Amon Amarth - The Great Heathen Army (Metal Blade) [Erick Willand]
At this point Amon Amarth have amassed their own Great Heathen Army with an unsinkable mega-Longship full of massive Viking Metal anthems, legendary live shows, and a trove of hunt worthy merch. So is the army ready for another battle or is the campaign season coming to an end? Grab your swords and oars, lads and lasses and we’ll set sail for glory, or damnation! The Great Heathen Army opens with Get In The Ring, dare I say, a classic Amon Amarth song and will absolutely be a crowd favorite. Its melodic opening leads into thundering gallops, just like you all wanted, don’t be shy. You know when Johan growls “Are you scared” the pit is going to go nuts.
Track 2 is the title track Great Heathen Army wastes no time at all with a guitar peel and instant gallop and all you raiders no it’s time. The song is lyrically inspired by a real historical Heathen invasion of England in 865. This is the kind of song that got me into Amon Amarth to begin with, musically it’s not breaking any new ground, but lyrically I’m right there. Gives me the right kind of Iron Maiden vibes. The next song is Heidrun and is a fun rollicking sing along, I’m a sucker for this stuff so yeah, I’m yelling right along “Who’s the goat, who’s the goat…Heidrun! Heidrun!” I can’t help myself. My one issue is that this song is in the wrong place on the album. You especially feel this when Oden Owns You All starts. For me this felt like a tonal shift after the rolling fun that is Heidrun, which maybe should have been the last song.
Anyway, track 4 is, and I hate to say it again but, a classic Amon Amarth song. In fact, if you’re already on this longship, like myself, then songs like Find A Way Or Make One (my personal fave), Dawn Of Norsemen, Skagul Rides With Me, and The Serpent’s Trail are exactly what you expected and wanted from Amon Amarth. It’s the same reason we love Slayer, Cannibal Corpse, and Motorhead. We know they’re not going to break any molds or rewrite the formula. It’s expected. However I do have to talk about Saxons And Vikings, which for me has been one of the highlight metal songs so far this year. The song is epic and visceral and the duelling vocals of Johan Hegg and none other than Saxon’s own Biff Byford was just…I’m still geeking out over it. It made the album for me. Also for the record, I love the cover art (so there social media). I’m declaring this a successful raid, with that absolutely epic vocal duel pushing it up, 7/10
The twelfth album from Max Cavalera's Soulfly has a definite classic metal sound to it, and an aggression that seems to have been missing from their past few albums, for me anyway. The band have been stuck in a bit of rut recycling the same old style over and over again while Max experimented more with his other projects. Here through for the first part of the album at least there's a concerted effort to make Soulfly feel vital again as Max, his son Zyon on drums and bassist Mike Leon are joined by a host of guest guitarists.
The reason for the guests is that long time guitarist Marc Rizzo, exited the band and rejoined his old group Ill Niño. The drama surrounding his exit inspired the more aggressive tone on this record. Not having Rizzo has meant that Cavalera has reached out to a selection of player who you may not think would fit in the Soulfly mold but most certainly do. Cavalera produces with Arthur Rizk of Eternal Champion who also plays lead guitars, while there's guest leads from John Powers (Eternal Champion) and Chris Ulsh (Power Trip), these guitarists insuring that the first few tracks and the progressive final track (which also has vocals from Ritchie Cavalera) are stuffed with melodic twin leads from the NWOTHM/Speed/Death/Thrash style, making for a sound Soulfly haven't had for a long time.
Cavalera has mentioned he is a big fan of the bands mentioned so it's only right that the songwriting reflects this. It gives at least the first half of the record a real vigour the inclusion of Obituary's John Tardy growls on Scouring The Vile is giving it the OSDM viciousness. Towards the latter part of the record is does dip a little as it falls back into tried and tested rhythmic grooving but for me Totem is probably the most entertaining Soulfly have been for a long time. 8/10
Inhuman Condition - Fearsick (Listenable Insanity Records) [Erick Willand]
Three members, Jeramie Kling, Taylor Nurberg, and legend Terry Butler collectively come with an established pedigree of death metal mastery including Massacre, The Absence, Deicide, Death, Obituary, and Ex Deo. And my dudes, the experience shows! This is death thrash of the highest order, building solidly on the corpse packed foundation that this crew's first release Rat God laid out.
David Readman - Medusa (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
I've said it before and I'll say it over again, with David Coverdale now retiring and ending rock legends Whitesnake, if they ever wanted to reform without ol' leather lungs himself they could easily bring in David Readman and the gap would be seamless. Having lent his voice to numerous projects, making his name in Pink Cream 69, most recently coming back to Voodoo Circle which reinvigorated the band for me. His solo albums are always well worth listening too, as they always sit very comfortably in that Whitesnake rock vein.
Inhuman Condition - Fearsick (Listenable Insanity Records) [Erick Willand]
Three members, Jeramie Kling, Taylor Nurberg, and legend Terry Butler collectively come with an established pedigree of death metal mastery including Massacre, The Absence, Deicide, Death, Obituary, and Ex Deo. And my dudes, the experience shows! This is death thrash of the highest order, building solidly on the corpse packed foundation that this crew's first release Rat God laid out.
Opening track The Mold Testament comes blazing in and you know it’s going to be a fun ride, and absolutely there will be mosh pits of legend when they play this live. The song does run a wee bit long but I’m not bored at all. Recycled Hate comes out with the drums and quickly breaks into a full on old school slasher of a song, like a Wrong Turn killer jumping you from behind a tree. The drum work here is relentless and glorious, tied in with crunching guitars and sing along lyrics and I’m hooked, take my money! After that track 3 is an easy sell on me, not going to lie. Mean and aggressive both sonically and lyrically this is the song that will have people next to you at a red light rolling their windows up and clutching their phones.
Every death metal album has to have a zombie song and I’m Now The Monster is that song on Fearsick, I don’t make the rules friends. Waking up in your own coffin would suck hard and that feeling comes through here in the tortured vocals. My one issue here is song length as this taps at 4:35, a trim would have made this one a bit stronger. King Con has one of those quiet slow openings that as a death metal fan you know is a lie. Once the song properly starts it rolls in with a catchy riff and crunchy drums that fit the psychological lyrics nicely marked by the sick lead that breaks in at about 2:33 and then just slows and blurs out, nice effect.
Next track Hellucid keeps the psychological theme going and it's a brutal song that wastes no time getting to the meat. This will clearly be a crowd fave come show time, “this inhuman place, it’s inhuman monsters” will set fire to the pit I’m sure. With Wound Collector we’re back to horror movie monster mayhem about a creature that feeds off your nightmares and fears. The song isn’t breaking any thrash/death ground but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t rip, great drum work carries it through. If every death metal album must have a zombie track, there must also be a political track and I feel like Fencewalker is that song here, if it is a bit vague. Starting in with some thunderous drum work the song is relentless and aggressive in all the right ways, probably my fave track on the album.
Last track Where Pain Is Infinity is the final track of the album and starts riff heavy and slow but quickly builds to a rolling rumble of a song. It’s a solid closing track with a ripping solo that will peel layers off your brain. Fearsick is a solid album start to finish, giving the fans just what we want, ripping good death-thrash played with heart and built on experience. I can’t end this without also mentioning the awesome cover art by Dan Goldsworthy, the continued theme and character from Rat God are here and I’m totally digging it. Top shelf cover art also makes must have merch. 8/10
David Readman - Medusa (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
I've said it before and I'll say it over again, with David Coverdale now retiring and ending rock legends Whitesnake, if they ever wanted to reform without ol' leather lungs himself they could easily bring in David Readman and the gap would be seamless. Having lent his voice to numerous projects, making his name in Pink Cream 69, most recently coming back to Voodoo Circle which reinvigorated the band for me. His solo albums are always well worth listening too, as they always sit very comfortably in that Whitesnake rock vein.
Readman gives his all throughout, opening up with Madame Medusa which is a duet with singer Jessica Conte, it's a full throttle, semi-power metal offering with a big chorus. The Fallen meanwhile makes full use of Julien Spreutels keys (as does Shelter From The Storm), keeping the melodic metal feel. From here though the there's some swaggering riffs and grooving rhythms on Generation Dead and Change The World which is very 'Snake, Turned To Black is a cruncher and Mary Jane is dripping with attitude.
The record is expertly mixed/mastered by Readman's ex-bandmate Dennis Ward and he has a myriad of guests playing on the album with Zibby Krebs/Roland Grapow/Simone Mularoni all axe slinging, Michael Kolar/Bodo Schopf on drums, Spreutels on keys and Roxana Herrera on bass. A big, noisy, hard rock album, just listen to Children Of Thunder with some emotions running through it as well on Summer Wine and the epic King Who Lost His Throne. Another powerful rock record from David Readman, and another perfect Whitesnake audition. 8/10