  _______ __                     __      __                      ___ 
 |   _   |  |--.----.-----.-----|__.----|  .-----.-----. .-----.'  _|
 |.  1___|     |   _|  _  |     |  |  __|  |  -__|__ --| |  _  |   _|
 |.  |___|__|__|__| |_____|__|__|__|____|__|_____|_____| |_____|__|  
 |:  1   |                                                          
 |::.. . |                                                          
 `-------'                                                          
                   _______ __                      
                  |   _   |  |--.---.-.-----.-----.
                  |.  1___|     |  _  |  _  |__ --|
                  |.  |___|__|__|___._|_____|_____|
                  |:  1   |                        
                  |::.. . |                        
                  `-------'                        


        CHRONICLES OF CHAOS e-Zine, April 8, 2004, Issue #72
                  http://www.ChroniclesOfChaos.com


Co-Editor / Founder: Gino Filicetti
Co-Editor / Contributor: Pedro Azevedo
Contributor: Adrian Bromley
Contributor: Brian Meloon
Contributor: Paul Schwarz
Contributor: Aaron McKay
Contributor: David Rocher
Contributor: Matthias Noll
Contributor: Alvin Wee
Contributor: Chris Flaaten
Contributor: Quentin Kalis
Contributor: Xander Hoose
Contributor: Adam Lineker
Contributor: Adrian Magers
Contributor: James Montague
Contributor: Jackie Smit
Spiritual Guidance: Alain M. Gaudrault

The   individual   writers   can   be   reached    by    e-mail    at 
firstname.lastname@ChroniclesOfChaos.com.                            
     (e.g. Gino.Filicetti@ChroniclesOfChaos.com).

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<


Issue #72 Contents, 4/8/2004
----------------------------
* Editorial
* Chats
-- In Flames: A Soundtrack to Comeuppance
-- Rotting Christ: Still Rotting in the Free World
-- Exodus: Dancing With the Damned
* Albums
-- Berserk - _Rites of Supremacy_
-- Blodsrit - _Oscularis Infernum_
-- Cannibal Corpse - _The Wretched Spawn_
-- Dismember - _Where Ironcrosses Grow_
-- Ektomorf - _Destroy_
-- Eros Necropsique - _Crises de Lucidité_
-- Farmer Boys - _The Other Side_
-- Fear Factory - _Archetype_
-- Finnugor - _Death Before Dawn_
-- Furia - _Un Lac de Larmes et de Sang_
-- Genital Grinder - _Genital Grinder_
-- Heaven Shall Burn - _Antigone_
-- Himinbjorg - _Golden Age_
-- Loudblast - _Planet Pandemonium_
-- Mar de Grises - _The Tatterdemalion Express_
-- Mayhem - _Chimera_
-- Morbid Angel - _Heretic_
-- My Dying Bride - _Songs of Darkness, Words of Light_
-- Power of Omens - _Rooms of Anguish_
-- Satanic Warmaster - _...Of the Night_
-- Satanic Warmaster / Clandestine Blaze - _Split_
-- Sceptic - _Unbeliever's Script_
-- Temple of Baal - _Servants of the Beast_
-- Thorn.Eleven - _A Different View_
-- Trauma - _Imperfect Like a God_
-- Under Threat - _Behind Mankind's Disguise_
-- VAST - _Nude_
-- Weakling - _Dead as Dreams_
* Demos
-- Delian League - _Day of Question_
* Gigs
-- Death Comes Ripping

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

                    __, __, _ ___  _, __, _  _, _, 
                    |_  | \ |  |  / \ |_) | /_\ |  
                    |   |_/ |  |  \ / | \ | | | | ,
                    ~~~ ~   ~  ~   ~  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~~

               Y E A R    O N E ,    P A R T    T W O
               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
               Reflections on CoC's Second "Year One"
                          by: Pedro Azevedo


"EDITOR, n. A person who combines the judicial  functions  of  Minos, 
 Rhadamanthus and Aeacus, but is placable with an obolus; a  severely 
 virtuous censor, but so charitable  withal  that  he  tolerates  the 
 virtues of others and the vices of himself; who flings about him the 
 splintering lightning and sturdy  thunders  of  admonition  till  he 
 resembles a bunch of firecrackers petulantly uttering  his  mind  at 
 the tail of a dog; then straightway murmurs a mild,  melodious  lay, 
 soft as the cooing of a donkey intoning its prayer  to  the  evening 
 star. Master of mysteries and lord of law, high-pinnacled  upon  the 
 throne of thought, his face suffused with the dim splendors  of  the 
 Transfiguration, his legs intertwisted and his tongue  a-cheek,  the 
 editor spills his will along the paper and cuts it off in lengths to 
 suit. And at intervals from behind the veil of the temple  is  heard 
 the voice of the foreman demanding three inches of wit and six lines 
 of religious meditation, or bidding him  turn  off  the  wisdom  and 
 whack up some pathos."                                               

"REVIEW, v.t.

 To set your wisdom (holding not a doubt of it,
 Although in truth there's neither bone nor skin to it)
 At work upon a book, and so read out of it
 The qualities that you have first read into it."

(in "The Devil's Dictionary", by Ambrose Bierce)

To open one of my rare editorials by quoting a  profoundly  sarcastic 
book written from 1881 onwards and published in 1911 may seem an  odd 
choice, justifiable only by the accurate portrayal contained  therein 
of CoC's editors, reviewers, or both. Such assumption  would  be  far 
from the truth, however: I  use  Bierce's  words  in  an  attempt  to 
illustrate naught more than the pitfalls and difficulties  one  faces 
in carrying out such tasks -- especially when you have been doing  so 
for several years whilst juggling personal and professional  life  as 
well.                                                                 

This ambiguously half-ironic wee rambling  of  mine  therefore  stems 
both from the toils of editing and writing articles  alike  when  you 
must often trudge along beneath  the  weight  of  other  matters  and 
duties. Of this the reader need not be aware; but the  temptation  to 
repeatedly expose these circumstances of life under a different light 
every few years is considerably difficult for editors to resist.  One 
sets upon himself the task of doing his part to  keep  a  publication 
alive, and after a period of about twelve  months  succumbs  to  this 
temptation. Such is life.                                             

The purpose of all this? Not much, really; perhaps only to serve as a 
relatively dense and arguably pointless introduction to the fact that 
it has now been one year since Chronicles of Chaos reopened under its 
new guise, with an equally  renewed  engine  and  the  promise  of  a 
brighter future for every excellent being who spends some  time  with 
us, either reading or writing. This point in time seems to present  a 
fine opportunity, if ever there is one, to mull over  another  twelve 
months of our lives that we shall never get back,  and  reflect  upon 
success, failure, and everything in between.                          

Given the direction (or lack thereof) this editorial has  decided  to 
possess, I shall only state that from my perspective CoC is  today  a 
much healthier beast than it was one or two years  ago  --  something 
that requires the collective effort of a publication's staff. This is 
not your usual "we are still committed to doing  this"  speech:  this 
means CoC spent a few months down for  the  count  between  2002  and 
2003, dragged itself back up, and has now been standing strong  again 
for one year -- and what's more, it's back to the regularity of  old. 
To those who have invested more hours working in this than they would 
probably care to count even if they could, all of this is meaningful. 
Furthermore, it is my belief that these last twelve months were among 
the most important in CoC's nearly nine year history.                 

May it continue for many more.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

                          _, _,_  _, ___  _,
                         / ` |_| /_\  |  (_ 
                         \ , | | | |  |  , )
                          ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~   ~ 

      A    S O U N D T R A C K    T O    C O M E U P P A N C E
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      CoC chats with Anders Fridén and Peter Ivers of In Flames
                           by: Jackie Smit


In Flames are about to take over the world.  You  don't  believe  me? 
Well, for starters the first single off their upcoming _Soundtrack to 
Your Escape_ effort debuted at number two on the Swedish charts,  and 
with high-profile tours with the likes of Slayer and Hatebreed  under 
their belts in the States,  matters  across  the  pond  look  equally 
optimistic. Considering how many of today's metal  acts  continue  to 
pilfer the In Flames back  catalogue  with  gay  abandon,  one  could 
easily argue that the band are finally getting what they deserve; but 
the fact of the matter is that if they were going to  get  their  due 
for any single album, _Soundtrack to Your Escape_ is the choice  that 
would please both old and  new  fans.  Certainly  the  most  creative 
offering to carry their logo since 1996's _Whoracle_, the  record  is 
at once heavy, catchy and impossible to resist.  I  recently  met  up 
with vocalist Anders Fridén and bassist Peter Iwers  to  discuss  the 
new album, touring, movie soundtracks and a whole lot in between.     

CoC: Since In Flames released  _Reroute  to  Remain_  in  2001,  your 
     profile has increased exponentially, and you've  toured  with  a 
     lot of very popular bands (Slayer, Slipknot, etc). How did  this 
     affect the  band's  approach  to  the  music  industry  and  the 
     recording of _Soundtrack to Your Escape_?                        

Peter Iwers: It didn't affect the writing of the music  in  any  way, 
             but it did help us to see things from a  'bigger'  point 
             of view. Seeing all these bands play was incredible. But 
             again, it didn't affect how we write music,  because  we 
             always write music for ourselves.                        

Anders Fridén: I think that they affected us in a  live  environment. 
               They go on stage and they just don't give a crap,  you 
               know, they roll over you like a tank. And that's  what 
               we like to do ourselves: just go out there and do  the 
               best possible show. We don't want  to  be  like  other 
               European bands  that  make  excuses  --  "Sorry  we're 
               playing", or "If it's too loud,  please  stop  us"  -- 
               we're just there to roll  over  people,  do  the  best 
               possible show that we  can.  But  as  Peter  said,  it 
               doesn't affect us in a musical way. Obviously  touring 
               with a band like Slayer -- if someone had told me  ten 
               years ago that I would be touring with those  guys,  I 
               would just have said "Yeah, right."                    

CoC: So out of all the bands you guys  toured  with,  who  would  you 
     regard as your favourite touring buddies?                             

AF / PI: Slayer!

AF: It was just an amazing thing to  tour  with  a  band  like  them. 
    They've influenced us and they have influenced metal as  a  whole 
    for years and years.                                              

PI: And they still manage to be just really down to earth guys.  It's 
    really nice to see that.                                              

AF: We knew our place on the tour, but their crew was really  helpful 
    and really supportive. It's one of the best tours we've ever done.    

CoC: Any crazy tour stories to tell?

AF: We have tons, but they're X-rated. <laughs>

CoC: Moving on to the new album -- the new record instantly gives off 
     a far more sombre vibe than anything you've  done  before.  What 
     was your approach to writing and recording _Soundtrack  to  Your 
     Escape_, considering the obvious pressure  you  must  have  been 
     under?                                                           

AF: I've heard that said before, actually -- people think that we are 
    under pressure, but we don't have any pressure.  I  mean,  if  we 
    start thinking about it then yeah, but it's only from  ourselves. 
    We try and push ourselves to do our performances at 110%, so  the 
    only place where we feel pressured is within the band, because we 
    are trying to be better all the time. As far as the fans and  the 
    record company things -- we feel that if  we  stay  true  to  the 
    music that we feel is right for In Flames, then the  people  will 
    follow.                                                           

PI: We just tried to make a better record than we  had  done  before, 
    and not repeat ourselves.                                             

CoC: You've built most of the songs on this  new  album  around  some 
     very strong choruses that  follow  an  almost  traditional  '80s 
     structure. Thinking back to when you did the Depeche Mode  cover 
     on _Whoracle_, would you say that you're showing your roots once 
     again?                                                           

AF: <pauses> Not directly, but of  course  we've  been  listening  to 
    those bands for years and years -- since we were young -- so they 
    affect us and influence us more than  the  latest  music.  That's 
    something that's been with us for years  and  years.  We  are  an 
    extreme band, but we do have  that  influence.  Those  bands  all 
    wrote some great pop songs. We're all suckers for  melodies,  and 
    for example Depeche Mode  are  one  of  the  greatest  bands  for 
    melodies, and if we can use that influence in our  music  without 
    sounding like them, then that's great.                            

CoC: So, taking  into  account  how  different  _Soundtrack  to  Your 
     Escape_ is from something like _Reroute to Remain_, which  track 
     off the new album do you feel defines In Flames in 2004?         

PI: "The Quiet Place". We chose that as the single and we feel that's 
    what sums up what the album sounds like.                              

AF: I agree, but we are definitely not a  one  song  band,  we're  an 
    album band. You've got to listen to the whole record to see where 
    we are. We've never been about hit singles. We don't write  fifty 
    songs and then choose  the  best  fifteen.  We  write  whatever's 
    necessary for making the album. We try  to  top  ourselves  every 
    time we write a new song and all of a sudden we have an album.    

CoC: As far as choosing Daniel Bergstrand to produce the  new  record 
     -- why use him again this time round?                                 

PI: We were very comfortable with working with him the last time.  He 
    was very dedicated to what we were doing and he did a  very  good 
    job. Why change a good recipe?                                    

AF: He was very eager to do it this time round. We got to  know  each 
    other on the first round and felt how we would react  in  certain 
    situations, and now we felt  like  this  is  the  time  to  prove 
    ourselves and really give things an honest chance and  show  what 
    we could do together. He knows what we are about and he has  done 
    great things for us; pushing us to our limits and capturing great 
    moments.                                                          

CoC: As you grew more popular after  _The  Jester  Race_,  In  Flames 
     obviously drew a lot of criticism with people  saying  that  you 
     were repeating yourselves and that you had grown boring. Was the 
     departure of _Soundtrack to Your Escape_ a reaction to that?     

PI: Not at all. Our music is never a reaction to what anyone  thinks. 
    We just want to make things really interesting for ourselves.  We 
    want to make the best music that we can make at the time  and  we 
    want to make something different from what we have  made  before. 
    Evolution comes naturally to us. We never  give  any  thought  to 
    what anyone says when it comes to songwriting.                    

AF: We've been around for a long time and we've learned  a  lot  from 
    our experiences. From the first album we have been growing  as  a 
    band. In the beginning we didn't really know how to play live, we 
    weren't such good songwriters, but we pushed  everything  we  had 
    into In Flames. We don't regret anything, but I think  that  it's 
    important to move  forward  and  it's  important  not  to  repeat 
    yourselves.                                                       

PI: With us, people know that they can expect the  In  Flames  sound, 
    but they never quite know exactly what to expect. And  regardless 
    of whether you like it or not, you will never know what  you  are 
    going to get, because we  don't  do  anything  according  to  any 
    trends.                                                           

CoC: A lot of the so-called new breed of thrash  (Killswitch  Engage, 
     God Forbid, etc.)  use  a  lot  of  the  ideas  that  In  Flames 
     pioneered many years ago. How do you feel about  the  push  that 
     bands like this are getting and  about  the  fact  their  record 
     companies promote them as having a 'fresh' sound?                

AF: We get what we deserve, I think. If success is something that  is 
    meant to be, then we will get it eventually. We  have  a  lot  of 
    fans that come to our shows and we've had a lot  of  support  for 
    many years now, so I also think that people  know  who  did  this 
    kind of music first. As far as our influence,  I  think  that  is 
    often coincidence, and all  the  bands  you  mentioned,  I  think 
    are brilliant. I mean,  we  take  influences  ourselves;  we  are 
    influenced by other bands.                                        

CoC: In Flames appeared on a couple of movie soundtracks last year -- 
     "Freddy Vs. Jason" probably being the most prolific. What  would 
     be your ideal movie to score as a band?                          

PI: "Star Wars".

AF: "Rambo 4".

PI: Any Jean Claude Van Damme movie. <laughs>

PI: It's a great honour to be part of a soundtrack, and when  someone 
    offers us the opportunity we would always accept.                     

AF: I think that we definitely gained a  few  people's  interest  off 
    "Freddy Vs. Jason".                                                   

CoC: So what are the plans for In Flames for the immediate future?

PI: Touring for the rest of the year -- probably  until  the  end  of 
    the year. We'll be going  through  Europe,  the  UK,  through  to 
    Australia, the States, and then possibly back for another tour of 
    Europe.                                                           

CoC: Any last words, guys?

PI: Thank you.

AF: Buy _Soundtrack to Your Escape_. You will not be disappointed.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

 S T I L L    R O T T I N G    I N    T H E    F R E E    W O R L D
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
               CoC chats with Sakis of Rotting Christ
                           by: Jackie Smit


There's always been something special  about  Rotting  Christ  --  an 
enigmatic and mysterious quality that has and  continues  to  instill 
their many admirers with a fanatical ardor that very few  other  acts 
of their ilk can boast. Of course, central to their appeal  has  been 
the music. Starting with the primitive black  metal  of  _Passage  to 
Arcturo_ and _Thy Mighty  Contract_  in  the  early  '90s,  the  band 
continued to  grow  and  explore  further  recesses  of  dark  music, 
culminating in the mainstream teasing _Sleep  of  the  Angels_.  Now, 
with their latest opus, _Genesis_, the band have  come  full  circle, 
combining their penchant for the atmospheric  with  the  misanthropic 
fire of their early black metal sound. But  it's  not  about  to  end 
there, as frontman and chief songwriter Sakis revealed to  me  during 
the band's last visit to London -- the black cult  is  stronger  than 
ever, and 2004 could very well  be  the  year  that  sees  the  Greek 
quartet release their definitive work.                                

CoC: I've been listening through your back-catalogue recently, and on 
     your past two efforts there has been a definite  return  to  the 
     old, traditional black metal of the first Rotting Christ albums. 
     What was the reason behind  your  decision  to  move  down  this 
     particular creative path?                                        

Sakis: First of all, it's the fact that we are tired  of  this  metal 
       attitude that reminds me of a lot  of  mainstream  music.  You 
       know, everyone wants to be famous, everyone wants to  play  to 
       a thousand people,  everyone  wants  to  be  a  rock  star  or 
       something, and we are fed up with that stuff.  Of  course,  we 
       started back in 1989 when the music  and  the  scene  and  the 
       style were more romantic -- everyone  was  trading  demos.  We 
       didn't have the idea to be rock stars or anything  like  that, 
       and now we feel like being teenagers again  and  returning  to 
       our roots. But even though we have returned to our roots,  our 
       musical style is still adapted in order to sound contemporary; 
       there are a lot of samples and a lot of atmospheric  parts  on 
       the last two albums and there will also be more  on  the  next 
       one.                                                           

CoC: Well, there's certainly a strong sense of _Thy Mighty  Contract_ 
     on your last album [_Genesis_], but at the same  time  you  have 
     given it a modern feel.                                          

S: Exactly.

CoC: So  when  you  listen  to  Rotting  Christ's  biggest  stylistic 
     departures -- _A Dead Poem_ and _Sleep of the Angels_ -- do  you 
     carry any regrets about how those albums ended up sounding?      

S: No, not at all. In a career that  is  more  than  a  decade  long, 
   personally I think it wouldn't feel right to play exactly the same 
   thing all the time. It's not fair to the fans, and it's  not  fair 
   to yourself to just keep playing music to satisfy a small group of 
   people. I just want to express myself in any way I  want,  and  at 
   that point in time, I was really into  heavy  metal  music,  so  I 
   preferred to play that kind of stuff. Now I feel like  a  teenager 
   again, and I'm into a lot of black metal stuff, so I like to  make 
   this sort of music. What we are doing right now is not commercial. 
   We'd like to bring back the feeling of the underground, where like 
   I said to you before, things were really romantic. We're basically 
   just not satisfied with how the scene is going now.                

CoC: You guys are also busy doing a new album that's going to be  out 
     in September. Care to let me in on a few secrets?                     

S: I've been working on the new stuff for seven months...

CoC: Seven months?!

S: Yes, because I write all the music and I write all the  lyrics  by 
   myself, and I want it  to  be  something  special.  I  don't  know 
   whether it will be, but I want to be able to express myself  100%. 
   So I write songs, and change them after  a  few  weeks  --  repair 
   things, so to speak. Now we are going to  go  into  the  recording 
   studio as soon as we are finished with this tour; we will be there 
   for a  month  and  then  the  finished  product  will  be  out  in 
   September. We will record half the album in Greece and  the  other 
   half in Sweden, and it will be mastered in Fredman Studios.        

CoC: Does that mean that Fredrik Nordstrom will be producing as well?

S: No, I am going to do it myself, but Fredrik will be mixing it  and 
   mastering it. I did it before on _Khronos_ actually, but I  didn't 
   do it so good. Now I am working as a producer in Greece, so I have 
   learned a lot of new things. As I said before, I prefer to work by 
   myself -- I don't want many people to  be  involved  in  what  I'm 
   doing, because I am the only person who knows what I want.         

CoC: Where are the band headed toward lyrically with this new record?

S: Well, you're the first person that I am speaking  to  about  this, 
   actually. <laughs> There will be  some  anti-religious  lyrics  -- 
   nothing like 'fuck God' and all that stuff, just expressing  in  a 
   poetic way the misery of people and bringing the theme of religion 
   into that.                                                         

CoC: One thing I have always respected a lot about Rotting Christ  is 
     that you approach any  subject  you  write  about  from  a  more 
     intellectual point of view than many other  bands.  How  do  you 
     feel about bands like Deicide that ply  their  trade  upon  very 
     base- level ideas, with songs like for example "Fuck  Your  God" 
     or "Mad at God" off their new album?                             

S: No, I don't like that. Rotting Christ never do things  like  that. 
   We like to be more intellectual and we like people to be  able  to 
   take a trip with us, make up their own minds and  have  their  own 
   ideas. We would never say 'fuck God', because who is  God  really? 
   We are more agnostic -- we are still trying to find  meanings  and 
   we are still searching for answers.                                

CoC: So you'd say that it's a  misconception  for  people  to  regard 
     Rotting Christ as a Satanic band then?                                

S: It's not a Satanic band, because Satanism is a religion and we are 
   against any religion. Also, Satanism is involved in certain  parts 
   of the world with fascism and we are not fascist at all.  We  come 
   from Greece,  which  is  against  fascism.  I  find  some  Satanic 
   philosophies very interesting, but I am not a Satanist.  I  am  an 
   agnostic.                                                          

CoC: It's an interesting point you make there, because I have  always 
     felt that a lot of bands who use Satanism as a  means  to  rebel 
     against religion  end  up  doing  exactly  what  they  claim  to 
     despise: they're preaching.                                      

S: Yes, definitely.

CoC: I remember reading an interview with you a few years ago and you 
     were discussing the  name  Rotting  Christ  and  how  you  never 
     expected to receive the sort of negative feedback that you  did. 
     Is this still a point of contention for the band?                

S: We tried to change the name for about four or five years,  because 
   we felt like it was too offensive toward many people, and  it  was 
   reducing our sales because people were saying that because of  our 
   name they didn't want to buy our albums or let  us  play.  In  the 
   end, we decided to  keep  it  because  metal  is  supposed  to  be 
   revolutionary -- otherwise there wouldn't be a  point  to  it.  We 
   don't want people listening to us that care about things like  the 
   band's name; we want people to make up their own minds with us and 
   to come up with their own ideas, not like a band that sings  songs 
   like "Fuck Your God". That doesn't make a person think at all.     

CoC: What would you like people to think about when they're listening 
     to Rotting Christ?                                                    

S: First of all... <pauses> I wouldn't want  people  to  think  about 
   anything specifically. I'm not into forcing someone to  follow  my 
   ideas. I want to give alternatives to people  about  some  of  the 
   things that are flouted by conservative society. At the end of the 
   day it's just ideas,  and  if  you  want  to  get  it,  you  will; 
   otherwise, so be it. Some people are very offended by what I speak 
   about sometimes, but these are just small groups.  We  don't  like 
   how people live nowadays and we try to express that in  our  music 
   and to give solutions.                                             

CoC: Looking back over your career, what  would  you  regard  as  the 
     definitive Rotting Christ song?                                       

S: Best song? That is very hard to say. It depends on your  mood.  If 
   you are in the mood for something that is very dark and very black 
   metal, then you can choose "Sign of Evil  Existence",  or  if  you 
   want something atmospheric then  you  can  choose  "After  Dark  I 
   Feel". It depends on what you feel.                                

CoC: There's no song that you feel slightly 'embarrassed' by?

S: Actually I suppose everyone has something like that, but  I  don't 
   think that it's so good to regret anything you did in the past. We 
   entered into some  really  bad  contracts,  because  we  were  not 
   experienced in such things --  in  fact,  no  one  in  Greece  was 
   experienced in such matters.                                       

CoC: Speaking of Greece -- what's the state of the Greek  underground 
     scene at the moment?                                                  

S: Well, unfortunately Septic Flesh,  who  was  one  of  the  scene's 
   leaders, has broken up now, but I think that there are  many  good 
   bands still left apart from us. Because we are from the south east 
   part of Europe, it is very hard for one band to go to other  parts 
   of the world, but there are very good bands in  Greece  and  there 
   are many bands that play there. The thing that is  very  different 
   though is the attitude, because if you have not been in  the  rest 
   of Europe or in America, you do not  know  how  things  are  done. 
   There are many bands that think that they are rock stars,  but  we 
   do not concern ourselves with them.                                

CoC: You mentioned Septic Flesh --  I  believe  that  you  are  close 
     friends with several of their members?                                

S: I have a side-project with guys from Necromantia and Septic  Flesh 
   called Thou Art Lord. They are good friends of ours.                  

CoC: You have no idea as to why they broke up?

S: It's a personal problem with them --  they  have  proper  everyday 
   jobs, and if you want to play in a band you have  to  be  on  the. 
   road You have to sacrifice many things                           . 

CoC: Have you ever found yourself in a similar position?

S: I used to work in a record store and I used to have  a  studio  in 
   the past, but now I quit so that  I  can  concentrate  on  Rotting 
   Christ 100%. I don't make a lot of money, but enough  to  pay  the 
   bills. Life in Greece is not as expensive as it is in the rest  of 
   the world. But it has taken a long time for us to make money  from 
   this band -- we played for five years without making any money.    

CoC: What are the plans for Rotting Christ when the new  album  comes 
     out?                                                                  

S: Being on the road. We will go on a world tour as soon as  the  new 
   album comes out -- South America, Colombia,  Brazil,  Europe;  all 
   over the world.                                                    

CoC: Any last words, Sakis?

S: Keep the dark cult alive and stay true.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

          D A N C I N G    W I T H    T H E    D A M N E D
          ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
         CoC chats with Gary Holt and Tom Holting of Exodus
                           by: Jackie Smit


Exodus is back, and at this point, introductions are  not  necessary. 
Yet, as easy as it is to recall their place among the elite few  that 
formed an integral part of the fertile breeding ground that  was  Bay 
Area thrash, many won't realise upon  spinning  their  latest  effort 
that _Tempo of the Damned_  nearly  didn't  happen.  Indeed,  as  the 
nineties grew older and death metal  had  all  but  overshadowed  the 
once-dubbed "heaviest music on earth", the talent  that  brought  the 
metal  genre  classics  such  as  _Bonded  by  Blood_  and  _Fabulous 
Disaster_ was about to be  swallowed  up  by  a  myriad  of  personal 
problems that included the  death  of  a  close  friend  and  copious 
amounts of illegal chemicals. But in a  true  triumph  of  the  human 
spirit that would not look out of place on an  afternoon  talk  show, 
guitarist Gary Holt and his partners in crime managed to pull Exodus' 
barely-breathing carcass back from the brink of obscurity.            

Fast-forward to our present point in time and  I'm  sharing  a  couch 
with Gary and drummer extraordinaire Tom Holting, in a plush hotel in 
central London. Throughout the conversation, Gary and Tom  will  both 
make reference to the fact that for them, Exodus has been  reborn  -- 
and in case you're sceptical, a quick spin of  their  latest  platter 
should be all that's required to set you straight.                    

CoC: Exodus has gone through quite a lot of problems in the past  few 
     years: the drugs, Paul Barloff's passing and so  forth.  Out  of 
     these experiences, which would you say played the  biggest  role 
     in how _Tempo of the Damned_ eventually turned out?              

Gary Holt: Personally, I'd have to say getting  off  the  dope.  That 
           took the haze away and cleared  that  fucking  grey  cloud 
           that was covering up any creative spark I had.  Once  that 
           was gone, the ideas were just flying out. The energy  came 
           back, the desire to focus came back and that  brought  the 
           fucking aggression and the fucking electricity back to us, 
           which made the album into what it is. Also,  Paul's  death 
           -- when I got cleaned up and I could  think  clearly,  the 
           reality of the situation... that was a huge inspiration to 
           make the album as good as it is.                           

Tom Hunting: I feel the same way. We didn't have any focus and  there 
             was no work being done until we got ourselves together.               

GH: We worked more on getting more fucking speed than we did  writing 
    anything.                                                             

CoC: The album was released on the 2nd  of  February,  which  is  the 
     anniversary  of  Paul's  death.  Was  this  the  intention  from 
     yourselves or from the label, or is it just a coincidence?       

GH: Intentional from myself. Unfortunately it's only  being  released 
    in the States on March 9. But basically the label  told  me  that 
    they're shooting for a February release and I told them  that  if 
    that's the case, then why not February 2nd, and  they  said  that 
    wouldn't be a problem.                                            

CoC: So, do you regard this album as your  own  personal  tribute  to 
     Paul?                                                                 

GH: Absolutely.

CoC: What do you think his opinion of the record would be if he  were 
     around to hear it?                                                    

GH: He'd love it.

TH: I think he -does- feel wherever he is -- he  definitely  approves 
    of this.                                                              

GH: His spirit is still with us.  I  mean,  you  listen  to  some  of 
    Zetro's  vocals  on  the  new  songs  and  you  hear  Paul  kinda 
    channelling in his ass on a lot of it.                            

TH: And Paul was a huge influence on Zetro -- I mean, he started  the
    whole thing. Zet would be the first one to admit that.

GH: They both have different styles and it was totally unintentional, 
    but you listen to the new stuff and there's  definitely  some  of 
    Paul coming out there.                                            

CoC: Let's talk about the deal with Nuclear Blast. How did that  come
     about?

GH: This album would never have been  done  --  apart  from  our  own 
    problems -- if it hadn't been for the generosity  and  commitment 
    of a lot of people.                                               

TH: We had to reach out to a lot of people.

GH: Yeah, because we  recorded  it  ourselves.  I  mean,  Andy  Sneap 
    covered all of his own  expenses  because  he  believed  in  this 
    project. A friend of ours put up his credit card and paid for the 
    studio where we recorded the drum tracks.  The  studio  where  we 
    recorded everything else -- the guy put up with us for  no  money 
    upfront and actually took an active part in feeding us a  lot  of 
    the time. Those guys all made this album happen. Then  we  had  a 
    finished album and we were in the exact position that  we  wanted 
    to be in. We had a killer album done, and you're always going  to 
    get a better deal if you can provide the label with  a  fantastic 
    product. We had a shortlist of people we wanted to shop it to and 
    Nuclear Blast were at the top of the list -- they were the  label 
    I felt should be our home.                                        

TH: They're doing the right thing with it.

GH: They're metal fans to begin with. They know how  to  market  this 
    music, they have a proven  track  record  and  they've  given  us 
    nothing but respect.                                              

CoC: What about the decision to work with Andy Sneap -- how  did  his 
     name come up?                                                         

TH: Well, he was the only one we wanted to work with.

GH: We worked together the first time on  the  live  album  (_Another 
    Lesson in Violence_) and we have a similar  musical  history.  We 
    even played the Dynamo festival with Sabbat in  1987.  Andy  came 
    out of nowhere to do the live album and  I  have  honestly  never 
    worked with someone as well as I do with him. It's at  the  point 
    now where he is the sixth member of this band.                    

TH: He came out of nowhere when we did the live album and he said: "I 
    was born to mix this record."                                         

GH: He's our producer and he's like a brother to us. I'll never do an 
    Exodus record without him. He believed so strongly in this record 
    that he covered every cost himself.                               

CoC: It must be an amazing feeling to know that there are people that 
     believe in Exodus to such a great extent.                             

GH: Absolutely. The sound that he brought  to  this  record  is  just 
    killer.                                                               

CoC: It's been eight years since you brought  out  your  last  studio 
     album. How does your approach differ from the early days?             

GH: Well, it's a completely different mindset. We have  this  renewed 
    energy, which I think is similar to how  we  felt  when  we  were 
    writing _Bonded by Blood_,  which  is  why  I  think  people  are 
    comparing the record to that. We've got a drive to just grind.  I 
    liked _Force of Habit_, but  when  we  were  making  it  we  were 
    fighting all the time, we were in the middle of what  turned  out 
    to be a ruinous deal with Capitol Records, and when you're caught 
    up in all  the  big  business  bullshit  and  you're  getting  no 
    support, that's when it all just falls apart. And  now  we  don't 
    have that pressure. I mean, the album is a success  just  because 
    we made it -- whether it sells ten copies or fucking ten million. 
    We're a fucking behind the music special waiting to happen. We've 
    got drug addictions,  we've  got  death,  we've  got  bad  deals. 
    Hopefully if this album does well, it'll be  like  a  "triumphant 
    comeback". Unfortunately with  music,  to  really  be  remembered 
    you've got to die real early -- you  have  to  go  t  hrough  the 
    highest highs and the lowest lows and then die the moment you get 
    back on top. Like Stevie  Ray  Vaughn:  he  gets  clean  off  the 
    fucking coke and  the  booze  and  then  he  fucking  dies  in  a 
    helicopter crash. It's like a soap opera.                         

CoC: What would you have done if you were never  part  of  this  soap 
     opera, though?                                                        

TH: I'd be a shepherd.

GH: A male exotic dancer... male prostitute...

TH: ...cesspool sucker...

GH: ...proctologist... That's a hard one to say. I mean,  growing  up 
    as a kid, I always wanted to be a palaeontologist, so  maybe  I'd 
    be digging up dinosaur bones or something.                        

CoC: So for the record -- are Exodus back for good?

GH: Yeah, definitely. Unless some other crushing blow happens, but  I 
    don't see that.                                                       

TH: As long as we can do this, we will.

GH: I always said that I would do this as long as I  was  having  fun 
    and we broke up in 1992, because I wasn't having  fun.  Now,  I'm 
    enjoying myself as much as I ever have. I already have ideas  for 
    the next album!                                                   

CoC: And with all the things that you went through together as a band 
     and have now survived -- do you think that it makes you stronger 
     as a unit and brings you closer together?                        

GH: Absolutely.

TH: We were sucking on stage, until we took  the  drugs  out  of  the 
    picture.                                                              

GH: We were getting by just winging it. I  mean,  we  had  all  these 
    hardcore fans who  were  there,  but  they  weren't  even  really 
    listening sometimes. And anybody newer would just have seen  that 
    we were sloppy.                                                   

CoC: On _Tempo of the Damned_ you've once again delved into a lot  of 
     political subject matter. That said, I  recently  read  a  quote 
     from you [Gary] that said you hated all politicians. Considering 
     the material you write about, would you say that  you're  making 
     observations or proposing solutions?                             

GH: I'm making observations. I mean, there are  solutions  that  will 
    never take place. If you take  all  the  big  money  out  of  the 
    picture, then maybe politicians wouldn't be  the  criminals  that 
    they are. But now it takes you x-amount of millions of dollars to 
    get elected to public office and all that money has to come  from 
    somewhere. And I mean, I wouldn't give  you  fucking  five  bucks 
    unless I wanted ten back, or a favour. It's  these  favours  that 
    are fucking things up. On "Scar  Sprangled  Banner"  on  the  new 
    album, I actually tried to answer the question as to whether  I'm 
    a liberal. No, I'm as fucking conservative as you can be. I  just 
    don't hang around with these militia  fuckers  and  I  don't  run 
    around with machine guns. But I mean, I'm no fool -- I  know  I'm 
    being lied to. What else are we in Iraq for but oil? We  had  the 
    second biggest genocide in Rwanda and we send  what?,  a  fucking 
    tiny "peace- keeping" force?! Fucking hundreds and  thousands  of 
    people were  being  massacred  with  machet  es,  but  we  didn't 
    care because they have dirt, and  we  don't  want  dirt.  And  on 
    "Scar Sprangled Banner" I talk about "America,  the  violent  and 
    indifferent"; I'm talking about myself, not just  all  Americans. 
    I'm not anti-American. I watched the  bombs  drop  and  I  didn't 
    think: "Wow, that's fucking wrong". I was watching the firepower, 
    not the liberation of a nation.                                   

TH: These are our opinions though. I mean, a lot of politicians  base 
    their entire campaigns on their opinions.                             

GH: People are taking "Scar Sprangled Banner" out of  proportion  and 
    saying that I'm fucking anti-American. I'm not anti-American  and 
    "Scar Sprangled Banner" is no less anti-government  than  fucking 
    "Fabulous Disaster" or any of  the  other  anti-government  songs 
    that we've written.                                               

CoC: What would you want people to get out of Exodus' music when  the 
     new album comes out?                                                  

GH: A black eye. <laughs>  No,  I  want  them  to  feel  the  fucking 
    electricity, I want people to be able to feel something.  I  want 
    to turn the people into fucking battlebots.                       

TH: Yeah, killing each other to get to the merchandise stand to buy a 
    T-shirt.                                                              

GH: Although, every death is one less shirt sold.

CoC: Any last words from you guys?

GH: We're back. We're not  going  away  that  easily  this  time,  so 
    prepare yourself for some musical brass knuckles.                     

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

                       _, _,  __, _,_ _, _  _,
                      / \ |   |_) | | |\/| (_ 
                      |~| | , |_) | | |  | , )
                      ~ ~ ~~~ ~   `~' ~  ~  ~ 

Scoring:  10 out of 10 -- A masterpiece indeed
           9 out of 10 -- Highly recommended
           7 out of 10 -- Has some redeeming qualities
           5 out of 10 -- You are treading in dangerous waters
           3 out of 10 -- Nothing here worth looking into
           0 out of 10 -- An atrocious album, avoid at all costs!


Berserk - _Rites of Supremacy_  (Oaken Shield / Adipocere, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (5 out of 10)

What we have here is  Iberian  black  metal  --  could  this  be  the 
beginning  of  some  stiff  competition  for  the  Viking   subgenre? 
Unlikely, at least in this stage of  Berserk's  career.  Berserk  are 
from Spain and have already thrust upon the  black  masses  an  album 
titled _...From the Celtiberian Woods_ a while  ago,  but  _Rites  of 
Supremacy_ is the first I've actually heard from  them.  Their  music 
is mostly mid-paced,  semi-  melodic  black  metal,  with  occasional 
keyboards and clean chants employed in the usual ways.  In  fact,  as 
far as Iberian black metal goes, Berserk's music is not  particularly 
distinctive,  hence   wasting   a   good   opportunity.   Production, 
songwriting and musicianship are all average, although the repetitive 
drumming adds to a certain lack of real dynamics in the  music.  This 
is partially compensated by the reasonable sense of  atmosphere  that 
Berserk achieve on _Rites of  Supremacy_,  but  with  its  relatively 
lengthy song structures the album still isn't a very exciting affair. 
Berserk may still be on their way to something interesting, but  they 
will definitely need to improve in certain areas if they are ever  to 
get there.                                                            

Contact: http://www.berserkhorde.com


Blodsrit - _Oscularis Infernum_  (Oaken Shield / Adipocere, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (7 out of 10)

So, a new album by Sweden's Blodsrit -- or is  it  Dissection's  long 
lost demo? Either way, there is no denying how  enjoyable  _Oscularis 
Infernum_ is: for all its lack of originality, this is still an album 
you can safely throw into your CD player for a pleasant 40 minutes of 
melodic black metal. The album sorely lacks  the  shiny  professional 
quality of Naglfar's superior _Sheol_, but not so much as to become a 
problem.  The  production  is  competent  (except  for  the  slightly 
annoying drum sound) and the  playing  is  quite  adequate  (bar  the 
somewhat repetitive drumming made worse by the drum sound), which  in 
addition to all the good hooks and melodies ensures a very acceptable 
release in spite of its originality issues. Unsurprisingly,  you  get 
most of the usual shticks (such as corpsepaint, a band  member  named 
Nazgul or a Nietzche quotation in the  booklet)  but  this  is  still 
unpretentiously enjoyable -- a rather good bet if that's  all  you're 
looking for and bands like Dissection and Naglfar happen to  be  your 
kind of thing.                                                        

Contact: http://www.blodsrit.com


Cannibal Corpse - _The Wretched Spawn_  (Metal Blade, 2004)
by: Jackie Smit  (9.5 out of 10)

Virtually since their inception, Cannibal Corpse have,  almost  as  a 
rule, seemed destined to be reviewers' favourite whipping boys. Quite 
as to the reasons why remains uncertain; perhaps it is their stubborn 
unwillingness to compromise their now fairly tired lyrical fodder, or 
to depart even slightly from their  ultra-technical  style  of  death 
metal that has  since  spawned  a  voluminous  legion  of  imitators. 
Whatever  the  case  may  be,  the  fact  that  they  can  boast  the 
distinction of being the  first  extreme  band  to  achieve  platinum 
selling status would suggest that they're at  least  doing  something 
right, and one  could  further  argue  that  they  have  scaled  this 
considerable height as a direct result of their doing the very things 
that the metal  media  flays  them  for  with  their  every  release. 
Predictably once again _The Wretched Spawn_ has drawn its fair  share 
of criticism, with one point in particular standing out  in  my  mind 
this time round as a  pure  admission  of  ignorance:  that  Cannibal 
Corpse have simply repeated themselves. It  is  certainly  true  that 
_The Wretched Spawn_ is a Cannibal Corpse album in every sense of the 
word, and so from the off you will know  what  to  expect  --  George 
"Corpsegrinder" Fisher's blisteringly intense vocals, Alex  Webster's 
inhumanly skilful bass- wizardry, the seething  combination  of  Jack 
Owen and Pat O'Brien's guitars -- all dancing to  the  tune  of  Paul 
Mazurkiewicz's trademark battery.                                     

What makes Cannibal Corpse  worth  listening  to,  nine  albums  into 
their career, is that they continue  to  evolve  their  sound  within 
the admittedly conservative framework  which  they  have  imposed  on 
themselves -- the results of which have proven to be quite excellent. 
Small touches indicate how they have grown as  songwriters  over  the 
course of a career that spans more  than  fifteen  years:  the  doomy 
intro to "Festering in the Crypt", the  dark  melodic  break  halfway 
through "Frantic Disembowelment". In the meantime, they  continue  to 
excel as one of the most technical bands in death metal. Say what you 
will about their ability to come up with fresh ideas, but  there  are 
precious few guitarists  that  will  outdo  the  quite  frankly  sick 
staccato riffage of "Psychotic Precision". Of course, it may just  be 
that what Cannibal Corpse brings to the table just isn't  enough  for 
some, a view that boils down to a simple matter of  opinion.  But  as 
Alex Webster states on the record's accompanying DVD documentary, the 
band's primary objective  has  always  been  to  "deliver  the  death 
metal"; and in the case of _The Wretched Spawn_, the group definitely 
deserve infinite kudos for a job exceptionally done.                  

Contact: http://www.cannibalcorpse.net


Dismember - _Where Ironcrosses Grow_  (Karmageddon Media, 2004)
by: Paul Schwarz  (8 out of 10)

It has been five years since a Dismember album last saw the light  of 
day, but after a triumphant Wacken performance reawakened  the  world 
to their  hacking,  slashing,  chainsaw-powered  death  metal  might, 
anticipation has been running  high.  _Where  Ironcrosses  Grow_  has 
taken its time coming out, having been recorded a year ago,  but  for 
fans of the band and others hungry for some old-school, Autopsy-  and 
Iron Maiden-infused Swedish death metal, it will be  well  worth  the 
wait. Though not quite the mixture of all the best bits of  Dismember 
Matti Karki will tell you it is, _WIG_ isn't  actually  far  off  the 
mark. As any of you who've heard the title track -- downloadable from 
Karmageddon Media  --  will  attest,  Dismember's  sixth  full-length 
boasts a much better attuned sound  than  _Hate  Campaign_  did:  the 
dirty crunch of _Like an  Everflowing  Stream_  is  present  here  in 
spirit if not quite in actuality, with the slightly-too-clean, almost 
sequenced feel which the Swedes'  last  two  albums  dragged  like  a 
ball-and-chain, effectively amputated. Dismember have recaptured  the 
momentum and fist-to-the-face impact  which  those  last  two  albums 
lacked. Instead of delivering a slightly confused selection of  songs 
-- some great, some not  so  great  --  Dismember  have  delivered  a 
cohesive album which flows from track to  track;  the  opening  title 
track slams to a close, and after the well- placed click-clack  of  a 
handgun slide preparing a new magazine, "Fuelled by  Hate"  kicks  in 
backed with a big BANG; penultimate track  "Children  of  the  Cross" 
winds down and fades out with a doom-infused riff backed by  chaotic, 
improvised drum-breaks, seeming to signal the albums close, but  then 
fades back in for half-a-minute to allow "As I Pull the  Trigger"  to 
swat it aside, bolt you upright, and ultimately pave the  way  for  a 
highly satisfying finish. Put simply, _WIG_ combines all the elements 
that Dismember fans have come to know and love  the  band  for;  it's 
not experimental, but it  -is-  reinvigorated.  It  may  not  be  the 
perfect Dismember album, but it's  their  most  consistent  since  at 
least _Massive Killing Capacity_, my current  third  favourite  after 
_Indecent  and  Obscene_  and  _LaEFS_  (yes,  in  that  order),  and 
certainly an album no fan  of  the  band  should  be  advised  to  go 
without. I'd give it a higher mark, but then I'd be making  the  same 
mistake I did when I reviewed _Death Metal_ in  these  pages  all  of 
seven years ago: giving an album a high mark because -I- enjoy it  so 
much, rather than objectively giving it the mark it deserves.         

Contact: http://www.dismember.se


Ektomorf - _Destroy_  (Nuclear Blast, 2004)
by: Jackie Smit  (4 out of 10)

On the surface, Ektomorf's fifth  effort  appears  to  possess  every 
quality that could conceivably make up a  good  metal  record:  tight 
performances, thick solid production. Yet as the album progresses, it 
soon becomes painfully clear that  the  Hungarians'  Meshuggah-meets- 
Soulfly cocktail offers precious little  in  the  way  of  substance. 
Songs meander on without build-up, climax or any  sort  of  dynamics, 
and by the time the seventh track has aired,  monotony  has  all  but 
killed any sort of enjoyment one  could  conceivably  have  extracted 
from the record. That even  the  most  seasoned  metalhead  could  be 
forgiven for mistaking vocalist Zoltan for one Max  Cavalera  doesn't 
do much for their cause either.  Ultimately,  _Destroy_  does  little 
more other than proving that no matter how much  money  or  marketing 
muscle is behind a band, no amount of industry veneer can  compensate 
for lack of talent.                                                   

Contact: http://www.ektomorf.net


Eros Necropsique - _Crises de Lucidité_  (Adipocere, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (4 out of 10)

When you choose to call your project Eros Necropsique and release  an 
album presented in A5 digibook format, with a black and  white  photo 
of a naked girl lying on the floor embracing a  skull  as  the  front 
cover, you risk coming across as pretentious -- and either your music 
and lyrical concept are going to  be  good  enough  to  justify  that 
approach to the way you present your  work,  or  you're  pretty  much 
doomed. However presented, _Crises de Lucidité_ is a 55 minute  album 
comprised of work  spanning  from  1995  to  1998.  The  music  is  a 
stripped down affair built from vocals, keyboard, bass and artificial 
percussion, and it is mostly the creation of  one  Olivier.  In  each 
successive song, French poems are recited in a half-spoken, half-sung 
manner through generally well  performed  vocals.  Although  brimming 
with confidence, they  are  confined  to  a  relatively  safe  style. 
These are occasionally complemented by a  smooth  but  samey  soprano 
voice. Sometimes the music veers towards more medieval  fields,  some 
others into more tragic settings, and  yet  others  towards  somewhat 
Elend-like symphonic soundscapes. However, Eros Necropsique fall well 
short of Elend's grandeur; their medieval material  comes  across  as 
uninteresting, and the more tragic moments  entirely  depend  on  how 
well you can take this sort of gothic theatrics. Ultimately,  _Crises 
de Lucidité_ is let down by its lack of  direction  and  unconvincing 
instrumental side. This is not a terrible effort and it does  have  a 
few redeeming qualities, but unless you tend  to  like  their  chosen 
subject matter quite a lot, you are unlikely to find much  that  will 
interest you here.                                                    

Contact: http://erosnecropsique.cjb.net


Farmer Boys - _The Other Side_  (Nuclear Blast, 2004)
by: Jackie Smit  (3 out of 10)

With a name as overwhelmingly asinine as Farmer Boys,  one  could  be 
forgiven for having preconceptions as to the quality  of  the  band's 
musical output. If anything is to be learned from the  wonderful  and 
often weird world of metal however, it's  that  it's  better  to  not 
judge a book by  its  cover.  Unfortunately  though,  even  the  most 
open-minded pundit is likely to have his or her patience  tested,  as 
the twelve tracks collected on the German five-piece's  fourth  album 
reek of the same year-old stilton  that  wafts  over  their  moniker. 
Billed as a blend of Depeche Mode and Faith No More, Farmer Boys have 
little in  common  with  either,  and  come  across  instead  as  the 
quintessential caricature of  Euro  pop  rock  with  slightly  louder 
guitars. True, the slick, contemporary production job of  Siggi  Bemm 
(The Kovenant, Guano Apes) make this  record  mildly  more  palatable 
than _The World Is Ours_ or _Until the Cows Come Home_, but as anyone 
unlucky enough to have suffered through  those  albums  will  attest, 
that doesn't count for much.                                          

Contact: http://www.farmerboys.de


Fear Factory - _Archetype_  (Liquid 8, 2004)
by: Xander Hoose  (8.5 out of 10)

If I had to make a list of bands that have taken a hard fall in their 
career, Fear Factory would be ranking  somewhere  at  the  top.  With 
their immensely successful and genre-breaking  album  _Demanufacture_ 
and the critical acclaim  for  their  groundbreaking  _Remanufacture_ 
remix album, Fear Factory's seemed to have carved a bright future for 
themselves. But _Obsolete_ disappointed and didn't do quite  as  well 
as expected, while follow-up _Digimortal_ was pretty much ignored  by 
the masses. And so Fear  Factory  called  it  a  day,  releasing  the 
horrible _Hatefiles_ compilation to get rid of their contract.        

2004 shows the return of revitalized Fear Factory. Dino  Cazares  has 
left the band. Long-time member Christian Olde-Wolbers is on guitars. 
Strapping Young Lad Byron Stroud is on bass. Many changes  that  will 
leave the audience wondering how pathetic this renewed  attempt  will 
be; one only needs to think of Sepultura and  Metallica  to  have  at 
least some scepticism  about  such  insurrections.  Thankfully,  Fear 
Factory is for once not trying to 'create something new' or 'reinvent 
music'. Instead, they  just  do  what  they  do  best:  making  fast, 
aggressive tunes with a techno-approach. While  this  might  sound  a 
somewhat vague description, imagine a cross  between  _Demanufacture_ 
and _Obsolete_ if you will. The whole album flows by  (sorry:  pounds 
by) naturally. It is evident that Fear Factory is pissed, but for the 
first time in a long period their venting sounds natural  instead  of 
forced.                                                               

The thing I like least about _Archetype_ is that most  of  the  songs 
follow the same structure, building up and breaking down  in  exactly 
the same fashion.  It  tends  to  blend  songs  together,  give  them 
less individual power. Perhaps this  is  the  real  area  where  Fear 
Factory should progress in: adding  diversity  to  their  well-proved 
concept. Nonetheless, with ballads like "Bite the Hand  That  Feeds", 
powerhouses like "Bonescraper" and a Nirvana cover, I  can't  be  too 
harsh. _Archetype_ is an unexpected yet very  convincing  return  for 
Fear Factory. Good to have you back.                                  

Contact: http://www.fearfactory.com


Finnugor - _Death Before Dawn_  (Adipocere, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (2 out of 10)

Looking at _Death Before Dawn_'s ridiculously  garish  cover  art,  I 
could not repress a dominant feeling of  apprehension.  Looking  into 
the promotional information provided, I discover that  the  project's 
Hungarian mastermind Gabriel Wolf  added  the  guest  talent  of  his 
countrymate Atilla Csihar  (Aborym,  Tormentor,  ex-Mayhem)  to  Finn 
Nikolai Stalhammar this time around. None of this  seemed  to  matter 
much as cheesy keyboards were accompanied by the  trite  reciting  of 
some text by a female friend  of  the  band  calling  herself  Domina 
Mystica -- a combination that did not bode  well  for  _Death  Before 
Dawn_, much as I hoped that the album itself would be very  different 
from its intro. To my dismay, it  wasn't:  ludicrous  percussion  and 
guitar are often accompanied by an overwhelming (and at the same time 
so very underwhelming) keyboard, while Csihar shrieks away lyrics  to 
songs with titles such as "Astral Fornication" (which,  incidentally, 
is printed together with foxy  Ms.  Mystica's  picture).  To  put  it 
bluntly, Finnugor's symphonic black metal is rubbish; it is so deeply 
sub-standard that I can only  wonder  how  Adipocere  could  fail  to 
notice the album's astonishing mediocrity.                            

Contact: http://finnugor.cjb.net


Furia - _Un Lac de Larmes et de Sang_  (Adipocere, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (7.5 out of 10)

On _Un Lac de Larmes et de Sang_ ("A Lake of Tears and Blood")  Furia 
have created a concept album, each song a chapter of a story told  in 
French. Their musical approach  gathers  some  aggression,  technical 
skill and melody, ending up with an interesting and well produced mix 
-- there is plenty of Swedish sharpness, dynamics and technicality  a 
la Dark Tranquillity to be found. Furia are quite clearly a dedicated 
band, and there should be little doubt _Un Lac de Larmes et de  Sang_ 
required a very significant amount of work;  furthermore,  Furia  are 
able to turn all of that into something that is also interesting  for 
the listener -- which isn't always the case, regardless of the  level 
of  dedication  or  the  amount  of  work  the  band  puts  into  the 
album. Despite some similarities to  Dark  Tranquillity  marring  any 
aspirations to remarkable originality, _Un Lac de Larmes et de  Sang_ 
is still sufficiently original to stand on its own most of the  time. 
The overall quality of both musicianship and production, coupled with 
adept songwriting and several particularly enjoyable passages, ensure 
this is an album that should please a large number of listeners.      

Contact: http://furia.metal.free.fr


Genital Grinder - _Genital Grinder_  (Adipocere, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (4 out of 10)

Lavish  soundscapes  of  romantic,  classically   influenced   metal, 
featuring clean male and  female  vocals  as  well  as  grand  piano, 
violin, cello and  a  myriad  other  instruments  to  complement  the 
soothing guitar tone -- a description that has absolutely nothing  in 
common  with  Genital  Grinder's  self-titled  debut,  as  you  could 
probably guess from the less-than-subtle band name. Grindcore it  is, 
and if you thought  everything  had  already  been  invented  in  the 
death/grind genre before Genital Grinder came along... well, you  may 
be right. Either way, these Parisiens certainly won't prove you wrong 
given the recycled nature of this self-titled debut album of  theirs: 
this  is  good  ol'  fashioned  grind,  deeply  rooted  in  the  gore 
tradition. The more humorous and cartoonish kind of gore,  mind  you; 
in fact, all of the album's subject matter  hangs  between  obviously 
humourous and somewhat childish -- not  to  mention  downright  silly 
like most of the choruses, interludes and the  French  sing-along  in 
the final track. Genital Grinder can grind  reasonably  well  though, 
and the album is not entirely a snooze-fest if you're in the mood for 
this kind of metal -- just don't expect a bulldozer  like  their  far 
superior labelmates Morgue, because Genital Grinder are just a bit of 
harmless fun.                                                         

Contact: http://www.genitalgrinder.fr.st


Heaven Shall Burn - _Antigone_  (Century Media, 2004)
by: Xander Hoose  (8 out of 10)

With black metal having peaked  its  popularity,  most  major  record 
labels are looking for their next big  cash  cow.  Hardcore/noisecore 
seems to be the next thing and the signing of Heaven  Shall  Burn  to 
the Century Media line-up only seems to ascertain  that.  Thankfully, 
Heaven Shall Burn deserves what's coming to them;  for  a  relatively 
small band, they have an excellent sound, groove and production. Even 
though one of the most noticeable elements  of  Heaven  Shall  Burn's 
music are the razor-sharp vocals, the thing that  surprised  me  most 
were the guitars that at times sounded like those  in  the  good  old 
death metal days. Think At the Gates and Bolt Thrower,  then  recycle 
their music into a Converge / Shai Hulud mold  and  you'd  be  close. 
Small point of concern: the clear production gives _Antigone_ a sharp 
aggressive edge, but it does tend  to  suppress  the  impact  of  the 
double bass. While Heaven Shall Burn is  not  as  Slayer-oriented  as 
labelmates Dew- Scented, fans of this band should give  _Antigone_  a 
fair chance. The European  pressing  will  include  two  bonus  cover 
songs: "Dislocation" by Disembodied and "Not My God" by Hate Squad.   

Contact: http://www.heavenshallburn.com


Himinbjorg - _Golden Age_  (Adipocere, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (7.5 out of 10)

With a new guitarist and a new drummer, Himinbjorg have replaced half 
the band after _Haunted Shores_; whether that  is  one  of  the  main 
reasons for the renewed venom found in _Golden Age_  I  cannot  tell. 
The fact remains that this new album sees a strong Himinbjorg  return 
to the fray with an album that can conjure up a whirlwind during  its 
faster sections just as easily as it can slow down into a rather more 
majestic pace. With the changes in pace and occasional clean singing, 
Himinbjorg follow the footsteps of early  Borknagar  --  there  is  a 
feeling of something nordic to the  music  of  these  Frenchmen,  and 
_Golden Age_ shows character as well as vigour and skill. Dynamic and 
engaging, this new Himinbjorg effort should  prove  well  worth  your 
time.                                                                 

Contact: http://www.adipocere.fr


Loudblast - _Planet Pandemonium_  (Boycott Records, 2004)
by: Xander Hoose  (7.5 out of 10)

All ye ancient death metallers, be warned! Loudblast has returned! It 
has been more than six years since  these  Frenchies  have  unleashed 
carnage upon the world and apparently it was time for them to retreat 
from retirement, pick up their  instruments,  and  shred  once  more. 
Loudblast has always been quite underrated, even though their  Morbid 
Angel-meets-Gorefest approach had a high appeal to  the  death  metal 
masses. _Planet Pandemonium_ won't disappoint or surprise any of  the 
old fans. Except for the up-to-date production, there  have  been  no 
drastic stylistic changes; which, in a way, is probably for the best: 
most of the bands in this genre have  died  out  long  ago  (remember 
Gorefest, remember Morgoth, remember Pestilence?). On the other hand, 
certain songs on _Planet Pandemonium_ do sound a tad bit outdated. If 
you're the kind of guy who starts most of his sentences with "back in 
the day, everything used to be better", _Planet Pandemonium_ will  be 
an obligatory purchase. For those feeding off mechanized  double-bass 
assaults, you'd be better off skipping this one.                      


Mar de Grises - _The Tatterdemalion Express_  (Firebox, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8.5 out of 10)

Chilean doom metal is hardly a well-known scene in the  metal  world; 
but if more bands like Mar de Grises were to pop out of  there,  then 
that would surely change. Finnish Firebox Records yet again treat  us 
to some quality doom metal, and once more keep their releases  subtly 
varied: like most other bands on the label, Mar de Grises  also  have 
their own distinguishing attributes to set them apart from others  in 
the same genre. _The Tatterdemalion Express_ takes you on a trip to a 
different world, standing apart from other doom  metal  albums  in  a 
number of ways; it has  a  sound  very  much  its  own,  employing  a 
multitude of techniques to achieve its goals, and remaining curiously 
varied whilst  surprisingly  consistent  throughout.  Mar  de  Grises 
are  one  of  those  rare  outfits  that  manage  to  avoid  sounding 
like an ordinary  band  recording  an  album  in  some  studio;  it's 
as if  the  album's  musical  elements  were  put  together  by  some 
abstract entity, taking  shape  from  chaos  and  resulting  in  _The 
Tatterdemalion Express_. There is also an  important  sense  of  good 
taste throughout, of not overdoing things or  falling  into  clichés, 
that greatly contributes to the  overall  result.  The  album  hovers 
between interestingly atmospheric and either funereal  or  moderately 
progressive melodic doom most of the time,  and  includes  plenty  of 
remarkable  passages  in  the  process  (especially  the  outstanding 
second half of "Storm"). _The Tatterdemalion  Express_  is  a  highly 
recommended album, possibly  the  best  so  far  from  the  excellent 
Firebox Records; not to be missed  by  anyone  into  doom  metal,  or 
indeed extreme metal in general.                                      

Contact: http://www.mardegrises.cjb.net


Mayhem - _Chimera_  (Season of Mist, 2004)
by: Chris Flaaten  (9 out of 10)

Mayhem.  This  band  is  almost  legendary,  despite  their   limited 
discography and its varying quality. The "grand  return"  with  their 
previous album failed to impress me, although there were a couple  of 
interesting tracks. I remember thinking that if they  had  just  kept 
the intensity of the first few tracks throughout the album,  and  had 
better vocals, that it would actually have been quite good. _Chimera_ 
is the answer to this withered hope. Mayhem has  somehow  crafted  an 
album that exceeds even the wildest of expectations. This is not  the 
gem that fans of _De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas_ have been  longing  for, 
though. _Chimera_ is  an  inferno  of  detailed,  riff-based  extreme 
metal, executed with an almost arrogant machine-like  precision.  The 
musical mayhem is fittingly presented in a crystal  clear  production 
that really accentuates the technical and cold aspects of the  music. 
The word "Chimera" is from Greek Mythology,  where  it  represents  a 
fire- breathing monster made up of  disparate  parts  (usually  lion, 
goat and serpent). Similarly, Mayhem's  album  is  also  a  fearsome, 
multi-headed monster oozing hate and ferociousness. Imagine a mix  of 
the furious "A Time to Die" from _Grand Declaration of War_  and  the 
chilling moods and timing off Thorns' self-titled  album  and  you're 
pretty close. Chimera attacks you viciously  from  the  first  track, 
"Whore". No compromises and no mercy, a feeling that really sinks  in 
as Maniac screams the chorus;  "She  fucking  hates  you  all!".  His 
vocals are ugly as ever, but thankfully  less  annoying  and  with  a 
lower pitch. The next couple of tracks present  more  variation,  but 
the changes of pace only serve to highlight the intensity  that  runs 
consistently throughout the album. Some of the slower  passages  pack 
quite a punch themselves too, like  the  magnificent  ending  of  "My 
Death", with its haunting riffs and chanting (!). Another peak is the 
absolutely mindblowing "Slaughter of Dreams", where  the  riffs  have 
such fantastic details and interesting time signatures that Cynic and 
Spiral Architect could pick up a  thing  or  two.  _Chimera_  is  the 
manifestation of hateful arrogance; an incredibly solid album from  a 
band that finally lives up to its name.                               

Contact: http://www.thetruemayhem.com


Morbid Angel - _Heretic_  (Earache Records, 2003)
by: Jackie Smit  (9 out of 10)

Like many of their kindred acts, opinion on Morbid Angel's  continued 
relevance at the present point in time  remains  divided.  There  are 
some that feel that Trey Azagthoth should have called it a day  after 
David Vincent's departure in 1995 [He did, if only for a year or  so, 
in 1996 --Paul].  Others  offer  an  even  more  obstinate  argument, 
claiming that the band have yet to release  anything  that  justifies 
their existence post 1991's _Blessed Are the Sick_. Then on the other 
side of the fence, sit the Morbid Angel faithful  --  fans  who  have 
embraced the band's hunger to experiment and  evolve,  to  avoid  the 
stagnation  that  now  plagues  several  of  the  acts  that  birthed 
alongside them at the turn of the 1990s. Enter _Heretic_ -- a  record 
that could well come as a surprise sucker-punch for many adherents of 
the two former persuasions, brimming with the sort of fire that could 
ever only come from a band who knows that their reputation  as  genre 
leaders hangs in the balance.                                         

In the last two years alone, death metal's new breed have made  their 
presence felt to the point where one could even argue that  _Heretic_ 
may well have been the  band's  swansong  had  it  not  lived  up  to 
expectations. The last  efforts  of  Nile,  Zyklon  and  even  Morbid 
Angel alumnus, Eric Rutan's  Hate  Eternal,  are  prime  examples  of 
those upstarts who have  come  dangerously  close  to  unseating  the 
Tampa collective from their  throne.  Thus  _Heretic_,  almost  as  a 
matter of necessity, kicks into high gear  immediately  --  "Cleansed 
in  Pestilence"  presents  a  glorious  cluster-bomb  of  blasts  and 
polyrhythms, acting as a the veritable pulse beneath the  thick  wall 
of discordant guitar noise that has become Trey Azagthoth's signature 
over the course of the past two decades.  "Enshrined  by  Grace"  and 
"Beneath the Hollow" slow proceedings down for a few  brief  moments, 
only to have "Curse the Flesh" spew out the most venomous  collection 
of riffs that the band have come up  with  for  aeons,  crushing  any 
notion that Morbid Angel are retreading the slower,  sometimes  bland 
grooves of  _Gateways  to  Annihilation_.  But  _Heretic_'s  defining 
moments aren't found in the record's predominant brutality,  however; 
rather by two instrumentals  aired  at  the  album's  mid-time  mark. 
"Place of Many Deaths" and "Abyssous" are urgent, atmospheric  pieces 
-- affirming beyond a doubt the personal and introspective nature  of 
the disc. Curiously,  the  ambience  is  broken  by  two  technically 
brilliant, but undeniably out-of-place solos that conclude the  album 
--  one  an  almost  comedic  drum  check  and  the  other  a  highly 
superfluous piece of guitar shredding. Then there's also  the  matter 
of the production techniques utilized on Steve  Tucker's  vocals:  an 
ill-conceived combination of flange and chorus effects that only just 
falls short of undermining the usually stunning impact of one of  the 
best death metal vocalists working in extreme music  today.  Whatever 
the weight  of  these  criticisms  though,  _Heretic_  is  a  superb, 
confident testimony to the enduring legacy of Morbid Angel,  even  if 
it's not entirely flawless.                                           

Contact: http://www.morbidangel.com


My Dying Bride - _Songs of Darkness, Words of Light_
by: Pedro Azevedo  (9 out of 10)  (Peaceville, 2004)

The question "what do you give a man who has everything?"  is  surely 
more commonplace, but these  days  My  Dying  Bride  must  be  asking 
themselves: what do you play when you have achieved everything?  Fair 
enough, they can only be said  to  have  achieved  everything  within 
their musical niche, rather than via MTV or what have you,  but  that 
niche is precisely what really matters to us here -- worldwide record 
sales be buggered. These living legends of doom metal have created at 
least three masterpieces in my books, each with a character all their 
own in spite of their similarities  (_Turn  Loose  the  Swans_,  _The 
Angel and the Dark River_ and _The Dreadful Hours_,  not  to  mention 
their amazing live album and a host of other fine efforts), and after 
all these years seem healthier than ever. Their detractors might  say 
they have gone back to their old style, found an easy way out  of  an 
inspirational rut; but to me, such a statement overlooks far too much 
of what is actually going on in their music and only focuses on a few 
formal aspects -- such as the return of death growls or  the  absence 
of poppy electronica and other similarly fashionable elements.        

_Songs of Darkness, Words of Light_ provides further  proof  that  My 
Dying Bride have not stagnated; it shows a band  keen  to  experiment 
with new  approaches  within  their  style,  and,  more  importantly, 
succeeding in doing  so  while  keeping  the  album  interesting  and 
enjoyable for the listener. The album is at times very much My  Dying 
Bride, yet at others quite unlike what you would expect  of  them  -- 
but it still makes sense in  the  end.  The  Yorkshiremen  deliver  a 
variety of approaches throughout the album, ranging from subdued  and 
darkly romantic to sinister and all the way to downright vicious, but 
manage to keep it impressively memorable for a doom album.  There  is 
much to explore in _SoD,WoL_,  and  the  elements  used  therein  are 
expertly employed in order to produced a finely balanced result.  Not 
every doom cliché is avoided, but the  flowing  of  guitar  melodies, 
riffs and effects into each other, aided by the much improved use  of 
keyboards constantly fading into and out of the  music,  as  well  as 
Aaron's shapeshifting vocals, provide more  than  enough  reasons  to 
forgive such minor defects. Hopefully whatever source My Dying  Bride 
have been harvesting their inspiration and ideas from  will  not  run 
dry anytime soon.                                                     

Contact: http://www.mydyingbride.org


Power of Omens - _Rooms of Anguish_  (MetalAges, 2003)
by: Brian Meloon  (5 out of 10)

This is the second full-length album from Texas' Power of Omens,  the 
followup to 1998's _Eyes of the Oracle_ [CoC #37].  Although  on  the 
surface, the pompous progmetal on this disc is similar to  the  style 
they were playing five years ago, there have been some changes. First 
and foremost are the vocals. As on their debut  album,  the  vocalist 
sounds a lot like Geoff Tate, but this time,  he's  decided  that  he 
needs to hit high notes, hit them often, and hit them loud. This  was 
not a good decision. When he keeps his voice in the lower  registers, 
he's actually quite good, but his higher parts are simply awful.  For 
one thing, he seems to have very little range when he  sings  higher, 
so it seems like he's always hitting the same notes. Even worse,  the 
vocals at times seem to be out of sync with the music, almost  as  if 
they wrote and recorded the music first, then wrote  the  lyrics  and 
recorded them several months later. Finally, since the vocals are  so 
high in the mix, they tend to drown out  the  other  instruments  and 
steal your attention away from  the  otherwise-good  music.  However, 
that's not to imply that  the  music  is  perfect,  as  it  has  some 
significant problems of its own. The  major  problem  is  that  their 
drummer doesn't seem to want to settle down and  provide  a  backbone 
for the music; he'd rather go off and do his own thing,  leaving  the 
rest of the band to fend for itself. I suppose this  is  intended  to 
make the music more interesting -- and normally, I'd agree -- but  it 
leads to the music as a whole having an ungrounded feeling. Moreover, 
some of the sections sound  sloppy  to  me,  because  the  drums  are 
rolling or playing with  an  odd  rhythm  that  I  wasn't  expecting. 
But  the  band  certainly  has  talent,  as  the  Moroccan-influenced 
instrumental "The Calm Before the Storm" can  attest  to.  It  starts 
with Spanish- influenced acoustic guitar,  a  light  keyboard  melody 
and some subtle but  busy  drumming.  The  music  keeps  this  flavor 
throughout, even as it brings in  the  metal  guitars,  builds  to  a 
climax, and exits with a soft  outro.  It  features  both  impressive 
chops and good compositional skills. Unfortunately, not all parts  of 
the album feature such good composition, as the band often falls into 
the trap of having lots of musical passages  woven  together  without 
much apparent thought to song flow. The production  is  pretty  good, 
but could be stronger. The instruments are all clean, and the guitars 
have a nice sharp tone, but at times they are straining to  be  heard 
above the drums and vocals. This album was a  big  disappointment  to 
me, since I know that the band is capable of so  much  more.  Without 
their vocalist hitting those high notes, I'd probably give them  a  7 
or 8 out of 10. If they'd also get a drummer in there who understands 
that it's possible to overplay without  leaving  the  music  sounding 
ungrounded (such as Damion Ramirez, who played on Prototype's  _Seed_ 
demo), it could get a 9 out of 10. But as it  is,  it's  pretty  much 
unlistenable to me.                                                   

Contact: http://www.powerofomens.com


Satanic Warmaster - _...Of the Night_  (No Colours, 2004)
by: Matthias Noll  (8 out of 10)

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from _...Of  the  Night_.  Satanic 
Warmaster's last album _Opferblut_ didn't  impress  me  much  when  I 
bought and reviewed it and hasn't improved  with  time.  Furthermore, 
the split with Clandestine Blaze seemed to indicate  that  the  Finns 
might be another band caught in a downward spiral  after  an  awesome 
debut record. Surprisingly, this new  EP  brings  back  some  of  the 
ferocity of  _Strength  and  Honour_  combined  with  some  excellent 
mid-tempo material, and among the trademark Satanic Warmaster riffs a 
surprisingly obvious Burzum influence here and  there.  Announced  by 
their label as being "depressive and long", I thought this  might  be 
_Black Katharsis_ part two; but the  two  tracks,  each  in  the  ten 
minute range, are  more  diverse,  less  melancholic  than  the  _BK_ 
material, and even occasionally fast and aggressive in a fashion that 
is less melodic and more primitive and ripping than _Opferblut_. With 
a playing time of approximately 20 minutes and two excellent  tracks, 
this is one of the early highlights of 2004 for me when it  comes  to 
raw and unpolished black metal.                                       


Satanic Warmaster / Clandestine Blaze - _Split_
by: Matthias Noll  (2 out of 10)  (Northern Heritage, 2004)

The news of a Satanic Warmaster / Clandestine Blaze split almost  had 
me drooling as if it was  still  1985  and  Slayer  and  Exodus  were 
supposed to team up for a  joint  effort.  Unfortunately,  the  final 
result is totally unspectacular and even terrible in places, and  all 
the more disappointing considering the awesome work both  bands  have 
delivered in the past. The first two out of the four tracks the bands 
recorded together have a slightly more old  school  (read  pre-second 
wave) feel to them than what you'd  usually  expect;  the  other  two 
sound as if typical but mediocre Clandestine  Blaze  riffs  just  got 
strung together  with  equally  typical  but  also  equally  mediocre 
Satanic Warmaster riffs (or vice versa). The Clandestine  Blaze  solo 
track  is  forgettable,  and  is  further  ruined  by  a  sound  that 
completely buries the guitar underneath the drumming  and  less  than 
great vocals. As if this  wasn't  enough  already,  disaster  strikes 
thrice on this record as Satanic Warmaster turn out to be  unable  to 
save the day. Their track "To the Legions" mainly consists of a  riff 
that sounds like something an incomplete rock band might  be  jamming 
to get their sound and tuning right until the  missing  members  have 
turned up in the practice room. This material should have never  seen 
the light of day. It is embarrassing for both bands as  well  as  the 
highly respectable Northern Heritage label.                           


Sceptic - _Unbeliever's Script_  (Empire Records, 2003)
by: Brian Meloon  (8 out of 10)

This is the third full-length offering  from  Poland's  Sceptic,  and 
follows much in the vein of their previous releases: a blend of death 
metal and thrash with melodic and technical touches. The riffs are  a 
mix of styles, from fast tremolo-picked sections  to  individual-note 
lines to dissonant chords, and a  few  others.  This  variety  allows 
most of the songs to have  their  own  feel,  yet  there  are  enough 
similarities between the songs to hold the album together. There  are 
some very cool riffs here, but they're few and far between.  Most  of 
the riffs are average to above-average, but  the  band  changes  them 
pretty frequently, so even the average riffs don't  get  boring.  And 
although "intricate" isn't exactly a word I'd use to describe most of 
their music, they do throw in a  nice  subtle  or  progressive  touch 
every once in a while, just to keep things interesting.  The  playing 
is very tight but is  missing  some  of  the  technicality  of  their 
previous releases. It's generally less hectic and some of the  tracks 
(in particular "Controlled by Mind" and "Waves of Destruction")  seem 
unnecessarily slow. Vocals are a mid-register  growl;  they  fit  the 
music, but aren't really exceptional in any respect. The guitars  are 
very well done,  even  the  guitar  solos,  which  are  tasteful  and 
appropriate. The bass is quite good, and plays a  prominent  part  in 
the music, which is nice to  hear  for  a  change.  The  drumming  is 
excellent: technical and busy without being distracting.  Ultimately, 
this is a  quite  good  release,  even  if  there  are  a  few  songs 
which drag. The band has recently  inked  a  three  album  deal  with 
Candlelight, who plan on releasing this album more broadly.  This  is 
good news for fans of technical death metal, as this has been a  hard 
disc to get ahold of.                                                 

Contact: http://www.sceptic.metal.pl


Temple of Baal - _Servants of the Beast_
by: Pedro Azevedo  (6 out of 10)  (Oaken Shield / Adipocere, 2003)

In all their lo-fi Dark Funeral glory, Temple  of  Baal  are  one  of 
those bands that can come up with half an hour of entertaining  metal 
whilst completely failing to imbue their music with any  originality. 
As far as relatively underproduced black metal goes, this French band 
has gone for an excessively  bassy  approach  that  still  retains  a 
certain atmosphere -- which is not an  uncommon  occurrence  in  this 
genre. Having said all this, the music does show  plenty  of  intent: 
there's a decent amount of good riffs and leads to be found, but then 
again there is little or no novelty in them. The  drumming  struggles 
to keep up with the faster sections, though not so noticeably that it 
should ruin the album  for  most  listeners,  and  overall  the  band 
shows adequate musicianship and  songwriting  throughout  the  album. 
_Servants of the Beast_ is an enjoyable album, but not of  a  calibre 
sufficiently high to overcome much of its lack of originality.        

Contact: http://www.templeofbaal.com


Thorn.Eleven - _A Different View_  (Steamhammer, 2004)
by: Xander Hoose  (6.5 out of 10)

When I first listened to Thorn.Eleven's self-titled  debut  album,  I 
would have never expected it to  rank  so  high  in  my  2001  albums 
list. The whiney vocals, the Tool  /  Soundgarden  sound;  I  thought 
Thorn.Eleven were just another band and that  their  album  was  just 
another album. However, the more I listened to it, the more I started 
to realize that the songs were near-perfect, sticking with  you  long 
after listening them. I can still  recall  most  of  the  songs  even 
though I haven't listened to the album  in  over  a  year.  (And  the 
vocals don't sound so whiney anymore, it just takes some getting used 
to.) Even though _A Different View_ continues along this  path,  most 
of the songs lack that x-factor that made the previous  album  great. 
Occasionally, I get the impression of listening to  a  collection  of 
songs that didn't make it  onto  the  debut  album.  Perhaps  it  has 
something to do with the fuzzy, average production.  Perhaps  it  has 
something to do with the increased complexity of some of the songs. I 
could be wrong: _A Different View_ could, after a while, turn out  to 
be a great album -- but something in me seriously doubts that.        

Contact: http://www.thorn-eleven.com


Trauma - _Imperfect Like a God_  (Empire Records, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose  (8.5 out of 10)

Not ever having heard of Trauma, I was quite  surprised  when  giving 
_Imperfect Like a God_ a first spin.  With  the  tight  hyper-blasted 
drumming, the dense growling vocals and the slick  production  I  was 
immediately reminded of Vader and Behemoth, and sure  enough,  Trauma 
also originate from Poland. Seems like they have  a  patent  on  good 
death metal over there! _Imperfect Like a God_ most reminds me  of  a 
more straightforward variant of  Behemoth's  _Thelema.6_  album:  the 
songwriting is less fractured  and  songs  do  not  contain  as  many 
layers, but with exactly that aggression and usage of instruments  it 
creates a similar atmosphere. The major, yet only,  drawback  I  have 
discovered on _Imperfect Like a God_ is tightly  connected  with  the 
lack of layering; even though all the songs are individually  killer, 
you're bound to lose attention  around  two-thirds  into  the  album. 
Nonetheless, this  Behemoth-lite  is  a  definite  recommendation  to 
anyone finding themselves bashing heads on modern technical death.    


Under Threat - _Behind Mankind's Disguise_  (Conquest, 2003)
by: Brian Meloon  (8 out of 10)

Under Threat hail from Bogota, Columbia, and  this  is  their  second 
release. Their music is heavy, mid-to-fast-tempo thrash with  a  good 
dose  of  melody.  Most  of  the  riffs  are  semi-melodic,  staccato 
individual-note lines which are usually played in sync with the snare 
drum and are sometimes harmonized. It reminds me quite a  bit  of  an 
updated  version  of  Despair's  _Beyond  All  Reason_  (from  1991), 
especially in the structure of the riffs and the way the guitars work 
with the drums. Also like Despair, they include a  nice  instrumental 
and some acoustic/clean guitar parts,  mostly  as  intros.  The  main 
musical differences are the updated production -- which is much  more 
powerful -- and the main vocals, which are a standard  shouted/rasped 
style. Some of the background vocals are sung in  a  clean  (but  not 
really melodic) fashion, but the harsh vocals are very dominant.  The 
music is heavily guitar-based, but there are a few  parts  where  the 
bass and drums get to show off. Overall, the band doesn't seem to  be 
very concerned about being flashy -- you won't find  any  five-minute 
guitar solos here. In fact, the guitar solos weren't  very  memorable 
at all to me,  as  the  guitarists  seem  to  favor  short  solos  or 
harmonized guitar leads over long, elaborate solos. Their main  focus 
seems to be  on  keeping  the  songs  jam-packed  with  creative  and 
moderately technical riffs. The playing is a little sloppy at  times, 
but overall the band does a good job of staying together, which isn't 
a trivial task given the complexity of the music. The  production  is 
bit of a weakness, as it is inconsistent. At  times,  the  drums  are 
overpowering, and at others it's the vocals and/or guitar  which  are 
dominating. In addition, I would've preferred a tighter feel for  the 
production, including a sharper guitar tone and a cleaner drum sound. 
Ultimately, this is quite a good release and I hope to hear more from 
these guys in the future. It should appeal to  melodic  thrash  fans; 
it's not doing anything novel, but it does what it does pretty well.  


VAST - _Nude_  (456 Entertainment, 2004)
by: Xander Hoose  (9 out of 10)

Boy wonder Jon Crosby isn't giving up. Being dropped from the Elektra 
label because of the 'dissatisfying' sales for his  late-2000  _Music 
for People_ album, he has found a home on 456 Entertainment  for  his 
follow-up, _Nude_. Those familiar with VAST already know that  Crosby 
is responsible for all the instruments  and  the  compositions;  even 
with such a huge task, _Nude_, like its predecessors, has turned  out 
to be a small gem. Much of the familiar trademark elements, like  the 
classical orchestration and industrial elements, have  prevailed  and 
make up the lion's share of _Nude_'s texture.  Crosby's  vocals  have 
improved even further, but most striking is the maturity of  some  of 
the songs -- not just lyrically. "Don't Take Your Love Away"  is  one 
of the most breakable songs of the album, closely reminding  of  some 
of Trent Reznor's _Fragile_ songs. VAST definitely doesn't compete in 
the same league, but will have appeal to the same kind  of  listener. 
Closing the gap between Stabbing Westward,  U2  and  The  Cure,  VAST 
still has a  bright  future  ahead,  even  without  the  big  Elektra 
promotional machine.                                                  


Weakling - _Dead as Dreams_  (Tumult, 2000)
by: Alvin Wee  (10 out of 10)

How a genre-defining opus as mighty  as  this  has  managed  to  slip 
beneath my radar for so long shall forever remain a mystery (as  well 
as cause for endless shame). From  somewhat  dubious  roots  (members 
from The Fucking Champs, Ludicra and other San Francisco obscurities) 
springs black metal genius  of  the  highest  order,  delivering  one 
single crushing blow --  Weakling  has  since  disbanded  --  to  the 
posturing scene of today. Making comparisons between  the  atmosphere 
of _Kronet Til  Konge_-era  Dřdheimsgard  and  that  of  the  opening 
track  is  tempting,  for  such  combination  of  precise  old-school 
black-thrashing fury  with  grand  hypnotism  has  been  mastered  by 
precious few (very early Swordmaster,  for  instance).  Yet  Weakling 
add to  that  equation  a  natural  complexity  not  often  found  in 
black  metal,  their  timely  tempo  shifts  and  chord  progressions 
hinting at a compositional maturity exceeding the  vast  majority  of 
the self-important underground. Alternating  between  firing  blazing 
black/thrash riff-bullets and rolling out  crushing  doom-lines,  the 
band dangles the listener in the gap between  triumphant  melody  and 
disharmonic chaos, ever so often breaking into avant-garde interludes 
or extended passages of distorted drone without ever losing momentum. 
Weakling reprises all the developments of black metal in the past two 
decades (replete with a  singer  scaling  Bethlehem-like  heights  of 
anguish), and yet, like Emperor with _Prometheus_, has  mastered  the 
method sufficiently to stand above all blame  whilst  fucking  around 
with the conventions of the genre. Contrary to what  the  label  (and 
some other reviews) claims, Weakling is by no  means  extraordinarily 
experimental or genre- transcending, but rather  genre-defining.  The 
shocking depth of emotion, sheer musical ability and keenness of  ear 
for all things destructive displayed on this  masterpiece  should  be 
the goal for all black metal bands wishing to transcend mediocrity.   

Contact: http://www.tumult.net

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

                        __, __, _, _  _,  _,
                        | \ |_  |\/| / \ (_ 
                        |_/ |   |  | \ / , )
                        ~   ~~~ ~  ~  ~   ~ 

Scoring: 5 out of 5 -- A flawless demo
         4 out of 5 -- Great piece of work
         3 out of 5 -- Good effort
         2 out of 5 -- A major overhaul is in order
         1 out of 5 -- A career change is advisable


Delian League - _Day of Question_
by: Brian Meloon  (3.5 out of 5)

Delian League are from New Jersey, and play a hybrid style  of  metal 
with musical influences from the '80s and '90s  and  a  vocalist  who 
sounds like he could be from a late '80s metal band. The three  songs 
here are similar in style,  but  all  have  unique  identities.  "The 
Questioning" opens the demo off with a few pretty generic '80s  metal 
riffs, and retains this base throughout the song. There  is  a  short 
section that's a little more progressive, and the solo  is  neoteric, 
but overall this song is pretty run-of-the-mill. "Final  Day"  is  an 
improvement, starting off with a short generic riff, and then  moving 
into more intricate and progressive riffs as the song  progresses.  A 
few of the sections are reminiscent of Red Tide's _Expressions_  demo 
[CoC #3], and the song also features a  more  memorable  chorus.  The 
closer "Days of Regret" is the best of the bunch,  adding  keyboards, 
and featuring a catchy -- but not overly sweet -- chorus.  There's  a 
good mix of heaviness with melody  here,  including  a  section  with 
keyboards atop tremolo-picked guitar lines that wouldn't sound out of 
place in a lighter version of Dimmu Borgir. The songs generally  flow 
pretty well,  and  they're  structured  in  a  way  that  makes  them 
comfortable, but not predictable. There are a few  rough  transitions 
though, mostly when they move into a faster gear. The playing is good 
to very good on  all  counts,  with  the  vocals  being  particularly 
strong. I'm generally not a fan of clean vocals, since many vocalists 
are either too wimpy or too whiny  or  too  screechy  or  just  plain 
annoying. But this guy is quite good, and is  able  to  keep  a  good 
balance of aggression and melody in his voice. The guitars are pretty 
well done, and most of the solos fit the music quite well,  with  the 
notable exception of the last half of the last solo in  "Final  Day", 
which has a very amateur feel to it. The bass and drums don't  really 
stand out to me, but seem to do a competent  job.  There  are  a  few 
places where the band aren't as tight as they could be,  and  they'll 
have to work on this in the future, but this is  a  relatively  minor 
quibble. _Day of Question_ is a promising demo, and should be enjoyed 
by those looking for something fresh and a  little  progressive,  but 
not too extreme or experimental.                                      

Contact: http://www.delianleague.com

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

                             _, _  _,  _,
                            / _ | / _ (_ 
                            \ / | \ / , )
                             ~  ~  ~   ~ 

               D E A T H    C O M E S    R I P P I N G
               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
          Decapitated, Rotting Christ, Thus Defiled, Anata
                   @ The Camden Underworld, London
                           by: Jackie Smit


It's telling to note that a light snowfall greeted  many  patrons  of 
the Underworld earlier this afternoon, while inside the  confines  of 
the  venue  the  majority  of  tonight's  attendees  find  themselves 
drenched in sweat. This is due in no part  to  any  sort  of  heating 
system being in place, but rather the fact that tonight's performance 
has been oversold by a good fifty to one hundred people, which --  in 
case you hadn't  noticed  yet  --  provides  additional  evidence  to 
support the theory that the great death metal resurrection is in well 
and truly in process.                                                 

Amidst the murmurs of some that the assembled crowd  outnumbers  even 
the turnout when Sepultura performed three special "intimate" gigs in 
the capital last year, I am forced to wait in line for the  cloakroom 
through most of Anata's set. What I do manage  to  catch  however  is 
great, as the  Swedes  thrash,  shred  and  roar  their  way  through 
material culled mostly from their  superb  _Under  a  Stone  With  No 
Inscription_ effort.                                                  

Unfortunately the same high praise can't be leveled at  Thus  Defiled 
-- a longtime staple of the local scene, whose  appeal  continues  to 
elude me. They are generic, uninspiring and... well... a bit rubbish. 

Thankfully the memory of their  tedious  death/black  metal  is  soon 
erased when Greek demi-gods Rotting Christ make a long-awaited return 
to the London stage. Performing as a  quartet  since  the  reportedly 
amicable  departure  of  keyboardist  George,  they  launch  into  an 
immensely satisfying collection of  classic  and  recent  favourites. 
"Sign of Evil Existence", "Non Serviam", "Thou Art  Blind"  and  "Lex 
Talionis" are all  given  superbly  atmospheric  airings,  and  while 
material from _A Dead Poem_ and _Sleep of the Angels_  remains  sadly 
ignored, the band  do  make  up  for  it  by  performing  a  stirring 
rendition of "King of a Stellar War".                                 

Even with the bar raised to a  daunting  height,  Poland's  favourite 
sons Decapitated make quick work of  showing  one  and  all  who  the 
evening truly belongs to. Diminutive vocalist Sauron prowls the stage 
like a tethered rottweiler, spewing forth acidic vocal lines that are 
almost intimidatingly aggressive. In the meantime, his bandmates busy 
themselves constructing a dense, crushing wall of noise that  tonight 
ranks among some of the heaviest and most downright  barbaric  you're 
likely to hear in your life. Fourty-five minutes is all the  time  we 
get to spend with them before they bow  out  for  the  evening  --  a 
sojourn that's almost too brief to fully appreciate their simplistic, 
straightforward genius. The intensity that emanates from the audience 
could very easily power large cities, but almost curiously it doesn't 
result in a frenzied outbreak of flailing limbs -- it transcends into 
a state of near mass-hypnosis, as each and every soul in the building 
remains transfixed on the spectacle being played out on the stage  in 
front of them. "Three Dimensional Defect", "The Fury", "Mother  War", 
"Sensual Sickness", "Eternity  Too  Short"  and  "Symmetry  of  Zero" 
(among others) are all played -- each number as  precisely  performed 
as they are perfectly crafted. And, as the final guitar squeal  fades 
out and the sound of cheering and applause becomes  louder  than  the 
echo of Vitek's snare drum, there is little to argue against the fact 
that the Camden Underworld has tonight witnessed the stuff of legend. 

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

            W H A T   W E   H A V E   C R A N K E D ! ! !
            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pedro's Top 5

1. My Dying Bride - _Songs of Darkness, Words of Light_
2. Mar de Grises - _The Tatterdemalion Express_
3. Tenhi - _Kauan_
4. Himinbjorg - _Golden Age_
5. Furia - _Un Lac de Larmes et de Sang_

Brian's Top 5

1. Psycroptic - _The Scepter of the Ancients_
2. Dark Lunacy - _Forget-Me-Not_
3. Extol - _Synergy_
4. Monstrosity - _Rise to Power_
5. Horrified - _Deus Diabolus Inversus_

Paul's Top 5

1. Creedence Clearwater Revival - _Cosmo's Factory_
2. The Who - _Tommy_
3. The Chasm - _Deathcult for Eternity: The Triumph_
4. Dismember - _Like an Everflowing Stream_
5. The Who - _Live at Leeds_

Aaron's Top 5

1. Kataklysm - _Serenity in Fire_
2. Death - _The Sound of Perseverance_
3. Overkill - _Wrecking Everything: Live_
4. Enforsaken - _The Forever Endeavor_
5. In Flames - _Soundtrack to Your Escape_

Matthias' Top 5

1. Tankard - _Beast of Bourbon_
2. Satanic Warmaster - _Of the Night_
3. Vader - _Litany_
4. Drudkh - _Autumn Aurora_
5. Dawn of Azazel - _The Law of the Strong_

Alvin's Top 5

1. Weakling - _Dead as Dreams_
2. Khanate - _Things Viral_
3. Kataklysm - _Serenity in Fire_
4. Diamanda Galas - _Defixiones, Will & Testament_
5. Mayhem - _Chimera_

Chris' Top 5

1. Mayhem - _Chimera_
2. Ayreon - _The Human Equation_
3. My Dying Bride - _Songs of Darkness, Words of Light_
4. Slumber - _Fallout_ (pre-mastered)
5. Dark Age - _Dark Age_

Jackie's Top 5

1. Insomnium - _The Day It All Came Down_
2. Monster Magnet - _Monolithic Baby!_
3. Faith No More - _Angel Dust_
4. Cannibal Corpse - _The Wretched Spawn_
5. Death Angel - _The Art of Dying_

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

                      __, __, ___  _, _ _,   _,
                      | \ |_   |  /_\ | |   (_ 
                      |_/ |    |  | | | | , , )
                      ~   ~~~  ~  ~ ~ ~ ~~~  ~ 

Web Site: http://www.ChroniclesOfChaos.com
FTP Archive: ftp://ftp.etext.org/pub/Zines/ChroniclesOfChaos

--> Interested in being reviewed? Please ask for a local mailing 
    address by e-mailing us at:

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

                    Europe@ChroniclesOfChaos.com

                 NorthAmerica@ChroniclesOfChaos.com

                RestOfTheWorld@ChroniclesOfChaos.com

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

DESCRIPTION
~~~~~~~~~~~
Chronicles  of  Chaos  is  a  FREE  monthly  magazine  electronically
distributed worldwide via the Internet. Seemingly endless interviews,
album reviews and concert reviews encompass the pages  of  Chronicles
of Chaos. Chronicles of Chaos stringently emphasizes all varieties of
chaotic music ranging from black and death metal to  electronic/noise
to dark, doom and ambient forms. Chronicles  of  Chaos  is  dedicated
to the underground and as such we feature demo reviews from all indie
bands who send us material, as  well  as  interviews  with  a  select
number of independent acts.


HOW TO SUBSCRIBE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You may subscribe to Chronicles of Chaos at any time  by  sending  an
e-mail to  <Subscribe@ChroniclesOfChaos.com>  with  your full name in
the subject line of the message.

You may unsubscribe from Chronicles of Chaos at any time by sending a
blank e-mail to <Unsubscribe@ChroniclesOfChaos.com>.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
End Chronicles of Chaos, Issue #72

All contents copyright  (c)  1995-2004  by  individual  creators  of 
included work. All rights reserved.
All  opinions  expressed  herein  are  those  of   the   individuals 
expressing them, and do not necessarily reflect the views of  anyone 
else.                                                                


