God Ox – Abyssal Gigantism
By Gruesome Greg Despite the most pretentious band bio I’ve seen in a little while, I decided to check out NYC’s God Ox. These…
Reviews
Amorphis – Magic & Mayhem [Tales From The Early Years]
There are always going to be purists who cry foul when a band re-records a favourite song but, really, it’s the band’s song to do with as they will. On Magic & Mayhem though, I don’t see many fans crying foul, in fact, I think the opposite is true. This album shines from top to almost bottom.
Vilipend – Northern Hostility:Live in Ajax
Essentially, while Vilipend has a pristine track record thanks to creative dexterity and oppressive heaviness fuelled by overt originality, when experiencing the vitriol, embittered passion and tormented rage of an act such as this through a live album, one really feels the self-abuse, throat-tearing screams and constricting viciousness.
Rhapsody of Fire – The Cold Embrace of Fear: A Dark Romantic Symphony
Rhapsody of Fire have spared no expense on this EP, treating it with the same amount of care and detail that they give their full length releases: great story line, fully orchestrated songs, huge production, choirs, blazing guitars, and, of course, Christopher Lee’s voice.
Weedeater – Jason… The Dragon
A little on the short side, and lacking in any memorable tunes, Jason… The Dragon is only somewhat satisfying. That being said, I won’t object to another Weedeater tour, provided that it stops somewhere close by.
Wolves in the Throne Room / Shibboleth / Northern @ Sons of Norway Hall, Victoria BC, Jan. 7, 2011
“The stage is cast in smoke and shadow. Spotlights scale black tapestries depicting nature’ s creatures: wolf, owl, crane. At centre stage is an altar holding candles and a human skull, hemmed in by trimmings from an aromatic pine. Behind it is the drummer, bathed in a warm yellow light. The silhouettes of two guitarists flank the stage, eerie streams of blue light emanating from their instruments.”
Cara Cross reviews the recent Victoria performance of Wolves in the Throne Room.
Wino – Adrift
Although I’ve got no grading scale or any reference points when it comes to acoustic folk, I will say that if you worship Wino, you’ll want this.
Cyco Miko & Infectious Grooves – Live in France ’95
If you’re a Mike Muir completist, you’d want this but if you just dig Suicidal or Infectious, or even the Cyco Miko stuff, buy the studio records.
Legion of the Damned-Descent into Chaos
If you want simple no nonsense thrash delivered in a frenzy high octane effort then you can do no wrong with Descent Into Chaos.
Postcards From Natalie Zed, Set #10
Hey Hellbound Readers, welcome to the second edition of Postcards From Natalie Zed for 2011. We met Natalie just about a year ago now when she won our big year end contest, taking home more than 50 CDs, records, posters and t-shirts. In a surprise move, Natalie then asked us if she could review her winnings for us. How could we say no?
Well, Natalie is all done with her original batch but has decided to keep on doing her postcard sized reviews for us. So, without further adieu, here is part nine of her ongoing series which we like to call “Postcards From Natalie Zed”. This set includes reviews of MITOCHONDRION, GRAF ORLOCK, THE MEADS OF ASPHODEL and more.