Andrew Jackson Jihad - "Christmas Island" | Album Review

Andrew Jackson Jihad are one of the most under-appreciated bands of the 21st century.
Quite the opening statement you might say, but I struggle to find another band to have begun in the last 10 years or so that have established their sound so brilliantly. While there is obvious influence from Neutral Milk Hotel, The Mountain Goats and Violent Femmes, their sound is still instantly recognizable. Musically, you can expect folk integrated with catchy bubblegum punk. In sound, they may not sound too spiteful or bitter, but this element of their music comes through in the lyrics. Exploring themes of self-hate, self-obsession, suicide, death, isolation, pain and misery, you might not think their lyrics will stand out too much when we have bands like Converge or Vision Of Disorder. However, Andrew Jackson Jihad approached these topics in a very different way. They put a comedic and light-hearted twist on such topics as disability, racism and social issues (refreshing to say the least).

If you are aware of AJJ but not this album, this is technically their pop record. Before you raise your arms in dismay, assuming you'll be hearing bass-drops and EDM synth breaks, fear not. What I mean by this is their instrumentation has become more full (adding far more of it than even before), their songs have more clear and defined structures and the melodies are more prominent than have been on past albums.
The opening song is entitled Temple Grandin is one of my personal favourites of the album. As soon as the opening line seeps through the speakers ("Open your murder eyes and see the ugly world that spat you out") you know instantly what you're in for. Referencing Helen Keller and Stevie Wonder (both people who have over come disabilities), Andrew Jackson Jihad have added more layers to their music both in the instrumentation and in the lyrics.
This is followed up by Children Of God. This is BY FAR my most listened to song of 2014. It was everything I wanted out of a single, and it's woven itself into this album masterfully. In classic AJJ fashion, topics such as cannibalism, vampires, drugs all arise throughout the song - keeping the listener on the edge of their seat, attentively wondering where the band will take their music next.
We then get Do, Re And Me. One of the shorter songs but it still has a lasting effect. This is possibly the single track on the album that proves Andrew Jackson Jihad's astounding sense of lyrical/musical dynamics. Hearing the sweeping melodies of an acoustic guitar under Sean Bonnette's whiny vocals as they call out "I walked into a room full of corpses" is rather bizarre to say the least.

With these perfect 3 tracks, you'd assume the album would continue in suite.
Sadly no... While there are still some fantastic songs on here, there are certainly some weaker pieces. Songs like Deathlessness had so much potential to be one of the best songs on here, but fell short due to a couple of minor errors...
Production wise this is the best production this band as ever had. It's dynamically brilliant, every performer gets their voice (or musical saw) heard. It's crystal clear, which seems to wipe away some of the grit under the finger nails that so many came to love from this band, but I can assure you multiple listens and it will be revealed.

All in all, this isn't AJJ's best album (People Who Eat People... and Knife Man still hold those titles for me) but it's definitely one of their most important. It's also you that will continue to be appreciated in the coming years.

Falloch - "This Island, Our Funeral" | Album Review

*This review will possibly be posted on the blog Blog Of Putrefaction, I just need to post a review to catch up. Cheers!*

Black metal is undergoing a dramatic stylistic change, and I think a lot of it should be credited to the UK. Artists like Saor, Fen, Winterfylleth and Wodensthrone are branching away from the clichés of the Second Wave and bringing in more reserved and diverse overtones. While Emperor and Darkthrone are arguably the bands that defined the genre, the necessary growth is finally taking place. It’s also proved to be fairly divisive. While many have complained that the genre is losing touch with its roots, it’s possible that this new Falloch album - entitled This Island, Our Funeral  - could convert some of the elitists.

Candlelight Records has black metal credentials above and beyond any other label – In The Nightside Eclipse anyone? Nearly every black metal band on the label’s roster has delivered something that is worthy to defend their name. This is no exception.

Falloch have a deep connection with the Scottish landscape, which translates magnificently into their sound. The whispering guitar leads sit like fog over rolling percussion. The bass rumbles like thunder above Ben Nevis. The production is so pristine that the experience is like walking through untouched Gaellic wilderness. The band seems to have structured their music to reflect the climate, but it doesn’t come across as an attempt to seem pretentious or high-brow. Whether it’s intentional or by pure coincidence that they create an atmosphere that replicates that particular area, they do it in excellent fashion.

There are obvious traits of theirs they share with the classic BM bands. It delivers the same chilling demeanour that an album like De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas perfected when the music calls for it. The instrumentation will liquidize the teeth in your mouth – the guitars are beyond crushing at points. The balance between beauty and ferocity of the genre’s classics is as emotive as it’s been in years. However, the clean vocals may rub die-hards up the wrong way but I’m sure it’ll be a more welcoming to newcomers. While you do hear some infrequent growls, the cleans don’t sound too dissimilar to Brann Dailor of Mastodon. Upon first listen there’s a good chance you’ll question it being a black metal album in the true sense of the term, but its darkness will be revealed to you with repeated listens (a level of mystery a lot of the genre’s heavy weights lack).

In conclusion, This Island, Our Funeral is the obvious progression from their debut Where Distant Spirits Remain.  It may be less triumphant than anything they’ve done, but it’s still refreshing to hear a band evolving so noticeably this early on in their career, experimenting with sounds an established band would fear to. Falloch aren’t waiting to define parameters for themselves; they’re keeping their music free and formless so anything is possible. Excellent.

-          Elliot Paisley

Sunn O))) - "Black One" | Album Review

Musically, drone isn't very complex. It's often a single note played for long periods of time. However, that's not to say that it's easy to do well. Despite it being a relatively simple genre, it still has to remain engaging to the listener. Bands can add layers upon layers to their music, creating an atmosphere no other style can truly conjure.
With a new project involving music icon Scott Walker and Sunn O))) collaborating together for a new album Soused, I thought it'd be good to review the band's magnum opus: Black One

Greg Anderson (owner of Southern Lord Records) is in my opinion, a bit of a genius. His music has an obvious simplicity which peels away slowly and painfully to reveal a whole new form of darkness. You don't get death growls and thrashing guitars, but this is so much heavier than those things could ever create. Doing more with less is a feat in itself and this artist is the perfect example of that.

Black One starts as it means to go on, as sinister and as bleak as you can imagine. Attila (of Mayhem and other outfits) provides vocals that don't just send shivers down your spine, they shatter it. The riffs (if you could call them that) are quite simply: hypnotic. They spiral and churn in a way I'm yet to encounter again. The rumble they deliver isn't unlike having your entire body in a vibrating chair. While they are highly repetitive (which is an understatement if ever there was on) I find this really does work in their favour.Lyrically, this album is surprisingly complex. It may take repeated listens, but it's very assuring to know that there's more to what you're listening to than want you initially imagine there to be.

In conclusion, Sunn O)))'s Black One is a fantastic drone album, and one that I'm sure will be a gateway for many to get into the genre.