p Going to a concert solely populated by local bands can be a questionable affair. Honestly, how many times have you gone to a local show only to be confronted with some of the most awful music you ve ever heard? /p p I have had moments like this, never a complete show, mind you, but there are a lot of bad bands out there.
However, you have to realize that your favorite bands have to come from somewhere, and that is the local scene, your local scene. So you have to go out and find the good ones. Believe me, there are good ones out there, and when you hear them, you will wonder why they are local.
They can be that good. /p p What does that have to do with this show? Well, this was one of those shows where the stars aligned, a local show that was stacked with talent determined to put on the best show they could.
You could see the determination in the face of everyone that took that stage. Were they all successful? No.
The show was not perfect, but few are. Still, this was a local show to restore faith in the local scene. br / br / As I walked into The Chance Theater, I was greeted by the music of Within Another whose set had just begun.
I had seen them once before, in a much smaller venue. I remember remarking that their sound needed a bigger venue for the large progressive rock they played. I am happy to report that I was right, the larger theater gave them the room they needed to spread out.
They have a sound that is reminiscent of Queensryche, particularly in Jerry Scharsu s voice. He has a powerfully clean voice that can let out a bloodcurdling scream when called for. /p p The rest of the band is no slouch either, excellent leads from both guitarists, particularly from Paul Mallory.
Solid drumming and virtuoso bass round the band out. I cannot claim to be a big fan. Despite likeing a lot of what they were doing, there were chunks that just did not grab me.
They put on a good show and are definitely a band to keep an eye on. Nice way to open the show. br / br / Next up was Hyngd, a band I believe that I have seen before, but cannot quite remember when.
Anyway, they took the momentum that Within Another had built up and kept the night rolling along. I was very impressed with their performance, and considering that lead singer, Shane, was a little under the weather, he really put it all out on the stage. /p p Their sound has some overtones of Tool and Staind, yet steps in a different direction.
The music was solid, full of energy, and just great to listen to. Most impressive was drummer, Gregg, he wasn t flashy, but he was incredibly crisp and tight, with perfect timing, very impressive. This is definitely an act to revisit, I see a good future ahead of them.
br / br / Kristen Capolino was the third act to take the stage, and the one performance to give me the most mixed feelings. Let me start with the good. Kristen is an absolutely phenomenal talent.
She is a 17 year guitar prodigy, who is just amazing to listen to. She came to the stage with a Gibson Flying V which looked to be larger than her, a slight presence with a big sound and a virtual ton of enthusiasm. Plain and simple the girl can shred.
/p p Now for the bad, or more accurately, the not so good. She needs someone who can better focus her abilities. Her songwriting was not terribly strong.
The songs just did not strike me as songs so much as ways to show what she can do. Fortunately, what she can do with six strings is impressive. Then there is the problem of her singing; it was not all that impressive.
Still, it is hard to dwell on the bad when in the presence of this enormous stockpile of talent. She was even able to bust out covers of Michael Schenker and Paula Abdul in the same set. I doubt many bands could reconcile that.
I would definitely be interested in seeing her perform again, even if that youthful enthusiasm got to the aging cynic inside of me. br / br / The final act before our main event was the reuniting Section 18, a band that has impressed me in the past with their straight up rock/metal sound. They came to the stage with a look which seems to bring up the likes of Pantera, yet offer up a decidedly different sound.
Coming together with what may just be a one off, the band really played as a tight unit. They sounded fantastic, succeeding in getting the crowd all riled up, singer Mike Pettigrew jumping in the pit certainly helped to that end as much as the music did. I may wish they had a heavier sound, but they are still a solidly entertaining band, and if the crowd reaction is any indication, they should stick together and keep playing.
They do it so well. br / br / Now, the band of the hour, featuring birthday boy Jim Norton on bass, Audible Thought. This was a big night for the four piece and I believe it was the longest set that they have played.
Plus, they were filming footage for a DVD release they would like to have out this summer, not to mention the fact that there was a very good crowd on hand. Needless to say, the pressure was on for a good show. /p p They went on right about midnight and proceeded to put on the show of their careers.
I have had the opportunity to see them on a number of occasions, and they just keep getting better, this performance was easily the best I have seen from them yet. Their sound was a little chunkier and heavier, the vocals had a little more bite to them, the drums sounded enormous, it was a joy to listen to. /p p They played, I believe, every song in their live catalog, everything from their debut CD, i Measure Up /i , plus a pair of new tracks, and a third that could be called new, as it has only been played live on a couple of occasions.
The highlight of the show would have to be Can t Break Me, the song brings all of the elements that make Audible Thought who they are, from the emotionally charged lyrics, to the blend of crunchy heaviness and melody, to the screaming lead guitar work, it has it all and is destined to be a mainstay of their live set. Both of their other new cuts played very well, although I cannot recall their names, demonstrating a true growth in their songwriting, imbueing more emotion and complexity signifying how much stronger of a unit they are coming to be. br / br / Other highlights of the night include Measure Up, Darkness, Respect, and Games.
Lou West, recovered from an absessed tooth which hampered recent performances, brought his A-game and sounded great, while drummer Carl Fogarty has improved by leaps and bounds making his kit a powerful presence. Jim Norton s bass is solid as ever while he provides an imposing presence on the stage through his constant movement. /p p Finally Ryan Cady was absolutely shredding it as he ripped through his solos.
Overall, there was a distinctly heavier and faster aura to some of the older songs, making them sound fresh, and showing how the art of songwriting is an ever changing process, working to improve on what they have as they come together as a band. br / br / This was a fantastic night for local music. From top to bottom this was a strong card, lots of bands at the top of their game and a large crowd to support the local scene.
Perhaps, one day, some or all of these acts will be able to take their music to the world at large. Oh yeah, I cannot wait to see how the DVD comes out. br / /p div id="authorbio" img src="http://img.
photobucket.com/albums/v290/draven99/littleme-1.jpg" style="float:left; margin-right:10px;" border=0 Christopher Beaumont spends much of his time writing about entertainment when he isn't sitting in a movie theater.
He is known around the office as the "Movie Guy" and is always ready to talk about his favorite form of entertainment and offer up recommendations. Interests include science fiction, horror, and metal music. His writings can be found at a href="http://draven99.
blogspot.com" Draven99's Musings /a , as well as a href="http://filmschoolrejects.com" Film School Rejects /a .
/div br style="clear: both;"/ p Numerous are the bands that have made unpleasant transitions from one record to the next. Many are forced to appeal more to the masses, leaving behind the guttural inclinations in favor of pleasant choruses. Thus, the result is the musical landscape is overwhelmed with clone after clone.
Limited are those few bands that can ignore trends, evolve into the next height of creativity, and leave everyone behind in their quite-too-tight jeans. They set the measure higher and show us heavy music can still transcend the make-up and adolescent lyrics and delve into the darker side of life (i.e.
Slayer) but not without showing us hope (i.e. Killswitch Engage) br / br / The newest release from the Massachusetts-based quintet does not stray far from the formula they helped perfect, delivering such a complete collection of heart-pounding songs full of declaration.
Their resistance to falling into the pit of prefabricated and mediocre compositions makes this record an immediate progression from their previous album i The End of Heartache /i and establishes them even further as pioneers in the modern movement of heavy metal. /p p Guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz (who also serves as producer/engineer on every KSE album) delivers more melodically to an always-solid contrast and barrage of banshee-like screams. Joel Stroetzel s solid guitarwork has progressed, as he has added to the Swedish influence he showed in previous recordings.
At times, you can even hear the Crowbar-like sludginess come through, not in a plagiaristic manner but more like many bands take a page from Black Sabbath, all done out of admiration and respect. br / br / What will always set KSE apart from their contemporaries is the ebb and flow of vocalist Howard Jones, going from anthemic and soulful to letting the hammer fall with his devastating roar and screams. His delivery of each chorus is done with precision and conviction.
The intricate drum work of Justin Foley sounds crisp and clean as you can hear the frantic pace fall into place perfectly in each song. You can sense the seriousness in the creation and execution of how a heavy record is supposed to be made. /p p We are going to have plenty of bands come and go but I forsee that KSE will be doing this quite a while and doing a damn well good job.
br / /p div id="authorbio" 27, native of California but Texan by choice, non-religious but definitely a faith-filled child of Yeshua, aspiring writer poet, lover of music in general, made in Mexico and Costa Rica respectively, tattoo enthusiast, Star Wars fan, avid cereal eater and maker of the best plate of migas this side of the Rio Grande. I am also the resident frontman for the Dallas-based metal band Chidied. /div br style="clear: both;"/ p Testament is a band that has stayed true to metal ever since they first burst on the scene back in 1987 with the release of i The Legacy /i .
They were a part of the second wave of thrash metal in the 1980s, along with Exodus, following on the heels of bands like Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax. They have put out strong releases for as long as they have been around, even with their members shuffling around over the past ten years or so. Of late, they seem to have fallen into the trap of releasing live stuff and best of collections rather than anything new.
However, this collection is a bit different than the other three in their catalog, and it promises to be the last one before a new release of new material. br / br / The prior three collections focused primarily on the early years. The first release being i The Best of Testament /i , released in 1996, focused on everything up to i Low /i , including a single track from that release.
The following year saw the arrival of i Signs of Chaos /i , which was made to include the i Demonic /i release. A four year gap ensued, which saw the release of their last all new material album, i The Gathering /i , within its frame, capped with the release of i The Very Best of Testament /i in 2001, this was similar to i The Best of Testament /i in that it included albums up to i Low, /i with one track off of that release i , /i this time it was Dog Faced Gods. br / br / img src="http://img.
photobucket.com/albums/v290/draven99/music/testament.jpg" alt="" hspace="5" align="left" / Okay, by know I am sure you want to know what the difference is with this release.
Well, it focuses exclusively on their years with the Spitfire record label. This period encompasses five releases, i Live at the Fillmore, Demonic, The Gathering, First Strike Still Deadly /i (a re-recording of some of the classics), and i Live in London /i (featuring the reunited original line-up, which I got to see a href="http://draven99.blogspot.
com/2005/10/concert-review-testament-w-unbalanced.html" live /a ). Sure, there are only two albums worth of new material to cover, but factor in some excellent live cuts, and quality re-recordings and you have the makings of a decent collection.
br / br / If there is one thing I have learned about these collections, it s that they are rarely made for the long time fan, as you probably have all of the songs already. However, they do fill a market need, and that is making it easy to introduce potential fans to a new world of music. I know I would be more apt to pick up a collection like this over a regular release, as it would probably deliver a better cross section of their music.
So, I have no problems with collections, although four seems to be a little excessive. br / br / Now this collection covers what might be the heaviest period of their career, it would have been the definitive heaviest had i Low /i been included. They always delivered quality thrash metal, but it wasn t until these albums of the mid and late 199s that the true extent of the heavy side of their sound would make its presence felt the most.
The heaviness is only increased with the session drummers that played on the three studio releases, i Demonic /i has the presence of the insane Gene Hoglan, who sounds great (also check him out in Strapping Young Lad for an even more impressive display). /p p He is followed by Dave Lombardo on i The Gathering /i (he has since reunited with his first band, Slayer), and then on i First Strike Still Deadly /i John Tempesta returned to the kit (he was also on i Low /i , and has played with White Zombie, Rob Zombie, and Scum of the Earth). Now combine them with the fantastic voice of Chuck Billy who has increased his growl range over the years, and the ever present Eric Petersen on guitar, and you have the makings of some seriously heavy music.
br / br / img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v290/draven99/music/testament3chuck.
jpg" alt="" hspace="5" align="right" / The album is bookended with live cuts, a trio on each end. First up are a few live classics from their i Live at the Fillmore /i set, a nice dose of heavy thrash proving that they had what it takes to pull it off live, highlighted by Souls of Black. On the other end of the 14 song set features live music from the 2005 reunion tour, recorded in London.
This is a great inclusion, as it is like they never left, it takes me back to the night I saw them during the tour. The best cut here has got to be Disciples of the Watch. br / br / As for the studio tracks, this is a nice representation of the band at their heaviest, and most ignored.
Generally, when talk turns to Testament, it invariably centers on the i Practice What You Preach/Souls of Black /i era, which was probably the height of their popularity, although in my mind it is equaled in the i Low/Demonic /i era of heaviness. The tracks here that are worth the most attention would have to be The Burning Time and Careful What You Wish For, and the rerecording of Over the Wall is also excellent. br / br / b Bottomline.
/b If you are into heavy thrash, and want to see what these guys have been up to since you jumped ship in the early 90s, then this is a good disk to pick up. It is a good sampling of the heavier side of the band at their best, showing they are not only good in the studio, but also live on stage. Now, if only they would get that next studio album out.
br / br / b Recommended. /b br / a href="/archives/2006/03/09/044041.php" img src="/images/stars/3.
5-out-of-5-stars.gif" border="0" alt="" title="3.5 out of 5 stars" width="80" height="18" / /a br / /p div id="authorbio" img src="http://img.
photobucket.com/albums/v290/draven99/littleme-1.jpg" style="float:left; margin-right:10px;" border=0 Christopher Beaumont spends much of his time writing about entertainment when he isn't sitting in a movie theater.
He is known around the office as the "Movie Guy" and is always ready to talk about his favorite form of entertainment and offer up recommendations. Interests include science fiction, horror, and metal music. His writings can be found at a href="http://draven99.
blogspot.com" Draven99's Musings /a , as well as a href="http://filmschoolrejects.com" Film School Rejects /a .
/div br style="clear: both;"/
I think I am going to have to ask management for bigger facilities. /p p These may not be the best songs ever, they may not even be our favorites, but they kept us entertained last week. You could do worse than to try a few of them out and see what they do for you.
/p p There is an actual reason for this, and it s something I will get in to in more detail in the coming days. a href="/archives/2006/08/16/121543.php" I wrote about this song /a specifically in August of last year.
I don t have much to add to what I said then, other than it s five months later and it still has the same traction, the same pull as it did then. /p p I know some of you are tired of my Guster cheerleading, but if you haven t checked out i Ganging Up on the Sun, /i you really are missing out something wonderful. /p p A.
Hathaway: a href="http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.
woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=486133 s=143441 i=509838" Whatever I Fear /a from i Coil /i by Toad The Wet Sprocket br / br / i Whatever I fear the most is whatever I see before me. br / Whenever I let my guard down.
br / Whatever I was ignoring. /i br / br / Words I could live by. Words that describe how I have lived.
Even before I ever heard this song. /p p In June of 1998, I first heard Whatever I Fear by Toad the Wet Sprocket. I immediately connected with both the sound and the lyrics.
I still do each time I listen to it - which has been most of this week. If I had to pick a theme song for my life, then this one is it. Now that I have exposed my insecurities for the mocking pleasure of cyberspace I will go on to say that if you can t relate to this song on some level, then I have to wonder if you have a pulse.
br / br / a href="/writer/connie_phillips" Connie Phillips /a (Music Editor): a href="http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.
woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=1696910 s=143441 i=1696902" Belgium /a from i Let s Do It For Johnny /i by Bowling for Soup br / br / When I get stressed out I have a whole playlist of music I play to turn my mood around; much of it is comprised of a href="http://www.bowlingforsoup.
com/" Bowling for Soup /a . Though I ll usually turn to the outrageous and fun, this week I ve found myself going back to Belgium over and over again. br / br / You wouldn t know it by the title, but it s actually a sweet love song.
And now you rsquo;re halfway around the world/and I rsquo;m just a day behind/Nothing seems to fill the hole/That I have since you left my side. Not typical fare for these guys, but the mellow sound and the underlying theme of real love and desire has been just what I needed to hear. br / br / a href="http://www.
lookoutforhope.com/" Tom Johnson /a : a href="http://phobos.apple.
com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=73681729 s=143441 i=73681656" Augmatic Disport /a from i Untilted /i by Autechre br / br / It s the abstract rhythms in the electronic chaos that Autechre creates that draws me in.
The beat lurches back and forth, fighting with itself, as if two drum machines are dueling over time. This is impossible dance music ndash; no sane person could find a beat to center themselves around here, or, if they did, it would make for something humorous. br / br / There are stabs of synth here and there, but the focus is on time and how it competes with itself for the little sensible space our minds can allow.
The listener s payoff comes when bits of rhythmic predictability set in, little by little - chaos resolving slowly to order, layers of fragmenting drums giving way to a steady pulse. Left with a simple beat for what seems like an eternity, it s something oddly soothing and predictable from a group who so rarely offers anything of the sort. br / br / a href="/writer/mark_saleski" Mark Saleski /a : a href="http://phobos.
apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?
playlistId=214535601 s=143441 i=214535608" Nobody Knows My Nam /a e from i The Sermon On Exposition Blvd. /i by Rickie Lee Jones br / br / The initial idea was to create a musical and spoken word recording based on Lee Cantelon s book i The Words /i , a plain English rendering of the words of Jesus Christ. Rickie Lee Jones was brought in to read from a few chapters and managed to completely transform the entire project.
Jones idea was to improvise her part, based on the selected text, over the given musical track. Nobody Knows My Name was the first result and it is b stunning /b . Over a steady (almost Velvet Underground-ish) chord progression, Rickie sings out the idea of an anonymous Christ walking on earth.
Pretty amazing stuff, even for a non-believer. br / br / a href="/writer/mat_brewster" Mat Brewster /a : a href="http://phobos.apple.
com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=191843416 s=143441 i=191843623" I Gotta Move /a from i Ben Kweller /i by Ben Kweller br / br / I really thought I would be talking about a new Lucinda Williams song, but through a series of mis-adventures (wondered around the big multi-mart looking for Valentine s Day gift, but for some crazed, unknown reason forgot all about the new LW album; went back to the store the next morning specifically to purchase, and forgot my wallet) I am still without the new Lucinda album.
br / br / Instead I ve been giving the relatively new Ben Kweller album repeated listens. I didn t pay much attention to it at first, but dang, it s crazy catchy. The whole dang album keeps sucking me in, but I ve Gotta Move has been stuck in my head for days now.
I wish it were summer so I could play with the windows down, cranked to 11. br / br / a href="/writer/lisa_mckay" Lisa McKay /a : a href="http://phobos.apple.
com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=64874 s=143441 i=64860" Don t Take Me Alive /a from i The Royal Scam /i by Steely Dan br / br / I could listen to Steely Dan all day at work (and I often do).
That sounds as if I m calling them purveyors of elevator music, but that s not really what I mean. I love Steely Dan, and part of their appeal for me, especially for workday listening, is the way their music can just insinuate itself into the back of your mind without constantly pawing at your elbow for attention. i The Royal Scam /i is a swell album, full of the edge and sardonic humor that makes Becker and Fagen such fine company, and this track is simply one of my favorites.
br / br / a href="/writer/el_bicho" El Bicho /a : a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B000HT2MB4001004/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_004/105-1903228-8793224" Five Card Stud /a by Lorne Green from i Ricky Jay Plays Poker /i br / br / Magician Ricky Jay has collected 21 tracks of poker-related songs from a roster containing legendary musicians: Bob Dylan, Patsy Cline, Robert Johnson, and Anita O rsquo;Day.
Yet, the highlight for me is by an artist who has also appeared on the infamous i Golden Throats /i series of albums. Recorded during his tenure on the TV show i Bonanza /i , he doesn rsquo;t sing so much as he talks his way through Five Card Stud, the story about a poker showdown between a stranger and a young cowboy. It makes me yearn for The Dr.
Demento Show. br / br / a href="/writer/anna_creech" Anna Creech /a : a href="http://phobos.apple.
com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=213698280 s=143441 i=213698506" Can You Feel It?
/a from i New Magnetic Wonder /i by The Apples In Stereo br / br / As I wrote in a href="/archives/2007/02/14/090135.php" my album review /a this week, ..
. i New Magnetic Wonder /i is a fantastic pop-rock record. Can You Feel It?
repeats the title of the song in the chorus and adds the line, It makes you feel so good. It certainly makes me feel good when I listen to it..
.. From the electronica intro to the sing-along and totally rocked out chorus, every aspect of this song gives me aural pleasure.
It has been a lovely bit of sunshine in this otherwise grey and overcast week. br / br / a href="/writer/glen_boyd" Glen Boyd /a : a href="http://phobos.apple.
com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=15954063 s=143441 i=15958781" Sex Machine /a from i Stand!
/i by Sly And The Family Stone br / br / In anticipation of the upcoming re-release of Sly s entire catalog in a few weeks -- remastered with new tracks to boot -- I ve been revisiting much of that catalog, but always seem to come back to i Stand! /i . There is just no way to understate how important this band was for it s time.
Sly And The Family Stone influenced an entire generation of funk-rockers from Earth Wind Fire to Prince (whose concept of a multi-racial, multi-gender powerhouse band was first done by Sly with this very band). br / br / i Stand! /i has plenty of better known songs than Sex Machine, -- I Want To Take You Higher and Everyday People to name just two -- but this nearly side long, psychedelically wigged out instrumental shows just how tight this band really was.
Anchored by Larry Graham s trademark bass-popping and some wild guitar work from brother Freddie Stone on the wah-wah (remember those?), the track builds in tension for nearly fourteen minutes before exploding in a crescendo of crashing drums and cacophonous horns at the end. If this don t get your groove on, nothing will.
br / br / Also highly recommnded are a couple of live shows from the Fillmore recorded during about the same period that are available now over at a href="http://concerts.wolfgangsvault.com/" Wolfgang s Vault /a that are off the hook.
br / br / a href="/writer/cara_de_pescado" Cara de Pescado /a : ldquo; a href="http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.
woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=159369666 s=143441 i=159369667" Walking In Memphis /a rdquo; from i Marc Cohn /i by Marc Cohn br / br / First, who can rsquo;t appreciate a man who was shot in the head and released from the hospital the next day? br / br / Sometimes I feel nostalgic and want to listen to music from the early 1990s.
ldquo;Walking In Memphis rdquo; always makes the cut. Something about a suave baritone voice singing over the smooth piano makes the song speak to my soul. Plus, it is fun to sing along and really find my groove.
I can sing neither gospel nor blues, but ldquo;Walking In Memphis rdquo; lets me pretend I can sing a little of both. Knowing the story behind it adds to the soul of the song. br / br / Marc Cohn was at an old slave commissary turned into a caf e called Hollywood.
A woman was at a piano, singing spirituals and the like. Cohn spoke with this woman, each sharing their live stories. Their two spirits drawn to each other, she asked Marc Cohn to join her in singing ldquo;Amazing Grace.
rdquo; Her name was Muriel. br / br / a href="/writer/Benjamin_Cossel" Benjamin Cossel /a : a href="http://phobos.apple.
com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=75673035 s=143441 i=75673502" I ll Never Get Out of This World Alive /a from i Your Cheatin Heart /i by Hank Williams br / br / Williams final released single, no one at the time of its writing could have known the poignancy the song would take on.
This is a song about living too hard, drinking too hard, and realizing there s only one way out at the end. A good Sunday morning, you drank too much the night before tune and one of my personal favorites of Williams . br / br / a href="/writer/Michael%20Jones" Michael Jones /a : All The Things She Said from i Once Upon a Time /i by Simple Minds br / br / I can remember playing the daylights out of my cassette tape of the album this comes off of.
When I d heard another of this album s songs playing on Sirius a while back, it immediately made me wonder why I d never purchased this as a CD. I was floored..
. this was an album that I d basically adored at one point, and I d come to the point where I d nearly forgotten it. br / br / I m sitting here listening to the song I chose, All The Things She Said, and it all came rushing back.
I can remember sitting on my bedroom floor with my cassette player, just listening and grooving to the music until I heard that harsh click, which meant it was time for me to flip the cassette. br / br / This is just a great song off of a great album, and it waltzed its way back into my life and heart by tempting me with the all powerful currency of memory. Now, s cuse me while I close my eyes and remember asking my mom to borrow $10 to buy another copy of this cassette after I d let the other one melt on the dash of her car one fine summer day.
.. br / br / a href="/writer/Brian%20Garrepy" Brian Garrepy /a : Blackout from i Leading Vision /i by Gorod br / br / In the spirit of breaking boundaries, pushing the envelope and pioneering a new era, technical death metal gurus Gorod have really stepped up with their latest installment, i Leading Vision /i .
In the same fashion as Opeth, they have shown their ability to journey through soundscapes that are not all that common to this genre while attaining a style that still has the soul and Human element to keep it from sounding clinical and sterile. The track Blackout is a great example from this CD that shows just how progressive they can be while still incorporating what has influenced them as death metal musicians. br / br / What draws me to them week in and week out is how they keep it fresh and exciting.
i Leading Vision /i as a whole doesn t drudge on and has enough twists and turns for the ADHD in all of us. /p div id="authorbio" IMG SRC="http://www.djradiohead.
com/GFX/djr_color.jpg" height="" width="" style="float:right; margin:5px;border:2px solid white"/ DJRadiohead is a href="http://blogcritics.org/music/" Assistant Music Editor /A and hosts the A HREF="http://blogcritics.
org/archives/features/bcradio_podcast.php" BC Radio Podcast /A . He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster.
His podcasts and writing can be found at A HREF="http://www.djradiohead.com" DJRadiohead.
com /A as well as a href="http://www.themondoproject.com" The Mondo Project /a .
/div br style="clear: both;"/
In anticipation of its release, the band has just posted another new track entitled "Stranger You and I" on their a href="http://www.myspace.com/daphnelovesderby" Myspace page /a .
/p width="100" height="75" style="float:left; margin:5px; border:1px solid white"/ Anna Creech is a librarian and blogger who dreams of a day when she can improve the ratio of read-to-unread books in her house. Along with writing reviews, she posts a daily round-up column of audio and video media downloads and streams called the a href="http://bcgoodiebag.com/" Blogcritics Goodie Bag /a .
/div br style="clear: both;"/ p Type O Negative is a hard band to label. They have never been mainstream, or terribly popular in the traditional sense, yet they have one of the most dedicated fanbases in all of music. That is a fact I have witnessed when I have been able to see them live.
/p p The last time I saw them was while on tour for their last album, 2003 s i Life is Killing Me /i , and at the time Peter Steele seemed to indicate that Type O Negative may be coming to an end. Fortunately that has not happened and The Drab Four are set to return to the road with the impending release of their seventh studio album, i Dead Again /i . br / br / i Dead Again /i has been a long time coming.
I had sadly given up hope of a new collection of dark dirges from my favorite purveyor of gothic doom. Then there was the disappearance of Peter Steele and his rumored demise, fueled by the image of a tombstone on their official website in October of 2005 which had Peter Steele 1962-2005. That turned out to be a joke, as Peter resurfaced with the band as they signed a new deal with German label SPV/Steamhammer.
The first result of that union was the release of the concert disk i Symphony for the Devil, /i a show that was filmed in the late 1990s. Now, while that is all well and good, it is not what I wanted. br / br / This new collection of doom and gloom features a new sound from the band.
i Dead Again /i harkens back to the Peter s pre-Type O Negative days with the post-nuclear hardcore band Carnivore, and even Type O s debut i Slow, Deep, and Hard /i release from 1991. There is an injection of punk speed and aggression into the slow chugging excursions into the gloom that had become their trademark. I have to admit, I cannot say that the album grabbed me the first time through, I was not prepared for the speedy qualities that wind their way throughout.
br / br / img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v290/draven99/music/typeo.
jpg" alt="" hspace="5" align="left" / As I have sat with the album, digesting this new sound, I have discovered that while not quite at the level of some of their earlier releases, it is a distinctly Type O Negative album and indicative of a band that is rediscovering its roots. Rather than rehash their prior formula, they stripped everything back to basics and built from there, using elements of the past to work towards forming a new future. br / br / There is a certain beauty to the flow of sound created by the doom crew.
The escalating speed reigned back into the dirge-like gloom melting into Beatles-esque harmonies, layering in sonic depth not unlike Pink Floyd or The Cure, all while never losing just what makes this a Type O Negative album. br / br / The album starts off with the title track, Dead Again, opening with their trademark slow burn before kicking into a more speed infused goth-punk style instantly letting you know that this is a new and different band. I cannot say it is a great track, but it does prepare you for the blend that is to come.
Tripping a Blind Man brings the tempo back down, if only temporarily. Track three is the first excellent song to rear its ugly head. Profits of Doom, which had been the working title prior to selecting i Dead Again /i , brings some interesting guitar work and a style that is reminiscent of a blending of cuts on i Slow, Deep, and Hard /i and i Bloody Kisses /i .
br / br / Not one to shy away from controversy, there have been rumors of Peter Steele rediscovering his Christian roots. He was raised Catholic, but if you listen to any of Carnivore s or Type O s music, you will find much evidence to show that he left that part of him behind. In recent years he has lost loved ones, done a stint in jail, and been to rehab.
Perhaps seeking solace in spirituality, he returned to those roots. /p p Of course, none of this has been substantiated by anything I have found, however there is a song which may point to his return to faith and belief in life. The epic These Three Things is an anti-abortion song which begins with the words A child is torn from the womb un-baptized/there s no quesiton it s infantacide, is sure to stir up some controversy.
It is an excellent song, with subject matter I would not expect from the group. br / br / Moving along, She Burned Me Down is an excellent example of a Type O Negative track, from Peter s deep throated singing to Kenny Hickey s guitar work, it is one of the best songs here. The ten song collection comes to a close with Hail and Farewell to Britain which has some very nice riffing, with a strong 1970s feel.
br / br / i Dead Again /i is not my favorite Type O Negative album, but like I have found in the past, I suspect that this will grow on me over time. Their albums tend to age well, multiple listenings allow the music to dig itself into your gray matter where it will resonate well after you have pressed the stop button. This is an interesting return for the group, some different lyrical content, and I still haven t heard a band that has anything composed like this.
Type O Negative is a true original. They pull from a variety of influences and mold into something that is wholly their own. br / br / b Recommended.
/b br / a href="/archives/2006/03/09/044041.php" img src="/images/stars/3.5-out-of-5-stars.
gif" border="0" alt="" title="3.5 out of 5 stars" width="80" height="18" / /a /p div id="authorbio" img src="http://img.photobucket.
com/albums/v290/draven99/littleme-1.jpg" style="float:left; margin-right:10px;" border=0 Christopher Beaumont spends much of his time writing about entertainment when he isn't sitting in a movie theater. He is known around the office as the "Movie Guy" and is always ready to talk about his favorite form of entertainment and offer up recommendations.
Interests include science fiction, horror, and metal music. His writings can be found at a href="http://draven99.blogspot.
com" Draven99's Musings /a , as well as a href="http://filmschoolrejects.com" Film School Rejects /a .
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