Brimstone Coven - Black Magic (2016)

2016 CD Metal Blade

Brimstone Coven was a very promising American band.
Most of the writers/listeners called their style as Traditional Doom Metal.
Well, after a very good eponymous album, some really good stuff, they have recorded for the well-known label Metal Blade.
Nowadays 9 out of 10 bands plays common music, already done, styled yet sounds, older things, on and on.
Black Magic sounds like the same old stuff, not only to the old/traditional style (Slow Death), but even to the same band (Black Magic, The Seers).
If you think that great labels should bring something better that underground ones
you are wrong.
Black magic has only one color, a long album having only one sensation, beat, mood,
and this is not good...a delusion.

Tracklist

1 Black Magic
2 Black Unicorn
3 Beyond the Astral
4 As We Fall
5 Upon the Mountain
6 Slow Death
7 The Seers
8 The Plague
9 Forsaken
10 The Eldest Tree

Best Sounds of 2015 - Just a Mention - Not Particular Order

Year of the Cobra - The Black Sun ep (us 15)

All Them Witches - A Sweet Release ep (us 15)

Mother Engine - Absturz (ger 15)

Weedpecker - II (pol 15)

The Grand Astoria - The Mighty Few (ru 15)

My Sleeping Karma - Moksha (ger 15)

Void Generator - Supersound (2014)

2014 CD Phonosphera Records ph06

2014 LP Phonosphera Records ph06v

          It is not easy to write a review of the great italian band Void Generator for its almost unknown content. You can't know what VG will do the next time and how their release will sound. If you know the previous releases, Phantom Hell and Soar Angelic, Collision ep, We Have Found The Space and so on, you should expect something different from a Supersound like that.

           We are talking about 7 super songs playing a shorter time that Phantom Hell facing with a superfuzzed guitars, a super grooving drumming, very improved vocals and a different direction that we could call an heavy psych with a range of nuances.

           Behind My Door is an heavy pysch song running a weird timing and a fantastic guitar solo at the end. Synapsex is a sort of stoner rush where the band shows all its playing expertise with a very nice middle organ work. Master Of The Skies is a sort of occult/sixties rock reminiscence running on a waltz timing...oh how good is this song ! Check the guitar solo, it's a masterpiece. Here the vocals seem close to James Douglas Morrison.

            Then What Are You Doin', a cover of McChurch Soundroom, that is organ driven (remember: you'll find mr. Enrico Cosimi on keyboards...), super groovy and super sixties. Hidden Orbit is a sort of modern heavy song lying on a super odd heavy riffing going into a super grooving verse. Universal Winter is an acoustic and super lonely psychedelic song that breaks your groovy mood had before. Globular Cluster is a sort of homage to Monster Magnet of Superjudge.  

                 Ultimately you'll find here: heavy psych, stoner, prog, psychedelia, doomish mood, super recording, super playing, super production, super groove. A Supersound.

                   Don't miss it, this is one of the best release around and it is intended to be that for a long time.   

Tracklist

1 - Behind My Door 8:09

2 - Synapsex 4:38

3 - Master Of The Skies 9:33

4 - What Are You Doin' 4:17

5 - Hidden Orbit 6:24

6 - Universal Winter 3:32

7 - Globular Cluster 5:04

Greenleaf - Trails & Passes (2014)

2014 CD Small Stone Records ss 147

        Greenleaf from Sweden is Bengt Bäcke: bass, Sebastian Olsson: drums, Tommi Holappa: guitar, Arvid Jonsson: vocals and they play stoner rock.
        That's all we could say. This is stoner rock as many have been and probably many will be. It's a good release if you like stoner rock but if you think that such scene needs something new you can easily withdraw it.  

Tracklist

1 Our Mother Ash
2 Ocean Deep
3 Equators
4 Depth Of The Sun
5 Humans
6 With Eyes Wide Open
7 The Drum
8 Bound To Be Machines
9 Trails & Passes

Insider - Event Horizon (2013)

2013 CD Andruid Records (AR 001)

       After 'Vibrations From The Tapes' Insider are back with Event Horizon this time produced for their own label Andruid Records.

       Ranalli Bros. and Stefano Di Rito realize - alleluia - a different work. Do not expect anything of what you have already heard from the band of Pescara (Italy).

       The platter is completely instrumental and runs in eight tracks by the apparent heavy metal prog flavor. Imagine a series of metal riffs that run, varying, on a series of temporal and melodic scansion constantly in motion, some would say having no chorus.

        A proposal that is more cerebral than directly emotional.

       The effort, I assure you, it's huge. For sure, if you can't live without Fu-Manchu then forget about it as soon as possible, but if you are going to listen something 'different', that broadens your sensory faculties, then take a look at the odd timing, the distortion of the Pro Co Rat golden-era and the architecture of the old prog stuff.

      On the other side, the result is not equal to the effort, because - undoubtedly - listening to Event Horizon is not the easiest and relaxing thing in the world. In the long run it becomes difficult to remain 'on the piece'.
      An edition as ep, with a careful choice of the pieces, (3/4) at the maximum, would have been more efficient and nothing would take away the intrinsic value of the work.  

Tracklist

1) Escape Velocity  6:59
2) Magnetic field lines 8:39
3) Gravitational mass 9:14
4) Jet 6:05
5) Event horizon 3:37
6) Expansion of the universe 9:10
    a) inertia
    b) quantum fluctuations
    c) development of galaxies
    d) dark energy
    e) synthesis of elements
    f) the present universe
7) Black hole 9:00
8) White hole 6.07 

 

Mr. Peter Hayden - Faster Than Speed (2010)

2010 CD Winter Talvi-11
2012 Vinyl LP Mikrofoni 001

E' solo da poco che mi sono - fortunatamente - avvicinato ai finlandesi Mr. Peter Hayden. Questo quintetto annovera i seguenti ragazzotti: L. Kivelä, JP. Koivisto, S. Kuosmanen, M. Marjamäki, T. Santamaa e V.Vatanen e, altrettanto fortunatamente, è piuttosto complicato spiegarvi cosa suonino. Il cd in questione è semplicemente composto di due tracce super-lunghe (ad ogni modo, mai lunghe come i grandiosi francesi Overmars); ma non è questo il punto. Faster Than Speed di Mr. peter Hayden ha: la ripetitività dei connazionali Circle, un suono che tradisce inequivocabilmente il metal finnico, vagamente il senso psichedelico dei Motorpsycho orchestrali, un sax dagli echi crimsoniani; eppure non sono nulla di tutto ciò. Tra l'altro, hanno una sufficiente padronanza dei rispettivi strumenti, il che, pur non essendo necessario, non guasta certo in quest'epoca di approssimazione; potrebbero fare scuola e doposcuola a tanti nomi più famosi. Se amate esclusivamente le cose classiche potrebbe non piacervi, ma se avete le palle piene delle solite cose allora non potete sbagliare. Occhio a Mr. Peter Hayden, potrebbe esplodere in qualsiasi momento. (Sono anche distribuiti in Italia dalla intraprendente nostrana Phonosphera !).

Only recently that I've - thankfully - approached the finns Mr. Peter Hayden. This quintet includes the following guys: L. Kivela, JP. Koivisto, S. Kuosmanen, M. Marjamäki, T. Santamaa and V.Vatanen and just as fortunately, is quite complicated to explain what they play. The CD is simply composed of two super-long tracks (however, never long as the great french Overmars), but that's not the point. Faster Than Speed ​​of Mr. Peter Hayden: got the repetitiveness of their neighbour Circle, a sound that reveals clearly the finnish metal, vaguely the psychedelic sense of the orchestral Motorpsycho, a sax that brings Crimson echoes, yet they are nothing of the kind. Among other things, they have a sufficient command of their instruments, which, although not necessary, certainly does not hurt in this era of approximation, they could show and after-school so many more famous names. If you love only those classic things might not like it, but if you're sick of the usual things then you can not go wrong. Put your eyes on Mr. Peter Hayden, it could explode at any moment. (They are also distributed in Italy by our local enterprising Phonosphera!). 

Tracklist

1 Smoke in Space 33:33
2 Δt=0                  33:00

78/100

Mr. Peter Hayden - 'Smoke in Space' (from: Faster Than Speed 2010 - distro/excerpt) by Phonosphera Records

Aleph Null - Dale ep (2012)

File Digitale

Vorrei sottoporre alla vostra gentile attenzione i tedeschi Aleph Null da Colonia. Carsten al basso, Jens alla batteria e Philip alle chitarre e voce non ve la mandano a dire. Non so quanti di voi abbiano familiartità con lo sludge ma questo ep, scaricabile dal loro bandcamp merita sicuramente una citazione.

Il primo pezzo è sicuramente il migliore ma anche gli altri reggono bene il confronto. Come da necessità di genere il suono ha un punch da brividi, accordi monolitici, basso distorto, voce da metal moderno e così via...se avete i timpani deboli interrompete la lettura adesso.In qualche passaggio ricordano cose degli americani Starchild col loro Born Into Eternity del 2006, ma potrebbero essere assimilati ai Samothrace leggermente più morbidi (e ho detto tutto), una venatura dark, doom - quindi - è lecito aspettarsela. Io penso che una volenterosa etichetta se la meritino proprio, altrimenti squanternatevi le orecchie con un big muff attaccato ad un Sunn O))) Model T tirato a canna...

I'd like to draw your kind attention the germans from Cologne: Aleph Null. Carsten on bass, Jens on drums and Philip on guitar and vocals they told me in no uncertain terms. I do not know how many of you are familiar with the sludge, but this ep, downloadable from their bandcamp surely deserves a mention. 

The first piece is definitely the best but the others compare favorably. As is usually the need for such sounds they has a punch that chills, monolithic chords, distorted bass, vocals as modern metal and so on ...if you have weak eardrums stop reading now. In some passages remind us of things from the american Starchild Born Into Eternity (2006), but may even be Samothrace, slightly softer (and I've said it all), a dark coarse, doom - so - it is permissible to expect it. I think that if a label willing to deserve its own, otherwise keep breaking your ears with a big muff plugged to a Sunn O))) T-Model head pulled to death ...

Tracklist

1. Dale 05:17   
2. Kill the Colossus 05:51
3. Protogrammar 06:09   
4. Noah 06:31
5. Sidewinder 04:31
6. Corridor 08:28

75/100

INSIDER - …Vibrations From the Tapes…(2012)

(Phonosphera Records ph04 - 2012)

Quando ho saputo della nuova uscita dei pescaresi INSIDER, autentici paladini del rock nostrano, non ho potuto fare a meno di procurarmi una copia del loro ultimo lavoro '...Vibrations From the Tapes...' edito per la sempre più interessante etichetta romana Phonoshera Records. Premesso che gli INSIDER hanno esordito nel lontano 1996, credevo fossero estinti dopo l'ultimo grande 'Simple Water Drops' del 2005 (uno dei migliori dischi italiani in circolazione) ed invece tornano in auge con la presente release che consta di 5 tracce completamente improvvisate ed evidentemente registrate in sala con un paio di condensatori (il materiale è del 2007 !). Il master è stato realizzato da Gianmarco Iantaffi, ovvero il chitarrista dei Void Generator. Immaginate un fiume psichedelico chitarristico con condimento di synth ed ogni sorta di generatore sonico vintage: cinque groove che non potranno non piacervi se non amate il rock. Troverete una continua variazione in dinamica, interventi di wha, continui soli e temi di chitarra, una citazione hendrixiana ed effetti space in tutto il cd. Se amate il genere non mancatelo.   

When I heard about the new release of INSIDER from Pescara, true champions of our national rock, I could not help but get me a copy of their latest work '... Vibrations From the Tapes ...' published for the always more interesting roman label Phonoshera Records. Given that the INSIDER started out way back in 1996, believed to be extinct after the last great 'Simple Water Drops' in 2005 (one of the best Italian recordings in circulation) and instead come back into vogue with the current release, which consists of 5 tracks completely improvised and clearly recorded in a sort of rehearsal room with a pair of capacitors mic (the material is from 2007!). The master was made ​​by Gianmarco Iantaffi, or the guitarist of Void Generator. Imagine a river of psychedelic guitar with dressing of synth and all sorts of vintage sonic generator, five grooves that will surely please you if you do like rock. You will find a continuous variation in dynamics, interventions wha, just continuous themes and guitar, and a citation of Hendrix and space effects throughout the cd. If you love the genre does not miss it.

Tracklist

1    Your Brainticket         22:33
2    Killing Boredom         3:07
3    Raga in the Sky         12:27
4    First Steps         27:36
5    Dark Age         13:22

75/100

Farflung & Black Rainbows (Split) 2012

Longfellow Deeds

Ennesima uscita per la francese Longfellow Deeds che compone uno split i cui protagonisti sono gli americani Farflung (in giro dal 1995) ed i prolifici italiani Black Rainbows, il che, desta sicuramente curiosità. E' lecito aspettarsi sfumature space in un disco del genere. 'Lupine' non tradisce le attese. Un buon riff di chitarra (non esasperata) introduce una linea melodica tipica del genere, voce filtrata e riff semplice ed accattivante tanto che al minuto 2:00 il pezzo non dice più nulla di particolare. E' comunque un bel pezzo. 'Punching Hole in the Twilight' potrebbe essere tranquillamente un pezzo dei Monster Magnet era Dopes To Infinity o Powertrip ma meno hard o tranquillamente un classico pezzo degli Hawkwind. 'No Circuit' è un altro bel pezzo tutto space, nulla di originale ma apprezzabile. In definitiva, buon approccio space per i Farflung con un occhio teso a temi abbastanza orecchiabili. In un contesto del genere ci si aspetterebbe che l'intero album sia sulla stessa falsariga invece i Black Rainbows aprono la loro parte con 'Let it Shine' che non si discosta affatto da quanto proposto nei lavori precedenti, riff granitico heavy psych pittuosto accattivante, chitarra molto compressa e soliti interventi space con echo a nastro e synth monofonico. Diciamo un brano classico del loro repertorio con accenni space. Il brano successivo, il cui titolo è veramente intrigante: 'The River, The Moon, The White Lake, The Megaelectrofantafuzzspace'  è invece più space e cadenzato, immaginate un riff molto simile a 'Get on the Snake' dei Soundgarden ed avrete un'idea precisa di ciò che ascolterete, sicuramente il miglior pezzo dell'intero split. Verso i tre minuti il pezzo torna all'antico amore dei BR, la psychedelia heavy, una sorta di intermezzo prima di tornare al riff precedente che più ci piace. Chiude il discorso 'The Devil & The Dream' che evoca ancora echi dei Monster Magnet con passaggi heavy tipici dei BR. Ecco una dimostrazione di come i gruppi italiani possano essere migliori di quello d'oltreoceano.

Yet another release from the french Longfellow Deeds who composes a split in which the protagonists are the smericans Farflung (around since 1995) and the prolific italian Black Rainbows, which, certainly arouses curiosity. And it would expect space shades in such a disc. 'Lupine' does not betray the expectations. A good guitar riff (not so heavy) introduces a melody typical of the genre, filtered voice and simple and attractive riff so that the piece at 2:00 does not say anything special. It 'still a nice piece. 'Punching Hole in the Twilight' could easily be a piece of Monster Magnet's Dopes To Infinity or even Powertrip but less hard or quietly a classic piece of Hawkwind too. 'No Circuit' is another beautiful piece throughout space, nothing original but commendable. Ultimately, a good space approach for Farflung with an eye aimed at catchy enough issues. In such a context you would expect that the whole album is along the same lines but the Black Rainbows open their share with 'Let it Shine', which does not differ at all from that proposed in previous work, granite heavy psych riff rather attractive, very compressed guitar and usual space work with a tape echo and monophonic synth. Let's say a piece of classical repertoire with hints space. The next song, whose title is really intriguing: 'The River, The Moon, The White Lake, The Megaelectrofantafuzzspace' is more space and rhythmic, imagine a very similar riff to 'Get on the Snake' Soundgarden and you have a precise idea of ​​what you'll hear, certainly the best piece of the whole split. At about three minutes the track is back to the old love of BR, the heavy psychedelia, a sort of interlude before returning to the previous riff that we like. It closes the split 'The Devil & The Dream', which still evokes echoes of Monster Magnet with heavy steps typical of BR. Here is a demonstration of how some italian groups can be better than band from overseas.

Tracklist

    Farflung: 65/100       
1    Lupine        
2    Punching Hole in the Twilight        
3    No Circuit        
    Black Rainbows: 70/00       
4    Let it Shine        
5    The River, The Moon, The White Lake, The Megaelectrofantafuzzspace        
6    The Devil & The Dream

Domo - Domo ep (2010)

Self/Radix Records

I Domo risiedono ad Alicante e rispondono ai nomi di Paco (drums, percussion), Sam (guitar, effects) e  Óscar (bass, vocals). Immaginate i Blue Cheer con un attitudine prog ed avrete idea di cosa facciano questi tre bravi ragazzi spagnoli.  Dopo aver invaso il web col loro ep vengono messi sotto contratto dalla compaesana Radix Records, rimasterizzano il loro lavoro e ci regalano sette pezzi veramente interessanti. Per l'esattezza, ho reperito prima la versione in mp3 dal web e poi ho preso la versione rimasterizzata dalla Radix Records. La morale è che, se volete aiutare un gruppo emergente, allora acquistate il cd presso di loro o presso la Radix, ma se volete ascoltare la loro musica prendete gli mp3 che suonano 500 volte meglio della versione remaster. Incredibile ma vero...

'Nadi' non lascia scampo, una delle più belle parti di basso registrate negli ultimi anni. Groove sixties, distorsore e wha per la chitarra, batteria ampia, godibile in ogni sua sfumatura. In pratica, i vari temi improvvisati dalla chitarra reggono l'intera linea melodica, anchese ogni tanto Óscar si produce in qualche imprecisione esecutiva resa meno evidente dal bell'andamento del pezzo nel suo insieme. In sostanza, 6:30 di improvvisazione blues psychedelica accompagnata da un suono di basso spettacolare. 'Prana' apre con un echo a nastro imbizzarrito e ci conduce in un eccitante giro di basso che culmina con la chitarra. Qui, l'unico neo, forse dovuto alla produzione, è che il suono di chitarra risulta generato, secondo me, da una combinazione di strumenti la cui qualità intrinseca non è proprio eccelsa. Però la personalità non manca, e nonostante la similitudine col pezzo precedente che potrebbe farci pensare ad una inutile ripetizione, questa volta Óscar irrompe con un tema di chitarra da applausi, il pathos che manca ai più. Se continua così i Domo faranno strada, non ci sono santi che tengano...al minuto 8:20 l'ottima sensazione ancora non cessa. Come se non bastasse, il pezzo, verso i 9:00 vira verso un piccolo intervento di voce, semplice ma azzeccato. Ascoltatelo che fate prima e vale proprio la pena. 'Asura': e senti la chitarra col riverbero 'vero' ed immancabile wha, quello che ti fa percepire ogni sfumatura...ma non ti immagini che il tutto sfoci in uno scorcio quasi-Doom; intervalli inusuali per la chitarra in ambientazioni quasi arabesche (ricordiamoci che siamo in Spagna...). Segue un riff ancora diverso dal precedente, ecco perché si parla di prog. (ascoltate il 'solo' di batteria). Non vi dico più nulla di questa canzone e ben poco del prosieguo, scopritelo da soli. 'Pretas' è un pezzo acustico, 'Yamantaka' è un altro pezzo 'arabo'; c'è anche spazio per una digressione space (Eta Carinae) e Samsara dura 24 minuti (ho detto tutto). Il guppo di punta della Spagna in questo momento.

Domo band resides in Alicante and responds to the names of Paco (drums, percussion), Sam (guitar, effects) and Óscar (bass, vocals). Imagine Blue Cheer with a progressive attitude and you'll have an idea of what these three good spanish guys do. After invading the web with their ep they signed for the spanish Radix Records, they do a remastering of their work and give us seven pieces really interesting. To be exact, I found first the version as mp3 from the web and then I got the remastered version from Radix Records. The moral is that if you want to help an emerging group, buy the cd at them or at the Radix, but if you want to take a listen to their music get your mp3s that play 500 times better than the remaster version. Unbelievable but true ... 
'Nadi' leaves no way out, one of the most beautiful bass parts recorded in recent years. Sixties groove, distortion and wah for guitar, wide drums, enjoyable in every nuance. In practice, the various themes from improvised guitar govern the entire melodic line, even if Óscar occasionally occurs in some executive imprecision made less evident by the nice on goin' as a whole. In essence, 6:30 improvisational psychedelic blues accompanied by a spectacular bass sound. 'Prana' opens with a spooked tape echo and takes us on an exciting bass riffing that culminates guitar. Here, the only flaw, perhaps due to the production, is that the guitar sound is generated, in my opinion, a combination of instruments, whose intrinsic quality is just not excellent. But personality is not missing here, and despite the similarity with the earlier piece that could make us think of an unnecessary repetition, this time Oscar bursts with a  w-o-n-d-e-r-f-u-l guitar line, the pathos that is lacking in most. If they keep this way Domo will be a famous band, there are no saints...at minute 8:20 ... the good feeling does not give up. What's more, the piece turns about at 9:00 into a small presence of voice, simple but guessed. Listen to that, it worths the effort. 'Asura': and you can hear the guitar with the 'real' reverb and feel the inevitable wha, just what makes you feel every nuance ... but can you can't imagine that all this should result in an almost-Doom foreshortening; unusual intervals for the guitar in environments close to something like arabesque (remember that we are in Spain ...). Follows a one more time different riff, that's why we talk about prog. (Listen to the drum solo). I will not say anything about this song, and very little of the following, see for yourself. 'Pretas' is an acoustic track, 'Yamantaka' is another arabian piece and there is also room for a space digression (Eta Carinae) and 'Samsara' lasts 24 minutes (that's all...). The leading group of Spain at this time.

Tracklist

1 Nadi 6:30
2 Prana    11:57
3 Asura    8:52
4 Pretas 3:12
5 Yamantaka 8:27
6 Eta Carinae 1:59
7 Samsara 24:03

82/100