I didn't hear the last TTD album, but I love this stuff - exactly what I want out of heavy metal to a T basically. Those heavy, charging guitars, the complex arrangements and the catchy vocal hooks really work for me. I think it's got a lot of edge, nicely polished sort of crunch to the guitars that works in the right kind of 'modern production' way for me. Takes me back to listening to TTD's Crest of the Martyrs as a teenager - one of my old favorites that I haven't heard in a while. These guys just have 'it.'

Holy shit I thought you were exaggerating but no, that verse melody and chord progression is straight out of pop punk. Chorus is pretty bad too. I will definitely be skipping this one.

Twisted Tower Dire on the other hand are decent, but never really seemed to live up to their potential. Every album seems to have about half an album's worth of good ideas.

Crest of the Martyrs and Netherworlds are good, the former more than the latter I'd say. Crest does drag a little bit in the middle, but I'd say a good 2/3 of the album is great, with 2 or 3 tracks that feel kind of like filler but are still enjoyable. Netherworlds is less consistent, yeah.

I'm not even going to check that link. 99% sure from the reactions that I'd hate it.

Huh, I really thought that would be better liked here. Probably my favorite thing this year along with Vulvagun. I guess that sort of upbeat "pop punk" sort of thing (sounds more like a slight pinch of upbeat hard rock to me, but that's splitting hairs I guess) adds a certain spice to it for me, makes it more exciting.

I heard their demo a few years ago when it came out. Haven't listened to it since I reviewed it, so probably won't check this out. Twisted Tower Dire is awesome though. At least, the one albums I have of theirs (Crest of the Martyrs) is!

The first Praying Mantis song I ever heard was Children of the Earth, which is a mighty ass kicker of a tune. As far as I can tell though, none of their other songs even deserve to be mentioned in the same breath. So frustrating.

Is anybody digging the new Night Demon album? Had a lot of fun jamming it lately, it's about as straightforward and simple as trad metal can be, doesn't really waver into power metal or speed territory beyond a song or two. Really reminds me of the High Spirits album from last year, but with the heaviness cranked up a notch or two. Huge sing along choruses everywhere, with a classic rock attitude.

As far as the predicitable "obligatory speed metal song" goes, I enjoyed this Maiden tribute a lot


It also comes with a fun cover of the rock version of We Will Rock You that the BBC "discovered" this past year. Doesn't seem to be online yet, I may try to upload it soon.

Also, a bonus: Night Demon are from my hometown (although they were formed after I left for college). I liked the cover of Darkness Remains a lot, and thought it looked awfully familiar... behold!


It's our town hall! Down to the architecture, the weird bell tower thing on top, the stairs, the palm trees, and the statue of Father Juniperro Serra (the founder of the San Buenaventura Mission during the colonizing of California. I guess it won't matter so much to outsiders but I found this to be a neat tribute to a town that has a somewhat respectable history of trad metal (produced Cirith Ungol and the Frost and Fire fests as well).

Well, Brian Allen is back in Vicious Rumors and they have a new co-guitarist with this 18-year old kid, Gunnar DüGrey. Granted, lineup changes are common for them and although I have nothing against Brian, keeping Nick (a very good vocalist in his own right) could've been a real opportunity for them to showcase themselves as a longtime veteran band unafraid to embrace an almost wholesale youth movement within their ranks - a very unusual and atypical position for a band of their tenure and consistency.

Nevertheless, I'm interested in what Nick does next as well as Tilen with Pestilence besides new VR.

I liked what Brian Allen did for the band, I just think they need to focus more on his strengths - he's totally amazing on fast, aggressive songs. "Murderball" is easily one of their best post-Carl Albert songs, maybe even in their top 10 of all time. Yet they've hardly done any of that type with Allen, opting instead for too many midpaced filler songs.

It seems stupid because it's so simple, but playing faster adds a lot of intensity and just makes songs better 90% of the time. Especially when you have an aggressive shrieky guy on vocals who isn't necessarily super technically skilled.

It's so simple but it really is a huge key to success in this thing we all love. Well, if you count "success" as a handful of goons on the internet praising your music. Which I do!

I think this will be old news to you guys but I'm always late...modern Attacker fucking rules! I'm listening to The Unknown right now. I guess I didn't realize it was the original (living...) lineup. Bob Mitchell still sounds weird as fuck and even has some new shades to his voice that I'm loving. The production is modern but more in the way that Satan and Manilla Road have modernized. Certainly not Sneaped. Man. This is really cool. Looking forward to checking out the others.

I need to listen to more Attacker. Battle at Helm's Deep is a USPM favourite of mine, but I've yet to really explore the rest of their catalogue. I've heard some great things about the most recent two records they've put out, so maybe I'll start with those.

On a different note, Hell's Human Remains has to be one of the best, and most unique albums of recent years, at least within heavy/nwobhm circles. David Bower's insane, theatrical wailing fits perfectly with the rest of the band. While some don't like the interludes that occur on most tracks, I think they greatly help the flow of the album. The pacing is perfect, and the 66m6s run time (while hilarious and 100% intentional) doesn't seem anywhere near over an hour long. This is one that without a doubt belongs among the greats.

That one didn't do a lot for me the last time I heard it. Probably a bit of a mood thing... hope they come out with new material sometime soon.

I wanted to love it. Hell's demos are seriously some of the greatest music ever committed to reel. But I can't get beyond the Sneapsound on Human Remains. It seriously saps all the power and atmosphere from the music for me.

Hell was one of the times I actually liked Sneap's production. The music is so bright and colorful that the kind of clear production really worked in that case.

I don't even mind clarity I swear, it's just the way the guitars sound that drives me INSANE. I can't listen to anything the man has produced in recent times without imagining big empty metal balloons. That's what the guitar sound reminds me of. Just a big hollow aluminum balloon. Hell really do have a very quirky and sometimes upbeat sound that would benefit from a clear production, possibly. I'll never know because I can't physically tolerate the sound of the guitars.

I've only ever listened to a few albums that Sneap has produced, and they're Accept and Hell. I really don't have any issues production wise for those records, but I can totally see where you're coming from Jonpo.

Do you play the second disc much? I bought a copy strictly for the demos. I play it A LOT. I actually think the super rough and tumble anti-production fits the atmosphere like a glove on songs like The Devil's Deadly Weapon and especially Blasphemy and the Master. God, David Halliday was just a gem of a human being. I really believe if he was still alive he would have multiple classic albums under his belt. He just had that "I'm never gonna wimp-out or cash-in" vibe.

I also love the way they sequenced the demos to flow like the LP. Bit of genius there. And you're right the runtime FLIES by. And that's coming from me.

The second disc with all the old versions is cool, but I like the album better - sounds more like a finished product and the songs just jump out a bit more. But the old ones are still good for what they are, ancient old relics of weird heavy metal.

I haven't listened to the demos as much as I have the album, but they're pretty incredible, especially when you consider they were mostly written in the early 80s. It's amazing that they were able to salvage full versions of all of these demos though, as they're incredibly rare. I wonder if Kev Bower had all of the tapes sitting around somewhere.

Just stumbled across Heimdall. No, not the Italian Heimdall. It's essentially German-style power metal a la Grave Digger, although the vocalist is all over the place, alternating between a more Chris Boltendahl-ish snarl, a cleaner (unfortunately not as compelling) tone, and on one song even a fully harsh growl. At times it veers into less aggressive territory that's more Gamma Ray than Grave Digger/Persuader, etc., but the majority is closer to that heavier, rougher vein. Pretty fun B-grade stuff to bang your head to.

Sacred Oath's debut is fucking legit. This is some real first rate stuff and reminds me why I like USPM. The songwriting is just really great - super atmospheric, tight and mature and packed with killer riffs and leads that just keep going and going, just creating this cool dialogue of guitars the way I always like it in this kind of music. Rob Thorne is fucking great.

I don't play it enough but you're absolutely right, it's a gem. I posted here a very long time ago that A Crystal Vision is basically a workshop in technical galloping. I swear every riff is some kind of complex gallop but they ALL RULE. And the vocalist is so weird. So breathy. I'm gonna play that shit today!

It was another old gem I randomly decided to buy off Amazon the other day. Been hooked on it... it's technical while still being cool and catchy, and the vocals are unpolished and rough but he knows how to sing good hooks too.

Dog I reviewed that shit 10 years ago, you need to listen to me.

I knew about it probably around the time you did. Just didn't own it.

Sacred Oath's debut is super cool, but I still think the vocalist sounds like he has a potato in his mouth, or something.

I love the vocalist, he's such a great microcosm of how metal vocalist can be a little "off" but manage to be so exciting and memorable despite the weirdness. "Ferryman's Lair" has such a great Mercyful Fates Warning style chorus, just impossible to forget. Shame that their new albums don't seem to have the same level of quality riffing.

I just noticed the tracklist of A Crystal Vision seems to have been messed with a lot over the different versions. I think I enjoy 2001 order that has "The Omen" as the second song and closes with "Rising From the Grave" best.

Yeah, if I want someone who's rough and unpolished I just hope they go for the throat like Thorne does on there. He just sounds badass, snarling and wailing and seemingly just doing whatever he feels like impulsively. But like I said, he just rules at singing catchy lines anyway. "Two Powers," "Magick Son," etc - just super fucking catchy. He's like a slightly more palatable but less sane King Diamond.

Yeah the title track has been my favorite on that Sacred Oath since I first got into them. The section at the beginning with the fade-in dual lead guitars is fucking awesome, and the chorus has always been the most memorable for me, but overall a very strong record, yeah. "The Beginning" is another favorite with that simple, kind of laid back opening riff that turns into a galloping monster of a riff that I'd expect to hear from someone like Angus. Their influences go from NWOBHM to Mercyful Fate to thrash, I really enjoy the variety.

Jesus fucking christ there's already artwork and a tracklist up for a new Manilla Road album! He needs to slow down, man. He's pumping these albums out like they're McDonalds burgers. The cover is lame as fuck too. How on the nose can you get?

I hope the music is better than the cover and song titles make it look.

I wish I had any desire to even hear it. I've cashed out on their modern era. Never even had the heart to sample The Blessed Curse. I was naive enough to think after a double-album AND solo effort in the same year he might slow down and let the creative forces gather.

edit: Can someone confirm if Golden Core have his daughter captured in a dungeon somewhere? Are they forcing his hand?

The Blessed Curse was really good actually. But I haven't played much MR since that one came out.

Seems like he's just got a lot of free time and is trying to release stuff at the same speed as he did in the 80s. But it just isn't the same quality is all.

I'm going to sample some of it today. I know he still has a huge reserve of talent but I feel like he also has this urgency to "strike while the iron is hot" and it might be clouding his creative control a bit.

Those titles are really uninspired. Maybe "The Talisman" is a Maiden cover!? I didn't really like the previous 2 releases, Mysterium was hit and miss and The Blessed Curse was bloated and by the book but we'll see...

http://www.metal-archives.com/albums/Ma ... ing/651527

Two random thoughts as I'm sampling The Blessed Curse:

1) The album should make me want to listen to THE ALBUM, not old Manilla Road. The early "reunion" stuff has a life all it's own. When I put on Voyager it doesn't make me want to hear older stuff. When I listen to Spiral Castle it sounds OLDER than Crystal Logic, compositionally. Gates of Fire was over-long but if you break it down into EPs...The Frost Giant's Daughter fucking RULES. Hard. Playground of the Damned, Mysterium, and what I've heard so far of The Blessed Curse just makes me want to put on something else by them.

2) You've GOT TO MIX UP YOUR SOUND A LITTLE FROM ONE ALBUM TO THE NEXT! We are three (likely four with To Kill...) albums deep now with the EXACT same guitar tone, drum tone, mix, everything. Think about how different their stuff from the 80s sounds from one album to the next. Or even the "better" reunion albums? Atlantis Rising is dry as a bone. It's so fucking crunchy it hurts. Spiral Castle on the other hand is hella lush and totally driven by the bonkers rhythm section. I understand he has a comfy home-studio and that's awesome, but could we at least play with the sound a LITTLE? Is it possible that the exact same tone isn't going to fit everything you release?

Sidebar: Any chance I could get my custom title changed to "Road Scholar"? Heavy T. Skubbs called me that recently after a very detailed discussion on their early period and I have to admit I love it. I know asking for a custom title is gauche but whatever, I've been here for a minute.

Bloated? It was a 45 minutes or so album with a second disc tacked on that you can listen to separately. I thought both were really cool actually. Just great guitar work, and shorter, catchier songs than they usually do - a 180 from the epic lengths of Voyager but just as good in that direction. Better than Playground and Mysterium for me.

And that second disc had some absolutely gorgeous acoustic stuff going on.

Yeah some of the second disc was lame, "Life Goes On" and the Halloween tracks (old version and rerecording) weren't very good, though "Search for the Lost Chord" was excellent. Overall The Blessed Curse is a little bloated, but it's leaps and bounds ahead of Mysterium. "Falling" is one of my top 10 favorite MR tracks, and "The Muse's Kiss" is great too. Some of the songs on the first disc do get a little samey, and yeah, Shelton has been recycling or mostly recycling riffs here and there, but there's still plenty of really good material on the album, if he'd cut it down he could have an album the length of Crystal Logic worth of great, inspired stuff. I'm a little annoyed we haven't gotten another "Spiral Castle," "Voyager," or "Playground of the Damned" in the last few years, but I really think he's been releasing close to the same amount of quality he was around the second half of the 80s era, you just have to dig it out of twice the total run time over more albums (including Hellwell). Mysterium's the only one I don't really dig overall. The album art on the new album is pretty uninspired, yeah, but the song titles don't bother me, not really much of a departure from their usual fare in that regard.

You are out of your GOD DAMN mind if you think the level of quality is close to the same quality as the late-80s. Mystification and Out of the Abyss are more or less masterpieces. Mystification especially is an album where they finally figured out how to marry the thrash bits to the spooky bits without losing anything between. Even if you paired some of these albums down to their best tunes...no way. His guitar sounds so tired. So so tired.

I definitely wouldn't call "Out of the Abyss" a masterpiece. Sure, the guitar tone might be a little bit tamer with the newer stuff, but that's not the be-all end-all for me. I definitely wouldn't describe it as "tired." Out of the Abyss has really high highs ("Whitechapel," "Return of the Old Ones," "War in Heaven"), but it's a pretty mixed bag for me, most of the shorter thrash tracks are kinda forgettable to me.