MEMORY REVIEW: Static-X

When I was like 11 years old there was gonna be a block party for 4th of July in my culdesac and for some reason I was the person providing the stereo and they wanted to know how loud it went so I put on "I'm With Stupid" because it was what I thought was the loudest CD I had at the time and we put it on blast and I rode my bike down the street to see how far it would be heard from....By the time you reached Salinas you couldn't hear it anymore.

R.I.P. Wayne Static 1965-2014

Static-X - "I'm With Stupid"

Playlist for September 2014

This is a list of all the full-length albums, EPs, singles, demos, etc. that I listened to in their entirety during the month of September 2014. Afterwards are lists of the movies I watched, things I read, and stuff I saw live.

9/1/14
Through The Eyes Of The Dead - "Bloodlust"
Invade The River - March 2014 digital demos
Watercolor Paintings - "These Arms"
Bright Eyes - "The People's Key"
Voidcrush - "Tragically Inconvenient"
Quaaludes - S/T
The Gravitys - "Nutrition"
Ground Up - March 2008 Demo
Recluse - "Fading Into Darkness, Drowning In Myself" EP

9/2/14
Dragons - "Musical Witchcraft"
Dirt Squad - "Hajime"
Left Astray - "Don't Look For Me" EP
perpetual motion machine - S/T EP
Red Curtain - Demo
Fell Voices - "Regnum Saturni"
The Word Alive - "Life Cycles"
Laurindo Almeida e Charlie Byrd - "Tango"
The Gravitys - "Nutrition"

9/3/14
Avi Zahner - Summer 2011 Demo CD
Conheartist - "Surrounded By Drones"
Fleetwood Mac - "Mirage"
Alpha MC - "I Don't Give A Fuck" mixtape
Edie Brickell & The New Bohemians - "Shooting Rubberbands At The Stars"
The Gravitys - "Nutrition"

8/4/14
GWAR - "America Must Be Destroyed"
Bivouac - "Sink/Swim" EP
Dinosaur Jr. - "Without A Sound"
Bad Religion - "All Ages"

9/5/14
fine pets - "No Gaze"
Best Supporting Actress - "The Many Moods Of"
Bamberger Symphoniker, Camerata Rhenania, Hanspeter Gmur, & Gerhard Vetter - "J.C. Bach: Sinfonias Op. 6, 9, &18"
Big Takeover - Demo
The Commodores - "Anthology" Disc 2
Where My Bones Rest - "Forget Me Love"/"Harmonix" digital single

9/6/14
Carnival Seasons - "The Town"
Luciano Pavarotti - "Pavarotti Forever" Disc 1
Dying Regret - 2-song promo CD
Snow Black - "Ebb & Flow" EP
Fugue - "Years"
Chemical X - Demo
Jimmy Reed - "I'm Jimmy Reed"
Wolfpack - "Hellhound Warpig" EP
Magpie - "Breathless" EP
Growing Pains - "Just The Same" digital single

9/7/14
Dead In Seconds - December 2013 digital single
Ladies' Code - "Code #01" EP
Magpie/Interracial Bookclub - split EP
Menace 2 Society - Demo 2014
Darto - "Hex"
Del Sestro/The Delicates - split EP
Al Caiola - "Tuff Guitar Tijuana Style"
Anti-Cimex - "Raped Ass" EP
Life Of Refusal - "Ackowledge/Ignore" EP
The Birthday Party - "Junkyard"
Envision - "Mind Control"
Dino Dvornik - "Enfant Terrible"
Kikeiji - "Plastic Scandal" EP
Colombian Necktie - "Twilight Upon Us"
Antioch Arrow - "The Lady Is A Cat"
Fire & Flesh - "Vengeance" EP
Leonard Rosenman - "The Lord Of The Rings" animated film soundtrack
Powerwolves - "Slaughtering The Machines" demo
Hideous Rebirth - "Partially Devoured"
Bricklayer - Demo
Foxfield - "Live at The Wire"

9/8/14
Moondog & The London Symphonic - "Sax Pax for a Sax"
Husker Du - "Zen Arcade"
Dying Messiah - "Heinous Spectacle
Cop Rot - "II" EP
From Hell - "Heresy"
Antonin Dvorak - "The Very Best Of"

9/9/14
The Gravitys - "Nutrition"
Battlehooch - Preview 2010 CD
AJ Froman - "Nocturno" EP
Footwork - "+JMGVM" EP
Gypsy Rose - S/T
Outlaws - "Ghost Riders"
V/A - "Old School Punk"
Sledding With Tigers - "Sorry ACxDC But I Recorded A Diss Track" digital single
Hysterics - "Can't I Live?" EP
The Invisible Monsters - "Vestibules Of The Dead" EP

9/10/14

Arthur Freed & Nacio Hero Brown - "Singin' in the Rain"
Them Savages - "Demos/Covers/B-Sides"
New Gods - "Sex & Destroy" EP
Klank - "Urban Warfare"

9/11/14
Weather Report - "Heavy Weather"
MobAttack - "A Night Of Disrespect"
Special Explosion - "The Art Of Mothering"
Lifted To Fall - "At Last I See" digital single
Herbert Stothart - "The Wizard Of Oz" original motion picture soundtrack
Soilwork - "Steelbath Suicide"

9/12/14
Wolfpack - "Lycanthro Punk"
Zeahorse - "Sulphur" digital single
Weed - "Deserve"
LoveKillCircus - "A Poet's Awakening" EP
Percee P - "Perseverance"
Barefoot Jerry - "Keys To The Country"
Led Zeppelin - "Mothership" Disc 2
The Gravitys - "Nutrition"

9/13/14
nothing but a ghost - "from the walls of my room to the receiver in my phone"
Fake Tides - Demos
Yaphet Kotto - "The Killer Is In The Government Blankets"
Lanzo - "Law Of Attraction" EP
Arnold Schoenberg - "Pierrot Lunaire"
Helmet - "Monochrome"
Bad Kids - "Boys" EP
Scowler - "How To Find Light" EP
Aspect One - "Grit Mercenaries"
V/A - "Old School Punk"

9/14/14
Nelu Ploiesteanu, Stefan Iordache & Gheorghe Dinica - "Cantece de Petrecere"
James Taylor - "The Best Of"
Danger Junkies - "So Divine" digital single
Strangers Now/Enta - split EP
Immolation - "Here In After"
Stuff Smith - "Hot Jazz Violin"
7 Second - "Walk Together, Rock Together"
Noise Complaint - "Parasite"
Things Fall Apart/Light Black/Vowel/City Of Ifa - 4-way split
One OK Rock - "Mighty Long Fall"/"Decision" digital single
Jackie Lomax - "Home is in My Head"

9/15/14
Circle Jerks - "Group Sex"
The Insomniac Collective/High Tension - split EP
Stubborn Father - "2002-2012"
MAN WITH A MISSION - "Emotions" EP
Bruno Walter - "Mahler Symphony No. 4 in G"
Real Big Tits - "Suit Up" digital single
Converge/Napalm Death - split EP
The Young Dubliners - "With Due Respect: The Irish Sessions"

9/16/14
Hatebreed - "Perseverance"
Death - "Human"
Jimmy Ponder - "Steel City Blues"
Fall Out Boy - "From Under The Cork Tree"
Mouthful Of Snow - "The Truth Hurts, But You Would Still Like To Hear It"
nim - "a message from" digital single
The Real McKenzies - "10,000 Shots"

9/17/14
Amen - S/T
Hank Williams - "24 Of Hank Williams' Greatest Hits"

9/18/14
Cursive - "Burst & Bloom" EP
Deep Fields - "Salazar"/"Leonidas" digital single
Acidic Tree - "Forever Boneless" demo
The Young Dubliners - "Breathe"
Miss May I - "At Heart"

9/19/14
Smut Peddlers - "Failure"

9/20/14
Samhain - "Initium"
The Horrors - "Primary Colours"
Link 80 - "The Struggle Continues..."
The Naked Time - "Ferociously Adorable"
Monsters Of Folk - S/T
V/A - "Cure For FA" benefit compilation
Leon - S/T

9/21/14
KING 810 - "Memoirs Of A Murderer"
Lorenzo Perosi - "Transitus Animae"
Killwhitneydead - "Inhaling the Breath of a Bullet" EP
Terra Alive - "You Better Run Stevie Summers, My Family Owns This City" digital single
Coma Regalia/We Had A Deal - split 7"
Black Label Society - "The Blessed Hellride"
Jose Curbelo - "Rumba Gallega"
Soilwork - "Natural Born Chaos"
Empty Spaces - "All The Time"
Mothlight - "Calico"
Prong - "Beg To Differ"

9/22/14
Vesta Williams - "Everything-n-More"
Green Day - "Bullet In A Bible" live album
Bedhed - "A Product Of The Times"
Todd Congelliere - "Time to Be a Pussy" 7"
The Gravitys - "Nutrition"

9/23/14
The Gravitys - "Nutrition"
The Faceless - "Autotheism"

9/24/14
Blind Lemon Jefferson - "Classic Sides" Disc 2
C.D. Truth - "1990-2005" Disc 2
Choix - S/T EP
Japanther - "Beets, Limes, and Rice"
Butcher Babies - "Goliath"

9/25/14
Zeki Muren - "Selahattin Pinar Sarkilari"
Wolfpack - "Allday Hell"
Fist Benders - "It's Raining"
Pantera - "Cowboys From Hell"

9/26/14
Maximum The Hormone - "Bu-ikkaesu"
Terror - "Always The Hard Way"

9/27/14
Oscar Castro-Neves - "Big Band Bossa Nova"
V/A - "theMovement" compilation CD
Lynch The Landlord - "Chuck knows everything about everything" EP
Dip Leg - "The Sympathy Without Love"
Anthrax - "Spreading The Disease"
Bud Powell - "Jazz Giant"
Neurosis - "Given To The Rising"

9/28/14
Lein - "Mothers" EP
Trachimbrod - "A Collection Of Hidden Sketches"
Otep - "Jihad" EP
The Cathedral Quartet - "Worship His Glory"
Killwhitneydead - "Never Good Enough For You"
Suffer Along - S/T EP

9/29/14
Remek - S/T LP
The Devil Wears Prada - "Dead Throne"
Gene Autry - "The Complete Columbia Christmas Recordings"
Samhain - "Unholy Passion" EP

9/30/14
Brandon Thomas De La Cruz - "Three Songs" EP
Politess - 2012 EP
Carcass - "Symphonies Of Sickness"

MUSIC NOTES
- The (new) Bright Eyes album is badass...I kinda prefer the electronic stuff to his normal folk-indie stuff
- Worst of the month: Invade The River, Voidcrush, Growing Pains, Ladies' Code, Gypsy Rose, The Invisible Monsters, Klank, Lifted To Fall, LoveKillCircus, Danger Junkies, The Insomniac Collective, Amen, KING 810, Terra Alive, Black Label Society
- "Nutrition"
- Recluse is really good
- "Hajime" is a major step up from Dirt Squad's demos
- Favorite "new finds" of the month: perpetual motion machine, Fell Voices, Alpha MC, Edie Brickell & The New Bohemians, The Commodores, Where My Bones Rest Easy, Snow Black, Darto, The Birthday Party, Envision, Moondog, Outlaws, Hysterics, Weather Report, Yaphet Kotto, Strangers Now, Jackie Lomax, Stubborn Father, Jimmy Ponder, Acidic Tree, Leon, We Had A Deal, Bedhed, Maximum The Hormone, Oscar Castro-Neves, Dip Leg, Bud Powell, Trachimbrod, Suffer Along, Remek
- I hate to even say the words but DAMN some of Fleetwood Mac's full-length albums are shit...If you were to subtract the songs that ended up on "Greatest Hits" CDs, "Mirage" is pretty terrible
- The way my music lists have worked for this month I somehow listened to the soundtracks to the animated "Lord Of The Rings" movie from the 80s, "The Wizard Of Oz," "Singin' in the Rain," and a goddamned Christian rock compilation CD...I have finally lost my fucking mind
- Honestly what was I thinking listening to a band called goddamn Klank? Or fucking Real Big Tits? Come on, Ian, get real...
- I never realized how much Troy hates his birthday
- Weed rules
- I listened to 2 albums called "Perseverance" this month; one hip hop and one hardcore
- Nu metal still sucks
- GET OFF THE PHONE!
- Ska is cool and punk is cool but ska-punk
- My friend Ben made a compilation album for a very good cause and you should all check it out; link included after the description: "This compilation is dedicated to raising money and awareness for FRIEDREICH'S ATAXIA (FA) a rare progressive neurological condition that causes damage to the nervous system. Its incidence in the general population is roughly 1 in 50,000. ALL payments for this comp will be donated directly to FARA (Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance). When FARA was founded in 1998, there were no treatment approaches or drugs in development for Friedreich’s ataxia. Since then, 15 compounds have reached clinical trials for FA, and there are currently 24 treatment approaches in development. Any fan of hardcore/punk can download this comp and GREATLY help the cause! With your help, we won't go untreated for much longer."
https://secondguessca.bandcamp.com/album/curefa-benefit-compilation
- "We are condemned where we stand."
- "Beg To Differ" is so much better than the other Prong album I had listened to
- That live Green Day album is fucking audacious
- What the hell happened to The Faceless? They're like a wannabe prog band now? And they suck? WTF?
- The new Fist Benders album kicks ass
- I've heard "Cemetery Gates" like a million times but this time it made so much more sense
- Bossa Nova music fucking rules
- "It's A Madhouse"
- I listened to Gene Autry's Christmas Classics on my own accord WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH ME
- Samhain is without a doubt Danzig's shittiest band and I feel like that's a point that you'd be hard pressed to find anyone to argue


MOVIES
9/2/14 : "Beerfest"
9/7/14: "The Island"
9/9/14: "Disturbia"
9/12/14: "Storm of the Century" 2DVD
9/19/14: "Zack And Miri Make A Porno"
9/28/14: "Pineapple Express"
              "Youth In Revolt"

LIVE
9/6/14 : Interracial Bookclub/Liquid/Snow Black/Magpie/Happy In Hemet @ The Wheelhouse Bar
9/10/14 : Pilgrims/Them Savages/Ms. Moody @ The Dial
9/17/14 : Mouthful Of Snow/Dharma @ The Dial

Playlist for August 2014

This is a list of all the albums, EPs, singles, etc. that I listened to in their entirety during the month of August 2014. Below that are lists of the movies I watched, zines I read, and bands that I saw live, as well as notes regarding each.

MUSIC
8/1/14-8/7/14
Smashing Pumpkins - "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness" 2CD
Nirvana - "Nevermind"
Nirvana - "Bleach"
Green Day - "Dookie"

8/8/14
Mental Decay - "Run and Hide" EP
Bouncing Souls - "Maniacal Laughter"

8/9/14
Necrophagist - "Onset Of Putrefaction"
New Order - "Singles" Disc 2
Recluse - "Fading Into Darkness, Drowning In Myself" EP
So Stressed - "Attracted To Open Mouths"
Minor Threat - First Demo

8/10/14
The Tossers - "On A Fine Spring Morning"
Rogue Rats - S/T

8/11/14
Nirvana - "Bleach"
Jimmy Martin - "1954-1974, Vol. 4"
Crisis Arm - "Rend"
Green Day - "Dookie"

8/13/14
The Sky Above And Earth Below - "Parting Ways"
HIM - "Dark Light"

8/14/14
Blue Oyster Cult - S/T
Homegrown Hypocrisy - S/T
Black Cross - "Art Offensive"
The Glass Daggers - "Feel Good Destruction"
Underneath The Gun - "Forfeit Misfortunes"
Crisis Arm - "Rend"

8/15/14
Death By Stereo - "Day Of The Death"

8/16/14
Dead Kennedys - "Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables"
Smashing Pumpkins - "Pisces Iscariot"

8/18/14
Fractalline - "Polymath Theory"
Ordstro - "Fall MMXII" cassette
Big D & The Kids Table - "Good Luck"
Wire - "Pink Flag"

8/19/14
Our First Brains - 2014 Tour EP
Ordstro - Summer 2011 Tape
Void Boys/Hillary Chillton - split EP
Protest The Hero - "Kezia"

8/20/14
Joyride! - "bodies of water"
Mechachief - "Intruders"
Dreamdecay - "NVNVNV"
Wunami - S/T
Badlands - Demo
Dream Caste - "A Calmer Room" EP
Iron Maiden - "The Number Of The Beast"
Paper Thin - S/T EP
Stephen Steinbrink - "Arranged Waves"
Biblical Violence - "smmmece" digital single
V/A - "Fresh Cuts Vol.6" Guitar Center promo CD

8/21/14
Human Hands - S/T

8/22/14
Gravespell - "Gaia Terminus"

8/23/14
Vexx - S/T 10"

8/24/14
Rotting Christ - "Khronos"
The Gravitys - "Nutrition"
Struckout - "I'd Hate Me Too"
Hope - "Feeling Like A Buck Fifty"
Knights Of The Abyss - "Shades"

8/15/14
High Tension - Live Demo
Adamantium - "From The Depths Of Depression"
Bouncing Souls - "Maniacal Laughter"

8/26/14
Cursive - "The Difference Between Houses & Homes"
Vril - January 2013 digital demos

8/27/14
Snotrocket - Demo
Nomads - "Night.Owls//Mayhem.Aficionados//Death.Seekers" EP
Cold Lovers - "Mouth" EP
Full Of Hell - "Music From The Dial" live EP
Boilerman - "Loss Leaders"
Death March - "Fuck Your Fucking War" EP
The Valenteens - "Fun in the Sun With..." EP
Silverstein - "Discovering The Waterfront"
Noisem - "Agony Defined"

8/28/14
Nation Of Ulysses - "13-Point Program To Destroy America"
Banana Moose - "Part II" EP
The Caution Children - "Safe Crusades/No Judgements/And Baby"
Captain J Sperry - "Demon.Stration1" demo

8/29/14
Prawn - "Short Stay, Long Road" EP
Badblood - "End Me" EP
No Sir - "Holy Land" EP
Converge/Dropdead - split EP
Weatherbox - "Follow The Rattle Of The Afghan Guitar"

8/30/14
Silverstein - "Discovering The Waterfront"

8/31/14
Drive Like Jehu - "Yank Crime"
The Gravitys - "Nutrition"
Run Forever - "Settling"
HBH - "Slackin' It" EP

MUSIC NOTES
- I basically just listened to whatever Troy put on the CD player for the first couple weeks that we lived at the new apartment, and that was pretty much just the 4 CDs listed at the top of the list. For at least a week.
- "Born To Lose"
- Favorite "new finds" of the month: Recluse, The Sky Above And Earth Below, Fractalline, Badlands, Dream Caste, Gravespell, Snotrocket, Nomads, The Caution Children
- "Immoral, Inconvenient People..." .... "Rend" is such a good album
- "I never fit in anywhere, and now I don't I fit here. No hope, nothing to believe in."
- I had no idea Troy would like Big D & The Kids Table so damn much
- Protest The Hero fucking kicks ass; I can't believe the bassist left
- Fucking Wunami, goddamn
- Every time I listen to Stephen Steinbrink I'm blown away
- How did Hope get so thoroughly forgotten? They were badass
- "From The Depths Of Depression"
- Noisem KICKS ASS but when I saw them live I couldn't hear any of the solos
- After hearing "13-Point Program To Destroy America" I'm almost shocked at how blatantly Refused ripped it off on "The Shape Of Punk To Come"....it's just too obvious
- That was the first time I ever listened to Drive Like Jehu
- "Nutrition" is finished. Hit me up if you want a copy.
- HBH was by far the worst band I listened to last month. Maybe the worst of all 2014.

LIVE
8/7/14 - Crisis Arm/Pilgrims/Little Bear/(The Gravitys)/Obsolete Sun @ The Dial
8/15/14 - (Ian C. with special guest Troy Campbell)/Plastic City Pariah @ Che Cafe
8/29/14 - Dropdead/Full Of Hell/Noisem/The Coltranes/Badblood @ The Dial

LIVE NOTES
- On the 7th we played one of the best Gravitys sets we ever did and covered The Ramones perfectly before my good friends in Crisis Arm left for tour. On the 15th I played the worst set I have ever played in my entire life and then left my notebook at the venue. Alcohol is a hell of a drug...
- Dropdead is a quality live band. Extremely solid every time.

ZINES
8/8/14 - Crisis Arm - "Rend" lyrics/art accompaniment
8/19/14 - KYEO Speaks 8
8/28/14 - HUBY #4

MOVIES
8/9/14 - "Fun With Dick And Jane"
             "It"
             "The Wolf Of Wall Street"
8/10/14 - "Chappelle's Show Season 1" Disc 1
8/12/14 - "Shaquille O'Neal Presents: All Star Comedy Jam"
                "Ride Along"
8/13/14 - "We Are Marshall"
8/17/14 - "Her"
                "Pastor Shepherd"
8/18/14 - "The Purge"
8/19/14 - "Afflicted"
                "The Fighter"
8/22/14 - "Beerfest"
8/27/14 - "The Professional"
8/28/14 - "Stargate"
8/30/14 - "American Pie 2"
               "The Glass Castle"
8/31/14 - "The Butterfly Effect"
                "Fight Club"

MOVIE NOTES
- That's like, way more movies than I normally watch in a single month
- Despite it being one of my mom and my brother Troy's favorite movies, that was the first time I had seen "It"....it's all about togetherness and being there for one another and facing your inner demons and I liked it.
- I had read some bad reviews beforehand but DAMN "Ride Along" sucks
- "Her" wasn't as tear-jerking as I had been led to believe but it was definitely the best movie I've seen in quite a long time
- "Pastor Shepherd" is a weird fucking movie, ESPECIALLY after reading about its background...I'm not entirely sure what angle this guy is going for to be honest.
- I am Christian Bale's character in "The Fighter" and Troy is Mark Wahlberg....It sucks
- I have watched "Beerfest" wayyyyy too many times
- "The Professional" is so much creepier than I remember
- Troy went to bed before "Stargate" was over and honestly I don't blame him
- "The Glass Castle" is a ridiculous, ridiculous movie
- Troy had never seen "Fight Club" before WTF

EP REVIEW: Hysterics - "Can't I Live"

   I listened to this EP a few days ago and immediately after it was over I played it again, something is that is a major rarity in my listening patterns. I usually go from release to release to release without much of a pause in between but when this one ended I just had to hear it again.
   Hysterics is an all-female thrashy punk band from Portland with a vocalist that has absolutely badass ripping screams. This EP was released as a 7" by M'Lady's Records earlier this year, who also released Vexx's similarly dope 10" but in my opinion this is even doper. In a way they have a fast, basic approach to their songs that's at once almost street punk a la Blatz while simultaneously reminding me of seriously-angry bands like Uniform Choice or, in the case of the hyperfast delivery in "Psychotic Drain," SOA. You can just tell in her scream, the gritty and powerful barks, that she means what she's saying.
   There are a few moments when the thrash culls slightly, like the deep echoey part in "Now I See What I Have Lost" and the mid-tempo rock n roll swagger in "Please Sir," which at 4 minutes is by far the longest track on the EP. I didn't read the lyrics but with a title like "Please Sir" and a refrain of "I want some more" I've got to assume it's a somewhat flippant/ironic comment on institutional misogyny etc. This track has the kind of continuous growing trudge that brings to mind Ceremony's "Sick" due to its constant repetition that builds and builds upon the same layer until it's weighing itself in.
   EP closer "No Vision" is expressive in a nearly Embrace-type way, bringing to mind the song "No More Pain" in particular, but of course with more intensely biting screams than MacKaye's near-talking delivery. The seemingly facetious imploring to "give me your blessing/thank you!" also brought to mind the kind of irreverent, nearly-cryptic yet still question-raising lyrics on Nirvana's first album, but that might just be because my brother has been playing "Bleach" like, all the damn time lately.
   This is highly recommended to fans of harsh yet listenable hardcore punk, especially those of you keen on killer female vocals; this chick really wails.

http://mladysrecords.bandcamp.com/album/mlr-044-cant-i-live-7-ep

DEMO REVIEW: MobAttack - "A Night Of Disrespect"

   MobAttack is a d-beat style punk band from Corona. They label themselves as "tradional hardcore punk" on their bandcamp page but they've got to be referring to what was called "hardcore" in England not the States, because this brings to mind bands like Conflict, Discharge, or even maybe Disorder much more than what's "traditionally" called "hardcore" here in California.
   This 2-song demo is alright but there are just so many bands in this vein from the last 30 years that its difficult for any of them, much less a startup, to really stand out at all. The first song has a repeating 2-chord verse with thrashy, kinda sloppy drums and for the 'chorus'/chant part its like they're just going down the fretboard playing muted harmonics. It's called "Join The Resistance," and again Conflict came up in my mind as the nearest point of reference. Take that as you will.
   The second song, "Disaster or Disarmament" (real topical, guys) has a bit more substance but unfortunately the main riff in the song is pretty much the exact same chords as "Crippled With Fear" by State Of Fear, and for me that's like a classic so it was kind of hard to hear this song without hearing that also subconsciously. There's a real crappy solo at the end, although not out of step for d-beat/street punk stylings, and then the demo's over.
   This was released over a year ago and they don't appear to have any new music out since, but they do have some shows listed so I'm gonna just believe that somewhere in their set are songs more memorable or worthwhile than what's on this demo.

http://mobattack.bandcamp.com/album/a-night-of-disrespect

ALBUM REVIEW: Dying Messiah - "Heinous Spectacle Of Mutilation"

   Another day, another underground brutal death metal album with programmed drums and lots of cool samples. I really hate programmed drums and I don't get why so many death metal bands make releases using them. I mean, I guess I understand the desire to get your songs out there so assholes like myself can hear them but its so distractingly un-organic to hear the exact same cymbal and snare sounds for 40 minutes. It's especially grating when they're programmed to do (literally) inhuman grind speeds, like the chatter going on in "Gone Before The Bodies Drop." It's so fast that its actually kinda stupid and the click of the false snare is so loud as to drown out the guitars. It almost sounds like some late-90s techno buildup right before the lights go down. Moby still holds the world record for fastest BPM in a song and fake grind drums sound alot like that Moby song. Sorry.
   Otherwise, this is a pretty badass album with concepts sicker than alot of more metaphysical/metaphorical death metal bands out right now. This is straight up gore metal along the lines of Exhumed or (of course) Cannibal Corpse, with imaginative songs like "Skinned Alive And Crucified," "Bound Duct Taped And Drowned," and "Crushed Into Cranial Fragments." There's also the sexist element that again, only the most 'brutal' of death metal bands really embrace, as evidenced by songs like "Whoring Out The Innocent" and the ever-so-subtle "Motivated By Misogynistic Hatred." I wonder what that song is about. Other topics include "MethLab Mutilation"s and "The Bible Pimp" so if anything at least these sick bastards have some scope with their subject matter.
   Their disgusting subject matter.
   The guitars on this entire release are relentless and bring a vibe of very old school death metal, particularly the aforementioned Exhumed, and the vocals are low and unintelligible all the way as well. There's a slight reprieve for a spooky clean intro to "Hacksaw Slaughter" but soon enough that bludgeons its way as well. I just cannot get over the false sound of the programmed drums but at this point it seems like more than half the death metal releases I come across these days are filled with computer drums so I guess I'll just have to get over it.
   It would be alot cooler with real drums though.

http://dyingmessiah.bandcamp.com/album/heinous-spectacle-of-mutilation

ALBUM REVIEW: Hideous Rebirth - "Partially Devoured"

   Hideous Rebirth is a "brutal" death metal band very much in the line of Dying Fetus, Suffocation or even Cannibal Corpse. Their recent album "Partially Devoured" was released earlier this year on Gore House Productions and I streamed it earlier tonight as I was folding my laundry.
   The first few songs were strong enough, the guitarists certainly know what they're doing and there's enough time changes to keep you interested, but the drums are clearly programmed and that's a major distraction for me. I wasn't really thinking too much of it one way or the other, it was cool stuff on the whole minus the minor drum annoyance so I was just letting it play through.
   That was until, however, I looked at the screen to see what the current song was called. It was called "Butthole Portal."
   Hideous Rebirth, how in the fuck am I supposed to take you seriously when you have a song called goddamned "Butthole Portal?" That's something Green Jelly would call a song; I feel like that'd be too stupid even for 90's GWAR. The song itself is okay but its just such a terrible song title that I felt compelled to write this review.
   Let's just act like I never looked at the tracklisting and talk about the music. This is very technical death metal that shifts from brutal heavy mosh parts into shredding grind-like parts with ease and there is a dual vocal approach featuring both curdled highs and guttural lows. Almost every song starts with some kind of macabre sample or another, although a couple I'm pretty sure I've heard on other albums.
   Upon looking up the band's Facebook page, it appears that this release was recorded entirely by founding member Duane Gutierrez so that would explain the programmed drums. He's recruited members of Ossification and In The Form Of Flesh to fill out the band so hopefully new stuff comes soon and it doesn't have embarrassingly juvenile song titles

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http://gorehouseproductions.bandcamp.com/album/partially-devoured