Albert Einstein once said: “Time is an illusion.”

Hexvessel have managed take this illusion and ingeniously apply it to their rambling 70s inspired psychedelic forest-folk. The result is that the thirty-five minutes running length of their Iron Marsh EP released by Svart Records actually warps the very fabric of space-time. Seconds are stretched and distorted; these are perceived by the listener as hours or even days. At the end of the EP you feel like you’ve had your ears subjected to this dirge for an eternity. When will it stop? Who knows, it just seems to go on, and on, and on ….

Released in May Hexvessel was something of a step into the unknown for me. I’d never heard anything by this strange Finnish group before and I thought what the hell I’ll take a listen. In hindsight perhaps I should’ve tried to catch their No Holier Temple album then perhaps I would’ve have properly prepared my ears for what was to come? I could have bought some cotton wool and plugged them up. So, I’m guessing if you’ve read this far you’ll not be surprised to hear that I wasn’t particularly taken by these five songs, one of which is a Yoko Ono cover. Yes, you read that correctly a Yoko Ono cover! Fundamentally, this EP is one massive over-indulgent weird art project which should have been left alone in the middle of one of the forests they’re trying to pay homage too.

The first track is ‘Masks of the Universe,’ which clocks in at thirteen gruelling minutes. You get horns, a string section, organs and gently picked guitars which all vie for position and it’s simply just bizarre.

“This is the end of the world
This is the end of the world
this is the end of the world
this is the end of it all.”

Well, I was certainly wishing for the end of the world so I could stop listening to this; however, to be fair the song did eventually pick-up somewhat with some slight doom laden riffing but it was all too little too late. Perhaps the target audience for this track are people who are totally stoned? I guess that it would certainly help to get you through to the end of the track, as opposed to just feeling an overwhelming desire to doze off through sheer boredom. Sure, it’s clever dreamy, ephemeral, floating stuff but that’s what makes it so dreary and monotonous.

Next up we are treated to ‘Superstitious Currents’ which thankfully is only a few minutes long. Ghostly vocals, melancholy violins and creepy occult themes merge with the next tune: ‘Tunnel at the End of the Light’ which again conjures up a similarly depressing soundscape.

Then we move onto the low-point of EP, yes the cover of Yoko’s ‘Women of Salem.’ Apparently the band feels that Yoko Ono is a severely undervalued musical innovator. Eh? What? Is this the same Yoko Ono who was with John Lennon? Hmm, I’m not so sure about this. Let’s tick the boxes with this track: odd, tick; occult, tick; trippy, tick. Sounds reasonable on paper, but when you hear it it offends your sensibilities. Honestly, it’s like filler material found on a damaged LP of a 1972 musical which folded after one week. Chants of ”Salem, Salem, witches must hang” and “must kill, must hang” don’t help the situation. There is a nice duet between McNerney and Rosalie Cunningham, but I would struggle to think of anything else positive to say about it.

Then finally, the EP ends with ‘Don’t Break the Curse’ which was fairly uneventful and forgettable.

So, in summary “Iron Marsh” is a weak release from a band which may well be capable of better things. For sure they are good musicians and there’s nothing wrong with borrowing heavily from the 1970s, psychedelia, or doom but if you’re going to do this then make sure you pick all of the best bits and not the parts which most of the influential bands from each genre have decided to leave out.

Avoid.

Death Karma are a two piece blackened death metal outfit from Czech Republic. A Life Not Worth Living is their debut EP and it proves to be an extreme introduction that’ll leave you with an echo on the inside. Comprised of members Tom Coroner (Cult of Fire, Lykathea Aflame) on drums and Infernal Vlad (Cult of Fire, Zio, Maniac Butcher) on vocals, guitars, and bass, the four songs on this EP will surely grab you by the throat and keep you interested with its varying speed changes and style.

'A Dead Oracle' opens the album with slow, drudging chord progressions that fill the room with a particular mood almost instantly. Without warning the pace speeds up, striking the system like a whip on skin. The vocals are ruthless, something you’d imagine hearing from a suffering, mortally injured soldier. The whole track sounds primitive and raw, perfect for those who love the brutality of death metal and the lamented guitar sounds produced in black metal.

'G.G. Funeral' opens with a pornographic audio clip that almost makes you check your Internet browser to see if some kind of rated X pop-up emerged while you were trying to listen to music. The track swiftly explodes out of nowhere into an extreme composition of vicious drumming, and heart attack inducing guitars, causing a shift in the original mood of the album. The death encrusted riffing carry this track on, leaving you wondering what else is in store.

The third track on the EP, 'Dark Omens' presents with a different vocal style, almost as if Infernal Vlad suddently takes the role of a Satan worshiping choir member, summoning his congregation. The track is heavy, like an unrelenting hammering to the face until it is beaten beyond recognition. The track could easily be background music to visuals of someone dying a vicious and violent death and leads perfect into the closure of the EP.

'DeathKaos' is the standout track on the album. It strikes like a thunderstorm, with crashes of lightning every few seconds. The vocals are strongest on this track, spewing devastation in the form of sound directly into the chest. The guitar sound is eerie, coupled with the howl of the vocals and the blaring of the drums, it strikes vehemently while blazing its path.

Although the EP as a whole isn’t over the top unique, it is definitely going to turn some heads. These guys have something with this release, fans of their previous work and new listeners who are in love with extreme metal should be eager to give it a listen. A Life Not Worth Living was released on Iron Bonehead Productions on May 10th, 2013.

A little over a year ago when the existence of Palms was announced to the world there was a rush of excitement about the band. Both Isis and Deftones are revered and incredibly influential bands in their own ways. Expectations were set and for the next year everyone had to wonder what it would be like. Would it transcend the sum of its parts or would it fall into the “supergroup” trap and be too self aware to deliver? Would they be able to step outside of the considerable expectations and create something new but not alienate their collective fanbases? Luckily Palms have delivered a gorgeous debut that is not only worth the wait but exceeds expectations at every turn.

Comparisons to both Isis and Deftones are inevitable but it is apparent from the outset that Palms is quite different than both. ‘Future Warrior’ opens with a simple synth texture and mild electronics before dropping into a mid-tempo groove that is both familiar and fresh sounding. Anchored by wiry guitar melodies and airy vocals it gives a taste of the moody dynamics that make up much of the record. By the time the final climax of the song thunders in, it is apparent that Palms are reaching for the more grandiose and beautiful side of heavy music. Layers of delayed guitars, basses and softly twinkling keys fade out into the spacious ‘Patagonia.’ The opening waves give way to an effected bassline in lockstep with the drums, while hazy vocals and guitars play off each others atmospherics. As ‘Patagonia’ stretches and expands it avoids any cliched "heaviness" Ultimately, this is Palms’ biggest strength on the record. Their ability to be huge and expansive without relying on chugging riffs and overdramatic volume shifts is masterful and refreshing.

‘Mission Sunset’ takes the open and spacious atmosphere even farther than the opening tracks. The fuzzy optimism of the opening verse quickly gives way to a subdued, melancholic build. Pining vocals blend with crackling guitars before releasing all of the tension into a hushed middle section, before crescendoing again to the songs powerful zenith. ‘Shortwave Radio’ sits next to ‘Mission Sunset’ and also works because of its alternating light and dark moods. Guitars, bass and vocals layer melodies over each other through tenuous mood shifts until tightening into a brooding climb to the heaviest section of the album. These two songs in particular show off the expansive arrangements and dynamic range that Palms is capable of.

Whereas both ‘Mission Sunset’ and ‘Shortwave Radio’ thrive on slow builds and climactic release ‘Tropics’ is all ethereal beauty. Echoey keyboards and subtle slide guitar flourishes combined with some of the best vocals on the entire album make ‘Tropics’ a sublimely gorgeous song. The final song on the record ‘Antarctic Handshake’ is one part dreamy ambient meandering and one part upbeat soundscape. The final delayed refrain closing out the album with a quiet whisper. You’ll probably just start the whole thing over at this point.

What really works for Palms is the attention and emphasis on mood and feel over brute force. The music undulates and breathes without ever sounding forced or overwrought. Repeat listens begin to yield even more layers and little bits of ear candy that show the care that went into this project. There is enough here for fans of both bands to find some comfort in but it is still a very new and unique endeavor. Many people will be wondering if it was worth the wait, rather than the end of a wait, I hope this is the beginning of a long career.

It is marvelous.

Killsong is perhaps an apt name for a band that wants to do everything differently and that’s certainly the case here. After listening to their debut album He is Risen this Australian oufit might give you the impression that they are a bunch of lunatics but in fact we have to deal here with some very experienced veterans in the Australian experimental music scene. With former members from bands like Squat Club, Darth Vegas, Mr.Bamboo and Jimmy Swouse & The Angry Darts among others, this collective presents a whirlwind of styles in a quite deranged way. Influences from metal, funk, jazz and even spoken poetry are melted into an avant-garde form of music where nothing makes sense in terms of melody, harmony, rhythm etc.

The 5 ‘songs’ are in fact bizarre stories told by the maniacal vocalist Dano, sometimes very hilarious but then again also quite heartfelt. ‘Dear Anthony’ opens with saxophone, waltzing from jazz to blues and some freaky, over-zealous vocals which immediately reminded me of Captain Beefheart but above all John Zorn’s Naked City (with the screams of Yamatsuka Eye). After 3,5 minutes the song suddenly becomes a weird spoken word performance in which the story is told about a lost youth friendship due to the fact that ‘Anthony’ got a girlfriend. It’s hilarious but also very recognisable about the change of people when they grow up.

‘Pissflaps’ Magic Medicine’ is the weird title of a mainly instrumental piece that kicks off with some strange classical chamber orchestra playing again something of a waltz of polka. Next, the band changes gears and it’s back to jazz slowing down the pace. This, rather dark, atmosphere (with the sound of laughing children), is then abruptly slashed by disturbingly distorted laughs and a frantic outburst with wild sax and screaming violins again in the vein of John Zorn’s Naked City. The 2nd part of this piece has some twisted lyrics about rabbits (in fact it says: "Don’t fuck rabbits") and sounds like one rabbit has gone mad in working itself towards an orgasm.

Is that You Mr. Roebuck?’ has some explicit lyrics about…well you should listen yourself. The music again is a kind of whirlwind between jazz, trashmetal and funk. ‘Hotdogs’ is a nod to Captain Beefheart’s period with Frank Zappa (Bong Fury) telling the story of an unhappy guy who, under false pretences  is taken to the red light district in Amsterdam to meet a she-male called Layla Laticia. But when this unhappy guy finds this out he gets so angry that he want to kill his friend and of course the she-male with a…..hotdog!

The final piece ‘He is Risen (slight return)’ is a melancholic, drowned in alcohol, Tom Waits kinda blues played in a piano bar. In between you get the typical Zappa inspired, quick but short sound collages. Finally the piece gets louder and louder with the noise of distorted hammering on a piano first sounding like a child’s toy, repeating itself like the end of an LP, but in the end sounding more like a passing train. A sudden silence marks the end of this twisted journey.

Obviously this album is not for the weak at heart, in fact you must have a very open mind for musical experiments but if you have…..this is a very good album and it makes you definitely look forward to more from this mad and deranged combo.

There’s always a thin line between genius and madness and this certainly applies to this work. Listen and decide for yourself.

Lesbian are tricky to describe but to have a shot I would say they are a shroom worshipping doom metal band from Seattle who play crushingly heavy progressive jams. Their previous albums Power Hor and Stratospheria Cubensis were both truly epic pieces of work designed to take listeners on a trippy yet sometimes brutal voyage through unknown environments where anything could happen. If going on a voyage of this kind is something which appeals to you, not only do I like you but you urgently need to hop on board their latest cosmic offering Forestelevision which is comprised of just a sole 44 minute long song. This opus sees Lesbian somehow smashing down further boundaries that nobody even knows exist and tapping into weird and chaotic parts of your brain to provide you with a carnage filled hallucinogenic experience. Get in!

The album art offers us with clues to Forestelevision, a minimal shot of some woods through a sinister visual effect which is unsettling but also triggers curiosity. This is about escaping daily life and manmade stuff and plugging yourself into Mother Nature for a more primitive life with 100% freedom. This freedom might involve guzzling down the occasional mushroom if you so wish and has also empowered Lesbian to deliver us such a unique metal experience.

It starts with a warm hum of doomy riff with spacey FX lurking in the background before super slow drums kick in and we’re then punished growling mix of death and black metal vocals. Sound heavy? Yes it is fucking heavy and could stand up to just about anyone in that department. It’s slightly unnerving but before you know everything is breaking down into more of a psychedelic vibe, almost like Colour Haze or Earthless have rocked up for a jam. WOAH! We have had lift on this voyage and promised an adventure of a life time. Thankfully it more than delivers! We’re treated to many influences and styles across the album… post-rock, stoner rock, sludge rock and just as you get comfortable it morphs into something else making it a truly cosmic roller-coaster of an experience.

It totally immerses you and plays enchanting games with your imagination. There is a point where you are flying down a pitch black tunnel towards an unknown destination whilst dodging bolts of lightning which reveal subliminal visuals wizards travelling alongside you. I’m not sure what these wizards are up to and whether they are good or bad guys sorry, all I know is that this album is ridiculous! We’ve been given an unexpected yet brilliant conclusion where things turn slightly classic rock, everything gets a little happier and someone hammers out a ‘Stars in Their Eyes’ final winning impression of King Diamond. There’s certainly a hint of cheese in the air, next level genius!

Instead of a metal album written by four musicians, I believe that Forestelevision has been swirling somewhere in the cosmos in some intangible form since the dawn of time which needed to be unlocked and channelled by Lesbian so it could be experienced by us mere mortals. It’s a force beyond our understanding but I do know an album with such vision and ambition is exactly where metal should be at in 2013 and is a truly remarkable achievement. My album of the year so far for 2013.

Two man band Bölzer pack a pretty good punch on this vinyl EP. HzR on the drums and KzR handling guitars and vocals; these guys are full of hell and great at laying it out there. Really great, the lack of any other members isn’t even noticeable. This entire EP sounds like a full band delivering the goods. And those goods are….good..?

Side A: The first track ‘CME’ (which is abbreviated by the band for a reason, look it up) opens up with a slugged out riff that grows as the drums behind it are spinning in circles. It’s a mid-pace locked song, the slow headbanging type. That is until you get past the first minute. From there on it’s a spiraling black metal/death metal fusion of dizzying madness. The guitars are deep and pack a good roar that compliments the low vocals of KzR. And when I say the guitars are “dizzying” I honestly mean it. At one point I felt like I was at a goddamn circus from hell. And it felt good, yet disorienting.

The other track on Side A is another at times mind bender titled ‘Entranced by the Wolfshock’. This song barrows occasional notes or themes I should say, from the previous song. But as it progresses it becomes a mad dance of guitars and blast beats. Then the boys pull a sudden tempo shift and slow this party down. And the circular riffs come back for the attack!! Not for too long though, Bölzer speed it back up for a climatic ending, no fading out. On to Side B!!

Side B: One track here, at a length of nearly 11 minutes. So it’s safe to say we’re going to hear some more madness, and plenty of it. At times the vocals are over shadowed by the guitars and drums, but it adds elements of deviance and grim to the music. The spiraling riff we heard on Side A’s songs makes an appearance now and then. But, this side of the EP seems to be more of an up and down experience. The occasional slight shifts in speed that curve right back to full pace are done well. When the band does dip into the slow speeds and haunting noises, the death/black metal factor is put on hold, and we have a doomed-the-fuck-out band on our hands. At the tail end of the song you’re left with goose bump-inducing industrial sounds covered in echoes that radiate inside your soul. Pretty fucking evil.

Bölzer have put out a nice EP in Aura and I encourage you to seek it out and give it a listen. One can only hope a full-length album is in the works. But for now, you can grab this on wax through Iron Bonehead Productions.

Do it loud and proud. Support the bands you love and enjoy.

HAIL!!!!!!

I’m sure that a lot of you remember well Acadia, the debut album of Tim Waterfield, aka Karhide, released in 2010.

The Southampton native artist is back with a new EP that will be released next June 17th via the independent label Field Records. Rough Sleep is going to blow your mind with its 30 minutes journey. The 5 songs offer some truly haunting Post-Rock/Post-Metal riffs. I listened to Rough Sleep again and again and I’m still in trouble in defining this album genre of music: it isn’t 100% Post Rock and it isn’t 100% Post-Metal.

What I can say is that it’s a fine balancing act of the two with electronic elements inside. Very loud moments are mixed with the quieter post-rock creating a great effect. Tim Waterfield’s music of is in fact influenced by a multitude of genres and the outcome is a unique style of noisy electronic, post rock and post metal. Indeed the first thing you'll notice about this album is the change in the rhythm throughout its songs.

The opening title track, ‘Rough Sleep’, was originally composed for a fundraising compilation for homelessness charity Shelter. Karhide gave his contribution together with other huge bands like Four Tet, Karma To Burn and Wire. The starting of this song will remind you of a military march accompanied by an electronic beep but this effect will disappear soon leaving the whole stage to a guitar riff that will make your head bang uncontrollably. I really like the clean post-rock guitar melodies at the last part of the song.
The following ‘Piano Run’ seems to be a continuation of the previous song. This track has a typical post rock start with an electronic beat that imposes the rhythm to the whole song and is built on two levels, the piano and the guitars, that alternate creating a memorable vertigo. Approximately four and a half minutes into ‘Piano Run’ and we get a great melodic break. Gorgeous stuff.

Forget the piano melody and go into a ‘Daydream’ dimension where you can recognize the influence of someone like Four Tet but in a darker version. This song is a mix of sounds that evokes also a mix of feelings. It’s sweet in some part, dark in other and sometimes is frightening. It’s a song full of tension and would be perfect as the soundtrack to a drama film. I see it perfect for Requiem for a Dream: Darren Aronofsky should consider this tune for similar kind of movies. ‘Daydream’ will keep you breathless till the end.

‘Excerpts from sleep (MAB Rough Sleep Remix)’ is something never heard before. It’s the marriage of the best electronica with the best post rock: it’s a sort of rock-electronic that indicates the fact that Karhide has no long term plans in his mind, but instead always try to explore a found sound, record it, and again move on to the next thing.

The concluding ‘Ego Plusher (Mender Rough Sleep Remix)’ is again a new experiment of Waterfield that will bring you out of this world into a spatial dimension where the only admitted creatures are the instruments that create an original sound I could never define, augmented amply by the rhythmic mastery of Ash ‘Mender’ West-Mullen. The only solution is that I recommend you listen to it carefully.

Rough Sleep deserves that you listen to it many times and each time you’ll be able to discover new sounds and new shades. And this is the power of this EP. Rough Sleep is really a breathtaking record that I have had great pleasure in reviewing.

Have a listen and enjoy then, there is a great deal of potential here.

The first thing I thought when watching a teaser video for Naam’s Vow was “Wow, this reminds me of Tool.”

The video, posted by Max Wormbrodt, is of Naam at GaluminumFoil Productions recording a song that I can’t seem to pinpoint on the album. Bassist John Preston Bundy plays a bass riff that sounds very Justin Chancellor-esque, both in style and tone. And it’s not often that bands remind me of Tool, even when they are cited as a major influence; more often than not, they’re claimed as a main inspiration for generic radio hard rock bands that play standard verse-chorus-verse songs in nothing but 4/4, as opposed to bands with progressive tendencies.

So it’s strange for me to get that feeling from a band that doesn’t sound all that much like Tool when the entire package is examined. Naam are far more rooted in psychedelic rock, inspired by Hawkwind and Pink Floyd and bearing similarities to The Black Angels, Young Hunter, and Astra.

There is some complexity to Vow, but for the most part Naam focus on atmosphere rather than nonstandard song forms and time signature fuckery. However, there is a harder, darker edge to their music that is not present in the typical neopsych band, a good deal of which can be credited to Bundy’s Chancellor-esque bassing.

‘Skyscraper’ is driven primarily by Bundy, while the guitars on ‘Vow’ and ‘Beyond’ remind me of Adam Jones trying to emulate some classic fuzzy psych. These are juxtaposed with tracks like ‘Pardoned Pleasure,’ ‘Of the Hour,’ and ‘Midnight Glow,’ which are warmer and sound closer to the traditional psychedelic rock sound.

It is the synth work of Johnny ‘Fingers’ Weingarten that ties the two together. Besides having a kickass nickname, Fingers is fantastic at constructing atmosphere, staking his claim to a dominant place on the album with the instrumental introduction ‘A Call’ and continuing to add a spacey feel to the album all the way through to the outro track ‘Adagio.’ ‘Laid to Rest,’ a short acoustic track, is transformed from a quick little interlude to a standout moment on the album through his work. He contributes much to the unsettling nature of ‘Skyscraper’ and is essential to hard-rocking numbers like ‘Midnight Glow.’

Naam are well on their way to becoming standouts in the neopsych scene and fans of the style are sure to be all over this album. Not many bands are able to capture the contrast between the earthy and the spacey sides of psychedelic rock in one place, and Naam’s ability to do so separates them from many of their brethren. Vow is at times warm and inviting, at others cold, haunting, and dark, and at all times beautifully arranged and composed, and missing this album would be a mistake.

Matthew Cooper, aka Eluvium, based in Portland, Oregon has been presenting us with fine electronic instrumental music for a good few years now. With Nightmare Ending, a sprawling 2 CD, 80 minute opus, he takes us on a journey of incredible and beautifully arranged modern symphonies. The label releasing his music is the tremendous Temporary Residence Limited, who are also responsible for bringing Mono records into the world. I cannot thank the people behind this label enough for ensuring that this music is heard. For it needs to be heard. This is music.

I'd never heard of Eluvium before until I ventured down to Dublin to see Explosions in the Sky around the release of All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone. Cooper had just released Copia, and had done a remix of an Explosions track for their bonus CD. As the support that night, a solo figure sat behind a laptop, guitar in hand, he was creating these incredible electro soundscapes with minimal effort. I was dabbling in one-man-show-guitar-electronica myself at the time and was in my element watching this guy perform.

Six years later, having missed out on all his releases since (shame on me), it was with trepidation that I selected Nightmare Ending to review. Twitter was going apoplectic with encouraging snippets of information regarding how good it is. The weight of expectation was making it a long wait to get the preview copy.

On first listen, my immediate thoughts were along the lines of "How do you begin to do explain in mere words how good this is?". Repeated listens only made it worse as each track wound its way out of the speakers and took me to other places, where words matter not. The weight of everyday life reduced to dust.

...and I'm still finding it hard to transcribe into words. Usually, my reviews will look closely at the individual tracks of an album, a closer inspection of the highs and (any) lows will be considered. The enormity of Nightmare Ending and its 14 tracks, the very fact that each and every one is as good as the next, renders this sort of analysis almost irrelevant. But it's my duty to provide you with some informative appraisal.

As a way of introduction, opener 'Don't Get Any Closer' winds up on a zither-eal drone, waves of warm stringed chords wash over, plaintive piano winds its way through the track before a heaving organ completes the mix. Reminiscent of composer Angelo Badalamenti and his signature arrangements, Eluvium makes modern soundtracks for unmade films. 'Unknown Variation' begins with the chatter of static, echoed clatter like some outer space train station can be heard, synth chords eerily enhance the backdrop and the whole thing ends in a brilliant warped guitar drone that Kevin Shields would be proud of.

'Caroling' is the best of many short piano-only tracks, uplifting but yet full of mourning. 'Chime' continues this theme, only this time the piano is of the bar saloon variety, processed through an echo chamber; out of this world. Centrepiece 8-minute epic 'Rain Gently' is all lush chords and swooning guitars, the chord progression borrowed from a certain 90s pop hit.

Ultimate highlight has to be the incredible 'Covered In Writing', airy strings float in the cloud filled sky, it's such a tragic tune, but at the same time incredibly uplifting. The album ends with 'Happiness', book ending the set with another hymnal organ piece, this time featuring the vocals of Ira Kaplan of Yo La Tengo.

I'm really not surprised at all about the amount of praise that's being given regarding Nightmare Ending. This album should be prescribed on the NHS as a relaxant medication. Actually, no, it should just be made compulsory listening for everyone, the world would be a better place.

Goddag music soldiers. Oxide Tones opened its castle window and a fresh wind from the north of Sweden arrived bringing a wave of energy: let’s say hello to Sey Hollo, the one man band that is giving a great contribution to the Swedish musical scene. Sey Hollo is Sebastian Larsson and the main tag applied to his music is post-rock but I think that he goes farther exploring the land of post metal and progressive rock. Sey Hollo is really an open-minded rock band.

Sey Hollo’s first album was released in 2010 and in the two years since Larsson has put out 2 further digital releases. Kombinat is the new album and a mother of pearl in the instrumental rock scene.

In his project Larsson combines elements of post-rock and metal influences exploring the realm of the sound he has crafted over these years and conjures an album that will appease long time fans and newcomers alike. Kombinat is aligned with the previous album and fans of Sey Hollo will recognize the vocal samples that the Swedish artist used to put in his songs.

The new album is a show of musical strength, effort, feeling and solidity that goes through 6 catchy tunes in about 50 minutes – the shortest track being 5 minutes long.

The opening ‘Bunker of Bare Life’ is a sample of the album as a whole. It contains all the elements we’ll find throughout our northern journey. The song induces a tremendous vertigo with its bouncing, serpentine guitar lines that dominate the main rhythm of this track. And the second half of this tune has a rhythm that doesn’t allow you to rest: it keeps your heart beating together with the drums and the psychedelic loop that Sebastian created.

If you are thinking of having a break ‘Haraka Haraka Haina Baraka’ will betray your expectations. It begins with a growing bass drum pattern accompanied by an oscillating synthesis and echoing tremolo picked guitar lines. An 8 minute song in total and, after the first 3 that are mainly metal, the rhythm changes completely like a crack in a wall and the beauty that follows will let you flying away and develop an emotional resonance you wouldn't expect. The light flows high through the hole and the darkness of the intro disappear, however towards the end of ‘Haraka Haraka Haina Baraka’ darkness comes back again. This mix of edges and sonorities is wonderful.

‘Terroture’ is epic! This song moves and you can't avoid coming along for the ride. There's something irresistible in it. A dark tune dressed with a memorable melodic sauce with a continuous crescendo. 7 minutes closing with vocals, the oldest music instrument. This song is a work of art and definitely my favorite song from this album.

‘Lusaka Funeral Association’ is built around two dangerous riffs, the second more progressively shattering than the first one. Listening to this song has the effect of suffocating: you are in a room and the air is slowly ripped from your lungs but few seconds before the total darkness prevails an unknown force pulls you upward to a mysterious haven where you can breathe again in the presence of something eternal. The eternal space is offered by ‘Crowds at The End of The World’, the longest track on Kombinat. The two songs together are a mix of loud and soft contrasts characterized by playing lingering, drifting notes and heavy riffs.

The closing ‘Jimmy’s’ starts with vocals talking about our everyday sharing of knowledge, experiences and ideas. Only Jimmy doesn’t want to do it! This track is dominated by a memorable piano that makes you stop and saying ‘‘hey, what is this?’’.

‘Jimmy’s’ is out of the chorus, it’s another album, another world or the celebration of an end. It’s full of light after an intense journey through darkness and lightness alternation. It’s the wonderful conclusion of a great music show.
I listened to this album again and again and I’m impressed by its beauty. Kombinat is intense, dark and mysterious but also full of hope. I really love it.

Of Martyr’s Agony and Hate is the second album from five-piece, Spanish, brutal, tech/ death metal band Scent of Death (currently signed to Bloody Productions). Formed in 1998 Scent of Death, have seen several changes in line-up, and waited six years between releasing their first 2005 album, Woven In The Book of Hate (that I’ve not been able to get my hands on) and the recording of this follow-up album in 2011.

After completing the mastering of the album in 2012, Of Martyrs's Agony and Hate was released through Pathologically Explicit Recordings this year. Consisting of nine, dark and grisly tracks that are hard, fast and frantically complex, ultimately defining that in short, it is quality and not quantity that takes precedence in relation to the direction Scent of Death have been travelling in over the last fourteen years, and the level of blood, sweat and nightmares that presumably - if this album is anything to go by - have gone into their recording process.

The album begins with ‘Awakening Of The Liar’ which as far as its intro goes may as well be the noise you’d expect to hear when you’re screeching open the gates of hell. As the unpleasant ghosts and ghouls of the past are fully awoken and unleashed, I’d suggest you run for your puny insignificant lives ahead of tightly wound brutal tech that will pummel the fu(ck) out of you if you stand still too long. Then there’s ‘The Enemy of my Enemy’ with creepy, sinister growls, and impressive blast beats and shredding it’s kind of like inviting a sped up version of Cradle of Filth and DragonForce to a party and having them endure a heated argument with one another via the medium of sound. Or to be less imaginative, think in the “eat your heart out and devour it” style of Morbid Angel.

Even the slower paced tracks on the album hold no mercy being just as impressively stifling and intoxicating still holding the tenacity to evoke the anti-Christ. Look out for ‘A Simple Twist of Faith’ for a daily dose of “this is what happens when you wake up a raging beast.” and the very much needed interlude “The Sleeper Must Awake” for melodic instrumentation that goes to show however brutal/technical/outrageous these guys are, they are so much more than growls and beatdowns. Fans of Immolation, Morbid Angel, Cannibal Corpse, come out of your caves and grab a copy, this album’s for you. Finishing thought: If this is what hell on earth sounds like…I kinda like it.

Here we go again. Canada brings in another blistering slab of metal, albeit black metal. Gevurah claim to uphold the true values of black metal, praises to Satan with intellectual thought into their music and lyrics. I myself am no professional on the fallen angel myself; I’d say they’re doing a good job though.

‘The Essence Unbound’ is slow lighting of the candles before the attack of blast beats and tremolo picked guitars begin to dominate your ears. The vocals are clean in a sense that you can make out the lyrics, but make no mistake, they are spitting evil. The occasional Tom G. Warrior “UGH!” is thrown in as well, much appreciated. At one point the drums lead out and you think the song is over, but it’s simply opening up for an eerie guitar passage and incantations for the damned. ‘Flesh Bounds Desecrated’ is a straight shot of evil all the way through, sometimes pushing the vocals into the background and the bass forward in the mix, making the vocals more of an instrument for atmosphere. It adds an all around evil to the song that sounds perfect.

‘The Throne of Lucifer’ stays a slower pace with a great set of guitar riffs all over the song and a steady, slow and strong beat. Occasional speeds in the drums do occur, but this song is all burning hellfire and devoting. Vocals are mixed between yells and chants (and one more UGH! for good measure). ‘Divine Ignition’ is the mass at its highest moments. A mixed-bag as far as tempos and volumes, but make no mistake, this is a dynamic ritual being performed. The last track, a cover of Malign’s ‘Entering Timeless Halls’ rounds out this Ep nicely.

A fine EP of black metal: end of story. If you like the genre you’d be a fool not to pick this up. Black metal for the black mass. May 28th through Profound Lore Records, mark your calendars. Pick up this brief sermon and enjoy.

HAIL!!!!!

A ghastly feeling immediately takes hold upon introduction to the Black Testament. As the pages turn, the body is slowly sucked in and encapsulated in darkness. Rigidity is felt in the hands and the stomach as the sounds begin contracting their heavy grip around the intestines. All of a sudden a cold chill and a familiar transfixing energy are felt.  The dynamism of obscurity and decay, the recollection of life lost.

As one song bends to the next, the progression follows a journey heavy with rapacious vocals that ignite a fear that’s both disquieting and apocalyptic. As 'Carving A Temple' progresses, so begins a walk down a spiral staircase of unimaginable expanse. This descent is both dark and dreary alike, reminiscent of something unknown and unsettling. The drums create a storm and the guitars weep, the atmosphere grows darker and darker.

‘Eyes of the Earth’ strikes with an eeriness that feels as though you’re being watched from afar, like an ominous being is burning a hole in your back. With a guitar sound that almost screams, a grimacing scene is painted. The album closes with ‘Black Testament,’ a song that winds and weaves in haunting tempos that guide the listener to the end, unleashing the hammering that closes the book.

This album as a whole will delight the tastes of someone with a thirst for Dissection (only more raw), Watain, Sorhin, or Craft. Hailing from Sweden, this is the bands 7th full length in follow-up to their last release, Wrath Upon the Earth. Svartsyn is a Swedish word for “pessimism,” and the gloom and blackened ghastliness of this album holds true to that meaning.

With their full-length debut album, The Only Truth Is Music, 6-piece His Name is Codeine present a subtle blend of mixed-up Americana fuzz and reverb heavy punk and psyche-rock. The band are clearly influenced by The Velvet Underground (VU), Spiritualized, The Black Angels and The Jesus and Mary Chain and have used these groups as a springboard to create a dense, energetic and impressive record which is happy to be both seedy and, at times, extremely refined.

This is a difficult balance to achieve but when they get it right we are treated to indignant and concentrated songs which suggest that the band want to break free of the small-town of Elgin and soar much, much higher.

The LP opens with ‘My Tragic End’ which sees surges of passionate punk guitar blending with Lyn Ralphs's rumbling vocals. This is pop with a prog rock edge, all dished-up with self-assurance and vigour.

‘Before the Apple Fell’ follows, their first single, which perfectly balances arrogance with intimidation before ‘Shoot To Kill’ animates the brooding soul of Jesus and Mary Chain with a nice vocal interplay that is intensely raucous yet harmonious.

‘Not A Number’ sees the introduction of Americana and country influences. For me this was the weak point of the release, I personally just can’t stand this genre of music but fans will lap it up. Next ‘Magdalena’ sees a dizzy madrigal being offset by guitar noise and a cold, repetitive bass line before ‘Replica Gun’ switches the temperament back to pop, which is a jarring change that makes for a pleasing dynamic contrast.

‘The Measure of Your Misery’ opens with a bluesy feel which does nothing to prepare the listener for guitar bursts which abruptly attack before the sweeping melody makes a comeback. ‘I’m Not In Love (With The Way Things Are)’ starts quietly and then suddenly the listener is engulfed in rolling waves of guitar complemented by crashing drumming before returning back to the serenity of the beginning. The album closes with ‘Medal’ which sees the band back in VU mode: slide guitar glints off gleaming singing before coiling around a recurring eddy of sound and vocals.

The Only Truth Is Music may appear to be an arrogant assertion for a band's first full length release, but here it’s absolute reality.

The spoken word juxtaposed with music can be an immersive and rewarding experience, in particular powerful rumbling minor chord majesty such as found on GSYBE’s ‘Dead Flag Blues’ from their F# A# (Infinity) album, can take you to places that are hard to find.

Above all though, it has to be the music that provides the emotion and tone, and this is why I have always found Jeff Wayne’s War of the Worlds a bit clunky and obvious.  Indeed, it now seems to have found its more natural home on the theatre stage, where the drama can be played out as first intended.

So we come to a concept album by Australian artist Mark Healy released under his band name Hibernal.

The Machine is ostensibly a solo release by Mark who clearly wears his Porcupine Tree and Steven Wilson influences on his sleeve. No bad thing, in fact some of the instrumental sections are superb and have a spacy, fluidity reminiscent of the best of Lightbulb Sun, Up the Downstair and Signify. Don’t forget that Mr Wilson was heavily influenced by Pink Floyd and there is an element of Floydian dreaminess here as well.

However, the narrative sections simply don’t carry the album well enough for me. It might be my age (old !) but I’ve heard this corporate story so many times in different formats it is definitely tired now –  the cliché of the giant company taking away any individuality and replacing people, or parts of people in this case, with machines is frankly old hat.

The first time through, it’s reasonably rewarding and you find yourself wanting to see what happens but after that, it becomes a rather tiresome, am-dram affair and I really can’t imagine anyone reaching for this after more than 2 or 3 spins.

There are no individual tracks as such that you could pick out and think ‘Yeh, I fancy a bit of that again’ and it really does need a full play through for maximum effect, so this in turn limits it’s repeat playability.

There is no disputing the artistry involved here.  The recording is flawless, crisp and clear. The playing is precise and involving in certain sections and the actors perform their spoken parts with authority.

But for me, it just doesn’t work which is a shame as I really wanted to like it ……