Volition - 'Wreck Among Ruin' (Album Review)

Album Type: Full-Length

Date Released: 01/01/2015

Label: Total Rust Records

‘Wreck Among Ruin’ CD track listing :

1. A wreck Among Ruins

2. Cloth Spun of Night

3. Shared Sins and Harboured Secrets

4. Thrown To The Lions

5. The Vastness Consumes Us

6. Butchered In The Fog

Volition is:

Mark Burns

James Doyle

Jas Murray

Mark Burnett

Review:

It has been seven years since Volition’s last slab of doom, and with few of personnel changes, they are back more determined than ever to molest your soul. Despite their lengthy absence, their new record ‘Wreck Among Ruin’ immediately pick’s up where the debut left off and gives us six new tracks of filthy, minimalistic doom. Mark Burns’ apothegmatic growls set the standard of the record, in essence Volition delivers an hour of the very best music this genre has to offer, no Questions asked.

The record starts with ‘A Wreck Among Ruins’ and I find myself with an immediate grin on my face. What I love about the band is the droning quality of the riffs, notes appear to last for days, indeed the small minimalistic changes that you barely hear the first time, will be discovered after repeated listens.  Up next is ‘Cloth Spun of Night’, the main riff is supported with pounding drums and is the perfect example of the reason I love doom. Sometimes good music is the least complex, but with an abundance of head banger riffs and an added edge of fuzziness, nothing tastes sweeter.

With ‘Shared Sins & Harboured Secrets’ the listener is thrust back down into the depths of despair. To make an interesting track is not easy and over the course of 10 minutes is perhaps even harder, however this song is a good example of what I appreciate most with the band. They make these small little changes in atmosphere, sometimes changing tempos to create interesting and dynamic tracks instead of playing the same downtuned chords over and over again

“The Vastness Consumes Us” has a wonderful and mournful guitar solo at the end of the song with an abrasive tone that makes my skin shiver. It’s awesome and is another example of bringing variety into a very straight forward song. What is also striking is that this track reminds of Type O Negative and that’s never a bad thing in my opinion.

The brutality in “Butchered in the Fog” is an absolute ten ton hammer blow. It’s another demanding track through the heaviest landscapes of doom. Whilst treading a familiar path to the other songs and the fact that Volition don’t stray far from the established template, in the end we are served a very delicious and punishing fade out.   Again, this is another example of the band using effective and atmospheric changes to benefit the record, a skill they employ during the whole record.

On the whole, this could be one the bleakest pieces of music you will hear this year and fans of this type of music will not be disappointed. Who want their music colourful anyway? Once I came to my senses, I felt that I have had the honor of listenining to one of the best funeral/death doom records in many years. This record is an absolutely crushing statement.  A record I will set high when I summarize the year.

Words by: Sven-Åke Alveving

‘Wreck Among Ruin’ is available here

For more information:

Listen: http://volition.bandcamp.com/

Like: https://www.facebook.com/volition666

Official: http://www.volitiondoom.co.uk/

Ooze - S/T (Album Review)

Album Type : Full Length

Date Released : Out Now

Label : Total Rust / Forneus Records

Ooze, album track listing :

1). Intro

2). Thankless Life

3). Night Gastric Reflux

4). Worthless

5). The Smoke Told Me How

6). Theft of State

7). Experience the Hatred

8). Dope Visions

9). Shrine

10). Row to the Guillotine

Bio :

Ooze started its path of destruction in late 2011 when friends Antonio Strain, Sirio Palese and Andrea L'Abbate congregated in a dirty, smoke filled, filthy practice space in the middle of Trieste, Italy, to give birth to the bastard child of their corrupted, hazy minds.

After few months of intensive sessions of mental and musical distortion, they started recording their first self-released, self-loathing driven demo CD titled "Sister tank", an infamous collection of intricate, pummeling, rotting riffs topped by thunderous drum work and tortured vocals that took them under the spotlights of the local DIY scene.

Israeli label Total Rust can't resist the band infectious sound and put Ooze under its wing and send them to a proper studio for the first time to record their upcoming LP.

Due to early 2014, the self-titled "Ooze", collects Ooze most punishing, sludgy and perverted material to date.

Their music crawls from the bowels of the most rapidly decaying city in Italy and hits you in the face like the vile stench of stagnant bong water.

Get ready to get smashed by a slimy wave of feedbacks, possibly with a fat joint in your hand

The Band :

Antonio Strain | Bass

Stefano Sokota | Drums

Sirio Palese | Guitars

Andrea l’Abbate | Vocals

Review :

The charmingly titled Ooze hail from the city of Trieste in Italy and their name befits their classic sludge sound. It's filthy, raucous and noisy. It's been up injecting volume and drinking bad feelings for six days straight, and it's starting to look the worse for wear; which automatically qualifies it for lifetime membership around here.

We're like the country club from hell, us: if you can make an unholy racket and ruin the lawn by pissing on it then you're in.

The band's self titled debut full length is very much in the vein of EHG style filth, and would sit right next to Hogslayer on a reinforced shelf (that's a heavy joke, that is). Lashings of malicious groove abound on 'Thankless Life', all suffering from a severe case of feedback of course. The band isn't breaking any moulds but what they do they do very well. Pummelling rhythms and dirty swaggering riffs all interlock with some gnarly vocals to make sure you have a good time. Rock and roll at the extreme end of the spectrum, distilled into a dirty glass.

'Worthless' features a sexy intro full of attitude and much bird flipping. Great slow and low riffing, and hate fuelled vocals to boot. The dude sounds like he's been gargling bile at certain points. This track in particular has a real sense of power behind it for some reason, it's well built and malicious in nature. It never increases beyond anything more than a sedate pace, but it'll rock you. Maybe not like a hurricane, but those things suck anyways.

'The Smoke Told Me How' has a barn burning central riff that's catchier than a can of Pringles dipped in a barrel of herpes. That shit will stay with you, and you'll keep coming back for more again and again and again. Sorry if I just ruined Pringles for you. There's also a seriously cool part towards the end where it slows down to a hideous chug that is punctuated by a violent squeal. Like somebody is stabbing their amp, and it's yelping out in pain. Poor amp, but lucky us.

Italy has been banging out some really good noise over the last few years, and Ooze have joined those ranks with complete disregard for their own personal safety, or indeed the welfare of human ears. This album is rough around the edges and very undercooked, which makes it a success on all fronts when it comes to sludge. An outstanding effort from this young group, I look forward to hopefully documenting their infectious grooves for years to come.

Words by : Matt Fitton

You can buy there CD here

For more information :

http://oozerian.bandcamp.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ooze/143585005756501

https://twitter.com/OOZE_band

http://www.youtube.com/user/Oozerian?feature=guide

Lurk - 'Lurk' (Album Review)

By: Richard Maw

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 12/1/2012

Label: Total Rust

The riffing is taut and focused – indeed, the guitars throughout the album are a lesson in how variations on a theme make songs. This approach gives the record a unified feel.

‘Lurk’ CD//LP track Listing

1) Soar (07:58)

2) Unfinished (04:10)

3) Codec of Becoming God (05:13)

4) Fire The Blood Sky (04:47)

5) Pitch Beneath Eternity (06:18)

6) Deliverance (08:01)

Lurk is:

M. Reinikainen | Bass

A. Pulkkinen | Guitars, Synths

K. Koskinen  | Vocals 

The Review

The record kicks off with ‘Soar’ which, in a way, the track does. The drums are massive and reverbed with the initial groove being replaced by a massive chugging riff with vocals at the lower end of the register. One of the great things about the record is that the vocals shift up and down in pitch with the music itself. This lends an extra dimension to the songs in a genre which at times can be very singular in its approach. The music thus ebbs and flows over the course of the song. There is quite a lot of light to go with the shade on offer here- and the usage of it is very well constructed.  An almost shuffle type rhythm heralds in ‘Unfinished’. The vocals come straight in and an insistent groove is artfully introduced. The riffing is taut and focused – indeed, the guitars throughout the album are a lesson in how variations on a theme make songs. This approach gives the record a unified feel.

‘Codec of Becoming God’ is segued into from ‘Unfinished’. More great grooves here- the vocals are even almost hooky although the lyrics are pitch black. Maybe it's just me, maybe it's that the album contains a track called ‘Deliverance’, but there is something in the riffs here that reminds me of Pepper Keenan era COC- strange but true! Let's be clear though- this is dark, dark stuff and Finland is not one of the Southern States so there the comparison ends. Overdubbing of guitars is used well here as are unusual rhythms and accents within the music.

Just beyond the midpoint of the album lies ‘Fire in the Blood Sky’. The riff that kicks this one off is simply superb! It drops to a groove that is too subtle to be aggressive and has those dynamic shifts that break up the verses and songs that are a hallmark of the album. The structure, the shifts in the music; it all adds up to being a great “song” in the true sense of the word. The vocal delivery reminds me of LG Petrov of Entombed in the mid nineties in places, but again the delivery is varied- different types of sandpaper if you will! There are even some keyboard textures here and they add an effective variety to the sounds on offer.  More ebb and flow can be found within the unusual groove of ‘Pitch Beneath Eternity’. Again, the guitars offer nice variations and phrasing that the vocals match. The tone of the track is rather... grand- in a good way. The range of the vocals is rather impressive and some nice production effects are added around the three and a half minute mark to build the track up again after a shift in dynamic.

The album rounds off with the near eight minute aforementioned ‘Deliverane’, a slow Crowbar-esque groove lumbers into earshot and a great riff reveals itself as the track builds momentum. The paciest section of the album is yielded past the three minute mark and the guitar interplay once again stands out. A bleak black metal type feel takes over and Lurk prove they can't be predicted as they shift the pace to a certified doom cadence. The final two minutes of the record is a slow descent into howling feedback. It is a very fitting ending to a masterfully dynamic and varied release. If you like some variety in your sludge and worship at the altar of more than one genre of metal then this record is most definitely for you. Buy it and find out for yourself!

You can buy the CD here and vinyl here. 

Band info: Facebook  | Bandcamp

shEver - 'Rituals' (Album Review)

By: Seb Bismuth

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 12/5/2012

Label: Total Rust

 

The Doom/death music scene is growing up everyday, seeing new talent arriving from all around the world and shEver, is one of these band.  They are doing something that we have already heard on many Doom albums in the past? No, shEver rejuvenate the genre and give here one of the must have records of this year.

‘Rituals’ CD/DD track Listing:

1. Rituals of Chaos
2. Delirio
3. Je Suis Née
4. Souls Colliding
5. (You Are) The Mirror
6. Tha He Na Te

shEver is:

Alex | eve-ill brutal screaming & voice

Jessica | down-tuned heavy riffing & voice

Nadine | drone-doom bass, infernal growls & violin

Sarah | doomed drums

The Review:

Coming from the beautiful landscapes of Switzerland, shEver is not really a newcomer in the Doom/death Scene.  The band has even earned the respect from many big festivals including the Roadburn thanks to their first album and EP's.  So, one of the first main characteristic of this band is that all the members are women :)  But please, forget all your narrow-minded ideas or old clichés, because sheVer can bury many men's bands.

Let's talk about the music, dark, heavy and by the way DOOOOMy as hell.

shEver really knows its subject and they will prove it in these 6 tracks. The album begins with "Ritual Of Chaos", a really representative song of what is gonna smash you in the face during the following tracks.  The song begins with some arpeggios that directly put you in a state of gloom... and "then comes dinner" dark ambiences, muddy Riffs, and what a sound! Alexandra's vocals are really impressive, sometimes going from growls to clean. She does one of the best vocals I've heard of this kind of Doom/Death release.  The second part of the song comes with an apocalyptic doom riff with an incredible atmosphere reminding me of NEUROSIS.  Don't get me wrong, shEver never really sound like another band and they have found their own sound and style, going from Doom Metal to Death Metal with a kind of Pagan spirit there.  I don't know if shEver have already listened to CELTIC FROST (another famous band from Switzerland), but there is in their music this kind of fantasmagoric atmosphere ... maybe coming from their celtic blood :)

"Rituals" is one of those albums that will not only put cool dark riffs in your ears..... But will transport you into the album.  "Delirio" the second track of the album is another great proof of this and as soon as the first note enters, the sound of the thick bass will put you down.  Playing with the effective recipe of melting dark arpeggios, with mystic whisperings and sludgy bass & drums, shEver have created here a kind of Manual Of Darkness.... turning everything from light to dark."Je suis Nee" is surely one of my favourite tracks. There is here something that every fan of Dark Ambiences will love.  Think about YOB, meeting My Dying Bride and Electric Wizard and you'll have surely one of the best Doom/Death tracks of the year

Doin' a track by track review would be crazy as there is really not any weak songs on this album.  Each track is a kind of chapter in a Book of Occult, they all deal with the same theme but show you a different side of it, track after track.  shEver has without a doubt put the best of themselves in these 6 tracks and this new release will surely help them to conquer some new fans across the world.  Only excellent musicians with a perfect knowledge of the Doom/Death genre can release killer songs as "Tha He Na Te", "Delirio" or "Je suis Née". 

The Doom/death music scene is growing up everyday, seeing new talent arriving from all around the world and shEver, is one of these band.  They are doing something that we have already heard on many Doom albums in the past? No, shEver rejuvenate the genre and give here one of the must have records of this year.

Band info: Facebook | Bandcamp