Firewind -- 'The Premonition' [review]

Firewind - The Premonition
Century Media (4/8/08)
Metal

Just when you thought power metal was dead and gone...

Led by guitarist Gus G. (Nightrage, Arch Enemy, Dream Evil)—who is slowly proving himself a worthy addition to the shortlist of guitar gods—Firewind offers up a heaping helping of power metal in all its epic glory.

Hailing from Greece, the band's method of attack focuses around the driving force of Gus G.'s guitar work, offering up classic power metal with a European twist (there's plenty of keyboard work to accompany the solos). The band offers a nice change of pace in a scene where the lines between subgenres—death metal, industrial and hardcore, most notably—are becoming increasingly blurred, it sticks to its guns and shines as a result. While a bulk of the attention goes to U.S.-based outfits for the most part, at least stateside, there's this huge metal scene in Europe with exceptional bands cranking out album after album of killer material. Add Firewind to that list... and probably place the group somewhere near the top.

Embrace the End -- 'Ley Lines' [review]

Embrace the End - Ley Lines
Century Media (4/15/08)
Metalcore / Deathcore

The press material for Embrace the End's latest offering compares the band to a cinderblock tornado, that really is the perfect way to describe this band, which incorporates elements from a variety of sub-genres of metal and hints of hardcore into one messy, extreme, metallic concoction.

The vocals shift from strained screeches to death-metal wails. And the band does a great job of incorporating these moments into each song to really sell the total package. Perhaps no song does it better than "Intensity in Ten Cities". The drumming is completely frantic, but always sounds controlled. It carries this plodding beat one minute, and then explodes into a machine-gun assault the next. And the guitarists have equal fun, trading mind-bending riffs and then shifting into an all-out assault of chords. The band tiptoes around this gorge of progressive metal without falling into the void, and then shifts on a dime to this goliath of rage.

Another shining moment on Ley Lines comes in the simplest of forms—the two-minute "Denim on Denim Hate Crime" melds inspiration from the most extreme ends of the metal spectrum, but never gets so loud and obnoxious that you can't stand the assault. (Think a combination of Cannibal Corpse and Pantera, but with a hardcore soul.)

There's some inspired guitar play throughout "Trainwreck on the John Galt Line", and the acoustic work on "Pity and the Road to Bimini" sounds fantastic. (The ethereal tone of the music, overall, really adds an interesting juxtaposition to the vocals later on, giving the band this added dimension missing from most of the other songs on here.) And the technical precision on "Overnighter" really makes you appreciate the musicianship of the various members and how they are able take all these elements and make a cohesive song.

The band does a nice job perfecting that we're-spinning-almost-out-of-control-but-know-exactly-what-we're-doing constant tempo-shifting for the most part, though it gets a little tiresome at times. Take "Ride It Like You Stole It", which starts promisingly enough with some really unique rhythm guitar work, but then totally abandons it for the stutter-stop approach instead. The same thing happens later on the title-track.

And that, in a nutshell, is the weakness of this album. The band isn't completely off-the-wall, like early Norma Jean, for example, but the approach gets real old after a while, unless you're a band like Between the Buried and Me. (Then again, BTBAM is throwing all genres of music into the mix, so it’s not quite the same thing.)

This type of music isn't for everybody. Hell, it isn't for a lot of people, but if you actually listen to it, a lot, the chaos and brutality all starts to make sense. Ley Lines isn't perfect, but this type of music isn't meant to be.

Cradle to Grave -- 'Texas Medicine' [review]

Cradle to Grave - Texas Medicine
Eye of the Sun Records (4/15/08)
Metal

Cradle to Grave may hail from the dark corners of British Columbia, but the band emulates the groove-based metal of legends Pantera to a T. So, it's little wonder the band has called its latest effort Texas Medicine.

Chock full of thick, meaty riffs, explosive drumming and antagonistic bass licks—not to mention that absolutely crushing groove—Texas Medicine is an easy contender for metal album of the year. With opener "Broken God", a goliath of a track, the band grabs the listener by the throat and tosses them down 11 flights of stairs. The band rivals Hatebreed with "I'm at War With Myself", and shows a more introspective side with "Light", while still maintaining the choking pace.

But it's the middle of the album that completely steals the show. "From Nowhere to Nowhere" has the catchiest, most punishing groove that only compliments the sing-a-long chorus. And the band throws in an absolutely sick bridge mid-way through the song, with an acoustic opening and wonderfully sung break down, well... just because it can. From there, it tears everything apart with the speed-inspired "I Am Nothing", and ends the assault with a thick slab of southern metal called "At Last" (featuring a great group-sung opener).

Other highlights include the breakneck "F**k It Up", the acoustic instrumental "Daughters" and pulse-pounding album closer "Beheaded in Paris" (with a nice extended ending that closes with Freddy Krueger's warning, "You shouldn't have buried me").

There's no shortage of metal bands out there these days, but not too many come even close to presenting such a blistering package like Cradle to Grave has done here. This is a total surprise release for 2008 that shouldn't fly under any metal fan's radar.

Zimmers' Hole -- 'When You Were Shouting At the Devil ... We Were In League With Satan' [review]

Zimmers Hole - When You Were Shouting at the Devil... We Were in League With Satan
Century Media (3/11/08)
Metal

As the initial blasts of the title-track and album opener pour forth from the speakers, it's clear that Zimmers Hole isn't screwing around.

Sure, most of the lyrics are delivered with tongue firmly planted in-check, but the music itself is so raw, intense and destructive, that the listener is left slack-jawed at just how good the metal is. And why would anyone be surprised? Guitarist Jed Simon (Strapping Young Lad) is a beast, Gene Hoglan (Dethklok, Strapping Young Lad) brutalizes the drum kit and Byron Stroud just destroys the bass; so who better to front such a band than Satan himself (a.k.a. The Heathen)? And while the band’s vocalist may hide behind a moniker, he's the real star of this show, switching from the highest pitched '80s-inspired wails to the most horrific death-metal growls this side of Obituary's John Tardy.

Filter -- 'Anthems for the Damned' [review]

Filter - Anthems for the Damned
Pulse Recording (5/13/08)
Rock / Alternative / Metal

It's been five years since The Amalgamut, and Richard Patrick, the force behind Filter, returns with Anthems for the Damned, where he showcases the two faces of the band—the abrasive, industrial-tinged goliath alongside the pop-minded, melodic juggernaut—in unison for an overall well-balanced sound.

Five years is a lengthy absence these days. So much so that, on first listen, "Soldiers of Misfortune" could be mistaken for Chevelle, a band with two notable releases in the same timeframe. But those trademark plodding bass lines and Patrick's unholy wail put an end to any perceived charade.

Various Artists -- 'Gigantour 2' [DVD review]

Gigantour 2 [DVD]
Image Entertainment (4/22/08)
Unrated
66 minutes

"Gigantour is the spirit of heavy metal captured in a festival. It was about people going there, and the musicians being treated with respect, and an audience feeling like they’ve been treated with respect. And everybody walking away—the entertainers and the entertained all in agreement that it was a great environment.”
—Dave Mustaine

With Ozzfest down to one show this year, Gigantour seems a worthy successor to be the summer festival to carry the torch of metal to the masses. While on face value there appears little difference between the two tours, Ozzfest tried to pack a lot of bang for the buck, shoehorning more than a dozen bands into the course of a single head-banging day. Many a year it seemed quantity ruled over quality, though with so many bands from which to choose, concertgoers still got their money's worth in the end.

Local H -- 'Twelve Angry Months' [review]

Local H - Twelve Angry Months
Shout Factory (5/13/08)
Rock / Alternative

Local H may not be the same band that crafted one of the best, and possibly most underrated albums of the mid-'90s in As Good As Dead, but with Twelve Angry Months, Scott Lucas, the mastermind behind the band, shows he still has what it takes to create twisted-yet-subtle alternative rock music that can be thought-provoking and explosive.

Living up to its title, the album consists of twelve songs (January through December),

Opener "The One With the 'Kid'" starts off melancholic enough, but shortly explodes into frantic drumming and head-banging riffs. It's all very textbook Local H, especially the stutter stop-start mid-song break and consistently building end sequence.

Local H offers little filler here. "Michelle (Again)" is a bludgeoning force of rock, tempered with melody and classic pop-rock inspiration. The band sounds like it's ready to channel Mötley Crüe for a second on "White Belt Boys", before sliding back into a more deliberate approach. "Taxi-Cabs" sounds like a homage to Kurt Cobain and Nirvana, being over-simplistic yet brilliant all at once. The mellow "The Summer of Boats", an acoustic joy, is dark and moody and haunting and beautiful all at once, and flourishing to close out one of the band's finest moments.

But it's not all magical. "BMW Man" borders on annoying, while "Machine Shed Wrestling" never seems to get off the ground floor, so to speak (it needed to be more fleshed out). But the raw power of "24 Hour Break-Up Session" and "Jesus Christ! Did you see the SIZE of that sperm whale", or the near-perfection of the Foo Fighters-esque "Simple Pleas" more than makes up for any shortcomings.

The two-man Local H approach (Brian St. Clair is still pounding the drum kit to accompany Lucas) is filled out with an eclectic collection of studio musicians, either filling out the drums tracks or adding some string arrangements (everything from extra guitar to violin).

In the end, it's clear Local H is back with a vengeance. This is the closest the band's come to replicating As Good As Dead in the past decade. There's no unfocused or overly experimental songs this time around, as it's straight-ahead rock. Newer fans of the alternative rock genre (anyone who thinks Jack White is the next coming, perhaps?), would love this stuff. A welcome return for a band some wrote off in 1998, it's clear Local H can still hang with the best of 'em.