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What the heck is going on over in Oregon these days?

Another fine effort from an Oregonian outfit passes my desk again by way of Excrucitator, a speedy thrash ensemble that just smashes your face into pieces so small and fragmented that you just lie there hoping someone will take mercy on you and pick up your shattered head.

Vocally, an early Tom Araya is subtly channeled here in five songs that are of very high quality and design, further proving that some labels actually care about signing bands with talent and a future in the genre. The riffs here on By the Gates of Flesh are tremendously overpowering and memorable, especially in “The Edenwitch of Torment”, which switches tempo nicely from speedy head banging to some good doom-inspired power chords. Nothing here really gets old or boring, and while some arduous fans might find the style dated or recycled, the feel of the music is one that can and should garner some attention some twenty-five years after the first thrash band assaulted our ears from the Bay Area.

The overall collective is a really good band to watch in the future. It always thrills me to no end when I see good bands emerging from the underground that can actually carry the weight of our scene with pride and ability. We see so little of this these days, but the tide is ever turning.        
Eternal Voyager, Excruciator, Morgue Son & Sperm of Antichrist
October 23, 2010
CHRIS
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Eternal Voyager - Holy Warrior EP
It’s tremendously uplifting to pop in a power metal release like the Eternal Warrior EP I now blast from my speakers and not be utterly violated by keyboards that serve more as a secondary guitar than an added flavor, which is the true intent of said instrument.

Holy Warrior is a 25-minute trip into the power metal sect that was once mighty and unblemished (by my standards, anyway) and delivers a heavy punch to the stomach with its simple, yet headbang-inducing throughout. In five songs Eternal Warrior calls upon the NWOBHM and manages to marry the classic era of British metal bands to some more modern traditional heavy music without forcing a dated, even repellant feel. “Voyager Revelation” is the typical, yet resonating track that kicks open the door and really doesn’t let up as it defiles its way through the other tracks with little if any regard.

The EP is well-produced, creating a fine atmosphere with which to enjoy what you’re ingesting. These guys from Prince’s territory won’t necessarily dethrone Manowar or Amon Amarth any time soon, but for their own little niche in the power metal world they certainly have a jumpstart.         
Morgue Son - Silent | Hypnotic
Release Date:  2009
Band Self Released
TRACK LISTING:
1.  Before the Winter Sun Comes...  2.  Rose of Doom  3.  Wind as the Train  4.  Silent Hypnotic Ghost  5.  War Comes Above Bodies  6.  Spirit of Arachnophobia  7.  Disease of the Blue Apple  8.  Ice in My Veins           -    Total playing time: 33:42
Ambient/melodic death comes by way of the Czech Republic through Morgue Son. The band’s initial demo I have here obviously predates the full-length release from this year, so going on what I have here it’s my assertion that this is, once again, just another band in that crowded melodic death metal elevator, complete with female vocals to “compliment” the growling that is all but causing me to uncontrollably convulse.

By all things unholy…enough already!

The music here on Silent, Hypnotic is really anything but with its formulaic, even generic sound that bands like Within Temptation, Elis, Leaves’ Eyes, Edenbridge, Brave and Magica have embellished to the point of insanity up to this point. I truly don’t know what else can be done to move this genre forward, save for just stopping it all together, which is a mercy killing at the very least. The title track on this demo has the most annoying “oh, oh, oh, oh…” vocals I’ve ever heard; her voice is just unresponsive and flat to me and it seriously detracts from the music, which might otherwise be quite engaging.

Even though I’m admittedly tired of this type of metal I’m always willing and ready to be proven wrong but this doesn’t even come close. As I say, the music is really good, but both the growling and female vocals are so rudimentary that I have a hard time even concentrating on the music. It’s quite polished, mind you, but you know what they say about not being able to polish certain…wastes. The one track that manages to really grab me is “War Comes Above Bodies,” simply in part because it’s reminiscent of old Within Temptation before they were bought and sold ten times over to commerciality, and even this suffers from stock lyrics and arrangement.

Sorry…this just does nothing for me since I’ve heard it, literally, a MILLION times before and will undoubtedly hear it at least a million more before I die. At this point I’m marking my internal calendar for that date with Death so I may not be subjected to further inadequacies like this.
Excruciator - By the Gates of Flesh EP
Release Date: October 12, 2010
Label:  Heavy Artillery Records

TRACK LISTING:
1.  Nuclear Exmortis  2.  Fatal Fornication  3.  The Edenwitch of Torment  4.  Malevolence Impure  5.  By the Gates of Flesh
-    Total playing time: 21:54
DOWNLOAD By the Gates of Flesh FREE from the Heavy Artillery's bandcamp page for the band: Excruciator
TO THE TOP
Release Date: January, 2009
Band Self Released

TRACK LISTING:
1.  Voyager Revelation  2.  Holy Warrior  3.  Army of our Lord  4.  New Jerusalem  5.  This is War!       -    Total playing time: 24:54
DOWNLOAD Holy Warrior FREE from the band's official website: Eternal Warrior
DOWNLOAD Silent | Hypnotic FREE from the band's official website: Morgue Son
Sperm of Antichrist - Blight and Darkness
Yet again, the U.S. tries to stake a claim on the black metal trend. From the cold, evil wilderness of…Ohio…we have a black metal “project” that, simply put, just bores me into submission with pointless phoned-in “vocals” and repetitive, uninspired music that does little to embellish the evil persona it’s supposed to embody.

This unmitigated mess is not only somewhat insulting, but a waste of good recording tools. Yeah, maybe I’m not getting it; maybe there’s some underlying evil that’s supposed to entice me to slaughter random farm animals by moonlight, who knows? What I do know is this rash of crappy production from “black metal” bands over the last decade has run its course a long time ago. The vocals are distorted sounds over rumblings posed as melody…I guess. I mean, seriously people, what is the point of such ill-humored wastes of time?
Release Date: December, 2009
Band Self Released

TRACK LISTING:
1.  Serpent Mass Litany  2.  A Pact in Stone and Skin  3.  The Majestic Doomed Kingdom of the Unholy Darkness  4.  Born of the Blighting Angel           -    Total playing time: 19:46
For a copy of Blight and Darkness contact the band via their  website page (click on link above).
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