The Trials of February 9, 2018

Honorable Mention

Rotting Christ Tease Congregation with The Call

It has been a while since Rotting Christ has been mentioned in this site. Come to think of it, the Klown’s sibling named their album, Rituals, the best album in 2016. If you don’t believe that, you can check that clusterfuck out and see for yourself. Anyway, the Greek titans have returned with a bit of noise this year in the form of a tease. Their current EP, The Call, has come out through Peaceville Records on vinyl. Y’know the label most famous for carrying Darkthrone records since they signed them?

So why has the Klown put this release on an honorable mention? The answer is that their current release only contains one original song and a live version of an already established song. The original which happens to be titled “The Call” sounded awesome. The song had sounds similar to that of the previous album, Rituals, from guitar and vocalization from Sakis Tolis to the awesome bass work and drumming from Vagelis Karzis and Themis Tolis, respectively. The track also has a slow but awesome guitar solo.

The final song comes from their 1993 release, The Mighty Contract, “The Sign of Evil Existence.” The cool thing about this live version is that it contains two very prolific singers lending their voices. Those voices are Varathron’s Stefan Necroabyssious and Behemoth’s Adam “Nergal” Darski. Other than that, nothing truly stands out as much. All the Klown can say is that he can’t wait until March for the new one! If you fancy yourself a true Rotting Christ fan or just want to add one more to your vinyl collection, you can get that baby here.

Issuing The Call for the Heretics

Visigoth Return with its Second Conquest

Quickly! Without thinking, name a metal from Utah that’s not Chelsea Grin. If the answer was Visigoth, congrats you read the subheader. The Salt Lake quintet have comeback with its sophomore album Conqueror’s Oath through Metal Blade Records. This tribe still manage to bring back the power to their style of metal.

The album begins with “Steel and Silver” which opened with a killer solo and which are then accompanied by frontman’s, Jake Rogers, baritone vocals. Rogers’s vocals would then be accompanied by a manly chorus making it sound epic. “Warrior Queen” features the collective performing a throwback to the classic heavy metal sounds like that of classic Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. They pick up the pace altogether with “Outlive Them All” and feature power metal sounds similar to Blind Guardian but faster.

“Hammerforged” featured more of the classic heavy metal sounds and includes the rest of the band accompanying Rogers with a melodic and very masculine chorus. “Traitor’s Gate” starts off rather slow for a little over a minute and immediately pick up. “Blades in the Night” features some real speed and will get your blood flowing. The album caps off with “The Conqueror’s Oath” which made for a pretty good closer and finished how it began.

The Klown enjoyed the album. It had the collective really show off and highlight a throwback with a touch of modern power metal influences. If you haven’t heard of Visigoth before, then the Klown would recommend it for those who love the sounds of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal as well as power metal. Lastly, you can check it out in Bandcamp to judge for yourself and acquire.

5 out of 6 Vowing to Conquer Your Ears on Track at a Time

Conquering One Ear at a Time

Therion Release its Unholiest Contemporary to Date

Therion is the one band name that gets tossed around when the topic of symphonic death metal gets mentioned. The Swedish collective has been going strong for 30 years already and has no signs of stopping soon. But Klown, how can you be sure of that? Asked none of you. Well, if you didn’t read the title, they got a new one out titled Beloved Antichrist through Nuclear Blast Records.

Before the Klown continues on about this album he will say that he won’t attempt to talk about this latest release too much. Why? You actually may be wondering, this time? This current compilation is not only 3 discs but it is also 3 hours’ worth of music and 46 tracks long. That’s quite a doozy, am I right lads and lassies? This recent release also happens to be a rock opera. Therion’s concept and inspiration take a different turn than most metal albums because it is inspired by the Russian philosopher Vladimir Solovyov’s Tale of the Antichrist.

For those who’ve never read or heard of this tale, you’re either not very pious or haven’t dabbled in to philosophy in your scholarly career yet. The short summary that the Klown will give you is that the story is about unity among a common enemy/oppressor despite creed and regions. This album also features an array of guest musicians portraying characters from the narrative. Musicians like Chrysalys’s Chiara Malvestiti takes the role of Johanna, Erik Rosenius as Satan, Samuel Jarrick as Pope Peter II, Plague Of Stars’ Melissa Ferlaak and The Experiment No. Q’s Linnéa Vikström as a congresswoman.

The Klown will say this about this 3-disc compilation: the album was beautifully composed. The instrumental behind the album set the tone well and make you feel the moment. The vocals, unless you are not a fan of opera-style singing, felt right, well placed and didn’t feel too exaggerated or over the top. The choir featured on the album did a great job setting a tone and accompanying the stand-alone vocals from the characters when needed.  If you’re attention span isn’t longer than you’d want it to be or don’t appreciate operas, then the Klown wouldn’t recommend this for you. Lastly, you can check this piece out on Spotify or take the plunge here.

5 out of 6 Will Tame and Civilize the Beast Incarnate

The Face of the Unholy Opera

Harm’s Way Latest Show What Chicago Hardcore is All About

The Chi-Town quintet known as Harm’s Way has returned after a three-year hiatus. The Klown has had the pleasure of seeing this quintet perform a while back. In fact, admittedly, the Klown thought that frontman James Pligge was John Cena’s tattooed doppelgänger but that may be a story for another time. The point is the Klown can vouch for these guy’s brand of hardcore. The group’s latest album is Posthuman and it was released through Metal Blade Records.

This inhuman album starts with “Human Carrying Capacity” strongly. The heavy guitar opening makes this track sound powerful but once Pligge lets out his vocals, you know the band ain’t messing around. Lest the Klown forget the complimentary bass and drumming from Chris Mills. They follow up the same way but with more drumming power with “Last Man,” “Sink” and “Unreality.” “Temptation” was an intermission type of song which started out slow and with droning, wailing guitars and Pligge’s faded, vibrating vocals.

“Becoming the Machine” and “Dissect Me” not only picks up speed but also gives you some aggressive hardcore punk that will cause you to break out a circle pit of your own. “The Gift” has the group venturing into a some industrial which was rather unexpected but good. The album finishes how it began, with “Dead Space” but with extra vocals in the mix to really drive it home. The Klown has seen some hype on this band’s latest release and after hearing it, he can say that the hype was met. If you want to check this album out before you buy it, check it out in Metal Blade’s Bandcamp to further convince yourself.

6 out of 6 No Harm Done

No Harm Done while Hearing or Making this Album

Pissed Regardless Make One For The Birds

Oh… snap, look who’s making a return to your favorite site [citation needed]. For local San Diegans who dabble in the local scene Pissed Regardless is a very familiar name when it comes to hardcore. In fact, as the Klown mentioned before this isn’t Pissed Regardless’s first Ugh Metal appearance, check that shiz out whenever you can. Anyway, if you’ve had the pleasure to check this quintet out, good news they have released a new EP titled Feed The Birds with Creator-Destructor Records.

The album begins with “Empty” which starts off with some slow, heavy riffed guitars and immediately picks up the pace with Tim’s drumming and Matt Gerken’s harsh vocals. They continue their hardcore fest with “Feed The Birds” and “Lipstick on a Pig” and really have a steady, fast, and heavy pace with Tim. The group features a hardcore anthem “No Reprieve” which feature some speed, Gerken spewing some powerful vocals that had a pretty good flow to it, and a chorus that accompanies Gerkin’s vocals adding significance to the song.

The EP finished the feast with a good advice against the impending zombie apocalypse, “Trust No Pulse.” That track ended much rougher and with a heavy hardcore overtone. The Klown had the pleasure of seeing this group perform the day of the release and here these tracks live. If you haven’t quite dived in, the Klown would recommend this album for fans of Evergreen Terrace, Hatebreed, US Bastards and Norma Jean. Lastly, if you need a nudge check it out in the label’s Bandcamp and get in the same place.

6 out of 6 Hitchcock Has Nothing on This

Much bigger than breadcrumbs

 

The Trials of August 25, 2017

Queens of the Stone Age Make One for the Bad Guys

The desert rockers known as the Queens of the Stone Age have released their seventh album titled Villains through Matador Records. The album kicks off with “Feet Don’t Fail Me” which has a bit of funk to accompany the signature sounds of the Queens. This track also features frontman/guitarist Josh Homme’s voice combined with autotune which blend nicely with the song’s beat and rhythm. The song that paved the way for this album, “The Way You Use To Do” was somewhat refreshing and incredibly ear friendly, also felt borderline Indie in terms of sound, mixing and composition.

The Queens revisit some of their old sounds from Songs for the Deaf and Lullabies to Paralyze with “Domesticated Animals,”“Un-Reborn Again” and the current hit “The Evil Has Landed” which were all good songs and refreshing. It wouldn’t surprise the Klown if either “Domesticated…” or “Un-Reborn…” were to become the next hit. The Klown really enjoyed “Head Like a Haunted House” because the Queens mixed some rockabilly with their style of desert rock and incorporate the Theremin to make that famous spooky sounds you would hear for haunted houses and such.

The album caps off with the rather soothing but upbeat song “Villains of Circumstance,” which featured everything from Homme’s soothing autotuned vocals, Troy Van Leeuwan’s calming guitar riffs with some vibrato and bassist/vox Michael Shuman chiming in with some backup vocals during the chorus. This album was a pretty good listen and perfect for dedicated Queens of the Stone Age fans. You can get a hold of this bad boy here.

5 out of 6, One for the Bad Guys

The Adventures of Galaktikon Continue

Before Ugh Metal was born and Adult Swim attracted metalheads voraciously, the mastermind behind Metalocalypse, Brendan Small, composed, wrote and performed the metal opera known as Galaktikon. If you’re not familiar with Galaktikon, the Klown has got you covered. This tale is about a superhero named Triton who is going through a divorce, and whose nemesis, Beastblade, escapes prison and seduces Triton’s ex. While the hero is trying to stop his enemy, he gets enslaved by space pirates and ultimately unites the rest of the slaves to turn on their masters.

Triton’s odyssey continues with Galaktikon II: Becoming the Storm via Megaforce Records. Triton’s new epic tale can be best described as Dethklok meets Flash Gordon. According to drummer Gene Hoglan, this album was supposed to be a new Dethklok album. Which didn’t surprise the Klown as much considering Small’s performance of Nathan Explosion’s growling vocals with the Dethklok sound being featured on “Some Days Are For Dying,” “Icarus Six Sixty Six,”“My Name Is Murder” and “Become the Storm” just to name a few. Small also features some clean vocals in “Nightmare” and interchanges between harsh and clean in “The Agenda.” To close this out, you will love this if you loved the first Galaktikon, Metalocalypse: The Doomstar Requiem or are a fan of Small. You can get your copy of this album here.

6 out of 6, It’s Out of This World!

 

Akercocke Have Returned with Vengeance for their Latest

The name Akercocke has resurfaced after a ten year hiatus. This British quartet has returned with the long awaited Renaissance in Extremis through Peaceville Records. The album ironically begins with “Disappear” which can be best described as an energetic Himsa mixed with Bolt Thrower, most importantly you know the song meant business when guitarist Paul Scanlan used his awesome speedy riffs to open the song. The song take a prog approach and features frontman/guitarist Jason Mendonça’s growls, deep vocals, and his haunting clean vocals in the middle.

They follow up strongly with “Unbound By Sin” which takes a near-pure approach on prog at first but then switch it up to death metal. Much like the previous track, Mendonça different vocals, however, he reverses the order of his vocals by going clean and harsh exclusively towards the end. “Insentience,” “Familiar” and “Inner Sanctum” took a black/pagan metal approach similar to that of Primordial which can be best described as melodic but extreme with some ghastly melodic vocals to match. “First To Leave the Funeral” was a great song and featured a blend of both black and death metal with prog as an additive for a unique touch. Mendonça plays with his vocals some more in this song by briefly going out of tune with his clean for the chorus.

The frontman will, for the most part, serenade you with “One Chapter Closing for Another to Begin” which can be described as a ballad but with a demon that pops out to remind you that this is still a metal track. No joke. Mendonça busts out some screeching vocals as to say not to get too comfortable luckily for you, it’s towards the end. This album closes with “A Particularly Cold September” which mixes prog with goth and adds some blackened thrash in between. This track also features a great and melodic solo from Scalan which can put Rush’s Alex Lifeson and Opeth’s Mikael Akerfeldt in awe.

This was all over the place but was enjoyable and offered a little bit of everything to the faithful and the potential. You can totally check it out on Peaceville’s Youtube page or you can take the plunge here.

6 out of 6, The Ten Year Itch has Been Soothed

Dagoba Show Their Might with Their Latest Release

The French Industrial band Dagoba has returned and didn’t hold back the punches for Black Nova which has emerged through Century Media Records. Dagoba bring in the type of Industrial that is reminiscent with Dawn Of Ashes. “Inner Sun” starts out with some industrial by incorporating some samples, electronic mixes and synthesizers combined with some good ol’ fashioned metal. This song features Pierre “Shawter” Maille’s ever changing vocals which go from harsh, screaming, clean and soothingly harmonic vocals to accompany the chorus. Dagoba really give a dose of melodic death metal similar to that of Dark Tranquility and The Haunted with “The Legacy of Ares,”“Stone Ocean” and “Lost Gravity.”

“The Infinite Chase” take a straight industrial metal approach with a somewhat melodic influences and add some electronic and synth samples. Remember the Dawn Of Ashes comparison? Dagoba take a nearly identical approach to their sounds with “The Grand Emptiness” and “Fire Dies.” If you happen to get a chance to listen to this album on Spotify or buy the CD book version, you’re treated to demo versions of “Inner Sun” and “The Legacy of Ares” which sounds just as good, if not a bit better, than the final mixed versions on the album. Speaking of buying you can get a hold of this bad boy here.

6 out of 6, S’il vous plaît Monsieurs, avez-vous un peu plus?

The Haunted Show You That United We Stand

Although The Haunted may not be one of the founding fathers from the famous Gothenburg metal scene, they are still one of the moset underrated forerunners of that brand. 2 years after Exit Wounds, they return with their ninth album Strength in Numbers released through Century Media Records.

The album builds a hype with the intro “Fill The Darkness With Black” and unload with “Brute Force,” which the Klown has to say is the perfect title of the song. The song immediately begins with Adrian Erlandsson’s fast drumming which catalyze Marco Aro’s growls. “Spark” will continue to do just that, the song can also be described as such because if the beginning doesn’t light your interest than the rest of the song shall set your ears ablaze.

Although “Preachers of Death” has a slow beginning due to Erlandsson’s drumming, Ola Englund has his time to shine. At the beginning, Englund’s riffs immediately accompany the drumming, and midway he performs a killer guitar solo and finishes with some slow, melodic guitar riffs. “Tighten the Noose,”“This Is The End” and “The Fall” has the band revisiting the Made Me Do It and the self-titled album sounds and includes growling vocals, guitar solos and a little less melodic. The band turns metalcore with “Means to an End,” and the awesome guitar solos, the rhythm and melody of Jonas Björler’s bass, and Patrik Jensen’s rhythmic guitar combined with Aro’s growling vocals made the song seem like an anthem for the masses.

As you can see, the Klown clearly enjoyed this album and if it wasn’t evident enough, he just practically almost named every song. Yes, this album is good especially if you love The Haunted or are big Swedcore fan. You can totally take the Klown’s word for it and get the album here or you can check out through whatever streaming service you got.

6 out of 6, This Album Will Empower Us!