Thursday, July 30, 2015
The Prodigy: The Day is My Enemy
The Prodigy are an interesting band/group whatever in the realm of electronic dance music. One of their most notable differences is they are not afraid to show their human element. They burst on to the global scene in the 90s with music videos for Firestarter and the epic video for Breathe (after which there was a surge in tribal tattoos). Their video for Smach My Bitch Up was banned till 2 am. Then they disappeared. They were they metal of their genre, breaking rules, being on the edge, making people uncomfortable. The new album feels like a pure sequel to Fat of the Land. The original vocalists are back and that loose live vibe is present throughout.
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Best of 2014
Time for a long overdue reflection on 2014 a year in which many stalwarts of the metal scene dropped new albums that further advanced their own legacies. Jumping into the mix with the road warriors are some young and heavy bands fighting to leave their own mark.
The decision to pick the top album of the year was one of the hardest ones in recent memory. Three American bands each with a discography of at least 5 albums released albums full of vigor, relentless aggression and catchy tunes.
Machine Head: Bloodstone and Diamonds. Head of the class is Machine Head. In the great pantheon of metal this album truly encompasses it all. The album has big epic crushing tracks like the opener "Now We Die" which will bring a smile to the face of any true headbanger. Biggest reason for Machine Head taking the top spot is that they ventured off their path without losing the voice that is Machine Head. All to often bands try something new but forget who they were and what made them rock; which results in them sucking (Metallica St. Anger no solos style). Obviously that is not the case here; Sail into the Black being a prime example. Seeing them play many of the new songs live cemented their placement at the top. With a 20 year history new can songs stand out like oddities or are eaten up like the classics. This is an album of classics for new fans or old ones. Now go listen to Machine fuckin Head.
Slipknot: .5 The Gray Chapter. The media have covered just about every angle of the back story that could ever possibly be discussed. So what about the music? The knot delivers a crusher like a freight train through your front door. This is a great Slipknot album. The raw aggression of their early albums is back and it is sincere. That is the key to this album's success.
Mastodon: Once More 'Round the Sun. Have you heard "The Motherload"? Really have you heard it? Because this time, this time this song will blowwwwww your mind aaaaaa---wayyyyyy. If you don't believe me I'll put a copy right there in your hands.
Upon a Burning Body: The World is My Enemy Now. Straight out of Texas comes this energetic young band that brings the groove and the brutal. The vocal performance is an impressive modern take on the Phil Anselmo "Pantera" approach; yelling, screaming, and growling while being understandable. The vocal mix adds a great deal of sonic intensity to the deliver along with chain chorus. This is fast paced album all riffs, no solos, just constant pound, pound, pound.
Tripikon: Melena Chasmata. A true doom album. This one melds down tuned guitars and midtempo riffs with double bass drum blasts, tormented vocals and lots of room to breathe (but in a suffocating way). Listen to stand out tracks Boleskine House and Aurorae to get the full immersion in this bath of darkness. Find your best set of head phones and wait for the sun to set before spinning this disc.
Monster Magnet: Milking the Stars: A Re-Imaging of Last Patrol. A year after jumping back on the scene Monster Magnet redo their recent release and thrown some new songs. The result is an album better than the original. Why? Well for starters it has a faster tempo and there are more fuzzed out jams. Monster Magnet are one of the earlier torch-bearers for the stoner metal scene. They blew up in the mid 90's with Space Lord and have bounced around in obscurity since. Dave Wyndorf loses himself in fuzzed out riffage with hammond organs laying down a cosmic boulevard for him to float through. Set your space ship on autopilot, turn off the gravity and just float.
Pallbearer: More DOOM metal!!! These guys manage to weave melodic guitar playing into their songs creating this odd but wonderful mix of despair and hope.
Orange Goblin: This is a band that has perfected its craft crushing pubs in England for two decades. Lots of dirty groove, riffs and love of Sabbath. Check out Ubermensch, Bloodzilla, Blood of Them. Blood of Them is a desert island metal song. Mysterious prelude, power riff, vocals...bliss.
In Flames: Siren Charms. They are what they are and they're better at it than everyone else. In Flames combines thrash riffs, subtle electronic melodies, roaring vocals, double bass drumming, guitar solos and clean singing creating their own version of melodic metal. And they crush live.
Marmozets: The Weird and the Wonderful. This is a metal album in the way that At the Drive In's Relationship of Command was a metal album. It is aggressive in a punk way, very loose, sounds better on shitty speakers, and begs to be cranked. Odd fact about this five piece band is that it is comprised of two sets of siblings.
The decision to pick the top album of the year was one of the hardest ones in recent memory. Three American bands each with a discography of at least 5 albums released albums full of vigor, relentless aggression and catchy tunes.
Machine Head: Bloodstone and Diamonds. Head of the class is Machine Head. In the great pantheon of metal this album truly encompasses it all. The album has big epic crushing tracks like the opener "Now We Die" which will bring a smile to the face of any true headbanger. Biggest reason for Machine Head taking the top spot is that they ventured off their path without losing the voice that is Machine Head. All to often bands try something new but forget who they were and what made them rock; which results in them sucking (Metallica St. Anger no solos style). Obviously that is not the case here; Sail into the Black being a prime example. Seeing them play many of the new songs live cemented their placement at the top. With a 20 year history new can songs stand out like oddities or are eaten up like the classics. This is an album of classics for new fans or old ones. Now go listen to Machine fuckin Head.
Slipknot: .5 The Gray Chapter. The media have covered just about every angle of the back story that could ever possibly be discussed. So what about the music? The knot delivers a crusher like a freight train through your front door. This is a great Slipknot album. The raw aggression of their early albums is back and it is sincere. That is the key to this album's success.
Mastodon: Once More 'Round the Sun. Have you heard "The Motherload"? Really have you heard it? Because this time, this time this song will blowwwwww your mind aaaaaa---wayyyyyy. If you don't believe me I'll put a copy right there in your hands.
Upon a Burning Body: The World is My Enemy Now. Straight out of Texas comes this energetic young band that brings the groove and the brutal. The vocal performance is an impressive modern take on the Phil Anselmo "Pantera" approach; yelling, screaming, and growling while being understandable. The vocal mix adds a great deal of sonic intensity to the deliver along with chain chorus. This is fast paced album all riffs, no solos, just constant pound, pound, pound.
Tripikon: Melena Chasmata. A true doom album. This one melds down tuned guitars and midtempo riffs with double bass drum blasts, tormented vocals and lots of room to breathe (but in a suffocating way). Listen to stand out tracks Boleskine House and Aurorae to get the full immersion in this bath of darkness. Find your best set of head phones and wait for the sun to set before spinning this disc.
Monster Magnet: Milking the Stars: A Re-Imaging of Last Patrol. A year after jumping back on the scene Monster Magnet redo their recent release and thrown some new songs. The result is an album better than the original. Why? Well for starters it has a faster tempo and there are more fuzzed out jams. Monster Magnet are one of the earlier torch-bearers for the stoner metal scene. They blew up in the mid 90's with Space Lord and have bounced around in obscurity since. Dave Wyndorf loses himself in fuzzed out riffage with hammond organs laying down a cosmic boulevard for him to float through. Set your space ship on autopilot, turn off the gravity and just float.
Pallbearer: More DOOM metal!!! These guys manage to weave melodic guitar playing into their songs creating this odd but wonderful mix of despair and hope.
Orange Goblin: This is a band that has perfected its craft crushing pubs in England for two decades. Lots of dirty groove, riffs and love of Sabbath. Check out Ubermensch, Bloodzilla, Blood of Them. Blood of Them is a desert island metal song. Mysterious prelude, power riff, vocals...bliss.
In Flames: Siren Charms. They are what they are and they're better at it than everyone else. In Flames combines thrash riffs, subtle electronic melodies, roaring vocals, double bass drumming, guitar solos and clean singing creating their own version of melodic metal. And they crush live.
Marmozets: The Weird and the Wonderful. This is a metal album in the way that At the Drive In's Relationship of Command was a metal album. It is aggressive in a punk way, very loose, sounds better on shitty speakers, and begs to be cranked. Odd fact about this five piece band is that it is comprised of two sets of siblings.
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