Holy Grail - Ride The Void (2013)

And so, after two weeks of procrastination, time wasting and writers block I'm back with a new review. This time it's a personal favourite band of mine, traditional heavy metal revivalists Holy Grail and their new album "Ride The Void". Will it stack up to their amazing 2010 début "Crisis In Utopia"? Read on and find out...

1. Archeus
2. Bestia Triumphans
3. Dark Passenger
4. Bleeding Stone
5. Ride The Void
6. Too Decayed To Wait
7. Crosswinds
8. Take It To The Grave
9. Sleep Of Virtue
10. Silence The Scream
11. The Great Artifice
12. Wake Me When It's Over
13. Rains Of Sorrow
14. Can't Hide The Wolf (Bonus Track)

Mutiny Within - II: Synchronicity (2013)

After a few delays this year I'm proud to present ParaReviews' first review of 2013, and it couldn't have been a better first review in my opinion. A favourite band of mine, and one I'm immensely happy to have back in my life, Mutiny Within and their second album Synchronicity!!!

1. Embers
2. In My Veins
3. In A Moment
4. Falls To Pieces
5. Machines
6. Never
7. Become
8. Lights
9. Balance
10. Life To Dust
11. Signs
12. The Unsaid

2012 In Metal: Best EPs

Here's my final list of favourites from last year, this time E.P. releases. How any of these bands are unsigned is a mystery to me, but these bands are all worth checking out. Enjoy...

2012 In Metal: Best Debut Albums

After a week or so of downtime, procrastination and doing coursework I decided I would finish my second list for y'all, this is a list of the 10 début albums that made the greatest impression on me this year...

2012 In Metal: ParaReviews Best Albums

This has been one of the most interesting and consistently fantastic years for metal in recent memory, and to commemorate the end of the year I thought I would write my best albums lists for 2012. To differentiate and allow for both old and new bands to have their moment I've done lists for "20 best albums" and "10 best début albums" as well as "5 best EP releases". Also, before you mainstream fools/elitists start whining, there's NO Meshuggah, NO Gojira, NO Pig Destroyer and NO Lamb Of God in this list. These are MY opinions, not yours. Those bands all released albums this year that were great but I liked all of the following albums better. Get over it...

And without further ado, to business...

Bands To Watch: The Odious - Joint Ventures (2012)

So I finally got round to doing another "bands to watch" segment before the end of the year. Any of you progressive/death metal fans out there should enjoy this...

1. Nuchal Cord
2. Ancestral Perplexities
3. The Gynecic Curse
4. Combaticus
5. Minutia
6. A Sheep In Wolf's Clothing
7. Mer/ka/ba
8. Fail Science!
9. Charlie Guiteau
10. Joint Ventures
11. Houses Of Stone

Deftones - Koi No Yokan (2012)

1. Swerve City
2. Romantic Dreams
3. Leathers
4. Poltergeist
5. Entombed
6. Graphic Nature
7. Tempest
8. Gauze
9. Rosemary
10. Goon Squad
11. What Happened To You?

Fear Factory + Textures - London KOKO - 18th December 2012

After several things keeping me off the radar for nearly two weeks I must offer my sincerest apologies to those of you out there that are regular readers. With the apocalypse being a complete fucking joke and Christmas nearly upon us I will be leaving you with a couple of reviews to day and a possibly a couple more by Christmas, when I shall be starting to compile my top 20 albums of this year as well as a best 3 or perhaps 5 for each sub-genre, because as we all know this year has been monumentally fantastic in terms of metal releases. Aaron will also be giving us a top 20 to my knowledge, but for now though I leave you with my review of Fear Factory's stellar London gig last Tuesday. Enjoy...

Obituary: Rotting Slow In Europe - London The Garage - 5th December 2012

 Obituary were one of the first death metal bands I was ever introduced to, and after being told that they were a must see band I knew this would be the tour to see them on, a tour treating the fans to a set filled with tracks from their first three albums, three undeniable death metal classics.

Braving the train to London for the second time in 3 days (after a spectacular night at Alexisonfire on Monday, see previous review) I finally got to Highbury, the site of The Garage, found my friend and holed up in the nearest pub, the hilariously titled "The Famous Cock".

This was my first time ever attending a gig at the garage and I must say while it seemed to be a fairly cool venue, being unable to move due to the gig being sold out was not a good feeling. Plus due to the designated smoking are being outside the front door, which was a single set of double doors, while people were still coming in, meaning a queue quickly formed, locking down the entire hallway. The lack of space was fairly discomforting, but that was a small negative on an overall fantastic evening.

The Amenta (7) a band who bill themselves as industrial death metal, but in reality come off as an Australian version of Behemoth with the occasional industrial part thrown in. Nothing outstanding but a good start to the evening. Psycroptic (9) change that completely however. The Tasmanian tech-death mob are on fine form tonight and tear through their set with the intensity and ferocity of their homelands famous devil. Frontman Jason Peppiatt is on top form, but looks odd with a full head of hair.

Everything is still going strong when Macabre (7) take the stage. A band I've heard of from numerous sources but never checked out, they seem to be a fairly standard death metal affair but with a lyrical focus entirely on famous serial killers, a subject so often used in death metal it borders on cliché. However the Britney Spears style ear mic the singer uses was amusing and musically the band was fairly enjoyable.

When Obituary (10) take to the stage, all hell breaks loose. Fans are clearly ecstatic to see the band return to our shores, and hearing every member of the crowd growl along with John Tardy is absolutely brilliant. Crowd favourites in particular are "Turned Inside Out", "Chopped In Half", "The End Complete" and the ever popular "Slowly We Rot". This is a band that has never lost a step and is still on top form live after nearly 25 years. Obituary have blown me away tonight and are clearly still among death metal royalty. And long may they reign.

Obituary Setlist:

1. Stinkupuss
2. Intoxicated
3. Bloodsoaked
4. Immortal Visions
5. Gates To Hell
6. Infected
7. Cause Of Death
8. Chopped In Half
9. Turned Inside Out
10. Body Bag
11. Back To One
12. Killing Time
13. The End Complete
14. Dead Silence
15. I'm In Pain
16. Slowly We Rot

Slowly We Rot, Cause Of Death & The End Complete are all available on Roadrunner Records

Alexisonfire - London Brixton Academy - 3rd December 2012

So here we have it, one of my favourite bands playing their farewell tour across the world. Within seconds of seeing the announcement I was ordering tickets, not giving a single fuck if I was going alone. This was something I knew I had to see. And see I did...

It was a cold Monday night in Brixton when I arrived at the venue, and despite a second date being added the night before due to immense demand, the line circle the block twice. I heard accents and languages from all over Europe as I found my place in line, it was apparent many had travelled far and many had also bought tickets for both nights. These were clearly the most hardcore of fans. After what seemed like an eternity, the doors opened and we filed in to what would undoubtedly be a night to treasure for a long time to come.

I was personally not a fan of opening act Ghost Of A Thousand (6), but the fact that they had reformed after a years absence just to support their friends in Alexisonfire for their final UK shows was admirable. This did not sway me into enjoying their music however, which I found to be loud and slightly abrasive. No matter, because nothing was going to spoil this evening for me.

At 9pm the lights went down and Alexisonfire (10) ambled onstage. Wasting no time, they break into fan favourite "Young Cardinals", it becomes apparent instantly that they have been missed greatly and every single person in attendance is singing as if their lives depend on it. After a short speech from the band they tear into "Boiled Frogs" and it's as if they've never been away. The band shows why they have always been a sight to witness live by tearing through hit after hit, all the while the entire venue singing along and hanging on their every word.

This was a particularly special night for me as I never believed I would have this chance to see them live, and they have been responsible for two of my favourite albums. "This Could Be Anywhere In The World" is particularly important as this song introduced me to the band that I have now loved and waited for 6 years to see. The set is a wonderful mix of old and more recent favourites, each song getting a spectacular crowd reaction. The only song which I had hoped for that wasn't played was "Mailbox Arson", which saddened me slightly, but I was uplifted by the high quality of the setlist regardless.

After titanic closer "Happiness By The Kilowatt" the crowd begins to thin, and here and there I see tears and signs of deep upset at the end of an era. I too feel some of this pain, but my joy at seeing something I never thought I would be privileged enough to see far outweighs my sorrow.

All in all this was a night I will treasure for the rest of my life and am very happy I was able to share with you.


Alexisonfire Setlist:

1. Young Cardinals
2. Boiled Frogs
3. Heading For The Sun
4. Pulmonary Archery
5. Drunks, Lovers, Sinners & Saints
6. No Transitory
7. Get Fighted
8. Born & Raised
9. Waterwings
10. Control
11. Rough Hands
12. Midnight Regulations
13. Hey, It's Your Funeral Mama
14. Old Crows
15. We Are The Sound
16. Accept Crime
17. To A Friend
18. 44 Caliber Love Letter
19. This Could Be Anywhere In The World
20. Accidents
21. The Northern
22. Dog's Blood
23. Happiness By The Kilowatt

Old Crows/Young Cardinals is out now on Dine Alone Records

P.S. the reason I've not uploaded any pictures for this review is due to me being in the seats upstairs at Brixton Academy and not getting any decent clear shots of the bands due to the distance and constantly changing lights. Ah well.