SEEN AND HEARD: ARCH ENEMY, ARKAIK, OAK PANTHEON, THE SECRET

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  3 Responses »
Sep 192012
 


 

Here’s a grab bag of things I saw and heard over the last 24 hours that I thought were good enough to pass your way. I saw and heard other things that I’m keeping to myself, for your own protection.

ARCH ENEMY

Laboratory testing of animals is a hot-button issue for lots of people. On one side are those who view it as utterly unethical, as a vestige of humanity’s barbarism that should be abandoned as quickly as possible. On the other side are those who argue that animal testing is essential for the development of things like new medicines that will save lives (of course, animals are also used to test products that have nothing to do with human health).

But I suppose there are lots of people who give the issues no serious thought at all, which is unfortunate. Sweden’s Arch Enemy are trying to get more people to think about the treatment of animals in laboratory testing through a video they released today. The video is for “Cruelty Without Beauty”, a song from their latest album, 2011’s Khaos Legions. It effectively mixes disturbing film clips of animal testing with animation — and of course shots of Angela Gossow venting her rage.

I had mixed feelings about the album, because I thought the quality of the songs was a mixed bag. For me, “Cruelty Without Beauty” is one of the stronger tracks, though I should confess that I lean toward the side of the debate that the song represents. Check out the video, which gives a voice to the voiceless, after the jump. Continue reading »

A TEASER: THE SECRET

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  2 Responses »
Nov 132010
 

Just in case we ran short of quality guest contributions to use while I was away, I wrote a few brief pieces before leaving. They’re called “teasers” because they’re just brief tastes of new albums that I’d like to review for NCS when I get back — because they’re really good. Of course, I have the attention span of a gnat, so there’s a chance I’ll never do that, and these teasers will be all I accomplish.

This is the first one. As I write this, I’m in a hurry to get my ass out of Dodge, so this will be short and sweet.

The Band: The Secret

The Band’s Location: Trieste, Italy

The Album: Solve et Coagula

Label: Southern Lord Recordings

The Band’s MySpace page:  http://www.myspace.com/thesecret

Brief notes:  This music will grind(core) your brain down to a nub and then drag it through a pool of tar. Haven’t heard vocals this hair-raising since the late Makh Daniels (Early Graves). The soundtrack to total loss of control. Here’s a track:

The Secret: Weathermen

P.S. In my half-assed attempt to keep up with what’s happening in the world of metal while on vacation, I saw a feature on MetalSucks about The Secret, which includes another track — and it turns out MetalSucks had done another feature about the band that I missed.  Check it out here if you like this music.