Category: Heavy metal

Haken, L-1ve: Rick’s Quick Takes

On By kruekuttIn Heavy metal, progressive rock3 Comments

In a word: YOWZAH!!

From the brooding opening of “affinity.exe/Initiate” to the concluding tour de force of “Visions,” Haken went for it at the Amsterdam stop of their 10th anniversary tour –and they got something special.  If anything, L-1ve is even more ecstatic and energetic than the band’s stunning studio albums The Mountain and Affinity — the unique mix of prog and metal, head-spinning vocal counterpoint and harmony coalesces into an breathtaking, unstoppable unity.  To my ears, it’s Haken’s ultimate statement of their mandate: strong melodies and killer riffs indeed.

Every member of the band is in sync and on point here.  Richard Henshall and Raymond Hearne are relentless on guitar, never letting up on the impressive sonic barrage; Diego Tejeida is smooth and versatile on keyboards, laying down classical piano lyricism, rich orchestral grandiosity or virtuoso organ/synth licks as the situation requires; bassist Conner Green and drummer Raymond Hearne navigate the twists and turns with confidence, pushing the band forward with precision and power.  And then there’s Ross Jennings, riding the wave of the music’s complexities and smash cuts with death metal growls, soaring choruses, a gorgeous, wordless falsetto and heartwarming, enthusiastic frontman banter.

Haken never flags throughout L-1ve, plowing through more than half of Affinity, a condensed medley from Aquarius and core tracks from The Mountain (including an audience singalong on “Cockroach King” — props, Amsterdam!) with undiminished verve and commitment.   If anything, they get stronger and more thrilling as they go; when the title track from Visions closes down the main set, it left me as hungry for more as the crowd at the Melkweg.  Fortunately, the DVD includes four more tracks from Haken’s 2016 ProgPower set in Atlanta (featuring Mike Portnoy on gong?  Well, he does seem to be everywhere …)

In a sentence: you don’t want to miss L–1ve.  If you haven’t heard Haken, you don’t know what you’re missing; if you have, this is even better than you think it might be.

Or, in a word: YOWZAH!!!

L1ve is released worldwide by InsideOutMusic on Friday, June 22.

— Rick Krueger

Left Hand Path

On By Mahesh SreekandathIn Heavy metalLeave a comment

Today (June 4th, 1990) Entombed released their debut, ‘Left Hand Path’. Descending from Venom and Hellhammer — that perfect ensemble of atmosphere, aggression and blues like melody. The hardcore punk cross over to metal was complete — “And you better prepare yourself for an equaling death”.

Mahesh Sreekandath's avatarProgarchy

“This is so hardcore”, responded one of my colleagues at work. At that time, ‘Left Hand Path’ CD was running in my Jeep stereo. So, along with the engine, ignition turned on some Swedish death metal also. My usual reflex is to adeptly switch the channel, but he insisted on listening. Perception is really an evolutionary product; going headlong into the margins of a genre might just inspire bewilderment, not fascination. So, without that musical context, he was also quite puzzled about the incoherent riffs and that defiant buzz saw guitar sound.

Early death metal is a blend of punk like structures with melodic guitar. But, 90s Swedish scene exhibits significantly more punk influences. Someone evolving from hardcore punk to metal would certainly find Entombed and Dismember more familiar than Obituary. One of the main hurdles to grasping Entombed is also that punk like dissonance. It’s that same dissonance which…

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Anticult

On By Mahesh SreekandathIn Heavy metalLeave a comment

Decapitated stands out within the pantheon of death metal Gods. They are simply one of those gatekeepers of this sub-genre — the one bridging the old with the new. The cross-over blend of old school death metal meets the newer 200 time-signatures-per-min technical brawl.

Recovering from a tumultuous past and successfully restructuring the sound is not trivial. Anticult is easily among the best illustrations of those stunning groovy prog elements within death.

Dimebag Darrell like riffing, downtuned uniquely melodic leads, and vocals bordering between screams to growls. Decapitated successfully integrates groove metal into their pristine Polish death terrain. Seamless switches between musical traits are numerous, and they span divergent eras — from Entombed like leads to Gojira like towering riffs. With everything layered on top of precision blast beats, these compositions are as sharp as a guillotine. Getting Decapitated has not been this blissful in a long time. The band has evolved from Vitek era tech death, but they are still absolutely about adapting old school structures to stunningly creative musical contexts.

By © Markus Felix (talk to me) [CC BY-SA 3.0], from Wikimedia Commons

The Conductor’s Departure

On By Mahesh SreekandathIn Heavy metal1 Comment

Heavy and incessantly shifting contours — ‘The Conductor’s Departure’ is simply riveting. That constant progression here can leave anyone speechless. Like any technical death sound, these textures are tangled and layered. But when combined with that relentless melodic progression, it only becomes more captivating. This level of sophistication in braiding tech death with complex drawn-out song structures is rare.

Anata is meticulous, but their compositions still project an offhand feel, as if the record was composed on-the-go. In other words, they tread a demanding terrain of understated refinement, tortuously rugged, yet dazzling display of spontaneity. Adds refreshing aspects to an otherwise grinding framework of measured technical progression. This blend of old school with modern technical death is melodic and yet dissonant — a cross-over act of the most demanding kind.

Image Attribution : https://anata-earache.bandcamp.com/

Human

On By Mahesh SreekandathIn Heavy metalLeave a comment

Discerning structural progression with that all-consuming guitar harmony –it’s 1991, but Chuck Schuldiner was already crafting that musical transformation of Death. Sort of chiseled with mathematical precision, these riffs can be overwhelming. Add some layering and complex transformations to the mix, and Death successfully exacts an emotional toll on their listeners. A musical arrangement so aggressive and poignant — baffling how such contradictions can gracefully coexist.

A revisiting of this classic album was purely accidental. I was driving up the Cascade Loop for a quick weekend hike and Death started playing on the radio. A drive through the tunnels with “Lack of Comprehension” on stereo was one of those fine death metal moments. An uneventful afternoon hike with stunning PNW visuals — but in my head, Death’s riffs were still playing in an endless loop.

By A Sniper [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], from Wikimedia Commons

Decibel Metal & Beer Fest, 2018

On By Mahesh SreekandathIn Heavy metal2 Comments

An Easter weekend music fest might seem whimsical – but it’s heavy metal – and it is Decibel fest. Except for some metalheads and lost travellers, an otherwise crowded Philadelphia streets were absolutely deserted by Sunday. At the Gates on Easter Eve and those picturesque Old City images on a drizzling Sunday morning – Decibel fest Day 2 had the best of preludes.

Spectral Voice, with an absolutely dim stage lighting and a matching sound is an ideal opener. Dial down those doom metal like qualities and we pretty much get the sound created by New York City death metallers — Incantation. The final three bands seek no introduction or picturesque settings. They would simply make their mark even in the void. The calmness with which Repulsion vented dissonance might have defied all the laws of physics. These grindcore veterans, perfectly composed on stage, wrecked pandemonium below.

Needless to say, Mayhem would simply double down. After that initial intimidating stage presence, an unprecedented frenzy befell. The Fillmore has seen its performances, but here the decibels were off the charts. Only the fittest survived to finally face Carcass. Two days of beer and dissonance ending with an unyielding train — of grindcore and melodic death — riffs which simply explain metal as we know it.

In the Passing Light of Day

On By Mahesh SreekandathIn Heavy metal, progressive rock2 Comments

So, Pain of Salvation makes a grand return to their metal roots — album does manage to pack more than adequate amounts of dissonance and melody. ‘The Beatles’ like undercurrents still remain intact. In short, along with caustic riffs and coarse vocals, we get more than subtle glimpses of blues rock — vividly expressed through the same old characteristic Pain of Salvation torment.

Drums run a tad out of phase with hardcore punk like riffs — effortlessly blending into those matching vocal screams — add those precise temporal switches and the rare combination of aggression with progressive metal harmony is complete.

Heavy and mellow – discordant and melodic – In the Passing Light of Day integrates not just sonic contradictions, but emotions uncomfortably fragile for heavy metal – “You’re watching me slowly slip away, Like the passing light of day, Watching our colors turning grey, Like the passing light of day”

Rated 5/5 – for that unparalleled experience.

 

Image Attribution:
By Selbymay [CC BY-SA 4.0], from Wikimedia Commons

Black Clouds & Silver Linings…& More

On By Mahesh SreekandathIn Heavy metalLeave a comment

Five days of listening to Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, another couple of days with Octavarium — no doubt, with this band mind is always in a great place. But, “just when I thought I was out…Bryan pull me back in”. Black Clouds & Silver Linings is the last Dream Theater album I thoroughly enjoyed. Always play it from start to finish – like how all progressive albums should be explored. On top of their usual run-of-the mill complexity; we get to hear some grungy riffs, narrative vocals, extended melodic passages and a violin. Essentially, it’s another astonishing display of Dream Theater School of craft.

Years ago I used to be a regular at this metal bar. The place had two categories of head-bangers — ones who resented Dream Theater, but admired Tool. Then there was the faction obsessed with the former, but at best indifferent towards Tool. Most of the Dream Theater critics were tripped by that brazen exhibitionism. Usual complaints include: they take themselves too seriously, or the band is mostly about Rudess and Portnoy sharing time slots whenever Petrucci takes a break. LaBrie is awfully off-pitch was also a rather popular opinion. Myung was generally spared from these searing insightful dissections.

Perpetually warring metal tribes aside, Tool is also a lot about that brazen self-indulgent exhibitionism. As much as these bands differ musically, they do share that striking quality. So it’s merely a question of choice – of your brand of pretentiousness. My preference is obvious, but more crucially, Dream Theater tickets are affordable.

Image Attribution:
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By dxburbuja [Public domain or Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons

Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence

On By Mahesh SreekandathIn Heavy metal, progressive rock5 Comments

From classical music to thrash metal, all within six degrees of musical separation. For Dream Theater, channeling this stunning wealth of influences is nothing novel. But, a concept album clocking 96 minutes and without any weak moments is extraordinary.

Covering the full spectrum from Overture to catchy choruses — “Are you justified, Are you justified —- Justified in taking, Life to save life”  — they comfortably elevate progressive musicianship to stratospheric levels. Layered passages with grinding riffs and complex time signatures — that sheer jazz like drumming with adequate doses of coarse and clean vocals. These drawn out compositions simply demand our undivided attention.

Within a world of carefully orchestrated concept albums, this level of spontaneity with elaborate structural progression is uncommon. In short, brazenly intricate and yet restrained, Dream Theater composes a rare aesthetic blend of metal and prog mindset. Musically and emotionally complex, Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence is a progressive epic even without attempting to be one.

Featured Image : Shot by yours truly (San Francisco, circa 2012)

Heavy Metal in Pictures

Excuse the quality, but still probably worth more than my thousand words.

Dark Funeral
At the Gates
At the Gates
Carcass
Carcass
Dying Fetus
Dying Fetus
Incantation
Incantation
Mayhem
Mayhem
Repulsion
Repulsion
Watain
Watain

 

On By Mahesh SreekandathIn Heavy metal1 Comment