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



       CHRONICLES OF CHAOS e-Zine, January 4, 2004, Issue #69
                  http://www.ChroniclesOfChaos.com


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

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

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

Issue #69 Contents, 1/4/2004
----------------------------
* Chats
-- Mastodon: An Out of Body Experience
-- Alchemist: Continuous Evolution
-- Mnemic: Into the Great Wide Open
* Albums
-- Anata  - _Under a Stone With No Inscription_
-- Armagedda - _Only True Believers_
-- Belphegor - _Lucifer Incestus_
-- Diamanda Galas - _La Serpenta Canta_
-- Dimension Zero - _This Is Hell_
-- Dwelling - _Humana_
-- Emancer - _The Human eXperiment_
-- Feral Horde - _Progressive Downfall_
-- Fortid - _Voluspa Part I / Thor's Anger_
-- Graveland - _Blood of Heroes_
-- Imperial Empire - _The Second Coming_
-- Impiety - _Kaos Kommand 696_
-- Intorment Black - _The Fallen Shroud_
-- Kalmah - _Swampsong_
-- Meatjack - _Days of Fire_
-- Nargaroth - _Geliebte des Regens_
-- Nordisches Blut - _Our Banners Will Rise_
-- Pest - _Desecration_
-- Swallow the Sun - _The Morning Never Came_
-- Widow - _Midnight Strikes_
-- Wigrid - _Hoffnungstod_
* Demos
-- Artificium Sanguis - _Ye Olde Demo Taype_
-- Failure of Usual Reasoning - _Failure of Usual Reasoning_
-- HFM - _A Virtual Theory_
-- Lupara - _Advance Rough-Mix Demo_
-- Vornoff - _Forledt_
* Gigs
-- And Out Came the Goths: Paradise Lost and Deathstars
-- Redemption at the Palace: The London Xmas Fest

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

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

          A N   O U T   O F   B O D Y   E X P E R I E N C E
          ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
               CoC chats with Brann Dailor of Mastodon
                           by: Jackie Smit


I'm standing in a queue outside the Camden Underworld, basking in the 
anticipation of seeing a band in the flesh who has recently blown  me 
away in every conceivable sense of the  word  with  their  phenomenal 
_Remission_ debut. Now, there's one thing that you should know  about 
London (if you haven't been here before that is): people don't  speak 
to each other. Unless someone knows you or is begging you for  money, 
verbal exchanges are anathema, especially mid-queue at a metal  show. 
But on this particular rainy evening, the unthinkable takes place.  A 
stranger taps me on the shoulder: "Have you seen these  guys  play?", 
he asks. I am stunned. Quickly shaking off the disbelief, I reveal to 
my fellow punter that this will be my first encounter  with  the  New 
York quartet. He takes this as his  cue  and  waxes  lyrical  on  the 
band's greatness for several minutes.                                 

In hindsight, it should not have surprised me. When you're an extreme 
band of note and even the preppy, corporate salad tossers of MTV  are 
calling your band the future of metal, something is  most  definitely 
up. And believe me: Mastodon transcend the hype.  They  are  not  The 
Darkness. They are not Linkin Park. They are  not  a  passing  phase. 
Their music flows  from  their  instruments  like  a  tidal  wave  -- 
stripped free of any bullshit; honest, fresh, emotive and aggressive. 

But I digress, because I recently had Brann Dailor on the  phone  and 
he had a lot to say about the band, their upcoming  record,  and,  in 
his own words, the "out of body experience" that is their music. Read 
on.                                                                   

CoC: Okay, firstly Brann: what's happening in the Mastodon camp?

Brann Dailor: We're working on the new album right now, and we'll  be 
              going out on tour from January the 20th to February the 
              15th. Then we're heading to Seattle to record  the  new 
              record with Matt Bayles, and we'll be in the studio for 
              about a month.                                          

CoC: You used Matt for _Remission_ as well. What made you  decide  to 
     bring him aboard again?                                               

BD: I feel comfortable  working  with  him  and  I  feel  that  we've 
    established a relationship with him. I also feel that  if  we  go 
    with him and go to a place that's comfortable  for  him,  leaving 
    our daily lives behind and just concentrating 100% on the  record 
    -- not having jobs and other conflicting interests -- then we can 
    come up with a product that's even better  than  _Remission_.  We 
    know him and we know what direction to go in. We  can  say:  "The 
    last one sounded awesome, but here's a couple of things  we  want 
    to change." It's much better than starting with  someone  new,  I 
    think.                                                            

CoC: Let's discuss the new album for a moment. What direction has the 
     band taken with the new material?                                     

BD: I think the biggest difference is that the progressive  stuff  is 
    much crazier this time round. I also think that in spots, certain 
    songs are heavier. And when I say that,  you  know,  there's  two 
    kinds of heavy: the blatant Slayer-esque heavy  (which  is  great 
    and there's definitely some of that on the record), and the mind- 
    melting Neurosis and Melvins-style heavy that we  also  are  akin 
    to, and it's  also  there.  Maybe  a  bit  more  deep-rooted  and 
    cerebral. I'm really happy and I'm really starting  to  know  the 
    new material much better. You usually have a song  in  your  head 
    and it usually takes us a good three weeks to a month to get  the 
    song to the point where we're really happy  and  really  positive 
    about where it's at.                                              

CoC: Do you constantly change the songs as you go along,  or  do  you 
     take it to a point and consider it to be complete?                    

BD: I guess it depends on many things. I think that you really get to 
    work on a song when you're on tour, where you get to play it over 
    and over and try new things with it every night. And I think that 
    it's going to be a really cool experiment  with  the  album  this 
    time round, because with _Remission_ we didn't really tour any of 
    the songs before we started recording. I mean,  we  played  them, 
    but  we  didn't  actually  do  a  full  tour  before  we  started 
    recording. I spoke to Scott Kelly  and  he  told  me  that's  how 
    Neurosis did their _Through  Silver  in  Blood_  record  --  they 
    toured for like a month, month and a half  on  the  material  and 
    then went and recorded it. That's what we're going  to  be  doing 
    with this album,  and  I  think  that  a  month  and  a  half  of 
    constantly playing those songs every  night  and  then  going  to 
    record is going to sound awesome.                                 

CoC: So would you say that the Neurosis album was the main reason you 
     decided to do it this way?                                            

BD: No, but it did put the final nail in the coffin about that  idea. 
    I mean, they told us about it, we thought that  it  was  a  great 
    idea, and then Clutch happened to offer us a spot on  their  tour 
    -- and it's  just  perfect  timing,  because  we'll  be  able  to 
    rehearse the songs every single night for that month.  And  then, 
    up from the East Coast  to  Seattle,  we'll  be  having  our  own 
    headlining tour where we'll play the whole album  from  start  to 
    finish, maybe add a couple of old songs, and just hit the  studio 
    directly afterward.                                               

CoC: Considering how sonically dense Mastodon's music  is,  have  you 
     ever considered incorporating synths into  your  stuff  the  way 
     that Neurosis or Strapping Young Lad have?                       

BD: We have considered it, but I think that it will  take  the  right 
    person. I mean, we've been in this band  for  four  years,  which 
    isn't that long, but we've been through a lot as a band and it'll 
    be difficult to accept a new person into  our  'club'.  I  really 
    think that it would have to be  an  old  friend,  simply  because 
    we're such good friends -- or it would have to be a truly kindred 
    spirit type relationship. We'd automatically have  to  have  that 
    click that the four of us had when we first met. We were into the 
    same stuff, the same ideas, and we were just ready to go. And  we 
    played basements and played for  sandwiches  and  played  to  the 
    doorguy who walks away -- we had all  the  disappointing  moments 
    that a band is supposed to have. We went  through  that  together 
    and it would be hard to let someone into the band who didn't have 
    to experience that. I mean, it's similar to Metallica when  Jason 
    Newsted joined the band -- we're  certainly  not  near  to  where 
    Metallica was at that point, but when they had  to  accept  Jason 
    into the band they held a lot of  animosity  toward  him,  simply 
    because he hadn't been there for all the shit that they had to go 
    through in the beginning.                                         

CoC: So, speaking of Metallica -- I'm sure that you know the quote on 
     MTV.com where Mastodon was referred to as the second  coming  of 
     Rush and Metallica, and this is the tip of the iceberg as far as 
     hype surrounding your band is concerned. How does that impact on 
     your and the band's collective psyche?                           

BD: Well, I think that when you see stuff like that,  it  just  makes 
    you go "wow". It's pretty tremendous, but  I'm  scared  shitless. 
    You know what you can do and I've been doing this  for  my  whole 
    life, but when something is hyped up like  this,  I'm  the  first 
    person to say: "Oh well, bla, bla, bla." I guess  it's  like  The 
    Darkness for instance -- everywhere you go you're  hearing  stuff 
    about them and you almost don't want to like them because  you're 
    hearing about them all the time. I don't want to be one of  those 
    bands.                                                            

CoC: To be fair,  you're  in  a  slightly  different  league  to  The 
     Darkness. I mean, let's  be  honest  --  The  Darkness  are  the 
     musical equivalent of used toilet-paper.                         

BD: <laughs> Yeah, that's true.  But  anyway,  getting  back  to  the 
    question -- it makes me nervous, but it also makes the band  work 
    harder to create something solid. And it forces  us  not  to  use 
    _Remission_ as a benchmark; to just forget that we wrote an album 
    in the first place, and just work on something new and  play  our 
    music and make sure that we're happy. Apart  from  that,  there's 
    nothing we can do and I can't control what people  are  going  to 
    like or what people are going to write.                           

CoC: So, what does the song writing process work like in Mastodon?

BD: It happens in the rehearsal room, and I think when we got off the 
    road the last time we were a bit nervous, because it felt like we 
    only had a couple of months to knock something out. But  when  we 
    got together, things just started happening and  everything  just 
    came together and we ended up having a  lot  more  ideas  than  I 
    thought.                                                          

CoC: Most of the Mastodon crew  are  involved  or  were  involved  in 
     side-projects at one point. Care to discuss some of them?             

BD: Well, Brian is currently doing something called West  End  Motel, 
    which is an acoustic thing with his friend Tom that sings, and  I 
    guess it's sort of bluesy sort  of  stuff.  Delroy  doesn't  have 
    anything and Troy has a band called Social Infestation, which  is 
    a grindcore band. I sometimes do an Elvis  Costello  cover  band. 
    But I don't really have time for anything else and nobody has any 
    time for anything but Mastodon. We're just trying to put together 
    an album that's hopefully going to change our lives.              

CoC: Considering the thematic material that you  deal  with  in  your 
     lyrics, have you considered a concept album as a future project?      

BD: Absolutely. I mean, once we have more time to write  and  we  can 
    get up to a level where we can tour more  comfortably  and  write 
    more comfortably, that's something that we'll  definitely  strive 
    for. Hopefully we'll be able to put out some crazy double  album, 
    and have a movie to go along with it -- I'd love to do  something 
    like that!

CoC: So if you could score any movie of your choice, what movie would 
     it be?

BD: "The Elephant Man".

CoC: When can we expect the new album to hit?

BD: Summer.

CoC: Title?

BD: _Leviathan_.

CoC: Thanks for your time, Brann. Anything else to add?

BD: Well, we'll hopefully be doing some stuff for the album in Europe 
    and the UK shortly. We want to try and have a  pre-release  party 
    for the record there as well, because  everyone  there  has  been 
    very nice us. And basically just thanks to all the Chronicles  of 
    Chaos readers for their support, and we'll see  you  out  on  the 
    road soon.                                                        

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

               C O N T I N U O U S   E V O L U T I O N
               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
              CoC chats with Adam Agius from Alchemist
                           by: Jackie Smit


In 1987 an Australian high school student by the name of  Adam  Agius 
decided to emulate his heroes in Slayer,  Metallica  and  Voivod  and 
form his own project. Dubbed Alchemist, the young band  very  quickly 
grew weary of their thrash  trappings  and  began  to  search  for  a 
greater sense of individuality and experimentation. Sixteen years and 
six albums later, the Antipodean  outfit  has  traveled  a  long  and 
difficult evolutionary  path  to  ultimately  bring  us  one  of  the 
surprise masterworks of 2003 in the shape of  their  Relapse  Records 
debut, _Austral Alien_  --  a  unique  musical  odyssey  of  multiple 
psychedelic, futuristic and brutal textures. Rather than sit on their 
laurels and bask in the praises  that  the  international  press  are 
currently lavishing over them, however, Alchemist continue to look to 
the future -- one which would hopefully involve  a  world  tour  very 
shortly. I recently had the pleasure of  conducting  a  brief  e-mail 
interview with Adam. Here's what transpired:                          

CoC: Why have we not seen Alchemist touring abroad any time recently? 
     Are there any plans to do so in the near future?

Adam Agius: Yes, we are very frustrated with not  being  able  to  go 
            overseas,  and  right  now  both  Alchemist  and  Relapse 
            Records are working on a solution. Unfortunately, the act 
            is that we have no agent and we don't know of anyone that 
            will book shows for us. We  are  definitely  looking  for 
            someone to get us on tours and book  shows,  but  so  far 
            we've had no luck despite the  excellent  press  we  have 
            received for _Austral Alien_ abroad. There  is  also  the 
            question of money, as it is very expensive, but obviously 
            we can make it happen if the opportunity arrives, and  we 
            are hoping it will soon.                                  

CoC: Alchemist initially started out as a thrash band and  then  went 
     through various changes until you  got  to  the  point  you  are 
     now. What influenced the change and  the  sound  of  present-day 
     Alchemist? Do you see the change continuing, or do you feel that 
     _Austral Alien_ is the definitive Alchemist record?              

AA: We have heaps of influences, but what I really think  shapes  our 
    sound is purely our desire to sound like Alchemist. I think  that 
    _Austral Alien_ is certainly the start of  a  new  evolution  for 
    Alchemist, and I think you will always be able to tell  that  you 
    are listening to us, because the basic  vibe  of  the  band  will 
    always be there. But at the same time, we will continue  to  make 
    each record special and not a rehash of the last.                 

CoC: What themes do you deal with on  _Austral  Alien_?  What's  your 
     favourite song on the record and why?                                 

AA: We deal with a  lot  of  things  in  _Austral  Alien_,  like  our 
    country's political situation, the suicide of loved ones. There's 
    songs that deal with the grim picture that seems  to  be  painted 
    for future generations, alien abduction. We also talk  about  our 
    frustration with being stuck down under and away  from  the  rest 
    of the music  scene,  and  some  environmental  issues  as  well. 
    Everything is all tied to a loose theme of life in Alchemist  and 
    in Australia. As for favourite song on  the  record,  that  would 
    have to be "Alpha Cappella Nova Vega". I  think  it's  got  great 
    spacey guitars and a sweet vocal melody, and  everything  in  the 
    song just builds very smoothly to  a  heavy  ending.  I  love  it 
    because it has a lot of Alchemist's signature guitar parts,  like 
    slide solos and  awesome  clean  sounds,  and  I  think  that  it 
    captures the atmosphere of the record perfectly.                  

CoC: In recollect, would you do anything different if you  could  re- 
     record _Austral Alien_?                                               

AA: No, a record is exactly what it says: it's a record of people  in 
    various places and at various times. As long as the production is 
    good it's all cool. If I absolutely had  to  change  anything  it 
    would be to have some of the electronics louder.                  

CoC: What would you regard as the primary challenges faced by a metal 
     band in Australia as far as getting international recognition?        

AA: The simple reason is that we are so far away. There are  lots  of 
    great bands in Australia, but we are so far away  only  a  select 
    few break the overseas market. There's also the  fact  that  many 
    Aussie bands try to compete in  an  overseas  market  by  copying 
    overseas styles, and with Alchemist that's not going to work.  We 
    always just strived to be ourselves and be an original band.      

CoC: So, what's the current scene like in  Australia?  Any  bands  to 
     recommend?                                                            

AA: The scene here is like any other country. We have some good bands 
    and we have some crap ones. I would recommend Blood  Duster,  Pod 
    People, Log, Deströyer 666, and Cog.                              

CoC: How has the domestic support been for the band, as far as  radio 
     play or playing the "First Contact" video is concerned?               

AA: Airplay on TV for both our "First Contact" and "Solarburn"  clips 
    was great. They were aired  regularly  for  about  twelve  weeks. 
    We're currently working on a new one  for  "Alpha  Cappella  Nova 
    Vega", and we also just finished one for "Speed of Life", so that 
    will hopefully bring us to the attention of some more  people.  A 
    national radio station called JJJ gave  Alchemist  high  rotation 
    for eight weeks with "Solarburn" and  "Alpha...",  so  everything 
    has gone great as far as that is concerned.                       

CoC: Have you begun work on a new  album  yet?  What  can  we  expect 
     Alchemist future material to sound like? When can we expect  new 
     Alchemist output to materialize?                                 

AA: No, we have only just started talking about what we will  do.  We 
    are still hoping to tour overseas in  the  next  six  months,  so 
    we've decided to extend our Aussie touring by a few  months  into 
    2004 just to keep the live feel fresh. When we approach an  album 
    we usually don't play many gigs, but just concentrate  purely  on 
    writing music. I would say 2005 for the next Alchemist album, but 
    who knows?                                                        

CoC: Is Alchemist something you  see  as  possibly  turning  into   a
     career What are your plans for the band? 

AA: Oh, for sure. We also run  Australia's  biggest  metal  festival, 
    which is called Metal for the Brain, and that keeps us very busy. 
    People can go to www.metalforthebrain.com and have  a  look,  and 
    you can also visit our official website at www.alchemist.com.au.  

CoC: Any last words?

AA: Thanks for the interview, and if anyone out there can please  ask 
    any promoters you know in the UK area (or anywhere else for  that 
    matter) to book Alchemist, so we can play overseas... PLEASE!     

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

           I N T O   T H E   G R E A T   W I D E   O P E N
           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
             CoC chats with Michael and Mircea of Mnemic
                           by: Jackie Smit


It's a shade  after  19:00  in  London's  World's  End  Pub.  As  per 
usual, the establishment is virtually  packed  to  the  rafters  with 
white-collar trendites indulging  in  their  ritualistic  sundowners, 
joined this evening by a select group of music fans who  have  chosen 
to sit down and enjoy a pint while they wait for Death Angel to  take 
to the stage in a next door club.  Amidst  this  hustle  and  bustle, 
strut the members of one of tonight's much talked-about support acts: 
the Danish techno- thrash collective known as Mnemic. One  listen  to 
their recent _Mechanical Spin Phenomena_ record should  already  have 
made it clear enough, but for  those  yet  to  hear  them,  here's  a 
personal prediction: these guys are going to be BIG. They  exude  the 
same sense of impending acclaim that Pantera did after _Cowboys  From 
Hell_ or Fear Factory upon the release of _Soul of  a  New  Machine_. 
Not that they'd believe you for a moment if you told them, mind  you. 
In fact, while most band members (or indeed average  members  of  the 
human race) would greet a music journo with a hearty  "fuck  off"  if 
said scribe were to  interrupt  their  dinner,  Michael  and  Mircea, 
vocalist and guitarist with Mnemic respectively, appear  to  have  no 
qualms in answering my questions as  they  tuck  into  a  well-earned 
meal.                                                                 

CoC: Your website doesn't provide much by way of tell us  how  Mnemic 
     got started -- care to shed a little light on the subject?            

Mircea: The band basically started out with Brylle [drummer] and Rune 
        [guitarist] just jamming on a lot of stuff, and then  myself, 
        the bassist [Obeast] and our first singer came in during 2000 
        with the idea to just do something completely  different  and 
        completely original. We wanted to combine  genres  like  jazz 
        and techno, while still keeping  the  metal  element  strong. 
        Then we decided to get rid of our first singer and I  got  in 
        touch with Michael, and we did a  demo  at  Antfarm  Studios, 
        which got us signed to Nuclear Blast.                         

CoC: So, you sent your demo to Nuclear Blast?

Mircea: No, actually there's a guy in LA who works for Nuclear  Blast 
        and about a week after we had done the demo, we  posted  some 
        MP3s on our website and he got in touch with us and said that 
        he wanted to offer us a deal. In the meantime we had received 
        several other offers, but theirs was the best, so we went for 
        it.                                                           

CoC: You are a fairly unique band on the Nuclear Blast roster  --  do 
     you think that they're the best label to represent your kind  of 
     music?                                                           

Michael: It's hard to say, because we don't have much to  compare  it 
         with, but at the same time they've done a fucking  excellent 
         job. They're a European label, but even though  we  sound  a 
         bit American, they have done a great job with the  promotion 
         for _Mechanical Spin Phenomena_.                             

Mircea: Sounding American was  never  something  we  set  out  to  be 
        though, but our market is more centred in the US.                     

CoC: And have you managed to tour there yet?

Michael: Unfortunately not, but hopefully we'll  be  doing  something 
         there in the spring.                                                  

CoC: On the subject of promotion, Nuclear Blast is  giving  Mnemic  a 
     very big push -- you've done two music videos for  "Liquid"  and 
     "Ghost" already. Which of the two clips is your favourite?       

Michael: Well, that's really hard to say, because we haven't seen the 
         final cut for "Liquid" yet. It's done, but  we  haven't  had 
         the chance to see the finished product yet, and most  of  it 
         was done on a blue- screen anyway.                           

CoC: So, what's going to be the concept behind "Liquid"?

Mircea: We can't say yet.

Michael: It'll have a really nice car in it though.

Mircea: Yeah, there's a really great car chase sequence.

CoC: What about adding some ladies?

Michael: Well, I begged the band to add some ladies,  some  lightning 
         and maybe some more nice cars, but the other  guys  wouldn't 
         go for it, unfortunately. <laughs>                           

CoC: So, what's the feedback been like for the "Ghost" video so far?

Mircea: We get a lot of e-mails  from  the  US,  because  "Ghost"  is 
        played on Headbangers Ball, and unfortunately at  the  moment 
        that's only showing in the States. But a lot of  people  like 
        it and we've been getting a very good response for the  video 
        so far. I don't know if it has had any effect  on  our  sales 
        figures, but people are definitely into it.                   

CoC: And are sales figures something that concern you at all?

Mircea: No, but it is exciting to see how your album is doing.

Michael: To us, it's like if you sell well, then you can have a clear 
         conscience toward the label and toward yourself. I mean,  if 
         you're selling a hundred copies of your CD, then you  should 
         be  wondering  whether  you  even  deserve  to  be  in  this 
         position. So yeah, it's not our  main  concern,  but  it  is 
         something that we do take interest in.                       

Mircea: All bands want to sell well, because I mean, we want to  make 
        a living out of this. But at the same time,  we  want  to  do 
        well, but doing what we're doing right now. We're  not  going 
        to change.                                                    

CoC: Now, getting back to your experiences making videos -- have  you 
     enjoyed making them?                                                  

Michael: Well, for "Ghost", we did all the takes in this  really  hot 
         room...                                                               

CoC: How many takes did you do?

Mircea: A million!

Michael: I'm not sure, but it lasted about eighteen hours straight.

Mircea: Imagine headbanging for eighteen hours...

Michael: Yeah, it's like  playing  a  fucking  concert  for  eighteen 
         hours, and that was really shit. With "Liquid" it was a  bit 
         different -- we just did a lot of single shots and basically 
         sat around watching DVDs and playing video games in  between 
         takes.                                                       

CoC: You worked with Patric Ulleaus for both videos, right?

Michael: Yeah, and he's fucking brilliant! I mean,  he  really  knows 
         his craft; he knows what he's doing. He is into  metal,  but 
         he realizes that metal's not where the money  is,  which  is 
         why he has made videos for people like Ace of Base. But he's 
         doing a lot more metal  at  the  moment  --  he  did  Within 
         Temptation and the new Dimmu Borgir clip. He is definitely a 
         cool guy and we love working with him.                       

CoC: And as far as the creative control on the videos were concerned, 
     did you leave that over to him, or did you outline the  concepts 
     yourselves?                                                      

Mircea: Well, we actually had to leave it to him because we  were  on 
        such a tight schedule at the time. But it's very hard to  say 
        whether we'd like to be more involved in  that  side  of  the 
        band in the future. We'd like to be part  of  every  creative 
        aspect of the band, but we were happy  leaving  the  concepts 
        for "Ghost" and "Liquid" up to him. He  is  a  very  creative 
        person, and he did a fantastic job.                           

Michael: We did give him a couple of ideas, and he used some of them, 
         so it's not like we were out of the loop completely.                  

CoC: Would either of you consider directing a Mnemic  video  yourself 
     in the future?                                                        

Mircea: I don't think we have the expertise to do that, to be honest.

Michael: You need a lot of money to do that though, because obviously 
         if you're going to do something like that then you're  going 
         ito want t to look good.                                     

Mircea: That's a typical problem in this band  --  we  have  so  many 
        ideas, but we don't have the budget to do it. I mean,  before 
        we had a record deal, we were  considering  doing  a  concept 
        album, but as we were working on it, it ended up being cheesy 
        because we didn't have the budget for it.                     

CoC: So, as your profile increases and  your  budget  does  likewise, 
     where would you 'invest' in the band?                                 

Michael: I think that firstly we'll get all our gear up  to  scratch, 
         because being in a band has turned out to  be  an  expensive 
         hobby. I mean, gear breaks down and it costs a  fucking  lot 
         to replace. After that, I don't really know.                 

CoC: After that, it's cars and women.

Michael: <laughs> Yeah, after that it's booze, strip  clubs  and  big 
         cars!                                                                 

CoC: Now, as far as  your  live  shows  are  concerned,  do  you  see 
     yourself moving into a more production-based show the way  bands 
     like Rammstein do, or are you pretty  much  a  meat-and-potatoes 
     band?                                                            

Michael: Definitely.

Mircea: We had those ideas before, but again -- no budget.  But  when 
        we have the money, we will definitely be doing that.                  

Michael: We actually have a list of what we want to do, so  hopefully 
         one day...                                                            

CoC: Being a relatively young band, these are very exciting times for 
     you, I'm sure. Do you feel that the big push you  have  received 
     from Nuclear Blast has put more pressure on you to perform?      

Michael: Well, more than anything we're our own  biggest  critics,  I 
         think. We get really fucked off and really moody when  we've 
         played a bad show. I mean, we really want to get better  and 
         better,  and  right  now  we  feel  that  we're  in  a  very 
         developmental time and we need to be  pushing  the  envelope 
         all the time.                                                

CoC: You mentioned on the website that you've been  working  on  some 
     new material. Care to give us any indication on  what  direction 
     you're taking?                                                   

Mircea: It's much more dynamic...

Michael: Slightly faster.

Mircea: Yeah, I can't really say much about it at the moment, because 
        it's always changing. We're always working on it and when  we 
        iget nto the studio, we'll probably change it again.          

CoC: So, how does the songwriting process work in Mnemic?

Mircea: It all happens in the rehearsal room.

Michael: We're very old school like that.

Mircea: The drummer takes over and then I take over --  sometimes  we 
        end up jamming on the same riff for like four hours, until we 
        look at each other and say: "Yeah, this is working."          

Michael: And then I go: "Please fucking stop playing." <laughs>

Mircea: We're always working on  a  really  tight  schedule  and  for 
        instance when we finish this tour, we have to go and write  a 
        lot more and start preparing for the next album.              

CoC: Can we expect to see it on the shelves by next year?

Mircea: Definitely. Probably after summer sometime.

CoC: So, finally -- a lot of reviewers and a lot of  your  detractors 
     label you as nu metal, when obviously if one  gives  _Mechanical 
     Spin Phenomena_ a proper listen, that's  not  the  case.  What's 
     your reaction to this?                                           

Mircea: Well, it sucks, because  basically  we  see  ourselves  as  a 
        thrash band that just enjoys  incorporating  influences  from 
        many  other  genres  of  music.  We're  fans  of  bands  like 
        Frontline Assembly as well as  stuff  like  Suffocation,  and 
        when we make music we use a lot of this, but we also want  to 
        go out on our own. I guess it's hard for  people  who  always 
        want to label things to accept that.                          

CoC: Thank you very much, gentlemen. Any last words for Chronicles of 
     Chaos?                                                                

Michael: Not much, man -- we're just thankful to all the  people  who 
         have bought the album  so  far.  We're  looking  forward  to 
         playing a lot more and to hopefully  introduce  a  lot  more 
         people to our music.                                         

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

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

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!


Anata  - _Under a Stone With No Inscription_
by: Jackie Smit  (8 out of 10)  (Earache / Wicked World, 2003)

For a genre accused of stagnation at the frequency that  death  metal 
is, it's almost  amusing  to  see  these  belligerent  epithets  fall 
flat in the face  of  recent  innovative  efforts  by  the  likes  of 
luminary acts  such  as  Zyklon  and  Akercocke.  Anata,  the  latest 
signings to Earache's ever-expanding Wicked  World  imprint,  are  an 
equally adventurous lot, owing as much to jazz fusion  and  noisecore 
dissonance as they  to  the  detuned  barbarism  of  Decapitated  and 
Suffocation. Consequently _Under a Stone With No  Inscription_  turns 
out to be an invigorating, exciting listen --  technically  masterful 
and as brutal as a pitbull on acid. "Entropy Within"  introduces  the 
listener  to  some  of  the  most  effective  and  dizzying  fretwork 
witnessed for some time,  while  "Leaving  the  Spirit  Behind"  puts 
guitar wizardry to one side and goes about the  business  of  melting 
eardrums in a style not unlike recent Krisiun output. The downside is 
that the production, while crystal clear, does not  always  pack  the 
punch that it should. There are also times  when  Anata  seem  to  be 
overreaching in their quest  for  fresh  ideas.  For  the  most  part 
however, _Under a Stone With No Inscription_ is a daring and engaging 
release by a band who we'll no doubt be hearing a plenty  of  in  the 
future.                                                               


Armagedda - _Only True Believers_  (Agonia Records, 2003)
by: Matthias Noll  (8 out of 10)

Armagedda's debut _The Final War Approaching_ made a minor splash  in 
the black metal scene, but I never really got  what  was  so  special 
about them. In my opinion the  record  was  enjoyable  but  generally 
bland and  uninspired,  and  Armagedda  seemed  to  be  just  another 
Darkthrone inspired Johnny-come-lately with no identity or  qualities 
to lift them above the mass of similar  bands.  Things  have  changed 
massively with _Only True Believers_, however. All of  a  sudden  the 
band has found their own  distinguishable  style,  combining  massive 
doses of old-school with a sometimes driving  and  grooving  approach 
not too far away from what Carpathian Forest did  on  _Black  Shining 
Leather_ while staying perfectly clear of any black  'n'  roll  tags. 
_OTB_ features hateful, powerful vocals,  dynamic  drumming,  a  very 
strong but raw production, and cool riffs -- a couple  of  which  are 
somewhat unusual in the  true  black  metal  context,  downtuned  and 
almost early '90s death metal style. Without ever coming across  like 
a clone, this mixture sounds like the material Darkthrone should have 
written  instead  of  _Ravishing  Grimness_  and  subsequent  albums. 
Finnish bands like Clandestine Blaze or  Warloghe  succeed  in  their 
unholy crusade to refine and focus  the  ideals  behind  masterpieces 
like _Transylvanian Hunger_. They develop black metal in a retrograde 
direction by carving out the essence of this style as sharp and clear 
as possible. Swedish bands like Craft and Armagedda seem to be  among 
the  very  few  bands  that  can  pull  off  a  forward  looking  yet 
conservative, slightly modernized  version  of  black  metal  without 
throwing the ideals and grimness overboard. A direction acts like the 
misguided Satyricon or burnt-out Darkthrone  should  have  taken  but 
either don't want to or can't.                                        


Belphegor - _Lucifer Incestus_  (Napalm Records, 2003)
by: Matthias Noll  (8 out of 10)

_Lucifer Incestus_ finds Austria's Belphegor moving  into  much  more 
Swedish sounding territory than ever before. This album is  a  blast- 
fest almost all the way through, with a multitude of  guitar  layers, 
way more textures than ever before, occasional keyboards accentuating 
some of the very few slower  sections,  and  vocals  which  alternate 
between death metal bellowing  and  a  black  metallish  rasp.  While 
Belphegor are certainly among  the  few  bands  that  can  pull  this 
hybrid style off with outstanding skill, breathtaking speed  and  the 
brutality level permanently at 11, I miss some of the raw  old-school 
death metal vibe of _Necrodaemon Terrorsathan_. I  also  bemoan  that 
the Austrians, who were always beyond fast in the first  place,  have 
sacrificed a part of their identity to the gods of hyperblast  to  be 
able to accelerate even further.  The  problem  with  this  breakneck 
speed approach is that the faster you go the more difficult  it  gets 
to write really  memorable  riffs  instead  of  just  successions  of 
semi-melodic bursts. At this extremity  level  it  seems  unavoidable 
that _Lucifer Incestus_ will be one of those albums that lose some of 
their momentum after the first three tracks and start to appear a bit 
samey during the second half. As always you find me  complaining  way 
too much however, and I have to avoid a tendency to make this  review 
sound as if _Lucifer Incestus_ is a bad album.  Quite  the  contrary: 
this material blows away the last two Marduk albums and the laughable 
posers from Dark Funeral with ease,  crushes  newer  bands  like  The 
Legion without effort and sounds much better and heavier to  my  ears 
than what I've heard from  almost  every  other  blasting  blackdeath 
outfit this year. In addition to this, the production is  outstanding 
and once again doesn't sound clinical  or  compressed,  and  "Diaboli 
Virtus in Lubar Est" is the  best  song  Belphegor  have  written  so 
far. So, despite my complaints, which  are  probably  the  result  of 
unrealistic expectations, there are plenty of  reasons  why  _Lucifer 
Incestus_ should have a slot very close to the top  of  the  list  of 
records you must purchase in 2003.                                    


Diamanda Galas - _La Serpenta Canta_  (Mute, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose  (10 out of 10)

Those of you who know Diamanda Galas will probably know that  she  is 
one of the most extreme musicians of  our  timeaaron.  If  you  think 
Deicide, Broken Hope and Burzum are evil and extreme, do  yourself  a 
favour and pick up a copy of Galas' _Litanies of Satan_. She has been 
adorned by artists ranging from  Marilyn  Manson  to  Nick  Cave  and 
continues  to  influence  many  songwriters.  Her  voice  is  unique; 
alternating dark low growls with ear-piercing shrieks, yet with  such 
splendor and expertise, her voice is her  main  instrument  with  the 
piano only providing the background to her twisted and insane  tales. 
_La Serpenta Canta_, Diamanda Galas'  thirteenth  album,  is  a  live 
recording of one of her finest tours. On this  double  album,  you'll 
find renditions of Ornette Coleman's "Lonely  Woman",  Hank  Williams 
"I'm So Lonely I Could Cry", Screaming Jay Hawkins's "I Put  a  Spell 
on You", John Lee  Hooker's  "Burning  Hell"  and  many,  many  more. 
Never have such famous songs  sounded  so  barren,  so  desolate,  so 
emotion-laden; _La Serpenta Canta_ is highly addictive.  Once  you've 
been mesmerized by Diamanda's vocals, it's impossible to let  go  and 
step out. If you're a fan of Diamanda Galas, there's no question  you 
should be buying _La Serpenta Canta_ rightaway. For those of you  who 
are still unaware of what good music is really about, give this album 
a try. You might find yourself just as hooked as I am.                

Contact: http://www.diamandagalas.com


Dimension Zero - _This Is Hell_  (Regain Records, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)

With Dimension Zero's first full-length scorcher _Silent Night Fever_ 
still ringing in my ears from the countless times I've spun  it,  the 
prospect of a new album that might retain the sheer metallic  energy, 
driving riffs and pummeling rhythms of  its  predecessor  was  simply 
mouth-watering.  And  this  is  it:  _This  Is  Hell_.  Unfortunately 
however, while _Silent Night Fever_ got about  as  close  to  Swedish 
melodic death metal perfection as anyone has come since At the Gates' 
_Slaughter of the Soul_, this new effort is  a  bit  lacking  in  the 
inspiration department. This is essentially more of the  same  (which 
in this case is not a bad thing), with perhaps a little more  mid-era 
In Flames thrown in here and there. The energy hasn't gone  stale  in 
the least, and you can still find  some  great  cuts,  but  alas  the 
incredible memorability and repeatability of _Silent Night Fever_ has 
not been matched this time. On its own, _This Is Hell_ would probably 
have earned an even higher rating, but compared to its predecessor it 
has to be called a bit of a disappointment. _Silent Night Fever_ is a 
fundamental album, while _This Is Hell_ is just part two: it provides 
lots of fun, abundant energy, good riffs and cool  melodies,  but  it 
will stay in the shadow of its predecessor.                           

Contact: http://www.dimensionzero.org


Dwelling - _Humana_  (Equilibrium Music, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8.5 out of 10)

Lush acoustic strings and a silky, full-bodied female voice: this  is 
the starting point for a voyage into neoclassical music  courtesy  of 
Portugal's Dwelling. The ensemble is influenced by  Portuguese  Fado, 
something that remains in the background but still lends the music  a 
more unique character. Those of  you  already  familiar  with  vastly 
successful Portuguese exports Madredeus may find  some  similarities, 
though Dwelling tend to have more melancholy  in  their  music,  less 
folk influences and more of a neoclassical feeling. The engaging  but 
often  melancholic  melodies,  carried  through  by  the  crystalline 
vocals and the highly accomplished acoustic violin, guitar  and  bass 
arrangements, are a true pleasure  to  listen  to;  furthermore,  the 
pleasantly sombre shade that surrounds most of  the  music  adds  yet 
another layer of interest. No effort seems to be made to  sound  dark 
or depressive, which the music really  isn't;  but  there  remains  a 
sense of tranquil elegance and subdued melancholy  throughout.  While 
the album's main strengths lie in the  pleasantness  of  the  overall 
sound and some brilliant violin passages,  its  main  weakness  stems 
from a certain lack of variation. Apart from the  last  track  (which 
features a rather out of place upbeat section but  also  one  of  the 
best violin lines  in  the  entire  album),  each  song  follows  the 
other very pleasantly, but  with  little  novelty.  The  listener  is 
kept interested  by  each  successive  melody  and  arrangement,  but 
may eventually wish  to  hear  more  elements  in  the  music  rather 
than variations  on  the  same  theme.  Having  said  this,  _Humana_ 
is simultaneously soothing  and  musically  interesting  despite  its 
relative sameness, and  should  provide  some  excellent  late  night 
music.                                                                

Contact: http://www.equilibriummusic.com


Emancer - _The Human eXperiment_  (Black Owl Records, 2002)
by: Aaron McKay  (7.5 out of 10)

The date on this release is a bit out of sync with  my  objective  to 
keep ahead of the material that flows in monthly, but  this  one  was 
different. In all fairness, I haven't had this effort from Black Owl, 
a newer metal label out of Edison, New Jersey, for long.  This  debut 
was offered for public consumption a year ago this month  (December). 
Upon listening to the material found within _The Human eXperiment_, I 
uncovered a pure orgy of Norwegian brutality. Not altogether  without 
an experimental edge,  Mithrin  and  Gorbag,  collectively  known  as 
Emancer, evolve a wicked style of brash death,  intense  black  metal 
and a sculptured understanding of mood. Riffs  are  not  uncommon  on 
this debut. "Prison Tellus", "The Greatest of Pains" and  "Dead  End" 
supply a flurry of catchy guitar chops  that  amazingly  enhance  the 
power of Emancer's sound. These guys could bolster their  footing  as 
they forge ahead by developing their musical  strategy  to  encourage 
more of an expansion into the rifer atmosphere  they  touch  upon  in 
this introductory effort. Absent of blame on any front, it took me  a 
year to explore Emancer's genuinely driven style; don't let  that  be 
the case with you.                                                    

Contact: http://www.emanceronline.com


Feral Horde - _Progressive Downfall_  (Independent, 2003)
by: Alvin Wee  (6.5 out of 10)

This Toronto-based horde has apparently been getting  some  attention 
locally, and for good reason too. _Progressive Downfall_ is a step up 
from the patchiness  of  their  previous  demo,  with  an  infectious 
blackened spirit permeating all nine of the black metal blizzards  on 
disc. The first song impresses right away with the dark brilliance of 
its melody and unrelenting pace recalling the early Swedish scene, or 
perhaps some of the newer underground European acts. The band  flaunt 
their prowess with a full black metal instrumental track --  not  one 
of those insipid acoustic  interludes  --  but  not  too  far  along, 
tell-tale signs of weak arrangement and a general lack  of  tightness 
begin to creep into the recording.  I'd  put  it  down  to  a  simple 
lack of recording budget and time,  but  the  recurrence  of  awkward 
transitions in later tracks like "Vagabond" and "Tool  of  Damnation" 
hint at the band's inexperience  in  song-writing  and  studio  work. 
Nevertheless, the sheer passion and energy of the music shine through 
clearly throughout the album, and  the  chainsaw  riffing  assumes  a 
certain authority when coupled with  the  vocalist's  manic  howling. 
Most of the tunes are downright hummable, and  this  ease  of  melody 
throughout the forty-plus minutes of music make this one helluva ride 
for any maniac missing the early days of Thy Primordial and the like. 
With that said, there's still plenty of room for improvement,  and  a 
good portion of the material on  each  track  would  end  up  on  the 
cutting-room floor of a more experienced band.  Nevertheless  it's  a 
worthwhile listen; such budding talent is hard to ignore.             

Contact: http://www.geocities.com/feralhorde/


Fortid - _Voluspa Part I / Thor's Anger_  (No Colours Records, 2003)
by: Aaron McKay  (3 out of 10)

This is a solo effort by Eldur from Potentiam fame. Structured to  be 
the first in a three-part chronicle, _Voluspa Part I / Thor's  Anger_ 
is bent on developing a soundtrack to the very essence  of  stripped- 
down Viking conquests. Fervently underground, Eldur uses Fortid as  a 
vehicle to rub whatever shine might glissen off  the  face  of  black 
metal today. What is unfortunate is other than track five, "Birth  of 
Men", most of the nearly forty-five minutes on this offering fail  to 
garner any of the wild imagery of self-indulgent cruelty so  wickedly 
sought after on this effort.  "Birth  of  Men"  develops  a  kind  of 
Summoning feel  which  explains  my  gravitation  to  that  cut  from 
_Voluspa..._. Vocals,  especially  on  "Thor's  Anger",  represent  a 
strong  connection  to  Grimm  on  Ancient's  _Trolltaar_  disc  and, 
ultimately, takes  my  number  two  choice  on  the  "best  of"  from 
_Voluspa..._. No Colours has some intrepid bands on  its  roster.  If 
you're unfamiliar with No Colours, start with  some  of  their  other 
acts before confronting this effort by Fortid. It is  the  definition 
of "acquired taste".                                                  

Contact: http://www.no-colours-records.de


Graveland - _Blood of Heroes_  (Vinland Winds, 2002)
by: James Montague  (7 out of 10)

"Free Hendrik Möbus! He served his sentence for murder, but  now  his 
right to free speech makes him an international criminal."            

Ah, good old retarded Nazi logic. It just melts my heart  to  see  my 
old buddy Darken signing up with the most superior people of  Vinland 
Winds, who released the _Blood of Heroes_ 7" EP in 1488 copies  as  a 
sign of reverence to He Who Shall Not Be  Named,  then  insulted  the 
memory of the mustachioed tyrant by exalting man's right  to...  free 
speech?                                                               

As long as you don't mind buying from idiot labels, and  as  long  as 
you already have  all  the  Graveland  full-lengths,  then  there  is 
something to be gained from this pair of new songs, released  hot  on 
the heels of 2002's _Memory and Destiny_. Side A features "I Am  What 
They Fear", which combines the moody melodicism  of  the  full-length 
album with the persistent hi-hat rhythms  of  _Creed  of  Iron_.  The 
title track on  side  B  is  a  little  bit  rawer  but  still  quite 
nostalgic, feeling like a throwaway from  the  _Memory  and  Destiny_ 
sessions.                                                             

Essentially, this 7" EP does little more than provide an overview  of 
Graveland circa  1999-2002,  but  without  ever  quite  reaching  the 
heights of the LPs released during the period. For fans only.         

Contact: http://www.vinlandwinds.com/graveland/


Imperial Empire - _The Second Coming_  (Independent, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8 out of 10)

Death metal  stalwarts  like  Napalm  Death  and  Morbid  Angel  have 
influenced countless bands out there, but every once in a  while  you 
find a band that can wear those influences all over again  and  still 
come out with something interesting in the end. Imperial  Empire  are 
one such case, and _The Second Coming_ is a veritable feast  of  cool 
hooks and wicked riffs,  dynamic  mid-paced  crunching  goodness  and 
outbursts of hyperblast. This is made all the more remarkable by  the 
fact that the band consists of only one person: Lee  Wollenschlaeger, 
who lives in Bloemfontein, South Africa. Not having been able to find 
suitable members for the band yet, he's done great work  on  his  own 
with just the help of a rather unobtrusive drum  machine.  While  not 
exactly a very original album, the death metal  competence  shown  on 
_The Second Coming_ is of such calibre that  surely  Imperial  Empire 
will be on a label sometime soon -- especially if Wollenschlaeger can 
enlist  some  worthy  band  members.  Well  produced  and  impeccably 
delivered, _The Second Coming_ is an unpretentiously enjoyable  death 
metal disc that should not fail to please any death metal addicts out 
there.                                                                

Contact: leewollenschlaeger@yahoo.com


Impiety - _Kaos Kommand 696_  (Osmose, 2002)
by: Quentin Kalis  (7.5 out of 10)

Despite being together for a decade,  Impiety  have  not  lost  their 
affection for their idiosyncratic, and to  be  honest  puerile,  song 
titles. (Though they do seem to be slightly less  OTT  than  before.) 
But musically, they have come a long way. All traces of their  early, 
straightforward black metal approach have  been  erased;  the  thrash 
frills of previous CD (the awesome  _Skullfucking  Armageddon_)  have 
been retained, and a strong death metal influence has been  added  to 
the mix. The production is vastly superior to that  on  any  previous 
album, and this has resulted in a noticeably more focused and intense 
release, showcasing an unexpected complexity. In short,  Impiety  has 
grown up. But once the initial surprise has worn off, this  album  is 
fairly  disappointing.  _KK696_  is  not  nearly  as  catchy  nor  as 
engrossing as _SA_. Even after repeated listens, _KK696_ simply fails 
to make an impression. This album could almost be seen as a  practice 
run or as a stepping stone, as it showcases  a  dramatic  growth  yet 
fails to impress. If Impiety follows on what they have  started  with 
this album, the next may very well be their masterpiece; for now I'll 
stick with _SA_.                                                      


Intorment Black - _The Fallen Shroud_  (Independent, 2003)
by: Quentin Kalis  (7.5 out of 10)

This black metal five piece from Down Under specialise in  performing 
black metal, albeit not of the  primitive  kind  but  rather  of  the 
slightly more accessible kind that emerged in the wake of  Cradle  of 
Filth and Dimmu Borgir. Considering this is an  independent  release, 
the production is damn good -- and sounds all the better in  a  world 
of Ildjarns and Darkthrones!  As  with  the  less  necro  bands,  the 
production has been cleaned up and they utilise a similar sound,  but 
unlike the others keyboards are scarce  and  merely  one  of  several 
techniques  (which  include  arpeggiated  sections  and   utilisation 
of typically doom  metal  riffs)  to  create  a  largely  melancholic 
atmosphere -- Intorment Black are obviously not interested  in  being 
confined to the limiting borders of the genre! There are several dips 
--particularly the (rare) use of clean vocals which sound as  if  the 
vocalist is imitating Mikael Akerfeldt's vox. However, it  remains  a 
worthy addition to the black metal world and a strong show  of  force 
by an as yet unsigned band.                                           

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


Kalmah - _Swampsong_  (Century Media, 2003)
by: Quentin Kalis  (8 out of 10)

Kalmah, along with Children of Bodom, are the Finnish cousins of  the 
melodic death bands  that  originated  in  neighbouring  Sweden,  but 
differing in that they utilise a more mainstream and melodic approach 
with a stronger focus on  the  heavy  metal  component  of  the  mix. 
Although not the most original of  bands  (they  are  frequently  and 
justifiably compared with Children of Bodom), this is overshadowed by 
the exemplary execution and sheer catchiness of the music. Those  who 
have heard Kalmah's two previous offerings will not  be  disappointed 
by _Swampsong_, as it retains the features that made previous  albums 
so memorable: duelling guitars  overlaid  upbeat  keyboards  overlaid 
by the accompaniment of  snarling,  black  metal-esque  vocals.  (The 
converse is also true -- if you hated Kalmah's previous albums,  then 
you will hate this as well.)  The  guitars  occasionally  erupt  into 
their trademark ultra fast bursts of melodious speed, less frequently 
than in the past but no less intense. The riffs are  again  extremely 
catchy and guaranteed to  rebound  inside  your  head  for  days.  An 
enjoyable album, though their style risks becoming  stale  should  it 
carry on without significant alterations.                             


Meatjack - _Days of Fire_  (At a Loss, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose  (9 out of 10)

Halfway through the album, I suddenly realized I  had  seen  Meatjack 
play twice. It's a long while back (2000) when they were touring with 
Damad, but they left quite an impact on  me  back  then.  Not  having 
heard a single thing from them ever since I  didn't  give  them  much 
thought, but with _Days of  Fire_  on  the  shelves  I  can't  resist 
writing a few words. Meatjack play a style of music that can best  be 
described with the term "vile Neurosis". On _Days  of  Fire_,  you'll 
find  the  same  densely  layered  sounds  that  Neurosis  and  their 
offspring (Today Is the Day and Unsane) have adopted  quite  a  while 
back. However, density does not mean that the instruments blend  into 
another. On the contrary, the well-adjusted mix  clearly  brings  out 
the best of the individual artists. The  haunting  vocals  especially 
are of a high level, outraking Steve Austin on his  latest  Today  Is 
the Day album. Excellent rhythms ("Face Down") only add to the sludgy 
flow of the album, making _Days of Fire_ feel a hell of a lot  longer 
than the 41 minutes it really is.                                     

Contact: http://www.atalossrecordings.com


Nargaroth - _Geliebte des Regens_  (No Colours, 2003)
by: Matthias Noll  (7 out of 10)

My initial reaction to this record was to immediately visit  eGay  to 
determine if I could sell it for the amount of money I spent  on  it. 
The music on _Geliebte des Regens_ seemed  to  fulfill  all  promises 
made by some of the worst cover artwork I've seen  in  recent  years. 
Dig the lightning flashes!  Who  came  up  with  this  idea,  Beavis, 
Butthead or the skinny idiot from HammerFall? The musical content  of 
_GdR_ is easy to desribe. Compared  to  previous  Nargaroth  material 
this sounds like an even slower _Raluska  Part  II_,  with  the  same 
excellent and suffocating sound but fewer riffs and songs  that  that 
have thrice the length but hardly any dynamics. The  questions  every 
potential buyer of this record  should  be  able  to  answer  with  a 
straightforward "Yes" are: Are you absolutely sure  you're  going  to 
dig three plodding and very similar tracks each  between  eleven  and 
seventeen minutes with at maximum three or four fast strummed  riffs? 
Are you positive you can even enjoy one of the main songs played once 
again in a supposedly different version (no, I haven't yet discovered 
what the differences are)? Can you deal with a Nargaroth record which 
has almost nothing in common with _Herbstleyd_ or  _Black  Metal  ist 
Krieg_? Even then _GdR_ remains a difficult affair. I do believe it's 
possible to force yourself to like it but not  without  some  effort. 
Listen to it on a miserable, rainy day, three or four times in a  row 
(the equivalent of four to five hours) and you might get to  a  point 
where it starts to make sense, sink in deeper than  before  and  stay 
there. Nevertheless I bet there are only a few people out  there  who 
will wholeheartedly call this an excellent album. Kanwulf himself has 
supposedly been so moved by his material that he cried while playing. 
Although I've come to enjoy _GdR_ a lot more since I got it, I  still 
can't help wondering if he was in tears because he was strumming  for 
fifteen minutes already and forgot how to stop. Of course  repetition 
and monotony are core ingredients of black  metal  to  put  listeners 
into a hypnotic trance but seventeen  minutes  with  hardly  anything 
going on can be close to eternity.  As  strong,  sincere  and  deeply 
melancholic the emotions that led to _Geliebte des Regens_ might have 
been, the attempt to adequately express them through  music  has  not 
been 100% successful.                                                 


Nordisches Blut - _Our Banners Will Rise_  (Undercover Records, 2003)
by: Matthias Noll  (7 out of 10)

Nordisches Blut is Vargsang (Vargsang / ex-Graven)  doing  a  heavily 
Graveland or Viking-era Bathory inspired record. Of course this means 
mostly slow to mid-tempo songs with very raw  guitars,  anthemic  yet 
minimalist keyboards, booming war-drums and raspy vocals all the  way 
through. As with his main band, Vargsang (who goes by the name of Von 
List here) still is no innovator, but offers a mixture  that  borrows 
elements here and  there,  enriches  them  with  his  own  ideas  and 
combines them in a way that achieves surprisingly convincing results. 
The sound is fairly  necro  and  totally  unpolished,  and  could  be 
considered a somewhat rawer version of earlier Graveland days,  circa 
_Thousand Swords_. Fortunately the major part  of  the  album  avoids 
folkish themes, which greatly helps to  stylistically  separate  this 
German project from the Poles to a  certain  extent.  Those  familiar 
with either Graven or Vargsang will also be able to easily  recognize 
the vocals, as well as some of the guitar work. For an album in  this 
specific genre it's quite refreshing that all the songs remain  at  a 
length which is still easy to digest and does not drag on forevermore 
to appear more epic. Together with the fairly diverse  and  memorable 
song material, _Our Banners Will Rise_ is a  truly  enjoyable  album, 
which, no matter how much Nordisches Blut owe to the sound  pioneered 
by Darken and Capricornus, makes this album far more enjoyable for me 
than the viscous _The Fire of Awakening_.                             

Contact: http://www.undercover-records.de


Pest - _Desecration_  (No Colours Records, 2003)
by: Aaron McKay  (2 out of 10)

Maybe it is because the name is spread so thin, as the  moniker  Pest 
seems to be so readily prevalent in the genre (by my count there  are 
- three-: one from Germany, one from Sweden and  one  from  Finland), 
this Swedish pair have little left to work with which hasn't yet been 
covered in the  realm  of  back  metal.  Beginning  with  a  demo  in 
1998, Pest (currently comprised of  Necro  and  Equimanthorn)  is  on 
their sixth offering; sort  of  like  one  track  from  _Desecration_ 
representing every effort from  Pest's  collection  without  covering 
their previously incorporated  works.  The  harsh  and  raw  approach 
carries an outfit only so far, then one looks discerningly for  "just 
a little more". What separates this Pest  from  the  others  (or  any 
other stripped-down black metal group for that  matter)?  Simply  and 
purely aggressive, Pest takes an obviously less polished  --  dare  I 
say unclean -- approach to the six tracks  comprising  _Desecration_. 
Evidently aiming for a sort of "Burzum meets  Darkthrone"  objective, 
Pest falls short of their intended mark  on  this  undertaking.  This 
effort's production wants for a  primordial  feel  in  the  same  way 
Metallica currently longs for an inspiration infusion.  _Desecration_ 
seems to purposefully fly in the face of simplicity and hinges on the 
precipice of near total outrageousness. Pure black metal -- sure, but 
unfortunately the darkness Pest created with _Desecration_  evidently 
prevented them from seeing when to -stop-!                            

Contact: http://www.no-colours-records.de


Swallow the Sun - _The Morning Never Came_  (Firebox, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo  (8.5 out of 10)

Finland's Firebox  Records  continue  to  release  consistently  good 
albums at a surprising rate for such a young label, and  this  latest 
one, Swallow the Sun's debut _The Morning Never  Came_,  is  possibly 
the best so far. Swallow the Sun  can  be  summed  up  thus:  Finnish 
melodic doom/death with vast growls and occasional clean vocals, well 
placed keyboard enhancements, and enough variety and dynamics to ward 
off any form of boredom. Their melodies can just as easily  evoke  My 
Dying Bride or Amorphis circa _Tales From the Thousand Lakes_ as they 
can bring Rapture to mind, which helps ensure that  the  music  flows 
nicely throughout. _The Morning Never Came_ is an uncomplicated album 
-- not in the sense that it is simplistic or dull, but rather because 
it remains unpretentious and accomplished throughout. The songwriting 
is good; the riffs range from doomy to energetic with apparent  ease; 
the melodies mostly vary between good and excellent; the  playing  is 
tight and the production top notch. _The  Morning  Never  Came_  does 
owe some ideas  to  the  aforementioned  bands,  but  even  in  terms 
of originality, the  end  result  is  acceptable.  Not  every  single 
passage in the album is remarkable, and some  bits  could  have  been 
trimmed, but Swallow the Sun manage to remain sufficiently consistent 
throughout the record to come  out  with  a  very  impressive  debut. 
Rarely is a doom-tinged album as downright enjoyable as _The  Morning 
Never Came_ whilst keeping so much of its  atmospheric  quality,  and 
the fact that this is only Swallow the Sun's first effort  makes  the 
future seem even brighter for them.                                   

Contact: http://www.firebox.fi


Widow - _Midnight Strikes_  (Tribunal Records, 2003)
by: Adrian Magers  (7 out of 10)

Widow are definitely a band that lets its influences  show.  Inspired 
by the greats, including but not limited to Maiden, Priest, and  King 
Diamond. Unfortunately this makes Widow  sound  pretty  much  like  a 
retro band. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it somewhat  puts 
a ceiling over the band. Due to a lack of originality Widow  probably 
won't become legends of their genre. Other than a few modern  touches 
here and there, Widow sound more or less like a generic tribute  band 
to '80s metal. However, the  playing  is  excellent  and  passion  is 
definitely there, making the four-piece a good band to listen  to  in 
small spurts. The songs are very well-constructed, sound  quality  is 
impeccable and the fact that a lot of effort and labor went into this 
project is evident. Aside from a dated sound, my sole  complaint  are 
weak lead vocals. In my opinion it  would  behoove  Widow  to  either 
focus more on the backing aggressive voice, and/or add more power  to 
strengthen the more melodic vocals. Bottom line,  if  you're  looking 
for some very well-done, hook-filled '80s Euro-metal; Widow  is  your 
band.                                                                 

Contact: http://www.burning-village.com


Wigrid - _Hoffnungstod_  (No Colours, 2002)
by: Quentin Kalis  (7 out of 10)

On the one hand, I can accept that many bands,  especially  those  in 
the process of discovering their true sound, may sound a bit too much 
like their influences. But Wigrid take this concept to the extreme in 
their extensive emulation of Burzum. Their simplistic motifs, droning 
riffs and minimalist drumming style is clearly adopted from  Burzum's 
first four releases -- even the intro, "Leere",  sounds  suspiciously 
reminiscent of the intro to _Det Som Engang Var_. But  most  annoying 
of all are the vocals. Next to Garm's (of Ulver fame) clean vox, Varg 
Vikernes has possibly the most distinct vocals in all of black metal. 
Yet this does not stop Wigrid's vocalist from doing his best to sound 
like Vikernes. But, on the other hand and despite all of  the  above, 
this is actually a fairly  enjoyable  album,  and  as  great  as  the 
temptation is,  it  is  hard  to  simply  dismiss  _Hoffnungstod_  as 
mere slavish hero worship. Burzum-esque riffs  are  hardly  Malmsteen 
inspired bursts  of  technical  supremacy  and  are  fairly  easy  to 
perform. However, some skill and talent is  still  needed  to  create 
songs that generate the same sense of imminent menace as Burzum's. It 
is strongly  recommended  that  this  album  is  listened  to  before 
purchase.                                                             

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

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


Artificium Sanguis - _Ye Olde Demo Taype_
by: Adrian Magers  (4 out of 5)

Just looking at the cover piece, the song titles and the logo  itself 
one assumes this to be modern, raw, "true"  old  school-styled  black 
metal. While Artificium Sanguis do build from a  base  of  the  first 
wave of the Norwegian sound, their  best  moments  are  when  they're 
allowing the venomous edge of black metal they employ to mingle  with 
parts which share a great deal in common with  early  American  death 
and late thrash. The three songs featured on _Ye Olde Demo Taype_ are 
all well done, but in my opinion, I think the band should go more out 
on a limb; according to their  website,  the  members  of  Artificium 
Sanguis listen to a lot more than just black metal, and I think  that 
by incorporating even more elements from  around  the  musical  realm 
into their sound they could put out a very solid full-length  release 
when the time comes. However, this is  not  to  take  away  from  the 
talent that is already evident, just a suggestion from myself.  Those 
strict on sound quality would do well to  avoid  this  recording,  as 
it's intentionally been given a very rough  production  job  (in  the 
liner notes, it specifically states "not produced"), but  those  into 
grim BM exhibiting open minds may find a few things they  like  about 
Artificium Sanguis. I know I did.                                     

Contact: http://www.artificiumsanguis.com


Failure of Usual Reasoning - _Failure of Usual Reasoning_
by: Jackie Smit  (3 out of 5)

Hailing from the bowels of London, Failure of Usual  Reasoning  is  a 
band with much to  applaud  and  unfortunately  a  fair  bit  working 
against them. Whilst the tinny production and  cringingly  poor  drum 
sound could be to blame  for  the  effort's  lack  of  gumption,  the 
over-use of Maiden- esque melodies on tracks like  "Beer  Angel"  and 
"Buried" detracts heavily from the impact of Wes Haulip's uber-brutal 
vocals -- a deep- throated roar that could easily go toe to toe  with 
Frank Mullen or John  Gallagher.  Where  FoUR  come  into  their  own 
is when they dabble  in  the  type  of  twisted  stop-go  polyrhythms 
that would elicit a sadistic grin  from  any  Dillinger  Escape  Plan 
worshipper. By increasing their focus on these aforementioned  strong 
points, and upping the overall heaviness of their music just  a  tad, 
FoUR could well be a name worth remembering.                          


HFM - _A Virtual Theory_
by: Jackie Smit  (5 out of 5)

Sweet fuck -- I am shocked! Not only am I in awe  of  how  good  this 
demo is, but also at how HFM have  somehow  managed  to  slip  by  me 
unnoticed.  True  they  have  only  been  in  existence  since  March 
2001, but with songs as jaw-droppingly brilliant  as  "Unsubliminal", 
"Spineless" and "Mine", these guys should  conceivably  be  plastered 
on  the  covers  of  every  heavy  music   magazine   in   existence. 
Ultra-technical, crushingly heavy, and at times  almost  barbarically 
unhinged, HFM's closest musical contemporaries could be  regarded  as 
Converge, Beecher and Dillinger Escape Plan. But  the  fact  is  that 
with a live show to match, this Bournemouth-based band  could  easily 
run circles around the aforementioned acts. Yes, they are that  good. 
This is a message to any record label exec with  even  the  slightest 
shred of common sense: sign this band now!                            

Contact: http://hfmhfm.com


Lupara - _Advance Rough-Mix Demo_
by: Jackie Smit  (4 out of 5)

The Broken Hope back catalogue occupies a  place  of  honour  in  the 
hearts  of  many  extreme  music  fans,  myself  included.  From  the 
merciless  onslaught  of  _Bowels  of  Repugnance_  to  the  dizzying 
groove-oriented dynamics of _Loathing_ and _Grotesque Blessings_, for 
the duration of their career, Broken Hope always seemed to  revel  in 
confounding their detractors by continually producing  unique  music, 
whilst staying firmly rooted within  the  confines  of  their  chosen 
genre. Now,  with  former  members  Shaun  Glass  and  Brian  Griffin 
whittling away in Soil, those who were contemplating the  whereabouts 
of Jeremy Wagner (the other  half  of  Broken  Hope's  guitar  salvo) 
finally have an answer in the form  of  Lupara.  Christened  after  a 
sawed-off Sicilian shotgun said to be used by mafia soldiers  in  the 
golden era of the gangster, Lupara have more in common sonically with 
bands like Lamb of God and Chimaira than  with  Cannibal  Corpse  and 
Deicide, but interestingly still maintain Wagner's trademark  riffing 
style. Three songs are offered on this advance demo,  and  of  these, 
opener "Light Up the Pigs" stands out as  the  highlight.  A  catchy, 
adrenalized introduction to the band, it has everything a good  metal 
song should have: a lead riff that could  effortlessly  slice  off  a 
dozen heads, uber-angry vocals (supplied by a very able Craig  Gross) 
and a driving drum groove that repeatedly pummels the  listener  into 
submission. This initial outburst of fury is counterbalanced  by  the 
atmospheric, Twin Peaks-esque  clean  guitar  of  "The  Rage",  while 
"Rejection" is slightly weaker,  in  particular  its  opening  thirty 
seconds, sounding far too convoluted and unpolished to compare to the 
preceding numbers. Ultimately though, despite only three songs  being 
offered, Lupara provide ample evidence to suggest that  they  are  an 
act with a tremendous  amount  of  potential,  and  judging  by  what 
they've done here, I'd highly recommend keeping an eye out for  their 
name in the future.                                                   

Contact: http://www.lupara1.com


Vornoff - _Forledt_
by: Quentin Kalis  (4 out of 5)

Vornoff is another worthy entrant into the  world  of  dark  ambient. 
Their specialty is in creating minimalist soundscapes accompanied  by 
some piano tinklings, producing an atmosphere that  is  paradoxically 
soothing and at the same time sends chills up your spine. Comparisons 
can be made with Vinterriket (with whom Vornoff has released a  split 
EP) insofar as  they  both  evoke  similar  emotions,  but  Vornoff's 
sparse instrumentation is a  far  cry  from  the  comparatively  busy 
Vinterriket ambient works. The music is predictably  simplistic,  but 
this is essential to the creation of such a forlorn  atmosphere.  For 
an ambient release the  songs  are  surprisingly  short,  potentially 
hampering the build up of atmosphere;  but  if  listened  to  in  its 
totality in one sitting this shouldn't be a problem, as the tracks do 
build upon and complement each other  quite  effectively.  Definitely 
one of the better demos I've heard for a while.                       

Contact: soulwail@yahoo.com

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

           A N D    O U T    C A M E    T H E    G O T H S
           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Paradise Lost and Deathstars at the London Astoria, 18 November 2003
                           by: Jackie Smit


The three-quarter capacity crowd  lining  the  floor  of  the  London 
Astoria this evening makes it almost too easy  to  forget  about  the 
zenith from which Paradise Lost have fallen. Touted by many as a band 
to potentially ascend to a Metallica-like stratosphere of  commercial 
acceptance, the album intended to propel them to these lofty heights, 
_One Second_, proved to be their undoing. Not accessible  enough  for 
the mainstream, and a frustration for hardened  fans,  it  ultimately 
relegated them to the second tier of heavy  music,  where  they  have 
languished ever since, despite their gradual return to form on recent 
releases. Regardless of your opinion on the  UK's  erstwhile  premier 
misery mongers, however, it has to be said that when pooled together, 
their  back  catalogue  does  make  for  a  potentially  entertaining 
evening.                                                              

First to strut the stage this evening, however, are Deathstars -- the 
sole opening act,  after  the  departure  of  Finnish  folk-metallers 
Amorphis from the tour. Playing a selection of  numbers  culled  from 
their _Synthetic Generation_ debut, their delivery is tight  and  for 
the most part quite entertaining.  Unfortunately  their  efforts  are 
lost on a sizeable part of the audience, as yelps of "Fuck  off,  you 
Swedish cunts" echo  through  the  building  when  vocalist  Whiplash 
announces the last song. A real shame too, since the Rammstein  meets 
Sisters of Mercy hybrid of "Semi-Automatic" and "Little  Angel"  turn 
out to be rather enjoyable.                                           

Paradise Lost, by the looks of things,  can  seemingly  do  no  wrong 
though. While the ovation greeting their  arrival  on  stage  is  not 
quite the decibel-shattering  response  I  was  expecting,  they  are 
instantly mesmerizing, kicking off proceedings with the dual salvo of 
"Primal" and the crowd-pleaser "Widow". The  union  of  Nick  Holmes' 
tormented croon and Greg Mackintosh's wispy  guitaring  floods  every 
crevice of the venue, sounding particularly colossal  and  impressive 
on moments  like  "So  Much  Is  Lost",  "Mercy"  and  the  evening's 
highlight, "Prey Nightfall". Unsurprisingly, the band  opt  to  focus 
their performance primarily on their latest _Symbol  of  Life_  opus, 
but thankfully still manage  to  churn  out  a  few  old  favourites, 
including their now anthemic "As I Die".  For  the  duration  of  the 
evening, crowd interaction is  kept  to  a  minimum,  while  on-stage 
activity is unlikely to put the likes of Hatebreed to  shame  anytime 
soon. It matters little, however,  in  the  face  of  the  tremendous 
on-stage charisma which the band bring to the plate, and the inherent 
showmanship in their performance indicates that they may  still  have 
the ability to reach great heights in the future. Whichever  way  you 
care to look at it, Paradise Lost prove  tonight  that  at  the  very 
least they are a live act well worth catching  when  next  they  roll 
into your town.                                                       

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         R E D E M P T I O N    A T    T H E    P A L A C E
         ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
         Deicide, Destruction, Nile, Akercocke, Dew-Scented,
                     Graveworm and Misery Index
  The London Xmas Fest, 7 December 2003 @ The Camden Palace, London
                           by: Jackie Smit


One can only marvel at the incompetence behind  the  organization  of 
this year's Xmas Fest. For starters, the lengthy  queue  outside  the 
Camden Palace only started shuffling into  the  venue  a  full  forty 
minutes over the advertised opening time.  This,  combined  with  the 
security guards being somewhat overzealous in fulfilling their  given 
task of ensuring our "safety", resulted in there  being  a  decidedly 
sparse audience (some thirty odd revellers) clustering at the foot of 
the stage for Misery Index's opening set. This is just as well, since 
it appears that the Baltimore death metal outfit are not afforded the 
luxury of a proper soundcheck, causing  their  outstanding  brand  of 
extremity to dissipate  into  a  reverberating,  muddied  mess.  Half 
the set, consisting  primarily  out  of  cuts  from  their  excellent 
_Retaliate_ opus,  sees  Jason  Netherton's  vocals  buried  entirely 
beneath the wall of guitar noise,  and  it  is  only  when  they  air 
"Demand the Impossible" that good things look set to start happening. 
The collective look of frustration and malice on their faces  say  it 
all when they exit the stage though, and the greatest irony of it all 
is that their merchandise is entirely sold out an hour afterwards  -- 
which, in my mind, constitutes a fair number of disappointed fans.    

The audience may have  expanded  almost  exponentially  by  the  time 
Italian Cradle of Filth clones Graveworm take to the stage,  but  the 
sound problems remain. With their synths barely audible,  songs  like 
"Legions Unleashed" sound even weaker than their album  counterparts, 
and ultimately Graveworm's stint does not amount to much more than  a 
second consecutive  reason  why  the  individual(s)  responsible  for 
today's audio production should shortly be claiming unemployment.     

By comparison, Dew-Scented's half hour bathing in the stage lights is 
wholly more enjoyable. Possibly because on the surface their music is 
less complex than their two  forerunners,  the  likes  of  "Inwards", 
"Bitter Conflict", "Acts of Rage" and "Flesh  Reborn"  hit  hard  and 
satisfyingly heavy. While the entire band are clearly highly  skilled 
musicians, it is the consummate showmanship of vocalist  Leif  Jensen 
that clearly drives this band's performance, and his  exuberance  for 
the material makes one want to enjoy them even more.                  

I unfortunately miss Amon Amarth's 17:15  slot,  but  return  to  the 
floor just in time to see five tall, lanky gentlemen dressed  to  the 
hilt in some very debonair-looking suits pick  up  their  instruments 
and prepare to unleash Hades. This, of course, could  only  mean  the 
arrival of Akercocke, a band I greet with mixed feelings. True, their 
latest _Choronzon_ effort was a highly enjoyable slice of  brutality, 
but I also recall seeing them perform in support of Cradle  of  Filth 
earlier this year and delivering  a  decidedly  drab  and  fallacious 
spectacle. Still, I'm more than willing to give them the  benefit  of 
the doubt, and  as  it  turns  out,  they  are  a  markedly  improved 
live act. While the  sound  gremlins  remain  a  constant,  even  the 
most hellacious audio problems cannot hide  the  sinister  genius  of 
songs like "Becoming the Adversary", "A  Skin  for  Dancing  In"  and 
"Enraptured by Evil". The true highlight of Akercocke's set, however, 
is drummer David Gray, whose almost insanely technical  style  is  as 
bewildering as it is jaw- dropping.                                   

Things are set to get even more lively, as Nile hit  the  stage  with 
their now-familiar Egyptian intro music  providing  the  backdrop  to 
vocalist/bassist Jon  Vesano's  welcoming  war-cry.  Like  a  general 
leading his troops into battle, he demands response and  receives  it 
en masse, clearly establishing who the crowd favourites are.  Kicking 
off the ritual with "Chapter  for  Transforming  Into  a  Snake"  and 
"Barra Edinazu", Nile are almost scarily intense and  conjure  up  an 
atmosphere of such primitive brutality that the Camden  Palace  feels 
shaken to its foundations. As usual, the band do not skip a  beat  as 
they blast through "The Blessed Dead", "Sarcophagus",  "Churning  the 
Maelstrom" and "Masturbating the War God", before finally  concluding 
with "The Black Seeds of  Vengeance"  --  definitely  the  hands-down 
winner of loudest audience response of the evening.  It's  been  said 
many time before, but  it  begs  repetition:  Nile  are,  as  tonight 
proves, one of the most exciting, vibrant and challenging death metal 
outfits of our present point in time,  and  without  a  shadow  of  a 
doubt, one of extreme music's most important assets.                  

With the anticipation of tonight's headliners almost  reaching  fever 
pitch, a number of punters  get  a  tad  overzealous  and  begin  the 
Deicide-chant early; not the most welcoming of scenario for Germany's 
Destruction. While some of the audience are seemingly exhilarated  by 
the band's forty five minute sojourn, I find them monotonous  to  the 
extreme. Where fellow thrashers Death Angel blew my head off and left 
my jaw stuck to the floor when they played London a few  months  ago, 
my experience of Destruction is very similar to  having  molten  lava 
poured down my boxer shorts. They  play  old  songs  ("Incriminated", 
"Bestial Invasion"), they play new  songs  ("Metal  Discharge",  "The 
Butcher Strikes Back") -- it all sucks.                               

When Destruction head for the exit after what feels like an eternity, 
the time finally arrives for Deicide. A  lot  can  be  said  for  the 
remarkably poor quality of the Floridian  outfit's  recent  releases; 
much in the same way as one can yawn at the tedium of  Glen  Benton's 
anti-Christian, anti-Roadrunner, anti-music press rants. Yet, for all 
the clichés and all the wallowing in mediocrity, one undeniable  fact 
remains,  and  that  is  that  Deicide's  first  three  efforts  were 
phenomenally powerful and still to this day can hold up  to  anything 
released since. As was the case  with  Deicide's  trip  to  the  Mean 
Fiddler in October last year, Glen is in good spirits as he makes his 
way to  the  stage,  and  declares  his  undying  love  for  the  UK. 
For the next hour,  the  band  proceed  to  batter  our  senses  with 
"Children of the Underworld", "Bastards of Christ",  "Bible  Basher", 
"Lunatic of God's Creation", "Sacrificial Suicide", "Serpents of  the 
Light", "Once Upon a Cross", "Mephistopheles", "Dead  but  Dreaming", 
"Deicide", "When  Satan  Rules  This  World",  and  "Dead  by  Dawn". 
Unfortunately we get nothing off the band's forthcoming _Scars of the 
Crucifix_ supposed return-to-form, save  for  Glen's  claim  that  it 
sounds like _Legion_,  but  it  doesn't  matter.  Tonight's  show  is 
fantastic. The crowd lap it up. The Deicide boys genuinely seem to be 
enjoying themselves on  stage.  And  ultimately,  if  _Scars  of  the 
Crucifix_ can harness even half the passion and enthusiasm  displayed 
here tonight, it may well live up  to  the  substantial  hype  that's 
currently trumpeting its arrival.                                     

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Chronicles  of  Chaos  is  a  FREE  monthly  magazine  electronically
distributed worldwide via the Internet. Seemingly endless interviews,
album reviews and concert reviews encompass the pages  of  Chronicles
of Chaos. Chronicles of Chaos stringently emphasizes all varieties of
chaotic music ranging from black and death metal to  electronic/noise
to dark, doom and ambient forms. Chronicles  of  Chaos  is  dedicated
to the underground and as such we feature demo reviews from all indie
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End Chronicles of Chaos, Issue #69

All contents copyright  (c)  1995-2003  by  individual  creators  of 
included work. All rights reserved.
All  opinions  expressed  herein  are  those  of   the   individuals 
expressing them, and do not necessarily reflect the views of  anyone 
else.                                                                

