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Album Review – Escapetor / Fear (2014)

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A serious contender for “Thrash Metal Album of the Year”, as heavy, invigorating and awesome as it can be.

Rating3

ESCAPETOR - Fear cover artWhen you think of that insane Thrash Metal from the 80’s, your head automatically turns to North America, more specifically to the San Francisco Bay Area and to South Florida, where monsters such as Slayer, Megadeth, Metallica, Anthrax, Exodus, Testament and many other great bands simply made history with their never-before-seen heavy music. But what if I tell you there’s also excellent Thrash Metal music in the “Land of the Midnight Sun”, the stunning Kingdom of Norway? And what if I tell you it’s the most awesome Thrash Metal music you can find anywhere today?

That’s exactly the case with Norwegian Thrash Metal band Escapetor, who after a few demos, EP’s and a debut album, are about to release their second full-length album, entitled Fear. Not only that, this Rogaland-based group also adds lots of elements from more contemporary bands like Pantera and Slipknot to their songs, which ends up elevating the overall fierceness of their musicality to a level all Thrash Metallers from anywhere in the world will love from the bottom of their hearts. In other words, if you do not like the Thrash Metal by Escapetor, you’re not a good person.

The initial riffs and fast drums of the opening track, The Queen, say it all: it’s fuckin’ brilliant Thrash Metal, so good I bet no one can stand still while tis song is played. In addition to the flawless instrumental, with highlights to the aforementioned powerful guitar riffs, the performance by German singer Claudius Bormuth is beyond superb, turning this song into a unique heavy music delight. What a great voice, perfect for Escapetor’s musicality! If only Metallica were doing something as enjoyable as this. Anyway, that was just the beginning of Fear: the melodic mid-tempo song Dark Past, with its more modern sonority perfect for headbanging and for some crazy air guitar, has some excellent guitar solos accompanied by a strong and catchy chorus (“Can you feel it, burning inside / I can’t take it anymore. / All these feelings tearing me apart, / Cause I know it is my dark past.”); while Unknown Thoughts, a pretty decent song with an interesting job done by drummer Leif-Ove Haugstad, reminds me of a more contemporary Metallica.

Dealing with Fate is pure riffs and heaviness where you can sense the influence from the band’s biggest idols in terms of harmony and rhythmic breaks. Besides that, its backing vocals are an amazing addition to the already great vocals by Claudius, and everything gets even better due to an outstanding guitar solo at the end. The following track, Mr. Hyde, showcases a refined mix of Thrash Metal and Southern Rock, something I’ve seen only Testament doing properly. It’s direct and powerful, straight to your face, with its lyrics inspired by the “Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde” being an extra ingredient to this great recipe (“Last night, I woke up, I had the same old nightmare / What have I done, Mr. Hyde has taken over”).

ESCAPETOR band photoThe title-track, Fear, is truly kick-ass, with its deeper growls in the chorus and all variations from a faster rhythm (perfect for mosh pits) to a heavier and slower tune (tailored for intense headbanging) perfectly exemplifying the total synergy among all band members. The mighty bass lines by Dan Gundersen set the tone for another badass ferocious track, Shadow, where guitarists Ragnar Nord-Varhaug and Axel Feller keep up with the tradition of dynamic and technical guitar duos in Thrash Metal, followed by Escapetor, with its epic intro and an astonishing atmosphere created by the guitar riffs. Not only this is one of the best songs of the album without a shadow of a doubt, but its pure old school musicality and lyrics (“We are Escapetor, here in your town / Delivering metal to you our crows / We travel the wastelands, we sail over seas / To bring you our music, to make you feel free”) make me feel like I’m listening to a classic band from the 80’s.

Then it’s time to bang our fuckin’ heads with Suicide, an evil version of A7X (which is indeed something very positive), with highlights to its great vocals and to drummer Leif-Ove Haugstad simply smashing his drum set. It can’t get any heavier than this! The next track, Time, reminds me a little of Iced Earth and although it might not be as brilliant as the rest of the album, it’s a pretty decent song anyway; while the Testament-ish tune Creatures of the Night offers us some very dark and solid guitar lines, with the final part of the song being so damn heavy it’s impossible not to love it. And finally, Escapetor offer all fans of good music an incredible gift, with their impeccable cover version of Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison Blues. I have to say this is more than just a cover version, it’s a superb tribute to one of the biggest music icons of all time, and seriously, this song made my day a lot better.

Call it the “New Wave of Norwegian Thrash Metal”, “Boknafjord Area Thrash Metal” (the largest bay in the county of Rogaland), or create your own definition of it, but one thing is certain: Fear is surely the “Thrash Metal Album of the Year” so far, and there’s a huge chance it will remain in the top spot when 2014 is over. If you cannot wait to listen to more of Escapetor’s crazy Thrash Metal, a preview of the entire Fear is available HERE, and you can already pre-order it at the official Crime Records webshop. Let’s say that only Thrash Metal behemoths Exodus can beat them, but it would be an honour anyway to be second place just behind Gary Holt, Zetro & Co., right?

Best moments of the album: The Queen, Fear, Escapetor, Suicide and Folsom Prison Blues.

Worst moments of the album: Unknown Thoughts and Time.

Released in 2014 Crime Records

Track listing
1. The Queen 5:52
2. Dark Past 5:05
3. Unknown Thoughts 4:33
4. Dealing with Fate 6:42
5. Mr. Hyde 5:03
6. Fear 3:56
7. Shadow 3:45
8. Escapetor 4:52
9. Suicide 4:24
10. Time 5:46
11. Creatures of the Night 5:53
12. Folsom Prison Blues (Johnny Cash cover) 2:30

Band members
Claudius Bormuth – vocals
Ragnar Nord-Varhaug – guitar
Axel Feller – guitar
Dan Gundersen – bass
Leif-Ove Haugstad – drums

Album Review – Matanza / A Arte do Insulto (2006)

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Learning Brazilian Portuguese can be a lot easier and more fun with this awesome countrycore album.

Rating3

A+Arte+do+InsultoWith less than 3 months to the 2014 World Cup, lots of soccer fans from all around the world are probably heading to Brazil pretty soon and, of course, are trying to learn some basic words and sentences in Brazilian Portuguese (well, the original Portuguese from Portugal might be helpful too) in order to have an even better experience during the event there. However, if you really want to mingle with the locals, you’ll need more than a simple “por favor” (please) or “obrigado” (thank you), and Brazilian Countrycore band Matanza can help you out with that.

This very talented band from Rio de Janeiro plays an awesome mix of heavy music, hardcore, punk and country, being highly influenced by sacred monsters such as Johnny Cash, Motörhead, Slayer and The Exploited, and adding a huge amount of irony and sarcasm in their lyrics about women, alcohol, violence and human ignorance. After two excellent full-length albums (Santa Madre Cassino, from 2001, and Música para Beber e Brigar, from 2003) and a tribute album composed in its entirety by heavy versions of many classics from Johnny Cash called To Hell With Johnny Cash, from 2005, Matanza released A Arte do Insulto in 2006, or “The Art of Insult” if translated to English, considered their best album until today by the fans.

The title-track, A Arte do Insulto (The Art of Insult), is pure hardcore that will teach you a vast cursing vocabulary for you to use whenever you meet a Brazilian, while Clube dos Canalhas (Scoundrels’ Club) reminds us men what it really is to be a man. The next track is also mandatory for anyone that wants to party in Brazil:  O Chamado do Bar (The Call of the Bar) has some awesome fast riffs and is perfect for some insane circle pits. Sabendo Que Posso Morrer (Knowing I Can Die), a song that talks about love, and Quem Perde Sai (Who Loses Leaves), focused on the pitfalls of poker, are also pretty good fast songs that showcase all the talent of the band’s musicians, as well as the amazing Meio Psicopata (Half Psychopath) with its funny lyrics.

matanzaThe album continues its feast of black humor and bad mood with the classic Eu Não Gosto De Ninguém (I Don’t Like Anyone), an excellent hardcore song with one of the most acid lyrics I’ve ever seen, and the slow-paced O Caminho Da Escada e Da Corda (The Way of the Ladder and the Rope), which despite its cool lyrics is not as exciting as the previous songs. Then we have another great example of what countrycore is with Ressaca Sem Fim (Endless Hangover), the intelligent Tempo Ruim (Bad Weather), and Quem Leva A Sério O Quê? (Who Takes What Seriously?) which is pretty much filler. The last two tracks are pretty cool:  both Whisky Para Um Condenado (Whisky for a Convicted) and Estamos Todos Bêbados (We’re all Drunk) are some kind of funny tribute to alcoholism, with the last being even funnier due to its “pirate song” atmosphere.

Regarding the musicians, I would say the heart and soul of the band are the guitar player Donida (who wrote pretty much all the songs from A Arte do Insulto), and especially the lead singer Jimmy London. Although he was born in Rio, he doesn’t look like a “carioca” at all, resembling a lot more with a metalhead from Ireland, and his voice and attitude add a lot of value to the music of Matanza. And finally, the album art is simple but very effective, inspired by sexy saloon dancers, alcohol and guns, a constant in all of their albums.

Do you understand now how Matanza will help you during the World Cup? It’s heavy music with lots of sarcasm, bad words, and the perfect soundtrack for partying and having some drinks at a pub, which is pretty much everything you’ll be doing in Brazil, right? Or are you going to tell me you are planning to get there just to support your national squad?

Best moments of the album: A Arte do Insulto, O Chamado do Bar and Eu Não Gosto De Ninguém.

Worst moments of the album: O Caminho Da Escada e Da Corda and Quem Leva A Sério O Quê?

Released in 2006 Deckdisc

Track listing
1. A Arte do Insulto 1:51
2. Clube dos Canalhas 3:01
3. O Chamado do Bar 2:06
4. Sabendo Que Posso Morrer 2:19
5. Quem Perde Sai 2:32
6. Meio Psicopata 2:18
7. Eu Não Gosto De Ninguém 3:53
8. O Caminho Da Escada e Da Corda 3:00
9. Ressaca Sem Fim 3:08
10. Tempo Ruim 2:43
11. Quem Leva A Sério O Quê? 2:50
12. Whisky Para Um Condenado 2:22
13. Estamos Todos Bêbados 3:32

Band members
Jimmy London – vocals
China – bass
Fausto – drums
Donida – lead and rhythm guitar