Considering the recent demise of Dismember, it's good to know there are still bands out there churning out solid no-frills Swedish death (fucking) metal like Mr. Death. I'm all for innovation and and originality and whatever, but there's also something to be said for sticking to a genre and doing it perfectly and Mr. Death do just that. I'd even venture to say that their sophomore record "Descending through ashes" is an improvement on their totally solid debut. Also worth noting: there are few genres where the practitioners seem to improve as they get older and strangely, contrary to all expectations, death metal has proven to be an exception, alongside jazz and country. Yes, there are plenty of youngins who are able to nail that filthy old-school sound and so on, but more often than not, they end up coming off as try-hards or are sorely lacking in actual songwriting abilities. Not so with many of the other old-timers such as Mr. Death; see also US counterparts such as Disma and Immolation who are both 40+ and at the top of their game. Respect your elders!
It's old-school Swedish death metal time again and Stockholm quartet Morbus Chron are dishing out other people's riffs like they're going out of style. This hits me on four levels. All at once they're great, good, mediocre, and awful. You may wonder how that's possible, so allow me to disclose: Firstly, there's a killer, super-heavy and flawless production courtesy of Nicke Andersson. That's the great part. Secondly, they offer (via artist Raul Gonzalez) an oddly colorful piece of cover art that's quite like a fantasy retake on John Carpenter's "The thing". That's the good part. Thirdly, there's the music itself which, as enjoyable as it can be, is nothing more than a rehash of old Swedish riffs from days of yore. There are constant references to stuff that the band have either subconsciously 'borrowed' or blatantly ripped off and I have no idea which is true. Maybe it's neither; maybe it's a bit of both. If you want just one example, however, grab your copy of Dismember's vastly-superior "Massive killing capacity" album, crank up "Hallucigenia" and then have a blast of the main riffs in both Chron's "The hallucinating dead" and "The lidless coffin". That's the mediocre part; the complete lack of originality. And the awful part? Well, I'm never really one to have a pop at image but, guys, seriously. Unless you've had to squeeze the photo shoot in on a quick break from a day's hard graft down a coalmine, there's no excuse. To sweeten what might seem like a harsh review, I must add that Robba's vocals are pretty damn cool. Keep the sound and write something that hasn't been done by every other Swedish death metal band over the last 20 years and Morbus Chron could be onto a winner. - John Norby
The old-school Swedish sound made famous by Entombed and Dismember back in the day has come back with such force and in so many numbers of late that it's hardly fair to call it a revival. There's part of me that is wholeheartedly delighted to hear fresh songs surface with the HM-2 guitar buzz yet, with the vast amount of bands sporting the sound these days, there's another part of me that concedes the fact that nothing compares to the likes of "Left hand path" or "Like an everflowing stream" when it comes to the allied genius of that sound and song structure. Blood Mortized are one of the few modern bands that pretty much have both aspects nailed down. They have displayed in "Bestial" a thorough knowledge of what drove the scene and drew the masses into the hellish depths of Sweden's death metal darkside back in the late '80s and early '90s. It's a pity that there are only three tracks on offer here but, with this being a vast improvement on 2009's debut full-length, there's a glimmer of hope that their next full length will be a subhuman monster of an album. - John Norby
Lambgoat reports that has signed Swedish metal act In Solitude: http://www.lambgoat.com/news/view.aspx?id=15459
The band recorded their new album at Nicke Andersson (Hellacopters, Death Breath, Imperial State Electric, etc.) at his new Gutterview Studios in Stockholm with Fred Estby (Dismember, Necronaut) producing. Expect a spring 2011 release. And as for those UFO comparisons, I dunno... as far as I'm concerned, the band's 2008 self-titled debut sounds way more like Mercyful Fate/King Diamond worship to me. Not that that's a bad thing.
Ah, the good old days of Swedish death metal. They’ve never really gone away, with the early recordings of likes of Entombed, Dismember, Carnage and Grave still cited as the best, most influential death metal ever to disgust the planet. One band that was around back then -- having formed at the same time as all the aforementioned legends -- was fellow countrymen Interment. Having disbanded after the release of a few demos back in the day, they tested the water back in 2007 with a split with US death crew Funebrarum before going on to record this, their first ever full-length album. I could go on and on describing the sound and the songwriting in great detail but, to keep it short and to the point -- and to let you know exactly what this album sounds like -- one sentence will do the trick: it's the oldschool Stockholm sound and style, done with great authenticity and the aspiration to be the "Left hand path" of the 21st Century. Obviously, nothing can ever top "LHP" but, for those looking for something new in this particular style "Into the crypts of blasphemy" isn't too far away. - John Norby
Necronaut, the solo project of ex-Dismember drummer Fred Estby, has posted the complete guest lineup for his upcoming album: http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=414772938&blogId=538096458
For those that aren't so good with names, the list includes members from Entombed, Death Breath, Autopsy, At the Gates, Watain, Graveyard and more.
Necronaut, the solo project of Fred Estby from Dismember/Carnage, is streaming a new track at myspace featuring guest twin brothers Hellbutcher and Tyrant (both from Nifelheim/Treblinka): http://www.myspace.com/necronaut666
I'm into it.
Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU:
01. Elephant9 - Fugl fønix
02. TALK 1
03. Håkan Lidbo - X-Bot-DXC vs MC-Monstrux - EuroAsian Warzone Cronicle
04. Disco Ensemble - Protector
05. Kausal - Evac
06. TALK 2
07. Smoke Mohawk - Murder attempt
08. Masshysteri - Dom kan inte höre musiken
09. MF/MB/ - The big machine
10. Chicagojazzen - VI
11. TALK 3
12. Monty - Seglaren
13. Sweatmaster - Turnover
14. The Aches - Count slowly to ten
15. Dismember - Misanthropic
16. TALK 4
17. Camouflage - Syster sol
18. EL-SD - SÖSJÖ
19. Darkthrone - Those treasures will never befall you
20. TALK 5
21. Deathbed - Black sky
Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.
Ahhh, the sonic wonder that is old-school Swedish death metal. Remembering the good old days when the likes of Entombed (Nihilist), Dismember, Carnage and the crew were kickstarting a musical style that would not only define a genre, but remain in fond memory for decades to follow. Another band in the fold during those early days of death was Nirvana 2002, also spewing forth the guitar tone from Helvete (you know the one) and blasting out some of the best death metal this side of the "Left hand path". Indeed, the opening track on this, "Mourning", could easily sit on the lauded debut from Entombed and hold its own. In fact, it even kicks the ass of some of the tunes on "LHP" and, since that's probably my all-time favorite death metal record, it's really saying something. The songs here have all the elements of classic Swedish death metal: from the overall, face-ripping sound, to the masterful song construction that offers fast sections, pummelling mid-paced passages, and slow, haunting, melodic runs. Obviously, with this release being a collection of early recordings there's bound to be some variation in production between songs. The quality doesn't really begin to waver though until track seven ("Physical excursion / Truth and beauty"), which is understandable, given the songs from here on comprise the band's very first demos and rehearsal tapes. It's not an issue, however, as they give true insight into the workings of a fledgling genre, essentially serving as a window to the past and offering us the chance to really hear what was going on back in those formative years. On that note, the tracks from 1990's "Disembodied spirits" are presented here in two forms -- the original mix and a fresh 2009 mix. As could probably be expected, while the new mix offers a fuller, beefed out sound, the 1990 mix allows the true power of the original songs to shine through. As a whole, this is an exceptional and very welcome release indeed. An essential album for fans of the genre. - John Norby
Necronaut, the solo project of ex-Dismember/Carnage drummer/Sunlight Studios engineer Fred Estby, has signed with and will be releasing their self-titled album later this year. The band features music written by Estby with a huge cast of metal all-stars contributing guest vocals and guitar tracks including luminaries such as Tomas Lindberg (Disfear, At the Gates), Nicke Andersson (Death Breath, ex-Entombed, The Hellacopters), Robert Pehrsson (Death Breath, Dundertåget), Robert "Strings" Dahlqvist (Dundertåget) and many more. Hear a sample tune at myspace featuring vocals from Chris Reifert (Abcess, Autopsy) and lead guitar from Uffe Cederlund (Disfear, ex-Entombed): http://www.myspace.com/necronaut666
The best way to put a tag on this Swedish quartet is to take Entombed's "To ride, shoot straight and speak the truth" and Dismember's "Massive killing capacity" and fuse the two to create an album that displays the mid-90s death 'n' roll sentiment as expressed by the country's extreme forerunners back then. Both bands have long since left their bop-mosh tendencies to explore different paths (although it was really Entombed's ball, with Dismember lightly toying with the idea amid a more straightforward death metal foundation), essentially leaving a gap in the market for those who fell in love with the style and who strive to make it their own. The Generals manage to pull it off with great conviction, despite not quite achieving the hair-raising impact made by their death metal ancestors. There's one main ingredient here -- the old-school Tomas Skogsberg guitar sound – that elevates this to a status it wouldn't otherwise deserve. It offers what is essentially slightly-above-par songwriting a boost into the realms of acceptance and makes the songs a good deal more enjoyable than if they had some sort of generic death metal tone. That said, the production on here is ever-so-slightly on the wrong side of tinny and it gets a tad annoying after a while. Songwise, it's average with a few shining moments here and there, most notably on their purer death metal moments such as "The offer still stands" and "Consulting with the sinner". Track of the disc must go to "Portal to paradise" though, with its clever use of '80s Sunset Strip hard rock passages that fit so well with the heavier elements that it's a shame The Generals didn't have the foresight to make more use of the amalgam. Overall, "Stand up straight" is a good debut album that shows a wealth of potential, providing the band take the right steps on their next effort. - John Norby
Blood Mortized are a solid B-grade, 2nd-wave Swedish death metal act, comparable to Dismember's more mediocre moments. Never too exceptionally raw or brutal, fast or ferocious- just good ol' middle-of-the-road groovy death (fucking) metal. I was actually pretty stoked on them at first listen, but digging deeper yielded diminishing returns as too many songs either sound the same, go on too long, or both. On the other hand, they do boast one of the cleanest metal recordings I've heard in recent memory, and that's at least worth some points. It's especially apparent on the drums which are warm, clear, punchy and very natural sounding -- an oddity in this age of trigger abuse and overproduction. Shame the material isn't slightly more interesting to match. - Avi Roig
Iron Lamb, the new Swedish all-star "filthrock" act featuring members from Dismember, General Surgery, Repugnant, Tyrant and more, will be releasing a split 12" with Spanish doom act Deadmask via Psychedoomelic Records. No date set yet, but considering that the band aims to record in October/November, I'd say to expect an early 2010 release.
The brand new Swedish "filthrock" act Iron Lamb (feat. members from Dismember, General Surgery, Repugnant, Tyrant, more) will be releasing their debut 7" via Greek label Nuclear Winter Records this coming fall. The band is also working on their live debut which will happen on August 22 at Hornstull Strand as part of Stockholm-based tattoo parlor Swahili Bob's 4-year anniversary party with Poison Idea (thee Kings of Punk!) and Henry Fiat's Open Sore, who will apparently be debuting "a new style," whatever that means (speculation is not positive from what I've seen). Listen to demo tracks at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/ironlambofficial
Morbus Chron
Blood Mortized
Interment
Nirvana 2002
The Generals
Blood Mortized
