YTSEJAM Digest 4785
Today's Topics:
1) Re:Ozzy
by Bezerk02@aol.com
2) Re: YTSEJAM digest 4784
by HeiNouSX@aol.com
3) Watchtower, Spastic Ink, Sieges Even...answers to EVERYTHING!
by Younis Hilal <yhilal@cds.caltech.edu>
4) Re: Watchtower, Spastic Ink, Sieges Even...answers to EVERYTHING!
by drkhoe@gms.gmsnet.com (Dr. Mosh)
5) Spock's and remasters, looong
by Steffen Barabasch <TheMirror@westend.com>
6) Dream Theater Fan Club question.
by 7th String Man <memkilun@earthlink.net>
7) Bored, so here...
by Christopher Ptacek <someone@enteract.com>
8) Re: YTSEJAM digest 4784
by indii@twave.net (Indii)
9) Re: TAMP promo CD ?
by JamesAhab@aol.com
10) RE: Ozzy Osbourne----No Rest For The Wicked???
by "xxx" <hipodilski@usa.net>
11) Alice Cooper
by CyberDuke <duskob@mol.com.mk>
12) Re: Dream Theater Fan Club question.
by Syrinx <syrinx@erotomania.org>
13) Couple of reviews
by Phil Carter <phil@usefulware.com>
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Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1999 17:56:53 EST
From: Bezerk02@aol.com
To: ytsejam@axnet.net
Subject: Re:Ozzy
Message-ID: <22ec4810.2437f6b5@aol.com>
I always thought that the untitled track on "No Rest For the Wicked" was
callede "Hero". I am not sure where i remember that from though. IMHO, the
cd is one of Ozzy's best.
aaron
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1999 18:27:58 EST
From: HeiNouSX@aol.com
To: ytsejam@axnet.net
Subject: Re: YTSEJAM digest 4784
Message-ID: <e9f61f5d.2437fdfe@aol.com>
>By deep voice do you thereby mean Type O Negative(Peter Steele) kind of =
>deep or growling kind of deep? If you mean TON, then i think that DT's =
>music is far too fast-paced for that kind of singing. If you mean =
>growling, then check out 5YIAL in which DT plays with the singer from =
>Napalm Death (IMO the singing sounds like crap). BTW I agree in all your =
>other points about Moore and Myung.
I don't really mean deep deep. Just not something so up there in pitch. Heh
Maynard of Tool would sound cool with DT. :) Talking about the Damage Inc.
cover by DT with the guy from Napalm Death? I don't have 5YIAL. I wonder
what it would sound like with Les Claypool and DT. Some crazy stuff I'll bet
knowing Les.
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1999 16:30:40 -0800 (PST)
From: Younis Hilal <yhilal@cds.caltech.edu>
To: Multiple recipients of list <ytsejam@axnet.net>
Subject: Watchtower, Spastic Ink, Sieges Even...answers to EVERYTHING!
Message-ID: <Pine.SOL.3.96.990403155024.29301C-100000@crane.cds.caltech.edu>
I guess most of these replies are about a week late. Sorry, hehe, got
wrapped up doing some other things. Anyway...
To the guy who was asking about the Watchtower homepage:
I found one a while ago at:
http://www2.msstate.edu/~jrm1/watchtower/watchtower.html
but now there's nothing there. Have no idea what happened.
The Spastic Ink (Jarzombek's group) page though is at:
http://www.spasticink.com/
There's a bit of Watchtower-related info there, but it isn't really
meant to be a webpage for people who have heard of Watchtower and are
looking for more info about the band. The first URL I posted above was
intended to be such a page.
You can get Watchtower's 2 CDs (Energetic Disassembly, Control &
Resistance) at places like Laser's Edge (http://www.lasercd.com/)
and the place that used to be Knights of the Round
(http://www.moremetal.com/) and probably a few other places too.
Lemme know if you'd like to hear a couple of mp3s first.
To the guy who posted saying that Jarzombek was a founding member
of Watchtower:
That's not quite true. The original guitarist was another ferocious
guitarist called Billy White (a "smokin' guitarist", to use Jarzombek's
description). In an interview, Jarzombek himself recalls going to one
of Watchtower's early shows and being blown away by the band.
To the guy asking about the demo that Watchtower made after C&R:
I don't know exactly what demo you're talking about. As for the
quality of the music that Watchtower was writing after C&R, Jarzombek's
interviews indicate that he was a bit disappointed with it. I guess
about a year and a half ago, Keyser, Colaluca, and himself were involved
in a serious push to write and rehearse new music for a new CD which was
gonna be called "Mathematics." It actually looked like it was going to
happen. But I guess Jarzombek was surprised at the kind of music they
were writing. It just seemed too mediocre to him, uncharacteristic of
Watchtower's music. Anyway, and I'm not sure exactly what happened here,
this effort basically died down and Jarzombek and Keyser & Colaluca again
went their separate ways, and Jarzombek went back to writing stuff for the
2nd Spastic Ink CD. All this stuff is detailed in the interviews that
Jarzombek has posted on the Spastic Ink website (he gets a shitload of
Watchtower-related questions, I guess, hehe).
Anyway, if you're talking about a demo from this last effort, I guess I
should say don't get your hopes too high. If you're talking about a demo
that was done much earlier (like shortly after C&R came out), I sure would
be interested in hearing it.
But, although, I hate to say it, it looks like Watchtower is finished.
On Sieges Even:
This is for the guy who bought Sophisticated and Uneven, hated the vox,
and decided to skip their other stuff cuz he heard their first vocalist
was one of the worst ever. It seems that you haven't heard anything about
SE's *2nd* vocalist. Without question, the best one they ever had. Too
bad he left, hehehe. Anyway, he was on the "A Sense of Change" CD (their
3rd CD). There's a couple of mp3s from this CD at mosh's ftp site:
total.devastation.com/incoming/Sieges_Even
Get the tracks called "Behind Closed Doors" and "The Waking Hours".
Spastic Ink stuff:
Jarzombek has put up some sound-clips at the SI website. Very promising
stuff.
And check out this proposed line-up for "Ink Compatible". I damn near had
a heart attack when I saw it. This is straight from the SI website.
Vocals - Jason McMaster
Guitars - Ron Jarzombek
Bass - Steve DiGiorgio and Sean Malone
Drums - Richard Christy and Sean Reinert
Cameo guest voices - Doug Keyser, David Bagsby, Chris Leibundgut
Holy shit...can you say "technical-metal-fest"? Monster guitarist,
bassist(s) and drummer(s). Unbelievable. I guess all this is still
tentative. I sure as shit hope it happens. For those who've never heard
of Richard Christy, I hadn't either, till I picked up Death's new one,
"The Sound of Perseverance". Fuckin' awesome CD. If you were wondering
how Schuldiner could possibly improve on Symbolic, this is his answer.
Anyway, Christy plays drums on the CD, and this guy is all over the wicked
guitar riffs. I think he's got more cymbals than I have fingers.
Brilliant shit. Very much looking forward to hearing him go psycho on this
SI CD, if he ends up playing on it. As for Reinert, hell...you know
who HE is. Funny thing about the "Death" connection: this proposed
line-up lists 3 people who have played in Death (DiGiorgio and Reinert on
Human and Christy on TSoP).
Oh yeah, another surprise is seeing Doug Keyser (Watchtower bassist)
listed as "guest voice."
Younis Hilal------------------------yhilal@cds.caltech.edu
NP: Trivial Act, "Change
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1999 16:53:16 -0800
From: drkhoe@gms.gmsnet.com (Dr. Mosh)
To: ytsejam@axnet.net
Subject: Re: Watchtower, Spastic Ink, Sieges Even...answers to EVERYTHING!
Message-ID: <199904040053.QAA09378@gms.gmsnet.com>
Before being sacrificed upon the altar..., Younis Hilal thus begged:
>
>To the guy who posted saying that Jarzombek was a founding member
>of Watchtower:
>That's not quite true. The original guitarist was another ferocious
>guitarist called Billy White (a "smokin' guitarist", to use Jarzombek's
>description). In an interview, Jarzombek himself recalls going to one
>of Watchtower's early shows and being blown away by the band.
This is the same Billy White that was recruited to play on Don Dokken's
Up From the Ashes... good guitar album... John Norum too... rippin
dual trade-off licks...
-The Doc
-- *#&*@#@*(#@#*@(#!@*#(!@#(&!#(@!*#@((#@$(#@(($@#($(#@$@#($@#(*$@(*$*(#(#(##(#(# computersarefasterthanhumans - devastatetoinnovate - hyperspacialparallelcomp\ drkhoe@gmsnet.com = http://progmetal.gmsnet.com = internetcyberwetwaregamedev+ s*o#o$n@@c*o!m^e)s@@t>h<e@@|d~i+g-i%t%a.l@@<M><E><S><S><I><A><H> gaMECoReTeKN0------------------------------
Date: Sun, 4 Apr 1999 03:33:58 +0200 From: Steffen Barabasch <TheMirror@westend.com> To: Ytsejam <ytsejam@axnet.net> Subject: Spock's and remasters, looong Message-ID: <v04020a01b32c5c3a0604@[194.8.196.143]>
Hi!
Spock's Beard - Healing Colors:
"The Healing Colors of Sound" is indeed a 20-minute-opus. The demo version was one long song, they just split it into smaller chunks on the album to avoid people looking at the tracklist (non-prog-people...) to say 'whoa... 20 minutes... that's way too long for my dumb little brain'. Or something. I think it's ridiculous. It's still ONE long song, even if they'd smash it to 200 pieces. It's more for political, tactical, whatever reasons.
CD remasters:
If they wouldn't have made a crappy master first, there wouldn't be the need to RE-master it, would there?
Seriously, many digital masters back then, when the CD appeared in the early 80s, were made in a hurry. The labels had huge back catalogs that needed to be transferred onto CD, so sometimes they didn't do it right due to the lack of time (and experience, and equipment, and money).
So one day they started to release REmastered CDs, to correct their mistakes. But then they realized that the fans liked remastered CDs because of the (hopefully) better quality. So the labels started to remaster, eventually reremaster, just to have a reason to put some big stickers on the jewel case saying,
"Remastered from the very original master tape. This time we did it, really! Even better than the last remaster. 24-bit, 24-carat gold, and garnished with larks' vomit. Plus restored artwork, with fat red letters spread all over it saying REMASTER"
To clarify the terms master, remastering, digital, AAD etc. a bit: First there is recording (the first letter in eg AAD), then mixing (second letter) and then mastering (third). Since the CD is digital, the third letter is always a D, though the actual master remains analog. (I'm talking about old recordings here!) They use the original analog master tape, sample it, and call that digital mastering. So it's analog recording, analog mix, analog mastering, digital mastering of the analog master. If you are lucky. Sometimes they don't have access to the master (lost, damaged, legal reasons), then they have to use production copies. These copies were x-gen copies of the master, sent to the pressing plants back then in the vinyl days. Of course, every generation adds more noise and signal loss, that's the reason for the emphasis on the "original master tape".
Ok, some bad examples:
Once I compared the first issue of Led Zeppelins 4th album with the remastered version, and since then I usually puke when I read the name George Marino (the guy who remastered it). I didn't hear any significant quality differences between the two versions, but I noticed that they started fading-out some seconds earlier on many tracks of the remastered CD, just to make the noise in the original masters disappear. If you have a song with a fade-out at the end you hear some noise when the signal gets more and more quiet. If you cut some of the original, noisy fade-out, and start to fade-out earlier with your digital equipment, you get a nice, clean fade, but you lose some of the original material, and that's just inacceptable! Just listen to the mega-classic "Stairway to Heaven". The last words at the end are sung really quiet. On the original CD you can hear "...to heaven...", on the remasters you hear "...to heav." It's like cutting the edges of a Van Gogh because they were frayed out! Good job, Mr. Marino!
Just listen to the Yes remasters. Most of them are GREAT, just Going for the One has those 'let's fade out quickly before someone realizes that this record is 22 years old' endings, and Relayer sounds muddy and distorted. If they really used the original master, they must have stored it in a wet cellar all these years. BTW, George Marino remastered those two. He's tha man! Really!
I just got a 2-in-1-CD with two Gentle Giant albums on it (Free Hand/Interview), released by the English label BGO. Big silver sticker, "remastered from original master tapes". The quiet parts have so much static-like noise as if they recorded the albums from FM radio. Whoever "re-mastered" this shouldn't quit his day job. To top the cake the sticker also says you'd get "faithfully restored artwork". Unfortunately the sticker doesn't say WHERE. On the booklet you just see tiny thumbnails of the two album covers, that's it.
Look at the Marillion remasters EMI Europe released recently. I never had a chance to compare the sound quality, but what totally pissed me off was that they put a big gray (?) border around the original cover on the booklet. FYI, the early Marillion covers were beautiful fold-out-covers, and the booklets of the original CDs had the complete artwork, too (on the first and last page, fold-out like the LPs). Sigh...
Hey, there are some good remasters, like the Deep Purple ones (though many people don't like the bonus material, but the original stuff is excellent!), or the Pink Floyd and The Doors remasters, but most of them are just for the money.
Steffen -- Steffen Barabasch (mailto:TheMirror@westend.com) THE MIRROR - German Dream Theater Fan Club (http://www.westend.com/TheMirror)
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 03 Apr 1999 18:20:02 -0800 From: 7th String Man <memkilun@earthlink.net> To: ytsejam@axnet.net Subject: Dream Theater Fan Club question. Message-ID: <3.0.6.32.19990403182002.007bdd70@earthlink.net>
I've been in the club since Christmas of last year. I got my initial package and haven't heard anything since then for months now. Are there any updates, or what is presently going on? Is the new newsletter coming out soon or what? If anyone knows anything, please e-mail me. Thanks.
-7th String Man
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1999 21:41:21 -0600 (CST) From: Christopher Ptacek <someone@enteract.com> To: ytsejam@axnet.net Subject: Bored, so here... Message-ID: <199904040341.VAA29906@adam.enteract.com>
> Subject: My Supergroup
I am so bored of this thread... to each their own, but man, it seems like no one wants amything original to happen here. You put JP in a prog lineup and it will sound like LTE, or AoI, or DT etc. No matter how great the guys are, I don't think I'll be shocked by the next supergroup album to come out of Magna Carta or whatever. I'd like to hear something really strange and powerful, not something prog that we can predict the sound of.
Vocals: Huun Huur Tu (Tuvan Throat Singers... unbelievable) Guitars: Fareed Haque and Jason Becker (Jazz/classical/ethnic music master and the king of all neoclassical purism) Drums and Bass: Aphex Twin (for all electronic bass, ambience and beats) and Trilok Gurtu (just to have someone go off!) Dobro: Jerry Douglas
Go find some new music to appreciate. Expand!
> From: bforst@busprod.com (Bruce Forst) > Subject: remastered cds
> what i want to know is this... why didnt they remaster for the compact disc > when it was first introduced? they had this new format that could offer > better resolution and they didnt even bother to go back and remaster the > music before they released it on cd? I would think that they would > constantly be working to make sure all the material they > (labels/distributors) they were putting out to the public sounded as good as > it can?
Most of the early cds from before digital recording have a disclaimer about the sound quality, saying that they were remastered from analog originals. Yes, remastering was done back then, to get from reel to disc. What you're missing is the idea of technological advance. Just as I'm now typing on my dad's PII 400, I used to type on an 80/86. What you can now do with Sound Forge and a few thousand dollars worth of plug ins on your own home computer will dwarf what was possible when 2112 was first put on a cd. With the hundreds of thousands in gear that go into a true state of the art mastering facility, the remaster of 2112 is apt to be much improved over the first cd release. The audio industry is growing at a pace with the computer industry. The audiophiles who have abandoned tape (reel, not cassette, which is generally lame for multitrack) now generally shun anything below 20 bit (most of us remember when an ADAT at 16 bit was considered flat out amazing clarity) and some even look down at anything below 24 bit. The average consumer can buy gear today at a reasonable price that will outperform what was being used anywhere on the planet for digital recording 5 years ago.
> From: bforst@busprod.com (Bruce Forst) > Subject: new aol instant messng has file transfer > there is a new version of AOL Instant Messanger that allows the user to set > up a directory on their harddrive that is accesible to the people on their > buddy list for downloading. This may be useful to people who are trading > MP3's with people to check out bands or let other people hear samples... > this way you can leave it there and let someone download it at their > leisure. You still have to be logged on and the computer turned on of course > but you can always put it on AWAY. This is better for peope who may not have > much ftp space on their provider. like myself.
You don't have a problem with opening your hard drive on the net? Any file sharing you allow online, especially in the mp3 trading community is really a disaster waiting to happen. I'd be willing to bet that there's someone who's already found a way around the safeguards on this software and can really mess your shit up. Be wary.
- Chris
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Date: Sun, 4 Apr 1999 01:42:51 -0500 From: indii@twave.net (Indii) To: ytsejam@axnet.net Subject: Re: YTSEJAM digest 4784 Message-ID: <v01540b00b32cb72d96cd@[12.21.241.101]>
>Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1999 14:00:42 -0600 >From: bforst@busprod.com (Bruce Forst) >To: ytsejam@axnet.net >Subject: new aol instant messng has file transfer >Message-ID: <199904032000.OAA15105@busprod.com> > > >just thought I'd let people know.... > >there is a new version of AOL Instant Messanger that allows the user to set >up a directory on their harddrive that is accesible to the people on their >buddy list for downloading. This may be useful to people who are trading >MP3's with people to check out bands or let other people hear samples... >this way you can leave it there and let someone download it at their >leisure. You still have to be logged on and the computer turned on of course >but you can always put it on AWAY. This is better for peope who may not have >much ftp space on their provider. like myself. > >factoids for all!!! > >bruce >bforst@busprod.com
There is a MUCH better way. without using AOheLL. IT's a program called Hotline. If you haven't heard of it, it's similiar to what bruce is describing..except, it has chat with it too. It's like having your computer act as a server, with file trading and chat.
www.hotlinesw.com
You should really check it out. If some one had a cable or t1/t3 connection and a static IP address. You just leave your computer on all day, and people come and visit. You can give them access to only the files of your chosing...people can also upload MP3s, files, music programs, transcripts, etc....it has endless possibilities. I would do it, but right now my computer is screwed up, and i only get email, i can't get on the net (don't ask, long story). But it's really great....the chat is just as good as Perch, or anyother IRC. You can give administrative accounts to certain users, send personal messages..have personal chats, with multiple people... It's a really great program....
If anyone is interested, they can contact me and i will try and help you set it up, and give you further info....
It would be great to have a DT hotline server...you can put your server on a tracking list, and anyone who doesn't subscribe to this newsletter, who likes DT or prog will see it and join in.....It would help to further our devotion to DT. Please send me private mail if interested and i will do all in my power to help you out....i am on hotline alot (except recently, see above...) and there are thousands of people out there...it's easy to find MP3, faster downloads than off the net, not a memory hog...........it goes on.....best of all, it's free!
indii indii@twave.net
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Date: Sun, 4 Apr 1999 03:35:31 EDT From: JamesAhab@aol.com To: ytsejam@axnet.net Subject: Re: TAMP promo CD ? Message-ID: <e1296213.24387043@aol.com>
>< > Can someone tel me if "Take Away My Pain" ever has been released as > a promo CD ? If there is, I'm unaware of it.
- mike.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= erotomania! - http://www.erotomania.org -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ><
oh, well then it must not exist.
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Date: Sun, 4 Apr 1999 13:31:38 +0300 From: "xxx" <hipodilski@usa.net> To: "Ytsejam" <ytsejam@axnet.net> Subject: RE: Ozzy Osbourne----No Rest For The Wicked??? Message-ID: <000701be7e86$6c79ed80$1308e6c3@xxx>
>does anyone know the name of the unlisted ninth track?? On mine it is listed as "Hero". Ozzy kicks ass...
Vic
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 04 Apr 1999 01:34:31 +0200 From: CyberDuke <duskob@mol.com.mk> To: YtseLand <ytsejam@axnet.net> Subject: Alice Cooper Message-ID: <3706A587.5FEFDAE@mol.com.mk>
> Derek will be featured on three tracks on the upcoming 4CD set > "The Life & Crimes Of Alice Cooper". This long awaited release > will finally be out on April 20th, 1999, and will include many > previously unreleased demos/versions and guest musicians
Any idea on which songs these folks appeear as guests???
> Ozzy Osbourne, Axl Rose, Slash, Izzy Stradlin, Todd Rundgren
??? Who is that Todd guy anyway?
> Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Nikki Sixx,
I think these are on "Be My Frankenstein" from the "Hey Stoopid"! Vai and Satch do a cool "human-conversation" type of guitar duels
> Rob Zombie, The Bee Gees,
???
> Chris Cornell
Man, what was the title of this song??? :( It was a ballad, a great one! I loved it first time I heard it. I didn't have a clue who is that awesome screamer back vocal until it flashed me that it sounds as Chris! Still ain't sure about it but I can bet on it! This dude can really sing!
> The Billion Dollar Babies, etc.).
??? -- CyberDuke
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* "Chuck! Chuck! This is your cousin ... your cousin, Marvin Berry! Remember the new sound you were looking for? Well listen to THIS!" - Back To The Future I *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* _______________________________________________________ Home Page http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Gym/3466/ E-mail duskob@mol.com.mk ICQ# 17392722 _______________________________________________________
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Date: Sun, 4 Apr 1999 11:06:02 -0400 (EDT) From: Syrinx <syrinx@erotomania.org> To: 7th String Man <memkilun@earthlink.net> Subject: Re: Dream Theater Fan Club question. Message-ID: <Pine.OSF.4.05.9904041104440.32691-100000@tempest.ocis.temple.edu>
> I've been in the club since Christmas of last year. I got my > initial package and haven't heard anything since then for months > now. Are there any updates, or what is presently going on? Is the > new newsletter coming out soon or what? If anyone knows anything, > please e-mail me. Thanks.
The new newsletter is being printed as we speak. It should be available and mailed to you guys within the next 2 weeks.
- mike, dtifc.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= erotomania! - http://www.erotomania.org -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
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Date: Sun, 04 Apr 1999 12:30:55 -0400 From: Phil Carter <phil@usefulware.com> To: A Pleasant Shade of Ytse <ytsejam@axnet.net> Subject: Couple of reviews Message-ID: <4.1.19990404122847.00943a50@pop.usefulware.com>
Greetings ye 'jamanoids...
Here's a couple reviews of some of the discs I just got:
Rhapsody -- "Symphony of Enchanted Lands" Rhapsody's music is as excellent as ever, but what's overjoyed me is that vocalist Fabio Lione has learned to control his voice in this one. He has matured greatly as a singer and sounds worlds better than he did on Rhapsody's first disc. The production is top notch and the songwriting is outstanding. My one problem with the disc is the horrific narration. "Yeth, mighty warrior. What you hear ith the thuffering"....oh, I can't go on. Rhapsody should have taken a cue from the fantastic narration on Blind Guardian's latest.
Labyrinth -- "Return to Heaven Denied" I listened to this for the first time at work when I was too busy to properly appreciate it. Tried again when I was at home and had some time to listen better, and I have to say I quite like this one. Melodic speed metal with some very nice keyboard work. Rob Tyrant's vocals are good without being overbearing. Intricate duelling guitars and keyboards for an overall fine package.
Pain of Salvation -- "One Hour by the Concrete Lake" This is probably the best of the fourteen discs I got. Cerebral, thought-provoking progressive metal, with great vocals from Daniel Gildenlow and complexly written music. How can you not love a band fronted by somebody who's studying nuclear physics? "One Hour" also has a great storyline behind it and is packed full of music at nearly 74 minutes.
Iced Earth -- "Something Wicked This Way Comes" Jon Schaffer and the boys are back! Cruncha-cruncha-cruncha. Blindingly fast chunky riffs from Schaffer, furious drumming from Mark Prator, and powerful vocals from Matt Barlow. Barlow has a very recognizable style and can blast out the high notes while sacrificing none of the elemental power of the low stuff. To top it off "Something Wicked" is a cool concept disc. "IF IT TAKES TEN THOUSAND YEARS, WE NEVER WILL RE-TREAT!!!!!" The upcoming Nevermore/Iced Earth tour should be really something.
Gordian Knot -- "Gordian Knot" With a lineup like this, you can't help but be amazed. Shawn Malone, Ron Jarzombek, Trey Gunn, Sean Reinert, and Glenn Snelwar have come up with some terrifyingly intricate music here. This isn't a bunch of showoffs wanking off on their instruments, but rather a group of incredibly talented artists painting a musical tapestry that defies description. Not so much metal as it is jazz-and-fusion-based, Gordian Knot is some sick, SICK music.
Skyclad -- "The Silent Whales of Lunar Sea" I kind of dig the idea of a fiddle being played in unison with heavy metal guitars. I'd heard some reviews of this band but wasn't expecting the unusually guttural vocals. Martin Walkyier has an interesting style -- just on the listenable side of "cookie-monster" death vocals, which usually irritate me to no end. Some interesting violin and classical guitars thrown into the mix with some nice keyboards make this overall a pretty cool disc.
All right, discuss amongst yourselves. More reviews may be upcoming if I can find a little spare time. The Glass Hammer website has been updated, too, for those of you who follow the band. :)
Cheers, Phil
========================================================= Phil Carter -- phil@usefulware.com http://www.mindspring.com/~philcarter Check out the Glass Hammer website at http://www.glasshammer.com/ "Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." -- Berthold Auerbach
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End of YTSEJAM Digest 4785 **************************
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