Dogmatic

One of my most played albums of the past few years has been Alkaline Trio’s ‘Crimson’. I can’t even begin to put into words just how much I love that disc and it would easily ranked as one of my most listened to opus’. Having said that, I was on tender hooks waiting for the band’s new release. ‘Crimson’ hit the stores way back in 2005 and the band were well overdue for some new tunes. Sure the Trio graced us with the obligatory ‘Best Of-cum-B-sides/rarities’ colleciton in 2007’s ‘Remains’ disc, but seriously that just wasn’t enough to tide this fanboy over.

And so after what seemed like an eternity waiting for new tuneage, Alkaline Trio have been very much hard at work. The result is ‘Agony & Irony’. Enlisting the help of producer Josh Abraham who has erstwhile twiddled the knobs for Linkin Park and Velvet Revolver, to name but a few. It all sounds lush and grand as one would expect, and its tinged in the obligatory Alkaline Trio darkness (afterall, two of the guys are proud members of the Church of Satan). However, I found that this release hasn’t floored me as much as the aforementioned ‘Crimson’. Which isn’t to say that this isn’t a good album. In fact, it is a wonderful slab of catchy and smart pop-punk tunes that will hopefully garner the band a larger following. The usual morbid fascination with death, love, evil, is still permeant throughout the band’s imagery and lyrics and none more-so prevalent than in the first single ‘Help Me’ - a tribute to lead Joy Division crooner, Ian Curtis.

Unfortunately the band gets lumped with all the Emo and pseudo Punk bands that are proliferating the mainstream but there is so much more to Alkaline Trio. Much more.

This is a great album but I feel it just doesn’t quite go near to the magic of the band’s previous releases in ‘Crimson’ & ‘Good Mourning’. They’re gonna have a monster smash one day soon, but it isn’t going to be with this one.

Ok let me state from the outset, I’ve been a Judas Priest fan since the late 70’s. In fact, ‘British Steel’ was probably the first (true) Metal album I ever purchased. An absolute classic album that has stood the test of time and is still every bit amazing now, as it was then. Having said that, the band’s latest release, a double-album concept based on Michel de Nostredame (whose name is often ‘Latinized’ as Nostradamus) - is nothing but a bloated, pretentious borefest of the highest order.

I’ve really struggled to get into this opus and as much as I friggn love my Metal tinged with old-school stylings - there is just nothing to get excited about with this release. It’s so embarrassingly cheesy and reflects a band becoming a parody of itself in the highest order. This is Spinal Tap. Make no mistake about it, this is Spinal Tap come to life but at least the Tap have the ability to keep one awake. This album does not.

Seriously, if you can stomach grown men repeatedly screeching “I AM NOSTRADAMUS” ad nauseam, then you’re a better man than I!

So freaking sad. Regardless, I will be at the band’s forthcoming Australian shows. Fingers crossed we don’t get too many tracks from this pompous, bloated, overblown, grandiose and ridiculous release.

The past several years have been real good to Al Jourgensen and all that is Ministry. With a clean and healthy outlook on life, (as clean and healthy as someone like big, bad Al can be) - Ministry have been prolific in releasing amazing album after amazing album. They have a habit of doing that when there is a GW Bush in power as the band is its most vitriolic and venemous during the Bush years.

“We don’t just bitch about Bush and global oligarchies. We’re still a rock band and ‘Cover Up’ is THE Ministry party album,” said Ministry’s Al Jourgensen about Cover Up, recorded by Ministry & Co-Conspirators and set for an April Fools Day (April 1) release.

To be perfectly honest, I didn’t think much of this release when I first checked it out. Some of the tunes I already had (such as ‘Lay Lady Lay’ and ‘Supernaut’ - the latter featuring Al Jourgensen on vocals and not Trent Reznor as had originally been recorded so many moons ago) and the new stuff sounded a little underproduced, somewhat rushed and reeked of Big Al ‘cashing in’. On repeated listens, I’ve grown to appreciate the ‘party’ aspect and in turn, I’m digging this sucker!

Is it to be the final musical statement from Ministry? Who knows. I for one would love to hear more from Al and co in the future as I’m a fan of everything this band has done. But we’ll just wait and see…

It’s becoming a bit of a cliche. Band breaks up. Band splits into two different bands. The two new bands are nothing short of a disappointment and the fans ponder for the inevitable reunion several years later. In this case, Max leaves Sepultura and spawns Soulfly. Whilst both Sepultura and Soulfly have released some decent music over the course of the past several years, it was never the same. No where near. And here we are many years later with the core of Sepultura, the brothers Cavalera reuniting in the aptly title Cavalera Conspiracy. Hard to believe it has been nearly 12 years since these two have made music together but from the opening shredding and relentless riffing of title track ‘Inflikted’ - you can do nothing but let out an evily satisfying grin at the massive cacophony on hand. This is just how I like my Metal… chug-chug guitars over a pounding, precision-like beat! Anything that can rekindle memories of Sepultura at their best, is really ok in my books! And now we await… the inevitable Sepultura reunion. In the meantime, check it all out. It really is a decent album.

I’m gonna be brutally honest here (and brutal is a word that is going to be used liberally in this review), I’ve never been a fan of Swedish 5 piece Meshuggah. I have appreciated their intricate, mechanical and overtly technical attack on music, but they were never my scene. Their ability to methodically twist, turn and practically invert musical theory is something to behold. They mesh so many different forms of musical brutality and have this monstrous tonality that at times makes them seem not of this planet. You can’t tap your foot to this band, no matter how hard you try and melodies are so deeply buried in their sheer bludgeoned rhythms that it often is an exercise in sheer concentration to try and figure out just what the fuck is going on. And so the band have recently expunged their new offering Ozben to an unsuspecting public. I had no intention of buying this album, I’m not a fan of the band - but what caught my eye was the amazing cover art. I just couldn’t take my eyes off the majestic beauty of this thing… (artwork courtesy of the freaky Joachim Luetke) - and I strictly purchased this CD on its looks alone! I know! Bizarre! Weird! Like whoa dude, are you ok? And you know what? I’m glad I bought this because this piece of shiny plastic has blown me away in its ferocity, its intricacy and its mind-bending avant-garde pretentious, brutal as fuck swagger. I’ve had it pounding out of my car stereo in such volume that drivers in cars next to me look over in my general direction and tap the side of their heads as if trying to tell me something I don’t already know! This truly is a release that fully endorses why so many are calling it the Metal Album of the Year. This is the future of Metal.

It is incredibly difficult to put into words a review of the latest Nine Inch Nails release… ‘Ghosts I-IV’. In its vastness and scope and the mere fact that this is a veritable slab of over two hours of music… where does one even begin to analyze individual tracks or key moments in this Reznor opus? Add to the fact that there are no identifiable track names - it all adds up to a unique and fresh listening experience.

I absolutely adore what Reznor has accomplished here as I have always preferred his more experimental work. There is so much on offer here. So much style, technique, haunting ambience and emotion. It is all so grand yet at the same time, there is an element of rawness permeating throughout each track. It is going to take a long, long time to fully digest just what has been unleashed here.

The entire ‘Ghosts’ experience was all incredibly rewarding. I can’t recall such a buzz over a new release and the digital methodology that was used to deliver this music to the masses. These are exciting times for genuine music fans and genuine artists such as Trent Reznor/Nine Inch Nails who are actively seeking out new ways of doing things. Everything from the initial overworked servers and the moment of finally downloading the music (legally and intact as the artist wished) - to even managing to score the $300 Deluxe Edition as yours truly did - just added to the entire experience that was/is ‘Ghosts’.

With bassist Michael Todd and drummer Josh Eppard leaving the band mid-tour, things were looking a little hazy for Coheed & Cambria. After enjoying the success and massive buzz of their previous albums ‘The Second Stage Turbine Blade’ (February 2002), ‘In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3′ (October 2003), ‘Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness’ (September 2005) - the band was in a precarious position as it was about to begin work on the ‘Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV, Volume Two: No World for Tomorrow’ album. But as luck would have it, bassist Todd returned to the fold and former Dillinger Escape Plan drummer Chris Pennie took over the drummer’s stool. Due to contractual obligations Pennie was not able to play on the album but Foo Fighters’ skinsman Taylor Hawkins appears in his place. Coheed & Cambria play a complex but infectious brand of Progressive Rock that is simply littered with melodic hooks and harmonies that leave you wanting more after each and every listen. Couple all this with some classic guitar riffing and lead crooner Claudio Sanchez’s high pitch Geddy Lee-esque vocals and you end up with (yet another) amazing Coheed & Cambria album! Yet amongst all the prog-rock craziness, there are some brilliant pop moments as these guys have an uncanny knack of writing what is catchy and memorable all at once. Standout tracks for me right now are ‘The Running Free’ and title track ‘No World For Tomorrow’. Bottom line, it’s a Coheed & Cambria album and with that in mind, you are guaranteed a multitude of glorious melodies, serious riffage and the continual nerd-nirvana of the three album space-rock-opera that has even made it onto the pages of a comic book! Geek bliss!

I know it is pretty fashionable to diss them, but I am unashamedly a big fan of Korn. They burst onto the scene as the Grunge move was dying a slow, flannel-wearing death and practically created what became known as Nu-Metal. Tho for the most part, this dire musical mismatch of Metal & Rap inspired some woeful and pretty forgettable acts. (Anyone remember Limp Bizkit?) But to simply label Korn as Nu-Metal is totally unfair. They are far better than that and have spawned some amazing records over the past decade. It is always with great anticipation I await a new Korn release and quickly snapped up their 8th studio album - ‘Untitled’ on its day of release. Produced by Nine Inch Nails stalwart Atticus Ross - this is a damn fine sounding album. You can hear Ross’ influence drip off each and every track. With the band’s ranks weirdly diminishing, (Head found God, Dave is on temporary hiatus) - the band recruited the amazing Terry Bozzio to drum on Untitled. As brilliant as Bozzio is, I found the drumming a little on the annoying side. I missed the ole Korn BOOM-CHUCK as Bozzio is just far too busy on some of these tracks and sonically, the groove is all over the place. Still, there’s plenty of Korn downtuned guitar and bass chunkiness to steady the ship and Davis even injects some grindcore vocals here and there. ‘Bitch We Got A Problem’ features a sickly Trent Reznor-esque keyboard melody intertwining with a malevolent bass riff that sounds positively freaky. Whilst the track ‘Hold On’ could have come off any earlier Korn album as it features all the vintage, trademark Kornisms that make this band so unique and special. The eerie ‘Do What They Say’ is such a bitching, moody fuck as it bumps and grinds from start to finish with rich musical landscapes and really nice guitar undertones. Repeated listens of Untitled continues to reveal fresh, intriguing moments and surprises throughout. Do give this one a go! It is more than worth it.

Whaddaya get when you mix liberal doses of the Rolling Stones, Radio Birdman, a dash of the punk stylings of the Saints and some Ace Frehley insipired licks and solos? Splash ‘em with some Alice Cooper/King Diamond make-up and dress ‘em up as androgynous Nazis and sailors and you’ve got Oslo’s finest exponent… Turbonegro.

It’s so rare these days to chuck a CD on and every track… and I mean every-single-solitary-aural-sonic-blast be simply outstanding. ‘Retox’ features 14 of the catchiest Rock N Roll songs you’re likely to hear all year. Dripping with sarcasm and sing-a-long anthems that inspire the listener to have this disc blasting out of your car sterero, driving down the highway with shades on, window wound down and giving the bird to pedestrians and cars you pass in pure egocentric who-gives-a-fuck about the world attitude!

This is Rock! Pure! In your face! Unadulterated ROCK!

Retox is an album I have not stopped playing. It gets better with each listen and if you’re a fan of big, dumb guitar histrionics and catchy hooks that refuse to leave your brain - then just go and get this album. Pompous! Ballistic! Offensive! And all in all fucking amazing!

The Dio era of Black Sabbath has always had a soft-spot in my old blackened heart! The news of the formation of this incarnation of the greatest Metal bands of all-time - had this particular fanboy donning a black cape and throwing the devil-horn salute at anything that moves! Although they are touring under the monicker ‘Heaven & Hell’ due to legalities and a certain cunt known as Sharon Osbourne not allowing them to use the Sabbath name… it is still Black Sabbath and this compilation album pays tribute to Ronnie James Dio’s incredible contributions to this classic line-up. Tracks from the Dio era (Heaven & Hell, Mob Rules, Live Evil and Dehumanizer) isn’t all that you get here… there are three new tracks which prove beyond any reasonable doubt - just how insurmountably great Messrs Iommi, Butler, Appice & Dio are. The new tracks ‘The Devil Cried’, ‘Shadow of the Wind’, and ‘Ear In The Wall’ are fucking incredible! I was floored on first listen and I pray to all that is unholy that these guys give us a full album. Let’s face it, Dio’s solo career - apart from his first two albums ‘Holy Diver’ & ‘The Last In Line’ - has been a little on the lackluster side. With that in mind I was dreading what these new tracks might possibly sound like… but after picking my jaw up from the floor… I was completely blown away at what is on offer here. The new tracks are worth the price of admission alone! Brilliant Iommi riffs that chug and chug along embedding themselves deep into your synapses whilst Geezer Butler and Vinnie Appice lay down monstrous foundations. And on top of it all… the greatest voice in Metal sings like an angel possessed, waxing lyrical the doom and gloom that is and always will be… Black Fuckn Sabbath! Goddamn!!!

The Best of 2006

And here we are at the death knell of another year. This can only mean one thing for all ye faithful droogs who’ve been here since 2003. You guessed it! It’s time for the Dogmatic Best of 2006 where we look back at the year’s best offerings in the pop-counterculture’s cesspool of goodies, nasties and indeed - all the delicious things that go bump in the night! Boo!

Musically, it has been an awesome year of supremely fine tuneage with some damn good releases from the established acts of the Metalsphere as well as some great young acts coming on through. There wasn’t a month or week that went past without a decent slab of tunes coming down the pipeline.

So without further delay, and after considerable consideration, internal debate and over analysis… here are the Dogmatic Top 10 Albums Anno Domini Nostri Iesu Christi… 2006. Enjoy!

When it came to choosing ‘Album of the Year’ - my mind was made up months ago. Celtic Frost’s brilliant return to the scene with the extremely dark and fiendish ‘Monotheist’ was a clear winner. This album just drips a disquieting tone that is hard to comprehend let alone surpass. It’s just so fuckn nefariously good and sickly evil at the same time. I’ve been playing it since the day it came out and it is always a cathartic listening experience to this day. A brilliant album no question which has served as the soundtrack of my life throughout the course of this year!
[FULL REVIEW HERE]

“…In this darkness, called my mind. The waste you left for me. I’m your shit, your verbal smut. Your twisted world recapped. This is you, your lifeless soul. Your sick and fucked-up lies. In my world your love is death. Your disease, your skin that burns. Oh God, why have you forsaken me…”

But as the year came to a close, the Frost was nearly knocked off the number one perch by the Deftones’ ‘Saturday Night Wrist’ album. Undoubtedly this is the Deftones’ best release in a number of years. I have been enjoying this one so much, that I’ve gone back over the band’s back-catalogue and re-listening (and appreciating!) just what a damn fine band they truly are! For fans, there is a ‘Deftones/Bob Ezrin Demos’ collection doing the rounds on the ‘net - do check it out! And for Aussie fans, the band will be touring our shores in the new year! (See you there!)
[FULL REVIEW HERE]

“…I’ve looked outside. But I’ve never wandered out. I’d like to pull you into me. Intercept you, in between but I will never walk without, outside…”

I know many who would have this one further up. You’ll get no argument from me! This is indeed a brilliant album and illustrates what is so exciting about the new American Metal sound that has rejuvenated a flagging genre from the dire that was the nu-metal movement. Masterfully crafted, this is an album that will pulverize you to nothingness with the meticulous musicianship of all involved. Oh, and weren’t they fuckn amazing live when they turned the Palace into mush!
[FULL REVIEW HERE]

“…Blood and fire used to fill the night, burnt and drowned by our very lives. You missed a sinking boat by years, dollar signs, crocodile tears. It’s over now it long has been…”

Interestingly enough, Ministry have been making the Dogmatic Top 10 each year for the past 3 years. Well it goes without saying, they are one of my fave bands of all time and I love everything they do - so possibly, my views are a little tainted and definitely biased. But.. I challenge anyone to listen to Rio Grande Blood and not be blown away by the offerings on show. The band has also been nominated for a Grammy for the Lieslieslies song. (Best song on the album by the way…) And wouldn’t it be great on Grammy night if Ministry do pull this one of - and we bear witness to Al Jourgensen (and co) getting on that stage and giving the good old USA a heartily felt… FUCK YOU VERY MUCH! When all is said and done, this is one of Ministry’s finest!
[FULL REVIEW HERE]

“…Absolute destruction is the battleground we’re given. Strip away the fabric of a thousand years of livin’…”

Dropping the pace down a cog considerably, I was turned onto Gary Numan’s Jagged album by reading Tom Warrior’s (of Celtic Frost fame) blog. He was full of praise of this, Gary’s 17th studio album, and I thought to myself, “Self, we gots to check this out!” And I am glad I did. I never got round to giving this the full Dogmatic review, but this is one of the most dark, disturbing and sombre albums I have ever heard. In short, I love it! Gary Numan has always been considered one of the pioneers of the Industrial sound. His early works and songs such as ‘Cars’, ‘We Are Glass’, ‘Down In the Park’ et al - have been major influences on the likes of Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson. With this album, Numan has returned the favour and lifted what is great about today’s exponents of the Industrial movement - and spawned an album that is so ethereal and lugubrious that it drips of excellence.

“…Who hasn’t made, A big mistake, Betrayed a love, Or turned to hate? You think it’s you…”

Easily Iron Maiden’s best album since the glory days of the mid-eighties. I would have rated this higher if not for the weak start to the album, but the second half of this disc is friggn sensational as the album finishes on a very high note. Hopefully we’ll get to see the lads back in the land Down Under as it has been years since their last tour. Amazing how a band that is close to 30 years old still manages to release quality such as this. A masterpiece!
[FULL REVIEW HERE]

“…You lie in your death bed now. But what did you bring to the table. Brought us only holy sin. Utter trust is a deadly thing…”

When it comes to the Metalcore scene, no one does it better than Killswitch Engage. In fact, they leave most of their supposed contemporaries for dead. Brutally powerful riffs topped off with the enigmatic melody that lead crooner Howard Jones perfectly injects into each and every song. You see folks, the Switch ain’t afraid of melody. They embrace it! Combine that with bone-crunching guitars and you’re in for a treat seeing this mob live as the crowd is always in full-voice singing back to the band with loud abandon. I’m not sure if this is the breakthrough album for them, but give ‘em another year or so and these guys are gonna be massive!

“…No more broken promises. The shattered hearts will heal. No more broken promises. No more…”

Musically, Mastodon is unparalleled - delivering an intricate bludgeoning with each and every track. But it ain’t all a slice of bludgeon-riffola as far as these guys are concerned. The solos are interlaced with melodic undertones and the band have an uncanny knack of injecting unique sounding melodies with vocal and guitar alike layered on top of a complex and perplexing rhythm section. Or in short, the drumming is fucking amazing and lays an immense foundation for the band to work from. This album is so multi-faceted and continually refuses to let up its ferocity despite frequent shifts in style, mood, and attitude. Truly, a classic album.
[FULL REVIEW HERE]

“…The hero of the gods. The crossing of the threshold. The belly of the whale. Refusal of return…”

Satyricon have done the unthinkable! They’ve given Black Metal a groove! Now, Diabolical, first and foremost - is incredibly diabolical and sinister as sinister can be! But these guys have taken a woeful, miserly genre and turned it on its head. I’m quite sure, Black Metal diehards probably hate this album (’cos it’s good!) but in all honesty - how can one take serious a bunch of twats running around the frozen mountain-tops of Europe with ‘corpse-paint’ on their pimply faces scaring the village nuns away? Yeah, those dweebs would hate this album for sure ‘cos Satyricon have injected friggn awesome riffs and songs into this album - arguably the band’s best. Cannot fault this album and I eagerly await to see what the band will have on offer next time around!

“…Countless nights of ferocius anger. And grinding teeth. The jaw is clenched. The spark is lit. The target locked. We want you dead…”

A new Slayer album doesn’t happen too often. In fact, it has been a laborious five years since the underrated ‘God Hates Us All’ album pummeled our eardrums on that fateful 9-11 day. Sheesh, if ever a band was created to be the perfect soundtrack for airplanes crashing into towers… then Slayer is it! So here we are, several years later and the band’s original (and definitive) line-up have once again joined forces to bring us another slab of Slayer nastiness! With drummer supremo Dave Lombardo back in the ranks, the band is whole again.
[FULL REVIEW HERE]

“…You’ll never touch God’s hand. You’ll never taste God’s breath. Because you’ll never see the second coming. Life’s too short to be focused on insanity…”

Notable Exceptions:

• Cradle of Filth (Thornography) - I’m really getting into this album. Quite possibly their best release since the mind-blowing ‘Midian’. A few more listens and this one would have been staking a place in the Top 10!
• Revolting Cocks (Cocked & Loaded) - a great release and just got pipped out of the Top 10.
• Tool (10,000 Days) - initially, I was so in love with this album but I got tired of it fast and now just can’t even listen to it anymore. In hindsight, I was expecting more from Tool.
• Devin Townsend (Synchestra) - Devin continues to blow me away with everything he touches. Another amazing solo effort!
• The Gathering (Home) - one of my fave bands who are in the habit of continually releasing exceptional albums.
• AFI (Decemberunderground) - Although this is a great album, it is not a brilliant one like their prior. Great songs throughout tho.
• Strapping Young Lad (The New Black) - My least fave album by Strapping for a while but I did get tons of enjoyment from it regardless.
• Dog Fashion Disco (Adultery) - A great album from a new act. Reminded me of Faith No More in places. Will definitely be checking them out again.
• Johnny Cash (American V: A Hundred Highways) - The Man In Black with Rick Rubin at the helm, ’nuff said!
• Godhead (The Shadow Line) - My boys! Another great release from Jason & co.
• The Eagles of Death Metal (Death By Sexy) - a fun record! Hatebreed (Supremacy) - didn’t really give this one a decent crack, but what I have heard - I like!
• Lacuna Coil (Karmacode) - the album that is destined to make them superstars. Great all round, but prior releases are much better.
• Poisonblack (Lust Stained Despair) - Not bad, but check out their prior one which is brilliant!
• The Prize Fighter Inferno (My Brother’s Blood Machine)
• Sepultura (Dante XXI)

Disappointment of the Year:
Killing Joke (Hosannas From The Basement Of Hell): I had high anticipations for this one seeing as the previous album was so good. I really tried giving this one a shot, but could just not get into it. Alas.

If someone ever told you that Iron Maiden would release a classic slab of music in the year 2006, you would probably laugh in their face. And yet, Maiden’s latest opus ‘A Matter of Life & Death’ is as close to being a masterpiece as is humanly possible. In fact, this album is probably the band’s best work since the glory days of the mid-eighties and the ‘Powerslave’ era. Speaking of which, I got to see the band on their second tour of Australia in 1985 on the aforementioned ‘Powerslave’ tour. That was truly a magic day for this young metalhead as I got to spend the day with the guys as they were shooting a promo for music show Countdown. (I still have Nicko McBrain’s sweat-band and drum-sticks from that day and a slab of signed goodies that I treasure to this day! But that’s another story and another era all-together!) When the band reformed with vocalist Bruce Dickinson and guitarist Adrian Smith back in 2000, they released the brilliant ‘Brave New World’ album. They followed this up with the disappointing ‘Dance of Death’ album so I didn’t have high hopes for this new CD. Boy, was I wrong! This is really an incredible return to form by Maiden - particularly the second half of this album which is as majestic as it is astounding. Dickinson’s vocals are as amazing as ever and the melodic overtones that these guys manage to inject into their music is second to none. The intro to ‘The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg’ is so brilliantly dark and sombre and has ‘vintage’ Maiden stamped all over it. Same goes for my fave track on the album ‘Lord of Light’ in which Dickinson just blitzes on. Classic stuff.

I’ve never been a huge fan of the Deftones. In fact, I found them a little on the over-rated side but having said that, they did stand out from the rest of the sickly irritating ‘Nu-Metal’ movement that spawned them. Apart from their blistering debut, they’ve released a slew of bloated, pretentious and misdirected follow-ups but for some reason or another, I would always take time to check them out nonetheless. As a live act, they are simply incredible. I saw them a while ago on a Cure tribute performance and they floored me with how good they sounded. So full of atmosphere, depth and genuine emotion. I said to myself, ‘now why can’t they be like that on their albums?’ Someone must have heard me because on the latest opus ‘Saturday Night Wrist’ - they have blown me away. This is a multi-layered, textured slab of music that gets better with each passing listen. Magnificently produced by one of the genuine supremos of the production world - Bob Ezrin (Alice Cooper, Pink Floyd, KISS) - the sounds on this album are vast. Emotive and cathartic. ‘Saturday Night Wrist’ is a sinister and moody fuck that becomes more memorable each time you venture through the tuneage on offer. An incredible listening experience that always gets my attention every time I fire it up on the iPod.

I’ve been sitting on this review for a while for the sole reason that it takes time to fully digest anything that Mastodon release. A lot of time. ‘Blood Mountain’ marks the band’s first release for major label Warner and features a diverse range of cameos from the likes of Neurosis vocalist Scott Kelly, Queen Of The Stone Age’s Josh Homme and Cedric Bixler-Zavala from the Mars Volta. An eclectic bunch of characters right there but then again, Mastodon are an eclectic mob themselves. Musically, Mastodon is unparalleled - delivering an intricate bludgeoning with each and every track. But it ain’t all a slice of bludgeon-riffola as far as these guys are concerned. The solos are interlaced with melodic undertones and the band have an uncanny knack of injecting unique sounding melodies with vocal and guitar alike layered on top of a complex and perplexing rhythm section. Or in short, the drumming is fucking amazing and lays an immense foundation for the band to work from. This album is so multi-faceted and continually refuses to let up its ferocity despite frequent shifts in style, mood, and attitude. Truly, a classic album.

With their recently announced Australian tour in October with Killswitch Engage & Unearth, (HELL YEAH!!!!) Lamb of God’s latest album - Sacrament - hit the streets this week. Yours truly quickly snapped up a copy as the record-store staff were placing this fucker on the shelves! The Australian pressing comes with an additional 90 minute ‘Making of the album’ DVD which proved to be a fascinating insight into the making of one of the albums of the year! Let’s face it, any ‘behind-the-scenes’ look into Lamb of God is always an amazing, eye-opening experience and worth the price of the CD alone. But having said that, it would be a shame not to focus on what is a blistering slab of new tunes from one of America’s definitive exponents of the Metal genre. Featuring absolute precision muscianship courtesy of the intricate and majestic drumming of Chris Adler who keeps the band tight and intense, the foundations are well and truly laid for a fine slab of Heavy Metal in its purest form. Lamb of God have an uncanny knack of producing Metal riffs that remain embedded in the sinews of your brain long after you’ve stopped listening to the album. Vocalist Randy Blythe delivers some of his finest moments. His intencity is so magnificently captured by album producer Machine. Blythe’s vocal stylings cut through the bone and his voice is filled with such venom and spite that one shouldn’t stand too close to the speakers when listening to this in case one is sucker-punched by the ferocity and anger eminating from the wall of sound. What we have as an end-result is such a complete and finely crafted Metal opus. The band have injected more melody throughout - nicely toned lead-breaks and a nice measure of controlled chaos at all times. A damingly awesome exponent of where the American Metal movement is headed these days.

A new Slayer album doesn’t happen too often. In fact, it has been a laborious five years since the underrated ‘God Hates Us All’ album pummeled our eardrums on that fateful 9-11 day. Sheesh, if ever a band was created to be the perfect soundtrack for airplanes crashing into towers… then Slayer is it! So here we are, several years later and the band’s original (and definitive) line-up have once again joined forces to bring us another slab of Slayer nastiness! With drummer supremo Dave Lombardo back in the ranks, the band is whole again. Since Lomabardo’s departure, the band never really sounded like Slayer - such is his key influence and importance to the Slayer sound. The return of it’s master skinsman, the aforementioned Lombardo, had this particular fanboy chomping at the bit! So I’ve had the album for a day now and have managed several listens and I gots to tell ya, I’m really enjoying this one. The band haven’t sounded this sinister and visceral since the glory days of ‘Reign In Blood’ & ‘South of Heaven’ - the band’s finest moments. The band haven’t abandoned their Satanic overtones, in fact, they glorify them on this album and mix it all up with the almost pro-terrorist track ‘Jihad’ - a song written from the terrorist’s point of view(!) Now isn’t that gonna rile up the skirts of Christian Middle America? Hell yeah! Slayer are at their best when they shove their collective middle finger in the ass of all that is wrong with this world - and this album is sure to piss off all the self-righteous religious scum of the Earth on the eternal quest for their collective ‘good guy badge’. This is clearly Slayer’s finest moment in over a decade - just do not listen to this one when on your next plane trip!

Holy Mother of God! Celtic Frost’s newly released ‘Monotheist’ has not only exceeded my expectations, it has completely blown me away and refused to leave my iPod and iTunes. On heavy rotation, it permeates the office and home airwaves as I will not play anything else but this fucker! I had thought Celtic Frost all but dead - their glory days buried deep and far away somewhere in the mid to late 80’s. Even though the band’s origins spawned out of the (awful!) Hellhammer back in 1984 (they were so bad back then you just had to take notice!) they reformed as Celtic Frost and released the wonderful ‘Morbid Tales’. With the rest of the metalsphere trying to mimic the fledgling Metallica and trying to play at ridiculously fast speeds, Celtic Frost took a different approach. Haunting, catchy Sabbath-esque riffs filled their repertoire. Always experimental and even operatic in places, infinetely evil and sinister, the Frost were a unique and cathartic band that were busy creating a sound uniquely their own. No one sounded like them. No one had the balls to pull off such an album as the gloom-ridden opus ‘Into The Pandemonium’. Which other Metal band would even attempt a cover of Wall of Voodoo’s ‘Mexican Radio’ and do it so magnificently? And here we are, years later - Celtic Frost have returned with quite possibly one of the finest releases for 2006. I can’t even begin to put into words just how good this album is. Innovative. Fresh. Atmospheric. Brutal. In this Metalcore (ugh!) world we currently live in where every band tries to out-muscle every other band by screaming and growling like a carbon-copy of eachother, it is refreshing, so refreshing that a band like Celtic Frost are back with an album so sinister, so macabrely evil that they are going to take the Metal world by the scruff of its collective neck and send it to hell!

Before 2003’s brilliant ‘Sing The Sorrow’ album, I had never heard of AFI. I can’t even begin to put into words just how much ‘Sing The Sorrow’ meant to me but one look at my iTunes and you’d see just how many times I listened to that sucker. I love that album now just as much as I loved it back in ‘03. With that in mind, I had been eagerly anticipating a follow-up to that masterpiece - and that time has come. AFI’s new album ‘Decemberunderground’ is set to be released on 6/6/06 (geez isn’t everyone having a ton of fun with that date huh?) I won’t lie to you, I loved the previous album so much that I worried if ‘decemberunderground’ would manage to live up to it. I really needn’t have worried, because this album has completely surpassed my lofty expectations and on several listens thusfar, I’m getting more and more into it with each passing day. The band has completely evolved away from their early Punk stylings and to these ears, that’s a good thing. The dark and melodic overtones on this album are just wonderful and hint at the Cure in their peak. ‘The Killing Light’ has Cure just stamped all over it in smudged black lipstick! Catchy as hell with a chorus you’ll be singing along to from the very first time you hear it. I was suprised this was not the first single. But there could have been any number of tracks on this album with that honour. Do check out the delisciously evil video for first single ‘Miss Murder’ and do get yourself a copy of this incredible album! Well worth the wait.

Following the tremendous success of 2002’s ‘Comalies’ album, Italy’s Lacuna Coil have become that country’s most successful band of all time. Beautifully led by frontwoman Christina Scabbia (and I do mean beautifully) Lacuna Coil’s latest release pretty much picks up where ‘Comalies’ left off. With their Italian origin, the band attack the Metal sound in a unique and fresh manner. Ambitously melodic and harmonious at all times, the band have crafted an opus with layers of guitars that Scabbia croons over with finesse and grace. First single ‘Our Truth’ is a song that will embed itself into your head and refuse to leave. This is pretty much a template for the Lacuna Coil sound and probably my fave track on the album. The album closer, a Depeche Mode cover, ‘Enjoy The Silence’ I feel is the worst track on the album and completely unecessary. Nonetheless, the album is full to the brim with goth-metal niceties and well-crafted melodic songs. I don’t think ‘Karmacode’ is as strong as ’02’s ‘Comalies’ but indeed, a worthy and strong follow-up that I will spend more time with in the coming weeks. Now if only I could spend some time with the aforementioned and delicious Ms. Scabbia instead… but we won’t go there shall we?

It’s hard to even contemplate where to begin reviewing a new album from TOOL. Damn hard. In fact, I think the only way to properly do the band justice - is to not review the album now, but wait a year when this opus has been (and can be) fully digested. Listening to TOOL is a deep and sometimes cathartic experience. On my first listen of ‘10,000 Days’, I felt like driving my car into a tree. The morose and sombre tones of the music enveloping me - dropped my mood down a notch or two. I wasn’t just listening to music here, I was opening my mind to an experience and hearing a band pouring their souls out to me. Melodies hook and intertwine themselves within complex time signatures and beats. Just when you got that foot tapping in sync, the whole thing shifts up (or down) a cog and takes you someplace completely different. It’s beyond music. It’s beyond art. It is a mystery unravelling and embedding itself deep within your soul. Accept it or exorcise it - but be forewarned, you’ll never ignore it.

Atreyu’s fantastic (read FUCKN FANTASTIC) previous album, ‘The Curse’ made it to the coveted number 1 spot of Dogmatic’s annual Best of charts. Still in heavy rotation on the iPod, it was with great anticipation that I was eager to get my mitts on the new album - ‘A Death-Grip On Yesterday’. Would it disappoint? Or would it prove that the last opus was indeed no fluke? I’m happy to say that ‘A Death-Grip On Yesterday’ is an amazing release. At times it feels like a pure continuation from the last album. The band’s trademark angst & melody is still present and they are never afraid to inject majestic hooks in their tunes that completely divorces themselves from some of the cacophony of their contemporaries. This album will take Atreyu to the next level. It’s gonna be a good one and I’ll be damned surprised if it doesn’t feature itself prominently in this year’s ‘Best of’ chart at the end of ‘06. Atreyu’s ‘A Death-Grip On Yesterday’ will be hitting store shelves on March 28… GO GET SOME!

For the better part of a year now, I have been clamoring for the release of HIM’s fifth studio album - Dark Light. So much so I pre-ordered the ’special-editon’ version from the band’s official website close to 2 months ago and began counting down the days for it’s designated global release. (September 26). Yesterday evening when I got home from work, - the deluxe boxed CD had arrived! The sheer speed at which the package was ripped open astounded not only me, but my ever curious cat who looked at me with a confused inquisitive look. I’m sure she was thinking this is really not the way for a grown man to behave.

With caution, I put the CD in to play with feelings of trepidation. Everytime I eagerly await something so bad - it always ends up being a big disappointment. My fears were certainly short-lived. I’ve played this album from start to finish close to 15 times and with each listen, I’m liking it even more.

Dark Light was originally supposed to be produced and mixed by Andy Wallace, (Slayer, Sepultura, Springsteen, Faith No More etc), but vocalist Ville Valo said he made HIM sound ‘too American’ so they fired him, and hired Tim Palmer who they worked with before on the Love Metal and And Love Said No albums.

Dark Light is an incredible slab of music delivered as only HIM can. Featuring 10 tracks (12 on the deluxe version) all with infectious vocal melodies interwoven with competing guitar melodies overlapping subtle and oh-so tonal keyboard undertones - and a rock steady bottom end that is sure to shake the foundations! Just fuckn incredible! Album of the year? Quite possibly… quite possibly!

Ladies & germs, believe the hype!

I guess the only good thing about the tyrannical George Bush years - is the sheer ferocity he seems to inspire and excorcise out of Ministry. Over the past few years, Ministry have been incredibly prolific releasing album after album of absolute bonafide classic material. ‘Rio Grande Blood’ is certainly no exception and a spine-tingling political statement from Al Jourgensen and the band. This is a mutha fucker of an album that should be crammed down the throat of every damn right-wing Christian moron that put this monkey into power for a second term. And when they are gargling at your feet having just had a CD shoved down their wind-pipe, kick them with steel-capped boots whilst blasting out the ‘LiesLiesLies’ track! (sorry, I’m getting way overboard here - ‘LiesLiesLies’ is a classic track that borrows the riff from S.O.D’s ‘Seargent D’ track and gives it the Ministry touch!) This is easily some of Ministry’s finest work featuring guest appearances from Jello Biafra, Liz Constantine amongst others. Get your mitts on this one folks…

It’s been well documented that a new Nine Inch Nails album only comes around every five years. The wait for new material from Trent Reznor is sometimes quite a challenge for his army of dedicated fans. Nine Inch Nails’ last release was the challenging and often misunderstood masterpiece, 1999’s The Fragile. An adventurous two disc musical extravaganza embelished with layer upon layer of sonic mastery.

So now we find ourselves in 2005 and the latest Nine Inch Nails album, ‘With Teeth’ has been unleashed to a rabid fanbase and a music world curious to see what Reznor has been up to. The expectations are always high when it comes to NIN.

The album opens with the surreal-like ‘All The Love In The World’. Sounding like a Radiohead-cum-Moby tune the song drifts through a haunting piano melody overlapping a somewhat, ‘drum and bass’ beat as a pleading Reznor questions what he can’t have and deeply coveting what he truly wants. The song slowly builds to a melodic climax with multiple layers of harmonizing vocals which rise and rise until the song strips itself back in typical Reznor fashion to the underlying piano melody. Beautiful stuff. At one point, this was my least favourite song on the album but I noticed myself singing the melody in my head to the point where I began to really enjoy the tune.

After such a calm and melodic start, the album kicks on with the ferocious ‘You Know What You Are’. Reznor’s vocals are peppered with venom and spite which brought back memories of ‘The Downward Spiral’ for this listener. In fact, one thing I did notice about this album, is that it captures many elements of albums gone past.

Continuing on with a typical Dave Grohl drum pattern, (Grohl beats the skins on about 80% of the album whilst regular NIN live drummer Jerome Dillon handles the rest), ‘The Collector’ plods along with some trademark Reznor soundscapes and grating guitar embelishments. The piano ivories twinkle throughout the song’s crescendo sounding very Mike Garson-like (of David Bowie fame).

The first single ‘The Hand That Feeds’ grooves with the best of them. This song just gets better and better with each listen. Best served nice and very loud - you’ll soon find yourself singing along to it. And of course, if you’re not happy with the mix, you can have a go at doing your own version of the track courtesy of Mr. Reznor’s Garageband download!

‘With Teeth’ I am convinced will be a huge commercial success for Trent Reznor/Nine Inch Nails. With some very catchy songs such as the magnificent ‘Only’ (which will be the album’s second single and feature a video directed by David Fincher) and the majestic synth/retro sounding ‘Sunspots’ there are just far too many strong and well constructed songs for this album to fail.

There are definetly elements of all of Reznor’s major releases scattered throughout ‘With Teeth’. And that can only be a good thing when NIN’s past works are nothing short of incredible pieces of music. Which is not to say that Reznor is rehashing old ideas, far from it… ‘With Teeth’ is most assuredly an innovative and rewarding 2005 release with plenty of new ideas and a vibrant, fresh approach to the beast that is Nine Inch Nails - a band which for the better part of the last 15 years has been the soundtrack to my life.

Whilst perusing the music section of Borders last night, my attention was immediately drawn to this black box that looked both menacing and ominous in between the usual pap that music stores stock these days.

Let me start from the outset and say - this is one of the most beautifully packaged box-sets I have ever seen. Granted the entire packaging is as black as black can be, visually, it is as gloomy and sinister as the band’s true legacy… its music!

Featuring the first eight Sabbath albums (Black Sabbath, Paranoid, Master of Reality, Vol. 4, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Sabotage, Technical Ecstacy, Never Say Die) - the set also includes a four track DVD of Sabbath performing ‘Iron Man’ and ‘Paranoid’, a live cover of Carl Perkins’ ‘Blues Suede Shoes’, and a rare promotional clip for the song ‘Black Sabbath’ live at The Beat Club).

An 80-page gorgeous hardback book is also included and features rare archival photos, two-part liner notes, complete lyrics, and an extensive timeline. The book also features two new historical essays by writers Chris Welch (”1970-1972: Lords of This World”) and Brian Ives (”1973-1978: A Hard Road”) and snippets from current stars who have been influenced by the Sabbath legacy. (Henry Rollins, Metallica, Rob Zombie, Nirvana, Rob Halford, Beck, Zakk Wylde, Melissa Auf Der Maur, Slash among many others).

Each classic album features newly remastered sound - which has to be heard to be believed! Never has the Sabbath catalogue sounded so dynamic and if you have ever considered yourself a fan - the Black Box editions are an essential purchase. Each CD comes packaged in an individual digipak recreating the original album art from the Seventies.

The original Sabbath lineup (along with executive producer Sharon Osbourne) supervised the box set with bassist Geezer Butler personally labouring over the lyrics of each album to ensure they were correct.

Simply mind-blowing and if that wasn’t enough… a spokesperson at the management company of Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi has confirmed that the remaining Black Sabbath catalog is slated for similar treatment in 2005.