Clandestine Cuts #9 - Feat. Bleeding Fist, Legiones, Trillion Red, Assyrian, After Oblivion, Endolith, Vintundra
| Written by: | Troy Killjoy |
| Published: | June 03, 2011 |
Clandestine Cuts #9
Demo/EP Spotlight
Like a bad case of herpes, right as soon as you thought it was gone for good, it's back, and even less ignorable than ever! It's Clandestine Cuts! We're onto issue number 8, for those of you who missed our first few issues, vote for whichever band you think is the best, and the top 10 will be nominated in the yearly Metal Storm Awards for our Clandestine Cut Of The Year!
Gotcha! It's issue 9, and there's been a bit of a change since our last issue...
*drum roll please*
Yours truly is now the master of this domain, the ruler of this kingdom, the Mad Max of this dystopia, the - okay, you get it. The Doc has checked out and there's a new kid in town. Read it and weep.
Also, be sure to give our previous (inferior) issues a read and vote for your favorite release!
Clandestine Cuts #5
Clandestine Cuts #6
Clandestine Cuts #7
Clandestine Cuts #8
Voting Closed on January 10, 2012
| Bleeding Fist - Devil's Ferox http://www.myspace.com/bleedingfist Bleeding Fist are back with a blasphemous occult black metal release only the twisted bastards at Moribund Records would be willing to release. Reminiscent of early Deathspell Omega and a slew of extreme underground black metal acts, this Satanic quintet will more than appease fans of ultra-grimy, no-holds-barred chaotic black metal. Featuring a grainy production even Senor Vikernes would be proud of and blastbeats that would all but shame Inferno. You know those kvlt-as-fuck unheard-of black metal bands you wanna play when your friends are over so you can impress them with your elitist musical preferences? Devil's Ferox is for that exact situation. |  |
 | Legiones - Legiones http://www.myspace.com/legionesnorway Norwegian black metal band Legiones have more or less reissued their independently-released demo from 2009, only it's missing a song and - presumably - the production is better. Not that the production is "good", as it shouldn't be, but the musicianship alone tells the story of a band who have made strides towards their ultimate goal. The name of the game is "interesting", from the drum abuse and catchy guitar melodies to a frog being butchered for a vocalist. There are enough ideas present to suggest these guys could deliver a serious contender of a black metal album in the near future, and it wouldn't at all surprise me if they end up on a Moribund-esque label. |
| Trillion Red - Two Tongues http://www.myspace.com/trillionred Mixing a wide variety of extreme metal sub-genres, Trillion Red's debut touches on just about every emotional facet known to Man. Fuzzy, sludgy guitars slowly work their way into constructing both aggressive and relaxing songs, while a voice suited for a psychedelic rock band out of the '70s carries on before ripping at your guts with beastly grunts and raising the hair on the back of your neck with ghastly whispers. The strong "outer space" vibe really adds to the eerie nature of the band's intrinsic ambiguity, making Two Tongues a must-listen for fans of weird music, or anything weird in general. There isn't anything done by the books on this release, which at first might dissuade some listeners, but the difficulty in the band's approach is well worth the effort to get into. |  |
 | Assyrian - Self-Portrait http://www.myspace.com/postassyrian Mexico isn't known for its death doom scene, but Assyrian are doing everything they can with this EP to change that. The songwriting is something almost otherworldly, dancing back and forth between "more death than doom" and "more doom than death", which is almost completely led by the chaotic drum work and not the guitars... Sometimes. The oppressive (and simultaneously relaxing) atmosphere fits the music perfectly, with a mix of growls and ethereal clean vocals to add to the almost shoegaze vibe. For such a "vice-versa" album, Self-Portrait is surprisingly fastened with consistency and direction, staying the course of a true death doom metal opus, but the band members know enough not to limit themselves in terms of letting outside influences make their mark. |
| After Oblivion - Vultures http://www.myspace.com/afteroblivion Vultures is an extremely technical death and/or thrash metal three-track demo, featuring all the catchy guitar leads and insane drum patterns you could ask for in less than 15 minutes. The problem with the mesmerizing musicianship isn't the flow or the structure; on the contrary, these guys obviously know how to write a song, but this entire experience is unfortunately overshadowed by the vocalist. He's got an interesting scream that would probably find a more suitable home on a metalcore release, but with the brand of music After Oblivion play, these vocals seem incredibly unfitting. It's tough to imagine this band doing any damage without a more appropriate vocalist, but the musicianship alone will probably land them somewhere significant in the near future. |  |
 | Endolith - Demo 11 http://www.myspace.com/projectendolith Endolith's demo is essentially the combination of Fear Factory's Digimortal and Dimmu Borgir's Godless Savage Garden EP. Primarily an industrial metal release, the archetypal black metal shrieks and rapid death metal-esque drumming add a layer of depth to an otherwise purely Meshuggah-style groove-oriented sound, meaning - especially for a demo - all four songs are maturely written and well-executed. The high-quality production ensures you don't miss a single nuance, and you're free to let that head do what heads normally do when their ears are exposed to such an infectious level of groove. At times the songs come across as extremely technical, but the atmospheric moments help balance the equation, which makes this demo about as complete as you can expect a demo to sound. |
| Vintundra - Urnacht http://www.myspace.com/vintundra A brutally melodic death metal demo like Urnacht is something incredibly desirable for underground record labels: the potential is obvious, the influences are as noticeable as their personal touch, and - perhaps most importantly - they know how to write a story within their songs. Lyrics are in Swedish and German, so I don't have a chance in hell at telling you what they're singing about (Metal-Archives asserts me it's one of those Norse mythology things), but the music itself is where the story lies; melodies that build on a dark, violent foundation and lead up to absolutely filthy solos before transitioning effortlessly into Middle Eastern acoustic mitigation. Only 4 songs are featured on this demo, but there is enough variation to last for repeated listens without the unfortunate after taste of boredom that normally accommodates such a release. Make room Europe, Vintundra are ready for their shot at glory. |  |
 | Written on 03.06.2011 by I'm total pro; that's what I'm here for. |
Comments
Comments: 18
Visited by: 128 users
| Doc G. Full Grown Hoser Staff Posts: 9718  |
I really liked Trillion Red. Definitely my pick for this issue.
---- "I got a lot of really good ideas, problem is, most of them suck." - George Carlin
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Staff Posts: 21306  |
Written by Doc G. on 03.06.2011 at 12:05 Glad you checked them out, they really deserve recognition for their style. Excellent stuff.
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| K✞ulu Seeker of Truth Posts: 2573  |
I have listened to After Oblivion - Vultures, and actually my problem is not with the vocals at all but with the music. The vocals remind me of Chuck Schuldiner and are actually quite enjoyable. The music, on the other, while showing some technique is essentially forgettable. In the end of the day it's nothing new really.
---- Savor what you feel and what you see Things that may not seem important now But may be tomorrow R.I.P. Chuck Schuldiner Satan was a Backstreet Boy
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| Aetherius Posts: 219  |
Just checked out the Endolith - Demo 11, considering I love Fear Factory AND Black metal, I had to, and so far I love it  Cant wait to check out the other stuff later and cast a vote 
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Staff Posts: 21306 |
Written by [user id=35732] on 03.06.2011 at 18:47 Just the page for now, next issue will feature some other peoples' opinions. 
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Staff Posts: 21306 |
I went with Assyrian over Trillion Red, but it was a really tight race. At the end of the day Assyrian just has a little more of what I look for in metal, but TR will definitely raise eyebrows.
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| X-Ray Rod Skandino Staff Posts: 18374  |
Trillion Red all the way from me, Assyrian was good but Trillion Red seems to be doing more interesting stuf and it's just way more eerie... Really interesting bad. Nice surprise.
---- Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29 Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
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| projectendolith Posts: 1 |
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Staff Posts: 21306 |
Written by projectendolith on 04.06.2011 at 11:58 Keep up the good work. 
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| Bad English Tage Westerlund Posts: 62000  |
No doubt Assyrian stands out from others and I likes it only it and vote for it
---- I stand whit Ukraine and Israel. They have right to defend own citizens. Stormtroopers of Death - "Speak English or Die"  I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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| Sombre Posts: 23  |
Written by Bad English on 05.06.2011 at 20:46 ThankS you but is this issue dead? other issues had a lot of feedback
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| Doc G. Full Grown Hoser Staff Posts: 9718 |
Written by Sombre on 08.06.2011 at 22:08 Nope, you'll notice previous issues get feedback two weeks or so after the publication date, and they attain more votes from being mentioned in future issues.
---- "I got a lot of really good ideas, problem is, most of them suck." - George Carlin
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| NocturnalStalker Metal Addict Posts: 889  |
Thanks, Troy! This issue seems to be one of the strongest ones so far. I almost had my head cracking and ears bleeding over this. After all, for me it also came down to choosing between Assyrian and Trillion Red and I picked the latter.
---- "And we are not who we think we are We are who we're afraid to be" - Lux Occulta "The Opening of Eleventh Sephirah"
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Staff Posts: 21306 |
Written by NocturnalStalker on 13.06.2011 at 11:54 Thanks for reading and checking out the bands! It means a lot to them, really. (They send me emails about the feature and our users' comments.) It's a shame two great bands like that are in the same issue...I'm sure either one would win in another edition.
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| NocturnalStalker Metal Addict Posts: 889 |
Written by Troy Killjoy on 13.06.2011 at 14:17 Yeah, it really is a shame...
---- "And we are not who we think we are We are who we're afraid to be" - Lux Occulta "The Opening of Eleventh Sephirah"
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Staff Posts: 21306 |
Written by [user id=35732] on 13.06.2011 at 21:12 When I was first going through the write-ups that was my reaction...like, "wow, these bands are really good; I'm actually going to have to think about who really stands out the most". It was an excellent issue for me, with each of the band's offering something worthwhile. I wasn't upset with any of the submissions.
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| JD Account deleted |
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| Boxcar Willy yr a kook Posts: 9155  |
Assyrian wins imo.
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