All customer reviews by Tai K.
Posted on: July 31, 2017
Not the old death doom
Without doubt Paradise Lost is one of the most influential and also controversial metal bands Britain has ever produced. It is no wonder the fans were divided into two groups, upon the release of "One Second". Many love it, and some hate it, because it has electronic sound effects and experimental stuff. However, the album still reflects the dark emotions previously experienced by listeners in the first albums. To me, this is a spectacular Paradise Lost album.
With the release of One Second, it had in effect ended the Gothic metal era in the band’s history at this point, and with this release, it saw the band renovate their sound completely. Gone are the Hetfield-esque vocals and the raw abrasive guitar work, and instead, Paradise Lost incorporates a heavily synthesised sound, reminiscent to that of the Depeche Mode. The guitar still plays a heavy role in the band’s music, but they aren’t the focal point anymore and they now provide more room for some superb keyboard melodies. The keyboard/synthesisers are the key new aspect to the band’s new sound, which is evidenced right from the beginning, with the opening title track. What fans may also notice is that Nick Holmes, previously known for his influential guttural vocals and then his James Hetfield impersonations, has now opted for a new cleaner approach. Songs like “Say Just Words† displays his new baritone vocal line and compliments the new sound superbly.
Despite all this change, Paradise Lost have managed to maintain their song-writing abilities to a very high standard, creating new memorable melodies whilst also preserving the gloom found in their previous releases. Nick’s transformation is a remarkable highlight to the album, backed up by solid instrumentation by Greg Mackintosh and co. The keyboards/synths are used appropriately and never become tedious to listen to, a trait that can be common in most synthesised gothic music. Offering highlights such as the slow, yet poignant “Disappear† to the aforementioned “Say Just Words† which houses a great chugging guitar riff whilst also reflecting Paradise Lost’s capability of creating memorable choruses – this is without question, a successful experiment and one that just brims with quality. Though, fans who are only accustomed with their previous works may be wary of picking this up – although there is no denying the lasting appeal of this record once they disregard their previous presumptions.
Posted on: July 30, 2017
OK for an IM release
After 15 albums and being one of the most recognisable bands in heavy metal, Iron Maiden need no introduction. Iron Maiden is a band that takes its themes, concepts, and lyrical content very seriously, and on this album there is no exception. This album runs a gauntlet of songs about space, whether it's exploring it or being stranded in it. And there are also a lot of themes about going home and missing loved ones; kind of about being away from where you're used to being.
The two best tracks are without a doubt "When the Wild Wind Blows" and "The Talisman". The former is an 11 minute epic that reminds you of Maiden's classic epics that you'd listen to all day. Plenty of style changes, gripping and unsettling lyrics, and Bruce's voice is just unbelievably amazing on it. The middle of the song reminds one of "The End" by The Beatles, where everyone gets a chance to solo, and the slightly Celtic sounding riff that sounds a bit like the intro to "No More Lies". The latter is on the same level as Hallowed- yes you heard me right. Beginning with a soft sea shanty about leaving a less fortunate land for a better future, the song kicks into high gear heavy metal and some stunning vocal deliveries from Bruce prove the man is nowhere near done yet. Galloping bass, guitar riffs that display true musicianship and Nicko's galloping drums only complement the amazing voice work from Bruce, and the lyrics that tell of a ship lost in a hurricane create an intense and horrifying film in your head, and how the story goes on, you hope this boat of misfits survives.
Maiden really haven't done anything radical in terms of sound changes throughout their career. And why should they? They've gotten this far without receiving any mainstream help. They are in their middle age and they just want to have fun and sing about coming home from far off places. Why shouldn't they? I mean, they sell out arenas and stadiums all over the world. They have fans as young as six years old. You go to a concert and see people ages 8 to 80. Obviously Maiden still have lots left in their tank, which is far from empty. Aerosmith or Judas Priest couldn't release an album this consistent if they wanted to. And it shows how relevant they've managed to stay through the years. This is Maiden showing to us that they still matter, and that they can rock if they want to. It's full of class and skill only Maiden could show.
Posted on: June 26, 2017
masterpiece
Death are a death metal band from Florida. The bands lead vocalist, song writer and guitarist Chuck Schuldiner has been named the "Father of Death Metal" in the past and he truly deserves it. Death started off their career with the highly influential album Scream Bloody Gore which is far more straight forward than recent releases. Deaths 2nd album Leprosy is often forgotten among casual fans of the band, It's more technical and keeps to a slower pace than its predecessor while still keeping the signature Death sound.
Every song in "Leprosy" is impressive, every single riff, every single drum-beat, every single lead, every single Bass-line (rumors say that Chuck Schuldiner himself played this instrument, and then he let Terry Butler take credit for this) every single scream, everything is remarkable, there's a lot of things to say about an album of this lineage, but I won't say more, only that I recommend you to buy it (even though I am sure you already have it in your collection) and then make a conclusion.
Posted on: June 25, 2017
Grind at its best
From Enslavement to Obliteration is an album that scares the piss outta me. It's like walking through a grave and stepping across the bones, and with each time you feel like you've been mentally scared. Compared to Scum, this album's production has increased by a long shot, and it doesn't feel 100% muddy. And the drums and guitars are evenly distinguished, instead of thinking they sound similar.
Although the album opener "Evolved as One" is a brutal doom metal number (perhaps foreshadowing singer Lee Dorian's Cathedral project, which he formed after leaving Napalm Death), the majority of this album is a blur of unhinged grindcore featuring Mick Harris' flurry of percussion, Dorian's maniacal grunts and entirely obfuscated guitar riffs. For those who like their songs to have a great deal of variety and distinction, this is not the record for you. At this point, Napalm Death made Sodom look like the pinnacle of polished arena rock. Napalm Death apparently aspired to created some of the ugliest music in existence and it's safe to say they came quite close, particularly in the context of 1988's music world. Tone Loc, this ain't.
It's fortunate this album has such a short running time. I can't imagine anyone, including the most dedicated grindcore fans in the world, wanting to hear this style for upwards of an hour. The CD version includes the brief The Curse EP as bonus tracks (two of which last all of seven seconds, which is plenty now that I think about it). Much like Scum before it, I find From Enslavement to Obliteration to be an amusing sideshow to the general heavy metal underground scene of the late 80s, but it's also hard to imagine being so into the band that I'd spend hours looking at their liner notes and thinking deep, academic thoughts about exactly what they were trying to express in their music.
Posted on: June 6, 2017
Not Kings Best
There are a number of musical highlights across the album with "Digging Graves" being perhaps the most profound of the albums offerings. There is some excellently ominous stuff being delivered by Andy LaRoque on every track and his guitar screams in cruel agony during tunes like "Oh Daddy" and "Sleep Tight Little Baby". This recording tells a full story which folks expect of the King on each of his albums because it seems to bring the whole dramatic mood to a larger effect than if they were scattered tunes that cover a number of different stories. He did this with his The Spider's Lullabye, which was the album that preceded this one and while a strong and interesting effort it seemed to piss the larger fan base off a little bit. I felt the King was in excellent vocal form on this release as he delivered a number of different parts of the tale in character and hence brought these characters to life in the music. Joining Diamond and LaRoque on this recording are Herb Simonsen (guitars), Chris Estes (bass) and Darrin Anthony (drums) and for the most part there are no real acrobatics being done and much of the music is relatively straight forward. A booklet is included which only gives us two small photos of King Diamond and a single one of the other musicians (also small) so one might feel a little bit of a visual cheat going on. After my full listen I realized that the best way to sink into this one was to relax and play at moderate volume and let your mind take you on a journey into the gruesome tale. Like most King Diamond releases it's very easy to do this with the vivid imagery that he paints in his lyrics. I've read that some folks regard this as a weak album but perhaps to its 1999 audience it was met with this based on the other music that was going on around at the time. It is hard to appreciate a conventional Horror laden Metal album when the airwaves of the day are telling us about "Living la Vida Loca". If you don't yet own this recording, then now is your perfect chance to bundle up and listen as the tale chills the very air around you.
All in all, The Graveyard really takes the time to establish itself as a powerfully driven album with an interesting theme which deviates from the rest of King Diamond's catalog. For fans of Diamond's voice, it's a no-brainer. For fans of metal or a good concept album in general, it's also a no-brainer.
Posted on: May 28, 2017
Average
Malevolent Creation's first two albums had brutality and power that tested the limits of death metal and redefined the genre, yet Stillborn is the exact opposite of that because of its generic nature and lack of creativity. The guitar work is just a lame collection of repetitive riffs with foreseeable changes and no technical elements whatsoever. There are usually two riffs for each song that switch at predictable intervals with an occasional slow part thrown in. Some of the solos are ok, but most of the guitar work on Stillborn is completely forgettable.
Alex Marquez's percussion is severely restricted here because half of his performance is just simple drum patterns. There are many parts of this album that have slow beats during fast riffing, which end up sounding out of place and disorganized. Marquez brings some satisfactory aspects when he lives up to his chaotic potential, but most of those moments are rare and don't come very often. It's rather painful knowing the musical effort here could have been great, but it's instead a poorly written LP with few good features.
This record is also cursed with ghastly production that sounds totally rundown and cheap. Brett Hoffmann's vocals are way too muzzled and distorted whilst his bandmates are shrouded with faded guitar volume with an unnecessary emphasis on the drumming. The loud percussion eclipses most of the riffing and it all just sounds like chaos (in a bad way, of course) when Hoffmann's growls enter the scene. To get a better picture of Stillborn, just imagine Retribution with recycled music, distorted vocals, and awful sound quality.
Knowing the same band that created The Ten Commandments and Retribution was also responsible for this disaster is a tough pill to swallow. Just about everything else Malevolent Creation has done beats the crap out of Stillborn, so unless you truly love this band, I suggest you stay away from this album.
Posted on: May 28, 2017
OK
Despite the more metallic feel slightly disappearing, guitarists Dave Murray and Janick Gers are still excellent in The X Factor. While I don't like the production on their guitars at all, they work with what they have and churn out some impressive riffs. Catchy, melodic riffs (especially when combined with Blaze's singing) make up for the lack of heaviness. Murray and Gers solo at the right times, adding speed and power to songs. Dave and Janick are best on the opening, 11 minute epic Sign of the Cross, where they spearhead the long instrumental that makes up almost half of the song.
The X Factor was a change for Iron Maiden, and a very important one at that. At over 70 minutes, this album paved the way for future albums of similar length, like Brave New World, Dance of Death, and their upcoming album A Matter of Life and Death. To this very day, the album remains one of the more unpopular Iron Maiden albums, along with Virtual XI. The X Factor is the kind album you either really love or really hate, as it doesn't feature the band's traditional sound. If I could recommend one album to get samples from before purchasing, it would be The X Factor, as it seems to have a mixed bag of supporters and haters. Personally, I really enjoyed The X Factor, its introspective lyrics, and Blaze's singing. That said, I would prefer the band refraining from recording an album similar to this one.