Tear the riff off: ASG, Krisiun, Inquisition

ASG - Win Us Over Inside layout

The secret word of the day - every day - is riffs. I've reviewed some nice batches. The latest record by ASG has the best riffs I've heard this year. Imagine a whole album of "March of the Fire Ants" or "Hollow Severer." The rest of stoner metal might as well give up. Brazilian death metallers Krisiun understand the art of the riff. So do Colombian black metallers Inquisition. Support the arts, folks.

ASG - Right Death Before
Krisiun - Sentenced Morning
Inquisition - Nocturnal Gatherings and Wicked Rites

I've also reviewed retro revivalists Bigelf, Pelican-plus Capricorns, drum machine grinders Enemy Soil, NYHC veterans Inhuman, and Bay Area rollers Totimoshi.

Good reads elsewhere: Phil Freeman's feature on Runhild Gammelsaeter, Brandon Stosuy's interview with Hammers of Misfortune, Todd DePalma's interview with Arghoslent, Adrien Begrand's feature on John Darnielle's book about Master of Reality. Some killer quotes in the latter, especially this one:

I think the indie aesthetic is pretty invested in a very old, very tired idea about whether the creator and the audience are in agreement about what makes the music good. The indie audience wants to feel like the people on stage are their people. I think the metal audience is quite different, insofar as it’s composed of people who are less willfully outsiders and more genuinely outside - people who’re so used to being on the outside that they don’t give a shit whether anybody else in the room is feeling what they’re feeling. You see this at metal shows: one or two dudes off to the side air-guitaring wildly right on the edge of the pit, just not giving a shit. I think that level of individuation, of comfort with not fitting in, is something that indie audiences are uncomfortable with...

Is this true? One could arguably switch in "metal" for "indie" here.

Sepultura - Revolusongs

Speaking of "Bullet the Blue Sky," Sepultura recorded the song for their 2002 covers EP Revolusongs, which came out in Brazil and Japan, as well as on the limited edition digipak of Roorback. The Derrick Green era of Sepultura has generally underperformed, so it's unsurprising that its highlight is a cover. As "Bullet" shows, Green is a more talented vocalist than Max Cavalera. However, the band badly misses Cavalera's guitar interaction with Andreas Kisser. As the main riff-writer now, Kisser just isn't cutting it.

Bullet the Blue Sky (U2)
Bullet the Blue Sky (Sepultura)

However, he tears into The Edge's riffs with amazing ferocity. What were once textures are now flagellations. Igor Cavalera's drumming is a tour de force of tasty fills and tribal accents. Green roars with conviction that challenges Bono's. He's an American in a Brazilian band covering an Irish band indicting the US involvement in the Salvadoran Civil War; I'm not sure if that's interesting, or indicative of how diluted Sepultura have become. This cover, though, is concentrated fury. Finally, the rage of "Bullet" has a sound to match.

Revolusongs is my favorite recording by Green-era Sepultura, mainly because its song selection is so interesting. It has metal (Hellhammer, Exodus), but it also has Devo and Public Enemy (the latter of which features bad-ass rapping in Portuguese). Most intriguing is the trio of "Bullet the Blue Sky," Massive Attack's "Angel," and Jane's Addiction's "Mountain Song." These songs are quite similar - heavy, bass-driven, psychedelic blues with common lineage in Led Zeppelin's "When the Levee Breaks." Sepultura were onto something with this vibe; too bad they didn't pursue it further.

Fight Amp, Avenger of Blood, Brutus, and more

Fight Amp

At Pitchfork, I've reviewed Fight Amp, a '90s AmRep throwback whom I suspect has a Danzig fetish. The recording is tough; the guy-girl vocals are tougher. At All Music Guide, I've reviewed Avenger of Blood (German thrash from Las Vegas), Barbara (artful Israeli sickness), Bilk (Croatian drum 'n' bass 'n' rock), Brutus (Caesar-slaying Dutch death metal), Cypher 7 (Bill Laswell-helmed IDM/dub), Last Chance to Reason (Maine calculus-core), The Phantom Family Halo (retro with a capital R), Primordial (the pride of Ireland), PureH (electronic desolation), Ratos de Porão (the pride of Brazil), and Shinjuku Thief (a soundtrack to Kafka's The Trial). You can also disregard this list and window-shop in the sidebar.

Fight Amp - Bound and Hagged
Avenger of Blood - Death Brigade

Ratos de Porão - Anarkophobia

Speaking of rats, Brazil's Ratos de Porão ("basement rats") began in 1981. In 1984, they released Crucificados Pelo Sistema, purportedly the first hardcore punk album in South America. You may recognize the name from Sepultura's cover of the title track on 1993's Refuse/Resist EP. Last year Metal Mind reissued RDP's late-'80s/mid-'90s records on Roadrunner. 1989's Brasil may be the best crossover thrash record I've ever heard - it's raging.

Death of the King
Rise and Fall

1990's Anarkophobia was RDP's second record for Roadrunner. Evidently the band caught flak for becoming "too thrash," which is like complaining that sex is "too good." But I can understand the gripe - the songs on Anarkophobia are slightly longer and more technical, and the record isn't as direct and punchy as Brasil.

Still, I loves me some thrash, especially when it comes from a singer named Gordo and a drummer named Spaghetti. I'd bet that the band was listening to Anthrax, as the picking patterns are often Scott Ian-esque. "Death of the King" evokes early Prong, while some of the slinkier riffs recall Slayer.

But RDP didn't ditch their punk roots. (Gordo once told me his favorite bands all began with "Dis": Discharge, Disrupt, and Disfear.) "Born to Suffer" could almost be a Sex Pistols song, and the band turns the Ramones' "Commando" into a gruff Bad Religion rave-up. Who doesn't like Ramones songs in Brazilian accents?

In typical Metal Mind fashion, this reissue has a spiffy digipak with bonus live tracks, complete lyrics, historical photos, and biographical info. Metal Mind has scores of such reissues - how do they afford it?

Anarkophobia is available at CM Distro, Relapse, and Interpunk.

The Ordher - Weaponize

The Ordher consist of ex-members of Brazilian death metal bands Rebaelliun and Nephasth, the latter of whom appeared on Relapse's Brazilian Assault compilation back in 2000. Their full-length debut, Weaponize, is a departure from the technical death metal that's Unique Leader's trademark. Instead, it's much more straightforward, recalling fellow countrymen Krisiun, though more melodic and not so relentless.

Weaponize
The Poison
The Razor's Edge (AC/DC cover)

Interestingly, Weaponize harkens back to old-school death metal - much of it is essentially extremely fast thrash - yet it has melodic touches that are modern and catchy. The album is 40 fat-free minutes with an interlude placed perfectly in the middle for that "Side A/Side B" feel. Blazing speed is the M.O., though the band often drops into awesomely headbangable grooves. That ripping thrash section at 1:21 in "The Poison" makes me want to find random people and smash their skulls together (an atypical impulse in my advancing age). Leads are brief but fiery, often with wah-wah enhancement. The vibe isn't "evil" so much as "intense."

On its site, the band has posted a cover of "The Razor's Edge," one of my favorite AC/DC songs. Great taste, great chops, great band. Weaponize is one efficient killing machine, and some of the best death metal I've heard in a while. It's available at Unique Leader, which not only has its usual "Buy 3 CD's, get the 4th free" deal, but also a holiday special of a free Unique Leader T-shirt with a $36 purchase - the price of 3 CD's. Bang your head!

Vougan - Silent Souls

What a debut! Vougan is a Brazilian power metal quintet that impresses mightily on the Silent Souls EP, available as a free download. The EP contains five tracks - an instrumental plus two fast and two slow tunes. The faster numbers have hints of Priest, as well as other unexpected bits. "Behind the Lies" unleashes rides galore and delightfully burbling, fusion-esque keys, while the title track resounds with unexpectedly soulful vocal harmonies.

Behind the Lies
L.O.S.T.

For me, the test of a power metal band is the slow song (i.e., can they do one without making me vomit). "Unspeakable" is a typical piano power ballad, but "L.O.S.T." delivers with quasi-exotic melodies, tribal drumming, and deliberate grooves a la later Queensrÿche (in a good way). The production is strong, preserving guitar bite while keeping keyboards balanced in the mix. Most people will hear the EP as a download, but the physical version has a cool, heavy stock sleeve with a nifty pocket for the CD.

Vougan will release its first full-length, Mind Exceeding, this fall, featuring new singer Izack Salvatierra. They're not signed yet??? Given this EP, that should change soon.

Stormental - Self-Titled

The Conquer

Self-Released
2006



Brazil's Stormental gives "ProgPower" new meaning by splitting the difference between the genres. Its sound is surprisingly stripped down, as the band only has four members, with one guitarist and no keyboards. Thus, the instrumentalists have more room to flex their considerable skills, with particularly fine work by the bassist.

I never thought I'd say this, but I wish the vocals were more over-the-top. The singer hits his notes, but I found myself wanting more oomph. I realize that's essentially asking for more cheese, but there is a perverse pleasure in glass-shattering vocals that make your balls shrivel up in pain. Instead of big, technicolor peaks, these songs coolly glide along, with occasional flashes of shredding.

Adding to this sense of restraint is the bare production. The guitars sound so dry that I'd wager that they were recorded direct. I also never thought I'd say this, but I wish the production were "wetter" - more reverb, lusher, deeper. This is a slippery slope, of course, but more sonic depth would enhance the epic nature of the melodies.

The lyrics are also quite epic, with a historical/colonization theme running throughout. They read like textbooks: "In the end of feudal system, Europe was in crisis / A lot of homeless were living in the streets / Everyone was searching for gold and silver / And a foreign place for providing raw material." Not very rock 'n' roll, but if your Settlers of Catan game needs a soundtrack, you know where to go.

Stormental's debut album is available as a free download at its website. I'm not sure how I feel about bands giving away their music this way. Is it desperation? Cost cutting? A clever way to get people to hear music? All of the above? Regardless of motive, the album, complete with Sadus-esque font, is worth checking out.

Blakk Market - Hateful Affection

Twisted Broadcast

Self-Released
2004



This demo CD has two original songs, but it also includes a video, photos, and two "pre-production" MP3's. The band also sent a paper bio with full-color photos along with another CD containing two MP3's, a cover of Anthrax's "Indians" and another "pre-production" track. I don't know why the band calls these other tracks "pre-production" instead of "demos." Since some of this stuff is newer, and the actual demo is three years old, I'll treat this all as one entity.

However, I've never gotten a submission with this high an extra stuff to music ratio. The demo comes with a logo of the guitar company sponsoring the band, for crying out loud. It's good to be serious about the business of being a band, but I can't help but feel that Blakk Market is letting that overshadow its music.

As for that aspect, this Brazilian band does competent melodic thrash/death metal. The somewhat raw recording hinders the force of the material, and the band isn't as tight as it could be. The guitarists can play, though, busting out with fluent harmonies, and the drumming has some interesting accents. The vocals are thin, but perhaps that's because they're low in the mix. Better production, especially with more low end, would help the band, as well as some good old-fashioned woodshedding to weld it into more of a sonic unit.

The Anthrax cover really puts things in perspective, as the songwriting of "Indians" is much stronger than the rest of this demo. It has catchy riffs and choruses, coherent transitions, and a sense of identity and drive that Blakk Market's songs don't have yet. The band has good taste, at least, and hopefully it can learn from this example. Its newest track, "Nova," begins with a chord progression so Lacuna Coil-ish that at first I thought it was a cover, too. And what are those syrupy keyboards doing in the mix? This band has the skills to do what it wants; it just has to figure out what that is.

Refuse/Resist

If YouTube is any indication, Sepultura's "Refuse/Resist" holds a strange fascination for children.

Exhibit A is a video showing two brothers playing the song. I'd guess that the drummer is about eight years old, and the singer/guitarist is about six. The latter is playing a guitar that's practically taller than himself. He's also wearing a Pikachu shirt. His vocal ad libs are somewhat disturbing. Not only does he do the "Fuck it up" that comes before the main riff enters (actually, I think it's supposed to be "Fuck shit up"), he also does some "Uh"s on the upbeats. Has he been watching Sepultura live tapes? Did he go to a show? Where did he learn to do the "fret hand over the neck" trick?

More importantly, where are the parents? Are they filming this? Or is it the bad influence older brother? Would you let your elementary schoolers listen to Sepultura? There's no way I would, unless they got educated in Black Sabbath first. Sabbath at two, Maiden at four - that's about the right trajectory for rocking Sepultura at six.

Kids playing Refuse/Resist



Exhibit B is a video showing two children dancing to this song. This is one of the most surreal things I've ever seen. The girl in the Powerpuff Girls mask is something else. In terms of compulsive viewing of car crash-like phenomena, she's somewhere between the Dancing Baby and the Star Wars Kid. It's kind of like watching Donnie Darko minus the plot and Jake Gyllenhaal. The poor boy doesn't have much rhythm, but he manages to sync up with the girl near the end for some credible "Jumpdafucup" action.

Kids dancing to Refuse/Resist



How did this video get made??? Did Uncle Frank, the one with the tattoos, say, "Kids, want to do something fun?" Were they coerced into doing this? If so, someone should call Child Protective Services. I'm reminded of that Simpsons episode where Burns shoots a gun at some guy's feet and tells him to dance.

To get some, ahem, chest hair back into all this, here's the original video. It's pixilated as hell, but what can you do. Enjoy!

Sepultura - Refuse/Resist

The Sceptic - Psychopathological

If you order four or more CD's at a time from Willowtip, they send you free stuff from their "shitbox." Psychopathological came from said box, and my expectations were pretty low, given the horrible artwork (note to bands: putting fat, bloody people on album covers does NOT make people want to buy them). The logo, too, was straight out of the "glut-of-death-metal" '90s. Plus, on the back cover, one band member was credited with "programmed drums." I was skeptical, so to speak.

Thus, I was pleasantly surprised to hear five songs of ripping old-school death metal, done the way it should be done - blastbeats, chunky riffs, tremolo picking, low but intelligible death growls, and just enough melody. These guys have got that old-school feeling down. I got a vibe that I seriously haven't felt since the '90s, from Carcass, Death, all that good stuff. That means, of course, that this band breaks no new ground; but then again, 99% of bands don't (which leads to things called "genres").

The programmed drums are actually decent. No one would mistake them for real drums, and the programming skill isn't as high as, say, with Necrophagist. But they do the job, and once one adjusts to their rigidity, one starts focusing on what's important - the guitars. I get a strong Symbolic-era Death vibe here, which is always a good thing. The leads are fluent and run the gamut from sweep picking to tasteful dive bombs to Heartwork-esque melodies. As I list these references, I realize these guys aren't as brutal as their artwork suggests (even the band name is later Death-esque). But there are already tons of ultra-brutal bands anyway, and it's rare to hear guitar work this effective and enjoyable.

The lyrics make no sense ("Neurotic manners/Of a mental illness/Languid capacity/Unbalanced personality," etc.), but The Sceptic gets a free pass since they're Brazilian. I wish more bands sang in their native languages, which often sound so much more bad-ass than English (check out !T.O.O.H.! for crazy vocals in Czech). Sure, English is more "universal," but if you're going to butcher it and no one understands the vocals anyway, why not grunt and growl in your native language? That's a tangential gripe, which in no way should affect one's enjoyment of these songs.

The Sceptic - Psychocenesis
The Sceptic - Soul Sickness

This self-released EP has no bar code/Amazon presence/etc., so to get it, you should contact the band via its website.