Reviews – Audio

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Audio February 9, 2010

Orphaned Land – The Never Ending Way of ORwarriOR

It has been a long six years since the release of Orphaned Land’s landmark album, Mabool, an album that continues to amaze me with its beautiful combination of Middle Eastern instrumentation combined with the familiarity of metal. Ever since word of their follow up album was out, I have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of The Never Ending Way of ORwarriOR – and with producer extraordinaire Steven Wilson (of Porcupine Tree and Opeth collaboration fame) on board to mix the album? Let’s just say expectations weren’t exactly low for this one.

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Audio February 8, 2010

Fozzy – Chasing the Grail

With Stuck Mojo still churning out the nu-metal and Chris Jericho enjoying a second wind with the wrestling gig, it took Fozzy five years to put a proper follow-up together, but the resulting Chasing the Grail doesn’t miss a beat whatsoever. In fact, it turns out to be a surprisingly good record that should prove the band’s legitimacy once and for all.

Headline, Reviews, Reviews - Audio February 8, 2010

KEVI METAL’S RIMSHOTS v.2 #2

Welcome to the second installment of the snarky, irreverent world of Rimshots, reconstituted for the online world that is Hellbound.ca. Enjoy them, because I know I didn’t. After suffering through this crop of crap, all I have to ask is: Sean, dude, what did I ever do to you?!

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Audio February 4, 2010

Taking Dawn – Time to Burn

Time to Burn is stuck shamelessly in 1984: it was a time when melodic heavy metal and hard rock boasted über-slick production and massive, massive hooks, but most importantly, the guitars still retained a metallic bite, unlike the gaudy, thinner sounds of the post-1986 glam metal era. More Spencer Proffer, less Bruce Fairbairn. Simply put, if you grew up with bands like Ratt, Dokken, Kick Axe, and Y&T, you will dig this sucker, without a doubt.

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Audio February 4, 2010

Headhunter D.C. – God’s Spreading Cancer

This is the band’s fourth full length studio album, which is technically a three-year-old release that came out in Brazil in June, 2007, and it brings fifteen tracks packed with early Vader, Carcass and Possessed influences mixed with Dimmu Borgir style vocals (very throaty and rough aggressive roars). Headhunter D.C. is based on killer riffs, fast and angry tracks and Anti-Christian lyrics.

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Audio February 3, 2010

Siegfried – Nibelung

On first listen, this album gave me visions of using it as a soundtrack to a documentary about people who are into epic fantasy role-playing. I can see the hordes of costumed Lord of the Rings fans clashing their replica swords on a battlefield to win the princesses hand

Headline, Reviews, Reviews - Audio February 3, 2010

Trouble: Unplugged and Live in Los Angeles

While instability is familiar territory for Trouble, the changes of the last few years are of an order of magnitude beyond anything it has experienced previously. The reissue of Unplugged, featuring outgoing vocalist Eric Wagner, and Live in Los Angeles, featuring the debut of replacement Kory Clarke (Warrior Soul), jointly symbolize the end of one era and the start of a new era.

Tate Bengston reviews these two new releases by Chicago doom metal legends Trouble.