Noisear-Turbulent resurgence (2012)

Noisear is a prominent player in the modern and technical grind game. the very special Dorian Rainwater riffing also makes them one of the most original grind act. add Bryan Fajardo (also Kill the client and Phobia) behind the drum kit and it easily  makes Noisear one of the most skilled band (the other guys in the band aren't doing bad either!). Willotip records recently made another good move in releasing Noisear latest record called Turbulent resurgence. a record written in a day and recorded in two! and judging by the result it seems to be a good way to make a grind record!

get your mind blasted by listening to it on Bandcamp

Demonic death judge-Skygods (2012)

Demonic death judge is a high quality stoner / sludge band from Finland. I discovered them last year with The descent that was really good (read my review HERE). They now are back with a new record called Skygods, and they keep the quality on a high with a good balance of heaviness and melody, of rawness and a touch of psychedelia (it's more about heaviness, but that's the good balance, a lot of heaviness with a bit of melody and psychedelia!).

It's another really good record even if for me it's not better than The descent due to a guitar sound that's going more on the stoner side. Stoner rock addicts will approve, more metal oriented people like me will be a bit disappointed. But it's really cool stuff anyway, the quality of songwriting is still well in place. 

You can try it on their Bandcamp

Their singer Jaakko Heinonen answered to my questions about Demonic death judge. Read it below :

-can you present the band and its music ?

We are Demonic Death Judge from south east Finland, and we have thick, heavy sludgy riffs and lots of them!

-you just released Skygods, a few words about it?

It's our second full length album and  I think it combines the best sides of the stoner/sludge/doom genres.

-seems to me that your guitar sound get a more stoner and less sludge/metal tone on this record, is that something you wanted?

Well we really didn't think about it that much, we just basically plugged the amps in started experimenting with the sound and when we found the one we liked, we just hit the rec button and started doing it. Also, the mixing process was a bit different this time around so that gave the sound a nice touch, we're really happy with it.

-what’s the songwriting process in Demonic Death Judge?

I don't really know how the bass and guitar playing Hakuli twins write these songs, they must have a some sort of secret recipe for doing this as they are producing great stuff all the time. So they do most of the writing and then me and the drummer Lauri might just add or change few bits here and there at the rehearsal room, but the twins deserve most of the credit.

-is there a Finnish touch in your music?

I don't really know, you tell me? I think we have our own thing going, it's quite universal sound.

-how are your live shows?

They're deep and sludgy. I think we have a great live sound, it helps that there's only one guitarist so  it's well-balanced and though it's raw and heavy it's still easy to take in. We just love playing live and i think it shows.

-which bands from your area would you recommend?

From our home town there aren't too many bands of our kind, but in Finland there are the likes of Fleshpress, Temples and Hebosagil to name a few that you might enjoy if you're into this type of stuff.

-how did you get into heavy music?

My dad was a huge ZZ Top fan, that was the first stuff I listened to as a kid so it's not surprising that I went on to grow a beard and started listening to all sorts of rock and heavy stuff. And I still love ZZ Top, they're the best!

-what’s the next step for Demonic death judge?

We're releasing Skygods on vinyl near Christmas and from there on we just keep playing gigs and try to get our asses outside of Finland and play some shows abroad.

-a joke to share with us?

I've only got dirty filthy jokes, I'd get in trouble telling them in here. Come and have drink with us, and we'll tell you all about it.

-what’s your  favourite record for 2012 so far?

Has to be Witchcrafts ”Legend” album, it's a seriously great record!

-a final “full of wisdom” sentence as a conclusion?

Fuck everything and rumble!

 

The howling wind-of Babalon (2012)

The howling wind is one of the new band with Ryan Lipinsky (with Serpentine path, see HERE my review of their first LP) after the split of Unearthly trance. And another proof of his good taste. The howling wind plays a really well crafted mix of black metal and old school death metal, with also a few doomy elements. It's not impressively fast, brutal or technical, but where they are making a difference is in the songwriting, in their capacity to create strong atmospheres. they install the feeling of an ominous presence with some dark melodic or dissonant riffing. The vocals and the drumming are simple but good, serving well the songs. they released their first LP called Of Babalon with the always good Profound lore records. 

you can listen to it on Bandcamp

Sick fix-Vexed (2012)

Back to something more pissed off. Sick fix is a band from Baltimore / Whashington DC that shares two members with the excellent Coke bust and Magrudergrind (Here's my review of the recent Coke bust / Vaccine split). Of course they play a punishing hardcore in a violent and fast straight edge style with also some more metallic heavy moments. they formed in 2006 but just released their first LP called Vexed with A389 recordings. If you like fast and angry hardcore, fastcore, powerviolence, there's no reason for not liking this record. 

you can listen to it on their A389 bandcamp page

Sierra Leone's Refugees All Stars-Radio Salone (2012)

Something different now (I mean really different from the bands I use to review). The Sierra Leone's Refugees All Star band started to play in refugee camps in west Africa but their music breathe with sunshine and hope. What they play is a blending of Highlife, afro-beat and reggae. Radio Salone is their second LP, it's produced by Victor Axelrod (Sharon Jones, Antibalas), and if you're into african, reggae or any "feel good music" I really recommend you try it. the meeting of african ryhtms and melodies  and reggae influenced parts is interesting and works really well and it's a really enjoyable record.

you can check it on Bandcamp

P.O.O.R-extinction of trust (2012)

In march I posted a review of Point of our resistance by P.O.O.R (you can read it HERE), not knowing it was rough mixes in anticipation of the release of their LP Extinction of trust that they released in september. And it was already really good. and Exctinction of trust is indeed even better (and it's the twelve song that were on point of our resistance plus twelve more good songs). It is death grind with a lot of rythm and groove, they have good grind/punk beats, and really good slower goovy parts. a bit like a mix of old school grind and Dying fetus in a way. a powerfull sound, really good playing and songwriting and really well done and effective vocal parts done by three members of the band (and Matt Harvey form Exhumed appear also as guest for vocals and solos).

don't miss this record. you can listen / download on their Bandcamp

Vitamin X-About to crack (2012)

If you're looking for a no bullshit straight to your face and full of energy hardcore / punk record, Vitamin X from Amsterdam can really be a good option. here's how they present themselves : "VITAMIN X is a straightforward, fast and aggressive hardcorepunk band...and yes, we're also straight edge. We started this band with the idea to bring back fun and politics in hardcore and make people think and laugh at the same time." I can add that their music reminds me of crossover bands, but they stay on the punk side of the crossover. with also something like a punk'n'roll vibe with the fast and melodic solos. It's their fifth record, I don't really know their older stuff but they seems to continue on the good direction they already had. The cool label Tankcrimes released About to crack in september and you can listen to it on their Bandcamp.
                                                                             

Tankcrimes / Vitamin X-About to crack on BC
other Vitamin X records on BC