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.

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.

Kylesa - Spiral Shadow

Since my forced migration to the sunny yet metallically challenged climbs of Rio de Janeiro there hasn't been a lot to write about. It's not that bad, but sadly most international acts play São Paolo/Belo Horizonte/Curitiba ahead of Rio. That means travelling the distance from London to Aberdeen just for some good music. So there are no gigs in this city at the moment, and it's very hard to get the latest releases without downloading them or paying £15 postage and waiting 2 weeks. But the release of the new Kylesa album demanded some attention...

After discovering this bunch and much eulogising over seeing the band back in July this year (far too late admittedly) I was pretty excited to hear their new album, their forth full length, and their second album in only two years.

Kylesa are, along with such other psychadelic sludgy metal counterparts as Mastodon, Baroness, Black Tusk and Zoroaster are part of the Georgian scene, which at this rate will probably go down as legendary as the early 80's Bay Area thrash or the late 80's Floridian death metal scene.

The record is brilliant - no filler, packed with an equal weight of heavy trademark grooves and celestial instrumental passages. The production is excellent, and the two drummers are given enough space in the mix to distinguish their amazing interplay. The album owes as much to metal as it does to rock in general - the song Don't Look Back is a potential radio hit, whereas Drop Out showcases both hardcore and stoner influences.

Singer/guitarist Phillip Cope mentioned in a recent interview with Terrorizer that he isn't much of a fan of prog, and that he prefers songs that are more to the point and catchy. This is certainly reflected in the record, and it is usually executed wonderfully, although I'd take issue and say that it would be interesting if a few of the songs, particually the gorgeous album closer, Dust, were carried a bit longer and given a more, erm, epic vibe. This is nit picking essentially, it's a great record.

Hopefully I'll have more to come in time. I'm going to see Polish death metal behemoths Vader the weekend after next, and hopefully I'll find time to give the new Intronaut a spin. Other than that, there are new albums by Morbid Angel, Crowbar, Hate Eternal, Eyehategod, A Perfect Circle, Devin Townsend, Autopsy, Neurosis and Gojira to look forward to in the next 6 months. 2011 looks to be promising already!

Jack

Converge and Kylesa, live at Manchester Academy 2, 15th July 2010

Despite missing the first two acts, this was well worth a 6 hour return trip to Manchester for. The two main bands, Kylesa and Converge, were hardly natural partners in crime, but it certainly seems like its going to work throughout the long tour they are doing together.

Kylesa are a special act. They have managed to forge their own unique brand of heavy, with a hypnotic groove that both bewilders and pleases the listener, with the otherworldly heavyness of Electric Wizard and the more technical/psychadelic elements of Mastodon mixed to beautiful perfection. If this doesn't make you want take drugs, no heavy music will. Watching the two drummers at work is pretty mesmerising stuff, and frontwoman Laura Pleasants has a nice dirty roar on her which compliments the music, and its refreshing to have a female in a band who isnt the selling point of the music *cougharchenemycough*. Although like many members of the crowd I wasn't that acquainted with the bands discography, the nature of the music induces involuntary headbanging, and it was a great shame they only had a half hour set.

Converge confirm the diversity of this evening. The songs are short, relentless, incredibly tight and, erm, pretty hardcore. The bundle of energy that is singer Jacob Bannon is to hyperactivity what Mike Williams is to narcotic induced numbness - one wonders how it is humanely possible to maintain such levels of enthusiasm throughout an entire tour. The set features quite a few songs off Jane Doe, the seminal album ranked as the 4th best album of the 00's by Terrorizer, and as the best by Decibal, which were always going to have the crowd in raptures.

Jack