Tag: album review
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Shardborne – Living Bridges
Hailing from Limerick, Ireland (and thus, local lads!), Shardborne are on the right label with Out On A Limb, as they did a fine job with fellow Irish instrumental prog-metallers, Rest. On ‘Not That Axis’, Shardborne are very reminiscent of Voivod circa ‘The Unknown Knows’, whereas ‘Qualia’ displays virtuoso jazz influences. In a sense, Shardborne are a…
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Iron Maiden – The Book of Souls
Whenever any of us listen to music, we bring the sum of our knowledge and experiences along for the ride. Those elements are called the beholder’s share, and they obviously shape our understanding and opinion of what we hear. I’m going to provide you with my opinion about Iron Maiden’s latest and sixteenth album,The Book…
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Leave The Living – Pacifist
There is a big Pantera-shaped hole in the metal scene. The question is, what band has the chops to fill it? On the strength of Pacifist, it could well be Leave The Living! That all important groove of Pantera is there, coupled with the raging intensity of At The Gates circa Slaughter of the Soul.…
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Crusty Culprits: Crust Punk from Bandcamp, Part One
I’ve loved heavyweight crust punk since I first heard bands like Discharge, Hellbastard, and Amebix adding metal to their respective visions of punk rock in the early 1980s. To this day, nothing satisfies my musical appetite more than some filthy battle-vested punk with a snarling metal accent. In recent years, Bandcamp has proven to be…
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We Hunt Buffalo – Living Ghosts
Man, what is it with B.C. bands and Bison americanus? Not only is the biggest East Van metal band not founded by Devin Townsend named after this majestic creature, but the next big buzz band happens to hunt ‘em when not playing heavy rock. OK, so their name might scream emo, but We Hunt Buffalo…
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Venom – From The Very Depths
Venom have always been weighted down by a very metal millstone: that of their own legacy. The classic Mantas, Cronos, Abaddon line-up is the one everyone thinks of when Venom is mentioned. Since that era, Venom have been all over the place, with various line-ups, none of them achieving any great success. The Welcome To…
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Van Halen – s/t
The thing about albums which are truly progressive (to be clear, I’m referring to albums which break new ground – not necessarily prog rock albums) is that their impact on pop music as a whole takes a bit of time to really register. Sure, there’s a chance that they might break through, win fans and…
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Kadavar – Berlin
Kadavar has really cut its teeth on the road since the release of their last record, 2013’s Abra Kadavar. On their first North American trek, they blew Scorpion Child off the stage on what I can only assume was a regular basis, judging by the Toronto show. And their 2014 headlining gig at the Horseshoe…
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blackQueen – The Directress
Originating in San Francisco and now calling Seattle home, blackQueen invade the psyche with new album The Directress. The band is led by original Assuck bassist Pete Jay (guitar, vocals, synths, samples), and is rounded out by Brandon Fitzsimons (synths, keys, samples), Ursula Stuart (bass) and Alex Bytnar (drums). Just now finding their way onto my…
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Grime – Circle of Molesters
As far as sludge bands go, Grime is aptly named. These Italians play a dirty, gritty blend of downtuned doom, taking the foundation that Eyehategod built, and making it even more unpleasant. Case in point: their sophomore album, which boasts a title even more offputting than its artwork. Curiously enough, the song titles seem more…