All customer reviews by Tan M.
Posted on: November 15, 2016
Top 5 Swedish Black
On their first full-length offering, Sacramentum fix most of the mistakes they made on _Finis Malorum_. Gone are the out of tune parts, (most of) the off-time parts, and the poor production. What's left? Something that sounds a lot like Dissection. They even have blue/black cover artwork by Necrolord, and their pictures are in boxes on the back liner. But to discount them as Dissection rip-offs on this basis alone would be foolish. Their style is less aggressive than Dissection, but more intricate, avoiding the overly straightforward approach that Dissection's latest suffered from. As with Hypocrite (see review this issue), their melodic parts are usually either harmonized or have countermelodies, which is a technique that I think works especially well. As was the case with their MCD (although not quite as much so), the songs on this offering vary often, switching riffs every couple of times that they're played. In some cases, this amounts to nothing more than a change of key or a different drum beat, but it does help to keep the album from getting boring too quickly. Overall, I was a little disappointed by this album, but I did have high hopes for it, and it nearly delivered. I'd recommended it for Dissection and melodic black metal fans.
Posted on: October 23, 2016
Top 10 swe-death material
Gorement was one of the bands that spawned from the great Swedish death metal explosion of the early 90s. Unfortunately, as with fellow Swedes God Macabre, their immense talent was undercut by a shitty label and simply the steamrollers known and Entombed, Dismember and Grave; while those three bathed in praise and genre defining criticism, Gorement and God Macabre languished in the post Left Hand Path landslide. Relapse made amends by re-issuing the superb God Macabre effort, The Winterlong, but Gorement essentially remained unheard by those not fortunate enough to own their sole output The Ending Quest on the ill-fated Crypta Records.The Ending Quest is a long buried treasure of classic Swedish death metal, finally unearthed for all to appreciate and show that it was indeed the golden age of death metal that has never been replicated.
Posted on: October 20, 2016
First strike is still the deadliest
Slayer have become one of the most respected bands in the metal scene by the fans and their peers. They've just released their eleventh studio album, World Painted Blood, and show no sign of stopping. This relentless career started back in 1983 with an album titled Show No Mercy, and it did exactly what it said on the cover.
Show No Mercy is a one off in the career of the band, its sound is nothing like anything else they have done and can be seen as a transcendent passage from heavy metal to thrash. The album is packed with NWOBHM inspired riffs and Araya often pulls out high pitched screams that are not normally associated with the thrash scene. What differences this from the conventional heavy metal of the early 80s is the faster paced more aggressive style with which Slayer play. Venom and Diamond Head had done this before but Slayer took it to whole new levels. The band's characteristic sound was not yet found but Show No Mercy is not to be ignored by any means.
It contains songs that have become classics and fan favourites, such as "Die By the Sword", "Black Magic" or "Fight Til' Death"... But the album doesn't just contain a couple of decent tracks; it is a well worked ensemble which is probably overlooked because of the success and strength of the bands later material. I'd add a special mention for "Tormentor" which is my all time favourite Slayer song that, I also find best sums up the album's spirit.
Show No Mercy is without doubt my favourite Slayer album, why? Probably because of the 80s feel it has, which to some may make the record seem slightly outdated. However, the digitally remastered version, released in 2004, brings the sound slightly more up to date, and helps to fully appreciate the talent and effort put into the music.
Posted on: October 7, 2016
This a is Gold
Cirith Ungol returned to the Metal realm in 1984 with their second offering, "King Of The Dead". The Californian quartet took awhile to produce this album. The delay was attributed to the fact that Cirith Ungol had to finance their music with their very own hard-earned money. They were also on an independent record label that did not offer much support. "King Of The Dead" is heavier, darker, and slower than "Frost And Fire" (1980/1). On this album Cirith Ungol forges their eccentric identity with an amalgamate of Heavy Metal, Doom Metal, and Neo-Classical Metal along with some Progressive elements. In other words, Cirith Ungol gathers the doom and darkness from Black Sabbath and the energetic spirit from Rush and then merges it with the attitude of Judas Priest and the melody of Iron Maiden to establish their unique sound. Cirith Ungol's inspiration also comes from their passion of fantasy and science fiction literature such as J.R.R Tolkien's "The Lord Of The Rings" and the "Elric" novels of Michael Moorcock. Cirith Ungol are primarily Heavy Metal but they also had their hand and sword in the development of Power Metal, along with other notable artists such as Manowar, Dio, Savatage, Warlord, Manilla Road, Nightmare, Omen, Armored Saint, and Jag Panzer. Only the loyal fanatics of Cirith Ungol will appreciate this music as this is a group unlike most. Many will also not like the voice of Tim Baker (which sounds like a strange mixture of Judas Priest's Rob Halford and AC/DC's Brian Johnson). This is one album you need to have in your collection.
Posted on: September 27, 2016
Not a masterpiece, but its good
"Paradise Lost" is easily the most accessible title in the Cirith Ungol catalog. With heavy metal swelling to its highest popularity, Cirith Ungol released a CD that was far more standard and clichéd than any of their previous releases. Tim Baker's banshee vocals are brought down a notch, making him sound like a more serious Vince Neil. And the songs are written in a much more standard vein. Whereas earlier Cirith Ungol was unique in its loose songwriting style, the songs on "Paradise Lost" are even and - dare we say it? - smooth. Tracks such as "Go It Alone" almost sound like the popular anthems we were all hearing on the radio back in the late 80s and early 90s.
Still, perhaps not surprisingly, "Paradise Lost" is still better than the vast majority of the band's competitors at the time.
Although they sacrificed much of their originality with "Paradise Lost," Cirith Ungol also showed an impressive ability to adapt. Without selling out their sound, the band created a CD that would appeal to fans of what was hot at the moment, but also draw them into the unique Cirith Ungol world. In other words, those unfamiliar with Cirith Ungol might do better to start here before moving onto the band's more singular style on CDs like "King of the Dead," "One Foot in Hell" and "Frost And Fire."
Cirith Ungol continue to be cited as a band from which others drew inspiration and influence and their impressive, although far too minimal, catalog is proof of their place in heavy metal.
Posted on: September 23, 2016
Amazing death metal
Desultory plays death metal of a more melodic variety. Just think, the band comes from Sweden and puts melody in their death metal...normally this would make you think of some cheesy band which is really more power metal with death vocals than anything truly brutal. However, Desultory are definitely an exception.
This album uses much more melody than the previous album "Into Eternity", but doesn't sacrifice any of the brutality, with plenty of brutal sections coming out too. If anything, the inclusion of the classic HM-2 Buzzsaw guitar tone helps make this album even more brutal! It's not a better album (Into Eternity is one of the best death metal albums ever), but it certainly is a good runner up. The death growls are much deeper than the previous album, but are not as strong. However, there are quite a few of really interesting "gang vocal" moments, which you would normally expect for a hardcore band. Just listen to the album and you'll see.
This is a very, very good album...don't miss out on it! Sadly Desultory are not very well known, but they are clearly a very good band.
Posted on: September 11, 2016
Another solid release
This is Mercyful Fate through and through. Although some tend to argue that the original two albums are "the best" and "Time" is just another filler. I am on the opposite side of the spectrum there. Time is a pretty good album from Mercyful Fate. The musical direction of the disc is hard rock with a gothic atmosphere. There's a total of eleven tracks, and I find all of them to be listenable and energetic. The musicianship is proficient, and the songwriting and production are good. King Diamond does a cool job with the vocal duties. He is a distinctive, dramatic, and versatile vocalist. The guitar playing is tight, and there are some nice riffs and solos throughout. The songs that I like the most are "Nightmare Be Thy Name," "Angel of Light," and "Witches' Dance." "Nightmare Be Thy Name" sports a cool guitar riff. Time is an album from Mercyful Fate that I don't mind listening to. Worth a listen.
Posted on: September 6, 2016
Not a masterpiece, but its good
Nine years after Mercyful Fate released Don't Break the Oath. The songs here are first rate; most of them grab your attention in one way or another. But what separates this record from the rest for me is the amount of hooks found here. Whether it is a riff, a chorus or a drum pattern, by the end of the album you'll remember something from it. The album also features awesome production; you can listen to every single note and vocal line the way that the band intended and yet, it doesn't sound overly polished. if you are into King Diamond or Mercyful Fate and have never heard this, I see no reason why you would not like this album, as it delivers a quality dose of what you would expect from these artists. If you have never heard these guys and are curious to check them out, In the Shadows would be a good place to look.
Posted on: August 20, 2016
Humble beginning
While Chuck Schuldiner was notorious for ditching his old musicians in search for new talent and new band mates, his former band mates would go on to try on form other groups. Massacre is one of those groups.
The brand of death metal featured on "From Beyond" is pretty standard Floridian death metal. Scott Burns sits in the production seat at Morrisound studios in Tampa and its off. While this album may not have garnered the popularity like other releases at this time, it is still a great album. The consistent pummeling drumming of Bill Andrews and the wild soloing of Rick Rozz are a treat in themselves. If you couldn't get enough of Death "Leprosy" and wanted a second helping (minus Chuck) here it is!As well as Kam Lee's phenomenal vocals there's Rick Rozz's guitar wizardry with wild solo's unlike I've ever heard before and Terry Butler and Bill Andrews supply a BRUTAL Bass & Drum rumble to power this monster of an album along.
Posted on: August 5, 2016
A good beginning
First of all, Immolation is like no other death metal band you've heard before. They don't sound like Morbid Angel, Cannibal Corpse, or Suffocation. On here, they haven't yet developed their innovative style completely, especially the dissonant riffs and bizarre melodies, but the riffing is still innovative. Its kind of like Morbid Angel's Altars of Madness, an album where they hadn't yet reached their full potential, but still had enough integrity to make them rise above the rest of the bands in the genre. Although Dawn Of Possession isn't going to cause anybody to rethink their notions of what old school death metal sounds like, it is a very strong album, and is highly recommended for anybody who considers themselves a fan that gruff, super heavy New York Death Metal sound.