Crown Lands - Fearless (Spinefarm Records) [Matt Bladen]
There's been a lot of Crown Lands releases, many EP's that feature the same songs, plenty of singles but Fearless is the Canadian duo's follow up to their Self Titled 2020 record which really put them on the map as a rock n roll force.
Fearless is forward thinking but also returns to Crown Lands earliest influences, the hard blues rocking of bands like Wolfmother still present on tracks such as Right Way Back but they now have fully embraced the band they have been compared to a lot during their career, fellow Canadians, Rush.
Again featuring some previously released track such as their breakthrough single Context: Fearless Pt. 1 the invention is pushed to breaking point especially on the 18 minute opener Starlifter: Fearless Pt. 2 which is as close to the double neck toting, largest drumkit in the world version of Rush that appeared on Hemispheres through to Moving Pictures. It's simply staggering how close to Rush it is.
Using percussion, bells/chimes, odd time signatures, and walls of sci-fi influences, it's probably no surprise that Fearless is concept record that deals with colonization. Persecution and being sidelined and overlooked is something that the band have always tried to the crossover onto their music as strong advocates for the LGBTQ+ and indigenous communities.
They flavour their sci-fi conceptual journeys with these more earthly concerns much like their Canadian influences did with tracks such as The Trees or Bastille Day. It's hard to listen to the album without thinking about Rush singer/drummer Cody Bowles having that nasal falsetto of Geddy Lee as well as the percussive genius of Neil Peart, check out the swells on Dreamer Of The Dawn or the power on Reflections.
Guitarist/keyboardist Kevin Comeau steers the songs with all manner of strings and synths, from the moody The Shadow to the classical guitar instrumental Penny as they bring the Rushisms back for Lady Of The Lake and the closing cinematic epic Citadel, which ends this second album in majestic but reflective style.
I have a former colleague who will be jumping for joy at the sound of this and has probably already given this record top marks. I have to agree as Fearless is just that. 9/10
Tilintetgjort - In Death I Shall Rise (Dark Essence Records) [Paul Scoble]
In Death I Shall Rise is the debut album from Oslo based band Tilintetgjort. The band formed in 2020 by guitarists Den Gamle and Hazzlegard, and bassist Sturt, later that year drummer Tybalt and singer Svek joined lineup making a five piece. The quintet set out to make music influenced by Avant-guard black metal, whilst also having other diverse influences.
This debut album was recorded in the Chaka Khan studios in Oslo in 2022. The sound on offer on In Death I Shall Rise is initially simple, but with more listens becomes much more complex. The albums sound is very close to lo-fi raw black metal, production wise it’s very basic with an fairly analogue early Nineties sound that would be familiar to anyone who has listened to second wave black metal, particularly the non symphonic style pioneered by Dark Throne, and similar to more modern black metal bands such as Mork. There's a paired down feel to the production, rather than a huge multi layered sound. However, the more you listen to this album the more you hear other influences that should be incongruous, but actually fit together really well.
In it’s 47 minutes In Death I Shall Rise has influences from 70’s hard rock, NWOBHM, electronica, alternative rock, punk and hardcore, it turns out that Tilintetgjort are very talented musical magpies who have mixed their raw black metal with anything that interested them, and have pulled off a triumph! The album opens with Kvikksølvdrømmer, a mix of paired down, fast and blasting black metal with occasional chanting and dissonance, the vocals are nasty, harsh and very effective. The song is probably the most ‘standard’ black metal track on the album, but it does draw you in well, and it gives you your first taste of the high level of technical ability on this album, as all the performances are very good, particularly the bass.
Next comes Sannhetens Søyler which opens with some very fast blasting and tremolo picked riffs, that are at the high end of the guitars neck. This section is very aggressive and batters the listener into submission. The song then slows down to a more measured pace with some very melodic mid-paced riffs which sound very Seventies hard rock, before a very melodic solo section that is full of tunefulness and has really great energy to it. Next track, Mercurial is initially super fast with some very nice riffs that I thought were a little reminiscent of Voivod, in that they are very interesting and full of melody and drive, again the bass riffs are just as interesting as the Guitar and the interplay between the two is sublime. The song then drops into a mid-paced stomp with riffs that have a little bit of NWOBHM about them, before the pace picks up with some punky black metal to take us to an end where the song disintegrates.
Vinter og Høst is next, it opens with savagely fast blasting and totally unhinged riffs. A pagan style riff with chanting slows things down before a section with some very interesting guitar that I feel has an alternative sound, maybe a little like Dave Navarro’s playing in Jane's Addiction, maybe a little like Larry LaLonde’s in Primus, I even think it’s reminiscent of Marc Ribot’s Guitar work on Tom Waits album Rain Dogs. This section has a guitar solo that is idiosyncratic, but also brilliant. The song disintegrates into screaming, which takes us nicely into the next track. Hex is a two minute blast of very simple riffs, that then morphs into blasting with alternative riffs, before dropping into a short blast of punk black metal.
Lastly we get a twenty minute epic of creative black metal; Dommedagsmonument. During this huge song you will get some atmospheric black metal blasting, very high speed, high register riffing, several idiosyncratic guitar solos, vocal chanting, an instrumental section that has a very jazz influenced feel, some electronica, aggressive hardcore, a shredding guitar solo, some very punky black metal riffs, and ends with more electronic noises. It would be pretty pointless trying to describe the whole thing, it changes almost constantly and is an almost ridiculously creative song, that shouldn’t work but does brilliantly.
In Death I Shall Rise is a stunning album. It’s one of the most creative black metal albums I have heard in years, in fact I can’t remember the last time I was this excited about black metal. The way the band have added so many different stylistic elements together, whilst still maintaining a simple raw black metal sound is really impressive, instead of adding layers to create a musical melting pot, Tilintetgjort have used their playing to do this. This album can almost certainly be recreated on stage without backing tapes or extra musicians. This album is definitely going on my end of the year list, but I think it’ll be remembered for years as an amazing, groundbreaking and very influential album, who knows, maybe in a few years we’ll be taking about Tilintetgjort style black metal. It’s superb, I absolutely fucking love it! 9/10
Lordi - Screem Writers Guild (Atomic Fire Records) [Simon Black]
Lordi are a ridiculously prolific band nowadays. In their early years like everyone else they cranked a new studio disk out every couple of years or so, but whilst most bands either braved a cautious EP with remote recorded content, rested completely or cleared out the live recording’s cupboard during lockdown, this bunch instead opted to produce a seven-disk set of completely new albums in 2021 in one release. You think that would have been it for a while, but no, there’s another one – their eighteenth no less. As in the past, tongues are placed firmly in someone else’s cheek, with a loose concept of homage to classic horror movies of the last century filling the lyrical subject matter.
To be fair Rob Zombie’s been at that for a while, but this is Lordi, so it’s a far from serious dalliance for the most part. When it kicks off with the rather unexpectedly enjoyably heavy Dead Again Jayne, I was lulled into a false sense of security that this might be heading into new territory, but sadly they switch almost immediately back to the oft-trod pattern of spoken word humorous (allegedly) interludes breaking up a series of competent, but unspectacular middle of the road rockers.The music is competent enough in its delivery, but it really does feel like it’s been done by the numbers and with the exception of the catchy opener really leaves one wondering why they didn’t bother taking a long enough break after 2021’s four and a half epic for the creativity to peak. Sadly, it just feels like factory fodder. 4/10
Kingsmen – Bones Don’t Lie (Sharptone Records) [Zak Skane]
Once the intensive intro finished we go straight into the our industrial title track Bones Don’t Lie comes at us with sci-fi sounding throbbing sub bass pulses, mechanical quacking guitar tones, industrial marching pulses and classic metalcore breakdowns. The vocalists go from low graveled vocals, Jonathan Davies styled sung choruses to metal core styled grunts. Bitter Half takes the tempo up a notes with it’s thrashy grooves djenty machine gun precision whilst the track channels Disturbed vibes whilst the singer is challenging their inner David Draiman.
Trials By Fire shows the band going into hard rock territory with its 2000 era sounding influences with it Three Days Grace sounding choruses and Breaking Benjamin styled breakdowns, whilst adding some modern production with adding ambient synth layers and lead guitars. The momentum continues with is baritone tuned riffs and sing along verses and choruses. Other highlights on this album are the meaty metal power house of Catalyst which comprises groove metal riffage and the return of the David Draiman inspired vocals, Prayer Man comes back with the low pulverizing industrial punches before it comes to our closer Diamondize. Our final track takes it back to ten, with its Rammstein marching tempos, chanting choruses and low tuned barking riffs all wrapped up in a metalcore bubble.
The only weak point on this album is No Road Home, in which I think is constructed with the best intentions but executed in the worst way. First of all I am not disregarding the production quality on this song by any means but my gripe comes to the arrangement and the direction. The lyrics are some of the most repetitive I have heard in a while, but due to them being turned high in the mix the rinse and repeat delivery get nauseous. The sudden musical direction from their industrial alt rock to this Imagine Dragons daytime styled jingle I found just jarring.
Despite their impersonation of doing Imagine Dragons in No Road Home, Kingsman have released a decent sounding album. I have got to give my congrats to the mixing engineer that has done a great job harnessing all of these wild elements from the bawl rumbling guitars in songs like Bones Don’t Lie and Prayer Man, to the industrialized drums in Diamonize and the singers multi dimensional range from songs like the anthemic Trial By Fire to the harsh vocal delivery of Catalyst.
Even though this is a great produced album there were moments where I found it just lost music direction from going to industrial metalcore to radio rock, but either way if you are a fan of 2000’s era rock of Disturbed and metal with a modern twist. 7/10