Donnerstag, 29. November 2012

JOEY RAMONE - "...YA KNOW?" (Sometimes they come back... the second solo album of the legendary Joey Ramone, a posthumous release; released as a CD in 2012 via a corporation between "ROUGH TRADE DISTRIBUTION" & "BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT")

JOEY RAMONE - "...YA KNOW?"
("Rough Trade Distribution" & "BMG Rights Management"; CD):
Here's something special and something you might can call a goody or some sort of a gift or something like this. The posthumous released second full length solo album of the legendary JOEY RAMONE, all done, compiled/produced and realized by his brother. I saw it some day this sommer and this also for only 9 Euros, a pretty low price for a brandnew full length album, what shall I say, clear that I bought it, not at least because I wanted to buy it anyway and also I am a big fan of the almighty and legendary RAMONES. If you know about the, hm, let us say background mixture of subculture, music, personal issues and social environment that marked the growing up and the life of JOEY RAMONE the music on this disc should be no suprise to anyone. Okay, I know about it only slightly and just by reading about it, but I had a pretty good idea about it anyway and was very excited about finally listening to it. Then the opener blasted me nearly away, "ROCK'N'ROLL IS THE ANSWER" is and gives us exactly what it promises: Rock'n'Roll; and this in  a very pure and just damn great way. Snotty, slightly punky, pretty strong by Glam or however you may would like to name it influenced classical Rock & Roll that you can imagine like a authentic, snotty, rebellious, earthed and organic, ''punky'' and ''glamy'' version of THE ROLLING STONES and the likes of it that rocked the shit out of the youth over the 1960's and the 1970's. And like this it goes on here on this very one. But unfortunately not all that strong and good. But it's also only rarely gets bad on the track. All in all we get fifteen tracks of sympathic snotty, authentic punky, pretty energetic and nicely dynamic classical Glam influenced Rock & Roll music full of melodies, as well as emotions and passion for and in the music. Best showcased and displayed in great songs like the larger than life opener anthem track "ROCK'N'ROLL IS THE ANSWER", the pretty melancholical tuned "GOING NOWHERE FAST", the hymnal "NEW YORK CITY", the electrifying "21st CENTURY GIRL", the orgiastic "PARTY LINE", yes, all great tracks. All is marked by nicely varying ''glamy'' guitar work, ''punky'' rockin' and cool rollin' shit, heavily marking the songs, the shining charismatic unique typical snotty vocals, already legendary by any means and one of a kind, and a damn tight, nicely powerful and present but still pretty laid back and not too much urgeing too strong in the foreground of it all rhythm section, exactly like it's needed to be in good old Rock & Roll music. Big melodies and leads, good solos, cool arrangements and fresh approaches to the songwriting, more often yes than no, so, yes, pretty good done shit. Annoying are just plain and simple bad songs like the annoying original (?) solo version of "MERRY CHRISTMAS (I DON'T WANNA FIGHT TONIGHT)", the boring "LIFE'S A GAS", and especially the somewhat by Reggae, Calypso, Carribean and/or what the hell else ever inspired "MAKE ME TREMBLE" that sound in fact like nothing anyhow like Reggae/Calypso/Carribean/WTF-else-ever music, but just like a song that wasn't used for a Bud Spencer and Terence Hill movie back then because it simply was a by any means far too bad as well as far too annoying song. But anyhow, fans of the DICTATORS, the RAMONES, the ROLLING STONES, and maybe also of the NEW YORK DOLLS can calmly give this disc anyhow a good round with trying it out, it's more than worth it and a lot of cool shit waits to be discovered by you. The artwork of this album is really a cool and damn good one, while also the lyrics are really good and the linernotes about the origin of this album and with insight-ful thoughts about JOEY RAMONE in general truly shine, not to talk about the very, very good production sound. Not a milestone or something like this, but a good one, for sure, also with a lot of value not at least especially for fans of the RAMONES and JOEY RAMONE. Test it out, could if not should be worth your time. (8 of 10 points)
(www.joeyramone.com)

Dienstag, 27. November 2012

AS I LAY DYING - "DECAS" (10th Anniversay Album by the Metalcore Heroes, released on CD via "METAL BLADE RECORDS" in 2011)

AS I LAY DYING - "DECAS"
("Metal Blade Records"; CD):
No, not the new AS I LAY DYING album that for all what I think to know was released pretty recently some time ago this month, no, this new album by this Metalcore heroes I currently don't call my own yet, a fact that I think I will probably change in the hopefully more sooner than later future. So, this is not their new album, instead of this it's their 10th anniversary jubilee album released last year to celebrate, da da da, you got it, their 10th year of existence as the band known as AS I LAY DYING. I bought it some months ago this very year for a somewhat pretty low price around 5,00 Euro bucks or something so like this. And after I really like this band quite a bit, to say it precise, very much and truly a lot, and so it was damn clear that I would need to have this one. And when I listened to it the first times I was like: "Damn it, why didn't I know this album already last year or latest before I finished my 2011 retrospection and the album top ten of 2011 up here? Fuck, this one would have been pretty sure up there as well, and for sure pretty high." I came to this conclusion after listening to the really shining three especially for this album recorded songs "PARALYZED", "FROM SHAPELESS TO BREAKABLE" and "MOVING FORWARD", three totally brilliant first class tracks, and also to their great covertunes of SLAYER's "WAR ENSEMBLE", JUDAS PRIEST's "HELLION"/"ELECTRIC EYE" and the DESCENDENTS classic "COFFEE MUG". But, okay, beside this one we get a newly recorded old medley styled song titled "BENEATH THE ENCASING", nice shot anyhow, hm, and then comes what really sucks heavily about this album... four terrible and horrible dull dumb bullshit remixes of their four classic tracks "THE BLINDING OF FALSE LIGHT", "WRATH UPON OURSELVES", "CONFINED" (the only remix that at least stands somewhat like its ground) and "ELEGY". So, okay, let's get it straight, the remix stuff is incredible utter garbage that truly takes this album down quite a bit. Okay, however, still the three new songs or back then for this album new songs were and still are phenomenal tracks full of all the trademarks you want to have from AS I LAY DYING and even more and this all of so damn high quality, it is surely damn fucking breath-taking. Melodic and symphonic as well as amazing atmospheric, yet heavy and brutal as well as pretty aggressive modern Metal or if you like so then (modern, of course) Metalcore musick that also offers plenty amounts of catchy potentials and hymnal arrangements and is truly amazing grapping and interesting and builds tension as well as atmosphere non stop, very, very skilled and in some cases you might could also say gifted without a doubt. Awesome changes of pace, rhythms, structures and riffs, all thrills, no fills, almighty guitar playing, a damn massive rhythm section at work and outshining charismatic aggressive and brutal, yet pretty anthemic and melodic as well as somehow ''clear'' shouted and grunted lead vocals, yes, great shit. But I think you pretty good know about the deal in the case of AS I LAY DYING. Also, the cover tunes are just outstanding stuff that truly pay tribute and give honour to the influential originals. Really a great album, if it wouldn't be for the terrible cheap and uninspired electronical music remixes that really drag this album down. Still for sure a good album, but it could have been truly so much more. I still have to mention how great the artwork is, styled as a book, beautifully designed and including all the lyrics, linernotes, thanklists and a lot more, as well as it is just damn shining beautifully done. The bombing production sound also really sticks out. So, all in all, still a good album, as if a mighty band like AS I LAY DYING could ever possibly do a bad album, come on, but, like I've already said, it could have been so much more... Anyway, because of the three for and at this one new songs and the massive cover versions this album is still recommended for sure and calmly, hm, and the remix bullshit you just can easily skip, yehp, so more or less all is still and again good and fine at the end of the day. test it or get it directly. (8 of 10 points)

I AM REVENGE - "PIT JUSTICE" (Sinister Beatdown Hardcore from the city of Hamburg, Germany via "SWELL CREEK" in 2012, CD-Release)

I AM REVENGE - "PIT JUSTICE"
("Swell Creek Records"; CD):
Didn't I announced that I will buy this album as soon as it would be out? I think so. And so I did, bought it, I think, this August and now finally the review on it by me is coming up and ready to read. And don't ask me why just now... maybe it's true and it was a pretty busy year so far, up here as well as in the real life hustle. However, now it's coming up, better late than never I guess. Back to the topic: And didn't I mentioned that this will be a great record? So, okay, let us see. The guys of I AM REVENGE were before their new baby here already pretty active in bands like BADGE OF APATHY, BETWEEN LOVE AND MADNESS and D.T.A., so you see, no strangers and no beginners here at work. I AM REVENGE are from the german city of Hamburg, a five piece roughneck Beatdown Hardcore band, mercyless, heavy, hard, brutal, aggressive, and metallic. And, on top of it, really damn fucking bloody sinister and dark, a tight and intense atmosphere marks the songs and also the lyrics, the whole music of I AM REVENGE very much and gives them some sort of a pretty own and strong unique characteristic identity, refusing to turn them into your ordinary Beatdown Hardcore band. And this I like so much about them, not to talk about their overall damn intense and sinister approach, as well as the quailty of what they deliver is really of an incredible damn fucking high standard, more than just great. And also all the pretty technical and somewhat ''proggy'' suprises and twists and turns that they know to work into their songs really stick out and truly shine. But, whow, whow, what they give us in general? Okay, if it's this what you ask yourself, then let me tell you that you can locate I AM REVENGE somehwere in the distric in between THROWDOWN (before they turned into a wanna be PANTERA Metal clone) some very few KNUCKLEDUST and bands like FALLBRAWL, GIVE 'EM BLOOD and REBORN TO CONQUER, add to it a very own approach and identity and you've arrived pretty much in camp I AM REVENGE doing their "PIT JUSTICE", and doing it for good. Beatdowns, Mosh parts, high speed Hardcore assaults, mad thrashing stuff, beside this a lot of already mentioned tricky and proggy moments for example in the rhythm work, suprising melodic and atmospheric guitar work, clever timed and placed breaks, interesting arrangements and really grapping songstructuring, thumbs up, the songwriting is totally above any doubts. Great shit!!! Further on expect ultra heavy tons of deep down tuned incredible heavy and forceful guitars, all done damn diverse and skilled and varying a lot with giving us over and over again great suprises and grapping moments of melodic symphonia, and in some moments when the brutal guitar riffs get hammered stoic through somehow some of the few better moments of SLIPKNOT and also some EMURE come to my mind, even I AM REVENGE beat this overly hyped masked clowns known as SLIPKNOT and also the "VICTORY RECORDS" dudes of EMURE black and blue and the shit out of both of them. Then expect a gruff and grim, angry and mean, heavy and pretty evil sawing bass at work, tight, precise, well timed, heavy, brutal, yet very diverse drumming, and all in all a rhythm section that is nothing else than a deadly armed and dangerous wall of sound. All topped and crowned by very rhythmic accentuated, brutal and sharp, pissed off shouted very charismatic and skilled lead vocals spitted into the microphone that also know to work damn cool and intense spoken word passages into the whole package, and that are backed up by broad, fat, loud, proud and powerful crew backing chants. All cultivated by a very dark approach and a tight sinister Pit Fighter atmosphere. And all delivered by skilled musicians being totally in command of their instruments. Then the lyrics come perfectly into the play at this time and place because they totally fit perfectly to this described dark Pit Fighter feeling and attitude, unbowed, unbroken, gladiatorial and battle scarred like hell, and for this also thumbs way up high. The great artwork also sticks out, even the cover looks a little bit like a ripp off of or maybe a tribute to the "UNBREAKABLE" masterpiece of KNUCKLEDUST. And the heavy and plain and simple ultra-hard, yet dirty and earthy, harsh as well as warm production sound is just absolutely pure gold, like the whole ''thing'' here is nothing less than this, pure gold, if not even maybe already pure platinum. My personal highlights are without doubt "BREAK YOUR FACE", "TAP OUT", "DROP DOWN", "INVINCIBLE", "ARMED FOR LIFE" and "THIS WILL NEVER END", so start with listening to this ones if you want to risk an ear first. But, you know what, better buy it promptly, you won't regret it, trust me upon this, point and fact. This year already saw a lot of very, very strong and great releases, also especially of the Hardcore style and kind, and "PIT JUSTICE" by I AM REVENGE is without a doubt also one of this kind and will make it pretty sure in my top ten list of 2012. Can't stop listening to it, can't get it out of my head. So don't think twice, just: Get it!!! HARDCORE!!! FIST!!! (10 of 10 points)

Montag, 26. November 2012

Fuckin' Hippies!!! Fuckin' Hipsters!!!

Nothing to say about it, it speaks for itself!!! Maybe just: Totally correct!!! Cheers & Oi!
 
 
And now good night everyone, sleep well and dream better!!! Maybe of beating some fucking Hipsters black and blue...

LAZY BASTARDS - "TOGETHER 'TILL THE END'' (Bavarian Streetpunk released via "SUNNY BASTARDS RECORDS" on CD back then in 2010)

LAZY BASTARDS - "TOGETHER 'TILL THE END''
("Sunny Bastards Records"; CD):
Okay, here's the next new post, and another record review coming in through for you. A review on the "TOGETHER 'TILL THE END" Mini-CD of the LAZY BASTARDS from somewhere down in Bavaria, I guess, here in Germany, released via the pretty prominent and well reputated german record label "SUNNY BASTARDS RECORDS". This little album was already released back then in 2010. I bought this disc two months or so ago at a concert here in Goslar Rock City, at the ninth birthday concert of the local and by now already in the german Oi!/Punk scenery pretty prominent band PLATZVERWEIS, where I saw and heard them, the LAZY BASTARDS, for the very first time ever. They totally convinced us, my girlfriend and me, and so I wanted to buy their new album. But somehow I ended up with buying their for all what I know so far all three releases, and so this is their debut release, like already mentioned from 2010. I will in the next LAZY BASTARDS reviews go on to their current release, with reviewing their split 7'' with THE DROOGIEZ from 2011 next and then their brandnew 2012 full length last. But now to the starting point, the review of or on their debut Mini-CD from 2010 titled "TOGETHER 'TILL THE END", so here we go: Today this band is one of the strongest german Streetpunk bands loose to be located in the wide area somewhere between COCK SPARRER, OXYMORON, ROGER MIRET & THE DISASTERS, TIME AGAIN, and RANCID, and with a great new album in store and also one hell of a strong live band up on stage. But or and how they started?!? Not that strong and good, but still surely okay to good, more than just solid and average. We get one pretty bombastic atmospheric "INTRO" track, and then six songs more, featuring their über-hymn "WORKING CLASS ROCK & ROLL", today live on or down from the stage a just pure hit of the highest quality. And also here it sticks out, for sure. All in all this album is a solid to good Streetpunk record, full of nicely fast paced tracks to sing a long to and dance pogo to, raise your fist in the air and swill some brews down your throat. Perfect for live action, not that exciting anymore on album, the typical ordinary Streetpunk thing today. Anyway... Catchy, melodic yet pretty heavy and aggressive guitars, nicely buzzing bass, full throttle punky drums, powerful sing a longs and nice snotty punky sung lead vocals. Songwriting is tight and good, even not that fresh on this one because more solid which means very well known Streetpunk songwriting than anything else, and to play their instruments they know for sure, beside the drumming that sounds not so tight and not so powerful at all on this very one here, so I would say it was a very good move of them to change their drummer over the years untill now since then. So, not that much originality and creativity to be recognized on this one, and that's the only problem with this album. By far too good known Streetpunk, to say it that way. Beside this it's all good and fine, solid to good typical Streetpunk that you can calmly test out if you are into Streetpunk, but if you have the choice then for fuck's sake buy their new album first. Nice and typical Streetpunk lyrics as well on top of it, a pretty cool artwork and also a pretty good production sound on top of it all. Streetpunk fans, especially those with a faible for at least some of the above mentioned bands, can surely and calmly risk an ear on this very one here and now. More about this band soon in the near future. (7 of 10 points)

SUFFER THE PAIN - "THE LAST MASSACRE" (Sverige Death Metal Crust on Tape via "KRIG TEJPS" in 2012)

SUFFER THE PAIN - "THE LAST MASSACRE"
("Krig Tejps"; Pro Tape):
Oh yeahr, here it is, the newest release of the mighty SUFFER THE PAIN from Sverige, featuring six new tracks by this grim Death Metal meets dirty Crustcore roughnecks, namley "APOCALYPSE APPROACHING", "ONLY DEATH", and "GORE OF REALITY" on Side A and "HEADED FOR EXTINCTION", "BURIED ALIVE" and "THE LAST MASSACRE" on Side B, all in all the recordings offer a running time of about circa eight to nine minutes with the songs running in between one minute and seven seconds as the shortest running time ("BURIED ALIVE") and one minute and fourty-eight seconds as the longest running time ("ONLY DEATH"). And now, before we go ahead here in this review on it, it's time to say a damn big "THANKS A LOT!!!" for sending it my way down to Germany as well as a at least exact so big "SORRY!!!" for the long delay that there was before I managed to finally put it up (which is now) for Stefan and the rest of SUFFER THE PAIN. THANKS VERY MUCH man, and also SORRY VERY MUCH for the delay. But okay, however, now it's finally coming up and so let us go ahead here with this one, my review on it. Released somewhere by the end of this summer or the beginning of this autumn, if I now remember it correctly, and so finally "THE LAST MASSACRE" saw the light of the day, and damn it, but I was really desperately waiting for it. If you know this blog a little bit then you should know that I'm a big fan of this band, of SUFFER THE PAIN. I know them from and since their "THE DEATH" titled first demo tape from the beginning of this very year of 2012 and propmtly done a review on it as well as a interview with them some months ago. If you want to get some background informations about SUFFER THE PAIN then probably just read there. You want to read it now? Okay: Click just here: http://manslaughterthuglife.blogspot.de/2012/04/suffer-pain-blackened-metallic.html - Hm, but maybe just read this review down to its finish and then go and check out the interview that I've done with them this March/April. Just a little update for you, also backing up the informations given in the interview: SUFFER THE PAIN are today on the road as a full band with two new additional members which are Joel on Bass and Christoffer on the second guitar, after they had been at first just a two man band, consisting out of Stefan on vocals and guitars and Johan on the drums. So today nothing stands anymore in their way of doing live shows and then there's also already a next new release of them waiting in the pipeline to be finally released, and this is a split 7'' vinly release together with BOMBS OF HADES, so watch out for this one as well. So, okay, back to the topic, the review on their second demo release and their so far as well still current release, titled "THE LAST MASSACRE". It's released again on the band's own label "KRIG TEJPS" as a Tape and in particular on a Red Pro Tape, strictly limited to one hundred handnumbered copies (and as you may can see, my copy is no. # three of the one hundred, but don't ask me if there are still any physical copies left or if you have to stick with the MP3 version on their Bandcamp site. The Tape comes with great artwork and all informations you may could use or need (beside the lyrics), and also the recording respectivley production sound is (also again) a totally thumbs up affair. Okay, so you see that all the packaging is a damn good affair. But what about the most important thing, what about the content of this packaging? What about the music, the six new SUFFER THE PAIN songs? There they stayed true to what they used to come up with the first time around, and they also stayed true and sticked with the high quality that they delivered also the first time they came around. So expect deep down rotten necro blackened strong metallic Crust or maybe today better deep down rotten necro blackened crusty Sverige Death Metal full of tight played extreme aggressive and damn heavy yet sinister frosty blackened guitar work that is cultivated by its infernal atmospheric, intense, very dark black leads, totally a trademark of SUFFER THE PAIN, precise played high speed drums that vary nicely and very well-versed between raging thrashing Old School Death Metal drumming and furious D-Beat Crust mayhem assaults and often take the steps to becoming tight and fast skullsmashing and bonecracking blast speeds and then also a sick buzzing tight played bass makes the forceful rhythm section complete, and the sick necro screamed and shouted aggressive guttural and throaty hysterical lead vocals then set the crown on it all. Somewhere between AT THE GATES and WOLFPACK/WOLFBRIGADE you can locate SUFFER THE PAIN today, with more leaning towards the AT THE GATES part than the WOLFPACK/WOLFBRIGADE part. Step by step they create more and more their very own style and make it all more and more round, and that they moved far more in the Black/Death Metal direction feels very natural and organic in their case. This is very sympathic, and also it makes them even more authentic. Also the quality of their songs and music they kept up this fucking high than before when they were the first time around, if they not also improved it yet again a little bit. And yes, surely they improved it quite a bit. SUFFER THE PAIN really have all the potential to become one of the best Black/Death Metal bands with a very sympathic Crust background in the future and I am really excited to experience it all in the first row, if you want to say it so. They demonstrate and proof this potential already again here and I am very sure that they will work focussed on it on and on and on and there is for sure by far more to come from them. What I think is pretty phenomenal is how damn bloody tight this guys already are, I mean, keep in mind that this only their second output so far and this is just done to perfection, all is where it fucking belongs, so damn tight, precise and to the point played in time, amazing. Also their ability to write songs and create a grapping damn intense sinister, sick, morbid, necro and in the same time energetic, dynamic, aggressive and full throttle atmosphere and keep it in general damn fresh and interesting, this is also just amazing. And that they are totally in command of their instruments should be clear and is just mentioned for reasons of completion here and now by me. Lyrical you should know what you get by reading the titles of the songs, even the lyrics aren't printed. Benefits the atmosphere heavily and strongly. All in all they improved again, like already written, and I can only recommend this demo to truly and really everyone out there into Metal and Crust of the heavy and extreme kind. And when they do some songs that last a little bit longer than only under two minutes and if they proove with this songs that they also manage and are able to keep up the tension of their songs over a longer distance, than they get the highscore from me, for sure. And I believe and think to know that they have the potential, and especially one hell of an outstanding and everything else outshining anthem like "APOCALYPSE APPROACHING" really demands by itself that it lasts longer, shining shit, for sure, too. But also so, one of the bestd emos of this year and one hell of an release!!! And if anything in this world is at least still a little bit just, than finally a good label comes up with a good, proper and fair deal for SUFFER THE PAIN. And for now, just you write to the band and order your copy of this demo as soon as possible, I command you to do so, period. Can't wait to see their future development and evolution and to see and hear more from them in the future. Again, like I already said, highly recommended!!! (9,5 of 10 points)
(http://sufferthepain.blogspot.se/)

 

PRO-PAIN - "STRAIGHT TO THE DOME" (Hardcore Silverbacks from the NYC back in 2012 via "RAWHEAD INC." & "SUNNY BASTARDS", CD-Release)

PRO-PAIN - "STRAIGHT TO THE DOME"
("Rawhead Inc." & "Sunny Bastards Records"; CD):
Oh fucking yeahr, damn bloody whoaaaa, yes, baby, that's what I'm talking 'bout!!! Yeahrrr!!! Hm, okay, okay, before it gets here and now too euphoric and too out of hands at once, uhm, let me take a deep and calm breath, huuuuuaaaaah, okay, maybe also a second one, huuuuuuaaaaaah, yes, now it's better, and then which means from now on slowly one after another, so here we go: Here it is, my review on the new PRO-PAIN full length album release. And all of you who read this blog at last a little bit more regulary and frequently and this now maybe also already for a little bit longer may already know, that this band is and always was really and truly damn important for me, something that I used to point out so far already in two ''Videos'' tribute postings to PRO-PAIN in the past (one in 2010 and one in 2011 I think) as well as in the mighty "NEW YORK HARDCORE TRIBUTE" post I did at the end of 2010 and which also, only logically and more than just somehow justified and surely also damn necessary, featured PRO-PAIN beside many other legends and great bands then and now of the NYHC movement and scene from out of the Big Apple, the city that never sleeps. And so now here it is, the new album of the silverbacks grouped around the PRO-PAIN mastermind Gary Meskil. My last experience with this roughnecks had been the "NO END IN SIGHT" album some years ago, but to my dislike and misfortune this was some sort of a dissapointing let down for me. By far too much Metal, mostly all the Hardcore and with it all the PRO-PAIN typical unique characteristicas had been suddenly wiped away just for the showcasing of some advanced Thrash Metal affair that could have been done by any Modern Metal band of today, after also on the albums before this one, especially "FISTFUL OF HATE" and "PROPHECIES OF DOOM", were by far more metallic than what PRO-PAIN once created by themselves (and trust me, I know that PRO-PAIN had always been a pretty metallic Hardcore band, and no problems with that), and "NO END IN SIGHT" then finally set the ''crown'' on it all, and while it was in no way a anyhow bad album it was in the whole PRO-PAIN context a (big) let down. The follow up album, "ABSOLUTE POWER", then I just listened to shortly here in the local record store and in my perception back then- but it's just a very ''short'' perception and so if it is terribly wrong then sorry, my fault, my ignorance last year or so I guess- it was also still too much done in the nearly pure Metal way of "NO END IN SIGHT", at least for me, very modern or something like this for sure but anyway by far too much generic, and so it really gave me nothing and so it is the first and so far only PRO-PAIN full length that is not a part of my collection so far (even I will surely change this some day, if only for reasons of making my collection one day complete again). So, yes, since some years this new one here, "STRAIGHT TO THE DOME", is my first experience with this legends again since quite some years. I was suprised to see that this album saw some to me drastic changes of the band line up; so where the hell is Tom Klimchuck gone?; as well as a new unexpected record label behind it (damn it, I would have not expected "SUNNY BASTARDS RECORDS" to put out the new album of a band like PRO-PAIN, really not), and all in all my curiosity awaked heavily again when I saw this disc and got it without a second thought, and so now here we are, me and the new PRO-PAIN album "STRAIGHT TO THE DOME" and here's also my review on it. So, okay, I bought it last month and I took it with me and I was really damn curious. What would I have to expect? What would be coming for me? I grabbed it without listening to it, thinking about it in the record store I only came to the simply only conclusion that I fucking need to have it and call it my very own as soon as anyhow possible. I felt that it was about time, that finally a new PRO-PAIN album joins the ranks of my finally again (even it's slowly) evergroing record collection, and so I bought it and the album did join my already mentioned record collection, excited and curious about it. This time I even spared it me off (hopefully you understand what I want to say with this words, I have not a single clou if I can say it this way in english...) to take already a first listen to it in my car during the drive home, I really wanted to wait to give it at home a full blast first listen on my stereo, and so I did, even I nearly couldn't wait for finally listen to it. So I just came home and turned on my stereo, hammered the CD down in the player, cranked the volume up, pressed play, and... Whoooaaaaa, what a damn fucking blast nailed me with my back to the wall without remorse, without regrets: Bang!!! Bang!!! Bang!!! The opener and title track "STRAIGHT TO THE DOME" was and respectively is such an enormous jackhammer of a song that will really leave only burned earth and bloody splattered remains, a statement that PRO-PAIN are back as strong as before in their heydays and that they are back for more, back to stay, in it for the long haul, and that's just so damn great, a statement like this is always good and fine and necessary. And so it goes on and on, eleven new tracks long in total plus some bonus tracks, four at all, which are "EGG RAID ON MOJO" which is in fact a BEASTIE BOYS cover tune to honour the this year on cancer died Adam "MCA" Yauch (or how his name was, hm, and I think he did died this very year), then also "DESTROY THE ENEMY" in a early demo version from 2010 (a song pretty unknown to me, so I would guess it's from their "ABSOLUTE POWER" full length album if I'm not totally wrong currently), and then two live tracks, "STAND TALL" the opener track of their "ACT OF GOD" masterpiece recorded live in 2011 on their "20 YEARS OF HARDCORE" tour and their larger than life classic "POUND FOR POUND" recorded live back then in 2001 on tour at a concert in Sittard, Netherlands. All four bonus tracks are cool and nice shit and make this album even more worthful and valuable, but what matters really and most are the eleven new tracks, from the opener "STRAIGHT TO THE DOME" to the last new track "ZUGABE", and here they know incredible heavy to convince and this also as much as they didn't for now some if not maybe even long years already. And what shall I say, I love this album, this band anyhow, but also finally again their brandnew album. So here's what you get from "STRAIGHT TO THE DOME": Finest Hardcore from out of the backstreets of the NYC the original PRO-PAIN way par excellence!!! They are really and definitely back to their old strength and glory, and for this they get a extra big ''Hell yeahrrr!!!" from me here and now. All filled with roughless energy and a raw and harsh forceful delivery, all truly pretty damn skilled and made grapping and exciting, kept fresh and lively. Thumbs up!!! This album brings me back into the times when I held with curious and excited feelings albums like "CONTENTS UNDER PRESSURE", "PRO-PAIN", "ACT OF GOD", "ROUND SIX", and "SHREDS OF DIGNITY" in my hands and listened to such albums with huge excitement and curiousity. And also the musical approach of "STRAIGHT TO THE DOME" is pretty comparable to their mentioned period, so they go somehow a little bit back to their roots after their experiemntal Metal phase over the last decade. So expect tons of mercyless stunning massive and harsh and heavy guitar work, incredible heavy and also pretty diverse (from straight moshing Hardcore sledgehammer attacks like "STRAIGHT TO THE DOME", "PAYBACK" and "FALLEN SON", just to name a few, to metallic thrashing and also slightly by SLAYER inspired massive assaults like "BLOODLUST FOR WAR" and "A GOOD DAY TO DIE", also just to name a few, to the melodic, catchy and anthemic sing a long compatible über-hit "ZUGABE" we find a lot of pretty different stuff on this one here, all heavily dominated by the strong guitar work on all levels, riffing, lead, solos, and also all pretty nicely varying in pace and structure), as well as a incredible heavy and (again) massive, very beefy and bulky and damn precise and tight rhythm section, and the totally charismatic lead shoutings by Gary Meskil, backed up here and there by roughnecked gang shouts. All done by veteran musicians totally in command of their instruments and with a strong songwriting ability, keeping it all intense and grapping over the complete distance. On top of it all we get also a big bunch of cool and damn good lyrics, from personal fighting issues to pretty political topics, finishing it off with their ode to the life on tour and their homage to their fans in "ZUGABE" we find a lot of different stuff that they give us here to celebrate and sing a long with them to. The production sound is very heavy and tight and just pure gold and the artwork is maybe not the best and especially not the most creative one in the world but it's still an pretty okay done job after all. So, all in all, what can I say more that I haven't said already, maybe just that this is a great amazing album, I love this stuff, and so be sure that you will find this album definitely in the ranks of my top ten list of this very year of 2012. Good to see that they are back, so cheers to PRO-PAIN!!! Old School moshing, metallic, heavy, thrashing Crossover styled Hardcore from the NYC at its damn fucking very best!!! And: Buy it!!! HARDCORE!!! FIST!!! (10 of 10 points)
(http://www.pro-pain.com/)

Dienstag, 20. November 2012

ONESTA - "THE AMERICAN DREAM" (Hardcore the NYC way from Paris on CD via "CORE TEX RECORDS" in 2012)

ONESTA - "THE AMERICAN DREAM"
("Core Tex Records" & "Mad Mob Records"; CD):
Here's a band pretty new for me, discovered them just via and through this very album here, their newest full length release from 2012 being released via the german Hardcore and Punkrock record label "CORE TEX RECORDS" and its sublabel "MAD MOB RECORDS" on CD and at least my copy is one of a row of down to just 250 copies limited beautiful designed digi pack CD's, hm, and after it's already two  or three months from now or so that I bought and with this since then own this CD and my copy is no. # 109 of in total only 250 copies I would say that this limited edition is pretty much sold out by now. I would say that also a normal edition was or still is existing, so that you shouldn't have any problems with still getting your hands on a copy of this album for and by yourself, but for sure I don't know about it. So anyhow, better be quick or forget about it, maybe, and anyway, this album should have been released in a edition much bigger than just 250 copies, by any means. After I didn't know ONESTA before I've chosen to ask the almighty and all-knowing Google gods if they could help me out and tell me something about this guys. And, dingel dangel, not only here in Germany the dumb ass fucked AFA/ARA nutjobs are at least as fascist in their way of thinking and in their way of acting as their chosen enemies and political counterparts and are totally running amok at last virtual and so also across the border in France they are and act and do the same defaming and cowarly shit and so it turned out that also ONESTA got attacked and defamed as being Racists and Fascist Hooligans and bullshit like this, and all done like their very best "Oire Szene" and/or ''Ingo Taler'' german counterparts and maybe rolemodels used to do it, so as well done by the french AFA/ARA scenery. No need to tell you that this is total bullshit and absolutely utter garbage. And, yes, what a bunch of smale minded assholes and bullshit preaching jackasses this whole AFA/ARA nutjobs are I don't have to tell you!!! Fight Fascism!!! For sure!!! But this means also that you have to fight and stand opposed to fascist practises and fascist ways of thinking and the buttheads that do so and preach it. So: Fuck you, you scumbag fascist AFA/ARA nutjobs!!! So, okay, after this needed, justified and maybe even somehow righteous outbreak of rage by me here and now it's really about time that we finally go back to the topic, which is the newest ONESTA full length album titled "THE AMERICAN DREAM" and its review here on it. Here we go again: ONESTA play pretty modern or new schoolish Hardcore heavily influenced by the New York Hardcore school and scene and especially the likes of BIOHAZARD and MADBALL really managed to leave their marks in the music of ONESTA, but they do it all with a strong smart and hard own identity and character and enrich and cultivate it all with a strong gladiatorial unbowed attitude, battle scarred to the max or so you may can say, and the proof for this you find in their great music as well as in their strong lyrics. The level of aggression, brutality, intensity and sheer heavyness is damn high, without becoming a bullshit Metalcore or a dull dumb Beatdown band, and also without using incredible creative Death Metal grunts as the lead vocals for a Hardcore band on a Hardcore album. And, just btw, this is a pure through and through Hardcore album and not shitty groovy ''Death'' Metal labeled as Hardcore or anyhow Core-related just because it's maybe hip and trendy and in and cool to do so. So, damn it, thumbs up for this, period. Expect a great and exciting, grapping cocktail full of clever arranged changes of the pace and structure of the songs, hammering grooves, heavy moshing stop and go parts, slightly by Rap/Hip Hop influenced rhythms and rhythmic architectures of the songs, great slam dance compatible moments, suprising and interesting and grapping arrangements, yes, fuck it all, it's all here, and even more, damn fucking bloody great, point and fact. Build upon massive stunning incredible tight and harsh delivered beefy and bulky guitar riffing, outshining fat and broad rhythm work as well as an harsh to work going rhythm section, fat widescreen gang shouts and crew back ups, and shining charismatic hard and smart Hardcore shouting lead vocals, it's all delivered outstanding good and by guys totally in command of their instruments, thumbs up way up high bloddy high for that. All done damn grapping and exciting, an amazing album. Very good artwork (even I think their Terrorism definition and solution to it is at least very childish and this whole Blackpower imagery and Malcom X tribute paying is not so much mine, especially when I think about the fascist tendencies it bred with all the Nation of Islam bullshit and so on, and about the at least slightly to be recognized Anti-Americanism I won't loose a word here and now) and first class top jobs lyrics (also clear against Fascist and Nazi scum aimed lyrics we find, so much again about the AFA/ARA scumbags above mentioned), all made round by a killer bomb production sound. ONESTA as a band or at least some of the guys seem also to have deep roots in Serbia or something like this and so we find a bandpicture infront of bombed out areas and buildings in Belgrade, Serbia labeled as NATO crimes, and this surely with some good doses of justification, as well as a great song with outstanding lyrics like "U.N. LIES, NATO KILLS", more than justified, and good to see that there are still bands existing that do really political lyrics that have a deeper approach than just your ordinary "Fuck Fascism!", "Smash the State!", "Capitalism kills!" and the stuff like this on the one side, or "Wave your Flag!", "Love your Land!", "Get the National Traitors out!" or something like this on the other side. Thumbs up for this guys!!! Also we get guest appeareances by some guys of SKARHEAD and BARCODE, and this also for some good reasons. So, all in all and in short: One of the best albums of this year, and highly recommended by me to you. Damn fucking get it, period.  HARDCORE!!! FIST!!! (10 of 10 points)
(http://de-de.facebook.com/HonestyHardcore)

Sonntag, 18. November 2012

"FUTURE WAR" (From "BLOODSPORT" straight through the "MATRIX" into the "FUTURE WAR", the journey of DANIEL BERNHARDT, in parts here on this on DVD from 2009, while the movie is primarly already from 1997.)

"FUTURE WAR"
("Best Entertainment"; DVD; 2009):
Incredible that this movie seems to be really from 2009, the special effects are more than down below any standrads even low ones of today and look by far more like they would have been done and used for low budget Action Sci-Fi movies of the early to mid 1990's or so, but even then the quality would have been damn fucking low, hm, but okay, the backcover of the DVD says 2009 and who am I to question it anyway, so okay, that's it for this. But, nah, you know me, I questioned it, and so it turned out that this is a movie already from 1997. So my impression with the mid 1990's was pretty correct after all. Age and experience in thrashy movies, yes, it's really a gift, haha;-). Okay, but this isn't making anything about the special effects anyhow in anyway better, seriously not, and also it makes nothing anyhow in anyway better in case of all other things that are wrong with this one. This movie was back then a direct to video affair, no wondering about it, but for this DVD re-release some could have maybe overworked the material at least a little bit somewhere here and somewhere there. But, okay, anyhow and so on... But to all of this we will come later on in this review on it, on "FUTURE WAR". And what else is to tell, what do we have here if we look past beyond the abysmal effects and stuff like this? Okay, this is basically some sort of a "TERMINATOR" ripp off affair or something like this, with the ''movie star'' Daniel Bernhardt known from "MATRIX RELOADED", "MATRIX REVOLUTION" and "BLOODSPORT" Vol. II, III and IV as the main actor and character. Here we get loads of time travels, like hairy gay Bikers looking Cyborgs complete clothed in studs and leather and so on, some Raptors like Dinosaures as the pets of the Cyborgs to hunt humans, humans hold as slaves, former street prostitutes that became catholic nuns, stupid cops, mexican/latinamerican weapon dealers, and street gangs with shotguns on the attack on the Dinosaures and Cyborgs, and MMA Kick Box Action on top of it all as well. So we have: Cyborgs, Dinosaures, Whores, MMA Kick Boxing Fighting Action, Weapon Dealers, Street Gangs, dumb Cops, Time Travles, Hunt on Humans, the whole Human Population held as Slaves, so, ha, what could ya ask more for? All ingredients of a potentially soon to be a classic movie we have here, haha;-)!!!
So the story goes pretty much like this:
In the future, when the technology of time travels and space ships and other far developed stuff like this already exist things has changed drastically. The rulers are intelligent and violent machines, Cyborgs, that managed to enslave the complete remaining humans that hadn't been exterminated by them. Mankind made to slaves or annihilated by superior machines? You think that you maybe already know this from somewhere? If you now think about the legendary immortally great "TERMINATOR" saga then you're maybe not that damn wrong after all. All we get to know is basically that the Cyborgs are promoted as a ''master race of cyborgs'' that used to travel from the future and ''made abductions from Earth's past'' and they made also even the Dinosaures to their compagnons, because ''the dinosaurs were trained as trackers'' and ''the humans were bred as slaves'', maybe on planet earth in a future period, maybe somewhere else, but anyhow, the humans that were bred as slaves still believe in a place called heaven and this for them is our good old planet earth in our more or less present time. Yeahr, I can hear and see it goes ring, ring, ring: "Heaven is a place on earth!" or something like this. ;-) Just guessing...
So then one day there's a runaway slave skilled in MMA and Kick Boxing that makes it to heaven a.k.a. our planet earth in our present time and that is no one else than the already above mentioned Daniel Bernhardt, is running out of the water of the ocean (which one ever) on land, he comes from somewhere to our earth, after we see at the beginning a space ship flying through the space as well as over planet surfaces he maybe jumped from board when the space ship made a tank stop at a gasoline station near by or so, but anyhow, he's soon followed by a grim Cyborg and his blood thirsty Dinosaure that come also out of the ocean and first kill a bum that's sleeping at the beach and then start to follow the escaped slave. What's pretty funny is the fact, that the Cyborg as well as the Dinosaure aren't really able to see anything in a proper way. I mean, in movies like for example "TERMINATOR" or "PREDATOR " it works damn good and is really great and adds a lot to the intense atmosphere of this amazing movies when suddenly you see what's happening through the eyes of the War Machine or the Alien Assassin, it's really more than just great and I am a big fan of this change of perspectives for example in the mentioned movies. But here it is like the Cyborgs with this cheap infrared view and the Dinosaures that sees everything and all in deep and blood red aren't really able to see anything because it basically looks just red in the case of the Dinosaures or it looks like a broken TV screen showing only black and white chaos with some few colors floating randomly over the screen in the case of the Cyborg, so they simply aren't able to see anything somewhere. Good for hunting, I guess... It's totally ridiculous. If you don't have the budget to get such things done in a proper way, then why the fuck do it anyway instead of forget about it and do something else that benefits your movie potentially by far more? Just thinking... And what this movie wants to tell me with the use of this crappy retro Nintendo music I also ask myself heavily... Ah, and btw, if a Dinosaure gets killed he soon after it explodes and nothing remains. Leaving no proofs for the CSI guys or so I would guess... Okay, the Cyborg looks like a big fat pretty gay Biker with bad Corpsepaint and long Cuerly Sue hair and goes, so it seems, in the fight against the MMA skilled runaway slave, on the hunt for him, with no weapons at all, call it self-confident or call it lazy or call it stupid or call it not good programmed or not all too well prepared, anyhow, but who cares,  while the runaway slave comes in black combat wear and with a knife out of the ocean to heaven, call it clever and call it well prepared or something so like this. Hm, what the movie wants me to tell with this? Anyway, it doesn't matter, because pretty soon both, the Cyborg and its Dinosaure, get their ass kicked back to where they come from and where they belong and better should have stayed. But the Dinosaure kills and at least partially eats another bum. Yes, fifteen minutes run through and the first and so far only persons that got killed were two bums. Hm, if there's any message behind it that the movie is trying to bring through to us... solving the problems of social unequalities in current societies via the use of deadly violence, maybe, or what?!?
So, okay, after this first around fifteen minutes the cops, not really clever and pretty much without a clue what to do, get involved in the action with trying to also hunt down the runaway slave because of his somehow involvement of the bum slaying (before they change their views as well), and finally the former prostitute and now nun comes finally also into play with comming and getting in contact with the former slave and together with her buddies she helps him out or so, in any case she surely helps him so far pretty much out and manages that he survives, and vice verca so he does for her and as anyhow possible her friendly buddies. The MMA skilled slave and the once pretty sexual active nun share the role of the lead character of this movie that so with this gets two of this leading characters. And while over and over again more Cyborgs and especially Dinosaures come and hunt and kill and eat they finally decide to gather the crew (a bunch of Street Kids or so now forming a righteous Street Gang or anything so like this) around, get some weapons from dubious probably mexican or otherwise latinamerican weapon dealers, do some practising with the fire weapons, and then solve the problem by their very own after especially the pack of stupid cops is totally not able to do anything against it, to say it that way. And so the hunters become the hunted and the nun does a lot of storytelling like good old Sarah Connor in the old "TERMINATOR" days. I think I really don't have to tell you anything more, you probably know the story and its ongoing already anyhow. And you can also probably imagine how it all finally ends, so I will also spare me any other words to or about it. So, you see, a damn foreseeable plot without any good fresh ideas but instead of this filled with ridiculous nonsense and utter garbage crappy thrash in its purest form.
The acting isn't really that strong, too say it still nice and especially pretty euphemistic, but (also) in no way a total farce like the abysmal acting in the two direct before this one here reviewed movies. But the special effects, or what they dare to call in the case of this one here so, are as abysmal as they only possible could have been done, no matter if in 2009 or 1997. Personally I am a huge fan of apocalyptic Sci-Fi Action movies stuff and so on, and I don't care as much as if it's a "A-Movie", a B-Movie or what else ever and of course honestly I am also a pretty big fan of what others may would call and label thrash movies, but this one here is for sure nothing to make me smile and feel happy that much at the end of the day. A totally foreseeable story with a lot of blank holes and everything but positive "WTF?!?" moments in the plot, actors that lack a lot of acting skills and also lack a lot of necessary charisma (what counts even more for the lead characters of the movie), a big bunch of dialogues of questionable quality, a incredible bad and sheer truly abysmal german synchronisation, cheap play with social and by movie created clichés, sets and outfits that could have been also used easily for a dumb ass fuck Porno Movie, bullshit music from Nintendo sounds to totally crappy and generic 1990's WWF/WWE Heavy Rock guitar riff stuff, totally ridiculous special effects, a bunch of ugly cheap plastic puppies used as oh so terrorizing Killer-Dinosaures, terrible bad camera arrangments, and what the guys that had done this movie do present us here as Cyborgs is just a so incredible ridiculous farce that I don't know what to say about it and so I better stop here and spare me every word more about it here and now. So, you see, not all in all too much positive points in the record books for this one here. What gives this movie some positive points in the end is the pretty big amount of action going on here and some nice done MMA Kick Box Fights, but when the fight in an MMA and Kick Boxing style goes against a T-Rex like freakiy fuckin' Dinosaure and the MMA fighting human wins also this gets just ridiculous and so soon far down the drain and what and where else ever as well, and that the Dinosaures seem to have especially a hunger and taste for bums and big fat black guys is maybe somehow at least questionable or so... ;-) All in all the running time of this very movie here lies around 81 minutes and it got a FSK16 rating here in Germany so that everyone at the age of sixteen or older is allowed to watch it without getting problems, at least if he or she feels the need to do so, and this is all good and fine for this one here at least from my point of view. What's pretty good is the fact, that this movie is by its very own approach a somewhat somehow serious one, but that in the same moment and case just can't be taken anyhow aynway serious. That's nice, even probably nothing planned by the guys who done it back then.
So, after all: No folks, this is pretty much crap, the only reasons to watch it are some well done nice fighting scenes and because partially this very one here will give you a lot of laughing out loud "LOL! LOL! LOL!" moments, even the movie itself and the guys that done it maybe pretty sure weren't after this as a appreciation of their work that they have delivered here to us with this very movie here, the "FUTURE WAR", but or better: and that's all what's the outcome after all. I bought this movie some years ago for something like 2,50 Euro, hm, and thinking about it, it maybe even was back then in 2009, could be possible though. If you see it for a pretty low price like this and if you have a faible for the above described and mentioned genre of movies even when the meant one is a very crappy thrashy one, and if you then also like movies that want to be taken serious but are in fact nothing like a ridiculous farce that will make you shake your head and start to laugh out loud heavily in not only one or two moments, or if you like to feel bad and feel somehow even physiacl pain, if this all is the case, then go and get it and give it a good round, but in any other case better stay away from this bullshit. And, to say it precise and direct, one of the most worst "TERMINATOR" ripp offs ever, period. In no way to recommend, point and fact. In no fucking way!!! Totally utter garbage crap, forget about it, period. (1 of 10 points)

Samstag, 17. November 2012

GRAVE - "THE DARK SIDE OF DEATH" (Old School Sverige Death Metal on "CENTURY MEDIA RECORDS" via a corporation with the german "LEGACY MAGAZINE" in 2012 on CD)

GRAVE - "THE DARK SIDE OF DEATH"
("Century Media Records" & "Legacy Magazine"; CD):
Okay, yesterday or so I reviewed a surely still young local Death Metal band and thought and said that they should better do some homework about the background and the meaning of the music they want to play and now today here's a review of a great new possible starting point for them to do so. And anyhow, now comes a review on a great Death Metal record. I first listened to GRAVE in the mid 1990's and my experiences were with their masterpieces "INTO THE GRAVE" and "SOULLESS", two brilliant Death Metal albums rotting down to us from Sverige, to be named in one row with classics that had been created by DISMEMBER, ENTOMBED and UNLEASHED, for example. But somehow GRAVE always stood a little bit too much in the dark background so that also in the glorious heydays of Sverige Death Metal they were always or mostly named in the second row of the silverbacks of this kind of (Death) Metal behind the three above mentioned legendary bands. Maybe this was because they were always too well earthed and too rotten in their music without any somehow ''scenester glamer'' and without going too much in the flow of somewhat somehow ''modern trends'' and stayed always true to their old school roots, who knows, but why ever they were and pretty sure still are mostly named in the second row it was always somehow heavily unjustified and so I am really glad to see them being finally back in action again. And they are damn much heavily into command again as well. This little CD contains all in all eight songs and is a teaser of or a appetizer for their brandnew studio album "ENDLESS PROCESSION OF SOULS" and came as a free garnish of one of the last issues of the german Metal music magazine of the name of "LEGACY", so maybe you have it already if you are interested in it or you will maybe have a hard time of still finding it somewhere. Or just by the new proper album right from the start. However, after I have my copy I don't care about it that much about it, haha;-). We get two brandnew songs, the grim and great and also pretty Crustcore influenced anti-christian "PASSION OF THE WEAK" and the brutal slasher "PERIMORTEM", then also a very strong cover of the old ASPHYX evergreen "VERMIN", and then also five older songs in total, two from their I think pretty much 25th anniversary gig  in Stockholm in 2011, the two ones are "IN LOVE" and "EXTREMELY ROTTEN FLESH", as well as the three already classicks "MORBID WAY TO DIE", "UNHOLY TERROR", and "TURNING BLACK". The five old songs are well chosen and should be well known, the cover tune is done very strong and totally manages to catch the morbid sick doomy crushing atmosphere of the ASPHYX original and transforms it nearly perfectly into something pretty own by GRAVE themselves. And then the most important stuff, the two new songs, and this two ones totally rule. "PERIMORTEM" is a brutal mad thrashing Death Metal slasher with a heavily rotten atmosphere and some nice SLAYER-esque guitar shredding riffs and totally filled with aggression and sick brutality and also coming with a very cool refrain arrangement, damn good stuff. You have to go nuts on it. "PASSION OF THE WEAK" then is even a little bit stronger, deep down rotten to its deepest core and full of mad raging nicely somehow Crustcore-ish aggressive and sinister atmosphere, a total brutal sledgehammer in the form of music and again also offering even more commanding groove parts and a great nearly somewhat sing a long combinable refrain arrangement, a truly great song, morbid and sick intense tight atmosphere, and a heavily intense pure rampage track that takes no damn fucking prisoners. Expect tons of heavy, brutal, dirty and aggressive shredding guitars without end, charismatic throaty guttural brutal slightly more shouted than just pure grunted lead vocals, mean and angry distorted buzzing bass playing, and thundering massive drumming, as well as musicians totally in command of their instruments, and that also know how to write fresh, interesting and grapping songs full of everything mercyless old school Death Metal the Sverige style needs to convince, and this done damn great and really fresh and exciting. Well, well done guys. On top of it we get typical rotten necro and anti-christian lyrics, a totally great Old School Style artwork, nice short linernotes, and a very powerful yet damn dirty and noisy production sound. With this one GRAVE have convinced me heavily and I think everyone into old school real pure dark and sinister Sverige Death Metal will be made curious and hungry for the new GRAVE full length album by this nice little appetizer album. Great shit!!! (9 of 10 points)

Donnerstag, 15. November 2012

DIS.AGREE - "DISSERTATIO HUMANITAS" (Heavy groovin' deathy Metal from Goslar City all done the "D.I.Y." way on CD-R already back then in 2010)

DIS.AGREE - "DISSERTATIO HUMANITAS"
("D.I.Y."; CD-R):
Here's the promised first new record review in November and it's on the "D.I.Y." released debut of the Goslar based band DIS.AGREE. This album comes as a CD-R and was done already back then in 2010 but I just bought it two months ago from now, so don't ask any questions why it just comes up now. Back then years ago around 2008 or so I guess it was when Facebook was unknown and MySpace was (at least for me and in my perception) the leading social network no. # one and before the decline of the so called new MySpace I used to follow this back then pretty young band quite a bit untill I saw them live and was, hm, not really disappointed, no, that not, but, hm, yes, they totally left me cold and unmoved and as longer as the concert went on I also must say that I got quite a bit annoyed by what was going on up there on stage. After this I totally lost them out of sight and was heavily suprised when I got aware of the huge following they have today especially here in their home area but also with a band like HEAVEN SHALL BURN they already toured and shared the stage. Okay, I was even more suprised when I then experienced that they failed to become live on stage more convincing. But okay, anyway. Amybe that's just how perceptions do differ, I don't know. Maybe also just a matter of age and experience in and with music, who knows, at least not I. This very album here was recorded with their old original former singer who died by the beginning of the last year in a tragic car accident. I didn't know him personally and musically I was not that much a fan of what he was doing, but it was anyhow a tragic big lost for the underground music scene here in our area and that was heavily to be felt at his farewell concert last year. And also it was a big loss for the band DIS.AGREE and so I was even more suprised when I saw them already only a few months later again live on stage with a new singer under their old name playing their old songs. Hm, but don't ask me if they've changed the lyrics or not, I don't know it, never did so, I don't care for it, never did so. Okay, anyway, their decision and I won't question it anyhow. But what I question is their choice, because of the open lack of skills he showcases far too often over the last concerts that I attented at which also DIS.AGREE played up. But anyway I bought their album on the last concert where they also played, the last copy they had, for five euro bucks, was just interested in and about it. So, okay, currently I now lost myself a little bit in retrospective as well as current personal subjective thoughts on and about DIS.AGREE, so back to the topic, the review on their CD-R burned album here, which is in fact their debut album as well as their still only release to date. Btw, like you can easily see by a look at the cover art above this band really takes it all as well as themselves damn serious, okay, how and why ever. So, okay, musically they announced themselves back then as Thrash Core... no comment... total bullshit... Core as a short term form of or for Hardcore... show me any Hardcore, any Core in their music... nothing to find, nothing existing, nothing to show. And, honestly, personally I really doubt that any of the guys in the band knows about and have ever listened to Hardcore (any other forms of Core-Music like Crustcore or Grindcore not to mention), so it not makes me anyhow wonder about it, just a little bit about the curiosity that they really labeled themselves as anyhow Hardcore and Core related. Maybe just because it's hip and in and trendy, or was it once, or the guys in the band think so, or what the fuck else ever. And also Thrash from Thrash Metal isn't really that heavily to be found in their music. Surely a little bit, but only in a few moments. Basically DIS.AGREE play and have always played some sort of a somehow modern slightly pretty melodic Death Metal in which here and there some few at least somehow Breakdown styled parts are worked into and then that's it, hm, and thinking about it they may think that already this, the Breakdowns, is making them somehow anyhow Core-ish... bullshit... They play a style of new schoolish Death Metal influenced in fact by ''new breed'' bands like HEAVEN SHALL BURN and the likes of it or them, so expect more or less good done and also more or less good arranged changes of the pace from fast paced heavy hitting assaults to groovy mid tempo slashers and some somehow down breaking affairs, delivered via heavy and noisy, harsh and dirty guitars, rumbling and buzzing bass playing, pounding distorting powerful drumming, as well as some grim and gruff screamed and grunted guttural lead vocals, some few marking guitar leads that also manages it to create some pretty tight atmosphere. So okay, if you are a fan of this kind of music you know the deal, if not see by yourself what you make out of the terms ''modern'', ''grooving'', ''melodic'', ''heavy'' and ''Death'' and ''Metal'' when you settle them together into one description term. They can play for sure their instruments already pretty good, hm, but the songwriting isn't all in all that good not to talk about really interesting and grapping excitement. I mean, okay, they do it all not bad, no, even pretty good but honestly they damn lack at least still currently the skills to make it all round, heavy and intense and also they lack the abilities to create something by their own and make this whole thing their own, so there's still a lot of work for them to do, but no problem after this was respectively logical still is their debut and if they work more focussed and maybe do a little bit more intense their homework about the style of music they want to play and not just listen to the overly hyped PC mainstream farce than maybe they will come up one day with some really strong shit that's really interesting and grapping and this not or at least not just for a bunch of oh so tough subcultural wanna be ''Metalheads'' around the age of sixteen years or so. I would love to see them create something more lasting, to see them being in it for the long haul. Also I would love to see and hear them becoming more massive. Lyrically they tried to cover a distance of serious topics as good as they could, and even they maybe better should have stayed away from some abysmal lyrical outcomes that's pretty good and okay with me, to see that they want to have to say something and not only sing about Satan and Beer and Sex, so nothing to say more about it. The production sound is a pretty good one, thumbs up for this, and the dark and sinister artwork is okay, hm, even personally for me slightly a little bit too much up to date cliché stuff. All in all I think this is at least still by now by far more something for the kddies out there, all listeners of real extreme and heavy music that are more experienced in extreme music of the Metal kind and that are also interested in something more valuable out there won't be really satisfied with this album here. But maybe that's exactly what they want to do, this up to date stuff that makes the kiddies go nuts, hm, and then it's all good and fine. Some headache give me the thoughts about if they know that the song "BLACK TEARS", that they do very often cover live on stage these days, is originally a EDGE OF SANITY song and not a HEAVEN SHALL BURN song that also only did cover it some years ago, and also not really that good though... Do your homework and create something more your own and something more interesting and grappping. For a debut demo all okay, a average to solid record, but I really expect them to finally take the next step before they do a new one. Recommended to the above described tough up to date kiddie ''Metalheads'' (if any of this kind should be reading this very blog here, even I don't really think so) and fans of HEAVEN SHALL BURN and comparable acts can also calmly try a listen, all others, hm, test it, but recommend I can't it really to you. But if you do listen to it and test it then give it a fair try, give yourself a fair try with testing the guys out. Copies of this CD-R aren't left, like I've mentioned before above, at least if I got the correct impression of what they were saying at the somewhere above mentioned concert, so check them on the web or if you can live on stage if you want to get known to them. Or write them, if there's still a chance to grab a copy of it, or what the hell else ever if you are interested in them and what they are doing. (6 of 10 points)

"100 MILLION B.C." ("THE ASYLUM" brings us the story of a special forces unite that goes back in time to rescue a bunch of scientists and ends up with bringing some Dinosaurus-Terror back with them to our time...)

"100 MILLION BC"
("The Asylum"; 2008; DVD):
First comes first: My internet or maybe better my internet access was fucked up over the last week or something like this so that's the reason why again for a pretty long while nothing came up here. Okay, that's it for now, so here it goes on again, yes, and after this very month used to start with a new movie review posting finally again we will continue with another one of the movie reviews section kind, before again record reviews and other stuff will come up again as well. And I will continue with this one here, a review on "THE ASYLUM" movie "100 MILLION BC" from primarly 2008... and yes, just by reading the title you may already got it that this is a damn fucking try to rip off "10.000 BC" and cash some money in on it. Keeping in mind that this very one here is from 2008, gets the ''rip off cash in'' conclusion more clear for you? So, okay, beside this pretty equal sounding and so seeming names of the two different movies, "100 MILLION BC" on the one side and "10.000 BC" on the other side, this one here is pretty much some sort of a rip off of "JURASSIC PARK II: THE LOST WORLD" enriched with a time machine travel scenery to it all. Ah, and btw you may also know by a look at the name of "THE ASYLUM" what you have to expect. I didn't know it before, but I know about it now, so you better be warned. So, okay, the story of this one here is now coming in and through the mist for you all, but maybe don't expect too much coming out there, I mean out of the mentioned mist, so, yehp, yehp, here we go: In the 1940's a U.S. Military sponsored and started science projection succeeded in sending a group of scientists through time right back into the times when Dinosaures walked the earth... and ruled it. Unfortunately for the poor bastards that travelled back in time the project failed in getting them back home. But thank the mighty gods above the leading scientists back in our present time was the brother of the leader of the bunch of time travelling scientists and after they seemed to be good brothers he wanted to get his brother if anyhow possible back, and this by best alive, back from the mean hungry Dinosaures, and so he kept on working focussed on the project over a period of more than six decades or so and finally he succeeded in doing so and his command was to get them finally back home, if you want so, and so he commanded and joined a team of Special Forces elite soldiers to go with them back through time to visit some damn Dinosaures and get his brother and the other scientists finally back home with them in our present time. And there they go... and what incredible awesome special effects carry them on their way... it really motivates to hang in there with watching the movie... I mean, a brilliant creative story and almighty special effects matter a lot... especially if you combine it with brilliant actors and also a phenomenal synchronisation... just watch this movie and you will understand this writing. (And I know that this is a B-Movie if not even a Z-Movie but it's still from 2008 so there are no excuses or any reasons why the special effects are on the same ''high'' level of quality like the ''Ninjy Mystic'' special effects of "AMERICAN FIGHTER II" respectively "AMERICAN NINJA II", so you see, I'm not unfair to the movie and its creators.) So okay, they jump through the time portal or time gate straight and direct back to the time of the walking and ruling Dinosaures and the missed in action scientists, and what happens next? Come on you've got three tries free, do your best! Three tries? Free? Okay, here's the call for all three, one after another, up and away we go:
(01.) The most of the Special Forces Soldiers get killed by a bunch of Dinosaures that are meant to be evil smart Raptors (that also demonstarte some ''fascinating'' special abilities) and monstrous meat eating flowers and other deadly stuff and beings, and so also the soldier team leader, one of the few characters that speaks more than only a few words and that owns some sort of charisma and so is one of the few characters with the potential to identify with, but very soon he gets killed by the hungry Dinosaures. Before the whole rescue troop gets killed and eaten up by the Raptors the so far survived members of the group of scientists that travelled in the 1940's to the Dinosaures help them and rescue them. And, suprise, suprise, in contrast to the pretty old grown leading scientist of the time travel project his brother and the rest of the survivors are still in their glorious heydays, the women are still hot like hell (or so) and the men still tough as nails (or so), and are clothed like cavemen or something like this. Anyhow, so they start to get away out of the territory of the Raptors, trying to stay alive and also trying to save their deadly wounded comrade from the death, for sure after the joy was big that they finally met (again).
(02.) On their way out of the Raptors territory back to the time portal they meet a Dinosaure biggie, probably meant to be a Tyrannosaurus Rex or in short a: T-Rex, that eats up their anyhow meant to die injured comrade and then manages to go back through time, the crew that desperately wants to travel back in our present time succeeds. But guess what, righty right, the T-Rex follows them. Whoaaa, suprise, who would have thought that, so, okay.
(03.) And then they manage to make it back through the time protal into our present time, like already mentioned, and, yes, right, the T-Rex manages it as well, like also already managed, and starts to run amok and spread chaos and disorder and violence and carnage in the streets of the city known as L.A. while ''they'' try desperately everything to finally stop the Dinosaure. That's the story and how it goes you can easily figure out for yourself just by thinking about it for a short, short while.
So, if this had been your three tries, this or something close to this three ones, you had been right and already knowing the deal behind it all. So, okay, the story is foreseeable deep down to its core. And far more worse than this it's also even not making really that much sense after all. (No, not that whole time travel and meet the Dinosaures stuff, I mean, come on, it's fiction, so that's all good and fine, nah, I mean that the whole plot in itself isn't making that much sense after all.) The Dinosaures totally look like shit and are pure utter garbage done by totally IT nutjobs and look even more terrible in the way they are done in general and even far more laughable and ridiculous like the Dinosaures Figures that had been uses through out the for example movies of the 1970's or so. (And back then it couldn't had been done better, but today there are no excuses left.) And the whole special effects are just shit as well. The world in the time of the Dinosaures looks like nothing anyhow linked to what we know today about the environment of the prehistoric times but instead of this it all looks in fact like the old 1980's sets of the legendary "A-TEAM" when the crew travelled to Venezuela or so, minus the crappy Dinosaures. So, you see, don't expect any sort of atmosphere at all. The actors mostly totally lack talent and characters to identify with aren't really to be found, and about the abysmal german synchronisation I won't loose a word. And all in all this movie is so incredible crappy and bad that it's also even not at least not a single little bit sympathic or at last something like this. It's just a incredible waste of ressources and time. So after all I have to admit that it really should have been warning enough for me that this movie runs over and over again and again on the german thrash television channel of the name of "TELE-5". And I also know by now that you also can waste also 2,50 Euros on a movie DVD disc. Won't believe me? Try this one here. Then you will believe me. And I also ask myself for what reasons ever this movie got a FSK-18 rating (so that he's only ''free'' for eighteen years old grown up young adults here in Germany), because anyhow something gory or what the hell else ever you simply just can't find here. And I also ask myself, why ever this movie saw since his first release in 2008 so many re-releases. Anyway, after all, this movie is nothing but unbeatable bullshit and not even for total Dinosaures nerds anyhow interesting or somehow satisfying. It runs around eighty minutes and believe me, after watching it you know that this eighty minutes no one ever will give you back. The DVD also contains some Bonus Material, but I preferred to take it out of the DVD player instead of suffering also through this crap. The real life names of the lead actors are Michael Gross, Christopher Atkins and Greg Evigan, and this poor bastards must have been incredible desperate or made high against their will to act their part in this farce of a movie. Utter garbage, nothing else. (0 of 10 points)
Here you can find and see the extended official trailer for "100 MILLION BC", then you will know already more:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcc2hzHdL7o

Montag, 5. November 2012

"ALIEN VS. ZOMBIES - THE DARK LURKING: IT WILL COME FOR YOU" (Uncut Version; "8-FIlms" DVD; originally from 2010)

"ALIEN VS. ZOMBIES - THE DARK LURKING"
("IT WILL COME FOR YOU!")
("8-Films"; DVD):
This is the first November 2012 posting, the first and so with this new movie review posting since some months again and so finally we do go on here ahead agin. I don't know, but at least I've planned that this month some more stuff will be coming up here finally again, not at least because I am quite a bit more motivated than over the last one to two months. But we will see what happens. And after my passion for watching movies is back again (I mean, the weather is getting more and more cold outside, so it's time to put some frosty Black Metal in the stereo and watch some good and some maybe also not so good movies) and it's also once more really about time doing one of the movie reviews I thought that it would be a good move to start it all off again with a new movie review up here. But okay, maybe I could just have chosen another movie, haha, but we will see and don't tell anything to early or so, so read on and here it goes ;-) ... So, okay, "ALIEN VS. ZOMBIES - THE DARK LURKING" or maybe better ALIEN VS. ZOMBIES" and "THE DARK LURKING" or something like this, because "THE DARK LURKING" fits more or less perfect as a title for this movie, while "ALIEN VS. ZOMBIES" is utter garbage as well as the picture of the Alien like creature at the frontcover of this DVD. Because, honestly, such a creature that's drastically ripped off by the well-known prominent legendary Alien creation isn't to be seen in this very movie (and also no other anyhow alien lifeforms from outta space), so I guess it's just a try to cash in on the whole "ALIEN(S) VS. PREDATOR" (and also in general the "ALIEN") hype. (And maybe now also because of the "PROMETHEUS" movie, after this very movie here already came out 2010 and is in 2012 back again in the shops.) But okay, who could blame them for this. This movie is, so I guess, a direct to DVD production and I know no one of the actors from other movies before, at least not that I know by now. So, okay, after this movie offers no Aliens after all, what about the second part, what about the damn bloody Zombies? Zombies you will find in masses here, as well as some sort of a Super Ultra Über Zombie that gets a impressive violent and short appareance just to get his ass kicked to fade away into oblivion quickly. The Zombies here are sort of degenerated Mutants, the unwanted blood thirtsy outcome of scientifical medical experiments of megalomaniac scientists in a down the drain going station based in the underground of a then lost world up in space. So, we have: Aliens = none; Zombies = checked, more than enough. What do we have else and what's going on in general?!? Here we go, read on: The movie starts with a space ship and so with this in space, in the orbit of a let us call it dying planet and a call from help from the mostly underground build outpost on the planet. Then we are hammered down right into the outpost station in one of its deepest lowest levels and we see how a woman that will turn out to be the main character steps into a shower, totally desoriented, and gets nearly shot by a two men cleaning team, before the guys gets eaten up by a hungry Zombie. And already here we can easily see how ugly and disgusting this breed of Zombies here is. From then on we see how she escapes and finally joins a group of soldiers or mercenarys and some survivors of the working personal, mostly medics and scientists, that try to make their way out there somehow alive. While more and more of the little group of survivors are killed during their desperate escape through thirteen levels up to the surface of the planet they finally come to a high security laboratory where they meet one of the leading scientists of the outpost and there they decide to make their camp and regroup before they try to make their way up higher again. Also there they decide or better there they are forced to heal some otherwise deadly wounds, and so one of the so far survived scientists reanimates the main character, yes, the woman that took a shower at the beginning of the movie. There also the whole story is revealed to the viewer, and hey man, what did ya expect, no one else than the Nazis somewhere between 1933 and 1945 kicked it all off, because they used to find no one else than Lucifer himself on their war campaign in Africa. Any questions? No, should be all clear. I mean who and what else. Nazis, Lucifer a.k.a. Satan a.k.a. the Devil himself. And, yes, again, Nazis; who else... Should one day a prequel will be coming it could be named "WHERE NAZIS AND LUCIFER MEET" or so. Any questions should be answered, this is utter garbage storytelling and all. But after this is nothing than a Zombie Slasher movie and like I've already said in no way a anyhow Alien movie and not to talk about a somehow to "ALIEN" related movie we all should know latest by now that no one of us should be watching this very movie here because of a great story or something like this. So okay, Lucifer is these days bred in the body and mind of the main character, yes, again, our shower girl from the very beginning of this movie. And while the nice scientist woman reanimates her also a spawn of Lucifer slips into her... Okay, after this whole dingel dangel finally a rescue team is coming down to the planet right from the spaceship of the very beginning of this movie. But wait: A rescue team? Nah, a cleaner team that only shall take care of that the leading scientist and the main character, who's always named the only succesful experiment while the whole Zombie horde is just a bunch of un-succesful experiments, but we all get no answer to the question what this experiments really are respectively were, ah, we just get to know that evil forbidden rituals and some sort of Necronomicon like book play a important role, so maybe where science and magic meet or so, anyhow. Okay, in short the rest is told fast and quick: Everyone dies, the leading scientist is killed by the by Lucifer possessed formely nice scientist woman while this Lucifer possessed woman gets shot as well and this by one of the last remaining soldiers or maybe better mercenaries, and then in a wild blood dripping mixture everyone gets killed respectively they kill each other all over and over again, the few remaining survivors kill the Zombies and the cleaner team, the Zombies hack and slay through the few survivors and bite their way through the cleaner team, the cleaner team shoots the Zombies and kills the survivors, so after all only the shower girl from the start remains and after she steps into the lift to the surface in the elevator tunnel to the rescue ship she gets shot by a remaining member of the cleaner team... and then Lucifer awakes in her and she kills the soldier and the scientists and the medics who are then with her in the elevator or maybe better rescue tunnel and then she steps into the rescue ship and onward in space to the spaceship or where the hell else ever she goes, while the outpost and with it all the masses of the remaining Zombies inside is bombed away. Maybe the sequel to this movie, if it comes one day, will be named "LUCIFER IN SPACE" or something like this. Okay, any questions about the quality of the story should be answered already by now, and also the acting of the actors gives this movie not really any positive points, and the german synchronisation is plain and simple terrible. What gives the movie really some strong and good positive points is the tight and intense ''gory'' and desperate atmosphere and the ''schizophrenic'' rusty and ''claustrophobic'' scenery in which the whole plot takes place. It really gives this movie a dark and sinister, apocalyptic and rotten, a totally sick feeling, and that's not only needed for a movie like this but also really cool. That the whole movie works in large parts like a 3D Ego Shooter PC Game and consists in large parts out of nothing than countless bullets flying in and ripping through as well countless Zombies is everything but creative but for a movie like this, just a hack and slay slasher zombie movie all good and fine, because anyone who wants and expects more is here in the wrong place. You can compare it pretty much in some large parts to "DOOM", but by very far more the movie than the games, but without being so good... and if you know "DOOM" the movie you also know that this movie is also not really a good movie anyhow, but at least it makes a lot of fun to watch and somehow knows how to grab you and it also holds Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in store as well and that's always good. But okay, even this kept in mind, which means what you can and have to expect from your ordinary hacking and slaying Zombie movie, isn't making a good movie out of this one, but some nicely stupid blasting slasher action with a sick and sinister atmosphere that can give you some joyful shortwhile, as far as you are a fan of hack and slay slasher zombie movies. All fans of this genre may check it out, but anyway don't expect too much, but I think you could enjoy this quite a bit. Test it out. The movie runs for around 96 minutes and I would bet that the ''Monster F/X Team that is responsible for the F/X of movies like ''TROJA'', ''GHOST RIDER'' and ''MATRIX REVOLUTIONS'' and other blockbuster movies" isn't too proud that they are also at least partially responsible for this very one here... Ah, like the cover tells this here is the ''uncut version'' of this movie but it's still free at the age of sixteen, at least over here in Germany. But, honestly, sometimes and partially often I thought "WTF?!?" because maybe a free at the age of 18 years would be far more deserved. So you see, it's surely a very bloody movie anyway. And don't ask me about differences to the ''cutted version'', because this one I don't know. Okay, no story, no mentionable acting, no characters to identify with but non stop killing shooting hacking and slaying slashing mutilating Zombie bloodshed like in 3d Ego Shooter PC game. If this makes you smile and gives you good feelings when you only think of it than check "ALIEN VS. ZOMBIES - THE DARK LURKING" out. Everyone else should maybe better stay away from this one here. (4 of 10 points)
Here's a goody, at least for fans of the above described genre of movies, because if the link works like it should then you can watch the complete movie right here respectively there:
http://www.myvideo.de/watch/8452225/The_Dark_Lurking_Alien_vs_Zombies