| CD REVIEW TSM/SLW Promotions special, March 2010 #2 |
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TSM/SLW Promotions special, March 2010 #2 Gosh, the TSM/SLW family is really branching out to be a very large family these days, leading to an average of 6 to 10 releases arriving at the Concrete Web office every month! And it’s not just melodic Rock anymore either: this month’s second batch indeed features an Extreme Metal act (a first for the promotion agency, I believe…but then I could be wrong, since not every band that signed to TSM/SLW has gotten around to sending us their stuff! Anyway, here’s 4 very nice bands, one of which actually a returnee! ----------------------------------------------------------------- Well, this Minneapolis based American band is the “odd one out” here. Formed in 2002, the trio of Luke (vocals, guitar, bass), Tim (vocals, guitar, bass) and Patrick (drums) produce a wall of sound that is best described as a Progressive Grindcore with mixed vokills (one harsh and high, the other lower, but equally as harsh…and usually describes as grunts; then again, the two singers mix modes quite frequently, frequently overlapping each other…and even throw in the occasional shoirt spoken word bit) and influences from shredding Thrash and Death Metal, without losing a feel for melody. On top, the guitar is down-tuned, which gives the whole a Groove and Hardcore thang! They opened their string of official recordings in 2004, releasing A Second From the Surface (probably an EP, because they don’t speak of it in their biography when talking about their full-length releases) on the Pangea Recordings label. On the same label followed 2006’s Bison, but 2007’s The Streets Have Eyes was issued through the This Dark Reign imprint. Released on August 11, 2009, When In Hell became available worldwide through Relapse Records’ distro in December. Containing 16 tracks, the album is done after only 29 minutes…so maybe you can imagine the pace of the songs to be quite high. Nevertheless, there IS quite some variety in the whole album, which will certainly aid in people listening it out without problem…and pushing that “Play” button again after a gasp of fresh air! With the album out for over half a year, I can give you some quotes from other media, such as Culturebully.com : “…One part Nasum, one part Slayer, a teaspoon of Mastodon, and a dash of Cro-Mags: it (the album) is a fresh, reinvigorating breath of air to a genre that is running out of places to grow…”, Mouth For War: “…With one foot planted in the grind core realm, Minneapolis’ Ambassador Gun throw every variety of Metal into the mix in one way or another. From thundering grooves to basement Punk. From Death Metal riffing to progressive tempo shifts, this trio unleash 16 heart pounding tracks. Buckle up and hold on. You’re in for a nasty ride into a rusty blender attached to a diesel engine…”, or Stylus Magazine : “…Not since Nasum and Discordance Axis has a band packed so much “Fuck you” in so little time…”! As if that’s important…you know, I hadn’t even noticed, but the Nasum – Discordance Axis comparison certainly holds in the sound department too, and as both bands belong among my favourites, you’ll understand why I added When In Hell to my 2009 year-lists! You can listen to 6 tracks off the current album at myspace.com/ambassadorgun (their official website), and to another two off the previous album. Meanwhile, the band’s already been busy writing new tracks and, announcing working titles to some 7 tracks in December of last, announced 4 titles in mid January which were sure to be recorded for an EP, to be issued in early 2010 (in fact, last news on March 17 was that the band was in the working process of mixing a total of 7 tracks, 3 of which to be put on a split 7-inch with Colorado’s Aberrant). Can’t wait to get that in earshot. Meanwhile, I’ll have to check at the local record store whether any of the band’s previous releases is still available!!! 98/100 ------------------------------------------- I’m sure I heard of/ came in contact with a band called Glass Hammer somewhere in the now over 30 years that I’ve been actively involved with music…but whether that was this same Progressive Rock band from the neighbourhood of Chattanooga (Tennessee), remains to be seen (you see, although I have a rather huge collection of music, there’s nothing in there from a band by this name)! Still, it’s not impossible since, having been founded back in 1992, GH hàs been around for quite a while already. Back then, long-time friends, studio musicians, and multi-instrumentalists Steve Babb (whom concentrates on the bass and keyboards) and Fred Schendel (concentrates on the guitars and drums, and also does keyboards) decide to get to get together and record a “Rock Opera” around the story of Aragorn in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord Of The Rings. Sales over the Internet, TV home shopping, and phone orders for Journey Of The Dunedan exceeding largely the duo’s expectations, they conclude to continue working together! And the collaboration would prove to be a prolific one: to date (and including Three Cheers), a total of 10 studio (and 3 live) albums, plus DVD was released. Many of these albums are not only centered around fiction literature (more Tolkien, but also C.S. Lewis), but also around the duo’s Christian belief…although they’ve tried to keep that to a minimum. Over the years, the duo have worked with an ever-changing array of guests. Although both do sing, they’ve often worked with other singers as well, most notably Michelle Young, Walter Moore, and Susie Bogdanowicz, the “last in line” and also featured on Three Cheers. Stylistically, GH’s most apparent influences are Yes, Kansas, Emerson, Lake & Palmer and, to a lesser degree, Genesis. In other words, the Greats in ‘70s Prog Rock! Yet Steve and Fred succeed in melting everything to something of their own, adding a touch of soft Metal here and there! While not a concept in the traditional sense, Three Cheers hàs a red-line theme running through its songs, showing a darker and cynical side to the usually optimistic band! Although they hardly need any help in the studio, Fred and Steve invited Josh Bates to add acoustic & electric guitars to album opener “Come On, Come On” and “A Bitter Wind”…and David Walliman for extra guitars on “Sleep On”. Quite a few of the songs have Suzie in a starring role, Steve and/or Fred adding vocals mainly in a backing capacity. But on “The Mid-Life Weird” and “Falling” Fred takes the lead and has the other two back him up…and he’s even the sole vocalist on “Schrodinger’s Lament” (which includes sizeable spoken word passages, as does the ensuing “Hyperbole”, by the way), while on “Sundown Shores” it’s Steve taking over the main mike! But mainly, the album is geared toward Suzie’s soft female vocals, and actually, all vocals have a certain calmness about them! Of course, in live conditions, he band line-up is extended somewhat, the current live band including singer Carl Groves, guitarist David Walliman, drummer Matt Mendians, Fred, Steve and Suzie, and The Adonia String Trio featuring violinist Rebecca James, viola player Susan Whitacre, and cellist Rachel Hackenberger, making for an impressive 9-person outfit! To get acquainted with the band’s beautiful music and diverse music (has slight touches of change depending on the album and people they worked with in the past), you’re better off checking the “Album Samples” section on the band’s own website (www.) glasshammer.com, where you’ll also find an extensive band history…since none of the MySpace pages dedicated to the band (myspace.com/glasshammer11, /glasshammermusic) seems to carry songs off the new album! 89/100 ------------------------------------------- Well, this is the returnee talked about in the opening paragraph, coming back with a sophomore album. And it looks like I need to retract some of the words I wrote in the end paragraph of my review of M.I.C.’s self-titled debut (posted in TSM/SLW special # 5, on 03/12/2009 – should’ve been earlier, but somehow the e-mail with the special and other reviews had gone lost, and we didn’t notice it missing at first). Well, retract…you may remember the debut album took quite a while to be mixed and mastered, and meanwhile Serré had formed new ideas as to how he wanted M.I.C. to move on. Regretfully, the other M.I.C. members at the time didn’t see eye-to-eye with him, and therefore M.I.C. was initially disbanded. Halfway 2008 Serré contacted his old friend Huang Hongliang (from Jazz Fusion band Tian Fang Ye Tan), talked over his musical views, and found Huang very willing to participate in the project, which was initially named Nail. As a drummer, Liang took along Tian Fang Ye Tan’s Zhao Qian. Meanwhile, Nail was re-baptized to M.I.C., and in early 2009 the band took its material to nightclubs in and around Chengzu. By May they had 13 worthy songs, which they recorded at Rebirth Group Electric Monster Studios. Around the same time they apparently got in touch with Seattle (WA, USA) native Angela Renzetti, who completed the band’s line-up as rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist. In the studio however, she’d anly be responsible for some backing vocals. As with the debut album, Serré invited some guest musicians embelish the album’s material with their contributions. Hence, one Ramon Colon adds backing vocals to the album’s opening track “Sit On You”, as well as the Spanish singing in the middle part of same…Kari Holmes provides the ensuing “Who Do You Love” with backing vocals…with Hou Wei bringing the keyboards to that song, as well as to third track “Out In The Rain”,and to “What Your Doing”…Jun Sugimoto provides “Can’t Live This Way” with its middle solo, and brings rhythm & slide guitar to the intro of “Tell The Lies”…more keyboards on “Hot Summer Day”, “Between The Eyes” and “Can You Hear Me” come from Kathryn Merriam…Mark Mcleod, who’d already contributed to M.I.C.’s debut, returns to play the main piano (and strings) on “Something To Say”, with Han Zhenzhen playing additional keys on the same song. Ending the guest list is David DuByne, adding the sounds of sitar to “Forever In Your World”. So, you ask me, what’s changed? Well, although the album is still (so was the debut) announced as featuring “…different styles ranging from Punk, Rock & Roll, Ballad to Melodic Rock…”, but overall there’s a shift towards the Melodic Rock with a Rock ‘n’ Roll foundation, and none of the more outspoken Melodic Punk Rock which one could find occasionally on the debut. In essence, the songs are now a little more in the same vein, in spite of their little differences. Sure, I still feel Serré ain’t gonna win any vocalist championships soon…or ever… (‘cept when the competition happens to be lousy, perhaps), but musically speaking Out 2 Rock is rather more enjoyable than M.I.C.’s debut! Check it all out for yourselves at myspace.com/madeinchine, where Serré posted a staggering 9 songs off the new album (didn’t leave any of the old ones on for comparison, though!). With a higher appreciation also comes a higher rating, that stands to reason! 82/100 ------------------------------------------- Very little info about this young Helsingborg based Swedish Melodic Hard Rock band, but then the band IS very yound, as are its band members, with an average age going to 19 now! All five members are friends from school, and have been playing in bands with each other in a variety of combinations since 2004. Apparently guitarist Kristian Larsen, keyboardist Christopher Björck, bassist Gustav Bergström and drummer Simon Cop had been moving around their city as a band called Striker for a while, and when their singer upped and went, they recruited Gustav Larsson, and changed the band’s name to their current one. Then, using the likes of Toto, Journey, and Giant as a template, the quintet set about writing a keyboard driven set of songs which are a joy to listen to! Funny detail: the guys are apparently só into their music, they’ve taken on an image to fit it: white shirts, taylor-made suits (well, perhaps they’re from the super-market after all, but you get the drift, right?), and even the appropriate hair-do, for some of ‘em! Having played with each other before, the guys are finely tuned into each other, and each of the members is a rather good musician too! Of course, in today’s world of Melodic Rock, you need a gimmick in order to stand out, and this can be achieved either through an exceptionally great guitarist (not available, although I won’t deny Larsen’s qualities, quite on the contrary…but he ain’t that good, see), or through an out-of-the-ordinary singer! Does Larsson have that quality? Well, some may argue about that, but I feel he handles things very well. I was a little worried when he started hitting the high note after the promising first sentence, but luckily he retains his slight nasality throughout the song, and the other 5 songs! Oops, made a mistake there, because after the ballad “When Evening Falls” (and yes, Larsson does pass the ballad test), the guys put in a short (one minute) instrumental (actually an intro to the ensuing “Top Of Your World”). By the way, as can be expected from a band playing this type of music, you’ll find the lead singer backed harmoniously by his bandmates (no idea as to whom may take place behind a microphone stand besides playing his instrument, though!)! To showcase their prowess, the band posted the songs “Hero” and “When Evening Falls” at myspace.com/titantheband (in fact their official website, as logging onto (www.) titantheband.com simply redirects you automatically to the MySpace page! 85/100 Tony. |
