By now we trust you are familiar with the format, purpose and rules of the beloved Mystery Grab Bag. Us men throw 10 songs into the bag, five for each. We know nothing of the selections and more often than not we have no idea what we are listening to. Therein lies the fun. Mind though that this is not us purposefully trying to play song that the other one cannot know. That would be silly, right?
The rules are simple:
- The mp3 files contain no information and are nameless.
- We do not refer to our music libraries, youtube, discog, music identification apps and we don't look for lyrics online nor ask our friends.
- We submit our reactions to what we just heard and then we make our reveals later.
Good fun, eh! Find us in the comment section below if you want to talk to us about our picks, the artists or just our lousy opinions and sensibilities.
AVERSIONLINE'S TRACKS:
Track 1
Birkir: Again I'm pointing my finger at a decade passed, namely the '90s, and I'll throw America's east coast in there as well. Gotta be. I really like the powerful and open riffs that ring like a blast in the night—à la Burn, Quicksand, and Helmet. The vocals are great. The guy's got character, especially refreshing is the rapid, hurried delivery in parts. What I like about this is that it ain't too "post-hardcore" to rage to, you know what I mean? When music becomes so thought out and next level to where it came from that it's rendered boring live, at least from a crowd participation point of view. I can picture people going apeshit to this, yet this ain't no Shattered Realm or something! I like this. Raw and powerful.
Artist: Jesuseater
Title: "Happier Than Dreams"
Album: Step Inside My Death Ray! (2002)
Hear It (direct link)
Andrew: The fact that I couldn't find this song on YouTube suggests to me that Jesuseater is perhaps even more underrated than I thought!? And wow, we're old, because recognising that this tune is from way back in 2002 feels pretty crazy to me [Yeah there's a lot of that in our Grab Bags - The Ed]. The band was fronted by Shawn Brown (ex-Dag Nasty, ex-Swiz, ex-Sweetbelly Freakdown, now in Red Hare), so you are absolutely correct in citing the quality and character of the vocals. A defining quality of Jesuseater, for sure. I was a big fan of their hard rockin' post-hardcore-ish grooves back then, and certainly still enjoy giving 'em the occasional spin to this day. You can grab both of their CDs as a $10 package deal from Deathwish Inc., which is a fuckin' steal, so… get movin'!
Track 2
Birkir: Super down-tuned bass and melodies. Gotta be recent-ish. Strange accent. European. "Clean piano," it has to be European! This is people that used to be in brutal bands but are now catchy, like Paradise Lost and Katatonia are catchy. Yet this bears little resemblance to the two. I like the chorus much more than the verses. Vocals in the chorus are strong. Dramatic, even cinematic. There's a lot going on in this song. Very ambitious arrangements. This session didn't happen overnight. This song is puzzling, yet fascinating. I'll play it again right now. A lot of ideas here that capture the imagination. I wonder what they'd come up with on an entire album?
Artist: Head Control System
Title: "It Hurts"
Album: Murder Nature (2006)
Hear It (direct link)
Andrew: I don't know if you're a fan of his more notable work at all, but that's Kristoffer Rygg from Ulver, Arcturus, etc. singing. Head Control System was, I guess, sort of a one-off project spearheaded by Portuguese multi-instrumentalist Daniel Cardoso, and Rygg joined in on vocals. I'm sort of surprised this record didn't make a little bit more of a splash based on Rygg's association alone, but… the album cover was pretty goofy, and it was mis-promoted to some degree as well. I've always assumed some people would toss it off as "nu-metal," too, since it leans in that direction on occasion, and we all know how narrow-minded people can be. It's a great album, though. And being the under appreciated gem that it is, there are a few copies on Amazon for just $0.01, ha. "It Hurts" has been my favorite song from the disc since day one, but I'd have to agree with you that the chorus just smokes the rest of the composition.
Track 3
Birkir: Oh, brother! Able Baker Fox's debut full-length is one of my favourite albums of this century. I've written a lot about it, and crusaded for it in the real world—so much so that most of my friends became hooked on it and continued to analyse and scrutinise it a few years after it came out. We almost had a fucking panel on this album. So fucking good. Small Brown Bike is a band so fucking dear to me, and I also was quite The Casket Lottery completist. I remember when they collaborated on the "Wrong Hometown" (youtube it you bastards) track from the The Casket Lottery/Small Brown Bike split all those years ago. That song was perfect, and for the longest time I longed for more of that, and then my prayers got answered in 2008, I think, when these guys got together to write a whole album together! It couldn't have turned out better. No way. This is "What Doesn't Kill You," from the album Voices. Not the strongest cut from it, but better than most music people will listen to this week, that's for sure. Ah, those drums, man… fuck.
Artist: Able Baker Fox
Title: "What Doesn't Kill You"
Album: Voices (2008)
Hear It (direct link)
Andrew: Correct! What a great album, right? I never got into Small Brown Bike for some reason, but I loved The Casket Lottery. Not enough to realise that they released a new album a couple years ago, though, as I just learned that fact right now. Damnit. Same thing happened with Able Baker Fox, too! I had no idea this album existed when it came out, until someone recommended it to me on my website (thankfully). There's too much good music out there, I just can't keep up. They never did anything else, did they? What the hell?
(Oh, hmmm, I just looked 'em up and apparently they're playing two shows towards the end of this year… I wonder… will we get some new recordings out of that!?)
Track 4
Birkir: Starts out like Bloodlet (sans the snare drum, of course)! I'm intrigued. Wonder what the singer will sound like. Hope he doesn't fuck it up. He kinda does. No, not really. He quickly grew on me because I'm well versed in that "'90s new school hardcore" thang, as you well know. Oh, that drum break is so "conventional" for the time. Love it, ha, ha, ha, ha. Guitar flute notes and palm mutes! It's all there! "So I will tell you friend, what I tell you now, that I will carry on what you carry out!" He said that, right? More metal happening in those riffs than, shall we say, Harvest or One King Down, but this track leaves something to be desired. More intensity, maybe. I'm about this though. I was there for this, far away from all of you, here in Iceland.
Artist: Withstand
Title: "Second to One"
Album: ...And Anger Was a Warm Place to Hide (1997)
Hear It (direct link)
Andrew: '90s hardcore indeed, obviously! That's Withstand, from Troy, NY, off their only full-length album from '97. Maybe it's a little too midpaced for you? I don't know, I'm a sucker for moshy, midpaced breaks myself. And those pauses during the intro! Argh! Perfect. Not to mention the harmonics during the breakdown in the middle… bands don't really do that anymore, do they? Did Machine Head ruin them for everyone or something? It's funny, you're a drummer, so I have to take your word for it on the whole "conventional" thing, but to me the drumming here has a little more of a rolling groove to it than most, and I have a soft spot for that aspect of the percussion—especially with regard to this particular genre!
Track 5
Birkir: Ahhh, starts out fresh. Hard rock vocals! The Almighty going through Alice in Chains' garbage? It's that Skid Row stomp man! See what I did there? "Monkey on his back," he says. HUGE chorus befitting the Seattle quartet, but would be at home on a fucking W.A.S.P. album. I'm a sucker for that. What's going on with the tempo during the crybaby guitar solo part? That was not a good move, if I'm to be honest. The guitar tone is great, it rings and twangs. Great touch. All I can say is that this kicks fucking ass regardless of my criticism, and I cannot wait for this reveal!
Artist: My Sister's Machine
Title: "Sunday"
Album: Diva (1992)
Hear It (direct link)
Andrew: Yeah, this is a Seattle band, and one of the guys was actually in a very early version of Alice in Chains. It's from My Sister's Machine's debut album, Diva, which was released right in the midst of the "grunge explosion" of the early-'90s. I think the band did alright at the time, 'cause I used to see the video for "I'm Sorry" on Headbangers Ball fairly often. In recent years this song, "Sunday," has become my favorite, though. Like you said, the chorus is absofuckinglutely incredible. Just huge! "Youuu liiiiiiiiiiiive, my loving light is coming round…" Man, it's impossible not to sing along every single time. I love it! Oddly enough, this track didn't strike me at first, however. No clue why, 'cause now I'd say it's far and away the best song on an already solid disc. Definitely worth checking out.
HALIFAX COLLECT'S TRACKS:
Track 1
Andrew: YES! Train of Thought! "Bliss." Right away! You knew, of course, that I was going to know this, and then flip out and gush for an hour. I love, love, LOVE this fucking band, man. Love 'em! This was actually the first Train of Thought song I ever heard, as it's their first track on the East Coast Assault II compilation (my all-time favorite hardcore compilation, no less), and I completely lost my mind when I heard this back in the day. So much so that I eventually tracked down a copy of their demo tape on eBay—years before their posthumous discography CD finally hit the streets. All of my favorite bands from East Coast Assault II—Train of Thought, Struggle Within, and Rainmen—went pretty much nowhere, and that fact still destroys me to this day. FUCK. It's just insane to me that Train of Thought only recorded seven tracks (all of which are absolutely incredible). "Bliss" is one of their greatest: a perfect blend of vicious mosh breaks and sleek melody. I mean, check out those god damn basslines, man! The dude's roaming all over the place and it's fuckin' fantastic! The fluidity of the solo, the vocal harmonies... they were so diverse, and talk about stellar songwriting! I'll never understand why they weren't more appreciated. New Jersey in the mid- to late-'90s was an absolute goldmine of incredible metallic hardcore bands. Everything I've said above also applies to Elements DEC and Agents of Man, but don't get me started...
Artist: Train of Thought
Title: "Bliss"
Album: East Coast Assault II: The Second Coming (1997)
Hear It (direct link)
Birkir: What can I say, brother? I just wanted you to jump out of your seat with joy. I knew you'd know, but I've been dying to play this song for our readers. It's so goddamn perfect. I bet it's not even on YouTube, so I'll up it on my SoundCloud believing these guys won't mind [EDIT: It's on youtube - The Ed) Talk about an underrated band. It's been aaaaaages ago since I found that CD in a store somewhere in Denmark and the Train jumped at me the strongest because of the audible and assured vocals - so much character - and incredible bass work, first and foremost. The start of the song sets the tone like few other songs can. Let me get off the track (pun intended) and onto another train of thought (pun intended) here for a second. Today I saw some young dudes talking about a deathcore band of sorts, and they did so with reverence. They went into this spiel about the "clean vocals." In that genre and almost all young-people subgenres (it's a thing man!) of metal, these vocals all sound the same. All go for the same computered-cleaned approach, like there's no emotion or personality behind it. I like how Train of Thought/Agents of Man did it. Powerful, from the gut, with flair. New York always had the best vocalists. But you've said all I wanted to say about the band, so I'll move on to the next one.
Track 2
Andrew: Hmmm, is this gonna be funk metal? Oh, PLEASE let it be funk metal! Okay, it's gotta be from the late-'80s/early-'90s. Nah, it's early-'90s, definitely. Those bass-centric verse grooves would not have been present in the '80s, I don't think. It's thrash, and it's bouncy, but it's not as funky as I was expecting it to be. I have a major problem here, and that problem is that I don't know who this is, and I should absolutely know who this is! I should know who this is, and this album should be on my iPod. Son of a bitch! Are they from the UK? They've got a very UK-sounding vibe to the riffs and vocal arrangements—like Xentrix, Slammer, etc.—but not quite, and I know it's neither of those bands. That dissonant run during the chorus ("You better watch yourself, be careful what you do...") is an unexpected twist. Fuckin' great, too. Shit, man, I really like this. Great pick, and I'm both shocked and disappointed that I don't know who this is. How the hell has this band managed to elude me for more than two decades!?
Artist: Wrathchild America
Title: "Forever Alone"
Album: 3-D (1991)
Hear It (direct link)
Birkir: One of, no, scratch that, the most underrated GOOD thrash bands of the late-'80s and early-'90s. Especially in the early-'90s, when most thrash bands were moving into more expansive areas in the wake of Metallica's success with ... And Justice and then the Black Album. During this period from '88 to '93 we started to see songs and whole albums with music that I've coined "Lexus thrash." Everyone was doing it, Anthrax (Persistence of Time, Sound of White Noise), Testament (Souls of Black, The Ritual), Death Angel (Act III) and even Defiance (Beyond Recognition), to name but a few. But with 3-D Wrathchild America did it the best and made it their own to such an extent it sounded like nothing at the time. They were the only ones to really make it their own was, as one can clearly hear on this track, the title track, and 3-D as a whole really. I'm repeating myself. Sorry.
I've been playing this album on the regular since it came out. I'm not even exaggerating. As a kid I decided that this was a song about drug addiction, and I was moved by the whole experience. Still am. The guitar tone on this album is totally unique for the time and the genre. The drums are incredible and creative. I love Lars Ulrich, but for the longest time I thought Metallica would have benefitted if they just employed Shannon Larkin (One of rock's and metal's best drummers ever. Period!) to play live for them. Best idea I've ever had!
3-D explores a lot of songwriting ideas - variety in mood and tempo throughout - most of which work perfectly. As was the case with many bands of their ilk at the time, they felt the need to include goofy/fun moments within songs or for a duration of song as to not come off as too boring. Sometimes it works, other times it don't, but the lasting impression is that of a totally unique band that put to tape an everlasting "feel," and songs that have stood the test of time. I could go on forever about this… Oh, and before I bounce; to all the music critics that said Brad Divens' voice was that of James Hetfield, you obviously never listened or you are just dumb. Probably both.
Track 3
Andrew: Whoa. Throwing me for another loop here. Metalcore with reggae vocals. Is it Skindred or Dub War or something? Those are the only bands I can recall having heard that head in this kind of direction, but I'm not very familiar with either group. For whatever reason, the fact that it's actually got some record scratching/DJ-type elements makes me think they're not coming from the hardcore scene, though. I guess I feel like "hardcore" would frown on that as being "cheesy" or something. That being said, the production values are really raw—almost demo-like—which is intriguing in that it further confuses me as to where this band might be coming from. Not that it matters. Hmmm... I'm on the fence here. It's got some cool moments (some of the guitar textures remind me of 108), but I really dislike reggae, so the vocals are a bit much for me. I don't care for the record scratching/DJ stuff in this particular context either. It's overly grating and doesn't add to the song. Not terrible, but I can't quite come around to diggin' this. Catchy chorus, though.
Artist: Dub War
Title: "Original Murder"
Album: Words of DubWarning (1994)
Hear It (direct link)
NOTE: I ran into bit of a problem here. The version of "Original Murder" Andrew got from me is from the the Words of DubWarning release that pre-dates the Extra Pain version you just listened to. The older version has a different ending, and the overall sound is rawer and more aggressive. Alas, we couldn't find it streaming online.
Birkir: Dub War it is! Benji's vocals are instantly recognisable, and on this album the band was just rough enough around the edges to not fall in line with whatever was the "rap-metal" of the time. This album has an air of aggression they never captured since. I like the noisy guitar work as well, and those drums are hard as nails. In fact, revisiting this album when picking songs for you, it dawned on me that in those days UK bands had absolutely amazing drummers! I contemplated putting together a top UK drummer list for No Echo. I just might...
Track 4
Andrew: Damn you! I'm stumped again! No clue. Dark, heavy post-hardcore that surges forth into full-on abrasive metalcore. Half of the vocals are spoken, half are shouted/screamed, and all are under a light sheen of distortion. I can't really discern much of anything about this. Is it newer, or have you gone with a '90s theme here? Are they American, or no? It sounds like there might be a slight accent, but I just can't tell. "It's all your fault!" is about the only line of lyrics I can make out. The production does have a more modern sound—it's nice and thick, and the kick drums are ever so slightly "clicky"—but it can't be all THAT new, right? It's bringing to mind a heavier/more modern and consistently aggressive Die 116. Actually, it also sort of reminds me of Dissolve's Caveman of the Future, from which I selected a track for you back in Grab Bag #2 (listen/read). This isn't as chaotic, though. Well, you're taking me to school this month, my friend! Another excellent pick that I should have in my collection. You'll have me spending money once again as soon as you reveal your selections!
Artist: Medulla Nocte
Title: "Twice the Trauma"
Album: Dying From the Inside (2000)
Hear It (direct link)
Birkir: I was certainly not trying to stump you with this one, but it's no wonder you don't know who this is—and it's a criminal fact, really—because very few people seem to. This is the UK's own lunatic asylum, Medulla Nocte. Were it not for my old Terrorizer magazine subscriptions I would never have known about this band. You know, pre-internet and all that! I have no fucking idea why this band didn't reach higher than it did. Were they terrible people that made enemies at each step? I doubt it. Their albums, A Conversation Alone and Dying From the Inside are absolutely relentless, emotional, and captivating. This is ugly music that bites, much like Deadguy, Kiss it Goodbye, Starkweather, Today is the Day, Botch, etc. It's beyond me why fans of those bands and similar acts didn't lock to Medulla Nocte. The vocals are unique and instantly recognizable (which has always been a rare and precious thing; hello Sean Ingram (Coalesce), Jacob Bannon (Converge), Scott Angelacos (Bloodlet)). And those drums, man. Nicknamed Jammer, he was in a world of his own, totally unhinged and hungry. So fucking good. Also, he's one of the reasons why I want to write about UK drummers from this era.
Track 5
Andrew: Seven minutes, eh? Sheesh, that acoustic intro was super quick!? This is very weirdly stripped down. The production is pretty dry and it doesn't even sound like the guitars are doubled, which is cool because it makes for an open, spacious mix... but it still feels like something's missing. For the most part it's midpaced and doomy, but not in an overbearing way. The vocals range from black metal snarls to deep, flanged spoken passages to a gruff death metal delivery, and I don't think the lyrics are in English. Some of the melodies are Scandinavian-tinged, but that doesn't necessarily hint at their home base. I have absolutely no idea who this is. It's alright, but doesn't grab me at all. It's too long and disjointed. Around 5:04 when things kind of build up and converge (With subtle keyboards, maybe?) it starts getting cool, but by that point it's sort of too little too late, you know? This could've been released at any point during the past 10 - 15 years. I can't even wager a guess. Who am I listening to?
Artist: Kuolemanlaakso
Title: "Nostos & Algos"
Album: Uljas Uusi Maailma (2012)
Hear It (direct link)
Birkir: I had to get something in there at the end that's cleanlier, shall we say, more clearly metal. But I wasn't lazy in picking this. It had to be good, and I'm glad you honed in on some of the song's stand-out qualities. At least it had your attention. Yeah, that doubled guitar (complete with nylon-stringed acoustic guitars) is a nice play on Bolt Thrower. but gives it a fresher touch with those nylon strings, man. Although not completely taken by this band from Finland (I'm all about metal and hardcore from Finland), Kuolemanlaakso intrigues me and their releases always find an open mind and ears with yours truly, although the diversity of sound and ideas on their albums proves to sometimes be hit or miss, or a tad too much of many things. They are by no means conformists, but creative explores of many things heavy, melodic, death and doom-like. When simple, slow, and heavy, Triptykon comes to mind. When native and folk influences peek through, it brings my mind back to their countrymen Amorphis when they were interesting. That said, Kuolemanlaakso is operating in a totally different realm, both heavier and braver. It's worth the look for anyone looking for a bands that's not concerned with today's trends but blazes it's own trail instead, albeit it weird or strange. I can't put my finger on them and that is good.
NOTE: We couldn't find this song online but the band and it's label were quick when I asked them for permission to upload "Nostos & Algos." Very understanding and cool. Many many thanks.
Uploaded with a permission from KUOLEMANLAAKSO and SVART RECORDS for a feature at www.halifaxcollect.net
Heartfelt thank you to both band and label. For more information on KUOLEMANLAAKSO and Svart visit:
svartrecords.com/
kuolemanlaakso.net/
Heartfelt thank you to both band and label. For more information on KUOLEMANLAAKSO and Svart visit:
svartrecords.com/
kuolemanlaakso.net/
To order Uljas uusi maailma LP/CD go to goo.gl/gyNd8B
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