SHORT TAKES is a batch of reviews which are short because the subject matter is easy to define.
TOXICROSE - In for the Kill
Golden Robot Records
So you look at the album cover, see the name and band photo plus their release's title. You think MOTLEY CRUE wannabe's right? Well I saw a video by them and my first thought was that Shagrath from DIMMU BORGIR had a make-up and wardrobe sale on E-Bay and these guys cleaned him out.
As far as their music is concerned this is Swedish pop metal with more cheese than France. The children of EUROPE (yeah that 80's Swedish rock band with their final countdown) did not turn out so well. OK musically this is melodic as hell, catchy and well performed. Instead of shout at the devil it's more give us that Swedish Grammy. We're talking radio friendly power metal stuff here which I strangely like.
http://goldenrobotrecords.com/
LISTEN HERE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYqoiK3SLBg
GOJIRA - Fortitude
Roadrunner Records
I've given this band plenty of chances to excite my metal senses and they always come up short. I think the people I've actually heard say great things about this band were lying in order to not look sophisticated. Seriously GOJIRA have always been a boring band that critics like. Now of course I'll get the typical snarky hipster reply "well you're not open minded enough to get it".
You know what, they right. Their version of open mindedness means they have small brains so there's plenty of room inside their skulls for boring music like this to congregate. And hey what's not to get about harmless modern metal? There's nothing progressive or technical about this band's sound. This album is a perfect example of background music that you try hard to get far away from.
https://store.roadrunnerrecords.com/
LISTEN HERE & DIE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cS9GVBRdwM
PARADISE LOST – Gothic Live At Roadburn 2016
Nuclear Blast
OK I'm a PARADISE LOST fan, Gothic is one of their best albums and I've never seen em live. So yeah to me this is a must have release for fans. Also this was recorded when they appeared at the Roadburn Fest in 2016. Now for those of you unfamiliar, when bands appear at Roadburn they tend to put on special as well as amazing performances.
The skinny on this one is pretty simple. Back in 2016 the band celebrated the 25th anniversary of their Gothic album by playing it in its entirety. Now not just here at Roadburn but in other places as well. And just like all other bands when it comes to their albums, they don't play every track off of them on tour. So it's these special releases where you hear live versions of some tracks for the first time ever.
So now it's 2021 and the album's 30th anniversary so the band (and label) made this recording available to us fans. I mean seriously the only people I know who've been to a Roadburn Fest are those in bands. You and I will never ever get to go. The tickets for the fest sell out faster than a cheetah late for supper. But be that as it may yeah this is a must have for any PARADISE LOST fan.
https://www.nuclearblast.de/en/shop/index.html
LISTEN HERE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUOiT7vDozc&t=1970s
WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM - Primordial Arcana
Relapse Records
Just to recap from the past. WITTR were famous years ago for calling themselves Cascadian black metal. The genre term would go onto mean "We borrowed our sound from DRUDKH". They were synonymous with the whole hipster black metal pedigree back when those cretinous individuals invaded the metal scene. Finally I still own two of their releases. One I like a bit and the other I hate. Oh yeah and I haven't heard anything new by them in a decade.
Seeing that this new full length is their first release on Relapse Records. I expect some ginned up hype via mainstream music scribes. But hey it's all about the music, right? So sound-wise this is cut and paste atmospheric black metal. It's a cloning of what has come before so much that even on it's decent moments I found myself bored. The harsh / growled vocals are held back deep in the mix. Some cuts have way too much keyboard use. For the most part I kept thinking well at least they're leaving DRUDKH's work alone. But now they have some Norwegian and Swedish acts to deal with in copyright issues. Folk influence thievery is not good.
LISTEN HERE:
https://wolvesinthethroneroom.bandcamp.com/
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