Are we still alive?

Uh, sorry for not posting anything for like, months. I'm quite busy at the moment with writing my thesis, and listing to harsh Black Metal like early Mayhem, or to sorrowful tunes like Slowdive. Sounds weird? Well, welcome to my world. 

Destroyer|Borderlines is about to be released in two days, and for the last few weeks a lot of reviews came in. It's funny to see that either people seem to really like it, or think it really sucks. Only very few reviews are in between those two poles. That really makes we wonder how things like "taste" work. I mean, how is it possible that two persons, listening to same same record, come to totally different conclusions? 

One thing that seems to be important is, of course, the scene or subculture the listener feels hisself connected to. Like, there was this one review from this dude whose favourite bands are Children of Bodom and Blind Guardian. The "commercial metal" kind of guy. Of course he didn't like our record. He said something in the meaning of ambitious, but not executed. Other people, who I'd say also came to our shows before and in general belong to same sub-scene or hardcore like we do, like the record. Of course. They understand the different influences, the whole concept behind the album, and they don't expect us to sound like Lamb Of God or something. Then you'll find a lot of reviews written by people, who, sorry for that, don't seem to know A SHIT about music at all. Not necesserilly Hardcore, or extreme Metal. Just no clue at all. One review said "Old School Hardcore with youthcrew melodies" or crap like that. Come on, we might sound like a lot, but Old School Hardcore?! What's that anyway? It's just like names like "Indie" or "Heavy Rock". It sais SHIT about the music, it doesn't mean anything. And "youthcrew melodies", fuck, that's even worse. When I think about youth crew I think of bands like Youth Of Today or Chain Of Strength, Gorilla Buscuits, you name it. And even though those bands are kinda melodic, it's definetly a different kind of melodies than we do. When I read the review I knew what the kid who wrote it looked like: White flesh tunnels in his ears, red, checked shirt above a Go It Alone t-shirt, tight jeans, New Era Vans. Am I right? I'm sure I am. How do I know the Go It Alone shirt? Because that was the only band he compared us to. None of us ever listened to that band. The only effect reviews like that have is that the reader realizes that the writer doesn't know shit. 

One guy thinks the production is bullshit, everybody else thinks it's good. Weird. Even though the cultural studies tell me that every media reception is linked to cultural influences, I don't understand how it works. Maybe the wide range of reviews tells at least one thing: Destroyer|Borderlines is a record that is not just black or white, but releases different feelings in everybody who listens to it (unlike records like "Reign In Blood" everybody loves haha), and call me pathetic: that's the only thing you can hope to achieve by playing music. 

On the other hand: Do I really give a shit? Reviews mean rating music, and that doesn't make a lot of sense anyway, it's just a part of music business. I mean, when I write a review, I want to support the band (that is why you only find good ones on this blog). But a lot of reviews are written because some guy writing for some zine/blog gets it and has to review it, because he's part of the whole music-consume-machinery. Although he's writing for nothing but fame for some non-profit blog. I don't exactly know what I want to tell you haha. Just make up your own mind, listen to what you want, fuck everybody who want's to tell you what to listen to, including me. Culture belongs to you, so use it the way you want it.

Liers In Wait - Spiritually Uncontrolled Art EP

Death Metal time again, today: the only official release by this Swedish band called Liers In Wait (which was released in 1991). I believe they named themselves after that line in "Abominations" by Morbid Angel: "Liars in wait, priests of the night/Make images to burn by the moon/Robbing the spirit, raping gods law/Send up our hate to burn heavens gate" and changed the A to an E. But that's only a guess. Liers In Wait have musically way more in common with what was happening concerning Death Metal in the USA at that time than with the "typical" Stockholm- or Goteburg-style. I'm thinking of bands like Morbid Angel (obviously), maybe Cannibal Corpse and Deicide above all. You know that means we're more on the technical side of things. Loads of riffs, sick harmonies, strange rhythm patterns, you name it. What makes this record so awesome is that Liers In Wait managed to keep their songs technically, catchy, groovy and super heavy at the same time, not to mention the superb production. The band came to live after the break up of Grotesque 1990; their main songwriter Kristian is also the dude behind the songwriting in LIW. Whereas two other guys (Tomas and Alf) of Grotesque went to form what would become one of the best known Swedish Death Metal (and, not their fault, quasi proto-metalcore) bands ever, At The Gates, LIW never really made it, although they definetly had their chances. I'm very curious to listen to their other releases, their seems to exist a demo and even an unreleased LP, but none of it seems to be findable anywhere in the depths of the internet. So if anyone has this stuff or knows where to download it, write me! Most information given here is taken from Ekeroth's book, what else. 

Update on the The Swarm post

Just in case you haven't noticed, I've uploaded three exclusive compilation tracks from The Swarm. Just hit this post, scroll down, there you go!

Judas - s/t 7"

Judas is a band from California, thrashing out some of the heaviest Hardcore imaginable. You already know what to expect just looking at the dark, disturbing artwork, which looks really awesome and contributes a quite big part to the overall violent and dark atmosphere. The lyrics get spitten out in short phrases, not unlike bands like Dropdead, but way sicker. "I am here/From the depths of hell/City streets I dwell/Control this world I shall/Judas lives" (Ascension). That's one song. So as you might guess, the songs are rather short, burning out in an explosive mixture between Powerviolence and Sludgecore, taking no prisoners.  

At first I wanted to order this record directly from the label (16 Oh), unfortunately I never received my 7", nor any replies to my e-mails. So I bought months later from a mailorder in Germany, being glad I wasn't a cry baby not buying the record again haha. Because this shit rules. I wonder why there isn't much more rave about this band.

Judas on myspace.com

Instilled - Unfinished Business

If you're one of those people who think that American Nightmare should have split after their first 7", Blacklisted lost track after their first full lentgh, and the Frostbite EP is one of the best 7"s ever, this record is for you.
"Unfinished Business" (released on State Of Mind Recordings) delivers seven songs of hard hitting, tough, fast and passionate Hardcore, just like the aforementioned bands and not of a worse quality, sound and songwriting-wise, the last song, "Looks like rain" for example is catchy as hell.
It's really a bummer this band split up without any further releases; if they've kept going (or if this 7" would have been on a bigger label like Bridge 9) they surely would be one of those cult bands. But sadly enough that didn't happen, so Instilled remained largely in the underground of Hardcore. Which isn't a bad thing anyway. After the split up some members went to form a new band called Depression, but they split up not too long afterwards as well. I don't know if Depression ever recorded anything, maybe a few demo tracks.

Mourningside - Confessions Of Disbelieve

One day my friend Lars showed me the myspace site of a band, that, in his words "is a total Disembodied worship", Mourningside AD (actually I don't know if they have that AD now, or not anymore or whatever, because on the cover of my 7" there is no AD). Although Disembodied is probably a huge influence for this band they also remind me of other great 90ies bands, Mean Season for example or even Chokehold. Saying that, you should know what to expect: grooving, hard hitting Hardcore with a super heavy, metallic edge. The lyrics cover mostly personal topics, with a depressed but always combative undertone and a relation to political topics as well: "...we must come to the conclusion that we're on the brink of destruction. Liberation must be gained. Until we're free." (from "Life Deceived"). The production is perfect, not to "vintage sounding" and far away from beeing too slick, just as your favourite releases from New Age records for example.
Maybe Mourningside AD can't stand the comparison anymore, but it just fits so well; if this 7" would have been released 1995, it would be a sought after item now. Excellent stuff which makes me waiting for more! This 7" (released on Hard Press Records) should be avaible at your favourite mailorder or record store, get it.

Mourningside AD on myspace.com

Seed Of Pain - Blindfolded And Doomed (Review)

I already own this record for a while and wanted to review it all the time, but I always felt (and in a way, still feel) too incompetent to express this piece of art in proper words. A record of this monumental greatness isn't easy to describe, because it offers so much in so many layers, you really have to take your time and dig deep into it to discover everything. Anyway, I'll give it a shot:

Seed Of Pain from Lucerne and Zug (Switzerland) is a band I was into since the first time I heard of them. We played with them in Mannheim, and at that point (which was in late 2007 or something) SOP perfectly played Hardcore in the vein of Über-bands like Burn and 108, and I was always impressed by Samuel's guitar playing (and his collection of effect pedals hahaha). And although they, even at this time, were (and of course still are) better musicians and song writers than most other Hardcore bands, they have kept such a refreshing "don't give a fuck" attitude. They don't have 12 different shirt designs and, most important, they don't act as if they want to be the next big thing by any means. Although they easily COULD, and that makes them great alone.

The gatefold LP (released on Cobra Records) looks from the outside like a Hardcore LP, like a good one though, just a b/w picture, you can't see really much, some fingers, something that looks like black paint spilled over the photograph itself, that's it. Open the gatefold, now it doesn't look like a typical Hardcore, or Metal, or Punk record at all. Just the lyrics, printed black on a plain white background, and nine photographs that look as if arranged by accident, showing things like an embryo, a hand, a foot, a brain, a box, and some stuff I can't perceive. So the inside of the gatefold makes you think about it, at least it does that for me, why those pictures, what's the relation to the songs etc.?

Describing the music without perverting it is nearly impossible; you can still hear that the backbone of it is Hardcore like the aforementioned Burn or 108, the second mainstay is heavy music like Neurosis for example. Those two components are fused and held together by elements of Post Punk, Industrial and Shoegazing, add loads of samples, countless layers of guitar tracks, reverb and delay effects (among others) and sometimes instruments like a piano or a mandolin to get at least a small picture of what to expect.

The record starts with a poem by Gottfried Benn and builds up a tension that lasts until the final, fading notes of the last song. My favourite track maybe "Blindfolded", because it features vocals of Remo Helfenstein from the Swiss Post Punk outfit Les Yeux Sans Visage, whose voice perfectly matches the music and athmosphere, so perfect you'll get the chills.
If those four (sometimes five) guys would give a fuck about it they really could be big, not necessaraly in the (anyhow quite limited) Hardcore scene, but really in bigger spheres. They are one of the most exciting, refreshing and greatest bands anyway. 

Seed Of Pain on myspace.com