Vit - The Dry Season EP (2013)

Band: Vit
Country: Canal Winchester, Ohio
Style: Atmospheric Black Metal/Doom Metal
Label: Handshake Inc.

The trio known as Vit are quite the ambiguous little entity in the world of metal. After releasing their debut - back in 2010 I had come to know more about the band, but in terms of follow-up material, the stream of albums did not come. It has only been after months of waiting and of anticipation that this new EP was finally released to the net.
So what have the trio been up to since the release of their stellar debut, well... apparently crafting an album that definitely takes things into a heavier direction. This album doesn't take us down the same avenue of crusty black metal that the full-length did but instead down a slower, rawer (I'd say) and all together more doomy one. The main body of this album lies in the lengthy pieces Sixteen Bodies and A Hymn of Benediction, which both make use of this more crushing shift in direction. I know the idea of blackened doom isn't exactly a ringing endorsement on my part and aren't exactly going to sell albums or tickets, but be warned that this is some of the most grinding (you heard/read it right) doom I've heard in quite some time. The ladder track actually reminds me a bit of Sweden's Shining to be honest, with more riff driven black metal than tremolo picked to death. The title-track demonstrates a more traditional black metal style that the band has already made their fans aware of on their full-length. Despite that, there's a sense of ambiguity hanging over the almost four minute long piece that makes the whole thing feel slightly off-kilter. The real kicker is closer ...And The Rain That Soon Followed which is an instrumental bluegrass piece that in no way resembles anything the band has done before. It's interesting, but not entirely to their benefit as it feels like the sort of piece that doesn't really belong. The real test will be to see if they can do something more with that sort of sound on future releases.
This is a solid four track release that definitely brings a nice shift to the band's sound in a way I didn't foresee. It definitely has its problems, but for what it is, it's enjoyable and definitely a well executed piece of blackened doom. Well worth your time if you're interested in this sort of style done in a raw, and slightly less defined way (I mean that in the best way possible).
Overall Score: 7.5
Highlights: The Dry Season, A Hymn of Benediction

The Ocean - Pelagial (2013)

Band: The Ocean
Country: Berlin, Germany
Style: Progressive/Post-Metal
Label: Metal Blade

As far as I'm concerned, The Ocean (Collective) is probably one of the most interesting bands to be working within the confines of mainstream metal. While their early work was dark and foreboding, very reminiscent of post-metal and straight-up sludge, their newer work has become much more adventurous since gaining a stable line-up. The concept of writing an album based on the different zones of the ocean seemed perfect for this band (and since I did a lot of research into the ocean when I was a kid) it excited me even more so.
After the duel albums of Heliocentric and Anthropocentric, which were certainly ambitious undertakings, it's nice to see the band no longer restricting themselves towards making music to fit that concept. While the songs on here certainly fit with the different layers of the ocean, the music itself does not feel as restrained as on Heliocentric or as single-minded as on Anthropocentric, and instead finds them working in the middle ground between the two, where progressive ideas exist but the band's older and more grandiose still have a place. The band feels hungry again, with The Uncanny being one of their strongest openers to date (when you take out the piano led intro Epipelagic), it's an aggressive track that doesn't just charge ahead with how technical its riffs are or how heavy it is. It's a smart piece of progressive metal that isn't showoffy. The rest of the album certainly doesn't disappoint either with the band really delivering on all fronts on pretty much every track. The band trades off between more epic sounding post-metal with their typical orchestral like brilliance, while the heavier and more technical spots are nice to drive home the more aggressive points of the concept.
While no one on here delivers a bad performance, for me the highlight was vocalist Loïc Rossetti who definitely proved himself on the band's last two full-lengths, but he really comes alive on here. He does not as reigned in because of a weighty concept, so his vocals come across so much more impassioned on here (since the concept is a bit looser). His range is also a lot more obvious on here, as he moves from his soft falsettos to his monstrous roar with ease within moments in a single track. I was aware that he was very talented but like I said, he was the clear highlight for me.
But back to the album as a whole. While it's certainly fair to say that this is the band's most diverse album yet, it still has a flow to it, and one that I didn't pick up on immediately. It was only as I was listening to it while writing this that the structure of the album hit me. The first half of the album is the more technical, more progressive, more friendly to the whole tech metal kids - and that's not bad, but the second half was where I found most of my time going back to. It's on Boundless Vasts (track six) where the band start retreating into more of a post-metal sort of sound; and while I could just as easily take against them for falling back on the technical aspects from the first half, the second half is far more somber and cold sounding. Just as the deeper aspects of the ocean would not be as raging as the top layers, this album does not retain that chaotic style but crafts a sound that is far more interesting. It's darker, the last few tracks are some of the darkest tracks the band has ever written, coming across more like death-doom than anything else. For as much as I enjoy Rossetti's clean voice, the growls he belts out on the last two tracks on here are just monstrous. It's a tone that, while not entirely new for the band, genre-wise is a side I did not see coming.
Overall, it's a very impressive piece of work that definitely stands as one of the band's best (sorry, still doesn't top Precambrian for those wondering). Definitely a very impassioned and heartfelt release that shows new sides to the band and proves that they are certainly not a group who remains in one place for too long. While I won't try and predict where the band go to next, I will say that it is going to be hard for them to top this one.
Overall Score: 8.5
Highlights: Impasses, Signals of Anxiety, Cognitive Dissonance

Ash Borer - Bloodlands EP (2013)

Band: Ash Borer
Country: Arcata, California
Style: Atmospheric Black Metal
Label: Gilead Media

The guys in Ash Borer have been doing this whole black metal thing for several years at this point and have gotten quite well known in certain circles. Thanks to the release of Cold of Ages last year on Profound Lore, they gained a much wider audience then previously available to them, but I was not sold on that album. After hearing that they were releasing something special for Gilead Media, I was excited at the thought that this might see the band returning to something a bit more individualistic.
While I had no problem with the direction the band were going into on their Profound Lore release, I didn't find it to be anywhere near as powerful or memorable as their debut full-length was. I'll certainly give it to the band that they definitely advanced their atmospheric side on that album, but personally, it wasn't as dark or visceral as what had come before it. This two song EP really hits home for me and definitely delivers the goods. The band have definitely retained that more atmospheric textural side from Cold of Ages but the memorable melody lines have returned and, more than ever before, the synth textures are heard throughout. No longer are they hidden behind a fog of reverbed guitars and wretched vocals, they have found the sweet spot in the mix where the can play their role perfectly and enhance the ambiance while still shining through and being clearly audible; and boy is that a highlight on here. Those synth textures are really something to marvel at - not so much the sounds themselves, but how they're being used throughout the tracks. I know I've said it before when mentioning Ash Borer, but I've always found their work to be very reminiscent of the work of Lunar Aurora (one of my favorite black metal bands), in that their atmospheric work is just so dense while their music remains visceral in ways that many of their peers fail to even attempt. They manage to pull off the fast and slow with ease, which is another trait far too many bands never even attempt (c'mon, not every song needs to have 200 bpms), and while the former is no surprise, the band has really grown into those slower sections, listen to the extended opening on Dirge/Purgation. I think it's also worth saying that while the band have always had long songs (very few of their songs are under ten minutes) these are some of their best yet. Both tracks are long, but not once did they ever feel that way.
These are songs that really encapsulate what "atmospheric black metal" should be. This is a major step up from all their previous releases in every way (riffing, textures, mix, etc.) and you'd be a fool to pass this album up if you're a fan of the genre. It's a real treat this year and one I hope many of you will look into.
Overall Score: 8
Highlights: Oblivion's Spring

Random Child - Trials (2012)

Band: Random Child
Country: Brooklyn, New York
Style: Melodic Hardcore/Punk
Label: Independent

Obviously, I haven't been writing as much as I once did for this site (I won't go into too much detail) but I should say that that doesn't mean I haven't been listening to as much music. I was sent this album by the band late last year and even though it did take me a few months to finally listen to it, I did give it several spins in the last few months. I've never called myself a hardcore or punk fan, so forgive me if my views are a bit unfavorable.
This thirteen track affair was something I was a bit trepidatious going into because punk is a genre that could go either way for me. I have never claimed to be a huge fan of punk music (I bring it up because it has been called into question before) so my tastes may not be the most interesting, but I know what I like to hear. I say it whenever I review a hardcore record, I like it when I can feel the passion of the musicians playing, when it doesn't come across to me like just another studio record but like something I could imagine being played in front of me as I listen to it.
I guess the first thing that got my attention when listening to this was how haphazard the songwriting was. Now, I don't mean that in a bad way (even though it probably sounds that way), but I think that while this record doesn't exactly put forth the energy I mentioned above in the performances, I think that the passion comes through in just how wildly chaotic some of these songs are structurally. It literally sounded to me as if the band were just thrashy wildly about while trying to play these parts as clearly as they could (once again - not meant as a criticism). The way a song like Blood, Ash, Shattered Glass just seems to disregard genre and jumps from hardcore punk to doom rock to thrash metal in the course of three minutes is impressive to say the least. The way the band manage to portray a different idea in almost every track does show how talented these guys are. I do have to say that if there was one pitfall for me it was the band's cleaner vocal delivery. In and of itself, there isn't anything wrong with it, it actually sounds quite like the sound of a lot of old-school punk groups; but that isn't a style of singing that I'm particularly fond of. On the other hand though, the harsher vocals, whether they were just shouting or the semi-death growl, I actually thought did the band more justice.
But I guess one of the best things I could say about the band is that no matter what they choose to do with a track, they manage to make it work. The length of a given song was never an issue for me in regards to this album, and I know that might sound like a rather backhanded compliment but when you consider how many "progressive" bands slog out songs that top eight minutes or how many grindcore bands pump out songs around a minute in length, the fact that this band can pull off both is a testament to their skills as songwriters. But I guess I have to be fair and say that there was one track on here that I really did not enjoy at all and that was the closer Conclusively, I Reject Instrumentality and All Was Well which was more like a straight-up, old-school, melodic punk song which is not my style at all. It sort of made the album end on a sour note for me.
So, as you have probably figured out by now, but I obviously enjoyed the vast majority of this album. This band is really talented and hopefully they don't try and simply their sound but keep pushing it into even further extremes and experimentation because that's where they are at their best. Fans of punk music, hardcore, even prog rock to a certain extent I think will dig this.
Overall Score: 8
Highlights: Half Dissolved, ...And Tribulations, Grey Skies Over Red Hook

Soilwork - The Living Infinite (2013)

Band: Soilwork
Country: Helsingborg, Sweden
Style: Melodic Death Metal
Label: Nuclear Blast

I've been a Soilwork fan since I first started getting into death metal (melodic death metal, but I digress). Despite my interest in the genre waning in the last couple of years, Soilwork are a band I continue to come back to. With the second departure of founding member guitarist Peter Wichers, I was a bit worried about how the band would adapt their sound on here.
I have to be honest about the fact that when I first heard the tracks released from this album, Spectrum of Eternity, This Momentary Bliss, and Rise Above The Sentiment, I was quite surprised by them. While all three tracks were certainly Soilwork being themselves, they were the most intense I had heard the band in quite some time. The instrumentals simply floored me with how intense the band were going with Dirk Verbeuren providing more blast-beats than I ever expected him to bring into the band and guitarists Sylvain Coudret and David Andersson bringing a much more technical and progressive flair to the riffing that the band really hasn't exhibited too often before now. But relying on those three tracks still left me feeling somewhat curious if that was the way that this entire double-album would sound because the band weren't straying too far away from their more structured approach to songwriting despite bringing a more technical flair to their instrumentals. So it is with great pleasure that I am able to say that the band definitely do make the most of both albums.
The first album is definitely the sort of album that is sure to please any fan of the band's more recent material. For me, the songs, while exhibiting that more technical flair, still share a very similar stylistic comparison to the band's last couple of albums. The songs are more straightforward and direct, with the structures not deviating too far from what the band have done in the past. I will say that this first album was certainly more aggressive than I would have expected despite the band keeping in line with the aggressive verse and melodic chorus formula. Bjorn Strid is exhibiting more intensity in his performance on here than he has in at least the last decade or so, and I was constantly being surprised by how little reliance the band was using clean vocals. Though that's not to say there's aren't exceptions on here, with songs like Tongue and The Windswept Mercy standing out on here by breaking the mold not only musically but also vocally as well, the latter - in my opinion - being among the best songs the band has ever written. We also have tracks like Let The First Wave Rise that brings back a bit of an early Soilwork vibe as well. I should also mention that no matter how many times I hear Realm of The Wasted, the chorus always catches me off-guard. Despite all that, to me, this first album is Soilwork being Soilwork. They are demonstrating great songwriting and breaking out of their boundaries just enough to make it interesting, but it's definitely still them. I've always known that Soilwork could write an album's worth of good material, the real test was going to be whether or not they could make a second album to stand up with it.
Knowing that the second album featured both an intro track and an instrumental, I was somewhat skeptical of where the band was going to take this second album. While I think that the opener Entering Aeons is somewhat unremarkable - it's not bad, just nothing amazing - that instrumental interlude, Loyal Shadow, is actually a really impressive piece of work showing off the band without the reliance of Speed's vocals to provide the main grabbing point. But frankly, the eight other songs that make up this album totally surprised me. Each of these tracks just hit me with not only how interesting the riffs and structures were but also with how powerful the choruses were. I still remember the first time I listened to Long Live The Misanthrope and feeling like I had just been hit with a ton of bricks once that chorus hit because the rest of the song is pretty winding and aggressive. In my opinion, I do think that the second album is more interesting than the first one was and has songs that I found to be more catchy. It's also a bit darker and atmospheric (in spots) than I've heard the band since Figure Number Five. Over the several times I've listened through these albums, it appeared to me that this second disc featured the band adding a slightly more progressive edge to their sound; or to hopefully clarify, I found the first disc to be Soilwork doing their style of melo-death with some more progressive touches, the second disc was Soilwork going into progressive-death metal with melo-death touches - but maybe that just sounds like rubbish to whoever's reading this. After all Rise Above The Sentiment is a pretty typical sounding Soilwork track, but when stacked up against tracks like the straight-up prog-metal (not Dream Theater sounding) Antidotes In Passing or the death-doom closer Owls Predict, Oracles Stand Guard, it works as a nice straightforward and direct melo-death track. Make of it what you will, at this point I sort of feel like I'm just rambling.
So, in the end, I can't say that I agree with the many of other reviews that have been calling this album a masterpiece, but I do have to agree on the fact that it's pretty damn good. It's definitely the band's crowning jewel thus far in their career and hopefully the band continues to pursue their more progressive side on future releases. It's definitely one of the best albums I've heard this year and I don't think I'd be wrong in assuming that it will be listed among the year's finest. Don't miss out on this one.
Overall Score: 9
Highlights: Tongue, The Windswept Mercy, Long Live The Misanthrope, Antidotes In Passing, Parasite Blues

Killswitch Engage - Disarm The Descent (2013)

Band: Killswitch Engage
Country: Westfield, Massachusetts
Style: Melodic Metalcore
Label: Roadrunner

From the beginning of their career, KSE has been a band that has brought exposure by a more modern audience to the world. Though I can't really say that I have been a huge fan of their material in recent years, they will always hold a special place in my playlists because they were one of the first groups I ever listened to that made use of screaming vocals that I enjoyed. Not that it's unknown news, but this album does feature the return of original vocalist Jesse Leach after the departure of Howard Jones several years ago.
I'll get the controversial opinion out of the way first so there won't be any dependencies over it later, but my favor does tend to lean toward Leach than to Jones as a vocalist. Now, there is no denying the power and ability that Jones brought to the three albums he was a part of, arguably delivering some of the band's biggest hits during his time in the band, but I have always tended to prefer the more bluesy and passionate (in my opinion) quality that Leach brings to any album he has participated on - whether it be the stoner rock of Seemless, the modern tech-metal or The Empire Shall Fall, or the "post-metalcore" of his work on the Times of Grace record. His voice is just one I identify with more so. Now that that is out of the way, I can say that this is a far more aggressive delivery than some of his more recent performances have been - and I have to say that I was slightly disappointed by that fact. That's not taking against the more aggressive style the band chose to pursue on this record, as Leach obviously just tried to convey whatever emotions he was going for, but after hearing the Time of Grace record, 2011's The Hymn of A Broken Man, I had hoped to hear more cleaner performances than what he did on here. It also has to be said that the return of Adam D.'s vocals does bring a sense of (vocal) harmony that was missing from the band's last record, and his harmonies with Leach prove to be some of my favorite moments on the entire album.
I should also mention that musically, while this album does return to a more edgy and metallic sound, contradicting the more melodic rock sound they appeared to be going down on their last record, it did not satisfy exactly what I was looking for. The aforementioned Times of Grace record brought a fresh breath of life into a tired and worn out genre through the use of huge choruses, unexpected musical depth, and variety that the genre had not utilized in what seemed like years to me, and I had sort of hoped that with the return of Leach, maybe Adan D. and co. would choose to embrace more of the somber and atmospheric ideas used on that record and use them on here. Unfortunately, that was not the case. This is undeniably the band's most aggressive record since 2002's Alive Or Just Breathing, but it lacks the variety of even that record. I know that aggression may be enough to satisfy some people, but I had hoped for something a bit more from the band on here. But I guess for me, all this record brought to the table for me were some nice choruses and solid melodic guitar work. Maybe enough for some, but not enough for me.
If I take this for what it is, a melodic metalcore record, I think that it does succeed in what it's trying to do, but if you're looking for some fresh ideas, than this will most likely not satisfy you. If you're looking for variety, I would suggest some of the other bands that Leach has lent his voice to in recent years (I am referring just as much to musical variety as vocal variety here) because they have proved to be a better indication of not only his talent, but Adam D. (in the case of Times of Grace) as well, which is not really exhibited on here. It's solid, but nothing more than that.
Overall Score: 6
Highlights: Beyond The Flames, You Don't Bleed For Me, The Call

Clutch - Earth Rocker (2013)

Band: Clutch
Country: Germantown, Maryland
Style: Hard Rock/Stoner Metal
Label: Weathermaker Music

Obviously anyone familiar with anything happening within the stoner genres within the last couple of decades will know of Clutch. Their transformation from hardcore punk to stoner rock to blues rock has been one of my favorite transformations a band has ever done. While I can't say that I was totally sold on their last full-length, I was still very anxious to hear what they would do on this new one.
By now it should be no secret to those who come to this blog often enough that I am not a big fan of stoner based music; but like most of the stuff I wind up actually covering on here, I do enjoy Clutch very much. I should also say that I am not a big advocate of blues rock either - though to a much lesser degree than I am to stoner rock/metal. But maybe it's the way Neil Fallon manages to string together words and his powerful howl that grabs me, maybe it's how Jean-Paul Gaster plays drums so simplistically but always manages to amaze me, or the guitar/bass combo of Tim Sult and Dan Maines (respectively) and how they can craft riffs that can topple over buildings while also being sultry and interesting at the same time. There are so many reasons I could list to why I dig what these guys do over anyone else's take on the style, but I guess the easy answer would just be that these guys write badass songs and deliver kick ass performances. That settles that.
As for the album in question, I do think that it is quite the return to form for the band (in my opinion anyway). It's sound is much fuller and heavy than the thinner and more somber ideas expressed on 2009's Strange Cousins From The West but is not quite as jam based as 2007's From Beale Street to Oblivion. For my money, it's a return to the straight-up rock'n'roll sound that they perfected on 2004's stellar Blast Tyrant. It's not bullshit based blues riffs with a tight rhythm section and soaring choruses that I have yet to hear matched by any other band in this genre. You just can't deny the strength of the opening title-track, or the old-school heavy metal vibe on Unto The Breach (am I the only one who thinks the main riff sounds a bit like early Dio records?), it's just a rocking good time listening to this band and album. Even when the album slows down on Gone Cold, you still get that small bit of attitude that just keeps you (or me, rather) listening. The middle section in that song in particular is quite well done, with the acoustic guitar passage just really bringing the goods, so to speak. Now, I won't go so far as to say that this is a perfect album - it isn't - but it's hard for me to contain my excitement for a record that is just so unabashedly rocking as this one. I can forget originality and uniqueness when a band writes great songs, luckily for me, Clutch has always been a band that has had both traits.
Screw all the experimental shit, this rocks my socks off and it's hard to say no when you get a band who is just all about their craft and doesn't compromise. Whenever there's a band who can make me forget all my prejudices I am always happy to hear their material. Clutch - don't ever stop what you're doing! Anyone who digs some solid rock, listen to this or die.
Overall Score: 8.5
Highlights: Earth Rocker, Unto The Breach, The Wolfman Kindly Requests