      ___  _   _  ____  _____  _  _  ____  ___  __    ____  ___
     / __)( )_( )(  _ \(  _  )( \( )(_  _)/ __)(  )  ( ___)/ __)
    ( (__  ) _ (  )   / )(_)(  )  (  _)(_( (__  )(__  )__) \__ \
     \___)(_) (_)(_)\_)(_____)(_)\_)(____)\___)(____)(____)(___/
                             _____  ____
                            (  _  )( ___)
                             )(_)(  )__)
                            (_____)(__)
                    ___  _   _    __    _____  ___
                   / __)( )_( )  /__\  (  _  )/ __)
                  ( (__  ) _ (  /(__)\  )(_)( \__ \
                   \___)(_) (_)(__)(__)(_____)(___/


                     Fifth Anniversary Mega-Issue
                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
        CHRONICLES OF CHAOS e-Zine, August 12, 2000, Issue #48
                   http://www.ChroniclesOfChaos.com

Editor-in-Chief: Gino Filicetti
Coordinator: Adrian Bromley
Copy Editor / Contributor: Pedro Azevedo
Assistant Copy Editor / Contributor: Brian Meloon
Contributor: Adam Wasylyk
Contributor: Paul Schwarz
Contributor: Aaron McKay
Contributor: David Rocher
Contributor: Alex Cantwell
Contributor: Matthias Noll
Contributor: Alvin Wee
Spiritual Guidance: Alain M. Gaudrault

The   individual   writers   can   be   reached    by    e-mail    at
firstname@ChroniclesOfChaos.com ("firstname" must be replaced by  the
respective writer's  first  name,  e.g.  Gino@ChroniclesOfChaos.com).

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

      For  more  Chronicles  of  Chaos  information,  check  out  the
      Details section at the end of this issue.

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

Issue #48 Contents, 8/12/00
---------------------------
* Editorial
* Loud Letters
* Deadly Dialogues
-- King Diamond: The House That King Built
-- Dismember: Dissecting a Decade of Dismemberment
-- Glenn Danzig: Machine
-- Earache Records: Foreseeing the Future of Music...?
-- In Flames: Molding Their Visions
-- Broken Hope: Broken but Not Subdued
-- Demons & Wizards: Satan and Merlin Unite!
-- Aghora: A Cynical Eastern Gathering
-- ...And Oceans: Scandinavian Domination
-- Saturnus: For the Loveless Lonely Lives
-- Rapture: The Futility of it All
-- Thy Primordial: Reasoning With the Heretics
-- Necrophagia: Gore Is Fun
-- Malevolence: Malevolently Materialized Martyrdom
-- Decapitated: Beheading the Eastern Prophets
-- Rebaelliun: Pyromaniacal Slayers Assault Paradise!
-- Jag Panzer: Staging a New Sound
-- Mental Home: The Shores of Inner Thoughts
-- Burning Inside: Burn Florida Burn
-- Altar: The Shrine Unshrouded
-- Transport League: Still Fighting for Exposure
* Album Asylum
-- A Perfect Circle - _Mer de Noms_
-- After Forever - _Prison of Desire_
-- Altar - _In the Name of the Father_
-- Anaal-Nathrakh - _Total Fucking Necro_
-- Ancient Wisdom - _...And the Physical Shape of Light Bled_
-- Angel Dust - _Enlighten the Darkness_
-- Angelwhore - _Superman_
-- Apollyon Sun - _Sub_
-- Ashes You Leave - _The Inheritance of Sin and Shame_
-- Asiatic Spike - _Beastial Warfare_
-- Asphyx - _On the Wings of Inferno_
-- Autumn Tears - _LPfDC Act III: Winter and the Broken Angel_
-- Axel Rudi Pell - _The Masquerade Ball_
-- Ayreon - _Universal Migrator Part 1: The Dream Sequencer_
-- Black Label Society - _Stronger Than Death_
-- Blinded by Faith - _Veiled Hideousness_
-- Blood Storm - _Pestilence From the Dragonstar_
-- Bloodbath - _Breeding Death_
-- Borknagar - _Quintessence_
-- Charon - _Tearstained_
-- Chastisement - _... But Lost We Are_
-- Circle of Nero - _Massive Obliss_
-- Coffin Texts - _Gods of Creation, Death & Afterlife_
-- Corvus Corax - _The Atavistic Triad_
-- Cruachan - _The Middle Kingdom_
-- Various - _Curse of the Demon: A Tribute to Mercyful Fate_
-- Dark Funeral - _Teach Children to Worship Satan_
-- Dark Tranquillity - _Haven_
-- Darkness Eternal - _Dawn of the Suffering_
-- Defaced Creation - _Serenity in Chaos_
-- Descend / All That Is Evil - _Split CD_
-- Destruction - _All Hell Breaks Loose_
-- Dying Fetus - _Grotesque Impalement_
-- earthtone9 - _hi-point_
-- Entombed - _Uprising_
-- Even Song - _Of Man's First Disobedience
                (Expulsion From the Divine Abode)_
-- Everon - _Fantasma_
-- Exciter - _Blood of Tyrants_
-- Fates Warning - _Disconnected_
-- Fleshcrawl - _As Blood Rains From the Sky...
                 We Walk the Path of Eternal Fire_
-- Grief of Emerald - _Malformed Seed_
-- Grimm - _Nordisk Vinter_ 7"
-- Hair of the Dog - _Rise_
-- Hatred - _The Offering_
-- Hypnos - _Hypnos_
-- Hypocrisy - _Into the Abyss_
-- Impaled - _The Dead Shall Dead Remain_
-- Impaled Nazarene Vs. Driller Killer
-- In Flames - _Clayman_
-- Incantation - _The Infernal Storm_
-- Jag Panzer - _Thane to the Throne_
-- Juvenes - _Riddle of Steel_
-- Keelhaul - _Keelhaul_
-- Linea 77 - _Too Much Happiness... Makes Kids Paranoid_
-- Long Winter's Stare - _The Tears of Odin's Fallen_
-- Lux Occulta - _My Guardian Anger_
-- Mayhem - _Grand Declaration of War_
-- Mental Home - _Upon the Shores of the Inner Seas_
-- Milligram - _Milligram_
-- Murder Corporation - _Murder Corporation_
-- Nightsky Bequest - _Of Sea, Wind and Farewell_
-- Nile - _In the Beginning_
-- Nokturnal Mortum - _NeChrist_
-- Obscenity - _Intense_
-- October 31 - _Meet thy Maker_
-- Opprobrium - _Discerning Forces_
-- Orth - _Feed the Flames_
-- Overcome - _Immortal Until Their Work Is Done_
-- Pain - _Rebirth_
-- Pantera - _Reinventing the Steel_
-- Power Symphony - _Lightbringer_
-- Primordial - _Spirit the Earth Aflame_
-- Raging Speedhorn - _Raging Speedhorn_
-- Various - _Raise the Flag of Hate: A Tribute to Kreator_
-- Red Harvest - _Cold Dark Matter_
-- Rorschach Test - _Peace Minus One_
-- Running Wild - _Victory_
-- Saturnus - _Martyre_
-- Sick of Society - _Sportsman Sound_
-- Sincronisity - _Winters of Despair_
-- Sinergy - _To Hell and Back_
-- Spiral Architect - _A Sceptic's Universe_
-- Stormhammer - _Fireball_
-- Suicide Culture - _Hallow Be the Agony_
-- Summon - _Baptized by Fire_
-- The Chapter - _The Chapter_
-- The Gathering - _if_then_else_
-- The Project Hate MCMXCIX - _Cyber Sonic Super Christ_
-- Thornspawn - _Blood of the Holy, Taint thy Steel_
-- Thy Primordial - _The Heresy of an Age of Reason_
-- Thy Serpent - _Death_
-- Tidfall - _Circular Supremacy_
-- Twilight Kingdom - _Adze_
-- Unmoored - _Kingdom's Greed_
-- Usurper - _Visions From the Gods_
-- Vehement - _Unbalanced for Mankind_
-- Venom - _Resurrection_
-- Violation - _Moonlight's Child_
-- Vordven - _Woodland Passage_
-- Winterblut - _Der 6. Danach_
-- Wolf - _Wolf_
-- Yogge Sothothe - _Yogge Sothothe_
* New Noise
-- Actual Time - _Actual Time_
-- Belshazzar - _Sie Nur Ad Astra_
-- Bongwater666 - _L-yeyed/Tanner_
-- Butterfly Temple - _Baec_
-- Condition Red - _Back in Business_
-- Midnight Scream - _Midnight Scream_
-- Omnium Gatherum - _Promo 99_
-- Scald - _Nematoid: Specimen Parts I-IV_
-- Shaw Shank - _Beautiful Bedlam_
-- Soul Destruction - _United in Obscurity_
-- Suffering Souls - _Cries of Silence_
-- Te Deum - _Demo 99_
* Classic Carnage
-- Atheist - _Piece of Time_
-- Basil Poledouris - _Conan the Barbarian_
-- Carnage - _Dark Recollections_
-- Celtic Frost - _Morbid Tales_
-- Celtic Frost - _To Mega Therion_
-- Celtic Frost - _Into the Pandemonium_
-- Crumbsuckers - _Life of Dreams_
-- Crumbsuckers - _Beast on My Back_
-- Cynic - _Focus_
-- Deceased - _The 13 Frightened Souls_
-- Dodheimsgard - _666 International_
-- Manowar - _Fighting the World_
-- Manowar - _Kings of Metal_
-- Manowar - _Battle Hymns_
-- Manowar - _Hail to England_
-- Manowar - _Sign of the Hammer_
-- Nocturnus - _The Key_
-- Rush - _2112_
-- Spinal Tap - _Spinal Tap_
-- Anathema - _Serenades_
-- Anathema - _The Silent Enigma_
-- At the Gates - _Slaughter of the Soul_
-- Dark Tranquillity - _The Gallery_
-- Emperor - _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_
-- Enslaved - _Blodhemn_
-- Katatonia - _Dance of December Souls_
-- My Dying Bride - _Turn Loose the Swans_
-- Summoning - _Stronghold_
* Chaotic Concerts
-- Milwaukee MetalFest XIV
   -- Another Pilgrimage to the Metal Midwest
   -- Crusade to the Carnage Capital
-- The New Millennium Maiden Slayers: Iron Maiden, Slayer and The
                                      Almighty in France
-- The Maiden Voyage to a Brave New World: Iron Maiden, Slayer and
                                           Entombed in England
-- Air Guitar Raid on Zurich: Iron Maiden in Switzerland
-- Devil's Plaything: Danzig, Six Feet Under and Disturbed
-- There's No Mercy in Satan's Oven: Deicide, Immortal, Cannibal
                                     Corpse, Marduk, Vader and more
-- Scotland Skinned Alive: Dismember, Akercocke and Infestation
-- Invadering From Across the Seas: Vader, Vital Remains, Fleshcrawl
                                    and Rebaelliun
-- Pledge Your Allegiance! Suicidal Tendencies in London
* Writer's Wrath
-- Machine Head Are Becoming Manowar!
* What We Have Cranked
* Details

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

                      _____)
                    /       /) ,            ,      /)
                    )__   _(/   _/_ _____     _   //
                  /      (_(__(_(__(_)/ (__(_(_(_(/_
                 (_____)

                          by: Pedro Azevedo


[Welcome to the fifth anniversary MEGA issue of Chronicles of  Chaos.
This month I have turned  over  my  coveted  privilege  of  editorial
writing to my workhorse of a co-editor, Pedro Azevedo. As  I've  told 
everyone, I've recently, voluntarily, turned my life  upside-down  by 
moving to the United States, getting married,  graduating  University
and getting a new job. As a result of  the  extremely  busy  schedule
I've been trying to live with, I have had to turn almost  all  of  my  
duties over to Pedro (who already does more than his fair share  each
issue of CoC).  It  is  for  this  reason,  that  I  most  graciously 
relinquish my editorial to him. Knock 'em dead boy... -- Gino]

     In August 1995, Gino Filicetti, an  e-mail-less  Adrian  Bromley
and Brian  Meloon  assembled  and  distributed  the  first  issue  of
Chronicles of Chaos. For the past five years,  their  initial  vision
has grown and evolved into what you now behold  without  ever  losing
any of its unique "personality".  This  is  CoC's  fifth  anniversary
issue, and also by far our biggest to  date  (twice  as  big  as  the
previous record-holder,  actually),  and  contains  an  unprecedented
number of interviews and album, demo and concert  reviews  (including
our coverage of this year's Milwaukee MetalFest), a  special  Classic
Carnage section  and  a  Writer's  Wrath  article.  A  proportionally
massive amount of hard work went into this issue, which makes it even
more special to us -- but we are already planning special treats  for
the future as well: expect a full report on the first  ever  European
CoC reunion soon...
     We are also welcoming new members to our staff. First of all, we
are pleased to announce that Alvin  Wee  is  now  a  permanent  staff
member, and deservedly so. In the near future you will also be likely
to find the work of three promising new contributors  in  CoC:  Chris
Flaaten from the cold fjords of Norway; Eli  Fishbein,  who  will  be
writing from Israel; and from the USA, Scott Andrews.
      As I  write  my  first  editorial,  I  know  just  how  special
Chronicles of Chaos is to me. In fact, I am  sure  I  can  speak  for
the entire CoC staff and say  we  are  all  truly  proud  of  writing
and working for this remarkable  publication.  But  we  also  believe
CoC  is  very  special  to  many  of  you  readers  out  there.  Rest
assured that we will continue  striving  to  keep  its  spirit  alive
and  stronger  than   ever,   and   after   five   years   we   still
doubtlessly intend to keep doing  so  for  as  long  as  we  possibly
can.

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

     As many of you readers may recall, awhile back, we put  out  the
word that Chuck Schuldiner, Death / Control Denied frontman and death
metal pioneer, had been afflicted with a deadly condition  for  which
expensive experimental  surgery  was  the  only  hope.  To  help  the
Schuldiner family in their time of need, we at CoC decided to take up
a collection amongst the staff, and any of our readers  who  felt  so
inclined. As you may also have noticed, we did  not  follow  up  with
postings of reader donations as promised, though only  because  there
were none. While we were only able to collect from within our  ranks,
we would like to think that our bringing this issue to your attention
prompted  at  least  some  of  you  to  contribute  directly  to  the
Schuldiner family, perhaps  being  a  little  wary  of  sending  your
hard-earned dough to total strangers. Chuck appears to be well on his
way to recovery, which is the most important outcome of this  ordeal.
And to the one reader who sent in  the  cheque  made  out  to  "Chuck
Schuldiner Appeal", we thank you, even though we were unable to  cash
it  without  opening  a  special  account  under  that   name.   Your
thoughtfullness is commendable.

     -- Alain M. Gaudrault

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

                 M""MMMMMMMM                         dP
                 M  MMMMMMMM                         88
                 M  MMMMMMMM .d8888b. dP    dP .d888b88
                 M  MMMMMMMM 88'  `88 88    88 88'  `88
                 M  MMMMMMMM 88.  .88 88.  .88 88.  .88
                 M         M `88888P' `88888P' `88888P8
                 MMMMMMMMMMM

     M""MMMMMMMM            dP     dP
     M  MMMMMMMM            88     88
     M  MMMMMMMM .d8888b. d8888P d8888P .d8888b. 88d888b. .d8888b.
     M  MMMMMMMM 88ooood8   88     88   88ooood8 88'  `88 Y8ooooo.
     M  MMMMMMMM 88.  ...   88     88   88.  ... 88             88
     M         M `88888P'   dP     dP   `88888P' dP       `88888P'
     MMMMMMMMMMM

This is the column where we print those lovely  letters  our  readers
decide so graciously to write us. Whether they be positive, negative,
ignorant or just plain spelled  wrong,  you  can  rest  assured  that
they'll be here in their original form. If you'd like to see your own
letter here, e-mail it to <mailto:LoudLetters@ChroniclesOfChaos.com>.
All  letters  received  will  be  featured  in  upcoming  issues   of
Chronicles of Chaos.


Date: Sat, 27 May 2000 20:38:31 +0930
From: "Frank" <bassmetalchick@iprimus.com.au>
Subject: Satanists VS Christians and anyone else who  wants  to  join
         the battle

Ok, for all of you out there who appear to have completely the  wrong
idea altogether here is my  view  on  this  whole  religion  debacal:
Satanism is a respectful religion in which  one  emulates  satan  and
becomes his/her own god there for satanists are not devil worshippers
and aren't  necessarily  out  for  christian  blood.  In  my  opinion
christianity is a harsh religion  which  merely  allows  weak  minded
people to blame all the problems in their  life  on  someone  else  -
their god. I do not believe in god therefore I am not part of  either
religion (note here that if you claim to be a satanist  you  need  to
realise that you are also to an extent, accepting  christianity  into
your life). I just think that life is going to be good so long as you
do what you want, be who you want to be and enjoy it! You don't  need
a superior being standing over you to make sure you smoke  the  right
drug. Oh no, god doesn't allow drugs does he? Well  there  goes  your
fun! Catcha 


Date: Fri, 09 Jun 2000 21:03:37 -0600
From: "S.R. Prozak" <prozak@anus.com>
Subject: a damn troublemaker speaks...

Greetings,

I must say I am honored to be mentioned in C.O.C. by  so  many  angry
people. I have found in this life that there are usually both leaders
and followers in any grouping, and that the latter take on leadership
abilities when the continuity of  their  existence  as  followers  is
threatened. I'm glad to see that you followers are upset.

In your complaining, "I don't like the debates about Christianity  in
metal" becomes a rallying cry for those who feel directly opposed  to
the ideology predominantly expressed by metalheads in those  debates,
or for those who think they are becoming "free"  by  ignoring  issues
that bring up conflict. That is after all, social courtesy  and  good
business. This is the same response as moving to the suburbs:  You're
crazy, and we're locked up  with  private  security.  Their  argument
boils down to a complaint that we are being selective and not  "fair"
to all democractically equal but radically different beings.  Because
in this merciful world, of course, "selectivity"  is  one  step  away
from hatred.

But something made metal distinct - an internal selectivity? Look  at
why metal emerged from history. There were all these people making  a
good income with progressive rock and "70s" style neo-bluegrass disco
cheese. Why be "hateful" and  "dark"  and  "occult"?  Black  Sabbath,
until the Christians  dragged  them  down,  *did*  have  an  artistic
suggestion in mind for the times - to abandon  the  way  of  thinking
that had even infested all of the 1960s  movements  that  had  become
commerce. These first metal  musicians,  like  metal  musicians  now,
hated the transparent world of material control  (religion,  society,
state) and the meaningless rules it accumulated,  but  most  of  all,
they had a spirit that was - better? - than the  one  it  contrasted.
They wanted to live life to  extremes  and  not  fear  the  "bad"  or
"negative," even if that meant a morbid nihilism of accepting death.

Metal has been the culture outpouring from that theory,  and  through
its  eras  it  has  successively  identified  enemies:  heavy   metal
(christianity, normals, war, society); speed metal (nuclear war,  the
middle  east,  organized   religion,   police   brutality,   society,
environmental destruction); thrash  (society,  government,  religion,
illogicality,  environmental  destruction);  death   metal   (people,
society, rules,  morality,  Christianity,  new  agers);  black  metal
(christians, jews, non-whites, god, society, normals, the  merciful).
You may notice that "Christianity" or "religion" appears  many  times
on that list. It enemies are not its betters, but its opposites:  the
theories that compete with its own and its own claim to independence.

This is an issue of metal's leaders versus society's followers.  This
issue will not go away, nor will it ever be resolved,  because  there
will constantly be a  part  of  the  Christian  religion  wishing  to
neutralize the "threat" of heavy metal and heavy metal attempting  to
work for its independence. This is simple competition.  Those  urging
the issue "go away"  are  trying  to  strip  metal  of  its  cultural
heritage in philosophy and politics so that Christianity may  have  a
voice  for  propaganda  in  a   genre   that   directly   contradicts
Christianity. If you can corrupt your enemy's will, you win. This  is
what the followers hope to do. They hope to make things difficult for
ideology so we all give up and conform.

Thanks to an intelligent editorial policy, you heard it here.

---
Live Jesus Christ Sodomy Video!!!

http://www.anus.com/altar/


Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 15:31:46 +0200
From: thomas mao <thaumas@club-internet.fr>
Subject: christian metal

hi everybody

i know, everybody's overstuffed by the christian debate, but i'll get
to the forefront 'cause definitely i want to have the  last  word  on
this subject 8 )

i think you (nearly) all missed it. did anyone involved  since  Coc42
lift his ass up to define the 'christian metal' label ? come on  !  i
mean john tardy's a hobby  gardener;  did  obituary  play  'gardening
death metal' ? it's lame folks.

if the christian label is needed,  it  must  be  that  the  musicians
develop biblical views  through  their  music,  not  passively  being
christian. so you can be christian and compose unchristian metal, and
when you EXPLICITLY call it 'christian metal' then that's  that  it's
propaganda or marketing strategy etc. in  either  case  that  doesn't
relate to the music itself; i think it's clear, 'cause the mechanisms
by which you illustrated jesus' word could as well serve an  inverted
purpose (in history this is the contrary : music took on the  satanic
duties  first)  >   'christian'   is   an   ideological   connotation
indifferentiative of the musical forms.

metal is about sublimating one's mind. it's  something  that  tackles
our   innate   perceptive   capabilities.   it's   something   highly
individualistic. then you'd legitimately reply : what about concerts,
why are they so important ?  the  parameters  are  different  here  ;
that's more a sociological stuff that has nothing to do  with  music.
there's the human factor, the 3D sound plus various stimuli that  are
likely to push you out of critical lucidity. now WARNING : if  you're
heartedly headbanging along the hardcore metal stuff,  if  you  don't
wait for the end of the songs to put out first appreciations, if from
one riff to another you lose memory, if you don't collate/corroborate
elemental variations and/or prefer  to  dig  aesthetical  impact  and
musical consistency, i see no pt for you to follow me. (please  check
out my reviews at http://perso.club-internet.fr/thaumas.)  where  the
hell does it fit into anything? for sure, christianity  binds  people
through doctrine. religious music is overtly simple for this  sake  ;
anyone into religious music knows how this is  rigorous,  rigid  (the
gregorian/council thing for instance) and moves on to more  and  more
accessible areas. but this  IS  the  same  gregarious  force  of  the
concert shit ! the more people you take in, the bigger the chance you
have to build a solid basis for mass/congregational formation (i know
people who got involved into christianity for  the  majesty/solemnity
of its church music), whereas metal helps in  exploring  one's  inner
potential. so i think that metal is NOT anti-christian music  :  it's
satanic when you take  it  from  the  christian  side;  it's  neither
especially 'christian', in that music  is  generic  to  beliefs,  but
music can reduce itself to ideology lyric-wise. i think that  as  its
power is essentially narrative and not analogic/phenomenologic in the
meta-psychic way, metal with pro-christian lyrics has a  good  chance
to tread in polluted waters.

also one word for the 'true' christian  metal  played  with  balls  :
christian guys can make art as well, but i'll get as far  as  this  :
when this is art as approached above,  they're  BAD  christians  that
suck both the metal and christian things.

thaumas not

check my band, AAAAARGH!bloody 2-handed chainaxe blow at
http://perso.club-internet.fr/thaumas


Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 20:33:44 +0200
From: "Jackie Smit" <1998549750@wwg3.uovs.ac.za>
Subject: The great Christian metal debate

Hi!

I am so fucking sick and tired of hearing every boring, pimply  faced
wanker with an e-mail address, a computer and a keyboard moaning  and
groaning about how cool Christian metal is, or how much it sucks. And
then to top it all off, we have idiots like Alla Xul who  do  exactly
what they supposedly hate, which is preach. 

I'm a Christian as well and to me it's a very personal  thing  and  I
NEVER try to tell other people  that  what  they  believe  is  wrong,
because I feel that their paths will lead them along the way that was
destined for them. Even though I'm a Christian, I dislike almost  all
so-called   Christian   metal,   because   the   bands    (especially
Mortification) sort of expect a person to listen to them based  soley
on lyrical content, even though their music is  a  load  of  shit.  I
listen to music which sounds cool to me and I don't  care  from  what
genre it is either, as long as the artist I'm listening to has talent
and can make me say WOW! In  fact,  my  favourite  bands/artists  are
Devin Townsend, Samael, Morbid Angel, Emperor and  The  Kovenant  and
none of them are what you'd  call  Christian.  I  do  however  derive
immense enjoyment from their music, and I have  found  much  of  what
they have said with their music and (yes, Alla Xul) even their lyrics
to be a great source  of  personal  strength.  The  fact  that  their
religion differs from mine, is  inconsequential,  because  I  see  it
merely as a difference of opinion. 

So, what I'm trying to say is, that music should be judged  on  music
alone and not on lyrics. If you happen to like the lyrics, then  it's
a plus. The worst lyrics in the world aren't written by Emperor or by
Tourniquet - they're written by  Dez  Faffara  who  is  probably  the
biggest asshole in all of music, apart from Phil Anselmo. And  please
pick another topic to write about, because this is getting annoying!

Thanks to CoC for a brilliant zine and best of luck in the future.  

Jackie Smit
South Africrap

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          T H E   H O U S E   T H A T   K I N G   B U I L T
          ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                      CoC talks to King Diamond
                           by: Alex Ristic


"Nobody does it better!" A cliche and well used, but one  that  aptly
describes all that is King Diamond. Compared to him,  no  one  writes
more involved concepts or stories on their albums, no one  else  gets
the best out of their musicians like he does, and maybe, just  maybe,
some have  an  equally  entertaining  live  show  (but  King  getting
cremated on stage is tough to beat). It's now time  for  a  new  opus
from the Great Dane, in the form of _House of God_, an involved story
and album that continues to bear the Diamond  seal  of  approval  and
will entertain his many fans. The following is  the  near  hour  long
conversation that Chronicles of Chaos had with the King.

CoC: Only getting a promo copy of the album, I don't have  a  set  of
     lyrics. Can you please tell me what the story is about?

King Diamond: Oh, great. That's not what you  want  to  hear,  right?
              That's not really your fault. They [the  record  label]
              need to do  that  kind  of  stuff.  Anyway,  the  story
              itself, the scenario takes place in Southern France;  I
              took it from real life.  But  that  actual  story  that
              takes place in that scenario is, of  course,  my  doing
              and has nothing to do  with  what  really  exists.  But
              there really is a church in  Southern  France,  upon  a
              hill, that has this inscription over the door that says
              "This place is terrible". And at  that  very  place  it
              also has a devil that looks you right in  the  face  as
              you walk inside the  main  entrance;  very  strange.  I
              think it  has  up  to  about  20000  visitors  a  year,
              tourists they say, that come to look at it, and most of
              them don't actually go into  the  church  because  they
              feel appalled by the thing in the church, and they feel
              like something is  wrong.  The  story  goes  about  the
              church itself, and I kind of used that  for  just  that
              short theory that you hear  during  the  intro  of  the
              album, and that is that they  talk  about  this  priest
              that was in charge of this church. He supposedly found,
              like I said in the beginning, there's a  foreword  that
              talks about this story taking place 200 years ago,  and
              the main character in the story has chosen to tell  the
              story as if it happened to himself.  But  he's  changed
              some names because he had  to,  and  in  the  end  just
              remember that this is just a story,  and  most  stories
              are  exactly  that:  something  told  by  someone  else
              without the actual facts to prove it. But  there  is  a
              story about that church, that  goes  like  this  priest
              supposedly finding these four scrolls that talked about
              Jesus, if you believe in him for  real  and  as  having
              lived and all that stuff. It says,  in  those  scrolls,
              that he  actually  lived  at  this  church,  with  Mary
              Magdalene,  having  married  her  and  founding  a  new
              dynasty, and that he never died on the cross. And  this
              priest also found a secret grave  that  indicated  that
              Jesus was buried there, but he brought these things  to
              the Vatican and came back from there a filthy rich man,
              as if he had something that  they  did  not  want  out.
              Later, when he died, he tried on his deathbed  to  tell
              these secrets to his housekeeper, but never managed  to
              get to the actual secret before he did die.  It's  kind
              of shrouded in mystery and these weird  theories  about
              it. And I think, if that was really the case, it  would
              be good for Christianity. The whole foundation that  he
              died for our sins would be out  the  window,  and  that
              would not be very good. So that's kind of put into that
              intro. But from then on it is completely about  my  own
              story, dealing with this character who's out travelling
              in  the  mountain  regions  of  Southern  France,   and
              suddenly finds himself lost. He's been there many times
              before, but now the roads look different, and he  hears
              this distant howl, wolves howling, and  suddenly  finds
              himself surrounded by wolves ready to attack. And  he's
              preparing himself to die when suddenly this  big  black
              and silvery white wolf  steps  forward  with  magically
              blue eyes, and all the others kind of step back  scared
              of it. And this wolf talks to him;  not  verbally,  but
              actually with its mind, and tells him to follow it. And
              he does that, and they travel up  the  mountainside  to
              the top of the mountain where they get to  this  church
              that looks horrible from the outside; it's in  complete
              decay. Once they get inside the  church  it  completely
              changes before his eyes,  and  becomes  this  beautiful
              church, but there are some odd  things  in  there  that
              don't normally belong in a church.  Like,  there's  two
              pulpits in there; one of them is decorated  with  these
              protective gargoyles, while the  other  one  has  these
              little figures of demons having fun. And there are  all
              these mirrors with crucifixes, and  there's  also  this
              little devil figure sitting by  the  altar.  It's  just
              like "whoa", it's a little chaotic because  it  doesn't
              seem to belong together. When he's inside that  church,
              suddenly the wolf sheds  its  skin,  right  before  his
              eyes, as the church is changing too. Out  of  it  comes
              this beautiful lady; he's never seen anything like  it.
              He immediately loves her sight, there's  no  doubt.  He
              doesn't even care where she came from or what she  was,
              or anything; it's just like "Wow, this is it!" He never
              experienced that feeling before. From  that  point  on,
              for a couple of days, they have a lot of  fun  in  this
              church. They have sex everywhere in this  church;  just
              having a really cool time.  But  somewhere  along  that
              line, one morning he sees  this  girl  kiss  the  black
              devil figure as he wakes up, and he's  like  "What  the
              hell was that?" And then he starts paying attention  to
              these strange  things  that  are  in  the  church,  and
              suddenly the girl approaches  him  and  says:  "There's
              something I have to tell you. I have to  give  you  two
              choices now, because I have seven days left. I swore by
              signing a sacred pact to be a guardian of  this  church
              for a year. When this year is up I will either die,  or
              you can sign this pact and take over the  guardianship.
              By doing that you can set me free and I  can  walk  out
              the door as a woman. Otherwise, I have only  been  able
              to leave this church as a wolf, as part  of  the  pact.
              But I would be able to leave as a woman and continue my
              life, but the second I step outside my memory  will  be
              erased and I will not remember ever  having  seen  you,
              and I will not be walking back into the church. It will
              be the last time you see me.  The  other  way,  I  have
              seven days left, so we might have two more days of  fun
              but then you will have to experience me dying in  front
              of your eyes." And he simply can't handle that part, so
              he decides, unselfishly, to set her free. And he  signs
              the pact, and she leaves, and suddenly he finds himself
              in this situation where he can only leave the church as
              a wolf,  which  gives  him  nothing.  He  becomes  very
              lonely, and he feels a loss with  her,  and  he  starts
              drinking and he gets very, very  frustrated  about  the
              whole thing; he doesn't  even  know  why  he's  in  the
              church. "What is it I'm guarding?" He's not  been  told
              anything. It turns into desperation, and then,  finally
              almost insanity, where  he  goes  crazy  in  that  song
              "Help!!!", and starts smashing  all  the  mirrors  with
              crucifixes in them, because he can't stand  looking  at
              his own misery. Suddenly, when  he  smashes  that  last
              mirror, it triggers a mechanism that moves  the  altar,
              and that leaves a big black whole in  the  floor  where
              there are stairs leading into the dark.  And  he  knows
              that he has to go there; there's nothing else  for  him
              to do, so he does that. As he walks down there he finds
              himself, suddenly, with a candle in his hand and  these
              long narrow hallways, and there are lots of little side
              chambers full of human bones. From one  of  these  side
              chambers there's a light coming, and he walks  in  that
              side chamber, and  in  there  finds  this  Virgin  Mary
              statue and it's full size, big,  carved  in  wood.  And
              seeing another religious symbol, he starts smashing its
              head and realizes that it's hollow.  There's  something
              inside, and what he finds  inside  is  a  mummy  that's
              wearing a crown of thorns; that's obviously  Jesus.  He
              starts to take  the  bandages  off  the  head,  and  in
              through the eye sockets he can see a  light,  and  this
              light starts coming out of the eye sockets and then  he
              hears this scream from  inside  of  it,  and  he  turns
              around and starts running for his life. Then this light
              comes after him through these hallways, and he makes it
              back up into the church, and there, this light  follows
              him into  the  church,  and  fill  the  entire  church.
              There's all these faces and bodies floating  around  in
              it. Then the two have a confrontation,  and  of  course
              the person asks the light "What are you?" And  it  says
              back to him that it's the highest there  is.  Then  the
              guy says "Well, what do you mean?" And it's like "Well,
              there's nothing higher and you don't need to know  what
              I really am. It doesn't matter. You have  totally  over
              stepped your boundaries, you were not supposed to  have
              seen or found what you found. I will never  explain  to
              you why we kept him  down  there."  He's  referring  to
              Jesus, the mummy. It says that "There could be a couple
              of different reasons, of course, it's obvious  that  we
              might have kept him away from God, so  he  would  never
              find him and put  him  back  on  Earth  again.  Another
              reason would be to keep him safe from people like you",
              he says, "who could probably crucify him again, or  try
              to. Or it could be something else. It's  none  of  your
              business. All you need to know is what we are, not what
              we are about." And this guy says "Well, that's no  good
              for me. I'm not going to serve some unknown god. If you
              really are the highest God there is you need  to  prove
              it to mankind, not just me. You need  to  prove  it  to
              everybody at the same time that you are the only one in
              existence. Then you need to explain to us  why  we  are
              here; what is the meaning of life. None  of  us  really
              know. We're only guessing, still today,  we  are  still
              guessing about all the different gods there are. No one
              has the proof that their god is the right one.  No  one
              on this Earth has been able to prove to the rest of the
              Earth that what they're believing is the  right  thing.
              We'll avoid a lot of bad stuff; all the wars  that  are
              going on in today's society. Ninety per cent  of  those
              are based on religious differences. Because we have all
              these different gods, no one  has  ever  been  able  to
              prove he's right." He says: "Tell us what  the  meaning
              of life is. Show us death, show us what's after  death.
              Explain it to us and show it to us  so  that  we  know.
              Give us some guidelines to assist this Hell that we are
              sometimes going through on this  Earth.  And  this  god
              says: "It's not for you to know these things. You  just
              live your life the best you can, and leave the rest  to
              us." And this guy is like "I can't do that. I will  not
              accept that.  If  you  can't  do  that,  it's  probably
              because you  don't  know  the  truth  yourself.  You're
              probably just another puppet on someone  else's  higher
              strings. And you really don't know  the  truth,  that's
              why you can't tell me. What effort would it  really  be
              for a big God to show itself to  us  on  Earth  for  20
              minutes? Just 20 minutes man, that's  all  we  ask.  Is
              that really that much to ask? It could be that the real
              reason is that there may be no gods at all."  So,  they
              have this confrontation and this guy will not buy  what
              this "god" says. So he says to the god: "You know what?
              I'm a man of logic, and I will prove to you that I  can
              think for myself and I can take according action.  What
              I am going to do is, I have nothing to live for in this
              church. I'm imprisoned in this  church.  I  can't  even
              leave the church as a human being, and you  won't  tell
              me why I am here? You give me no choice. I want to find
              out, and there's nothing else  to  do  in  this  church
              anyway, so what I'm going to do is  choose  death  over
              you, and you just try and stop me, because you  can't."
              So he takes a rope in his hands, and throws himself off
              this high tower and he hangs himself. At last comes the
              instrumental "Peace of Mind", which is what he  finally
              finds. It's a funny dilemma that we have here on  Earth
              sometimes; we don't know  why  we're  here,  and  we'll
              probably never find out until we're not  here  anymore.
              What I'm trying to say with the story is some of what I
              told you before; it blows my  mind  that  we  have  all
              these wars based on religious differences, even  today,
              even though people don't know whether they  believe  in
              the right god. Even though you think you have the right
              god you can't prove it to anyone  else,  for  the  very
              fact that you might not be right. And for the fact that
              we don't actually know why we're here on Earth; none of
              us do. I'm accepting that I don't know it, but  at  the
              same time I know  that  no  one  else  knows,  and  I'm
              accepting that I don't know what death  is  and  what's
              coming after death. I don't have any  proof  for  that,
              but I also know that nobody else has that proof. But  a
              lot of people spend their  time  worrying  about  that.
              Worrying about things?, you can worry about  death  and
              what it consists of for the next 20 years and you won't
              get the answer. You're wasting your time.  Some  people
              are even scared of death, they're  fearing  death.  And
              when you ask: "What is it that you actually fear?", you
              don't know, because you don't know what death is about.
              I have chosen  to  be  extremely  logical  about  those
              things, and I'm telling myself that I'm not going to be
              afraid of something I don't even know. It could be  the
              best thing ever; I don't know. But since I  don't  know
              I'm not going to waste my time worrying about  it.  I'm
              not going to waste my time  here  on  Earth  trying  to
              figure out why I'm here, because I won't. Though  these
              answers, maybe if there is this big god somewhere,  and
              if it ever decides to give us a little time of  day  to
              show itself and explain it to us, then maybe I'll  find
              the answers.  But  that  might  never  happen  in  this
              lifetime, so why would I spend a lot of time trying  to
              figure out what the reasons are? I'll never  have  that
              chance. Instead of wasting all that time I'm  going  to
              do things that I know make me feel good, and  that  way
              I'll live a better life here  on  Earth.  And  if  more
              people did that we'd have a  much  better  world.  More
              people would feel better, and when you fell better  you
              have a surplus of giving, that would  be  a  much  more
              positive environment to live in. At the  same  time  it
              would stop those stupid, insane wars where  people  are
              trying to prove that they're right by fighting  someone
              else. If I could meet Einstein  and  beat  him  up,  it
              doesn't mean that his theory is  wrong.  To  me,  these
              wars and people trying to prove and  shut  others  out,
              because they think they've found the  right  god,  they
              can't prove it to anyone else, so how can  they  be  so
              sure they're right? It's a guess, a theory. I can  come
              up with a theory that's just as meaningful, which  just
              goes to show how stupid that really is. I can tell  you
              that I have a yellow flower in my yard,  that's  really
              big, and that's God. It  speaks  to  me.  <laughs>  And
              people would say "That's really insane." But I can say:
              "What do you mean? You say your god speaks to you.  You
              can't even see your god. At least I can see mine.  This
              flower tells me that if you don't believe in  the  same
              thing that I do, then I should kill  you."  That's  how
              crazy it really is. It blows my mind man, I  can't  get
              it through my little brain how people can act that way,
              and we  still  do.  I  certainly  respect  that  people
              believe in different gods. If people would only use  it
              for what it is, it's almost like, and I mean this in  a
              positive way, a pacifier. It calms you down, in respect
              to the questions that you will never  get  the  answers
              to. Human beings hate chaos; we want to put  things  in
              little drawers. They worry about  death  so  much  that
              they have a need to create a god that, in  Christianity
              for instance, says there's a heaven. "That's where  I'm
              going to go." Fine, if that soothes you  that's  great,
              but  don't  hold  it  against  other  people  for   not
              believing in the same thing that you do. That  is  what
              this album is very much about.

CoC: This album seems to have a lot of social issues involved in  the
     story. Do you think that will surprise people?

KD: They all actually do. It's kind of like things that bother me for
    a year before I do an album, that's usually what I write a horror
    story around, so I can put those human  issues  into  the  story.
    Like _Voodoo_; it also deals with that kind  of  stuff.  I'm  not
    fearing other people's way of life. Instead of  being  scared  of
    it, if you can research and you have a chance of finding out what
    it's about,  do  that  first  before  you  start  taking  drastic
    measures to get rid of it. You might find out that it's harmless,
    and you don't need to do anything at all. It would take you maybe
    a couple of days to read a book on it, and you'll find  out  that
    voodoo is harmless if you leave the people alone. But if you  try
    to interfere  and  destroy  their  stuff,  they  will  take  into
    consideration that their life  is  being  destroyed,  and  that's
    actually what you would do by trying to destroy a  voodoo  burial
    ground. There's so many things that people don't know about, that
    they don't want to take the time  to  find  out  about,  if  they
    actually can. But  there's  always  social  issues  in  all  King
    Diamond albums; jealousy, greed, hate, love.  There's  a  lot  of
    these human issues woven into  these  stories,  and  the  stories
    themselves may take place in another time period, but those human
    issues are the same, and very valid  today.  Some  of  them  take
    place today.  _The  Graveyard_  was  dealing  with  child  abuse.
    There's always these issues, but this album,  though,  goes  very
    deep because  it  actually  goes  in  and  touches  on  religious
    beliefs, in a very down to earth, logical way. It's  deeper  than
    anything else we've done.

CoC: _House of God_ is your first direct  reference  to  Christianity
     since _The Eye_. Has  this  album  been  something  that's  been
     planned for a long time?

KD: No, actually not. And it's not directed at  Christianity  either.
    As soon as the word "God" is thrown in there most people take  it
    for granted, but there are many gods in this world  today.  There
    are many different gods that people believe in,  and  that's  why
    the church itself, that I use, is set up in a  weird  way.  There
    are two pulpits; which one is the right one?  There  is  God  and
    Satan in this church; that's of course Christian gods -- both  of
    them, which is something  Christians  sometimes  forget,  one  of
    their gods is Satan, created by their own God that's supposed  to
    be perfect. He created an imperfect angel and threw  him  out  of
    Heaven and into Hell, which he  also  created.  So  therefore  he
    created evil. But that doesn't matter. It's in  a  general  sense
    that I talk about the "God", that no one has proof that their god
    is the right one. Christians have never been  able  to  prove  to
    Muslims that they have the only correct way to  believe,  because
    they can't, and probably because they don't have the  right  god.
    It's a guess, it's purely a guess. But maybe I could turn  around
    and say that the Christians are right, but they can't  prove  it.
    Maybe the Muslims are right, but  they  can't  prove  it  to  the
    Christians. If there ever was one, or is one, he has never  taken
    the time out to visit us here, and at the same time to  show  all
    of humanity; that would give the proof. That's what the guy asked
    for in the story; "Show yourself to mankind. Not just  to  me,  I
    don't know if you're real or if you're not. You could be from the
    spiritual world and claiming to be the biggest  god.  If  I  were
    Christian I might think you're Satan  trying  to  tempt  me  into
    following you."

CoC: All your stories have a lot of detail. In  a  past  conversation
     for the _Voodoo_ record, you had mentioned that you performed  a
     lot of research for the album. How important is it to research a
     topic so thoroughly?

KD: It's only important if it's a subject that I really want to write
    something about, and I don't know about. I didn't  know  anything
    about voodoo except what people get from  watching  movies.  They
    chop the heads off chickens, drink  the  blood,  and  they  dance
    crazily, and they stick needles in little  dolls.  That's  pretty
    much what I knew. The reason for trying to find out,  again  it's
    often coincidence, but the music for the actual song "Voodoo" was
    written before I started writing that story.  But  it  had  those
    tribal drums in it that gave me the feel, I had all these visions
    in front of me with these voodoo dancers dancing  crazily  around
    the fire. I was like "Wow man. Maybe I should see if there's more
    to voodoo than just these two little things, because  if  there's
    only these two little things it's not interesting enough to write
    a story about." So I borrowed three  books  and  started  reading
    about it, and I found out how deep a religion it really is. I had
    no idea about the  stuff  that  comes  into  it,  and  that  it's
    actually a religion and not some kind of cult thing.

CoC: What about _House of God_?

KD: I read about this church from Southern France in  the  newspaper,
    but that didn't inspire my story. It inspired the place  where  I
    put the story, and the twist for the intro. It's  like  the  same
    kind of theory, like what would  be  if  suddenly  we  found  out
    aliens are for real? Visitors from outer space; there  are  other
    populated planets in this universe, a universe that we can't even
    comprehend how big it is. To think that there would not  be  some
    kind of life in  a  universe  that's  bigger  than  we  can  ever
    imagine, I think is ignorant. I think it's ignorant to  say  that
    there could not be life anywhere else, just  because  we  haven't
    found it yet. We can't even comprehend the beginning of time;  we
    have no idea of how things started. Some scientists have a theory
    about a big boom,  but  it's  pretty  obvious  that  a  bunch  of
    molecules have to bump into each other to create a big  boom.  So
    where did they come from, and where did the space come from  that
    they were in? We can keep going and we'll  never  hit  that  wall
    that says "here is the right space". We like to do that, we  like
    to create order out of chaos, because it bothers us  so  much  to
    have chaos. We can't exist in chaos, which  is  why  we  probably
    create all these gods and other things, to try and make sense  of
    it. But we also know that if you have a rocket, eternal life, and
    eternal fuel, would you ever hit a wall out there, and what would
    be on the other side of that wall? It's just weird, and our minds
    go "This is -not- fun." Same thing with some of the  other  stuff
    that we mention in this album. It's not fun to  think  about  not
    having a clue as to why you're alive; what are  you  supposed  to
    achieve with life? And what's  going  to  happen  afterward?  You
    don't have a clue about these things. I certainly would  love  to
    have these answers, but at the same time I know I'm not going  to
    get them. Why would I waste my time on these things when it is  a
    waste of time, really? It is fun to talk about, it's a good brain
    exercise, just as long as you know before you start to talk about
    it that you'll never get a result out of it; you're  never  going
    to a reach a conclusion because there is none.  It's  interesting
    to sit and talk about because you can throw  all  these  theories
    around. That's fun stuff, as long  as  you  don't  take  it  more
    seriously than that.

CoC: When you were going into production for this record, I had  seen
     and heard rumors that this album would  be  _Voodoo_  part  two,
     much like a connection  between  _Them_  and  _Conspiracy_.  I'm
     wondering if that's sitting in a vault somewhere?

KD: No, actually not. I know that it's set up to go straight on  into
    another one, and you could do that with several  of  our  albums,
    actually, where there's room for continuing. Even though it's not
    the case, it would look like I had run out of ideas,  so  I  just
    went on with the story I had started. Actually, before I went  on
    with _House of God_, I had three different stories. I had written
    a lot of notes while I was out touring with  Mercyful  Fate,  and
    when I came back home -- other people stay  in  my  house  taking
    care of it when I'm gone, they keep all the mail; I have to  sort
    through it when I get back. All my notes got lost in that pile; I
    couldn't find them, and I had three stories that I  could  choose
    from, depending on the mood I was in. Then I read one  day  about
    the church in this  newspaper.  Then  it  was  like  "Wow.  Could
    actually put some of those thoughts I've had in  the  past  year,
    about how unbelievable it is that we have  these  religious  wars
    even though people can't prove that they have the right god,  and
    why we're alive." I think about that  sometimes,  you  know,  and
    then I grab myself and say "Don't waste your time on this  stuff,
    because you won't find the answers." The  same  about  death  and
    fearing things that I don't know if they're good or bad. So I was
    like "Wow, maybe here's the opportunity to do that." So  suddenly
    it got very deep and heavy and I had to have  a  talk  with  Andy
    [LaRocque, guitarist] about it and said: "This is really deep.  I
    don't know if we should do this stuff  at  this  point."  And  we
    discussed it a little bit, and a couple of days  later  I  called
    him and said: "We're going for it. I  don't  give  a  shit,  man,
    let's just do it." And we did it. Afterwards, probably not  until
    after I came out of the studio, I actually found all those  notes
    for those three other stories. I don't know. It's not like I  was
    thinking "Oh, there was a purpose to that." No.  I  know  why  it
    happened. There was a big mess when I came  home,  and  they  got
    misplaced.  <laughs>  I'm  actually  glad  now  that   they   got
    misplaced, because it gave me the opportunity to  do  this  other
    thing.

CoC: You welcome along two new band members on  this  album  in  Glen
     Drover and Dave Harpour. How did they wind up joining?

KD: Well, Glen started before we started the _Voodoo_  tour  in  '98.
    The guitarist, Herb Simenson, quit the band before the  tour  for
    family reasons; he wanted to spend more time with his family. And
    I respect that. People's lives change. I've been around so  long,
    and  you  really  have  to  be  prepared  to  sacrifice  a   lot,
    specifically as long as I've been in this business.  Some  people
    can't; their values are different from mine. Their priorities are
    different, and like I said, life changes. But Glen I'd known  six
    years before that; he  actually  sent  me  videotape  of  himself
    playing our songs a long time ago. I  always  kept  him  in  mind
    because he has a very unique style and would fit perfectly in the
    band. Suddenly here was the chance. I called him up and said: "Do
    you want to go to tour?" He's like "What? You're  kidding!"  "No,
    I'm serious, man." And he prepared for it and he did it; he did a
    killer job on that tour. He fit in so perfectly that there was no
    doubt that he would work out in the studio too.  And  then  going
    into the studio he really proved himself. Tons of ideas,  he  has
    killer technique, he works fast. He's there ready  to  sacrifice,
    and that was perfect. Then, coming off the tour, the  same  thing
    happened with the bass player. The family situation.  He  married
    his girlfriend, who has a ten year old daughter, and they  bought
    a house and were talking about having another baby.  I  was  like
    "Are you sure you can tour?" "Uh, no." "Well, we need  an  answer
    before we go into the studio, because I don't want  to  be  in  a
    situation where you record the album but I have to  find  another
    guy to go on tour. It's unfair to us, the new guy  and  everybody
    else. You need to notify us in good time."  And  that's  what  we
    did. John, actually, our drummer, suggested Dave, who lives  here
    in Dallas too, because he played with him ten years ago in a band
    called Chastain, and he said he was amazing -- and he  sure  was.
    Now he's in the band, and he seems like one  of  those  guys  who
    would sacrifice anything for this.  He's  totally  into  it,  and
    always was a King Diamond fan. None of us can wait to go out  and
    tour for this. And we have a brand new production for  _House  of
    God_ that's been built in Sweden. When we hit the big  stages  we
    can put everything up; it's going to look awesome. We're bringing
    the coffin again so we can do the cremation trick. There's  going
    to be a lot of stuff to watch, and the set we're  going  to  play
    will be very interesting too, because if you saw us in '98,  half
    the songs you see will be different. That's quite a big  exchange
    of songs. Of course you'll hear the intro from the new  album  at
    some point, and then we'll play five songs from  the  new  album,
    two from the _Voodoo_ album and then we completely jump over _The
    Graveyard_ and _Spider's Lullabye_ on this  tour,  for  the  very
    specific reason that we noticed on the '98  tour  a  lot  of  new
    young faces in the audience, and they have not seen us play quite
    a few of the older songs. So we're trying to  emphasize  more  of
    the  old  set,  compromising  a  little  bit  with  the  mid-time
    _Spider's Lullabye_ / _Graveyard_ area. There are  songs  in  the
    set that Andy and I haven't played in ten  years.  We're  playing
    "No Presents for Christmas" again, "Black Horsemen", "Dressed  in
    White", and then there's one we've never played from  _The  Eye_,
    "Burn". Still, you'll get "Welcome Home", "The Invisible Guests",
    "Sleepless Nights", "Abigail", "Family Ghost". It's a long set, a
    lot of songs, and it's so much fun when we're  playing  it.  It's
    going to be very cool and refreshing for those who  come  to  see
    the show.

CoC: You mentioned having to sacrifice a lot to  be  where  you  are.
     Have you ever wanted a family?

KD: Well, I love kids, you know, but my marriage did not work out  --
    but there were different reasons. I'm not involved  with  anybody
    at this point. The past five months, before I started my share of
    the writing for this album, it was a crazy time  --  I'm  glad  I
    wasn't involved with anybody at that time. The Mercyful Fate tour
    last year went on for a little longer than expected, and  we  had
    already booked time for the studio, for the third of January, for
    King Diamond, and when we came off  the  tour  it  was  only  two
    months until Christmas. So I  had  to  change  my  whole  writing
    habits around, and do it differently  and  actually  spent  maybe
    even double the time that I normally do on this album. I did that
    by actually -- and this literally -- spending every minute that I
    was awake in those two months in my music  room,  working  on  my
    songs and the lyrics. I didn't watch one movie for two months,  I
    didn't listen to one CD for two months. I saw  two  human  beings
    that I know, face-to-face, that I  talk  to,  and  that  was  the
    drummer, one time to give him the CDs of the  album  for  him  to
    give to the others, and I  saw  the  studio  owner  once  because
    sometimes we watch Monday Night  Football  together.  That's  it.
    Otherwise, I saw a couple of grocery clerks buying food, but that
    conversation only goes so far  as  "Paper  or  plastic."  It  was
    really strange afterwards, finally going into  the  studio,  even
    though I know all the band members really well, it was still like
    "What is this  strange  feeling?  There's  human  beings  walking
    around me, talking. What is this?" It was when you kind  of  like
    stand there, and look at yourself, and think "What the hell, man.
    What did you just do? Isolating  yourself  for  two  months  like
    that." And then going into the studio for three months. Andy  was
    there for two months, the other guys a couple of weeks each,  but
    me and the co-producer, Kol Marshall, we  were  there  for  three
    months. I mean three days off in that whole period of  time,  and
    working a schedule that is 12 to 14 hours every  single  day;  in
    the end you're pretty burnt. And then you come out of the  studio
    and it's almost Summer time -- it was about to become  Winter  in
    Dallas when I started to write. I mean, it was worth it, but five
    months just flew right over my head.

CoC: You hooked up with the Usurper guys for  their  album.  How  did
     that come about?

KD: It's not very much, you know. It's not like I'm featured on  that
    album in any way. It's just a little guest appearance, doing  one
    verse, and I think a bridge. They recorded at  the  same  studio.
    They had booked time at  Nomad  Recording,  in  Dallas,  and  the
    problem was we were not done, and we spent a month more  than  we
    had scheduled. And they had booked time there  and  arranged  for
    flight tickets, hotel and all that kind of  stuff.  And  suddenly
    it's like "I wonder if they can change it or not?" I had to  tell
    the studio owner: "I can't stop now. I'm not going to  leave  the
    set-up we have now  and  then  try  and  get  back  to  that  and
    re-capture the sound; no way in hell. If you force me to do  that
    you'll never see or hear me again, and that's a  guarantee."  And
    that's just from the business side, because  we're  the  best  of
    friends. And he said: "No, I know. You've got to call those  guys
    and tell them what's going down." "I'd be  willing  to,  if  they
    find that interesting at all, if it means  anything  to  them,  I
    don't know what they think  of  King  Diamond,  but  I  would  be
    willing to do a little guest appearance on one of their songs  if
    they wanted me to. If that would make it attractive for  them  to
    hold  off  until  we're  done,  and  change   their   plans   and
    everything." And they  really  loved  that  idea.  Then  we  made
    everybody happy. The owner was not forced to say "You can't  come
    in here and be an asshole", and not keep his word. It worked  out
    very well that way, but it was strange to do, man. I mean in  two
    hours I had to go in there and figure out what  the  riffs  were.
    I'd never heard the music  before  in  my  life;  and  then  sing
    someone else's words, of which there were  too  many  for  me.  I
    don't sing in that way where I kind of growl a lot of words in  a
    short time. It was suddenly "How do I do this?" I had to come  up
    with vocal melody lines on the spot, and still get the  feel  for
    the music, do it right, and actually re-write some of  the  words
    so it didn't change the meaning that they were after, to give  me
    fewer words so I could actually sing like I do;  my  style.  That
    was definitely a challenge. I was suddenly realizing "This is  so
    odd, man." In two hours it actually worked out. I found some cool
    melody lines,  and  I  think  I  recorded  up  to  eight  vocals,
    actually, in some of the parts. It worked out well,  and  it  was
    fun. It was a fun experience, but it was odd. I  had  never  done
    that kind of thing before. I would certainly prefer,  if  I  ever
    had anyone approach me wanting me to do a guest vocal  appearance
    on a song, it would be like "Yeah, if you let  me  write  my  own
    words. Tell me what your story's about, but let me write  my  own
    stuff. That way I can better relate to it, and put  more  emotion
    into it." It would be much easier. Then have them give  me  stuff
    in advance, so I know what I'm going into.

CoC: I talked with Snowy Shaw recently about his band Notre Dame.  He
     said he still gets along well with you, but  there  were  things
     that bugged him about his time with you in the past.

KD: Oh, really? Maybe he is, I don't know. I never talk to him. I saw
    him once, in '97 when we toured and played Sweden, he came to the
    show. I have no relationship with him, really; I  don't  talk  to
    him.

CoC: He didn't say anything negative, really, but he said he felt  he
     wasn't given enough room for creativity in the drumming.

KD: You see, that's the danger sometimes for people if they don't see
    the big picture of what a band is  trying  to  achieve.  When  we
    recorded _Time_ [Mercyful Fate], a thing you don't want  to  hear
    somebody say, just because they get  a  chance  of  recording  an
    album and there's actually time to record it properly, you  don't
    want to hear that person say "Oh great, now  I  finally  get  the
    chance to show what I can do, so I'm going to  do  everything  on
    this album that I ever learned to do." It's like  "No,  no,  it's
    not a solo project. We don't need drum solos everywhere, we  need
    songs to work like they're meant to work. We don't need big  drum
    breaks every time a verse goes into a bridge goes into a chorus."
    That's like stretching over five bars or so, and that  breaks  up
    the whole flow of the song. If that's your  way  of  arranging  a
    song then you have to be held back, you have  to  be  told  "That
    doesn't work. You're killing the song." The same goes for a  bass
    player. The bass player we have now  is  so  skilful,  Dave,  you
    know. He can do anything with a bass; it's unbelievable.  But  he
    has that sense for arrangement. He knows when to add some  stuff,
    where he goes off into  his  own  melodies,  it  still  fits  and
    enhances  the  music.  That's  a  person  that  has  a  feel  for
    arrangement. If you don't have that feel  then  you  need  to  be
    told, because  I'm  certainly  not  going  to  be  sitting  there
    listening to somebody destroy an album just because they have  to
    show every little thing they've ever learned, every  little  lick
    they've ever been able to play, but have not had  the  chance  to
    play on an album. It's not going to be  a  compilation  of  Snowy
    Shaw tracks. <laughs>  That's  not  the  way  it  works  in  this
    business; we've been around for a little too  long  to  let  that
    happen to an album. It's always the song that  comes  first.  The
    songwriters have a vision of what they want  to  come  out  of  a
    song, a certain expression, a certain feel, and then you  try  to
    get that out of the music. There's always so much  space  in  our
    music for you to show off anyway, as a musician; always. But  you
    can't turn it around and suddenly turn it  into  that  new  guy's
    solo project. I have no outstanding things  with  Snowy  at  all.
    He's always been a very cool person. But I know exactly what he's
    referring to there, that he could have felt  that  he  was  being
    kept back a little bit, but that was a necessary evil,  otherwise
    we would have ended up all over the place.

CoC: For my last question, I would like to know your thoughts on some
     of the King Diamond tribute records.

KD: I have not heard them. All I ever knew of that was that I saw  an
    ad in a magazine. I have not heard it, or  seen  it  or  anything
    else. The first time I knew of it was when  I  saw  an  ad  in  a
    magazine, and the funny thing about it  was  that  I  don't  mind
    that. It's  not  like  I'm  sitting  here  being  pissed  off  or
    anything. But it did say something like "The  only  King  Diamond
    tribute album endorsed by the King himself." The first time I saw
    the album I was like "Oh yeah? Really?" <laughs> In any way, fans
    or record labels, whether they  make  money  or  not,  making  an
    effort to pay tribute to someone that influenced  them  to  maybe
    start becoming musicians themselves, or entertainers, it's a  big
    honor, always. And it doesn't even matter what  it  sounds  like.
    The most important thing is that they should  not  try  to  sound
    like us. It should sound like their own band sounds. It should be
    as if that band just plays one of our songs,  which  is  what  it
    really is. I have so much respect, and I'm honored,  that  people
    have taken time out to do that. But it's kind of funny  when  you
    see an ad in a magazine for something I've endorsed and I haven't
    even heard about it. <laughs>

CoC: Thanks very much, King. It was great to talk to you again.

KD: Vice-versa.

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

                 DISSECTING A DECADE OF DISMEMBERMENT
                 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                CoC interviews Dismember's Matti Karki
                           by: Paul Schwarz


Ascending to Chaos
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     At the steel doors of Glasgow's  Cathouse,  around  six  in  the
evening. Finding myself having to half-shout "I am here to  interview
DISMEMBER!" at a door on a street in a city previously unknown to  me
does make me feel awkward. That I am  of  course  asked  the  classic
follow up "Which publication are you with?" and  proclaim  to  street
and door alike "CHRONICLES OF CHAOS!" does naturally not  settle  me.
And once stairs had been ascended and band found crammed into  a  low
ceilinged room -- tables covered in tour-rider-requested  fluids  and
multiple copies of a  German  compendium-of-metal  mag,  prepared  in
readiness for the upcoming Summer  festival  season,  littering  what
tabletop space remained --, the first thought from Matti  Karki  upon
establishing who I was and why I was there was: "Let's go outside."
     Having already found my  dictaphone's  batteries  dead  and  now
standing in a bare fire-exit corridor with a notepad clumsily  trying
to account for my lack of recording device, it suddenly dawns  on  me
how laid  back  and  fan-like  the  bearded  singer  is;  despite  my
situation, I am quite at ease. Thus, Matti's answer when  I  ask  him
why he and his bandmates still struggle on with Dismember, nearly ten
years down the line from their classic _Like an  Everflowing  Stream_
debut, is unsurprising.
     "We just do it for fun, really. We  enjoy  doing  the  band,  so
that's what we do." It's hardly an unusual sentiment,  but  rewinding
Dismember to the beginning of the  nineties  we  see  Matti  and  his
bandmates on their album's back cover drenched in pig blood; we see a
band with a strongly defined image. Dismember are furthermore a  band
very much from a scene, the Sweden's Stockholm "death metal" scene.
     "We don't give a fuck about the scene now --  we  have  families
and jobs and all that;  we  don't  have  time  to  anymore."  Matti's
response today will no doubt prompt the metal die-hards among you  to
cry sell-out, poseur or rock-star, but why  -should-  Dismember  take
interest in something which  no  longer  interests  them?  The  scene
Dismember emerged from no longer exists and even the -extreme-  music
they care about seems to lie mostly in the past.

Acts of the Repeatable
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     "Autopsy rules!" followed by the lifting of a nondescript hooded
sweatshirt to reveal a  _Severed  Survival_  original  cover  t-shirt
(which inspired hideous jealousy in me).  That  was  the  impassioned
reaction of Richard Cabeza (Dismember's former full-time bass player)
-- stirred from his  concentrated  joint-rolling  on  only  this  one
occasion -- to Matti and I's conversation later on  in  the  original
low-ceilinged band room, then vacated by the other members. Cabeza is
filling in for the band on this tour but will not commit to Dismember
anymore. All are still friends, and Matti respects Richard's decision
fully. Conversation had moved onto the subject  of  Autopsy,  a  band
close to Dismember's collective heart, but closer yet to Matti's:  he
positively worships  them  and  has  in  past  interviews  proclaimed
_Mental Funeral_ as the best death metal album  ever.  We  were  just
previously salivating together over  the  prospect  of  the  Ravenouz
album due out in September. Ravenouz is a  new  death  metal  project
featuring Brutal Truth / Nuclear Assault / SOD  bassist  Dan  Lilker,
Killjoy from Necrophagia (who also features in  trans-Atlantic  black
metal supergroup Eibon) and Autopsy's Chris Reifert.
     "Chris Reifert is  the  Midas  of  death  metal:  everything  he
touches turns to gold!", exclaims Matti -- and deriders to this claim
should remember  that  Reifert  is  -not-  involved  in  Abscess  --,
prompting an espousal of the merits of Autopsy.
     "Autopsy's structures, the riffs, are simple -- they're easy  to
play. But the -feel- is what makes it so amazing." And we should  not
forget that this feel was born of a band playing  in  a  garage.  The
relevance is to the Stockholm scene from which Dismember comes.  Back
in the day Dismember were among those such as Nihilst (later to split
into Entombed and Unleashed), Corpse (later to be known as Grave) and
others doing the local rounds together.
     "The  inspiration  for  the  Stockholm  scene   was   all   this
aggressive, noisy stuff like Repulsion", Matti explains. "That's  why
it always has this raw dirty sound." Matti and I in  the  process  of
juxtaposing Stockholm's  late-eighties  scene  with  another  certain
Swedish metal scene of the nineties: "I  don't  like  the  Gothenburg
stuff, really, they are very  power  metal  influenced.  It  is  very
technical;  there's  like  a  million  notes  --  Magnus   [Sahlgren,
guitarist] is into all that technical shit like Yngwie Malmsteen  too
--, but there isn't much feel, in my opinion. We  were  always  about
-feel- more than technicality, like Autopsy and Repulsion."
     In fact, Matti's so obsessive over Autopsy that he has a band to
effectively pay tribute to them. Murder Squad is the  entity  through
which he began this, one black sabbath. "Murder Squad  began  because
me and Uffe from Entombed and a few other guys used to  jam  together
on a Sunday and  try  to  get  over  hangovers.  We  needed  to  play
something easy so we ripped off Autopsy. We  would  just  smoke  pot,
drink and jam out these cool riffs."
     It may sound like something unsuitable for  public  consumption,
but Matti and his cohorts, after a few years  with  Murder  Squad  on
hold for various reasons, decided to  take  the  first-album  plunge.
"The record has a one-day production, it was on a low budget, we  did
it fast. We think it might be too good a sound, though."
     A one day production with "too good" a sound? Does it seem  like
an oxymoron? Well, you obviously don't share Matti Karki's tastes  in
music.

Reeking Over the Coals of Memory
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     Matti and I sit with band manager Stuart Ness and talk music. We
all agree that Mortician are rubbish, and bemoan  why  a  label  with
such a consistent roster as Relapse -- who are also  strongly  touted
to put out Murder Squad -- keep this rather low quality band on their
books. I suggest that they may be Relapse's biggest  seller,  judging
on past Milwaukee MetalFest crowd draws.
     Next  up  is  Carcass.  I,  predictably,  sing  the  praises  of
_Necroticism -- Descanting the Insalubrious_; Stuart, straight out of
leftfield, opts for first and  last  as  his  only  interests.  Matti
bemoans the clean, boring sound of _Symphonies  of  Sickness_  before
proclaiming that... "_Reek of Putrefaction_ is the  ultimate  brutal,
extreme music album." Which was not a phrase  I  thought  I'd  -ever-
hear. "It has all kinds of noises and blasts. Still, today,  no  band
has topped it. I don't like any Carcass album but the first one.  And
the rough mix makes it even better."  Yes,  unbelievably,  the  muddy
mess of a sound that is _RoP_ was re-mixed from an original recording
deemed by the band to be worse, but not by Matti. Matti had, and  may
resurrect, a similar project to Murder Squad by the name  of  General
Surgery, which pays homage to _RoP_ like Murder  Squad  does  _Mental
Funeral_: by unashamedly ripping it off in style.

Shadows of the Past
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     So now it should make sense how a one-day production is too good
for the sickening tastes of Mr. Karki. He is nonetheless  excited  to
finally be putting out something tangible from Murder Squad. Matti is
happy with Dismember's new album _Hate Campaign_ -- as  he  is  happy
with all of Dismember's albums apart from _Massive Killing  Capacity_
("I like some songs on it but I don't like the  production.  I  can't
listen to that album all the way through without at some point  going
"What the fuck was I thinking there!?"") -- but he is more excited to
be putting out the Murder Squad album. The feeling for  him  is  more
like when  Dismember  originally  made  their  now-classic  _Like  an
Everflowing Stream_ album. But did it occur to Matti at the time that
Dismember were making history, making a record that would someday  be
spoken of as a classic?
     "No, we were just excited to make a first  album.  Carnage  [see
review of the re-issued _Dark Recollections_ in the  classic  reviews
section] was rushed and collapsed before the  album  even  came  out;
Mike left to  join  Carcass  only  a  few  weeks  after  we  finished
recording  the  album.  After  that,  Fred  [Estby,  drums]  reformed
Dismember and he asked me to sing. Of course I accepted."
     "When we got the  contract  from  Nuclear  Blast  we  were  just
excited to be able to be signed. Our relationship with Nuclear  Blast
is pretty non-intervention; they don't have any creative control,  we
just get money from them to do our thing." A classic example of  this
comes up as we discuss the video for "Dreaming in Red". I tell  Matti
that it's probably my favourite music video ever.
     "The shots of the band were done in  one  day",  he  reminisces,
"then this freak who was doing it filmed all the other  shit  on  his
own, without us,  without  even  consulting  us.  Nuclear  Blast  had
nothing to do with it, they just gave us -some- money for it."
     Unfortunately I didn't ask Matti whether Nuclear Blast were  the
impetus behind Dismember's blood-splattered appearance  on  _Like  an
Everflowing Stream_'s back cover. However, I did ask him whether  the
whole mess the band got into over that  first  album,  which  centred
around the track "Skin Her Alive" for which the band went to court in
the UK on charges of  obscenity,  was  an  intentional  ploy  to  get
publicity; did they know it would cause such a ruckus?
     "No, we didn't originally set out to cause  offence.  "Skin  Her
Alive" was about what happened in the house next door to me. I retold
it from the killer's point of view, though. Once  customs  seized  it
they weren't too happy. We went to court for that and so on the  next
album, _Indecent and Obscene_, I wrote "Eviscerated (Bitch)"  to  get
up their noses, to piss them off. But by  then  no-one  really  cared
about all this stuff and so no-one noticed."
     Pulling cheap death or black metal shock  tactics  up  short  is
fine by me, but when "no-one really  cares"  starts  to  apply  to  a
band's  output,  that's  when  there's  a  problem.   Dismember   are
self-confessed non-innovators, but  they've  always  had  people  who
cared, who noticed what they were doing. "It's not our  intention  to
innovate; we just to do Dismember but keep things fresh." One of  the
methods for keeping things fresh over the last three years  has  been
the influx of Iron Maiden-esque melodic stylings, juxtaposed with the
head down and brutal Swedish death metal attack which Dismember  have
never abandoned.
     "We grew up with Iron Maiden, they were an influence from  early
on, so that comes out in some songs. But we put a brutal slant on it.
We contrast the brutal with the melody."

Beyond Good and Evil
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     Matti's explanation of what Dismember are  doing  is  plain  and
unpretentious, and the latter term is also applicable to the band  on
a musical and lyrical level. To provide  some  prompting,  I  brought
along some books I figured Matti probably would  have  seen  or  even
read, being a death metaller of the early nineties.  The  books  were
"Dagon  and  other  Macabre  Tales"  (a  collected  volume  of   H.P.
Lovecraft's    stories),    "Beyond     Good     and     Evil"     by
late-eighteenth-century German philosopher Freidrich Nietzche and the
infamous "Necronomicon", which is believed by most to  be  faked  but
claimed by some to  be  the  actual  final  testament  of  one  Abdul
Alhazred who, writing in Damascus in the eighth century, espoused the
magickal (sic) secrets of ancient  Sumeria.  All  three  are  classic
nineties   death   metaller   fare.   "Necronomicon"'s   introduction
unwittingly lists a plethora of extreme metal acts,  song  and  album
titles, many  of  which  also  unsurprisingly  appear  in  Lovecraft.
Neitzche, on the other hand, is a philosopher in the academic  sense,
recognised as worthy of study by universities  and  schools.  He  was
chosen on impulse because, as any of you with  _Hate  Campaign_  will
know, the title to this book of his was stolen by Matti  for  a  song
title. "And that's all I got from Nietzche", claims  the  singer.  "I
found his ideas interesting, but I didn't think  he  was  right.  You
should talk to Magnus about this, he has a degree in Philosophy." The
singer didn't believe that the  "Necronomicon"  was  based  on  truth
either. Matti's reaction  to  Lovecraft  was  simply  to  repeat  the
author's name as if regarding an old friend not  visited  for  aeons,
but who deserved at least one last visit before the end.
     All this literary dabbling happened as  we  stood  in  the  fire
corridor and just as I am about to put the books back in my bag,  the
rest of the band leave the practice room to soundcheck. Matti  brings
the Neitzche text to Sahlgren's attention, who  regards  it  much  as
Matti did Lovecraft before. Sahlgren and I resolve to talk philosophy
later, but it doesn't come together on this  evening  --  maybe  next
time Dismember visit the UK.
     However, though the gig that evening at the Cathouse turned  out
to be a roaring success [see Chaotic Concerts], I wouldn't hold  your
breath for such an event. This was Dismember's first show in  the  UK
for nearly eight years, and touring has  not  recently  produced  the
most positive of experiences for them. The band's  last  proper  tour
"organised" (that's definitely a  broad  use  of  the  word)  by  the
Metalysee agency  turned  out  to  be  a  deliberate  rip-off  and  a
hideously bad experience  all  round:  it  contributed  to  Richard's
original departure. All the same though, Dismember  soldier  on.  "We
are playing for our fans, for them to see  us  live",  Matti  plainly
states. "Maybe we'll also gain a few more fans by playing live."
     Matti's final offhand remark is eerily played out as I am in the
process of leaving the Cathouse after Dismember finish their set...
     "I don't believe it! They don't have any more CDs!" The  comment
is from a fellow student at my university who I  quizzed  before  the
gig as to what he figured to the new Dismember material and  got  the
response that he'd never heard the band: he was  here  on  a  friends
recommendation. I gave him the name of a good mail order business  he
could contact for a copy of _Hate Campaign_. "Why aren't  these  guys
bigger? I mean, why aren't they bigger -in the  metal  scene-?!",  he
incredulously adds.
     There are a ton of reasons I could posit to answer his question,
but in the end, and based on my  own  affectation  for  the  band,  I
sometimes find it hard to believe that Dismember aren't  at  least  a
-bit- more popular.  Time  will  tell,  and  since  Matti  says  that
Dismember will keep doing their thing as long as they are able,  time
may be on our side.

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

                            M A C H I N E
                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                     CoC interviews Glenn Danzig
                           by: Aaron McKay


     The  word  "machine"  brings  to  mind  concepts  of  precision,
well-timed movements and, for some reason, the late Harvard professor
B.F.  Skinner,  known  for  his  behaviorism  school  of  psychology.
Speaking  of  the  science  of  mind  and  behavior,  "machine"  also
consciously surfaces the movie "8mm", the shadowy  thriller  starring
Nicholas Cage from Columbia TriStar Pictures. If you haven't seen the
film, then you won't understand what "machine" has to do  with  Glenn
Danzig. Without going into too much detail,  Machine,  a  fundamental
character in the movie, is a  hulking  beast  of  a  psychopath  who,
evidenced by the irrefutable shrine to Mr. Danzig in his room,  is  a
big fan of the band.
     In spite of some -obviously huge-  differences  between  Machine
and myself (i.e. the "8mm" character is certifiable and  I'm  not!!),
we do both seem to support one  truly  great  musician.  Having  been
informed of the Danzig / Six Feet Under /  Disturbed  show  in  Cedar
Rapids later in the week, I hurriedly engineered  an  interview  with
Mr. Danzig for a  pre-show  critique  on  the  Wednesday  before  the
concert. Glenn was cordial and accommodating on the phone during  our
twenty-plus  minute  conversation.  Attentive  to  the  pressures  of
bringing on a new bassist, preparing for a two month US/Canada  tour,
all the while doing press for  individuals  like  myself,  I  did  my
damnedest to smooth the  interview  into  Mr.  Danzig's  schedule  as
easily as possible.
     Very few artists seem as busy as Danzig right now. "I just  came
from mastering the Samhain box set", begins the incredibly  congenial
Glenn Danzig. "I have to go through tons of hours of live  cassettes,
DATs and tapes and pick the best of. It's real sloppy and a real pain
in the ass." Set for a  June  release,  the  Samhain  box  set  comes
complete with the sometimes referenced comic of Danzig's second band.
"It's going to be in the box set", the Master continues. "We put  the
cover up on the website." As you might imagine, as loyal CoC readers,
having an artist as interested in putting things  out  there  on  the
Internet is a true and sincere pleasure. Glenn elaborates:  "Part  of
the reason we do it is so the fans can go on there and see the  "real
deal". Over the years, people have printed a lot of  shit,  not  just
me, but a lot of other artists, and this is a way for artists to say,
"Hey! That's bullshit!""
     Speaking of intense interest in the Internet, Glenn actually has
two covers of the new album:  one  general  release  and  one  solely
Internet. Mr. Danzig adds: "Marty [Edmond] did  the  original  cover,
came in and we looked at it -- it  was  awesome,  but  she's  totally
naked. I mean, he went  into  great  detail  on  some  parts  of  her
anatomy." Simon Bisley (a.k.a. Biz) enters  into  the  release  cover
discussion. "I called up Biz and he's like,  "Yea,  I'd  love  to  do
another cover"", Glenn chimes in, "you know, he did  the  _Thrall..._
cover." That one becomes the general release cover  and  subsequently
Marty Edmond's design is relegated to the Internet site.
     Contributing to demands on Mr. Danzig's  time,  there's  been  a
recent line-up revision. New bassist,  huh?  "Yea,  Lazie  wanted  to
spend more time with his son Rocko, who's about four  going  on  five
years old", Glenn replies. "Howie's awesome. It's all really,  really
good. We've been rehearsing for  the  past  three  weeks  and  it  is
actually more solid -- not to dis  Lazie  or  anything",  the  band's
founder adds.
     Also, B-sides  of  Danzig's  material  are  on  the  docket  for
release. "Actually, I'm mixing all these European B-sides right  now;
they are new tracks", Glenn points out. "They're not leftover  tracks
or anything. There is an unreleased tracks record that'll  be  coming
out next year", the undaunted Mr.  Danzig  assures.  Glenn  goes  on:
"That is just stuff from everything from Danzig One  to  Five;  there
might be some Danzig Six stuff on there. The stuff that  I'm  in  the
studio doing right now, besides the  Samhain  thing,  is  I'm  mixing
these tracks from European singles.  There  is  a  cover  of  [David]
Bowie's "Catpeople" on there, and there  is  this  song  called  "The
Coldest Sun" on there. There are four original tracks and  two  cover
tracks", Danzig verbally illustrates. Would  you  believe  there  was
some trouble with a label not wanting to put  out  material  by  this
quintessential outfit? Me either, but Disney was clued  in  that  the
sixth album ways slated for release on its Hollywood label. "We had a
problem as soon as the record came out, about three weeks in",  Glenn
explains. "They freaked out and were getting protests or whatever via
e-mail -- everything. Originally when we did go over  there  we  were
told  that  Disney  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  us;  we'd  be
autonomous. I was supposed to get my own label there, actually."
     Finally distancing themselves  from  Hollywood  and  avoiding  a
lawsuit, the band settles on a newer, centric music company, E-magine
Entertainment. "After I  finished  recording  Danzig  6  and  started
talking to the major [labels] again, I go, "it's just going to be the
same bullshit"", Glenn picks up on the story. "I started talking with
Christoph [Ruecker, co-founder of E-magine and an  ex-BMG  executive]
and he told me what he was starting. I decided this would be the best
direction to go in." So  it  was,  I  think.  Christoph  additionally
participated on _Satan's Child_, cited in the  CD's  liner  notes  as
supplying executive direction. According to Glenn himself, the band's
fans voted the gratifying new release as the finest  of  the  group's
history. Hence, I think it  safe  to  say  that  Danzig,  along  with
E-magine Entertainment, orchestrated a powerful new album primed  for
a huge North American tour. Vision of Disorder had their tour support
pulled, however, fear not! Looking out for the fans'  best  interest,
Hatebreed has been added for some  East  Coast  and  Canadian  dates.
Glenn Danzig, the  multi-talented,  pleasant  and  extremely  affable
artistic authority, finishes: "It's pretty crazy  [right  now]...  It
has never really been hard for me to do all the different things  [at
once]. I know what people are capable of; nothing shocks me."
     This last comment leads me to speculate that  Machine  would  be
gratified. Look for many great things to come  from  metal's  Man  in
Black.

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

 F O R E S E E I N G   T H E   F U T U R E   O F   M U S I C . . . ?
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
  CoC chats with Digby Pearson, head and founder of Earache Records
                           by: Paul Schwarz


     Digby Pearson (or Dig, as he is more  commonly  known  and  also
referred to on various album sleeves) started Earache Records in  his
own bedroom in the late-eighties. Earache went on to help release not
only some of the first grindcore albums ever in the shape  of  debuts
by Napalm Death and Carcass, but also, as  Earache  grew,  the  label
became one of the  most  important  homes  for  death  metal  in  the
nineties. Morbid Angel, Carcass and  Entombed,  among  others,  found
their first home and recorded all or  most  of  their  releases  last
decade under the Earache banner.
     Around 1995/6, various techno albums began  to  surface  on  the
label (as part of a deal with the New  York  based  label  Industrial
Strength), and Earache's main logo was changed from  eardrum-splatter
original to a more shiny,  rounded  piece  of  graphical  work.  Many
people lost faith in Earache; by the middle/late-nineties death metal
or grindcore albums with real punch appearing on the label  were  few
and far between; Carcass and Entombed had left, citing money  as  one
influencing factor, for the "greener pastures" of  the  major  label,
Columbia -- which they subsequently released nothing on,  the  former
splitting partially as a result and the latter taking a lengthy break
between albums three and four; Morbid Angel had seemingly split after
the departure of David Vincent; only a few bands such  as  industrial
heavyweights Godflesh remained from "the good old  days".  It  didn't
help Earache's reputation that, in a relatively short period of time,
they released a lot of B-side compilation albums, live videos and the
like from their departed or defunct artists. Though admittedly  these
were in most cases "contract fillers" that Earache were,  of  course,
well within their rights to release, from the perspective of some  of
the  bands  and  their  fans  such  releases  seemed  like  needless,
money-grabbing cash-ins.
     In early 1998 things began to  change.  Earache's  newly  formed
Wicked World imprint label began releasing material more in the  vein
of the stuff which had made Earache a big name. Additionally,  Morbid
Angel released the brutally brilliant _Formulas Fatal to  the  Flesh_
[CoC #28], which definitely bolstered confidence in  the  label  from
quarters who had got the impression that Earache were "running out on
metal". 1998 was a good year  for  Earache,  producing  a  number  of
well-received and exceptionally brutal albums, and since then  Wicked
World has helped keep Earache in the game of unleashing brutal  metal
albums.
     However, recently Earache took a step I, in my ignorance of  the
inner workings of the industry, had not seen  coming:  they  released
their entire back-catalogue to Emusic.com for sale over the Internet.
Interested, I asked to talk  to  someone  at  Earache,  and  Dig  was
suggested. Though surprised to be offered a label's founder and  head
for an interview in our pages, I of course jumped at  the  chance  to
talk to someone who'd helped release (and, it -seemed-,  produce)  so
many releases that I own and cherish. It turns out that  Dig  is  big
into "the digital revolution" and where it is taking  things,  so  it
made every bit of sense to talk to him about the Emusic deal,  though
of course I didn't restrict conversation only to this issue.

CoC: Are you ready to answer questions on the Emusic thing? The  whys
     and the wherefores?

Digby Pearson: I'll chat all day long if you want, 'cause I'm  really
               into it.

CoC: First, on a different point, are  Earache  still,  in  this  new
     millennium, centralising themselves on metal, or are  you  going
     to be branching out with the main label and possibly  relegating
     metal to the Wicked World side of things?

DP: No, hardly. I don't  know  how  much  you  know  about  Earache's
    history.

CoC: I know a fair amount.

DP: Well, I wouldn't call ourselves a metal label. Extreme music,  in
    all its guises, is what I try to say, which  confuses  a  lot  of
    people. Metal has been a thing that we're most known  for:  death
    metal and grindcore things. Nothing wrong with that. I personally
    grew up listening to that sort of stuff, Slayer and all  that  --
    still my ultimate favourites to this day. That's  what  Earache's
    always going to be doing,  to  be  honest.  The  confusion  arose
    because three of four years ago we started to get -- I personally
    started to get really into, how can I put it...  dance  music,  I
    suppose. In all its forms: drum 'n' bass in the UK, pirate radios
    and all that sort of  stuff.  I  became  a  big  convert  to  the
    programming skills, people who program  beats  on  computers  and
    stuff like that. And I thought it was just as much a skilful  art
    and a way  to  be  creative  as  normal  bass/guitar/drums/vocals
    outfits.

CoC: I have to say, I agree with you on that.

DP: Do you? Well, yeah, not many people do actually.  That's  one  of
    the things that makes Earache interesting as  far  as  the  label
    goes, I think. We're very  maverick  in  terms  of  what  we  do,
    because we don't have any sort of central head office, Sony don't
    own us or we're not part of the Zomba group  --  so  many  labels
    have a corporate headquarters and a chairman and board  that  you
    have to answer to. And Earache's  so  street  level  compared  to
    that. We're big in  one  sense,  but  if  you  actually  saw  our
    operation here -- we're a bunch of fuck-ups sitting in  a  little
    office in Nottingham, basically.

CoC: On the earlier releases you helped with production as well...

DP: Well, that's part and parcel of the thing: I was  in  the  studio
    with the bands doing it. I don't think  I  actually  touched  the
    mixing desk back in those days, but it was part of an  ego  thing
    as well. A lot of labels have done  it,  early  Cacophonous  ones
    would have Nile as the producer and even  Nuclear  Blast  records
    would have Markus Staiger as a producer. It's basically a perk of
    the job. I stopped doing that years ago because it's just an  ego
    boost and I don't really need that anymore. But  as  far  as  the
    Earache label is going, we've flirted with electronic music,  the
    real extreme end of it, the gabba stuff, and we tied up with  the
    Industrial Strength label in New York and I became a big  fan  of
    that label's output, really. I thought it was fairly extreme  but
    done in a different way. I think  I'm  seeing  reverberations  of
    that little thing that we did a few years ago: a  lot  of  people
    are a lot more accepting of programmed beats. It's just  the  way
    the world is now: even black metal bands, it's like the new thing
    to have programs and experiment. It's another instrument to me.

CoC: I don't know quite how it has filtered its way in,  but  it  has
     become way more accepted. I do agree with you  that  in  general
     people who like extreme music in the metal sense  tend  to  say,
     "and not all that dance shit!".  I  suppose  I'm  lucky  myself,
     because I grew up not with just a metal crowd of people. I  grew
     up just with a crowd of people who love music and so  I  got  to
     hear what I term "good" techno. There's a lot  of  -bad-  techno
     out there just like there's a lot of bad metal; there's a lot of
     poor, boring house and poorly constructed techno. So, people get
     the impression that it's totally  uncreative.  If  you  actually
     listen to something like Future Sound of London you get quite  a
     different impression.

DP: Yeah, it's a real art in its own right and I think it's going  to
    be accepted: the sampler. The "Q-Base" on the  computer  is  just
    another instrument just as  valid  as  everything  else.  But  to
    answer your original question, I am actually bored of  that  now,
    believe it or not.  We've  had  our  flirtation  with  a  lot  of
    programmed beats artists and spurred on,  I  suppose,  by  Wicked
    World's success. Dan, the label manager here,  had  said  to  me,
    "Dig, do you realise that all these techno bands  that  you  keep
    signing are diluting our appeal to our fanbase,  our  real  bread
    and butter death metal fanbase?" And I was  like,  "Shit,  you're
    right!" He was dead right, actually. So he was like  bursting  at
    the seams and Wicked World is basically Dan's A&R input. I  said,
    "We'll give you another label name." It's all part of the Earache
    thing, but it's just concentrated on Dan's ears, basically. Those
    bands have done really well so far: Hate Eternal  especially  and
    Decapitated are doing really well.

CoC: It has got a response as well,  the  Wicked  World  label.  Some
     people do say, "Why aren't these records on  -Earache-?!"  After
     that, though, people are quite pleased. You get  something  from
     Wicked World, you know the general idea of it.

DP: In a way it's going back to what Earache started as, it's a  sort
    of a purist label and it'll be only underground  metal  bands  on
    it: Dan's not into experimenting and that's fair  enough,  and  I
    appreciate that and it's actually great. And  it'll  be  for  the
    purists, the underground purists, they'll be nothing but  extreme
    underground metal on it. I don't want to say "death  metal",  but
    it's predominantly death metal. Gandalf are coming  out  with  an
    album that's kind of hard to explain.  It's  actually  brilliant:
    it's  like   AC/DC   meets   Carcass.   It's   really   anthemic,
    fist-in-the-air kind of metal, with heavy vocals and heavy riffs;
    it's bizarre. Dan can  speak  better  about  it.  Anyway,  Wicked
    World's doing well and in a way that's had an impact on  Earache.
    In my world the sub-label is now driving how I think about  metal
    again. So we're actually in discussion with a  few,  newer  metal
    acts to be released on Earache. I mean, we've never really  given
    up on metal. We've had this bad press from  a  few  quarters  who
    just think Earache is putting out weird shit these days or techno
    shit. A band like Berzerker is interesting for me. I do like  it.
    It's extreme. We're going to have some more extreme stuff  coming
    out on Earache that'll surprise a few people, hopefully. I wish I
    could tell you the names, but they're not signed up yet.  But  at
    the  same  time  we're  doing  bands  like  Linea  77,  who   I'm
    particularly into, who could be construed  as  on  the  Deftones'
    side of things. I think it's quite valid.  I  don't  think  death
    metallers will particularly take to it, but I  think  they're  an
    extreme band in their  own  right  and  quite  cutting  edge  and
    current: I like 'em, anyway. I mean, that's the  ultimate  thing:
    it's my label so we put  out  what  we  damned  well  feel  like,
    really.

CoC: Moving onto the main topic of discussion, one of  the  things  I
     love about the Emusic conversion is I've  now  got  one  of  the
     ultimate contradictions in terms: I've now  got  "Technology  Is
     Gay" on MP3. <we both laugh> What made you decide originally  to
     put the back catalogue on Emusic.com? Because  not  -that  many-
     labels have yet signed these kinds of  contracts  [though  there
     are, I discovered upon really looking, a lot more than I thought
     when this conversation with Dig took place  --Paul],  a  lot  of
     people are -very- dubious about  the  whole  conversion  to  the
     Internet. They think it will possibly kill  them  [the  labels],
     and give the power to the bands. What made you decide to  really
     go for it?

DP: Well, again, we've embraced technology  since  the  Internet  was
    getting  past  the  technologists  stage  and  moving   to   mass
    popularity. We had an Earache.com site in 1995, which is a  long,
    long time ago in Internet time, and we had, within a  few  weeks,
    some of our music available for digital download from  the  site.
    It was the obvious thing to do as far as  we  were  thinking,  we
    didn't really have any second thoughts about  people  downloading
    it and that ruining our CD sales. That's absolute bunkum,  in  my
    opinion. As will become evident, in my opinion, in the  next  few
    years. It's a whole new -paradigm-, to use the current buzz-word,
    it's a whole new way of looking at music. I'm not a  Nostradamus,
    but it's a new thing and Earache wanted  to  be  involved  in  it
    straight away and that's why we didn't say  no  when  Emusic  was
    knocking on the door, basically. Any label that doesn't  want  to
    embrace the MP3 revolution is  kind  of  crazy,  really.  They're
    hangin' onto an old mindset. Music: you can now download  it,  it
    takes a few minutes if you've got a good modem, and you've got  a
    track.

CoC: One of the reasons I was prompted to do a piece is  because  I'd
     never really bought MP3s before. At university, I'm on a LAN  so
     I can download it really fast. I ended up  getting  really  into
     the whole downloading thing.

DP: It works, doesn't it?! It's amazing, isn't it?!

CoC: It also allows you to get stuff which is different  or  rare  or
     stuff like the _Love of Lava_ which was  only  re-released  with
     the entire album.

DP: Which you wouldn't want to buy anyway... Actually, that's a funny
    one because each song is really  only  a  solo,  so  one  of  the
    catches is that Emusic, with our permission, also allow a  thirty
    second free sample of each song as well, so if you're  lucky  the
    _Love of Lava_ might actually have the whole song. I'll  have  to
    check. The full version might be forty seconds,  so  why  bother?
    Unless you want to pay a dollar for the extra ten seconds...

CoC: Is it Emusic's policies on the albums and tracks or can you  put
     different prices on the albums? 'Cause the songs are universally
     99 cents, so you can pay forty dollars for an AC album...

DP: No, you can download the whole album for $8.99...

CoC: Yes, but theoretically you could pay forty  dollars  for  an  AC
     album if you wanted to.

DP: But you wouldn't, you'd pay $8.99, wouldn't you?

CoC: Fair play. It's kind of interesting, though, 'cause you can  get
     Iron Monkey's _Our Problem_ for less than $8.99...

DP: That's true. We've gone with the  standard  pricing  that  Emusic
    advise and it's their experience of the pricing. It's still  such
    a new thing -- the prices could come down,  presumably  will  do.
    You can get it, presumably, on MP3 from Napster for free.  I  do.
    Though we use Macster 'cause we have Macs here. We just  thought,
    MP3s are out there, the genie is out of the bottle;  why  pretend
    otherwise? Also, we want to embrace that as well. When I've heard
    stories about how people have used Napster, people who've sort of
    gone out  of  music  and  Napster's  revitalised  their  interest
    because you can get hold of stuff  quite  easily.  So,  you  read
    about bands and you haven't got it and it's hard to get.  Napster
    just brings it to your desktop, your PC or  Mac,  straight  away,
    and you can just enjoy the music and become exposed to new music.

CoC: The other thing I was curious about was: was it just a  decision
     to put it on the Internet just for the sake of it, just  to  get
     it out there, or is it for  a  particular  market?  One  of  the
     advantages of Emusic  is  that  though  I,  living  in  England,
     -could- get it through the mail, if  I  lived  in  some  country
     which didn't have all of Earache's releases available to me...

DP: Exactly.

CoC: So would that be a lot of the purpose of it: so people  can  get
     it wherever they are in the world?

DP: Exactly. It's also a phenomenon 'cause  we  don't  have  physical
    distribution of our CDs in every territory; we have  it  in  most
    territories. We have a lot of Malaysian people actually  --  it's
    hard to get deals over  there  to  distribute  the  CDs,  it's  a
    different market. I don't know why we just haven't really cracked 
    it.

CoC: I think they have quite an oppressive government, don't they?

DP: Absolutely dead right, you've just reminded  me  of  the  reason.
    We've had deals before and they've gone sour; the minute  we  put
    out  something  crazy  they  go:  "We  can't  release  this."  In
    Singapore, for instance.

CoC: I've got letters from people in the  past  saying  "don't  write
     back using my band name".

DP: Yeah, our deals have fizzled out in those places.  So  there  you
    go, the beauty of the Internet and MP3. I think they're  bringing
    plans in to try and censor it, they're always talking  about  it.
    But now our music is  available  for  legal  download,  globally.
    We've noticed  a  few  e-mails  from  China,  and  we've  had  no
    distribution in China ever, physically. There's a steady  trickle
    of Chinese e-mails, I don't know if they're picking  us  up  from
    the Internet or whatever, or downloading  those  tracks.  It's  a
    fantastic feeling to know that we're reaching  places  --  that's
    the power of this thing, it's a powerful tool. You never know, it
    might actually lead to a physical distribution deal.

CoC: If you permeate the market, people get used to it and they might
     as well let you distribute the CDs. I have to say as  well,  the
     catalogue  you've  got  on  there  is  the   whole   -available-
     catalogue.

DP: It's the whole damn thing, supposedly, everything. Every  record,
    I mean there might be some gaps there where they haven't uploaded
    it yet, but technically it will be every  CD,  every  track  that
    Earache has ever released will be on there sooner or later.  Some
    of our early releases have not been available since their release
    and they've  become  sort  of  collectible  things,  and  they're
    supposed to be up there because that's the beauty  of  it  again:
    there's no inventory for us, we don't have to keep CDs or  vinyl;
    it's just available for download as and  when  people  choose  to
    download it. I know that the whole beauty of it  for  me  was  to
    have our complete and utter  catalogue  up  there  for  download.
    There's no reason why some albums are up there and  other  albums
    aren't, it's just a matter of: our biggest  bands  are  up  there
    first and then the other stuff will probably be put up later.

CoC: I didn't yet notice stuff like Carnage and Old Lady Drivers...

DP: They will be up there.

CoC: And especially  bands  like  Spazztic  Blur  are  a  bit  of  an
     underground classic...

DP: That's a band I was going to mention: it's meant to be up  there.
    They've got the master, all I  can  think  is  they  haven't  got
    around to it yet. We've  got  a  total  of  two  thousand  tracks
    available on that. Ten years of Earache  are  now  available  for
    download. In theory, you can  hear  a  thirty  second  sample  of
    everything we've ever done, every track. The power of it is still
    hitting home, to me. I mean, to do that  in  the  physical  world
    you'd have to... I don't know.

CoC: It's great for the older, less requested stuff.  If  one  person
     wants one copy of one album it's no difficulty. You  don't  have
     to repress a thousand copies.

DP: That's another beauty of this: it makes  our  catalogue  complete
    and available on an individual download basis. Spazztic  Blur  is
    one that I'm looking at to get on there as well.  There's  no  CD
    available of it, it was only ever released on vinyl. Technically,
    our whole catalogue should be up there in the next weeks.

CoC: What other re-issues do you have planned? You've  done  Massacre
     and Carnage. Might you use the Emusic  site  to  determine  what
     re-releases you do in the future?

DP: It's debatable. Unless there's a huge, huge demand, I don't think
    we'll be doing any more re-issues of so-called old classics.

CoC: No Cadaver then?

DP: Cadaver's possible because one of the  bands  we're  thinking  of
    signing is the new Cadaver: Cadaver Inc. [A  stupid  name  in  my
    opinion, but, I admit, I got it wrong:  I  reviewed  the  Cadaver
    Inc. demo as Cadaver back in issue #47 -- Paul]. We're  close  to
    signing them. That's what's so funny to me: when we  did  Cadaver
    originally, no-one gave a fuck about it, it was just  some  weird
    band from Oslo, Norway, pre-black metal and pre-all  the  murders
    and stuff. If we have a huge demand  for  Cadaver  after  Cadaver
    Inc. comes out then there's a slim chance  we'll  be  re-issuing,
    but it just seems kind of why now,  you  can  just  download  it,
    can't you?

CoC: I think the concern from people is that a lot of the fans of the
     old  Earache  stuff  aren't  technological   people   that   own
     computers. A lot of them are still CD collectors working a  nine
     to five day job and so until MP3 players become part of  stereos
     I think people will say that you're kind of leaving out the  old
     fanbase because they won't have the capacity to  get  the  MP3s;
     that's the problem.

DP: I guess then it would be a case of if there's sufficient  demand.
    From a record company's point of view you've got to sell at least
    five hundred or a thousand to cover the costs, really. And that's
    a pretty big number, really,  for  something  that's  many,  many
    years old.

[Conversation turns to the Carnage album -- see this month's classics
section for a review -- and then comes to Napster.com.]

DP: Napster is as we speak transforming the music industry. And I'm a
    big fan of it, actually, even though  it  could  put  us  out  of
    business. It's about the music in the end,  and  I'm  sure  we'll
    find a way to get involved with it. I've been talking to  Napster
    in America about doing something. It's  amazing  the  mixture  of
    music you can get on there. The smallest band; someone  somewhere
    has got their out of print 7" or something,  on  MP3.  We're  big
    fans of Napster, so I guess with the  whole  Emusic  thing  we're
    actually having our cake and eating  it.  Napster  lets  everyone
    swap MP3 files for free. I don't know, as long as the music's out
    there and people are  enjoying  it,  then  I  think  it  is  just
    promotional stuff and at the end of the day people will  want  to
    either download the full album or buy  the  CD.  Either  way  the
    artist will get paid at the end  of  the  day,  through  us,  the
    label, and everything should be OK, hopefully.

CoC: I think the whole MP3 "scare" is about equivalent to  the  "home
     taping is killing music" label they used to have on  vinyls.  In
     the end, if you tape something for someone, they don't keep  the
     tape and never buy the CD unless they don't have  the  money  to
     buy the CD. Most people who love an album will  buy  it  on  CD.
     It's not just a question of honesty, people like to have albums.
     I don't think that will stop. I think  people  will  still  want
     albums even if they have MP3s: they're nice  to  have.  Maybe  a
     generation from now kids won't even care 'cause they won't  even
     have this whole CD [hangup].

DP: I think there is a revolution imminent  about  how  people  treat
    music. I think music's going to become like  free  software.  The
    only thing that really bothers me is when we get e-mail from guys
    like this guy, I think he's in France, who compile like four  CDs
    of MP3s of death metal, basically -- it's got four hundred tracks
    on it --, for ten  dollars  he's  offering  it.  That's  actually
    getting  us  pretty  annoyed,  because  he's  actually  charging,
    basically, for compiling four hundred of his tracks onto a set of
    four CDs.

CoC: I think that's where you have to draw the line: if you  want  to
     use someone else's software, that's cool,  but  you  can't  sell
     someone else's software.

DP: Exactly. If Napster started charging, then they'd be closed down.
    The fact that  it's  totally  free  is  what  makes  Napster  the
    equivalent of tape trading: there is no charge. This CD thing,  I
    mean four hundred tracks is some labels' entire output. A lot  of
    the labels have sent each other e-mails about this.  Although,  I
    was talking to the guy at Century Media about it and he  said  he
    didn't want to join the MP3 revolution &lt;laughs&gt;  just  yet,
    so it's weird that you can't get any of the German label bands on
    MP3 -- they've got different attitudes. All the tracks  that  are
    on this guy's compilation, with the four CDs, we're going to  try
    and e-mail him and make him see the error of his ways.

[Conversation moves through various topics and we get into  the  idea
of people taping or trading for CDs as a form of promotion.]

DP: At the end of the day, from a record company's point of view  and
    from the artist's as well, we want to  get  people  to  hear  the
    music and whatever technology or tools there are to achieve  that
    aim we want to use them all and that's kind of  why  we're  here.
    I'm just glad that you discovered some  of  our  stuff  that  you
    wouldn't otherwise have  discovered  'cause  then  it  will  have
    proved the whole point, I suppose. [I was talking to Dig  earlier
    about my buying via Emusic certain Earache releases that I'd been
    meaning to check out. -- Paul]

[Conversation moves again  to  Napster  in  connection  with  use  in
universities, where Dig says it has in some places  been  banned;  we
then proceed to the freedom the Internet offers: how difficult it  is
to censor?]

CoC: That's the great thing about the Internet, I  think,  especially
     for underground music because underground music has always  been
     beaten down a bit by lack of exposure and the attitude taken  to
     it by certain people. Earache was really helped early on by John
     Peel's patronage of Napalm Death and Bolt Thrower.

[We chat about the possible redundancy of journalism in  the  future,
accounting for the possibility for fans  of  simply  listening  to  a
release rather than having to read a review.]

DP: I'll tell you what I think is going to be needed:  I  think  it's
    all going to be about trusting people in the future. If you go on
    Emusic, go to genre "metal", it's got an  A-Z.  You  haven't  got
    time to wade through every  band  that's  got  an  MP3  out,  and
    MP3.com is even worse.

[MP3.com becomes the topic as we discuss demo bands and  I  tell  Dig
about the fact that many of my  recent  demo  reviews  have  been  of
MP3s.]

DP: I think it's all going to be down to  tracks  in  the  future.  I
    think it will just be compilations that will rule in the  future.
    Like, "here's this month's selection of the best stuff  out"  and
    it'll be the people who you trust to make  those  selections  who
    are the Sonys or whatever of the future. It'll be  the  ones  who
    are the experts in the music genre that people trust.  Good  MP3s
    will aggregate around those people and  then  other  people  will
    know that instead of wading through all the MP3s, it'll be, "I'll
    just go for  the  readymade  compilation  that  my  selector  has
    already done", to use a term from dance music. I think  it'll  be
    the same as where DJs decide  the  tracks  in  the  dance  arena,
    because you can't be arsed to wade through every track, you trust
    the DJ to do it for you. The same, in rock.

CoC: It happens in a lot of industries. That's one of the purposes of
     service industries: to cut down the  amount  you  have  to  look
     through stuff. A  good  search  engine  does  that.  It  can  be
     depressing as well, trawling through MP3.com,  because  although
     there are plenty of good bands there are lots of  -really  shit-
     bands. Bands I think are starting to record way too early.

DP: Oh, absolutely, yeah.

CoC: There is an  over-abundance  of  bands  who  spend  three  weeks
     together and think they need to get a release out.

DP: Oh, tell me about it, we get demos like that every day.  Some  of
    them I'm tempted to say, you know, "Ring us  back  in  two  years
    time." But actually they usually end up on a French label  before
    then or something like that. It's actually shocking the amount of
    bands we see and then they end up with a CD deal. The labels  are
    to blame a lot of the time 'cause they just add to the  crap  out
    there.

CoC: Certain magazines contribute to it as well, if you don't tell  a
     band they're not very good when they are not very good. A lot of
     the time they won't get that much better.

DP: Bands do get better, actually. Some bands are absolutely crap and
    then they can have a burst of creativity and get very  good  very
    fast.

CoC: Fair enough, but what I meant was that it's less common or  less
     likely for a band to get better if they're not aware of the fact
     that  they  have  to  improve.  If  you  get  ten  out  of   ten
     consistently for each album, then why change your format? Unless
     you're a particularly creative person.

[We wound up our conversation talking about CoC itself and  the  fact
that Morbid Angel's new album  will  be  an  MP3  promo  as  well  as
eventually being physical.]

To date (August 7th),  only  the  non-deleted  Earache  catalogue  is
available on Emusic -- no Spazztic Blur yet...

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

              M O L D I N G   T H E I R   V I S I O N S
              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
               CoC talks to Bjorn Gelotte of In Flames
                          by: Adrian Bromley


     Sweden's In Flames are easily  one  of  my  favorite  bands  out
there. Their music is a  brilliant  meshing  of  death  metal  vocals
accompanied by powerful melodies and some of the coolest guitar solos
that have been displayed within the  metal  scene  in  recent  years.
Their constant evolution and groundbreaking work within  the  melodic
death metal scene has stationed them high up on the list of bands  to
be inspired by and copy.
     Their  new  work  on  _Clayman_  [reviewed  in  this  issue]  is
breathtaking and we are indeed blessed with the notion that the  band
is just hitting their stride, no doubt anxious  to  see  where  their
music takes them within the next few years.
     "When we start to record an album, we never really plan what  we
are going to do or where we are  going  to  take  the  band",  starts
guitarist Bjorn Gelotte about the ideas that inspired the  new  disc.
"We just used the inspiration that  we  got  from  touring  and  just
meeting people. We just bring into the  fold  ideas  and  inspiration
from how people are reacting to what we do."
     "We also try to look at what we did with the last record and try
to take the music of In Flames one step  further.  I  think  that  is
quite obvious since we have the same  line-up  now  that  we  did  on
[1999's] _Colony_ [CoC #40] and  that  makes  all  of  us  feel  more
comfortable with what we do. We [the band is rounded  out  by  singer
Anders Friden, bassist  Peter  Iwers,  drummer  Daniel  Svensson  and
guitarist Jesper Stromblad] grew together on this record and we  took
it to the next level."
     Indeed they have.  Ever  since  their  debut  album,  the  death
metal-tinged disc _Lunar Strain_  (Wrong  Again  Records,  1994),  In
Flames has gradually taken on a much  more  melodic  overtone  within
their music, a change brought forward in their punishing (and  in  my
eyes classic release) _The Jester Race_ (1995) [CoC #12]. Since then,
the band has managed to capture a real solid  feeling  of  creativity
and musicianship in the last few years by putting out one  impressive
record after another.
     While the band does have a very faithful  following,  a  lot  of
fans of the band feel very passionate about the work on  _The  Jester
Race_ and  think  that  much  of  In  Flames'  new  work  is  just  a
continuation of that, not really breaking from that mold. About those
comments from fans, Gelotte answers:  "Let  people  think  what  they
want. Some people even want us to go back and  record  another  album
like _Lunar Strain_. Why should we do that? That would be like living
in the past. We are getting older now and  are  being  influenced  by
many different things these days. We have  much  more  diverse  music
styles than we had when the band first started.  It  would  lying  to
ourselves and In Flames if we just stayed in the past, because we are
always trying to move forward with each recording."
     "It has never been this easy to create songs for a  record,  but
this time it was", states Gelotte of the recording of _Clayman_.  "We
were on tour in the United States, the first one we have  ever  done,
and we were so inspired with this tour and the great experiences that
we had, we didn't waste any time when we got home.  We  just  started
writing and it came together very fast. It was all pretty  much  done
within the time frame of a month. It was very fast  and  it  felt  so
good to be able to go into the studio inspired and get it all done so
quickly."
     "This whole idea of being inspired to write music  is  something
new to us. A while back we would normally have to book studio time to
get things rolling for us and working on music and inspired to  write
for an In Flames record. It isn't like that anymore. We  used  to  be
very lazy, but this time around it was the total opposite. After  the
tour, we just couldn't stop writing and we didn't want to. We  didn't
want to stop the momentum of all this."
     How does Gelotte and In Flames feel about  all  of  the  respect
they have garnered over the years? "It is  very  flattering  to  hear
people speak so highly of In Flames and  reading  how  all  of  these
bands are influenced by us, but I also got to thinking about  all  of
that too. When you create music you are trying  to  create  your  own
identity, and if you don't, something gets lost along the way.  There
is already one In Flames. The world probably doesn't need another one
and people must know that they can use what we do and get  influenced
by it, but then they need to take it to their own next level and  get
their band noticed."
     I ask Gelotte about the perils of  being  lumped  into  a  music
scene, In Flames most notably thrown into  the  "Gothenburg"  Swedish
metal scene. He answers: "We have always tried to do our  own  thing.
We were there when this whole "Gothenburg" scene took  off.  We  were
there in the beginning and we had to decide just where we were  going
to go as well. It was the only way for us. I don't think we  followed
trends or tried to stay within a scene sound. We don't know  what  we
are going to do next and I think you can hear that with what  we  do,
especially on the new disc and how some of  the  choruses  and  ideas
have been done. We aren't afraid to do things like that and  I  think
it is important to be dynamic and  have  songs  that'll  come  across
solid live, because let's face it, we like to tour and play  for  our
fans. Everything is important to us and our music and I think  it  is
important for many bands to stay focused  on  what  you  do  and  let
things happen, and not have a great plan."
     What inspires Gelotte and his songwriting / guitar  playing?  "I
would have to say the touring and most importantly the line-up of the
band. We have been the same band for the longest time now and we  are
like a family. For the last few years In Flames has kind  of  been  a
project with members being used from other bands to help  In  Flames,
but now we are a full unit with all members devoted to the  cause  of
In Flames. It used to be Jesper and myself telling people what  parts
to play and all that, but now everyone brings into  the  group  their
ideas and we function as a full unit. This time around, and over  the
last year or so, everything seems to be great for us and working as a
team", says Gelotte. "It just seems very relaxed and that is a  great
feeling."
     On the topic of the album title, Gelotte  responds:  "We  had  a
bunch of names to go as the title, but they didn't work out. We chose
the title _Clayman_ because it was very short and easy  to  remember,
just like the last record _Colony_. Also, the name seemed to fit very
well with the concept of the record too."
     As always it seems, an In Flames release is a big deal and  that
means big pushing by their label, Nuclear Blast. So  how  does  Bjorn
feel about all of the press work and hype surrounding  each  release?
He comments: "I think doing press is a lot of fun and it is great  to
talk to people  that  like  metal,  as  well  as  meeting  some  very
interesting people. I think it is more of a  necessary  evil  for  us
because we just want to play the music. That is the main  reason  why
we started all this. When we started out, we didn't want to  talk  to
the press, but this is needed to help push the  band  name  and  make
things smooth for the label we work with and the people who  help  us
out. Oh well, it is only for a short time when the record  is  coming
out and the rest of the year we get  to  play  music  and  tour.  Now
-that- is exciting."

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

             B R O K E N   B U T   N O T   S U B D U E D
             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
             CoC chats with Brian Griffin of Broken Hope
                           by: Aaron McKay


From _Bag of Parts_  to  "Engorged  With  Impiety",  featuring  James
Murphy, to "Siamese Screams" and the phantom instrumentals of "Deadly
Embrace", finally to "War-Maggot", I've braved the delineated path of
these authoritative metal connoisseurs. Having waited  patiently  for
the release of _Grotesque Blessings_, I eagerly clamored for a chance
to canvass  Broken  Hope  topics  with  Mr.  Griffin  via  an  e-mail
exchange. The typed dialog to come is both encouraging  and  daunting
concurrently. I encourage you to read on further to harvest the seeds
of erudition from the  indisputably  busy  and  exceedingly  talented
Brian Griffin.

CoC: With  all  your  commitments  with,  for  instance,  EmSinfonia,
     producing, engineering, mixing, mastering and guitar duties  for
     the mighty Broken Hope, you and Erik Rutan [Hate Eternal / Alas]
     could be accurately described as a couple of the hardest working
     men in the business, huh?

Brian Griffin: I would have to agree there. I can't speak  for  Erik,
               but I do know he is the same as I am when it comes  to
               dedication to our craft. I have been  doing  this  for
               ten years and it never gets boring. I like  to  devote
               all of my time to music in one way or another.  It  is
               great to be in more than one band as well  as  have  a
               studio to work with other bands. Music is my life  and
               everything else  isn't  quite  as  interesting.  As  a
               matter of fact, I have just  started  my  third  band,
               which is another death metal project, but more extreme
               than Broken Hope. I can't imagine slowing down. I just
               want to try a  lot  of  different  styles,  because  I
               wouldn't be happy just sitting around watching someone 
               else do it.

CoC: Having been exposed to Broken Hope for a great number of  years,
     the band seems to be  extremely  proficient  in  self-promotion.
     What do you think? True? And, as a follow-up to  that  question,
     was it Martyr Music's ability to give BH the support  the  group
     deserved, finally, that made  you  go  with  this  up-and-coming
     label?

BG: Broken Hope has always been self-sufficient.  We  can't  rely  on
    someone else to get us to the next level. All bands  really  need
    to work hard to get to where they want to be,  nowadays.  If  you
    expect to get something done you really have to do  it  yourself.
    Martyr has made us a priority and I think that is what we  really
    needed at this time. They know what needs to be done  because  of
    their years of experience in the industry. We  bounce  ideas  off
    each other and the band/label relationship we have could  not  be
    any better. Things are getting easier  as  the  label  gets  more
    well-known and being on a label that actually knows the scene  is
    a big plus.

CoC: I believe I can hear Broken Hope  influences  in  others  bands'
     material.  What  do  you  think  about  the  influence  BH   has
     effectuated on music and brutal death metal in specific?

BG: We definitely have our influences and they are  quite  varied.  I
    think it is a great compliment to have another band  be  inspired
    by what you have done. We are definitely not innovators  anymore.
    We have been around awhile like a lot of the older bands and  the
    newer acts have definitely taken what we started with  to  a  new
    level. Back in the day there weren't many death metal bands,  but
    now there is one on every block. This  was  all  started  by  the
    bands that were around ten or twelve years ago and it is great to
    be one of those bands.

CoC: Seems to me that for a long time Broken  Hope  was  kind  of  an
     undiscovered treasure in the world of metal.  Would  you  agree,
     and do you think this is changing? Is the band more exposed now?

BG: I wouldn't say we were a treasure, but we definitely  didn't  get
    the push we were  hoping  for  in  the  past.  With  all  of  the
    competition it is difficult  to  make  your  mark,  but  I  think
    sticking it out  all  of  these  years  has  shown  that  we  are
    definitely a group of guys that are willing  to  do  it  for  the
    music and deal without the recognition if that's what  it  takes.
    We are getting quite a bit of  exposure  through  Martyr  because
    they are more in tune with the scene and know what media  outlets
    will benefit us the most.

CoC: Speaking of hidden aptitude,  how  would  you  characterize  the
     notoriety you've achieved through your production  efforts  with
     other bands, in addition to Broken Hope?

BG: I am still working on getting my name out there as a producer. It
    is a never-ending job. With today's  technology  everyone  thinks
    they are a record producer and that makes for  more  competition.
    In the past I concentrated on death metal recordings, but  now  I
    am expanding into all styles. I plan to do this for the  rest  of
    my life and I feel it is time for me to try it all  and  not  get
    pigeon-holed into one genre. I also find it a good idea to record
    other styles so it keeps my ideas fresh  when  it  comes  to  the
    death metal albums I record. It is too easy to get into a routine
    and make everyone sound the same and  that  is  the  stage  death
    metal is at now. I am very fortunate that the death  metal  scene
    has given me a name as a producer and I have enjoyed working with
    all of the bands and I can't wait to work with more. It's a great
    start that I am going to expand on, but I will never forget where
    I started from.

CoC: There seemed to be a little bit of a "lag time" in  the  release
     of _Grotesque Blessings_. What  was  happening?  And  could  you
     possibly elaborate on the situation with Joe  that  was  brought
     out on the Broken Hope webpage, www.brokenhope.com?

BG: I took some time off from Broken Hope to work with my other  band
    EmSinfonia and do a lot of studio work. In the  meantime  nothing
    was being done with the band, because the  other  members  aren't
    24/7 music guys like I am, so they took the  break  to  do  other
    things. Once we found the right  people  to  write  with  we  got
    things together for _Grotesque Blessings_. As far as Joe  goes...
    he is back with us. He decided he was not ready to do the tour we
    had booked and bowed out at the time. We in turn could  not  fail
    our fans and decided to go on with  the  tour  with  a  different
    vocalist. It went well  but  we  are  glad  Joe  has  decided  to
    continue with us.

CoC: Speaking of Joe, on the new album I would say  that  his  vocals
     are somewhat more distinctive and discernible. Is this accurate?

BG: The band and Joe made a decision to try and make the vocals  more
    understood this time around. In my opinion Joe  is  at  his  best
    this way, instead of trying to do a million words in every  line.
    We concentrated on less lyrics to make things easier on him.

CoC: Was there more of a co-operative writing effort  on  this  album
     between you and Jeremy?

BG: Not really. Jeremy and I have been working  the  same  since  the
    beginning. We each write our own songs. We  both  have  different
    capabilities and each one of us has progressed in  our  own  way.
    Our style in writing and structuring varies.  The  fans  seem  to
    like the variation in the songs. If we were  to  collaborate  too
    much every song would more or less come out too predictable.

CoC: Interesting the way the band utilized three  other  bassists  in
     addition to Brian Hobbie, the group's "full time"  bass  player,
     and then some bass work by you,  as  well.  How  did  this  come
     about?

BG: I had originally planned on doing all of the bass on  the  album,
    but between writing, recording the guitars, leads, and  producing
    and engineering alone, I found myself needing fresh ideas. I  did
    in fact play a lot of bass on the album, but it was good to  have
    input from the other players.

CoC: What would you  say  the  biggest  selling  point  is  regarding
     _Grotesque Blessings_, as opposed to other prominent Broken Hope
     releases?

BG: _Grotesque Blessings_ is by far more advanced in playing. We have
    better structuring and have really improved since the last album.
    The vocals are more intelligible, the drumming has more flare and
    the bass playing is more diverse. I guess there are quite  a  few
    selling points. It is also our best layout and cover as well.

CoC: Would  you  recommend  _Grotesque  Blessings_  as  a  "first  CD
     purchase" to inaugurate someone new wanting to get  into  Broken
     Hope?

BG: Yes, I would. But, then again, it is just my preference,  because
    I prefer to hear a band at their latest stage of progression.  If
    you were to buy  this  one  and  _Swamped  in  Gore_,  you  would
    definitely think it was two different bands.

CoC: Last couple of years I've seen you  and  Jeremy  Wagner  at  the
     Milwaukee MetalFest. Any chance that you'll play this year?

BG: We go there to  promote  the  band.  MetalFest  has  become  less
    appealing to us as the years have gone by. It is great to go  see
    up and coming bands, but the scheduling is usually screwed up and
    it gets difficult for a band to put on a good show.  I  doubt  we
    would do it again.

CoC: A pretty reliable source informed me that "Bag of Parts" made it
     on the play list for this coming tour! I, for one, think this is
     fantastic!

BG: Yes, it did. We consciously made an effort to add songs that  get
    requested at the shows. It was great to have a variation  in  the
    set this time around. Some of the songs took people by surprise.

CoC: As a colleague of Chuck Schuldiner's (and a true friend  of  his
     as well, I'm sure), can I impose upon you for your  thoughts  on
     his situation?

BG: We are not close friends that keep in contact all  of  the  time,
    but meeting and working with him was a special time for me. He is
    the kind of person that you can be around for a  short  time  and
    consider a good friend. I can't think of anyone  more  supportive
    and personable to work with. Chuck is an amazing person. What can
    I say? He has done it all, and  his  contribution  to  music  has
    definitely inspired all of us.  The  strength  he  has  shown  in
    battling his illness is  just  what  I  would  expect  from  him.
    Nothing can stop him and I am confident we will  be  hearing  him
    play for years to come. It is great to see  all  of  the  support
    everyone is giving him in return for what he has done. I hope  he
    has a speedy recovery so he can get back to what he  enjoys,  and
    that is writing music for all of us.

CoC: It has been an honor to conduct this interview with you,  Brian.
     Please conclude any way you would like...

BG:  Thanks  for  the  interview,  Aaron.  Thanks  to  everyone   for
    supporting Broken Hope throughout the years and the rumors!!

Contact: http://www.brokenhope.com

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            S A T A N   A N D   M E R L I N   U N I T E !
            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    CoC talks to Jon Schaffer and Hansi Kursch of Demons & Wizards
                  by: Adrian Bromley and Aaron McKay


     Metal fans would probably think that Iced  Earth  guitarist  Jon
Schaffer and Blind Guardian singer/bassist Hansi Kursch would have  a
difficult time venturing outside of their own bands to start up their
new project, Demons & Wizards.  Actually,  according  to  Kursch,  it
wasn't that hard to do at all.
     "It all just happened quite easily for us to get this together",
starts Kursch when asked about the formation of  D&W  with  guitarist
Jon Schaffer. "It has been such a great time. Jon and  I  have  known
each other since the early '90s, and we knew what to expect  from  us
getting together with our ideas. We're both professional and we  were
very confident with the musicianship we would bring to D&W."
     "We'd talked about doing this for a while now", explains Kursch.
"One day a while back we got  together  for  an  afternoon  and  just
jammed. We got such  a  good  vibe  from  that  time  and  felt  with
chemistry that good, it would be a waste to  not  put  these  talents
together. We just waited for the right time to do this. This was very
easy to do for us, really. I mean there is so much  we  can  do  with
Blind Guardian and Iced Earth, and there is so much else that we  can
venture out and do with D&W."
     "The first time we met was on a  promotional  tour  that  I  was
doing", co-founder Jon Schaffer clarifies. "We ran into each other at
a disco and the guys from Rock Hard magazine said "This is Hansi from
Blind Guardian and these are the  guys  that  you  are  going  to  be
opening for", so we hit it off instantly there. Really, it  was  kind
of a magical thing that doesn't happen  between  bands  normally;  we
became brothers right off the bat -- right from the first day!"
     The band's self-titled debut for SPV is a wicked combination  of
heavy-duty '70s guitars, breathtaking choruses and some of the finest
melodic vocal stylings to hit metal in some time. Kursch and Schaffer
have taken their talents from their current  bands  and  etched  them
into D&W, but still set out to  bring  something  new  to  the  metal
genre.
     Together, the  imaginative  magic  between  these  two  uncommon
individuals confidently exhibits  itself  on  no  better  place  than
"Fiddler on the Green" and "Winter of  Souls".  "I  just  wrote  that
music [for "Fiddler on the Green"] and sent it  over  to  Hansi.  The
whole concept is his and it's based on a true story", Jon elaborates.
"[Hansi] was out walking his dog and he saw a little boy  get  killed
on a bicycle -- hit by a car. Well, it happened again,  like  a  week
later -- same spot, same place in his neighborhood in a  place  where
something like that would never happen. Over in Germany, the  Fiddler
is like what we call the Reaper." Sounds like the  Demons  &  Wizards
album cover, wouldn't you agree? In  summary,  the  Fiddler  makes  a
mistake and takes  this  little  boy's  life  too  soon.  Thusly,  he
promised the boy he'll create this paradise for him. The girl in this
scenario would have been this little boy's future wife, so  the  deal
is that the Fiddle makes a heaven  for  this  pair  as  part  of  the
bargain. In case you were wondering, this is Jon Schaffer's  favorite
track.
     ""Winter of Souls" goes back to 1986 or  something.  I  stumbled
across it and added one new section, the clean  bridge  part  towards
the end; then it kicks up  and  gets  heavy,  that's  new",  Schaffer
illustrates with his typical insight. "Hansi liked it  a  lot  and  I
like the vocal melodies he came up with. In  addition,  he  lyrically
based it on the King Arthur and Mordred thing."
     About his songwriting style and approach to  the  D&W  material,
Kursch says: "I find the material of D&W a  lot  darker.  The  topics
range from weird fairy tales, bizarre dreams and fictional ideas,  to
life experiences. A lot of the stuff is more brutal that most of  the
stuff I would normally be doing with Blind Guardian. It was great  to
break away from a type of mold here", admits Kursch. "The  thrill  of
making music was awesome. The best part was the whole spontaneity  of
things."
     But what about those who  are  calling  the  new  D&W  record  a
meshing of Iced Earth and Blind Guardian styles? Kursch answers:  "We
never considered to do anything in between our bands' music or  go  a
certain direction with the D&W sound. Jon can't deny his  songwriting
style and I have a very identifiable vocal style. While it may be  an
amalgamation of us creatively, I still hear something new  with  what
we are doing."
     The last three songs are a trilogy, right? "Yea! And I can't  be
blamed for it", Schaffer  jokes  good-naturedly.  "Everybody's  like,
"Schaffer did another trilogy". It's not the case  this  time."  This
Dante-esque,   near-_Stormrider_   abstraction   is   a   wonder   of
de-evolution as a gnome takes a human through a losing faith scenario
as it ranges from Creation to Revelation. Jon concludes: "I like dark
stuff, man."
     Many great things  are  in  store  for  this  praiseworthy  band
collaboration. Kursch finishes: "I hope that people who listen to the
record two or three times will come to the conclusion that this isn't
a straight copy of Iced Earth or Blind Guardian. It is  a  whole  new
experience, and an exciting one at that."

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        A   C Y N I C A L   E A S T E R N   G A T H E R I N G
        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
              CoC interviews Santiago Dobles from Aghora
                           by: Paul Schwarz


Let's note that cynical is present here in  its  ancient  use:  as  a
means to  achieve  virtue.  Aghora  are  no  depressive,  frustrated,
baggy-pants metal brat  pack,  nor  some  violently  thrashing  death
troupe; they have both a positive outlook and a wide-ranging  musical
scope. Aghora also have the talents of Sean Malone and  Sean  Reinert
(Gordian Knot and ex-Cynic bassist and drummer respectively)  filling
their rhythm section, and a female  vocalist,  Danishta  Riviera,  on
vocal duties. When one adds the guitar playing  of  Charlie  Ekendahl
and Santiago Dobles (who is  also  the  band's  central  figure)  the
result is a  progressive,  eastern-tinged  but  defiantly  riff-laden
journey which has proved to be one of  the  few  truly  original  and
creatively unrestrained releases I have heard in recent years. Aghora
really are on to something different  with  their  self-titled  debut
release [CoC #47]. I caught up with Santiago Dobles to discover  from
where this technical and unusual outfit has emerged, how things  came
together for them, and where they might hopefully be taking music and
people in the future.

CoC: How would you describe the style of music  of  your  self-titled
     debut album?

Santiago Dobles: It's hard to really describe, but  to  me  its  like
                 putting World music, fusion and metal in  a  blender
                 and creating a  balanced  concoction.  I  think  the
                 style is actually something new.

CoC: It would be fair, I  think,  to  say  that  there  is  a  strong
     influence of prog-rock/metal (with  elements  of  jazz)  running
     through your music. Why did you choose to combine female  vocals
     with  the  this  rather  technical  and  somewhat   instrumental
     tapestry?

SD: It was what I was hearing in my head. I was fascinated  with  the
    idea of trying to fuse all the elements I listened  to  into  one
    sound. Danishta, to me, has a wonderful voice. Her tone  is  very
    sincere and angelic-like.

CoC: Whom would you say are influences for  you  as  a  player?  What
     records  would  you  say  have  most  influenced  the  style  of
     _Aghora_?

SD: I am very influenced by Allan Holdsworth. He completely leaves me
    mesmerized. I am also always inspired by Steve Vai, Frank  Zappa,
    Jason Becker, Brett Garsed and Greg Howe.  As  for  the  _Aghora_
    sound, these following albums had a deep impact: Cynic's  _Focus_
    and  the  later  _Portal_  and  _Aeon  Spoke_  demos,  Mahavishnu
    Orchestra's _Visions of the Emerald Beyond_ and  _Inner  Mounting
    Flame_,  Shakti,  Tool's  _Aenima_,  Meshuggah's  _Destroy  Erase
    Improve_, Peter  Gabriel's  _Passion_,  Bjork's  _Post_,  Alanis'
    _Jagged Little Pill_, _Supposed  Infatuation  Junkie_,  Dead  Can
    Dance's _Aeon_, Steve Vai's _Passion and Warfare_.

CoC: Are Aghora spawned of a "scene" of similar music?

SD: No, unfortunately the legendary metal scene of south  Florida  no
    longer exists in the way that it used to. Aghora is  spawned  out
    of the lack of a scene and out of every artist that has  inspired
    us.

CoC: How did you first come into contact with Sean  Malone  and  Sean
     Reinert of Gordian Knot / Cynic and how did you come to use them
     as your rhythm section?

SD: I met the entire band [Cynic] when they performed live  in  Miami
    to support the _Focus_ album. This was back in 1994. Afterwards I
    began taking guitar lessons from Paul [Masvidal]. As time went by
    I made friendships with all of them. They are all incredibly cool
    people. I pretty much stayed in contact with Paul and the rest of
    the band. After Paul left to California, I began  to  communicate
    more with Sean Reinert. At that time I  was  writing  music  that
    would later be used for Aghora and I needed to  form  a  band.  I
    asked Sean if he wanted to play drums. He listened to  the  music
    and showed interest in developing what later  became  Aghora.  As
    for Malone, things with our original bassist didn't work out;  so
    Sean and I both suggested to each other to contact Malone and see
    if he would be interested to join. I called him in Oregon, and he
    said it would be an honor. Of course it's been a dream come  true
    for me to work with both Sean Reinert and Sean Malone.  Not  only
    are they amazing musicians, they are truly  unique  and  down  to
    earth people.

CoC: How  much  did  Sean  Malone  and  Sean  Reinert  contribute  to
     _Aghora_?

SD: Sean Reinert and I have had more time to play together than  with
    Sean Malone. Reinert has been contributing to Aghora since  1997.
    I have always given him  the  freedom  to  be  the  backbone  for
    Aghora. In my opinion, he is the one that sets the vibe  and  the
    power. For the album, Reinert had a lot to do with the  feel  and
    helped in making the songs come alive.  He  added  the  dynamics.
    Also he helped with writing "Jivatma" and "Anugraha". As for Sean
    Malone, he came into the band in the second week of recording the
    album. I sent him charts in Oregon along with basic tracks of the
    album and demos. In less than three weeks he  learned  the  album
    and created his bass parts. His bass parts completely filled  the
    vibe missing in Aghora. Sean has such a unique style and  control
    over his instrument and expression. When  he  was  recording  the
    album I was very  confident  that  his  contribution  would  turn
    Aghora into something higher or more evolved. He came down during
    the mix down sessions and helped mix down and produce four songs.
    He has an incredible talent both as a musician and as a  creative
    force in the studio.

CoC: How did Aghora come together as a band and when?

SD: I always had the idea to form a group where together everyone was
    extremely tight and yet as individuals everyone would shine.  The
    idea to create this band was cultivated  while  I  was  attending
    school in Berkley in 1995. At  that  time,  I  was  beginning  to
    sketch ideas which later evolved into  music  for  the  band.  It
    wasn't until I moved back to Miami in 1997 that the band became a
    reality. Originally the  band  consisted  of  Charlie  on  rhythm
    guitar, my sister Danishta on vocals, Andy  Deluca  on  bass  and
    Sean on drums. Because Andy lives in  Chicago  and  everyone  was
    extremely busy with school, our rehearsals were limited. While we
    recorded the '98 demos we got to rehearse only once. For the  '99
    demos, we had to rely totally on faith  in  each  member  because
    rehearsal time was non-existent. At that time, Sean Reinert moved
    to Los Angeles, so we only saw each other a  few  times  in  that
    year. When the opportunity came to work on the album  we  had  to
    hurry and prepare everything for  the  recording  sessions.  Sean
    came back to Miami for rehearsals. At this  time,  things  didn't
    work out for us with Andy and we parted ways with him. Two  weeks
    into the recording of the album during  the  summer  of  '99,  we
    asked Sean Malone to  join  the  band.  His  entrance  definitely
    helped Aghora evolve towards the direction we wanted to go. In my
    opinion the band started to sound like a band and  come  together
    while we were creating the album.

CoC: In writing the music for _Aghora_, were tunes penned by you  and
     brought before the band in a mostly-finished  format  or  is  it
     primarily a project based around jamming and improvisation  like
     much jazz, for example, is?

SD: Basically, I tried to give the band a very complete "rough draft"
    of the songs. It's a bit of a long process, but I think it  helps
    to have some form of foundation before you actually  make  things
    "final draft". The  album  is  very  structured.  The  music  was
    composed for the  musicians  involved.  Most  of  the  music  was
    written between 1997  and  1999.  After  I  completed  the  basic
    structure of the songs, I  would  sequence  them  with  MIDI  and
    record a demo with guitar parts and melodies. After this  process
    I'd give the band their copy of a demo and  charts.  I  then  had
    them mould their sound and style  into  the  music.  After  that,
    Charlie, Danishta, Sean Reinert and I would rehearse it  and  get
    it ready for the studio. Most of the parts stayed  the  same  but
    some things ended up coming out more and feel more alive. It ends
    up getting the band's sound. This was basically  the  process  we
    used for recording the album and our demos. Sean  Reinert  and  I
    would rehearse together to bring the dynamics out and to get  the
    overall feel right. The only songs that were based around jamming
    where "Jivatma" and "Anugraha". For these two songs we  wanted  a
    breath of fresh  air  to  the  album.  "Jivatma"  was  completely
    improvised. We wanted something different from every other song.

CoC: What is the lyrical focus of _Aghora_? I notice elements of what
     I think is Hinduism and certainly a focus on "the divine".

SD: The whole album has an underlying message of  looking  within  or
    "unplugging from the matrix".  Ever  since  I  got  into  eastern
    philosophy  I   began   to   think   and   desire   a   goal   of
    self-realization, detachment and  compassion  towards  everybody.
    It's difficult now to be a "detached" person  because  we  easily
    get caught up in things that keep us within the "Veil of Maya" or
    the "Matrix". Every human being has the  potential  to  do  great
    things. So my idea was to present a  message  of  positivity  and
    self-discovery  based  both  on  philosophies  and  on   personal
    experiences.

CoC: Are the lyrics of Aghora important or are they  merely  to  give
     backing to the music and a wider scope for audience  acceptance;
     could Aghora have been an instrumental project?

SD: The music and lyrics are very  important  to  the  whole  picture
    because they give you the imagery and feel for  the  struggle  we
    constantly battle against our own Ego. I don't think Aghora could
    have been an instrumental project. It wouldn't seem right without
    Danishta's voice and the lyrics.

CoC: What do you consider "capturing the individual  soul  of  music"
     (as you credit Shakti and the Mahavishnu Orchestra  with  doing)
     to be, and do you think you have achieved it? Is it your aim  to
     achieve it?

SD: Well, I think it means to capture your self within  a  moment  of
    true expression. Bands that inspire me such as Allan  Holdsworth,
    Frank Zappa, Shakti and  Mahavishnu  Orchestra  relied  heavy  on
    improvisation and being in the now. It's as  if  they  channel  a
    higher state through their instruments. You can hear it on albums
    like _Shakti_, _Shut Up &  Play  Your  Guitar_,  _Inner  Mounting
    Flame_. To me it represents the idea of life. You have to  always
    be in the moment. I don't think being in the moment  is  a  state
    that can be mastered, but  it  can  definitely  be  achieved  and
    experienced. I think on  songs  like  "Jivatma"  and  "Existence"
    Aghora experienced those magical moments of being eternal in  the
    moment. "Jivatma" is full of this feel. It reminds me of a modern
    day raga from India. You can also experience the soul captured in
    Sean's drum solo in "Existence". In my  opinion  it's  a  classic
    moment of true  expression.  We  hope  to  go  deeper  into  this
    "experience" in the next album. We found out later that Aghora in
    Portuguese means "now". It's an interesting coincidence with  the
    vibe we wanted. [In  fact,  the  Portuguese  word  for  "now"  is
    spelled "agora" and not "aghora". -- Pedro]

CoC: Why do you create the music of Aghora? (E.g. success,  your  own
     musical fulfilment, to bring a message to the world, etc..)

SD: There is always the want to satisfy your musical thirst.  I  have
    been  very  dissatisfied  with  the   heavy   community   because
    everything nowadays tends to sound the same and has  no  inherent
    value to it. I wanted to compose what I hear in my head. I wanted
    something that satisfied my thirst musically. As for the message,
    I think a lot of music today tends to be very negative and  gives
    of a very violent message. I don't think there is anything  wrong
    with aggression or raw  power,  but  I  do  think  it  should  be
    harnessed and sublimated to a higher state. That type  of  energy
    can have a strong impact on kids if it is fused with intelligence
    and something positive. We didn't want any negativity around  the
    music. I think it's time for people to somehow uplift  themselves
    and begin to find ways to  evolve.  If  Aghora  makes  some  kids
    somewhere in the world think and open new doors  to  things  like
    philosophy and evolution within the arts, you will have a  higher
    resonating consciousness  moving  towards  great  potential.  And
    before you know it, a "new" scene will arise.

CoC: Why did you decide to put out your debut record on your own  (or
     your brother's?) label? Did you try to get a record deal through
     normal channels?

SD: My father has been supporting our efforts since day one. Together
    out of frustration we established Dobles Productions in order  to
    secure the rights  of  the  band  and  not  get  screwed  by  the
    industry. We grew tired of waiting around for  labels  to  simply
    play around with us. A lot of labels either wanted to exploit our
    creativity or simply wanted to change our  ideas.  We  wanted  to
    stay true to ourselves and maintain integrity in our work. A  lot
    of labels turned us down because they  felt  the  vocals  weren't
    "metal"  enough  for  the  heavy  labels  and  the  music  wasn't
    "progressive"  enough  for  the  prog  labels.  They  would  also
    complain  because  the  lyrics'  message  hints  towards  eastern
    thought. Some even went as far as to say that the message of  the
    lyrics is religiously controversial and  offensive  to  Christian
    beliefs. They all came back telling us they would  be  risking  a
    release that was so different  from  everything  else  they  have
    released. It seems they are afraid of  change  or  anything  new.
    Everything has to sound like  something  that  has  already  been
    done. It's almost as  if  they  set  the  standards  on  what  is
    considered "good" in the scene. So they are the ones  that  start
    the trends and keep up the cliches  that  end  up  polluting  the
    industry for good artists.

CoC: Is there a meaning or a  connotation  to  be  derived  from  the
     rather understated artwork and presentation  (grey  is  not  the
     most striking of colours...) of the _Aghora_ CD; does it give  a
     message of some sort?

SD: There is no hidden meaning, we just wanted a simple album  cover.
    We wanted this album to be as organic  as  possible.  The  entire
    album has a rawness to it that seems as if the  band  is  in  the
    same room with you while you listen to it. This is what we wanted
    to achieve.

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            S C A N D I N A V I A N   D O M I N A T I O N
            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
               CoC interviews K-2t4-s of ...And Oceans
                          by: Adam Wasylyk


     Finland is quickly becoming the hottest place in Scandinavia  to
hear metal music that's brutal, melodic, and challenging.  Already  a
healthy scene with mainstays such as Impaled Nazarene, Sentenced  and
Amorphis, a younger crop of bands are making sure  to  carry  on  the
country's proud tradition of creating music worthy for  the  ears  of
metal fans worldwide. While many of the elder bands  in  Norway,  for
instance, find themselves in a transition state  --  maturing  beyond
their roots -- Finland's young and upcoming acts find themselves with
an excess of aggression  and  the  compulsion  to  purge.  A  classic
example is ...And Oceans, whose second album _The Symmetry of I,  the
Circle Of O_ (on Season Of Mist)  [CoC  #44]  combines  great  riffs,
strong harmonies, harsh blastbeats and powerful vocals. It must be in
the water or something, as this part of the world is creating some of
the most creative and innovative metal presently.  And  don't  expect
things to change anytime soon.
     Vocalist and  co-creator  K-2t4-s  picks  up  the  story  as  he
explains his thoughts and feelings on _The Symmetry..._:  "The  album
was recorded at Tico-Tico Studio here in Finland", he begins. "It was
released as a double digipak with a bonus disc containing ambient
material which was spontaneously created in the studio,  in  addition
with just a normal jewel case with the regular metal CD.  Overall  we
are still  pretty  satisfied  with  the  material  and  our  previous
releases, but of course there are  things  that  could've  been  more
properly done. One can never be too satisfied by one's own  material,
and that's the  reason  why  one  keeps  releasing  and  making  more
material. I think the new album will be more like a well-done  [piece
of] beef compared to the half-raw beef _The Symmetry..._."
     Getting  a  little  more  in-depth,   K-2t4-s   mentioned   what
originally spawned the idea for this ambient creative  outburst,  and
what additional bands were  involved.  "The  idea  came  long  before
entering the studio. Originally there were two bands,  Puissance  and
Tiermes. Puissance did their job, but  Tiermes  were  too  busy  with
their minds that they didn't have the time to finish their track.  We
just wanted to add some special atmospheres to the  album  and  these
bands in question would've contributed by doing some material for us.
Both bands are also very different to each  other  and  therefore  it
would have suited the concept perfectly."
     So will you continue to create that sort of music in the future?
     "I don't think we will continue creating that much ambient  type
of music for our next release 'cause it  got  a  bit  monotonous  and
boring. Nothing  against  monotonous  music,  but  we  just  want  to
constantly move on instead of suffering from stagnation."
     With The _Symmetry of I, the Circle of O_ being  ...And  Oceans'
sophomore album, I made sure to ask about their debut album, entitled
_The Dynamic Gallery of Thoughts_ [CoC #33]. "Well, we are  not  that
satisfied with the previous  material,  but  I  guess  that's  pretty
normal", the frontman honestly states. "There are so many things that
could've been done differently in the past. Some things are better on
the debut album, but musically and  lyrically  _The  Symmetry..._  is
much better; it's more personal and colorful. I guess the debut album
was an OK release -- nothing more, nothing less."
     He also discussed the band's first  recording  --  a  1995  demo
entitled _Wave_ -- along with their first official demo,  which  will
soon be re-released. "The _Wave_ demo was  an  unofficial  demo  tape
which was more technical  and  sounded  more  death  metal  than  the
material released after that particular tape. I don't think  we  will
ever release it on CD, even if the sound quality is  damn  good.  The
first official demo, _Mare Liberum_, will be  pressed  on  CD  before
Fall and released by the Italian label Nocturnal Music. The  demo  CD
will also contain five live tracks from our European tour."
     Our conversation turned back to _The Symmetry..._, in which  the
first-time listener is confronted by a tracklisting with titles  like
"Acid Sex and Marble Teeth" and "I Wish I Was Pregnant". So I had  to
ask, what exactly is going on here lyrically?
     "The track titles should be seen as different sides of the  same
coin and as different coin of the same sides, if you prefer",  begins
the rather perplexing explanation. "Physical phrases are combinations
of letters and numbers modified into codes in our mental  vortex  and
[your] individual interpretation and comprehension is the  energy  of
systematic thinking. Man is divided [into] mental sides, like a  coin
in its physical existence, and therefore the energy is visualized one
way or the other, stronger or  weaker  depending  on  the  person  in
question. Actually, I don't think it makes a difference which side is
stronger 'cause both are naive and affected by conservative  rituals,
but they still do compensate each other. The semantic aspects of  the
written lines are as black as they are white, but yet  they  stay  on
the personal level. I stand behind the lyrical curtain, but  it's  up
to the listener to decide what the deeper  semantic  construction  is
all about. I don't want to affect anybody particularly,  'cause  it's
always better for the listener  to  construct  his  own  surrealistic
mindworld into something suitable for him  and  his  mind.  Find  the
oppositions 'cause contradictions  can  be  constructive."  Hmm...  I
think I got it...
     The oddly named vocalist also commented on  the  upcoming  movie
the band are working on, and all of the work that has  gone  into  it
thus far. "Actually, it was planned to be more like  a  short  movie,
about 12 to 15 minutes long, containing two ambient  tracks  and  one
metal track. The material has been shot with three different cameras,
one 8mm, one 16mm and one security camera, and of  course  everything
is black and white with some moments containing excessive light.  The
screen will be divided in at least two separate  pictures,  depending
on where we can edit the film, and with different topics  rolling  on
at the same time. We've got about 13 hours of material, but we  still
have to go through the whole material, do the  cutting  and  editing.
It's very time demanding, but we're working on it and hopefully we'll
get it finished sometime this year. The head man behind  the  cameras
has done a lot of short movies and won some cultural prizes  for  his
work, but he is very busy with his own job and is  often  abroad,  so
we'll just have to wait for the right  moment  before  finishing  the
movie. Maybe we will take the tracks from our next album  instead  of
_The Symmetry..._ 'cause those tracks seem a bit old and  boring  for
our current existence."
     ...And Oceans is composed of six musicians  (guitarists  Neptune
and de Monde, vocalist K-2t4-s, bassist Gaunt,  keyboardist  Anzhaar,
and Grief  on  drums)  who  find  themselves  involved  with  several
different bands in the Finnish  metal  scene.  Speaking  about  this,
K-2t4-s states: "Some of our members are involved in different bands,
but they are not project bands. They were all  formed  before  ...And
Oceans, but due  to  the  fact  that  it's  very  difficult  to  find
competent and interesting members around this neighbourhood. Our bass
player, drummer and keyboard player are   part  of  Black  Dawn,  who
recently recorded  their  debut  album  on  Necropolis  Records.  Our
drummer is  also  part  of  Enochian  Crescent,  who  are  signed  to
Avantgarde Music; and our bass player is part of Rotten Sound,  which
is also signed to Necropolis Records. All bands are important for the
members, and there's no sort of competition between the bands."
     I concluded by congratulating him and the band  for  signing  to
Century Media, and asked how that deal came about,  along  with  what
the current status of the band is. "We  just  sent  over  some  promo
packages to several labels in order  to  gain  knowledge  about  what
different labels thought about us. Several  labels  showed  interest,
but as Century Media seemed like a great label we  thought  we  could
move on and sign a contract with them. We  haven't  really  discussed
any details about tours or anything yet, because we  have  a  lot  of
stuff to do with our material at the moment. Hopefully we'll head out
for a tour later, but we'll see what happens after the release."
     And what about newly written material?
     "We have basically seven tracks completed for the next album and
I think we'll make two more before entering the studio in  September.
I think the new material is more  rhythmic  and  vibrating  than  the
previous material."

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      F O R   T H E   L O V E L E S S   L O N E L Y   L I V E S
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      CoC chats with Peter Poulsen and Thomas Jensen of Saturnus
                          by: Pedro Azevedo


Saturnus managed to make a significant  impression  within  the  doom
metal scene with  the  quality  melodic  doom/death  of  their  debut
_Paradise Belongs to You_. However, for me it was its successor,  the
very broken-hearted MCD titled _For the Loveless Lonely Nights_, that
most clearly proved there was something special about this band:  the
emotion was definitely there, both on the melodic  doom/death  tracks
and on the acoustic ones, supported by  well  above  average  musical
quality. The recently released full-length  follow-up  to  that  MCD,
_Martyre_ [reviewed in this issue], is another worthy effort  by  the
band, even though I have mixed feelings about a  few  of  its  songs.
Still, Saturnus, who started out as a melodic death  metal  band  and
then played what seems to have been a rather life-changing  gig  with
My Dying Bride, seem poised to maintain their place as one of today's
melodic, dark-romantic doom metal's highest  exponents.  Having  once
played with a choir inside a church and having been nominated for the
Danish equivalent to the Grammy awards  in  the  past  seemed  to  be
further subjects for interesting conversation; so  here  is  a  brief
e-mail chat with guitarist Peter Poulsen and vocalist Thomas Jensen.

CoC: You seem to have been somewhat influenced  by  My  Dying  Bride,
     with whom you played a gig in 1996. How influential was that  to
     your progression as a band?

Peter Poulsen: In the beginning of Saturnus we played  melodic  death
               metal, but the gig with My Dying Bride in 1996  opened
               our eyes to something  else  that  could  express  our
               music  better.  Maybe  that's  why   we   have   those
               influences from My Dying Bride.

CoC: These days, however, the evolution of your musical  style  tends
     to remind me more of the  kind  of  path  followed  by  Anathema
     towards a lighter and more melodic form of doom metal;  yet  you
     certainly have not forsaken the death  vox  on  _Martyre_.  Most
     bands, however, would probably say death vox  do  not  fit  well
     with the kind of melodic, broken-hearted  doom  you  play  --  I
     disagree and feel the death vox do suit your music very well. Do
     you think they will continue to be a part of your music  in  the
     future?

Thomas Jensen: As the years pass you evolve  from  what  you  started
               from, and will on your way maybe  end  up  in  another
               place, different from where  you  started.  Maybe  the
               death vox will stay. Maybe they  won't.  It's  all  in
               what you feel at the moment.

CoC: Where do you think your sound might evolve to next, emotion-wise
     and also as far as becoming  instrumentally  softer  or  heavier
     again?

PP: We can't say, for the time being. But  we're  creating  some  new
    material, and it will take us further on the  way  to  expressing
    ourselves in this particular moment in time. So it will still  be
    Saturnus again, just new!

CoC: Speaking of Anathema, you have now  included  a  new  half-sung,
     half-growled vocal style, somewhat reminiscent of  Darren  White
     [formerly of Anathema and The Blood Divine] but sometimes  maybe
     more "rocking", together with your death grunts and  clean  vox.
     Why did you decide to use this new vocal style in your music?

TJ: Because Darren White is my favourite singer!!

CoC: Can you tell us more about your 1997  concert  in  St.  Stefan's
     Church with a female choir? That's quite an unusual event for  a
     metal band...

PP: That is quite an unusual event for a metal band  indeed,  and  it
    caused quite  a  stir  in  the  Danish  church.  Klaus  Olsen,  a
    sound/picture artist, had been involved in an arrangement in  the
    church the previous year, and the  priestess,  Anne  Braad,  said
    that she, for long Friday  (you  know,  the  day  long  ago  when
    somebody was crucified to death), needed death and  destruction!!
    Klaus answered her: "I know a band that  I  guess  will  be  very
    interested!" And that's it.

CoC: Another thing which is rather unusual for metal bands is to  get
     nominated for national music awards, yet you were nominated  for
     Best Hard Rock Release of the Year for your  _For  the  Loveless
     Lonely Nights_ MCD in something that is supposed to be like  the
     Danish Grammy awards... How was it like? And, by the way...  who 
     won?
     
PP: It was great fun to be nominated for  the  Danish  Grammy  awards
    (free food and beer). It was the second time that the "best  hard
    rock" category was included in the show. We didn't win the award,
    but we won the party... so fuck the prize! Superfuzz (at the time
    an unreleased, unknown band... I guess they  stopped  playing  as
    well) won the award and we were very happy  on  their  account...
    bull...

CoC: You had Flemming Rasmussen, of Metallica fame, as your  producer
     for _Martyre_. What motivated that? Are you happy with his work?
     
PP: Mr. Flemming "Trainconductor" Rasmussen is a very gifted man  who
    knows his ways in every kind of music; and we  talked  about  the
    possibilities for havin' him doing the CD, contacted him  and  he
    was open and keen on doing the project with us.  It's  very  nice
    when you can work with a man you have been talking and  listening
    to all your childhood. We hope he's up for the next CD, which  we
    are at this time working hard on!

CoC: What about the album itself, how much of a  progression  do  you
     feel it was from your past releases? How satisfied are you  with 
     it?

PP: Of course there must be progression from one release to the next;
    you grow as a person and as a musician and you reflect about life
    as you grow with it. -We- are very satisfied with  _Martyre_,  it
    just couldn't be better!

CoC: Despite some changes, _Martyre_ carries on your darkly  romantic
     doom metal style. Do you think you can write, play or even enjoy
     such broken-hearted, gloomy music even if  you're  feeling  good
     and things are going well for you, or does  it  take  some  real
     feeling behind the music for you?

PP: As said before, we grow all the time and every particular  moment
    in your lives brings sadness and happiness with it. We  are  very
    happy people on the outside, but yet we cannot deprive  ourselves
    of the nothingness we grow in. The music and lyrics will stay sad
    with us.

CoC: What kinds of music does the band generally enjoy these days?
     
PP/TJ: We can only speak for ourselves.  In  comparison  it  will  be
       something like "mainstream rock",  metal  in  general,  pop...
       whatever;  we're  not  that  fixated  on   style,   names   or
       production, just as long as the music talks to us!

CoC: Is there anything  else  you'd  like  to  mention  to  end  this
     interview?

PP/TJ: Stay heavy and keep smiling... Saturnus is coming  to  a  town
       near you... and tell all your friends we're "nice" people...

Contact: http://www.saturnus.dk

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             T H E   F U T I L I T Y   O F   I T   A L L
             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
              CoC interviews Petri Eskelinen of Rapture
                          by: Pedro Azevedo


Rapture's remarkable debut _Futile_ [CoC #45] was one of 1999's  best
surprises: an emotionally gripping album, music drenched  in  sadness
and the sense of all-encompassing futility  indicated  by  the  album
title. It was, however, immediately labelled as Finland's  answer  to
Katatonia's _Brave Murder Day_, which is understandable but  also  an
unfair suggestion of lack  of  originality  that  the  band  did  not
deserve. Indeed, regardless of  eventual  similarities,  _Futile_  is
still an album that is very relevant. It was one of the highlights of
the year for me,  and  I  can't  wait  to  hear  its  successor.  The
following is an e-mail interview with vocalist Petri Eskelinen.

CoC: Quite a significant part of the doomiest bands around these days
     seem to  come  from  Finland  --  Rapture,  Unholy,  Skepticism,
     Dolorian, etc. --, more so than from other Scandinavian nations.
     What is it about Finland that you think might cause this?

Petri Eskelinen: I don't have the slightest idea. Could be the  long,
                 cold  winters.  Then  again,  we  have  the  highest
                 suicide rates in the world, I think. Finnish  people
                 are generally kind of introverted  and...  I  really
                 don't know, 'cause everybody tells me that  I'm  not
                 your  average  Finnish  bloke,  but  rather   really
                 extroverted and sociable.

CoC: What do you think of the Finnish metal  scene  in  general?  How
     does Rapture fit in it, what is it that you think can  make  you
     special?

PE: The Finnish metal scene... I really don't  know  if  there  is  a
    "scene" anymore. At least I haven't been involved in  it  anymore
    for a long time. We have some very, very good bands here, but  as
    far as the demo scene goes, I don't know. I don't  think  I  have
    the energy  to  be  interested  in  demo  bands  anymore,  unless
    somebody comes up to me and really  recommends  something.  About
    fitting in the scene, I don't quite understand what you  mean  by
    it, since I don't think there's too much of a scene to fit  into.
    [I was thinking of this "scene" as being formed by the bands that
    I mentioned in the previous question, amongst others. --Pedro] We
    just do our own thing to please ourselves. And what makes Rapture
    so special to me is that it's something I'm  deeply  a  part  of.
    Whatever makes it special to someone else, I really  can't  tell.
    That's something for each and every one to decide for himself.

CoC: Do you think there might be a chance that  Finnish  doom  became
     known more or less like Swedish death or  Norwegian  black  did,
     despite  the  obvious  differences  between  the  aforementioned
     Finnish bands? And would that be a good thing, in your opinion?

PE: Firstly, I don't feel we're that much a doom band. Secondly, doom
    will never be as big as black metal, 'cause it's far more extreme
    and hard to swallow  than  black  metal.  Plus,  there's  nothing
    "cool" in doom to scare your parents with. If doom were to become
    big or whatever, I couldn't care less. There would still be a lot
    of good bands to listen to.

CoC: What about Rapture, what makes you want to write and play  music
     as sombre and sad as _Futile_?

PE: Well, our guitar players write all our music, so  I'm  not  in  a
    position to say anything about that, but I guess they  only  want
    to express some of their own feelings through this kind of music.
    That's what I personally try to do when I'm writing lyrics.  This
    band is -- and I think I can safely speak for the whole band here
    -- an outlet for expressing emotions that would otherwise pile up
    and later come out in some unhealthy way. For me, it's a  way  to
    release depression, frustration, <place any human  feeling  here>
    and for example anger through words and music  together.  It's  a
    great feeling to have found people around you that can  put  into
    music the things you yourself put into words.

CoC: What feelings would you ideally like to induce in  the  listener
     with your music?

PE: Liking good music or art in any form is a matter of  relating  to
    what the musician/artist has tried to say. Well, not always,  but
    in most cases. I'm not trying  to  induce  any  feelings  in  our
    listeners. Whatever feeling you get from listening to Rapture  is
    fine by us. We play music only to satisfy our own need to  create
    and release some feelings from our inner selves.

CoC: To what degree do you feel you have achieved that with _Futile_?

PE: If I didn't play in Rapture, I'd be a fan,  I  guess...  I  think
    it's a good album and I do get the chills whenever  I  listen  to
    it.  I  guess  that's  a  good  indication  that  we've  achieved
    something, since we wrote it for ourselves. I've had people  come
    up to me and say that they've cried listening to the album, so...

CoC: How concerned are you with  all  the  criticism  about  _Futile_
     sounding a lot like Katatonia's _Brave Murder Day_? Will it be a
     priority for you in the  future  to  reach  a  more  distinctive
     sound, or are you more worried about just creating music  you're
     satisfied with?

PE: I don't care. I know that we're different than Katatonia  and  it
    will  most  definitely  not  be  a  priority  to  "reach  a  more
    distinctive sound" in the future. As  I  said  before,  we  write
    music that comes to us naturally  and  to  please  ourselves  and
    ourselves only.

CoC: What main changes can  we  expect  to  find  in  Rapture's  next
     release? Will you be treading a  similar  path  as  far  as  the
     emotions you express with your music?

PE: Oh yes, definitely. I still have some demons to  exorcize  and  I
    think the guys have their share of emotional  distress  as  well.
    Only time will tell... We write the kind of music that  comes  to
    us naturally, so it's impossible to say what will come  next.  Of
    course every band grows and evolves, but don't hold  your  breath
    expecting a pop record! <laughs> We will possibly  try  out  some
    more clean vocals and concentrate  a  bit  more  on  the  general
    atmosphere...

CoC: What are your plans for the near future? New album on the works?

PE: We're playing a show here in Helsinki on the 5th  of  August,  so
    we're rehearsing like hell at the moment. After the show, we will
    begin rehearsing some new songs and  continue  writing  more  new
    material. The new album will probably come out in late Summer  or
    Fall 2001.

CoC: Is there anything else you'd like to add to this interview?

PE: I guess all is said and all is done. Thank you for the  interview
    and sorry about the delay...

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        R E A S O N I N G   W I T H   T H E   H E R E T I C S
        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
          CoC interviews Mikael Andersson of Thy Primordial
                            by: Alvin Wee


     It's always sad to see how some quality bands in the underground
are neglected; especially one as promising as Thy Primordial. Perhaps
it's their lack of truly outstanding  innovation  in  an  overcrowded
scene. Or maybe the lack of promotion. Either way,  the  band  hasn't
been getting the attention they deserve -- not  from  the  fans,  and
even less so from the press.  Hoping  to  expose  the  work  of  this
underrated group, I summon Mikael Andersson -- axeman,  composer  and
spokesman for one of  Sweden's  most  underrated  acts  --  from  his
Northern lair for a quick "what's up" chat.
     Thy Primordial still haven't made  the  impact  one  would  have
expected from a young and talented, if not incredibly unique, outfit.
Despite having been released ages ago, little has been seen or  heard
of _At the World of Untrodden Wonder_, the band's third  album.  [CoC
#46] "_At the World..._ has been out for some time for sure. Almost a
year, I think." A case of poor  promotion,  perhaps?  "We  have  done
pretty much only interviews to promote the album.  But  nothing  else
other than that for promotion." In a scene where marketing speaks  as
loud as the music itself in securing the success of a band, the  work
of individual labels has become crucial in determining the outcome of
new releases. "I don't know about the rest of the world, but here  in
Sweden and most of Europe there has been almost no promotion  at  all
for _AtWoUW_; I saw an ad for it in Close Up  mag  [Sweden's  largest
metal publication -- Alvin] some time ago, but that's all I've seen."
I  suggest  that  working  with  Pulverised  Records   (the   premier
Singaporean label that introduced Amon Amarth to  the  world)  hasn't
been altogether favorable, but the Swede is quick to point out:  "The
promotion for _Where Only Seasons Mark the Paths of Time_  [CoC  #20]
was a lot better, at least in Europe. And otherwise I don't  see  any
big problems working with them, except for all the delays  that  have
cursed the band."
     Thy Primordial must have realized that taking up a contract with
an unrecognized, Asia-based label would be a gamble in its own right.
Delays would be inevitable, and promotion would no doubt be  inferior
to that of an Europe-based office.  So  how  did  their  relationship
begin? "They wrote to us asking  for  material.  We  then  sent  some
samples from each of our demos and promos. They liked what they heard
and sent us a contract for  three  releases,  which  we,  after  some
changes, decided to sign. What made us sign with  an  "exotic"  label
was that there was no other interest from any labels back then."
     With respect to the debut album, the  efforts  of  the  "exotic"
label proved respectable, to say the least. Advertisements sprung  up
in most major magazines worldwide, and while distribution  proved  to
be a stumbling block, the name of Thy Primordial made the rounds  for
a time.  Mikael  interjects,  "I  think  you  mean  the  _Where  Only
Seasons..._ album here. Which is -not- our debut album, although  the
first to be released." Which brings us to the most confusing part  of
the band's history: the debut album that wasn't.
     Most fans and  journalists  alike  took  their  maiden  release,
_Where Only Seasons Mark the Paths of Time_, as simply an  impressive
debut. But circulating in the underground, among the better informed,
were rumours of a little-known, unreleased album. It was  only  until
1998 that, without fanfare or explanation, _Under Iskall Troll  Mane_
surfaced on certain distro lists. An  obscure,  B&W  affair  of  1000
copies, hardly distributed and advertised less. Most of all, the  new
album wasn't on Pulverised Records as expected... "Pulverised was not
even a record label when we recorded that album. Back in '95 we  were
signed to this American label called Gothic Records. They faced a lot
of economic crises and it took them till '98 to  release  the  album.
Things got really messy for us, people thought that it  was  our  new
album. That is nothing we are pleased with, but there was nothing  we
could do about it. We tried to cancel the whole album as  it  doesn't
represent Thy Primordial today, but Gothic refused to listen, as they
saw a bright future for the label."
     Despite the lack of  sustained  interest  in  the  band,  Mikael
remains unfazed. One assumes the livelihoods  of  the  members  don't
rest solely on the success of the band. "No, we  don't  live  on  the
music. Music is a hobby for us. I work in a factory, Albrektsson  and
Nilsson study, Morth works  at  Sunlight  Studios  and  Isidor  walks
around unemployed (that lucky bastard)."
     While retaining  the  characteristic  melody  of  their  Swedish
roots, Thy Primordial has eschewed  the  traditional  technique-heavy
style of  their  countrymen.  Driven  by  an  almost  Norwegian-style
aggression and fury, the band's  ferocity  is  more  than  one  would
expect coming out of Sweden. "We  play  in  a  more  Norwegian  style
because we like the songs to be less melodic than  the  rest  of  the
bands from Sweden", Andersson  explains.  "Probably  because  me  and
Albrektsson, who are the main songwriters in the band, are more  into
that kind of style."
     _AtWoUW_ took the band to  greater  heights  of  complexity  and
aggression, yet there was no way to pinpoint any concrete  change  in
the songwriting. "The riffs are more worked out. And the material  is
a lot more aggressive on _AtWoUW_ for sure, Mikael states.  "When  we
did the _Where Only Seasons..._ album we  were  a  bit  stressed,  as
Pulverised needed a quick release from us. So  we  didn't  have  much
time to write new songs. Some of the songs on  _WOSMtPoT_  were  like
two years old already when we started recording. We  used  about  one
year for the songwriting for _AtWoUW_. Basically everything  feels  a
bit more worked through on _AtWoUW_."
     "We told Isidor that we would like him to change the vocals", he
continues, highlighting  another  major  change  in  the  music.  "We
thought that the way he screamed on _WOSMtPoT_ took down  the  energy
in the music. Also it shall be mentioned that we  used  only  English
lyrics on _AtWoUW_, which is a lot easier to sing  than  Swedish."  I
did like the Ihsahn-type shrieks that accompanied the  earlier  album
for the atmosphere it added, though. "We think Isidor's  new  way  of
singing is a lot better than the style  he  used  on  the  _WOSMtPoT_
album", he remarks, putting an end to the discussion.
     An alarming number of bands are treading a new  path;  Satyricon
and Dodheimsgard are just two of the many bands who  have  turned  to
electronic experimentation. Satyr  believes  that  the  inclusion  of
industrial/urban elements in  an  already  dark  musical  style  will
achieve an even more oppressive and inhuman effect: black  metal  for
the urban chaos, so to speak. "I have to agree  with  Mr.  Satyr.  If
such elements are used right, it makes the  music  more  brutal,  and
darker", Mikael opines. "Although it will -not- be  included  in  the
music of Thy Primordial for sure." I breathe a sigh of relief, and he
finishes: "But I think a lot of bands will use such stuff."
     So Thy  Primordial,  like  many  other  underground  bands,  are
sticklers for tradition.  But  do  they  see  themselves  progressing
anywhere in the future? "Of course I see a progression in the  band",
Mikael says emphatically. "Otherwise we would split up today. I don't
see any reason for doing the same shit again and again.  Today's  Thy
Primordial is a bit more controlled, but  still  brutal  enough.  You
will understand when you hear the forthcoming material." Indeed,  but
what does the man think of "holocaust metal" bands like  Marduk,  who
believe that melody only detracts from the hatred in the music? "Yes,
nice melodies take away the brutality of the music, but they also add
something new for the listeners. It might get  boring  to  listen  to
total chaos from beginning to end. So there I see a reason for  using
some nice parts. But not too many!!"
     The band's obsession with all  things  dark  and  depressing  is
clearly reflected  in  their  lyrics.  "Death  and  darkness  through
different forms --  that's  basically  the  concept  of  our  lyrics.
Albrektsson is the main lyric writer in the band, even if both myself
and Morth have added some over the years. We write our lyrics so  the
listeners can decipher them in their own way. To spread darkness  and
hatred is the goal of both lyrics and music. Misanthropy is a concept
which is often used in our lyrics for sure. I can't really get deeper
into it, as I leave most of the lyric writing to Albrektsson."
      Sensing a dead end in the topic, I turn the discussion over  to
music in general. New record labels have all but destroyed  the  demo
scene with  indiscriminate  contract  offers  to  new,  inexperienced
bands. I ask Andersson  if  he's  heard  anything  promising  in  the
underground lately. "No, I don't think I have  heard  a  single  demo
tape for years. I am not too up-to-date about the demo scene at  all.
Seems like most of the bands got signed before the demo was released.
I don't know how many Gothenburg bands got signed. I  stopped  buying
those types of records years ago", he  says,  and  I  couldn't  agree
more.
     New material has already been recorded for the  upcoming  album,
_The Heresy of an Age of Reason_ [reviewed in this  issue].  The  new
album boasts a cover done by Ola Larsson (who  also  did  the  _Where
Only Seasons..._ cover) and a superb Sunlight Studios production. "We
changed studio from _WOSMtPoT_ to _AtWoUW_ because  we  thought  (and
still think) that the old studio sucks. The guy who owns  Rolab  [the
_WOSMtPoT_ studio -- Alvin] is pretty good to deal with,  but  he  is
not too involved in the metal scene. We were actually the first metal
band to record in that studio. He doesn't  understand  the  music  at
all. In Sunlight the people at least understand what the hell you are
doing. Anyway, nowadays, as  Morth  works  at  Sunlight,  it  is  our
natural choice to record there. Good  price  and  plenty  of  comfort
while we're there. The sound is outstanding on this  upcoming  piece.
We hope people will enjoy  it!"  Listeners  can  be  sure  that  when
Pulverised does get around to releasing it, it'll be one  hell  of  a
ripper!

Contact: http://go.to/pulverised/
Contact: http://come.to/thyprim/

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                        G O R E   I S   F U N
                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                CoC interviews Killjoy of Necrophagia
                           by: Aaron McKay


The philosopher Lucretius (c. 95-52 BC) once expounded: "So far as it
goes, a small thing may give analogy of great things,  and  show  the
tracks of knowledge." Continuing in that vein of  thought,  Lucretius
persisted: "That fear of Acheron be sent packing which  troubles  the
life of man from its deepest depths, suffuses all with the  blackness
of death, and leaves no delight clean and pure." Doesn't that  simply
ooze images of Necrophagia? I especially enjoy the implication of the
first quote that thought processes behind pieces of a  larger  puzzle
can eventually become clear. That makes  me  think  that  the  mighty
_Black  Blood  Vomitorium_  is  only  the  tip  of  the  iceberg  for
Necrophagia's creative convictions and we  are  getting  to  see  the
whole thing as it evolves. To get a  closer  look,  read  on  as  the
authoritative Killjoy escorts us through his world  by  way  of  this
e-mail exchange.

CoC:  First  off,  congratulations  on  _Black   Blood   Vomitorium_!
     Incredibly  -heavy-  MCD,  Killjoy,  but  then  again  they  say
     dynamite comes in small packages, huh?!

Killjoy: Thanks. I think _BBV_ is by far our heaviest stuff thus far,
         but the sickest is yet to come. Halloween 2001...!!

CoC: My first exposure to Necrophagia was  years  ago  on  the  inlay
     sleeve  to  Death's  1988  release  _Leprosy_.  How   did   this
     association come about? Did Necrophagia and Death tour together?

K: No, we never toured together, but have  been  good  friends  since
   1983. Mantis/Death and Necrophagia started around the  same  time.
   We traded demos, shirts, etc. and have just kept in  contact  ever
   since. I hear Chuck is recovering quickly now -- great  news,  for
   sure!

CoC: I understand the first incarnation of the band began to  take  a
     different direction after the commanding _Season  of  the  Dead_
     release.

K: Yeah, those guys got way out of their heads. The stuff  they  were
   coming up with was like Scorpions and Queensryche. Arghhh!

CoC: I think you have currently enlisted the assistance of some major
     talent. How did Necrophagia come together as it is today?

K: It was  actually  our  guitar  player's  idea.  I  have  know  him
   ("Anton") and Wayne  for  a  long  while.  I  think  this  line-up
   completely crushes the old one!!

CoC: Kind of an eclectic group of Necrophagia songs on the Red Stream
     compilation disc, _To Live Is Ever to Be in Danger_. Thanks  for
     getting "Death Is Fun" on there. You were  responsible  for  the
     release's  title  too,  correct?  Were  you   happy   with   the
     compilation in general and specifically Necrophagia's other  two
     songs on there, "The Cross Burns Black" and  "It  Lives  in  the
     Woods"? "It Lives in the Woods" was inspired by "Evil Dead"  and
     is kind of a sequel to "Devil Eyes", right? Was there  a  reason
     that the band put "It Lives in the Woods" out  again  on  _Black
     Blood Vomitorium_?

K: The title was inspired by what Maniac did on  the  intro  to  "The
   Cross Burns Black". I like the songs on that release. At the  time
   it came out it represented Necrophagia past, present, and  future.
   "It Lives in the Woods" is indeed about "Evil Dead" and  a  sequel
   to "Ancient Slumber" from _Season of the Dead_. "Devil  Eyes"  was
   our cover of a Mercyful Fate song.

CoC: Someone political once said  to  William  F.  Buckley  (National
     Review) that they felt daunted by discussing politics  with  the
     "world's greatest debater". Well, I now know how that individual
     feels; only my question is posed to the world's biggest  fan  of
     horror... Probably my favorite film in the  genre  is  "Exorcist
     III". I know you sampled it on  track  one,  "Blood  Freak",  on
     _Holocausto de la Morte_, but what are your honest  thoughts  on
     the  movie  and  how  does  it  compare  to  some  of  the  more
     underground Van Bebber and Fulci films you are fond of?

K: I think "Exorcist III" is fucking brilliant. Very  disturbing  and
   one of the greatest modern horror films made, in my opinion.  It's
   a whole different style than what Fulci does. I turned Van  Bebber
   onto it, too; he loves it, as well. I won't sample anything unless
   I really like the film it comes from.

CoC: Speaking of _Holocausto de la Morte_, incredible  packaging  and
     artwork on that release. "Dr. Gore" Balun  was  responsible  for
     the painting, right? Did you and he work closely to tie  in  the
     concept so well with Necrophagia's undertakings?

K: Yes, we worked very closely on  that  cover.  Chas  is  great.  He
   understood exactly what we wanted on that cover -- a homage to the
   maestro, Lucio Fulci. Chas did an amazing  job,  for  sure.  Fulci
   lives!!

CoC: In my review of _Holocausto de la Morte_ in CoC  #38,  I  stated
     that: "Probably this writer's favorite aspect  on  this  effort,
     other   than    Necrophagia's    10-ton    style,    is    their
     more-than-adequate use of feedback  in  strategic  places.  This
     technique  is  brilliant  when  done   well,   and   exemplifies
     immaturity when done  otherwise.  The  latter  point  is  of  no
     concern to Necrophagia. I have heard few bands pull this  guitar
     approach off as effortlessly as  these  guys."  I  suppose  this
     should be more appropriately addressed to "Anton  Crowley",  but
     would you agree with my assessment, Killjoy?

K: Yea, "Anton" is totally responsible for that  stuff.  It  kind  of
   sets the mood at times. He is the master of the macabre  riff,  in
   my opinion. Wait till you hear the next record. Trust me!!

CoC: As if you aren't busy enough, I hear that the Eibon material  is
     coming along quite nicely and, in  fact,  you  have  recorded  a
     track, "Mirror Soul Jesus". Is  it  difficult  song-writing  and
     working over long distances due to Satyr,  Fenriz  and  Maniac's
     participation in the group? Any word yet on the  label  handling
     Eibon will be or still too early to say?

K: Eibon is progressing rather well now. Phil [Anselmo] and Satyr are
   finishing the writing on the current Pantera European  tour.  It's
   not really a problem with writing. Satyr came  over  for  a  while
   last year. We got together at Phil's house and did  some  writing.
   We hope to start recording in July and finish by year's  end.  I'm
   not sure what label yet. Probably Moonfog for Europe. Maniac is no
   longer in Eibon.

CoC: Touring. I hear rumblings that Necrophagia might take the  stage
     in Milwaukee this year at the MetalFest. True?

K: Well, we have spoken with them a lot about this, but unfortunately
   it all comes down to money. It isn't cheap to put on the  show  we
   want, plus our  travel  expenses,  etc..  So,  hopefully,  in  the
   future, but not this year.

CoC: Almost as an irrelevant aside,  do  you  remember  or  have  any
     thoughts on a band from awhile ago  called  Rigor  Mortis?  Mike
     Scaccia's old group before landing his Ministry guitar post.

K: Oh yea, of course I remember them. They had a major label  release
   and an EP. Cool stuff...

CoC: Killjoy, it has been a pleasure to conduct this  interview  with
     you. I wish the band much success and please wrap this dialog up
     in any way you would like!

K: Thanks for your support, Aaron. We truly appreciate it. Check  out
   our gore-drenched video!! Fulci lives...

Contact: http://www.necrophagia.com

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M A L E V O L E N T L Y   M A T E R I A L I Z E D   M A R T Y R D O M
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
             CoC interviews Karlos Kariano of Malevolence
                          by: Pedro Azevedo


Nowadays, Malevolence are simultaneously one of Portugal's  best  and
also most promising metal bands. Not only is their second full-length
_Martyrialized_ [CoC #46] more than able to make  an  impact  on  its
own, the band doesn't seem willing to settle for anything  less  than
highly ambitious achievements. Vocalist/guitarist Karlos Kariano  has
in the meantime started his own label, Maquiavel Music, through which
_Martyrialized_ was released,  and  recently  signed  the  remarkable
Polish band Lux Occulta. Indulge in Kariano's massive  answers  below
if you want to know more  details  about  Malevolence  and  Maquiavel
Music, and also find out how passionate Kariano is about his work.

CoC: I'm curious about the album title _Martyrialized_; what made you
     think of it?

Karlos Kariano: As you already know, our texts are just  spinning  in
                this useless hole in time. Upon  them  we  are  often
                trying to  expand  ideas  of  igniting  something  to
                perfectly  achieve  something  different,   something
                that's better than the present state of decline  that
                Humanity faces. So "Martyrialized", as a  name,  just
                arrives with the conceptual idea reflecting  that  we
                will never agree with the schemes  from  people  that
                always act as  if  they  were  supreme  or  flawless,
                because in fact  there  isn't  a  global  truth  upon
                mankind  and  no  one  shall  suffer  for  the   sins
                committed by others. We have just made the reunion of
                two interesting words to create the  full  conceptual
                idea for the album. So you  have  the  word  "martyr"
                united in accordance with the word "materialized"  to
                give the full martyrdom thematic approach. Even if we
                take some lyrical influences  from  both  Machiavelli
                and Immanuel Kant  upon  the  thematic  side  of  the
                album, we will never entirely agree  with  their  own
                thesis and formulas. I believe that both of them have
                made  a  huge  impact  upon  our   systematic   sound
                structures and  thematic  accomplishments,  but  that
                does not necessarily mean that  we  think  they  were
                perfect or even supreme compared to any  other  human
                form. It doesn't matter if it's just  another  writer
                or even a dissimulated human form that comes unto  my
                thematic and lyrical approach, I am  always  able  to
                create  my  inner  individual  approach   to   always
                construct  new  interesting  themes  and   conceptual
                works. Therefore, on _Martyrialized_ you will be able
                to sense our own inevitable collision course with all
                those Christian persevering performances that  people
                often take as true reality in  their  lives.  We  are
                just expressing that we are  the  opposition  to  the
                carnival of Christian madness. So  instead  of  being
                abandoned in bleeding faith and afflictive  penitence
                when the speech of the saviour (Christ) always sounds
                the same, we just prefer to be considered as the  new
                researchers of progressive  and  supreme  apocalyptic
                art. With the thematic side on  Malevolence  we  have
                always been trying to show people that  we  all  must
                unite our own efforts to get rid of the moral  raping
                madness that's infecting our living path.  That's  to
                say  that  we  need  to  constantly  battle  all  the
                tyrannical ideals upon the  carnival  of  morals  and
                politics that we have had  to  face  since  ancestral
                times, not only in Portugal but also  all  over  many
                other countries. At this point, in _Martyrialized_ we
                have expanded a conceptual  view  about  the  present
                state of Humanity's decline  in  general.  The  album
                becomes the perfect vehicle for  us  to  amplify  and
                bring   about    all    these    twisted    visionary
                accomplishments because on it  we  made  the  supreme
                reunion of all the biggest aspects that  we  consider
                of the highest martyrdom  of  our  own  existence  on
                Earth. We are just materializing on the album all the
                entities  which  have  been  previously  marked   and
                restricted by the laws of injustice, stealth  customs
                and  several  other  punishments.  We  are  currently
                living in a society that is extremely  dangerous  and
                often cruel  for  their  kind  fellow  creatures,  so
                _Martyrialized_ exposes to people in general that all
                those  entities  that  have   been   suffering   that
                treatment will enter an inevitable  collision  course
                with all the aspects of their  martyrdom.  Throughout
                the use of our individual reflection we might be able
                to start renouncing over and over the same codes  and
                models set by the  entire  segregating  community  we
                inhabit. Therefore, in conclusion, you  also  have  a
                fine phrase in the album  that  sums  up  the  entire
                concept when I say, ironically, that men teach men to
                kill their brother men. Just watch and listen to  the
                statement I make: "I send my brothers  to  teach  the
                brother men, I teach my brothers to kill the  brother
                men...",  upon  the  song  "A  Shining  Onslaught  of
                Tyranny" on the new effort, to get a glimpse of  that
                particular conceptual idea of the conceptual word you 
                asked me about.

CoC: I'm sure you must get this question all the time,  but  I  still
     have to  ask:  what  was  the  story  behind  the  recording  of
     _Martyrialized_ in the Fredman Studio in Gothenburg? That's  not
     very common for Portuguese bands.

KK: That's the main reason why we have recorded over  there,  if  you
    positively ask me. It looks like nowadays we are  a  bit  like  a
    non-standard metal act based in Portugal. We never  followed  the
    natural procedures that other Portuguese bands like to follow too
    much, and we have always  tried  to  improve  when  it  comes  to
    entertaining  and  pleasing  ourselves  in   terms   of   musical
    achievements. Fredman Studios were  a  very  natural  choice  for
    Malevolence after we decided to cancel the potential recording in
    the Abyss Studios, also in Sweden, with Peter  of  Hypocrisy.  We
    have opted for Fredman, but do not look at it  thinking  that  we
    made it just for the great role this studio has nowadays  in  the
    underground metal scene. If you ask me, I  will  tell  you  right
    away there's no great importance in having the name of the studio
    typed upon the band's promotional stuff. I am even against  using
    all those procedures just to get some extra exposure at  the  end
    of the day. When we decided to record in Fredman Studios the main
    intention was just to get a qualitatively perfect  sound  plus  a
    very powerful crystalline production above everything  else  that
    you might think. I know that nowadays  people  do  have  a  great
    syndrome to get all those famous studios and  producers  to  have
    half the work already done when it comes out  in  all  levels.  I
    also have to admit that the fact we have recorded  this  new  one
    over in those studios has helped us in some aspects as well,  but
    at the end of the day we were not even interested in the  methods
    used by that single producer in his own studio just because  he's
    actually one of the main gurus in the recording scene. Of  course
    it was a phenomenal experience to record in such  a  great  place
    like Fredman Studios with the support of  Fredrik  Nordstrom  and
    Anders Friden of  In  Flames,  but  I  guess  all  that  is  just
    secondary for us. This new recording was way  more  relaxing  and
    even faster than when we recorded _Dominium_ unto all thy levels.
    As we have made some mistakes in the previous  recording  of  our
    musical creations, this time we just decided that we had to get a
    professional studio with a professional sound engineer that could
    also make a final powerful mixing of all the ideas we were  going
    to record for _Martyrialized_. In a way, this  was  certainly  an
    unusual task to accomplish for a Portuguese  band,  but  we  will
    keep proceeding like that in the future,  since  in  Portugal  we
    might have good studios as well, but there's a great lack of good
    sound engineers and mixing technicians to help  you  achieve  the
    final perfect recording result that you have in mind.

CoC: Did you enjoy working with  Fredrik  Nordstrom  and  In  Flames'
     Anders Friden there at Fredman Studio? Is the  final  result  as
     good as you expected?

KK:  From  my  point  of  view,  I  think  this  recording  was  just
    phenomenal,  if  I  have  to  compare  it  to  all  the  previous
    recordings that we made for the  demo  and  also  for  the  debut
    album. Initially we had fifteen days to record the new album  and
    I can assure you that on the seventh day we had almost everything
    completed down there as well.  The  recording,  the  mixing,  the
    production and the final mastering have  worked  perfectly  well,
    because to some extent we had already made all the pre-production
    of  all  the  individual  tracks  by  ourselves  before  we  left
    Portugal. We all knew in advance the  ideas  that  we  wanted  to
    capture and put in practice over there for the final result. What
    mainly made us focus on recording the album  in  that  particular
    studio was that we had at least to have the chance for one single
    time in our lives to use the very same studio that a band like At
    the Gates has already used  in  the  past  to  capture  all  that
    aggressive smell that tastes so good all over  the  most  typical
    metal caterpillar albums assassinating men in general. We  needed
    that crystalline quality and  powerful  sound  from  the  Fredman
    Studios unto our audio bastardization in such  a  level  that  we
    ended up choosing that one as the perfect room to record all  our
    annihilating production, as opposed to the  raw  production  idea
    from the Abyss Studios. This time we were not only looking for  a
    satisfying result like we did for the _Dominium_  recordings,  as
    we also thought that  way  in  the  past  and  now  there's  many
    elements that we would  have  liked  to  change  in  the  initial
    recording. We were just looking for the highest and final perfect
    result in order to also live with the album in the future without
    even wanting to change anything. After  seven  months  since  the
    album was released we still feel the same level  of  passion  for
    all the songs gathered there, so we  definitely  made  the  right
    choice this time and we are very proud  of  this  record  on  all
    levels. The differences are evident, in our own  opinion  --  and
    _Martyrialized_ speaks for itself without need to resort  to  any
    external influences. Fredrik just made the final  mixing  of  the
    musical product and we think he did a  phenomenal  job.  I  still
    remember that Fredrik told us that we were a very  talented  band
    and that he was not expecting such a  professional,  tight  metal
    unit from Portugal to record over there. He told us that while we
    were just accomplishing the final  mixing  for  _Martyrialized_'s
    nine tracks. He also told us that he was more than surprised with
    our natural and powerful ability not to sound  Swedish  all  over
    our musical pores, as every goddamn band that goes there  strives
    only for that single purpose and achievement. I also remember his
    own words: "This material  sounds  really  good,  definitely  not
    Swedish, but that's also twice as good for you as a metal  band."
    Then when we were making the final mastering for  the  work  with
    Mr. Goran Finnberg -- who also mastered the works from In  Flames
    and Arch Enemy, among many others -- he  also  told  us  that  he
    found our musical approach very original and refreshing  compared
    to all the other stuff that he had already worked  with.  Believe
    me, man, we were the first ones to be caught by real surprise  by
    that and these really are their opinions and words; so everything
    worked perfectly between all the parts involved this time and  we
    are more than pleased with all of the final result.

CoC: I  suppose  recording  an  album  there  must  have  been  quite
     demanding  financially;  did  that  influence  the   fact   that
     _Martyrialized_ is only 30 minutes long?

KK: Yeah, that affirmation might be right, but that had nothing to do
    with  the  actual   length   we   decided   to   accomplish   for
    _Martyrialized_. It might sound strange to you, but be sure  that
    since we started the promotion  of  this  brand  new  devastating
    full-length album people have been systematically approaching  us
    with questions similar to yours. So at this point I guess I  have
    to take that observation of  yours  as  another  fine  compliment
    towards our musical art instead of narrow-minded  criticism.  [My
    opinion on that subject can be found in CoC #46. -- Pedro] If you
    ask me, it's more than great to know that in fact  we  have  been
    able to drive away so many people this time as we also  had  that
    purpose among our ideas  when  we  started  to  develop  all  the
    musical themes and structures for this new album. That's  one  of
    the main rules that make us move, actually. We just love to shock
    people just for the individual pleasure. I guess if the album  is
    only 30 minutes long, that's  also  twice  as  good  in  our  own
    opinion. We have in fact recorded two more songs  in  the  studio
    that could have been in the album, but the whole idea we had  was
    just the creation of a  shorter  one  in  order  to  create  that
    dependency over pissed off people who will always find the  album
    shorter than many others out there.  We  hadn't  released  a  new
    album for almost three years, so we positively had to  come  back
    twice as aggressive as possible, if you understand what  I  mean.
    If you ask me, at the end of the day, whether this  was  done  on
    purpose for this new full-length effort, then  I  have  to  reply
    with a positive answer, as we just wanted to be able to achieve a
    very short but mighty album on all levels  with  _Martyrialized_.
    We were able to do just that, as you are not the first one to ask
    us this question. Many people really react like you and say  that
    the album could have been longer, to some extent. Anyway,  we  do
    think that those 30 minutes of sonic mayhem are more than  enough
    to make the conceptual idea that we initially had  in  mind.  You
    will be haunted by a caterpillar-like rhythmic  section  full  of
    original and intense ideas during those 30 minutes, and when  you
    get to the end of the album you will feel an urgent necessity  to
    press the play button once again, as you are so marvelled by  all
    that's going on that you don't want  to  stop  the  sonic  mayhem
    addiction that the album possesses on all  levels.  Some  of  the
    best metal albums out there, in  my  opinion,  like  for  example
    Slayer's _Reign in Blood_,  Deicide's  _Legion_,  At  the  Gates'
    _Slaughter of the Soul_, Vader's _Black to the  Blind_,  or  even
    the new album from Hate Eternal, _Conquering  the  Throne_,  also
    had that impact on us and are actually some of the jewels of  the
    extreme metal scene. So why would we try  to  expand  the  albums
    sometimes a bit longer when  with  30  to  32  minutes  you  have
    already accomplished all the ideas that  you  had  in  mind  with
    strong effects in general all over the masses? It's always better
    to have 30 phenomenal minutes of pleasure than 45 or even more of
    boredom and disgusting musical approach, in my  sincere  opinion.
    Besides that, we have managed to accomplish a very diverse  album
    in the end and we just want to allow our potential  listeners  to
    listen to the album more than only a few times, as they will also
    have the necessity to understand the album  with  a  couple  more
    listens than the first normal ones. This  is  an  album  full  of
    annihilating new elements, so  this  means  that  after  all  the
    attentive listening you will see that the album really  grows  on
    you, and that keeps it twice more interesting than  many  of  the
    long running albums that nowadays are  made  just  to  have  that
    schizophrenic depressive effect unto your mind.

CoC: How satisfied are you  with  _Martyrialized_?  [Retrospectively,
     looking at Kariano's previous answers,  I  wouldn't  have  asked
     this  had  this  been  a  real-time  interview.  Such  are   the
     shortcomings of e-mail... -- Pedro] Sales-wise, I've been  given
     numbers  around  the  8000  mark  for  sales,  which  is   quite
     impressive for a Portuguese band on a national label.

KK: All we have been achieving since the recording of the  new  album
    has been more than impressive unto all thy levels.  The  reaction
    to  our  new  full-length  effort  so  far  has  been  more  than
    phenomenal, both in terms of promotion and  distribution.  To  be
    honest with you, we were positively the first ones to  be  caught
    by surprise this time. I mean, we knew since the  very  beginning
    that we really had a very good and  twisted  accomplishment  upon
    our hands when we got out of the studio, but the idea that we had
    from the very first reactions really had nothing to do  with  all
    the major and amazing feedback that we have been receiving so far
    in terms of promotion and sales in general. In Portugal  we  were
    able to sell 1000 copies just in the very first weeks, and now we
    will soon be reaching  more  than  8500  copies  sold  worldwide,
    including three different licensing  deals  upon  countries  like
    Poland, Norway and Malaysia. So far it's been one full year since
    the release of the album and it  still  sells  very  well,  since
    there's still a great demand for it nowadays. I guess we are more
    than in the right path to duplicate the number of sales,  because
    there's definitely a lot of promotion to be done in the future as
    well. We will very soon also be reaching more than 750 interviews
    answered regarding the promotion for the record, and  believe  me
    because these are not fake numbers, as in fact I have been  dying
    to come up with the answers for them all since  we  also  started
    the promotion. We are mainly doing exclusive interviews for  many
    radio shows around the  world,  including  per  example  as  many
    diverse places as Canada, Australia,  France,  England,  Romania,
    Mexico, Chile, Spain, Holland,  Belgium  and  many  others.  What
    really surprises me at the end of the day is the fact  that  this
    time we have also been able to be included with  interesting  and
    deep interviews in some of  the  biggest  and  most  professional
    magazines  in  the  world,  including  for  instance  names  like
    Terrorizer, Hard  'n'  Heavy,  Legacy,  Nordic  Vision,  Grinder,
    Torment, Riff, Metal  Hammer,  The  Grimoire  of  Exalted  Deeds,
    Ancient Ceremonies, Oskorei, Imhotep, Thrash 'Em All, Necromance,
    Black Light, Masterful, and many others all around the globe.  At
    the time I am answering this one, you can be  sure  that  I  also
    have some more to answer soon. All of this  sounds  very  amazing
    and I am the one still not believing all these recent  happenings
    for sure. I am also more than surprised  with  the  name  we  are
    spreading at the same time for the label, as actually we  already
    have exclusive distribution in Portugal, Spain, France,  Germany,
    Poland,  England,  Holland,  Slovakia,  Greece,  Czech  Republic,
    Canada, Italy, Greece, Japan, Malaysia,  Singapore,  Scandinavia,
    Brazil, Russia, Belarus and  Chile.  Besides,  we  are  currently
    working towards also closing a couple more exclusive distribution
    deals in  some  other  countries  like  Australia,  Bulgaria  and
    Romania to mention just a few more. It's just  unbelievable  what
    we have been able to accomplish, all this recently  with  such  a
    new label as well as with our second full-length  album  so  far,
    metal brother Pedro. As the entire rejoinder in general has  been
    so great, we are already thinking of taking a  support  slot  for
    some bigger bands upon the end of 2000 on our possible first ever
    European tour.  We've  already  had  some  offers  to  make  some
    interesting ones with bands like Immolation or Behemoth,  but  we
    just want to do some more promotion in the meanwhile to see if in
    fact we can obtain an even bigger tour package at the end of  the
    day. As if all that was not yet enough, I can also  tell  you  in
    advance that lately we have also been receiving some  number  one
    positions in some radio play lists,  so  what  the  hell  can  we
    complain about this time when everything is going so  marvelously
    for the band on all levels besides the sales -- which are not the
    most important thing in music for me.

CoC: Do you feel the  success  of  other  Portuguese  bands  such  as
     Moonspell has made more people notice you, even though they play
     a completely different style?

KK: About this one I cannot totally  match  my  opinion  with  yours.
    That's a major fact, that those guys are  now  the  biggest  band
    from Portugal, even if  I  don't  think  that  nowadays  you  can
    classify them as a metal act. Anyway, I never did  see  in  their
    interviews  any  words  of  support  towards  other  bands   from
    Portugal. It might be just my schizophrenic point of view, but to
    be honest I remember that in the beginning of their  career  they
    even told the media out there that we had  no  underground  metal
    scene in Portugal or even any metal bands to look out  for.  Just
    seek some of their interviews and let me know how many Portuguese
    acts they mention in their interviews to open those gates for the
    Portuguese underground metal that you mention.  All  of  what  we
    have been accomplishing with Malevolence is a direct fruit of our
    hard work behind the existence of this band and nothing else,  in
    my sincere opinion. The fact that they are in a very large record
    company does not mean that all the Portuguese bands will get more
    credit just for that  single  reason.  I  believe  that  all  the
    Portuguese bands have to strive for their  own  metal  niche  and
    also start to support their fellow creature bands, as we do  have
    one of the biggest and most talented scenes of the  entire  metal
    world. One thing is for sure: Malevolence is now able to be among
    all those higher level acts and is  even  capable  of  surpassing
    some of them in terms of achieving  better  reviews  and  amazing
    rejoinder from all the media metal press. We are even  considered
    in some countries out there as being the  best  Portuguese  metal
    band that people have the chance to know. In some cases,  believe
    me or not, they only know Moonspell and we just become so  amazed
    how can that be in the world we live  in  nowadays,  since  bands
    like Heavenwood are just in a bigger label than us. So this means
    that we are finally able to be exposed unto the most  underground
    magazines and also over the most notable and  professional  radio
    shows all over the entire  world.  I  have  to  agree  with  your
    proposition  in  some  levels,  since  sometimes  certain   names
    involved can just give you a bigger chance to succeed  out  there
    as people will look at your work from  a  different  perspective,
    but in Moonspell's particular case I guess  you  are  treading  a
    totally wrong path, as I do not remember honestly  to  have  seen
    them defending our competitive metal scene.  [I  never  suggested
    that.  Unfortunately,  Kariano  misinterpreted  my  question.  --
    Pedro]

CoC: You recently played live in Portugal with Behemoth -- a  concert
     I  unfortunately  was  unable  to  attend.  How  good  was  that
     experience for you? Any European touring projects yet?

KK: In my strong opinion, playing live is great no matter whether you
    play with bigger bands like Behemoth or  with  small  underground
    bands. What positively interests me is all the  chemistry  behind
    the bands and the live situations in general. The single show  we
    made in Portugal with Behemoth was not an exception to that rule,
    and I can tell you that they are wonderful people to  play  with.
    Playing live has some magic and that's when you have that special
    chance to meet a great amount of your  fans  besides  many  other
    people related with metal. Everything happened that way regarding
    the show with Behemoth and we had a great time together. I  shall
    also mention the devastating metal act Devileech, since they were
    also great people to deal with. On that particular show,  if  you
    were there in the venue I guess you could see  the  rage  flowing
    from the eyes of the crowd from a different point  of  view  that
    you don't have while you are recording the material for the album
    in a studio. Believe me, this is just one of the best  sensations
    you could ever get towards your musical  approach  in  rehearsals
    and later in studios. Playing live with wonderful, down to  earth
    people is always sacred, because you have a common place like the
    stage where you can share all your  emotions  no  matter  whether
    they are more aggressive or even more intense.  When  Malevolence
    play live we can express our musical views even better  and  even
    get a  great  dose  unto  the  mind  of  the  attentive  listener
    directly, with no subterfuges. We  do  not  use  any  effects  in
    general in our own shows and  we  are  of  those  few  who  still
    believe in the integrity and rawness of thy music to make  people
    move with a certain vibe of  energy.  No  one  can  stand  deeply
    concentrated in one of our live shows without  feeling  a  strong
    vibe  for  moving.  Recently  we  have  played  with  bands  like
    Behemoth, Sinister, Purgatory, Asgaroth and also some others acts
    from Portugal including  Devileech,  The  Firstborn,  Goldenpyre,
    Holocausto Canibal, Theriomorphic, Sirius and some others. In the
    meanwhile there's also some plans to share the stages in Portugal
    and also Spain with bands like Necrodeath from Italy and  Avulsed
    from Spain, but nothing has been decided yet. Lately we were also
    supposed to play at the shows that Testament  made  in  Portugal,
    but that did not happen due to the fact that the promoter took us
    out of the bill in the final hour. Concerning European tours,  we
    had an offer from Metalysee from Belgium in mid-1999 (as  I  have
    already told you)  to  open  for  the  American  act  Immolation.
    Anyway,  we  were  at  the  beginning  of   the   promotion   for
    _Martyrialized_ all over the place unto thy magazines and  radios
    from all over the world and we just had to refuse that one due to
    the 700 exclusive interviews that Maquiavel  Music  Entertainment
    Lda. had already booked for the band. At this time there's a huge
    demand from the fans throughout Europe to see the band  live  and
    we are going to try something out during the fall of 2000. If  we
    cannot get something interesting in the meanwhile, then  we  will
    take our time to concentrate upon  the  recording  of  the  third
    album and then we will move towards the European tour later on. I
    just hope that we will have  some  kind  of  opportunity  in  the
    future to play out there and watch the same  relentless  emotions
    in foreign lands all over Europe like we have been able  to  feel
    when we play on Portuguese soil.

CoC: You used a drum machine on that concert with  Behemoth,  and  it
     was   Genocide   drummer   Gustavo   Costa   who    played    in
     _Martyrialized_.  I  assume  you're  planning  to  bring  in   a
     permanent drummer -- any news yet?

KK:  I  guess  that  you  will  always  have  that   lack-of-drumming
    insatisfaction while you watch our live performances. I mean,  we
    are no longer interested in using a live drummer, as we only want
    to use him for studio recordings. This is one of our best  actual
    options and is resulting in a very phenomenal way. Gustavo Costa,
    the drummer, is a very occupied person as far as his own personal
    life, and it happens that sometimes he would not be available for
    the same live dates we have on offer for Malevolence. So this was
    our best survival option to keep on  playing  live  without  more
    problems in our career. Anyway, you will not be able to feel  the
    drummer's absence, as we are using the same real  drum  recording
    from the  Fredman  Studios  live  upon  a  very  advanced  studio
    processing machine allied to our own extreme and devastating live
    performance. It works with bands like Samael, so why shouldn't it
    also work with  a  band  like  Malevolence?  There's  no  way  to
    incorporate a live drummer in our performances. People just  have
    to respect our own choices no matter whether they will love us or
    hate us. We have made the best options unto our musical path  and
    we just want to keep  them  that  way.  This  new  line-up  works
    perfectly  in  the  strength  of  each  other  and  as  you  know
    _Martyrialized_ is the result of a collective work, even if I was
    the main composer of the musical and lyrical structures  for  the
    new full-length effort. Gustavo Costa will keep on  recording  in
    our future releases and in the live environment we shall keep the
    performance the way it is nowadays. Everything worked  more  than
    fine this time and we shall keep it that way in the future.

CoC: Speaking of Polish bands like  Behemoth,  Lux  Occulta  recently
     signed for your label, Maquiavel Music, as well. This  seems  to
     reveal a very positive attitude from the label; what's the story
     behind Maquiavel?

KK: Maquiavel Music Entertainment feels like an old dream since I got
    into metal. This is the lifestyle that I love and as  I  am  also
    addicted to metal I had  to  create  my  own  drug.  I  have  the
    necessity to maintain myself  always  hyperactive  in  all  ways.
    Since I  had  that  Embryonic  Magazine  thing  that  I  got  the
    possibility to  discover  many  people  from  different  cultures
    engulfed in many obscure life models from the entire world, so  I
    guess this is just the progression of those old  emotions  I  got
    from metal. As you also know, there are many elements and aspects
    from life and humanity in general that I have a  strong  aversion
    to. By releasing this art upon a label that  I  have  created  is
    another fine chance to be able to show  my  contribution  to  the
    installation of some radical difference unto the  normal  musical
    models of Humanity. I am now in a superior position to deal  with
    the rebellion of the oppressed masses, so it's  like  giving  new
    chances for the appearance of new flesh sent to  the  lions  with
    our overall support unto their back. I am just  inaugurating  thy
    arena of musical insubordination to keep the  flame  of  artistic
    freedom alive. I am always struggling towards the most depressing
    moments in life in general with the creation of this new  extreme
    label. Therefore, I am now giving the opportunity for  people  to
    voice their own disgust for the actual situation  of  decline  of
    humankind, as well as giving  them  the  possibility  to  release
    their  own  dreams  and  skilled  metal  machinery  upon  albums,
    merchandising, tours and everything that a band really  needs  to
    express their own hatred out of  their  individual  human  mortal
    forms. In my own opinion,  music  is  the  strongest  vehicle  to
    amplify those twisted visions, and by using this "weapon"  I  can
    crush cretinism, hypocrisy and  the  carnival  of  the  Christian
    madness in a more effective way.  Maquiavel  Music  Entertainment
    and Malevolence being two of my  individual  creations  does  not
    mean that I have created the label just for my own creations  and
    twisted visions.  So  signing  Lux  Occulta  is  a  very  natural
    progression from the  work  we  have  been  developing  with  the
    release of the second professional album from  Malevolence.  This
    is a label for all the extreme metal bands like  Malevolence  and
    Lux Occulta and also for all of the Earth that  might  share  our
    ideals, philosophies and individual ambitions in general. So  far
    everything has worked perfectly between the label  and  the  band
    and we are by now preparing all the necessary procedures for  the
    their fourth full length release, since they are going  to  enter
    the studio during December 2000 to record their debut  album  for
    our label, as they left Pagan Records from Poland to  stick  with
    us for their next musical  creations.  That's  for  sure  a  very
    positive and  devastating  addition  to  our  new  extreme  metal
    catalogue and we shall  keep  being  so  selective  with  signing
    professional and original bands as we have been until now.

CoC: What are your plans for the near future? When can  we  expect  a
     new album and what can we expect  from  the  evolution  of  your
     musical style?

KK: I cannot wonder about the band's future since I am  not  a  total
    visionary. Of course we do always have some new ideas to  develop
    with every new musical creation that we accomplish. But  at  this
    time it's pretty difficult to tell you too  much  information  in
    advance about the next album or even about the next moves for the
    band. We do  have  many  long  term  barriers  that  need  to  be
    surpassed within the band, but at this level what I can tell  you
    in advance is that we will keep on composing our music by  making
    the reunion of our bestial and natural  musical  skills  like  an
    elite. This means that we will keep the  musical  progression  we
    have carved with  the  very  unique  and  multidimensional  metal
    element upon our _Martyrialized_. The  differences  between  each
    single new release from Malevolence are always huge, so I  cannot
    advance much more for now. What mainly differs between all of our
    full-length achievements is our refined and  polished  individual
    potential to  play  and  compose  even  greater  audio  hymns  to
    remember each time that we release a new work, if you ask me. All
    the preceding years have taught us  the  highest  experience  and
    granted us with enough knowledge in order to  deliver  much  more
    than simply a normal album saga upon the metal masses, so we will
    be able to still shock people with  the  third  release.  There's
    always a whole new universe that we can use to develop our  music
    one step further. So  we  will  never  lose  the  band's  already
    achieved integrity and identity, as you can be sure that we  will
    always be very pissed-off individuals. I guess that we positively
    know extremely well how to handle our own instruments, so  that's
    only a matter of using our inner force, our  mental  madness,  as
    well as our strong individual imagination to keep on breaking the
    boundaries of metal and keep on twisting everything  louder  than
    anyone else. We do not have a specific  formula  to  produce  our
    multidimensional metal, so we will just keep on gathering all our
    extreme voracious emotions with our  dark  enigmatic  atmospheres
    upon each single new musical achievement. The  material  for  the
    new album is already in process of composition and that's  all  I
    will advance for thy current moment.

CoC: Any closing comments?

KK: With Maquiavel Music Entertainment Lda. we do not have  any  kind
    of restrictions imposed upon our audio bastardization or even our
    musical themes and dark philosophies in general. This also  means
    that we are more than able to keep our imagination as well as our
    ferocious metal rebellion intact and  preserved  from  all  those
    infiltrators behind our back.  Everything  has  changed  for  the
    better and I am now proud to state to you  that  we  are  finally
    happy with  all  our  latest  achievements  --  the  recognition,
    promotion, distribution and sales for the new full-length effort.
    There's a very fresh chemistry of mutual  co-operation  unto  the
    entire band right now and we shall keep it that way since all the
    members are interested  in  breaking  all  the  musical  barriers
    imposed upon the band by making the union of all  the  power  and
    inner strength inside us all. Malevolence will keep on  fighting,
    conquering and  discovering  always-new  dimensions  within  this
    scorched Earth we inhabit. Thanks for all the  support  and  keep
    the pain, the invention and the madness of  Chronicles  of  Chaos
    running forever, because we definitely  need  more  powerful  and
    dedicated metal magazines like yours  in  the  devastating  metal
    scene. Thanks for everything and keep the  Christ  fucking  metal
    raping madness alive!

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     B E H E A D I N G   T H E   E A S T E R N   P R O P H E T S
     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
            CoC interviews Martin of Poland's Decapitated
                           by: Paul Schwarz


Yes, they are from Poland, yes, they are unusually  young,  and  yes,
they do owe a meagre few stylistic debts to Vader -- but  forget  all
that: ultimately, none of it really matters. Decapitated are a -very-
promising new band, plain and simple. Their _Winds of Creation_ debut
[CoC #47] isn't perfect (in particular,  Sauron's  vocals  need  more
character and variation), but it's light-years ahead of  older  "more
experienced"  bands  and  other  spring  chickens   alike   in   pure
musicianship, let alone songwriting. _Winds of Creation_ would  be  a
great debut for any band, but it is  a  debut  that  shows  potential
rather than being a statement or mark of its time which  will  become
classic in its own right. Decapitated are  a  hope  for  the  future:
they've got a long way to go, but they've made  a  really,  seriously
impressive and promising start. Done by e-mail, this  interview  with
bass player Martin should give  you  an  insight  into  Decapitated's
character, as well as providing the background  story  to  how  these
Polish hopefuls got together.

CoC: How did you enjoy working with Peter  Wiwczarek  from  Vader  on
     your  debut  album?  Were  you  happy  with  the  production  he
     achieved?

Martin: From the very  beginning  our  co-operation  was  practically
        seamless. In fact, we really felt comfortable going into  the
        studio, for two reasons. First of all, all  logistic  aspects
        of the session had been taken care of by our  management:  we
        had two weeks worth of studio-time, all  food,  accommodation
        and equipment was arranged. All that made this session  quite
        unique and very much different from all others. We just  knew
        we would have time for  everything,  including  the  smallest
        details. It's very reassuring to know that no sound you don't
        like will find its way outside the studio.  In  the  past  we
        could rely only on ourselves and with rather  poor  financial
        resources we just could  not  spread  our  wings.  The  other
        factor was Peter's presence. He  recorded  in  many  studios,
        worked with many producers, and in Selani itself  made  three
        Vader albums. Accordingly, he knew the  studio  like  no  one
        else,  both  its  advantages  and  disadvantages.  All   that
        considered, we could simply concentrate on the recording  and
        sound we wanted to get. It's also very important  that  Peter
        is not only a good musician and producer but also a wonderful
        person. Plus he really knows what death  metal  should  sound 
        like!

CoC: How did the four of you [Sauron, Vogg and Vitek in  addition  to
     Martin] meet and form a band?

M: Well, the  band  formed  quite  spontaneously,  but  despite  such
   beginnings we have never had any changes in  the  line-up  or  the
   name. Vogg, Vitek and Sauron started the band in  Autumn  1996,  I
   joined them in early 1997. And it was only because I didn't have a
   bass guitar earlier -- I had just played the guitar, also  in  the
   music school. In fact, we all had known each other for a long time
   before Decapitated was born, as we all attended the  same  school.
   Sauron and Vogg are graduating this year and they want to continue
   at the university. But back to Decapitated  --  in  June  1997  we
   recorded the debut demo _Cemeteral Gardens_ and  in  October  1998
   another one, titled _The Eye of Horus_. The latter  brought  us  a
   contract with Massive Management, which in April 1999 financed the
   recording session for our debut album. The management was also  on
   the lookout for the recording contract, which finally  turned  out
   to come from Wicked World.

CoC: Overall, were you pleased  with  the  results  you  achieved  on
     _Winds of Creation_?

M: I think that without any false modesty we can clearly say that  we
   are satisfied. Very much so, in fact. When I listen to that  album
   I cannot help thinking that we have really made it and I'm  simply
   proud. _Winds of Creation_ is a milestone in  our  career  in  all
   possible respects. It marks our  musical  development,  it's  much
   better musicianship-wise, it's well conceived. We have matured  in
   the basic sense  of  the  word  and  we  treat  what  we  do  very
   seriously, as much as it may seem to be somewhat funny considering
   our age. But that's a fact. Someone may say, "What do  these  kids
   know about music?" I can only reply: quite a lot, in fact. We have
   lived with music since our early childhood, we wouldn't be able to
   live without it. As far as the album itself is  concerned,  _Winds
   of Creation_ presents us the way we were a year ago  and  we  have
   progressed a lot since then. We learn all the time and try  to  be
   as attentive as possible when it comes to  all  sorts  of  musical
   tricks.

CoC: What made you feel, still being so young, that you were ready to
     make your debut album? Were you at all  tentative  about  taking
     that plunge at such a young age?

M: Because we started so young and achieved so much so early  in  our
   lives, we feel ever more inspired and motivated to do what we have
   been doing for the last several years. We really  feel  recognised
   and appreciated and we are happy that we can convey so much in our
   music. Music is a perfect medium of talking to  other  people  and
   influencing their lives. We simply have that power, so  what  else
   could we want? The fact that we already have an  album  under  our
   belts makes us even more determined to work harder and devote  all
   our time to music. Not to mention the fact that so far  our  music
   has been received really well. Of course, I would lie  if  I  said
   that we are not interested in the number  of  albums  we  sell  or
   whether  people  like  the  material  or  not.  I  cannot   really
   understand it when some musicians say things like that -- it  just
   stinks hypocrisy a mile away! If somebody  does  not  really  care
   about fans and audiences, why do they bother to record albums? Our
   age -- well, it has both good and bad  sides.  Some  people,  even
   those who interview us, make  jokes  about  it  and  ask  sort  of
   malicious questions. But then again there are also praises.  I  do
   not really care much about those who joke. Music  is  what  counts
   and not how old the musicians are!

CoC: How much influence or inspiration do you draw from Vader?

M: Never ever have we tried to sound like Vader. We all listen to all
   sorts of music, including a lot of non-metal.  Of  course,  we  do
   like and respect them but it would not be  fair  if  we  tried  to
   imitate them. I am sure that  subconsciously  they  have  been  an
   influence just like  many  other  bands,  but  when  it  comes  to
   conscious actions we try  to  be  ourselves  and  follow  our  own
   musical path and write our own music. I think it will become  more
   and more obvious with time. Maybe there will even be the day  when
   somebody will say, "Hey, they sound like Decapitated!" Not that it
   is my dream, but it would definitely mean that people respect  and
   see us as an independent band playing its own music.

CoC: Do you worry about sounding  like  Vader  or  other  bands  from
     Poland like Devilyn?

M: Well, I am not afraid of anything. The comparisons with Vader have
   worn out a bit and they do not surprise me. Just as I  said,  it's
   good that we are compared to such a  good  band.  It's  definitely
   better than being compared to some shitty bands -- luckily no  one
   has made those. We all have our likes and dislikes, so it's better
   to be compared to those whom we like. In the  past  we  were  also
   described using such names as Morbid Angel, Deicide or Death. I am
   not sure why -- but everyone has the right to their  own  opinions
   and impressions. Also, it's not like people keep comparing  us  to
   others all the time; these are just the names that  we  hear  most
   often. At the end of day these are just words and  our  music  can
   defend itself very well.

CoC: Do you think there is a "Polish sound" developing?

M: It's hard for me to say that. I live in Poland and I have heard so
   many Polish bands. They all sound different to  me,  so  I  really
   can't define "the Polish sound". I guess people  from  abroad  who
   have some perspective would find it easier to do that. In the same
   way,  I  can  definitely  make  similar  statements  about   other
   countries. For example  in  Poland  we  talk  about  "the  Swedish
   sound", which  supposedly  covers  such  bands  as  Dismember,  In
   Flames, At the Gates or Dark Tranquillity. Swedes may like  it  or
   not, but we definitely use the term. And when we talk  about  "the
   American sound" we think about  Immolation,  Cannibal  Corpse  and
   others.

CoC: Where do you expect and hope to see Decapitated go in  the  next
     few years?

M: I hope we still have the opportunity to  create  music.  We  would
   like to play live as often as possible. Gigs are our element. What
   do we expect from Decapitated? I would like the band  to  give  me
   pleasure, I would like it to develop and progress. Maybe  one  day
   we will even be able to live off playing music? It would be really
   wonderful! I would only need to worry about whether we  will  play
   this or that concert or if I still have hair on my head. <laughs>

CoC: Are you writing new material to follow up _Winds  of  Creation_?
     If so, is it shaping up very differently or similarly?

M: Yes, we do have some new material. What I can say at the moment is
   that the new tracks will be far more complex,  both  in  terms  of
   arrangements and musicianship.  One  way  or  another,  they  will
   definitely be better than those from the debut album. And  I  hope
   they will constitute a certain whole. _Winds of Creation_ is  more
   of an illustration of our whole career than a coherent album:  one
   track comes from  the  _Cemeteral  Gardens_  demo,  the  core  was
   originally recorded for _The Eye Of Horus_, and there are also two
   brand new songs. They may sound similar, but there is  no  central
   concept there whatsoever. But then again, it's Decapitated all the
   way through!

CoC: Do you make it your aim to take death metal to new places in the
     years to come?

M: We do not want to create any hype or artificially cause sensation.
   We want to remain true to what we really are. We are not  here  to
   start some strange revolution. This is not why we started the band
   in the first place. We are  not  interested  in  improving  things
   because it would mean that we  want  to  improve  somebody  else's
   style and this is not why you  play  music.  Have  we  contributed
   anything to music? Very much so -- the book titled  "Death  Metal"
   has just got a new chapter: "Decapitated"! Is that good? Time  and
   people shall tell.

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

                PYROMANIACAL SLAYERS ASSAULT PARADISE!
                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    CoC chats with guitarist Fabianno Penna of Brazil's Rebaelliun
                           by: Paul Schwarz


If you crank up opener "At War" from Rebaelliun's  recently  released
debut _Burn the Promised Land_ [CoC #45] you can not  only  hear  the
guns of war blazing as their percussion battery hits ground zero, you
can even hear the cartridge casings hitting the ground as the bullets
of aural battery are spent. But cool touches like  this  aren't  what
make Rebaelliun worth noticing; they're worth  a  second  glance  for
musicianship alone. Pretty much matching Krisiun in the speed  stakes
is no easy task, and doing so without mimicking their  sound  is  yet
more of a feat. Rebaelliun have managed both,  putting  a  distinctly
Slayer-esque spin on their  take  of  late-nineties  Brazilian  death
metal insanity. Guitarist Fabianno Penna reached through a relatively
solid grasp of English to express the meaning  of  Rebaelliun  music,
lyrics and ideas. Unfortunately, the cost of a phone call  to  Brazil
hindered the amount of time we had to talk.

CoC: You've emerged from Brazil quite recently, you're getting  quite
     a few good reviews: where have you come from --  what  scene  --
     and where are you aiming to go?

Fabianno Penna: That's the history of the band, is that  what  you're
                asking me about? We started playing in '92  but  with
                another band. We played together  from  '92  to  '96.
                Then, we just stopped with the band 'cause we  didn't
                have the right conditions to stay  together.  So,  in
                March '98, we started Rebaelliun. We took a two  year
                break and then we started  Rebaelliun.  But  we  play
                with a strong purpose, you know? For  six  months  we
                just rehearsed with the  line-up,  then  we  went  to
                Europe for the first time.  Then  things  started  to
                happen for the band.

CoC: So since you've been doing this for such a  long  time,  do  you
     feel like this band is the band that you're really going  to  be
     able to do things with? After doing music for quite a while,  do
     you think that Rebaelliun is going to be "the one"?

FP: Yeah, I think that we have very clearly in our minds what we want
    for the band. So, since we've started with the  band  we've  just
    been  dedicating  our  time  to  it.  All  the  time  rehearsing,
    improving as musicians and getting the right contacts around  the
    world. So I just think that we can do a lot in the future, but of
    course we need support.

CoC: And the tour that you're doing around May or June  will  help  a
     lot. How do you feel about playing with Vader and Vital Remains?
     I imagine you're pretty excited?

FP: Yeah, of course. It will be the best tour ever for  us  to  play,
    because before we played with Limbonic Art and Mystic Circle...

CoC: Ughh...

FP: Yeah. <laughs> They weren't death metal bands,  so  it  wasn't  a
    good tour for Rebaelliun. But we played twice with Vader  already
    and it was great. We also played with Deicide -- the best  --  in
    Belgium and Germany. It was also great. But we'll be playing with
    Vader and Vital Remains; great and famous death  metal  bands  in
    the world. So I think it will be the right  tour  for  Rebaelliun
    this time.

CoC: In terms of the music, what would  you  say  are  your  greatest
     influences? You've got bits of Slayer and old thrash,  but  also
     there's a very heavy death metal element to your music, and it's
     got Satanic lyrics. I was just curious  where  you  drew  -most-
     inspiration from for the music you're doing for Rebaelliun.

FP: Yeah,  you're  right.  I  think  Slayer  is  the  most  important
    influence we have and also Morbid Angel from _Altars of  Madness_
    -- very strong influence. But basically Slayer: _Reign in Blood_,
    _Hell Awaits_. The old stuff. It is the most important  influence
    for us.

CoC: So Slayer are one of your favourite bands? Are you aiming to  do
     something that is new and -different-, but  -taking-  influences
     from bands like Slayer and things like that?

FP: No, no, actually we are not going that way. We  just  make  death
    metal but we are trying to draw some influence from the past, the
    eighties. And maybe in the album, _Burn the  Promised  Land_  you
    can't hear it yet, but in the new stuff you will see that. 'Cause
    we are just drawing influence from the first steps of Slayer; the
    riffs. Of course it is more extreme and faster, because we are at
    least twenty years from where they started. But basically this is
    the influence. We are not interested in making something  new  in
    the death metal scene because I think that death metal is not the
    kind of style where you can just always put something new  in.  I
    think that you have to run in the  right  way  but  playing  with
    something new for your band but not for the scene, you know?

CoC: You've been in the Brazilian scene for ten years now and  I  was
     wondering: where you think the Brazilian scene is going?

FP: I think you probably know the band Krisiun. They are one  of  the
    bands responsible for this new death metal scene  that's  rising.
    Bands always playing faster and more extreme. I think  that  they
    were one of the first bands to do  albums  with  blastbeats  from
    beginning to end. A lot of bands down the road are influenced  by
    them. Now Brazilian bands can think that if Krisiun can do  that,
    they can do it too. So right now Krisiun is the biggest Brazilian
    band and one of the biggest death metal bands all over the  world
    and now Rebaelliun is starting to rise as well, and we  have  too
    many Brazilian bands that could be touring Europe like we will do
    in one month. Bands like Mental  Horror  and  others.  A  lot  of
    bands, very good bands.

CoC: How did Rebaelliun come together? Why did  you  guys  decide  to
     form Rebaelliun? What was the idea behind the band and what  are
     the ideas behind the lyrics, songs like "At War"?

FP: First, in '96 we just stopped. And then  in  '98  the  conditions
    were a bit better, but we were not playing -- I'd just  sold  all
    my equipment: guitars and amplifiers. So, two years total  break.
    Then, in March '98 I just thought to myself that I  had  to  play
    again. Then I just invited the other  guys  from  the  old  band.
    Actually, when we stopped the band in '96, the first band we had,
    then we just decided it was the time to stop, we didn't have  any
    conditions. We started again with Rebaelliun; we  created  a  new
    band called Rebaelliun. But now the other guitarist left the band
    some weeks ago and I am the only guy left from  the  first  band.
    About the lyrics, I just think that our  lyrics  talk  about  the
    hate we feel towards mankind, you know?  Against  all  this  shit
    that we can see around the world, you know. Lyrics like "At  War"
    -- it's just that we are not Satanists. For us  it  is  not  just
    worth writing Satan and Satan and that's done. We want  to  write
    things that we really feel. It's not just to sell  CDs.  I  think
    lyrics like "At War" are very strong. You can  feel  the  end  of
    mankind, the end of the road. It's like apocalypse  or  something
    like that.

CoC: So you think the lyrics definitely have to fit with  the  music.
     Later Slayer  material  talks  about  war  and  things  and  the
     late-eighties thrash scene tended to centre  on  apocalypse  and
     things. What I've noticed is that both you and Krisiun  seem  to
     have taken up this topic. Were albums like _Beneath the Remains_
     and Nuclear Assault albums an influence?

FP: Yeah, yeah, for sure. It's a feeling I like a lot, you know, like
    _Schizophrenia_ from Sepultura and  _Hell  Awaits_  from  Slayer,
    _Reign in Blood_. All  this  feeling  is  very  strong  and  very
    honest. It's not like a lot of bands trying to  play  fast,  play
    heavy and writing about Satan. It's not like that. Our lyrics are
    very anti-Christian, but you know that Brazil is a very Christian
    country, so we can see a lot of  stupid  things  every  day.  The
    lyrics are just the way we have to express ourselves, to  say  we
    don't like that.

CoC: To express your feelings towards what you see around you.

FP: Yeah. I hope you understood everything.

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

                S T A G I N G   A   N E W   S O U N D
                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
              CoC chats with Mark Briordy of Jag Panzer
                          by: Adrian Bromley


     To many, the world is a place where creativity and  ideas  clash
to spark off new routes of inspiration and emotion. Music is much the
same, a spectrum of ideas that propel themselves into  the  uncertain
direction that individuals make them go to. Trying to find new routes
and new ideas is nothing new, as countless bands throughout the  last
few decades have struggled to find the perfect concept to push  forth
their ideas and keep us interested.
     Colorado heavy metal act Jag Panzer have  done  just  that  with
their new disc, titled  _Thane  to  the  Throne_  [reviewed  in  this
issue], a multi-dimensional concept  record  based  on  Shakespeare's
classic play Macbeth. Not only does the music within _TttT_  bask  in
the realm of Shakespeare's world, but the music and vocals, even  the
lyrics, run deep with references to the classic tale. Listen  to  the
detailed work on such numbers as "Blood Crime",  "Treachery's  Stain"
or "Face of Fear" -- they reek of classic subject matter.
     It seems as though this idea would be  something  very  hard  to
achieve and almost impossible to carry out.  Guitarist  Mark  Briordy
agrees, but notes that the challenge was worth it. "I  was  a  little
apprehensive about doing this record this way and we weren't sure how
much harder it was going to be. It was a lot harder", he  says,  "but
it wasn't unmanageable by any means. It was a great accomplishment to
get this recorded and done."
     He adds: "We have always tried to  do  something  a  little  bit
different, not too different where everything  is  way  out  in  left
field, but to stand out a bit. So Harry  [Conklin,  singer]  came  up
with the original idea to tell it like a storyteller. It was like the
times before radio and TV where someone would just tell  stories  and
people listened. He wanted to tell a  classic  story  and  we  picked
something that would be able to give us enough room musically to work
with, and we went from there."
     Another bizarre notion is the fact that an  American-based  band
opted to do this, not some European band  that  most  definitely  was
more exposed to the content of Shakespeare's work. Was it a hard task
to take upon themselves? "It was very difficult for us to  bring  the
older element of the story into a modern story",  says  Briordy.  "It
was a lot of fun, though. In the past, Chris  [Broderick,  guitarist]
or I would write a riff and it would become a part of  a  song.  Then
Harry would write the lyrics and the song would be done. This time we
had to really pay attention to what was going on.  There  was  a  lot
more to think about with this record. We had to  figure  out  how  we
would go from one song to another without losing a step."
     Concept records are rarely done, but with  the  right  work  and
ethics compiled to make things bond, they can be very rewarding.  How
does Briordy think fans of Jag Panzer (or fans in general) will react
to _TttT_? "I think people will like what we have done here",  states
Briordy. "I think we got a really strong performance out of Harry and
the production is just really great. I hope people will like it."  He
laughs.
     "This time, especially for the subject  matter  of  the  record,
Harry worked really hard on the pronunciation factor and phrasing and
breathing techniques. As guitar players, we worked on different  ways
to play the music, rehearsing numerous times to see how we would pick
at certain guitar stylings. We worked on refining all of  the  parts,
which is something we really never do. For past  work,  I'd  write  a
song, learn how to play it and record that song and it would be over.
With the new album, by doing all of this rehearsing and learning  the
songs, I was able to know just how each song was  made  up  from  and
what was the best way to work the song and get the most from it."
     Over the past few years, Jag Panzer  have  propelled  themselves
into the spotlight once again with two  solid  records:  1997's  _The
Fourth Judgement_ and _The Age of Mastery_  in  1998.  The  time  was
right for them, the music was right. Are things starting to  work  in
their favor once again? "Yeah, we can see it  all  happening  again",
says Briordy, whose band went away after a  promising  start  in  the
late '80s and a much-respected release  titled  _Ample  Destruction_.
"It is a slow climb, but with each album we [the band is rounded  out
by drummer Rikard Stjernquist  and  bassist  John  Tetley]  see  more
people at the shows, see more press, more sales, and  it  just  seems
like everything is on the rise again for the band and that is a  nice
feeling."
     "We really work hard  to  give  each  member  as  much  artistic
freedom as they want to have, as long  as  it  can  work  within  the
confines of how we do things. That adds a bit more freshness to  what
we do, 'cause  we  always  try  to  make  each  recording  experience
different, whether it be a new studio where we do  the  record  or  a
different way of assembling songs."
     Seeing that Briordy's band was at one time marked for death,  no
doubt a factor of the changing music scene and what have you,  I  ask
him to comment on today's music scene. His answer: "I think there  is
a lot of good stuff out there. There are so many sub-genres out there
that it is really hard to pick who is really good and who is  bad.  I
mean, out of all the sub-genres, I'd  say  there  are  two  or  three
really good bands that are making an important impact for  the  metal
music scene. I like bands like Nightwish. I like Devil  Doll,  though
they are pretty obscure. I like Blind Guardian and Iced Earth too."
     Mentioning the latter two bands, I ask Briordy if he  likes  the
tag "progressive metal band"  stuck  onto  Jag  Panzer's  work.  "I'd
prefer not to have it at all", admits Briordy, "but  the  way  things
work in the press you pretty much have to, so we don't  really  fight
it." He concludes: "There are a lot bigger bands  within  this  genre
and it doesn't hurt us to be  lumped  in  with  them,  so  we  aren't
complaining."

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

       T H E   S H O R E S   O F   I N N E R   T H O U G H T S
       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
       CoC interviews Michael "Maiden" Smirnoff of Mental Home
                           by: Aaron McKay


Every once in a great while you happen across  someone  or  something
that inspires you to trudge forth and re-engage your  proper  musical
imperatives. Such is the case with the following interview  conducted
with a very welcoming Michael "Maiden" Smirnoff of  the  band  Mental
Home from Russia. As you will see, Maiden, as he like to  be  called,
jumps right into the interview with a  heartfelt  apology  that  more
than made up for any delinquency you could have inferred as  dilatory
(but I didn't) in getting his responses back to me via e-mail. It was
a terrific experience to converse over the computer with Maiden about
a broad range of topics, but Mental Home's music in particular.  With
his responses, I believe you will still find Maiden  as  much  of  an
enigma and the mysteries he clears up. Press on and wrap you eyeballs
around the wonders of Mental Home.

Maiden: First of all Sir, I'd like to apologize  for  taking  such  a
        long time to answer... I have no excuse but so is my life...

CoC: To begin, happy belated birthday, Maiden! Did  you  do  anything
     wild and crazy?

M: Thanks a lot, it's always great to get some greetings from such  a
   big and famous mag. Actually I didn't do anything, I  didn't  even
   celebrate it. Also, if it matters, I'd tell you that I don't drink
   at all, so it's a very rare thing for me to  go  crazy.  I  prefer
   silence and solitude or sitting with a few friends in the kitchen.

CoC: If you would, please tell me a little bit about your feelings on
     Mental Home having been instrumental in the  foundation  of  The
     End Records.

M: Well, we never thought we'd ever happen to be the  reason  of  the
   record label's foundation. But in mid '97 we  got  in  touch  with
   Sergey Makhotkin, who wanted to help us by releasing our stuff  on
   CD. After long negotiations he decided to founded a label together
   with his good friend Andreas Katsambas. The name for the label was
   The End. We were not the  only  reason  of  founding  that  label;
   there's another band, Nokturnal Mortum, whom The End really wanted
   to release. But we  happened  to  be  the  first  release  of  the
   newfounded label. We are very grateful for that chance  they  gave
   us. And us being on Century Media would also have been  impossible
   without tremendous efforts from Andreas trying to get us a  better
   spot in the business.

CoC: What was the band's collective impression  about  Mental  Home's
     _Vale_ being released before _Black Art_?

M: The reason for releasing _Vale_ before _Black  Art_  was  that  we
   still wanted to give some chance to  our  former  label  MetalAgen
   Records to release _Black Art_ and cover some studio expenses paid
   for us. But after all it did not  work  and  we  ended  up  giving
   MetalAgen their money, taking _Black Art_ masters and selling them
   to The End Records. Maybe it was not a  good  idea  to  try  being
   gentlemen for us, maybe we should have released _Black Art_  first
   'cause it was most up-to-date back then. But things turned out  as
   they did and we followed natural chronology... We don't feel sorry
   for all that and we are proud of _Vale_. And I'd add that if  we'd
   give [the go ahead for] _Black Art_ to go out first we would never
   see _Vale_ on CD, 'cause we'd been writing  new  songs  as  _Black
   Art_ went into printing.

CoC: If you were to play another instrument, other than keyboards, in
     another band, let's say a raw black  metal  side  project,  what
     would that instrument be? What would you  name  this  fictitious
     group?

M: If I tell you that I'm not actually a keyboard player,  would  you
   believe me? My first time on keys was right at the day  I  got  an
   invitation from Mental Home. They just told me that I had to learn
   how to play that instrument. In all my previous local bands I  did
   vocal/guitar duties, having no idea how to play keyboards. So  you
   see that's not a hard  thing  to  imagine  for  me.  I  also  play
   keyboards in another band together with our drummer Igor  --  it's
   called Rossomahaar and we play black metal there. I'd say it's the
   most interesting black metal band around here. I think you  should
   take a listen.

CoC: How did "Stained" come to be  the  song  chosen  for  The  End's
     _White_ compilation?

M: It's simple. They asked me what song I'd like  to  put  onto  that
   sampler and I gave them "Stained" because it represents the  album
   better than any other one  ready  at  that  moment.  It's  a  rare
   version of "Stained", because we gave The End its first mix and it
   wasn't mastered at all, so it's got a pretty raw sound.  All  that
   makes the _White_ compilation a collectors item! <laughs>

CoC: Can you give the Chronicles of Chaos readers some  idea  of  the
     current metal scene there in your home country, please?

M: It's hard to give a brief description of our scene. It's as big as
   our country is... Many bands in  hundreds  of  regions.  The  main
   problem here is the lack of honest and big metal labels. All we've
   got here is a few labels that cannot offer any suitable conditions
   to bands they release. As the band grows  it  becomes  unsatisfied
   with the conditions  they're  being  offered,  and  since  there's
   nothing better, people split up disappointed  with  making  music.
   After we showed others that Russian bands can  sign  with  foreign
   labels, bands began sending their promos far  and  wide  and  very
   soon many of them got signed to more or less big  foreign  labels.
   It's a great progress within our scene, 'cause  before  we've  had
   dozens of great bands living and dying here.

CoC: Was the title of _Against the Sun_ changed to _Upon  the  Shores
     of the Inner Seas_? If so, why was this the case?

M: Yes, it was. I was supposed to write lyrics for that album as well
   and we wanted it to follow _Black Art_  lyrically.  But  I've  had
   huge mental health problems and even spent a  month  in  a  mental
   hospital. So I could not handle my lyrical  duties  and  no  songs
   were completed. Then our vocalist Sergey Dmitriev stepped  in  and
   wrote lyrics on his own. He is a different person  and  his  views
   and thoughts are quite different from  mine,  so  his  lyrics  are
   absolutely different from what I could write. The old album  title
   became unsuitable, so I came up with the  new  one,  which  did  a
   better job of incorporating Sergey's inner world, through which he
   led us with his lyrics.

CoC: On the _Black Art_ digi-pak, the CD-ROM video  clip  for  "Pagan
     Freedom" was extremely impressive and erratic. What did it  mean
     to you personally?

M: The song itself means a lot. It describes how Christianity  ruined
   our great culture, our legacy  and  everything  we've  accumulated
   through  years  of  our  Slavonic  History.  As  Yiotis  Katsambas
   (Andreas' brother) and John Swanson of Mythos Media made  a  clip,
   they represented their own version of the song, not following  the
   lyrics, but  giving  you  the  right  sorrowful  impression,  very
   similar to what I intended you to feel through the lyrics.

CoC: For the most part, by and  large,  the  first  The  End  Records
     compilation, _...Until the End of Time_, was the first  exposure
     the US metal community had to Mental Home. Why  was  "Under  the
     Wing (of Gamayun)" chosen?

M: That song is very monumental and with a piano and bells dark intro
   it became a perfect opener for that compilation. It was the  right
   mood we wanted to bring to people. We'd  changed  our  label  from
   MetalAgen to The End Records, we'd changed line-up -- one  of  the
   composers left the band and we wanted to show the  world  that  we
   were back to rule, that we were even stronger than ever before. If
   you remember, there was another Mental Home song on  that  sampler
   -- "Southern Calm Waters". It's a very melodic and impressive song
   that we were playing on every show. It's from the _Vale_ album.

CoC: What would you say the difference is in the  sound  between  the
     version of "Amidst the Waves" on _Upon the Shores of  the  Inner
     Seas_ and the original recording on 1995's _Mirrorland_, besides
     possibly money and notoriety?

M: We changed harmony in some places from minor to major, changed the
   back solo and cut away the last lead guitar part. Also the  vocals
   were now done in a double track version with some intervals  never
   used in _Mirrorland_  era.  The  final  keyboard  part  is  played
   differently and with different sounds. As we release  _Mirrorland_
   on CD, you'll see the difference.

CoC: Let's say, hypothetically, during a full US tour, while the band
     was in the country, what would be some of the  things  that  you
     and the other Mental Home members  would  want  to  do,  see  or
     experience in America?

M: First of all, we'd like to kick some asses during our live  shows.
   In between we'd visit some interesting places, maybe museums, talk
   to fans and other people around. We'd just love to know more about
   that brand new place for us. The rest is to  schedule  a  full  US
   tour for us. <laughs> Actually, we don't know  when  we'll  get  a
   chance to tour in the US, but I can  assure  you  we'd  leave  all
   venues ruined.

CoC: Before we wrap this interview up, allow me to ask you about your
     nickname, "Maiden". Also, tell me your thoughts  on  Metal  Home
     and the reformed Iron Maiden on a world tour together.  What  do
     you think?!

M: You understood my nickname right -- the reason is that great  band
   that we all love very much. When I was 14, I'd been raving [about]
   Iron Maiden in high school during  lectures  saying  things  like,
   "Wow, yesterday I was listening to _Somewhere in Time_! You  can't
   imagine how cool the lead guitar was", or something like that. And
   it was every day... So people began calling me "Maiden". With time
   my nickname almost became my second name and my signature reads as
   "Maiden" (even in  my  passport).  Reunion  of  Iron  Maiden...  I
   remember running around and telling each and every human that  the
   Maiden guys are back! I was so happy, man... It's my biggest dream
   to tour with them. I have no words... UP THE IRONS!!!

CoC: Other than Iron Maiden, is there a band that you would desire to
     play with in concert or tour with in general?

M: Yes! Those are Anathema ("Did I punish you for dreaming...?"), The
   Gathering and I'd still love to see  Tiamat  as  headliners.  They
   have changed their image and music but J. Edlund remains  the  man
   who wrote _Clouds_ and I worship that state of the art.

CoC: Thank you  very  much  for  taking  the  time  to  answer  these
     questions for the Chronicles of Chaos readers, Maiden. End  this
     interview in any way you might like and best of luck  to  Mental
     Home. I hope I see you in Milwaukee at the MetalFest.

M: Thanks a lot for giving us a spot in your magazine. We'd  love  to
   hear from you again. Please let us know if you need anything  from
   Mental Home. And could you please publish our contacts:

Contact: Sergey Dmitriev, ul. Kastanaevskaya, 55-51,
         Moscow 121108, Russia
         mailto:mentality@rusmetal.ru
Contact: Michael "Maiden" Smirnoff, P.O. Box 345,
         Moscow 121151, Russia
         mailto:maiden@glasnet.ru
Contact: http://www.rusmetal.ru/mentalhome/

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

                  B U R N   F L O R I D A   B U R N
                  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
           CoC chats with Steve Childers of Burning Inside
                           by: Paul Schwarz


     Responses to Death's 1998 album _The Sound of Perseverance_ [CoC
#33] may have been mixed, but I remember one  reaction  being  pretty
consistent: "Who the fuck is that drummer?!"
     Richard  Christy  was  "that"  drummer  and  he's  also  Burning
Inside's drummer. But don't allow my name-dropping intro or Richard's
"connections" (he also plays in Control Denied and Iced Earth and has
just finished tours with Incantation and Demons &  Wizards)  to  fool
you  into  thinking  that  Burning  Inside  is  just  a  side-project
"featuring..." some famous faces. Not only  is  Burning  Inside  from
before Richard's "fame", but it's also a  band  with  music  which  I
-couldn't- ignore, even if the band were made up of the most  loathed
names in music. Ironically, it  -was-  Richard's  incredible  rhythms
(though I didn't at the time know it was he who was laying them down)
which first drew the attention of my stimulation-hungry brain to _The
Eve of the Entities_. But once I was sat up straight,  I  was  easily
converted by the mix of modern, dark and atmospheric death metal, and
technical traditional heavy metal which came flowing at me. _The  Eve
of the Entities_ subsequently found quite a pattern of rotation in my
stereo.
     So, with a whole load of questions as to where the hell this lot
have been hiding, and why I'd never even heard mention of them before
_The Eve of the Entities_ turned up in my possession, I  hunted  down
guitarist Steve Childers so that he could  give  CoC  an  account  of
Burning Inside and what  they're  trying  to  achieve.  After  a  few
mix-ups, I got him on the phone from his Florida home back  in  early
June.

CoC: How's things goin'?

Steve Childers: Great, man.

CoC: You doing shows with the band at the moment?

SC: At the moment no, Richard's gone, he's doin' a tour with Demons &
    Wizards [Iced Earth and Blind Guardian  collaboration;  interview
    in this issue and review in CoC  #46  --Paul]  in  Europe.  We're
    working on some recordings. We did some drum tracks so now  we're
    messing around with some demo tracks, and that's what we're doing
    now.

CoC: Can I establish the full line-up, and what other bands everybody
     is in?

SC: Well, to start with myself, I play  rhythm/lead  guitar  and  I'm
    also in a band called Black Witchery. I play guitar in that. Then
    you have Richard Christy, who...

CoC: Does so much it's unbelievable...

SC: Yeah.

CoC: Death, Control Denied...

SC: Well yeah, if you name off everything he's done; right  now  he's
    doing Demons & Wizards, their  tour.  He's  done  Death,  Control
    Denied, and he's just done a tour with Incantation.  Also,  Jamie
    Prim, who  plays  bass  and  vocals,  he's  not  currently  doing
    anything else. Michael Estes plays guitar and he was  in  Acheron
    for a couple of albums.

CoC: Thanks, just 'cause I got various messed up reports from people:
     someone said the band had someone from Iced Earth.

SC: Well, one of the guys from Iced Earth is in Demons & Wizards (Jon
    Schaffer) and I think Richard's gonna be doing an album with  him
    later too. [As it turns out, Richard is  also  now  drumming  for
    Iced Earth --Paul].

CoC: How do you think Burning Inside is a meshing of  all  the  stuff
     Richard does and maybe the sort of influences you have  or  Mike
     might have from Acheron?  'Cause  there's  a  lot  going  on  in
     Burning Inside. People are touting it as a great record for  the
     death metal scene,  which  I  think  it  is,  but  almost  in  a
     -progressive- way in some respects.

SC: Yeah, it's different sounding. To answer the question of  meshing
    of influences, Burning Inside is a band that started  before  all
    the other projects. So, we've been  jammin'  and  writing  stuff:
    this is our album that we all write original material in. And the
    other things are written by other people, so that's why  you  get
    an influence of what we like. Mike likes Brian May and  Dio  type
    stuff. We all like Deicide and Morbid Angel, we're into that. And
    also we all grew up in the eighties,  so  we  have  the  eighties
    background. So we're trying to blend the brutality of death metal
    with a bit of a technical edge. Not to go  overboard,  but  still
    making it brutal, you know? Trying  to  come  up  with  something
    original  was  our  goal  from  the  beginning.  It's   different
    sounding, I think it's different.

CoC: Yeah,  and  it's  interesting  because  the  elements  all  work
     together. Like I noticed an influence in your riffing and Mike's
     riffing -- there's some -low- death metal stuff --, but  there's
     a lot kind of like what Immolation do.

SC: Yeah, yeah.

CoC: With blasting or without but very atmospheric.  I  find  it  has
     sort of "damned" feel to it.

SC: Cool, thanks.

CoC: But all this meshes with Richard's drum style. Do you  think  it
     would work without that rolling drum style? He  just  pulls  out
     shit all the time.

SC: No. No, it wouldn't work without Richard. He is the  key  element
    in the band and, especially on some of the newer stuff, he writes
    a lot of the guitar stuff. The basic riffs he'll  come  up  with,
    some of 'em. His drumming adds a really unique sound to it.  This
    is his place, where he can do whatever he wants, and that's  what
    he wants to do, and it's unique sounding.

CoC: It gives it that kind of edge  that  Death  have  had  the  last
     couple of albums. It's much more -metal-, but metal in a sort of
     technical way. More than in a "down hard" way  [a  la  Saxon  or
     Manowar].

SC: He blends a lot of -- he'll do blastbeats over certain parts  and
    then go into his upper hand work. His upper hand work is where he
    excels. I mean he's good everywhere, but his upper hand work,  he
    does some very innovative stuff.

CoC: You mean on the cymbals...

SC: Yeah, everything. He's just hitting shit everywhere. He's got  so
    much stuff. On the demo he even  had  a  drum  pad  that  he  was
    hitting for an electronic tom sound, so he  had  more  toms  than
    what he had and he had two hi-hats going.

CoC: That's really impressive. The album has this whole mix.  Jamie's
     vocals are quite traditional death metal. What I find about  the
     album is that it's really good, it's got a lot of  potential  as
     well, but I find the production -is- good but lets some  of  the
     elements down...

SC: Yeah, I would agree with you there.

CoC: And I find Jamie's vocals  are  good,  but  they're  very  death
     metal. He hasn't done a lot of moving  around.  So,  you've  got
     this death metal element, but then it goes all  crazy.  The  end
     solo in "Blind to All That Exist" is just -very metal-.  How  do
     you feel pulling something like that out in the middle  of  what
     is quite a  dark  record;  it  [the  record]  doesn't  have  the
     exuberance of, say, Iron Maiden or something.

SC: We tried to work different riffs together; it took us a long time
    to write a lot of those arrangements because a lot of stuff -- to
    get them to blend together we had to constantly  re-arrange  them
    and re-arrange them until we found something that sounded the way
    we wanted it to sound. Otherwise it gets  out  of  hand.  If  you
    could hear what we start with, it's pretty  insane.  We'll  strip
    real technical riffs down and make 'em  way  less  technical.  So
    it's kind of complicated and we haven't toured  or  anything,  so
    the few years we've been here we've had a lot of  time  to  write
    songs. We've got other songs.

CoC: But this isn't the compendium of a demo career?  Has  this  come
     out of the last couple of years of writing?

SC: _The Eve of the Entities_ is a combination of stuff we  wrote  in
    '95 and '96: there's three or  four  songs,  like  "My  Own"  and
    "Masque", which were written then. Then "Eve of the Entities" and
    the rest of the songs on there were written in '97, '98. Kind  of
    just a collaboration of some of the songs we've written from  '95
    up 'till '98.

CoC: The album seems to get more adventurous as you come towards  the
     end; it  varies  in  different  places,  but  "The  Eve  of  the
     Entities" is much more tentative with bringing  things  in  than
     the later tracks. How did you feel writing  this  material,  did
     you feel that you were writing just a metal record, or  a  death
     metal record... or did you at one  point  go:  "Wait  a  minute,
     we're trying to write a death  metal  record,  and  it's  really
     metal!"

SC: Well, all I can say is we just practised  the  material  that  we
    have and went in and recorded it and that's the way it came  out.
    We didn't have a set... -- we're not going to say "We're a  death
    metal band". We've never really  labelled  ourselves.  I  try  to
    label it "dark technical metal".  It  has  elements  of  so  many
    different things it's kind of hard to label it.

CoC: Totally.

SC: As for the production: the next production will be a lot  better.
    We had to go into a... modest studio and...  you  know,  when  we
    hear _The Eve of the Entities_ we know that we could do  it  five
    times better now. You know how it is, after  playing  it  out  so
    much and stuff. But the next one -- we've matured a lot,  all  of
    us, recording. We've all been recording with different bands.  So
    we're learning so much stuff recording; I think  the  next  one's
    going to be a lot more powerful sounding and -drums-  already  --
    from what we've done so far it sounds really good.

CoC: How do you feel Burning Inside fits in  with  the  rest  of  the
     death metal and extreme music scene -- you've only just  started
     pushing the band into the outside world?

SC: Well, I think we fit into a lot of categories. I think a  lot  of
    people that are into nothing but more technical stuff  will  like
    it and I think people that are into traditional... -power metal-,
    I think, will see elements in it, in fact  I've  been  told  that
    already: even though it has the higher vocals [Steve is referring
    to Jamie's vocals being  gruff  death  grunts,  broadly  speaking
    --Paul]. And I think it's got a -lot- of  death  metal  elements.
    There's a lot of things going on,  a  lot  of  influences.  We're
    influenced by so much stuff. Just my influences vary so much, and
    Richard's also. So it blends good: we had to work at it but...  A
    lot of bands try to end up sounding super brutal or something. It
    just doesn't work, so we're trying something different and  we're
    doing what we each like. And there's no egos here at all. If I do
    a riff that doesn't fit they'll tell me and  we'll  drop  it.  So
    that's how it works and that's why the members are also  able  to
    do other bands and  stuff:  because  there's  no  egos.  We  know
    Burning Inside's our music -- the four of us.

CoC: Do you think, therefore, that it -won't- be hard to keep Richard
     Christy in the band? I obviously don't know about how  you  guys
     know each other, but he's done a lot  of  stuff,  so  the  first
     impression is kind of like: hmm, he's probably guesting. Do  you
     know what I mean?

SC: Yeah, I mean this band's been here  --  I've  been  jammin'  with
    Richard since '92, so I'm sure this project will always exist. We
    went through so much shit so far just to get where we're at,  you
    know? I mean, we've moved, we've relocated, we've had labels turn
    us down a lot. We've just been through a lot of shit and  there's
    nothing that's going to break it up  that  I  know  of.  I  mean,
    Richard might be out doing a tour, but he's back in a month and a
    half. And he's home, and then you know what? He's around three or
    four months, so we jam, you know.

CoC: It sounds like, from reading [the PR] and  what  you're  saying,
     that the band is very much what you wanted to do, and  what  you
     all wanted to do, like a focal point.

SC: It's fun. We like doing it, so that's what keeps  it  going.  And
    we've got so much to record. We want to record, we want to  tour,
    we want to do so much, but at the moment we're  not  offered  any
    tours. We got the album out, so I mean if we're not really  doing
    anything and people [in the  band]  have  opportunities  to  make
    money, or jam something here, you know, we're working musicians.

CoC: On touring, the guy from Still Dead said  that  Cannibal  Corpse
     were thinking of taking you guys out after  hearing  the  album.
     That's what I've heard.

SC: Well, we were asked one time if we were interested  and  we  said
    yes, but I don't know... That's just  talk.  We'd  love  to,  you
    know... Everybody knows we want to tour, everybody in  the  scene
    knows... We're serious about it and we can do  it,  but  we  just
    haven't had any serious offers, so I don't know what to  do,  I'm
    just waiting. We're a great live band, I think that's one of  our
    best -- that's one of our things, we love to play out, we like to
    play our material out live, it's a lot faster and  more  in  your
    face live.

CoC: And I think in a way with music, it's  the  way  that  music  is
     supposed to be.

SC: Yeah, you know, especially metal.

CoC: Metal is such a live thing.

SC: You can listen to your vinyl and it's fuckin' kick ass, and  then
    you go to a show and it's fuckin' ten times heavier.

CoC: Yeah, I mean, I've listened to Iron Maiden for a load  of  years
     and I like their albums and I put 'em on, but I'm going  to  see
     'em next week and that's  going  to  just  top  everything  [see
     Chaotic Concerts for whether it did --Paul].

SC: Fuck yeah.

CoC: So that would be great for you guys to get out: the exposure  of
     the album will do a lot to help that happen. What have you found
     from the responses you've got so far?

SC: I've done... I couldn't even count how many  interviews  and  the
    response has been really, really good. I was expecting it  to  do
    good, I'm not trying to sound egoed out, I expected it to do good
    but I didn't expect it to do -this- good. There's been a  lot  of
    tension on it. I think it's a great debut  album.  I  think  it's
    done a good job for a debut. Now we just want to keep going,  put
    out another one, try to strive to do better and better.

CoC: Like you say, it sounds on the record like you've really  got  a
     good record, but a record that gives you a lot of possible  ways
     to go; you don't really exhaust all your  possibilities  in  one
     album. What did you find with the album, what were the songs you
     were most happy with?

SC: "Blind to All That Exist" and  "The  Eve  of  the  Entities"  are
    probably my two favourite off of there, but I also like "My  Own"
    and "Masque". I pretty much like it all.

CoC: I pretty much agree. With the tracks you  were  mentioning,  and
     just in general, how did the lyrics fit in with it? It  kind  of
     defies death metal  convention  as  well,  because  it'll  sound
     strange maybe, but it almost has a sort of power metal feel,  in
     some  ways,  because  it's  sort  of  thematic,  it's  sort   of
     conceptual. The music and lyrics fit together  in  a  much  more
     complete, album sort of way.

SC: From the beginning what I wanted to do, what all of us wanted  to
    do -- let me turn this video down I'm watching. What we tried  to
    do, what I wanted to do is have -- I'm 34 years old, when I  used
    to buy an album in the eighties I'd put  it  on,  and  each  song
    usually had a feeling to it, it had its own  characteristic.  And
    the last song -- you always remember the last  song,  this  side.
    Then you'd turn it over, you know; it's got a personality to  it.
    And I think _The Eve of the  Entities_  definitely  has  that.  I
    think it's got a feeling; each song is different, the lyrics  are
    different: some of  them  are  horror,  horror  movie  based  and
    psychological. A lot of mental psychological; just things  to  do
    with one's self, individualism. Just a lot  of  things;  we  like
    horror movies a lot and that kind of stuff influences us.

CoC: Which kind of horror movies in particular, which era?

SC: I'm into Hammer films...

CoC: You can definitely notice the Hammer influence...

SC: Yeah, and I watch Italian. I watch Italian gore like "Maniac".

CoC: Fulci and stuff like that?

SC: Fulci, Argento, Mariano Baino, Diodar. The "Cannibal..." movies.

CoC: Like "Cannibal Holocaust", right?

SC: Yeah, I'm watching "Make Them Die Slowly" right now.  Got  it  on
    DVD just now.

CoC: I ordered just a while back "City of the Living Dead", I haven't
     seen that one and it's supposed to be killer!

SC: Yeah, that's my favourite Fulci movie.

CoC: It's better than "The Beyond"?

SC: It's my favourite, but a lot of people think "The Beyond" is  his
    best -- but I personally like "Gates of  Hell"  [one  US  release
    title for "City of the Living Dead" --Paul]. One of the songs  on
    our new album is called "The Gates of Hell". I wrote it about it.
    The newer lyrics, I think there's four that are based  on  horror
    movies. Richard's really big into John Carpenter, especially "The
    Fog" and "Halloween". I've got like 800 horror movies, so...

CoC: Nice. You know who you should tour with, you  should  tour  with
     Deceased.

SC: Yeah, I could handle that tour.

CoC: For someone who was interested in getting into  Burning  Inside,
     thinking of buying the album, what elements of it would you  say
     would attract people;  what  elements  would  you  say  are  its
     primary good qualities?

SC: FUCKING METAL.

COC: <laughs> That's good.

SC: You just ask the person: are you into FUCKING METAL? And if  they
    say yes, then you ask 'em what kind. Yeah, just as long  as  they
    like metal I think they'll like it. A lot of the real sick people
    that are just into more primitive shit probably -- the band Black
    Witchery that I'm in is almost the exact opposite to what I do in
    Burning Inside. It's really raw, stripped down, Bathory,  Beherit
    blastbeat type metal. But I have people that are into  that  band
    that also like Burning Inside. So, I think it's open to a lot  of
    doors, I think people just need to listen to it.  That's  why  --
    another thing with the name is that that doesn't  really  pin  us
    down to any certain style.

Steve and I also chatted briefly about:

Metal from England...

SC: My favourite bands, like Judas  Priest,  Black  Sabbath,  fuckin'
    Maiden: they're all from there.

Venom turning up unexpectedly...

SC: I remember when I went to the MetalFest at Milwaukee, Cronos just
    walked by at ten  in  the  morning.  I'm  like:  "That's  fucking
    Cronos, man, I'm standing next to Cronos here!"

And a classic Canadian band...

SC: I'm going to Canada  21st  of  July  to  see  Blasphemy:  they're
    playing their first show in  nine  years.  They're  the  gods  of
    Canada; skinhead satanic -black- metal: they've got a  black  guy
    in the band.

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

              T H E   S H R I N E   U N S H R O U D E D
              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
               CoC interviews Marcel Verdurmen of Altar
                           by: Aaron McKay


No sense in getting all wrapped-up in too many details.  Usually  the
shortest distance between two points is a  straight  line.  It  would
seem that Marcel from Holland's Altar would be  a  defender  of  that
line of direct reasoning, judging from the replies I received back on
e-mail from the band's goliath guitarist. I found his answers  to  be
simple,  forthright  and  fraternal.  After   a   simple,   obviously
unsuccessful attempt to speak with Marcel on the phone, I coordinated
this e-mail dialog with the band's  spokesperson  and  guitarist  for
you, the CoC readership. I hope that you find it illuminating in some
regard.

CoC: Altar has two different  covers  for  the  new  album,  for  the
     European and US releases, huh?

Marcel Verdurmen: It seemed better to bring out two different covers,
                  because some people thought the one with  the  girl
                  and priest on it was too shocking.

CoC: You have been given -a lot- of credit for taking the band to the
     next level in ability, with respect  to  _Ego  Art_,  with  your
     clever, weighty guitar approach. Do you agree with that?

MV: Well, I had another approach to Altar's music, but I always  kept
    the Altar style in mind when writing any new material.

CoC: In your opinion, before this new release,  would  you  say  that
     _Provoke_ was more innovative and/or radical than _Ego Art_?

MV: Yes, I agree. _Provoke_ was more melodic  and  in  my  eyes  more
    mature than the _Ego Art_ album. It was not an experiment, it was
    just a new album with a different approach, and it  is  still  an
    album we are very proud of.

CoC: Where did the title of _In the Name of the Father_ come from?

MV: Well, here in Holland some priests were caught in a clothing room
    of a swimming pool filming little naked boys and girls and in the
    beginning this was a great case, but after all, they did not  get
    convicted and had no punishment at all!! So we  decided  to  give
    our album this title with [that] meaning behind it. Even  if  you
    are a pervert priest, no one will blame you for this, because  he
    is acting "in the Name of the Father".

CoC: Did I read somewhere that _Provoke_ was Altar's rebuttal  to  --
     was it the media or organized religion?

MV: I think both. <laughs>

CoC: Last year, Altar performed at  the  Waldrock  festival  with  In
     Flames, S.O.D, Immortal,  Mercyful  Fate  and  Sepultura,  among
     others. How was that compared to other concerts Altar has done?

MV: Well, to play on Waldrock was a wish we had for years. We enjoyed
    it a lot and playing with other well  known  bands  is  just  far
    out!!

CoC: I see that you are slated for  a  date  in  July  in  the  Czech
     Republic with Dark Funeral and Behemoth. Anything happening with
     a US tour? Deeds of Flesh, possibly?

MV: Hopefully, we are waiting for other people who promised this tour
    to us to keep their word and hopefully we are going to the US.  I
    know Altar is a band you have to see live. We are much better  on
    stage.

CoC: European tour with Vader?

MV: Same answer.

CoC: Didn't you guys do a split album with Cartilage?

MV: No, I think that was another band.

CoC: What song did  Altar  cover  on  the  Chuck  Schuldiner  Benefit
     Concert (with Altar, Blo.Torch, God Dethroned, Occult, Dead Head
     and Consolation)?

MV: We did the song "Evil Dead".

CoC: Did you particularly  appreciate  any  other  the  other  bands'
     covers?

MV: Yes, sure!!

CoC: What happened with your former label, Displeased? How are things
     working out with Pavement?

MV: After a long fight and so  much  discussion  going  on,  we  said
    goodbye to Displeased. Some things just did not  work  out.  With
    Pavement things are looking OK, but you always have to  see  what
    happens in the future.

CoC: You guys worked up everything to do with _In  the  Name  of  the
     Father_ all by yourselves. Did you shop that,  your  now  fourth
     release, around to labels or were you prepared to go the  entire
     distance without any support at all?

MV: No, when we said goodbye to Displeased we had  already  signed  a
    deal with Rough Trade / Zomba. Pavement came in later.

CoC: I noted that Pavement is handling promotion for Altar everywhere
     -but- in Benelux [Benelux is the name  used  for  the  group  of
     countries comprising Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg,  which
     are on the western  coast  of  Europe,  nearest  to  the  United
     Kingdom -- Aaron]. Who's handling that?

MV: Rough Trade / Zomba.

CoC: Anybody you are listening to now?  Found  any  impressive  bands
     lately?

MV: I like Rammstein a lot.

CoC: My very best wishes to the band and please  end  this  interview
     anyway that you would like -- and  thanks  very  much  for  your
     time, Marcel.

MV: No need for thanks at all, and I thank you for your interest  and
    hopefully we will see each other on some tour and have some beers
    together. Cheers!!

Contact: http://www.altarband.com

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

        S T I L L   F I G H T I N G   F O R   E X P O S U R E
        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
         CoC chats with Tony Jelencovich of Transport League
                          by: Adrian Bromley


     Sweden's Transport League is one  of  the  most  underrated  and
exciting bands out there. Unfortunately,  not  many  people  know  of
them. What a shame.
     Having followed the band since  their  1994  debut  disc  titled
_Stallion Showcase_ (and before that  with  singer  Tony  Jelencovich
fronting B-Thong)  and  onto  other  interesting  works  like  1997's
_Superevil_ and their latest effort _Satanic Panic_,  I  have  always
told people of the band, urging  them  to  tell  others  about  their
unique sound and direction. But I could only do so much.
     Things seem to be on the up and up as we speak. Transport League
have signed a worldwide deal  with  Pavement  Records  with  _Satanic
Panic_ and I am hoping that the band gets the exposure they  deserve.
I've got my fingers crossed for you guys!
     "Things are going good for us right now and we are back  working
on new  material  for  a  new  record",  states  singer  Jelencovich.
"_Satanic Panic_ came out last year and it just seems so  old  to  us
now, we just want to explore and try out new things.  The  groove  is
going to be the same, we have always had that, it is just that we are
itching to write new material. I think the new record will be  a  bit
like _Satanic Panic_ but maybe flirting  a  bit  with  that  nu-metal
sound."
     When asked about the creative process that goes into a Transport
League record, he says: "It has become a bit harder to  write  music,
but at the same time it is easier too. It is hard to explain, really.
We have become better musicians since the first disc [Jelencovich  is
the only original member  --  Adrian],  but  at  the  same  time  the
arrangements are more technical and harder to grasp. Each day we  are
experimenting and coming in contact with all of these ideas and it is
great to be able to change music and have fun at the same time --  or
at least try to have fun. We have a really good band right now  too",
he says. "Patrik [Sten] is a great drummer who has brought a lot into
the band and he also plays guitar, so that  adds  something  to  help
creating ideas. He isn't just a drummer."
     One dream that Jelencovich wishes is for the band to be able  to
come over and tour the United States.  It  is  still  just  a  dream.
"Things have just been a bit slow  for  us  over  here  in  terms  of
exposure. Things haven't been going too well for us. The  key  market
over here is Germany, but over there they are looking for bands  that
play progressive metal or melodic death metal, bands like HammerFall,
In Flames or Dark Tranquillity. The stuff that we are doing  is  very
difficult to fit over here. Since the  first  record,  we  have  been
hearing that our music would fit very well with what is going  on  in
the United States, but we've never been able to  try  and  tour  over
there."
     "I'd love to tour with Pantera or Machine Head. That would  just
be the best to go out and play across the United States and see if it
is true that our music works well with what is going on  over  there.
It is worth a shot", he quips, "I hope it happens. We are keeping our
fingers crossed."
     Listening to the new disc by Transport League  (rounded  out  by
guitarist Peter Hunyadi and bassist Ken Sandin), it is quite  obvious
a lot of the material is very personal and hard-hitting:  songs  like
"Neckdraft", "Tar" and "Plague  Ship" have a real  harrowing  display
of darkened imagery and heaviness combined. So is there a  dark  side
to _Satanic Panic_? What is the significance to the album title?  "We
chose the name _Satanic Panic_ because it was connected to  the  hype
of the millennium coming and all that stuff. There was this big panic
with all of these people being worried about computers  crashing  and
all of this crazy shit going on. Whatever. It is also a bit sarcastic
and it rhymes. <laughs> It is just a fun title, I think, for the most
part, kind of playing off the last album  title  _Superevil_.  It  is
just a name..."
     "As for the music, this is just us saying how it is like.  There
is no need to be all cute and simple about things. Life is  difficult
and so is being in a band, and in order to be something you  need  to
strive for something."
     "Our music is the way it is because we have fused  together  all
of these elements (groove,  samples,  hardcore  vibes)  and  made  it
aggressive and very much Transport  League.  We  believe  in  keeping
things on the go and _Satanic Panic_ is one  of  those  records  that
never lets go. We just need people to give us a chance and  see  what
we are all about."
     "I do this because I enjoy the music. I enjoy the creative ideas
that we do with our music. I just enjoy the  fact  that  I  can  make
music and people react to it",  explains  Jelencovich.  "Up  to  this
point, it has been a lot of fun to be a  part  of  Transport  League.
Hopefully we will be going somewhere in the near and distant  future.
As you can see, so far we have gone nowhere with  the  band,  really.
<laughs> And that is a shame. It is a long way to the top, you  know?
Well, we don't want to get to the top, we just want to make a  living
from all of this."
     "Hopefully things will happen soon for us", he finishes. "I'm 32
years old right now and who knows how long this can go  on  for?  The
important thing for me right now is that I still  have  a  goal  with
this band and we will continue to get  Transport  League  where  they
belong."
     May the Force be with them!

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
                   _____  .__ ___.
                  /  _  \ |  |\_ |__  __ __  _____
                 /  /_\  \|  | | __ \|  |  \/     \
                /    |    \  |_| \_\ \  |  /  Y Y  \
                \____|__  /____/___  /____/|__|_|  /
                        \/         \/            \/
              _____                 .__
             /  _  \   _________.__.|  |  __ __  _____
            /  /_\  \ /  ___<   |  ||  | |  |  \/     \
           /    |    \\___ \ \___  ||  |_|  |  /  Y Y  \
           \____|__  /____  >/ ____||____/____/|__|_|  /
                   \/     \/ \/                      \/

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!


A Perfect Circle - _Mer de Noms_  (Virgin, May 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (8.5 out of 10)

With this being lyrical genius and intensely  emotional  Tool  singer
Maynard James Keenan's side-project-of-sorts, it  is  not  surprising
that from the first notes of finely crafted opener "The Hollow",  APC
bear comparisons to one of the greatest bands  on  the  last  decade,
which can't be an entirely bad thing. Maynard's vocals are admittedly
the  main  cause  of  this  and  only  a  handful  of  tracks   (e.g.
"Magdalena", "Judith" (which is the classically irreverent "single"))
are actually exceptionally close to Tool's heady interplay of guitar,
bass and drums. That said, APC will appeal to people like myself  who
are fans of Tool, and if you find Tool a bit too emotionally troubled
in their lyrics or "long-winded" in their song structures, then maybe
APC will even be the quicker fix to  better  suit  your  tastes.  APC
bears a much stronger influence from ordinary alternative  rock,  and
its track lengths (particularly) and song structures (somewhat) stick
far more closely to popular music norms than Tool ever have; no  song
on _Mer de Noms_ clocks in at over five minutes in length.  Maynard's
collaboration with Billy Howerdel, Paz Lenchantin,  Josh  Freese  and
Troy van Leeuwen (and I'll bet they're all from California with those
names...) has resulted in a record peppered  with  a  nice  batch  of
really great songs but which has definite fall-out points, and  fails
to capture the soul-searing sincerity of Tool's creations.


After Forever - _Prison of Desire_  (Transmission Records, 2000)
by: Chris Flaaten  (7.5 out of 10)

After Forever from The Netherlands is the latest fruit from the  tree
of doom with soprano and death metal vocals.  Many  claim  that  this
kind of music has been overdone, but this album  from  After  Forever
actually has enough quality and character to deserve  attention.  The
album opens with a very atmospheric synth and choir piece, with Latin
lyrics that represent the prologue to the lyrical trilogy  consisting
of track two, five and nine, while the music itself  is  the  perfect
intro for the album as a whole. The second track -- and  all  of  the
remaining nine tracks, for that matter -- follows perfectly with both
varied, well composed and well played music  lead  by  singer/soprano
Floor Jansen's tremendous talent. After  Forever's  music  is  mainly
based on traditional guitar riffing with  the  synth  in  more  of  a
support role. The most apparent comparison is Within Temptation,  and
Sharon den Adel also appears on the album's  last  and  perhaps  most
beautiful track, "Beyond Me". Still, the comparison does not describe
AF's music accurately; Within Temptation  meets  Nightwish,  perhaps?
People interested in either of those bands' music  should  definitely
check After Forever out.


Altar - _In the Name of the Father_  (Pavement Music, March 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (6.5 out of 10)

Don't be thrown by what could be construed as a lower marking on this
release. Launching their savagery from  Holland,  Altar  pours  forth
some truly malevolent and spiteful  offerings  on  this,  the  band's
fourth release. For the  most  part,  I  very  much  agree  with  the
comments expressed by my colleague Adrian Bromley in CoC #33, when he
reviewed _Provoke_. Altar's sound is as metal as you'd want it to be,
sounding somewhat like subdued or suppressed _Harmony Corruption_-era
Napalm Death. The band has a truly well put together sound  showcased
no better place on the  record  than  on  a  couple  of  back-to-back
tracks, namely "I Spit Black Bile on You" and "Hate Scenario".  As  I
understand things, after parting  company  with  Displeased  Records,
Altar took matters into their own hands when making  _ItNotF_  before
ever firming up a deal with Pavement. Pavement added two  extra  cuts
to this release, "I Am Your New Provider" and a cover of the  classic
"The Trooper", by Iron Maiden. Looking directly at this effort, Altar
clearly has nothing to be ashamed of; the album is powerful.  At  the
same time, I can honestly say the material included  on  _ItNotF_  is
mostly forgettable, with the aforementioned couple of songs being the
exceptions. Were this a spectacular release, I  would  say  subjugate
yourself to the will of Altar, but as things are, I might only advise
visiting their sanctuary  for  a  brief  sermon  before  joining  the
congregation.


Anaal-Nathrakh - _Total Fucking Necro_  (Leviaphonic Records, 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)

Having reviewed their self-titled demo in CoC #43, I was very pleased
to receive this new CD from Anaal-Nathrakh -- and this  time  I  knew
what to expect: very harsh and destructive black metal delivered with
outstanding brutality and intensity. (How ironic that the package  in
which they sent me the CD had more "very  fragile"  warnings  written
all over it  than  I  can  remember  ever  seeing  before.)  This  CD
contains five new songs and their first demo, all recorded with  very
raw but effective production  --  except  for  the  very  nasty,  but
fortunately brief, sound glitches near the end of the opening  track.
The thing with Anaal-Nathrakh still is that they can mix very unusual
amounts of venomous fury with  a  strange  kind  of  catchiness  that
emerges from their wall of sound. The opener  "The  Supreme  Necrotic
Audnance"  is  one  devastating,  unrelenting  track.   The   doomier
overtones  of  "Satanarchist",  featuring   almost   _Bergtatt_   era
Ulver-like slow and sad bass lines,  complete  an  excellent  opening
duo. Note that this is nothing like _Bergtatt_'s superb atmosphere or
even sound style, though; _TFN_ is far more destructive  and  has  no
focus on atmosphere. The following two tracks keep up the aggression,
even  if  somewhat less remarkably, before a cover  of  Mayhem's  "De
Mysteriis dom Sathanas" closes the first section of the CD --  and  a
good cover it is, imbued with AN's own style. Their first  demo  then
follows, its sound quality slightly inferior but acceptable  and  the
music equally enjoyable. This may not be such a jewel hidden  beneath
misanthropic production as Ulver's _Nattens Madrigal_, but  for  five
pounds or nine US$ from Golden Lake Distribution, this 45 minute long
onslaught should definitely be a treat for anyone  into  very  harsh,
grim and powerful black metal to whom a raw but  adequate  production
isn't a problem (otherwise you can basically ignore the 8 out  of  10
rating above).

Contact: mailto:crushfuk@fuckyou.co.uk
         http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~dbanger
Contact: Golden Lake Distribution, 19 Castlehill Drive,
         Newton Mearns, Glasgow G77 5JZ, Scotland
         mailto:serenade4@yahoo.co.uk
         http://www.members.tripod.co.uk/golden_lake/index.htm
Contact: http://www.leviaphonic.co.uk


Ancient Wisdom - _...And the Physical Shape of Light Bled_
by: Eli Fishbein  (9.5 out of 10)  (Avantgarde, 2000)

This is the latest solo offering from Mr. Marcus E.  Norman  (writer,
arranger, performer, producer, engineer and mixer) and it easily tops
his previous opuses, _For Snow Covered the Northland_ [CoC  #16]  and
_The Calling_ [CoC #28]. The tracks  are  tighter  than  before,  the
melodies catchier -- though still extremely dark  --  and  the  vocal
range much wider. I could not  help  noticing  the  soulfulness  with
which The Big Man delivers his Satanist messages, as opposed  to  the
older,  more  mechanical  approach.  He  sings  with  grandeur   that
approaches the sublime, in  correspondence  with  some  of  the  most
resounding harmonized passages to come out of Sweden. A testament for
this man's genius can be heard in the  last  track,  "The  Spell",  a
cover of  Demon's  1982  heavy  metal  classic,  that  surpasses  the
original in every way.  The  cover  --  which  also  appears  on  the
_Tribute to Demon_ CD -- digs out caves behind that  '80s  antiquated
style to discover a new,  beautifully  sinister  interpretation.  The
only beef I can come up with is the  rigidity  of  the  piano-playing
throughout the album. To establish an emotional vibe, the  keys  need
to be gently  caressed,  not  banged  upon.  This  is  only  a  minor
drawback, though, and does not impede on  the  spellbinding  ambience
that this album masterfully weaves, nor on its indelible imprint.


Angel Dust - _Enlighten the Darkness_  (Century Media, June 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (5 out of 10)

Perhaps in an attempt to revitalise power metal, Angel Dust  seem  to
have added a slightly goth-like atmosphere, at times not too far from
EverEve's disappointing _Regret_ [CoC #46], and also some  electronic
elements. The strong drumming, riffs and melodies in opener  "Let  Me
Live" made me think  this  could  be  more  interesting  than  I  had
anticipated, and the following track, "The One You Are",  didn't  let
it down. But from  that  point  onwards,  hardly  anything  seems  to
achieve a similar level, and as the record went on  I  wondered  what
happened  to  the  elements  that  initially  made   it   seem   more
interesting. "Beneath  the  Silence",  for  example,  starts  with  a
Tiamat-like spoken part (think _Wildhoney_) before  changing  into  a
pretty  damn  mainstream  ballad  --  and  you  get  plenty  of  that
throughout the album. The initial interest is never  again  recovered
as the  extra-sweet  ballads,  less  than  effective  heavier  parts,
annoying goth-like elements and electronics just  add  up  to  tracks
varying between mediocre and  average  quality  --  which  is  rather
disappointing after the first couple of songs. Overall,  musically  a
competent album, but it clearly could have been much better.  But  as
it is, in all honesty -- and I know they play a very different  style
--, for some reason _Enlighten the Darkness_ just makes me wish I was
listening to Sentenced instead.


Angelwhore - _Superman_  (Casket Music, June 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (5 out of 10)

Imagine if you will, Dani Filth and the rest of his undead  elite  in
Cradle of Filth  rocking  hard  to  a  hard  rock  groove.  Shed  the
keyboards and beef up the wails of aggression and  the  guitar  riffs
and you pretty much know where Angelwhore are going with their music.
Vampiric qualities are etched everywhere as the  band  descends  into
darkness with punishing numbers as  the  title  track,  "Victim"  and
"Nausea". Without scaring people off,  I  picked  up  certain  sounds
reminiscent of Marilyn Manson  too.  There  is  enough  to  keep  you
interested, but I'm not sure if this hybrid will work for some  metal
fans.


Apollyon Sun - _Sub_  (Mayan, May 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (8.5 out of 10)

Thomas Gabriel Fischer has never been  an  easy  man  to  predict  --
actually, let's face it, he's damn near impossible to  predict:  very
uncharacteristic for a musician who's worked so  long  in  the  metal
genre. His post-Celtic Frost band's debut album --  finally  released
after nearly nine months of delay in mixing and remixing -- shows  no
indication that old age has made Tom  lazy;  _Sub_  is  certainly  no
exception to his ever-unpredictable recording  career.  Apollyon  Sun
seem impossible to label without either constructing ludicrously long
adjective strings to pre-modify  "metal",  or  resorting  to  useless
splicings like  "techno-metal"  or  "electro-metal"  which  generally
either say nothing informative or narrow down a small part  of  _Sub_
to represent its whole. This is key to _Sub_'s success as  a  "Thomas
Gabriel..." album; however  much  I  were  to  ultimately  enjoy  the
innovator's latest step, the last thing I wanted was for _Sub_ to  be
easy, either to comprehend or to  categorise.  And  not  only  is  it
neither, but I even like it. Maybe not as much  as  'Frost  at  their
best -- _Sub_ is neither that successful an innovation nor has  songs
of quite that calibre --, but 'Frost on _Vanity_/_Nemesis_? Possibly.
To give you an idea of what to  expect,  _Sub_'s  songs  are  usually
structured centrally  around  a  few  simple  slow  and  occasionally
mid-paced downward progressing riffs. These  are  backed  by  a  very
pronounced bass guitar and overlaid by  Tom's  vocals  --  which  are
seedily under pronounced, lending a slimy, grimy urban sheen  to  the
Godflesh-esque guitar and bass interplay.  The  drum  patterns  sound
entirely programmed (though sampled), but this  element  is  probably
_Sub_'s most complimentary quality, rather than the fall-down  it  so
often  seems  to  be  for  a  "metal"  record.  A  wide  variety  and
combination of rhythmic sounds  and  patterns  greatly  enhances  the
comparatively simple  interplay  of  guitar,  bass  and  vocals.  The
picture presented so far may be called the "skeleton" of _Sub_.  Onto
it is poured tons of contrasting and varied  "flesh"  and  a  quality
production "skin". Oscillations,  drum  'n'  bass  /  trance  breaks,
samples, scratching and a host of other, mostly seamlessly integrated
aspects feature on _Sub_. It has  been  put  together  carefully  and
professionally.  The   coherent   sound   throughout   many   musical
fluctuations belies accusations from some quarters that this is  some
cobbled  together  "industrio-metal"  affair.  _Sub_  has  been  well
executed and is certainly daring; whether you like it will depend  on
your musical tastes, but do its great financial  cost  and  ambitious
musical scope justice and give it a good, focused slab of your  time:
Tom deserves it, Apollyon Sun deserve it,  and  _Sub_  is  more  than
worth it for its possibly pleasurable musical rewards.


Ashes You Leave - _The Inheritance of Sin and Shame_
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)  (Morbid Records, February 2000)

My expectations regarding AYL's _The Inheritance of  Sin  and  Shame_
were very high, considering this Croatian band's quality  debut  _The
Passage Back to Life_ and second  album  _Desperate  Existence_  [CoC
#39]. _TIoSaS_ did not disappoint me, but it did not turn out  to  be
as amazing an album as I still feel AYL  can  produce,  either.  It's
still very doomy metal with female vocals and some death vox, as well
as violin and flute, and still not anywhere like the vast majority of
bands that might fit that description. AYL's sound continues to  have
a slight pleasantly raw edge that you do not generally find  in  such
bands, while the vocals and  the  various  instruments  produce  less
flashy but often  more  interesting  and  emotional  results  --  AYL
continue to very clearly play doom metal with a  highly  personalised
musical approach. Similarly to _Desperate  Existence_,  _TIoSaS_  has
some really fine passages that would justify an  even  higher  rating
and prove that this band can reach something very  remarkable  indeed
soon. But even forgetting for a  moment  the  incomprehensible  happy
section in the title track, AYL just need to be able to make a  whole
album that can be as special as those passages on _TIoSaS_. The  band
is currently going through some considerable line-up changes as  well
as a change of label. If things go well,  I  strongly  suspect  their
next album might see them  finally  making  full  use  of  all  their
potential. In the mean time, _The Inheritance of Sin and Shame_ is  a
fine album indeed, and a very welcome change from the genre's norm.


Asiatic Spike - _Beastial Warfare_  (<Independent>, May 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (5 out of 10)

I'll admit it. I did find myself cheering on this totally bonkers and
off the wall tirade and massive  mess  of  mayhem  found  on  Asiatic
Spike's _Beastial Warfare_ offering as I played it.  But  things  are
different now. After it came to a close I was left with little if any
interest to give it more than a  few  spins.  At  times  it  is  very
reminiscent of a death metal version of Faith No More mixed with  the
hard groove of, say, Sepultura or Soulfly and a  real  grindcore-like
drumming (thrown throughout). I'm sure there are many out there  that
would love to bask in Asiatic Spike's malicious energy  vibes,  while
I'd rather watch from the sidelines.

Contact: mailto:mrphuq@hotmail.com
         http://members.tripod.com/~asiaticspike/


Asphyx - _On the Wings of Inferno_  (Century Media, 2000)
by: Alvin Wee  (8 out of 10)

If good, brutal old-school death is what you're hankering after, what
better merchants to turn to than a legendary Dutch troop who's  grown
up with the likes of Pestilence? "Death, the brutal way!!!"  is  what
the trio claim to offer, and shunning the machine-gun speedrumming of
Krisiun or Mortician has yielded terrifying results. All but the most
inattentive of death metal fans will know that Asphyx have  advocated
mid-paced, heavy-as-fuck death since  their  humble  beginnings  with
_The Rack_, and _OtWoI_ is no different.  Wannes  Gubbels'  (on  loan
from countrymen Pentacle) typically torrid  Dutch  cries  evoke  fond
memories  of  Martin  van  Drunen  days,  and  provide  an  anguished
counterpoint to Eric Daniels' plodding, pounding riffage. It is  this
combination which makes the title  track  the  most  massively  heavy
death metal since Brutality's _Screams of  Anguish_.  Slow,  crushing
and inexorable,  the  monumental  riffs  plod  menacingly  onward  as
Wannes' tortured cries presage your doom! An  exercise  in  heaviness
unparalleled by the lightning-fast bands of today, despite the  intro
riff having (apparently)  been  taken  straight  off  Bolt  Thrower's
"Final Revelation". Just throw on _War Master_ and  you'll  see!  And
like old Bolt Thrower, Asphyx seldom lose their composure, preferring
a strictly rhythmic, almost martial tone  throughout  the  album.  If
you've been pining for some old-fashioned pounding death the  way  it
hasn't been done for years, _OtWoI_ is just the cure for you. All  29
minutes of it.


Autumn Tears - _LPfDC Act III: Winter and the Broken Angel_
by: Pedro Azevedo  (9 out of 10)  (Dark Symphonies, May 2000)

The highly anticipated  third  act  of  the  "Love  Poems  for  Dying
Children" series [see CoC #23, #37, #43 and  #45]  is  Autumn  Tears'
finest to date overall, though it  contains  no  major  surprises.  I
suspected their sound might begin to  lean  more  towards  Elend-like
tenebrae, especially considering their latest MCD _Absolution_, which
pointed in a different musical direction,  was  considered  as  being
mostly experimental by the band and not an  indication  of  what  the
future might bring. However, the one song on _Winter and  the  Broken
Angel_ that was taken from that MCD, the sublime "The  Never",  turns
out to be the track I enjoyed most on  the  full-length.  And  indeed
sublime is a very appropriate adjective for most of the music on this
album, though dark, eerie and  melancholic  are  equally  valid.  The
quality heralded by the  excellent  opener  "The  Grand  Celebration"
never disappoints (even if the chanting of "The Passion and the Fury"
may not be my thing). The fact that there are now two (superb) female
vocalists in the  band,  with  Jennifer  LeeAnna  joining  and  Erika
returning, increases the potential for variety in the  music,  though
the possible interplay between their voices isn't really explored  on
this album. Erika's distinctive black vox found on Act  II  are  only
used on the last track this time, which was  somewhat  disappointing.
The keyboard work is again superior to previous releases, though  not
very different in style, still aiming more at eerie  melancholy  than
grandeur -- yet at times  the  music  is  also  more  grandiose  than
before. Beautiful ethereal melodies draped in sombre  shroud,  finely
packaged and superiorly composed and performed  by  Autumn  Tears  is
what you will find on _Winter and the Broken Angel_. What follows?

Contact: http://www.darksymphonies.com


Axel Rudi Pell - _The Masquerade Ball_  (SPV, 2000)
by: Alvin Wee  (9 out of 10)

The Pell is back! And raring to go,  it  seems.  No  introduction  is
needed to a band, who like compatriots Running Wild, churn out  album
after album of similar-sounding material,  yet  never  once  fail  to
satisfy. Reprising the tried-and-true power-rock formula has garnered
this old rocker no small measure of success over the  years.  Opening
with strikingly memorable leads and Johnny Goielli's  searing  cries,
"Earls of Black" establishes the dark yet epic  atmosphere  from  the
outset. Things take a lighter turn with "Voodoo Nights", harking back
to older, "rock" days with the singalong chorus and vocal acrobatics,
not to mention Pell's effortless solos. Even more  nostalgic  is  the
ballad "Night and  Rain",  and  here  is  where  Johnny's  rough  yet
operatic throat shines, dragging out his high notes Dio-style, adding
a touch of raw power to former singer Jeff Scott Soto's more polished
tones. The title track fills the spot of  the  obligatory  ten-minute
"Pell"-epic. Another nod must be made to Dio;  just  hearing  Goielli
scream out the chorus evokes images of  the  dark  Elf  himself.  The
remaining tracks show a more "rock" side of the  band,  and  takes  a
more laid-back approach than _Magic_'s speed-riffing. What  more  can
be said about a man who has eleven albums under his own  name  behind
him, and who's been churning out such quality since his old days with
Steeler? I'm already kicking myself for missing last  year's  _Oceans
of Time_, so if you're into German heavy-rock/metal, don't  make  the
same mistake with this one. Available as a  "limited"  edition  of  a
ridiculous 20000 copies in a nice box with a great poster.


Ayreon - _Universal Migrator Part 1: The Dream Sequencer_
by: Chris Flaaten  (8 out of 10)  (Transmission Records, 2000)

As the title of this album indicates, this is the  first  part  of  a
two-CD set, the second being _The Flight of the Migrator_. While  the
second half of the set features heavy rock and progressive metal, the
first part consists of song-oriented and atmospheric, almost  dreamy,
progressive rock. Both have been written in full by Ayreon mastermind
Arjen Lucassen and as always he has a horde of guest vocalists  along
with him: Johan Edlund, Neal Morse and Lana Lane, to name a few.  The
first instrumental introduces us to the Dream  Sequencer,  a  machine
that takes the user on a dream journey back in time. We fly from  the
21st century to the first man on Earth, stopping by  everything  from
the moonlanding in '69 to the Mayans. The music lets  us  participate
properly in this  dream.  Lucassen's  and  fellow  prog  rocker  Erik
Norlander's synths create an atmosphere that is just uncanny. This is
soothing, relaxing music at its best. Some melodies might seem odd at
first, as if taken from late '80s arcade games, but it  doesn't  take
many spins to thoroughly enjoy the wholeness of this  album.  A  must
for those interested in prog rock  and  all  of  you  who,  like  me,
weren't at all disappointed by Tiamat's amazing  _A  Deeper  Kind  of
Slumber_.


Black Label Society - _Stronger Than Death_  (Spitfire Records, 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (8.5. out of 10)

I cannot say for sure which I like more: Zakk Wyldes's music  or  his
attitude. I've been singing this fuckin' album to, from, and at  work
for weeks, especially "Phony Smiles, Fake Hellos". I think this  song
was written about people like I deal with  every  day.  Can  you  say
idiots? Dead on, Brother Zakk! That's one of  the  best  features  of
_Stronger Than Death_: I think it speaks to -everyone-. I  know  that
most of you have run across those morons who act like The  Undertaker
at a high school wrestling meet, except they haven't the capacity but
to just put one  foot  in  front  of  the  other  let  alone  wrestle
competitively. You know, the belligerent wannabe pricks... Mr.  Wylde
has a song on _STD_ that speaks to those of us that have  to  put  up
with these types, if not in school  then  on  the  roads,  malls,  or
restaurants. He calls it "13 Years of  Grief".  Excellent  track.  Of
course, all the  things  that  you  would  expect  from  this  guitar
proficient proprietor are present on the  album.  I'm  thinking  Rick
Rozz's style crossed with everything you'd want from Crowbar. What am
I talkin' about? Most of you own _No Rest for  the  Wicked_,  so  you
have -some- idea what I am taking about. For  a  clearer  picture  of
BLS's sound, down a bottle of Jack Daniels (Texas fifth,  of  course)
and run the Boston Marathon. Once you've  crossed  the  finish  line,
immediately wring out your Gang Green t-shirt into a glass and  drink
it. Ha! The liquid equivalent off BLS. After hearing  _Stronger  Than
Death_, you'll be pouring yourself a  glass  of  this  ample  alcohol
alacrity daily. Salute!

Contact: http://www.ZakkWylde.com


Blinded by Faith - _Veiled Hideousness_
by: Adrian Bromley  (5 out of 10)  (Tuxedo Productions, June 2000)

If you can't pick out the Cradle of Filth influence in this band from
the first few seconds, may I suggest that you get your ears examined?
Quebec-based band Blinded by Faith are talented musicians stuck in  a
rut. Their music is full of emotions and  assembled  with  some  very
nicely organized melodic pieces; it is just that once the  band  hits
its stride with the black metal attack they come off sounding like  a
carbon copy of CoF. It is a shame, but  they  bring  nothing  new  or
varied to the black metal scene. Maybe that was planned?  Maybe  not.
Whatever  the  case  may  be,  Blinded   by   Faith   play   melodic,
keyboard-driven black metal  that  sounds  like  second-rate  CoF  at
times. If that is enough to turn  you  on,  then  so  be  it.  If  it
doesn't, cover your ears and move onto  the  next  disc  in  your  CD
collection.

Contact: Danny Emond, 430 rang sainte-Anne ST-Amselme,
         Quebec G0R 2N0, Canada
         mailto:blindedbyfaith@hotmail.com
         http://fly.to/blindedbyfaith


Blood Storm - _Pestilence From the Dragonstar_
by: Aaron McKay  (2 out of 10)  (Soul Sold Music, 2000)

While I continue to have high hopes for the  Soul  Sold  label,  this
isn't the best CD to inaugurate me  to  their  endeavors.  About  the
three minute mark on "Death Thunder",  track  two,  and  the  ensuing
first seconds and middle of the following song, "The Chaos Magician",
provide the only illumination by which to see your way clear of  this
release. Horrendous. While  some  would  think  Raise  Hell  (Nuclear
Blast) might qualify  as  unsatisfactory  material  generally,  Blood
Storm takes things to an all new level within the black metal sphere.
BS was hatched from namelessness by Mezzardurus (vocals  and  guitar)
in 1994 to issue forth an onslaught of occult metal. In  my  opinion,
the band was better left in obscurity. No sense beating a dead horse.
I'll be the first to own up to the fact that having only been exposed
to the band's 1997 _The Atlantean  Wardragon_  (Cacophonous  Records)
release prior to this atrocity of an album, I can't  say  that  I  am
Blood Storm's biggest fan; not by a long shot. As I have  told  those
who have asked about this newest  offering,  with  so  much  scathing
black metal to choose from today, I can honestly offer no  compelling
reason to own _Pestilence From the Dragonstar_. Beware.


Bloodbath - _Breeding Death_  (Century Media, 2000)
by: Matthias Noll  (8 out of 10)

An all star line-up  consisting  of  Akerfeldt  (Opeth),  Renske  and
Nystrom (Katatonia) and Dan Swano (he of  countless  projects,  bands
and production jobs) doing a three  track  EP  of  old  school  death
metal. Is that what the world needs? My answer  is  yes.  This  is  a
great EP (bought it for the price of a single) which has made me bang
my head quite some more than some full-blown releases  I've  listened
to this year. The old school trademark is kind of misleading, because
this record doesn't sound dated, even if there are  traces  of  bands
like early Unleashed, Gorefest, Massacre, etc.. The production is top
notch and the songs are less simple than you might  expect  (not  the
Six Feet Under approach). Bloodbath do achieve heaviness with  medium
paced grinding riffs on top of which  Akerfeldt's  impressive  grunts
sound like another instrument that provides memorable rhythmic  hooks
like in the remarkable last track "Furnace Funeral". This release  is
neither groundbreaking nor  spectacular,  but  it  has  such  a  high
quality standard that I  think  the  8  is  well  deserved.  If  your
definition of death metal does not list blast or hyper speed parts as
a must, then get this release and join me in hoping that  this  won't
be the last Bloodbath output.


Borknagar - _Quintessence_  (Century Media, April 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)

_Quintessence_, the fourth album by  Borknagar  (and  second  by  the
Garm-less version of the band) is a record that  neither  disappoints
nor astonishes. A  solid  record  made  by  very  skilled  musicians,
perhaps slightly superior to its  predecessor  _The  Archaic  Course_
[CoC #36], it showcases a band  still  successfully  maintaining  the
fluidity and, to some extent, the grandeur that  characterised  their
music in the past.  However,  as  was  the  case  with  _The  Archaic
Course_, the abstract  strength,  brilliance  and  feeling  contained
within and transmitted by the band's  last  recording  with  Garm  on
vocals,  _The  Olden  Domain_,  is  never  entirely  reached   during
_Quintessence_. The style is somewhat different,  but  not  different
enough to avoid this  comparison,  despite  Solefald's  Lars  Nedland
having added a somewhat different keyboard style to the  band.  Vague
memories of Dimmu Borgir's  _Spiritual  Black  Dimensions_  may  also
occasionally  arise,  though  they  are  not  necessarily  caused  by
vocalist Simen Hestnaes' participation in that album. As a matter  of
fact, _Quintessence_ contains less  clean  vocals  than  I  expected,
considering Hestnaes' renowned prowess in that  area,  and  at  times
some of his black vox are  not  very  far  from  Garm's,  in  a  way.
Nevertheless, the differences are obvious, not  simply  in  terms  of
vocals but also instrumentally. Although in  my  eyes  Borknagar  may
still remain unable to equal their _The Olden Domain_, _Quintessence_
still is another very good album from this talented band.


Charon - _Tearstained_  (Diehard, April 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (7.5 out of 10)

They may not be all that  original,  but  there  is  a  touch  of  an
x-factor in Charon -- something which is essential for any great band
-- which sets them apart from the chaff of mere imitating  hangers-on
that every scene is polluted by. Comparisons between Charon and their
Finnish  cousins  Sentenced  hold  ground  beyond  the  band   photos
presented in _Tearstained_'s inlay, but Charon acquit  themselves  in
producing this stunningly catchy and impressive album  of  distinctly
gothic-leaning  songs,  but  songs   which   never   forget   to   be
invigoratingly metal. Since their _Sorrowburn_ debut of two years ago
Charon have evidently worked hard, honing  their  songwriting  skills
and expanding their musical thinking. It has all  paid  off  and  the
impact is felt throughout _Tearstained_'s forty-five minutes.  Should
Charon build on this momentum, then I  can  only  see  them  go  from
strength to strength in the years to come, provided they don't  allow
themselves to slip  into  a  one-dimensional  groove  and  thus  stop
exploring new musical territory.


Chastisement - _... But Lost We Are_  (<Independent>, 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (7 out of 10)

Rather enjoyable half-hour long self-financed album from Sweden, this
one. Based on melodic death, with a few  thrash  guitar  elements  at
times and occasional somewhat  Meshuggah-like  riffs,  Chastisement's
music is certainly varied, dynamic and entertaining throughout.  With
the simple but effective production staying out of the way, the  band
shows  good  technical  skill  and  ability  to  keep  the   listener
interested, with songs such as "At the Garden  of  Eden",  the  title
track and "Life  Denied"  standing  out.  Riffs,  rhythm  and  vocals
frequently  vary  in  style  throughout  the  record,  and   one   of
Chastisement's main qualities is precisely that doing so  helps  them
avoid stagnation -- which is very useful as their sound itself is not
particularly complex and atmosphere is not something the  band  seems
to worry about. Of course the other side of the coin is usually  loss
of consistency or some  of  the  styles  not  working  properly,  but
Chastisement generally avoid falling into any  major  traps  in  both
cases. The price, by the way, is supposed to be "around 10 to 12$".

Contact: http://www.chastisement.com


Circle of Nero - _Massive Obliss_  (<Independent>, May 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (7 out of 10)

Hard to really say just  how  I  feel  about  Circle  of  Nero.  This
talented progressive metal / hard rock outfit play  truly  tight  and
technical metal music, topped by  the  great  vocal  range  of  Doyle
Stone, but it just seems a bit too flashy for me. It is like  they're
going all out to show just how good they  are  and  impress  someone.
Guitarist Koky Flores really knows his way around  a  guitar  and  it
shows, and while I think the music seems to "show-off-like",  I  must
admit the solos are pretty neat. I'm on the fence with this one,  but
in the end the band's talent  helps  make  this  worth  a  listen  --
especially tracks like the dominant "Dark Side of  Eternity"  or  the
nifty "Thorazine Dream".

Contact: P.O. Box 1594 Stafford, VA 22555-1594, USA
         http://www.circleofnero.com


Coffin Texts - _Gods of Creation, Death & Afterlife_
by: Aaron McKay  (7 out of 10)  (Dwell Records, April 2000)

Against my original impression, I am inclined to give these guys some
manoeuvring room with the vortex of  pulverizing  conflagration  this
band has manipulated here. The condensed version is:  I  like  Coffin
Texts. Expanding on that a bit more, I'd like to have seen some  more
intrepid, pioneering  steps  taken  on  this  release.  Coffin  Texts
certainly has the power and ability to pull off  an  innovation  here
and there, but instead chose to play things close to the vest. Desert
dry, guttural rasp/growls scour across the tumultuous sand  dunes  of
brutality CT lays waste to on _GoCD&A_. At times, I  am  reminded  of
Nile, but as you might imagine, this can be a good  thing  especially
when a band colors the golden tan soundscape  generously  with  their
own style. Two favorites to be on the  lookout  for:  Coffin  Texts's
self-titled track and "Disturbing the  Priest".  Both  are  extremely
alluring,  but   the   savior   of   this   effort   is   CT's   very
Massacre-sounding cover of "Crypts of Eternity", which is of course a
remake done initially by Slayer on _Hell Awaits_. This track can also
be found on Dwell Records' 1999 various artists release, _Gateway  to
Hell -- Tribute to Slayer_. At  just  over  thirty-eight  minutes  in
length,  you  can  seen  Coffin  Texts's  potential  spelled  out  in
enigmatic writing all over the wall -- or crypt,  I  guess,  in  this
case.


Corvus Corax - _The Atavistic Triad_
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)  (Dark Symphonies, February 2000)

_The Atavistic Triad_ is composed of three long tracks and a  shorter
instrumental, for a total duration of about forty minutes. Their  mid
to fast-paced, very atmospheric, doomy, and well crafted black  metal
reaches its most remarkable level during fifteen minute  long  opener
"Son of the Earth", in which the influences ranging from classical to
dark folk music, the aggression and the doom elements in  the  band's
music all come together extremely well. Symphonic despite the  rather
subdued keyboards, always in a dark and gloomy way and sometimes with
a more war-like sound, Corvus Corax do not disappoint during the rest
of the record either. "Terminus Est" and "Mystagogue" are  also  very
good, though not quite as remarkable  as  "Son  of  the  Earth".  The
acoustic track "Sojourn" is a highly evocative one, fitting perfectly
into the album's atmosphere, which is further enhanced by both images
and lyrics. Corvus Corax have created a fine debut, very  interesting
and highly promising, and certainly seem to be an excellent  addition
to the Dark Symphonies roster.

Contact: http://www.darksymphonies.com


Cruachan - _The Middle Kingdom_  (Hammerheart, May 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (4 out of 10)

_The Middle Kingdom_ could comfortably be dismissed as merely another
misconceived attempt to combine  Celtic  folk  music  (in  this  case
Irish) with  metal  (in  this  case  black-ish)  if  it  weren't  for
Cruachan's seeming belief (expressed in Hammerheart's press  release)
that they have created something significant  and  original  in  this
sophomore  effort.   What   _TMK_   essentially   does   is   combine
vaguely-black metal riffing with folk music -- expressed centrally by
bagpipes, among other traditional instruments, along with folk-styled
female singing  --  in  a  rather  clumsy  fashion,  which  generally
constitutes the mere harmonising of folk  instruments  and  distorted
guitars. Had Cruachan instead  intertwined  the  two  elements,  they
certainly could have emerged with quite an effective and  maybe  even
original album. As it is,  _TMK_  is  mostly  tediously  unoffensive;
though points such as the ska-like timing  of  "Unstabled  Steeds  of
Macha" do try my patience  somewhat,  I  find  myself  getting  bored
rather than frustrated when listening to _TMK_.


Various - _Curse of the Demon: A Tribute to Mercyful Fate_
by: Aaron McKay  (8 out of 10)  (Dwell Records, 2000)

This is probably one of the better and fine-tuned tribute albums I've
heard in quite a while. It is no secret that releases of this  nature
are not what I'd call a favorite  of  mine,  but  any  fool  knows  a
valuable commodity when they come across it; well,  most  simpletons,
anyway. Let me save you the embarrassment of subjecting  yourself  to
the idiot-test; if you like Mercyful Fate, old  and  new,  and  bands
savor the works of Deceased, Vital Remains, and  Necrophagia  --  buy
this. Acheron's instrumental "Room  of  Golden  Air"  track  is  near
perfect and  Soilwork's  "Egypt"  is  almost  as  compelling  as  the
original, with a backdoor vocal approach that  is  numbing  to  hear.
Varathron's cover of "Nuns Have No Fun" is nothing like the  Deceased
variety on the Listenable  Records  tribute  to  King  Diamond,  Hank
Shermann and the rest of Mercyful Fate, but no  less  interesting,  I
assure you. Watch out for  the  first  track,  Equinox's  version  of
"Gypsy". It is sensational. Why  don't  I  own  some  Equinox?  After
hearing their cut on _Curse of the Demon_, I intend to  rectify  this
oversight. I might also suggest that if this Dwell Records tribute to
one of the mightiest of bands through the annals of time  is  not  in
your collection, that you too rectify this omission.


Dark Funeral - _Teach Children to Worship Satan_
by: Aaron McKay  (9.5 out of 10)  (No Fashion Records, February 2000)

Here they  are  again  in  rare  form.  Fresh  from  their  prominent
_Vobiscum Satanas_ release in 1998, an  incredible  new  MCD  is  now
available from black metal's powerhouse, Dark Funeral.  I  believe  I
notice, more than just occasionally, -so many- bands in  this  genre,
in some way, distinguish their relationship to Dark Funeral,  whether
it be thanking them, as  touring  allies,  or  even  as  inspiration.
_Teach Children to Worship Satan_, as you can  tell  from  my  rating
above, is astounding, despite the fact that I could  do  without  the
title of the disc; too clumsy, in my opinion, for such a celebratedly
arcane and nebulous band. No points were deducted for this,  however,
only a mere 0.5 subtracted for the  petty  fact  that  I  could  have
certainly tolerated another -new- track on this MCD. As  things  turn
out, the wildly superior "An Apprentice to Satan" is all  I  have  to
tide me over until Dark Funeral's next full-length offering. The bulk
of _TCtWS_'s points come in the form of their renditions of  Slayer's
"Dead Skin Mask" and the grand and wondrous "Remember the Fallen"  by
Sodom. I've always thought that this was Sodom's strongest  song  off
of _Agent Orange_ and I'll  shamelessly  admit  that  any  band  that
covers that track wins -big- points in my book. At any rate, rounding
out the other two cuts on _TCtWS_ are King Diamond's "The Trial"  and
Mayhem's "Pagan Fears". Four covers and one  new  Dark  Funeral  song
therefore complete this exceedingly  strong  MCD.  There  is  also  a
CD-extra MPEG video on here that is completely beguiling for any  fan
of the band. I have to wrap this up now, as it's time  for  a  thrash
around my room to DF's Sodom tribute; "Honour the fallen  heros.  See
their last resting place. Perished in the battle  of  nations.  Where
they found eternal peace..."


Dark Tranquillity - _Haven_  (Century Media, July 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (9 out of 10)

Immediately and unreservedly did I like what  turned  out  to  be  my
third favourite album of 1999, _Projector_, despite all  the  changes
in Dark Tranquillity's  sound  --  the  frequent  clean  vocals,  the
keyboards and the general feel of  the  music.  There  was,  however,
plenty of teeth gritting on my part during  the  first  few  times  I
listened to _Projector_'s successor, _Haven_. Nevertheless, being the
masters  of  their  art  that  Dark  Tranquillity  doubtlessly   are,
_Haven_'s tracks, although quite  short  (generally  below  the  four
minute mark), ultimately start making enough sense on their  own  and
as a whole, and musical quality begins to really shine through as one
would expect from DT. However, _Haven_ is not without its  faults  as
far as DT's options are concerned, in my opinion.  The  clean  vocals
that suddenly appeared in DT's sound on _Projector_  were  completely
forsaken this time, in exchange for a very considerable  increase  in
the use of electronics -- more on that later. Mikael  Stanne's  raspy
vocals are now somewhat deeper and  used  throughout  the  album,  in
order to produce contrast with the  occasional  returns  to  his  old
style,  which  is  a  somewhat  more   high-pitched   and   anguished
scream-like growl. This duality is well planned and works quite well,
but nevertheless I would have liked him to use  his  old  style  more
often and I also miss the emotional clean vox he used on _Projector_.
As far as that's concerned, _Haven_ still proves to be an emotionally
strong album, though for me not as much so as _Projector_. Guitar and
drum-wise, no major changes  are  apparent  and  quality  remains  as
remarkably high as usual, with some of the music  strongly  reminding
me of _The Mind's I_ -- the end of "Not Built to Last"  even  brought
to my mind "Of Chaos and Eternal Night". The keyboards, however,  are
used quite differently and are, for  me,  by  far  the  album's  main
problem. Even the short duration of the  generally  mid-paced  tracks
turns out to be quite acceptable, as the structures aren't linear  or
predictable as is often the case under such circumstances, but a  lot
of the keyboard work is just average  or  even  mediocre.  There  are
exceptions, but most of the time the keyboard's  electronic  elements
are just redundant and annoying, which becomes even more evident when
compared to the  better  keyboard  sections  and  especially  to  the
stellar work of the rest  of  the  band.  Still,  with  DT's  musical
excellence resulting in tracks such as "Feast  of  Burden",  "Haven",
"Fabric" and "At Loss for Words", _Haven_ is  still  a  great  album.
However, for me, it just is not worth a 10 out of 10 as I had reasons
to believe it would be.


Darkness Eternal - _Dawn of the Suffering_ (<Independent>, July 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (6.5 out of 10)

I was ready to give up on this band the first time  I  saw  the  lame
artwork adorning the album cover. No doubt this is the -worst-  cover
for a record, indie or major label, that I have ever seen. It depicts
a "Virgin Mary"-like figure holding a lizard-tongued child in  a  sea
of flames while a bleeding eye looks on. I know: -lame-! But  luckily
for one-man metal machine George Valaetis  (yes,  he  plays  all  the
instruments), the music of Darkness Eternal is a nice, somewhat solid
piece of death metal -- but still full of faults. My problem  doesn't
lie within the production, that is actually pretty good;  my  problem
is with the pace of the record. Loose ideas seem to spur on the songs
at times, making this just lumped ideas with no  real  congruency.  I
liked the record, notable numbers being "Mass  Suicide",  "Impeccable
Doom" and the title track, but it needs work. And, of course,  a  new
album cover.

Contact: George Valaetis, P.O. Box 5002, Spruce Grove,
         AB T7X-3A2, Canada
         mailto:Darknesseternal666@hotmail.com


Defaced Creation - _Serenity in Chaos_  (VOD Records, 1999)
by: David Rocher  (8 out of 10)

With more than just their name being  reminiscent  of  US  deathsters
Malevolent Creation, Scandinavia's Defaced Creation have the  cutting
aggressiveness,  precision  and  inspiration  to  impose   themselves
rapidly as one of the uprising leaders of the... American death metal
scene. Indeed, _Serenity in Chaos_ is  a  blasting,  mauling  assault
that, and with vicious bloodlust at that, taps  into  the  same  gory
vein as renowned acts such as Malevolent Creation, Cannibal Corpse or
Germany's lesser-known Mental Aberration. With a  sharpened,  maiming
rhythmical backbone provided by their fantastic drummer Arttu Marrki,
and a four- and six-string section revelling in  exemplary  precision
and power, _Serenity in Chaos_  boasts  twelve  tracks  of  crushing,
blasting death metal guaranteed to pound listeners into dust,  served
with a crunchy Morrisound-style sound  that  nonetheless  bears  deep
scars of the Scandinavian  sense  for  power.  Defaced  Creation  are
murderously intense, surgically precise and  superbly  violent  --  I
know as little as nothing about these guys, but I'll wager that  more
will be heard of them at some point  in  a  near  future.  With  song
titles such as "Stillborn" and "Cannibalistic Feast", this definitely
un-canorous quintet know where  they're  headed,  and  are  decidedly
injecting true dedication into their career.  Violent,  raging  death
metal fans should make sure to keep tabs on these lads.


Descend / All That Is Evil - _Split CD_
by: Adrian Bromley  (6 out of 10)  (Cutting Edge Records, May 2000)

While the opening wave of violence put forth  by  storm  troopers  of
death metal Descend is of admirable quality, with  their  deep  vocal
growls and menacing guitars riffs, it is the dominating  death  metal
drive of  All  That  Is  Evil  that  puts  this  split  venture  into
overdrive. Tight, technical when need be and truly sick and  in  your
face, All That Is Evil crush on  "Peril  at  Sea"  and  "The  God  of
Duality". The recording of their four tracks is  very  raw  and  just
enhances their attack. Good stuff here. A safe bet, with All That  Is
Evil being the real draw here.

Contact: P.O. Box 77036, Cleveland, OH 44107, USA


Destruction - _All Hell Breaks Loose_  (Nuclear Blast, April 2000)
by: Matthias Noll  (6 out of 10)

Reunion time again. Be it public interest, money or whatever that has
spawned the resurrection of the legendary German thrashers, it  might
not  be  financially  dangerous  for  anybody  involved  (quite   the
contrary, I assume), but I think at least  Destruction's  own  legend
and credibility is at risk. The Germans and  their  label  have  done
their best to raise expectations to  a  high  level:  producer  Peter
Tagtgren, references  to  the  days  long  gone  with  bullet  belts,
coloured contact lenses (where are the inverted  crosses?)  and  song
titles like "The Butcher Strikes Back".  With  the  release  of  this
record it's time to look behind the hype and let  the  music  do  the
talking  to  show  what  Destruction  have  to  offer  in  the  third
millennium. First of all, this album, musically, is not a  return  to
the  style  of  the  three  classic  releases  _Sentence  of  Death_,
_Infernal Overkill_ and _Eternal Devastation_. The  retro  factor  is
kept to a minimum. Decide for yourself if that's  what  you  want;  I
give them loads of credit for not playing it safe. While opener  "The
Final Curtain" is propelled along  by  a  typical  Destruction  riff,
their year 2000 style is far more complex, less  straightforward  and
fast than one might expect.  Every  song  features  loads  of  riffs,
breaks, tempo changes, pre-chorus and bridge sections, and that's  my
main gripe with _All Hell Breaks Loose_. Less technicality would have
resulted in more power and ultimately better,  more  cohesive  songs.
Too many of Mike's impressive riffs start to grab you by  the  throat
and unfortunately the next break for the sake of adding another break
is only seconds away. While the first half of this record  is  strong
enough not to suffer too much from excessive complexity, later tracks
"Visual Prostitution" and "Kingdom of Damnation" are hardly more than
filler material, and I think it's  no  coincidence  that  the  OK-ish
remake of "Total Desaster" is placed on position 10 in the track list
to regain the listener's attention.  In  general,  _All  Hell  Breaks
Loose_ reminds me  a  lot  of  the  complex  thrash  metal  Forbidden
delivered on their later albums like _Green_ or, to a certain degree,
the instrumental style of Nevermore on their more  thrashing  tracks.
Adding up to this, Schmier's highly improved vocal delivery also does
sound a lot like Forbidden vocalist Russ Anderson, and when listening
to this record for the first time the moments where his voice  sounds
familiar are more rare than one might expect. Of course Tagtgren  has
given "All Hell Breaks Loose" a good sound, but it's  definitely  not
superior to the rather samey Abyss jobs of late  (Sunlight/Morrisound
syndrome revisited?). Overall this  is  a  decent  record,  featuring
professional musicianship, five or six  good  tunes  without  a  real
standout track, and I would  recommend  this  to  fans  of  technical
thrash metal as well as long time Destruction lunatics. On the  other
hand, I have to say that bands of the fifth or sixth wave  of  thrash
metal like Defleshed have learned how to outshred their idols  and  I
don't see anyone giving _All Hell Breaks Loose_  another  spin  in  a
couple of months after the initial Destruction-reunion bonus has worn
off.


Dying Fetus - _Grotesque Impalement_  (Blunt Force Records, 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (9 out of 10)

I feel nearly the same way about this almost 22 minute MCD as  I  did
about Viking Crown's _Onorthodox Steps of Ritual_ [CoC #42] -- if you
don't like this, you should stop reading my shit! Also, if you  don't
like this type of all-out, balls-to-the-wall death metal, you  should
re-examine yourself as a fan of the genre. I think these  East  Coast
gentlemen have some of the best style in metal. I must  confess  that
Dying Fetus's _Killing  on  Adrenaline_  [CoC  #34],  is  -still-  my
favorite, but this is  -solely-  due  to  the  fact  that  _Grotesque
Impalement_ is an MCD. Otherwise,  with  the  presentation  of  more,
newer DF material, I would be forced to  re-evaluate  that  decision.
I'd argue, convincingly and to the best of  my  ability,  that  Dying
Fetus possesses the epitome of  a  death  metal  vocal  style.  "Hail
Mighty North / Forest Trolls of Satan (Anno Clitoris 666 Opus 11)" is
a cut reminding you of the heaviest song  Gang  Green  -wishes-  they
could have recorded! Killer, powerful and brutal work  on  _Grotesque
Impalement_. Do yourself a favor  and  check  it  out.  Again,  guys,
unquestionably heavy as a really fuckin' heavy thing.


earthtone9 - _hi-point_  (Copro Productions, May 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (8 out of 10)

There are few bands out there  nowadays  that  I'll  put  high  on  a
pedestal with my  fave  band,  Nottingham  outfit  Pitchshifter.  But
earthtone9 has easily made the jump to such high  distinction.  These
guys write some of the coolest  hard  rock  /  hardcore  /  noisecore
numbers out there. With a real kinetic vibe  and  a  badass  flow  of
intensity, English outfit earthtone9 know how to stay  grounded,  but
expand with this four-song outing by using momentum  and  technology.
Keep your eyes peeled for these guys and get down to opener "Tat Twam
Asi".


Entombed - _Uprising_  (Music for Nations, March 2000)
by: Matthias Noll  (8.5 out of 10)

Warning: this  is  neither  another  _Left  Hand  Path_  nor  another
_Clandestine_. If that's what you're looking for, you can  skip  this
review.  If  you  haven't  lost  hope  after  the  disastrous   _Same
Difference_ (what a lie) album and have preserved  your  appreciation
for the Swedes and their  music  throughout  most  of  their  musical
changes, then there's plenty of reason to rejoice. Let's forget about
that last album and compare _Uprising_ with the -- in my  opinion  --
fantastic _To Ride..._: on _Uprising_, Entombed have again decided to
throw some more (death) metal  elements  overboard,  namely  Petrov's
vocal style, who's more screaming than growling now, and  also  their
trademark Sunlight studio boost. (Gasp!) The latter got  replaced  by
an excellent, raw and natural sounding production  which  leaves  the
impression of personally being in the rehearsal room with cabinets of
smoking speakers and  amps  in  front  of  you.  Sound-wise  a  great
achievement which brings back the spirit of Voivod's wicked debut  or
AC/DC's _Let There Be Rock_ masterpiece. With  a  slight  portion  of
regret, I have to say that I do understand and appreciate the  band's
desire to turn their back on the more artificial Skogsberg treatment.
Musically this is  still  the  same  Entombed  that  did  songs  like
"Wreckage" or "Out of Hand", only this  time  with  an  even  heavier
infusion  of  Motorhead-style,  dirty,  rabid  rock  'n'  roll   and,
according to CoC's Paul Schwarz, some Autopsy-influenced  riffs.  The
album starts in great fashion with a couple of driving,  heavy  songs
like "Say it in Slugs", has one or two somewhat less intense  moments
and ends with a great finishing  track,  "In  the  Flesh",  with  its
"Black Sabbath" meets the last part of "Left  Hand  Path"  doominess.
Overall this is a true return  to  form.  Slightly  inferior  to  _To
Ride..._, but definitely an album I see myself banging my head to  in
the years to come.


Even Song - _Of Man's First Disobedience
             (Expulsion From the Divine Abode)_
by: Paul Schwarz  (7 out of 10)  (Displeased, April 2000)

When constructing their arrangements and choosing their progressions,
this Hungarian quintet certainly didn't wimp out and make things easy
for themselves. The guitars of Mihaly Szabo and Gabor Olah rarely fix
on one theme (let alone one riff) for long, except for the meagre few
sections where the band decide that riffing things up (usually  in  a
doom-inspired style) is what a song needs. The majority of  the  time
Even Song spend dealing out melodious progressions by the bucketload;
the guitars almost constitute a third, genderless singing voice which
constantly complements the duelling male and female voices. Symphonic
keyboard work underlines a complex  rhythm  section  resulting  in  a
final concoction which is frustrating to assess. On the one hand  you
can't but admire Even  Song's  technical  ability  and  challengingly
complex arrangements. On the other, _OMFD(EFtDA)_ does fail to really
grip me; Even Song impress more than they emote.  Definitely  not  an
album to buy blind, but one which may hold considerable  joy  for  it
"hits the spot".


Everon - _Fantasma_  (Mascot, May 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (7 out of 10)

As Everon get down to business  with  the  prog-rock/metal  of  their
fourth effort _Fantasma_, "If Rush were  German..."  was  the  phrase
dancing its way through my cranium, and it remains my  most  poignant
recurring thought after absorbing the album's entirety. Everon spin a
big,  brash,  fantasy  yarn  of  a  prog-metal  album  brimming  with
high-pitched,  crystal  clear  vocals,  sometimes-preposterous  synth
textures, melodic and consistently shifting riffs  and  a  relatively
complex rhythm section to backbone it all. _Fantasma_ may  be  cheesy
as fuck in both sound and occasionally also lyrical content; some  of
Everon's best moments may reek a bit too much of Rush (my gods as far
as this sound is concerned) to make them overly convincing;  all  the
same, though, _Fantasma_ provides those of us who (whether biting our
lips to suppress laughter or grinning widely in unbridled  enjoyment)
enjoy the works of bands such as Dream  Theatre,  the  aforementioned
Rush, or even  the  more  popular  Genesis  with  some  good,  clean,
fantastically-inspired prog-rock/metal.


Exciter - _Blood of Tyrants_  (Osmose Productions, June 2000)
by: Matthias Noll  (6 out of 10)

Quite some time before the Metallica shockwave shattered  the  earth,
Canadian metallers Exciter had their classic debut out (_Heavy  Metal
Maniac_) and together with Venom reigned on the extreme Metal throne.
For their first three records they  maintained  their  quality  level
before the typical line-up roulette started, and the band disappeared
after some shitty records. With only one  member  from  the  original
line-up, and I think it's a bit ironic  that  it's  John  Ricci  (the
original guitarist who was the first to leave),  the  Canadians  have
reformed in the late '80s and this is their second record  after  the
reunion. The reborn Exciter have chosen to follow the path of one  of
their main influences, Judas Priest (one of  whose  song  titles  was
used for the band's name) much closer than ever before. Gone are  the
screechy but unique vocals of original drummer/vocalist  Dan  Beehler
and new singer Jacques Belanger, who prefers the high  pitch,  sounds
like Rob Halford's lost brother,  with  an  impressive  and  powerful
vocal range almost identical to the original's performance on  Priest
songs like "Painkiller" or "Freewheel Burning". Lyrics and songtitles
also seem to be taken from ravishing Rob's textbook of what  to  sing
about if you're more metal than metallic metal.  Only  by  inches  do
Exciter miss the highest mark of metal-cheese on cliche laden  tracks
like "Rule With an Iron Fist" or "Weapons of Mass Destruction". Think
"Faster than a laser bullet, louder than an atom bomb" and you're  on
the right track. Musically, the old Exciter style is still intact and
recognizable, so this is not a total change of  direction  to  direct
some of the power metal bucks into Ricci's presumably  small  wallet.
Speedy and powerful, nowhere near intricate riffing, a few breaks and
simple song structures, a slower crunching number now and  then,  and
John Ricci's noisy  leads.  Despite  my  criticism,  I  do  have  the
impression that even with the 20%  of  originality  Exciter  have  to
offer nowadays, they are far more sincere and honest than most of the
mullet and leather wearing bulk of European power metal  revivalists.
In comparison to the moustache metal from bands like Sinner or Primal
Fear, they sound dirty, rough, unpolished, dedicated  and  definitely
show some muscle even  with  their  mostly  unoriginal  approach.  If
Priest's _Painkiller_ record has a top slot on your best  album  ever
list, then you might want to check this record out instead of new  or
old output from bands like Pegazus, Stormhammer, etc., etc., etc..


Fates Warning - _Disconnected_  (Metal Blade, July 2000)
by: Brian Meloon  (6 out of 10)

Fates Warning's latest offering shows them shows  them  moving  in  a
different direction than they were with _A Pleasant Shade  of  Grey_.
Unfortunately, while that was a step back  in  the  right  direction,
this one seems not to be. The overriding word that was in my mind  as
I listened to the first few tracks of this album was  "grunge".  Yes,
you heard that right: the first few tracks ("One", "So", and  "Pieces
of Me") have that "dirty rock" guitar sound that  was  popular  among
"alternative" bands a few years back. Adding to this are  riffs  that
sound more like something Soundgarden or  Tool  would  have  come  up
with, and a definite similarity in vocal tones --  but  most  of  the
vocal melodies sound like those on Fates' _Parallels_. There are even
a couple of  parts  which  have  a  techno  influence,  reminding  me
somewhat of Nine Inch Nails. This makes for a unique sound, though  I
find it neither compelling nor progressive. After that, though,  they
settle  down  and  the  album  improves.  The  next  two  songs,  the
eleven-minute "Something From Nothing" and the sixteen-minute  "Still
Remains" are mostly slow, roughly in the vein of "The Eleventh  Hour"
from _Parallels_. At times, though, they slow down to almost  ambient
speed. The grunge influences are somewhat toned down by the fact that
the songs are slower, though the guitar tone remains the same and the
industrial/techno influence is still  apparent.  The  closing  track,
"Disconnected Part 2" is even more ambient, and drones on and on, but
is still preferable to  the  earlier  stuff.  The  playing  is  solid
throughout, but there is very  little  that's  actually  challenging.
There are very few guitar leads, and most  of  the  playing  is  very
restrained. Overall, this is an interesting album, as it is a  fairly
radical departure away from progressive metal.  There  is  some  good
material here, but largely I find it a step in the wrong direction.


Fleshcrawl - _As Blood Rains From the Sky...
              We Walk the Path of Eternal Fire_
by: Paul Schwarz  (7 out of 10)  (Metal Blade, April 2000)

Fleshcrawl have no interest in being  original.  They  have  made  it
their mission, as a -German- band, to deliver  music  solely  of  the
early nineties Swedish death metal variety, and on _ABRFtS...WWtPoEF_
a single Exciter cover is the only possible exception to  this  rule.
Being a fan of early nineties Swedish death  metal  and  thus  owning
many of its highs and even some of  its  lows,  I  must  admit  that,
bizarrely enough, Fleshcrawl really have hit the nail on the head  as
far as reproducing the early nineties Swedish sound goes:  they  have
the structures, the vocals and, well, everything you could  wish  for
in an early nineties Swedish death metal album... except originality.
When Entombed made _Left Hand Path_, the production sound and musical
style they were part of was new; it  was  a  different  take  on  the
gore-soaked, bass-heavy,  Scott  Burns  produced  sounds  which  were
emanating from the USA at the  time.  In  2000,  Fleshcrawl  are  not
giving us something fresh or new; they are merely repeating the past.
However, with the Fredman studio and an engineering Fredrik Nordstrom
to help them, Fleshcrawl have undeniably delivered one  of  the  most
Swedish sounding albums of the last few years, which  will  no  doubt
enthral those who wish Entombed had done five more _Left Hand  Path_s
and Dismember four more _Like an Everflowing Stream_s.


Grief of Emerald - _Malformed Seed_  (Listenable Records, May 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)

_Malformed Seed_ is the second offering from Grief  of  Emerald,  and
having missed their first, _Nightspawn_ [CoC #35], I can only imagine
where they are coming  from  musically.  This  proudly  self-produced
record does sound somewhat different from the norm, and although some
of the production options may be  a  bit  questionable,  the  overall
result is good. They apparently aimed at having a  peculiar  kind  of
big, "explosive" sound, which they achieved to  some  extent.  Faster
and slower parts and a few different guitar and keyboard  styles  are
used throughout in an attempt to keep their symphonic but  aggressive
take on black metal varied and interesting, a goal which is partially
achieved. In the end, though, album still tends to seem a bit in need
of a good interlude or two. Grief of Emerald are very  competent  and
entertaining, thus earning their rating,  but  they  are  so  without
really achieving anything remarkably brilliant  or  innovative.  This
nonetheless does not detract from the fact that the  album  is  quite
consistent and enjoyable and does have a characteristic sound of  its
own.


Grimm - _Nordisk Vinter_ 7"  (Vinyl Maniac bootleg, 2000)
by: Alvin Wee  (9 out of 10)

We're not in the  habit  of  reviewing  unofficial  stuff  like  this
bootleg from "Vinyl Maniac Records", but this stuff is  too  good  to
pass up. This  bootleg  7"  is  one  in  a  series  of  cult  bootleg
re-releases by  the  label  (we'll  feature  more  next  month),  and
features the band's 1994 demo of the same name.  Starting  out  as  a
cult act in the underground, the band pretty  much  stayed  that  way
despite boasting the session playing of  the  two  Carpathian  Forest
members. The otherwise one-man  act  soon  disappeared,  leaving  the
legacy of this  recording,  the  quality  of  which  questions  their
obscure status. A grim mixture of old Burzum and Darkthrone, this  is
black metal played in the old way, and its short duration will  leave
black hearts panting for more. Titles like "The Embrace of the  Cold"
and  "Darkest  Depths"  don't  require  much  explanation:  like  old
Carpathian Forest, the music is dark, droning  and  chill,  with  the
semi-raw, fuzzy production sending  delicious  tremors  through  your
frost-bitten limbs. Old school maniacs mustn't miss shit  like  this,
especially if you think Carpathian Forest's _Through Chasm, Cave  and
Titan Wood..._ is godly (I do!). No info given, but I  know  you  can
get it ($7 should do the trick) at:

Contact: No Colours Records, Postfach 32, 04541 Borna, Germany


Hair of the Dog - _Rise_  (Spitfire Records, 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (3 out of 10)

Sounding a lot like the new Alice Cooper record, I think  both  these
groups could have given a touch more "metal" to  the  cause.  Without
getting into an Alice review here, I guess that I  was  nourished  on
material like _Raise Your Fist and  Yell_  (Kane  Roberts!)  and  the
like. I think that I've always believed that Mr. Cooper was ahead  of
his time, but this last release, _Brutal Planet_, with a few  notable
exceptions on the album, isn't worth hollering  about  --  let  alone
putting my fist in the air and screaming. So anyway,  I  mention  the
Alice due to both groups belonging to the Spitfire label, along  with
Testament and  Black  Label  Society.  Those  last  two  bands  being
favorites; Hair of the Dog obviously not being all that close  to  my
heart. HotD camouflage themselves as devotees  of  Kiss,  Van  Halen,
AC/DC and, to some degree, Eric Clapton. What I hear  when  listening
to _Rise_ is something that puts me in mind of what I used to  listen
to in clubs near the concert venue awaiting bands like Dark Angel and
King Diamond. Fluff. I hear a lot of puffed-up metal when I spin this
newest Hair of the Dog effort. How this band ended  up  opening  some
dates in the mid-West for Motorhead and Nashville  Pussy  toward  the
middle of July, I'll never know. I'll give _Rise_ this, it is  smooth
as a shot of Absolute! Very clean and professionally  done.  So  well
done, in fact, that my girlfriend has  frequently  requested  I  give
_Rise_ a spin after my  12th  time  through  Venom's  _Resurrection_.
Also, the group has an extremely impressive  website.  If  you  crave
unabashed musical whipped  cream  or  your  desire  to  impress  your
significant other overrides what I know to be your better  judgement,
then Hair of the Dog's _Rise_ might be for you. Otherwise,  vaccinate
yourself against the rabies these guys are surely spreading.

Contact: http://www.hofd.com


Hatred - _The Offering_  (Demolition, June 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (8 out of 10)

Holy fuck! Run for cover as Hell has spewed open and the  minions  of
Satan are spreading like wildfire. Virginia-based act  Hatred  (great
name, by the way, guys) play some of the  most  ball-busting,  brutal
death metal that I have heard in some time. While  they  deliver  big
time on the speed of it all, the real winners here are  the  menacing
screams of anger and aggression that singer Tom Clayborne  brings  to
the fold. His  menacing  cries  just  keep  the  momentum  in  strike
position from start to finish. Get crushed  by  such  fucking  brutal
numbers as "Rotting" and "Trust No One". Hatred is  here  and  it  is
spreading. You've been warned, folks.

Contact: P.O. Box 10264, Alexandria, VA 22310, USA
         mailto:hatredva@aol.com


Hypnos - _Hypnos_  (Morbid Records, May 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (7.5 out of 10)

As the debut EP from a new band featuring no  less  than  two  former
members  of  Krabathor  --  one  in  particular  significantly  being
long-standing bassist and 50% vocalist Bruno --, _Hypnos_ may be part
of  a  body  of  evidence  suggesting  the  imminent  demise  of  the
long-suffering Czech death metal heroes (in which catalogue we should
include last month's  Martyr  album,  which  Krabathor's  other  half
created with the help of Master mastermind Paul Speckman), but it  is
nonetheless  a  promising  introduction  to  a  band   seemingly   in
Krabathor's league as well as centrally following their musical path.
Here, Hypnos only provide us with a three-track taste  of  their  own
music along with a cool Bulldozer cover ("The Cave", for which I have
not heard the original) by which to assess them. My jury is still out
as to whether Hypnos will necessarily be much of  a  concern  in  the
future. They have a good strangle-hold on the loose and  unrestrained
style of death metal favoured by many bands  of  the  former  Eastern
Bloc, but essentially the material they have presented  here  amounts
to average Krabathor or Yattering tracks and certainly  not  anything
unusually promising or original. One to keep an eye on all the  same,
though.


Hypocrisy - _Into the Abyss_  (Nuclear Blast, August 2000)
by: David Rocher  (8 out of 10)

Talk about insomniac workaholics in metal, and the  names  Dan  Swano
and Peter Tagtgren immediately spring to mind. With  their  eponymous
and very atmospheric-toned sixth effort released  just  over  a  year
ago, Tagtgren's melodious bunch have  certainly  wasted  no  time  in
readying its sequel, _Into the  Abyss_.  And  surprisingly,  a  first
cursory listen to _ItA_ actually proved to be  mildly  disappointing;
Hypocrisy indeed simply seemed to have reached a crucial point  where
they have apparently become that bit too proficient and  professional
for their own good. _ItA_ showcases  simply  brilliant  tracks,  that
fully live up to Hypocrisy's celestial standards; distinctly  hateful
and aggressive back-to-the-roots material, such as the searing opener
"Legions Descend", or  the  very  brutal  "Total  Eclipse",  thrashes
alongside majestic mid- and slow-tempo hymns such  as  "Resurrected",
"Fire in the Sky" or the fantastic closer  "Deathrow  (No  Regrets)".
Now where is the problem, then?  Well,  quite  bluntly,  _ItA_  lacks
rawness and rage; whereas the  customary  Abyss  sound  fits  _ItA_'s
slower anthems like a heavy metal gauntlet,  on  faster,  tentatively
"old-school" tracks where Hypocrisy lash out in full speed and  fury,
this same fantastically smooth and perfect  sound  in  fact  actually
blunts their rage's  cutting  edge,  and  makes  potentially  violent
material sound tame and somehow  subdued.  I  am  very  likely  being
overtly pointillious and demanding,  and  complaining  about  musical
perfection is maybe wasted energy, but as Hypocrisy's seventh chapter
closes, its sleekness and utter perfection will leave many a listener
craving for a lashing of growling rawness and unbound savagery.


Impaled - _The Dead Shall Dead Remain_
by: Aaron McKay  (4 out of 10)  (Deathvomit Records, March 2000)

I honestly gave it everything I had to liking this  offering.  All  I
have to say is the sum of this release's points come  from  the  fact
that I think the distinctive guitar work is beyond belief.  I  tried,
over and again, to get into this effort, but every time I was greeted
by a sense of Carcass's _Necroticism -- Descanting the  Insalubrious_
rehashed by Impaled in a less than  commendable  way.  I  noted  that
James Murphy mastered _TDSDR_, another authoritative reason for me to
at least -try- to like this release, but the connection wasn't there.
Track four, "Spirits of the Dead",  has  an  incredibly  strong  riff
about the four minute mark, and the "fuck off" statement imprinted on
the disc itself was humorous, but even  together  it  was  still  not
enough to compensate for the remainder of the album.


Impaled Nazarene Vs. Driller Killer  (Solardisk, March 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (7 out of 10)

Whether you'll be interested in this four track MCD representation of
last year's split 7" between these two bands, depends how fanatically
you dig either Impaled Nazarene,  Driller  Killer,  or  in  best-case
scenario, both together and intertwining. You  see,  in  a  mere  ten
minutes each band manages to belt out a song of their own,  but  also
cover a song of the other's. If you've only ever  heard  these  bands
tagged, and not actually heard their music,  this  might  sound  more
novel than it actually is. However, let's face it,  Impaled  Nazarene
can be very punk for a black metal band and Driller Killer are  metal
and raw enough a punk band, that together on one MCD the two  do  not
sound overly disparate from each other. Since Solardisk  only  has  a
major distribution deal in Finland, your best bet to pick this up  is
at their website.

Contact: http://www.solardisk.com


In Flames - _Clayman_  (Nuclear Blast, July 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (9 out of 10)

_Clayman_ is already In Flames' fifth full-length  record,  yet  they
still sound every  bit  as  enthusiastic  as  before  and  even  more
skilled. When a band has such characteristic elements as  In  Flames'
very own blend of  melody  and  aggression,  it  can  quickly  become
difficult for them to avoid repetition without  losing  some  of  the
most distinctive elements  in  their  sound.  In  Flames  managed  to
half-reinvent themselves with _Clayman_ -- not in the sense  of  such
reinvention being  desperately  needed  and  having  been  left  half
finished, but rather in the sense of again having been able to change
enough without changing too much. _Clayman_ still  definitely  sounds
like In Flames, but rhythmically unusual riff patterns do appear,  as
do rather  different  keyboard  elements  occasionally.  Vocals  have
changed as well, having become slightly more screamed and less raspy,
which reflects an overall sensible increase in aggression  throughout
most of the album. Plenty of semi-spoken passages  were  included  as
well in order to create some contrast, which the band  achieved  very
well. Without being revolutionary or the greatest album of the  year,
_Clayman_ is an excellent record that still sounds  like  In  Flames,
but a somewhat different In Flames: a band that has kept their  style
intact  while  still  evolving  and  exploring,  staying  as   fresh,
memorable and energetic as ever.


Incantation - _The Infernal Storm_  (Relapse, March 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (8 out of 10)

Losing Daniel Corchado (who is currently back doing great  things  in
The Chasm) seems to have been more of a blow to Incantation than  his
meagre writing credits in their last _Diabolical Conquest_ [CoC  #33]
would suggest. Incantation in 2000 comprises, of course,  omnipresent
figurehead John McEntee and also bassist Robert Yench, who are joined
this time by new vocalist Michael  Saez  (ex-Deathrune,  also  second
guitarist) and a guesting Dave Culross  on  drums.  And  though  this
means that the inexorable hounds of  Culross'  pounding  double  kick
drums and tight snare are ever on your heels, it doesn't make  for  a
selection of songs or an overall sound which has the same enrapturing
power as _Diabolical Conquest_. Incantation's rumbling and raw  death
metal style requires, for my  ears,  quite  a  fine  balance  between
production sound and song  structures  to  weave  a  web  around  its
listener, and on _The Infernal Storm_ I don't think McEntee  and  co.
have got the balance  consistently  right.  Though  the  mind-numbing
repeated minor chord progressions of _TIS_ do create good atmosphere,
they are far over-used and the punctuation of the  stronger,  thicker
melodic  strains  (still  minor)  which  well  balanced   _Diabolical
Conquest_'s  character  are  sadly  forsaken  here.  All  the   same,
Incantation have given us another appetising platter  of  dark  death
metal which explores the less  ambitious  style  presented  on  their
first two  outputs  (_Onward  to  Golgotha_  and  _Mortal  Throne  of
Nazarene_), though with a far superior production and somewhat better
constructed songs.


Jag Panzer - _Thane to the Throne_  (Century Media, May 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (8 out of 10)

I don't know what the guys in Jag Panzer are drinking, or what  lucky
charms  they  got  draped  around  their  necks,  but  this  Colorado
progressive metal machine continues to put out great records. The new
disc, _TttT_, is the interesting and (very) different  follow  up  to
1997's _The Fourth Judgement_ and 1998's _The Age  of  Mastery_.  And
why is this so different? Well, for one  thing,  the  whole  disc  is
based on the work of William Shakespeare's Macbeth.  Yes,  you  heard
me: Macbeth! The band has worked their music and material around  the
classic theatre production, with singer  Harry  Conklin  drumming  up
some great vocal  styles  and  axe-slingers  Mark  Briody  and  Chris
Broderick bringing up the rear. A  concept-style  record  that  works
wonderfully, most notably on numbers "Bloody Crime"  and  "Insanity's
Mind".


Juvenes - _Riddle of Steel_  (No Colours Records, May 2000)
by: Alvin Wee  (8 out of 10)

It must be something in the water over there:  Poland's  black  metal
elite just can't seem to get enough of  this  "Viking"  mood.  First,
Poland's loyal sons Graveland surprised us with their epic  _Immortal
Pride_,  and  now  debutantes  Juvenes  follow  suit   with   another
"Hammerheart" tribute. Advertised as the "Polish  answer  to  Bathory
and Falkenbach", this obscure Carpathian  outfit  doesn't  disappoint
with the  five  long  tracks  on  this  album.  A  suitably  majestic
horn-blowing "Prolog" opens up  the  album,  leaving  little  to  the
imagination as "Chariots of Gods" rides in with the requisite martial
drumming and more horns. Pretty involving stuff if played  out  loud,
evoking a truly medieval, war-like feel, which is more  than  can  be
said for the draggy _Immortal Pride_ album. Clean "Viking"  bellowing
takes over on the ten-minute epic "Ubi Sunt", which  carries  on  the
olden-warrior thang a tad too long, before the title track breaks  in
with a promising beating of war  drums  and  blowing  of  war  horns.
Clearly the best track on the album, "Riddle of Steel" blends all the
previous elements into one glorious war hymn clocking in  at  fifteen
minutes. Guaranteed to please  the  most  deluded  warrior  with  its
interwoven motifs and epic structure, this is  clearly  no  album  to
take on the road; a little patience and imagination  should  pay  off
well here. Stop buying all those big Viking  names  and  support  the
underground by sending $20 to:

Contact: No Colours Records, Postfach 32, 04541 Borna, Germany


Keelhaul - _Keelhaul_  (Escape Artist, May 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (9 out of 10)

This record completely passed me by when it originally emerged a  few
years ago, so I am very glad that  its  recent  re-release  occurred,
because otherwise I may never have got to discover, absorb and  enjoy
its unusual character. Still, I find  it  difficult  to  describe  or
explain  precisely  -why-  I  like  _Keelhaul_   so   much.   Largely
instrumental, sometimes for whole tracks (like the aggressive  "Tuco"
opener or calming closer of  "ESP")  but  just  as  often  for  large
sections of songs where Aaron Dallison's grating  vocals  nonetheless
feature, _Keelhaul_ is not a first listen record: it takes a while to
absorb and digest. When Dallison's direct shout/screams  do  feature,
the instrumentation is uncomplicated. However, when Keelhaul move off
instrumentally, -that- is when they really get  interesting.  From  a
relatively simple rhythmic  base  and  basic  riffs  the  band  layer
various harsh melodies and percussion fills, slowly and  hypnotically
building to massive climaxes: the intimacy of the compositions  makes
you feel like you're hearing a band (and a very tight, good  band  at
that)  jam  in  their  own  practice  room.  Then,  momentarily   and
dynamically, Keelhaul will reduce their complexity  down  and  plough
themselves  in  a  different  direction.  There's   something   about
_Keelhaul_ that's strangely private; it's a hard record to listen  to
amongst people who don't "get it". That said, giving its unusual  and
intensely individual forty-five minutes repeated spins is well  worth
the moments of wonderfully pure  musical  enjoyment  it  will  yield.
Virtually nothing on _Keelhaul_ fits any traditional  description  of
"nice" -- it's nearly all hard and harsh in one way or another -- but
yet its nastiness is more  atmospheric  than  it  is  gut-wrenchingly
brutal; Keelhaul doesn't use percussion battery  or  multiple-tracked
guitars to do its work, it instead evokes feeling more purely through
its musical compositions. That's what makes great  music:  making  an
impact on a deep, lasting level. A devastating, shocking first strike
may initially make peoples' jaws drop, but it  doesn't  keep  hitting
the spot in listens or years to come, and I think _Keelhaul_ will; in
fact, I think it'll just get better the more time I put into it.


Linea 77 - _Too Much Happiness... Makes Kids Paranoid_
by: Paul Schwarz  (6 out of 10)  (Earache, April 2000)

After Crackdown -- Italy's answer to Biohazard --  in  1998,  we  now
have Linea 77 -- Italy's answer to Korn  --,  who  are  having  their
debut of last year  re-released  for  the  European  market  via  the
Earache label. Linea 77 -appear- to have created a not inconsiderable
stir  in  their  home  country's  live  scene  with   the   vitriolic
baggy-pants metal blend showcased  over  the  thirty-odd  minutes  of
_TMHMKP_. However, they have quite simply delivered nothing more than
a  debut  which  displays  ample  competence  at  condensing  various
elements from names such as Korn, Deftones or Limp Bizkit  down  into
aggressive three minute soundbites. _TMHMKP_ has  nothing,  musically
speaking, which is likely to enthral even a  person  only  moderately
acquainted with the ways of the baggy-pants metal crowd; it  provides
a tangible backing to Linea 77's live performances, but  it  provides
little to nothing else.


Long Winter's Stare - _The Tears of Odin's Fallen_
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)  (Dark Symphonies, June 2000)

How very appropriate that a band who describe themselves as  creators
of  "dark  symphonic  metal"  is  now  signed  to  Dark   Symphonies.
Coincidences aside, LWS's third release [CoC #32, CoC #39]  sees  the
band continue to explore their rather unusual sound, now with  female
vocalist Deirdre Faith in their ranks as well. After  LWS's  previous
record _Before the Dawn,  So  Go  the  Shadows  of  Humanity_  I  was
wondering where the band might go next. That  album  was  interesting
but not very consistent, and I  felt  further  experimentation  might
subtract more from that consistency if they were not careful. LWS did
make some good choices for this record, however, and  did  manage  to
make some interesting changes to  their  sound  without  losing  more
consistency (even if they didn't gain much either).  Deirdre  Faith's
often sombre but quite varied vocals are certainly a worthy  addition
to LWS's music, while the male vocals continue  to  evolve  somewhat.
The thick, dirge-like guitar sound is used in  such  a  way  that  it
leaves centre stage  for  the  vocals,  keyboards  (mainly  classical
piano)  and  contrabass,  backed  by   the   competently   programmed
artificial percussion. This all works very  well  indeed  during  the
slower sections, but whenever LWS try to add some more power or pace,
their musical engine clearly struggles to keep up, as their sound  is
not well suited for that at all -- the slower and  sadder  the  music
gets, the more appropriate it seems. The album's highlight for me  is
a good example of that: the rather tragic "In  Arms".  Other  tracks,
such as "Blood of Steel", are also worthy of mention, but  again  LWS
need to achieve a more consistent album  than  this,  for  there  are
still passages that don't work too well. A nearly twenty minute  long
funereal doom track closes this hour-long album. It  does  not  fully
justify its length, as it does get rather repetitive,  but  the  idea
was good and the execution competent. This is another  unusual  album
from LWS that might cause very varied reactions, but they do have the
merit of sounding quite different from the norm, in addition  to  the
quality that _The Tears of Odin's Fallen_ does have.

Contact: http://www.darksymphonies.com


Lux Occulta - _My Guardian Anger_  (Pagan Records, 1999)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (9 out of 10)

A band that has impressed me with every release so far [CoC #18,  CoC
#29], Lux Occulta did not fail to  do  so  again  with  _My  Guardian
Anger_. Starting with an interesting album title and very good  front
and back cover art, Lux Occulta proceed to constantly  challenge  you
throughout  the  record  with  their  uncanny  blend  of  aggression,
technicality and avant-garde ideas -- a bit like what Solefald  could
have done instead of their disappointing  _Neonism_  [CoC  #43],  but
more metal-oriented and with a different sound. Indeed, the sound  on
_My Guardian Anger_ essentially leans more towards death  than  black
metal elements, compared to the band's past efforts, but the keyboard
work,  arrangements,  sudden  rhythmic  and  contextual  changes  and
musical influences therein defy classification. Very heavy, crushing,
driving, and forming  such  a  rapid  yet  fluid  sequence  of  acute
changes, the music just does not  allow  distraction.  Be  forewarned
that this is a record unlikely to  make  much  sense  initially,  but
things really start finding their places after repeated  listens  and
the massive  fluidity,  strength  and  creativity  of  it  all  fully
surfaces. Challenging and remarkable.


Mayhem - _Grand Declaration of War_  (Season of Mist, May 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (8 out of 10)

Scanning backward after engaging _Grand Declaration of  War_  in  the
old melenky stereo reveals an intro which is, reflectively, backward.
From this very much black-tinged-with-the-crunch-of-death styled  yet
simplistic and uncharacteristically  relaxed  first  intro  begins  a
healthy and growing infection of influence from Canadian thrash metal
oddballs Voivod. "A Grand Declaration of War"  is  the  aptly  titled
second intro, and first track. This embraces more recognisable  black
metal atmospheres with Blasphemer juxtaposing loose  relaxed  riffing
with beefy chugging, backed by thick, solid and fluent drum work from
Hellhammer. As a militaristic rhythm establishes  itself,  a  quietly
venomous,  vocally  proclaiming  Maniac  introduces  us  to  Mayhem's
minorly-flawed two-part concept album of  a  sophomore  release.  The
lyrics of the third and final initial intro "In the Lies  Where  Upon
You Lay" begin to lose their initial power, to even grate,  when  the
consciousness-rebellion-concept war declaration narrows its focus  to
Christendom, the "religion of pity". Mayhem have said words in recent
interviews to the effect that the rebellion against  Christianity  is
in some way symbolic of a  larger  scale  rebellion  towards  greater
personal self-awareness -- or that's how I read them in any case.  My
problem is that Mayhem seem articulate  enough  thinkers  adept  more
than sufficiently in  English  to  tackle  less  basic  and  overused
symbolism. Krisiun, with a less firm and assured  grasp  of  English,
can acceptably settle  for  the  second  place  of  requiring  verbal
explanation for people to properly understand their wider vision;  in
my opinion, Mayhem could and should be getting a general point across
more effectively in the lyrics themselves, rather resorting to  rough
metaphor. "ItLWUYL" introduces the first batch of serious riffing and
speedy  drumming,  but  this  segues   quickly   into   the   lyrical
proclamations described above. There are pangs of disappointment, but
the brooding six minute testimony  still  provides  many  moments  of
vividly evocative power. First  true  (yes,  without  capitalisation)
song "A Time to Die" does not back up  the  assured  threats  of  the
aforementioned trio of intros. And yes, since we're on  the  subject,
_GDoW_  does  have  too  many  intro  tracks.  "A  Time  to  Die"  is
undoubtedly intense -- especially once its second, more furious  half
really gets moving -- but it is ultimately primitive  in  arrangement
and by far the most creatively redundant track on _GDoW_. "View  From
Nihil"  learns  from  every  one  of   its   predecessors   mistakes,
dynamically juxtaposing the earlier use of proclamative  lyrics  over
militaristic percussion, with sections of insanely fast drumming  and
speedy, crushing riffing. As "View From Nihil" closes, a  one  minute
outro-of-sorts in a similar style closes off Part  II  (_Wolf's  Lair
Abyss_ has retrospectively become  Part  I).  Part  III  begins  with
another spoken section  (again  using  Christianity  as  a  reference
point) to introduce "A Bloodsword and a  Colder  Sun",  the  definite
oddity of _GDoW_. Mimicking the atmosphere electronics  of  Kraftwerk
and (I'm told on good  authority)  Skinny  Puppy,  Mayhem  more  than
merely defy expectations;  they  positively  shatter  them.  But  the
impression is still more of a band experimenting for  effect,  rather
than pure musical value. Ultimately, the track serves  little  higher
purpose than as an intro-of-sorts to The New Mayhem,  should  such  a
term be applicable. "Crystalised Pain  in  Deconstruction"  contrasts
sharply in continuing Blasphemer's evident love-affair  with  Voivod,
and taking it to new heights; the classically jagged riff  patterning
woven into arrangements that are  the  most  fully  realised  on  the
album. It may  not  have  "View  From  Nihil"'s  crushing  speed  and
intensity, but "CPiD" digs deeper on an emotional level.  "Completion
in Science of Agony" goes yet more dark, atmospheric and gradual than
any of its predecessors, while still embracing Mayhem's  guitar-based
approach. All the same, it has definite flaws. Its nine-minute length
is not succinctly filled, and  like  some  of  _GDoW_'s  opening  few
tracks it adopts the feel of an extended intro for what  follows  it.
And "To Daimonion" is just the closer to assure that Mayhem finish up
_GDoW_ with their style intact, and an element of  mystery  pungently
lingering about them. Embracing an almost bouncy groove  and  lacking
little or nothing in roaring power, Mayhem exuberantly chug their way
through  _GDoW_'s  final  few  minutes  before  Maniac  delivers   an
ambiguous final proclamation: "I remember the future. A new beginning
in time", over total silence. Mayhem's admittedly massive alterations
in style are not as concerted a break from the extreme music norm nor
as creatively rich as those managed, for example, by The Chasm on the
masterful _Procession to the Infraworld_. Mayhem seem almost confused
by comparison. The proportion of their potential which is realised is
comparable to Satyricon's _Nemesis Divina_. I hope Mayhem can inspire
themselves to a similar turnaround in creative success as the  _Rebel
Extravaganza_ which followed for Satyricon. Because, interesting  and
occasionally  rhythmically  unusual  though  _GDoW_   may   be,   its
(nonetheless very welcome) Voivod  throwbacks  and  mildly  effective
conceptual character still leave it wheezing and panting  behind  the
likes of Dodheimsgard's _666 International_. Their concept works well
overall, though it is somewhat prosaic, and certainly surpasses black
metal crisp-packet-philosophies like Gorgoroth's "The Sin of Satan is
the Sign of  Gorgoroth".  Mayhem  have  not  put  themselves  at  the
forefront of innovation, but they have very firmly  thrown  down  the
gauntlet at the feet of those  who  would  have  them  attempting  to
recreate "the good old days"  (i.e.  _De  Mysteriis  Dom  Sathanas_).
Ultimately, it is time that will tell if the name of  Mayhem  retains
the (un)hallowed resonance it has enjoyed in the nineties,  in  years
to come, and I must admit, whatever my  misgivings  about  _GDoW_,  I
will be curious to see where the band are in ten years.


Mental Home - _Upon the Shores of the Inner Seas_
by: Adrian Bromley (6 out of 10) (Century Media / The End, June 2000)

The most appreciative quality about Russia's Mental Home is  not  the
fact that that their music is chock-full of many sounds  and  styles,
one time going  the  melodic  metal  route,  the  next  taking  on  a
doom/gothic sound backed by searing keyboards. The music is well done
and very complex, and while many critics and fans  like  them,  I  am
beginning to see a loose grip of material take over their sound. They
expend too much time working on shape-shifting their  music  here  to
make it a solid listen throughout. Highly potent at times, but  still
missing the mark by  a  small  distance  in  my  books.  Choice  cut:
"Breakdown".


Milligram - _Milligram_  (Tortuga Recordings, June 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (8 out of 10)

It is hard to believe that it has been seven years since Only  Living
Witness dropped a bombshell of a record called _Prone Mortal Form_, a
highly groove-oriented metal release that drew  deep  influence  from
the East Coast hardcore scene, but still supplied its own  genius  to
each composition. Now with Milligram,  ex-OLW  singer  Jonah  Jenkins
once again fires up the troops with this crushing musical experience.
The music of  Milligram  has  succulent  grooves  and  melodies,  but
delivers a one-two punch like an experienced bar room brawler.  Check
out the menacing "I Don't Bleed (For You)".

Contact: P.O. Box 382409, Cambridge, MA 02238-2409, USA


Murder Corporation - _Murder Corporation_  (Regain Records, 1999)
by: David Rocher  (4 out of 10)

This eponymous album was recorded in the cold month of  October  '97,
as the snow fell in a white funereal veil of sorrow,  icing  mortals'
very hearts and the blood in their veins  and  --  well,  fuck  that,
because "Murder Corporation ain't never  going  to  hang  around  the
woods!",   boasts   _Murder   Corporation_.   A   massive   extremist
death-metallistic dirge is what Deranged axeman Rikard's  bunch  have
spawned here: a grinding, grunting and distinctly unemotional musical
deformity, that prides itself in sneering at romanticism, subtlety or
any boring emotion of the kind. With twelve titles of gross,  intense
and   totally   caricatured   grind-sodden   death   metal,   _Murder
Corporation_ is clearly a proud  statement  of  intent  according  to
which feelings are for wusses, especially black  metal  warriors  who
lurk around forests at  night.  Well,  the  fun  unfortunately  fades
quickly, as  the  interest  of  this  album,  despite  the  few  cool
hooklines and breaks it features, generally vanishes  into  sameness,
and very rapidly turns out to be a damn good reason indeed to  go  to
the woods for a nocturnal communion with the unleashed  elements,  or
simply to check the enjoyable silence out...  It's  actually  nothing
personal, but this album is better a joke  than  a  convincing  death
metal album, and Murder Creation's musical humour picks off precisely
where my tolerance fails and shrivels away into sheer annoyance!


Nightsky Bequest - _Of Sea, Wind and Farewell_
by: Adrian Bromley  (9 out of 10)  (X-Rated Records, May 2000)

I was surprised  at  the  first  listen  of  Bulgarian  act  Nightsky
Bequest's release _Of Sea, Wind and Farewell_ -- not for the  variety
it offered, but for the passion that came with each track. Passion of
vibrant proportions that seemed  to  shine  with  brilliance  as  the
soft-toned creations of this melodic, acoustic and  atmospheric  band
helped carry things onward. I was  smitten  by  this  band  from  the
get-go and it is no surprise that they took their (careful)  time  in
creating and executing such pieces of art. Singer Radoslava  Dikanska
adds a unique classical element with her vocals on _OSWaF_.  Fans  of
ambient-styled/melodic metal acts will want to scope this  out.  This
band,  while  not  recording  a  masterpiece  like  The   Gathering's
_Mandylion_, have served up a stellar release for us to consume.


Nile - _In the Beginning_  (Hammerheart, April 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (8.5 out of 10)

The debut albums of bands discovered and exalted upon the  unleashing
of their second opus are often not worth speaking of, but  for  USA's
Egypt-obsessed and brutally  warped  death  metallers  Nile  this  is
certainly not the case. This welcome re-issue of  earlier  this  year
re-introduces 1995's _Festivals of Atonement_  to  the  international
catalogue of availability  and  also  includes  the  later  _Ramasees
Bringer of War_ EP -- though this latter rarity merely serves to demo
a few of the frenetic numbers which later appeared on  Nile's  second
exalted opus, _Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-Ka_ [CoC #32].  _FoA_
is interesting for its stylistic differences, for though  it  is  for
the most part unmistakably Nile, it is Nile at a much  reduced  tempo
from _ATKoNK_. Heady, powerful chugging and crushing outpourings like
the monstrous opener "Divine Intent" do display the trademarks you'll
be accustomed to if you've checked out _AtKoNK_,  but  the  songs  on
_FoA_ extend often beyond the six or  seven  minute  mark,  bestowing
upon them, and the whole record, a vaguely  epic  quality.  The  mere
five tracks presented (plus the "Immortality  Through  Art"  acoustic
instrumental) clock in at thirty-two minutes,  and  that's  including
the sign-for-the-future, under-three-minute crush of "The Black  Hand
of Set". Nile's debut finds a comfortable  spot  between  a  low  but
rough death/thrash rumble and the dirty, doomed-out grind of  Crowbar
and others of a sludgy and rumbling nature. It may not be perfect  in
terms of songwriting and even sound, which nonetheless  is  rich  and
hard-edged, but _FoA_ is well worth owning, replete  as  it  is  with
some of the band's best solos and some great, evocative moments.


Nokturnal Mortum - _NeChrist_  (The End, 2000)
by: Brian Meloon  (7 out of 10)

Nokturnal Mortum's latest release could be  described  as  a  mix  of
their previous two releases, _Goat Horns_ [CoC #31] and _To the Gates
of Blasphemous Fire_ [CoC #38], though I find it to be slightly  more
in the vein of the latter. The music is fast and brutal black  metal,
with a significant folk influence and dual keyboardists. Folky  parts
are interspersed with black metal parts, and in places  layered  over
them. While this isn't a particularly original combination, Nokturnal
Mortum  do  have  their  own  sound,  due  partly  to  their  use  of
traditional Slavic folk, and the variety of woodwinds they  use.  The
interplay of their dual keyboardists with the rest of the  band  also
remains a distinguishing feature. The playing and production are once
again top-notch. The playing seems a little more technical this time,
though I find the production  could've  been  a  bit  more  powerful.
Although there are 88 tracks on the  CD,  tracks  10-87  are  each  4
seconds long, and consist of nature  sounds  (birds  chirping,  frogs
croaking, etc.), leaving the CD with  10  longish  tracks  of  brutal
black metal. Ultimately, this is not a groundbreaking album,  but  it
is well done, and is likely to appeal to fans of the style.


Obscenity - _Intense_  (Morbid Records, May 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (6.5 out of 10)

Obscenity have made a few meagre attempts  to  vary  the  speedy  and
brutal pastiche of death metal styles from Europe and the  USA  which
they offer as their  own  identity.  With  nods  towards  the  fabled
"Swedish sound" and  tighter,  faster  blast  sections  both  notable
improvements on this new opus, Obscenity have unsurprisingly remained
essentially the same: _Intense_ still displays an  overwhelming  bias
towards Massacre, Obituary, Death  and  Deicide  --  solos  included.
Obscenity play well, structure songs adequately, are complemented  by
a nice production  and  thus  produce  results  which  are  at  least
fittingly brutal. End-riff  melody  squeals  and  a  near-five-minute
song-length  average  dent  _Intense_'s   semi-glossed   sheen,   but
nevertheless Obscenity create a  marginally  convincing  Frankenstein
with _Intense_.


October 31 - _Meet thy Maker_  (Metal Blade, June 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (7.5 out of 10)

The one-star cast -- Deceased main man King  Fowley  being  that  one
"star" -- of October 31 have delivered a traditional eighties  "cult"
heavy metal record. And they've actually done it  pretty  damn  well,
just without any  surprises.  Though  he  is  reported  to  be  being
replaced on their next album by the more accomplished -singing- voice
of Shawn Pelata, King's half-successful attempts at singing  in  tune
on _Meet thy Maker_ somehow flaws it in a very good, honest and metal
way; it divides October 31 from  that  commercial  over-clarity  that
afflicts HammerFall. Of course, what with Deceased sliding closer  to
full-blown melodic metal  mayhem  by  the  day,  the  divide  between
Fowley's main concern and  this  side-project-of-sorts  is  not  that
sharply  defined.  Furthermore,  King  lapses  into   his   "Deceased
(capitalised or not) voice" a number of times on  _Meet  thy  Maker_.
Thus, there are points where one could be taken for  the  other.  The
production, executed by Fowley, is rough, but not so lo-fi  that  the
fist-banging power of tracks like "Power  and  the  Glory"  ("To  the
power and the glory / Raise your glasses high / To the power and  the
glory / Be with me tonight", its unrepentantly  traditionally  themed
chorus lyrics!) or "For There Is War!"  can't  be  comprehended,  and
without having to go through dozens of careful  listens  either,  the
songs pretty much jump out and grab -you-. Brian Williams  and  Kevin
Lewis' guitar duelling sees them pull  out  classy  riff  lines  with
pleasant regularity, and though, probably through the influence of  a
similar metal  "upbringing",  they  remind  of  the  results  of  the
Smith/Adams pairing in Deceased, their similarities do not amount  to
mimicry and are quite acceptable. A fun, air guitarable  record,  but
ultimately not something truly special.


Opprobrium - _Discerning Forces_  (Nuclear Blast, June 2000)
by: David Rocher  (6.5 out of 10)

Just when you thought opportunistic reformations  were  beginning  to
really piss you off, here come (or rather return)  Opprobrium,  their
CD proudly bearing the statement that the band  are  in  fact  better
known as "Incubus, from Louisiana, USA". Indeed, after releasing  the
death metal classic _Serpent Temptation_ in  1988,  Incubus  released
its somewhat samey sequel, _Beyond the Unknown_, in  1990,  and  then
mysteriously disappeared from the face of the scene. Well,  maybe  it
should have stayed that way; many a fond memory  is  better  laid  to
rest -- a thought which Slayer should definitely consider  reflecting
on. It's not that _Discerning Forces_ is in any way a bad death metal
album, but it would certainly have kicked a lot more ass  some  eight
or ten years ago, as a direct follow-up to _Beyond the Unknown_. What
_Discerning  Forces_  most  unconceitedly  reveals  is  that  founder
brothers Francis and  Moyses  Howard  (former  bassist  Mark  Lavenia
having apparently spontaneously mutated into thin air) have, over the
past seven or eight years, taken the time to study the scriptures  of
Bolt Thrower, Obituary, _Leprosy_-era Death and many  hardcore  acts,
whose influence  they  have  attempted  to  graft  on  to  their  own
thrashing songwriting style. As  a  result,  _Discerning  Forces_  is
actually a pleasant, in fact really  catchy  death  metal  entity  at
times,  but  merely  falls  short  of  offering  the  same  level  of
enthralling violence as _Serpent Temptation_ surgically delivered  at
the time; despite the fact that it offers many  a  tight,  aggressive
and catchy riff, this comeback slab sounds rather disjointed  on  the
whole, and basically tends  to  display  a  lack  of  congruence  and
conviction within one same  track.  Moreover,  warnings  against  the
spiritual devastation incurred by Internet  surfers  ("Addiction  set
forth, Denial is always high, Warning unnoticed, Trapped to the web")
prove to be just slightly (a frantic understatement) anachronistic in
a Y2K death metal album. So all  in  all,  albeit  being  efficiently
interpreted by proficient and  probably  dedicated  metal  musicians,
Opprobrium's new offering just fails to rise from the slightly  tepid
musical swamp in which it revels.


Orth - _Feed the Flames_  (Morbid Records, May 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (6.5 out of 10)

Fun and brutal Orth may in parts be, but _Feed the  Flames_  displays
no evidence  that  Orth  either  have  anything  hugely  original  or
wonderfully constructed to offer the world of extreme  music.  "Bobby
Brown", for example,  is  a  hilarious,  semi-balled  styled  ode  to
Whitney Houston's former husband -- who  is  here  heard  -seemingly-
proclaiming in the first-person: "oh god, I am, the  American  Dream"
-- delivered in a style part Six Feet Under, part grindcore and  part
intense thrash, but it and the few other relatively  good  tracks  on
offer here are themselves far from masterpieces,  and  they  comprise
the good "half" of _Feed the Flames_. Still, Orth do not rest on  the
laurels of any other particular band's style for long and thus  _Feed
the Flames_ at least manages to keep a decent stream of variation  in
tempo and even style going over its forty-five  minute  duration.  As
death metal goes, Orth may not be  clever,  but  they  are  certainly
competent and in possession of a sense of humour.


Overcome - _Immortal Until Their Work Is Done_
by: Paul Schwarz  (7 out of 10)  (Facedown Records, May 2000)

Having  never  before  consciously  listened  to   "Christcore",   or
Christian hardcore as it is more commonly referred to, I was somewhat
surprised at how musically similar it seems to be  to  the  music  of
many SXE bands, e.g. Earth Crisis. But, going back yet  further  than
my being informed that _IUTWiD_ -was- indeed "Christcore", I must say
that Overcome failed to make any large impression on  me  with  their
music, and even though a  reasonable  amount  of  listening  to  this
record has interposed the time between then and now, I remain  in  my
original conviction. I enjoyed  Overcome's  "work"  more  than  Earth
Crisis' _Breed the Killers_, for example, but  to  my  --  admittedly
relatively untrained --  ears  this  is  not  musically  enough  over
Turmoil, or Integrity and Earth Crisis' good moments,  to  warrant  a
great deal of fuss. If you're content with angry, screamingly  brutal
metallic hardcore (which entails plenty of similarities to  the  more
straightforward, atmosphere-devoid death metal bands out there)  with
big chunky kicks drums  and  sheet  metal  guitars,  but  nothing  to
severely challenge your musical mind (except maybe  the  acoustically
driven penultimate track,  "Reverance"),  then  I  expect  you'll  be
content with _IUTWiD_.

Contact: http://www.facedownrecords.com


Pain - _Rebirth_  (Stockholm Records / Universal, June 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (6 out of 10)

While I was a sucker  for  the  industrialized/electronic  flow  that
Peter Tagtgren presented us a few years back with Pain's  self-titled
disc on Nuclear Blast, his  latest  release  on  Universal  (a  major
record label) is coated with a much more commercial sound. Not to say
that Peter T. sold out, he  didn't,  I  am  just  missing  the  dark,
depressing vibe that came along  with  the  self-titled  disc.  While
still dark in every aspect (just look at the song titles),  it  seems
as though Peter T. wants to hit a crossover  market.  Who  can  blame
him? He is talented and the world should know this, right? Even if  I
hated this, I don't think Peter T. gives a fuck. He's  exploring  his
musical creativity and I guess we should all be proud of that.


Pantera - _Reinventing the Steel_  (Elektra, February 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (7 out of 10)

Before I review _RtS_, I wanted to use the occasion of this review to
say a few things that have been on my mind. It may  surprise  you  to
find that the CoC staff was almost put to the vote as  to  whether  I
should even be -allowed- to  review  _Reinventing  the  Steel_.  All,
including myself, agreed that Pantera didn't need the exposure,  that
most readers of CoC would likely have had the opportunity to  read  a
review of _Reinventing the Steel_, and that none would need informing
that a new Pantera album was out. But  is  CoC  merely  a  forum  for
exposure? Isn't it a forum for sincere critical analysis of music?  I
opt for the latter. That is why we're free of advertising, isn't  it?
So we can say what we think,  -whatever-  it  is?  However  much  the
chest-beating "true" underground may  proclaim  the  unimportance  of
Pantera to their musical lives -- either because they sincerely don't
like them or are just too fucking underground to listen to  an  album
that sells over three hundred thousand, let alone a  million  --,  it
still seems undeniable that it is the  popular  face  of  metal  like
Pantera or even recent Metallica (it's sad, but  true...)  that  gets
much of the younger generation started on  "extreme  music";  we  all
have our own opinions, but I don't think Oasis or Britney Spears draw
people into the metal or extreme music underground. I  was  listening
to  metal's  popular  mid-nineties  output  (Pantera,  Fear  Factory,
Machine Head et al) for nearly two years before I  started  seriously
swaying to the vocal incomprehensibilities,  blastbeats  and  general
musical extremities of Carcass and Entombed, and  thus  further  into
the genre broadly labelled "extreme music". It's not simply a natural
process that someone gets into more underground bands; it does depend
on personal taste, but being exposed  to  the  music  and  the  whole
"scene" is key. It wasn't that I'd heard of all the underground bands
I love now but just hadn't checked  them  out;  I  didn't  know  that
Immolation existed, I didn't know that Morbid  Angel  existed,  ditto
Celtic Frost, Darkthrone and hundreds of others I now know and  love.
Granted, the fact that bands like Pantera -do- get people started  on
metal doesn't mean that we should leave them without criticism (hence
this review...), or that they are the  best  at  what  they  do,  but
forgetting "worthiness", the reality is that Pantera -are- one of the
bands who have the platform to draw people into the genre or metal. I
can't change that, and not critically assessing Pantera won't  change
that either. Ignoring Pantera and thus not trying to put popular  and
underground music on the same level for critical assessment,  amounts
to  the  underground  --  despite  its  oft-professed  belief  to  be
musically "better" -- not making itself available to those outside of
it, and not wishing to have itself judged one-on-one against  popular
releases.  That  constitutes  pointless  pride:  to  me,   it's   all
assessable as heavy music. I don't think we should  just  be  telling
people who like underground metal about the scene they know; I  think
the music I listen to is -good-, that's why I listen  to  it,  that's
why I review it, and that is also why I want to expose people outside
of it to it and see if they bite. Most people can probably  tell  you
if they like Oasis or Britney Spears because they've heard  them  and
can see interviews with them on TV.  Go  ask  someone  if  they  like
Immolation or Morbid Angel and the response you're most likely to get
is "I've never heard  them".  So,  to  sum  up  why  I  am  reviewing
_Reinventing the Steel_: 1) to give you, the CoC  reader,  an  honest
opinion on it as a piece of music; 2)  to  show  anyone  reading  who
-hasn't- heard of the smaller bands we at CoC love -and-  hate,  that
liking Pantera doesn't make them "unworthy"  to  read  CoC  and  that
Pantera are not in a league of their  own  musically  or  critically:
either in a good way, or a bad way. One thing I would say is that  if
you think Fear Factory is as heavy as it  can  get,  or  that  no-one
rocks it live like Machine Head, or that Pantera  made  the  greatest
thrash album ever with _Vulgar Display of Power_, then please do me a
favour and check out some of the "underground" (though I really  mean
the semi-underground: labels like Relapse,  Metal  Blade  or  Nuclear
Blast are not what  we  traditionally  think  of  as  "underground"),
'cause I think you'll change some of your opinions if you  hear  some
of the bands who are out there; I certainly did.
Unfortunately, Pantera haven't come up with the goods.  I  can't  say
the same thing back to  CoC's  Pantera  naysayers;  _Reinventing  the
Steel_ is just  the  album  to  make  me  doubt  how  worthy  Pantera
ultimately are of their influential position. I really do feel a  bit
cheated simply by the title of this album, for it suggests quite  the
antithesis of the truth about where Pantera have taken  their  sound:
nowhere. There really is no "reinvention", as far as I  can  see,  on
_Reinventing the Steel_; it is Pantera at the flattest I  can  recall
them. Its songwriting is  more  quality-consistent  than  on  _Vulgar
Display of Power_, is more stylistically  predictable  than  on  _The
Great Southern Trendkill_, and is far more controlled  (or  tame...?)
than on _Far Beyond Driven_, but no song gets to as high a  level  as
the high-point(s) of any one of their four  previous  albums  in  the
nineties, and as a whole _RtS_ is lacking in impact, something  which
has always been key as an  enhancing  factor  for  Pantera's  albums.
_RtS_ is most convincing in its lyrical focus which, though  hard  to
tag with a single term, can be characterised by how  universally,  in
my opinion, it will appeal to "metal kids" -- that may  be  a  mildly
patronising tag for a group, but I do  think  we  all  know  what  it
means. The lyrics to "Goddamn Electric" brilliantly  speak  with  the
voice of exuberant youth, or just the metal party goer:  "Your  trust
is in whiskey, weed and Black Sabbath, it's Goddamn  Electric".  This
lyrical focus on honesty, and the accordingly honest delivery, allows
Pantera to retain the credibility they would  have  undoubtedly  have
lost if they'd taken a  Manowar-a-la-_Fighting  the  World_  turn  to
shameless self-glorification  and  use  of  cheap  religious  imagery
(which I love on _Fighting  the  World_,  but  let's  face  it,  only
Manowar can pull off convincingly). However, the end  result  of  the
four year wait from _TGST_ has not  resulted  in  an  album  that  is
either terribly memorable, varied or extreme. It's a shame, but  hey,
there's always next time -- and if Phil stops getting drunk at  every
show I hear of, maybe they'll still be worth seeing live as well.


Power Symphony - _Lightbringer_  (Pavement Music, May 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (6.5 out of 10)

Power metal, whatever the definition of that  phrase  you  choose  to
identify with, for me, has been largely limited to Morgana Lefay  and
a choice few others. Preferring black, death and  thrash/speed  metal
to the likes of Power Symphony's ilk, I will note that _Lightbringer_
is a strong and well done release. I'll  single  out  here  the  song
"Gethsemane". The track is catchy, evasive, and biting. I'd  have  to
say the most well executed piece on  the  album  right  down  to  the
provoking lyrical content. The rest of _Lightbringer_ has a  definite
alluring charm in its  largely  mystifying  workings  of  keyboardist
Claudio Berra. The band having originally no use for it, the addition
of the keyboards, especially on  this  release,  is  well  done.  The
remaining charisma emanates from the  vocal  entrapments  of  Michela
d'Orando. A rich alluring female  style  with  Celtic  influences  is
utilized to bring off _Lightbringer_ with proper decorum. Having been
around since late 1991, with more than their fair share  of  setbacks
in recording material for the group, I would  have  expected  a  more
intriguing  effort  than  what  is  served  up   on   _Lightbringer_,
especially when it was produced by veteran  Joey  Vera.  Actually,  I
wasn't that impressed with Vera's  Engine  project  either,  come  to
think of it. Unless I become weary with Morgana Lefay, I  doubt  this
disc will see much time in my player; but it might occasionally, from
time to time. Also, this disc has a "hidden track" (if you  can  call
it that) about the thirteen minute mark  into  the  last  song,  "The
Necromancer". Into your brain, Ms. d'Orando beats the phrase,  "Isn't
it charming? Isn't it tempting?" The answers are "No!" and "Hell no!"
After track seven's music ceases, stop the CD. You'll  thank  me  for
it.


Primordial - _Spirit the Earth Aflame_  (Hammerheart, May 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (9 out of 10)

Following such a superb record as _A Journey's End_ [CoC #33] and  an
MCD like _The Burning Season_ [CoC #45], I expected nothing but sheer
brilliance from _Spirit the Earth Aflame_. And after the  title-track
intro, "Gods to the Godless" provides you with an immediate taste  of
the impressive feeling, atmosphere and strength Primordial can  imbue
their music with. It is very epic and sombre,  with  an  instrumental
side  similar  to  _A  Journey's  End_  (as  is  generally  the  case
throughout) and offers the first indications that Nemtheanga's  clean
vocals still are not replacing his harsh vox, which  in  fact  abound
throughout _StEA_. The record reveals itself more  epic  and  overall
less doomy than _A Journey's End_  (though  it  still  certainly  has
quite a doomy atmosphere), with dark, hateful passages  arising  more
often than on its predecessor -- especially impressive  during  "Gods
to the Godless". The third track "The Soul Must Sleep" is  also  very
good indeed, doomier and very emotional, and is then followed by  the
title track from the _Spirit the Earth Aflame_ MCD  --  another  very
good song that fits perfectly within the album, though  a  bit  of  a
waste for those who own the MCD. Another mid-paced  track,  "Glorious
Dawn", then follows, carrying vitriolic black vox  throughout  and  a
very effective  fast  passage.  The  highly  evocative  and  war-like
instrumental "The Cruel Sea" then precedes the album's  final  track,
"Children of the Harvest", which is a less than brilliant closer  but
still acceptable. Overall, _StEA_ did not disappoint  me  despite  my
huge expectations, although it was not every  bit  as  amazing  as  I
though it could be -- maybe I expected too much from  the  band,  but
only time will tell.  In  any  case,  _StEA_  is  very  satisfactory:
emotional, intelligent and quietly majestic.


Raging Speedhorn - _Raging Speedhorn_  (Green Island, July 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (8.5 out of 10)

There are definite parallels to  be  drawn  between  the  frustrated,
aggressive noisemaking of Corby's Raging Speedhorn and the  similarly
happiness-allergic works of Iron Monkey. This  is  not  to  say  that
Raging Speedhorn ape  (sorry,  but  that  pun  was  irresistible)  or
replace the now-defunct and  much  revered  former-Earache  act,  but
Raging Speedhorn's intense,  sludgy,  aggression-venting  pound  does
evoke memories of Iron Monkey at their bruising best, and in the most
respectful, reverential way I can  see  possible.  Finally  releasing
their fury onto plastic after  getting  over  200  gigs  under  their
collective belt was a refreshingly mature  decision  which  has  paid
serious dividends; Raging Speedhorn display the confidence that comes
from having "tested" your material time and time over before  putting
it onto record; I wish more bands had their  patience.  The  duelling
vocals may not make the band out-of-ordinary as one might expect, but
maybe that's good; Raging Speedhorn don't  have  a  gimmick,  instead
they have a pounding, "physical" sound which almost  literally  jumps
out and smacks you right in the face.


Various - _Raise the Flag of Hate: A Tribute to Kreator_
by: Aaron McKay  (5 out of 10)  (Full Moon Productions, 2000)

Spouting off the obvious, Germany's  Kreator  has  a  very  long  and
distinguished history of fundamental  thrash  metal.  Simply  ask  me
about the effect of  1985's  _Endless  Pain_  as  it  relates  to  my
music-listening  pursuits.  Fioretti  and  Petrozza's   writing   was
exemplary. Coincidentally, more than a few tracks off of  _Raise  the
Flag of Hate_ come from Kreator's debut album. To  keep  this  review
succinct, I'll just give you the finer  points.  To  be  truthful,  I
fluctuate quite a little bit on my opinion as it relates  to  tribute
CDs. I guess that it has more than  a  little  bit  to  do  with  the
quality of the  band  being  celebrated  and  the  groups  doing  the
saluting. With the Full Moon Productions offering there seems  to  be
equal  parts  to  the  aforementioned  verbal  equation.  Kreator  is
certainly worthy of praise for the most part, and  the  bands  paying
homage are solid to a large  degree  --  some  more  flattering  than
others, obviously. Krisiun,  Goddess  of  Desire  and  Acheron  do  a
powerful rendition of their respective Kreator songs, but I  expected
a little more from Centinex and Hemlock. I'd  say  get  this  tribute
only if the thought of balancing a fresh slant of  renovated  Kreator
songs against some of the old tried and true favorites of  yesteryear
calibrates totally and completely in your mind.


Red Harvest - _Cold Dark Matter_  (Nocturnal Art, May 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (7 out of 10)

Not being familiar with any of Red Harvest's previous output  through
Voices of Wonder, I cannot analyse their musical  evolution;  but  on
_Cold Dark Matter_, through the use  of  heavily  distorted  guitars,
effect-drenched vocals and  an  overall  oppressive  atmosphere,  Red
Harvest produce a reasonably bleak yet  hard-hitting  sonic  assault.
Variety is considerable throughout the  record,  as  the  band  seems
equally likely to vaguely remind one of a darker version  of  Machine
Head as to opt for a black metal-like approach (including  Fenriz  of
Darkthrone on guest vocals) or imbue the music with  more  electronic
sounds and rhythmic elements. This does not entirely  work  to  their
advantage, as I find myself clearly preferring the  industrial  black
metal kind of approach. Nevertheless, the first  half  of  the  album
does flow quite well. As the  end  draws  nearer,  however,  interest
clearly tends to  decrease,  although  not  to  any  dangerously  low
levels. The album does have some good moments and ideas, the  quality
level  generally  remaining  quite  acceptable,  and  overall  it  is
different  and  interesting  enough  to  justify  some  attention  --
especially if the blending of generally dark electronic elements with
metal  attracts  you.  For  me,  however,  Red   Harvest's   "matter"
throughout a very significant part of this album  still  isn't  quite
"cold" or "dark" enough to be especially remarkable given its musical
quality.

Contact: http://www.redharvest.com
Contact: http://www.nocturnalart.com


Rorschach Test - _Peace Minus One_  (E-magine, 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (4 out of 10)

I  loathe   to   say   that   college   psychology   101   rears   it
attractively-challenged head again. The Rorschach Test, if my  memory
serves me correctly, was considered to be  what  most  in  the  field
called "projective". As I understand projective tests, they  endeavor
to measure an individual's  personality  based  on  the  theory  that
people tend to project their own unconscious perceptions and outlooks
into ambiguous situations. Of course, the Swiss psychiatrist  Hermann
Rorschach (1884-1922)  garnered  somewhat  of  a  respected  standing
surrounding this school of thought. This leads me back to the  _Peace
Minus One_ release by Seattle's  Rorschach  Test.  RT  released  some
previous  material  on  the  now  defunct  Slipdisc  Records,  namely
_Unclean_ in 1998. About that time, from what I understand, _Unclean_
stirred up the  Seattle  scene  a  little  bit.  Today  RT's  current
offering, _PMO_, would put the listener in mind of solution including
Pro-Pain, Ministry, Skinny Puppy and  a  tablespoon  worth  of  KMFDM
bleeding together on the tie-dye canvas of a white t-shirt.  This  is
my first exposure to RT and  my  impression  is  of  a  pseudo-social
agenda designed band with more-or-less sophomoric  lyrics.  Sometimes
the groove that Rorschach Test finds itself in  is  catchy,  like  on
track four, "Shocking", but more often than not  it  is  grating  and
pesky. I think  Hermann  Rorschach  wanted  his  projective  test  to
measure people's unconscious outlooks on situations, but his namesake
band whips-up a few very conscious perceptions of their music that  I
wish I could say were more positive.


Running Wild - _Victory_  (Pavement Music, April 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (3 out of 10)

I can't say I have a lot of time for  this  type  of  metal.  Like  a
primed geyser, founder Rock 'n' Rolf (NO! I'm not making this up) and
the rest of Running Wild whip up a frenzied foam of  excitement,  but
amounting to nothing  more  than  musical  delirium.  The  background
filler the band is passing off as music would  remind  you  of  Peter
Frampton meets Yngwie Malmsteen at a  Badlands  concert.  "The  Final
Waltz", an instrumental track timing in at only about  a  minute  and
twenty seconds, could very well be the only reason I don't  use  this
disc for skeet shooting practice. Running Wild opened for Motley Crue
on the Theatre of Pain tour and recorded a rendition  of  Lennon  and
McCartney's "Revolution" for this release. Enough said?


Saturnus - _Martyre_  (Euphonious Records / Voices of Wonder, 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)

With this follow-up to their fine debut _Paradise Belongs to You_ and
the excellent _For the Loveless Lonely Nights_ MCD, Saturnus carry on
with their lovelorn, broken-hearted melodic doom. Things have  become
somewhat softer than before, and indeed quite far from the doom/death
of their debut, though much of the guitar style is  recognisable  and
both the death vox and spoken parts are still  used  (though  not  as
much of the former as I would have liked). A new vocal  style,  which
turns out to be perhaps predominant  overall,  has  been  introduced:
half-sung, half-growled, not far  from  the  style  of  Darren  White
(Anathema), though occasionally with a rather more "rocking" feel and
not quite reaching similar emotional quality. It  is  soft,  melodic,
darkly romantic, but fine tracks such as "Inflame thy Heart",  "Noir"
and "A Poem (Written in Moonlight)" eventually begin to give way to a
generally somewhat less accomplished second  half  of  the  album.  A
percussion-less version of the excellent "Thou Art Free"  from  their
previous MCD provides a good segue midway through the  album,  but  I
still prefer the original --  as  a  matter  of  fact,  my  favourite
Saturnus track is still "Starres" from  that  MCD.  Quite  a  bit  of
_Martyre_ sounds like it would have benefited from  a  more  frequent
use of death vocals instead of the Darren-like ones, and some  rather
happy-ish (or at least excessively  rocking)  passages  do  sometimes
spoil the atmosphere quite a bit, but Saturnus' skill  does  overcome
that in  order  to  produce  a  very  good  record  indeed.  Overall,
_Martyre_  is  a  well  performed,  easily  enjoyable  and  not  very
demanding doom album.


Sick of Society - _Sportsman Sound_  (<Independent>, 2000)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (3 out of 10)

This release has quite a mish-mash of styles, ranging from  punk-like
elements to groovier or more metal ones and even soft  ballad  parts;
but all this results in nothing capable of  interesting  me.  Neither
the music itself nor the atmosphere it creates  is  ever  impressive,
consistent or remarkable in any way: mediocrity  abounds.  The  music
could at least have been reasonably aggressive, but that's  generally
not even the case -- and when  they  do  try  something  a  bit  more
aggressive, they fail to achieve any noteworthy results. The  ballads
they strangely decided to throw in the middle  of  all  this  do  not
help, either. By the way, I don't know  what  the  great  purpose  of
inserting nine minutes of silence before  the  last  track  in  a  30
minute long record really is, but some bands seem to find  that  kind
of thing hugely fun. And "fun" may also be what  whoever  might  like
this will probably derive from _Sportsman Sound_  given  the  music's
general feeling, which is somewhat conceivable considering  that  the
playing isn't bad and the production acceptable -- which  earns  them
all their marks, because for me this just does not work at all.

Contact: Oliver Kast, Romerstr 26, 89269 Vohringen, Germany


Sincronisity - _Winters of Despair_  (Black Sheep Records, May 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (6 out of 10)

This one of the  oddest  records  I  have  ever  had  to  review  for
Chronicles of Chaos. Sincronisity manages to take death  metal,  turn
tables, movie samples and a real hard rock groove and work magic with
it. Don't ask me how it works or why I'm in support of it, I just am.
Sort of. You'll just scratch you head as tracks like "Obsession", "No
World Order" or the title track play on. Sincronisity,  please  stand
up and take a bow. You got me interested.  File  this  next  to  Mike
Patton's project Fantomas.

Contact: 1 Washington Drive, Lindenhurst, NY 11757, USA


Sinergy - _To Hell and Back_  (Nuclear Blast, June 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (6 out of 10)

Sorry, press release, but I  don't  think  a  title  such  as  "metal
goddess" can be anything but hyperbolic  when  applied  to  Kimberley
Goss, the black metal back-up singer turned "true metal" wailer.  The
sophomore release of her "true metal" band Sinergy sees only Children
of Bodom's Alexi Laiho salvaged from the line-up that  recorded  last
year's _Beware the Heavens_. But  not  to  worry,  the  departure  of
Jesper Stromblad and Sharlee  D'Angelo  has  wrought  no  changes  to
Sinergy's style. The key difference is simply that _To Hell and Back_
is better than its predecessor. Goss' vocals aren't so  ludicrous  in
their attempts to imitate the masculine metal vocalist,  and  Laiho's
melodic compositions this time  gel  better  with  her  vocals.  It's
musical rehash but it's well-executed and at least differs  from  the
endless stream of Priest/Helloween  rip-offs  that  pollute  Europe's
metal mags and festival second stages -- though mostly this is simply
because _To Hell and Back_ has a woman singing rather than a man with
clamped testicles.


Spiral Architect - _A Sceptic's Universe_  (Sensory, 2000)
by: Brian Meloon  (8.5 out of 10)

Being a fan of these guys from way back [CoC #9, #11], I had expected
their  long-awaited  debut  album  to  really  blow  my  socks   off.
Unfortunately, I was quite disappointed. Whereas their demo showed  a
band with an original take on the progmetal genre, this  album  comes
off  sounding  a  lot  like  Psychotic  Waltz's  _A   Social   Grace_
(especially the vocals)  and  Watchtower,  with  some  Fates  Warning
(_Perfect Symmetry_) and Cynic thrown in. The music is  very  complex
and technical, often causing a disjointed feel to  the  music.  While
this isn't necessarily a bad thing, they aren't consistent  with  it.
At times, they begin to develop sections and then rapidly switch to a
completely different style, with no apparent connection.  This  kills
any flow that they were starting to create for the song. The  playing
is excellent, however: very tight, even when each of the band members
are playing completely separate parts. The parts  of  the  individual
musicians are usually very technical. The production  is  clear,  but
the separation of the instruments is a little too much for my  taste.
The bass has a very compressed tone  (similar  to  Sean  Malone's  on
_Focus_), which -- while making the bass easily audible -- also tends
to split the music apart. A richer, fuller tone  would've  created  a
more coherent sound. Ultimately, there's a lot of good music on  this
CD, and fans of technical and progressive metal should enjoy it,  but
I think that these guys are capable of a lot more than they showed on
this disc.


Stormhammer - _Fireball_  (Century Media, July 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (3 out of 10)

Try to picture this. Myself, Pedro, Matthias and David (the  European
CoC Contingent of the time) are perusing various albums,  recent  and
well-aged, at Mr. Rocher's abode, in Brittany. Matthias, with a  hint
of amused trepidation, asks if he  can  spin  this,  Century  Media's
latest entry into the true metal resurgence  movement.  After  a  few
bars  of  Helloween  cut  'n'  paste  riffs  to  which  we  all  look
despairingly at each other, I sarcastically put in,  "I  wonder  what
the vocals will be like?". As Kai Hansen's  carbon  copy  begins  his
high-pitched  melodic  wailing,  Matthias'  face   displays   visible
disgust. "This makes me feel ashamed to be German",  he  exclaims.  I
put in, again sarcastically, "Yeah, isn't  it  funny?  We  get  -six-
Helloween albums a year these days". "More  like  60",  is  Matthias'
quick-fire reply. The above are first impressions, but  they  sum  up
_Fireball_ adequately. There may be a decent lick here and there, the
band may not be -atrocious- songwriters, but Jesus H Fucking  Christ,
I think we have had  E-fucking-nough  of  true  fucking  power  metal
fucking rehash. There was enough before HammerFall  kicked  off  this
mass resurrection of over-melodic metal; there was more  than  enough
two years ago. Now, there is ludicrously far and away too  much,  and
the output of the "genre" is getting worse and lazier. And the albums
are getting longer! I find Stormhammer hard enough to tolerate for  a
few songs; listening to all 55  minutes  of  this  creative  dinosaur
gives me the martyred feeling of suffering for my art --  whether  my
writing matches up to that description is your opinion, but  I  doubt
anyone would  claim  such  a  classification  should  apply  to  this
unoriginal dross. The world needs  no  more  superfluous  rehash;  we
don't need more than one Helloween; we certainly don't need more than
one HammerFall, especially with under-par vocals.


Suicide Culture - _Hallow Be the Agony_  (<Independent>, May 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (7 out of 10)

I liked what I heard with death-ish speed metal act  Suicide  Culture
on their three-song demo back in CoC #33  and  I'm  down  with  their
sound and style on the new five-song outing. The new offering,  which
features four new songs and a cover of Celtic Frost's "Jewel Throne",
is much heavier than past work and a  welcome  change  at  that.  The
guitar solos still rip out at you, as the demonic growls of  frontman
Kevin Bedra echo atop the blistering drum beats  courtesy  of  Joshua
Hanenburg. The thing I like about Suicide Culture (though they  could
use a name change, I think) is that they don't hide their  influences
that they wear on their sleeves. They pay homage to their heroes  and
at the same time try to maintain a sound and  a  style  that'll  push
their band forward into the spotlight. They could  be  onto  big  and
better things with this release for sure.

Contact: P.O. Box 70566, Seattle, WA 98107, USA
         mailto:suicideculture@webtv.com
         http://suicideculture.itgo.com


Summon - _Baptized by Fire_  (The Plague / Hammerheart, April 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (7 out of 10)

_Baptized by Fire_ spends most of its time attempting to flatten  its
listener with a whirlwind of lightning fast blastbeats,  double  bass
runs   and   incomprehensible   solos.   However,   despite   showing
considerable technical ability, this tactic  merely  results  in  the
band bringing to mind the bastard child of  a  union  between  second
rate Angel Corpse  and  Marduk  clones.  Interposed  between  _BbF_'s
speedy opening and closing tracks is the  mid  to  slow-paced  number
"Realm of No Return". The tracks surrounding it  varying  tempo  more
than earlier tracks but remain centrally speed  driven.  Though  more
varied, and in the case of "Realm of No Return" adopting a  different
modus operandi, these differences only minorly contradict my previous
characterisation of Summon. Certainly _BbF_ contains nothing that can
be called original, but  that's  not  to  say  it  isn't  listenable,
competent and momentarily good.


The Chapter - _The Chapter_  (Stark Records, May 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (3 out of 10)

Fans of Manowar will no doubt see the comparisons and  fans  of  Iron
Maiden will no doubt pick up on the band's attempt to try and tell  a
story. Guess what? They fail -- miserably. The  Chapter  are  one  of
those bands that get together, jam and record an album thinking  that
they got what it takes to  get  noticed.  Well,  they  don't.  Cheesy
vocals (and lyrics too!) -- once you get past the testosterone charge
of "Underdog" or the lame ballad feel of "True  Self  Revealed",  you
will no doubt want  this  all  to  end.  This  Chapter  needs  to  be
rewritten if they want to be taken more seriously.

Contact: 1460 Neil Armstrong Street #309, Montebello, CA 90640, USA
         mailto:marcespinoza@earthlink.net


The Gathering - _if_then_else_  (Century Media, July 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (9.5 out of 10)

I remember when 1998's double-disc _How to Measure  a  Planet?_  [CoC
#36] came out and many critics harped all over the band for expanding
their sound and (god forbid!)  trying  new  ideas.  That  record  was
brilliant, showcasing the band's finesse at song structure and  solid
production. But there was indeed something missing. The missing  link
is found in  The  Gathering's  new  disc  titled  _if_then_else_,  an
interesting ride of sonic bliss and stunning vocal arrangements.  The
music creeps along with subdued passion  and  mesmerizing  segues  of
lustful melodies -- and never  lets  go.  Get  sucked  in  by  opener
"Rollercoaster", "Bad Movie Scene" and the ultra-cool "Analog  Park".
This all comes together quite well, and in the  end  The  Gathering's
sonic brew  of  masterful  collaborations  presents  itself  in  true
talented fashion. Other than her masterful  work  on  my  fave  album
_Mandylion_ [CoC #7], singer Anneke van Giersbergen has never sounded
so radiant.


The Project Hate MCMXCIX - _Cyber Sonic Super Christ_
by: Adrian Bromley  (9 out of 10)  (Pavement, June 2000)

Hands down, this is one of the most exciting  releases  for  me  this
year. Managing to engage in a volatile battle between the beauty  and
the beast, TPH (a project led by Entombed's Jorgen Sandstrom) rip and
tear through a monstrous array of song death metal / keyboard  driven
ideas, splitting up any notion that this would be any ordinary  metal
release. The passionate vocal chants of Mia Stahl add electricity  to
the already vibrant music  circulating  through  the  record.  Killer
production (thank you, Dan Swano!) and a  real  hatred  flowing  from
every pore makes TPH the real deal in 2000.


Thornspawn - _Blood of the Holy, Taint thy Steel_
by: Aaron McKay  (8 out of 10)  (Baphomet Records, April 2000)

Infuriatingly horrific! Completely engaging black metal  out  of  San
Antonio. From beginning to end,  these  monsters  lead  the  all-out,
full-on rampage totalling over fifty minutes  of  tireless  metal.  A
true feather-in-the-cap for American black metal can be found  within
_Blood of the Holy, Taint thy Steel_'s material.  The  band  includes
ex-Necrovore bassist  Bjorn  Haga,  guitarists  Swornghoul  and  Lord
Necron, as well as  drummer/vocalist  Blackthorn.  I've  always  been
impressed by how an individual can manage to play an instrument,  let
alone drums, and double-up on vocals in  addition.  Truly  an  august
achievement, to say the least. If the  proper  amount  of  persuasion
were applied, I would have to say  track  four,  "Ancient  Path",  is
certainly my favorite on this release. Thornspawn has all the  corpse
paint,  aggression  and  talent  to  survive  and  succeed  in   this
ever-increasingly crowded metal conglomeration. I'll be watching  for
great things from this band. All praise, Thornspawn!


Thy Primordial - _The Heresy of an Age of Reason_
by: Alvin Wee and David Rocher (9 out of 10) (Pulverised, July 2000)

With surprisingly little time elapsed  since  the  release  of  their
fantastic third album, _At the World of Untrodden  Wonder_,  Sweden's
unjustifiably  unrecognised  Thy  Primordial  have  now,  anno  2000,
crafted their finest work of retaliation to date. Blasting in true TP
style, opener "Ceased  to  Decay"  showcases  the  band's  knack  for
melding epic melody lines with pure aggression. As a moment  of  calm
deceptively seems to settle in,  writhing,  serpentine  riffs  finely
woven into a  sudden  storm  of  blasting  drums  and  growling  bass
brutally lash out in venomous, hateful and melodic rushes, laden with
spectacular, intense drumming and vocalist  Isidor's  harsh,  grating
and baleful screams. The highly impressive double-pedal pummelling of
Morth sets the score right from the start: TP are faster and  tighter
than ever before, launching into attacks of  breathtakingly  furious,
yet disarmingly melodious Swedish mayhem.  The  rage  which  animates
_THoaAoR_ is truly tangible, and the incredible,  bewitching  melodic
guitar work, at times tinged with the icy  fury  of  early  Norwegian
black metal, can barely claim to shroud the sheer bestial anger  that
emanates from this thundering, rabid black  metal  opus.  Comparisons
with countrymen Dark Funeral will no doubt be made, but rest  assured
that TP's material rises far above the oft monotonous  straight-ahead
speed of the former. Masterfully tamed  musical  savagery  is  indeed
what  _THoaAoR_   perfectly   embodies;   Thy   Primordial's   fourth
full-length exudes aggressive, outstanding musicality, played by five
competent and inspired musicians. While one yearns for  the  stronger
melodies of their early work, the sheer power and intensity  on  this
album crushes any uncertainties one  might  have  about  this  band's
ability, as well as providing a testament to the  faultless  Sunlight
production. In fact, TP's skills for keeping such  relentlessly  fast
material from sounding messy or formulaic has always been remarkable,
and the band looks to be honing it to a finer edge with every  album.
Despite the label's apparent lack of  distribution  and  advertising,
this record is brimming  with  an  expensive  production  and  layout
worthy of much bigger labels. At a time of  the  ever-renewing  metal
cycle when black metal  seems  to  have  slipped  into  a  coma,  Thy
Primordial have dealt a fourth merciless  blow  with  _THoaAoR_,  and
spawned an album which reveals that the chthonic  forces  lurking  in
the Swedish scene are certainly as talented and worthy of recognition
as the Swedish black metal flame-bearers Marduk and Dawn.  Check  out
the interview in this issue for more information.


Thy Serpent - _Death_  (Spinefarm, June 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (9 out of 10)

Most will see an EP by a band as an opportunity to fool  around  with
their sound or do a cover song. Or much more simply,  just  a  filler
between albums. The new _Death_ EP by Finland's Thy Serpent, however,
is an important step for the band, as  it  continues  on  with  their
vibrant  dark  metal  sound  they   relayed   to   us   with   1998's
_Christcrusher_ [CoC #35], as  well  as  introduce  us  to  new  band
members (Throne of Chaos' Teemu Laitinen on drums and Rapture's  Tomi
Ullgren on guitar) and the sound they bring to the band. The music is
amazing, a wall of sonic beauty meshed  within  a  darkened  vibe  of
intensity. Luscious keyboards combat with searing vocals and stunning
guitar work to form abrasive, yet sometimes melodic works of art. The
title track and "Sleep in Oblivion" just blow my  mind.  This  an  EP
that fans of the band will find comfort in and a  release  that  will
definitely draw in new listeners once they hear it.


Tidfall - _Circular Supremacy_  (Nocturnal Art, 2000)
by: Eli Fishbein  (8.5 out of 10)

The  booming  layers  of  over-the-top  Dimmu   Borgirian   keyboards
immediately point to Nocturnal Art as the label behind  this  outfit.
Present here are the same sci-fi concepts and the  same  overwhelming
guitar/keyboard-oriented musical tsunamis that characterize at  least
two other Nocturnal Art bands: Sirius and Odium. It seems to me  that
all these bands have conquered a niche, which  would  not  be  a  bad
thing had that niche not been too crowded by  now.  So  before  these
bands get too repetitious (assuming they  haven't  already),  I  hope
they look for labelmates Limbonic Art and  Emperor  for  inspiration,
mutate a bit, quit cloning, and start designing. Originality must  be
the key factor in whatever they do next. This is not to say _Circular
Supremacy_ is not a good album; far from it. In fact,  context  aside
(for contextualization, after all, eliminates individuality),  tracks
like "Empty Silence" and the closer "Hymn to Fall" exemplify just how
grandiose Tidfall might become. The  former  track  is  colossal  and
jagged in a manner reminiscent of later Hypocrisy, with  both  slower
and faster moments and creative  double-tracked  vocal  arrangements.
The latter is  relentless  in  its  pursuit  of  appropriate  musical
imagery -- as if searching  for  a  new  path  --  to  accompany  the
funereal and emotive lyrics ("The tear you / didn't dry, has died and
turned into a scar. Your dreams / are  becoming  the  photograph  you
never wanted to see.") For the sake of evolution  in  the  post-black
era -- as it is beginning to  be  defined  by  coevals  Nagelfar  and
Limbonic Art -- with more than just evil as its  only  permanence,  I
hope that this band decides to slip free of  the  Norwegian  moorings
and find their own echo chamber. There is no telling what might  come
out then.


Twilight Kingdom - _Adze_  (Siegen Records, 2000)
by: Brian Meloon  (7.5 out of 10)

This is likely to be the longest review I will ever  write  for  CoC,
but being as familiar as I am with these guys, I have a  lot  to  say
about it. Their music is similar in style to the  progressive/pompous
style of Dream Theater's _Images and  Words_,  though  somewhat  more
consistent: generally lighter, but without the excessive  cheesiness.
Their songs tend to be in "extended" verse-chorus format  (i.e.  with
an extended development section  in  the  middle),  which  puts  them
roughly between five  and  nine  minutes  in  length.  The  music  is
keyboard heavy, but guitar driven, with a good  mix  of  lighter  and
heavier sections. The choruses tend to be  memorable,  and  sometimes
catchy, though the  songs  are  hardly  hook-heavy.  The  playing  is
generally good, at times flashy, but most of the time restrained  and
appropriate instead of technical for the sake  of  showing  off.  The
lyrics are generally very good, dealing with subjects  without  being
too direct or too abstract. Unfortunately,  there  are  a  number  of
problems with this release that make it far inferior  to  their  1995
independent cassette-only release, _The Guardian_ (which incidentally
contains the best five songs on this album). First  and  foremost  is
the production. This album sounds worse  than  my  CD  copy  of  _The
Guardian_, which was digitized from  a  half-worn-out  four  year-old
cassette tape, originally produced on a shoestring budget. The guitar
is a fuzzy, tinny mess, sounding quite a bit like the  tone  obtained
by we-don't-care-about-production black  metal  bands.  There's  also
virtually no bass. It's almost like they recorded it too  muddy,  and
to "fix" it, they cranked the high end. In any case,  I'm  unable  to
think of a progmetal CD with worse production.  My  second  complaint
would be the sloppy playing. The guitar solos are particularly bad in
this department, as Trey's timing seems non-existent at points  (e.g.
the last guitar solo in "Shadow Troops"). Chris' vocals are sloppy as
well, almost as if they were rushed in the studio during the last few
sessions. While he's usually a  talented  and  natural  vocalist,  he
doesn't sound like he's trying  very  hard  on  this  recording.  His
timing is noticeably off in a few places, such as the last chorus  of
"Awakening". He's also off key in a few places. Part of this  may  be
because the original vocal lines were  changed  to  lower  registers,
which was a particularly bad idea, as Chris' voice is more  naturally
in the high registers. Generally, all of the  changes  they  made  to
songs from _The Guardian_ -- such as cutting down "Shadow Troops" and
the intro to "Forever Sacred"  (though  I  can  see  why  keeping  it
might've caused legal problems) -- were  bad  ones.  The  non-musical
intro "Dreams of Osirus" is pointless, especially when "March of  the
Guardian" (the far superior intro to _The Guardian_) is  the  "hidden
bonus track". Having "hidden" bonus tracks is a stupid  idea,  moreso
now than ever, but if they really needed to do it,  why  didn't  they
use "March of the Guardian" as the intro, and put "The Ticket" as the
hidden track? On this record, they sound like a band  who  have  been
together for a little while,  trying  out  a  new  singer,  and  just
screwing around in their garage. It's hard to believe that this is  a
"professional" CD that took three years to record and mix. That said,
if you've never  heard  these  guys  before,  you'll  probably  think
"they're a good band, and they have some good songs; if they clean up
their act, they'd be pretty good." If you're lucky enough to  have  a
copy of _The Guardian_, you probably won't be able to listen to  this
very much.


Unmoored - _Kingdom's Greed_  (Pulverised, July 2000)
by: Alvin Wee  (7 out of 10)

Obviously trying harder than ever to make up for the  flop  that  was
their debut album, Unmoored are back with a  vengeance,  sporting  an
album that's surprisingly good. This time round,  Unmoored  buck  the
annoying  hardcore-ish  elements  of  their  debut  in  favour  of  a
semi-technical death/thrash slant, a step  many  Swedish  bands  have
taken in the past year or so. While  not  as  overly  progressive  as
Theory in Practice, _Kingdom's Greed_  isn't  exactly  easy-listening
material either. "Feral Blaze" kicks things off  rather  ferociously,
Christian "Evil  Spice"  Alvestam's  vicious  rasping  over  grinding
guitars a lot more appealing than his previous  semi-shouting  style.
Session skins-pounder Jocke whips up a venerable cacophony  of  nifty
rhythms, while the  guitars  weave  an  atonal  web  of  death/thrash
riffage interspersed with scorching leads and keyboard  epicness.  As
if to display their knack for melody, "Final State Pt. II" boasts  an
intro lead worthy of a good (read:  early)  In  Flames  album,  while
screamer Christian busts out his clear singing in  a  brave  show.  A
ballad of sorts, it's mighty impressive and a welcome break from  the
disharmony of the  previous  tracks.  Things  remain  rather  thrashy
throughout the album,  with  occasional  flashes  of  brilliance  and
all-round impeccable musicianship. Unmoored  have  an  arduous  climb
ahead of them after last  album's  transgressions,  but  _KG_  should
serve as a mighty push in the right direction. The music is far  more
original than the cover (ever seen Pestilence's _Spheres_?) and makes
for many rewarding listens.

Contact: Pulverised Records, P.O. Box 109, Yishun Central,
         Singapore 917604
         mailto:pulverised@pacific.net.sg


Usurper - _Visions From the Gods_  (Necropolis Records, April 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (7.5 out of 10)

This "1994 demo and rare live and unreleased  material"  started  off
with "Soulstalker '96"  sounding  an  -awful  lot-  like  Gorgoroth's
_Destroyer_, but then cuts into a riff about the two minute mark that
work do Tad proud. Excellent! Then track two, "Deep in  the  Forest",
blows your  (black)  heart  through  the  back  of  your  chest  with
sludge-heavy rhythms and double bass drum work. I think Blackheim and
Bewitched would be impressed by Usurper's  excoriated  work  on  this
album. Let me touch on track eight, "Wolflord", for a  brief  second.
At the very onset  of  the  song,  I  thought  that  Usurper  covered
Crowbar's "I Have Failed". Yes, it's cool. As it turns out,  I  think
that "Wolflord" might be a welcome addition to Crowbar's  repertoire.
As cement crushing as this track is, it is no wonder it turned out to
be a favorite of mine on _VFtG_. Even the one and only live track  on
the release, "Blood Passion", as the last track, nine, is  completely
venerable. If the truth be know, I think that _Usurper  II:  Skeletal
Season_ is my favorite -- possibly even more than  _Diabolosis_,  the
band's debut on Head Not Found.  _VFtG_  places  a  very  respectable
third regarding the band's album history, I feel I have to admit. I'm
not convinced that anyone can go wrong with -any- Usurper effort.


Vehement - _Unbalanced for Mankind_  (Cellar Records, May 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (3 out of 10)

Vehement's music is definitely "unbalanced". The death  metal  groove
of this Illinois trio flies at us with a rapid fire  of  death  metal
growls, drum blasts and a real aggro-core groove for the  most  part.
And while that may sound appealing to some, the band delivers it with
a real weak, clunky approach  throughout  the  disc  and  that  alone
brings down the overall effect of the band's death  metal  vibe.  The
music  is  brutal  enough  to  mosh  to,  but  nothing  really  earth
shattering. I'll let all my other  brothers  and  sisters  making  up
mankind to make their own judgement. Bland.

Contact: Cellar Records 116 N. Peoria Ave., Dixon, IL 61021, USA
         mailto:tjoos@essex1.com
         http://www.essex1.com/people/tjoos/


Venom - _Resurrection_  (Steamhammer, April 2000)
by: Matthias Noll  (8 out of 10)

I was on stand-by to rip this record to shreds. "War against Christ",
"Black Flame of Satan" -- does that sound like anything else than  an
obvious attempt at cashing in on the commercial potential black metal
has (no, I won't elaborate on the trueness of the  cash  cows  here)?
Did anyone expect that  Venom  were  capable  of  other  things  than
spending their bucks in  the  local  pubs  in  Newcastle  or  do  the
festival thing with loads of pyros, red boots and yesteryear's  hits?
Thinking about this kind of things I put  _Resurrection_  in  the  CD
player, expecting some more ammunition  for  a  below  4  out  of  10
review. What I got was the perfect proof that the old law which  says
that predicted catastrophes do not happen still applies. The  openers
"Resurrection" and "Vengeance" immediately define what Venom 2000  is
all about: simplicity,  brutality,  drive  and  the  use  of  massive
headbanger-friendly powerchords, with Chronos' trademark nasty  snarl
on top of that. These old farts have managed no less  than  fusing  a
certain amount of Fear Factory style staccato riffing  with  the  old
approach of songs like "Warhead", "Countess Bathory", "Seven Gates of
Hell" or "Don't Burn the Witch"  while  miraculously  still  sounding
like classic Venom and not just a bunch of old fuckers who  try  hard
to remain relevant in the year 2000 by  ripping  off  the  sounds  of
modern metal. Among the fourteen(!) tracks  on  _Resurrection_  there
are two or three weaker cuts, like "Pandemonium"  or  "Man  Myth  and
Magik", with overlong melodic choruses, but whenever the  disk  seems
to lose pace there's a series of killer  songs  to  put  it  back  on
track. Surprisingly enough, even the songs  with  stereotype  dumbass
black metal titles turn out to be killer tunes. The  production  work
of Charlie Bauernfeind is  simply  amazing.  He's  preserved  Mantas'
shredding guitar sound and Chronos' bulldozer bass in their primitive
early '80s form, but made them sound crisp, powerful, huge, huge  and
huge again! I don't see anyone missing  Abaddon  (he  who  sounds  as
tight as a drum kit falling down the stairs), even if new guy  Antton
is not doing much more than providing the two  old-timers  with  some
solid drumming. This is the best Venom record since _Black Metal_ and
definitely worth having in your collection, no matter whether  you've
joined Venom's Legions in 1982 or are thinking about applying now.


Violation - _Moonlight's Child_  (Red Stream, May 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (6 out of 10)

I'll  be  honest,  after  the  first  couple  of  listens   to   this
German-based melodic death / atmospheric metal band,  I  was  chewing
over the possibility of spitting Violation out with a lot less  of  a
grade than what they ultimately scored. As you can see, they  won  me
over a touch more than what an average score might  indicate.  Formed
in 1993, Violation's _Beyond the Graves_ disc finally saw  the  light
of day in early 1998 after contracting with Last Episode Productions.
Endeavoring to release the follow-up CD, the band parted company with
Last Episode and sparked a brief relationship with  Invasion  Records
before settling in the fine company  of  Red  Stream.  The  Violation
bouquet, smelling somewhat like an  In  Flames  fragranced  Gates  of
Ishtar rose, is truly very becoming and certainly one that  grows  on
you. Recording at the Abyss II and co-production  by  Peter  Tagtgren
could only have helped the effort, but the strongest aspects  of  the
band rely almost exclusively on their melody and  not  brutality.  If
Violation would concentrate more on melody and loosen their  struggle
for brutality, I'd have no trouble giving this effort a 8 or 9 out of
10; but things are not  this  way,  you  see.  A  glorified,  intense
melodic atmosphere awaits the listener like a siren  beckoning  to  a
lonely sea captain, but if it is unadulterated brutality  you  crave,
your desire will surely be splintered against the rocks.


Vordven - _Woodland Passage_  (No Colours Records, 2000)
by: Alvin Wee  (7 out of 10)

Following an under-promoted full-length debut, these Finnish  mongers
of melancholy return with one aptly titled MCD.  Having  found  their
synth-drenched syrup rather promising before, I cracked open the  new
one with some anticipation. Smacking of _In  the  Nightside  Eclipse_
Emperor, the opening track heralds a new aggression, and a  departure
from Tolkien-worshipping  musings  to  a  more  pagan-fronted  stand.
Titles  like  "Cold  Pagan  Steel"  signal   the   band's   new-found
motivation, but old habits die hard as further  investigation  yields
the familiar Covenant-style sweetness (minus the commercial pandering
that makes Covenant so repulsive to us). On the bright side, Mika and
Co. have dropped the lassez-faire tone of their debut in favour of  a
more powerful metal sound with fast double-kick  beats  and  sonorous
synth   passages   occasionally   reminiscent   of   early   Emperor.
Musicianship has improved by leaps and bounds, and the  band  doesn't
hesitate to showcase it  in  faster  and  more  varied  material.  An
uncharacteristically  professional  layout  from  No  Colours  should
ensure this sylvan sojourn does better at the cash registers than the
ill-fated debut. And I have to  admit  falling  for  their  brand  of
catchy fantasy metal this time round, no matter how wimpy it makes me
look. Gentler folk and the fairer sex don't have to look any  further
than this for a class act in epic synth-based metal.


Winterblut - _Der 6. Danach_  (Darker Than Black Records, 2000)
by: Alvin Wee  (6.5 out of 10)

Yet another Teutonic obscurity from the stables of Darker Than Black,
a label known for its  blatant  anti-Semitism,  if  little  else.  An
interesting release, _D6D_ features four chapters of  varying  music.
The first  part  is  a  rather  perturbing  mess  of  low-key  synth,
electronic drumming and guttural sneering. Not  exactly  a  promising
start.  Things  look  up  with   the   second   chapter   as   rather
run-of-the-mill Norse-style black metal takes  over.  Winterblut  (as
the sole member) is rather fixated on his keyboards, and while he may
be no Charmand Grimloch, the melodies he churns forth aren't half bad
either. Things proceed at a surprisingly leisurely pace over the next
tracks, not something one expects from  raw,  underground  acts  like
this. Enjoyable, if not  exactly  adrenaline-pumping  stuff.  Chapter
three brings dejectedly rasped vocals against the backdrop of  sparse
keyboards  and  monotonous  drumming.  Not  exactly  inspired  stuff,
especially since Abigor's infinitely better attempt (on their  debut)
is brought to mind. Chapter four isn't  much  different;  more  synth
noodling with even more obscure vocals doesn't offer much  more  than
suicidal depression. Three tracks of that, and we're at  the  end  of
this 72 minute curiosity. Not everyone's cup of tea, but certainly  a
fascinating album to discover. Darker Than Black has sister-labels in
the States and  Canada,  so  check  out  their  website  if  profound
NS-sympathies don't annoy you.

Contact: http://paganfront.cjb.net


Wolf - _Wolf_  (No Fashion Records, March 2000)
by: Aaron McKay  (7 out of 10)

Debut  material  here  from  a  truly  promising  band.  A  pure  and
unadulterated metal barrage is what you can expect from this  Swedish
underground four-piece. Production a la Peter Tagtgren at  the  Abyss
Studios. Clean  vocal  work,  sounding  -very-  eighties,  on  Niklas
Olsson's part, who also picks up the  second  guitar  responsibility.
The group is rounded  out  by  Henrik  Johansson  on  guitar,  Daniel
Bergkvist with drum duties and Mikael Goding filling the bill on bass
guitar. To be honest, I didn't expect something this "clean" from  No
Fashion. I'm used to more of the Ablaze My Sorrow,  Allegiance,  Lord
Belial and Mork Gryning material on the label, so Wolf was a  welcome
surprise. A class metal effort here reminding me, at times, of a very
raw and stripped Helloween, but  better  in  many  regards.  Personal
favorites on the release include "The Voyage", track  five,  and  the
little bit of feedback and transition passages of "In the Eyes of the
Sun", track nine,  are  brilliant.  The  aptitude  of  this  band  is
staggering and, at forty minutes in  length,  I  figure  it  is  time
pretty well spent.


Yogge Sothothe - _Yogge Sothothe_  (<Independent>, 2000)
by: Adrian Bromley  (6 out of 10)

Stepping out from the ashes of Pain Lab [CoC #27,  #32]  comes  Yogge
Sothothe, a bizarre mix of grinding death metal and  technical  metal
know-how. Unlike the radiant sonic assault of the past band Pain  Lab
(which was in the  vein  of  Blunt  Force  Trauma  and  Merzbow),  YS
presents us with a maniacal and raw stride of  metal  mayhem.  Brutal
and to the fucking pounding point. While the  production  could  have
easily been souped  up  a  bit,  the  raw  element  helps  make  this
enjoyable. My only qualm with the band is the cliche start  'n'  stop
guitar riffs and some boring musical sections.  A  passable  release,
but hopefully next time I'll be knocked off my ass.

Contact: Joel Rosenberg, 614 Canby Street Apt. C,
         Laramie, WY 82072, USA
         mailto:geeheeb666@hotmail.com

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
                 __                    __      _
              /\ \ \_____      __   /\ \ \___ (_)___  ___
             /  \/ / _ \ \ /\ / /  /  \/ / _ \| / __|/ _ \
            / /\  /  __/\ V  V /  / /\  / (_) | \__ \  __/
            \_\ \/ \___| \_/\_/   \_\ \/ \___/|_|___/\___|

If you have a band, don't forget to send us your  demo,  including  a
bio,  if  you  want  to  be  reviewed.  We  accept  demos  either  on
traditional   media    or    MP3     format.     E-mail     us     at
<mailto:Demos@ChroniclesOfChaos.com>  to  know  which  is  the   most
appropriate postal address for you to send your CD or tape,  in  case
you are sending one, or to indicate the location of  a  website  from
which we can download the MP3 files  of  your  entire  demo  (but  do
NOT send any files attached to your e-mail).

Scoring:   ***** -- A flawless demo
            **** -- Great piece of work
             *** -- Good effort
              ** -- A major overhaul is in order
               * -- A career change is advisable


Actual Time - _Actual Time_  (5-track demo)
by: Brian Meloon  (****-)

Actual Time are a three-piece from Virginia, formed from the ashes of
Ataxia [CoC #16]. The band they remind me most of  is  Don  Caballero
[CoC #11], though their style is  more  metallic  and  less  dynamic.
Their music is all  instrumental,  and  relies  heavily  on  rhythmic
syncopation instead of melody. Unfortunately, this imposes  a  severe
limitation on their style, which causes the  music  to  be  a  little
boring when  taken  as  a  whole.  While  it's  fairly  complex,  the
complexity is due to the polymetric layering and odd time  signatures
rather than flashy playing on the parts of the musicians.  The  riffs
tend to be interchangeable between songs, so the  songs  end  up  all
sounding much the same. It's not that the music itself  is  bad,  but
it's so heavily focused on rhythm that the songs  come  out  sounding
too one-dimensional. They're missing something, whether that would be
more melody, guitar solos, a vocalist, or anything  else  that  would
add dynamics to the music and break up the monotony. The  playing  is
flawless, though: very solid and tight, though there is  little  that
is flashy. The production is good, especially for a  demo  recording.
As it is, this demo clearly shows that they have potential; with  the
infusion of some more diverse elements to their music, they could  be
very good.

Contact: mailto:actualtime@virginia.edu
         http://www.people.virginia.edu/~sha3u/time/


Belshazzar - _Sie Nur Ad Astra_  (4-track MP3 demo)
by: Paul Schwarz  (**---)

An acceptable though rather shoddy demo of what is more or less black
metal from this Lanarkshire duo. Creators  Arioch  and  Mars  impress
almost as little with the music presented on _Sie Nur  Ad  Astra_  as
with their choice of pseudonyms. Their production ranges from average
(on the first two, produced  tracks)  to  irritatingly  bad  (on  the
closing two, rehearsal-room recordings) while the music  neither  has
atmosphere, nor gains any through the rough quality of its production
as, for example, Darkthrone so famously do. Belshazzar has little  to
do with black metal as  far  as  I  can  see;  it  has  none  of  its
atmosphere and is not even stylistically that similar. Thus this demo
of -metal- is simply nondescript and uninteresting, displaying, as is
often the case with demos, a band able to play heavy music,  but  not
necessarily with any particular skill in fashioning great or original
songs from it.

Contact: 23 Tarbolton, Calderwood, East Kilbride G74 3SQ, Scotland
         mailto:arioch@goresville.freeserve.co.uk
         http://mp3.com/Belshazzar/


Bongwater666 - _L-yeyed/Tanner_  (2-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley  (***--)

While I still own these East  Coast  sludge-mongers  debut  six-track
demo _Pissed off and Fuzzed out_, [CoC #19], I am glad  to  see  that
Bongwater has managed to strengthen their sound since the demo  three
years ago. The sound, while still a noisy mess of guitars and  clunky
drums and plenty o' fuzz, has  become  a  lot  more  Melvin-like  and
deeply situated within this real drivin'  groove.  Fitting  somewhere
between noise and stoner rock, this two-song offering of present  day
BW666 material gives us all yet another reason to hit  the  bong  and
just chill out. They get an "A" for effort.

Contact: Nedal Ayad, P.O. Box 204, Bay Roberts, NF A0A - 1G0 Canada
         mailto:nayad@nf.sympatico.ca
         http://www3.nf.sympatico.ca/nayad


Butterfly Temple - _Baec_  (11-track demo)
by: Paul Schwarz  (****-)

Boasting a host of bizarre, unusual  keyboard  textures  and  Russian
chanting on top of a slew of other odd noises and a varied  array  of
female vocals, this Russian band,  who  even  sing  and  print  their
lyrics in their own language, are  impressively  ambitious  and,  yet
more surprisingly, successful  in  being  interesting  and  enjoyable
quite a reasonable amount of the time. _Baec_ takes a few listens  to
absorb, but it's refreshing in its seeming drive to not simply follow
the flock but strive on in its own, relatively individual, direction.
It is no musical revelation, but it shows a lot of  potential  and  a
full-length with some serious financial backing behind it could prove
very interesting. Unfortunately,  singing  in  Russian  may  severely
limit the band's appeal outside their home country.

Contact: Agafonov A., P.O. Box 17, 117313 Moscow, Russia
         mailto:btemple@mail.ru
         http://listen.to/btemple/


Condition Red - _Back in Business_  (4-track MP3 demo)
by: Paul Schwarz  (**---)

Five years of playing together has, unfortunately, evidently not been
enough time for this Finnish five-piece  to  develop  a  sound  which
establishes  a  truly  individual  character  for  them.   _Back   in
Business_, the band's third demo titled  to  symbolise  their  return
after nearly a year where three of their number  were  occupied  with
military service, reeks far too obviously of Machine  Head  to  leave
Condition Red with much to  credibly  call  their  own.  Essentially,
Condition Red simply pull off various nineties power  groove  cliches
with skill and a powerful sound. Vocalist  Jone  has  a  good  voice,
Roope's drums, especially in the double-bass department, back up  the
loud guitars and underlying  bass  well;  the  band  can  play  their
instruments very competently, but creatively they really do  have  to
do some serious thinking and work hard to get away from  the  cliches
of a genre all-too-prevalent in metal's popular, late-nineties  face.
Add a point if you're not yet sick of the _Burn My Eyes_ sound.

Contact: mailto:jvpkuism@cs.helsinki.fi
         http://come.to/conditionred/


Midnight Scream - _Midnight Scream_  (4-track demo)
by: Paul Schwarz  (**---)

Though produced by Nightwish guitar player Mike  Galiatsos,  Midnight
Scream is certainly not congruent with his band's more  traditionally
heavy metal styled, female vocal accompanied and  melodic  creations.
Instead, _Midnight Scream_ offers us a deeply simplistic three tracks
of death metal, plus a traditionally irrelevant keyboard-based  intro
to bring the track total to four,  which  are,  to  be  quite  frank,
severely  limited  in  musical   scope   and   somewhat   shoddy   in
presentation. I get the impression Midnight  Scream  have  let  their
enthusiasm to get things moving  recording-wise  get  the  better  of
them. _Midnight Scream_ positively -screams- of a band who need  more
time to tighten up their musical cohesion, while singer Makis  Memmos
needs  to  do  some  serious  individual  time  at  the  death  metal
vocalists' school of hard knocks to bang into shape a  characteristic
and affecting throat which has importance to his band's greater music
vision -- something his performance on _Midnight Scream_ quite sorely
lacks. That _Midnight Scream_, the demo, is rather under-par does not
necessarily mean that Midnight Scream, the band, are a lost cause  or
entirely without promise. _Midnight Scream_ sounds more like  a  good
band who simply haven't yet put the requisite time in to  make  great
music than a poor bunch of musicians who've pretty much reached their
peak. Time is what is needed here; we'll hopefully keep you posted as
to any interesting developments.

Contact: Lukas Bergis, Panagouli 1, 17237 Imittos, Athens, Greece
         mailto:Midnightscream@freemail.gr
         http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/
         /Theater/8279/Welcome.htm
         (Price: 3 pounds sterling; other currencies also accepted)


Omnium Gatherum - _Promo 99_  (4-track demo)
by: Paul Schwarz  (**---)

Bar one track, the songs that make up the seven and a half minutes of
this _Promo 99_ are tracks ready to be included on Omnium  Gatherum's
imminent debut  full-length.  However,  despite  a  relatively  thick
production which gives their rabid, raw-ish  death/grind  tirades  an
unprecedented bite, Omnium Gatherum are essentially little more  than
purely derivative as a musical entity.  There  is  certainly  nothing
presented on _Promo 99_ to  suggest  innovation,  and  nothing  which
enthrals me greatly. Omnium Gatherum are welcome to a friendly pat on
the back for playing decently and taking the time  to  produce  their
material relatively  well,  but  at  present  they  are  of  no  real
significance to the international death metal or grindcore scenes.

Contact: PO Box 79, Kilkenny, South Australia 5009
         mailto:omniumgatherum@arcom.com.au


Scald - _Nematoid: Specimen Parts I-IV_  (4-track promo)
by: Paul Schwarz  (****-)

Delving into the realm of mind-numbing sludge which only  those  such
as Eyehategod usually brave, Scald have blended this dirty,  lurching
breed of extremity with some of the percussive, striking  aspects  of
death metal and even  touches  of  the  extremity  of  the  noisecore
fraternity here belching forth four tracks which are planned to  make
up half of a theoretically upcoming full-length album. Judging by the
relatively well-produced and  nicely  constructed  material  featured
here I think the band deserve a contract, even if it be with a  small
label, to give _Nematoid_  a  full  album  crack.  I  for  one  would
definitely be interested in hearing the results.

Contact: Paul McCarroll, 32 Dellmount Rd., Bangor,
         Co. Down, BT20 4TY, Northern Ireland


Shaw Shank - _Beautiful Bedlam_  (3-track MP3 demo)
by: Paul Schwarz  (***--)

A very nicely produced ten minutes composed centrally of  the  angsty
baggy-pants metal Korn and Limp Bizkit peddle, with some of the  more
hip-hop /  DAT  machine-esque  sounds  of  the  latter  making  their
prescence felt. There are some nicely placed and unexpected  sections
of double-bass drums and (on "Caimera") a definite bias  towards  the
more suicidal, depressive tones of Misery Loves  Co.  and  Nine  Inch
Nails.  Unfortunately,  however,  nothing  presented  on   _Beautiful
Bedlam_ is overly adventurous and little of it truly grabs me by  the
throat. Shaw Shank are promising musicians and surprisingly competent
songwriters, but their material  is,  as  yet,  nothing  particularly
remarkable.

Contact: mailto:shank_shaw@hotmail.com
         http://fly.to/shawshank/


Soul Destruction - _United in Obscurity_  (5-track demo)
by: Aaron McKay  (*****)

It's just now May, going on June, and thus far this year I  have  had
two extremely pleasant surprises: the new Venom release and this demo
from Ohio's Soul Destruction. They present their sound as  "diversity
and  power".  I  might  be  compelled  to  call  'em  "poignant"  and
"imposing" as well. I received Soul Destruction's promo  material  on
audio cassette instead of  CD  and  -still-  was  astonished  at  the
immensity of  SD's  sound.  Without  planting  personal  preconceived
comparisons in the acreage of your thoughts (a little mid-West  humor
there), I don't have to stretch too far to hear some shrouded  S.O.D.
and possibly Wrathchild America congruities. Now with  a  duel  vocal
offensive,  a  power-lung  roar  and  a  low-register   quake,   Soul
Destruction stands to make some very impressive rumblings through the
industry. Having shared the stage with Armored Saint and Today Is the
Day, what would make me really pleased now, I think, would be a Venom
/ Soul Destruction bill. With a demo like this, the SD boys are going
to have to find another way to be -united-, 'cause  it  won't  be  in
-obscurity- much longer.

Contact: http://www.souldestruction.com


Suffering Souls - _Cries of Silence_  (3-track demo)
by: Alvin Wee  (****-)

What an obscure release...  Out  of  Germanic  forests  rises  a  new
four-piece claiming to play "German Black Metal Art". More a demo  CD
than an official MCD, this little  underground  three-tracker  offers
nothing more than  old-school  synth-laden  hymns  to  the  night  in
typically mediocre Norse fashion. Failing to  achieve  the  depth  of
Nargaroth or the raw simplicity of  Moonblood,  _CoS_  comes  off  as
trying too hard to squeeze something out of a  genre  that's  already
been  milked  to  death.  Credit  goes  to   the   highly   ambitious
arrangements and commendable musicianship, signs that a band is ready
to offer more than the one-off recording on sundry overnight  labels.
Sadly, such run-of-the-mill material might have  easily  reaped  much
label attention in Behemoth's demo-days (strange how this one  brings
to mind _From the Pagan Vastlands_), but  today's  competitive  scene
demands a much greater kick in the balls than generic Norsecore.  All
said, these boys (and a girl) won't be toppling over so  easily;  the
quality   of   _CoS_   bodes   well   for   things   to   come,   and
underground-minded labels might like  to  check  out  this  ambitious
young act, as they're unsigned as far as I know.  No  price,  but  10
bucks should do the trick.

Contact: Suffering Souls, c/o Tobias Micko, Scwalbenweg 15,
         92245 Kummerbruck, Germany


Te Deum - _Demo 99_  (4-track demo)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (****-)

Interesting demo CD from this young  Portuguese  band:  well  played,
decently produced  and  certainly  unveiling  some  very  significant
potential. Te Deum build their  sound  around  dueling  vocals  --  a
highly  promising, and indeed already very good  classically  trained
female singer, and a competent male vocalist who performs both  death
and clean vox. Sounds familiar, most likely, but Te Deum still manage
to avoid sounding  as  derivative  as  the  above  description  might
suggest. There is some good keyboard playing at  times,  particularly
during the church organ-like instrumental track (except for the final
part, in which it loses most of the dark atmosphere). The drumming is
reasonably good (neither  a  highlight  nor  a  problem),  while  the
guitarists appear to be quite  skilled,  though  perhaps  in  several
places their style does not seem entirely adequate for a  doom  band.
In fact, that is the main issue here: technically this is  clearly  a
very competent band, but I feel they need to make some choices in the
future, namely whether to really become a doom band or not.  I  would
have liked deeper death grunts that  could  contrast  more  with  the
female voice, more  downtuned  and  doomier  guitars,  stronger  drum
sound, and keyboards that could really drench the sound in  a  darker
atmosphere. Of course this might not be what the band wants  at  all,
but I feel that it would be the best way for them  to  capitalise  on
the finest elements of their sound. Creating greater  contrast  would
highlight those elements, ultimately resulting in  more  intense  and
emotional music. As it is, Te Deum are definitely talented, have very
interesting potential and did create a very pleasant,  enjoyable  and
clean demo CD with some very good passages scattered  throughout  its
duration. However, some things are still missing, and therefore  I'll
save the 5 out of 5 for their next demo, in case they can keep up the
progression and simultaneously create something more intense.

Contact: Te Deum, Rua Combatentes do Ultramar 79, Aruil,
         2715-247 Almargem do Bispo, Portugal
         mailto:te_deum@fcmail.com
         http://www.angelfire.com/myband/tedeum

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You've asked for it, and now you've got it. Classic  Carnage  is  the
one and only place to find all your  favorite  albums  of  yesteryear
reviewed from today's point of view. This section will  be  appearing
sporadically in Chronicles of Chaos,  gracing  our  special  editions
exclusively.


Atheist - _Piece of Time_  (Roadrunner, 1989 / NMG, April 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (9 out of 10)

Atheist were one of those few bands in metal's long history who dared
to experiment. They imposed  uncommon  time  signatures  and  musical
textures, along with thought-out lyrics  from  their  earliest  days,
onto an essentially barbaric, anger-driven musical style: death metal
(of the thrashy late eighties variety). Their _Piece of  Time_  debut
only dabbled  in  such  deviations  --  the  major  step  into  truly
uncharted waters came two years  later  with  1991's  _Unquestionable
Presence_ -- and it is primarily on the opening title track that said
dabbling occurs. But though not really showcasing the  characteristic
which Atheist are most remembered for, _Piece  of  Time_  is  both  a
remarkable debut and an impressive musical achievement  seen  in  its
1989  context.  Death  get  a  lot  of  credit  for   the   technical
developments of _Spiritual Healing_ (1990) and _Human_ (1991), but  I
think Atheist outdid either exalted line-up of Schuldiner's legendary
act in terms of intensity -and- technicality with  _Piece  of  Time_.
Scott  Burns'  production  crossed   the   primitive   low-end-driven
_Leprosy_ sound with  the  speed/thrash  intensity  of  _Beneath  the
Remains_, and Atheist emerged with a vitriolic debut which  pre-dates
most "classic" death metal albums, yet even today doesn't play like a
selection of genre cliches. "Piece of  Time"  is  classy,  rich  with
unpredictable time shifts and the seemingly effortless  bass-work  of
the now-late Roger Paterson. The likes of "Unholy War"  or  "On  They
Slay" may be comparatively simple, but in their own way they are just
as effective, whereas closer and band signature  "No  Truth"  suffers
only from trying to cram too much intensity into  one  place  at  one
time  as  it   progresses.   Lovers   of   technicality,   intensity,
late-eighties thrashing monstrosities and considered lyrical  content
(if not always writing) will be right at home with this  long-deleted
debut by one of the nineties criminally forsaken and  sadly  departed
creative enigmas. NMG's pleasingly eighties-looking re-issue includes
"Looking Back..."-style sleeve notes by every band member  except  of
course the sadly departed Patterson, and also includes six bonus demo
tracks. These comprise alternatively titled demo versions  of  "Life"
and "Why Bother", along with demos of "On They Slay" and "No  Truth",
and two never-before-released early Atheist  songs  in  demo  format:
"Brain Damage" and "Undefiled Wisdom". All the tracks, including  the
bonus demos, have  individual  explications  by  Kelly  Shaefer.  All
tracks have also been digitally re-mastered and sound  as  crisp  and
clear as a 1989 Scott Burns production ever can, or should.


Basil Poledouris - _Conan the Barbarian_  (Varese Sarabande, 1982)
by: Paul Schwarz  (10 out of 10)

This is more than a film soundtrack: it is a  wonderfully  structured
piece of music. If you travel to England, ask  my  friends,  or  even
better, just ask me my opinion on John Milius' 1982 film of Robert E.
Howard's titanically defined hero of fewer words than sword  strokes,
you'll quickly realise  that  I  have  more  than  merely  a  passing
interest in this epic, fantasy tale told in celluloid. Truth be told,
I love it. The specific reasons why I love "Conan the Barbarian" need
not be expounded here (though many will  surely  spill  out  as  this
review unfolds), but this soundtrack is a good portion of the  reason
why "Conan the Barbarian" works so brilliantly as  a  film.  However,
enjoying and appreciating the score's musical value is not  dependent
on knowing or enjoying the film it was  scored  to,  though  it  will
greatly enhance the score's evocative power and  effect.  Poledouris'
score, composed closely with Milius and  deftly  edited  to  fit  the
film's structure and specific visuals, heavily utilises the  operatic
device common to Wagner of using repeated musical themes to represent
characters, places or ideals. It thus takes on an operatic  character
as a soundtrack. But _Conan the Barbarian_ goes a step  further  than
the average score-soundtrack album. It is infinitely  more  important
than  the  film's  minimal  and  (wonderfully)  simplistic  dialogue.
Sectioned musically into the various  scenes  of  the  film  --  and,
independent of the visuals, the tracks vividly evoke each in turn  if
you've seen the film even a relatively small number of times --, this
near-complete sixty-seven minute representation of Poledouris'  score
is musically  valid  independent  of  its  visual/narrative  creative
impetuses. This is certainly not what one might crudely  describe  as
"wimpy classical  music";  _Conan  the  Barbarian_  is  stirring  and
-heavy- in more ways than one, and quite frankly more ways, and  with
more profundity, than most "extreme music"  releases  I  receive  for
review. Tracks like "The Anvil of Crom" or "Battle of the Mounds" are
heavy in a Wagnerian, percussive, and dramatic sense; the former with
its stirring and pronounced opening drums of war and the latter  with
its  dramatic  orchestral  cymbal  crash   climaxes.   However,   the
soundtrack as a whole is heavy on a far more  significant,  emotional
level. To paraphrase Kirk Windstein [CoC #47]: heaviness is not about
playing fast, slow, loud, soft or  even  (dare  I  say  it...)  on  a
distorted guitar, or with a drum  kit  backing  you  up.  It's  about
emotion; it's about how effectively you push across -feeling- through
music. If that's heaviness, _Conan  the  Barbarian_  is  one  of  the
heaviest albums I own. Beautiful,  stirring,  inspiring,  doom-laden:
_Conan the Barbarian_  works  on  many  different  levels,  but  most
importantly, it works, it clicks, it makes you feel good to be alive.
And it's among the most empowering and gripping records I own;  right
up there with _Reign  in  Blood_,  _Clandestine_,  _Focus_  and  many
others which remind me why music matters so much to me. Make sure you
get Varese Sarabande's 16 tracker, as it is the most complete score I
know of.  If  you  can  find  a  more  complete,  or  -the-  complete
soundtrack, then get that, but please drop me an e-mail  if  you  do,
even if it -is- only so you can gloat.


Carnage - _Dark Recollections_  (Necrosis, 1990 / Earache, June 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (8.5 out of 10)

Exalted and tape traded for years since it was  deleted  as  part  of
Jeff Walker's Necrosis Records Earache offshoot  (who  also  released
Cadaver and Repulsion material), _Dark Recollections_ is a  primitive
and visceral slab  of  traditional  Swedish  death  metal,  and  this
re-release is not only a welcome musical nostalgia trip, but  due  to
its linear notes also  a  charming  lesson  in  Swedish  death  metal
history. "In a way I think the band was maybe more  famous  for  what
came after it" is the aspersion  of  Mike  Amott  in  said  extensive
linear notes, and I am very much  inclined  to  agree  with  him.  He
himself split Carnage when he joined Carcass --  which  according  to
vocalist Matti Karki happened more or  less  the  second  that  _Dark
Recollections_' recordings were finished -- and went on to form  both
the seventies-styled Spiritual Beggars  and  later  help  herald  the
return of death metal in  the  late-nineties  with  Arch  Enemy.  His
bandmates in Carnage comprised what are  arguably  Dismember's  three
most pivotal figures (drummer Fred Estby, vocalist  Matti  Karki  and
guitarist  David  Blomqvist)  and  Johnny  Dordevic,  whose   ghostly
appearance on  Entombed's  _Clandestine_  is  here  cheaply  credited
seemingly to bolster  this  re-release's  credibility.  Carnage  also
originally featured the vocal talents of Johan  Liiva  Axelsson,  who
went on to record some classic Swedish death metal with  Furbowl  and
has more recently rejoined Amott in Arch Enemy. The family  trees  of
over  half  a  dozen  bands  thus  lead  back  to  Carnage,  and  one
accordingly expects a lot out of _Dark Recollections_. The truth  is,
it doesn't generally live  up  to  most  people's  expectations,  but
mostly because, quite honestly, people expect too much  out  of  five
young Swedish kids making their first recording. _Dark Recollections_
is a classy Swedish death metal record, and a first recording  to  be
proud of. Its songs are even more primitive and gritty than _Like  an
Everflowing Stream_ or _Left Hand  Path_,  though  not  of  the  same
quality, and the fuzzy crunching guitar  tone  trademark  of  Swedish
death metal is present and very much correct. Blomqvist pulls  out  a
few of his classic melodic solos and leads, which  are  like  an  old
friend to any Dismember fan, while some of the riffs Amott churns out
-- particularly on the definite standout  "Malignant  Epitaph",  with
its infectious vocal patterns --  are  memorable  as  well  as  being
unashamedly brutal. Its influence, due to  its  limited  availability
almost since the day it was released, may be  questionable,  but  all
the same _Dark  Recollections_  is  undeniably  a  pivotal  piece  of
Swedish death metal history, and a very much worthwhile purchase  for
lovers of  classic  Entombed,  Dismember,  Grave  and  Furbowl.  This
re-release is pushing the must-buy category: not only,  as  mentioned
above, does it tell a great tale of an important time in a number  of
today's extreme metal musicians' formative years,  but  it  also  has
both Carnage demos, and even includes the rough mixes of  the  first.
This not only gives you the opportunity of hearing Johan place -that-
throaty growl over  some  material  which  later  appeared  on  _Dark
Recollections_ (_Infestation of Evil_), but it also gives  you  three
tracks which never even made it as far as the full-length debut. _The
Day  Man  Lost_   is   a   primitive   but   surprisingly   enjoyable
death-grinding five odd minute ride strongly bringing to  mind  early
Carcass; whether you like it will depend on how many Earache releases
with a Mosh number ten you own, and how much you like them.


Celtic Frost - _Morbid Tales_  (Noise, 1984 / Noise, January 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (9.5 out of 10)

Haunting, raw, classic. Definitely three words which apply to  Celtic
Frost's debut album, _Morbid Tales_.  Though  the  band  went  on  to
refine and innovate with _To Mega Therion_ and _Into the Pandemonium_
respectively, it is still _Morbid Tales_ which gives me the  greatest
listening enjoyment. Offering classics  like  the  record's  storming
opener, "Into the Crypts of Rays" along with the likes of  "Dethroned
Emperor", "Procreation (of the Wicked)"  and  "Return  to  the  Eve",
_Morbid Tales_ set a  standard  in  certain  sectors  of  the  thrash
community and exerted considerable influence, long after its  initial
release,  on  the  music  of  the   Norwegian   black   metal   scene
(particularly in the  case  of  key  players  Darkthrone).  Likewise,
Frost's image at the time also  influenced  the  uniform  of  spikes,
bulletbelts and accentuating face-paint of the early-to-mid  nineties
black metal movement and again many in the thrash  fraternity.  Frost
influenced death metal considerably. _Morbid Tales_, along  with  _To
Mega Therion_, range from providing the  general  percussive  playing
style and deep vocals in most cases, to supplying most of  the  music
in others (i.e. Obituary, whose, "Circle of the  Tyrants"  cover  was
hardly discernible from  their  own  material).  Regardless  of  what
followed  it,  _Morbid  Tales_  demands  praise  of  itself.  It  has
atmosphere and heaviness while also sticking distinctly in  the  head
and not ending up a mindless blur as early  thrash  albums  sometimes
tend to. Closing ominously with the haunting and catatonic atmosphere
piece of "Danse Macabre", _Morbid Tales_ is undeniably excellent both
as a representation of Frost at the time  and  a  precursor  for  the
turning upside down of thrash metal  conventions  that  was  soon  to
come. In comparison,  the  later  _Emperor's  Return_  EP,  which  is
included as a bonus here, is nothing to write home about.  The  songs
are  faster  but  far  less  well  written  on  the  whole,  and  the
production, whether you take these original mixes or  the  previously
released ones, is lacklustre. The most  interesting  and  significant
thing about it is that it features the first version  of  "Circle  of
the Tyrants", which would become a 'Frost staple and produce  one  of
their few videos. Re-issue includes the _Emperor's Return_  EP,  with
all tracks in their previously unreleased original  mixes,  and  full
digital re-mastering. In addition, the booklet is now in full  colour
with all lyrics, linear and sleeve notes, and a  good  collection  of
pictures and images from the time. Unfortunately,  unlike  Noise  US'
recent reissue of _Morbid Tales_, the Hellhammer _Apocalyptic  Raids_
EP is not included on this new edition of _Morbid Tales_.


Celtic Frost - _To Mega Therion_  (Noise, 1985 / Noise, January 2000)
by: Paul Schwarz  (9 out of 10)

I am told that this is, to  this  day,  Frost's  most  popular  album
overall. Whether that is based on sales or comments I don't know, but
what I must admit is that there are bountiful  reasons  to  like  _To
Mega  Therion_,  especially  for  a  modern  metal  listener  not  as
interested in the creakier, creeping feel and slower pace of  _Morbid
Tales_. Furthermore, on _TMT_ is where Frost's flirtations  with  the
symphonic and the atmospherically odd begin to blossom. The  pomp  of
opener/intro "Innocence and Wrath" is contrary to the expectations of
a thrash metal album circa  1985,  at  which  time  proceedings  more
typically began with a tokenistic keyboard intro, acoustic guitars or
a fade in of wailing feedback/thrashing to set up  a  simple  dynamic
with the aural evisceration that was to follow. In  contrast,  Celtic
Frost close their intro and wait an instant before launching into the
intensely percussive first song, "The Usurper".  From  this  frenetic
beginning 'Frost pound through mid-paced classics like "Jewel Throne"
and the huge, heady Sabbath-ish riffs of "Dawn of  Megiddo"  (a  song
with a uniquely ominous atmosphere) on to "Circle  of  the  Tyrants",
one of their more famous  and  fully  realised  tracks.  Though  more
polished, _TMT_ still has a dirty, overdriven feel to it, reinforcing
the division between 'Frost and other bands of their time, though not
as solidly as their flirtations  with  the  avant-garde  did.  'Frost
hammer their way through "(Beyond  the)  North  Winds"  and  "Fainted
Eyes" in full-on thrash glory, but  the  brooding  atmospheric  piece
"Tears in a Prophet's Dream" is nothing typical. 'Frost  close  _TMT_
with the hammering precision  of  "Necromantical  Screams",  complete
with coherent and impressive female backing vocals. Definitely  ahead
of its time and standing up as a powerful and effective metal  record
to this day,  _TMT_  provides  the  essential  link  between  _Morbid
Tales_' endearing imperfections and the drastic experimentation which
_Into  the  Pandemonium_  would  later  showcase.  On  the  re-issue,
original album mixes of the "The  Usurper"  and  "Jewel  Throne"  are
replaced with the later re-recordings (featuring Martin Eric Ain  who
had left to be replaced  by  Dominic  Steiner  for  _TMT_'s  original
recording) featured on the _Tragic Serenades_ EP. The 1985 "Return to
the Eve" studio jam, also from this EP, is added as  a  bonus  track.
All tracks  have  been  digitally  re-mastered  and  all  lyrics  are
included, along with both H.R. Giger pieces licensed to the band  for
the album, and plenty of photos along with informative  sleeve  notes
by Tom G. Warrior.


Celtic Frost - _Into the Pandemonium_
by: Paul Schwarz  (10 out of 10)  (Noise, 1987 / Noise, January 2000)

It isn't quite my favourite Celtic Frost album,  but  if  any  thrash
metal album ever deserved a 10 out  of  10  for  its  combination  of
quality song-writing  and  an  unrestrained  drive  to  do  something
different, then this -must- be it. It was  as  much  of  a  pain  for
'Frost to get the experimentation of _ItP_ past Noise,  their  record
company, as it was for them to reach within themselves and commit its
orchestrated, avant-garde form to tape. With the nineties now only  a
shadow of the past themselves, it is perhaps hard to appreciate  just
how drastic _Into the Pandemonium_ was  in  1987,  especially  for  a
record which actually came -out- of the  heavy  metal  genre,  rather
than merely borrowing from it. From  opening  Wall  of  Voodoo  cover
"Mexican Radio" to the closing "Oriental Masquerade" outro, _Into the
Pandemonium_ is an encapsulating experience: as  astoundingly  varied
as it is unpredictable. Warrior switched his  assault  of  relentless
death howls for a style which crooned as much as  it  crushed,  while
the influx of other voices, including many brilliantly used  ones  of
the female variety, gave _ItP_ a unique vocal soundscape.  The  track
objected to most by Noise was "Tristesse de la Lune", which comprises
merely a solo  violin  and  rich  female  singing.  The  track  comes
straight out of leftfield:  though  in  1987  it  was  probably  more
astounding, let's be honest, we don't expect this kind of daring from
the majority of metal bands even today, thirteen years later. Much as
it is a daring departure, _ItP_ does contains some of 'Frost's  best,
heavy, metal moments in the shape of tracks like  "Babylon  Fell"  or
"Inner  Sanctum".  However,  it  is   the   tight,   infectious   and
pop-structured  crush  of  "I  Won't   Dance"   and   the   operatic,
thematically constructed closing  song  "Rex  Irae  (Requiem)"  which
provide _ItP_'s most stirringly  brilliant  moments.  "One  in  Their
Pride", a programmed drum affair paying a strange homage to the  NASA
space mission to the moon, is the final jagged piece  of  the  puzzle
thus far not mentioned here. _ItP_ is intense and moving even  today;
despite inevitably showing its age in places,  it  is  nonetheless  a
brilliant and shockingly original album, 'Frost's greatest peak (from
which the valley and the "cold lake" at its bottom was  deep),  which
will surely guarantee them a place in metal history for  as  long  as
the style itself is remembered. Re-issue includes four bonus  tracks:
an extended mix of "One in  Their  Pride",  "In  the  Chapel  in  the
Moonlight" (a Dean Martin cover taken from the limited vinyl EP  _The
Collectors Celtic Frost_) and two versions of "The Inevitable Factor"
(a track which never made the final  cut  of  _ItP_)  with  differing
vocal tracks. All tracks are fully  digitally  re-mastered,  and  the
booklet contains informative sleeve notes by  Tom  G.  Warrior  along
with all the original artwork affiliated with the album, and numerous
photos of the band from the period.


Crumbsuckers - _Life of Dreams_  (Combat 1986 / Relativity, 1999)
Crumbsuckers - _Beast on My Back_  (Combat 1988 / Relativity, 1999)
by: Aaron McKay  (9.5 and 10 out of 10)

Outside of Death and  a  choice  few  visionaries,  the  Crumbsuckers
-were- certainly a band  vying  for  my  unparalleled  attention  and
devotion during some of my  formative  years.  To  review  _LoD_  and
_BoMB_ is like a grand ride through Central Park in a  Sherman  tank.
Strangely soothing in its New York  punk/thrash  amalgamation,  these
albums were clearly way ahead of their time. Bending their sound to a
largely more metal convergence, in  1988  the  Crumbsuckers  released
_Beast on My Back_ or (BOMB), as it was referred to among my  concert
going buddies at the time, but I'll get to _BoMB_ in due time.  Truly
adrenaline-driven, _Life of Dreams_ smoldered  and  fused  the  scene
together cohesively along side groups like Agnostic Front  about  the
_Cause for Alarm_ and _Liberty &  Justice  for  All_  eras.  Yet  the
Crumbsuckers had so much more to offer with  -their-  seemingly  beer
mashed hardcore/meal blend. Often biting with a bitter commentary  on
life, one gets an inside, underdeveloped  glimpse  of  what  Pro-Pain
eventually evolved from after bassist Gary Meskill's and drummer  Dan
Richardson's development upon the mighty unfortunate  dissolution  of
the  Crumbsuckers  after  _BoMB_'s  release.  While  "Shits   Creak",
"Bullshit Society" and "Mr. Hyde" off of _LoD_ are  some  ascetically
killer tracks and "The Longest War" gives the  enthusiastic  listener
the first malted taste of things  to  come  from  Pro-Pain,  I  don't
believe  that  anything  the  band  did  could  ever   top   _BoMB_'s
"Remembering Tomorrow". Like a seasoned brewmaster, the  Crumbsuckers
mixed their soft melody hops and  metal  barley  ingredients  without
flaw on "Remembering Tomorrow". One single note not exactly where  it
is would have been a crime. History repeats itself. I think that this
is ultimately true when it comes to the Crumbsuckers. So much as  the
band was ahead of its time way back in  1986,  I  could  argue  these
metal clairvoyants were definitely in the  position  of  "Remembering
Tomorrow" and hindsight is usually 20/20.


Cynic - _Focus_  (Roadrunner, 1993)
by: Paul Schwarz  (10 out of 10)

Cynic have remained the fascination of a surprising number of extreme
metal fans considering that they never made the impact on  the  scene
which they deserved to back in 1993, added to  which  the  fact  that
this incredible debut record is now deleted.  As  probably  the  most
divergent yet also relevant left-fielder to emerge from  the  Florida
death metal scene, Cynic dared to combine the improvisational  styles
of  jazz,  a  milieu  of  keyboard   textures,   guitar   and   vocal
synthesisers, and an introspective philosophical approach, with death
metal: an essentially barbaric  musical  form.  It  is  testament  to
Cynic's incredible talent that they succeeded not only  in  making  a
brilliantly diverse and gripping album, but that they succeeded  also
in making a death metal album. Electronic-sounding voices give way to
Schuldiner-like howls, vicious chainsaw  guitars  slide  effortlessly
into  spiralling  progressive  leads  or  keyboard   flourishes   and
double-bass insanity is  exchanged  momentarily  for  improvisational
jazz rhythms. This is  _Focus_.  It  is  probably  the  most  diverse
listening experience which falls, however close to the  edge  it  is,
within the wide boundaries those  such  as  Morbid  Angel  rightfully
place on the  death  metal  genre.  It  is  a  stunningly  successful
experiment  where  dazzling  technicality  combines  with  impressive
songwriting to create a complex but comprehensible whole.


Deceased - _The 13 Frightened Souls_  (Relapse, 1992)
by: Paul Schwarz  (9.5 out of 10)

Their vision of a post-apocalyptic world of  faceless  desolation  --
arriving a few years  after  the  late-eighties  where  such  subject
matter became an obsession for some  --  can  belie  Deceased's  true
brilliance on their second release, this  near-perfect  EP.  After  a
rather shoddy debut in 1991's _Luck of the Corpse_, it must have been
quite easy to dismiss Deceased, on an international level  at  least,
as  little  more  than  a  second-rate  thrash  throwback.  _The   13
Frightened Souls_ banishes such conceptions  utterly.  Two  pairs  of
expertly and astutely  written  thrash  songs  are  interposed  by  a
tightened-but-authentic "Voivod" cover, and result in  what  must  be
one of the finest EPs in my collection, standing equal or superior to
the likes of _Despise the  Sun_  (Suffocation)  and  _Flag  of  Hate_
(Kreator).  Deceased  mix  up  Voivod,  Possessed  and   Kreator   in
fashioning  a  sound  which  is  characteristically  their  own,  and
creating  thrash  driven  metal  songs  with  a  stronger  percussive
permeation  and  dynamic  quality   than   was   typical   with   the
aforementioned eighties heroes in their heyday. On _The 13 Frightened
Souls_, Deceased don't concentrate on going slow or fast;  they  just
concentrate on writing and playing  great,  hard,  metal  songs  with
effectively  despair-ridden  moments   as   well   as   megatons   of
headbang-inducing riffs and rhythms. Rarely are bands so free of even
a single dud moment on an individual release, be it EP or LP.


Dodheimsgard - _666 International_  (Moonfog, 1999)
by: Paul Schwarz  (10 out of 10)

I'd love to call it an _Into the Pandemonium_ for the  nineties,  but
unfortunately Dodheimsgard's triumphant  statement  of  individuality
bears out only one comparison: it is a creative milestone  of  metal.
Though  forged  of  shocking  originality   and   incredibly   daring
innovation just like _ItP_ was, _666 International_ never rocked  the
boat of its genre (black metal) like Celtic  Frost  managed  to  with
theirs (thrash metal).  _666I_  was  not  unleashed  on  a  similarly
massive and loyal fanbase and  was  more  commonly  quietly  ignored,
objected to or shelved than held up as  a  standard  for  others  who
wished to innovate, to follow. Describing _666I_ is a difficult  task
without creating the  wrong  impression.  Its  drums  are  programmed
(though sampled from Czral), its rhythms often move into very unusual
time signatures -- I could go on listing characteristics, but it will
suffice to say that, to a greater extent than any other record in the
black metal genre,  _666  International_  defies  any  but  the  most
deranged of expectations. However, I would say that like every  great
piece of innovation, it remains essentially tied to its  roots;  _666
International_ -is- a black metal album: no  other  genre  can  claim
primary responsibility for its existence. Like _Focus_ or _The  Key_,
it pushes boundaries rather than incompetently  cutting  and  pasting
other styles on  top  of  itself;  this  is  not  techno-metal.  _666
International_ marries the raw, dark,  haunting  qualities  of  black
metal with the  21st  century:  from  the  technology  used  for  its
creation to its visual presentation. I'd rather not go too  far  into
describing the  compositions;  I'd  rather  let  you  discover  these
wonders yourself, I'd rather (as the old phrase goes) let  the  music
do the talking, because it's got a -lot- to say -- but over twenty or
thirty listens and six months down the line from first obtaining  it,
I am still hearing something new each time I put  it  on,  and  I  am
still struggling to fully comprehend what Dodheimsgard have  done.  I
must admit at this point that I was wrong about Arcturus  [CoC  #30],
that I did allow myself to get carried away on its hype, that  I  was
wrong to give it a 10,  but  don't  let  my  mistake  fool  you  into
ignoring   _666   International_,   for   it   is   something   truly
extraordinary. Even if you don't think you'll like it, you should  at
least hear what black metal's creative  forefront  sounds  like.  And
actually, now that I think of it, I guess that's  one  other  way  in
which Dodheimsgard's moment of creative clarity compares with  Celtic
Frost's: anyone who considers themselves truly  interested  in  music
should at least hear it.


Manowar - _Fighting the World_  (ATCO, 1987)
by: Paul Schwarz  (9.5 out of 10)

I am listening to it right now, and God damn it I can't help but sing
more or less -every- line and air-guitar to -every- solo  --  at  the
rate I am currently going, this review will  take  a  lot  longer  to
write than it rightfully should. Yes, I am a Manowar fan; yes,  I  do
think they are probably the greatest metal band  ever  (or  at  least
high up among the likes  of  Iron  Maiden,  Judas  Priest  and  Black
Sabbath); but I also think there  is  something  about  Manowar  that
makes them a band that everyone should hear, a band  that  many  more
people than do will at least get something out of -- maybe even, like
me, something that is actually  life  affirming.  And  _Fighting  the
World_ is quite possibly the easiest place to start.  Not  only  does
Manowar's fifth album have some  of  their  catchiest,  most  solidly
rocking songs on it, but it also displays their taste  for  the  epic
more concisely than on other works. _FtW_  moves  from  the  rocking,
intensely catchy realms of the title  track,  "Blow  Your  Speakers",
"Carry On" and "Violence and  Bloodshed"  to  "Defender"'s  slow  and
solemn pound (complete with Orson Welles  spoken  "vocal"  part)  and
onward to the relentless "Holy War", before capping itself  off  with
the magnificent closer of "Black Wind,  Fire  and  Steel".  Manowar's
music is not technically driven. Though all members  are  technically
exceptional (Joey's bass playing is a  particular  standout  in  this
respect), their abilities permeate their solos instead of  dominating
their songs. Eric Adams' vocals have the spirited power of  Dickinson
and Halford, and are surely one of the elements totally essential  to
Manowar's charm. I remember a time when I laughed at this  band.  I'd
heard _The Triumph of Steel_ (probably the band's lowest  point)  and
its lyrics (which are notoriously  over  the  top,  proclamatory  and
fantastical), had disliked the band's image, and  had  thus  labelled
them as embarrassing rubbish. My attitude was quite typical of a '90s
kid growing up with the cynical, realist trappings of grunge and  the
likes of Machine Head, Rage  Against  the  Machine  or  Metallica.  I
thought metal should be gritty and realistic and hard.  Then  I  gave
_Kings of Metal_ a chance. It converted me and I am  most  definitely
the happier for it. I recommend giving Manowar a chance, and  if  you
don't want to do it for yourself, do it as a favour to me.


Manowar - _Kings of Metal_  (Atlantic, 1988)
by: Paul Schwarz  (10 out of 10)

Although probably among the most boastful album titles  ever  penned,
_Kings of Metal_ is, in my opinion at least, also  one  of  the  most
accurate. Beginning similarly to _Battle Hymns_, with the roar  of  a
powerful engine followed by the  squealing  of  tires  on  a  vehicle
accelerating at high speed, this  short  introduction  is  a  perfect
warm-up (please excuse the pun) for the opening barrage of "Wheels of
Fire". Tagged as Manowar's "thrash metal song"  in  certain  circles,
its vicious speed/thrash is more than adequate incitement  to  commit
multiple driving offences, speeding not least. Initially belting  out
a venomous verse tirade, Eric switches to his classic  melodic  style
for the evocative, stunning chorus lines of "Wheels of  fire  /  burn
the night / ride across the sky / wheels of fire / burning  bright  /
we live to ride." From here on in _Kings of Metal_  proves  to  be  a
strangely reconciled mix of being Manowar's least restrained work  in
terms of what could be attempted with their sound and also the  album
which features some of the best material they  have  yet  written  in
their classic style. It is a masterpiece.  "Kings  of  Metal"  pounds
with its  proclamative  chorus  and  headbang-inducing  rhythm  while
"Heart  of  Steel"  still  stands  as  undoubtedly  the  band's  most
convincing ballad. "Sting of the Bumblebee" is Joey's  electric  bass
rendition of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakoff's "Flight  of  the  Bumblebee",
and despite its indulgent nature, is technically astounding and great
fun  to  listen  to.  _KoM_'s  most  majestic  moment,  and  probably
Manowar's as well, is also its halfway point: "The Crown and the Ring
(Lament of the Kings)". Backed by a canoldir male choir in St. Paul's
Cathedral, Birmingham (conducted by Joey  in  his  finest  jeans  and
leather; not crackerjack clothes), the song features no guitar but is
gloriously moving and a simply astounding piece of songwriting. "Hail
and Kill" is the record's magnificent  penultimate  track.  Beginning
with an acoustically backed opening call to arms,  the  song  quickly
emerges as a raging slab of heavy  metal  which  is  among  Manowar's
best. The chorus of chanted "Hail,  hail,  hail  and  kill"'s  is  as
unrelenting it is heavy, and the song is bolstered by  some  of  Ross
"The Boss"'s greatest speed solos, riffs and  lead  lines.  Eric,  in
turn, reaches deep for the dynamic and gripping vocal delivery  while
Columbus' drumming assaults the ears. It is a true classic. The album
closes with a four minute story told  in  Wellesian  style  with  the
pretext of a grandfather telling his grandson a "real  story".  After
this, "The Warriors Prayer", the final grandiose assault of "Blood of
the Kings" leads the final charge  into  battle.  Though  closing  in
hideously self-indulgent style, "Blood of the Kings" is  a  supremely
convincing finish to _Kings of Metal_ which  hails  fans  across  the
globe (it  is,  in  this  respect,  a  distorted  twin  of  "Army  of
Immortals"), encouraging others to "join the cause  of  true  metal",
and mentions every one of the bands previous album titles,  and  half
the countries in Europe by its finish. It is a towering testament  to
virtuosity and  confirms,  if  any  confirmation  were  needed,  that
Manowar have no interest in underplaying anything  for  the  sake  of
"good taste". _Kings of Metal_ is best summed  up  in  Manowar's  own
words: "No synths, no pedals, no wimps. Just power, metal and might."


Manowar - _Battle Hymns_  (Liberty, 1982)
by: Paul Schwarz  (9.5 out of 10)

As with _Kings of Metal_, Manowar's  landmark  debut  begins  with  a
roaring motor engine, from which  the  classic  opener  "Death  Tone"
takes off. From  here  on  in  Manowar  indicated  that  conservative
commercialism and restraint were never going to be their fortes.  And
though songs like  "Fast  Taker"  and  "Shell  Shocked"  showcased  a
socially aware lyrical content which Manowar  never  again  explored,
_Battle  Hymns_  also  established   their   barbarian-like   lyrical
character, stage personas and  visual  image  as  much  as  it  first
introduced their war-like music to the metal scene of 1982  --  which
we must remember had only recently  witnessed  and  adjusted  to  the
birth of the heavier New Wave of British Heavy Metal  movement  bands
like Iron Maiden and Saxon. Emerging from New York and  hailing  '70s
heroes  Black   Sabbath   and   Dio   rather   than   their   English
contemporaries, Manowar were not another NWOBHM band. They  took  the
accentuated image of metal to a tasteless level of excellence,  while
epic track "Dark Avenger" took "epic metal storytelling" ("cheese" to
non-fans of this sort  of  thing)  to  an  impressively  high  level,
complete with an Orson Welles narration he prepared -with- the  band.
The muscular metal of _Battle Hymns_ is neither strictly  traditional
nor  drastically  innovative.  Mostly,  what  it  has  is  power  and
exuberance: a brash but catchy blend  of  pounding  percussion,  huge
upfront bass lines, accomplished but simply constructed guitar lines,
classy and indulgent solos, and brilliant but completely over the top
vocals. _Battle Hymns_ is Manowar at their most hungry; it is  thirty
five minutes of great metal.


Manowar - _Hail to England_  (9.5 out of 10)
by: Paul Schwarz  (Music for Nations, 1984 / Metal Blade, 1999)

Following in the tradition of '70s rock and metal acts, Manowar, in a
mere two years, had already made it to their third release: _Hail  to
England_. The title a "thank you" to the band's loyal  supporters  in
the territory, _HtE_ was Manowar's most polished release at the time,
and it still stands as one of their  best.  The  powerful,  thumping,
anthemic "Blood of My Enemies" begins proceedings  followed  soon  by
classic Manowar staples "Kill With Power" and "Army of the Immortals"
-- one of their many songs which pays homage to their fans  all  over
the world. Track six is Joey's first creatively interesting bass solo
piece, "Black Arrows", a frenetic barrage of arpeggios  delivered  at
astounding speed. It's not his greatest solo bass moment (that was to
come on the next album, recorded in the same sessions as _HtE_, _Sign
of the Hammer_, with "Thunderpick") but it is  at  least  technically
astounding and comfortably sets the more standardly written songs  of
_HtE_ apart from  its  final  epic,  "Bridge  of  Death".  Among  the
greatest in Manowar's catalogue, "Bridge of Death" is reason alone to
own _HtE_. Its calculated, monstrous, gradual main riff and grandiose
lyrical content puts it almost on par with Iron Maiden's  epic  "Rime
of the Ancient Mariner", and  certainly  the  power  and  emotion  it
evokes by the time it reaches the final proclamation of  "He  is  the
one who waits / Satan is His name / Across  the  Bridge  of  Death  /
there he stands in flames" is truly affecting.  Not  a  bad  starting
point as a Manowar album, and definitely essential if  you  are  even
mildly fanatical about the following three.


Manowar - _Sign of the Hammer_  (10 Records, 1984)
by: Paul Schwarz  (10 out of 10)

Kicking off with the macho proclamation of  "All  Men  Play  on  10",
_Sign  of  the  Hammer_  is  anything  if  not  varied.  Though   the
aforementioned and the following song "Animals" are Manowar at  their
boastful and full-on rocking best, "Thor (The  Powerhead)"  puts  the
tone and feel onto mythological lyrical subject matter and provides a
different, more majestic  musical  muscle  to  pump  Manowar's  iron.
"Mountains" is a classy epic along similar lines while "Sign  of  the
Hammer"  and  "The  Oath"  follow  with  equally  thundering   power.
"Thunderpick", which  precedes  the  closer,  "Guyana  (Cult  of  the
Damned)", is easily Joey's creative peak with solo bass work and  the
closer itself is no downer. The power of  Eric's  vocal  talents  are
mercilessly displayed while the pound of  Manowar's  basic,  thumping
metal riffs and war-like  drum  patterns,  interspersed  with  classy
leads from guitar and bass alike, wreak their  havoc.  Despite  being
recorded at the same time  as  _Hail  to  England_,  and  even  being
released later in the same year, _Sign of the Hammer_ bears  no  real
resemblance in terms of production or songwriting -- except of course
that both are so unmistakably Manowar. _Sign of  the  Hammer_  is  my
favourite of the early Manowar albums and an  inexorable  album  from
start to finish. A must own.


Paul's Ranking of Manowar's albums to date
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. Kings of Metal (1988) [10]
2. Sign of the Hammer (1984) [10]
3. Battle Hymns (1982) [9.5]
4. Fighting the World (1987) [9.5]
5. Hail to England (1984) [9.5]
6. Into Glory Ride (1983) [9]
7. Louder Than Hell (1996) [8]
8. The Triumph of Steel (1992) [8]


Nocturnus - _The Key_  (Earache, 1990)
by: Paul Schwarz  (10 out of 10)

Before Nocturnus went ahead and did it, no-one in the early  nineties
would have dared attempt to fully combine death metal with keyboards.
However, with this debut album Nocturnus  not  only  dared  it,  they
managed to do it effectively, creating one of the most  sinister  and
infectious death metal releases of the year, as well  as  surely  the
most innovative. It earned Nocturnus no  points  with  death  metal's
only recently created but still ever-conservative  fanbase,  and  so,
though critical appraisal was considerable, Nocturnus did,  over  the
years, slip slowly into obscurity to only recently be revived in time
for the third millennium. Irrespective of history, however, the power
of _The Key_ as a musical entity is undeniable. It is not merely  the
idea of adding keyboards  that  makes  Nocturnus  special.  The  twin
guitar  attack  of  Mike  Davis  and  Sean  McNerny   is,   with   no
overstatement whatsoever, complete technical insanity. I am surprised
it is even possible for a human to play the  combination  of  chords,
fills and monstrous, spiralling solos which these  two  between  them
manage on _The Key_. What is yet more surprising is  how  it  somehow
works. It is possible to follow McNerny and Davis' insanity, and  the
reason is that Louis Panzer's keyboards and  Mike  Browning's  vocals
are there with them, making them make sense. A riff or solo is  often
backed by a subtle chord from the keyboard  played  with  some  eerie
sound effect, while the tale of the evil which exists  in  man  being
reborn  all  the  stronger  through  technology  proclaimed   through
Browning's harsh vocal tract does a  great  job  of  punctuating  the
intense textures of  sound.  Meanwhile,  his  rhythm  work  on  drums
provides a crushing assault of speed and well-calculated pounding  to
underscore the whole experience. And that's exactly  what  _The  Key_
is:  an  experience.  A  complex  and  morbid  horror/sci-fi  concept
expressed through detailed lyricism and technical, technological  and
of  course  original  death  metal.   A   masterpiece   of   creative
achievement.


Rush - _2112_  (Anthem, 1976)
by: Paul Schwarz  (9.5 out of 10)

The title track concept piece totalling nearly the length of its name
which kicks off _2112_ is, to  me,  not  only  a  wondrous  piece  of
progressive '70s rock with dynamics, emotion, and classy  songwriting
in abundance; it is also the soundtrack to a trip across a small part
of the beautiful country of Canada which, as much as any single event
ever has, changed my  perspective  on  life.  So,  yes,  I'm  biased.
Regardless however, "2112" is absolutely brilliant music to drive to,
especially when the scenery that flies  by  as  you  speed  down  the
highway is as beautiful as that of Northern Ontario. And  maybe  this
intensely personal image of _2112_ is not as leftfield  as  it  might
seem, for Rush are Canadian (from Ontario itself, no less) and  there
is something almost -distinctly- Canadian about the way  they  helped
revolutionise rock music and create a part of the blueprint for  what
the term prog rock  means  today.  _2112_  is  a  key  part  of  this
movement. Though with such songs as "Bytor and the Snowdog" Rush  had
explored the challenge of the epic concept piece before,  "2112"  was
among the longest, and for my money the best and most  effective,  of
its time. With Neal Peart laying down rhythms to die for,  Getty  Lee
made sure his vocals were as effeminately high but also  full  bodied
as was always his  trademark.  Meanwhile  Lee's  bass  work  combined
itself with Alex Liefeson's incredible guitar histrionics to  form  a
sound which, though it was free of the brash, abrasive  paint-peeling
sound of the likes of  Black  Sabbath  or  Judas  Priest,  was  still
undeniably full on, and also some how very  folk-tinged  in  its  own
way. The five tracks following "2112" do step down into more familiar
rock territory, but all  the  same  are  definitely  more  than  just
fillers. I must admit, I tend to only listen to the whole album about
every ten times I listen to its epic title track, but giving  them  a
long-deserved spin now, I realise that maybe I just don't give  these
five other tracks, which  include  the  live  staple  "Something  for
Nothing",  enough  of  a  chance   because   of   their   unfortunate
juxtaposition to the  epic  title  track.  _Farewell  to  Kings_  and
_Moving Pictures_ particularly may have taken Rush to greater heights
in terms of writing great songs to more concise lengths, but for  the
inalienable memories as well as  its  epic  qualities,  I  personally
choose _2112_ over the others I own for when I want to sit  back  and
enjoy the brash, "good-taste"-disregarding  (cheesy  lyrics?  Never!)
sound of classic seventies progressive rock.


Spinal Tap - _Spinal Tap_  (Polydor, 1984)
by: Paul Schwarz  (9.5 out of 10)

Recorded  by  the  band  to  accompany  the  "This  Is  Spinal   Tap"
"rockumentary" made by Marti "enough of my yakin', let's  boogie"  de
Bergi, _Spinal Tap_ is essentially a soundtrack album of  that  film.
Nigel "better done in Dolby" Tufnel, David "and why not?" St. Hubins,
Derek "luke warm water" Smalls, Mick "the law of averages"  Shrimpton
and Viv "I've got two hands here" Savage play the  songs  from  their
history which featured prominently in the film,  with  finesse.  They
exploit every rock cliche in the book to their bitterly pitiful,  and
somehow brilliant, logical  conclusions.  Maybe  this  would  be  the
review, if Spinal Tap were  a  "real"  band,  for,  as  most  of  you
hopefully know, Spinal Tap "merely" exist in the  aforementioned  Rob
Reiner film, "This Is Spinal Tap". However, there is a sense in which
Spinal Tap are more real than many a faceless glam/shock  rock  band,
for they  almost  personify  the  whole  genre,  and  this  album  is
razor-sharp  in  summing  up  the  mid-to-late  seventies  and  early
eighties in rock music. The lyrics  are  perfectly  idiotic,  cutting
amazingly close to the  bone  of  bands  like  Manowar,  while  being
hilariously reverential in some strange way, rather than feeling like
the cold knife in the back fashioned of  misunderstanding  mainstream
criticism of the extremities of rock and metal.  "Tonight  I'm  Gonna
Rock  You  Tonight",  "Rock  and  Roll  Creation",  "Sex  Farm"   and
"Stonehenge", to name only some of the classics on here, all  have  a
strange reality to them despite  effectively  being  jokes,  and  are
strangely enjoyable in the traditional musical sense, in addition  to
being possibly the most utterly hilarious musical  compositions  ever
written. Christopher Guest, Michael  McKean,  Rob  Reiner  and  Harry
Shearer  managed  to  tap  a  vein  of  lyrics  which,  though   they
brilliantly make fun of  rock  cliches,  are  not  unbelievable  -as-
lyrics. Likewise, the riffs, solos, drumming and keyboard  fills  are
riotous exploitations of many the cliches rock music adopted  at  the
time. With complete joke tracks purported to  be  from  Spinal  Tap's
pre-rock sixties days like "Cups and Cakes", "Gimme Some  Money"  and
"Listen to the Flower People" thrown in for good  measure,  the  only
reason this doesn't  get  a  10  is  for  the  different  version  of
"Tonight..." and its mere thirty five minute length. _Spinal Tap_  is
a classic; it may be a humour classic, but it is a  classic  all  the
same. You'll need to  have  seen  the  film  a  few  times  to  fully
appreciate it, but if you haven't done this  already  then  you  have
been severely deprived and need to fix that problem: I believe  "This
Is Spinal Tap" is consistently available at a  very  cheap  mid-price
these days. So, admire yourself in  the  "huge  black  mirror"  of  a
cover, turn your stereo  up  to  11  and  revel  in  this  "ponderous
collection of religious rock psalms". You might wonder  on  what  day
the lord created Spinal Tap, and you might end up wishing he'd rested
on that day too, but if you're a 'Tap addict like myself or  you  are
able to have a laugh at rock's past excesses in  tastelessness,  then
this is a 100% essential purchase.


Pedro's Selection
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Since this is the first time I've participated in a Classic Carnage,I
decided to review the albums I selected for my top "10+1" of all time
featured in CoC #45, even though some of them have been  reviewed  in
CoC before. I have already reviewed  two  of  these  albums  in  past
issues of CoC myself, namely  Empyrium's  _Songs  of  Moors  &  Misty
Fields_ in CoC #30 and Opeth's _My Arms, Your Hearse_ in CoC #32;  my
opinion about them hasn't changed since then and they therefore  will
not be included here. Four of these "10+1" albums came out in 1998 or
1999 and the oldest ones were  released  in  1993,  but  nevertheless
these are all classics for me. I decided not  to  give  any  ratings;
these are most of the albums I would still today give a 10 out of 10,
with very few possible exceptions. So, here are  my  reviews  of  the
albums I chose as personal classics.


Anathema - _Serenades_  (Peaceville, 1993)
Anathema - _The Silent Enigma_  (Peaceville, 1995)
by: Pedro Azevedo

The massive differences between Anathema's first two albums suggest a
greater time gap than two years, but they have  at  least  one  major
characteristic in common. It is one they share with the vast majority
of all the brilliant material Anathema have released to  date:  given
the right opportunity, the music  and  lyrics  can  crawl  into  that
sullen corner  of  your  heart,  coil  inside  it  and  never  leave.
Throughout the band's career, the  Cavanagh  brothers'  guitars  have
led Anathema as they tell of grief and misery as  eloquently  as  the
finest poet. And from the broken-hearted  doom/death  of  _Serenades_
with Darren White  on  vocals  to  the  equally  emotional  and  more
atmospheric doom of  _The  Silent  Enigma_  with  Vincent  Cavanagh's
voice, this is music with a sorrowful spirit of its very own,  coming
from a band that still today has not lost its  direction,  creativity
and pure genius.


At the Gates - _Slaughter of the Soul_  (Earache, 1995)
by: Pedro Azevedo

The title of the album that is  arguably  the  most  demolishing  and
intense slab of Swedish metal ever, _Slaughter of the Soul_, actually
carries a deeper meaning than may be initially apparent --  one  that
unveils what this record is all about: "slaughter" and "soul".  Never
has an album slaughtered so  mercilessly  and  with  such  relentless
precision -- because driving the aggression is a  soul  that  carries
such  unbridled  anguish-fueled  rage  that  virtually  every  single
element and every single moment of the album carries its own  amazing
amount of pure raw energy. With _Slaughter of the Soul_, At the Gates
gathered the doom and despair of  their  brilliant  trilogy  of  past
efforts as well as their technicality, and  encapsulated  it  all  in
highly  destructive  sonic  shotgun  shells  aimed  at  your   skull.
Excellent since their  very  first  full-length  release  and  having
produced such superb tracks as "Neverwhere" (_The Red in the  Sky  Is
Ours_), "The  Burning  Darkness"  (_With  Fear  I  Kiss  the  Burning
Darkness_) and "Forever Blind" (from the brilliantly titled _Terminal
Spirit Disease_) among many others before _Slaughter  of  the  Soul_,
one can only forever wonder what might have been next if At the Gates
had not split up after this  album  (good  as  AtG-derived  band  The
Haunted's debut album may be, the style  is  different  and  vocalist
supreme Thomas Lindberg is absent). Everything just seems to work  so
incredibly well in _Slaughter of the Soul_,  however,  that  one  can
hardly even begin to envision what a superior  successor  might  have
been like.


Dark Tranquillity - _The Gallery_  (Osmose Productions, 1995)
by: Pedro Azevedo

The relentless aggression of At the Gates' _Slaughter  of  the  Soul_
may have been a landmark for Swedish metal in 1995, but the same year
saw another Swedish landmark of equal importance  be  released:  _The
Gallery_, arguably the  most  technically  remarkable  Swedish  album
ever. In _The Gallery_, Dark Tranquillity managed  to  somehow  blend
that technicality with such emotion, aggression and dynamics that the
result was beyond all reasonable expectations. Not just classics such
as "Punish My Heaven" and "Lethe", but the whole album can  grip  you
firmly in its claws; each sequence just blends effortlessly into  the
next, and with such  creativity  that  this  becomes  one  incredibly
intense ride. Very emotional and with such vast amounts of creativity
and skill flowing throughout the record, _The Gallery_ is  simply  an
amazing and seemingly ageless album.


Emperor - _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_  (Candlelight, 1997)
by: Pedro Azevedo

Important as its predecessor _In  the  Nightside  Eclipse_  may  have
been, for me it was _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_  that  truly  set
the standard for extreme symphonic black metal. Ferocious guitars and
vocals backed  by  amazing  percussion  and  enwrapped  in  brilliant
keyboards tear  through  complex  song  structures  that  can  be  as
atmospheric as they can be searingly intense. Some amazing crescendos
(especially the main one in "With Strength I Burn")  further  enhance
the  album's  excellent  dynamics,  which  together  with  the   very
complexity of the music practically  guarantees  that  _AttWaD_  will
keep unveiling deeper details every time you listen to it  for  quite
some time. Add to this the fact that most of the atmosphere from  _In
the Nightside Eclipse_ was well preserved despite  the  changes  that
did occur (contrarily to what happened with _AttWaD_'s successor  _IX
Equilibrium_) and you  have  what  is  arguably  the  most  important
landmark in modern, symphonic black metal.


Enslaved - _Blodhemn_  (Osmose Productions, 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo

With _Blodhemn_, Enslaved decided to leave behind most of the  Viking
elements that previously drenched their music, and opted  for  a  far
more condensed and intense  approach.  The  result  was  devastating.
Propelled  by  Dirge  Rep's   drumming,   the   downright   merciless
guitar-driven black metal on _Blodhemn_ is indeed remarkably dynamic,
aggressive and intense -- and all this is further enhanced by one  of
Tagtgren's finest production jobs to date. Almost incredibly,  amidst
all the bloodthirsty frenzy of some passages, Viking chants and  some
highly effective mid-paced sections still find  their  way  into  the
music, and it all flows seamlessly. Very  violent  indeed,  but  with
absolutely remarkable skill  that  takes  all  the  violence  to  far
greater levels of intensity.


Katatonia - _Dance of December Souls_  (No Fashion Records, 1993)
by: Pedro Azevedo

When trying to find the best way to describe Katatonia's debut album,
I always come back to one single word  --  one  which  most  "normal"
people would be more than unlikely to even associate with music. That
word is sorrow. To me, vocals never sounded more  anguished,  strings
never sadder, drums never more melancholic. With a little  help  from
Dan Swano, the young Katatonia produced a landmark  black/doom  album
in 1993. Not a flawless album -- maybe even far from that at times --
but even its flaws seem to add to  its  overall  effect.  Indeed,  in
spite of a few less  adequate  passages,  Katatonia  reached  amazing
heights in  musically  expressing  sorrow  with  _Dance  of  December
Souls_. Depending on the listener, this is  potentially  one  of  the
most mesmerisingly emotionally powerful albums ever made.


My Dying Bride - _Turn Loose the Swans_  (Peaceville, 1993)
by: Pedro Azevedo

Perhaps the most highly praised doom metal album of all  time,  _Turn
Loose the Swans_ set the standard for many an atmospheric  doom  band
these days. More importantly perhaps, My Dying Bride released this to
a mostly unsuspecting metal world back in 1993 and  proved  that  the
innovators often set long lasting standards. And indeed,  as  far  as
doom/death metal goes, in recent years not many have even  challenged
this record (Evoken's _Embrace  the  Emptiness_  certainly  comes  to
mind, though -- an album which came  very  close  to  being  featured
here). Besides Aaron  Stainthorpe's  mix  of  nearly-wept  and  harsh
growled vocals, this was also  the  album  that  showed  what  Martin
Powell's heartbreaking violin could do for doom metal; but how unfair
it would be to forget the remaining members of  the  band.  The  dark
romanticism of the opening and closing non-metal tracks pervades  the
whole record: a seemingly unstoppable  succession  of  musically  and
emotionally crushing -- yet somehow beautiful -- dirges.


Summoning - _Stronghold_  (Napalm Records, 1999)
by: Pedro Azevedo

If there ever was music that could take your  spirit  for  a  journey
soaring through the sky and into  mysterious,  gloomy  yet  wonderful
places, then this must be it. In fact, the music on  _Stronghold_  is
at times so intensely evocative you may have  to  force  yourself  to
open your eyes in order to remember where you are. Elected Chronicles
of Chaos' 1999 album of the year [CoC #46], _Stronghold_ is currently
the pinnacle of a  series  which  started  with  _Minas  Morgul_  and
continued with _Dol Guldur_. It consists of mostly slow-to-mid  paced
symphonic, atmospheric blackened metal -- not exactly black metal  in
the evil sense of the tag, except for the anguished  vocals  and  the
dark atmospheres. A drum machine is very well used  on  _Stronghold_,
interwoven with the all-encompassing keyboards and the  guitars,  all
presented in a very strong, clear, yet at times still somewhat  harsh
production. However, it is Summoning's outstanding ability to  create
monumental  arrangements,   melodies,   passages   and   atmospheres,
complemented by the tortured vocals, that truly give _Stronghold_ its
uniqueness. Magical.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
        ____     __                       __
       /\  _`\  /\ \                     /\ \__  __
       \ \ \/\_\\ \ \___      __      ___\ \ ,_\/\_\    ___
        \ \ \/_/_\ \  _ `\  /'__`\   / __`\ \ \/\/\ \  /'___\
         \ \ \L\ \\ \ \ \ \/\ \L\.\_/\ \L\ \ \ \_\ \ \/\ \__/
          \ \____/ \ \_\ \_\ \__/.\_\ \____/\ \__\\ \_\ \____\
           \/___/   \/_/\/_/\/__/\/_/\/___/  \/__/ \/_/\/____/
     ____                                          __
    /\  _`\                                       /\ \__
    \ \ \/\_\    ___     ___     ___     __   _ __\ \ ,_\   ____
     \ \ \/_/_  / __`\ /' _ `\  /'___\ /'__`\/\`'__\ \ \/  /',__\
      \ \ \L\ \/\ \L\ \/\ \/\ \/\ \__//\  __/\ \ \/ \ \ \_/\__, `\
       \ \____/\ \____/\ \_\ \_\ \____\ \____\\ \_\  \ \__\/\____/
        \/___/  \/___/  \/_/\/_/\/____/\/____/ \/_/   \/__/\/___/


	       ANOTHER PILGRIMAGE TO THE METAL MIDWEST
	       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
		       Milwaukee MetalFest XIV
	      July 28/29 2000 @ The Milwaukee Auditorium
			   by: Adam Wasylyk

     An eleven-hour drive finally landed us canucks into the American
Midwest  --  the  hardest  rain  I've  ever  seen  greeted  us  while
travelling past Chicago (to the tune of Vintersorg in our CD  player)
and "Poltergeist" movies awaited us on TV at  our  hotel  room.  They
must have been omens for what was to come, as  Milwaukee  Metal  Fest
2000 was one of the best on record. Some great bands  were  to  play,
and the usual attraction, European bands,  were  here  and  ready  to
play. My anticipation was as strong as  the  prior  five  years  I've
attended, and for good reason. For some of  the  bands  scheduled  to
play, it was to be their first time  in  North  America.  Hopes  were
high, and they would eventually be met.
     As far as organization goes,  MetalFest  2000  was  one  of  the
smoothest on record. Of course this year had disappointments  as  far
as cancellations go (Behemoth and Opera IX most  notable),  but  then
again, it wouldn't be Milwaukee if things  went  absolutely  perfect.
Stages did fall behind but none of the  European  bands  (hence,  the
important bands) suffered serious cuts  to  their  sets.  Some  great
music was to be heard during the 27 or so hours scheduled  for  metal
music. Here's most of what I was physically able to see.

Day 1
~~~~~
     We arrived at the venue at around 1 p.m.,  heading  straight  to
the vendor area to meet old friends and  buy  some  merch  while  the
getting was good. A Burzum longsleeve would be had for a great price;
already a smile was on my face. Yep, it's time for Milwaukee again...
     Running into Aaron McKay,  the  only  additional  Chronicles  of
Chaos writer present, we made our way  winding  through  the  crowded
hallways, up and down staircases and circling through four  different
stages to find anything that would keep us interested.  At  times  it
wasn't difficult at all, at other times it was nearly impossible.
     The first band we were willing to see  was  Sarcophagus.  Having
strongly impressed me at last year's  March  Metal  Meltdown  in  New
Jersey [CoC #39], I was a bit disappointed by their mediocre  set  of
death/black metal. I  had  heard  that  vocalist/guitarist  Akhenaten
moved to Germany but had returned to play this set, so maybe the band
were a bit rusty? The sound wasn't exactly great, but  I  would  soon
discover (as I have in previous years) the first song in a set  is  a
band's soundcheck, but the  latter  songs  never  sounded  that  much
better. Too bad.
     Blood Storm, as usual, failed to impress, so it was time to move
to another stage. Bongzilla were well into their hemp fueled  set  of
stoner metal when we arrived, so we took a  seat  in  the  plush  red
seats in the Relapse stage room. The band's harsh vocals and  droning
riffs didn't do much for me; I would say I was more  complacent  than
"high", so to speak.
     Up next were Today Is the Day, a band I knew would not  fail  to
impress. Steve Austin is one of the most enigmatic frontmen I've  had
the pleasure to see. It's not that he commands an audience, rather he
bewilders them; he's thoroughly entertaining to both watch and  hear.
Scrambling for tapes to play as song intros, along with a  mike  half
way down his  throat  as  he  screamed,  he,  with  band,  put  on  a
performance that won't  be  forgotten.  They played a good variety of
material; TItD fans were surely satisfied, and so was I.
     Hate Eternal should have been good. This of  course  being  Erik
Rutan's death metal project outside Morbid Angel, I give  credit  for
the technicality and at times catchiness, but  the  P.A.  gave  their
music the consistency of pea soup. A hard act to walk out on, but  my
ears had to be spared.
     The female led band Promisques did a good  job  in  entertaining
the 200 or so people on hand to check them out. Much more  aggressive
than  I  imagined,  the  death   metal   outfit   were   surprisingly
entertaining. And it never hurts to end a set with a Cannibal  Corpse
cover ("Stripped, Raped and Strangled").
     Maudlin of the Well was perhaps the most laughable band on hand.
It's  not  that  I  don't  respect  them  for  certain   aspects   --
particularly their incorporation of female vocals,  brass  and  other
instruments into their metal sound. But the outcome was quite bad. It
was as if two bands were playing on top of each other, the  differing
musical styles in the band never mixing. One style sunk and the other
floated, never cross-pollinating. Another disappointment, and at this
point I was starting to question the choices I was making as  far  as
which acts to catch. Fortunately that bad luck would end soon.
     Mayhem were to make their second  appearance  at  the  Milwaukee
MetalFest, this time  on  tour  promoting  the  critically  acclaimed
_Grand Declaration of War_. Playing a healthy  variety  of  both  old
material (arriving on stage to the beat of  "Silvester  Anfang",  and
playing "The Freezing Moon", "Chainsaw Gutsfuck", "Deathcrush", "Pure
Fucking Armageddon") and new (dammit, forgot which one, thanks to the
beer I was drinking), the only downside to their set was the size  of
the stage. It was too big for Maniac and co.  to  command,  something
smaller (like the Rave stage they played a couple of years ago) would
have been perfect. No blood was shed at this show, so fans had to  be
satisfied by a great sounding, well chosen set of material.
     What was great to find out was  that  the  Nightfall  stage  had
fallen behind (due do the  cancellation  of  Malevolent  Creation,  I
believe) so this meant I was able to catch both Mayhem and Katatonia,
as it would have been near impossible  to  choose  between  the  two.
Katatonia, despite the rare off-key  singing  of  Jonas  Renkse,  was
simply amazing. They favoured material off _Discouraged  Ones_  ("Saw
You Drown", "Stalemate", "Cold Ways", "Deadhouse")  rather  than  the
more recent _Tonight's Decision_, which may be due to the  fact  that
it still hasn't seen a domestic release in North  America.  Honestly,
this suited me just fine,  as  I  had  always  believed  _DO_  to  be
drastically superior to _TD_. Playing  "Endtime"  off  _Brave  Murder
Day_ (which Jonas sung using the old vocals!) was a great  ending  to
the set. I was later to discover that the  band  actually  played  on
practised gear and not  their  own,  meaning  they  weren't  entirely
thrilled with how their live sound compared to that on record. But  I
must say that their set was nearly worth the entire  trip  itself  --
not only for it being  their  first  show  outside  Europe,  but  the
calibre of material was near perfect.
     Katatonia having been the last band I needed to see on  day  #1,
it was time to sit down and give my feet a rest. Watching four  songs
of King Diamond had me entertained, dancing girls  and  all.  I  just
don't get the appeal of this band. Most people I know say  this  band
has steadily headed downhill the past two or three albums,  but  they
still seem to get a good sized crowd totally hypnotized. They  played
"The Graveyard", I  remember,  as  it  was  repeated  in  the  chorus
numerous times. Time for yet another beer...
     Opeth (playing their first show in North America) would  be  the
last band I was to check out on Friday night's festivities. Solid and
strong, they played to a packed Nightfall  stage  with  fans  singing
along and swaying to their melodic black/death  songs.  Playing  with
great sound, I  wish  I  had  been  more  familiar  with  their  back
catalogue so I could get more into it, but I decided to  leave  early
and get some sleep for the much-longer day #2. Mayhem, Today  Is  the
Day and Katatonia would be my personal  faves  for  this  day;  three
great bands who made all of the shit I had to sit through worth it.

Day 2
~~~~~
     We arrived purposely late to miss as many pay-per-play bands  as
possible. Some CD browsing and  purchasing  would  commence  until  a
suitable band was worthy of my picky ears. This  would  come  in  the
form of Relapse's Origin.
     With  a  frontman  both  sounding  and  looking   a   lot   like
Suffocation's (R.I.P.) Frank Mullen, the music, however, is much more
in death/grind vein. Playing material  off  their  self-titled  debut
disc for Relapse, their set was technical at times and just  outright
brutal in others, keeping  things  tight  and  entertaining  for  the
20-odd minutes they played.
     Not even allowing a  breath  of  rest,  Benumb  soon  afterwards
stormed onto the  stage,  spasming  to  their  great  hardcore/grind,
patented from the sunny state of California. While at home I received
a call from vocalist Pete in which he said that both he and the  band
were thoroughly disappointed with their set -- I  however  must  take
issue with this, my friend. Having played new  stuff  off  _Withering
Strands of Hope_ and of course playing material  from  the  acclaimed
_Soul of the Martyr_, I must say they were one of  my  highlights  on
this day. Very entertaining, to say the least; it's my third time  in
seeing the band, I just wish it was more often than once a year.
     Sweden's Entombed rocked the main stage; the material  was  well
chosen, but the effort put forth by  band  members  could  have  been
better. L-G's vocals didn't fully cut it, it was almost as if he  was
only putting in 70-80%, and what was  missing  was  tangible.  Having
seen them on their two stops in Ontario  during  their  _To  Ride..._
North American tour, they just didn't live up to those  performances.
However, classics like "Out of Hand", "Evilyn", "Left Hand Path"  and
"To Ride, Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth!" were played,  for  the
most part very well, so all is forgiven. They didn't  play  "Stranger
Aeons" though, so hopefully I'll live long enough to see them perform
that track live.
     Ravenous had many curious  on  hand  to  check  out  their  set.
Featuring Killjoy (Necrophagia, Eibon), Danny Lilker (ex-Brutal Truth
/ S.O.D. / Nuclear Assault) and Chris  Reifert  (ex-Autopsy/Abscess),
they performed a great set of "necro death metal", the only  lowpoint
being a new Abscess track which, well,  sucked.  Pulverizingly  heavy
and tight (with an obvious Autopsy influence), coupled with a -great-
vocal performance by Killjoy, this set was unforgettable. Can't  wait
to hear their first full-length, _Assembled in Blasphemy_,  scheduled
for release soon by Hammerheart.
     Having seen Destruction in Toronto three days prior, it wasn't a
priority to check them out, but since my schedule opened up for it  I
decided to get another glance of the German metal legends. Playing on
a much bigger stage (with a light show) than in T.O., they  played  a
cool set and got a -much better- reception than their  last  show  in
Milwaukee (performed by  "Neo-Destruction",  as  Schmier  colourfully
refers to them as). Playing a host of classic tracks, the  crowd  I'm
sure were happy they didn't have to throw empty cups at  the  band  a
second time.
     The band that turned out to be the surprise of the MetalFest was
England's Anathema. I didn't expect such a powerful set from  a  band
whose new material (the past three albums) I could care  less  about.
Vocalist Vincent Cavanagh and co. performed a varied set,  and  their
fans couldn't get enough. Performing for  the  first  time  in  North
America,  it  was  clearly  evident  that  Cavanagh  was   pleasantly
surprised and taken by both the reaction and  enthusiasm  from  their
fans on this side of the pond. Performing my favourite Anathema  song
"Sleepless" (without the harsh vocals) scores them  points  as  well.
Cavanagh's announcement to  the  crowd  that  they  had  another  ten
minutes left resulted in what could be called "an  uproar",  so  they
treated us to a cool Pink Floyd cover and a rousing rendition of  The
Misfits' "Halloween". I'll have to re-investigate this band, as I was
thoroughly impressed with their new stuff live, and I rarely  give  a
band a second chance.
     Children  of  Bodom  also  made  their  first   North   American
appearance, but since I've never cared for them I didn't stick around
for too long. Plenty of  happy  riffs  and  keyboard  leads  left  me
unsatisfied, ready to check out the nearby vendors for a last look at
CDs. Oh cool, there's the first Solefald album...
     Also having  seen  Dying  Fetus  on  the  Wednesday  prior  with
Destruction, again I decided on a second glance  in  almost  as  many
days. I must say that Dying Fetus, both on disc and live, are one  of
the best brutal death metal bands ever. EVER. I hold them in as  high
regard as I do with Suffocation or Incantation. My personal highlight
would have to be "Nocturnal Crucifixion",  but  there  were  many  to
choose from.  And  the  new  stuff  they  played  from  _Destroy  the
Opposition_ sounds really tight, and very true to what they've played
before. Can't wait to hear their new album, which should  be  out  on
Relapse in October.
     There couldn't have been a better way to  end  off  this  year's
instalment of MMF than with a set by  Norway's  Enslaved.  It's  rare
when I'll actually get riled up and find myself within the world of a
live band, but this was  one  of  those  occasions.  Vocalist  Grutle
Kjellson stole the show  with  an  awe-inspiring  vocal  performance,
gliding from majestic clean vocals to harsh black metal vocals oh  so
effortlessly, and the drumming of Dirge Rep was spot on  as  well.  I
wish I could remember the entire track listing of their  set  (again,
beer is to blame, along with some herb from  Cephalic  Carnage),  but
standouts in my mind would have to be the  opener  "Slaget  I  Skogen
Bortenfor", "Eld", "Sacrifice to the Elves (Alfablot)"  and  a  great
new  song  off  their  new  album  _Mardraum  (Beyond  the  Within)_.
Mesmerizing from start to finish; after all was said and done  I  was
still in a state of shock. Enslaved's  near  hour-long  set  will  no
doubt enter the annals of Milwaukee's longest running metal festival,
and rightfully so.
     Thus another chapter in America's longest running metal festival
ends. After a mediocre 1999, I was wondering beforehand if this  year
may be my last. But MMF 2000 has restored my faith in this  festival.
As long as they keep bringing over high quality European bands,  they
can count on my attendance. There's also a plan in the works to  have
the majority of CoC writers in attendance  for  2001,  something  I'm
already looking forward to. Thanks to Aaron for gracing the MetalFest
with  his  presence  and  for  making  my  experience  all  the  more
enjoyable. Cheers!

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     C R U S A D E   T O   T H E   C A R N A G E   C A P I T A L
     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                       Milwaukee MetalFest XIV
              Milwaukee Auditorium, July 28 and 29, 2000
                           by: Aaron McKay


     Well, judging from some of the reviews I've read concerning Jack
Koshick's previous March Metal Meltdown,  I  whole-heartedly  believe
that he needed this show to go off well. I  don't  think  that  I  am
alone in that opinion, either. I feel that for the  amount  of  bands
that were there, people in attendance, and the seemingly smooth  flow
of the event, I wouldn't hesitate for a minute in placing this year's
Milwaukee MetalFest in the "success" column.
     At any rate, before I tackle the formidable abundance  of  bands
collaborating  for  the  'Fest,  I'd  like  to  point  out  the  most
gratifying aspect of this year's show: comradery.  I  was  powerfully
delighted to see my good  friend  and  colleague  from  Canada,  Adam
Wasylyk, who I had not seen since last year's MetalFest. Also,  Chris
Bruni of Unrestrained! and some friends from Iowa and individuals  in
bands, both playing and not playing, whom  I  haven't  seen  in  what
feels like aeons, made the entire trip well worth it. Well worth  it!
     Coming in a very close second to  enjoying  the  company  of  my
metal brethren was  the  line-up  this  year.  As  always,  too  much
happening to completely consume and devour, but the  portions  served
and presented this year were very much to my liking.
     Having arrived in Milwaukee the night before  (as  to  not  miss
anything that I might have deemed important, like beer), I  was  able
to make it to the Milwaukee Auditorium shortly after the first  bands
went on -- pretty close to three o' clock. To be completely candid, I
was not much interested in catching any  of  the  performances  until
about 4:55, as Sarcophagus arrived on the Nightfall stage.
     I suppose this is as good of a time as any to rehash the venue's
arrangement. The main  stage,  this  year  titled  KNAC.COM,  is  the
vastest and most cavernous of the show halls. Imagine if you  will  a
large, older gymnasium with fairly decent sized stage at the far end.
This main area is split in half by  a  curtain  with  some  recording
labels on the side facing the main stage and the majority of the rest
on the other side of the partition situated around the outside, along
the wall like a giant "D" shape. The only stage upstairs, as  it  was
last year, was the Relapse one. A  great  carpeted  environment  with
cushioned chairs and good acoustics. Back downstairs,  off  the  main
hall, or KNAC.COM stage, are the two smaller, less  comfortable,  but
effective Nightfall and Necropolis stages. As  it  turns  out,  these
last two were where most of the bands I saw played.

Day 1
~~~~~
     Immediately after nothing more  than  an  acceptable  show  from
Sarcophagus (not bad, but nothing to elaborate on either)  was  Blood
Storm on the same stage. After having reviewed _Pestilence  From  the
Dragonstar_ elsewhere in this issue, and not having cared for it  too
awful much, I was curious  to  see  if  Blood  Storm  had  a  notable
improvement in a live setting. They didn't. After about  four  songs,
my group of friends and I walked out.
     At this point, as I remember, we headed for our first  beers  of
the evening. $3.75 draws for Miller Genuine  Draft  heavy  or  Miller
Lite. Pretty pricey and I wish I could say that  inhibited  my  usual
intake of the frosty brew, but it did little for me in  that  respect
-- save draining my cash reserve. If I would have had the beer  prior
to Blood Storm's gig, I might have possibly viewed  their  show  with
less critical enmity, but I severely doubt it.
     Not a lot took place until my first venture of the 'Fest  up  to
the Relapse stage for the last song  of  Bongzilla  and  subsequently
Today Is the Day immediately thereafter. Having heard only  the  very
ass-end of Bongzilla's last tune, I'll just touch  on  Today  Is  the
Day. As you might imagine, -extremely- high energy.  I  am  sorry  to
report that I am not as well-versed on the Nashville group's material
as I would appreciate being, but their  supersaturated,  in-your-face
impact style was certainly enough to  grab  my  interest  for  thirty
minutes. Today Is the Day guru Steve Austin deserves a huge round  of
applause.
     Time to make a viscous dash to the Nightfall  stage  (again)  to
observe  Hate  Eternal.  Erik  Rutan's  release  on   Wicked   World,
_Conquering the Throne_, is one probably worth possessing. The demo I
have from when Mr. Rutan was  shopping  around  for  this  deal  with
Wicked World, however, is all I own. I was glad to see them live, but
I was truly disappointed with the sound the room  was  fostering  for
Hate Eternal. Getting nothing out of the remaining time allotted  for
HE, I departed.
     As an aside, after this performance by HE, the  time  slots  for
the Nightfall state became fouled-up and -if- Malevolent Creation was
at the MetalFest, they sure didn't play anywhere close to  when  they
were  supposed  to.  This  mattered  very  little,  since  the  press
conference with members of  King  Diamond,  Mayhem,  Babylon  Whores,
Shadows Fall and others threw me off kilter  time-wise.  I'm  getting
ahead of myself a bit, however.
     Now things began to get frenzied. I'd have liked  to  have  seen
Cephalic Carnage upstairs, but was instead tortured by the discord on
the Necropolis stage radiating from Promisques, an all  girls  and  a
guy "metal" act (and I do mean -act-, 'cause they  sure  didn't  seem
like real musicians) -- bad, bad, bad. The only reason I  stayed  was
the cover  of  Cannibal  Corpse's  "Stripped,  Raped  and  Strangled"
Promisques pulled off. I think it was to the liking  off  all  within
earshot. In the hopes  of  catching  Malevolent  Creation,  we  stood
around across the hall in the Nightfall area. Winding-up listening to
Maudlin of the Well, a very populated group comprised of many members
playing -a lot- of different  instruments,  from  keyboards  to  some
brass horns. Not at all to my liking, but then again the room  wasn't
helping matters any, either.
     Frustrated at the whole time disorder  and  Malevolent  Creation
mishap, we wondered over to the main hall to watch and enjoy  Shadows
Fall. These Massachusetts-based  tempo  change-up  artists  ended  up
surprising me. While I don't think I'll seek out _Of  One  Blood_  at
Century Media's website, I did enjoy the atmosphere and  presentation
of Shadows Fall (and being in the main auditorium again).
     Before Mayhem began, we dashed to the  Necropolis  state  for  a
smattering of Babylon Whores. What a mistake that was. BW sounded  to
me like a warmed-up hard rock band from Atlantic Records, as  opposed
to a group associated with Necropolis. I heard  all  I  could  handle
after two songs and decided to wait out Mayhem's arrival back where I
was.
     Having had my _Grand Declaration of War_ disc snap in two in the
mail, I was pretty unfamiliar with their new material. I was told  by
some pretty reputable pals in the music industry that I  would  enjoy
this new  Mayhem  direction  completely.  As  my  first  exposure  to
anything off of _Grand Declaration of War_, I  will  say  that  I  am
speechless.  The  sound  Mayhem  achieved  on  stage  was   gripping,
all-encompassing and clear/clean  --  not  something  I  am  used  to
spouting-off about a black metal band. A wonderful spread of material
ultimately ending with my favorite cut,  "Pure  Fucking  Armageddon".
Beautiful performance.
     As I remember, we peaked in on Avernus about this time to see if
I could  grab  a  listen  to  my  all-time  favorite  song  by  them,
"Godlessness". Hearing no indication of it,  we  moved  back  to  the
KNAC.COM stage for King Diamond. Having grown up with a  majority  of
King's releases in my collection and going to see him  live  numerous
times while in Florida, I was  interested  in  seeing  the  respected
musical entertainer on a larger scale. Before  his  arrival,  a  dolt
dressed up like the King  walked  around  complete  with  a  would-be
sidekick "band member" in hopes of fooling individuals into  thinking
he was King Diamond. What a loser. Some people have  -way-  too  much
time on their hands.
     The King opened with a couple  tunes  off  _Them_,  my  absolute
favorite KD release, so I  was  instantly  thrilled.  The  decked-out
stage, adorned with candelabras, a coffin (for the  infamous  "coffin
trick" that apparently I have never witnessed),  and  "Grandma",  was
enough to make Alice Copper green  with  envy.  After  a  track  from
_Conspiracy_, we dragged  ourselves  (it  was  getting  late  in  the
evening by this point, so "dragging" is truly  appropriate)  down  to
hopefully absorb some of Katatonia.
     The Swedish doom metal band seemed  to  be  uninhibited  by  the
shittiness of the Nightfall room and playing  their  complicated  and
contrived musical concoctions. As the members of Katatonia pulled off
resembling sleep-deprived transients, I also slowly began to feel the
effects of the day. No more so,  however,  than  when  Opeth  finally
emerged immediately following.
     Opeth, as most all of you are aware, can stretch a melody  in  a
song in so many ways over such a long period you almost  forget  what
you're listening to. Although Opeth are  talented  musicians,  and  I
-was- picking up  a  nice  shift  from  _My  Arms,  Your  Hearse_  to
_Morningrise_ through the infinite crappiness of the room,  I  became
far too exhausted to wrench anything alluring from  their  expertise.
Couple this with the fact that I couldn't stick around for Usurper or
even see Macabre and Gorguts (playing at the same time  as  Katatonia
and Opeth); frustration compounded my malaise. Thusly, I brought to a
close a fairly productive day at the MetalFest, but tomorrow  bragged
of much greater things.

Day 2
~~~~~
     Saturday found our intrepid clan rested  and  in  need  of  some
sustenance before entering the Milwaukee  Auditorium  again  for  the
last day. After a much regretted, failed attempt to meet Adam and his
friends for a bite to eat,  my  group  ate  some  good,  ol'  fashion
mid-West cooking and made a move for the venue -- there was metal  to
be heard and seen, damn it!
     Once we realized  that  our  search  for  Mr.  Wasylyk  and  his
companions was fruitless, like I said, we made haste to  the  concert
after eating. For the record, these asses would have pulled this shit
on me,  but  today  the  infantile,  prick,  asshole  "door-watchers"
(hardly security) decided in their  obviously  infinite  wisdom  that
taking some granola bars into the venue is "not allowed"  today  (but
not  yesterday,  mind  you,  just  -today-).  After   this   episode,
everything went off without a hitch. Morons.
     Okay, sorry for breaking away from the music there for a second,
but I have to continue in that line of thinking for  another  moment.
These same pathetic, idiot "door-watchers" were -also- the source  of
the stream of "squatters"  in  the  'Fest.  In  case  you  have  been
fortunate enough to never have run  across  these  "squatter"  fucks,
they are nomadic losers -by  choice-,  constantly  mooching  off  the
concert-goers for beer and money. I am quite sure  they  don't  bathe
and sleep on the grass as a way of  being  indigently  different.  To
illustrate the point, some "squatters" wore designer eye glasses, but
couldn't find their way to a fucking shower if  their  pitiful  lives
depended on it. Ass-fucks -- every last one of them!  Furthermore,  I
know first hand that the equally stupid "door-watchers" were sneaking
them into the concert  hall  through  a  side-door  on  purpose.  One
dip-shit  "door-watcher"  even  muttered  to   the   other   dip-shit
"door-watcher" while smuggling them on in, "I wonder if we could lose
our job over doing this?" Heaven, I hope so! That'd be poetic justice
if ever I did hear of it. Mr. Koshick, if you are reading this -- I'd
do something about it for next time around.
     Back to the much more sophisticated part of this review:  metal.
Again, about three o' clock for the  second  day,  we  were  in  full
concert preparedness. I'd have really liked to have  seen  Michigan's
Summon, but screw getting there at 11:00 a.m. just for them. The time
slot for Summon  was  honestly  regrettable.  We  goofed  around  the
labels' stands buying up  the  CDs  until  we  seated  ourselves  for
Wolfspider at 4:20 in the main hall. The group sucked, but not enough
for us to leave or pick our asses up out of our chairs. If the  truth
be known, Wolfspider wasn't deplorable, just nothing great, but  they
did carry a  beat  pretty  well  and  understandable  vocals,  so  we
listened in spite of ourselves. -Hell-, we all had earplugs!
     The reason we put up with Wolfspider was for what was to follow:
Yellow Machine Gun. Maybe the greatest surprise of the event for  me.
I truly enjoyed this Japanese trio that seriously appeared as if they
just came from the airport (with  luggage  and  all)  moments  before
their set, and -shit-, what a  set  it  was,  too.  On  Howling  Bull
records, these three females brutalized the audience from power chord
number one on. Speaking of the crowd, the depth of audience  steadily
became more and more and more as either the word spread about YMG  or
the concert-goers took in a listen as they moved from room  to  room.
Either way, for so early in the evening (about 5 o' clock), a  nearly
packed house cheered for Yellow Machine Gun by the end of their  set,
which included a killer cover of Black Sabbath's "Paranoid".
     Next, on to Fleshgrind. I listed this band as one of my  Top  10
of 1999. Based on the strength of _Destined for Defilement_ and their
performance    on    the    all-too-well    established     Nightfall
"acoustically-shit" room, I still maintain that was an excellent pick
(at the risk of sounding like a sycophant). Guitarist and all  around
amiable guy Steve Murray disclosed to me that the band has a new deal
with Olympic Records, which I hope yields them more of  the  fan-base
they deserve.
     Off to the main stage for my second time  seeing  Immolation  at
the MMF. Not too bad and I will say this,  Immolation  having  formed
from the ashes of Rigor Mortis (one  of  'em)  is  -about-  the  only
reason  I  pay  them  any  attention,  so  their  debut,   _Dawn   of
Possession_, is about the band's strongest  effort,  in  my  opinion.
Ross Dolan and company, for the  most  part,  provided  an  excellent
musical backdrop to conversations between myself and the rest of  the
group.
     Right after that,  Immolation  welcomed  Entombed  to  the  main
stage. I remember trying to go see these  guys  in  Iowa  City,  Iowa
about two years ago, but the weather that Winter must have  been  too
much for 'em and they cancelled. That stunk because I  think  that  I
would have liked to have seen the group on more of an intrinsic level
as opposed to this time on such a large scale, being my first witness
to Entombed's subversion. I watched  for  a  while  and  not  hearing
enough from the mighty _Clandestine_ release, I left for the  Relapse
stage upstairs for Epoch of Unlight.
     Here is a group  that  -never-  disappoints.  Epoch  of  Unlight
utilizes fantastically sharp, technically-edged material --  and  I'm
just talking about their old stuff. The band blessed  the  room  with
some new material of an upcoming release, hopefully soon, on The  End
Records, that was diamond-cutter  accurate  and  meticulously  pulled
off. Impressive right down to the addition of the  second  guitarist,
who was not with EoU at last year's MetalFest. To emphasise my  point
about what a great group this is,  during  a  guitar  change  by  the
individual I just  mentioned,  there  was  some  silence,  naturally.
Someone yells out "Drum solo, Tino!" Tino taps his  cymbal  once  and
the fans break into laughter. "Burning as One" off of _What  Will  Be
Has Been_ is always a  pleasure  to  hear.  Incredibly  enjoyable  to
witness EoU in action once again.
     Break time! Some beers are  consumed  at  this  point  while  we
sponge the sounds  of  Destruction  from  some  seats  situated  afar
(Destruction have -never- been favorites of mine), but their lighting
and stage show was pretty good.
     Somewhat rejuvenated, we hopped over to catch  a  group  that  I
wanted to see ever since my interview with  Killjoy  revealed  to  me
that Necrophagia wasn't going to perform at the 'Fest -- Ravenous was
my  appeasement.  Being  not  too  familiar  with   Chris   Reifert's
(ex-Autopsy/Abscess) earlier works (or bands), I was  impressed  with
his contribution to Killjoy (Necrophagia / Viking  Crown)  and  Danny
Lilker (Nuclear Assault / S.O.D. / just about any other band you  can
think of) during Ravenous's half hour.  Killjoy's  necro-vocal  style
was in stunningly tight form. I'm clamoring to get  their  _Assembled
in Blasphemy_ release through Hammerheart to arrange an interview for
more information to pass along for you -- it'll be worth it for sure.
     -Thank heavens- the Nightfall stage was running late,  otherwise
I would have been deprived of Mortician, one of a couple of tried and
true staples I demand  at  the  MetalFest.  I  would  devitalize  the
greatness of Mortician's performance by droning on, but  I  will  say
the room was -packed-, the ferocity was evident  and  the  fans  were
appreciative.  Will  Rahmer  was  in  his  characteristically  brutal
posture peppered with appreciation and  humor  for  the  fans,  while
Roger Beaujard took over drum duties this show instead of  guitar.  I
have to confess here, I do not know who Mortician had on guitar,  but
I am pretty sure it wasn't Desmond Tolhurst. I could be wrong due  to
my uncertainty in this regard. Regardless, Mortician -pulverized-!  I
just have to get me another copy of 1999's  _Chainsaw  Dismemberment_
soon (my original was stolen out of my truck last year).
     Conflict time. Children of  Bodom  or  Dying  Fetus?  Well,  the
choice was clear to me, but not the rest of my group -- but that soon
changed. Luckily for us, DF was getting on a bit later than they were
supposed to, so to keep the whole gang happy, I was glad to  take  in
some of Children of Bodom. Having interviewed Alexi Laiho  last  year
for the release of _Something Wild_, I was especially grateful to get
to hear the song "Children of Bodom" live. Out the  door  and  across
the hallway, I see my friends John and Jason of Dying Fetus  adorning
their instruments on the other stage (it's good to be tall)  --  time
to go!
     While  through  this  whole  review  I've  bitched,  moaned  and
complained about the Nightfall Stage's incredibly terrible acoustics,
to this very minute I haven't the foggiest idea what occurred, but DF
sounded as good as Mayhem did the previous evening.  Torrid!  Killer!
Marksman perfect and overwhelmingly tight -- I could  not  have  been
more pleased with Dying Fetus's set. As I was  telling  someone  just
last night, it's like this: if you want a good doctor,  find  out  to
whom your physician goes; and if you want a  killer  band,  find  out
where the other groups' members are going. Watching  Dying  Fetus,  I
saw Trevor P. from Obituary, Corporate  Death  from  Macabre,  Jeremy
Wagner from Broken Hope, Danny Lilker from pick-your-group, and  many
others. Get this: after a whole day of being in the same building, at
the beginning of the DF set is where I ran into my good  friend  Adam
again, who I hadn't  seen  since  before  getting  in  the  Milwaukee
Auditorium. Better late than never, so we enjoyed DF en masse.
     Becoming increasingly drained from the events of  the  last  two
days, we decided to watch a few minutes of  Enslaved.  They  gave  me
what I wanted to hear, the song "Eld", and  having  gotten  separated
from Adam yet again, I took a few moments to congratulate  John  (DF)
on the band's magnificent job and headed for the  last  time  to  the
main stage  area  for  a  taste  of  Howling  Bull  recording  artist
Hellchild. I was too tired and worn out to fully  appreciate  what  I
think was  a  pretty  decent  show  by  these  stripped-down  violent
Japanese metallers. Even some members of Destruction  joined  us  and
the sparse crowd for some of Hellchild's set.  That  was  about  all,
kids.
     Time after time,  I  am  ultimately  pleased  by  the  Milwaukee
MetalFest and so much for Dani's (of Cradle of Filth) prediction that
last year was  final  time  for  the  event.  I'm  delighted  in  his
inaccurate understanding. This was a mighty fine year.  When  all  is
said and done, you can't go  wrong  with  some  good  beer,  superior
friends, and metal music. Here's to next year!!

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  T H E   N E W   M I L L E N N I U M   M A I D E N   S L A Y E R S
  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
           CoC attends Iron Maiden, Slayer and The Almighty
        at the Palais Omnisports de Paris Bercy, Paris, France
                           June 14th, 2000
                           by: David Rocher


     Returning to Bercy with undeterred determination almost  a  year
after Iron Maiden's apocalyptic appearance with  Megadeth  (and  very
proud to have indeed survived  9/9/99  well...),  I  arrived  at  the
entrance of  the  POPB  to  discover  that  quite  a  few  long-maned
individuals  had   also   survived   the   Great   Britain   sextet's
eschatological show last year, and had also returned for  more.  With
the very promising prospect of beholding Slayer and  Iron  Maiden  on
the same evening  (now,  did  anyone  mention  The  Almighty?),  this
two-and-a-half band "package" was undoubtedly, to  some  considerable
extent, a dream come true. Oddly enough, Bercy was  filling  up,  but
slowly -- well, 16000 odd  thrashers  were  after  all  going  to  be
treated to a definitely not-very-Almighty reformation show, so  being
late that evening was probably only a half-assed effort  to  try  and
spare oneself some aural agony.
     So, the lights went out, Bercy's audience didn't bother standing
up, cheered with rather lukewarm conviction, and The Almighty  (minus
Pete Friesen -- good on him) made a tentatively triumphant arrival on
stage; they then awkwardly waddled through an  excruciatingly  boring
half-hour long set covering material  from  all  their  albums  since
_Powertrippin'_, whilst methodically racking my nerves and ears  with
excerpts from their  obviously  gruesome  new  album.  Ricky  Warwick
sounded like a tone-deaf drunken punk choir, the guitar work was lame
and unconvincing, and only drummer Stump Monroe proved to  be  worthy
of any interest that night, as he vainly attempted  to  salvage  this
"Ricky's bunch go iceberg-spotting onboard the Titanic" spree.  After
what seemed like the longest half-hour in my life, The  Almighty  had
convinced me that reformations  suck,  that  poppy  punk  music  also
sucks, and had me wondering, for many a sleepless  night  thereafter,
how I  could  possibly  ever  have  enjoyed  _Soul  Destruction_  and
_Powertrippin'_.
     During another endless 20-minute period as roadies  cleared  the
stage, Bercy began to twitch, growl and  shudder  as  the  excitement
related to Slayer's imminent appearance soared to  a  peak.  Finally,
the lights went out,  and  a  warlike  roar  flooded  Bercy,  as  the
legendary thrashers invaded the stage. They started  out  with  their
classic "Mandatory Suicide", then flawlessly broke into a  high-speed
rendition of "War Ensemble", followed by the eerie "South of Heaven".
Slayer's playing was perfectly on  time,  powerful  and  made  for  a
totally enrapturing set. The quartet halted, and started  to  play  a
few of their newer tracks, including the rather  unconvincing  "Stain
of Mind" and another excerpt from _Diabolus in Musica_,  after  which
Slayer  attempted  to  "grace"  their  Parisian  audience   with   an
unreleased track, named "Here comes the Pain" -- which Araya  proudly
introduced with the words "this is a song about the band...  SLAYER".
Well, Slayer's forthcoming album is  apparently  slated  for  October
31st this year, and I'm quite sorry to say that I  sincerely  believe
that they should put a bold and timely end to  their  career  (rather
than beating a dead horse the  Sepultura  and  Metallica  --  scratch
that, should I rather say "Rockica"? -- way) and cease chipping  away
at their  legend  by  revelling  always  deeper  in  their  new-found
Korn-style antics. After having more than molested Megadeth's opening
appearance last year, I found myself to be more eagerly awaiting  the
Mustaine mob's new album (which should see them reverting to _Rust in
Peace_ and _Peace Sells..._-style aggressiveness) than Slayer's  next
output... oh, woe is me.
     Nonetheless, after this rather tepid  fifteen-minute  interlude,
Slayer paused, before dealing the finishing blows to  Bercy  as  they
moved onto cult material such as "Dead Skin Mask", "Hell Awaits"  and
"Reign in Blood". Without granting  fans  a  second  to  catch  their
breath, Slayer closed their set off with the much-awaited  "Angel  of
Death", and left the stage after saluting the  writhing  mosh-pit  at
their feet.  No  encore  was  granted  to  us  that  night,  and  the
bitter-sweet taste of having actually seen Slayer,  but  only  for  a
ridiculously short 50 minutes, probably remained long in many a fan's
mouth that evening.
     After another twenty-minute  break,  the  glorious  heavy  metal
legends Iron Maiden then appeared, and things took an unpleasant turn
as they instantly opened fire with two  tracks  from  their  horrible
last collection of essential deja-vu classics, _Brave New  World_.  I
fail to remember  what  tracks  they  played  from  this  "Brave  New
Reformation" that night,  but  I  do  however  recall  that  we  were
mercilessly treated to every track featuring  a  "wohowoho"  sequence
for the public to sing (and occasionally collectively  go  flat)  to,
including rather lengthy and unconvincing "epic" slabs such as "Dream
of Mirrors" or "Blood Brothers". Compared to  the  splendorous  track
listing and stage of last  year's  tour,  the  backdrop  here  seemed
rather bland  and  uninteresting,  and  Iron  Maiden's  selection  of
material did nothing to stray away from the  assortment  of  classics
they have taken the customary habit of treating their  audiences  to,
such as "Wrathchild", "Iron Maiden", "The Number of  the  Beast"  and
"Two Minutes  to  Midnight".  The  sextet  unfortunately  decided  to
studiously ignore all material from their 1987 masterpiece _Somewhere
in Time_, and their godly _Seventh Son of a  Seventh  Son_  was  very
meekly represented by the nonetheless great "The Evil That Men Do".
     But Iron Maiden's strong point was, as always,  their  fantastic
scenic presence; Bruce Dickinson was absolutely frantic  that  night,
as he tirelessly ran from one end  of  the  stage  to  another,  then
appearing crucified on a cross  that  was  raised  behind  the  stage
decor, gracing French audiences with some of the most perfect singing
I have ever heard from him. The string section put on a fine show  as
usual, Dave Murray's  and  Adrian  Smith's  godly  leads  ceaselessly
giving chase to one another, Steve Harris bass-gunning the  audience,
and Janick Gers making a total fool of himself on many an occasion --
a heart-warming sight indeed, something that has the feel  of  coming
home after a long journey... After the Maiden first left  the  stage,
faithful to tradition, an encore gimmick took place, as always capped
off by a brilliant interpretation of "Hallowed Be  thy  Name";  Bruce
Dickinson was literally ethereal on this track, so perfectly flawless
were  his  vocals,  reaching  heights  unknown  to  me  with  utterly
awe-inspiring smoothness.
     The band then left the  stage  for  good,  and  Bercy  began  to
empty... I can't help but think that despite his electric performance
that night, Bruce must feel somehow restrained on a  tame  collection
of rather banal heavy metal  material  such  as  _Brave  New  World_;
however, I sincerely wish that the Maiden's next offering will  prove
me wrong, and that with the ideal line-up  they  have  conjured,  the
Britons will release the glorious sequel a timeless milestone such as
_Seventh Son of a Seventh Son_ so direly deserves.

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

                THE MAIDEN VOYAGE TO A BRAVE NEW WORLD
                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                   Iron Maiden, Slayer and Entombed
                  at Earls Court 1, London, England
                           June 16th, 2000
                           by: Paul Schwarz


     Having arrived and just sat down, I was immediately  greeted  by
the dimming of lights, and shortly by the  eruption  of  "Eyemaster",
preceded as ever by Entombed's Imperial March intro, from the  --  at
this remove  --  tiny  stage.  Though  going  back  only  as  far  as
_Wolverine Blues_ -- save for the closing half of  "Left  Hand  Path"
which likewise closed the set --, Entombed put on a good show, with a
half-full Earls Court sporting enough Entombed fans to voice the post
chorus "Fuck!"  of  "Out  of  Hand".  Entombed  acquitted  themselves
adequately to the Maiden-only,  truly  -adult-  audience,  but  their
impact is much more profound in a club atmosphere  where  their  punk
attitude and overdriven rage  can  fester  under  contained  pressure
rather than dissipate uselessly into the air  around  them.  Entombed
are just -not- an arena band.
     But neither are Slayer. However, the  major  difference  between
the two is that while cramming Slayer into a smaller  venue  compacts
their aggression  down  into  an  inexorable  juggernaut  of  musical
destruction, the band are experienced and adaptable  enough  to  cope
with other situations; in five times of seeing Slayer  (two  outdoor,
three indoor including this  evening)  they  have  always  ruled  and
always reaffirmed my faith in metal's worth,  never  have  they  even
come close to disappointing. Tonight was no  different.  Veterans  of
more than two or three Slayer gigs in the  nineties  will  note,  and
maybe object to, the fact that there is only a certain catalogue  the
band ever draw from live (and every song  pre-'94  on  tonight's  set
list can be found on the _Live: Decade of Aggression_ double CD set),
though this catalogue covers virtually every album  in  some  way  or
another. But this was certainly no pitfall this evening; where Slayer
may actually be gaining new fans rather than merely  reaffirming  the
faith of their following. Anyway, who can seriously object  to  being
treated to belting renditions of the likes of "War Ensemble", "Bitter
Peace", "Raining Blood", "Hell Awaits" and "Angel of Death"?  Tonight
the extra treat on the menu is not the  lack  of  Tom  Araya's  usual
stoic silence, but "Here Comes  the  Pain",  a  new  track  which  is
showcased. With lots of dirge  and  a  crushing  low-tuned  riff  its
nucleus, "Here Comes the Pain" was progressive while still  retaining
Slayer's  very  individual  character,  and  it  bodes  well  for   a
forthcoming new record.
     So, it's on to Iron Maiden. Seven years  since  Bruce  was  last
here with "the boys", or vice-versa, and things have finally come  to
the crunch on their "home-turf", after the band have  been  half  way
around the world. Strange maybe, that Iron Maiden should wait so long
to come home, but there is no bitterness in the air  as  Earls  Court
goes ablaze with light, sound -- and a few  small  pyros  --  as  the
opening riff of "The Wicker Man" sounds out and Maiden kick off a set
filled at every moment with energy and exuberance, but  unfortunately
not always filled with the greatest of their songs. "The Wicker  Man"
is a damn fine opener (as I wagered it would be), but "Ghost  of  the
Navigator" is not quite  the  follow-up  -I-  was  looking  for,  and
immediately adding "Brave New World" to the catalogue of  new  tracks
showcased did stretch my patience, and visibly the patience of others
around me. Maiden return to safe waters with  "Wrathchild"  and  then
follow with the godly "2 Minutes to Midnight" before challenging  our
minds once again with the present-day-Metallica Vs.  Manowar-isms  of
"Blood Brothers". Things continue in more  or  less  this  vein  with
Maiden contrasting old and new -- crowd-pleaser vs.  crowd-challenger
-- and thus trawling through two more ("The Mercenary" and "Dream  of
Mirrors") from _Brave New World_ and a small selection of  Bailey-era
material in the shape of "Sign of  the  Cross"  and  "The  Clansman".
Despite closing with a straight run of old material --  from  "final"
song "The Evil That Men Do" through the whole  four  song  encore  of
"Number of the Beast", "Hallowed Be  thy  Name",  "Iron  Maiden"  and
"Sanctuary"  --  Maiden  delivered  a   set   which,   overall,   was
disappointing. I understand that _Brave New World_  needs  promotion,
and that this is the time to do it, but -forty minutes- of  it  in  a
less-than-two-hour set? Where were classics like "Flight of  Icarus",
"Aces High" or "Run to the Hills" while the -nine-minute-  "Dream  of
Mirrors" echoed its choruses twenty times or more  through  my  head?
All the same, whatever my qualms about the new songs  chosen  or  the
old ones left out, what cannot be denied is that,  musically,  Maiden
were more than a force to be reckoned with,  they  were  a  force  to
conquer the world with. The likes of "Fear  of  the  Dark"  and  "The
Trooper" were mesmerising, powerful and anthemic: metal songs to lose
your voice to. Performance-wise, Maiden were spot on expect for a few
hairy-timing and mushy-sound moments. Set-wise, Maiden  -were-  heavy
on new songs, but between the old  ones  they  gave  us  and  Bruce's
promise in "Sanctuary"'s final throes that the  band  would  be  back
before  Christmas,  they  assured  that  no   proverbial   mud   this
performance might have thrown up would stick.  Whether  intentionally
or unintentionally, Maiden kept the attention  of  their  crowd,  and
pandered to their patience as necessary, but only as necessary.  They
cut  a  fine  balance,  but  ultimately  their   expertise   at   the
give-and-take game of live performance,  sent,  I  believe,  everyone
home smiling and expectant of the next  time  they  would  roll  into
town. I can't  tell  if  it  was  deliberately  planned,  but  Maiden
succeeded in getting a -very- indulgent set  list  past  an  audience
who'd waited at  least  seven  years  to  see  them.  To  me,  that's
testament not only to their fans' loyalty, but also to the quality of
the performance they put on.

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          A I R   G U I T A R   R A I D   O N   Z U R I C H
          ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
           Bruce Dickinson, Steve Harris and Nicko McBrain
          plus three unplugged guitars, a.k.a. Iron Maiden,
                    supported by Spiritual Beggars
              at the Hallenstadion, Zurich, Switzerland
                             July 7, 2000
                          by: Matthias Noll


     What a change of vocalist can accomplish is simply amazing. From
their descent into the small venues, Iron Maiden have returned to the
big 4000 or 5000 seat arenas, at least in Europe.
     The Spiritual Beggars, lead by the multi-talented Michael Amott,
did fairly well in front of the 4000 Maiden fans. Even the fact  that
the keyboards made Amott hardly audible did not stop the people  down
the front from showing their appreciation by raising their fists  and
applauding enthusiastically after each song. The band  looked  a  bit
odd on the big stage, but they definitely managed  to  win  many  new
fans with an enthusiastic, driving performance.
     Maybe because I got too used to the multiple band  line-ups,  it
was kind of weird to see  the  headliner  so  soon,  after  only  one
opening act. Introduced by a very dramatic  classical  intro,  Maiden
entered the stage, greeted by a sea of hands and ear-shattering noise
from a crowd that went absolutely crazy and generated a  hair-raising
atmosphere that sparkled with electricity. Adrian Smith led the  band
into "The Wicker Man" and when Murray and Gers joined him  (at  least
they started working their guitars) I couldn't  help  but  laugh  out
loud, because the sound coming from the stage left the impression  of
a band making an attempt for the  Guiness  book  of  records  in  the
category "the band with the least power per  guitar".  Picture  this:
three good guitarists on a big stage, running  around,  posing  (Gers
should think about giving lessons for air guitarists), banging  their
heads; and what you hear is drums, bass, vocals... A  special  thanks
to Bruce Dickinson for telling the crowd that "Heavy Metal" is, among
other things, about loud guitars  --  what's  Maiden,  then,  trance?
Dickinson himself was in top form and it was mainly him who made  the
gig an enjoyable event. His vocal delivery in "Hallowed Be thy Name",
"The Evil That Men Do", "Dream of Mirrors", "Sign of the  Cross"  and
"Fear of the Dark" were simply amazing, and with  the  help  of  4000
vocalists in the audience, he  was  weaving  that  hair-raising  epic
Maiden magic. However, I felt that the set list was a  bit  short  of
classic material. In addition to the songs I already  mentioned,  the
band played "Wrathchild", "The Trooper", "Two Minutes  to  Midnight",
"Number of the Beast", weak versions of "Iron Maiden" and "Sanctuary"
(imagine these songs without powerful  guitars),  plus  another  four
songs from _Brave New World_ -- but with  so  many  albums  you  just
can't do everything you should. Overall, I have to say that it really
felt great to see the classic Iron Maiden back on the big stages, but
please, bring the guitars with you next  time  around  (and  if  that
helps, leave Steve Harris at home).

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                  D E V I L ' S   P L A Y T H I N G
                  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                 Danzig, Six Feet Under and Disturbed
                        in Cedar Rapids, Iowa
                            March 31, 2000
                           by: Aaron McKay


     News of the Mighty One's slated date to perform  live  in  Cedar
Rapids, Iowa fell upon my ears like a sunset shower on parched earth.
Not since the Milwaukee MetalFest o' so long ago have  I  been  to  a
show -so- worth travelling to see. What's that? Six Feet Under is  on
the ticket, as well?! My revered brothers from the  Sunshine  State?!
Damn, I couldn't wait. Before departing for the show,  I  arranged  a
brief interview with the "Man in Black" himself for  a  word  on  the
March 31 gig (see Mr. Danzig's  interview,  "Machine",  elsewhere  in
this issue).  Serving  as  a  delectable  appetizer,  my  hunger  for
Danzig's appearance increased ten-fold.
     Arriving about 7:30 p.m. at Third Street Live, my  concert-going
companions and myself were greeted with a line that  the  venue,  I'm
sure, hasn't seen in ages. A snake-like throng  of  souls  stretching
out from the door to oblivion that we had to somehow find the end of.
Eventually making our way inside, I grabbed a frosty brew just as the
opening act, Disturbed -- hailing from Chicago, I believe -- fired up
what turned out to be a tight and  concise  set;  not  too  long  and
respectful of the bands to follow. Not having ever  been  exposed  to
this band of miscreants previously, I found myself chugging along  to
a semi-techno, Pro-Pain-esque power rhythm that  wasn't  terrible  to
stomach, despite  Disturbed's  obvious  influences  stemming  from  a
number of other established outfits. I did observe, standing near the
concert gear stand, that Disturbed's tour shirts were  selling  at  a
pretty good clip. I think they made a fan or  two  at  the  show,  at
least.
     I could feel the tension, as could the crowd; Six Feet Under was
next. My first witness to this arguably  formidable  group  of  death
metal prognosticators. During my years  in  Florida,  I've  seen  the
these gentlemen in their preceding  organizations:  Cannibal  Corpse,
Death and Massacre. Now was the time for SFU! Opening with  an  array
of new material off of _Maximum Violence_ that got the people stirred
up substantially, Six Feet Under were not careless  to  include  some
favorites like "Insect", "War Is Coming", "Lycanthropy" and  "Beneath
the Black Sky". All told, they would have stolen the show if not  for
the great and all-powerful Danzig to follow.
     Blasting on stage with the force of tempest,  Glenn  overwhelmed
the mid-West multitude with musical attitude and  style  uncommon  in
today's industry. Danzig worked his album repertoire with the  utmost
skill and ease found only in a musician of Glenn's  caliber.  Dancing
with dexterity between the encompassing new release, _Satan's Child_,
and his vast back catalog, all the while playing to the audience  for
their participation. Glenn bellowed richly from his metal pulpit  for
the fans to decree the next song from either  the  second  or  fourth
Danzig release. The crowd fires back resoundingly, "TWO!  TWO!  TWO!"
-- "Killer Wolf" ensues. Straight from  one  song  to  the  next.  No
talking, almost without exception, as a perfect  fusion  of  material
became evident through Danzig's set to the appreciation of  an  eager
horde. Tracks like "Under  Her  Black  Wings"  and  "Twist  of  Cain"
enraptured seasoned followers while the new tech-tinged  material  of
the latest issuance, _Satan's Child_, flowed  effortlessly  forth  to
mold the prevailing, "Johnny-come-lately" mass into the  fold.  Do  I
have to mention at this point what the encore was? "Mother",  despite
its popularity, is -still- stunning!
     Some of my favorites include "Brand New God" and "Until You Call
on the Dark" from _Danzig 4_, "7th House" off of _Blackacidevil_, and
"It's Comin' Down" on 1993's _Thrall-Demonsweatlive_ EP.  If  I  must
confess my one and only disappointment, it would be the  omission  of
"Devil's Plaything", my personal favorite from _Lucifuge_.
     The reconfigured line-up did a remarkably  fine  job,  including
former DGen bassist Howie Pyro, his inclusion having been only in the
last couple of weeks. This transpiring from Josh  Lazie's  desire  to
terminate his tenure with the band to focus more on  family  matters;
the substitution having been completed before this concert,  Danzig's
first date of the tour.  I  would  have  to  admit  it  went  largely
unnoticed by the devotees there to observe the performance.
     The hour and a half set  came  to  fruition  much  too  quickly.
Danzig arrived, captivated, and subsequently departed leaving awe and
devastation in his wake. If you have never seen  Glenn  Danzig  live,
-do so now-; If you have, see him again. The force of  the  show  was
imposing and the satisfaction -- treasured. You are welcome  in  Iowa
anytime, Mr. Danzig, but please, next time, play "Devil's Plaything"!

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

   T H E R E ' S   N O   M E R C Y   I N   S A T A N ' S   O V E N
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
          Deicide, Immortal, Cannibal Corpse, Marduk, Vader,
               Dark Funeral, Hate Eternal and Vomitory
                 at the Hafenbahn, Offenbach, Germany
                            April 23, 2000
                          by: Matthias Noll


     An incredibly hot Easter Saturday did not stop about 800 extreme
metal maniacs  from  witnessing  the  year  2000  No  Mercy  tour  in
Offenbach. Despite temperatures way above 35 degrees Celsius (it felt
like 60) inside the sold-out Hafenbahn,  countless  individuals  took
the chance to present their truest outfit including Gladiator  boots,
leather coats, denim jackets, long-sleeve t-shirts and  other  assets
of the true black/death metaller who is experienced  in  withstanding
the fires of  hell.  Personally,  I  did  have  problems  lighting  a
cigarette and keeping it on fire for more than a few seconds, because
the sweat was running down my arms like the river Styx.
     The heat did immediately increase when Vomitory unleashed a good
dose of Scandinavian old school death metal. Not really  spectacular,
but they turned out to be a good opening act  with  aggressive  stage
acting and some decent tunes. The crowd reaction was OK and I've seen
opening bands do much worse under such extreme conditions.
     On the second slot, Offenbach already got one of  death  metal's
shooting stars of 1999: Hate Eternal.  Definitely  one  of  the  most
anticipated acts of the No Mercy tour, the  band  turned  out  to  be
seriously handicapped by the loss of second guitarist  Doug  Cerrito.
Even Eric Rutan's extensive live experience did not prevent a  rather
disastrous performance, which suffered from a lack of  heaviness  and
definition -- individual songs were only distinguishable  by  Rutan's
guitar solos. The three-piece appeared rather tired, did not have any
real stage  presence  and  wasn't  really  up  to  their  mission  of
attacking with some serious, brain damaging death metal.
     Dark Funeral did  not  really  manage  to  raise  the  level  of
excitement with their live set. Twenty  minutes  passed  without  any
real highlights or reaction from the  crowd  until  they  once  again
ended their set with the rather odd Slayer cover version  "Dead  Skin
Mask". The crowd suddenly came alive, fists were raised  and  banging
heads appeared everywhere. In my opinion it's a rather poor trick, to
gain the only crowd attention  with  a  Slayer  cover  (who  wouldn't
headbang during this one?). My advice:  add  "Am  I  Evil",  "Ace  of
Spades" and "Post Mortem"  and  next  time  the  whole  gig  will  be
successful.
     After numerous convincing appearances on  German  stages,  Vader
definitely do not suffer from a small fanbase. The  Hafenbahn  stayed
alive and the crowd started to  rush  towards  the  stage  and  chant
"Vader, Vader". Knowing that time was short, Peter Wiwczarek  greeted
the crowd with the words "Kameraden, tonight there'll  be  no  mercy"
and the  band  directly  launched  the  crushing  "Blood  of  Kingu".
Sometimes headbanging while on their knees, the band delivered  their
usual energetic stage show conducted by  their  fortunately  returned
drummer Doc, who remained nearly motionless  despite  the  incredible
whirlwind he produced with his kit. "Red Passage", "Sothis",  "Wings"
and "Xeper" were all executed perfectly and once again  Vader  proved
to be one of the best live bands in the death metal genre.
     After some exhausting headbanging and still under  the  memories
of Marduk's disappointing gig when  they  supported  Cannibal  Corpse
last year, I left the venue for some time to cool down  in  front  of
the hall. I returned halfway through their  set  and  was  pleasantly
surprised by a much more convincing show than  last  time.  The  band
sounded  much  more  aggressive  this  time  around   --   especially
throughout "Funeral Bitch" and "Wolves" --, Legion's stage acting was
frantic as always but came across a lot less poseur than  last  time,
and I start to see  that  their  hyperfast  material  like  "Scorched
Earth" or "Panzerdivision Marduk" really works when the  band  is  in
top form.
     Following Marduk, Cannibal Corpse used a  slightly  altered  set
list and opened with "Staring Through  the  Eyes  of  the  Dead"  and
"Stripped, Raped and Strangled", two  mind-numbing  songs  from  _The
Bleeding_. Their sound was inferior to the last show I witnessed, but
the band still managed to play a  convincing  set  that  pleased  all
death metallers in the  audience.  The  band's  tightness  and  power
during  killer  material  like  "Unleashing  the   Bloodthirsty"   is
something that will make me always return to see them again.
     For most, Immortal were  the  real  headliners  of  this  event.
Unfortunately, the whole schedule was blown to pieces  by  this  time
and they were left with meagre 20 or 25 minutes. I  had  been  really
looking forward to see the band, but tonight they did not seem to  be
in complete control of the forces of nebula winter.  Abbath's  guitar
sound was way too thin and his playing on "Triumph"  and  "Solarfall"
was extremely sloppy. New  bassist  Iscariah  looked  extremly  wimpy
underneath the corpse paint and did not add that much musically; only
Horgh  (who  fortunatley  was  wearing  a  shirt)  did  a  good  job,
delivering some intense drumming. Hardly ever was the  band  able  to
unleash some ice-cold black metal atmosphere upon  the  crowd.  Songs
like  "Mountains  of  Might"  even  sounded  a  bit  commercial  when
delivered the  way  they  sounded  during  Immortal's  gig  and  both
Abbath's  and  Legion's  fire-spitting  intermezzos  were  also  more
amusing than impressive. I'm sure Immortal can do a lot  better  than
that; maybe it was just too hot for the frostdemons to rule.
     Deicide had the headliner slot, but with an eight  band  line-up
I'm sure this is definitely more a status symbol than an advantageous
position. By this time everybody was  tired,  soaked  with  sweat  or
about to break into dry, tiny little puzzle pieces because  of  acute
dehydration, and the crowd reaction was weak at best. The long breaks
between individual songs, which were used by Benton to  announce  the
upcoming track accompanied by endless wannabe evil breathing into the
microphone didn't help to  maintain  a  steady  level  of  excitement
throughout the show either. To my delight the band played some  great
tunes like "Dead by Dawn", "When Satan Rules His World" and "Dead but
Dreaming" with a sound that was far better  and  heavier  than  their
Scott "where the hell did that natural guitar sound get  lost  again"
Burns produced albums. Stage acting wise there wasn't much going  on;
Benton occasionally banged, big Hoffmann was probably thinking  about
weightlifting and little Hoffmann and drummer Steve Asheim did  their
job but nothing more. Overall, Deicide were quite OK, but after seven
other bands, not really capable of wreaking havoc  and  proving  that
they really deserved the headliner slot.

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             S C O T L A N D   S K I N N E D   A L I V E
             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
            Dismember, Akercocke, Infestation and Regorge
                  at the Cathouse, Glasgow, Scotland
                            May 22nd, 2000
                           by: Paul Schwarz


     Regorge, the  local  support,  show  far  more  promise  onstage
tonight than on their  comparatively  derivative  _Decerebate_  demo.
Launching an instrumentally  superior  attack  with  an  impressively
clear live sound, they grind, groove and occasionally blast their way
through a blistering twenty minutes of death/grind, interspersed with
decent leads and a deftly  executed  finger-tapping  descension  into
chaos. Successfully casting off most of their borrowed,  Malevolently
Created rags, Regorge display potential to move to a new level.
     Infestation's commanding crowd control exemplifies just  such  a
higher echelon to reach. Despite some muddiness in  their  sound  and
the crowd's likely unfamiliarity with their material, Infestation (as
ever  without  bassist)  belted  out  their  Florida-influenced   and
pounding tirades drawing a crowd response second only  to  Dismember.
The cries for more echoed  even  after  Infestation  had  regretfully
succumbed to the constraints of  their  allotted  stage  time,  after
squeezing in the traditionally  death  metal  themed  short-but-sweet
"Butcher Knife".
     Unsurprisingly, Akercocke's blend of grim  death/black  blasting
and a darkly occult, semi-corporate atmosphere did  not  go  down  so
easy with the gathered death horde. That the PA didn't bring  to  the
fore Akercocke's infamous love for "the blast" (despite the fact that
it did bring out their solos and dynamics), and that  Jason's  guitar
went totally dead after about the third song  in,  did  not  aid  the
crowd's uneasy digestion of such sharply contrasting  soundscapes  to
the rest of the evening's entertainment.  Unconventional  songs  like
"Marguerite &  Gretchen"  are  just  not  instant  death  metal-crowd
pleasers. The response was about 50 for 50 against as far as I  could
see, ranging from enthusiasm to open derision. Akercocke  will  shift
that balance with more live work in Scotland -- this was their  first
show here, after all.
     As Dismember's opening volley of _Hate  Campaign_'s  preliminary
three song medley blasts from the PA, it becomes quickly evident that
their first(!) Scottish performance will not be a let down either  to
the fanbase or to Dismember themselves. "Of Fire",  "Bleed  for  Me",
"Trendkiller" and "Hate Campaign" itself scorched their way from  the
speakers cementing my developing feeling recently that Dismember have
somehow become timeless in their own sphere;  their  material  sounds
neither  old  nor  new:  just  like  them,  just   Dismember.   Sure,
Blomqvist's guitar went out for a song or so,  and  yeah,  maybe  the
sound wasn't perfect all the way through, but by the time  the  final
encore of "Override the Overture" and the classic "Dreaming  in  Red"
came rushing like a storm from the stage, when soundboard,  band  and
crowd had all got into the swing of things, there  was  nothing  that
could have stopped the crowd from moving, and my  current  sore  neck
becoming an assured consequence of the evening out. When a previously
unexposed patron exclaimed his surprise at Dismember not being bigger
within the metal scene, even a cynic like me had to stop and wonder.

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

    I N V A D E R I N G   F R O M   A C R O S S   T H E   S E A S
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
           Vader, Vital Remains, Fleshcrawl and Rebaelliun
                  at the Underworld, London, England
                            June 8th, 2000
                           by: Paul Schwarz


     Stirred from pottering about  the  Underworld  waiting  for  the
evening's musically destructive events to kick off by the unholy roar
of Rebaelliun in full live swing, I quickly headed for the  stage  to
see how well these  frantic  but  talented  Brazilians  would  acquit
themselves in the live arena. Overall,  Rebaelliun  fared  relatively
well, conjuring memories of seeing Angel Corpse  play  at  this  very
venue two years ago in  support  of  Immortal,  by  virtue  of  their
roaring but unclear live sound, monstrously loud, stark  and  violent
presence,  and  shaven  headed,  spitefully-venom-spitting  vocalist.
Rebaelliun were more about impact  than  music:  they  made  a  great
impact, but you could hardly pick out the songs themselves, save  for
the dynamically brutal cover of Morbid Angel's  "Day  of  Suffering".
Like Angel Corpse's, a performance which did not do the band justice,
but which seemed to draw interest from enough people to  assure  that
their next visit should be at least quietly triumphant.
     Despite well-executing a Swedish death  metal  album  with  this
year's _As Blood Rains From the Sky... We Walk the  Path  of  Endless
Fire_, I could  think  of  little  reason  before  this  evening  why
Fleshcrawl's existence in today's extreme music scene was in any  way
necessary -- we certainly had more than enough well-executed  Swedish
death metal albums before _As  Blood..._  came  into  existence.  But
Fleshcrawl live is about the only way, in the early zeros, to  see  a
Swedish death metal band play live in the early  nineties.  The  only
other way I can picture involves Dismember, a set  list  composed  of
_Like an Everflowing Stream_ and a selection of Carnage covers, and a
lot of strong Swedish beer.
     Next for the chop was Vital Remains, and I'll be honest,  I  was
expecting a safe, solid performance  to  welcome  new  vocalist  Jake
(replacing the only recently returned Jeff Gruslin, who replaced  the
disgraced Thorns); I was completely  unprepared  for  the  proverbial
massacre which ensued shortly after Vital  Remains  took  the  stage.
Anticipation was running reassuringly high for the  band's  first  UK
performance -- and there was me cynically thinking  I  might  be  the
only one who cared. Things were getting hot, the intro to the  band's
last _Dawn of the Apocalypse_ [CoC  #45]  (warped,  melodramatic  and
classical) was spinning. Then from the  pint-sized  Jake,  "This  is,
BLACK MAGICK CUURRSSSE!!!!" And then all hell  broke  loose.  With  a
more raw and overdriven guitar sound than on  their  recorded  albums
and some of the crispest drumming this side of Pete Sandoval courtesy
of David Suzuki, Vital Remains tore through, among others,  "Sanctity
in Blasphemous Ruin", "Dawn of the Apocalypse", "Flag of Victory" and
"Battleground". Sound and playing crushed  for  nearly  their  entire
set, with only a few points where the band lost momentum.  But  there
was something more here this evening. There was something in the  air
between  the  band  and  the  crowd,  something  powerful.   Founding
guitarist Tony Lazaro realised this and harnessed it. He became  like
a general inspiring a berserk mob to violence, raising his  fist  and
roaring like some great unearthly beast.  Vital  Remains  synthesised
tight playing, a  crushing  sound  and  a  presence  to  match  their
muscular, dark music to result in one of  the  finest,  most  fitting
death metal performances I can recall:  masterful  and  monstrous  in
finely-balanced measure.
     Enthusiasm was of a similar, though less extraordinary level for
Vader. The band have visited the UK enough times to have a rock solid
base of support here. And so we waited out their melodramatic-but-fun
intro, which had more than a hint of militarism to it, and for  Peter
to  welcome  us,  in  his  charismatic  tones,   to   another   Vader
performance, closing his speech, as always, with  those  now-immortal
words, "Join us... it's time...  to  die!".  Vader  carved  viciously
through a set pleasantly  heavy  with  _De  Profundis_  and  _Litany_
numbers, and sprinkled with choice cuts from _Black to the Blind_ and
"Creatures of Light  and  Darkness".  Between  the  to-the-point  new
material and the classy old stuff there was  not  a  dull  moment  in
Vader's entire set. Though not as war-like as  Vital  Remains,  Vader
never lost their momentum and I am  now  convinced  that  with  their
_Litany_ material beefing up their set, they are one of the  must-see
metal bands out there. The only feeling myself  and  other  CoCers  I
consulted with had was that more convincing lead work  would  improve
their impact on both  record  and  in  the  live  arena.  That  said,
everything about Vader now fits, and the band are one of the tightest
musical units out there. I don't care if they keep  coming  back  and
molesting me with tonight's exact same set list, I'd still turn up to
watch them rip things up and ruin my ears time and time  again.  Like
Slayer, Vader are a rock solid but  ever-invigorating  act  to  watch
live.

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

            P L E D G E   Y O U R   A L L E G I A N C E !
            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                         Suicidal Tendencies
                  at the Astoria 2, London, England
                            June 2nd, 2000
                           by: Paul Schwarz


     Suicidal Tendencies hadn't  been  in  the  UK  for  eight  years
previous to this show, and though I have only been  waiting  half  as
long for the band to return to these shores, if you include the years
before they reformed, I was nonetheless itching  to  see  what  these
hardcore heroes could do in the live arena.
     A similarly expectant, and to my eyes  a  surprisingly  youthful
crowd welcomes seasoned vet (and sole original member for a long time
now) Mike Muir and his current crop of talented cohorts to the  small
stage. Suicidal have evidently neither been  forsaken  by  those  who
missed their heyday, or those who stuck with them  through  to  their
original 1994/5 break up. Nearly two decades in music don't  seem  to
have taken much of a  toll  on  the  ever  animated  "Cyco  Miko"  as
Suicidal energetically tore through  a  set  comprised  centrally  of
their beginning (_Suicidal Tendencies_), middle (_Lights... Camera...
Revolution_) and end (_Freedumb_, to date),  though  they  drew  from
pretty much every record in  their  catalogue.  Muir  was  inimitably
"Cyco". His performance was rife with  dynamic  posturing,  unashamed
grooving about the stage and often incoherent and manic stage  babble
juxtaposed with positive, message-ridden tirades on how to live life.
His  focal  persona  was  completed  by  his  basketball  player-like
appearance, knee-high socks in  classic  Suicidal  style  and  -that-
bandanna. Muir's focality was  not,  however,  to  make  up  for  his
bandmates, who each had their own visual character which blended with
the whole picture. All members meshed together to make the  stage  an
ever-fluctuating source of activity, which pumped up the music of the
one and a quarter hour set immensely. The likes of "Fascist  Pig"  or
"I Want More" (which tonight was stylishly preceded by a  funk-styled
jam) may be seventeen years old, but Suicidal belted  them  out  with
the exuberance such that you'd think they just scribbled them down in
the van five minutes before. Such was Suicidal's  exuberance  that  I
can even forgive the over-abundance  of  self-glorifying  anthems  in
this  evening's  set;  though  choosing  numbers  like  "Pledge  Your
Allegiance", "Join the Army" or "We Are Family" over better tracks on
their respective albums  does  warrant  comment,  it  did  not  spoil
Suicidal's otherwise relatively well-chosen set. Suicidal were fun to
watch live, rife as their performance, or more  specifically  Muir's,
was with tongue-in-cheek humour, goofy, accentuated stage  poses  and
great music: from the hard and fast likes of "Two-Sided Politics"  to
the funky, grooved up bounce of "Send Me Your  Money".  However,  any
laughing, out loud or otherwise, was with Suicidal, and not at  them.
Tonight's performance reeked of a statement of  intent;  a  measuring
stick by which to measure  the  performances  of  today's  metal  and
hardcore bands. And few that I have witnessed match Suicidal in  both
power -and- charisma.

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  @@!  @@!  @@! @@!  @@@ @@!   @@!   @@!      @@!  @@@ !@  !@@
  @!!  !!@  @!@ @!@!!@!  !!@   @!!   @!!!:!   @!@!!@!       !@@!!
   !:  !!:  !!  !!: :!!  !!:   !!:   !!:      !!: :!!          !:!
    ::.:  :::    :   : : :      :    : :: :::  :   : :     ::.: :

          @@@  @@@  @@@ @@@@@@@   @@@@@@  @@@@@@@ @@@  @@@
          @@!  @@!  @@! @@!  @@@ @@!  @@@   @@!   @@!  @@@
          @!!  !!@  @!@ @!@!!@!  @!@!@!@!   @!!   @!@!@!@!
           !:  !!:  !!  !!: :!!  !!:  !!!   !!:   !!:  !!!
            ::.:  :::    :   : :  :   : :    :     :   : :

Here is where things get ugly. Writer's Wrath  gives  our  writers  a
chance to voice their own opinions about certain hot  topics  in  the
scene  today.  Check  out  this  column  for  the  most  obscene  and
controversial ramblings this side of the National Enquirer.


                  MACHINE HEAD ARE BECOMING MANOWAR!
                  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                           by: Paul Schwarz


     Returning from the Lost Weekend at the London Arena a  mere  few
hours ago, it suddenly dawned on me that I could kill two  proverbial
birds with a mere single stone. The first "bird" was  fulfilling  our
beloved  editor's  recent  request  for  something  opinionated   and
discursive in our anniversary issue. The second was the  niggling  in
my  mind  after  watching  the  around-an-hour-long  performance   by
Oakland's non-finest (try Neurosis for  that),  that  I  -needed-  to
share my thoughts about the "performance" they put on  with  a  wider
audience.
     First, some  background.  (*)  In  1987  Manowar  changed.  They
stopped being simply an honest, musically brilliant  metal  band  and
turned themselves into "Metal Gods". Proclaiming their own greatness,
Manowar showered about cheap religious imagery and  even  included  a
cheesy writ on the reverse of their album characterising the  playing
of metal music as taking part in a war. I think Manowar got away with
it, and  I  enjoy  the  fantasy  of  their  present  larger-than-life
personas, but there is something cheesy and excessively  brash  about
their output and attitude post _Fighting the World_, and a part of me
wishes they had left more of their honesty  intact.  I  give  Machine
Head two albums to do their _Fighting  the  World_.  The  performance
tonight at the London Arena may have suffered from bad sound, and the
band may have triumphed over this "adversity" and made a lot of kids,
down in the pit, mosh-happy, but  their  attitude  and  stage  banter
tonight was about as bad as Manowar at Dynamo last year, and far less
tolerable. Machine Head didn't try to strip  a  woman  on  stage  and
Machine Head didn't play a rock 'n' roll  ending  for  every  one  of
their songs, but give 'em a few years and I'm  sure  they  can  reach
Manowar's levels of on-stage sexism, masculine single-mindedness, and
rock 'n' roll indulgence; but I guarantee they'll never get away with
it like Manowar do. As I said, I love Manowar's image as a -fantasy-:
I don't believe it and I -certainly- don't need another  band  taking
on such an image, least of all Machine Head  --  though  after  being
bored by _The More Things Change..._ and uninterested in _The Burning
Red_, it wouldn't really make much of an impact on my life.  However,
before I get ahead of myself, I'll present my evidence.
     About half way through  the  evening's  set,  in  a  pause  from
thrashing his guitar or rapping at "da mike", Rob Flynn  got  on  the
proverbial soapbox and spoke  his  mind.  Beginning  innocently  with
Machine Head's absence from the UK  live  scene  over  the  last  six
months, Rob went on to voice his anger at what "certain magazines" --
he didn't (wouldn't?) say which --  had  been  saying  about  Machine
Head. He went on  to  criticise  the  same  "certain  magazines"  for
"saying heavy music was dead and then putting N-Sync on the cover  of
their magazine", if I remember his words correctly.  I  had  no  idea
what magazine he was going on about, and the bemused  looks  of  some
knowledgeable friends suggested that I wasn't alone in my  ignorance.
I shouted "Which magazine?"  at  the  stage,  but  my  question  went
unheard or, at least, unanswered. Rob then asked everyone to look  at
the person next to them and remember that "they" are what keeps heavy
music alive. He then got the crowd into a chant of "I say "fuck", you
say "you"" (or was it "yeah"?), seemingly in  answer  to  the  people
that -he- claimed were trying to destroy heavy music. Now, I'll  take
this all back if someone can show me -evidence- to suggest  that  Rob
was -really- trying to rally the metal troops and save  heavy  music,
but to me this all seemed like a cheap gimmick  to  get  a  crowd  of
boozed up punters shouting, and thinking that Machine Head were  some
kind of saviours sent from on high. Or maybe  it  was  to  show  that
Machine Head  were  just  (professional  musicians  and...)  ordinary
metal-mad kids, just like their audience. Maybe what Rob was  saying,
if we read between the lines, was that we were  all,  I  don't  know,
Brothers of Metal, maybe? But it gets better. Rob also went on and on
about drinking and partying. Nothing wrong  with  that,  but  it  all
seemed cheap. Machine Head were  posturing,  they  weren't  giving  a
considered opinion, they were soaking  up  cheap  claps,  cheers  and
shouts from a drunk, adrenaline-fuelled crowd.
     However, Rob clinched my feeling that next time round  he  might
as well ride onto stage on a Harley clad in  leather  chaps  (lacking
any style in doing so...), when he finished with a  final  few  words
which went something like "rock out, drink  beer  and  fuck  girls!".
Could that be the same as the reverse of one of Manowar's t-shirts --
"Born to rock, drink and fuck" --, only put in a -more-  sexist  way?
Rob, at least a quarter of your audience were  women,  I'd  estimate,
are you saying they all are, or  should  be,  lesbians,  or  are  you
saying that only the men are -real- Machine Head fans? -Brothers-  of
Metal? Funny that Rob's words were -so- close to Manowar's last  year
at Dynamo where, I think, Joey DeMaio asked the crowd  two  questions
about sexual preference: "How many guys here like  girls?"  and  "How
many girls here like girls?". Machine Head at one point  pretty  much
played the drumbeat to "Fighting the World": I thought for  a  minute
they might have realised how stupid they sounded and were going to do
a cover of the aforementioned to, as it were, end the joke. Alas, no,
Machine Head must have been, marginally speaking, serious.
     Well, if Machine Head want to ham it  up  like  Manowar,  that's
cool, they'll just look stupid doing it. However, if they want to  be
taken seriously as musicians -and- as lyricists (which, if  I  recall
rightly from the Machine Head interviews I have read in the  past,  I
believe to be the case: Machine Head never seemed to be merely  "good
clean   fun"),   then   I'd   suggest   they   stop    acting    like
testosterone-driven rockers who just wanna have  a  good  time,  fuck
groupies, drink beer and claim to be the saviours of  metal.  I  love
Manowar, but if Manowar did a song about a world issue (say, I  don't
know, sexism  in  the  workplace!)  and  Joey  DeMaio  complained  in
interviews that no-one  was  taking  him  seriously,  I  wouldn't  be
terribly sympathetic.
     So, that's pretty much it. If Machine Head want to discuss  this
issue, or want to  fight  me  over  it,  then  judging  by  tonight's
performance I'll win in the case of the former and lose  should  they
choose to unleash their Oakland-bred brutality on  my  suburban  ass.
However, since the chance of even getting to  talk  to  Machine  Head
will probably involve -hours- of running around after Roadrunner's PR
department, I doubt we'll ever find out the truth about any of  this,
unless I go back to working for a "high profile" magazine like  Metal
Hammer.

(*) Thanks and credit go to Matthias  Noll  for  leading  me  to  the
realisation of Manowar's change in character on _Fighting the World_.

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

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

Our Favourite Article Titles of All Time
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Over the past five years, we have managed to come up with some pretty
damn good titles for our articles once in a while, if we may  say  so
ourselves. We therefore decided to  find  out  which  ones  were  our
favourites; the voting resulted in the following  top  10  (which  is
actually a top 12, but whatever). Many titles received votes, but  in
the end there was one clear winner. Enjoy...

1. Arckanum: The Wood Is His 'Hood
2. Clutching Onto the Last Orange: Clutch with Orange 9mm / Fu Manchu
3. Impaled Nazarene: Nazarene With a Fax Machine
4. Peaceville: The X-Viles
5. Grave: Digging Graves and Hating it
=. Lesser Known: Who Knew?
=. Testament: Thrash Up Yo Ass, Muthafucka
8. Danzig Does Dance
=. Forest of Impaled: Coppice of Corpses
=. My Dying Bride: The Bride Returns to the Bleak Rainy Moors
=. Take Your Stein, and Ramm It! Rammstein and Soulfly in Canada
=. Unholy: Tears From the Thousand Lakes


Gino's Top 5

1. Tool - _Aenima_
2. Various - _Gummo Soundtrack_
3. The Doors - _Box Set_
4. Brutal Truth - _Need to Control_
5. Life of Agony - _River Runs Red_

Adrian's Top 5

1. The Project Hate MCMXCIX - _Cyber Sonic Super Christ_
2. Thy Serpent - _Death_
3. Daylight Dies - _Idle_
4. Hatred - _The Offering_
5. Apartment 26 - _Hallucinating_

Brian's Top 5

1. Profanum - _Profanum Aeternum: Eminence of Satanic Imperial Art_
2. Spiral Architect - _A Sceptic's Universe_
3. Catharsis - _Pathways to Wholeness_
4. Windham Hell - _Reflective Depths Imbibe_
5. Pentagoria - _...And the Sky Bled Gore_

Alain's Top 5

1. Devin Townsend - _Physicist_
2. Vader - _Litany_
3. Mayhem - _Grand Declaration of War_
4. Malevolent Creation - _The Fine Art of Murder_
5. Mr. Bungle - _California_

Adam's Top 5

1. Morbid Angel - _Gateways to Annihilation_ advance
2. Nile - _Black Seeds Of Vengeance_ advance
3. Katatonia - the track "Brave"
4. Der Blutharsch - _The Track of the Hunted_
5. Enslaved's powerful set in Milwaukee still ringing through my ears

Pedro's Top 5

1. Dark Tranquillity - _Haven_
2. In Flames - _Clayman_
3. Soilwork - _The Chainheart Machine_
4. Autumn Tears - _LPfDC Act III: Winter and the Broken Angel_
5. Ashes You Leave - _The Inheritance of Sin and Shame_

Paul's Top 5

1. Discordance Axis - _The Inalienable Godless_
2. Beastie Boys - _Paul's Boutique_
3. Voivod - _Killing Technology_
4. Mercyful Fate - _Melissa_
5. Unanimated - _In the Forest of the Dreaming Dead_

Aaron's Top 5

1. Venom - _Resurrection_
2. Black Label Society - _Stronger Than Death_
3. Norkturnal Mortum - _NeChrist_
4. Stuart Hamm - _Kings of Sleep_
5. Crumbsuckers - _Life of Dreams_

David's Top 5

1. Anathema - _Alternative 4_
2. Throne of Chaos - _Menace and Prayer_
3. Thy Primordial - _The Heresy of an Age of Reason_
4. Extol - _Undeceived_
5. In Flames - _Clayman_

Matthias' Top 5

1. Soilwork - _The Chainheart Machine_
2. In Flames - _Clayman_
3. Vader - _Litany_
4. Iron Maiden - _Brave New World_
5. Entombed - _Uprising_

Alvin's Top 5

1. Manowar - _Hell on Stage Live_
2. Thy Primordial - _The Heresy of an Age of Reason_
3. Dead Silent Slumber - _Entombed in the Midnight Hour_
4. Desaster - _10 Years of Total Desaster_ DLP
5. Mayhemic Truth - _In Memoriam_

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               |  --  |  -__||   _|  _  ||  |  ||__ --|
               |_____/|_____||____|___._||__|__||_____|


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End Chronicles of Chaos, Issue #48

All contents copyright 2000 by individual creators of included  work.
All opinions expressed herein are those of the individuals expressing
them, and do not necessarily reflect the views of anyone else.
