It might be election day but it's still a Tuesday

[mad rhetorik]

Mr T. is getting some December in November. Not quite as, umm.. articulate as Converge or Botch, but they play like madmen, and don't relent through the entire album. Also, a couple OLD OLD comps of mine called Blood Ugly 1 & 2, many of my favorite 90's bands, thought you'd like to sample.. Craw, Dazzling Killmen, Drive Like Jehu, Hammerhead, Don Caballero, Today is the Day.. So I listned to those again.. fun fun.

Ah, yes. Thanks Jar. I await these comps (and Lament Configuration) with bated breath. Much pummeling fun to be had. ; )

And Botch WE ARE THE ROMANS and Converge JANE DOE. Both head-spinning stuff. Converge hits you like a hurricane, Botch hits you like the bricks thrown around in a hurricane.

Glad you like 'em. What did you think of the last two tracks on We Are The Romans? Totally not what I was expecting...Gregorian chants, breakbeat on a metalcore album? Who would've guessed?

Lately I've been thinking about crafting a comp of heavy music, tentatively titled "Offend Yr. Parental Unit." It'll have thrash/death, industrial and noisecore bands (Dillinger Escape Plan, Metallica, Megadeth, In Flames, Ministry etc.); also some noisy indie/alt-rock (Stooges, Soundgarden, Nirvana, McClusky) and more melodic metal (Motorhead, Kyuss) to balance it out. Abrasive and loud, but with some melodic tracks, not just "EXTREEM" stuff, to make the harshness go down easier. Think of it as sort of a cross between your It's OK and Punisher comps, Jar.

Anyway, my birthday was a couple weeks ago, so I indulged in a bit of music shopping:

Devin Townsend: Ocean Machine
Great melodic prog-metal/hard rock. Creative, atmospheric, and not wanky in the slightest (though certainly accomplished). Devin shows a totally different side to his vox compared to Strapping Young Lad, singing as opposed to screaming his lungs out. Definitely recommended.

Weather Report: Interstellar Traveller
Solid record from the pre-Jaco period. Some parts sound a bit New Age-y, but otherwise excellent. Lots of interesting instrumental textures and good performances by Wayne Shorter and Joe Zawinul (who wrote most of the album). "Nubian Sundance" is a great track.

Einsturzende Neubaten (sic): Perpetuum Mobile
This is my first E.N. album. I've heard some of their early stuff, and this is WAY different--more melodic and warm, much less "clang." Blixa Bargeld also sings rather than screams most of the way through. I dig the German, lets me ignore the lyrics and just focus on his voice as an instrument. Speaking of instruments, the stuff these guys play on is nuts. Sheet metal? "Amplified spring glass?" Pressurized air tubes? Very imaginative. Me likey. Thanks Dusty for the rec.

Machine Head: Burn My Eyes
"Slow" thrash, sort of in the vein of Pantera, but heavier and better. These guys are masters of "The Crunch." Something is definitely going to be comped from this, I guarantee it.

Other albums I've been listening to:

Fear Factory: Obsolete
Fantomas: self-titled
Killing Joke: self-titled
Johnny Cash: At Folsom Prison
Jaco Pastorius: self-titled
Joy Division: Unknown Pleasures