Hesper Payne - The Strange Tale of Samuel Gonzalez

Hesper Payne

The Strange Tale of Samuel Gonzalez

Works of Ein

This release missed my roving ear by some distance – 'The Strange Tale of Samuel Gonzalez' was released by Newcastle-Upon-Tyne's Hesper Payne right at the beginning of the year, and it wasn't until towards the end of last month, following some slightly earlier but nonetheless late buzz on another metal site that I chanced upon this band. I'm glad that I did, because Hesper Payne are another well kept secret that the U.K. north has churned out in recent years.

Ufomammut - Oro: Opus Primum

Ufomammut

Oro: Opus Primum

Neurot

Ufomammut's sound defies any natural explanation of doom. Intrinsically the core elements are there, the body hammer riffs, the booming drums, the thick sludgy grooves. The ethereal vocals, the spacey effects and the mystery with the band serve to convolute matters. Not that's it's a bad thing – everyone loves a bit of mystery. And then there's their lofty ambition to stand out from the rest of the pack. Be this their collaboration with Malleus to provide their stunning visuals or the concepts they employ, and you can see why Steve Von Till was keen to make them an addition to the Neurot family. Following on from the success of 'Eve', Ufomammut's next step is to unleash a two-part opus entitled 'Oro'. The first of those parts 'Opus Primum', has dropped like a proverbial atom bomb, and even the highest of expectations for the new relationship between Neurot and Ufomammut have been blown away thus far.

Chimp Spanner - All Roads Lead Here EP

Chimp Spanner

All Roads Lead Here EP

Basick

You may remember when I reviewed Dutch tech-metallers Textures' new album 'Dualism' a while back, I refused to use a certain 'word' aimed to encapsulate their sound. This stance remains today. That doesn't mean I won't stop covering such bands, as evidenced by this particular review of the latest EP from Chimp Spanner, the project created entirely by guitarist Paul Ortiz. Ortiz does shy away from that particular label and prefers to describe Chimp Spanner as 'ambient/progressive metal'. 'All Roads Lead Here' is Chimp Spanner's second release for Basick Records, following 2010's 'At The Dream's Edge'.

Loincloth - Iron Balls of Steel

Loincloth

Iron Balls of Steel

Southern Lord

2012 is still young and already we’ve received in our inbox the first new album of the year, from latest Southern Lord signees Loincloth. With a title such as ‘Iron Balls of Steel’, you wouldn’t be wrong to assume what lies within is the chest-beating, fist-pounding true heavy metal made famous by the likes of Manowar and ...erm… Manowar! However, that’s not strictly true; despite featuring two members of legendary death/doom metal act Confessor (in guitarist Cary Rowells and drummer Steve Shelton), Loincloth’s approach mixes beefy heavy metal riffs into a progressive/technical stew. And sadly, stew is quite appropriate – cos personally, I found it’s a little difficult to pick out anything that stands out about ‘Iron Balls of Steel’.

Don’t get me wrong, riff wise, there’s plenty of them, every song supplying a beefy chug, brimming with time changes, tempo changes, stop start rhythms, etc. It just feels completely lacking in direction. The lack of vocals is one thing – it shouldn’t necessarily matter in this day and age whether a metal band has a vocalist or not. But a lot of this album’s songs don’t even clock in above two minutes, leading to a primarily ‘interlude’ feeling to some of the tracks; where they do spread their legs a little, there’s nothing particularly interesting going on, everything melding into a mush. At times, they could actually do with a singer. More appropriate, they could do with a few more ideas. Other instrumental bands, for example, Serious Beak (whom we recently reviewed) thrive on keeping the listener on their toes, even injecting a bit of atmosphere. You don’t bemoan their lack of a singer as their train is constantly rolling. Loincloth’s instru-metal is cold and only occasionally splutters into life, doing little else besides; a critical downfall.

Progressive metal has been given plenty of technical sheen over the last few years and while I don’t doubt Loincloth’s passion for their music, really I don’t see how it compares to the more natural, often younger bands of today who pull this off with more flair and supreme skill, whether you like them or not. For a band containing former members of Confessor, I’m sure they won’t care for a review like this, and I don’t particularly enjoy savaging albums; but the fact is, there’s not really much good I can say about this album. And yes, admittedly I bought the press garb, and wound up disappointed.

Peter Clegg

‘Iron Balls of Steel’ is released on Monday 16^th January, 2012. Pre-order it here

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Serious Beak - Huxwhukw

Serious Beak 

Huxwhukw 

Art as Catharsis

Australian metal bands are like diamonds. I personally find quality ones rare, not because they're bad - more to do with my relative lack of knowledge on the scene Down Under, coupled with the flood of metal bands I hear about from just over the Atlantic Ocean. But when I do stumble upon one, wow is it a thing of beauty, of rare quality. And Serious Beak, featuring Adrift For Days guitarist Lachlan Dale, with their unpronouncable album 'Huxwhukw' prove to be quite a valuable find.

'Huxwhukw' is a varying instru-metal assault over 10 tracks, and fans of bands like The Mars Volta, Meshuggah, Mastodon, etc. will sure find something to like here, whether they're flexing their heavier muscles, akin to the razor sharp talons carried by larger avian varieties, or spreading their progressive wings, which they have a tendency to go for on several occasions, particularly on the jazz/metal/gonzo fest that is 'Sporas'.

They remind me, in some ways, of fellow Aussies Akaname - whose 2010 EP, 'As Above So Below' is well worth seeking out - and perhaps that's down to the guitar tone, particularly at foot to the floor time. That said, its more expansive and other influences are prevalent at various points, particularly on 'Fljóta', which contains a tribal vocal, the only voice heard throughout the record.

I for one hope Serious Beak get some serious acclaim for this record and get their name put out a bit further. Instru-metal records can fall into the trap of becoming backing music pieces or some sort of soundtrack form. Not 'Huxwhukw', which firmly soars over those pitfalls with little difficulty. Another cracking find from the Australian goldmine.

Peter Clegg

Buy/download 'Huxwhukw' here

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Vektor - Outer Isolation

Vektor
Outer Isolation
Heavy Artillery
While thrash enjoyed something of a mainstream resurgence in the last few years, one band became a buzzword among underground thrash fans and yet haven't received the attention of their less forward thinking peers. Crossover and Exodus baiting are all well and good, but why not push the boat out a little. Thirteen minute progressive sci-fi thrash metal odysseys? Ladies and gentlemen, and the uninitiated, welcome to Vektor, an outfit mixing old-school values with the lyrical vision of Voivod and classic science-fiction. Their debut 'Black Future' is seen a something of a rare undiscovered diamond, so standout it was from other releases of the time, but chances are you probably haven't heard of it as they didn't get swept up in the first instance.

The surprise factor may have disappeared for the initiated, but Vektor still have plenty to offer the unsuspecting potential fan, and 'Outer Isolation' delivers that in spades. The riffs churn and probe more than ever, and are incredibly distinct and memorable, an ace in the deck for any would-be standout thrash band in 2011. The ten-minute, multi-limbed 'Cosmic Cortex' is a swirling vortex of riffs, soloing and blackened blasts and screams spewing forth from the Arizonans. There's so many awesome riffs in there, blackened or not, as sums up Vektor in a nutshell pretty well. Unlike 'Black Future', where they broke the 10-minute barrier on more than one occasion, there are no further forays of such duration on 'Outer Isolation', yet this doesn't shackle Vektor one bit, often displaying several memorable moments per track A sickening turn of pace halfway through 'Echoless Chamber' is one such example, adhering to old-school thrills, and the riff that appears near the beginning and end of 'Venus Project' is so different and intense it almost channels an unearthly threat. Vektor always recognised the need to input a melody when necessary, the surf-esque lick in 'Tetrastructural Minds' being a highlight, as is the mid-section of the title track. I could go on about these key points within tracks, but they're too numerous to mention them all, and they wouldn't be so important were the bits inbetween them so damn incredible.

The eight tracks here further emphasise Vektor's portrayal of the future as bleak, barren and destined to become hostile. Frontman David DiSanto has a voice perfect for this material - his scowl has a quality that seems almost alien in its delivery, adding to the authenticity of the lyrical themes. His screams (such as those on 'Fast Paced Society') make it seem as though extraterrestrial beings are conducting experiments on him as he lies awake, with lead guitarist Erik Nelson hellbent on getting every skronk, solo and squeal out of his guitar in another impressive lead performance.

Put simply, Vektor have proved themselves not to be one trick ponies, although the constant fast pace could do with being reined in a little more in future. That's just a minor quibble - Vektor may wind up being a distant star, one admired by few from afar and not being fully appreciated for their majesty. Justice decrees their bionic thrash should be worthy of gracing more lost souls in need of an original metal fix. 'Outer Isolation' is an impressive roadmap for a dystopian metal prognosis, and if Vektor were to be at the helm of that potential future, I'd honestly lend myself to their vision.

Peter Clegg

Buy/download 'Outer Isolation' here
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Remembering Chuck Schuldiner - 10 years on

Today marks ten years since a brain tumour claimed the life of Death guitarist/vocalist, and all-round death metal pioneer Chuck Schuldiner, at the age of 34. It’s fair to say that his legacy and influence are stronger than ever, with countless up and coming bands arguably inspired by Schuldiner’s ever evolving take on the style he played a huge role in creating.

The recent reissues of landmark Death albums ‘Human’ and ‘Individual Thought Patterns’ are living proof that Death’s music has stood the test of time. I finally got round to listening to the reissue of ‘Human’ just a couple of weeks ago and not only does it sound as fresh as did when it was released (and indeed, when I first heard it for myself around eight years ago), but its so darn heavier than the majority of (death) metal (or what passes for it) these days. Everything about Death’s Human-era line-up was firing on all cylinders when that album was recorded. As Chuck steered death into a more technical, progressive future, he also changed his approach and insisted on recruiting session musicians, as opposed to being part of a full band as per the first three Death albums. And in guitarist Paul Masvidal and drummer Sean Reinert, both of cosmic progressive death metallers Cynic, he had two candidates who were absolutely ideal for the role, while bassist extraordinaire Steve DiGiorgio (of Sadus) completed the line-up. Such a line-up underlined Chuck’s perfectionism, but Death wouldn’t be Death without Chuck’s attention to detail.

‘Individual Thought Patterns’ continued Death’s progressive trend, again enlisting DiGiorgio, and replacing the Cynic guys with Gene Hoglan on drums and King Diamond’s legendary guitarist Andy LaRoque. Schuldiner further pushed the boundaries of what could be done with death metal, throwing into jazzy bass rhythms and supreme technicality than was more than ably performed by his backing band, especially so by DiGiorgio. It even turned Hoglan into the in demand name for numerous metal bands to call upon, such was the performance and the album’s impact.

I’ve only put primary focus on those albums given their recent reissuing. Death’s legacy reaches far beyond these albums, of course; their entire discography reads essential, and is full of classic metal anthems, namely ‘Zombie Ritual’ (from 1987’s ‘Scream Bloody Gore’); and Crystal Mountain (from 1995’s ‘Symbolic’) just to name a few. Add to that the numerous bands and musicians who can count Death and Chuck Schuldiner as an influence and the evidence speaks for itself. Chuck Schuldiner was a progressive visionary, a talented genius and unconstrained by the boundaries which seem to shackle so many of Death’s descendants today. 10 years on from his death, Chuck Schuldiner remains death’s metal’s most important figurehead. Keep on rocking Chuck, wherever you are.

Peter Clegg

Empty Words – the official Death/Control Denied/Chuck Schuldiner website

Death Bandcamp page

Official Death Facebook

Worthy of Your Time: Low Sonic Drift

North of the border, a nation is brimming with heavy musical talent. If it carries on this way, Scotland may well become as well known for its metal bands, as it is for haggis, whiskey and battered Mars bars. I'm positively losing track of how many great bands have emerged from the Tartan nation, especially in the last year or two, and in Glasgow's Low Sonic Drift, we can add another to the list.

Revocation - Chaos of Forms

Revocation

Chaos of Forms

Relapse

Despite accumulating a cavalcade of plaudits for their previous albums, swallowing up top positions in year-end lists like Sebastien Vettel snatching pole positions, Revocation can consider themselves unlucky not to have risen to the cream of the crop unlike recent metal success stories such as Mastodon, Kylesa, The Black Dahlia Murder, The Dillinger Escape Plan, etc. Their music is certainly on a par with those bands at least, possessing a care-free swagger fuelled by main man and guitarist David Davidson's style and sheer confidence that most rock 'n' roll bands would give their right arm for, never mind heavy metal bands.

Hammers of Misfortune - 17th Street

Hammers of Misfortune

17th Street

Metal Blade

If John Cobbett had been around about the time when heavy metal ruled the airwaves, he could well have been a metal god by now. Steadfastly remaining dedicated to true heavy metal through his time served in The Lord Weird Slough Feg, and more recently, he was one of the driving forces in now defunct, but critically acclaimed US black metallers Ludicra. Inbetween, he's also the main visionary for progressive heavy metallers Hammers of Misfortune, who've made a name for themselves in the States among critics in particular for their third three albums, all of which received high praise.

'Kin Hell Fest preview: Part 3

 
Well, this is it. The 'Kin Hell Fest is now less than 24 hours away! So without further ado, We Must Obey completes its in-depth preview of Leeds' newest all-dayer and takes a look at the final four bands:

Opeth - Heritage

Opeth
Heritage
Roadrunner

Some people may well have been alarmed at Opeth's decision to move away from the progressive death metal which they originated, in favour of exploring even folkier and more traditional proggier influences. Vocalist Mikael Åkerfeldt had long stated previously that 'Heritage' would be far removed from Opeth's previous works, stating a boredom with extreme metal and that he felt the band had outgrown its roots. He's certainly not wrong there - 'Heritage' is a progressive rock album, with none of Åkerfeldt's trademark death growls to be found anywhere.

Wiht - The Harrowing of the North

Wiht

The Harrowing of the North

Doomanoid

To the majority of you, Wiht will be an unfamiliar name. But to those of you among the UK stoner/sludge/doom underground, the Leeds three-piece are a burgeoning force. Having had the pleasure of sharing a bill or two alongside them, I can vouch for their vast potential and incredible live performances that are starting to get them noticed. 'The Harrowing of the North'.

'The Harrowing of the North' comprises only two tracks, but over a running time of roughly 33 minutes. It's a concept EP, as the bands puts it:

"Taking influence thematically from the subjugation of the North of England by William the Conqueror in the 11th century, it tells the troubled history of doomsday-era Yorkshire- the king massacred it's people and destroyed the land to ensure it held no economic or cultural worth and would remain under his subservient rule."

The title track, which opens proceedings, weighs in at a hefty 20:46 on the clock, but isn't weighed down by it at all. It takes a good three and a half minutes before there's any sign of the drums, preceded by a tolling and ominous intro, but soon rolls into action with a storming riff. The song twists and turns through numerous different passages, ranging from thunderously heavy to psychedelic and even minimal. The S/T EP was good but this is a major step up, incorporating all kinds of influences and melding together for one satisfyingly heavy jam.

Track two, 'Orderic Vitalis', gets on the front foot a little quicker, a bass intro soon leading into a mighty big riff. It soon heads back to the prominent bass riff with some psychedelic guitar and ambience effects, and minimalistic drums. This continues on this route for some time, taking you on a journey through a chasmous place, eventually building back up at about the 4:25 mark. The riff that soon follows is huge, backed up by bass and thunderous drums. Psychedelia filters back in around six minutes in and there's a huge astral riff around 6:50 to get your head around. The remainder of the song continues down this path, mixing heavy stoner rhythms and echoey guitars frequently as the song heads for the sky, fading to synth at the very end.

'The Harrowing Of The North' is a masterclass from start to finish, and despite the huge song lengths, it's entirely attention-keeping throughout, thanks to plethora of ideas placed on show. Fans of bands such as Neurosis, ISIS, Pelican, etc. would be far worse off for not checking out this band. And as a pay-what-you-like download, you owe it to the band to go check them out and discover one of Yorkshire's best-kept secrets - which surely won't remain that way for too much longer.

Peter Clegg

Download 'The Harrowing of the North' here (name your price)

Or, buy a physical copy here

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Mastodon - Jools Holland appearance tonight + UK tour news!

Tonight's the night! Hot off their stellar new album 'The Hunter', Mastodon's unstoppable rise hits new highs when they perform on BBC 2's 'Later Live with Jools Holland'! Make sure you get your backside in front of the telly for 10pm, or at least SkyPlus, Tivo or whatever you use it. Failing that of course, there'll be a couple of late night repeats and it'll be available on the BBC iPlayer.

It'll be interesting to see how they go on - the only other metal band to perform on the show previously is Metallica. Will any of the show's usual viewers take to them? Probably mostly not. But I'd love to be proven wrong, and with Mastodon seemingly able to raise the bar at will, I wouldn't be surprised if they absolutely destroyed it tonight.

In related news, the Atlanta quartet have also announced a fresh batch of UK dates for February 2012! The dates are as follows:

Sun 05 - Bristol O2 Academy
Mon 06 - Manchester Academy
Tue 07 - Glasgow Barrowlands
Thurs 09 - Norwich UEA
Fri 10 - Birmingham HMV Institute
Sat 11 - London Brixton O2 Academy

Tickets for that are on sale now!

Peter Clegg

Mastodon - The Hunter

Mastodon

The Hunter

Roadrunner

When Mastodon announced that this album was to be free of concept and more of a straight-up rock album, one or two eyebrows may well have been raised, although given the band's dabbling in ZZ Top, Thin Lizzy and Melvins worship it may not have been entirely surprising. Still, a Mastodon making a record not based on the elements is certainly an enterprising one, and for the band that Time magazine voted their number 3 album of the year (2009's 'Crack The Skye'), this meeting the mainstream in the middle has come about at roughly the right time.

Wolves in the Throne Room - Celestial Lineage

Wolves in the Throne Room

Celestial Lineage

Southern Lord 

The best artists within metal seem to have an air of mysticism about them. Ronnie James Dio possessed it in spades. Ghost are doing it pretty well right now, despite everyone's attempts to decloak them. Even Kiss had an aura with the whole facepaint thing. And Enslaved seem to have the ability to rapture us all with the Norse Gods, Vikings and more. That's just scratching the service. I'm sure there's plenty of bands out there who carve their living from the air, the spirits and more.

While those bands aren't exactly connected to one another in many other ways, it serves to show that mysticism in metal takes many forms. If Wolves in the Throne Room don't give you that air at the beginning of 'Thuja Magus Imperium', what with the chimes and the operatic vocals from the returning Jessika Kenney, perhaps you're missing something. It instantly takes you to a cold, harsh and desolate landscape where hope comes in small quantities. Use of such cliches is tired and old, but entirely correct. It sweeps through several different phases from here, as brothers Nathan (guitar) and Aaron (drums) head on the attack.

You'll notice the running themes of nature, the afterlife and more within - 'Woodland Cathedral', again featuring Kenney's vocals and organ over a doomy riff, almost makes for a real out-of-body experience; whereas 'Astral Blood' has all kinds of surreal going on, starting as battering ram blackness before wind and atmospheric effects briefly take over, introducing a brief harp solo, before the darkness returns to complete the ritual; and the closing 'Prayer of Transformation' really feels like the final act of transcendence, with a slow guitar opening the song before tremeloing into life around three minutes in, with guitarist/vocalist Nathan hallowing a final call to the sky, awash with ambience and minimal percussion. Within 49 minutes, the spiritual adventure is complete. A perfect end to a fine album.

The Wolves sound is gritty and as raw as the wasteland it inhabits, yet completely in harmonious existence with it too. That mystical feeling I referred to remains throughout, and while happy to attract other components, it retains a distinctly uncompromising, yet entirely encapsulating feeling. The multi-faceted approach is so that any of their releases, and particularly this one, need to be listened to as a whole to be fully appreciated. The individual tracks are great, but the experience has to be one as a whole. Wolves in the Throne Room fully realise this and deliver with aplomb.

Peter Clegg 

 

Buy 'Celestial Lineage' here 

 

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Textures - Dualism

Textures

Dualism

Nuclear Blast

When Textures first emerged in 2004 with their slightly more melodic take on Meshuggah mind-mangling technical metal, it’s taken the world at large a little while to come round to them. Efforts like ‘Drawing Circles’ and ‘Silhouettes’ deserved wider attention – the mixture of technical riffs, beats and ambience was certainly a winner and Textures showed they could pull it off with ease. Since releasing ‘Silhouettes’, a slew of (progressive) technical metal has emerged, each claiming to be original by going under a name derived from an apparent guitar sound.

That claim I refute on two grounds:

1. They wouldn’t exist without Meshuggah and, to a lesser extent, bands like Textures;

2. It’s not even a word! Hence it shall not be named here, and simply known as what it is: technical metal.

Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events

Dream Theater

A Dramatic Turn of Events

Roadrunner

Since founder member Mike Portnoy decided to up sticks and leave Dream Theater, there’s been two side stories to go along with the whole debacle – firstly, the remaining members long drawn out and highly publicised search for their new drummer – eventually settling on former Annihilator/Extreme sticksman Mike Mangini – while Portnoy still continues to try and hog the spotlight, filling in for Avenged Sevenfold before they too ditched him. The amount of spotlight that Portnoy seems to be trying to obtain is a little hard to digest. I’d rather he kept quiet rather than becoming something of a sideshow – particularly in light of the recent development in which he apparently issued a notice of summons on his former band mates over the use of the band’s name.

That drummer mystery aside, Dream Theater have otherwise got on the with job in hand of making their first album without their Portnoy, conjuring up ‘A Dramatic Turn of Events’. The first thing I would note about this record is that – personally at least – Portnoy isn’t missed. Anyone who doubted Mangini’s skills before will surely be shushed as he at least matches Portnoy’s standard throughout. As a whole, Dream Theater are still Dream Theater, progressive, complex and dynamic as ever, and while ‘A Dramatic Turn of Events’ isn’t going to be held as their greatest achievement, it’s still very much business as usual, and business right now is pretty damn good.

No Made Sense - New Season/New Blues

No Made Sense

New Season/New Blues

Self-released

When No Made Sense released ‘The Epillanic Choragi’ to widespread critical acclaim, the world should well have been at their feet. The plaudits kept coming in, and loyal fans continued to head to their shows. But it hasn’t really taken off for the Reading three-piece in the way it should have; and I’ll admit, I never got round to checking that album out in full. The wait for this album has been much, much longer than any of their epic songs.

Those concerns aside, ‘New Season/New Blues’ is a welcome return from these progressive metallers, and as its been made available on a pay-what-you-like scale through their Bandcamp page, there’s no reason why any true rock or metal fan shouldn’t add this to their record collection. Interesting and forward-thinking enough for prog musos, yet accessible and resistant enough to avoid going off on too many tangents.

New stuff: Opeth/Mastodon

The spate of quality albums coming out lately is nothing short of stupendous, and anticipation is high for two of metal’s biggest hitters, Opeth and Mastodon, both of whom have released songs from their new albums this week to tease fans for what’s to come.