Pale Horseman/Self Titled/2013 CD Review

  Pale  Horseman  are  a  band  from  Chicago,  Illinois  that  plays  a  heavy  mixture  of  sludge  and  doom metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  titled  and  self  released  2013  album.

  Drums  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  playing  with  no  fast  drumming  or  blast  beats  being  present on  this  recording,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  are  coming  out  of  the  guitars.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  playing t hat  combine  sludge  and  doom  metal  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own  with  a  great  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  being  thrown  into  the  riffing  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  clean  playing,   while  the  lead  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  are  very  dark  and  melodic  sounding  doom  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  range  from  sludge  style  vocals  to  clean  singing  stoner/doom  metal,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  metaphysical  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  dark  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  with  the  songs  being  long  and  epic  in  length.

  In  my  opinion  Pale  Horseman  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  if you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Black  River"  "Paranormal  Unknown"  and "Afterlife".  RECOMMENDED  BUY. 

Polkadot Cadaver/Last Call In Jonestown/Razor To Wrist Records/2013 CD Review

  Polkadot  Cadaver  are  a  band  from  Maryland  that  plays  a  mixture  of  thrash,  avant  garde  metal  and  experimental  rock  rock  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2013  album  "Last  Call  In  Jonestown"  which  was  released  by  Razor  To  Wrist  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  some  blast  beats  being  utilized  at  times,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  riffing  that  dominates  throughout  the  recording,  as  for  the  synths  when  they  are  utilized  they  bring  a  very  experimental  and  avant  garde  sound  to  the  recording.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffs  that  combine  thrash  with  avant  garde  and  experimental  rock  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own  with  some  melody  being  thrown  into  the  riffing  at  times  as  well  as  some  soft  and  clean  playing,  while  the  lead  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  are  very  old  school  sounding  thrash  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  range  from  punk/thrash  style  yelling  and  clean  singing  avant  garde  vocals  along  with  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  and  female  vocals,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  the  recording.

  In  my  opinion  Polkadot  Cadaver  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  thrash,  avant  garde  metal  and  experimental  rock  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band. RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Phantasmagoria"  "Sheer  Madness"  "Lunatic"  and  "Transisters  Of  Mercy".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

Sanktuary Interview

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard of you before?

We are Sanktuary. We play straight up no bullshit heavy metal with plenty of tasty licks and double kicks to satisfy that sonic fix. We like beer. We like hockey. We’re Canadian and damn proud of it.

1. How would you describe your musical sound?

We’ve been compared to the sound let out by a dirty butt smoking hobo who’s just been kicked viscously in the testicles by a stiletto wearing street whore. We are oldschool. Plain and simple. We’re not doing anything new or ground breaking, we’re just pumping out solid, bang your head heavy metal.

1. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

Anything and everything. We write about the downright deranged, evil and witchery, mammoth hunting in the high north, partying and getting fucked up. Whatever crosses our minds at any particular point in time usually goes down on a piece of paper.

1. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

There is none. It’s a lame band name and we know it. How many bands with our name must be out there? Probably a million. But you know what? It’s a part of us now. We’ve been Sanktuary for so long that changing it would be denying ourselves who we are. So hell, why not just embrace it?

1. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?

No particular show comes to mind, they are all fuckin’ ridiculous. It’s true what they say, whether playing in front of one or a million you have to take the same approach and just play your heart out. I mean if you’re not having fun up on stage then why play live? Might as well just lock yourself in your basement and jerk off to your guitar. Our stage performance consists of sweat, blood and dirty bottom of the keg beer.

1. Do you have any touring plans for the future?

Always plans in the works. We are always trying to go further and play places we’ve never been. We can say we’ve played the majority of Canada with a few exceptions but we haven’t branched out across borders. Hopefully that time will come and with the album coming out I’m sure it will light a fire under all of our asses.

1. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of metal?

It’s been great. Even if it wasn’t, who cares? We are doing this because we love to do it. It’s awesome that others have enjoyed our vision as well. I admit it does help to inspire us to further our development and get new material out to the light of day. But at the end of the day, the only people we really aspire to satisfy is ourselves and you’re your own toughest critic.

1. Are there any other musical projects besides this band or is this a full time line up?

This is a full time line-up. It takes up a lot of time and energy to fuel the beast and keep it running. If people outside of the music world were to really see how much goes into the creation of it all I think things would be a little different. As of the past little while actually, a couple of the members along with a fellow northern ally have embarked on a secret journey as the mysterious Space Canoe. I’ve already said too much.

1. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

Your guess would be as good as mine. Who really knows what the future has in store for us. Our music no doubt will evolve as will we. With Glen  Emond back in the fold and the all original line-up once again complete, there is no telling what kind of ferocious magik we will be able to conjure up.

1. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

How can this question ever be answered without sounding totally cliche? Or for that matter totally douchy for listing all of the radically obscure underground or vintage bands we are into. We were influenced by pretty much all the bands that every metal head cuts their teeth on. As time passes and people grow, they find their little niche or dark corner. Not to say that we are solely influenced by metal bands alone either. As for listening pleasure, we listen to it all. What we like makes it on for another spin.

1. Outside of music what are some of your interests?

Beer. Whiskey. Hockey. Wrastlin’. 

1. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

Watch out for our debut full length “Something Fierce” comin’ at ya July 2 through Spread the Metal Records. We’re gonna be on the road for this one so your just gonna have to keep your eyes open and your ears fully stuffed with toilet paper cause we’re coming for ya. We’re coming fast and we’re coming loud. Because we are heavy metal. We are Sanktuary.

Ass Of Spades/Sleep When You Die/Heimathone Records/2013 CD Review

  Ass  Of  Spades  are  a  band  from  Switzerland  that  plays  a  mixture  of  heavy  metal,  hard  rock  and punk  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2013  album  "Sleep  When  You  Die"  which  was  released  by  Heimathone  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  to  fast  playing  with  not  much  in  the  way  of  blast  beats,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  riffing  that  dominates  throughout  the  recording.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffs  that  combine  heavy  metal,  hard  rock  and punk  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own  with  a  good  amount  of  melody  being  thrown  into  the  riffing,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  old  school  sounding  heavy  metal/hard  rock  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  are  all  clean  singing  heavy  metal/hard  rock  vocals,  while  the  lyrics  cover  everyday  themes, as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  Ass  Of  Spades  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  heavy  metal,  hard  rock  and  punk  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Back  In  Town"  "Godamn  Wrong"  "Get  Dead  On  The  World"  and  "Sleep  When  You  Die".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

Sanktuary/Something Fierce/Spread The Metal Records/2013 CD Review

  Sanktuary  are  a  band  from  Nova  Scotia,  Canada  that  plays  a  mixture  of  power  metal,  thrash  and  stoner  rock  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2013  album  "Something  Fierce"  which  was  released  by  Spread  The  Metal  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  not  much  in  the  way  of  blast  beats,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  are  coming  out  of  the  guitars  and  at  times  they  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffs  that  combine  power  metal,  speed,  thrash  and  stoner  rock  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  old  school  and  melodic  power/heavy  metal  guitars  and  leads,  as  for  the  acoustic  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  they  use  finger picking  and  full  chords  to  add  more  variety  to  the  recording.

  Vocals  are  mostly  clean  singing  power  metal  vocals  with  some  more  aggressive  elements  being  used  at  times  as  well  as  some  thrash  style  back  up  shouts,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark,  violent  and  everyday  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  dark,  heavy,  old  school  and  professional  sound  to  it.

  In   my  opinion  Sanktuary  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  power  metal,  speed,  thrash  and  stoner  rock  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Heat  Lightning"  "Screeching  For  Vengeance"  and  "Fire  In  The  Sky".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

Author & Punisher/Women & Children/Seventh Rule Recordings/2013 CD Review

  Author  &  Punisher  are  a  band  from  California  that  plays  industrial  doom  metal  with  elements  of  noise,  and  dubstep  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2013  album  "Women  &  Children"  which  was  released  by  Seventh  Rule  Recordings.

  Drum  programming  ranges  from  slow  to  mid  paced  beats,  while  the  synths,  programming,  and  effects  bring  elements  of  drone,  noise,  industrial  and  dubstep  to  the  recording,  as  for  the  bass  playing  it  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  riffing  that  dominates  throughout  the  recording.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  riffs  that  combine  doom  metal  with  industrial  and  drone  to  create  a  very  heavy  sound  of  their  own  and  there  are  no  guitar  solos  or  leads  present  on  this  recording.

  Vocals  are  all  industrial  style  vocals  which  range  from  clean  singing  to  more  aggressive  elements,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy,  dark  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of t he  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording  with  some  of  the  songs  being  long  and  epic  in  length.

  In  my  opinion  Author  &  Punisher  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  industrial,  noise  and  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Women  &  Children"  "Tame  As  A  Lion"  and  "Miles  From  Home".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.      

Maudlin Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

Well our album "A Sign of Time" is out since February 15th and we've been promoting it mainly in our country, Belgium, by playing out shows. In the summermonths we do some one of shows in The Netherlands and Germany, that hopefully will be backed up with some weekend tours starting from September. A short European tour should follow in the last week of October. And further then that we have all options open. We're also at the point that we slowly start working on new material, yet we don't have anything concrete yet, because we have a very unique and complex way of writing songs. Depending on how fast the writing evolves we'll start recording again.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it differs from previous efforts?

Describing the musical sound is so difficult, I mean when we read the reviews the terms that are used a lot are "exciting", "original", "overwhelming", "intense", "captivating", "influential album" "dark",... we also got compared with so many different bands as Neurosis, Type O-Negative, Hawkwind, Husker Du, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Mastodon, Pink Floyd,... We worked hard on this album and we have put so much in it, so many influences that it is difficult to describe it without referring to those terms and bands. We do have a friend who said to us something like: "Fuck guys, this is Mastodon on relatin, Pink Floyd on steroïds and Saint Vitus on speed". I feel this is the best possible description we could have received.

To answer how it differs from our previous efforts, well... up to now Maudlin always came with totally different sounding albums. Our e.p. "Solitary Echo" was an interpretation of I guess Isis and the likes. While on our first full we felt like we had to put more into it then just the influence of one band or genre. So on "Ionesco" we started experimenting and we created a mix between post-hardcore, sludge, doom, psychedelic rock and math-core. The album got well received, but we somehow felt like it wasn't totally what we wanted. For ourselves we missed some kind of natural flow blending those styles to something new. So, we kept on searching, we skipped the mathcore and threw in some prog rock and progressive metal insted. On the vocal side we started experimenting on "Ionesco" with some clean singing and multiple layered vocals... we loved it so much that it's all over on the "A Sign of Time" album. 

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

"A Sign of Time" is, just as "Ionesco", a conceptual album. To tell you the story of "A Sign of Time", it is important that you do know the story of "Ionesco" so let's start there. "Ionesco" tells the story of a fictive person that we have put in a real background. We choose the late 1940ies, Washington DC. Around that time there was a doctor called Freeman, who believed he found the cure against depression. Be it through a treatment called 'transorbital lobotomy'. Mainly that was putting an icepick in the eye socket, move it back and forth until the bridge between the left and right hemisphere of the brain wasn't anymore. Sounds like a horrortale, but we didn't tell this lugubrious side on the album, but we described the depressive thoughts and emotions our fictive person has gone through before, during and after this surgery. "Ionesco" ends with a suicide attempt, but it had an open ending and we never told if our character survived this or not. "Ionesco" had an almost silent part which stood for the near death experience of our character. We used this part as a starting point for "A Sign of Time". In fact "A Sign of Time" is a timestretch of those brief seconds who feel like hours and in which we see ourselves re-living the highlights and the lows of our lives that made us who we are/were. But we re-live them in a more psychedelic way, as we stepped out of ourselves... so we see connections that might have been there, but that we never noticed before. All persons that meant something, positive or negative, turned in some sort of mythic gods that are related to strong nature elements. Those nature elements symbolise our emotional state of that moment. This sounds very complicated, but to us it felt natural in the writing process, which naturally means we speak a lot about what direction we want to go to. I give an example, hope this might help: We start jamming and we come up with a riff, we do speak about how this riff feels and around that feeling we start combining it with natural things that have some sort of motion... like for 'Godess of the Flame' we felt fire, heat, brutality,... in this riff, we started talking and came with an imaginative picture of a vulcano. So, we created the song around how a vulcano works: sleepy to active to panic to eruption to magma slowly burning the land. It's a short and simple explenation, that has way more crazy twists for us involved in the writing process, but to find them all, that's up to the listener.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

Honestly, we do not feel like we have the best band name ever. But 3 months after our first rehearsel we had a first show offer to play with The White Circle Crime Club, a legendary band in Belgium. So, we were honored and wanted to do this. We received a deadline to come up with a name for the flyer. So, the best we found in those 2 days was Maudlin, which came from the Old English expression 'Maudlin eyes'. That expression described how Maria Magdalene her eyes looked like when she removed christ from his cross. We felt like the name suited the music... so that's what it became.

5. Has the band done any shows or is this strictly a studio project?

We played out a lot in the past and we hope to play out even more in the future. Up to now we covered 13 European countries, playing lots of shows... we hope to expand this territory!! I do believe that we didn't managed our live feel completly on our albums, it's all a little more intense, when we are on stage playing our heart out!!

6. Currently you are signed to ConSouling Sounds, how did you get in contact with this label and how would you describe the support they have given you so far?

We got in touch by simply sending them our recordings, the mixed & mastered version. They liked it a lot and they deceided to work with us. It's a great support, the promotion is amazing, lots of magazines covered us with a review... Next to Consouling sounds we also work with Moment of Collapse from Germany, who released us on lp. And it's great to see how 2 labels work together in the best interest for the band! We feel like those labels did help us to make it to the next level.

7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your recordings by fans of music?

I can only say that reviews have been overwhelming to us. We had the idea that we came with a good album... but seems like the reviews are more positive then we could have wished... let's see where it leads to. More shows, more stages,... if that is the answer, well then we welcome that with open arms!!

8. Are there any other musical projects besides this band or is this a full time line up?

Jasper is in another band called "Oscar & The Wolf", they're becoming one of the most wanted indie rock bands in Europe at this point. But we're more then happy that Jasper is doing everything to combine both bands. We will work with a stand in for some shows, since Oscar plays out all over Europe. But writing will happen with Jasper among us.

9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

I think as always we'll explore the horizon. It will be heavy, as that is a constant factor in Maudlin. But how it will sound exactely, we have no idea yet, so I can't answer this one.

10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

I listen to very diverse musicstyles & bands going from Slayer (rip sir Hanneman) to the Pixies over Neurosis and back to Led Zeppelin and inbetween I have some Taake, Foo Fighters, Goat,...

11. Does Occultism play any role in your music?

As much as I do respect and are intrigued by occultism, I have never been a part of it. It's just not me worshipping other things then a riff, so it would be fake and disrespectful if I ever was part of some band involved with occultism.

12. Outside of music what are some of your interests?

I speak for myself on this one, but I am very much into surfing. I know it sounds happy & vacation & sun & beach &... but a fact is that I do live in Belgium with a fulltime job and that the water is freezing cold over here... 2° Celcius is my homespot. But yes I do travel to Morocco and Indonesia and the USA to have some better conditions every now and then.

13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview/

Thank you and your readers for the interest in Maudlin. Please find us on:

http://www.facebook.com/maudlinrocks

http://maudlin.bandcamp.com

Keep on reading!!