Within The Giant's Reach - In the Beginning

Record Label: Self-release

In the beginning, there was no God. So God created one. Within the Giant's Reach looked at and listened the last twenty years of metal. And they saw and heard that it was good. So, it is written.


On the first song on "In The Beginning, which is called "The Summit" the band combine a furious Slipknot rhythm with Phil Anselmo style vocals although towards the end of the song the vocalist takes a much more death metal direction. "Faceless" has a digital sound that isn't miles away from Japanese band, Mad Capsule Markets. There's a similar vibe of controlled chaos due to the drummer, Evan Parigi's timekeeping.

After the nu-metal opening,there's a stomping feeling to "Rise". The vocals are definitely used as an instrument in this track and it's an effect that works well for Within The Giant's reach as the drums and the vocals seem to play off each other. This is a track that will have nu-metal fans wetting themselves. Collapse/Rebuild contains the ferocity of early Korn although, for most of the track, the vocals of Norman Lucas head in a more death metal direction. When the semi-rapped part comes in, it's difficult not to think of Biohazard and their melding of hardcore, metal and rap.

This EP is recommended to fans of Coal Chamber, early Korn, Slipknot and other bands mentioned in this review(Pantera don't really count).





3/5

Release Date: 11 May 2018



Within The Giant's Reach on bandcamp


Within The Giant's Reach on bandcamp

Vantablack Warship - Vantablack Warship

Record Label: Self-release

I remember going circuses as a kid enjoying the animals doing tricks, laughing at the clowns and being enthralled by the gymnastics of the trapeze artists and the tightrope workers. The tightrope walkers especially captured my attention as somebody who absolutely hates looking down from heights. I've always started shaking when I'm on the third floor of a shopping mall if I can see below. The enthrallment is similar for music, when bands straddle the tightrope between genres it's fascinating and attention grabbing. Vantablack Warship straddle the tightrope between hardcore and metal.

You might be asking yourself, which kind of metal do these genre-benders straddle? On "Another Dead Rockstar", it's black metal but there's an undeniable modern hardcore edge. On "Black Tongue Bertha", it's groove metal and I'd guess that a few members of this band own both Pantera T-shirts and albums. The vocals are spat out Phil Anselmo style. "Blood on the Mat" is Pantera wrestling with Converge. Kneel and pray you don't get hurt as a mere spectator. Towards the end of the song when a more standard rock beat is set down, the vocals move in the puking and growling direction of Blaine from The Accused.





Is death metal groove a thing or groove death metal? Because that's the twisted direction that "Kill this Kid" takes. It's slow but there's a metallic edge and a grooving underbelly. There's a little of nineties noise rock twisted in their mixture too. Amphetamine Records fans should be all over this track. There's a clear Slayer influence on the riffing on "Ruderalis" although the vocals lean towards blackened hardcore. "Abrasive Pulmonic Speak" sounds like Helmet jamming with Slayer. The chorus to "Crisis" is oddly reminiscent of "Stay Hungry" period Twisted Sister but the tune is a lot heavier and sludgier than anything Dee Snider's crew did in the eighties.

On surface level, Vantablack Warship come across as a metallic hardcore but scratching below the murky surface, the band are integrating nineties noise rock and black metal. If you wanted to hear any of the bands mentioned in this review take on a more experimental edge then I'd recommend checking this album out. With the eight song on full album clocking in at under thirty minutes, Vantablack Warship, thankfully don't wear out their welcome. In this day and age of over sixty minute albums and even songs, brevity is warmly welcomed.

3.5/5

Release Date: 26 January 2018

Vantablack Warship on bandcamp


Vantablack Warship on facebook

Untime - Untime

Record Label: Ampmandens Records



I'm willing to stake my wages that when you think Norway and metal, groove metal is not what comes to mind. It's more likely black metal, which conjures up images of bleak weather, snow and forests in the Scandinavian country. Groove metallers Untime have been knocking around for twenty years. They've finally got around to releasing their debut album this year.

As Untime are a groove metal band, the Pantera influence shines through brightest but there's also a tablespoon of "River Runs Red" period Life of Agony. Tracks such as "Some to Pay" open with that guitar tone and chugging rhythm that Pantera were renowned for during the nineties. "Mysterious Ways" is thankfully not a U2 cover but a fierce and muscular Untime groove metal original. "The Chosen One" is how Pantera would sound if they'd allowed New York tour mates Biohazard to influence their sound.

Untime's drummer bashes his kit in "This Picture". The vocals are somewhere in between rap, hardcore and metal without the band abandoning the groove metal template. Untime prove they're far from one dimensional groove metallers in "One Step", which contains a heavily grungy underbelly. "Manipulation" comes off as pure nineties Pantera worship. Untime sound stronger when they go down the Biohazard road and integrate elements of hardcore and rap like on the track, "Pale and Grey"than when they imitate the band who claimed to be stronger than all. It might be telling that the last track is called, "This is Nothing Compared to What's Coming". Hopefully what is coming doesn't sound as much like Pantera.

3/5

Untime on facebook

Arisen From Nothing - Broken EP

'


Record label: Collective Wave



I know how tough it is to be original these days as there are a tonne of blogspots out there that are fairly similar to this one and, even though we altered it slighty, we stole our blog's name from both a song and a magazine. Seattle band Arisen from Nothing have released an EP shares the same title as a Nine Inch Nails EP however this band sound nothing like Trent Reznor's outfit.

Listening to their "Broken" EP, Arisen From Nothing fit snugly in the heavy metal category and most would place them in the groove metal pigeonhole. Whilst it opens quietly, and then bursts into a melodic guitar sound, vocalist Jessie Bingham starts shouting Lamb of God/Pantera style in the opening track, "Chaos", however he also uses some clean melodic vocals, which give the track a little more of a traditional metal edge. "American Patriot" features the near rap style shouting of some New York hardcore however Bingham is a versatile vocalist and when he pulls out the clean vocals they have a slight early Faith No More (think Mike Patton rather than Chuck Mosley) feel. The song itself moves from stomping hardcore/groove metal style to Middle Eastern rhythms. A melodic synth opens "Better Off Dead" before Arise From Nothing lay down the groove, which transforms the song into a stomping huge metal track with some traditional metal guitar solos and good cop/bad cop vocals. "Falling from Grace" has single written all over it as this track is rock radio-friendly with its fast driving beat, crunching guitar sound, mostly clean vocals and sheer catchiness. The final track greatly contrasts "Falling from Grace" as it has an incredibly fast beat with shouted vocals and a bumblebee guitar sound, which is all reminiscent of later Pantera.





There are also two bonus tracks on this EP, which do nothing to change my feelings about bonus tracks being a waste of time. One is a radio edit of "American Patriot", which has some of the words bleeped out. The other is a clean version of "Chaos", whic,h despite being a little more melodic than the opening track, still features a lot of shouting.





This EP is well-produced and Arisen From Nothing have a huge sound. It'd be great if they did away with the shouting because it's clear that their vocalist can hold a melody so why not utilize this talent more. Although Arise From Nothing probably aren't doing anything that you haven't heard many times before, they do sound like they'd be a fun band to see live.

2.5/5


Arisen From Nothing on Facebook



Follow the Small Takeover on Facebook

'