ALBUM REVIEWS: KILLING TIME, HIGH ON FIRE Monday, March 1, 2010KILLING TIME Three Steps back Dead City Records
Its been a long, long, long time since Killing time put out a new album. The hardcore pioneers have been on a long hiatus between the years of their last release (The Method 1999) and now. What has changed? Absolutely nothing. Instrumentally they are tighter than ever and lyrically they are angrier than ever. Like a bunch of old guys bitching about work at a local bar. Hardcore is a very grey area these days. If a band does too much experimenting with the classic sound, they are sellouts. If they continue the same formula, they are unimaginative and uninspired. Three Steps Back proves that theory incorrect, and the new release is diamond in the rough. They aren't reinventing the wheel here. Hell, what is hardcore but three chords and a bunch of angst and passion. TOP TRACKS: Spaceheater, 24, Rope A Dope, Mingus, Half Empty FINAL VERDICT: Killing Time has proved you can pump out blue collar hardcore, stay true to the scene and move forward with the same driving sound that was made popular in the late 80s and 90s. Some things are good to rely on. Catching an STD from a Hunt's Point hooker is one. Killing Time putting out a killer album is another.
RATING: 4/5
HIGH ON FIRE Snakes for the Divine Koch Records
What do you get when you combine a three piece metal band, crushing riffage and lots of devil horns? Answer. A migraine brought about by the constant whiplash caused by headbanging to High On Fire's new album, Snakes for the Divine. I've seen these guys play only a few times and was amazed that the sound emanating from the stage
was that of a three piece. Not many bands can pull that off. While not too familiar with their previous albums, Snakes, is very stripped down and raw sounding album. If you are one for comparisons, the album can come off as sounding like a much heavier version of The Sword.
TOP TRACKS: Snakes for the Divine, Ghost Neck, How Dark We Pray
FINAL VERDICT: With each song clocking in at 6 plus minutes, you are in for a long listen. I've read some other reviews where people complain about the track order and how it doesn't run smoothly. I think these people have too much time on their hands. You either like the album or you don't. This reviewer likes the album. A lot.
ALBUM REVIEWS: THY WILL BE DONE, CATHERINE, AMARNA REIGN Wednesday, August 19, 2009 THY WILL BE DONE In Ancient Times Stillborn Records
There's brutal, then there's kickin babies in the teeth brutal. After their second release its apparant that TWBD do not like babies. Alright maybe they like the crying little meatbags a tad bit but that doesn't take anything away from In Ancient Times. The album is aptly titled since it sounds as if lead singer, J. Costas, has tapped into some old, twisted, demented spirits and spat them out in the form of insane vocals on this record. Combined with bone crushing riffs and heart pounding drums, its easy to see In Ancient Times as one of th ebest metal albums recorded this year. TOP TRACKS: Mourning Without The Sun, And Fire Will Fall, New World Idolatry, Machineries of Debt, Until the Ancient of Days FINAL VERDICT: Thy Will Be Done have carved a great niche for themselves and have quietly earned the respect of many with their intelligent lyrics and blue collar approach to music. There's no evidence of sophomoric slump going on here. An ace among jokers. RATING: 5 out of 5Tim Tebow's girlfriend!
CATHERINE Inside Out Rise Records
Upon reading the liner notes I was made aware that Bryan Lemasters, the original vocalist for Catherine, passed away due to cancer at the young age of 23 in December of 2008. Catherine was a different band with Bryan at the mic, and I was skeptical about anyone replacing him. The new lead singer, Nick Bradwell added some melody to Catherine's already impressive breakdowns and blastbeats. It was obvious that this was a different Catherine altogether. The transformation which started on The Naturals, comes to fruition on Inside Out. TOP TRACKS: Prosthetic Limbs, Turbulence, Mr. Monroe, Scene Not Heard FINAL VERDICT: Inside Out is dedicated to the life and memory of Bryan LeMasters. The first Catherine album (Rumor Has It..." will always be a favorite of mine. But the new sound has grown on me and maybe over time I'll come to love the new as I have the old. But lest we forget our past. RIP Bryan "with a Y" LeMasters RATING: 3 out of 5Tim Tebow's girlfriend!
AMARNA REIGN Atonement Unknown Label. Unsigned? I'm sure not for long.
Stumbled upon this band while being home from work injured. Good thing about having a bunch of sick days is I get to sift through the shitty albums and try to give you guys something goo to check out rather than just trash every cookie cutter band out there. Amarna Reign is anything but boring and everything about interesting. Combining many different melodies with brutal aggression seems to be their fortay. Can someone say "Next best thing"? Someone sign these guys already! TOP TRACKS: The Fall, Deceiver, Into the Sky, The Fight (Isn't Over) FINAL VERDICT: The best $6.93 I've spent on iTunes in quite some time. RATING: 4 out of 5Tim Tebow's girlfriend!
MMA vs. BOXING Friday, July 31, 2009
I've been getting into these debates a lot lately so I figured why not blog about it on the site, maybe even get some feedback from the readers. So here I am, about to give you ten reasons why MMA will surpass boxing, if it hasn't already, in the next decade. I wouldn't even be surprised if boxing disappears altogether. The boxing elite know this change of the guard is coming. So here is my argument:
1. Quick. Name the boxing heavyweight champion of the world. More than likely the sound you'll be hearing after you pose that question will resemble the sound of a packed movie theater at a Woody Allen marathon. Crickets ladies and gents, crickets. I approached 10 avid sports fans and asked the same question and got several different answers. The correct answer? I'm reluctant to take a guess and say it is, WladimirKitschko. But to be honest, I can't say for 100%. All the resources i have checked out also gave me a bunch of different answers. Which leads us to....
2. What's with all the acronyms?!?! The reason why its pretty much impossible to name the heavyweight champion is simple. There is no clear cut, undisputed, heavyweight champion. Reason being that their are 5 different organizations which put on fights, each with the ability to have their own champion. The idea of unifying all these titles hasn't been done since Roy Jones Jr. (I could be wrong on this too) and even his status as undisputed light heavyweight champion was, well, disputed.
Here is a list of all the boxing organizations: WBA (World Boxing Association), WBC (World Boxing Council), IBF (International Boxing Federation), WBO (World Boxing Organization), IBO (International Boxing Organization). That's a lot for a fan to swallow ain't it? True, MMA is starting to go through a similar, but highly less confusing ordeal with more and more organizations starting up. UFC being the most noteworthy, followed by WEC, Affliction and Strikeforce. And each organization has its own champions so having a "unified" or "undisputed" champion in a weight class will probably never happen.
3. There's no Don King! In my opinion shameless promoters hold a large share of the blame for boxing's downfall. Bouts are set up with nothing but the payout in mind. There is no pride or dignity in the sport anymore. Its not surprising to see so-called "champions" fighting absolute no-names so long as the purse is right. What the UFC did in this area was brilliant. They sign fighters to short term contracts, not in years, but in the amount of fights. No sleazeball promoters! In each fight you can received bonuses. Put on the best Fight of TheNight? That might get you an extra 5-10 grand! As seen in UFC 100, Dan Henderson cashed in with Knockout of the Night honors and raked in a six figure salary. Its obvious that when the cash goes to the best performer, the crowd always gets a better show. Performance based salaries...what a great idea hey Mr. King?
4. MMA has a larger talent pool than boxing ever will! You tell me how many high schools have boxing teams or clubs in them? I know in my area (NYC) there aren't many if any. Now tell me how many high schools have wrestling teams? Fact is wrestling is a large part of MMA. But wrestlers have no where to turn to after their high school and collegient careers run their paths. Some of the top wrestlers in the country (and world) have turned to MMA as a means to go somewhat "professional". UFC veteran and former PRIDE champion, Dan "Hendo" Henderson was an Olympic wrestler. Current UFC welterweight champion, Georges St. Pierre is a highly skilled Canadian wrestler. Freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling is right behind college football and basketball. I wonder where boxing ranks amongst them? *check out The Mat: The Official Website of USA Wrestling 5. Yes, MMA IS barbaric! And that's the beauty of it! Jump in a fucking time machine to the days of Jack Dempsey and I'm willing to bet the masses were against Dempsey's, sometimes bareknuckled brawling! How is MMA any different? Its new as compared to boxing, but pitting man against man in a ring, cage, arena has been entertainment for centuries, and that will never change. 6. MMA is physically and mentally more demanding than boxing. There I said it. Even though UFC CEO, Dana White usually dances around this question, you know he wants to say it. MMA athletes can outlast any boxer. Period. I'm not taking anything away from the athleticism of today's boxers but come on now. There are so many aspects to train for an MMA fight. Plain and simple, MMA is a simulated street fight, boxing is just a small part of that formula. The argument that boxers endure 12 rounds of fight while MMA combatants usually go for only 3-5 rounds is null and void. Boxing bouts that I have seen recently get stopped for some nonsense reason and leave both corners arguing who really won the fight.
7. How many boxing matches end in some sort of bullshit decision? I've been watching the fights (boxing) lately on Showtime. And in one night there were 4 fights. ALL of which ended in a decision or a questionable stoppage. There were no clear cut winners in any of the matches. It left me thinking, "Wow. I just wasted my time watching this crap!" Its clear that the judges in boxing have no clue how to judge a fight. I don't know what fight they are watching half the time. With the judges inability to properly score a bout, and the ineptitude of the referees its amazing fights even make it past the second round these days. Does it happen in MMA? Sure. But no where close to the frequency of boxing.
8. Boxing is corrupt. We all know it. I don't even think I should have to argue this point any further. Check out ESPN's article on the top ten questionable bouts ever. Those are just ten! The article also sheds some light on how exactly a boxing match is scored.
9. The old timers just don't get it. MMA is confusing for someone say my father's age (60) who grew up watching boxing legends such as Rocky Marciano, Muhammed Ali, Joe Frazier, and Roberto Duran. Its a simple, sweet, science. Two guys in a ring and they punch each other till one blacks out or it goes the distance and some mystery judges decide their fate. Watching UFC 98 with my dad, it was hysterical to see him bitch and moan about two guys "hugging all over each other". But once explained, he started to understand that each move in JiuJitsu has a specific and deliberate purpose. I even got him looking into the Gracie history of the sport. Unlike my pops however, some old-timers (if he reads this he's gonna kill me for referring to him as that) just refuse to try and understand MMA.
10. Boxing has a legacy...for now. In the above clip, Joe Rogan makes a brilliant comment about today's boxing heroes. Quite simply there aren't any. The "greats" that will always be remembered are the heroes our parents tell us about. There will be no more Muhammad Alis. There will be no more Sugar Ray Leonards. Hell there won't even be anymore circus sideshow acts such as Mike Tyson! Will there be "legends" so to speak in the MMA world? The UFC has a Hall of Fame. The Gracie name is almost religiously spoken of when conversing with todaysMMA greats. The fact is only time will tell and MMA has all the time in the world and boxing is on life support.
ALBUM REVIEWS: AUGUST BURNS RED, GOD FORBID, POISON THE WELL Thursday, July 30, 2009 AUGUST BURNS RED Constellations Solid State Records
One day I was bored out of my mind and decided to see what iTunes suggested listening I would appreciate. A band called August Burns Red popped up and I decided to give it a try. The album I listened to back then was named Thrillseeker. Since then, I've been a rabid fan, and their number of plays on my playlist trumps most bands on my iPod. Constellations is the third full length release from the Pennsyvania quintet. As with the previous albums, ABR doesn't dissappoint with their signature heavy breakdowns and odd-meter riffs, only this time they throw in a little melody exemplified in "Indonesia". ABR is three for three so far as I'm concerned. TOP TRACKS: Where do I start? "Existence", "Ocean of Apathy" has a pretty groovy stoner breakdown riff in the middle of it, "White Washed", "Indonesia", "The Escape Artist", "Meddler", "Rationalist"... FINAL VERDICT: Metalcore never really did anything for me until I heard these guys. I mean you can throw a rock and hit the next "up and coming" metalcore band these days. The genre is just over-saturated with, well...shit. August Burns Red stays true to the wonderful musical catastrophe it created when they first started. RATING: 4 out of 5 Assbanditos
-GDeViL
(Yes, that's ABR doing aBritany Spears cover)
GOD FORBID Earthsblood Century Media
I'll be the first to say I have missed the train on NJ metal artists, God Forbid. Their most recent release, Earthsblood, is, sadly, the first I have heard from this band. I guess God Forbid has always been one of those bands I hear so much about, but never actually got a chance to listen to? Or I'm just a complete hermit? My therapist would agree with the latter. So without hearing any previous work by God Forbid I had a great and rare opportunity to give this album a purely unbiased review. Earthsblood comes five years after their previous release, Consitution of Treason. Its been reported that guitarist, Dallas Coyle, left the band almost immediately followong this release (He has been replaced as far as i know by ex-Darkest Hour guitarist, Kris Norris). After a month of listening to the album I have to say I'm sorry I haven't tuned into God Forbid sooner. Straight up metal goodness. TOP TRACKS: "Empire of the Gun", "The Rain", "Bat the Angels", and the single-worthy "Walk Alone" FINAL VERDICT: Earthsblood made me realize how many times I've passed the chance to go see these guys play at a small local venue. I'm kicking myself in the balls now. I got the chance to listen to their earlier stuff and as usual, I like the previous releases more. This album, although good, was a bit too cleaned up compared to the older stuff, but again, a great album through and through. RATING: 3 out 5 Assbanditos!
POISON THE WELL The Tropic Rot Ferret Music
Poison The Well have always been the average girl at the high school prom in my opinion. In other words, they ain't the ugly duckling with no date, but they aren't the prom queen either. A respectable 6 or 7 on the 1-10 scale if you will. That's why when I picked up PTW's latest album, The Tropic Rot, I wasn't expecting to be blown away, and I wasn't expected to listen to complete crap. For argruments sake, I have never been a huge fan. Not that I didn't like them, I just never got around to getting into them. Speaking to a few die hard PTW fans, I hear that this album is sort of a return to their original sound. At first listen, I would compare this album to a Deftones album sans White Pony era, only grittier. Not a bad thing to sound like at all. TOP TRACKS: "Sparks It Will Rain", "Cinema", "Antartica Inside Me", "Are You Anywhere", and "Makeshift Clay" FINAL VERDICT: Beautifully chaotic sounds that will keep you interested for sometime. If this is a return to their original sounds I'm impressed. Solid effort. RATING: 4 out of 5 Assbanditos!!!
BURN HALO, EARTH CRISIS, NARROWS Monday, July 20, 2009
BURN HALO Burn Halo Rawkhead Records
Grab yer tightest jeans and get ready to rock the fuck out! Well, sort of. Throwback bands seem to be the thing. As my grandfather once said, everything goes in cycles...even glam metal. Burn Halo borders on the 80s sound that made spandex a fashion statement. Coming from that era (fuck you i know I'm old) I can appreciate it to an extent. The band stareted when former lead singer, James Hart, of Eighteen Visions fame met up with Zac Malloy, formerly of The Nixons. The two began writing enlisting the help of Synyster Gates (Avenged Sevenfold), Daniel Adair (Nickelback), and Chris Chaney (Jane's Addiction). The resulting sound is something I would have lisetened to way back in the day when nullets and denim jackets were the shit. TOP TRACKS: Dirty little Girl, So Addicted, Our House FINAL VERDICT: Glam metal is a bit hasty when describing Burn Halo. Afterall there were some good bands that came out in that era (Motley Crue, Skid Row...). There are a few ragin tracks on the album that make me want to rip lines like Nikki Sixx, but there are also a bunch of ballads that border upon suckin your dad off in the shower. Raw rock n roll. I can deal with that. RATING: 2 out of 5 Kim Kardashian Asses!
- GDeViL
EARTH CRISIS To The Death Century Media
What's this? Kids breaking out the fat markers and painting X's on their hands? "sXe" is labeled on every article of clothing? A "Straight Edge" resurgence? All this can only mean one thing. Either Earth Crisis has delivered yet another powerful album or the fashion industry has infected yet another aspet of the punk/hardcore lifestyle. Yes, Earth Crisis has reunited and have put out a another brutal album with To The Death. And sadly, yes, straight edge has seeped into fashionistas hands, but thats a whole other issue. Its been a while for the Syracuse quintet but they collectively still bring it. They pack intensely brutal riffs and their signature use of gang vocals and breakdowns have never been better. Lyrically, Karl tackles some serious subject matter and answers it with his militant stance on these topics (drug use, animal rights, terrorism, the media, etc...). Not for the faint of heart. TOP TRACKS: To Ashes, Security Threat Number One, Control Through Fear, To The Death, Cities Fall FINAL VERDICT: Definitely worth the 8 year wait. No I'm not Straight Edge, not by a long shot. But I can appreciate good hardcore and Earth Crisis delivers. I'm usually not one for political beliefs but some of their (Earth Crisis) stances on certain topics should be heeded. RATING: 4 out of 5 Kim Kardashian Asses! -GDeViL
Narrows New Distances Deathwish Inc
Narrows is a force to be reckoned with. With members spread from London to Seattle, the transcontinental project is a mix of artists who worked with Unbroken, Over My Dead Body, These Arms Are Snakes, Nineironspitfire, Tropics, and Quarantine, just to name a few. The debut “New Distances” is an aural masterpiece, if there ever was one. “New Distances” is a melodic and technical album with some intense and fierce vocals. The influences of the American hardcore pioneers and London’s punk rock foundations blend beautifully in tracks like “Changing Clothes” and “Chambered”. Rating: 4 out of 5 Kim Kardashian Asses! -Amanda
