EP Review: Ruins Of Earth - Misguided Lifeforms

Bravely attempting to combine moody melodeath with a dash of thrash and a hoard of hardcore, Ruins Of Earth bring us a whole world of pain. Hot on the heels of their first EP, 'Ashes Of The Ocean', this second collection offers plenty more ideas and asks a lot of intriguing questions.

They've recorded this bad boy themselves so it's no surprise to find that the production sounds a little odd. It's as if your next-door neighbour is trying to burst through your bedroom wall. He's trashing his kit whilst his gorilla has smashed a head-shaped hole, through which he delivers these filthy grunts. Cleanest of all is the scarred larynx of the second vocalist who hovers over you, yelling these brain-scrambling wails right in your earhole. Yes, odd, but interestingly powerful.

'Funeral' emerges from an electro-industrial squall to thrust forth a punchy, bass-packed groove. It screams and thunders its way through a thrashy, dipping spot of jagged deathcore and even throws in a shambolic gang-chant to try and hook you. The dark themes continue through the instrumental 'The Wait' which locks onto a swaying, two-chord hook and doesn't shift. It's missing something and I'd have loved them to expand on the thought rather than just cutting it off in its prime with the sound of rain on a tin roof.

'Becoming Inhuman' has a nifty, crawling riff underpinning it and plenty of Carnifex-cum-Sylosis battery layered over the top. It's by far the most effective track, grabbing on hard and pulling you backwards through falling masonry. There's even a spot of symphonic metal backing and a dark piano outro - the kind of elements that have recently surfaced with bands like Hope For The Dying and The Human Abstract. Now, comparisons like that show just how far Ruins Of Earth have to go to make the grade.

If only that mix, was cleaner and crisper, the switch between brutality and melody would be ten times more effective and they'd have a real slice of shock and awe to wave in the faces of their peers. It's being offered as a free download here so there's no excuse not to be checking it out - just don't pin all your hopes on finding those answers.

Also online @ MTUK = http://www.metalteamuk.net/june11reviews/cdreviews-ruinsof.htm

EP Review: I, Inside - Mental Exhibition

Sucking lazily upon the fumes of Metallica, this Belgian quartet plunder their heroes thrash and groove, disappointingly turning it into bit of a chore. Behind a wall of volume, there seems to be very little variation to the tracks, one wandering aimlessly into another. There is a distinct lack of bite and there aren't exactly any hooks to cling onto to. A lot of it is just two-chord faffing around. All sounds pretty damning but there is an occasional flash of inspiration. The artwork is pretty neat, for one. Also, the bass blast that steps in around the 1:45 mark of 'Verdrängtes Trauma' is pretty worthy, and the vocal occasionally finds an impressive guttural edge for 'Moral Midgetry' - yes, I'm really grasping at straws here. The trouble is you simply have to concentrate too hard on blocking out the biggest weakness that this EP exudes - the production.

All hail their attempts for, presumably, digging this out without assistance, but it just hasn't paid off. The dull, lifeless thud of the solitary cowbell lurking inside 'Liquid Recollection' pretty much sums up the kind of contrast between hissing top-end and thick, sludgy bottom-end - I see big black boots and a bobble-head but where's the body? The drums are particularly paper-thin, sounding ridiculously clipped next to the incessant grunt that the guitar chugs offer. Throw on a vocal that sits about thirty feet back from everything else and you've just got this grotty mess that is never going to showcase the band's nascent talent for digging out a groove.

This opaque mess continues right through until 'Turbid Shape' opens out and starts revealing slow, delicately plucked open chords. The undulating nature of it is a bit of a revelation, as it proves the band are prepared to blossom out into more than just one-dimensional grunt. Vocalist Kris' last verse is delivered with real menace behind a flux of dark, minor chords - "He has no face / he has no shadow".

I guess, sometimes what's on the cover just doesn't match the innards. No matter how much I try and constructively criticise this beast, it's always going to end up sounding pretty ugly. I honestly believe 'Mental Exhibition' isn't a great example of what this band are actually capable of. They need to put this behind them and come at us again with a more solid, fine-tuned attack.

Also online @ MTUK = http://www.metalteamuk.net/june11reviews/cdreviews-iinside.htm

EP Review: Burn The Iris - Sovereign

One letter shy of being horribly accused of being Emerald Isle-bashing pyromaniacs, the crazily named Burn The Iris hail from the nether regions of the Netherlands and seem at pains to claim they draw great inspiration from their progressive metal neighbours, Germany's The Ocean and Sweden's Burst. Having recorded a promo back in 2007, it's certainly taken them a fair old while to construct three tracks worthy of release - possibly a sign of either a lethargic demeanour or an absolute dedication to producing nothing but quality.

Moving through the tracks, 'Holding Time' pounds along at a fearsome rate, firing out damaged licks and globs of roared, echoic hate until it reaches a gut-churning breakdown that sinks itself into a grim mire where it meets a sticky end. Changing tack, 'Old Son' is a sand-shifting storm of Isis-inspired battery and ubiquitously contrary acoustic guitar and guest vocal, courtesy of Tamara Clijsen. The real find here though is the 10-minute ‘(Sovereign) Ghost’ which straddles an incessantly subversive, richly macabre vein that punches above its weight, inhabiting a groove that will inevitably inspire windmills and headbanging alike. It's possibly a little too choppy to really cling onto the coat-tails of Opeth, and infinitely more opaque than their named influences.

It's probably the deep, echoic vocal and lamentable repetition of minor keys that mark out the distinct streak of black metal running down BTI's spine, but it's a strong feature that bears noting for all future releases. 'Sovereign' is a fine glimpse of the capabilities of an upcoming band but, if they continue to release at a rate of one track a year, I don't recommend holding your breath for a debut album anytime soon.

Also online @ MTUK = http://www.metalteamuk.net/nov10reviews/cdreviews-bti.htm

EP Stream = http://soundcloud.com/burntheiris/sets/sovereign