Before I had listen to “The Dream, The Space” the second full-length album by Crossfaith, I saw on YouTube their video of “Omen” and it just blow my head off. I’m quite a devoted Prodigy fan and “Omen” is one of my favorite songs, but these guys released a killer cover.
On the other hand I have to admit, I’m sick, tired and bored of this “metalcore”, “alternative metal” trend, trillion of bands from all over the world playing the same patters, it becomes absolutely cliche this mixture of raw and clean vocals dialogue, this post-emo approach of classic metal with post-hardcore elements. Well, as always, there are a few exceptions, and these Japanese guys are one of them. Read more Crossfaith – The Dream, The Space (2011)
Reviews
Slide On Venus – Put music to your troubles, EP (2010)
Formed in 2007, Slide On Venus* from Besançon, France merging power pop, indie, pop punk and high-energy rock elements in their groove oriented, electrifying music. Their third EP “Music To Put Your Troubles” released in November 2010 consist of five dynamic, pulsing, high-end and absolutely positive songs, beside their declared influences, reminds me a little bit also of OK Go, and not only because these French guys are singing in English, but their sound and music is quite American.
“California Saturday Ghost”, “Tongue and Blood”, or the smoother, softer “Aurora” are quite catchy songs, this positive vibe just feels alright. Read more Slide On Venus – Put music to your troubles, EP (2010)
BadBadNotGood – BBNG, EP (2011)
I actually thought their name is The Odd Trio, it seems I was wrong. And I admit it when I’m fucking up things. For God sake I’m not perfect. Yet. 👿 I’m willing to improve myself.
BadBadNotGood are back with another free EP, can grab it from their Bandcamp page or via Mediafire. Matt Tavares on piano, Alex Sowinski on drums and Chester Hansen on bass are three talented guys from Toronto and they plays smooth, but groovy modern jazz balancing between classic aromas and post-bop flavors. Experimental, still classy charming, smooth and exciting. Something absolutely nice to listening to. It’s quite an unique blending of traditional jazz and avant-garde experimentation, improvisations. Absolutely fresh and sparking. Read more BadBadNotGood – BBNG, EP (2011)
Basement – I Wish I Could Stay Here (2011)
Basement. Don’t matter what others may say, I really don’t give a shit about, believe me, I think it’s pretty dumb to name your band with a one – common – word. The world really gonna mad, every fucking single day independently or through one of the few trillion labels, a few trillion albums are released. I quite believe: everybody’s singing, nobody’s listening (and care). And very few are actually interested in buying something. So, if you name your band as probably at least a few others already did and some few will name their own a few minutes later, you’re just increasing your chances to stay unnoticed. Not to say that if somebody will try to “googling” you, there’s absolutely no way to find you. “Cloudy Basement”, “Burning Basement”, “Bass-ment”, fuck knows, but try to figure out something.
The very next issue is: “Basement? Oh, that guys sound just like Title Fight…” Read more Basement – I Wish I Could Stay Here (2011)
I, The Phoenix – Self Titled (2010)
Belgium gave to the world a few quite exciting artists. Well, my first “acquaintance” at age of 6 was René Magritte. Few years later I was crushed by Front 242, after a while, a Dutch friend of mine introduced me TC Matic (the former band of Arno Hintjens), dEUS are still on the top of my favorites list, and there are a few others as well. Kingdom of Belgium might be a small country – 11,787 square miles (30,528 km2) – , but it’s only prove that “size don’t matter” in some particular cases. Still, Belgium is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU’s headquarters, as well as those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.
In addition, I had in my mind “In Bruges”, the black comedy directed by Martin McDonagh in 2008. And somehow, in my subjective perception, the Belgian art scene delivering mainly pretty gloomy stuffs. Some like it hot, while others chosen the darker path. ITP makes no exception.
I, The Pheonix is a project born in Brussels, the brainchild of Jean-Paul Frenay and Vincent De Puydt, as they call it: “an organic platform”. ITP – far as I heard – is quite an unique something. Label it industrial seems unfair. Rather is a disturbing mixture of dark-wave, garage and gothic rock, a twist of psychedelic and progressive rock, some tasty spices of noise and industrial and lot of creativity. Read more I, The Phoenix – Self Titled (2010)
Harm’s Way – Isolation (2011)
I don’t have a clue if the novel by James Bassett written in ’62 inspired this guys from Chicago or not, but “Isolation” is definitively heavy as a cruiser on a seek-out-and-destroy mission. They delivering kind of old-school but excellent hardcore merged with some sludge and doom after-taste moments and sounds, filled with cutting and crushing groove metal riffs, pumping drums and howling basses that will tread you to the ground. Not to compare it with, but it reminds me of Biohazard’s “Urban Discipline” (1992), it has the same groove, strength and unpolished freshness and raw, but also incorporated the power of Pantera and their best riffing without actually copying anything. Usually I don’t get too easily excited, but Harm’s Way quite made me bang my head. Read more Harm’s Way – Isolation (2011)
Allcoy – Loud Music For Quiet People (2011)
Promised to be the new grunge revelation, Allcoy have delayed only one decade and so.You can get a taste of what they call “Allcore” at their Bandcamp page and buy their debut album if you like it. And these four guys from Detroit, Josh Augustine, Bryan Aldrich, Anthony Palsgrove and Drew Easton, delivering a pretty tasty alternative rock material with catchy grunge after-taste. It might be kind of out-dated and retro, but still, they write some good riffs, catchy themes and put together a couple of groovy rock songs. When most of the trendy bands are completely predictable, something “out of the beat”, even if it’s quite familiar, are sometimes a bless. And Allcoy brings back something from the rawness of the early Nirvana, the heaviness of Godsmack and the attitude of Stone Temple Pilots and blended all of this elements in their own high-energy rock. Read more Allcoy – Loud Music For Quiet People (2011)
Lost Sphere Project – Third Level to Internal Failure (2011)
Brutal, grinding and merciless, Geneva’s Lost Sphere Project are back after their first full length album, “Verse XXIV” released in 2009. Make no mistake, they gonna rip off your head and eat your heart. “Third Level to Internal Failure” is an excellent mixture of grindcore terrorism and brutal, technical death metal, the result is a fast, violent, extremely complex, uncompromising grind metal album with many cutting riffs, tempo and theme shifting, raw vocals and beneath all the butchery, Lost Sphere Project actually are quite musical, managed to write songs beyond madness, chaos and noise. Read more Lost Sphere Project – Third Level to Internal Failure (2011)
Panzer Princess – Get Off My Back (2011)
Sleazy, ripped off from two decades ago, the Swedish Panzer Princess brings back the sparkling of glam metal just like it was yesterday. In June I had Michael Monroe of the Finnish Hanoi Rocks brand new album “Sensory Overdriveâ€, and the spirit of Hanoi Rocks, L.A. Guns, Mötley Crüe, Vain, Vixen, Faster Pussycat, Dogs Damoúr, and all the other sometimes called “hair-metal” bands of the 80s is all over on this “Get Off My Back”. And well, “Get Off My Back” and it’s 12 tracks are not just a fine time-capsule, but this dirty rock’n’roll sounds quite fresh and while nowadays everybody follows exclusively trendy patterns, it’s quite a rock’n’roll suicide. Read more Panzer Princess – Get Off My Back (2011)
Pop Evil – War of Angels (2011)
“Last Man Standing”, the leading single of the second full-length album by Pop Evil was released last fall and it’s a strong, powerful, 101 % American rock/metal song with all its best characteristics. “Monster You Made”, the second single from the album, was released on June 7, 2011 and it’s a power-ballad, maybe we chances on the charts, but actually quite pale and pointless. The album it’s right between great rock songs and themes and pale, faceless, plastic and second-hand taste like indie/post grunge whatevers. Good to hear catchy, beefy riffs like “Last Man Standing”, “Boss’s Daughter”, “Epitaph” or “Black & Blue” have, I see (hear) no sense in the Pearl Jam meats Bon Jovi copying “Let It Go”, “Next Life”, “Purple” and the mentioned “Monster You Made” ballads and cliches. Read more Pop Evil – War of Angels (2011)
