The Lion’s Daughter - Skin Show (Season Of Mist) [Paul Hutchings]
Disturbing, raw, deviant. Three words that may quickly spring to mind on first encounter with The Lion’s Daughter and their latest release, Skin Show. The trio Rick Giordano - guitars, vocals, synths, bass, Erik Ramsier - drums and percussion and Scott Fogelbach – vocals were by all accounts immersed in blackened Sludge metal until this, their fourth album. I’m unfamiliar with their earlier works so taking this very much face on, it’s difficult to contemplate them with that sound. The St. Louis outfit kick things off with Become The Night, incorporating a heavy synth feel which is balanced by crunching riffing, ferocious drumming and Fogelbach’s rasping vocal roar. Interestingly, the band has played a bit of musical chairs with Fogelbach dedicated solely to vocals here, having played guitar and bass in 2018’s Future Cult. Here he shares the vocal duty with Girdano. Over the 42 minutes that make up this album, you are treated to an onslaught of industrial metal, made up of thick layers of synths, aggressive guitar work and the raw and savage vocals.
At times it’s hard to put the finger on a particular sound, as The Lion’s Daughter weave their way through a myriad of styles. The opening two songs are bombastic, whilst Neon Teeth moves to a cinematic soundscape, with its anthemic pulse, synth work and driving bass. Searching deeper, regardless of the music, it’s the lyrics on Skin Show that cut deepest, focusing on topics of discomfort: sexual violence, abuse, mental health issues and anxiety. I agree with the blurb: ‘It’s the type of record that can easily garner coveted radio airplay, and yet, it can also serve as the background playlist for a BDSM orgy in an illegal dungeon or abandoned warehouse’.
The songs on Skin Show are incredibly variable. The full-on thrash of Werewolf Hospital, all intense sharp edges contrasts with the darker, deeper sonic vibe of Snakeface, whilst the dramatic, sludge-tinged conclusion to the album with The Chemist leaves you confused, emotionally scarred, and slightly unnerved. Which is no doubt where this band want you to be. It doesn’t fit conveniently into one genre defining box. You’ll need to immerse deeply to full appreciate an album that is dramatic, sinister, and generally uncomfortable but in a good way. 7/10
Borstal – At Her Majestys Pleasure (4 Family Records) [Liam True]
In the overpopulated world of top-notch extreme metal drummers, Nick Barker is an undisputed legend. With Cradle Of Filth, Dimmu Borgir and Testament on his resumé, not to mention grindcore supergroup LOCK UP, he has already earned his place in metal history. But now it's time for an entirely different vibe, as Nick Barker makes a very welcome return to the stage, after a lengthy period spent behind the scenes. Six tracks of absolutely ripping metallic hardcore, with a neat and subversive twist, At Her Majesty's Pleasure fulfils the drummer's long-held desire to pay tribute to the crossover scene that inspired so many of his generation.
With a lineup boasting members of UK hardcore legends Knuckledust and London's ultra-gnarly Dripback, Borstal could easily come across as a fun, temporary side project, but what really hits home during this exhilarating burst of thuggish precision is that Barker has assembled himself a real band here, with all the vein-popping chemistry and exuberant camaraderie that goes with it. Musical reference points are exactly as they should be. Borstal deal in a straightforward, groove-driven and relentlessly ferocious strain of metallic hardcore, steeped in the seminal clangor of NYHC greats like Cro-Mags and Sick Of It All, and from the adrenalized rush of opener Refuse To Lose onwards, the quintet's debut EP nails that sound with more energy and conviction than any band in recent memory.
More importantly, however, Borstal have a broad and proud British streak that precludes them from simply echoing Big Apple beatdowns. Gang vocals and the occasional burst of knuckleheaded melody point to a love for old-school UK street punk and the early '80s Oi! scene as well as bands like The Business and The Exploited. Borstal are more than capable of throwing in a jaw-shattering D-beat from time to time, too. The end result is vastly more exciting than other high-quality NYHC tribute as a result. It's genuinely hard to imagine that songs like preview single Vicious Circles and anthemic closer King Of The Jungle won't turn mosh-pits into warzones when they finally get to play these songs live. And one thing is absolutely guaranteed: Nick Barker is having the absolute time of his fucking life, back where he belongs and doing something genuinely fresh and exciting. Her Majesty will doubtless be delighted. 7/10
Baron Crâne - Commotions (Mrs Red Sounds) [Richard Oliver]
Baron Crâne are a three-piece progressive stoner rock band from Paris. Their latest release Commotions, which is the third album from the band, was originally self-released by the band in 2020 but they have signed up with Mrs Red Sound Records (curated by the band Mars Red Sky) who will be re-releasing the album in April 2021.
Despite falling under the stoner rock label, Baron Crâne are a band with a multitude of influences which affects their shifting and swirling sound. They have the stoner rock aesthetics but mix in progressive, psychedelic, jazz fusion and math rock sounds across the five songs which make up the album. Songs such as Firmin and Fifth Stone mixes desert rock riffage with these alternative sounds whilst Closing Doors veers more towards the psychedelic and jazz fusions sounds. Although primarily an instrumental band, Commotions sees Baron Crâne welcome guest vocalists with Arthur Brossard on the desert rock of Acid Rains whilst hip hop artist INCH guests on On Rase Les Murs resulting in the most experimental sounding song on the album.
When I listen to stoner rock the main attraction for me are the riffs as a great riff can put me in a good mood instantly. Unfortunately this album is very much lacking in the memorable riff department for me as the album is more focused on psychedelic soundscapes and math rock complexities than the fine art of great riffs with groove. I appreciate that this aims to be far more than a simple stoner rock album and the band very much achieve that but personally I would have liked to have heard a healthy mix of cool stoner rock riffs with these progressive elements mixed in. Stoner rock is a very crowded genre and it is great to hear a band taking the genre in new and experimental directions but Commotions lacks staying power and the songs, whilst very technically proficient in their compositions, just don’t really stick in the mind once the album has come to an end. Baron Crâne have to be applauded for the bold experimentation of their music but it is a flawed experiment. 6/10
Stepson - Help Me, Help You (Sharptone Records) [JT Smith]
This is a record that has managed something quite rare, in that I have not heard a record this uninspired, unoriginal and unappealing in quite some time. Metalcore is a genre of music that has to try particularly hard now anyway, given just how many metalcore bands there are and have been out there, and this record fails pretty miserably, sounding… Well. Lazy.
The songs are formulaic in construction, literally sounding like they’ve come off metalcore-by-numbers production line and with every metalcore cliche thrown in (here’s the slightly quieter verse before the louder, equally unmemorable chorus, here’s the slightly upbeat but emo sounding song, here’s the dirty, but tuneful vocals, here’s the ‘woah, woah,’ refrains), but with puzzlingly quiet-in-the-mix drums, guitars that are too polished and toothless (seriously, how do you get this wrong?! In Flames perfected *exactly this* guitar sound well over a decade ago, and while they may be a shadow of their former selves, they’ve contributed a lot to heavy music, not least how to dial in a good, generic, bog-standard guitar tone).
There are no high points on the album, but I can pick out a low point; I Wish is clearly a stab at a more mature, experimental dabbling in samples and electronica, and it’s unbelievably smug and self congratulatory. It goes nowhere and adds nothing to an album already veering into those territories. This is like all of the ideas discarded by Alexisonfire and Underoath were picked up and strained through a filter marked ‘2007.’ Avoid at all costs. 2/10
Baron Crâne - Commotions (Mrs Red Sounds) [Richard Oliver]
Baron Crâne are a three-piece progressive stoner rock band from Paris. Their latest release Commotions, which is the third album from the band, was originally self-released by the band in 2020 but they have signed up with Mrs Red Sound Records (curated by the band Mars Red Sky) who will be re-releasing the album in April 2021.
Despite falling under the stoner rock label, Baron Crâne are a band with a multitude of influences which affects their shifting and swirling sound. They have the stoner rock aesthetics but mix in progressive, psychedelic, jazz fusion and math rock sounds across the five songs which make up the album. Songs such as Firmin and Fifth Stone mixes desert rock riffage with these alternative sounds whilst Closing Doors veers more towards the psychedelic and jazz fusions sounds. Although primarily an instrumental band, Commotions sees Baron Crâne welcome guest vocalists with Arthur Brossard on the desert rock of Acid Rains whilst hip hop artist INCH guests on On Rase Les Murs resulting in the most experimental sounding song on the album.
When I listen to stoner rock the main attraction for me are the riffs as a great riff can put me in a good mood instantly. Unfortunately this album is very much lacking in the memorable riff department for me as the album is more focused on psychedelic soundscapes and math rock complexities than the fine art of great riffs with groove. I appreciate that this aims to be far more than a simple stoner rock album and the band very much achieve that but personally I would have liked to have heard a healthy mix of cool stoner rock riffs with these progressive elements mixed in. Stoner rock is a very crowded genre and it is great to hear a band taking the genre in new and experimental directions but Commotions lacks staying power and the songs, whilst very technically proficient in their compositions, just don’t really stick in the mind once the album has come to an end. Baron Crâne have to be applauded for the bold experimentation of their music but it is a flawed experiment. 6/10
This is a record that has managed something quite rare, in that I have not heard a record this uninspired, unoriginal and unappealing in quite some time. Metalcore is a genre of music that has to try particularly hard now anyway, given just how many metalcore bands there are and have been out there, and this record fails pretty miserably, sounding… Well. Lazy.
The songs are formulaic in construction, literally sounding like they’ve come off metalcore-by-numbers production line and with every metalcore cliche thrown in (here’s the slightly quieter verse before the louder, equally unmemorable chorus, here’s the slightly upbeat but emo sounding song, here’s the dirty, but tuneful vocals, here’s the ‘woah, woah,’ refrains), but with puzzlingly quiet-in-the-mix drums, guitars that are too polished and toothless (seriously, how do you get this wrong?! In Flames perfected *exactly this* guitar sound well over a decade ago, and while they may be a shadow of their former selves, they’ve contributed a lot to heavy music, not least how to dial in a good, generic, bog-standard guitar tone).
There are no high points on the album, but I can pick out a low point; I Wish is clearly a stab at a more mature, experimental dabbling in samples and electronica, and it’s unbelievably smug and self congratulatory. It goes nowhere and adds nothing to an album already veering into those territories. This is like all of the ideas discarded by Alexisonfire and Underoath were picked up and strained through a filter marked ‘2007.’ Avoid at all costs. 2/10