Helloween - Better Than Raw (1998)

After gaining back most of the respect they had in their early career, Helloween probably felt confidence in moving onto other territories again, going beyond the fantasy themes that have served the band so well. But to not make the same mistake as last time, the Germans dialed up the heavy dial, adding another layer of metal coating to their sound so that they would not scare away their fans once again. Also, it probably helped that the album cover for "Better Than Raw" also included a nice witch pinup cooking little Helloween men (probably the members) in a big bowl while wearing a skimpy bikini that is more suited for a sex dungeon than a castle kitchen. Men are so easily fooled...

Anyway, the band presents us with something pretty similar to their previous two outings, but it is clear from the start that the band is not relying themselves on safe methods. After the theatrical intro "Deliberately Limited Preliminary Prelude Period In Z" (What kind of a name is that?), the band blasts through with "Push", a straight up banger that also sees Andi Deris trying his best "Painkiller" voice, and does a good job doing so. It is an energetic start that keeps on rolling in "Falling Higher", so far so good for the power metal lovers.

Then the band drags us back to the 80's in the first of two singles of the record, "Hey Lord!". The sound is something straight out of Ratt, and the added robot voice only enhances the flavour of this cheese to gorgonzola levels. It is certainly one of the more dated songs in this record, even at time of release. The second single "I Can" (which is found a little later in the album) is certainly more catchy and is enjoyable in its own right thanks to its groovy momentum, but it is a little too laid back in its approach, making it seem lazy. Also, both of these tracks does not really represent the album that well, so bummer there.

The middle of the record is nothing to showboat about either. "Don't Spit On My Mind" feels like a softer Pantera track, trying to be in your face with a pillow and an ice hockey choir. Then we have "Revelation", who despite having some speedy sections, is a pretty dull track that goes on for far too long, with an ultimate play time of 8:21. Speaking of dull, "Time", the previously mentioned "I Can", and "A Handful of Pain" continues the "meh" streak, making me thirsty for some excitement.

Finally we get some speed again in "Laudate Dominum", but it seems like we have a substitution at our hands. Helloween has apparently switched with Rhapsody of Fire, singing in Latin and having these neo-classical elements. It is another strange song in what is forming out to be a divided record with tons of ideas, but no real direction. We also got two pretty decent bonus tracks in "Back On The Ground" and "Midnight Sun", but they do not help "Better Than Raw" as a whole because they are just bonuses. Yeah, this is a mixed stew of tracks that has some enjoyable moments, and I like that the band went a little heavier, but there is very little substance here to hold it all together. The recipe for "Better Than Raw" is pretty iffy, I would like to go with something more rare next time I make an order.

Songs worthy of recognition: Push, Falling Higher

Rating: 5,5/10 Revelations

www.helloween.org/
twitter.com/helloweenorg

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Opeth - My Arms, Your Hearse (1998)

After two very promising, but not fully developed records, Opeth comes through big time with "My Arms, Your Hearse", the first concept record of the band. It is here where they seem to find the balance between all of their influences to create a cohesive sound that feels fully original. Gone are most of the jazz and fusion elements, and left is a very dark, but still beautiful, melodic sound that weaves its wave very smoothly through the speaker and ear canals. And let us not forget the black and death metal elements too, they are still there.

As said, this is a concept record, but it is one that is up for interpretation. All of the lyrics are written in a very poetic way, almost like Mr. Åkerfeldt was sitting out in his garden, enjoying his side hobby of poetry writing, reflected upon what he wrote, and said "yes, this is what we are gonna base our third album on". It is definitely interesting, and it encourages the listener to go deeper into the lyrics, making them think for once, and while we do lose some catchiness in the process, it really does not hurt the music all that much.

Besides from the lyrics, what really makes "My Arms, Your Hearse" stand out is just how well balanced the record is. While "Orchid" was very dark and murky, and "Morningrise" was very calm and collected, this album utilizes both strategies to not only give it more variety, but also just stabilizing the sound, and it all comes together nicely. Each and every song comes naturally, flowing without any problem at all, which just makes it easier for the listener.

And it is this mixing between the heavy and the calm, the harsh and clean vocals, the tough and soft riffs that just makes this record so fascinating. With so many little details here and there, it is close to impossible to take it all in at first listen, so you need to listen to the album again and again and again, but you still find a new little beat every time you spin it around. The replay ability is through the roof, and I will gladly play this sucker again and again, because it is just so pleasant.

But while this album is mostly soft around the edges, it still has a hard enough core to draw most metal lovers in. The band still knows how to hit it hard with those deep black metal vocals, and there are also a bunch of crunchy riffs here and there. As said before, this is a very well balanced record, so there is truly something for everyone here. I could wish for another song in the mix though, since we only get 6 real songs (and none of them are over 10 minutes), but the album is still 52 minutes long, so it still has some decent length to it.

Nonetheless, this is an astonishing record that just delivers a lot of different things. It is heavy, but soft. Dark, but light. Tough, yet fragile. It is an album with many faces, but it still has a very cohesive feel to it all, making it a very strong effort from the Swedes. It is their spring board towards stardom, and they are certainly touching the sky, with a progressive effort that delivers on every front. Maybe the concept could have been a little clearer, but it might just be me, I am not the best at interpreting high art, I am just here for the metal, and the metal is certainly good.

Songs worthy of recognition: Demon of The Fall, The Amen Corner, Credence, Karma

Rating: 9/10 April Ethereals

www.opeth.com/
twitter.com/officialopeth

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Motörhead - Snake Bite Love (1998)

Motörhead is a band that is well known for not fuzzing around when it comes to recording a new album. It is in to the studio, write the songs, record the songs, and out, all in a time span of only a small bunch of weeks. While the band has been really effective with this strategy, it was only a matter of time before they would make an album too quickly, regretting some decisions. That album is named "Snake Bite Love", and while it is not a complete wreck, it is most certainly an album that could have used some more time.

Lemmy, Mikkey, and Phil have all openly expressed their disappointment of how this album turned out, and I can absolutely see why. A couple of songs in here are just pure head scratches, fillers that should have stayed at the studio, or even better, the sketch paper. One of these songs are "Night Side", a song with a pretty decent beat, but with an extremely sluggish and boring chorus. With a little more work behind, it might have been a cool track, instead it stands as a clear example that this record was not truly finished.

With that said, there is still a lot to like about this album. The performance is nice, and it does sound like Motörhead from start to finish, with more of their heavier side in it. To be completely honest, it does sound just like any other Motörhead album, just that it has some more inconsistencies than what we might be used to, so it is clear that time was the issue, not the chemistry of the band.

And while some songs are pure filler, we got some really fun tracks here that are both familiar, but also highly interesting, especially in that brilliant first half. The title track is all about the love for snakes (a topic that would be more fitting for Slash to be honest), and expresses it so with some good groovy rhythms, more hypnotizing than Kaa's stare. Then we have "Assassin", a fine song indeed with a really awkward, but also kind of cool, hook, where Lemmy pronounces the title as "Ass-ass-in", making it also sound like he is saying "That's a sin". Not my favourite, but fun none the less.

The best one do comes straight after though, and it is named "Take The Blame". It is one of the fastest songs the band has ever made, so it will certainly get you into a swing within an instant, and the lyrics of the uselessness of politicians is so god damn hilarious. It also slows down two times, but it never loses its edge, not even when Lemmy goes "Blah blah blah blah blah" (literally). As said, the first five songs of this album are pure awesomeness, and just what we want to see from the band.

It is just such a shame that the quality dips quite a lot when "Dead And Gone" enters the stage, sending the album down the gutter. I guess it would have been a little dull if the band had kept going in the same pace throughout the entire record, but if you are gonna change things up a bit, do not temper with the quality of the craft. We get some nice swing in "Don't Lie To Me", and "Better Off Dead" ends the album on an upside, but it is such a drop from the first half that it hurts the album quite a lot, especially when songs like "Night Side" and "Joy of Labour" are so mind boggling, being contenders for the running of worst Motörhead song ever.

"Snake Bite Love" might end up as one of the most inconsistent Motörhead records to date, with very high peaks, and very low valleys. The time might be the cause of this, but I know the band can pull one better out of their ass, or simply just take it easy and take some more time on it. Still, I do enjoy this album, the first half kicks a lot of ass, and the album cover is pretty dope, so it can skate by pretty easily. It attacks like a cobra, but tries to smother you like a really old and weak python.

Songs worthy of recognition: Take The Blame, Dogs of War, Snake Bite Love

Rating: 6,5/10 Assassins

imotorhead.com/
twitter.com/myMotorhead

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Slayer - Diabolus In Musica (1998)

Looking into the Slayer discography, "Diabolus In Musica" is probably the album that stands out like a sore thumb, an ugly mark on an otherwise excellent retrospective. Now, why is this so? The obvious answer is that the album is different, very different from what a typical Slayer album is. Okay, not that different, but different enough to make one cringe.

"Diabolus In Musica" was released in 1998, in a time when the nu-metal scene dominated, something that is most certainly reflected into the album (and the new band logo for that matter). This album is a full on experiment, it takes the classic Slayer sound, throws it in a blender together with some Pantera groove, creating some weird, murky 90's metal humbug (plus some dust, don't breathe this). This description is awful in itself, and unfortunately, it does not sound much better.

The classic Slayer sound is there, buried deep behind a couple of C# tuned guitars that are taken straight from hell's trash bin. I do not know if it is the production or the actual guitars that makes them sound so awkward. There are some great riffs here and there, but it simply does not hold up. Araya also sounds weird here, probably because there are a lot of different effects that skews his voice. He tries, but he can't help it here. The only one that sounds fairly normal is Bostaph and his drums, and thank god for that, because without them, this album would be a complete mess.

So are the songs any good though? Well, the before mentioned stuff makes it harder to appreciate them, and there is none that is anywhere close to the best Slayer songs, but there are some that is noteworthy. "Stain of Mind" actually gets the groove thrash right, making a weirdly enjoyable Rage Against The Machine beat that suits nicely with Araya's aggressive style. "Scrum" might be short, but it is sweet as hell, blasting through in an impressive manner, something that "Point" also points out nicely.

Slayer (or should I call them §LL^YER?) tried to show that they could keep up with the young folks and their music, and to no one's surprise, they failed miserably. It might have been an album that worked for the time being, but it just does not hold up today, mostly because the effects and production is just garbage. There is some glimmer of hope here and there, but not nearly enough to save the album. So yes, this is without any competition the worst Slayer album out there, because of the simple fact that it sounds like a cheap copy of Slayer.

Songs worthy of recognition: Scrum, Stain of Mind, Point

Rating: 4,5/10 Desires

www.slayer.net/
twitter.com/slayer

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2wo - Voyeurs (1998)

After the break up of Fight, Rob Halford went on to even stranger territories, maybe because he was inspired of the 90's culture in general, I really do not know. 2wo is not a new band though, it is instead a collaboration project between Rob and John Lowery, a man that you all know more as John 5, Rob Zombie's current guitarist. It is certainly a odd match up when you look at it in theory, but one could always hope that it would be a Ozzy Osbourne kind of thing. A veteran musician takes in a unknown guitarist for the start of his solo career, creating amazing music together.

As it turned out, it did not end that way. "Voyeurs" is the only album that 2wo ever did, and the two guys went on to other projects separately. Halford went on to create Halford, and John became the guitarist for both David Lee Roth and Marilyn Manson (what a combo!). Listening to the music in "Voyeurs", I can see why. It mostly consists of some grungy industrial metal that just does not suit The Metal God very well. His voice is, as always, stunning, but it just does not fit. Hell, even his overall image looks out of place in this project, Rob looks more like Geoff Tate than Rob Halford on that album cover, which is a clear sign that he was a little lost.

Now, if you ever wanted to know how weird the 90's were, just look up the video for the album's only single, "I Am A Pig". This is hands down as close to a professional porn video as you will come, without actually watching a porn video. It was produced by porn director Chi Chi Larue, and included several porn stars doing blurry S&M scenes in some sort of a sex dungeon. Now, by this time, Rob had come out as a homosexual, so I am not surprised at all to why he made this happen, but still... weird, even by 90's standard. The song? Definitely fitting as a single, and one of the better songs on the record, but not overly impressive.

Most of the appeal of this album comes from the heavy riffs of John 5, he makes these slimy songs a little harder, giving them a much better edge. I honestly think he has kind of a niche playing style that certainly suits the right artists, and it does hit this particular project that he has with Halford, but it would not work with either Fight or Halford. He is an accomplished guitar player and song writer, and while he does not get out the most of his skills on "Voyeurs", he still does a stellar job with cool riffs and nice solos. Overall, nice solid work from John.

Even with a good performance from both Rob and John, I still feel like the song writing on the album is pretty sub par. The closest band I can compare this to might be Nine Inch Nails, but without the catchy aggressiveness, replaced by a more sludgy type of... stuff. Honestly, it sounds like kind of a mess some times. Some songs are quite cool, like "Stutter Kiss", "Water's Leaking", "My Ceiling's Low", and "Bed of Rust", but some of the other ones do not make a lot of sense, or what do you guys say about the song title "Hey, Sha La La"? Complete nonsense. The lyrics especially are ridiculous, just a bunch of gibberish that is hard to comprehend. This is certainly not the album for those who wants poetry in motion.

2wo is ultimately a weird phase of Rob Halford's career, the high point of a time when he tried to find his footing again in the music industry after his departure from Judas Priest. "Voyeurs" is far from a great album, and while it does fit in the time period in which it was released, it still feels out of place. This is not the type of music Rob was meant to sing, and I wonder if he even knew that while making this album. It is an odd album that has some kind of charm to it, but is it any good? It is not bad, but it is safe to say that there are tons of albums that feature The Metal God that are a hell of a lot more enjoyable.

Songs worthy of recognition: Stutter Kiss, I Am A Pig, Water's Leaking

Rating: 5,5/10 Beds of Rust

Amon Amarth - Once Sent From The Golden Hall (1998)

In 1988, a bunch of Swedes with Finnish origin created the band Scum, a sort of grindcore band that based their music on dark atmospheres, jagged riffs and a whole lot of mead. This band did not get any notable recognition at all until around 1992 when the band changed vocalists. Out went Paul Mäkitalo (whom later joined Dark Funeral as Themgoroth for a short period of time) and in came Johan Hegg, and it was his presence and his mighty voice that changed the band into a direction that would make them stars. The band focused their song writing on the Norse mythology and changed the name Scum to Amon Amarth, named after the Sindarin name for Mount Doom in the J.R.R. Tolkien classic "Lord of The Rings" trilogy (a.k.a the volcano in which Frodo throws the ring into).

After a couple of low quality demos and another pair of member switches (ultimately making Olavi Mikkonen the only remaining founding member), the band finally released their first full length album in 1998, 10 years after the creation of the band. "Once Sent From The Golden Hall" was the name, and lyrically, it is not much different from the Amon Amarth material we are hearing today. It is songs about battles from the Viking age and stories about Thor, Odin and the rest of the gods and creatures in the Norse mythology. The big change is instead in the music itself. It is darker, rougher, and much muddier in the production, but you can still hear that this is Amon Amarth you are listening too. The melodies are definitely there, but not as clear or prominent as you can hear in albums like "Surtur Rising" and "Twilight of The Thunder God".

Let us focus instead of the pure quality of the work, which is actually quite nice. The twin guitars cooperates well together, the drums are blasting through, and Johan Hegg's voice is like a thunder storm, roaring through your speakers and blowing you away. The production does hurt the band in some degree, but it is not bad enough to make the listener miss the talent that lies behind the instruments.

The quality of the song material in "Once Sent From The Golden Hall" is quite even. All of the songs are certainly enjoyable, but none of them are any number one hits in my books. It all comes down to how good the melody lines are and how much they stick to your brain. The most memorable part in the entire album is the opening riff to "Amon Amarth". It is a slow, haunting riff that chills your bones to its core, and together with the songs steady pace, the sound effects from a grand battle, and Johan's darkest of vocals, it helps creating a fantastic setting that fits the band so well. I also get struck by the power and fury in the title track and the sweet head banging beat in "Victorious March"

You can definitely hint in this album what would come to happen with this viking group, even if the production could have been much clearer. Nonetheless, "Once Sent From The Golden Hall" is a great, even piece that offers a lot of nice, original music. Amon Amarth brings out a force that is incredibly strong, but still very melodic and well thought out. It does still needs some more polishing before this piece of coal turns into a big, shiny diamond, but the band has the drive, the sound is there, so all that is left is just to evolve and execute it all in the future.

Songs worthy of recognition: Amon Amarth, Victorious March, Once Sent From The Golden Hall

Rating: 7,5/10 Friends of The Suncross

https://www.amonamarth.com/
https://twitter.com/amonamarthband

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Devin Townsend - Infinity (1998)

You can probably tell by looking at the cover, but it is a stone cold fact that after the release of "Ocean Machine: Biomech", Devin Townsend checked himself into a mental health hospital after he started to see humans as "little lonesome, water based, pink meat, life forms pushing air through themselves and making noises that the other little pieces of meat seemed to understand.". Fortunately, Devin was discharged a while after he was diagnosed with Bipolar disorder (which could explain how he could create Strapping Young Lad and Ocean Machine around the same time).

From this "madness" came "Infinity", a album that Devin described as a "parent project" between "Ocean Machine: Biomech" and SYL's "City". Is it a accurate description of the album? Well almost. It does not have the same heaviness that SYL stands for, but it is certainly a good mix of heavy and epic in this album. You know what else there is a lot of in this album? Loudness. This is a album that takes up a lot of space with its grand sound, and even with the volume set to a low level, you can clearly hear the music with ease (although it is unnecessary with low volume).

And it is the first half that makes the most of the noise. After the epic starter "Truth", Devin kicks into gear with "Christeen", a spiritual and smooth flowing song that is easily likable. After that, the album becomes more groovy with the jazzy "Bad Devil" that takes your mind to some country western bar in the middle of Transylvania. Sounds weird? Well, it is, but in a really good way. Then we probably have the most well known track in "War". A pretty stale song that still has a hooky riff and some interesting lyrics. It also becomes very silly in the later half when the quire and Devin starts sing "doo wop boddum" in some kind of Can Can style. Oddly enough, it is still fitting nicely with the rest of the track, making it one of the better songs on "Infinity".

The second half of the album is leaning more towards the epic side, especially in songs like "Wild Colonial Boy", "Life Is All Dynamics" and "Soul Driven Cadillac". But it also contains a track that is just completely wild. "Ants" sounds like the mice from Cinderella where high on Red Bull and crystal meth. This song is all over the place, so the end result is not very good. It makes me laugh, but as far as the listening experience goes, I did not like it one bit.

There are some madness in "Infinity", but there is even more brilliance in it. The grand sound makes the album an exciting piece, and even though I feel that the overall standard could have been higher, it is made up for with some fine musicality work and atmospherically feelings. So you will not loose your mind if you listen to "Infinity", but you will probably find some epic quality in this record. 

Songs worthy of recognition: Bad Devil, War, 

Soul Driven Cadillac


Rating: 7,5/10 Unities

https://www.hevydevy.com/
https://twitter.com/dvntownsend

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Iron Maiden - Virtual XI (1998)

"Virtual XI" is the second (and last) album with Blaze Bayley and also the only album where Blaze was a part of the song writing process. And after hearing this album, I can definitely hear that Blaze has contributed a lot on the material. Some of the songs, especially "The Angel And The Gambler", has influences from Blaze's current band Wolfsbane. So instead of the dark and absorbing sound that was present in "The X Factor", "Virtual XI" is more of a upbeat album with some classic rock elements. You may ask, is these influences good or bad? Well, they help to make the album more memorable then its predecessor, but I still feel that it is not one hundred percent Maiden, even though I can accept it.

It is instantly clear that the band has left behind the experimental failure known as "The X Factor" behind them. The opening track "Futureal" is more like the good old Maiden with the speed and the chorus that has that classic mix of epicness and catchiness that Maiden is known for. A good way to start off "Virtual XI", but compared to similar tracks like "Running Free" and "Heaven Can Wait", "Futureal" is still behind. Afterwards comes "The Angel And The Gambler", a track I have already stated that it is a Wolfsbane song in disguise. It is still one of the trump cards in this album, but was it necessary to put in the line "Don't you think I'm a saviour/Don't you think I could save you/Don't you think I could save your life" so many times in this song? It gets very repetitive very quickly.

"The Angel And the Gambler" is the longest song in the bunch, but there are two other epics in "Virtual XI". First we have the 9 minute long "The Clansman" that has the biggest epic factor in the album, but its weakness is that it is not a memorable epic. The other epic, 8 minute long "Don't Look To The Eyes of A Stranger", is some what of a opposite. It is a pretty repetitive track, but it has the speed, riffs and feeling that makes me think back to the other classic Maiden epics like "Seventh Son of A Seventh Son" and "Rime of The Ancient Mariner". This is definitely my favourite track in the Blaze era, especially since Blaze finally managed to perform some great singing in this track.

The rest of the songs on "Virtual XI" keeps the momentum going. But there is two songs that stands out a little extra. One is of course the well recognized ballad "Como Estais Amigos" (Spanish for how are you, friends) that closes the album in a beautiful and impressive way. The other song is the determined and groovy "The Educated Fool". It is an under appreciated song that impresses with its epic chorus and fine riff work. Sure, Blaze does not do his strongest effort here, but I feel that Gers's and Murray's guitar playing makes up for it.

It stands very clear that this is the best Maiden album with Blaze Bayley on vocals, but it is still far behind most of the albums in the Maiden catalog. The epicness is there, the catchy tunes are there, the musicality is there, but it is clear that the true soul and inspiration is gone. But just like with "The X Factor", how many did actually expect "Virtual XI" to become a new Maiden classic? I know that I did not, and for that, I could actually enjoy the album, even though it did not reach that extra level.

Songs worthy of recognition: Don't Look To The Eyes of A Stranger, Futureal, The Educated Fool

Rating: 6,5/10 Clansmen