Metal – Page 78 – Wonderbox Metal

Monster Coyote – Neckbreaker (Review)

This is the third album from Brazilian Sludge/Stoner Metal band Monster Coyote.

With a colossal and crushing sound, Neckbreaker holds nothing back. The album is aptly named, let’s just say that.

Living in the same hinterland between styles that is inhabited by bands such as Ilsa, Serpent Eater, Northless, Colombian Necktie and the like, Monster Coyote play heavy, nasty music that’s too upbeat to be Doom, too gnarly to be pure Metal, and too rocking to be Death Metal. It’s somewhat how you might imagine Mastodon would sound if they had fallen in love with heavier, nastier music after their first release, or maybe Clutch if they developed a love of Sludge Metal.

The singer has a formidable roar that doesn’t let up. His caustic, gruff tones are a joy to listen to as the music rumbles and chugs its way through the 40 minutes of playing time.

The music is all about the crushing riffs and relentlessly aggressive heaviness. What separates them from some of their peers though is that instead of fusing this with Doom or Hardcore, they instead choose to fuse it with a Stoner Rock sensibility that means these tracks are all endowed with high energy and furious vitality.

The band know their stuff when it comes to playing and some of the longer tracks give them ample opportunity to develop their art. The drums in particular are a really satisfying listen, all rolls and pounding beats.

Emotive without being weak and strong without being brutish, Neckbreaker is the perfect recommendation for anyone into heavy, aggressive music that knows how to rock the fuck out.

Highly recommended.

Beseech – My Darkness, Darkness (Review)

Beseech are a Gothic Metal band from Sweden and this is their sixth album.

Since reforming in 2012, this is the band’s first release in 11 years, after their last album Sunless Days in 2005. I always really enjoyed Beseech’s older work when I was in the mood for it so was looking forward to hearing their newest music.

Immediately as the first song Beating Pulse starts it’s like they’ve never been away, with sterling melodies and emotive vocals from both male and female singers. It’s a strong opening.

The Beseech of 2016 have refined their sound so that they now pay homage to their earlier work, but have also added something new and, dare I say it, better than what came before. There’s a bit more of a Rock vibe to parts of this album than there was previously, and this has replaced certain overly-Gothic aspects of their sound in some ways. I don’t have a problem with this though, in fact I think it makes for a stronger album overall.

Beseech were always quite an emotive and textured band, but they appear to have developed this even further on My Darkness, Darkness. There also seems to be a bit more subtlety and nuance here than before; although this is not something they were really lacking, it’s just a deeper part of their sound now.

Essentially this is Beseech 2.0; better, leaner, hungrier and more refined than before. Experience and time appears to have aged them like a fine wine, and this collection of songs is very enjoyable indeed.

I’m very pleased with this. Rather cynically I honestly expected some form of half-hearted rehashing of old glories, (not sure why), but instead the band have impressively produced an updated, fresh and wonderfully emotive release that has quite floored my jaded expectations and is currently swamping my brain with quality tunes.

Check this out.

Systemhouse33 – Regression (Review)

Systemhouse33 are a Metal band from India. This is their latest album.

Their previous release Depths of Despair was an enjoyable, albeit brief, romp through all things heavy and modern, and Regression continues the theme but ups the stakes.

At a slightly longer 30 minutes in length, the band have further refined their blend of modern Metal and Metalcore/Hardcore/Death Metal influences into a potent blend of muscular aggression.

The singer has a harsh snarl that fits well with the music and doesn’t allow for any compromise. He plainly means business and I like what he’s selling.

The songs chug, rumble and bludgeon their way through the playing time and there’s a decent amount of catchy riffs and heavy melodies involved.

Although I liked Depths of Despair this is an all-round more cohesive, focused and superior release; perfect for when you want some heavy, crushing, upbeat, groove-based music. Without too much extremity, but also without going the other way into commercial, sanitised waters, Systemhouse33 have hit the right spot and Regression is actually a positive move forward.

For fans of Lamb of God, Meshuggah, Whitechapel, Skinlab, Machine Head, Testament, Merauder, etc.

Artillery – Penalty by Perception (Review)

Artillery are a Thrash Metal band from Denmark. This is their eighth album.

These Metal veterans return with another 54 minutes of old-school Thrash Metal.

The vocalist’s melodic cleans are straight out of a different era, and in the context of 2016 sound flawless and delivered with a skill and passion lacking in most similar bands.

Savage riffs and sterling solos are moulded around classic song structures. The band obviously know exactly what they’re doing from the outset and this is a ridiculously strong collection of tracks. Catchy, memorable and charismatic, these songs are seriously good. They also awaken such a powerful sense of nostalgia in me that I honestly don’t know what to do with. I’ll just listen to more Thrash Metal I suppose.

Some of the riffs and melodies on this release get the hairs standing on end and the overall feeling is indescribable in some ways. Being exposed to this much authentic top-grade Thrash Metal in one go should come with a health warning.

Well, this really has made me sit up and take notice. I pretty much hate the vast majority of the retro-Thrash movement with its stupidity and moronic nonsense, so it’s great to hear a band that were forged in the original era when this kind of thing was first born produce something so strong and worthwhile. This should put all of the idiotic posers in their place and demonstrates what a force to be reckoned with Artillery still are.

Taken with the recent release by Exumer, could 2016 be the year that reignites my love affair with Thrash Metal? It’s shaping up to be that way so far.

This is what Thrash Metal is meant to be about.

Exumer – The Raging Tides (Review)

This is the fourth album from these German Thrash Metal veterans.

With a crisp, punchy and professional sound, Exumer return with another album chock full of Thrash Metal anthems.

The songs are well-written and both catchy and memorable. The old-school Thrash vibe is present and correct, but the production and delivery is quite modern, resulting in an album that manages to tread different eras with ease, which is no mean feat.

The band sound focused and tight, intent on delivering a flurry of riffs and pounding drums strong enough to get even the most jaded of Metal fans moving.

I particularly enjoy the guitars on this release; Exumer have a talent for writing good riffs. I also like that the vast majority of these riffs sound energised and perfectly judged; a lot of old-school Thrash can easily sound stale and done-to-death, but Exumer seem to have the secret, (whatever that is), to producing songs that just hit the right spot.

Frequent solos accompany the cutting riffs and the singer’s vocals use good rhythms and pacing.

The Raging Tides is criminally enjoyable and I haven’t been this enthusiastic and excited by Thrash Metal for some time. For an album full of ripping Metal tunes you should look no further.

Crisix – From Blue to Black (Review)

Crisix are a Spanish Thrash Metal band and this is their third album.

This is an endearing mixture of old-school Thrash and modern know-how. It’s fun without being stupid and authentic without being retro nonsense. I approve!

The album boasts a strong production that’s crisp and clear, lending the songs a sharp edge and professional veneer.

The singer grunts, groans, shrieks and screams his throat hoarse throughout these 39 minutes. Alongside a plethora of backing and gang vocals, he provides an energetic performance and one can’t help but wonder if he survived the recording process with his sanity intact.

As would be expected from the style, solos and leads are tossed around like they’re going out of fashion, alongside so many punchy riffs you could knock someone out with them. With some minor movie and Hardcore influences too, there’s a lot of catchy material here.

There’s a lot of enjoyment to be had on From Blue to Black, especially if you like early Anthrax and Pantera and always wondered what it might sound like if they collaborated on a Thrash Metal sideband. It probably wouldn’t sound too far off how this does.

Very enjoyable. Check this out.

Gottweist – Future Is in Our Hands (Review)

This is the début album from Canadian Metal band Gottweist.

Gottweist’s music is somewhere between the classic Iron Maiden-influenced Metal style and a more modern one, as played by bands like Killswitch Engage, Bullet for My Valentine, As I Lay Dying, Atreyu and the like. The balance is weighted towards the latter, but the former has enough of a presence to give Future Is in Our Hands more impact than is normal for a band like this.

The album features a bright sparkly sound that might not be quite as polished as those aforementioned groups, but still works in concert with the songs themselves to present a band who clearly have a passion and energy for what they do.

The singer’s voice is melodic and smooth, backed by the odd shout or harsher vocal. The Heavy Metal influence counteracts the more modern Metalcore one in various ways, one of the more notable being the fact that the harsh vocals are very much in the minority here, whereas normally it’s the other way around, with cleans usually being restricted to radio-friendly choruses. Gottweist go the other, less-usual route; the majority of the vocals on this release are sung, and when harsher ones do appear they typically back up the cleans on the choruses.

Leads and solos are used well, adding much to the hearty songs and catchy melodies. Indeed, there’s so much enthusiasm here that it’s hard to feel jaded and dislike what the band are doing, (unless you’re just not into this kind of thing, of course).

All of the above results in an enjoyable and slightly different take on the more commercial side of melodic Metal/Metalcore. I have enjoyed their slightly-atypical spin on the modern Metalcore sound; with the traditional Heavy Metal aspects of their delivery lending a bit more depth and longevity to the music than is typical for a band of this ilk.

Given the right backing and exposure, as well as a bigger production and a slightly more adventurous songwriting outlook, Future Is in Our Hands might actually be potentially quite prophetic for their next album.

Check this out.

Between the Buried and Me – Coma Ecliptic (Review)

Between the Buried and Me are a progressive Extreme Metal band from the US. This is their seventh album.

If you haven’t encountered Between the Buried and Me before then you’re in for a treat. They’re one of the best examples of a band individualising what they do, and what they do is progressive Extreme Technical Metal. It’s a bit of a mouthful but it’s hard to describe this band in simple terms. Over the course of their career they’ve pretty much done it all, and over time they’re only getting more ambitious with their releases.

As with anything like this though, it’s not for everyone. If you favour music that has traditional song structures and predictable layouts, then move quietly along. If, however, you like the idea of listening to a band that can effortlessly combine the type of stuff you’d hear from bands like Queen, Deicide, Dream Theatre and The Dillinger Escape Plan, while simultaneously remaining entirely their own entity, then make sure you check this out.

This latest album is as ambitious and grandiose as always, more so in many respects. Piano and keyboards probably feature even more heavily than previously and add to the progressive structures in innumerable ways.

The singer uses both clean vocals and growls, although there seems to be a trend developing now that shows him using his clean vocals more and more. This is reflected in the music too, as the band use blast beats more sparingly than they used too as well. It may be less extreme than some of their other work, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s any more accessible for the average listener. After all, there are more ways to be extreme than just playing fast.

The music is flawlessly delivered and the level of musicianship on Coma Ecliptic is staggeringly high; this is a band who know how to work their instruments. The compositions are long and involved, as usual, although the average track length is slightly shorter than some of their previous work.

Eschewing anything close to standard song structures, Between the Buried and Me are all about the song sections and how these holistically fit together. There’s a lot to take in over these 69 minutes and the album certainly requires multiple spins to give up its secrets.

All of the songs have their own personality, as you would imagine, and it’s easy to differentiate between them. They’ve always been a highly textured and nuanced band, and this only seems to be becoming more pronounced over time.

Anyone into challenging music that successfully mixes progressive music with extremity, heaviness and quirkiness should definitely check this out.

Gargantua – Avant-Propos (Review)

This is the début EP from French Progressive Metal band Gargantua.

Gargantua play Progressive Metal that combines some quite eclectic influences to produce a 26 minute calling card that shows off what they can do quite effectively.

To give you a flavour of their style, imagine a mix of The Meads of Asphodel, Sigh, The Black Dahlia Murder and Akercocke, among others. It’s essentially a form of melodic Death Metal with added folk, avant-garde and progressive influences, allowing the band a freedom to experiment and be playful with their influences.

The keyboard and accordion aspect of their sound is quirky and endearing. While not as completely over-the-top as some of the stuff that Sigh get up to, this part of their sound can still be demanding and attention-seeking.

The more aggressive Metal that lays the foundation of their music is tempered by their other influences so that the majority of the riffs have a lot of other stuff going on; the avant-garde and more-emotive aspects of their style are never too far away.

Thrash Metal-esque shouted growls, barely-holding-it-together screams, progressive cleans, operatic choral parts, emotive theatrics; there’s a plethora of different styles employed on Avant-Propos via four of the various band members.

A very promising first release. While not perfect, it shows a creative band willing and able to push boundaries to achieve the sound they want. With a few tweaks here and there to tighten the songwriting up, they could become quite a fearsome proposition in the future.

Check them out.

Redemption – The Art of Loss (Review)

This is the sixth album from US Progressive Metallers Redemption.

Redemption’s Progressive Metal is melodic, song-oriented music that features keyboards, a raft of high-profile guests and a The Who cover. Importantly, it also has some extremely well-composed pieces of music that are Metal enough to have kick and progressive enough to take the listener on a journey.

This album has a very bright, strong sound, allowing the band’s music to shine and stand uninhibited on its own merits. It sounds good.

The band are clearly all well-versed in their chosen instruments, but one of the reasons I like Redemption is that for the most part they don’t let all of the technical, ostentatious playing get in the way of the song itself; this is paramount, more than anything else really. As such, this is an album full of catchy, memorable tunes that have the extra advantage of added depth due to the exploratory avenues that are opened up by virtue of being a Progressive Metal band.

There’s a mix of song-oriented tracks that are largely straightforward Metal songs, combined with a few where the band really let their progressive side shine; this is particularly demonstrated on the final track At Day’s End.

A vocalist with a great range and capable of delivering a sterling performance is required for music like this, and this is what they have.

At 76 minutes in length there’s a lot of music here to absorb, but it’s worth the time as Redemption have created a compelling and engaging listen.