Initial Impressions: Brutal Truth Flexi-Disc

Yesterday, I received my latest issue of Decibel in the mail and there was a surprise: a free flexi-disc featuring two songs off of Brutal Truth's latest album. I was not totally familiar with the band. I have heard of them of course, but since grindcore is not really my thing, outside of a few exceptions, I had never really heard them.

Well, I am definitely impressed with the band's sound. They're loud, brutal, and fast. Of course all of that could be expected, they are a grindcore band after all. There is enough metal influences here to keep me interested though. The band sounds like more recent Napalm Death, a group that I have grown to really enjoy.

This is just a small sample of the band's material, and I have to say that it has piqued my interest enough to seek out more of the band's stuff. I will have to start with the new album. Thanks Decibel.

What I've Been Listening To

I have not been keeping very good track of things during my hiatus from posting on this blog. But, here's a rough idea of some of the stuff I have been listening to:

Unleashed
Amon Amarth
Deceased...
Darkthrone
Lightning Swords of Death
Vomit Remnants
Razor of Occam
Brain Drill
Woe of Tyrants

I was on a big Deceased... kick last week and listened to all of my albums by them, and I do have quite a few. I have not bought anything new in a long time. Most of my money has been going to trying to get my law firm off the ground. I do have four criminal court appointments going right now. I think the most challenging part of this will be trying to get clients. Advertising is a must.

I do want to thank the individuals who commented for their support as well as my fiancee for hers. I will probably be writing reviews here shortly. As I mentioned I do not have any new albums, although there are quite a few that I want. Lots of good stuff has been coming out. My wantlist includes the new albums (and some older ones) from the following:

Cradle of Filth (bit of a guilty pleasure, but they're better than Dimmu Borgir these days)
The Crown
Sacrifice
Heathen
Forbidden
Atheist
Hail of Bullets
Sodom
Grand Magus
Kamelot
Vektor
Voivod
Fleshgod Apocalypse

Update 2

I have made the decision to start up my own firm. I will keep you all up to date. Next week, I intend to get back to posting regularly. Thank you for your patience.

Update

As of today I am unemployed. I am not going to go into reasons or what happened. I have some time to get things figured out. My fiancee is being incredibly supportive and I want to publicly thank her for that. Once again, I ask you to stay with me, I will get back to posting regularly soon. Thank you.

Weekly Recap: 10/31-11/6

Well last Sunday was Halloween. My fiancee decided this year to dress up the rabbit, a checkered giant named Genghis. She decided to dress him as a dragon this year. We just kind of hung around the house for the holiday and carved pumpkins.

My trial date has been set for November 16. I will not be quite as active until that trial is over. It's kind of a stressful one.

I did finally get the new Melechesh album on Friday, and already posted my impressions on it.

Amon Amarth: Once Sent from the Golden Hall
At the Gates: Slaughter of the Soul
At the Gates: The Red in the Sky is Ours
Blind Guardian: Imaginations from the Other Side
Cathedral: Carnival Bizarre
Cauldron: Chained to the Nite
Cradle of Filth: Cruelty and the Beast
Cradle of Filth: Middian
Dark Funeral: Attera Totus Sanctus
Dark Funeral: Secrets of the Black Arts
Dark Tranquillity: The Gallery
Death: Symbolic
Drawn and Quartered: Merciless Hammer of Lucifer
Emperor: In the Nightside Eclipse
God Dethroned: Passiondale
Immolation: Dawn of Possession
Immolation: Failures for Gods
Immolation: Majesty and Decay
Immolation: Shadows in the Light
Incantation: Diabolical Possession
Incantation: Onward to Golgotha
King Diamond: "Them"
Lion's Share: Dark Hours
Melechesh: Sphynx
Melechesh: The Epigenesis
My Dying Bride: For Lies I Sire
My Dying Bride: The Angel and the Dark River
Necrodeath: Into the Macabre
Panzerchrist: Soul Collector
Satyricon: Dark Medieval Times
Unleashed: As Yggdrasil Trembles
Unleashed: Hammer Battalion

Initial Impressions: Melechesh: The Epigenesis

I was at a Continuing Legal Education seminar in Omaha yesterday, just six blocks away from Homer's, so you know I had to run over there. It's been several weeks since I bought anything new, and I had a list 18 CDs long that I wanted to find. Well, apparently Homer's is scaling down their selection, I only found one CD there from my list. But man, is it a good one.

Melechesh has been one of my favorite bands ever since I discovered Emissaries a few years ago. This is also the band's first album since that one released. Melechesh's sound, a blend of thrash and black metal, with Middle Eastern rhythms and melodies, is truly original and sounds amazing. Their vocalist Ashmedi is very strong and their songwriting skills are top notch. These strengths are evident in full force once more on this album.

This album sounds a little bit more polished than prior releases. Perhaps this is due to the band's increasing visibility on the international metal scene. It's also a little less chaotic than past albums. Neither of these two things really detract at all from this album as Melechesh again puts out a fantastic album. I do not like it quite as much as their last album, at least initially, but it could easily grow on me. I have only heard it once so far.

Year in Metal: 1995

As I mentioned earlier, for the next few weeks, posts will be less frequent. Please bear with me. I have a major trial coming up soon that I am spending the majority of my time preparing for.

AT THE GATES: SLAUGHTER OF THE SOUL
Who's honestly surprised to see this one here? This was a massively imfluential album for the melodeath genre and is the album most people think of when they think of that style. Oddly At the Gates streamlined their sound quite a bit. Their earlier material sounds little like this one. The album is hard-hitting, aggressive, and fast. For good reason, it is an absolute classic. Unfortunately, At the Gates broke up afterwards.

BLIND GUARDIAN: IMAGINATIONS FROM THE OTHER SIDE
This is probably my favorite Blind Guardian album. It is still reasonably aggressive, for Blind Guardian anyway, with an excellent sense of melody. The German power metal has never sounded as good as they do on this release. It is a darker sound than some of their earlier albums, which adds to the mystique of this release. Blind Guardian would become overly complicated on later releases, this was the last album where they were wholly concentrated on putting out quality songs.

DARK TRANQUILLITY: THE GALLERY
I am a huge Dark Tranquillity fan, and this is their finest album. This was before the band became too reliant on electronic elements and their last that was pure Swedish melodic death metal, plain and simple. Along with the above At the Gates album, this is one of the hallmarks of the Gothenburg style of melodic death, with dual leads and gruff vocals driving the music. The reissue is a must as it has the band covering tracks from Metallica, Iron Maiden, Kreator, Mercyful Fate, and Sacred Reich.

DEATH: SYMBOLIC
This is probably my favorite album by Death, as it combines the band's earlier death metal sound with the more progressive sound exhibited by the band's final album. Chuck Schuldiner's vocals are different, higher and more melodic, than they were on the band's earlier material. The razor-sharp riffs remain and Schuldiner's keen sense of songwriting is definitely still present. Some of these songs, such as "Crystal Mountain" are absolute classics.

PARADISE LOST: DRACONIAN TIMES
I had a hard time between this album and My Dying Bride's 1995 release, but I ultimately chose Paradise Lost because it was an early favorite album. This was one of my formative albums. Paradise Lost's sound was in a state of flux at this point, they were not really playing doom metal or gothic metal, but more of a traditional metal with gothic and doom influences. I have loved this album ever since I first heard it. The dynamics are incredible and the riffs are amazing. The vocals are incredibly powerful as well. This is just a great album, and an overlooked classic.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Alice in Chains: Alice in Chains, Cathedral: The Carnival Bizarre, Faith No More: King for a Day...Fool for a Lifetime, Fear Factory: Demanufacture, Immortal: Battles in the North, King Diamond: The Spider's Lullabye, Moonspell: Wolfheart, My Dying Bride: The Angel and the Dark River, Opeth: Orchid, Trouble: Plastic Green Head, White Zombie: Astro Creep: 2000.

BANDS THAT FORMED IN 1995: Borknagar, Ensiferum, Shadows Fall, Xasthur.

Weekly Recap: 10/24-10/30

I'm getting ready for a couple of trials in November, which is why my posting has not been as frequent lately. Hopefully, things will pick back up once these are out of the way. My fiancee and I went back to our home town for the weekend. I took her to the pumpkin patch on Saturday as one of our Halloween rituals. My dad and I went to the Nebraska football game on Saturday. Other than that, not much to report.

Abigail Williams: Legend
Acid Bath: When the Kite Strong Pops
Benediction: Killing Music
Blind Guardian: At the Edge of Time
Coldworker: Rotting Paradise
Corrosion of Conformity: Deliverance
Cradle of Filth: Bitter Suites to Succubi
Cradle of Filth: Cruelty and the Beast
Cradle of Filth: Dusk and Her Embrace
Cradle of Filth: Lovecraft and Witch Hearts
Cradle of Filth: Nymphetamine
Cradle of Filth: Thornography
Darkane: Insanity
Enslaved: Axioma Ethica Odini
Exodus: Fabulous Disaster
Hammerfall: Threshold
In Flames: Lunar Strain
Kataklysm: Heaven's Venom
Mantic Ritual: Executioner
Mayhem: De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
Metal Church: This Present Wasteland
Pro-Pain: Foul Taste of Freedom
Seance: Awakening of the Gods
Testament: Low
The Absence: Enemy Unbound
Tribulation: The Horror
Voivod: Negatron
Voivod: Nothingface
Wastelander: Wardrive
Wolfpack Unleashed: Anthems of Resistance

Halloween Playlist

I am heading to my hometown for the weekend, so this is the last post before Halloween. Halloween has always been my favorite holiday, and being that heavy metal can sound pretty spooky, it's the right season for the music. So here's what I am listening to this weekend:

Cradle of Filth
King Diamond
Mercyful Fate
Incantation

I know Cradle of Filth is not a particularly well-respected band amongst the true metalheads out there, but I find this particular season particularly appropriate for listening to them. The band blends gothic metal, thrash metal, and black metal and mixes that with a very dark atmosphere. Lyrically, Cradle of Filth covers morbid sexuality, supernatural events, and basic gothic horror. Dani Filth is a hell of a lyricist and possesses a vocal style all his own. I have been listening to all of the band's albums.

King Diamond and Mercyful Fate really need no introduction and I have covered them both extensively in the past.

I will also be listening to Incantation's Onward to Golgotha, a favorite album of mine that I have just not had an opportunity to hear for some time. The grimy riffs and spellbinding songs are just the kind of thing I am looking for this season. Excellent New York death metal.

Year in Metal: 1994

1994 was an important year for me in metal. Not because of the albums that were released, but rather that this was the year I started listening to metal.

ACID BATH: WHEN THE KITE STRING POPS
Acid Bath was an early pioneer in the sludge metal sound. Featuring members who would later comprise groups like Crowbar and Goatwhore, Acid Bath was ahead of its time. The band blended sounds from doom metal, hardcore, blues rock, black metal, death metal, and virtually anything else. This is a fantastic album with extremely strong dynamics and range. The band only released two full length albums, of which this is the debut.

CORROSION OF CONFORMITY: DELIVERANCE
Corrosion of Conformity (C.O.C. from now on) has had many different sounds over the years. Beginning as a hardcore band and slowly incorporating more and more thrash and metal influences, the band changed a lot. This was a complete change however, with the band adding classic rock and southern influences into their more traditional metal sound. The band was one of the leaders in the New Orleans sound along with Crowbar and Eyehategod, and of course, the above Acid Bath.

IN FLAMES: LUNAR STRAIN
Here we go, the first sign of the Swedish melodeath scene in this series. This was In Flames's first album and at this time, they had a very different sound than what they have now. This was pure melodic death metal with occasional folksy interludes, such as a soft string section. The band was also different in that Mikael Stanne of Dark Tranquillity fame was the band's lead vocalist instead of Anders Frieden, who was fronting Dark Tranquillity at this time. Weird.

MAYHEM: DE MYSTERIIS DOM SATHANAS
Mayhem's masterpiece is a dark and brooding album, perfect for this season. This album features Attila Csihar on vocals and his performance can best be described as manic and frightening. The album was the last to have guitarist Euronymous and bassist Varg Vikernes prior to Varg murdering Euronymous. For that reason alone, this album is far more infamous than it is famous. The music though is one of the best examples of the Norwegian black metal scene.

TESTAMENT: LOW
I kept wanting to get Testament on one of these things. Well the time has finally come. Testament was never really an elite thrash metal band, until this album, when they combined elements of groove and death metal with their thrash metal and Chuck Billy started growling far more often. This is when the band truly came into their own. This is a heavy and brutal album, far moreso than anything the band put out before it. This is the band's best album to this point, and it's not even really close.

Honorable Mentions: Black Sabbath: Cross Purposes, Cannibal Corpse: The Bleeding, Cryptopsy: Blasphemy Made Flesh, Dream Theater: Awake, Emperor: In the Nightside Eclipse, King's X: Dogman, Machine Head: Burn My Eyes, Megadeth: Youthanasia, Pantera: Far Beyond Driven, Queensryche: Promised Land.

Bands that formed in 1994: Abscess, Destroyer 666, Lacuna Coil, Six Feet Under, Strapping Young Lad, Symphony X.

Compilations: Metal Maniacs November 2008

God, I've slowed down on posting here lately. Well, let's get another compilation thingie out of the way quickly. Hopefully it won't be too painful.

GUILLOTINE: "INTENSE OPPRESSION"
Guillotine is a fantastic Swedish thrash metal band. I already own this CD and it fucking slays, so yes, I absolutely recommend this. Go get it.

DRAGONSLAYER: "THE SLAYER"
Someone's looking at a lawsuit. Not really. Apparently this is a NWOBHM band whose album was reissued in 2008. It's pretty decent. I wonder how many of these bands slipped through the cracks. It's like discovering fossils.

SCALERA: "GET OUT ALIVE"
Lots of drums, way too high in the mix. It's hard to hear what else is going on, which is a shame because this sounds like reasonably decent death metal on the opening riff, until the clean singing part. Spoke too soon. That killed it, now it's basically metalcore. Next.

MENDACITY: "AWAY"
More metalcore, and some progressive noodling. Yikes, this is starting to scare me.

KRISIUN: "COMBUSTION INFERNO"
This is the Editor's Pick. This band of three brothers from Brazil picks up where countrymen Sepultura left off. Absolutely fucking brutal, pounding intensity. Great band. I own this album too.

WRETCHED: "ABORNING"
Pretty decent melodeath/thrash. I enjoy this. I had a bad feeling based on the song name, a word I don't understand. But the music is quite good.

THREAT LEVEL: "STAND YOUR GROUND"
Completely unoriginal. It's okay musically, but offers absolutely nothing new.

BOWELS OUT: "A CHAINSAW AUTOPSY"
Ugh. Mental picture is disgusting. Who guessed death metal? Well, duh. It's pretty grimy stuff. I like it pretty well.

MAGNUS: "DREAMS"
I was expecting possibly some sort of doom metal here. Instead we got some metal/hardcore hybrid. Huh, guess you can't judge a band by it's name all the time.

ENTHRALLER: "OF THE SUN"
What a terrible band name. Sounds like a glam rock band trying to come up with something to thrill the ladies and Exciter was taken, albeit by a great band. And then the music is as far removed from glam as possible. It's death/grind. Why the stupid name?

COFFIN BIRTH: "SPIDERS OF INSOMNIA"
Let's play the name game. How about "Grasshoppers of Influenza", "Caterpillars of Irritable Bowel Syndrome", "Ants of Mononucleosis", "Earwigs of Catatonia", "Boll Weevils of Juvenile Diabetes", "Stinkbugs of Dementia", or "Aphids of Stockholm Syndrome"? Musically, it's pretty good though.

APOCALYPTIC VISIONS: "MOVE AND APPEAR"
I really like this band's sound. Lots of technicality and some damn impressive guitar work. This is pretty decent. This band could have a future.

ARABYSS: "ETERNAL SILENCE"
The compilation ends on another strong note. This is symphonic metal tinged with death metal elements and yes, some metalcore, but it works. A great song and a great ending for this thing.

Not Metal Post: My Fiancee's Ipod

So, I bought my fiancee an Ipod (or however the hell it is best written) for the first Christmas we were together. It has quickly become the bane of my existence. She has, shall we say, eclectic musical taste. We were having a discussion recently about songs to clear the reception hall and I pointed out to her that many of the songs on her Ipod are objectively terrible and just as likely to clear the reception hall as Cannibal Corpse's "I Cum Blood". So, here's a list of some of the crap on her Ipod that will also chase away people:

"Barbie Girl", yes the Aqua song. It's amazingly dirty actually.
"My First Kiss"
"We Like to Party"
Some song with instructions on doing a stupid dance that I can't even name but I point out every time it comes on that it's not actually a song but instructions set to a keyboard rhythm.

This will probably be an ongoing list as I think of things. My brain isn't working this morning.

Weekly Recap: Oct. 17-Oct. 23

Last week was incredibly slow. Long week at work. Oh well, it's given me a chance to try to prepare for a couple of potential trials next month. Not much to say otherwise. My fiancee has been working evenings and getting home late, which kind of sucks. Not a ton going on in metal. Looking forward to the new Melechesh album. Hopefully Hastings will carry it. Not holding my breath though.

Amon Amarth: Once Sent from the Golden Hall
Artillery: Through the Years
Bathory: Under the Sign of the Black Mark
Believer: Gabriel
Bonded by Blood: Exiled to Earth
Brain Drill: Quantum Catastrophe
Brown Jenkins: Death Obsession
Carcass: Heartwork
Celtic Frost: Into the Pandemonium
Celtic Frost: Monotheist
Celtic Frost: To Mega Therion
Cephalotripsy: Uterovaginal Insertion of Extirpated Anomalies
Cynic: Focus
Danzig: Deth Red Sabaoth
Dark Fortress: Ylem
Dark Tranquillity: Fiction
Dark Tranquillity: We are the Void
Decrepit Birth: Polarity
Dying Fetus: Killing on Adrenaline
Enforcer: Diamonds
Enslaved: Axioma Ethica Odinihttp://by137w.bay137.mail.live.com/default.aspx?wa=wsignin1.0
Entorturement: Descend Into Deprivation
Ex Deo: Romulus
Exodus: Fabulous Disaster
Fatal Embrace: The Empires of Inhumanity
Havok: Burn
Heathen: Breaking the Silence
Heathen: Victims of Deception
Hellhammer: Demon Entrails
Immortal: Pure Holocaust
Iron Maiden: The Final Frontier
Kataklysm: Heaven's Venom
Kataklysm: Prevail
Kataklysm: Shadows and Dust
Krisiun: Southern Storm
Lecherous Nocturne: Adoration of the Blade
Mastodon: Leviathan
Merciless Death: Realm of Terror
Morbid Angel: Covenant
Old Man's Child: Slaves of the World
Paradise Lost: Icon
Pathology: Legacy of the Ancients
Pyrexia: Sermon of Mockery
Sinister: Diabolical Summoning
Teitanblood: Seven Challices
The Absence: Enemy Unbound
Toxic Holocaust: An Overdose of Death...
Toxic Holocaust: Hell on Earth
Triptykon: Eparistera Daimones
Vorkuta: Into the Chasms of Lunacy
Warbeast: Krush the Enemy
Watain: Lawless Darkness
Witchery: Witchkrieg
Xenomorph: Empyreal Regimes

Random Thoughts: Songs to Clear Out the Reception Hall

This one's for you honey.

Here are some songs that will drive everyone away from the reception.

Cannibal Corpse: "Necropedophile"
Cannibal Corpse: "I Cum Blood"
Cannibal Corpse: "A Skull Full of Maggots"
Cannibal Corpse: "Entrails Ripped from a Virgin's Cunt"
Crytopsy: "Slit Your Guts"
Obituary: "Chopped in Half"
Cradle of Filth: "Gilded Cunt"
Mayhem: "Chainsaw Gutsfuck"
Type O Negative: "Christian Woman"
Bathory: "Satan My Master"
Dimmu Borgir: "The Devil's Path"
Slayer: "Raining Blood" (would make an excellent opening theme though)
Slayer: "Dead Skin Mask"
Morbid Angel: "God of Emptiness"
Suffocation: "Bind Torture Kill"

And that is just a small sampling. I could have made this post extremely long.

Year in Metal: 1993

CARCASS: HEARTWORK
Carcass is revered for being a pioneer in the grindcore genre. However, in their later years the band put out one of the all-time great death metal albums, Necroticism-Descanting the Insalubrious. Still later though, Carcass had a major hand in the formation of melodeath with this amazing album. Featuring cover art from H.R. Giger and some absolutely sick riffs and melodies, this is a great album without which we would not have had melodeath. At least the good stuff anyway.

CYNIC: FOCUS
Along with Atheist, Cynic is responsible for bringing jazz and fusion influences into death metal. Sounds like something doomed to failure, but it surprisingly works quite well. The songs often run the gamut between death metal and more ethereal, serene soundscapes. The vocoder vocals can be a little irritating at times, but it's nothing to stop listening for. Cynic did not release much after this, going on hiatus until just recently releasing their second full-length album.

IMMORTAL: PURE HOLOCAUST
One of the more well-known bands in the Norwegian black metal scene, Immortal is also probably my favorite of the groups. Immortal knows their sound and largely sticks to it, and their sound is chaotic and unholy thrash riffs played with ungodly speed and shrieking vocals. Immortal has created their own world on this album. They may be a little cheesy-looking in pictures and videos, but there is nothing cheesy about this music. Excellent black metal.

MORBID ANGEL: COVENANT
The first time I have ever heard of Morbid Angel was when the video for "God of Emptiness" was on Beavis and Butthead. I thought to myself that I had to get that album. The music was so evil and unlike anything I had ever heard to that point. Well, I was not able to find the album until I really started looking within the last few years. Now, this is one of my favorite death metal albums ever. Terrific death metal that other bands have been trying to copy for years.

PARADISE LOST: ICON
You won't see a lot of gothic metal in these lists, but there will be some. Paradise Lost is probably my favorite such group next to Type O Negative. The English band helped usher in the death/doom genre with Cathedral, My Dying Bride, and Anathema, but they became more of a gothic metal band over time. This album represents the crossroads between the two sounds and the doom elements and gothic elements blend perfectly into a beautiful, but still aggressive album.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Anthrax: Sound of White Noise, Atheist: Elements, Crowbar: Crowbar, Darkthrone: Under a Funeral Moon, Death: Individual Thought Patterns, Entombed: Wolverine Blues, Fight: War of Words, My Dying Bride: Turn Loose the Swans, Overkill: I Hear Black, Satyricon: Dark Medieval Times, Sepultura: Chaos A.D., Type O Negative: Bloody Kisses.

BANDS THAT FORMED IN 1993: Children of Bodom, Dark Funeral, Diabolical Masquerade, Dimmu Borgir, Electric Wizard, Hammerfall, Melechesh, Nile, Symphony X.

Initial Impressions: Enslaved: Axioma Ethica Odini

Wow. Enslaved has outdone themselves on this album. I became a big fan of the band after seeing them in concert awhile back. I have enjoyed all of the albums I have heard from the band so far, but I do think this one blows even those albums out of the water.

The opening track is certainly the strongest, featuring an opening riff that is the closest thing to pure black metal that Enslaved has released in some time. The song does not continue in that vein, instead it becomes more interesting, and the band's prog influences are clearly felt throughout.

The opening track is just a brief microcosm of the overall album. This album features numerous black metal parts which blend into numerous progressive parts. The vocals run the gamut between crooning tenor and harsh blackened rasp. Indeed, Enslaved has shown more willingness to incorporate clean vocals into the mix a little more often this time around. These clean points are often peppered with the black metal vocals.

The riffs are overall impressive. Enslaved does not really sound much like a black metal band at this point, but there is nothing wrong with that. Their sound has matured and has come into its own this time out. The band has fully realized the potential of the experimentation they have conducted on other recent albums. This sound is fully fleshed-out and complete this time. This is the album they have been hinting towards for years.

Initial Impressions: The Absence: Enemy Unbound

The Absence is an American band that sounds like they come from Sweden. By that, I mean they are a melodic death metal band. However, they prefer the sounds of the early days of the subgenre. This is no In Flames or Soilwork ripoff band, The Absence goes for the more straightahead crunch of At the Gates. Unlike most American bands aping that style though, The Absence features no core influences. It's just hostile melodeath.

I picked this album up recently after loving their last album. It seems like a long time has passed since that album was released, but the wait was worth it. The Absence actually sounds a little better this time around. In my opinion anyway. Decibel did not care much for it, but I find myself seeing eye to eye with Decibel with far less frequency these days. So, that doesn't bother me.

The Absence has tightened up musically this time around. There is more precision to the riffing style and the guitar solos are sharper and more melodic. The Absence has also increased their thrash influences evident in their music. The band has continued to grow as musicians. This is an extremely overlooked band. I will be interested to hear where The Absence goes from here. This is currently the band's highpoint. The Absence is not for everyone, but if you like good melodeath, they are highly recommended.

Initial Impressions: Exodus: Fabulous Disaster

I kind of stumbled upon this rare find at Hastings recently. I was looking for some of the newer releases by groups like The Absence, Malevolent Creation, Kamelot, and others, but when I saw this, I knew I had to have it. An album by a great thrash metal band at their height? Absolutely. Plus, I have always loved "The Toxic Waltz".

This album is not quite as good as Bonded by Blood, and it does feature Zetro on vocals instead of Paul Baloff. But, Zetro's voice does fit in well with what the band is doing. Particularly on the aforementioned "The Toxic Waltz". Zetro sounds like a mix between Bon Scott of AC/DC and Blitz Ellsworth of Overkill, and he sounds great on this album.

There are some unusual moments here. The spoken word intro, the ill-advised "Low Rider" cover, and the odd Deliverance-esque opening to "Cajun Hell". It makes a little sense when you consider that Exodus has always had a bit more of a sense of humor than their more serious brethren (just look at the album cover for proof). These moments kind of derail things a little bit, but then the band comes back with a crushing thrash riff.

This is one of the better albums from the Zetro era of the band, which I still prefer to the current Exodus regime, but it's not quite as good as the band's debut. Still though, this is an absolutely neck-breaking album of thrash metal. I would pick this up anyday over most of the stuff coming out today.

Weekly Recap: 10/10-10/16

Another week. Ho hum. I did recently buy some more CDs, so look for Initial Impressions posts from Exodus, The Absence, and Enslaved. Hopefully this week. I've been trying to cut down on buying CDs lately to save money. So I have been making a conscious effort to only buy CDs I know I will enjoy. I am trying to make sure I can help give my fiancee the wedding she deserves.

1349: Demonoir
Akercocke: Antichrist
Akercocke: Words that Go Unspoken, Deeds that Go Undone
Alice in Chains: Dirt
Amorphis: Skyforger
Argharus: Pleitas
Baroness: Blue Record
Bloodsoaked: Sadistic Deeds...Grotesque Memories
Bonded by Blood: Exiled to Earth
Candlemass: Death Magic Doom
Cannibal Corpse: Tomb of the Mutilated
Cradle of Filth: Godspeed on the Devil's Thunder
Crucified Mortals: Promo 2007
Danzig: III-How the Gods Kill
Deceased...: Fearless Undead Machines
Deicide: Legion
Deiphago: Filipino Antichrist
Destroy Destroy Destroy: Battle Sluts
Enslaved: Axioma Ethica Odini
Evile: Infected Nations
Exodus: Exhibit B-The Human Condition
Fear Factory: Soul of a New Machine
Gama Bomb: Tales from the Grave in Space
Hecate Enthroned: Upon Promethean Shores
Imperial Vengeance: At the Going Down of the Sun
Judas Priest: Sad Wings of Destiny
Kyuss: Blues for the Red Sun
Laethora: The Light in Which We All Burn
Lightning Swords of Death: The Extra-Dimensional Wound
Mastodon: Leviathan
Metal Maniacs Oct. 2008
Metal Maniacs Nov. 2008
Misery Index: Heirs to Thievery
Necrophagia: Holocausto de la Morte/Black Blood Vomitorium
Poccolus: Ragana
Red Harvest: Internal Punishment Programs
Rotting Christ: Aealo
Samael: Above
Satan's Host: Great American Scapegoat-666
Satan's Host: Power, Purity, Perfection-999
Satan's Host: Satanic Grimoire-A Greater Black Magick
Shackles: Traitors' Gate
The Absence: Enemy Unbound
The Lord Weird Slough Feg: Ape Uprising!

Compilations: Metal Maniacs November 2008

ENSLAVED: "THE WATCHER"
Well I am a huge Enslaved fan and have all of the albums they have released in about the last decade, so of course I already own this one. Good song, better album.

RONNIE JAMES DIO, TONY IOMMI, RUDY SARZO, AND SIMON WRIGHT: "GOD REST YE MERRY GENTLEMEN"
Yes, this is a Christmas song. Yes it's a little odd to have a doom metal treatment to a Christmas song. Still, it sounds great. Stranger stuff has happened I suppose. I'm sure the Westboro Baptist Church would have a field day with this.

THE HAUNTED: "MORONIC COLOSSUS"
I already own this album by the Swedish thrash metal outfit. This is the best song on the entire album. The rest of it is good, but not great. That's kind of how I feel about The Haunted in general actually. This is the Editor's Pick.

AQUEFRIGIDE: "DETESTO"
Just a guess, but these guys may not be American. It's also hardcore. No thanks.

RABBIT JUNK: "GHETTO BLASPHEMER"
Terrible band name. Worse song name. The song also really sucks and grates on my ears. Pass. I don't even want to describe it.

PHOENIX REIGN: "RUN NOW"
Traditional heavy metal with a female lead singer and a somewhatMiddle-Eastern sounding opening riff. This kind of reminds me of Temtris. It's pretty decent actually. I would want to hear more from them.

CELLPAN: "DUCT-TAPED MOUTH"
Awful nu-metal sounding shit. I thought nu metal died? At least it's short.

DEGRADATION: "DISILLUSION"
This is thrash metal. This, I actually enjoy. It sounds like they're heavily influenced by Slayer, utilizing the same harsh yell that Tom Araya uses. Good stuff.

FIMBULVETR: "BROTHERS INTO BATTLE"
Not to be confused with Fimbulvinter I suppose. It's impressive folk-inspired death metal. I may have to check these guys out, this is great.

CYNIC: "INTEGRAL BIRTH"
The technical, progressive death metal band returned with a sound that is decidedly less death metal, but still amazing. This is a great song, off a great album, which I already own.

THE VENGEFUL FEW: "MADHOUSE"
Excellent traditional metal with a singer who sounds a lot like Rob Halford. Once again, great song. I definitely need to hear more from these guys.

IRONSWORD: "CIMMERIA"
More traditional/power metal. This comp is full of this stuff. Once again, another great song. Huskier vocals and heavy riffs make this a very interesting track. I have heard of Ironsword before, but now I will have to check them out.