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Metal Chick of the Month – Elana Justin

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Can’t believe I’m lost inside your eyes… And anything and everything don’t you know I’m up for it tonight…

As the winter might be hitting most of us in the Northern Hemisphere in full force, let’s turn up the heat here on The Headbanging Moose by paying a humble tribute to an up-and-coming lady who definitely knows how to rock, living and breathing old school and modern-day Hard Rock, and always showcasing a deep passion for music and arts in general. Owner of a beautiful voice that matches perfectly with the riffs from her own band Motive Black, our metal lady of the month of February will kick your ass mercilessly and hypnotize you with her looks and music. I’m talking about Elana Justin, a New Yorker who’s making a name for herself in the competitive American market, in special in her current city Los Angeles, California, in the United States. Having said that, are you ready for a Rock N’ Roll ride together with Elana and her Motive Black?

Elana has always been into music, growing up doing musical theatre and singing Hard Rock and Heavy Metal simultaneously. As mentioned by Elana herself, her father had a nightclub while she was growing up, and on Thursdays they would have a singer-songwriter night. “I think watching and listening to everyone during that time really inspired me to want to be a singer/performer,” commented Elana about her beginnings. Graduating from the bar band circuit in New York, Elana seized the opportunity to move to Los Angeles in 2018 to work on new music, suddenly finding herself immersed in the local scene and performing on open mic nights at the iconic Viper Room. That immersion and connections made with members of the local scene eventually led to a collaboration with Grammy-winning guitarist and producer Nick Rowe (Bloodsimple, Vampire Weekend), with the duo reworking a song from Elana’s former New York band, taking the music in a heavier direction. That’s how Motive Black was born.

Regarding the name Motive Black, Elana mentioned in one of her interviews that they had a lot of trouble coming up with a name for the band.  “David Buckner from Papa Roach actually came up with the name, and it fit perfectly. It really paired well with the music and vibe,” commented Elana, who also had a few words to say about the musical direction of Motive Black, venturing through the realms of Alternative Rock and Metal with Hard Rock and Rock N’ Roll nuances. “I think the music both developed naturally and was pushed a little in a certain direction. I’ve always listened to and been a fan of this genre, and when the opportunity arose to create my own new project, I was definitely excited to really delve deep into the music I love.” Furthermore, Elana’s plan is to turn Motive Black into a full-bodied band, both in the interest of touring and future work on new music as they move forward.

Motive black are just about to release their debut opus, entitled Auburn (available on all platforms HERE), with Elena’s electrifying vocals bristling with a dynamic punch and scorching tones infusing all songs with raw, ferocious timbres and searing emotions. Regarding the album title, Elana explained that the album “is named for my sister’s beautiful auburn-colored hair. Losing her forced me to reexamine my life and make significant changes. I went through a huge transitional period which included both ugly and beautiful experiences. The album is a wild ride through that journey of anger, mania, deep love, and self discovery,” complementing by saying that “I lost my sister to her battle with addiction. She was one of the smartest women I will ever know. She was a straight-A student who aspired to be a doctor. Addiction does not discriminate. I am angry that she will never realize her dreams. This song is about loss, struggle, rage, but mostly it’s about missing my sister and all of her potential. I will never laugh with anyone like I did with Mia. We need to end the stigma associated with addiction. People are meant to be loved, not judged. I miss Mia every day, and I will for my whole life.” You can already enjoy songs from Auburn on YouTube, those being Broken, Fight Alone, and the title-track Auburn, as well as stream those songs on Spotify. Elana is extremely excited about not only the launch of Auburn, but also about the upcoming months as she plans to take the music by Motive Black to the stage, and therefore to feel the energy of the crowd reacting to her music.

Inspired by books, poetry, short stories, films and plays, Elana’s musical influences aren’t directly associated with the Motive Black sound, but they provided a solid foundation for the music to flourish. She cites Joan Jett, Alanis Morissette, and Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell as her main vocal inspirations, with bands like Halestorm pushing Motive Black’s music in the direction it has taken. “I’m a huge Halestorm fan; Lzzy Hale is a huge inspiration. I’m also really into Bring Me The Horizon lately.  I really love their creativity. Rival Sons was the last live show I saw before Covid. They were incredible. The vocals and musicianship left a huge impression on me,” commented Elana about some of the bands she enjoys the most. In addition, when asked which musician or celebrity she would date, her answer exhaled pure Rock N’ Roll. “I would have to say, Joan Jett. She oozes sex and power. She so inspires me, and just being around her would expand my consciousness.”

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One of the songs from Motive Black’s debut album, the thrilling Lift Me Up, featuring the red hot synergy of Elana performing together with Butcher Babies’ one and only Carla Harvey in a street fighting sequence fans will want to view on repeat. “I wanted the video to focus on female strength. The director and I worked together to come up with an idea that spoke to that. It was also fun to step out of my comfort zone and try something new. I’ve never done anything combat related so it seemed like it would be a fun avenue to explore. The director, Dale Resteghini, also directed the video for Broken. I’m a Butcher Babies fan, so when the song was played for Carla and she agreed to perform on it I was super excited. Carla is a great example of a badass woman killing it in the music industry. I think her vibe fits the song perfectly. She really added something special to Lift Me Up. Working together really brought the song up to a new level,” commented Elana, complementing by saying that “I think it’s really important for people to see women working together to create music and art. We keep seeing it more and more and it’s so exciting. It’s essential for women in this industry to stick together and support each other. There is so much more female visibility in this kind of music than there was even just a few years ago.”

When questioned about the differences between the rock and metal scene in New York on the lower east side compared to the music scene on the legendary Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, Elana said that she has felt really embraced by the scene in Los Angeles since moving there, jamming at the Viper Room and meeting tons of talented musicians, as there’s always a lot going on in the city. When asked about how her hometown has influenced her sound, she said that she thinks there is a rawness that runs through every song that may not be present had she been from somewhere else.  “Who knows? I’m pretty laid back in general, I think and love living here in LA now. I save all my angst for the music!”

Elana strongly believes that drawing from experience gives the lyrics legs to stand on. “When something comes from a real place it almost writes itself. People want to connect – so I think songs from experience really resonate with listeners,” commented our diva, also saying that “everything that I write is emotion or experience driven, but sometimes a cool riff inspires lyrics that come out of nowhere and you work backwards to find the truth in them. It doesn’t always work – but there isn’t just one recipe I use. Other times I have something very specific that I want to say or reference and then I work with that to express what I am trying to get across.” She also believes that to be a successful musician or artist, especially in the very competitive landscape of the current music and arts industry, one should never give up, and be willing to persevere when times are tough or when there are too many obstacles that get in one’s way. Elana is indeed a fighter ready for any battle that comes her way, as not only she’s now beginning her path with Motive Black, but she’s also an actress (as you can see in her IMDB profile), having already featured in G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) and The Jim Gaffigan Show (2015).

Although our amazing singer has never been big into social media, she said she’s been adjusting to that as that’s going to play a big part in the way Motive Black connect to their fans and share their music for the foreseeable future. “I believe the more we can connect directly with our fans, the better chance we have not only to survive – but to thrive, long term.  Having loyal fans who are really into what we do – and are directly connected to us – the better chance we have to remain viable long term, no matter what the industry circumstances are,” said Elana, who also said that she wants people to hear her songs and reinterpret them into something that is meaningful to them. She wants us all to “be bold, be brave and always keep moving forward,” exactly like what she’s doing in her promising career in rock and metal music, and I’m sure we’ll hear a lot more from her in a not-so-distant future.

Motive Black’s Official Facebook page
Motive Black’s Official Instagram
Motive Black’s Official YouTube channel
Motive Black’s Official Twitter

“I want people to hear my songs and reinterpret them into something that is meaningful to them. I want them to empower, and be an outlet for whoever is listening.” – Elana Justin

Album Review – Motive Black / Auburn (2023)

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Rock on to the debut album by this promising Los Angeles-based band, peeling back the layers to reveal the dark and turbulent emotions that dwell in the heart of vocalist Elana Justin.

Peeling back the layers to reveal the dark and turbulent emotions that dwell in the heart of vocalist Elana Justin, Los Angeles, California-based Alternative Metal/Hard Rock group Motive Black is about to release their debut album, entitled Auburn. In collaboration with Grammy winning guitarist and producer Nick Rowe (Bloodsimple, Vampire Weekend), the duo have reworked songs from Elana’s former New York band, taking the music in a much heavier direction while also having guitarist Marcos Curiel (P.O.D.), drummer Ray Luzier (Korn), and vocalist Carla Harvey (Butcher Babies) as very special guests in the album. Produced by Nick at the legendary NRG Studios and mixed by Josh Wilbur, Auburn, which name was inspired by Elana’s sister’s auburn-colored hair (as losing her forced Elana to reexamine her life and make significant changes to it), will appeal to fans of Evanescence, The Pretty Reckless, Halestorm and In This Moment, among many others, representing a wild ride through that journey of anger, mania, deep love and self-discovery.

Nick wastes no time and begin an incendiary riff attack in Lift Me Up, featuring the she-wolf Carla Harvey as a guest vocalist, with the screams by Carla beautifully complementing the striking vocals by Elana; and featuring Ray Luzier on drums and Marcos Curiel on the guitars, Broken is another onrush of Alternative Rock and Metal that will please all admirers of the music by In This Moment and Halestorm. It’s then time for a headbanging tune titled Let Down, with Elana’s vocals alternating between Nu Metal and modern-day Hard Rock, not to mention how awesome Nick’s bass punches sound, and if you enjoy Halestorm’s modern sound you’ll have a blast with the rockin’ tune Bloodsport, showcasing hints of Punk Rock while Elana keeps kicking ass on vocals. Ray crushes his drums in the heavy and thrilling Caged, supported by the incendiary strings by Nick and, therefore, resulting in one of the best moments of the album. Such groovy and dark atmosphere continues in the Nu Metal feast Purge, again spearheaded by Elana’s strident vocals while Nick extracts tons of electricity from his guitar.

Supported by the frantic beats by Ray, Elana screams and roars in the name of Rock N’ Roll in Cellophane, an electrifying song perfect for slamming into the circle pit, followed by Bad Decisions, one of the most modernized of all songs, blending elements from the music by Korn, Nine Inch Nails and other renowned acts from the 2000’s rock scene. After that, Elana sounds insane in Fake, speeding things up to the classic beats by Ray while Nick’s riffage sets fire to the song’s already flammable vibe in an ass-kicking Alternative Metal extravaganza; whereas despite the solid job done by Ray on drums and the heavy riffs by Nick, the song Fight Alone sounds a bit generic compared to the rest of the album. The title-track Auburn offers our ears a passionate performance by Elana on vocals declaiming its pensive lyrics (“Who are you / When you’re all alone / When there’s no one looking / Do you still feel whole / What’s been living inside your soul / Are you empty inside / Are you empty inside”) while Ray dictates the pace with his pounding beats in a powerful heavy ballad, and lastly as a bonus we’re treated to the radio edit version of Lift Me Up, keeping the same energy of the original version.

The stunning Elana and her Motive Black are waiting for you on Facebook and on Instagram with news, tour dates, more of their music and other nice-to-know details about the band, and don’t forget to also stream their classy creations on Spotify and to purchase your copy of auburn by clicking HERE. “I’m not an aggressive person,” Elana says. “But my music is very to the core; everything goes into it. I do most of my venting through music. It’s definitely a collaboration with Nick. We feed off each other and we’ve created some really cool music,” and we must all admit their partnership has been very productive and exciting so far, with Auburn becoming a must-listen album in the current American rock and metal landscape.

Best moments of the album: Lift Me Up, Cellophane and Fake.

Worst moments of the album: Fight Alone.

Released in 2023 AFM Records

Track listing
1. Lift Me Up 3:45
2. Broken 4:05
3. Let Down 3:36
4. Bloodsport 3:22
5. Caged  2:50
6. Purge 3:42
7. Cellophane 3:54
8. Bad Decisions 3:07
9. Fake 4:19
10. Fight Alone 3:40
11. Auburn 4:00
12. Lift Me Up (Single Edit) 3:34

Band members
Elana Justin – vocals
Nick Rowe – guitars, bass

Guest musicians
Carla Harvey – vocals on “Lift Me Up”
Ray Luzier – drums on “Broken”, “Caged”, “Cellophane”, “Fake”, “Fight Alone” and “Auburn”
Marcos Curiel – guitars on “Broken”

Album Review – Chaoseum / The Third Eye (2022)

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This Lausanne, Switzerland-based Nu Metal/Metalcore outfit welcomes us all back to their museum of chaos to the sound of their fourth full-length album.

The talented vocalist CK Smile, guitarists Loïc Duruz and Valery Veings, and drummer Greg Turini, collectively known as the unstoppable Lausanne, Switzerland-based Nu Metal/Metalcore outfit Chaoseum, are welcoming us all back to their “museum of chaos” with the release of their fourth full-length album, entitled The Third Eye, following up on their critically acclaimed 2020 album Second Life. Recorded by Chaoseum at Chaos Studio and Conatus Studios, mixed and mastered by Gwen Kerjan at Slab Sound Studio, and again displaying a grim artwork by Brazilian artist Gustavo Sazes, The Third Eye showcases a more mature and dynamic Chaoseum, who are never afraid of experimenting with new sounds while staying true to their roots throughout the entire album.

I, Sexy Zombie already provides us all with a classy fusion of Alternative Metal and Metalcore where CK’s vocals are at the same time enraged and wicked, while Loïc and Valery extract sheer groove from their stringed weapons; and drinking form the same fountain as renowned acts the likes of Korn and Marilyn Manson the band offers us Unreal, perfect for raising your horns at a sick Halloween party while also showcasing an amazing guitar job done by the band’s talented axe duo. Dance on My Grave is modern and electrifying form the very first second, with Loïc, Valery and Greg making the earth tremble, offering CK exactly what he needs to declaim the song’s dark lyrics (and all spiced up by the song’s incendiary backing screams), whereas the interlude The Third Eye brings to our avid ears somber and atmospheric passages before exploding into Fly Away, inviting us all to jump up and down and bang our heads nonstop to the furious beats by Greg, also displaying the band’s trademark melody and modernized sounds.

Rumbling bass lines and chaotic riffs and beats ignite the dense tune My Wonderland, where once again CK is on fire on vocals in another great sample of how the band’s musicality has evolved in an exciting way through the years. Then it’s time to hit the dance floor together with Chaoseum and succumb to pitch black darkness to the sound of Welcome Home, a fantastic modern-day Metalcore and Alternative Metal extravaganza led by CK’s anguished vocals, followed by the dark ballad Until The End, with Greg dictating the pace with his sluggish beats while also presenting another amazing guitar work done by Loïc and Valery. Their second to last blast of modern and groovy sounds, entitled Sanctum Cinerem, will hammer your head mercilessly from the very first second, with CK sounding possessed on vocals as usual; and What If is perhaps the most experimental of all songs while still bringing the band’s core Alternative Metal, offering our ears solid instrumental pieces by all band members and, therefore, turning it into a great option for their live performances.

If you want to savor The Third Eye in its entirety you can stream the album on YouTube and on Spotify, but of course the guys from Chaoseum would love to see their new album added to your personal collection by purchasing it from their own webstore, from their BandCamp page, from Le Lapin Blanc (as a CD or an LP), from Apple Music, or from Amazon. Furthermore, don’t forget to give them a shout on Facebook and on Instagram, and to subscribe to their YouTube channel for more of their unique creations. I don’t know what’s next for Chaoseum, but if they keep working so hard and so focused, delivering great music like what they did in The Third Eye, we can rest assured their “museum of chaos” will remain open and expanding in the most exciting way imaginable.

Best moments of the album: Unreal, Dance on My Grave and Welcome Home.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2022 Independent

Track listing
1. I, Sexy Zombie 4:05
2. Unreal 5:09
3. Dance on My Grave 3:53
4. The Third Eye 1:33
5. Fly Away 4:24
6. My Wonderland 5:00
7. Welcome Home 6:33
8. Until The End 4:00
9. Sanctum Cinerem 5:38
10. What If 5:56

Band members
CK Smile – vocals
Loïc Duruz – guitars, bass
Valery Veings – guitars
Greg Turini – drums

Metal Chick of the Month – Kristina Vega

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Save me, for the punishment of my head…

Let’s turn up the heat here at The Headbanging Moose in this month of June and properly kick off the summer season in the Northern Hemisphere with a metal lady that will absolutely stun you with her powerful vocals and onstage presence. A metal singer and vocal coach known for her work with bands the likes of Born In Exile, SerapiS, and Cobra Spell, she has a fantastic vocal range that allows her to sing not only metal but pretty much any music style, which explains why she’s becoming more and more famous, respected and admired in the current music scene. I’m talking about the multi-talented Kristina Vega, also known as Kris Vega, carrying the flag of Catalan metal wherever she goes armed with her fulminating voice. I bet you’re eager to know more about such skillful musician as much as Kris is waiting for you to join her in her quest for heavy music.

Born and raised in Barcelona, Spain, Kris had her first contact with metal music when she was only eight years old, more specifically a Rammstein song which she has tattooed on her arm (which we’ll talk about shortly). When she was 16 she had a band called MOTH (which didn’t last for too long according to Kris herself), she also spent five years with a Japanese music group where she used to write music and do the guttural vocals, then three more years with a Blues band, and another metal group called Lunes 12. However, Kris had to take a break from music for a while, getting back in action in the metal scene after seeing an ad asking for a vocalist for a local band. It didn’t take long for Born In Exile to take its desired shape and form, catapulting our diva to stardom right after the band’s first release. Furthermore, growing up in the golden years of Nu Metal helped her to detect all her registers, to play with different techniques of singing and to find her way as a vocalist, having also thoroughly studied how harsh vocals, textured voice and hyper-compression techniques work in order to reach different types of sound. A formed vocal coach by Rodrigo Llamazares at Vocal Studio (a specialist in vocal coaching for teachers), she actually started studying electric bass at the age of 14, and two years later she recorded her first album as a bass player and a guttural vocalist.

Formed in 2012 in Barcelona by drummer JuanMa Ávila and guitarists Carlos Castillo and Rodrigo Baez (all from the band Corelyn) with the goal of creating a project with progressive influences inside Heavy Metal that would please fans of bands the likes of Symphony X, Opeth, Dream Theater, Rush, Myrath, Leprous and Circus Maximus, among others, the unstoppable Melodic Progressive Metal outfit known as Born In Exile has been on a roll since its inception, all of course multiplied by one thousand after Kris joined the band in August 2015 with her melodic, raspy and soaring vocals, having recorded with the band their debut opus Drizzle of Cosmos, in 2017, which by the way led the band to play at Barcelona Rock Fest in 2018, their sophomore album Transcendence, in 2020, and an EP titled Live at Vampire Fest, in 2021. Kris mentioned in one of her interviews that she recorded a cover version for Queen’s “The Show Must go On” as a reply to the band’s ad where they were searching for a new vocalist, followed by a short meeting with JuanMa and Carlos, and both were absolutely mesmerized by her vocals, which you can enjoy in all its glory in songs such as Fields On Fire, The Lighthouse of the Haunted Keeper, Enchantress, One More Line, Ziggurat, Revenant and Torch.

Apart from her career with Born In Exile, our talented diva can also be seen blasting her unparalleled vocals with the bands Cobra Spell, Uneven Frame and SerapiS, as aforementioned. As a matter of fact, Kris has just started her stint with Cobra Spell, the Dutch Heavy Metal/Hard Rock outfit led by guitarist Sonia Anubis (Burning Witches, Crypta), having replaced the band’s original vocalist Alexx Panza about a month ago, and although she hasn’t recorded anything in the studio yet with the band you can already enjoy her visceral vocals with Cobra Spell on the road, as she’s now touring with the band despite the extremely short time to rehearse with them. It’s not clear if Barcelona-based Nu Metal project Uneven Frame is still active as there are no news from the band since 2020, but it would definitely be interesting to see what Kris can do in a more alternative style (and you can take a listen at their demos on their YouTube channel); and regarding Progressive Metal project SerapiS, recently formed by Kris together with guitarist Joaco Luís (Mollitiam, Born In Exile), you can enjoy the band’s first three singles on Spotify, or go to YouTube to be stunned by Act I: Defiance, Act II: Dissidence, and Act III: Wistfulness, pointing to a very interesting future ahead of them.

Our multi-talented Kris can also be seen as a guest vocalist for the songs Our Demise, from the 2021 album The Harbour in Me, by Spanish Symphonic Power Metal act Embersland, and The Breathless Season Bane, from the 2021 album Portraits, by Spanish Atmospheric Black Metal horde Perennial Isolation; and as a metal vocal coach at the Metal Academy School of Music, the first school completely devoted to Heavy Metal and Hard Rock founded in 2017 in Barcelona, and as a voice actress for The Monster Factory, a Montreal, Canada-based company specialized in the conception of voices for monsters, zombies, aliens and many more creatures in the video game and film industries provided by metal vocalists the likes of our unstoppable diva.

Highly influenced by a wide variety of styles, from bands like Tool, Arch Enemy, Opeth, Leprous, Slipknot and Jinjer to vocalists like Freddie Mercury and Mónica Naranjo, Kris has already performed in over 500 concerts, singing not only Heavy Metal and Hard rock, but also Blues, Soul, Death, Progressive and Experimental Metal, proving not only how skillful she is, but also how experienced she already is in the music industry. As mentioned, having listened to her first metal song at the young age of eight, more specifically the song Klavier, from the album Sehnchust by Rammstein, thanks to the father of one of her neighbours, Kris quickly moved on to other bands and artists such as Linkin Park, Slipknot, Machine Head, System of a Down, Otep and Arch Enemy, being right now a huge fan of Jinjer, In This Moment, Gojira, Opeth, Devin Townsend, Myrath and Twelve Foot Ninja. When asked if she listens to any bands that she considers some sort of “guilty pleasure”, Kris mentioned Nino Bravo, from her childhood years, Azul y Negro, from her teens, and Evanescence, when she was in her 20’s. In addition, when questioned if she prefers Nightwish or Epica, she said she doesn’t really enjoy their voices, being a much bigger fan of stronger vocals the likes of Jinjer and Battle Beast.

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An avid reader of everything surrounding the voice anatomy, Kris is also writing a book to help singers who are just starting their careers and trying to find their own voice, focusing on all obstacles a vocalist might find along the way as for example not being told what’s working and what’s not, which by the way happened to her in the beginning of her career. She believes anyone can sing as long as it represents your own voice and delivers the desired message, always working not only her students’ voices but also their fears, their landscapes and so on, trying to transfer as much courage and strength to all of them during her classes.

It was right after the release of Drizzle of Cosmos that Kris and her bandmates from Born In Exile began touring on a more professional level, having played in different countries and festivals, such as Barcelona Rock Fest. She mentioned that when the band received an email informing they were selected to open that festival she almost cried of pure joy, also saying their performance at the festival was one of the most memorable moments of her life so far. She mentioned in one of her interviews how difficult it is to perform onstage for a massive festival crowd, the importance of being mentally prepared, and the energy shared with the crowd. Still talking about touring, Kris said that she loves to play alongside renowned bands as everything feels a lot more professional, and that although organizing tours (especially outside of Spain) is a lot of work, all that effort is definitely worth it.

As a prominent woman in Heavy Metal, Kris commented on how she sees the role of women in the current metal scene and the type of treatment she receives from men. She mentioned that despite a few bad experiences and situations in her career, one of the most beautiful things in her life is the fact she’s extremely well treated by her bandmates, who support her in everything and the whole feminist movement. However, she believes women in metal should stop fighting against each other for different reasons and realize that they’re stronger when united, saying it’s important to stop thinking like a man and avoid at all costs using sexist words and expressions that are stuck inside our minds thanks to the way we’re taught those things by our society. Moreover, Kris also faced some criticism and sexism when she decided to move from her hairdresser job (which she had been doing since she was 15) to pursue her career in music. She used to listen to things such as being a vocalist or working with music doesn’t pay your bills, doesn’t put food on the table, that she should get a “real” job, and so on, but that didn’t stop her from becoming the awesome vocalist she is today.

Regarding the metal scene these days, she said she thinks the musical landscape is unfair, complaining about an empty venue for an excellent band that goes all the way from Australia to Spain, for example, which is frustrating for the musicians involved. In addition, she said she would like to encourage all bands to have more respect and companionship among themselves, and to see more support to local bands by inviting them to open for the foreign headliners, just like what happened to Born In Exile during Barcelona Rock Fest where the band might have played for only 30 minutes, but according to Kris herself it was good enough to show the crowd what they got. And to be honest, even if they had played for only five minutes that would have been more than enough for the metalheads at the festival to witness how amazing the music by Born In Exile is and how powerful Kris’ vocals are, always singing about love, pain, real-life experiences and other related topics, therefore adding an extra personal touch to her thrilling performance.

As aforementioned, Kris is an accomplished vocal coach, offering vocalists not only from Barcelona but from all around the world different options to work with her, including more basic, free courses through the Metal Academy School of Music, or intensive online and in-person courses (which you can get more details by contacting her by email), and she’s waiting for you to begin a very productive and fun partnership in the name of rock and metal music. By the way, you can also click HERE to check all of her official links where you can get to know more about Kris and her career. Lastly, in case you decide to take vocal classes with Kris and it starts to rain, that might be a very good sign, and the reason for that is quite funny. When she was asked about something curious that has already happened with Born In Exile, she said that every time the band is about to do something important, it rains, it doesn’t matter if it’s the recording of a new album, signing with a record label, playing at a famous venue, or anything else. In other words, let’s join the incendiary Kristina Vega in her quest for heavy music, and may the rain fall down on us for many decades to come together with such inspiring musician.

Kristina Vega’s Official Facebook page
Kristina Vega’s Official Instagram
Kristina Vega’s Official Twitter
Born In Exile’s Official Facebook page
Born In Exile’s Official Instagram
Born In Exile’s Official YouTube channel
Born In Exile’s Official Twitter

Album Review – Through The Noise / Tragedies EP (2022)

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This talented Swedish Post-Hardcore and Nu Metal outfit is back in action with an inspiring three-track EP, pointing to an exciting musical direction prior to their next full-length album.

Vocalist Jowl Nyberg, guitarists Victor Adonis and Marcus Skantz, bassist Martin Lingonblad and drummer Peter Liwgren, collectively known as Lund/Malmö, Sweden-based Post-Hardcore/Nu Metal outfit Through The Noise, are back in action now in 2022 with a brand new EP entitled Tragedies, following up on their highly acclaimed 2019 album Dualism. During the Covid-19 lockdowns the band was unable to tour; however, there was plenty of time to write new material and they wrote a bunch of new songs, and after some careful consideration they decided that it would be best to release an EP before a full-length album, so they tracked three songs which make up Tragedies. Produced by Robert Kukla at Obsidian Recording Studios, Tragedies showcases a more sinister and heavier side of Through The Noise, appealing not only to the band’s current fanbase but also to anyone in search for fresh and vibrant heavy music.

The quintet arises from the underworld with a fusion of Alternative Metal and darker elements in Tantalus, bringing forward poetic lyrics rabidly declaimed by Jowl (“Perpetually trapped / Lost sense of time / Eternal damnation / Cursed with temptation”) and an amazing job done by Peter with his crushing drums, while Victor and Marcus add tons of heaviness to the music with their refined riffage. And Peter keeps hammering his drums in Aktaion, with all whimsical background elements making a thrilling paradox with the metallic bass by Martin and the raspy roars by Jowl, being therefore perfect for banging your head and jumping up and down with the band in the name of heavy music. Lastly, in Lamia we’re treated to another round of their wicked words (“Aggression bottled up from past transgressions / Disfigured, tormented by the pain / Forever haunted by my heinous actions / A victim, forced by godly hands”) supported by the visceral hybrid of Alternative Metal and Hardcore blasted by the quintet, making us eager for more of their music in a not-so-distant future.

You can get in touch with the talented guys from Through The Noise and know more about the band, their tour dates and plans for the future on Facebook and on Instagram, subscribe to their YouTube channel for more of their music and videos, steam their entire catalog on Spotify, and of course purchase your copy of Tragedies by clicking HERE, showing your utmost support to the Swedish underground. Nobody truly knows what will happen to the world of music in the coming months due to this never-ending Covid-19 madness, but at least we can rest assured the fires of heavy music will keep burning thanks to hardworking bands like Through The Noise, and based on the heaviness and melodies offered to us in Tragedies I can’t wait to see how their next full-length album will sound. It will be awesome, no doubt about that.

Best moments of the album: Tantalus.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2022 Eclipse Records

Track listing
1. Tantalus 3:55
2. Aktaion 4:41
3. Lamia 3:24

Band members
Jowl Nyberg – vocals
Victor Adonis – guitar
Marcus Skantz – guitar
Martin Lingonblad – bass
Peter Liwgren – drums

Metal Chick of the Month – Mikaela Attard

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I flew high on black wings when death looked me closer in the eye…

The Headbanging Moose is about to become The RED-banging Moose this summer with our multi-talented, sunning and rebellious metal chick of the month of June, and you better get ready because she’s out for blood. I’m talking about Mikaela Attard, a vocalist, composer, lyric writer and producer hailing from the island of Malta, in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, with a wide vocal range that allows her to easily sing in multiple rock and metal styles, known in the metal community for her time with Maltese Extreme Metal act Martyrium and more recently for her wicked solo project MIKAELA. Born on May 8, 1993, Mikaela has been singing since the young age of eight, having actually started with classical singing training as well as classical piano training and examinations. In addition, she won the Pop Idol in Malta when she was 13 and released her first Alternative Rock EP Hear Me Out when she was 15, with all the singles from the EP getting constant airplay. Do you want more? Alright, here we go.

Having performed on several stages around Malta and overseas, including cities like Los Angeles and Boston, in the United States, and several European countries, Mikaela studied Vocal Performance on campus at Berklee College of Music in Boston and furthered her education with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Production with Summa Cum Laude, always attracted to the creation and production side of the music, and also getting into the science and engineering behind it as well as into Game Audio and Film Scoring. All that passion, talent and education resulted in multiple awards in her career, including Best New Artist in 2010, Best Female Artist and Malta’s Export Artist in 2011, Vodafone Upcoming Artist and Berklee College Singer-Songwriter, and Best Metal Band in 2019.

Let’s begin her journey in our Heavy Metal universe with her two-year stint with Martyrium (or MartYriuM), an Extreme Metal band from Malta formed by Count Mortem in 1999 with the spawn of the second wave of Black Metal, offering fans of extreme music a unique blend of Black and Death Metal with a specific sound design introducing sinister orchestrations and industrial elements to the style. Our red-haired diva began her time with Martyrium back in 2018, and Mikaela herself mentioned that it was a great learning experience in the beginning. However, as time passed by she started to feel very uncomfortable inside the band, stating that things got unacceptable literally, from the conditions how they treated her as a frontwoman and how they used her pictures, never wanting to hear what she had to say about those topics, leading to her departure form the band in 2020. It is what it is, unfortunately, because as you can see in some live videos such as Martyrium playing the song Curse Of Salvation at Oskorei Midvinter Festival in 2019 and the song Vital in Willemeen, Arnhem, Netherlands during the Female Metal Voices Tour 2018 with the Butcher Babies and Kobra and The Lotus, Martyrium kicked some serious ass with Mikaela fronting the band. Not only that, Mikaela had also been part of several collaborations such as Xirka Rock, and collaborated with the legendary multi-instrumentalist Marco Minnemann on his album My Sister on the songs My Sister and A Working Town. In addition, she was also a member of a metal band called Hex Omega during part of the 2010’s.

A few months after leaving Martyrium due to the personal issues listed above with the other band members, our Maltese metal goddess founded her stunning solo project MIKAELA, having already released her debut effort Nocturne In Red in 2020 alongside guitarist and bassist Kyle Farrugia (from Maltese metal band Align the Tide) and the aforementioned Marco Minnemann on drums, bringing to our ears an electrifying and sexy fusion of Metalcore, Deathcore, Progressive, Black, Death and Nu Metal, as you can see in the excellent song Chaotic Mind. According to Mikaela herself, Nocturne In Red is a conceptual album and also comes to terms with her personal experiences. “The concept of the album is about state of the mind. In fact, even it is even portrayed in the artwork on the album. I hold on a crystal ball and assigned to it the human brain. It is dripping black blood from it, and basically what it means is that it is about six different states of the mind and it is different how we perceive them, but sometimes we still are the same in the difference. So that is what it generally is about. All the songs are about a particular episode and that is what inspired me to write a particular song,” said Mikaela, complementing by explaining the idea behind the song Bring Me Blood. “That was inspired by an extreme event I went through in the past. I was the victim of an attempted murder here in Malta. I wrote that song in literally five minutes basically, it was just spitting out the words and music. It just came right on and that is why I decided that it should be the first single on the album, because it is so authentic. It is like: I left from somewhere over there. The song speaks about the anger I felt towards the situation and also towards the misunderstanding of court. I do not think it was well dealt in court, I think justice was not delivered.” And you can watch Mikaela discussing about that in an interview to Gabriel Gignac from Grizzly Media named 10 Bites of Nocturne In Red.

When asked about what us fans should expect from her first solo album, Mikaela explained how different the music style would be from her previous years with Martyrium. “My background of influences are quite different from Martyrium’s, although obviously there’s a lot of common favorites. I, however, like a more dynamic plateau of sounds and textures. I am a lot into deathcore, jazz, classical, electronic, groove and progressive music apart from all the metal in general. Obviously, I have a fond love for Black Metal and Death Metal too as well as all sorts of rock and metal in general. But I’m not quite a one kind of music-kind-of-girl. For that matter, I also love techno and industrial.” Regarding her main influences and idols, as expected she keeps getting inspired by a vast array of distinguished musicians and bands the likes of Ronnie James Dio, Metallica, Megadeth, Rammstein, Nine Inch Nails, The Prodigy, Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Opeth, Janis Joplin, King Crimson, Emerson, Lake and Palmer, Lamb of God, Otep, Gojira, Slipknot, Thy Art Is Murder, Whitechapel, Jinjer, Bring Me The Horizon, Suicide Silence, Northlane, Chelsea Grin, Behemoth, After The Burial, Emmure, In This Moment, Arch Enemy, Wage War, ERRA and Ded, just to mention a few, which explains why the music found in her solo project is so difficult to label, so unique and diverse.

An accomplished vocalist, Mikaela can easily switch from clean singing to powerful growls and screaming vocals, and when asked about how she grew to like and practice this kind of singing and who were her heroes or inspirations that got her into that, she said that she’s a trained classical singer with a fond love for rock and metal who has always listened to those styles, having been introduced to them at a young age by her parents, and as her voice has always had sort of a rasp and natural scream it was a smooth transition for her to start doing guttural vocals. “My first experiences growling and screaming in public came gradually but once I launched some of the music at my debut, it was then official,” commented Mikaela, who’s also absolutely passionate about being on stage. “I must have been 9 singing in public, festivals, auditions, cathedrals, singing with organs and orchestras, stages, karaoke’s, we used to do it all the time when I was kid. It was fun. My first official outside country experience in public was singing in Johannesburg, South Africa though on a much larger scale and I loved it. I never feared the stage, can’t really say I got ever shy or anything… And I guess that still shows to this day.” And although she believes the pandemic might destroy metal music if nothing is done urgently, she understands the whole situation and keeps working off stage in anything that requires her attention. “We’re doing this massive sacrifice to help stop the spread of covid which now I don’t even know when that will ever stop but let’s hang on. When I’m off stage, there’s still a lot of things to do for a musical act so I keep myself entertained and focused by practicing on my own, coming up with ideas, drawing, writing, preparing orders and doing everything necessary to keep it going.”

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As a woman that performs in a genre that is always connected with power and strength, when asked about what she would say to women in general who face sexism and undermining and are considered weaker than men, she believes that all women in metal and in life in general should not go down to the level of the bullies who are being sexist, as it’s a waste of time. “If you share negativity, that’s what you’ll get. So be positive, feel it for real and just shut them and their vibes out of your life. The world is much better than that. Always be yourself and look for people who share the same ambition, who can see through you for real and what you’re after in life and music. You deserve better, we are strong and our strength should be celebrated just as any man can,” commented Mikaela, who also thinks that music shouldn’t be divided by gender or sex at all, as if we don’t all have a pair of vocal cords and we all can sound unique no matter what techniques we use to voice our hearts out.

Regarding her view of the metal scene in her homeland Malta, she mentioned that although Malta is a small island with a population of only around 500,000 people, it’s pretty much the same population as Iceland, but a lot of great artists come from Iceland. “I do not think it is quite within the culture to appreciate Metal a lot. It is not the mainstream at all. With the Metal scene, there are a lot of bands and actually, if you play here, a lot of the people in the crowd perform themselves. In general, I think it is very hard to make it, you have to skip the first step and it has to be outside of Malta, unfortunately,” said our screaming queen, complementing by saying that despite the fact there are several excellent metal bands showcasing a lot of potential on the island, the lack of a proper market or industry makes it extremely hard (albeit not impossible) for most bands to reach a decent level of success. In addition, if you want to know more about Mikaela and her beautiful home country, I highly recommend you watch two very interesting interviews with her done by local publications, one being 73 Questions Malta, where she talks about her thoughts on the metal industry in Malta and what it was like growing up there, and another called Lovin Malta Meets: Mikaela, where Lovin Malta’s resident music journalist JP Azzopardi discussed everything with her, from her musical origins to the world of metal and her future plans.

There are many TV performances of Mikaela on Youtube with the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra during an event called Rockestra, a collaboration that Mikaela considers really amazing, singing in front of 13,000 fans in her homeland even with the fact that metal is still a controversial style in Malta. For instance, you can enjoy her powerful vocals in absolute sync with her country’s national orchestra in songs such as Metallica’s Enter Sandman in 2011, Guns N’ Roses’ Paradise City in 2012, Ozzy Osbourne’s Crazy Train in 2016, and AC/DC’s Back In Black in 2018, showing her performances with the orchestra were not a once-off, but she’s a recurrent guest during such unique festival. Also, there’s another great video of Mikaela performing Black Sabbath’s Children Of The Sea live on the Maltese TV channel One on the program Q, always showing her support for metal music in Malta.

Our talented Mikaela also loves to interact with her fans and followers on social media, not only posting pictures but also writing lengthy captions and asking them questions as well as for opinions or suggestions; however, people tend to simply “ignore” her questions and give her only compliments in the comments. Mikaela said she actually appreciates all the comments and compliments, not judging anyone for not answering any of the questions posted and always valuing the interactions with her followers. She also likes to keep track of the number of streams of her songs, which countries she’s listened the most and merchandise purchases, as she believes it’s very important to know where her music is being enjoyed. For instance, she mentioned in one of her interview that Germany is amongst the top countries where her debut solo album is being listened to, as well as the United States, Canada (and The Headbanging Moose is proud to contribute to that, of course), Mexico and Russia.

Having several beautiful tattoos all over her body, Mikaela said it all started with ‘Rock and Roll’ inked on the side of her palms some years ago and she has never looked back, having her two full arm sleeves, palms, fingers, front side of the thighs, some on the neck, ass and full back all covered (and always ready for more). “I love tattoos, I think it’s like turning a house into a home. I feel confident in my body and what I represent. In my country it was still a taboo, especially on women, until a few years ago, but things slowly started changing thankfully. I used to get looks for having red hair in the past, can you imagine when I had the first tattoo sleeve? Older mentalities still judge a woman with tattoos greatly and to be fair, it is still not the norm and could get a lot of judgement,” commented Mikaela, who’s always encouraging uniqueness and trying to lead by example. Furthermore, when asked why she has chosen red as her main color, when her zodiac sign says it should have been green or pink, she answered by saying she loves red a lot along with black, representing a lot of things for her personally and becoming an important part of her identity. Mikaela also has some interesting hobbies whenever she’s not listening to music, writing, playing the piano and experimenting with mixing and sound engineering. For example, she loves to paint occasionally with pencils or acrylics and of course to take part in photo shooting sessions, among other non-music activities, but yet again she has mentioned several times already that music is her life and vice-versa. “Well, I live the cliché, yes my life is the music.” Well said, Mikaela!

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“Honestly, the more you know about music, and the more you know how things are done behind that, I think being a vocalist is just the tip of the iceberg. I think it is good to you have some kind of knowledge. I mean, you do not have to have a degree if you just like to read about mixing, mastering and production and you have the space to do so, I think it is just awesome. But I really wanted to get that formal degree. So that is why I applied for that degree course. It was very important for me, it was a game changer, because I have always seen music not from a vocalist perspective. I have always seen it as a musician’s perspective, since I am formally trained and piano classically trained and also jazz trained.” – Mikaela Attard

Album Review – Mikaela / Nocturne In Red (2020)

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Succumb to the dark and personal fusion of Metalcore, Deathcore, Progressive and Nu Metal by one of the most prominent voices of the Maltese metal scene in her debut solo album.

A few months after leaving her previous band MartYrium due to personal issues with the other band members, Maltese metal goddess Mikaela Attard is unleashing upon humanity under her newborn Metalcore solo project Mikaela her debut opus entitled Nocturne In Red, featuring guitarist and bassist Kyle Farrugia (from Maltese Active Metal band Align the Tide) and drummer Marco Minnemann as her loyal henchmen throughout the entire album. Written and produced by Mikaela herself, and mixed and mastered by Tue Madsen at Antfarm Studio, the pivotal concept behind Nocturne In Red highlights subjects surrounding personal experiences and states of the mind, but according to Mikaela it is up to the listener and viewer to perceive them on how it’s relative to their lives. Not only that, the album also provides an incendiary mixture of Metalcore, Deathcore, Progressive and Nu Metal, and even nuances of Black and Death Metal, all spiced up by Miakela’s native language Maltese carefully added to some of the tracks from the album, being therefore recommended for fans of the music by Pantera, Godsmack, Mastodon and Lamb Of God, among several others.

The cinematic and creepy intro Into a New Hell opens the gates of the underworld for the she-demon Mikaela to stun us all in Bring Me Blood, showcasing darkly poetic lyrics declaimed by Mikaela (“I flew high on black wings when death looked me closer in the eye / I may have pushed up daisies before, I gasped and wanted more / Now, hell came to me to show you what I see / The blade won’t reign on me, you sick fuck, it ends when you can’t breathe”) embraced by the solid fusion of Metalcore and Deathcore blasted by Kyle and Marco. And her insanity in the form of music keeps flowing nonstop in the also heavy and groovy Chaotic Mind, once again presenting psychological lyrics growled by our talented diva (“A whisper of existence / A face wrapped in maleficent greed / Silence even grins at you / Delusion creeps in the lies let lose”), smashing drums by Marco and Groove Metal-inspired riffs and bass punches by Kyle; followed by Disenthralled, highly recommended for fans of the demented music by Slipknot and Jinjer, where Mikaela is on fire with both her violent roars and strident clean vocals, and with the riffage and solos by Kyle sounding even more piercing than before. Then it’s time to break your neck headbanging to the venomous Alternative Metal hymn Nightmare, with Mikaela’s growling ranging from deep guttural to hellish gnarls while Marco brings his dosage of heaviness with his progressive beats.

In Death Dance we face more of Kyle’s metallic, rumbling bass jabs accompanied by Marco’s smashing drums and the mesmerizing vocals by Mikaela, blending elements from Metalcore with Melodic Death and Groove Metal, albeit going on for a bit too long, though, whereas Abyss is a piano-infused dark ballad by Mikaela where the sharp guitars by Kyle walk hand in hand with her passionate vocal performance, sounding very personal, epic and obscure from start to finish and presenting a unique and captivating side of our banshee. Back to her beastly she-wolf mode, our dauntless diva of darkness and her henchmen will penetrate deep inside our psyche once again with the Metalcore extravaganza titled Enthalpy Rage, feeling like an electrifying fusion of the current music played by Arch Enemy with modern-day Deathcore, while Ophidian’s Whisper is another solid composition by the trio with Marco dictating the pace with his infernal and intricate drumming, and with Mikaela once again alternating between demonic screams and melodious clean lines. And lastly, we’re treated to a sinister atmosphere embellished by a melancholic piano and the gorgeous voice by Mikaela, morphing into one final metal attack titled Room Hell, with both Marco and Kyle being on absolute fire with their sonic weapons, providing all Mikaela needs to shine on vocals and, consequently, ending the album in a truly devilish way.

Mikaela’s musical journey to hell and back can be appreciated in its entirety on Spotify and on Deezer, but of course you should purchase a copy of such amazing album of modern-day Metalcore from her own webstore, from Apple Music or from Amazon, also showing your support to one of Malta’s most prominent names in metal music by following her on Facebook and on Instagram, and by subscribing to her YouTube channel for more of her darkly enchanting official videos. Nocturne In Red is a very personal album by Mikaela that will undoubtedly please all fans of Metalcore, Deathcore and all related styles, showing us all the darkest side of such talented artist while at the same time adding the charming Republic of Malta to the worldwide map of contemporary metal music.

Best moments of the album: Bring Me Blood, Disenthralled and Enthalpy Rage.

Worst moments of the album: Death Dance.

Released in 2020 Independent

Track listing
1. Into a New Hell – Intro 2:29
2. Bring Me Blood 4:25
3. Chaotic Mind 4:35
4. Disenthralled 5:44
5. Nightmare 6:37
6. Death Dance 6:20
7. Abyss 4:56
8. Enthalpy Rage 4:41
9. Ophidian’s Whisper 5:23
10. Room Hell 5:00

Band members
Mikaela Attard – vocals

Guest musicians
Kyle Farrugia – guitars, bass
Marco Minnemann – drums

Album Review – Chaoseum / Second Life (2020)

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After taking their first step to hell, it’s time for those Swiss metallers to stun us all with their sophomore album, showcasing a thrilling fusion of Metalcore and Nu Metal with a theatrical twist.

Founded in 2018 by Loïc Duruz and Valery Veings, both former guitarists of Symphonic Metal band Elferya, the up-and-coming Lausanne, Switzerland-based Metalcore act Chaoseum is back in action in 2020 with their sophomore album entitled Second Life, presenting the band’s trademark amalgamation of styles including Metalcore, Power Crossover and Nu Metal, among others. Recorded at both Chaos Studio and Conatus Studios, mixed by Gwen Kerjan from Slab Sound Studio, and featuring a beautiful artwork by Brazilian artist Gustavo Sazes, Second Life brings forward a new (and more theatrical) era in the career of Chaoseum, with its 11 original compositions thoroughly crafted by Loïc and Valery together with fontman CK Smile and drummer Greg Turini appealing to all fans of the modern metal music played by bands such as Lacuna Coil, Korn, Trivium, Killswitch Engage and Slipknot, among others.

The creepy, cinematic intro XXV-IX-MMXX (or September 15, 2020, the official release date of the album) will send shivers down your spine before the quartet comes crushing with their vicious Metalcore in Hell Has No Way Out, with Greg sounding like a machine gun on drums while Loïc and Valery fire melodious riffs for our total delight and CK roars and sings with tons of anguish. The melodic and aggressive title-track Second Life starts in an atmospheric way before exploding into a visceral fusion of Metalcore and Melodic Death Metal, with the rumbling sounds of the bass by Loïc punching us hard in the head, followed by Into My Split, a fulminating Alternative Metal tune tailored for banging our heads nonstop or simply enjoying the gentle guitars and beats by the band, all spiced up by CK’s introspective performance. Then we have the excellent Smile Again, clearly inspired by Nu Metal masters Korn, with CK doing his best Jonathan Davis impersonation while Loïc and Valery keep delivering pure metallic lines through their riffs and bass punches; whereas it’s time to speed things up and offer the listener the sinister and alternative Scream, with Loïc, Valery and Greg bringing tons of progressiveness to their wicked sonority, and with its futuristic and modern vibe being all CK needs to shine on vocals.

Stick Under My Skin is another song with a cryptic, mesmerizing intro, evolving into a feast of Alternative, Groove and Progressive Metal where CK’s clean and harsh vocals are nicely supported by his bandmates’ backing vocals, while Burn My Eyes is a solid rock and metal creation by Chaoseum, albeit a bit generic if compared to the rest of the album, with both Loïc and Valery doing a great job with their flammable guitars. And you better get ready as there’s still a lot more of the music by Chaoseum, starting with Feel, a modern, industrialized party perfect for their live performances where the quartet enhances their rage, punch and insanity. Put differently, this is a heavier version of traditional Alternative Metal led by the classic beats by Greg, while things can’t get more alternative nor groovier than in Sex In Hell, a suggestive song name that matches perfectly with the heavy but sexy music played by the band, resulting in a dark ballad where CK steals the spotlight with his devilish vocals. Lastly, there’s more of their groovy bass punches and rhythmic beats intertwined with futuristic background elements and the raspy vocals by CK in Frozen, a song which fans of Korn, Lacuna Coil and other modern metal bands will surely love.

In a nutshell, it doesn’t matter if you’re a longtime fan of Alternative and Nu Metal or if you’re taking your first steps in this more modern side of heavy music, you should definitely add Second Life to your daily playlist (and you can do so by streaming the album in full on Spotify). Chaoseum put their hearts and souls into the making of their new opus, and you can sense that passion and hard work in each and every track of the album, proving those Swiss metallers are o the right path to stardom. Hence, don’t forget to show them your support by following them on Facebook and on Instagram, by subscribing to their YouTube channel and, above all that, by purchasing their new album from their own BandCamp page or webstore (where you can by the way find tons of ass-kicking merch as well), from Apple Music or from Amazon. Chaoseum’s “first step to hell” was already solid and vibrant, but it’s under this new era, or maybe I should call it their “second life”, that the band is ready to show the world what their music is all about.

Best moments of the album: Hell Has No Way Out, Scream and Stick Under My Skin.

Worst moments of the album: Burn My Eyes.

Released in 2020 Independent

Track listing
1. XXV-IX-MMXX 0:58
2. Hell Has No Way Out 4:07
3. Second Life 4:18
4. Into My Split 4:18
5. Smile Again 4:27
6. Scream 3:38
7. Stick Under My Skin 4:51
8. Burn My Eyes 3:31
9. Feel 4:39
10. Sex In Hell 5:41
11. Frozen 4:41

Band members
CK Smile – vocals
Loïc Duruz – guitars, bass
Valery Veings – guitars
Greg Turini – drums

Album Review – Null Positiv / Independenz (2020)

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A fantastic hybrid of Melodic Death Metal with Alternative Metal and Neue Deutsche Härte brought forth by one of the best new names of the underground German scene.

Forged in the fires of Lübbenau, Germany back in 2015 by the multi-talented frontwoman Elli Berlin, the up-and-coming Alternative/Nu Metal army known as Null Positiv has been on a constant and healthy rise in the underground scene releasing an array of electrifying albums since the band’s inception, starting with their 2016 debut EP Krieger until their brand new opus titled Independenz, or “independence” in English, brought into being earlier this year. Currently comprised of the stunning Elli Berlin on vocals, Bene Gugerbauer on the guitars, Manu Altendorfer on bass and Flo Schnablo on drums, Null Positiv are definitely one of the most interesting bands hailing from Germany from the past few years, not only presenting a fantastic hybrid of Melodic Death Metal with Alternative Metal, but singing all of their songs in their mother tongue German (just like their countrymen Rammstein), giving their music an organic and powerful vibe, with their new album Independenz beautifully representing their amalgamation of styles, their passion for heavy music and, therefore, pointing to an even brighter future for Elli and the boys.

In a truly Neue Deutsche Härte-inspired mode, Null Positiv begin their industrial feast with the excellent Freiheit (“freedom”), where Manu sounds bestial with his metallic bass jabs while Elli roars and screams rabidly from start to finish, followed by Insomnia, bringing forward a thrilling fusion of Alternative and Industrial Metal that reminds me of some of the best creations by Korn, led by the whimsical riffs by Bene and the pounding drums by Flo. Moreover, the music flows smoothly until the very end, setting the tone for the title-track Independenz, where you don’t need to speak a single word in German to understand and feel deep inside your soul what Elli passionately declaims, evolving into a dark ballad showcasing rumbling bass lines, melodious riffs and an empowering atmosphere. And growling like a demonic entity Elli steals the spotlight in the Melodic Death Metal tune Armageddon, infused with modern-day Groove Metal elements while Bene and Manu make a dynamic and incendiary duo with their thunderous strings.

Once again venturing through more alternative and modernized lands, Flo dictates the rhythm with his classy beats supported by the strident guitar lines by Bene in Gib Mir Ein Zeichen (“give me a sign”), while Elli “raps” the song’s lyrics. Then it’s time to be stunned by the gorgeous performance by Elli in the delicate but somber Blutdiamant (“blood diamond”), a stylish semi-ballad where its vicious bass and drums make an amazing paradox with its piano notes and all gentle background elements, whereas Phantomschmerz (“phantom pain”) sounds even more metallic and aggressive than its predecessors, with Elli singing and growling in great fashion while Flo shows no mercy for his drums (and consequently for our necks). After such amazing display of savagery by Null Positiv, grim vocalizations, a sense of hopelessness and endless electricity will penetrate deep inside your soul in Ich Fühl Nichts Mehr (“I don’t feel anything anymore”), one of their most atmospheric tunes while keeping their core Alternative Metal vibe intact.

Let’s keep banging our heads to their groove and melody in the exciting aria titled Fall Out, perfect for jumping up and down with Null Positiv in a fusion of contemporary Melodic Death Metal and alternative music, with Bene kicking ass with his riffs, and the quartet never seems tired of smashing our heads with their heavy-as-hell but very harmonious music as we can all witness in Schwarzes Labyrinth (“black labyrinth”), a very pleasant composition where Manu and Flo bring thunder and groove to our ears with their rumbling weapons. In Deine Haut (“your skin”) we’re treated to a rising metal intro where the guitars by Bene are intertwined with Elli’s striking vocals, resulting in a solid creation by Null Positiv (albeit not as flammable as the rest of the album), followed by Kommen Und Gehen (“come and go”), their last breath of insanity in the form of music with a welcome 80’s and 90’s vibe, bringing forward a great paradox between riffs and drums while Elli continues to hypnotize us all with her piercing clean vocals and evil gnarls.

In a nutshell, if you’re a fan of the Neue Deutsche Härte crafted by Rammstein and at the same time of female-fronted metal bands the likes of Arch Enemy, The Agonist and Infected Rain, you should definitely take a shot at Independenz, which is by the way available for streaming in its entirety on Spotify, as the new installment by Null Positiv might be exactly what you’re craving in heavy and alternative music. Hence, don’t forget to give Elli and the guys a shout on Facebook and on Instagram, to subscribe to their YouTube channel for all of their breathtaking videos, and of course to purchase Independenz from the band’s own webstore, as well as from Apple Music, from Amazon or from Discogs. Null Positiv not only reached new heights with Independenz, but as the name of the album already suggests, any band in the world can be one hundred percent independent (Triplebase Records is their own label, by the way) and still be successful and deliver first-class music to the masses, proving to all critics that heavy music might not be the exact same thing as decades ago, but it’s still alive and kicking.

Best moments of the album: Freiheit, Armageddon and Phantomschmerz.

Worst moments of the album: Deine Haut.

Released in 2020 Triplebase Records

Track listing
1. Freiheit 4:09
2. Insomnia 4:05
3. Independenz 5:29
4. Armageddon 2:55
5. Gib Mir Ein Zeichen 3:37
6. Blutdiamant 3:27
7. Phantomschmerz 3:55
8. Ich Fühl Nichts Mehr 3:37
9. Fall Out 4:00
10. Schwarzes Labyrinth 4:06
11. Deine Haut 5:02
12. Kommen Und Gehen 3:37

Band members
Elli Berlin – vocals
Bene Gugerbauer – guitars
Manu Altendorfer – bass
Flo Schnablo – drums

Metal Chick of the Month – Elli Berlin

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Freiheit! Suche ich… Freiheit! Komm ans Licht… Sei mir unendlich!

Even if you don’t understand a single word in German, I bet you’ll fall in love with the talent, the charisma and the energy flowing from our metal chick of this month of September. Owner of a beyond versatile voice, which allows her to deliver from the most serene, cleanest lines to truly demonic growls and roars, German vocalist and alternative model Elli Berlin will rip your heart out and mesmerize your senses with her stunning looks and incendiary performance, showing you why her fantastic Alternative Metal band, which goes by the stylish name of Null Positiv, is on a constant rise in the world of heavy music. After reading more about Elli and listening to her wicked creations, you’ll be absolutely addicted to her voice and to her music, placing Null Positiv among one of your favorite bands of our modern times hands down.

Elli started her career as a vocalist at a young age, more specifically when she was around 13 years old, as she became aware of her skills and capabilities when different people started to approach her and compliment her for her talent. She then went to take singing lessons, starting with classical music and gradually moving on to pop and rock music, making her first recordings in a professional studio, and then forming her first band when she was only 16 years old. Elli said in one of her interviews that was a really hard time for her, with over 150 shows per year, but she’s very thankful for all that as she simply loves her touring life. At first her band only played cover songs, but of course they started writing their own music as time passed by, and although metal music has always been an important part of her life, she only began growling and screaming a few years ago.

It was in 2015 in Lübbenau, a small town in the Oberspreewald-Lausitz district of Brandenburg, Germany, when Elli began looking for like-minded musicians to join her project and work on powerful, modern metal music, resulting in what is known today as her very entertaining and electrifying band Null Positiv, bringing to our ears an incendiary hybrid of Alternative and Nu Metal with Neue Deutsche Härte. Since their inception a few years ago, Null Positiv have released an array of unique and vibrant albums, including their debut EP Krieger, in 2016, followed by the full-length albums Koma (2017), Amok (2018), and their 2020 brand new opus Independenz (which will be reviewed here at The Headbanging Moose sooner than you can say “Scheiße!”), having also toured extensively with over 100 shows in just a few years, having played with renowned acts the likes of Anthrax, The Raven Age and Life of Agony, while also having in their short but solid career an appearance at the Wacken Open Air Festival in 2017 and an European tour with the iconic band Therion.

Currently comprised of our gorgeous frontwoman Elli Berlin, guitarist Bene Gugerbauer, bassist Manu Altendorfer and drummer Flo Schnablo, Null Positiv got its name from 0+, one of the most common blood types, as Elli herself explained we all share it, we all have it flowing within our veins, being essential to keep us alive and, therefore, becoming a synonym to the general equality all band members believe in. “Furthermore, it also translates to the mindset within the band, lyrically and musically. We believe in telling things how they are, without sugar-coating stuff and digging deep into the sentiments, good or bad, that motivate or prevent people to do things. We do this intending to rouse people, to give the initial spark to start to deal with the problems that we as humanity are facing in modern times,” commented our multi-talented diva.

In addition, Elli and her henchmen are one hundred percent, purely independent from any label or management company, having founded their own label, named Triplebase Records, from which they have released all of their albums. Not only that, Null Positiv also shoot and produce all of their official videos, available through their YouTube channel. For instance, you can see Elli kicking some serious ass with her potent vocals and her ravishing looks in songs such as Freiheit (one of my favorite Null Positiv songs), Turm Der, Trauma, Amok, Kollaps, Koma, Hass, Hoffnung Ist Ein Suesses Gift, Friss Dich Auf, Wo Rauch Ist, Ist Auch Feuer, Unvergessen, Zukunft Ungewiss, and a short and eerie film called Puppets Of Hate. Furthermore, if live performances and everything that surrounds them are your cup of tea, you can also enjoy Elli and the boys blasting insane performances at Rock Am Stück in 2019 and at Near Castle Festival also in 2019, playing the song Labyrinth on a live tour rehearsal in 2019, or go behind the scenes with them during their European tours in 2018 and 2019, during Wacken Open Air in 2017, and during Gefle Metal Festival in 2018. Also, don’t forget to show Elli and her Null Positiv your utmost support by purchasing their music and merch from their official webstore, by streaming all of their insane albums and songs on Spotify and YouTube, and by following them on all social media such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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Highly influences by several renowned rock and metal acts including Korn, Slipknot, In This Moment, System of a Down, Papa Roach, Marilyn Manson, Linkin Park and Prodigy, among many, many others, as well as obviously by her countrymen Rammstein, Elli mentioned in a recent interview that the first album she’s ever bought was Life is Peachy, the second studio album by American Nu Metal band Korn, released in 1996, saying she deeply loves that album, and complementing by saying she got to know the other aforementioned bands through festivals she used to attend as a fan in her early days, and that nowadays it would be a dream come true to tour with bands the likes of Korn, Rammstein or Arch Enemy, and that her playlist currently includes Slipknot, I Prevail, Korn, Parkway Drive, Asking Alexandria, Infected Rain, Amon Amarth and Arch Enemy. Moreover, you can sense how much all those modern metal bands have influenced her taste and her style by taking a listen at the cover songs she uploaded to her own YouTube channel, like her version for German Neue Deutsche Härte/Medieval Metal band Tanzwut’s Ich bin der Nachtwind, and mainly her gorgeous version for American music duo Simon & Garfunkel’s all-time classic The Sound Of Silence, drawing inspiration not from the original song but from Disturbed’s majestic version released in 2015.

Elli also said that it’s hard for her to choose her favorite song or songs to play live, as she feels that a concert is like one single, big explosion, hitting the stage and then leaving it at the end without “paying attention” to each song played, feeling like one huge energetic track. When asked how she manages to stay healthy while on tour, Elli said that as tours can be lengthy and exhausting, she has to integrate a daily fitness program to them, being very disciplined despite the fact there are tons of parties to attend and have fun. Also, in early 2019 Elli suffered an unfortunate back injury which forced her to take a break for a few months before getting back to touring, and she said that although it was a very difficult time for her, she always got the support from her bandmates. The final result was that not only Elli returned in full force to play with Null Positiv in countries like Switzerland, France, Belgium and Italy, but the band also won an award as best new band at the Mera Luna Festival in 2019.

When questioned about the fact that women still face a lot of sexism both in our everyday life and in the metal community, Elli said that fortunately in her own case she has never experienced any negative experiences like that in her career, complementing by saying that she has always felt very comfortable and welcome in Heavy Metal, a very positive environment where people are united in the name of good music, in her opinion. In addition, when asked about who she considers the most influential women in metal today, her answer included the talented and unrelenting ladies Angela Gossow, Doro and Amy Lee, mainly for their hard work, technical capabilities and their persistence, and let’s say it’s easy to sense their influence on Elli’s vocal style, looks and taste for rock and metal, don’t you agree? Furthermore, besides her career with Null Positiv our dauntless vocalist said that among her hobbies we’ll find things like painting, editing the band’s videos and designing their own attire, saying she’s then an actress, director and alternative model beyond her vocal duties who loves to play with fashion and makeup and, therefore, showing how powerful and dynamic a woman can be.

Among other topics that Elli has already discussed in her career are crowdfunding, politics and social networks, and her opinion on all those subjects proves why she’s been experiencing such high level of success and admiration in the world of heavy music. First of all, when questioned about crowdfunding, she thinks it’s a great idea that gives interested people the direct possibility of influencing the market by supporting the artists, bands or any other projects they like, complementing by saying that as everybody knows the music business can be extremely hard in the beginning, and due to lack of funding many bands cannot put into practice all of their amazing ideas, which is why the band has an option for fans to financially support them directly through their official website (where you can also buy their music and merch). Regarding politics in music, Elli believes music is, and has always been throughout history, a very powerful tool for bringing positive change to the world and problems to the light, saying that writing about political issues is as useful and valuable as writing about human emotions like love, suffering or hate. And last but not least, our unstoppable, multi-talented artist considers social networking a beautiful way to communicate and to keep in touch with her fans, complementing by saying it’s a powerful way to receive love and encouragement and, therefore, to get all strength and inspiration needed to keep moving forward. However, she said people must not be obsessed with it, searching for what truly motivates you, being honest all the time and selective of who you follow. Well, I wonder who would dare to make any negative comments on social media about one of the most talented, promising and hardworking women from the current German rock and metal scene, right?

Elli Berlin’s Official Facebook page
Elli Berlin’s Official Instagram
Elli Berlin’s Official YouTube channel
Null Positiv’s Official Facebook page
Null Positiv’s Official Instagram
Null Positiv’s Official Twitter
Null Positiv’s Official YouTube channel

“I believe that music is, and has been throughout history, a very powerful tool for bringing positive change to the world and problems to the light.” – Elli Berlin