ALBUM REVIEW: Primordial, "Exile Amongst the Ruins"

By: Daniel Jackson

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 30/03/2018

Label: Metal Blade Records

‘Exile Amongst the Ruins’ CD//LP//DD track listing:

1. Nail Their Tongues

2. To Hell or the Hangman

3. Where Lie the Gods

4. Exile Amongst the Ruins

5. Upon Our Spiritual Deathbed

6. Stolen Years

7. Sunken Lungs

8. Last Call

The Review:

Given enough time, any and every band will stumble. Of course, there are degrees and scale to these things. Each fall will come from different heights and will last for different distances. After 25 years of growth and refinement, Primordial were long overdue for something like ‘Exile Amongst the Ruins’. The big picture issues have been covered in a number of places already, but they do ring true: the album is longer than it should be, and the overall feeling is that this was a really good EP stretched into a bloated, clunky full length.

A narrow example of this album’s larger problems lies in one of the album’s singles: “To Hell or the Hangman”. The song is built around a really great song idea. The driving groove that serves as the song’s backbone is a brilliant way for the band to avoid some of the rhythmic tropes the band have been working with over the last 10-15 years. The central guitar idea is every bit as good. It feels unmistakably like Primordial, but places that sound in a new context and it all comes together beautifully. The problem is that the band ride this great idea into the ground, going minutes longer than they should have. Heart’s “Barracuda” is an all-time classic, but nobody would listen to it if it were just slight variations of the opening riff, with no break or chorus, for seven-plus minutes. No idea is good enough to withstand that kind of repetition without diminishing returns.

One of the other nagging issues that hurts ‘Exile Amongst the Ruins’ in a general sense is Simon O'Laoghaire’s occasionally uneven performance. I have no idea what happened here. I don’t know if he ventured a tad too far outside his comfort zone, or if there were production issues, but there are specific moments over the course of the album where things just fall apart. It’s particularly noticeable thanks to the album’s natural-but-boxy drum sound. For a frame of reference, the drum sound might be described as a heavier, updated version of the sound on Satyricon’s ‘Nemesis Divina’, especially in the kick drums.

For the most part, O'Laoghaire sounds like his strong, feel-oriented self. But a specific example to illustrate where his performance becomes a problem would be “Sunken Lungs”. The song is difficult to get through because O'Laoghaire’s grove-shy and needlessly busy beat choice is made all the more unpalatable by the kick sound. It feels intentional, but it’s difficult to shed the feeling that he’s perpetually late coming in on the downbeat because he’s frantically shoving as many notes as he can into the counts prior to it. If it were a brief section or the intro, you could almost wave it off, but it’s used as the general rhythm structure for the whole song. I normally wouldn’t have spent so much time on this, but O'Laoghaire is usually a drummer I’m excited to hear more of, and some of the choices he’s made on this album are a complete mystery to me.

As I indicated earlier, the story of this album for me is similar to what you might have read elsewhere. There are a ton of good and great ideas here, but some of those ideas get lost in translation, and some are ridden for well past too long. Even when Primordial misfire, the end result is still a largely good album. That’s where the degrees and scale I mentioned earlier come in. When Primordial put out their worst album in more than a decade, it’s because they put out a good-but-not great album. This isn’t ‘Illud Divinum Insanus’ or ‘Cold Lake’. This is Primordial going through some growing pains as they try new things. I have no doubt they’ll get where they mean to go, but the start of this journey is a bit more rough than they might have planned.

‘Exile Amongst the Ruins’ is available digitally copy here and on CD/LP here.

Band info: Facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Agrimonia - "Awaken"

By: Chris Bull

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 26/01/2018

Label: Southern Lord Recordings

'Awaken' is a tour-de-force of genre hopping doom. It should see the band gain ground on their contemporaries and even surpass them.

“Awaken” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. A World Unseen
2. Astray
3. Foreshadowed
4. Awaken
5. Withering
6. The Sparrow

The Review:

Gothenburg's Agrimonia have always been a difficult band to pigeonhole; partly epic and expansive doom, partly crusty, blackened death metal, they seem content to don the cap of each of the aforementioned genres whenever the mood is befitting. It should come as no surprise then that 'Awaken', their 4th full length, slithers and writhes with venom and bile in tow.

Opening with the majestic 'A World Unseen', a track that owes as much to Primordial as it does Dissection, Agrimonia put as much into one nine minute epic as some bands do on entire albums. It's an opening statement that implies that further surprises lay ahead...and lay ahead they certainly do; from the Paradise Lost with blast beats of 'Astray' to the haunting melodic intro of 'Foreshadowed' and through its Dismember style death metalisms, there's very little for the casual listener not to enjoy!

The title track sits at the centre of the album and, despite its mesmerising melancholy, and the fact it is a 3 minute instrumental, seems oddly juxtaposed. 'Withering' gets back on track with 13 minutes of captivating death/doom before final track 'The Sparrow' weaves a sombre tapestry before triumphantly galloping headstrong towards the album's shimmering, sobering conclusion.

'Awaken' is a tour-de-force of genre hopping doom. It should see the band gain ground on their contemporaries and even surpass them. For this, you're going to need to pack spare clothes and snacks, for this musical journey is truly epic.

“Awaken” is available to preorder/buy here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Dread Sovereign - "For Doom The Bell Tolls"

By: Brandon Green

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 03/03/2017

Label: Ván Records

This is a fantastic doom release for walking around in the woods when everything is dead.  This album deserves to be cranked, listened to on headphones in the dark with candles lit.

“For Doom the Bell Tolls” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. For Doom The Bell Tolls

2. Twelve Bells Toll In Salem

3. This World Is Doomed

4. Draped In Sepulchral Fog

5. The Spines Of Saturn

6. Live Like An Angel, Die Like A Devil (Venom Cover)

The Review:

I’ve been a huge fan of Primordial for years, so when Dread Sovereign formed in 2013 (featuring Primordial vocalist Alan Averill) I was beyond excited. Their first full length, “All Hell’s Martyrs” was a fantastic doom release loaded with memorable riffs and catchy vocal melodies. When it came out in 2014, it was a frequent listen for me. Fast forward to 2017; Dublin’s doom trio have put together their second full length effort, and it’s dripping with evil atmosphere, soaring vocals, and huge riffs.

Compared to “All Hell’s Martyr’s”, “For Doom the Bell Tolls” sounds a bit more vintage and less noisy.  Fans of the occult/psychedelic doom genre may take notice and appreciate this approach more than their previous release. The album starts with an atmospheric intro loaded with bells, feedback, and then builds into the effort’s longest track “Twelve Bells Toll in Salem.” The song starts with pure Sabbath-worship riffs pushed with soaring vocals and layered psychedelic guitar leads which develop into slow bass-distorted drum/bass/vocal sections.  The sound of this track just oozes with imagery of witchcraft, occult symbolism, and appreciation for evil. Definitely my favorite from the album.

Track 3, “This World is Doomed” starts with a classic heavy metal and more upbeat feel. The vocals and guitar riffs are more traditional in song structure, but this is a welcome addition providing the listener with a doom track perfect for pushing your speakers. There’s a brief break with “Draped in Sepulchral Fog.”  A two and a half minute atmospheric song loaded with atmosphere and feedback providing a build up to “The Spines of Saturn,” which is the final original song of the record. Clocking in around 8 minutes, the track has the feel of an 80s traditional doom song with loud catchy jam sections and upbeat repeated sections with vintage synths in the background.  The vocals overall in the intro provide more texture/melody than anything but are a welcome addition to the sound. Halfway through the song, the instruments open up to massive reverb/chorus drenched vocal melodies which build to the familiar heavy sound in the beginning of the track. The album closes with a Venom cover of “Live Like an Angel, Die Like a Devil” which is a ripping track loaded with the lo-fi evil feel of the rest of the record.  They did a fantastic job with this tune, and I can only imagine how huge this would sound live.

Dread Sovereign have created another worthy addition to their discography which is their own brand of filthy lo-fi sounding doom dripping with memorable vocal melodies. My only gripe with this record is I feel like it is a little on the short side.  I think another track would have rounded this album out nicely. This is a fantastic doom release for walking around in the woods when everything is dead.  This album deserves to be cranked, listened to on headphones in the dark with candles lit.

“For Doom the Bell Tolls” is available to buy/preorder here

Band info: facebook || bandcamp

FFO: Primordial, Candlemass, (old) Ghost, Pallbearer, Crypt Sermon

Live Review: Damnation Festival 2015, Leeds University Union, 7/11/2015

By: Richard Maw

With a stellar line up, a venue within my own city and the opportunity to wear a battle jacket, attending this year's Damnation was a no brainer. This time around, the music was split between four stages, plus vinyl, merchandise CDs etc. The capacity was limited to a lower level than last year (when trying to get into the right part of the venue to see Cannibal Corpse was a matter of some difficulty) and this made for a much easier day all around, really.

The atmosphere was great from the off. I arrived around 2pm and settled in to watch the main stage openers Savage Messiah at 2.30pm. Really, it is this kind of thing that festivals are all about. I had never heard Savage Messiah before, but I will hear them a lot more now... Their show was absolutely superb. High energy and highly technical thrash/melodic trad came together in a whirlwind of precise riffs and excellent solos. With a new guitar player in tow (who played superbly), this was a show of very high calibre indeed. I was immediately converted as a fan and will be going to see them again when they next come through Leeds or somewhere else in the North. Fantastic band- kind of like Priest/Maiden crossed with Testament. Good singer too. Their (third?) album “Plague of Conscience” is available as a free download through the Earache website- I downloaded it this morning and have it on while writing this review. This evenings plans included ordering the back catalogue (or what of it I can afford) from Amazon/Ebay.  The band deserve to be much bigger, so check them out.

I then caught Sea Bastard on a much smaller stage downstairs- good, heavy doom, played slow and with conviction. I enjoyed their set, but must admit that I did not watch all of it. A little of that stuff can go a long way... Onwards and upwards to The Ocean, then! The German band's “Epilagial” was a superb release a couple of years back and I was looking forward to their set. They did not disappoint as, cellist in tow, they brought an atmospheric and powerful set to life. The front man gave a particularly committed performance- which included diving off the balcony (!) into the crowd. Great band, great show.

On to Keep of Kalessin, who I am not too familiar with; playing a tight and very professional set of extreme and epic metal. For a three piece band, they make a lot of noise and delivered a taut performance with some very fast sections. I enjoyed what they did and, again, will be checking them out on record. I checked out a little of Solstafir, but it wasn't my thing so I moved on for a little food...

For me, one of the main reasons attending was to see Asphyx. They did not disappoint. Complete with dedication to the recently departed Martin “Kiddie” Kearns of Bolt Thrower, the band oozed class and power. Van Drunen screamed his lungs out while his three colleagues played with conviction. Early classics rubbed shoulders with tracks off “Deathhammer” and “Death The Brutal Way.” The band were really, really good and I also must note that their t-shirts were priced at the wholly reasonable £10 each. I bought one- bands charging £15 a shirt is just about acceptable, but anything more than that is very pricey indeed. This was true death with some doom mixed in and their set was a real highlight of the day. Classic band.

Onwards to see another big draw- the mighty High on Fire! Matt Pike and co. turned in a great and loud show. Pike, shirtless, thinner than in recent years and moustachioed threw down his battle axe riffage with aplomb, while Jeff Matz and Des Kensel provided one of the best rhythm sections in extreme music. Plenty from this year's “Luminiferous” was played- I loved hearing “The Falconist” live for the first time- as well as old favourites like “10,000 Years”. Surely one of the bands that most metal heads agree on, HOF burnt as much rubber as their name suggests. I went on to watch some of Primordial who played a professional and entertaining set. Front man Alan Averill was theatrical and charismatic, with as much Maiden as Mayhem in his stage presence. I really must check them out on record, beyond the track on a Terrorizer sampler CD I heard in 1996!

Finally, having been somewhat mystified by Japanese instrumental rock lords Mono for all of five minutes, I headed to watch At The Gates on the main stage. I must confess, first off, that I did not watch the whole set. It had been a long day and the wife was waiting in the Fabia nearby, so I ended up ducking out half way through their set. From what I saw, though, the band are in that rare bracket of “ultra pro” festival act. They played some choice cuts from their “At War With Reality” - which I like but do not love, but really, I was there to see the stuff from “Slaughter of the Soul”. Yes, they played the title track, yes they played other songs and yes, I shouted “GO!!!!” along with everyone else. For me, At The Gates will never really be a current band- I heard “SOTS” first time around and had the Peaceville records too. I think of them as a band from the past- albeit one brought back to life. Maybe that is doing them a disservice- but I just think of them as a kind of extreme metal heritage act. I want to be clear, I love the band and that one record dearly and their performance was one of professionalism and strength- in no way am I knocking it.

Overall, it was an excellent festival and certainly my favourite one in the UK. I like that it mixes genres and bands and brings in some real big guns who I might not otherwise see. For me, band of the day were Savage Messiah- I had never heard them and they blew me away with their utter commitment to the metal cause. At the end of the day, that is what festivals can do. I always check out as much as I can because I might stumble upon a new band that really impresses. If you ever consider attending Damnation, I say do it. I got to see a new band who impressed, veterans who I had never seen and some current heroes who all turned in great performances. And all for £36?! What an absolute bargain.



Live Review: Primordial / Winterfylleth / Malthusian @ Sound Control, Manchester. 6th February 2015

With Primordial and Winterfylleth both releasing new albums in 2014, it was a great thing to see two bands like this on the same bill, to share material from their latest releases. Having shared the bill in Manchester several years prior to this run of gigs, the veterans Primordial released another in a long line of stiring albums with 'Where Greater Men Have Fallen'; whereas Winterfylleth released one of the absolute best albums of 2014 with 'The Divination of Antiquity'. 

With Winterfylleth in the main support slot, Malthusian opened up the evenings proceedings. Shrouded in murky blue lights for most of their thirty minute set, the band mixed things up between blackened doom tempos and pure black metal blasts, to warm the growing crowd admirably. The guttural vocals and chugging, doomy pace were excellent throughout and set the scene for a great night.

http://malthusian.bandcamp.com/track/wraith-plague-spore

One of the great plus points of the nights gig, was the lengthier set time for Winterfylleth. Having had their slot on the recent tour with Behemoth limited to a mere 20 minutes, the band had time to really showcase their great talent. With new guitarist Dan Capp stepping in for the run with Primordial, the band showed why they are one of the leading lights in UK black metal.

Opening with the title track from the bands latest release, Winterfylleth’s no frills stage presence is one of the bands endearing features. There is no need for black metal’s well known clichés to mask anything. The music is stunning; and clad all in black, the band can really take their music to vast extremes. The ferociousness of the blast beats and razor like guitars of 'The Divination of Antiquity' make for a visceral experience, whereas the Iron Maiden-esque intro and progressive pace to the mighty 'A Careworn Heart', is a thing of beauty. The middle section of another new track; 'Whisper of the Elements' also provides respite amongst its furious and snarling surroundings.

With cherry picked tracks from the bands back catalogue making up the set, Winterfylleth closed out their set with a glorious rendition of 'Defending The Realm' from their debut full length long player; 'The Ghost of Heritage'. Leaving the stage to rapturous applause from their hometown crowd, Winterfylleth again proved why they’re one of the best bands England has to offer. The band is playing several festivals around Europe this year, as well as a date in London in March; try and catch them if you can. 

Where their Irish counterparts Malthusian, and brothers in arms Winterfylleth, are established but still carving their legacies, Primordial are the relative veterans of the scene. A scene that has embraced them, and seen their genesis over time allow them to become one of the most respected and revered black metal bands around.

‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ is Primordial’s eight studio album, and it is the follow up to the excellent ‘Redemption at the Puritans Hand’. On my initial listens to the new album I struggled with it, and I’m not sure why. After hearing more than half of it played live with the passion and vigour that Primordial possess, the album has taken on a new verve in my conscious. The opening track of the night and album title track is fantastic. Alan Averill’s painted face, stage demeanour and deeply passionate vocals raise the track to new levels. This is true of every single song that Primordial commits their name too. Other new tracks that were aired were the epic ‘Babel’s Tower ‘(which was accompanied by a fantastic video upon release), and the folk tinged ‘Wield Lightening To Split The Sun’.

The newer material sat very well with older tracks; which are rightfully deemed classics. It was great to hear ‘Gods to the Godless’ played very early in the set as it ensured the crowd were firmly on board with the staunch Eire natives. ‘The Coffin Ship’s’ from 2005 release, ‘The Gathering Wilderness’, is always a musical journey that tugs at the heart strings due to the lyrical and epic nature of the song. Averill’s emotional delivery of the sad story of the native Irish attempting to escape the great famine of the mid 1800’s is amazing. Two of the high points from ‘Redemption at the Puritans Hand’; ‘No Grave Deep Enough’ and the anthemic ‘Bloodied Yet Unbowed’ gave strength to the bands latter day output. The band finished their heroic set with classic rock tinged ‘Empire Falls’ from 2007’s ‘To The Nameless Dead’. With hordes of Mancunian’s left wanting more; Primordial exited the stage to exultant applause after giving every ounce of what they had on stage.

Seeing Primordial is an experience that never gets boring. Their chest beating anthems and clinical musical delivery is magnificent. There only a few bands that can truly hold sway over a crowd and have them in the palm of their hands for as long as they like; Primordial are one such band. Assisted by the excellent Malthusian, and quite superb Winterfylleth, I feel privileged to have witnessed such a concert.

Words by: Dominic Walsh

Primordial - Where Greater Men Have Fallen (Album Review)

Album Type: Full-length

Date Released: 25/11/2014

Label: Metal Blade Records

‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ CD//LP//DD track listing:

01. Where Greater Men Have Fallen

02. Babel's Tower

03. Come the Flood

04. The Seed of Tyrants

05. Ghosts of the Charnel House

06. The Alchemist's Head

07. Born to Night

08. Wield Lightning to Split the Sun

Primoridal is:

A.A. Nemtheanga | Vocals

M. O’Floinn | Guitars

C MacUiliam | Guitars

P. MacAmlaigh | Bass

S. O’Laoghaire | Drums

Review:

For over twenty years now, Primordial have been in a perpetual state of refinement. Each album, since their first full-length, 1995’s ‘Imrama’, has built upon and in some way improved upon the album before it. No doubt, some will prefer ‘Imrama’ over ‘Spirit the Earth Aflame’, or ‘To the Nameless Dead’ over ‘Redemption at the Puritan’s Hand’ or any variation thereof throughout their whole discography. The key point is that the metaphorical halls of their twenty-plus year career are flooded with gold from top to bottom.

Primordial are sort of an outlier when compared to some of their mid-90s black metal peers. While they’ve continued to put more distance between each new album and their purer black metal roots, they never really get met with the vitriol that bands following that same trajectory often do. An excellent comparison is Enslaved in that they both had their full-length debuts come within a year of each other, they both started out with black metal heavily influenced by their native culture, and both have put out music consistently ever since.

Where Enslaved—especially in the case of 2000’s ‘Mardraum’—has frequently played with progressive components and enjoyed taking some big risks with their overall sound; Primordial has taken the approach of introducing new elements a bit less chaotically; trying new things more conservatively on each successive album. For Enslaved, those big risks paid off more often than not, but they’ve also served to alienate blocks of their audience (while obviously gaining others) with each major shift. Meanwhile Primordial has continued to improve upon their original formula without straying so far as to be virtually unrecognizable when comparing the debut to their newest. Instead, they came to a clearer definition of their sound with 2007’s ‘To the Nameless Dead’.

It was on that album that one of Primordial’s greatest assets, vocalist A.A. Nemtheanga, began to really hit his stride, with what seemed at the time to be a sudden boost in self-confidence; this coming after an already strong performance on ‘The Gathering Wilderness’. He’s grown into being one of the very few examples of a larger-than-life frontman in an extreme metal band. I’m not sure if it’s the purposeful lack of humanity in black or death metal vocals, or if extreme metal suffers from a shortage of charisma from its vocalists in general, but almost no one commands an album and acts as the true voice of a band the way A.A. Nemtheanga does in 2014.

That brings us to ‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’, the band’s eighth studio album. In keeping with their M.O. up to this point, it carves finer detail into, and makes grander everything they’ve done to this point. It’s also more adventurous than they’ve ever been before. Each song has its own distinct personality, perhaps more so than any album in their discography to date. The album’s strongest songs are the ones that open and close the album, but every track is a captivating listen.

The album-opener, which is also the title track, is perhaps the finest example of what you might consider the Primordial sound. It’s instantly-identifiable, without ever sounding stale or rehashed. It also takes almost no time at all to realize that this is easily their best-recorded material to date. A.A. Nemtheanga is better than ever, as his voice scales mountains and drills beneath the earth and hits every point in between. Everything feels alive and wild with a passion and fortitude missing in all but a handful of the best heavy metal has to offer.

That’s not to say the album doesn’t have its out-of-character moments. “The Seed of Tyrants” blasts along at a “Traitors Gate” pace, but it never even comes close to recycling those ideas. The guitars have an almost lingual quality to them, not unlike someone humming to themselves. In some ways, it reminds me of Bölzer in its early minutes, prior to the eventual break when the humming guitars and taut blastbeat gives way to locomotive double kick and hammering snare drum. “The Alchemist’s Head” is also a step outside their comfort zone, oscillating between an atypically dissonant verse and a foreboding, but low key bridge. It’s a song that travels some bleak terrain, both musically and lyrically.

Speaking of which; the lyrics, maybe more so than with any heavy metal band I can think of, play a vital role in Primordial. With A.A. Nemtheanga having such an impassioned delivery and the musical compositions themselves covering so many different emotional tones; it makes ‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ all the more satisfying that the lyrics have meaning and resonance as well. I won’t spend time trying to interpret their meaning or message, but it goes without saying that it’s worth giving this a listen with the lyrics handy so that you get a complete experience with this album.

With all of this in mind; ‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ is one of the great albums of this year. 2014 might very well be remembered as a year where the truly great albums stood well apart from a pack of very good albums. The separation is clear from a quality standpoint and Primordial is strongly in the former category and I’d even go so far as to say, at least as I’m writing this, I’d have ‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ on par with ‘To The Nameless Dead’.

Words by: Daniel Jackson

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

  

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