Review: The Postman Syndrome - Terraforming

artist: the postman syndrome album: terraforming label: now or never records released: 9/24/02 by: eduardo moutinho Our site, blood.sweat.tears, is about two months away from celebrating its one-year anniversary. Time sure does fly by. When we started this site, it was pretty simple, a couple of reviews here and there, a lackluster seafoam green interface, and a good five hits per day if we were lucky. While we haven’t reached Lambgoat or Buddyhead-like numbers, we’re getting more and more popular as each day passes. With this newfound popularity, a few perks have come our way as well. Receiving new CDs from upstart (and even established) labels is one of them. And in some cases, we’re blessed with an amazing work, like Terraforming. The Postman Syndrome is a new kid on the block from the thriving hardcore mecca known as New Jersey. This band approaches the game with their own unique formula, looking to incorporate their excellent musicianship and creativity to form their own unique beast of a sound. You’ll get a little bit of everything from this band. Similar to bands like Candiria, they incorporate all kinds of jazzy riffs and beats to fuse with hardcore. Plus, they take this a step further, by adding snippets of well-done acoustic guitar, flute, and horn interludes to their music. This is definitely a visionary band worth taking some time to explore. The band’s freshman outing, Terraforming, is the kind of album that you listen through from the beginning to the end. Taking a cue from The Blood Brothers, the album tells a story, through its lyrics and its music. The Postman Syndrome meticulously crafted this work, and they want your emotions to be struck on all levels as you listen to it. The lyrics themselves are wondrous, as they manage to relay the story on an intimate and eloquent level, while straying away from the norm of free verse. These words rhyme, yet they don’t rhyme like the words of a Good Charlotte song. They actually sound properly placed; there is not a sign of triteness to be found. The album itself is described by the band as “a story in eight parts.” Each part has a header name, such as “Amputees Make Bad Swimmers” or “Schizorabbit and the Face Parade.” Within each part, there are chapters. The actual tracks on the CD make up these chapters. It’s interesting, and a much needed breath of fresh air. I’m not going to go into heavy detail over each song, since I think the album itself is worth listening to from start to finish, yet I will give you a taste of what to expect. Like I mentioned above, each song is a roller-coaster ride of different sounds, tempos, instruments, etc. One song might have a heavy, Coalesce-sounding, introduction, with piercing vocals that suddenly leads into a mellow, atmospheric, verse with subtle singing vocals. As strange as it sounds, the parts fit together well and flow smoothly. You’re never left going “What the…” as you’re listening. Believe me, you will constantly be surprised. As I was listening to Terraforming, I couldn’t keep from being mesmerized by the beauty of the record. There were so many segments that grasped me, and didn’t let go. I found myself closing my eyes and moving my head gently in rhythm to the music on frequent occasions. These kinds of experiences make me love music the way I do. This whole piece managed to act as an escape for me. While I watch MTV, or browse through my 12-year-old sister’s CD collection, I get disillusioned by where music is heading. But when I have the opportunity to listen to a CD like this, I get back some hope and realize that there is still great music out there coming from relatively new bands, such as The Postman Syndrome. favorite song: Interpretive Decorating – Chapter X rating: 93%/100% listen to the postman syndrome

Review: Isis - Oceanic

artist: isis album: oceanic label: ipecac recordings released: 9/17/02 by: dan phelps This is the follow up to the highly acclaimed Celestial, and this is their best record to date. 9 tracks of incredibly expansive metal and hardcore. Each song has its parts that are crushing and heavy, and each song has its parts that are much more ambient and mellow. The songs are constructed very well, each 7 minute track flows, and combined with the artwork and layout, and noise it is all incredibly thematic. The recording is excellent, and each instrument is distinct, while still being loud. Giving her guest vocals to this record is Ayl Noir of the band 27. All of it is just excellent. Music that deserves to be heard and appreciated. Isis rocks. favorite song: n/a rating: n/a

Review: Sin Desires Marie - Self-Titled

artist: sin desires marie album: self-titled label: released: by: ryan nee This record is incredibly honest. That’s probably not something you usually hear a reviewer say, but I assure you that it’s the biggest compliment I could ever give to a collection of songs. I feel like I really understood the three female members of the local band Sin Desires Marie after listening. The record starts out with the most dreary song on the album, which discusses what I assume is a personal experience of one of the members of the band being raped. The lyrics are cold and to the point without getting too overbearing on the listener: "Hush now / don’t move, don’t speak now / hush / hush now." They go on to say, "This is the sound of breaking / breaking in." The song is angry, but accepting of past events, and is an overall excellent introduction to the honesty of Sin Desires Marie. The album progresses onward from the first song into more comfortable intellectual ground, and progresses in the music aspect also. The music is something along the lines of a slowed down version of Q and not U, but has its own edge and exclusively female vocals. The music is beautifully written – It is calm and soothing in the sense that it has very little distorted guitar and is almost entirely single notes, as if they took bass lines and converted them into guitar parts. Despite it’s calm attitude, this is very direct and to the point. The third song on the record probably has the best instrumentation with what sounds like a slightly jazz/dance/funk influenced sound that really works out well and culminates in the end with a multi-layered vocal climax completed by consistency of the clanging bell of the ride cymbal. My absolute favorite moment of this record is probably what some people would view as the weakest area of the album, but I think it’s pretty incredible. In the seventh song something really amazing happens, where the two singers are singing over each other and you hear one of their voices start to shake and get out of key when she says, "This is the last time I wanted to talk to you anymore." As a singer, I find that it’s pretty tense to hear someone’s voice start to shake in a recording. Immediately, out of nowhere, the same singer comes in and booms out with unbelievable confidence, "I am done! / I am done / I am done." This is probably one of my favorite moments of a record that I’ve ever heard. It is human. It’s honest. It’s sincere. It’s beautiful. This album is definitely one of the best local records I’ve ever heard, and something that people will not regret having as a part of their collection. rating: 92%/100%

Spotlight: The Hope Conspiracy

bst spotlight band. The Hope Conspiracy is five piece hardcore outfit that took the hardcore world by storm when it formed in late 1999. They released a 7” in early 2000 and have taken off since then. Their first full length, Code Blue, was released on Equal Vision Records in October of 2000. The band states that they were “still finding their style” at the time of this recording. About a year later, they released a six song EP called File 03, and began to define their style. Which leads us to today… their second full length, Endnote, is one of the most anticipated releases of the year. Code Blue was a new direction for hardcore, with amazing guitar work, crisp vocals. After hearing the EP, and if anyone has ever seen this band live, you would understand why in less than two years, The Hope Conspiracy has become one of hardcore’s biggest names. They fill the stage with energy that doesn’t stop from start to finish and they entertain the crowd better than half the bands that exist today. For those that haven’t heard this band, you are missing out on a new perspective on hardcore. Check out the band's website and Equal Vision Records for more information and some mp3’s. the hope conspiracy official website

Review: Dillinger Escape Plan - Irony is a Dead Scene

artist: the dillinger escape plan album: irony is a dead scene label: epitaph records released: 8/27/02 by: eduardo moutinho Okay, when I heard about this combination of Dillinger Escape Plan (DEP) and Mike Patton (Faith No More, Mr. Bungle, and Fantomas), I was incredibly intrigued. I think DEP is one of the only grindcore-oriented bands that I actually can find some liking to. They're a crazy band indeed, as many of you know. DEP is notorious for their shows filled with fire and chaos. In fact, many believe they're the best ticket anyone can find. Musically, they are just as crazy, with sporadic musicality, insane tempos and time signatures, and pure spontaneity in song structure. Patton has been in his own little world with Mr. Bungle and Fantomas over the past few years. Mr. Bungle, in particular, is as unique as DEP, with its mellower music and various inspirations. Their albums have generated a loyal, cult-like, following, along with critical acclaim. Fantomas is probably the closest thing to DEP that Patton has associated himself with, and that is a loose statement to make. While Fatntomas has little inklings of grindcore, it's more comparable to Melt-Banana than Dillinger Escape Plan. This is why Patton's involvement on this record intrigues me. I guess this is the pattern that Patton is choosing to go by, one that is similar to DEP's music in its spontaneity. Nevertheless, the hype has been generated, the EP is here, and it is indeed quite an interesting piece of work... The record consists of four songs. All of them quite insane. I'll be blatantly honest here, Patton's vocals do not work with DEP's music. This isn't a case of "two completely unique elements combining to create something masterful" at all. On the first track, "Hollywood Squares," Patton chooses to wail over the incredibly fast past of the song, which unfortunately makes for a strange combination that doesn't hit the ear right. On the next track, he opts to sing in small and quick little bursts for a good portion of the song, sounding almost like he's speaking in tongues. The style of singing he displays reminds me of Jonathan Davis singing "Twist" from Korn's Life is Peachy album. I don't think many people here like Korn, so I'm not sure how many will perceive what Patton is trying to do. The third song on the EP, "When Good Dogs Do Bad Things," should be noted for its percussion and overall instrumentation. This is pure DEP here. In fact, the whole record demonstrates DEP's method to their mayhem. The band consists of good musicians, that know what they're doing. Those who like the DEP sound will be able to easily recognize that this is indeed the band they have grown to love. The guitars are there, the drums are there, the time signatures too. But again, this EP just sounds strange because of what the band is trying to do with Patton. Again, I believe it's commendable. They're trying to experiment with something different, but it doesn't work. Nevertheless, I'd like to praise the band for their attempt to cover the classic electronica song "Come to Daddy" by Aphex Twin as the last song on the EP. It's a really great song that is definitely worthy of a cover. All in all, I did not enjoy this EP. I assume that many people will like, and many will love, what DEP has done with Patton and vice versa. I think that DEP is a better band with their own vocalist doing all the work, and I think Patton is a better vocalist doing his own thing. This is a fascinating work though, that people should listen to. It can be best described as an interesting idea that just didn't work, like Pepsi Blue or Nintendo's Virtual Boy. favorite song: "come to daddy" rating: 70%/100% listen to the dillinger escape plan

Review: Grade - Headfirst Straight to Hell

artist: grade album: headfirst straight into hell label: victory records released: 8/2001 by: eduardo moutinho This album has been out for a while, I am very aware about that. I am also aware that Grade is pretty much done, at least for the time being. Nevertheless, this album is worth reviewing, and for those who have never heard it or are interested in reading about it, this will be of some value. Headfirst Straight into Hell is Canada’s own Grade’s latest and possibly last release. The band is best known for their popular releases Separate the Magnets, The Embarassing Beginning, and Under the Radar. Grade’s sound is hard to describe, and definitely unique. They manage to blend together elements of emo, punk, and hardcore into an amalgam they call their own. The vocals are even more difficult to explain, since they sound like a mix of singing and screaming. Their sound is thoroughly respected in many circles, and a countless number of bands have tried to emulate it or incorporate many of its elements into their music. First off, the production value of the album is quite low. For some reason, this album does not sound as crisp and vibrant as it should. Under the Radar sounds much better. That is quite strange, since it was recorded beforehand and the band probably had a smaller budget to work with at that time. It seems that the treble is too high, which makes the guitars sound tinnier than they should, and takes away some of the body from the music. These problems cannot really be remedied by a good equalizer either. It’s not something that makes the album difficult to listen to. It sounds fine, but for a band with Grade’s connections, a more sharply produced album is expected. Anyway, onto the actual music, while Under the Radar showed Grade’s pop-oriented side, Headfirst Straight into Hell is definitely a step towards the harder and grittier sonic end. This can be attributed to the fact that the band went through some member changes before the album was actually recorded. In actuality, I think the harder sound is a welcome change. It’s more aggressive, and the songs seem to have more bite to them. There is heavier emphasis on the guitar work for this record. There are more catchy lead parts being played, and the layering is quite good. The vocals are excellent. Kyle Bishop’s singing really helps round out the band’s sound. As I mentioned earlier, his voice is sort of a scream/sing hybrid. It can almost be described as an excessively raspy singing voice, yet I think that gives a bad impression. It works really well, and manages to flow incredibly with the actual screaming. The transitions between singing and screaming are flawless. The vocals blend with the music, even more so on this album because of the aggressive style. Highlights on this album include the excellent opening piece “Termites Hollow,” fast paced “Becoming Not Being,” catchy “Overthrowing Creation Itself,” and the hypnotic “Twenty Moons.” There’s a lot of variety in the album. “Termites Hollow” and “Becoming Not Being” are fast and aggressive pieces showing the direction the band was heading in at the time of the recording, yet songs like “Overthrowing Creating Itself,” “In the Wake of Poseidon," and “Will Bending” sound like the Grade of Under the Radar and Triumph & Tragedy. Then, songs like “Twenty Moons” are slow and more epic-sounding. It’s a very interesting mix, and I enjoy it quite a bit. In the end, I think this is a solid album. If this is indeed the swan song for Grade, that would be an absolute shame. I think the band is incredibly talented, and they have become an institution in our scene. No matter what, they definitely have left with a bang. favorite song: "termites hollow" rating: 90%/100% listen to grade

Review: Unearth - The Stings of Conscience

artist: unearth album: the stings of conscience label: eulogy recordings released: 1/16/01 by: eduardo moutinho Let me be blunt here, I don’t like metal. I don’t like cheesy solos. I don’t like whammy bars, and I sure as hell don’t like Yngwie Malmsteen. I’m not into new school metal either. You won’t find me at a Meshuggah or Children of Bodom show. It’s pretty cut and dry with me. Kind of… When I first heard of Unearth, and what they’re all about, I was really turned off. I heard about their amazing guitarists and ridiculous talent, and thought that I would absolutely hate them. I held this mentality until I went to a show last December, the self-dubbed “Cancelfest 2002.” At this show, Unearth became the headliner by default because A Static Lullaby, Hope Conspiracy, and From Autumn to Ashes didn’t make the show due to the weather. I was left there, angry and irritated. I didn’t want to sit through a show like that in my wildest imaginations. Amazingly, after watching the mass of hair, sweat, and technical prowess known as Unearth, I was converted into a fan. Unearth manages to do the impossible. They bridge the gap between those who love metal, and those who love hardcore. They take a little bit from hardcore, like the non-guttural screaming vocals and devastating breakdowns, and combine it with a few hints of metal, like blistering leads and power ballad verses. It’s a relatively simple concept that is difficult to explain. In layman’s terms, they take the good stuff from hardcore and metal and put it together into something nice. While this music takes incredible musicianship to play, there are no odd times or experiments going on here. This music is pretty straightforward. It’s the kind of music you want to listen to while beating on something. This is as “Headbanger’s Ball” as hardcore gets. In actuality, this is the definition of metalcore. Anyway, this review goes over Unearth’s latest full-length, The Stings of Conscience. This is a relatively old release, yet I think it’s an important album to review. Each song on the album can be described as a jumble of heavy segments, lead segments, interludes, and breakdowns. While this is somewhat general, you won’t be seeing spontaneous moments of brilliance by the band here. A pattern is being followed, and it works, for what the band is trying to accomplish. Songs like “Only the People,” “One Step Away,” and "Fuel the Fire” start out violently and stay the course. The hard intros lead into complicated string bridges, where a scale is being dexterously executed by one of the band’s guitar players. It’s ridiculous. On many occasions I found myself with my mouth wide open, imagining how difficult it is to play some of these parts. Other impressive guitar feats, such as finger tapping, are evident as well. The two guitarists in this band are incredibly talented. The title track of the album serves as a résumé for these two individuals. A good 75% of the song is all lead. It’s pure insanity. What’s even more impressive is that the songs are faithfully reproduced on stage, and in some cases, one of the players has his guitar behind his head. Unbelievable. You might be wondering, “I remember you saying that you hate lead parts, what gives?” Good question. I believe my previous statement of Unearth’s music being a good mix of hardcore and metal answers this question. While these crazy lead parts are going on, the vocals and drumming are keeping it from sounding like Exodus. The vocals are well done and the drumming is quite proficient. Unearth sounds hardcore, to be quite honest. They manage to do it. Plus, the lead parts are balanced out by nasty breakdowns. This band delivers some of the hardest breakdowns I have ever heard. I mean, this is the kind of hard that can render someone into a Cro-Magnon man. I’ve seen it happen before. In addition to all the heaviness, some songs actually have hints of power ballad-like interludes. Songs like “My Desire” and “Monition,” while very heavy in their own right, have instances of slow and tinny interludes, which would make Whitesnake proud. There is no singing, at all. But these interludes are there, and almost out of place. Sometimes, in the case of “Monition,” they act as transitions to blistering heaviness. There’s not much more I can say about this album, outside of it being a good escape from reality, if you’re angry or in the mood to get your heart racing a little bit. It won’t challenge your brain, unless you play guitar and wish you were as good as the individuals in this band. favorite song: "stings of conscience" rating: 83%/100% listen to unearth

Review: Dead Poetic - Four Wall Blackmail

artist: dead poetic album: four wall blackmail label: solid state records released: 6/4/02 by: rob tatum I first heard Dead Poetic at their show with Zao in July. I was pretty impressed by the performance. (See my show review) When I got home I did some research and found out some more information. The band is on Solid State Records (one of the biggest Christian labels). This sometimes can put a damper on how much I like a band, but not Dead Poetic. I downloaded an mp3 that night and read the lyrics, surprisingly not preachy. They are Christian, but you probably wouldn’t know from the music. Anyway, this spawned me to go pick up their new album, Four Wall Blackmail. The album opens with the song "Burgundy," a catchy, emotional sing along. Lyrics include, “When you cried, when died, when you told me you’d open my eyes, I believed you.” The music is melodic and simple (as much of the album is). It’s pretty heavy, but it doesn’t sound as heavy because of the vocals, which are very melodic with background screams. This is one of the best songs on the album; my only complaint is that it is so simple. The chorus repeats over and over and the music fails to progress. Second is "The Corporate Enthusiast." A less melodic anthem that describes the problems with the music industry. The message behind the song is justified, but the music is awful. Almost redundant punk at times. The intro vocals are awful as well, like bad screamo. Lead singer Brandon Rike must have forgotten what he was good at because half this song is just obnoxious. The only good part of the song besides the motive of the lyrics is the bridge with some decent guitar stringwork. The third song starts off with some of the problems from the previous. Too much of the screams and not enough melody. But it improves. A Green Desire is one of the best sounding songs on the album, but the lyrics seem to be about God, or coincidentally a girl that would guide you to the answers. Haha. The music is simple, but fits the vocals well in the melodic parts of the song. The screaming has got to go by this point in the album. It just doesn’t work with the music. Next is the title track, "Four Wall Blackmail." This is the longest song on the album. It begins with some string work on the guitar. This song has the best intro of any song on the album. The screaming doesn’t stop, but seems to fit a little better in this song. This is one of my favorite songs from this album, even though the song does involve many references to God. The song is very well arranged and it is very melodic. The music isn’t that complex and the lyrics aren’t to my preference, but this is one song that demonstrates Dead Poetic’s ability to make good sounding music. It’s catchy and pleasing to the ear. Fifth is "August Winterman." The track is another well arranged piece. Nothing amazing musically, but that’s about how the whole album is. Lyrics include “Perfect, as if my wings worked like yours…but I’m falling down…..it’s a disease they’ll never have a cure for.” It’s hard to tell what the lyrics are about in this song, but this is my favorite song vocally (*I’m big on good sounding vocals*). The background screams actually mesh with the music and singer Brandon Rike sticks to what he is good at for most the song. "Ottie Olsen" is the name of the sixth track. It has the worst intro of any of the songs on this album, and the verse isn’t much better. They should have saved the chorus for another song and thrown the rest of it out the window. The vocals in everything but the chorus are terrible. The music isn’t much better. It is plain, fast, and downright annoying. Listening to this song is frustrating because the chorus is really good. The seventh song, "Bliss Tearing Eyes," is an all acoustic track. Very emo in everything about it. Some of the lyrics are “Cause you bleed all the time. The pieces of a broken heart are wasted time. And I can’t forgive myself for all the things I’ve done. But you, you do.” I’ll let you decided what that is about. It’s a toss up, but being from a Solid State band, I am going to go with the song being about God. It’s a nice change of pace and I really like Brandon’s voice. Next up is "Stereochild," which, from the lyrics, is ironically about the problems I speak of with Christian bands and their preaching. Or at least from my perspective. Dead Poetic’s lyrics are hard to interpret but you would have to listen to this album to understand what I am talking about. This is another catchy song, but the background screams are a little overused. "Arlington Arms" starts with terrible, boring driving guitar and those horrible screams. The verse and chorus of the song are a little easier to swallow as it gets a tad more melodic. Another lyrical change as this one is about Suburbia and the American dream. The lyrics are a nice change of pace, but the intro ruins the song. The final track, "Tell Myself Goodbye," is another lyrical enigma in terms of motivation. There is really good drum work toward the beginning of the song, about the only thing I noticed about the drums throughout the record, as it isn’t just builds or blast beats. Nothing special about this song. Typical melodic song with screaming backing vocals. This band has a ton of potential. The oldest member of the band is only 23, and the rest are like 19. If they figure out what is going for them and get rid of the boring redundancy of the screams, they will go far. They are really good at writing catchy songs, but some of the parts don’t fit. I recommend this to anyone who likes emo-core, but they don’t use the screams properly. I am anxious to see where this band progresses. Not a bad album by any means. favorite song: "august winterman" rating: 77%/100% listen to dead poetic

Review: Keepsake - Black Dress in a B Movie

artist: keepsake album: black dress in a b movie label: fearless records released: 6/11/02 by: rob tatum I am not really sure how many of you have actually heard the band Keepsake, but let me tell that it is pretty hard to track down their material. I finally found their new CD. For those of you who haven’t heard Keepsake, the band was emo-core, and they played very catchy songs about girls for the most part. Most of their older material included very poppy vocals mixed with occasional hardcore screams and crazy guitar work. Well, throw half of that out the door. The latest release, Black Dress in a B Movie is about 100% emo. No more cool backing vocals, no more crazy guitar work. This CD really disappointed me. It’s 10 songs with a really cheesy drum solo at the end of the last song. The drumming isn’t terrible, but who puts a drum solo on their album?? The whole album is mellower than any of their previous releases. The aforementioned hardcore screaming really added to the prowessof the band. None of the tracks are really bad, but there is nothing left to surprise you or anything. I don’t have a favorite song because nothing stands out to me. To be honest I thought it was really boring. The lyric writing of Shane Halpern is still really cool, and it has progressed from the basic love song, to deep, thought out feelings. However, it’s not enough to entertain me in the slightest. If any of you have heard their full length right before this, The End of Sound, you would understand my perspective. Musically the band is really talented, but the guitars aren’t used to their potential at all. The bass and drums play a much bigger part in this albumthan in the past, but it needs more guitar work. Not the worst album I have bought lately, but by far the worst release thus far for Keepsake. rating: 73%/100% listen to keepsake

Review: Qualm - Long Story Short

artist: qualm album: long story short label: not bad records by: rob tatum Well, for those of you that have been around long enough to remember Qualm of say 1997 or so, then you know what Qualm was about…… Now enter 2002 with an open mind…… This new album is a new direction for Qualm. Even as a long time fan, Long Story Short blew me away. I think that this album is Qualm’s way of saying to everyone that they are serious about making music and that they are here to stay. The album consists of ten songs, plus one secret joke track. The secret track might be their way of reminding people that while they are serious about their music, that it’s okay to have some fun now and then. My favorite song on the album is the third track “Bring Down.” The song is about the corruption of parts of the music scene. It focuses on the people only involved for money. The message is far more serious than the days of songs about Hanson and what not. Not only do the lyrics demonstrate a new direction, the music has progressed as well since the last EP. You can expect more dimensions to the music from the Qualm of the past. I also really liked the cover song. The ninth track is a cover of Lifetime’s “Young, Loud, and Scotty.” The song was probably my favorite song by Lifetime, and for someone to bring it back and introduce it to more people is great. Anyone who has “heard” Qualm, needs to hear this record. It is not the best album I have ever listened to by any means, but it provides new potential in our scene and shows that there are quality bands making quality records. rating: 83%/100%