Concert Review: T.S.O.L., Toxic Energy, Knocked Down and Blunt Force Trauma at the Brentwood Emporium (11/10/2024)

 

    For those living in the Bay Area, it is always enjoyable to see a show promoted in a city where you don’t have to deal with chaotic traffic, costly parking fees, crackheads throwing cups at you with unknown liquids and of course, douchebags breaking your car window. When I saw that Southern California punk legends T.S.O.L. were going to be playing in Brentwood at the Brentwood Emporium, I knew this was a show I did not want to miss. 

    I had previously attended a show at the Brentwood Emporium back in March of this year and really liked the venue’s setup. Plus, the venue puts on all ages shows, which is great to see since a decent number of all ages venues have gone away in Contra Costa County over the years. What I noticed right away about this crowd when I first entered the venue was that you really did have fans of all ages, so to me it sort of spoke to how punk music can connect with a extremely diverse group of people. 

    I thought the three opening bands did a solid job supporting T.S.O.L. as well as getting the crowd going from the very beginning. The first opener, Blunt Force Trauma, is a local Bay Area trio that mixes metal and punk together to come up with some crushing riffs, while also turning up the intensity to get the people moving. Definitely could hear some hardcore influences at times, along with a few slow doomy metal sounding riffs thrown into the mix to get people to bang their heads. For a young bands I thought they played tight and their singer/bassist really had strong stage presence when interacting with the audience. They’re definitely a band that I feel will benefit from having more opportunities to play live, which will allow them to better develop their sound. Overall, I was very impressed by their passion, and I could tell the crowd was enjoying the band’s set that even included a killer cover of “Bloodstains” by Agent Orange. 

Blunt Force Trauma

    The 2nd opening band was another trio called Knocked Down from Stockton, CA. This group of punk rockers had more of a pop punk sound, so right away I will address that their music was not exactly something that I personally listen to. However, I am not as judgmental as I've gotten older and decided to listen to their entire set. They seemed to be playing with a lot of exuberant energy and during their performance a young fan was frantically rocking out with his dad in front of the stage. Actually, I must admit that the members of Knocked Down seemed to really appeal to this young punk who was constantly banging his head to their songs and throwing up devil horns. Seeing kids like that having a great time listening to music in the front of the stage is a truly awesome sight, unlike seeing a drunk woman in her fifties grabbing at Wayne Hussey of The Mission’s mic stand until the venue security finally has to escort her out. 

Knocked Down

    After Knocked Down finished their set, the third band took to the stage and started setting-up. Coming all the way from Orange County, Toxic Energy brought the raw old school sounding punk rock spirit with a ton of killer angsty hardcore punk songs. The band's frontman had tremendous stage presence and knew how to whip up the crowd when delivering his vocal parts. One of the band’s guitar players even had a wireless guitar to where he would jump off stage and start playing in the pit and then quickly run back on stage. As much as a liked the band’s originals I was extremely impressed by the two covers they did of, “Neat Neat Neat,” by The Damned and, “Just What I Needed,” by The Cars. I particularly liked, “Just What I Needed,” because they took this classic song and infused their own style to give the song a more punk rock vibe. All of the members seemed to be having a killer time and the audience was very receptive to their music as well. 

Toxic Energy 

    The final band of the night which caused everyone to make a rush to the front of the stage, was the mighty T.S.O.L. that I consider to be an extremely important part of punk rock history. Their debut album, “Dance with Me,” is a truly brilliant release with its mixture of punk and deathrock. The band opened to a thunderous cheer from the audience as they tore into the first song and the pit started moving. Jack Grisham is an amazing frontman and looked like he was having a blast up on stage and wore a jacket with The Creature from the Black Lagoon on the back. Also, he is a funny dude and his comments in-between songs definitely drew out some laughter from the audience. Ron Emory’s guitar playing was a sight to behold as he jammed away at such classic riffs on song like “Sounds of Laughter," “Dance with Me” and “World War III.” The drummer and bass player did a solid job, and I respect the drummer who was having to battle issues with the monitor volume while Jack was busting his balls about it. For their encore the band played, “Code Blue,” and seeing people singing along to song about necrophilia is a glorious sight to behold. I think my only complaint is I wished they could have done a few more songs, but I thought that the set they played sounded solid from start to finish. 

T.S.O.L.

    In the end, I definitely felt as though all the bands delivered, especially when I look back at home the crowd responded throughout the night. Now, I did notice that the show ended earlier than most shows, but I can understand that since the show was all ages and Brentwood has a curfew law for minors. Then again, I respect the venue and promoter for putting on an all ages show that offered a safe and enjoyable environment for everyone in attendance. All around, the spirit of punk continues to be fueled by the desires of those looking for something that rebels against the system and can be appreciated by people of all ages. 

Nekus "Death Apophenia"

    Emerging once again from the dark subterranean depths of the German underworld, Nekus returns with an utterly monstrous sounding sophomore release titled, “Death Apophenia.” These shadowy death doom musicians conjure up some cataclysmic sounding tracks drenched in copious amounts of punishing reverb and ear shattering distortion on this new album. 

    After first hearing their debut album, ““Sepulchral Divination,” which Sentient Ruin released last year, I knew this band still had more to offer the extreme metal world. There is no denying this band’s monolithic death doom sound, which allows them to come up with extremely suffocating arrangements. Compared to some of the other current death doom acts that have left me underwhelmed after hearing the same riff structure repeated over and over again without much thought, I find Nekus constructs these surrealistic and profoundly haunting arrangements which takes you into the horrifying depths of a nightmarish musical realm. A their core, Nekus is an act that does not mess around, and you can hear in their songs a band reaching into the darkest depths of their fiendish artistic minds to craft some inhumanly brutal sounding music.   

    As with most death doom bands, Nekus does not write short two to three minute songs, but at the same time the band does not try to test the listener’s patience by cranking out twenty minute slabs of lackluster material. I think the songs actually flow together perfectly, and that is what makes this album a solid listen from start to finish. The opening track instantly captures your attention with the sounds of ritualistic drumming slow building-up to a malevolent riff accompanied by some gruesome vocals. “Cadaverous Periphery,” is a very dynamic piece of music and shows how Nekus can transition from a slow bone crushing style of extreme metal to a more thunderous sounding onslaught without sounding disorganized. I would say that the music is well procured and whoever did the recording for this album perfectly amplifies the band’s monstrous vision. On the track, “Noxious Furor,” I thought the band hammered out some unfathomably fearsome riffs, and the vocal parts added to the vile atmosphere which sort of evokes a primordial feel at times. 

    Songs like “Accursed Murmur” and “Unutterable Prophecies,” descend further down into the caverns of unspeakable madness and continue to send these deafening shockwaves through the speakers. The drummer compliments the brutal tribalistic energy by coming up with mesmerizing rhythms from behind the kit. During the the end of "Accursed Murmur" the drums echo over the other instruments like thousands of boulders crashing down during an rockslide. On the final song, “Erichthea,” the band once again traverses across these bombastic death doom musical  landscapes, but I would argue that Nekus comes up with even more profoundly loud spellbinding arrangements to conclude an album already full of constant aural punishment.  

    Although Nekus may not be baffling listeners with whacky technical arrangements, dressing up in clown suits and singing about aliens running a solar farm, I would argue that the atmospheres and arrangement featured on their sophomore release are unfathomably profound. “Death Apophenia," is a truly hellish offering in terms of unapologetic and sadistic sounding brutality. In the end, Nekus has proven to be yet another insanely creative extreme metal artist to be a part of the Sentient Ruin family, and I hope they continue to record more insidiously heavy death doom releases in the future. 

Check out the song "Accursed Murmur" below:

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp (Album comes out November 15th, 2024) :

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

Yellowcake "A Fragmented Truth"

 

The savage Arizona based d-beat/crust punk band, Yellowcake, continues to show beyond a doubt why they are one of the most sadistic sounding bands around with their new release, “A Fragmented Truth.” Following up their profoundly vicious debut release, "Can You See The Future,” the band dives even further down into the entropic sounding anarchistic punk abyss to unleash a punishing firestorm of distorted hostility. 

Right away, I would consider the songs on, “A Fragmented Truth,” to be even more intense, more antagonistic sounding and just down right deafening. "Can You See The Future,” in my opening had an extremely impactful sound, as well as captured the band’s ferocious nature perfectly. I felt as though on this release the band was a little bit more untamed at times and that allowed the feverish instrumental compositions to really buildup this overwhelmingly fearsome momentum. In terms of the vocals and how they were executed, I think the band’s singer once again delivered a strong performance, and from the first track you become instantly hooked by her undeniably confident presence when emphasizing lyrics. 

Once again, the band’s drummer hammers out some monstrously primitive rhythms from behind the kit to give songs like, “Maelstrom” and “Blood Soaked System,” an extra boost of raw aggression. Also, I thought the riffs on this new release ventured in some different directions at times, like on the song, “When Night Comes Around,” which had a slight crossover punk/thrash sound. On the fifth song, “Vinyl Chloride Rain,” the bass player and drummer slowly built-up the music with a catchy sounding jam that gets eventually washed away by an incinerating hardcore sounding onslaught. The singer injects a tremendous amount of rage while shouting out the lyrics over the chaotic soundscape, which I must say allows you to easily remember the title of the song. 

The last song, “Mind Scabbed Over,” happens to be the longest track on the release with a total run time of 3 minutes and 15 second. Yellowcake does not need an extensive amount of time to make an impact and that can be proven with their debut demo as well as these new songs. I thought, “Mind Scabbed Over,” was a crushing old school sounding hardcore offering that will appeal to wide range of ravenous punk fanatics. My only complaint is that I wish there were more songs and I look forward to the day Yellowcake compiles enough songs to make a full-length album. 

My final thoughts on this new Yellowcake release, “A Fragmented Truth,” are that the band shows no signs of stopping their fiendish push to offer up some blistering sounding hardcore/d-beat/crust punk tracks, while coming up with ways to hit the listener straight in the gut with a fistful of sonic devastation. Still, “Visage of the Flame,” is the best Yellowcake song to date in my opinion, but the songs on the new release definitely do not disappoint and I bet will be utterly insane to hear when performed live. I'm glad Yellowcake was able to still demonstrate that uncompromising mentality on this new release, as I do believe that their unrelenting mindset in terms of writing and recording material will really propel them as they fight their way into the future. 

Listen to "A Fragmented Truth" below via Felopunk's Youtube Channel :

Link to where you can buy/order the album :

https://totalpeace.bandcamp.com/album/a-fragmented-truth

Yellowcake Instagram: 

https://www.instagram.com/yellowcakephx/

Cemetery Filth “Senses of Detriment”

    After releasing their debut album four years ago, Cemetery Filth has re-emerged from the malevolent depths to unleash upon the metal world a brand new unfathomably decimating release titled, “Senses of Detriment." Picking up where they left off on their debut album, “Dominion,” an album that I consider to one of the most brutal and tenacious sounding recordings in recent years, the band continues to deliver a down right brutal brand of old school style death metal. 

    On this new EP, I can tell that the band wanted to push themselves in a more technical direction, while still maintaining that gruesome sounding old school death metal tone. Based out of Atlanta, GA, the band has had some new additions to the line-up with exception of vocalist/guitarist Maddie Kilpatrick who has been the foundation and primary driving force behind the band. I actually interviewed Maddie back when I hosted a hard rock and metal radio show in college, and I have really been impressed by the band’s continued growth over the years since that interview. With the new additions of Evie Austin on bass and Tristan Payne on drums, I really do believe that this new line-up really came together and recorded a strong release. 

    The EP features three new tracks, a new recording of the song “Cosmic Wraiths” which was first featured on the Unspeakable Axe split, “4 Doors to Death,” and a cover of Death’s “Vacant Planets.” On the new tracks I can hear the band pushing themselves in a more technical and dynamic sounding direction similar to that of bands like Atheist, Death and Pestilence. There are some unique and complex sounding riff structures, which gives the music a very entropic feel at times. I still find that Maddie’s voice and delivery captures the raw nature of old school death, thus allowing the music to give off that morbidly sinister vibe. “Intrepid Ways,” is very much a track that combines blistering technicality with a horrifying old school death metal sound and I thought that it was a great choice as the first track on this EP. The riffs really jump out at you as well as the bombastic drumming from Tristan who seems to be a beast behind the kit. The second track, “Cyclocognition” is another extremely warped sounding piece of extreme metal music that features some truly wicked sounding bass lines along with some diabolically savage riffs. 

    On the third track, “Senses of Detriment,” I thought the band did a tremendous job building up the intensity in the beginning of the track and by the middle of the song you become completely possessed by the insidiously deafening arrangements. Also, the lead guitar parts during the song were executed extremely well and did not go overboard with the shredding. I really liked getting to hear this new line-up tackle the song, “Cosmic Wraiths,” which I remember enjoying when I first heard the track on the, “4 Doors to Death,” split back in 2015. This line-up is unbelievably tight and the new recording really gives the song an extra hellacious sounding boost. As for the band’s cover of Death’s, “Vacant Planets,” I definitely think the song was an appropriate choice given the more ambitiously technical direction that Cemetery Filth seems to be exploring. I would also say that I liked how Maddie’s vocals sounded, because instead of trying to sound exactly like Chuck to where the track becomes another cheap and generic Death cover, Maddie’s style provides a refreshing take and adds a unique touch to the track. 

    In the end, if you are a fan of scorching old school death metal and want to hear some mind altering cuts of sickening technical brutality, I definitely think you need to check out, “Senses of Detriment.” I know a lot of bands are writing material similar and sometimes you feel as if there are more new metal bands compared to new metal fans, but I must say that Cemetery Filth not only puts thought and unrelenting passion into their recordings, but this is a band that continues to persevere by coming up with some down right killer sounding death metal music. After seeing this band put out some exceptional releases in the past, I look forward to the future of Cemetery Filth if this is the musical direction that the band plans on pursuing going forward. 

Check out the music video for "Cyclocognition" below:

Link to where you can order the album on CD and Vinyl:

https://rottedlife.bandcamp.com/album/senses-of-detriment

Cemetery Filth links:

https://linktr.ee/cemeteryfilth

Maudissez “Self-Titled Album”

    The debut self-titled album from French extreme metal monstrosity, Maudissez, is an unholy juggernaut of a release that unleashes such a malicious death doom/sludge sound that the Notre-Dame Catheral might collapse from the unfathomably devastating sonic force. 

    Recorded originally in 2023, Maudissez is teaming up with Sentient Ruin to make this album available for extreme metal enthusiasts all across the world to hear and purchase on vinyl. I am not surprised Maudissez is working with Sentient Ruin, because this band perfectly compliments the label’s diabolic extreme music ethos. Sentient Ruin is a label that prides itself on delivering some of the most unapologetic and sonically decimating underground acts from all around the globe, and Maudissez’s definitely delivers some inhumanly destructive compositions on this debut album. 

    In all honesty, there have been plenty of bands that have made heavy sounding music and have criticized the christian religion, however I will give Maudissez credit for crafting a very monstrous and surrealistic sounding arrangements to compliment their sacrilegious themes. There are some dissonant elements thrown in which creates these nightmare inducing atmospheres like on the opening song, “Fracture par Fracture.” The album’s opening track begins with a mighty barrage of deafening blast beats and savage riffs, but eventually slows down for a more ominous sounding arrangement. I actually liked the drumming throughout this album as the rhythms helped give the music a very sadistic and primordial vibe when needed.  

    For an album featuring only four tracks in total, the band meticulously explores the inhumanely brutal musical landscapes by conjuring up some extremely vivid sounding compositions. Some of the riffs on the second track, “Blessure par Blessure,” really stood when I first listened to the song, especially the one sludgy doom riff that kicks in the four minute mark. After listening to the dissonant and malevolent noises at the beginning of the song, I liked the transition to this hypnotic doom like riff section. Of course, the band goes back into the abyss of sheer mind shattering terror for the song’s finale, but I understand that they wanted to have a surrealistic sounding conclusion to an already insanely entropic piece of music. 

    The other two tracks, “Meurtrissure par Meurtrissure” and “Brûlure par Brûlure,” are very bombastic sounding as well, and without any doubt display a tremendous level of nihilistic brutality. “Brûlure par Brûlure,”is probably the song that stands out the most on this album, mainly due to the fact that the ending sounds like the Gates of Hell are opening and all the demons are coming through the gateway in search of human souls to defile. The eerie tempo, evil organ music and cries of agony in the background, really pain this vivid picture in your mind as you become engulfed by the apocalyptic noises coming at you from all different directions. 

    In the end, I must credit Maudissez for coming up with one uniquely profane extreme metal release, especially considering that this is their first album. The entire album is actually very well produced and the songwriting paints an utterly surreal and hellacious sounding story, even if I did get lost in those moments of gratuitous distorted chaos like on the second track. This is definitely an album worth checking out if you are fan of death doom, sludge metal or downright deafening music. Actually, I would really like to see Maudissez live, because the arrangements are so profoundly heavy that it would be amazing to see this up front and close. Although, I bet my ears would be ringing for days after seeing them live. Oh well, the experience would definitely be worth it! 

Check out the entire release below:

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

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/

North “We Are, We Remain…”

    Polish black metal veterans, North, look to unleash a savage sounding black metal blizzard upon the extreme metal world with the release of their new EP. Titled, “We Are, We Remain…,” the upcoming release shall contain some new material, a re-recording of the classic song “Hymn to Winter,” as well as a cover of Bathory’s, “A Fine Day to Die.” 

    Along with fellow Polish black metal titans Graveland, Sacrilegium and Behemoth, North was part of that undeniably influential black metal scene which saw a plethora of killer releases coming from Poland. North’s 1998 release, “From the Dark Past,” is a truly vicious sounding black metal release featuring some utterly grim riffs and hauntingly ruthless vocal parts. Fans have waited since 2011 for new music from North, so there has been a fair amount of anticipation surrounding the release of this new EP, and I believe a lot of that has to do with North’s strong cult extreme music following. 

    Listening to the new material I can guarantee fans of merciless sounding black metal will not be disappointed. The riffs on some of the songs are down right scorching in terms of the distorted intensity which the band is able to conjure up. On the opening track, "Czas By Powstali / It's Time For Them Arise,” the band hammers out a deafening onslaught of pestilent guitar parts to create an ominous sounding atmosphere. Also, the vocals really standout on the song and are delivered with such an unapologetically savage black metal attitude. 

    The other two new tracks “Stulecia We Krwi / Centuries In Blood” and “Horda Duchów / Horde Of Ghosts,” are also a couple decimating pieces of black metal music with some death metal elements added as well. At times the riffs take on an unfathomable brutal sound, but then transition into a more frantic old school black metal style, which displays how talented this band is when coming up with destructive sounding arrangements. I thought the re-recorded version of, “Hymn to Winter,” was extremely impressive as well, because the band was able to maintain the song’s classic pagan black metal tone, but added an even more modern punch in terms of the production quality. I would even say that the drum sound on this new version of the song was very tight sounding and the drummer demonstrated a tremendous amount of talent from behind the kit by pounding out some intense rhythms. For their cover of Bathory’s, “A Fine Day to Die,” I thought they did a solid job covering a classic song which has been covered numerous times before by other black metal bands.  

    Overall, North’s new EP, “We Are, We Remain…,” is a malevolent black metal creation which maintains an old school black metal mentality in terms of the songwriting and the sound, while also adding some slight modern extreme metal touches. In recent years there have been some black metal bands that have made new albums and for some reason they sound egregiously overproduced and watered down. North’s utterly grim and brutally behemoth black metal sound seems to still be there, and I look forward to seeing if they can build off this album’s sound on future recordings as this is the type of extreme metal music that you desire to hear more of from bands. 

Link to where you can order the album :

https://www.pagan-records.com/pl/p/NORTH-We-Are%2C-We-Remain...-CD-PRE-ORDER/13742

North Facebook Page:

https://www.facebook.com/kingdominblood/

Concert Review: Bonded by Blood, Malpractice, Mortalis and Hemotoxin (3/16/2024)

 

    I think for those living in Contra Costa County, there has been a void ever since Red House in Walnut Creek closed down in 2016, especially when pertaining to all ages music venues. For years I have talked about how punk and metal bands have struggled to book shows in this region of the Bay Area and I even wrote an article about this topic a few years ago. So, when I heard that there was going to be an all ages metal show in Brentwood on March 16th featuring four killer bands, I definitely decided to make the trek out the Brentwood Emporium located in the city’s downtown to check it out. 

    The four bands billed for the show were : Bonded by Blood, Malpractice, Mortalis and Hemotoxin. This was definitely a special show for Hemotoxin, a band that I believe has been a flagship band amongst the Contra Costa County metal scene, as well as an act that has put out some exceptional releases over the years. Also, I think for a lot of people getting the chance to see a line-up featuring four such ravenous metal acts, helped draw out the metal maniacs for this show. I thought the turnout was solid as I pulled up to the venue and I also was extremely impressed by the venue’s layout. There was a strong vibe right from the get go as you had fans of all ages starting to come in and surround the stage located in the front of the venue. 

Hemotoxin

    Opening the show was Contra Costa County’s own progressive death/thrash titans, Hemotoxin, a band that I have been following and reviewing for well over ten years. The first time I saw Hemotoxin was when they opened up for Havok in Walnut at the Red House around 2013, and this band has continued to progress as musicians and songwriters. It was great to see bassist Nathan Fruth back in the band as he and guitarist/singer Michael Chavez play so well together and are at the core of Hemotoxin's heavy technical sound. Also, this would be the first show featuring new members Juan Carlos Garcia on guitar and drummer Aryan Pakkhoo, with both doing a tremendous job for their first performance with the band. As a four piece, Hemotoxin sounded better than ever and I do believe their performance started to really resonate with the feverish crowd. Since Covid struck when the band put out their third full-length release, “Restructure the Molded Mind,” I was excited to finally hear songs from that album live, especially “Automation,” which lyrically is very relatable to the world we are living in today with all the technological advancements that will impact human existence. For the encore, the band played “The Shadow Over Innsmouth,” a Lovecraft inspired song from their debut album that I was singing along to as Michael delivered the chorus section with such profound passion. I am excited for the band’s future as they have a new album in the works and based on the response from the audience during the band’s set, I see Hemotoxin building off this momentum and I wish to see them continue to get the credit they deserve for all their years of hard work. 

Mortalis

    After Hemotoxin left the stage to a thunderous roar from the crowd, the second band, Mortalis, started setting up for their thrash metal onslaught. Based out of Southern California, Mortalis, seemed like they were extremely enthusiastic to be playing up in the Bay Area and I was glad to see the band getting a loud response as they tore into their first song. I thought the singer/guitarist conveyed a lot of raw emotion as he played his flying v guitar and interacted with the audience. During their set I also noticed that the pit was starting to expand as the riffs became more intense. Mortalis had a solid sound that reminded me of early Metallica, Anthrax and Megadeth, along with some other metal influences sprinkled in the mix. I would definitely recommend checking them out and hope to see them come back to the Bay Area in the future. 

Malpractice

    The third band to perform was Malpractice, an up and coming group of young headbangers from the Bay Area that looked to add to the musical mayhem with their own brand of hellish sounding thrash. Right off the bat, I have to say that the band’s bassist is an extremely talented musician who added an extra boost of explosive low end brutality to the band’s overall sound. I thought the lead singer and guitarist really captured the rebellious essence of heavy metal as he shouted out the lyrics and hammered away at his guitar like a possessed lunatic. The band’s drummer made his presence known by playing with an utter astonishing amount intensity as he dealt out juggernaut sounding rhythms from behind the kit. My only complainant and maybe it is because I have become more cranky in my old age, is that some girl in front of the stage was taking a selfie video while the band was performing for an egregious amount of time. Luckily the pit started to move in her direction and I think she valued the life of her phone so she stopped, and the people behind her could finally enjoy Malpractice’s performance. Overall, I think Malpractice is a promising act that has something going for them, but of course my recommendation is to keep working hard at their craft and avoid ending up like those bloated bearded metal bands playing the same generic sounding recycled thrash riffs at some backyard outlaw mud show to an audience of tire iron wielding barefoot humanoids. 

Bonded by Blood

Once Malpractice finished their set and made their way off the stage, the headliner Bonded by Blood started getting ready for their set. This group from Southern California has been around for a while and I have heard some of their music over the years, but I had never had the opportunity see them live before, so I was definitely looking forward to hearing their set. The band blends thrash and hardcore together to create one momental sounding concoction of furious sounding riffs that can get a mosh pit going right away. I was impressed by the band’s singer who demonstrated tremendous skills as a frontman by delivering the lyrics with a pure unapologetic attitude. The twin guitar attack provided a lethal dose of headbanging thrash riffs, while the drummer and bassist provide a strong rhythmic foundation. Even after all the intense moshing around the audience was still going strong with a few exceptions, like the guy who tripped over the stanchion rope and took a bump similar to that of Shawn Michaels at SummerSlam 2005. As the band finished their set the audience howled for an encore, which the band obliged as they seemed to be fueled by the maniacal metal noise coming from the mass group of people in front of the stage. In the end, Bonded by Blood put on a crushing performance and I hope to hear them continue to perform as well as record new material. 

Overall, I think all the band’s deserve an enormous amount of credit for putting on some solid performances throughout the entire evening. Also, the turnout was very strong, which is great for the local metal scene in this area and will hopefully inspire more shows in the future. I would recommend checking out the Brentwood Emporium, as the venue itself was very impressive and has the potential to be a significant place for the Contra Costa County music scene given the fact that it hosts all ages shows. Once again, I look at bands like Hemotoxin who have continued to persevere over the years, which I would say is driven by the loyal fanbase that continues to show up in full force whenever the opportunity arises. So in conclusion, I look forward to the future of this area’s metal scene, as bands like ones that performed last night along with the people who showed up in attendance keep the headbanging spirit alive and strong. 

Clip of Hemotoxin performing "The Shadow Over Innsmouth" :

Link to the article I wrote about the Bay Area music scene and lack of venues in Tri-Valley if interested :

https://rockandmetaltemple.blogspot.com/2018/02/tri-valley-music-venues-tale-of.html

Album Recommendation: The Mission “God’s Own Medicine”

    There are some albums in the history of rock music that really do stand the test of time and still holdup when you listen to them today. I've come across countless releases that I believe would fall into this category, and the debut album from UK band The Mission titled “God’s Own Medicine,” is in my opinion one of those perennial albums. 

    Originally released in November of 1986, The Mission’s debut album came to be after singer/guitarist Wayne Hussey and bassist Craig Adams left their previous band The Sisters of Mercy to start a new group. Joined by guitarist Simon Hinkler and drummer Mick Brown, this new band looked to continue to explore the post-punk/new wave/goth rock soundscapes which Wayne and Craig had created in The Sisters of Mercy, but they would also go on to create a truly unique sound of their own with the release of The Mission's debut album. 

    Lyrically, this album features some extremely captivating lyrics to the accompany the haunting melodies and mesmerizing chord progressions. From the opening lines on the first song, “Wasteland,” where Hussey delivers the memorable lines with such a solemn sounding tone, “I still believe in God, but God no longer believes in me,” instantly grips you before being introduced to the vibrant sounding galloping guitar riff. I definitely believe, “Wasteland,” is a great opening song that features some brilliant arrangements to complement the song’s very deep and impactful sound. Wayne Hussey’s vocals are extremely well recorded and his voice perfectly soars over the instruments during the chorus section to deliver some unbelievably emotionally charged lyrics. Throughout the album I would say that the chorus sections vividly stand out on each track, which one can attribute to how the band masterfully transitions from the verse sections to choruses. Also, instead of overwhelming their compositions with unnecessary synths to create massive sounding atmospheres, the dynamic guitar work incorporated on each song really builds up these monumental sounding musical landscapes.  

    Another aspect about this album that cannot be overlooked, and definitely adds to the band's unique sound, is Hussey’s use of a 12-string electric guitar. On tracks like, “Wasteland,” “And the Dance Goes On,” and “Severina” the overall sound benefits from the extra fullness of the 12-string, especially during the chorus sections. Out of the three singles released from the album, "Stay With Me,” “Wasteland,” and “Severina,” I would say that, “Severina,” is the one track that people tend to recognize the most from the album, and in my opinion would be very influential on future goth rock/new wave/post-punk artists. Again, the utilization of full chords mixed with the haunting melodies and tight rhythm section due to the solid bass lines from Craig Adams as well as Mick Brown’s tight drumming, makes the music flow with a profound synergy. 

    My favorite song on the album, “Love Me to Death,” is a very bewitching song that I would describe as a romantic gothic love song where you hear these haunting words that manifest over the gloomy sounding chords. The female vocalist in the background provides a great contrast to Hussey’s voice, which ends up highlight the song’s strong emotional theme. Just like with, “Severina” and some of the other tracks on this album, “Love Me to Death,” is rich with mesmerizing atmospheres conjured up by Hussey and Hinkler guitar work. 

    In the end, I write this recommendation as I strongly believe that this album is one of those releases which can appeal to a wide range of music fans. The band’s sound and style definitely fits in with some of the other goth rock/new wave bands of the time, but also goes beyond due in large part to the exceptional songwriting skills and memorable arrangements. The band has released plenty of other solid albums following, “God’s Own Medicine,” however if you have not heard anything from The Mission before then I think the debut album is where you should start without question. Actually, the band is soon to be going on tour in April with plenty of West Coast dates lined-up, so I'd definitely recommend going if you have the chance. 

Check out the song "Wasteland" below:

Diabolic Oath “Oracular Hexations”

    Spawning from out of the twisted and hellish depths comes yet another inhumanely agonizing release from Portland, OR’s savage black/death metal trio Diabolic Oath. Titled, “Oracular Hexations,” this sophomore full-length release picks up right where the band left off on their debut album, “Profane Death Exodus,” yet ventures even further into the tumultuous musical void that shreds away at your sanity as you become engulfed in the abhorrent sounding extreme metal miasma. 

    Right away, I will acknowledge that this album is definitely a step into an even more sinister direction, which is hard to imagine given how much I thought their debut album was a monstrous release. However, the production on this new album along with the cataclysmic riffs seems to take on an even more aggressive and surrealistic sound. There is a truly haunting evolution that you hear on this album as the songs seem to further experiment with utterly bludgeoning unorthodox chord progressions and seismically devastating blast beats. I feel as though where most modern death metal and black metal bands take on a very repetitive formula and fail to really step outside box, Diabolic Oath really puts a tremendous amount of effort into this new album by structuring the songs to leave a profound and devastating impact. 

    Out of the six tracks featured on this album, I never thought that the band disappointed in terms of offering some dynamic extreme metal compositions. Plus, the titles for the songs on this album are also extremely descriptive with the opening song being titled, “Rusted Madness Tethering Misbegotten Haruspices.” The band wastes little time and dives right into a massive sounding arrangement featuring some bombastic riffs, grotesque growls and sickening rhythms. Throughout the album the band continues to deliver these unbelievably monumental sounding arrangements that really standout thanks to the solid production. Track number two, “Serpent Coils Suffocating the Mortal Wound,” is a dynamically fearsome sounding black/death metal onslaught which blends together different tempos as well as some frantic sounding blast beats. 

    There are tracks on this album that really explore the thresholds of extreme metal music by deviating from the same path like on, “Winged Ouroboros Mutating Unto Gold” and “Fragmented Hymns from the Globulous Cruciger.” There are some death doom elements at times which adds to the dark suffocating atmospheres, but then all of a sudden you can have an unexpected transition into an adrenaline pumping old school death metal beatdown of unapologetic aggression. One track that stood out on this release was the close to ten min song, “Gathering Hordes from the Outer Worlds.” From the opening riff you are thrown into a thunderous primordial sounding realm, while at the same time the vocalist delivers more demonic growls to complement the music’s putrid tone. In the end, you just cannot escape this band’s unapologetic ferocity as well as their savage musicianship that delivers until the final song. 


    Working with Sentient Ruin on the release of this album, Diabolic Oath will be releasing, “Oracular Hexations,” on April 5th, 2024. Looking back at the other releases I have reviewed from Diabolic Oath, most of which have been released through Sentient Ruin, I strongly believe that sonically this is their best release to date. The riffs on this album are extremely insidious and the overall execution on each arrangement instantly hooks you once you start listening. This is definitely one of those extreme metal releases you are going to want to check out, because there is simply no denying Diabolic Oath’s almost unworldly sinister extreme music making talents on this album. 

Check out the song "Winged Ouroboros Mutating Unto Gold" below:

Link to Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

Link to Diabolic Oath Bandcamp:

https://diabolicoath.bandcamp.com/album/oracular-hexations

Aberration “Refracture”

     On their debut album, “Refracture,” Aberration molds together a monstrous sounding death metal release that ventures down into the cataclysmic depths to achieve a profoundly malevolent sound. The Minneapolis, MN based band proves to be a formidable force that looks to violently reshape the perception of extreme music by offering up some mind bending brutality with each new track. 

    Working with Sentient Ruin on the release of their debut full-length album, Aberration confidently puts forth an album that does not fall into the run-of-the-mill modern death metal category. Very similar to other artists on Sentient Ruin, I find that Aberration’s skillful musicianship as well as their abhorrent approach to composing death metal, creates an unfathomably deafening sounding realm where the music grips you from start to finish. I reviewed the band’s first self-titled EP back in 2021 and I definitely remember being impressed by the band’s willingness to compose these unique agonizing riffs, while maintaining such a vividly haunting overall tone. Recently, they put out a split with fellow Sentient Ruin label mates, Diabolic Oath, which I also recommend checking out if you're into sinister sounding death metal.

    The new album features five tracks, but most of the songs on this album average around eight to ten minutes, so do not let the number of tracks think you are getting a short release. Actually, the longer tracks feature a plethora of dynamic compositions and dissonant chord structures to keep you constantly focused and wondering where the band will transition next after already laying down a mighty death metal barrage. There is definitely an unpredictable and eradicate side to their style of death metal, but of course that is why I think Aberration is such a fascinating extreme metal act. On the opening track, “Antithesis,” the band slowly rises from the abyss and then unleashes a punishing riff assault. The vocals give off this pestilent demonic vibe as the singer growls with tremendous ferocity, while your ears get completely pummeled by the intense blast beats. At the core of this album, the drummer maintains such a monumental presence and the recording of the drummers is something that I think was exceptionally executed throughout the album. 

    On the second track, “Wresting Vibrations,” you are violently thrown into this realm full of unorthodox arrangements and chord structures, which compliments the album’s dark entropic vision. I think, "Wresting Visions," was my favorite song off of the album because of the savagely aggressive sounding dissonant riffs. Along with most of the songs off of this album, you are almost overwhelmed by the complete chaos going on in terms of how the band frantically transitions from arrangement to arrangement, but eventually you become firmly acclimated to the sadistic unpredictable musical landscape. This was also the case with tracks like, “Interstitial Enmity” and “Blighted,” where the band deals out these insidiously bludgeoning riffs. At times the music slows down to allow the band to conjure up these thunderously agonizing rhythms that end up complimenting the singer's inhumanely unapologetic vocal delivering.

    From the album’s opening track until the last song, “Refracture,” I do honestly believe that Aberration did not disappoint in terms of intensity and unforgiving brutality. Overall, this is a strong debut album from a very ambitious extreme metal band. I am not surprised that Sentient Ruin is continuing to work with Aberration, especially given the label’s strong history of putting out profoundly decimating releases. One recommendation for Aberration would be to continue to explore those surrealistically dark and unorthodox compositions which make their debut album such a compelling extreme metal creation. In a world where we are overwhelmed with mindless simplicity from mainstream music, you really do appreciate a band like Aberration for their skillfully innovative extreme metal mindset. 

Check out the song "Interstitial Enmity" below (Album comes out March 22, 2024) : 

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

ABERRATION / DIABOLIC OATH 7” Split “Divinations”

    After dominating 2023 as one of the most brutal and savage extreme music labels around, Sentient Ruin looks to continue their sadistic sonic reign of terror into 2024 by unleashing an unbelievably sinister 7” split called, “Divinations.” This new split features two talented up and coming extreme metal acts that have put out some insanely decimating releases in the past via Sentient Ruin. Aberration from Minneapolis, MN and Diabolic Oath from Portland, OR, are two fiendish and abhorrent bands that conjure up some wicked blackened death compositions to create these suffocating abyss like atmospheres that exude such a pestilent sounding aura. 

    When I heard Aberration and Diabolic Oath would be working together, I knew right away that this split was going to offer up some monstrous sounding compositions. Both bands really capture the pure dark essence of classic black/death metal music, which is why I think fans of extreme metal music will be instantly hooked once they hear the songs on this release. Out of the two songs featured on this split, I do not believe you can say that one is better than the other, because both bands equally deliver some gruesome skull crushing riffs and truly demonic vocal parts to paint these abysmal and catastrophic musical landscapes. 

Aberration

    Aberration’s song, “Divinations of Flesh,” starts off with a flurry of primate sounding blast beats and agonizing guitar work. The vocals are utterly insidious sounding, which definitely adds to the song’s ritualistically malevolent tone. I really liked when the music slowed down and gave off a very ominous sound that slowly shreds away at your sanity as you are dragged down in the nightmarish depths of infinite darkness. Diabolic Oath’s track, “Divinations of Wrath,” was also very ruthless sounding with its very unapologetic and abrasive arrangements. The entropic guitar parts vividly standout throughout the song, which does not surprise me given the band's previous releases which also happen to feature a plethora of brutal mind altering riffs. Plus, I thought the raw production quality made the band sound even more fearsome as the song progressed and the music continued to focus in on these vile sounding riff structures. 

Diabolic Oath

    Overall, both bands really complimented each other extremely well on this split, and it comes as no surprise that Sentient Ruin will be responsible for releasing this sinister offering to kick off 2024. I would say that this is but a small taste of the destructive blackened death metal talents that Aberration and Diabolic Oath have to offer, as both shall be releasing new full-lengths this year. From this new split release alone, I predict we are going to be hearing a lot of apocalyptically decimating releases form Sentient Ruin in 2024, and Aberration and Diabolic Oath are the first two bands to commence the cataclysmic extreme metal onslaught. 

Check out the full split below :

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/