__ _ __ ,'_/ /7 _ _ _ () __ /7 __ __ _ ,'_7 ,'_/ /7 _ _ __ / /_ / \ //7,'o| / \/7/7,','//,'o/(c' ,'o| /_7 / /_ / \,'o|,'o| (c' |__//n_/// |_,'/_n_/// \_\// |_(/__) |_,'// |__//n_/|_,7|_,'/__) CHRONICLES OF CHAOS E-Zine, May 13, 1997, Issue #20 Editor-in-Chief: Gino Filicetti Co-Editor: Rafal Szczyrba Coordinator: Adrian Bromley Assistant Editor: Alain M. Gaudrault Contributor: Brian Meloon Contributor: Steve Hoeltzel Contributor: Adam Wasylyk Contributor: Drew Schinzel Contributor: Andrew Lewandowski Contributor: Pedro Azevedo Mailing List provided by: The University of Colorado at Boulder --> Interested in being reviewed? Send us your demo and bio to: -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= CHRONICLES OF CHAOS 57 Lexfield Ave Downsview Ont. M3M-1M6, Canada Fax: (416) 693-5240 Voice: (416) 693-9517 e-mail: ginof@interlog.com -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= DESCRIPTION ~~~~~~~~~~~ Chronicles of Chaos is a monthly magazine electronically distributed worldwide via the Internet. Chronicles of Chaos focuses on all forms of brutal music; from thrash to death to black metal, we have it all. Each issue will feature interviews with your favorite bands, written from the perspective of a true fan. Each issue will also include record reviews and previews, concert reviews and tour dates, as well as various happenings in the metal scene worldwide. If you'd be interested in writing for CoC, drop us a line at mailto:ginof@interlog.com. Concert reviews are especially welcome, but please bear in mind that we cannot accept every submission we receive." HOW TO SUBSCRIBE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ You may subscribe to Chronicles of Chaos at any time by sending a message with "coc subscribe " in the SUBJECT of your message to . Please note that this command must NOT be sent to the list address . WORLD WIDE WEB SITE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We are currently in the process of constructing a website for Chronicles of Chaos. You can check it out by pointing your web browser to http://www.interlog.com/~ginof/coc.html. If you have any comments or suggestions, please e-mail Brian Meloon . FTP ARCHIVE ~~~~~~~~~~~ All of our back issues and various other Chronicles of Chaos related files are stored in the e-zine archive at ftp.etext.org. Connect to this site using your favorite FTP program and chdir to /pub/Zines/ChroniclesOfChaos. For a description of each file in the archive, check out the README file. You can also reach this site through a web browser by pointing it at: ftp://ftp.etext.org/pub/Zines/ChroniclesOfChaos. AUTOMATIC FILESERVER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ All back issues and various other CoC related files are available for automatic retrieval through our e-mail fileserver. All you have to do is send a message to us at . The 'Subject:' field of your message must read: "send file X" where 'X' is the name of the requested file. Back issues are named 'coc-n', where 'n' is the issue number. For a description of all files available through this fileserver, request 'list'. Remember to use lowercase letters for all file names. If you experience any problems or are having difficulty, feel free to e-mail us the usual way at . >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< Issue #20 Contents, 5/13/97 --------------------------- * Editorial * Loud Letters * Ferocious Features -- W.A.S.P.: They're Back * Chaotic Chat Sessions -- Amorphis: The Search For Perfect Melody -- Grief: Good Grief -- Anal Cunt: Conversing With A Cunt -- Heavy Water Factory: Cooling The Reactor -- Thy Blood Divine: Bleeding Divine Blood -- On Thorns I Lay * Record Revelations -- Agarthi - _At the Burning Horizon_ -- Alastis - _The Other Side_ -- Blood of Christ - _... A Dream to Remember_ -- A Canorous Quintet - _Silence of the World Beyond_ -- Cardinal Sin - _Spiteful Intents_ -- Cemetary - _Last Confessions_ -- December Wolves - _We Are Everywhere_ -- Driller Killer - _Fuck the World_ -- Dying Fetus - _Purification through Violence_ -- Emperor - _Reverence_ -- Enslaved - _Eld_ -- EverEve - _Seasons_ -- Fear Factory - _Remanufacture: Cloning Technology_ -- Fueled - _In the House of the Enemy_ -- Gates of Ishtar - _The Dawn of Flames_ -- Gehenna - _Black Seared Heart_ -- Napalm Death - _Inside the Torn Apart_ -- Orphanage - _By Time Alone_ -- Various - _Out of the Dark Live Compilation_ -- Paingod - _Paingod_ -- Plan E - _E for Your Eyes_ / _E for You Ears_ -- Septic Flesh - _The Ophidian Wheel_ -- Thy Primordial - _Where Only the Seasons Mark the Paths of Time_ -- Vinterland - _Welcome My Last Chapter_ -- Vital Remains - _Forever Underground_ -- Within Temptation - _Enter_ -- Various - _World Domination II_ * New Noise -- Chaos Theory - _Scarred for Life_ -- Christhanasia - _Cragoedie_ -- Kaffeine - _Unworthy_ -- Nympha - -- Solarisis - _Illuminations_ -- Sub-Version - _Foul_ * Chaotic Concerts -- Korn Kan Kick Keister: Korn with Helmet in Toronto -- Obliterating Obsolescence: Obliveon with Blood of Christ and Solus -- Dio Destroys Decadance: Dio with My Dying Bride in Toronto * What We Have Cranked * The Final Word =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= E D I T O R I A L ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ by: Gino Filicetti Here it is loyal readers, Chronicles of Chaos #20, the big TWO-ZERO. Can't believe we've actually put out twenty of these babies. Believe me when I say the time has flown by. Not much new to report this issue so I'll keep this short. We do have some pretty interesting chats for you all, and our usual number of quality reviews. As well, check out our story on Boston's Grief written by High Times music journalist and good friend of ours, Zena Tsarfin. On a sad note, our condolences go out to Toronto's Solus, whose bass player Doug Regan recently passed away. Solus is featured in a concert review later this issue and was interviewed in CoC #13. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= CoC's Hellish Osmose CD Giveaway and Infernal Trivia Contest of Death ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Thanks to the generosity of the mighty Herve and Osmose Productions, CoC hereby gives you the chance to win a copy of Disk One of the new 2-CD compilation of Osmose and Kron-H bands, _World Domination II_. Disc One contains tracks by: Vital Remains, Marduk, Necromantia, Angel Corpse, Immortal, Dark Tranquillity, Gehennah, Enslaved, Swordmaster, Inferno, Demoniac, and Absu. Disc Two is not available in this giveaway. (For more information on the CD, see Steve's review in this issue.) We have about 20 copies to give away. In order to win a copy, you must correctly answer all three of the Osmose-related trivia questions below. DO NOT SEND YOUR ANSWERS TO CoC's RETURN ADDRESS. SEND THEM TO STEVE, AT: mailto:hoeltzel@blue.weeg.uiowa.edu. Please put "OSMOSE CONTEST" in the subject line of your message, and include your name and postal address. In order to keep things as simple as possible, we will accept only one entry per person and only one entry per e-mail account. Steve will check the messages in the order in which he receives them. One copy of the CD will be awarded to each person who answers all three questions correctly, while supplies last. Once there are no more CDs available to be won, the contest is over. Winners will receive their CD by mail. The questions: 1. Which Osmose band's former vocalist now sings for the Swedish band In Flames? 2. Which Osmose band hails from South America and has a vocalist who sings tenor? 3. Kron-H band Raism (formerly called Diabolos Rising) contains members of Necromantia and which other Osmose band? Good luck! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= M""MMMMMMMM dP M MMMMMMMM 88 M MMMMMMMM .d8888b. dP dP .d888b88 M MMMMMMMM 88' `88 88 88 88' `88 M MMMMMMMM 88. .88 88. .88 88. .88 M M `88888P' `88888P' `88888P8 MMMMMMMMMMM M""MMMMMMMM dP dP M MMMMMMMM 88 88 M MMMMMMMM .d8888b. d8888P d8888P .d8888b. 88d888b. .d8888b. M MMMMMMMM 88ooood8 88 88 88ooood8 88' `88 Y8ooooo. M MMMMMMMM 88. ... 88 88 88. ... 88 88 M M `88888P' dP dP `88888P' dP `88888P' MMMMMMMMMMM This is the column where we print those lovely letters our readers decide so graciously to write us. Whether they be positive, negative, ignorant or just plain spelled wrong, you can rest assured that they'll be here in their original form. If you'd like to see your own letter here, e-mail it to and enter 'Attention Loud Letters' in the subject field. Hopefully all letters received will be featured in upcoming issues of Chronicles of Chaos. Date: Fri, 28 Mar 1997 From: bob Subject: Sup This is to Gino Filicetti. Hey, man, Primitive Rhythm Machine is a really good album. First of all, listen to it better! Steve Rowe does not sound like Max Cavalera. The guitar soloing just happens to fit with the songs being played, it has nothing to do with how hard they are to play. I'm a drummer, and Bill Rice kicks ass, man, I don't know why you said anything bad about him. Last, there's nothing wrong with wanting to be born again. I can see that people who listen to Monster Voodoo Machine can say stuff about intelligent music like MORTIFICATION!! Date: Thu, 03 Apr 1997 From: Nuno Almeida Subject: CoC - Attention Loud Letters! Hi, I found out your excelent e-zine a couple of months ago, while browsing in the death metal newsgroup. I liked it a lot. Nice articles, interviews, album reviews and one thing i really liked, reviews of demos of bands without record label. You're really helping the undergroung scene. That's good. I was also very glad that a portuguese guy (Pedro Azevedo) entered your staff, as he can help bring really good new portuguese bands to light, as he did on his reviews of Desire and Heavenwood. Just one small problem. I didn't like the rating on Anathema's _Eternity_, which i think is an amazing album (10/10 for sure) and Funeral's _Tragedies_, which he rated as an 6/10. But no problem at all. In fact, reading your older issues, I found a real improvement in the reviews. Rating Emperor's _In the Nightside Eclipse_ as an 6/10, Dark Tranquility's _The Gallery_ as an 3/10 (!!!) on your old issues and Moonspell's amazing _Wolfheart_ as an 5/10 on your anniversary issue certainly is nothing to be proud of, but you're learning fast >:> In resume, you have a fantastic zine, which is improving along the way. Keep up the good work. Nuno Date: Mon, 14 Apr 1997 From: Jared Griffith Subject: Letters to the Editor Thanks for the time and effort you guys put into this publication. I live in Christchurch, New Zealand and your zine is basically my only contact with all things hard and heavy. Any music I want I have to import (very small amount of metal in the record shops)and it usually takes forever. Therefore your review section comes in very handy !!!!! I have bought Minas Morgul by Summoning and In The Nightside Eclipse by Emperor because of your recommendations and have been most pleased. A great addition to your zine would be a discography in each review and maybe a list of similar bands. That would help me discover more great music. Once again, thank you for your efforts every month; its much appreciated. Oh, try and find New Zealand on a world map - then you may sympathize!!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ___________ .__ \_ _____/__________ ____ ____ |__| ____ __ __ ______ | __)/ __ \_ __ \/ _ \_/ ___\| |/ _ \| | \/ ___/ | \\ ___/| | \( <_> ) \___| ( <_> ) | /\___ \ \___ / \___ >__| \____/ \___ >__|\____/|____//____ > \/ \/ \/ \/ ___________ __ \_ _____/___ _____ _/ |_ __ _________ ____ ______ | __)/ __ \\__ \\ __\ | \_ __ \_/ __ \ / ___/ | \\ ___/ / __ \| | | | /| | \/\ ___/ \___ \ \___ / \___ >____ /__| |____/ |__| \___ >____ > \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ The meat of the matter lies here. Read on for the juiciest morsels on bands ranging from the reknowned to the obscure. No fat, no gristle, just blood-soaked slabs served hot and ready. Dig in, readers. T H E Y ' R E B A C K . . . ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CoC interviews W.A.S.P. by: Adrian Bromley I am the first to admit that I have never been a big W.A.S.P. fan. I never really got into the band's music or controversial issues that they faced against 'Joe Public' or the PMRC in the 1980s with such albums as their self-titled debut in 1985, 1989's _Headless Children_ and the critically acclaimed theme record, _The Crimson Idol_ (1991). Bluntly put: I never was a fan. But like most times in this business as a music critic/writer you are faced with the task (or in this instance given the opportunity) of talking to a band or band members that you may or may not want to talk with. W.A.S.P. was the task I was to face. As I walk into the classy Essex Clarion hotel in downtown Toronto, I'm already primed (and somewhat worried and nervous) to interview original W.A.S.P. members Blackie Lawless and Chris Holmes, who have just reunited after an eight-year breakup with their Castle Record's debut album, the mind-rippin' industrial-tinged _Kill Fuck Die_. As we approach the hotel suite where the two are awaiting my arrival, visions of Lawless all decked out in a blackened shroud and skulls and satanic symbols bounce back and forth in my head. Images of a drunken and violent Holmes (as seen in the movie _The Decline of the Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years_) is embedded into my brain. I'm scared now. I eventually am introduced to Holmes and Lawless, both of whom are relaxed and somewhat tired from a long day of press. The interview begins with Holmes pointing at my handheld tape recorder and asking me, 'Is that a Sony?' I answer cautiously, 'Um... no... a Genexxa.' Holmes' eyes light up and the towering Holmes, tattooed sleeves and all sits up from the sofa chair and thunders toward me sitting on the bed across from Lawless and grunts, 'Shit... we should break that right now, that ain't a Sony.' I'm thinking, 'Why me?' While Holmes is rather rambunctious, he is quite peaceful and quiet for the most part. It is Lawless, wearing a t-shirt and sweat pants, who is rather calm and willing to talk about the reuniting of Holmes and himself. 'It was a simple phone call that got this thing going again for us,' utters Lawless talking about how easily Holmes and himself mended their ways. Holmes juts in, 'It was rather quick after I had accepted the collect call.' They laugh in unison. For as long as W.A.S.P. has been in this industry (since 1985), you'd have to think that making records and writing songs was easy for them. Piece of cake. Not true answers Lawless, as he discovered with penning material for _KFD_. 'It becomes harder for myself as a songwriter because I become more selective of what I write about. I want to take my time when writing the songs I make now. To be able to make them mean something and have a lasting affect.' Knowing now what I was to experience next, I should have avoided this question to some extent. I ask, 'The album title _Kill Fuck Die_: Why? What fueled the ideas?' Holmes rapidly responds in a loud bellow, 'You live in Los Angeles and see how you feel with all the guns and violence and murders that happen! It is a dangerous place to be but I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. I'm reading here in the paper that the other day like all these people have been shot over the last couple of weeks, Fuck!, ' he yells, 'That is the last fucking page of the Los Angeles time everyday.' At this time Holmes begins to stand up and act out a mock take on life and times in Los Angeles. He stands by the curtain clad windows of the hotel, drawing them back and forth while staring out the window mumbling names like George and Martha as he proceeds to make gunfire sounds, ending with a shallow scream. I make a quick glance to Lawless perched on the bed across from me and we both let out a huge ball of laughter. Lawless almost falls off the bed. I agree with Holmes about his take on life in Los Angeles and the ideas put forth towards _KFD_ and he says, 'That's the way I look at it. Ah well, _Kill Fuck Die_!' Lawless lets out a huge dose of laughter and says, 'This is too much. You had to get him going right?' Holmes finishes, 'That's a normal day for us who live in Los Angeles. To other it's not.' While on the topic of the album title and the general make-up of material and ideas for _KFD_, Lawless goes on to talk about the formation and ideas of the band in the 1990s, having to live on the edge and be a dangerous entity in the music industry if you want to get noticed. 'We talk about how we are a dangerous band and all but when we got back together we said to each other that we had to be the nastiest, stinkiest, filthiest fucking band on the planet. That's what we attempted to do and will continue to try to do.' About the lyrics of _KFD_? Lawless says so blatantly, 'There is not a lot of deep philosophical thought and social significance within our lyrics on this record.' At this point in time the conversation meanders away from a basic Q&A session and goes more into gibberish about bands of the 90s, touring (which is set to start in May, what Lawless describes as 'an intense show; not for the faint of heart'), and growing old. Looking at Holmes and Lawless, you can tell that they are getting on in the years but there still seems to be a youthful glow in the eyes. And long years in this business has not slowed down W.A.S.P. or their desire to keep going in this business. Holmes quips, 'When I started this business with W.A.S.P., people thought I was an old fuck. Fuck! I'm gonna die doing this!' Lawless leaves the room to use the toilet. I'm left with Holmes. Trouble? Who knows? I ask him, while his partner is 'draining a vein,' about being a songwriter. He corrects me. 'I don't consider myself a songwriter. I'm an entertainer. I like to make music and go out and tour and put on a show. Other people might call themselves songwriters but not me - I'm an entertainer and that is what I do.' His eyes light up as he tells me that. I am starting to believe him and for once in this interview I feel a bit more relaxed. Lawless returns. At this point in time my 25-minute interview is wearing down and I am starting to notice that after about 6 hours of interviews during the day, the two are getting restless. Lawless is squirming on the bed and Holmes proceeds to pace around his small sofa he has been sitting on during the interview. I couldn't have asked for a better way to end the interview than with the way Holmes so effortlessly provided me with a real closer. The topic: critics. Both Lawless and Holmes have mixed feelings about the way one of their records is either praised or panned. I ask about that topic and Holmes once again stands up and walks towards me saying, 'I'm gonna tell you how I feel.' That nervous feeling comes back to me as the 6ft+ guitarist meanders over to me on the bed I am sitting upon. He stands over me with a halfhearted grin and leans into my tape recorder microphone and mutters, 'Fuck'em! That's how I see it. I don't care what people say about what we do. Fuck'em!' Lawless laughs as Holmes sits down. Lawless ends the interview by saying, 'We really don't give a fuck what people say about the record. We don't care what critics or music journalists really say about _KFD_. We are doing this for ourselves and our fans. That's about it. Fuck everybody else.' I leave the interview with a real feeling that all the mayhem and shit that came along with W.A.S.P. in the 80s may be coming around again once more when _Kill Fuck Die_ hits stores at the end of April. Lawless and Holmes together again - watch out! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= _______ __ _ _______ __ / ___/ / ___ ____ / /_(_)___ / ___/ / ___ _/ /_ / /__/ _ \/ _ `/ _ \/ __/ / __/ / /__/ _ \/ _ `/ __/ \___/_//_/\_,_/\___/\__/_/\__/ \___/_//_/\_,_/\__/ ____ _ / __/__ ___ ___ (_)__ ___ ___ _\ \/ -_|_-<(_- The members of Boston-based Grief are not exactly happy campers. While the doomy quartet that specializes in slow, heavy sludge-core have gotten slightly more upbeat since their first two full-lengths, _Dismal_ (Common Cause) and _Come to Grief_ (Century Media), Grief still tend to look for the cloud behind the silver lining, most recently on _Miserably Ever After_ (Pessimiser/Theologian). While the core of the band started out as Disrupt, Grief soon became the favored outlet for vocalist Jeff, drummer Rick, bassist Randy, and guitarist Terry. With their misanthropic lyrics and credo "If it's too slow, you're too happy," Grief have become a favorite of other extreme bands such as Soilent Green, 16, Dystopia, and Corrupted - all of whom have done split recordings with the band. I recently got a chance to speak to their guitarist, Terry Savastano about Grief's new record, plans for the future and cynical outlook on life. CoC: Will we ever see a happy album from Grief? Terry Savastano: Probably not happy, but we're getting away from the depression thing and more into the anger and loathing thing. But happy? Never. CoC: When and how did Grief come about? TS: Three of the members were in Disrupt, and we played in that band for a number of years but wanted to do something else. We did both bands for a while then Disrupt broke up and we're just doing Grief now. It's been that way ever since about '90 or '91. I'd say five years and going strong. CoC: How is Grief different from Disrupt? TS: It's a different form of music; Disrupt was just charging full of hardcore and politics and Grief is really slow, monotonous dirge. I try not to use the word metal, but I guess we are a metal band. CoC: Face it, you're a metal band. TS: Yeah, you'd have to say that. CoC: Sorry about that, but I have to quote Anal Cunt every chance I get. TS: It's alright. CoC: Who are some of your influences? TS: The usual: Black Sabbath, Trouble, St. Vitus, and the Melvins. CoC: How did the Grief sound develop? TS: Just fucking around; just screwing around with certain shit trying to turn up everything as loud as it will go, tuning things down and smoking a lot of grass. Plus being bored and bummed out. CoC: Do you think there's a certain sound that comes out of smoking pot? TS: Definitely, that slow churning stuff. We just get really baked and it comes out. For rehearsal we smoke as much pot as possible and just get down and make music. CoC: How do you feel about people associating Grief as a drug band? TS: As long as they just associate us with grass and drinking booze, we pretty much frown on everything else. CoC: How would you describe the Grief sound to someone who has never heard the band? TS: Like explosions... really slow, fuckin' funereal dirge music with a singer who sounds like he got his arms cut off. CoC: How has your sound progressed over the years? TS: It's gotten a lot more melodic, a tiny bit faster, more involving and a little more technical - but still true to form. CoC: Tell me about some of the lyrics on the new record. Was "Low Life" based on personal experience? TS: Jeff [vocalist/lyricist] wrote the words to that song and they were definitely based on personal experiences - just numerous individuals that will find out sooner or later. CoC: I also noticed anti-straight edge lyrics in "Straight Edge-Closed Mind", what prompted that? TS: We've just taken so much shit from people. People will pretty much do whatever the hell they want, I don't care - but I hate people that preach. These militant straight-edge kids can just fuckin' stick it up their ass. When they stop preaching to me and telling me what to do, then I'm going to write a song about it. If you're straight, that's cool; live your own life, make your own rules. We've actually met people like 'Oh, you're a fuckin' loser, what the fuck are you doing smoking that shit?' Fuck off! CoC: The song "Why Should You Care" puts down bands that try to promote ideas through their music. Do you really believe that? TS: That's another song that Jeff wrote, you'd have to ask him about that one! . I'm not PC or a veggie and I'd love to take drugs until the day I die. It doesn't really matter, it's just music. If people are going to take it really seriously, then they definitely haven't got it. Everything is so negative because it just comes right out in the music, a little bit of it is tongue in cheek. CoC: You've used the slogan "I Hate the Human Race" for a while, now the song finally appears on the new record. What took so long? TS: We had that on the back of our shirt for over a year, it was just something to put on the back and offend people. When we wrote music to a song in the studio that didn't have any words we just used that and now I know people [for which] that's their favorite song. It cracks me up. CoC: You also covered "Angry Man" by St. Vitus. Are you big fans? TS: Absolutely, we love St. Vitus. I've been into them since high school and turned the other guys onto it. We have all their records, especially the stuff with Wino. CoC: With such long, dirge-inspired songs, was there ever a fear that people just wouldn't get it? TS: Yeah, that's a constant fear and an everyday occurrence. Most people don't get it, we have to travel four hours to play in front of people that like us; no one likes us in Boston at all. CoC: What caused you guys to become so misanthropic? TS: I've been that way my whole life, I'm sure the other guys in the band... well, Randy's half Jewish, so he's kind of... . It's the environment and just life in general. CoC: I'm a New Yorker, that's my excuse, but was it hard to find three other people that felt the same way you did about the world? TS: In the beginning it was kind of hard, I had Grief in my mind for a long, long time... years, and then finally I met these guys in Disrupt and they had similar interests and [we] gave it a shot. It took off from there, but it took a while. CoC: Are you planning on touring in support of the new record? TS: Come springtime, we're going to go down South and do a bunch of weekends. We want to go to California again, we went there in '93 and it was good, 80% of our audience is there. We'd like to hit the Midwest again, but we've got to work around our jobs. CoC: Is playing cathartic for you? TS: It's a release, everything comes out. Everything that's pissed me off during the day, I get out at night through my music. If it wasn't for my music, more than likely I'd be a serious dope addict, in prison, or just a total fuckin' loser. CoC: How do people react to the band in a live situation? There's no clear or defined mosh parts. TS: No, not at all. Most people just stand there with their jaws open, a lot of people just frown and walk out, and some people actually kind of laugh. Other people, the people that like it - they just stand in awe, mesmerized. CoC: Any weird fans come out to the shows? TS: This one guy carved a big upside-down cross in his chest and dripped blood all over the place, we've gotten some fuckin' beauties. We've seen some seriously freaky people at our gigs, but it's nothing really - no one pulls out a gun or anything like that. Not yet anyway. CoC: Your last album, _Come to Grief_ was issued on Century Media. What happened to your deal with them? TS: They dropped us, they let us go. It's actually worked out good because I didn't want to work with them any more, it was really bad. I'm a musician, I just want to play my guitar and sing. Dealing with labels and people that have a control on what I do, I don't dig that at all. With Pessimiser, it's just give them a call and [Chris Elder] does whatever we want or we do whatever he wants. He's a friend, it works out much better. CoC: I noticed you had some changes in the line-up, what happened? TS: Our old drummer, Rick, left. Randy, the bass player, moved over to drums and our friend [and Grief's artist], Eric is playing bass for us now. Randy's originally a drummer, he drummed in Disrupt. When we started Grief, he was actually our singer for one of the first rehearsals and his voice couldn't take it so he went out and bought a bass and he's been playing that ever since. Then Rick left and Randy moved back over to drums and it's working good. CoC: If you guys are so miserable, how come you're all smiling on the back of the record? TS: Life's basically been going pretty good for all of us. When we started the band, especially me, I was a miserable little bastard. I lived at home, always bummed out, getting drunk, getting into accidents with my truck. I moved out, and just realized it ain't that bad, you just got to stick it out and try to think positive. All my negative aspects in life, I just save 'em all up and when I get to rehearsal, or get to a gig, then I let them out through the music. It works great, it's such therapy. I just try to save it up instead of being a little baby and whining about it. CoC: How has that worked out? TS: Works fuckin' great, my life's definitely improved and that's probably why we're smiling on the back [of the record]. It's an outlet and I hope a lot of people are looking at our music as an outlet too, instead of just 'Oh these guys are wicked sick' or just run of the mill. It means a lot to us, and hopefully to certain individuals it will mean a lot to them, too. CoC: What's the biggest misconception about Grief? TS: That's a good question... that we're bland, that we have no substance. I think we're one of those bands that tend to grow on people. CoC: Like mould? TS: Yeah, possibly or skin cancer. We're not internal, we're like something you brush off, but we'll always come back. Contact: GRIEF, c/o Pessimiser/Theologian PO Box 1070, Hermosa Beach, CA, 90254, USA =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= C O N V E R S I N G W I T H A C U N T ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CoC chats with Seth Putnam by: Adrian Bromley As many of our readers and writers like Anal Cunt, and have expressed that we should do an interview with them, I tried for many months to get an Anal Cunt interview. Finally I was able to get an interview with Seth Putnam, lead screamer/sicko/weirdo and ringleader of anarchy for Massachusetts-bred Anal Cunt, at his home in Boston late one night to talk about their latest 52-song platter of mayhem, _I Like It When You Die_. While Anal Cunt has released numerous 7"s, 12"s, and records in the nine years of their existence, it wasn't until the early part of the 90s and working with Earache Records that the band saw some exposure with such albums as _Top 40 Hits_, 1995's _40 More Reasons To Hate Us_ and their latest "bad-taste" record _ILIWYD_. While Putnam was tired after a long day's work, having had a couple of 'brewskies' beforehand helped add some color to the interview and kept him somewhat interested in our little chat. Knowing quite well that Putnam is not a huge fan of the Internet or technology (i.e. songs off their latest _ILIWYD_ such as "The Internet Is Gay" and Technology Is Gay" [more like "Seth Putnam Is Gay" - AMG]) I cautiously try to explain to Seth what our on-line magazine Chronicles of Chaos is all about and how we reach a lot of people worldwide who may not get publications with features or reviews of Anal Cunt. He listens very carefully, but responds quite scathingly, "That's cool if we don't reach people or they don't know who we are. I'd rather not have people know about us than read about us on the Internet." CoC: Does music still play a huge role in your life now after all these years of creating music and noise with Anal Cunt? Seth Putnam: Yeah, it is still an important part of my life and what I do. This is my life and something I think about all the time. If we didn't just lose our drummer (Nate Linehan recently left) we would be out on tour right now and I wouldn't have to be working. CoC: You seem to have a large amount of material on each record with lots of ideas and commentaries going on. Are there messages in the music or is this just noise? SP: When we first started doing this music, we had no lyrics, the music was short, no song titles and we made a lot of this stuff on the spot. It was all garbage. We were playing a big musical rock n' roll laugh with really loud guitars and playing all horrible and shit to make it sound bad. Nowadays... CoC: Is there something there now, seeing that the music is a bit more organized with lyrics and song titles, then? SP: For the first time with the last record, all the lyrics are written around the song titles for the first time. So all the music is mean and angry towards all groups of people. It is totally against everybody and I don't think we missed any one type of person. Basically we badmouthed everybody. CoC: I guess it's just a big ranting and raving session then? SP: Yeah... I guess. I guess it depends on what mood we are in the day we write the music. The new record is a piss-off but we didn't say, 'Oh let's piss off this type of person!' No. We just wrote it because we were pissed off at that particular person. CoC: And what about the album title _I Like It When You Die_? Is there a statement for that? SP: Actually, we didn't even think of the album title. A friend of mine from the band Sock-Eyed made up some t-shirts for us with random sayings on it and one of them said, "You're A Bastard. I Like It When You Die" and we used that for a title. CoC: And the fascination with everyone being considered "gay"? SP: In Massachusetts, that is a very common slang term. Kinda like when people think something is stupid they say, 'Oh that is gay.' It is a common way of talking around here. I just speak that way around here anyway. Some people think it really means gay. Not true. I use the word a lot but obviously the song "Recycling Is Gay" can't mean that recycling is a homosexual thing. Anybody with half a brain can pick that out and see that it doesn't mean anything to do with homosexuality. CoC: What kind of fans does Anal Cunt draw to a show or buys your records? SP: I think the average Anal Cunt fan that comes to our show is an unemployed, alcoholic asshole loser which is kind of like the people that we get along with anyway. Troublemakers that like to start shit up. The fans that buy our records are a mixed lot. A wide variety from artsy people to troublemakers. I think the people that like us are the people that are looking for the most extreme and fastest music that they'll hear. CoC: And why did you start this band up? To spread anarchy through music? SP: I hate that word, anarchy. It's overused. Anyway... when we started this band up we only meant for AC to last two weeks. To play one show and make one tape. The fact that we are still around amazes me. CoC: Do you consider yourself a joke band? SP: Maybe in the first two weeks of this band but things evolved for us and we starting writing about things that interested us or bothered us. CoC: Does the music industry get to you at times? SP: For the last three years straight from January to March I was wanting to break up the band and not do it again. I just get that way every now and then but I am the kind of person who gets pissed off when things go well for me and I try to ruin my life. I'll get sick of this a couple months of the year but at least I know now not to let people take advantage of me. CoC: And Earache Records? How has that been for you guys? SP: They're there. They don't do any promotion for us. They just put out the records. I wish they would do better because I think we would benefit from them helping us out. Originally, Earache bothered me but I realized that we weren't the bigger band on the label. I'm used to them not really doing anything for us. We just let them get the record out and we try to promote the band ourselves. CoC: What kind of things piss you off? Things that would make it onto an AC record. SP: I don't have my notebook here but we already have like forty songs written for the next record. All of them just downright mean towards all people. It is the most violent stuff that we have ever done. I can't remember any of the titles as we worked on the ideas really fast. CoC: Is that gonna be out soon? SP: Earache pretty much makes us put out an album once a year so I'm sure in early 1998 you will see a new Anal Cunt release. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= C O O L I N G T H E R E A C T O R ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CoC chats with Heavy Water Factory by: Adrian Bromley Detroit three-piece Heavy Water Factory have always aimed at creating hypnotic power-driven electronic music with a bite and a definite roar that would set them apart from the rest, allowing metal and noise tidbits to be dispersed within the loops and beats of the techno-driven music. On their second record, _Author of Pain_ (Energy Records), the band aimed to find a unique style or feel to their music. They may have found it as their sophomore release, a follow-up to 1996's indie release _Fluid and Meat_, truly surpasses what the band had done first time out. Singer/keyboardist/programmer Jesse McLear (HWF is rounded out by other keyboardist William West and guitarist Scott Hixson) talks to Chronicles of Chaos about the music and momentum generated by Heavy Water Factory. CoC: What interests you about the kind of music that you play? Jesse McLear: I grew up listening to bands like The Cure, Joy Division, and The Smiths, and a lot of these bands used keyboards. I liked that quality about those bands. That interested me. And then I started getting into the industrial around 1989 and it was so different from anything that I had heard before and I wanted to get into that. I fell in love with bands like Nitzer Ebb, Ministry, and Skinny Puppy. CoC: Do you still play close attention to the new industrial or electronic music nowadays? JM: I am finding myself less and less listening to or paying attention to those kinds of music right now. I just want to stay focused on what I am doing and not be influenced in anyway by other bands. CoC: Where do you want Heavy Water Factory to go as a band? How important is success for you? JM: I don't know about that. I am not expecting to be rich or do this for years to come. I do it right now because I like to write music. I feel like there is a certain level I am gonna reach and feel like I made it, but I don't know what that level is. I don't know what I am reaching for. I don't know if it is a dollar amount or being famous. I think it is more of a personal accomplishment for myself. Making music and being happy doing it. I really care about what I do and I want this to be a personal thing for me. I'm trying to be myself with every song I write. I try to make each song better than the last one I wrote. CoC: The record sounds very focused and clear. How are you in the studio when working on material? JM: I work very hard in the studio trying to create the music that I hear in my head. I try to bring my ideas to life. I am determined to get it as accurate to what I want but that always doesn't happen. CoC: How did you hook up with Energy Records? JM: We heard good things about them from some of our friends who are DJs, always talking about how Energy really cares about their bands and stuff. We sent them a press kit and they really dug our material. We met up with them and felt a good vibe so we hooked up with them. CoC: How would you describe the new record to someone? JM: I'd probably tell them that the record is full of a lot of variety of song styles and moods. Usually there is something on the record, it could be one track, that people usually come away liking on this record. I like the fact that someone could get excited about something on this record, to be excited and be moved by a piece of music that I created. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= B L E E D I N G D I V I N E B L O O D ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CoC interviews Darren White of The Blood Divine by: Pedro Azevedo A band formed by the Ryan brothers and PJ Allender from Cradle of Filth, a drummer such as Was from Extreme Noise Terror, and Steve Maloney on bass sure sounds more than promising. But what would this band be without a good vocalist? Well, The Blood Divine undoubtedly have one who's as good as vocalists can get. Formerly the Anathema frontman, Darren White is the man who gives TBD that extra quality and personality with his voice, lyrics, and overall influence. I had the pleasure of talking to Daz on the phone, and here's the result - enjoy, and do yourself a favour by checking out their debut, _Awaken_. Before starting the interview itself, there's something I must make clear. Darren was interviewed by a Portuguese radio station just a few days before I talked to him, so I didn't want to repeat the questions he had been asked in that interview for rather obvious reasons. However, two of the questions are worth mentioning here. The first concerns his departure from Anathema - a decision that belonged to the rest of the band. They claimed that Darren's vocals were getting worse as the rest of the band got better, and added that his lyrics in _Pentecost III_ were bad (maybe they forgot about his work on _Serenades_). "A good move", as Danny Cavanagh once stated. Many, myself included, will strongly disagree, at least in what concerns Anathema, since while Anathema lost some of what made them special, the world did gain a new and superb band called The Blood Divine, which is probably much more suitable for Darren's vocals than Anathema right now. Darren blames his departure on the lack of communication in the band: as he says, "They never told me, earlier on, how they felt - it was like they were afraid to speak about it. They chose the easy way out but it helped me, because sometimes some bad things happen to you, but sometimes you can make something positive out of that negative experience, and that's what I've done". However, says Darren, "I can forgive them, but I'll never forget, because it's not something that friends should do to each other. Then again, I can thank them for it, because now I'm in a band where I'm much happier than I ever was in Anathema, and I'm able to express myself more honestly, more openly." About their next album, Darren said TBD will most likely record it during April or May, so it should be out around September. With this out of the way, let's move on to CoC's interview. CoC: Suppose you were in some room and someone would play _Serenades_. What would be your current opinion on the quality of this album? Darren White: I think it's good... I think the music was good, but the production could have been better, and I think I'd do the vocals differently now, but it was 1992, so... I'm a better singer now... but I still like it, it's still my past and it's still in my heart. CoC: There've been a lot of bands abandoning the death-style vocals recently. Your vocals aren't really death vocals anymore, like they were in the past, but they're still heavy, and, as far as I'm concerned, excellent... DW: Thank you. CoC: Would you say this abandoning of the death vocals is becoming a trend? DW: I don't know... there's so many trends, that to me it doesn't matter. I think it's also a trend if a band just start up singing black metal style because it's easier to sing that way, you know, it's easier to scream and it's harder to sing in tune but still keep powerful. That's the thing that a lot of bands do, they try to sing softer or in a tune but they lose the power, and to get the two is the best. I don't know about you, but I think one of the best singers ever was Robert Plant, because he was able to get perfect tune but also a lot of power in his voice as well. CoC: How important are your lyrics? DW: They're totally important. It's 100% important, if not more, you know, if it could be more than 100% it would be. It's therapy for me, it's very important for me that for every word that goes on to the paper and every word I sing I can defend myself if someone was to say "What do you mean there? Why did you say that?", I'd have to be able to defend myself. They also have to be completely from the heart, so I can find the balance and sort of be clever with the lyrics, but also be honest and open about my own feelings. I think that's something I lost for a little bit and I have regained it now, especially for the second Blood Divine album, which will be very [much] about personal experiences that I think anyone can relate to. CoC: Is there any special reason why your lyrics come out so gloomy and bleak, especially in the past? DW: I think it's for two reasons. I use the lyrics as a therapy so that I can get out the negative feelings inside me, and also I do try to reflect the atmosphere of the world. There is so much injustice, so much cruelty and so much pain and suffering in the world, and those come out in the lyrics. Some people live a happy life and they don't think about those who are suffering and other people's pain and sometimes they can't enjoy themselves properly because they don't realize how lucky they are. I think by talking about the pain of suffering and injustice, that people can realize how lucky they are and maybe even go out and try and fight as well. I always say that if I wasn't playing music I would be some form of revolutionist fighting against injustice. I'd be out there defending defenseless animals, setting animals free from torture laboratories and many other things. CoC: What inspired you to write the lyrics for "Warm Summer Rain"? DW: I'm gonna give you a secret away now... for that track, I was sitting there, and it was very, very late at night, which is the best time for me to write lyrics, and I was thinking about ideas while listening to the track (the band had written that track two or three months before going to studio, so it was almost completely finished), and I wanted [the lyrics] very, very simple, but also meaningful and deep. And it's like a football manager, sometimes he has to admit that his wife helped him pick the football team; my wife helped me with those lyrics. I knew that the song felt like rain, something made me think that there had to be rain when the music stops, so I wanted rain to be in the title, and once she got the idea into my head it all came out very easy and very simple. Just as if I was walking outside the house in Summer with rain coming down and I'm looking up to the sky, feeling the rain on my face, thinking what a great feeling that is, breathing the clean air and hoping that we'll be always able to breathe clean air, which is a dream that probably won't happen, but it would be nice. CoC: That track features Ruth, an excellent female vocalist... DW: Yeah. CoC: ... who accompanied you from Anathema. DW: Yeah. CoC: Do you think she'll ever have more weight in the band, do some larger parts of the album? DW: I don't know, I think for the second album we're gonna try something else, but I'll always have her phone number and I hope that we'll always be friends and that we'll be able to do something again in the future. I think for the next album we'll be trying something a little bit different, but we might ask Ruth again to do some stuff. It's not that we don't like her vocals, but we wanna do something different in the next album. CoC: How did you come up with such a name as The Blood Divine? What does it mean? DW: I just thought of a few different names for a band, names that I thought were good, and I majorly thought that this one stood out as the strongest. When I showed it to the other guys, I didn't tell them which was the one I liked, I just showed them the list of names, and every one of them said that's the one. I think it's good, because it's strong... it could be pretentious in a way, but we believe in divine blood. It's not just those six people who are The Blood Divine, it's anyone who feels that they also bleed divine blood. If you believe that you have your own strong conscience and your own god inside of you, and you don't worship an external god but you obey the being inside of yourself, then you can be part of us, so if you believe you bleed divine blood you can be part of us. CoC: Wise words. I suppose you are an atheist, then? DW: No, I think I have a strong faith, but it's not a Christian faith, it's not Moslem faith, it's not Hindu faith, it's just a faith in Nature and life in general. I think that life is the ever-powerful thing. CoC: Changing the subject, what bands or which kinds of music do you guys listen to after work? DW: Very different stuff. I would say that Paul Ryan is the big metal fan in the band. He loves mainly the new wave of British metal... and we all love Iron Maiden. Paul Allender, he's into all kinds really, he's a rock fan, he likes classical music too. CoC: What about yourself? DW: Myself, I love any music that I think can take you away from where you are at that time, the reality and boredom of where you are, so that it can lift you or make you feel better. I like a lot of 60s and 70s stuff, they use a lot of clever sounds that can help you drift away, and I like bands like Kyuss and Monster Magnet. I also like that really, really heavy style. Also Led Zeppelin, the Beatles, Black Sabbath, the Doors... I'll tell you what Steve's into, he's into a lot of punk and 70s and 80s stuff as well... Lou Reed, Velvet Underground... and then Ben, he's into mad sounds, he likes anything that sounds strange. And Was, our drummer, he worships Frank Zappa. And he likes Miles Davis and jazz. CoC: It's weird that if you ask this to most metal bands, they almost never mention newer metal bands. What's your opinion on other Peaceville bands, for example, such as My Dying Bride? DW: To be perfectly honest with you, I was never really a fan of their music, even though I have respect for them. We just toured with them for four and a half weeks, and I respect them, but I'm more into Cathedral. CoC: They were a bit like Anathema in the early days... there were some similarities between _Serenades_ and _As the Flower Withers_, and the way both bands grew. DW: Yeah. CoC: I noticed that you mention a band called Celestial Season twice in the _Awakening_ credits... you, yourself. Is there any special relation between you and that Dutch band? DW: Yeah, their old singer, I knew him in the old days, and also in the last tour that we've done, a couple of guys from Celestial Season came down and they were really friendly and all, and we had a smoke together, and we talked and had a drink. They were really cool people. CoC: What's your opinion on the current metal scene? Or take the Swedish scene as an example, if you know it. DW: If we take Sweden as an example, I like Entombed and At the Gates, even though they have split up now. And Opeth... I'm not really into their music, because their songs are too long, but they really know how to play their instruments. The only band that I can think of that are in the extreme scene are Einherjer, I listened to a demo or something of theirs a couple of years ago, and it was really epic and heavy music. CoC: I read in an interview that you don't value black metal too much. DW: Eh... not really, no... not the current black metal scene, because it's just full of spotty kids... and... CoC: So you believe there is no such thing as a good black metal band right now? DW: Er... there probably is... I could pick up Terrorizer and have a look at that... there's probably a good band in that. I'm a friend of Cradle of Filth's new guitarist, and have been for a long time, and I always thought Cradle of Filth were good... even though I shouldn't be promoting them really... but I think they're okay... Impaled Nazarene, they're okay as well. And Celtic Frost, from the older scene, and Sodom, I could go on there... but in the current scene, I think the bands are just far, far too pretentious and it's just completely fake. I think it's all a fake image. CoC: Changing the subject back to The Blood Divine, have you had any problems in any of TBD's live shows yet or is everything going alright so far? DW: Well, there's things like guitar amps suddenly deciding that they don't wanna work anymore, guitar leads that decide they don't wanna work anymore... people jumping up on the stage and knocking things over, but that's not a problem, that's all part of the fun. One of the things I hate is that on the last tour there was a couple of gigs where we had to do the sound check while everyone was in the room... just little things, because when you're a professional you want everything to be right, but then again, if there's a problem you make up for that problem by trying that bit harder in the show and trying to basically play the next song so good that people will forget what happened. I mean, I've got a lot of experience, so as long as I can use that experience to make TBD a better band, I'll try everything I can. CoC: How satisfied were you with _Awaken_, both musically and in terms of production? DW: We're like every band, we see all the faults because we look at it objectively. CoC: Would you say there's a lot of faults? DW: I mean, I can look at it and say "that could have been better", and we would have done it differently now, but at the same time, considering that we'd only been together for six or seven months when we recorded it, I think it's a miracle that we were able to do it so well and I'm happy about that. But I think we are a much more mature and much better band now, and we would do it differently now. CoC: How did you manage to do such a great debut album, considering you all came from such different bands? DW: Yeah... I mean, I do things that are only for the more open-minded people, and I heard that the Portuguese fans are open-minded... CoC: Some are and some aren't... like anywhere else... DW: Yeah, but I think in England the emphasis on music is more on if it will sell, if it's commercial. I think that we will do quite well in Portugal, and the likes of Germany, Italy, Spain and places like that, also like America, Scandinavia and Japan... we're doing well in a lot of places, and we're trying at the moment to sort of break into the English scene. It's a very sad thing, but even though in music it's great to use your heart, to break into the English scene you gotta use your mind as well, and you gotta be clever. At the moment, I'm trying, and it's a new thing to me having to be thinking about business and all. I think people will accept it in England, but not like in Portugal, you're far more open-minded and the people really understood the diversity of the music in Portugal and countries like that. CoC: Has _Awakening_ been doing well in terms of sales? DW: Uh, I don't know, I think so... I'm not really sure about that... but I hope so! It means that we can carry on. CoC: Is there any news about your second album you'd like to share with me? DW: Let me think... not really... Well, we'll be more mature, more groovy in a way, more rocking... more focused... less silly bits, if you know what I mean... all really hard and true, more honest. CoC: Will your vocal style remain the same? DW: I will always keep the heavy style, but I obviously always try to become a better singer, not just shout all the time, put tunes in there... but at the same time I'm confident that I'll keep the very heavy style and use tune and melody as well. CoC: What's your opinion about all those bands out there who write music just to try and sell lots and lots and lots of copies, even if they know that their music is crap, saying "Our music is crap, but it'll sell, so let's do it!"? DW: Yeah, that's really sad... they're ruining the whole music scene. It's like a product, like Coca-Cola, so many bands are products of their record label, and that just makes me sick. That's one of the reasons why I don't like the black metal thing, some of the bands need to wear their makeup because they don't know how to do anything else and they're not confident enough in their music. CoC: _Awaken_ keeps shifting from doomy parts to great melodies to powerful parts all the time, so it's really hard to put a label on your band. Would you like to try and label TBD yourself, or would you say that's just useless? DW: Heavy rock'n'roll... CoC: Nothing with the word "metal"? DW: I could say metal, but when you say metal, the pigeonholes come alive in people's heads and they expect you to sound a certain way, whereas I can say, yeah, we're a heavy metal band, but people will think "Oh, it sounds like that, then...". And if I said we're a death metal band, people would say "Oh, it sounds like that..." So I don't really want to categorize ourselves, because of the labels the people have in their own minds, so I would say that we capture the spirit of heavy metal, but not in the old style, more drifting in a rock'n'roll spirit, the music being open and hopefully something that'll break some boundaries, or change the world... that'd be my dream... CoC: Now's the time for you to say whatever you want to our readers... DW: Bleed divine blood, be yourself, use your mind as well as your heart, respect people... respect life. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= O N T H O R N S I L A Y ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Interview by: Panos "nahitfol" Agoros Intro by: Pedro Azevedo The Greek band now known as On Thorns I Lay was formed in 1992 under the name Phlebotomy, having just released their first EP _Dawn of Grief_ at the time. They came back under the name On Thorns I Lay to release _Sounds of Beautiful Experience_ for Holy Records in 1995, an album that featured quite a lot of original ideas (and nice packaging). Also, strange as it may seem, it's rather far from what I'd call doom, even though they use a suggestive name, as the mood is actually quite light. The band quit the female vocals they had used in their EP, and _SoBE_ was a mix of atmospheric death with influences varying from classical music to some rather strange "rockish" stuff - it's one of those love-it-or-hate-it albums. On Thorns I Lay have a new album ready for release during Autumn this year - here's a chat with guitarist Chris Draga. CoC: It seems that you have disappeared for some time after the release of your debut CD. What happened? Chris Draga: Here we are, two years after the release of our debut CD, entitled _Sounds of Beautiful Experience_. The delay was due to many reasons that created some trouble. These reasons were: a) The bass player left the band for personal reasons. b) We were not in the least satisfied with our previous album. In fact we were disappointed, so we needed some time to think, to test different musical approaches, yet we didn't want to divulgue them. And now, two years later, we are stronger and heavier than ever. CoC: Did the reactions to your CD satisfy you? CD: Our first CD doesn't represent us at all. To be honnest I believe that it was awful [Yet I enjoyed it a lot -- Panos]. However it obtained some good reviews (4/5 at Kerrang and 8/10 at all Metal Hammer mags). People liked it. The reactions were better than they should be. According to these I assume that our 2nd album will have a better fate. The production is perfect and the sound is more complete and more atmospheric than ever. CoC: You're one of the few underground metal bands who express happiness and joy through their lyrics and music . Would you be one of the rare humans for whom life is not pain? CD: At our first album we wanted to express such feelings and to send these messages, indeed; this can be read in the title too. However the second CD deals with the mystery and the ancient memories of the lost Atlantis. It's an opus written for the earliest and more fascinating culture of the world. We were delighted by the atmosphere that this ancient culture rose, so we decided that our music and lyrics should be based on this subject. CoC: In your 7" EP, when you were still named Phlebotomy, you used delightful female vocals. Why didn't you do so in your debut? Will you do it in the future? CD: The female vox didn't express us on the first CD. However, on the second one there are many parts with female vocals that match our music. We used them to show the difference between hatred and love, brutality and tranquillity, war and peace. CoC: Let's talk about your new musical direction. Your contribution to _The Holy Bible_ (Holy Recs' unreleased tracks compilation), was an excellent surprise for me. Will your new songs be in this vein? I mean with no death growlings and with more rock stylings? CD: Our contribution to this compilation was just an experiment for us, fortunately or unfortunately. We are pleased with the conclusion. Besides, in this way we wanted to test the studio that we had chosen to create our second album. We really like this style, however death metal lives in our hearts. We've listened to it for ten years now and we have connected our own lives with this kind of music. We are open minded but we will never stop worshipping our music. CoC: I know you like rave and techno music. Why don't you do a side-project in this vein? CD: In fact we DON'T like techno and rave music. [Their singer stated liking rave/techno in several interviews and even quoted Prodigy's debut album as one of his all-time faves, maybe Chris forgot that. -- Panos] We like the atmospheric drum'n'bass, the dark breakbeat, the psychedelic trance and any other atmospheric dark feeling music. Our new CD contains melodic death metal tracks full of atmosphere and mystery. We worked very hard, with the help of the latest computers in order to create a hymn towards the ancient Atlantis. CoC: Magus Wampyre Daloth (Necromantia) in an interview with Chaotik Webzine said that, "The techno movement is empty from any sense". Do you agree? CD: My answer is YES. The techno movement is empty from any sense. CoC: I greatly enjoyed the dreamy dimension of "Sounds..." and "Taxidi Nostalgias" the closing track; can someone say that you are dreamers? CD: We were and we shall never stop being dreamers. The second album is a dream, a vision (the title is Opama=Vision) of the last Atlantis. CoC: Have you anything to say to our readers? CD: Fight for death metal, stay underground, stay away from all techno, sleaze, funk, poseurs and other bullshit. Our forthcoming CD is a pure atmospheric death metal creation so even if you don't consider buying it try to give it a listen. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ______ __ | __ \.-----.----.-----.----.--| | | <| -__| __| _ | _| _ | |___|__||_____|____|_____|__| |_____| ______ __ __ __ | __ \.-----.--.--.-----.| |.---.-.| |_|__|.-----.-----.-----. | <| -__| | | -__|| || _ || _| || _ | |__ --| |___|__||_____|\___/|_____||__||___._||____|__||_____|__|__|_____| This is where we rant, rave, and rip apart albums. Check this column every month for the scoop on the latest in heavy hand-outs. Scoring: 10 out of 10 -- If there was ever a perfect CD, this is it! 8 out of 10 -- A great piece of metallic mayhem 6 out of 10 -- Not too bad of an album 4 out of 10 -- You are treading in dangerous waters 2 out of 10 -- If you like this, you are fucked! 0 out of 10 -- My shit can put out better music than this! Agarthi - _At the Burning Horizon_ (Red Stream, 1996) by: Drew Schinzel (8 out of 10) Agarthi come from Italy, and play a pretty original blend of symphonic metal combined with elements of death and black, all played with conviction, albeit with a rather weak production effort. Although they employ the use of keyboards heavily, Agarthi don't use the atmospheric, simple sounding effect. Instead, they convey more of an evil, nefarious feeling, with the guitars usually following suit with melodic riffs and some more choppy, Iced Earth-style riffage, all played at a mid-to-fast pace, and with a ton of variation; there's never a boring moment on the 23-minute mini-CD. The vocals here are a little creative, too. Some of the time, your obligatory black rasp (actually more of a black growl, really), some of the time, the growl mixed with a clean male baritone voice, Agarthi went for something original, and it paid off - the vocals are a rather refreshing change from most bands' monotonous single style, although at times the clean vocals sound a bit amateurish, unfortunately. No need to worry about that though, as Agarthi's MCD is still very worthwhile; the truly dark atmosphere, good execution, and perhaps, foremost, the bit of originality should be enough to convince anyone of their musical prowess. Alastis - _The Other Side_ (Century Media, April 1997) by: Adrian Bromley (7 out of 10) For those of you into the works of such bands as Tiamat, Samael or Moonspell comes the latest Century Media signing, Alastis (all the aforementioned bands are on CM, too). _The Other Side_, the debut album for Century Media from this Swiss quartet (they have had two previous releases), is knee-deep in epic song structures, ambiance, and heaviness. Produced by the brilliant Waldemar Sorychta (Grip Inc., Tiamat, Samael), _TOS_ showcases a truly unique pairing of ambiance with intensity. The music is deafening at times with a towering presence of darkened ambiance coating the assault against our senses. Brutal yet soothing, the varied assortment of songs and ideas do make this an album worth investigating. While the variety of songs is adequate and the band isn't doing anything really 'groundbreaking,' it is the sound of _TOS_ that is the album's best asset - thanks to Sorychta. Chock one up for Sorychta once again as he has brought out something unique sounding in Alastis, allowing them not to be dismissed as just another doom/dark metal band. Blood of Christ - _... A Dream to Remember_ by: Adam Wasylyk (8 out of 10) (March 1997, Pulverizer Records) Some of you should be familiar with Blood of Christ from my demo review (in issue #11) and my interview in the last issue. Being one of the better bands to come out of the London, Ontario metal scene, they have just released their first CD which is a great debut and will gain them a far larger fan base around the world. Mixing elements of doom, black, and death metal, Blood of Christ take no prisoners when it comes to brutal music. Melody also plays a part in BoC's music, as there are some slow acoustic bits that fit between the brutal parts. Fans of the Cryptopsy/Kataklysm kind of death metal should find this appealing, as will other fans of death metal that like some melody in their music as well. Very dark and very, very brutal. A Canorous Quintet - _Silence of the World Beyond_ (No Fashion, 1996) by: Drew Schinzel (8 out of 10) Hey! It's that time again... you guessed it, time for more Swedish melodic death! No Fashion (and plenty of other labels) just seem to keep pumping them out, but even though the genre may be getting just a -little- overcrowded with copycats, for every five or ten lame ducks there are one or two bands like A Canorous Quintet: quality, moderately original (nothing groundbreaking here, but no blatant cloning either), and refreshingly energetic and powerful. Not really overtly 'evil,' the lyrics as always focus on darkness and other such things, but the music doesn't always follow suit. In actuality, the music on _SotWB_ is actually a little upbeat at times, probably as a result of the high-tuned, clean melodies and the usually flowing overall sound of things. The vocals are for the most part neither death nor black (death vocals are used at times though), but instead more of a top-of-the-throat screaming, naturally matching the often times frantic musical pace. In fact, frantic is a good word to describe A Canorous Quintet's music. Frantic, melodic, maybe a bit on the hyper side, ACQ prove that they are -more- than capable of composing quality melodic death metal, and have come up with an album worthy of recommendation. Cardinal Sin - _Spiteful Intents_ (Wrong Again Records, 1996) by: Drew Schinzel (8 out of 10) As soon as you hear the acoustic intro to Cardinal Sin's debut MCD, _Spiteful Intents_, you know John Zwetsloot has got to be involved. The guy just seems to have an affinity for soft acoustic pieces, sometimes with whispered vocals, sometimes without, and who can really blame him? I think we all enjoy a little moody acoustic goodness every now and then, and as long as, along with the acoustic sections, Zwetsloot keeps on writing the kind of riffs he did with Dissection, and now Cardinal Sin, I'm not going to complain. It would figure that the two best songs on the sixteen minute offering are written by Zwetsloot, and bear no slight resemblance, in riffage, to his work with Dissection. For reference, just listen to "Heaven's Damnation" off of the latter's debut, and you'll know what I mean. Dry, sharp, black vocals complement the melodic riffing, accompanied by some fairly simplistic drumming. So, basically, you'll find no surprises here, and it may not be worth one's money for such a short release, but for what it is, _Spiteful Intents_ is well done. Oh, and what's this? The final song is a short acoustic outro... Cemetary - _Last Confessions_ (Black Mark, April 1997) by: Adrian Bromley (7 out of 10) After the release of their last effort, the brilliant 1995 release, _Sundown_, you'd have thought that Sweden's Cemetary would have been gearing up for world domination. Didn't happen. Instead, following years of slugging it out as a veteran death metal band (molding more into a goth/metal influenced band towards the end) and touring, the band decided it was time to bring the music of Cemetary to an end. The results of this decision to end a somewhat successful career are displayed on the band's farewell LP, _Last Confessions_. While not the best selection of material to end a career with in my books (also, 28 minutes seems a bit short and rushed), as singer/guitarist/songwriter Mathias Loldmalm and his band have created a very melodic and gothic release with _LC_, a far cry from what the band had delivered to the metal masses years ago with the death metal onslaught of their debut album, _An Evil Shade of Gray_. Despite changes in styles of music, this record has its moments, i.e. "Caress the Damned" and "One Burning Night". Interesting to see what creativity the band will conjure up as Loldmalm and drummer Christian Silver have formed a new band called Sundown, with a debut album in the works for June release on Century Media. We'll see if disbanding was required. December Wolves - _We Are Everywhere_ (Independent, 1997) by: Drew Schinzel (9 out of 10) One of America's finest black metal acts, December Wolves have returned with a short, two-song offering of what is to come from the band. Featuring only two tracks, "We Are Everywhere", and "... Not with Tainted Blood", this release is not meant to be the band's next album, but only a taste, and to me it tastes like skilled, melodic black metal with a lot of variation. Unlike their debut album, _Til Ten Years_, there aren't any female vocals, acoustics, or keyboards on this sampler, and there really is no need for them; December Wolves' music succeeds on practically every front, and to add anything else would simply be unnecessary. Without a doubt, if there is one thing that sticks out about December Wolves, from both their previous efforts and this one, it's their use of clean, mid-paced melodic parts, usually with a decidedly folkish, anthemic, and (for whatever reason) Irish sound. This is a very good thing, especially in the title track, which has one of the coolest, most folkish sounding melodies I've ever heard. Don't take that the wrong way, though. It may sound a little folkish at times, but even then, it undeniably -rocks-, and folk music will be the farthest thing from your mind when in the next instant they are unleashing an Abigor-esque blast. If this is any indication of the next December Wolves album, I don't know if I can wait for it. Driller Killer - _Fuck the World_ (Kron-H, March 1997) by: Steve Hoeltzel (8 out of 10) Another great signing for Kron-H. These guys may have kind of a silly name and a ridiculous album cover, but musically they are no joke, and _FtW_ is, hands down, the most skull-cracking release I've heard so far this year. It's down-tuned, riff-mongering metal-core - but with the emphasis firmly on the metal element, where it belongs. With the kind of thickness and weight you'd expect from a death metal band, this stuff hits you right in the gut, a steely alloy of catchiness, heaviness, and utter sonic might. Thirty-two minutes gives you sixteen unpretentious, energetic, riff-propelled songs, short on complexity but long on drive, and loaded with pummelling grooves and pounding choruses. Resistance is futile. This is the musical equivalent of a twenty-ton tank looking to mow you down; chugging monsters like "Freeman", "Hellcome", and the rabid "I Couldn't Care Less" are proof. The CD's production is simply excellent: Andy's guitar sound is titanic, and it fits perfectly into a clear, muscular mix which nicely balances all the instruments with Cliff's great, deep-but-not-quite-death-metal vocals. This is one of those records that just makes it seem like the vast majority of the bands that claim to be really "hard" or "brutal" these days are either pathetically self-deluded or totally full of crap (or both). This, in other words, is the shit. An awesome release. Dying Fetus - _Purification through Violence_ by: Adam Wasylyk (7 out of 10) (February 1997, Pulverizer Records) Having seen these guys play at last year's Deathstock in NYC, they were one of the highlights of the show. Very heavy and fast, they never let up intensity-wise. The big question for me was if they could bring that energy into the recording studio. The answer is yes, as _Purification through Violence_ does a good job in utilizing vocal styles and musical structures so there is never a dull moment. Songs like "Skull Fucked", "Nothing to Pray For", and "Nocturnal Crucifixion" take no prisoners when it comes to no-nonsense, brutal death metal. Included is a cover of Napalm Death's "Scum", entitled "Skum (Fuck the Weak)". Eight songs at just under 30 minutes, it's a little short but then again, I (along with others I'm sure) can't take a full hour of this at a time. Well produced and well played brutal death metal, yours for the asking. Emperor - _Reverence_ (Candlelight Records, 1997) Music review by: Steve Hoeltzel (7 out of 10) Of the three songs on offer here, only "The Loss and Curse of Reverence" will appear on the band's upcoming full-length. In a couple of ways, this song seems "busier" than Emperor's earlier material: there are more discrete sections than in most earlier compositions, and the production is a bit more layered and polished. Personally, I think that these developments actually tend to subtract from the classic, "epic" Emperor vibe. Still, all the band's trademarks are present - Ishahn's vocals, haunting melody lines, and segments of icy, synth-washed speed. But this time, the numerous sections are generally too short to permit the buildup of any sustained atmosphere. One of the main riffs is punctuated by an annoying squealing guitar that makes me think more of Sunset Strip than of Spitzbergen, and more squeaky wah-wah effects seriously mar what would otherwise be the grimmest moment in the song. There is a pause for a corny-sounding spoken exhortation, too. Most of the song's individual parts do retain the basic Emperor feel, but somehow the whole assembly of parts just doesn't congeal as effectively as their earlier material - at least not for me. (Of course, this is the "Video/Chaos Mix" of the song, so perhaps the full-length version will differ.) The second track, "In Longing Spirit", is a reworked version of an older song from 1992. Slow, moody, heavy on synth and light on guitars, this one showcases some nearly-spoken vocals which have a tinge of the pompous goth style to them. Not a bad song overall, but nothing special either. Closer "Opus a Satana" is an all-synth reworking of the mighty "Inno a Satana", arranged and performed entirely by Ishahn. It's surprisingly enjoyable, with cinematic sweep and sprightly momentum. Fun stuff. Video review by: Adam Wasylyk (no rating) After obtaining a copy of the EP, a trip to Adrian's was in order as I didn't have the capabilities to play a CD-ROM video. Watching it for the first time I was surprised at how much money went into it. The video opens with a camera zooming over a barren landscape while later scenes depict fire-breathing, forests, and several shots of the band playing in front of what appeared to be a castle. Perhaps a little cliche but very entertaining to watch. My problem with this CD-ROM was the video is in a small box in the middle of the screen, but the video itself truly makes up for for that. Overall it's definitely worth a look-over. Enslaved - _Eld_ (Osmose Productions, March 1997) by: Steve Hoeltzel (9 out of 10) Enslaved has always had a highly evocative sound: guitars that ring with echoes of vast, windswept spaces; ferocious rhythms that summon images of surging seas, rains of arrows, and snapping bones. And without a doubt, _Eld_ is their most fully realized and evocative recording yet. Harsh riffing with a fine feel for underlying melody, and driving, often raging rhythms are arranged and ordered more organically and with somewhat greater complexity than before. In addition, really stirring 'clean' vocals are used with great effectiveness, adding lots of emotive texture to an already impassioned sound. Check out "Alfablot", a simply incredible song: harsh vocals and excellent drumming propel furious, engaging riffs which glide effortlessly into haunting slower sections, graced by clean vocals that are wonderfully phrased and well performed. If Grutle can learn to deliver these cleaner parts with the same kind of vocal power that his harsh vocals display, then some of these passages will really sound majestic. As is, they still sound great, and they are artfully used to provide melodic phrasing to blasting passages ("Kvasirs Blod") and to sections of more subdued rhythmic strumming, as in "793 (Slaget Om Lindisfarne)". The latter is the album's 16-minute(!) opening track, which runs the gamut from mellow synthesizer score to laid-back, rhythmic strumming to all-out blistering attack. Also notable is "For Lenge Siden", which tones down the ferocity a bit, only occasionally blasting; mostly rocking, pounding, and galloping its way through a collection of tough, catchy riffs. This is simply a -great- record, by a band with a distinctive sound, alive with Northern black metal's deep ferocity, powerfully expressive, and skillfully refined. EverEve - _Seasons_ (Nuclear Blast, March 1997) by: Adrian Bromley (9 out of 10) Since the band's conception in 1993, Germany's EverEve have managed to carefully structure their gothic/doom metal-influenced sound. The band has taken their time and used experience to help chip away all useless elements within their music and focus clearly on providing the music with enough character and structure to truly capture what the band is about. Accomplished. On _Seasons_, their first full-length LP and debut for Nuclear Blast (they had a 1994 demo called _On the Verge of Tears_), what we are provided with is stunning meshing of both powerful doom metal (growls and all) and the eerie and darkened wallop of goth. With no real set pattern of combining both elements, EverEve create multiple pairings of the two genres, allowing the album to supply us with ample creations that overflow with enough passion and strength to keep us satisfied from start to finish. A recommended purchase for those that like a bit of goth with your metal. Fear Factory - _Remanufacture: Cloning Technology_ by: Adrian Bromley (8 out of 10) (Roadrunner, May 1997) Finally! After many failed attempts to get out a 'remanufactured' version of sophomore release _Demanufacture_ to the public, Fear Factory finally unleashes _Remanufacture_. This remixed collection of material totally disassembles the previous _Demanufacture_ material and puts it back together in numerous techno/industrial-laced formats. Much like the band's previous EP, 1993's _Fear Is the Mindkiller_, this will surely shock some of their fans with the predominantly smooth techno feel and production circulating throughout the record. It's still heavy though, as producer extraordinaire Rhys Fulber (Frontline Assembly, Delirium) brings a heavy crunch to the industrial/techno-tinged numbers. Basically, all the songs off _Demanufacture_ get put through the blender with many parts re-organized or forgotten. In a nutshell, it's all the same shit 'cept more fucked up. Note: the remix of "Replica" is fucking amazing! Live a little and watch (and listen) to see how Fear Factory combine their powerful music and their views of technology to take shape and form a twisted and distorted product for our ears. Crank it! Fueled - _In the House of the Enemy_ (Energy Records, March 1997) by: Adrian Bromley (2 out of 10) Crap. From the opening number, "Reconstricted", I knew I was in for a beating - I really wanted this to end. Managing to mix techno (samples), metal, and hardcore with a slight groove, California four-piece Fueled really seem to be lacking something in their 10-song debut for Energy Records. There really is no identity to their music, as the music is just layered on thick with lots of samples and monotonous guitar riffs. And what's with the vocals? They sound so stale and bland. Sounding a lot like a second (or even third) rate metal/techno/hardcore hybrid band, Fueled's sound needs a lot of work before they will see any kind of success. I'm just glad Energy Records has some better bands like Hanzel Und Gretyl and Heavy Water Factory waiting in the wings. Gates of Ishtar - _The Dawn of Flames_ (Invasion Records, 1997) by: Drew Schinzel (9 out of 10) Some things just can't be explained. This is Gates of Ishtar's second album, the followup to their debut, _A Bloodred Path_, yet it bears little resemblance to their initial effort. Where did the killer, bouncing melodies go off to? What happened to the abundant variation and occasional tempo changes? I can't give you the answers, but I -can- say that Gates of Ishtar, on the surface, have produced a fairly generic album of Swedish melodic black/death metal, almost completely devoid of originality (even moreso than their debut, which wasn't exactly groundbreaking), and lacking most of the elements which made the previous effort such a joy to listen to. Now for the part that can't be explained: I just can not -stop- listening to _The Dawn of Flames_. This has got to be one of the catchiest, most addictive releases I've heard in a while. As mentioned, there is hardly an original concept here, and in fact _TDoF_ is even more derivative than _ABR_, and, in fact, if only superficially listened to, one might not be able to stand this album. I know I sure couldn't, at first. After the first two listens to this album, I was completely disappointed and nearly disgusted. But then, I listened closer and heard that, although yes, it is rather generic and lacking in creativity, the style is pulled off without a hitch, and there really are very few unlistenable moments on the CD. This release is just filled with dramatic choruses, flowing melodies, and competent playing, combining to constitute a release which, although dissimilar in style, surpasses the debut. Gehenna - _Black Seared Heart_ (Holycaust, 1996) by: Drew Schinzel (6 out of 10) Ho hum, another demo of a now well-known black metal band pressed onto CD. Wait a second though, this one's a bit different. First of all, it's not on Necropolis (thank goodness). Second, there are some previously unreleased songs and demo versions of released songs to fill out the space and make it viable as a full-length, albeit at a paltry 32 minutes. What's on offer here is basically more of the same, demo tracks which aren't particularly good (that's why they were never released in the first place), and some songs you've heard before, but only with worse production and a few minor alterations from their album versions. Oh, and try to hold back your excitement, but there's an intro and two (yes two) outros to be heard as well. When it comes down to the bottom line, you have to ask yourself if you really need another album like this. If you're a big Gehenna fan, the answer of course would be yes, however, if you aren't a follower of these painted warriors, you'd be better off to stay away.. Napalm Death - _Inside the Torn Apart_ (Earache, June 1997) by: Adrian Bromley (8 out of 10) Now that the soap opera is over (y'know, the lead singer swaps between Napalm Death and Extreme Noise Terror?) we can get on with the real issue here: new Napalm Death. While I liked the limited _Greed Killing_ EP, I found myself not being too impressed with the style and direction that Napalm Death had provided with their last offering, _Diatribes_. It seemed a bit rushed and unorganized - no real fundamental foundation for the music to strike from. Not the same with their latest, _Inside the Torn Apart_, a record that showcases the band's control of both groove and the destructive death/grindcore nature that has been an integral part of the band since day one. From the get-go, this 39-minute assault of noise and groove lashes out with severe intensity putting aside any ideas that the band, while always molding itself, was on its last leg of creativity. _ItTA_ is a good record primarily for the fact that a lot of the material delivers solid grooves and the vocals of Barney, while more death-ish in nature now, deliver some powerful, ultra-heavy doses of momentum that have not shown up in the last few releases. Some experimentation finds its way into the new material (check out closer "The Lifeless Alarm") but in the end it's still Napalm Death and that should bring a smile to any metallers who live for the band's extreme music ideas. Heavy. Orphanage - _By Time Alone_ (DSFA Records, 1996) by: Pedro Azevedo (8 out of 10) "Epic mix of melody, aggression, Gregorian choirs and danceable grooves"... is this publicity or a warning? Well, I was curious to see what Orphanage would come up with to describe their new album _By Time Alone_, after they had described their debut, _Oblivion_, as "Innovative Gregorian groovey Celtic doom death metal"... I guess they did it again. This time, however, there seems to be more of a Meshuggah feel to their sound, or maybe some Fear Factory influences - they boost a quite powerful sound, thanks to Vogelaar's guitar, which sounds almost like a bass. Orphanage have chosen to use lots of strange tempos and weird rhythmic sections which probably won't make much sense at first, and, unfortunately, there are a few nice melodies that get a bit smothered by all this, even though the combination of the two is what makes them unique - the melodic part being the best, in my opinion. In fact, as you probably noticed, the "Gregorian" part stayed in their description, both because of the good keyboard melodies and the very interesting female vocals done by Rosan van der Aa. The album starts off quite nicely, the first few tracks being majorly responsible for the album getting an 8 instead of a 7, especially "The Dark Side" and "Cliffs of Moher" (in which Rosan sings solo, great melody), and then moves on to a less melodic second half, the quality being generally a tad lower, yet still quite enjoyable. The last track, the "hidden" one, features a dance/techno/whatever part, which is about as interesting as finding a dead fly in your food. Overall, a good album, with a rather original sound and good rhythms and melodies. Various - _Out of the Dark Live Compilation_ by: Pedro Azevedo (8 out of 10) (Century Media, 1997) Six bands, six examples of some of the best European metal being made today. Each band plays two tracks, for a total of over 60 minutes, and the live sound on this CD is as good as it gets. So let's move on to the important part, which is who plays what, and how. The opening tracks belong to the Portuguese band Moonspell, who play their classic "Vampiria" from _Wolfheart_ and "A Poisoned Gift" from _Irreligious_. As usual, the guitars aren't too brilliant, but the songs were well chosen (even though I'd rather listen to "Alma Mater") and the overall performance is very solid. Next comes the true highlight of the whole CD: The Gathering, from Holland. Words fail to describe just how excellent they are live, from every band member playing perfect and with an amazing sound to Anneke van Giersbergen's awesome femme vox - and she doesn't miss a single note. They play "Leaves" and "Eleanor" from _Mandylion_. Samael, from Switzerland, take over next, and they sound as good and powerful live as one would expect - they play "My Saviour" from _Passage_ and the older "Mask of the Red Death", taken from _Ceremony of Opposites_. The Finnish band Sentenced come next with "Bleed" from _Down_ and "Dance on the Graces" from _Amok_. I never was much of a fan of theirs, but their performance seems perfectly reasonable. Rotting Christ play "The First Field of the Battle" (not much of a good choice, in my opinion) and "King of a Stellar War", both from the Greek's last album _Triarchy of the Lost Lovers_. They don't seem to play too tight live, but it's not bad either, and the second track is still quite good. The finishing act belongs to Crematory, from Germany, who rather disappointingly have chosen "Ist Es Wahr" from their self-titled album and the not-so-bad "Eyes of Suffering" from _Transmigration_. Being a keyboard-based band, their live sound is similar to the album's. So, if you don't know most of these bands, you really should buy this digi-pak; if you do know them, well, either you enjoy live albums a lot or you don't. As far as I'm concerned, The Gathering's remarkable performance is enough to make this album worth it, even though the second half of this compilation is quite inferior to the first. Paingod - _Paingod_ (Century Media, April 1997) by: Adrian Bromley (7 out of 10) I'll be honest with you about this LP. The self-titled debut album by Florida's metal outfit Paingod (formerly known as Raped Ape) has its moments. So you're wondering, 'Why such a high rating?', right? Well, to be truthful, when Paingod is 'ON' (which definitely outweighs the bland areas of the record), they really kick your ass. Tight, intense, and downright anger-inspired lyrics lash out at us with a strong groove and some hardcore elements intact, too. But when the album's material isn't chock full of monstrous and violent heaves of aggression we are left to waiting for another dose of intensity. Maybe this record should have been released as an EP? In my books, it would have been a better move to include such killer tracks as "Paingod", "Scream When You Burn", "Blind Vision", and "One and the Same" as an EP to keep the momentum strong and plentiful rather than a stop and start affair. Just a suggestion. A mixed bag of goods with some treats for all the metal kiddies out there. Plan E - _E for Your Eyes_ / _E for You Ears_ by: Adrian Bromley (7 out of 10) (E Records/Repulse, March 1997) Weird shit here with these 3-inch mini-CD 4-song EPs from Finnish project Plan E. This is really weird music, not all metal but weird and extreme nonetheless. Both EPs manage to pull in a very solid sound and style with each release, with _E for the Eyes_ focusing more on some really odd and obscure space rock shit and the other one hitting a more melodic industrial stride. The thing that seems to be very appealing about Plan E material is the clear focus on abstracting emotions from a song rather than just a cool lick or melody. This music is for those that may appreciate some form of thought going into a piece rather than just creating fucked up shit just for the sake of it. Plan E's label, E Records, also has an endless supply of bands and releases in the same vein as Plan E, some even more obscure. Contact: E Records, P.O. Box 50 90251 Oulu, Finland voice/fax: +358-8-3120-558 mailto:jani.lehtosaari@mail.suomi.net Septic Flesh - _The Ophidian Wheel_ (Holy Records, 1997) by: Drew Schinzel (8 out of 10) Now with their third full-length album, Septic Flesh have taken their atmospheric, avant-garde brand of death metal to new heights, while, perhaps unfortunately, not abandoning their harsher roots: they just don't fit in with this type of music anymore. To me, Septic Flesh never quite did the brutal death metal thing very well, brutality was never their thing; creativity, melody and atmosphere was where it was at with SF, and nothing has changed. _TOW_ contains some awesome material, mostly in the form of mid-paced, clean melodies with of course the usual guttural vocals and keyboard accompaniment. Unfortunately, sprinkled between these parts are sections of forced, uninspired brutal death, which would be absolutely fine, if it didn't seem thrown in just to contrast the more laid back moments. New to the Septic Flesh fold is Nathalie, and although the appearance of her female vocals may seem a bit dubious to some, she's a welcome addition, and her beautiful vocals complement many of the songs perfectly. Overall, another fine effort from Septic Flesh, with some new dimensions and upholding of the old ones; just skip the unnecessary parts. Thy Primordial - _Where Only the Seasons Mark the Paths of Time_ by: Steve Hoeltzel (7 out of 10) (Pulverised Records, January 1997) Like a lot of recent entries in the black metal stakes, this is a band with definite talent but very little originality. Still, you'll find some good songs on this release, should you decide to take the Thy Primordial plunge. Their overall sound could be likened to that of Emperor or Setherial, although these guys are neither as atmospheric nor as musically inventive. Still, they rip through some decent material at a hellish pace, and the album is peppered with passages which I really like ("Svart Gryning", in particular, has some great moments). Also, by black metal standards, the playing is very good, the production is pretty solid, and the guitar sound is unusually full. On the other hand, except for the complete absence of keyboards, the songs really don't contain much to separate these guys from the rest of the black metal pack. When I have this disk in the player, I find it quite enjoyable in spots, but once it's over... well, it's rather forgettable, since it's largely generic, even if well-produced. If you get into Emperor-style black metal but get turned off by the rudimentary production typical of many bands, then I think you'd definitely enjoy this CD. If, on the other hand, you're somebody who hankers after ever-weirder black metal variants, then this will probably seem not bad, but more than a bit 'samey.' Vinterland - _Welcome My Last Chapter_ (No Fashion, 1996) by: Drew Schinzel (7 out of 10) Another slab of melody from No Fashion, though Vinterland tend to lean more towards the blacker side of things. Much darker than a few other of No Fashion's recent releases, Vinterland have an album comparable in some aspects to Dissection's godly debut epic, _The Somberlain_, but not quite as variant or skilled. That's not to say that there aren't any good things about _WMLC_, because there are a few to mention, probably most notably the intangible feeling of darkness, sadness, and emotion present in most of the songs, among them the best probably being "Still the Night is Awake", a high velocity storm of stirring melody and fierce percussion. However, on the down side, a few of the songs tend to lapse into a very similar sounding structure, and the lyrics have got to be some of the most cliched pieces of writing I've ever seen. It's easy to see why only one song's lyrics were printed, with such original lines as "Let the wings of grief carry me to the kingdom far beyond all light." But really though, put the trite lyrics out of your mind and focus on the music, and there are enough quality elements here to warrant more than a few listens, although this is the type of album you don't just pick up and play any old time, it's more of a mood-oriented release. Nonetheless, if you can forgive some sameness among the songs and don't listen with headphones on for too long (will make you go deaf, -quick-), _WMLC_ can be pretty enjoyable. Vital Remains - _Forever Underground_ (Osmose Productions, May 1997) by: Steve Hoeltzel (8 out of 10) It's about time this band got signed to a label that can give them the kind of promotion and distribution they deserve, because as the old saying goes, These Guys Kick Ass. Their 1992 debut, _Let Us Pray_, is creepy and seriously heavy, and _Forever Underground_ continues in that vein, injecting a bit more variation and some all-out speed. (The band also put out an album in '95, but I haven't heard that one.) This has 43 minutes of music packed into six tracks - one of which is just a 0:90 intro. That leaves five unusually lengthy numbers, which again display this bands mastery of crushing, mid-paced death. There's no shortage of blast beats or cool breaks; they're just used with some calculated restraint. I think this approach actually adds a lot of impact: when the first blast beats rip through the first song - not until the 3:00 mark - they release tons of tension built up by the pounding verses. Many bands overuse the blast beat to the point that it just becomes tedious, but not these guys, even though they blast like crazy through the awesome "Battle Ground" and the enjoyable "Eastern Journey". They also don't overload their music with too many riffs and breaks. Tempo variations and killer breaks are numerous, yet scarce enough to ratchet up the tension and to preserve momentum and flow. The production is great, as are the performances, especially newcomer Dave Suzuki's precise and powerful drumming. This guy has got the blast beat down cold. Tony Lazaro cranks out some great riffs, some of which have a slight Morbid Angel feel, due to the way certain notes and chords get bent around for emphasis. Bassist Joe Lewis belts out solid, traditional death metal vocals. There is also -very- minimal use of synth - never during a verse or chorus, but only to subtly underscore a few rhythm guitar breaks with eerie tones. I guess this means that those who attempt to prove their highly questionable manliness by ragging on bands who use keyboards can snipe about Vital Remains, too. That, however, would be a big mistake. Within Temptation - _Enter_ (DSFA Records, April 1997) by: Adrian Bromley (8 out of 10) Having only been around a little more than a year, the sextet known as Within Temptation have done wonders in such a short span of time. The band recorded two demos (_Enter_ and an untitled one) before signing to DSFA where the band re-recorded and fixed up material from those previous efforts to form their DSFA debut, _Enter_. The music of Within Temptation can best be described as melodic, slow metal, very similar to labelmates Orphanage or Century Media's The Gathering. While angelic female vocals (by the superb Sharon den Adel) accompanied by a powerful showing of synthesizers dominate this release, the band also brings into the fold heavy guitars and the rough death growls of singer Robert Westerholt. And what a great combination are den Adel's soothing harmonies and the vicious grunts of Westerholt that go hand in hand throughout the release. The music is memorable and deserves to be mentioned as it truly showcases the band's ability to capture a triumphant sound that band's rarely can reach. No doubt this is one band you will want to watch grow with experience. Various - _World Domination II_ (Osmose Productions, April 1997) by: Steve Hoeltzel (9 out of 10) This is a killer compilation and a great value: two CDs with a total of 29 tracks, 18 of which are available here for the first time, and 11 of which won't be made available anywhere else. All that for $12US! Disc One consists mostly of material that's available on the latest CDs from: Marduk, Driller Killer, Angel Corpse, Immortal, Gehennah, Enslaved, Inferno, Demoniac, and Absu. Except for the Demoniac CD, we've reviewed all these albums in CoC, so I won't discuss these tracks individually. Disc One also contains a vinyl-only (until now) track from Necromantia, which I like a -lot- better than the other stuff on their recent MCD. Quite enjoyable. In addition, there's a track from the godly new Vital Remains disk, a great song from the new Dark Tranquillity full-length (review by Drew next issue), and a hyperactive, anthemic speed metal freak-out from the upcoming Swordmaster CD. And that's just the first disc... The second CD consists entirely of unreleased material. Four of the 15 tracks will eventually appear on upcoming CDs, but that leaves an impressive 11 tracks exclusive to this compilation. The four future-release tracks come from Raism, Sadistik Execution, Gardenian, and Devilyn. Devilyn play crushing death-grind, complex and tight as hell, like Incantation on lots and lots of speed. Gardenian is cool, too - basically it's melodic death metal, but they spike the punch with some really heavy, pounding parts and good, noisy production. (Most melodic death metal bands bore me with their overdone elegance; not these guys.) Raism and the totally insane Sadistik Exekution are probably better known to most readers, so I'll just say that I enjoyed their tracks, too. Finally, the exclusive material. The disc is opened by Impaled Nazarene with "I Am the Killer of Trolls", a catchy, molten slab of nuclear-core as only these guys can do it. Bewitched follows with "Blood on the Altar", another take on their rather dated Motorhead-meets-Mercyful Fate style, but all in all a quite enjoyable song. Next up: Disfear, who pulverize everything in sight with a pummelling style of crusty deathcore that makes most other bands sound like flaccid wannabes. I tell you what: these new Kron-H signings kick ass. The Loud Pipes are another good one, abrasive, charging hyperactivity with insane vocals and great riffs that are half Discharge, half Judas Priest. The Rocking Dildos are here, too, as are Swordmaster, Tsathoggua, Mystifier, Conqueror (grim, unrelenting black grind), Majestic Midnight (black metal), and... well, the last one's supposed to be a surprise. That's a ton of solid, diverse material, and for so little money that this compilation comes highly recommended. CoC will be giving away about twenty copies of DISC ONE ONLY; details are elsewhere in this issue. Clarification ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In my review of Necromantia's _Ancient Pride_ MCD in CoC #18, I complained about some of the political rhetoric and symbolism used by the band. "European consciousness, my ass," I said. This wisecrack was a clumsy way of making my point, since it could easily be read as an anti-European slur. To insult all Europeans, or all of Europe's committed pagan/heathens, was not my intent. Instead, I simply wanted to express my strong dislike for the fascistic connotations of some of the ideas and imagery on this release. And I am not calling Necromantia a bunch of fascists; I am just saying that I personally find their choice of imagery to be uncool. -- Steve Hoeltzel =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= __ __ _ /\ \ \_____ __ /\ \ \___ (_)___ ___ / \/ / _ \ \ /\ / / / \/ / _ \| / __|/ _ \ / /\ / __/\ V V / / /\ / (_) | \__ \ __/ \_\ \/ \___| \_/\_/ \_\ \/ \___/|_|___/\___| Your best source of information on the newest of the new, and the deepest of the underground, New Noise is the place to read about all the coolest shit you never thought existed! And if you have a band, don't forget to send us your demo with a bio if you want to be reviewed; our address is included in the zine's header. Scoring: ***** -- I see a record deal in the future **** -- Great piece of work *** -- Good effort ** -- A major overhaul is in order * -- A career change is advisable Chaos Theory - _Scarred for Life_ (6-track demo) by: Adrian Bromley (***--) The bio by this New Jersey three-piece says that they "... want to be the future of heavy metal, not a memory of the past". Well... not exactly as they had planned, but I guess a good attempt to constructing heavy metal music in this day and age. Unlike the strength and perseverance of the almighty Manowar (around since 1982), Chaos Theory have been working since forming in 1995 to create metal and they have a long ways to go until they can really call themselves a -true- metal band as Manowar have. But aside from that, the 6-song outing by this metal band is okay. It's got the right attitude and right sound (check out "I Abandon" or "Kill the System"), it's just that I'm not too keen on some of the vocals and the ideas behind some of the songs, though not funny topics (rape, murder, and suicide) sound cheesy. A good attempt to introduce metal into 1997 I guess, just not sure how well it will go over to the somewhat fickle metal music audience of today. Contact: CHAOS THEORY, 82 Eaton Rd. Bordentown NJ, 08505, USA mailto:ChaosTheory@aol.com Christhanasia - _Cragoedie_ (4-track demo) by: Adam Wasylyk (***--) Another one-man project (this time from an individual named Mouth), France's Christhanasia play some interesting black metal with only one fault: production. Taking influences from bands like Emperor and Mayhem, Mouth has created some good music on _Cragoedie_. The keyboards are well played and are the bright spot on this recording. The production really hurts this, the guitars are just too low and dirty sounding, especially when the track "God Without a Name" begins. The music is here but unfortunately the production isn't. Hopefully Mouth will put more money into production for his next demo. Until then, I can't recommend _Cragoedie_. Contact: CHRISTHANASIA, 3 Impasse Teissere, 13014 Marseille, FRANCE mailto:roffi@usa.net Kaffeine - _Unworthy_ (15-track demo) by: Adam Wasylyk (-----) Fucking horrible! I can't believe that anyone would put out such terrible stuff (I CAN'T call this music). I also can't believe I wasted time listening to this piece of shit. Littered with the most fucking stupid sound-bytes, I guess they chose them to go along with the equally stupid songs. A number of times I found myself fast-forwarding, to save what is left of my sanity. Using the most horrible alternative vocals I've ever heard, they then in turn use the most horrible death metal vocals I've ever heard. As the songs go by, the music gets worse and worse. The lyrics are also the worst I've ever read by any band, along with a equally horrible demo layout (a huge piece of paper folded incorrectly with small photocopied lyrics). The funny thing is this loser has a copyright on his lyrics. HA! Like anyone would want to copy them! I'm compelled to repeat a couple of lines from the lyrics, just to show how fucking bad they are. Check out this verse: "Tough luck, what the fuck? A hell of a day the only way. I know my life is a bucket of spit, I know this is it. Find a coin on the highway when my car broke down, hear everything without a sound. Keep it as a charm, for I mean you no harm". Or how about this gold nugget of a lyric: "You make me sick, you make me want to pick.... MY ASS!". The only positive aspects I see out of this demo is that I now have a tape to dub music onto, along with a new tape case that I can use to replace one of my older, cracked ones. _Unworthy_ this certainly is, of my time and yours. Fucking horrible! Contact: KAFFEINE, c/o Jason Smith 4124 East Kellis Court, Springfield Missouri, 65802, USA Nympha - (4-track demo) by: Pedro Azevedo (*****) What a surprise here. When I was handed this unpretentious-looking tape, I expected anything but this. Being just a 21-minute long rehearsal tape from a young band I had never heard of, I just hoped they would show some good ideas and some playing skills, but what we have here is one of the best demo tapes I have ever heard - and, believe it or not, the sound is cleaner and better than what I would have expected to find in a "real" demo. In fact, even though this is a mere rehearsal tape, this young Portuguese band manages to play tight and melodic throughout the 21 minutes, no errors are to be found, and the music's damn good too, especially the femme vox. Nympha show influences from bands ranging from The 3rd and the Mortal and some Theatre of Tragedy to Anathema, while the lyrics seem to be in the same style as My Dying Bride and Enchantment (although I'm guessing here). This is basically very melodic doom with a well-played heavy guitar, lots of competent keyboards, tight and strong drumming and a surprisingly great "angelic" femme vox provided by Liliana Barros, whose vocals are complemented by some spoken/whispered male backing vocals. Only the bass stands as rather unremarkable, but that's no surprise, considering their musical style. The core of their sound is Liliana's voice, accompanied by the guitar and the strong presence of the keyboards, which range from sorrowful backgrounds to good melodic tunes, but not "drowning" the guitar sound. All is very melodic, the melodies being relatively simple but very effective, soothing and sorrowful, although they do use some (again very good) faster drumming parts and heavier guitars to avoid being monotonous - in fact, the heavier and the more melodic/ambient parts both blend in and complement each other and prevent the other from getting boring. What I would suggest to this band is getting a second guitarist - this might add more power to their sound, as well as allow a few death backing vox once in a while, which I think might fit in nicely. I must again recall that this is a -rehearsal- tape, which is what blows me away the most. I mean, I went back to listen to the demo tapes I have from My Dying Bride and Anathema, and (even though they both were much more aggressive and less melodic than Nympha at the time) all I can say is that the future sure seems bright for this young band. Nympha have become one of my bets for the future, together with Lacrima from Porto (whose demo tape I hope to review soon - not an easy one to find). I sincerely hope these two bands won't stray from their musical path and keep improving and creating better and better songs. I also hope there's someone at some record label with his eyes and ears open. Contact: NYMPHA, c/o Ricardo Fernandes Rua Padre Costa n.400 1-esq. 4465 S. Mamede de Infesta, Portugal Voice: (351) 2 9014223 Solarisis - _Illuminations_ (8-track demo) by: Adam Wasylyk (****-) Pretty impressive stuff. Solarisis is the brainchild of one Gijs van Ouwerkerk, who's responsible for all the sounds heard on _Illuminations_. Reminding me a bit of _Ceremony of Opposites_-era Samael, the music is best described as symphonic metal with some dark metal influences. Good musicianship can be found on all eight tracks, which consists of some well played instrumentals. Keyboards are used all throughout the demo which help enhance Solarisis' sound, but the guitars were left a little too weak. The production, aside from the guitars, is pretty good and the demo layout is top notch. The lyrics are well written (something rare these days), which deal with struggles between God and Satan. Although I disagree with Gijs's views on veganism, he's put out a good demo and I hope to hear more from him in the future. A copy of this demo can be obtain by sending $7.95US to the address below. Contact: SOLARISIS, c/o Gijs van Ouwerkerk Campuslaan 55-107, 7552 NK Enschede, NETHERLANDS mailto:g.vanouwerkerk@student.utwente.nl http://www.dra.nl/~manichee Sub-Version - _Foul_ (6-track demo) by: Adrian Bromley (*****) Holy shit!!! Run to the hills and hide as there seems to be something powerful and lethal coming from Western Canada. Storming out from the commercially successful Vancouver rock/pop music scene comes the complete opposite: Sub-Version. Power-packed with grindcore/death metal and some hardcore intensity, this Vancouver quintet push all the right buttons with this truly powerful display of material. This demo has got enough rhythm, growls, and enormous guitar riffs to kick yer ass and leave you craving more. I'm floored by the might of this demo tape. Fuck! If New York's Brutal Truth ever had a Canadian cousin, this would be the band. I'm still floored writing this as the music cranks. I have not heard a demo by a band hit me so hard and fast in the last little while. Sub-Version's demo just doesn't have a handful of intensity within their music, it's got a truckload of intensity. A whole fuckin' truck baby! You want some prime dosage of Canadian heaviness then search and get this fucker. Contact: SUB-VERSION, P.O. Box 42585 #105-1005 Columbia St. New Westminster, BC, V3M-6H5, Canada =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ____ __ __ /\ _`\ /\ \ /\ \__ __ \ \ \/\_\\ \ \___ __ ___\ \ ,_\/\_\ ___ \ \ \/_/_\ \ _ `\ /'__`\ / __`\ \ \/\/\ \ /'___\ \ \ \L\ \\ \ \ \ \/\ \L\.\_/\ \L\ \ \ \_\ \ \/\ \__/ \ \____/ \ \_\ \_\ \__/.\_\ \____/\ \__\\ \_\ \____\ \/___/ \/_/\/_/\/__/\/_/\/___/ \/__/ \/_/\/____/ ____ __ /\ _`\ /\ \__ \ \ \/\_\ ___ ___ ___ __ _ __\ \ ,_\ ____ \ \ \/_/_ / __`\ /' _ `\ /'___\ /'__`\/\`'__\ \ \/ /',__\ \ \ \L\ \/\ \L\ \/\ \/\ \/\ \__//\ __/\ \ \/ \ \ \_/\__, `\ \ \____/\ \____/\ \_\ \_\ \____\ \____\\ \_\ \ \__\/\____/ \/___/ \/___/ \/_/\/_/\/____/\/____/ \/_/ \/__/\/___/ Here is where Chronicles of Chaos gives you the lowdown on the latest shows coming your way. Check out Chaotic Concerts every month for the scoop on the bands brutalizing the masses with their own form of terror. K O R N K A N K I C K K E I S T E R ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Korn with Helmet and Limbizcit At the Warehouse in Toronto, Ont., March 25, 1997 by: Adrian Bromley Six months after their canceled show back in October (due to drummer David suffering a broken wrist, day of show), SoCal hardgroove quintet delivered a pummelling 70-minute set, showcasing material off the band's two platinum selling albums, their 1994 self-titled LP, and 1996's _Life Is Peachy_. Korn opened their set with "Twist", the lead-off track of their latest LP, and without hesitation went right into their hit-song "Blind" off their debut LP. Singer Jonathan Davis, all decked out in a sequenced pair of Adidas sweatpants, kept the crowd's momentum fast and furious with brutal growls and screams of anger. His flailing chicken-like dance grooved along with the band's furious onslaught of material, as did the violent mosh pit. Normally a haven for poor sound, this show at the Warehouse sounded rather good, though there were times when the sound was muffled. Despite some sound restrictions, Korn did their damnedest to keep the intensity fresh and loud with every song. Their set included such crowd faves as "Shoots And Ladders", "Clown", "A.D.I.D.A.S.", and "No Place To Hide". Having toured since virtually the release of the record last October, Korn's monstrous machine of strength hasn't lost any momentum. Always a good show, Korn didn't disappoint those that waited out the six months for their return. Opening the show was sampler/rap/rock hybrid outfit Limbizcit and eclectic New York act Helmet. First on, Limbizcit kept the beats loud and quick-paced, lashing out samples and witty lyrics to the audience. A solid set. As for the band next up, Helmet, they always put on a good show. Fresh from the studio with their latest LP, _Aftertaste_, singer/songwriter/guitarist Page Hamilton led his four-piece through a roller coaster 40-minute set showcasing both old ("In the Meantime") and newer material ("Like I Care" and "It's Easy to Be Bored"). My only problem with Helmet most of the time is Hamilton's vocals - not loud enough. But besides that, when you add to the show his dynamic stage presence and his thunderous riffs, Helmet rules during their allotted time that they play. They always play their heart out. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= O B L I T E R A T I N G O B S O L E S C E N C E ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Obliveon with Blood of Christ and Solus At the Generator in Toronto, April 4, 1997 by: Adam Wasylyk Taking our seat at the Generator, I took a moment to soak up the ambiance. I then buried my nose into a magazine. The Generator is a horrible club, and I hate going there for shows knowing that these bands could be playing in a much better venue. I mean, the stage is positioned in a way that it's sideways to most of the club so you have to go to the very back of the place to see the band! Fucking stupid. Anyway, onto the band's playing tonight. Opening the show was London's Blood of Christ, who played a good portion of material off their new CD _... A Dream to Remember_ (see review this issue). Although playing a very brutal set, unfortunately they were lacking something since the last time I saw them with Hemdale (or maybe it had to do with the significantly smaller crowd in attendance tonight). Next up were Toronto's Solus who played material off their indie CD "Slave of Mind". Perhaps best described as "death rock", they played an okay set but failed in keeping my interest the entire set. Rather I was reading from my free Doomhauled zine, which is the most sick thing I've ever read. Perhaps Solus are one of Toronto's better metal bands, but you can easily be the best if there isn't any competition. Montreal legends Obliveon closed out the show in a great fashion, playing technical thrash/death that kept the attention of all in attendance. Playing a variety of tracks such as "Nemesis", I was confused when they left the stage to only come back to do an encore song. How rock star-ish can you get? I mean, one woman was chanting for them to come back but that was about it. Perhaps inflated egos made them do an encore, but to tell the truth the crowd didn't want it (from my vantage point) [What are you talking about? I was there, and I was screaming my fucking lungs out for an encore! - AMG]. A good band playing some good music, it's just too bad the crowd didn't treat them as such. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= D I O D E S T R O Y S D E C A D A N C E ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dio with My Dying Bride At the Warehouse in Toronto, April 22, 1997 by: Alain M. Gaudrault and Adam Wasylyk Adam: How rare is it to see a band that released one of your favorite records of 1996 and to see them on your birthday? Well, I would be that lucky individual as Adrian and I made our way to HMV to see My Dying Bride play a short set and afterward to an autograph session. After some technical difficulties, MDB finally hit the stage and played a shortened set with most of the songs off their not-so-new record, _Like Gods of the Sun_. The title track and "Dark Caress" were the highlights as Aaron's vocals were emotionally charged while Martin did a great job going back and forth between keyboards and the violin. To my surprise, the sound at HMV was great and would end up being better than at the show. An autographed photo topped off my afternoon, my expectations for the evening's show high. We arrive at the Warehouse, only to find out that I wasn't on the guest list! Lacking the money for a ticket, the heart palpitations began. Fortunately Paula Hogan, who works at Fierce/Mayhem and who had flown up from NYC to see the show took care of me and got me in (thanks again Paula!!!). Having some time to kill before MDB were to take the stage, we talked to other zine writers, label people, and friends in attendance. For what seemed like forever, MDB finally took the stage playing most of what they played at HMV with the addition of a couple of other songs, one of them off their _The Angel and the Dark River_ LP. This was hands down the LOUDEST concert I've ever been to. MDB were very heavy and also very emotional, while Aaron writhed in sorrow on the floor of the stage. The crowd, mostly consisting of older metallers waiting for Dio seemed content to sit through their 45 minutes, and thankfully so. MDB proved to me that they not only sound great on record but they sound great live. Presently they are supporting Dio, so you are advised to see them if they visit a town near you. I also heard that after the Dio tour that they'll be playing some shows with Suffocation supporting. I can only hope that tour will make its way back to Toronto, as MDB are definitely a band to be experienced live. Alain: While Adam and Adrian got to see MDB twice, I was unfortunate enough to have arrived at 21:45, just as MDB were ending their set. I got to hear them play the tail end of their last song as I was waiting in line to buy my ticket. Needless to say, I was upset and disappointed, but I'm nevertheless a bigger fan of Dio, so that was consolation enough. This review will be short and sweet, because there isn't much more that can be said about a Dio concert that hasn't been said before. It all boils down to whether he can still deliver the goods, and for those fans of his and his older work with Black Sabbath, and Rainbow, it's all comes down to Dio's voice. It was my first Dio concert, and I walked away pleased, having heard renditions of all the classic songs, such as "Holy Diver", "We Rock", "The Last in Line", "Rainbow in the Dark", as well as newer cuts from the last few albums. The crowd reacted favourably to Sabbath's "Heaven and Hell" and "The Mob Rules", and there were more Rainbow tunes than I'd expected, including "Man on the Silver Mountain", "Long Live Rock and Roll", and "Mistreated", the latter easily the most beautifully and emotionally rendered song the entire evening, yet odd in its choice since it's an old Deep Purple tune that Rainbow used to do live. But a good song is a good song, and Ronnie knows that all too well. The only sore points were the too-long solos on both Tracy G. and Vinny Appice's part. I can somewhat forgive Appice, since he's a well-respected veteran, and he had a few interesting licks, but Tracy just got downright annoying after the first minute of his interminable solo. But let's face it, you go to a Dio show to hear him sing, to experience the quality of high caliber metal; everything else plays second fiddle. Well worth the admission price. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= W H A T W E H A V E C R A N K E D ! ! ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gino's Top 5 1. Filthboy - _Diverse Reality_ 2. Vondur - _Stridsyfirlysing_ 3. Impaled Nazarene - _Latex Cult_ 4. Fear Factory - _Remanufacture (Cloning Technology)_ 5. Marilyn Manson - _Portrait of an American Family_ Adrian's Top 5 1. EverEve - _Seasons_ 2. W.A.S.P. - _Kill Fuck Die_ 3. Paingod - _Paingod_ 4. Fear Factory - _Demanufacture_ 5. Killing Culture - _Killing Culture_ Brian's Top 5 1. Don Caballero _For Respect_ 2. Labyrinth _No Limits_ 3. Dark Reality _Oh Precious Haze Pervade the Pain_ 4. Red Tide _Hybrid_ 5. Artension _Into the Eye of the Storm_ Alain's Top 5 1. Grim Skunk - _Meltdown_ 2. Grip Inc. - _Nemesis_ 3. Sacramentum - _Far Away from the Sun_ 4. Cryptopsy - _None So Vile_ 5. Dark Funeral - _The Secrets of the Black Arts_ Steve's Top 5 1. Driller Killer - _Fuck the World_ 2. Vondur (rules) - _Stridsyfirlysing_ 3. Vital Remains - _Forever Underground_ 4. Absu - _The Third Storm of Cythraul_ 5. Various - _World Domination II_, Disk Two Adam's Top 5 1. Old Man's Child - _Born of the Flickering_ 2. Blood of Christ - _...A Dream to Remember_ 3. Emperor - _Reverence_ EP 4. Bathory - _Jublieum Vol. 2_ 5. Bathory - _The Return_ Andrew's Top 5 1. Naked City - _Black Box_ 2. K.K. Null and James Plotkin - _Aurora_ 3. Zeni Geva - _Nai-Ha_ 4. Incapacitants - _Asset Without Liability_ 5. Malevolent Creation - _Retribution_ Pedro's Top 5 1. The Gathering - _Mandylion_ 2. Edge of Sanity - _Infernal_ 3. In Flames - _Subterranean_ 4. Dominion - _Interface_ 5. Gorefest - _False_ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= T H E F I N A L W O R D ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ See you all next issue. Currently we're trying to get that long promised survey together. The only problem is finding the time, but hopefully we'll get that out soon, all we need then is your participation. Thanks again for reading, later. -- Gino Filicetti =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= End Chronicles of Chaos, Issue #20 All contents copyright 1997 by individual creators of included work. All opinions expressed herein are those of the individuals expressing them, and do not necessarily reflect the views of anyone else.