Temple Of Void/Demo MMXIII Review

  Temple  Of  Void  are  a  band  from  Detroit,  Michigan  that  plays  a  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2013  demo.

  Drums  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  playing  with  not  much  in  the  way  of  fast  drumming  or  blast  beats,  while  the  bass playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the riffing  that  are  coming  out  of  the  guitars.

Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  riffs  that  combine  doom  and  death  metal  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own  with  some  dark  sounding  melodies  being  thrown  into  the  riffing  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  clean  playing, while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  dark  and  melodic  sounding  doom/death  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  are  mostly  deep  doom/death  metal  growls  with  some  spoken  word  samples  being  utilized  at  times  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  high  pitched  screams,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  unholy  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  dark  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  with  most  of t he  songs  being  long  and  epic  in  length.

  In  my  opinion  Temple  Of  Void  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Bargain  In  Death".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

In Silent Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

 Hi

Firstly, thanx for being interested in our band.

Recently we’ve started promoting our album with a concert in Lapidarium Club in Sandomierz. This concert starts the Southern Blast Tour planned for autumn.

What’s more, we are preparing a new material for the upcoming gigs with our new drummer Kamil.

 2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it differs from previous releases?

 It was supposed to be a wall of sound. To avoid clean clinical sound we chose  on purpose SCREW FACTORY STUDIO in Dębica. I think we’ve managed to achieve this awesome dirt which is somehow lost in many new productions. So here heads down to Janek Bryt, a sound engineer, who is responsible for creating such a beautiful shit.

It was our first professional session, so the sound we got is 1000% better than that on 2009 demo PEDOFILUZKLERU.

 3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the new release?

 Generally, we write about stuff that gets on our nerves.

Pedophilia in church, fucked-up Polish mentality and constant national martyrology, etc…

One of the lyrics called Amputation was written by our base player Mlynarz just after when one and a half month before the recording he cut his finger off. Finger’s gone, but we’ve got lyrics, haha

All in all, we don’t limit ourselves to one subject.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

 The name appeared around 1996-1997 when we played in a  more doomlike style. We wanted to have an epic and mysterious name, haha

Times have changed, the music evolved in the direction of brutal death metal, and the name stayed the same. I quess it’s cool, that the name sounds contrary to the music we play. 

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?

 In fact, we’ve played quite a few times. It’s hard to say which gig was the best. The last gig with a new drummer was awesome. We only had five songs prepared. People didn’t want to let us go off the stage, so we played them again and again.

We love playing gigs, we love that fucking awesome underground atmosphere. We are doing our best so that our rage can be felt seething form the scene.

 6. Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

In autumn we are planning to continue Southern Blast Tour to promote POTĘPIENIE. It will be 8 to 10 gigs in the southern and eastern Poland. Because of our jobs we can only play at the weekends, so it will take some time. We are going together with Slaughter of the Souls and Impervious. It’s gonna be hot!!!

 7. Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label and if so what kind of label do you feel that would be a perfect fit for your music?

The album was released on our own. In fact it would be nice to have a support from a solid label. We are not grieving though. Me and Konrad are in the underground for that long that we know how it works. If you want to count, count on yourself.

The album would surely get old if we waited for a label.

We’d like to thank Greg and Godz ov War who helped promoting our album

Well fucking done – Greg. 

 8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer music by fans of death metal?

Right now we are impressed by the way the album has been received. We didn’t count on such good reviews. The feedback is really very good. I have to tell you that it gives us a fucking huge kick for further work. With a new line-up and lots of energy we are seriously thinking about the successor of Potępienie. Thanx to all metal maniacs whose support we could count on. 

9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

It’ll for sure be a brutal sound. It doesn’t matter whether more death or black. We are true to one chosen direction that ‘music should punch straight in the face’. Our new talented 15 year-old drummer Kamil fairs even greater blast and technical advancement. We’ll try and not disappoint you.

10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

 We are all fans of brutal sounds. Bands which influence our style are for sure Vader, Decide, Slayer, Morbid Angel.

There is no unfortunately an outcast in the band who would say: I play death metal, but I listen to Depeche Mode everyday.

We are a bit one monotype kind of a band, but we feel good about that.

Recently on my player and it hasn’t changed for two years now is Azarath " Blasphemers' maledictions". It blows my mind in every respect.

I’ve also been crashed lately by Nile - At the gates of Sethu and Terrorizer - Hordes of Zombies

11.Outside of music what are some of your interests?

As for me it has always been and is a sport. It used to be football, then bodybuilding. Nowadays when I have some free time I take my kids to play football, to the swimming pool and skiing in the winter. The rest of the band also practice sports: Buba – bodybuilding, Mlynarz – thai boxing, Kamil – karate. As you can see, it’s better not to disturb us, haha

12.Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?  

Thanx for cool questions. Thanx for all the support and your interest in the band.

Greetings to all fans of metal shit.

We won’t give up, we’ll keep on playing, spend money on our own metal business and nothing will ever stop us.

Stay silent 

ave

Milanku/Pris A La Gorge/Replenish Records/2013 CD Review

  Milanku  are  a  band  from  France  that  plays  a  mixture  of  post  rock  and  hardcore  with  elements  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2013  album  "Pris  A  La  Gorge"  which  was  released  by  Replenish  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  drumming  with  no  fast  playing  or  blast  beats  being  present on  this  recording,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  riffing  that  dominates  throughout  the  recording.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow to  mid  paced  riffs  that  combine  post  rock,  hardcore,  sludge  and  doom  metal  with  the  heaviness  of  death  metal  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own  along  with  a  good  amount  of  melody,  soft  and  clean  playing  being  thrown  into  the  riffing,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  dark  and  melodic  sounding  post  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads,  as  for  the  acoustic  guitars  they  use  finger  picking  and  full  chords  to  add  more  post  metal  elements  to  the  album.

  Vocals a re  mostly  hardcore/sludge  style  screams  and  growls  that  have  a  death  metal  edge  to  them  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts,  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  French  and  cover  dark  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a very  strong,  powerful,  heavy,  dark  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording  with  most  of  the  songs  being  long  and  epic  in  length.

  In  my  opinion  Milanku  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  hardcore,  post  rock,  doom  metal  and sludge  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should c heck  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "La  Chute"  "Antalgie"  and  "Hypomanie".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

Locktender/Kafka/Replenish Records/2013 Album Review

  Locktender  are  a  band  from  Cleveland,  Ohio  that  plays  a  mixture  of  sludge,  grind,  post  rock  and  hardcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  their 2013  album  "Kafka"  which  was  released  by  Replenish  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  playing  with  no  fast  drumming  or  blast  beats  being  present on  this  recording,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  riffing  that  dominates  throughout  the  recording.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  riffs  that  combine  sludge,  grind,  hardcore  and  post  rock  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own  along  with  some  soft  and  clean  playing  as  well  as  some  melody  and  there  are  no  guitar  solos  or  leads  present  on  this  recording,  as  for  the  acoustic  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  use  finger  picking  and  full  chords  to  enhance  the  post  rock  elements  of  the  album.

  Vocals  are  mostly  sludge/grind  style  screams  and  growls  along  with  some  hardcore  style  vocals  as  well  as  some  clean  singing  post  rock  rock  vocals,  while  the  lyrics  cover  philosophical  themes, as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy,  dark  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording  with  some  of  the  songs  being  long  and  epic  in  length.

  In  my  opinion  Locktender  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  sludge,  grind,  post  rock  and  hardcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Aphorism  #  17"  and  "Aphorism  #  63".  RECOMMENDED  BUY. 

Agowilt/Clocks Made Of Their Own Bones/2013 EP Review

  Agowilt  are  a  band  from  Long Beach,  California  that  plays  a  mixture  of  drone,  noise,  crust  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2013  ep  "Clocks  Made  Of  Their  Own  Bones".

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  a  good  amount  of  blast  beats  being  throw  into  the  music,  while  the  noise  effects  bring  elements  of  drone  and  noise  to  the  music,  as  for t he  bass  playing  it  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  are  coming  out  of  the  guitars.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffs  that  combine  doom  metal,  sludge,  noise  and  grindcore  together  to create  a  sound  of  their  own  with  some  soft  and  clean  playing  being  utilized  at  times  and  there  are  no  guitar  solos  or  leads  present  on  this recording.

  Vocals  are  all  high  pitched  noise/grind/sludge  screams,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  dark  sound  with  their  only  song  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  In  my  opinion  Agowilt  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  drone,  noise,  doom  and  crust/noisecore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  BUY.  

Humiliation/Turbulence From The Dead/Deepsend/2013 CD Review

  Humiliation  are  a  band  from  Malaysia  that  plays  a  very  old  school  form  of  doom/death  metal  and this  is  a  review  of  their  2013  album  "Turbulence  From  The  Dead"  which  was  released  by  Deepsend.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  with  not  much  in  the  way  of  fast  playing  or  blast  beats,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  are  coming  out  of the  guitars.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  riffs  that  combine  old  school  death  metal  and  doom  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own  with  some  melody  being  thrown  into  the  riffing  at  times,  while  the  lead  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  are  very  dark  sounding  doom/death  metal  guitar solos  and  leads,  as  for t he  acoustic  acoustic  they  are  only  utilized  on  the  last  song  and  use  finger  picking  to  bring  a  dark  atmosphere  to the  album.

  Vocals  are  all  deep  doom/death  metal  growls,  while  the  lyrics  cover  war,  chaos  and  death  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy,  old  school  and  professional  sound  to  it.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Humiliation  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  old  school  death/doom  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Operation  Obeo  One"  "Sea  Denial"  "Total  War"  and  "The  Deadly  Trouble".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

The Lumberjack Feedback Interview

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard of you before?
Hey gals & guys , we are The Lumberjack Feedback, a french instrumental doom/sludge band with two drummers. We've just released our first EP « The Hand of Glory » on Kaotoxin Records.

2. How would you describe your musical sound ?
Few months ago, someone who's not in doom/sludge music told us that it sound like « Black Sabbath jamming with Pink floyd ». That could be a simple and good point of view about our music.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
As we're an instrumental band, there is no lyrics in proper ways, but our music can fit to an apocalyptic earthquake scene, or be the soundtrack of a man-hunt in a deep forest by a stormy night. Band's artwork, that is ruled by ourselves, can be seen as lyrical topics ( and it's the main reason we're doing it by ourselves ) : esoterism, instrospection, rituals, man confronted to nature,...

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the band name?
At the very beginning of the band, we tried to explain to someone our music style. We told her «Hummm, it's like a lumberjack gang playing music, with a loud chainsaw sound full of feedback as background » and than she told «Hey, you are The Lumberjack Feedback so ! ».
So simple !

5.Currently all of the music is instrumental, are you planning on using vocals in the future ?
When starting the band, we were searching for a singer, but we quickly focused on this fact : « Why should  we have to get a guy (or a gal) that would yell or growl like billions of other doom/sludge/post-hardcore bands ! » As the band wrote his first tracks, it came clear that we were working on  progressive songs, with multi-layered melody and heavy droning sound that don't suffer from « vocals less ».
As we love discovering and trying new music landscape, we are opened to experiments.
We have played by the past an acoustic gig for a children audience (a real challenge ! ) and we had some vocal guests on few shows, leaving a total freedom to the vocalist (from melodic to « down to death yelling » and black metal ritual voices...)

6. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance ? As we love saying, « Loud & Low » is our motto ! So be sure to wear ear protections !!! The stage is our « ritual shrine » where we let our inner nature run free. You can expect from us mesmerizing and ethereal moments to « hammer smash your face » assaults and cathartic howls.

7. Do you have any touring or show plans for the future ?
Well, we are currently promoting on stage our « Hand of glory » EP. We've play some « warm up » shows in our home town and Belgium before the « Hand of Glory tour » part 1 that lead us for the first time in Germany and Czech Republic. We'll be playin' in United Kingdom and Paris (with the mighties Acid King) in July 2013 and we've got some shows (and a « in progress » tour) with Jucifer planned for October 2013 in Europa.

8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of doom metal and sludge?
We have always been some kind of « outsiders » on the musical scene. We've played with metal, doom, stoner, psyche rock bands. It's always a challenge to capture audience attention.
At this moment, we are really proud of our EP's feedback. It's always rewarding when you get worldwide messages or reviews and from various music style fans about your music that reassures us about our musical direction. It was also a great surprise, when Billy Anderson, after sending him our pre-production tracks, told us that he was really impressed  and would really like to work on the mastering process.


9. Are there any other musical projects besides this band or is this a full time line up ?
The Lumberjack Feedback is our main project, but Chris (drummer) is screaming in the grindcore band PROJECT FOR BASTARDS. Simon (guitar) works on his drone solo project BOUMT HERSINA & Nicolas does some electronic music production for BEAT BOUTIK label.

10. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?
As the EP is freshly released, it's quite hard to tell at this moment. We're quite focusing on promoting it on stage. But we can tell you that it will still be instrumental, with a « rise and fall » attitude, heavy riffs, more and more interesting (two ) drumming patterns.

11.What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays ?
The Lumberjack Feedback music is fueled by every member musical background (yes, we know, it's a really original answer !). Regarding what most people can think about us, we're not « bearded heavy smokers & doom and sludge » kind of guys (hum... were almost all bearded guys too:) ). We're listening a large display of music, from grindcore, black metal, brutal death to post-rock, classic rock..
You can find on our Ipods, in shuffle mode, bands such as Suffocation, Queens of the stone age, Pink Floyd, Deftones, Liturgy, The Melvins, Nile,nine Inch Nails or Midlake.

12. Outside of music what are some of your interests ?
We're all working and dedicating our life to music and artistic activities : sound engineering, instrument making or dealing, graphic design, video editing.

13. Any final word sor thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
We would like to thanks our devoted crew, Nico from Kaotoxin records, Oliv T'Servancx from Electrik Box studio for the mixing, Billy anderson for the mastering and all people who are involved in our tour booking. Nothing can be done without you. And thanks to you for this interview !

Let's keep playin' it Loud & Low !!!