Ninjaspy/No Kata/2014 EP Review

  This  is  a  review  of  another  recording  from  Ninjaspy  which  continues  their  mixture  of  extreme  metal,  hardcore,  experimental  and  ska  with  the  ep  being  self  released  in  2014  and  called  "No  Kata".

  The  ep  starts  out  with  silent  sounds  before  adding  in  drones  and  melodic  male  and  female  chanting/vocals  and  after  awhile  bass  guitars  and  spoken  word  parts  are  added  into  the  recording  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  along  with  aggressive  vocals.

  When  the  ep  goes  into  other  songs  the  music  starts  combining  experimental  and  ska  sounds  with  extreme  metal  as  well  as  some  hardcore  back  up  gang  vocals  and  you  can  also  hear  a  good  amount  of  melody  in  the  guitar  riffing.

  With  this  ep  Ninjaspy  continue  their  experimental  mixture  of  extreme  metal,  hardcore  and  ska  while  cutting  back  on  the  death  metal  elements  this  time  around  as  well  as  adding  in  a  few  songs  that  are  under  a  minute.

  Song  lyrics  cover  humorous  and  everyday  themes,  while  the  production  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  ep.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  decent  sounding  recording  from  Ninjaspy  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  extreme  metal,  hardcore,  experimental  and  ska,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Nihivas  (Slowly  Surfaces)"  and  "Skaingkh  (The  Skank)".  7/5  out  0f  10.

Ninjaspy/Nature/2007 CD Review

   Ninjaspy  are  a  band  from  Canada  that  plays  a  mixture  of  metal,  hardcore,  experimental  and  ska  with  elements  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2007  album  "Nature".

  The  album  starts  out  with  sound  effects  before  going  into  a  heavy  direction  that  mixes  hardcore  and  metal  together  with  some  aggressive  vocals  and  you  can  also  hear  melody  and  ska  elements  in  the  music  along  with  clean  singing  and  spoken  word  samples  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  When the  album  goes  into  other  songs  more  experimental  and  thrash  elements  are  added  into  the  music  along  with  some  death  metal  influences  in  the  vocals  as  well  as  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  and  they  also  have  traces  of  nu  and  groove  metal  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  after  awhile  acoustic  guitars  are  added  on  a  few  tracks.

  With  this  album  Ninjaspy  take  the  heaviness  of  death,  nu  and  groove  metal  and  mix  it  in  with  hardcore,  experimental  and  ska  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own  which  kind  of  reminds  me  of  what  Mr.  bungle  would  sound  like  if  they  where  more  influenced  by  the  extreme  genres  of  metal.

  Song  lyrics  cover  humorous  and  everyday  themes,  while  the  production  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  album.

  In  my  opinion  Ninjaspy  are  a  very  decent  sounding  mixture  of  extreme  metal,  hardcore,  experimental  and  ska  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Sub  Artic-Trickery"  "Pure  Sketch"  "Evolution  of  The  Skid"  and  "Dot  Calm  Down".  7/5  out  of  10.  

Mass Infection Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?

MI: The recordings of our new album took place in summer 2013 and the whole production finished in the middle of October, by George Stournaras at Infected Studios (GR).After that, we were focused on rehearsing and start the booking of live shows indoor and outdoor.We will hit the road in 2014 as more as we can!

2.You have a new album coming out in a couple of months, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical
direction of the newer material and also how does it differ from previous recordings?

MI: Yes our new album "For I Am Genocide" will be out on April 1st this year.Now musically it's a mix of classic
Death metal riffing,including elements of "modern" drumming like our previous release. I think that this album is "a level up" than our previous work "The Age Of Recreation", from the hand of song structuring,composing and final production.It's a mix of new and old era style of death metal music and sound. Expect a massive album of 9 tracks inspired mostly from the us sound of genre, similar with bands like Unmerciful, Hate Eternal,Origin,Severe Torture and more...  

3.Can you tell us a little bit more about the lyrical topics and subjects the new release explores?

MI: The lyrical theme of our new album is similar with our previous works.Written from our previous bass player
Victor,focused this time more into falling of the humankind and the bad aspects of religions.Describing scenes of
apocalypse and war, providing a fulfill dark feeling from start to finish.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Mass infection'?

MI: When we was in searching of the band's name back in 2003,we would like to found something that reminds
the whole bad aspects of the human society over the years.Mass Infection was the unique name to describe the falling of every human's salvation belief. Many people, one by one everyday driven into misery and fear.
That's what we call "Mass Infection".     

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe
your stage performance?

MI: It's a difficult question man!haha. We've played some great shows these years..great moments!I'll try to mention some of them.We will always remember our support to the death metal legends Bolt Thrower in Greece,it's a great honour to share the stage with such a band.Also we always love to play in Italy,we have many friends over there and every single live is an experience for us!Our first abroad tour also along with Rotting Christ was really awesome including some great gigs in balkan area!We had great show also in Germany at Fuck The Commerce festival,Sweden at Gothenburg Deathfest and of course every show in our festival (Livadia Extreme Metalfest), which taking place in our city Levadia/Greece almost every summer from 2003.
That's some of our greatest shows i can mention right now...At our gigs you can expect a well played setlist, sounding massive and clear.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

MI: Actually now we are booking shows as i told you before for 2014..We are planning a european tour after the summer,and someshows in festivals and single gigs.Non of them is officially up until now, exept the "Greek Death Grind scene" festival in Thessaloniki-Greece  on 1st of March.As soon as possible we will upload the already booked shows.Also we have plans for touring the US in 2015.

7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of brutal death metal?

MI: We are really excited of what we've heard for our music.We are receiving mails from people all around the globe and this is very enthusiastic.People of death metal seems to enjoy our material so they giving us the power to keep on and on...Thank you!

8.Are any of the band members involved with any other musical projects these days?

MI: Basically our drummer George Trakas has his own band all these years called "Blustery Caveat" playing brutal death metal as well.A project band also with George Stournaras (Guitar) and our first drummer Chris Panagotas is formed, playing black metal music and called "Pandemonical". You must check them both! 

9.What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

MI: The main direction of our music these last years is the memorable riffing and the mix of the old school and the newest sound of  death metal.I think that our future releases will be in the same veins of music and maybe a little bit more "darker" than our previous works. 

10.What are some bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what
are you listening to nowadays?

MI: Generally some bands that influenced our music are Origin,Unmerciful,Severe Torture,Deeds of Flesh etc from the newest wave of death metal and of course the classic death metal bands like Morbid Angel,Incantation,Bolt Thrower and loads more...Nowdays we want to listen some music played physically, and not the mix of a "digital" studio band.That's the point!

11.Do you have any non musical interests?

MI: hmmm,non musical?Both George's are into sound engineering but this is into musical interests also i think..I could say that drawing and digital design are the other interests of the band haha. 

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

MI: Yes of course,Thank you very much for this interview and we hope to meet all our friends out there!
Our new cd "For I Am Genocide" will be released under Comatose Music (USA) on April 1st and we can't wait to start touring and hanging out with all of our friends!Check our new album and don't hesitate to give us your feedback.Is more than welcome!!! Cheers! www.comatosemusic.com 

Khaoz/I Creator Of Damnation/Mad Lion Productions/2014 CD Review

  Khaoz  are  a  band  from  the  Netherlands  that  plays  a  very  brutal  and  old  school  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "I  Creator  of  Damnation"  which  was  released  by  Mad  Lion  Productions.

  The album  starts out  with  a  very  fast,  heavy  and  brutal  sound  along  with  blast  beats  and  a  mixture  of  screams  and  growls  as  well  as  bringing  in  a  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  you  can  also  hear  some  melody  in  the  music  and  as  time  goes  on  by  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  added  into  the  music.

  As  the  album  progresses  the  bass  guitars  get  more  powerful  in  sound  and  the  band  start  mixing  the  90's  sound  with  the  more  modern  and  brutal  variation  of  the  genre  and  the  band  seems  to  have  a  lot  of  melodic  elements  being  utilized  at  times.

  Khaoz  bring  in  a  very  heavy  and  brutal  sounding  old  school  death  metal  sound  with  this  album  and  proves  that  even  after  20  years  some  musicians  remain  true  brutal  metal  and  all  of  the  band  members  are  veterans.

  Song  lyrics  cover  dark,  gore  and  horror  themes,  while  the  production h as  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy,  professional  and  old  school  sound  where you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  Khaoz  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal,  old  school  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Ravishing  Khaoz"  "Purpose  Lost...I  Am  Dead"  "Rigor  Mortis"  and  "Creator  Of  Damnation".  8  out  of  10.

Karnivore Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

1 right now we are trying to get all the promotion done for the new release,photos,interviews and that stuff , and we are talking about getting a full line-up so we can get some gigs done it´s not easy to find the right people for the job in this area of Sweden,

2.Recently you have put out a new album, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical direction of the new recording and also how does it differ from your past album and demos?

2 When we started to work on the material for the new recording we wanted to make all song in the same direction and hard hitting  more death than thrash metal, we also wanted to get  a bigger and more dark  sound  (and i think we did a pretty god job with that) the old recordings was more (lack of a better word) nicer and more well behaved and we haven't found our thing , all in all it was  a path to were we are now.

3.Can you tell us a little bit more about the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the new release?

3 I'm not  part of the lyrical work but i know that the new record have a theme of mental illness in different ways, being the one on the outside looking in and  what's looking back at you from the inside of your mind.

4.The band started out as 'Karneywar' what was the decision behind the name change and also what is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Karnivore'?

 4 the name karneywar was a play on words that we after a wile notised not really paned out that well with our fans outside of sweden so we changed it to karnivore which is the word for carnivore in latin with an extra e at the end , no thoughts behind it and yes we know that we are not the only band with that name but we thought it would be hard to change completely to another name when we had used karneywar for all the demos.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

5  as long as that the band have existed we have had problems keeping a full line-up for long,and that has unfortunately kept us  from playing that many gigs ,But we were in germany a couple of years ago and played a couple of gigs that was pretty cool especially the one in göttingen that was a really nice one indeed, About our stage show...not much to say but death metal and headbanging , we hope to offer a more interesting show in the future though .

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

6 No we have nothing booked, but as soon as we have our line-up problem solved we plan to play as many gigs as we are able to  .

7.The new album came out on Lake Of Fire Productions, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

7 this mighty label is actually run by a good friend of ours Björn Thorup, that has been a part of karnivore a couple of years ago , he was actually part of the first full line-up and the first couple of gigs. so we are very confident in working with lake of fire.
be sure to check out his other releases www.lake-of-fire.se.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death and thrash metal?

8 up to now we have not got that much of a feedback ,but i´m sure that things will change now with lake of fire behind us.

9.Are any of the band members involved with any other musical projects these days?

9 I (Mattias ) is the only one in karnivore that have other bands and i play doom in el camino  which have released a couple of albums, i also play in  the speed metal band Under attack which also have a couple of releases coming up in the spring, be sure to check ' em out ,i also do some session drumming in a couple of other bands .

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

10 we think we are on the right track now and i think our next recording will head that same way, but we haven't started to work on new material yet so it's hard to say anything without guessing .

11.What are some bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

11  as a group we are all inspired by the usual death black and thrash bands,but i think all of us differ when it comes to our personal choices , but the bands that inspire me personally is any band with a deeper meaning ,that can inspire you as a person and not just as a musician ,

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

12 once again  i'm not sure about the others but besides work and wife and kids, i´m a manic record collector ,and a frequent visitor at the local gym , times is not something that i have much left to spare hehe

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

13 Yes, keep supporting metal and buy records !!!  that's how we can make new ones ,
  and why not check us out on facebook and twitter and support karnivore .

cheers /Mattias on behalf of Karnivore   .

Karnivore/In The Halls Of the Wicked/Lake Of Fire Productions/2014 CD Review

  Karnivore  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "In  The  halls  Of  the  Wicked"  which  was  released  by  Lake  Of  Fire  Productions.

  The  album  starts  out  with  sounds  of  wind  along  with  dark  sounding  synths and  after  a  few  seconds  the  music  goes  into  a  fast,  melodic  and  heavy  direction  along  with  blast  beats  and  a  mixture  of  growls  and  screams  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  you  can  also  hear  leads  and  solos  in  the  music.

  As  the  album  continues  you  can  hear  more  old  school  Swedish  metal  and  thrash  influences  being  added  into  the  music  along  with  some  parts  that  bring  in  a  good  amount  of  brutality  as  well  as  having  some  early  90's  technical  death  metal  elements  and  on  the  last  track  there  is  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples.

  With  this  album  Karnivore  take  the  old  school  Swedish  death  metal  sound  and  mix  it  in  with  thrash  and  a  good  amount  of  melody  to  create  a  very  interesting  album  that  has  the  best  elements  of  the  early  90's.

  Song  lyrics  cover  darkness  and  serial  killer  themes,  while  the  production  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy,  old  school  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  Karnivore  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  old  school  Swedish  death  metal  and  thrash  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Feast  Upon  The  Living"  "An  Era  Of  Decay"  and  "Mr  Gein".  8  out  of  10.  

Apocophrex Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

1.       The band was formed in 2013 by Justin (guitars, mixing, programming), and Pete (vocals, lyrics, artwork). Apocrophex is an internet collaboration between the two.

2.Recently you have released a new ep, can you tell us a little bit more about your musical sound?

2.      Justin- I like to use a lot of sweeping arpeggios , tapping harmonics, and just mess around with different things to get the overall sound that I’m looking for. The goal is to keep it interesting and progressive without losing the brutality along the way. After I’ve written the bones of a song I always try to make sure that it has that relentless momentum that will drive the listener into an uncontrollable windmill headbang!

 

3.Can you tell us a little bit more about the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

2.      Justin- I like to use a lot of sweeping arpeggios , tapping harmonics, and just mess around with different things to get the overall sound that I’m looking for. The goal is to keep it interesting and progressive without losing the brutality along the way. After I’ve written the bones of a song I always try to make sure that it has that relentless momentum that will drive the listener into an uncontrollable windmill headbang!

 

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Apocrophex'?

4.       Justin- Apocrophex comes from the word Apocrypha when means “secret, or obscure” it also means “to hide away”. I felt that it went well with the subject matter and Pete came up with a great logo and so Apocrophex was born.

 

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

5.       Justin- Well, all performing has been done in my spare bedroom mostly in my boxers, so I can’t comment on the stage performance, but my bedroom performance is off the charts ;)

Pete- Being that we live in different area of the country there will be no live shows for quite some time. 

6. Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

6.       Justin- As of now we do not have any plans to tour but of course we are always open to the possibility and I hope we are able to at some point.

 

7.The ep came out on Manicidic Records, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

7.      Pete- I own and operate Manicidic Records so it seemed like a great way to help gain some exposure to our project. Manicidic Records was founded in 2005 and we currently have 32 releases to date. Bands like Danny Tanner, So I Shot Myself and Gukurahundi have really helped to establish us in the extreme metal scene. Our new sub-label Manicidic BLACK was just founded this year in 2014 and our goal is to release free digital split and EP releases for emerging black metal artists. 

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of technical death metal?

8.       Pete- The 'Wheels Within Wheels' EP has only been live for a couple of weeks now but the response has been outstanding so far. 

 

9.When can we expect a full length album and also what musical direction do you see the band heading into in the future?

9.       Justin- I think we should have the full length out later this year. If things go smoothly I don’t see that being an issue. I’d like to say earlier but 2014 is the goal. As for the sound there are many more layers to the full length and I would say a greater sophistication overall. The EP is a great snapshot of what we are all about but there is only so much you can showcase in 5 minutes!

10.What are some bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

10.   Justin- I’m old school, my brain is hardwired from the early death metal days 89’-92’. That laid the foundation for me and I’ve found things I like along the way but nothing as good as the old Florida / New York scene. Some of those bands along the way would be Despised Icon, Benighted, Deranged, Necrophagist, Decapitated, Immolation, to name a few.

Pete- I too am obsessed with the early death metal scene, mainly the Finnish bands of the 90's most recently; Demilich, Depravity, Demigod, Rippikoulu etc. My other musical loves include most genres of black metal, most recently atmospheric black metal by the likes of Panopticon, Drukne, WITTR, Ifing etc. Also mid 90's-early 00's NJ Hardcore; One 4 One, NJ Bloodline, For The Love Of, Shattered Realm etc.

11.What are some of your interests outside of music?

11.   Justin- Discovering new beers I’ve never had before that make me stumble around giddy as a school girl drooling with delight! And that endless pursuit of brewing your own beer that will one day win you a gold medal in a major beer competition. Stay thirsty.

Pete- Same here, however, beer truly pays the bills for me! The growing craft beer market is ever changing and morphing into something bigger and better. Its a full time job in and of itself to just stay on top of whats happening! I wouldnt want to be involved in another professional industry. 

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

12.   Justin- I just want to thank the fans that have shown us such awesome support during our short existence. The response has been great so far