HALESTORM EP Review

Halestorm – ReAniMate 2.0: The CoVeRs eP

Atlantic, 2013

4/10

This is an entirely disposable release that has little worth for all but the most devout Halestorm fans. As the title suggests, this EP contains six cover songs, so I won’t spend a lot of time thinking about creative ways to bash this. “Dissident Aggressor” opens the EP on a decent note, but Slayer’s version crushes both this and the original by Judas Priest. I’m glad I didn’t know who Daft Punk was until I googled it, but “Get Lucky” is the only other decent song here. “Shoot To Thrill” is downright weak; the guitars and drums lack punch, and the effort sounds phoned in. Pat Benatar’s “Hell Is For Children” is the song I was most looking forward to on the EP, however, there’s none of the emotion found on the original. Things only get worse with Fleetwood Mac’s “Gold Dust Woman” and “1996” by Marilyn Manson. Generally I’ve found covers releases to be pretty lame—Garage Days Re-Revisited and Attack Of The Killers B’s are the only great ones that spring to mind. If you’re a Halestorm fan you may want to check this out, but don’t expect anything great.

Halestorm performs tonight, Friday, December 13 at Myth in St. Paul with support from Stars In Stereo and Redlight King.

EP Review - ARSIS

Arsis – Lepers Caress

Scion A/V, 2012

9/10

It seems forever since Starve For The Devil came out in 2010, and the usual delays and personnel changes have ensued during the intervening time. The timing of this release is a bit odd, only four months or so before the new album, Unwelcome, is released on April 30. Who’s to complain, though, as this EP delivers six songs, only one of which will appear on Unwelcome (“Carve My Cross”). Whereas Starve For The Devil suggested a move towards straight-forward thrash, Lepers Caress signals that Arsis is instead sticking with their trademark, technical thrash-inspired death metal sound. “Haunted, Fragile, and Frozen” is an instrumental that leads off the EP, building up from an acoustic start into a slow, epic riff that blasts into the fast “Six Coffins Wide”. It doesn’t let up from there, with a brutal machine gun snare and wicked double-bass drumming underlying fast, technical guitar riffs and solos. If these are the leftovers from the writing sessions for Unwelcome, then the new album should be a monster. The constant turnover in the band would usually be a cause for concern, but Lepers Caress is a fine reminder that Arsis is still at the top of their game. Best of all, you can download this EP for free from the Scion A/V website.

Arsis performs on Tuesday, May 7 at Station 4 in St. Paul as support to Krisiun with Starkill, Deretla, Diabolical Sacrilege, and Daigoro.

CYNIC EP Review

Cynic – Carbon-Based Anatomy EP

Season Of Mist, November 2011

9/10

Reactivated progressive death metal band Cynic is becoming harder and harder to classify as their music continues to drift off into towards complex space rock with each new release. Although their origins are in death metal, Cynic left that field behind with their return in 2008 with Traced In Air. You’ll be disappointed if you’re expecting a return to the heavy and bizarre sounds of 1994’s Focus, but those willing to embrace this developmental journey will continue to be entranced. There’s really only three traditional songs on this six-song EP, as “Amidst The Coals”, “Bija!”, and “Hieroglyph” are trance-like interludes filled with chants and spoken word parts. The meat of Carbon-Based Anatomy is the title track, “Box Up My Bones”, and “Elves Beam Out”. “Carbon-Based Anatomy” features jazz-inspired drum fills everywhere underneath a simple bass and guitar line that only gets interrupted by acoustic passages that build into solo that is the track’s climax. “Box Up My Bones” is easier to grasp, and also follows a heavy acoustic rock sound. Things get a little weirder with “Elves Beam Out”, but its rhythmic chorus brings a sense of heaviness back to the mix. I admit to feeling a little let down with Traced In Air, but Carbon-Based Anatomy shows a maturing of Cynic’s new direction where the band sounds more comfortable and confident. The doors are wide open for fans of progressive rock in the mold of Porcupine Tree and The Pineapple Thief to embrace Cynic, and I’m already eagerly awaiting to hear what the next record with sound like.

Cynic performs tonight, Sunday, November 13 at Station 4 in St. Paul with support from Metal Blade recording artist 3 and locals Iron Thrones.