If you want to get more information about any of the bands featured at The Metal Moose Show, simply Google the band and/or the song name to find their official website and Facebook page and, more important than that, attend their live concerts and buy their music. Here at The Headbanging Moose you can find a detailed review of Swedish Groove Death Metal band Chugger (just click on the link below to read the review). Support your local bands… AND FOLLOW THE MOOSE!
On The Metal Moose Show this week (not necessarily in this order):
1. Woodhawk – Wake The Witch
2. Apocryfall – Aberration Of Mind
3. Flesh Engine – Purging Existance
4. Melphomene – Howl
5. Cull The Heard – I Want More
6. Bury The Rest – Lying In Responce
7. Black Tora – Fuel My Hunger
8. Black Tora – Never Enough
9. Nobodys Straight – Autopsy
10. Beauty Killed The Beast – Prepare
11. Ringleader – Web Of Pain
12. 3 Mirrors In The Room – Wanna Want
13. Aittala – Deconstruct
14. Bookakee – Whorific
15. Infinite Series – Stars And Fortnights
16. Chugger – Virus
17. Dirty Crush – Envy
18. Rabbid Rabbit – Cruel Treatment
19. Never Mind The Riot – Sacrifice
20. Skeleton Birth – Democracy By Firepower
21. Dissonance In Design – Absolution
Click HERE to listen to this week’s episode on Spreaker.
Another good heavy music album by one of the most influential Folk Metal armies from Finland.
When Folk Metal came into prominence in the early 2000’s, more specifically due to several promising bands from Finland such as Finntroll, Korpiklaani and Turisas, we all knew that was a subgenre of heavy music that was definitely here to stay. However, despite each band having their own characteristics, the nature and limitations of Folk Metal made it clear it was going to be really tough for all bands to reinvent themselves over the years and to avoid becoming stale or ostracized, a terrible curse upon any type of artist in the world. Even with this dark shadow over every band who decided to follow the path of folk and heavy music, Finnish Epic Folk Metal band Ensiferum have managed somehow to remain relevant and kept delivering decent albums like One Man Army, the sixth full-length album in their career.
Fans of the band will agree with me when I say that Ensiferum (the Latin word for “Sword Bearer” in case you don’t know it) have as their main attribute their ability to always craft melodic and epic songs, it doesn’t matter the album nor the speed or length of the song. One Man Army, featuring a great album art by renowned illustrator Gyula Havancsák, is no exception to that and will surely please most admirers of epic metal music. Far from being a masterpiece, perhaps the biggest problem with One Man Army is that some of its songs sound too repetitive and in some cases too epic (even knowing this feature is deeply rooted in their music), but that doesn’t mean you cannot grab you sword and shield or maybe enjoy a huge pint of barley wine while listening to it.
Although the intro March Of War sounds more like “Western Folk” than pure folk music, that doesn’t make it less fun nor harms the next track, the faster and more violent than usual Axe Of Judgment. Can it be called Blackened Epic Folk Metal? Anyway, the harsh screams by Petri Lindroos are quite effective, with the keyboards by Emmi Silvennoinen and its backing vocals adding more “epicness” to this battle tune. Then we have a truly awesome Epic Metal song entitled Heaten Horde, where the 100% Manowar chorus sung by Ensiferum’s “horde” is its highlight for sure and will thrill all fans during their live concerts (“All heathen hearts, / Answer the call, / God of thunder bless our swords, / Our heathen horde, / Will never fall, / We are hungry for blood, steel and war”), not to mention they even used an Old Norse poem in the lyrics as an amazing “bonus”.
One Man Army, the first single of the album, showcases riffs and double bass that couldn’t sound more Scandinavian metal, and again they abuse of the backing vocals in a good way. In addition, it’s kind of impressive how bands like Ensiferum can sing about battles and war in each and every song they record and still sound fresh in many cases. But getting back to the album, after the nice folk intro Burden Of The Fallen, perfect for enjoying around the fire pit while roasting a leg of goose and having a cold beer, Ensiferum offer us Warrior Without A War, which despite its epic start and all the band’s efforts to make it even more epic, especially the “Oh-oh-oh!” in the background, is just an average song with not much to offer to the listener.
And the boring Cry For The Earth Bounds follows a similar formula: another epic battle intro done by some kind of choir, lyrics talking about war, keyboards giving it an extra touch of magic and so on, but nothing that makes the song outstanding. Quite the contrary, it gets really tiring and falls totally flat after a while. In the excellent Two Of Spades, they finally sing about something that’s not a medieval battle, but a more contemporary type of war: gambling! Its truly exciting riffs and vocals are good indicators they should invest more on this type of raw and direct metal, with its disco beats and Finnish lines being interesting elements added to the song.
The following two tracks, My Ancestor’s Blood and Descendants, Defiance, Domination , form one song name “Heathen Throne Part III”. The first song is pretty boring, with its riffs sounding too generic and its rhythm being as monotone as possible, while the second part is even worse: there was no doubt an 11-minute tune would sound epic, sorrowful and imposing, but the overall result is extremely disappointing due to the lack of energy and entrenchment. In other words, the song just goes on and on forever, with its instrumental parts being very basic, and you even forget to follow the storyline at a given point. Fortunately, Neito Pohjolan closes the regular version of the album beautifully with its awesome lyrics (“Eessä myrskytuulien / Eessä elon taistojen / Aina sydämessäin oon / Neito pohjolan”, or in English “In front of storm clouds / In front of battles of life / In my heart I’ll always be / Lady of the North”). It is as folk as it can be, with Emmi leading the singing and more important than that, in Finnish, making it a very enjoyable tune.
And if you’re in doubt about purchasing One Man Army or not, or which version of the album is the most suitable for your collection, I suggest you go for the limited edition with its four witty bonus tracks. I would say the best ones are the fun Rawhide and the violent Warmetal, which by the way are better than 90% of the songs from the regular version of the album. In summary, Ensiferum might not exactly be a “one man army” as the name of the album says nor the most creative band in the world, but they’re indeed a solid and interesting Folk Metal army that will keep you entertained and ready for battle with their epic and melodic heavy music.
Best moments of the album:Heaten Horde, One Man Army and Two Of Spades.
Worst moments of the album:Cry For The Earth Bounds, My Ancestor’s Blood and Descendants, Defiance, Domination.
Released in 2015 Metal Blade Records
Track listing 1. March Of War 1:32
2. Axe Of Judgment 4:33
3. Heathen Horde 4:12
4. One Man Army 4:25
5. Burden Of The Fallen 1:49
6. Warrior Without A War 5:24
7. Cry For The Earth Bounds 7:31
8. Two Of Spades 3:39
9. My Ancestors’ Blood (Heathen Throne Рart III) 4:30
10. Descendants, Defiance, Domination (Heathen Throne Рart III) 11:20
11. Neito Pohjolan 4:10
Limited Edition bonus tracks 12. Candour And Lies 4:11
13. Rawhide 2:35
14. Warmetal 2:54
15. Bonus Song 4:29
Band members Petri Lindroos – harsh vocals, guitars
Markus Toivonen – guitars, backing vocals, clean vocals
Sami Hinkka – bass, clean vocals
Emmi Silvennoinen – keyboards, backing vocals
Janne Parviainen – drums
Get ready to have your body and soul abducted by an alien onslaught of Extreme Metal.
It doesn’t matter if you believe in extraterrestrial life or not: as long as you believe in Spanish/Portuguese Exocore band Alienchrist and their brand new EP entitled Exolution, your life will be spared. Well, at least in terms of an alien abduction, because if there’s one thing you will suffer for sure are the effects of this Seville-based project’s brutal sonic storm full of deep growls, unorthodox tempos and bizarre riffs. Or as metalheads would say in Portuguese about the music by Alienchirst, “É PESADO PRA CARALHO!”
Formed in 2014 by Portuguese musician Mario Rocha and inspired by names like Carnifex, Whitechapel and Meshuggah, Alienchirst have already played at various events such as the Alburock Open Air in Murcia, Spain, sharing the stage with Even When Dead, Bloodyard, Resurrection, The Fall Of Atlantis, among many others. It’s important to mention that except for Alienchrist’s architect Mario Rocha, all other members are handpicked to tour or to play live gigs, which means this cannot be considered a band per se. Nothing that will stop Alienchrist from invading and conquering your city with their unearthly extreme sounding, though.
In case you have no idea what Exocore is, think of it as the coalition of Death Metal and Metalcore, also known as Deathcore, but with a kind of primeval exoskeleton (or “external shell”) to make it even more rigid and resistant. With that said, you can get a sense of how heavy and organic it sounds, which is exactly what you’ll find in the opening track, Zimabu Eter, featuring Bryan Long from American Deathcore band Dealey Plaza. Inspired by the movie The Fourth Kind, the whole song is a brutal assault of Death Metal riffs and blast beats, led by the deepest guttural growls you can think of. In summary, if an alien invasion or abduction has by any chance this song as the soundtrack, we’re totally doomed.
Signals continues delivering savagery, with its eerie intro suddenly turning into modern and violent metal. It will break your fuckin’ neck with its badass riff, plus some special keyboard effects in the background that end up establishing an interesting and ominous atmosphere. The next track of the EP, All Seeing Eye, is Death Metal to the second power: it’s like an “alien” version of Deicide with a monster on vocals, and obviously you have to master the art of guttural singing to understand whatever Mario Rocha is screaming.
The Mind Of The Psychopath showcases low-end bass lines and hardcore riffs, adding a lot of brutality to it, as well as ghoulish long-lasting growls by Mario Rocha. What a massacre! Finally, as a bonus to the listener, Exolution has a Dubstep remix for Zimabu Eter, and even if you hate electronic music you must admit this remix is pretty cool, capturing all the main elements from the original version.
You can take a listen at Exolution in its entirety on YouTube and also listen to it and purchase it at Alienchrist’s BandCamp page. As previously mentioned, if one day the human race faces an extraterrestrial invasion (as many people are eagerly expecting), let’s hope for it to be orchestrated by Alienchrist and their ruthless onslaught of extreme music.
Best moments of the album:Zimabu Eter.
Worst moments of the album: None.
Released in 2015 Independent
Track listing 1. Zimabu Eter (feat. Bryan Long) 3:39
2. Signals 3:48
3. All Seeing Eye 3:52
4. The Mind Of The Psychopath 3:34
5. Zimabu Eter (Dubsteb Remix) 2:58
Band members Mister V (Mario Rocha) – vocals
Mister W – guitar
Mister X – guitar
Mister Y – bass
Mister Z – drums
Guest musician Bryan Long – additional vocals on “Zimabu Eter”
A fearless band from Gothenburg bringing forth a technical and organic fusion of Melodic Death Metal and Southern Rock.
Whenever you think of the Gothenburg Sound (also known as Melodic Death Metal), forged in the 90’s amidst the harsh climate and technological progress in Sweden, names like At the Gates, Dark Tranquillity and In Flames will instantly come to your mind. Those bands were capable of creating something completely new in the world of heavy music, blending melody and violence in a unique way augmented by tons of catchy riffs and contemplative lyrics. Hailing from the same fruitful area comes the five-piece Groove Death Metal band Chugger, who after the 2013 EP entitled Scars are releasing now in 2015 their first full-length album, the heavy and modern Human Plague.
The initial idea behind the band came up in 2006 by guitarist Robert Bjärmyr, but it wasn’t until the end of 2012 that Chugger actually came to life with their progressive and aggressive musicality. Although they can be seen at first glance as just another Swedish Melodic Death Metal group, perhaps what differentiates them the most from all other Gothenburg bands is their ability to accurately add many interesting elements from American Southern Rock and Metal to their music, enhancing the level of belligerence found in every song in Human Plague. In addition, the album art designed by independent artist Sam Hayles at DOSEprod also effectively expresses the high-tech but organic fusion offered by Chugger in the album.
And all the modern music proposed by Chugger becomes clear as soon as The Grid starts, a song built of traditional Gothenburg sound pinched by Industrial Metal, Death Metal and even Metalcore, something In Flames have already done (but unfortunately got lost somewhere), as melodic as expected from a Swedish metal band and a great choice for jumping up and down with the band. The harsh growls by frontman David Dahl definitely help define the violence in their music, which is also the case in the first single of the album, Virus, where the band truly spreads their “virus” of metal. Furthermore, its short and effective apocalyptic chorus is more than perfect for screaming along with them (“One shot at glory / Ascending through the sky – Virus”).
Rust is probably their most Americanized song, especially its heavy guitar riffs and vocals and its awesome headbanging rhythm (providing the listener once again another good opportunity to scream the lyrics with the band), while Never Alone showcases a melancholic slow intro followed by a dense atmosphere, an amazing “devilish” duet between David and Swedish singer Maria Strandén (ex- Therion), and inspiring lyrics about unity and never being alone in our society.
Feed The Fire follows similar lines as “Rust”: it’s another excellent raw and direct metal track with its main riff made for breaking your neck. Not only that, it’s important to say those guys know how to craft addictive choruses (“Burn! You feed the fire / Burn! With everything you do / Burn! You’re feeding the flames / Burn! Time to pay the price”). The following tune, Ignorance Divine, has a strong Gothenburg vibe with lots of rhythmic breaks, from a faster metallic sounding to Southern Metal/Rock riffs and Melodic Death Metal guitar solos, thanks to the great job done by guitarists Robert Bjärmyr and Fredrik Carlstedt; whereas Five Feet Down reminds me of some of the best songs by In Flames and Soilwork. The heaviness of the chorus is at the same level as the most violent Southern Metal, with kudos to drummer David Pergament for smashing his drums during the whole song.
In Cut Out From Hell, which despite all its violence is a very harmonious 6-minute song, David offers some deeper guttural while the rest of the band keeps kicking ass at a high level, and after a short display of some nice riffs in The Pendulum Swing the band presents us Endgame, with its Arch Enemy-ish sonority and uprising vocals. Besides, maybe if this song was a little shorter it would have been a lot more effective. And finally closing the album with razin’ guitars and piercing vocal lines we have the title-track, Human Plague, a song that was born ready for Chugger’s live performances where the bass lines by Henrik Östlund are more solid and ferocious than ever.
There are many places on the web where you can find more information about Chugger and listen to their excellent music, such as their Facebook page, YouTube channel and ReverbNation, as well as enjoy an interesting reading about how Human Plague was brought forth with their online studio diary. And of course, don’t forget to purchase their music and witness their furious metal live, as their Spreading The Disease Tour 2015 is just about to take off with many dates around Europe. As the band states, “We are the voice of the voiceless. We do not fear what lies beneath. We are Chugger.”
Best moments of the album:Virus, Feed The Fire and Five Feet Down.
Worst moments of the album:Endgame.
Released in 2015 Rambo Music/Gain Music Entertainment/Sony Music
Track listing 1. The Grid 4:32
2. Virus 4:14
3. Rust 4:20
4. Never Alone 5:51
5. Feed The Fire 4:35
6. Ignorance Divine 5:21
7. Five Feet Down 3:37
8. Cut Out From Hell 5:56
9. The Pendulum Swing 1:24
10. Endgame 5:46
11. Human Plague 6:17
Band members David Dahl – vocals
Robert Bjärmyr – guitar
Fredrik Carlstedt – guitar
Henrik Östlund -bass
David Pergament – drums
Guest musician Maria Strandén – female vocals on “Never Alone”
If you want to get more information about any of the bands featured at The Metal Moose Show, simply Google the band and/or the song name to find their official website and Facebook page and, more important than that, attend their live concerts and buy their music. Here at The Headbanging Moose you can find a detailed review of British Blackened Death Metal band Goatchrist (just click on the link below to read the review). Support your local bands… AND FOLLOW THE MOOSE!
On The Metal Moose Show this week (not necessarily in this order):
1. The Obliesk – Subterfuge
2. Sleepwalking Home – Skin Army
3. Stabbingback – Grief
4. Seven Circle Sunrise – Undone
5. Goatchrist – Inferno
6. From Ashes To New – Stay This Way
7. Greylights – Tapeias Decent
8. Donna Drive – Alone With The Devil
9. Church – Dammned From Birth
10. Billion Dollar Man – Legion
11. 100 Proof Hatred – Battle Scars
12. Artifas – Blame
13. Message To Venus – Hollow
14. Twelve Years Drivin – Scars
15. Poynte – Hold On
16. Kill For Mother – Death Of Texas
17. Every Hour Kills – Deliver Us
18. Saturate – Damage The Memory
19. Stalking Madness – Ava (One)
20. Final Drive – Run For Your Life
21. Enslaved By Fear – Over Night
Click HERE to listen to this week’s episode on Spreaker or HERE to listen to it on Mixcloud.
It’s time for some old school Doom Metal with this nefarious Ukrainian band.
In case you have no idea what an “apostate” is, it means an individual who renounces, abandons or betrays a religious or political belief or principle, as for example a Catholic person who chooses to violate the Ten Commandments without any remorse. That’s an excellent definition for the massive and dark music found in Time Of Terror, the new album by old school Ukrainian Doom Metal band Apostate. If you are a fan of the eccentric heavy music by bands such as Anathema and My Dying Bride, you’ll love the eerie fusion of Doom, Death and Black Metal delivered by those guys.
Formed in the year of 1993, Ukraine’s oldest protagonists of old school Doom Metal, who started as Black Moon Frankness but quickly changed their name to Apostate, are back with more of their damned musicality after a long pause since the release of their debut full-length album Trapped in a Sleep, from 2010. Not only that, although Time Of Terror looks like an EP at first glance mainly due to the fact it comprises only five tracks, each one of its songs easily surpasses the nine-minute barrier, resulting in over 50 impressive minutes of epic and doomed metal.
Starting with a “classic horror movie” intro, Solar Misconception opens the album offering us primeval Doom Metal riffs and slow-paced beats dictating all obscurity developed in over 10 minutes of music. Furthermore, Lead singer Bohdan Kozub makes sure his vocals are truly inhuman, which together with some interesting background voices and sounds make the whole thing even more macabre than usual. When the following track Pale Reflection begins, full of melancholy and sorrow, you know nothing joyful will come out it: this is the type of song that blackens your mind, with highlights to the relentless guitar lines by Vlad Filimon and Yuriy Savchuk maintaining the song at the darkest level possible, the cavernous vocals by Bohdan, and the Death Metal breakneck speed at the end of it.
Pain Served Slow doesn’t make things any lighter or less horrid. Let’s say the name of the song pretty much summarizes what Doom Metal is in its true essence, with an amazing mesmerizing riff complemented by the traditional drumming by Nikita Holovin. In addition, the second half of the song sounds totally apocalyptical, coming to a crescendo of despair that gives an awesome finishing touch to this excellent track. In Memory Eclipse, darker notes, wicked guitar solos and deeper growls take the listener to a sad world where the entire band also seems to be; followed by the last track of the album, World Undying, which starts with an ominous religious narration before the bass guitar by Alexander Kostko initiates another feast of darkness, with highlights to another killer performance by Bohdan with his somber growls. Also, the faster excerpts and some extra religious narrations amidst the low-tuned riffs are very effective, with the message in its lyrics lacking any sign of hope. That feeling of pure disheartenment was probably what the band wanted to transmit in its 13 minutes, and when this song and consequently the entire album are over you won’t feel quite well.
Highly recommended for metalheads with a true passion for Doom Metal, Time Of Terror can be purchased at Apostate’s BandCamp page and at the Ferrum Records’ webstore, and you can also visit their official Facebook page for more information on the band, check out their tour dates, listen to their music, among other cool stuff. Get ready to have your hellish heart darkened to a new level, because it’s time for some old school Doom Metal with one of the oldest and most nefarious bands from Ukraine.
Best moments of the album:Pain Served Slow.
Worst moments of the album: None.
Released in 2015 Ferrum Records
Track listing 1. Solar Misconception 10:03
2. Pale Reflection 10:54
3. Pain Served Slow 9:05
4. Memory Eclipse 9:35
5. World Undying 13:32
Band members Bohdan Kozub – vocals
Vlad Filimon – guitar
Yuriy Savchuk – guitar
Alexander Kostko – bass
Nikita Holovin – drums
Justice ravaged by pain… I surrended my innocence in vain.
Our Heavy Metal diva this month is a tribute to Gothic Rock & Metal, a “love it or hate it” type of music that always divides the opinion of the more traditional metalheads. Fans of Iron Maiden, Slayer, Judas Priest and Metallica, for example, usually tend to despise almost everything from bands such as Rammstein, The Prodigy or Disturbed, mainly because “those bands are not true Heavy Metal”. However, they all have a lot of very interesting, creative and especially heavy material, which is also the case for the dark alternative music by our blue-haired gothic goddess Lahannya.
Lahannya was born in the United Kingdom, and although I’m not 100% sure, I believe her birthday is on January 20. Don’t ask me her full name or the year and city she was born (which by the way might be London), though, as it seems she’s one of those girls that doesn’t enjoy sharing her age nor many other details about her personal life with the rest of the world. Well, that doesn’t affect the quality of her work by any means, as what really matters here are her music, vocal performance and, of course, her stunning dark alternative looks.
Let’s say that Lahannya is not a regular singer, songwriter and performer: she’s a lot more than that, we should say a one-of-a-kind frontwoman, and her talent and skills can be enjoyed not only in the music from her own band, Lahannya, but also in the compositions from many other different bands and artists. Although she’s never made it to the mainstream, it’s in the underground world of heavy music where she has established her pillars and it’s also where she keeps influencing the newest generations of gothic and heavy musicians with her unique approach.
To begin with, it was back in 2004 when she met bassist Lutz Demmler, from German Gothic Metal band Umbra et Imago, at the M’Era Luna Festival where things really started to happen for Lahannya. After several projects since the beginning of her career in 1998, including the song Drowning for the compilation album Amduscias (1998) and her first EP entitled Drowning (2000), she finally formed the band Lahannya together with her then (and still) good friend Lutz in 2005, which is nowadays complemented live by German guitarist Christopher Milden and Italian drummer Luca Mazzucconi.
Lahannya’s Gothic Metal music is a complex and rich blend of the sonority from bands and artists such as The Prodigy, Disturbed, Loreena McKennitt, among many others. Actually, it’s kind of hard to truly define their music or compare it to other artists, although their lyrical themes are similar to what some of those artists also sing about, like darkness, pain, agony and relationships. The band has already released a good amount of material besides the EP Drowning: three full-length albums entitled Shotgun Reality (2007), Defiance (2009) and Dystopia ( 2011); another EP named Welcome to the Underground (2008); the live album Scavenger (2010); and the live DVD Sojourn (2013). You can take a listen at her mesmerizing voice in songs like Cocoon and Save Me, both from the album Dystopia.
The band has been touring a lot since its inception, especially in the UK and Germany, as for example in the Wave Gotik Treffen music festival, in Leipzig, in 2009, as well as many other dates in countries such as Austria, Netherlands, Poland and Switzerland, among others, with highlights to their exceptional performance during the Metal Female Voices Fest VII that happened in Wieze, Belgium, in 2009. There are some high quality videos on YouTube with Lahannya’s concert at that festival, like the ones for the songs Open Your Eyes and Burn, where it’s quite impossible to take your eyes out of her moves while her voice “invades” our ears with greatness. Another excellent live moments are the heavy and modern Inside the Machine, filmed at the X-Tra Club in Switzerland in 2008, and the metallic Never Enough, during the band’s performance at the the M’Era Luna Festival 2012. There’s also a really nice interview with her during that same festival, which can be seen HERE, where she talks about her career and other stuff. It’s totally worth the time spent, especially because she’s a fun and humble woman, and her British accent is beyond beautiful.
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Among her infinite number of partnerships, projects and special guest appearances, the most important or famous ones are certainly her collaborations with English Electronic band Greenhaus, German Power Noise/Techno act Soman, Norwegian Aggrotech band Combichrist, German Industrial project Xotox, German Goth Rock band ASP, and German Gothic Electro band Dracul. None of these are close to Heavy or even Gothic Metal, but that doesn’t make the final results less enjoyable.
With Greenhaus, she was part of the songwriting and the vocalist for almost all tracks of their album Another life, from 2003, while with Soman she was the co-songwriter and vocalist for the following tracks: Tears, from the album Revenge (2004); Antique, from a compilation album with various artists entitled Machineries of Joy (2004); Mask and Eye to Eye, from the album Mask (2007); and Skin Deep, from the album Soman Noistyle (2010).
Our goth diva’s collaboration with Combichrist happened in the form of a spoken sample for the Soman remix of the title-track from their second EP Sex, Drogen Und Industrial (2004), while with Xotox she recorded a spoken intro for the video of the track [psi], from the album [psi] (2005), and was the vocalist on the song Habitat, from the album In Den Zehn Morgen (2008). Finally, she was featured in the remix of the song Nie Mehr, from the album Nie Mehr (2007) by ASP, and was the co-songwriter and vocalist for the tracks Vampiras Dream and Deathwish, from the album Like an Animal (2006) by Dracul.
There are a few other projects she’s involved which unfortunately I cannot list here, otherwise I would never be able finish this document. However, there’s one more interesting detail about Lahannya in regards to her career that you should know: if you’re in London and you are that type of person that likes to party, you might have a chance to see our blue-haired beauty in person doing something very different from singing with her band, which is being a DJ at the London alternative club Slimelight once in a while. Do you want to know where Lahannya finds all that energy to do everything she does? “I think it’s my purpose for living. I don’t really want to find a family or whatever. For me it’s my passion, it’s the legacy I want to leave behind, it’s how I express myself. If I didn’t do it, I would feel like I’m not actually living or breathing.”, she said. That explains a lot.
In regards to her idols in music, the pretty Lahannya mentioned she enjoys listening to and is constantly inspired by many distinct and excellent artists such as Kidneythieves, Dimmu Borgir, The Prodigy, Tori Amos, Celldweller, Bush, Disturbed, Mankind Is Obsolete, Loreena McKennitt, The Cranes etc. However, her inspiration in terms of lyrics comes from what is happening around her life and from her own emotions. Moreover, Lahannya mentioned a couple of times her “dream tour” would be with Industrial Metal icons Rammstein or English Electronic group The Prodigy, which in my opinion are outsdaning options for a full professional and exciting tour, don’t you agree?
Lastly, this nonstop frontwoman said she hasn’t had any free time for hobbies, but when she did she used to go scuba diving and climbing, which in my opinion are “not-so-common” activities for people who live in the gothic world, but each person does what they feel like doing, right? And in order to chill out, Lahannya’s choices often include a good DVD and a glass of wine, especially after a long day of hard work. That’s something even people like us, mere mortals who are not famous masterminds behind a successful band, can relate to, and maybe one of us is lucky enough to enjoy those rare free moments Lahannya has together with her. In the meantime, let’s keep on appreciating her dark and beautiful music.
“The best piece of advice I can give is, don’t waste your time waiting for a manager, booking agent or record label to make things happen for you. If you are prepared to work hard, not just on the music but also on the business side, and you don’t give up, you can achieve an awful lot. No one will work as hard for you as you do yourself and no one will invest more money into your band than you are prepared to do yourself. If you don’t put the work in, why should anyone else?” – Lahannya
A cohesive and aggressive mix of Thrash and Death Metal by a band with only one objective in mind: erasing all life from this toxic world we live in.
The story of Finnish Death/Thrash Metal band Gian is not uncommon in the world of heavy music: lots of dreams and a gigantic amount of effort put together by the band in their beginnings in Finland in 2005, many live performances which I’m pretty sure didn’t result in any decent money for them, the inevitable conflicts of interest that ended up splitting up the band a couple of times, and so on, including a “hibernation” period between the end of 2013 and mid-2014. However, after all those years of blood, sweat and tears, struggling to survive and to make their Heavy Metal dream come true, Gian are now releasing their debut full-length album, All Life Erased, and based on the music those guys brought into being in this album their golden years seem to have finally arrived.
The band members themselves like to call All Life Erased a “mutated and demented nuclear freak”, and let’s say they’re not exaggerating when describing the album with such lovely words. What you’ll witness during the entire album is a cohesive and aggressive mix of Thrash and Death Metal that will pierce your ears and strike your mind without a single drop of mercy. The album art also tells you so, with the gas mask being one of the best contemporary symbols of our violent and noxious society, providing the whole album an extra touch of brutality.
The gas mask also appears in the opening track, Trauma, represented by a heavy breathing sound right before lead singer Jampe Honkonen begins growling directly in your face amidst a melodic sonority that reminds me of the music by many famous Swedish Melodic Death Metal bands, followed by a true metal storm entitled Bloodstorm. There are many elements from different metal genres in this song, from its Black Metal blast beats by drummer Konsta Vehkala to its Metalcore clean vocals, turning it into a first-class choice for both headbanging and slammin’ into the circle pit. The title-track All Life Erased is another fast and furious assault by Gian, where its Slayer-ish guitar lines by Lassi Pollari and Tuomo Laulainen guide the listener through all the band’s sonic madness.
And there are more fuckin’ razing riffs to make you want to crush everything around you in ZombieChrist, where it’s interesting to notice how guitars and bass guitar follow almost the same notes, while Self-ImmolationParty shows us Gian are also good at selecting the names for their songs. This time, instead of nonstop riffs and drums, the band focuses on more consistent beats and especially on the anarchic vocal lines by Jampe, with a great chorus tailored for pepping the fans up during their live performances. Burn presents a band on fire once again, and despite being a violent track there’s a lot of harmony in it, just as expected from any European band.
Sounding like a hybrid of Cavalera Conspiracy and Slayer, the band offers more of their rousing modern metal in the following track, A Perfect Shot, with highlights to Konsta for his performance on drums and to the guitar duos by Lassi and Tuomo, and in the amazing Pain and Pleasure: it’s indeed a pleasure to listen to this track, but be warned it leaves a huge pain in your neck so hardcore it is, similar to the old school Punk Rock played by Black Flag.
Aggression Unleashed is another good song with interesting tempo changes, huge doses of cruelty in the vocals, and dense riffs inspired by 80’s Thrash Metal, whereas when the music starts to grow slowly but steadily in No Absolution you know hell is about to break loose, sounding even more modern than its predecessors with elements from Industrial Metal and some melancholic passages halfway through it. And as the band’s final blast of animosity we have Capital Punishment, a very metallic and thrilling song where Jampe lays much more emphasis on his harsher screams than his usual guttural vocals.
If you want to know more about this diehard Finnish band and purchase a copy of All Life Erased, visit their Facebook page, YouTube channel, SoundCloud, BandCamp or the Inverse Records Store. Those guys want to erase all forms of life from this toxic and wicked world we live in with their metal music, and with our support they will surely succeed in their crazy and audacious mission.
Best moments of the album:Bloodstorm, All Life Erased and Pain and Pleasure.
Worst moments of the album:Aggression Unleashed and No Absolution.
Released in 2015 Inverse Records
Track listing 1. Trauma 4:58
2. Bloodstorm 4:41
3. All Life Erased 2:14
4. ZombieChrist 3:07
5. Self-Immolation Party 3:10
6. Burn 3:03
7. A Perfect Shot 2:53
8. Pain and Pleasure 2:12
9. Aggression Unleashed 4:12
10. No Absolution 4:41
11. Capital Punishment 3:47
Band members Jampe Honkonen – vocals
Lassi Pollari – guitar, vocals
Tuomo Laulainen – guitar
Henri Rahm – bass, vocals
Konsta Vehkala – drums
If you live in Toronto or anywhere nearby you know how bitterly cold the past couple of months have been. For instance, I personally don’t remember when we had temperatures above the freezing mark (or even above -5°C) for the last time, and it looks like February 2015 is about to become the coldest month in the history of Toronto. Well, nothing better than a hotter-than-hell extreme music night to warm up the hearts of lots of headbangers in the city, right? The venue chosen for this awesome gathering was the always welcoming Phoenix Concert Theatre, where friends wearing the T-shirts of their favorite extreme bands and even a group of girls with their well-crafted corpsepaint were able to enjoy some beers together, headbang like motherfuckers and especially slam into the circle pits.
The bands chosen to liven this mini-festival up were the excellent Swedish Death Metal bands TRIBULATION and AEON, both raising the flag of Scandinavian metal really high with their ferocious performances. If you truly love extreme music but have never heard of either Tribulation or Aeon, I kindly ask you to please go check these two bands: you’ll be surprised with how good they are. The first band was Tribulation, playing a very technical and progressive Death Metal permeated with elements from Black and Doom Metal and singing about darkness, horror, vampires, death and all other of those “beautiful” themes. In case you want to know more about this great Swedish band, my suggestions are the songs Beyond the Horror, Rånda and When the Sky Is Black With Devils, masterfully executed by this four-piece act in front of an avid Torontonian crowd.
Aeon @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015
After a short break it was time for Aeon to deliver their infernal music, blasting everyone’s ears and necks with each and every song played. Lead singer Tommy Dahlström is a beast on vocals (and you can easily notice he’s a huge fan of Cannibal Corpse by his stage performance), perfectly vociferating the violent lyrics of all songs of their brutal setlist, with highlights to the opening song Satanic Victory and also to the amazing Kill Them All and Blessed by the Priest. In addition, how can I describe the performance of drummer Emil Wiksten? That guy is like an unbelievable human stone crusher behind his drums so fast and precise he is, which added a lot of power and fury to the band’s performance. As I said, go after the music by Tribulation and Aeon as quick as the blast beats by Emil!
Behemoth @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015
It was around 8:45pm when the iconic Nergal and his horde of darkness hit the stage with an incredible concert, both in terms of their ominous music and their unique theatrical performance, and it’s amazing how they were capable of delivering so much content in such a limited space. Still promoting their most recent album, the impeccable The Satanist, which even after one year of its release it continues to astonish me, Polish Black/Death Metal masters BEHEMOTH proved why they’re one of the most influential and portentous groups in the world of extreme music.
Although they didn’t play the best song of The Satanist in my opinion, “Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel”, the songs selected from the album were just as superb live, with highlights to Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer and Ben Sahar. Older classics also helped keep the audience mesmerized by their obscurity, such as Chant for Eschaton 2000 and Slaves Shall Serve. However, I believe almost everybody will agree with me when I say they simply kicked all possible asses with the already classic O Father O Satan O Sun!, a song that live sounds even more grandiose than its studio version, augmented by the band’s special satanic attire worn during its execution. This might sound stupid for a lot of people, but Behemoth performing this song at the Oscars would have been beyond spectacular. Unfortunately, the world and all mere mortals that live in it don’t seem ready for Behemoth yet.
Behemoth @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015
Also, it’s undeniable that Nergal is a true Extreme Metal leader and he’s passionate about what he does, and consequently he had almost all eyes staring at him during the whole concert, but the other band members are also wonderful and skillful musicians who help Nergal achieve the level of excellence he has in his mind for the band. Who didn’t enjoy the performance by bassist Orion, who looked like an even more devilish version of Gene Simmons’ stage persona The Demon? And what about the dark riffs by Seth or the rhythmic drumming by Inferno? What an awesome band, and if you missed them this time, may Lucifer have mercy on your soul. Or not.
Setlist 1. Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer
2. Conquer All
3. Ben Sahar
4. Decade of Therion
5. Messe Noire
6. Ov Fire and the Void
7. At the Left Hand ov God
8. Slaves Shall Serve
9. Chant for Eschaton 2000
10. O Father O Satan O Sun!
Band members Adam “Nergal” Darski – lead vocals, guitars
Tomasz “Orion” Wróblewski – bass guitar
Patryk Dominik “Seth” Sztyber – guitars
Zbigniew Robert “Inferno” Promiński – drums and percussion
Cannibal Corpse @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015
In order to properly close the night and pulverize anyone or anything that was still alive after Behemoth, Death Metal titans CANNIBAL CORPSE arose from the crypts of hell to transform the entire venue into their own “skeletal domain”, obviously promoting their most recent album, the visceral A Skeletal Domain. If there’s one thing that I love about Cannibal Corpse is the fact that they’re a band that always moves forward, despite having a solid past which they could live on forever like many classic bands do. All their latest albums are brutally superb, and technically speaking they’re getting better and better year after year.
Their setlist was an awesome mix of old classics and newer songs, including almost one track from each one of their albums, from Eaten Back to Life (1990) to last year’s A Skeletal Domain. Mosh pits and pure headbanging erupted with classics such as A Skull Full of Maggots, Demented Aggression, Make Them Suffer and The Wretched Spawn, while the selected songs from their new album for this tour, in special the great Sadistic Embodiment and the steamroller Kill or Become, intensified even more the hurricane that was happening on the “dance” floor.
Cannibal Corpse @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015
Moreover, anything I say about the band members will just be pure repetition of common sense: they are all really talented musicians that love Death Metal above all things (well, Corpsegrinder said he loves pussy above all things), and that translates into pure electricity when they’re performing on the stage. You can barely see Alex Webster’s face, but he’s there delivering the most intricate bass lines you can find in extreme music, while Pat O’Brien and Rob Barrett keep firing their evil riffs and Paul Mazurkiewicz his nonstop beats. And as I always say, Mr. George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher is the face of Cannibal Corpse and the one to give life (or death) to the band’s gory lyrics while headbanging like a fuckin’ chopper in a way only he is capable of. Besides, seeing him scratching himself with one of Paul’s drumsticks due to an incontrollable itch in the middle of his back, and you know he’s not a small guy, was priceless.
When Cannibal Corpse played their last two songs, the unparalleled classics Hammer Smashed Face and Devoured by Vermin (my top Cannibal Corpse song of all time), they turned the whole venue into a fuckin’ monstrous mosh pit with absolutely no place to hide, showcasing how awesome those songs are. But do you think anyone in the audience complained about it? There were so many smiles and so much sweat everywhere when the show was over I’m pretty sure the fans of the Corpse cannot wait for them to storm Toronto once again and heat up our chilly winter with their perfect Death Metal. Fire up the chainsaw!
Setlist 1. Scourge of Iron
2. Demented Aggression
3. Evisceration Plague
4. Stripped, Raped and Strangled
5. Kill or Become
6. Sadistic Embodiment
7. Icepick Lobotomy
8. The Wretched Spawn
9. Pounded into Dust
10. I Cum Blood
11. Make Them Suffer
12. A Skull Full of Maggots
13. Hammer Smashed Face
14. Devoured by Vermin
Band members George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher – vocals
Pat O’Brien – guitar
Rob Barrett – guitar
Alex Webster – bass
Paul Mazurkiewicz – drums
If you want to get more information about any of the bands featured at The Metal Moose Show, simply Google the band and/or the song name to find their official website and Facebook page and, more important than that, attend their live concerts and buy their music. Here at The Headbanging Moose you can also find detailed reviews of many other excellent underground bands. Support your local bands… AND FOLLOW THE MOOSE!
On The Metal Moose Show this week (not necessarily in this order):
1. Dreamgrave – Last Drop Falls
2. Dead In Seconds – Dead In Seconds
3. Shades Of Glory – Lobotomy
4. Sectas – Destiny
5. Kill For Mother – Unrecognized
6. Kill For Mother – Death Of Texas
7. Throne Of Eden – House Of Fate
8. Knights Of Remnant – Warriors
9. Edge Of Paradise – Breakaway
10. Convictor – Angel Of Impurity
11. Lick – Sweet Regret
12. Hell Came Home – Dead To Me
13. New Tattoo – Certified
14. Prison Of Shadows – Dream Crusher
15. 5 Billion And Counting – 1%
16. The Violet Hour – Insatiable
17. Forshadow – The Meaning Of Life
18. Area Of Effect – Depths Of Eternity
19. Romantic Rebel – Believe
20. Of Burning Empires – Dead Skin
Click HERE to listen to this week’s episode on Spreaker or HERE to listen to it on Mixcloud.
If you want to get more information about any of the bands featured at The Metal Moose Show, simply Google the band and/or the song name to find their official website and Facebook page and, more important than that, attend their live concerts and buy their music. Here at The Headbanging Moose you can find a detailed review of Swedish Groove Death Metal band Chugger (just click on the link below to read the review). Support your local bands… AND FOLLOW THE MOOSE!
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