Abaddon magazine

Tag: Blood Fire Death

  • Review: Siroll! – Al Gra!

    Review: Siroll! – Al Gra!

    Label: Blood Fire Death

    Date: June 14th, 2024

    I would actually like to know where is the line between an album and an EP. It seems to be quite arbitrary. I mean, here’s a twenty three minute long recording of eight tracks that is dubbed an album. On the other hand, I’ve got a few four track EPs which last well over half an hour. To each his and her own would be a correct policy, if it wasn’t for the pricing. While you can get an EP for something like eight euros (pounds, dollars, whatever…), a full album costs from ten, fifteen, to eighteen or even twenty. Then again, with the independent music scene the pricing can be just as arbitrary. In case of Siroll!’s new album, you can “name the price” on Bandcamp and get it for free.

    I just don’t know and will likely be left without a concrete answer, as the question bears way too many variables and unknowns. What I can say is that I do not (and will never) encourage “naming the price” zero. If you want to listen to the album for free, do so on any given streaming platform, because in such cases the band can earn a few bucks from the sheer number of “streams”. That much you can do.

    The unnecessary tractate be gone. I’m diving into “Al Gra!”. More than fifteen years are behind this Catalan quintet and this is their fourth album. What constitutes their musical credo is named on their Bandcamp page as extreme crossover metal and that’s as good of a description as any. Literally, Siroll! mixes hardcore, thrash metal and modern melodic death metal into a strong and surprisingly homogenous rock formation. With politically engaged lyrics, of course, though I’m inferring that from context, since Catalan language is not among those I’m even slightly familiar.

    The closest comparison I’m thinking of is Slayer from their “troublesome” nineties, along with a more distinct devotion to west coast hardcore (Madball, Suicidal Tendencies, Hatebreed…) and spiced, on occasion, with melodic guitars not unlike Dark Tranquillity or Kataklysm, for best example. Hardcore is the one holding it all together, while the others are there as an enhancement. Also important to notice are the vocals that offer variety which further intensifies the multitude of genres involved in Siroll!’s music. These span from classic shouts, (where would hardcore be without the) gang vocals and classic growling. The singing is fairly convincing and the voice stands ground with tons of bricks being delivered by the other instruments.

    While on the subject of instrumentalization, it’s done by the highest standards. Enriched by a solid, heavy production work, “Al Gra!” is an album that will fill the hearts with all the anger and adrenaline its creators and performers exuded on the piece of plastic. The Catalans have listened to a whole lot of music and picked up exactly the lessons they needed to craft such an album. But that’s where lies an issue they failed to address…

    Namely, the album lacks any indication of a personal touch. The whole thing is highly predictable and made from the well-worn bag of tricks. That fact alone wouldn’t be such a terrible thing if the album contained a massively catchy and easily memorable parts which would serve as points of distinguishment. Unfortunately, “Al Gra!” works like a charm while it spins, but dissipates from the mind as soon as it stops. At least in my case, since I believe in the riches of language and there’s an open possibility that the understanding of those, not to mention the ability to singalong to a catchy chorus, could be the turning point in proper judging of Siroll!’s possibilities.

    Even with those reservations mentioned, I would still recommend listening to these guys. It won’t hurt since they are rather good. Plus, it’s not like there’s anything new happening in hardcore every day, so you might as well try some Catalan rage.

     

  • Review: Litost – Pathos

    Review: Litost – Pathos

    Label: Blood Fire Death

    Date: March 17th, 2023

    When it comes to trendy black metal I’m the one to miss out on it and then arrive at the “crime scene” way too late to witness it firsthand. Yes, I’m that guy who imagines himself buried deep in the underworld and all too proud to succumb to current development of the scene. “Give me old school until my ooga-booga does the ooga-booga I need to ooga-boogy me”. Something like that.

    Anyway… That kind of approach to music (and life in general) rarely turns out to be the right one. For instance, the first time I heard the name Harakiri For The Sky, I dismissed it as rubbish, just for having that weird name. Then when I saw them become a band of significant stature I further dismissed them for being this hyped up act that will last a season and then disburse as many before. And then I heard their music which made me lick all the places I’ve spat upon.

    It all happened to me way too often, before and after, so why am I mentioning the “Harakiri incident” on this particular occasion? Well, mostly because Litost claims to stem from the same root as the famed Austrians. Thankfully, and to shatter any illusion you might have, the Spaniards have opted not to blindly follow but to advance, enhance and generally leave a footprint on the basis of “Harakiri sound”.

    Another thing… Of course, Litost doesn’t just take from the Austrians. They’re not that shallow. There’s a healthy dose of primal Scandinavia in there. Taake is mentioned in the press release and it is definitely a good suggestion, as are Ulver, Borknagar… Or Mgła for that matter. Though this type of mixture does sound intriguing, this is only the appetizer and a fairly simple one at that. A detail here and there and not much else to speak of.

    It still needs to be clarified that Litost, on the second full length recording, presents ideas that are not all that familiar. Far be it from calling them extremely original, but the tracks do show that there is something which might lift the band up high. However, it would seem like it remained underdeveloped.

    Take a listen to the opener, for instance. “Tromba” starts you off with an almost frantic guitar solo and takes you on a journey of melodic brutality one can hardly resist. Yet, it’s been done before. Tried and tested. Even if Litost offers decent musical pieces you cannot say you’ve heard countless times before, they are not likely to get you to heights you yearn if at all inclined towards Groza, Harakiri For The Sky or Deathspell Omega.

    However, halfway through the record something happened. Just when I thought this will be another good but not too spectacular CD which will spend my lifetime on the shelf. As if Manri, the band’s leader, heard it too. Track five and onwards, we get the same foundation of sound, black metal just slightly on the melodic death metal side, but the build-up changes considerably.

    Insert progressive elements, some uneven rhythms and different riffing patterns. Still, most notably, there’s this dramatic insurgence of folklore motifs. It’s not that they’re subtly infused, no, they take an extremely significant role in the overall soundscape, as well as in the song arrangements. Almost to a point where you can dub the second half of “Pathos” a folk black metal record. Litost doesn’t lose focus from the black metal origins, but these insertions are what the band needed as an identifier.

    What’s more, these pieces of folklore legacy also come from two differentiating sources. Manri is apparently a connoisseur of his local history and is not afraid of using it to his band’s advantage, taking influences from the Muslim, Middle-Eastern tradition and mixing them with Iberian, Mediterranean ones. Such a combination, in addition to heatwaves of extreme metal, perfectly depicts what Valencia represents in the artistic and historic books of the world.

    Unfortunately, I don’t have the opportunity to see the lyrics to “Pathos”. Even if I did see them it is a question whether I would understand them, as I’m not well versed in Spanish language. And judging from the press kit that accompanied the CD, Litost is on a wholly different agenda than looking over their shoulder to their local history and cultural growth. They seem to have a much deeper, philosophical and existentialist questions on their collective minds.

    Whatever the truth may be, it still doesn’t deter me from having my own view of the art Litost presented to the world. As far as I’m concerned, Litost came up with a couple of EPs. The first one being a good yet quite standard attempt at a harmonious, melodic and grimly atmospheric black metal. And the second one is a marvelous exercise in all of the above lifted above and beyond by a dive into the local musical folklore. As a collection, they give out a sense of a band more than capable of a massive breakthrough. Wait and see.

     

  • Review: Red Elm – Arena

    Review: Red Elm – Arena

    Label: Blood Fire Death

    Date: October 7th, 2022

    Hailing from Barcelona, Red Elm was formed back in 2010. The first single “Unikorn” was released in 2015, and their debut album “ZERØ” in 2017. On previous releases, Red Elm were balancing between Spanish and English lyrics, but Raul “Bu Bu” Morón (Vocals) and Danu Valcárcel (guitars, backing vocals) made a decision to continue writing lyrics only in Spanish language.

    “Arena” is the second album of two piece progressive heavy metal band and it contains eight songs packed in around 38 minutes. The first impression is that this is not just progressive heavy metal. The album has so many layers: heavy metal, groove, stoner, progressive, rock, alternative rock…

    Unfortunately (or fortunately) I was not a fan of the Spanish telenovela very popular here in Serbia, so my Spanish language skills are really poor. But, Spanish language evolved from colloquial Latin that I have been learning ages ago in high school, so at least from the song titles I can figure out what is the essence of the band’s inspiration. Raul “Bu Bu” Morón says:

    “Sincere, dark, romantic, and universal at the same time”.

    As I wrote, till the “Arena”, Red Elm was making bilingual albums. Now, when they decide to focus on their mother language, it is difficult for a reviewer who does not speak the language to go into every pore of an album. So, lyrical content remains unknown to me or just on the guessing level based on song titles. All I can do is to trust Raul’s words.

    Red Elm is criticizing not humanity, but a single human being and its actions or reactions within a group. The focus is on the effect that one wrong step of every individual has. Lyrical content might be philosophical or psychological but however, it has a strong message. As I understood, the main message is never give up, do not sit and be just an observer, stand up and try to change something. Song titles discover a bit the main idea that is hiding behind the lyrics (new opportunities, challenge,

    Musically, the band drives from modern hard rock, playing on the edge of heavy metal, with a pinch of grunge to progressive. The music has so many layers, and its depth is even recognized and well represented through cover art. A mystic figure that in my opinion represents death holds in its hands an hourglass framed with filigree elements. Sand that falls with the key inside shows the complexity of an album. Obviously the passage of time is the main motif. Behind the art cover stands Ione Navarro, artist, or better to say tattoo artist from Barcelona.

    Once again, I apologize for not understanding the lyrics, I do not criticize the idea, but if at least I would have lyrics in front of me, I would find the way to translate it and write longer review.

    As the album is DIY recorded and produced, I can say this is a very high quality album.

    And I cannot resist saying that at some parts, well, most of it, Red Elm reminds me a lot of Slovenian band Siddharta.

     

  • Review: Metator – Akocedakor

    Review: Metator – Akocedakor

    Label: Blood Fire Death

    Date: March 26th, 2019

    Don’t be confused by the date above. It seems like the Spaniards have just recently inked a deal with Blood Fire Death to promote their debut album further. And it seems to have worked out quite well as the World Wide Web is filling up on the articles about Metator. Rightfully so, if you ask me, as the record deserves some attention. However flawed it might be.

    For a band that’s been “destroying wimps and posers since 2004” Metator have really done little to harm them. A couple of demos and this full length album. I haven’t heard the demos, but “Akocedakor” has an unnerving quality that should shock and appall those wimps and posers.

    The problem is that most of it comes from the production work. It’s as if the producer himself didn’t find a proper way to untangle the web Metator wove in the creation process. The album is neatly audible all the way, except for the parts where the lead guitar fails to take its prominent position in the overall audio carnage. It’s really a shame as these leads could’ve taken “Akocedakor” to a whole new level.

    Furthermore, I would say that the leads are shifting in influence between death and black metal, sounding quite interesting all the way. If you pay close attention, of course, since they are not properly accentuated as one would hope and expect.

    By the way, if I’m already stuck at the lead guitars, they offer that monumental Belphegor feel that so many people adore. Me being one of them. Other than the Austrian legend, Metator is influenced by a vast array of brutal death and grind bands. Formed in that way, “Akocedakor” is a treat for those who live and breathe death metal.

    But please keep in mind this is not one of those extremely technical records swarming with various meaningless fragments whose only goal seems to be boring the listener and easing his way to forgetting all about what he/she just heard. The Spaniards neatly formulated their tracks in the best tradition of Deicide, Suffocation, Napalm Death (later era), Immolation… At their more atmospheric moments Metator might even bring out connotations with Necros Christos.

    But I need to round up this review with another fault. At least to my ears. The vocals.

    These extreme gutturals fall out of place here. First of all, it is my opinion that a band proclaiming a philosophical stance behind their lyrics needs these lyrics to be heard to be understood. Even if they are written in both Spanish and English. Apart of that, the music promises a much deeper sophistication than the voice corroborates.

    Too bad, but that’s the way they wanted to go.

    In any case, I’m hoping for a re-mastered or re-recorded version of the record sometime in the future. Can’t say I’m not satisfied with “Akocedakor” but I can see it in much better light having a much deeper impact.