Tag Archives: Dance Metal

Eskimo Callboy – Crystals

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Germany is renowned for its unique music scene, with bands such as Rammstein, We Butter The Bread With Butter and Caliban causing a storm in both the UK and US. Eskimo Callboy are no exception, and since their formation in 2010 they have amassed a loyal fan base, which consists of over 148,000 Facebook fans. As a metal music fan it would be easy to instantly dismiss Eskimo Callboy as just another scene kid ‘electrocore’ band, but if their popularity is something to go by, they are definitely doing something right.

Opening track ‘Pitch Blease’ gives you an instant indication of their musical direction: their fusion of harsh vocals, singing and synths is easily reminiscent of the MySpace era. The lyrical content features themes such as getting drunk, partying and having sex, with the band themselves referring to their music as ‘porno metal’. If you are over the age of eighteen, listening to Eskimo Callboy will probably bring back cringe-inducing memories, such as having an emo fringe, wearing studded belts and plastic ‘shag band’ bracelets.

Musically, the screaming vocals are actually quite impressive. The fusion of screaming and clean vocals is nothing new, but Sushi and Kevin’s contrasting singing styles work well together. The main problem with Eskimo Callboy’s music is the disorientating and rushed synth-backing, which is especially apparent in ‘My Own Summer’. The repetitive “go, go, go” is easily reminiscent of tacky dance music remixes, and the constant synth beats are almost headache-inducing.

If you are looking for a new metal band to listen to, you should probably steer well clear of Eskimo Callboy – their music is definitely an acquired taste. However, if you are a fan of electronic/synth-based alternative music, then the German sextet will probably appeal to you.

Probably…  Maybe?!

 

2.0/10

Eskimo Callboy on Facebook

 

JULIA CONOPO


The Monolith Deathcult – Bloodcvlts EP

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The Monolith Deathcult make me despair for the state of modern Metal.  Not by the very fact of their existence, Steel Panther-style, but because they’re nowhere near as well-regarded as they should be. With Triumvirate (Twilight Vertrieb) and Tetragrammaton (Season of Mist) they’re responsible for two of the most distinctive, perfectly-formed and blackly comic Death Metal albums of the last decade. Both shocking and funny in a truly unique way, they blend brutal Death Metal, enormous grooves, dance music and Transformers samples into two albums that, in a just world, would be regarded as modern classics, which makes writing this review an unpleasant task, because Bloodcvlts (Season Of Mist), I’m truly sorry to say, is nowhere near that good.

Initially it appears that their sense of irreverence and lack of respect for tradition is right to the front with Bloodcvlts, an 8 track “EP” lasting over forty minutes, but it quickly becomes clear that the designation isn’t just two fingers to the conventions of the music business. Despite its length, Bloodcvlts is emphatically not a new TMDC album, and it proves itself disappointingly lacking in the things that would make that such an exciting prospect, including precisely that irreverence and humour.

There’s little significantly wrong with Bloodcvlts.  ‘I Conquistador’ is relatively weak, and the final two tracks are de-Metalled reworkings of previously released songs (and not terrible for it, though perhaps a little pointless), but the rest is perfectly entertaining symphonic/industrialised Death Metal with some catchy moments. Their knack for combining both groove and violence is still there, but divorced from the dark humour, bold experimentation and the sense of whole-album dramatics that make Triumvirate and Tetragrammaton so special, they count for considerably less than they used to.

Bloodcvlts, then, is a perfectly enjoyable release which is nevertheless resoundingly disappointing. It’s like going to Heston Blumenthal’s restaurant and being served steak and chips – there’s nothing wrong with it, but because you were expecting something distinctive and bold you can’t help but be disappointed.

 

6.0/10

The Monolith Deathcult on Facebook

 

RICHIE HR


Arbitrator – Indoctrination Of Sacrilege

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Let’s get this out of the way now – the days when mixing samples and electronic music with your Metal was enough to make you different or “experimental” are long over.  There’s still ground to be broken in this area, but it’s to do with how well those elements are integrated and made part of the song-writing, rather than just being there.

Arbitrator really want us to call them “Industrial Death Metal”, but on Indoctrination Of Sacrilege (Independent/self-released), that much-abused “I” word seems to mean nothing beyond some programmed drums, heavy use of samples and “atmospheric” synth passages. The use of electronic music and Dance elements in heavy, low-end Death Metal makes a comparison with The Monolith Death Cult hard for any lazy journalist to resist, and unfortunately for Arbitrator that comparison is not a flattering one. While their Dutch peers create a constant, ceaseless assault that jumps from torturous to comical as often as it moves between genres, Arbitrator go for a more sedentary, considered approach that initially seems boring or flat in comparison.

If this has been something of a roasting so far, then it’s not an entirely deserved one, and it’s time to flip the perspective a little.  Once the lack of fireworks have been accounted for and expectations adjusted, there’s some effectively gloomy Death Metal, bordering on Doom in places, going on here.  The band are tight and heavy, and have a good sense of dynamics that keeps their music thundering forward even when they bring the pace right down.  The samples and electronic elements are largely well used – though they add little to the music, and have a tendency to fade into the background – and the album sustains an effective mood throughout.

Indoctrination Of Sacrilege is a competent, well-produced, entirely enjoyable album of atmospheric “Death Metal With Bits” from an unsigned band who may well achieve something genuinely worthwhile in their future, but as it stands is hard to get too excited about.

 

6.0/10

Arbitrator on Facebook

 

RICHIE HR


Amaranthe – Massive Addictive

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Massive Addictive Cover-1

 

I have two.

Guilty pleasures, that is. What else did you think I meant? Penises? Yes, I generally pull the “I don’t have guilty pleasures, I’m proud of everything I like” (both ironically and non-ironically) bullshit we all do. But I do have two. Amaranthe and Five Finger Death Punch are two bands I feel a bit embarrassed about admitting to liking. And I like Manowar. A lot. Unashamedly.

I’ll still profess a liking for the pair, but it does make me feel a bit squidgy in the stomach to do so.

Massive Addictive is the third explosion (all Spinefarm) from the Swedish Pop Metallers arsenal, and within 10 seconds of opener ‘Dynamite’ we’ve had a trademark dose of electro-synth and a chugging beatdown. By the chorus all elements of their trademark Cascada (yep) meets Within Temptation meets post-Reroute In Flames are out in the open and it’s clear that Amaranthe are running with the sound and style that was so successful on their previous releases. ‘Drop Dead Cynical’ bounces in and we’re off into Dance Metal territory with its euphoric chorus.

The basic premise of an Amaranthe song revolves around their clean male vocalist (Jake E.) trading off with their harsh male vocalist (Henrik Englund) to build up to Euro-Pop chorus delivered by Elize Ryd, or variations of the theme, and Massive Addictive adopts the “if it ain’t broke…” approach. What at first seemed a silly idea actually suits the infectious band.

And it is infectious, and all good fun, but there is no “Oops!” as, unlike Britney, Amaranthe didn’t do it again because Massive Addictive seems to be missing something that its predecessors brought to the table. Maybe it’s the novelty wearing off, maybe it’s that the metalcore has been toned down and there are fewer “colours” as the songs settle into a repeating mid-paced head-nod tempo with regularity, maybe it’s that once you’ve told a story – no matter how great a story, and let’s face it they weren’t orating the Ilyad the first two times around – it becomes less fascinating with each repetition, but the most pressing “maybe” belongs to the fact that the songs aren’t quite as good this time around. There’s no instant classic, like ‘Automatic’ was on the self-titled debut, or the “If Aqua did Metal…” ‘Electroheart’ from The Nexus, though ‘Digital World’ does its best.

Still, all said and done there’s no one out there quite like Amaranthe. I’m still not sure if that’s a good thing or not…

 

6.5/10

Amaranthe on Facebook

 

STEVE TOVEY