High on Fire : "Cometh the Storm"

It's been 6 years since "Electric Messiah". Since then they have been joined by Big Business drummer Coady Willis. The bar is low for them here, as they have never scored higher than a 7.5.  They rely more upon a rumbling chug and are not dark or melodic enough for me. Always sounded like they took the stoner rock DNA and mixed it with Motorhead and Venom, in a manner that is not all that original. Things have changed this time around. Perhaps Pike's sobriety factors in. But I hear another influence, which makes perfect sense, after all, Matt Pike is close friends with Brent Hinds. Imagine them hanging out and one day a newly sober Piek thinks, well if they can play big places to a larger audience, I could as well, after all, it's not a huge leap, just groove a little more. To the record label, this is a reason to celebrate. 

The album opens with a more grooving sludge that recalls old Mastodon, with little of the Motorhead punk drive. In fact, it's s not until "Trismestigus" that I hear any of the old Motorhead rumbles. I imagine the song is about Hermes. It's a dense hammering wall of chugs, that obscures the roar of the vocals so he might be about as informed of the founder of  Hermetic magic as Ozzy was of the O.T.O when he wrote "Mr. Crowley". The answer here is not at all. Making it a clever metal occult namedrop. The title track benefits from their new drummer, as Pike makes more of an effort to sing. These factors help give me more of the brooding tension I want from heavy music.  

After an excursion into Middle Eastern music, they return to hammering you with the overdriven wall of sound. There is a surmounting tension to its drive. "the Beating' finds them back to the kind of more punk-leaning attack that prompts the Venom and Motorhead comparisons. "Tough Guy" is a step in the more metal direction, but it is also a rather straightforward pounding, with the growl of the vocals not contributing a great deal.  Though it is much more deliberate than much of what I have heard in the past from these guys.  If you stepped on the gas while playing "Orgasmatron" the results might be similar to "Lightning Beard". 

He makes another attempt at singing on "Hunting Shadows", which gallops closer to a more traditional metal with its brazen howl. The album closes with a ten-minute epic that is "Darker Fleece".  It hangs on a rumbling riff that trudges in a monolithic drone. Six minutes and I am wondering when they are going to switch it up. They don't. Regardless , this might be the most accessible to work, and showcases more thoughtful songwriting, so all the inspiration paid off I will give them an 8.5, which doesn't make this a top-tier legend of an album, but it does make it their best work yet. 

Taylor Swift : "THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT"

 While other pop artists have to grab your attention by putting on cowboy cats or trying on new personas their record labels want to convince you are breaking new ground, Taylor Swift has less to prove and is content just being herself. She has herself this is the album she needed to make, which seems to mean getting these songs out of her system so she can move on. They feel like thoughts captured in the transition between "Folklore" and "Midnights". Though it is clear this is the songwriting genius who wrote "1989" and "Reputation" . 

  The opening track is a wandering melancholic pop that moves with a hushed intensity. At first, listen might be confused for something similar to the space Lana Del Ray occupies. However Swift's take on this melodrama is not pill-induced, or self-deprecating, but almost as if she is processing her past relationship with Joe for a therapist.  Though some theories that her sexuality is not what is marketed to the masses will find plenty of fuel when the lines are read between here,  Post-Malone's guest spot is kept to a minimum, and he is merely a backup singer. 

"My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys" is the first song that feels like it hits like a pop song, as she indulges more introspection and atmosphere on this album. It took a few listens for "So Long London" to click, even then it's a little too minimalist in its arrangement to fully stand next to the bar she has raised for herself. Lyrically it is as strong as her other stuff, and that is one thing this album does highlight she is a tremendous lyricist she is.  "But Daddy I Love Him" perfectly balances her reflective side and the dynamic arena-rocking pop that plays to her strengths. If you were to ask me what I want from her in 2024 I would point to " Fresh Out of the Slammer" which is organic enough to cater to my need for real instruments but respects what her vibe is here. 

"Florida!" is pretty much a slapper that speaks to the state's mojo. Florence and the Machine contributes more than Post Malone, and is an effective pairing for Swift. "Guilty as Sin?" is Tay Tay doing Tay Tay things the way her fans expect her to, and excelling at it while not feeling stale. She belts it out in her higher register for "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me" where she reflects on her superstardom. "I Can Fix Him I Really Can" took a second listen for its creeping groove to take hold. Swift muses about the part she plays in her less-than-functional relationships here. It's a little darker than what you might expect from her. 

"IomI" shows "So Long London" how she really writes a ballad. On the other side of the spectrum, there is more motion on the dance floor with "I Can Do it With a Broken Heart". Though it percolates with futuristic optimism rather than dropping the beat.  "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived" feels like it is left over from "Folklore". Supposedly it's about Matt Healy from the 1975.  'the Alchemy" is a superior song, which is supposed to be about Travis Kelce. "Clara Bow" is another reflection on the circles  Swift now finds herself in. This will give the Gaylors plenty to work with. It ends with the introspect ballad "the Manuscript" which works well enough but is not the album's strongest song. I will round this up to a 10, as a couple songs are a matter of what I want from her, and some of the more into her feeling at the piano songs, might need time to grow on me. Overall she proves, she is still the best at what she does and offers more depth than any other pop artist out there including Miley can muster. Though Miley would be in 2nd place in this regard. 

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Henry Kane : "Circle of Pain"

 

This Swedish death metal project uses a great deal of atmosphere to bring their grim tidings to life. The second song feels like a marginally more deliberate march into darkness than the first song. There is a uniformity in the brand of aggression they are hitting you with. Not far removed from Behemoth in terms of heaviness, with shades of Rotting Christ coming up at times as well. They are trying to write songs and not just be heavy for the sake of being heavy. There is an anthemic feel to what is being done here. Another plus is that for a Swedish band they are not playing melodeth or trying to sound like Entombed or At the Gates. 

They are dark enough that when they pick up the pace it sometimes borders on being black metal. However when they speed up the drums sometimes suffer in the mix and become a patter in the background. The lyrics are articulated within the growl well enough, though I am unsure what the narrative message of this album is. They are possibly against religion, but what lies beyond that aside from a desire to not be forced to do as they are told is unsure. They distract you from this with some crunchy riffs. The title track chugs by in a manner that does not demand my attention, it sounds like an extension of everything they have done so far here. 

The guitar melody to "Wealth of Obscenity" makes it stand out more than the straightforward approach of the previous song. "Weird Fiction Founded" is an interesting title. There is more nuance and a cool melodic breakdown section that does not kill the momentum of the song or album. In fact, it is more interesting than when they just charge straight ahead at you on the last song.I will give this album an 8.5, it's pretty solid, and cares about the songs despite falling into t some of the uniformity this genre breeds,  

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Pearl Jam : "Dark Matter"

 Do I really need to introduce Pearl Jam? If you do not know who these guys are, this is not the blog for you as they are now like Led Zeppelin a band that is one of the fundamental artists of the era and genre they forged. This album comes closer to what you expect from them than some of their more recent albums that found the band taking more chances. Granted if you think of these guys as a grunge band, then you might find this album lacking in grit, however, this is their 12th album, and only their first two albums should really be considered jazz, as the band has ventured off into varied forms of rock and Americana since then in the 10  albums that followed these guys have a pretty basic formula to follow to be successful and please their fan base. Eddie sings and the rest of the band supports him allowing Vedder to do what he does. 

The second song picks up the pace in a way that is not "State of Love and Trust" but it still works. Then comes their more Neil Young-influenced ballad with the casual folkish strum of "Wreckage".  Vedder's voice has held up well. If this sort of thing still had a place on the radio, this song would fit the format. But rock radio has hit a place of stagnation and has not progressed past 'Better Man". They have given themselves enough room to grow that allows a song like the title track to be different enough, yet as a song holds up against the songs like "Jeremy" they have built their career upon. Amazingly, they can still be consistent as artists 12 albums later and still write songs this good. Mike McCready is ripping out plenty of guitar solos on this album. 

"Won't Tell" might have more of a pop sensibility, but it's really well written and Vedder vocal melodies work their magic.  The more balladic musing that is this album's "Yellow Ledbetter" is "Upper Hand" though it's less Jimi Hendrix influenced.  "Waiting For Stevie" rocks out a little more with  Mike continuing to rip it, and Matt Cameron continuing to show why he is one of the best rock drummers in the business. "Running" is a more energetic return to the "Vs." era. The almost country strum of "Something Special" is just a little more upbeat than what I prefer. 

You can't argue that Bruce Springsteen has not been an influence on these guys as it permeates "Got to Give". It has echoes of 90s rock anthems but is more of a blue-collar rocker. The last song is almost more of a ballad, as it seems to muse upon mortality and the human condition. There is also a slight country unpining to this which is the first time this has crept into what they do. I will give this album a 9.5, and see how it sits with me, it holds up better against their classic works than some of the post-Vitalogy releases. 

 

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Cosmic Joke : "s/t"

 

Been reviewing more punk this year than normal, I guess everyone got angry enough to start writing music about it. The obvious influence of this band is Bad Religion, but they are also into hardcore and sometimes dance their way into something that has more of a breakdown bounce to it. Backing vocals carry more of a hardcore grit to them than the main vocal which is typically yelled in a purposeful and almost melodic manner. 

By the time I get to the eponymous song, which is one of the album's stronger moments I have already become numbed out by a generic high-energy punk battery. The first song is the only track that breaks the two-minute mark, so these are quick outbursts, though not as spastic as say power-violence. "Leave it Alone" might be one of the album's best songs. It is very to the point but still catchy. 

"Morphine" works for what it is. What it happens to be punk rock in its most basic form, for better or for worse. This is not the manner in which I normally ingest my punk, as I prefer it to be darker, more metallic, or have more sonic layers. This is just what it is. The audience is teenagers who are just getting into punk, a better choice than any of the 90s pop punk, as it is a more honest replica of an era.  I will give this album an 8. I can scratch it off my list of hard core albums to check out.  

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Drahla : "angeltape"

When saxophone opens a post-punk band's album you know it's going to be different.  I was not expecting them to sound like Romeo Void's "Never Say Never". Their new wave ways continue to pay homage to the 80s on  "Default Parody".  The first two songs have worked off a quirky angular jangle, and going into "zig-zag" they are going to have more to prove   What is at stake? Well, it's bad enough to be a glorified tribute band but if you can only cover one song it's even worse. Do they pass the test?  It's more of a lateral move as they take the same theme and play it more aggressively. 

From this point, the songs begin to run together until they allow the song some room to breathe on "Talking Radience" , though it sounds like Grimes covering Romeo Void instead. "Talking Radience" sound bass line was ripped from a pre-Purple Rain Prince song, Yes, I know the song, but I am going to make you guess. There could be decent songs buried under some of this chaos. By "Concrete Lilly" this is beginning to lose my attention. It's not until the odd groove of "Lipsync" that I pay attention once more. They casually hit you with moments of abrasion. 

By the time it gets to the end of the album, I might not be sure what I heard though I expect it was a noise rock band trying to cover Romeo Void in the style of freeform jazz. I will give this album a 6.5, as feels generous enough considering it was terrible from a songwriting perspective, but when thought of as a deconstruction of new wave music, or an anti-rock take on the 80s there might be more substance to it. If this is something would keep in regular rotation, you might also like doing coke in coffee shops and getting fisted in the bathrooms of art galleries, which is fine as long as you know who you are. 

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Six Feet Under : "Killing For Revenge"

 Chris Barnes has a great deal to prove here, as his vocals on "Nightmares of the Decomposed" were weak as hell. I can appreciate that Chris Barnes speaks his mind in this bizarro world where metal was once considered to be a genre where poseurs were called out, there is now a trend to discourage gatekeeping. But that means you gotta back it up and walk the walk you are talking about. Thanks to production choices that find his voice heavily distorted with a filter of high gain, it's hard to tell if he is bringing it or not. The band is certainly invigorated and in your face. 

This works for the first two songs, but things start to take on a uniform sound by the time we get to "Ascension".  Barnes' work with Cannibal Corpse is classic and has been long emulated after, but these days it's hard not to wonder if Corpsegrinder is not outperforming him. They certainly made the right production choices here as it is ripping the last album a new asshole. He sounds like he is getting back closer to his old growling power on "When the Moon Goes Down in Blood" . The riffing is more intricate without getting too technical for my tastes. 

"Hostility Against Mankind" is more deliberate. Articulation has never been his strong suit but here the gurgle makes it harder for him to get the message across. But the feeling of the song seems to convey it. The song breaks down to an expected groove thanks to the gritty bass line. More rock n roll than what most death metal bands are doing, but there is nothing wrong with that. "Compulsive" is more straightforward, but in the method-out speed fest manner that "Fit of Carnage" is. Which is almost a punk extreme. "Neanderthal" proves a deliberate attack is always heavier than relying upon speed. The counterpoint to this argument can be heard in "Judgement Day" which shows if you are going to play at least sound like Slayer when you are doing so.

The album's moments of filler come when they get bogged down in sounding like generic death metal. This trend is not broken until they close the album with a cover of Nazereth's "Hair of the Dog" which musical does not venture far from the original with Barne's growled vocals the main thing setting it apart. I will give this album an 8, at times it is one-dimensional, but there are fans of just the death metal basics. It does find them in better form than the previous album. 

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