CD Reviews

Alteras – Grief (review)

Published

8 years ago

July 19, 2016

JJ Ulizio

Alteras – Grief

Review by JJ Ulizio

08/05/16 will see the release of the full length debut from Alteras from Youngstown, Ohio. The album, titled Grief, will be released on Revival Recordings. Not hearing of these guys prior to listening to the album I must say they were a pleasant surprise. Though this is not typically my favorite style, their heavy guitar riffs and contrasting vocal parts hooked me in right from the first song. Recommended for fans of The Used, Dead By April, & Underoath.

Mild electronics and keys are used to give a dynamic and flavorful depth to the intros of several songs and to add subtle atmosphere behind the hard hitting drums, heavy and at times crushing guitar riffs. Harsh screams for the vocals offset the, dare I say, emo style of the clean singing in the vocals. Strong emotion is conveyed through the music regardless of the subject matter. The lyrics gives me the feeling that the content is truly felt by the vocalist, at times I wish I knew all the lyrics, because I would catch myself humming along or “do do do doing” along with the melody.

Being a sucker for guitar riffs, there is no shortage on this album, full of palm muted drop tuned metal-core styled breakdowns; they don’t come across as repetitive as is easy to do with the style but rather are the angry offset to the clean style singing. The songs flow pretty seamlessly without any harsh or jerky transitions.

My standout track on this album would have to be “Broke.” The first track on the album, with electronic effects that fade into a crunchy hard guitar riff, that breaks into a punk-like beat for the harsh screams of the vocalist to emphasize and push his lyrics across before the song breaks pace for the chorus with the clean style vocals to come in.

But kiddies relax, balls to the wall heavy and screaming not your thing? At least not for a whole album? That’s fine because the song “Could Ever Love” will get you a power ballad fix with melodies and song structures that bring heavy and emo together in a way rarely done well. There is no screaming in this song kiddies, later in the album they show off some of their music diversity with an acoustic track titled “Black Box.”

All in all a decent album, it will be in my regular rotation of music for a little while yet, looking forward to checking them out live sometime and to see what the future holds for them. You can check them out on all the usual social media outlets.

About Author

JJ Ulizio

JJ has been a contributing writer and huge asset to Empire and Empire Extreme since the very begining. He is always digging for new bands and has a true heart and desire to see the bands grow and succeed.

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CD Reviews

Phasers Engage: A deep dive into the debut album of inter-dimensional travelers and the music they make.

Published

2 weeks ago

April 14, 2024

Ron

“Departure Initiated” is the debut album of Phasers Engage. It’s a fun instrumental jam from outer space .

I’ve never been a huge fan of instrumental bands. There are a few I enjoy, like John 5 and the Creatures and Apocalyptica, and even with those bands, I can only listen to a little at a time or see them live. I feel like Phasers Engage would be a great band to see live.

There are parts of the album that I super dug, the heavier, darker, and spookier parts and the lighthearted, fun, and whimsical parts as well. This album reminds me a lot of Mr. Bungle, minus the vocals. The album has seven songs and feels like it conveys an interesting story via sounds and codes. I feel like if they would have added some vocals, even silly, nonsensical lyrics, it would have heightened the album much more, in my opinion.

The band is very good, and the instruments are played with precision, and you could tell the band was having fun making the album. It’s for sure an album to check out. If you’re into instrumental inter-dimensional sound waves and jams, then this album is right up your alley.

Check the band out on Facebook :https://www.facebook.com/PhasersEngage?mibextid=eQY6cl

About Author

Ron

Ron has keen eye for new talent, a love for the underground, and a tremendous passion for music of any genera. You’ll probably bump into him at a horror convention or some seedy club checking out the next need-to-know band.

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CD Reviews

SCAREFIELD DEBUT ALBUM “A QUIET COUNTRY”.

Published

2 weeks ago

April 11, 2024

Ron

Newcomers SCAREFIELD just released their debut album, “A Quiet Country.” Inspired by 80s horror movies, I thought that this sounded right up my alley, also combining the love of thrash and heavy metal.

Opening up the album with “Ancient Evil,” this track sets the tone for the album. Thrashy guitars, killer drums, and power metal vocals.

The album has 11 tracks. Each track is delightfully titled with a horroresque feel. Songs like “Altar of Fear,” “Child of the Corn,” “Primitive Shadows,” and “Shiver”.

I really dug the album as a whole; I loved the concept, the artwork, and the guitars shred on this album. The shreds remind me of old-school metal, and in a good way. My favorite tracks would be “Altar of Fear,” “God of Terror,” “Always,” and I also loved their version of “House of the Rising Sun.”.

My only criticism of the album is that at times the vocals are too clean for me as a thrash/horror themed album, which is understandable since the singer, MARKUS KRISTOFFERSSON is from Sweden, and you know the Swedes love their power metal, but they also love to have their vocals a lot cleaner. That doesn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy the vocals; I actually love his voice, and at times throughout the album, it gets heavy and gnarly, which was amazing.

Overall, I think it’s a very successful album and is worthy of being in anybody’s collection who is a fan of this type of metal. I look forward to seeing what SCAREFIELD does in the future. Hopefully we can get an American tour, with the resurgence of the youth getting into this style of metal, I feel that American mosh pits will be going crazy for those fast guitars and drums. I would love to see them play with The Burning Witches.

Buy the album here: https://hypeddit.com/scarefield/aquietcountry

Check them out here: https://www.scarefield.com

About Author

Ron

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CD Reviews

Alestorm – Voyage of the Dead Marauder

Published

2 months ago

March 11, 2024

J. Scott Holland

Another solid (most likely plundered) offering from the pirate metal scalawags known in these parts as Alestorm. The five-song EP Voyage of the Dead Marauder washes up on these shore on March 22, 2024, via Napalm Records. This new effort is produced by Lasse Lammert of LSD-Studios, who has worked alongside genre mates Gloryhammer and Wind Rose.

With the new release, ALESTORM is “Scraping the (bottomless) Barrel” for the fifth time for what is their eighth album , following the international success of the previous Seventh Run of a Seventh Rum album that was released in June 2022.

If you’re an existing fan of their trademark pirate-style metal, then Voyage of the Dead Marauder is a batch of good new stuff. If you’re not a fan, well, maybe you should listen until you are. (This is how I learned to like country music, by the way.)

The first track is the title track and features German hurdy-gurdy musician Patty Gurty sharing vocal duties with vocalist and keytar player Christopher Bowes. The song is in the same vein as “Captain Morgan’s Revenge” from the previously mentioned Seventh Run of a Seventh Rum album. Patty sounds great, but I’m willing to bet she was the only sober one.

Apparently, you can be a pirate anywhere, including the desert and the Great White North. Alestorm proves this with the song “Uzbekistan” as they reminisce about the time they invaded the lands of shifting sands and ultimately turn the President of said land against them. Next up is the tale of a simple farmer who was forced to become a pirate due to governmental tyranny in “The Last Saskachewan Pirate.”

“Sea Shanty 2” is an instrumental offering and would fare well with a watering can full of tequila at one of Alestorm’s live shows (see the lengthy list below if you the need to fulfill this desire).

“Cock” is the last track, and I can hear all of you snickering jut from the title, but wait until you listen to it you immature bastards. The second time you hear it, you’ll be singing along to the tale of an enchanted dream about a Leprechaun who pulls out his schlong.

ALESTORM are:
Christopher Bowes – vocals, keytar
Gareth Murdock – bass
Mate Bodor – guitar
Peter Alcorn – drums
Elliot Vernon – keyboard

ALESTORM Live 2024:
UK & Ireland Tour 2024
w/ Korpiklaani & Heidevolk
21.02.24 UK – London / O2 Forum Kentish Town
22.02.24 UK – Norwich / LCR UEA
23.02.24 UK – Nottingham / Rock City
24.02.24 UK – Bournemouth / O2 Academy
25.02.24 UK – Bristol / O2 Academy
27.02.24 UK – Belfast / Limelight
28.02.24 UK – Dublin / Academy
29.02.24 UK – Cardiff / SU
01.03.24 UK – Birmingham / O2 Academy
02.03.24 UK – Oxford / O2 Academy
03.03.24 UK – Glasgow / O2 Academy
05.03.24 UK – Manchester / O2 Victoria Warehouse
06.03.24 UK – Liverpool / O2 Academy
07.03.24 UK – Leeds / O2 Academy
08.03.24 UK – Newcastle / NX
09.03.24 UK – London / O2 Forum Kentish Town

“Tour Of The Dead Marauder”
w/ Elvenking & Glyph
19.03.24 US – Cincinnati, OH / Bogart’s
20.03.24 US – Grand Rapids, MI / Elevation
22.03.24 CA – Toronto, ON / The Concert Hall
23.03.24 CA – Montreal, QC / MTELUS
24.03.24 US – New Haven, CT / Toad’s Place
26.03.24 US – Pittsburgh, PA / Stage AE
27.03.24 US – Detroit, MI / The Majestic
29.03.24 US – Milwaukee, WI / The Rave
30.03.24 US – Omaha, NE / The Admiral
02.04.24 CA – Winnipeg, MB / Park Theatre
03.04.24 CA – Saskatoon, SK / Coors Event Centre
05.04.24 CA – Edmonton, AB / Midway Music Hall
06.04.24 CA – Calgary, AB / The Palace Theatre
08.04.24 CA – Vancouver, BC / Commodore
09.04.23 US – Spokane, WA / Knitting Factory
10.04.24 US – Boise, ID / Knitting Factory
12.04.24 US – Sacramento, CA / Ace of Spades
13.04.24 US – Santa Ana, CA / The Observatory
15.04.24 US – Tucson, AZ / Rialto Theatre
16.04.24 US – Albuquerque, NM / Sunshine Theater
18.04.24 US – Oklahoma City, OK / Diamond
19.04.24 US – St. Louis, MO / Red Flag
20.04.24 US – Indianapolis, IN / Old National
21.04.24 US – Nashville, TN / Marathon

Festivals 2024
28.06.24 FI – Sulvilahti / Tuska
05.07.24 DE – Rock Harz / Ballenstedt
11.07.24 HU – Dunaújváros / Rockmaraton
12.07.24 CZ – Vizovice / Masters of Rock
13.07.24 AT – Area 53 / Leoben
14.07.24 NL – Pirate Metal Party / Helmond

About Author

J. Scott Holland

Scott is one of the newest additions to the Empire Extreme team of misfits. He is a printer by trade, who moves to the beat of his very own drum. He is also an avid cyclist and seeker of new music and bands,

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