     ____ _  _ ____ ____ _  _ _ ____ _    ____ ____    ____ ____
     |    |__| |__/ |  | |\ | | |    |    |___ [__     |  | |___
     |___ |  | |  \ |__| | \| | |___ |___ |___ ___]    |__| |

                       ____ _  _ ____ ____ ____
                       |    |__| |__| |  | [__
                       |___ |  | |  | |__| ___]

       CHRONICLES OF CHAOS e-Zine, October 19, 2001, Issue #55
                  http://www.ChroniclesOfChaos.com

Editor-in-Chief: Gino Filicetti
Coordinator: Adrian Bromley
Copy Editor / Contributor: Pedro Azevedo
Contributor: Brian Meloon
Contributor: Adam Wasylyk
Contributor: Paul Schwarz
Contributor: Aaron McKay
Contributor: David Rocher
Contributor: Matthias Noll
Contributor: Alvin Wee
Contributor: Gabriel Sanchez
Contributor: Chris Flaaten
Neophyte: Kirsty Buchanan
Neophyte: Quentin Kalis
Neophyte: Vincent Eldefors
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 #55 Contents, 10/19/01
----------------------------
* Editorial
* Loud Letters
* Deadly Dialogues
-- Emperor: Prometheus Unbound
-- Crematory: The End Complete
-- Rebaelliun: Annihilating the Competition?
-- Godgory: Creation Through Evolution
-- Jag Panzer: Unstoppable Progressive Metal Machine
-- Astroqueen: Killer Band Puts Us "Into Submission"
-- Shocore: Crossing Boundaries and Having Fun
* Album Asylum
-- Anathema - _A Fine Day to Exit_
-- Arch Enemy - _Wages of Sin_
-- Averse Sefira - _Battle's Clarion_
-- Awakening - _An Eves Nightmare_
-- Bastard Noise - _Analysis of Self Destruction_
-- Various - _Beauty in Darkness 5_
-- Benediction - _Organized Chaos_
-- Bernd Steidl - _Paganiniana_
-- Brick Bath - _I Won't Live the Lie_
-- Celestia / Goatfire -
   _Darkness Enfold the Sky / Black Slaughterization_ split 7"
-- Death - _Live in LA - Death and Raw_
-- Delirium Endeavor - _Flight of the Imagination_
-- Depraved - _Decadence & Lust_
-- Devin Townsend - _Terria_
-- Divina Enema - _At the Conclave_
-- Dornenreich - _Her Von Welken Nachten_
-- Ebony Tears - _Evil as Hell_
-- Emperor - _Prometheus - The Discipline of Fire and Demise_
-- Entombed - _Morning Star_
-- Eternal Majesty / Temple of Baal -
   _Unholy Chants of Darkness / Faces of the Void_ split LP
-- Evergrey - _In Search of Truth_
-- Fireball Ministry - _FMEP_
-- Fleshitized - _Here Among Thorns_
-- Ginger Leigh - _From Artesia With Love_
-- Godgory - _Way Beyond_
-- Imagika - _And So It Burns_
-- In Aeternum - _Past and Present Sins_
-- In Flames - _The Tokyo Showdown_
-- Levl - _Controlled by Time_
-- Mannhai - _The Sons Of..._
-- Mastodon - _Lifesblood_
-- Merzbow - _Collapse Twelve Floors_
-- Meshuggah - _Raretrax_
-- Morbid - _Deathexecution_ picture 7"
-- Morgue Supplier - _Not Dead Enough_
-- Mortiis - _The Smell of Rain_
-- My Dying Bride - _The Dreadful Hours_
-- Mystifier - _The Fourth Evil Calling From the Abyss_
-- Pig Destroyer - _Prowler in the Yard_
-- Porn (The Men Of) - _Experiments in Feedback_
-- Profanum - _Musaeum Esotericum_
-- Prophet - _Broken Promise_
-- Sadistic Intent - _Resurrection of the Ancient Black Earth_
-- Shape of Despair - _Angels of Distress_
-- Soilent Green - _A Deleted Symphony for the Beaten Down_
-- Solefald - _Pills Against the Ageless Ills_
-- Sonata Arctica - _Silence_
-- Splattered Cadaver - _Merciless Butchery_
-- Suppression w/ Crank Sturgeon / Misopsychia - _Split_
-- System of a Down - _Toxicity_
-- Tristania - _World of Glass_
-- Ulver - _Silence Teaches You How To Sing_
-- Unexpect - _Utopia_
-- VLE - _Book of Illusions: Chapter 1_
-- Zero Hour - _The Towers of Avarice_
* New Noise
-- Bisclaveret - _Aegri Somnias_
-- Deathguy - _The Secondary Quest_
-- Effluvium - _Genesis of Our Conquest_
-- Exhibition - _Mind Explosion_
-- Holochaust - _Valley of Misery_
-- Human Abstrakt - _Human Abstrakt_
-- Phantasmagory - _Odd Sounds_
-- Renazcore - _Veritas Vincit_
-- Serpent Eclipse - _Thy Bleeding Heavens_
-- Spiritus Mortis - _Demo 2000_
-- Summer Dying - _Summer Dying_
-- Triton - _Darkroot_
* Chaotic Concerts
-- I Love the Smell of Napalm in the Evening: Wacken Open Air
-- No Rest for the Weary: Milwaukee MetalFest XV
* What We Have Cranked
* Details

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

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

                         by: Gino Filicetti


     Welcome back  everyone. It's been  a little more than  two months
since our last issue of CoC, and  to say that a lot has happened since
then would be an extreme understatement. I'm not going to dwell on the
issues plaguing our world today, or try  to make some sense of them in
the context of our magazine, for that would merely serve to trivialize
the gravity  of these events.  I'm certain every  last one of  you has
felt the effects of this tragedy in  one way or another in your lives,
but it's time to move on with  our lives and more importantly to never
forget what took place that day.
     After  taking   a  well   deserved  break  following   our  sixth
anniversary issue in August, I thought  we would have to make due with
an extra  "skinny" issue this  time around. However, our  fine writing
staff -- who never  cease to amaze me -- were able  to pull together a
mountain of material in the very last days prior to our deadline.
     In this issue, you'll notice we've got two "swansong" interviews,
if you will.  Both Emperor and Crematory have called  it quits and are
parting ways. In the case of  Emperor, you've got a band that survived
ten tumultuous years that saw two members jailed for murder and arson,
not to  mention countless  other surprises,  to emerge  as one  of the
greatest and most revered black  metal bands that Scandinavia has ever
produced.  Crematory, another  ten  year veteran,  managed to  produce
eight  albums  during  their  tenure  as one  of  the  most  respected
purveyors of  gothic death  metal Germany has  ever known.  Both bands
will be dearly missed but, more importantly, fondly remembered as true
giants.
     Finally, don't forget  to check out our  Chaotic Concerts section
this issue for  coverage from two gigantic metal fests  on either side
of  the pond.  From Milwaukee,  Aaron  McKay reports  on the  immortal
Milwaukee  MetalFest. And  from  Germany, Matthias  Noll delivers  the
goods on the twelfth Wacken Open Air Festival.
     I  want you  all  to thoroughly  enjoy this  issue  and to  ready
yourselves for our next issue: CoC #56, The New Year's Evil Edition. I
assure you, Chronicles of Chaos will close out 2001 with a bang!

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

                 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, 4 Aug 2001
From: "Rigsby" <Rigsby@rigsbyszone.co.uk>
Subject: Burning Embers

Geezers,

Although others  moan at you  for this and  that, I feel  that without
some optimism  in this world, nothing  would happen. On that  tract, I
feel I must  say how good I feel  your Zine is and that  it takes some
dedication to keep something together with the intensity that you guys
do for the time you have. Okay,  we might not agree on every item, but
we are all individuals and that's what  we all represent at the end of
the day! It's just opinions, support and promotion of a style of music
we all enjoy...

We have  a modest  effort of  our own that  is occasionally  helped by
people we  know, but essentially  ours is  one made of  people holding
down full-time jobs  and then going downtuned in their  own time, so I
can more than sympathise.

I think, what I  am trying to say is something I  read in another Zine
recently, and that  is 'support the supporters', because  if you don't
then  what  chance  has  the  whole  thing  of  surviving,  let  alone
progressing!?

Peace,

Rigsby. (Downtuned Sounds)
Transcripts From The Downtuned
Subtitled: Rigsby's Music Zone
(http://www.rigsbyszone.co.uk)


Date: Mon, 13 Aug 2001
From: "Steven"
Subject: Fw: Chronicles of Chaos #54 (6/10)

Hi! Steven here from Vibrations of  Doom Magazine. Got a letter for ya
you seriously need to print in the next issue...

Great issue! Glad to see C.O.C.  still kicking around! Hope to see you
guys put out issues as long as I have, me realizing that my own rag is
nearing the 11 year mark.

Have to make  a MAJOR gripe here. In the  interview with Virgin Steel,
Mr. Defeis writes that he wrote "all  of the material for Act I and II
at the same  time..." That's complete bullshit! Has  anyone ever heard
of  a  band  called  EXORCIST?  Yeah,  the  same  band  that  released
"Nightmare  Theater" on  Cobra Records  back in  1986. Okay,  now then
listen to  the song 'The  Fire Of Ecstacy' from  "Act II." NOW.  On my
site  there  is completely  digitized  the  Exorcist album  "Nightmare
Theater." Go  listen to the  song 'The Exorcist'  and TRY and  tell me
it's not the same song! Guitar  parts, lyrics and all (of course, some
of the  lyrics are different,  but I swear to  god you can  follow the
song The  Exorcist using some of  the lyrics from 'Fire  Of Ecstacy.')
are damn  near the  same! This  wouldn't be such  a bad  thing, except
NOWHERE in the liner notes does he mention that this is a reworking of
a song from ANOTHER BAND! Interviews nowhere does he mention Exorcist,
which if  you listen  to you  will realize was  one obscure,  but very
innovative forerunner to the black  metal scene which breathed life in
the  very early  90's.  Back in  86  black metal  had  it's roots.  In
Exorcist.  And for  Defei to  deny  this is  simply a  crime. This  is
something I plan to confront him with if he even has the balls to face
me in an interview. Okay, I'll come  off the soapbox now. Go listen to
Exorcist and many classic 80's metal  albums, many STILL out of print,
at:

http://members.spree.com/vibrations

Fly the flag of metal high... ALWAYS!!


Date: Mon, 13 Aug 2001
From: "Markus" <hl_1001@flashmail.com>
Subject: RE: question

Hails,

Not  much to  say, just:  Extreme music  for extreme  poeple. Satanic,
hate, brutal, anti-christian, against-the-system and even right-winged
lyrics belong  to death/black  metal. With  these things  this extreme
music became  big and after  these rules a lot  of fans of  this genre
live.  So i  think there  are only  two solutions:  1. Don't  take the
lyrics too serious and enjoy the  music or 2. Pic another music style.
Maybe you can enjoy pop or rap music more.

..Markus


Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2001
From: Nokreth@gmx.net
Subject: Dominus Sathanas

Hail, 
cool mag and all..
This  mail is  aimed  at Jim  Tasikas  and people  of  his opinion  in
response to his mail posted in youre anniversary issue...

Jim Tasikas,  you write  that metal  should evolve  in a  more musical
derection and immediatly obandon its  ideological views... But this is
not possible, i  say. the 2 are interlinked. Remove  one and the other
crumbles.  It crumbles  either  in  the putrid  hands  of commerce  or
suffocates. You  mentioned sepultura as  one of you  recognised bands.
But what drove Max  Cavalera to write such brutal music?  I say it was
his fascistic love for his ancestry, his hate towards christian aliens
and government induced poverty. We  all saw what happened to Sepultura
when they started focusing on their music.

Let  us   compare  BURZUM  with   DARK  TRANQUITY.  Both   bands  play
"blackmetal"  i can  hear the  muical complexity  and emphasis  on the
technical aspect of blackmetal in  DARK TRANQUILTY. But they dont even
CuM FUCKING  CLOSE to the  madness, derpression and anger  compiled in
songs  such as  "Stemmen  Fra  Taarnet" ot  the  sadness  of "Der  tod
Wuotans"  (by BURZUM).  What makes  Blackmetal bands,  such as  Burzum
supernatural is not only the music, but also what it means.

I say people  need to have another look at  what Blackmetal really is.
It is  slowly evolving  into something pathetic.  A new  generation of
alternative children are trying to take  the genre and and strip it of
all that cannot be soled. If, Jim  Tasikas, you want to take metal and
with it create a new form of  jazz, or whatever, then fucking a! do it
today. 'cause after  all music is something to cherish.  But touch NOT
not  BLACKMETAL !!!!!  There are  people like  Varg that  burn fucking
Churches out of  love for blackmetal and all  it incoorperates. Anyone
reading this  mail should  ask themselves  whether they  really belong
here, or are they just trying 2 piss off their parents.

Blackmetal is  only for the  aryan children of  Wotan and that  is the
truth.

"The fucking Priests must Hang"

   <Grimnir>

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                                      |___/


                 P R O M E T H E U S   U N B O U N D
                 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                  CoC interviews Ihsahn of Emperor
         by: Adrian Bromley, Chris Flaaten and Pedro Azevedo


Prologue: THE DEMISE OF LEGENDS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
by: Pedro Azevedo


     One of  the greatest  bands in  the history  of extreme  metal is
laying  their more  than decade-long  career to  rest. Some  may argue
whether  Emperor really  are  -- sorry,  -were-; I  must  get used  to
speaking of Emperor like a deceased  entity. Anyway, I was saying that
perhaps not  everyone will  agree with  my opening  sentence regarding
Emperor's excellence. However, I doubt anyone with a broad view of the
extreme metal  realm will deny  this band's massive  importance within
it. This prologue is  not meant to serve as a  band biography; I shall
not go  into much detail  about each  of their releases  or historical
issues, but rather try to provide an overview of what I feel made this
band so remarkable throughout most of its existence.
     Even if  you disregard  their demos, Emperor's  full-length debut
_In the Nightside Eclipse_ made it clear  that they were not a band in
need of a crutch. The press publicity surrounding Norway's early black
metal scene  was certainly not  the deciding factor in  their success.
Sure, they were  part of that publicity to some  extent, and there may
certainly be a  criminal record or two in the  band (most notably, but
not exclusively,  former drummer  Bard Faust).  However, with  _In the
Nightside  Eclipse_ it  became clear  that the  influence of  all that
sideshow was  insignificant compared to  the musical prowess  the band
was developing.
     _In the Nightside Eclipse_ (1994)  is, to this date, arguably one
of the  most intensely atmospheric  black metal albums ever  made: the
keyboard symphonies mixed with the  harsh guitars and piercing screams
to create  a chilling wall  of sound. With  this album Emperor  made a
strong statement  that they would  clear a  path of their  own, adding
a  thick  layer  of  keyboards  to  the  icy  guitar  foundations  and
experimenting with classical influences to  develop their own style of
black metal.
     Although the influence  of _In the Nightside  Eclipse_ in today's
densely  populated symphonic  black  metal  scene appears  undeniable,
Emperor's  classically influenced  avant garde  approach to  the black
metal foundations  was not  to reach  its peak  until the  band's next
album, _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_ (1997). Complex, multi-layered,
venomous and grandiose, _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_ is still today
a record of highly unusual magnitude and, much like its predecessor, a
genre  milestone. Propelled  by Trym's  highly talented  drum barrage,
Ihsahn's classically influenced orchestrations and Samoth's more death
metal influenced  guitar approach  combined to  once again  prove that
contrast is not  necessarily an obstacle to consistent  results. A few
passages  in that  album  remain  some of  my  absolute favourites  in
extreme metal.
     Great records  usually cause great  expectations to be  built up,
and potentially great disappointments to follow. For many that was the
case when Emperor released _IX Equilibrium_ (1999), which repeated the
_Anthems to  the Welkin at  Dusk_ formula  with a greater  emphasis on
death metal and  even heavy metal to some extent.  The result, despite
its  technical  merits, was  certainly  not  to everyone's  liking;  I
personally found  only a couple  of tracks to  be truly worthy  of the
band's  legacy. Nevertheless,  others  believed  the album  reaffirmed
Emperor's excellence  and progression within the  extreme metal realm,
spanning other genres besides black  metal, and possibly again leading
the way  for others to follow  in their wake. Followers  of the "true"
black metal scene  who held the band's pre-_In  the Nightside Eclipse_
releases as  their favourites  felt mostly alienated  by now,  but the
band continued to achieve widespread notoriety in the metal scene.
     Anno 2001, the  Emperor lays down to die after  one final battle.
_Prometheus  -  The Discipline  of  Fire  and  Demise_ is  the  band's
swansong album; you can find a  review in this issue, and also greater
insight into the album and the reasons behind the band's demise in the
article that follows.
     Two  CoCers  were  scheduled  to interview  Ihsahn  --  Emperor's
vocalist, keyboardist, guitarist and  songwriter. To avoid redundancy,
each of the interviewers planned his  part of the questionnaire from a
different angle: Adrian would cover their career and Ihsahn's thoughts
on it, while Chris would delve  into their new album and its creation.
Ihsahn speaks; the fire still burns inside him.


Part 1: THE FIRE STILL BURNS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
by: Adrian Bromley


     Emperor's   singer/guitarist/founder   Ihsahn   says   he   feels
"liberated" now  that his band  of the  last twelve years  has finally
come to an end. Strong words from  a musician who has helped shape the
black metal sound throughout the 1990s and into the new millennium.
     He also  says he is  pleased with the  success the band  has seen
over the  past ten  years and  the four  full-length albums  they have
released,  including the  forthcoming album  titled _Prometheus  - The
Discipline  of  Fire and  Demise_  on  Candlelight [reviewed  in  this
issue].
     But it is time to move on, he suggests. Time to explore music and
be creative all over again under a new vision of ideas. The fire still
burns within Ihsahn.
     "This is  very liberating, being  finished with Emperor.  I guess
now I  have this kind  of childish excitement  knowing that I  will be
involved with  Peccatum [with his  wife Ihriel  -- Adrian] and  my own
solo stuff in  the future", starts the talkative  Norwegian. "It feels
good to bring one chapter of my life to a close and be able to go onto
another one."
     While many  fans are unsure  why a  band like Emperor  would fold
after four full-length albums -- _In the Nightside Eclipse_ [1994, CoC
#1], _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_ [1997, CoC #22], _IX Equilibrium_
[1999, CoC #39] and the latest one --, Ihsahn points out that if there
was any time to end the band, then this was the perfect time.
     "I think this album is a good way to end it all. I feel that on a
more personal level with one another in the band [guitarist Samoth and
drummer Trym], it was  the right time to bring it to a  close and in a
good way. We have always had  our differences musically over the years
and  the way  we worked,  but  I think  we  have all  drifted in  many
different directions and it was the  right decision to end it while we
can still work  in a constructive manner, rather than  fighting to put
out releases."
     "We just wanted to keep Emperor the way it should be and keep our
friendship with one  another", he reveals. "It is very  healthy for us
to bring this to a close and try new things. We are better off from it
for sure."
     Knowing that  this was going  to be  the last Emperor  album, did
Ihsahn  have  any  set  goals  with the  new  album  _Prometheus:  The
Discipline of Fire and Demise_?
     "I think we always had that goal to take our music a step further
with each record", he states. "We have always had the same foundation,
but we always made an effort to do something different with each disc.
We wanted to  add new dimensions and to better  ourselves. I think the
biggest  step we  ever  took  as a  band  was  with _IX  Equilibrium_,
especially when you look at it from a production point of view."
     He continues: "With this album, I  think we have pretty much kept
the same philosophy when it came  to creating music and made an effort
to take  it a step  forward. But  we also made  an effort to  bring in
various other  ideas, like  the epic sounds,  atmospheric ideas  and a
bunch of  other ideas that have  been part of older  Emperor works. We
wanted this record to be well-rounded."
     Seeing that Ihsahn  had written and assembled the  whole album on
his own (while Samoth and Trym were busy with Zyklon), was it a really
draining experience for the front man?
     "This was  a very challenging  record for me", he  says, pointing
out that he had done a lot of the record in his own studio. "It wasn't
intentional that  I wrote all  the material,  it just turned  out that
way.  Samoth  and  Trym were  busy  with  Zyklon  and  I was  just  so
concentrated on getting an album underway."
     You know,  a lot of  people out  there will probably  assume that
this was all  your doing and that this is  Ihsahn's final record, when
it really is a final Emperor record. Am I right?
     "For  sure. If  this had  been my  solo record  it would  sound a
lot  more different  than what  you  have here  with _Prometheus:  The
Discipline of Fire and Demise_. This is an Emperor album. You can just
hear the way we all work  together to comprise this sound. Plus, there
is so much power and expression  with Trym's drum work on this record.
How could anyone assume it was  anything but an Emperor record? It was
a  very interesting  work  experience to  assemble  this record,  with
Samoth and Trym getting CDs of the material and working on their parts
and me  assembling them later on  and mixing the album  at Akkerhaugen
Studios. It was chaos, but it worked out fine in the end. It was great
to be doing a  lot of the work at my own studio,  because I had my own
pace to  work on the record  and move arrangements around  and try new
things. There was no pressure to get in and out."
     Is Ihsahn happy with the new album?
     "Yes I  am, but there are  always things that you  wish you could
have done  but had to  compromise because  of studio time  or whatever
else is the case. In comparison to the other albums that we have done,
where we were  rehearsing the music and doing  preparations before the
studio,  this record  just came  together much  differently, as  I had
pointed out, and  it was an experience. There are  some things I would
change if I could, but not as many changes as I would have liked to do
with previous Emperor albums. I am  happy with this record. I am happy
with the way  it finished off the  career of this band,  as it doesn't
leave me wanting to work on any  more material to finish the legacy of
Emperor.  This is  the  final album  and  I can  live  with the  final
results."
     And  the past  albums of  the band?  How does  he feel  about the
career of the band musically?
     "I  think  all  of  our  records  are  great  representations  of
different eras of the band", Ihsahn points out. "I was sixteen when we
started the band. Each period was different for us when we went into a
record. It all  changed as the years  went on with me  growing up, our
musical styles changing and just the  way we thought things should be.
I'm not  embarrassed about anything we  have ever done. I  have always
said that each album that we ever did was the best that we could do at
that point  in our career.  I am  very proud of  what we did  with the
band. I think there are a lot of people who are proud."
     Seeing  all of  the  problems  that Emperor  faced  early on  and
throughout  their career,  how does  Ihsahn  feel about  all that  has
transpired?
     "I think what  people need to understand about all  of the events
that happened during the early '90s was stuff that happened outside of
the music. The music genre got a  lot of attention from what was going
on. When  you play this  kind of extreme music  you don't sell  half a
million  records because  of  a  certain event.  People  are no  doubt
inspired and  into the music  and they  buy the records.  Those events
happened, but I think the reason  black metal has been so popular, and
why we have continued  to be a part of it all, is  because we are good
musicians and create great music for people to enjoy."
     Do you try to just forget what happened?
     "On the  band level, we had  to deal with some  problems with our
line-up, but we always tried to look past all of that and work hard on
our next recordings.  For us personally, as  we were a part  of all of
this as teenagers, it did have an  impact on us, but on the other hand
as a band, it never really affected us musically."
     Can Ihsahn believe what he has been a part of with Emperor?
     "In  a way,  but for  us it  is on  a very  different level",  he
responds. "We never really  toured much and a lot of  our work was put
towards making albums.  We are very privileged that we  have been able
to do this, not only as an extreme metal band, but also as a Norwegian
artist. We  have been lucky.  We are humble to  the fact that  we have
been able to make records and a living from doing this for ten years."
     Now that Emperor is over, what work lies ahead of Ihsahn?
     "The first priority for me right now is the new Peccatum album. I
am very excited about  it all. It is great that  Ihriel is so involved
with the  music and ideas  within Peccatum and that  I can add  my own
ideas, as  well as  follow her  direction on how  things should  go. I
just  love  working  together  with  her. It  is  a  very  mutual  and
creative environment.  It is great  to work  on guitar parts  with her
and  decide how  they  should be  and breaking  things  down. That  is
something completely new  to me, because Emperor worked  on ideas much
differently. With  Peccatum we  don't really know  where we  are going
musically or  lyrically, but  that is  what I enjoy  about it.  I know
Ihriel has some ideas  of where she wants to go, but  I have a feeling
that it may go even further musically. It is all very exciting."
     What about solo work? When can we expect that?
     "Oh, I  don't even know what  is going on with  that", he replies
with a  chuckle. "I am  very pleased to not  have any idea  about that
right now. That is very exciting for me too, just not knowing where it
will go for me.  With the end of Emperor making  me feel so liberated,
things are  starting to  feel all  new to  me again  and I  enjoy that
feeling. I am having these urges to  try and just build stuff. I don't
know when this will happen, seeing  that I am working on Peccatum, but
it will  happen some  time. I just  don't want to  jump into  the solo
thing too  quickly. I  want to  take the  time to  form ideas  and get
things going."
     As the  interview closes  down, I  ask Ihsahn  what has  been the
highlight of his ten year career with Emperor.
     "It is really hard to say. Putting  out each album was a big deal
for me, especially this final one. I see the ten years of Emperor as a
whole,  even though  it has  been in  fragments with  a lot  of things
happening in between.  To me there has been a  lot of progression with
this band, but  also a lot of disappointment. When  Emperor started to
grow commercially as a band there were  a lot of things that we had to
deal with, on  a much grander scale, and that  was always something we
weren't happy  with. It has  been great to know  we have been  able to
make a living from this. I am grateful that we have been able to be so
creative and so inspired by what Emperor is all about."
     Final question: in  ten years from now, will there  be an Emperor
reunion tour or album?
     "No. This is  definitely it for us", he blurts  out. "Emperor has
come to a  close. It is time for  all of us in the band  to search out
new ideas  and grow as musicians.  I'm looking forward to  the music I
will be  creating in the  years to come, and  I think Samoth  and Trym
feel the same way about what they plan to do musically."


Part 2: THE MUSICAL DISCIPLINE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
by: Chris Flaaten


     I am  called the  exact minute I  am supposed to  be, and  we get
right  to the  point.  I ask  Ihsahn  if he  has  an adequate  opening
statement regarding the new record.
     "Well, production-wise  we did things very  differently this time
around, since this was from  the start a studio-only album. Musically,
I felt that was a big advantage -- doing the entire pre-production and
most of  the actual production in  my own studio. This  time the songs
were not created during rehearsals; the entire songwriting process was
done in my studio, which also was new for Emperor."
     On this album,  Ihsahn flirts more with  some classical passages,
almost baroque-sounding at times. Is this something he has read/worked
alot on?
     "I  did some  on the  Thou Shalt  Suffer album,  but I  feel that
classical elements in some form always have been a part of Emperor. At
the same time, inspiration from classical music has grown stronger and
stronger and  it is  very cool  to work on  with sequencers.  It comes
naturally,  sort  of.  In  the  beginning,  I  planned  to  have  more
electronic  elements on  the album,  but it  really didn't  blend that
nicely with the rest of the  music from an arrangements point of view.
The classical elements,  however, fit very well with  the pompous feel
of the genre."
     I point  out that classical  music would  also be written  in the
same way Ihsahn did for this album -- you do not jam in the studio and
come up  with a full symphony.  Had Ihsahn perhaps studied  any theory
regarding this method of composing?
     "Well, some, but  not a lot, really. However, I  have always been
very interested in arranging music. From this perspective, it was very
relieving to write the music in the studio and not writing band music,
drums and guitar and then adding synths, vocals etc. later as filling.
I could record a riff when I came  up with it, or I could write a riff
to  accompany a  new synth  passage, or  vice versa.  The arrangements
became more complete because of this; I had much more freedom. I could
delve into various elements for a  mid-section of a song, and then not
have to worry  about the beginning or ending of  the songs until later
on.  I  think  this  way  of working  is  much  more  interesting  and
rewarding.  It  gives me  greater  control  over the  various  musical
aspects."
     _Prometheus  - The  Discipline  of  Fire and  Demise_  is a  very
complex  album,  and somewhat  fragmented  in  its expression.  Ihsahn
explains that the writing process shares these traits...
     "The writing process is also  very fragmented; I always work that
way.  Sometimes it  is just  a full  chaos. This  is why  it feels  so
comfortable to have a studio at home. I can document my ideas as I get
them, record  riffs immediately  after they  are developed.  Later on,
I  can  pick  out elements  and  work  more  on  them or  change  them
afterwards."
     Is this true for all of the  songs on the new album, or are there
exceptions?  Like  my  favorite  track, "In  the  Worldless  Chamber",
perhaps?
     "Yes, that  song is different. In  my opinion, that is  the least
ambitious song on the album, it is  more back to basics. The fun thing
about that song is the contrast  between the music and the lyrics. The
music is very grand and bombastic with warhorns and whatnot, while the
lyrics  are very  claustrophobic. I  have actually  received a  lot of
positive feedback on that  song. People seem to pick it  out as one of
the better  ones on the album.  Sure, it is  a decent song, but  in my
mind the least special one. People say  the album is hard to get into,
but I have difficulty relating to that. A matter of taste, I guess."
     I explain that I feel technical metal and jazz are usually easier
to get  into than _Prometheus_.  Ihsahn is  quite puzzled by  this, it
seems...
     Ihsahn  mentioned pompousness  earlier, but  this album  has less
of  these  elements   than  earlier  albums.  There   are  no  massive
synths  leading the  show here.  Like  _IX Equillibrium_,  it is  more
guitar-oriented.
     "Yes, this again  is a result of the writing  process. Being able
to distribute  tracks from  the start, rather  than writing  the basic
song first  at a rehearsal  and then just adding/filling  synths, etc.
This time  I was able  to write everything  from the beginning  at the
same time. Letting the guitar lead, the melodies came naturally. Also,
this is the  first time we worked with seven-string  guitars. With the
massive platform  they provide,  there was  no need  to add  that much
synth  tracks. The  guitars filled  a larger  portion of  the spectrum
now."
     A paradox, at least to  the interviewer, is that sound-wise there
are fewer tracks  on this album than on earlier  ones. On _Prometheus_
there are usually two guitars,  bass, drums, vocals and the occasional
synth, while on  _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_  there could be layer
upon  layer of  synth. Was  it not  tempting to  go all  out with  the
synths, now that they knew they  were never going to play the material
live?
     "That is mostly due to experience, I think. As I learned and grew
as  a musician  and  songwriter,  I got  a  less-is-more attitude.  On
_Anthems..._ we  had the basic songs  first, then I sequenced  all the
synths at home before playing them live in the studio afterwards. When
doing this, however, you don't get  the true feeling of the music that
actually is  there. It drowns  in all the  fillings. It is  no problem
filling out with synths and arranging and arranging forever, until you
have a complete wall of sound, but how relevant is it to do this? With
such  a massive  fundament  as  we already  have,  and  the tempo  and
everything,  we have  focused more  and more  on staying  true to  the
essence of the  music. Instead of adding layers, we  tried to vary the
different themes when they reappeared and so on."
     The album  is very fast at  times, and the guitars  have a deeper
sound than  before, probably due  to the  seventh string. As  with _IX
Equilibrium_, there are many death metal elements on the album. Samoth
was said to be the mind behind those elements on _IX Equilibirum_, but
this time Ihsahn wrote everything himself and they're still there. Was
this done on purpose?
     Ihsahn explains:  "If I had  done a  solo album, things  would of
course have been radically different.  This album was written from the
fundament of what is the Emperor sound and this was something I always
had in  mind while  composing it.  Writing riffs as  I have  done here
actually comes naturally for me. I also have to mention that the death
metal elements  on _IX_ were not  solely Samoth's work. Since  we knew
this was going to be the  last Emperor album, we drew inspiration from
what we  have done  on past records.  On each album  we have  tried to
evolve and  incorporate new  elements, and  I feel  we have  done this
again  on _Prometheus_.  I  also  enjoyed bringing  back  some of  the
atmosphere and  moods of  earlier records  on some  of the  new songs,
achieving a mixture of past and  present. So bringing back some of the
groovy, death metal  feel from _IX_ was really  quite natural, instead
of  just  doing  very  fast  and  smooth-going  music.  I  don't  feel
_Prometheus_ is  as death metal oriented  as _IX_, it's more  a common
denominator  of our  musical past,  and at  the same  time it  has new
elements."
     When having to stay true, so  to speak, to the Emperor sound, did
Ihsahn feel confined  at all? Was it hard writing  the "correct" music
and not drifting off into other non-Emperor areas?
     "No, not  at all! Of course,  one has boundaries to  work within,
but Emperor has always been  a compromise between the members' various
musical standpoints.  Nothing was  new there. Our  musical standpoints
have drifted  farther and  farther away  over the  years, but  I still
found  it interesting  to  build upon  our musical  past  and add  new
elements. I  really feel there  are -many-  new things on  this album.
These are things we have never  touched before, but they are presented
in a way  so that it still feels  very Emperor. I tried to  do as much
as  possible within  the  boundaries present,  and  perhaps also  push
these slightly.  I didn't  feel them  confining or  restraining. Also,
being simultaneously  songwriter, producer and technician  was a great
learning experience."
     Well then, was he happy with how the production turned out?
     "I  am very  happy with  it, but  of course  that is  also thanks
to  Torbjorn at  Akkerhaugen  Studios.  I liked  the  way  we did  the
pre-production in my  studio, then recorded the  drums at Akkerhaugen,
then  added guitars  and  more  at my  place  again  and then  finally
returned  to Akkerhaugen  for mixing.  Torbjorn is  a technician  with
great experience  and we  have known  him for a  long time.  Still, he
hadn't heard  the album, so he  had a completely fresh  view of things
when we did the mixing. This way,  he could stay very objective and it
was great to get his input at the end of the recording process."
     Ihsahn is then asked to introduce each song with a few words.
     "Lyric-wise, things  are quite  different on  this album,  as the
lyrics  are more  chronological. On  the first  three tracks,  there's
almost  a complete  storyline and  the music  follows this  in a  way.
Things then take  a turn and break from the  chronological concept and
finally  get back  on track  on the  last couple  of songs.  The third
person narrative  is also used much  more often on this  album than on
any  previous  ones.  "The  Eruption" has,  appropriately  enough,  an
opening track feel with a classical intro that hints about the various
elements to come  later in the song. There are  wide contrasts between
the soft parts with  clean vocals and the very raw  black metal, and I
really wanted  to present the  contrasts to come throughout  the album
clearly in  the very  first track. "Depraved"  is different,  with its
almost dissonant  opening, and it  brings everything down.  "Empty" is
more basic  in its expression,  with no clean  vocals and a  very hard
feel from  start to  finish. "The  Prophet" is  almost like  a ballad,
except for the fast, intense mid-section.  "The Tongue of Fire" is one
of my  favorites, with a nice  flow in spite of  many sharp contrasts.
This is  a goal  for me,  writing sharp  contrasts without  having the
transitions  being  too sudden.  In  "In  the Worldless  Chamber"  the
contrasts are,  as we already  have discussed, between the  lyrics and
the music. "Grey" and "He Who Sought  the Fire" are more of an average
musically, and then you get a  brutal and epic conclusion with "Thorns
on My  Grave". I  feel there's  a clearer red  line musically  on this
album than on _IX_."
     My last question  about the album concerns the  riffing, since it
stands out  from older  Emperor albums. They're  more metal  now, more
groovy and distinct rather than fast, monotonous black metal riffs...
     "I  think the  riffs are  a result  of me  focusing much  more on
smaller details  and nuances. Over  the years  I have tried  to become
more experimental with  my guitar playing, since  very direct, forward
playing gets so  boring after a while.  I made an effort  to think new
and to be  more bombastic or... violent  in my expression. I  am not a
very technical guitarist who plays superfast solos, so I opted for the
closer and more elaborate approach. I also thought it was cool to play
some more groovy and playful stuff  which appeals to more... nails and
headbanging  and those  sorts of  things." Ihsahn  laughs. "You  know,
lipstick and stuff..."
     Finally, I ask about Ihsahn's inspiration for the album.
     "As far as  inspiration goes, I listen to  everything -but- metal
almost." Like what? "It could be  anything from old classical music to
electronica and even pop. Even if I don't like the music per se, there
can  always  be  musical  elements  within it  that  are  of  interest
from  my point  of  view.  Also production-wise  there  are things  to
learn from  these genres.  I also pay  attention to  technical issues,
instrumentation  and syncopes,  etc.  Finding new  ways  to use  these
elements, or  new contexts for them,  is very interesting. A  genre is
really more defined  by the instrumentation and  arranging rather than
the actual music. I actually think some elements on _Prometheus_ could
have been good pop choruses  with different instrumentation. I hope to
work more with these contexts and  ways of arranging music in the time
ahead. Without  a ten-year  musical fundament upon  which to  build, I
stand free  to write whatever I  feel like. The new  Peccatum album is
the  first item  on the  agenda, but  after that  there are  no plans.
Maybe I'll  play together  with musicians  with an  entirely different
background, more  solo work perhaps... only  time will tell. I  feel I
have regained the childish curiosity about music."

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

                   T H E   E N D   C O M P L E T E
                   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                  CoC talks to Harald of Crematory
                         by: Adrian Bromley

 
     Crematory bassist Harald  is well aware that the  end has finally
come for his  German gothic metal band. The band  recorded, toured and
partied  for the  last ten  years  and he  is  glad that  the band  is
finishing things  up on  a high note,  their double-disc  _Remind_ (on
Nuclear Blast).
     So, how does it feel to know that the band is over?
     "I don't know. It feels very  strange, but in a good way", starts
Harald. "When  we started  this band  off, we  never imagined  that we
would even  get this  far. When  we recorded  out first  album [1992's
_Transmigration_ on Massacre Records -- Adrian] nobody really believed
in what we were doing. But we  had seen some success, some fans really
liked what we were doing, so we kept going and recorded another album.
We  [the band  is rounded  out by  vocalist Felix,  guitarist Matthias
Hechler, keyboardist Katrin and drummer Markus Jullich -- Adrian] took
this band further than any of us imagined we would have."
     As mentioned above, the final  installment of Crematory and their
career comes  to us as  a deluxe double-disc  set. _Remind_ is  a live
seventeen-song set from the band that sounds really good. No doubt the
band wanted to go out with a bang, opposed to a half-assed live record
like the  new one from  In Flames,  _The Tokyo Showdown_  [reviewed in
this issue].  Also included are  alternate versions of songs  and some
old demos,  as well as a  60-page colour booklet (written  entirely in
German, so  I didn't understand  one word)  with tons of  pictures and
words from the band.
     So  why does  Harald  think  many music  fans  grasped onto  what
Crematory was doing musically?
     Starts Harald, "I think people,  our fans, just really liked what
we were doing. We always did what  we wanted to do musically and there
was never any real pressure from our  label to make our music become a
certain way. Our  hearts always guided what we did  musically. When we
got such amazing  feedback from fans, it really helped  us become more
excited about what we were doing."
     "We are very  proud of what we  have done with the  band. I think
one of our biggest accomplishments was our last studio album _Believe_
[2000]", says the bass player. "For  me personally, I think we had the
best songs  we had  ever written on  that album, as  well as  the best
production we  ever had with any  Crematory disc. It was  just a great
record for  us, with sales  and chart entry.  It was great  to release
that record and see how people reacted to it."
     Are there any regrets or mistakes he would like to correct in his
career?
     He responds: "We made a lot  of mistakes over the years. <laughs>
But we always continued on. You will  always look back at what you did
and say  you could have  done things  differently, but you  also learn
from those mistakes. We knew what  we had done wrong at certain points
in our  career and we  moved on. We just  used that experience  we got
from our mistakes and used it to help take this band further."
     The topic turns to the idea  of assembling _Remind_. How did this
double-disc set idea come about?
     Says Harald: "We  could have finished things  off with _Believe_,
but we wanted to give the fans  of Crematory a present. We also wanted
to give ourselves a present as well,  to celebrate what we had done as
a band over the past ten years. We thought it would be great to sum up
the last ten years in one album,  to record a live show and assemble a
double-disc set with a good lengthy  booklet. It took almost a year to
do all of this,  to pick out photos, write the history  and put it all
together. It took a long time for us to make sure this was the perfect
gift for our  fans. We wanted it  to be a perfect summary  of our band
from day one up to now."
     "I am  happy with everything about  _Remind_. We did all  of this
ourselves. Our  keyboard player  Katrin did it  all, really.  She just
collected all of these pictures and  items from the last few years. It
looks really good."
     So now that it is all officially  over for the band, what is next
up for bandmembers of Crematory? Day jobs? Relaxing time? New bands?
     Harald  comments, "I  think we  all just  really want  to have  a
normal job right now. We also have  to take care of our private lives,
too. For the last  ten years it has all been  about Crematory and rock
'n' roll. We are all in our thirties and it just seems like it is time
to get  things in  order. Also, none  of us have  ever taken  any real
vacations, because  the band has  been so demanding. This  band needed
100% from all of us all the time, so vacations never really happened."
     "Over the  years, making  records for  us has  been a  chore", he
continues. "Early  on we spent  a while trying  to find our  sound and
style. We eventually did, but as the years went on, it became a little
easier to add onto what we had accomplished the record before that."
     "It just  seems like this  is the right time  to go out  for us",
Harald states  about their decision  to end it  all. "We have  done so
much as  a band  and with our  music. We made  some great  records and
toured a lot.  It has been a  great experience. We just  think this is
the right time  to go out. We  wanted to go out when  things are going
good  for the  band and  have been  able to  play for  so many  years.
Crematory, in a  way, is a cult  band. We want to remain  that way for
our  fans forever.  We want  to go  out on  a high  note where  people
remember us being great, rather than  fading out like a lot of veteran
bands do and  no one takes notice  of them any more.  Those bands just
disappear. We wanted to quit on a high note and just say "goodbye"."
     He ends, "This  seemed like the right thing to  do. I don't think
Crematory fans  are upset; I  think they are  proud of us  and excited
about what we left them with  _Remind_. Who knows? Maybe in two, three
or five  years we  might create  some songs  together and  return with
Crematory. Right  now that  doesn't seem  like it  will happen,  but I
promise you,  if we do  come back  it will be  with a big  bang. Until
then, goodbye to all of our fans."

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

      A N N I H I L A T I N G   T H E   C O M P E T I T I O N ?
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
              CoC chats with Fabiano Pena of Rebaelliun
                          by: Paul Schwarz


     The  ripples Krisiun  made  when Europe  and  North America  were
exposed  to  them  around  five  years ago  have  recently  brought  a
veritable tsunami  of Brazillian  extreme metal  crashing down  on the
extreme metal  scene. Many bands who  before would have been  lucky if
their -demos- were  heard in the northern hemisphere,  have now gained
label deals and recently released albums.
     Two  or  three years  ago,  Krisiun  were  pretty much  the  only
Nineties-originated extreme Brazillian death metal band with a name in
Europe.  I  say "pretty  much"  because  Rebaeilliun  are one  of  the
few  other  bands  with  a  similar --  though  admittedly  lesser  --
status  at  that time.  Emerging  as  a band  in  1998  -- though  its
respective members had all been  playing death metal since around 1991
--  Rebaelliun quickly  gained  a reasonable  following after  selling
virtually everything  they owned to  come to Europe and  play nineteen
surprisingly successful live shows in three countries. Recognised as a
quality death  metal band via  their _Promo-Tape '98_  [re-released by
the band's  label, Hammerheart, in  the form of  the _At War_  EP] and
1999 debut  _Burn the Promised  Land_ [CoC #45],  Rebaelliun certainly
wore the influence  of Krisiun on their sleeves,  but yet individuated
themselves  via a  more directly  Slayer and  Morbid Angel  influenced
musical approach.
     This year's  avalanche of  Brazillian extreme metal  has revealed
the  majority of  Rebaelliun's counterparts  to be  as concerned  with
individuation as they are. Much of  what has been released recently is
characterised  almost solely  by  the "Nineties  Brazillian sound"  --
which you  could just as  easily call the  "Krisiun sound" --  and the
impression so far of Brazil's metal scene is not that of a vibrant and
varied musical  landscape, but  rather a planned  housing development,
with only  the odd architectural  variation. Nonetheless, it  is early
days for the bands who have just hit the scene, and it would be unfair
to write any of them off individually -- or write off the scene itself
as a whole -- on the basis of what little has happened so far.
     However,  two  Brazilian  extreme  metal albums  that  should  be
closely scrutinised and  considered in terms of what  they suggest for
the future of the scene (and, of  course, the bands who made them) are
Krisiun's  _Ageless  Venemous_  and Rebaelliun's  _Annihilation_  [CoC
#54]. Neither of these albums -- both released this last summer -- are
mere continuations of  what has gone before them;  neither Krisiun nor
Rebaelliun have  merely made an  album that  you can spin,  enjoy, and
put  down  again without  pause  for  thought. _Ageless  Venomous_  is
at  the  least  a record  any  Krisiun  fan  is  likely to  find  odd:
its  production  sharply  separates its  instruments,  destroying  the
cohesive, whirlwind-of-fury feel that characterised 2000's _Conquerors
of Armageddon_ [CoC #47]. Musically, I find it not only by-the-numbers
Krisiun,  but  also extremely  boring  Krisiun;  _AV_ displays  Moyses
Kolesne's  technical ability  for speedy  fret-scaling yet  completely
disregards  the  need  to  construct  interesting  progressions.  _AV_
is  Krisiun's  equivalent to  Suffocation's  _Breeding  the Spawn_  or
Malevolent  Creation's   _Stillborn_.  _Annihilation_   is  different.
Sonically,  it  is,  unsurprisingly,  reminiscent  of  _Conquerors  of
Armageddon_  -- _Annihilation_  was  recorded and  produced with  Andy
Classen  at Stage  One studios  -- and  is utterly  flattening in  its
brutal impact. In terms of  overall musical merit, _Annihilation_ is a
very  in-between  album.  Its  riffs,  solos,  drum-blasts  and  vocal
evacuations are not badly executed, but its structure severely lets it
down. I  don't find  it the  kind of  album that  has you  coming back
for  more time  and  time again.  Yet  at present  it  still seems  to
leave  Rebaelliun ahead  of  much  of their  competition  -- and  most
significantly, ahead of Krisiun's most recent work.
     Where Brazil's extreme metal scene is headed is very difficult to
tell, but with  their following in Europe, Rebaelliun seem  sure to be
an important part of it for a while to come.
     I questioned Rebaelliun guitarist  and founder Fabiano Pena about
_Annihilation_,  Rebaelliun's  career,  and the  Brazillian  scene  in
general. I hope you enjoy the results.

CoC: Rebaelliun  have  been  an  internationally  known  part  of  the
     Brazilian scene  since near the  time of their inception.  It has
     now been  nearly two  years since you  first toured  Europe. Your
     first album  was deservedly  well received.  What did  that rapid
     rise  to acknowledgement  contribute  to  _Annihilation_? Do  you
     think the warm reception you received gave you more confidence?

Fabiano Pena: Although Rebaelliun is one of  the youngest bands in the
              Brazilian scene,  we all  have been playing  death metal
              since 1991/1992, so we believe that the response we have
              got with  Rebaelliun is also  a response for  almost ten
              years playing death metal. I doubt a band could get such
              a quick  response in  the worldwide metal  scene without
              any background. I mean, if  we had started playing death
              metal in 1998,  when we formed Rebaelliun,  we would not
              be  here  for  sure.  _Burn  the  Promised  Land_  is  a
              good death  metal album  with a  strong feeling,  and it
              fortunately got a huge response within the extreme metal
              community -- especially in Europe  -- although we all in
              Rebaelliun knew right after  recording _Burn..._ that we
              were able to do much better than this album. Anyway, the
              response for _Burn..._ was great, we toured Europe twice
              to promote  this album, and  this response gave  us more
              strength  when  writing the  new  album.  So I  consider
              _Annihilation_  a mix  of  two feelings:  a strong  will
              to  go  further than  _Burn  the  Promised Land_  and  a
              motivation born from the response of that album.

CoC: When  we  last  talked  [CoC  #48], you  said  that  one  of  the
     differences between Rebaelliun and  others in the Brazilian scene
     was that you were treading more  in the early the steps of Morbid
     Angel and Slayer,  and that you would be  taking those influences
     further. Is that what happened with _Annihilation_? Would you say
     _Annihilation_  is primarily  influenced  by the  style of  early
     Morbid Angel and Slayer?

FP: I wouldn't say that _Annihilation_  sounds like early Morbid Angel
    or Slayer,  'cause it doesn't  and that  was not our  intention at
    all. The main  thing about the music in _Annihilation_  is that we
    tried to reach our own sound with this album. As I said before, we
    have been playing  death metal since 1991/1992 and  this is surely
    the main goal  for any band which wants to  have a serious career:
    to find their own sound. I think most of the Brazilian bands sound
    too modern, some  of them have speed as the  only element in their
    music, and  bands such  as Morbid  Angel and  Slayer --  the first
    extreme  bands in  history  --  showed that  there  are  a lot  of
    different elements that can be incorporated into the music to make
    it even more extreme and  intense, without sounding boring. If you
    have a strong melody or write good lyrics, that will differentiate
    you from the other bands in the end, not the speed itself. I would
    say we drew a  bit the feeling and the way  to structure the songs
    from these bands, not the music itself.

CoC: Who do  you think are  the most  promising band in  the Brazilian
     extreme metal scene  at present and why? (Yes,  you are permitted
     to say "Rebaelliun", but I'd  like you to justify whatever choice
     you make.)

FP: I think that Krisiun and  Rebaelliun are the biggest extreme metal
    bands  in South  America  and both  bands are  in  the right  way.
    Krisiun is  already established in  the scene, they have  toured a
    lot all  over the world and  have huge support, and  Rebaelliun is
    growing quite quickly as well, we have the feeling that if we keep
    working like this things will happen for us sooner or later. There
    are  several other  good  bands  in Brazil,  some  of these  bands
    already got  record deals  with foreign  labels and  released good
    albums, but  it's maybe still  too early  to say that  these bands
    will get  really bigger, 'cause  it's a long  and hard way  to get
    tours and true support from the fans.

CoC: Personally,  I  am  worried  that the  Brazillian  extreme  metal
     scene  is declining.  My  worry  is based  mostly  on my  opinion
     of  the  latest  Krisiun  album  (which  I  think  is  creatively
     extremely  boring  and  a  massive  disappointment  after  _CoA_)
     and  Abhorrence's  debut  album  (which I  think  lacks  defining
     qualities).  _Annihilation_ I  am  more  positive about.  Firstly
     because sonically speaking _Annihilation_ is absolutely crushing,
     but also  because structurally  it is  more interesting  than the
     aforementioned two  records, and  differs considerably  from your
     first  album. Firstly,  what do  you think  of what  I have  said
     above? Secondly, do  you think the Brazilian  extreme metal scene
     is in  danger of declining  (or at  least becoming boring)  if it
     doesn't seek to progress in some significant way?

FP: In my opinion  the main problem about the  Brazilian extreme metal
    scene nowadays is that most of  the bands are trying to sound just
    like Krisiun. This is not good for the bands, for Krisiun, for the
    fans and for the scene itself. I mean, this is really bad in every
    sense. However, this situation will not last too long; most of the
    bands will realise  in a couple of years that  labels and fans are
    not interested  in copies: they  want something original.  We know
    how hard is to create something original when playing death metal,
    but as  I already said  before: in _Annihilation_ we  reached this
    "old"  goal. The  album sounds  very original  and this  will make
    Rebaelliun more  known in the  worldwide scene, 'cause we  are not
    just a  copy of any other  band, we have personality  in the band.
    About the latest Krisiun, I think it's not their best album, but I
    personally  like it,  maybe  'cause  I'm a  fan  of Krisiun  since
    1991... Abhorrence is a good band,  but they have to develop their
    own style to go further, although the musicians are very good.

CoC: Why did  you choose  to record  _Annihilation_ at  Andy Classen's
     Stage  One studio?  Did hearing  Krisiun's _Conquerors..._  album
     influence your decision at all?

FP: Recording with  Andy at  Stage One was  an idea  from Hammerheart;
    after recording the _Bringer of War_ MCD in Brazil we decided with
    the label to produce  the next album in Europe or  the US; we knew
    that _Annihilation_ would  be an important step in  our career and
    we  should get  a  good  sound with  this  album. Hammerheart  had
    already sent some other artists to record over there and they were
    probably satisfied with the results, and so offered us this studio
    to produce  _Annihilation_. The only  album we knew that  had been
    recorded with Andy was _Conquerors..._  and we all think it sounds
    very good, so  we accepted and went to  record there. Fortunately,
    we got a good sound as well and  it was nice to work with Andy: we
    learnt a lot during the  recording. The sound of _Annihilation_ is
    also very different  than most of the recordings we  have heard on
    the  last  years; the  album  sounds  powerful, heavy  and  clear,
    exactly what we wanted for this stuff.

CoC: When you  first went to Europe  -- selling everything you  had to
     get there  -- were you positive  about the outcome? Did  you ever
     think Rebaelliun would be as popular/known as the band is now? Do
     you expect  Rebaelliun's popularity  and notoriety to  grow? Does
     popularity really matter to you,  or are you more concerned about
     people being seriously into the band,  and you being able to make
     music and present it to people?

FP: After the first  time in Europe we were really  positive about the
    way things turned out for  us; before going to Belgium, Rebaelliun
    was not  known even in Brazil,  and after those three  months over
    there we  had played nineteen  concerts in three countries  and we
    had got  signed to Hammerheart. So  we came back to  Brazil really
    happy about the results from that trip. We knew that that had been
    the first step in  the whole way, and that from  that moment on we
    had to work much more to achieve new results. We had several plans
    in mind right  after that trip, and fortunately most  of them have
    become reality on these last years. About popularity, I think that
    it's important in  every sense for a band. We  are aware about the
    music we  play and we  don't expect  to get a  lot of money  or be
    really famous in the music business -- like Aerosmith, for example
    --  but we  know  that it's  possible to  build  a good  structure
    playing death metal  and live from the music. We  play death metal
    and we love music, so it's  pretty natural that we wanna live from
    the music, and this will  depend on the popularity Rebaelliun will
    achieve in  the metal scene.  We think  our music can  reach other
    fans beside  the extreme metal fans;  we are not making  noise, we
    play music and we wanna be recognized for that.

CoC: When Marcello Marzari left Rebaelliun  [in late 2000 -- Paul] did
     you seriously contemplate just giving up?

FP: Not at all, we knew that that was a hard moment for Rebaelliun and
    we had to  be really patient in finding the  right replacement for
    him. I and Sandro  [Moreira, Rebaelliun drummer] rehearsed without
    the  others for  a couple  of weeks  and in  the end  it was  very
    important for us to see that we  were two guys and we were able to
    play the  same music in  the rehearsals.  I mean, everyone  can be
    replaced  in  a  band;  Marcello  was important  one  day  for  us
    but  we knew  that Rebaelliun  would  survive without  him --  and
    _Annihilation_ is the proof that we were right...

CoC: How do you feel about the strength of Rebaelliun as a band within
     itself and a  musical force in the extreme metal  scene now, with
     Lohy Fabiano in the band?

FP: I feel  that people are  taking Rebaelliun more seriously  now; we
    are  not a  "promising band"  anymore. Rebaelliun  has done  a lot
    since the  beginning and _Annihilation_  is in my opinion  a great
    death metal album,  which differs a lot from most  of the nowadays
    death  metal bands.  Of course  we  are still  developing our  own
    style; this is  just our second album, and though  we have already
    reached a good level we know that  we still have a long way and we
    will be  able to  record better  albums in a  near future.  We are
    getting more and more involved with  the music we play and Lohy is
    getting as involved as the rest of Rebaelliun -- I'm sure he's the
    right frontman for the band and  I just hope things keep like this
    in coming years.

CoC: What lyrical themes are followed  in the songs on _Annihilation_?
     Is there  a common thread  running between  all of them?  Are the
     kinds  of  topics  radically  different  from  those  covered  on
     _Burn..._? How much difference has  it made that Lohy Fabiano has
     taken over as singer/bassist?

FP: The  lyrical  conception  of  _Annihilation_ is  very  clear:  the
    extermination of the  human race over this planet.  All the lyrics
    are linked in this album, they  can have a different approach, but
    they talk about the same theme.  The lyrics are not different from
    the  lyrics on  _Burn..._;  I  could say  that  the  way to  write
    them  was  developed since  then  and  this  makes the  lyrics  on
    _Annihilation_ maybe a  bit different from the  ones on _Burn..._,
    but it's for the development of the structure at all. This time we
    tried to  use more "strong  words" in  the lyrics, then  we worked
    with different sounds  of Lohy's voice -- high  screams mixed with
    low  screams for  example  -- to  give to  these  words the  right
    meaning  in the  lyrics  and in  the music  itself.  This is  hard
    to  explain,  but if  you  read  the  lyrics while  listenning  to
    _Annihilation_, you will realize that  they fit very well with the
    music and the  way Lohy sang the lyrics in  each song really means
    what we wanted to say with the texts.

CoC: This is  your chance to add anything you  may want to, especially
     any crucial fact or factor I missed out. The floor is yours...

FP: I would  like to say that  we are going  to Europe in April  for a
    big  tour. It's  not  100% fixed  yet, but  this  tour to  promote
    _Annihilation_ will  happen sooner or  later, and we just  hope to
    meet  all our  friends once  again. Be  sure that  you will  see a
    strong show in every sense.

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

         C R E A T I O N   T H R O U G H   E V O L U T I O N
         ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
              CoC interviews Matte Andersson of Godgory
                         by: Adrian Bromley


     Godgory vocalist  Matte Andersson likes  to see change  with each
Godgory album. So far his vision  has managed to work successfully for
the last  three albums,  as well  as for  their latest  offering, _Way
Beyond_ [for a different opinion, see review in this issue].
     "We  are just  one of  those  bands [the  duo is  rounded out  by
drummer/keyboardist  Erik Andersson  -- Adrian]  that likes  to change
things up  each album. To  take our music to  the next level.  We just
want to improve things as we go along  and I think we have done a good
job with these last four albums", he  says down the line from his home
in Sweden.  "But now  knowing what  we have done  with our  music over
these four albums,  for our fifth album  we will look back  and try to
take our  music to another area,  to be influenced by  other ideas. We
already have some new material written, so the wheels are in motion."
     What  kind of  ideas is  he  planning to  bring to  the music  of
Godgory?
     "We just want to develop our sound. The gothic / death metal feel
of our music is great, but there is a lot more we can do. I know there
is."
     The  latest album  by Godgory  (recorded at  Studio Fredman  with
Fredrik Nordstrom) is a solid album that is very atmospheric and dark.
Gothic overtones clash  vividly with the death metal, and  some of the
keyboard work  is stunning. While  at first the  album may be  hard to
take in  (such was  the case with  yours truly), a  few spins  of _Way
Beyond_ will have you enthralled with the music this duo creates.
     "I love everything about  this record, especially the atmosphere.
It  is great",  says Andersson  of the  music found  on _Way  Beyond_.
"There are  a lot of good  ideas on this disc  and a lot of  them work
well with each other."
     "This is the first time we  have ever done pre-production for one
of our  albums", the singer reveals.  "We have a home  studio and that
allowed us to really concentrate on  getting the songs right before we
went into the  studio to do the final recording.  We were prepared and
knew  exactly how  things  had to  be assembled  and  played. We  will
definitely do pre-production again next time around."
     And seeing that this is  the band's fourth album, has songwriting
become any easier over the years, or is it still a challenge?
     "It still  takes time to write  material, but not as  long as one
would expect. Erik writes  a lot of the lyrics, so he  has a good idea
of what  we should do and  knows what we have  done in the past  -- so
when it comes time to record, our ideas come together pretty quickly."
     One listen  of _Way Beyond_ and  metal fans will notice  that the
longest song,  "Final Journey" (8:34),  opens the album. What  was the
decision behind that?
     "We were  so pleased with  that song, and  it came out  great. It
really  offers a  great atmosphere  and brings  the listener  into the
song", he  says. "I like  the fact that if  some kid who  doesn't know
Godgory goes  in the record  store and listens  to our album,  when he
hears  the first  track he  will hear  quality and  a song  that truly
represents what Godgory is all about."
     "A lot  of our  fans tell us  that they like  us because  we just
do  things differently.  Our  sound  is unique  and  we just  approach
songwriting a lot differently from most acts", he states. "I know they
appreciate that we have cool  atmosphere, slow parts mixed with brutal
parts and some great guitar work. A lot of our fans have stuck with us
since the  early days and I  totally understand why they  still follow
us."
     "There are a lot of great songs on this album", the singer notes.
"I like "Final Journey" and "Caressed by Flames". I already said why I
like "Final  Journey", but "Caressed  by Flames"  is also a  very cool
song. There are  some great melodies that really make  it an enjoyable
listen." He  adds, "I  think our  band's music really  takes a  lot of
getting used  to. I can  see how some music  fans that hear  our album
might not  like it the  first or second listen.  But if they  take the
time to play the  record and give it a chance, the  music will stay in
their head and they will become closer to the music."
     What about the meaning of the album title _Way Beyond_?
     "It actually comes from the Nicholas Cage movie "8mm"", Andersson
explains. "There is a scene in the movie [which deals with snuff films
-- Adrian] where  Nicholas Cage is walking through  a basement looking
at several  categories of movies  being sold;  one of the  sections is
titled  "Way Beyond".  We thought  it was  a great  title for  the new
Godgory album.  There really is  no real  meaning for the  album title
other than we liked  the sound of it. If there is a  meaning to it, it
is up to the listener to decide for themselves."
     The topic shifts  to the music business and how  many young bands
want to  make it  beg come  the first album.  Godgory has  been around
since 1992,  but didn't put out  their debut disc _Sea  of Dreams_ (on
Invasion Records) till 1996. The band's growth and success has been in
stages. How does Andersson feel about all of these young bands wanting
to break out big early on?
     He responds,  "It would have  been great  if we had  seen success
with our first record,  but it just didn't end up that  way. If we had
toured for that album things would  have been better for us, possibly,
and we might have more recognition."
     So you don't tour at all?
     "No we don't.  We will try to  tour for this album,  but with two
people in the band,  it would be kind of hard to pull  it off. We will
try to  get on  the road  this year.  We want  to recruit  our session
guitar player  [Mikael Dahlqvist]  to go,  but he  is busy  with other
bands. We'd like to see this happen.  It is time to tour with Godgory.
This record  deserves a tour  because it is  a great album  and people
should hear the music in a live environment. I love playing this music
'cause of the way  it makes me feel. I want  people to experience that
as well."
     He ends, "I know  if we toured, we'd have more  fans, but at this
point in time people who like us continue to buy our discs. Who knows?
This tour may or may not happen. If  that is the case, we will go back
to  the same  way things  have been  for the  band: we  write records,
record them and put them out. Then  we start all over again and we are
okay with that.  Making music is the most important  thing for Godgory
and I think it shows."

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

                UNSTOPPABLE PROGRESSIVE METAL MACHINE
                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
              CoC chats with Mark Briody of Jag Panzer
                         by: Adrian Bromley


     A few years back, Colorado  progressive metal act Jag Panzer were
but a distant memory in the  metal lore books with their classic album
_Ample Destruction_  (1984) serving  as a  collector's item  for metal
fans.
     Then  in  1997,  things  changed.  The  band  re-grouped,  signed
to  Century  Media Records,  released  the  well-received _The  Fourth
Judgement_, and they haven't looked  back since, releasing _The Age of
Mastery_ in 1998,  _Thane to the Throne_ in 2000  and now their latest
effort in 2001,  titled _Mechanized Warfare_. Does it  ever stop? What
is the secret to this resurgence in making music for the band?
     It is  Jag Panzer guitarist  Mark Briody  down the line  from his
home in Colorado who will answer CoC's questions.
     He begins:  "We always  figure that  the best time  to put  out a
record -- when you  know it is time to do so --  is when all the songs
are written  and in place. We  don't get any pressure  from the record
label  and we  try not  to put  any on  ourselves as  well", he  says.
"Making records has become a lot  easier for us because there are less
and less obstacles  with every release. Nowadays we know  the label is
going  to be  behind it,  and we  know what  kind of  budget we'll  be
getting. We also are really comfortable  with our producer, as well as
we have had the same line-up [completed by bassist John Tetley, singer
Harry "The  Tyrant" Conklin, drummer Rikard  Stjernquist and guitarist
Chris Broderick  -- Adrian] for the  last little while. It  is getting
easier to write songs in this environment and I think that shows up in
the material we are currently doing."
     What was  the recording  experience like for  the band  this time
around?
     "It  was  really  exciting.  It  is getting  to  the  point  that
everything I hear in  my head we can get down on CD.  It is getting to
the point that if I want a giant  choir to sound a certain way, we can
make it happen", says Briody with  excitement in his voice. "Even with
the electric or  acoustic guitar, I know I can  try certain sounds and
ideas and be able to capture that idea on record. It used to be a real
strain in the past  to not be able to get  certain things down because
of lack  of experience  or what have  you. Now it  is all  working out
great."
     "Making a record is  a fun thing for us, but it is  a lot of hard
work",  says  Briody about  the  creativity  that  went into  the  new
disc.  "The songs  on this  record are  here because  of a  process of
elimination.  I usually  throw  out about  90% of  the  material I  am
working  on. I  just toss  it  all out.  I  bring the  ideas to  Harry
[singer] and we  discuss, and sometimes he throws it  out if he thinks
it doesn't work. Once both of us  have settled on a sound or idea that
will work for us, we introduce it to the rest of the band. Rarely, but
occasionally, they'll toss out ideas. By the time we get to the ten or
eleven songs that  will appear on the new record,  it has been through
the hands of five people who looked it over and made comments and felt
that it was worthy of being on the new disc."
     He continues, "After  all of that, we usually bring  the ideas to
Jim Morris [producer] and he offers up some suggestions of what we can
do with  the music.  His expertise  really helps  make our  music look
better than it already is."
     About the  new recording,  Briody comments, "I  think as  a whole
this is by  far our best record.  I think there is so  much variety on
this record. A lot  of people have pointed out to me  that there is so
much more  variety on this  record than  past Jag Panzer  albums. Both
Harry and I have discussed all of these new harmonies and melodies for
this record and how  we wanted to let new ideas in.  I think the whole
variety, within the solid framework of a heavy metal album, makes this
a great disc and really shows our progression as a band."
     The topic shifts  to the album title, _Mechanized  Warfare_ -- an
unusual title seeing that Jag Panzer seems to have always dabbled into
a fantasy title or theme. Is the band becoming more modern?
     He responds, "There  really is no reason at all.  We wanted to do
something  completely  different from  _Thane  to  the Throne_,  which
was  so conceptual-filled,  that we  decided  that this  would be  the
anti-concept. So we purposely decided to come up with a title that had
nothing to do with  the songs and nothing to do  with the album cover.
We just assembled  two different phrases that some people  had used to
describe out live show. One person said that our music sounds so tight
that it sounds mechanized, while someone  else said "you kicked my ass
live, it was  audio warfare". So that was the  basis behind the title,
really. It was something far different from what was inside."
     And Travis  Smith (Nevermore,  Opeth) did  the cover  artwork. It
looks cool and creepy.
     "Yeah, he did a great job. I really like the cover a lot. I never
want to  be one  of those bands  where you can  predict what  the next
album will  sound like or  what the next  album cover will  look like.
There are a lot of heavy metal bands out there that I like that I look
at their album cover  and I know what the album will  be like. I don't
want that with Jag Panzer."
     Briody and his band mates know that  they are very lucky to be in
this situation:  a record deal  and a growing  fan base. What  does he
credit the band's success to, especially over the last five years?
     "It is very exciting to know that  our fan base is growing and to
see all of these  young kids so into our band. I know  a lot of people
may not  know our music,  but they know the  name. Every album  we are
getting  more fans,  both  young  and old,  coming  to  our shows  and
supporting what  we do. It  feels great to  see all of  this happening
before our eyes."
     "I think  we have just  been very fortunate as  a band. We  got a
second chance  and we went  for it", adds  the guitar player.  "We are
also very  lucky that there  is no  fighting amongst band  members. We
have made an effort to avoid in-house fighting and make sure the music
is the main focus with what Jag Panzer does."
     "I feel  very lucky to be  in this situation, being  able to make
music and tour and  what have you. This is a great thing  to be a part
of. I think for me personally, the  ability for me to be able to throw
ideas has  allowed me to  stay in this business  for so long.  I know,
when I  am making music, if  it sounds too  close to what I  have done
already I throw it away. I write  all the time. I also enjoy recording
a lot and enjoy working with  new technology. That keeps me interested
too. I like  being able to try new  ideas and see what we can  do as a
band."
     "The way  you record music now  is very different from  how I did
when I was a teenager", explains  Briody. "It is still really exciting
for me to work  with a digital recorder. I am like a  kid in the candy
store with all of the new technology being brought into the studio for
us to work with."
     He ends, "Every record  is so fun because we have  so much at our
disposal. There is so much we can  do to help make Jag Panzer a better
sounding band. Right now I don't think I could be any more excited."

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

 H O T   B A N D   P U T S   U S   " I N T O   S U B M I S S I O N "
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
             CoC interviews Daniel Anghede of Astroqueen
                         by: Adrian Bromley


     There  are  very  few  bands out  there  nowadays  like  Sweden's
Astroqueen. Y'know?  Bands that can  rock out,  hit a groove  and sail
into the  wee hours of  the morning on a  constant buzz of  energy and
tight musicianship.
     Not since the  early days of Monster Magnet, Fu  Manchu and Kyuss
has stoner / hard rock sounded  this good. Being mentioned in the same
sentence as  those three bands  is indeed a  high honor, but  when you
rock as hard as these Swedes do, you deserve all the praise you get --
and then some.
     "This record is made  up of some old material from  an EP that we
put out just for our friends a year ago and some new material", starts
singer/guitarist Daniel  Anghede. "We really  didn't have a  theme for
this record.  It was just us  choosing the songs that  we thought best
suited what we wanted to do with this debut record [_Into Submission_]
for Pavement."
     And hooking  up with guitar  player and producer Andy  La Rocque?
How did that come about?
     "A lot of it had to do with the fact that his studio [Los Angered
Studios] is  about half hour  away from  us. The label  also suggested
that he  might be the  right person to work  with", he says.  "We were
interested in working with him because he has never really worked with
any stoner rock before; more progressive metal and hard rock bands. He
has this  really clear heavy  metal sound and we  wanted that to  be a
part of  what we were  doing. We are huge  fans of heavy  metal. Heavy
metal is  a huge  influence for  us all,  bands like  Cannibal Corpse,
Slayer and Black Sabbath. Almost everything heavy we like."
     "Working with  Andy was great.  We got  a great sound  with him",
continues the singer. "He really was a  great thing for us. I think we
really dared  to explore our heavy  metal side and not  just have this
whole retro sound. I think this record sounds very current and modern,
but still with a '70s-style music sound."
     I hear a lot of Kyuss in what Astroqueen plays. Does Anghede?
     "Yeah, oh yeah.  I can hear that  in what we do. I  think you can
also hear  Cathedral, Spirit  Caravan and  Electric Wizard.  We really
like Electric Wizard, though they are doom, but still heavy."
     In today's  music scene there are  a lot of bands  that fall into
stagnant  waters. Bands  that once  roared with  originality have  now
succumbed to mediocre album offerings  and less creative passages. How
has  Anghede and  the band  (rounded  out by  bassist Mattias  Wester,
guitarist Daniel Tolergard and drummer Johan Backman) kept their sound
and direction from becoming stagnant?
     "The main thing  that we try to  focus on, so that  we don't fall
into the  trap of sounding  like all of  the other bands  playing this
style of music, is to focus on sounding more metal than everyone else.
I think a lot  of bands are afraid to explore.  Bands that play stoner
rock are always trying to be like Kyuss and play it safe. We don't. We
don't care if it  is a stoner riff or a heavy metal  riff. If it works
for us and we like it, we add it to our music and go with it. A lot of
bands out  there need to understand  that you have got  to explore and
try new things. We have no rules to follow. We do what we want to do."
     So has the sound changed much since their inception?
     "I don't  think it has changed  much. We are still  the same guys
jamming since we started this band in  1995. In 1998 we really made an
effort of  this band  and called ourselves  Astroqueen and  started to
push this band.  We are still pursuing the same  ideas with this band.
Nothing much has  changed. We all know each other  so well that making
music is not a job at all. It  doesn't even seem like work. It is just
a group of friends writing riffs and having a good time."
     "I  love everything  about this  band and  the way  it has  taken
shape. Not many bands that have been  playing for so long can say that
they still are  excited about what they do. Each  day is something new
for us."
     Seeing that the album just came out this summer, how will 2001 be
a successful year for the band, in Anghede's mind?
     "We just  want to go out  on the road  and tour. We want  to tour
with a  big band and  just follow them around  all over the  place and
play as many cities as we can.  We hope that Pavement has the money to
bring us over to North America to play our music."
     I think Astroqueen would do very well playing in North America.
     "I do too. We have been getting a lot of mail from fans asking us
"when are you coming over to play?",  so we have to come over and play
now."
     Where in the U.S. would Anghede like to play a show and/or visit?
     "There are a few places I want to go. California, Texas..."
     What about Disneyland? Everyone who comes to the U.S. wants to go
to Disneyland?
     "No, not really", states the singer. "I just want to get in a van
and tour all over North America for several months."
     Aside from a day job working  at a cookie factory (an easy access
to cookies when you got the  "munchies", I'd assume), Anghede says the
band makes  an effort  to practice  three times a  week to  keep their
chops up.  Summer has  slowed things  down a bit,  but the  band still
makes an effort to keep things focused.
     Says the singer, "Our rehearsal room is in my parent's garage, so
it is very easy for us to get together and jam."
     That sounds pretty fucking convenient for the band...
     He ends, "Oh,  it is. It makes  it all the easier to  roll out of
bed and just jam when I want to. I love it."

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 C R O S S I N G   B O U N D A R I E S   A N D   H A V I N G   F U N
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                CoC chats with Cory White of Shocore
                         by: Adrian Bromley


     I  am  not  going  to  lie  to all  of  you  metalheads  and  say
Vancouver's  Shocore  is  a  metal   band.  They  aren't.  More  of  a
crossover-type  band   that  blends   hard  rocking   riffs,  hardcore
aggression and punk rock DIY mentality.
     Having been a big fan of singer Cory White's previous band (which
he was booted from) called DDT, and  the fact that they are a Canadian
band, gave me  more of an initiative to track  down the goateed singer
to chat  about their  new album  titled _Devil  Rock Disco_  (on Linus
Entertainment).
     "I am  excited about  what I  am doing  right now  with Shocore",
starts White down  the line from Vancouver. "I thought  that DDT got a
little too poppy for  me and that wasn't really my  taste. I loved the
first DDT record, but when it came time to work on the second record I
really wasn't involved too much with the writing and I didn't like the
direction it was  going. This Shocore record has a  lot more balls. It
is definitely a lot heavier."
     "Things keep  changing as the  years go on  for me", he  says. "I
don't really have a grand master plan of what is going to go on. After
I got kicked out of DDT, Terry  "Sho" Murray called me up and asked me
if I  wanted to  come down  to the studio  and work  on stuff.  We had
worked before in the past on some stuff and it was lots of fun to just
be in the studio  doing this stuff. When we were  in the studio, every
week we'd have  a keg of beer  and our friends would come  by and play
stuff. There really seemed like there  was no pressure working on this
disc.  When I  had  recorded  with DDT,  there  was  this whole  crazy
pressure with people coming into the studio and it just added a ton of
pressure onto you. This was very  low-key, as if you were just hanging
with some of your friends and writing/recording music. We [the band is
rounded  out by  Chon Chikara,  Andy  Simpson, Paul  Floyd and  Stevie
Ericson -- Adrian] just made a record that we wanted to make."
     White has seen a  lot of ups and downs in his  career so far. His
ex-band DDT  had seen success in  the early to mid-'90s  with their EP
_Living  Off the  Generosity of  Other People_  and eventually  signed
to  Metallica's  Lars Ulrich's  imprint  label  TMC (which  worked  in
conjunction  with Elektra  Records) to  release _Urban  Observer_. And
then came the  departure from DDT, with White cast  out to the musical
world, and  soon after that, DDT  broke up. What inspires  him to keep
creating music? Is it the only thing he is good at?
     "This is definitely  one of the only things I  can really do", he
laughs. "Being in a band and creating music is just a great outlet for
me. I love to travel and I like to create and perform and entertain. I
am not a  rocket scientist. I don't  plan on changing the  world. I am
not political. I just like to have a  good time. I know if I go to see
a band play for $10, I want to be entertained. That is what I put into
all of this with  Shocore. I am not a rocket scientist  at all, I just
like to rock!"
     Talking about the new disc, he says, "I like all of the songs. My
favourite songs on  the record change from day to  day, really. I have
been living with the record for a year now. There are a lot of songs I
like  to perform  live, songs  like "High  School Punk"  or "Legendary
Camaro"."
     "I have been  through so much so far in  this music business, and
seen a lot of stuff happen, and  I am just glad and excited about what
we did with this record. We made  something that we really love and it
just came  out of  us. It  wasn't forced.  We weren't  trying to  be a
certain sound. It  just happened. And it just keeps  going with us. We
are already working on the second record for Shocore."
     Shocore are not afraid  to try a lot of new  ideas and bring them
into the  fold, though a lot  of other bands sometimes  bring too much
variety and ideas to their music, causing some to lose interest.
     "When I first listened to this record, I kind of felt there was a
real  '70s rock  feel to  it",  he reveals.  "I grew  up listening  to
records like that with my parents. Not  to say we sound like that, but
there was  that rock feeling  inside. When we  worked on the  disc and
were  looking for  samples and  sounds to  fit what  we were  doing, I
noticed that  we made  sure we  took in ideas  that would  enhance our
music and sound cool and draw the listener in."
     "The music scene in Canada has  always been tough for young bands
to get  noticed", answers  White when asked  about the  Canadian music
scene. "You have to be pretty straight  head rock to make it here. And
all the power to bands like that  playing in Canada, but to me that is
just music  that is playing it  safe. Not that we  are jumping through
circles of fire, but I think that  we are playing our music the way we
want to and not worried about playing it too safe." He laughs. "Making
music has always been fun for me. That is why I enjoy doing this. This
isn't easy at all -- vans breaking down, living homeless, which I have
done -- but it is a lot of fun as well, fun that most people never get
to experience. This is  real riot and you amass such  a vast amount of
experience from being in a band."
     The final  question goes out  to Shocore's frontman: how  does he
feel about working within the music industry?
     "I like the corporate engine working for you, but I don't like it
taking  over what  you are  doing", he  states. "I  have been  in that
situation before [with DDT] and I don't want to have that again."
     He finishes off, "I  like what Linus is doing for  us and I think
they really  believe in what  we are doing.  They are good  people. We
both want this band to be a success."

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
                   _____  .__ ___.
                  /  _  \ |  |\_ |__  __ __  _____
                 /  /_\  \|  | | __ \|  |  \/     \
                /    |    \  |_| \_\ \  |  /  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!


Anathema - _A Fine Day to Exit_  (Music for Nations, October 2001)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (7.5 out of 10)

_Judgement_ [CoC #41] was a superb album, another excellent release by
this unique and  immensely gifted band -- but still  I felt their best
was yet  to come. Ever  since Anathema had  found their new  path with
_Eternity_,  they had  been  gradually becoming  more consistent,  and
always able to distill their emotion into the music they created. Gone
were the  days of _Serenades_ and  _The Silent Enigma_, but  this band
was  becoming something  else, leaving  in  its wake  a collection  of
remarkable albums.  I therefore had a  feeling _Judgement_'s successor
would be their greatest achievement ever, perhaps even the culmination
of all  their potential;  but sadly,  I was wrong.  This is  again the
product of  a more mature  band than  before, something that  has been
apparent  with each  successive album  they've made.  But in  spite of
that,  this time  they  have produced  a  comparatively bland  effort,
lacking the necessary intensity to  accentuate the emotion and passion
in Anathema's  music. It  isn't just  a matter  of sounding  too soft,
which it  does; the distorted guitar  sections also fail to  stir much
inside of me. Compared to  the heartbreaking guitar work the Cavanaghs
used to come up with, this is almost unbelievable. This time we either
get mostly unremarkable acoustic guitars, or guitar work that tends to
sound like the  vaguely sloppy product of a simple  rock band, failing
to  add anything  truly significant  to the  vocal efforts.  Vincent's
vocals are again in great form -- had it been someone else singing and
the  album  would  have  surely  received a  much  lower  rating  from
me  --, but  why  all the  excessively  mellow, repetitive  sing-along
sections  and all  the annoying  layering  of backing  vocals? Not  to
mention  the lengthy,  odd  ending  Anathema decided  to  slap on  the
album.  Furthermore,  knowing  it  had been  Travis  Smith  to  create
that  poor commercial  excuse  for an  album cover  was  all the  more
distressing.  Unfortunately,  most  of  what lies  inside  is  also  a
strangely watered-down version of what Anathema used to be -- not just
in terms  of "heaviness" and absence  of "metal", but also  because it
lacks the  intensity and depth  that made  the emotion in  their music
truly stand out  in previous records. Make no  mistake, however: there
are still a  handful of superb emotional moments in  the album. Still,
most of  the time  the tracks  just flow  by nicely,  unremarkably and
strangely unaffectingly for Anathema songs,  due to the changes in the
guitar work and,  to a lesser extent, songwriting.  Overall, they have
done so  much better  in the  past that  I cannot  seem to  enjoy this
album, because of all  that I find missing from it.  I wish they would
have taken  three or four tracks  from _AFDtE_, made an  EP with them,
forgotten  about the  rest, and  then  written the  real follow-up  to
_Judgement_. Vincent's vocals alone keep this album afloat, but in the
end, _A Fine Day to Exit_ leaves me mostly indifferent compared to its
predecessors -- just wondering whether  Anathema will ever get back on
track and fulfill their huge potential.


Arch Enemy - _Wages of Sin_  (Dream On, August 2001) 
by: Chris Flaaten  (8.5 out of 10) 
 
Arch Enemy  have been on  a steady course for  three albums in  a row,
defining  their  musical style  and  --  at  least  in my  opinion  --
improving with each  step they take. Since the release  of the eminent
_Burning Bridges_ [CoC #41], however,  things have not been going very
smoothly for  the band.  They have changed  vocalist and  their latest
album still has no release date in  Europe or the US -- _Wages of Sin_
is only available in Southeast Asia at the moment. Hopefully this will
change soon, because  this is a great album! With  previous Arch Enemy
albums, the only  thing I wished for was more  intense vocals. Liiva's
shouting  style of  vocals  never sat  well with  me,  even though  he
improved a  lot for _Burning  Bridges_. Apparently, the band  felt the
same way  as I did  and found what they  needed in Angela  Gossow from
Germany. Yes, that  is a feminine name.  Yes, she is a  female. Yes, I
was as  curious as you are  now when I  played the disc for  the first
time.  The album  opens with  forty seconds  of quiet  piano and  then
glides  over in  hammering  riffs  and drums;  then  a  short fury  of
poweresque guitar harmonies before  Angela unleashes vocals of extreme
intensity! The music  is unmistakably Arch Enemy, with  the weaving of
power metal and melodic death metal  elements they are well known for.
Yet again  they have achieved  a wonderful balance between  melody and
brutality, but  they sound  slightly darker and  angrier on  _Wages of
Sin_  than on  their previous  albums --  especially the  song "Savage
Messiah", which  features a  dark, slow and  melody-stripped heaviness
unprecedented for Arch  Enemy. The album has their  best production to
date and variety is abundant. My only remaining problem regarding Arch
Enemy is that I  can't seem to keep my interest up  through all of the
eleven songs. Listening to either half gives me the same impression of
quality, though,  so this is due  to my taste regarding  the genre and
not the music itself. Arch Enemy shouldn't disappoint anyone with this
album.


Averse Sefira - _Battle's Clarion_  (Lost Disciple, 2001)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)

Fast and  hateful, Averse Sefira  thrust their warlike black  metal at
the listener  with considerable potency.  Do not expect  nice keyboard
embellishments  here.  Instead,  it  is  the  addition  of  some  good
atmospheric  effects, akin  to some  of Enslaved's  recent work,  that
allows the  band to  give their intense  attack some  breathing space.
This serves a  dual purpose: to enhance the  atmosphere that surrounds
the  music  itself, and  to  help  them  avoid creating  a  continuous
sequence of similar-sounding  tracks. These Americans do  come up with
several  enjoyable mid-  to fast-paced  riffs, and  are able  to imbue
their music with a good deal of venom  as well -- and all this is then
enhanced  by  their smart  manipulation  of  the aforementioned  sound
effects. Sometimes bringing to mind  Sweden's excellent In Battle [CoC
#23, #33],  _Battle's Clarion_ turned  out to  be a very  pleasant and
enjoyable surprise for me. Averse Sefira seem to have what it takes to
avoid disappearing amidst the mass of black metal bands populating the
metal market these days, at least judging by _Battle's Clarion_.


Awakening - _An Eves Nightmare_  (<Independent>, 2001) 
by: Adrian Bromley  (6 out of 10) 

From  Australia   comes  the  bizarre  metal   outfit  calling  itself
Awakening.  Not   really  a  full-blown  metal   act,  Awakening  find
themselves  hovering  between  a  creepy, atmospheric  metal  act  and
melodic metal, paying lots of  attention to haunting segues and unique
musical passages. With a really dream-like sequence of ideas, _An Eves
Nightmare_ is  very effective as  it draws  the listener in  with some
impressive  ambient features,  not  to mention  dark  vocal ideas  and
hypnotic  guitar work.  The  keyboard work  by singer/guitarist  James
Steed, for example  on the track "Introduction to  Obscurity," is also
worthy of note.  No doubt the twelve songs on  _An Eves Nightmare_ are
meant to be  taken in all at  the same time and would  surely lose the
appeal  should they  be  heard out  of sequence.  A  gothic stench  of
moodiness descends  upon the music  of Awakening as it  trudges along,
deeper into a nightmare of ghastly  sounds and creepy emotions. Not as
good as it could have been, but effective nonetheless.

Contact: mailto:awakening28@hotmail.com
         http://www.angelfire.com/realm/awakening/


Bastard Noise - _Analysis of Self Destruction_
by: Gabriel Sanchez  (9 out of 10)  (Alien8 Recordings, 2000)

This  has been  sitting in  my "to  review" pile  for ages  now. After
giving it a virgin run on my  CD player upon initial receipt, I backed
off making  a detailed  assessment out the  realization that  given my
overall views  of noise  at the  time, my  commentary would  be overly
biased and perhaps largely uninteresting.  To clear the air on another
issue, let it be said Bastard  Noise will never take the gold, silver,
or bronze in  the "harshness" or "dynamics" competitions.  It would be
foolish  for a  listener to  expect such  triumphs from  an act  which
deliberately fails  to compete  in those areas.  Bastard Noise  is all
about meshing a  darkness in tone with minimalism  of sound. Sometimes
they drift in,  other times they float about. They  order their sounds
to achieve  their ends of  conceptualizing the bleakness  of existence
through an artistic  medium seldom few ever attach a  shred of meaning
to. There is a  cold emptiness in the works of  Bastard Noise that may
be longing  in there (somewhere) for  a ray of hope...  of warmth. The
group seems decidedly  set on offering none,  however. Nihilistic, the
world drifts  through time without  meaning; more  pain in a  day than
pleasure in a lifetime. Bastard Noise  knows this. It may never escape
their minds  that humanity is capable  of such good and  beauty, their
eyes and ears are ever transfixed on the rot we so gleefully bathe in.
For a noise group... any group to offer such bleakness in their sounds
alone does  not happen often.  Few have the  courage to peel  back the
layers, abstract their socially constructed ordered thinking patterns,
and come to grips with sound  what life around them really is. Bastard
Noise has done that before, and for  the sake of a humanity that could
care even  less about their message  than they do the  implications of
it, they do it yet again.

Contact: http://www.alien8recordings.com


Various - _Beauty in Darkness 5_  (Nuclear Blast, July 2001)
by: Quentin Kalis  (7.5 out of 10)

The  latest  instalment in  Nuclear  Blast's  vaguely monikered  "Dark
Music"  series can  be  better  described as  a  gothic music  sampler
--  though  even  this  description  is inadequate,  as  a  number  of
featured  bands  (such as  Dimmu  Borgir  and  Nevermore) do  not  sit
comfortably  within  this  category.  Highlights  include  Theatre  of
Tragedy's contribution,  the exquisite  "Image" -- which  Liv Kristine
sings  in French,  her ethereal  vocals adding  an extra  dimension of
sensuality to the  song, something which was missing  from the English
version. Mandragora Scream  are a new gothic band from  Italy and they
offer "Cryin' Clouds"  off their debut album. It sounds  as if a woman
is  singing,  but  apparently  it  is  a  man  providing  the  vocals.
Irrespective of whether  it's a man or woman  singing, the androgynous
vocals are a refreshing change from  the plethora of female vocals and
Eldritch-esque vocals that plague  goth-inspired acts. Of course there
are  also bad  tracks, most  notably Dimmu  Borgir's "Puritania"  -- a
noisy  meandering  piece of  neo-industrial  garbage.  Not to  mention
Crematory's feeble  gothic metal  contribution. But the  album's major
flaw is a lack of metal  in comparison to earlier _BiD_ releases. Many
established bands  which have  contributed to previous  _BiD_ releases
have mellowed considerably  -- such as Therion and  Theatre of Tragedy
--, creating a  softer overall feel to the album.  Another four tracks
are by  bands who  are not  and never  have been  metal. One  of these
tracks does not  even so much as  feature a guitar. Despite  a few bad
selections,  this is  a pretty  good  album. But  even after  repeated
listenings one  cannot help but  think that  this is a  compilation of
goth  songs with  metal elements  rather then  a compilation  of metal
songs with goth elements.


Benediction - _Organized Chaos_  (Nuclear Blast, October 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (8 out of 10)

I have always had this love-hate relationship with Benediction. I like
their earlier stuff (_Subconscious  Terror_ and _The Grand Leveller_),
tolerate some  of their mid-era  albums (_Transcend the  Rubicon_) and
was really unimpressed with the last few discs (_The Dreams You Dread_
and  _Grind Bastard_).  But  with the  band's  new album,  _Controlled
Chaos_, I once  again plan to show support for  Benediction. While far
from  being mind-blowing,  the  new album  finds  Benediction back  in
familiar territory,  playing some strong  old school death  metal with
lots of  conviction. Singer  Dave Hunt  (who replaced  longtime singer
Dave  Ingram, now  in Bolt  Thrower) sounds  in control  here, as  the
chaotic frenzy  begins with  "Suicide Rebellion"  onto "The  Temple of
Set" and  "Easy Way to  Die". Tight,  fast, grinding death  metal that
shows no  mercy as it  unfolds into metal  madness. Good to  see these
grind bastards back in good form. Let the chaos begin!


Bernd Steidl - _Paganiniana_  (Shrapnel, 2001)
by: Brian Meloon  (7 out of 10)

This is the American release of Steidl's long-awaited follow-up to his
1991  debut, _Psycho  Acoustic  Overture_. This  album  is similar  in
style, but at the same time, shows many differences. His core sound is
a metal shred  guitar style played on acoustic  guitar, accompanied by
gothic- and  classically-inspired keyboards. It's a  very original and
unique  sound,  and  Steidl  definitely  has  the  chops  to  make  it
interesting. His technique  and style hasn't changed much  in the last
ten years,  but what has changed  is the nature of  the accompaniment.
The keyboards on  this album are generally less gothic,  and there are
long sections which sound like a  movie soundtrack. In fact, there are
many  sections where  Steidl's  guitar  takes the  back  seat and  the
keyboards  (which Steidl  also  plays) dominate  the music.  Classical
themes are  very prevalent  on the  album. In  fact, a  full one-third
of  the  tracks  are  classically themed,  including  two  based  upon
Paganini violin  caprices, one based upon  Albinoni's famous "Adagio",
and  one based  upon  Scriabin's "Piano  Etude #8  Op.  12". A  rather
unfortunate addition to Steidl's style comes in the way of dance beats
in  a  couple of  the  songs,  which  are  eerily reminiscent  of  the
classical-set-to-dance-music albums  of the mid-to-late 80's.  But for
the  most part,  this  is an  enjoyable release.  While  it isn't  the
groundbreaking release  that _Psycho  Acoustic Overture_ was,  fans of
that  album should  enjoy this  one as  well. Note  that the  European
release  -- _Burnt  Steel_ (on  KDC Records)  -- features  three extra
tracks:  "Cobra" (a  remake of  "Cobra  Negra" from  his debut),  "The
Bunker" and "Odyssey".  Luckily, their omission on  this release isn't
much of a  loss, as while they're good songs,  they aren't better than
the ones that are here.


Brick Bath - _I Won't Live the Lie_  (<Independent>, 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (5 out of 10)

In their bio,  California metal quartet Brick Bath  likens their sound
to a  "combination of Pantera  and Testament  on steroids". As  far as
accurate descriptions go, Brick Bath pretty  much hits the nail on the
head. Fans  of Pantera and the  aggressive hard rock movement  will no
doubt be pumping their fists as _I Won't Live the Lie_ rages on. While
there are a good variety of  heavy and ambitious songs on this record,
most notably  "Sick of You",  the powerful  "So Wrong" or  "Erased", I
couldn't help but  feel a little upset about just  how much they sound
like Pantera. From  the vicious bass lines and drumming  styles to the
screeching guitar riffs and heavy-set vocals, Brick Bath could pass as
a Pantera cover band. I kid you not. In all, this is good, heavy music
to play loud, but if you metalheads are looking for something original
sounding, Brick Bath can only offer  up second rate Pantera to digest.
If  you're craving  anything more  than that,  then you  need to  look
elsewhere.

Contact: J.W.M. Productions, 610 Country Club Lane, Suite 90,
         Escondido, CA 92026, USA
         mailto:joelspy@aol.com


Celestia / Goatfire -
          _Darkness Enfold the Sky / Black Slaughterization_ split 7"
by: Alvin Wee  (7 out of 10)  (End All Life, 2001)

Elusive French  outfit Celestia seem to  have taken on a  darker, more
infernal shade since we last heard from them on the long-deleted _Cave
Full  of  Bats_  EP.  Core  member Noctu  spits  forth  his  vitriolic
war-words  with far  more low-end  venom  than ever  before, and  fans
familiar with the clean, high-pitched Swedish sound that characterized
their  Drakkar  days   might  do  a  double-take   at  their  newfound
rawness  on this  record. Melody  is  downplayed in  favor of  hellish
atmospheres; listening to  the twisted blackness on  this track almost
brings  the  stench of  burning  sulphur  to one's  nostrils.  Nothing
particularly earthshaking, but certainly a  nice slab of pure evil far
less  derivative  than  their  MCD material,  and  that,  despite  its
primitiveness, remains impressively memorable  in true Celestia style.
Goatfire  struggle  somewhat to  keep  up  with Celestia's  diabolical
sorcery, coming across  a tad messy and rehearsal-like  in their black
metal meanderings. However, to dismiss these Italians this early would
be  a grave  mistake;  "Black Slaughterization"  has an  inexplicable,
barbarous  charm  to  it  transcending the  band's  apparent  lack  of
cohesion in  the studio. Evocative  of the old Swedish  underground in
the  demo days,  Goatfire manage  to recreate  the unschooled  fire of
cult  acts like  Sorhin  in the  early  nineties. All  in  all a  nice
collaboration  that's  pleasantly  satisfying, if  nothing  essential.
Limited to 300 copies as usual.

Contact: mailto:EAL@wanadoo.fr


Death - _Live in LA - Death and Raw_  (Nuclear Blast, October 2001)
by: Chris Flaaten  (10 out of 10)

I am not very keen on live  albums. They are usually just a "best of",
routine-like and overproduced. Rarely do  they capture the actual feel
of the  concert. I can  think of a  few exceptions, however,  and this
record is the best of them  all! The title is highly appropriate: this
is Death  at their rawest, and  the live feeling is  maintained to the
fullest. Unpolished and almost  flawlessly executed, their performance
is truly  awesome. Drummer  Richard Christy  deserves extra  credit --
filling the shoes of  both Gene Hoglan and Sean Reinert  as well as he
does here is  quite the feat. The live album  contains thirteen songs,
taken from every Death album  except _Spiritual Healing_. The emphasis
is on the  last two albums, with  a combined total of  seven songs. Of
course there are other songs I wish were on it, but it is hard fitting
seven albums worth  of solid material in a live  album. Buy this album
ASAP and help out Chuck at the same time -- that's a win-win situation
if I ever saw one.


Delirium Endeavor - _Flight of the Imagination_
by: Brian Meloon  (8 out of 10)  (<Independent>, 1998)

I realize this  is a bit older  than the albums we  usually review for
CoC, but the  guys sent it to  me, so I'm going to  review it, dammit!
Delirium Endeavor hail from Rochester, NY, and are an all-instrumental
trio. This is their first  full-length offering, after an earlier demo
which was released under the name Manic [CoC #22]. They describe their
music  as "a  series  of 'busy'  instrumentals  created for  indulgent
musicians  and music  listeners who  love detail".  That sums  up this
recording pretty well, though the word "busy" might be misconstrued by
some. This  is not overly  technical music.  Rather, I'd use  the word
"complex", to signify  that the music isn't  particularly difficult to
play,  but it  is organized  in a  way that  requires several  listens
to  fully  comprehend. The  songs  meander  through several  different
styles and  tempos, generally  without telegraphing their  next steps.
In  addition  to non-conventional  song  structures,  they offer  some
interesting and unique  textures. The band I'm most  reminded of while
listening to  their music is Sieges  Even. In fact, the  style of this
album is roughly halfway between  _Life Cycle_ and _Steps_ (thankfully
without the distinctive  vocals of Franz Herde). The  heavy parts have
the manic thrash sound of _Life Cycle_, but aren't as chaotic, and the
clean  guitar parts  (especially with  the chorus  effect) sound  much
like  those on  _Steps_, but  not quite  as smooth.  In addition,  the
musicianship isn't  quite up to the  standards set by Sieges  Even. In
particular, the  guitar work is  slightly sloppy throughout.  It's not
overly annoying, but the album doesn't  have the tight feel to it that
bands like Zero  Hour [also reviewed this issue] do.  Overall, this is
an  interesting  offering,  and  the  band's  target  audience  (which
probably includes Sieges Even fans) should enjoy it.


Depraved - _Decadence & Lust_  (Warpath Records, 2001)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (5 out of 10)

Twelve tracks of brutal death metal packed into less than half an hour
is what Depraved  present us with here. Death  grunts are complemented
by  grindcore screams,  which are  typically used  whenever the  music
speeds up, making  it all annoyingly predictable after  a short while.
Depraved remind  me of a  kind of fast,  punkish, grindcore-influenced
death metal  not far from what  pioneers like Brutal Truth  and Napalm
Death  once created.  Production is  adequate, but  doesn't save  this
French  band from  coming  across as  a very  derivative  member of  a
much-explored genre. These guys probably have lots of fun playing this
material live,  but there's  a limit  to how much  you can  repeat the
simplistic chopping riff  with growls, followed by  the blastbeat that
starts with the  grindcore scream -- especially if all  your riffs and
vocals are  basically going to  sound the same throughout  the record.
Depraved  are reasonably  adept at  what  they do  given one  specific
track, but then they make the same thing last for the entire half-hour
without even  trying to develop  it any  further. Within the  realm of
death metal, what Depraved are  doing is hardly relevant or refreshing
at all,  given everything that  has been done  before in the  genre. I
would therefore recommend this record  exclusively to die-hard fans of
the genre  who just cannot  get enough of the  same thing. And  by the
way, regarding the  album's imagery: personally, I  couldn't care less
about  the  band members'  sexual  traumas,  and Depraved  are  really
pushing the subject like there's nothing else in their world.


Devin Townsend - _Terria_  (InsideOut, October 2001)
by: Chris Flaaten  (8 out of 10)

HevyDevy  is   back  and  his   presence  on  this  album   is  almost
overwhelming. A  bold conclusion would be  that he has managed  to put
his soul and mind on tape. I am  assuming a lot here, as I do not know
his soul, nor his mind, but it just seems like the obvious observation
to make when listening to the music.  It is quite apparent that he has
written  the music  he burns  for, not  following directions  from any
labels or  trends. From  that point  of view,  one could  compare this
album to _Infinity_ [CoC #36]. Still, the music on _Terria_ is calmer,
smoother and  more melodic. The same  could perhaps be said  about the
composer  himself?  The  album  starts  with  an  appropriately  weird
instrumental and then leads into  the thundering, doom-like opening of
"Mountain". Enter  Townsend's vocals and  you have the  combination of
heaviness and  beauty that  he is  so renowned  for. The  songs glides
smoothly  through  soft,  hard  and even  punkish  elements  (leftover
inspiration from  the time  with The  Wildhearts?), yet  they maintain
their identity  as songs.  Townsend is  playful and  experimental, but
never loses grasp  of the melody. Musically, this is  indeed closer to
his Ocean Machine project. He even  keeps the nature focus intact with
songs  like "Olives",  the aforementioned  "Mountain" and  "Earthday".
Expect to  spend a few  listens before  the music really  makes sense.
Fans of either _Infinity_ or Ocean  Machine should have a field day on
this. Those  who do not  know those projects  but think 72  minutes of
melody and different metal could be interesting should also check this
out.


Divina Enema - _At the Conclave_  (Eldritch Music, 2001)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (5 out of 10)

The wintry  front cover  chosen by  this band  from Belarus  for their
album sparked considerable interest in me -- the desolate yet majestic
ruins amidst  the dark, frozen  landscape. As  it turns out,  the band
uses violin, cello and piano to augment their progressive, theatrical,
symphonic  metal sound  quite well,  and  the whole  thing might  have
worked... had it not been for most of the vocals. I simply cannot hear
past the incredibly annoying,  jarring, high-pitched male singing that
accompanies the very  decent Garm-influenced vocals. Even  if I could,
the extremely poor death grunts and blackened vocals are lurking right
behind the next corner to render the whole thing unenjoyable. I simply
cannot  recall having  heard worse  death vocals  than these,  or more
intolerable clean  singing than  these eunuch-like  theatrical vocals.
Fortunately,  there is  enough  vocal variety  to  avoid having  these
particular vocals on  all the time --  but they still show  up far too
frequently, all courtesy  of the same person. For  six lengthy tracks,
Divina Enema  show lots of  ambition and  several good ideas,  even if
they often bring to mind Devil Doll and Angizia, for instance. Several
acoustic string passages  and piano sections prove  the potential this
band does have,  only to be ruined by  the aforementioned insufferable
vocals  (e.g.,  the opening  of  the  second  track). The  quality  of
the  musical arrangements  tends to  vary  somewhat, but  the band  is
instrumentally competent and full of  drive to build intricate musical
and lyrical structures. They really should have done a lot better when
choosing the appropriate  people for some of the types  of vocals they
use;  this way  the  music keeps  changing  abruptly from  interesting
to  infuriating  --  hence  my rating.  Hopefully  Divina  Enema  will
significantly improve their  vocal section for their  next release. As
it is,  however, this  metallic "Bohemian  Rhapsody" of  sorts doesn't
even get off the ground, despite all the potential it did have.

Contact: mailto:dzianis@eldritch-music.com (Europe)
         mailto:tsimafei@eldritch-music.com (USA)
         http://www.eldritch-music.com


Dornenreich - _Her Von Welken Nachten_  (Prophecy Productions, 2001)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8.5 out of 10)

Your average band Dornenreich most  certainly are not. These Austrians
manage  to build  an obscure  atmosphere  around their  music, one  of
genius combined with a good pinch of insanity, that keeps the listener
wondering what  will come  next. Not  only can  their riffing  go from
blackened to something  with a gothic flavour, they  often add violin,
and occasionally piano  and cello, into the mix. In  addition to this,
their vocalist  sings and screams,  whispers and whimpers along  in an
unpredictable manner (all in German, by  the way). The songs vary from
subdued pieces based on various  acoustic strings and tortured, mostly
whispered  vocals,  to  songs  full  of  catchy  riffs,  choruses  and
melodies, and to passages that borrow from the blacker or doomier side
of the spectrum. The tortuous,  dark, yet silky acoustic pieces aren't
any  less important  than  the harsher  sections,  as evidenced  about
midway through the record. Instrumental prowess, compositional madness
and brilliance,  and often  unexpected yet interesting  vocals combine
with the strong sound (courtesy of Markus Stock, of Empyrium fame) and
the  lush, sad  violin  and cello  passages to  create  a very  unique
record. Some  of the German  sung goth-like  vocals get on  my nerves,
however,  and on  a couple  of occasions  the band  also uses  them in
rather repetitive choruses to tiresome effect.  A few of the riffs are
somewhat upbeat  and seem inconsistent  with the dark  atmosphere that
pervades most  of the record --  which is the downside  of the album's
otherwise enjoyable variety --, but  they do not occur too frequently.
Still,  I would  have  gotten rid  of  a couple  of  passages in  this
hour-long  album  -- i.e.,  most  of  the  third and  seventh  tracks.
Nevertheless,  _Her Von  Welken  Nachten_ reeks  of individuality  and
talent, and is  at the very least  worthy of a good  number of listens
before passing judgement. Personally, I  find most of the record quite
brilliant -- in a slightly insane sort of way.


Ebony Tears - _Evil as Hell_  (Black Sun, July 2001)
by: David Rocher  (7 out of 10)

Ebony   Tears'  evolution   is   an  intriguing   one  indeed.   After
their  1997  debut  effort  _Tortura Insomniae_  [CoC  #30]  saw  them
sharing  the grounds  with  the ever-increasing  plethora of  prolific
Gothenburg-tinged death  metal acts  such as  In Flames,  their second
release, the cryptically-titled _A Handful  of Nothing_ [CoC #42], saw
Ebony Tears,  by then reduced  to vocalist Johnny Wranning  and axeman
Conny Johnson  plus two session  musicians, veer west towards  the Bay
Area's thrashing  tones. The  nice, melodic  violin, which  was pretty
much a golden facade tentatively embellishing some rather tame riffing
on  _Tortura Insomniae_,  was  now  only to  be  heard  on the  weird,
squeaky track  "Erised". And now,  behold! Two years after  _A Handful
of  Nothing_,  Ebony Tears  are  back  again,  meaner than  ever,  and
_Evil  as  Hell_  itself!  The  Swedes  have  obviously  beaten  their
former  violin player  up with  his  instrument, thus  getting rid  of
both these  whimsical elements,  leaving them  free to  concentrate on
all-out, totally  cathartic thrashing songwriting. While  the now four
distinctly tearless  ebony thrashers  don't actually display  the same
groundbreaking  songwriting genius  as Meshuggah  on _Destroy,  Erase,
Improve_  or  Fear  Factory  on  _Demanufacture_,  they  prove  to  be
remarkably  effective when  it boils  down  to dishing  out a  raucous
mixture of thick, chunky rhythms and distinctly-not-nice, tortuous and
aggressive material,  which is  somewhat reminiscent to  me of  a band
such  as  Wicked  World  signees  Corporation  187,  or  Wranning  and
Johnsson's former thrashcore project Dog Faced Gods. Although _Evil as
Hell_ does  suffer from a  form of sameness  syndrome in the  long run
(which, incidentally, can also be  said about _Corporation 187's debut
_Subliminal  Fear_), the  individual tracks  are catchy  as hell,  and
stand out  enough to be  both entertaining (the opener  "Deviation" is
guaranteed to get the virtuoso air-guitar meister in you riffing away)
and  memorable.  All in  all,  despite  some  flaws in  the  "variety"
department, this raging forty-minute chunk of meanness is well worth a
listen,  but  fans of  Gothenburg  trademark  melodies and  aesthetic,
violin-driven death metal should definitely proceed with caution!

[Brian Meloon: "Ebony Tears have joined the ranks of the bands who had
 a great  debut album  and then went  downhill into  banal mediocrity.
 Imagine Darkane minus their melodic and interesting sections, and you
 have this  album. Sure, this  is a  good album technically:  it's got
 good playing, good production, blah blah blah, but underneath, it's a
 bunch of boring, uninspired crap."]


Emperor - _Prometheus - The Discipline of Fire and Demise_
by: Chris Flaaten  (7 out of 10)  (Candlelight, October 2001)

This  is   it,  the  last   Emperor  album  ever.   _IX  Equillibrium_
disappointed  both critics  and some  fans,  so there  was quite  some
pressure on them  for making this an excellent  album. Ihsahn composed
everything  this time.  So  what  is the  result?  The  album is  very
guitar-oriented, even more  so than _IX Equillibrium_.  There is great
variation in  tempo, vocals, riffing  and arrangements. It  all sounds
good, doesn't it? Still, I can't seem to  love it. In fact, I get in a
bad  mood every  time I  listen to  the album.  It is  really hard  to
explain why, though.  I have listened to it in  its entirety dozens of
times now  and there is no  explanation in sight. The  problem lies in
the essence of  the term "musical taste". On paper,  so to speak, this
album -should- appeal to me; but  it really doesn't. Why not? It's the
reviewer's nightmare -- it's very hard for me to objectively point out
the reason why this album just isn't that good. I have to try, though,
so I'll  go through  a few  issues. The  first track,  "The Eruption",
starts with a  classical, Bach-influenced intro, and  then bursts into
heavy riffs  and blast beats. The  drums sound awful, as  I think they
always do when  recorded in Akkerhaugen studios.  In fact, Akkerhaugen
delivers an utterly mood-deprived production and strips away any magic
that lies in  the compositions themselves. Another fact  that is quite
apparent is that  Ihsahn uses overtone and  other high-pitched effects
in his guitar work much too often.  The structure of most of the songs
also seems -too- complex. I  am not normally intimidated by complexity
-- Spastic  Ink and  Spiral Architect's  latest albums  are two  of my
favorites --, but here everything  is just too fragmented, causing the
songs to lack identity. Luckily,  there are three exceptions: "Empty",
the third track, which starts  very aggressively, then moves into some
classical  passages  where  violin  (synth) glides  into  lead  guitar
harmonies and then  turns back into a brutal drive;  "In the Worldless
Chamber", the sixth  and by far the strongest  track, with hypnotizing
synth/riff arrangements,  crushing groove  and a truly  majestic feel;
and finally "Thorns  on my Grave", the final and  fastest track on the
album, which features a slight  _In the Nightside Eclipse_ feel. These
three  songs save  this album  a great  deal, but  one still  gets the
impression that the composer wasn't  truly inspired and motivated when
writing this album. Writing out of duty and not out of passion has its
consequences,  even with  the  talent of  a  professional of  Ihsahn's
caliber.


Entombed - _Morning Star_  (Music for Nations, 2001)
by: Matthias Noll  (8 out of 10)

"Why wait for another mediocre Slayer  record?" -- this must have been
Entombed's motto while  writing some of the songs  for _Morning Star_.
Overall,  this record  if far  less noisy,  Motorhead etc.  influenced
death  rock  than anything  Entombed  have  released since  _Wolverine
Blues_. Listening to  some of the obvious Slayer  worship that happens
during songs  like "About to  Die", this is  probably more metal  in a
traditional sense  than anything Entombed have  ever done. Sound-wise,
the laws  of heavy metal are  strictly followed as well,  and _Morning
Star_ features the most professional  production of any Entombed album
so far.  Entombed's latest sounds  absolutely killer: broad,  loud and
crisp, metallic and with increased  clarity and depth in comparison to
_Uprising_ and _To  Ride..._ -- and fortunately  the overall heaviness
is not  compromised. The record  starts brilliantly with  the pumping,
anthemic "Chief Rebel Angel", with a dramatic background choir section
underneath the chorus, and continues with the crushing "I For an Eye",
where the second, faster half  showcases the first bit of Slayer-style
riffing on the album. "Bringer of Light" is slightly less powerful and
followed by the  almost thrashy "Ensemble of the  Restless", which may
well be the fastest track Entombed  have ever recorded. From there on,
unfortunately, it's a rollercoaster  ride between good, heavily Slayer
influenced tracks, and a couple  of far less impressive, almost boring
numbers -- like the abysmal "Out  of Heaven", which must be the lamest
Entombed  track ever  recorded.  While Entombed  have  reached a  late
metallic peak, the quality of  the songwriting is inconsistent on this
record. If everything  on _Morning Star_ was on the  same level as the
killer songs, it would be a 9 out  of 10 or even better. The fact that
three out the of twelve songs are average at best in comparison to the
rest is a shame. Nevertheless, this is  a record with a good number of
severely crushing  highlights, and  for those  who started  to dislike
Entombed after _Wolverine  Blues_, this might come as  a nice surprise
and  a  highly recommended  purchase.  Others,  like me,  who  enjoyed
everything they  did except  _Same Difference_, will  get and  love it
anyhow.


Eternal Majesty / Temple of Baal -
             _Unholy Chants of Darkness / Faces of the Void_ split LP
by: Alvin Wee  (9 out of 10)  (End All Life, 2001)

Yet another  thorn in the side  of commercial black metal  courtesy of
the  burgeoning French  scene,  coming  in the  guise  of  a split  LP
on  the ever  trustworthy  End  All Life  label.  After an  obligatory
intro,  Eternal  Majesty  storm  in mightily  with  "Le  Christ  Roi",
sounding uncannily like _Opus  Nocturne_-era Marduk, instantly proving
themselves the copycat rivals -- if not the equals -- of their Swedish
counterparts. Dead-set  on working  their neo-Swedish  similarities to
the  hilt, the  Parisian quartet  continue  pretty much  in a  _Panzer
Division  Marduk_  vein,  pulling  off icy  blizzards  to  rival  even
Marduk's  finest. While  the band's  play-as-fast-as-you-can sentiment
might wear short  on a longer album, the three  tracks here blaze with
an intensity and conviction to  set even the most frigid misanthrope's
blood seething. More  than can be said for Dark  Funeral or latter-day
Setherial, both of which suffer  from the sterility of over-production
that a  label like EAL  shuns. Temple of  Baal stand themselves  in no
worse  stead, wasting  no time  in blasting  forth with  the vitriolic
"Satanic  Dominators",  boasting  a  highly  compressed  guitar  sound
reminiscent  of  Swordmaster's early  days.  Which,  coupled with  the
band's  raw and  passionate delivery,  makes for  extremely compelling
listening. Keeping up the levels set by their A-side compatriots is no
easy task,  but ToB manage to  slow things down (minimally)  to a more
sinister  level, throwing  off the  previous intensity  for a  twisted
blackness  with so  much flair  and  conviction it's  almost scary  to
watch. Three long  songs that leave one drained yet  begging for more,
and I've no doubt that this is one of the underground's more important
releases this  year. Limited to  300 on vinyl,  and you can  still ask
around mailorders if EAL themselves run out of copies.

Contact: mailto:EAL@wanadoo.fr


Evergrey - _In Search of Truth_  (InsideOut, 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (9.5 out of 10)

I cannot begin to tell all you  CoC readers how much I -LOVE- this new
album by Evergrey.  I have not stopped playing this  album since I got
it. Honestly. Sure I'll  throw on other CDs to review  them or just to
break away  from _In  Search of Truth_  for a while,  but after  a few
hours or at the latest by the end of the day when I am finishing up my
nightly  e-mails,  I  have  the  album  cranked  again.  Playing  what
could  only  be described  as  "impressive  progressive metal"  music,
Sweden's  Evergrey just  dazzle us  with their  musicianship here  (as
they  have  done  with  past  works  like  _The  Dark  Discovery_  and
_Solitude, Dominance,  Tragedy_). The talent, the  production (by Andy
LaRocque) and the song structures just  blow me away with each listen.
Singer/guitarist Tom S.  Englund sounds in fine  form here, delivering
vocal lines  with passion  and intensity  as this  concept-based album
unfolds.  And the  piano/keyboard work  found here?  To die  for. From
eloquent to  haunting, the keyboard  definitely adds another  level to
the material, as  do the occasional female vocals.  Nicely blended and
not  overdone. Fans  of Nevermore  and older  era Queensryche  will no
doubt want to pick this baby up,  as it delivers the perfect sound and
style that  should be  associated with good  progressive metal  -- not
wanker  guitar work  that  seems to  be flooding  the  genre of  late.
Die-hard fans of  the band probably already have this  disc and are in
the same exact frenzy  I am. Am I right, people?  _In Search of Truth_
is hard, heavy and truly one  of 2001's most memorable discs. Everyone
should own this.


Fireball Ministry - _FMEP_  (<Independent>, 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (7 out of 10)

Stoner rock squadron Fireball Ministry have got a lot of charisma. The
dynamic  trio  also have  a  lot  of rock  power.  They're  on a  roll
right  off  the bat,  aren't  they?  Just  listen to  their  five-song
_FMEP_ release  and you'll  be rocking  out in no  time to  songs like
opener "King"  and "Choker". Sounding  like a cross between  Fu Manchu
(a  somewhat  more  sedated  version)  and  Corrosion  of  Conformity,
Reverend James A. Rota II  leads his disciples through five impressive
numbers, slowly dishing out  distorted guitars, echoing vocal passages
and  a  hypnotic  rhythm  section.  While not  as  rocking  as  Sweden
act  Astroqueen's debut  disc _Into  Submission_, Fireball  Ministry's
latest  is an  interesting  ride to  take. Not  too  intense, not  too
cliche-sounding. A good core sound also  helps bring the talent of the
band to the surface for us all to enjoy each time out.

Contact: Fireball Ministry, P.O. Box 375, 2110 Artesia Blvd.,
         Redondo Beach, CA 90278-3069, USA
         mailto:thereverend@fireballministry.com
         http://www.fireballministry.com


Fleshitized - _Here Among Thorns_  (Mighty Music, September 2001)
by: David Rocher  (6 out of 10)

This  American brutal  death metal  three-piece is  a band  whose case
seems  to be  rather  recurrent in  today's  metal scene.  Fleshitized
studied hard  at Ye  Olde College  of Death  Metal, fared  decently in
Morbid  Angel,  proved to  be  above  well above-average  in  Cannibal
Corpse, graduated with honours in Malevolent Creation and Suffocation,
but fell short of success  on their "Compelling Songwriting and Catchy
Riffage" test.  Don't get  me wrong:  Fleshitized aren't  bad; they're
unpretentious,  technically proficient  and  extremely efficient,  but
even after  many a listen,  the material  on _Here Among  Thorns_ just
fails  to bury  enough rusty  hooks  in my  flesh  for me  to want  to
spin  it over  and  over  again. The  closing  track,  a decent  cover
of  Morbid  Angel's  "Rapture",  is  very  revealing  as  to  what  is
wrong --  or maybe  simply perfectible --  about Fleshitized  on _Here
Among Thorns_;  the track  is played flawlessly,  and even  the insane
intricacies  of Azagthoth's  trademark  leads  are decently  rendered.
However, Fleshitized have missed out on one important point: there's a
lot more to Morbid Angel's death metal than just all-out aggression --
namely that sombre,  mean, dissonant twist, which is  precisely what I
believe Fleshitized  actually fail  to display  on this  second album.
Graced  with a  nice, powerful  sound  courtesy of  Danish fame  Jacob
Hansen, _Here  Among Thorns_  will be a  definite turn-on  for intense
death metal  fans who are  sooner seduced  by a maelstrom  of blasting
aggressiveness than by the actual atmosphere of their music.


Ginger Leigh - _From Artesia With Love_  (<Independent>, 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (7 out of 10)

I  reviewed Ginger  Leigh's _Broken  by the  World_ back  in CoC  #51,
an  interesting disc  that  offered  the listener  a  unique blend  of
industrial beats and  bizarre ideas rolled into one.  While not really
metal  for the  most part,  Ginger Leigh  offered the  metal masses  a
solid realm  of heaviness  that consisted  of electronic  snippets and
distortion. While  less electronic  based that  the past  work, Ginger
Leigh's new  disc scopes out a  very atmospheric soundscape, led  by a
lot of  percussion work and  a sitar. Interesting enough,  these ideas
only  take up  a portion  of the  record, with  a good  enough portion
focusing  on the  industrial drive  (Godflesh, Nine  Inch Nails)  that
encompassed the first outing. While different from the last record, it
is quite  evident that  Ginger Leigh  likes to  explore new  ideas and
keep  the door  wide open,  never really  pigeon-holing the  sound and
direction. The  work of Ginger Leigh  is far from done.  There will be
more.

Contact: Ginger Leigh, P.O. Box 863 Artesia, CA 90702-0683, USA
         http://www.gingerleigh.com


Godgory - _Way Beyond_  (Nuclear Blast, September 2001)
by: Chris Flaaten  (6 out of 10)

The bass  drum following  deep, pounding  guitars... The  opening riff
leaves  no  doubt  about  who  we  are  dealing  with.  Godgory  mixes
death metal  sounding guitars with  both gothic and  almost industrial
atmospheres, leaving them a true metal bastard. _Way Beyond_ continues
much in  the same  vein as  _Resurrection_ [CoC  #42]. Apart  from the
Swano /  Moontower synths  on the  second track, which  is by  far the
strongest one, this  is just repeating a formula that  already had its
flaws.  Sure, it  is  a nice  listen  at times,  but  it doesn't  -do-
anything. Looking at  pretty horsies can be time well  spent, but it's
not an experience until you ride them.


Imagika - _And So It Burns_  (WWIII, July 2001)
by: Aaron McKay  (2 out of 10) 

This band has a song called  "Fade Away", ironically one of their best
on this  effort. Put in  a different  context, I wish  Imagika -would-
fade away, but then again you have to actually -be- something to begin
to recede. Blah,  blah, blah and on the ten  original tracks go. Where
can one hang  their indigent interest amidst this  dismal vestibule of
horror Imagika calls music? I  understand that this outfit has enjoyed
some overseas  success. All  I can  say to that  is maybe  they should
enjoy foreign  accomplishments -exclusively- instead of  subjecting us
to this substandard retro "Bay  Area thrash scene" drivel; this coming
from a principal fan of the S.F. scene, too. Imagika's two points come
almost exclusively  from track twelve,  "When". That cut  is certainly
well put together,  minus the Brian Vollmer of  Helix covering Morgana
Lefay vocals  that seem to pervade  even the bonus tracks  supplied at
the conclusion of _And So It  Burns_. Also, the third unreleased song,
"Unheard",  has  its  moments  with  specific  melody  and  desirable,
interwoven patterns of developed  drumming and dove-tailed guitar/bass
work, but  again those  vocals are regrettable  and nearly  painful --
like a fruit bat in heat. Unless you have a flaming desire to undo the
natural course of events and purchase _And  So It Burns_ as to not let
it go up in smoke, I'd redirect my magnifying glass elsewhere.


In Aeternum - _Past and Present Sins_  (Necropolis Records, 2001)
by: Aaron McKay  (9 out of 10)

Going back  away, I  remember reviewing  In Aeternum's  _The Pestilent
Plague_ [CoC #49] and giving it a  score of 6. Obviously a lot of time
went  into  that  review,  and  in reading  over  it  again  for  some
background to  work up a  piece for _Past  and Present Sins_,  I don't
think I would change so much as a word. Now, however, I am presented a
brilliant and inspired melange of In Aeternum's material going back to
1995, culminating  with live cuts  from the Plague Across  Europe Tour
2001.  Beginning with  the newest  offering  on this  CD, In  Aeternum
cracks things wide open with "Cursed Legions" driving proficiently and
with celebrated guest vocals by Schmier of Destruction. A cut is taken
from  the _Demon  Possession_  7", "Witches  Spell"  and my  favorite,
"The  Arrival  of  the  Horde", fall  into  place  exceptionally  well
with  super-heated aggression  tempered with  limitless head-thrashing
grooves. Powerful.  "The Pale  Black Death", "Black  Moon Attraction",
"Defeat Life" and "The Storm of  Triumph" furnish a skilled, but harsh
subjugation of  current In Aeternum  offerings. These songs  enforce a
wicked standard early on in an aura of coarse, earthy vocal and guitar
tones. Very convincing.  There are two extremely well  done remakes on
_PaPS_:  Venom's  "Countess  Bathory" and  King  Diamond's  "Abigail".
Losing little to  nothing in a live setting, IA  bust off four callous
and  raspy tracks,  "Wolves  Blood", "Revelation  of Hell",  "Ultimate
Warfare"  (all  from _The  Pestilent  Plague_)  and a  severely  great
performance  of  "When the  Vultures  Left".  From the  elaborate  and
complex cover artwork to the range  of material In Aeternum packs onto
_Past and Present Sins_, I can see no other option; buy this!


In Flames - _The Tokyo Showdown_  (Nuclear Blast, 2001)
by: Matthias Noll  (3 out of 10)

Oh my god, this is such a lame album, it almost hurts. Especially when
I think about _Clayman_ [CoC #48], one  of my top albums for 2000, and
the fact that I kept listening  to and enjoying this record constantly
since  the Four  MusCoCteers met  in Rennes  over a  year ago.  Things
become even  more painful when I  remember two of the  three In Flames
shows from  the _Clayman_  tour that  I had  the pleasure  to witness.
These gigs  belonged to the "exceptional"  category, the 11 out  of 10
points  kind of  shows  that  do not  happen  frequently. Besides  the
incredible positive vibe brought across by the Swedes, their energetic
performances also satisfied my  appetite for upfront, crunching guitar
riffing, a  good frontman, tasteful  guitar solos, and, in  general, a
very  tight performance  with  a superb  and heavy  sound  and a  good
selection of songs that made whole venues go berserk from the front to
the very back. Yes, the very, very back where people usually sip their
beer  and try  to  look  as cool  as  possible.  _The Tokyo  Showdown_
features  the same  band  I saw  live  and a  similar  setlist with  a
slightly different  running order, but  simply none of  the atmosphere
and energy I experienced when I was in the audience. Where live albums
like  Judas  Priest's  _Unleashed  in the  East_,  although  allegedly
recorded  live in  the  studio, almost  burst out  of  their CD  cases
because of  their mesmerizing, energetic  content, _TTS_ is  suited to
put even  melodic metal fans  to sleep --  so sterile and  lifeless is
the  recording,  featuring  tight  but  clean  and  harmless  sounding
reproductions of  a greatest hits  selection. Where the hell  did, for
example, the  incredible dynamics of  the opening track  "Bullet Ride"
get lost? While  I remember Anders Friden as a  witty and entertaining
frontman, on _TTS_ we get song announcements like "this is a song that
I wrote when I  had a difficult time in my life".  This is so pathetic
that I'm  laughing every  time I  hear it. At  least his  vocals sound
better than I  expected. When listening to this record  I'm plagued by
images  of a  band  sitting in  comfortable  armchairs while  playing,
shedding not  a single drop of  sweat. They're watched by  an audience
which is slightly  more lively than a soulless corpse,  and in between
the two parties there is a barrier which separates them some ten miles
(about the same  distance one got blown away by  the Possessed demo in
'85). For those  who have been waiting for an  In Flames greatest hits
collection, there  is one  available now. Just  don't think  that this
is  even  remotely  close  to  seeing  one  of  their  shows.  What  a
disappointment!


Levl - _Controlled by Time_  (Punctured Records, October 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (5 out of 10)

For a record that was produced  by a talented musician (guitarist Jeff
Waters of  Annihilator fame), the debut  disc of Levl sounds  a little
weak. It is  quite obvious that Levl  is a band full of  heavy metal /
thrash power and might, but with the  way things have ended up via the
production,  the  momentum of  the  band  seems a  little  restrained.
I  could  easily see  songs  like  "Don't  Leave Me",  "Chronic  Pain"
and  "Mesmerized"  ripping my  face  off  with  the solid  groove  and
face-peeling guitar  solos, but it doesn't.  Instead I am left  with a
disc that downplays the intense  vibe, keeping it controlled and below
par when it should  be raging like a bull. Levl are  good, but I think
their disc  needs some re-working. I  like to see bands  emerging from
Canada (they  hail from Victoria,  B.C.), but if  they want to  make a
mark they need to have stronger produced material to back it up.

Contact: Punctured Records, 110-174 Wilson Street,
         Victoria, B.C. V9A 7N7, Canada
         http://www.puncturedrecords.com


Mannhai - _The Sons Of..._  (Spinefarm, October 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (8 out of 10)

After  Finland's  Xysma  disappeared  from the  face  of  the  planet,
something in  my metal heart was  gone. I missed their  weird-ass rock
style and  cool vibe. I never  thought I'd hear anything  else by them
again. When I  found out that ex-Xysma singer Joanitor  was singing on
the debut disc by hard rock / stoner rock / groove rock act Mannhai, I
ran into the  streets screaming in excitement. Okay, I  made that last
part up, but oh was I excited  to hear Joanitor's raspy growl lead the
hard rock flow of Mannhai. Songs  like "No Need to Follow", "Gazers of
the Red-Hot  Stones" and  "Lowbrow" just reek  of coolness.  There are
also some cool sedated numbers that  just shout "Chill out! Stay for a
while." At times I  can hear a bit of Kyuss in Mannhai  -- and that is
always a good thing.  In closing, all I have to say  is this: if there
are some  Xysma fans out there  you should look into  Mannhai's music.
They just  might get your  foot tapping  and fists pumping  like Xysma
did. If  I can't  have Xysma,  at least  Mannhai is  there to  keep me
company.


Mastodon - _Lifesblood_  (Relapse, 2001)
by: Brian Meloon  (6 out of 10)

Mastodon is a relatively new  band from Atlanta, GA, featuring drummer
Brann Dailor and guitarist Bill Kelliher formerly of Lethargy [CoC #4,
#14, #51] and  Today Is the Day. They're joined  by Social Infestation
bassist Troy Sanders  and guitarist Brent Hines. As  you'd expect from
such a group of experienced musicians on a label like Relapse, this is
a  high-quality  release,  with  good production  and  solid  playing.
Unfortunately,  the music  isn't anything  particularly special.  It's
straightforward industrial- and death  metal-tinged thrash, not overly
technical, brutal or original. In  other words, it fits perfectly into
Relapse's  roster.  This  is  another technically  good  release,  but
ultimately, it is rather average material.


Merzbow - _Collapse Twelve Floors_  (OHM, 2001)
by: Gabriel Sanchez  (7 out of 10)

What good  would be returning  sporadically to  do noise reviews  if I
didn't  have some  more Merzbow  to offer?  Keeping in  line with  his
newfound  desire  to  keep  trying  something  new  (or  fairly  new),
Akita-san makes  use of nothing  other than  an Apple computer  for an
effort that, while lacking in  the intensity department, still manages
to come together as an overall  enjoyable listen. Much of the noise is
kept under  control through what  is likely careful  computer editing.
Adding it  the addition of  theremin and  his usual bag  of electronic
tricks, the  sounds themselves resemble  those largely boasted  on his
other works in recent years. The computer does manage to serve as more
than  an elaborate  editing  mechanism, as  clearly  the influence  of
reworked  sound  bites and  mixed  over  layers  of noise  make  their
presence known throughout the recording. While I am the last person to
slight any noise artist for trying  to venture off into new territory,
it seems that more  and more Merzbow is fighting to  "stay alive" in a
sea of  new talent by  forcing itself to  do something it  hasn't done
before. What  is lacking  is a distinct  formula for  excellence which
Akita appeared to  have captured on many of his  releases between 1994
and 1996. Those days of harsh walls of sound mixed in with Akita's own
fine-tuned ear for  subtle dynamics seem to be over.  The new days are
far more directionless,  and hence do not work  towards establishing a
body  of work  that  any one  listener  may  be able  to  point to  as
"satisfying". Certainly  none of  this will  prevent me  from tracking
down any Merzbow albums that catch  my fancy; it may just yet diminish
the legacy of one of the true legends of the avant garde.


Meshuggah - _Raretrax_  (Nuclear Blast, September 2001)
by: Chris Flaaten  (5 out of 10)

"This album  contains old recordings,  demos, MPEG videoclips  and the
first mini-LP  _Psykisk testbild_ from  '89". I am  not a fan  of this
kind of  release. Unused  (read "unworthy  of studio  album") material
sold  at full  price...  can't they  release  something good  instead?
Anyway,  there are  actually a  couple  of interesting  songs in  this
album. The opener, "War", is their heaviest song yet. Firmly placed in
the realms  of death metal, it  shows a side  of the band that  I hope
they will explore further. The next  three tracks are from their first
mini-LP. For hardcore fans,  I am sure this is nice  to have, but both
the music  and production are way  below par. Tracks five  and six are
previously  unreleased material;  nothing  exciting  and nothing  they
haven't  done  several times  already.  Following  them are  two  demo
versions of songs off _Contradictions  Collapse_. The ninth track is a
remix of _Chaosphere_'s  opening track. The tempo is  much slower than
the original,  giving it a nice,  heavy feel. Along with  "War", these
songs are the only  reason to buy this album, in  my opinion. The disc
finishes with a  crazy, noisy and totally  unnecessary track. Included
are also  three MPEG videoclips.  The video of "New  Millenium Suicide
Christ"  is basically  the  band  without instruments  in  a tour  bus
mimicking  the song.  Humorous.  The live  recording  of "Elastic"  is
decent, but the quality is below average and the cameraman should have
been  closer to  the stage.  The  final videoclip  consists of  random
craziness  shot on  tour  and in  the  studio. "Completely  irrelevant
material", it says on the album. I agree... all too much.


Morbid - _Deathexecution_ picture 7"  (Reaper, 2001)
by: Alvin Wee  (6 out of 10)

Yet  another piece  of  black  metal history  from  the Belgian  label
hell-bent  on deifying  the  memory of  Dead's  legendary death  metal
troop. Given  that all the  handful of songs  the band ever  wrote has
already been bootlegged to death in various formats, this (admittedly)
beautiful picture  7" rendition of  Morbid's live performance  in 1988
comes  as nothing  refreshing. Three  tracks we've  all heard  before:
"Disgusting  Semla",  "Deathexecution"  and  "From  the  Dark",  in  a
surprisingly  sharp  live  recording  that puts  the  numerous  Mayhem
bootlegs to  shame. If you  haven't already heard  Morbid's old-school
death metal grindings, then you probably  don't need to either; on the
other  hand, I  face the  wrath of  many a  "true" black  metaller for
dismissing  this overrated  act's  music as  such. Scandinavian  death
metal has been better served by acts such as Cadaver and Hetsheads, so
to me,  Morbid's material (like Darkthrone's  equally overrated demos)
can  only  be  labelled  as  being  of  historical  interest,  nothing
more. Still,  it's an impressive  package with full-color  artwork and
remarkable production values, and  the hefty price this already-scarce
piece of vinyl (333 copies) is already fetching on the market makes it
of interest to collectors and fanatics alike.


Morgue Supplier - _Not Dead Enough_  (<Independent>, 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (7 out of 10)

Ah, nothing like sick and demented  death metal to really get me going
on a Sunday night (when I am writing this review). In just over twelve
minutes, Chicago's Morgue  Supplier manages to cram  as much brutally,
horrific  sounding  death  metal  growls,  razor  sharp  guitar  riffs
and  drum bashings  into this  four-song EP.  The violent  "Convulsive
Reoccurrence" starts  things off  nastily, as  the band  just explodes
into a maniacal frenzy with "Jugular Appetizer" and "Morgue Supplier".
And just  when you think you  have been bashed over  the head numerous
times, they  bring out the big  guns: the title track.  Sounding as if
there was a fucking wild boar loose in the studio as they recorded the
song, Morgue  Supplier perform the  final death  blow on us  with this
devastating offering. If you want  something that'll scare the bejezus
out of you parents and have  you wetting your pants in excitement over
its sheer brutality, then Morgue Supplier  is here to supply your sick
fantasies.

Contact: Morgue Supplier, P.O. Box 577767 Chicago, IL 60657, USA
         mailto:msupplier@aol.com
         http://www.morguesupplier.com


Mortiis - _The Smell of Rain_  (Earache, October 2001)
by: Aaron McKay  (6.5 out of 10)

No matter how prepared I thought I  was for the release of this album,
I could not have been more astonished if Mortiis would have shaved his
head and announced he was filling in  on bass for the now absent Jason
Newsted in  Metallica. I will tell  you this, I respect  any artist so
confident that they  can explore a change so utterly  complete as _The
Smell of  Rain_ without  fear or  trepidation. Forget  Emperor. Forget
Vond  and Fata  Morgana.  All have  gone  the way  of  the dodo  bird.
Emerging  from the  primordial  ooze is  a  darkened electronic  techo
fledgling; Mortiis's newest undertaking. As I discovered for myself in
CoC #44 during  my interview with the Norwegian  troll, Mortiis defies
classification and  challenges all preconceived notions.  He does this
all  with a  profound  visual  aspect to  this  musical universe;  his
appearance proves that and his  book, "Secrets of My Kingdom", further
strengthens the point. Think of a less complicated KMFDM / This Mortal
Coil  / Laibach  assortment funneled  through a  persona like  that of
Mortiis. All  vocals completely  done by the  troll himself  with only
some sparse backing  support in that area. A less  that Circean ballad
called  "Everyone Leaves  in the  End" bitterly  torments this  effort
without  remorse.  I  found  much  of the  lyrics  on  _The  Smell  of
Rain_  to  be infantile  and  rather  embarrassing. The  forth  track,
titled "Monolith",  snared my  interest. I  later discovered  why: its
lyrics were  written pre-_The  Stargate_. "Monolith"  possesses molded
subterranean  beat that,  I think,  would have  been better  suited to
release on Mortiis's last effort. It now serves as one of the brighter
lights on  _TSoR_ and adding  to the album's score  consequently. Time
will tell if this newest effort  by Mortiis pulls more into favor with
me or pivots away  with more conviction. As of this  moment, I think I
will spin _Fodt Til A Herske_ for the helluva it.


My Dying Bride - _The Dreadful Hours_  (Peaceville, October 2001)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (9 out of 10)

     It certainly is a great feeling  when one of your favourite bands
has returned from the mire in fine form. In this case, My Dying Bride,
who were reborn with the fine _The Light at the End of the World_ [CoC
#44]  and  now improve  upon  it  with  a  darker, deeper  album  that
showcases much  of the band's  history while adding  renewed freshness
and intensity to their craft.  _The Dreadful Hours_ shows clear traces
of all  its predecessors  since day one,  while showcasing  the band's
finely honed  skills in a  renewed sound, and  at times also  a subtly
different approach.
     Aaron Stainthorpe's  clean vocals were already  quite unique, but
when added  to his thunderous  death vocals and his  newfound penchant
for harsh blackened roars,  the result is successively broken-hearted,
cavernous and demonic  -- outstanding. Few vocalists can  excel in any
one of these categories; Aaron currently  excels in all three of them.
My promo copy doesn't have a  lyrics sheet, but Aaron's lyrics seem to
range  from potentially  interesting to  rather pedestrian  this time.
Aided by  the skilled and  very appropriate drum work,  the guitarists
prove themselves equally adept at  slow mournful melodies and crushing
doom/death riffs:  Andrew Craighan's  talent has  been known  for many
years  with  MDB, whilst  Hamish  Glencross  seems a  very  successful
replacement for  Calvin Robertshaw, and  bassist Adrian Jackson  is as
usual a  brooding background  presence. The  keyboard work  belies the
fact  that  Yasmin Ahmid  is  just  a  session keyboardist;  dark  and
haunting, mostly subdued, but very effective.
     The  venom in  My Dying  Bride's  music has  been much  increased
recently, and the  doom kept intact -- a contrast  that works wonders.
The opening title track exemplifies the way My Dying Bride are growing
within the sound  that is their own: opening with  a smart combination
of  a  slow acoustic  guitar  and  a  second  mournful guitar  upon  a
soundscape  of rainfall,  the song  then  develops into  a guitar  and
violin-like  synth dirge  with  Aaron's  sorrowful vocals.  Chillingly
atmospheric  and emotional,  the  song temporarily  goes  back to  the
opening combination  only to make  way for  a strong riff  and Aaron's
combination of  deep and  screamed growls; majestic  keyboards briefly
augment this in  the background... Suddenly, five minutes  are gone in
what  seemed like  an instant,  before  the song  moves onto  another,
equally engaging  section, and  culminates with  the sound  of thunder
before it dies  away like it started. This is  _The Dreadful Hours_ at
its best: flowing gracefully from  one excellent passage into another,
drenched with  atmosphere, masterfully transmitting sorrow  and wrath.
The second  track, "The Raven  and the  Rose", continues the  album in
equally remarkable  fashion, mixing slow doom,  an excellent blastbeat
passage and a mournful piano sequence towards the end, all accompanied
by a varied  and superb vocal performance. It is  then followed by "Le
Figlie Della Tempesta",  a more tranquil song that brings  to mind the
hypnotic structure of "The Cry  of Mankind". Fourth track "Black Heart
Romance" has  a melancholic  beginning with alternating  whispered and
clean deep vocals, and after a short but effective atmospheric passage
mutates into  a harsher mid-paced  piece, before briefly  returning to
the opening sequence again. "A Cruel  Taste of Winter" again begins in
a  melancholic, romantic  way,  and  so it  stays  until its  superbly
baleful mid-section; most of this song tends to drag somewhat, though,
and it practically repeats itself  after that mid-section. Sixth track
"My Hope,  the Destroyer" has  a strong _Like  Gods of the  Sun_ feel,
until  it yet  again evolves  into a  harsher beast  altogether midway
through; instead  of simply  repeating itself,  however, it  then goes
into some  nice guitar melodies  accompanied by the  rather pedestrian
lyrics I mentioned  before. For a change, "The Deepest  of All Hearts"
has a  harsh beginning and then  moves along carried by  an impressive
sequence of doomy guitar leads and sombre vocals. This eight track, 70
minute  album ends  with  a  14 minute  reworking  of  "Return of  the
Beautiful"  from MDB's  debut  full-length --  and  a very  worthwhile
effort it is, adding much to this fine doom/death epic.
     Clearly, not  all of  the album  is quite  as outstanding  as the
opening couple of tracks  (which would have been worth a  10 out of 10
on their own), but the variety  is considerable and the next moment of
inspiration is never too far away.  I was delighted with the direction
the band  took with  _The Light  at the  End of  the World_;  but _The
Dreadful Hours_ is  a stronger, more impressive effort  that builds on
its predecessor's qualities to become a superb slab of darkly romantic
doom/death  and one  of the  very best  doom metal  albums in  several
years.


Mystifier - _The Fourth Evil Calling From the Abyss_
by: Pedro Azevedo  (6 out of 10)  (Eldritch Music, 2001)

This  disc  actually arrived  in  the  same  package as  Divina  Enema
[reviewed  above],  and what  a  peculiar  companion  it is  for  that
Belarussian  theatrical  metal album  --  even  though they  are  also
on  Eldritch  Music  from  Belarus  (and  having  previously  been  on
Osmose), Mystifier are actually a Brazilian band playing thrashy death
metal.  One of  the  first things  you  are likely  to  notice is  the
prominent  and  involved bass  work.  Varied  arrangements, plenty  of
guitar soloing and  occasional keyboard touches are also  to be found,
with  cavernous grunts  and  blackened rasps  completing the  picture.
Mystifier's  mid-paced  music  is reasonably  technical  and  decently
produced --  that is until  midway through  the record, where  it goes
into demo-tape-thrown-onto-CD  mode. The material on  this second half
is apparently  from a 1989 demo  tape. The sound quality  becomes very
low (tape  hiss included),  and the music  sounds muffled  and frankly
uninteresting after  the more  recent recordings  that fill  the first
half  of the  disc. The  first  half contains  a 1999  MCD, two  cover
songs (Sarcofago  and Poison)  and two new  tracks. Totaling  one hour
of  material, the  album  may  be a  reasonable  purchase  if you  are
particularly keen on  the genre, even if you aren't  interested in the
demo  material that  makes up  its second  half. There  are some  good
passages during the  rather competent first half, but I  feel both the
percentage and total amount of  interesting material here is likely to
prove a bit low overall for the average listener.

Contact: mailto:dzianis@eldritch-music.com (Europe)
         mailto:tsimafei@eldritch-music.com (USA)
         http://www.eldritch-music.com


Pig Destroyer - _Prowler in the Yard_  (Relapse, 2001)
by: Aaron McKay  (9.5 out of 10)

Seeing  these fuckers  at  the Milwaukee  MetalFest  this past  August
more-or-less saved the weekend from being a complete musical fiasco. I
haven't bought a concert shirt for years,  but I tell you sure as I am
typing these  words -- I BOUGHT  A PIG DESTROYER "T".  The black shirt
with white lettering  spelling out the name of the  band was painfully
simple, but truly  effective -- like the band itself.  My first listen
to  _38  Counts  of  Battery_  [CoC  #52]  told  me  this  East  coast
three-piece (no  bassist) was  something to  be taken  very seriously,
kinda like  Dying Fetus.  Unlike DF,  however, Pig  Destroyer forcibly
works the listener over with  songs varying in length from thirty-five
seconds  to as  much as  seven  minutes and  fifty-seven seconds  with
mostly Soilent Green / Burnt by  the Sun / Discordance Axis-like vocal
work  by the  gifted J.R.  Hayes. Truth  be told,  "Mapplethorpe Grey"
(about the  one minute and  twenty-one second) and "Naked  Trees" have
every necessary ingredient to be my favorite on _PitY_. The astounding
riff (thank you, Scott Hull!) on "Trojan Whore", about the forty-three
second mark, however, is far too  hard to ignore as is wildly alluring
guitar  work on  "Sheet Metal  Girls".  The drums  on track  nineteen,
"Hyperviolet", compliments of Brian Harvey, solidified _Prowler in the
Yard_  as one  of  my top  picks  for 2001,  people.  This effort  was
engrossing to me from  the word GO! If you don't  grab yourself a copy
of _PitY_, I sincerely PITY you.

Contact: http://www.loudnet.com/pigdestroyer/


Porn (The Men Of) - _Experiments in Feedback_
by: Adrian Bromley  (8.5 out of 10)  (Small Stone, October 2001)

Who'd have thought  there would be a  band as fucked up  (or nearly as
fucked up) as Old Man Gloom, but here they are: Porn (The Men Of). For
their debut  offering on Small Stone  (they used to be  on now defunct
label Man's  Ruin), the  band goes  all out  trying new  sounds, vocal
styles, guitar  riffs and, of  course, feedback. From  three different
versions of  Motorhead's "I'll Be Your  Sister" to a bizarre  cover of
Pink Floyd's "One of These  Days" (parts assembled from four different
versions) onto  various tracks of pure  feedback, singer/guitarist Tim
Moss leads  his band  of sonic  enthusiasts through  some of  the most
creative spasms  of feedback  and chaos that  has surfaced  this year.
Sure _Experiments in  Feedback_ is out there in the  most intense wild
way -- as is OMG's stunning  double offerings of _Seminar II: The Holy
Rites of Primitivism Regression_ and _Seminar III: Zozobra_ -- but for
those of us out there who  dig bands like OMG, Keelhaul, Neurosis, and
even Clutch,  this is some good  shit. Not everyone will  be into what
Porn (The Men Of)  do musically, and I think that  suits the band just
fine. They  obviously enjoy  what they  do and  could care  less about
anyone who dislikes  their expeditions into feedback. One  of the most
bizarre one-hour musical experiences you'll sit through in 2001.

Contact: Small Stone Records, P.O. Box 02007 Detroit, MI 48202, USA
         mailto:sstone@smallstone.com
         http://www.smallstone.com


Profanum - _Musaeum Esotericum_  (Koch, 2001)
by: Brian Meloon  (9 out of 10)

Poland's  Profanum return  from  the dead  with  their third  release,
following on  the heels  of their  black metal  debut _Flowers  of Our
Black  Misanthropy_  and their  brilliant  black-metal-without-guitars
follow-up _Profanum Aeternum: Eminence  of Satanic Imperial Art_. This
release has much the same style  as their second album, but shows them
developing and expanding their ideas and incorporating some industrial
elements. It features two epic-length  tracks, which total 38 minutes.
The songs  generally consist  of layered  keyboards and/or  drums, and
feature a wide variety of tempos  and styles. The vocals are generally
either distorted or spoken (in Latin?).  The music runs the gamut from
soothing  to bombastic  and  everywhere in  between, flowing  smoothly
throughout the album. The heaviest sections feature pounding drums and
distorted, screamed vocals, with  aggressive keyboard parts that would
sound right at  home in a black  metal song. While this  isn't a metal
album, it  certainly is intended for  a metal audience. The  only band
I've heard  doing a similar  style is  Elend, but Profanum's  music is
much less gothic, and generally  more aggressive and involved. This is
highly recommended for fans of the avant-garde black metal.


Prophet - _Broken Promise_  (<Independent>, 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (9 out of 10)

If there was one band in this issue of Chronicles of Chaos that really
threw a curve  ball at me when  it came to tackling  reviews, it would
most definitely  be Finland's very own  Prophet. I was unsure  what to
expect  with the  band, though  I was  impressed right  away with  the
elaborate digipak  format of _Broken  Promise_. Would they be  a death
metal band? How about a really  gothic black metal band like Cradle of
Filth? I eventually got to the disc in my review pile and threw it on.
To my  amazement, it  sounded nothing  like I  had expected.  That was
indeed a good feeling. The trio,  a hybrid mixture of gothic, doom and
hard rock, have assembled a  vibrant four-song offering titled _Broken
Promise_ that flies  through a varied assortment of  sounds and ideas.
It is  quite obvious  to hear  on _Broken Promise_  how the  band pays
homage to  their influences (Black  Sabbath, Anathema, My  Dying Bride
and Type O Negative), as well  as showcasing their delicate touches to
metal  music, especially  on "Are  We  Through?" and  the title  track
closer. The passionate vocals of singer/bassist Aleksi Ahokas are just
the perfect touch to the melodic  texture of the dark music they play.
Had his vocals been heavier (i.e.  death growls), it would have ruined
the flow of  things, though H. Villberg (of  Diablerie) adds effective
growls on  "I Kiss  and Let  You Die". Fans  of newer  incarnations of
Katatonia and Anathema  will definitely want to track  this band down,
as they  offer a similar emotionally  soul-draining musical experience
that could easily match some of the works of those bands. This is well
thought out music  that is intense on a whole  number of levels. These
guys  have worked  hard over  the years  to craft  their music  and it
shows, so hopefully this time someone will sign them.

[Pedro  Azevedo: "Prophet  are one  of  those unsigned  bands who  are
 clearly well beyond the need to  release more demos. Their music will
 require a  couple of adjustments  before their commercial  debut, but
 these should come naturally with experience. There is still a certain
 naivety about some aspects of  Prophet's music, but the much stronger
 second half  of this EP proves  that they are a  very promising young
 band with a potentially bright future ahead of them."]

Contact: Prophet, c/o Viljatie 7 C 56, 00700 Helsinki, Finland
         mailto:prophets@iobox.com
         http://www.brokenpromise.cjb.net


Sadistic Intent - _Resurrection of the Ancient Black Earth_
by: Alvin Wee  (9 out of 10)  (Iron Pegasus, 2000)

By no means a new release, this superb re-edition of Sadistic Intent's
two MCDs  on vinyl by  German guarantee-of-quality label  Iron Pegasus
still deserves a few kind  words considering its relative obscurity up
till now. Like  their Polish cousins Vader, pretty much  every drop of
old-school death these boys spill turns  to gold in the hands of their
cult followers. 1994's _Resurrection_ fills side A with a monumentally
heavy, bone-chilling  darkness, easily putting the  entire death metal
boom of 1992/3  to shame. Jump forward to 1997,  and strangely enough,
_Ancient Black Earth_'s looser, more primitive assault chucks the band
firmly back  to the eighties,  and in  true Ulver style  throws anyone
expecting any progression  since '94 quite decisively  off their feet.
Still immensely enjoyable  in the face of  increasing commercialism in
the death metal  arena back then, _ABE_ brims with  a raw, primal evil
that remains terrifyingly convincing  despite the looseness of playing
and  understated  production  values.  Two live  tracks  wrap  up  the
ceremonies, unremarkable in terms of sound but nevertheless showcasing
the band's  formidable live  presence well  on "Ancient  Black Earth".
Superb  layout  by  Iron  Pegasus  makes  this  an  essential  in  any
self-respecting death  metal freak's collection. Picture  vinyl may be
sold  out, but  limited copies  of  two different  vinyl colors  still
available from the label.

Contact: Iron Pegasus, P.O. Box 1462, 56804 Cochem / Mosel, Germany


Shape of Despair - _Angels of Distress_  (Spikefarm, September 2001)
by: Chris Flaaten  (8 out of 10)

Slooooooow. Dooooooom.  That sums  it up  right there,  but due  to my
strong sense of duty, I will elaborate. Shape of Despair's debut album
_Shades  Of..._  was not  that  great  --  apart from  the  monumental
"Down  Into  the  Stream",  it lacked  consistent  quality.  This  has
improved greatly on _Angels of Distress_. Amorphis vocalist P.K. (Pasi
Koskinen) and siren songstress N.S.  deliver great performances on top
of Shape of  Despair's melancholic and beautiful music.  This is music
for  those who  find My  Dying Bride  a tad  cheerful, those  who like
soothing  melodies  played at  0.03  mph,  and  those who  want  sheer
depression shot right into their system.  I am one of those. Featuring
five  songs (averaging  eleven  minutes each),  Shape  of Despair  use
violins,  synths  and  the  aforementioned siren  song  to  create  an
enchanting mix of melody and  variation. This album is the melancholic
highlight of the year for me thus  far, but I haven't heard the new My
Dying Bride album yet.


Soilent Green - _A Deleted Symphony for the Beaten Down_
by: Aaron McKay  (7.5 out of 10)  (Relapse, September 2001)

This is a key release to one  of the more important bands on the scene
today.  While the  phrase "there  is something  for everyone"  has the
reputation  for being  abused  in press  circles, in  the  case of  _A
Deleted Symphony  for the Beaten  Down_ -- it  is the gospel  truth, I
believe. This New  Orleans five piece, muscling around  since the very
late 1980s/early 1990s, is unquestionably  undaunted in their quest to
consume everything  in their  path musically  and expel  it back  in a
fashion all  their own. Starting off  perfectly with one of  the finer
contributions to  the disc, "Hand  Me Downs", Soilent  Green instantly
instills a fine sense of vigilante correctness in a topsy-turvy world.
This band  has a sound  that they've pioneered, where  their intricate
manner is nearly  preoccupied with drawing the listener into  a web of
molten beats,  hoarse vocals and  harsh reality -- for  example, "Last
One in the  Noose". "Afterthought of a Genius", a.k.a.  track four, is
surreal  and  dynamic in  stark  contrast  to "Swallowhole".  With  an
absence  of the  sludge  aspect, "AoaG"  works ya  over  with a  power
not unlike  of Cathedral's  _Ethereal Mirror_,  specifically "Midnight
Mountain", set  to a  Dillinger Escape  Plan apocalyptic  pace. Always
flaunting a  dichotomous flavor to  their style, Soilent  Green struts
among  the proudest  peacocks in  the bunch,  with good  reason. Fast,
heavy, and groove-laden, _A Deleted  Symphony for the Beaten Down_ has
a little something for everyone, if "everyone" refers to characters in
an early Quentin Tarantino film.


Solefald - _Pills Against the Ageless Ills_  (Century Media, 2001)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)

Regardless  of whether  you ever  happened upon  either of  Solefald's
previous  outputs, I  advise you  to have  a look  at www.solefald.org
before proceeding, in  order to gain some insight  into their madness.
Well, yes, madness;  sorry boys, but I  do think there has  to be some
sort of insanity ravaging your poor  minds. The strange thing is, much
like I mentioned in my Dornenreich review above, this insanity is able
to somehow produce some musical and conceptual brilliance. At least it
did on Solefald's debut _The Linear  Scaffold_ [CoC #29]; I was -much-
less  impressed by  their  irritating follow-up  _Neonism_ [CoC  #43].
_Pills Against the Ageless Ills_ is  fortunately a fine return to form
for Solefald  -- say, I  wonder how hard the  duo would laugh  if they
read that  sentence. (If you don't  know what I mean,  then surely you
haven't  yet  followed  my  advice  and  visited  their  website.  You
horrible person, you.) Lyrically, _Pills  Against the Ageless Ills_ is
a  philosophically  deranged  concept centered  around  two  miserable
brothers: Pornographer  Cain and Philosopher Fuck  (which enables them
to have such cute song titles as "Fuck Talks"). Musically, Solefald no
longer  go  into classically  influenced  piano  sections or  flamenco
passages like they  did on _The Linear Scaffold_, nor  do they go into
the  all-out weirdness  of _Neonism_  (no  more silly  beats or  those
insufferable, admittedly  rap-like vocals). Comparatively,  _PAtAI_ is
more straightforward  and uniform  -- technical blackened  metal fused
with plenty other guitar influences  and keyboard effects ranging from
violins to  organs and various electronics.  The strong, guitar-driven
sound is complemented  not only by the keyboards, but  also the voices
of Cain and Fuck themselves (i.e. simultaneously Cornelius and Lazare,
the duo  behind Solefald),  which include  thick black  snarls, superb
anguished screaming, and various types of well-performed clean singing
and spoken  vocals. The excellent  opener "Hyperhuman" begins  to show
Solefald's  dynamic and  talented  combination  of the  aforementioned
elements,  giving me  the  pleasant feeling  that  the excellent  _The
Linear Scaffold_-era Solefald might very  well be back. Overall, while
not  quite as  impressively affecting  and  full of  flowing flair  as
_TLS_,  _PAtAI_ stands  as a  great improvement  upon its  predecessor
_Neonism_ in terms of sheer listenability and enjoyability. It's still
adventurous,  darkly  humorous and  insane  enough  to be  a  Solefald
record, but  this time  they've used more  of their  very considerable
talent to make it enjoyable for  the listener -- much like _The Linear
Scaffold_ was. Welcome back, Solefald.

Contact: http://www.solefald.org


Sonata Arctica - _Silence_  (Century Media, October 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (8 out of 10)

There are a lot of bands out  there in the metal world that claim they
know how  to play melodic metal.  Y'know the type of  band, right? The
type of  band that wails  away on the  guitar, have vocals  that sound
like their singer's pants are too  tight, while acting all pompous and
full of  themselves as  the music  cruises along.  Yeah, I  hate those
bands too. Hmm... Children of  Bodom, anyone? Finland's Sonata Arctica
are a  great example of  a melodic metal  band that plays  their music
with enough  conviction and passion that  you get swept up  in it all.
Some might classify  them as one of those bands  I described, but look
deeper into the work of Sonata  Arctica, and pretty soon you'll change
your mind  about them.  _Silence_ is  a great  record. The  vocals are
incredible, the music  masterful and the production is  top notch. The
band  couldn't have  asked for  a better  follow-up to  1999's stellar
_Ecliptica_. Melodic metal  it may be, but Sonata Arctica  gather up a
lot of steam  on this record, showcasing that not  only can they write
good songs  but they can speed  it up too. Interesting  tracks include
"False News Travels  Fast", "Land of the Free" and  "Black Sheep". Ten
times better than Children of Bodom and easily surpassing the last two
discs from  HammerFall (who?),  Sonata Arctica are  the real  deal for
fans who want good, wholesome melodic metal done right. Stunning.


Splattered Cadaver - _Merciless Butchery_
by: Adrian Bromley  (7 out of 10)  (United Guttural, October 2001)

For anyone out there  in the know, you can pretty  much guess what you
are going  to get  with a  new release  from United  Guttural Records:
sick, brutal death  metal. Joining the ranks of  Rotting, Lividity and
Malignancy, Splattered  Cadaver cram 34+ minutes  of violently charged
death metal into _Merciless Butchery_,  stocked to the hilt with sharp
death  metal  riffs  and  intense vocals.  While  far  from  original,
Splattered Cadaver play their music  with intensity and might, turning
what could  have been  generic song structures  into mammoth  doses of
death  metal destruction.  Favourite tracks:  "Complete Carnage",  the
title  track and  the  smashing  "Embalmed Alive".  Like  it sick  and
brutal? Spend your money on Splattered Cadaver.

Contact: 1111 S. 117th St, Milwaukee, WI 53214, USA
         http://www.splatteredcadaver.com


Suppression w/ Crank Sturgeon / Misopsychia - _Split_
by: Gabriel Sanchez  (6.5 out of 10)  (Nat Records, 2001)

This  is the  second Suppression  EP  I've uncovered  that features  a
hookup with a more readily "known" noise artist. While I've never been
a  particularly  big  fan  of  Crank  Sturgeon  outside  of  his  live
performance,  his obnoxious  noise  styling compliments  Suppression's
inane minimalist  outbursts well. Much in  the same vein as  older Man
Is  the  Bastard noise  recordings,  Suppression  overlay their  noise
with  howling  vocals  that  express  the  group's  typically  raucous
anti-Americana message. With harsh  criticisms of a media-fed American
culture on "Amerikkkan T.V. Dinner"  to ridiculous one liners like "If
god could have  an erection...", there's something here  for the whole
family to enjoy.  Unfortunately, Misopsychia's side to  this 7" really
hauls  in the  suck. With  a style  largely reminiscent  of throw-away
screamin' and growlin' doom-wannabe crust, I find it difficult to take
their  work seriously.  They  do manage  to join  in  with the  social
criticisms however, taking  some more poignant shots  at American life
and  the  general uselessness  of  the  current macrostructure  as  it
relates to human happiness. Truly this is a timely listen in a culture
pumped up to  the max on jingoistic  fervor. In short: buy  it for the
noise, stay for the anti-flag waving.


System of a Down - _Toxicity_  (Def American, 2001)
by: Matthias Noll  (9.5 out of 10)

I despise  nu-metal. I couldn't  care less  if any of  those so-called
singers had parents who didn't want to  buy him a second TV set at the
age of  seven and  therefore traumatized  him for  life. I'm  sick and
tired of hearing them trying to exorcise their made-up demons during a
rapped verse  and a  catchy chorus  that always  seems to  happen over
the  same  three  chord  riff that  makes  all  those  baggy-trousered
middle-class kids "fuck da shit up"  or "jump da fuck around". I think
it was Scott Ian who called all these Linkin Parks, Papa Roaches, etc.
out there "Backstreet  Boys with guitars", and I  couldn't agree more.
Calling them metal  is blasphemy, a disgrace! However,  hidden in this
stinking brown  mass, there is a  diamond called System of  a Down. On
_Toxicity_,  their second  album,  they unleash  a  unique mixture  of
vicious, hectic metal riffing  (metal, not nu-metal), sometimes almost
thrashy  in style,  insane rhythmic  shifts between  quiet and  raging
parts,  and throw  in  a dose  of oriental  scales  and melody  lines.
Intensity-wise, this record is not a letdown even if I listen to it in
between grindcore and necro black metal. Almost miraculously, the band
manages to blend all their  ingredients into songs that actually work.
In addition to  great musicianship and songwriting skill,  System of a
Down's main strength lies in their singer. He shifts between dozens of
always  appropriate styles,  occasional  death grunts,  proclamations,
almost  slapstick-like  parts  and  great, clean  singing,  while  his
voice always  maintains a hypnotic  quality that equals  Jello Biafra.
Actually, I find  quite some similarities between  early Dead Kennedys
and System  of a Down  when it comes  to the unconventional  nature of
their material, although  SoaD are far heavier, more  metallic and, in
general, more  insane. Amongst all  the madness, chaos  and heaviness,
this album features some of the most heartbreaking melodies I've heard
in  quite  a  long  time,  brought across  with  a  dedication  which,
strangely enough,  reminds me  of Manowar's Eric  Adams in  tunes like
"Bridge  of Death"  or Messiah  Marcolin on  _Nightfall_. Forget  your
prejudices; don't  give a fuck if  jerks like Pantera or  Fear Factory
like this band  or if they look nu-metal. SoaD  have set the benchmark
for innovative,  heavy, breathtakingly great  music in the  year 2001.
And no,  they don't rap,  neither Fred  Durst nor Corey  from Slipknot
make guest  appearances, and they  didn't even invite Max  Cavalera to
contribute any of his moronic lyrics.


Tristania - _World of Glass_  (Napalm, October 2001)
by: Chris Flaaten  (8 out of 10)

I  thoroughly enjoyed  Tristania's debut  [CoC #30],  but I  wasn't as
impressed by their follow-up, _Beyond  the Veil_ [CoC #45]. Therefore,
my expectations for their  new album were not very high.  I am glad to
say  Tristania exceeded  them.  While still  sounding like  Tristania,
they managed  to rewrite  their musical  formula again,  thus avoiding
repeating themselves. Of  course, when you pack such a  vast number of
components as  this band  does, you  have a lot  of options  to choose
from:  clean and  harsh male  vocals,  female soprano,  both male  and
female choirs,  violin and synth on  top of the usual  metal ensemble.
They have also successfully implemented a few electronic effects, like
the synthetic beat behind the choirs halfway through "Lost". The album
has another unusual feature: the  second half is clearly stronger than
the first  one. After  four songs,  the vision of  a 6-ish  rating was
spinning  in my  head, but  the album  made me  maintain and  actually
increase my  interest as  it progressed. The  melodies just  made more
sense  and were  much more  enchanting on  the slightly  softer second
half. This album  lacks the melancholy of their debut,  but apart from
that, old fans should not be disappointed.


Ulver - _Silence Teaches You How To Sing_  (Jester, 2001)
by: Alvin Wee  (8.5 out of 10)

Musical shapeshifters Ulver finally  manage a not-too-shocking release
this  time  round  with  (relatively) minimal  departure  from  2000's
_Perdition City_. Trickster G and Co. seem to have found their footing
since  moving over  to their  personal label  Jester Records,  and the
spate of high quality releases  since _William Blake..._ attests quite
conclusively  to that  fact.  Despite  talk of  this  MCD having  been
recorded during  the _Perdition City_  sessions, the material  here is
decidedly less song-oriented  dancefloor than the album,  turning in a
more  ethereal-ambient  direction  instead.  Minimalist  and  sparsely
beautiful,  the single  twenty-minute track  gradually sweeps  forward
with near-inaudible  drones and subtle statics,  occasionally throwing
glowing sparks of  light into the sombreness  with higher-end metallic
resonances. All of which leads to a surprising outpouring by the fifth
minute, warming  things up  with rich,  dulcet piano  passages. What's
unsettling is the music's ability to retain its icy core while pouring
forth warmer organic tones: the aura of desolation and despair becomes
apparent not long into the disc, and never releases its chilly grip on
the  soul for  a  moment.  Garm's surreal,  twisted  vocals and  soft,
insect-like scrapes  and screeches  never cease to  remind one  of the
potential  depravity  lurking behind  the  chimerical  beauty of  this
music. Limited to  2000 copies and already fetching  healthy prices on
auctions, it's one that open-minded listeners won't want to miss. This
is sugar-coated depression at its best.


Unexpect - _Utopia_  (<Independent>, 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (8 out of 10)

To sound somewhat  corny, I didn't know what to  expect from Unexpect.
Hailing from Quebec, Canada, this  talented seven-piece band play some
truly  jaw-dropping symphonic/epic  metal  music,  coated with  sharp,
demonic  vocal cries  and harsh  guitar riffs,  but at  the same  time
offering up enchanting  vocals (provided quite nicely  by singer Elda)
and some really memorable melodies. This is an epic album that doesn't
come off too grandiose or pompous,  but still strong enough to push us
back a bit as the epic songs unfold into beautifully mastered numbers.
From start to finish _Utopia_  has you hooked, reminiscent somewhat of
the effect that Therion's _Theli_ drew  in listeners, but not as tight
or dazzling as  Christofer Johnsson's Therion. In time  this band will
find the right  tools to bring their  music to the next  level. All we
can do now is enjoy what they offer us at this point in time.

Contact: http://www.unexpect.org


VLE - _Book of Illusions: Chapter 1_  (<Independent>, 2001)
by: Adrian Bromley  (9 out of 10)

VLE  has got  to be  one of  the most  dazzling, brave  and impressive
independent  offerings I  have received  in sometime.  Adventurous and
downright  creative, the  eclectic,  dark and  imaginative VLE  tosses
out  its musical  ideas into  many  different directions  on _Book  of
Illusions:  Chapter 1_,  not really  focusing on  certain sounds,  but
rather on the final results.  Inspired by "ocean sunsets, darkness and
silence",  this  one  man  project  hovers in  a  world  of  beautiful
compositions (i.e.  _3 in 5_,  _Kano_ and _Stark_), each  one bringing
its own  texture and substance  to this seven-song release.  And while
the  music of  VLE  could  be easily  classified  as experimental  and
atmospheric, there is a definite progressive rock feel to the music as
well. I'm  picking up the  same kind of vibes  I did with  Dan Swano's
third Nightingale release, _I_. Vocals play a very small but effective
role  on this  VLE release,  used more  as an  instrument ("Timeless")
rather than a main ingredient of  song passages. In the end, VLE makes
the listener  really pay attention to  the sounds and ideas  going on,
because if you  don't pay attention you'll no doubt  be lost until the
next song starts  up. In a world  all its own, VLE  are onto something
good. Can't wait to hear Chapter II.

Contact: VLE, 455 West 34th Street Apt.14C, New York, NY 10001, USA
         mailto:vle25@hotmail.com
         http://www.mp3.com/vle/


Zero Hour - _The Towers of Avarice_  (Sensory, 2001)
by: Brian Meloon  (7 out of 10)

This is the second album from Texans Zero Hour, and it is very similar
to the Dream Theater-inspired progmetal of their eponymous 1997 debut.
Their  sound is  very tight  and metallic,  much like  Dream Theater's
heaviest moments  on _Images and Words_,  such as "Pull Me  Under" and
"Under  a Glass  Moon". The  production is  excellent, with  a crystal
clear sound. The playing is rock  solid, and even technical and flashy
at times. Their riffs -- while  not particularly great -- are at least
original; unlike  most Dream Theater-inspired  bands, I don't  get the
feeling that I've heard them all before. Unfortunately, Zero Hour seem
to be afflicted  with "perpetual RSN (Real Soon Now)  syndrome", as in
"real soon  now, the  song will  really take off"  or "real  soon now,
something interesting will happen", but it never does. The songs don't
build to  a climax, they  just seem  to perpetually tread  water until
they just end. Perhaps their  "no beginning, no end" songwriting style
has  some deep  connection with  their lyrics,  but I'm  guessing not.
These guys  have a great  and very  professional sound, but  they need
some serious help on their songwriting to make their songs interesting
and  memorable. While  this  is  a good  album  technically, it's  not
something that I'll listen to very much.

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


Bisclaveret - _Aegri Somnias_  (3-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley  (***--)

Lasting what  seemed like a  lifetime, the ambient passages  of Polish
duo Bisclaveret  drew me into  a world  full of creepy  sound effects,
spoken segues  and distorted  sonic explosions.  For me  personally, I
find  the music  to be  a  wonderful assortment  of ideas,  especially
interesting  for those  out there  that have  grown fond  of works  by
creative bands like Ordo Equilibrio, Puissance and others of that ilk.
Fans of  extreme music that  have little care  for acts of  that genre
will find the music of  Bisclaveret disjointed and perhaps boring. But
for  those of  you out  there taking  time to  listen to  the material
provided  here,  especially  the  lengthy title  track  (9+  minutes),
Bisclaveret show more than just a band create atmospheric music. There
is  a  lot of  strong  components  that  enrich  the music  on  _Aegri
Somnias_. The  mystique that wraps  around the vocals  really enhances
the  music of  this band,  strengthened by  some really  dark keyboard
work. In  time and  with some real  studio support,  Bisclaveret could
really make  a name for  themselves if they stay  focused. Interesting
work here  that'll no doubt  get richer  and more experimental  as the
years go on. I'll be watching.

Contact: $3 U.S. to: Maciej Mehring, Ul. Rejtana 3/7,
         84-200 Wejherow, Poland
         mailto:ldthorn@wp.pl


Deathguy - _The Secondary Quest_  (8-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley  (**---)

I'll give Deathguy  credit -- they have a really  tight sound. Too bad
the music isn't all that original or inspiring. Sounding at times like
a rehashed version of almost any  aggressive black metal band that has
come  out in  recent  years, Deathguy  seems to  just  go through  the
motions of making their music sound like everyone else. Isn't it every
band's plan  to try to  sound different? Guess not.  But as much  as I
make  negative statements  about this  Thailand act,  there are  a few
bright spots on  this demo. One worthy of mentioning  is that the band
does manage  to successfully add  a jazzed-up progressive  metal sound
into the  fold, enhanced by keyboards  and some nice guitar  work. But
that is only  short-lived, really, breaking back  into the uninspired,
unoriginal sounds  they manage to  coat their  music with for  most of
this eight-track demo. Bands like Deathguy  sit and play in garages or
small clubs  for years trying to  make a name for  themselves and they
wonder why no one is giving them  a break. Maybe this review will help
them decide  to create something more  original sounding. As far  as I
see it, there still is some hope for Deathguy. It is up to them on how
they want to approach the situation.

Contact: Thanit Thepsitrakorn, 21/2 Soi Suanoi, 1 Samsen Road Dusit,
         Bangkok 10300, Thailand
         mailto:thepsitrakorn@hotmail.com


Effluvium - _Genesis of Our Conquest_  (3-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley  (**---)

Once  you get  past the  absolutely  atrocious sound  quality of  this
three-song demo, the music of Effluvium  isn't all that bad. The band,
a mixture  of black metal  masters Emperor, vintage Black  Sabbath and
the heavy metal charge of Iron Maiden, manage to find some stride with
their  sound  --  but  with  almost  no  real  production  finesse  to
aid  the  material here,  the  music  goes  nowhere. While  there  are
several long guitar  solos peppered throughout that  add some likeable
characteristics  to their  bland dark  metal approach,  Effluvium lack
substance to keep  us interested. I hear some potential,  but when the
music is weighted down by production  like this, it is hard to imagine
doing anything else other than turning it off.

Contact: Willie Desamero, #3M Fule Sahagun St., San Pablo City,
         Laguna 4000, Philippines


Exhibition - _Mind Explosion_  (5-track demo)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (***--)

"Odd name for a band" was  pretty much the first thought going through
my mind when  I saw this demo  CD. The second concerned  the fact that
they used  the same  distinctive font throughout  the package  as Dark
Tranquillity  did on  _The Mind's  I_  (notice the  similar titles  as
well). When I analysed the music  on this Greek band's half-hour demo,
what I found  was mid-paced, thrash-influenced metal.  Even though the
vocals seem too upfront, overall the production is decent and does not
significantly hamper the band's musical showcase on this lengthy demo.
The  band seems  ambitious  and reasonably  skilled,  even though  not
always very  tight. Their song  material still lacks  some consistency
and  strength to  take  it further  and make  more  of an  impression,
though. This  causes my withholding of  an eventual fourth mark  in my
rating;  for  now,  Exhibition  still  need some  time  before  it  is
advisable for them to think of a commercial release. However, I see no
reason why they shouldn't eventually get there if they keep improving.

Contact: mailto:devastator_gr@yahoo.com


Holochaust - _Valley of Misery_  (3-track demo)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (****-)

The computer-generated  woman wearing a  skimpy bikini on  this disc's
front  cover  is  hardly  Lara Croft's  better-looking  sister...  and
Holochaust  are hardly  Sentenced's more  talented countrymates.  This
doesn't  mean that  _Valley of  Misery_ is  a mediocre  demo, however,
nor  that Holochaust  are  complete copycats,  despite the  occasional
similarities.  The  gruff  sung  vocals  and  rocking  metal  attitude
successively  bring  to my  mind  Metallica  and especially  Sentenced
throughout the  demo, which  features a mellow  ballady track  and two
more dynamic ones. Although Holochaust  are obviously no match for the
talent and  personality of the  highly effective Sentenced,  they have
nonetheless managed to  create a nicely flowing, rocking  demo CD. The
band is technically proficient and tight, and the demo is surprisingly
well produced  -- well above average  for a demo band  on both counts.
Style-wise,  this mostly  upbeat kind  of rock/metal  is not  quite my
cup  of tea;  I definitely  prefer Sentenced's  darker "suicide  rock"
approach,  and at  times Holochaust  sound  like they  could use  some
more  originality (the  end of  the title  track chorus  is just  like
Sentenced's  "With Bitterness  and  Joy"). Nevertheless,  this a  good
effort, well  above average for a  demo, and the band  deserves credit
for it.

Contact: mailto:holochaust@sinisetsie.net
         http://go.to/holochaust/


Human Abstrakt - _Human Abstrakt_  (2-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley  (**---)

Technical  blackened heavy  metal?  Blackened  technical power  metal?
Technical death metal with blackened  qualities? I am just as confused
as I  was taking my  Managing Money final exam  in 11th grade  when it
comes  to  describing  the  music of  this  four-piece  from  Atlanta,
Georgia. Whatever  you want to  call this  act, you cannot  ignore the
technical style  and sound the  band showcases on this  two-song demo.
The band does their best to  offer up interesting technical numbers --
enough to  keep us interested, but  not enough to really  show us what
they  are all  about.  The music  here  is good  (I  liked the  opener
"Vice"), but for all I know the  rest of their set list when they play
live could be weak as shit. I don't know what else they have to offer.
Another problem I have with this  band is the name: Human Abstrakt. It
just doesn't  seem to fit  the music they  play. It sounds  too "death
metal"-like.  In the  end, these  two songs  are interesting,  but not
enough to keep me coming back for more. Onto the next demo...

Contact: mailto:humanabstrakt@lycos.com
         http://human-abstrakt.8m.net


Phantasmagory - _Odd Sounds_  (7-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley  (****-)

With much,  much better sound  quality than  the two previous  demos I
had  to sit  through this  issue (Deathguy  and Effluvium),  Ukraine's
Phantasmagory are  an impressive progressive death  metal band. Tight,
well-structured  songs make  up  this seven-song  release, a  definite
ear-pleaser to fans of technical death metal in the vein of Pestilence
and Cynic. There  are a lot of  bands out there who make  an effort to
really shine  and showcase their  talent and Phantasmagory are  one of
those bands. Production here, especially for  a demo, is top notch and
the  band really  captured  their  best work.  One  thing that  really
impressed me  about this demo  from Phantasmagory is the  variety that
the  seven-song demo  offers:  everything from  technical death  metal
to  thrash  metal  heaviness,  heavy  metal  guitar  solos  and  black
metal-inspired screams. This demo is all  over the place, but not in a
bad way.  Like the album title  suggests, "odd sounds" indeed.  I have
heard  a lot  about this  band over  the years,  having read  numerous
articles about them, and it's nice to finally put music to what I know
about them. Easily the gem of my New Noise pile this issue.

Contact: Edward Miroshnichenko, P.O. Box 7488, 83062 Donetsk-62,
         Ukraine


Renazcore - _Veritas Vincit_  (8-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley  (***--)

There are a lot of bands out there  in the world that claim to be real
fans of metal music. Fans of  metal that would never really compromise
their sound and style, rather willing  to bleed for their music before
they change sounds  and ideas to fit any corporate  mold. Which brings
me to Virginia act  Renazcore. If I had to use a  word to describe the
music of Renazcore, I would most definitely use the word "metal". This
is a band that definitely loves  what they do musically, whether it be
the Nevermore-like  stomp of  one song or  the blistering  death metal
attack of another, or even a slow musical passage to change things up.
These are all metal ideas working  off one another, the most effective
ones being  "The Yearning", "Augmented  Travels" and "Wicked  Winds of
Fate". While  not the best  metal act  out there, Renazcore  show true
honor with what they provide with  us musically and that means more to
me than slick  production or metal superstars in a  band. These values
should make something out of Renazcore some day. Only time will tell.

Contact: 15042, Unit D, Warwick Blvd, Newport News, VA 23608, USA
         mailto:renazcore420@home.com


Serpent Eclipse - _Thy Bleeding Heavens_  (6-track demo)
by: Alvin Wee  (****-)

American black metal has taken a  turn for the better since bands like
Judas Iscariot  and Krieg have  made their presence felt,  and Serpent
Eclipse  certainly  bear  the  much-maligned  American  torch  capably
enough.  Evoking  fond  memories  of early  Norse  black  metal,  _Thy
Bleeding  Heavens_ rips  forth with  mind-numbing conviction,  twisted
riffs and sweeping  keys conjuring up mountains of  madness and oceans
of insanity. Fundamentally  old-school, yet unashamedly technological,
SE dredge up  a Mysticum-like coldness sadly missing from  much of the
neo-black  metal  scene  today.  Comparisons might  even  be  made  to
_Declarations..._-era  Mayhem, with  disharmonic  riffs and  chilling,
robotic percussion, but  I prefer to draw on  the similarities between
the twistedness  of early Emperor's oft-overlooked  background riffing
and SE's equally  atmospheric guitarwork. And despite  the band's lack
of a human drummer, the  drum-machine actually adds to the recording's
already-inhuman  coldness.  This is  material  worthy  of an  official
release, so  keep your  eyes peeled  for the  band's upcoming  MCD. Or
simply order this killer promo for $5.

Contact: Void Sector Recordings, P.O. Box 1384, Salem, NH 03079, USA


Spiritus Mortis - _Demo 2000_  (3-track demo)
by: Chris Flaaten  (***--)

Last issue I  reviewed Spiritus Mortis' most  recent demo. Apparently,
they have now got  a record deal, but this deal came  from an old demo
-- the one in question here. In this demo, Spiritus Mortis are clearly
darker in  their expression, playing  old school  doom in the  vein of
Black  Sabbath.  Although  everything  is  well  played  and  decently
produced, I  can't seem  to like  these ten minutes  worth as  much as
their newer  material. It lacks  the flair and the  subtle humouristic
approach that made the _Forward to  the Battle_ demo stand out. Still,
this music  should be easier  to market  and they're still  more metal
than 90% of everything else out there.

Contact: mailto:vesa.lampi@pp.inet.fi
         http://www.metalprovider.com/spiritusmortis/


Summer Dying - _Summer Dying_  (3-track demo)
by: Aaron McKay  (****-)

It has been a  really bad week and I am in a  shit mood right now, but
these motherfuckers still  impress me. I say "still"  because I caught
their  performance originally  at  the Milwaukee  MetalFest this  last
August. Much  like now,  I spent most  of the two  days far  less than
enthused, but  Summer Dying was a  bright spot at an  otherwise dismal
two-day affair. This  five piece from Lansing, Michigan  (also home to
one of my  preferred black metal outfits, Summon) has  a great concept
of music for  the masses -- that being KEEP  THINGS INTRIGUING! Summer
Dying moves  this demo along  with conviction and  poisonous veracity.
Six minutes  and seven  seconds is  the shortest of  the cuts  on this
self-titled offering --  changing vocal style and tempo  like I change
air in my  lungs. Moving from the heavily chaotic  rhythms to peaceful
passages worthy of Anathema spontaneity,  nothing here is typical. The
intensity of the bass separation in  "Forever Lost" make that track my
favorite on the demo... well, that  and the guitar solo about the four
and a half minute  mark; in a weaker moment, I  might think a younger,
hungrier  Kirk  Hammett  was  persuaded  to  lay  down  that  solo.  A
significant offering. Keep up the good work.

Contact: Goddess Death Promotions, Jamie Cripe, P.O. Box 27263,
         Lansing, MI 48909, USA
         mailto:jamsie@excite.com
         http://summerdying.tripod.com


Triton - _Darkroot_  (2-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley  (**---)

Was there not enough money to assemble a three-song or four-song demo?
I'm just asking,  as I can't believe a band  submitted a two-song demo
to review. Anyway, Massachusetts melodic  death metal act Triton sound
pretty tight  and effective on this  demo, but is it  really enough to
pass judgement  on the band?  I don't think  so. With just  over eight
minutes of material  and two very similar sounding  songs, Triton does
not sound original or creative enough  to have my head spinning and my
fists pumping in the air. Pretty generic, if you ask me. Hmm, which of
the two songs do  I like better? Tough call. I'd have  to say the song
"Burden", with its cool acoustic guitar breakdown following an intense
first two  minutes. I'm not ragging  on Triton for putting  together a
two-song demo, I'm just saying that if  you want to really make a good
first impression,  wait until  you have a  good substantial  amount of
songs to  record with and  then submit more  material to show  off the
band's talent. It's guaranteed to get  a better response than they did
here with a two-song release.

Contact: Triton, 91 Hillside St. #3, Roxbury, MA 02120, USA
         http://www.tritonmetal.com

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


              I LOVE THE SMELL OF NAPALM IN THE EVENING
              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                           Wacken Open Air
                  Wacken, Germany, 3-4 August 2001
                          by: Matthias Noll


Tips
~~~~
Let me start with some hopefully useful information.  
- Try to arrive on the day before the festival starts.
- Exchange your  ticket for a wristband as early  as possible to avoid
queues.
- It will be  better for you if you only feel the  need to take a dump
at night.
-  Money: there  were no  cash machines  on the  festival area;  don't
forget there's the Metal Market and  many merchandise and CD booths --
you might need more than you think.
- Bring an electric torch.
- Better have solid shoes.
- Bring  a  printout  of the  running order  available  on the  Wacken
website with you.
- Don't forget  toilet paper and enough water to  brush your teeth and
wash your hands. The latter applies only if you're a wimp like me.
- Ear plugs: two days of constant  metal barrage might be too much for
such delicate organs. Don't forget you've only got two of them.
- A cape in case it rains, and sunblock in case it doesn't.
- Find a good meeting point early on.
- Be at the stages in time -- no bands will be late.
- Wacken  is  approximately one  hour north  of Hamburg.  90% of  that
distance is on a highway.
- Once you  park your car, find  some landmarks to help  you find your
way back in the dark.
- Once in  the parking area, you won't get  out until countless others
leave. This means you won't get out in the evening to stay in a hotel.
(The backstage area might be  a slightly different story.) The further
away you are from the entrance, the  earlier you will be able to leave
on Sunday.
- Aspirin and alcohol, or vice versa.
- Downtown  Wacken  is  approximately  twenty  minutes away  from  the
entrance by foot. The few shops that exist have extended opening hours
during the festival (until 8pm as far as I can remember).
- Careful with drugs -- the police blocked the whole highway, directed
everybody through a resting area and  searched many cars when we left.
The previous years they searched people on their way to the festival.
- Avoid bringing a rucksack to  the festival area or it'll be searched
every time you go in.
- Entrance controls are strict. Not even water in plastic bottles will
get in.

Prices in 2001
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
- Ticket: 99,- DM
- Camping area: 30,- DM per car
- Fries with ketchup or mayonnaise: 4,- DM
- Grilled sausage and bread: 4,- / 5,- DM
- Beer: 4,-  DM plus 2,- for  the cup (which you'll get  back when you
return it)
- Noodles: 5,- DM
- CDs: 25,- DM or cheaper

Thursday
~~~~~~~~
     Since Paul and I were seeing  most of the bands together, there's
really not  that much to add  to his report  [CoC #54]. I will  try to
focus a bit  more on the event  itself and comment wherever  I think I
have something to say that may add some detail or a different opinion.
If you  feel you already got  a sufficient amount of  Wacken info from
the last issue, then don't bother with this article.
     Being at the  meeting point at Frankfurt airport on  the same day
as Paul came as a surprise, as well as a relief [see CoC #51]. We went
straight to  my place,  readied our  belongings for  the trip,  got my
friend  and  neighbour Daniel  into  the  car  and left  on  schedule.
Fortunately, we didn't  forget to buy twelve bottles  of mineral water
for various  wimpy purposes:  washing, brushing teeth,  drinking, etc.
The six hour trip went quite  well and at approximately 9pm we arrived
at Wacken.
     Wacken is a small town of approximately 2000 souls, many of which
gathered in  the street  or in  their gardens at  this late  hour and,
sitting on  comfortable chairs, watched  the long queue  straight from
the entrance into Wacken all the way to the festival area on the other
side of the town. I'm still  surprised at the relaxed and friendly way
these people reacted  to the constant flow  of dangerous-looking metal
maniacs invading their home town. We  even exchanged a couple of jokes
with the people watching us and  returned the waving of children as we
slowly made our way to the festival grounds.
     It took  us another hour until  we finally parked the  car in the
parking area  most remote  from the  actual entrance.  Immediately our
vehicle  was surrounded  by other  cars and  tents, and  only by  some
device  straight  out of  James  Bond's  arsenal  would it  have  been
possible to move the car from where it was parked. After we all helped
setting up Daniel's  tent in the dark -- which  would have been almost
impossible without the miner's light Paul had fortunately brought with
him -- we headed towards the  entrance, where we were supposed to meet
Dave  Rocher. The  path turned  out  to be  a bit  rough, because  the
different camping grounds  we had to cross were  separated by trenches
filled with either water, barbed wire, or both. We safely made our way
to the entrance, and baptized the last part of the path "Road of Piss"
on the very first night, because of the horrible stench emanating from
countless metallers' urine in that area.
     As we  arrived at the  entrance, we heard W.A.S.P.  playing "Fuck
Like a Beast" from afar and had a first look at the options for buying
food and drink. There were many  booths and also the "Metal Market" --
a huge  tent with merchants  selling used and new  CDs -- in  front of
which people  started to  queue up  as early as  9am (the  tent itself
would only open at 10am, with an entrance fee of 4,- DM). To the right
of the entrance  there was the "Wet stage", a  tent outside the "real"
festival area in which bands also played on both days.
     In  order to  enter the  festival area,  we had  to exchange  our
tickets for wristbands. Close to the entrance, we finally met Dave. As
no  one  was interested  in  seeing  W.A.S.P.,  we  then went  to  the
backstage  entrance  (approximately a  twenty  minute  walk), where  I
picked up  my wristband. Everything went  well, we walked back,  had a
few beers,  chatted and temporarily parted  ways with Dave --  we were
supposed to meet him again the following day.
     We made our way back to the car through the vast camping grounds,
seeing some quite interesting tent  constructions on the way (like for
example a parachute,  and even an old-fashioned fire  brigade car used
for transportation  by some metalheads). With  a good dose of  luck we
found  our car  again.  I  slept surprisingly  well  and the  metallic
neighbourhood remained relatively  calm; the same also  applies to the
two nights that followed.

Friday
~~~~~~
     Deceased were on  at 10am. Paul had set his  alarm clock, but due
to the sunshine  the temperatures inside the car climbed  into the 30s
and  we woke  up  at  8:30. After  some  very basic  hygiene-improving
activities like brushing  teeth and washing face and  hands, we headed
towards the festival  area, which we then saw during  daylight for the
first time.  Once through the  entrance, where  Paul had to  leave the
mineral water plastic bottle, we decided to take a brief look and then
head towards the stage.
     Directly to  the left of the  entrance were many huts  and booths
selling clothes, leather, spikes, CDs old and new, food, etc. Straight
ahead, a five  minute walk away, the two big  stages were located side
by side. On the left hand side -- maybe another five minutes away from
the main  stages -- was the  Party stage, which would  feature most of
the bands we wanted to see.  As we would later find out, unfortunately
the Party stage was  so close to the main stages  that, unless you got
really close to the  PA, you had to endure some of  the sound from the
main stages,  augmented by almost  constant wind from  that direction.
Every band at  Wacken played a minimum of  45 minutes; semi-headliners
like In Flames or Helloween for 60  to 75; and Saxon and Motorhead for
90 minutes.
     For Deceased we went very close  to the main stage, because there
were only about 300 to 400 people awake that early who were interested
in seeing  the band  -- meanwhile,  many others  walked around  on the
festival area  to shop or  just get accustomed  with the area  and its
attractions.  Personally, I  wasn't  overly  impressed with  Deceased.
Their Kreator cover "Tormentor" triggered raised fists and devil horns
everywhere, but  besides that, Deceased  didn't really convince  me. I
haven't gotten their point yet,  and the experience felt like watching
a second rate outfit which would  better remain either in their garage
or in very, very small clubs.
     Carnal Forge were  proof that competent thrash  metal requires as
much  control and  precision as  it does  aggression and  speed. Their
blasting  style is  just too  over-the-top  to really  work, and  what
should have had  approximately the same impact as  a medium-sized atom
bomb became just a harmless fizzle.
     Soilwork were next  on the Party stage. I expected  the Swedes to
be very static on stage, but they came across quite well, despite some
rockstar posing and cliche announcements  in between songs. The recent
touring seems to  have secured them a surprisingly  large fanbase, and
the band went  down impressively well, playing 45  minutes of material
from the  last two  records. What  turned out  to be  really annoying,
especially during Opeth's gig on the following day, was the sound from
the main stage -- which was far too close to the Party stage. The only
place where one was able to hear only  one band at a time was in front
of the PA on the left hand side of the Party stage, which was farthest
away from the main stage.
     Then I  watched the reformed  Holy Moses,  playing on one  of the
main stages.  The band did  well and received an  enthusiastic welcome
from a considerable crowd. I especially enjoyed "Current of Death" and
"Finished With the Dogs" from  the band's second album. Sabina Classen
was  in  top form  and  her  voice  sounded  more inhuman  than  ever.
Seriously: forget  Karyn Crisis  when it comes  to the  most un-female
vocals in metal.  Things got a bit cheesy when  Holy Moses were joined
by  Germany's Metal  Barbie Doll,  Doro  Pesch, for  a mediocre  cover
version of  the Dead Kennedys' "Too  drunk to Fuck". I'm  not too sure
whether the new  album is really going to be  worthwhile, but the good
news is  that _Finished With  the Dogs_,  a minor German  thrash metal
classic, is going to get re-released.
     Napalm Death were  next, and their sound was gone  with the hefty
wind  in front  of the  right main  stage. Energetic  action on  stage
didn't help  me recognize more than  one or two songs,  and the band's
performance was rendered powerless by the forces of nature.
     We then decided to take a  walk around the festival area, buy CDs
and have a look at the selection of food available. When I returned to
the main stage,  Exciter were already 1/3 into their  set. A couple of
old classics like  "Pounding Metal", "Violence and  Force", "Rising of
the Dead", etc. almost managed to summon the spirit of the early '80s.
Although their new singer's voice has strong similarities with a young
Rob Halford, his extremely predictable  usage of normal and high pitch
turned out  to be  quite annoying  after a  couple of  tracks. Exciter
received decent crowd reaction, and as with their latest record _Blood
of Tyrants_ [CoC #48], they were a lot more convincing than 90% of the
horrible true/power metal  crap which we were forced to  endure from a
distance later on.
     Speaking of  (German) power metal,  we had our first  exposure to
this style when  Primal Fear entered the main stage  on the right hand
side and  Ralf Scheepers got a  chance to do his  "Judas Priest didn't
want me and now I'm going to record Painkiller II without them" thing.
After listening to a couple of  versions of the fast double bass track
with  melodic chorus  followed by  slight variations  of the  stomping
bang-your-head-and-shake-your-fist song, we headed  to the Party stage
to see Nasum. They turned out to  be the first real surprise at Wacken
due to their  epileptic stage acting and great songs.  The band seemed
to be surprised that  so many people had come to see  them in spite of
the  power  metal barrage,  which  was  audible  at the  Party  stage.
Remaining in  a really good  mood due  to the unexpectedly  good crowd
response, they unleashed one of the best performances of the whole two
days.
     Nasum were then followed by Exhumed, whom I checked out for wenty
tminutes. Exhumed were surprisingly good  initially, but started o get
tboring after the first ten  minutes (which included my favourite rack
t"Necromaniac" from  _Gore Metal_).  I had  a good  laugh when  the wo
tguitarists and the bass player lifted  their guitars to show that hey
thad used some duct tape to  write "Gore", "Fucking" and "Metal" on he
tbacks of the three instruments.
     Thinking something along  the lines of "always  leave when things
are at their best", I left to  see Nevermore, who were far better than
with Dimmu Borgir in Stuttgart [CoC #53]. Warrel Dane's vocals were in
top form, the songs sounded fresher  and more energetic, and the huge,
cheering and singing audience loved every  minute of it. My only gripe
was that  although they did play  a Sanctuary track, it  was the cover
version "White  Rabbit" from  the debut _Refuge  Denied_. This,  in my
opinion, is the weakest track on this classic album.
     Even  though I  was not  very interested  in seeing  Overkill for
approximately the tenth time in my life, we nevertheless stayed at the
main  stage, and  surprisingly Overkill  put on  one hell  of a  show.
Starting with  one of  my all-time favourites,  "Deny the  Cross" from
_Taking  Over_,  everybody around  us,  including  the incredibly  fat
Tankard singer Gerre (who was  standing right behind us), was freaking
out and heads  were banging everywhere. Blitz is still  a thrash metal
frontman  in  a league  of  his  own,  with  his agile  movements  and
well  sought-out conversations  with the  crowd. Overkill  even played
"Hammerhead"  from _Feel  the Fire_  (which I  hadn't heard  them play
live  since 1987)  plus "Hello  From the  Gutter", "Evil  Never Dies",
"Elimination",  "In Battle"  and  a couple  of  less impressive  newer
tracks. After  everybody in the  audience had  the chance to  sing "In
Union" and  "Fuck You", Overkill  came back  for an encore  and played
"Bastard Nation", which again had  everybody singing along the chorus.
An exciting show from these veterans, whose appeal seemed to have gone
a bit  stale after more  than a decade with  at least yearly  tours in
Europe.
     After Overkill we  decided to watch Mortician,  who were slightly
less brutal than a Stan and  Ollie movie, but equally funny. Too tired
to walk away again, we also stayed for Desaster -- who weren't lame at
all in  their corpsepaint,  leather and  spikes outfit,  but musically
sounded like another one of those  bands who come across as a slightly
black metallish second rate copy of second tier bands from the '80s.
     After seeing  The Haunted  supporting Nile  in Vienna  early this
year,  my expectations  were  almost impossible  to  meet. Guess  what
happened: The  Haunted were even  better this time. Getting  a comment
such as  "This is like Exodus"  from my friend, metal  dinosaur Daniel
(which  happened during  the second  song, "Bury  Your Dead"),  is the
metal  equivalent of  being given  saintly status  by the  Vatican. If
there's one  new band  who plays  thrash metal  on the  same intensity
level as Exodus, Forbidden, Legacy,  Testament, Vio-lence, etc. did in
the '80s, then it is The Haunted. From opening track "Dark Intentions"
to the last one, "Hate Song", their gig was perfect. In retrospect, to
me Wacken was The Haunted's festival and from now on riffmaster Jensen
is considered god.
     Exumer, in my opinion, had one of the most unfortunate time slots
of the whole festival. They had to  play at 1am, after The Haunted and
at  the same  time as  Saxon. Having  practiced for  three months  but
played only one gig in Frankfurt  before Wacken, it seemed likely that
the show would  not be very good. Fortunately, that  was not the case.
Exumer had a  good to very good  sound, and a decent  amount of thrash
metal zombies -- clad in jeans covered with patches -- had gathered to
see  the reunion  gig.  I should  have  known that  the  band was  not
completely forgotten  despite disbanding  thirteen years  ago, because
the last offer  from a fan for  my tour shirt from '87  had been "I'll
cover it with  money bills" in the early morning.  I refused. The band
started with "Fallen  Saint" and played all tracks  from _Possessed by
Fire_ with the exception of "Reign of Sadness" and "Silent Death", one
crap so-called "new" song and a superfluous Black Sabbath cover. Their
own  material sounded  great and  surprisingly tight  after all  these
years -- especially "Winds of Death" (the only track from _Rising From
the Sea_),  with its crushing  slower sections, was killer,  just like
three days  earlier in Frankfurt.  Except for original front  man Mem,
who moved around  more than three normal singers at  the same time and
came across very energetic and convincing, everybody on stage was very
static and non-metal looking. The  music was good enough to compensate
for a certain  lack of stage presence, though, and  if these guys just
did not feel like sucking up to their fans by wearing wigs, spikes and
metal  shirts,  then  so  be  it.  The  time  tunnel  has  spewed  out
Destruction  already.  Overall,  it  was a  very  worthy  reunion  gig
from  these  German  veterans.  And,  for a  change,  this  is  not  a
permanent reunion and  we're not running the risk of  having to endure
disappointing new records. On an  Exumer related topic: anyone with an
interest in  thrash metal should  check out  singer Mem's new  band at
www.sundescends.com.
     Paul and I left after the gig  and Daniel went to check out Dimmu
Borgir. After the boring performance on their last tour, I just didn't
have enough energy  left to endure another hour on  the festival area.
The fact that during  our fifteen minute walk to the  car all we heard
was keyboards (leaving  me with the impression that  Jean Michel Jarre
was filling in for Dimmu Borgir) seemed to indicate that leaving was a
clever decision.
     Before we went to  sleep, I was in for the  only bad experience I
had during the four days. It consisted of the sight that unfolded when
I opened  the door to the  next toilet. Shit  was piling up on  top of
what normally would  be the seat. I took my  toilet paper, jumped over
trenches  and barbed  wire  in true  World War  I  assault style,  and
disappeared  into  the  foggy,  fortunately dark  night.  To  all  you
potential Wacken tourists: never assume  there will be a usable toilet
when you need one.

Saturday
~~~~~~~~
     Saturday began with sunshine  and Warhammer. Warhammer are German
Hellhammer worshippers, and their sound and  songs are of a kind which
could easily  have been on  Hellhammer's _Apocalyptic Raids_  EP. It's
100% well done Hellhammer worship and absolutely nothing else.
     Cryptopsy went  on stage at 11am,  and I've got little  to add to
Paul's Wacken report  [CoC #54]. From my perspective, they  were a bit
less impressive than during my last encounter with them in 1999, and I
felt that  the new tracks didn't  work as well live  as older material
up  to  _Whisper  Supremacy_.  As expected,  the  band's  technicality
(especially the drumming) was breathtaking  and Mike DiSalvo put on an
impressive last performance with the band.
     Dark  Tranquillity  were  the  next  interesting  band  to  play.
However, I'm  getting the impression that  either I've seen them  on a
bad  day twice  or they  are  rather mediocre  musicians. Once  again,
everything they  played from  up to _The  Mind's I_  sounded extremely
sloppy, and Mikael Stanne's vocals were simply horrible. On record the
guy has a really cool, distinguishable  voice, but on stage he sounded
like some below  average growler filling in for the  real singer. With
the old material not sounding overly good, there were only _Projector_
and _Haven_ songs  left to save the day. Although  I really like those
two albums, Dark Tranquillity came across as a rather boring act.
     After a  long break, during  which we  had to endure  power metal
wailing from various  stages, we checked out  Krisiun. Having achieved
an average  status through permanent  touring and three  good records,
the Brazilians turned out to be as exciting as Dark Tranquillity. More
than ever  before, I  had the  impression that  Krisiun only  have one
track: it's the  hyperspeed one, where the cascading  riff is repeated
over and over  again in different scales, and about  2/3 into the song
the guitarist does  as many trills as possible in  the shortest period
of time. I  definitely prefer listening to _Black Force  Domain_ on my
home  stereo, rather  than  the unimpressive  live  versions of  their
material that  Krisiun offered today.  It's about time  the Brazilians
get  a second  idea of  what to  do with  their outstanding  technical
skills.
     Tankard's singer Gerre constantly  flaunted Europe's fattest beer
gut shortly after Paul had left, and his performance was the only good
thing  about  Tankard's gig.  I'd  been  wondering why  later  Tankard
material sounded so lame, and I thought that Harris Johns was to blame
for that. The fact  is that the band itself has got  a shit sound that
is not  at all  comparable to  their heyday  in the  mid-'80s anymore.
Their new material  came across as sub-par funpunk  bullshit, and even
old  classics  like "Maniac  Forces",  "Chemical  Invasion" or  "Empty
Tankard" sounded  like second  rate cover  versions of  the originals.
Hadn't it  been for  Gerre --  who is  still one  of the  funniest and
craziest frontmen in German metal --,  this would have been 100% utter
crap.  From  my  point  of  view, Tankard  have  become  a  parody  of
themselves. The fact that they can still attract and entertain quite a
lot  of people  only shows  how good  they once  were and  how good  a
frontman Gerre is.
     In Flames were  entertaining, but never reached  the intensity of
their recent club gigs, and so we  had to wait until Opeth appeared on
stage before  we were blown  away again. Despite  miserable conditions
caused by HammerFall's  main stage sound mixing  with Opeth's acoustic
sections,  this was  an  awesome  show. Band  and  audience seemed  to
connect  immediately, and  even if  Mikael Akerfeldt  stayed calm  and
quiet  in  between  songs,  he  seemed  to  be  deeply  moved  by  the
enthusiastic cheering and clapping from the crowd. "Demon of the Fall"
was  absolutely breathtaking  with  its heavy  beginning,  and all  my
doubts that  a band that  relies as much  on atmosphere as  Opeth does
could be  convincing live had  disappeared. The musicians were  in top
form, the  vocals never faltered (be  it in normal or  growling voice)
and the gig,  despite the fact that Opeth only  played four songs, was
stunning.
     After Opeth  had finished their  set, we walked towards  the main
stage. From a  distance I saw the skinny  HammerFall guitarist running
around on  the stage. He  wore a batman  cape that almost  touched the
stage and  also an armor  that reflected  the light from  the lighting
rig. They performed  the Accept metal ballet and the  Manowar clash of
guitars held with outstretched arms; they ran around with torches; and
they also did some black metal style fire breathing. Next time they'll
probably  have Dio's  plastic  dragon on  stage.  Disgust is  probably
a  word  which isn't  strong  enough  to  describe my  feelings  about
HammerFall. I  don't fully understand why  the band makes me  react in
such an overblown negative way, and  maybe I should just chill out and
see  them  as  a joke  --  but  I  really  can't. During  this  almost
physically painful  experience, Daniel and I  were imagining Motorhead
coming on stage and kicking all  the poser asses up there, taking over
the instruments  and playing "Ace  of Spades". As our  frustration was
growing,  we envisioned  the  Motorhead bomber  stage  set taking  off
and  dropping  napalm  on  HammerFall  and  their  fans,  so  bad  was
the  experience.  Unfortunately  that  didn't  happen,  but  this  gig
strengthened  my opinion  that  HammerFall and  their music  represent
almost everything that's crap in metal.  Buy _Keeper of the Seven Keys
Part I_,  _Battle Hymns_ and  _Restless and  Wild_. Buy two,  three or
four copies of  each if you must, but why  anything by HammerFall? I'd
rather step barefoot into dog shit than see something like this again.
     Paul  had   hoped  that  Motorhead  would   say  something  about
HammerFall,  but Lemmy  seemed to  have spared  himself the  sight and
sound of  them. Had he  witnessed their  circus, I'm sure  he wouldn't
have kept quiet. Motorhead's set began in very energetic fashion, with
a  very good,  full sound  and amazing  drumming, and  stayed exciting
until after the sixth song, "Shoot You in the Back", from the immortal
_Ace of  Spades_. The Sex Pistols  cover that followed was  the lamest
thing I've  ever heard done to  a Pistols song, and  somehow Motorhead
never recovered from that low point.  The audience was there in masses
but completely lifeless, which made for a very strange atmosphere, and
Lemmy's jokes about the lack of response also failed to break the ice.
I left with  Daniel, hearing "Killed by  Death" on my way  to the car,
while Paul stayed to see the bomber.

Sunday
~~~~~~
     At 8am the first few people started to move. Now the fact that we
were parked so far away from the entrance would pay off. Miraculously,
everyone  who was  blocking our  path  left, and  we were  out of  the
festival area within a couple of minutes.  As far as I heard, Dave and
his friends were  trapped inside for another couple of  hours. We made
our way to the highway, only to  get directed to a parking area by the
police  after ten  clicks. They  looked at  every car  and the  people
inside and  searched some  of them.  Only a  short distance  from this
first bottleneck,  a car was  lying on its roof  in the middle  of the
dual carriageway.  Fortunately, this had happened  only seconds before
we  arrived,  and we  managed  to  avoid  the  traffic jam  which  was
definitely about  to develop  immediately after.  We had  another very
positive  encounter with  a middle-aged  German in  Itzehoe, where  we
asked for directions from the gas  station to the highway. Despite the
fact that  it was a bunch  of dirty, smelly metallers  talking to him,
our newfound friend led the way in his own car.
     Overall, Wacken was  a very well organized,  outstanding event. I
recommend the festival to everyone,  no matter where he/she might come
from.

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

              N O   R E S T   F O R   T H E   W E A R Y
              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
             CoC at the 15th annual Milwaukee MetalFest
                           by: Aaron McKay


     I was going  to call this review A Caravel  in Chaos or something
to that  effect, but  even chaos  by definition  is, if  nothing else,
interesting -- this  year's MMF was not.  If I had an  arsenal full of
weapons of mass boredom, the  largest would be the Milwaukee MetalFest
XV.
     Okay, I am  somewhat responsible for a spiritless  review of this
year's  event. Putting  off writing  it for  far too  long wasn't  the
brightest notion I have ever had, but as I told my editor, I had major
difficulty finding the  inspiration to pound out the  letters for this
piece. Why?  A lack  of any  real headlining  band was  most of  it, I
think. Some disappointments in the band schedule was another chunk, as
was a  stark absence of  enthusiasm by  the attendees, which  made the
whole  two  day  affair  musically as  boring  as  Destruction's  last
release. I'll get to all that in due time...
     I should have known that things were  off to a bad start from the
very  first day.  Kathy, my  fiancee, and  I were  due to  leave on  a
Wednesday  afternoon  to  have  as  many full  days  in  Milwaukee  as
possible. As it happens, the evening  before I withdrew some money for
the trip and forgot to retrieve  my ATM card from the blasted machine.
It, of course, was irretrievable the next day when I discovered it was
missing at the gas station leaving my home town for the show.
     After  taking  care  of   the  prerequisite  bullshit  caused  my
ignorance,  we left  the following  morning and  arrived for  the last
Miller brewery tour of the day. WHEW! Things were looking up.
     After dropping some hard earned money in the brewery's gift shop,
we were  off to the  hotel. Getting all  checked in and  squared away,
Kathy and I cleaned up and headed out to our favorite haunt, the Water
Street Brewery  in Delafield, WI. A  good hot meal and  some beer made
things all that more enjoyable. Sleeping in anticipating a -very- long
Friday of  metal, we  made our way  to what they  were calling  the US
Cellular arena this  year, which, in all actuality, is  the same place
it was last year: the Milwaukee Auditorium.

Friday
~~~~~~
     Arriving about 2pm  or so, Kathy and  I said hello to  one of the
most kind  and helpful people  in the  world: Debbie Sellnow  of Mazur
Public Relations. Heading into the show,  one would find it nearly the
same as  any other year,  but with  noticeably less vendors.  Even the
labels were under-represented by a fair degree. Something was afoot.
     Making a few rounds to look over the lay of the land, I noted the
main  stage last  year  was  called KNAC.COM  and  this  year went  by
the  Snakenet Radio  stage. The  two  smaller, less  open, but  highly
effective  Nightfall and  Digital Metal  (formerly Necropolis)  stages
were (obviously) positioned as they were a year ago. Again, these last
two  halls were  where most  of the  bands I  saw preformed.  Relapse,
naturally, had  the most  comfortable spot:  upstairs with  carpet and
padded chairs -- sponsorship has its rewards.
     About this  time, my fiancee pointed  out that we were  without a
schedule of bands. Good point  there. After scouring the area, Relapse
clued us in on  the fact that they were being copied  off as we spoke.
Fair enough. We scurried off for Rise on the Digital Metal stage until
they got printed.
     Rise sure  is an impressive outfit  of which I know  very little.
As  best as  I  could  tell, Rise's  style  was satisfactorily  heavy,
incorporating a nice keyboard effect and noteworthy vocals fostering a
kinda goth-y feel. I made it a  point to contact them via the Internet
and came to  learn that they were represented (at  least in August) by
Brutal Sound  Productions &  Management. To  date, I  haven't received
anything further  about Rise, but  I sincerely  hope to. They  were an
excellent band to begin the MetalFest  with. If only things would have
stayed that positive.
     Catching some of New Jersey's  Chaos Theory on the Relapse stage,
I  came  to the  resolve  that  CT has  only  a  minor stage  presence
consisting mostly of the lead  vocalist acting as strange as possible,
and not strange  in a good way. Despite some  solid riff, Chaos Theory
is one  of those groups that  I could take  'em or leave 'em.  In this
case, I left 'em.
     We soon found ourselves back downstairs for Summon. Nothing truly
notable about this black metal outfit from Michigan other than I enjoy
their fast-paced tempo and thick rhythms. The vocals, at times, seemed
screechy, but that  could have been any number of  things ranging from
the room  to the equipment. If  the shrillness was intentional  at the
show,  the  recorded  vocals  didn't  strike  me  as  that  piercingly
prominent.
     Again wondering around the label vending area, I came upon one of
the few, but very welcomed  highlights of the event: Andreas Katsambas
of The End Records. Andreas was there for only one day (Friday) before
making  his way  to  the benefit  concert for  the  two Chucks  (Billy
and  Schuldiner) in  California. Andreas  is an  extremely intelligent
colleague (see my interview with Mr.  Katsambas in the last issue) and
a fellow I am certainly honored to know. Kathy, Andreas and I had some
beers and shot the shit all  the while hearing Command Presence in the
background on the Snakenet Radio stage.
     Summer Dying was next  on the main stage and I was  glad I was in
the room when they started, because they  were not on my list of bands
I had marked to see. I am sure glad I caught their show, nevertheless,
and snagged one of  the demos they were passing out  (see my review in
this issue).
     -Now- we got cookin' with gas:  Epoch of Unlight on the Nightfall
stage was up next. Being on The  End Records, I was sure to stand near
Andreas for some  of their set until he switched  with Sergey to allow
Sergey (also  with The End) to  bear witness to EoU's  last few songs.
With flawless precision, Epoch of  Unlight seared through their set of
mostly new material  all the while breaking in a  new guitarist to the
band:  Josh Braddock  of Incineration  The whole  set was  a fantastic
experience and the new songs sounded impeccable.
     Only catching  one of the  songs from  Blood Stained Dusk  on the
Relapse stage, it took no time at all to surmise they were sounding as
black as ever; I wished I would  have been able to see more. I decided
then and  there I  needed food.  Kathy and I  scampered down  to snack
area, grabbed  something to supplement  our beef jerky  contraband and
headed  for the  main hall  for Wykked  Wytch --  what a  mistake that
was...
     If I  would have had  any concept of the  sheer horror (not  in a
good way) that I  was in for, I would not have brought  food to eat. I
nearly lost my appetite. I've come  to understand WW hail from Florida
(a state with  which I am infinitely familiar,  especially where metal
is concerned),  plus having been around  for more than ten  years, why
was this the first  I had heard of Wykked Wytch?  What's more, why was
Jason  Blachowicz -ever-  associated  with this  atrocity  of a  band?
Believe  me, I  will do  everything I  can to  never hear  this outfit
again, but I still had to keep my dinner down, so, needless to say, we
left.
     About this point, things got off  schedule a little bit and I was
saddened by missing Fog, but I  was otherwise occupied with Macabre in
the Digital Metal room  -- and boy, I was NOT ALONE.  Well more than a
quarter  of  the  people  attending  Friday were  in  that  space  and
Corporate Death, Dennis  the Menace, and Nefarious put  on one helluva
great show. Covering some tracks like "Vampire of Dusseldorf" and "Dog
Guts", the entire vicinity in font of the stage and the larger room in
general  was bouncing  and  thrashing in  flawless  time. A  fantastic
performance from one of the MMF's sanctioned and essential standbys.
     Kathy and I  bounced around until Catastrophic  hit the Nightfall
stage. I was biding my time  in anticipation of seeing Trevor Peres of
Obituary  and  his  new  band.  Being a  fan  of  their  release  _The
Cleansing_,  I  stood  patiently  waiting and  found  myself  rewarded
appropriately. They  worked through a  fantastic set and  sounded only
somewhat distant in  the small room, but it was,  nonetheless, good to
see Trevor again  in fine musical form. As an  aside, Trevor showed up
last year  to the MMF after  the Slayer concert earlier  that night in
Milwaukee; it was  exactly the same room, only we  were watching Dying
Fetus tear it up and not Catastrophic. Strange how things happen...
     I  wanted   to  catch   Psypheria  especially  because   of  Lyle
Livingston's participation in  Dragonlord in the worst  kinda way, but
instead  wound  up cooling  my  heals  with Killjoy  from  Necrophagia
waiting  for him  to go  on with  the guys  from Ravenous.  It was  an
investment  of  time  that  I  felt pretty  good  about,  as  I  truly
appreciate their  _Assembled in Blasphemy_ material;  seeing this band
always  puts me  in better  spirits  despite the  uninspired and  drab
happenings at the concert thus far.
     To finish  off Friday,  Kathy and  I stayed  put and  awaited the
arrival of Gorgoroth;  a main reason for me going  to this year's MMF.
On the Snakenet  Radio stage, Anathema was beginning, but  we both saw
them once previous here at the MetalFest. Truth be known, I was mostly
tired, but also frustrated by a  lackluster crowd all day long, but at
this last  performance, as well.  However, Gorgoroth, a  virtual black
metal  supergroup breeding-ground,  did not  disappoint any  of us,  I
don't  think.  Covering  substantive material  and  sounding  brutally
nefarious throughout, I  was pleased, in my own mind,  with a set done
to near  perfection. I would have  liked to have seen  them earlier in
the evening  with more material  from _Destroyer_ and  _Pentagram_, so
that I  might have soaked in  their presence and finer  work with less
filtration through fatigued ears.

Saturday
~~~~~~~~
     Another  day --  fresh hope.  My optimism  didn't last  for long.
Looking over the schedule for the day,  Kathy and I didn't like it was
necessary to get to the show  much before 2pm. Missing the first batch
of  morning and  early afternoon  acts wasn't  worth jeopardizing  the
longevity of our stamina for the evening bands. The one thing I failed
to notice until too late was Avernus at 12:10 -- what a fucked up time
slot they were given.
     Very shortly after arriving  at Milwaukee Auditorium, we happened
across a  good friend: Steve  Murray of Fleshgrind. Also  playing with
Avernus, he dropped the boom by  confronting me with the harsh reality
that they had already played (of course). SHIT! Oh, well -- what about
Fleshgrind, then? Here  is where things got royally  screwed up. Steve
told me something  that he heard about the MMF  "invoking the two year
rule".  Unfamiliar with  this, I  pressed  him for  some insight.  Mr.
Murray  told me  that  it was  his understanding  that  if you  played
consecutively  two years  previous, you  were "asked"  not to  preform
again.  Is this  what happened  to Fleshgrind  and Mortician,  another
notable MMF staples  not playing this year? If that  is the case, what
about Macabre  -- were they  here back to  back years? I'm  not saying
that  this "two  year  rule"  and being  "asked"  not  to preform  was
actually what came  to pass to ultimately botch up  the host of killer
bands that  usually play the  MMF, but if it  -does- happen to  be the
case,  I have  never heard  of  something so  shit-all stupid,  blind,
ignorant, and foolish in all my life!
     Noctuary played the  Digital Metal stage to a  warm and receptive
crowd, but my interest really was in seeing Averse Sefira. Having done
an e-mail interview  with both Wrath and Sanguine,  this Lost Disciple
outfit was  high on my agenda  to see; they did  not disappoint. After
taking care of some trouble with  the bass sound, Wrath spewed forth a
host  of the  most blackened  wickedness seen  at the  show. The  room
showed positive signs of familiarization with Averse Sefira's material
and, consequently, enjoyed  themselves as much as the  band seemed to.
In full corpse paint, AS no doubt drew more than a couple of fans into
their fold that day.
     Time to bust ass upstairs to the Relapse stage for Pig Destroyer.
The stage was running a bit late  and we caught two songs by Phobia. I
began looking almost frantically around the room for Carl Schultz from
Relapse and noticed  him walking in moments before PD  went on. We had
arranged earlier  yesterday to  watch the  performance together  and I
think that I can safely say, Carl and I both were overwhelmed with the
unbridled power Pig  Destroyer displayed. Fans were  yelling out names
of songs and J.R., Brain (had  some trouble with his right cymbal) and
Scott even blessed us with a reworked version of "Birthday Suicide".
     Mastodon  came up  next in  the comfortable  Relapse stage  area.
Taking into  consideration two of the  members' roots in Today  Is the
Day, it  is easily understood  why both  my fiancee and  I appreciated
their hard-hitting  and certainly  bass-heavy approach  as much  as we
did.
     Einherjer's Viking metal set was something I needed to see. Their
stage presence and  smooth change-ups played the audience  like one of
their battle-scarred instruments. In a sea of mediocrity, I am happy I
witnessed Einherjer's havoc play out upon the Digital Metal stage.
     Over to see what was going on with Soilwork. I can say this, they
drew a big crowd for reasons unknown to me. That not withstanding, the
main hall was nearly filled to capacity with people.
     That in mind, is it any wonder we moved back toward the Nightfall
stage? There  we set ourselves  up for a massive  disappointment. That
being the fact that Acheron wasn't  going to show. Fucking great! Next
to Gorgoroth, Acheron was a major reason for me attending.
     Having  seen Immolation  at  last  year's MMF,  and  who was  now
playing  instead of  Acheron,  Kathy  and I  both  reached the  mutual
decision to  relocate to the Snakenet  Radio stage until it  came time
for Novembers  Doom. We made our  way through the vendors'  area up to
nearly  the front  of  the  stage. Great  overall  vocals,  but to  my
surprise,  the female  contributions  on songs  they  played on  stage
seemed to  detract somewhat more in  a live setting that  I would have
previously gathered from  such a wonderfully ambient  band. They ended
with  a  great  live  interpretation  of  "Dawn  Breaks",  a  personal
favorite!
     The last band there I really  cared to see again was Dying Fetus.
They went on  almost exactly on time at 11:25  on the Nightfall stage.
Here is another band that confused me as to their presence at the show
if the  "two year  rule" -was- in  effect. I was  glad to  have -some-
stability, no  matter how slight or  in what form, at  the 'Fest. This
was my first time seeing the  reformed band without Jason Netherton on
bass/vocals. John  Gallagher was in  fine musical form, but  failed to
connect with  the crowd -- including  me, and I treasure  DF like gold
bouillon from Fort Knox. Joined on stage by Robert Vigna of Immolation
(guitar), Dying Fetus  seemed disconnected from their  audience with a
lot less  groove-oriented tunes  on their  set list  to get  the crowd
whipped up into a  frenzy. I guess every band has an  off show now and
again, plus they  may have been going through a  difficult period with
new members and  all. Only getting to see John  and the boys generally
once a  year here at  the MMF  (for less than  an hour, mind  you), if
absolutely  necessary, I  wish they  could  have had  their "bad  day"
another time...
     Wanting  to  see  Limbonic  Art,  but not  feeling  the  need  to
experience any more surprises, disappointments, or blemishes during an
already  less than  average MetalFest,  Kathy and  I exited  the show.
Yawn... zzzzzzzzzzz  <snort> Oh!  Sorry -- must  have dozed  off. Even
remembering  the  MMF  and  regurgitating it  back  for  your  reading
"enjoyment" must induce drowsiness, apparently.
     Before  I stretch  out  for a  nap,  allow me  to  say this:  God
willing, I WILL  ATTEND NEXT YEAR for the Milwaukee  MetalFest XVI, on
July 26 and  27; even the best  of the best happen upon  a slump every
now  and  again.  I've  told  myself that  it  can  only  get  better.
Rectifying some of the issues is probably an absolute imperative, like
keeping the asshole  "scabs" out of the venue (once  again this year).
Definition  of  "scabs":  loser, unwashed  teenie-boppers  who  derive
pleasure from  mooching beer and stinkin'  up the joint by  choice and
generally dumb-shit assholes.  Also, removing the "two  year rule", if
that does indeed turn out to be  what was actually going on this year,
plus securing a  stronger, more inspiring line-up  of headlining bands
would all be huge pluses for the Milwaukee MetalFest in years to come.
     Something  that  I   noticed  this  year,  while  I   am  in  the
hypercritical  mood, is  that some  lesser known  bands, by  design or
otherwise, enjoy some pretty choice times on the schedule, while other
more well-known outfits have bizarre slots. For instance, Tarcid (just
to name one -- no offense to the band intended) at 10:20pm on Saturday
night and  Avernus getting stuck  with the  12:10 in the  afternoon or
earlier,  if  I  remember  hearing  correctly  from  Steve  Murray  --
inexcusable.  While I  realize  it must  be a  major  headache to  put
all  these bands  on  a program  that flows,  somehow  it still  seems
ineffectual and certainly inappropriate.
     Good night,  everyone. I know that  most of you are  asleep right
now anyway if you are still reading  this... If you made it through --
congratulations! For me, coming up with this review, painful for me to
say as it is,  was like shaving with a rusty  straight-edge -- it gets
the job done, but the tetanus shot is -far- less than amusing. Lastly,
I want  to say to the  people I was able  to hang out with  again, the
bands I  wanted to catch  live in concert,  and the town  of Milwaukee
were points I choose  to recall fondly; I AM GRATEFUL.  Here is to the
promise of a better MMF 2002!

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


Gino's Top 5

1. Pig Destroyer - _Prowler in the Yard_
2. Carcass - _Symphonies of Sickness_
3. Soilent Green - _A Deleted Symphony for the Beaten Down_
4. Fu Manchu - _The Action Is Go_
5. Absu - _Tara_

Adrian's Top 5

1. Evergrey - _In Search of Truth_
2. Slayer - _God Hates Us All_
3. Porn (The Men Of) - _Experiments in Feedback_
4. Necrodeath - _Black as Pitch_
5. Godflesh - _Hymns_

Brian's Top 5

1. Necrophagist - _Onset of Putrefaction_
2. Profanum - _Musaeum Esotericum_
3. Sceptic - _Pathetic Being_
4. Ephel Duath - _Phormula_
5. Diabolical Masquerade - _Death's Design_

Alain's Top 5

1. Akercocke - _Goat of Mendes_
2. Darkest Hour - _The Mark of the Judas_
3. Darkest Hour - _So Sedated, So Secure_
4. Cadaver Inc. - _Discipline_
5. Deeds of Flesh - _Mark of the Legion_

Adam's Top 5

1. My Dying Bride - _The Dreadful Hours_
2. Der Blutharsch - _When All Else Fails..._
3. Nargaroth - _Black Metal ist Krieg_
4. Neurosis - _A Sun That Never Sets_
5. Unreal Tournament v4.36

Pedro's Top 5

1. My Dying Bride - _The Dreadful Hours_
2. Dornenreich - _Her Von Welken Nacthen_
3. Absu - _Tara_
4. Svartsyn - _His Majesty_
5. Solefald - _Pills Against the Ageless Ills_

Paul's Top 5

1. The Chasm - _Reaching the Veil of Death_
2. Pungent Stench - _Masters of Moral Servants of Sin_
3. AC/DC - _Live at the BBC_ (bootleg)
4. Motorhead - _Overkill_
5. Fantomas - _The Directors Cut_

Aaron's Top 5

1. Edguy - _Mandrake_
2. Hypocrisy - _Ten Years of Chaos & Confusion_
3. In Aeternum - _Past and Present Sins_
4. Scholomance - _The Immortality Murder_
5. Pro-Pain - _Round 6_

David's Top 5

1. Arch Enemy - _Wages of Sin_
2. Sanctuary - _Refuge Denied_
3. The Crown - _Deathrace King_
4. Iced Earth - _Horror Show_
5. Aborted - _Engineering the Dead_

Matthias' Top 5

1. System of a Down - _Toxicity_
2. Pig Destroyer - _Prowler in the Yard_
3. Svartsyn - _His Majesty_
4. Entombed - _Morning Star_
5. Jello Biafra and DOA - _Last Screams of the Missing Neighbours_

Alvin's Top 5

1. Eternal Majesty / Temple of Baal -
   _Unholy Chants of Darkness / Faces of the Void_
2. Serpent Eclipse - _Thy Bleeding Heavens_ demo
3. Biomechanical - _Distorted_ demo
4. Various - _Within This Infinite Ocean_ (Projekt sampler)
5. Death in June - _DISCriminate_

Gabriel's Top 5

1. New Order - _The John Peel Sessions_
2. Weezer - _Pinkerton_
3. Ben Folds - _Rockin' the Suburbs_
4. U.S. Maple - _Long Hair in Three Stages_
5. Tori Amos - _Strange Little Girls_

Chris' Top 5

1. Death - _Live in L.A. - Death and Raw_
2. My Dying Bride - _The Dreadful Hours_
3. Shape of Despair - _Angels of Distress_
4. Devin Townsend - _Terria_
5. Nevermore - _Dead Heart in a Dead World_

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End Chronicles of Chaos, Issue #55

All contents copyright 2001 by individual creators of included  work.
All opinions expressed herein are those of the individuals expressing
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