Bastions, Kingdom of Dogs EP review

Bastions

The UK is known for pumping out a new hardcore band every other week, but few manage to get the attention of small record labels in Pittsburgh PA and a small town college reviewer. However of these many hardcore bands that can be found in pubs all over the UK, Bastions managed to stick out with their latest EP Kingdom of Dogs.

Kingdom of Dogs will kick your ass, there is no polite way to put it, there is no avoiding it, just accept it and enjoy. I say it so bluntly because that is the best way to describe how fast and mind boggling this EP is. It starts off with the song, Crooked Hands, which does not hesitate to punch a hole in your face with a fast riff, loud vocals and a quick yet steady thrash beat. The band isn’t trying to reinvent the wheel, just make it move a little faster and able to run over things without the risk of breaking down.

Kingdom of Dogs sounds like the members of Every Time I Die, Impending Doom and Cancer Bats, got together to make an album of fast punk, slower hardcore without generic breakdowns or two-step riffs and the eerie minor notes being played over a break down (listen to Matriarch to hear these eerie undertones). The EP not only makes you go crazy but scares the hell out of you if you happen to pick –up on the eeriness of it all.

The album demonstrates that a hardcore band can be more than breakdowns and actually show some musicianship with interesting timings and riffs that aren’t typically heard in modern hardcore. For an EP, this is probably one of the best releases that I’ve heard this year and look forward to hearing even more of Bastions in the future.

Thoughts on the Current State of Metal

The other day I was thinking about all the sub-genres of Metal and wondered which one will be the next to take the nation by storm. Death-core has lost it's mass effect (though still popular) it isn't as talked about as it was when JFAC came out with their Debut EP, Doom.
I worry about the way which music is going. There is always the possibility that bands like The Black Dahlia Murder and Obscura will be copied. But at the same time, the younger generation of metal heads seem to be listening to bands Such as Attack Attack and Asking Alexandria where the music consists of nothing more than repetitive breakdowns and a weird techno track being played over it.
As I write this, I know why I made this blog in the first place, to alert the people of new metal that displays talent and won't be forgotten in two years. I wonder which band is going to be the Cannibal Corpse (even though personally I don't like them, I have to respect them for staying popular in the industry for over 20 years). I have a few different bands in mind of who I'd like to see tour around the world (Embedded Within, Beyond Dishonor etc...).
Any way I have a few bands that will on here in the next couple of weeks. Starting with Bastions, Slaughter of Elysium and Bring me the Doom.
Stay brutal
Dan

Sacred Serentiy "Enemy In the Clouds"

For some reason, Pennsylvania has a hard time producing a solid metal-core band with potential for more success than just being praised in the local scene. Nate Parker and Pat Scanlon are the brain children behind the new metal act, Sacred Serenity, coming out of Perkasie, Pennsylvania. The band’s seven song debut EP Enemy in the Clouds was recorded and mixed in completely do it yourself fashion. Enemy in the Clouds was recorded in Perkasie at Cancer Studios which vocalist, Pat Scanlon, describes as “an old friends studio that was literally in a barn”, then together Pat and Nate mixed the EP to create a much more solid sound. The combination of free recording and mixing adds up to a surprisingly well put together record, that should be on any metal heads playlist.
Enemy in the Clouds combines hard hitting breakdowns with soft well written melodies to create a sound unique to the underground scene. Nate Parker’s guitar work is exactly what every metal guitarist should be, fast, precise and technical. Fans of lots of melody and what is obviously quick finger work will love this EP. The bass can be a little harder to hear (which is probably due to the lower quality of the final mixes) but when heard, it matches the guitar note for note.
Pat Scanlon’s vocals are both intimidating and jaw dropping. The vocals on the EP range from high to low and have listeners feel the evil of his voice flow through their veins. Lyrically it is one of the most dominating and forceful EPs that can be heard today. For instance, in the song Death in Solitude, the second verse begins with the line “Fuck your infectious ways” making whoever is on the receiving end of that line, aware that they are scum.
My only complaint with the EP is the drumming, although not completely off, it is by no means as tight as the other elements of the EP. This could be because it was recorded by a substitute drummer or something in the mixing process didn’t fall through as it should have. Regardless this is still one of the best metal-core EPs that anyone will find in the scene today.
Enemy in the Clouds will attract all audiences and pulls influences from Whitechapel to All That Remains. It has the heavy breakdowns the hardcore scene, the quick melodies of any melodic death metal band today and even the soft sung choruses of popular metal-core acts such as As I Lay Dying and Trivium.
Sacred Serenity will be entering Lonely RD Recordings in Perkasie at the end of March to record a newer EP which will be titled Divulgence. The band will be playing shows during the summer to promote both EPs and I’ll be very surprised if it doesn’t turn heads. Enemy in the Clouds can be heard in its entirety on the bands myspace,www.myspace.com/sacredserenitypa, where listeners can find a link to download the entire EP.

Eryn Non Dae, Hydria Lernaia

Starting in 2001, French death metal outfit, END. , has been annihilating the European death metal scene leaving no survivors as they showcase their brutality. After going through singer changes in 2004 the band recorded their Debut EP “Never ending Whirl of Confusion” which earned a lot of airtime on France’s premiere metal station LE MOUV. In 2006 the band hit the road and shared the stage with bands such as Gojira, High on Fire and Black Bomb A. Before going into the studio to record their first full length album, they played Hell Fest with Slayer, Neurosis and Machine head. Their Debut Album Hydra Lernaia was put out on Metal Blade Records in the summer of 2009.
The band’s debut full length consists of ambience, death-metal, thrash metal and hardcore all in one. The opening track, “When Time Elapses” provides a general summary of what you’re going to hear in the rest of the album. It opens with what almost sounds like an angelic choir and two seconds later, listeners are taken out of serenity and thrown into a fast thrash driven riff. The song continues into more thrash and death metal and even a little bit of a grind-core is thrown in. Listeners are taken back into the comfort of a melodic, down tempo riff that could best be described as the calm after the storm.
The album demonstrates the musician ship of each member, not one member outshines the other, leaving audiences to be amazed at what they’re hearing. Hydra Lernaia touches all forms of metal and does it so well that it’s almost hard to notice a genre change within the song.
Hydra Lernaia is probably one of the heaviest albums to come out in a very long time. With the scene being taken over by power chord driven screamo, END. , puts more than half of the music industry to shame with the musicianship and heaviness of Hydra Lernaia
There is nothing on the market right now that anyone can compare this band to. They mix a unique blend of hardcore, ambient and death and thrash metal to create a new wave of progressive metal. END. is currently in the pre-production stages of a new full length that will be put out on Metal Blade Records.
The top two songs on the album in my opinion are Blistering Hate and the final track, Pure. Blistering Hate has a much more hardcore feeling to it, with dissonant chords being played after heavy chugs; it will leave listeners with a bang over from listening to it.
The final track on the CD Pure has a much more doom/stoner metal feeling to it that leaves listeners wanting more after listening. It is the perfect cliff hanger and the perfect lead in to the next storm of brutality that, I, personally cannot wait to hear.
END. plays fast, hits hard and leaves absolutely no head staying still. This band will definitely be headed for bigger things than they already have done and have a bright future ahead of them.
END. is currently playing shows throughout France and working on the pre-production stages of their next album. For those interested in END. , their debut full length Hydra Lernaia can be found on itunes and various other online outlets.

How to find this Band
www.myspace.com/END.1freefr


Stay Brutal
Dan