To paraphrase comedian Chris Rock, I’m tired of apologizing for CRYPTOPSY. I was in the minority among people when I loved The Unspoken King. I’m sure as people are reading this; they are scratching their heads again. No matter, CRYPTOPSY has silenced all their critics with an album that matches the best work of their career. A brutal slab of technical death metal on every level the album is great for all the reasons that made the band stellar in the first place. Obviously, people talk about the inhuman level of Drummer FLO MOUNIER. However, the real strength of the band is returning guitarist and writer JON LEVASSEUR and mainstay guitarist/uber producer CHRISITAN DONALDSON. The songs they wrote are superb. I was nervous about Oliver Pinard being able to replace ERIC LANGLOIS on bass, but even he was great too! Lastly, MATT MCGATCHY‘s performance provides the shut the fuck up moment of the year to all the haters. Well done sirs!
#9. PRONG- Carved Into Stone (Long Branch Records/SPV)
I thought my birthday came early this year when PRONG’s new album came out. PRONG has always been one of my favorite bands and all of their recorded output has been always been strong. Carved Into Stone is actually the bands best album since 1996′s Rude Awakening. Not only is the album full of sick tunes, but over the top, guitar playing in general is terrific. TOMMY VICTOR (DANZIG, MINISTRY) has been known for two things in his career: great songs and being a riff master general. The album displays an unexpected depth for any record in 2012. Packed with just the right touch of technical mastery and catchy songwriting to please and the hardcore soul, which hearkens back to Tommy’s NYC metal roots. The performances from TONY CAMPOS (SOULFLY/ MINISTRY/STATIC-X/ASESINO/POSSESSED/OTEP) and ALEXI RODRIGUEZ (ex-3 INCHES OF BLOOD) are matched perfectly too, making this one of the baddest power trio’s around.
#8. GOJIRA – L’Enfant Sauvage (Roadrunner)
GOJIRA albums, when they come out, are an event. The metal world waits with baited breath and the results are always stellar. Armed with a new deal from Roadrunner, the band put out L’Enfant Sauvage over the summer to roars of approval. Perhaps, even I was too cynical to believe that GOJIRA would continue to get increasingly popular as they stayed true to who they were? L’Enfant Sauvage is a great blend of theProgressive Rock/Metal, Tech Death, old-school Death Metal and Thrash influences they are known for. Then there is their subject matter: they are one of the most thoughtful and socially conscious bands around, lyrically. The album hits the right mood on every level, every time and has the musical confidence of a band much more senior in years. Songs like “Explosia”, “The Axe” and “Liquid Fire” are going to be talked about in metal head circles for years to come.
#7. CANNIBAL CORPSE- Torture (Metal Blade)
Like a beautifully marbled steak or a legendary work of art, CANNIBAL CORPSE truly does get better with age. It seems likely that much like SLAYER, the death metal godfathers will keep right on trucking on to oblivion, making skull splitting, gore filled albums for as long as they can. Torture is perfect in every way and all of the things you love about the band are in the mix. Perhaps due to being the most collaborative written album in the bands history, the sound from song to song is quite eclectic. Not like Dubstep, power-ballad eclectic, mind you, but the band has figured out how to blend different song styles seamlessly. Inventive new chord structures and riffs, hard to fathom bass lines and stupendous drumming are all topped off by GEORGE “CORPSEGRINDER” FISHER‘s impeccable voice from hell. Plus, don’t forget the grooves. Oh those crushing grooves! Nobody writes a grooving-ass, brutal riff better than ALEX WEBSTER. The band continues to be the yard stick by which all death metal music and consequently, all death metal bands are measured.
#6. C.O.C. – C.O.C. (Candlelight)
That C.O.C. was able to make a comeback as a trio at this point in their career is not a surprise. The fact that they reunited to make an amazing album is not even a question. What I am surprised by, is that it seems like the rest of the world has caught up to the sound of the band and the love from fans and the press is over flowing. When last we saw C.O.C. as a trio it was the 80s and they were mostly an underground phenomenon. Lots of bands like to say they were influenced by the Sludgy, Crossover Doom masters, but in this age of the Internet; flattery goes a long way to help a new bands rep.To hear WOODY WEATHERMAN tell it, the reunion circuit was totally un-interesting to the band, unless they were gonna make new music. C.O.C., the album has more quality and vitality than many of the upstarts of the genre they helped put on the map. MIKE DEAN‘s bass is full of fuzz and style; Woody‘s soloing is on fire and REED MULLEN, back for the first time in over decade, drums and sings like a man possessed. Let us not forget the poignant political lyrics, much welcomed in these troublesome times of a divided America. You might say the metal world needed C.O.C. to come back, as much as they needed to make a comeback themselves.
#5. MESHUGGAH- Koloss (Nuclear Blast)
What can you say about MESHUGGAH that hasn’t been said already? It’s not hard to run out of superlatives when talking about the most influential metal band of the last fifteen years. Whether Koloss was going to be great or not was likely not debatable. What was up for grabs, was what direction these geniuses would take the iconic music we have all come to expect. The results were stunning. Can you change things up, and still be the same band? By definition no, but that is MESHUGGAH for you. Koloss is a collection of songs much like the rest of the bands’ storied catalog: brutal, and complex. Most of the songs feature a pulsing groove that has come to the fore in the bands work of late. Every beat and riff is a maelstrom of twisting delight, overlapping time signatures and finger-defying licks galore. Most of all, the album sets another technical high water-mark for guitarist FREDRICK THORDENDAL and drummer TOMAS HAAKE.
#4. TESTAMENT- Dark Roots Of Earth (Nuclear Blast)
The return of TESTAMENT to their former level of greatness is nothing short of a triumph for all of metal. 2008′s Formation of Damnation was an excellent comeback album, after almost a decade of no new music. In the interim years since getting back together, they have toured tirelessly around the world, reignited their chemistry and fulfilled the promise of their early career. Dark Roots of Earth takes the concept of the old-school Thrash style, added a modern sensibility and took it all one step further. Only EXODUS and ANTHRAX have been able to pull of the feat of making new music for modern ears, staying true to their past and begin able to add a level of panache. ERIC PETERSON finally got his dream come true by getting GENE HOGLAN to write and record drums for a TESTAMENT album. The unrelenting bottom end of the songs gives the band a new power they have never had. Every song is a gem. “Native Blood” is one of the catchiest, yet grooviest songs I’ve heard in ages. The chorus is also the best of 2012. CHUCK BILLY‘s ageless voice carries the day and ALEX SKOLNICK displays the chops that verify his legions of fans. Even GREG CHRISTIAN is heard from, with some excellent bass lines. Dark Roots of Earth is all killer and positively no filler.
#3. BARONESS- Yellow And Green (Relapse)
One of the most anticipated albums of 2012 did not disappoint when BARONESS dropped the latest in their color-themed recent discography. The band made no pretense that this album would be not be metal and frankly, that was OK by me. If you have been following the band, they have been less concerned with the trappings of fitting in, in their career up to this point. They instead stayed true to their artistic authenticity. What BARONESS delivered is a double-album of incredible songs, displaying great chops and the best dynamics overall of any album on this list. Some of the songs are quite heavy, but more often than not, that heaviness never came the expense of melodies or tones. “Take My Bones Away” was my out and out favorite song of the entire year. “March To The Sea” was another stone cold rocker, the likes that haven’t been heard since the heyday of QUEEN or THIN LIZZY. Some of the best moments are the most unexpected ones; like the freak-out synth work in “Cocanium”. All of the keyboard work is stellar as is the bass playing, which band leader John Baizley played all of too. “Back Where I Belong”, “Eula” and “Board Up The House” will also rank at the top of the bands’ song book for years to come. The “Green” side of the double set is equally tuneful and more mellow, but no less mint song-craft wise. Finally, tying it all together is the brilliant cover artwork, the years’ best; also by Baizley once again.
#2. DYING FETUS- Reign Supreme (Relapse)
DYING FETUS is such a great band in its current incarnation that one almost forgets there were entire years in their history marked by upheavals and departures. The present day lineup has been intact since 2007 and the comfort level they have together creating the most brutal Death Metal possibly known to man is sky high. Through it all, JOHN GALLAGHER has been the one constant: constantly growing as a guitarist and writer and constantly writing pissed the fuck off, baffling and sick lyrics. Reign Supreme might be remembered years from now as one of the top three releases of the bands’ career with its non-stop violence inspired songs. GALLAGHER and his p-i-c SEAN BEASLEY crush it out of the park on the guttural vocals. Beasley, who was always an underrated bassist for the genre, plays some of the best passages ever recorded for the instrument in the context of technical death metal. TREY WILLIAMS also one-ups his performance from Descend Into Depravity, being a might less technical, but still precise as fuck and bludgeoning as all hell. His blasts are far and away my favorite of any drummer on album this entire year. The album is a masterpiece of death metal brilliance, and that is really saying something considering how deep the sub-genre is these days.
#1. IHSAHN- Eremita (Candlelight)
In what was a high quality year at the top of the heap of metal music, IHSAHN‘s fourth solo outing is my choice for the album of the year. It’s not the sexy choice compared with typical years past, but it is the best choice, by far. Eremita is a sprawling, ambitious album full of musical twists and turns, yet perfectly coalescing into a sensible piece of art. In an interview I conducted with him for Metal Army he talked about the creative process as a continual evolution, a death followed by a rebirth. That would just begin to cover the emotional and lyrical depth in the music. In many ways, this is the album that IHSAHN, famously known as the legendary front man of EMPEROR, has been building up to for his entire career. His mastery as a composer, guitarist, vocalist and lyricist is without equal at this point in his career. Musically the songs cover the gamut of emotions and styles and reveal a complexity that mirrors the artist himself. Songs like “Arrival”, “The Paranoid”, “Something Out There”, “The Eagle And The Snake” and “Departure” are among the best of the year. Topping off the package are the guest performances by the likes of DEVIN TOWNSEND, JEFF LOOMIS, EINAR SOLBERG (LEPROUS), JEFF MUNKENBY on sax and IHSAHN’s wife HEIDI S. TVEITEN‘s enchanting vocal turns, which sends the quality of the album into the stratosphere.
Now this here show I wasn’t expecting to be too off the wall, since it’s the Middle East, a venue that has become infamous in my mind for its almost telepathic no mosh policy. Why the fuck wouldn’t you move when GAZA‘s on, dammit? Inb4 jokes about GAZA being in the Middle East. Hailin from SLC, Utah, these punks make Sludgecore interesting. The trick is to add some angular mathematics, a healthy dose of schizophrenia, and a genuinely formidable sound/stage presence combo that’ll make the nonbelievers sing “Hallelujeracunt!” while devolving into an orgy of violence. Unfortunately, as I mentioned above, this venue is full of squares, and if you’re looking to punch someone in the nose, go to the Palladium. It’s still great to see that Jon’s mannerisms have only gotten more insane, with him at a few points abandoning his microphone to infiltrate the crowd and bellow from within, and even before that he had jumped down into the crowd area to get more of a “punk rock vibe goin”. Attaboy. While many audience members looked confused or scared at Jon prowling around menacingly while the band continued to blast their warning message to everyone’s unready ears, I and the other GAZA fans took delight in knowing what would happen. From dragging his microphone along the ground to create an odd homemade doomy ambiance to him sounding like a raving, drunken preacher denouncing the world’s ills, it had all the hallmarks of a great GAZA performance. The only problem was that about five out of however many attendees seemed to enjoy being touched, pointed at, yelled at, or generally graced with the chest of (since Jon’s always taller than everyone) a monster. The new material promises to be as punishing, if not more so than previous outings, and if they ever do decide to go soft, it’d still sound like fellow Sludgecore band IMBROGLIO’s ugly little sister on heroin mixed with gunpowder for extra kick.
BLACK COBRA
Following these titans were a relatively smaller band, both in size and I dearly hope influence, BLACK COBRA. Since they drove me damn near to drowsiness with a lack of actual songwriting dynamics and also-ran performance in general (or maybe their songs actually were that badly written), then I’ll make my review the same. Suck it. And the guy in the white BARONESS shirt who was actually into that band can suck it too. I’d assumed they’d be boring because of their name, and it saddens me to know I was right.
TOCHE played an inspired set as the penultimate act.
TORCHE broke the monotonous smoky fuck cloud created by the cobra with their mixture of heavier than thou Sludge Metal and a poppy sensibility that can only come from being from the flowery state of Florida.They have somehow found the exact right balance between heaviness and melody, perfected by similar bands such as Canada’s BISON B.C. and Boston boys THE PROSELYTE. Like frosting on a supple cake, they know how to perfectly accent their songs with interesting elements so you actually feel like you’re participating in the listening experience. People reacted well to TORCHE, as they’ve been here several times and have built up a small but dedicated base in Boston, including some non-Metal folk, which just goes to show their versatility. Here’s to hoping TORCHE keep up the great work as the superheroes of Stoner Pop.
Mike Dean is leading the current incarnation of C.O.C.
Raleigh’s own CORROSION OF CONFORMITY have been around a long time, and can actually claim that the birthing of Crossover Thrash and some of the popularity of Sludge Metal belongs to them, which one of their new songs, “The Doom” seems set on demonstrating. They just put out a new album, and recently came around recently in support of CLUTCH, who are also dirty old men who like their drink. If you’re from the South, it’s impossible to be Edge. C.O.C. might be some low-down dirty dogs, but their music is actually quite technical and dare I say… mildly Proggy, and is nowhere near as lazy as a good dose of Southern heat normally puts bands anywhere below Virginia. With this odd combination of technical Crossover and groovy Sludge, one who’s not all too familiar with them may just look in awe at how they can stand with their bodies being about 65% liquor and dirt, and then be awed at how they seamlessly go from one style to another. by Sean “That Black Metal Dude” Genovese It’s clear how they got to be so influential, because it causes a reaction in the vagina of every lesbian. A couple of girls who I’m sure had never seen each other before that night decided to bust out some PG-13 action for all to see. It was… peculiar to say the least, but there were no children around to complain, since this band’s for grown folk. Go see them and hopefully you’ll score too.
Reed Mullen is back and killing it behind the kit and on vocals.
Woody Weatherman shreds!
Review by Sean Genovese with photos by Echoes In The Well.
It seems like yesterday I was extolling the virtues of Snakes For the Divine (eOne), the last album from Oakland’s HIGH ON FIRE. That album was a masterpiece of raw musical fury and wild guitar abandon. I wasn’t sure the band could top that effort, nor did I think they would try to. At this point the band, led by Matt Pike (SLEEP) has little to prove, has built a strong following and rocks stages the world over. Their new album takes the approach of not trying fixing what isn’t broken, but still attempting to grow sonically and especially lyrically. Although you can make a case that every HoF album has a theme behind it, De Vermis Mysteriis is truly a full fledged concept album in the purest sense. The album title translates to “Mysteries of the Worm” and comes from mind of author’s like Robert Block (Psycho) H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulu Mythos. The rest of the story has to do with Jesus Christ, the Immaculate Conception and the would be son of God’s ghost of his dead in-utero twin, who becomes a time traveler. Still with me? No, I am not quite high enough to fully get this concept yet, but it sounds pretty cool to me.
Prepare to be bowled over from the first notes of this album. “Serums of Liao” thunders alive with a crazy drum fill before launching an all-out assault on your senses. Just a wave of jagged riffs and ferocious drumming the band has come to be known for. Right away Pike sounds like his usually raging, unhinged self. Right from the first chorus, there is a hint of more melody underneath the weight of his gravely voice. Rather than play a typical guitar solo when you might expect it, the band engages in a unified tribal breakdown for the ages. Later on, when Pike does shred he favors texture and style over flash. This song is so ripping it’s ridiculous. Des Kensel murders his drum kit and Jeff Matz sneaks in a some fluid walking bass lines as well. Together they are one of the best rhythm sections in metal. My ears were kind of exhausted from listening to the opening track on repeat a few times. But when I did finally play “Bloody Knuckles”, I was amped! Definitely in the stoner groove vein of the bands’ earlier material. Nasty and hostile, the song just jams. The single “Fertile Green” is next and you just know there are gonna be some titles with smoke references on a HIGH ON FIRE album. Super thrashy sounding, the song has a main lick that careens back and forth between your speakers and ear drums. Pike again has the grit going in his voice, but manages to bring new possibilities with his vocals lines calling to mind a TOM WAITS or LEMMY. Both drums and bass again have slick little solo breaks as each musical part of the band carries their own weight. Hats off to producer Kurt Ballou (CONVERGE, CAVE IN, ISIS, TRAP THEM, KEN MODE) for bringing this band to new heights and capturing all of the blissful chaos. “Madness of An Architect” is really a throwback to SLEEP and all the great doom of yesteryear. Just a dirge made of tube shattering chords and grinding riffery. Definitely a track to burn one to, it almost has a MELVINS-like quality which I have observed before in their writing. “Samsara” is an epic, moody instrumental track that could be straight out of 1973. There is some great soulful lead playing on this track too. The song “Spiritual Rights” is at the heart of the meaning of the album. Great lyrics and crushing riffs. With its superior drumming it could easily share a musical ancestor with MOTORHEAD’s “Overkill”. “King Of Days” is another sludge metal masterpiece. It is so slow and harsh, yet has a great tunefulness to it. Matz channels his inner GEEZER BUTLER and JOHN PAUL JONES here as well. The title track is another killer tune. All of HoF’s albums are deep and full of well written songs, but this is kind of ridiculous. “Romulus and Remus” is another SABBATH-ian epic with a chopping riff that will blow your top off and have lots of kids working on their picking technique. The opus closes out with “Warhorn” which is as mighty in sound as it is in name. Sort of an aural bastard child blending SAINT VITUS and C.O.C. It’s hard to believe that this might be the bands’ finest hour, but it is. Raise your glass, bong and devil horns high with full respect!
Metal Army caught up with Woody Weatherman, the guitarist for C.O.C on the eve of their just released new album. We talked about the reunion of the 1980′s lineup, the new album, writing and recording, the history of the band and if they will ever reunite with Pepper Keenan who is busy with DOWN these days.
MAA: How did the original trio of C.O.C. reform and what led to making new music?
WW: It’s kind of a funny story. I’ve told it a time or two. Mike and I had been jamming and writing music and all that. Mike and Reed had also been jamming in a side project together called RIGHTEOUS FOOL. Pepper actually sort of rounded us all up initially. He wanted to do some festival dates as a four piece. Pepper called us all up and rattled all of our cages. Me, Mike and Reed started jamming and he was gonna come up from New Orleans. I guess the time kind of flew and out paths became a little discombobulated there. Those things never happened. But the three of us kept on jamming and we were like ‘We’ve already got started on this, let’s keep going with this!’ We were having such a good time so we decided to keep on rocking. Before we knew it we had an album written and we were out in L.A. Recording it. Then we set up a couple of shows back in the Summer of 2010 and had a great time. The funny thing was that Pepper sort of spearheaded it, which is cool.
MAA: How long did the writing process take for the new album?
WW: It would have gone a heck of a lot quicker. The actually recording of it, we really laid it down in two weeks and about the same amount of time mixed. But in between recording it and mixing it we did an entire summer of touring. We started recording it last March out at DAVE GROHL’s joint out in L.A. After we got it all on tape we spent some of the summer on the road doing shows to break it up. We finished mixing it this past fall over a few weeks. The writing of it went really quick. The only thing that made it seem like a long time was that we had so many shows in between. We were trying to play live and really gel the new stuff together. Because there is nothing like trying to making the new songs work better playing them in a live show.
Power Trio!
MAA: There are obvious influences of punk, doom and thrash, but I hear some psychedelic parts and even some soul parts in there. Is that where you guys are at these day?
WW: We’ve got a lot of influences you know. I was joking to Mike and Reed like ‘When did we become a prog, death, doom, soul and every other adjective you can think of band?’ (laughs) None of it is on purpose. It truly is how we write. I know a lot of bands might say that. We’ve never approached this like we need to do this kind of record or we need to do this, we need to do that. Even if we started off that way in the back of our minds thinking that, it never works out that way.
MAA: Once again John Custer was behind the boards. What does he bring to the table that keeps C.O.C. coming back to him?
WW: I think he’s a quality control guy. At this point in the game because we have done so many records and worked with him through the years, he really let’s us do our thing. He doesn’t try to manipulate the music, like tries to change the direction. But he let’s you do want you do best. He let’s you do your thing. Then he tells you what really doesn’t work and how to make what does work sound better. He’s just really great a getting tones, bass, guitar and drum wise. That’s where he shines, polishing up the music and getting all the right tones in the studio. But he’s not into changing the music. He’s never has been one of those other guys.
Reed Mullen and Mike Dean on stage, opening for CLUTCH in 2011.
MAA: It’s not slight to anyone else that has played drums in the band, but what does it mean to have Reed back in the band?
WW: There is no doubt. That was the lynch-pin in whole thing was actually getting Mullen back. That is what made it happen. It’s the original guys. What can you say? It’s what makes it click. Like I was mentioning about the writing process, whenever you write a riff with a drummer who plays the right drumbeat you want to hear behind you without telling him, that makes all the difference in the world. That’s the way it happened on this one. Of course we’ve had some excellent guys fill in behind the kit when he wasn’t with us. We’ve had Jimmy Bower (DOWN/EYEHATEGOD) or Stanton Moore from GALACTIC and they are great drummers. But there is nothing like having Mullen behind the kit. He is the real key to the C.O.C. thing, man.
MAA: Is the record being self-titled a statement in any way?
WW: As opposed to being really any kind of statement, it was just kind of time to do one. This year, 2012, we are around as a band for thirty years. Especially with getting Mullen back it seems more like the original band. It was the right time. It may or may not be our definitive work. I don’t want to say that any record is our best work because I think we are always improving. I’m sure our next record will be even better. It was time to do a self-titled. It was going to happen eventually, so why not now? (laughs)
MAA: From the bands earliest time the voice of the band was very socially conscious, political and anti-establishment. Why do those themes seem to still ring true today and appear on the album?
WW: At any time you could almost say that about the world. There is always some effed up shit going on in the world! (laughs) Everything in the world seems to be coming to a head. Everybody today is talking about these internet censorship and piracy bills like this SOPA. It’s pretty scary stuff. Big Brother is out there and has his hands around our neck. There are a couple of references in the lyrics on the album that alludes to it. We never try to get too exact and obvious with out meanings, but it is all in there. They are there and we leave them open to interpretation. Mike Dean does a great jobs with his lyrics. Reed does as well. He sings a few songs on the record too that are great.
Woody, ripping it up live in 2011.
MAA: You have always had a distinct and soulful lead guitar style. Who were your influences that made you pick up the guitar?
WW: I would say probably the two standouts from my early years are BILLY GIBBONS of ZZ TOP and of course CARLOS SANTANA. I was a big SANTANA freak growing up as a kid in the 70s. And of course (TONY) IOMMI. Everybody says IOMMI, but you got throw him in there. (laughs)
MAA: Will we see a reunion of the lineup with Pepper eventually?
WW: Yeah! Obviously nobody knows the future but, you know Pepper is our buddy and we are gonna jam with him in New Orleans on St. Patty’s day. I’ve already talked to him. Maybe he will do a song or two, I don’t know. When the time is right, we all want to. But I believe we will get back together at some point. I think we have some more to offer as a four piece. We’ll see what time brings us.
MAA: Do you think there is a misconception about Pepper’s involvement with the band?
WW: Really what happened was we had a bunch more touring set up for In the Arms of God, which came out in 2005. And that hurricane (Editors note: Hurricane Katrina) really messed us up. We had a whole European tour booked to open for MOTORHEAD and all these plans that just dissolved after that. We just never got the ball back going. And the DOWN guys were all in New Orleans. The all live there. They got busy again and C.O.C. just fell by the wayside a little bit for a while. It was definitely not any kind of personal stuff involved in any way.
MAA: Manchild zine writer Brian Walsby did a phenomenal history/graphic novel of the band. What are your lasting memories of the history of the band?
WW: There have been a million labels applied to us through the years. Some of them were just made up, like crossover!
MAA: That is all D.R.I.’s fault!
WW: (laughs) Yup, D.R.I. took that over. We’ve always been doing the same thing. It is just a matter of how we’ve been able interpret it through our recordings and live shows. Just learning how to play better over the years on our instruments. (laughs) Just learning tricks to do and recording techniques. I think it has changed how we sound and how we improved. We’ve always have the same goal and it’s just a matter of how we do it has changed a little bit.
MAA: Thanks for your time Woody!
WW: Cool man! Thanks a lot brother! Look for us on tour!
One of the most anticipated albums of 2012 is finally here. C.O.C. as an entity was nearly as influential to mid-80s crossover hardcore bands and fans as they were sludge, doom and thrash ones later on. They continue to be one of those artists you sit back and admire the mad genius of years later. Even when they were getting popular with the SABBATH-ian riffage in the mid-90s, I still bumped Technocracy and Animosity in particular, a lot. It was so raw, so emotional and much too smart for the average fans back in the day to understand what they were all about. When Reed Mullen and Mike Dean started playing together in RIGHTEOUS FOOL I hope a glimmer of hope this lineup would come together and eventually it did. Believe it or not Pepper Keenan was part of the impetus for the trio version to come back together and he hopes to return to the fold someday when DOWN takes a break. In the meantime we have this appropriately self-titled album that reflects all of the little colors the band has played with over the many years cultivating their palates.
Woody Weatherman, on tour in 2011.
From the opening riff to Dean’s unmistakable grunt, the band announced their grand return to form. “Psychic Vampire” has the same groove and ruff and tumble punk grind that their vintage tracks had. Immediately I though of John Custer, once again behind the boards making his magic happen. The sound of Dean’s tremendous bass tone, Woody Weatherman’s crust soaked guitar tone and Reed Mullen’s drumming is the real sound of the band and it is a joy to hear it back. Doom, hardcore and thrash parts blend naturally through these veterans’ hands and hearts. When Woody’s solo blazes in, it is just a revelation. He has always been a great lead guitarist, but he has also stepped up a lot here in terms of not strictly relying on the typical blues scales. “River of Stone” is another epic track full of boogie thunder and metallic frenzy. The jagged riffs that cut in and out are huge sounding while Mullen murders the drum kit. The sludgy chorus has a few twists and turns that will delight listeners as well. “Leeches” is a slice of pure 80s throwback that could have come out in 1985. It is raw, furious and fun. Great gang vocals too from everybody. Reed gets in on the act on some lead vocals too and again it is like back in the day came through to slap today’s face off. Dean is certainly a stronger singer than he has ever been and it shows on a number tracks. He comes off like a cross between an early OZZY, Darby Crash and a demented sooth-sayer. The lyrics are also superb on this track. The band continues to make relevant intellectual social and political commentary, proving the years have not dulled their anger much. For a change of pace the instrumental “El Lamento de las Calabras” is an introspective piece with some nice guitar work. “Your Tomorrow” returns to the feral rocking ground and is another rager. “The Doom” might be the best song on the album and it’s title is fitting. The track channels all of the sludgy yesterdays of metal until some rabid drumming by Mullen introduces the breakneck speed part. Their ability to shift back and forth between these styles and keep it fresh song after song is great. The last two minutes of the track rivals anything in the bands’ history. “The Moneychangers” is another tight track the band has been playing a lot live and harkins back to their pre-90s sound too. Right on the money with the lyrics again too. The philosophical nature of some of the lyrics and even some of the musical movements do call to mind the Pepper related albums. This makes me think that he was as much an influence on the band as they were an inspiration to him. My other favorite tracks include “Newness”, “Time of Trials” and “The Same Way”. The album is without a flaw though and I hope this lineup endures for a while so they can remind the old and wise of their greatness while schooling the newbies on what a great band sounds and looks like.
‘Bear Metal’ you say? Bring it on, for Norway’s Svolk cause a sure fire ruckus here on Svolk ‘Em All, their highly enjoyable debut record for Napalm Records. For those wondering what in the HELL constitutes ‘Bear Metal,’ it really isn’t all too confusing in the end. Take one part traditional, NWOBHM-influenced proto-thrash, filter it through a heavy, bass-driven stoner rock filter and get it drunk on some fine Norwegian moonshine…voila! Instant Bear Metal!
Svolk do indeed concentrate on Thee Riff here on Svolk ‘Em All, coming across as the bastard thrash offspring of Monster Magnet and Black Label Society, kicking out big, dumb riffs in the most lovable of fashions, while the Pepper Keenan-esque croon of Knut Erik lead the charge with a fun-filled charisma. Sure, there isn’t exactly anything original about the noise of Svolk, really, but these riffs are big, hairy and mean-just like their animal namesake-and take great pleasure in kick ass with swingin’ swagger to spare.
While “Anchor” sits high as an album highlight-featuring tasty, twin Maiden leads and a killer, Diamond Head-influenced bridge section-the lion’s share of Svolk ‘Em All is an unabashed, unassuming ass kicker which has fun at all costs, taking things as loose ‘n lethal as possible…while having tons of fun along the way, of course! Solid.
USX, or US CHRISTMAS as they have been known recently released the epic concept record The Valley Path (Neurot Recordings). Metal Army caught up with front man Nate Hall for a wide-ranging interview going into great depth about many topics. What follows is an excerpt of a longer interview with Nate.
An achingly beautiful testament to the natural world.
MAA: The Valley Path is a bit of a unique experiment for the band. Can you tell us how it came together?
NH: Well it’s been awhile since the idea first started getting kicked around. About a year ago we started working on it. We recorded it last August and uh, it was really easy. It was the easiest recording we’ve ever done. It was just real, real natural feeling, uh, I had the basic structure and ideas for the record. It’s kinda the same approach we always take: song/record. I’ll have a lot of ideas and then people will bring in ideas and we’ll sort of merge things and it was collaborative and the next record will be even more so because a lot of the guys in the band were kind of new when we recorded Run Thick In The Night weren’t in the band for the recording of it. We got to work on Valley Path a little more together and a lot of people have asked about how did we decide to do the one song thing. I mean I’ve always liked records that were real cohesive. One I’m listening to right now when I’m in the car, Wish You Where Here by PINK FLOYD and Animals is like that, The Wall is like that. Dark Side of the Moon…a lot of those records were just real seamless and I like that idea. I don’t know, you’d have to ask those guys, but as far as their label. I think they probably would have done one that was just one long track, it seems like that’s all they ever want to do. (laughs) I don’t know, really know, were the idea to agree to just make it just one thing, but the, the desire to do it was there. I think there is something about that, bands re-gravitate towards that. And when you play music, especially to play live a lot like we do. I personally, years ago, developed the urge to just not want to stop at all, I don’t like breaks in the momentum. And I don’t like to talk and I don’t like to explain things. When we’re playing live we just play and it seems like you build a momentum through a set like that without having to stop and having there be silence. When there’s people talking and things like that I remember realizing I don’t wanna ever stop. I think that it’s maybe how it manifested with this record it’s a good way to make music. I think that the whole idea of separate songs, isn’t really coming from musicians, it’s coming from people trying to sell music. It’s a lot easier to sell things when there in marketable little sections like the pop songs. Two minutes and fifty second songs -the radio staple and all of that. I don’t think musicians ever really liked that idea. I think that it seems like people have always been pushing it with longer songs and when they can do things on their own terms. You look back and a lot of musicians have done similar things over the years. Uh, yea, I can talk about that a long time!
MAA: Is the specialness of this project the reason for the abbreviation of your moniker?
NH: Well, I’ve always liked the USX abbreviation that came from Scott (Kelley) from NEUROSIS. And I think I used to put USC on our gear, and I still got some that has that. Just on our on our amps and cases and stuff. I think we might have put it on some of our older stuff. I don’t remember what he did but he said “USX” or I don’t how exactly he put it to me or whatever. He just thought that that would be a good sort of symbolic abbreviation. I thought about this for a couple of weeks and thought “that is kinda cool”. (laughs)
MAA: I don’t know if this was intentional or by accident, but USX is also the old stock ticker for US Steel.
NH: Yeah somebody told me that. That’s kind of cool, the metal thing. We had it on Run Thick In The Night, on the front and I guess I just prefer saying that. The U.S. CHRISTMAS name was something we thought of a long time ago. It’s one of those things where you don’t really think about what the future’s gonna hold (laughing). I don’t really understand why we thought that was a good name. For years everybody would always ask about that name. It was the first question and so like USX is just a lot easier to say. I like it a lot. Like C.O.C., there’s a lot of bands like that. There’s a lot of bands that have used abbreviations, it just makes things simpler. I like the idea of just having a symbolic, sort of the weird and inverted open symbol that we have in USX.
MAA: Any chance fans will get to hear The Valley Path performed live in its entirety? It almost seems to have been written to be performed live.
NH: Yeah and we’ve already played it twice live right before it came out. I’m sure we’ll do it a lot, it’s a lot of fun. We’re getting ready to play with YOB and DARK CASTLE in Raleigh, NC on the 18th of July and I’m sure we’ll do it then. It’s a really fun thing to play live and it is kind of liberating. We never do the same set live even though we tour a lot. We’re always just sort of throw spur of the moment sets together. Four or five songs for us is an average time slot that we are allowed usually. When we are on tour we always play something different, but this allows us to play something completely different. It’s different every time we play it too. The structure’s there and like the chord changes and things like that, they’re the same. But the leads and a lot of the stuff that Meghan (Mulhearn, violinist) plays changes. All this heavy stuff that changes every time you play it, so it’s a lot easier on my voice. Ripping my throat out like I usually am, it’s kind of a good rest on me. That’s really been bothering me a lot lately, just, my throat hurting and stuff. So, it’s kind of nice a little more mellow.
MAA: Does concern for your voice affect the songwriting?
NH: Well, the next record is going to be a lot heavier, I know that. I’ve already gotten a lot of songs written out.
Blind is the only Corrosion of Conformity album you really need.
Surprised? Yup, it’s not a popular opinion, but let me first quantify my statement by also saying that I don’t feel that North Carolina’s beloved C.O.C. has EVER made a crap album, with most every record in the band’s collective discography serving as a definitive statement for where C.O.C. was creatively at the time.
This being said, however, there’s a sparklingly bright spot of life present on 1991′s Blind which places it head and shoulder atop every Corrosion album which was released after it, not counting the band’s harsher, hardcore influenced early efforts, Animosity and Eye For An Eye.
Nope, Blind was the first C.O.C. effort to showcase the band’s burgeoning doom and southern rock influences, reveling that symbiotic, southern swampiness which would eventually become their trademark. This was also the only album to feature lead singer Karl Agell…which brings us to the exact reason WHY Blind kicks so much ass.
Simply stated, Agell rules, and its his excellent mix of classic rock soul and this almost mercurial frontman sheen-think David Coverdale, no joke-which places these Blind songs upon a musical pedestal which C.O.C. themselves have yet to equal. While many fans prefer the gravelly, black-throated growl of guitarist Pepper Keenan-who actually sings the excellent album single “Vote With A Bullet” here on Blind-its Agell who leads the charge here, providing an excellent foil to C.O.C.’s iconic riff assault.
It’s this unique dynamic which makes Blind such a super-charged effort, really. Whether it be blasting opener “Damned For All Time,” “Painted Smiling Face,” “Mine Are the Eyes of God,” “Buried” or killer closer “White Noise,” there isn’t an ounce of fat to be trimmed here on Blind: each cut is essential, and displays the C.O.C. machine firing on their strongest cylinders. The sick, bluesy licks of Keenan and guitarist Woody Weatherman have never sounded as smooth or soulful, either, echoing their childhood doom heroes Sabbath and Trouble, while providing the ultimate, memorable C.O.C. experience within this defining album.
The one song which really encapsulates this electricity, however, has to be the epic “Dance of the Dead,” for which the band made a defining video. Beyond being the BEST song C.O.C. has ever written, it became a defining anthem for the band, regardless of whether or not Keenan and company actually agreed.
You see, Blind-and Agell’s performance-was widely slagged by the band within the years after its release and Agell’s unceremonious ousting probably didn’t help this album’s matter any with Keenan, Weatherman, bassist Mike Dean and drummer Reed Mullin. Regardless of how the band feels about Blind, however, it remains a key cornerstone within C.O.C.’s creative evolution; a record without which Corrosion of Conformity might have never achieved the success they have over the years.
Like it or not, C.O.C. is stuck with Blind, so they might as well embrace it. Karl Agell certainly has, having recently formed Karl Agell’s Blind, a group which current makes the live rounds, reliving formerly C.O.C. glories. While both parties seem to be going about this album’s legacy in roundabout wrong ways, the bottom line regarding Corrosion of Conformity’s Blind is that it deserves re-evaluation…so why not start now?
It’s been four years since North Carolina’s Weedeater have kicked out their THC-fueled jams to the masses, and graced their fans with a new LP.
2007′s God Luck and Good Speed simultaneously raised both bar and visibility for this grimy Southern collective-formed by vocalist/bassist Dixie Dave from the ashes of the highly influential Buzzoven-and Jason…The Dragon seems primed ‘n ready to capitalize on said, speedy buzz…despite a number of crippling injuries sustained to Weedeater members over the past couple years.
Though the band does indeed sound more focused than ever-perhaps fueling their ire from personal misfortune-their sound remains a polarizing one, at best. Jason…The Dragon does indeed let all of its sticky venom pour atop a swampy, Southern-Satanic riff arsenal-not mincing words or overstay its welcome for too long-yet the end result STILL smacks (heh) a bit too much of the sub-Eyehategod factor to truly deliver any long-lasting goods.
The band doesn’t dwell too much on lengthy composition, preferring instead to get in, get bent and get out. While this sort of songwriting has never been my personal cup of tea, I must fully admit that it works in Weedeater’s favor, sounding honestly delivered and powerfully produced. While this should come as good news to the band’s fanbase, Jason…The Dragon has been done better by many other black art practitioners, and should leave most other, casual listeners cold.
The incorporation of banjo-while positively intended-smacks (heh, again) as more of a bells/whistles afterthought than anything else, not doing much to help the album’s cause on the whole. Jason…The Dragon is an album which should please fans, but not much else-a sidestep without any forward motion.
