Rabies Caste-Self-titled
(Dada Drumming, 2006)

Rabies Caste is a band that I’ve been a fan of for quite sometime. They sent me a demo CD for review what seems like ages ago and it is too bad that this is going to be the last release from the band. This album contains three new songs, two live songs and some older unreleased songs. The new songs show the band continuing in their sludgy style of doom complete with harsh vocals and ample doses of feedback. It is quite easy to hear that the band likes Black Sabbath, but this is quite harsh and actually reminds me a bit of Iron Monkey. The new songs here are easily among the best the band has ever written and while it is a shame that the band has broken up, at the very least they went out strongly. If you are already a fan of the band I definitely would recommend picking this up. If you haven’t heard Rabies Caste yet and you enjoy the unpleasant sounds of Iron Monkey and Eyehategod, or like the idea of a noisier more self destructive Black Sabbath, then this band will be right up your alley. Like I mentioned earlier it is a shame that the band has broken up. There are tons of shitty bands that could break up, yet it always seems to be the good ones that call it a day.

Blut Aus Nord-Mort
(Candlelight Records, 2006)

I feel like I just pressed play on a nightmare. This is a twisted and dark musical journey that really sounds unlike anything you have probably heard before. The music is still metallic, but this is filled to the brim with odd sounds and a layer of plain weirdness. But this has always been a band that broke the conventions of black metal; with this album they are just doing it further. At times it almost sounds a black metal album being played on a turn table but at the wrong speed. It has an eerie vibe that really hasn’t been captured on an album very often. You know that feeling you get in your throat when you brace your self for impact, or realize something bad is about to happen? That is the feeling that this album releases in you, the feel of dread. There are a few more melodic sections littered throughout the album, but this is mainly noisy and very interesting. The album is actually one very lengthy song that is broken up into separate tracks but there is no break musically. The only problem I could really see with the album being one long song is that it requires your full attention and isn’t exactly what you would consider casual listening. This is the type of album that almost demands headphones but be warned this album might take you to places mentally you never thought music could. Sitting in the dark and listening to this may very well cause you to hallucinate. Think you’ve heard everything black metal has to offer? Think again as this is unlike anything you have ever heard before.

Skullflower-Tribulation
(Crucial Blast, 2006)


I’m sorry but this is a genre of music that I have never understood and probably never will. This is called noise and for a reason, it’s just damn noise. All it really succeeds in doing is giving me a headache. It is basically minutes on end of some of the most annoying noises you can imagine, and what the bands in this genre are shooting for I just don’t get. Listening to 8 minutes of screeching noises mixed with a few blips and shards of feedback is definitely not something that I enjoy doing. For fans of the genre maybe you can see more in this music then I can, because all I know is that I have a headache now and really need to turn this CD off.

Roger Miret and the Disasters-My Riot
(Sailor’s Grave, 2006)

This is my first time hearing this band and I am definitely impressed. I am a huge fan of Agnostic Front, so it comes as a bit of a surprise just how different this is from the usual fast and heavy hardcore I am used to from Roger Miret. Call it steet punk, rock, or oi, I just call it good music. The songs are extremely catchy with a rock flair and no shortage of bouncy punk energy. Links could definitely me made between this band and Social Distortion or The Clash, but what gives the band a unique edge is the fact that Roger’s voice is much raspier and street worn sounding then most of the vocalists that play this style. You can hear that he has been to hell and back and is more then willing to sing about it. I’m really impressed that each song is extremely memorable and actually just a bit different. There are a few noticeable different tracks, especially Everything I Do which is an acoustic song that really stands out. The album ends with a reggae sounding song that really reminds me of The Clash. The rest of the album is more punk based, with a few songs kicking up the tempo into a more hardcore feel. With so many hardcore bands playing metal and the overall state of hardcore, this album definitely stands out like a sore thumb. Any way you look at it this is the real deal and this deserves to be heard. Forget about “brutal” breakdowns and “crucial” this and that, it’s about the music and it doesn’t get much better then this.

To-Mera-Transcendental
(Candlelight Records, 2006)

Calling this progressive metal is probably the best way to describe the varied and almost ethnic inspired music of To-Mera. The album hints at a variety of sounds, but there is no getting around the fact that this is a metal record. Through and through the album is filled with crunchy rhythmic guitars, technical flairs, and captivating female vocals. While some progressive music can be overbearing, this is actually quite memorable and filled with hooks. There is no shortage of guitar solos, or odd rhythms, but it all comes across as being very musical and quite natural. There is nothing forced sounding about this band and that is saying quite a bit as the music does move around quite a bit. I also like the fact that this band is heavy and I do mean heavy. Some of these riffs are downright monsters and wouldn’t sound out of place on a Nevermore album. There are also some moments that could only be described as death metal complete with blast beats and some excellent old school flavored riffing. But on the other end of the spectrum the band is also goes into jazz at the drop of a hat. There is no shortage of experimentation here and the band has the chops to make it work and sound effortless. The entire album comes across as effortless and very natural. I don’t really want to give off the impression that this album is completely technical and void of feel. I’ve used the word progressive to describe this, but at the end of the day there is a lot of feeling present here and the entire album isn’t technical. The band knows when to play it simple and they also know when to kick it up a notch and show off their chops. This is an album that I’d recommend to fans of heavy music in general. Whether you like progressive music or not, there is a lot to like here and this is easily one of the most exciting debut albums I have heard in a long time.

Aborted-Slaughtered & Apparatus: A Methodical Overture
(Century Media, 2007)

It really has to be said. Aborted is the best death metal band around right now. There might be bands heavier, and bands that are more technical, but Aborted know how to write interesting heavy music and continue to improve with each new album. This latest album shows the band continuing to move forward while staying true to their groovy yet blasting form of death metal. The melodic aspect of the band has been kicked up quite a bit giving the band a shot of Heartwork era Carcass. Overall the band has really stripped things down to the essentials and added some new elements. There is almost a hardcore feel to some of the album and a few songs even have what could be considered breakdowns. Of course there is no shortage of blasting insanity and guttural roars, but this band is definitely proving that they have a lot to offer and aren’t a one trick pony. At base level the band could be seen as a cross between goregrind and Heartwork era Carcass, like a combination of old and new Carcass if you will. But when you get right down to it Aborted has been doing this long enough that they have their own original spin on the genre. Aborted is one of the best in the genre at incorporated groove into a death metal song and this songs are some of if not the best the band has ever written. The guitar solos on here are absolutely amazing. They are a perfect combination of a more flashy style mixed with a more straight forward rock sound. Vocally this album is also quite diverse. Of course the trademark guttural roar is used to great lengths, but there are a variety of vocal styles on display here. My favorite being an almost hardcore like yell that shows up quite a bit throughout the entire album. There are also a few spoken almost clean vocal parts throughout the album which are definitely new for the band. These parts are more in the background and mainly used for atmosphere but they certainly add to the diversity of the album. I was expecting Aborted to record an album of this caliber, but even my expectations have been blown away. This is an album that doesn’t necessarily takes death metal to any new places, but it definitely does perfect the Aborted sound. If you think death metal is one dimensional, think again. This album shows that even a band that is usually blisteringly fast can have melodic elements and make it work. This is the best album yet from Aborted and one of the best death metal albums I have ever heard.

Ostinato-Chasing the Form
(Exile of Mainstream Records, 2006)

This is actually quite a bit more mellow then most of the music I would usually listen to, but something about this album just clicks with me. I’m not even sure how to describe the band, but I guess atmospheric rock would be an ideal start. The music doesn’t move around quickly or change tempos much, but the songs still cover a lot of ground with different feels. The band will go from clean guitars and soft vocals, to much heavier moments quite suddenly and what might come next is always up in the air. There are moments when almost surf like guitars are thrown in and for some reason it just works. What I really like about this album is the bass guitar work. The guitars aren’t overbearing a lot of the time so it gives the bass a lot of room to breathe. You don’t even have to strain to hear it either which is nice as the bass lines usually counterpoint the guitars nicely and rarely play the exact same lines. Vocals are not really a big part of the band as some of these songs feature very sporadic vocals. So essentially the band is largely instrumental and they really make it work. The band knows how to make it work. Instrumental music has to be just a bit self-indulgent but still memorable enough to make people want to listen in the first place. This has many shoe gazer moments and long passages that never change, but you’d be hard pressed to call these parts boring. Self indulgent yes, but boring, not in the least. This is one for those of you who enjoy long songs with tons of emotion and some surprises thrown in for good measure. Think Fugazi meets Pink Floyd with some Dick Dale and Neurosis thrown in for good measure and yes, it is as awesome as it sounds.

Heresi-Psalm II
(Hydra Head, 2006)

I have to admit that I was initially expecting this to be somewhat strange because it is on Hydra Head but truth be told this is a fairly straight forward black metal album and a damn good one at that. Heresi have a fairly classic style of black metal with tremolo picked melodic riffs, blast beats and harsh vocals. One of the main differences here is that the riffs are quite catchy and actually vary in feel from time to time. For some strange reason the band reminds me of a cross between early Mayhem and some of the early Brazilian death metal bands. Some of these riffs really remind me of the simplistic brutality of very early Sepultura. There is no shortage on blasting here as each song is really quite fast with only a few slower sections. There is one song that is completely slow however and this song really reminds me of Mayhem. The following song has more of a Hellhammer or Celtic Frost feel with a thrash like tempo and simpler riffs. Of course the whirlwind approach of the band is interjected into the almost punky song and it might not be anything completely new but it does make for an enjoyable song. I’m actually amazed that this is a one man band, but what really makes this album work is the fact that he used a live drummer instead of a drum machine. A drum machine would have definitely hurt the album I think. The live drumming adds a great deal of energy and while it isn’t an incredibly flashy drum performance, it is definitely rock solid. I really had no idea what to expect from this disc and I am very impressed. It is very rare to hear black metal of this caliber right now and this is an album that fans of the genre will not want to pass up on.