Wolvserpent - Perigaea Demo

Another review for Emurg; the latest 'demo' by experimental metal duo Wolvserpent, Perigaea.

http://www.emurg.com/review/wolvserpent-perigaea-demo/

Aloeswood - Forsaken Landscapes

Check out my latest review on Emurg, for the band Aloeswood. The band is the brainchild of UK musician Daniel Downing (also of Ravenage, Windrider), like Agalloch have named themselves after a type of wood, and like Agalloch, Wolves in The Throne Room and Fen (previously reviewed on Emurg) conflate the light of shoegaze/post rock/folk with the shade of black metal. Forsaken Landscapes is a five-song e.p. released in 2011.

Here's the link:

http://www.emurg.com/review/aloeswood-forsaken-landscapes/

Fen - Dustwalker

I began writing for Emurg a few months ago, so some of my reviews are now published there. Check out the latest, the new album by post/atmospheric black metal band Fen, Dustwalker:

http://www.emurg.com/review/fen-dustwalker/

Neurosis - Live at the HMV Forum, London, 2nd December 2012

Note - I didn’t catch much of Godflesh – they played Damnation Festival in November last year which I attended. I’m not that much of a fan, and I was keen to save my ears for the main band, hence the title of the review...

I'd seen Neurosis at High Voltage in July 2011, a fantastic show, although the heat and clear blue skies at the start of the set made it a little odd, and the sound didn't do justice enough to the band. On Sunday in Kentish town it was a different story, however - the loud/quiet dynamics were the best I've ever heard, and the complete darkness suited the band to a tee. 

I really dug their choice of setlist - it showed boldness and an intransigent attitude not to tread water or pander to the expectations of the fans.The set featured only one song from their 90's back catalogue, the title track off Times of Grace, so leaving out such bodies of work as Through Silver in Blood and Enemy of the Sun. And it completely worked - their newer material suits the Neurosis of today more, just as intense, ugly and beautiful as ever before. How many bands that are 25+ years old can play an awesome show and have only one song on the setlist over eight years old? Imagine if Metallica played a set containing only one 80’s/early 90’s song - they'd die on their arse. 

The sound of the band in full flow is a pure force of nature. Some of the sounds created defy such simple descriptions as fitting into a particular key or time signature, for example the colossal collage of noise that the band left the stage to following the earth-shattering rendition of Given to the Rising sounded like nothing you'd heard before or could imagine. The band don’t rely on such conventional musical devices that inhabit the metal genre such as technicality or speed, instead focusing on pure feral strength and rage.  It was hard to know how to react at times – I found myself shaking my head in disbelief, grinning like mad or just overwhelmed by the intensity and epic nature of the performances. 

The new material slotted in perfectly to the rest of the set, At The Well being particularly devastating. The ending was incredibly overwhelming and climactic, just about as intense as music can get. My Heart For Deliverance was of similar nature - it had Scott Kelly so possessed by the riffage that he smashed his forehead against his microphone stand. The band may be ageing but their stage presence is still phenomenal – in particular Steve Von Till attacks his guitar as if it is tormenting him and creates mind warping walls of sound with his extensive pedal board. The sound manipulation Noah Landis conjures is wonderful - in particular, the piecing together of all the songs into one cohesive flow of music, worked really well. It's only been 48 hours since the end of the show but I know for sure that I'll be a first minute buyer of their next UK show - the best gig of my life for sure.

Neurosis - Honor Found In Decay

Neurosis have an formidable back catalogue - from the hardcore teenage angst of 1987's Pain of Mind to the monolithic post-metal of Given to the Rising, it's hard to pick a weak album in their entire discography. Honor Found in Decay continues this tradition.

The record opens with We All Rage in Gold, with a verse structure as simple as you can imagine for Neurosis, but nonetheless effective. Ending with a crushing riff, twisted keyboard playing and Scott Kelly's iconic throaty roar, there's no doubt this is classic Neurosis.This, in the words of Kelly "sets the table" for what is to come.

Even more impressive are the following two tracks - they are unmistakeably "classic Neurosis" but hardly feel like the band is treading water. It's hard to think of a moment in another Neurosis song as air-guitary as the outro to At The Well - graceful and melodic guitar lines on top of a thudding, spiralling rhythm. One thing which was missing since Times of Grace (with the exception of Hidden Faces on 2007's Given to the Rising, and one or two moments on A Sun That Never Sets) was (for want of a better word) the duets between Scott and Steve - the return on At The Well in particular is glorious, adding another dimension to the impeccable music. This is best exhibited in the outro - Kelly chanting "In a shadow world" whilst Von Till preaches "The paths become clear; the road's true; oaths have been sworn; the temporal spiral away; among the teeth of time". Undoubtedly one of the finest moments in extreme music of 2012.

Many people have lauded the performance of Jason Roeder on this record, which is perfectly justifiable, but for me his drumming performances are no better on this record than any of the previous ones - that's to say, he has always been outstanding, making a mockery of so called "tech drummers", using the same set-up as that when he was fourteen years old. Listen to the outro of Purify now. The awesome rhythms heard in At The Well and All is Found...In Time are typical of his, it would be foolish to throw the word "tribal" in since it has been so overused that it's lost all of it's meaning, but needless to say it's some of the best drumming you'll hear.

The same goes for Noah Landis - his work in Neurosis records has always perfectly complemented the music. His tones give an edge to the music; the peculiar sounding woodwind instrument in the closing stages of My Heart for Deliverance evokes what can only be described as "the Neurosis emotion" - something so brilliant and otherworldly that one finds it hard to describe in terms of being happy or sad - maybe transcendental would do. Bleed the Pigs features some particularly caustic and unnerving sounds. Best listened to in a darkened room with a quality hi fi system.

The music world being the bloodthirsty unforgiving place that it means questions of comparison will always arise, many people focusing on the fact that it's simply not as good as the mid-late 90's heavy hitters such as Through Silver in Blood and Times of Grace. In all fairness this cannot be disputed - those records are on their own plateau of greatness - but I believe Honor Found in Decay, for the most part, is the best music that we could expect from Neurosis - they haven't let themselves down. Yes, I do think Casting of the Ages  does drag on a bit, and Raise the Dawn fails to match Origin, I Can See You and Stones From the Sky in terms of rounding off the album in an epic way, but the good by far outweighs any negative aspects. Here's hoping it's not another five years before the next opus.

Songs of Townes Van Zandt

Townes Van Zandt's legendary status in American folk and country music has been well documented, yet this collection of covers by Scott Kelly, Steve Von Till and Scott 'Wino' Weinrich, three of the most creative and innovative metal/experimental musicians in the last 25 years serves as a brilliant reminder of the Texan's talents.

This isn't the first time these artists have covered Van Zandt. Equally impressive to anything on this record is Kelly's apocalyptic folk project Blood and Time's rendition of Rake; Von Till did a stellar job of The Snake Song a few years ago too. The pedigree of the artist being covered and the artists doing the covering meant that this was always going to be a fantastic record. The song order, which has each one of the musicians playing back-to-back apart from the last two songs, flows beautifully, as do the own guys arrangements, as if these songs were meant to be played this way.

Although I personally prefer the musical creations of Von Till and Kelly in general, for me Wino stands out as the star performer on this record. Nothin' in particular is gorgeous and sorrowful in equal amounts, and A Song For is the perfect closer, off Van Zandt's final studio record. It's awesome to see the idiosyncratic nature of each of the performers shining through - in particular, Kelly reinterprets Tecumseh Valley in a drastically slower manner; using his stunning ability to rinse every drop of feeling out a single chord for dramatic effect (see Catholic Blood off 2008's The Wake also), making it even more emotionally flooring.

A must listen; here's hoping a volume two is in the pipeline.

 9/10

Sleep & A Storm Of Light - Live at the University of Leeds

Sleep, one of the progenitors of the stoner rock/metal genre in the early 90's, reunited a few years ago, much to the delight of large sections of the metal underground. This was the first time the band had visited this part of the country in a long while, and anticipation was high. A Storm Of Light did a good job warming the crowd up, even if their brand of post metal is a little generic and uninspiring. Sleep blew away all memories of them, however, with a memorising performance. The set began with some of the dirtiest guitar you'll hear courtesy of Matt Pike, droning on hypnotically for about five minutes unaccompanied, before Al Cisneros and Jason Roeder joined in, producing an unbelievable cacophony akin to the lumbering of great mammoths. Most of the gig consisted of songs flowing seamlessly into each other, but the highlight of the set was the epic title track from 1993's Holy Mountain, a gargantuan psychedelic journey with devastating dynamics and sludgy rhythms. Even though Matt and Al's bellies have expanded since the bands heyday, their musical talents have as well - both guys are masters of their instruments and it's a joy to watch and listen to, and although purists might be a bit put out by the presence of Neurosis sticksman Jason Roeder in place of original drummer Chris Haikus, it isn't to the detriment of the band whatsoever. Leeds Uni hadn't shook with this kind of subsonic energy since Electric Wizard graced Damnation Festival with their presence back in 2009 - it was a pleasure to witness these Californian legends in their element.

Nate Hall - A Great River

Psychedelic/doom/folk rockers US Christmas are hot property in the underground. Eat Of The Low Dogs and Run Thick In The Night are two of the most awe inspiring, innovative and heartfelt records released in the last five years. Alternating between Hawkwind-esque synth,huge spacy guitar freakouts and gorgeous acoustic songs that recall the beauty of artists such as Neil Young, they are incredible pieces of music. Nate Hall, leader of USX, decided to follow his contemporaries Scott Kelly, Steve Von Till and Scott 'Wino' Weinrich and go on a solo sojourn, with A Great River being released earlier this month.

 Despite the excellent opener The Earth In One Cell and the title track, this release seems somewhat lacking. The few acoustic tracks on Run Thick In The Night stand out ahead of anything on this record. Raw Chords sounds too much like Peaceful Valley Boulevard off Neil Young's latest release to be enjoyable. Often it feels like there's too much going on, too many layers when the music doesn't require them. Take the simple, aching chords of Mirror Glass and Fire Is Sleeping, with tasteful backing violin. This is what I was hoping A Great River would sound like. Nate's increasing penchant for instrumental interludes is noticeable here - unlike on RTITN it detracts from the flow and serves to highlight the paucity of actual songs.

Nevertheless, Nate Hall's own brand of music stands out on this release - it's unique and promising, but just not there in it's execution. I can't see myself returning to this record with the same fervour as If I Should Fall To The Field or The Wake, but any future releases by USX or it's mainman will still eagerly be anticipated.

 6.5/10

Meshuggah - Koloss

Since the release of their breakthrough album and magnum opus Destroy Erase Improve in 1995, Meshuggah have continued to push the boundaries of extreme metal. Every release provided something new, fresh and challenging. The iconic jagged stacatto riff in Future Breed Machine. The point at which your brain nearly collapses in on itself thanks to Thordendahls mind-expanding solo in Corridor of Chameleons. The tightest, most violent and churning rhythm section imaginable, combined with ever-poetic and well written lyrics in Perpetual Black Second. Catch Thirty-Three climaxing all over the place and dragging you deeper into the abyss over the course of 47 minutes. And off Meshuggah's most recent album before Koloss, the suffocating, pulsating palm-muted riff in Lethargica, showcasing the potential of the eight string. Breathtaking, groundbreaking untouchable music. In short, the Swedes had a lot to live up to with Koloss, their first record since 2008's Obzen.

And in short, there isn't a moment like the above on Koloss.

Koloss, unlike the rest of Meshuggah's back catalogue, isn't extraordinary. The opener, I Am Collosus, is unspectacular. It's trademark Meshuggah - Thordendahl and Hagströms' subsonic, off-kilter riffing, Kidmans' usual ululations and Haakes' pounding polyrhythms, but there's nothing to really keep you on the edge of your seat. The Demon's Name is Surveillance is more interesting, asphyxiating the listener with its relentless double bass and razor sharp riffage, and Marrow is another solid tune. However, much of the album plods along with substandard, non-urgent riffing. Lead guitarist extraordinaire Fred Thordendal, known for his Allan Holdsworth-esque jazzy leads, is still impressive in places, but rarely attaining the facemelting power of times gone by. The lyrics lack the poetic elegance and effortlessly acerbic power this time round - I used to enjoy studying the words of the Nothing album greatly, but for no such enjoyment can be obtained with Koloss.

I can't say I'm not disappointed with Koloss. For four years in the making, I expected more. I hate to say it, but unlike all the other records there is very little trace of stylistic evolution, and it has the feel of being a collection of Obzen B-sides at times. By all means check it out, but this is very much the nadir of Meshuggahs' career.

6.5/10

Rwake - Voices Of Omens

Rwake's abrasive onslaught positively molests your eardrums in the way that only great sludge can do, whilst adding some finesse here and there to make for a highly enjoyable listen. The band have been around for a while, releasing three full lengths, but have only really gained any 'mainstream' recognition since signing for Relapse - this album being their first on the label. Like genre progenitors Eyehategod, the riffs here are a mix of bluesy and atonal - witness the grating, torturous, dragging central riff on the album closer, "The Lure of Light" to feel the pure power of their music. Yet like their Southern counterparts Kylesa, Rwake have the knack of throwing in interesting nuances to the music, such as the gorgeous mandolin playing in the intro track - just listening to this whilst looking through the album art is pretty trippy. The lead guitar work is pretty tidy too, with plenty of whisky soaked leads that Pepper Keenan would be proud of. Whilst the albums 59 minutes of intense extreme metal can get a bit wearing, it has just about enough to keep the listener interested throughout. They'll be releasing their follow up to this record later this year - keep an eye out.

8/10

Highlights : "The Great Finality", "Leviticus"

See also - Crowbar, Eyehategod, Kylesa.

Hate Eternal - Phoenix Amongst The Ashes

It takes quite a bit for me to get excited by modern death metal. Aside from Nile, Dying Fetus and Goatwhore I don't really pay that much attention to it. Another name to add to that list would be Hate Eternal. I've always been enamoured by frontman Erik Rutan's undying love and passion for extreme metal, not to mention he is one of the most talented musicians the genre has ever had. Even though his career highlight of his stint in Morbid Angel has passed (witness the solo tradeoff between Rutan and Azagthoth in 'Summoning Redemption' - spellbinding), Hate Eternal still have a lot to offer.

In contrast to the suffocating production and incondite songwriting of 2008's Fury And Flames, PATA is far more clear and focused, without ceding any brutality for polishness. Rutan has once again tinkered with the lineup, but this appears to be HE's best yet. You can just feel the band's confidence coming out of your speakers, from the start to the finish of the album. Opener 'Rebirth' oozes hellish atmosphere, serving as a build up for the aurally sodomising 'The Eternal Ruler', which along with the following song, 'Thorns of Acacia', showcase everything that is to love about Hate Eternal - Rutan's trademark atonal riffage (employing excessive yet tasteful use of the tritone), his divine harmonised harmonic minor leads and savage blasting with clever usage of rhythmic patterns. The rest of the album continues in similar fashion - although if your eardrums haven't burst by the title track then you're doing very well.

An excellent record - perfect antidote for the dross that is the new Morbid Angel.

8/10

Highlights : "Haunting Abound", "Thorns Of Acacia"

See also - Morbid Angel, Nile, Suffocation, Dying Fetus.

Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain

Despite the misleading, Scandinavian-sounding name, Agalloch are in fact from the Pacific Northwest, an area more associated with the grunge era than folk-tinged metal. Yet Agalloch summon the same desolate, eldrich spirits as their Northern European counterparts, making for an epic, solemn affair.

Ashes Against The Grain, the band's third full length, once again has the critics and pigeon-holers scratching their heads. It's a mix of folk, post-metal, black metal, prog, without naturally falling into any category - a bit like Opeth. Indeed, the comparisons with the Swedish legends don't stop there - indeed, they could be seen as the American version of them. The album starts off in divine fashion - gorgeous progressions, flowing effortlessly and convincing the listener from the offset. Rasping and haunting vocals, punchy yet soothing guitars, epic song titles (This White Mountain on Which You Will Die) - all positive signs. Yet one's interest level doesn't sustain beyond even halfway through the album. The lead guitar work is somewhat lacking - the melodies are flat and unimaginative in many places, leaving one wanting. Long, languorous instrumental passages pepper the album, which do little for the overall feel of the music.

The potential is there, but the execution isn't. Agalloch may have mountains of critical acclaim but on this record I feel this praise isn't justified.

7/10

Highlights : "Limbs", "Falling Snow ".

See also - Opeth, Alcest, Fen.

Morbid Angel - Illud Divinum Insanus

Eight years after Morbid Angel's last effort, the indifferently received Heretic, the godfathers of death metal have finally returned with a follow up - Illud Divinum Insanus, the first featuring David Vincent since 1995's Domination. To briefly recap on the legacy of this band, the first three Morbid Angel albums are timeless masterpieces, phenomenal works sound just as fresh and twisted today as they did back in the day, for any music follower. Even though I'd been listening to a lot of extreme metal before I got into Morbid Angel, and thus been desensitized to the "evilness" of music to a certain extent, the feeling of hearing Altars of Madness for the first time was an unforgettable, almost unsurpassable experience.

When David Vincent (who did vocals/bass on the first four records) re-entered the Morbid fold back in 2004, expectations were understandably high, and judging by the awesome performance at Wacken 2006, with Erik Rutan as the second guitar player, there was a lot of hope for another classic. This, however, was followed by more tours, more stagnancy, and more confusion for the fans. What was taking so long? For a band that averaged an album every three years, regardless of change in band members, concern was justified. However, a new song, Nevermore, surfaced in the setlist in 2008, which helped to appease impatient followers. Finally, the band entered the studio last year to record, without longtime drummer Pete Sandoval (citing a back problem), replaced by the more than competent Tim Yeung, whose impressive CV include Divine Heresy, Nile, Hate Eternal and Vital Remains. Despite the series of delays, things were looking up - Eric Rutan was lending a hand with production, a good omen if any, given his good rapport with the band, and with his faultless work in the studio with Goatwhore and Cannibal Corpse.

Before any music was actually heard, eyebrows were really raised when the song titles emerged, names of juvenile simplicity and banality, a clear contrast from the themes of the classic albums. In an interview back in 1997, following the release of Formulas Fatal to the Flesh, Azagthoth stated that one of his regrets with Domination were the Vincents lyrics - that "they didn't really mean anything". He clearly has changed his perspective since on what exactly constitutes "meaningful" lyrics - there are some pretty laughable examples, as you'll read below. This, therefore dampened expectations, but not nearly enough, since the music was something else...

The album begins with a brooding instrumental, which instantly evokes memories of Doomsday Celebrations from the Blessed Are The Sick album. But the frailties appear when some shoddy industrial and gothic influences pervade the song, and set the tone for the rest of the album.

Lets get the bad points out of the way first. Radikult is embarrassingly bad, featuring some key reasons which let this album down badly - boring guitars, dance beat, tasteless industrial influences, and Vincent's awful, chanting vocals. Essentially, a Marilyn Manson B-side.. Profundis - Mea Culpa is another forgettable song, and Destructos Vs. The Earth/Attack will inspire a similarly distainful reaction. As I mentioned, the lyric writing leaves something to be desired. "We are the new religion...no religion!" might've sounded badass in Chapel of Ghouls", but it just comes across as lame here. Nevermore is full of the usual chest-beating pseudo-macho garb, which again feels tired. Beauty Meets Beast is something else though - "Oh beautiful child/Come to me moist/I’m the great connoisseur" - need I say more?.

The band (read - Vincent) might be trying new ideas, but it just comes across as platitudinous. Destructos Vs. The Earth/Attack can be considered a microcosm for half of the album - it has some alright parts to it, but they are drowned by the dross that surrounds it. In short, lacking all the vitality, aggression, creativity and sheer wow factor that elevated Morbid Angel to the apotheosis of extreme music.

Not wishing to dwell on the weaknesses, there are some ok bits on this record. The aforementioned Nevermore, is an enjoyable effort, as is Existo Vulgaré, both with scything riffage and twinkling hints of genius in Trey's lava solos. 10 More Dead has some genuinely cool grooves in it, but is again stained by the lame chorus with such pointless lyrics "10 more dead, the bodies piling higher, and higher". Yet, there are no riffs here that come close to licking the boots of Rapture, Maze of Torment or Rebel Lands. but there were a few moments when the hairs on the back of my neck gave a vague tingling sensation.

Notably, one of the albums picks, Blades for Baal, was written by Destructor, who joined the band in 2008. This has real death metal ferocity, and Tim Yeung's performance, like the rest of the album, is faultless. If you consider that on the non-Rutan albums, there was only one song written by the second guitarist Richard Brunelle (a minute long instrumental, the divine Desolate Ways), it's notable that Azagthoth has allowed the young Norwegian to write a few on this record - is this simply because Trey has run out of ideas?

Azagthoth has clearly both ceded a lot of creative control to Vincent, and lost interest in the death metal scene, with a notable percentage of the tracks on the album being the input of the latter. In addition, the mix gives too much prominance to the vocals, and not enough to the guitars. The vast majority of press surrounding Illud has been conducted by Vincent, when let's not forget, this is Azagthoth's band. He looks jaded and apathetic in all of the press shoots, whereas Vincent is full of gusto and pride in his work, yet far from the frontman we knew in the 90's - clad in PVC and with a Kiss badge on his jacket, he's looking disturbingly like Nikki Sixx these days. The contrast with Autopsy, making their comeback after a sixteen year absence with a killer new album, is stark.

Vincent claims that you'll like this album as much as the others if you are open minded - even if you take this album out of the context of Morbid Angel, and the huge burden of expectations that go with it, so much of this album is just ordinary, so the argument that just because the band have adopted new, non-death metal influences is invalid. Some critics have claimed that this is another example of Morbid Angel's intransigent attitude - they have, after all, gone against the entire fanbase by creating this album. Perhaps this should be applauded...if the music was of high quality.

Fans (well, former fans) have been joking that "Ignominious" would be a more appropriate album title (given it also follows the MA tradition of alphabetically-ordered releases), which isn't too far from the truth. This album isn't a complete abomination - a few songs save it from being so - but it will nonetheless be filed under "fallen from grace", next to St. Anger, Cold Lake and Risk.

4/10

Highlights: "Blades for Baal", "Nevermore".

Album Of The Week : Disincanate - Dreams of the Carrion Kind

Disincarnate were the brainchild of extreme metal mercenary James Murphy, whose impressive C.V includes death metal pioneers Death and underrated thrashers Testament. In those bands he was able to showcase his lead prowess, but only in Disincarnate did he finally get a chance to have almost sovereign control over the musical direction of the band.

Released in 1993, the peak of the genre, output and popularity wise, so Disincarnate were able to ride on the waves of death metal's success, snagging a deal with Roadrunner to release their one and only album, Dreams of the Carrion Kind.

Whilst there are some pretty tasty riffs and decent drumming, Disincarnate offer not much more than what you've already heard. It inevitably suffers with comparisons to Death - if you've heard the albums Individual Thought Patterns and Human, released in the same era, there's not a lot here that will surprise or interest you. In addition, Colin Richardson's production is excellent, but it confines the band within a set paradigm (that of generic 90's death metal), rather than to forge something unique and fresh.

6/10

Highlights : "Stench of Burning Redemption".

See also - Death, Carcass, Obituary.

Album Of The Week : Shrüm - Red Devils and Purple Ringers

Acid Bath's stature in the southern metal underground speaks for itself, and the fortunes of bands that rose from its' ashes such as Goatwhore and Agents of Oblivion have been more then adequately documented. However, bassist Audie Pitre's side project, Shrüm, a unique act featuring two bass guitars to create an insalubrious sonic effect, has been largely ignored.

Anyone who's given Acid Bath a listen will be more than aware of Audie's musical prowess, and Shrüm serves as another example of his riffwriting talents, in a slightly different context. Shrüm doesn't have the organic sludgyness of any of Acid Bath's works, instead favoring a more processed, industrial soundscape. However, they maintain the lurid, nefandous nature of Audie's main band, perhaps even more so given the total absence of clean vocals, with similarly OTT lyrics, such as "fucking her as she dies" from Psychedelic Abomination

While the material never comes close to bona fide classics such as Finger Paintings of the Insane and Venus Blue, it has a few high points, such as the pretty instrumental Michelle Song and the Iommi worshipping riffage of Tears of a Marionette. The sheer aggression and ominous industrial textures make this an interesting listen, even if the rather one-dimensional death growls start to grate after a while.

This was to be Shrüm's one and only album, and bassist's Audie Pitre's last ever, as he was tragically killed in a drink-drive incident the same year. Not essential by any means, but those wishing to delve deeper into the enigmatic legacy of Acid Bath could do a lot worse than give this a listen.

6.5/10

Highlights : "Drip", "Michelle Song", "Tears of a Marionette".

See also - Acid Bath, Goatwhore, Nailbomb, Buzzov.en.

Ian Anderson - Live at Citibank Hall, Rio de Janeiro, 15th May 2011

And so to my final concert in Rio de Janeiro. The gig was of enough importance to merit a mention in Brazil's prime media corporation O Globo. The article pointed out how Anderson had mentioned to journalists at the time of Jethro Tull's first concert in Brazil (1988) how he preferred Scotland's grey skies and subzero temperatures to Rio's eternal summer, which causou polêmica among weather-proud Brazilians. Fortunately for him, the gods seemingly answered his prayers, with torrential rains before the gig and the lowest temperature recorded in Rio this year (a brutally chilling 18° Celsius...).

The gig was at the same venue as Ozzy's show last month, and benefited from the same excellent acoustics. This was my first all-seated show ever, which was fine by me - I could sit back and drink expensive beer to the awesome music of Jethro Tull all night, which is what I do on many nights anyway. Much criticism has been banded about regarding Anderson's weakening voice - this can't be denied, but his flute playing and stage presence is still awe-inspiring. For a 63 year old he is far from sedentary - Anderson struts around brandishing his small metal instrument, playing some excellent improv. and acting as a great showman to boot. His backing band do a quality job too, all brilliantly proficient at their instruments, giving their own take on the old stuff too.

Despite being billed as a rarities setlist , a great deal of Jethro Tull classics were played - the excerpt of 'Thick As A Brick' being undoubtedly the highlight, and for the obligatory set-closer "Locomotive Breath" the crowd abandoned their seats and moved as close as possible to the stage. Slightly disappointed at the lack of anything from Heavy Horses though, but it was good to see a few hidden gems - 'Up To Me' from the Aqualung album and 'Budapest' from 1987's Crest of a Knave. The instrumental jams were excellent too - the band paying copious amounts of homage to Bach and World music in equal amounts. You wonder what the average Brazilian makes of the lyrical content - what other artist can sing about their pets, dervishes, sardonic takes on religion, backstage encounters with girls and the Vietnam war over the course of one gig? 45 years in the business now, Anderson may have fallen from such heights as the folk-rock trilogy era of the late 70's, but he certainly isn't Too Old For Rock 'n' Roll just yet.

Jack

Album Of The Week : Soilent Green - Confrontation

Soilent Green, the legendary head bludgeoners from Louisiana, released their forth album in 2005, Confrontation. Famed for their unorthodox approach to metal, adding jazz and blues into their frenetic deathgrind mix, even if they're not everyone's cup of tea you can't deny their sheer originality and audacity

Confrontation, like it's predecessors, is the aural equivalent of having a binbag put over your head and dosed with copious amounts of LSD before being thrown into the lion's den. The third track, "A Scream Trapped Underwater", being a perfect example. It opens with an off-kilter groove riff before morphing into some classic death metal and blastbeats, with vocalist Ben Falgoust screaming "Blood on my hands, Blood on my hands" in a satisfyingly er, brutal fashion. Then you have the mind-boggling middle section, a classic blues lick fed through guitarist Brian Patton's tech-orientated mind, there's no way you can headbang to this, one has to just sit back and let the weirdness flow over you.

This is undoubtedly the highlight of the album, but the first real song, "Leaves Of Three" is a good track too, in fact there are quite a few other decent numbers found across the record. In between the more savage metal assaults are short intro tracks which wouldn't be out of place on a country record. Even if this is nice respite from the intensity of the rest of the record, they feel a touch contrived, unlike the small preludes to tracks on Sewn Mouth Secrets, which for me fit perfectly and enhance the song greatly.

This serves as a good introduction to the rest of Soilent's stuff, if you are struggling after the first few songs on this record you might as well give up. Definitely worth checking out if you enjoy the wacky nature of The Dillinger Escape Plan and southern metal.

7/10

Highlights : "Leaves of Three", "A Scream Trapped Underwater"

See also - Goatwhore, Eyehategod, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Converge, Pantera.

Album Of The Week : The Hidden Hand - The Resurrection Of Whiskey Foote

Scott "Wino" Weinrich, is unquestionably one of the biggest legends in underground heavy metal. Turning fifty later this year, the man is in his Indian summer, currently on an acoustic tour of the U.S with a fellow acolyte of uncompromising heavy music, Scott Kelly. It's beginning to seem a little clichéd for an aging metal frontman to pick up an acoustic and calm down, but for Wino it has no feel of contrivement - just check out some of the tracks off Adrift, it's nothing less than stunning. Some have labelled this as a rebirth for the doom metal godfather, but the truth is that he has never died, his creative flame hasn't even flickered. Over thirty years of stunning songwriting in a variety of bands, each with their own idiosyncratic nature, and with an intransigent attitude to music that has seen him garner tonnes of respect from his peers, Wino has burnt a mark on heavy music that few others can claim to have done. I thought this is as good time as any to reflect on his career and have a look at one of his albums.

Anyone sad about the demise of the excellent Spirit Caravan in 2002 didn't have long to wallow, as Wino wasted no time in assembling a new band the same year, by the name of The Hidden Hand. The first two albums are damn hard to get hold of, so I had to settle for the band's final effort, The Resurrection Of Whiskey Foote. The album opens with the short but sweet Purple Neon Dream, with everything you'd expect from a Wino encarnation, with his trademark fuzzy guitar tone and soulful vocals, yet still sounding incredibly fresh and exciting. Aside from a few less-than-excellent tracks, the rest of the album is filled with raw, melodic and soulful post-doom/stoner rock. The highlight has to be the albums closer, Slow Rain. Co-vocalist and bassist Bruce Falkinburg takes the mic. for the first half, a psychadelic sludgy affair, before an awesome instrumental jam mid-song is concluded by Wino's vocals entering, sounding incredibly powerful and commanding, his lyrics as inspiring and poetic as ever.

People will point to the anthemic Born Too Late and Wino's work with The Obsessed as career highlights, but little of the man's output can be considered weak. This is another excellent chapter in Wino's career, and a great starting point for first time listeners.

7.5/10

Highlights : "Purple Neon Dream", "The Lesson", "Slow Rain"

See also - Spirit Caravan, Saint Vitus, Black Sabbath, Sleep, Clutch, Down.

Blackfield - Welcome To My DNA

Blackfield, the on-off collaboration between Israeli singer-songwriter Aviv Geffen and prog rock mastermind Steven Wilson recently released their third album, entitled "Welcome To My DNA". It had a lot to live up to, given that Blackfield`s second album was a stunning piece of work, even if it was too damn depressing to listen to the whole way through, and so I approached Welcome To My DNA with high expectations.

The album opens with a typically Blackfield track, "Glass House", with the irresistable melancholic melodies and clever songwriting which makes the band what they are. Then comes a real head-scratching moment, the second song, "Go To Hell". If it wasn`t for the reasonably good instrumentalism this song would be a total dud - the highly incongruous lyrics of "Fuck you all, fuck you, I don`t care" are almost laughable it's so bad. This is the kind of dross you`d expect in some awful metalcore song. The album manages to dig itself out of this rut though, the rest of the record is peppered with decent pop/art-rock numbers, with the succulent, uplifting melodies of "Oxygen" being a definate highlight. In addition to the more straightforward material, Blackfield have given themselves some room for experimentation on this record - "Blood" is an obvious nod to Geffens origins, with the Middle Eastern riff which is central to the song. I can see many fans being put off by the melodramatic and cringeworthy nature of the lyrics (they are pretty emo, it`s a credit that these two men in their 40`s can so perfectly put themselves in the shoes of a depressed teen). Not to mention rhyming couplet of "small town" and "roots down" used in "Far Away"...remind you of anything?

Overall, this album has failed to live up to the very high standards set by Blackfield II, but nonetheless it`s definately worth a spin. Wilson's recent collaboration with Mikael from Opeth, due for release later in the year, should provide more interest.

7/10

Highlights: "Oxygen", "DNA"

Ozzy Osbourne - Live at Citibank Hall, Rio de Janeiro, 7th April 2011

In the latest issue of Road Crew, Brazil's most popular metal magazine, the editor defended the image of the country of being a place for aging rockers collecting their last run of paychecks. Fair enough, as the editor claims proudly, the country does recieve some acts in the youth of their careers (erm, Avenged Sevenfold!?), but the percentage of gigs played by international artists that are over the age 50 is significantly higher than in Europe or North America. My gig calender reads to confirm this - Iron Maiden last week, Ian Anderson on 15th May, and in between Ozzy Osbourne.

Say what you want about Ozzy appearing in multimillion dollar adverts with Justin Bieber or Sharon's seemingly sovereign control of his career, if he can keep getting the reaction he did from the Brazilian crowd on Thursday, he can keep touring "until he dies" (as he said he would in a recent interview). The Citibank hall was packed full of punters who, like at Iron Maiden last week, pogoed around to the tunes and sang each and every lyric almost without fail.

The setlist was a pure nostalgiafest, only one song from the last twenty years worth of studio albums was played, the gaggingly commercial single off the latest record, Let Me Hear You Scream. This made for pleasent listening, seeing as songs like "Bark at the Moon" and "Crazy Train" are classics, but personally I was disappointed at the total dismissal of the "Diary of a Madman" album - one of the two albums recorded with legendary guitarist Randy Rhodes.

Anyone who's still interested in Ozzy's career (a gradually diminishing number) will be keen to see how Ozzy's new backing band are doing, particulary the most revered spot, lead guitar. It seems fairy ironic that former guitarist Zakk Wylde's much maligned use of pinched harmonics was one of the reasons fans were happy to see the back of him, yet Gus G is fairly liberal in his usage too. Other than that, the Greek guitarist stays faithful to the Rhodes/Lee/Wylde originals, with the exception to the occasional fill to give his own spin on the old songs.

On stage, Ozzy, nearly 45 years into his career, still acts like a child who's eaten too many haribos, but for him it seems hardly incongruous. The man still has an puerile grin on his face throughout the show and took great pleasure in dousing the crowd in water at regular intervals. Although it has to be said, Ozzy really needs to learn more stage banter - "I can't fuckin' hear you!!" in between every song grates after a while. His voice held up for most of the gig, partially aided by an extended instrumental jam, including a rather tedious drum solo (90% of drum solos are boring for me, admittedly).

Overall, a good night's entertainment, not sure quite worth another £45 spent, but as is the standard in South America, you pay a lot of money for musicians 20/30/40 years past their peak. A final note - the playing of War Pigs and Fairies Wear Boots made me realise again how important a Black Sabbath reunion would be...fingers crossed.