{"id":20015,"date":"2012-05-14T18:24:44","date_gmt":"2012-05-14T23:24:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=20015"},"modified":"2013-02-05T16:04:10","modified_gmt":"2013-02-05T21:04:10","slug":"69-chambers-torque","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2012\/69-chambers-torque\/","title":{"rendered":"69 Chambers | Torque<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis<\/span>
\nStaff Writer —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"Swiss female-fronted metal trio 69 Chambers has just released its sophomore effort entitled Torque<\/em> and it is a fine follow up to their 2009 debut, War On The Inside<\/em>. A bit alternative, a bit Gothic, and a bit old school, 69 Chambers delivers 14 varied and interesting tracks that should appeal to fans of almost any of the darker genres of metal.<\/p>\n

The trio is led by the expressive vocals and multi-instrumental talents of Nina Vetterli-Treml (who is an automotive and motor sports journalist when not performing). Her voice is well-suited to the genre, and runs the gamut from soft and smoky to gritty and intense. She also contributes some fine bass and guitar to the album. Nina is backed nicely by standout guitarist (and husband) Tommy Vetterli (Coroner, Kreator) and drummer Diego Rapacchietti. The tracks on Torque<\/em> stylistically range from the standard rock ballad to \u201cbeauty and the beast\u201d metal to near pop-metal, but no matter which genre dominates melody is always present. The band\u2019s musicianship is excellent, and the production values of the release are high.<\/p>\n

The album opens with a bit of electronica during the intro to \u201cCause And Effect,\u201d a thrashy track that sets the gritty tone for the remainder of the CD. Nina does a bit of back and forth with growling vocalist Chrigel Glanzmann (Eluveitie), and the pair change from sweeping melodic metal to snarling near death metal without difficulty. A more alternative sound (with a hint of pop metal) takes over with \u201cBring On The Flood.\u201d This track features some great drum \/ bass coordination and a smooth layered chorus \u2013 a nice job all around. The band goes doom metal with the gloomy, guitar driven \u201cNaughty Naughty Naughty,\u201d and Nina adapts her vocals perfectly, coming across as a bit sinister. \u201cAnhedonia\u201d is a more conventional metal track with some manic drumming, well done vocals, and interesting rhythm guitars. Nina\u2019s voice and passion are apparent on the conventional bass oriented rocker \u201cBurn Some Gasoline.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Peep Hole\u201d is a very dark gritty track with great vocal performances (including some cool growls) and a complex rhythm line. \u201cRing A Bell\u201d has an electronic opening and a bluesy vocal line. It would be a great track if it wasn\u2019t for the distracting electronic manipulations of Nina\u2019s voice. These last two tracks don\u2019t seem to fit the image that 69 Chambers is trying to build \u2013 they are better suited to a pop-rock band, especially when followed up by the very dark and Gothic \u201cCloseure\u201d and the doomy \u201cAnd Then There Was Silence.\u201d The latter features some excellently brutal growls by Nina and slick guitars throughout. Unfortunately this track is marred by an annoying spoken (well, yelled actually) section at the end. \u201cTemple Down\u201d is another well-done Soundgarden influenced rocker.<\/p>\n

The ballad-esque modern rocker \u201cYour Fool\u201d is a nicely done song, but again lacks the brutal edge of most of the other songs and as a result it seems a bit out of place. Fortunately the band dials the intensity right back up with the guitar-heavy and drum-centric \u201cThe Doom Of Her Power\u201d \u2013 one of the best tracks on the release on lyrical, tone, and performance levels. “Grace\u201d conjures up a bit of Lacuna Coil with its somber mood and strong bottom end. The soft and smooth \u201cElegy\u201d wraps the album and features an emotional and heartfelt guitar solo. This final track really highlights the full range of Nina\u2019s voice and the talent of Vetterli and Rapacchietti, as well as the stylistic depth of their songwriting skills.<\/p>\n

69 Chambers Torque<\/em> should appeal to most alternative metal fans, and to those who are into the Gothic or groove metal scenes. The band writes good dark songs without being overly morbid and depressing, and delivers them for the most part with appropriate levels of emotion and enthusiasm. The variety of styles highlights the band\u2019s versatility, but leads to some tonal inconsistency. Not a perfect album by any means, but one that comes from the heart. Solid performances and gritty lyrics, coupled with good production techniques make 69 Chambers a band to watch in the future.<\/p>\n

Genre: Alternative Metal<\/p>\n

Band:
\nNina Vetterli-Treml (vocals, bass, guitar)
\nTommy Vetterli (guitars)
\nDiego Rapacchietti (drums)
\nGuest musician: Chrigel Glanzmann (vocals on \u201cCause And Effect\u201d)<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n1.\tCause And Effect
\n2.\tBring On The Flood
\n3.\tNaughty Naughty Naughty
\n4.\tAnhedonia
\n5.\tBurn Some Gasoline
\n6.\tThe Peep Hole
\n7.\tRing A Bell
\n8.\tClosure
\n9.\tAnd Then There Was Silence
\n10.\tTemple Down
\n11.\tYour Fool
\n12.\tThe Doom Of Her Power
\n13.\tGrace
\n14.\tElegy<\/p>\n

Label: Massacre Records<\/p>\n

Website: http:\/\/www.69chambers.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 7.5\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis Staff Writer — Swiss female-fronted metal trio 69 Chambers has just released its sophomore effort entitled Torque and it is a fine follow up to their 2009 debut, War On The Inside. […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6772],"tags":[780],"class_list":{"0":"post-20015","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-arcrvws2012","7":"tag-massacre-records"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20015","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20015"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20015\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20015"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20015"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20015"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}