Arson Anthem - Insecurity Notoriety (2010)

1. Naught

2. Foul Pride

3. Isolation Militia

4. More Than One War

5. Insecurity Notoriety

6. Pretty Like That

7. Initial Prick

8. Crippled Life

9. Polite Society Blacklist

10. If You Heard This You Would Hit Me

11. Hands Off Approach

12. Has Been/Has Been

13. Primate Envy

14. Death of an Idiot

15. Independant and Busted

16. Kleptomania

17. Teach the Gun To Love the Bullet

Bishop: I loved Arson Anthem’s self-titled EP. When it came out, there were no other new bands about doing anything as raw and unhinged. It was like a throwback to all those crust bands that have either buggered off, or are shadows of their formers selves. But I’m gonna be honest, the album bores me to hell. I dunno what it is, it just didn’t grab like the EP did, and I was pretty bummed.

Elliott: Damn, I need to hear the EP. Whenever I hear about mainstream thrash I’m nervous. Will it be like Metallica? Pantera? Metalcore? Well, even though this has a member of the groove legends (and by mainstream I mean in the metal community), this is pretty damn good skate thrash with punk influences, with the singer of Eyehategod and Hank Williams III. So, the album bores you? I’ve always known you were weird.

Bishop: I burn out pretty easily with music like this, always have. Saying that though, I'm going to retract my previous statement. I'm giving it another spin and it's actually much better than I remember it. Short, snappy and varied. My worry with albums like this is that everything going to be too repetitive, but each song really stands out. Brilliant, angry thrash punk. I must've listened to the wrong album initially - either that or it's just a grower, but I doubt that, it jumps down your neck too fast for it to have time to grow.

Elliott: It's sort of a grower. I was put off by the weird sludgy parts. The three second stuff, as far as repetitiveness goes with music like this, I don't really care as I'm looking for brutality first, if it's fast and pissed off I don't care. Hank III is one hell of a drummer, and Mike has a great voice. Also the mix is raw without being like the EP.

Bishop: The mixing on this is a thousand times better. Like you say it retains the raw crust sound they were obviously aiming for without making it sound like someone's scraping the inside of your eardrum like the EP. Everything's tight and confident. They all knew what kind of record they wanted to make, and they made it. No mess, no fuss, no confusion. You know what you're getting.

Elliott: Now don't get me wrong I enjoy that mix (Suburban Mutilation's LP comes to mind), but for music like this and musicians like this a more professional mix fits. Drink a few beers and put this on, it works on so many levels! Think they'll ever put out anything else?

Bishop: Maybe. I'd like to hear at least another EP from them. It's one of Phils' side projects though, so it probably doesn't have long before he loses interest.

Elliott: Yeah, he'll be back to Down or whatever crap band he plays in now. I'm surprised he plays the guitar as good as he does. As anyone reading this blog knows I'm not a Phil fan, so when I heard about this record I was thinking oh no. In fact the only reason I checked it out was the singer and drummer, but I was surprised that Phil could actually play. I've never heard his black metal band.

Bishop: Hey, nothing wrong with Down. The new EP was pretty good. Anyway, we can both agree this is a good record, yes?

Elliott: Yeah, this LP is quite good. One thing I have noticed, has mike lost his voice? I much prefer his vocals on Eyehategod's albums.

Bishop: I honestly never noticed. Doesn't sound weak to me so I don't think it's so much losing his voice, it's either refined with age or he's approached this project differently.

Elliott: I actually think it would have been cool to hear Eyehategod vocals on this album. It's just strange to me. I also love the short sludge moments, they go from slow to fast so many times!

Bishop: Yeah, I like the fact that it's not all 100mph constantly. It doesn't feel like an insult to my intelligence unlike other records in this genre, it just feels honest.

Elliott: You know me, the faster the better! But I like that they slow it up and they do it well. Many bands try to do it but it just comes out bad, these guys know what they're doing. Well they should they're all well-known metal musicians! Still has that southern feel - in a good way I mean.

Bishop: You mean not in the "kill the blacks, marry your sister" kind of way, right? I personally don't hear the Southern influence, but maybe that's just my Brit ears not being able to differentiate. I guess it's more noticeable to Americans.

Elliott: Different kind of southern influence, I'm talking NOLA sludge. It just sounds Southern. Blues influence. It's hard to describe. I’ll say this: it has pretty much everything you'd expect from this kind of record, good musicians, good mix, ass kicking thrash. If you're a new band look to this record.

7 seconds the crew lp

if they hadn't taken this name 7 seconds would have been the name of some shit grindcore bandbut this isn't grind this is kickass hc. i'm not really into youth crew hc stuff. but this record is pretty killer. they fucked the mix up though. I always find this record too clean and the drums didn't have the great sound like on the skins ep. no crackling highhat. sad. the lyrics are your typical positive thite. trust and happiness. not my thing. but kevin can sure sing. I do have one question. what was kev thinking putting rap at the end of one of the songs? as everyone knows rap fucking sucks! this lp (mlp?) is pretty damn short but it packs a punch. you can mosh to this so it's pretty damn good. though I still say get the eps first. walk together rock together the lp after this is pretty good too. I've never heard anything after that and will probably never do so. actually I do have a recent album and they were still good is a tad poppy. anyway get this and sing along to some melodic youth crew hc done right. oh and fuck rap!

slam induced groove astral overload ep

this ep isn't what I expected. when I heard slam death I thought of human mincer or something. however, not being something I expected isn't bad. okay. so anyway. this is a band called slam induced groove. not a bad name. this ep is about space..well the titles are. when I pressed play I expected nothing but novelty metal with pig squeal vocals. man was I surprised! good riffs, great vocals (they do need to be turned up a bit) I don't even mind the drum machine (clearly these aren't real drums) I will say that on the first track they sound really weird like they're cranked up too loud. all deathcore bands need to listen to this. this is how you do breakdowns. they (he I guess, this is one of those one man band things I think) even do a gojira cover. i'm not that into them (maybe i'll change my mind later after I hear more) but this cover sounds pretty dead on. overall, a very good ep that you should play if you want something slow and groovy. sometimes they speed up but not that much. not like it matters really. this is slam death at its best. buy or die!

the big 4 live dvd

got this a while ago. the big 4 came to l.a but I didn't see them. too much money. besides, my big 4 is nothing like this. but anyway onto the bands. first up is anthrax. I only liked the first album so..pretty borring. I guess it's cool but why would I listen to anthrax's melodic thrash when I can listen to pleasure to kill and get my head smashed open? good set I guess, sort of borring really. I've never like joie's vocals (none of neal's screams, just too clean) and thought anthrax sucked when they got rid of lilker. next up is megadeth. I hate megadeth. pretentious, slow, wanking, bornagain, lame. just a lame band who never did anything for me. I tried to like them but. slayer is next. hell yeah! mixed loud slayer is sloppy, loud, fast, and pissed off. best band of them all. don't even tell me different. tom's losing his voice though. finally we have reached the end of the first disk. each band played hour long sets. now comes metallica. oh my god, they're the only band on the second disk. how long is this gonna last? the answer, too fucking long. metallica only released one great album. so..yeah. lars sucks, tries to play too fast and he only has 5 drums, james has lost whatever anger he had, the rest of the band sucks. this is metallica light. it's sad that this concert took song long. because all I see on these disks are old ritch man pretending to be 23 again to get more money. don't get this dvd, get the slayer performance and rock out. then get the metallica stuff if you need something to put you to sleep. 5 hours of shows, only one worth it. and why does poptallica get so much time? it's not the big 4 tour. it's metallica and 3. rippoff. fuck metallica. anyway, don't buy this. btw sorry about the adds, blogger did that to us. we're not making money from them, we don't approve of them. just hope you understand.

dr aids and others aids infected shit split cd

i'm not back, this is special. the final dr aids record. that's right, the only new punk band I like (misery addict broke up) has bit the dust. I can now say fuck all new punk bands. now, onto to the record. thrught reform suck. fuck them. generic as all hell and just lame. the other band is called shitfuckingshit. god, what a creative name! the music is as bad as the name. they're worse than thought reform. well, this was a shitty split. wait, what's that? another band? oh that's right, dr aids. well, these cunts went out swinging. I can't say enough about these tracks. fast, raw, brutal. the mix is perfect. the samples are interesting. where's that sample song from? the only song that drags on a bit is gotta be delt with. great song, middle should have been cut in half. the rest are amazing. mindblowing. they're going out with more than a bang. they managed to save a horrible ep and make it great. if they were the only band on it, it'd be even better! buy this, fuck off the other two bands unless you want shit, and get ready to have your head crushed by these brits. like misery addict, they saved the best for last. rather than the rip I usually say i'll say..if any band think they can beat dr aids, fuck off. they'll be gone but not forgotten. lucky agz has another band. let's hope it's as good as dr aids, or at least better than thought reform or manitsashitband

moving aside

well, I've decided to step aside for a while and hand the blog over to bishop. i'll still be around, reading comments (ha!) and maybe doing those partner reviews with bishop. but for now, he's the main writer. I want to try new stuff, maybe start a new blog. it's been fun but..i need to try something new. so for now, Elliott signing off

m.o.d. red, white and screwed cd

one question. is billy serious? I know s.o.d was a joke band and this was but..i just wonder if he's as stupid as this in real life. these songs are right wing and idiotic. I agree with him that things are fucked in America with concentration camps. but he blame liberals. what? also he seems very nationalistic. the music is nothing special. standard thrash. i'm beginning to think these nyhc and thrash bands are brainless. no guys, you don't have to have national pride. i'm not proud to be an American because I didn't choose it. anyway the music is lame, the lyrics are stupid, throw this away. except for g.l.e.t. which is fucking funny. don't bother with this though

rip political trendy

i'm sorry guys, this blog will end forever after this post. the reason? this blog isn't making any money. I need this blog to make money because i'm greedy and refuse to do things just for the fun of it. i'm very sorry, but this blog will not go on. or maybe it will if one of you would comment. april fools and all that. actually I just wanted to update you . I still have no new records. but hopefully we can pull something together. Elliott signing off for now

bathory s/t lp

alright, sorry i keep forgetting to post. things are not going well in my life. no that's an understatement. they couldn't be any worse..well maybe if everyone i know died it'd be worse. if i don't get my mind off this i'm gonna go insane so heare's a classic metal record for you. a lot of people call bathory a black metal band. i do agree that bathory influenced bm but i always described this as a thrash band. one listen and you can see why..along with the fact that black metal didn't exist. for 1984 this is a really brutal album. the mix. well..the drums exist though it's hard to tell what they're doing. i love this mix, sounds like a demo album. the guitars just pound and pound and pound. the vocals shreak the torment of some sort of unholy creature. musically these guys were never better. still one of the heavyest albums i've heard i can't emagine in 1984 putting this album on, hering the intro and then...all hell breaks loose. this was recorde in a garage i beleive. well..more bands should record stuff in a garage. my favorite track in in conspiracy with satan but really they're all good. these guys aren't advanced musicians but man can they deliver! this album is a musthave if you wanna call yourself a metalhead. get it and watch as the skin melts off your face as you listen!

NYC Mayhem discography

want more posts? make em yourself! or give me lots and lots and lots of money. either way, do something! now, nyc mayhem existed for 1 year, 1985. they started out as a sick ass death metal band. i mean great death metal. but over time they drifted into really fast hardcore. kind of the youth crew sound here but soooo damn good. 72 tracks on a bunch of demos and live tapes. they recorded a 7 that was sadly never officially released but a bootleg does exist. minus the first track which i've still never heard. rhis band became straight ahead which put out a great demo and an okay ep. these recordings are actually officially released on a 2 cd set but i got mine off the interwebs before the cds were released. maybe i'll buy one some day. depends on how much money i get. this stuff is great. you need to get it no matter what you like. death metal or hardcore nyc mayhem (guess where they're from) have something for you. seriously, if you don't like this you're fucked. get it now! i order you!

no comment discography cd

i know i haven't been on fora long time. i've been busy with life..okay the truth is my love of racing is rapidly becoming the main love in my life..but i'm back..first off, sorry for all the fucking spam comments..i don't know how to get rid of them..anyway we have a great 90s hardcore band for you..i hate using the word powerviolence. so 90s hardcore. no comment are one of the few bands from the 90s i like. ultrafast, angry, and short..this is what i love about hc. too bad this band didn't exist for very long and all songs can fit on one cd..actually lucky for you and me we only have to get one cd..i'm still surprised at how clear the mix is on some of the recording.. i'm not sure what all they did in terms of records but i do know this is some of the best 90s hc around. get it or be a wimp!

infest moshroom cd

i have a serious problem with this band. not the music which is badass grindcore with just a hint of crust..it's the name. for those of you with no brain, infest was a great hardcore (and not powerviolence you stupid fucks!) band from the late 80s. they released the slave lp in 88 which is one of the last truly great and interesting hc records then released a couple other good records before breaking up and like every other band in the world is reuniting and cashing in..now the infest i'm talking about on this post is a new (2000s) french band..you mean to tell me they had no idea about the other infest? i don't think so. a worse one is the itallian band repulsione..oh great..you put an e at then end..it's still the same name jackass! i'm gonna start a band called metalllica.. see? one more l! it's a totally different fucking name! now i don't care about bands having the same name in period (the punk and the metal anthrax) or shitty bands coming up with a band name that belonged to an obscure punk band (i can never say i'm a slipknot fan..people don't get it) but if your band is pretty obscure and there's another band that existed long before you guys that people actually know about..maybe do some research..or just add an extra letter..that'll shut everyone up i guess. now i've ranted on..on to the music. first of all the mix is actually really good. you can hear everything. everyone is a good musician on this. everything on this record is good..not great but pretty damn good..am i the only one who likes the guitar tone? the vocals i think could only work for this band. not really complex music but something to play if you like grind..just change your name infest!

disclose apocalypse of death 7

at the risk of offending some nwe hc fans, i really don't feel this band deserves all the praze it gets. shitty crust from japan..shitty crust, that's redundant. i'm not a crust fan. we get it, you love discharge..get over it. the mix is annoying too. they try too hard to be destorted and cool. i love japanese hc but that's something i've always found, i thought a lot of bands tried too hard to be interesting. this band does the same. i mean, i have very few d-beat records. shitlickers, anti-cimex, that sort of stuff. maybe it's just because i don't like new hc. punk did its thing people. only a few punk bands now can hold my attention. and also, this isn't even good japanese d-beat..it's just a lame band. stop wershipping this pile of shit and listen to 80s hc

i'm bored

my ipod took a shit, my records are hiding, i have no cd play....fuck, i suck. so...i have no idea what the hell to review. i'm still alive. my computer just deleted all my songs...thanks computer. and keeps cutting out. waiting for the racing season to pick up. maybe by then i'll have some new records. peach kelli pop has a new record...wanna get my hands on that..awesome artist. other than that, i've been watching a shitload of british stock car racing, as well as tv shows such as tripping the rift and duckman...jesus, i have no fucking life...this post is just to tell you all i haven't died yet, not like it matters. oh, and fuck you bishop!

annihilist betrayal on the warpath ep

yeah i'm a lazy cunt. i haven't done a post in a while and...whatever. no one reads this. i wonder when bishop will realise i even posted this. annihilist was a killer thrash band from england with bishop on vocals..if i have to tell you who bishop is you're an idiot. this is the band's second and last release sadly. the incriminated demo showed the band was good. this shows what could have been. the rerecorded versions of the songs on the demo are amazing, just amazing. the new songs are as good. the best song though is the title track. oh my fucking god, what great..everything. the mix is professional yet still sounds raw. bishop improved his vocals and now they're just fucking brutal. this band doesn't go fast a lot but tje midpased thrash is amazing. it's also not very sloppy either. the last track is fucking funny. how small is my bannanna? haha. love the sort of antichristian lyrics too. everything on this ep is spot on and if the members had any fucking brains they'd reform. reform you bastards! reform! get this on the net. all hail annihilist!!!!!!!

deicide s/t lp

hi! remember me? i'm elliott, the guy who blogs? well, sorry i haven't posted in forever, i had female trouble. but, i'm over that so let's get back to bitching about how no one looks at my blog. thanks to the singer from social overload for commenting, that was cool. everyone knows who deicide. satanic death metal band. this is the first album released in 1990. we all know about the band name change bla bla bla. what we have is crushing fucking death metl when death metal counted (84/92) god damn this rocks from a to z. the drums are pretty fucken killer, double bass and everything. the guitars have a cool sound to them and have really cool rifs. glen benton is god (or maybe satan) he is just brutal. don't know about his bass but his vocals are just amazing. i love how seemingly on every deicide album, he puts so much energy into his work as he spews out his hatrid of jesus and the idiots that go along with him. the lyrics are simplistic but effective, brutally satanic. the mix is cool, but, as i say with most death metal, turn the bass up! the album is short too. that's the thing about deicide's albums they're always quite short. some don't even go to 30 minutes. intro is cool, no 10 minute long thing, just i think a door opening? maybe? and then it's boom. one of my favorite death metal records/bands of all time. buy or die! actually, buy or be a christian

the blog is back!

just a short one. i'm back to do more reviews that no one reads. i don't know why, i guess i'm stupid. so stay tuned for more spelling errors, rants about nothing, empty comment feilds, and bishop being too good to review anything. i know he's working on something but who elce can i make fun of? anyway crappy new year to all

i just don't care any more

i just feel completely burnt out. 3 years i've been busting my ass and i get nothing. not even a comment or someone emailing me saying how much they like my blog. sure my spelling sucks. sure my grammer is aweful. but you know what? this blog comes from the heart. i don't try to make it professional (though i wish i was more like bishop) i just wanted to make my feelings known about records. i just don't feel like doing it any more. i really don't maybe i'll come back to it one day. but for now, if you see any reviews they will be from bishop, not me. not until i get comments. at least one. i poor my heart in to this blog. and time. each post takes 4 hours max to make. going through records. this one's good. no how about this one. it's not like, oh i'll just do a post about this. it takes a long time. but no one cares any more. people want mp3s, not writing. i knew people who used to download from good bad music. i love erich's writing. i read each post and the comments. but they just download the album. sometimes they don't even know where it's from. that's what makes me sick. people don't want to read, they just want mp3 links. and because i don't have any, they don't care. well fine. i guess i'll close up. i don't know when i'll be back but until then, this is elliott signing off

the kill make em suffer cd

not sure why i have to do all the reviews on this blog. that's why i got bishop in! so i could relax wile he reviews some stuff. bishop, review something! anyway here's some australian grindcore jay jones, of fuck i'm dead is on drums. i got this because i saw his name on it. when i learned he played the drums i was interested. and...man he can play drums! blasts up your ass. tight and loud. amazing. the vocalist is killer as well. the guitars have a really nice sound to them. mix is loud which i expected. i guess this band's been around for over 10 years and just gotten around to making an album. considdering it took fid 11 years to record a second album my conclusion? jay's lazy. haha. anyway 15 songs under 20 minutes. what's not to love? i really only got this album because of jay but i'm glad i did. it's well worth buying. oh and the lyrics are great too. one of the best grindcore releases of 2012. btw if anyone has the shallow grave demo that jay played on i'd love to hear that. please help! but for now play this loud and...make em suffer!

extra hot sauce taco of death lp

one of my favorite records that you can put on if you just wanna have fun. extra hot sauce was a side project of dan lilker of anthrax, brutal truth, nuclear assault, and a shitload of other great bands. he used to go to hardcore shows and get drunk after and talk about starting a joke hc band. well this is it. danny is on drums. some other guys fill out the lineup. the guitarest is really the only other serious musician. he was in some other bands and you can hear that he knew how to play. bass is good and..you can hear it! the vocals are absurd. this dude isn't even triing. strong new york accent comes through very nice. i actually love the vocs. now on to the song titles....actually i'm not gonna even start. with an album titled taco of death i think that explains everything. funny lyrics. my favorite was the black sabbath cover. sped up and played in a minute. the music is about what you'd expect. grindcore with some metal parts. it's really really nice. the production is actually pretty clear. maybe the guitars are a little low some times but whatever. dan can sure play the drums! produced by a dude from nuclear assault which if you don't know was a kickass thrash band lilker started after being kicked out of shitty anthrax. released in 1988. lilker was also in the joke band s.o.d so he's no stranger to humor. honestly this is funnyer than m.o.d, billy's band after s.o.d broke up. get this on the internets. i've also seen a version with different recordings and less tracks. not sure what's up with that but avoid it! it's not as good as this!

pt is 3!

3 years ago today i was bored. i had a sort of blog thing going for about a year but it wasn't going anywhere or doing anything. plus it was on songmeanings.net and who goes to song meanings to read a blog? justin did but that's another story. well i was bored so i wanted to see how hard it was to make a blog on blogger. easy as it turned out and what became political trendy was born. i've had comments from europe and canada and america, people from bands comment, and i got a british guy to help me. to all of you who like my blog i give you my thanks and i hope you come back for more. to be honest i'm not where i thought i would be. i thought i would be at a point where almost every post would have comments and people would have discussions about the records. maybe it'd get to the point where i couldn't read all comments. sadly i rarely get any comments. i'd like to know people are reading this. i thought after 3 years i'd get some huge responce. i have a small following. and i'm so greatful for those people. bishop, zach, maybe justin and a few others i'm not sure about. you guys rule. as do anyone who's left a comment including agz, paul from disattack, the guitarest i think from the throwaways (sorry it's been a really long time), and buck from the modernettes. not bad actually. also i know per of filthy christians has read this and erich keller has commented on this. also brian and ed from garden weasel and ryan from a lot of bands. and to everyone who i know that's never seen my blog...i hate you. seriously thanks guys. you give me hope that some day i will get noticed. and to the hate comment i got...whoever you are, you're great. i do enjoy getting hate mail. so anyway just thanks for everything and hope you will keep suporting political trendy in the future. and bishop, answer your emails about the record!

fuck i'm dead another gory mess cd

just as i was going to review the first album by these australian grinders with the coolest name in metal i heard they put out a new album. they only waited 11 years to do the second album. so i figured what the hell? i'll review this one. the first album was amazing. the only band that could get away with a drum machine. i couldn't even tell what jay was saying or if he was saying anything. but in all that mayhem you could hear melodic parts. this is different. first of all they have a real drummer. he does not disapoint, blasting away like he meant to do the drum kit s much harm as possible. jay's vocals are more in the higher range and you can tell that he might be saying actual words now. just what the words are i still don't know. the guitars are the same amazing wall of noise. the song titles are abou what you'd expect from this band. btk, arse to outh, need i go on? the mix is a bit louder. personally i liked the first album's mix. the good thing is we don't have the live tracks at the end to fill up time. overall...this is a grindcore album. i mean, what more can i say about it? it's a grind album. get it if you like grind. if you don't...well if you need me to explain you need your brain examined. btw jay's other band the kill made an album i'll be reviewing soon as well.

a tribute to amebix

amebix has broken up again. when i first heard them i was blown away. now as you all know i'm kind of young. i didn't live through the glory years of amebix. so when i read they were considdered a crust band you all know what i thought. bad d-beat meets speed metal. oh boy. but no! it was amazing! so dark, so raw, those vocals that went right to your soul. everything about it was amazing. this isn't crust i thought. this isn't punk or metal. it's...it's amebix. they can't be described. i got everything they recorded even the 1979 demo. i was more than a little surprised when i heard they got back together. they kept saying they didn't want to start again that all had been said. so i figured we'd seen the last of these guys. then when they reunited i and probably a few other people thought it was mainly for the money. they must have known a whole new generation likes them and maybe they'll do the repulssion thing and play some gigs for a few years without recording anything. then i heard they were recording an ep of previously recorded classics with a drummer from soulfly. i was like, what the fuck? i heard it. it was okay. disappointing as all rerecordings are. then i heard they were recording a new album. i didn't know what to think. would it just be an attempt to rip off past albums but with improved musicianship? would it be different? would it be worthy of the amebix name? well when i baught sonic mass i was reluctant to play it. what if it's bad? i asked myself. but i did it anyway. it was amazing. yes it was different. the sound was very different from the two previous albums or the singles. but that's why i loved it. a full review of sonic mass is coming with more detail on the music. it was an amazing album and probably the best of 2011. when i heard they broke up i had mixed feelings. sure it sucks when a band you love breaks up. but on the other hand maybe they did it at the right time. who knows if they could replicate the magic. honestly if they came out with another sonic mass in that it was just like it or another arrize or monelith they wouldn't be amebix. amebix evolvs. amebix isn't one type of music. amebix is..i can't describe it. but you can't simply call them one subgenre of extreme music. so maybe they called it quits at the right time. before they just released records to release records. so many great bands do that. they'll reunite and make a record that's a hollow representation of past albums and keep doing that til no one cares. then they'll just play old stuff and pretend the new albums didn't happen. not amebix. amebix kept evolving and came out with a great album. in conclusion we'll miss you amebix. you left behind 3 great albums and great eps as well. goodbye and good luck with whatever the three members do in the future. as you guys said on your final album, "these days will never come again."

ydi out for blood cd

alright. ydi. i've reviewed them twice before. the ep and the lp. wso why am i reviewing this? because it's a discography. ydi released a great ep and a missunderstood lp. but they also released a demo which was never sold. they need to be slapped for that. not as overwelmingly serious and hard as the ep it seems but a really solid hc demo. these guys were idiots not celling this. i mean, how can you not love that guitar tone! the other tracks worth mentioning are the comp tracks from get off my back! one was used in the movie american hardcore in a live version. that seems to be where people know them now. two great songs especially i killed my family. the rest of the tracks are from the ep and lp which i've already talked about. the ep is as good as ever. the lp isn't everyone's cup of tea but for some reason i love the way it sounds. if you don't own any of these records i suggest getting it. if you do..well it's worth it for the out for blood demo. ps ydi, please explain why you never sold the demo. unless you just gave it away for free. then you guys rock haha

chemical waste life's a bitch demo tape

here's something for you thrashers. an obscure new york (or new jersey whatever) crossover thrash band who released one demo in the 80s. and this is it. billy from m.o.d along with other bands was a fan of this band. i only wish m.o.d sounded as good as this. what this is is crossover thrash. the way it's supposed to be done. hardcore meets metal in the best way. you can hear that they were having fun on this release. and it doesn't sound like they're triing too hard to be just like other bands, the knock on most new thrash bands. this just sounds great. nothing mindblowing but a fun little thrash demo when thrash or crossover mattered. the lyrics are funny as well. just look at the titles! overall a nice little tape from an unknown band. look for this on the net. it's worth owning. p.s i always thought this was where municipal waste got the name. i recently saw an interview where they said it was on a garbage truck. still i'm not convinced.

negative approach nothing will stand in our way cd

well here's something i baught at amoeba a while ago. i heard that it contained rare demos. cool! i thought. well i was half right. the first few tracks are from the band's first recording. nice sound to this one. a little slower but still pretty cool. the next tracks were from a live show. the band's first. i'm not much for live recordings anyway. skip. the next tracks were from a demo. really cool sound on this one. the next tracks are a heavelly eddited version of a recording i have of them playing at the mud club. i have the uneddited show and it sounds way better than this. not saying anything interesting happened in between songs but the mud club gig was powerful as hell. i mean i got chills listening to it. this one the tape sounds too loud. everything's somewhat destorted and it just doesn't sound as good. the next two tracks are outtakes from the self titled ep. really good especially the cover of chaos by the 4-skins. i like the na version more. something to do with brannon's voice i think. the rest is live stuff. i lost interest after that especially considdering the shitty quality of the sound. overall i kinda felt ripped off. i just wanted the studeo stuff anyway. if you get this try to get a download and take out all that live tracks unless you want crappy sounding live stuff that you could get on the net in better versions. kind of reminds me of the total recall cd where after tied down it's like i'm done! anyway get this for the studeo tracks if you're an na fan

Kreator - Enemy Of God (2005)

1.  Enemy Of God
2. Impossible Brutality
3. Suicide Terrorist
4. World Anarchy
5. Dystopia
6. Voices Of The Dead
7. Murder Fantasies
8. When Death Takes Its Dominion
9. One Evil Comes - A Million Follow
10. Dying Race Apocalypse
11. Under A Total Blackened Sky
12. The Ancient Plague

Bishop: A friend bought me this album for my birthday... Christ knows how long ago now. I remember the first song I ever heard by Kreator was "Betrayer" from Extreme Aggression. I'd say by the time they got to Enemy Of God they were a lot more mature a band. Whether that's a better thing or not is down to opinion I guess.

Elliott: Two things you must know: first, I’m a thrash fanboy. I fucking love thrash. Second is “Pleasure To Kill” is one of my favourite thrash… no, favourite metal album ever. Every time I got into Kreator’s other albums I was disappointed, but I must say this album is kick ass! It reminds me of “Pleasure To Kill”, but more polished and with more melody.

Bishop: It's a brilliant album. There's more harmonic bits in it than the old stuff, which I think is what turns the "elitists" away.

Elliott: I really like the nice mix of heavy and melody. I don't know about the elitist thing, 90’s Kreator kind of did that and now they're seen as back. One thing, I kind of wish they didn't record “Pleasure To Kill”. This is a great album, but it took me so long to like it. I just kept comparing it to Pleasure, but fuck that album, I'll do it another day. Love the vocals on this.

Bishop: The vocals are strong as hell; they don't falter at any point. The production is crushing too, one hell of a heavy album. There are a lot of bands that get to that point I think and are burned out and not really angry any more, but it doesn't sound like they're phoning it in at all.

Elliott: I think doing what they did in the 90’s really energized them. Everyone said “Fuck Kreator” and they wanted to kick ass. Bands like slayer just sound like they repeat themselves. I mean, I like slayer, but still, they kind of sound like they're phoning it in

Bishop: Yeah, fair enough the 90's stuff wasn't to everyone's taste, but it probably kept the band alive. Slayer just sound like a poor version of how they used to be and I have no doubt Kreator would've turned out the same if they walked the same route.

Elliott: Yeah, so maybe its good they changed. What's your favourite song off this album?

Bishop: Honestly, I couldn't choose. Every single song is an absolute belter. I'd probably say "Suicide Terrorist" and "World Anarchy" are a bit thrash by numbers though, although by no means bad songs.

Elliott: And what's wrong with thrash by numbers? The first song really sets the tone. It builds up so nicely and goes apeshit. And great lyrics! Oh and I just want to say.....amazing drummer.

Bishop: Everything's just tight as hell, the playing is utterly faultless. If I remember the album after this just sounds like Enemy Of God Pt II as well.

Elliott: As luck would have it i just got “Hordes of Chaos”. It does and that's
actually a good thing! Check the new one out dude it's really good. The singer sounds pissed btw

Bishop: I can't think of a single criticism towards this album, I really can't.

Elliott: The problem is neither can I. Ah well, you're dumb. Haha.

Bishop: I'm dumb? You're the yank.

Elliott: And you're a cunt. Is it just me or does Kreator seem to flirt with death metal a lot on this album?

Bishop: Yeah, it's definitely got elements of death metal in there, luckily not too many.

Elliott: Wouldn't mind a few blasts and stuff. Honestly, great record. Good god, we agree on something!

Bishop: I can agree that we both do not dislike this record.

Elliott: I wish I could sing like this guy

Bishop: He has a good and unique voice like. Seriously, I'm sat trying to think of a single thing I don't like about this, but it's not happening.

Elliott: Me too dude. I mean once I got over the clean production it all sounds great! The drums, bass, guitar and vocals! It's a great new thrash album!!!! Why'd you pick an album that we both like? Can i just say that I love the lyrics to “Impossible Brutality?”

Bishop: No you can't.

Bishop: Well, I just did!

the modernettes get it straight cd

i'm not sure how many times i've played the teen city ep. hundreds at least. well i found this and just had to get it. and boy i'm glad i did! the modernettes were a fantastic poppy punk band from canada. this cd has everything they did in the studeo. the first 6 tracks are from the amazing teen city ep. yeah...amazing. the next 3 tracks are from the gone but not forgiven lp. the lp is live except these three. shame really. would have loved to hear a modernettes lp. won't have to worry i've heard before and it quickly became my favorite song by them. but really all the songs are great. the next 5 tracks are from the view from the bottom ep. remixed i guess. it kicks off with rebel kind. wow is that a great song or what! i guess the problem with this record is every song once i hear it becomes my favorite. maybe i'm the one with the problem haha. the next tracks are demo and live stuff. i with they'd included more demo tracks as the one on this cd is amazing. if anyone has the full tape and would like to share it....well i'd like it. the live tracks are okay i guess. i'm not much for live tracks anyway. seriously i only have a few live recordings. the tracks for the radio show (i think) are really good. over all a fantastic record from a fantastic band. allmusic said this band probably doesn't stand the test of time. well here's someone who wasn't even born when the modernettes were around (yes i am that young) who loves this record. take that allmusic! haha. if you like powerpop or melodic punk it's not even a question of should you buy it but when should you? the answer, right now!!!!!!

sound of imker train of doomsday/see those girls 7

here's a weird one for you. sound of imker was from holand and recorded this single in 1969. it was released but i'm guessing in very small numbers. it flopped. wonder why. it's a great record but probably just wasn't right for the time. had this been released in the 80s it would have been well received i think. jello biafra called it the first hardcore record. it really does sound like punk before punk. train of doomsday has a great beat. the singer isn't melodic at all but that's part of the fun. the quality of this record is well...the sound sounds like as one guy put it "a secondhand demo" but it's still a fun record. see those girls at first would seem to be the weakest track. but it's got a great solo and an even more unmelodic vocal performance. i know that imker was the last name of the two brothers. and one overdoced in the 80s. shame that. this band was way ahead of its time. this makes me think how many more records like this exist? obscure records that were fast before fast was cool. the best way is to get this off youtube now that both songs are up. i think this is on some compilation but i'm not sure. you need this if you're a fan of obscure music. not only is it obscure but....it's good too.

napalm death and more live review

well last night i went to the observatory in orenge county to....observe some bands. let's start with the first band. downspell. they were from alaska. did i mention they were from alaska? oh and they were from alaska. they only said it about a thousand times. the music was pretty good deathcore. metal archives calls it metalcore/death metal.....deathcore. pretty good considdering the genre of music they play. then after the unknown downspell came the classic thrash band attitude adjustment. they seemed to have lost some of the punk from the sound and play much tighter and a little slower. barny from napalm death came up to sing a song. it was pretty cool. and they actually played songs off the demo and destruction's end flexi! yay!! next came exhumed.....lame! i've never heard exhumed before except when they covered a samhain track. the high vocalist sounds like an emo kid now. and he acts like one on stage with the croud. he actually got the crowd to say swares. how lame can you get? he was just another lame ass performer. how you all doin tonight? i can't hear you! shut up for a second and maybe you'll get to hear us idiot. the chainsaw durring a song was nice though. so was closing with a seige cover. next came repulsion. barny sang with them too. repulsion was great! everything was amazing about the set. and the singer could actually still do it! i guess the only problem i had was they didn't play every song off all 6 demos haha. next came napalm death. i thought they were gonna be the last band honestly. so did the croud i guess. now i know nd has no original members and is a tad more metallic than 87 but it was a great show! barny's voice is way more gritty and i love it that way. mich's voice was cool with some nice echo effects and his clean vocals were haunting. i've always thought of nd as a punk band with metal trappings and i beleive it even more today. also greenway's rants between songs were awesome. ps danny's drums were so crazy i couldn't follow it. after that came municipal waste. i was actually ready to leave at that point when a few old friends came up and we talked some. mw is an okay band. it doesn't take any ammount of brain power to get them and the lyrics. seriously how many songs about getting drunk can you have? it got annoying. plus repulsion, napalm death, and not least attitude adjustment should be way after them especially attitude adjustment. hell they created the sound mw rips off and sees no reason to alter. it's fun party music but really that's all. no meaningful lyrics. i'd like it more if they were at least before napalm death. seriously it felt like the long beach grand prix where they run the indycar race then they have a sports car race after so if you want to wait out the crowd you have something to watch. half the people left after napalm so that's what it felt like. that municipal waste was the throwaway band after the legends....which they are! like i said i like mw. they're fun. but after napalm death? that's like when mr. manson went on after slayer. what the fuck? btw nd did a cool repulsion cover as well as some other short songs (they closed with you suffer) and municipal waste did what every crossover thrash band does and covered s.o.d's united forces. as much as i love s.o.d seriously everyone's done it. maybe that's why people don't like this retrothrash thing that's been going on for some time now. i enjoy the music but am not the biggest fan. overall it was a fun night. btw the dj at the shows is a god. kiss of death by satan and a weapon song were played. obscure nwobhm. i was like is that??no! wait yes!!! hell we went in just as nuns have no fun by mercyful fate was playing. that's when i thought wow something cool is happening. so thank you for playing obscure metal whoever you are. overall i had fun. heard a lot of music and talked to some old friends. good night

peach kelli punk s/t lp

no, that's not a mistake. somehow i found this on the internet. i thought the amazing peach kelli pop put out a new record. well i was wrong. this is some dude named joe from some band called germ attack rerecording the pkp lp. i'm sorry, it's just not good enough. i mean i don't think it was suposed to be but still. it just can't hold a candle to pkp. now i know nothing about germ attack (i'm guessing they're canadian as the thing i read was on a canadian site) but....yeah. joe sounds like he's having a lot of fun and it did make me smile a little. you can tell he likes the record. it's kind of funny actually. but it's just not the same. sorry mr. joe whoever you are. it was a fun listen but i just can't see myself going back to it....then again i said that about level and i listened to that shit for like another year before finally deleting it. over all not a bad record actually....just nowhere as good as peach kelli pop. btw anyone know anything about germ attack?

kreator pleasure to kill lp

oh my god. this record is one pure headfuck. from start to finnish this record says one thing....ttttttttttttttthhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaaaasssssssssssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! seriously. this is thrash in its purist form. the songs might be repetitive for some. boo hoo. it's a great record. this had me headbanging so hard i was actually tired at the end of the album. first off the production. fuckin yes! this is what i love in a thrash production. rough, echoy, and the band recorded live. you can feel it too. this is unpolished thrash at its best. kreator would go on to be one hell of a band going more goth and industrial before returning to thrash with more of a melodic touch. but this album....amazing. the two vocalists are just amazing. the german accent comes through quite clearly. i feel with this the same thing that i felt about sepultura's first two albums. great music not meant to be anything than what it is, raw thrash. and while like sepultura i love the later works, nothing and i mean nothing can compare to this. this might be more interesting than dark angel's darkness descends which came out around that time. i also hear a lot of pree-death metal in this. if someone would ask me what's death/thrash i'd say this was it. not death metal with a thrash feel but thrash metal with a death feel. confusing huh? haha. anyway you need this record. no not you should have it or i think you need it. you fuckin need this album. if you don't get it don't ever call yourself a metalhead

The Exploited – Fuck The System (2003)

Now then!

Over the past couple of years you've had the massive displeasure of listening to either Elliott or myself waffle on about various albums. Whilst I haven't done that many reviews myself, I have spent a considerable amount of time over the past year emailling Elliott about albums, usually ones we don't agree on. It dawned on me that instead of me just publishing my one sided opinion here, we should instead engage in conversation and publish that. Elliott thought it sounded like a good idea (not that he knows anything) and out of pity I let him choose the first feature as a test run to see how it goes.

The Exploited - Fuck The System

 

1.  Fuck The System
2. Fucking Liar
3. Holiday In The Sun
4. You're A Fucking Bastard
5. Lie To Me
6. There Is No Point
7. Never Sell Out
8. Noize Annoys
9. I  Never Changed
10. Why Are You Doing This To Me
11. Chaos Is My Life
12. Violent Society
13. Was It Me

Bishop: I'm not massive on The Exploited, but I have to admit I really like this album. I don't think there's a dud song on here at all.

Ellliott: I actually really like this band. Great album, but am I the only one who thinks the lyrics are a little simplistic?

Bishop: What, and the other albums they did were full of lyrical genius? It's simple punk for simple people.

Elliott: Yeah, I guess you’re right. I’m just so used to Napalm Death and Crass and stuff, they can articulate. Bad Religion too. I do love the last track “Was It Me”, that riff gets stuck in my head all the time.

Bishop: Oh man that final track is a killer, used to have it on in my car all the time. Every other song is about politics, or anarchy, or some other bullshit I don't want to be preached to about, but "Was It Me" just feels genuine. By the way, I'm pretty sure you used the word articulate in the wrong context.

Elliott: I don’t care if I used it in the wrong context, I’m American. I agree with what they have to say about politics, though I do think they jumped on the anarchy boat a little after it was popular. Anyway, I like the blending of metal and punk. Wattie sounds nothing like his old self though, he reminds me of a more pissed off you.

Bishop: I don't really hear the comparison to me, but I guess I wouldn't.

Elliott: “Beat The Bastards” sounds like you too.

Bishop: The thrashy elements that come through are refreshing. A few people give this album bad lip because of the production quality, but it still sounds raw and aggressive to me.

Elliott: The production sounds like the last three Municipal Waste albums. Anyway, one of the reasons I like The Exploited are the samples at the beginning of the album. Wanna talk about that?

Bishop: No.

Elliott: You’re a cunt.

Bishop: I like the sample at the start of the album. Every time it crops up on my playlist it annoys me to fuck though, I'm pretty sure that's why they did it.

Elliott: Great drum sound by the way.

Bishop: Yeah, nice and crisp. I don’t think, sound wise at least, it could’ve been any better. I’m not even that bothered that the album doesn’t really evolve, or is a little bit repetitive, it’s a brill album. If they released another record almost the same though, I’m not quite sure I’d be able to sit through it.

Elliott: It’s The Exploited, have you ever known them to ever evolve in an album? And this will probably be the last record; I think they’re content to play gigs now.

Bishop: They’ve already announced a new one.

Elliott: And they haven’t done that before? Sorry, I’ll believe it when I see it. Just like with the Septic Death discography, they keep saying they’re going to do it, but they’re fucking slow about it.

Bishop: I wouldn't complain if they didn't. I mean, I'm pretty sure they've covered all the ground they could by now.

Elliott: Unless they do a Napalm Death and add more stuff to the basic sound on every new album which, given who they are, isn’t likely. By the way, I love the energy on the record, it just sounds like they feel it.

Bishop: I think we can pretty much agree that, although a simple record, it's solid and enjoyable from start to finish.

Elliott: It’s a good record if you’re pissed off.

Bishop: Yeah, although I now have a strange urge to nut a politician.

d.r.i dealing with it lp

dri's first album (the dirty rotten thing was an ep!) it took me a long time to even get this. i knew they went metal and i didn't know how this would sound. well...for the most part really good. straight up fast as fuck hc. right where i belong. the mix is great. all the musicians get plenty of sound. people spend large amounts of money triing to get the perfect production and some punk kids did it on one album. the vocals especially are really pissed off. he still sounds like that today! not the low parts. they screwed up the intro to i don't need society. i liked the ep version where it was just drums and guitar then all hell broke loose. the lp version has some doublebass stuff and the lyrics are sung slow. yes mam was better on the ep too. but whatever they can't just stay the same. the worst song is nursing home bluez. oh my god. it just goes on and on and on and i fall asleep. 9 hours later it's still going. the song is pure metal but it just doesn't go anywhere. i love metal. we all know i love metal. if you couldn't tell just by reading the blog posts you're an idiot. but this is just annoying. the song goes nowhere and it's a problem that would dog the band on the rest of the albums. the songs are just too long sometimes. other than that it's a great album. the lyrics are a bit simplistic but whatever. i still prefer the dirty rotten ep to this but it's fun for a listen. ps the clip of the singer's dad yelling at them is funny as hell

NME unholy death lp

i first got into NME (enimy) a few years back when i heard the machine of war demo released in the mid-80s. i loved it. pretty much pure venom wership and i just fell in love with the tape. the songs were all in the right tempo and had the right amount of fury. well my friend kept talking about unholy death as this great album. so i got it. what a fuckin shame. this album should have been amazing. except and this will sound weird but the songs were two fast! okay i love fast music. but it seemed like what they did was take slower songs and speed them up. without changing anything in them. the result is it just sounds really messy and bad to me. it sounds like the drummer has no idea what he's even doing. that's fine but i don't know. they even rerecorded at least one track from the demo and it just sounds wrong. too sped up. maybe if i hadn't heard the demo i'd like it more. i'm gonna keep triing to like it but it just doesn't sound right. great lyrics though. and i can't argue with the guitar tone. it just seems sped up and wrong. just get the machine of war demo and be happy. sorry if i've said the wrong thing haha

iron maiden s/t lp

i've been listening to a lot of maiden in my two month period of having no computer....and before that two. but what album should i start with? how about the first and one of the best. it's a lot more raw than they'd be known for. wonder if that's just because they were new at this. some people have point out how this sounds punk influenced. well sorry steeve but it realy does. and i beleive maiden did have some connections to punk. i don't remember what they were but i remember reading about them. paul's voice. you can't get much better than this! i love later albums like number of the beast and powerslave and the polished high vocals paul adds a layer of i guess you'd call it grit. his voice can go high but he sounds like some dude ready to fight. every other musician is great on this as well. this album gets ripped on for not being consistant or whatever. my responce, what the hell are you talking about? i don't really like the mix. compared to killers it's a pretty weak mix. other than that i can't find one falt with this record. even the two rerecorded songs from the demo are great. and i'm the first to say i usually don't like rerecorded songs. the magic seems to be gone most of the time. if you want a great example check the unholy death album by NME. anyway this is a must own if you like nwobhm. and if you don't....well i hate you. seriously get this and rock out!

circle one patterns of force lp

helloe! i'm back. the master of pt is back. bishop did a good job (of pissing me off) with those two reviews. now i'm back with some la hc. circle one are an interesting band. the first time i heard them was on the public service comp where they were a really good and raw hc band. so when i heard this lp i was like huh? it's an amazing record don't get me wrong but....it wasn't quite what i expected. the great (great as in clear not great as in actually good) production, the effects, john's vocals. what happened between the ps recordings and this lp? seriously i'd like to know. the lyrics range from good anti-war stuff to christian lyrics about how the evils of the world are caused by satan. john was a member of some christian hardcore gang that according to what i've read was quite violent. we all know how he died. the musicianship is really good for hc on this record. and john's vocals are actually really cool. i don't know why they changed sound or anything. but this lp needs to be in your hc collection. at least listen to it. btw if anyone can give me a coppy of the circle one demo i'd love to hear and review that. so.....get this! btw i'm back for good so you'll see more of my reviews and less of bishop's weirdness. seriously good job holding down the fort bishop. that's why i made you an admen.

The (International) Noise Conspiracy - A New Morning (2001)

Elliott has still vanished. I briefly considered doing a spin-off blog called "Where In The World Is Elliott Lindamood?" where I post from various countries whilst trying to find him, looking at the top of the Eiffel Tower and such, but I didn't want to give the impression that I care.

Anyway, the point is he hasn't come back. If he is indeed dead or something, I'll be sure to rename the blog to "Elliott Sucked" in his honor.

I'm going to continue reviewing drivel until he returns. There's only so much I can break this blog before he'll have to come crying back to save it (or destroy it, opinions pending).

ANYWAY.

The (International) Noise Consipiracy - A New Morning

1. A Northwest Passage

2. Up For Sale

3. Bigger Cages, Longer Chains

4. Breakout 2001

5. A Body Treatise

6. Born Into A Mess

7. New Empire Blues

8. Capitalism Stole My Virginity

9. Last Century Promise

10. Dead Language Of Love

11. A New Morning, Changing Weather

 Look at that tracklist. What the fuck is this, a politcal album? Oh no, the rabbit hole runs much deeper my friend, this is a political band.

I'm more than happy to throw my hands up and say I have a problem with political bands, and my problem is this - more often than not I know they're a political band before I've even heard a song. So when the band are throwing meanings at you without even hearing the first note, you have to wonder if music is the best route. Admittedly, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, with their silly name, aren't all that bad about it. I only figured out their songs had a political edge to them when researching for this review, although that may have been related to the fact that I also turned the album off after not long.

Anyway, the band play a sort of garage rock, slightly-punk-but-only-if-you-squint type music, mostly upbeat and easily dancable. The intro track is actually a good song, driven by the bass and drums with catchy vocals overlayed and never outstaying its welcome. There's some interesting use of random instruments you wouldn't expect from this sort of band, electric organs, horns and keyboards which work well to pad out the music. The songs are never guitar driven, which I have a soft spot for.

Songs like "Bigger Cages, Longer Chains" sound almost ska, which I hate and is probably where most of the dislike for this band stems from on my part. I can't make peace with it, at all. It's worth noting that while it sounds like it has a ska elements (the horns and the punk vocals, primarily) the songs are actually much slower and funkier than the drivel you'd expect from a ska band.

The songs walk back and forth between punk and rock, some being fairly light and others having more of a punk orientated guitar rhythm. Actually, listening to it now I don't mind it. I'm pretty sure I was going to hate this. Fuck sake.

According the Wikipedia, this album is actually called "A New Morning, Changing Weather", but where the fuck does it say that on the cover? It's the sort of shit that sends HMV employees into fits of rage. What sort of prat doesn't even have the correct details on an album cover?

"Bricklayer Anthems, Vol 1"

I'm pretty sure I hated this band half an hour ago. What the hell?

I guess the moral of the story is don't listen to politically motivated bands kids, 'cause they'll brainwash you. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to stand outside the local town hall quoting Rage Against the Machine for reasons I can't comprehend.

Jeff Wayne - Spartacus (1992)

Elliott's disappeared into the void, he hasn't sent me emails for weeks now begging for some crazy album or whatnot. I can only assume he's either been eaten by zombies or got laid.

Anyway, in Elliott's absense I have free reign of the blog. That means you'll read whatever tripe I write here - and holy hell is this album a barrel load of tripe.

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of Spartacus

 DISK 1

1. Destiny

2. Animal & Man (Part I)

3. Animal & Man (Part II)

4. For All Time

5. Whispers

6. The Eagle & The Hawk

 

DISK 2

1. Going Home

2. The Parting Of The Ways

3. We Carry On

4. Trust Me

5. Two Souls With A Single Dream

6. The Last Battle/The Eagle & The Hawk

7. The Appian Way

8. Epilogue (Part I)

9. Epilogue (Part II)

Here's a fact about this album: I've never been able to stay awake the entire time listening to it.

Let's get something out of the way. If you YouTube a song off this album, the comments will be a mix between people rightly proclaiming just how horrible this turd filled cravasse is, and people saying you need to give it a chance. The latter people are in severe denial, and giving this album a chance will result in an early demise*

For the uneducated amongst us, Jeff Wayne is the guy who did (shock horror) Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of the War of the Worlds, an album based on the story about tripods attacking Victorian London. That album was amazing and a classic. You know it don't you? DUN DUN DUNNNN. Of course you do, classic.

So what did he do after getting loads of recognition over that? Wrote this barrel of bull testicles. I mean, I can't blame the guy. An album about Roman gladiators fighting to the death, screaming "I'M SPARTACUS!!1!" sounds like a probable Manowar album, lots of cheesy lyrics about clashing heavy metal and fighting to the death in the arena, right?

Right...?

What the fuck Jeff.

A song where Spartacus whinges about if he refuses to fight he may get whipped a bit, and then Anthony Hopkins getting giddy over some arena action, whilst making the most unsubtle comparisons between the Roman civilization and the beasts in the arena. All the while, the crowd shout the name of a well known neck vein often referenced in bad circus related jokes.

I'm gonna be honest, it isn't all an abomination. The song above is probably one of the better on the album, keeping an exciting pace, but there's no real lead, and the progression doesn't really feel refreshing or exciting when it happens. The albums biggest crime is after the first few songs are over, it just plods along until the end. Horrible, horrible love songs make it cringeworthy, and a lack of any kind of hook in pretty much every song makes it hard to actually remember much of what went on.

Someone, somewhere will jump on me for this review. "You just don't know decent music!!1! Go back to listening to teh Sexy Pistolz!!" they'll scream, offended at my criticisms and apparently thinking that I like punk.

To that guy, I say fuck you. This album isn't interesting. The story falls flat a few songs in. The narration is all over the place, and the singing doesn't feel like there's any passion behind it (I believe this may be a reflection of the music, as all the singers seem more than capable). The redeeming brilliant moments in this album (and believe me, there are actually a few) are sandwiched between monotonous lengthy tunes that don't really go anywhere.

Honestly, to me it sounds like someone tried to spruce up an audiobook, but forgot to put half of the story back in, the music acting more like a backing track for ambience.

I think they're with you mate.

But this is the biggest annoyance - if this was just a shit album, I'd just have written a review saying "THIS IS A SHIT ALBUM" and be done. But somewhere, lodged between the tepid turd of the track list is some good music, some decent tunes weighed down by crap progression and support.

Apparently this album is pretty rare now, having being out of print for a while. That's because I bought them all. And I burned them.

Anyway, pray for Elliott to return before this stops being a punk blog and I start just reviewing Pink Floyd constantly.

*The album may or may not actually result in an early demise, currently unproven.

brack greatest hits vol. 1 cd

now some of you should know that i love racing. and music. this combines the two. this is indycar champion kenny brack's band. i won't go into much detail but brack raced in the irl for a few seasons and won 4 races including the 1999 indy 500. then he made the right choice ad moved to the cart champ car series. he won 5 races in that one and finished second in the championship in 2001. then he moved back to the irl and got hurt really seriously in a bad crash at the insanely dangerous (for indycars) texas motor speedway. he later came back to indy and i beleive is doing ralleying now. anyway in 2007 he started a band and did an album. what's the music lie? i'm gonna be quite honest here. it's pop rock maybe a little pop punk. something you'd probably here on the radio. now you're probably thinking that me the punk who listens to dr aids and souch will hate this band right? wrong! it's actually quite good. i really like kenny's song about a.j foyt legend of the speedway. yeah the lyrics are cheezy as all hell but it's a good song. the worst part is the vocalist. i can't describe it but he just doesn't sound right. maybe he shouldn't be a melodic singer. i think his name is frank. hey frank! wanna try death metal next t time? anyway this thing only has 7 songs (9 if you include the two radio edits which i skip) and they're all great pop songs. one is a slow one about kenny's kid being born a few floors abouve where he was recovering from the crash. i wish i could link youtube stuff. this crash was horrible.i hope kenny does a new album soon. come on dude! maybe write a song about how great paul tracy was haha. racing joke. anyway you can get this from amazon or whereever and i suggest you do it. enjoy this well produced rock from the only swedish racer to win indy

the exploited punk's not dead lp

yes, a punk post! about time eh? well everyone knows of this band. i don't know if they were nazis or what but this album does kick ass. later on they became more political but they were mostly an oi! band at this point with some hc leanings. the lyrics are pretty simplistic but effective. cgreat music though. watty's voice is well punk. this is the only scotish band i know other than the alternative. to be honest i can't really say much about this album. it just is punk. the live intros to some of the songs were a bit weird. i don't know why they did that. over all a strong punk album from these brits. funny that they're now metal. and no, punk is totally dead. btw i'd like some mpore records to review. the email is ellindamood@gmail.com please get in touch.