ALBUM REVIEW: Montecharge, "Demons or Someone Else"

By: Josh McIntyre

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 27/12/2019

Label: Abekeit, URGENCE DISK RECORDS,

Violence In The Veins & WOOAAARGH

“Demons or Somone Else” CD//DD//LP track listing: 

1). XVIII Demons or Somone Else

2). XIV Divine Arrows

3). XIII Encircle The Earth

4). XV Wind & Waves

5). Atone II

6). XVI Cernes Profondes

7). XVII Oreste

8). Atone I

9). Atone III

10). XIX Protagonists / Antagonists

11). XX Wolves II

The Review:

It’s like our Swiss friends got together and decided to make sure 2019 was a really excellent year for heavy music in their country. We’ve been enjoying the hell out of Rorcal and Coilguns as of late and in the final days of the year Montecharge of Geneva dropped this record, making it clear that it was their turn to pummel people’s ears.

Montecharge sit somewhere between Old Man Gloom and Ken Mode, the former largely thanks to the Caleb Scofield (RIP) sounding vocals and the latter to the consistently angular rhythms. Like both bands, Montecharge sound huge. I think it’s safe to assume the instruments were captured in a rather large room. It’s a brilliant choice as it helps the synth/electronic elements sound natural as they creep and crawl around the guitars and drums throughout the album. These elements add a nuance that helps give the band some additional identity.

While some riffs are certainly mosh-worthy this is still an atmospheric record. It’s a balance that will keep both hardcore and post-metal crowds content and, overall, Montecharge sound like they could have been on the Hydra Head label back in its heyday right alongside Swiss vets Knut (whose “Challenger” album is a must for mathcore and post-metal fans). Every riff is killer, especially the first one in the final track. I only wish that, instead of having three interlude tracks, the band had expanded on “Atone II” and made it a complete song as it features guitar arpeggios over a trippy drum machine beat that is simply really freaking cool sounding. 

Montecharge have brought us an excellent example of sludgy noise rock and help keep the sound relevant decades later. The accessibility of this album must be emphasized, too, as I suspect that most fans of aggressive music would find something to enjoy here.

“Demons or Somone Else” is available HERE

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Great Falls, "A Sense Of Rest"

By: Charlie Butler

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 21/12/2018

Label: Corpse Flower Records |

Throatruiner Records |

Init Records

 

…the band have expanded their sonic horizons to cover new levels of punishing heaviness.  Jagged shards of damaged post-hardcore now give way to crushing low-end riffs like a collision between KEN Mode and “Remission” era Mastodon

 

“A Sense Of Rest” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. The Accelerationist
2. Not-For-Sale Bodies
3. Kettle Logic
4. We Speak In Lowercase
5. Thousands Every Hour
6. Baldessari Height
7. I Go To Glory
8. Scratched Off The Canvas

The Review:

Great Falls decided to throw Album of 2018 lists into disarray with the late December release of the monstrous “A Sense Of Rest”. The Seattle trios last LP “The Fever Shed” was a taut thirty minutes of barbed noise rock fury. In the three years since its release, the band have taken their furious back catalogue as a foundation and crafted an expansive beast of an album.

“The Accelerationist” wastes no time introducing the listener to Great Falls in full flow with an onslaught of razor sharp guitar, pounding drums and churning bass. It soon becomes apparent that the band have expanded their sonic horizons to cover new levels of punishing heaviness.  Jagged shards of damaged post-hardcore now give way to crushing low-end riffs like a collision between KEN Mode and “Remission” era Mastodon. “Not-For-Sale Bodies” continues the barrage, culminating in a lumbering finale that demonstrates how much weightier “A Sense Of Rest” is compared to previous offerings. 

The highlight here is the monumental fifteen minute centrepiece, “We Speak In Lowercase”. It feels simultaneously like Great Falls unleashing all they have achieved to this point in one slow-burning epic and a huge leap into the unknown. The opening sections are unexpectedly melodic, delivered with a restraint and vulnerability that bring to mind Kowloon Walled City's amazing “Grievances” LP. Demian Johnston's vocals are at their most affecting here, from an exposed despairing howl at the beginning of the track building to an imploring scream at its climax. As the band dynamics move between quiet and loud, the tempos shift accordingly leading to a stirring slow-motion coda of shimmering reverb-heavy distortion.

It's as if Great Falls anticipated the state of awe the mind-expanding “We Speak In Lowercase” would leave the listener in by following it with “Thousands Every Hour”. The opening minute or so of screeching feedback followed by a skipped groove, one chord riff brings you back down to earth with a dose of punk rock urgency.

“A Sense Of Rest” is an incredible release from Great Falls. A perfect blend of ragged noise rock, devastating riffs, dark melody and ambitious songwriting, this LP should earn them some well-deserved attention.  

“A Sense Of Rest” is available (LP USA) HERE, (LP Europe) HERE and CD HERE

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

TOP 16 ALBUMS: THE SLUDGELORD'S SOUR 16 (August / September 2018)

Allow yourself to indulge in a hefty dose of riffs; because it is time to present 16 of the best albums from August & September, it is time for your SOUR 16. 

You know the drill by now, every couple of months you the reader are unwittingly compiling a list of the top16 records, covering all genres of metal.  Is it not a chart, in which reviewers or contributors extol their opinion about their favourite music.  To put it simply, THE SOUR 16 are the records that have been trending the most at SLUDGELORD HQ.

The results are compiled based on the amount of page views the reviews have received and are then calibrated into the list below.  All reviews can be viewed by clicking the artwork and we have included album streams wherever possible. (Total views since their publication are highlighted brackets)

16). Craft, “White Noise and Black Light” (387)

15). Clutch, “Book of Bad Decisions” (399)

14). Satan, “Cruel Magic” (425)

13). 1968, “Ballads of the Godless” (437)

12). Organ Dealer/Nerve Grind/Invertebrate, “Split” (442)

11). Allfather, “And All Will Be Desolation” (481)

10). Chubby Thunderous Bad Kush Masters, “Come & Chutney” (503)

9). Brant Bjork, “Mankind Woman” (549)

8). Forming The Void, “Rift” (550)

7). Sumac, “Love in Shadow” (662)

6). Thou, “Magus” (791)

5). The Secret, “Lux Tenebris” (1100)

4). Kurokuma, “Dope Rider” (1272)

3). Conan, “Existential Void Guardian” (1910)

2). Famye, “Famyne” (2561)

1). KEN mode, “Loved” (2776)

RECORDS OF THEIR YEARS:...with KEN mode guitarist/vocalist Jesse Matthewson

Brenna Faris (c)

Winnipeg trio KEN mode made a welcome return with new LP "Loved" at the end of August and is is by far the nastiest entry in their impressive body of work and all the better for it.  Almost 20 years into their existence KEN mode has set the bar for riff-heavy noise rock in 2018.  With the release barely a few weeks old and with the band set to hit the road in support the album we hooked up with guitarist/vocalist Jesse Matthewson to discuss some of his favourite records.  Welcome to RECORDS OF THEIR YEARS..., 

SL: Favourite album from the year you were born? 

Black Flag, "Damaged" (1981)

Jesse Matthewson: I’d probably have to say Black Flag – "Damaged". There’s no way it’s not the most influential, and even if I don’t listen to it as much anymore compared to other Black Flag records, it probably edges the Birthday Party’s   - "Prayers on Fire" by a smidge in terms of pure enjoyment for my own personal taste. That’s tough though. 

SL: First record you bought with your own money?

Green Day, "Dookie" (1994)

JM: I think it may have been Green Day’s "Dookie". It was pretty much the most popular thing going on at the time with teens/pre-teens, and it sounded fun. I know I ended up selling it maybe a year later because I found it boring…a pretentious piece of shit even at 13.

SL: Favourite non metal / rock album?

Badbadnotgood, "III" (2014) 

JM: Lately, maybe Badbadnotgood’s "III" record. It’s just such a fun sonic mix of jazz, some hip hop, trip hop, whatever. I had a hard jazz kick a couple years ago, and this got way too much play, and has ever since. 

SL: Album that most disappointed you?

KEN mode, "Success" (2015)

JM: I always struggle with questions like this, because it exposes the inherent entitled nature of music listeners. “The piece of art you made this time didn’t connect with me in the same way as that one from a few years ago that fit what I was looking for perfectly; and I expected it to!”

I dunno. I don’t want to throw anyone under the bus on this one. How about this? I’m most disappointed in KEN mode’s "Success" because it wasn’t what people who like us necessarily wanted to hear as much and we worked really hard on it. How’s that?!

SL: Favourite album of all time or if you prefer album (s) you’d run back into a burning building to rescue

JMN: I don’t have a single record…at this point it’s more of a top 10 maybe. Nirvana’s "In Utero" was a milestone, Melvins, "Ozma" another…Kittens, "Bazooka & the Hustler", Dazzling Killmen, "Face of Collapse", Today is the Day, "Willpower", Zeni Geva, "Desire for Agony", Tad, "Salt Lick", the Jesus Lizard. "Goat", Rollins Band, "Hard Volume", Drive Like Jehu, "Yank Crime". Maybe it needs to be a top 20. I don’t know. The older I get, the more I hate this kind of question. 

SL:Favourite album (s) of 2018?

JM: Tomb Mold – "Manor of Infinite Forms"
Not Of – "Hypocritic Oath"
Pig Destroyer – "Head Cage"
Nightmarer – "Cacophony of Terror"
The Lion’s Daughter – "Future Cult"
Imperial Triumphant – "Vile Luxury"
Hot Snakes – "Jericho Sirens"
Craft – "White Noise and Black Metal"

SL:..And finally The last album you bought? 

Imperial Triumphant, "Vile Luxury" (2018)

JM: I ordered the Euro pressing of Imperial Triumphant’s, "Vile Luxury" from Throatruiner because I wanted their exclusive coloured vinyl variant. All the cool colours were already sold out at Gilead Media in the US, so screw it…I’ll pay for the extra shipping from France.

"Loved" is available to preorder/buy HERE & HERE

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: KEN mode, "Loved"

By: Charlie Butler

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 31/08/2018

Label: Season of Mist |

New Damage Records

Few records will match the sheer rage and intensity of “Loved” this year. Almost 20 years into their existence, KEN mode have released their finest work that sets the bar for riff-heavy noise rock in 2018.

“Loved” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. Doesn't Feel Pain Like He Should

2. The Illusion Of Dignity

3. Feathers & Lips

4. Learning To Be Too Cold

5. Not Soulmates

6. Very Small Men

7. This Is A Love Test

8. Fractures In Adults

9. No Gentle Art

The Review:

Winnipeg trio KEN mode make a welcome return with new LP “Loved”. It is by far the nastiest entry in their impressive body of work and all the better for it.

The album screams into life with “Doesn’t Feel Pain Like He Should”, a feral burst of sludged up noise rock that sounds like Unsane plugged into the mains. KEN mode have always dealt in a potent blend of churning low-end rumble, razor wire guitar lines and frantic vocals but they have never sounded as livid and visceral as they do on “Loved”. “The Illusion Of Dignity” continues the carnage, this time raising the intensity levels with furious squalls of saxophone at the track’s climax. Somehow the band manage to maintain this frightening level of ferocity through “Not Soulmates” and “Very Small Men” while introducing some touches of Botch style math rock into the fray.

“This Is A Love Test” provides some welcome respite with passages of quiet restrained menace bolstered by more saxophone, this time providing unsettling melody. These periods of calm only serve to emphasise the abrasive attack when the band kick back into high gear.

After eight tracks of seething rage, KEN mode somehow manage to save their hardest hitting track for last. “No Gentle Art” is a masterclass in slow-burn build and release dynamics, rising from a barely audible bass pulse and muttered threats into an utterly devastating one chord onslaught riddled with screams, feedback and wild saxophone noise. The music is the perfect match for Jesse Matthewson’s repeated howls of “STOP GIVING ME HOPE”, the sound of all dreams being ground into dust.    

Few records will match the sheer rage and intensity of “Loved” this year. Almost 20 years into their existence, KEN mode have released their finest work that sets the bar for riff-heavy noise rock in 2018.

“Loved” is available to preorder/buy here & here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Botfly – “Botfly”

By: Mark Tremblay


Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 22/09/2017

Label: Gluttony Gang

Botfly are one of the best things in Canadian Heavy music, with arguably a sleeper in the discussion of record of the year.

“Botfly“ DD//LP track listing:

1). Disjointed

2). Melancholy in Real Time

3). Yellow Bike Road

4). Man’s Best Friend

5). Back Tracked

6). Day in my Life

7). Code Name

8). Gutless

The Review:

East coast hardcore/sludge purveyors Botfly return with their second release of the year. Botfly has slowly morphed from KEN mode worship, to embracing a wide range of elements ranging from punk all the way to indie rock.

The album is broken into two halves; the first half embracing more punk elements, and the second being much more dark and atmospheric. The opening tracks “Disjointed” and “Melancholy in Real Time” employ major keys and melodies that are both disjointed and comforting all at the same time. “Yellow Bike Road” comes out of the gate with a super catchy-yet-heavy riff, and emploes vocal techniques not previously used by the band.

The listener is transitioned into the darker half of the record with “Man’s Best Friend” featuring walls of static and haunting vocals. It is one of the most moving tracks on the record. “Back Tracked” features some “Watch Out” era Alexisonfire influence before swinging into hardcore that bleeds into “Day in my Life”. The sludge is brought into the fray with “Code Name”. Full of heavy hitting riffs reminiscent of material found on “Hatch”. The album quietly segues out on “Gutless”, a dark ambient folk track that is the perfect ending to this record.

Botfly are one of the best things in Canadian Heavy music, with arguably a sleeper in the discussion of record of the year.

“Botfly” is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

FOR THOSE ABOOT TO ROCK: Riffs of Canada with Cellos (Windsor, Ontario)

By: Mark Tremblay

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 5/8/2017

Label: No List Records |

Harbour House Records

The best way to describe this band would be “Torche meets KEN Mode” in the most harmonious way possible. The album is a plethora of serpentine riffs from “Demagogue” and “Bury me on Highway 3”, to the outright sludgy plod of “Out of Phase” and “White Lines.  This record is for anyone searching for something slightly different in the myriad of heavy music releases this year

“The Great Leap Backward” CS//DD//LP track listing:

1). White Lines

2). Demagogue

3). Delirium Tremens

4). Ghosts in the Sky

5). Snake Charmer

6). Out of Phase

7). Bury Me on Highway 3

8). Shooting Star

9). Stranger at the Door

The Review:

Cellos continue the legacy of great Canadian Noise Rock under the No List Records Label (LP via Harbour House Records). The best way to describe this band would be “Torche meets KEN Mode” in the most harmonious way possible. The album is a plethora of serpentine riffs from “Demagogue” and “Bury me on Highway 3”, to the outright sludgy plod of “Out of Phase” and “White Lines”. “The Great Leap Backward” is an emotional rollercoaster that could be best encapsulated by the song “Snake Charmer”; a track that lulls you with a hypnotic opening riff, only to change course with the noise rock twist of Kittens.

Cellos “The Great Leap Backward” has so much crossover appeal that putting it into a sub genre would only cheapen its potential to a wider audience. This record is for anyone searching for something slightly different in the myriad of heavy music releases this year.

“The Great Leap Backward” is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

CHOICE CUTS: Shallow North Dakota – “The Apparatus Must Be Earthed” (1997)

By: Mark Tremblay

Years Active: 1992 – 2004?

Records to Date: 4

Genre: Noise Rock, Sludge

Labels: Sonic Unyon

The Band:

Biff Young

Dan Dunham

Tony Jacomes

The Review:

Shallow North Dakota is the band that started it all for the onslaught of Canadian sludge/hardcore bands that followed. Everything from KEN mode to The Great Sabatini, their influence is undeniable. Even though this record was released about twenty years ago, “This Apparatus Must be Earthed” is still as heavy today. If you love riffs, this album is bursting at the seams with them. From the hardcore-tinged “Backbone” and “Cuz”, to the steam-rolling “Lubber” and “Replace the Herzog”, this album has a riff for you. Although often imitated, few have come close to the riffs of this band

The highlight of the album is Tony Jacomes, the bands drummer and singer; the patterns he is able to create while singing is simply astonishing. His vocals have this cheese grater quality to them that breaks through the syrupy nature of the band’s music. You can currently find these member in Crux of Aux and Backbiters.



Album Details:

Playing noise-rock outta Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Shallow North Dakota released 4 albums during their tenure, the last of which was a self released double LP entitled “Mob Wheel”

“This Apparatus Must Be Earthed” their 3^rd album was issued via Sonic Unyon on 17/06/1996, an album described by Allmusic as “a series of tracks so sludgy, heavy, stomping, metalesque, and generally hardcore that it's difficult not to be affected by them but an album that exudes a good deal of intelligence behind the album's hammering sludge”

“The Apparatus Must Be Earthed” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1). Backbone

2). Greenhorn

3). Cuz

4). Perna Du Pau

5). This Apparatus Must Be Earthed

6). The Lubber

7). Speed King

8). Old Type Rider

9). Outside Dakota

10). Replace the Herzog

11). Cigar Box