Thieves and Villains-Movement
(Victory Records, 2008)

Thieves and Villains are a solid bands but they are somewhat held back by one thing. That one thing is that they sound a great deal like Fall Out Boy. There are songs where the influence isn't as prominent but when it does show its face it is hard to ignore. That said, for a debut album the band has written some powerful and catchy albeit unoriginal songs.

The band certainly has songwriting chops and that is probably why it is so easy to look past the lack of originality on display. You can hear the influences but the strength of the delivery and the memorable vocal hooks makes this an album hard to overlook. It's apparent that the band doesn't want to be a Fall Out Boy clone and with time I'm sure the comparison will diminish. The band is on the right track and this is a damn fine start for any band.

If you are a fan of big riffs, vocal hooks and energy this album certainly provides. If you can look past the initial "wow this sounds like Fall Out Boy" stage of the album, you'll find a solid debut album here.

http://www.myspace.com/thievesandvillians

40 Below Summer-Side Show Freaks
(Driven Music Group, 2008)

You certainly don't hear much these days that could be considered nu-metal. 40 Below Summer unashamedly stick to their guns and while their sound is hardly in vogue these days, the band is quite good at what they do. Combining rhythmic stomp and melodic choruses the band has a sound that is instantly recognizable yet still somewhat typical of the genre.

Given the state of this style of metal it is obvious that the band isn't out for money. It is obvious that they do put a lot of effort into the songwriting as the band is much more dynamic than the average band playing this style. A song like 5lb Hand does what Limp Biskit always tried but never fully realized before they simplified their sound to the point of stupidity.

If you aren't a fan of nu-metal this album certainly is not for you. If you still listen to this style, 40 Below Summer manage to do the style justice and still bring in some new elements along the way. Regardless of how you feel about the genre you have to repect the band for sticking to their guns while other similar bands have probably already moved on to the metalcore fad.

http://www.myspace.com/40belowsummer

Bestial Mockery-Slaying the Life
(Season of Mist, 2008)

Slaying the life shows the Bestial Mockery sound reaching lethal perfection. The old school and vicious attack is strengthened by some of the strongest riffs ever from the band and the simplistic yet addicting vocal patterns. While this is the most memorable the band has ever been the album is just as lethal as anything the band has ever done, if not more so.

The Bestial Mockery sound combines black metal with thrash and with more than a hint of early Brazilian death metal influence coming through. Which basically translates into somewhat simplistic evil guitar riffs, pummeling drumming and vicious vocals. Manic lead guitar runs are common and fit the sound of the band perfectly. The sound offers few surprises but the evil thrashing attack kicks a whole lot of ass regardless.

Each of the 12 songs here is a blistering reinforcement of the fact that Bestial Mockery is one of the most vicious bands in metal today. If Bestial Mockery and Nifelheim were the only two bands releasing music of this nature I would be a happy man. This is an album that will easily be in my top 10 for this year.

http://www.myspace.com/bestialmockery666