Hull are a band from Brooklyn, New York that plays a style that I would describe as being an experimental form of sludge/doom/death metal with a Southern Rock and this is a review of their 2010 album "Sole Lord" which was released by The End Records.
Drums are mostly slow beats with no fast playing or blast beats, while the bass playing has a very dark and doomy tone.
Rhythm guitars are mostly slow sludge doom riffs with some soft open string playing ansd some thrash/hardcore influences in the faster parts, while the lead guitars have a Southern Rock feel to them with alot of distortion being utilized, as for the accoustic chords they utilize alot of full chords and fingerpicking to give the music a classic rock feel.
Vocals are mostly sludge/doom/death metal growls with a good amount of clean singing and some hardcore style vocals, while the lyrics are very philosophical, as for the production it sounds very professional and all of the instruments have a very heavy sound.
In my opinion Hull are a very good experimental sludge/doom metal band that should appeal to all fans of this genre. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Transition" "Deliverance" "Wrath Of The Sands" and "Architect".
This is a zine dedicated to gothic and doom metal for more info contact hatredmeanswar@yahoo.com
Monday, June 13, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Bulletwolf Interview
1. Can you update us with what is going on with the band these days?
-Right now we are getting ready to record with Iron Bob Fouts at Basement Rage Studio (Indianapolis) again,
and enjoying an awesome summer with some good friends and cold drinks.
We aren't playing too many shows currently, just because we tend to play on our home field a lot, no need to overdo it.
Bands need to space it out and give people a reason to see you when they can, or tour constantly, and we just can't do that right now.
Plus, a lot of awesome shows happen around here, so there is always something to go see.
2. What is the meaning behind the band's name?
-gotta give the short answer on that one...
The Bulletwolf is a mutant type comic hero.
His body was mangled in an explosion and he ended up spliced with a wolf head and has a cannon in his chest.
Dude is also built like an 80's He-Man toy so all kinds of ass gets itself kicked as he fights for the good of mankind.
The cartoon/comic was never even drawn, just a little thought in my head ten years ago that later became our band name.
I hope to see what he looks like one day.
3. How would you describe your musical sound?
-Loud, low & lewd. The riff reigns supreme, or you ain't got shit.
4. How would you describe the lyrical content of the music?
-Mostly about drinking, partying, women and just having a good time overall.
I like to think of it as blurry, half-written pages from some maniacal party animal's journal that gets beligerent everywhere he goes.
You have to either: write what you know, or what you are passionate about.
For some bands it politics, or wizards, or loving your scene, or family, or what have you.
For us, it's about enjoying the moment and not caring what somebody elso thinks of it and at the same time keeping it fun.
We'll stretch it out sometimes, with the new recording, there is a song called "Quest for Fire" and all the lyrics will be inspired by that film.
The same idea behind "Dead in the Water" from our '07 demo. That tune was all about 'The Big Lebowski.'
We also got permission from George the Painter (who writes for The Horse Magazine among doing other amazing things)
to use some of his spot-on, immaculate words in a motorcycle inspired song called "Right On (Ride On)."
Our guitarist rides, and the rest of us just fantasize about it.
5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?
-We played a completely awesome set in Pittsburgh, PA at The Smiling Moose last summer, everything was just perfect that night.
We had a crappy, long, hot drive there from Cleveland and ate some terrible pizza in our friends van.
So the only thing to make you feel good is knowing that you get to be on a stage later that night.
The show had a great bill (Forged in Flame from Ohio and Vulture from Pittsburgh) and the sound was just stellar. We got to do our songs in front of first-time listeners of the band.
When you hit everything right for people that have never heard you before, it's just about the best thing to get out of being in a band.
-Our cd release show in November 2008 was pretty great too.
It was at the Melody Inn in Indianapolis (with our indy brothers Aposlte of Solitude and Tunguska and a great band from Ohio called Wrecked), which is just about the best place to be anyway, and we played 'Double Shots of Rock and Roll' in it's entirety. I really like it when bands do that!
Every show at the Melody Inn is pretty great. The place has a perfect mood about it.
-Recently we played at an all-ages DIY place called The Dojo, a glorious little hole in the wall run by great people for all the right reasons. One of those nights when everything just feels right. That was another night with Aposlte and some bad asses called Deadmen.
We give it our all whenever we get play.
1, 2, 3, 4, ROCK!
6. Do you have any touring plans for the future?
We'd like to get out a lot more. Kinda like we did in '08 & '09, it just gets hard with home responsibilities and work and vacation days and stuff.
Hopefuly we can get some weekend dates together soon and get back out there.
7. How has your music been recieved so far by stoner/doom metal fans worldwide?
Seems pretty good so far! People are buying it all over the place, we never thought we'd have listeners outside the states.
I think it helps that we don't hold anything back. We're a love it or hate it band.
Cussing and in-your-face riffs are what we like to do, some have really gotten into it.
8. How would you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?
As long as we keep getting more comfortable with each other and zoned in on what we wanna do, everything will be great.
Some of the new stuff is way more rock oriented than metal. We still keep it heavy but we are having lots of fun getting more of our influences into our songs.
One day, we'll get our drummer's dad to play pedal steel on a song.
9. Are there any side projects besides this band, if so who are they and what kind of music do they play?
TJ (guitar) and myself (bass) have a grindcore band that practiced one time, total commitment there!
Don (drums) is playing in a pretty serious 80's metal cover band with some local heavy hitters.
10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and what are you lstening to nowadays?
Basically, we rip off every style we like and hope we mix it up enough to make it sound like we meant to do it.
That mostly comes from: rock, metal, doom and stoner.
We do listen to classic rock, pop, fusion and rap a lot too.
On the regular, we get into Deep Purple, Orange Goblin, ZZ Top, Van Halen, Slayer, Thin Lizzy, Black Sabbath, Death, Cathedral, AVAIL, Sleep, Frank Zappa, Witchcraft, Fu Manchu, CCR, High on Fire, Goatsnake, Led Zeppelin, KYUSS, The Jesus Lizard, Helmet, QOTSA, Bad Brains, DEVO, The Doors, Kiss, Church of Misery, i could go onand on.
Hell, there is a Billy Joel lyric in one of our songs and nobody has called me out on it yet!
11. What are some of your interests outside of music?
The usual stuff: motorcycles, fireworks, chicks, football, grilling out, recycling, video games, ninjas, boobs & explosions
12. Any final words or thoughts?
HI-FIVE
-Right now we are getting ready to record with Iron Bob Fouts at Basement Rage Studio (Indianapolis) again,
and enjoying an awesome summer with some good friends and cold drinks.
We aren't playing too many shows currently, just because we tend to play on our home field a lot, no need to overdo it.
Bands need to space it out and give people a reason to see you when they can, or tour constantly, and we just can't do that right now.
Plus, a lot of awesome shows happen around here, so there is always something to go see.
2. What is the meaning behind the band's name?
-gotta give the short answer on that one...
The Bulletwolf is a mutant type comic hero.
His body was mangled in an explosion and he ended up spliced with a wolf head and has a cannon in his chest.
Dude is also built like an 80's He-Man toy so all kinds of ass gets itself kicked as he fights for the good of mankind.
The cartoon/comic was never even drawn, just a little thought in my head ten years ago that later became our band name.
I hope to see what he looks like one day.
3. How would you describe your musical sound?
-Loud, low & lewd. The riff reigns supreme, or you ain't got shit.
4. How would you describe the lyrical content of the music?
-Mostly about drinking, partying, women and just having a good time overall.
I like to think of it as blurry, half-written pages from some maniacal party animal's journal that gets beligerent everywhere he goes.
You have to either: write what you know, or what you are passionate about.
For some bands it politics, or wizards, or loving your scene, or family, or what have you.
For us, it's about enjoying the moment and not caring what somebody elso thinks of it and at the same time keeping it fun.
We'll stretch it out sometimes, with the new recording, there is a song called "Quest for Fire" and all the lyrics will be inspired by that film.
The same idea behind "Dead in the Water" from our '07 demo. That tune was all about 'The Big Lebowski.'
We also got permission from George the Painter (who writes for The Horse Magazine among doing other amazing things)
to use some of his spot-on, immaculate words in a motorcycle inspired song called "Right On (Ride On)."
Our guitarist rides, and the rest of us just fantasize about it.
5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?
-We played a completely awesome set in Pittsburgh, PA at The Smiling Moose last summer, everything was just perfect that night.
We had a crappy, long, hot drive there from Cleveland and ate some terrible pizza in our friends van.
So the only thing to make you feel good is knowing that you get to be on a stage later that night.
The show had a great bill (Forged in Flame from Ohio and Vulture from Pittsburgh) and the sound was just stellar. We got to do our songs in front of first-time listeners of the band.
When you hit everything right for people that have never heard you before, it's just about the best thing to get out of being in a band.
-Our cd release show in November 2008 was pretty great too.
It was at the Melody Inn in Indianapolis (with our indy brothers Aposlte of Solitude and Tunguska and a great band from Ohio called Wrecked), which is just about the best place to be anyway, and we played 'Double Shots of Rock and Roll' in it's entirety. I really like it when bands do that!
Every show at the Melody Inn is pretty great. The place has a perfect mood about it.
-Recently we played at an all-ages DIY place called The Dojo, a glorious little hole in the wall run by great people for all the right reasons. One of those nights when everything just feels right. That was another night with Aposlte and some bad asses called Deadmen.
We give it our all whenever we get play.
1, 2, 3, 4, ROCK!
6. Do you have any touring plans for the future?
We'd like to get out a lot more. Kinda like we did in '08 & '09, it just gets hard with home responsibilities and work and vacation days and stuff.
Hopefuly we can get some weekend dates together soon and get back out there.
7. How has your music been recieved so far by stoner/doom metal fans worldwide?
Seems pretty good so far! People are buying it all over the place, we never thought we'd have listeners outside the states.
I think it helps that we don't hold anything back. We're a love it or hate it band.
Cussing and in-your-face riffs are what we like to do, some have really gotten into it.
8. How would you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?
As long as we keep getting more comfortable with each other and zoned in on what we wanna do, everything will be great.
Some of the new stuff is way more rock oriented than metal. We still keep it heavy but we are having lots of fun getting more of our influences into our songs.
One day, we'll get our drummer's dad to play pedal steel on a song.
9. Are there any side projects besides this band, if so who are they and what kind of music do they play?
TJ (guitar) and myself (bass) have a grindcore band that practiced one time, total commitment there!
Don (drums) is playing in a pretty serious 80's metal cover band with some local heavy hitters.
10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and what are you lstening to nowadays?
Basically, we rip off every style we like and hope we mix it up enough to make it sound like we meant to do it.
That mostly comes from: rock, metal, doom and stoner.
We do listen to classic rock, pop, fusion and rap a lot too.
On the regular, we get into Deep Purple, Orange Goblin, ZZ Top, Van Halen, Slayer, Thin Lizzy, Black Sabbath, Death, Cathedral, AVAIL, Sleep, Frank Zappa, Witchcraft, Fu Manchu, CCR, High on Fire, Goatsnake, Led Zeppelin, KYUSS, The Jesus Lizard, Helmet, QOTSA, Bad Brains, DEVO, The Doors, Kiss, Church of Misery, i could go onand on.
Hell, there is a Billy Joel lyric in one of our songs and nobody has called me out on it yet!
11. What are some of your interests outside of music?
The usual stuff: motorcycles, fireworks, chicks, football, grilling out, recycling, video games, ninjas, boobs & explosions
12. Any final words or thoughts?
HI-FIVE
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Bulletwolf/Double Shots Of Rock 'n' Roll/Abyss Records/2008 CD Review
Bulletwolf are a band from Indiapolis, Indiana that plays a mixture of heavy metal and stoner/doom metal and this is a review of their 2008 album "Double Shots Of Rock'n'Roll" which was released by Abyss Records.
Drums are mostly slow to midpaced with no fast playing or blast beats, while the bass playing has a heavy sound which sounds like a mixture of doom metal and 70's rock and there are some powerful bass leads being used at times.
Rhythm guitars mix slow doom/sludge metal riffing with some classic metal riffs and 70's rock with mostly slow riffs but there are some more update midpaced stuff that comes up times mixed in with some fast parts that have a punk feel, while the lead guitars are 70's rock sounding guitar solos with a heavy stoner feel to them.
Vocals are mostly raspy sounding clean singing vocals with some heavy singing that reminds me of Cathedral when they where going through their stoner phase, while the lyrics cover beer, whiskey, hangovers and life, as for the production it has a very powerful sound and all of the instruments have a very heavy feel to them.
In my opinion Bulletwolf are a very good stoner/doom metal band and if you are a fan of this genre you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "White Trash Whiplash" "Get The Horse Out" "Fuckfight" and "Hungoveritz".
Drums are mostly slow to midpaced with no fast playing or blast beats, while the bass playing has a heavy sound which sounds like a mixture of doom metal and 70's rock and there are some powerful bass leads being used at times.
Rhythm guitars mix slow doom/sludge metal riffing with some classic metal riffs and 70's rock with mostly slow riffs but there are some more update midpaced stuff that comes up times mixed in with some fast parts that have a punk feel, while the lead guitars are 70's rock sounding guitar solos with a heavy stoner feel to them.
Vocals are mostly raspy sounding clean singing vocals with some heavy singing that reminds me of Cathedral when they where going through their stoner phase, while the lyrics cover beer, whiskey, hangovers and life, as for the production it has a very powerful sound and all of the instruments have a very heavy feel to them.
In my opinion Bulletwolf are a very good stoner/doom metal band and if you are a fan of this genre you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "White Trash Whiplash" "Get The Horse Out" "Fuckfight" and "Hungoveritz".
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
FUCT/Reatain To The Aggro/Abuyss Records/2009 CD Review
FUCT are a band from Nashville, Tennesee that has a history that dates back to the mid 80's and they play a style that mixes hardcore, thrash, sludge and death metal together and this is a review of their 2008 album "Reatain To The Aggro" which was released by Abyss Records.
Drums alternate between slow and fast drumming with some ocassional blast beats, while the bass playing follows the riffs that are coming out of the guitars.
Rhythm guitars have alot of variety with some fast riffs that mix thrash and hardcore together while the slow riffs are sludgy and doomy mixed in with some death metal heaviness, while the lead guitars are classic rock sounding guitar solos.
Vocals mix alot of different styles together with some clean singing, thrash style vocals and some sludge style high pitched screams mixed in with some deep death metal growls, while the lyrics touch on Spirituality and Earth, as for the production it has a very thick and heavy sound that goes great with the music that is on this album.
In my opinion this is a good album from FUCT, i remember buying a cd from this band in the 90's and when I bought it, I never thought anyone even heard of this band, and their newer album is alot different than that one which was crossover thrash, and this album has sludge and death metal elements which the older one did not, if you are looking fro something origianl you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Devotian To The Dying World" "A Forebidding Tale Of Woe" "Kicker" and "October". RECOMMENDED BUY.
Drums alternate between slow and fast drumming with some ocassional blast beats, while the bass playing follows the riffs that are coming out of the guitars.
Rhythm guitars have alot of variety with some fast riffs that mix thrash and hardcore together while the slow riffs are sludgy and doomy mixed in with some death metal heaviness, while the lead guitars are classic rock sounding guitar solos.
Vocals mix alot of different styles together with some clean singing, thrash style vocals and some sludge style high pitched screams mixed in with some deep death metal growls, while the lyrics touch on Spirituality and Earth, as for the production it has a very thick and heavy sound that goes great with the music that is on this album.
In my opinion this is a good album from FUCT, i remember buying a cd from this band in the 90's and when I bought it, I never thought anyone even heard of this band, and their newer album is alot different than that one which was crossover thrash, and this album has sludge and death metal elements which the older one did not, if you are looking fro something origianl you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Devotian To The Dying World" "A Forebidding Tale Of Woe" "Kicker" and "October". RECOMMENDED BUY.
Necrovorous/Funeral For The Sane/Pulverised Records/2011 CD Review
Necrovorous are a band from Greece that plays a very brutal from of dark death metal with a doom metal edge and this is a review of their 2011 album "Funeral For The Sane" which was released by Pulverised Records.
Drums range from slow, midpaced to fast drumming with a good amounts of blast beats, while the synths which are only used on the intro and briefly on a couple of songs have a very dark and evil feel to them, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.
Rhthym guitars range from slow, midpaced to fast death metal riffs that are also influenced by doom metal with some melodies being used at times, while the lead guitars are very distorted sounding death metal guitar leads.
Vocals are mostly deep death metal growls with some high pitched screams being thrown in at times, while the lyrics cover gore themes with somewhat of a dark and occult edge, as for the production it has a very strong, powerful and professional feel to it.
In my opinon Necrovorous are a very good old school sounding death metal band with a doom metal edge and if you are a fan of this style, you should check out this band. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Succubus Dormotory" "The Vilest Of All Dreams" "Deathkneels" and "Funeral For The Sane". RECEMMONDED BUY.
Drums range from slow, midpaced to fast drumming with a good amounts of blast beats, while the synths which are only used on the intro and briefly on a couple of songs have a very dark and evil feel to them, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.
Rhthym guitars range from slow, midpaced to fast death metal riffs that are also influenced by doom metal with some melodies being used at times, while the lead guitars are very distorted sounding death metal guitar leads.
Vocals are mostly deep death metal growls with some high pitched screams being thrown in at times, while the lyrics cover gore themes with somewhat of a dark and occult edge, as for the production it has a very strong, powerful and professional feel to it.
In my opinon Necrovorous are a very good old school sounding death metal band with a doom metal edge and if you are a fan of this style, you should check out this band. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Succubus Dormotory" "The Vilest Of All Dreams" "Deathkneels" and "Funeral For The Sane". RECEMMONDED BUY.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Mindrot/Dawning/Relapse Records/1995 CD Review
Mindrot where a band from Orange County, California that played a style of music that mixed atmospheric doom metal, gothic, and crustcore together and this is a review of their 1995 album "Dawning" which was released by Relapse Records.
Drums cover a good amount of variety with some slow to midpaced playing mixed in with some fast parts as well as some blast beats, wfile the keyboards have a very gothic and atmospheric sound, as for the bass playing it has a very powerful that gives the music a very melodic feel with some bass leads.
Rhythm guitars mix some fast playing thatt mixes crustcore with a more death metal style of tuning as well as some thrash and hardcore influences while the slower riffs mix noise rock with doom metal with some soft playing mixed in as well, while the leads have a very melodic and doomy feel, as for the accoustic guitars when they are utilized they use open chords and give the music a more depressing feel.
Vocals are a mixture of deep death metal growls/crustcore style yelling mixed in with some clean singing as well as some spoken word passages, while the lyrics touch on depressing themes, as for the production on this album which was recorded at Jim Barnes Audio Productions during the autumn of 1994 sounds very professional and you can hear all of the instruments that are present on this album.
In my opinion Mindrot where a very talented and underrated band for their and if you are a fan of atmospheric doom/death you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Anguish" "Burden" "Forlorn" and "Internal Isolation". RECOMMENDED BUY
Drums cover a good amount of variety with some slow to midpaced playing mixed in with some fast parts as well as some blast beats, wfile the keyboards have a very gothic and atmospheric sound, as for the bass playing it has a very powerful that gives the music a very melodic feel with some bass leads.
Rhythm guitars mix some fast playing thatt mixes crustcore with a more death metal style of tuning as well as some thrash and hardcore influences while the slower riffs mix noise rock with doom metal with some soft playing mixed in as well, while the leads have a very melodic and doomy feel, as for the accoustic guitars when they are utilized they use open chords and give the music a more depressing feel.
Vocals are a mixture of deep death metal growls/crustcore style yelling mixed in with some clean singing as well as some spoken word passages, while the lyrics touch on depressing themes, as for the production on this album which was recorded at Jim Barnes Audio Productions during the autumn of 1994 sounds very professional and you can hear all of the instruments that are present on this album.
In my opinion Mindrot where a very talented and underrated band for their and if you are a fan of atmospheric doom/death you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Anguish" "Burden" "Forlorn" and "Internal Isolation". RECOMMENDED BUY
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Heinali And Matt Finney/Conjoined/Paradigms Recordings/2011 CD Review
Heinali and Matt Finney are a duo with one member from Alambama and the other from Ukraine that mixes doom metal with shoegaze/ambient and spoken word and this is a review of their 2011 album "Conjoined" which was released by Paradigms Recordings.
Drums are mostly slow playing with some tribal parts with no fast drumming or blast beats, while the bass playing has a very dark distorted tone with alot of heavy and slow riffing, as for the synths when they are utilized they bring a drone/dark ambient feel to the music.
Rhythm guitars are mostly slow riffs that combeine doom, ambient, and shoegaze together mixed in with alot of weird distorted drone parts, while the lead guitars are very distorted sounding doomgaze leads when utilied.
Vocals are all spoken word with no singing or growling, while the lyrics cover dark themes, as for the production it sounds very dark, heavy and raw.
In my opinion Heinali and Matt Finney are a very good doomgazwe band and if you are a fan of this style, you should check out this band. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "A Chant" and "The Sun Will Rise Yet We Wont Be There". RECEMMONDED BUY.
Drums are mostly slow playing with some tribal parts with no fast drumming or blast beats, while the bass playing has a very dark distorted tone with alot of heavy and slow riffing, as for the synths when they are utilized they bring a drone/dark ambient feel to the music.
Rhythm guitars are mostly slow riffs that combeine doom, ambient, and shoegaze together mixed in with alot of weird distorted drone parts, while the lead guitars are very distorted sounding doomgaze leads when utilied.
Vocals are all spoken word with no singing or growling, while the lyrics cover dark themes, as for the production it sounds very dark, heavy and raw.
In my opinion Heinali and Matt Finney are a very good doomgazwe band and if you are a fan of this style, you should check out this band. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "A Chant" and "The Sun Will Rise Yet We Wont Be There". RECEMMONDED BUY.
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