F.O.A.D.- Filthiest of Apocalyptic Detroit compilation LP review

F.O.A.D.- Filthiest of Apocalyptic Detroit compilation LP review

As a package, this is a great example of how to do a compilation on vinyl- four bands, two songs each, lyrics and band shots included, and layout ever so crisp, complete with a painting by Tim “Shagrat” Jenkins, who also appears in two bands on this compilation.  So, by appearance, I see a great level of potential.  Would the music live up to it (and the level of local popularity all the featured bands have)?

First song on the record is Reaper’s “Satanic Leather”, a tale of being metal dogs in Detroit, and detailing a series of unfortunate events that happened with the band, yet it never deterred them from continuing to make music.  The riffs are good, and the leads rip, but the vocals have a bit too much reverb, and they’re hard to hear.  A good song in its own right, though.  I’ll be the audiophile who likes the song, but not the mixing job.  “Satan Approves” is a title that, for some reason, reminds me of the Jesus figure in Dogma, but of a dark red, winged figure giving a cheery thumbs up instead.  Music-wise, I like the vocals better on this song, and the music is blitzing thrash metal in its lo-fi glory.  Very gnarly.  Next is Perversion, a more blackened thrash metal band who has been around for a few years, only recently playing bigger gigs and getting out of town more.  “Morbid Aggressor” has some tight playing and some leads that shred, but I couldn’t get into it- maybe it wasn’t fast enough, or the vocals were a bit rough for me, but I wasn’t banging my head much.  “Storm of Evil” picks up the pace and carries in some better riffs and vocals, ringing heavily of “Hell Awaits” and “Chemical Warfare”-era Slayer.  The song carries on for a bit too long, but otherwise is a solid metal jam.

Shitfucker kicks off the other side of the wax with “Bestial Ice”.  The lyrics leave me with more questions than answers- I’ll leave it at that.  The music is decent- the drums are tight, maybe mixed a bit too high, the bass and guitar are bit hard to hear and possibly mixed too low, but they can be heard distinctly if one listens closely enough.  The vocals are truly unique- extremely weird, but unique.  “Araknophobia” is an evenly mixed metal-punk song that seems to have an organ in the background- very cool, actually.  Same style of vocals here; the guitars and bass are both a little more audible, and it really helps them sound better.  I could circle pit to this song.  Lastly is Anguish, who have gone from a more straightforward crust punk sound to a rock and roll-leaning Motorhead style of music.  The vocals are nowhere near Lemmy’s trademark growl-y shout, and instead are clear and not too far off from Ian Gillan’s Deep Purple-era voice, and (dare I say it) is also comparable to Axe Ripper’s melodic-styled vocals, though it is distinctly different.  “The Onslaught Continues” is alright, but as a song, I’m not a big fan.  I was never that into mid-paced 70s-era heavy metal beyond the classics, and even those only somewhat so- in other words, not my style of music, to a large extent.  The bass sound is fucking sweet, though.  “A Blade in the Dark” has better riffs and better song formation- despite being a bit too long, it still rocks.  It may be the mix of the funky, cool bass sound with the speed metal guitar sound, but I dig this a bit.  Deserves a jam every so often.

Weirdly enough, the bands’ second song is better with all four bands, in my opinion.  Not a must have, but absolutely worth borrowing from a friend.

-Aunty Social

American Violence- False Idols EP review

American Violence- False Idols EP review

Man, I can’t decide if this is metal or hardcore- it has the hardcore breakdowns and the sort of bulldog-like frontman, but the guitars are straight metal.  This is a heavy little album here- all the parts of the music contribute to this, and it is well-mixed.  In their sound, you can hear traces of early 90s metalcore, a little Pantera, and a bit of Rage Against the Machine.  This combination makes either headbanging or hardcore dancing suitable- very nice.  Although I have not read the lyrics, the sound of the album would indicate a Columbine kid-esque style of lyrics- not happy music at all.  Even unhappy people may not truly get this EP, but they’ll at least enjoy it.  Don’t ever speed this album up- it’s a sledgehammer, not a pair of nun chucks.  Heavy fucking metal indeed.

-Aunty Social

The Terrordactyls- Unknown Terror 7" review

The Terrordactyls- Unknown Terror 7” review

Being a kid from the digital age, I find it tremendously odd when a metal album comes out on vinyl at all (metal-heads are usually a bit less idealistic than the punks, not that there’s anything wrong with that), and to see it on a 7” record is even weirder, given the average length of metal songs.  Regardless, as soon as I heard this band had members of In Defence and played straight-up thrash, I knew that it didn’t matter one bit what format the record came out on.  It was set to be pretty good.  Did it live up to the hype that I had preconceptually given it?  After a spin or two, I would have my answer.

The first song “Straight Edge Kids at the Liquor Store” takes up a whole side of the EP, and it’s well worth an entire side of a record.  The song is one of the best, most refined, most captivating I have heard come from a metal band in a very long time.  I’m talking levels of attention-grabbing near “Painkiller”, “Iron Maiden”, and “Angel of Death”.  That’s how good this song is.  It’s got the thrashing speed, both on drums and the guitars, and the vocals are straight youth crew style singing, and surprisingly, it works here, better than it would any other thrash band.  However, add in the gang vocals for the chorus, and you can see the members are very influenced by these youth crew bands.  Shit, sounds good to me!  Next was “Dude-geoisie, Oppressors of the Bro-letariat”, and while this one was shorter, it still packed the same punch-y vibe the previous song brought; though this song wasn’t quite as good as the first, it’s still pretty fucking good- I prefer to think of it as the epilogue to the last song, at least a bit.  Concluding this metallic EP was “Chemical Toilet”, which, while fast, seemed a bit more mid-tempo than the other two gems.  Too, it accompanied more gang vocals this time around, though I could not complain.  It was still a gnarly song, but I wasn’t as wowed as I was with the first two.  Regardless, this one still trumps “Between the Hammer and the Anvil”.  That’s something!

Thrash-tards, crossover cretins, and putrid punks alike ought to love this EP.  Speed, hilarity, gang vocals, low cost… what the fuck else do you want!?  It’s all here- buy or die.

-Aunty Social

Band profile: Hash Blazer

Hash Blazer hails from the culturally rich, poverty-stricken wasteland of Detroit, following yet surpassing former local heavyweights Halloween, Ugly But Proud, and Heresy.  While most often a three-piece, they are amidst toying with a quartet, sharing vocal duties between the two mainstays, drummer Louie and guitarist Kyle.  The band started in mid to late 2010, just months after the demise of former sludge band Stabbed in the Face.  This time, these two former members of that band decided to take a brand new direction musically- they went towards metal; more specifically, a mix between New Wave of British Heavy Metal and traditional thrash.  Little over one year after their formation, the band has opened for the likes of Destruction, Hellbastard, and Upsidedown Cross, not to mention having recorded a stellar demo, now this…

The band is a perfect example of moderation between influences and originality in music; yes, traces of many bands come to mind listening to Hash Blazer, but they don’t sound like a single one of them.  Coming from the perspective of a 80s hardcore and peace punk worshipper, I really respect a band capable of effectively walking this line.

Still, influences play a part in the lives of the ‘Blazer.  In the drums, one can hear traces of Motorhead, Sodom, very early black metal, and Hellbastard; lots of double bass, consistent energy, and a few metal breakdowns.  No two songs sound the same with these drums.  In the guitars, there’s a considerably wider spectrum:  Diamond Head, Iron Maiden, Teutonic thrash, Megadeth, Painkiller-era Judas Priest, Exodus, Armored Saint, and even a little Slayer.  There’s no limit to the array of riffs and licks that can be used, and the band uses many of them to create a sound to call their own.  The vocals are not so easily pinned down; primarily melodic and clear-sounding, this is a breath of fresh air in an era of barks, growls, and annoying cacophonous screams and utterances seemingly dominant in today’s metal and punk bands.  Both singers/ band members take from the sounds of Armored Saint/ John Bush, Diamond Head/ Sean Harris, Iron Maiden (both Paul and Bruce), Megadeth/ Dave Mustaine, and even from cheesy 80s hair metal bands a la W.A.S.P., Motley Crue, Dokken, and the like.  In short, the band is that very evasive mix between melody/ rhythm and natural aggression in singing.  In this age of indecipherable singing, the band takes an undeniable step outside the box, for the better.

Though it’s impossible to pinpoint exactly what Hash Blazer sounds like and there’s no one band to offer a near perfect or side-by-side comparison, they certainly fit well with a number of bands, all the while carving a unique path.  However, imagine Megadeth circa 1985-1992, playing Sodom’s music with a unique tinge, with John Bush in the early days of Armored Saint.  Even that is only a shell of what Hash Blazer is and represents.

They hash, they thrash, and goddamn it, your head will whiplash!
Full length album “Welcome to Detroit Destruction” to be released on Pirated Records in late 2011/ early 2012

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnZNrZwfSnA&feature=feedf

End Times zine review

What happened to metal?  No, I mean real metal:  Slayer, Exodus, Destruction, Sodom, Halloween, Hellbastard, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden…  It’s all gone now, it seems.  At least, most of it is; the number of and quality of bands has surely dissipated.  However, there seems to have been at least a slight resurgence; a zine called End Times out of Lansing has cropped up.  Though I knew of only of the of the bands, the artistic direction was low fidelity (black and white, cut and paste) and the information was both interesting and informative.  On top of this, it seems that Michigan metal has revved up, and hopefully End Times will be at the forefront, documenting it all.  Places like the Blackened Moon, Mac’s Bar, the Ritz, (unfortunately) Harpo’s and (more unfortunately) Blondie’s are hosting the main metal shows, a few different promoters are getting the word out to fans, and bands like Reaper, Perversion, Wastelander, Hash Blazer, Beast in the Field (who are interviewed in the second issue), Year of the Pig, and Shitfucker are spreading this sound.  Though End Times is undoubtedly a bit dirty and lo-fi, I like it.  It’s a throwback to how things used to be done- and that, my internet-age friends, is better than any e-zine.  Michigan metal lives on, and End Times is proof.

-Aunty Social

Hash Blazer- Demo review

There is a spectre that once haunted the music scene of Detroit (in a positive way)- that ghost was a thriving scene of metal bands, who would often mingle with punks after crossover was set in stone.  However, that period of killer metal bands slimmed to just a few as of late.  Could it be- that perhaps thrash is making a comeback?  It’s possible that it will; the more pertinent question here, however, is: Will Detroit’s Hash Blazer will be at the forefront of this metal resurgence?  They could; the songs are there.

However, this demo may not be indicative of their best work.  It is definitely very metal and very tight; as I said, the songs are there, and they are good.  The guitar grinds, the drums pound, and the bass vibrates- what more could one want?  Well, there are a couple of things:  The vocals sound overly clean, even for traditional thrash; they are overly melodic and lack the aggression that would fit this style of music best.  Though they aren’t bad per se, they are undoubtedly out of place for a dirty Motor City metal band.  The other worry I raise is related strictly to the recording (not the music itself)- the mixing is unbelievably far down on the volume; every one of the instruments could have been turned up on the mixing board.

Ignoring those two things, the metal mania is strong with this one; the artwork, too, is very detailed and much respect must go out to the artist.  I suppose if demos were supposed to be mixed perfectly, the metal scene would be filled with Metallica clones (those who want some kind of perfection doing things DIY, which is exceptionally rare, and rightfully so).  Thankfully, Hash Blazer and its demo are far from perfect, yet fulfill the expectations one ought to have for a demo recording, by a band with the name Hash Blazer.

-Aunty Social