Album review: ROTTEN SOUND

Apocalypse

Review Score: 10

Reviewed by: Johnny Ibay

Oldschool Finnish grindcore legends Rotten Sound are back with Apocalypse, their first newly recorded material in over 5 years and MAN DOES IT SLAP! To people familiar with the genre this band needs no introduction; they’ve been around since ’93 and are one of the big bands that popularized the HM-2 impenetrable wall-of-sound grind style (along with Swedish legends Nasum and a few others) that has been massively popular over the past 10+ years. This new record delivers in spades with 18 tracks of suffocating blasts and gnarly walls of distorted animosity that will scratch the itch of old fans and earn a lot of new ones.

This record rages hard right out of the gate like a sucker punch to the face. It has a lot of the classic grindcore “blastbeat/d-beat/blastbeat” structure, a groundwork laid by genre pioneers Napalm Death, but adds a modern spin to the formula with some choice mosh riffs, mid-tempo breaks and sludgy filth to keep it interesting. The mosh riff in “Fight Back” is one of several highlights for me and I imagine will induce a full room sized circle pit when played live. The mid-tempo riffs in the title track and “Empowered” are also exceedingly moshtastic and give a bit of a FETO era Napalm Death vibe. The hard ass sludge parts at the end of “Sharing” and the beginning of “Denialist” are so god damned heavy, they make me feel like I’m being slowly crushed in a human sized hydraulic press.

Lyrically Rotten Sound deals with socially conscious themes typical of the genre. The lyrics “Mortgage of tomorrow; Reason to wake up; Must work to pay; Too many square meters” in the song “Suburban Bliss” are a commentary on the societal expectation to work hard and accumulate debt to buy property, which is unfulfilling and leads to normalized slavery, resulting in the fake promise of perfect living. The lyrics “Energy sources are to be built; Materials are to be mined again; Batteries for charging storage are not sustainable” in the song “Renewables” criticize the paradox of renewable energy sources that require non-sustainable materials to be built, pollute in new ways, and rely on non-sustainable batteries. The song questions the sustainability of renewable energy and the “insanity of creativity“ in our current system.

Overall, this record delivers exactly what most fans want from a Rotten Sound record. They managed to put out a somewhat dynamic record without straying too far away from the standard grind formula. There seems to be an endless sea of bands playing this style of grind nowadays but not only are Rotten Sound among the originators of it, they prove on this record that they are still among the best to play it.

Album Review: ROSS THE BOSS

Legacy of Blood, Fire and Steel

Review Score: 8.0

Reviewed by Tom Elke

You know what? I’m really not sure how one is to Review a Compilation album. After all, every song on a Compilation Album is supposed to be good right from the start, right? So, what do you say?

Well, I do have some things to say. So let’s start from the beginning.

Ross The Boss has a new album – “Legacy of Blood, Fire & Steel,” with a Release Date of April 28^th, 2023. It is indeed a Compilation Album. It’s 12 total Tracks, and features 3 Songs from each of the Ross The Boss Albums, 2008’s “New Metal Leader,” 2010’s “Hailstorm,” “By Blood Sworn” from 2018 and “Born of Fire,” which came out in 2020. I love that there are Tracks from those first 2 albums. It gives the people who aren’t overly familiar with them, a taste of what they’re about… and they’re real good songs!

There’s a good flow in the sequence of the Songs, with mid tempo to up tempo Selections. And the Musicianship is top notch all the way through. It’s a very strong, straight-up Metal Album, with Tracks like “Blood Of Knives,” Kingdom Arise,” This Is Vengeance,” and “Maiden Of Shadows.”

It’s always interesting to see what Songs are selected to be part of a Compilation Album, or a Best Of/Greatest Hits Album. Many times there’s acrimony & questioning of the reasoning. With “Legacy of Blood, Fire & Steel,” that is not the case. Each Track is worthy to be included.

If you can come away from a Compilation Album thinking –“I’m ok with the Track Listing,” then it is all good. And I am ok with the Track Listing. Job well done!

Track Listing:

1 – Blood Of Knives
2 – I Got The Right
3 – We Will Kill
4 – Kingdom Arise
5 – Hailstorm
6 – Great Gods Glorious
7 – By Blood Sworn
8 – This Is Vengeance
9 – We Are The Night
10 – Maiden Of Shadows
11 – Born Of Fire
12 – Denied By The Cross

But I’ll forge ahead…

An interesting challenge to…

If you can come away from listening to Compilation Album thinking, I’m ok with the Track Listing, then all is ok… and I’m ok with the Track Listing. Well done.

Album Review: HORRIBLE EARTH

Weakened by Civilization

Review Score: 7.0

Reviewed by Johnny Ibay

Horrible Earth are back with their latest release, “Weakened by Civilization“, and the Boston-based deathgrind outfit show no signs of slowing down their brutal assault on the senses. Released through the ever-reliable Horror Pain Gore Death Productions, this 17-track album is a reminder of the band’s vision of cut throat savagery and vicious grindcore intensity.

The albums opener “Worth more Dead” starts off with slow, brooding rung out chords reminiscent of Assuck before breaking into a tremolo picked riff accompanied by a blastbeat. The vocals are an interesting intermediary between extreme metal and traditional grind or hardcore, sounding like a more extreme metal tinged Chris Dodge. In true grindcore fashion, this song (along with the rest of the album) is almost over before you can finish your second or third beer since almost every song is 30 seconds to a minute and a half long.

The album rages on with a relentless onslaught of start-stop speedpicked riffs and brain melting blast beats that give off a bit of a Brutal Truth vibe. Although this is a grindcore album I think that this band truly shines in their use of groove riffs such as the beginning of “Extinction Through Violence”, “Brainworms” and the identical riffs in the intro and title track “Weakened by Civilization” which bookend this release and tie everything together very nicely. “Jazz Odyssey” starts with about 30 seconds of funky drums and clean guitar that sounds like Jimi Hendrix before blasting into furious grindcore for maybe another 20 seconds. I found this track to be a little silly for my liking and thought the album would be better off without it.

Lyrically the band touches on familiar themes of the genre such as inequality, environmental destruction and human rights violations. The production is very clear and punchy, sounding more like a modern metal type production than a basement jamspace recording typical of a lot of grind acts.

Overall, this album is a certified Boston grindcore rager. The production sounds heavy and the music is fast and filthy. I wouldn’t expect any less from an outfit hailing from the area of greats such as Siege, Dropdead and Disrupt. Fans of Assuck, Brutal truth or Siege should check it out.

SKID ROW IN FORT WAYNE, INDIANA

PIERE’S ENTERTAINMENT CENTER

MARCH 14, 2023

BROUGHT TO YOU BY: MARSWORTH

Many know the band Skid Row from their rough and raw vocals or their Earth shattering guitar solos, but going into this show, I knew not to compare it to a show you would have seen them perform in 1991. Don’t get me wrong, the screeching vocals were still present, but nobody could ever overshadow Sebastian Bach; although, it is nice to hear the band still playing the classic hits that they wrote the music for all those years ago. Not many rock groups from that time still have what it takes to put out a full length record and tour with it, so applause is definitely in order! The members may not be jumping around, running, and twirling on stage, but they know how to put on a hell of a show just like they did in ‘91.

Let’s start with my VIP experience. I get there by noon for the early as heck soundcheck, refuse to wait in the freezing weather, and have all my VIP goodies in hand by 12:30. The vomit-inducing anxiety leading up to seeing those 5 men, who’re old enough to be my father, on stage in their street clothes to play 2 songs, have us all turn around for a group photo, and the shortest mingling session you have ever seen was all worth it. Meeting all but my favorite member was still worth every penny spent as the members I did have the joy of meeting were more than happy to see the 20 of us VIP folks.

The time leading up to doors opening was seriously bone rattling. The exhilaration running through my veins was unspeakable, but I never let that change my demeanor as the evening went on. I secure my barricade spot, make nice with the patrons around me, and even see some familiar faces from previous internet connections! The opening acts, No Resolve and Buckcherry, warm the crowd like no other show I’ve attended in the past. The fans were feeling the music and the genuine reactions of the concert-goers is something no artist can forget, even if it is in a smaller venue! Before we knew it, the lights went down for Skid Row.

Being able to have the opportunity to capture one of your favorite bands in a riveting moment in time is out of this world. You can see the youth flaming in the members’ eyes as they get a chance to look into the crowd and see their trusty fans living in the moment. Even if the new album isn’t your jam and you prefer to stick to the old gold, you’re in luck because that’s mostly what they’re serving up! If you’re a Skid fan, take a weekend off to catch these boys perform their hearts and souls for just one evening, you’re in store for something monumental!

Album Review: STEEL PANTHER

On The Prowl

Review Score: 8.0

Review by Georgina Strilakos

Steel Panther is back with a brand new studio work: “On The Prowl”

Steel Panther is a band focusing on not taking themselves too seriously. They approach hard rock and classic heavy metal with a fun attitude and just want to connect with the audience with an energetic, good vibe. The group’s most recent studio work, On The Prowl, stands out as a perfect example of this!

The release has thirteen new songs, embracing the tropes of 80s hair metal, with incursions into synth-wave here and there. The intro song, ‘Never Too Late (To Get Some P***y Tonight)’, has a classic-sounding synth intro, which later delves into a fiery rock and roll anthem, in the vein of artists like Mötley Crüe or Poison, among others.

The song ‘Friends with Benefits’ follows along the same lines, capturing the riffage and swagger of 80s arena rock to absolute perfection. The album is a rollercoaster of fun licks and iconic riffs with a retro twist. From the hard-hitting shuffle of ‘One Pump Chump’ to the soaring guitar antics of ‘Is My D**k Enough’, featuring special guest Dweezil Zappa, a true guitar innovator and the son of the icon himself, Frank Zappa.

The track ‘On Your Instagram’ is probably one of the most fun and dynamic tracks from Steel Panther on this album. The lyrics are absolutely hilarious, and the track itself pokes fun at the nature of social media and how people present themselves through the filters of cameras and the high expectations of curated social media scrapbooks of perfect moments that aren’t representative of real life.

Overall, On The Prowl should be taken for what it is: a fun rock album with a comedy twist, as Steel Panther is just the kind of band that wants you to have a good time and make us all smile!

Find out more about Steel Panther and listen to On The Prowl, which is currently available on Spotify.