Rock

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    Earth Burnt Black – Harrowing Catharsis (2011)

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    With a very interesting and rich sound, today we have Earth Burnt Black’s debut full-length “Harrowing Catharsis”. The band pretty much throws everything in the frying pan and delivers a very well tasty dish of well crafted and different sounding music with a nice and clear production on top of it. These types of albums are the ones we wait for at Infernal Masquerade since the combine so many different things and still manage to sound very well and powerful.

    The “Intro” track immediately gives you the feeling that this will be a Doom Metal release, but this quickly changes in the next song. “The March” features hard rocking guitars and clean vocals to start, clearly breaking away from what is expected from the intro. However, not long enough the Doom and Grooviness come back and the band delivers interesting brutal sections with both growls and screams mixed in between some more clean vocals. While this might sound completely chaotic, it actually works very well with the melodic aspect of the song.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Dope Flood – A Planet on Four Legs (2011)

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    Hailing from Greece, today we have the Hard Rockers of Dope Flood delivering their 3 song EP titled “A Planet on Four Legs”. With a very mainstream sound, this Greek newcomer has a very catchy sound and excellent tunes, but sounds exactly like any other Hard Rock album we get here at Infernal Masquerade. While we are not saying this is bad, the band faces a hard up-hill battle to get noticed an hopefully signed in the future.

    Immediately opening “Uncertain” with some powerful riffing the band’s sound becomes evidently mainstream, with the very familiar sounding vocal style. The production on the drums and guitars also sounds like most music we hear on the ‘alternative rock’ radio stations. The song itself is very well crafted and catchy, and if consider the band is from Greece, then they sound exactly like an American band taking a crack at this genre. But if you don’t consider that, they just sound like any other band playing in a club on Tuesday night.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Orange Goblin – A Eulogy for the Damned (2012)

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    Arriving just in time to be the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for Stoner Rockers, today we have Orange Goblin and their seventh full-length release “A Eulogy for the Damned”. In their first album in four years, the band returns in full-strength to deliver 10 tracks of super catchy and high-quality Stoner Rock/Metal unlike you’ve ever heard before.

    Aging as a fine wine, the band shows their awesome song-writing skills that have been constantly improving over the years. Backed by the production and engineering magic of Jamie Dodd and mastered by two-time Grammy-nominated Pink Floyd engineer Andy Jackson, “A Eulogy for the Damned” has the band sounding at its best. Since the opening “Red Tide Rising”, the bar is set very high with catchy guitar melodies and very energetic vocals.

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    Bradley Tatum – It’s a Beautiful World (2011)

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    Arriving from the Grunge capital of the world: Seattle, WA, today we have Bradley Tatum’s “It’s a Beautiful World” release. Featuring an ensemble of 13 tracks that range from Electro Punk to Gothic Rock, this release has at least something for everybody into any of these genres. We particularly enjoyed the catchy beats and the deep Gothic-sounding vocals.

    First off, the production of this release is probably not the best, but it gives that extra originally and rawness to the material that one would get by listening to Bradley Tatum perform live at some open-mic night. With a high catchiness factor, the trippy Electro opener “Under the Storm Clouds” features nice vocal effects and solid distorted guitars. Not letting things get dull, Bradley Tatum delivers very different compositions in the following tracks “The Others”, “The Human Experiment” and “It’s a Beautiful World”.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Leningrad Cowboys – Buena Vodka Social Club (2012)

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    Featuring 13 crazy Finish musicians, today we have the very enigmatic and cult-worshiped Leningrad Cowboys and their first album with original songs since 2000. In “Buena Vodka Social Club” we are treated to 11 tracks of pure wackiness, but with excellent musical skills and a very festive spirit.

    While nowhere near the area of expertise of Infernal Masquerade reviewers, we still managed to appreciate and enjoy this very interesting release. Sakke Järvenpää, the band’s mastermind, has managed to bring back the Leningrad Cowboys and with such style and grace that you should keep an eye for them once they come close to your town.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    The Devil’s Blood – The Thousandfold Epicentre (2011)

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    As one of the most anticipated releases of 2011, “The Thousandfold Epicenter” delivers in every single aspect and considerably surpasses all expectation we had from The Devil’s Blood. In this release we are treated to 11 tracks of brilliant composition and intelligently transmitted emotions that will either captivate you due to its very catchy nature or its highly interesting ideological nature. The band spares no expense in providing a very insightful release, both musically and lyrically.

    After their amazing 2009 release “The Time Of No Time Evermore”, this band blew us away immediately with their high-octane psychedelic/occult rock sound that while many bands mimic, this band is the real deal. Lead by the mysterious SL/TDB/A-O and fronted by the powerful female vocals of F/TDB/MOS, this band is the real deal when it comes to mixing psychedelic music with occult references and ideas. The band’s persona is surrounded by mystery and large amounts of symbology, allowing all people that like to dig into things to enjoy countless hours trying to identify each little (and carefully crafted) detail behind the band.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Vanderbuyst – In Dutch (2011)

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    As a very entertaining ‘blast-from-the-past’, today we have Vanderbuyst and their latest release “In Dutch”. In this release, the band returns with eight hard-hitting and hard-rocking songs that will immediately command your attention. If you are a fan of 70’s Hard Rock with a little Metal twist, this release will have you raving for the next few months.

    Opening with catchy riffing and very effective vocals, “Black and Blue” delivers the perfect opener for a very memorable release. The chorus section is very simple and super catchy, a signature of these types of songs. The guitar solos are also another thing to notice since they are all perfectly placed through the track. Moving into more melodic and catchier territory, “Into the Fire” is our favorite song of this release due to its epic opening section. The paring of guitar solos, pounding bass guitar line and the overall melody of this the opener of this track makes it magical.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Nemesea – The Quiet Resistance (2011)

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    Four years have passed since Nemeasea’s last album “In Control” and on this 2011 they return stronger than ever with the very well crafted “The Quiet Resistance” release. Morphing from a Symphonic Gothic Metal outfit to a more alternative and fresher Gothic Rock sound, the band manages to keep things ‘heavy’ and not sound overly Pop-ish like many Gothic Rock/Metal bands have been doing in the last years.

    Lead by the charismatic and powerful vocals of Manda Ophuis, Nemesea’s sound has matured greatly over the years and now they deliver confident and efficient songs that go straight to the point and never get dull. The band’s alternative and almost mainstream sound is still on their own terms and they never sound like a mash up of Britney Spears with some distorted guitars thrown into the mix (hint: Amaranthe).

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Svölk – Svölk ‘Em All (2011)

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    Playing something called “Bear Metal”, according to what the band says, Svölk delivers us their latest full-length release “Svölk ‘ Em All”. This release is basically their 2009 self-released debut but with three new songs. Through 12 tracks the band delivers a heavy dosage of Stoner Rock/Metal elements with some ‘Nordic redneck attitude’, but it still sounds just like any other Stoner Rock album.

    With all the hundreds of Stoner Rock/ Metal albums that come out almost each day, it is very hard to keep listening to the same stuff and like all of it. While Svölk is undoubtedly a solid band and the songs in this album are pretty good, they can’t avoid sounding just like everybody else. The best thing we found about this release is that the band does not try to play (too much) the ‘Southern’ vibe in their music, but this might be what is coming in the future of this band.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Autumn – Cold Comfort (2011)

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    After dabbling into more ‘mainstream friendly’ lands with their previous release “Altitude”, Autumn returns to the darker side of things with the highly emotional “Cold Comfort”. In this new release the band delivers nine beautifully crafted melodies that nicely combine Progressive Rock elements with more traditional Rock influences under a very melancholic atmosphere that had us completely hooked into the album since the first track.

    The band’s vocalist Marjan Welman seems more integrated into the band’s sound and her sultry voice fits perfectly into the darker and more melancholic mood of this release than on the band’s previous ‘pop-goth’ release from 2009. Every song in “Cold Comfort” features a nice Progressive Rock/ Melancholic Rock blend of sounds, something like The Gathering with Anneke but in a less experimental way.

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