INTERVIEWS:
7 "Seven" (Suck Me Plasma Records)
Though there is no track listing, 7 showcases some slow ambient pieces with little or no beats. Track one has interesting use of bells and track three has a more upbeat tempo, though most of the songs here are slower in pace and more for an ambient atmosphere than one used for dancing. A few tracks take quite a while to kick in, as I said it's more a relaxing piece than one fit for a dance club. Track five is in stark contrast to the rest of the disc, with slow but heavy beats and eerie sharp trance sounds. An interesting use of trance and ambient sounds, though some pieces need a bit more "padding out."
BIRMINGHAM 6 "Assassinate" (Hard Records/Cleopatra)
Very VERY cool industrial dance floor combo, with slight thrash guitars and techno sounds reminiscent of Psykosonic and Two Unlimited, especially on the tracks "Contagious" and my personal favorite "Dance 17." The vocal style is similar to that of Spahn Ranch, though less intense and on some songs a near whisper sound. Most of the songs are of a mid tempo pace and great dance floor favorites, especially "Who Do You Love?" and my favorite track again. "This Girl" has some cool voice samples thrown through it, and "Assassinate" bring us samples from the Kennedy Assassination. This is what I would call a great club disc; most people will find there are several great tracks to play in any club, though the songs "Mindhallucinations 2" and "679-4700" may be TOO fast for some.
BRUJERIA "Raza Odiada" (Roadrunner Records)
Well, whether you believe the story of how these "Mexican Druglords" came to release singles and albums, the fact remains that the follow up to "Matando Gueros" showcases some brutal death metal. Though the vocals rarely dip into the extreme low ranges save for chorus lines and other places, the riffing is fast and furious on tracks like "Revolucion" and "Almas De Venta." I see that the instrumentation also leans towards slower and more intricate riffs, though nothing outstanding. Still just as brutal, this album (thankfully my roomate speaks fluent spanish) deals lyrically more with political ideals, though the black magic and drug touches are still present, especially in the track "Consejos Narcos." Whether fast or slow, they still rattle off lyrics (in spanish, however, if you haven't guessed) in a rapid fire tongue on the speedier cuts, though some of the chorus lines are still kinda weak. A brutal release, and one that stands out differently in the realm of brutal artforms, if not musically then certainly lyrically!
CUBANATE "Antibody" (Machinery/Dynamica Records)
Hard edged thrash style guitars, explosive dance floor beats, and a screaming style vocalist similar to Drown makes for a great combination! Tha track "Body Burn" is a great song for the clubs, and most of the others are very hard hitting. "Kill or Cure" has some funny lyrics, and there are two other versions of "Body Burn." A great album for those into the heavier side of industrial, kinda reminds me of Drown set to a dance floor beat.
DER DRITTE RAUM "Mental Modulator" (Harthouse Records)
A very strange name for a group, and no, I have no idea what it means! Anyway, there are 7 tracks, and LONG ones at that! One thing I will say, though, is that they have the strangest beats I have ever heard! "Magnetic Fields" has laser shot style drums, and on the track "M50" they use tribal drums. Most clubs may find a few songs they like, though "Stella" is quite basic, way too long, and there isn't much variety to the song. My personal favorite is "Montiee" for its wacky whip-style acid/trance sounds, also you hear a strange robotic voice chanting every once in awhile! It's crazy, man! "M50" was more laid back than the rest, kinda pop oriented and used lots of bells! While I didn't like the whole album, I did appreciate what they were doing, since long tracks like that need lots of variety and on most tracks they kept it interesting.
EXTREMA "The Positive Pressure of Injustice" (Flying Records)
Well, I must say I really didn't care for this much at all. The vocals, music, and everything else is a sort of trumped up Pantera or Biohazard. The riffs mostly border on that heavy crunch you'd expect from such a band, but I must say that there is some interesting variety on a few cuts, which surprised me a bit due to the fact that the riffs sometimes sound out of place. The lyrics are somewhat positive in influence, though the song "Confusion" has rather stupid lyrics; check out a sample: "Two, Three, Four, Listen to this music, Better take of yourself and don't abuse it?" A couple of songs had potential, but all in all I just didn't really enjoy this all that much.
HAUJOBB "Homes and Gardens" (Pendragon/Offbeat Records)
A strange German (I'm assuming) industrial combo, this is almost a year old, but it missed the deadline a few issues ago. Anyway, the group uses LOTS of samples, and some of the strangest instrumentation I've ever heard! (Note the strange rapid fire cartoon noises on "Slugbait.") The mood here is explosive and dark, not quite as explosive as Cubanate but with a darker, more gothic feel to it. The vocals remind me of that harsh, German sneer made famous by other German industrial pioneers. "Eye Over You" is an exception, starting off with a lighter ambient feel, and also mixing in some guitars before they hit the middle of the track. "Maternal Instinct" has some slamming drums, and on most tracks the instrumentation was very aggressive and full force, right in your face! The track "Tame" is more club oriented, though in an aggressive, Nine Inch Nails sorta way. Very dark and aggressive, though that seems to fit the bill for most industrial artists these days.
INDUSTRIAL HEADS "The Fear and The Anguish at The End" (Silent/Furnace)
Though they CLAIM to be strongly influenced by American and Canadian industrial acts like Nine Inch Nails and Skinny Puppy, (see the interview with them this issue) there is quite a bit of originality in their version of danceable industrial. The atmospheric sounds and ambient landscapes wash over a desolate, somewhat dark and heavy mood throughout the whole disc, though there are songs that portray thick sound overlay (like "Unrated," which goes over the top with the wall of noise and the ultra distorted vocals.) Mostly, though, the vocals are quite normal, with only a hint at distortion, but they DO love the use of samples! "Cancer" is a good club track, though it brings feelings of great distance between the music and the vocals. The instrumentation is quite good, lots of different sounds and mostly heavy, dark notes, while the drum samples are a bit reminiscent of other atmospheric industrial bands. The song "Machine," however, has a funkier sound with some rapid fire machine gun style drum samples! Makes you wonder sometimes if it's possible for a real drummer to hit that fast! All in all a good effort from the realm of Norway; check out the interview and be on the lookout for more projects from this seven piece.
KLINIK "To The Knife" (Zoth Ommog/Music Research GmbH)
THIS is very cool industrial/gothic with some techno thrown in! And the nice thing about this disc is that there are NO guitars, well, save for the electronic ones thrown into the song "Animal Torture." The whole CD has a dark, ominous sound to it, though a few tracks "The Knife" and "Black Ring" sound a bit more club worthy and even the vocals take on a different tone. Mostly the vocals are a darker mix of X Marks the Pedwalk and Sisters of Mercy. My biggest complain is the way the vocals are hidden behind the music on a couple of tracks, and the song "Phoenix" sounds like the mix wasn't worked out properly. However, the touches of goth thrown into the industrial mix are very nice, even on the track "Forest," which incidentally is an all instrumental ambient piece, showcase a dark mood. Very likeable, and also quite different to what other industrial artists are doing. Clubs may also like the overall mood of the aforementioned tracks.
MALEVOLENT CREATION "Eternal" (Pavement Records)
Man, it's a damn shame Roadrunner dropped Malevolent, because this album is SO brutal words can't even describe it! (But, since I HAVE to use words, I'll try) First off, the drumming is top notch and very solid, very fast! I haven't heard double bass quite that fast in some time! The riffing is very heavy and complex as well, especially on tracks like "Enslaved," and "Unearthly." The whole band as a unit works very well together. Other standouts are "Alliance or War," check out some of the sound samples from Full Metal Jacket! The songs vary in length from 3 to 5 minutes, keeping you from getting bored with overemphasis on riffs. The vocals are very vicious, and every fan of these Florida boys will be crushed from the opening track. GET IT OR ELSE!!!
NIGHTFALL "Eons Aura" (Holy Records)
"Sympho-doom-death," and "Epic War Metal" are two terms used to describe the sound of this classic Greek band. The four tracks presented here utilize a mixture of doom metal style guitars (sometimes with great beauty in the vein of Candlemass, especially on the track "Ardour Was I") with unbelievable symphonic keyboarding. You can hear many different orchestral sounds, and I must admit I've never heard orchestrated instruments sound that heavy or intense! Check out the organ riffs matching the guitars note for note on "Eroding." My few complaints was with the track "Until the Gods Help Us," this is basically an organ instrumental with a whispered voice that also uses very low and guttural death vocals, which are out of place in a track like this. Also, the beautiful mood set by the instrumentation on "Ardour Was I" is ruined when they break into a set of speed riffs and death vocals. The production was a little fuzzy; I had expected a bit better production for something like this, but all in all it's not a terrible release, in fact, it's still in the vein of the type of material that Holy Records puts out.
NITZER EBB "Big Hit" (Geffen Records)
A big hit this is NOT. Anyone familiar with Nitzer Ebb will be VERY displeased at the direction this album has taken. Gone are the harsh big hit style songs that were up front and aggressive like "Join in the Chant" and "Showtime," this time around the vocalist is too absorbed in trying to sing pop style. The only two decent songs on this disc are "Hear Me Say" and "Kick It," and the latter song sounds a bit out of place with the vocals, while the former would make a good club piece, it's about the only song on here that gives a hint at what Nitzer Ebb used to be. This must be an experimental piece, there are even classical instruments on one of the tracks, for god's sakes! In case anyone doesn't know, Nitzer Ebb is a sort of dancey industrial unit, but you'd never know it from the alternative pop style presented here.
NOISEBOX "Monkey Ass" (Cleopatra Records)
Yep, another industrial/techno based group that LOVES those guitars! Explosive industrial with thrashy guitars and a raspy over distorted voice, perfect for dance clubs into really heavy stuff. Check out the working of The Crazy World of Arthur Brown's "I am the god of hellfire" into the track "I Hate U." The songs "Desire" and "Skinner" are two of my favorites, the former incorporates the over thick distorted guitars, while the latter relies more on keyboarded instrumentation and voice samples. Clubs who like the explosive industrial sound will like this one, as will people who are more into the metal scene and wanting to check out ultra brutal industrial. Those guitars do thrash on!
PGR "The Morning Book of Serpents" (Silent Records)
Imagine you're on an alien planet, it's dark and you have no idea what horrors await you. This is the perfect CD for those horror filled nights of emptiness and darkness. It's very dark ambient music, devoid of beats or real structure, save for the landscape sounds that rush at you. Most of the tracks are quite long, the elements of each track vary little. The track "Eight Corners of the Horizon" has a strange man speaking in a foreign language, and "Pythagorean Sea" has water sounds, perfect for the imagination of your last drowning minutes. A dark piece, though it's a bit long timewise, for if you're not in the mood for "nice, normal" ambient works.
THE ABYSS "The Other Side" (Relapse/Nuclear Blast)
Anyone familiar with the band Hypocrisy ought to know that this is their side project. The CD contains 8 songs and is no more than 35 minutes long. This is a chaotic style of black metal that contains some melodic pieces, though the majority of tracks contain fast riffing and drums, which are quite competent. The track "Sorgens Dal" showcases some intricate riffs done in a slower, more melodic fashion, while the vocals are of a higher range than the vocals used in Hypocrisy. They even do a cover of the old Hellhammer track "Massacra," and it's interesting to hear because their guitars sound like the Celtic Frost style we all know and love. While scoring no points for originality, it's an interesting piece, they do use female operetta style vocals on "Marutukku" and "Slukan." I'm assuming that the lyrics as well are done in their native language. Those fans of black metal will find this an interesting side piece.
VARIOUS ARTISTS "A Saucerful of Pink" (Cleopatra Records)
Yep, a Pink Floyd tribute album of industrial, techno, & ambient artists! The most interesting and best cut here is Leaether Strip's version of "Learning to Fly:" Claus Larsen takes a mellow song and adds a dark, gothic twist to it! Controlled Bleeding's "Another Brick in the Wall" is very cool as well, and clubs that are able to play slower industrial/techno songs and get away with it will find this a perfect crowd pleaser! Spahn Ranch does a nice job with "One of These Days," and Electric Hellfire Club's version of "Lucifer Sam" is a perfect dance piece! So is Penal Colony's version of "Young Lust" for that matter. Most of the cuts on here have been presented in a more electronic format, instead of just cloning the song. However, Din's version of "On the Run" sounds damn close to the original!! It's a good compilation CD if you're a big Pink Floyd fan, though most everyone will be more familiar with "Another Brick in the Wall," "Learning to Fly," and "Lucifer Sam." Hopefully they'll come up with a Dark Side of the Moon tribute album!
CATHEDRAL. Interview with Brian Dixon.
Despite rumours of being broken up and what not, Cathedral is still alive and well, evidenced by their upcoming release "The Carnival Bizarre." Brian explains to us what happened with the Columbia deal: "Well, lack of money basically meant that we were dropped by Columbia. (Kudos to the wonderful world of corporate organizations. - Ed.) At that point, the rhythm section had two guys from Chicago, who couldn't be kept on due to high costs of getting everyone together. At this point it was a bad time for the band, and it was realized that they needed someone from England, so there was an audition held which I accepted. We had three days rehearsal and then immediately had to go out on the road with Deicide. It was tough, but despite being the wrong kind of tour, not to mention there was like six other bands, it went down well. Anyway, we are down to one guitarist now, and halfway through the tour with Black Sabbath, they had some problems with a guy named Victor, and so they had to get rid of him. They were down to a four piece then and live some of the songs that were written for two guitarists are a bit difficult to pull off. However, I think that as a four piece you have more room to move about, plus it kinda remnids me of the Sabbath of old, that early 70's sound." In description of the sound, the new album is "70 minutes long. Some people say it's more straight forward than the older stuff. It's more accessible but not in a commercial way. It wasn't something that was concentrated on, let's just say it was whatever came out at the time. I think every album has been totally different from every other album Cathedral has ever done."
To involve Cathedral in the major doom metal movement that has been quietly gaining acceptance would be a good move, concerning their roots, musical background, and also Lee Dorrian's involvement with his own label Rise Above. This editor tends to think that Lee Dorrian could be a pioneer for the "new doom metal movement." Though Brian has only been with Cathedral a short time, he gives a little insight into the workings of Rise Above Records: "Flying Records in Italy has taken up a distribution deal with Rise Above, and Flying of course as you know has a base here in the U.S. Bandwise there is Mourn, a London band, Electric Wizard, and a new London band Our Haunted Kingdom, which has just been recorded I believe. Electric Wizard, kind of a slow, doomy band, should be available quite soon. There are plans to release about 7 or 8 albums a year. It's hard for Lee to put a lot of time into the label because of cathedral's touring plans and other commitments. Because of the busy schedule, he involved Flying Records to help with the business end of things. We played with Acrimony last weekend at a club called the Borderline in England, a rather small club, which was filmed for a Japanese TV special. We did the gig under the name of Midnight Mountain, and I think this is coming out in March."
As far as the writing of the new album goes, Brian tells us that "we wrote a song called 'Utopian Bluff' which features a solo from Tony Iommi from Black Sabbath on it. He hardly ever plays with any other bands, but he came down here and laid down about 5 solos for us to choose from. Since we've been together it's been nonstop work, maybe for the next album things will be a bit different. We used a guy named Kitt Wolven for the producer of this album, and he's a producer who works with lots of 70's bands like Thin Lizzy and U.F.O. which kind of put us off a bit, but as it turns out he didn't really try and change anything, he just helped us achieve the sounds we wanted and get the parts down we needed. The guitar sound is much more in your face than your old stuff, it's a lot heavier, even Lee sings in a more traditional fashion."
Touring plans are still up in the air, but they plan to hit the U.S. shores "About January or February of next year. We're doing a few U.K. dates at the end of this month, then we're going to Scandinavia with Motorhead, and after that we do a European tour with Crowbar which will take us up until Christmas. Then we've got Japan in March, so between January and March is when we focus on the U.S. We are hoping the album does really well; this will determine how we set up our touring plans." Something I noticed with the release of this album is that it is out the same time both in Europe and in the States, so things are more together for this release.
Before Cathedral, Brian says he didn't do much interesting, but he states: "Where I came from I was just playing in bars mostly. I was glad to have a job because I was kind of depressed, and believe me where I'm from (Liverpool, England - Ed.) there are some depressing areas. I guess it makes a good breeding ground for English doom metal bands. Liverpool is a violent city at times, and though I have never been to the States, I had heard a few horror stories about New York City; I fully expected to get mugged once I get off the plane! Doing the interview from the New York offices I came in on a holiday so I haven't got to see a whole lot of the city. I used to listen to a lot of Southern Rock when I was a kid, like Allman Brothers and Lynrd Skynrd, so I also want to visit regions in the South. I look forward to touring the States, it will be my first time over here, so try to check out the album when it comes out, it has some amazing artwork that folds out in the cover." Hopefully things will work out for the new lineup, and expect to see them stateside sometime early next year!
FEAR FACTORY. Interview with Dino at the Roadrunner offices.
With their newest release "Demanufacture," Fear Factory incorporates touches of industrial and electronics into their brutal sound. The industrial influence starts back to an EP entitled "Fear is the Mindkiller," and as Dino tells us: "I was big fans of Front Line Assembly, and when we wanted someone to do our remixes, we naturally picked them, and we got Roadrunner to call up the members of Front Line Assembly. They called us back and were really into the music, so they did some remixes for this EP. Roadrunner does work with Front Line Assembly quite a bit. As for the new album, we wanted to go in the same vein as the remixes EP, but we didn't want to go full on techno. We still wanted the killer riffs and vocals, but we just added a bit of new sounds and new style. Most of the stuff I've been listening to, and you might be surprised to hear this, but I've been listening to a lot of New Wave stuff, and a lot of sound tracks to movies like Alien, Terminator, and Blade Runner. Soundtrack music is a lot of what we added to Fear Factory, that atmospheric keyboard style industrial sounds. I have also been listening to a lot of techno, fast techno, and ambient/trance stuff. I love the band Prodigy. I was kinda surprised to hear that your magazine is into techno, because the magazine name (referring to Vibrations of Doom - ed.) sounds kinda like it's mainly into death metal. We are even trying to see if Prodigy will do some remixes for us."
In reference to Prodigy, the European scene does more for a band like Fear Factory than the U.S. scene. According to Dino, "MTV Europe is a lot more open minded and they play a lot of everything, like Prodigy, and Carcass and stuff. Over here it's all R&B and Green Day and stuff. We have done a lot for MTV Europe; we've done live shows, interviews, and videos. We plan on doing a video for the song "Replica." which will hopefully get MTV play in Europe, but I'm sure that MTV USA will never play it. Headbanger's Ball is gone, and they bypass almost everything that is heavy."
Talking about "Demanufacture," the whole album deals with, in Dino's own words: "Demanufacture deals with a person dealing with the society he/she lives in. It means breaking down the old and creating the new. The hardest part is breaking down the old. The movie 'Falling Down' is the basis for a lot of what we write about. People are basically desensitized to life these days, and kids are carrying guns around and killing each other because they think it's cool, and they do it with no remorse and no guilt! Media plays on this as well, because they know people don't want to hear positive stuff, they want to hear all the crap, like the O.J. trial, and the people that died in the federal building. The movie 'Running Man' played on this very well, a talk show that's all violence. In some ways, media influences people's minds a lot. We like to call our album a soundtrack for survival." And what about a person's society? How influential is where a person lives or where he works on his character? "Take the guy who bombed the federal building," says Dino. "When he was caught, we found out that he was in the Gulf War and was affected by the mustard gas. He went to the government for federal aid because he was sick, and they wouldn't give him any money, so he blew up the federal building. The agents that were interrogating him showed him pictures and videotapes of people who died and he wouldn't even flinch, he wouldn't even look. He basically became machanical, a machine. In the army they taught him how to kill, and how not to feel pain, not to feel guilt. The only answer that the guy would give is his name and rank number. You kinda feel sorry for him, because in some ways it's like he's a product of his environment. It would have made a better statement if he had blown the building up at night, when there were few or no people in the building, but instead there was a tremendous loss of life. And I also wonder, not meaning to sound racist or anything, but why is it always caucasians that do the most extreme things? I mean, in Los Angeles where I live there are Hispanics and Blacks that are in gangs, and they kill each other in territories, kinda stupid actually, but caucasians seem to always take it to the next level, they get more extreme. Like Jeffrey Dahmer, Son of Sam, John Wayne Gacy; my theory is that most caucasians came from middle class families. Most of these kids were brought up kind of sheltered, and in America you see white suburban kids in the gangs, and it's become a trend. They see it on TV and become influenced by it."
Another topic, and one that seems to have taken a personal effect on my publication, is the selling of CD's, whether used or promotional or otherwise. Though I didn't make it a topic for interviewees, Dino had PLENTY to say on the matter of selling CD's: "Hey, I even sell my own CD's! Used CD's are selling better right now than actual CD's. As long as I get one, as far as bootlegs are concerned, I really don't care! To me it's more exposure if it gets to more than one person, hey that's another person who might say, 'well, I liked the CD a lot, I think I'll go see them in concert.' It's like this, what did the labels send you the CD's for? I mean, are you supposed to send them back or something? I sell used CD's all the time, and there's an artist by the name of Clint Black, some country singer or what not, who was all upset and trying to ban the sale of used CD's. Why should he even care? He has zillions of dollars and there are people who can't even afford a brand new CD. Like I said, if it puts our music into the hands of more people it helps US out. Even with video tape traders, we like to have them there, as long as I can get a copy, it is no problem for us."
Touring plans for Fear Factory have already commenced. "We're doing the Dynamo Festival over in Europe, it's like a really big thing. Paradise Lost, Type O Negative, Machine Head, Life of Agony, Dog Eat Dog, and more will be playing there. After that we will be touring with Megadeth in the States. I know a lot of people aren't into Megadeth but for us it's really big time exposure." Though they failed to mention it, they actually have started a tour with none other than Ozzy Osbourne himself, and Fear Factory is also involved with Geezer Butler in a side project, read more about that in the noteworthy items section, and we'll review the CD next issue! Until that time, Dino has a few words for his fans: "One thing, I want to thank the people who stuck with us through all the years, and I want to thank the fanzines like you who give us the exposure we need to get our music out there. Fear Factory is NOT about limitations, and most of our fans know that we will be doing new things all the time. We don't limit ourselves in the music we listen to either. We're not into labels or categorizing either. If we were categorized as a punk band, for instance, we'd die with that scene. Anyway, hopefully everyone will buy the record, or buy it from someone who already bought it, or whatever!"
INDUSTRIAL HEADS. Interview with John Stene.
For those of you unfamiliar with this Norwegian industrial band, a recent signing to the Silent/Furnace label, let's start off with a brief history, courtesy of Mr. Stene: "We started out in the summer of '91 when we were attending a club here in Oslo that plays industrial music. We started out as DJ's at the club, just spinning records. We consider ourselves the best DJ's here in Oslo, and used that position to play our own music. There were a couple of guys who had some equipment and allowed us to record. After the material was recorded, we played it in the club to great response." Amazing as it sounds, John reveals to us an even more startling fact: "There is no real scene here whatsoever. There is only one industrial club here and it's closed for the summer. It's very small for industrial here, basically our only scene is popular stuff."
"Influence wise, for the recording of our album, we have used trance elements and we have even added a bass player from a thrash metal band, one that was local to the area. He quit his old band, I can't recall the name of the band. I think they had a record deal in Germany or were working on one. We are big fans of stuff like Front Line Assembly, Nine Inch Nails, Skinny Puppy, Young Gods, Ministry, stuff like that. Basically we are fans of the music and incorporate that stuff into our lineup. Lyrics are written by myself and Thomas Sevaldrud, our other vocalist. Lyrically we like to write about death, pain and other 'happy' topics. I basically write about things that either upset me or stuff that pops up into my brain, but it's rarely anything positive. For our next release, though we're not planning to go into that right now, we still have an album we're promoting; we want to go heavier, kind of harsher. We have always talked about going to a style like that of Skinny Puppy or Nine Inch Nails, especially production wise."
Speaking of playing live, or playing at all for that matter, they HAVE done quite a few shows in their homeland. John relates the tale of the band's activities on stage: "We did a release party for the CD here in Norway, and we also played two gigs in Oslo in June. We are planning on doing another tour in a city called Bergin. Hopefully we'll be able to play outside of Scandinavia and Europe soon. Anyway, last year we played a show with the Swamp Terrorists, which is a good band. I'd like to tour with bands that are easy to work together with, groups that influence us a lot like Skinny Puppy and Nine Inch Nails." There are seven members in the band, and it's a trip the way they get everything together on the stage: "On the release party we had 17 people on the stage with us, and it was crowded! Ten other people were doing an S & M show on stage while we were playing, and we use a lot of sequencers when we play. We're aiming at trying out everything to get the best sound, to see what fits us best. There are quite a few samples on this album as well, lyric samples and sound samples. It's been about six months since we recorded the album, and I can't remember exactly what they were pulled from." And, while we're on the subject of samples, John mentions in the CD that he supports the idea of MACOS, which stands for Musicians Against Copyrighting of Samples, and he explains to us it's significance in his part of the world: "We're basically tired of hearing about bands who have been sued by some people because they use samples from other bands or people (The Malhavoc incident springs to mind, mentioned in a previous issue of V.O.D. - Ed.) Here in Norway it's not a problem, because over here it's basically a free country for that sort of thing. Like if we're wanting to sample phrases or words from movies and what not, then it is all basically American or English oriented. The people who want to sue us, if it's in America, would have a VERY hard time having to deal with the distance plus our laws and their laws."
Who knows what the future holds for these Norwegian industrial musicians? Though the distance holds them back, it may be left up to the record labels and clubs to give them additional exposure. We'll leave the final words to John: "We hope everyone will check out our album. We want everyone who listens to it to enjoy it, and maybe they'll be checking out our other releases and our upcoming projects. We have side projects coming out, one that is sort of in the works right now is called Dismembered Quietly, a sort of soundtrack style piece that I will be in with another fellow musician outside of the band. It should be released in October on Furnace Records. It tends to lean in the direction of Skinny Puppy. We are also working on something that we call "Chemical Adin," and Adin is a Russian word for one. We don't know who will do this, but this is a video project we are doing." Sounds like great things coming from Norway, stay tuned for more info!
NOTEWORTHY ITEMS:
Silent/Furnace Records has new releases due on September 19th. First off, a Japanese noise band Manta Ray will release "Numinous Island," Fkozey Fetish has an album titled "Mama Kei" and self titled albums will appear from Operation Mindwipe and Syntax Error. Syntax Error, by the way, is being mixed and produced by Darryl Hell, founder of Silent Records.
Silent/Furnace now has new distribution. They are being distributed by Alliance rather than Caroline. According to Darryl, "This is a better move for us, as it gives us a greater distribution rate." They also plan on releasing a full video line including everything from concerts to full length videos. They will start this in the fall of '95.
The Cannibal Corpse army is once again active! They are planning on releasing a 4 song E.P. just in time for Halloween and their next full length release is due in early 1996. In addition, Chris Barnes is involved with a new side project that features not only Chris Barnes on vocals, but also Obituary guitarist Allen West! This project is known as Six Feet Under, and yes, they DO plan to embark on a U.S. tour very shortly! In fact, they played their debut at this year's Milwaulkee Metalfest and the tour commences in October.
Remember Voivod? Well, they have reportedly inked a deal with Toronto's Hypnotic Records and their full length studio album should be completed by the time you read this. This will be the first effort by the band since the departure of vocalist Snake. Some tenatively titled tracks include "Project X," "Cosmic Conspiracy," "Insect," and "D.N.A." Also picked up by Hypnotic Records is Gorguts, who will record their third full length album.
The former members of Exhorder have been busy as well, with vocalist Kyle Thomas fronting a new group called Penalty. After searching for a whole year for good major label interest, it seems as if they will sign with Roadrunner Records! Meanwhile, ex-Exhorder guitarist Jay Ceravolo is currently involved with Fall From Grace. They have recorded five new songs that are said to be more mature and accessible than their first release. Unfortunately, they are still looking for a record deal.
In other new venture deals, former Sodom drummer Chris Dudek (better known to Sodom fans as Witchhunter) is putting together a new power/groove metal outfit that is being called Witchhunter. They are currently looking for a new singer before they complete their first demo. James Murphy of Obituary/Disincarnate/ Testament has also been hard at work, putting together instrumental material in the hopes of landing a solo deal. No word on whether or how this will affect touring plans with Testament or not.
Metal Massacre is back! Yes, the 12th volume of Metal Massacre is set for a November 7th release, and will feature 15 bands. Here's the rundown of who is to be on it: Paingod, Pist*On, Crisis, Level, Avernus, Ancient, And Christ Wept, Amboog-A-Lard, Pervis, Eulogy, Divine Regale, Tipper Gor, Big Twin Din, Gunga Din and Overcast. Big Twin Din, if it's the same band, is from the Atlanta area and features none other than ex-Hallows Eve vocalist Stacy Anderson! Look out for a feature interview with Stacy in our next issue!
Metal Blade Records has got some stellar releases planned all the way up to spring of '96. Releases are as follows: Sacred Reich are planning on an early '96 date for their newest "Heal." Galactic Cowboys, after their split with Geffen, will release "Machine Fish" early next year. Fates Warning are now a 4 piece after the departure of guitarist Frank Aresti, and they hope to hit the studio this fall to begin working on a new full length. Thought Industry has completed "Outer Space is Just a Martini Away," which should see release early next year as well. October 24th will see a new GWAR record entitled "Ragnarok," and Channel Zero's debut "Unsafe" will hit stores October 10th. Channel Zero, a Belgian quartet, should satisfy those into Pantera, Machine Head, and Biohazard.
Many of you may remember Masquerade's "Surface of Pain" that we reviewed some time ago, well, Metal Blade has picked up the rights to it. October 10th will see the release domestically and as far as I'm concerned, it's about time! For those fans of good old fashioned hard, and I do mean HARD driving, straight forward heavy metal, you will NOT be dissapointed.
In addition to the Metal Massacre series, Metal Blade will be releasing The 12 Commandments, a new video collection featuring videos from bands past and present. With the dissolution of Headbanger's Ball on MTV it will be very hard for most fans to see these fine gems get T.V. play so on October 24th you'll get to see videos by Desultory, Skrew, Broken Hope, Joey Vera, Armored Saint, Grip Inc., The Organization, Cannibal Corpse, Mercyful Fate, Chemlab, Fates Warning, and Gwar.
And now for the reissue department. In addition to the domestic releases of Masquerade and Celestial Season, Metal Blade is reissuing the REST of the Lizzy Borden collection. The other album titles that will see reprint are: "Love You to Pieces," "Menace to Society," "The Murderess Metal Road Show Live," "Give 'Em The Axe/Terror Rising," and "Visual Lies." Also to be slapped to the record store shelves are the first three Armored Saint albums that were previously released on Chrysalis: "March of the Saints, "Delirious Nomad," and "Raising Fear." These last three are due out this fall.
Roadrunner has a new subdivision label entitled Deep Blue, which will deal with the techno/ambient and true industrial side of things. Already out are new discs from Intermix, Paradise 3001, and Battleground. Upcoming is a Global House culture compilation series volume 1 and 2. Third Mind Records is no more, so it is still uncertain what will happen to the rest of the acts covered by Roadrunner/Third Mind, most notably Prayer Tower, Will, and Front Line Assembly, though Cleopatra may pick up on the rest of the FLA catalog.
OZZY'S BACK! OZZY'S BACK! Yes, Ozzy is touring once again and this time he's dragging Fear Factory with him to do 15 dates, mostly in the northern part of the U.S. The only dates I have at present is Kansas City, MO October 24th at the Memorial Auditorium and St. Louis, MO October 23rd at the American Theatre. More dates as I get them. Look for the info to be posted on alt.rec.rock-n- roll.metal. Also be on the lookout for Ozzy's "Ozzmosis" album which should be released next month.
In other Fear Factory news, lead singer Burton is teaming up with Geezer Butler (from the legendary Black Sabbath, as if ya didn't know!) and Ozzy's current drummer to release a full length album! This news comes to us from SCPR, a publicity department dealing with Morbid Angel and a few others. Set for release in October, details are VERY sketchy right now, with even Roadrunner personnel unsure as to how this thing will fly.
Century Media, home of such brutal greats as Morgoth, Tiamat, and Samael, has quite a bit planned release wise. October 24th will see the release of Kansas' own Hostility. Their album, entitled "Brick," is kinda sludge style in the vein of Crowbar and Eyehategod. November 7th we will see Kentucky's My Own Victim release "Burning Inside." Eyehategod and Only Living Witness will release albums around February of 1996, the Only Living Witness album is entitled "Innocents," while the Eyehategod album is still as of yet untitled. Merauder is doing an album to be released around January 1996, and expect new Morgoth and Samael full length discs near the summer.
Earache has some U.S. releases planned for the end of the year, the list is as follows: At The Gates and OLD will release theirs in October, Scorn will bring out a new album in November, and Napalm Death will release a 7 inch in December. More releases as they become available.
My Dying Bride's "Trinity" and Mind Over Four's "Empty Hands" should be out by the time you read this on the Fierce label, a subdivision of the Futurist department. However, Leeway, Overdose, and Malhavoc will have albums out sometime soon. No dates have been set yet, but we'll keep ya posted!
Though they have had a slow summer, Pavement Records has a few releases due out soon. Internal Bleeding has a new one due October 10th, Stevie Salas Color Code puts out "Back From the Living" on October 24th, and Beyond (formerly known as Demented Ted) will release "Reassemble" on November 7th. Demented Ted has a new guitarist in Mick Vega, formerly of the group Syndrome. Plans for 1996 include a new Soltiude Aeturnus record, the boys will hit the studio in March and the new release is set for spring. There is also talk of a live Malevolent Creation record as well.
Black Mark now has a PROPER U.S. site! And they will bombard us with lots of cool releases! Due out probably by the time you get this (October 3rd) are Bathory's "Octagon," Morgana Lefay's "Sanctified," Gomorrah's "Reflections of Inanimate Matter," and Lake of Tears' "Headstones." They also plan on incorporating a full merchandise line, including T-shirts and much of the back catalog.
Memento Mori has dropped Messiah Marcolin from their lineup, but still plan on releasing a new album around February. No word as yet to who will be replacing Messiah on vocals, but it will still be distributed through Black Mark in the U.S.
While on the subject of Black Mark, the U.S. division of the popular label has a distribution line for the label known as Raw Energy. Bands like Mundane, Trigger Happy, and Throbbin' Hoods showcase a sort of hardcore style that is a bit different from the rest of the Black Mark catalog. More info on that as it becomes available.
Skinny Puppy has released "Download," a 4 song advance CD featuring Cevin Key and special guest Genesis P. Orridge from Psychic TV. This is a bit of a surprise because the se 4 songs are from Skinny Puppy's forthcoming release "Furnace" which is to be released on Cleopatra! They have also called in their friends DJ Philth and Mark Spybey (Dead Voices on Air/ex-Zoviet France) and Dwayne Goettel, who is another member of Skinny Puppy. Look for them to tour later this year in support of this release.
Machine Head tour with Stuck Mojo from October 6th to November 24th. For a complete list of dates, watch the alt.rock-n-roll.metal and alt.rock-n-roll- metal.death for more details.
EDITORIAL NOTATIONS:
As I write this, I think how much effort it took to get this 10th issue out. I almost didn't make it, what with the damn PC being in the shop more than three times. I hate to have an issue come out late, but that's what happened. Anyway, I'm still here, and hopefully I can make up for the long, LONG delay with the Cathedral interview, and hopefully some more good stuff!
Anyone seen the Mortal Kombat movie? Well, judging by how it's done at the box office, I'm sure everyone has seen it. Has anyone paid any attention to the bands used in the soundtrack? Napalm Death, Fear Factory, Stabbing Westward, Orbital, and others! It was great to see death metal used in such a fashion, especially the Napalm Death tune! It just goes to show that even death metal and industrial are getting bigger. Just last week I saw a preview for a movie that had a song in it from Lords of Acid! I might have been wrong, but more and more movies are using a heavier soundtrack these days.
It's been a slow summer release wise and concert wise as far as metal is concerned. Hopefully things will pick up soon, and by the next issue we hope to have concert reviews and a few extra features we can bring to you. Look for the next issue to come out around the end of December, and also grab those sound files through our new addresses.
Before I wrap this issue up, I just wanted to say what I was most impressed by in 1995. Cubanate and Zero Defects are by far two of the best Industrial bands I have heard in quite some time, the fact that Zero Defects is still a relatively unknown commodity here in the States saddens me a bit. Metal wise, Holy Records still manages to put out some great bands, most overseas projects have a bit of originality to them once they can get past the "me too" syndrome of death metal. It was good to see David Bowie return with a more aggressive sound and industrial influences, the fact that Trent is working with him now is no real surprise. White Zombie comes to Savannah on February 11th I believe, and it may change the shape of our town as we know it! D.R.I. and Acid Bath play here on January 30th, and I have been involved in promotions for some other shows, most notably Sister Machine Gun and Die Krupps. With a little help and hard work a good music scene is possible ANYWHERE!
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