Tag Archives: clouds

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SARCASTIC TERROR, Infernal Hatred (1995, Dark Side)

The skull:
Oh, I bet you’ve never seen a skull in the clouds before. No, sir, this is a totally original piece of work, and brilliantly executed at that. The way the bone fades into the sky is utterly convincing, and the big, awesome logo/eyepatch doesn’t at all detract from the symmetry of the design. BOO!

The music:
Gurgly death metal that sounds to me kind of like early Earache material, like Carcass, but slower. So basically, like Bolt Thrower trying to sound like Carcass. With Chris Barnes singing. Only way less fun than all of that sounds. WAY less. I’ve heard worse. I probably own worse. But, this is some seriously dull shit in my book, and considering this half-of-a-split-CD is the only commercial release from Sarcastic Terror, I’m just gonna go ahead and call this “inessential.”
— Friar Johnsen

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TRANSMETAL, Indestructible (2012, La Mazakuata)

The skull:
Crowned in lightning and wreathed in black clouds, this massive sky-skull is not fucking around. And while the figure at the center of the Aztec calendar stone adorning the skull’s forehead is widely believed by scholars to depict the sun god, this interpretation is not universal, and clearly Transmetal are throwing their hat behind an unorthodox theory that it’s none other than Mictlantecuhtli: god of death, and, by extension, death metal. He’s out for blood and will be taking no shit. And don’t even think you can destroy him. Have you not noticed the title?

The music:
Looking at that name, and that logo, you’d surely assume that this was some super-corny true metal band, but you’d be wrong, because Transmetal are basically the wise old men of the Mexican death metal scene. Since forming in the mid 80s, they’ve released over 20 full length studio albums, and their meat-and-potatoes DM sound hasn’t changed much in all that time. There really isn’t a comparable band in the States, although Cannibal Corpse or Immolation might fit the bill. And while most DM bands who have held on that long are down to a couple original members, at least, three of the four original Transmetal dudes are still in the band. So, color me impressed by the dedication and longevity. If only their music was better! Their early stuff sounds like pretty much any other class of 87 death metal band, and over they years they’ve only modernized in the sense that they’ve incorporated some European influences (especially Scandinavian), and they’ve resisted the temptations to go melodic or technical. They’re a perfectly fine act, and if Indestructible isn’t one of their best albums (and it isn’t, especially considering the terrible, tinny production), it’s hardly a bad disc. It’s just maddeninly generic, and samey from song-to-song as well. But if mid-tempo death metal a la Asphyx is your thing, if what you want is tank-like consistency, then Transmetal might just do it for you.
— Friar Johnsen

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BRAINDEAD, The Human Remnants Of… (1988, demo)

The skull:
This cover is like a victim’s-eye-view in the aftermath of nuclear holocaust. A mirage/hallucination of grinning death, the skull not actually there but seeming as real as the horrible remnants of the war. It’s formed of ash, dirt, and the skeletal remains of buildings that were blasted to bits. Even if it’s a mirage, the skull looks a little worried, questioning himself: “Am I cut out for this? Am I worthy of taking on the role of mirrored alter-image to the dying human that gazes at me to see only a grinning death’s head? Where can a guy get a cup of coffee around here? What the hell just happened? Why, why, why???”

The music:
This band from Portugal released two demos of cruel, ugly thrash in 1988, and then in the ’90s went the alternative/grunge route. There wasn’t even any kind of smooth transition. One decade they’re sounding like Protector, the next like a mixture of Beastie Boys, Faith No More and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Ouch. Listening to the short but sweet The Human Remnants Of…, it’s surprising that nobody has combined this with the other demo from that year, The Final Judgement, for a reissue, because there are probably plenty of people out there who would appreciate this stuff. Think Iron Angel meets Destruction meets Protector…yeah, who lotta German-esque stuff happening here. The recording is terrible, the guitars sounding like cement mixers and the drums being a haphazard sonic mess, but the writing and performances are solid enough that the overall cacophony is enjoyable, the effort a laudable one. There’s just enough imagination in terms of riffs, tempi, and arrangement, it manages to stand just a few heads (skulls?) above many similar acts. Within both tracks proper (“Wings of Insanity” is a shorter intro piece) there are generous slabs of early death metal, reminding of Morbid Angel’s earliest material, the off-the-rails nuttiness of Incubus, and Necrovore’s merciless churning. Much worse has been recorded and, much later, reissued, and I’d probably pick up a repackaging of this stuff, especially if they could master from the source tapes. Good luck, right?
— Friar Wagner

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NOX, Blood, Bones and Ritual Death (2010, Listenable)

The skull:
You start with a skull and crossbones, and you think, “This is cool, but it kinda looks like we play pirate metal.” So, okay, add a ritual circle or something. It’s not a pentagram, but it at least sort of suggests magick or some Crowley shit. Maybe add some esoteric symbols, like that thing on all those King Diamond albums. Looks good! But then, you start thinking, “This is pretty plain, just a skull and a circle. Maybe some clouds or something to fill in the background?” Except now your cover is mostly white and grey. That shit ain’t evil. Maybe if the whole thing was red? Bingo! Now that’s a fucking cover you can take to the bank!

The music:
When this EP started playing, I was initially a little excited by the slinky weird riff that opens the disc. But then Nox repeated that single riff for a minute and a half, and called that a track. So, that’s how it’s going to be, Nox? After that momentary illusion of interest, the EP settles into competent Morbid Angel/Nile worship, with hints of black metal thrown in for good measure. Some of the guitar work is genuinely interesting, including the generally excellent leads, and across the board the playing is solid, but an over-reliance on blast beats and the pedestrian growling drag the whole thing down. I think if Nox spent a little more time trying to write the best songs possible, worrying less about sounding and looking evil, they might come up with some properly great work. That said, the band is on hold while the guitarist pursues another project, so there’s no guessing if this is the last we’ll hear from Nox.
— Friar Johnsen

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MALEFICIO, Under the Black Veil (2008, Hateworks)

The skull:
Under a gloriously unreadable logo flies a skull, seemingly blasted out of a cannon into the yellow glow of dawn. Or perhaps it’s an LSD-influenced vision by the same artist who conceived the band logo, the skull an illusion created by the dense cloud formation, although what this all has to do with being under a black veil is not entirely clear.

The music:
Unless somebody’s pulling our leg, this Swedish band released 18 demos between 1991 and 2004, and have experimented with their death/black/thrash metal formula by occasionally mixing in flutes and violins. So what we get on their 2008 debut full-length should be astoundingly good and focused, right? Well, it’s just kinda average. Reasonably well-executed death/black metal with some thrashy hints, reminding of the days when bands like Mayhem, Cradle of Filth and Impaled Nazarene weren’t exclusively black metal, but a hodgepodge of sub-genre intersections. What’s even more incredible is not that Maleficio have stuck with it for so long with very little reward, but the fact that they’re one of the only long-running Swedish extreme metal bands where the members aren’t also in 10 other bands. It’s kind of amazing, considering the band’s longevity, but the eight songs here are uninteresting and rather faceless, lacking any sort of individual character, just like the skull that graces the cover.
–Friar Wagner