Pale Communion - Opeth [Album review]

Aug 27th 2014 - Every time that a majestic band like Opeth releases a new album, I always get super excited. Prog music in general will surprise even the most avid listeners and confuse the newbies to the genre. When Opeth originally announced Pale Communion's predecessor, Heritage, several Opeth and metal fans were disappointed because of the band moving along from death metal to straight up 70s-inspired prog rock. I always considered Opeth as one of the most solid group in the extreme metal genre, but now they are proving themselves as one of the most (or the most) important prog-rock band of the era. Ladies and gentlemen, this is Pale Communion. 

When I saw that Opeth announced this album, I was very excited. Considering they had so much negative feedback from Heritage (which I personally found excellent, but not exactly up to par to previous works like Blackwater Park and Still Life), I was very curious the sound that the band would adopt for the new album.

After months of waiting, I decided to listen to the leaked version... and I [kinda] regret it.

This is an album that is definitely worth waiting for, purchasing a physical copy and get lost within the magical spirit that this album releases. When listening to the first track, I was surprised on how the album starts with a huge bang of prog-rock goodness. Very good opening track, although the best is yet to come. I did sense a massive presence of Steven Wilson's input, which is entirely a good thing. The song then goes to a slower tempo, more psychedelic prog-rock feel until the end of the song hits with awesome, technical musicianship. Well, this is going to be quite the journey, my friend.

Second track comes in, being the official single for the album. Good track, yet nothing too special... although it fits very well with the album. I suppose most of you heard this track already, so I'll just skip ahead.

Then, we get to the 3rd track "Moon Above, Sun Below". Clocking at over 10 minutes, you now realize at this point that you're in for a treat. I found that the song starts off very Heritage-sounding, but slightly more haunting and dark. It's a very interesting track, specially when you get past the 2 minutes mark. That riff sounds like it's been taken off Damnation (one of my favorite Opeth album, by the way), very calm yet very dark. It's good to see Opeth going back to their roots without going full-on death metal. Although, this doesn't last very long, since the song abruptly goes to a fast prog-rock phantasmagoria, then goes back to an even more Damnation-sounding part. Honestly, this song gave me massive shivers.

The fourth track, Elysian Woes, starts where the previous song left off. Very calm song, lot of Opeth-sounding riffs which, once again, sound very Damnation with a touch of old-school 70s prog rock. There isn't a whole lot to describe about this song but it holds its place very well within the album.

Next track is where things start to get very interesting. Goblin, the album's instrumental track, is a very groovy and psychedelic piece of music. The riffs sound awesome, and I'm feeling like I'm listening to an instrumental section from Steven Wilson's solo stuff. Near the end of the song, at about 3:50 (until the end), it gets super dark and pretty heavy, too. MAN! This is 100% Opeth right now.

Then, there's River, probably my favorite track on the whole album. It's a very nice contrast to the previous song, as the beginning makes me feel like it's been greatly inspired from Porcupine Tree's Lightbulb Sun... but almost feels too happy-sounding for an Opeth track... but that's until the middle of the track kicks in ; it transforms into a super dark and gloomy feel which quickly transitions to an absolutely wicked instrumental section. Then, at about 2/3 of the song, THIS is what you want to hear. Very evil-sounding riff, crazy bass line, whacky drum pattern... something that sounds like it came out of Ghost Reveries (minus the growling), yet some pretty cool riffing and double bass pedal. The song then ends with probably the most beautiful performance from Mikael... the vocals sound SO right, I mean Mikael always been a very good singer but he's totally outdoing himself at this point.

Now we get to the last 2 songs. Voice of Treason is, once again, a very dark sounding track accompanied by an orchestra that makes the song feel even more evil. Very trippy and captivating track, to say the least. Very good vocals on here as well, and the instrumental section is really satisfying with typical Opeth-riffing... great build up that gets you on the edge of your seat until Mikael goes all out on an awesome vocal performance [once again]. The song flawlessly merges with the last track, Faith in Others. Honestly, I can hardly imagine a more perfect way to finish the album. It's accompanied with a beautiful string arrangement, very hypnotic riffs and vocals... it just sounds right. Not heavy at all but very powerful. I was very impressed how the ending of this album could be so... good.

I honestly think that Pale Communion is one of the best releases from the prog giants. Definitely my favorite album of the year... I already listened to it several times (probably too much) but I just can't get enough of it. One wouldn't think that a prog rock album from Opeth would be as good as previous masterpieces like Blackwater Park, but let me tell you... it is.

Genre(s) : Progressive Rock
From : Stockholm, Sweden
Release date : August 25th 2014
Listening format : MP3 (320kbps)

Production value : 9.0
Mixing : 10
Lyrics: 10
Music: 10

Overall : 10/10
[Not an average]

Cannibal Corpse are entering the studio [News]

Feb 15th 2014 - Death metal pioneers Cannibal Corpse are starting their recording session for their upcoming album this weekend, according to Blabbermouth. They will be entering Audiohammer Studios with producer Mark Lewis. The album is expected to come out this summer via Metal Blade Records.

Kindly Bent to Free Us - Cynic [Album review]

Feb 14th 2014 - Cynic are coming back stronger than ever. This album was highly anticipated since it's the first full length release from the band since Traced in Air, released in 2008.  Six years later, Cynic are coming back in a slightly different direction, but entirely in a good way.

Well... where am I starting? I just have to say that Cynic did a damn fine job creating this album. Compared to their previous releases, this one feels like they leaned even more on the prog rock and jazz fusion aspects of their sound. You still get crazy double-bass drumming, but then at one point it feels like I'm listening to something similar to Steven Wilson, or even Opeth's Damnation. It has such an amazing psychedelic feel and it really helps you get the general vibe of the album. I'm pretty sure most Cynic fans have heard "The Lion's Roar", the first released track from the album. Honestly, I wasn't sure about it. I felt like it was missing something that older Cynic had. By listening to the album from the beginning to the end, I can confirm that I was wrong. It definitely has a different vibe compared to previous releases, but if you are in any means a Cynic (or prog in general), you will enjoy this album from beginning to end.

Aside from the jazz fusion/prog rock influence that's more noticeable,  you still have the BTBAM-like slow hypnotic parts, but in an instant your head will be crushed by super quick double-bass drumming and insane- yet very well implemented shredding. All of the songs are pretty much average-length (ranging from ~4:00-6:00), and I would've been interested to see the band incorporate some lengthy tracks on this new release, specially considering the fact that they released relatively short albums in the past. Although it's not really a game-changer, it would've been a "nice to have" on the album. Otherwise, it's still longer than their previous releases (both being originally under 35:00), so there's that.

They still possess their crazy and mind-blowing musicianship. There are parts that I was absolutely amazed by the super-technical bass and guitar riffs, and at another point the music gets me zoned out because it just sounds so trippy and captivating. This is an album you want to relax while listening to because it is simply made to be enjoyed by actually listening to it (if you listen to it in the background while doing other stuff, you might actually find it boring). The album isn't really heavy in general (less than their previous releases), but it's nice to see the musicians try out some new techniques and ideas. It's definitely worth listening. Cynic fan or not, this is simply a really well written record and any music fan, in my opinion, should be able to point out something musically amazing from it.

Here's the tracklist from the album :

1 - True Hallucination Speak (6:03)
2 - The Lion's Roar (4:34)
3 - Kindly Bent to Free Us (6:27)
4 - Infinite Shapes (4:57)
5 - Moon Heart Sun Head (5:21)
6 - Gitanjali (3:58)
7 - Holy Fallout (6:35)
8 - Endlessly Bountiful (3:56)
9 - Bonus Track / Earth Is My Witness (4:32)


Genre(s) : Progressive Metal, Progressive Rock, Jazz Fusion
From : Miami, United States
Release date : February 14th 2014
Listening format : MP3 (320kbps)

Production value : 8.5
Mixing : 9.5
Lyrics: 9.0
Music: 9.5

Overall : 9.5/10
[Not an average]

The Shape of Punk To Come - Refused [Album review]

Feb 10th 2014 - In the times where punk and hardcore were dominating the underground music scene, a few bands stood out of them all ; my personal favorite is this album - The Shape of Punk To Come : A Chimerical Bombination in 12 Bursts by Refused. Prepare your mind to be blown by this crossover mixture of hardcore punk, progressive rock, metal and jazz elements.

Before I was really into metal, I was mainly listening to punk music. You know, some of the modern classics such as Bad Religion, NOFX, Pennywise, Millencolin, Lagwagon... the list goes on. I remember buying music magazines as a kid and noticed a lot of praise towards this album. The album was released in 1998 and it was still a big thing about 6 years later still. I just never really payed attention to it and I regret it. What I don't regret though is that I ended up listening to it (several years late, but it's better than never... right?). I was actually on break during my shift at work and I decided to go casually browse the record store in front of my workplace and I ended up on this record. I remembered the praise that this album was given, so I gave it a shot by buying the vinyl record version

When I got back to my place, I placed the record in my player, turned on my audio receiver, turned on my vaporizer and sat in my comfy chair. My reaction : holy shit.

Considering I didn't had any expectations beside the fact that it's a really well written hardcore punk album, I was legitimetaly blown away. The first song (a 7:05 track, which is pretty long considering the genre of music we're talking about here) starts with a smack in the face. It somehow made me think of a heavier and an even more prog-influenced version of At The Drive-In (which included members of The Mars Volta, hence their proggy sound)

As the album keeps on going, I got really suprised at some points ; electro/techno sounding breaks, psychedelic and art-rock influenced passages, crazy bass riffs and jazz parts. Wait, wasn't I supposed to be listening to a hardcore punk album here?! The album is so intriguing (even after several listens) and there's so much variation and a nice flow to it that you'll absolutely won't want it to end.

I love everything from the album ; typical but well executed hardcore punk vocals, sick bass grooves, fast and heavy guitar riffs, anarchic lyrics, anger... all mixed in with the magical feeling of progressive-influenced and experimental rock music.

Honestly, that's pretty much all I have to say regarding the album. I don't think I need to describe everything ; you absolutely need to listen to it. Even if you already did, do it again. It's worth it. The dirty sound yet the brillant mixing also helps making this album a milestone in the huge library of punk/hardcore bands around.

Here's the tracklist for the album :

1 - Worms of the Senses/Faculties of the Skull (7:05)
2 - Liberation Frequency (4:08)
3 - The Deadly Rhythm (3:34)
4 - Summerholidays v.s. Punkroutine (4:01)
5 - Bruitist Pome #5 (1:25)
6 - New Noise (5:08)
7 - The Refused Party Program (2:38)
8 - Protest Song '68 (4:32)
9 - Refused Are Fuckin' Dead (5:08)
10 - The Shape of Punk to Come (5:06)
11 - Tannhäuser/Derivè (8:07)
12 - The Apollo Programme Was a Hoax (4:13)

Genre(s) :  Hardcore punk, experimental rock, art punk
From : Umeå, Sweden
Release date : October 27th 1998 (reissued in 2004)
Listening format : Vinyl record, CD

Production value : 9.5
Mixing : 9.5
Lyrics : 9.0
Music : 9.8

Overall : 9.6/10
[Not an average]

Construct - Dark Tranquillity [Album review]

Feb 5th 2014 - Melodic Death Metal behemoths Dark Tranquillity are back with another fantastic record. I was underestimating this album at first, but it's emotional power and sick riffs will get you hooked until the end.

As you probably know, Dark Tranquillity have been around for a while ; since 1989, that is. Since the beginning, the lineup has changed and the music evolved, but they always managed to keep that signature sound that is Dark Tranquillity. When I first listened to this album, I actually wasn't sure what I was getting myself into. It kinda brought the same feeling that I had when I listened to In Flames' Sounds of a Playground Fading ; a calmer, poppy alt-metal sound. I was wrong. Of course, SOAPF isn't a terrible album, but it's by comparing things like these that you notice the wonderful talent and signature sound of Dark Tranquillity. Both bands grew up at the same time and had a similar sound - the wave of Gothenburg melodic death metal. Of course, Construct might feel slightly more melodic and less violent than their previous efforts, but it doesn't mean that they're following the wrong track.

Enough talking about In Flames now... let's go back to Dark Tranquillity!

Released in spring of 2013, the album was highly anticipated by both fans from the band and the metal genre alike. I first listened to a few songs and I wasn't really all that impressed. Contrust truly shines when you listen to it as a whole ; when you let the album take you to a far away dream land of wonder and mysteries. The overall mood of the album is fantastic ; a very wintery Insomnium-esque sound. I think it fits the band perfectly, but some people might think otherwise.

The album is a 10 track piece of music that asks to be listened more than once. Like I said, my first listen was a "meh". I had really big expectations for this album but all I really wanted was basically a 2nd part to one of their most successful masterpiece, Fiction. I opened my mind a bit and noticed that this album isn't half-bad after all.

When you get further into the album, around The Silence in Between, you'll start hearing more and more melodic leads, brutal screams that sound similar to Carcass' own Jeff Walker, and powerful riffs.

It's a worthy experience to check out. Although that it might not be the band's finest, it's certainly not bad. There might be some parts that are feeling a bit extended, but once you get through that you'll realize that it's a really good album.

Here's the tracklisting for the album :
1 - For Broken Words (4:34)
2 - The Science of Noise (3:35)
3 - Uniformity (5:30)
4 - The Science in Between (3:32)
5 - Apathetic (3:29)
6 - What Only You Know (4:01)
7 - Endtime Hearts (3:58)
8 - State of Trust (4:06)
9 - Weight of the End (4:55)
10 - None Becoming (4:31)

So, if you can get your hands on this album, do it. It might not be what you expected, but is nonetheless a really good album that's worth checking out.

Genre(s) : Melodic Death Metal
From : Billdal, Sweden
Release date : May 27th 2013
Listening format :  MP3 (320kbps)

Production value : 8.0
Mixing : 8.0
Lyrics : 7.0
Music : 8.0

Overall : 8.0/10
[Not an average]

Alestorm In Studio! [News]

Feb 3rd 2014 - It has been reported that the mighty pirates from Alestorm are just about to enter the studio to record their newest album. No release date have yet been provided, but it should be out by the end of the year. They are recording at the LSD Studios in Germany and it's going to be once again produced by Lasse Lammert. We are also expecting some bonus cover tracks along with the album, so it should be quite an exciting release.

Stay tuned for more info.

Heliocentric - The Ocean [Album review]

Feb 3th 2014 - The Ocean (a.k.a The Ocean Collective), despite having over 9000 lineup changes, always manages to impress with their solid releases. Heliocentric is the start of a 2 album concept released in 2010.

Hailing from Germany, The Ocean is a Metal Blade Records-signed band that started as a project which included several musicians, yet no stable lineup. But, during the recording sessions of Heliocentric and Anthropocentric, The Ocean saw its first stable lineup of musicians (consisting of Luc Hess, Louis Jucker, Loïc Rossetti, Jonathan Nido and Robin Staps). The idea behind the concept of these albums is to criticize Christianity, not in a butt-hurt atheist way, but by covering different philosophies and angles of the world's creation and existence.

Heliocentric starts off with a short instrumental track which slowly drives you into the album's atmosphere. It's basically some psychedelic synth noises which are then followed by a calm clean guitar melody. The second track goes on as soon as the drums kicks in. When Firmament started playing, the first band I had in my head was Karnivool ; down-tuned guitars rhythms grooving with a distinct melody and some clean vocals. Oh, did I say clean vocals? Wait until the singer rips your head apart with an almost death metal-like growling. At some points, it reminded me of Opeth ; not really in how they sound like, but how their music seems to make you daydream and can suddenly surprise you with fast complex riffing and growling vocals.

From what I heard, Heliocentric is undoubtedly the least heavy album from the band, but it still manages to keep you hooked. Songs like Ptolemy Was Wrong are mainly driven by piano melodies and peaceful vocals which brings an oddly satisfying sensation of warmth ; I was pleasantly surprised to hear strings arrangements merged in some songs. But then, you get songs like Swallowed By The Earth which drags you for a wild journey of calm melodies and anger-fueled heaviness throughout the same track.

To be honest, the album really made me realize that it's really the calm before the storm (Anthropocentric, that is). It really doesn't feel as varied and dynamic as their other releases. If you're expecting a full-on metal album, you've come to the wrong place. Yet, it's still an incredibly produced record with some great riffs and melodies. The band is mostly recognized for their sludge-proggy metal sound, but I supposed they decided to explore a bit more than their usual sound. Of course, they have calm parts here and there, but this album is dominated by them. It's not really a bad thing, but it could be if it wasn't what you expected.

Still, this 10-track album is very decent with a rich sound, hypnotizing melodies, psychedelic atmosphere and some intense fury and growling.

Here is the tracklist of the album :

1 - Shamayim (1:53)
2 - Firmament (7:29)
3 - The First Commandment Of The Luminaries (6:47)
4 - Ptolemy Was Wrong (6:28)
5 - Metaphysics Of The Hangman (5:41)
6 - Catharsis Of A Heretic (2:08)
7 - Swallowed By The Earth (4:59)
8 - Epiphany (3:21)
9 - The Origins Of Species (7:23)
10 - The Origin Of God (4:33)

Things get awesome around the end of the album ; you'll get to hear a bit more heaviness and technical riffs. I suppose it was intended to make it merge flawlessly with its heavier-sounding sequel. Nonetheless, it's a really good album. Some of my favorite tracks are Swallowed By The Earth, The Origin of Species and The Origin of God. It might not be the best release from the band, but it's still worthy to check it out and listen to it from the beginning 'til the end.

Genre(s) : Progressive metal, sludge metal, psychedelic
From : Berlin, Germany
Release date : April 9th 2010
Listening format :  MP3 (320kbps)

Production value : 8.0
Mixing : 9.0
Lyrics : 7.5
Music : 8.0

OVERALL : 8.0/10
[Not an average]

The Satanist - Behemoth [Album review]

Feb 3th 2014 - So... I'm pretty sure most metalheads out there have heard of Behemoth if they are not already a fan. Rising from the city of Gdaǹsk in Poland, the black/death metal titans are delivering their most satisfying experience to date.

I've never really been a huge Behemoth fan until now, actually. Don't get me wrong ; this band, consisting of Nergal (Adam Darski), Inferno (Zbigniew Prominski) and Orion (Tomasz Wroblewski) always appeared like a really talented band with an extremely dark lyrical imagery and music, but I just couldn't get into it as much as I get into other bands. Surely, if you want to enter the world of Behemoth, The Satanist is a great place to start with.

The Satanist starts with their critically-acclaimed single "Blow Your Trumpets, Gabriel!" ; a bang of atmospheric blackened-death metal which almost reminds me of a mixture of older Behemoth and Septic Flesh. Of course, I think it's a wonderful way to start the album.  Although, let's keep in mind that this song is an intro to the album. Prepare yourself to get your face ripped off as soon as the track changes to number 2.

I won't spoil too much from the album, but I will say that my favorite songs off the album are Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer and In The Absence Ov Light. The album in whole is conceptual - treats the subject of Satanism. Even if that it isn't really something new to Behemoth, I felt like the lyrical power of this album was something they spent a lot of time on. It's not mindlessly bashing Christian religion - instead, The Satanist is a more objective point-of-view to the subject (unlike some older albums like Thelema.6 and The Apostasy, with song titles like Christians To The Lions and Christgrinding Avenue).

While we're on the subject, here is the tracklisting of the album :

1 - Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel (4:40)
2 - Furor Divinus (3:06)
3 - Messe Noire (4:04)
4 - Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer (5:35)
5 - Amen (3:49)
6 - The Satanist (5:33)
7 - Ben Sahar (5:35)
8 - In The Absence Ov Light (4:58)
9 - O Father O Satan O Sun! (7:13)

When listening to the album from start to finish, it doesn't feel like a task where you feel obligated to listen the album until the end. This is one of those albums that you start on track one and you actually don't want it to end. The production and the mixing of the album is beyond anything that the band released in the past. I think it's safe to say that the band is heading in the right direction ; an atmospheric voyage of darkness and terror.
If you're in any way a death metal or black metal fan, do not miss out on this album. It has been delayed a few times to cope with the lead vocalist/guitarist Nergal fighting Leukemia, but it was undoubtedly worth the wait and Nergal's illness doesn't show a single sign from his fantastic performance throughout the album.

Definitely a must buy. Also, don't get a downloaded version ; buy the physical copy instead. Both the CD and LP versions have terrific artwork that's worthy to own in anyone's music collection.

Genre(s) : Death metal, black metal
From : Gdansk, Poland
Release dates : February 3rd 2014 (Europe), February 4th 2014 (USA, Poland)
Listening format :  MP3 (320kbps)

Production value : 9.5
Mixing : 8.5
Lyrics : 8.5
Music : 9.0

OVERALL : 9.2/10
[Not an average]