From Prague, Czech Republic, since 1998 delivering ravishing mixture of grind/death and sometimes quite experimental metal. Oleg “mrtvola” Kamenetski – vocals, Pavel “hjalli” Kuchař – guitar and bass, Tomáš “lesik” Mleziva – guitar and Jarda “mental” Haž – drums, throw in their sick-minded music blender elements from classic monsters such as Napalm Death till twisted turns of Korn and the result is quite impressive. “Nonsense” have grindings, have Korn like dark riffings and screams, but also jazzy cut-downs. It’s a killer track. And well, Alienation Mental have lot of surprises, they do not grinding from the beginning till the end, they knew to colour they music with exciting switches, inspired twists and turns, changing of tempos and approaches from grinding to slow cutting riffs, industrial colours and noise massacres, have some inspired riffs, wrote some good themes and actually have a few very good songs (“Nonsense”, “Indifference”,”Emotions of People 53 Seconds Before the End of the World”, “Follow the Perfecitizen”) not exclusively butchering. Read more Alienation Mental – Self Titled (2011)
Reviews
Benji Boko – Beats, Treats and All Things Unique (2011)
So, this is the new dancefloor/DJ sensation from U.K. featuring Maxi Jazz, Deuce Eclipse, Ricky Rankin and Mr. Louis (Boko’s seven year old cousin 😀 ) as contributing artist. Benji delivering a mixture of Electronic Funk and Trip-Hop, it’s smooth as it’s danceable, retro perfumed, but sounds kind of fresh. Take Jamiroquai and throw it in a blender with the Gorillaz and you will get something pretty close to this. The skits are kind of funny, the “music” is a minimalist, meticulously calculated series of samplers, sequencers and switches, classic beats and turns coloured with few smooth jazz piano and guitar cuts. It takes only a MIDI sequencing, multitrack recording and mixing software – for instance the excessively user-friendly ACID Pro 7 – and using the proper loop library, even my 4 years old son can deliver a few catchy dancefloor firestarters. And this lead me back to something else: not the bloody “music” matters, but who you know and who stands behind you – how many asses you kissed and most importantly, who’s ass. Read more Benji Boko – Beats, Treats and All Things Unique (2011)
Pariso – Sooner Insignificant Better (2011)
Not Betty, but only Pariso, still pretty musculus. Based primarially in London, Pariso formed early in 2009 under the moniker of Betty Pariso, released a split 7″ with the now defunct Manuscripts same year in July. Still going by the name Betty Pariso the band played a whole string of shows and it wasn’t long before another recording session was under their belts – a split cassette with We’ll Die Smiling. Drummer Tom decided in Easter 2010 that he was going to leave the band to concentrate on his now successful clothing line King Noir. Following Tom’s departure and a couple of months off, the band halved their name and found Alisdair whose drumming style solidified Pariso’s sound. A few old un-recorded tracks and some new ones written with Alisdair found their way onto the “Sooner Insignificant Better” 7″ which was released in January 2011 and is the first under the new name: Pariso. With half their former name and twice as hard, Pariso delivered another doze of fast and grinding hardcore. Read more Pariso – Sooner Insignificant Better (2011)
Wugazi – 13 Chambers (2011)
It’s not so hard to figure out: Wu-Tang Clan vs. Fugazi = Wugazi and the result is this “13 Chambers”, obviously 13 tracks available for free download at the official site . Actually, Wugazi is a labor of love by Cecil Otter & Swiss Andy. A year’s worth of cutting up every imaginable Fugazi record and trying out every Wu-Tang acapella they could get their hands on, resulted in this record. Now I had my own little problem with it: I saw a few years back Wu-Tang Clan at a festival, it wasn’t my choice to listen them, I was interested in Marilyn Manson who performed after them, but honestly, don’t matter how open-minded I might be, it was the worst live shit I ever had the bad luck to bear. Too many black guys with too many microphones rapping over a boring loop of four beats for one too long hour about how bad is to be black and how hard is their life in America. I really don’t give a shit about it and well, if life sucks in America, Africa is still on large, isn’t it? (Just like lefties can emigrate to Cuba anytime…)
On the other hand, Fugazi, formed in Washington, D.C. in 1987 and being on hiatus since 2003, is one of the leading bands of the post-hardcore movement, band formed by Ian MacKaye after legendary Minor Threat was dissolved in 1983.
So, kind of bitter-sweet, bad-good mixture of “stuffs” – exclusively from my point of view. Read more Wugazi – 13 Chambers (2011)
Black Jet Radio – Sex Sex Riot (2011)
It might sounds “dusty”, but this is absolutely straight, dirty, garage rock and raw as it is, no polish needed, this is only (“ugly”) rock’n’roll with roots both back to glam and punk rock.
Formed at Fort Wayne, Indiana, by guitarist and bass player Brian Jenkins of The Sacred Broncos and singer Danisha Jenkins. They recruited Shelby Siefring of Thunderhawk to work on drums and Danielle Teagarden on bass and guitar. Some of their first tracks, “Dead Wine” and “Ugly” brought to mind a Blondie meets The New York Dolls kind of approach mixed with Cabaret inspired vocals.
Singed to Riot House Records, their debut full-length album, “Sex Sex Riot” hits the stores in May 2011. Read more Black Jet Radio – Sex Sex Riot (2011)
Stellardrive – ERS-4 Speak, Memory (2010)
Built upon post-rock/post-hardcore structures, Stellardrive juggling between heavy and noisy elements and quieter, smoother, but pretty gloomy moments. If life is a labyrinth and we should have a musical background for it, well, this might be one of the proper options.
Stellardrive is an instrumental quintet from from Besançon, France created in 2005. The band initiated the ERS series in 2005, with two EPs “ERS-1” in 2005 and “ERS-2” in 2007 (digital releases), grouped on their first physical release “Omega Point” (Le Sonotone Rec., Impure Muzik, Inter-Over, Believe) in 2007. The third EP “ERS-3: ECOTONE”, both physical and digital released, was out in 2008. “ERS-4 Speak, Memory” was released in September 2010 and continue the exploration of the boundaries of the music delivering another beautiful piece of their music puzzle. Read more Stellardrive – ERS-4 Speak, Memory (2010)
Matthew Shipp – Art of the Improviser (2011)
Free improvisation, as a style of music, developed in the U.S. and Europe in the mid and late 1960s, largely as an outgrowth of free jazz and modern classical musics. Pioneers including saxophonists Evan Parker, Anthony Braxton and Peter Bratzmann, guitarist Derek Bailey, and the improvising group AMM. Free jazz is most strongly associated with the 1950s innovations of Ornette Coleman and Cecil Taylor and the later works of saxophonist John Coltrane. Other important pioneers included Charles Mingus, Eric Dolphy, Albert Ayler, Archie Shepp, Joe Maneri and Sun Ra. Although today “free jazz” is the generally-used term, many other terms were used to describe the loosely-defined movement, including “avant-garde”, “energy music” and “The New Thing”.
Matthew Shipp began playing piano at six years old. He was strongly attracted to jazz, but also played in rock groups while in high school. Shipp has been very active since the early 1990s, appearing on dozens of albums as a leader, sideman or producer. He was initially most active in free jazz, but has since branched out, notably exploring music that touches on contemporary classical, hip hop and electronica. He has been a long member of saxophonist David S. Ware’s quartet, but also recorded or performed with many musicians, including William Parker, DJ Spooky, Joe Morris, Daniel Carter, Roscoe Mitchell, Mat Maneri, High Priest and Beans of Antipop Consortium, and El-P. His dense, percussive style is often compared to Cecil Taylor by some critics. Read more Matthew Shipp – Art of the Improviser (2011)
Leszek Mozdzer – Komeda (2011)
Leszek Mozdzer is a classically-trained pianist, born in Gdansk, Poland, who discovered jazz as a teenager and now moves comfortably between the classical concert stage and jazz performance, garnering numerous awards along the way. He’s played with Stańko and has recorded with bassist Lars Danielsson, also he has worked with such artists and groups as Zbigniew Namysłowski, Tomasz Stańko, Jan A. P. Kaczmarek, Zbigniew Preisner, Anna Maria Jopek, Kazik Staszewski, Marcus Miller, John Scofield, Pat Metheny, David Gilmour, Behemoth and Lester Bowie. He is famous for his “Impressions,” subtle new interpretations of Chopin’s compositions. His recordings are the most popular jazz albums in his homeland.
His classical background strongly influences the sound of Komeda. Krzysztof Komeda, the Polish musician and composer who died suddenly and in a mysterious way at age 38, in 1969, was a key figure in the emergence of European jazz, and remains a major source of inspiration for musicians across the continent. On Komeda, his ACT solo album debut, pianist Leszek Mozdzer pays his own beautifully crafted tribute to his fellow countryman.
Fans of Keith Jarrett will be absolutely delighted. Read more Leszek Mozdzer – Komeda (2011)
Necrodeath – The Age Of Fear (2011)
The band was formed in 1984 under the name Ghostrider by Claudio (guitars) and Peso (drums) right after they saw Venom in concert. Under the influence of bands such as Slayer, Possessed, Kreator, Celtic Frost and Bathory, Necrodeath released a cult-demo tape titled “The Shining Pentagram” and obtained an incredible success through the underground. Tons of tributes in major magazines, fanzines and other underground features highlighted the release of the first two legendary albums “Into The Macabre” (1987) and “Fragments Of Insanity” (1989). “The Age of Fear” is a collection of some of their most powerful songs: it contains 15 tracks, the first 12 of which are taken from the band’s past eight albums, arranged chronologically and the previously unreleased “onyric” version of the song “Queen Of Desire”, featuring guest appearances by Giorgia Gueglio (Mastercastle) on vocals and Botys Beezard (Godyva) on piano, and also the killer cover version of Slayer’s classic “Black Magic” and the live version of the band’s own “The Theory”. The album’s artwork was made by French artist Pierre-Alain D. Read more Necrodeath – The Age Of Fear (2011)
Jungle Rot – Kill On Command (2011)
Hailed by many as the metal release of the year, “Kill On Command” is classy, traditional and absolutely old-school as it is. Fans disappointed by the quite modern approach of Morbid Angel on “Illud Divinum Insanus”, will be pleased by the thrash/death grindings of Jungle Rot.
The Midwest based quartet have garnered a large and loyal following within the last 10 years due in large part to having a style more similar to acts such as Slayer and Sodom, rather than the typical Cannibal Corpse and Suffocation rip-offs. Read more Jungle Rot – Kill On Command (2011)
