World Painted Blood… World Painted SLAYER!

Slayer’s latest effort harks back to the days of old Slayer, proper Slayer! Of all the metal acts out there, except Overkill, Slayer have kept the truest to their roots, yet a couple of their recent..ish albums did miss the target slightly. Things started to turn back in the right direction with the release of Christ Illusion however and I for one have been eager with anticipation for their follow up.

Signs were good, Psycopathy red was released a long time before the album and only one word could be used to describe it, “SLAYER!!!” the came Hate Worldwide, which in my opinion is the weakest song on the album, but if you like thrash, it still beats pretty much anything that’s been released by anyone since around 1993.

Playing with Dolls
A short film by Slayer fan Mark Brooks, was announced on their website, the trailer was awesome and the song in the trailer, the title track to the new album, simply breathtaking. The full video (18 mins of a guy cutting women up) is probably a bit over the top, but hey, this is SLAYER and it is an interesting concept, getting in the mind of someone like that, this stuff happens and unfortunately it’s often taboo.

World Painted Blood
I’ve held off reviewing the album until the initial excitement wore off, and so that i could get to know it enough to review it fairly.

The way the album opens is just paving the way for what’s to follow, it grabs your attention and is like ‘dude this album is going to tear your head off’ from the first listen you just want more, The intro, the changes in tempo, the (rather strange for slayer) solo, the outro, it’s just one of those songs, like ‘seasons in the abyss’ a one off, a stroke of genius.

it continues into Unit 731 a song about the Japanese army unit of the same name, it’s gruesome and the music is fitting, an onslaught of thrashing guitars and thundering drums, next step Snuff which keeps up the pace of it’s predecessor but adds a more personal and demented twist. It’s followed by "Beauty Through Order" a more ritualistic slayer song, not as thrashy as the others but still very very dark.

The speed kicks back into gear with Hate Worldwide, but as mentioned before this is really the weakest part of the album, though in no means is it anywhere near as weak as the weakest parts of Death Magnetic or Endgame. Public display of dismemberment is next, very similar to Divine Intervention, it’s very direct and the lyrics are, nice and sinister.

Human Strain is really the closest to any of their more recent material but with a ‘Seasons’ vibe it’s really the most catchy, (if you can call a Slayer song catchy) song on the album. Americon just seems to get lost in the grand scheme of things, on it’s own it’s a great song and similar to Jihad. probably it just gets forgotten because it’s followed by the almighty Psycopathy Red.

Then the album quietens, slows down and hush hush, the eerie ‘Playing With Dolls’ builds up, hailed as the new ‘Dead skin Mask’ it does not disappoint and has probably the best title of any song i can think of.

The tempo returns to blistering pace for the closing track ‘Not of this God, think Reign in Blood…

once it’s finished, quickly press play and start from World Painted Blood again!

I give it a whopping 12/10 it’s a fantastic album and the best for well over a decade, keeping the trend of old bands putting out good albums, well decimating that trend really and shows just how far James and Dave still have to go to get back to their best.

Endgame

Megadeth's latest is one of their greatest efforts, mirroring the efforts of their Arch-Rivals, they (and by they I mean Dave) have dug deep and gone back to their eighties roots. Often paying homage to their past glories but still keeping everything modern and tight.

One one hand you can say that this is a greater album than Death Magnetic, it's weak points are definitely no where week as Unforgiven 3 and overall it's a real Megadeth album, no re-inventing anything, it's just strap yourself in the seat and GO!

The pace is pretty much unrelenting chuggleing along in rust in peace fashion with the technicalities of killing is my business. the neat production is just the icing on the top, Kudos to Mr Andy Sneap! I must say I'm looking forward to his upcoming work with Accept after this! oh and the new Exodus album, nudge nudge wink wink.

The weak point is that nowhere on the album does it really reach that greatness, where a song can become a classic, there's no Symphony of Destruction, no Hangar 18. The closest it comes is with Headcrusher.

9/10

Anvil!

So Anvil's one of those bands I heard AGES ago and just assumed, like Angel Witch and Diamond Head, that they just stopped somewhere in the mid-80s. Maybe it's cuz I'm stuck in Europe and unless you actively look for stuff you won't find anything. Anyway one day last year I was hearing Metal on Metal and decided out of curiosity to look up Anvil and found out a film was coming out, in USA obviously.

As soon as the DVD was for sale online, I snapped it up and three days later I watched it, I was astounded. these guys have been Rocking for the last 30 years and they were just forgotten about! This just isn't right!!

The movie has worked for them though and now with backing from VH1 they are playing mega huge gigs with the likes of AC/DC and Saxon!

To Lips, Robb and G5 you guys Rock!

Update: December

So I was pretty blown away by Death Magnetic, and have been drawn away from the computer and will continue to be till around mid-January. But I will post a few articles here and there. We've had some technical problems at BlackRock, though no data or music has been lost thanks to our back up system it's caused us to have to work with a hand tied behind our backs for a while.

Metallica - Death Magnetic

Death Magnetic is a damn good effort by Metal's biggest act, there are two ways to review this album, one is by thinking who's made it and what they've done before (good and bad) and the other is to review it as a stand alone album, the latter is definitely the fairer way to review it, but also it's nigh on impossible, at least for me. so i'm going to try both!

On a first listen it's apparent that Metallica have REALLY REALLY REALLY tried hard to make an album that not only rocks, but makes everybody happy revisiting alot of styles from their back catalogue.

The first thing that stands out is that this band have made an incredible effort in recording this album and writing the songs, taking a multitude of influences and blending them into a nice concuction that usually falls somewhere between Pantera and Megadeth.

Robert Truillio is The best thing to happen to Metallica since Cliff Burton, he's breathed some fresh air into them and helped them get back on their feet and start running again.

The band feels very comfortable with sharp turns and twists, and the sound is not only a nice refreshing change, but also each member has a nice commanding prescence, with impressive performances by the Vocalist and Basist.

ok enough of that, it's too hard

Overall this album makes me feel 10 again discovering the Titan Metallica for the first time, left open mouthed by their power and being slammed into a wall at a million miles an hour. I've read countless comparisons to previous Metallica albums, and although there are tastes or rather influences from said albums, Death Magnetic sounds mostly like Death Magnetic. It's just like hearing Ride the Lightning or ...And Justice For All for the first time, it's a new chapter in Metallica, and for 12 or so years the first one that's not been dissapointing. Sorry Dave but this album tears United Abominations apart, chews it up, swallows it, digests it and then excrets it all over every Megadeth album released after Countdown to Extinction. Can this album reach the highs of the first four?

After Metallica have let so many people down before I doubt it, but HAD this album been released instead of load, and HAD the whole napster kerfuffle never happened, i'd say definately, but that hurt and resentmant Metallica caused can't be burried or forgotten by most people, and that's understandable. What i will say is every song on this album will sound fitting played live with Seek and Destroy and Creeping Death.

That was just your Life
Ripping the album open in true Metallica style, That was just your life is the kind of song you want to have blairing out your speakers in your 70s muscle car as you mow down innocent bystanders and pedestrians. A true neck jerking onslaught of powerful and sharp riffing with a catchy chorus, this song is everything good about Metallica wrapped up in a nice package. I've heard comparisons to Blackend, but those are false, I'd put it more along the lines of Holier than Thou meets Lepper Messiah.

The End of the Line
This song starts off with the intro of 'Death is not the end' you know that song they played live a while back and someone did a cover version on youtube, that was half decent song, but this is much better, the main verse shares a vocal likeness to the 'time has taken it's toll on you..' bit of The Four Horsemen, it's probably intentional and the mixture along with the groovy bouncing of Rob's bass works wonders, the slowdown and build up around 6:00 is pure musical genius, kind of showing a load influence, but in a good way.

Broken, Beat and Scarred
This is one of those songs that that you just can't help singing along to 'Show your Scars' for some reason it reminds me of no remorse even though it doesn't really sound like it at all. The sound visits ground where Metallica have never really been before, but it sounds like Metallica.

The Day that never Comes
The tried and tested formula of a slowbit, heavy bit, slow bit, heavybit, really heavy bit works wonders in the first single off of Death Magnetic. with the slow bit being one of the slowest softest metallica have done, think Nothing else matters/mamma said,exploding into an onslaught of intense manic riffage and pounding bass guitar, think Damage inc. You see the two extremes of Metallica and the song really grows on you and as part of the album sounds much better than on it's own. I'd give it an over all vibe of Load 1st half, Sanitarium 2nd half.

All Nightmare Long
Luck Runs out! Another real taste of Metallica's 'new sound' like Broken Beat and Scared, and one of my favorite tracks on the Album, another real neck jerker here. A couple of riffs from 'Vulturus' grace the mid section and accompany a most delicious solo nicely.

Cyanide
OK We've all heard this one before, and it's in some ways one of the better songs on the album, in others it's one of the worst, i think it really takes some getting used to, it's very jigsawed and doesn't seem to flow as smoothly as all the others, but at the same time it's a really identifiable song that sticks out from the crowd.

The Unforgiven III
I was very scepticle when the Titles were released and to see Unforgiven III on the list, i wasn't to suprised that it's my least favorite track on the album, it starts of with piano, and moves on to a very eeerie clean riff which is probably the best bit of the song, it proceeds into a very 'bleeding me' sounding verse followed by a megadethy sounding bridge. Better than the Unforgiven II but not as good as the original.

The Judas Kiss
Yes it starts with that riff from the Album name anouncement video, a bit start stop at first but soon progresses in to a damn fine neck jerker. BOW DOWN SELL YOUR SOUL TO ME!

Suicide and redemption
This is never gonna be another Ktulu or Orion, but i don't think it's too far behind To Live is to Die. though the style isn't really Metallica.

My Apocalypse
Damn fine Thrasher, sounds like it could be on Kill Em All, and keeps up the Metallica tradition of ending an album with a blast.

Overall it's a nice concoction of songs, though i can't give it more than 9/10 as a couple of things let it down.

Well worth ordering the coffin box off mission: metallica if there are any left, they have them on play.com too.

9/10

My Apocalypse \m/

So right now all the buffs in the Music industry are reviewing the new Metallica single, 'The day that never comes', However I am going to review the five minute long piece of Mayhem at the end of Death Magneic, all i can say about it is, 'This is the 11th song on Kill 'em All, nuff said!

10/10

Cyanide live at Ozzfest

Metallica played one of the new songs off Death Magnetic at Ozzfest according to James they are pretty damn proud of it. Audio clarity sucks quite badly but we're familiar with a lot of the riffs from Mission Metallica. Parts of it remind me of Ride the Lightning where others go along the Justice Route.