Armsbendback -- 'The Waiting Room' [review]

Armsbendback
"The Waiting Room"
Victory Records


ArmsBendBack burst onto the scene in 2002 with "Even Though I'll Hurt You." While there were only a handful on songs on the disc (five to be exact), they seemed to generate enough buzz to sign with Trustkill Records. Of course, it didn't hurt that this Philadelphia quartet was also heavily touring with the likes of OneLineDrawing and A Static Lullaby.

The band isn't nearly as grinding and hardcore as some of their label-mates (Nora or 18 Visions). But then again, Trustkill is also the home of Open Hand (a phenomenal band) and Poison the Well (which, while pretty hardcore, has it\'s moments of melody and softness).

I was familiar with the band prior to this release, but hadn't really heard any songs. I assumed the band's sound was similar to A Static Lullaby -- there's a huge sticker on the front of the wrapped CD talking about Finch and Thrice ("If you're a fan of these bands, check this out..."). Victory Records had done this type of marketing in the past with the likes of Taking Back Sunday and Thursday to try and get more buys. It almost saying the band can\'t stand on it's own, so we'll reference these other well-known bands instead.

And that's definitely not the case with Armsbendback -- they CAN and COULD stand out on their own.

The band consists of Andrew Kegerise on drums, Brad Sloan on bass, vocalist Mike Coasey and guitarist Carson Slovak. Slovak and Sloan also handle backing vocals. The band's sound is catchy and dynamic, with vocals drifting from melodic wails to angry screaming (but leaning towards the former); the tracks seem intricate and simple all at the same time. Coasey's vocals didn't appeal to me on first listen. The vocals seemed murky, almost waterlogged if it were possible, like there was a weird bass to it. But that was just a "first-listen" thing, and the strength of his vocals are what's rapidly making this one of my favorites of the year.

Four of the five tracks from the first album were re-recorded for "The Waiting Room" at Big Meanie Studios in New Jersey (where Thursday has also recorded for what it's worth). The rest are new and the whole thing was recorded in eight days, a commendable feat given nothing seems rushed or off, and the disc probably feels a little more raw (in a good way) for it.

"Hooray for hell if it\'s on the way." With those words Armsbendback opens "The Waiting Room." The opening track "Countdown to the End of the World," sets the tone for the album: driving guitar and bass with thundering drums and traded off vocals ranging from melodic rambling to strained screeching and screamed, hardcore punctuations.

"Primera (Last Goodbye)" is a fantastic track. The song works great as the second track: it isn't quite intense enough to open the album, but a great lead in to the meat of the disc. The vocals are strong and Coasey's singing really shines, especially as he draws out lyrics like "This is my last goodbye" and makes them sound so haunting.

"Trading the Silence" has some interesting back and forth vocals in it, but the music seems too monotonous. Definitely one of the disc's weaker tracks... but that's still saying a lot as it isn't terrible, just not too exciting musically.

"The Arms of Automation" is one of the songs redone from the first album and is my personal favorite on the disc. The lyrics, seemingly dealing with spurned love, are great ("My arms will not take hold of you. Instead of giving up I wait."). The guitar riffs and drumming are fast-paced but deliberate during the song, while the chorus' music has a great catchy sound. And as the song comes to a close with Coasey singing "I've waited all my life for this," there's a sort-of sing-along scream in the background that still comes off as melodic.

The drumming shines during "Terms and Conditions." The vocals seem pretty strained, but the bass and drumming trade off work well. This is another one of those songs that seem almost monotonous, but the double-bass pedal-work of Kegerise makes it worth while.

"Garry Gilmore's Eyes" has a Helmet feel to it: the thick guitar start/stops with a driving, hook-laden chorus. "Radial" is more of a hardcore track, with an interesting start/stop during the verses. The chorus is more melodic and Coasey voice again shines. There's a great, almost hypnotic guitar line played through most of the song too, just a simple back and forth chord.

"Watermark" again revisits work from "I'll Hurt You..." The lyrics make the song come off like a love song ("I want to live inside you, just to see just what you see"), but I can't help but feel there's more underneath the surface. That's the great thing about most of these songs, they're open to interpretation. The verses are slower and melodic, with the choruses picking up energy and the vocals becoming more scratchy.

"Dystopia" (the last of the previously released tracks) is just a great, slow brewing song with a lot of energy in the choruses and haunting feedback during the verses. There's some great drum work mid-way through the song too.

"This Could Be" seems out of place on the disc overall. It has the thick, guitar riffs during the verses, but the tempo seems off for some reason ... it might be the placement of the song so close to the end of the disc. There's some nice melodic singing during the chorus though.

"Red Ceiling" is a slower, driving track -- musically the song just keeps drilling towards something, but never seems to get there. But the vocals save it: Coasey follows along, ploddingly during the verses but really opens up during the choruses ... and I assume he handles some of the hardcore yelling during the bridge which sounds great. "Red Ceiling" is the perfect example of a song that starts off boring, but hooks you in by the middle, and then by the end you're wondering why you didn't like it to begin with.

A piano break opens up the last and longest track on the disc, "Apollo's Collapse" (clocking in around 7 minutes). It reminds me a little of the weird, Pink Floyd sounding stuff Snapcase puts out from time to time. There's some space effects, and Coasey sounds like he's singing a lullaby ... then right as you feel safe and relaxed the track really opens up with the whole band rocking out. Of course, the lullaby returns to calm things down again ... and the cycle continues. A nice ending to a solid album.

Mushroomhead -- 'XIII' [review]

Mushroomhead
"XIII"
Universal Records


It can be tough trying to classify a band when it mixes so many elements to its sound. Such is the problem with Mushroomhead, relative newcomers to the national metal scene. What to call the band's sound? Hard rock with a techno edge? Even that seems too confining, although it's clear the band is firmly grounded with at least one foot in the metal scene.

Starting out, Mushroomhead was more of an underground sensation, developing a reputation off the strength of its live show. The band broke nationally in 2001 with the release of "XX," an album which featured re-mixed material from Mushroomhead's hard-to-find independent releases: "Mushroomhead"(1993), "Superbuik"(1996) and "M3"(1999). The band has been compared to everything from Faith No More (musically) to Slipknot (both bands feature mask-wearing jumpsuit clad members -- that's where the similarities end in this case), but the band has managed to create a unique enough sound that is easily recognizable: dualing vocals, chunky bass riffs, down-tuned guitars, plodding drums, samples and interesting orchestration. If you had to sum it all up in one word: Murky.

So, does "XIII" do anything to further the legacy of Mushroomhead? Whereas "XX" was really hard to digest (covering such a large expanse of the band's catelogue -- the album lacked a certain focus on it's own but served as a nice introduction to the band), "XIII" features all new, fresh music.

Mushroomhead's unique sound comes from a variety of elements: the vocal combination of J Mann and Jeffrey Nothing, drummer Skinny playing off of Pig Benis' wicked bass lines, Shmotz on keyboards, guitarists Gravy and Bronson with Stitch rounding out the amalgam with samples.

"XIII" kicks off with "Kill Tomorrow." The song has some great, fast-paced rhythm during the verses with the bass and drums sounding better than ever, but the choruses slow down to the familiar Mushroomhead sound.

The disc's strongest track, "Sun Doesn't Rise" was, I assume, the first single off the disc, and is reminiscent of "Solitaire/Unraveling," the big hit off the last album. The vocals are pretty strong, the drumming is great during the bridge, and overall the song exhudes a creepy vide which is perfectly suited to the band.

"Mother Machine Gun" starts off with an interesting piano and drum piece before the sludgy guitars kick in. This song is a perfect microcosm for the album as a whole: it starts off real promising but falls back to the safe, usual sound for the band, and comes off lacking in some fashion. Still, the guitar riffs in this song are great.

On "Nowhere to Go" the band finally slows down, this song has a ballad feel, but still features an edgey guitar sound to it -- like, you're not quiet sure if the song is going to tear apart at a point (in a good way), and by the time the full band florishes mid-way through, it's like a well-deserved payoff.

"Becoming Cold" seems like a write-off track. At this point on the disc, the similar-sounding songs start to blend together. You start to feel like you've already listened to the song before it really gets going.

"One More Day" opens up with piano too, but the piano stays throughout the song which creates a great atmosphere (with the vocals and programming) for what I assume is a spurned-love song with lyrics like "You take me higher than the lowest place."


Benis' bass work on "The Dream is Over" is fantastic, grinding under the vocals like a steamroller and giving the track a feel of something like a song off Coal Chamber's first album. The fast paced "The War Inside" follows, giving a a nice one/two punch mid-way through the disc. I wonder if the album would have been better off leading off with these two tracks, and then blending into a slower track.

"Almost Gone" has a nice Corrosion of Conformity vibe to it. Vocally, the COC vibe popped up slightly in "Nowhere to Go" first, but here it\'s the vocals and the general feel of the music -- the sludgey guitars and bass and bluesy riffs -- that almost make this sound unlike anything else the band is doing. (This is personally, my favorite track.)

From here the album just sort of plows on -- each song has nice little moments but aren't too great: "Eternal" features some great attacking bass lines and drum progressions on it; "Our Own Way" is a powerful track ending with a constant scream of "Arise" and piano; "Destroy the World Around Me" just seems too long and overblown clocking in at over 8 minutes.

The last track, "Thirteen," begins as an instrumental, but turns into a heavy cover of Seal's "Crazy." I could recognize the song, and never liked it before -- but I don't mind it so much here. If you never recognized it as a cover, it would sound like a good Mushroomhead track. Instead, it's a hard twist on a mellow song. As far as covers go, it's not bad, and the band puts its stamp on it.

Between the Buried and Me -- 'The Silent Circus' [review]

Between the Buried and Me
"The Silient Circus"
Victory Records


North Carolina's Between the Buried and Me (BTBM) is looking to make a big name for themselves nationally with the release of their Victory Records debut, "The Silent Circus." The band\'s self-titled 2002 release garnered moderate attention on the underground circuit, so much so that the band was playing shows with the likes of Poison the Well, Hatebreed and Malevolent Creation before signing with Victory. So, will "The Silent Circus" redefine people's existing notions of "metalcore" as their band bio suggests? Well ... perhaps. But new listeners will have to exercise a little patience when checking out the new album to form their own answers.

Guitarists Nick Fletcher and Paul Waggoner, drummer Mark Castillo, bassist Jason King and vocalist/keyboard player Tommy Rogers have created an interesting sound for themselves, combining hardcore melodies with death metal vocals, while at the same time being unafraid to throw in some keyboard bridges, acoustic guitar or haunting melodic singing. The caveat here is they don't mix and match the different music styles in the songs, but develop BTBM's sound throughout "The Silent Circus."

The disc's first three tracks -- "Lost Perfection: a) Coulrophbia," "b) Anablephobia" and "Camilla Rhodes" -- kick the album off with an assault of death metal vocals and thundering bass riffs and drum kicks. While the music aspect reminds me of a band like Suffocation, the vocals are of the more extreme Cannibal Corpse variety. I thought this was a hardcore band(?!).

A quick break from our review. Coulrophobia is the fear of clowns, while anablephobia is defined as "a persistent, abnormal, and irrational fear of looking up," which unfortunately causes millions of people needless distress every year. Glad we could all learn together. Use your newfound phobias with care. Now back to our review.

Track 4, "Mordecai," is when the band finally breaks free of its death metal sound. The album kicks off with death metal vocals alternating with extreme hardcore screaming. The song still sounds the same as the preceding three, but the band throws in some start/stop riffing that causes you to sit up and take notice. Mid-way through the song the intricate guitar chords give way to a mellow bridge with Rogers' wrought vocals shining through. It's like a breath of fresh air. Suddenly the "bridge" flourishes and the song immediately turns into something of an opus. THIS song is the reason to check out BTBM. It sounds nothing like what precedes it and really makes the band stand out from its contemporaries.

"Mordecai" gives way to "Reaction," which opens with Rogers on keyboards (the first time keyboards show up on the album). But "Reaction" seems to just be a bridge to "(Shevanel Take 2)," which can basically be boiled down to an acoustic track. Minimal drumming with alternating acoustic and electric guitar, complete with ballad-ly vocals. How can this be the same band that started off the album?

It's at this point I realize why BTBM were on tour with Poison the Well, as the layout of the tracks on this album remind me of Poison the Well's "Tear From the Red," except more extreme on the metal end, and more mellow on the softer tracks.

Track 7, "Ad a dglgmut," is a whiplash back to the death metal vocals at first, but soon gives way again to the more mellow singing and rhythmic underscores. Clocking in at over seven minutes, it's the longest song on the album -- a journey from BTBM's darkest, angriest sound, to one of its softest moments (with lyrics like "It all makes sense, we are capable of beauty.") and then back to the full-on metal dirge.

"Destructo Spin," "Aesthetic" and "The Need for Repetition" round out the disc. "Repetition" features a really interesting guitar sound that seems thick and heavy and adds interesting dimension to the vocals and is a great closer to the album. (Note: there is a hidden track tacked onto the end of "The Silent Circus" about 11 minutes into the last track.)

From the driving bass on a track like "Aesthetic" to the great guitar interplay "(Shevanel Take 2)" and intense extremes of the vocals, BTBM have created a unique disc. They've managed to bridge the huge gaps between the different sounds they attempt effortlessly, yet I wonder if the gap was too big to attempt to bridge. The band will hit the road in for a North American tour in 2004.

Static X -- 'Shadow Zone' [review]

Static-X
"Shadow Zone
Warner Brothers


Static-X burst onto the music scene in 1999 with the release of "Wisconsin Death Trip." At the time, I had just seen Static-X open for Fear Factory and remember being taken with lead singer Wayne Static's vocal delivery. It was fast paced and urgent ... and he wrote lyrics that rolled off his tongue in such a unique fashion. The music sounded almost industrial in nature (think: Ministry without the edge), and over the years developed into a mix of programming and metal almost on par with Rob Zombie's band for the solo material (only with all the production effects added).

"Death Trip" was, at its heart, a nice little metal album. Static did some programming effects for tracks throughout the disc, but the album as a whole, was a nice little kick in the ass for fans of that type of music. Songs like "Bled for Days" and the title track are as good today as they were four years ago while other bands making disposable music at the time have since disappeared.


Static-X followed up "Death Trip" with 2001's "Machine." The album was much heavier than its predecessor. Songs like "Get to the Gone" and "This is Not" were louder, angrier and more fierce than anything the band had offered up previously. At some point the band also offered up a track for an animated Batman series that sounded like trance music and seemed totally out of character for the band.

"Shadow Zone" seems to have taken a step back from the foundation laid by "Machine": the band toned the "heavy" down, and added a lot more programming -- it just seems overly apparent in every track. Plus -- and this is a complaint I heard about the band from fans and non-fans throughout the years -- each song seems to bleed into the other and sound the same. In the past I'd have disagreed, but "Shadow Zone" seems to lack whatever I had heard in the previous albums.

Each song has nice parts, but most of them don't seem very memorable. It's nice to hear the trademark Static growls at the end of the opening track, "Destroy All." Tony Campos' underlying bass riffs on "Control It" are fantastic, but the guitar riffing gets annoying after a while. "Control It" is actually one of the strongest tracks on the album and I'm surprised it wasn't the lead off-single as it's a track that showcases the elements that fans of the band have come to love.


"New Pain" starts off with some potential, but then there's a strange bridge after each chorus with weird vocals that detract from the overall sound the song has going for it. The title track has some nice vocal delivery from Static, but the actual lyrics seem nonsensical, and the song again suffers from a weak chorus heavy on the keyboards. The singing reminds me of "Bled for Days" only less threatening. The guitar work done by Static and Tripp Rex Eisen on "Dead World" is another trademark of the band, the buzzing back a forth of the two creates a nice frenetic atmosphere.


"Monster" has some great vocals again from Static. He just rattles off line after line at breakneck speed while the guitars grind along with him like a locomotive. While it's mostly a list of words or phrases, everything flows nicely together and actually makes sense.

"The Only" is a little slower than the tracks preceding it, but has a nice edge to it. The drumming and bass lines at the end of the song are a highlight of the track. "Kill Your Idols" is the closest song to sound like the Static-X of old. Musically "All in Wait" is strong, especially the bass, but the vocals seem distant and bring the song down. The programming on this track also seems out of place. "Otsegolectric" was the song I heard touted before the release of the disc, but doesn't really do anything to stand out on its own.

"So," a song about pushing a loved one away, is the best song on the "Shadow Zone." It's a great love-type song with a nice edge. It's the type of song you could put on a mix tape for someone, but still listen to it alone and get into it.

"Transmission" is just a bridge of noise and sounds to the last track, "Invincible." The band goes out on a slower note with this melancholic track that doesn't seem to fit in with its normal sound.

Well, at first listen it seems like Static-X has lost it's edge. The songs have strong elements, but suffer ultimately from either bad choruses or weird structure. The strongest songs on the disc have to be "Control It," "Shadow Zone," "Monster" and "So." I know that the programming is one element of the "Static-X sound," but I just feel like it gets overwhelming after a while. On second and third listens the band still comes off angry and loud, but in the end this album just didn't quite do "it" for me.

From Autumn to Ashes -- 'The Fiction We Live' [review]

From Autumn to Ashes

"The Fiction We Live"

Vagrant Records



"Climbing on the way up,

Sizing up the competition,

waiting for the right time,

To strike a chord and change your life."

-- From "Lilacs & Lolita"


When From Autumn to Ashes made the jump from Ferret Records, home/once-home to bands like A Static Lullaby and Killswitch Engage, fans wondered exactly how much the band's sound would be altered. Well, if ever a band benefited from the jump from an indie to major (or in this case, somewhat major) label, it's From Autumn to Ashes.

The concern on the part of the fans was not unfounded ... after all, From Autumn to Ashes, at its core, was a hardcore band experimenting with tinges of metal, acoustic guitar and heartfelt melody. Its first full-length release, "Too Bad You're Beautiful," was raw, aggressive, and beautiful all at the same time. Would the band become more mainstream? Would a major label tone down the hardcore aspects and play up the emo elements?

The answer to these questions is a resounding no.

After signing to Ferret Records, From Autumn to Ashes went and made a phenomenal From Autumn to Ashes disc. The band sounds more crisp and polished than ever, due in part to constant touring over the past few years, and also the great production work of Garth Richardson who has previously worked with the likes of Rage Against The Machine, L7, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ozzy Osbourne and Kittie (to name a few).

The band features two vocalists, lead singer Benjamin Perri and drummer Francis Mark, who trade off throughout the songs. Bassist Mike Pilato keeps a nice backbeat through the disc and has some nice breakout moments in some tracks (which I'll get to later). Guitarists Scott Gross and Brian Deneeve round out the line-up trading guitar riffs, neat little guitar licks and dive bombs from track to track. The beauty of the band is that no one aspect or member outshines the other, the five form a well-oiled machine and complement each other nicely.

The disc kicks off with "The After Dinner Paycheck," which had actually been released a month earlier on the Freddy Vs. Jason soundtrack. The track is a great introduction to the band's sound with Perri growling out vocals before Mark starts answering back about a minute in, with a more strained delivery, sounding slightly forced and more rock-centric. The bass and guitar tumble over each other like a steamroller before opening up with driving guitar riffs at a more frantic pace.

"No Trivia" is one of the best songs on the disc, both lyrically and musically. Pilato is great on the bass here while Mark handles all the vocals ... by the end of the song as he's yelling, "You know I care," I defy the listener to not get chills up the back of your neck.

By now the band's settled into a groove and the songs flow heavy and hard: "Milligram Smile" (which the band filmed a video for and may currently be seen on MTV2) combines quick verses with heavy drumming and guitar riffs alternating with acoustic bridges; "The Second Wrong Makes it Right" does the opposite with slower verses and more metal-like bridges and ends with a great piano piece.

"Autumns Monologue" is one of the strongest songs on the disc and one that fans will like more than casual listeners. Melanie Wills (of One True Thing) does the vocals on the track accompanied by only an acoustic guitar, piano and quiet drumming. The song is a continuation of "Short Stories With Tragic Endings," the last song off the band's previous effort "Too Bad..." Wills has a great voice and I highly recommend checking out her band (www.onetruething.net).

"Alive Out of Habit" and "All I Taste Today is What's Her Name" are strong tracks. "The Fiction We Live" is an answer song to "Autumns Monologue," the same song with Mark singing different vocals. I personally like the song a lot but sometimes skip over it because I feel like it would work better at the end of the disc, maybe as a hidden track. Instead the disc ends with "I'm The Best At Ruining My Life" which seems to end abruptly and leave you wanting more.