Various Artists | Tribunal Records 100 – Cover to Cover

by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer –

Home to a diverse lineup of artists from melodic rockers Line of Fire to thrashers Blatant Disarray to modern metal bands Vanisher and Age of Ruin to metalcore and hardcore bands like Killwhitneydead and Jonin, Tribunal Records has just celebrated their 100th release. To mark the occasion, the label has released a special album that reflects the diversity of their roster as well as the diversity of influences those bands represent. Tribunal 100 – Cover to Cover features 21 cover songs from bands currently (or previously) on the Tribunal label.

Diversity is the key word for this release (which is available in MP3 format only). It’s a safe bet that no other album will have a metalcore band like Wombwrecker stomping their way through Korn’s “Here to Stay” right next to a sublime cover of Queensryche’s “I Will Remember” (courtesy of Line of Fire). The whole album is like that. That anyone would cover bands like EMF and Third Eye Blind is (pardon the pun) unbelievable enough, but hearing those songs from hardcore bands like Swift and He Is Legend is surreal. It works though, as do the more traditional choices, like Blatant Disarray doing justice to Megadeth’s “Holy Wars…The Punishment Due” or Vanisher taking on Metallica’s “Of Wolf and Man.” There are even a couple of old school gems from Uncle Slam and Sargant Fury.

Line of Fire’s Queensryche cover is an obvious standout of Tribunal 100 – Cover to Cover, but other highlights are Jonin’s fierce version of Faith No More’s “Caffeine” and instrumental progressive metal band Canvas Solaris’s take on Coroner’s “Arc-Lite.”

This is just a fun collection of unexpected cover songs that are executed very very well. Whatever your tastes (assuming you’re a fan of metal), chances are there’s something on Tribunal 100 – Cover to Cover for you. If nothing else, you’re in for some surprises with this one. Oh, and how cool is that cover artwork?

Genre: Metal, Hardcore, Melodic Rock

Track Listing:
1. The Feds: Barracuda (Heart)
2. Blatant Disarray: Holy Wars…The Punishment Due (Megadeth)
3. Aria: Clocks (Coldplay)
4. Vanisher: Of Wolf and Man (Metallica)
5. Age of Ruin: Buried Dreams (Carcass)
6. A Secret Death: Welcome to the Machine (Pink Floyd)
7. Killwhitneydead: Sacrifice (Inside Out)
8. Slowmotion Apocalypse: The Razor’s Edge (AC/DC)
9. Line of Fire: I Will Remember (Queensryche)
10. Wombwrecker: Here to Stay (Korn)
11. Jonin: Caffeine (Faith No More)
12. He is Legend: Wounded (Third Eye Blind)
13. Sargant Fury: Maniac (Michael Sembello)
14. Century: Kiss From a Rose (Seal)
15. Canvas Solaris: Arc-Lite (Coroner)
16. Uncle Slam: Dazed & Confused (Led Zeppelin)
17. Enemy is Us: Stockholm Syndrome (Muse)
18. Swift: Unbelievable (EMF)
19. Vanisher: Superbeast (Rob Zombie)
20. Slowmotion Apocalypse: Be Quick or Be Dead (Iron Maiden)
21. Killwhitneydead & Jonin: Vote With a Bullet (Corrosion of Conformity)

Label: Tribunal Records

Website: www.tribunalrecords.com

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.75/10

Colossus Drunk on Blood

by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer

A year after it was released on vinyl, CD buyers finally get to feast on the crushing metal platter that is Drunk on Blood, the debut EP from Raleigh, N.C. traditional metal revivalists Colossus. Traditional metal acts may seem like they’re a dime a dozen these days, but Colossus has a sprit that the White Wizzards and Cauldrons seem to lack. They’re not just aping classic Iron Maiden albums; they’re digging deeper and developing a grittier, more authentic, more metal sound.

It goes without saying that Judas Priest and Iron Maiden are key influences, but you can also hear a strong New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) vibe to these songs. It’s possible the guys in Colossus have never heard of Jaguar, Savage, Tygers of Pan Tang and the like, but they’re practically channeling those bands on some of these songs. Hell, you could slap a Neat Records logo on a 7” of “The Operative” and “Wendigo” and convince people that you had discovered a lost NWOBHM single. And those aren’t even Drunk on Blood’s best songs!

That honor goes to the thrashing, stomping “The Mountain That Rides,” which is based on the unforgettable character in George R.R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire fantasy series (take that, Blind Guardian!) and the furious “Kill More Better,” which absolutely captures the spirit of the soldiers depicted in the zombie epic World War Z. Like the hipster-friendly retro metal band Early Man, there is a sense that the guys in Colossus realize the absurdity of grown men singing about zombies and dragons, but whatever fun they have with the lyrics is balanced by a serious commitment to making authentic metal music.

A lot of bands claim to have a “classic metal” sound but instead seem to exist to fulfill a specific marketing agenda. Colossus is the real deal.

Genre: Traditional Metal

Band:
Sean Buchanan (v)
Bill Fisher (g)
Andy Lewis (g)
Nicky Nixon (g)
Rylan Wilshire-Eshelman (b)
Milton “Doza” Hawes (d)

Track Listing:
1. The Mountain That Rides
2. Kill More Better
3. A Year Later (There Is Still Meat Left In the Skull)
4. The Operative
5. Wendigo

Label: Tribunal

Website: www.myspace.com/thecolossuswillcrushyou

Hardrock Haven rating: 8/10

Nikki Dimage of Line of Fire

by Derric Miller
Staff Writer

Line of Fire guitarist Nikki Dimage checked in with Hardrock Haven to talk about their brand new studio album Momentum; how he’s doing after beating cancer; the behind the scenes vidoes they made to depict the “making of” Momentum; why they covered Dokken’s “Breaking the Chains” and the arrangement of the cover; upcoming tour plans; and a whole lot more.

After hearing Line of Fire, you’ll hear that Europe isn’t the only continent that can churn out world-class Melodic Rock — this is as good as it gets! Tune in now to get to know Dimage and Line of Fire, and pick up Momentum immediately!

Online: On MySpace

(If the embedded player doesn’t populate, click here to stream the interview in a stand alone player.)

Blatant Disarray Everyone Dies Alone

by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer

Is there any doubt that thrash metal is making a major comeback? Between “The Big Four” performances, strong recent material from veteran bands (Testament and Overkill, in particular), retro bands like Toxic Holocaust and Municipal Waste, and exciting modern bands like Skeletonwitch and Warbringer, the thrash revival is inescapable. One of the more promising of the new breed of thrash metal bands is Raleigh, NC-based Blatant Disarray. The band, which features members of black metal band Dreamscapes of the Perverse, plays old school thrash metal with a thoroughly modern energy and classic production.

Everyone Dies Alone is the band’s long-awaited first full-length album, and it’s an absolute feast for thrash metal devotees, especially those who revere – as Blatant Disarray obviously does – classic bands like Testament, Metallica, Megadeth and to some extent Slayer. Wicked fast riffs are paired with intricate guitar solos, and Mike Schaefer’s vocals bring to mind Chuck Billy and James Hetfield’s more aggressive days. There’s also a technical element to these songs. Not necessarily progressive, but technical nonetheless. Production was handled by John Custer who produced several classic Corrosion of Conformity albums, and you do get that Blind/Deliverance vibe at times listening to this album.

Highlights of Everyone Dies Alone include “Down and Out,” “Eye Fortune” and especially the title track, but the whole album is guaranteed to induce headbanging.

If thrash is your thing, Everyone Dies Alone is a must-have album. There aren’t a lot of bands that can pull off such a classic sound without sounding trite or gimmicky, but Blatant Disarray does it, and quite well. It’s not hard to imagine this promising band becoming the standard bearers for the new wave of thrash metal.

Edition Notes: The CD version of Everyone Dies Alone features three previously unreleased bonus tracks – “Nine Days Wonder,” “Number One Disaster” and “Manipulation” – that were originally intended for an EP release that never materialized. These songs are not available in MP3 format, which makes the CD version the better purchase – a rarity in this age of digital music.

Genre: Thrash Metal

Band:
Mike Schaefer (v) (g)
Ryan Johnson (g)
Tim Worrell (d)
Adam Peterson (b)

Track Listing:
1. Undetermined
2. Down and Out
3. Question
4. End
5. Faithless
6. Pathetic
7. A Righteous Rant
8. Eye Fortune
9. Hourglass
10. Everyone Dies Alone
11. Nine Days Wonder (bonus)
12. Number One Disaster (bonus)
13. Manipulation (bonus)

Label: Tribunal

Website: www.blatantdisarray.com

Hardrock Haven rating: 8/10

Line of Fire Momentum

by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer

Momentum seems like an odd title for the second Line of Fire album. Momentum is exactly what the US-based melodic rock band lost in the five years since their well-received self-titled debut was released. Of course, the delay is understandable, given that guitarist/keyboardist/songwriter Nikki Dimage was sidelined for two years with cancer. Now healthy and once again focused on Line of Fire, Dimage and vocalist Shawn Pelata (recently active with Liberty n Justice) are back with another well written, brilliantly executed slice of melodic rock.

For those of you who missed the band’s debut, Line of Fire plays a brand of melodic rock that’s influenced by classic bands like Journey, Boston and Foreigner, but has a modern energy and precision that rivals European bands like Khymera and Brother Firetribe. The band seems to acknowledge their long absence up front, with the appropriately titled “It Takes Time,” which was originally recorded by Nikki Dimage’s 80s band Dimage. This was one of the better songs from Dimage’s It Takes Time collection, and it sounds even better with Pelata singing it. After that comes the very catchy “Obsession,” which is the album’s first single. The Street Talk-sounding ballad “Ghost In Your Heart” is another song that seems made for AOR radio. Of course, there aren’t many, if any, songs on Momentum that wouldn’t make great singles (well, not here in the US of course). The whole album is just packed with catchy melodies, great guitar hooks, and some very impressive vocals. Pelata sounds absolutely incredible here. His vocal range and control seem to have grown measurably since the debut, and he gives these songs an additional measure of both power and heart. The vocal harmonies in particular are just gorgeous. And if that weren’t enough, the album is impeccably produced, mixed and mastered.

Momentum is one of the absolute best melodic rock albums released this year, and proof positive that the Europeans don’t have a monopoly on high quality modern melodic rock. With any luck, the band will stay healthy and this album will prove successful enough to regain that lost momentum.

Note – The CD version of Momentum features an exclusive cover of Dokken’s “Breaking the Chains.” Line of Fire takes a stripped down, acoustic approach to the song, and the results are positively chilling.

Genre: Melodic Rock

Band:
Shawn Pelata (v)
Nikki Dimage (g) (b) (k) (v)
Thomas Clark (g)

Track Listing:
1. It Takes Time
2. Obsession
3. Give Me All
4. I’ll Be the One Tonight
5. I Belong
6. The Fire Never Dies
7. I’m Crying (For You)
8. In the Stone
9. Undone
10. Ghost In Your Heart
11. Breaking the Chains

Label: Tribunal

Website: www.myspace.com/LoF

Hardrock Haven rating: 9/10