Review of "Malicious Mind" by Godlike

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https://itunes.apple.com/album/malicious-mind/id571309829?l=nl&v0=9988&ign-mpt=uo%3D1# (iTunes)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009U27HPA (MP3)

Website

http://www.godlike.fi/

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http://www.facebook.com/GodlikeProfile

1. Showdown

2. Reason for My Rage

3. Sickness

4. Meth

5. Original Rebels

6. Confrontation

7. Shi No Negai

8. Behind the Gates

9. Artificial Eminence

10. Greed

11. The Story of Sandra Jones

Godlike is an alternative metal band from Finland. They`ve been subscribed to be a unique band that has a lot of skills in writing versatile songs. In band contests they`ve had comments like: "the fluent rapping and growling is phenomenal", "your playing was superb" and even the A&R representative of Emi Music Finland praised their stage presence.

This year they will record their debut album. The album will be distributed by Inverse Records. The band will also release a music video (or two) to promote the upcoming release. You can purchase your own cd (worldwide) from amazon, play.com, spotify etc. or download it digitally. The album will be published in October 2012.

Godlike was formed in 2008. They all had been playing for years in different groups (in some cases they had 65% of the current members playing in those same bands) and when all the other projects didn`t work out…well: Godlike was born. Ilkka and Jussi had an idea to form a metal band. They needed a bass player so they asked Ilkka`s brother Ismo to join the band. At this point it wasn`t very clear what kind of metal music the band should compose. They needed a vocalist but could`t think of one. One day it hit them: they asked Jarkko to join the band as a lead guitarist and Jussi switched the guitar into singing. Now they needed a drummer and Jussi decided to ask Rami if he was willing to play drums. It had been nearly 6 years since Rami had played in a band (in which Jussi was playing bass guitar back then) but he was very anxious on returning behind the drumset again.

After the very first rehearsals it was obvious they`ve found their "power group".

Many reviews have ended in a phrase: "I hope these guys get a record deal". Well, now the album is on it`s way and there is a lot of electricity in the air. The band itself wishes to get more live shows and tours with the album and the fans seem to be holding their breath to hear how the new songs will sound like…

Starting this album off on a high note is “Showdown,” bringing a combination of old school thrash flows with newer melodic death metal riffs and screams. It’s a shorter track but had me excited to hear the rest of the album. It is very hard not to head bob to “Reason for My Rage” with the faster thrash and the groove-tastic riffs. The drums give off a bit of a punk/post-hardcore style. It is definitely a catchy track and the mix of clean vocals and screams is great. Bringing guitars that are incredible and hard to get out of your head is the next track, “Sickness.” The vocals felt a little like rap-metal or some nu-metal, but the way it flowed along with the guitars is too catchy to hate on.

The chugging on the riffs and bass lines make “Meth” have a groove that is undeniably amazing. The fast paced vocals are great, accompanying those parts and the riff near the end of the track is nice as well. “Original Rebels” gave me a southern hardcore feel to it, which was interesting in my opinion. The guitars on the this track were badass. The vocals on “Confrontation” really shows off the quicker style vocals and the whole feel reminds me of Drowning Pool a little bit. Also, I am pretty sure they rhymed bible with pie-hole, in which case they have sold me on that alone. The next track, “Shi No Negai, ” starts with really interesting ambient electronic that goes into with a stellar bass riff. When the guitars accompany it sounds perfect. Some of the guitar bits had an old heavy metal feel to them.

“Behind the Gates” has nice mellow guitar and relaxing vocals to start, it really makes you feel as if it is a ballad but then it gets into the heavier stuff again. At least you can hear he has the vocal talent to do such though. A nice drum intro and effected guitar starts off the next track, “Artificial Eminence.” Godlike really have the whole rap metal thing down, and know how to make it catchy. The guitars on “Greed” are really groovy and the solo is nice as well. The mix of clean and scream vocals on this track is great as well. Ending the album is an interesting change of vocal styling on “The Story of Sandra Jones”, they’re clean but were different than the faster paced vocals which was a nice. It was a little more of a mellow track and the guitars were good as well.

This album brings in a lot of great talent and it is great to see that they have been picked up by a record label. Jussi Lahtinen’s vocals have a great mix and a talent fast pace feel at some points. My only problem is that, in my opinion, they need more screams. Ilkka Nieminen and Jarkko Nyman bring very catchy riffs and along with Ismo Nieminen on bass created some groovy pieces. Rami Alanko also brings drumming which add to the perfect flow. Now, as much I praised them, I do believe they could use a little more screaming. Instead of using a clean rap style like Disturbed, Korn, and Slipknot, why not give more force behind it and make it more akin to Pantera? It may benefit the band, it may not, that is just my thought and I may have liked it a little more it was more Pantera like, seeming how the southern feel is already there.

Review of "In Love & Silent Screams" by Luna Reign

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http://lunareign.bandcamp.com/album/in-love-silent-screams

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1. Blood

2. Snow Blinded

3. Broken

4. Luna Eclipse II

5. Save You?

6. In Love And Silent Screams

7. As The World Falls

8. The Key

9. Kiss The Sky

10. Fallen Empire

Luna Reign (rock/metal) music is a powerful and electrified journey through creation and destruction. Powerful, sensual and seductive as black silk brushed along bare skin. Romantic and soothing, yet aggressive and abrasive. Luna Reign is a UK based Rock/Metal solo artist with a twist of gothic style romance, which was brought to life in full form in 2010.

This album starts off with the track “Blood,” with a really old style gothic rock feeling coming from the guitar. The vocals puts you more into the sense of 80s rock. Although the drums are simplistic they still sound catchy. This track really throws you into the nostalgic feel of how rock used to sound and the keyboard and lead parts are really awesome the way they are laid out. The ambient keyboard at the end of the track prior flows nicely into the next track, “Snow Blinded.” It has a very grim but gothic rock feeling riff to start off and the synth really does add to the feel, while it accompanies the riff. This is a really chilling track the way the lyrics go and the vocals bring the words out. The guitars, around four minutes in, with the ambience was really awesome as well.

“Broken” has a faster styling of the olden rock era of guitar. I enjoyed the break from the guitar into keyboard about the three minutes. With the bass kick build up to bring the band back it sounded really badass. Bringing a really mellow feel is the next track, “Luna Eclipse II,” with the chilled out guitar and very soft spoken vocals. When the guitar and keyboard come in it gets really epic. This was a very well done gothic rock ballad and the vocals really get the spotlight as they are very perfect and amazing for the style. The organ affect on the keys of “Save You?” are really tone setting, as well as the ambience. The strumming of the guitar makes it a really laid back track. This track is really mellow but for the genre that’s definitely fine. It is a very trance inducing track and you can’t help but feel as if you’re going to get bit by a vampire and be okay with it.

The mix between the low ambience and higher keys made for a chilling sound in the next track, “In Love And Silent Screams,” and the guitar chugs sound good. Having two toned vocals was really dark sounding as well and makes it more enjoyable. Mellow guitar and vocals start off “As The World Falls,” but builds up as the drums comes in and it gets a little which sounds nice. It is a really catchy track the way it flows, with relaxing breaks and a heavy chorus. “The Key” brings really groovy rock feeling guitar riffs and the vocals are great on this track as per usual. They felt a little more chilling, but it may have just been how the keyboard flowed with it though.

The next track, “Kiss The Sky,” is very dark feeling the way the ambient keyboard and guitar flowed. Some of the riffs were a little grim feeling which is awesome. It is mostly a mellow track but it still has a very chilling feel to it, especially the ending of it with the ambience and whispers. “Fallen Empire” was probably the best way to end the album, with its short and heavy feel. The guitars are catchy and the vocals are as well the way they flowed, although it is a short track it is a great track.

This album is really well done and the fact that this is a one man band makes it even more of a masterpiece. I don’t think I have ever listened to anything quite like it. The whole album feels like it belongs in movies like Labrynth, Never Ending Story, and even Donnie Darko in some scenes. The ambient keyboard and guitars are very old school gothic rock and the vocals are really great with the soft spoken but chilling coherent singing. I recommend picking this up as it isn’t too heavy and is something everyone will be able to enjoy, especially at a pay what you want price.

Review of "Clarity of Perception" by Concordia

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https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/clarity-of-perception/id499281848 (iTunes)

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http://amzn.to/YsRU1d (CD)

Website 

http://www.concordiaband.com/

Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/ConcordiaRock

1. Spoon-fed Sheep

2. Surrender

3. White Horse

4. 2-U

5. Eotw

6. The Calling

7. Ghost of You

8. Sorry for Now

9. Edge of the Sky

10. Was It Worth It?

11. Hubris

“Concordia is a fresh, new four-piece hard/alternative rock band that originated in Cleveland, Ohio in late 2011. Concordia is a testament to just how varied and innovative bands in the hard rock spectrum can be. In one sense, this band is a pure driving force of melodic sounds and instrumentals, but they do so in a way that is powerful and adrenaline pumping all the same. I consider them to be a soft, melodic band with the energy and vigor of a metal band. It can be so rare nowadays to find a band with that uplifting “feel good” melodic sound, but with backing edginess and adrenaline that gets your blood flowing in the process.” Concordia has been compared to bands like Linkin Park, 30 Seconds to Mars, Chevelle, and Breaking Benjamin.

In 2010, after Eric posted a cover of Ra’s “Broken Hearted Soul” on YouTube, he was amazed to find that one of the first comments on the video was from Sahaj Ticotin, lead singer of RA. It wasn’t long before Eric was on a plane to Sahaj’s studio in LA to record what would eventually become Concordia’s debut album, Clarity of Perception. The album was co-written by Sahaj Ticotin (RA), Dustin Bates (Downplay), and features studio drummer Adrian Ost from the critically acclaimed bands Powerman 5000 and Dope.

Eric Emery talked long-time friends Cory Juba (Guitar) and Nick Smith (Bass) into taking a break from their studies at college and becoming members of Concordia. Eric reached out to local virtuoso Kyle Tresch (Drums) to complete the lineup and provide an interesting musical perspective to the band.

Blending everything from soaring melodic choruses to powerful, heavy chugging riffs, their sound will surely appeal to a wide variety of listeners. With catchy hooks and angst-ridden lyrics, Concordia will likely become a veritable force in the hard-rock arena. Make sure to look for Concordia on the road somewhere near you and check out their debut album, Clarity of Perception.

The album starts with the quite mellow track, “Spoon-fed Sheep.” I like how the piano built up to the guitar. The vocals are really relaxing and there is a great mix of nice piano and bass bits as well as heavier guitar bits. I enjoyed this track and it was a nice introduction for someone who has not listened to the band prior. The next track, “Surrender,” opens on a very catchy riff. All of guitar riffs are amazing with distortion effects to keep a heavy feel.  To keep a more metal concentration there are a few subtle screams, but later on they are more apparent. This is one of my favourite tracks. The mellow acoustic and vocals and heavier bits made for an awesome mix of emotion pulling riffs in “White Horse.” Although Concordia are mellow, I find them great to listen to.

I like the acoustic and bass bits in “2-U,” they sound really groovy and the heavier riffs are done well as well. The mellow break in the middle with the riff and backing bits along with the great vocals was nice. With the catchy riff following it was a great part, especially with the solo. Continuing the very awesome acoustic is “Eotw.” I am not sure what the title means exactly but what I do know is that although it is mellow the whole way through, it still sounds great. Having the acoustic throughout the whole track lets the vocals have time to shine, as they do, and feel so relaxing the whole way through. The riffs on “The Calling” are very badass and the bass lines are great as well. The screams were enjoyable and they add nicely to the cleaner vocal parts. The lead diddles are great and this is definitely another favourite.

Bringing guitars in a very catchy fashion, the way the lead flowed on the mellow bits, is the next track is “Ghost of You.” The bass has some nice parts as well and I think I heard some more screams on this track but you couldn’t tell as they weren’t very loud or apparent over the main vocals. Keeping the catchy leads is “Sorry for Now” and the vocals are amazingly done as well and sound perfect. This track flowed well with its heavier and mellower bits and is possibly another favourite. “Edge of the Sky” had some really awesome acoustic parts. I think the tambourine adds to it and makes it more badass, because tambourines are badass. It is overall a mellower track but still sounds great.

The distorted riff with acoustic diddles accompanying it was really awesome in “Was It Worth It?” I really like the lead tapping riff as well and this track is a great one for the guitarists’ talents. “Hubris” has really old school influences the way it flowed and the heavier lead riffs sound. It quickly goes into acoustic breaks, but the mix of the two made for a great album ending track.

For being a more rock oriented album, I actually enjoyed this album. The vocals from Eric Emery is great and if he is the only one doing vocals, as I am not sure if someone does backing screams, then he has a nice spectrum of vocal talent. He, along with Cory Juba do a great job of tackling the guitar, with a mix of acoustic and heavy riffs which bring even more to the table. Kyle Tresch, as I cannot forget the drummer, does great as well with epic fills. Concordia, although being mainly a rock powered group, can and does have the capability of being a metal band. I think if they added more screams and put more emphasis on their distorted riffs, they would sound even more amazing than they already do.