Fields Of The Nephilim – Fallen

Review# 242

Fallen is Fields Of The Nephilim's fourth studio album... Well kinda. After the third studio album Elizium and the tour Carl MaCoy left the band and took the name with him. Eventually in 2002 Fallen was released but has never officially acknowledged by the band claiming that it was released without consent by the label and is essentially unfinished tracks and demos that the label, Jungle Records, had stolen as a cash in.
While it may not be my favourite FOTN album it is still not a bad album. It is heavier than anything, barring Zoon (released under "The Nefilim" and is Carl MaCoy's solo/side project), to date. Musically it is more Industrial sounding but still with the Gothic elements to it and even a touch of the Death Metal growls occasionally. There are two tracks that are covers of FOTN songs of early EPs and compilations; Darkcell and Trees Come Down. They have been amped up a bit and renamed Darkcell AD and One More Nightmare (Trees Come Down)
You can feel that it's not quite up to Carl's usual standard so weather or not the tracks were nicked something unusual was happening in or around the studio but in saying that it is still an enjoyable album.

Darkcell AD: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrkrLq-BnkA
Subsanity: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Po18Q25YSx4
One More Nightmare: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkTEunB_AWI

Killing Joke – Killing Joke (2003)

Review# 241

In 2003 Killing Joke released another self titled album. This one comes across are far more aggressive than their 1980 release. Musically it also incorporates a lot more Rock and Industrial sounds. The Foo Fighters Dave Grohl takes control of the drum kit for this album and the bass and guitars are filled out by Paul Raven and old school KJ members Geordie and Youth. Jaz Colman's voice sounds like it has grown up and maybe through some hard times since 1980, but still awesome.

The Death And Resurrection Show: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_j4Eq3ziE4
Asteroid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6QLzBSTUEg
Implant: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUoQKHxXqiM

Killing Joke – Killing Joke (1980)

Review# 240

The first Killing Joke album is a brilliant piece of work. Musically it is great and it also has some fantastic production. There is a really great attitude on the album which really sells it. The dynamics throughout are fantastic too. It is easy to see why this album and band have been such an influence on so many bands.

Wardance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBm56qSS58Q
Requiem: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7WPI4TJImo

Murderdolls – Women And Children Last

Review# 239

Not as impacting as Beyond The Valley Of The Murderdolls and also requiring a good few playthroughs to really get into it, Woman And Children Last is still a decent album. It almost comes across as a more serious album than Beyond, but there is still a lot of tongue and cheek here. So not as good as the first album but still a decent album on the whole.

My Dark Place Alone: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucsJiKGHXtE&ob=av2e
Chapel Of Blood: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoH0AokrsKI

Rammstein – Volkerball

Review# 238

Volkerball makes for a pretty decent live album. The live recordings came with the DVD for the show. On it's release there were something like three editions; standard, special and collectors. I naturally ordered the deluxe edition which is a hardcover book full of photos as well as the live show, another disk with a documentary and also the double disk live album. The recording is pretty good and mixed well too.

Reise, Reise: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wBH6HXidO4
Mein Teil: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE8EMWxuZB0
Rammstein: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=strKBSyKNUQ

Foo Fighters – Wasting Light

Review# 237

Parts of this album are really solid. White Limo is up there as one of the best Foo Fighters songs to date. But Wasting Light still has a lot of tracks that either detract from the overall experience or are just not up to scratch. For a radio album the mix is pretty decent though, my only complaint is the vocals - something in the production just detracts a little from the amazing vocals I know Dave has.

White Limo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Z3nBokjZyE&ob=av2n

Meshuggah – Nothing

Review# 236

Really solid album from the always awesome Meshuggah. Nothing is a good solid album with a great raw feel to it. All the familiar trade mark sounds and forms are present but thankfully Meshuggah are a band that never get boring!

Rational Gaze: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D08JDW_vZ5c
Perpetual Black Second: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQ7liQrRMT4

Iron Maiden – The Final Frontier

Review# 235

The most recent Iron Maiden output is... Ok. It is interesting and there are some solid tracks here but on the whole it doesn't do much for me but is fine for the occasional spin.

El Dorado: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=coBzy-tPdws

Devin Townsend – Terria

Review# 234

While I do not prefer Terria over most of what Devin has done with Strapping I do think it's quite a pretty album. It's rather peaceful and organic. I admit I tend to tune out a little and just let it play without really listening to the lyrics or anything but it seems to work well just merging in with background thoughts.

Stagnant: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJNJM-Y69c4
Olives: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKKTtpmwgzA

Ministry – Twitch

Review# 233

Twitch is great. It's crammed full of electronics, there is no guitar except bass on one track and no drums except some percussion on another track. Even the vocals are often electronic sounding. But it is a dark album, there are lots of synth and samples as well as the lyrics that all add up to this dark industrial type of negative output. There is even a song, The Angel, that could loosely be called a ballad. The main reason this track stands out is due to it's toned down (relatively) use of samples and synths. There is some great stuff here and it is an honest and raw album.

Just Like You: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XENb8ry_q_w
Over The Shoulder: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQ6P3xMaDTQ
The Angel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEZ41hfDc_M

Soulfly – Omen

Review# 232

Omen is a pretty decent album. I am not too familiar with Soulfly's back catalogue so not sure how it stacks up in comparison but it has some solid tracks on it. It is not an album that has immediately stuck on me but not terribly un-enjoyable.

Rise Of The Fallen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igULEx4davY&ob=av2e

White Zombie – Astro Creep

Review# 231

Astro Creep is fun. It's just one of those good fun albums. A great Industrial vibe and some crazyness in the mix too. There are some really solid tracks here and it's great for parties.

Grease Paint And Monkey Brains: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5p96KUZsrY
More Human Than Human: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0E0ynyIUsg&ob=av2e

The Alan Parsons Project – Tales of Mystery and Imagination

Concept albums were all the rage in the 70’s. I’ve talked about this more extensively in the Thick as a Brick/A Passion Play review a wee ways back but everything was kind of getting out of hand by this point. Remember, this was just before punk and disco took everything... well, backwards. Sometimes this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. This album is based on Edgar Allan Poe stories... kind of loosely anyways. I like some of the material on here. Actually there are some great songs here, but I think they’d be better as standalone things with their own scope and themes.

Ringo Starr - Ringo

This is good rock and roll but only in the emptiest way there is. Ringo is a decent singer, a great drummer and a fully competent entertainer, but is a long way from a great artist. He’s kind of like seasoning, his touch can make a meal special but you don’t want to be served a plate of paprika. 

Really if you look at the Beatles solo careers it's pretty clear what the artistic heirarchy is. John had a couple of great albums, George only really has All Things Must Pass but that's one hell of an assett. Paul has Band on the Run and a Best Of. Ringo did the voice on Thomas the Tank Engine.

The Cure - Greatest Hits

To be honest, I’ve always preferred the darker side of The Cure. This isn’t really anything like that but it is good. In fact I’m surprised at how much I’m enjoying it as I thought these pop singles were complete crap when I was a ‘deep’ sixteen year old. I’ve lightened up a bit, and while there’s still a huge pull towards the darker side of the group for me personally this band has done some GREAT pop songs. Still warming to some of it but I’m glad I gave this one another spin.

The Grateful Dead - Aoxomoxoa

This is my favourite Grateful Dead record, there’s an experimental edge missing from most of their other studio work. We all know of course that it’s the live material which best serves the legacy of the Dead anyway, but personally most of their studio work is kind of... boring? Workingman’s Dead was alright but I’ve yet to make it through American Beauty before skipping back to Friend of the Devil and stopping.

Aoxomoxoa is the same forwards as it is backwards.

There are two mixes, the common one on every CD and the original mix, which was out of print by the early 70’s. The original mix completely overshadows the common mix. In basically all of the ways. In fact, when listening to the standard mix it always felt like there was something not quite there. The original mix is spot on and is the best you can get from the Dead, live or studio. That’s right. This is better than Live/Dead, Skull Fuck, any of those albums. The standard mix? Good, but slightly below Live/Dead, but better than Skull Fuck.

Alice Cooper - Pretties For You

Normally I like psychedelic music, but this is kind of... unengaging? After a few listens it’s grown on me a little bit more, but I can see why it’s basically completely ignored, both by fans and by Cooper himself. Even in the context of albums he doesn’t even remember recording. There’s some good stuff on here, Swing Low, Sweet Cheerio is a highlight. Reflected is kind of a demo version of Elected from Billion Dollar Babies. In fact the whole album is kind of demo-like.  

Mnemic - Mechanical Spin Phenomena

Review# 230

I haven't listened to this album in ages! It's one of those albums that is enjoyable simply because it is. Because you like that style of music as well as other releases by that artist. Not for any other reason like; it's pioneering, the production and mix is amazing or anything. It just is.

Blood Stained: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWSEpA2MKJs
Mechanical Spin Phenomena: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJXU0Tb7x-Q

The Sisters Of Mercy – First Last And Always

Review# 229

Andrew Eldritch is another of those amazing singers from the Gothic scene. His deep bass voice really is the focal point of the album. The music is also very good, although I prefer follow up album Floodland. On the whole this is a good debut studio album and has some solid tunes on it.

Walk Away: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AD-8-IYY_8
Marian: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1WcGXpqfnE

Dio – Holy Diver

Review# 228

I love Dio for his impact, dedication and personable personality. He has a great voice and I really enjoyed the Heaven And Hell stuff... And parts of Holy Diver are great. The title track is just one of those songs that is enjoyable and fun, and some of the other tracks are pretty solid too like Rainbow In The Dark. But I have to admit I am not hugely sold on the entire album, it's not bad but it doesn't do a hell of a lot for me.

Holy Diver: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkysjcs5vFU
Rainbow In The Dark: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYlDltwm-JY

Lacuna Coil – Lacuna Coil

Review# 227

What I like about this album is the down to earth feel of it. It's not as flashy nor as imminent as Comalies for example but it is quite refreshing. Especially compared to the last output from Lacuna Coil (Shallow Life). A decent listen and rather calming.

Falling: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2-kghzN6f4
Soul Into Hades: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reYQ_lhvyTc

Skindred – Shark Bites And Dog Fights

Review# 226

Reggae and Rock would you think it's a good combo? Well in Skindred it actually is. I actually loath reggae, but Skindred have a good blend and it just melts down into a pretty fun album. And they are one of the most entertaining bands I have ever seen without a bunch of flashy props.

Stand For Something: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8IJnV4i5Vw&ob=av3e
Invincible: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyFwh3KqA6o

Fear Factory – Digimortal

Review# 225

Digimortal isn't a bad album, it does feel a little flat after albums like Demanufacture and Obsolete though. It tends to lack the power, aggression and impact of previous albums - some of which feel like it had been lost in the mix. Apparently Burton wanted simplicity fir this album... Which for a band who are known for their technical ability and samples etc it just seems absurd and I hope that it wasn't the desire for simplicity that led to the lackluster mix. But under all of that you can hear Fear Factory and while it may not feel as raw it is still a reasonably decent album.

Linchpin: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuDxo-fbW9c
Invisible Wounds (Dark Bodies): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJuzzT314VA