ALBUM REVIEW: Wake, "Devouring Ruin"

By: Josh McIntyre

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 27/03/2020

Label: Translation Loss

“Devouring Ruin” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. Dissolve And Release
2. Kana Tevoro (Kania! Kania!)
3. This Abyssal Plain
4. Elegy
5. Mouth Of Abolition
6. Paean
7. Torchbearer
8. In The Lair Of The Rat Kings
9. Monuments to Impiety
10. The Procession (Death March To Eternity)

The Review:

Calgary’s Wake has certainly proven themselves to be a band that doesn’t want to repeat itself. Their sound has always been a bit more varied than others and with 2020’s “Devouring Ruin” it is made absolute that Wake cannot be defined as just grindcore or even deathgrind as they pull from other heavy subgenres more than ever before. The result is their strongest LP to date.

Wake is still incredibly aggressive, but we have more variance than ever. The average song length has increased dramatically (earlier, more strictly grind albums had songs that rarely reached three minutes) giving more time for riffs to twist and turn as they travel across time. Track three, “This Abyssal Plain”, is just one example of drastic tempo changes as it starts with a fury before being suddenly slogged down into a more doomy and atmospheric approach. These songs are unpredictable and that makes them all the more interesting, whether they be two minutes long or ten and a half.

Musical ideas are aplenty and Wake isn’t running out of gas anytime soon. Blasting grind with thrashy riffs are as prevalent as melodic doom licks. The riffs for “In the Lair of the Rat Kings” are especially disgusting, pulling from the Artificial Brain/Gorguts world. Hell, there’s even a great guitar solo on “Mouth of Abolition” and I usually detest guitar solos. In short, there is plenty of time to have your face ripped apart on this album but the juxtaposed moments of euphonious purpose give it the clarity needed to be a grand extreme metal record.

Wake’s refusal for stagnation has set them apart from their peers. After a handful of LPs and shorter releases they continue to grow and stay musically curious, a rarity for an extreme band over a decade old. They’ve gradually moved from a more grindcore oriented group to one that brilliantly fuses different elements of metal to create music that is able to be simultaneously violent and downright ravishing. 

“Devouring Ruin” is available HERE

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Skinless, ‘Savagery’

By: Daniel Jackson

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 11/05/2018

Label: Relapse Records

On “Savagery” Skinless are very clearly still Skinless, they’re just a better and more imaginative version of what they’ve always been  and in the process they’ve come up with an album that stands up to their legacy albums and then some.

‘Savagery’ CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. Savagery

2. Siege Engine

3. Skull Session

4. Reversal of Fortune

5. Exacting Revenge

6. Medieval

7. Line of Dissent

8. Cruel Blade of the Guillotine

9. The Hordes

Bonus Track:

10. High Rate Extinction (Crowbar Cover)

The Review:

You generally know what you’re getting into when a new Skinless album finds its way to the masses. It’s going to be brutal, ugly death metal, just as they’ve done for more than 20 years now. But it’s also true that even the most diehard death metal devotees are likely to feel a need to toy with their own formula eventually. To a reserved degree; that’s the case on Skinless’ new album ‘Savagery’. The changes the band have undergone with this album are not the sort of abrupt sharp turns in direction of bands like Katatonia or Ulver or even Carcass. Instead, Skinless have gone with a more subtle tact to freshening things up.

One such change, which is obvious from the get-go is that the band has opted for a much warmer, dirtier production this time around. In the past, Skinless has tended to go with a more “brutal death metal standard” production approach, where everything sounds sharp, crisp, to the point of feeling clinical. On ‘Savagery’, a lot of that sharpness is replaced by a grimier guitar tone, and by going with a much more natural, roomy sound over all. The production works exceedingly well at setting this album apart from the rest of the band’s discography without even looking at their compositional choices.

The songs themselves feel different than anything the band have done too. There’s less of a focus on speed. You’ll still find plenty of intricate, hacking riffs, if that’s your thing, but you’ll also find a greater variety to what you’re hearing than Skinless have ever offered. “Siege Engine” tries its hand at bigger, catchier riffs to great success, which should make the track a live staple. Balancing those larger riffs with some blast n’ trem keeps the song from feeling too self-awarely anthemic, but the song’s a self-contained riff machine in either case.

Meanwhile songs like “Exacting Revenge” and “Medieval” have something of a moodier disposition, where the riffs have an almost sludgy texture to them, the pace sometimes slowed to a near crawl. With that in mind, “Medieval” might be the best song on the album. It’s absolutely rotten with ugly harmonizing and apocalyptic chord work. It harkens back to some of the slower moments on Suffocation’s ‘Pierced From Within’, but tackles that sound in a very different way, and the slower breakdowns in the songs second half are absolutely crushing.

It’s not that Skinless have reinvented their own wheel on ‘Savagery’, so much as that they’ve just found new ways to work within their established sound. They’re very clearly still Skinless, they’re just a better and more imaginative version of what they’ve always been. It’s a hard thing, trying to compete with nostalgia and legacy, but Skinless has come up with an album that stands up to their legacy albums and then some. No mean feat for a band twenty years on from their full length debut.

“Savagery” is available digitally, on CD and LP here

Band info: Facebook || bandcamp

ALBUM REVIEW: Of Feather And Bone, "Bestial Hymns of Perversion"

By: Mark Ambrose

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: March 23, 2018

Label: Profound Lore Records

It’s a stellar record, one that cuts deep and infects your blood supply.  I suggest you subject yourself to this trauma and damn the consequences.

“Bestial Hymns of Perversion” CD//DD//LP track listing

1. Repulsive Obscurity

2. Resounding from the Depths

3. Lust for Torment

4. Mockery of the Ascension

5. Hymn of Perversion

6. Pious Abnormality

7. Throne of the Serpent

The Review:

               

There are a few tried and true methods when it comes to hair-raising metal album intros.  Some really solid menacing spoken word, particularly religious insanity culled from a crackling radio transmission.  The patented horror movie sample of practically any Mortician song.  So when I heard demonic chanting and what can only be described as the buzz of carrion flies, I knew I was in for some relentlessly grim death metal.  I did not expect, however, that with “Bestial Hymns of Perversion”, I’d be wading into a grim, necrotic nightmare that may also be one of the best releases of the year.  With their second full-length, Of Feather and Bone have completely reinvented themselves as one of the most devastating death acts operating today.

               

Aforementioned opener “Repulsive Obscurity”, after the descent into sonic madness of the intro, centers on drummer PW’s double-kick assault.  This is tribal warfare music, not tech wizardry – every hit sounds like it’s rattling against bloodied skins, reverberating through a chasm of evil.  The thick, fuzzy tone of DG’s guitar is pure filth, without ever losing the discernable, disturbing riffing.  AS’s bass is much more subdued but essential, a clean counter to the buzzing fury of the six-string assault.  Meanwhile, AS and DG counter guttural death growls with agonized, frayed higher register shrieks.  The combination is particularly unnerving.  Which isn’t to suggest its pure cacophony – tracks like “Resounding from the Depths” have an oldschool punky rhythm break that bely the trio’s earlier hardcore roots.

               

“Lust for Torment” may be the standout track for me on a record without a moment of filler.  The breakdown, punctuated by cracking snare work, frenetic fills, and pinch harmonics that will make you scream “fuck!” while you’re sitting all alone in traffic, is one of the most enervating musical moments of my year.  Plus the mid-song crescendo is the type of chugging riffing that mosh pits were made for.  The tortured high end vocals of “Mockery of the Ascension” are almost too distressing after such brutality, but Of Feather and Bone is not here for your weak bullshit.  Instead the tribal rhythms coalesce again, around a blissfully simple guitar line.  The minimal, tremolo lead work is as effective as any sweep picking, and far more memorable.

“Hymn of Perversion” is a testament to how aware Of Feather and Bone is of the power of space – sometimes they allow room to breathe, only to collapse back in with so much intensity that you may suffocate.  And throughout all this chaos, the production is never muddied, never too busy, always unflinching in capturing the relentless assaults on display.  When PW blisters his snare with furious blast beats on “Pious Abnormality”, not one hit is lost – no mean feat when the distortion is so primal.  “Throne of the Serpent” closes as the album began – with sheer, unmitigated power.  DG and AS weave a sinewy, descending guitar riff that is beyond sinister – it’s downright malevolent.  With tradeoffs between chugging rhythms and high-end tremolo, slowed down tribal drums and breakneck blast beats, the closer builds to a nauseating expulsion of raw energy, before dissipating in another cloud of buzzing flies.

It’s hard to express just how grim and powerful the whole experience of “Bestial Hymns of Perversion” is.  It stuck to me like a layer of grime you really need to scour yourself to get off.  Even when I felt unburdened from the filthy tones and punishing rhythms, I had to go back, re-traumatize myself, and contemplate just what was so unsettling and compelling about the whole thing.  For one, it’s a major departure from their frenzied, punky debut, “Embrace the Wretched Flesh”.  There’s far more skill, more despair, more wrathful intensity.  But there’s something ineffable about the primal necromancy these guys dredge up for “Bestial Hymns…”.  It’s a stellar record, one that cuts deep and infects your blood supply.  I’m likely to keep returning all year, like the scene of an atrocity I can’t erase from my memory.  I suggest you subject yourself to this trauma and damn the consequences.

“Bestial Hymns of Perversion” is available here

Band info: facebook || bandcamp

FOR THOSE ABOOT TO ROCK: Riffs of Canada with Wake [Calgary, Alberta]

By: Mark Tremblay

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 23/02/2018

Label: Translation Loss

“Misery Rites” is a standout contemporary extreme metal record one of the most punishing heavy music albums of the year so far.

“Misery Rites” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1). Exhumation

2). Misery Rites

3). Embers

4). Rot

5). Paradigm Rot

6). Exile

7). Rumination

8). Bitter Winter

9). Burial Ground

The Review:

Canada’s most complex grindcore band returns with “Misery Rites”. Taking a lot of what the band had previously done on “Sowing the Seeds of a Worthless Tomorrow”, and further pushing elements of black and death metal. The album is one of the most punishing heavy music albums of the year so far.

From the very start, the record opens on a different path. The sludge riffs on “Exhumation” would make Primitive Man proud. In true grind fashion, however, the album is still full of blast-beats. They are interspersed with moments of dissonant death metal riffage; “Paradigm Lost” and “Exile” utilize this structure in a way that make the heaviest moments stand out. This band really excels at building peaks and valleys in its music for the listener.

Drummer Josh Bueckert really stands out on this record. The drum patterns create a lot of surprising twists and turns. The continual motion on tracks like “Burial Ground” showcase a variety in drum patterns rarely heard in heavy music. “Misery Rites” is a standout contemporary extreme metal record that sees this band moving further into other forms of heavy music, and finding their unique sound

“Misery Rites” is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

REVIEW: Glacial Tomb - "Cognitive Erosion" [EP]

By: Chris Bull


Album Type: EP

Date Released: 11/04/2017

Label: Old Cathedral Cassettes

From the opening drum fill that leads to some face ripping riffage of 'Black Hole, White Teeth' all the way through to the creeping, crescendo  of 'Burial Shroud', it's a tour-de-force of extreme music.

“Cognitive Erosion” CS//DD track listing:

1). Black Hole White Teeth

2). Of Flesh And Worship

3). Entropic Decay

4). Burial Shroud

The Review:

To start with the most random pop culture reference here; do you remember the short lived WCW wrestler Glacier? He was a complete Sub Zero (of Mortal Kombat fame [yep, that's a 2nd pop culture reference]) rip off. He was hyped, full of promise and ultimately failed to deliver. 'Cognitive Erosion' from Denver's Glacial Tomb is the polar opposite (excuse the pun); it's no bark and all bite.

The 4 tracks on this EP are chocked full of scathing, blistering, HM-2 worship and while crusty grind is the meat and potatoes, Glacial Tomb season the tracks with some crushing sludge/doom when the time is right.

From the opening drum fill that leads to some face ripping riffage of 'Black Hole, White Teeth' all the way through to the creeping, crescendo  of 'Burial Shroud', it's a tour-de-force of extreme music. Sure, the guitar sound suffers from an almost digital sound, but this is enough of an appetite whetting to have me hungry for a full length. I'd love to hear these guys let loose on an analogue studio; the results would undoubtedly double the effects of global warming.

“Cognitive Erosion” is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

Theories - ‘Regression’ (Album Review)

Album Type: Full-length

Date Released: 24/3/2015

Label: Metal Blade Records

‘Regression’ CD//LP//DD track listing:

01. Burnt Concrete
02. Cycle of Decay
03. Shame
04. Abortive Crescent
05. Bathing in Pigs Blood
06. First World's Last Breath
07. Swimming in Mud
08. Revenge/Rewild
09. Hell in Her Eyes
10. Landfill

Theories is:

Rick | Vocals

Joe | Drums

Kush | Bass

Lee | Guitar

Review:

Putting out what is by and large your band’s first recorded output* through a label the Metal Blade Records is an opportunity that few bands can say they’ve started out with, but once you hear ‘Regression’ it all begins to make sense. Theories is a well-oiled machine pumping out precise and vicious deathgrind, drawing from a similar well of influence as Misery Index, though Theories is a bit more wild-eyed crazed where Misery Index is a bit more conservative, musically.

While the whole of the album is suitably pissed off and ferocious, some of the production choices, which I’m sure were made for the sake of clarity and distinction between instruments also leave the album feeling more sterile than an album in this style should. It’s a tough line to walk, because you don’t want a sound that gets too muddy or sloppy during the more intricate palm-muted riffs, but you also don’t want a sound that’s so compact and tight that it lacks any real power. Luckily, ‘Regression doesn’t suffer too much from it. A snare sound with a bit more heft would have been ideal, though I’ll admit that’s more me nitpicking than a real issue.

How you’ll feel about an album like ‘Regression’ largely depends on how you feel about the genre in the first place. There’s plenty of frenetic energy and headbang-worthy rhythm work, but there also isn’t much in the way of dynamics or ultra-memorable moments from a song-writing perspective. I can absolutely see this working in a live environment, or putting it on when you’ve got friends with similar tastes over for some beer or whatever else. But when listening alone, wanting to get deeply involved and relish in the minutiae or a well-written extreme metal album; it’s missing something. There are flashes of brilliance, as in the opening 90 seconds of “Hell in Her Eyes”, where the band builds some tension and hits a dissonant climax early on, but opting for flat-sounding, american-style blast beats towards the end of that apex lessens the impact of that moment to some extent.

Even with those criticisms in mind, and remembering that I’ve gotten a bit of a reputation for over-analyzing things and getting swept up in minor details, ‘Regressions’ is a very strong first outing. Carcass didn’t come out of the gates with ‘Necroticism’, and it’s reasonable to believe that Theories is capable great things down the road as well. They’re certainly in the right place technically, now it’s just a matter of finding a way to channel that savagery in execution into something that leaves an impression beyond that visceral first reaction.

* - There is a reference to a debut EP in their bio, though I had a hard time finding any info on it. It’s not listed on their metal archives page, nor is it referenced on discogs. There’s a lone song available for streaming on their bandcamp page from it though.

Words by: Daniel Jackson

You can pick up a digital copy here and a CD/LP copy here.

For more information:

Facebook | Twitter | Official Website

Misery Index - The Killing Gods (Album Review)

Album Type : Full Length

Date Released : 23/5/2014

Label : Season of Mist

Misery Index “The Killing Gods” (CD/DD/LP) track listing :

1. Urfaust
2. The Calling
3. The Oath
4. Conjuring the Cull
5. The Harrowing
6. The Killing Gods
7. Cross to Bear
8. Gallows Humor
9. The Weakener
10. Sentinels
11. Colony Collapse (feat. John Gallagher, DYING FETUS)
12. Heretics
13. Thieves of the New World Order [MINISTRY cover bonus track]

Bio :

MISERY INDEX return with a fury worthy of the title of their new album, "The Killing Gods". With their fifth full-length, the American icons of hard hitting brutality display the strength of maturity grown out of the experience gained as a relentless touring machine. The general trend of their continuous evolution to incorporate less core elements and move towards classic death metal finds a new high water mark. When their debut EP “Overthrow” was recorded in 2001 by vocalist and bassist Jason Netherton (ex-DYING FETUS) together with (then) guitarist and vocalist Mike Harrison and drummer Kevin Talley (ex-DYING FETUS), MISERY INDEX immediately charted a course to explore and push the limits of Death Metal and Grindcore, drawing influence from bands like MORBID ANGEL, NAPALM DEATH, TERRORIZER, BOLT THROWER and ENTOMBED. The erstwhile project shifted to a full time band when guitarist Sparky Voyles (ex-DYING FETUS) joined.

In 2003, MISERY INDEX unleashed their first full-length “Retaliate”, to exceptional reviews and followed by numerous support tours and festivals in Europe and North America. After several line-up changes, second album “Discordia” was released in 2006 with even more touring in its wake. Their third full-length, “Traitors” (2008) reaped raving reactions from both critics and fans and saw the band on the road again until 2009.

Then MISERY INDEX dropped “Heirs to Thievery” (2010) like a bomb on the Death Metal masses, shattering all expectations. The album was both a commercial and critical success, elevating the band to headlining slots. During that year, long time guitarist Sparky Voyles was replaced by Darin Morris. A string of shows and festivals around the globe followed and on the Munich date of “Full of Hate Tour” alongside CANNIBAL CORPSE, BEHEMOTH and LEGION OF THE DAMNED, the band recorded their first live album. Released early 2013, "Live in Munich" perfectly epitomized the rawness and ferocity that MISERY INDEX now elevate onto a new level with "The Killing Gods". Brace, hold tight and duck for cover, the wrath of the gods is upon us!

The Band

Jason Netherton | bass, vocals
Adam Jarvis | drums
Mark Kloeppel |guitar, vocals
Darin Morris | lead guitar

Review :

I’d like to start by acknowledging upfront that I’ve never been a huge Misery Index fan. I liked “Retaliate” well enough, but it isn't an album I revisit very often, and everything I've heard from Misery Index since then has been met with a pretty similar reaction from me.

Some albums are worse, some are better, but I wasn't really moved in either direction by any of their albums. 'The Killing Gods', the band’s fifth full-length album changes that. This is an album where I can truly say I’m a fan of Misery Index. They've kept their trademark ferocity and hardcore-informed rhythmic catchiness and added a melodic sensibility that enhances their sound wonderfully.

“The Calling”, the first song on the album makes all of this clear, starting with a riff that would be right at home with/on Defleshed’s over-looked classic “Under the Blade”. Meanwhile, Adam Jarvis lays waste to his drum kit with ever-changing beats and constant snare abuse, reminding one of some of Janne Saarenpää’s best work in The Crown. There’s plenty of melody and harmony, but what makes it great is that they've sacrificed none of their vitriol in the process. The new attention they're paying to melody also shows up in the form of an octave lead at the opening of “Conjuring the Cull”, along with a revisiting of the intro's theme towards the end with plenty of harmonized lead work over the central riff. It's obvious that Misery Index is committed to fully realizing the songs on 'The Killing Gods', and they're built to keep you coming back for more.

The title track lets some of the notes ring longer, and allows for a bit of a breather tempo-wise, if only for a fleeting moment. Jarvis continues his torrential drum onslaught in the form of virtually relentless drum fills through much of it; this keeps the energy level up despite the more reserved riffing going on. It should be said that in many ways, even with all of the quality guitar work going on, the whole of the album seems to revolve around the drums in a way that their previous work did not. They’re very loud in the mix, and while that might be a detriment to some albums and bands, it’s actually a huge benefit to the overall experience of 'The Killing Gods'. As a result, the moments with the desired heaviest impact are felt all the more deeply.

Not everything is completely praise-worthy as the second half of the album is a little too locked into a routine of hardcore-ish riffs while abandoning some of the elements that made the first half of the album so successful. Things are so tightly played and on-point rhythmically that it doesn't hurt the flow of things too much, but it feels like they might have benefited from spreading the first six songs out more evenly over the course of the twelve songs on the album. This would have kept the second half of ‘The Killing Gods’ from exploring too much of the same terrain.  Even with that minor gripe aside, I have no problem stating that this is Misery Index’s finest hour. ‘The Killing Gods’ towers over their previous albums and it’s really not even close.

Words by : Daniel Jackson

The record is available everywhere now on Season Of Mist Records.

For more information :

www.facebook.com/MiseryIndex