mayhem

...but then what does it mean that "something is wrong" if one "feels good" listening to this album!? For me, certain noise albums are pure enjoyment; should I doubt my mental health...?

Hello everyone, I’d like to say a few words and I apologize for the length of the post. The same guitarist from Black Sabbath used to express how "scared" he was to compare the provocative puppet monsters "of his time" with what bands like Deicide do. This recent "habit" of taking oneself damn seriously, all in all, isn’t so bad musically (only musically): unfortunately, there are tragic episodes (as rightly mentioned in the previous post) and highly debatable statements that make us hesitate a thousand times before playing, say, a Burzum album. I have always believed that the far-right politicization of musical content stems from an unhealthy trend, from a furious desire to go against the grain of the overused "peace & love," or worse, from producers' demands, who would "impose" this attitude in the hope that the album sells better. More philosophically, "metal nihilism" often (perhaps unintentionally, perhaps not) runs parallel to apologies for questionable eras: the fact is (and I say this with much sadness) that anyone who uses the word "death" in their lyrics is automatically branded as a defender of Hitler and the Aryan race. What I would like to make you reflect on is that if you read the lyrics of "Pure Holocaust," there is no trace of explicit Nazi propaganda. Those who write what they write should think twice (also because they weren’t the ones burning churches; that was Emperor), and should bring some excerpts from the lyrics (which they surely HAVE NOT read) to support their claims. Otherwise, they are just another cheap provocateur, fully immersed in the banal "debaser-style." For years, I’ve been "defending" myself from "accusations" (strictly hearsay!) of sympathizing with music that favors Thor, holocaust, death, violence, when not fascism (and this just because the "others" CLAIM to be "left-wing"). As if it were all about that (are we really joking?!)

Perhaps one of the most overlooked albums by fans (unjustly), anyway, one of the most misunderstood works of Master Chuck... the reception is a bit sparse.

David, I assure you that I fully admit there are people who think differently than I do; that’s not the point. What I mean is that Morbid Angel, simply unreachable with their first three albums, have progressively declined, and this is the most "scandalous" result. So I say: it’s better to listen to many other less famous bands - there are far too many - to realize how much "good" innovation and experimentation can be found elsewhere. I’m just trying to draw attention to the fact that the underground often holds pleasant surprises, which we too often carefully avoid getting to know in order not to lose the "certainty" about our favorite artists. Works like these are typically meant to be "forced" upon you, to convince yourself that they are masterpieces when (in my opinion) they are not, nor will they ever be. For me, the MA were superior to many others, but the moment they released clumsy works like this, aiming only to create a sensation, they lost value in my eyes...

These 4 and 5 surprise me... so how much should we give to "Altar of Madness"? Your rating seems a bit naïve to me, just to offload some weight to the other side - nothing serious, since, all in all, I believe you wouldn't have a hard time admitting that FFTF isn't that great, and that there are better CDs out there. This is because if you were truly convinced of what you say, you would at least have attached some sort of reasoning, something different from just repeating "it's a good album" twice. I can't stand this attitude because it means accepting uncritically any rubbish produced by our favorite group. And it often means ignoring everything else. With all due respect, it doesn’t make sense...

The review is a bit lacking, but clear. Personally, I never managed to digest the album; it sort of slips into indifference (and perhaps not without reason). The absence of Bon Scott is definitely felt, but let’s not forget some subsequent work with the current vocalist ("Blow Up Your Video," for example), which is definitely more acceptable. Perhaps, as the review rightly points out, quite rare cases...

Sorry guys, but around here we’re always quick to dismiss (no offense, of course!) as nonsense the things said by anyone who isn’t aligned with the majority of fans of the genre: just to clarify, I’m a "fan" of progressive rock too, but that doesn’t mean every prog album I know is a masterpiece... Balletto di Bronzo has "simply" some limits, like many others, really. Limits that very few admit, in my humble opinion... And why should I "simply" say that I don’t like it?! I might as well leave a nice anonymous comment full of insults...

We must admit that there are listeners who don't know what a mixolydian scale is, an accent, or an odd meter, right?!

I had been waiting since 2001 for this blessed (!) new Slayer CD: as far as I'm concerned, the same goes for Cannibal Corpse, who are delightfully (!) a monolithic repetition of themselves to infinity, though with always different nuances that often go unnoticed. I know many won't agree with my enthusiasm... I prefer, however, to express myself definitively about the complete album. I wouldn't take for granted that being anti-religious means being blasphemous, but for Slayer, this has almost always been the case (and this long before "the old Disciple," a track that opened, years ago, one of the most beautiful concerts I've ever seen...)

I also greatly prefer "Darwin!": this work is certainly not to be underestimated, even though I consider it quite overrated. As far as I'm concerned, they had already reached their peak in the first two albums. In particular, alongside the fantastic "Non mi rompete" and "Canto nomade...", the rest of the CD feels like there's a "void," something missing that is not easy to define with certainty. Moreover, as far as I know, Gianni Nocenzi is no longer in the band from this album onwards (correct me if I'm wrong given the recent oversights...). The inspiration is certainly not lacking, but the "rhythm" of the album is way too slowed down and a bit too introspective. Certainly a good album (and a good review!).