Reviews: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Reviews - T DSFA RECORDS I put this in my CD player, and as soon as the first track started, I began to cringe. A little later, I was fully cowering, and I turned the damn thing off before I was reduced to slobbering idiocy. Why didn't I like this disc? I don't know, but maybe because it's stupid alterno-techno-metal-grunge crap. Maybe I'm just in a bad mood? (No, it sucks.) Who really cares, I don't think you'll like this CD unless you're a total retard, so just forget about it. Mike,I don't know where you got this CD, but I think it's time to throw it back! MIKE
TANK - "FILTH HOUNDS OF HADES" REPERBOIRE REC. Have you ever heard of the new wave of British heavy metal? No? Why then, find out a little about this band. This title is from 1982, yes, I said 1982. It is still available at your local "weird import metal shop" if you bug the owner long enough to order it from Europe. Any way, this release was produced by Eddie "Legendary X- MOTORHEAD guitar god" Clark. The voice is rough, similar to AC/DC, VENOM MOTORHEAD, etc... The style is very straight ahead in-your-face metal power. This CD contains the song, "Turn Your Head Around" which SODOM covered a few years back. Find out why so many people love this band. LIEFF
TEARABYTE: GLOOM FACTORY SCREAMING FERRET Talk about stupid! This is some lame chugga thrash and hardcore! All they do is scream about how they hate everyone and how they are victims due to everyone around them. Boo hoo, they sound "angry" at the world. You know what the funny part is, these guys are old!! They look old and sound stupid. If you can imagine a bunch of really drunk, old red-necks playing bad Pantera covers to an empty bar somewhere in Texas on a Monday night, then you might have an idea. www.screamingferret.com Mauricio Araniva
TERROR 2000 - Terror for Sale NUCLEAR BLAST RECORDS Just a big ketchup fiesta of beer and speedy moronic thrash with lyrics about metal and Kerry King, King Kong, the Cookie Monster, barbecue and stupidity in general. This project is fast, fast and tight, with screaming, growled and wacky vocals. It's the opposite of overproduced and serious. This is a joke with tequila on the side, and vodka for dessert. Soilwork's vocalist is the screamer here, except that here he sounds like a numskull. www.terror2k.cjb.net www.nuclearblastusa.com Mauricio Araniva
THANATOS - "ANGELIC ENCOUNTERS" (label?) Very high crisp guitars, deep and screaming vocals switching back and forth. Its mostly speed and pretty repititous, although now and then its got some pretty good grind in it. I would say the best song on there is their cover of "Corpse Grinder" by Massacre. Its just not much of variety and its too filled with speed and blast beats. Rogue
THEATRE OF TRAGEDY - "['MJU:ZIK]" Nuclear Blast Okay, it has been a while since I heard this band, but I could have sworn that they played a sort of death/doom metal style, right? A while ago, a long while ago, 'zine reviews were comparing them to My Dying Bride. Well, what is it with bands changing drastically in style and not changing the freakin name!? Paradise Lost is the main band I'm thinking about as I write this review. You can forget the doom/death style they once had, and now I would definitely call them an electronic band who tries to include their metal influences. Does it work? Well, opinions will definitely vary. As for me, I just don't know what to think yet. Since I haven't heard this band since 1997 or so, I can actually admit that it's pretty catchy and an enjoyable listen. Then again, my taste has changed since then as well, so... This sounds like an 80's electronic band actually. We have male vocals and female vocals, keyboards, a lot of electronic hip-hop dance beats going around, and some guitar work, where they try and blend in their metal, though I really don't think that word is in their vocab. anymore. Anyway, if you're into Ramstein, KMFDM, or any other band along those lines, this will definitely be for you! I'll keep listening and see what it does for me. Mike
THINE EYES BLEED - IN THE WAKE OF SEPARATION THE END RECORDS 1. "Cold Victim": very tight, intense thrashing, in the spirit of Slayer/Kreator. The screaming is very Kreator/Petrozza-ish. A good beginning. Good, but short solo. 2. "Without Warning": Not as fast. Overall, less impressive, though good. 3. "And Since Forgotten": By now the sound has moved more into Killswitch Engage-ish territory. Somewhat more metalcore-ish, but still thrashy. The metalcore/breakdown element is more present. The drumming is now less intense. 4. "Live to Die": The vocals are slightly different, more metalcore-ish screaming. Up until 1:30 into the song, thrashy; after that, slower, metalcore; at about 2:20 the thrash returns and alternates with metalcore riffing. At about 3:35, clean singing comes in. Sounds chic and trendy. 5. "Corpse You up": first :35 is uninteresting riffing, but things get better after :45. Solos come in, rescuing the song from facelessness. At about 2:00 metalcore returns; things get worse. At 2:45 things get a lot better with some cool, thrashy, catchy riffing. At 3:18 the metalcore returns; it's slower with screaming over it. 6. "Innocent Mind": Much better. Thrashy, memorable. The riffing is much better; the solos are good and fit the song really well. 7. "Sliver": A midpaced, thrashy number. I find the vocals annoying with the midtempo riffing. Overall, this sounds like filler material to me. Not much personality. 8. "Consequence Unknown": The guitar work sounds Arch Enemy-ish. Not bad. The solos are good, if short, but the song is just too monotonous. 9. "Regret Your Fear": The vocals are more metalcore. The last slow, melodic solo is good, but too little, too late. www.ThineEyesBleed.com www.theendrecords.com Mauricio Araniva
THREAT SIGNAL - Under Reprisal NUCLEAR BLAST RECORDS When performed in front of a younger audience in 2006, say, into Shadows Fall or Lamb of God, this type of material will be received well because of the overriding characteristic of this cast from Canada is the things that capture the sales, magazine coverage and airplay: (1) the mid 90s Pantera/Fear Factory and hardcore influence, meaning chugging guitar, and (2) the scream/shouted vocals in conjunction with clean singing, popular with core, as well as with bands like In Flames. The sound of the band's metal-core is very professional and booming. On the other hand, there's too much of a formula going on and the lack of original ideas is a problem. www.threatsignal.com www.nuclearblastusa.com Mauricio Araniva
THROCULT - STORMBRINGER--CONJURATION OF THE NIGHTHORDE CRASH MUSIC There's quite a bit of layers going on with this album. In fact, I listened to it some ten times because I kept feeling like I did not really get it at first. This is, for sure, well-performed black metal with a cool chaotic feel. The guitar work and overall sound, really, is to be heard several times to get an idea. The drumming is technical, but sounds more frantic than technical, which is cool, for a change. The riffs can sound dissonant, while thrashing the next. Very promising. For some reason, though, this album never really clicked for me. Too technical maybe? www.crashmusicinc.com Mauricio Araniva
THYRFING- "URKRAFT" This band is somewhat of a hybrid in my eyes, heavy guitars, deep vocals, and a great sound and production, but there is much more to it. Many of their songs are so laden with keyboards putting out a variety of instrument sounds, it gives it a sound that could only be described as "Symphonic Death Metal". They hail from The Netherlands and put out some pretty good music. They are a 6 piece band and definately have talent, however after the first 3 or 4 songs it kinda gets old. If your a fan of this type of music though check them out, they are probably one of the better ones out there. Rogue
TNT - ALL THE WAY TO THE SUN MAYHEM RECORDS Tony Harnell is a very talented and traditional melodic rock singer. The voice is high and clear: think 80's high vocals of the glam rock variety. Ronni LeTekro's soloing is of the guitar idol kind. Combine them and the result; music that will particularly please the audience whose preferences are bands in the style of Foreigner, Journey, Firehouse, Slaughter, etc. Of course, the music is more laid back now because the guys are older now, so the lyrics don't narrate stories about making out in the back seat of a car, etc. There are rocking moments, slower moments, guitar solos, and all the elements needed to have a balanced album. My personal opinion is that this band lacks power or energy. There is no kick. The rocking moments simply do not rock hard enough. There is a song here called "What a Wonderful World" and it is that old song that everyone knows. What's the point in covering this song? I have a TNT record from 1984 called "Knights of the New Thunder" on Polygram Records. One day, when I get motivated, I will get a record player and listen to the album. Having said that, it's obvious that the band thought of itself as a metal band back then. One song is called "Deadly Metal". The title track also says "Bearing the swords of steel/So black you can't see/Armored with will to survive/Taking you dead or alive/Hear the roar of our sound..." See what I mean?! www.tnttheband.com Mauricio Araniva
TO DIE FOR - "ALL ETERNITY" Nuclear Blast I love this CD! You can't tell me that this band didn't listen to The Cure (coincidence?-ed). The catchy 4-chord progressions, the brilliant ear for melody, keyboards, the vocalist's uncanny resemblance to Robert Smith, all of these elements are obviously influenced by the 80's masters of pop, The Cure. Surprises abound on this CD, however. One might be tempted to write them off as another gothic alternative band, until the guitarist unexpectedly tears into some Ynwie like solo licks and the drummer works some tasteful double-bass work into his grooves. On top of that, the female vocals opens up beautifully. This is, in spite of the obvious pop influences, a metal band, and I love how the mix of influences turns out. I look forward to further work from this band and hope to see them live someday. A definite must buy! John Boy
TORSOFUCK - EROTIC DIAHRREA FANTASY GOREGIASTIC RECORDS Ignore the fecal porn cover for now, this is some brutal gore, and these two sickos schmaggle through goriness and brutalness like two seasoned veteran gore schmagglers schmaggling for the beings snockered on whiskey. If that’s not enough, well, let’s face it, that’s enough. Sick samples, guttural vocals, and brutal slamming riffs make up this disc. Now back to the fecal porn cover so I can masturbate to my Erotic Diarrhea Fantasy. www.goregiasticrecords.com Gore Schmaggler
TORTURE KILLER: FOR MAGGOTS TO DEVOUR CANDLELIGHT I'll say this much, this has a pretty good sound, which is cool because they can't say that the production doesn't do them justice. With a sound like this, you can definitely tell, for sure, that this band actually sucks. The cheesy guttural vocals have no feeling, the riffing is total chugga garbage, and the drumming is lame and simple, like AC/DC, Six Feet Under or the Rolling Stones. This band makes Twisted Sister sound like a bunch of talented guys. (Twisted Sister! "I wanna rock!" Ha!) These songs are boring, all mid-paced and no personality. Some of the worst cheesy "death metal" I have heard all year, and they can't blame it on the production, either. For fans of Mortician and of the type of death metal that pays to play at 1 in the afternoon at the Milwaukee Metalfest. Torturekiller@jippi.fi Mauricio Araniva
TRAIL OF TEARS - "DISCLOSURE IN RED" DSFA What this band is doing is "uncool" with all your black metal friends. Why? Because they play (very well): mid-paced doom-death metal, that's melodic, musical, atmospheric, catchy, aggressive, simple, from the heart, multi-layered. With death metal and operatic vocals. Tell your friends to go to hell and check this out. Lieff
TRAIL OF TEARS - FREE FALL INTO FEAR NAPALM RECORDS So, you think you know what this band is like? Read the name and that they are on Napalm Records and you think: goth or folky. Wrong! "Free Fall into Fear" will sucker punch you! You wouldn't expect tight, blazing, blasting speed, but that's what you get. It's not the only thing: the music is often hovering around the fast, faster mid-tempo with lots of double bass, courtesy of one Jonathan Pérez. The polished death/black elements are predominant with substantial, constant clean vocals by Kjetil Nordhus, also a member of Green Carnation. Ronny Thorsten takes care of the growling business. Personally, I'm glad to see the band go in this direction of dark, heavy, faster-paced (somewhat symphonic) black/death with some melodic moments and clean singing. The rawer approach reminded me of why I liked the debut, "Disclosure in Red" back in 1999 or so. I'm glad to see that the blast is not forgotten (Excellent way of putting it!! - Mike). "Carrier of the Scars of Life" and "Cold Hand of Retribution," for example, sound great with the properly placed blasting. www.redheaven.com www.napalmrecords.com Mauricio Araniva
TRAIL OF TEARS - "DISCLOSURE IN RED" DSFA The thing I truly love about DSFA records is the fact they tend to release bands that play my favorite style of metal; melodic, complex, atmospheric, keyboard infested, growls that are accompanied by beautiful female vocals, you know, the style a lot of other people usually put down for some reason: well, probably because a lot of these bands sound the same. Here we have another example of such a band that plays this style. The thing that somewhat upsets me though is that this band is pretty similar to Within Temptation, amongst others. So clearly, this band isn't that original, but you know what, I like it. The music kind of reminds me of black metal at times, but don't be misled by that comment. If melodic music with the above ingredients appeals to your soul, check this out. It isn't bad at all. Mike
TRISTANIA - ASHES SPV/STEAMHAMMER So, there I was, at the corner of State and Gorham, enjoying a slice of pizza, pondering this album, when two people, a man and woman, walked by with matching Tristania shirts on. After that, Satan appeared to me and said: "Go home and write the review." "Right now?!?...I'm eating pizza, you big goof!," I responded, annoyed with Jack. "Fine. Finish the pizza. Dang, what a cranky bastard", said the Horned One, and I did not keep arguing. It's probably a bad idea to get into an argument with that guy. So, I was thinking long and hard (boasting again, as Lemmy would say) and it seems to me that what this band does is very difficult: to combine growled vocals and heavy guitars with high, female vocals--to do that--and not make it sound stupid or corny is difficult. This is not heavy on the keyboards, but centered on crunchy guitars and growled and clean vocals. The songs alternate between melodic, midpaced black/death and lighter numbers. Classy, memorable stuff. www.spv.de/www.spvusa.com Mauricio Araniva
TWELFTH GATE - Threshold of Revelation SEASON OF MIST RECORDS Patience is necessary with this traditional metal high-pitched wailing, lots of time changes, guitars that twist and turn, drumming that is playing a song as much as it is showing off. The first listens can sound downright annoying and headache-inducing. Talk about serious metal! Nevertheless, repeated listens reveal that, in fact, there is a real coherence, that the songs do flow and that the considerable talent is put to good use. Furthermore, more listens bring forth all sorts of things not obvious earlier on, which only encourages more listens. After a while it becomes apparent that there is lots of thrashing going on. Technical, progressive power thrash like this goes over some people's heads the first few times they hear it, but the person that enjoys dedicated musicality will note this 40-minutes-plus album gets better each time. www.twelfthgate.net www.season-of-mist.com Mauricio Araniva
TURMOIL - "THE PROCESS OF:" Century Media If you like teeth smashing, in yo' face ass kicking hardcore/metal and music in the vein of Dead Guy and Dillinger Escape Plan, then this is for you. Brutal vocals, off beat rhythms, heavy as hell riffs and melodies, you name it! Stuff like this gets me to the point I wanna bust some heads! If you like brutal metal core, get this for sure! Eric |
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