REVIEW: SEALCLUBBER - STOICAL

Starting with a song titled “Tales of a Romanian Horse Whisperer,” UK mood-ruiners Sealclubber immediately bludgeon the listener with noisy sludge. Based on the prevailing sense of dread and hostility in the scabrous songs on Stoical, I’m guessing this horse whisperer has more in common with the deranged theatrics and animal mutilation of Equus than that Robert Redford snooze-fest.

Speaking of animal mutilation, you might have frowned at that band name already. If it’s any solace, the violent intentions of these songs don’t stop at aquatic mammals, and humans are very much in danger once pressing play. With their barbed riffs and the pitch-black ugliness of Drunk Dad and Trap Them, Sealclubber feel like Deadguy if they lasted long enough to have an experimental sludge phase. Like the bands mentioned, Sealclubber’s songs aren’t just sutured opiate-abusing crusty gutterpunk riffs tuned to the brown note. Even in a furious barnburner like “Haima,” the song scavenges elements of hardcore and stoner metal to create a richly textured soundtrack for giving and receiving shit news.

Despite a three-plus minute atmospheric interlude frustratingly murdering momentum, the album quickly regains its footing with “Vows of Silence.” Between suckerpunches of distortion, the reverb of callused fingers scraping over guitar strings leads to a foreboding bass tone that floats above the song like a storm cloud ready to empty apocalyptic rainfall.

It’s a fitting prelude to the disarmingly pensive epic “I Only Desire the Things That Will Destroy Me in the End.” That title likely applies to most fans of heavy music, whether it be regarding their bad habits, currently undiscovered crimes, or the headbanging riffs that will eventually snap their necks. The song proceeds patiently, feeling its way along desolate corridors. Two-thirds of the way through its almost twelve-minute runtime, the song confronts the bloody aftermath it was seeimngly trying to avoid. While the climax isn’t as destructive as hinted by the album’s first half, it still feels like the inevitable victory of baser instincts, where volume rules and subtlety burns away like bong resin. It’s a nuanced track that lingers in the listener’s mind long after it gently fades out.

While their two-song EP Sticky River was impressive, this is a definite leap forward for Sealclubber. While retaining their nihilistic bite, they also build soundscapes that reflect a rotting metropolis in a puddle of mud, blood, and petrol. Looking out my window right now, the view sure as hell sounds familiar.

Follow Sealclubber over on Facebook and check for news on a Stoical pre-order, available from Medusa Crush Recordings on February 5th.

REVIEW: GORGUTS - COLORED SANDS

Sometimes there’s music that just isn’t made for the 13 year old mind, the age I bought my first Gorguts album, the now-legendary Obscura. At that that I couldn’t appreciate the artistry involved, and I wanted, above all else, more breakdowns. It’s like expecting a teenager to get totally pumped about Ingmar Bergman’s Wild Strawberries. Go live a little, then revisit.

Gorguts have never been an easy listen, and Colored Sands (their first studio album since 2001’s From Wisdom to Hate) certainly doesn’t deviate from their reputation as a challenging band that demands patience and full attention from their audience. That being said, there are moments here where they sound almost traditionally heavy, with head-banging momentum and groove amidst the chaos and cacophony. When they’re at their best, Gorguts sound like death metal an alien species might make when trying to replicate earthling heavy metal, trying to slowly worm their way into our population. Starting with “Le Toit du Monde,” band founder Luc Lemay and company dazzle with technicality that lures you into its confounding labyrinth of sound. The title track is simply one of the best metal songs of this young century, with clean guitar building like an escalating warning call that builds to a fanged burst of crawling death. It’s a song that will hunt and haunt you to the end of human existence.

The only thing predictable about Gorguts is their unpredictability. Just when you think you’ve figured out their discordant brand of planet-melting metal you hear “The Battle of Chamdo,” a piece performed by a string quartet that feels like Danny Elfman composing music for a long-lost Hitchcock film. Throw in the John Zorn freak-out of “Enemies of Compassion” and the intoxicated, kaleidoscopic sludge of “Absconders” and there’s no shortage of standout performances on display here. Anyone familiar with Coneheads knows that extra-terrestrials claim to come from France. Judging by the alien sounds of Colored Sands, however, they may actually say they’re French Canadian.

Colored Sands released TODAY in North America, so order it from Season of Mist over here:  http://e-shop.season-of-mist.com/en/bands/gorguts/913

REVIEW: HUMMUNE - CRAFTED IN DARKNESS

According to their Facebook page, the band name refers to an immunity to humans, which sounds like the best immunity ever, since humans are just about the most destructive and dangerous force the Earth has ever known. This band’s brand of pummeling, hardcore noise is a very close second.

Hummune was seemingly constructed in 2009 by sinister robots in some Southampton, UK factory with the intention of beating human brains to a gelatinous pulp. I haven’t been able to locate surnames for the three lethal members of this band, furthering my suspicion that they are not human at all, but Terminator-style machines that just happen to have been programmed to rock hard enough to splinter teeth. Crafted in Darkness, their full-length debut, pulses with Unsane’s jarring energy and drags hardcore through sludge like the best work on Fudge Tunnel’s Hate Songs in E Minor. Guitarist/vocalist Stu and bassist/vocalist Mike have rasps that finds the broken glass-covered middle ground between Justin Broadrick’s growliest moments in Godflesh and Lars Göran Petrov’s work in Entombed, just drenched with reverb. The rhythm section (Rik on drums, Mike mentioned previously) is phenomenal, digging deep trenches for mosh pit victims while the guitar soars and stabs. These guys have the tools and skill to do some serious damage.

Then you listen to “Moth” and “Into Dust” to open the album and realize you’re in for even more harm than you anticipated. These songs hit hard but still contain a ton of texture, from splashes of shoegaze to the whispered vocal delivery on “Claw.” Some of the gentler moments remind me of early Deftones and work beautifully to enhance the foreboding mood before the distortion levels every building in a kilometer radius. Not every song hits with the same efficient fury (“Inside” features a jarring rhythm that unfortunately murders the momentum, “Driven to Husk” plods along without the demolishing riffs that made predecessor “Rise” so deadly) but Crafted in Darkness is still a damn good slab of noisy, metallic rock and hardcore. The sneaky groove of “Era” closes out this album on a muscular note, ending so ferociously that you almost forget the intricate songwriting and melodic guitar work snaking around the bass rhythm just a few minutes prior.

Listening to Crafted in Darkness may not make you immune to the frustrations and dangers of dealing with humanity, but for almost one hour you’ll feel like Hummune have toughened you up to deal with all their shenanigans in stride. Either that, or your brain will be gelatinous pulp. But hey, this is metal, you can’t make an omelet without bruising some brains.

Check out Hummune on Spotify or over here at Bandcamp:  http://hummune.bandcamp.com/album/crafted-in-darkness

And follow them on Facebook for news on shows and releases:  https://www.facebook.com/hummune

REVIEW: KORESH - CHUMP

I judge books by their covers all the time. Albums too. Luke Drozd’s cover art for Koresh’s new EP Chump perfectly captures the music’s brutal, impish mania, with rage-possessed unicorns dueling for unknown reasons, but probably for something ultra-important, like to impress a nearby unicorn chick who totally digs blood-slicked horns, ‘cause really, who doesn’t? Koresh, who have been churning stomachs with punk-infused sludge for a decade now in London, kick out ugly, nasty tunes that smirk at you the whole time if you’re in on the joke. And the music ain’t the joke.

This release from Witch Hunter and Withered Hand Records, a follow-up to 2010's excellent Crippledriver, crackles with the reckless punk energy of The Stooges or Junkyard-era work by The Birthday Party while dishing out crusty sludge overdosing on groove and grit. The Paul Newell/Donny Hopkins vocal tandem reminds me of Weedeater’s Dave “Dixie” Collins, if his vocal cords were grafted with cells from Nocturno Culto’s throat. There is definitely a sense of fun that permeates Chump, from the celebratory “woo!” in “Straight Edge Till Midnight” to the hilarious audio clip from American Juggalo opening “Wogan” to the T-shirt worthy song title “Adolf Hipster.” Also, “You Can Call Me Gaahl” is my favorite title parody since Carcass’ “Keep On Rotting In the Free World.” Koresh, named after the Branch Davidian leader involved with the infamous Waco incident, share a twisted sense of humor that’s absolutely on my wavelength. You know the friend you can send any joke to, no matter how offensive and reprehensible? Yeah, that’s Koresh. This music is like laughter at a funeral, the type of chuckling that’s contagious and soon overtakes the crowd of mourners.

“Cheer Up Glasgow” shows Koresh at their most bleak, offering tortured doom until it blasts into hardcore punk and a stoned groove that brings to mind the slimy tempo shifts of Eyehategod’s In the Name of Suffering. Koresh crash into jagged noise-rock territory in “Bin Juice,” ripping worlds apart with catchy, spastic riffs that skip gentle head-nodding and go straight to tearing your own head off and tossing it in the air in celebration. The bass-heavy rock of “Shitbird” seems a bit rigid and lifeless compared to the rest of the album, but the final minute still slithers to awesomeness thanks to a killer bass line. Chump is the soundtrack of a bender destined to go bad, the sort of party where hundreds of laws are shattered and at least one person loses a limb. Then years later, when the traumatized partyers break vows to never speak of that night again, everyone admits that secretly, despite the debauchery and limb-loss, it was the best party they ever experienced. Koresh is not polite. They will make fun of your mom, even after you tell her she’s dead. But the joke will get you laughing, and their music will make you swear off civility.

Listen to Crush now and order an awesome CD/Shirt bundle over here:  http://witchhunterrecords.bigcartel.com/product/koresh-chump-cd-and-t-shirt-bundle

And check out the Koresh website for more information:  http://straightedgetillmidnight.blogspot.com/

GUEST REVIEW: HORSEBACK / LOCRIAN - NEW DOMINIONS

Mister Growls welcomes our second guest reviewer today, Mr. Rick Sahlin, to share his thoughts on the Horseback/Locrian collaboration New Dominions. Unlike the previous guest assignment (Jude Gullie’s review of Evoken’s A Caress of the Void) I had not listened to this release prior. I entrusted this task to Rick knowing that he is a passionate fan and scholar of the full spectrum of music. Take delight in his following musings as he asks difficult questions and gives me cautious credit for not being an elitist metalhead:

“Sean says the leader is into Neil Young. Neil Young is my favorite. I’ve said this out loud many times and Sean must have heard me say that. Lots of people love Neil Young and that’s fine. I don’t need to feel like I have idiosyncratic taste in music.

I just recently heard “Slip Away” for the first time. It was the version from the Year of the Horse album and I fell in love all over again. There’s always another great Neil song to discover.

So there was a chance that maybe I would like this. I initially thought maybe the point of the exercise was to shock the non-metal fan or make him uncomfortable so metal fans can jeer and congratulate themselves for being tough enough or open-minded enough to like the thing that scares or alienates the non-metal fan. But I should have known Sean would not be up to something like that. Sean is inviting me to metal’s house and I am in metal’s house now as his guest. I’m thankful to have been invited and I will a be a respectful guest and I will sample the banquet that metal has prepared.

Why invite a non-metal fan to review metal? Probably you know more about metal than I ever plan to learn. About how metal works and what metal means and how effective this particular metal is. I can only tell you how someone with a limited knowledge of metal and, today at least, more curiosity than suspicion about metal, will receive this.

I was playing “Sway” by the Rolling Stones around my brother. It sounded like the best goddamn song as I was listening to it and it just made me feel great about music and the Rolling Stones and life and I was dancing around with a big grin on my face. When it was over I asked him what he thought about the Rolling Stones and he said, “They don’t need me to like them.” Sharing your music with others is not always rewarding.

But maybe you want to share metal with your friends. Maybe sharing metal with your friends and family will enrich your relationship with the people in your lives and also with metal. I personally wish I knew more people who were into hip-hop because I just need to share my thoughts about hip-hop sometimes and also hear some fresh thoughts from others. I hope everything works out for both of us.

I can't get into the newest Ghostface album but I enjoyed hearing his recent Wu-Block collaboration on a recent walk through the park. The beats are functional. You'll nod your head. There's a song where Ghost and Sheek Louch compare their guns to children they diligently care for. In the intro of another Ghost breaks down his preferences for cold remedies. He browses the Encylopedia Britannica while drinking lemonade and watching Larry King Live on mute. It's just fun.

My metal background: I took a friend’s extra ticket to Ozzfest 2002. Ozzy was fine - the time-tested songs are familiar to a novice and he is a cute and doddering old man. I took my shirt off even though I’m fat and I was one of several shirtless fat guys yelling and throwing up the horns. System of a Down were also fine - you could shout “Disorder!” during that song and alternate between pogo dancing and swaying side to side. I also enjoyed Rob Zombie. I later lived with that same friend for a while and he made fun of my Sonic Youth records.

I've distilled my personal metal canon to 1-2 songs each from the acts I mentioned above and also “Ace of Spades.” I like some of Alice in Chains’s stuff, if that counts as metal. Also I've heard some Sleep and sun0))))))))))) but I’m guessing Mister Growl readers consider that hipster dilettante metal. People are beyond hating “hipsters” I hope, I mean that gets pretty tiresome.

So this album drones. The idea of droning appeals to me.

I’m not feeling this album though and I don’t really have it in me to say much more than that. They lose me at 3 minutes and 30 seconds into the first song when drums make their first appearance and they are not nearly thunderous enough to satisfy my admittedly cliché-informed expectations. I didn’t listen to it all the way through, to be honest. I checked out last track which is a “(remix)” of the first track because I thought it might have some additional aggro-techno drum machine beats you know like a remix but it didn’t.

This very well could be a good or great metal album. As a non-metal fan I am in no position to say and obviously this isn't a real review. But if the newbie or hipster dilettante in your life asks for a recommendation I would suggest more aggressive and demon-y. That is probably what he had in mind when he asked you.

If you want to recommend something to a Neil Young fan I would suggest Several Shades of Why by J. Mascis from 2011. The song “Can I” is just beautiful. Kurt Vile plays on that album and I would also recommend the new Kurt Vile album which is the consensus pick of internet indie culture this month. The consensus chose well this time.”

Not to self: Listen to each album first. Bad job by me. I’ve enjoyed releases from Horseback before and thought I was going to woo someone over to the metal playground with droning Swans-by-way-Burzum-if-they-were-both-from-Arkansas extreme noise. Many thanks to Rick for sharing his thoughts, hopefully we can convince him to review a future release that is appropriately demonic.

Listen to New Dominions here: http://horseback.bandcamp.com/releases

REVIEW: KEN mode - ENTRENCH

 

 

I was already excited to review this album, but after reading Patrick Lyons’ article about “hipster metal” I had to step in and make this post a priority today. The article examines the shrinking gap between indie rock and heavy metal and how this has resulted in numerous bands who may be shunned by the metal community for their questionable influences. The point of the piece is somewhat difficult to identify, as it reads like a meandering endorsement of KEN mode’s newest album, Entrench, while playing devil’s advocate, suggesting that “true” metal fans are weary of an “indie-friendly sound.” If snarky Brooklynites are tickled silly by abrasive, jagged, brain-bruising heaviness, then yes, this is “indie-friendly.”

According to the social scientists over at Reader’s Digest, Canada is the third most polite country in the world. KEN mode’s music is one of the chief reasons Canada didn’t land the top spot. If there was ever a soundtrack for a post-traumatic stress breakdown followed by a multi-territory baseball bat rampage this is it. KEN mode has been a model of intense consistency and this album still achieves an even more dynamic and barbed sound than previous releases.

From the opening, quivering strings of “Counter Culture Complex” there’s an uneasy, unhinged quality to this collection of songs that immediately engages the listener. “No; I’m In Control” delivers Entrench’s most lethal breakdown, threatening to smash the album itself under the weight of it’s own power. At its most ferocious the album compares favorably to pre-Relapse Dillinger Escape Plan; the songs twist just enough that you can’t fully identify what sort of animal is ripping you apart, but it’s working on its third limb. Other highlights include “The Promises of God” and “Why Don’t You Just Quit,” which both snarl and stare you down with a glare that could gouge eyes.

There are also moments of restrained anger on this album, from the slimy, Deadguy-esque crawl of “The Terror Pulse,” to the whispered electro-goth charm of “Romeo Must Never Know.” KEN mode also weave unexpected sounds into these songs (like the subtle MicroKorg hum leading into “Figure Your Life Out” and splashes of shoegaze) to build inspiring moments of contrast, which is the whole reason the album closer “Monomyth” works. The bleak, elegiac string arrangement feels like it’s tucking the album into its coffin and kissing it goodnight. it’s a surprisingly gentle conclusion to such a punishing album, and it also allows me to consider the word “monomyth” while feeling like an accomplished English minor with my Joyce VS. Campbell deconstruction of the word’s purpose. Wait, did name-dropping James Joyce just make me a hipster?

I’ve never understood the need to separate metal fans into different factions or bands into a million sub-genres. If there are talented people playing heavy music (as the Matthewson brothers and Andrew LaCour are doing so well in KEN mode) then I won’t hold it against them if a few skinny-jeaned Williamsburg residents watch with folded arms at one of their shows. The fan base does not define the band, and a small sample of the fan base especially does not. This is vicious, complex music that transcends post-(insert genre here) classification and kills everything, now.

Listen to the album to form your own opinion and purchase it here:  http://kenmode.bandcamp.com/album/entrench

(Their whole discography is available on Bandcamp. Say goodbye to your afternoon.)

Or head over to Season of Mist, their stellar record label, and check out tour dates and merch:  http://www.season-of-mist.com/bands/ken-mode

And check out their official website over at:  http://www.ken-mode.com/