Arcwelder - Jacket Made In Canada (1991)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Post Hardcore
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 1991 Big Money Inc.
AllMusic Review by Ned Raggett
The title alone is a winner, referring to the omnipresent logo on tons of indie rock releases from the mid-'80s on (check any Touch and Go release for an example). The music itself, meanwhile, continues in the catchy, not-just-punk vein of This. The opening number "Harmonic Instrumental," for instance, which is in fact laden with lyrics, has Macdonald whipping up wry sentiments with a gang-shout chorus as the music rocks with a fierce control (the guitar sounds like it's moving in a lock-step circle -- finally, a clear demonstration of what is meant by angular riffs!). That the next number begins with acoustic guitar before kicking in completely shows again that the canny trio will never just go ahead and crank to ten when they can have some other fun. Some of the brute power that Arcwelder can stir up places them next to contemporaries Fugazi easily, while sometimes it seems clear that members of Helmet and the Smashing Pumpkins kept an ear open as well for their goings on ("Missing" and "Plastic" could almost be tunes from Gish, vocals and less solipsistic lyrics aside). The perhaps inevitable Husker Du comparisons surface as well -- at least, it's hard to think of anyone other than Bob Mould after songs like "Staback." Softer numbers as "Left" and "When You're Gone" aren't any less forceful, just a touch more subtle, avoiding jangle for crispness. The latter is especially good, rueful without being dramatically weepy; it's just cryptic enough, with a fine Macdonald vocal. Brian Paulson is once again behind the boards, turning in other fine piece of production work, bringing out everything just as it needs to be. Add in a fun piece of mock cornpone ("I Hates to Lose," sung with a nutty twang), and Jacket is a great little kick of a record.

tags: arcwelder, jacket made in canada, 1991, flac,

More Info

Arcwelder - Pull (1993)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Post Hardcore, Alternative Rock
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 1993 Touch & Go
AllMusic Review by Jason Ankeny
Pull is muscular and frenzied, a dense venture into noise anchored by a surprisingly strong melodic sensibiity.

tags: arcwelder, pull, 1996, flac,

More Info

Arcwelder - Xerxes (1994)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Post Hardcore
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 1994 Touch & Go
AllMusic Review by Ned Raggett
Another quick blast of Arcwelder love (barely over half an hour long), this album maintains the same level of quality evident from previous releases. While by this time, now on their fourth album, it's clear that Arcwelder has a sound -- rock with many post-punk roots, wedding crunch and drive with an emotionalism that isn't totally hidden -- from which they don't really deviate, it's still good. Bill Graber gets in the first song with the nice rush of "Smile," but Macdonald's first bow, "All My Want for Need," succeeds even more with its measured pace and thick guitar flow supporting his ghost-of-Mould vocals. From then on in it's the usual mix of songs: a dozen fine reasons why rock will never die, but may not get the attention it always deserves ("Let Down" in particular qualifies in the lost-classic book). Producer Brian Paulson does the business once again, while Bob Weston stops by to remix about five songs, which, if anything, makes them sound even better. His work on "All Mixed Together" may make Arcwelder sound more like Nirvana than ever before, but the song is still solid and the performance fantastic. Other hints that the trio had heard some of what was going down in the early '90s crop up as well -- sudden silences mid-song and so forth -- but it's still very much an Arcwelder album, just one that absorbs some more touches as it progresses. "Freebird" is another one of the group's sharp, charging instrumentals. It is not a cover -- it'd be hilarious to hear what they could do with that old warhorse, admittedly! -- but they reveal a most wicked sense of humor in naming the thrashy penultimate number "The Carpal Tunnel Song."

tags: arcwelder, xerxes, 1994, flac,

More Info

Arcwelder - Entropy (1996) ☠

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Alternative Rock, Post Hardcore
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

☠: Selected by Lass

© 1996 Touch & Go
AllMusic Review by Ned Raggett
For their fifth album, Arcwelder went for Bob Weston in the producer's chair, having remixed tracks on Xerxes. There isn't necessarily a big difference here from the albums with Paulson -- there's the same great mix of crunch and punch with the hooky but not poppy music and lyrics. There are subtle touches, however, that crop up throughout that show that, while Arcwelder still isn't ever likely to radically reinvent themselves, neither are they content to just redo album after all album. "Free Me" is a good example, with a slight, static-echo start leading into another fine pounder, while at points Macdonald sings in a falsetto that hasn't surfaced much before. "Ad Infinitum" also departs from the norm just enough, with bass clarinet appearing about halfway along and adding a lovely, slightly mournful feeling. "Know" throws out a huge Zep-style drum stomp at the end, while "Vengeance" could almost be something not far removed from the Cure or the Wedding Present. The end cut, "Ash," is as close as the band has ever come to a gently redemptive feeling that still kicks hard, a bit like Nirvana's "All Apologies" but with its own droning climax. Where things are more Arcwelder as ever before, the trio still finds ways to get under the listener's skin just enough, as with the ruefully titled "I Promise Not to Be an Asshole." "Blowin' Smoke" also stands out, with some sharp lyrics and singing from Bill Graber in a surging rock-epic feel -- all without ever sounding like some insufferable prog nonsense. Though speaking of more corporate forms of music, it is rather interesting that regarding the good-timey "Turn To," in their liner notes the band slyly credits the overall performance to individual members of Boston.

tags: arcwelder, entropy, 1996, flac,

More Info

Arcwelder - Everest (1999)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Post Hardcore, Alternative Rock
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 1999 Touch & Go
AllMusic Review by Tom Hallett
Minneapolis post punk trio Arcwelder continue the tradition of such groundbreaking local compatriots as Husker Du and Run Westy Run, with choppy, melody-laden thinking-person's rock. On Everest, their sixth album, brothers Bill and Rob Graber (guitar/vocals and bass, respectively) and pal Scott Macdonald (vocals/drums) create edgy, traumatic aural landscapes with growling axework, driving rhythms, and urgent vocals. Tracks like "Paying Respect" and "I Gave This Up For You" force their way out of the speakers and into your skull with the same energy and fire of past standouts like "Favor" (from 1991's "Jacket Made In Canada") and "Know." (from 1996's "Entropy") Since their inception in 1988, (they began as Tiltawhirl, until the owners of the famed carnival ride of the same monicker sued them) the band has remained true to their original DIY spirit, releasing 7" vinyl 45's, touring extensively with like-minded souls such as The Jesus Lizard, Tar, and Jawbox, and retaining their mysterious day jobs in the Twin Cities. "Everest" displays impressive growth for the group, both musically and lyrically, proving once again that life experience, rather than youth, can sometimes bring us the most powerful rock and roll.

tags: arcwelder, everest, 1999, flac,

More Info

四街道ネイチャー (Yotsukaido Nature) - V.I.C. Tomorrow (1998) ☠

*ディスクの写真はRARファイルに含まれています。

 (*A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.)

Country: Japan
Language: Japanese (日本語)
Genre: Hip-Hop
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

☠: Selected by Sentinel

© 1998 Guntez Records
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

tags: 四街道ネイチャー, yotsukaido nature, vic tomorrow, v.i.c., 1998, flac,

More Info

Babybird - There's Something Going On (1998)

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Pop Rock
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 1998 Universal
AllMusic Review by Tim DiGravina
There's Something Going On is the least catchy of Stephen Jones' hi-fi Baby Bird albums. The only song suggesting the pop charm of "You're Gorgeous" is "If You'll Be Mine," a beautiful minor ballad. The album is almost unrelentingly dark and mysterious, in much the same manner as his earlier lo-fi productions. Indeed, two of the tracks here, "You Will Always Love Me" and "There's Something Going On," were recorded straight to four-track. Jones' voice echoes out of lyrical valleys that suggest he's quite disturbed when it comes to relationships and life in general. "Take Me Back" is a horrific tale of an obsessive relationship, with lyrics about eyeballs scratched with rusty nails and a creepy chant of "dead, dead, dead" ad infinitum. It's a conceit that starts with the very first track, "Bad Old Man," where Jones sings of wife-beaters and a drowning in a duck pond. Musically, the album is more of a lean toward the baroque than Ugly Beautiful. One might describe it as stark, disturbed chamber pop. Beautiful melodies appear quite majestically out of Jones' psychological studies. "It's Not Funny Anymore" is bittersweet and touching, with Jones reaching for the album's emotional core over weeping, organic keyboards. "There's Something Going On" is the tender conclusion, suggesting that Jones knows there's a better way of life than obsession and self-torture. There's Something Going On is definitely Baby Bird's most subtle album, and it's a fascinating listen from start to finish.

tags: babybird, baby bird, theres something going on, 1998, flac,

More Info

Babybird - Ex-Maniac (2010)

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock, Downtempo
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 2010 Unison Music
AllMusic Review by Jon O'Brien
Never quite managing to shake off the huge albatross around their necks that was 1996 Top Three single "You're Gorgeous," Sheffield outfit Baby Bird have become all but a minor footnote in the annals of Brit-pop history, despite the best efforts of prolific frontman Stephen Jones. Ex-Maniac, their second release following their 2005 reunion, is perhaps the best chance they'll get to rectify this situation, thanks to the presence of a certain Johnny Depp, who not only plays guitar on lead single "Unlovable" (whose promo video he also directed), but is also responsible for its production costs and choice of producers: Bruce Witkin (Adam Ant) and Ryan Dorn (Ugly Kid Joe). While Depp's musical CV (short-lived "supergroup" P, Oasis' much-maligned Be Here Now) might not instill the same confidence as his acting abilities do, he doesn't appear to have treated this as your typical Hollywood vanity project, taking a backseat on the album itself and allowing Jones to further develop his trademark blend of macabre tales and melodic acoustic pop/rock. Indeed, one look at the track list proves that the bitterness and resentment he first displayed on his 1995 debut I Was Born a Man hasn't mellowed in the subsequent 15 years, with titles like "Drug Time," "Failed Suicide Club," and "Send Me Back My Dreams" all evoking the spirit of an alternative soundtrack to Depp's adaptation of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. But despite the often-difficult subject matter, much of Ex-Maniac is shrouded in the kind of uplifting Brit-pop that they briefly threatened to produce in the mid-'90s. Opening track "Like Them" may open with the lines "I will kill you -- said the five year old," but its tragic-comic take on the issue of parental paranoia is made easier to swallow thanks to a nagging Arctic Monkeys-esque bassline, a driving anthemic chorus, and Jones appearing to be channeling the impassioned vocals of Noel Gallagher. It's a trick he repeats on "Drug Time," where he confesses "my whole life, I've never been clean" amongst a backdrop of pleasant acoustic folk-pop and a simplistic but infectious chorus which sounds like a potential (if rather inappropriate) children's TV theme, and the self-aware "Bastard" which fuses overtly cocky lyrics with the hook-laden jangly guitar pop of early Travis. Keen to show he has a softer side, there are several tracks which aren't as biting. The honest sentiments of "For the Rest of Our Lives," a gorgeous Coldplay-esque chiming guitar ballad, is perhaps the closest Jones will ever get to penning the type of song that would be played at a wedding's first dance, while closing track "On the Backseat of Your Car" echoes the unfashionable folky chamber pop of the Beautiful South and even ends with a triumphant, free-form jazz trumpet solo. Ex-Maniac sounds like the record that Jones consciously avoided making following their unexpected chart success. It may have come a little too late to restore his glory days, but ten albums into their career, Baby Bird have finally found the perfect sound to complement their unique and distinctly warped lyrical themes.

tags: babybird, baby bird, ex maniac, 2010, flac,

More Info

Babybird - Ugly Beautiful (1996) ☠

*U.K. pressing. 

This pressing contains the original version of "Bad Shave" and 

features the track "King Bing" that was removed from the U.S. pressing. 

Contains 15 tracks total.

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock
Style: Britpop
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

☠: Selected by Lass

© 1996 Echo
AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Moving to a major label and switching to a full backing band for Ugly Beautiful is both a positive and negative development for Baby Bird. In the positive sense, Stephen Jones' songs -- including a handful of tracks that were on his indie releases -- are given a clarity they were lacking in the past, and the full-bodied arrangements reveal songs like "Good Night" and "You're Gorgeous" as effortlessly catchy pop singles. However, the sonic clarity and larger arrangements also reveal that Jones is neither as clever nor as strange as his lo-fi albums suggested. Indeed, he often sounds like he's stuck in 1985, replicating the quirky charms of Robyn Hitchcock and Echo & the Bunnymen, and he lacks the wit or the adventure of either artist. So, Ugly Beautiful often treads close to cutesy nostalgia, of all things, yet it's saved by the sporadic surfacing of his songcraft. Even in this radio-ready setting, "I Didn't Want to Wake You Up" has a disquieting power, and "You're Gorgeous" positively radiates with twisted sexuality. But the long, "ironic" jams and unfocused material that end the record suggest that instead of representing the first flowering of his full talent, Ugly Beautiful may be the peak of it.

tags: babybird, baby bird, ugly beautiful, 1996, flac,

More Info

Shed Seven - Truth Be Told (2001)

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 2001 Artful Records
AllMusic Review by Dean Carlson
Their fourth album -- first after being dropped by Polydor -- with new bandmembers (guitarist Joe Johnson and keyboardist Fraser Smith joined shortly after Paul Banks fled to form the Rising) and with elevated, reedy courage to battle the belief that the band seemed utterly unable to write an album with more than a couple of decent tunes, Truth Be Told is likely as good, or as bad, as the band will ever be. That moment in "Cry for Help" when a victorious keyboard refrain comes out of nowhere to put the "This is my private hell" lyric up on its shoulders or how, especially in "Never Felt So Cold" or "Be Myself," listeners are shown what it would have been like if Johnny Dean had ever fronted the Black Crowes -- it's re-energized business as usual suddenly fueled by public dismissal. While other bands in analogous painted corners have either stuffed themselves with inventive absurdity (The Bluetones) or disappeared completely (Northern Uproar), Shed Seven digs their heels in, polishes their flag, and looks around -- anxious and desperate -- for someone to finally follow their lead.

tags: shed seven, truth be told, 2001, flac,

More Info

Shed Seven - Change Giver (1994) ☠

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock
Style: Britpop
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

☠: Selected by Lass

© 1994 Polydor
AllMusic Review by Tracy Frey
Change Giver, the debut album from Britain's Shed Seven, mixes energetic, guitar-driven pop tunes with singer Rick Witter's crooning vocal delivery. The band follows in the tradition of other '90s Brit-pop bands, such as the Bluetones and Oasis, but doesn't pull it off as well. Although the songs are catchy and well-executed, there's nothing especially creative or innovative about the album. There isn't much style variety among the songs; they basically all sound similar. However, it's an enjoyable pop album overall. "Speakeasy" is a great track with its dramatic riffs and catchy chorus ("don't break the habit of a lifetime/you broke the habit of a lifetime/I see through everything you do"). "Ocean Pie" is a slight departure from the rest of the album with its semi-bluesy guitar feel. Change Giver may not be the most prolific Brit-pop album, but it has its moments.

tags: shed sevcn, change giver, 1994, flac,

More Info

Shed Seven - A Maximum High (1996) ☠

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock
Style: Britpop
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

☠: Selected by Lass

© 1996 Polydor
AllMusic Review by Jason Damas
Producing five massive U.K. singles, Shed Seven's sophomore effort is the band's most consistently engaging album. Borrowing more from trad-rock than many of their peers, Shed Seven essentially created an album full of inspirational anthems -- three of the album's singles seem to deal with achievement of some sort. This is no drawback, however, as many of the songs on A Maximum High are excellent shout-along, arena-ready numbers. The set as a whole is far more consistent than their spotty debut and contains very little filler. While Shed Seven scarcely explore any unfamiliar territory, A Maximum High is a very consistent and listenable disc of mid-1990s mainstream rock & roll.

tags: shed seven, a maximum high, 1996, flac,

More Info

Shed Seven - Let It Ride (1998) ☠

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

☠: Selected by Lass

© 1998 Polydor
AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Three albums in and Shed Seven's hard-rocking trad-rock is beginning to play itself out. The band sailed by on pure energy on Change Giver and they began making musical progress on Maximum High, but on Let it Ride ...well, they simply let it ride, turning out raucous Brit-pop and trad-rock with only occasional flair. A few cuts find the band breaking through from their trademark sound, such as the knees-up raver "She Left Me on Friday," and those are the moments where the band sounds truly alive. Otherwise, Shed Seven delivers the predictable. To some fans, it may be worth a couple of listens, but they won't be able to deny that the group is backing themselves into a corner.

tags: shed seven, let it ride, 1998, flac,

More Info

Daughtry - Leave This Town (2009)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Post Grunge
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 2009 RCA/19 Recordings
AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
When he was recording his debut album in 2006, Chris Daughtry didn't have the time to assemble the real rock band he so desperately wanted to have, so it appeared under the band name DAUGHTRY without featuring any of the musicians who later became part of the group. That's not the case with Leave This Town, DAUGHTRY's second record: all five members are seen glowering on the album cover, floating like specters over an abandoned Californian street (presumably the city's citizens have already heeded the group's advice and abandoned this burg). The five rockers serve as visual evidence that DAUGHTRY is a band, not a person, and such explicit reminders are necessary because Leave This Town doesn't differ much in feel or form from DAUGHTRY, sounding for all the world like a remake of the debut. Overall, Leave This Town isn't quite as studio slick as its predecessor, but the four DAUGHTRYS who aren't Daughtry play with competence, not flair, cranking out post-grunge comfort food designed to soothe, not surprise. That was also the case with DAUGHTRY, but that record was fueled by Chris Daughtry's desire to be taken seriously, to prove that he belonged in the big leagues. Having achieved that goal, he's intent on staying at the top of the charts as long as possible, giving the people what they want in the form of furrow-browed rockers and brooding power ballads, all saved from their self-conscious sobriety by arena-level hooks, hooks that come from Daughtry and a variety of co-writers including Ben Moody and Nickelback's Chad Kroeger. Daughtry brings these big hooks down to human scale, injecting them with warmth if not quite mustering humility, and certainly avoiding mirth at all costs. For a man who sings "all that I'm after is a life full of laughter," he sure manages to avoid putting any sense of fun into his records, but that's just the legacy of grunge: after the early '90s, rock & roll was considered serious business indeed, and that's a lesson that Daughtry and DAUGHTRY heed. If they don't manage to have a lot of fun, their single-minded sobriety does mean that they avoid excesses, never succumbing to soul-baring indulgence or flights of instrumental fancy, which paradoxically turns into their strength: they have nothing on their mind other than making basic, black-and-white modern rock, and they do so efficiently on Leave This Town, a sophomore album that's every bit as satisfying as the first.

tags: daughtry, leave this town, 2009, flac,

More Info

Blahzay Blahzay - Federal Reserve Notez (FRN'Z)/Gee Sums/Good For Ya Club: 3-Song Maxi-Single (1999)

*A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Hip-Hop
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 1999 Game Recordings
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

tags: blahzay blahzay, federal reserve notez, frnz, gee sum, good for ya club, 3 song maxi single, 1999, flac, notes, good for your club,

More Info

O.G.C.- Da Storm (1996)

*A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Hip-Hop
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 1996 Priority Records
AllMusic Review by Leo Stanley
Originoo Gunn Clappaz's debut album Da Storm is an inventive fusion of streetwise rhythms and soul and jazz-laced hip-hop, highlighted by the trio's clever rhymes, as well as the dense production, which has a number of unusual and delightful samples.

tags: ogc, da storm, original gun clappers, originoo gunn clappaz, 1996, flac,

More Info

Questionmark Asylum - The Album (1995)

*A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Hip-Hop
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 1995 RCA Records
AllMusic Review by Bret Love
Nine out of ten rap fans surveyed could not tell Questionmark Asylum from the Pharcyde in a blind taste test. After all, the D.C.-based quartet possesses mad dance skills, has a uniquely tripped-out rhyme style, and sticks to a primarily positive alt-rap approach. Thankfully, all four MCs have their own unique lyrical flows, and The Album ultimately defies easy comparisons. On "Curse of the Q," which laments the loss of their original major-label record deal, they reveal distinct personalities that make the catchy hook and freaky vocal melody even more memorable, with Mistafiss and Digge Dom assuming drum and keyboard duties, respectively, as sidemen Kevin "KC" Campbell and Jesse "Twin" Blanks add guitar and bass to the ultra-funky mix. On "Love, Peace, Soul," go-go music legend Chuck Brown adds distinctive flavor to the acid jazzy mix, while "Get With You" samples Bootsy Collins' classic "I'd Rather Be With You" for a funky reinvention. An impressive debut from unfairly overlooked hip-hop shoulda-beens.

tags: questionmark asylum, question mark, the album, 1995, flac,

More Info

All Natural - Second Nature (2001)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Hip-Hop
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 2001 Thrill Jockey/All Natural Inc.
AllMusic Review by Todd Kristel
All Natural's first full-length release in several years is another example of a rap album that should have been shorter. But it's still a satisfying effort despite its excessive length. Capital D delivers fast-paced, intelligent, complex rhymes and seems comfortable with both social consciousness and braggadocio; he's not perfect, however, so sometimes his delivery sounds rushed or his rhymes seem uninspired (e.g., "Mayor Daly" and "On the Daily"). Of course, the album also features several guest MCs, including J.U.I.C.E. (on "Ill Advisory," where his style contrasts effectively with Capital D), Daily Planet's Spotlight (on "Queens Get the Money," whose anti-gold-digger message contrasts with the positivity of most of this album), and Atmosphere's Slug (who shines on "Uncle Sam"). Meanwhile, DJ Tone B. Nimble shows off his turntablist skills and shares production chores with Capital D, Molemen's Memo (who handles the decks on the percussion-heavy "Chatham" and two other tracks) and His-Panik (who layers strings over the heavy bassline of "The Stick Up" and piano over the sloomy drums of "Queens Get the Money"), Lone Catalysts' Jason Rawls (who adds a piano loop that blends perfectly with MC Jason Sands' delivery on "Renaissance"), and G(riot) (whose tracks include the affecting instrumental "The Next Mile"). The production is somewhat uneven, but overall this is a solid, understated, jazz-inflected album that will definitely reward listeners' attention, even though it won't send the future of music in any unexpected directions.

tags: all natural, second nature, 2001, flac,

More Info

Malevolent Creation - Dead Man's Path (2015)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Death Metal
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 2015 Century Media
Review by Kyle McGrinn for Dead Rhetoric.com
Now twelve albums into their career, Floridian death metallers Malevolent Creation still haven’t hit that “big time” death metal that their peers have kept and maintained. Some of it may have stemmed from some bad luck with labels, some of it may have stemmed from the band members being involved with a number of controversies throughout the years, but none the less, the band has carried on with aggression fully in check. Dead Man’s Path is the band’s first album with Century Media, having been on the Nuclear Blast roster for a while before that.
The band has had some solid albums over the years (Retribution, Eternal, The Ten Commandments), yet none of the albums from the band’s stint with Nuclear Blast really seemed to match up with those. Dead Man’s Path continues in the same manner. Malevolent Creation have had a particular ‘sound’ to them, and this merely continues it. The thrashy, often-speedy and blastbeat-riddled approach to traditional death metal does have its charms though. Some of the leads, such as on “Imperium (Kill Force Rising)” are quite effective, and founding vocalist Brett Hoffman can still belt out some rather intense screams after all these years. War-like marches like “Fragmental Sanity” and “12th Prophecy” do provide a wallop of intensity and are sure to become fan favorites in due time.
Whether or not you are burnt out on Malevolent Creation’s path will ultimately decide your thoughts on this one. It’s intense (as with all their other albums), and perhaps it’s too much to ask for a bit of variety at this point in the game with them but it just doesn’t seem to have the same lasting power as some of the other Floridian bands latest outputs (Obituary or Deicide for example). It will please the die-hards, but that’s about it.

tags: malevolent creation, dead man's path, mans, 2015, flac,

More Info

Honeyz - Wonder No. 8 (1999)

*This is the Japanese pressing with 2 bonus tracks 

and a special lined album cover. 

This pressing contains 17 tracks total. 

A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: R&B
.FLAC via Mega (Link)
.AAC 256 kbps via Mega (Link)

© 1998-1999 1st Avenue, Mercury Records
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

tags: honeyz, wonder no 8, number 8, 1998, 1999, flac,

More Info