BASS SHRED

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  6 Responses »
Aug 182011
 

It’s a well-established fact that metalheads love guitar gods. It seems like no matter how good or bad a song may be, if you stick a flaming guitar solo in it somewhere, metalheads will start slobbering and playing air guitar with their grimy fingers. I certainly like me some guitar shred, though I’ve reached the point where even a technically flashy solo doesn’t do much for me if it’s not an organic part of the song and if it doesn’t have authentic soul behind it.

BUT, I do love the sound of a well-played bass almost as much as an expertly played guitar. The lowly bass leads a lonely, often overlooked life in metaldom. It’s an absolutely essential ingredient in most metal, but its contribution is often hard to isolate and notice when you’re listening. More often than not, it gets buried in the mix or overwhelmed by the other instruments. Sometimes that’s necessary, given the kind of sound a band is trying to achieve. Sometimes it’s a blessing, when the bass player isn’t doing anything especially interesting. Sometimes, it’s just a shame.

If you’re like me, you sit up and take notice when a song includes an audible bass line that shows some flash and creativity, and when you hear an actual bass solo, well that’s just a very sweet gift. I get a charge out of heavy-assed bass licks that are solidly competent, rather than flashy, but when a really good bass player lets it all hang out, I get the same slobber-response as most people do when they hear a burst of guitar shred.

When you hear that kind of talent creating rhythms on a fretless bass, it REALLY stands out. It’s a unique sound, which some of us were trying to describe in the comments to a post two days ago about a free four-song comp that’s being offered to build interest in the CD release party for a Toronto band called Nephelium. One of the songs on that comp (“Omnipresent Perception”) is by a Montreal band that we really love around here — Beyond Creation. And Beyond Creation features an accomplished fretless bass-player named Dominic “Forest” Lapointe. Thanks to a comment from an NCS reader who goes by the name egordon, we’ve now discovered a new video of Lapointe doing a play-through of the bass parts in the song, with the recorded song in the background. And holy shit. Is it fun to watch!  (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: CHANCE GARNETTE OF SKELETONWITCH

 Interviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  4 Responses »
Aug 182011
 

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Last Sunday, our favorite NCS writer from the UK (okay, yes, he’s the only NCS writer from the UK) killed three birds with one stone. Actually, he didn’t kill anything (at least so far as he can remember), so let me change that: Andy Synn did a lot of multi-tasking last Sunday night, to whit:

He and his band Bloodguard opened a show in Nottingham headlined by the almighty Skeletonwitch; he interviewed Chance Garnette, the frontman for Skeletonwitch — on video no less; and he filmed Skeletonwitch playing a new song (“Reduced To the Failure of Prayer”) when they took the stage. And he probably did some other things that night, which are better left private. Not too fucking shabby for one night, huh? So, here we have both the interview video, a transcript of the interview (which Andy did, too), that live video, and one more Skeletonwitch video just for good measure. UPDATE: We’ve now also got the song that will appear on a flexi-disc in the next issue of DECIBEL mag.]

Sunday evening I had the chance to interview Skeletonwitch singer Chance Garnette just prior to their show at Nottingham Rock City. It was also the first time I’ve attempted to video an interview… and I think it turned out ok!

I edited the original footage down from 25+ minutes, simply to remove some of the more conversational and rambling stuff that Chance and I got into, so don’t worry, there’s been no editing trickery to alter the content of the interview as presented – just some to make me look better as an interviewer!

After the jump there’s a transcript for those of you who, like me, don’t always want to watch/listen to an interview and prefer to read it at their own pace! Continue reading »

EYES SET TO KILL: “WHITE LOTUS”

 Album Reviews  15 Responses »
Aug 172011
 

(NCS writer BadWolf reviews the new album from Eyes Set To Kill.)

We don’t do negative criticism here very often – it’s no fun to write and doesn’t help anyone. The artists don’t read it, and you readers have probably made up your mind already. The only time negative criticism is justified, to me, is when a bad (or even just average) record is symptomatic of a greater issue.

Case in point: Eyes Set to Kill’s 2011 outing, White Lotus. Or, as I like to call it, textbook example #1 of half-assing it.

Eyes Set to Kill’s 2010 album Broken Frames (which made it to my top 10 most listenable records of the year list) was a proof to me that genre and style mean absolutely nothing next to songwriting. Yes, EStK play wussy/poseur/insert-adjective mallcore, but they do so with the songwriting skill young Bon Jovi displayed.

That songwriting skill is present on White Lotus as well–at least for part of it. The first half of the record is a stellar continuation of Broken Frames–two amazing singles, a brief interlude and two more amazing singles, each superior to the last. In fact, track 5, “Where I Want To Be,” might be the best thing they’ve ever written. My sole complaint is that the harsh vocals, now handled by new guitarist Cisko Miranda, are weak. If you’re reading this, EStK, give Derek Rydquist of The Faceless a call–he won’t steer you wrong and he’s free now.

After that things get sketchy. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

SOCIAL MEDIA

 Uncategorized  58 Responses »
Aug 172011
 

This seemed as good a time as any to set out some thoughts that have been rattling around my head, but I’m doing it in the hope of getting some feedback from NCS readers — both those of you who are fans of metal and those of you who are musicians, too, to get both kinds of perspectives. Writers of other metal blogs, PR people, and even label reps sometimes stop by here, too, and those perspectives would also be useful.

So, by social media I mainly have in mind Facebook and MySpace. They serve many functions for their users, but today I’m only interested in what they have to offer metal fans and bands. As I see it, for fans, they serve three primary functions: First, they allow fans to track what the bands they like are up to (ie, news), and to interact with the bands at the same time. Second, they provide a vehicle for listening to new music. Third, they allow fans to interact with each other — and here, I’m thinking mainly about fans exchanging music recommendations and other info about bands and the scene.

For bands, social media serve goals that are connected to the functions they provide for fans: First, they give bands a way to stay connected to their fans by providing a place where they can post news items and comments and get feedback.  Second, they provide a vehicle for attracting new fans — a place where they can stream their music, provide music downloads and videos, and post basic info, such as how the band started and its history to date, who’s in the band, descriptions of the music, links to other sites related to the band, etc. Third, they provide a forum where musicians can exchange ideas among themselves and make connections with each other.

When we started this blog more than a year and a half ago, MySpace was the dominant social media presence for music. For me as a budding metal blogger, it was the one place where I knew I could go and listen to virtually any band’s music. I could read their MySpace blogs for news, and I could use MySpace messaging to communicate with them. It was like one-stop “shopping”. Back then, I didn’t pay much attention to Facebook, because it just didn’t really offer much in the way of music resources. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

ARISTEIA

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  3 Responses »
Aug 172011
 

(Here’s a quick music recommendation from TheMadIsraeli. Djeathcore anyone?)

Ever since The Contortionist came on the scene and introduced the concept of melodic deathcore infused with djent (or as I’ve deemed it, djeathcore) fewer bands have tried to adopt this style than you’d expect. I’ve only heard two other bands doing this, and they’re doing it well: an up and coming band (whose EP will be reviewed here soon) called Substructures, and these guys, Aristeia. I just stumbled upon what I’m under the impression is this band’s second EP, The Era Of The Omnipotent — and it’s killer stuff.

This is an assault of furious blasting, brutal grooving, and beautiful ambience all in a tight, consistent, 6-song package. Syncopated grooves, blast beasts, brutal 7-string chuggathons, all with nice, emotional melodies and some awesome mood setting-ambience. I’m not reviewing this, I’m just telling you to stop fucking around, pick this up, and support these guys. Songs from the album are after the jump . . . Continue reading »

NOW THIS IS HOW TO DO A CD RELEASE SHOW

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  17 Responses »
Aug 162011
 

I’ve mentioned that I have an impulse-control problem. Case in point: I took a short break from the job I’m actually being paid to do so I could check my NCS e-mail, and I saw the name Beyond Creation in a press release I got, and the short break turned into a long break. You may remember Beyond Creation — a Montreal band whose Marco Hasmann album cover for their 2011 debut, The Aura, lured us into checking out the music in one of our EYE-CATCHERS posts (here). To quote myself (because if I don’t, who else will?):

“We’re too lazy to keep Best of the Year lists, but if we did, I’m pretty sure The Aura would be in my personal Top 20, maybe my Top 10. . . Beyond Creation is a head-spinning trip like few bands you’ll hear this year.”

What I learned in the press release from Ricburn Media were three things: First, there’s a Toronto death-metal band called Nephelium who will be releasing their new album, Coils of Entropy, on August 20. Second, to celebrate the event, Nephelium is headlining a CD release show in Toronto on the same day, with support from (you guessed it) Beyond Creation, as well as two other Toronto bands, Nexortus and Fragile Existence. Third, to celebrate the event, the four bands on the bill teamed up to make available a free digital split via Bandcamp, consisting of one song from each band.

I just like everything about the way this is being done, but most especially, I like the idea of offering a free digital comp to promote a metal show — one song from each band. IMHO, the same idea would work just as well for tours, too. In addition to helping spotlight the show, it also uses the show to help introduce fans to the bands’ music. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

WITH A NAME LIKE “SUCKFEST”, IT’S GOT TO BE GOOD

 Metal News  9 Responses »
Aug 162011
 

When I was growing up, in the larval pre-metalhead stage of development, I remember watching TV ads for Smucker’s jelly that featured the slogan: “With a name like Smucker’s, it’s got to be good!” I didn’t understand that slogan at the time. Smucker’s jelly did taste good in the PBJ sandwiches I used to take to school, so I didn’t see why it had to taste good just because the name was Smucker’s.

Looking back, I get it now: The company might have been able to fool consumers into thinking the jelly was good, even if it tasted like shit, by calling it something like “Orgasm of the Gods”, or maybe “Fucker’s”. But because the name was Smucker’s, which had no sex appeal at all, the jelly had to stand or fall on its own intrinsic merit.

Where was I going with this? Oh yeah, where I was going was the subject of a new metal festival called “Suckfest”, sponsored by our friends at MetalSucks. “Suckfest” is a clever name, but it’s also a ballsy name, because with a name like that, it had better be good. At least they’re off to a good start, announcing yesterday that Day 1 of the fest will be headlined by Municipal Waste and Day 2 by Cynic. The rest of the 20 bands will be announced over time, and we’re mighty curious to see the rest of the line-up.

We’re also mighty proud to see a metal blog as the lead sponsor for a whole 2-day, 20-band festival in New York. Really, that’s an impressive accomplishment. Granted, it’s not quite as impressive as the NCS-sponsored, nationwide FUCKING GOOD PANCAKE TOUR, but it does have the very slight advantage of being real. We’ll be keeping our eyes on the unfolding of the line-up. We might even have one of our own intrepid reporters on site to cover the event. Depends on how well our bake sale goes.

REVISITING THE CLASSICS: “PERSISTENCE OF TIME”

 Revisiting the Classics  7 Responses »
Aug 162011
 

(In light of the positive response to TheMadIsraeli’s “Revisiting the Classics” post about At the Gates, we’ve decided to make this a continuing feature, and all of us here at NCS will be contributing over time. But for the second installment, TheMadIsraeli is back again, and he’s looking back at Anthrax.)

Since you guys liked my “Revisiting The Classics” column, I thought I’d do another until I can pump out the next round of current stuff. Have some good stuff coming down the pipe, including another discography download. But now, we’re talking about Persistence of Time (1990).

This is Anthrax’s best album. NOT Among The Living. Get that notion out of your head. It’s amateur tripe compared to the maturity found on Persistence of Time.

Come on, YOU KNOW YOU LOVE IT. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

ONE HANDED SKULL CRUSHING

 Album Reviews, IQ Subtraction  39 Responses »
Aug 162011
 

My body is a temple. I keep it clean, well-toned, and free of toxic pollutants. I smoke no more than one pack of cigarettes a day, except when I smoke two. I don’t drink enough to float an aircraft carrier, only enough to float a battleship. I eat only free-range pizza and I make sure to include plenty of fruits and vegetables in my daily diet; I make sure to get my bacon double-cheeseburgers with the lettuce and tomato, and Red Vines have fruit in them, right? Someone told me that once.

And as for the body-toning, I lift weights. I’m like the epitome of an addicted gym rat. I lift on a regular schedule, pumping iron like a boss once every six months. And you know what I listen to when I’m bending the bars with massive stacks of iron? Sure you do — evil fucking death metal. I don’t know about you, but I like to make the lifting sessions even more brutal by stacking the bars with the eviscerated corpses of emo scenesters.

And now I’ve found the perfect musical accompaniment for those days in the gym when I make even semi-pro weightlifters gasp in awe at my clean-and-jerk: A four-song EP called The Dumbell Murders by a project fittingly called One Handed Skull Crushing — three metalheads who met at the gym and were united in their anger toward all posers who lift weights to MCR.

One of the dudes behind the skull-crushing is an NCS reader from Gothenburg, Sweden, who finally decided to share with me the year-old fruits of this brutal side project. And it’s such a perfect accompaniment for brutal, emo-hating, iron-pumping gym sessions that I talked him into letting us host a free download of this mutha, with the lyrics included in the download file — because the eloquent lyrics are really what make this musical extravaganza so captivating.  Like these inspirational words from the song “Corpse Lifting”:  (after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

CHIMAIRA: “THE AGE OF HELL”

 Album Reviews  2 Responses »
Aug 162011
 

(Today marks the official release of the new album from Chimaira — The Age of Hell — and Andy Synn provides this review.)

Brothers and sisters, the time is at hand, The Age Of Hell is here… but what, precisely, does this mean, both for fans of the band and the group themselves as they enter this “new age”?

For a long time Chimaira have been a band in search of an identity, from their early days as a semi-industrialised scrappy contender, through their more epic aspirations, their stripped down thrash-based years, their expansive and ambitious resurrection and their darker, more death-tinged recent days of darkness. Perhaps then both the greatest strength, and the greatest weakness, of the band remains their occasionally amorphous style?

No one sounds quite like Chimaira, this is true, yet by the same token it’s often difficult to describe what exactly the Chimaira sound is. Though the crushing, powerhouse core of the band always remains intact, the accentuating sonic characteristics of the band are often diverse to the point of diffusion.

I can see this being a particularly polarising record for Chimaira fans, and would be interested to see how it divides the fan-base along certain lines. This is due to the band’s conscious choice to reach back into their own past to recall certain older styles and influences into service. Different tracks recall moments from each of their albums, from the electro-stomp of Pass Out Of Existence right up to the monolithic lumbering death-metal the band toyed with recently on The Infection. True to their mythical namesake, this record is a chimaera of all the styles the group have employed thus far, serving almost as a “best of” collection, updating and improving on all aspects of their sound, yet without ever really defining itself definitively. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

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