Artist: Casket Records round-up

First up is A Last Day On Earth – Between Mirrors and Portraits, a five-piece heavy metal band from Leiria, Portugal and they formed back in 2005. The intro track to this CD, titled “Gold”, confused me with the distortion, and I did check to see if it was playing correctly. When it occurred to me that it was supposed to sound like that, I sat back and listened to the actual music. It surprised me that they performed the songs in English as I half-expected them to be in Portuguese. Valter Geraldes (the vocalist) puts a lot of effort into his performance as he screams in some parts of the CD, but in others, proved that he was capable of actually singing (and in tune!). You can imagine in your mind what he is singing and it fills you with thoughts and feelings you may never have experienced before. You can feel the pain in his words as he sings of his torment (this is how emo bands are made). With the heavy guitars and the repetitive riffs, the music itself reminded me of KoRn. The first time that I listened to this CD, I wasn’t overly fond but I suppose that it is one of those bands that will, undoubtedly, grow on you. The name of the band put me off instantly, but before you know it, you are swaying to the rhythm of the drums and playing air guitar to the guitar riffs and the every-so-often guitar solos. In my opinion, it is without a doubt, a band to watch out for as musically, they have talent.

Second on the pile is Ade - Proomemivm Sangvine; it’s an okay name for a band and a slightly strange name for the album, but if you could look at the artwork, it would give you an insight of what you are about to listen to. The cover depicts images of soldiers from what looks like ancient Roman or Greek times at battle, with their massive shields and spears. There is also a soldier on horseback fully clad in the armour you would expect them to wear in days gone by. It all makes sense when you learn that the band’s ancient history consists of Roman and Greek heritage, so they have tried to express sounds that would convey their history and this includes using “ancient instruments”. This band falls into the genre of death metal, as they say on their official webpage, and it is that with the growling vocals and heavier than heavy thrashing guitars at a fast pace. Considering the scene they have set for the listeners, it makes sense for these tracks to come across as battle songs of those brutal times, with the lyrics being sang in both English and Latin. This band isn’t exactly to my liking but with tracks like “Silens Trames” and “Obsidio Noctv”, you can’t help but imagine ancient history laid out in front of you like a banquet and the music that may accompany calmer times in ancient history. The other tracks leave you breathless as the imagery takes hold of your mind with its brutality. This is probably the most original band I have ever encountered and despite the fact that death metal isn’t my favourite genre, I do appreciate their efforts.

As a band from the UK, I feel I ought to be critical of Kill 21 as they are trying to represent us musically (and failing). Kill 21 may be a band that have come from previous projects, but that doesn’t stop them from sounding generic and manufactured on this album Shoot In Sight, like Take That of the pop rock world. They may be a band wanting to show their influences, but it’s boring when every track on the CD sounds like the last with the same boring guitar riffs, the same beat of the drums, and the monotonous vocals, so I am guessing they were all influenced by bands like 3 Doors Down and Nickelback as that is what they sound like. This band is okay if you don’t have any imagination and if you don’t want music that is thought-provoking, either musically or lyrically. Vocally, they are average with the mandatory back-up vocals to emphasise supposed important sections of songs. The song titles lure you into a false sense of excitement, with titles such as “New Way to Die”, “Burning the Butterflies” and “World in Flames”. Overall, I think that this band needs to get a grip on their own identity instead of stealing everybody else’s and passing it off as their own.

At first I’m not sure what to write about UK thrashers Promethium – Welcome To The Institution; I admit I had a case of writer’s block but here goes. They are a five-piece band that has formed after the five bands that they were in, split up. In 2009, Promethium released their debut EP “Tribute to the Fallen”, which did well in the underground metal scene and lots of radio play. When you listen to them, you know that this is a band of vast experience. The guitars screech and riff the torment that accompanies the lyrics, the drums back-up the guitars and the vocals as if they were standing next to you, nodding along, agreeing with everything that is said. Where this band would not normally be my kind of thing, I have listened to this CD a few times now and they have grown on me. The vocals are strong and in my opinion, the vocalist (who goes by the name of Gaz. What a very British name) sings with complete and utter conviction throughout. An excellent CD by an extremely talented band and they deserve to reach the top and be the kings of 2011’s metal scene.

Shame On U? Yes, shame on you indeed, for raping my ears with your commonly depressing lyrics and atrocious vocals on album Blind Eyes Don’t See. This band is from Switzerland, and not much is given away on their website apart from where they are from. I looked at the cover of their booklet and noticed there were a fair few pages, so I leafed through to find that there were actually lyrics inside, amongst the obligatory band photo shoots, so I read some of the lyrics. I wish that I hadn’t. There is rarely a song lyric that isn’t self-deprecating. I want to write to this band and tell them to get on the Prozac. Maybe then, their music will be a little bit better than it is. Don’t get me wrong, the CD sounds professional. Good drums, good guitar solos, but it’s the whiny vocals and the whiny lyrics that get on my nerves and drown out the real talent that lies in this band. Lyrics like: “Serve my life on a silver plate, stab me in the back slit my throat, do what you want”. Maybe some creative writing lessons alongside the Prozac prescription would be a good idea. Oh, and a much better singer, too.

http://coprorecords.co.uk/