Detroit

Acid Witch, Rot Among Us (Hells Headbangers 2022)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

Motor City horror metalists Acid Witch are back with the perfect Halloween album, Rot Among Us.

Stemming from the northlands of Detroit, Michigan, Acid Witch is a doom-ish metal band that vibes on horror themes. Making regular use of mysterious keyboard lines, the band has put together three previous full-length albums and a passionate string of splits and EPs. Their new album, Rot Among Us, has arrived just in time for the holiday. The Metal Archives lists the band members as Tim “Shagrat” Jenkins (vocals, bass), “Slasher” Dave Monastiere (vocals, keys), and Phil Warren (drums).

“Gather Each Witch” is the invocation that begins a horrifying trip into the dark netherworld of Acid Witch. Hissing chants and creeping keys are a strong signal of what follows. The title track has a hammering hook that is wickedly groovy. An eerie goblin voice drops in to narrate while the instruments lurk in the outskirts, rather like a song from The Nightmare Before Christmas. When the music surges it is a mini volcano. There is a great little lead guitar break that echoes the sound of the Alice Cooper tune “Cold Ethyl.” Following that, “The Sleeper” has a more traditional metal structure in vocal and rhythm with excellent rolling movements. It teeters and pounces in a very creepshow kind of way.

What you get overall on this record is many different looks at heavy horror-themed music. There is a recurring hideousness ideal that could be seen as a throughline but the songs themselves are quite different. “Psychedeathic Swampnosis,” for example, works the keys in ways you don’t hear on the other tracks, and “Evil Dad” is an up-tempo rumbler that gives you a good squeeze with a notably divergent sound. The essential weirdness is there in every song. The winning formula is that different bits and angles are highlighted through alternate means. “Gundella The Green Witch” is the final step and a pure delight. I love the honking cadence and the dooming weight of it all. The breakout thrash in the middle is inspiring, as is the long, sinister walk out. This album could get heavy spins during the altered states we sometimes find ourselves in. Recommended.

The digital version of Rot Among Us is available now through Hells Headbangers Records with the physicals to follow on Halloween.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://acid-witch-detroit.bandcamp.com/album/rot-among-us

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/acidwitchofficial

Hells Headbangers Records, https://shop-hellsheadbangers.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Acid Witch, Rot Among Us (Hells Headbangers 2022)

I Prevail, True Power (Fearless Records 2022)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

True Power is the third record from Michigan metalcore band I Prevail.

Starting out almost ten years ago, I Prevail has made an indelible mark on the hard rock scene. Releasing Lifelines in 2016 and the thundering follow-up Trauma three years later, the band continues to bend their trajectory ever farther upward. Staking out top spots in major festivals and embarking on a massive headlining tour this fall, I Prevail is making its presence known. The band is Brian Burkheiser (vocals), Eric Vanlerberghe (vocals), Steven Menoian (guitars, bass), Dylan Bowman (guitar), and Gabe Helguera (drums).

After a short intro track, “There’s Fear In Letting Go” gets the ball rolling on the new album. The signature I Prevail sound complete with alternating vocals is on full display. High energy and delineated assurance are pervasive forces throughout the song and, we’ll find, the entire album. “Body Bag” is even fiercer – an interesting choice to start out at such a high level and then raise the bar immediately. “Self-Destruction” changes the tempo but does not back off the attitude, and the riffs here grow heavier and darker. “Bad Things” is next and it starts out melodically, but there is a punch in this one, too.

There is no question that fans of I Prevail are going to be stoked by the new album. Apart from the opening movements, stand-out tracks for me are “Judgement Day” for its ragged harshness and “Choke” for that killer guitar riff. The final two songs on the set work a particular magic together as well, “Visceral” and “Doomed.” The former is aggressive, true to its title, and the latter is quiet and smooth despite its theme. This album is one that will be celebrated now and remembered in the years to come. Recommended.

True Power is out on Friday, August 19th through Fearless Records. Press the links below for all the details.

Live photos by Wayne Edwards.

Links.

I Prevail website, https://iprevailband.com/

Bandcamp, https://iprevail.bandcamp.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/IPrevailBand/

Fearless Records, https://fearlessrecords.com/

© Wayne Edwards

I Prevail, True Power (Fearless Records 2022)

The Native Howl at Piere’s, Fort Wayne, May 19th

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

The Native Howl is opening for Gwar on the Black Death Rager World Tour.

The Native Howl is a murder folk band that likes to refer to their music as thrash grass – a combination of thrash and bluegrass. They do have a harder edge than, say, Amigo The Devil, with the same general vibe. This band from Detroit had a lot of fans showing up for them last Thursday at the Gwar show, judging from the people I talked to in the long line waiting to get in.

This photo gallery completes the trilogy from that night. Go out and see The Native Howl, Nekrogoblikon, and Gwar this May and June. See the tour poster below for cities and dates.

Photos by Wayne Edwards.

Links.

Gwar, https://gwar.net/

Nekrogoblikon, https://nekrogoblikon.bandcamp.com/

The Native Howl, https://www.thenativehowl.com/

Piere’s Entertainment Center, https://pieresentertainment.com/

© Wayne Edwards

The Native Howl at Piere’s, Fort Wayne, May 19th

Theandric, Flight Among The Tombs (2022)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Back with the first new music since 2014, Detroit’s Theandric present the four-song EP Flight Among The Tombs.

The band had early beginnings about ten years ago in Detroit. Releasing an EP called Up The Irons in 2011, and then a long-player two years later, The Door Of Faith, the band went quiet shortly thereafter. In its most recent formulation, the players are Paul Tiseo (vocals, bass, keys, and guitar), Bill Bogue (guitar), Aaron Wienczak (guitar), and Matt Voss (drums). Tiseo had the original idea for the group, and it continues now along similar paths with expanded perspectives.

The music is filled with big notions in both the narrative and the musical composition itself. It has a renaissance feel to it more than a medieval one. More Robin Hood than Lord of the Rings, you might say. Fixed in fantastic ideas and melodies, the guitars sometimes play in homage to Randy Rhoads and the vocals might be mistaken for a merry take on Ronnie James Dio.

The first pairing is “Flight Among The Tombs” and “The Battle Of Sherramuir.” “Flight” has a notably prog orientation in the keys and strings; a challenging composition. “Battle,” on the other hand, has a lighter tone, even though it is ostensibly about a violent conflict. It is rather like listening to a mage sing about a storied battle in the most entertaining way possible.

“Condemned To Death” is heavy and dark, with serious, doomy riffs and sorrowful vocals. “Ozymandias” has a more mysterious vibe to it, mystical and maybe even sinister. Big riffs and soaring vocals line the halls of both songs, expressed along somewhat divergent lines. It is good to hear the solid production in these songs and the artful execution of the musicians’ vision. If you are in the mood for traditional metal with an epic flair, Theandric is worth a look. Recommended.

Flight Among The Tombs hits the streets on Friday, February 11th. The quick grab is Bandcamp. Links below.

Links.

Theandric website, https://www.theandric.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/TheandricMusic

Bandcamp, https://theandric.bandcamp.com/

Theandric, Flight Among The Tombs (2022)

Suzi Quatro, The Devil In Me (SPV Steamhammer 2021)

Wayne Edwards, , , , ,

The unstoppable Suzi Quatro returns with a new studio album that pops and cracks with multifaceted looks at rock and roll.

The first album I ever heard from Suzi Quatro was Rock Hard (1980). There she stood on the cover wearing black leather and holding the fire engine red bass. At the time I assumed she played only hard rock, but as I started going through the earlier albums I quickly understood that she had already had an impressive career with big pop hits and a variety of albums in different styles. Whenever a new record came out from her it was a good day for me. Her music is not what I usually listen to if we go by the numbers, but I am a huge Suzi Quatro fan.

The album opens with a couple of bangers. “The Devil In Me” is a raucous rock and roll rambler with a Bob Seger spirit while “Hey Queenie” is more of a rock-sprouting lounge tune. The album takes a walk through a wide variety of styles and looks on differently seasoned rock hooks and structures. Every one of them has a familiar feel and a fresh take. The music is mostly upbeat and fast-paced, with a couple of reflective tracks and one straight-up ballad.

There are a several stand-outs for me on the record. “You Can’t Dream It” is one with its urgent pace and prominent bass work. “Do Ya Dance” hit me at an Alice Cooper angle in the 1970s sense. “Isolation Blues” is a soulful, meandering tune with a great saxophone part. And the closer, “Motor City Riders,” is the perfect guitar and piano rock and roll flashback to close the show. This album is a big win for every Suzi Quatro fan.

The Devil In Me is out now – hit the links below. Recommended.

Links.

Website, http://www.suziquatro.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/Suziquatrorocks/

Label, https://shop.steamhammer.de/products/691043-suzi-quatro-the-devil-in-me

Suzi Quatro, The Devil In Me (SPV Steamhammer 2021)

Plague Years, Circle of Darkness review (eOne Music 2020)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

Speed and mayhem are alive and well in Circle of Darkness, the new full-length release from Michigan metallers Plague Years.

From the beginning notes of the band’s first EP, these four Detroit musicians threw down the gauntlet in a clear sign to the world they were here to create hard, fast, crunching metal. Labeled as a crossover band, you can definitely hear Hardcore, Thrash, and Death Metal elements throughout. The new album is a continuation of 2018’s Unholy Infestation, except even faster and darker. The band on Circle of Darkness is Tim Engelhardt (vocals), Eric Lauder (guitar), Rian Staber (bass), and Mike Jurysta (drums).

There isn’t a single band to compare them to because Plague Years combines so many styles and their music shifts and moves in and across the songs in the album. They show a lot of chopping steady guitar rhythms at a mid-tempo speed in narrative moments of songs, then click into phantom blasts and thrashing ramps to sink the spikes in deeper. From the new album, songs like “Eternal Fire” rest on a modulated pace overall but have mystical lead breaks and surprising percussion eruptions that are not externalities but instead are essential elements in the composition. Flat out raging numbers are there too like “Circle of Darkness” and “Play The Victim” – and in these pieces the tempo is set high but there are also echoing ethereal moments and fascinating transition bridges.

Plague Years will get a hook into any metal fan because the range of expression and the variety of their musical appeal allows them to fit in on practically any heavy title card. Recommended.

Circle of Darkness is out this Friday, September 18. You can hear a couple singles already, and preorder the download or a hardcopy in different forms now. Their previous EP Unholy Infestation is on Spotify right now so you can go listen to that to tide you over for a couple of days

Band photo by Rian Staber.

Links.

https://www.facebook.com/plagueyearsdet

https://plagueyears.bandcamp.com/

http://www.entertainmentone.com

http://www.facebook.com/eOneMusicUS

Plague Years, Circle of Darkness review (eOne Music 2020)