ENTOMBED; "Hollowman" (Columbia-Earache). * * *
TREPONEM PAL; "Excess & Overdrive" (Roadrunner Records). * * 1/2PESTILENCE; "Spheres" (Roadrunner Records). * *
Black Sabbath, Judas Priest and Iron Maiden are arguably the dignitaries of doom and the guardians of gloom. Their gothic music and malevolent lyrics, some might say, sprouted the roots of heavy metal.
Three new bands have returned to these dismal roots of metal, and in the process tip their hats to the gothic kings with their new releases.
- THE NEW JERSEY-based Entombed can be considered a poorman's death-metal band. The music on the six-song EP "Hollowman" rests in the thrash groove but is also heavy on melodic arrangements.
Morbid lyrics likening bedrooms to tombs and coffins to cradles are splattered throughout the EP. Heavy, double-time beats and "chain-saw" rhythm guitars contrast the razor-sharp leads in the title cut and "Serpent Search," while "Bonehouse" echoes the thrashing influence of early Anthrax and Testament.
This EP, complete with a parental advisory label for explicit lyrics, even spews out a couple of surprises. The narrative instrumental "Wolverine Blues" features a doom-and-gloom rumble as lead vocalist Lars-Goran Petrov dictates from an encyclopedia entry on wolverines.
The other surprise is an instrumental epic, "Hellraiser." This piece, not to be confused with the Ozzy Osbourne/Motorhead single with the same title, is based on Clive Barker's original heavy-metal movie trip, "Hellraiser."
The emotion and chaos of the doom-laden tempo changes, fleshed out with actual script from the movie ("What's our pleasure Mr. Cotton?" and "It's only a puzzle . . ."), take the listener into the very depths of Hades. (Black Sabbath would be proud.) It will be interesting to hear Entombed's full-length album due soon.
- "EXCESS & OVERDRIVE," the debut from the French band Treponem Pal, is filled with sinister riffs and abysmal feedback, but as the album progresses, the music regresses.
When the first cut, "Out of Reach," kicks with massive, gothic chords and speed-metal drum licks, the album sounds promising. Funky drum lines, enhanced by echoing feedback, create profound imagery in "Pushing You Too Far," while the gloomy licks of the title cut melt to the floor. The next cut, "For Progress," drifts the listener away with its syncopated, metal rap.
The album begins to lose its originality with a cut called "Stoned." The choppy guitars and relentless snare mimic Lenny Kravitz's hit "Are You Gonna Go My Way."
That's not all. A song called "Blow Me Out" takes too long to get started. When it does, it sounds suspiciously like Kiss's MTV hit "Unholy." Then, the schizophrenic theme of "Full Moon" approaches the same chord progression of Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze."
Still, this album is mixed and balanced well. The sound and feedback effects are skillfully used and take the listener on a trip through the senses.
- PESTILENCE strikes America from the Netherlands with its morose, experimental thrash debut "Spheres." Not bad but not good.
The biggest problem with this band is the heavy emphasis on guitar synthesizers and effects. Instead of enhancing and giving feel to songs, the effects get in the way and the album loses its edge.
The instrumental pieces, "Aurian Eyes" and "Voices From Within," are nothing but spontaneous synthesized doodles that go nowhere. When the much-needed vocals are added, they give the songs destination and purpose, however jumbled the arrangements may be.
The opening tympani- and sitar-like slides create a falling spiral of chaos that eventually finds a halfway consistent tempo in "Changing Perspective." This song also tries to metallically reflect some of the progressive jazz/rock sounds of Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Kansas. But instead of flowing orchestral arrangements, the combination becomes tedious.
The overused synthesizers on the title cut "Spheres" sound out of place amid the roaming guitars and screeching vocals. And the thrash garble of "Mind Reflection" is sloppy and loose.
But there are some excellent cuts as well.
The punk-like chants of "Demise of Time" are carried on the heavy, aggressive gush of the rhythm and bass guitar in a tight, syncopated package. And then there's the instrumental jewel "Phileas." This piece resembles the Black Sabbath medieval pentagonal-guitar-scale instrumental intensified by a river of synthesized strings.