The Tell of the Realmbuilder : The Epic Empire Will Live On
Prelude : There are some castles that will manage to succeed the
test of time, hence preserving their cultural baggage with their solid
walls. These structures will help the old age ideologists in their
quest, a never ending homage to their gods, their influences, their
mentors. In Realmbuilder's little but honest castle, there's an idol in
the shape of a shark placed in the center of their chapel. Praise thy
altar. Like the epic metal templars they are, criticism is nothing
important, they'll keep fighting with the help of their proud sound. who
cares what the more popular cults say, who cares what me, an apostle of
no importance say.
Still, this is my testament to them. In my mind, in this era, this is a
success in itself to follow the guidance of the Shark and his road to
Manilla. Albeit being happy with the noble intentions of this duo from
the New World, the great city of New York to be more precise. Before my
continuation of this publication, I have to state that I am offering
them my full approval. I'll gladly support their real metal crusade by
offering my most sincere thoughts in a non apologetic manner.
Verse I - The Painting on the Walls : The cover art is quite
interesting, it was done by Czar (drums, vocals, lyrics) and I really
appreciate the old 80s fantasy video game/tabletop role playing game
vibe. We have a caped tyrant looking at his spires outside his castle
window and there's huge mountains in the background. It's a bit
amateurish, but for the style they play, it fits, just like Manilla
Road's artwork always fits their music even though it's obviously not
the prettiest drawings around. Epic metal is not something that we
should take very seriously, it's something that we should enjoy with our
child hearts just like when I play Dungeon and Dragon. It's touching
our imaginary perception, it touched mine at the very least.
Verse II - The Lyrical Approach : Czar, outside of his musical
endeavors is also a novelist and screenwriter. So, we have a very vivid
album with captivating ideas developed in an epic fashion. Nothing new
that their forefathers haven't told us before though, we can read
Howard's influence on Old Savage and A Conflict Between Dukes
reminds me of the Dune saga by Frank Herbert. The lyrics are often
simple, but full of imagery and they were fun to read. But in the end,
they kind of fall short compared to some other songwriters such as
Solstice or Atlantean Kodex. I'm sure the lyrics can be more complex and
even more enjoyable.
Verse III - The Construction of a Realm : A kingdom, if you're
not Alexander the Great, will take a lot of time to be established. If
your desire is to enjoy life itself, you'll be better served with small
pleasures. Being a visionnary is harsh and it's not given to everyone.
What these two guys do is passionate epic heavy/doom for the initiated
disciples and it's definitely full of nostalgia. It can be perceived as a
middle of the road band, but with the amount of this kind of steel
released, I'll gladly take what I can. They're not a lazy band, they do
not sound like a particular band, instead they're encompassing many old
school influences and making them their own.
My principal criticism towards their music is definitely the vocals,
J.H. Halberd's delivery is unorthodox and its power is lacking. Like
Realmbuilder's overall sound, it took me a while to appreciate them and
I'm still reluctant when I'm confronted with the album.I like the
dynamic that we can find in a duo (I'm a fan of Darkthrone's modern and
more traditional metal material) but I think the addition of a seasoned
vocalist would be something welcome. He's not a bad singer, but I'd like
more torque in his vocals. The moments with background/choirs vocals
are well done though. His style is not nasal as Shelton or Baker, it's
more subdued and he's at his best when it's slow and there's a
traditional doom ambiance. Nonetheless, there's some really catchy vocal
melodies like the ending of the title track, I was humming this part
while I was walking in the cold and it's epic, memorable and immediate.
Fix the ladders/Stack the stones/We build the wall that shields the empire
Verse IV - The Epitome of a Grower and the Foundations of the Realm :
When I first heard the album, I thought it was really underwhelming and
incomplete, I learned to like it, the very good riffs tamed my opinion.
They're mesmerizing and my only desire is to get vocals to match them.
It's a duo but they do have a lead guitar guest, while necessary, the
leads are not pristine and are a bit anticlimactic, especially in the
doomy track Old Savage. The songs are truly epic, the atmospheric track
Ascend to the Glass Kingdom is well done even if it's used as an
interlude in the middle of the album, I'd like to see this side of the
band more thoroughly. While the band can have really catchy moments on
their more fast paced tracks (just like Cirith Ungol or Manilla Road), I
prefer their slower numbers like the last track The Stars Disappeared from the Sky When We Uncovered the Bones of the First Gods
(no, it's not a Bal-Sagoth song). Their blend of epic heavy and doom
metal is charming and I kept trying to enter the realm, after three or
four attempts, something happened, a door got unlocked somewhere. It's
something that doesn't happen often to me, I either like something from
the start or I don't. The bass could be more present and noisy just like
their ancestors, it's a bit buried under the mix. Talking of the
production, it's appropriate and without any frills and I guess that's
how the band wanted it.
Postlude : This album is highly recommended to all epic metal
aficionados worldwide and also to the Dungeon and Dragons geeks ! It's a
better and more focused album than their debut Summon the Stone Towers
and there's slower numbers. Talking of their doom dimension, maybe
it's because I'm more a doom apostle than a traditional metal one, but I
think it's really their forte. I would happily live in their realm,
they took their time to build it, the foundations, the fortifications
and materials are solid.
Some of my wish for the band's future : longer and slower songs, more
intricate lyrics and songwriting and I'm sure it can be even more epic
than it already is !
Here's the review of my evening at my favorite venue in Montréal, the Katacombes!
Barrow Wight
This band is a newcomer from the Canadian capital, Ottawa. A city not especially known for its metal scene but these guys
were
cool. They're a mix of Venom, Darkthrone and NWOBHM mixed with Lord of
the Rings. They're amateurish as fuck but that's literally what they
want, the leader and founder of the band (bass/vox) is charistmatic and
lead the 2 other younger than him high schoolers with an iron hand. The
guitarist who were trying to be "theatrical" with his Hobbit cape was funny and it really was obvious than he's a new member because of some of the problems he had with the songs,
still, the set was very fun and I appreciate their sound and attitude.
Songs like "Anvil of Mordor" and "Nine Horsemen" and a tongue in cheek
stage presence made this a succesful first presence for the band in
Montréal.
PS: Fuck the drummer who had to bone his girlfriend before the show and this was apparently the reason their
set was 30 minutes late and yep, I missed the metro because of this
delay :/ No biggie, I went to watch a movie at HB's place, good way to
end a very cool evening. Dude, you're not a rockstar!
PS 2: Thanks to Andrew for the beer and
the demo, my first reward as a MA moderator! My awesomeness is finally
recognized! :oh shit:
Metalian
Local
heavy/speed metal hereos, Metalian is simply fucking awesome and a lot
of people were present for them. They completely destroyed with their
awesome Maidenesque leads and their soaring high vocals, their energy is
really contagious and the crowd response was awesome as always (it was
my 2nd time seeing them too). They finished their set with an awesome cover of Phantom of the Opera, damn this was great!
Voor
Trash
metal. God, I know these guys are kvlt and all, but I really thought
their set was freaking awful. It's basically 2nd rate Possessed with
lame old guy punky vocals. They had some good riffs here and there
mostly from their 1985 demo Evil Metal but their new songs are very poor
(with lame titles like "Don't bring a knife to a gun fight"). The crowd
seemed to have been pleased though, I wasn't, I was bored out of my
mind for their 45 minutes set. I would like to be a chauvinist and
praise Voor simply because they're local, but I can't. There's some
bands that are best kept forgotten. A Nuclear War Now! re-edition
doesn't
make them good.
Natur
Man,
I probably heard their first album Head of Death 4 times this week
before the show, it's a very good trad/heavy with NWOBHM influences from
New York. The lineup of the show was different from the album though
(the bassist and the rhythm guitarist/lead singer were absent and they 2
other guys (albeit talented players) replacing them. The drummer Tooth
Log and the lead guitarist (I wonder if it's their real names?) were
great too, Tooth was the singer for this evening and there was no
backing vocals, something that would had been nice. His vocals were cool
but were suffering at the end, drumming and singing heavy metal
must be very hard!
Their set were cool, perhaps a bit too short
though (40-45 mins). They played The Messenger, Head of Death, Decion, Goblin Shark,
Mutations in Maine and 2 new songs. These new tracks were also fantastic
and more doomy than their first album. Natur certainly has a lot of
potential!
Great evening all around!
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Boobs, Beer and Metal!
Directly from Canada's metropolis, the cosmopolitan city of Toronto, Axxion is a new heavy metal and this EP is their first release. Comparable to their friends Cauldron, the band is influenced by many heavy metal scenes including NWOBHM, some USPM and even the Swedish traditional heavy metal bands (Heavy Load & Gotham City). They're a four piece with a very cute blond woman handling the drums (I'm happy we see more women in metal these days and not just operatic chicks in corsets).
While the passion is definitely there and the goods are delivered, this EP lacks something to be truly a beast. Nevertheless, this is s a first offering and the songwriting is quite decent and shows potential. It's very enjoyable, fun and if you like good honest heavy metal you won't be disappointed. There's more strengths than mistakes, really. The band has two very competent guitarists (Sir Shred really does honor to his name in a live setting and Devon Kerr is an awesome front man who can play his share of the leads/riffs). His vocals delivery is similar to his Ontarian brethren in Midnight Malice or the aforementioned Cauldron and it's definitely enjoyable. While not a very powerful vocalist, he has maximum charisma and can hit high notes when the songs are asking for it. He can shine on either faster or midpaced tracks, these later are my favorite songs of the album (Voyager and Savage Avenger). On the other hand, I usually prefer the epic side of traditional metal, I mean I think Harley Davidsons are cool but give me sword and sorcery and I'll be in Valhalla. While I'm talking about this, I think Axxion's lyrical identity is a bit weak, outside of the two more epic tracks, the three others are your typical heavy metal drinking and fucking songs ("Livin' into these crazy nights" or "ride your stallion through the night"). Not that I don't enjoy these kind of songs, but I prefer a certain cultured lyricism, that's why I'm a fan of Manilla Road or Slough Feg, call me a boring snob, I won't mind, I would agree with you. If you want to write a song about sex, find a cool and original subjects like teledildonics or something. I'm also not a big fan of samples in music, not really an important criticism but it must be noted (the one in Crazy Nights annoyed me a bit, I feel it's pausing the momentum of this fast paced and festive song)
The guitars and riffs are very fucking good, but I think the production is a bit weak and muddy, but this little problem will probably be solved in the near future if they ever do a full length, I certainly hope so. The solos are top notch and of the highest caliber in the style (check out the dual leads in Savage Avenger). I wish the bass was louder though, the rhythm section while good is a bit underwhelming compared to the guitars and vocals. Their song structures are rather normal and safe, but this was expected with the style they play. Still, I would to hear them play an epic 8-10 minutes song, they have the blistering solos and songwriting skills to nail something like that.
This 22 minutes release is a strong slab of pure lusty and passionated heavy metal but do they have what it needs to become a forerunner of the style ? Perhaps, they are a very strong live act and their music although catchy and competent needs some refinement. One thing though, this is becoming a saturated market and it's hard to create a fuss in the underground, especially here in Canada. I mean Skull Fist or Striker did it but it's sometimes only luck. Nonetheless, a thing they managed to accomplish here is to grasp the spirit of what heavy metal was in the 80s and what it should be today, I would certainly wear their patch proudly on my new kutte. Canada is still part of the Commonwealth and this NWOBHM inspired release would certainly please Steve Harris, the de facto king of England.
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Give 'em booze money!
