Acrassicauda, derived from a Latin word for a species of black scorpion commonly found in the Middle East, originally hails from Baghdad, Iraq. Formed in 2001, they are often hailed as being the first heavy metal band to emerge from Iraq and were made famous in 2007, when they became the basis for the internationally acclaimed documentary, Heavy Metal In Baghdad. Back in those days, the band was persecuted to no end by Islamic militants operating under the Saddam Hussein regime and condemned as Satan worshipers. They had to sneak in and out of their well-concealed basement practice space, while under the constant threat of attack, only to find it destroyed by a missile during an insurgency uprising one day. All of their equipment was destroyed.
Heavily influenced by western bands like, Slipknot, Slayer and Metallica, they were only able to play two or three shows during the entire time they were still based in their homeland and in the midst of being seemingly hunted for playing heavy metal, some of their fans died for having listened to it. One of their first performances included a song called “The Youth of Iraq” which the band was forced to write in support of Saddam Hussein. Headbanging was banned, because it was considered to be too similar to the head movements of Jews during prayer.
But all of that is behind them now. Acrassicauda applied for asylum in the United States shortly after the taping of Heavy Metal in Baghdad and were granted green cards one year after that. In fact, on their second day in the US, the band was able to watch their oldest musical influence, Metallica, perform at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. Afterwards, they were allowed to go backstage and meet their idols.
The band currently resides in Brooklyn, New York and has an EP under their belts called Only the Dead See the End of the War, released by Vice Records in 2010. They followed up that release with a performance at the Scion Rock Fest in Columbus, Ohio, where they played with Cannibal Corpse, Voivod and others. A few national tours came later and in 2012, when they opened for Ministry, Ministry’s frontman, Al Jourgensen was quoted saying, “Acrassicauda is my favorite band.”
Furthermore, after 14 long arduous years, the band is finally on the verge of releasing their first full length album, called Gilgamesh, to be released on April 4, 2015.
All this being said, any struggling band with talent who’s thinking about calling it quits because of monetary setbacks, scheduling conflicts, high school drama or a general lack of productivity, perhaps all of the above, needs to take a hard look at Acrassicauda’s career and rethink things. This band is the physical embodiment of perseverance, and after only having seen Heavy Metal in Baghdad just recently, I’m already so proud of these brave guys and their accomplishments.
Check out the links below and support this great metal act, who clawed their way out of hell and lived to tell the tale.
Since 1996, Tuomas Holopainen and his band, Nightwish, have collectively been an authority in the European symphonic metal game. Hailing from Kitee, Finland, Nightwish have already toured the globe many times over, released seven full length albums, one EP, a few DVDs and several singles. Their most recent accomplishment, Endless Forms Most Beautiful, is their eighth full length studio effort and will be released in the United States on March 31,2015.
The album introduces Floor Jansen (After Forever) on vocals and brings back Troy Donockley (formerly a session musician for tours) on pipes, flutes and whistles. Kai Hahto (Wintersun) has also stepped in as a fill-in drummer on this record, as Jukka Nevalainen was forced to temporarily step aside due to chronic insomnia.
Now, as far as this album is concerned, Nightwish fans may be forced to ask themselves a tough question- Which era of Nightwish is better? Those of you who long to be reunited with original vocalist, Tarja Turunen, along with the simpler song structures that were without the help of the London Symphony Orchestra, might be disappointed. Endless Forms Most Beautiful (a title hailing the naturalist, Charles Darwin), is a huge, busy, dark, heavy, ridiculously powerful symphonic metal album. In fact, the only song that disappointed me was the first single, “Elan” not that it’s even that bad a tune. But any fan of Nightwish knows that this band is notorious for choosing simple, “safe” songs to be their singles.
Here’s my take, from start to finish, track by track:
The opening track, “Shudder Before the Beautiful”, introduces a fast tempo, melodic heaviness right from the beginning. Instantly, Floor’s vocals fit perfectly with the overall sound of the new lineup. Certain notes and techniques reminiscent of Tarja take hold, but Floor also brings some unique qualities to the table, which only add to the intricate but very catchy riffing. There’s a back and forth guitar and synth solo section in this song that might remind the listener of how Children of Bodom might approach a part like that.
“Weak Fantasy”, gravitates towards the big booming movie soundtrack end of the Nightwish spectrum. It’s powerful, captivating and introduces a soaring vocal dynamic between Floor and bassist, Marco Hietala (Tarot). The two produce melodies that gel so well, it’s hard to imagine the band without either of them at times.
“Elan”, the current single, is a small and safe song with very few surprises. It’s catchy and has a solid balance between the six members. However, most fans might agree that if every Nightwish song went in this direction, they might be a pretty easy band to write off.
“Yours Is An Empty Hope”, is the loudest, fastest song so far. It’s also the epitome of symphonic metal. Huge choirs give you goosebumps throughout the track and are accompanied by a series of well-timed explosions.
“Our Decades In the Sun” settles things down quite a bit. It’s mostly piano and vocals, until Emppu finally appears on guitar much later in the track. It had me thinking, “Sleeping Sun” the entire time.
“My Walden” is very happy and folky. Troy Donockley shines on this track. There are some pop rock elements as well, which completely contradict the first five tracks, however they don’t take away from the band’s overall sound. If you liked “Last of the Wilds” or even an earlier upbeat instrumental like “Moondance”, you’ll be fine with this song.
“Endless Forms Most Beautiful” is once again, very simple and safe for being the title track. It’s a good song and probably a great choice to keep the crowd motivated for the live show, but nothing really extraordinary happens here. I wouldn’t call it filler, but I also wouldn’t call it a statement. I felt it was too bland to be impressive, but too sophisticated to be written off. It’s a Nightwish song.
“Edema Ruh” is a very hoppy song with a solid clash of symphonic and folk elements. Marco and Floor split this song evenly in the vocal department and there’s a real feeling of youthful revelry here.
“Alpenglow” might be your biggest disappointment on this album, but only because it’s the second filler track of sorts and you’re itching to get through it, because you know the bone crushing, monumental conclusion is coming.
“The Eyes of Sharbat Gula” is an intro for the last track, or at least that’s the impression that I got. It’s primarily an instrumental, aside from a youthful choir singing quietly in the background.
“The Greatest Show On Earth” is 24 minutes long. No, I’m not kidding. There’s a calm atmosphere slowly building up to full on vocals, guitars and drums for the first few minutes, but once the first climax is reached, they keep on coming. Each time a new mountain is climbed, the terrain changes completely, allowing for a new ascent up a whole new structure of musicianship. Fans of longer epic Nightwish tracks like “Ghost Love Score” or “The Poet and the Pendulum” will appreciate this. At one point, Richard Dawkins comes in as narrator and fills your head with thoughts of the beginning of the end of the world, just before a massive explosion slams into your ear drums. This explosion paves the way for the heaviest, most cinematic sounding piece of metal music I have ever heard. The way the six elements of this band come together with the orchestra in this section is uncanny and Tuomas’s composing skills really shine here.
I suppose I’d recommend this album to any fan of metal, just because of the musicianship and layering present on it. Nightwish purists will most likely be disappointed, but my advice to them is to forget that it’s Nightwish for a little while and hear some interesting stuff. At the very least, it’ll make you want to watch a Peter Jackson Tolkien film.
In other great local news, Nightwish will be performing at Buffalo NY’s Town Ballroom on April 16, 2015.
Key tracks: Shudder Before the Beautiful, Yours Is An Empty Hope, The Greatest Show On Earth
This is Pagan folk metal from Finland at its best. Many people condemn the genre and many of its greatest bands as Renaissance festival nerds with cool guitars and war paint. But Ensiferum raises the bar ever so slightly with every release, making them pioneers of sorts in the folk metal game. One Man Army is a perfect example of the band’s unique approach to their genre.
Ensiferum (The Sword Bearer) never hold back when it comes to their powerful chorus driven war songs with their 1,000 year old feel, but fully embrace their heavy nature as well. Since they are a metal band at their core, they have to represent. The opening track, “March of War” is beautifully composed with an array of old-world string instruments, “Burden of the Fallen” could come straight out of the “Lord of the Rings” or “Hobbit” films, and the closing track “Neito Pohjolan” naturally has its Finnish roots, but can at times be easily mistaken for an American country/western tune. The whole album is full of their usual bells and whistles, choirs singing backup harmonies reminiscent of blockbuster soundtracks like “Braveheart” and plenty of references to the very heart of the band’s name and their love of their heritage; clashing swords and bloody battlefields. Fans of this genre won’t be disappointed, but those weary on folk metal may not appreciate 11 straight tracks with said formula.
“Axe of Judgment” forces the listener into an all-out war zone. “Cry For the Earthbound” and “Warrior Without A War” transport you back to ancient bloodstained ruins, despite Earthbound’s borderline poppy female vocals in the bridge. “Two of Spades” is an upbeat Celtic dance party, which instantly had me thinking of Bilbo Baggins’s 111th birthday party in “The Fellowship of the Ring”. And, wouldn’t you know it? Ensiferum decide to throw you a curveball and end the album with a cover of the theme from Rawhide.
So, once again, any avid listener of folk metal can’t hate this album. Metal purists will either hate it, be bored with it, or both (presumably), and those who simply dabble in folk metal might grow tired of Ensiferum’s consistent battle anthem formula. But all in all, I think this is a great opportunity for those open to taking the “folk metal challenge”, to open their hearts and minds to this wonderfully fun genre! Cheers!
Key tracks: One Man Army, Cry For the Earthbound, Burden of the Fallen
Since 2004, The Agonist have released three full-length albums. In March of 2014, they announced a lineup change when original vocalist, Alissa White-Gluz, left to join Arch Enemy. Vicky Psarakis then assumed her new role as The Agonist‘s lead vocalist. Eye of Providence (All Seeing Eye of God) is their newest release and has been available since February 24th, 2015, but be warned! Diehard Agonist fans beware! The majority of this album makes me feel as though there is an entirely new band present!
Vicky Psarakis’s vocals are on point but they bring a noticeable change to the band’s overall sound right off the bat. The guitars have also switched up their dynamic a bit. In this instance, the leads are more memorable than the riffing, and the riffs themselves seem to be more melody driven than I’m accustomed to. Any longtime Agonist fan might agree that this slightly new guitar direction makes for a necessary musical “double-take”, before you’re able to just take in the music. As for the production, this record screams studio magic, but that tends to only further take away from the raw, raunchy sound I used to associate with The Agonist. Structurally speaking, most of these tunes are simpler and more repetitive, often implementing the “verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus, end” formula, which once again seems so unlike this band. Take this review with a grain of salt though. If you were iffy about The Agonist before for any reason, Eye of Providence may be exactly what you’re looking for.
Vicky’s vocals are fantastic and I was actually more impressed by her cleans than I was her screams. Her vocal melodies just feel more tasteful than Alyssa’s, I suppose. Then again, if you’re an Agonist scream era fan, prepare for predominant crisp cleans throughout the entire record. I’d say that 75% of the vocals are clean singing from start to finish. The screams are there, the screams are solid, but it’s not the same. The ratio of cleans to screams only left me wanting more vocal diversity.
Guitar-wise, I can’t tell if they’re using different effects or a different tuning, but there’s a noticeable tone change on this album that I like a great deal. It makes the heavy parts heavier and the intricate parts crisper.
Key Tracks: Gates of Horn and Ivory, My Witness, Your Victim, I Endeavor
When all was said and done, I didn’t like this album, but I also didn’t dislike it. I guess we fans of the original Agonist sound may just have to tread carefully before accepting Eye of Providence into our music libraries. Cheers!
By now, anyone who frequents local metal shows in Buffalo has heard of I’m From the Government and I’m Here to Help. Having seen these guys live many times myself, I wanted to give the dedicated metal show goers of our town a behind-the-scenes look at this particular band, and why I think they’re worth a listen to anyone who isn’t familiar with them. Personally, I’d recommend these guys to any fan of any kind of metal, because I think they have something for everyone in the metal world. Their performances are energetic, their songs are incredibly catchy, and they stay just as brutally heavy as they do honest and melody driven, for the duration of their tunes.
Recently, I had an opportunity to catch up with Tom Bieler (vocals), Robby Warren (guitar) and Steve Keicher (drums), and ask them a few important questions about their project. Here’s what they had to say.
Mike Marlinski: Where does the name I’m From the Government and I’m Here to Help come from and how would you describe your music to new listeners?
Robby Warren: The name comes from the famous words said by President Reagan during a speech as “the 9 most terrifying words in the English language”. He couldn’t have been more right and those words still hold value today.
Tom Bieler: I almost wanted to name the band, I’m a Firefighter and I’m Here to Help You, but the government quote was a lot better. I would describe our sound to new listeners as metal. Too many people focus on sub-genres nowadays and it isn’t helping local scene unity at all.
Steve Keicher: For new listeners, I would describe our sound as being heavy with some underlying melody, whether it be vocals or guitars, with influences ranging from hard rock, heavy metal and hardcore. Modern American Heavy!
MM: What kind of music were you raised on? Who are your musical influences?
RW: I was raised on a lot of classic rock, ‘80s hair metal and country from being raised by my mom. Once I found Megadeth at 10 or 11, it was all metal there on out. My guitar influences range from Dimebag Darrell to Ted Nugent to Marty Friedman.
TB: I was raised on mostly rock in the same vein as Bob Seger, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Tom Petty, Billy Joel and stuff like that. Once I hit high school, it was all Wu-tang and skate punk music like Millencolin and Bad Religion.
SK: I was raised on a wide variety of things. My parents listened to everything from The Doors and The Beatles to Alabama and Charlie Daniels. I grew up with some older cousins who were always jamming the heavy stuff so Sepultura, Suicidal Tendencies, Slayer and Metallica invaded my ears when I was in like 4th grade.
Everyone was always skating and blasting thrash! MTV was huge while I was growing up too. Pop music was everywhere, then I saw that first Nirvana video. Pantera wasn’t far behind either. I’m constantly trying to discover new bands and things to listen to. Lately it’s been old psyche rock bands from the ‘60s and ‘70s, bands like Blue Cheer, The Nice, Joshua and a ton more.
MM: Who do you typically listen to on the way to a performance?
RW: On my way to a show, I’m usually listening to something very heavy to get me psyched up. As I Lay Dying is a regular to get me pumped.
TB: Just whatever’s in the CD player. Lately it’s been Seplophile and Makhai, both Buffalo locals.
SK: Since a show night tends to be filled with a lot of loud and heavy music, I tend to listen to hip hop to get pumped or old classic rock to just chill out and focus.
MM: Do you have future touring plans? Where are you hoping to tour?
RW: I hope we are able to tour in the near future, but who knows how realistic that is. These days it’s tough to do it with bills and such at home, while making next to nothing being on the road. It is a dream of mine though and I hope to at least tour the east coast.
TB: If the demand for a tour comes and we’re able to do it then that would be really rad. The truth is we’re all hardworking American men and have jobs and we can’t just leave our responsibilities at a moment’s notice.
SK: I would love to travel with this band. I’d love to see the west coast, and from there, possibly some European cities. I’ve always loved to travel, so any place outside of the norm would be fine with me.
MM: Do the five of you have a common major musical influence? Who would you collectively love to open for one day?
RW: We all have our own style we bring to the band to create what you hear. I can’t say we all have a common musical influence, but that makes for something truly special having that many different influences coming together. We would love to open for any major band out there in the metal world. It is always very exciting to share the stage with a band you listen to. I personally would be able to die a happy man if we got to open for Megadeth.
TB: Collectively, we have a really wide range of influences, so I don’t know if we would agree on one band between us. I would love to open for a classic metal band like Iron Maiden or Megadeth.
SK: I can’t say if we all collectively have a common influence. The age range (23?-33?) in this band is funny, but I feel that’s what brings all sorts of different influences to the table. We all want to write heavy, memorable songs that connect with the listener on some level. Musical, lyrical, emotional, spiritual, whatever.
MM: Can you recall a specific news story or personal experience that first motivated you to take the band’s lyrics in a political direction?
RW: Tom, that’s all you. (laughs)
TB: I think it’s important to have meaningful song lyrics. We sing songs about things that matter to everyday Americans like you and me. We worry about drones, we worry about politics and religion and we worry about getting through the day and taking care of our business.
MM: Does the band have an overall message you all wish to convey to your audience with each performance and studio release? If so, what is that message?
RW: The overall message we try to give our audience, whether it’s live or in the studio, is that we must unite and stand for what we believe in, whether it’s against a shaky government or uniting with our brothers and sisters in the metal scene.
TB: Musically speaking, I think the one thing we try to convey in everything that we put out is the importance of riffs. We’re lucky to have some tremendous guitarists. At the end of the day metal is all about the riffs!
MM: What can we expect from the next EP?
SK: New songs. (smiles)
RW: The next EP is going to have lots of exciting guitar work, pummeling drums, sick bass ripping, and of course lots of hard truth.
TB: The next EP is going to be a step up. I think we set a pretty high standard with “Hard Truth/Forced Unity” and now we have to meet and exceed that standard. It’s a challenge but I think we have the right songs to do it.
Below is a full stream of their debut EP, “Hard Truth/Forced Unity”:
It’s no secret that ‘Armageddon’ is one of the most overused metal band names in history, with over 800 entries on Metal Archives alone. That being said, too many metal heads that shouldn’t be overlooking this particular ‘Armageddon’, have been for far too long. Formed in Sweden in 1997 by Chris Amott (ex- Arch Enemy), Armageddon has been home to a revolving door of session musicians, who have all happily catered to Amott’s array of metal writing concepts. Captivity & Devourment is the band’s first release since 2003’s Three.
The album features ten beautifully composed songs, all of which flawlessly pay homage to Sweden’s original melodic death metal sound. It kicks off with the title track, “Captivity & Devourment”, which has a more traditional death metal feel. This tune gives us our first opportunity to hear Matt Hallquist (Under A Serpent Sun) expertly deliver his signature punchy death metal vocals over Amott’s guitar work, and although Hallquist’s screams (traditional highs and lows) are nothing out of the ordinary, they compliment the music perfectly.
The album continues with the tracks “Locked In” and “Rendition”. These two tracks are instantly memorable and pack more of Amott’s signature melodic hooks and anthem like solos. However, the riffs are just as heavy and driving as they are insanely catchy. We even get a chance to hear Amott’s fantastic clean vocals by this point in the album, on “Rendition”.
The album’s fourth track, “Fugitive Dust”, was in my opinion, a perfect choice for a single. It kicks off with an ’80s sci-fi style intro, reminiscent of the soundtrack to the movie, “Blade Runner”. It then instantly kicks in to the main riff, a classic choppy melodeath riff, with quick pick scrapes and three note harmonic sweeps, adding even more to the mechanical sci-fi feel of the entire track. Hardly surprising, since their first album, Crossing the Rubicon (1997), was entirely science fiction themed. (Scroll down for the “Fugitive Dust”video)
Other songs like, “Conquer,” “Thanatron” and “The Watcher”really bring the initial ideas behind this album to fruition. We even get to hear more of Amott’s clean vocals on the track, “Equalizer”. As a whole, Captivity & Devourment is destructive, beautiful, masterfully layered, sinister, sludgy and downright metal. Fans of this genre shouldn’t be able to ignore this one.
Armageddon is now based in New York City and are currently taking the upper east coast by storm on their No Dead Weight tour with Framework. All the details for this tour are on Armageddon’s Facebook page. If you have the opportunity to check out one of these shows, I’d advise you to do so!
Do you like melodic death metal? Do you like role playing games along the lines of Dungeons & Dragons? If you answered yes to both of these questions, Dethlehem is a band you need to know about, if you don’t already.
Simply put, the music of Dethlehem serves as a portal to a wondrous realm of knights, maidens, dragons, wizards, witches, and ghastly nocturnal creatures. Hailing from Pittsburgh, PA these five heroes have spent the last seven years treating their audiences to a true fantasy RPG experience, through both their live shows and studio recordings.
Their latest album, Destroyers of the Realm, is no exception. From start to finish, this 11 track adventure uses crushing war drums, superb guitar riffs and solos, beautifully layered and diverse vocals, and a tasteful low end, to cut through the fabric of space and time. It transports the listener to a metal nerd’s utopia, where the only rules stem from the limits of your XP and your luck with the dice.
Presentation is very important to this band. Not only do they grace the stage covered in medieval battle armor, they also made sure to put just as much effort into the physical copies of their latest album. Visiting their bandcamp page and downloading a digital copy scores you an issue of their digital comic book, but buying a deluxe hard copy from the same site ensures a separate lyric sheet. It comes off as a medieval scroll with burnt edges, and encapsulating the entire package, is a custom sleeve with the band’s royal seal stamped on it with red candle wax.
The album kicks off with an 8 minute battle called Knightmare. This tune goes off in several directions throughout, but the diversity of the song never takes away from its flow. This band is very good with song structure in that regard. Each song is a well conceived part of an overall story and never fails to hit its mark. The guitar riffs are catchy and spot on with their genre, reminiscent of the guitar work on The Jester Race, Whoracle or Colony by In Flames. The solos are very driving, but also just as catchy as the riffing. If you’re a fan of hooky leads with a slight power metal feel, then these licks are for you.
Oathbound follows Knightmare and serves as an ideal single and perfect representation of this band’s sound. It’s hard-hitting, with no regrets and leaves you wanting more. Simply scroll down for the video and allow it to speak for itself.
The record also never loses its RPG feel. Several guest performances were included on this record to make certain of that. Haunting narrations make their way on and off certain tracks. The album also contains three interludes, during which the listener is transported back to a D & D setting, where only the dungeon master’s words can dictate the next chain of events.
Enchanting female vocals, courtesy of Clarissa Badini appear on the track, Shadow Remnants of the Guardian Shield, and the URIZEN boys’ choir also appears on the same track, taking on the roles of a group of dwarfs. This is also the longest track on the album, at 9:08. It’s a true testament to the band’s level of admirable musicianship as a whole.
The shortest actual song on the album is Oathbound, clocking in at 3:52. However, the majority of the full songs, not counting the interludes, hover in between 6 and 9 minutes. Fans of this genre shouldn’t be disappointed by the longer tracks. These are very multi-dimensional songs, with great dynamics and skilled layering across the board. Simply put, they remain interesting for their duration.
Dethlehem will be in Clarence NY on June 13 for an outdoor folk metal festival. Fans of the band and their new album Destroyers of the Realm are urged to come out and hear these tracks played live, along with some of the best talent the WNY metal scene has to offer!
Key Tracks: Knightmare, Oathbound, Shadow Remnants of the Guardian Shield
The album introduces Floor Jansen (After Forever) on vocals and brings back Troy Donockley (formerly a session musician for tours) on pipes, flutes and whistles. Kai Hahto (Wintersun) has also stepped in as a fill-in drummer on this record, as Jukka Nevalainen was forced to temporarily step aside due to chronic insomnia.
