New Reviews

I have a lot of reviews that I have written for a contest on the Encyclopedia Metallum this week coming down the pipe. Rather than bog everything down and including them all at once, I will post one at a time. The reviews for Mortal Dezire and Dawn of Azazel appearing this week were part of this contest, which was to submit as many reviews as possible for albums that previously did not have any. Thus far, expect reviews for another Dawn of Azazel album, Seppeku, Sepultura, Goatwhore/Epoch of Unlight split, and Megadeth, with several more to come.

Dusting Off a Cassette Pt. 15: Dawn of Azazel: Vita Est Militia Super Terram

This is Dawn of Azazel's second demo. The band had a strong reaction to their first demo, but this is the one that really put things together for the band from a musical standpoint. By this point, Dawn of Azazel's sound had pretty much already been polished. By polished, I mean that the extremely chaotic nature of their music had been discovered and put to good use. Dawn of Azazel's music sounds like the theme to the most destructive battlefield in history.

Three of the four tracks on this cassette would appear on their first full length album, while the fourth appeared as the title track on the Bloodforged Abdication 7" single. The vocals are not real fleshed out yet, but it is very clearly the same band that recorded the next few albums. Rigel Walshe's inhuman shrieks are present, but not as pronounced in the music as they would become in the band's full-lengths. The production is surprisingly good for a demo as well, a little flat but that is to be expected on a self-released demo tape.

Dawn of Azazel has always gotten by on its riff style which is brutal, jagged, and unrelenting. The band has always been powerful as shown by this demo. The riffs show a strong influence from bands like Blasphemy and other "war metal" bands, blending a seemless mixture of death, thrash, and black metal. The drums pummel the listener's ears and are extremely raw. Sometimes the drums can't quite keep up with the riffs and lose time, but this just adds to the uneasy chaos of the music.

The songs are surprisingly catchy. It is very easy to distinguish from one track to the other which is not the case in a lot of other bands. I can only imagine the kind of live show this band performs.

This demo only gets points off because of its rough sound and incompleteness of the songs. Otherwise it is a good representation of the band in its early stages.

Nebraska Metal Scene Pt. 2: Mortal Dezire: Mortal Dezire

Mortal Dezire is a band from Kearney, Nebraska of all places. There is not much of a metal scene in Nebraska in general, but those bands that do or have existed mostly have come from Lincoln or Omaha, the closest things Nebraska has to big cities. Kearney is in the center of the state and is in a much more agricultural region, so the fact that there is a metal band from there at all is surprising.

Even more surprising is the fact that this metal band is more influenced by traditional styles of metal than by groove metal and metalcore. Mortal Dezire sounds like they should have come around in the 1980's. Their influences sound like US power metal bands such as Jag Panzer and Liege Lord. They combine those influences with some progressive metal and thrash metal influences into a decent mix of traditional metal styles that sounds fresh and keeps the listener's interest.

The production is fairly decent for a first time recording. Most of the instrumentation can be heard, except for the bass which is not audible all that often. The drumming is precise and is mostly there for keeping time. This is a guitar-driven album. The riffs are a little raw but are crunchy and catchy. They sound like they were influenced by the galloping riffs of Iron Maiden and Iced Earth. The leads blaze in and out of the riffs, and the solos are very well done. This band has taken a lot of time to learn their instruments and it shows.

The vocals fit in with the traditional metal style of the music. The singer is not a great vocalist, but it fits well with the sound. Every once in awhile, he attempts a high-pitched wail that is a little weak in the upper registers. However, this is definitely a throwback to 80's metal and adds to the charm of the album instead of detracting from it. The lyrical content seems to deal much more with fantasy themes than anything else, although some songs do not.

As for the songs themselves, they are catchy and memorable. The ballad slows things down and prepares the listener for the full speed throttle of the last quarter of the album.

The only real complaints I have are that many songs seem to simply stop without a natural-feeling ending. This band could play much longer songs and probably would sound more natural. The song "Hate Anthem" seems a little out of place. It is much angrier and aggressive than the rest of the music. The album would flow better without that song. The album itself does not end naturally. It feels like there could be more songs on the album.

All in all though, Mortal Dezire is a very good young band from an unexpected place.

Thrash and Burn Tour 2009

Hypothetical question: If one were to hear of a metal festival tour named Thrash and Burn, one would expect to find a thrash metal band, correct?

One would be wrong.

There are nine bands on this tour lineup, not a single thrash metal group there. I don't have much of a problem with the lineup, although I wouldn't personally go and I don't care much for many of the bands, but the creators should consider changing the name to something that does not imply thrash metal when there are ZERO thrash metal bands.

DevilDriver: Closest to thrash, more of a groove metal band with some melodic death metal influences.

Emmure: tough-guy hardcore band similar to Hatebreed. Not metal.

Despised Icon: Deathcore band.

My Children, My Bride: Hardcore band with some metal influences and Christian at that, not fucking metal.

Veil of Maya: Technical deathcore band named after a terrific song by Cynic.

For the Fallen Dreams: Metalcore. Looks kind of emo-ish.

Oceano: Deathcore band.

Periphery: No idea, never heard of them. Sounds like deathcore to me.

Red River Revival: Southern sludge metal band, formerly named Artimus Pyledriver.

Metal Blade Metalmeister Compilation Walkthrough

If I had to pick a favorite label, Metal Blade would probably be it. Since the early 1980's they have shown a commitment to metal that has been consistent. Even now they are still putting out great albums by groups like God Dethroned and Razor of Occam. They have some more mainstream bands on their label, but they still have a lot of great underground bands as well.

This is a compilation Metal Blade put out in the mid 1990's showcasing their roster. I picked it up used when I was in either high school or very early college. I like compilations sometimes because they help me find new bands and albums. The best compilations cause the consumer to go out and buy albums by the band on them. I will go through a track by track look at this compilation.

Cannibal Corpse: Mummified in Barbed Wire

This was one of the first Corpse songs I heard with the new vocalist, Corpsegrinder Fisher. It took some time to get used to his different vocals. I always liked Chris Barnes's deeper guttaral style a little better. Not a bad song though, typical Corpse. I would buy the album even though I already have five other albums by the band, all of which came after buying this compilation.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0

ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 5

Galactic Cowboys: Psychotic Companion

Not a big fan of this one. The band plays some sort of progressive metal typically. This track sounds like they were influenced by the grunge scene, not very good. The vocals are also a little weak and annoying. I would not buy this album or any others from the band, unless I heard something better. The psychic network infomercial samples are a little irritating too.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 0

Sacred Reich: Blue Suit, Brown Shirt

Fairly straightforward thrash metal song from a band that was past its prime and running on fumes. Not a bad song, just not any different from anything else they have ever put out. Once you have one Sacred Reich album, you pretty much have them all. I already own one and enjoy it, so there is no need to pick this one up.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 1

Mercyful Fate: Into the Unknown

This was the first song I had heard from Mercyful Fate/King Diamond. At the time I was not impressed. This is not the best song to introduce the band with, it is slower and does not have the strongest riffs. King's falsetto vocals require some time to get used to. Once you do though, you're pretty much hooked. I have two Mercyful Fate albums and three by King Diamond. I would pick this one up as well.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 2

Gwar: Meat Sandwich

Ah Gwar. I have this album and reviewed it in the Dusting Off a Cassette series. Gwar is weird, really that's all there is to it. I'm sure that this is a euphemism somehow.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 1 (this one)

Six Feet Under: The Enemy Inside

I didn't know at first that this was the former singer for Cannibal Corpse's new band. I kind of figured it out though. Six Feet Under isn't as good as Cannibal Corpse, they are far more groove-oriented, but this was a decent song. Unfortunately, every song by Six Feet Under kind of sounds like this. So I bought one album two years ago, and I'm pretty much set.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 1

Skrew: She Said

Skrew is an industrial groove metal band. Not a bad band when they are at their best. Industrial and metal can co-exist and form a crushing juggernaut of sound. This song was close, but just not quite there. I already owned one album by Skrew. I probably would not pick up another.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 1
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 1

Wardog: Scorched Earth

I like this song. Very good example of speed metal done right. For some reason I never got around to picking up the album. I may have to rethink that. The song is fast and aggressive, and way too short. You can definitely hear the Painkiller influence.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 0

Immolation: Here in After

This one did not impress me at the time. It was slow, the vocals were extreme, and it just never appealed to me. How times have changed. Immolation is now one of my favorite death metal bands, I particularly like the occult death metal sound that the band started. I don't own this one yet, but I would buy it. I have three other albums by the band.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 3

Crisis: Wretched

This one caught me completely by surprise. Crisis's vocalist is a woman with some of the most psychotic, angry vocals I have ever heard. She can go from a quiet whisper, to a soothing alto, to an angry growl, to a bloodcurdling shriek all in the span of a couple of seconds. And she does, frequently. Amazing vocalist, still one of my favorite female singers. Crisis is an underrated band as well. I have this album but it took a long time to find.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 1 (this one)

Desultory: Before Today, Beyond Tomorrow

I don't know why I never looked into this band. This is a Swedish death metal band, one of my favorite scenes. This particular song sounds like the band decided to follow Entombed towards a death n' roll type sound. Not bad if the band can pull it off. This particular song did pull it off. The album has terrible reviews though, I would have to do some research before deciding on this album.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 0

Ancient: The Curse

Ancient was part of the second wave of black metal in Norway. They were always a little different though, focusing on melody even moreso than countrymen Dimmu Borgir. This song is weird and is probably the first exposure I ever had to the genre. The various vocal styles completely threw me off. It always sounded like it belonged in some horrible fantasy movie about wizards or some shit. Nevertheless, I grew to enjoy the band at some point and now own two of their albums. Not this one though and I am okay with that.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 2

U.N.I.T.E.D.: Kill Yourself for Business

Huh. Japanese metal can be a little weird. The riffs are decent, sounding like they were influenced by Anthrax. The vocals are shouted which allows the listener to understand what they are saying, which leads to the problem. Apparently they don't speak English very well. We can also hear the accent very well. It's unintentionally hilarious. Pass.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 0

Decoryah: Fall-Dark Waters

Now, without looking I can tell you just from hearing the music that this band is from Finland. I did not know that before. It definitely sounds like a combination of Amorphis, Insomnium, and Nightwish. At the time, I was struck by how beautiful this song was. The piano is very prominent in the sound with the vocals sounding like they are coming from a fog. An amazing song, not particularly metal, although there are some metal riffs buried in there. The only reason I don't have this album is because I can't find it.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 0

Armored Saint: Creepy Feelings

This is not one of Armored Saint's better songs. I don't know why, it just doesn't have the same feel to it. It was disappointing song to hear because I was impressed by the band on Hellraiser 3, in which they had a cameo. This song put me off buying anything by the band for fear of it being their natural sound and not the song "Hanging Judge". I'm glad I got over that, but I still would not buy this album.

ALBUMS OWNED BY BAND AT TIME: 0
ALBUMS OWNED NOW: 1

So, since buying this compilation, I have picked up albums by nine of the fifteen bands. That's pretty impressive. The only reason I don't own more of these albums is because they were mostly out of print when I finally bought this compilation.

Dusting Off a Cassette Pt. 14: Type O Negative: Bloody Kisses

"Don't mistake lack of talent for genius." This is written on the back of the album. The front: a picture of two beautiful women caressing. Ironically, I picked this tape up on a church trip to Dallas, of all occasions. This is another album like the White Zombie album that I have come to realize is to be taken with a huge grain of salt. Type O Negative definitely has a strange sense of humor. How many other bands can have one of their biggest hits about hair dye?

I do really like this album, and to this day it remains Type O's best album. It has some great songs, but it also has a lot of filler on it, which is unfortunate. They could have made the album a lot shorter by taking out the filler tracks. Musically, Type O Negative is like a weird amalgam of Black Sabbath and The Beatles with some gothic elements thrown in for good measure. A weird mix, but it works. The songs are catchy as hell. Vocalist Peter Steele uses his trademarked baritone to full effect over doom-laden riffs.

Excommunication: The Legacy: 666

I love freebies. This CD was sent to me by the brother of one of the band members to review on the Encyclopedia Metallum. Here it is:

Excommunication is a young band out of Washington that plays some sort of melodic death metal with black metal influences (particularly in the vocals). This could be a decent combination that could work out pretty well in the right hands.

The first track off the album is an intro and I honestly don't understand the point of an intro on a 15 minute long album. It's just kind of a waste. Just write another song. The intro is ambient noise with vocals delivered in a raspy voice.

After that we get into the album itself. The songs are, for the most part, fairly short, with only the fourth song passing the 5 minute mark, and not by much. The production is surprisingly decent for a young band recording on their own, although I do think the drums are a little too high in the mix, this does present some problems which I will get to later. The other issue with the production is that the solos get a little lost. Nevertheless, it is still decent production from a band who could not afford a well-known producer.

Musically, there are some breakdowns in the songs, but I am not someone who has a problem with that sort of thing. The extended breakdown in the fourth track is actually fairly effective. Other than that, the structure of the songs is decent, not entirely repetitive and predictable which is a good thing. As for the musicians, the drummer seems to have a little trouble transitioning during riff changes, particularly on the third track. The riffs and leads are competent, if not original. Not a problem for a young band at all. I particularly like the almost-swing riffs toward the end of the fourth track and during the fifth track. The solos are not bad, but as mentioned earlier are kind of lost in the production. The vocals sound a lot like Deicide. There are two types: the brutal deep growling vocals and the raspy shrieking. This is fine with me, as I happen to like Deicide's vocals. They are not layered as in Deicide, but that is where the comparisons end.

All in all, this is a decent job for a very young, new band. There are some issues that should be worked out, but I think they can do so and put out some good music. Not an original sound, but competently played and enjoyable.

Thunder of the Gods Festival Cancelled

Thunder of the Gods was supposed to be a three day festival in the middle of Texas somewhere featuring several metal bands of varying degrees of popularity. Unfortunately, the festival promoter is an unethical piece of shit. First, he's from Ohio, so why he's putting together a festival in Texas, I cannot begin to explain. He did not promote the festival particularly well, so not very many tickets were being sold. The lack of ticket sales lead him to pull the plug on the festival without telling anyone Saturday morning after the first night. Several bands had to pay to play the concert and are out $500.00 each. Many more bands were left stranded at the airport without a way to get home. He then texted the stagehands to tell them to go home and they would not be paid. He kept all the money in ticket sales and band fees.

This man has opened himself up to a number of civil lawsuits and I hope that the bands pool their resources to find representation to go after this guy. Here are some of the causes of action: fraud, breach of contract, and unjust enrichment. None of these will be terribly difficult to prove. The elements are all present: agreement (offer and acceptance), breach, and damages. I just hope there is something in writing somewhere as to what the agreement actually was.

Thanks to Metal Martyr for the information and please check out the links for more info:
http://www.metalmartyr.com/this-is-why-bands-hate-promoters/
http://www.metalmartyr.com/update-thunder-of-gods/

Dusting Off a Cassette Pt. 13: White Zombie: Astro-Creep: 2000

Rob Zombie is one of my favorite personalities in rock/metal. His music has been good for the most part, he is a huge horror/sci fi fan and his concerts are a sight to behold. The Rob Zombie concert still ranks as one of my all time favorites. He uses elaborate stage setup, weird costumes (including an 8 foot tall dancing robot and giant trees), and lots and lots of pyro. Good stuff. That being said, musically he was at his absolute peak with this album and La Sexorcisto while fronting White Zombie. This was one of the early albums that corrupted me. White Zombie was one of the first bands that I credit with turning me on to metal. My older brother used to listen to La Sexorcisto frequently. Then when this came out, I picked it up right away.

White Zombie was well-known for their industrial groove metal riffs, bizarre tales of monsters, and frequent samples from 1970's B-movies. Rob's trademarked growling mumble is present in full force coupled with frequent screaming. The guitars swirl around the inhumanly precise drumming of John Tempesta while the bass rumbles along for the ride. A great album that unfortunately hasn't aged very well; this album seemed cutting edge at the time but now is not really all that special. I still enjoy listening to it for old time's sake fairly frequently. It reminds me of middle school. Back then, these guys seemed really scary due to the demonic imagery, dark atmosphere, and rough vocals. Now, it is obvious it was all an act and the band was just out to have a good time.

This was the last great album Rob put out. After this came one more album with White Zombie, a techno remix album, and then Rob struck out on his own. His early solo material was decent but never had quite the same feel as his material with White Zombie and then his later material was not even close. A shame.

Annoying Music Fans Pt. 2: Straight Edge

I have no idea if it's one word or two and frankly, I don't give a fuck. Straight edge people are fucking annoying. It's a movement (apparently they get offended if you call it a lifestyle) in which the participants do not use drugs or drink alcohol AT ALL and they listen to horrible hardcore music. Frankly, I would have to be drunk to enjoy their shitty music, but I digress. The annoying thing about them is their righteous, holier-than-thou self-image. You don't use drugs or alcohol, good for you, would you like a fucking cookie? Look, I don't need to drink alcohol or use drugs to have a good time either. I am 28 years old, never been drunk, never smoked a cigarette, never used drugs. You know what the difference between me and straight edge people is (besides the fact that metal is a hell of a lot better than hardcore)? I DON'T FUCKING MAKE A BIG DEAL ABOUT IT!!!! The other thing that pisses me off about these social rejects is the fact that they view drug and alcohol use as something that will IMMEDIATELY fuck up your life. Sure it's possible if you're retarded about how you use these things. But it's not fucking likely. Watch the fucking video.

Opeth and Enslaved Live at Sokol Auditorium in Omaha 5/8/09

Well this is my first concert review post as it was my first concert since last Fall.

As part of my birthday weekend, I managed to convince my girlfriend to come along with me to see Opeth and Enslaved in Omaha. I had to promise to protect her and keep an eye on her at all times, which I thought was very cute, and a little paranoid, but still cute. She felt out of place all night, but I never really feel at home at concerts either. I like to go and just watch the bands. I'm not there to socialize, although I do always have someone with me, and I don't go near the pit because that takes away from the experience. There was a rather diverse crowd there, but I will get to that in a minute.

ENSLAVED:
I am far less familiar with Enslaved's music than Opeth's. I like them pretty well but they don't have much that really stands out to me. That being said, they had a very strong show. They played several songs that were more straightforward metal songs rather than meandering progressive metal as on their recent records. It was a very good show. I just wish they would have played "Havenless". That was my only disappointment from the night. I decided to pick up a t-shirt prior to the show. I remember at one point sitting against the wall (there were no seats at all) with my eyes closed and my arm wrapped around my girlfriend thinking that this was one of the best nights of my life.

OPETH:
The obvious headliner. Opeth played a very long, diverse show. They played songs from most of their albums. I believe Orchid was the only album that was not represented. They seemed to cut down some of the prog interludes during some of the songs, making a conscious effort not to totally bore the crowd. Mikael Akerfeldt actually proved to be somewhat funny, which I was very surprised by, as he kept up banter with the crowd between songs. Opeth did play "Godhead's Lament" which is my favorite song by that band.

As mentioned earlier, the crowd was diverse. There were the usual culprits: the old school metalheads, the progressive crowd, the fucking hipsters and scenesters, the drunken idiots looking for a good time. I was a little surprised, although I probably shouldn't be, that there were a lot of hardcore kids there. Hardcore dancing is not especially appropriate at a progressive metal show. To the guy who looked like a dying seagull: you are not cool and you look like a fucking idiot.

All in all, a good show.

R.I.P. Dom DiMaggio

Sad day for Red Sox fans as Dom DiMaggio died today at 92. He played for the Red Sox his entire career, playing center field. He often lead the team in stolen bases and he owns the Red Sox record for longest hitting streak at 34 games. He played in seven All Star games. I always hoped he would one day join his brother Joe and his former teammates Ted Williams and Bobby Doerr in the Hall of Fame.

Red Sox vs. Yankees Pt. 2

I forgot to update this immediately after the series was over. In the early going it looks like Boston has New York's number. Great, I just hope it continues.

Game 1 ended with a final score of 6-4. The new stadium in New York is allowing lots of home runs. There were five in this game, two by Red Sox Jason Bay and Mike Lowell. The Bay home run constituted the deciding runs. Other than that, the story of this game was the youth movement on the pitching mound. Jon Lester started for Boston with Phil Hughes throwing for the Yankees. Lester was a little bit better this night and took the victory. Lester has a bright future for Boston.

Game 2 was won by Boston 7-3. The game was a lot closer than the score though. Other than a four run first inning, including a three run shot by new Yankee killer Jason Bay, the Red Sox were mostly stymied by Nebraska native Joba Chamberlain. Josh Beckett had a better game, he usually steps up against the Yankees, and the Red Sox scored just enough early to take the rest of the afternoon off and still win. Chamberlain plunked Bay in the middle of the back with a pitch late. He has an annoying habit of hitting Red Sox players, oftentimes seemingly intentionally. I don't know whether this was intentional or not, but I lose a lot of respect for him everytime he throws one up and in to Kevin Youkilis. Youkilis incidentally sat out this game with a nagging rib injury.

The next series isn't until June.

Manny Ramirez Suspended 50 Games for Violating Drug Policy

Oh shit. This is the highest profile suspension since MLB hardened its stance on performance-enhancing drugs. According to Manny, the drug was prescribed by his doctor who had no idea it would cause him to fail a drug test. This is bullshit. Other reports have it being either for sexual enhancement or for restarting the body's testosterone development after cycling on steroids. The latter is probably most likely.

I like Manny, even if he did phone it in to cause Boston to trade him. I hope that he has not been using anything for very long. Ultimately we will never know because HGH is undetectable. We do know he has not failed any tests between the time that the testing became stronger and earlier this year. So who knows? Maybe he just started this year, maybe not. I won't speculate because it drives me crazy when people do that.

Yankees fans are getting their opinions heard though, claiming that Boston's two World Series wins with Manny are now tainted. Again, I have no idea, and until some hard evidence comes out showing that he was in fact using PEDs at that time, it will not affect my opinion of those two victories.

Iron Maiden Suing Comic Book Creators

Link: http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=119506

I love it when there's legal news about metal. It means I actually have something interesting to say here.

Basically, the story is this: there is a comic book called Iron and the Maiden. The band Iron Maiden has decided that this is an infringement on their trademarked name. They are seeking an injunction against the creators to pull all Iron and the Maiden merchandise including the comic books and to pay damages.

The creator for the comic book believes this suit is completely without merit, and he's right. In order to succeed in a trademark infringement case, there must be one major element present. The infringing trademark must be identical to the other trademark or there must be a likelihood of confusion. We are talking about a name here, not a logo, so the infringing trademark is "Iron and the Maiden" and the infringed trademark is "Iron Maiden."

Luckily for us, some U.S. courts have given us factors to look at in determining whether there is a trademark infringement. Let's look at these tests and then apply them:

A. AMF, Inc. v. Sleekcraft Boats, 599 F.2d 341 (C.A. 9) 1979. This case gave us eight factors to look at:
1. Strength of the mark
2. Proximity of the goods
3. Similarity of the marks
4. Evidence of actual confusion
5. Marketing channels used
6. Type of goods and the degree of care likely to be used by the purchaser
7. Defendant's intent in selecting the mark
8. Likelihood of expansion of the product lines

1. Okay, what we have here is a world famous band against a comic book that I would guess does not rise to the same level of fame as the band. Factor #1 probably goes in favor of Iron Maiden. Most people who hear that term would think of the band, although some may think of the medieval torture device as well, but I digress.
2. Band vs. comic book. These things are not close. I doubt anyone who is looking for something by the band is going to pick up the comic book mistakenly.
3. There is a similarity here though, despite the two extra words in the name of the comic book.
4. See #2. I doubt there could be any proven actual confusion here.
5. I'm not sure here, I doubt this goes in the band's favor. I'm not sure how comics are marketed but I suspect you probably have to be looking for comics.
6. Once again, see #2. I strongly doubt anyone looking for Iron Maiden merchandise will be picking up this comic book.
7. I don't have the facts here so I can't speculate. It is possible that the comic creators wanted something similar to the band. It's just as possible that that thought never entered their minds.
8. I would be shocked if the comic book took off and got a movie deal, video game, etc. So far it's a five part comic book. Not many of these things get off the ground.

There are maybe two factors in this test that are in favor of the band's lawsuit. My theory could go out the window if this was an intentional infringement. I doubt it is though.

In re E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., 476 F.2d 1357 (CCPA 1973). The DuPont factors are as follows:
1. The similarity or dissimilarity of the marks in their entireties as to appearance, sound, connotation, and commercial impression.
2. The similarity or dissimilarity and nature of the goods . . . described in an application or registration or in connection with which a prior mark is in use.
3. The similarity or dissimilarity of established, likely-to-continue trade channels.
4. The conditions under which and buyers to whom sales are made, i.e. "impulse" vs. careful, sophisticated purchasing.
5. The fame of the prior mark .
6. The number and nature of similar marks in use on similar goods.
7. The nature and extent of any actual confusion.
8. The length of time during and the conditions under which there has been concurrent use without evidence of actual confusion.
9. The variety of goods on which a mark is or is not used .
10. The market interface between the applicant and the owner of a prior mark .
11. The extent to which applicant has a right to exclude others from use of its mark on its goods.
12. The extent of potential confusion .
13. Any other established fact probative of the effect of use.
Not all of these factors will be relevant or of equal weight in a case. Any one factor may control the entire case.

This is the test used most often in U.S. Courts.
1. This goes against the band. The names are somewhat similar, but there are two extra words in the comic name. The logos don't look similar at all. As far as commercial impression goes, no one is likely to confuse the two.
2. Nope, the goods are too different. The band does not lend it's name to comic books. The comic creators don't make music.
3. This goes back to the marketing factor in the other test. I don't think there's any overlap here at all. The band advertizes in music magazines, the comic advertizes in other comics.
4. Again, no one in their right mind would buy the comic when they are looking for band merchandise.
5. Iron Maiden is a world famous band.
6. There probably are not a lot of other things going by the name "iron maiden" other than the aforementioned torture device that the band got it's name from. But this actually works against the band because they did name themselves after a real thing.
7. Very difficult to prove any actual confusion because there probably isn't any.
8. It looks like the comic has only been around since about 2007, so approximately two years without actual confusion. I'm guessing it would be better to have a short time without confusion for the band, but at some point there still needs to be confusion and this case is lacking in that.
9. Huh, I'm not sure I know what this factor is looking for.
10. None.
11. I'm not sure of how this one will work out and I am not entirely sure it's relevant. Once again, the band named itself after a real device, that cuts down on it's chances. It's not like Metallica where the band invented a word.
12. Again, probably none.
13. I don't know of any, but if it was an intentional thing to make it similar to the band's name, which there is no evidence that it is, this would probably go here.

There are no dispositive factors in favor of the band's lawsuit here. Most of the factors work against Iron Maiden.

Based on both tests, there is no likelihood of confusion here. The Plaintiff would have the burden to prove that there is and I just do not see any chance of Iron Maiden succeeding there. If they were to do so, the Defendant could raise defenses such as laches (Plaintiff slept on their rights) or some sort of specific defense, but I don't think this case would go that far.

Overall, there's no way there is any merit to this case. It will probably get settled out of court unfortunately. I would like to see the comic creators fight it, but ultimately that is expensive. Unfortunately the rich frequently win these things by outlasting the other party. It's not fair, but it is how it is.

Metal's Sacred Cows

Are there metal bands who are beyond criticism? No, of course not. However there are some groups who went through a period where criticism is fairly difficult, not impossible because music junkies in general can be very elitist and dislike anything that is popular. This is also true of metal. That being said, here are some bands who went through a period of time that is almost universally praised.

1. BLACK SABBATH
Duh. The band who started it all. Without Black Sabbath, we would not have metal. That reason alone is enough for metal fans to praise their work. Another reason is that their material has withstood the test of time. It sounds just as good now as it did when it came out.
PRAISEWORTHY PERIOD: Self titled album through Sabbath, Bloody Sabbath. After that they got too proggy and drifted away from metal. They came back strong when Ronnie James Dio took over for Ozzy Osbourne on vocals.
BAD ALBUMS: Forbidden, Technical Ecstacy, Never Say Die, Born Again, Seventh Star.

2. JUDAS PRIEST
Almost on par with Black Sabbath in terms of respect from metal heads. Judas Priest took the Black Sabbath sound and perfected it. Judas Priest was also one of the first bands to truly embrace the tag of "Heavy Metal." Priest also gave metal a look.
PRAISEWORTHY PERIOD: 2nd album through Defenders of the Faith with one exception. They also came back strong with Painkiller later on, one of the quintessential speed metal albums. Then Rob Halford left for a few years. When he came back, the band was rejuvenated.
BAD ALBUMS: Point of Entry, Turbo, Demolition, Nostradamus.

3. IRON MAIDEN
Iron Maiden is the principal band from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and one of the few such bands that is still active. Maiden is one of the biggest metal bands in the world. They didn't start out that way though, it was not until classically-trained vocalist Bruce Dickinson joined the band that they really took off. Still able to headline world tours.
PRAISEWORTHY PERIOD: Dickinson's first album, The Number of the Beast through Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. Iron Maiden seemed to lose steam in the late 1980's. Bruce Dickinson left the band for a few years. Yet again, when he came back, so too did the band.
BAD ALBUMS: No Prayer for the Dying, Virtual XI, Dance of Death.

4. METALLICA
Surprised? You shouldn't be, Metallica was hugely important in metal. One of the founding fathers of the thrash metal movement and still one of the best such groups. Metallica achieved popularity that was once thought impossible for a metal band.
PRAISEWORTHY PERIOD: Debut Kill 'Em All through ...And Justice For All. The first four albums by Metallica are on par with anyone else's first four albums and quite possibly better than anyone else's first four albums with the only exception of possibly Black Sabbath.
BAD ALBUMS: Load, Reload, St. Anger.

That's pretty much it for unimpeachable metal bands. I'm sure I may be forgetting some, but these groups during these periods are so important to metal, that very little else comes close.

New Pickups

I have reviewed the Voivod album that I picked up on cassette. I also have four new additions to my CD collection. I blame the folks over at Metal Inquisition (damn peer pressure) for my placing an order with Comatose Music (they had a great sale this week). I was impressed by their gushing over slam death metal, a subgenre that is rare in my collection, so I placed an order for albums by Abominable Putridity, Devourment, Katalepsy, and Vomit Remnants. Previously, I only had albums by Sanatorium, Dying Fetus, and Internal Bleeding. I will probably do a joint slam post one of these days looking at all of the slam albums in my collection. Won't that be exciting?

Dusting Off a Cassette Pt. 12: Voivod: Nothingface

This one is a little weird. Voivod is a progressive thrash metal band from Canada, Quebec that is. It is a fairly recent addition to my tape collection. I just picked it up off of ebay for fairly cheap. Voivod in general, and this album in particular, seem to be a love them or hate them type of band. I have seen opinions from individuals who absolutely hate Voivod, and I have read one noteworthy blog post that stated that this album was one of the greatest albums of all time and he didn't seem to understand how anyone could think otherwise. Well, I'll answer that question, this album is strange.

I have been familiar with Voivod for quite some time. I have two compilation albums with a Voivod track on them, I have a dubbed tape from the radio when they had the Power Hour on, one track from this band was dubbed, I also have their 1995 album Negatron. I thought I had a pretty good idea of what to expect from this band. One of the songs on this album was even on one of the aforementioned compilation albums. But I was wrong, this album is very odd.

Voivod has always centered their lyrics around science fiction, and this album is no exception to that. This can definitely be seen in song titles like "Astronomy Domine" (actually a Pink Floyd cover) and "Into My Hypercube".

Musically, Voivod definitely shows that they have chops. They often use strange song structures, there are no verse-chorus-verse structures here and Voivod is no pop metal band. The songs often extend longer than they feel like they should. This causes the album to drag in places. The music is not radio-friendly due to the difficulty level of getting into them.

The music is driven by the bass. The guitars are mostly rhythmic instruments with the bass leading the way. The guitars come crashing in at times with staccato riffs that seem to come out of nowhere. The drummer is technically proficient, filling in where necessary.

The vocals are where the problems lie. The singer uses more of a spoken or shouted hardcore type of vocals, they are definitely not thrash vocals. It's not that the vocals are bad, they are unexpected and can be a bit abrasive at times.

Altogether, the atmosphere of the album fits in with the science fiction nature of the lyrics. The album sounds futuristic and spacey. It comes across well, but it did not age very well. At the time, this was probably a landmark, ahead of the times album, now it seems a little cheezy. It is not a bad album, but it is strange and challenging, once the challenge is met however, it is a rewarding album. It is very well-written and a fun listen.

Heaven and Hell Initial Impressions

I will probably write a more detailed review on this later but I figured I might give some initial thoughts on the album first. Some of these thoughts will probably be reiterated when I do a full review. So I will apologize beforehand.

1. The cover art is awesome. There's no other way to put it. I just love it.

2. Heaven and Hell is definitely a doom metal band. Many of the songs are slower and more melodic. There is nothing wrong with this as Black Sabbath is considered the forefathers of the doom metal scene.

3. Ronnie James Dio sounds great. What is this guy? 60? 65? Who cares, he's still an amazing vocalist. He has definitely aged better than Ozzy Osbourne.

4. The second half starts to drag a little bit. "Eating the Cannibals" is the fastest song on the second half, but afterwards everything else kind of drags on.

5. This album was probably overhyped. I had huge expectations going in. This was the first new studio album by Black Sabbath (let's face it, that's who this is) since the forgettable Forbidden. I wouldn't say I am disappointed with the album, but it wasn't what I was hoping for. You see kids, you should never look forward to anything, you will just be disappointed.

NOTE: From this point on, I will try to do this with all new pickups.

Dusting Off a Cassette Pt. 11: Spinal Tap: Spinal Tap (Soundtrack)

This is quite possibly the oddest item in my entire collection. When I was first discovering music, my dad found a travel case filled with tapes right next to a lake. No one was around and it was pretty beat up so he decided to bring it home with him. My brothers and I dug through it to see if there was anything decent. At the time I was not at all impressed with anything. Later on, when metal had taken hold of me, I went back through the tapes along with all of my parents' records and CDs in search of something. I found this tape and Suicidal Tendencies: Join the Army.

I did not know it at the time, but this was a soundtrack to a movie and the band was not real. I had even seen the band on The Simpsons so I had no idea that they were not a real band. With that being said, I was not overly impressed with the music on the album at first. There were some decent songs but the lyrics seemed absurd. "Big Bottom" and "Sex Farm" were of course sexually explicit and several songs did not come close to resembling metal.

Later on, I did discover that the band was fake, although the actors who played the over-the-hill band in the movie did really play these songs. It gave the songs a bit of a different feel knowing that. Then I saw the movie, seriously one of the funniest movies I have ever seen. The mockumentary is about the band travelling the U.S. on tour, which can only be described as an unmitigated disaster. Between drummers dying mysteriously, problems with set props, an album cover that was too sexually explicit so the label released a simply black cover (pictured), not being able to find the stage, and inner squabbles, nothing seems to go right. A great movie, I highly recommend it. The album though, is unnecessary with the exceptions of "Stone Henge" and "Hell Hole".