Countess - On Wings Of Defiance

 

How do you review an album which is so far removed from normalcy that it can not be compared to anything else in the metal canon? It's a problem I run into rarely since almost one hundred percent of all music is not created in a vacuum and since almost all music aspires, acknowledged or ignored, consciously or involuntarily, to be that which influenced it. Countess, however, is not a project that fits either of these groupings. Countess has never existed in a vacuum and, as such, has been influenced by and has influenced countless projects across its fifteen years or so of existence. At the same time though, it clearly doesn't aspire to be anything other than itself... because if it did, it sure as hell wouldn't sound like it does. I'm left trying to describe and analyze an album which can be reviewed from several different perspectives: for someone who is familiar with Countess and enjoyed what they heard, someone who has heard Countess and been able to withstand only several minutes (if that) of Orlok's creations, and someone who has never heard of Countess. There almost have to be three different reviews to explain this album. Luckily the first two groupings of fans are easy enough to review for:

Probably the "worst" of the Countess albums.

If you've heard Countess before and "got it" and thus enjoyed the previous albums, this will be enjoyable as well though I do think it might be slightly too long for it's own good.

If you've heard Countess before and cringed immediately for any reason, you will probably want to continue ignoring Countess. This album will not change your mind and would probably make you want to insert galvanized spikes, railroad ties and decking screws into your ear followed by a strong singular blow with a hammer to drive home the point that Countess should not exist in your world.

So this review is really for those that have never heard of Countess before and have no experience with the Orthodox Black Metal which Count Orlok has devised in some Dutch castle somewhere for nearly twenty years. Here's some background. On Wings of Defiance is the thirteenth (!) Countess album. They are all radically different in varying degrees of production standards though lately Orlok has been enamored with making his guitar sound like an amplified electric razor. The general style Countess has proceeded with since 1993 is difficult to describe. It's like a Manowar tribute album if the only songs chosen were from Louder Than Hell and all the bands that submitted tributes were Russian black metal bands from deep in Siberia. Additionally, Orlok has a knack for writing some of black metal's - actually any kind of metal's - most outrageously happy-go luckily, feel-good riffs. Did I mention the whole thing uses a drum machine? Thematically, this album revolves around invading Roman armies and burning down religious buildings and general black metal anti-religion angst. It's all well and good and some of the lyrics are really pretty good actually. One thing I've always admired with Countess is that it seems that for Orlok, his music is really nothing more than a way to say whatever the hell he wants and I have a feeling that he's actually probably super knowledgeable about history and theology.

I'm really fascinated with reviews I've read of Countess over the years which somehow are relatively positive. No other band that sounds like a twelve year old with a Korg who happens to be pretty exceptional at composition would ever receive such reviews. Somehow, across all this time, Orlok has earned so much respect that people just expect the musical equivalent of a Stretch Armstrong doll. No matter what Orlok does, Countess just can't break and people aren't even surprised when halfway through a song he belts out some throaty proclamation that sounds less like a Satanic warlord and more like a fifth grade English teacher pissed that every student in their class wrote book reports on internet facebook memes. It's an uncanny thing really. If Orlok released an album that was to Countess what St. Anger was to Metallica, it would most likely be hailed as a brilliant rethinking of the Countess doctrine. It's so strange to find not a single review which seems to objectively discuss the band. Even the reviews that DO blast Countess are usually short and poorly written. Probably because the reviewer just couldn't handle fifty-plus minutes of someone playing a guitar by rubbing a comb across the strings and listening to those ever-so-remarkably crisp and strained yelps.

Yes, Orlok has the single strangest vocal style I've ever heard. It's something I could never get used to and the first time I heard Ad Majorem Sathanae Gloriam, and consequently Blood On My Lips, I just had this revelation that somewhere out there was a grown man in his bedroom screaming into a microphone as if he was constantly being kicked in the nads while two rooms away his mom was cooking the best rookworst in the world and his dad was watching the world cycling finals on television. What's so great about On Wings of Defiance is that you get Orlok's barely tolerable yet considerably lovable and charming vocal approach for a full sixty-four minutes. Sixty four minutes of short, sharp bursts of snarling angst which is easy to mock and perfect to make anyone stuck in a car with you never ask for a ride again. In a genre which is supposed to be harsh and raw, there is nothing more perfectly ironic than Orlok's crystal clear delivery. It's Danny DeVito as the Penguin in Batman Returns singing over an emasculated Bathory with a Boss OD pedal. It's how Joe Biden pretends to imitate George Bush at family dinners for a laugh. Orlok's vocals are like being trapped in a 1930's horror movie full of actors that were never chosen to play the circus troupe in Freaks. It's listening to an album over ten times - as I have done - and still staring at your speakers not knowing if you should laugh, growl or just contemplate the fact that someone in the world thinks that vocals should sound like a human-cricket hybrid.

But as mentioned before, Countess has excellent songwriting and composition. The songs across On The Wings of Defiance are all excellent when you look deeper than outward appearances promote. Though slightly long, opening track "Where Eagles Die" displays a keen sense of dynamic writing with the inclusion of some keyboards at moments to elevate the song. Across the album there are moments in which Orlok creates a bombastic, regal vibe to accentuate the horny sounding lead guitar tone. Considering the themes across the album it works perfectly. See "Foggy Dew" for not only the best track on the album but a song which uses this feel to shine above the rest. The song is incredibly catchy and reminds me of bands like Forefather and songs like "Wudugast" or "These Lands." When Foggy Dew opens into the melody after the first verse you can't help but love what you're hearing just like when "Where Eagles Die" ascends into the first lead section or "At The Hot Gates I Stand," breaks the three-minute mark and reveals a brilliantly written instrumental section. "An Emperor's Stand" is another highlight for me. Much like other songs such as Sermon of the Devil Preacher (which shares an uncanny resemblance to Attacker's "Slayer's Blade") it opens with a grandiose and memorable intro.

Across the album are a few slower songs such as Invictus which sounds like that Graduation Song (Vitamin C happens to be from my town of Old Bridge... don't I just feel so proud!) that we all sat through during high school proms and graduations though with Orlok's crispy snarl tagged across his excellent piano and keyboard playing like some veteran graffiti artist marking up local highway underpasses with Satanic verse. The album's title track, "On Wings Of Defiance," also starts off with strong piano playing and, something I've not heard on other albums, an accompaniment of keyboards - a unique compositional treat. Across the whole album Orlok really keeps the album from devolving into boredom through expert use of comedic ingenuity and variety. He experiments with all kinds of instrument combinations, rhythms. tempos and collaborations in every song. It's one of the highlights not just of this album but all the Countess albums going back to Return of the Horned One which sets Orlok apart from other projects of this style - not that there are many out there. To believe that one guy out there somewhere is writing incredible music and getting overlooked due, most likely, to production standards which are incredibly high but so far removed from your everyday black metal bands both produced and unproduced is a crime of the metal underground's seeming penchant to write off bands that bear little resemblance to the genres they are supposed to represent. Also included on this are awesome covers of Demon's "Night of the Demon" and "In League With Satan," obviously a Venom cover. Both are incredible.

Ultimately, I would like to propose to Orlok, should he read this, that I offer to engineer the next Countess album should there be one. Countess are a band that deserves recognition for many reasons. Consistent, innovative, totally ambivalent towards what everyone wants black metal to sound like, musically proficient... the list can be long and arduous to finish. To allow production to prevent a band this excellent from prospering and gaining the admiration I believe, and so many others believe. look at the reviews on Metal Archives, they average a score of 75.7% and albums like Heilig Vuur, Spawn of Steel, The Shining Swords of Hate and The Revenge of the Horned One Part II plus several others all have multiple reviews adding up to a rating of over 90%. The most comment complaint is the tone of the albums and the production on them. Orlok has nothing left to prove with Countess and he should take the opportunity to create more masterpieces of the genre with nothing to hold him back such as drum machines - a major no no to many metal fans - and tonality.

Descantation - Descantation

Another older review, this one from back in 2006...

Descantation hail from Ontario Canada, were formed in 2003 by main man Pestilence, and play black metal. This is, from what I know, to be their only widely released album or widely released to the standards of the band since this is only limited to 50 copies. There isn't a whole lot to say about this album but ill try to at least make an effort at giving a decent description. Three tracks clock in at 11 minutes with the longest being the second track, While the Frozen Air Awaits Morning. This is also my personal favorite track due to the incredible atmosphere and sheer evilness of the song.

Production wise, its not bad in that all the instruments can be heard well. Of course, as is the nature of the product, there is the static that accompanies most underground black metal releases. The guitar tone sounds like its being played through a 12 watt amp turned up to 13 on the dial and the speaker is blown yet regardless the guitar actually sounds fitted to the music. The bass is also well played and never out of key. Vocally, there is nothing new done here but the vocals are mixed well and work more as another instrument than vocals. I would consider them one of the best aspects of this particular album aside from the great melodies. The only perturbance (Yeah... I was using words back then that didn't exist just like I do now) that I noticed was the drumming on the first track which lacked anything that could be called interesting. musicianship isnt bad but its not on par of anything such as Leviathan or Xasthur. Though I would say its a notch better than fellow Canadian, Sabazios Diabolus and his outfit, Lust. The musicianship is not that which would win the award in any particular contest but the slower, doomier last two songs show an incredible ability to create interesting melodies.

The first song is titled Firmament and is the fastest track on the album. It starts off as a mid - hi tempo black metal snare and bass drum pound-fest which then leads on into a great mid section and back out into what sounds to be the beginning of the song played again. Simple yet effective. Nothing meticulously structured or outdone. It starts, your listening, and before you know it, its over. Not a bad opener and it showcases all the strong points of this album - the melodies (especially in the center part of the song), the vocals, and the back to basics nature proving how black metal can be simple yet well done. As I mentioned before, the drums could have been worked with a bit more however I don't think they seriously hinder the music in anyway.

Song two is my favorite on the album and differs quite differently from the first song. gone are... the drums aside from accents here and there. If there was a child daycare service in hell and they had a commercial on television, this would be the theme song. haunting melodies complimented nicely by the eerie twang of the trebly guitar and also a simple bass line following the dark melody make this peice akin to playing with Lucifer while listening to his favorite "soft rock." The song continues on. sadly, the only thing holding this song back is a lack of any variation in the tempo or riffage. Though a great song, it falls slightly short of an excellent song. A little more effort could have made this song classic.

Song three is very slow and very wretched. The first minute of "The death of Fenrir" is nothing but bass and it stays this way for a while. Haunting like the interlude on the first track and the whole of the second track, the song crawls on until it comes it's fading end. an interesting choice for a final track but somehow it works well.

In total, this eleven minute album is quite good as far as underground black metal is concerned. it has its moments and is an interesting listen. for those who are looking for grim, fast, and headbangable black metal, this is NOT what your looking for. Those looking to light candles, sing hymns to the black lord and wander through untouched forests at night, i think you may enjoy this impressive debut but I would turn to masters Drudkh, Astrofaes, Empyrium, and Negura Bunget first.

Motherbrain - Live At Tobacco Road NYC 9/21/2012

A quick live video I shot the other night of the awesome Long Island grinders Motherbrain. Definitely go see these guys live if you have the chance. This video does NOT do them the justice they deserve. Most impressive about the whole thing was the overall tone of their sound. One guitarist sounding like a full band of a bassist and two guitarists. Joe, their vocalist, was awesome to talk to and gave one of the most impressive vocal performances I've seen in a long time. I give this band a ton of respect. Look for some reviews in the near future.

Necrosadist - The Alpha Nihil

The Cypriots behind Necrosadist led me to really expect some great stuff from this short EP. Although Menthor on Drums has been in several other bands seeing Dictator's name amongst the participants immediately evokes images of the awesome Dysangelist released under his self-titled project. And though I knew that this was a different force than the classically influenced, black metal tinted funeral doom which evaporated out of hell and into my stereo speakers during ritual playback of that tape, I believed that Necrosadist could be for me what Apolion was last year - a glistening beacon of resiliency amongst the matte black metal current that has pervaded so readily these last several years.

So does Necrosadist's EP, The Alpha Nihil, live up to my expectations? I don't know. Somewhere in the middle maybe but something hints at a subdued greatness here. It's like hearing a lot about a great restaurant only to get there and find that they ran out of the dish you wanted to order... To be frank, this EP is raw, dirty, unpolished and resembles a simmering pile of scat in the corner of the room. When you think about it though, when was the last time that you were walking down the street and didn't stop to confirm your fears when you saw roadkill lying in the street? My largest gripe with the EP is that the first song was longer than I felt it needed to be and contained some rather mediocre riffs while the two songs really displayed two different styles of the filthy stuff Necrosadist create. Opening track "Day of Dissolution" is a much more conventional sounding raw black metal track. There are some really good slow marching sections and near the four-fifths mark a fascinating clean section with blast beats that sounds like something Watain would do if they weren't too busy being generic. Unfortunately, there are other sections which make me seriously consider never listening to the song again. The caboose is the title track and it saves the EP for sure.

The second track on this fifteen-minute EP is a weird mix of bubbling and fizzing textures; frothy atmospheres of curdling blood and melting ligaments. It is far less direct than the opening track and where the first track had moments which could've come from any 'ol black metal band anywhere on the planet, The Alpha Nihil, is a much more interesting setup. It resembles a wandering hermit, confused and downtrodden, exploring his surroundings in a circle, his mind hazy and somewhere within, his consciousness is screaming in anguish. The layering of the guitars is an interesting thing with the most prevalent layer being a lead layer with a lot of whammy-bar experimentation. The first half of the track relies heavily on a layer of phasing and echoing guitars while the second half of the song is more solidly built of riffs. The drumming is set back but crisp enough and the vocals follow the same pattern as they did in the first track on the EP. While the first track is questionable but hinted at some great Ideas, the second track took those opportunities and excelled at them.

To go back to the restaurant metaphor, The Alpha Nihil is like going to a restaurant and finding out what you really wanted to order was no longer available but they brought you out this really phenomenal plate of french fries covered in bacon and chives and cheese, only the plate wasn't a plate... it was a naked woman and you weren't actually eating at a restaurant, you were in a ritual mutilation ceremony.

Midnite Hellion - The Fever

 
I waited to review this for far longer than I promised so I apologize to Midnite Hellion and Drew for the long period of absent reviewing. That said, I did so because I wanted to wait until the final copy sold out of my distro and, hopefully, their stock. I maintain the belief that it's not proper to review product I am trying to sell for fear that my opinions may influence someone to not buy a release. In the case of Midnite Hellion's debut demo, The Fever, this most likely would be the case. The Fever is not a bad demo, in fact it's a very good demo in some regards but it does have some major flaws, flaws similar to the Horrifier album I reviewed a few months back. The fact that the bands share members, and share styles could be discussed deeper but I'm not going to waste time with the minutia of describing Midnite Hellion as a response to Horrifier. The under currents between the two bands are known to those in the area so whatever that may imply is up to those involved to consider.

Midnite Hellion are an awesome live band. They really hit the nail on the head if that nail was being used to build a stage or show-prop or a doghouse. I was excited to hear the demo, hoping it would capture that energy on tape which, unfortunately it doesn't. At the demo release show they really hit it out of the park - their stage show was exciting and fun to watch, there was headbanging galore and the intoxicated nature of the whole thing was a definite blast into the ever increasingly distant golden age of metal. The main problem though was covered up; Sonny Zackeo is a great live performer but on record, he truly falls short. Falls very short, in fact. He falls flat on his face - and his notes - and is forced to drag himself through a mire of uneasiness and hesitance that is audibly equivalent to watching a good friend get shut down constantly by everyone around him. In the time since this demo was released, the band has changed vocalists and I have not had a chance to get out to see the new vocalist. If they can get that position filled with someone with some serious chops, the band have a good chance of being a local favorite. I don't think that world domination is within their grasp yet though.

To return to discussion of Midnite Hellion as a response to Horrifier, While I felt Horrifier was a confused example of a prodigal possibility, Midnite Hellion is the opposite. Midnite Hellion is a totally focused though mediocre entity at it's heart. The standout performance on the demo falls solely on bassist Bill Dripps with Dan Sclavi and Amadeus Zajac presenting strong - but average - guitar performances. Drew, as a drummer, is not going to do anything that will make you want to struggle through rewinding the tape or picking your head up from the morning crossword puzzle. He's a simple yet effective drummer as were the vast majority of NWOBHM drummers but to stand out, there needs to be more. The standout track on the demo is Cross the Line, but only because it really doesn't fit. It's a fast, thrashy piece that no one seems like they wanted to record. It would have fit better on the Stench album (There's some connections here too) with a song title about dipping children in a toilet full of vomit and excrement or some other ridiculous thing that Amadeus would talk about outside one of the many shows I see him at across NJ and PA.

The strongest song here is the second track, 1903. A bass intro opens the track, displaying some of Bill Dripps' talents. The song crisscrosses between verse and choruses with some gang vocals and solos. It's structured well, stays interesting and has Sonny's best performance as well. In a few places for about three seconds he almost comes across as a student of James Rivera that really didn't take class seriously. The other highlight is the cover of Invaders. Now, most of you don't know this but all my immediate friends do: I loathe that song. It's the biggest pet peeve track of all time for me. The almost lackadaisical and poorly thought out ascending and descending chorus section makes me want to slap my face with large slate slabs covered in vomit and urine. The pain of such an impact would be far less torturous than Bruce Dickinson's whiny vocal explorations. Hearing Sonny attempt those shrill high parts created stiffening fear and curdling blood in all parts of my body upon the thought that I was about to hear my least favorite song get redone by Midnite Hellion, of all possible people. Fortunately, Sonny did something great... he didn't try to hit the glass-shattering high pitched shrieks that Bruce made criminal. The result, a tolerable version of my most hated track! Midnite Hellion do in fact have some things going for them. They are good song writers, and the tracks, with some additional production standards and vocal improvements could in fact be significantly better. The demo's faults aren't really a fault of the band but a fault of what might be a rushed effort to get material recorded and released.

Although the poor production may have been a blessing in disguise, for some reason my tape was panned entirely to the left, with no sound on the right. I tested the other tape I had at the time and it was the same issue... on three tape players, each with two separate tape decks, and a portable walkman. The guitar tone is fairly weak though the separation of instruments is perfect. You can hear the bass clearly, though the bass sounds a bit limp. I don't know how they recorded this so I can't point to anything particularly but the overall feeling I get from the production is that it may have been a four track recording or something in a basement. Ultimately, with a new EP being released in a few weeks and a new singer present, Midnite Hellion may have improved considerably in the time between this demo and the show I saw them play. I plan on being at their EP release show in about a month so, I can only hope that their new EP and singer add the Midnite Hellion the pieces they need to become the awesome band that those guys deserve - they are all awesome people and I wish them the best. I'm definitely going to pick up the EP because with minor adjustments, it could turn out to be an awesome set of songs.

Demolizer Interview 9/17/2012

Of all the bands which I've received tapes from and traded with over the years, there have been few which truly moisten the loins and perk up the soul like the Motorhead and Bathory influenced Speed Metal Slovakians Demolizer. Fortunately, not only is the band skirting, what I feel, could be breakout success with recent surges of interest in bands like Midnight and Speedwolf, but the two main men behind the unruliness that is apparent on their awesome demo Possessed and their raucous Live Demo are genuine blokes. Amidst all the emails about beer and boozing with both Vrana and Demolator, we pulled ourselves together to get something out to the metal fanatics seeking something to crank during the binge drinking, house parties and all that other metal tomfoolery. Thanks again to my friend, Demolator, for taking a minute to answer some questions.


CT: Demolator, thanks for taking the time to answer some questions about your awesome band Demolizer! Tell me about how Demolizer came to exist back in 2008.

Demolator: Greetings ! Idea of making this band came simply from my fanatical attitude and love to the 80's extreme metal. I started it as a solo project due to lack of musicians around and also to have 100% control of music and band itself. I have decided to learn and play guitars, vocals and other instruments to handle the whole band. Luckily I've found later in 2009 another fanatic - Vrana from my friends Thrash Metal band RADIATION, who absolutely fit in and he joined. And he really knew how to PLAY guitars hehehe. I am still very grateful of him.

CT: Are there simply no musicians in Slovakia or is old school metal just not popular? It seems that early 80's metal is on an upswing in popularity here in the USA.

Demolator: Thats great to hear, you have really great "retro" bands like Toxic Holocaust, Midnight or Steel Panther, I saw that pussies this year and they did very great show !!! But there is also a lot of US bands, that did not catch that 80s feeling, which if you dont have, that tons of great riffs turns into a waste in a moment... Here in Slovakia (and I believe I can say in whole Central/East Europe) Old school Metal is dead at all... Germany, Finland or Sweden have very great bands in this genre, but the rest of Europe seems to have no interest in it anymore... It would be very nice to have bands only like Black Ghost around these time hahaha

CT: When someone asks you about your influences as they relate to Demolizer, what bands do you mention? What bands have had a large impact on the Demolizer sound?

Demolator: I am a total maniac to "1980-1985" era, which is in my opinion absolutely the best Metal could ever offer. To name the most important bands which inspired us are - VENOM, BATHORY, MOTORHEAD,  BLACK SABBATH, DISCHARGE, GBH, IRON MAIDEN, JUDAS PRIEST, MERCYFUL FATE. And sound ? We are trying just to sound like a total darkness !!  (which suceeded only on debut album of BATHORY and BLACK SABBATH...)

CT: Tell me about your awesome demo, Possessed. I think it's a classic sounding Speed Metal / Black Metal demo in the vein of Venom and early Sodom. How did you acheive this sound during the recording? Was your intent to create a demo that sounds like it came straight out of the early-mid 80's?


Demolator: Yes and no hahaha. Our intention was to create a sound like it came straight from hell !!! We were recording it on a tape machine and then vocals and bass has been recorded separately. Of course we were trying to be as close as possible to the 80's sound, but there are things hard to fight with like drums for example. In the 80's there were very different sounding drums with long toms and extremely loud snares etc., it is almost impossible to get this kind of drum kit today. But anyway, it is most important for us to do things by our own, because I like to do music as it comes, naturally, with no digital repairings and plastic shit around.


CT: The track titles say everything about Possessed but my favorite grouping of lyrics on the demo is for opening track, "Masturbation." It's such a twisted song. Across the whole demo though, the lyrics are really awesome. What are some of your favorite lyrics across Possessed? Are there any stories or background to any of the lyrics in your songs?


Demolator: Thank you. There are no favourite lyrics I guess. I just write as I feel it, on the first hit. Masturbation song wasnt meant seriously to be honest, one of those "lets make some fucking Motorhead" but lot of people like it mostly hahaha. Some lyrics are personal, some reflects my anger against this world and life, and some are dedicated to metal way of life.

CT: What things are you angry about that inspires you to voice your hate and frustration with Demolizer?

Demolator: Music and lyrics should speak itself... I can sum it into one sentence - Fuck this world !!!

CT: You also had a really small demo in 2009. What happened with this demo? Will it ever get released as bonus on another future album or will we never hear it? Apparently there are no vocals on it?

Demolator: Yes, it was recorded as rehearsal promo with no cover or info at all and spread only to close friends (shortly after Vrana joined the band). It has extremely great old sound in my opinion, even older than on Possessed demo. I played on Amati drums (very old Czechoslovakian drum producer, you can hear them on old TORR, MASTERS HAMMER, GLADIATOR, etc.) but I dont have them anymore... I haven't think about re-releasing of it yet, but when it will happen I will do some vocals for it definitelly.

CT: Tell me about Demolizer's live performances. What have been some live highlights? What is your favorite story to tell people that ask about your live performances?


Demolator: Well, Demolizer used to have very wild stage performance haha. Sometimes it was like GG Allin on stage !!! I use past time because we've decided to quit doing shows, I lost interest in it, because it's very difficult to find bands that understand it and which play REAL and VIOLENT Metal. Maybe some tour in Germany would be cool but fuck it anyway. Every gig we did was pretty extreme, with lot of booze, drugs and violence hehehe. I remember some Czech Demolizer fans started to throw chairs or tables through the window (it was second floor !!!) and there were a lot of fights during the show, our last gig ended up when the guy in the crowd started to bite me hahaha. This is rock n roll !!!

CT: Speaking of Live performances, you also have released a live demo. Do you feel this tape reflects the energy of Demolizer live?

Demolator: Definitelly not ! It captures only our drunkeness maybe, but I think Demolizer is very energic on stage.

CT: Tell me about the Slovakian metal scene. What are some of the bands that you've played with that deserve some attention? Are bands in the scene willing to help each other or is it a scene of people going it alone, doing everything themselves?

Demolator: Good question. There is no support I believe nor "scene" at all which is very sad. There are some guys from different locations of Slovakia, we are in contact with, but generally people are not helping to keep it. Most of Slovakian bands play shit - a new, modern, technical, with female-vocals, trendy, trendy and plastic music. Nothing for us !!! When speaking about our metal music, I can name RADIATION, HELCARAXE, TEMNOHOR, OLDBLOOD, EVIL, KORIUM, but almost every one does not perform live. RADIATION is playing live only so to speak hahaha.

CT: Other than Demolizer, you have played in some other bands in the past as well. What other bands have you played in and how would you compare those bands to Demolizer in terms of your involvement in writing and composing?

Demolator: Demolizer is very special in every meaning. It is my personal tribute to occult philosophy and heavy metal music ! 80's heavy metal era as I mentioned before is the most beautiful act of darkness ever done in a whole art. And I always try to be as close to this as possible with Demolizer. So every other musical feeling I have I put to different bands and projects. I will name other bands only with some releases or recordings - GOATCRAFT (black/death metal), MORGANTE (ambient, black metal), SVARTHAT (very primitive black metal), NIHILISM (black metal), GATES OF PTULAH (black/death metal with member Mrož from RADIATION) and BROKEN CRUCIFIX (heavy metal, also with Mrož) and from the past - STRYGON (heavy metal), POSTMORTER (thrash metal) and THE BAG OF BONES (70's hard rock)

CT: Other than metal, what else do you enjoy doing with your time? What other hobbies are you involved with?

Demolator: There is no other than Metal hahaha (only crust/punk and acid rock!) . But I am into occult, Satanic philosophy, horror movies/literature and nature or travelling.

CT: What would you list as your favorite horror movies or novels and why?

Demolator: I like retro spooky movies mostly like Häxän, Faust, Nosferatu, or The Exorcist, Lynch films, and Italian classics from Mario Bava or Lucio Fulci. They have incredibly great and obscure dark atmosphere. You dont need litres of blood and super-effects to shit from it. And I read mostly historical/religious books of fact or writers like Lovecraft or Velmistr (one current Czech uknown writer).

CT: You obviously enjoy the bottle. What Slovakian liquors and beers are worth seeking out? I'd love to get my hands on some Slovakian beer!

Demolator: Hahaha well we have a drink called Borovička with about 40 % of alcohol but I cant drink it anymore, I prefer whiskey (Jack Daniels !!!). And beers we have some but mostly crap, Slovakian prefers more Czech beers (Pilsner or Black Hill). My favourite Slovakian beer is called Goat of Velkopopovice, it has great taste and has logo like old Bathory hahaha.

CT: If there was one little known fact about Demolizer, what would it be?

Demolator: We never performed or recorded with clean minds.

CT: What are the future plans for Demolizer? Are you working on new material? Any plans for another demo or release anytime soon?

Demolator: Currently I am living abroad so the band is off, but I should be back for a while during this winter and for sure we will recorded some new stuff. First there will be recorded a 7" single and then a debut LP, I hope we will find someone who would like to release us on vynil.

CT: That's all! Demolator, you've got the last words brother!

Demolator: Thanks for your time and space here, I enjoyed your questions. Support the true spirit of extreme music !!!

Diseased Oblivion Review #4

Thanks from the awesome guys at Aristocrazia webzine for their great review of Diseased Oblivion - Portals of Past and Present. Check out the link here and also be sure to check out their review of Okketaehm - Stones while you're visiting their site.

Blood of Kings - Blood of Kings

Blood of Kings, not amused by their nude photographer...

Seattle, Washington is never the first place I think of when it comes to metal but Blood of Kings, a trio from the rainy city who formed in 2011, is hell bent on making sure that the city gets the heavy metal respect which it was never able to formally validate even after a number of great bands including Heir Apparent, D.C. Lacroix or myriad undervalued gems such as Serpent's Knight. It's a tough precedent to break but Blood of Kings gives it their all, and they give it admirably. Pete Yore (Bass, Vocals), Eric Jelsing (Drums) and Nick Paul (Guitars, Vocals) have quite a large amount of  talent between them and rampage through some fairly atypical and interesting songs on their debut release - an old school four song demo tape simply tagged with their moniker.

The first listen through was a fascinating experience for me simply because the band really seems to have already gelled so completely as far as their style can be concerned and the three piece has taken great care to produce a really strong product. Presentation on first impact is, however, somewhat lackluster with a cover which really doesn't seem to provide any indication of the overall contents of the tape. I honestly have no idea what the cover is. Perhaps it is intended to represent the third track on the tape, Heart of the Land, but my guess is as good as anyone else. My best guess is four skulls connected at the temple by a central heart but my second best guess is fungus... probably fungus scraped off the inner thigh of some long dead obese individual whose body has become a haven for new and exciting biological possibilities.

Music first. The tracks range from mid paced to just below what I would consider "fast." Opening track People Of The Light is my vote for weakest song on the demo though it has it's moments such as the post-solo lead and opening riff however a somewhat uninspired chorus really marks the demo's low point. It's pretty much smooth sailing from there though with Force Fed and closer Derailed really being highlights for me. The guitar tone, a crunchy muffled fluidity with hints of breakup in the bass frequencies and crisp treble clarity, suits the band's habit of utilizing more complex chord progressions and melodies and lends a doomish quality to some moments. Force Fed is a tremendous track, wandering through a heady amount of confident leads and memorable melodies. While Heart of the Land is a neat track with some, dare-say-I, unconventional progressions, Derailed is the strongest representation of what I think the band is best capable of doing; Voivodish thrash in the vein of tracks like Tornado. Blood of Kings is great at taking riffs and presenting them in a way which we haven't heard before which is really awesome.

The weakest part of the whole demo are the vocals which, I have to admit, are holding the band back at the moment. This is one moment where Mustaining it didn't work. While I'm not positive who does most of the lead vocals, it doesn't matter since all the vocals are pretty horrid. The nasally, out of key attempted vocals, though commendable, is like telling a crying baby that while we appreciate their attempt to alert the world that they aren't happy, we really could do without the deafening high pitched banshee wails. My main question is, why would the band go through such effort to produce some really strong tracks but allow the vocals to sound like a third grade teacher's fingernails on chalkboard? Either they didn't think it sounds bad - which it does - or they intended the vocals to sound like Gilbert Godfried's best impersonation of dying cats. This is something they will have to address if they want to garner any real widespread interest.

Okketaehm - Review #3

Thanks to Aristocrazia Webzine in Italy for the review.

Check it out here. There is a translation available from the Italian to the, slightly awkward, English.

Murkrat - Drudging The Mire

After a long, foreboding and tense piano intro to Murkrat's second full length, Drudging The Mire, we finally get to experience  what the brunt of this genre-bending release contains en-mass: droning archaic chants to the tune of the god fathers of ultra-slow, moody doom. With bands such as Skepticism playing major parts in the construction of a unique and solitary take on this corner of doom's vast pantheon of sub-sub genres, to try and compare Murkrat to other projects is as difficult as tying your shoes with broken hands. There really is no perfect fit. In the case of Murkrat, it really is like trying to shove a square peg in a round hole.

The most general description of the myriad components here breaks down as follows: The underlying base of the music is a structure rooted in something akin to Gregorian Chant or ritual music with an emphasis on vocal melodies. The religious symbolism removed, a haunting atmosphere is created. On the main tracks a guitar is used to create grit and heaviness. It has a strange overall tone though, as if the instrument has been played very softly and with little attack. Run through a fuzz pedal, the resulting effect is that of a cello or contra-bass bowed and played through an Engl with the bass turned all the way up and the treble turned all the way down. The foundation is rounded out with drums and keyboards, both playing prominent roles in the band's sound. The totality of the arrangement is not unlike the more recent Skepticism albums or what you would find in any number of funeral doom albums.

The two major factors that make this album so completely unique are Mandy VKS Cattleprod's vocals and Neil Dire's drumming. Drums first. Evidence for the unique drums is found through the album, though in second track (first real track after the intro) "I, Rodent," we are presented with one of the strongest displays of the unique drumming. Dire plays a style similar to that of Steve Shelton of Confessor but far far slower. Strong confident beats are punctuated with moments of experimentation and free - form fills and variants. The constant variety adds a sense of adventure to the mostly simple rhythm section. Fifth track, "Electric Womb" is an example where Dire relinquishes his experimentation slightly and the track suffers. "The Mighty Spires," marks a return to Dire's seeming need to complicate the rhythms. He succeeds here, crafting the spine to what is my favorite song on the album.  The drums play a major role in making this album listenable instead of simply an interesting attempt. Neil's drumming is about 30% of what makes this album tick.

The 60% that makes the album tock, however, would be Mandy's vocals. I have heard one other female vocal in this style though nowhere have I heard such a prominent role for this style of vocals. A quick reference point would be Vanessa Nocera from Wooden Stake. Though Nocera tends to let the riffs press the music onwards, objectively speaking, Mandy is the more skilled vocalist. Nocera may be more aggressive and I'd be surprised if Mandy could equal the extreme vocals which Nocera does so well (a moot point since there are no real extreme vocals on Drudging the Mire), but Mandy's ability to combine layer upon layer of vocal melodies and harmonies is rather astonishing. Vocally, there is an operatic element to the style employed here but it's more of a crooning at times. Mandy basically sets the stage here for every talented female vocalist who never thought that their love of the Cranberries could be translated into a doom metal setting. It's an immaculate blending of the holy and unholy - an angelic style used to perpetrate mournful and somber melodies and harmonies.

The album is long, and while the eight songs are all incredibly interesting, well composed and unique, a sense of dragging does occur. I noticed it around the midway point of "Electric Womb." While the following track, "The Mighty Spires," is, as mentioned before, a highlight in my eyes, the song which I have to give the most credit to is "World," an example of everything Mandy's vocal genius is capable of in a single track. It's the kind of song John Batchelor would open one of his radio shows with - a soundscape presenting an intimacy into the soul of a universally acknowledged musical truism; music can transport us places without a common language, without common beliefs or common experiences. "World" is mainly a vocal instrumental, if the two words could go together. Mandy lays a foundation of vocal layers and builds upon them to create one of the more beautiful pieces of music I've heard in a while. Though excellent, obviously this is not an album for everyone. There is a required interest in slow, moody, doomish music and also, I would say, a disposition of open-minded curiosity which would go well with this unique and eccentric album.

Black Chalice - Submission Review # 5

Another review for Black Chalice - Submission has been posted on metal archives. The positive reaction to the release continues and more than half of these tapes are gone.

Review added to the others on the Black Chalice - Submission page.

Okketehm - Stones Review #2 / Diseased Oblivion Review #4

Via Metal Core Webzine.

Okketaehm - Stones: 

"Wow was this some pretty damn good raw as fuckin hell black metal. This band can create a mood and just sink you in with feeling and emotion. The riffs, the style of music, the way it is played and the vocals all play a part in this. This isn’t just saw fly by night black metal band screaming about satan and all that. Sure this is fast and raw, but to me black metal is a lot about feeling and emotion and this had both. This easily comes from the pits of hell."

 Diseased Oblivion - Portals of Past and Present:

"All this was to me was a bunch of senseless guitar and keyboard parts that sounded like a storm was approaching. It is one riff repeated over and over with some guy just growling very low into a mic saying nothing every now and then. It sounds like a thunderstorm to me with the vocals being the lighting. To me this isn’t even music and I can’t see how anybody would even like this at all. This I can say is the worst black metal shit I have ever heard in my 25 years of reviewing metal."

Ummon - Retreat

I don't know if in France they have McDonald's with the ball pits and play areas but it's like tossing your newborn into the circus colored plastic balls and then realizing the play area is full of knives and needles and other evil menacing instruments. That's Ummon's demo Retreat. While that may sound like a tempting morsel for metal fans looking for the most extreme, Ummon have taken that combination of sweet and evil and turned it into a rather confusing style that I personally can't seem to enjoy. It may be the overzealous drum tone which sounds like slamming the lid on an assortment of empty resin garbage cans, it may be the infusion of jazz and lounge elements which make even the demo's most metallic moments sound like impromptu jam sessions with no direction or it may be the release's rhythmic section which is the rhythmic equivalent of peeling back your toenails with the head of a ball peen hammer. I guess this just isn't my thing.

The three songs occupy a running time of just over sixteen minutes which, luckily for me is all I need to come the conclusion that none of the three songs has anything remotely worthy of replay. First track, "Lost found Lost," starts the clusterbang off with something between Napalm Death and Fluerty with a heavy leaning towards the latter's album Department of Apocalyptic Affairs minus the everything positive about that album. Gone are the smooth vocals, the mellow relaxing sections and the genuinely well composed tracks. There is no composition here... just moment after moment of written on the spot, "then-we-should-do-this" amateur compositional awareness we see of high school bands trying to imitate their cursory knowledge of metal. Once the second track, the title track "Retreat," runs through it's motions, I've taken the hammer and moved to my fingernails, trying to rip my fingers out of their sockets for being the accomplice to the crime of even pressing the play button. They must die for this.

I will give the band the satisfaction of being decent musicians, however their ability to play their instruments has been compromised by their ability to ruin my lunch break. I could have been sitting in my car starting to work on my review of Countess' "On The Wings of Defiance," - another doozy but we'll get to that at a later time after I review the endless history of Count Orlok's sole addition to the annals of human culture. The playing on Ummon's release is, as stated rather good, with everything being in time with each other and such. It at least makes the release listenable from the standpoint of I can tell what sections are intended to sound like; I'm still unsure if they sound like they are supposed to. Additionally, final track "Children of Boredom," has some interesting vocal experimentation. Don't let that fool you though... I would only seek this out if you are solely interested in tracking down something to piss your girlfriend off on a long car drive, irritate your friends on your way to see a show or are in need of a soundtrack to self mutilation. 

Did Ummon spell their own band's name wrong?

Wendess - Nuee Noire

Wendess return with a new flood of material, raked together to form a new album, Nuee Noire. I reviewed Wendess' original album in Contaminated Tones Zine #1. It was an atmosphere heavy, patient introduction to a band that I felt would continue to coalesce and create it's own style. Elements of that first release appear once again on these new five tracks. The airy-ness of the self titled album reappears to great effect, now completely realized and mature. So while the amateur wings of Wendess were enough to lift the listener into the sky on the first release, there was a shaky quality that reminded me of the small "cityhopper" planes I used while touring Germany. They worked but I didn't know if I could entirely trust their construction. Still it was a strong first effort and tracks such as "Par Le Dent" and the intense "8913" rounded out a strong first effort.

Nuee Noire picks up where Wendess left off - with the airy, spacious atmosphere one is accustomed to these days with bands like Agalloch and Alcest and such riding the forgotten influences of bands like Empyrium and Arckanum into the dust. Hordes of new recruits to Black Metal worship every particle of dust Drudkh's sound waves vibrate, every fiber that resonates with Wolves in the Throne Room's menacing noise and every second that some new band can suck from their life with redundancy and repetitive wanderings. I've heard few Black Metal bands in recent years that portray the feeling that their music is more than what they say it is. Nuee Noire grows closer to that final ridge and leans over gracefully, peering down into an abyss that many are afraid to cross, a canyon which, once entered, one must within thrive without any hope of reversing course. I can't say that Wendess have taken that plunge just yet but the feeling that they want to is there.

They have drifted out of the pastoral setting that was hinted at on Wendess. Nuee Noire is way grittier than the first EP as evidenced by the opening minute of the twofer opening track, "Intro & Seroquel." Hints of disharmony twisted into an endearing form are layered across more traditional Black Metal stylings.  In this particular track the introductory section and Seroquel section are separated by a fermenting ambiance, drifting between dream and nightmare. Wendess like to wander the dreamscapes of myriad emotional states. The melodies can mean anything to the listener, of course, however it is hard to describe them jovially. Most of this album is blessed with a profound attempt to create bleak introverted depression. The album also has no interest in rushing the torture. Four of the five songs are over ten minutes long, three are over fourteen minutes long. The terminology behind the concept of an LP truly has meaning here. At times, I would wager that most would agree that the songs meander. While this is generally a good thing for background music, I also fell asleep on several occasions while trying to actually listen to the whole thing in it's entirety. Luckily, the ride home from Maryland Deathfest was an excellent opportunity to finally do proper reconnaissance on Nuee Noire.

Wendess have a knack for tonality. Every tone is beautiful especially the clean guitars which are a common element and are used often to transition between motifs. This is an area where Wendess are way more enlightened than others. They are able to change tonality of instruments in sections without affecting the flow of a song or sounding out of place. How often do I hear bands break into sections with effects on the instruments that sound downright foreign to anything else in the vicinity. Black Metal has no need for tonal tourism on the part of post-production experimentation. When the listener finally gets to the second track, "Xanax," a palindrome that is not reflected in the structure of the song, I think it would be prudent to expect an intense, eight-hundred beat-per-minute blast fest to break up the tempo (the band most likely have the talent to do so) but instead they continue on with their intent to create their album. "Xanax" utilizes the above mentioned clean guitars to full potential and truly hearkens back not to contemporaries but to albums such as Where At Night the Wood Grouse Plays. Wendess do add their own life to the style and omit the wonderfully powerful clean vocals.

It is the third track where Wendess make their blackened stand. "8915" is similar to "8913" on their self titled, but instead of being one and a half minutes, we get ten times that much material to weather. It is a storm. The most intense of the tracks available on the release. It also presents the biggest adjustment that I can notice between the two albums other than general songcraft. Vocally, there is a HUGE improvement on this album. I felt the vocals on the previous offering were the weak point. They retained a pre-pubescent lack of confidence. They were caught somewhere between being Black Metal and being metalcore. The vocals here sound more like what comes out of tape player when Eindig's Doodshcrift is inserted for prime enjoyment. Admittedly, they are better but not yet to the point to fawn over. And while "8915," at one point sounds like Dick Dale - which is awesome - it also once again fades away into more unnecessary sections as well with additional clean guitars. At times I think it would be beneficial to make several smaller songs. It takes a certain amount of commitment to listen to a fifteen minute song.

On that note, fourth track "Lithium" goes a full eight minutes without any kind of heavy distortion and by this time, when the distortion does kick in, I don't even remember what came before it. Once again, a lot of great ideas and great melodies but without the concentration of a Buddhist monk, I just don't know how effective it all is from the standpoint of composition. I guess the moral of the story is that by the last track, I'm depleted a bit. The slow, atmospherics of the last track, simply titled "Outro," is definitely enough to force me to need to move around and get my blood moving to avoid passing out.  If Wendess can find a way to maintain listenability of the album, from beginning to end, and maintain the listeners attention, there should be no problem of the band becoming a well known name in the modern day Black Metal scene. Their propensity for long, drawn out compositions which sound almost like entire jam-sessions could work in their favor or against them if they can find a way to control it. I also don't quite understand the reasoning for ending "Outro" with the same variation/section/rhythm as the intro on their self titled release. It seems far fetched that anyone would recognize that after falling asleep halfway through "8915."

The lack of physical availability of this release is disheartening. It deserves some sort of physical release. Apparently Self Mutilation Services has released a physical copy but with no distribution I doubt there will be much product movement.

Okketaehm - Stones Review #1

First review for Okketaehm - Stones has been added to the appropriate page. The original review can be viewed here, at Metal Archives.

Temple of Baphomet - In Morbid Fascination Of Sathan

This is a four track demo from Denmark. When I think black metal from Denmark one band comes to mind - and should come to mind for anyone with an interest in the genre - Countess. There are some similarities here. Both show a strong reverence to the classics - Venom, Mayhem, Darkthrone etc. Temple of Baphomet more so... Countess less in certain areas. I come from the position that Lord Beezanborgh has been profoundly influenced by Count Orlok's cinematic recent style.

Watch out Tom Sawyer, there's a new kid in town

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In Morbid Fascination comes across as very cinematic. I'll be careful not to say symphonic lest we implicate Temple of Baphomet of being something they are not, and do this demo a general injustice since so much of that bastard offshoot is laughable and drags a whole army of fans away into the distance from the task at hand - presenting Temple of Baphomet as they are. There are some keyboards here, also some pianos and moments of clean and spoken vocals however the mood set across the fifteen or so minutes is enough for me to forget I'm at Maryland Deathfest, parked on a side road under an overpass to get out of the sun. Usually I scoff at black metal in this style. The whole showmanship aspect puts me off and creates a dichotomy which I find hard to resolve within myself but this has been done considerably well.

Atmospherically, the album proclaims itself to be a "morbid story" in which Beezanborgh declares "temptation, fascination and damnation led me upon the path to hell." Black metal is known for it's coming of age stories. Varg spent his life living out his own tale in prison and this, though cute, obviously doesn't quite live up to that standard. This carries the weight of maybe Dennis the Menace or Charlie Brown. Musically it sounds less technical, stripped down, and wiped clean of comparable hatred against any of Emperor's classics. It has a carnivalesque feeling not unlike Arcturus.

Anyway, four songs. Opener, "A Call from the Distant Stars," is what Joseph Campbell would deem 'the call to adventure.' I wasn't given lyrics but if I was, I'm sure they would read something like "hot alien entities from the distant realms of existence and bleak northern frost show themselves and I became... fascinated." The track is fast black metal in the second wave style with a melody being provided by synthesizers at times. Guitars add grit and raw energy mainly and act as a rhythmic instrument. This seems to be the order of the day through most of the ritual. Many times verses will be arranged traditionally. I find this opening salvo to be a strong first impression - driven, aggressive and moody although repetitive at times. The title track is decent though not as exciting as "A Call from The Distant Stars."

Doomed to wander closes out the release and is pretty much an ambient piece. The meat left for picking then is "Confronting The Hidden Archetypes," a slower piece upon opening but pretty dynamic and is to my ears the most complex of the release from a compositional standpoint. It showcases the vocals which, for me, are a highlight of "In Morbid Fascination..." Lord B. switches between raspy and clean vocals throughout the tape bu here, both are used together to strong effect. It creates a truly distinguishing feature - tough to come by these days. As a last criticism, it was difficult to tell where one track began and another ended. I burnt the whole album to a CDr to listen to in the car as a single track instead of splitting it into separate tracks and because it was a short enough slab of material giving it a listen on my way to and from work a few times without having to stop in the middle of something worked to it's advantage though I see some being bothered by this minute fact.

 

Promo flyer that came with tape.