Ahh, The Autumn Offering? hailing from sunny Florida? and I’m doing this review closer to winter?, well anyway, with such a name what can you expect… you guessed it right, Metalcore, sure they add a lot of other things, and you can cut it anyway you like it, but it’s Metalcore with bit of other things, this is their second album “Embrace the Gutter”, let’s see if its any good.

After a brief “Prologue”, you get “Decay” and what can i say they sure pick nice names, it’s quite the trailblazer, what were they thinking!, I’ll just make some weird guitar riffage and then we’ll get it going, that will be wack, yeah it’s great, if your paralyzed from the neck up, this should be added to the music guide books on “when not to play a guitar solo”, then you get the “The Yearning”, and beat me with a stick if it’s not a another weird track, it all sounds like “live drunk God Forbid doing their last gig of a 2 year tour and they just want to get it over with”, it sounds bad, I’m starting to think it’s not me, it’s these fuckers, “Embrace the Gutter” another shitty track? oh god when they start the chorus i just started laughing, this is just silly, all of it, solos included, oh god i never though Metalcore could sound soo shabby (and this one is downstairs, listen to it, and then say if I’m not right), next please…

“Ghost” is more of the same, just with the added “happy meal” solo guitar, “Misery” is scaring me with it’s Static-X start, with that intro, i just know it’s going to be shitty…. and shit it is, “This Future Disease” is more of the same, “One Last Thrill” well a somewhat nice track, nothing much, although i think i could be losing my ability to judge good music, with every single moment i listen to this “thing”, I’m gonna play it backwards to see if the devil is speaking, “No End in Sight” oh gawd at least the comic relief from the track names keeps me going, well anyway another shit poor job, “Walk the Line” is … “Final Cut” is the final track, and i just don’t fucking care, it has piano or something in the middle, fuck it.

This is what i would call some uninspired metal, it’s kind of ripping Trivium or something, but at least those boys have skill, this is just embarrassing. This is what i think… if you don’t know what to do, don’t add a guitar solo, don’t add a breakdown, don’t make a silly melodic chorus, just trash it and a make a new track, this album seems like they forage the woods for every bit of shit they could think, to stick in the freaking album, and just add some random guitar riffs to tie it all together, but it seems foraging for shit makes a shitty album, so if you start smelling something fishy, run for your lives.

Official Site Theautumnoffering

The Autumn Offering - Embrace the Gutter

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With my last surge throughout the bowls of Sludge Metal, i guess it was time to talk about Kylesa, they play a more by the numbers form of Sludge, truer to the purest form of Sludge, mixing in some way Doom Metal, Hardcore Punk and Stoner Metal, with a couple of twists and turns in between. So what “Time Will Fuse Its Worth” is all about?

After a smallish “Intro”, you get right to the heart of it with “What Becomes An End”, shouting vocals, dual guitars, and the weird production, it sounds and feels like hardcore punk, nevertheless it shifts and turns into something else, more like instead of playing straight Sludge, they play all the genres in separate, because even though I’m trying to fit this into a genre, they are crossing a lot of them, musically speaking it’s quite well played and interesting, “Hollow Severer” is one groovy track, starts and works its way in with shouting vocals and sludge like riffing, great track, “Where The Horizon Unfolds” starts a bit slow, but when it gets on going, it gets going (almost in a Mastodon kind of way), solid track.

“Between Silence and Sound” is what i could call a pseudo-intermission, it’s a short instrumental/short music, it’s actually a good mix, then you get “Intermission” and it is what it is…a intermission, mostly a drumming workout, not bad and not too big, but after the last one it’s kind of weird, “Identity Defined” is a speedier track, opening up to a … experimental doom track, with some psycho guitar work, just like in the 60’s, Stoner Metal all the way, and not bad at all, “Ignoring Anger” and “The Warning” are straight to school, sludge metal, another pair of great tracks, building up to the finisher “Outro” that just shows off the double drumming.

Well, it seems they do have 2 drummers, not to put it down, but the single Mastodon drummer, brings more speed, twists and turns, more overall quality and originality, I don’t understand very well the 2 drummers thing, i hope its not to just show off (or i hope not), since i wouldn’t classify the drumming as one of their stronger features, being those the shouting 3 way diverse vocals and the guitar work, oh well its a interesting album nevertheless, but if i had to choose, i would put Mastodon and Intronaut first, but if your into Sludge you might want to check them out.

Official Site Kylesa

Kylesa - Where The Horizon Unfolds

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Intronaut play a interestingly mix variety of music, i would put them in the alternative/progressive metal/rock arena, close in resemblance with what Mastodon excel at, maybe a bit less overwhelming, i don’t know if i would fit it into the sludge category as well, nevertheless loads of skill and sprinkles of loads of genres popping in and out, so how does “Void” fit into this?

“A Monumental Vulgarity” opens the show, and what a show, after a “smallish” intro your just thrown into the groove, sounds and plays out like a Mastodon track, but with a little bit more taste for the eccentric (like Mastodon isn’t eccentric enough), it’s harsh vocals, it’s a constantly changing musical landscape, but all in the same logical sound structure, they are not stopping and playing another thing, they are just changing and mixing the same stuff in an unorthodox fashion, refreshing and not so much Mastodon, the resemblances are mostly in how it all sounds, “Gleamer” (that one you can listen downstairs ^~) is another groovy track, jazz like drumming, with a lot of things thrown into the mix, one thing that starts to show is the bass work, that almost rivals the drumming/guitar, impressive, and infections, plus a full minute in the end of nothing especial, weird.

“Fault Lines” has another minute long intro into this one, nice way to put a intermission, but when it enters high gear you can feel it, this one is a hit hard, soft, hit hard kid of thing, building to a interesting finish, “Nostalgic Echo” gets another rock like intro to another groove oriented almost sludge track, again with clean passages building up to funky metal sections, “Teledildonics” first of all that’s one funny named track, next, it’s probably the best track in the album, how’s that for building “word of mouth”, basically it sounds like Meshugah if they were playing this kind of music, point blank, impressive, sure it has some clean parts, but that seems to be their thing, “Iceblocks” has another almost 2 minute intermission before it gets into overdrive, again good track, last track “Rise to the Midden”, is a good last track, wraps it up nicely, it’s hard, it’s groovy, it is quirky, great stuff.

Intronaut hummm, well it’s difficult to say if i really like it, sure it has a lot of things that one can headbang to, “Teledildonics” being one of them…hahaah yeah headbang to that, and overall it is an impressive album, nonetheless it isn’t a relentless kind of thing, it has a lot of clean passages, and a lot of slow alternative rock twists, that although a clear sign of technical ability, they do hurt the pace of the album, in the third listen i kinda while skipping the end of “Gleamer”, skipped “Fault Lines” as well, just because i though it was too early to such a long intermission, sorry guys, i wanted “Teledildonics” as soon as possible, wait…that didn’t sounded that good, heheh great job, if your into Mastodon or even the likes of Isis or Neurosis, you should check them out, I’m sure everyone will enjoy some “Teledildonics”.

Official Site Intronaut

Intronaut - Gleamer

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Opening track “Goatcraft Torment” starts up with “This is Satanic Black Metal”, so i guess they play…Satanic Black Metal? good to know, i won’t have to spend a couple of minutes figuring out what the heck are they playing, not that i have anything against black metal or now that i think of it Satan, i just think that’s silly to coin yourself from the get go, does it mean that all the tracks will be about Satan? like “ahh Satan took a shower GRRR and ate some infidels christians for breakfast YARRR” wait, now that i think of it…. that would be cool, well let’s head back to Urgehal’s “Goatcraft Torment”.

“Goatcraft Torment” starts with that amusing “This is Satanic Black Metal”, i don’t know if that was the objective, but i find it amusing, tha and lyrics like like “die for satan”, maybe it’s me but who said that Satan cares, maybe if Urgehal says so, it must be true, hehehe, ok, ok i’ll stop with the funny business, music wise this is some well crafted black metal, i like the production, it’s clean and to the point, “Risus Sardonius” is again a solid track, with loads of blasting, “Antireligiøs” is again blasting black metal, great guitar work, and it seems they don’t just love Satan, they hate everyone else’s “religion”, “Dødsmarsj Til Helvete” is a bit more straight black metal track, slower pace but nice nevertheless.

“Satanic Black Metal In Hell” bring the blasting back with vengeance, it’s straight to fucking hell, i liked this one, “Nefastus Nex Necis” is actually the first classic black metal in the album, with all those nice touches, you know that eerie feel through, slightly melodic, short pattern blast, talking speed harsh vocals, with a touch of guitar solo, again a great track, “Gathered Under The Horns” is a another evil black metal track, with nice little touches that keep it fresh and moving, “Selvmordssalme” seems like the continuation of the later track, “Sentiment Of Chaos” brings the blasting and a bit heavier attitude, the last track “Et Steg Nærmere Lucifer” closes shop, it’s slow and methodic, i wouldn’t expect it any other way.

This is one kick ass album, loads of pace throughout, i know Urgehal have been around for ages, and the fact that they stick to their guns and drop quality material is always a good thing, they really loving Satan (and all that sodomy, children bashing, torture, general violence, you know all that great “evil” stuff Satan apparently endorses) doesn’t seem to influence too much on the quality of the music, and that’s for me the most important aspect, because this is solid black metal album, hell even though I’m not that much into black metal this one had me headbanging a couple of times.

Urgehal - Satanic Black Metal In Hell

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