Dawn Of Kaos

Album Title: After
Artist: Ihsahn
Record Label: Candlelight (www.candlelightrecordsusa.com)
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Synopsis: This album has set the bar very high for 2010.  Famous for fronting black metal powerhouse Emperor in it’s heyday, Vegard Sverre Tveitan aka Ihsahn has not failed to deliver after the highly successful angL, released in 2008.  The style of the album can be likened to blackened prog metal, a combination of blistering prog riffs steeped in black metal history.  The flow of the album is impeccable and conveys more of a storyline or journey, although people familiar with Ihsahn’s work will be well aware of his arranging and compositional prowess.  This album is his most unique and experimental as a solo act, without a shade of a doubt, leaving any preconceived notions of his current work being an “Emperor afterthought” in the dust (although make no mistake, the Emperor influence is there).  The opener, ‘The Barren Lands’, sets a less aggressive, sombre, atmospheric mood which is then shattered by the second offering, ‘A Grave Inversed’, a vicious, blackened bid with the use of a saxophone, which again makes reappearances on tracks ‘Undercurrent’ and  ’On The Shores’.  The saxophone on this album is masterful, and essential to the album’s musical integrity through it’s tasteful and unpretentious application, profoundly heightening the listening experience.  Unlike most metal releases in the past year, this album offers a rollercoaster ride of emotion expressed through the variety of its offerings.  The moody title track is then followed by the catchy, trash-tinged ‘Frozen Lakes On Mars’. 

Perhaps the most profound statement on the album is expressed in the tension that is ’Undercurrent’, with it’s slow build up to a tortured saxophone solo.  The drumming, although wonderful throughout the album, is impeccable on this offering.  One would think that this would be the culmination of After, yet it is not, with the haunting ‘Austere’ followed by the heavy yet majestic ‘Heaven Black Seas’, which has a fantastic guitar solo (and little bits of saxophone glory).  The last offering, ‘On The Shores’, reprises the saxophone melody and ties everything together masterfully.  One thing that definitely stands out in ‘On The Shores’ to me is the layered vocals, reminiscent of Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’.  The mix of harsh and clean vocals is very tasteful throughout, without lightning quick changes to and from both.  The only gripe there is with this album (as with other metal releases) is the level of the bass in the mix.  Although higher than past releases, it is still not prominent enough for an album of this caliber. 

  Most fans of metal enjoy the genre for its intensity, and make no mistake this album has plenty, although it is expressed through musical tension and progressive elements much more than the constant blastbeat and string camping practiced by most “heavy” bands.  If you are simply looking for an album to listen to while kicking down walls and making children cry, this is not the album for you.  It is not an album full of 3 to 4 minute, greatly intense “radio friendly” songs.  However, if you are a fan of Ihsahn’s work with Emperor, or Peccatum, or simply enjoy an excellent non-commercial interpretation of absolute quality metal, then I strongly urge the aquisition of After.  This release has added a breath of fresh air to a genre (metal in general) that has explored almost every avenue and subgenre there is to offer.  My tastes are wide and varying, yet I believe that this album could grow on any fan of metal, regardless of whether you like death metal, thrash metal, black metal, or any other sub-subgenre.  So far, the frontrunner for album of the year, no question.  As first stated, this has set the bar extremely high for 2010, and earns Dawn Of Kaos’ highest score for an album yet. 
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Standout Tracks: A Grave Inversed, Frozen Lakes On Mars, Undercurrent, Heavens Black Sea

Score: 9.75/10

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Album Title: Quantos Possunt ad Satanitatem Trahunt
Artist: Gorgoroth
Record Label: Regain Records (www.regainrecords.com)
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Synopsis: After all the drama surrounding Gaahl and Infernus, the band name, and personal lifestyle choices in the past couple of years (not dissimilar to drama one would find in the commercial pop music world), we are presented with the latest release, Quantos Possunt ad Satanitatem Trahunt.  I personally could have cared less about all the drama, and was (am) more interested if the legendary Norwegian band could live up to their name and past works and release an album worthy of its catalogue.  The line-up has changed drastically from days of old, with Gaahl being replaced by Pest, drummer Tomas Asklund (Dark Funeral, Dissection), guitarist Tormentor (Gaahlskagg, Orcustrus), and bassist Boddel (aka Frank Watkins of Obituary fame; being a longtime Obituary fan, I am still trying to figure out what Frank Watkins is doing in this band).  Arguably, Infernus has always been the mastermind behind the band, yet fails to add to the rich legacy of the band with a mediocre release at best. 

  Many people have rated this album very highly across the internet and other metal websites, but seems wholly uninspired to me.  By the end of the album, you will have trouble distinguishing the tracks from one another, they run together, and not in an agreeable or creative way whatsoever.  It is a listenable album, to be sure, but falls quite short for someone who has enjoyed the band’s past works.  The instruments are played well, the production is “good”, but there is something lacklustre about this album.  This comes down to personal taste, much the same as every other review written, but I have never been a fan of “high production” black metal releases, preferring the cold, grim, distorted sounds one would find on early Darkthrone releases, sounding as though it was recorded in a drafty Eastern European castle (this is paramount in my opinion as it gives a fantastic atmospheric feel to the music itself).  Second, if one has the time and patience to recruit a veritable supergroup of musicians (which Infernus managed to do quite nicely), one would assume that there would be a reflection of this in some element of the band, or  a showcase (however infintesimal it may be) of the individual talents at least to a minimal degree.  It seems as though Infernus has merely stroked his own ego with this release, and has simply fallen back on a formula (while successful in the past) which comes up short when compared with other bands and releases of the genre, or the bands own past work.  New Breed is the standout track in this album and definitely deserves a few spins, but if you are an ardent fan of black metal than you will inevitabely listen to this album and come to similar conclusions. 
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Standout Tracks: Human Sacrifice, New Breed

Score: 5.5/10
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Here is the playlist for the show on Tuesday, January 26th, 2010.  Happy hunting!

 

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Band: Augury
Album: Fragmentary Evidence    
Song: Skyless
Label: Nuclear Blast (www.nuclearblastusa.com)
         
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Band: Darkane
Album: Expanding Senses
Song: Innocence Gone
Label: Nuclear Blast    
        
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Band: Darkthrone
Album: Dark Thrones & Black Flags
Song: Norway In September
Label: Peaceville (www.peaceville.com)

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Band: Dissection
Album: Reinkaos
Song: Beyond The Horizon
Label(s): Black Horizon (www.myspace.com/blackhorizonrecords) The End (www.theendrecords.com)
    
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Band: Liturgy
Album: Renihilation
Song: Mysterium
Label: 20 Buck Spin (www.20buckspin.com)
    
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Band: Cattle Decapitation
Album: The Harvest Floor
Song: Gardeners Of Eden
Label: Metal Blade (www.metalblade.com)
    
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Band: Dying Fetus
Album: Descend Into Depravity
Song: Your Treachery Will Die With You
Label: Relapse (www.relapse.com)
    
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Band: Behemoth
Album: Ezkaton (EP)
Song: Chant For Ezkaton 2000 e.v.
Label: Metal Blade/Regain (www.regainrecords.com) /Mystic (www.mysticrecordshq.com)
    
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Band: Deeds Of Flesh
Album: Of Whats To Come
Song: Waters Of Space
Label: Unique Leader (www.uniqueleader.com)
    
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Band: Decapitated
Album: Nihility
Song: Spheres Of Madness
Label: Earache (www.earache.com) 
    
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Band: Burnt By The Sun
Album: Heart Of Darkness
Song: A Party To The unsound Method
Label: Relapse

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Band: Absu
Album: Absu
Song: Girra’s Temple
Label: Candlelight (www.candlelightrecordsusa.com)
    
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Band: Nile
Album: Those Whom The Gods Detest
Song: Those Whom The Gods Detest
Label: Nuclear Blast
    
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Band: Amorphis
Album: Skyforger
Song: Silver Bride
Label: Nuclear Blast
    
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Band: Gorguts
Album: From Wisdom To Hate
Song: Das Martyrium Des
Label: Olympic (www.olympicrecords.com) /Season Of Mist (www.season-of.mist.com)
    
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Band: Krisiun
Album: Southern Storm
Song: Minotaur
Label: Century Media (www.centurymedia.com)
    
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Band: Neuraxis
Album: Trilateral Progression
Song: A Curative Struggle
Label: Earache/Willowtip (www.willowtip.com)
    
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Band: Hate Eternal
Album: Fury And Flames
Song: Tombeau
Label: Metal Blade
    
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Band: Malevolent Creation
Album: Retribution
Song: Slaughter Of Innocence
Label: R/C (www.roadrunnerrecords.com)
    
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Band: Septic Flesh
Album: Sumerian Daemons
Song: Dark River
Label: Hammerheart (www.karmageddonmedia.com)
    
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Band: Suffocation
Album: Souls To Deny
Song: Tomes Of Acrimony
Label: Relapse
    
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Band: Ulcerate
Album: Everything Is Fire
Song: Tyranny
Label: Willowtip
    
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Band: Swallow The Sun
Album: New Moon
Song: …And The Heavens Cried Blood
Label: Spinefarm (www.spinefarm.fi)
    
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Band: Psycroptic
Album: Ob(servant)
Song: A Calculated Effort
Album: Nuclear Blast
    
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Band: Skitliv
Album: Skandinavisk Misantropi
Song: A Valley Below
Label: Season Of Mist
    
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Band: The Perennial
Album: Dissenssion
Song: Course Of A Coward
Label: Unsigned
    
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Band: Obscura
Album: Cosmogenesis
Song: Desolate Spheres
Label: Relapse
    
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Band: Satyricon
Album: The Age Of Nero
Song: The Wolfpack
Album: Koch (www.kochrecords.com) /Roadrunner
    
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Band: Necrophagist
Album: Onset Of Putrification
Song: To Breathe In a Casket
Label: Willowtip
    
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Band: Mumakil
Album: Behold The Failure
Song: Brothers In Slavery
Label: Relapse
    
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Band: Cryptopsy
Album: Once Was Not
Song: Angelskingarden
Label: Century Media
    
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Band: At The Gates
Album: The Red In The Sky Is Ours
Song: Night Comes, Blood Black
Label: Peaceville
    
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Band: All Shall Perish
Album: Awaken The Dreamers
Song: Stabbing To Purge Dissimulation
Label: Nuclear Blast
    
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Band: Ahab
Album: The Divinity Of Oceans
Song: Nickerson’s Theme
Label: Napalm (www.napalmrecords.com)
    
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Band: Carcass
Album: Swansong
Song: R**k The Vote
Label: Earache
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Wanna help out or be a contributer? Drop us a line.

We’re looking for some talented and devoted people to help contribute news, reviews, or other interesting articles. At this point we are open to suggestion as to the exact columns we want to run/host, but most anything in the realms of Metal, Punk, Hardcore, antiestablishment, black block, philosophy, culture, or local art would be welcome. You dont have to live in Hartford, but it would be cool to grab a beer together because thats the type of people we are. So if you, or someone you know, would like to be a contributer to Dawn of Kaos, use our form and let us know.

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[Last Week's Show - Beginning Next Week!]
Playlist

Weeklies:

Music Reviews:
Album Title: Dark Thrones & Black Flags Artist: Darkthrone Record Label: Peaceville www.peaceville.com
Album Title: Fragmentary Evidence Artist: Augury Record Label: Nuclear Blast www.nuclearblastusa.com
Album Title: Everything Is Fire Artist: Ulcerate Record Label: Willowtip www.willowtip.com

Art Review
coming soon

News Unfit to Print:
Moveyourmoney.info – A very personal way to make the banks smaller
Mumia Abu-Jamal Execution Info
KPRC shows Houston Police secretly testing unmanned drone aircraft intended to spy on Americans

Currently Reading:
Book of Vice – Robert Siegel

Here’s the playlist for the Dawn Of Kaos radio show on Tuesday, 1/19/10.  Each record labels website is listed once with the first album under which it falls.  Explore away!

Band: Entombed

Album: Clandestine

Song: Stranger Aeons

Record Label: Earache (www.earache.com)

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Band: Darkthrone

Album: Dark Thrones & Black Flags

Song: Hiking Metal Punks

Record Label: Peaceville (www.peaceville.com)

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Band: Augury

Album: Fragmentary Evidence

Song: Simian Cattle

Record Label: Nuclear Blast (www.nuclearblast.com, www.nuclearblast.de)

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Band: Augury

Album: Fragmentary Evidence

Song: Skyless

Record Label: Nuclear Blast

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Band: Ulcerate

Album: Everything Is Fire

Song: Withered And Obsolete

Record Label: Willowtip (www.willowtip.com)

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Band: Ulcerate

Album: Everything Is Fire

Song: The Earth At Its Knees

Record Label: Willowtip

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Band: Revocation

Album: Existence Is Futile

Song: Leviathan Awaits

Record Label: Relapse (www.relapse.com)

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Band: Blood For Blood

Album: Livin’ In Exile

Song: Anywhere but here (Maybe Someday)

Record Label: Victory (www.victoryrecords.com)

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Band: Bury Your Dead

Album: Cover Your Tracks

Song: Magnolia

Record Label: Victory

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Band: Blood Has Been Shed

Album: Spirals

Song: House Of Fists

Record Label: Ferret (www.ferretrecords.com)

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Band: The Perennial

Album: Dissension

Song: Course Of A Coward

Record Label: Unsigned (www.theperennial.net)

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Band: B/W The Buried And Me

Album: The Great Misdirect

Song: Disease, Injury, And Madness

Record Label: Victory

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Band: Skitliv

Album: Skandinavisk Misantropi

Song: Slandinavisk Misantropi

Record Label: Season Of Mist (www.season-of-mist.com)

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Band: Absu

Album: Absu

Song: Between the Absu of Eridu and Erech

Record Label: Candlelight (www.candlelightrecordsusa.com)

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Band: Liturgy

Album: Renihilation

Song: Mysterium

Record Label: 20 Buck Spin (www.20buckspin.com)

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Band: iwrestledabearonce

Album: It’s All Happening

Song: Danger In The Manger

Record Label: Century Media (www.centurymedia.com)

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Band: Burnt By The Sun

Album: Heart Of Darkness

Song: The Wolves Are Running

Record Label: Relapse

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Band: Dying Fetus

Album: Descend Into Depravity

Song: Ethos Of Coercion

Record Label: Relapse

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Band: Extol

Album: Synergy

Song: 26 Miles From Marathon

Record Label: Century Media

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Band: Goatwhore

Album: Carving Out The Eyes Of God

Song: Shadow Of A Rising Knife

Record Label: Metal Blade (www.metalblade.com)

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Band: Agoraphobic Nosebleed

Album: Agorapocalypse

Song: Question Of Integrity

Record Label: Relapse

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Band: Arsonists Get All The Girls

Album: Portals

Song: Saturnine

Label: Century Media

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Band: Acid Bath

Album: When The Kite String Pops

Song: Jezebel

Record Label: Rotten (www.rottenrecords.com)

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Band: Bloodbath

Album: Nightmares Made Flesh

Song: The Ascension

Label: Century Media

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Band: Austrian Death Machine

Album: Double Brutal

Song: Who Told you Yould Could Eat My Cookies?

Record Label: Metal Blade

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Band: Devin Townsend Project

Album: Addicted

Song: Universe In A Ball!

Record Label: Hevydevy (www.hevydevy.com)

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Band: Gorod

Album: Process Of A New Decline

Song: Splinters Of Life

Record Label: Willowtip

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Band: Deeds Of Flesh

Album: Of Whats To Come

Song: Of Whats To Come

Record Label: Unique Leader (www.uniqueleader.com)

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Band: Moss

Album: Tombs Of The Blind Drugged

Song: Tombs Of The Blind Drugged

Record Label: Rise Above Records (www.riseaboverecords.com/home)

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Band: Neuraxis

Album: Trilateral Progression

Song: Shatter The Wisdom

Record Label(s): Earache (UK)/Willowtip (US)

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Band: Opeth

Album: Watershed

Song: Lotus Eater

Record Label: Roadrunner (www.roadrunnerrecords.com)

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Moveyourmoney.info
Mumia Abu-Jamal Execution Info
KPRC shows Houston Police secretly testing unmanned drone aircraft intended to spy on Americans

(continue reading…)

Greetings! Alot of new metal is on the horizon. We will kick off the reviews today though with a “retro” review from 2008, followed by 2 other lesser known bands that, for lack of a better word, explode with intensity.

RETRO REVIEW!

Album Title: Dark Thrones & Black Flags
Artist: Darkthrone
Record Label: Peaceville www.peaceville.com
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Synopsis: Although this album was released in 2008, it is the latest offering from the Norwegian legends (an album has already been announced for a 2010 release, Circle The Wagon). Darkthrone have always danced to the beat of their own drummer, and this album merely reinforces that fact. Having started as a death metal band in 1988, then embracing black metal in 1992 with the release of A Blaze In The Northern Sky and becoming progenitors of the black metal scene, Darkthrone drastically shifted it’s style in 2006 with The Cult Is Alive. Whether this was a direct reaction to the “flooding of the market” with generic black metal bands, or was an homage to the progenitors of the genre (Venom, Bathory, Tormentor) is unknown. The band has always sought to remain outside of the musical mainstream yet still manage to influence many others who have found or sought (relative) commercial success. We are, of course, talking of metal standards here (basically, you won’t find any metal bands competing for top sales on billboard charts), but I digress.

This album’s style is a mish-mash of crust punk and rock, although the black metal roots are still quite evident not only in the droney guitarwork but also the lyrics. For those that are interested in their raw, black metal sound, this is not the album for you. This style is reminiscent of, and more than likely paying homage to the bands credited with starting the original black metal sound, Venom and Bathory, and does so quite brilliantly. For someone that has been bored with the black metal scene for quite some time, I find it refreshing that a band that has pioneered modern black metal such as Darkthrone redefine themselves while remaining true to the real roots of the genre. A highly enjoyable listen, with a few tracks featuring Nocturno’s clean vocals (Hiking Metal Punk, Hanging Out In Haiger) mixed with his trademark screams (Norway In September). The drumming to me is also a significant change, Fenriz having simply expanded his pallette with more rhythmnic changes. All in all a recommended album for those that appreciate the stylistic shift, and for those that enjoy hard hitting crust mixed with black metal influences.
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Standout tracks: Hiking Metal Punk, Blacksmith Of The North (Keep That Ancient Fire)

Score: an enjoyable 7/10

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Album Title: Fragmentary Evidence
Artist: Augury
Record Label: Nuclear Blast www.nuclearblastusa.com, www.nuclearblast.de
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Synopsis: Augury has risen to prominence through one of the most thriving scenes in North America that many hardcore metal enthusiasts will tell you is the capital of technical metal in Montreal, Quebec. Having taken four years to put together, this album simply put, is a treatise on progressive technical death metal, perhaps being one of the most underrated releases of 2009. This should appeal to every fan of hard hitting music, the core of their sound touches on and is influenced by death and black metal, but leans more towards the tech/prog than their 2004 debut, Concealed. What sticks out most for me are the combination of the mellow, melodic passages with sheer sonic assaults included in songs such as “Skyless” and “Jupiter To Ignite”, one of the many gems on this release. The technical proficiency and overall muscicianship is unparalleled, with perhaps one of the most astounding performances on bass in any subgenre of music involving electric instruments. The bass actually takes on the melody in quite a few passages, with some amazing and frantic fingerwork, reminiscent of Victor Wooten (that’s right, the virtuoso himself). There are many time changes and shifts in rhythmn, as is evidenced by the mid-tempo churn of opener, Aetheral. I cannot recommend this album highly enough, it is not only a departure from most run-of-the-mill “tech-death” releases but is also an album that gets infinitely better with each listen. This simply blows most other albums of the subgenre clear out of the water.
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Standout Tracks: Simian Cattle, Skyless, Jupiter To Ignite.

Score: 9/10

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Album Title: Everything Is Fire
Artist: Ulcerate
Record Label: Willowtip www.willowtip.com
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Synopsis: Ulcerate have sent a resounding wake-up call to its peers in the “brutal death metal” community with Everything Is Fire, much the same way Gorguts did while breaching long-held traditions in death metal with the release of Obscura over a decade ago. The riffing on this record centers largely around a variety of alternate-picked harmonics, frequently shifting back and forth between consonant and dissonant chord voicings and does not include the usual string camping (chugging) or melodic leads that have become staples of the genre. Make no mistake there is plenty of string bashing, but it is undertoned with a flurry of upper string chord play that separates them from run-of-the-mill bands in the genre. The New Zealand quartet’s influences are evident in their sound (Gorguts, Immolation). This album, like it’s predecessors, departs stylistically from the rest of the subgenre with it’s esoteric delivery and thematic differences. How is it different then? The song “The Earth At Its Knees” is a prime example, with a linear and dissonant wall of sound that most other bands of the genre would shy away from for fear of breaking the mold. The length of the songs (6 minutes or more) allows the band to explore the varying tempos, dissonance, and moods through multiple movements. Again this is a break-away album for the brutal death metal community, not only thematically (no lyrics about raping or pillaging) but musically. This album is not for the faint of heart. Superb album.
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Standout Tracks: Withered And Obsolete, The Earth At Its Knees

Score: 9.5/10
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Hey Everyone! 

  Time to kick off this year with the first round of music reviews of bands of interest on the Dawn Of Kaos radio show, which can be listened to here at www.wwuh.org on Monday nights/Tuesday mornings from midnight till 3am.  I do the reviews here for you so you can get a brief summary of music and information to further you interest in whichever band or sub-genre you choose to explore.  I’ve doubled the possible scores for the bands to easier distinguish what I personally like and believe is worth your time listening to.  Look for the next few months to be jam-packed with music, reviews, new articles, and much more! 
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Album Title: New Moon
Artist : Swallow The Sun
Record Label: Spinefarm Records www.spinefarm.fi
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Synopsis: This style of metal has grown on me.  Perhaps it is the cold weather and the time of year, or perhaps it is in the way the music is composed and delivered.  Either way, music is always affected by mood, and the mood set by New Moon is bleak to say the least.  Doom metal by definition has always dealt with bleak subjects: death, grief, dejection, coldness, and sorrow.  The droney, hypnotic tempo is agonizing, and conveys an atmosphere befitting the band, yes, but to label the band as doom metal does not do the Finnish quintet justice.  The clean vocals (Mikko Kotamaki) on “Falling World” and the title track are great and are magnified by the clever and catchy songwriting and harmonically rich melodic passages.  The keyboard (Aleksi Munter), as always, adds a dynamic element to songs such as “…And Heavens Cried Blood” and “Servent Of Sorrow”, which for me, surprisingly does not detract from the music at all.  To me this is the quintessence of tasteful harmonization with a keyboard in a metal band, which sadly exists only on rare occassion.  Too often do keyboardists assign symphonic chords to notes and play in that manner instead of actually playing the instrument as Munter does.  As usual there is something of the unexpected as well, with “Lights On The Lake (Horror Part III)”  beginning with clean female vocals and guitar, followed by a short burst of black metal, then an amalgam of both to finish the song.  New drummer Kai Hahto, known for his fast feet and technical prowess, has stepped in for original drummer Pasi Pasanen and filled the role well.  All in all, a fantastic album.  It might not sink in the first spin.  I was hooked straight away, and it only gets better each time I listen to it. 
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Standout tracks: Falling World, …And Heavens Cried Blood

Score: 8/10
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Album Title:  Addicted
Artist: Devin Townsend Project
Record Label: Hevydevy Recods, www.hevydevy.com
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Synopsis: Devin Townsend has always been a fountain of creativity, and has never really seemed to compromise it.  I was first introduced to his work through Strapping Young Lad, however, for those of you expecting a clone of that sound you will be sorely disappointed.  This album is the second of four in the Devin Townsend Project series, each featuring a different lineup and theme accoring to the musical styles presented in the songwriting.  This venture was started after Devin became sober and ended SYL for good, and decided to explore a new page in his songrwriting.  The music is still admittedly heavy on this album but explores many territories that modern metal bands would be afraid to tread.  Addicted is a wall of melodic guitar sound mixed with ambient, industrial, and dance grooves that compliment each other wonderfully.  Singing duty on the album is shared by Devin himself and Anneke van Giersbergen (Agua de Annique, formerly of The Gathering), and when I say shared, I mean a complete intertwinement of the two singers in almost every song.  The lyric substance is superb, as is the music.  Personally this album has grown most on me in the past month or so, there is just something refreshing not only about the album itself but the fact that Devin refuses to pigeonhole himself like so many other metal artists have done. 
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Standout tracks: Universe In A Ball!, The Way Home!,  Awake!!

Score: 9.5/10
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Retro Review: 2008
Album Title: Live The Storm
Artist: Disfear
Record Label: Relapse Records www.relapse.com
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Synopsis:  As if having acquired Tomas Lindberg (At The Gates, The Great Deceiver) wasn’t enough, Disfear brought guitarist Uffe Cederlund (of Entombed fame) into the fray to produce an absolutely awesome yet simple and to-the-point d-beat/hardcore album.  There is no beating around the bush with this album as each song rips into the chugging almost instantaneously, with a fist pumping chorus around every corner.  As such, Tomas Lindberg cites bands such as The Ramones, Motorhead, Discharge, Entombed, and Zeke (to name a few) as being musical influences.  The main difference from the previous release, Misanthropic Generation (produced by deceased grindcore legend Mieszko Talarczyk of Nasum fame), is definitely in the difference in style of production, with Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou at the helm.  He serves the new lineup well by underscoring the bands hardcore/d-beat roots without eclipsing the heavy sonic distortion so akin to their death metal roots.  It sticks to the d-beat formula fairly rigidly; hardcore drumming with breakneck riffing, screams and howls about anarchy and banding together and fighting.  An agressive, enjoyable album for fans of d-beat, hardcore, punk, and metal.
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Standout Tracks: Deadweight, In Exodus, Phantom

Score: 8/10
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Eco-Prisoner Jeff “Free” Luers is FREE! – The Guerrilla Underground Network.

Sherry Jackson – Courageous ex-IRS AGENT moved a week before Christmas to disrupt holiday mail.

(continue reading…)