Does anyone else love this band as much as I do? I can't get enough of them. My favourite album is 'The Goat of Mendes' with 'Antichrist' being a close second. The only album I haven't checked out yet is the first; 'Rape of the Bastard Nazarene'. What is it like? They seem to blend black and death a lot better than other black/death bands that I've heard and I love the variety in the vocals. Oh and of course the whole 'progressive-ness' of the music is awesome as well; I actually enjoy the electronic influences.
I have never seen them live (only discovering after they toured Australia last year... ) how are they as a live band? Do they manage to pull of the same kind of atmosphere? Also is there any similar bands out there? not that I have really tried searching...

So discuss your love (or hate) for Akercocke here.

Oh and here is that Irish TV interview with them that most of you would have seen. If not check it out, its hilarious; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dl9oM4f1xdQ

Chronozon is actually my favorite. Even though it's their least liked. That album has gotten many plays from me. Antichrist was pretty good but slightly jumped on the Opeth bandwagon somewhat.

I have "Choronzon" and "Antichrist", both excellent albums. I also love the piss take interview they did on British T.V.

Wish I could see them live, would be awesome with all those smart suits.

Great band that mix not only black and death but also prog elements. I Haven't really listened to their early stuff, but nonetheless, ''Antichrist'' and ''Words That Go Unspoken, Deeds That Go Undone'' are both excellent albums. I hope their next album will be as good.

Great band. My only bone to pick with their sound is their guttural vocals...very poorly executed and unnecessary in their overall sound IMO.

I might be alone in thinking that 'Words that go Unspoken' and 'The Goat of Mendes' are their best albums overall. To be honest, I think they write some great songs (Leviathan, Skin for Dancing In, Verdelet), but patchy albums. I didn't get into Antichrist at all.

I haven't heard a whole lot of their material, but I haven't been able to get into the little bit that i have heard. I probably just need to give them another chance though.

How so? Having a clean song (Epode) with clean vocals to finish the album? I don't think so at all. Using clean and harsh vocals =/= Opeth. If anything the album before it "Words that go Unspoken..." is more like that.



I have always thought it would be a cool idea playing a gig in suits. Especially that kind of music.

My favorite out of the Akercocke albums would have to be Words That Go Unspoken, Deeds That Go Undone. I love the heavy, catchy riffs, as well as the clean singing over the heavy/clean melodies. It's no short of evil sounding, yet its technicality is not as detectable as one would expect, including myself.

Although it's not on the album, my favorite song is "Axiom". The acoustic beginning and chanting vocals first attracted me to it. Following this song is "Words That Go Unspoken Pt. I". It's all over the place and still manages to flow smoothly. Every instrument has its moment in the song that are very noticeable, especially bass near the very end.

I honestly don't like their first three albums as much as their latest two which is weird for me, considering that black metal is my favorite genre of music to listen to. It just seems like Antichrist and Words That Go Unspoken, Deeds That Go Undone are a lot more interesting and enjoyable. There's so much to each song on both that I think they have progressed farther than their expectations since they first formed. These guys definitely have a lot of built up potential for another successful record.

EDIT: Nevermind, didn't fully read the OP.

This is what I find most people don't like about the band; the guttural vocals. Granted, it took me a while to get used to them, but now I have I enjoy them. I like it when they have the clean/spoken vocals with the guttural vocals backing it. Sounds evil as fuck. I don't agree with them being unnecessary, as it is a key component to their sound but I do prefer the black metal shrieks and clean vocals over the guttural death vocals.

I do like their black metal trimmings especially in some of the vocals but they are decidedly more death metal. As a matter of fact, they are one of the few bands that I really like that can be described as blackened death. Other than that, I never can get into many bands that mix the two genres. I must also say that David Gray is an awesome drummer.
The band has very refined tastes in men's fashions as well. But that goes without saying.

Great band, it's an interesting formula, mixing black/death AND the electronic influence. It really shouldn't work - it should be total shit. But these guys are fantastic songwriters and they're only getting better. My favorite albums are Words That Go Unspoken... and Antichrist, in keeping with the "only getting better" statement.

And I feel the need to mention my love of Mendonca's vocal versatility. It's hard to notice at first, but I hear tons and tons of different vocal types used, especially on Antichrist. Some complain about his cleans being very flat but I think it works well.

I couldn't agree more. Their blend of death metal is an attribute to their fantastic musicianship. I think Jason Mendonça uses great growls and superb screetches. Although I was a little disappointed how little he used the latter in Antichrist.

They're just so shit in my opinion. They sound like the vocals of a guy who just started getting into death metal and attempts guttural vocals for the first time in his crappy garage band. I do like his clean vocals though. They alternate between operatic-like singing and an 80's gothic rock baritone.

Its interesting to hear as well that they did kinda a 'Ordo Ad Chao' kinda thing (not really) with 'Antichrist' by having a more rawer production. It comes off quite nicely. Another thing is the bass lines. Although they are fairly unnoticeable, but when you do notice they are really quite good!

edit;



They are good although as someone said earlier tend to be a bit 'flat' at times. Epode has a fairly weak vocal performance. I just love it when he yells so furiously eg; "I wish to be alone with my god"

I wish Antichrist wasn't so short but less can be more sometimes. I won't complain too much about that part.

Choronzon is my favorite Akercocke album by far. If I recall correctly, that album originally got a whole lotta lovin' from the metal community, including plenty of 95-100% reviews on this site which seemed to have been erased some time ago. Opinions have changed since then and now Choronzon is the subject of a lot of unfair criticism and a ridiculously low average review score.

Antichrist is excellent, too. I like 'Words...' and 'Goat of Mendes' a whole bunch, but also a whole bunch less than the two aforementioned.

Edit: I'd also like to agree with the fella a few posts above me: David Gray is indeed a fantastic drummer. Freakin' octopus squid monster.

I enjoy Choronzon a lot and would give it a much higher rating. But it does tend to go off track towards the end. 'Leviathan' is definitely one of their best songs.

I don't know why Chronozon gets less appreciation than the others. I found no filler or anything whatsoever. It was just one solid offering of wicked brutality after another. Very tight. Valley of the Crucified was so awesome when I heard it closely.

I keep trying to get into this band. There are things I like, but they never really stick with me. Maybe I'm just starting in the wrong place. Can any one recommend me an album or song to get me started?

That sort of depends on what style you like. Their earlier albums are rawer and more brutal while their later albums, starting with Words, are much more progressive. Anyway, Akercocke are one of my favorite bands ever. I'd have to say that Words that Go Unspoken, Deeds that Go Undone is my favorite album, but all of their albums are excellent IMHO. "Verdelet" just kicks so much ass, though, that it makes the difference for me.

Surely you jest. Son of the Morning is simply amazing in its seamless transition from eerie electronic black to pure raw brutality. And Becoming the Adversary is the first Akercocke song I really got into and has always been one of my favorites. My only gripe is that the intro is very similar to Enraptured by Evil, which is probably the most brutal track on the album.

Overall, Choronzon is probably my favorite Akercocke album, though it faces stiff competition. It just covers so much ground, and is the perfect marriage of the raw brutal style of their first two albums to the progressive leanings of their most recent. And it's also complemented by a production which is just perfect for that style. Though, I think that Words that Go Unspoken... probably has the best production in an objective sense.

Yeah I'm listening the Chronozon right now and I take back my statement. Although I do think there is something missing in it when comparing to other albums.

Also another thing... How do you pronounce the bands name? I've always said Acka-cock-ee. I get annoyed when non-metal people ask me about this band. "Whats that bands name again? Cock something?" Grrrrrr.

I've heard members of the band pronounce it ack-er-cock as well as ay-ker-ko-kee, so I'm not really sure. I don't think they've ever let it be known that there was a proper way to pronounce the band name, which is... frustrating.

Haha. Everyone seems to have a different take on this. I pronounce it "a-ker-cock-ee" (a as in cat), because that's how it was introduced to me. The other common one is "a-ker-cock." But I've also heard "ay-ker-cock-ee" and "ay-ker-cock." And others besides. I think the second one is probably the one they band uses. But I'm not sure. I need to watch the DVD that comes with Words... again and see if there's a consistent pronunciation they use.

It's "Ak-er-cock-ee" or "Ak-er-coke-ee". I have a bonus DVD that came with my copy of Words... in which you hear the name said several times.

Great, great band. My favourite would be Words... for sure. Verdelet kicks so much arse.

I have only heard Words Go unspoken and Antichrist but from what I heard, I absolutely adore this band. I find the way they mix up black,death and prog rock it seems so well. Their lyrics sound really badass. I find the guttural vocals to be kind of out of place as well but I don't think its too bad.

Hmm. Verdelet. It is a good song but I always feel really awkward with the melody/riff at about 1:58. Reminds me of some emo or pop song that I heard once...Anyone else experience this?

Only heard their last two albums so far as their earlier stuff has been harder to find. I like them quite a bit though and do enjoy the mix of styles. I also find their lyrics to be very intelligent and well-written.

I call it [akəɹk’o:k] as this sounds the least gay, imo.

Awesome, awesome band. It seems I'm one of the few that holds "Words" as their finest hour, and probably one of the best prog/death metal albums. The production is excellent, no song sounds like the last one and every member is in top form. My only complaints are the solos are a little weak, and the track "Shelter From the Sand" is kind of forgettable (a shame, seeing as it's ten minutes).

"Goat of Mendes" and "Antichrist" are also excellent, and "Choronzon" has its moments. I agree about Jason's guttural vocals, though he has a very soothing singing voice. I also think David Gray is one of the most underrated drummers in the genre.

I agree; he's fast as hell and his drumming is always interesting.

On the DVD that came with the Words that Go Unspoken... special edition, it's pronounced 'Aah-ker-cock-eh', with the 'eh' sounding like the 'i' in the word 'is'.

Of course, no one will ever know what you're talking about unless you say 'ay-kir-cock'.

Who here has seen them live and who else was on the bill?

You can hear them say it here

That English three piece suit with pipe and handlebar moustache cracks me up. Look how he is smoking it too.

I'm a fan. I enjoy all of their material but I feel that the 'Words...' album is actually their worst effort. It seemed to me to be a mish mash of various ideas and way too much emphasis on the clean side of them. They came back strong with Antichrist though, I enjoyed that but my favorite album would have to be The Goat of Mendes. "A Skin For Dancing In" is an amazing track.

High quality live performance of Akercocke

http://www.moshcam.com/#?page=player&type=gig&id=4

Think this takes place in Australia, but feel free to correct me when im wrong. Anyway, The Goat of Mendes is definitely their best, followed by Antichrist.

I have Antichrist, Choronzon and Words That Go Unspoken, Deeds That Go Undone and there all pretty awsome albums but my favourite is Words That Go Unspoken, Deeds That Go Undone