THE EVIL INQUISITION ISSUE 35

DENIED - 'When The Slate Becomes Diamonds'
[Painkiller]


Inspired by sheer hilarity and video games, Italian Heavy Metal five piece Denied have unleashed their debut full length album entitled 'When The Slate Becomes Diamonds' upon the Metal world. Crossing and splicing the styles of Iron Maiden and Hammerfall, Denied play with a real sense of the old school melody and heaviness about them, fast melodic and with clear vocals shouted loud and very proud. You will in my opinion find it rather difficult to be turned of bored by these Italian Metallers, for whilst their tunes are of a very well worn method, their energy and musicianship More than make up for any deficiencies, of which there are very few. If you want intricate guitar solo's, you've got it, but if your hankering for fast alcohol fueled powerful vocals, you've got that too. Although a little bit of a one trick pony, Denied and 'When The Slate Becomes Diamonds' are extremely listenable without really shaking the earth around them. So if your on for a night out with lashings of beer and spirits, stick on this record to get you in the mood for a night of true old school Heavy Metal. [7]
http://www.myspace.com/denieditaly

ORCRIST - 'We Come In War'
[Painkiller]


From the same record label and the same country as the band featured in my previous review, Orcrist are Italian Black Metal played bleak and with seriously sinister undertones. 'We Come In War' is the latest release from this four piece and marks the pinnacle of the bands career so far. Their grinding style is somewhat weather worn and weary, like an old hand sagely laying down how things are, and this bands style reeks of Black Metal played harshly over the last couple of decades, in as much as it is not very original but making up for this with tonnes of atmosphere and presence.Orcrist are capable of multi-paced malice although generally their sound does come across as slightly generic and samey. Still they don't go overboard like so many a Black Metal band has done in the past and with me that will always stand you in good favour, and further more renders the whole album very listenable. 'We Come In War' is a giant stab at all around it, packing vitriolic tendencies, hatred and spite for all the band see, well worth a listen or two. [7]
http://www.myspace.com/orcristhorde

SPECTRAL MANIFEST - 'In Shadows Unseen EP'
[Unsigned]


From the US, specifically Houston comes a two piece Black and Death Metal band of such an awful and talentless disposition that one wonders whether there was any point them even starting a band. Aside from the fact that all you can really hear is the drumming, there is no flow, no direction, nothing of original value and the vocals just seem to screech along all of their own accord with no cohesion to the riff-age which incidentally is the most basic, simplistic and frankly shit you will ever hear. this band cannot play their instruments, cannot write songs and are the worst thing I have ever heard! What Spectral Manifest have created is a noise, a banging noise put together without a thinking process being involved. It's fucking tedious, grating and should be stopped at all costs. [0]
http://www.myspace.com/spectralmanifest

COMMON GRAVE - 'Embedded Coding'
[Twilight]


It has been a fast rampaging decade of aggression since German Death Metal squadron Common Grave's inception into the vast Death Metal hordes some ten years ago, and following twp demo's and two full length albums they have truly hit the proverbial nail on the head with this their third album, 'Embedded Coding'. Spewing forth venom regarding murder, hatred and the society that spawns both, and with a slight industrial twist via some unorthodox undertones thrown in some places for good measure, Common Grave have a sound that is truly brutal and harsh yet captivating, interesting and highly listenable. here we have a band that simply is not interested in blasting their way into Death Metal obscurity and has therefore worked hard to produce music of close to legendary proportions, and as a result I feel that you'll be hard pushed to find a better Death Metal release anywhere in the world this year or even a few years previous. This will be seen in years to come as a work of art and 'Embedded Coding' is an album that this great band can be truly proud of! [9.5]
http://www.myspace.com/commongrave

THIS WEARY HOUR - 'No Hand To Comfort You'
[Unsigned]


All the way from the Emerald Isle and in particular the stunning town of Cork comes a five piece Atmospheric Sludge and Doom Metal band by the name of This Weary Hour and their sophomore six track EP entitled 'No Hand To Comfort You'. The first you'll notice is the stone cold chill that this band immediately generates, it's methodical in approach and bleak in end result. That said initially This Weary Hour do lack a heaviness that I like to hear in a Doom band, yet at the same time have a slight early Anathema influence about them which i adore. This is not rip roaring stuff, it will not set the world a light at first but once the true growling vocals and the blistering riff-age kicks in to the slowed down Doom medley you'll once again be assured that this is Doom Metal the way it should be played. It isn't always gripping and sometimes lack a little flow and direction but overall this is a good stab at making the darkness even more dark, the shadows even more black and ominous oppressive mood that should come with all good Doom even more impenetrable. 'No Hand To Comfort You' is the first sign of good things to come. [7]
http://www.myspace.com/thiswearyhour

FATALITY - 'Metal As Hell: Chapter I'
[Unsigned]


From Lisburn in Northern Ireland comes a four piece straight up Thrash Metal band with no twist. 'Metal As Hell: Chapter I' leaves nothing to the imagination and tells the listener exactly what to expect within and after only a few seconds you'll realise that this is a band who do exactly what it says on the tin. This album is eight tracks of unadulterated eighties Thrash Metal with no modern thrills or spills. Opening track 'Terminal Agression' is the kind of song you would expect to adorn an album of this nature and it continues this theme right on until the very end with such titles as 'Bring Back The Days', 'Shock Treatment' and 'It's Devils Night'. Vocally the band sometimes sound a little distant due to the production levels and as you will have already gathered Fatality are not an innovative band with new idea's, yet as a good times rolling party time band there can be few better and as a result many people who still embrace, cherish and cling to the old days of Metal will find solace and happiness in what Fatality churn out. It isn't pretty and it isn't the best technically but it is Thrash for the sake of it and that is not to be sneezed at. [6]
http://www.myspace.com/fatalityriffs

INFERION - 'The Desolate'
[Unsigned]


Miami and the rest of Florida is famous for Metal but usually of the Death variety, so welcome Inferion and their latest full length release 'The Desolate', a Black Metal outfit that play loud, raw and blisteringly cold! sadly though those well rounded character traits are all I found about Inferion that I actually liked. Their music is full throttle malicious Black Metal which is all that you would generally expect but they offer nothing in the way of original thinking or creative writing and seem content to blast out fifteen very solid but very cliched tracks. Often they lose the flow and so their music turns into more of an arduous noise and for the most part any sense of melody is truly lost. Do not get me wrong here, Inferion are a band who can play and in places the wall of hatred and White noise is broken down letting through a semblance of riff-age that is less vitriolic but again as 'The Desolate' plows it's way onwards there is very little else on offer. This then is for all true Black Metallers but don't be surprised if you have heard this kind of thing many times before. To finish on a high though, the vocal work is sadistically fast, raw and venomous! A saving grace then...[5]
http://www.myspace.com/inferion

SLAVE ZERO - 'Exempt From All Tolerance'
[Double Standards]


From Kilkenny in Ireland comes Death and Thrash Metal in the shape of Slave Zero and their third release 'Exempt From All Tolerance'. At times this bands rolling riffs kick in with a crushing fury that can match anyone and at these moments you'll find this band, like I did to be totally exhilarating. Their drumming is often outstanding and the whole ambiance and brutality of the band is top notch. To put a slight downer on things, the more Thrash like the vocals get the worse they become and in my opinion Slave Zero should stick solely to the Death Metal side of their play. Another low point is the loss in flow and momentum that the band occasionally suffers from but neither of the previous two points should detract from the fact that Slave Zero attempt to make ferocious music and they succeed spectacularly. 'Exempt From All Tolerance' is a sledge hammer blow to the ribs, a smash in the face and a gore drenched fist to the skull of those who cannot take the pain. For those of you who like their Death Metal loud, rude and totally dominating then these Irish lads have got the tonic you so desperately crave. [6.5]
http://www.myspace.com/slavezerometal

BIGELF - 'Cheat The Gallows'
[Powerage]


I have no idea how you will take to a band called Bigelf, or the fabled Bigelf as the bands hyperbole would have you believe, but let me try any put this into a context that you will be able to grasp. To pigeonhole Bigelf and their brand new release 'Cheat The Gallows' I would have to describe them as the bastard offspring of a merger or relationship between 80's glam legends Guns n Roses and 60's pop icons The Beatles in the 'Sergeant Pepper' era, oh and with some early Phil Collins thrown in to make this a seriously bizarre threesome. Weird does not do this band credit, quirky does not do them justice, grand though may be hitting the nail firmly on the head. At first this Los Angeles quartet have you so confused you will not know where to put yourself but after a while once you have gotten over the fact that Bigelf pack more brass that a colliery band you will really start to enjoy what you are hearing. It's daring, pretentious and loud and I love it. I don't know how they came up with this concept but after a long hard day at work this cheered me up no end. [8]
http://www.myspace.com/bigelf

CITY WEEZLE - 'Taboo Sessions: The Leprechaun'
[Originology]


If you are in the mood to absolutely piss yourself laughing then this cross between Black Sabbath and a very poor Irish joke will be just what you are needing. from Ireland comes City Weezle, like the name in itself is not enough to give you a laugh. Musically the band are extremely sub standard, their blend of rock, folk and jazz fusion meant to be influenced by such bands as The Melvin's and King Crimson but just coming off as half baked. yet i don't think good music is really the point here as the vocals are done in the most stereotypical leprechaun voice you have ever heard, even completed with lyrics such as where is my pot of gold. your starting to get the impression. Once the track entitled 'The Leprechaun' is over they do a lot more serious vocal work but do sometimes lapse back into the comedy. Frankly though once the initial shock and laughter has died down there is little of worth here and it all gets very old very soon. some may find this entertaining but for me it holds very little musical value. [2]
http://www.myspace.com/cityweezle