Forming in the late noughties when the band were just teenagers – young enough to rival Def Leppard in the precociousness stakes – Voice of the Soul always had very grand musical ideas. Following three self-released EPs between 2009 and 2011, the Middle Eastern extreme metallers found themselves in a great position to expand on their previous works. Taking to the studio in early 2014, the band set about making their first full length release – and in melodic death metal terms, the dark and sprawling world conjured up on ‘Catacombs’ does not disappoint.
Tag Archives: stream
ANDREW DANSO – Fly EP
In 2011, Devin Townsend released his fourth “project” album, ‘Ghost’. A record heard by millions, it combined ambient-ish qualities with a mellow style that showed off a very relaxed side of the man who once gave us skull-crushing metal as frontman with Strapping Young Lad. Around the same time that those millions were getting (rightly) excited about Devin’s ‘Ghost’, somewhere in Northern Ireland, guitarist Andrew Danso had not long finished work on ‘f i n d’, a collection of largely instrumental soundscapes which appeared to share more than a few traits with Townsend’s record, but approached atmospheric music with an even spacier slant. The album, unsurprisingly, slipped under the radar of most of the people who really should’ve heard it, as is the plight of many an independent musician.
LA MUERTE – La Muerte EP
Three songs, seven minutes, seven inches of black plastic. That’s all that’s needed for you to work out that Colchester noisemakers La Muerte mean business. On this debut EP, the tough musical trio blend garage rock, punk with a touch of metal for extra punch and come out sounding like a cross between Misfits, Killing Joke and Limb – a combination of gritty noise that’s guaranteed to leave an impression…one way or another.
SCIENCE CLUB – Day Job
At the tail end of 2013, US punks Science Club released their ‘Aging Punks’ EP, a mid-budget, fairly ragged affair that captured a great energy. Just over a year on, their ‘Day Job’ full length brings more of the same. While the eleven songs are culled from recordings made over a four year period, the album hangs together well. Even with an obviously DIY recording style and ragged production, the musical talents within the band are still obvious – particularly those of bassist Nick, whose busy approach provides the real heart of most of the material.
THE SOFT SPOTS – Gently Down The Stream EP
On their debut EP, the self-released ‘Gently Down The Stream’, Philadelphia’s The Soft Spots blend various indie/alt-pop oriented sounds creating what sounds and feels like a very accomplished release in terms of production, especially for a band so inexperienced at the time of its release. They waste no time in making sure this surprisingly professional sound greets the ears of the prospective listener.