CD reviews - V

VACANT STARE (UK) "VINDICATION" CD 2002 COPRO.
VADER (POL) "LITANY" CD 2000 METAL BLADE. Fuck yeah! They're now signed to Metal Blade and they didn't pursue with their tekno bullshit on "Kingdom" MCD! Just the drums have a fishy tekno sound but that's still true VADER as we all usually know. I would say a lot more simple structured than before which is a little disappointing, at first some riffs were no more extremes than old CELTIC FROST or old OBITUARY...! On the opposite to it, they continue with their now legendary fast, intense blasting spirit called Doc and the result is just 11 tracks for half an hour which is short but if you're lucky to have installed the proper windows version on your PC, there's something like a bonus track/video-clip in this disc, mine can't afford to play it properly, I gotta check out a newer version! The last track "The Final Massacre" kills, obviously re-recorded as it featured on their "Necrolust" Demo 89 and "The Ultimate Incantation" first album 92 out on Earache recs. If you're proud to call yourself a true Death Metal warrior, you must BUY OR DIE FUCKIN' NOW! Everywhere is DEATH!!! VADER RULES! METAL BLADE: PO BOX 1332, 73054 EISLINGEN GERMANY. www.metalblade.com
VADER (POL) "Reign Forever World" CD 2001 METAL BLADE. Still true to their roots for more than a decade, who can say the same for other bands, when many changed style to sell more CDs and fit in a trend, there are some bands who won't give a fuck and continue exploring within their own style that they created for themselves! The incorporation of some more technical arrangements and weird obscures moods makes them sounding better and still getting those assassin accelerations here & there started by a guitar riff inducing total chaos & armageddon!! I found this album more interesting than "Litany" which was good but lacked of something concerning the sound, I think it was too clean, they now returned to a more savage & raw production and it doesn't mean that quality was put in the corner, no, that's how Death Metal must be produced in my eyes, it must sound dark & Evil!! There are also some familiar old-school covers revisited faster & more extremes than the originals of course and some cult Live cuts! This is a weird album and definitely a great one that I recommend to everyone into real Extreme Metal feelings, BUY OR DIE!
VADER (POL) "REVELATIONS" CD 2002
VALAR (FIN) "MAGIC & WYRMFIRE" CD 2001 FPG. A one-man band with drum machine & synths that does atmospheric/folk black metal… I'm definitely unlucky to find out good killer/aggressive Black Metal bands, most of those FPG releases were sent to me by Adipocere. VALAR is good if you need to fall asleep at track #3, in the Burzum vein… The sound is ok but with all those synths, I feel like listening to something commercial like Synthetiseurs vol.2 or Jean-Michel Jarre! If you dig this kind of soft music: DRAGONTHRONE Prods: c/o TOMI KALLIOLA, KASKENTIE 3 AS.1, 05840 HYVINKÂÂ SUOMI FINLAND.
VASTION (USA) "CLOSED EYES TO NOTHING" CD 2000 RETRIBUTE. Speed & melodic, strong Death Metal that reminds me our french CARCARIASS with emotions & aggression, also very much similar to ARGHOSLENT! Sometimes unrelenting apocalyptic & epic old-school Death/Thrash fuckin' Metal that I can compare to the old MASSACRA's own style & DECEASED's atmospheres enhance this 30mn disc here'n there superbly. Still the band has to prove themselves as they don't give full aggression to their music, not that it is badly played but certainly needs to spend more time in the studio and get the proper sound to accentuate their own mood. A better mixing could bring them at a higher aggressive level for sure, especially the drums! Well, it's damn fucking catchy, original & fresh, does not sound like anyone else and is fucking close to true underground Metal spirits from below! Some excellent reasons to BUY OR DIE! 80 FOSTER TRACE DR., LAWRENCEVILLE, GA. 30043 USA. vastiondth@aol.com www.geocities.com/vastiondth RETRIBUTE Recs: c/o CHRIS MEADOWS, PO BOX 76, NEW FERRY CH63 OQT ENGLAND.
VEHEMENCE (USA) "THE THOUGHTS FROM WHICH I HIDE" CD 2000 Self-prod. That's ok Death Metal, semi-brutal but do not attract me so much. It's maybe too much common now to hear this kind of band. Oh, yes the last track should be skipped because it sucks with its piano or synth intrusions, too bad! dethofme@hotmail.com
VENERAL DISEASE (GER) "VERDICTS" CD 99 Self-prod. Here comes an excellent fast and technical Death Metal band in the blasting & catchy thrashing traditions! Musicianship at the speed of light, unrelenting flow of deadly riffs, flattening everything on its path like if old SLAYER meets new CANNIBAL CORPSE & VADER, with the heaviness of old MALEVOLENT CREATION & Bolt Thrower, impressive & simply unreal! They're fucking tight and play 666% original and interesting, true Death Metal, by this I mean they got the real aggression & dark aspects performed with talent & feelings at quick pace, you see? The album is also lasting longer than the average (43mn) including 4 bonus tracks certainly taken from a previous Demo as the sound differs but the quality of the performance is the same. Well, to keep it short, this is a great Death Metal band and I command all true Death Metal fans to BUY OR DIE!! c/o INGO MAIER, BAHNHOFSTRASSE 32, 69514 LAUDENBACH GERMANY.
VERMINOUS (SWE) "IMPIOUS SACRILEGE" CD 2003 XTREEM. Dark intro as I will always like this kind, VERMINOUS starts with a fast Evil Death Metal assault that can sometimes remind you of SADISTIK EXEKUTION but remains more classic in the whole while also being fuckin' Extreme & aggressive all along with the typical Swedish sound's signature this way of KAAMOS or REPUGNANT, this also musically tend to be more of that kind of bands than the sadx dudes! So an impressive album to say the least, they blast & shred pretty well, I have nothing to complain about "Impious Sacrilege", the darkened atmosphere is also a plus and I like the raging vocals, sounds old-school and convincing like a spit in your face, may they spit blood, sperm & antichrist's vomit, this will always be a refreshing bloodshower to me, European Death Metal at it's be(a)st with uncontrollable leads madness and the cover artwork is a fine blaspheme, not for christians: BUY OR DIE!!!!!!! c/o ANDREAS JOHANSSON, AVÄGEN 14, 29638 AHUS SWEDEN. info@verminous.com www.verminous.com XTREEM Music: PO BOX 1195, 28080 MADRID SPAIN. info@xtreemmusic.com promo@xtreemmusic.com www.xtreemmusic.com
VILE (USA) "DEPOPULATE" CD 2002
VIOGRESSION (USA) "PASSAGE" CD 92 TOMBSTONE.
VIRAL LOAD (USA) "Practitioners of perversion" CD 2001 TXDM Underground
VIRULENCE (USA) "A CONFLICT SCENARIO" CD 2001 MORBID. These guys are twisted for sure, the prelude is like old Atheist, more melodic & more grind, then they mixed their Extreme Metal substance with some technical jazz experiences and uncommon melodies, undoubtedly original like CEPHALIC CARNAGE, WICKED INNOCENCE, HUMAN REMAINS or BRUTAL TRUTH & DICHOTIC but that's not something that attracts me maybe due to the vocals in the way Blockheads spew, the boring hardcore spewings is definitely not for me but the music is worth listening, it's very original & goes in all directions possible! If you're looking for something truly different & standing apart from other established styles, in other words: anti-trend twisted music, then look out for VIRULENCE's new effort but I recommend everyone to take a listen to their "Dormant Strains" previous MCD, it had more Death Metal influences & sounded awesome! Fans of aforementioned bands should rejoice with "A Conflict Scenario" anyway but don't let you disgusted by the cover art: a yellow flower with bees...! For open-minded grinders only: BUY OR DIE! c/o NICK PEYER, 1193 COMM AVE. APT. #11, ALLSTON, MA. 02134 USA. nman@aol.com
VITAL REMAINS (USA) "DECHRISTIANIZE" CD 2003 CENTURY MEDIA. Glen Benton's vocals are way too linear and medium to fit in with the VITAL REMAINS music in my opinion which is damn speed and more varied than the DEICIDE materials. This is not a winner, I appreciate the music but the vocals ruined it totally! In fact I love the speedy way the music is going on this album, it's really reaching an Extreme level sometimes like HATE ETERNAL and also the fact that they also incorporate Heavy Metal arrangements & solos, just buy it for the music, not for the shitty vocalist...!
VOMITOR (AUSTRALIA) "BLEEDING THE PRIEST" CD 2003 METAL BLOOD
VOMITORY (SWE) "REVELATION NAUSEA" CD 2000 METAL BLADE. A new album and continuing from where their second "Redemption" evolved: faster, more extreme! This one is destructive and dark, as always 100% Death Fucking Metal!! Punishing and thrashing your brain with their hyper-blasts, they leave absolutely no sweet nor calm moments like old Napalm Death or Krisiun! One of the most intense & strong heavy brutal Death Metal albums I have heard lately, the energy is unrelenting and it's great to see that the big labels now take care of the real underground Death Metal bands! That's how Adramelech & Bolt Thrower could sound if they were going faster & more extreme at the speed of light! Every band should follow that same mutation of chaos, it's supreme! BUY OR DIE!
VOMITORY (SWE) "BLOOD RAPTURE" CD 2002. A new one and still in that old vein, maybe more like MALEVOLENT CREATION than in the past now, very heavy stuff & slaughtering while also keeping the Swedish old-school trademarks & traditions: melodic & blasting! A song like "Chaos Fury" has a very Slayerian ANGELCORPSE/KRISIUN structure with breaks and catchy riffs whilst others have more of old NAPALM DEATH, BOLT THROWER similarities and I won't complain about this fact except that they're sometimes repetitive & predictable with easy & memorable riffs used & tried many times by many other bands to the point of that the whole album sounds like a tribute to all those mentioned bands… I have found some boring riffs inside and also some good arrangements here & there but I won't say that it is a necessary album to buy at all costs, I sometimes surprised myself at waiting for the end of the CD… for fans only!
VORACIOUS GANGRENE (FRA) "MURDERING WITH NO VALID REASON" CD Live April 30th 2000. I don't know if the band sells this but the sound is good! Cool intro and raw Live sound gives the band an exact view about the energy delivered on stage, it's heavy and grinding, blasting, technical with an awesome guttural voice and some occasional screams here and there. I like the heaviness of this recording, seems to have been recorded in Hell! They were tight and this performance was ok regarding this point, of course they certainly know better than me where the mistakes belong during the gig, but this is my opinion here: they're damn good! Imagine the old AVULSED more twisted and extreme, faster, more technical, more... brutal!! All in all, this is in the American style of crushing Brutal Death/Grind but VORACIOUS GANGRENE doesn't sound like a particular band in my ears, they're really original & bestial in their own twisted style of brutality, if you liked "Hooked To Death" their previous self-produced MCD studio recording, you'll find here much more tracks and get a better opinion, definitely worth a listening, shall we await for an album now?! BUY OR DIE!!
VORKREIST (FRA) "SABBATHICAL FLESH POSSESSION" CD 2003 XTREEM
VULTYR (?) "MONUMENT OF MISANTHROPY" CD 2001 FPG. Why can't I get good Black Metal for review? Am I onto some black lists or what?? This band sucks, it's no more extreme than some punk/rock in my ears and the melodies are too repetitives, this is a perfect boring album! Don't buy this shit.