Pale Cremation “EP VII: Consume”

 

As humanity becomes grossly enslaved to social media and technological advancements start to replace humans with artificial intelligence, we are going to need acts like Pale Cremation to remind us of the potential dangers that shall await humanity as all those brilliant science fiction films and books from the past become our new reality. 

On this brand new Pale Cremation release, “EP VII: Consume,” we see Matt Lasserre who is the mastermind behind Pale Cremation continue to explore more science fiction related lyrical themes, while taking the doom metal sound and adding a plethora of other elements to give the music a very dynamic sound. The early years of Pale Cremation were very much grounded in the old school doom metal world, however, with each new release you could hear the sound evolving and exploring Matt’s other musical interests. I think what really stands out about, “EP VII: Consume,” is how the lyrical themes address some very relatable topics pertaining to our society’s relationship with technology and how the digital age has impacted our lives. 

For the drum parts, Matt enlisted the help of Anders Wienerholden who proved to be a very strong addition right from the get go by making a deafening impact on the first song, “Anxiety Hivemind.” Actually, when I started listening to this new release and heard that main riff on, “Anxiety Hivemind,” I was blown away by how utterly aggressive the music sounded. I could hear a little bit of the nasty sounding riffs from Pale Cremation’s 2021 release, “Masquerade In The Violet Theatre,” but somehow the new music takes on an even more vicious and bombastic sounding approach. Throughout the entire song Matt’s guitar playing and bass playing delivers one fatal punch to the ears and even transitions into more  progressive/industrial metal sounding directions to make the musical landscape feel very entropic. 

The second track, “Nightmare Emulator,” definitely compliments the album’s science fiction theme by incorporating these haunting cinematic electronic noises. Also, the machine like pounding guitar riffs and drum parts create this surrealistic like environment where you start to feel like your mind is being completely altered by the bursts of cataclysmic distortion. I thought the song was an extremely creative instrumental track, which demonstrated Matt's willingness to push the music in new directions. 

The final song, “Goodbye to Everything,” was a clever conclusion to this nightmarish exploration into the sinister digital world that looks to control our minds and make us consume mindless content to become complete slaves to the corporate masters. If you were to ask me about the new release's sound quality, I would say that this is one of the best sounding Pale Cremation releases to date, especially the guitar sound on each of the tracks which was HEAVY as all hell. Overall, I would highly recommend this album to anyone who is a fan of monstrous sounding jams along with some really eye opening science fiction themed lyrics. I have to give credit to Matt as he continues to come up with some killer sounding releases. I'd recommend getting the kids off of that TikTok crap and start making them listen to some Pale Cremation, that way humanity might have a chance at survival when the machines take over. 

Listen to the entire release below: 

Pale Cremation Bandcamp :

https://palecremation.bandcamp.com/album/ep-vii-consume

Hemotoxin “When Time Becomes Loss”

 

    Similar to most metal bands that have experienced triumphs, challenges and setbacks in their careers, Hemotoxin is an act that has been on a wild rollercoaster ride since the band’s formation back in 2010. From line-up changes to having their third full-length album come out right when the 2020 Pandemic was in full-swing and everyone was stuck at home due to lockdown orders, this Bay Area based band is no stranger when tasked with overcoming adversity. However, the band’s resilience and feverish work ethic, especially from that of founding member and primary driving force Michael Chavez, is why I would consider this newest release, “When Time Becomes Loss,” to be an extremely important album that fans have been highly anticipating.  

    “When Time Becomes Loss,” is the fourth full-length Hemotoxin studio album to date, and can really be described as solo endeavor for singer/guitarist Michael compared to the previous releases from the band. For this new album Michael enlisted the help of Scott Fuller (Annihilated, ex-Morbid Angel) to handle all the drum parts. I thought Scott did a tremendous job, because his style of drumming as well as his past experience, perfectly complimented the musical direction Michael was trying to accomplish with the new material. There are even a few guest solos featured on some of the songs with contributions from Tony Barhoum (Condition Critical), Andrew Lee (Ripped to Shreds) and Donnie Small (Laceration/Trecelence). 

    The album’s first song, “Morbid Reflection,” makes an impact right away by unleashing some hellacious guitar playing and ear-piecing harmonic sequels to usher forth one devastating composition. Everything sounds tight and on point in terms of the sound quality and the punishing rhythms coming from Scott Fuller from behind the kit. Also, I thought Michael’s vocals sounded utterly profound on the recording, which is also something that can be heard throughout the album. On the second track, you continue to hear this raw and bombastic energy being unleashed through the agonizing technical death/thrash riffs which Michael conjures up. The guest solo that Donnie Small from Laceration/Trecelence provides really adds to the song’s aggressive and dynamic sound, while even offering up some unbelievably ethereal sounding shredding. 

    On track number three, “Malediction,” I liked how the music at times took on a very old school thrash sound by relentlessly hammering out these chaotic sounding riffs that sort of reminded me of the early Hemotoxin releases. However, Michael proves to be a very omniscient extreme metal musician who experiments with a plethora of different tempos and time signatures, so there are these extremely clever transitions from raw intense sounding riffs to more mesmerizingly fluid technical solos. In all, the music features so many layers and on tracks like “Abstract Commands” and “Conscious Descent,” you find yourself becoming completely ensnared by the overpowering arrangements. On, “Conscious Descent,” Andrew Lee from Ripped to Shreds, a band that Michael also plays in, offers up a brilliant sounding solo which I thought really complimented Michael’s playing on the track as well, thus demonstrating the solid chemistry between these two players.  

    Lyrically, I have always felt that with each new Hemotoxin album the l songwriting has always evolved, and I can definitely hear that on this new album.  Michael's approach to writing lyrics reminds me a bit of how Chuck Schuldiner’s lyrics always seemed to dig deeper into more meaningful themes relating to human existence, unlike some bands that cannot seem to breakout of the whole, "Hail Satan and put Jesus in a blender," fixation. That is why without question I thought the best song off of this release was,“Reborn in Tragedy.” From the relatable lyrics that can resonate with so many listeners to the highly emotional driven guitar solo, this song was truly exceptional from start to finish. 

The final track on the album which happens to be the title track, “When Time Becomes Loss,” is another fearsome piece of death/thrash, yet also conveys a progressive sounding feel at times. To me this has always been one of Hemotoxin’s strengthens when comparing them to their peers, as the music always seems to reacher higher than just that of a straight forward dearth/thrash band. I really liked the lead guitar parts during this track as well as Tony Barhoum’s solo, which once again provided a nice transition from the heaviness of the main riff to a more calming progressive rock/metal section. 

    Overall, I cannot find much to complain about this album, as I strongly believe this is yet another step forward for Hemotoxin. Of course, I will admit that I do have some bias having watched this band over the years, but I will refrain from being like wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer and just blindly giving the album a seven star rating out of five stars. Hemotoxin’s “When Time Becomes Loss” may not be Kenny Omega vs. Kazuchika Okada at the Tokyo Dome, but in the end the album is an exceptional metal release that I was recorded by some extremely passionate and dedicated individuals. In my opinion, the songwriting and musicianship really stood out when listening to this album, and I think a lot of that can be attributed to the attention to detail from all those involved in the making of the album. My final thoughts are that this is an album that you need to check out if you are a fan of extreme metal music, as well as someone who appreciates dynamic musicianship from an act that continues to wave the flag for heavy metal music in the Bay Area/Contra Costa County. 

Check out the full album below via Pulverized Records Youtube Channel! 

Hemotoxin Bandcamp:

https://hemotoxin70.bandcamp.com/merch

Pulverized Records:

https://www.pulverised.net/