bassist/vocalist Rick Cope’s distinct vocal style.  His snarl really fits the primal riffing and fast-paced tempos put down by drummer Joe Zito.  The promise is here but nothing on the 4 songs featured here really popped out at me.  The band surely has the talent and power to make a compelling full-length (which is in the works) but all they do on this 12” mini LP is show off their promise.

Rating: 6.5/10
Label: Heavy Artillery
Website: www.heavyartillery.us

 By Carlos Ramirez

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Do you like power metal in the vein of European bands like Primal Fear and Nocturnal Rites? Then chances are you’ll enjoy Road of Bones from band Ignitor. Consisting of Texas metal scene veterans, the quintet also mine from the same stylistic well that makes bands like Slough Feg so appealing. This is gimmick-free metal of the purest form. Erika Tandy’s powerhouse vocals return to a time when singers could actually hit high notes and not just resort to screaming and grunting. Not only do they soar but her vocals also have personality which really comes through on songs like “Scarlet Enigma.” She has since exited the band so hopefully the band can find a suitable replacement because these songs deserve someone strong singing them.

Guitarist Stuart Laurence might be familiar to older SMN News readers as a member of Agony Column. It is great finding him still churning out high-caliber metal like this! He delivers some nasty riffing throughout the album but “Broken Glass” is the definite stand out here. This song contains all the elements a great metal song should contain. The jagged riff refrains, the bombastic chorus and the kind of memorable guitar solos that never replace technicality with quality. This album isn’t going to cause waves or anything but it doesn’t mean you should ignore it. If you know and love classic metal, Ignitor deserves your attention.

Rating: 7/10
Label: Cruz Del Sur Music
Website: www.cruzdelsurmusic.com

By Carlos Ramirez

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If you read my review of the Blotted Science album a few weeks back, you’ll know how dear I hold bands like Fates Warning, Watchtower and Spiral Architect close to my heart. California quartet, Zero Hour has been playing the kind of hi-tech progressive metal that not only falls into this kind of categorization, but also lives up to the mighty legacies these bands have created for themselves. ZH’s new album, Dark Deceiver is the sound of a band driving forward with complete comfort and control. Guitarist Jasun Tipton leads the charge, pulling out every guitar trick out of the Shrapnel Records (circa 1989) catalog along the way. There are neo-classical twin-harmonies, shred runs and the kinds of buzzing arpeggios that would make Tony MacAlpine jealous in his glory days!

Sure, Tipton isn’t the only guitarist doing this kind of thing right now but few bands pack the songwriting muscle that ZH do. Tracks like “Lies” and “Resurrection” might be filled to the gills with acrobatic guitar lines, but there are strong songs at the foundation of them. Vocal dynamo, Chris Salinas also breaks out on this one proving why he is one of the most popular front men in the progressive community today. His high-pitched stuff here is right up there with Jon Arch (Fates Warning) and his more mid-ranged lines brought Russ Anderson from Forbidden to mind.

The choppy arrangements might prove to be too intense for mainstream listeners but their blend of challenging time signatures and seamless hooks should not be ignored by more adventurous metal fans. The twisting cyclones in “Power to Believe” alone are worth the price of admission! Mike Guy (drums) and Troy Tipton (bass) are the kind of rhythm section that a band of this level absolutely has to have to be able to pull this kind of material off. Guy’s footwork is awe-inspiring and definitely puts him in a class all to himself! So let it be known, Zero Hour has crafted a true modern day progressive metal classic with Dark Deceiver. The question is will people discover it.

Rating: 8.5/10
Label: Sensory Records
Website: www.zerohourweb.com

By Carlos Ramirez

Rate this review: (3 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
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Trees are a doom band from Portland, Oregon. They sound like a combination of Noothgrush and Khanate. Their debut album, Lights Bane (nothing to do with Dissection) consists of two songs. The first one is called “Nothing” and clocks in at just over fifteen minutes! There are moments of drone, squeals of amplifier feedback and blood-curling grunts scattered throughout the epic track. The ominously titled, “Black” is more of the same along with an almost, psychedelic quality wrapping the song together. If you listen with headphones, like I did and you should probably to, you can make out faint voices buried deep within the mix. This album is definitely not for everyone but its kult nature will definitely appeal to fans of the aforementioned bands.

Rating: 7/10
Label: Crucial Blast
Website: www.crucialblast.net

By Carlos Ramirez

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In the summer of 1990, all me and my friend Omer cared about was Consuming Impulse. The second album from Dutch death-thrashers, Pestilence was that good! Every track had at least five classic riffs and despite the music’s brutal nature, they still managed to craft memorable songs. That in itself is a feat that should not be ignored. But what really pulled me in were Martin van Drunen’s dry death metal growls. He sounded like he was dying with thirst and pleading for mercy. Unfortunately, the bassist/vocalist left the band and joined Asphyx who never lived up to the promise of their debut album, The Rack.

So here we are so many years later and van Drunen has joined forces with members of Gorefest, Houwitser and Thanatos to form Hail of Bullets. The combo is bonded by their love of death metal greats like Bolt Thrower and Autopsy. From the chugging attack of “Ordered Eastward” to the doom-stomp of “Berlin,” …of Frost and War is the kind of album that could have easily come out in 1991. Listening to Martin’s death grunts again is like being visited by an old friend. The guy has not lost a step in the in-between years!

Mixed and mastered by Dan Swanö, the Swedish death metal kingpin gives these tracks the kind of biting tone and crushing bottom end that was lacking in many of the records coming out during the genre’s heyday. Paul Baayens and Stephan Gebedi’s riffing patterns go from Scandinavian flavored runs to slower, sludge marches. Their solo runs also are full of character with enough whammy-bar drops and other nuances to keep you compelled throughout. It would have been great to find the band exploring their faster tendencies more but Hail of Bullets does not disappoint on this exciting debut.

Rating: 7.5/10
Label: Metal Blade Records
Website: www.metalblade.com

By Carlos Ramirez

Rate this review: (6 votes, average: 4.83 out of 5)
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Heavy metal has evolved so much in the last ten years in terms of how heavy bands have pushed the art form. There seems to be no boundary that hasn’t already been beaten down already in that department. The trick is really taking the abrasive attitude and applying it to your songwriting in an interesting and effective manner. Too many younger bands pile in 200 riffs in a song and try and pass it off as something of actual substance. Fortunately for us, Lancaster, PA’s Century has honed their chops enough to be heavy while structuring their assault in a cohesive package. Their waves of dissonant guitar riffs bubble out of the speakers with equal amounts of bite and atmosphere and they always make sense within the arrangement of the song. Everything falls into place and with a pummeling this tough, that is saying a lot! Their debut for Prosthetic Records, Black Ocean, is the sound of a band firing on all cylinders.

Jason Baker and George Fava’s guitar work reminds me of early 90’s bands like Kiss It Goodbye and Acrid while still retaining a modern flavor within the bigger picture. The polyrhythmic riffing on the great “Pantheon” is proof enough that this guitar team is a force to be reckoned with. They also show off a more fluid, discordant style on “Equus” further cementing their might. I read a review the other day where the writer ripped on Century’s vocalist, Carson Slovak calling them too “screamy.” Yeah, Slovak does scream a lot, but it’s hard to imagine a more fitting marriage when you have the beds of distortion that canvas the tracks on this album. Besides, the guy does a more than capable job throughout the tracks. He also has a great sense of cadence in his vocal runs that adds a propulsive meter to the already energetic tempos. The one thing that I walked away from after my initial listening of Black Ocean was the unlikely combination of aggression and melancholy the material had. There is a European vibe to the essence of the songs but with an American sensibility to it somehow. It’s tough to put it into words really, but the band has done something fresh and invigorating here.

Rating: 7.5/10
Label: Prosthetic Records
Website: www.prostheticrecords.com

By Carlos Ramirez

Rate this review: (5 votes, average: 4.2 out of 5)
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Soilent Green have always released consistent collections of their brand of Southern styled groove metal meets grindcore. Like Motörhead and to a lesser extent, The Ramones, the New Orleans based band’s albums don’t really differ much from one another. This isn’t a necessarily bad thing when the material is as strong as theirs. Now signed to Metal Blade Records, the quintet has just released their fourth long player, Inevitable Collapse In The Presence Of Conviction. Once again, they stick to what they do best and it pays off. The record is packed with wicked death metal informed guitars, grind-speed drumming, and some of the most EYEHATEGOD-styled (guitarist Brian Patton spends time in that band too) funeral stomps the band have ever put down on tape! The army of sludgy guitars that are featured in “Antioxidant” are proof enough of the unit’s ferocity. Other bands evolve and get fancier in their approach but this band just gets meaner!

Patton’s guitars have never sounded dirtier on any of Soilent Green’s other albums than they do here and his fret board work on these songs should be commended. His down-tuned riffing on songs like “Lovesick” and “Mental Acupuncture” never disappoint in their bite and scope. Ben Falgoust’s multi-faceted vocals fall in expertly with the band’s wide-scaled approach. His growl is menacing but his screechy stuff really gets the prize! His blood-curling assault on “For Lack of Perfect Words” definitely ranks up there with his best work. So another year and another Soilent Green album is hitting stores but “have they changed much?” you ask. Not really. But hey, when they deliver material this solid, I’m not really complaining!

Rating: 7.5/10
Label: Metal Blade Records
Website: www.myspace.com/soilentgreen

By Carlos Ramirez

Rate this review: (6 votes, average: 4.83 out of 5)
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Having gone from raw crossover purveyors to apocalyptic doom specialists, Neurosis have always kept critics and fans guessing throughout their three decade career. When it was announced that co-founding guitarist, Scott Kelly would be releasing a solo album, I didn’t know what to really expect. From the opening, folk-tinged chording of “The Ladder in my Blood,” it is clear that the record would be a much different animal from his primary output. The track listing on The Wake has more in common with rustic Americana from the likes of Mark Lanegan and even Will Oldham than it does with anything on the later Neurosis material. Kelly’s monotone vocals possess a gravely and low tone to them in the vein of the aforementioned vocalists and maybe a less-animated Nick Cave.

For most of the album, there is some bass and lap-steel guitars sprinkled throughout, all you get is Kelly’s vocals accompanied by acoustic guitars. This works nicely with the general bleakness of the lyrics laid out. On the depressive “In My World,” the singer laments, “the weather never changes in my world,” and the stark arrangement frames the song in a very fitting way. As interesting as the melding of the American Gothic styled imagery and bare-minimum structures are, it would have been great to hear some piano and maybe a blues harp on a couple of the tracks to lend the recordings some color. But then again, I don’t think that’s what Kelly wanted anyway.

Rating: 7/10
Label: Neurot Recordings
Website: www.neurotrecordings.com

By Carlos Ramirez

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Some of our older readers, and tech-metal freaks should remember the late Watchtower. The highly influential Texas band released Control and Resistance in 1989 and it went on to become a touchstone of progressive metal in history. Along with Jon Arch-era Fates Warning, the band sparked a movement of highly-skilled, technical metal that was short on traditionalism and big on virtuosity. Watchtower’s guitarist, and prime driving force, was guitar wiz, Ron Jarzombek. His inventive, oddly metered riffing was as erratic as a John Coltrane free-form jazz session but it somehow retained the biting veracity of thrash metal. When the band dissolved its working relationship, Jarzombek went on to form the less metal and even more technical, Spastic Ink. The band released records throughout the 90’s and with tempting offers to reunite started coming in from European festival organizers, Jarzombek decided to bring Watchtower back together on a semi-full-time basis.

Getting back to playing heavier material must have sparked something in the veteran guitarist because he went on to form Blotted Science, his new power-trio. Joining him is Cannibal Corpse bassist Alex Webster and Behold…The Arctopus wunderkind, Charlie Zeleny handling the drums. The Machinations of Dementia is the all-instrumental debut album by the ace musicians. The recording was done in separate states and shared through ProTools files via email but the end result is the sound of a band hammering out challenging yet abrasive arrangements in one room, together. Jarzombek hasn’t dealt riffs this heavy since the late 80’s and his songwriting chops have actually made way for a more streamlined style. Don’t get me wrong, songs like “Night Terror” and “Brain Fingerprinting” will still have your head spinning, trying to figure out the next part, but the songs are bound by a fluidity that other “tech-y” bands cannot seem to get a handle on.

Jarzombek also holds back on the soloing a bit, letting the schizophrenic riff structures be the main focus. When he does take a solo, like on “Narcolepsy,” it’s with taste and it always makes sense in the scheme of the composition of the song. What really surprised me was Webster’s effortless playing. He holds the bottom end with skill and computer-like precision. Although I knew he was a formidable player from his speedy work in Cannibal Corpse, I didn’t know how deep his control of the instrument truly was. He pulls off some Sean Malone (bassist of the mighty Cynic) worthy runs all over the album and prog-heads will not be able to deny that, snobbery and all! Finally, Charlie Zeleny anchors the entire thing, shadowing every move Webster makes. His bass drum patterns astonish and he lays down some of the most exciting tom-tom work I’ve ever heard! So if you’re a life-long fan of this faction of metal or have just been introduced to it by bands like Between the Buried and Me, just make sure Blotted Science finds a place in your collection.

Rating 8.5
Label: Eclectic Electric
Website: www.myspace.com/blottedscience

By Carlos Ramirez

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A few years ago, it seemed like every other release that came across my desk was black metal in style. But these days, heavyweight labels like Century Media and Metal Blade Records are signing a new metalcore band every month. The latter just sent me Vultures, the debut album by California upstarts, Fate which falls in line with my observation. From the 1, 2 punch of “Apostasn” and “Psychopathic Diary,” it’s easy to point out the characteristics. The chugging, down-tuned guitars, the hybrid of death metal and hardcore styled vocals, the European laced guitar harmonies are all present. Originality is obviously not their strongest asset but we’ll move on to the positives first. Kyle Fishman and Brice Vuson prove that despite their age (they formed the band in 2003 when they were in middle school) they are capable of twisting and turning a vicious riff at the drop of a dime. Their fret board party on “Your Creed is Greed” is proof enough that they can hold their own around some of their older heroes.

Actually, the other players also put in a solid enough performance on Vultures but their songwriting never takes them anywhere that exciting. The huge moments always seem to be around the corner but they never really come to fruition. There were entire sections in songs that I could have sworn I heard before on another band’s record. I’m probably wrong but the similarities are so strong that it’s difficult to hear a difference sometimes that you start to lose focus and ultimately, interest. With the band’s young age and very impressive instrumental skills, they could go on to craft some interesting stuff. But they need to spend more time building their songs, from start to end and not just concentrating on a few dynamic parts in every track. I know this metalcore gets a black eye from most people over the age of 25 (I’m 33) but I try to review these releases with as much open-mindedness as I possibly can. There are actually a lot of bands who do the style well but most of the scene is riddled with the whole “style over substance” cancer that plagues many scenes that are close to their demise.

Rating: 4
Label: Metal Blade Records
Website: www.myspace.com/fate

By Carlos Ramirez

Rate this review: (12 votes, average: 3.58 out of 5)
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Germany’s Dark Fortress have been slicing and dicing their brand of melodic black metal for the better part of twelve years. Eidolon is the quintet’s fifth album, second for Century Media Records, and finds the band fronted by a new vocalist. Original singer, Azathoth left the unit acrimoniously; they hired the single named Morean from obscure death-thrashers, Noneuclid. The change has done the band and their aural assault good. His ghoul-like vocals are just as intense as the chainsaw chorus that passes off as guitars. He commands attention and falls in perfectly with the brutal arrangements the players lay down for him. He joined by legendary Celtic Frost mastermind, Tom Gabriel Fischer on the almost catchy, “Baphomet.” I say “almost catchy” because I doubt that was on the band’s agenda when they wrote the track. But the chord changes and razor-sharp vocal lines are actually infectious here.

Other standouts include “Cohorror” and the pummeling “No Longer Human.” Guitarists Asvargr and V. Santura whip up some very nasty riff parties on Eidolon but they prove time and time again that they always keep the compositional power of the songs as the main priority here. I kept on being reminded of Naglfar’s better moments while listening to songs like “No Longer Human” with their speed-metal informed black-metal leanings. Seraph’s drumming anchors the material and with arrangements this busy, it could have come apart easily. He’s definitely in league with greats like Nick Barker (Cradle of Filth, Lock Up) and Trym (Satyricon) here. Hopefully these Germans can get to tour this album extensively as it’s their finest moment yet.

Rating: 8
Label: Century Media Records
Website: www.centurymedia.com

By Carlos Ramirez

Rate this review: (4 votes, average: 3.75 out of 5)
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