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Hidden Treasures #1: Priestess- Hello Master

As posted on Speed-Clothes.com

Metal's been doing well lately. Every weekend starts with an abundance of new releases, from both national and underground bands, some of them generating buzz within the metal community for x weeks and gaining media attention if the stars align just so. But once the novelty wears off and new material is produced, many treasures end up swept under the rug and forgotten by most. Any idiot can review whatever EP Blabbermouth posted about most recently or worship at the shrine of Rust in the Number of the Puppets… I'm here to kick up the dust on the great releases that have fallen through the cracks. I'm starting off with one of my all-time favorite albums: Priestess' debut Hello Master (released 2005 by Indica Records). Like a great many stoner rock albums that further blur the line between rock and metal, a generous portion of Hello Master is shameless Sabbath worship. Fortunately, that's rarely a bad thing. Sludgy riffs paired with Mikey Heppner's borderline-thrashy vocals make for an underrated gem and one of the best things to come from Canada (I'd say somewhere between Razor and Skull Fist… or Skull Fist and poutine… I'm indecisive.) The album starts with the unrelenting power of "I Am the Night, Colour Me Black", progressing into mellower songs. The album stays consistent with delicious riffs that may as well have come out of the seventies, highly catchy choruses, and the perfect balance of dark and heavy with cheerful and upbeat. Heppner's soulful wailing- almost reminiscent of Ozzy's, if he had no accent and enunciated his words- fits the music to a T. One of the most enjoyable things about Hello Master is the simplicity of it. While definite nods to timeless influences like Black Sabbath and Motörhead are noticeable, Priestess manage to maintain their own style, all the while without overcomplicating their music or lyrics and oftentimes dealing with generic themes (but hey, songs about love and death will never go away… if it ain't broke, keep writing about it, right?). You won't find ridiculous solos or machine gun blastbeats on this album… but it absolutely doesn't need them. Hello Master isn't the most unique album within its genre. It's far from the most technical. But it's also far from forgettable. As far as I'm concerned, it's an absolute masterpiece and worth a listen no matter what kind of metal you're into. Best songs: Blood, Run Home, I Am the Night... Colour Me Black

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I blog for SpeedClothes now!

Long time no see. 

I’m proud to announce that I now contribute reviews of underrated older metal albums to the Weekly Metal Blog on SpeedClothes’ website. So far, only one of my posts (a review of Priestess’ Hello Master) is up. I will be sharing them here as they are posted on the site. 

Find the blog here: https://speed-clothes.com/blogs/the-weekly-metal-blog

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Review: Paralysis- You Can’t Win (EP)

They’re winning.

 After nearly two years, New Jersey thrashers Paralysis have their second EP, You Can’t Win, coming out on May 20, 2016.

While their 2014 debut, No Turning Back, was decent, You Can’t Win completely blows it out of the water. Armed with their strongest lineup to date and guest appearances from thrash legends, the boys are all grown up and ready to kick serious ass with one of the best things to happen to modern thrash metal.

 You Can’t Win opens up with a solid, high-octane title track. You know when a thrash album has that really slow intro that gradually builds momentum and then gives way into face-ripping thrash? This is a prime example, and once the song kicks in, the huge improvement since the first EP is immediately apparent. Jon Plemenik has improved noticeably as a vocalist, and new members Weston Mahalic (drums) and Ron Iglesias (lead guitar) bring immense skill to the table. The lightning-fast shredding and thunder-like drumming remain consistent and punishing throughout, like a full-on sensory assault. The gang vocals on the chorus add a nice touch, and as a lovely surprise for fans of old-school thrash, Tankard’s Gerre makes a guest appearance after an insane solo.

 Up next is Silent Killer. The crushing riffs on this one, combined with Jon’s signature harsh vocals, remind me of Toxic Holocaust’s finest works, but the hint of influence isn’t at all overwhelming. The guitar solo is outstanding, on par with the classics every metalhead knows and loves. While it’s not the best song on the EP, it’s still a great one.

Track 3, Transgression, is my personal favorite. Toxik’s Josh Christian lends his guitar chops to this ripper, and the result is a hard-hitting pit anthem. Transgression is blistering and brutal from start to finish. The lyrics are powerful and scathing and the chorus is delightfully heavy. Transgression is a rollercoaster of a song- insanely fast when it needs to be, dropping pace when appropriate to deliver a heavier blow, and is guaranteed to give you whiplash.

The following song, Scars, featuring Bobby Gustafson (Satan’s Taint, ex-Overkill) on lead guitar, is shorter and slightly slower in comparison to the rest of You Can’t Win. However, everything it lacks in speed and length it makes up in brutality.

We come to an end of our epic thrash journey with All Your Lies. Instrumentally, it’s probably my second favorite. The chorus is extremely catchy, and if you’re into screaming along at gigs, this song is for you.

With just five songs, Paralysis have proven that there will indeed be no more bullshit on their part. You Can’t Win is the perfect example of modern thrash metal done right, and everything I had hoped it would be. In a genre where too many bands try to replicate classics and worship legends, Paralysis is a breath of fresh air with original, brutal, highly enjoyable thrash metal. They sound like Skull Fist and they’re winning, alright.

You Can’t Win comes out on Friday, May 20.

Tour dates: https://www.facebook.com/paralysisnj/app/123966167614127/

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Review: Desolate Isolation/Lifeproof- Drowning in Despair (split)

“All good things come to an end,” shrieks Lifeproof’s multi-instrumentalist Vex on The Inseparable Pair of Tragedy and Solemn (All Good Things), the intro track to Drowning in Despair, his split with fellow one-man black metal project Desolate Isolation. However, this is just the beginning of a very good thing. 

 I’ve been a fan of Desolate Isolation for a while now, and I can say that Kraven’s latest work did not disappoint. All three Desolate tracks on this split are everything I expected—thoroughly brutal, punishing black metal that storms the darkest crevices of the human experience, heavy with a thousands of years of humanity’s anguish and despair.

Lifeproof’s approach is slightly different. While the Lifeproof tracks definitely do not lack in brutality, Vex’s goal is clear from the first song: drown the listener in despair. Lifeproof will pick apart every wound you thought had fully healed and bring every miserable, depressing, or suicidal thought you’ve ever experienced to the surface.

Drowning in Despair pinpoints the gaping void at the core of despondency and rubs your nose in it, but in a way that will leave you desperately wanting more.

I highly recommend this split to any black metal fan, especially those fond of DSBM.

Get it here: https://desolateisolation.bandcamp.com/album/drowning-in-despair

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Review: Torturous Inception- Headfirst Into Oblivion

Move over, Asphyx.

You guys like brutal death metal, yes?

Tortuous Inception fucking deliver brutal death metal.

This band is one of the few things that make me proud to be from Staten Island. Their 2013 debut The Parable of Scorched Earth immediately gained the band widespread respect among fans of Suffocation, Cannibal Corpse, and anything else that sounds like a disturbance deep in the bowels of Hell. 2015’s follow-up EP Headfirst into Oblivion is every bit as devastating and crushing.

These guys don’t fuck around. Before the 60 second mark of the first track, Gored by Horns of Judgment, I guarantee that you will feel like your brain has suffered blunt force trauma at the hands of a raging maniac with a baseball bat. The skull-crushing brutality does not falter at any point. There is no slowing down, only 23 consecutive minutes of the personification of death the brutal way.

Insanely technical, with blistering riffs and vocals akin to Satan gargling barbed wire and broken glass, this EP will assault all your senses, give you a neck workout that would put Corpsegrinder to shame, and leave you anxiously awaiting Tortuous Inception’s next release.

Best song: Strategic Dismemberment

 Buy it here: https://torturousinception.bandcamp.com/album/headfirst-into-oblivion

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♠♠♠ Rest in peace, Lemmy... 49% motherfucker, 51% son of a bitch, 100% legend. ♠♠♠ 

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Review: GRIP- Wolves/Fawn EP

Beauty in destruction

I was contacted by Philly sludge/post-hardcore act GRIP to review their new EP Wolves/Fawn, and I’m glad I was, because this is absolutely sick.

GRIP reminds me of equal parts Cult of Luna and Empty Vessels. They’ve managed to effortlessly marry sludge metal and post-hardcore, and the result is beautiful—harsh and abrasive all the way through, but incredibly haunting and melodic at the same time. Wolves/Fawn is like the musical equivalent of falling into a deep yet restless sleep after too many painkillers and dreaming about crawling through broken glass. I mean this in the best possible way, because I can’t stop listening to it.

Wolves/Fawn draws one in immediately, takes control of all one’s senses, and refuses to loosen its grip (pun intended) until the very end.

My only complaint about Wolves/Fawn is that it’s far too short, and I look forward to hearing more from GRIP.

Get Wolves/Fawn here: https://gripxphilly.bandcamp.com/album/wolves-fawn-ep

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Top 9 EPs From Underground Bands You’ve Probably Never Heard Of

Well, babes, it’s that time of year again when the internet becomes oversaturated with lists of peoples’ favorite albums released in the past twelve months. It’s also high time Municipal Stace joined that party.

But here’s the thing.  

A lot of things have occurred in Municipal Staceland in the past year, and I’ve gotten balls-deep (ovary deep? Do people say that? Should I care? Ugh, anatomy) into the local scene—yay!  I’ve gone to a million local shows and I’ve blown several hundred American dollar on merch and music from these bands. 

 ‘What the hell does this have to do with your half-dead review blog, Stace?” you may catch yourself thinking. Simmer down there. 

Straight to the point- I haven’t listened to most of the major releases of this year because I’ve been too infatuated with this newly discovered abundance of heavy metal within driving distance of MSHQ.  So I’ve decided that my first Top X Albums Of The Year post will focus on local bands and their releases (two of them weren’t released this year, but were included because they’re still worthy of recognition. Good music is timeless) for two reasons: one, I’ve listened to more locals than the bands you’ll find in Decibel this year and two, all of these artists are seriously amazing and deserve recognition outside of the tristate.

Because I obsess over all of these and simply can’t choose which of these are better than others, the order does not in any way indicate my preferences—hence the bullets instead of a numbered list. 

Without further pointless rambling, I present the first ever Municipal Stace Top 9 Underground EPs of the Year list!

 ·         Sicada- Requisition Glorious death-thrash from my hometown (Staten Island, NY). If the thought of an orgy between Revocation, Death, and Exodus that results in a bastard child whose godfather is Pantera brings tears of joy to your eyes, you are going to love Sicada. In a world of generic thrash, Sicada is a breath of fresh air (that will promptly get knocked out of you by a 6’2 dude because it is physically impossible to listen to Sicada and not start/join a mosh pit). Notable feature: an intro that isn’t annoying and unnecessary

·         Shattered Skin- The Dungeon Sessions Holy shit. I don’t know how to genre this because there’s four songs on this EP, none of which really sound alike, and a complete list of bands I was reminded of while blasting it for the seven thousand four hundred thirty sixth time this month is as follows: Iron Maiden, Tool, Carpathian Forest, Pantera, Metallica (sorry, Ryan), Mastodon, Marilyn Manson, and Stone Sour. Into the fiery pits of hell with genres though, this is beautiful and too damn short. Truth be told, if I was numbering this list, Dungeon Sessions would probably make #1. Notable feature: Revolution Flawed. Mainly the vocals on the chorus, but the entire song is pure gold.

·         Demopolis- Realm of Darkness Demopolis is the kind of band that makes you forget Jon Nödtveidt is dead without sounding like a Dissection rip off. I don’t think I need to say anything else (although few bands have merged beauty and brutality quite as well as these guys have). Notable feature: Honestly? The lyric “blood is everyone’s dessert” performed in an evil growl.

·         Midnite Hellion- Enter the Unknown Okay, exception to the rule. Enter the Unknown came out in 2012, but I couldn’t not mention it briefly here because I’ve had it on heavy rotation all of this year. It’s just too damn good. Notable feature: dude, they sound like Powermad.

·         Paralysis- No Turning Back Much to the dismay of the mystery reader who occasionally tries to convince me otherwise through my ask box, I think Paralysis are fucking solid. I’ve always liked the title track, even as a demo (shout-out to those who remember my first post on this blog), but the EP as a whole grew on me a lot between when I first bought it and now. Highly recommended for fans of Toxic Holocaust and neo thrash in general. Notable feature: these guys are around my age, and their first EP is better than some of the well-known thrash that’s been around for decades.

·         Desolate Isolation- A Reach Into the Dark One-man ambient black metal done right. No hipster bullshit, just raw emotion and highly enjoyable yet soul-crushing music. Trve kvlt as fvck. Notable feature: the screams in The Scars That Marred My Throne. Heart eyes emoji.

·         Never- Demo 2015 Never isn’t local (they’re from Australia; one of my buddies from there sent me a CD. Cheers, Shane), but they’re underground and hella good. You can never go wrong with sludgy stoner rock n’ roll. Notable feature: I’ve had Serpent Woman stuck in my head for weeks so I’m going with that. Fun song to skate to, if you’re into that.

·         Beyond Dishonor- Generations Seriously my favorite deathcore band. Not only is the music excellent, they have a fucking song about Breaking Bad, for the love of God. What more do you want? Notable feature: completely unrelated to the EP, but they’ve “covered” Katy Perry’s ET and the video for it is absolutely hilarious. So hilarious that I’m mentioning it here.

·         Proletariat- Liberty and Tyranny This one isn’t from 2015 either, but late 2014 is basically 2015, right? Somewhere between progressive metal and hard/deathcore, Liberty and Tyranny kicks major ass and I can never listen to it just once. Side note, Proletariat fucking BRING IT live (no wonder they won a spot at Knotfest earlier this year. These guys work their asses off and give 200% to their music, and it really shows). Notable feature: my personal favorites are Wither With Me and Cycles

 …aaaaand that’s a wrap. Do yourself a favor and check these bands out, because they’re all incredibly talented. Better yet, go beyond the nine albums that struck my fancy this year—I’m just some girl with a laptop. Check out your locals. Check out bands from the other side of the country. Go to gigs. Buy music. Spread the word to keep the scene alive.  

Happy New Year.

 Stay metal.  

MS

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Review: Lindemann- Skills in Pills

Sex, drugs, and some kind of weird but enjoyable industrial(ish) metal

Peter Tagtgren fucking rules. This is generally accepted as fact.  

Till Lindemann is God himself. Some will debate me on this, but nonbelievers be Buck Dich’d.

So what happens when two legends meet and record an album together? Good songs about bad things.

Who remembers Rammstein’s 2009 release Liebe Ist Fur Alle Da? Ever wonder what it would sound like if it wasn’t Rammstein’s equivalent of St. Anger/Super Collider/Illud Divinum Insanus? Wonder no more. Lindemann’s Skills in Pills (released 6/23/15) is about as close as it gets.

Skills in Pills is the wild bastard child of two metal gods, likely conceived at a party similar to the one in Rammstein’s Pussy video. It’s a drug-fueled kinky fuckfest (although it has its darker moments, as seen in Yukon or Children of the Sun- my personal favorites). If anything, it’s a trip- start with a cocktail of drugs, fish for fat ladyboys, enjoy a golden shower, then at the end of it all, praise abort(ions). Tagtgren himself had described Skills as a “party album”, and that works.

Surprisingly, the whole album sounds very much like Rammstein (with hints of Pain). The music for it had been composed by Tagtgren, so I was expecting what was essentially Hypocrisy with a different singer, and was surprised (quite pleasantly, despite how awesome that would have been) to hear otherwise.

However, it has its flaws.

The album is sung entirely in English. I am not by any means saying that this is a bad thing. However, Till’s voice commands German. Sure, singing about sexual deviation in meticulous detail works well in either language (and can be quite hilarious, just listen to Fat), but some of the power is lost with English. Musically, the album could have been stronger as well. Party album or not, Lindemann’s vocals call for something heavier and darker. Not to say Skills in Pills was not a good album, but when the men behind Sehnsucht and the Fourth Dimension collaborate, expectations are higher.

However, without bias based on the impressive discographies behind Tagtgren and Lindemann, Skills in Pills is fucking solid. Get it. If you think it sucks, you can at least enjoy the photos in the booklet.

Buy Skills in Pills here: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/skills-in-pills-only--best-buy-cd/7879014.p?id=3385449&skuId=7879014

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Review: Melechesh- Enki

Pull out your keyboard warrior gear, it’s controversial opinion time: raw, grim, trve kvlt frostbitten black metal has been overdone to shit. A huge percentage of BM bands end up sounding identical, leaving the genre exhausted and unappealing, like a corpse-painted veteran hooker. 

Enter Melechesh.

Melechesh is a much-needed breath of fresh air in the dank, musty asylum basement that is modern black metal. By taking huge influences from their Middle Eastern roots (their lyrical themes are largely based on Mesopotamian culture) as well as a few hints of ass-ripping thrash and adding that to standard black metal, they've breathed new life into the genre and created something new and refreshing.

Their sixth album Enki (out 2/27 in EU, 3/2 in the UK, and 3/10 in NA) is true to the unique "Mesopotamian metal" style that firmly established Melechesh's place in the world of modern extreme metal. However, while 2010’s Epigenesis was an excellent album, Enki completely blows it out of the water. Enki pulls the listener into the epicenter of the Sumerian desert (in a totally badass way, because metal) and grows more and more epic as it progresses, concluding with a lovely instrumental that leads into thirteen minutes of glorious slayage that's actually worth sitting through. 

My point is, simply put: if trve kvlt frostbitten blerk mertl from beneath the permafrost has you bored to tears, y’all motherfuckers need Melechesh.

 Buy Enki here: http://shop.nuclearblast.com/en/products/sound/cd/cd/melechesh-enki.html

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Review: Arch Enemy- War Eternal

You will know her name.

I'm not going to lie. After years of being an Arch Enemy fan and being hugely inspired by former frontwoman Angela Gossow, I was far from happy with Angela’s departure and can’t say my attitude towards their new singer, The Agonist’s Alissa White-Gluz, was at all welcoming. The first few times I listened to their ninth album War Eternal (released June 9 2014 by Century Media), I crywanked over Angela like many others.

But damn it, Alissa won me over.

While some fans might bitch that “muh arch enemy iz turning in2 the agonist boohoo ;-;”, War Eternal shows that Arch Enemy is as strong as ever, and Angela has passed the torch to someone well deserving.

What it comes down to is, Alissa White-Gluz is every bit as good a vocalist as Angela Gossow had been, and her brutal vocals fit Arch Enemy’s trademark melodic death metal to a T. Musically and lyrically, the album is undiluted, pure Arch Enemy. War Eternal delivers everything one would expect from the band by now- Michael Amott’s blistering solos, brutal female vocals, powerful lyrics, and fourteen crushing, yet catchy anthems for the apocalypse.

Buy War Eternal here: http://smarturl.it/wareternalAMAZON

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Review: Emigrate- Silent So Long

After seven years of silence, Emigrate have spoken. Rammstein’s Richard Z. Kruspe, Combichrist’s Joe Letz, & co. have released their sophomore album Silent So Long on December 9.

The follow-up to 2007’s self-titled debut has shattered the silence effectively with tracks to suit every taste- from the deliciously dark to the “how in the name of juicy butt-shaped fruits did this get on a metal record?”- and an equally wide variety of guest vocalists: from Marilyn Manson and Motorhead’s legendary Lemmy Kilmister to… uh, Peaches.

Yeah, that Peaches. Hold on, fuckin' Peaches on a metal album? That’s blasphemy, right? This should not have happened, right? This couldn’t have possibly worked, right?

Wrong. While certainly unexpected, work it did, and while Silent So Long borrows few elements from Rammstein’s signature industrial brain sodomy that we’ve come to know and love, Kruspe knows exactly what he’s doing.

This is not an album you’ll end up moshing to in a beer-fueled frenzy. However, this odd hybrid of industrialelectropopmetal will permanently embed itself in your head, and as much as you’ll probably want to hate it, you simply won’t.

Buy Silent So Long here: https://shop.rammstein.de/en/catalog/Visuals-Sounds/CD/Emigrate-Album-SILENT-SO-LONG/product_info.html?cPath=115_39&products_id=1267

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Review: In Flames- Siren Charms

In Flames have released their highly anticipated eleventh studio album Siren Charms yesterday, September 5.

Siren Charms has been a controversial subject since singles Rusted Nail and Through Oblivion were posted online: while some fans gladly embraced In Flames' new alt-metal sound, others called for a return to the band's initial melodic death roots. Though this album lacks similarities to Whoracle or The Jester Race, it’s still quality metal when approached with an open mind.

 Fans of Anders Fridén’s clean vocals will thoroughly enjoy Siren Charms, since growls and screams on it are rather few; however there's something for everyone. Instrumentally, this album is as good as anything In Flames have done— their sound has changed and evolved greatly through the years, but it certainly has not worsened. While many metal bands have attempted to adopt a more modern sound and failed horribly, In Flames managed to transition gracefully from melodeath to alternative metal.

While In Flames have certainly softened their sound through the years, Siren Charms still packs a punch, especially with tracks like When The World Explodes, which is highly reminiscent of early In Flames. Love or hate their newer material, Siren Charms doesn’t disappoint. In Flames we trust!

Buy Siren Charms here: https://itunes.apple.com/album/siren-charms/id884978909

In Flames will be touring Europe and North America with Opeth and Red Fang this fall and winter.

[municipalstace]

Review: Judas Priest- Redeemer of Souls

British heavy metal giants Judas Priest are releasing their 17th album, Redeemer of Souls, on July 8th.

Put bluntly, Judas Priest’s glory days are long gone. The latest release is a huge step away from the albums that made Judas Priest legendary. Rob Halford’s once-powerful voice has aged significantly, and it has not aged well. The band’s overall sound is still quality heavy metal, but it’s difficult to enjoy because the vocals are noticeably weaker. Gone are the days of crushing anthems like You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’ and Night Crawler. Judas Priest has gone soft.

That’s not to say it’s a horrible album: for example, Crossfire, which is reminiscent of Black Sabbath’s most iconic works, and Hell and Back are highly enjoyable, powerful tracks.

Overall, if you want the best of Judas Priest, stick with the classics.

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Empty Vessels interview

Connecticut hardcore/doom duo Empty Vessels returned to Staten Island’s annual Punk Island festival last Saturday, where I had the opportunity to speak to the band.

MS: First things first, what inspired the name Empty Vessels? Allison: The day we were trying to think up a band name, the words “Empty Vessels” came up about three or four different times in different situations. It seemed like a sign.

MS: And who would you say are your biggest influences or inspirations musically? Allison:  Too many specifically...for me, just anything loud, noisy and with some form of feeling behind it.

MS: What, if any, are major sources of conflict for you when writing together? Justin: Not many at all, we just kind of match with our interests and styles so are usually on the same page when writing and creating.

MS: How and with what intentions was Empty Vessels started? Allison: I think our main goal was to not have intentions.

MS: So what are your plans for the immediate future, as well as ultimate goals? Allison: Our newest release we be coming out at the end of June and we'll be doing a US tour through out the summer. No real ultimate goal other then to continue having the opportunity to play music any chance we can.

MS: Are there any bands you’d like to tour with, or work with? Allison: Way too many to list!

MS: Is there a specific statement you guys are trying to make with your music? Allison: I think we just play, and whatever we do is what we do.

MS: From what I’ve heard on your Bandcamp, your last album, Seizures Within Reason, sounds a lot cleaner and more organized than Waves Of Waves did. Do you plan on changing your sound further? Allison: We don't intend for our sound to change but we also don't try to restrict ourselves or go in any specific direction. We just play what we are feeling at the time. Whatever happens, happens.

MS: Is there anything else you'd like the readers to know? Justin: We'd like them to know that we'll be out on tour this summer and they can check out our website www.emptyvesselsmusic.com for all the tour dates. Hopefully we'll see them at a show!

Empty Vessels’ new album, Seizures Within Reason, comes out this Saturday, June 28. Buy it here: http://emptyvesselsband.bandcamp.com/ Tour dates: https://www.facebook.com/EmptyVesselsCT/photos/a.338794269523284.74100.338786569524054/659385247464183/?type=1&theater

[municipalstace]

Review: Empty Vessels- Seizures Within Reason

Imagine an album recorded by Eyehategod, Nirvana, and Death. That’s what Empty Vessels’ latest creation, Seizures Within Reason (released June 28, 2014), sounds like. The New London, CT duo describes itself as “hardcore/noise/doom/punk/surfcore/sludge”, and their follow-up to 2012’s Waves of Waves is just that… and it works out splendidly.

Seizures Within Reason hits you like a nearly fatal overdose of over-the-counter pills, and gives you a hell of a listening experience. It starts out mellow and almost melodic, then next thing you know, you’re being penetrated to the very core with glorious sludgy noise.

Since their debut, Waves of Waves, was released, Empty Vessels have matured significantly and it shows in the new-found order and cleanliness of the filthy, raw chaos that is Seizures. Mixed by Converge’s Kurt Ballou and mastered at Audiosiege, Seizures Within Reason has struck a perfect balance between raw sludge, droning doom metal, hardcore punk, and good production.

Overall rate: 5/5

Buy it here: http://emptyvesselsband.bandcamp.com

[municipalstace]

Review: Deathstars- The Perfect Cult

After five long years and the departure of guitarist Cat Casino, the fabulous Deathstars have delivered exactly what fans were expecting with their fourth album, The Perfect Cult.

Cat’s absence doesn’t noticeably affect this latest release, and the Swedish quartet has managed to maintain their signature sound even with one less member. Deathstars could easily be called the Motorhead of industrial metal—every record sounds the same, but every record is consistently awesome. If you’re a fan of Rammstein’s Sehnsucht and Combichrist’s Joy of Gunz, this album will strike your fancy.

The band’s melodic, yet aggressive electronic music paired with Whiplasher Bernadotte’s unique combination of death growls, seductive whispers, and sonic booms instead of regular vocals yields gems whose sound can only be roughly described as industrial metal meets glam metal meets melodic death metal. Explode and All the Devil’s Toys are prime examples of this style, as well as the most enjoyable tracks on the record. The album is generally very consistent, although Temple of the Insects sounds a bit more edgy and aggressive than the rest of the songs. Even so, it follows the Deathstars template.

While The Perfect Cult is sonically pleasing, it’s not extraordinarily unique or particularly surprising, and if you’ve heard older Deathstars material, you’ve heard The Perfect Cult. Overall rate: 3.5/5

Buy it at any of the links listed here: https://www.facebook.com/deathstars/posts/10152502655339645