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PANZERCHRIST
Soul Collector
(Pavement
Music)
33:09min
This is my first ever time hearing and buying an
album by this band, I actually thought from what people told me that
they were either a melodic Death Metal band or a Black Metal band.
They are neither completely. What PANZERCHRIST is a mixture of
brutal Death Metal, raw Black Metal and hardened Thrash. The vocals
are predominately low guttural blurbs with some very well placed
high end registers. What caught me off guard was the utter war
brutality of the record. The cover yes is a tank a la MARDUK, but I
think its there to tell the buyer that this is not far off from the
classic "Panzer Division Marduk". With its grindy black riffs and
ultra fast drums you'd think you were in a war. The production of
the album is massive, yet the bass guitar inherits a war cannon like
blur, which in this case is perfect cause of the mood and
atmosphere. I mean I can draw comparisons to IMPALED NAZARENE,
MARDUK, MORBID ANGEL and ANGELCORPSE if you bloodthirsty comparison
mongers want a comparison. All I know is that this album kicked my
teeth in from start to bloody finish, I felt like a chewed bloody
stump after it ended, ahhhh the pleasure!! Essential listening. Oh
yeah if you want too know I think they hail from Denmark, does it
really matter?
Dimitri Ganatsios
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PENTACLE
Ancient Death
(Damnation
Records)
27:08min
Our
buddies of PENTACLE are also still alive and well and released right
before their mini-tour with DESASTER, this very entertaining piece
of mayhem! The album kicks off with a furious new track ‘Prophet Of
Perdition’ followed by a re-recording of their golden oldie
‘Descending Of The Soul’ (originally on their one and only demo
"Winds Of The Fall", the new version doesn't sound very different
compared to the original though). It continues with the very obscure
DEATH cover ‘Legion Of Doom’ and a new (and to my opinion the best)
track ‘Immolated In Flames’ (very fast and tight with a killer riff
which returns quite often throughout the song). To finish, you get
another DEATH cover ‘Witch Of Hell’ (you can easily hear the typical
riffs in there already which later on would define the sound of
MASSACRE) and the very extreme ‘Walking Upon Damnation’s Land’ (very
brutal and fast) with some guest-vocals of K.K. Warslut of DESTROYER
666. PENTACLE still stick to their very original and own
old-fashioned Death Metal sound (what else did you expect?), somehow
they are one of the very few bands that really totally breath this
kind of music and have a feeling for it. An extra compliment goes
out to them for the choice of the DEATH covers which is really
original as only the die-hards will be familiar with them (as none
of the covered tracks ever ended up on a DEATH album) and totally
shred (especially 'Witch Of Hell')! "Ancient Death" got recorded at
the Harrow studio (same studio where the last ASPHYX album and most
of the PENTACLE material got recorded) and still features original
drummer Marc Nelissen who left the band about a year ago. "Ancient
Death" is really an excellent release, worth your well-earned money.
It's great to see that their own material is very good again as
their last new song (which you can find on their split-10" with
DESASTER) was about one of their first tracks which disappointed me
somehow. Anyway, if there would be any justice in this world,
PENTACLE would also get to the same level sales - and
popularity-wise as for example DESASTER with this release. I mean,
their "Rides The Moonstorm" album was just excellent and they
haven't put out any really weak material so far throughout their
career, what more can you do as a band?
Steven
Willems
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PENTAGRAM (Chile)
Pentagram
(Picoroco
Records)
42:38min
This
is insane! After almost 15 years of disappearance, the legendary
demos from the Chilean PENTAGRAM are available again! And it is about time if you
ask me, because PENTAGRAM deserve their cult status ten times and
the CD format does justice to their music in a splendid manner. I
never imagined I could hold such a CD in my hands, this is simply
miraculous! Included here are the two PENTAGRAM demos, plus two live
tracks recorded in Chile in 1987, my God, time is running fast! For
those who don’t know about
PENTAGRAM music, all I can say is it is a kind of violent and
evil Thrash Metal, a sort of pre-Death Metal if you want. The vocal
performance of lead guitarist Anton Reisenegger gives you an idea of
what Hell could be, I never listened to such an hateful voice
before, except maybe on the “Journey Into Mystery” album by DREAM
DEATH, a band PENTAGRAM share many similitude with, especially when
it comes to the twisted song structures. Traces of POSSESSED
influences may be stressed out too, but PENTAGRAM knew to expand
their very own style though. Note that the CD comes with a beautiful
booklet, complete with pictures, lyrics and an informative bio written
by Anton himself. This is an essential buy for any self respecting
brutal stuff fan, a piece of history of the music we all love.
Contact Eduardo Navarrete at blabla@picoroco.cl, as he is fast and reliable when it comes to deliver
the goods. From the past comes the storm…
Edouard
Vergriete
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PENTAGRAM
Reborn 2001
(Picoroco
Records)
52:57min
It seems to me, that after all these years Chile’s number one
cult act PENTAGRAM is finally getting the treatment they would’ve
deserved back in the 80’s already. Following the essential
self-titled demo compilation CD from 2000, here’s another CD release
of Anton & the boys. “Reborn 2001” is a live album which
features the band’s 2001 reunion show in superb sound quality. It’s
great to hear the original line-up (except original bass player
Alfredo Pena, who unfortunately passed away a while ago) playing
together again in such
a fine condition. They sound as convincing as always and still kick
more ass than a lot of the newer bands (and that even includes
Anton’s new outfit CRIMINAL, I’m afraid). Of course all of the
classic PENTAGRAM demo tracks are included and they still sound
incredible to me today. The entire material actually almost sounds
better than ever before, due to the increased playing and recording
abilities. Killer cover tunes by SLAYER (‘Raining Blood’) and VENOM
(‘Countess Bathory’) complete the picture, as well as a kinda Punk /
Hardcore like tune (‘Pigs’), which might be another cover – but as
I’m not too familiar with that type of stuff I can’t exactly tell
you. The CD comes in a nice digipack format and even includes a
live-video (from the same show) for the song ‘Demented’. Essential!
It would be great if this (one-off?!) reunion would last a little
longer as a full length studio album is still on demand ;-) Contact:
Picoroco Records: blabla@picoroco.cl
Frank Stöver
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PENTAGRAM
Sub-Basement
(Southern Lord/Black
Widow)
44:41min
Be
forewarned: you better stop reading this at once and go out to your
favorite Metal shop to buy this new PENTAGRAM album at any cost.
“Sub-Basement” is a masterpiece and it would be irrelevant to
discuss that any further. So what follows I write only for pleasure,
not trying to convince anybody. “Sub-Basement” is not a mere another
album by another good band, but an act of love for the music, the
fans and the rock and roll life. The title track is simply the best
thing I have heard for the
last five years at least, and stands right now as a classic Metal
song; singer Bobby Liebling,
a legend in his own right, expresses here with a mystic touch his
pride to belong to the underground, without any arrogance nor pose.
Liebling has never compromised himself through the 38 (!!!) years of
his career, and he must be praised for that. PENTAGRAM live only for
the fraternity of their fans and their own pleasure of doing music
and will eternally stand as the most cult of the cult bands; this
occurrence is rather unique, especially these days when only greed
and cynicism count as cardinal moral traits. Musically,
“Sub-Basement” is a monument of classic Doom that easily blows away
your mind with its perfect thick and fat sound that will crush
you into pieces. Half of the
album was composed a long time ago, in the seventies to be more
precise, but needless to say the old songs are totally reshaped here
to match with the gargantuan heaviness of the newer ones. Far from
being a sort of American
BLACK SABBATH clone, PENTAGRAM could claim the same longevity really
(albeit with lot of line-up changes), and have expanded their own
style throughout the years. Please note that once again PENTAGRAM
appear as a two-piece, namely Bobby Liebling and his faithful
long-term friend and partner in crime Joe Hasselvander, the latter
playing all the instruments with an enraged intensity and feeling,
like it was the case on the precedent album “Review Your Choices”.
The vocal performance of Liebling is beyond any criticism, as always
the man graces us with his formidable talent, singing sometimes like
a more sinister Gene Simmons for switching just after that to a tone
reminiscent of bluesmen of old. “Sub-Basement” is about passion,
integrity, and the
joyous melancholy of being alone against trends and mediocrity, a
feeling that should be familiar to all dedicated Metal fan. Make no
mistake: this album is about all of us, so do yourselves a favor by
getting it without delay. “Sub-Basement” is a gift from
God.
Edouard Vergriete
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PESSIMIST
Slaughtering
The Faithful
(Lost Disciple
Records)
35:36min
I
was made aware of PESSIMIST's very existence only one year ago,
thanks to a link I found on the MORBID ANGEL web site. I discovered
then that the band had already two albums under their belts, namely
"Cult Of The Initiated" (1997) and "Blood For The Gods" (1999), both
on Lost Disciple Records. I bought these two without delay, to then
find myself deeply impressed by their fine brand of brutal Death
Metal with a devilish twist. But as good as these two releases can
be (check them out by the way), they are nothing compared to the
brilliance of "Slaughtering The Faithful". This new album introduces
a totally revamped line-up, with main man, founding member and
guitarist Kelly McLauchlin appearing here as the only survivor of
the PESSIMIST of old. Such a drastic change could have killed the
band for good, but it has a totally opposite effect really,
PESSIMIST coming through this trial only to become even stronger.
Combining the insane aggression of such acts as KRISIUN, REBAELLIUN,
HATE ETERNAL and DIABOLIC, while keeping their own identity,
PESSIMIST belong to the very elite of Death Metal now. The band
sounds tight with ultra-precise surgical riffing, the guitars buzz
like amplified demented insects, and I am not even talking about the
drumming parts delivered with stunning frenzy and total mastering,
almost inhuman! In fact, listening to "Slaughtering The Faithful"
may induce a sort of hypnotic trance, and I found myself totally
disconnecting from the surrounding reality all the while I have been
exposed to the attack of this venomous monster. The highly-dynamic
production (courtesy of PESSIMIST supporter Erik Rutan), while being
powerful, gives little room to each of the instruments, but far from
being a flaw here this only adds to the lethal hammer-like effect
the album could produces on the brain. Gone are the DEICIDE-like
screams that you could hear at times on both the previous releases,
expect a guttural-only (and nevertheless understandable) rendition
by new vocalist / bassist Ralph Runyan. "Slaughtering The Faithful"
is no less than a metallic holocaust, I even prefer this to the yet
excellent "Vengeance Ascending" album by DIABOLIC, and it is vastly
superior to the somewhat disappointing latest releases by both
KRISIUN and REBAELLIUN. A classic album if you ask me, and I see
PESSIMIST becoming HUGE in a very near future. I suppose that you
know now what you have to do, choose to ignore this at your own
risk! AWESOME (AND I MEAN THIS)!!!
Edouard Vergriete
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PHOBIC
Sick
Blemished Uncreation
(Elegy
Records)
48:28min
If you thought that HORRID was the only cool
band from Italy playing the good ol' Swedish Death Metal, you better
think again, cause PHOBIC have delivered a really fine album of
similar qualities. "Sick Blemished Uncreation" features ten brutal
songs in the classic DISMEMBER / CARNAGE tradition plus a rather
superfluous additional tekkno / electronic / whatsoever piece by the
name of 'S-L-999', which hopefully won't be a taster of things to
come in the future… Among the brutal material you will also find a
tune entitled 'The Right Ones', which originally was written and
recorded by… ta-taaaa: our good buddies in HORRID (the song was
originally featured on an older promo tape). So, that alone should
already be proof enough of the very good taste of these four lads
here, ha! It really seems to me that Italy is on the rise slowly but
surely when it comes to quality Metal nowaydays. And after we all
survived the first wave of Melodic / Symphonic Metal, brutality
seems to take over with excellent bands like HORRID, NECROFLESH and
PHOBIC! Luv that shit!
Frank Stöver
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PICA
FIERCE
Urbania
(Demo CD)
16:30min
Like some cool Thrash? PICA FIERCE from Kristiansund,
Norway, seem to be a good address. But there is more about this
young band than to be a KREATOR (mid period) clone: their stuff is
also influenced by almighty DEATH and therefore progressive to a
certain extend. The sound of this CD is not too good but acceptable
and the band has more songs ready to record. Their goals are to play
love a LOT, to live from their music one day and to be the best
Metal band!!! Actually, they might end up not too far from this as
they're already very good indeed... so to the labels: contact PICA
FIERCE asap! picafierce@hotmail.com
Ramon Claassen
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PREDATOR
Hell On The
Earth
(self
financed)
24:40min
It
seems KRISIUN paved the way for a new generation of highly talented
Death Metal acts in Brazil, and PREDATOR is surely one of them! I
suppose some Brazilian guys (and maybe even the band members
themselves) are currently journeying across Europe distributing this
professionally packaged CD-R demo, as five copies of this were
directly given to a friend of mine who runs an Heavy Metal store in
Paris. "Hell On The Earth" is a five track effort displaying a very
technical form of Death Metal, with twisted riffing and complex
rhythm patterns. Even if PREDATOR is obviously a Death Metal band,
this power trio cannot be reduced to just that. Guitarist Jener
Milani doesn't hesitate to inject some traditional Heavy Metal solos
into otherwise brutal songs, for a really refreshing result I must
say. BURNING INSIDE spread in mind when hearing PREDATOR's music and
saying that I hope you get a fair idea of what this band is all
about. On 'Osiris' you can even draw parallels with the mighty NILE
(especially with the godly "Into The Catacomb Of Nephren-Ka" album),
but PREDATOR always manage to keep their own identity. The record
sounds great if you keep in mind this is demo material, and
obviously a proper debut would show some improvement in that
department. If a record label talent scout is reading these lines, I
can only urge him or her to give a chance to PREDATOR, as this band
could be massive with a proper structure backing them! Amazing!
Contact: predator_band@hotmail.com, to get further
information on how to order this disc!
Edouard Vergriete
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PRIME
EVIL
Unearthed
(Battlezone Records)
57:33min
Yeah!!!
I've been waiting for an official release from PRIME EVIL since
1988. Many thanks to King Fowley from Battlezone Records for
releasing this posthumous collection (also thanks to Andy for
sending a copy to me). And this does not disappoint. PRIME EVIL were
one of my favorite bands in the late eighties and early nineties.
And this CD contains every PRIME EVIL song ever recorded - including
four that I have never heard before. A pleasant surprise to me,
because I thought I heard them all. PRIME EVIL were an awesome blend
of Thrash and Death Metal. Thrashing like DARK ANGEL / SLAYER with
no lame ass Thrash vocals... but killer Death vocals from Andy. I
was lucky enough to see them play live many times in the few years
that they were around. They played the NY area with many killer
bands of that time... IMMOLATION, RIPPING CORPSE and DEATH among
others. And they were all cool as hell too.... I can still remember
to this day, when I saw them for around the third time, they walked
up to me and said that they noticed me at shows before and thanked
me for the support! I've always thought that that was cool as hell.
The CD is awesome. Very nice looking layout and packaging thanks to
Tad and Todd, the two drummers on the recordings. And the lyrics are
included for all the songs. And there is even a really cool bio
written by Ed Farshtey. The sound quality is really great. The first
four songs from the "Prime Evil" demo sound way better than on my
original demo tape. All the other demo songs are excellent quality
recordings. The only songs that I can find faults with are the rare
tracks 13 through 16 recorded live on two tracks. They do not sound
as clear as the rest, but I am still glad they were included on the
CD, because they are the ones that I never heard before. All in all,
an excellent release... I just wish it came out in 1992, because I
always thought that PRIME EVIL were special and would rise to the
top of the Death Metal scene. But at least we have this killer
collection to remember them by! Ordering info: $12 ppd in the US and
$15 ppd in Europe. Money orders payable to King Fowley, 1004 N.
Powhatan St., Arlington, VA 22205, USA
Adam
Delarede
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PROFANITY
Slaughtering Thoughts
(Cudgel
Agency)
38:52min
KILLER!!!! It seems that I missed out on quite a lot of
excellent bands while VOICES FROM THE DARKSIDE was put on ice over
the last couple of years. And PROFANITY (not to be mixed up with
Swedish PROPHANITY) is one of them! This is already the second full
length by this German three piece and it completely blew me away!!
Judging the band by the featured eight own compositions on
"Slaughtering Thoughts" they are already playing in the same league
as all those established American Grind / Death Metal acts! You
won't even recognize their country of origin while listening to the
first class material. Everything's performed on a high musical
level, extremely powerful produced and heavy as fuck! This is very
extreme Death / Grind Metal in its most brutal form, delivered by a
bunch of skilled and very dedicated guys that quite obviously don't
give a shit about the latest trends. So, in case your personal faves
include American Death Metal in the vein of SUFFOCATION, CANNIBAL
CORPSE, MONSTROSITY and the likes you should immediately get in
touch with the label and order a copy straight away, otherwise
you're definitely missing a hell of an album! And I will have to
check out their debut now. Cudgel Agency, Collegienstr. 21, 06886
Luth. Wittenberg, Germany, e-mail: office@cudgel.de
Frank
Stöver
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THE PROVENANCE
25th Hour; Bleeding
(Scarlet
Records/SPV)
45:06min
Definitely one of my
favourite albums in 2001! I can whole-heartedly say this because
there was enough time to listen to this debut album over and over
again. How come? "The Stupid One" (as he called himself - no
revolution down in the pit - yet!) Frank mistakenly erased this
review and so had I. Therefore I have to write this once again, poor
me! But unlike many other CDs I reviewed in the past, "25th Hour;
Bleeding" is still blocking my CD player anyway, so this gives you a
hint that I'm not telling tales. These Swedes don't sound like
anybody else. Sometimes I think of IN FLAMES, sometimes of THE
GATHERING (both esp. because of the vocals), then the flute brings
magic like PSYCHOTIC WALTZ but still this sounds both natural and
unique. Let me give you a general idea: THE PROVENANCE sound a bit
like (slow/mid-speed) IN FLAMES meets a heavy sort of 70s
progressive rock plus some MY DYING BRIDE. Fragile piano parts or
heavy Hammond sounds are going to take you on a journey and I'm
pretty sure you won't like to come back after only 45 minutes.
Special tip: repeat button! Consequently, the breath-taking opener
'Deluded Into Delirium', 'For Whom I Bleed' or the fantastic title
track will steal your mind one again and you'll catch yourself
smiling foolishly. Only one point of criticism: the production could
be better, but it's okay, no reason not to go for this one! These
guys have the potential to become BIG with a good promotion and if
YOU check them out, I'm pretty sure you're not going to regret
it!
Ramon Claassen
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PURGATORY
Blessed With Flames
Of Hate
(Perverted Taste)
30:59min
I have
to confess that I never ever managed to get my hands on any of
PURGATORY's previous two albums (their 1997 debut "Damage Done By
Worms" and the 1998 follow up "Bestial"), so this newest full length
is my personal listening premiere when it comes to this German
fourpiece. "Blessed With Flames Of Hate" delivers half an hour of
extreme thrashing Death Metal with a brutal vocal delivery and a
pretty raw production. Even though these guys are probably mainly
influenced by a handful of American acts, they still managed to come
up with a style on their own. Always straight ahead and devastating,
but not necessarily really comparable to any bigger names within the
current underground movement. Musically PURGATORY neither invented
anything new, nor wrote any spectacular tunes that they might be
remembered for in the years to come. But they at least came up with
a fresh sounding, rather enjoyable and entirely convincing result
for everyone into brutal and uncompromising music. From what I read
somewhere the limited digipack version of this album features an
additional track, so make sure to go for that. All further info and
ordering info you'll most certainly get from the label directly:
PERVERTED TASTE, Hradschin 14a, 08523 Plauen, Germany, e-mail:
falk@pervertedtaste.de
Frank Stöver
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PYAEMIA
Cerebral Cereal
(Unique Leader
Records)
29:05min
Ha! Got it! Finally! The Dutch sickos
PYAEMIA had made a big impression on me at the Ear Terror Festival
in Emden, Germany. Unfortunately they had run out of CDs so I was
left in the rain that night. A couple of weeks later I finally found
"Cerebral Cereal" at a DEW-SCENTED gig in Bremen at a very good
vendor. You see: going out still pays off! "We dedicate this album
to the gods of Deathgrind, SUFFOCATION - R.I.P." that's what the
booklet says. And somehow PYAEMIA manage to create a similarly dark
and brutal atmosphere like their heros! Especially seeing this band
live makes you realize their precision and the music simply makes
you go crazy! I don't think there ever will again be a band like
SUFFOCATION, but as long as there are bands like PYAEMIA, the great
loss doesn't hurt as much. Contact the band whether they received
their CDs in the meantime and watch out for their next tour! www.pyaemia.com
Ramon Claassen
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