#holocaustum

HELLO EVERYONE!

This week we’ve got new music from Antigama, My Grimace, Civil War, Holocaustum, Within Silence, and more! Plus a re-release of Switchblade Jesus’s fiery self-titled debut album, and the latest from Veil Of Maya entitled “Matriarch”, their first album featuring Arms Of Empire frontman Lukas Magyar.

To top it off, we’ve got the sophomore album, entitled “The Great White Dope”, from Sun & Sail Club, a supergroup featuring ex-Kyuss/ex-The Obsessed bassist Scott Thomas Reeder, The Adolescents frontman Tony Adolescent, and both Bob Balch and Scott Reeder from Fu Manchu. It’s a seriously killer record.

Anyways, enjoy!

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"When The Smoke Clears" by Hinder

Hard Rock

Released May 12th 2015

    It's easy to think that right off the bat, the loss of Austin Winkler has taken A LOT out of the band, after the incredibly uneventful and slow opening of 'Rather Hate Than Hurt'. In some ways, thats true: these guys aren't exactly singing stuff like 'All American Nightmare' on here, but interestingly despite its lack of energy, "When The Smoke Clears" features Hinder at their most expansive. They've continued to bring in elements of 80's glam, but have strayed entirely from post-grunge and instead bringing in elements of heartland rock and southern rock, similar to the likes of Bon Jovi and recent-Lynyrd Skynyrd, evident from the huge and growing hooks of 'Hit The Ground' or the pop-country infusions of 'Foolish Eyes'. Industrial and modern metal even plays a subtle role on tracks like 'Dead To Me' and 'Intoxicated'. Musically these guys are stretching their wings, but it's still impossible to deny the slow and tiring pace of the record, particularly when all the songs are about loss, depression, and alcoholism (an ironic choice perhaps considering Austin's apparent stints in rehab). "When The Smoke Clears" lacks an energy, a serious kick to keep it going despite its interesting musical leaps. If you prefer slower rock though, this may be interesting for you.

Rating: 3/5 (Decent)

"Matriarch" by Veil Of Maya

Metalcore/Progressive Metal

Released May 12th 2015

    I've always been bored by most Veil Of Maya music - the complexity is interesting but never offered much that I hadn't already heard from several other modern prog and djent-style bands. "Matriarch" in some aspects is very much the same, but also reaches out more thanks to the use more traditional melodies and the sometimes dreaded 'clean-vocals' approach. However, it works for Veil Of Maya. The hooks are simple enough that they don't even stand out THAT much, and dig right into the song. They offer a contrast among the janky Periphery/Meshuggah-style djent riffery that has become the mainstay for this genre, via the post-hardcore esque soars of 'Ellie' and 'Aeris', or the grand layered melodies of 'Lucy' and 'Mikasa' (the latter in particular might be my favourite song they've done... no really). Musically, this is the same band - if you liked them before, chances are you'll still like them now, but my problem is that, as noted, I never cared for them to begin with. I struggled to write this because I really feel that clean vocals was the only element that really stood out from their usual formula and added something to the sound. Veil Of Maya made a step in the right direction, but that's it. One singular step.

Rating: 2.5/5 (Mediocre)

"Switchblade Jesus" (Re-Release) by Switchblade Jesus

Southern Metal /Heavy Metal

Released May 12th 2015

   Apparently this is a re-release, but that hardly matters considering I know little about this band, so let's do some learning: this album was originally released back in 2013, and it's out again now thanks to a new deal with Ripple Records. As far as I can tell, this release isn't different from the original, so fans shouldn't expect new material (but hey, I could be wrong so maybe look that up for yourself). The rest of us though, now have a re-mastered world of delicious Texan rock and metal to dig right into, as Switchblade Jesus unleash wave after wave of wonderfully soulful and heavy stoner metal with southern tendencies kicking all around, not too dissimilar from the likes of Black Label Society, but sharper and certainly more soulful. Opening track 'Into Nothing' starts the album on a sombre note before evolving into blues metal cruncher 'Bastard Son', and from there it really begins: 'Sick Mouth' is ripe with delicious southern grooves, 'Renegade Riders' strolls in with blues-dredged confidence and biker attitude, and 'Copperhead' piles on punishing riffs 'Children Of The Grave'-style. It's not a very original album, but it's execution reeks of heart and soul, and it's riffs and hooks are too infectious to ignore.

Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

"In The Fields They Bled" by Holocaustum

Death Metal

Released May 12th 2015

    While they brand themselves as blackened death metal, Holocaustum actually exist on a line between all sub-genres of death. There are elements of tech-death, melo-death, slam, grind, and blackened on top of an incredibly heavy and consistently brimming death metal base, and it gives "In The Fields They Bled" a diversity that is often non-existant in this genre. 'Atrocities Of War' for example opens on some relentless deathgrind riffing before bringing in huge technical sweeps and blackened rhythm guitar, and 'The Empire Falls' feels more like a mix of recent Behemoth and Cannibal Corpse, with brooding doom-infused riffery and some huge blackened turns before adding melo-death riffs half-way through. In fact, the only thing consistently 'death metal' about this album are the lyrics (zombies, murder, war, Satan, etc.) and the throat heavy gutturals, which are the only part of the record that don't impress simply because they're so generic and by comparison. "In The Fields They Bled" is perhaps an attempt at bridging the subtle gaps in death metal, and it really delivers throughout its duration. There are some sound mixing nitpicks here and there, but I see no reason why a big death metal wouldn't dig this.

Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

"Holy Serpent" by Holy Serpent

Stoner Rock/Doom Metal

Released May 12th 2015

    Holy Serpent manages to stand firm on a line between simplicity and progression, between being a straightforward back-to-basics hard rock troop to being dark, moody, and incredibly psychedelic assault of noise. Their fusion of Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats, Kyuss, and Electric Wizard is deep, focusing on droning stoner rock riffs and trippy instrumental sweeps, with plenty of the genre's trademark static and fuzz floating behind, via the slow doom metal-infused 'Shroom Doom', the free-flowing acid rock meets sludge jamming of 'Fools Gold', or the righteous Mastodon-like riffery of self-titled track of 'Holy Serpent'. The instrumentation is surprisingly tight, considering this is Holy Serpent's debut LP, delivering crunching riffs one after the other with no hesitation and tons of Jimi Hendrix worshipping bluesy solo's. Vocals tend to stick to spacey and psychedelic tendencies, with few actual hooks, but that's a minor complaint - Holy Serpent delivers the stoner rock goods here better than the genre's veterans.

Rating: 4/5 (Great!)

"Gods & Generals" by Civil War

Power Metal

Released May 12th 2014

    This sophomore record from Civil War, consisting mostly of former members of Sabaton, show's a consistency in sound that is lost among young bands. That consistency however is one that carries over from Sabaton, which begs the question: will Civil War even matter to you if you don't like Sabaton? The short answer is absolutely not, as even the albums attempts to stray from the obvious Sabaton comparisons are laughable at best. Piano musical-like segments in 'Braveheart' feel incredibly cheesy and unnecessary, and folk metal elements go un-noticed thanks to the albums massive sound, where power metal guitars dominate and choirs fill every gap of sound. Everything else still feels like Sabaton, albeit perhaps a touch heavier and arguably faster, from the big hooks of 'Bay Of Pigs', the slow brooding build-up of 'The Mad Piper', and of course the warfare and weaponry obsessed-lyrical content that is the base for EVERY song. Vocals are typical power metal fare, with a few weirdly nasally bits here and there, but ultimately nothing out of the ordinary. "Gods & Generals" is pretty standard and obnoxious power metal, and its few attempts at proving otherwise don't help it. "Gods & Generals" isn't bad, but it offers nothing compelling, and for a genre built on grandiosity and power, that's a borderline crime.

Rating: 2/5 (Poor)

"The Insolent" by Antigama

Grindcore/Mathcore

Released May 12th 2015                        

    Technical grindcore sounds incredibly strange, but it's becoming more and more common with groups like Fuck The Facts, Oblivionized, and Fulgora exploring more technical apsects of music (hell, even Napalm Death have gotten super experimental these past few years). Antigama is the latest to explore this apparently ever-growing subgenre, and they're pulling it off damn well, focusing on avant-garde and mathcore elements from the likes of Gorguts and The Dillinger Escape Plan. The result is incredibly abrasive and wildly technical, but it blends surprisingly well with the already frantic nature of grindcore, evident from the blistering riffery that consumes the entirety of the record and the throbbing bass that jabs in and out of the forefront. Tracks like 'Reward Or Punishment', 'Data Overload', and 'Randomize The Algorithm' assault the listener with highly complex bursts of grindcore - it's essentially a wall of extreme noise. That does bring up the albums one flaw though - it's essentially a wall of extreme noise. Sure, it gets fucking VICIOUS and is incredibly entertaining all the way through, but it lacks substance, and bleeds with grindcore's tropes. I could show a regular person any of the other acts above, and they could hear the technicality in those acts, but this would come across as, again, a wall of extreme noise. That said: fuck regular people eh? For what it is, "The Insolent" rips, and shows more potential for metal's next subgenre.

Rating: 4/5 (Great!)

"The Great White Dope" by Sun & Sail Club

Stoner Metal/Crossover Thrash

Released May 12th 2015

   This group is impossible to figure out in the best way possible. Consisting of members of Kyuss and Fu Manchu, and apparently inspired by the likes of Voivod, Slayer, Torche, and DEVO (???), the group swings between punk rock, delicious stoner rock, caveman thrash metal, and subtle prog rock on a dime. It's got an unpredictable vibe that switches between experimental ideals and more obvious crunchy speed-injected punk, evident from the sludgy proto-hardcore of 'Dresden Fireball Freakout Flight', the crisp Voivod-esque energy and static-dredged riffs of 'Krokodil Dental Plan', the subtle technical flashes and off-beat yells of 'Full Tilt Panic', or the huge sludge-like riffs and dual vocals of 'Cypherpunk Roulette', the latter of which wow's with its unpredictable shifts. The writing all around is consistently strange, delving into tons of different styles on top of the ones noted above, but Sun & Sail Club nail it all thanks to their incredible musicianship and sound mix. Riffs still have trademark stoner fuzz on top of thrash and punk's booming speed and aggression, backed up by hardcore vocals and some truly manic lyrics that compliment the albums insanity. "The Great White Dope" is all over the map, but Sun & Sail Club is aware of that - "The Great White Dope" is their GPS to navigate that map, so that they may deliver us to thunderous, obscure, and intelligent heavy metal.

Rating: 4.5/5 (Incredible!)

"Grim Serenades" by My Grimace

Melodic Death Metal

Released May 12th 2015

    I'll give My Grimace credit where credit is due: these guys are very clearly very happy to do what they're doing, and they have a lot of fire to show for it. Songs are aggressive all around, and there's little space in between songs to allow the listener a chance to breathe amidst the blatant anger. However, anger alone doesn't make a good song, and that is where My Grimace drop the ball. For a genre so focused on big NWOBHM-like melodies, I was extremely upset at how un-inspired and un-original some of the melodies were. Title track 'Grim Serenades' borrows open incredibly bland open tab heavy-riffing from modern metalcore on top of big guitar flashes, 'Drink Of Death' feels like pure Dethklok worship, and 'Candidates' bores with a more straightforward death metal sound before breaking the flow and diving into slower intricate passages two thirds in. It's sad because everything else is here - the guitar playing, with the exception of the bands deviations into chugs and metalcore riffery, is incredibly fluid and powerful, and vocals shock with their complete in-your-face force. My Grimace simply need to work on creating endearing songs and melodies to compliment their obvious technical capabilities becauseas it stands, "Grim Serenades" is just ok instead of great.

Rating: 3/5 (Decent)

"Gallery Of Life" by Within Silence

Power Metal

Released May 12th 2015

    I'm not going to sit here and say that I'm power metal's biggest fan, because I'm not. I'm often turned off by the genre because so many of the bands just sound the same, with focus on big fantasy oriented hooks and flashy instrumentals. Sure, there are obvious exceptions here and there (Helloween, Blind Guardian, Crimson Shadows, to name a few), but then there are bands like Within Silence to remind you just how stale this style can really be. All the trademarks of the genre are here, from the standard cinematic and atmospheric elements to the glimmeringly clean church-like choirs that bombard every chorus, with fumbles coming to form via some of the albums non-sensical lyrics. 'Road To The Paradise' for example starts with the singer proclaiming how hurt and lost he is, before boldly declaring how he will 'die for the king of the truth, whether I bleed or dreams come true', and then diving into 'Love will hold me up on dark days'. It may be a mix-up from English translations (I'm assuming English isn't the native language in Slovakia after-all), but it's a big mix-up that makes it hard to establish what these guys are even talking about. These guys know their stuff, but don't offer anything overly impressive or original musically, sticking close to the tropes of power metal and stretching them way out - the aforementioned 'Road To The Paradise' is so stretched it reaches an incredible 8 minute length. Not a single hooks hits, not a single riff wows, and a sense of power is lost in what is supposed to be their spin on power metal.