FOR THE LOVE OF METAL
All up, Anniversary is exactly what I hoped it would be. A mucky snail-paced trawl through the band’s debut, followed up by an unrestrained romp across the years. There’s obviously a wealth of material not on the second career-spanning disc, but I guess with only one side to play with you pick your best. I’ve no complaints.
At just under half an hour, This Machine Is Driving is almost not enough but at the same time it’s the perfect length. It makes you want to leave it on repeat, though continued listening may force you in to the shower several times a day.
“If we in the audience are puppets whose strings are manipulated by artists, then Townsend is both puppeteer and lead puppet, a living caricature of the genre who takes such obvious joy in poking fun at both the scene and his own place within it. His performances are both sincere and satirical, and that is what makes them unique.”
Jonathan Smith reviews the December 10th performance of Devin Townsend in Toronto. Live photos by Adam Wills.
Who knew that Slash was so good at anything other than knocking out great, classic licks for almost thirty years? Some fans might have, but Made In Stoke shows makes the point unavoidable; these are great, classic songs all around.
Musically, while True Traitor, True Whore is rooted in black metal -as dragged through a mire of nightmarish black psychedelia- it’s too experimental to be labeled as anything so straight-ahead. The record runs the gamut as it incorporates avant-psychedelic passages, as well as experimental progression within its bleak and damnable structure.
If you’ve not dabbled in the world of New Zealand metal before, Beastwars could be the perfect gateway band for you, especially if you like things grubby. The debut isn’t as technical as Ulcerate, as malevolent as Witchrist or as claustrophobic as Diocletian (bands that you should definitely listen to) but Beastwars hums with enough psychedelic escapism and irreverence to make it a good place to begin
Even if you already own one or two of the DVD’s in the set, this is a worthwhile trade up. If you’ve fallen behind this year and haven’t picked up any of the DVD’s then get out and grab this set! (And, of course, ‘tis the season so it makes a swell gift idea too!)
“I’ve been looking forward to enjoying another love set by UnexpecT since I saw them play at Sneaky Dee’s last year, and they delivered on all of my very high expectations. The experimental French Canadian band are the very embodiment of an avant-garde aesthetic combined with a dauntless independent spirit.”
Live review by Natalie Zed.
Crushingly heavy, riotously unconventional and passionately demoniacal, Through the Cervix of Hawwah is the sound of devolution.
After so many years of the same old angry show, it can only be said that Conditions of My Parole is a fantastic breath of fresh air for those fans of Maynard James Keenan’s myriad musical projects who had (rightly) begun to think he had no other side to him.