“THAT’S METAL!” – BUT IT’S NOT MUSIC (NO. 38)

 That's Metal -- But It's Not Music  2 Responses »
Jun 172011
 

It’s time for another edition of THAT’S METAL!, where we take time off from our usual focus on music and collect items we’ve seen recently that aren’t music, but that we still thought were metal. We’ve got four items today, all visual in nature. The last three are amazing videos, all of which have a hypnotic quality. Departing from our usual format for these posts, we’re throwing in some musical choices of our own (metal, of course) as accompaniment for two of these items. Here we go:

ITEM ONE

Chefchaoen is a town in the North African nation of Morocco, located in the Rif Mountains. It was founded in 1471 — and virtually the entire town was at some point painted in the powder-blue color of tekhelel, a natural dye made of shellfish. Tekhelel isn’t available any more, but the tradition has carried on through the centuries. The shades of blue now vary, but the effect is still striking.

As far as I can tell, there’s no law in the town which commands people to paint everything blue. The fact that people do it anyway, to keep alive something so unusual, is pretty fucking metal. More photos follow after the jump, and you can see even more of them here. Your musical accompaniment for these images comes to you from the late, great Acid Bath from an album called When The Kite String Pops (right after the jump). Continue reading »

TAKE A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE?

 Metal News  5 Responses »
Jun 162011
 

Blabbermouth reported this news this morning:

Metallica’s official web site has been updated with the following message:

“A few months ago our own Kirk Hammett hinted at a new Metallica project that’s ‘not really 100 percent a Metallica record.’ While Kirk may have jumped the gun a little (and has since been properly punished with a series of push-ups!), we are more than proud to announce that we have just completed recording a full-length album that is a collaboration with none other than the legendary Lou Reed.

“Ever since we had the pleasure of performing with Lou at the 25th anniversary of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame at Madison Square Garden in October of 2009, we have been kicking around the idea of making a record together. Some of you astute Bay Area residents may have picked up news of recent Lou Reed sightings in the greater San Francisco area and we have indeed been working at our home studio at [Metallica headquarters in San Rafael, California] on and off over the last few months. In what would be lightning speed for a Metallica-related project, we recorded ten songs during this time and while at this moment we’re not exactly sure when you’ll hear it, we’re beyond excited to share with you that the recording sessions wrapped up last week.”

I’d say this does qualify as news worth reporting. Even though my interest in Metallica has waned significantly in recent years, it’s still Metallica, which means I’ll listen to whatever they release, even though I’ll be holding my breath in anticipation of possible pain. And even though Lou Reed is now about 100 years old, it’s still fucking Lou Reed. First with Velvet Underground and then in his solo releases (and especially Transformer), he broke so much new ground that the word “legendary” isn’t an overstatement.

I’m having real trouble imagining what will result from this collaboration. I doubt it will be metal. I doubt it will be wild. It may be interesting, it may be good, it probably will be awful, but I have to admit I’m intrigued. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

SHORT BUT SWEET: GOROD’S “TRANSCENDENCE”

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  10 Responses »
Jun 162011
 

We’ve been using these SHORT BUT SWEET entries to catch up with new EP releases by bands both well known and not so well known. It’s safe to say that Gorod falls into the well-known category — and if by chance you haven’t yet explored their music, the time has come.

It’s not uncommon to see this French band branded with the label “technical death metal”, but over three albums, they’ve been outgrowing it; it has become too limiting as a description. With the band’s new EP, Transcendence, it may need to be discarded altogether. Hell, even the term  “metal” may now be too limiting. Gorod has reached the point where no familiar shorthand term can any longer capture the exuberant originality of their music.

Transcendence could be interpreted as simply a way-station between albums, or as a transition from what has come before to whatever comes next, or maybe even as simply a convenient way for Gorod to collect songs that they don’t know what else to do with.

After all, Gorod has self-released this EP, three of the five tracks are re-recordings of previously released songs, and a fourth is a cover of a Cynic song that Gorod recorded about three years ago for inclusion in a tribute to Cynic’s Focus album; that tribute album was released last year by something called Metal Factory Records and got almost no attention.

But don’t be misled — this EP is an unqualified triumph of songwriting skill and instrumental brilliance and a testament to Gorod’s diverse talents. Every song is worth hearing — and most especially the one completely new song, a 15-minute extravaganza of metallic deliciousness. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

SO, HOW DO YOU LIKE OUR NEW SITE BANNER?

 IQ Subtraction  30 Responses »
Jun 152011
 

This was designed by our buddy Phro as a kind of mock-up for something more permanent. It appears Phro has some modest graphics skillz in addition to . . . uh . . . his other talents.

I’m going back and forth in my mind about whether to make this sub-heading permanent. On the one hand, it has “Big Jugs” in it, which is bound to be a draw. We’d probably get more readers from people searching for porn sites. More readers is a good thing, right? On the other hand, there actually does seem to be a thing called Big Jugs Monthly, and so we’d probably get sued for trademark infringement. Also, I doubt many NCS patrons have ever perused The New Yorker magazine, so there’s that. What do you think?

As to where this idea came from, it’s all Phro. It evolved from a comment thread on a recent introductory post for a possible new NCS series called OLD SCHOOL / NEW SCHOOL. I asked whether people would be interested in seeing more installments of that series, and that led to an exchange with Phro, which you can see after the jump. So, I really can’t claim any credit. And why would I want to? Continue reading »

NEW TUNES: REVOCATION AND VADER

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  18 Responses »
Jun 152011
 

On Monday night of this week, NCS co-founder Alexis and I visited Studio Seven in Seattle. Our principal reason for going was to see Revocation again (my third time, her fourth), who were appearing in support of of the headline act, Forbidden. We really can’t get enough of these dudes — their live performance is an electrifying experience. The set just whizzed by, and we both remarked afterward how much we looked forward to the day when we could see Revocation at the top of the bill, with more time in which to turn our heads inside-out.

In addition to being tremendously talented musicians — especially guitarist extraordinaire David Davidson — Revocation have been creating music that is genuinely original. Their blend of thrash and death metal just doesn’t sound quite like anything else, and with each new release, they take more steps ahead in establishing their own unique identity. We’re tremendously excited around here for their next album, Chaos of Forms, which is scheduled for an August 12 release on Relapse Records.

On Monday night, Revocation played two new songs from the forthcoming album. One of them, “Cradle Robber”, has been streaming in full recently (here, for example). The second one I’d heard only as an excerpt in this compilation of samples assembled from iTunes. It’s called “Conjuring the Cataclysm”, and it’s my new favorite Revocation song, in part because it’s so different from the band’s usual style. I found a fan-filmed video of the band performing the song on the current tour, and you can see that after the jump.

Also after the jump is a high-quality fan video of Poland’s Vader performing a new song called “Come and See My Sacrifice” on June 12 in The Netherlands. It will appear on Vader’s next album, Welcome to the Morbid Reich, which is projected for release late this year. If you’re a Vader fan (and really, who isn’t?), then you need to see this. Continue reading »

VISITOR

 Album Reviews, Exceptions to the Rule  3 Responses »
Jun 152011
 

(Israel Flanders reviews the new album from a band called Visitor (UK), and has arranged for some free downloads to boot. This is one of those Exceptions to the Rule embodied in the name of this site)

I think sometimes the number one ingredient to individuality is how a band combine things that already have been done — how they select and distribute existing elements within the music and piece them together into a cohesive product — instead of straining to be wholly original.  Visitor is a band who have definitely succeeded with this formula, and I hope this review will get them some much-deserved exposure, I really do.

Visitor have a rather unique combination of sounds working in their favor.  I’d describe it as a mix of the groove metal stylings of Machine Head, mid-period Napalm Death (think Inside The Torn Apart), and All That Remains.  I don’t know how these guys make this mix of sounds work, but they make it work superbly, in a recognizable way.  I would know Visitor immediately if I heard them, I can say that for certain; they have established their individuality.

The band has just recently put out their latest effort, titled The Need To Believe, and it kicks ass.  I mean, it really kicks ass.  The energy on the record is fantastic, and the music itself is well-written.  The production is a bit rough, yes, but it’s refreshingly rough.  Adding to the feel of Visitor, which is rather hard to describe in the first place, they generate a street vibe (in the same essential way as Machine Head did on their first album), but they’re bringing that vibe into a modern context. What they do doesn’t sound out of place in the present. As a matter of fact, I would go so far as to say it’s perfectly relevant and needed in the music of more bands here in the second decade of the 2000s. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

SKULL SCOURING FROM ALL OVER

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  8 Responses »
Jun 142011
 

In this post, I’m collecting a handful of new songs and videos that made a deep impression on me as I listened/watched over the last couple of days. I’m talking about the kind of impression that a stout piece of lumber would make on the back of your head if swung vigorously. What makes this collection of metal interesting to me, apart from the skull-scouring nature of the music, is the diversity of places from which the music originated.

The first band is called DEAtHtUNE (though from here on, I’m typing it as Deathtune to keep my fingers from cramping up on the keyboard). They’re from Iran. Just a wild guess, but I don’t think Iran is the most hospitable place for a death-metal band. But I’ll tell you what, these guys are really fucken good. The video for their song “No War” gives you the chance to see the band in addition to hearing them — and I think you’ll want to hear them over and over again.

The second band is from Australia. They call themselves The Schoenberg Automaton. Musically, they’re making some freaked-out shit that I think is very cool. Norway is home to the third band whose music we’re featuring in this post — Wrath Passion. They’ve just put up two new songs for free download that are killing me. Knowing they’re from Norway, you get one guess about the style of music they’re pumping out.

Last, we have a “band” from Japan and a song in a style of music called Zeuhl. If you know what Zeuhl is, you get a big cookie. If you’ve heard of Kōenji Hyakkei (a/k/a koenjihyakkei) you get two big cookies. If you make it all the way through the song I’ve got for you, you’ll need those cookies to use in place of your brain, which will have liquified and poured out your nose.  (stay with us after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

I LOVE ZOMBIES, DEATH METAL, CATS, AND DEATH METAL, THOUGH NOT NECESSARILY IN THAT ORDER

 IQ Subtraction, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  21 Responses »
Jun 132011
 


I love many things. I will not name all of them today, because I don’t want to get too personal. I will just name a few of them, so you will feel like you know me better. That way, we can become closer friends, and perhaps do some internet bonding. If I told you all the things I love, this would take a long time, and we might not be friends after I was finished, because maybe some of the things I love would repulse you. Probably not, but I feel it’s better to stick with the things that you’re likely to love as much as I do.

Like zombies. Everyone loves zombies, right? Or at least, everyone loves the idea of zombies. I don’t know anyone who has actually met a zombie. It’s possible that if I met an actual zombie, I would not love it. I would instead be trying to stop it from eating my brain. I think it would be difficult to love something that was trying to eat my brain. I do like certain intoxicants, and from what I understand, many of them are slowly eating my brain, a few cells at a time. But a zombie would want to eat the whole thing, in a hurry. So, I think you can only love a zombie that you don’t personally know, like love in a very abstract way.

I love death metal, too. I basically love all flavors of death metal. I just wanna hug all of death metal — I know it’s crazy, I can’t hug all of death metal, but I just want to! I have a particular weakness for really ill, old-school, super-downtuned, spinning-chainsaw death metal — the kind that goes well with zombies. Actually, to be precise, the kind played by, for, and about zombies. Everyone likes that kind of music, right? So, confessing this kind of love should make me more popular. And since I have a new video from Puteraeon for you that pretty much epitomizes this kind of music, I’ll be, like, the most popular person in your life!

I love cats, too, and cats love me, so you should, too. Many people like cats. Some people like them with a very intense feeling. I have video evidence of that. Watching this video makes me feel like a more normally balanced person. I think it will make you feel that way, too. I think this is why people sometimes enjoy watching unbalanced people, because it makes you feel more balanced, even when you secretly think you’re as unbalanced as your checkbook. The video also inspired me to write this post.

Did I mention that I love death metal? I love it when it has a blackened crust, because I am loving black metal more all the time, too. I have found a new song by Thromdarr that I love. I think you will love it, too. If you don’t, then you probably aren’t someone I would love, except in a very abstract way. (more sharing and bonding after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

HELLFIGHTER: “DAMNATION’S WINGS”

 Album Reviews  11 Responses »
Jun 132011
 

(NCS writer Israel Flanders brings us another of his recent discoveries, this time a thrashtastic band from the UK.)

Go ahead, I dare you. Tell me you didn’t enjoy that.

Time to dig a little bit into my old-school sensibilities. Sometimes modern metal just doesn’t bring what you want to the table, doesn’t fit your mood, whatever. The point is, Hellfighter are solid power-thrash who bring a refreshing sense of old school.  The band is comprised of four members of legendary Brit thrashers Xentrix — guitarist Kristian Harvard, drummer Dennis Gasser, vocalist Simon Gordon, and bassist Mel Gasser — accompanied by the only non-ex-Xentrix member, guitarist Pete Smith.

Let’s get something straight here: Hellfighter kicks ass, and their debut album Damnation’s Wings will kick yours to the curb if you don’t have the metal flowing through your veins to embrace the power that these guys generate. This music has serious balls, serious epic factor, and solid, impenetrably polished song-writing that provide a total package worth checking out. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

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