Issue 28 - September-october 2008

CONTENTS TRIVIUM

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05 !

GUN

SHO

URIAH HEEP

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09

THOR

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We also have a wicked Progressive Metal piece and a bunch of other great stuff to keep you entertained.

Until next time... PLAY IT LOUD, MUTHA! Brendon Williams -Editor

HE OT INT ISE! NO

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Welcome to another jam-packed edition of Slaughterama! In this issue, not only do we have four great international interviews ranging from the classics through to today’s hottest bands, but we also represent what’s happening locally with our regular Kiwi Metal interview (this time around it’s Christchurch sickos Sacrament).

Thanks for purchasing the zine; we are proud to be NZ’s only dedicated Heavy Metal publication, and whether you’re from our great country or are one of our many overseas readers, we look forward to your continued support as we continually work towards bringing you as much exclusive, interesting and goddamn METAL material as possible!

THE KE WA EPER! SLE

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Hail!

DRAGONFORCE

22 RA ULT OWN! D T BEA

TT PLUS TT 03 - NEWS 19 - MUSIC REVIEWS 21 - DVD REVIEW 22 - PROGRESSIVE 25 - SACRAMENT

2008 SLAUGHTERHOUSE NZ. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

ALL ENQUIRIES TO: BRENDON WILLIAMS. PHONE +64 21 146 6477 EMAIL- [email protected]



NEWS

JUDAS PRIEST fans are screaming for vengeance at the recent annoucement that the Metal Gods will no longer be playing in New Zealand on their current tour. Purchased tickets were refunded, along with a discount offer for people who wanted to instead go along to... wait for it... Stevie Wonder’s concert! Yeah right, promoters... you’ve got another thing coming.

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METALLICA’s brand new album is set to come out on September 12th. After a string of crap albums, Death Magnetic is the band’s big chance to redeem themselves, and prove that they are indeed the metal militia, not simply disposable heroes.

NEW ZEALAND Heavy Metal fans have begun to unite their efforts in an attempt to nurture and encourage the future of Metal music in this country. See pages 8, 12 and 18 for more information on how you can be a part of this promising movement.





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RIVIUM are one of the biggest and best examples of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal. They are enjoying massive popularity right now, both overseas and here in New Zealand. If you don’t own an album yourself, you have probably at least seen someone in your neighbourhood walking around around wearing a Trivium tshirt. With their modernized Thrash sound, both young and old fans of Metal are paying attention to what the band is doing. With the release of Shogun happening later this month, we caught up with drummer Travis Smith to find out more...

back home and starting the US tour. Do you play any new tracks from the new album, ‘Shogun’ and what’s the reaction like from the audience? In Japan we played 3 tracks from the new album and it was amazing! The first night in Japan there were about 10,000 people and when the intro kicked in, the place just erupted! We put up a new song for download and a few hours after it became available the fans were posting videos on Youtube covering the song! It’s crazy, it’s only been online for a few hours! We got some killer fans! So you’re happy with the new album?

What’s the latest news there, Trav? Well, we’re in Sydney right now, getting ready to do a show. We just flew in from Japan, which was killer! So you’re going to not New Zealand?

You’ve been touring i t h our mates Dragonforce on your ‘ B l a c k Crusade’ tour. How did that go? w

That w e n t really well!



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Yeah, man, there’s not enough time to go everywhere, it’s crazy! We fly home from here and going straight to London for a week. Then we’re going

Australia, but

You know, we can’t ask for a happier time right now! There’s so much positivity going around! We love this record and what we’ve done with it, the record label is so, so happy with what we’ve delivered and the press around the world was really killer! Everyone’s enjoying what they’ve heard so far! It’s really awesome.

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We hang out a lot and those guys are really out there in a good way. Their antics are some of the craziest I’ve ever seen. Sam [Totman, Dragonforce guitarist - editor] is one of a kind guy. The stuff he says, it’s like, how the hell did you think of it? He should be a fucking comedian, he should be on stand-up comedy shows. Let’s get back to Trivium. It’s been said in some interviews that ‘Shogun’ will have more Thrash influences and that you’re also bringing back a bit of screaming... Honestly, this will definitely be the heaviest record we’ve ever written and the screaming is definitely back in action. When we made ‘The Crusade’ [2006] – we made it intentionally not to be anything like ‘Ascendancy’ [2005]. A lot of people wanted us to repeat ‘Ascendancy’ but we wanted to do our own thing. ‘The Crusade’ did very well for us, and now ‘Shogun’ is definitely another step in the evolution of Trivium.



It must be a very satisfying feeling when you’ve got the finished CD in your hands and you thing, ‘Yeah, I’ve made it out of nothing!’ It’s definitely the great feeling of accomplishment. The four of us are involved in the process every step of the way from creating the songs to the paintings that are going to be inside the booklet. And it feels really great when you finish the album and get on the road to play the songs

live.

what I’ve done on ‘Shogun’.

How much effort do you put in the CD booklet?

To wind up the interview, when are we gonna see you in New Zealand?

You know actually it’s kinda funny that you bring it up. This time we don’t put any lyrics inside the booklet. Every song has its’ own art segment which sort of explains what song is about, but what we want people to do is interpret the song for themselves. We want people to use their imagination and apply the material to their lives. The booklet just got finished last night actually, and it’s off to press right now as we speak.

You know, we got a lot of e-mails from Australia and New Zealand asking this question. We basically don’t have time to go everywhere we want right now. Of course we’d love to do much more shows, because we love being on stage. I just want to say to our fans in New Zealand, thank you very much for your support. When we played Big Day Out there you guys were amazing and we can’t wait to go back there with ‘Shogun’ and really Metal it up! t

Now, how extravagant is your drum s e t - u p ? How do you choose your equipment and what sort of gear do you use?

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I had 5 drum kits in the studio and basically we took best drums from each of those 5 kits and built a Frankenstein kit. I’m reallyreally happy with the drum sound on the album, I put a lot of effort into getting my parts as perfect as I could and I’m really proud of



HEAVY METAL INC The Society of Heavy Metal and Hard Rock Incorporated 35 Scarborough Terrace Parnell Auckland 09 366 7392 0211 383 752

Dear Slaughterama readers,

We at SocHMHRinc. have recently set up and incorporated National Heavy Metal and Hard Rock Society.

N

e

w

Zealand’s

First

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The main focuses of the society are: 1) to raise awareness about Metal and Rock in the eyes of the wider public, 2) to create national and regional infrastructures that will aid in promoting Metal and Rock, 3) to attain public and private funding for our initiatives. The Society has nine chapters through out NZ and is constantly growing. If you are interested in becoming a member please fill out the form on page 12. If you want a copy of our charter please email: [email protected] Hailz,

Joel Thompson National Secretary The Society of Heavy Metal and Hard Rock Incorporated



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hen you think about classic rock, URIAH HEEP is really the secret option number 4, right after Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath. Almost 40 years since their formation, they are still going strong with guitarist Mick Box being the only original member left in the band. We caught up with Mick right after the release of Uriah Heep’s “Wake the Sleeper’ album, and had an awesome conversation! Mick is a really cool dude, and you could talk to him for ages. So here’s only a few of the questions we asked.

So, Mick, what have you been doing with yourself lately? Well, we’re doing what we do best – we just finished the new album, ‘Wake the Sleeper’, and now we’re in the early stages of promoting it. We’re also getting ready to start the tour and then hopefully we’ll come out to see you guys. Actually, I’ve got some good friends in Auckland and I’ve had some good holidays there too! I believe your Prime Minister Helen Clark likes us too! (laughs) I believe she phoned a radio station there once, requesting “Easy Livin’’! Let’s talk about the new album. It’s been a while since your last studio record ‘Sonic Origami’, about 10 years or so...

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CLASSIC HEEP 

Yes, that album was critically acclaimed by fans and media alike, but the record company [Eagle Records – editor] failed to support it properly. So we were touring for the album and were getting really disillusioned with the whole thing, since the label didn’t put any money into promoting it. So we ripped up our contract and then the whole industry went into free fall because of the whole Internet thing. And because of that we couldn’t find a home anywhere, because the record companies were closing d o w n and the industry didn’t know what it was going to do next. So it took us all this time to get back on track.

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You’ve obviously been around for nearly 40 years now. How has your recording process changed since you started? You know, we’re actually taking it back to analog recording. We wanted to take the power of what’s happening in the rehearsal room onto the CD, so we found a converted church in the English countryside, with a studio named ‘The Chapel’ of course... (laughs) And we put all the equipment into that big room, and miked-up and played as a band. There’s been a lot of talk about the difference between the sound on a vinyl record and that on CDs. Which one do you prefer? Give

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me

vinyl

any

day. You know we go to the studio and spend thousands trying to get the optimum sound and then people put it on mp3’s and you don’t get the full value of it. That’s why we released ‘Wake the Sleeper’ on vinyl. We’re trying to make a point here, you know. (laughs) Uriah Heep is undoubtedly one of the most important influences for today’s Power Metal. How do you feel about that? It’s the highest form of flattery really, isn’t it? People thinking that your music is good enough to try and emulate. I think we brought a new dimension to music, because we used harmonies as another instrument. And it could b e very powerful too, so I think that’s what influenced all these bands. There’s a funny story about that actually. We were in America in the early 80’s doing an interview on the radio. And the guy said, ‘Hey I love your new single!’ I thought, well that’s great, since we haven’t had one for a while.

S o h e p u t it on... it was ‘Run to the Hills’

by Iron Maiden! (laughs) I had to tell Steve Harris about it – we had a good laugh. Probably because of [the harmonies] we got branded with the nickname ‘The Beach Boys of Heavy Metal’. (laughs) Gene Simmons [Kiss] and Blackie Lawless [W.A.S.P.] who we talked to recently both said that there’s not many real rock stars left, and the classic rock bands are disappearing and not being replaced by any new ones. What do you think about that? I think there’s no real character anymore. There’s no David Bowie to come out anymore with the Spiders from Mars, y’know. These people have disappeared and it became a little bit generic. People go out there and strum the guitar. So I can see what they’re saying. A lot of the entertainment side has disappeared. Quite often people leave guitar schools playing some fantastic guitar, but the thing that’s missing is character. The greatest thing I find as a guitarist is when people say ‘I only heard three notes on the radio and I knew it was you’. A part of success is finding something that’s instantly recognizable.

it when I was on the toilet one day. (laughs) Did you ever spray-painted ‘Uriah Heep’ on the side of the van? (laughs) Absolutely! It was a part of the cause, you had to do it! Gave you some sort of importance! (laughs) We did it all. You had to do it all yourself: posters, fliers, stickers – everything. On the cover of ‘Very ‘eavy, Very ‘umble’, that face of David Byron [the original vocalist] – it was me with a glue gun. The record company wanted to do this set with a girl and David in a top hat, and I thought, ‘Man, this is really boring.’ So I got that glue gun, tapped David on the shoulder and sprayed him in the face. Luckily the camera man was very smart and took the pictures and that [shot] became an album cover. Of course later the glue wouldn’t come out of David’s hair and mustache. So me, David and glue didn’t really go together. (laughs) We got an album cover out of that though. Don’t let me near any glue! t

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How did you come up with the name, Uriah Heep? Well, everybody was looking for that strong identity back then and our manager went to see the film ‘David Copperfield’ in which Uriah Heep is a character, and he came back and suggested that. It happened to be the 100th birthday of Charles Dickens and all over London there were book clubs, and films and TV [programs]. So we thought, it looks good in print and it’s different from the others like Deep Purple or Black Sabbath. Plus it gives you something to talk about when people ask you about your name. You don’t say, yeah, I thought about

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HEAVY METAL INC The Society of Heavy Metal and Hard Rock Incorporated Membership Application Address for Registered Office and Postal Address: 35 Scarborough Terrace Parnell, Auckland. Email Address for Communication: [email protected] The following application must be filled out truthfully and in full: Members Details: NAME: ……………………………………………………………………………………………… ADDRESS: ………………………………………………………………………………………… TELEPHONE: ……………………………………………………………………………………… EMAIL: ………………………………………………………………………………………………. Witnesses Details: (must be non member)

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NAME: ……………………………………………………………………………………………... ADDRESS: ………………………………………………………………………………………… Name of Incorporated Society: The Society of HeavyMetal and Hard Rock Incorporated. I, the person whose name is subscribed hereto, being a member of the above-mentioned society, hereby make application for the incorporation of the society under the forgoing rules, in accordance with the Incorporated Societies Act 1908. Dated: Member Signature:

Witness Signature:

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B

EFORE Bathory, Enslaved, Manowar and all of the other Viking inspired Metal bands (and in the infancy of Heavy Metal itself), ‘Jon Mikl’ THOR was mixing Norse mythology with Rock and muscle. And he’s still doing it four decades later!!! With sounds ranging from glitter rock to full-on chest pounding Heavy Metal, THOR has done it all. Now the classic eighties line-up is back, and working harder than ever before! We checked in recently with the underground legend and little known King of Viking Rock, THOR himself.

Scepter of Power. Just like warriors of another time and era, its storytelling before and during the battle and journey. Picture the Vikings around a campfire with the minstrel playing an instrumental and then the bearded ones belting out a song of legend and a tale of great battle and adventures into the unknown. We tried to capture this in a more futuristic method on “Into The Noise”. There are instrumentals featuring Steve Price and Mike Kischnick and then there are songs that I sing.

What can THOR fans expect from the new album, “Into The Noise”?

What’s it like having Steve Price back? And as a result, does the latest THOR record have a similar sound to classic albums like “Only The Strong”?

I feel our best

this album is one of works. Its a concept album where THOR and his men travel “Into The Noise”, through dimensions and time in a quest to find the ancient

What is the secret behind putting on a memorable, theatric rock show, and why do you think

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Steve Price is one of the greatest guitarists in history. That includes Jimmy Page, Randy Rhodes and more. He’s an unsung hero that has not properly been honored in history. Just look at some of the great live moments of THOR and Steve Price on youtube. Can anyone out there defeat him? When I introduced him in San Francisco, Seattle, Portland and Eugene just recently on tour, The crowds went bererk! Yes, there are similarities to “Only The Strong” and “Into The Noise”.

there are so few bands doing a theatric show?

Thanks for the interview THOR!!!! Your message for the NZ fans?

I want to give the crowd their money’s worth. You can hear the songs on the CD or downloads but when you see the band they shouldn’t just stand there. If the fans pay their dollar down, “GIVE THEM A SHOW”. They MUST BE ENTERTAINED. I would say that currently we have the “Greatest Show On Earth”. Its not easy to put on a theatrical performance. Not just any band can do it. I have broken ribs and other injuries because what I do is real. I will give my all to the fans.

To all the fans and fellow warriors in New Zealand watch out for “STEAM CLOCK” a new digital album coming soon. I look forward to seeing you all on the “THOR-THUNDER IN DOWN UNDER” Tour. Contact us at www.thorcentral.com www.myspace.com/thorrockwarrior www.myspace.com/thethorkorr t

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Are there any forms of media you have yet to make use of? There has been music and movies, but do you think that a THOR book of some sort, or anything else may be released in the future? I’m working on a book of my career and life. “LIVE IN DETROIT” has been re-released on Ektro Records in Europe. We are releasing a new album on Scratch Records called “STEAM CLOCK”. I am currently producing a new band from Britain called “THE GREEN ELOS” which is a whole new style of music altogether.A new biographical movie will be coming out called “Thunder On The Tundra” which is all about my four decades of ROCK. Also I will be starring in a new THOR movie “THOR-The Legend”. It’s based on the comic book by Mike Hoffman and Amryl Entertainment called THOR vs. The BeastWomen From The Center Of The Earth. What are the chances that you will tour NZ in the future? In 2007 and 2008,we have been touring quite a bit for “Into The Noise” in North America. We hope to play Australia and New Zealand next year.

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RAGONFORCE have a new album out called ULTRA BEATDOWN. It came out only a few days ago (August 26 to be precise). We spoke with keyboard player Vadim Pruzhanov just prior to the release...

How’s it going down there in the DragonForce camp? Awesome, man, awesome! It’s been over a year since we played in New Zealand, and after that

we had like eight months solid off the road, so we’ve been rehearsing and recording a new album, and now we’ve finally finished it! We’re 110% happy with it, it came out even better than we expected! Can’t wait for people to hear it! It’s called “Ultra Beatdown”. Interesting title... Yeah, we thought it would be a good name, ‘cuz it’s such a cool mix of songs, futuristic in a way, so we thought this name would suit the music, the songs and the cover. Is it still the DragonForce the fans expect?

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Yes and no. It’s still got our own sound, but if you listen to the whole album, you’ll see that it’s a bit more balanced out than the previous one [“Inhuman Rampage”; 2006 – editor]. It had so much going on and it was really chaotic and fullon; some people found it hard to listen to. But you’ll have to listen to the new one to see what I mean. Tell us how you came to begin playing the keyboard in the first place. I started playing guitar when I was a kid and then switched to keyboards, because I realized that you can do so much with this instrument. I guess I thought that playing a keyboard would be less of a cliché for a Metal musician. When you play a guitar, it will always be a guitar sound, but with a keyboard you

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can be really creative! What bands were you into when you got into Heavy Metal? What influenced you? My father used to spin Helloween’s “Keeper of the Seven Keys” all the time. Also Black Sabbath, Yngwie Malmsteen, Bryan Adams – he had a pretty good mixture of music, so I listened to whatever he had. I used to be a big fan of Yngwie, ‘cuz I liked the neo-classical stuff. DragonForce is obviously a Power Metal band, very melodic and ‘singable’, and a lot of fans of heavier genres, like Death Metal or Grindcore, often see Power Metal as “pussy music”. What do you have to say about that? Yeah that’s correct. (laughs) But people have different opinions about everything, and at the end of the day it’s just music. You see a lot of people who are trying to be all tough a n d

‘br00tal’, but then you could say, ‘Look at that, full-grown man trying to do a cookie monster impression on stage!’ There will always be critics and people who dislike our music, but that’s absolutely fine. So to wind it up, are we gonna see DragonForce in New Zealand on the upcoming tour? I think we are going there later this year. So yeah, definitely come down and hang out with us! Anything else you like to add before we finish? I just wanna thank all the fans who stuck with us through the years and I hope you enjoy the new album! Also keep an eye on the tour dates. Come down to the show and raise some HELL! g

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HMHR SHOWS

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The SocHMHR has organised the following shows for your entertainment in September:

Venue: Oblivion Auckland Date: 27th of September

Venue: Shadows Auckland Date: 29th of September

Event Lifestyle Features:

Event Lifestyle Features:

6pm Guest Speaker: Sam Sheppard Auckland Regional Co-President will be talking about his career to date and be giving a drum clinic / demonstration. 7pm Mixology: a demonstration on how to mix cocktails using commonly accessable spirits and in aid of our responsible drinking campaign Oblivion will also teach punters how to make “mocktails”. These feature drinks will be “on special” throughout the evening. 8pm Bogan BBQ: As part of message about responsible hosting / drinking we will be supplying a free BBQ to the punters from 8pm.

5pm - 6:30: Feature Film: Metalocalypse.

Band Entertainment:

Band Entertainment:

Reverence 8pm - 8:30 Initial 8:45 - 9:15 Kulus 9:30 - 10pm BloodLetting 10:15 -10: 45 Never Repent 11 - 11:30 Slipping Tongue 11: 45 - 12: 15 Subtract 12:30 - 1pm

6:30 – 7:00: Initial 7:15 – 7:45: Kulus 8:00 – 8:30: Set on End 8:45 – 9:30: Slipping Tongue 9:15 – 10:00: Blood Letting

Guest DJs from 1pm include: Dale - Hard Fast and Heavy, Chris - Rockzilla, Gareth - RW Entertainment.

Guest DJ: Dale from Hard Fast and Heavy to play between sets and after ten til close.

5pm – 11pm: Poker and Pool Competition

9:15 – Bar tab drawn

See you in the pit at the next SocHMHRinc Show! Hailz, Joel Thompson National Secretary The Society of Heavy Metal and Hard Rock Incorporated

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MUSIC REVIEWS

EL SCHLONG The Baddies Are Coming 2008 N/A

These nasty buggers from Christchurch have unleashed a sick EP full of vulgar depravity. The cover alone is enough to make anyone of weak stomach lose their lunch. I turned my CD insert inside out so I didn’t have to look at the middle aged retarded man in lingerie making love to a 4x4’s tailpipe. The vocals range from long belching sounds right through to that of a squealing pig mid-slaughter.

Here is an album which champions musical diversity and experimentation. ‘The Baddies Are Coming’ pummels the listener with so many strange and unique twists, that some people will undoubtedly turn it off quickly and run to mummy.

Overall a top effort, and did I mention that the boys are willing to send anyone in the world a free copy of this madness?

I recommend listening in a dark room. The lack of visual input should even out the overdose of audio input.

mmmmmmmmww Brendon Williams

mmmmmmmmww Brendon Williams

But those who listen long enough to learn the value of convention turned on its head should find this release noteworthy.

VARIOUS Something Wicked This Way Comes 2008 Creepshow Productions

RED DESCENDING Where Dreams Come To Die 2008 Red Empire Media

This CD impressed the hell out of me. I never thought that New Zealand talent was capable of a compilation album of dark music so polished, professional, catchy, and just downright excellent.

The debut album from Australia’s Red Descending was difficult to review, mainly because I don’t listen to a lot of Melodic Death Metal. But here goes. The symphonic accompaniments on the CD are very original and well done, and the overall production is very good for an independent release.

The packaging and music production is the best I have ever seen from a New Zealand release, no contest. Congratulations C r e e p s h o w Productions! A brilliant compilation. If your music collection extends beyond Heavy Metal, then definitely check this out.

The downsides for me were that I wasn’t partial to the vocals, and the songs didn’t hook me in. Hopefully on the next release the band will play some catchier tunes with the same strong atmosphere.

mmmmmmmmmw Brendon Williams

mmmmmmmwww Brendon Williams

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SACRAMENT Self Titled EP 2008 N/A

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MUSIC REVIEWS

MOTLEY CRUE Saints of Los Angeles 2008 Motley Records

JUDAS PRIEST Nostradamus 2008 Sony BMG

DRAGONFORCE Ultra Beatdown 2008 Roadrunner

ALICE COOPER Along Came a Spider 2008 SPV / Steamhammer

Great stuff from the world’s baddest rock’n’roll band! Crue’s first studio album to feature the original line-up since 1997’s “Generation Swine”. Kick-ass Motley Metal with massive choruses, power riffs and everything else you come to expect from these guys. Admittedly, I do hear a couple of filler tracks here, but the rest of the stuff, like ‘Face Down in the Dirt’, ‘Saints of Los Angeles’ or ‘MF of the Year’ is still up there. The Crue got a bit battered over the years (and Mick Mars looks like Death itself) but there’s still fire left in ‘em!

Enter Judas Priest with the first concept album in their career. There’s undeniably some great songwriting on this double-CD, but a few things surprised me. The record consists mostly of mid-tempo stuff (so no ‘Painkiller’ here), and is loaded with an enormous symphonic sound and countless interludes. Also Halford doesn’t do much of his famous high-pitch screaming, which was a bit disappointing. It’s very well made, but somehow it reminds me of every Grave Digger album since 1996. Hear it for yourself and make up your own mind.

I don’t know why but Dragonforce always put a smile on my face. They’re incredibly fast and complex, but there’s always some sing-alongs and funny sounds they chuck in. The new album is in the same key as previous ones – ultra fast Power/Speed metal with massive choruses and positive attitude. Once again, everybody here is at their best, delivering a flawless performance. I hear a little more experimentation with the synthesizers, but it only makes the music more interesting. Yet another great album from one of the world’s most promising bands.

My partner in crime, Brendon described this album as ‘all filler no killer’. Although I wouldn’t go as far as to say that, Alice is obviously having a bit of trouble in the hits department. Besides three or four tracks, like ‘Killed by Love’, ‘The One that Got Away’ and ‘Wrapped in Silk’ the material sounds like something which didn’t make it to the last two albums. I suppose that this impression could be somehow enhanced by Alice’s usually very high standard of songwriting. Personally I find the ‘Spider’ to be somehow weaker than I expected.

mmmmmmmmww Max Thrasher

mmmmmmmwww Max Thrasher

mmmmmmmmmm Max Thrasher

mmmmmmwwww Max Thrasher

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IRON MAIDEN “Live After Death” (2008) (DVD) by Max Thrasher

O

h, this is a beauty of a purchase! Every dollar you’ll pay for it will be worth it! Maiden finally release their legendary ‘Live After Death’ footage on DVD! A lot of people have seen it on VHS, I suppose, but there has never been such a package for the fans! The original video contained simply the performance at Long Beach Arena. On DVD however you get to see how it was all done.

The DVD continues with another documentary, which personally I’ve never seen in its entirety – the famous ‘Behind the Iron Curtain’ film, documenting Maiden’s journey to the then Communist Eastern Bloc. This is yet another collection of amazing footage, such as Maiden’s performance at a Polish wedding with a drunken version of ‘Smoke on the Water’. But wait, there’s more! For the next hour or so you will witness the legendary ‘Rock in Rio’ festival in 1985 and the ‘’Ello Texas’ doco from the American leg of the tour with a performance in San Antonio and further interviews at the Alamo. And if that’s not enough, you’re also getting an artwork gallery, tour programme, photos and two official videos for ‘2 Minutes to Midnight’ and ‘Aces High’. All in all, there’s never been a better time to get this legendary film. The sheer amount and the quality of stuff you get for your buck makes it worth every cent. Absolutely essential for everybody! t mmmmmmmmmm

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The first disk of the double DVD is the original concert released on VHS, but the second disc, packed with over 3 hours of footage, is what you’re really paying your money for. It starts off with a documentary on the making of the ‘Powerslave’ album, the following promotion and the 193-date ‘World Slavery Tour’ around the world. The documentary is obviously made as a feature programme, like the ones you see on TV. It has loads of in-depth stuff – interviews with band members, managers, producers, technicians, stage crew and basically everyone who had any connection to Maiden during this period of time (even the nerdy-looking member of the official Iron Maiden fan club). It gives you an amazing amount of information you most likely never knew, and really adds to the whole experience. For example you get to know where Bruce Dickinson got that feathery mask he’s wearing during the performance of ‘Powerslave’, what

happened to Eddie on the road, how (and where) the famous ‘Powerslave’ photo-shoot was done and a whole pile of other absolutely incredible little things. As a matter of fact, I’d recommend watching the documentary first, before viewing the actual ‘Live After Death’ video, since it gives you a whole new perspective on the concert.

PROGRESSIVE

10 ESSENTIAL PROGRESSIVE METAL ALBUMS P

By Max Thrasher

rogressive Metal, or simply Prog as it’s often called, is one of those ‘phantom’ genres, like Speed Metal or Viking Metal. Many bands toy with it, mixing Prog with everything from Hard Rock (like Royal Hunt or Legion) to Thrash (Watchtower, Savatage), Death Metal (Atheist, Cynic) and even Alternative (Tool, Opeth). Consequentially it can be broken down to many sub-genres and traces of it can be found in many albums from many renowned bands. It’s there, and it’s well-established, but it’s hard to pin-point too many bands that work exclusively within the borders of the genre. That’s what we’re doing here.

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The following is in no way a list of the best Prog-Metal albums. I’m sure everyone will find something I’ve missed out. But here’s a few records you should definitely listen to if you want to find out what it’s all about...

1.Dream Theater “Images and Words” (1992)

2.Queensryche “Operation: Mindcrime” (1988)

3.Mekong Delta “The Music of Erich Zann” (1988)

Stand out track: ‘Pull Me Under’

Stand out track: ‘Suite Sister Mary’

Stand out track: ‘Age of Agony’

This is the definition of Progressive Metal. ‘Images...’ has put Dream Theater on the map and established the sound and the structural scheme of the genre. Pretty much Prog in its’ pure form.

One of the very first ‘Metal operas’, this is the definitive Queensryche record every Metal fan must hear! This album is widely considered a corner stone of Progressive Metal.

Although this German band features some of the best instrumentalists in the land, the identities of the members were not disclosed until late in their career. Heavier version of Prog mixed with Thrash.

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PROGRESSIVE

6. Psychotic Waltz “A Social Grace” (1990)

8.Symphony X “TheDivineWingsofTragedy” (1996)

10.Fates Warning “Parallels” (1991)

Stand out track: ‘Don’t Ever Cry (Just Remember)’

Stand out track: ‘A Psychotic Waltz’

Stand out track: ‘Out of the Ashes’

Stand out track: ‘TheRoadGoesonForever’

A very strange record, filled with unexpected instruments line flute, saxophone and cello. Very catchy and easy to listen to album.

This is a version of Prog which is beyond conventional music. ‘Psychotic’ is a very good way to describe it.

The definitive version of what they call ‘Prog/Power’. Fast Power Metal tracks are split here with long Progressive numbers.

This is one of the original Prog bands. Although the earlier works are much more complex and unpredictable, ‘Parallels’ is a very cool example of the ‘winter-in-big-city’ Progressive.

5.Conception – “Parallel Minds” (1993)

7. Crimson Glory “Transcendence” (1988)

9.Royal Hunt “Moving Target” (1995)

Stand out track: ‘Water Confines’

Stand out track: ‘Painted Skies’

Stand ‘1348’

A brilliant example of more melodic and measured Prog.

One of the most influential Prog Metal bands, making their name by using stainless steel masks.

Although the rest of the band’s discography is mostly classic hard rock, ‘Moving Target’ is a great, complex listen.

out

track:

CRIMSON GLORY “INFLENTIAL” 23

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4.Shadow Gallery “Carved in Stone” (1995)

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HEN bands use controversy as a tool, they often still have some limits. Sacrament, on the other hand, have pushed everything as far as their imagination can take it, and as a result have known both the positive and negative sides of artistic expression without consideration for society’s etiquette. Check out our interview with New Zealand’s most daring band.

Please give us some general information on Sacrament for people discovering the band for the first time

We have calmed down a bit since the free EP we give out, we now choose not to focus so much on those subjects. To be honest all it did was get us into a lot of trouble, which isn’t always bad, but some people got really offended and well, all I’ll say is threats from the public aren’t always real cool haha. But it was a big learning curve; we love to push the boundries about shit like that, but sometimes things get blown out of the water. Do you think that your songs could be seen as glorifying or encouraging the subjects you cover, and if so, does that affect you? We

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no way condone the sorts of behavior we sing about, but I guess with the extreme music that is being made around the world you’ve really gotta push it to get attention. If you read our lyrics they are writen with a lot of humor and not always offensive for the sake of being offensive. It has affected us in ways, and I think thats why we are heading in a slightly d i ff e r e n t direction

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Basically we are a 3 piece Death Metal band from Christchurch, New Zealand. We have been together around 3 years, been through a couple of bassists but n o n e that really suited us, so we decided to tune real low and ditch the bass all together. We love to get drunk, do stupid shit, and have a good time We honestly don’t care what other people have to say about us, as long as we are laughing!

Your use of imagery and song titles/lyrics are very extreme. Why do you concentrate on the controversial subjects such as pedophilia and violence?

with our lyrical content these days. What is happening with the Metal scene in Christchurch these days? There’s always heaps of young bands coming up around here. It’s great to see. Not so many gigs have been going down over the winter but hopefully it’ll pick up over the summer. The main problem here is a lot of venues aren’t staying open for long, and seem to have a lack of funds and things like that which sucks because there are a lot of really talented bands around here. Its always good to see bands travelling here and playing some brutal shows.

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Looking at the photos on your myspace page (www.myspace.com/sacramentnz), in between playing with dead animals and taking great photos of attractive girls bending over, you appear to drink copious amounts of Harringtons Vodka. Do you have any recent booze-fueled stories to share? Haha we always have booze fueled stories to share. We have been drinking every weekend ‘til the point of passing out for the last few years and it’s great. We love our Harringtons, it’s cheap and extremely nasty! Haha. If myspace allowed nudity I think our albums would be a lot more full! I could be here all night telling you stories about what we get up to, but I don’t wanna offend the readers haha. However I invite anyone to come drink with us and become a part of our crazy weekends. You’re currently offering your EP to anyone in the world free of charge! How’s that going for you, and how is recording going for your next release? Well it’s expensive for us, but at the same

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time it pays off with the amount of people who end up with your material. We have had some crazy addresses from places I never knew exsisted so it’s working out to be a good geography lesson as well. Thanks google earth! We are currently working on some home recordings to throw up on the sites to show what we’ve been up to lately; we have a whole new set and are really excited to get the songs up. We are also looking at recording a full length album late this year or early next year. What’s the best way to stay up to date with Sacrament? I’d say our myspace page, we don’t have a website at the moment but maybe one day we’ll get one. Thanks for the interview. Anything else you’d like to add? Leave us your address and we’ll send you a free EP! you won’t be disappointed with the cover. Ball, play me some! t

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