Music Appreciation Thread

[Howie]

Yngwie Malmsteen - Unleash The Fury (2005) - http://www.yngwie.org/



I've never liked Yngwie Malmsteen. All of his albums suffers from having only one good song, where all the others sounds the same/is not good at all. Another problem is that all of his album (with the exception from some excellent live/experimental-albums) sounds exactly the same.

Unleash The Fury sounds exactly like his previous album; Attack!!. The vocals sounds ok, so does the drumming and keyboards. The guitar is the "main attraction" in this album, and of course, this albums is filled with constant guitar-wankery. He can play alright, but in the end, it gets reaaally boring. The album starts of with a decent song, called "Locked & Loaded". Not bad. "The Bogeyman" is also a song that's better than most others on the album. The rest is all the same, the same over and over and over again. Fans will probably love this, but everyone else, stay away.

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Trail Of Tears - Free Fall Into Fear (2005) - http://www.redheaven.com/



Mix gothic metal with death metal, add male, clean vocals. What do you have then? Trail Of Tears. I have no idea how their other albums are like (the albums had female vocals, so I guess it's like their fellow countrymen Tristania and Sirenia), but I certainly enjoyed this.

The album is at times soft, sometimes agressive. A nice combination, you could say. Growling death metal-vocals is often followed up by clean vocals with typical typewriter drumming in the background. Alot of electronic elements is used in this album, and most of the time it sounds good. The albums has a few standout-tracks, like "Carries Of The Scars Of Life" and especially "Cold Hand Of Retribution". Get those songs if you'd like a taste of what the album sounds like.

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Labyrinth - Freeman (2005) - http://www.labyrinthmusic.it/



Labyrinth isn't a band I have listened much to, but I have listened to it a few times, like for example the very good album Return To Heaven Denied. I enjoyed their old albums alot, but what about this one?

The albums is far from as enjoyable as their older albums. They've changed into some kind of "Nu" Power Metal-band with techno mixed in (I'm not joking, I can hear techno in some of the songs). The vocals is as "girly" and "Italian" as it can be, the guitars isn't too good, the bass is at times not present at all and the drummer was probably really bored when they made this. The keyboards are mixed in well though, and makes it fit the musical style perfectly, but that's not enough. The album is overlong and boring, most of the song sounds the same as well. There's only one song worth getting from this album, and that's "Dive In Open Waters", which is an excellent song... and what the hell is up with the cover?

[Soeru]

Yngwie... pure guitar masturbation. Even though I love music with some sort of complexity, 30-notes-per-second-solos-for-1-minute are a little too much.


Here's a review I wrote for Arsis' 2002 demo some time ago, thought I'd share it with you.

Arsis - Demo, 2002


In case the reviews for Arsis' full album "A Celebration of Guilt" haven't convinced you that this band is incredible, here's a review on the band's 2002 demo.

First of all, let me say(as I've done on my review for their album) that this band is probably one of the most talented and unknown death metal bands ever. With little over 10 seconds of one of their songs, you'll be jotting down the name of the band while headbanging irresistably. Shocking to hear that songs of this quality were written and recorded by only two individuals? Damn right. Well, let's get down to the music itself: highly aggressive melodic death metal would be the best description, but this band sounds even heavier than the thrashy melo-death band At the Gates. The have some slight black metal influence, but it's more apparent in their full length album(since that one has more brutal songs).

In case you haven't noticed, the first four tracks are also on their full-length debut album(and are probably the best ones on this demo). "Elegant and Perverse" starts the demo off very nicely with the razor-sharp piercing riffs and double-bass work that drive me insane with joy. Followed by "Wholly Night" and "Worship Depraved", two incredible songs that really show off the band's stunning creativity and talent in every aspect: drumming, bass lines, solos, riffs, vocals, and lyrics. These songs sound very similar to the album counterpart, save for a slightly reduced recording quality(which makes it sound a bit dirtier and nicer in my opinion). The fourth track "Seven Whispers Fell Silent"(one of my favorites) sounds significantly different from the album version, mainly on the main theme's riffs(they must've changed the song slightly afterwards). The riffs and lyrics in this one stand out like a black metaller in Christmas.

What I really like about these demo versions of the album songs is that regardless of having listened to them countless times on "A Celebration of Guilt", they sound somewhat new and fresh, despite having been recorded two years earlier before the album. The dirty but good recording makes all these songs sound different and maybe even better than the shiny re-recordings. The first half of the demo sounds more brutal than the second half, but I think that's fine since I am a huge fan of both brutal death metal and the Gothenburg-esque DM. It's cool since it will appeal to both types of death metal fans.

The second half of the demo are tracks not available on their album. Quite a nice treat for people like me who were craving for more Arsis goodness after listening to "A Celebration of Guilt". "Veil of Mourning Black", a track only available on this release(not on the previous demo nor the album), sports some very nice riffs in the style of At the Gates, and some very irregular yet original progression throughout the song. "Fortune's Envy", another melodic song, gives you a very clear example of just how talented James Malone is(both vocally and instrumental-wise). "Close" is more melodic than the previous track, not so evil sounding. Lots of At the Gates-ish thrashy riffs in this song, which make it my second favorite track from the second half of the demo.

The last track "Painted Eyes", the best melodic song on the demo, starts of with some uncharacteristical soothing acoustic guitar work(the version on the 2001 demo did not have this), some neglectable synth effects, and a slow solo in the background that makes it feel like an outro for an album. Little would you think that 1:20 minutes into the song you'd be surprised by yet another heavily At the Gates-influenced assault of melodic riffs and angsty melancholic singing/lyricsm, but at the same time this song(as well as the rest of the album) sound highly original, very unlike your Gothenburg-cup-of-tea. You can hear some more acoustic play in the background too in some parts of the song, as well as some nice drumming, but the riffs, singing, and guitar solo make this song stand out.

Overall, I have absolutely no complaints for this release save for one thing: how the snares/cymbal work sounds. On some parts of songs the snares sound so distorted it almost feels like static noise, but it's bearable. It must be the recording, but everything else sounded very clear(including the singing, and the lyrics were relatively easy to understand if you have a thick English vocabulary and sharp ears). Out of all the band demo's I've listened to(not too many, mind you), this is my favorite. I mean, 8 awesome tracks is not bad for a demo, but the sheer greatness of these songs makes this demo incredible. This is definately not a "for-fans-only" demo, it sounds just as good as a full release - perhaps even better than many death metal albums out there(and it's not even a LP!).

No real reason to get their 2001 demo. With the 2002 demo, you get the whole 2001 demo, 4 fresh-sounding songs found in the brutal "A Celebration of Guilt" album, and a totally new song("Veil of Mourning Black") on one CD, how cool is that? If you can spot this demo, get it no matter what. If you cant find it anywhere then I suggest you just buy "A Celebration of Guilt". If you already have that album then just keep searching for the demo. If you like any form of death or black metal, or just thrashy metal in general, then you must get this. I only need Arsis to make another release for me to proclaim them as my favorite band of all time(which by the way, is being worked on).

[Howie]

Nazgul - De Expugnatione Elfmuth (2002) - http://www.nazgulmusic.it/



From Italy comes a an unique band (with a rather "used up" name), Nazgul. They claim to play what they call "Orkish Black Metal". I don't know about "Orkish"-part, but they certainly play excellent and epic Black Metal.

This CD goes often from "heavy as fuck" to be "light as feather". Heavy riffs, screeching vocals (which at times sounds like some kind of bird, believe me. You haven't heard anything like this.) and great bass and drums. One of their main instruments, keyboards, makes this whole thing more epic and (what they call it) "orkish" than anything else I've ever heard in Black Metal (yes, keyboards can be used in a good way in black metal). The lyrics is also excellent, even if I don't understand a bit of what they're singing at all (I've read translations) because it's all sung in Latin! While this album is not for everyone, I recommend everyone to try it at least once (the songs "Elficidium" and "Dies Festi..." for example), especially if you like Folk Black Metal.

[Soeru]

Nazgul - De Expugnatione Elfmuth (2002) - http://www.nazgulmusic.it/



From Italy comes a an unique band (with a rather "used up" name), Nazgul. They claim to play what they call "Orkish Black Metal". I don't know about "Orkish"-part, but they certainly play excellent and epic Black Metal.

This CD goes often from "heavy as fuck" to be "light as feather". Heavy riffs, screeching vocals (which at times sounds like some kind of bird, believe me. You haven't heard anything like this.) and great bass and drums. One of their main instruments, keyboards, makes this whole thing more epic and (what they call it) "orkish" than anything else I've ever heard in Black Metal (yes, keyboards can be used in a good way in black metal). The lyrics is also excellent, even if I don't understand a bit of what they're singing at all (I've read translations) because it's all sung in Latin! While this album is not for everyone, I recommend everyone to try it at least once (the songs "Elficidium" and "Dies Festi..." for example), especially if you like Folk Black Metal.

Sounds nice, being a big fan of Nokturnal Mortum, do you think I'll like this? Oh yeah, Nazgul is the name of a (very good) BM band from Spain.

[Solitude]

Shining ~ In the Kingdom of Kitsch You Will Be A Monster
Rating ~ 8.5
Where the fuck do labels like Rune Grammaphon find such great artists, anyway? The way these guys find 'em, they might as well be growing on trees....at any rate a debut album on such a label is always worth some excitement, and Shining, an experimental jazz outfit ( yes,you read right, jazz),does not disappoint. The album opens with Goretex Weather Report, an outrageously incredible intro which, after a minute of a tense broody build up, rips your ears apart in a tense climax. After setting the bar so high, Redrum follows it up with a short blast of live and programmed drums mingling with stuttering waves of horns, shouts and hollers, and an absolutely romping midsection that doesn't last long enough.

This album is one of those rare debuts where all the musicians are contributing evenly to the music, and their combined effort seems to get everything jammed in tightly, without messing up the overall sound of the album. Occasionally mindblowing, and very entertaining. And definitely worth checking out

[Howie]

Unleashed - Shadows In The Deep (1992) - http://www.unleashed.nu/



From Sweden comes a band who is quite unknown to me. I never heard of Unleashed 'til a guy I know recommended it to me, and I must say that I'm quite impressed with it. A Death Metal-band without the gore-theme from the 90's?

Think Cannibal Corpse, just without crappy vocals from the Barnes-era and repeated riffs. Add christian-killing/viking-themed lyrics to it and you get Unleashed. Awesome riffing, superb drumming and vocals and even great bass can be found on this little 40-minutes long record. Not only is the music good, but also the lyrics are quite good as well. "The Final Silence", "Shadows In The Deep" and the Venom-cover "Countess Bathory" makes this a CD that should not be missed by fans of Cannibal Corpse's Barnes-era.

Soeru: Well, it's not really like NM, but I think you'll like it. I don't know if you'll like the vocals, though... they're kinda weird. I suggest you try it though.

[Soeru]

Soeru: Well, it's not really like NM, but I think you'll like it. I don't know if you'll like the vocals, though... they're kinda weird. I suggest you try it though.

If they're weirder than Wormed's vox, I shall be amazed. Will grab it later.

Unleashed is a legendary Swedish DM band, I thought you knew of them. I never bothered to listen to them though I do have one of their albums, but I know they've been around as long as Dismember or something.

[Howie]

Running Wild - Branded And Exiled (1985) - http://www.running-wild.de/



Running Wild is a power metal-band from Germany whose main lyric-theme is... pirates, believe it or not. Albums like Under Jolly Roger and Pile Of Skulls is classic heavy/power metal-albums that no fan of German metal should avoid, but Running Wild has not always been a "pirate" band

As their previous (debut) album, Gates To Purgatory, this album has Satan and Hell itself as theme. The music is excellent, they sounds a bit like early Iron Maiden and especially Helloween ( Walls Of Jericho) at times. The vocals are "gruff" and more evil sounding than it is on their later albums. The guitar and bass is great and the drummer does a fine job. While this album is not as good as Gates To Purgatory, it's still enjoyable and should be bought by any fan of Running Wild. The album has a few standouts, "Branded And Exiled", "Mordor" (this one sounds like a mix of their early and late works) and "Chains And Leather".

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Throne Of Chaos / TOC - Pervertigo (2002) - http://www.tocrocks.com/



Throne of Chaos (now known as "TOC". They also changed their styles) is like Children Of Bodom mixed together with Norther with some added clean vocals. Their often called the "younger version" of Children Of Bodom, which is quite right. Speed Metal with harsh vocals, more precisely.

The vocals of this album is great. His harsh vocals may be a little weak compared to many other bands of the genre, but his clean vocals fits into the music nicely (like newer Norther). The instrumental work is good, the keyboards also fits nicely into the album. Fine solos as well. The music is fast-paced (though there is a few slow-paced songs, even ballads) and really catchy, kinda like older Soilwork. A band easy to like even by people who isn't really into this type of music. Standouts are: "Johnny B. Dead", "No Nothing" and especially their only single from the album called "Truth And Tragedy". The song might be a bit "pop"-ish at times, but the song is really good.

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Taake - "...Doedskvad" (2005) - http://www.taake.cjb.net/



Taake (another way of spelling "T�ke", which means "Fog" in norwegian)is a typical norwegian black metal band (just without the controversy). They're proud of both their county and country, and loves to make music about it. Their previous album, _Over Bjoergvin Graater Himmerik_ (Over Bergen Gr�ter Himmerik would be the title in modern norwegian. The english title would be "Over Bjoergvin Cries Himmerik" was an excellent album and I don't doubt their debut was great either.

This is the 3rd and last album in the so called "Nattestid...Bjoergvin...Doedskvad"-trilogy, and it's a great way to end it all. Excellent drumming, the vocals are perfect and the guitars and bass is superb as well. The album is split into seven parts. Every part is called "Hordaland Doedskvad I-IV" (Hordaland = a norwegian county. Very close to where I live) and all lyrics is in norwegian. The album is dark and atmospheric and a must for any fan of all types of black metal. There aren't really any standouts, just think of the album as one song. (Note; Taake has been put on hold after this album was released.)

[Frozen Sky]

Anata - Any Kind Of Magic Or Miracle

Anata is technical death metal band from Sweden that blows any gothenburg bands out of the water.This song is amazing from the album "Under A Stone With No Inscription". It starts off with this fine intro filled with great riffs. 7 mins and 6 secs is pretty long for a song by a band of the same genre but I can gurantee it that you won't be sick of it. The solo at 3:54 is remarkable, the guitarist sure knows how to shred. There is a mellow part around 4:25 then a second solo is immediately blasted in your face

[Howie]

Novembers Doom - The Pale Haunt Departure (2005) - http://www.novembersdoom.com/



Novembers Doom is a band people keep recommending me, and people kept praising their CD To Welcome the Fade, but I never really liked it much. The same thing goes for this album, even if this album is a bit better.

Novembers Doom plays typical Doom Metal with both clean vocals and growling, like Opeth and especially My Dying Bride. The vocals are good and the instruments sounds ok. They use alot of acoustic guitars and even some piano at times. It all sounds fine, but it's so boring. The album is a bit too long (51 minutes) even if that's the usual length for Doom Metal albums. It's probably because the album is too repetive I feel this way... Standouts? "Through A Child's Eyes".

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Dreamaker - Enclosed (2005) - http://www.dreamaker.net/



Dreamaker is a band that became when 3 Dark Moor-members decided to leave Dark Moor to make this band. These 3 also got some other members to join them, and boom! You got Dreamaker. Better than Dark Moor? Both yes and no.

This album was surprisingly good. Agressive power metal at it's best, with riffs that almost sounds like taken from a thrash-metal band, great vocals (female, for those who wondered) which fits the music perfectly and awesome drumming. The bass is present to, even if you can't even hear it at times. There are also male vocals at times, both growling and clean vocals which sounds great. Dreamaker is ALOT different from Dark Moor, even if they're the same genre. Dreamaker is a lot more aggressive than Dark Moor, while Dark Moor is more melodic. If you liked Dark Moor's female-vocals era, be sure to pick this great album up. Standouts: "I Live My Own Life" and "W.W. 666".

[Slim]

Meshuggah - Destroy, Erase, Improve (1995)







If you're anything like me, you will love this from the first spin, but considering no-one is anything like me, it'll take some getting used to. For me, this is when they peaked. On the first two releases (1991's Contradictions Collapse and 1994's EP None) they were a standard alternative metal band, with one key difference, a love for complexity. Don't get me wrong, CC&N are close to my favourite Meshuggah, but they weren't really Meshuggah yet.

The album opens with sounds of machinery, etc, before a fantastic minor second chord opens the music, sounding just like an alarm clock. Before you know it, an incredibly loud, technical feast of sounds has you surrounded, a deceptively simple guitar riff, incredibly tight drumming, and then the vocals. The vocals are absolutely my favourite part of Meshuggah. Jens Kidman is one, and his own. His constant at-the-top-of-his-lungs shouting is as brutal as it is beautiful. In addition, his vocals are often in a different time signature.

Which brings us to the staple point of Meshuggah's music; polyrhythms. While drummer, Tomas Haake often keeps a 4/4 hi-hat beat, everybody else, including the drummer is often doing something different. A Rhythm section playing 5/4, a lead in 6/8, and the vocals so unpredictable, it's impossible to keep count.

Now onto their sound, a friend of mine once described their sound as "An army of cyborgs destroying mankind" or something to that effect. This is not too far off. They apply their alternative metal roots to death metal (brutality), industrial (tone), prog metal (complexity), and when it comes to tempo, I'd say medium, although a cross between thrash metal and post rock would be more fitting. They are, however, like nothing you've ever heard before. Highlights-

Future Breed Machine
Terminal Illusions
Soul Burn
Transfixion

For fans of anything metal or avant-garde...

[Howie]

Immortal - Blizzard Beasts (1997) - http://immortal.battlegrim.net/



Everyone who knows metal, knows who Immortal is. "It's the band with all the goofy poses!". Yes, indeed it is, but Immortal is far more than that. They make excellent music, and Blizzard Beasts is no exception.

As in all other Immortal-albums, you're served grim vocals, ice-cold and fast riffs, speedy drumming and great basswork. Blizzard Beasts is one of Immortal's most overlooked albums, and that's not without a reason. It's a bit different from the other albums (although not much) and it's way to short! 27 minutes just isn't enough for a full-length, they should have considered releasing it as an EP. The production isn't too good, but who needs great production in a black metal-album (other Immortal-releases has good production though, and it's still excellent)? Once you get past the production, I think most metal-fans (and not only black metal-fans) will like this album. Give these songs a shot; "Blizzard Beasts", "Mountains Of Might" and "Noctambulant".

[Soeru]

Immortal - Blizzard Beasts (1997) - http://immortal.battlegrim.net/



Everyone who knows metal, knows who Immortal is. "It's the band with all the goofy poses!". Yes, indeed it is, but Immortal is far more than that. They make excellent music, and Blizzard Beasts is no exception.

As in all other Immortal-albums, you're served grim vocals, ice-cold and fast riffs, speedy drumming and great basswork. Blizzard Beasts is one of Immortal's most overlooked albums, and that's not without a reason. It's a bit different from the other albums (although not much) and it's way to short! 27 minutes just isn't enough for a full-length, they should have considered releasing it as an EP. The production isn't too good, but who needs great production in a black metal-album (other Immortal-releases has good production though, and it's still excellent)? Once you get past the production, I think most metal-fans (and not only black metal-fans) will like this album. Give these songs a shot; "Blizzard Beasts", "Mountains Of Might" and "Noctambulant".

Ah... how I enjoyed Blizzard Beasts... I think I'm going to give it a listen now that you brought it up. True, the production on the other albums was 10x better, and certainly not a bad thing(contrary to many BM fans belief). Battles in the North was also fucking wicked, despite crappy production, it made it sound even heavier(not just watered down like an old cassete, ie: Bathory's self titled. )



Kreator - Enemy of God


I'm pretty new to Kreator, and to the German thrash scene in general. In fact, I've barely listened to any Kreator except for this album a few weeks ago and "Violent Revolution". These oldschool thrashers have been around since the early 80's.

They're pretty aggressive, some tracks making Slayer sound like pansies. The vocals are pretty angsty and harsh(think Alexi Laiho, but not so fucking... throat-burning), and fairly easy to understand. Political/war/aggression lyrics, just what you normally find in thrash. The riffs are awesome Slayer-esque stuff, some tremolo here and there, and they incorporate melodic leads a la Gothenburg a lot. A lot of the tracks have mid-paced passages/breakdowns.

Well, it's a really great album from a very nice band I've recently gotten into. Not overly impressive, but pretty fucking good. On top of that, I was able to see them live last night... where they played about 20 songs. One hell of a show, btw.

If you like thrash, chances are you'll like this. It's not over the top stuff, but I guess it's a good band to check out.
Score: 8.5
Tracks worth mentioning: Impossible of Brutality, Enemy of God, World Anarchy, Voices of the Dead, Dystopia, Suicide Terrorist.

[Howie]

Blind Guardian - Somewhere Far Beyond (1992) - http://www.blind-guardian.com/



What's the best german bands ever? Helloween, Gamma Ray, Kreator and of course, Blind Guardian. Chances are that you've heard the song "In The Forest: The Bard's Song", which is their biggest hit... but Blind Guardian is much more than just a nice acoustic song.

The album opens with the song "Time, What Is Time?". A small acoustic part plays in the opening of the song, then kickass melodic and speedy riffs. The drumming is insanely fast (sadly, the drummer decided to leave the band a while ago) and the vocals are incredible. Kursch has a really great voice, his cheesy german accent just makes it all much more "charming". Prepare for some top-notch solos in this song too.

Another great song worth mentioning, is "Theatre Of Pain". An unique orchestral ballad, where Kursch as usual delivers fine vocals. The keyboards are nicely used in this track as well. Atmospheric and melodic, just the way we all (or most) like Blind Guardian.

"Ashes To Ashes" is probably the best song on the whole album. It has a dark really dark atmosphere, fast pace and a really catchy chorus. This song could easily fit in to their older albums (these albums where more speed metal than power). Great track. Last mention is "In The Forest: The Bard's Song". This is an acoustic track, with a sweet melody and enchanting vocals. Don't miss out on this one if you haven't heard it before.

If you like cheesy power metal, I highly recommend this album. While this ain't their best album (which is in my opinion Nightfall In Middle-Earth), I can still recommend this.

[Solitude]

Slowdive ~ Catch The Breeze
Rating ~ 9.5/10

This compilation is one of the best things that happened to me last year. Think what Can did for post-rock, what Pixies did for grunge, then you know what Slowdive did for shoegazing. It comprises of two discs, which anthologize three LPs (Soulvaki, Just For A Day and Pygmalion...also includes a peel session cover of Golden Hair(Barrett) ). The music is simply heart wrenchingly beautiful. In fact,imo Slowdive as a band was far superior to My Bloody Valentine, and that Nick Halstead was one of the best songwriters of the 90s. The best way to listen to Slowdive, is to pop in the CD at bedtime, and let the music completely wash all over you. The breathy vocals, the atmospheric music guarantee you complete aural delight. For me the highlight of the comp, is easily Blue Skied An' Clear (from Pygmalion), which is quite simply, my all time favourite song. The dreamy bass, the light percussion and of course the characteristic breathy vocals, all combine together to make THE perfect song. For anybody who doesn't listen to Slowdive, buying this comp is the obvious step to take. And then you can go beserko and download their entire discography, which sadly is now, out of print. In fact a lot of people complained about the release of this comp, feeling that their albums should have been re-issued instead. Personally I don't give a fig eitherways, as long as somebody had told me about it. Awesome. Brilliant. All the keywords checked in. Now go buy.