Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Blackened "Underground Attack"






Here's a band who may or may not be named after a Metallica song. It'd be an easy assumption to make as Blackened do have some of the Bay Area sound in their thrash metal mix. However to my ears, it sounds more Exodus than Metallica as there aren't a whole lot of lengthy songs with classical leanings unless you're talking about classic 80's American thrash. The songs here all fall well under the five minute mark.

These boys from Brazil aren't metal purists as they're willing to go in the crossover mode. Just by looking at the cover, it's clear that D.R.I are a huge influence on Blackened and it comes through in the vocals although personally I find it hard not to think of Mark Salomon of The Crucified when listening to "Underground Attack". It's definitely due to the music rather than the lyrics as all the chapters in the Blackened bible only cover thrash metal. The song slows down so a quick and slower guitar solo can be played before the thrashing commences again. "Extreme Violence" has an early Metallica style intro but gets nastier and is closer to Exodus in style. The vocalist spits out words in "Psychopath" which has a punked up metal feel akin to some Suicidal Tendencies. The gang shouted vocals create a hardcore sound although the band still grip the metal firmly with all hands as there's no way they're letting go to slide fully into the hardcore.





There'll be some that complain that Blackened really do sound like an eighties thrash band when really that is admirable. This rules and in a dark room with a number of beer cans the band themselves have those important three words to say to you all in TxNxD, "Thrash Never Dies".

4/5



Blackened on Facebook

Witches Brew records









Monday, March 9, 2015

N.Tesla - Lux Manifesto



This slab of post-metal comes from a small country that you might have heard of called Russia. As N.Tesla clearly take their moniker from the Serbian American inventor so you either expect the band to be inventive or to be heavily influenced by the American metal band. N.Tesla are much further to the left of than the American band with a similar name and are far more creative.

N.Tesla move from ambient to more avant-garde metal to black metal with barely a whimper and often on a single track. The bands vocalist is definitely a huge talent as the man can do more than just scream as the times where singing is called for he handles the situation with aplomb.

There's a lot of black metal running through the music on "Lux Manifesto" and a little bit of Pink Floyd in the album's title track. Rather than comparing N.Tesla to other post-rock bands Agalloch seem a fairer comparison as the music and creativity both bands have are similar. The blues guitar on the album's closer, "Here Speak Only the Birds" is a nice surprise although it's nearly a little too short and sweet.

N.Tesla have recorded a metal album that clocks in at a little over thirty minutes instead of the usual full hour so that's a huge thumbs up here as we hate time-wasters.

Check out the title track below. Then go and click on the bandcamp link below to hear the full "Lux Manifesto" album.






3.5/5




N.Tesla on bandcamp



N.Tesla on facebook




Sunday, March 8, 2015

Necropoli "I"



After the speed of Reign of Fury and Drones for Queens, here's a real change of pace as Italian band, Necropoli are deathly slow and describe their music as funeral doom.

While the band play long doom metal songs there's definitely a death metal influence in their musical stew. David Unsaved vocals are slow death style grunts which are placed atop the haunting sounds of guitar, bass, synth and programmed drums. It's a real credit to the band that it's not really noticeable that the drums here are programmed. There's a Godflesh style industrial feel running through the mix too. Check out, "Curriculum Vitae" the shortest track on the album below.



While the length of the songs may be off-putting to many, Necropoli have produced an interesting and innovative debut.

3.5/5



Listen to "I" on bandcamp



Necropoli on facebook

Beastwars - IV

After over a year off for various reasons, we have returned solely because we wanted to review the new Beastwars album. I really w...