Flaming Tusk - Old, Blackened Century (High Water Media, 2010)

The Flaming Tusk Myspace page lists them as “Metal/Metal/Black Metal,” but that equation can't possibly be accurate. In fact, dissecting the influences here may be computationally intractable, and that is a wonderful thing. Flaming Tusk have a truly unique sound.

My first point of reference on Flaming Tusk has to be Enslaved. I get the same satisfying sense of weirdness that emerged the first time I listened to Mardraum. Those feelings of curiosity, groundlessness and amazement are rarely invoked for me by metal these days. Old, Blackened Century has violently appropriated my attention, much like Cobalt's Gin did last year.

I'm in the middle of reading Richard Dawkins' incredible “The God Delusion,” and I've got Darwin on the brain. Flaming Tusk's music is so interesting that I have to wonder at the evolution of their sound. Tracks like “Anathema” possess the riff aesthetic of early Mastodon, but with more focus on the NWOBHM melodics (a la “March of the Fire Ants.”) At other times, I get the demented vibe of recent Darkthrone. The hoarse guitar tone and strange rhythms evoke hardcore in ways I can't articulate. A more well-rounded listener might be able to delve into the hardcore lineage of these tunes.

Old, Blackened Century never moves faster than a mid-paced lumber, with no blasting in sight. The drumming is perfectly adapted to the odd rhythms and is curiously uninterested in speed. The lack of velocity intimates that there must be some doom influence at work, but I can't pin that down.

The two guitars rarely seem to agree, and it sounds fantastic. There are all sorts of memorable riffs in here, along with some nice pseudo-bluesy and bizarre solos. The guitars don't sport spectacular crunch, but the product is still satisfyingly heavy. These riffs will almost certainly burn themselves into synapses and make your head bang. The fully audible and driving bass is integral to the songs. The excellent bass sound shows how great the mix is; I love the production. It doesn't sound like there are any overdubs on the guitars, adding to the pleasantly undercooked atmosphere.

The charismatic vocals come from the Grutle/Abbath school of froggery, with some deeper gurgling to be found throughout. After listening to this a few times, my throat starts to hurt out of sympathy for the shredded vocal chords.

The songwriting is superlative and certainly one of Flaming Tusk's greatest assets. The lyrics are great; it's typical death metal imagery, but flavored with a poetic sauce and hints of hardcore disgust. When was the last time you heard someone scream “HO CHI MINH KISSINGER” in the middle of a black/death metal song? “No Smiles” is a fucked up and enthralling tune; its 8 minutes just seem to fly by. Most of the tracks are long, but diverse. Amazingly, nothing sounds out of place here, and the songs manage to hold my attention well.

My only small gripe with Old, Blackened Century is that the last track, “Icy River,” kind of degenerates into a free-form jam. While not a big deal, it sufferers the same lack of focus that pervades the most recent Enslaved albums. Thankfully, the cool hammered-on riff that develops part way through stops the song from completely losing me.

Flaming Tusk are distributing their album through Bandcamp, the same way From Exile did last year. For all the discussions going on about digital distribution of albums, I think Bandcamp is the only site doing it right. First off, you can listen to a stream of the entire album. Then, you can download the album and pay whatever you want, with no minimum. This completely eliminates the desire someone might have to seek out an illegal download of the album. Lastly, and most importantly, Bandcamp allows you as a consumer to choose any format for your download, including lossless (FLAC). This is the only way I'll spend money on a downloaded album – I can burn it to CD with no loss of quality and convert it to any compressed format I desire (I use the open source OGG format for portable music). So congratulations to Flaming Tusk, you chose your distribution channel wisely, and I paid $10 for your album.

Old, Blackened Century is sparse, raw and just what I need at the moment. Most new bands these days sound like poorly stitched Frankenstein monsters of metal methodology. Flaming Tusk are a fully evolved beast with a distinct and appealing sound. This shit just rocks. Old, Blackened Century is definitely worth checking out.

86/100
(The only appropriate score for a band from my homeland of Astoria, Queens).

Flaming Tusk Myspace

Assück – Anticapital/Blindspot/+3 (Sound Pollution, 1994)

2009 was the year I accepted grindcore into my heart. I've always been a fan of Napalm Death and Nasum, but I never became a true believer of the genre. Thanks to the word of some righteous preachers and a wafer of Wormrot, I'm born again. Rest assured I'll be focusing my musical obsessions on grindcore this year with a religious fervor.

One of my first points of reference in exploring grind was Andrew Childers' Dirty (Baker's) Dozen. Assück stood out of this exegesis of grind canon for several reasons. First, the band's name is more than a little striking. Second, I've been seeing people at shows in Assück T-shirts for 15 years and never heard a minute of their music. I decided to rectify that situation.

Thanks to the wonders of Amazon wishlists, I was able to acquire ABS+3 as a holiday gift this year (along with Misery Index). The album is out of print, and that's just not cool. The songs on this compilation were recorded between 1990 and 1992. The album is comprised of the Anticapital LP (1992), the Blindspot EP (1992) and a trio of songs from a split and compilation (circa 1990).

ABS+3 was an immediate and immense revelation to me. The music bears obvious resemblance to Napalm Death of the same era. The 17 tracks representing the Anticapital LP alone are worth the price of admission. Anticapital derives grind doctrine from Mentally Murdered era Napalm Death, but lacks the spastic chaos that Bill Steer spewed on his last Napalm recordings. In many ways, Anticapital also distills the austerity that we get from Napalm's next generation on Harmony Corruption. The songs are imbued with the crushing guitar sound of “If Truth Be Known,” but also display some of the massive groove Bill Steer bestowed upon “The Missing Link.”

But enough about Napalm Death; Assück dance to the beat of a different drummer. Rob Proctor's performance on this album is nothing short of legendary. By eschewing Mick Harris' hectic obsession with speed, Mr. Proctor displays a patience and precision that casts this grind in a different light. There are, of course, blastbeats and speed a-plenty. It's just a different kind of speed. I'm no expert on drumming, but there's something organic, flowing and fierce here that you can't find anywhere else. Mr. Proctor's skills often makes me think of Keith Moon; I love the idea that you can suddenly be completely surprised by the drumming in the middle of a song. You have to stop for a moment and think, “Did he really just do that?”

The incredible drum sound is part and parcel with the production. Whereas Napalm Death recordings of this era feel compressed into a tiny and explosive sonic spectrum, Anticapital sounds wide open and free. There's a nice stereo separation to the instruments that gives the thing an intimate feel. I feel like I'm sitting in a room with these guys.

Steve Heritage is a grind riff machine. He squeezes an amazing diversity of ideas from the traditional grindcore palette. The guitar sound here is perfection – this is the bottomless and razor sharp tone I crave. There's an incredible synergy between the crushing guitar sound, atonal chordage and never ending plethora of rhythms. I don't think Assück deign to use the same riff pattern twice on the album.

Paul Pavlovich barks out these lyrics like a highly articulate canine. His perfect diction ensures that the righteous poetics get their due. Anticapital is the real deal, one of those rare metal albums you can sit and listen to while following along with the lyrics and not be embarrassed for humanity. I'm a lyrics guy; it's part of my schtick. I like to know what the music is about (see blog sub-title). It gets me in trouble sometimes. That said, Assück deliver an engaging treatise on the flaws of society, religion, government and politics. They hit up all the important talking points. “Along with the art of conquest and domination, we have developed the absolute science of ignorance and bound it in text for generations of the unthinking.” Right on.

The +3 songs come in the middle of the album, out of chronological order. These tracks are a bit more raw, but also have more stylistic range. “Suffering Quota” features an amazing descending riff that spins down a detuned toilet; it's a match for any demented Carcass riff. “Parade of the Lifeless” features some of the more amazing drumming to be found on the compilation.

The Blindspot EP rounds out the album with material that's just as strong as Anticapital, but it suffers from less articulate production. It's unclear, based on the liner notes, which parts of the compilation were recorded at Morrisound studios and engineered by Scott Burns. Based on the reduced sonic spectrum of Blindspot, I'm most inclined to suppose it got the Morrisound treatment. Nevertheless, tracks like “Blindspot” are still incredibly edible bits of grind.

It's always a good day when I can add a classic album to my music collection, and ABS+3 is every bit a classic. And it doesn't suck one bit of ass.

95/100

Krallice and Crucifist – January 10th – The Knitting Factory, Brooklyn NY

I made another metal pilgrimage to Brooklyn on Sunday. When Jeanne Fury and I walked into The Knitting Factory, local grinders Humanity Falls were already playing. The venue was surprisingly full. In fact, I think there were already more people there than at last week's Revocation show.

Humanity Falls sounded great. Their demented Gorguts-meets-Scum take on grinding death was entirely entertaining. Front-man Eston Brown appeared to be having quite a bit of fun. Original songs were punctuated by at least one cover. If I'm not mistaken, Napalm Death's “You Suffer” made a brief appearance. Guitarist Ammo Diaz looked completely comfortable with the twisted and agonized cacophony he was producing. Ed Bednarek's solid drumming held the gnarly compositions together quite well.

Weirdly, Humanity Falls were the only band with a banner on stage the entire evening. The sound was so great during their set that Eston Brown took a chance to thank the sound person, and asked the crowd to follow suit. Folks were already headbanging to every song. It was definitely a different scene than last week. I suppose the trifecta of local acts helped attendance.


Between sets, I picked up Humanity Falls' Promo 2009 CD. While perusing the merchandise, I realized there wasn't a single item for the next act, the mysterious Ancient Wound. When the three unassuming band members took the stage, the crowd reacted with a rowdy cheer. Evidently Ancient Wound are a legendary, well-kept secret. I can't believe I've never heard of the band before.

Ancient Wound launched into a preposterously awesome thrash instrumental. When the second song kicked in with screamed vocals, I finally made the connection; this band must have stepped off a time machine from 1985. They sound exactly like Seven Churches era Possessed, and that is a wonderful thing. Everything about Adam Hell's delivery seems genuinely archaic. The band's madly thrashing proto-death sound is fantastic.

This massive metal experience was enhanced by near-perfect sound. The guitar was crystal clear and Pat Sorcerer's prominent bass was perfectly audible. Each song delivered compelling riffage with the utmost speed. I couldn't get over the way Adam Hell would introduce the songs in a mild mannered voice, explaining how each track was about zombies, demons, or Satan. His stage presence reminded me of Ronny James Dio, albeit with a guitar in hand. The crowd was going mad during Ancient Wound's set. Colin Marston of Krallice stood directly in front of the stage throughout the performance, headbanging wildly. Awesome.

I noticed around this point that the venue was getting packed. Unbelievably, I think almost half the crowd was female. Not only that, there were many extremely young females in attendance. I still haven't reasoned this out, but perhaps Krallice have some sort of teen-idol status in Williamsburg? Maybe Danny Lilker has some bestial attraction I don't understand?

I hadn't taken the opportunity to get acquainted with Crucifist's material. Now I know I was remiss. The band have distilled the raw roots of death metal, doom and black metal to form a wickedly powerful moonshine. A corpse-painted Danny Lilker (of Brutal Truth and S.O.D. fame) came out on stage to join guitarist John Gallo and drummer Mike Waske for a short instrumental ditty. Ron Blackwell walked out in a long robe and proceeded to scream bloody gore.

Crucifist were quite an experience. Ron Blackwell is seriously charismatic, and the crustified tunes sounded distinctive without any prior listening. The sound, however, started to get a little bit too loud. Surprisingly, Danny Lilker's bass wasn't very high in the mix. Ancient Wound found the sweet spot for volume, but Crucifist were in the red. It didn't really matter; this band's material probably sounds better when your ears are bleeding. You can't go wrong when you have a song entitled “Skull-Smashing Face-Ripping Death.”

Justina Villanueva (NYC metal photographer-in-residence) gave me the heads up that Krallice would be playing some new material. This was my first time seeing the band live, and I was hoping for a transcendent metal experience. Unfortunately, the sound wasn't fantastic, so that didn't happen.

Krallice ripped straight into some new material that doesn't seem to have vocals yet. The PA was extremely loud, and I had a very hard time distinguishing the guitars. Colin Marston windmilled while tearing through the riffs with ease. Mick Barr stood facing stage left instead of the crowd, as he's known to do. The dude looks completely harmless, but when he lets loose on vocals he exhales demons of madness.

I wanted to be able to sit back and soak in the music, but I spent most of the time focusing on the tunes and trying to discern the melodies. Don't get me wrong; this was an amazing performance. But ultimately the live Krallice experience didn't evoke the same sense of immersion that their recorded work does. In the end, the most impressive part of the set for me was the rhythm section. Lev Weinstein is unbelievable on drums. The guy creates a perfect rhythmic storm that begs for a bigger venue with better acoustics. Nick McMaster's bass sounded great, and his vocal delivery seemed to bring the band back to earth. Seeing Krallice live just made me want to see them again with better sound.

The large crowd was enthusiastic, and there was plenty of hair flying. An actual pit broke out twice. During the last song, things got particularly rowdy. When Krallice unplugged, the pit took a while to calm down. Before it died, I caught a glimpse of Ancient Wound front-man Adam Hell streaking across the floor with a beer raised high. Kick ass.

Revocation and The Binary Code - January 6th - The Knitting Factory, Brooklyn

This was a spectacular evening of shredding, headbanging, half-naked dudes and mysterious extra guitar players. Jeanne Fury accompanied me to this show on her home turf in Williamsburg, and I got to visit the new Knitting Factory for the first time.

The Knitting Factory is a small venue with fantastic sound and excellent beer. The stage is wide, set up much like the Highline Ballroom. The crowd was especially sparse when we showed up. Before Tiger Flowers took the stage, I took some time to examine the merchandise. At The Binary Code table, I chatted with Jesse Zuretti, who was extremely cool. I was psyched to pick up a physical copy of the band's latest album, Suspension of Disbelief.

Within a few minutes, Tiger Flowers took the stage, but they didn't immediately start playing. After a few moments of awkward silence, vocalist Jesse Madre explained that their bass player was taking a dump. Right on. Soon that situation was remedied, and the band ripped into a fantastic set of esoteric and entertaining hardcore. My experience of the band's music doesn't extend past their Myspace page, but I was extremely impressed.

The band combine crushing guitars, bottom-heavy bass and obtuse time signatures to produce a very cool sound. I'm surprised Tiger Flowers are unsigned. Guitarist Dean Landry sported a copious effects board and wasn't shy to bust out all manner of sonic absurdity. Jesse Madre was absolutely manic, trampling every inch of the stage, monitors and floor that he could reach. The dude was explosive. Unfortunately, the crowd wasn't particularly energetic. This was probably due to the advanced age of the audience. At the very least, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.

While The Binary Code set up, I was able to try out some of the venue's organic nut brown ale. I couldn't catch the name of the brewery, but it was a righteous brew that went down smooth. Good beer and good metal are a match made in heaven.

When The Binary Code plugged in, I realized that there was an extra man onstage. Evidently, the foursome has recruited an additional axe-man for the tour. They launched straight into tracks from their new album, and the shredfest was on. The sound was great. The volume was not absurd and the guitars were crystal clear.

Suspension of Disbelief has grown on me quite a bit, and the album tracks sounded fantastic live. The Binary Code's progged out and atmospheric vision of technical death metal is exactly what I've been in the mood for lately. Jesse Zuretti is a fantastic guitar player, ripping off absurd riffs and leads with little effort. The album is tied together by distinctive clean guitar interludes, and I was pleased to hear them being performed live.

I enjoy vocalist Michael Apprich's performance on the album, and he did a good job of pulling off his Ishahn-like screams in person. The guy was quite animated while he was singing, but he seemed to droop during some of the instrumental sections. This was only really notable in relation to Jesse Madre's earlier exhibition of insanity. I guess he's a hard act to follow. The new guitar player's long hair ensures that at least half the band can windmill throughout the set. Bass player Brett Bamberger was probably the most energetic guy on the stage with a genuine swivel neck. All told, it was an excellent performance. Drummer Umar Fahim ensured that the band's rhythmic peculiarities were perfectly executed, and the band sounded marvelously tight.

The crowd had filled in quite a bit during The Binary Code's set, but remained solidly geriatric. A couple of visits to the bar ensured I was experiencing a nut brown euphoria by the time Revocation began to set up. Once again, there appeared to be an extraneous guitar player assembling his gear. Have Revocation added a touring guitar player? The answer is yes.

With nary a cue from drummer Phil Dubois-Coyne, the show got started and the shred reigned. I was mildly concerned that the layered guitar sound on Existence is Futile wouldn't translate to the stage. The mysterious touring guitar player ensured that the translation was seamless. The sound was really great – I'm quite pleased with the Knitting Factory's acoustics.

David Davidson is the kind of guitar player that anyone can appreciate. During soundcheck, he whipped out the intro to “Tornado of Souls.” Touché. The guy plays like he was born with a Flying V in his hands. He's also a charismatic front-man whose energetic stage presence is entirely entertaining. All the kids who drool over Alexi Laiho should consider adopting Mr. Davidson as their new ruler.

I had no problem securing a spot directly in front of Mr. Davidson at the stage. I couldn't think of a better spot from which to enjoy the acrobatics. The crowd was all smiles, but barely moved. At one point, Mr. Davidson requested a circle-pit, but it didn't happen. For my part, I headbanged enough to induce a massive bangover. These guys are all motion on stage, and you can't help but siphon off some of that energy.

It took perhaps one song for the band to overheat and decide to disrobe. Clearly, the touring guitarist isn't used to this kind of thing; he doesn't have the road-worn, Bruce Lee physique of the other band members. Give him a few weeks on the road, and he'll fit right in.

The new guitarist held his own throughout the show. On some of the leads he ably mirrored Mr. Davidson's fretwork. The band seemed comfortable with the extra presence on stage. The only miscue occurred rather quietly when Mr. Davidson asked the guy to re-tune his guitar. I doubt anyone else noticed.

So yes, Revocation ruled. Songs off the new album like “Deathonomics,” “Dismantle the Dictator” and “The Brain Scramblers” sounded better live than they did on the album. The band's exuberance adds some extra sauce that the recorded compositions can't convey.

Bass player Anthony Buda raged around the middle of the stage and shared vocal duties throughout the set. Phil Dubois-Coyne's drumming was relentlessly punishing and quite impressive. The band played a couple of songs from their first album, Empire of the Obscene. The new guitar player ensured that every track sounded tremendous.

This was an awe-inspiring performance and an excellent way to start off the new metal year. If you think Revocation are decent on tape, I assure you they sound better in person. This show was a lot of fun, but I'm a little worried about the turnout. The Binary Code and Revocation are ear candy for the older metal crowd, but both bands need to draw a younger audience. Someone needs to get the kids out to these shows, or else it could be a long tour.

Unfortunately, due to my mammoth commute home on a work night, I couldn't stay around for Hypno5e. My apologies.

“Metal as Art” is not the sexiest tour name I've ever heard. I'd rather go with “Metal as Life.” Either way, existence is not futile as long as there's metal like this.

Convulse - World Without God (Relapse, 2010) (Re-issue, 1992)

I thought I had a decent grasp on the year 1992, at least from a metal perspective. Relapse will prove me wrong in January when they re-issue World Without God, a classic pile of death metal from Finland's Convulse. I've never heard of Convulse, but after listening to this thing, there's no doubt it needs to be a part of my CD collection.

WWG is a fascinating album. It's no missing link in the history of death metal, but it is an interesting sign of its times. The album combines recognizable and iconic genre methodologies in a fairly unique way. Convulse are disconnected from the Swedish death metal movement in sound but not in spirit. Despite being contiguous to Sweden, Finland's imprint on the history of death metal would come much later, mostly in the form of folk influences and the wild noodling of Alexi Laiho.

“Introduction” kicks off the album with keys and synths that mix foreboding with cheese. This frightening bit of melody has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the album, thankfully. The title track introduces us to the genetic mutant we're about to encounter. The first thing to notice is the lack of Sunlight sound. The lumbering and downtuned riff that starts things off bears resemblance to Blessed Are the Sick era Morbid Angel more than anything else. This same riff, however, gets the speed treatment with an unmuted, open handed strumming that instantly brings to mind Left Hand Path. Later on, things slow down and we get a slimy, doomier riff that makes me think of early My Dying Bride. Sound interesting yet? It gets better. At the end of the song, the thing slides into a fantastic stuttering beat and rips into a riff that sounds straight out of Carcass' Necroticism.

One of the most impressive aspects of the album is the production. To my ears, it surpasses the clarity that Morbid Angel and Entombed had at that time. The re-mastering job on the album is pretty decent, and it doesn't push things too far. The distortion on the guitars sounds surprisingly modern. The riffs on WWG aren't terribly complicated or diverse, but they get the job done and are quite entertaining. My favorite parts are the doomier interludes and the grindier bits. As the album progresses, we hear more and more of the Carcass influence.

The vocals are quite guttural. They sound like a deeper take on David Vincent's vocal style. The lyrics, for the most part, are a righteous screed against organized religion. I can dig that. Two of the tracks, however, deal with gorier topics. “Putrid Intercourse” is an absurd story about some graveyard lovin', and “Incantation of Restoration” follows suit.

The drums sound great and even brilliant at times. There are several ball-busting bass lines that propel the songs à la “Ruptured in Purulence.” As would be expected, there are also several classical guitar interludes to remind you that these guys know their way around a fretboard. “Powerstruggle of Belief” starts out with just such a composition before whipping up a metal storm.

Seeing how this is a re-issue, we also get the Resuscitation of Evilness demo tacked on the end of the album. These early versions of the songs don't really add much to the experience. They do, however, show that Convulse had hatched their death metal sound as early as 1990. The cover of Venom's “Countess Bathory” is a sloppy but entertaining mess, with production much worse than the rest of the demo. The live version of “Incantation of Restoration” sounds like a gore-soaked remnant of Reek of Putrefaction.

Look, I've got to be honest; WWG never achieves the iconic nature of the classic albums I've thus-far mentioned. But it's pretty goddamned good. If you're stoked about the resurgence of OSDM, you should check out this worthy example of some actual old-school death metal. It's the real deal.


86/100


Convulse Myspace

Full disclosure: Relapse provided me with a promo stream.

Revocation – Existence is Futile (Relapse, 2009)

I'm a frequent victim of hype fatigue, and Existence is Futile is certainly one of the most over-hyped albums of 2009. In an astronomically good year for metal, I definitely didn't give this album a fair shake when it first passed my ears.

I was a big fan of Revocation's self-released debut, Empire of the Obscene. That album was an exercise in riffage thrown at the wall; all manner of styles were represented and they all stuck. The riffs and solos on Empire of the Obscene were absurdly awesome, but the album lacked a cohesive sound and didn't display particularly consistent songwriting.

Revocation have achieved cohesion on Existence is Futile. Their sound is a unique blend of groovy thrash, technical and melodic death metal with solos that recall the greatest glory of the 80s. It's almost as if a band like Warbringer spawned alien children with The Fucking Champs.

Songs like “Pestilence Reigns” exhibit Revocation's blueprint. A handful of complex riffs drive the first part of the song. First, semi-melodic chordage slides up and down the guitar neck. Then we get a hammered-on fountain of notes that occasionally kicks into ludicrous speed. Scrumptious grooves sprout up in the transitions between riffs. Then, two and a half minutes in, we get a fascinating melodic riff that mutates into a minute-long solo. The lead is so incredible it overshadows the rest of the song, which kicked a good deal of ass on its own.

At this point, I think we can acknowledge that David Davidson is a guitar deity. Along with Michael Keene of The Faceless, he is the preeminent shredder of this young generation. I'll entertain the frequent Dimebag comparisons, but Mr. Davidson has much to learn as a songwriter. My only gripe with EiF is that the solos completely surpass the riffage at times. These are some transcendent, meaningful and mind-imploding solos. They sometimes make the rest of a song sound pedestrian. Dimebag was a legend because he could write a song where the riffs matched the solos in godliness.

My favorite parts of EiF are the melodic breaks. Hints of The Fucking Champs seep through in these sections and add a levity to the tunes that makes me smile. “Across Forests and Fjords” is four minutes of thrashing instrumental hyperbole that wouldn't be out of place on the legendary IV. See, Revocation aren't only about grim metallic mayhem. There's a sense that these guys love what they're doing, and their joyous enthusiasm is infectious.

EiF is beautifully produced, with an excellent mid-range punch. Phil Dubois' drumming is fantastic, and Anthony Buda's bass gets the proper representation for a three-piece band. In addition to being an axe-master, Mr. Davidson also performs the vocals. Close in spirit and character to Warbringer's John Kevill, the vocals fit well with the music. There is a nice hint of uncontrolled madness to Mr. Davidson's scream/yell.

The key to my enjoyment of this album is just to stop thinking about it. Let the thing move. Let the absurdly dexterous technicality bowl me over and go with the flow. If you want to hear some righteous shredding, this is the place. At the very least, EiF holds my attention throughout. I'm betting Revocation have yet to write their masterpiece. EiF is worth your metal money in 2009, but let's hope even better is in store from these guys.

I'm looking forward to seeing Revocation along with Hypno5e and The Binary code on the “Metal as Art” tour next month.

85/100

Revocation Myspace

Here's the video for "Dismantle the Dictator:"


Full disclosure: Relapse provided me with a promo stream.

My Year In Metal, 2009 - Favorite Concerts

7. Pelican, Black Cobra, Disappearer - November 30th - The Highline Ballroom, NYC
I wasn't expecting much and as usual I was blown away by a Pelican live show. What We All Come To Need ruled in person. My brother Frank and I enjoyed much alcohol and let Pelican string us up from the sky.

6. Gojira, Burst - September 21st - The Music Hall of Williamsburgh, Brooklyn
Seeing Gojira headline for the second time in a year was a treat, but Burst were the real attraction. My brother, Rich, Jeanne Fury and I enjoyed tales of flying whales with a raging crowd. Burst flattened the audience and were super nice dudes. I totally held vertigo.

5. Down, Melvins - September 11th - Nokia Theater, NYC
Jeanne Fury gave me the opportunity to get close and personal with Phil Anselmo from the photo pit, and the show ended up being incredible. The Melvins were awesomeness. It turned out to be an excellent evening.

4. Mastodon, Kylesa and Intronaut – May 9th - Irving Plaza, NYC
Crack the Skye was still fresh as dew, and a veritable pantheon of metal friends made it to the show. My wife, Elizabeth, Dave, Jeanne Fury, and my brother, Rich all came along to ride the tides of blood. It was a tremendous performance.

3. Baroness – November 20th – The Bowery Ballroom, NYC
It's bound to be an excellent night when they're playing songs from your favorite album of the year, right? Baroness ruled, hard. Jeanne Fury and I enjoyed the stained horizon, ablaze with revolvers. Stampedes? Hells yes. Reel in place, 'til the bastards take me away.

2. Gojira - May 6th - The Blender Theater, NYC
The first Gojira show of the year was the best. Tracks from The Way of All Flesh were still new to our ears, and everything was a superlative slaughter. Both my brothers and one sister-in-law made it out to the show, and the beer was excellent. Rich lost clothes and put on a pit clinic. Good times.

1. Skeletonwitch, Black Anvil – November 14th – Union Pool, Brooklyn
This was one of the best shows I've ever seen. Short and sweet, brutal and drunk. Jeanne Fury and I raged until there was no rage left.

My Year In Metal, 2009 - 20 Favorite Albums

[Every time I tried to lay this out, my cats would destroy it in seconds.]

Plain and simple, these are the albums I enjoyed most this year:

20. 3 Inches of Blood - Here Waits Thy Doom (Century Media)
Here Waits Thy Doom is metal in its purest form. This thing is as old school as it gets. Driven by excellent songwriting and pre-historic riffage, I'm thoroughly enjoying the album. The vocals are awesome, and the songs are hilariously infectious. "Will you be there to rock in hell?"


19. Converge - Axe To Fall (Epitaph)
I've honestly never been able to get into Converge. As much as they rage, some element of their dissonance has always turned me off. With all the critical acclaim surrounding Axe To Fall, I gave it a try and found it quite enjoyable. Axe To Fall rolls along with absurdly diverse riffing and rampaging rhythms. It's unstoppable and unforgiving. I can dig this.


18. Wolves in the Throne Room - Black Cascade (Southern Lord)
Sure, it doesn't live up to the glory of Two Hunters, but Black Cascade is still an excellent album. Trance-like rhythms accompany melodic black metal movements to create visions of grim Cascadian mountainscapes. I frequently use Black Cascade's monumental wall of blackness to block out background noise.


17. Kylesa - Static Tensions (Prosthetic)
Static Tensions provides a listening experience like no other. Duelling drummers attack your ears in stereo while the band rages with psychedelic sludge mayhem. Did I mention the dueling vocals? Thankfully, this isn't just a novelty - awesome riffage and songwriting combine to create a complete listening experience.


16. Be'lakor - Stone's Reach (Prime Cuts Music)
Stone's Reach is pure, raging melodic death metal. It's definitely my favorite album in that genre for the year. It's a festival of riffage, memorable songs and shifting rhythms that require mandatory headbanging. If you dig the melodic death metal, you should be rocking to Be'lakor.


15. Gorod - Process of a New Decline (Willowtip)
This was my favorite tech-death album of the year. Process of a New Decline is pure awesome. To me, it was the best combination of technicality, riffage, innovation, melody, soul and songwriting. The demented hammer-on madness is perfect for one man circle pits. Disavow Your God!


14. Deafest - Eroding Peaks (Ninth Meridian Records)
This mountain of instrumental black metal blew me away. Although self produced with the rawest of sound, the bombastic post-rock movements and excellent sense of melody have put this album in constant rotation for me since it came out. Eroding Peaks works with any mood I might be in – it's just gorgeous stuff.

13. Fen - The Malediction Fields (Code666/Aural Music)
I totally dig Fen's wide open, progged out vision of black metal. The Malediction Fields is filled with the sound of vast spaces and raging blackened storms. The clean guitars and vocals set it apart as truly unique. The lyrics are as bleak and beautiful as the music. Great album.


12. Krallice - Dimensional Bleedthrough (Profound Lore)
This one snuck up on me at the end. I really liked their debut album, but Dimensional Bleedthrough rules. The warp-speed melodic black metal magic is enthralling and mesmerizing. This album also grew on me quite a bit since it came out. Dimensional Bleedthrough puts me in a thoroughly enjoyable metal trance.

11. Swashbuckle - Back to the Noose (Nuclear Blast)
I don't go for much in the way of folk or pagan metal. Swashbuckle get unfortunately lumped with those bands due to their attire, I suppose. Seriously, this is just dead sexy New Jersey thrash that happens to be about pirates. Sweet-ass riffage and hilarious songwriting make BttN the most fun album of the year for me.

10. Kreator - Hordes of Chaos (Steamhammer/SPV)
I've never been much of a Kreator fan, but this album ripped my fucking head off. The best production on any album this year helped a lot. The righteous Teutonic thrash benefits from superb riffage and memorable songwriting. These dudes sat in a room and recorded the music together as a band. Who would have thought such glorious organic metal madness could result? If you skipped your dose of German thrash this year, take notice; violence is conquering the world.


9. Pelican - What We All Come To Need (Southern Lord)
The Ephemeral EP dulled my expectations, and at first I didn't know what to make of this thing. Alas, this album rules - a slow grower of instrumental glory. A reinvigorated rhythm section and lots of chug make WWACTN excellent driving music. Actually, it's excellent anything music. Yes, I'm still a Pelican fanboy.


8. Napalm Death - Time Waits For No Slave (Century Media)
This was the most excited I've been for a Napalm Death release since Enemy of the Music Business. The sheen wore off a bit, but the album has remained a staple of my playlist for the near. How these guys continue to churn out the righteous grind is beyond comprehension. Napalm for the win, always. Napalm for strength.


7. Mastodon – Crack the Skye (Reprise)
This was the toughest album for me to place. After lots of listening and seeing the thing performed in its entirety in May, I definitely burned out on Crack the Skye. I think my initial impressions weren't too far off the mark - perhaps only the rating. The vocals are the weak point, but if I get past that, it makes for an enjoyable progged out jam of a listening experience.


6. Black Anvil – Time Insults the Mind (Relapse)
Black Anvil have popped the lid on a blackened, frosty brew that goes down easy like Celtic Frost. Brooklyn's own have infused thrash and whiffs of hardcore into a black cauldron that is boiling with incredible riffage. This album moves like a fucking freight train and makes my head bang every single time I put it on. I seriously love this shit.


5. Cobalt - Gin (Profound Lore)
Gin is a thunderous, filthy slab of crusty American black metal. This is an innovative and ultimately personal album that took me a while to appreciate and comprehend. It's bursting with animalistic emotions, alcohol drowned guitar glory and unhinged, rampaging drumming. "Burn me down, shoot me in the chest."


4. Wormrot - Abuse (Scrotum Jus Records)
Abuse is the best grind album of the year, hands down. Singapore's greatest have ripped open some of the most unbelievable grooves you'll ever hear. Just enough cheek, unbelievable drumming and superlative riffage make Abuse a pure win. Wormrot are redlined at perfection for 22 minutes and 23 tracks. This thing is unbelievable; if you haven't heard it yet, fix your broken mind. Abuse is probably my favorite grind album since Nasum's Helvete. "Here's your fucking abuse of power."


3. Tombs - Winter Hours (Relapse)
My first impressions of this album were off the mark. Winter Hours has become my go-to album in all seasons. The raging black/sludge/core ambiance has become a bottomless pit that will accept any emotion I pour into it. Winter Hours cures anger, sadness, anxiety and most likely, cancer. As original as it is sublime, this album grew on me like my beard. Thank you Mike Hill.


2. Skeletonwitch - Breathing The Fire (Prosthetic)
This album was a revelation to me, striking at the heart of everything I hold dear in metal. Sweet thrashing and often blackened riffage speaks in tongues of NWOBHM glory. Filled with top-notch songwriting, this is one of those absurd albums that gets better and better towards the end. Breathing the Fire fucking moves, and will propel you triumphantly through anything life puts in your way.


1. Baroness - Blue Record (Relapse)
From the first note of fuzzed-out Hendrix-hallucination that is "Bullhead's Psalm," I was hooked. Baroness have written an album for the ages. Blue Record was built to destroy, front to back. A seamless blend of classic rock glory dipped in sludge, I just can't get enough of this thing. Is it really metal? Fuck off, wrong question. John Baizley and Pete Adams rage with righteous triumph on every track, and I sing along every time. From album art perfection to endlessly quotable lyrics, this thing has got it all. I can't remember so instantly falling in love with an album since my formidable years. Blue is triumph. You're my boy, Blue.

[A tabby stampede]

[Django, lord of destruction]


[Aftermath]

[Django, victorious]

Krallice - Dimensional Bleedthrough (Profound Lore, 2009)

There's nothing simple about this album. Krallice's self-titled debut displayed the same wildly complicated and enthralling brand of black metal, but the music was driven by more easily digestible post-rock melodies. Dimensional Bleedthrough feeds that staccato guitar wizardry through the obfuscation machine. I feel like I could listen to this thing a thousand times and never comprehend all of its nuances. Is it a good album? I personally think so. My suggested point of reference on Krallice is still Weakling. If you dig an esoteric take on black metal with triumphant overtones and a good bit of melody, then you should be all over this.

The tempo of Dimensional Bleedthrough is generally locked in at just short of ludicrous. You can pretty much distinguish each note; this isn't "wall of guitar" black metal. The guitar work of Mick Barr and Colin Marston is just as mind blowing as it was on the self titled album. Sometimes this thing hits plateaus of deliberate drone, but for the most part, it's two guitars doing battle on planes of existence mortal man can't fathom. How do four men sit down and compose this insanity?

Some of the best moments on the album occur when things slide out of overdrive. "untitled" lets the guitars escape from a rhythm section altogether and makes me think of the frozen tundras on Pelican's The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw. "Autocthon" breaks into a galloping thrash with a melody that's simply incredible.

One improvement over their debut is the bass work of Nick McMaster, who joins in the frenzy on tracks like "Monolith of Possession" to add an extra depth to the music. Lev Weinstein's drums are also more varied. "Aridity" has some positively thunderous drum work. At times the rhythm section seems to phase into a pocket universe to create absurd sensations of movement, like looking out the window of a train while facing the wrong direction.

The sparse vocals duties are shared by Mick Barr and Nick McMaster. I really enjoy the whimsically bizarre and frequently poetic lyrics. Neither man sports a particularly original black metal scream, but they're both able to get the job done in a satisfying manner.

Dimensional Bleedthrough is a complicated album that reveals its glory through repeated listens and a certain amount of attention. The melodies are both savory and sweet, giving the album an emotional foothold. Each song is held together by a thematic gravity that prevents these four musicians from flying out of orbit into oblivion. It is a wonder to behold.

87/100

Pelican - November 30th - The Highline Ballroom, NYC

This was my first visit to the Highline Ballroom. As my brother Frank and I approached the building, we were a bit befuddled to find a Western Beef establishment at the listed address. Naturally, the ballroom was upstairs.

When we walked in, the venue was almost completely empty. The fire warden sign listed alternate maximum capacities of 380 and 660 people. Either way, there couldn't have been more than 14 people in the room. It was an interesting space; wider than it was deep. Tables were set up on the left and right as well as in a balcony surrounding the room. Thankfully, enough people filtered in before Disappearer's set to avoid an embarrassing situation.

Disappearer were surprisingly good. Ambient sludgification accompanied excellent vocals from bass player Jebb Riley, who also plays in Doomriders. They are definitely a band worth exploring. The sound was quite good, receiving the approval of my brother, the audio engineer.

Between sets, we perused the merchandise. As always, Trevor de Brauw was manning the Pelican table. The dude is such a nice guy, and he's always willing to shoot the shit with fans. I asked him why he's always stuck selling schwag, and he told us it gets him out of other unsavory tasks during the tour. Works for me. I'm actually glad it didn't occur to me to query him about the infamous Village Voice article - it would have ruined the mood.

I've been hearing good things about Black Cobra. The duo did not disappoint. There was definitely a massive, chugging, High on Fire vibe going on. I'm pretty sure Rafael Martinez put in one of the most impressive drumming performance I've ever seen. He beat the absolute hell out of his kit while maintaining a goliath, pendulous swing the whole time. Drummers just don't know how to fucking swing like that anymore these days. Unbelievable. Sure, Jason Landrian's vocals are the band's weak point, but they make up for it in sheer ferocity. I'll definitely be checking our their Southern Lord debut, Chronomega.

Frank and I were reaching proper beerification by the time Pelican set up. The venue had mercifully filled in, though it was still far from capacity. Without further ado, the band launched into tracks from their new album, What We All Come To Need. They were absolutely crushing. The mix was crystal clear, if not a bit too loud. Trevor was going wild, and Laurent began his usual bizarre chicken headed bobbing routine. Pelican were raging.

A good portion of the set came from WWACTN, which made me very happy. "The Creeper" was downright filthy, and each gorgeous melodic break shot me through the heart. The intro to "Glimmer" sounded like a righteous ode to the open road. These new songs destroy live. I spent most of the show headbanging and thrashing like a maniac. "Ephemeral" still killed live, and surprising tracks like "Specks of Light" were enthralling.

After a few songs, some fine person in the crowd took the opportunity to scream out "fuck the Village Voice!" Now that's what I wanted to hear. A few other people took up the chant, and I added a drunken scream of "fuck them!" for good measure. It felt good, but I dont' think most people had any idea what was going on. Trevor, the only band member with a microphone, responded with something like "thanks, but the Village Voice really do have a lot of good things going for them." I think it was a deflection of sorts; he's too much of nice guy to talk shit.

If I'm not mistaken, City of Echoes was represented only by its title track. It's an excellent song that encapsulates the immediacy of that album for me nicely. "GW" was the sole song from Australasia to be played. It was a lull in the show for me, perhaps the only time when my attention wandered.

Did I mention that the WWACTN tracks sound awesome live? I was extremely impressed. It's definitely worth experiencing in person. The oft maligned drumming of Larry Herweg was good on this evening, never impinging on my consciousness as offensive. On one new song, bass player Bryan Herweg traded instruments with Trevor, which was entertaining. When the set ended without a single track off The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw, you knew what to expect for an encore. "Sirius" closed out the evening with the icy sounds of a deep space journey.

This was a righteous and energetic show. There was nothing boring about it. My brother was blown away by his first Pelican performance. This band genuinely moves me - to mosh. No "emotional ambiguity" there. They might do nothing for you, but their live show is a trip to auditory nirvana for me. Talk all you want about "phony triumphalism," but on Monday night, Pelican were triumph.

The Faceless, Dying Fetus - November 28th - The Blender Theater NYC

The marquee on The Blender Theater read "FACELESS SATURDAY." Co-headliners Dying Fetus apparently didn't make the cut; their name must not be safe for the masses on 23rd street. The goof ended up being indicative of the billing iniquity on this night.

I got to the show just in time to see Dying Fetus set up. I've never been a huge fan of the band, but through the years I've come to appreciate the intensity of their live shows. The venue was packed. I was surprised at the turnout. Evidently, Dying Fetus have a lot of fans in New York City.

As would be expected, the crowd was insane for Dying Fetus' set. It was definitely the most energetic pit I've witnessed this year. Bodies were in perpetual motion, and there wasn't much room for the martial arts displays that irk so many people. The hour long performance covered a wide swath of the band's discography. Only "Your Treachery Will Die With You" and "Shepherd's Commandment" represented their new album, Descend into Depravity.

The mix was excellent, and the band sounded tremendous as a three-piece. John Gallagher's guitar tone was massive, and I honestly think the new tracks sounded better than they do on the album. Sean Beasley was a raging mass of hair, and Trey Williams was rhythmic perfection behind the kit. Visibly happy with the crowd reaction, Dying Fetus closed out the set with the requisite "Praise the Lord (Opium of the Masses)." People were going nuts.

While The Faceless set up, the venue started to clear out. A decent amount of people actually left. It became clear there must be an age gap in the fans of these two bands. The crowd that filled up the floor for The Faceless was a good many years younger than it had been earlier. The Faceless had promised to play their latest album, Planetary Duality, in its entirety during this tour. That is what got me to come out to this show at all.

As the lights went down, The Faceless launched into "Akeldama," which is essentially a progged out tech-death jam. With a brief introduction, the band launched into "Prison Born" and proceeded to work their way through Planetary Duality.

The band have worked on their stage presence a bit. Derek Rydquist was far more animated than the last time I saw him. He has transformed from a unabomber type figure into an all-out vocal maniac.

"The Ancient Covenant" sounded fantastic - the mix was gorgeous. Michael Keene's distinctive guitar wizardry was front and center. His leads display an absurd sense of melody that blows me away.

The crowd had a problem keeping up with the music. The Faceless inhabit a weird dimension between complete death metal brutality and progressive technical wankery. I think they've found pure gold in that balance, bringing fantastic songwriting skills and a bit of soul to the music. The alien time signatures and demented breakdowns are not pit friendly. Kids will run like wild through the pit for a few moments, and then a shift in the music will leave them standing there with befuddled looks on their faces. This happened over and over during the set.

It was great to hear some of the songs that I hadn't seen live. "Planetary Duality I" and "Planetary Duality II" were fucking incredible. Such a great album. It's definitely worth it to get out and see this thing performed in its entirety. Lyle Cooper's drum performance on the last song was enough to send me into headbanging convulsions. I've mentioned this before, but I honestly think Planetary Duality will go down as a death metal classic.

As much as I enjoyed The Faceless, I've got to say that Dying Fetus owned the evening. There's no question; they should have been on top of this bill. The crowd response for their set was berserk, and it made everything else that came after feel just a bit awkward.

During the show I fumbled my camera and turned it into a brick, so no pictures on this night.