The End Is Begun ~ by: 3 (digipak re-release)
Scheduled for re-issue as a “digipak” by Metal Blade Records on Feb. 19th, this compilation, from the thought-provoking Woodstock, NY quintet called 3, is packed with progressive goodness throughout. The new package will include the 13 songs that appeared when The End Is Begun was originally released in July of last year, plus the bonus addition of 3’s tantalizing take on a Pink Floyd chestnut, “See Emily Play.” Also in the digipak will be a DVD, containing the video versions of “All that Remains” from The End Is Begun and “Alien Angel” from the previous Wake Pig studio release, as well as live renditions of three more Wake Pig songs: “Amaze Disgrace,” “Monster,” and “Alien Angel.” This coming release should be a “gotta-get” for prog-rock fans – both those who haven’t yet had the chance to fully savor the conceptual creativity found from start to finish in The End Is Begun, and those who seek to supplement their collections with all this richly-textured band has to offer. Visionary vocalist-guitarist-lyricist Joey Eppard and his bandmates – guitarist Billy Riker, bassist Daniel Grimsland, keyboardist Joe State, and drummer Christ Gartmann – lay down a layered sound that combines insistent rhythms, soaring melodies, and tight, tasty jamming into a progressive output that both intrigues and satisfies, whether from studio or stage, as the digipak re-release of The End Is Begun admirably demonstrates.
The_Ascension ~ by: OTEP
A truly excellent endeavor from this female-fronted quartet from L.A. The long-awaited CD was finally released a couple of months ago, and The_Ascension deservedly continues to gather momentum, thanks not only to the quality and depth of all the original songs contained, but also due to the prime job poet-singer Otep Shamaya and her bandmates have done with Nirvana’s “Breed,” including the acclaimed video produced in conjunction with the track. Shamaya and the band (eVil J on bass, Brian Wolff on drums, Karma Cheema on guitar) explore issues and concerns that range from the close-to-home subjects found in “Eet the Children” and “Home Grown,” all the way out to big-picture diatribes such as that found in the tightly-crafted “Confrontation,” a pulsating rocker which urges the listener to “Stand up, speak out, strike back … with a fist in the air … don’t be silent!” – And while anyone familiar with Otep’s work is aware that “silence” is by no means the band’s main mode, nevertheless one finds in this latest effort that the production is laced with judicious slow-downs, pauses, and spoken-word interludes, keeping the disk from being the relentless sort of sonic onslaught issued by so many modern metal bands. Blending hard-core attitude with articulate artistic expression, Otep is an already-accomplished band that aims for ever-loftier heights, as exemplified with this fine new CD, The_Ascension.
Angel Down ~ by: Sebastian Bach
When Sebastian Bach’s latest effort, released two months ago, was mentioned in the company of an accomplished local rock drummer, the first words out of the musician’s mouth were “Effin’ awesome, that new record!” The former Skid Row singer has a reputation not only for powerful pipes, but also for sometimes difficult behavior onstage and in studio, like another Eighties-vintage vocalist, Axl Rose. What a surprise, then, to find that the two have actually collaborated on each other’s projects, and the cantankerous Rose now appears on three tracks of Bach’s new disk, including an affectionate remake of Aerosmith’s “Back in the Saddle.” Bach roars out of the gate with the potent title track, a crunchy cut that shows how he’s still able to scream and shout with the best of today’s metal-boys. But Bach also notches his intensity back a bit with an acoustic turn on “By Your Side,” showing just a touch of his own sensitive side, surprise. Funny, tracks 10, 11, and 12 – “Our Love Is A Lie” and “Take You Down With Me” – all start with surprisingly similar string-slides down a guitar’s neck, though the three tunes then diverge in distinctly different directions, all of which head to hard-rocking destinations. Check it out, if you might dig the attitude of the Eighties attached to a sound that’s engineered to be in tune with the current times.
1321 (MCCCXXI) ~ by: Beggars Ball
Here’s another hard-edged glimpse of the post-millennial Hollywood scene from a tattooed crew of dudes who look like they’ve been to the dark side and back, fulfilling the adage that says, “what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.” 1321, which was produced, engineered, mixed and mastered by band founder, guitarist and manager Eddie Brnabic, is a twelve-track compilation that opens with a heavy sound that might not be as consistently rapid-fire as most thrash-metal, but is generally just as crunchy – for the first six of the CD’s eleven tracks. After the opening instrumental cut (entitled “1321,” same as the album, which is apparently also the name of the band’s Hollywood studio), titles such as “Helluva Ride,” “Binge,” and “Burnout” follow through with chunky hard-rock rhythms and beats, paired with words that seem to come straight from the street of broken dreams. But then, on tracks seven through eleven, the band surprises by performing acoustic versions of the preceding five songs. Not only does Eddie exhibit mastery on his electric axe, but he also knows how to elicit a gritty, bluesy feel when he’s playing unplugged. Likewise, vocalist D.K. Revelle, who wrote all the excess-laden lyrics, can scream and shout quite satisfactorily for the electrified selections, and yet again can enunciate and emote when his fellow Beggars break it down to sub-shred levels. The disk closes with a competent cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man,” in a respectful nod to the “cream of the classics.” By so doing, the boys in Beggars Ball pay tribute to past masters while pushing hard to establish an outlaw musical legacy of their own.
Acid Test ~ by: Cosmosquad
It’s a prog-rock instrumental album, this Acid Test, produced by guitarist Jeff Kollman and percussionist Shane Gaalaas, in conjunction with a supporting musical cast that includes two keyboardists and three bassists. The nine diverse tracks found on Acid Test venture forth on audio excursions that both intrigue and challenge the listener. It’s an electrified effort, heavy in voltage yet short on standard rock elements such as blues progressions and one-two-three-four beats. (Amusingly, though, the only vocals on the disk appear in the form of a spoken voice-over sample from bluesmaster Willie Dixon, on “Bedbucket.”) But oh, what instrumental excellence is found on the disk. Those with a taste for Chick Corea and Al Di Meola, for instance, or perhaps Steve Vai and Joe Satriani, will find much to like in Cosmosquad’s Acid Test
