Album Review: Melvins – Nude With Boots

Melvins – Nude With Boots
Ipecac – IP105P – 8 July 2008

If ever a band has remained criminally overlooked by the masses through a long, prolific and consistently excellent career (that has been in a steamrolling motion since 1983), than its the Melvins. Hugely influential to a multitude of rock and metal bands, inspiring everything from grunge to drone, their refusal to settle into a single niche has afforded them brief flirtations with the mainstream. The Melvins‘ enduring legacy may be their impact on a fledgling Seattle rock scene in the late 80s, early 90s, the scene’s most prominent martyr Kurt Cobain acting as something of a protege of the band initially, before eventually using the weight of Nirvana’s explosion with Nevermind to secure Melvins with a 3-album stint with major label Atlantic. The Melvins were alwyas too predictable and downright odd to sell millions of records to angsty gen X-ers, however, even if there were always potential radio-friendly hits buried within the gruelling sludge, twisted Sabbath-isms and general rock weirdness that is their forte.

In 2001 the band finally found a stable home with Mike Patton’s Ipecac label. Their past few albums have been quite streamlined by their standards, with ’06’s (A) Senile Animal perhaps their most accessible record since Houdini. Nude With Boots continues this trend, building on the critical acclaim of its predecessor. Notable about both Nude... and …Senile Animal has been the annexation of kindred upstarts Big Business into the bass, drumming and backing vocal fold, which means there are doubled up drums in the mix to give the listener an extra pounding. The backing vocals of Jarod Warren meanwhile add a great compliment to Buzz Osbourne’s familiar roar, the layered style adding a bizarrely operatic effect at times. Nude With Boots is stylistically similar to (A) Senile Animal, and there is a little deja vu going on here, but repeated spins prove rewarding as it really takes a few listens for this album to get under the skin. ‘The Kicking machine’ has a distinct 70s flavour, like Led Zeppelin dragged through a ditch backwards or something. ‘Billy Fish’ is something of a nod to the Houdini/Stoner Witch days as a ctachy, mid-paced rock-out, with the multi-percussive element proving devastating in this instance. As before, Jarod’s contributions are a great accompaniment to Buzz’s vocals – they’re slightly similar actually, but less gruff and thus add a melodic air to things. Think of Jerry Cantrell’s vocals to Layne Stayley’s in Alice in Chains.

Melvins have never made things too easy for the listener of course, and the ominous ‘Dies Irae’ is typical of this tendency, invoking Ennio Morricone’s spaghetti western soundtracks through a minimalist dirge. ‘It Tastes Better than the Truth’ is like a nightmarish mantra of sorts, as squawking guitar shapes and menacing screams and yells; it’s repetetive, loud and obnoxious the way a Melvins closer should be really. For the most past, though, Nude With Boots is comprised of standard issue Melvins rockers such as ‘Suicide in Progress’ that are always a treat to the ears. It rarely strays into the kind of out there weirdness that has often bemused listeners in the past (their collaboration with Lustmord a few years ago had a 20 minute track of incessant repetetion to fuck you up), it’s concise and to the point. It’s unlikely to have the critical impact of (A) Senile Animal, as it’s essentially more of the same, but it’s the Melvins and therefore rocks the fuck out of everything. So there.

Official Melvins Website
Official Melvins MySpace
Official Ipecac Website

Album Review: Graveyard Dirt – Shadows of Old Ghosts

Graveyard Dirt – Shadows of Old Ghosts
Self Released – 29 September 2007

These Irish doomsters have something of a complicated history. Originally forming way back in ‘94, their first demo Of Romance and Fire was released in ‘95. Having piqued the interest of German label Ars Metalli, they were signed the following year with a view to a debut album. A series of setbacks, including guitarist David Reilly’s sustaining an arm injury, led to the band’s dissolution before they ever managed to realise their potential. Cut to 2005, and Graveyard Dirt have reformed. Of Romance and Fire has been re-released, and the band have decided to enter the studio to finally record some of the material that was intended for that elusive debut full-length. Shadows of Old Ghosts is the result, a 34 minute, 3-track EP. As it turns out, we’ve all been missing out bigtime with their absence, as Graveyard Dirt have crafted a work of magisterial brilliance that not only entrenches them firmly within the upper echelons of doom’s considerable heirarchy, but actually surpasses many of their better contemporaries in the process.

The main riff motif that dominates the first 4 minutes of ‘Rise…Fallen Skies’ is sublime; effortlessly invoking that simultaneously uplifting and downtrodden beauty that typifies the best doom. Their sound could best be likened to British scene of the early 90s – Anathema (think Crestfallen and The Silent Enigma as opposed to Judgement), My Dying Bride and Paradise Lost. There’s a tinge of the dark romanticism that typifies those bands too, although it’s delivered in a less overtly hammy fashion. Each of the 3 tracks on offer shift through myriad moods and tempos, yet the familiar dirge of this genre is omnipresent. Paul Leydon gives a spirited performance behind the mic, his combination of throaty roars and whispered spoken word passages like a cross between Darren White and Aaron Stainthorpe.

Since some bands have made it their business to create the slowest, least listenable dirges in the world, Graveyard Dirt have instead concentrated on creating memorable songs. A warm, textured production baths each track in an audible but no less gritty light, and is short of being overly clinical. ‘A Tearless Lament’ highlights this nicely, as a spoken word and intricate, clean guitar midsection launches back into a crushing dirge, and the effect is nothing short of epic. ‘Gathering Storm’ is just as its name suggests, as a calculated build up morphs into a violent climax, whilst it utilises piano and string flourishes to great effect. Shadows of Old Ghosts is thus a lovingly constructed and excellently wirrten piece of work, and as all good EPs should, its brief length leaves you gasping for more. Those of you bored to tears by My Dying Bride’s dreary A Line of Deathless Kings need to hear this, as Graveyard Dirt could show those old dogs about how vital doom should sound these days. And labels? You let these guys release this independently? For shame!

Official Graveyard Dirt MySpace

Album Review: Various Artists – Intoxicated Volume 4

Various Artists – Intoxicated Volume 4
Underground Movement – 2006

Compilations that attempt to give insight into a particular scene can fall into the pitfalls of broad inconsistency, with the better offerings often flanked by a host of the poorer scene barrel-scrapings. If only one sub-genre is represented, on the other hand, it can be demoralising to discover that most of the bands on your BEST OF GOREGRIND XTREEEM XIV!!!! or whatever sound like carbon copies of each other. Ho hum. So it’s heartening that Intoxicated Volume 4 presents a host of bands from the Irish underground. Death metal is featured heavily, but there are cuts of classic thrash, doom and even instrumental rock to be found too. It might be worth noting that many of the tracks on this comp are culled from self-financed albums and demos, and as such the recording quality can be a little rough at times. However, what Intoxicated… does best is showcase a variety of talent from an island not exactly synonymous with metal, and highlighting the injustice of its lack of profile worldwide.

Pogrom open proceedings in a manner not unlike early Death, particularly in the vocal department, and as ‘Dirty the Cloth’ suggests, its a somewhat hilarious rage against paedophile priests. A nod to Immolation’s ‘Father You’re Not a Father’ perhaps? Abaddon Incarnate blast forth with possibly the best track on the cd, with stellar production values and a vicious death/grind assault that is as intense as it gets. Mass Extinction’s brand of retro thrash may seem a little hackneyed these days, but bear in mind this originally came about in 2006 and you’ll quickly forgive ‘em. Sure, the overused theme of nuclear holocaust is a bit predictable, but it’s hard not to give a wry smile at its earnest authenticity, especially those Tom Araya-borrowed screams from the Reign in Blood days. Coldwar have been plying their nasty, hardcore-tinged extreme metal since 1999, and the catchy sludge they ooze is impressively dirty. Both Morphosis and Slave Zero offer more death metal, with the latter being the better of the two with some deft, intricate guitar work, whilst Morphosis’s brutal death metal comes across as banal by comparison. A surprising highlight emerges with Parhelia’s instrumental rock. It may sound out of place on a death metal heavy comp such as this, but they’re equipped with some suitably intricate guitar displays to hold their own with. A more textured approach in the future may well land them some serious attention. Wreck of the Hesperus rival Abaddon Incarnate for track of the album, as ‘Venomous Tentacles’ unnerving take on filthy doom is sewer-dwelling nastiness at its best, somehow managing to appear both minimalist and dense at once.

With 18 tracks to be trawled through, it’s quite an intimidating listen, but well worth it. Ireland’s metal scene has for a long time been quite marginalised, yet with Primordial’s ever rising profile along with the likes of Mourning Beloveth this is steadily changing. Sure, there are a couple of duff tracks here (Chosen need to seriously work on their clean vocal approach if they’re ever to become true contenders), but for the most part this is a raw, visceral yet surprisingly varied take on an ever-bulging scene.

Official Underground Movement Website
Official Underground Movement MySpace

Album Review: Ihsahn – Angl

Ihsahn – Angl
Candlelight – CANDLE218CD – 26 May 2008

Ihsahn’s first solo outing, The Adversary, was certainly an interesting diversion, and chock full of many of his trademark strengths as a master songwriter, but it also suffered from a lack of cohesion. Ihsahn let his influences run a little rampant, his propensity for King Diamond worship in particular, and to be honest it’s hard to remember any standout moments. Not only is Angl much better in all respects, but it could perhaps be seen as the true follow up to Emperor’s swansong, Prometheus: The Discipline of Fire and Demise, as it explores some similar themes whilst inhabiting that classicist, proggy, post-black metal headspace thatto this day only Emperor ever fully realised.

Sure enough, opener ‘Misanthrope’ recalls ‘The Tongue of Fire, whilst the epic, string-laden bombast and blastbeats of ‘Malediction’ echo ‘In the Wordless Chamber’. Ihsahn has managed to reign in the unecessary indulgences of The Adversary in favour of more concise songwriting, yet without compromising the technical prowess he has so effortlessly displayed in the past. ‘Unhealer’ is a proper highlight, Opeth’s Mikael Akerfeldt lending his considerable pipes in both clean and growled capacities, and his emotive singing adds an excellent current through Ihsahn’s ever-extravagant guitar playing. The pair trade off growled and rasped vocals during the chorus, and it works so well as to act as a climax of sorts.

Angl isn’t perfect, however. The production is a little clinical in places, and as such it can’t summon the kind of atmospheric heights that it hints at. Ihsahn has no time for black metal primitivism or its resultant constraints, and as expected this could hardly even be called black metal were it not for his distinct throaty rasp. Yet it’s hard to beoman Ihsahn for this as ‘Threnody’s gentle strains close the album in a suitably eerie fashion, which is when one finally realises that Ihsahn’s musical vision far exceeds the limitations imposed by black metal’s ideological conservatism. Angl may lack both the nasty, malevolent streak of prime Emperor, not to mention its forest-trolling atmosphere, but as a full on piece of metallic art this is probably up there with the best of the year so far.

Official Ihsahn Website
Official Ihsahn MySpace
Official Candlelight Website

Album Review: Deranged – The Red Light Murder Case

Deranged – The Red Light Murder Case
Regain Records – RR139 – 25 February 2008
By Paddy Walsh

Blood-spattered brutal death is served up through Swedish veterans’ 7th (and final) offering. When a death metal band keeps things simple, with the focus on songwriting over noticeable progression, or bludgeon over technical wizardry, the results can still be devastating, even in 2008 – Dead Congregation proved that. Many bands have even resorted to reducing their art to Malmsteen-like acts of sonic masturbation in an attempt to deflect attention away from the fact that they’re incapable of writing a memorable riff (see recent Cryptopsy). Deranged have no such illusions of grandeur, and it’s thus left to the actual material to impress. The Red Light Murder Case has its hemorhraging heart in the right place, but unfortunately falls below the mark in a few respects.

As ‘Watch Me When I Kell’ kicks off, it bewcomes apparent that this bad boy won’t be featuring any Nile-inspired brass sections. Rather, Deranged serve up a straight-ahead, no frills barrage in the vein of Cannibal Corpse with touches of Slayer in the mix. An attempt at a concept of sorts (a guy who muders prostitutes or something…enthralling i’m sure) is there, although it’s hard to see the point in a genre as openly bone-headed as brutal death. A somewhat clinical production nullifies their attempt to thematically diversify, unfortunately, and any atmosphere which they may have conjured otherwise is lost. The relentless bludgeon attention also fails to hold the attention for the duration, with many of the songs seemingly interchangeable. ‘Murderess’ proves an exception, with a satisfying groove invoked that finally gives the listener something to get their teeth into, whilst ‘The Killer Wore Black Gloves’ has a slow-burning chug that successfully taps into a menacing atmosphere that’s otherwise lacking.

The requisite growls are quite blandly executed , i.e. they remain in guttural autopilot throughout. Why do death metal vocalists think that just because they can do a good cookie monster impression that it automatically converys an angry/aggressive emotional extreme? It doesn’t, and growling needs to be considered an art as much as any other vocal style. Seriously. As I can assure that it’s a part of what separates the Morbid Angels from the Hate Eternals in this world. So Deranged end a 15 year career with an adequate but wholly unremarkable brutal death metal platter. It’s decent, but it’s bog standard and one strictly for the Cannabal Corpse afficionados. Still, it’s not worful by any means, yet simply can’t compare with the likes of say, Dismember or Severe Torture in the ’simple but effective’ stakes for 2008.

Official Deranged Website
Official Deranged MySpace
Official Regain Records Website

Alum Review: Torche – Meanderthal

Torche – Meanderthal
Hydra Head – HH666152 – 8 April 2008

Although the fuzzed-up guitars may make Torche sound like another troupe of stoner rock pretenders, the frantic heaviosity is too upbeat, nay, too much fun, for it to languish in predictable Black Sabbath worship. And whilst they mightn’t like to admit it themselves, the ghosts of early 90s luminaries such as Soundgarden and Melvins are invoked throughout Meanderthal. Hell, ‘Grenades’s soloing even recalls Smashing Pumpkins at their most space rock (think ‘Starla’ from Pisces Iscariot for a more distinct reference). This kind of ballsy, unabashed riffery may have been superceded in the mainstream by a slicker, more flaccid offspring in the last 10 years (see Audioslave versus Soundgarden, or Velvet Revolver as opposed to Stone Temple Pilots, yeuck!), but listening to Torche has the essence of the heady days of Seattle at its core. The time is right for a re-ignition of this kind of thing – like most musical fads a backlash emerged soon after the suicide of its reluctant flag-bearer – and Torche are far better equipped to herald this than the piss-taking likes of Chris Cornell + RATM.

So we have Melvins, Soundgarden, Nirvana, Mudhoney – if you miss the days when these flannel-clad fuckers ruled the roost, then Meanderthal has lots to offer. Queens of the Stone Age, Mastodon – these guys can be found under the bonnet of this work too, and as such Meanderthal is no mere piece of revivalism. The most important thing about Meanderthal is that massive riffs are delivered in spades, the solos are ear-bleedingly intense, the drums roll like thunder, and Steve Brooks’s vocals are howled with that perfect mixture of slacker nonchalance and righteous anger. Sure, it could do with a little more variation at times, but this is nullified by its all too brief running time and the fact that some of the songs barely push 2 minutes. You never even get a chance to to take a breath anyway, and thus Torche are nothing short of a riotous revelation. Ignore them at your peril you assholes.

Official Torche Website
Official Torche MySpace
Official Hydra Head Records Website