Evil Scarecrow - Sixty-Six Minutes Past Six
Deadbox Records
By Ellie McGee
Let’s be honest, with a name like Evil Scarecrow, I was never going to pass up this promo. Going by interesting names in the absence of bands you know anything about is a risky strategy, but one that I feel has paid off this time. It's paid off because, quite frankly, this is a superb album. It takes no small amount of guts to take the piss out of metal quite so comprehensively, but Evil Scarecrow have done it anyway.
For starters, anyone who's ever encountered the more angsty, eyeliner-driven end of metal surely can't fail to crack a smile at Blacken The Everything with lines like "I've lived a hundred lives more miserable than yours!". As a (whisper it) former HIM fan, I was almost literally in hysterics. Then there are further gems like March Of The Spider God, with its wonderfully menacing drums, mocking lyrics and more than a touch of Cradlesque histrionics. Unusually, given that I usually hate such things, even the intro, Inseminate ("Psychos do not explode when sunlight hits them, I don't give a fuck how crazy they are!"), is brilliant and sets the tone perfectly.
Yes, there are a few slightly forgettable tracks (I personally can't warm to War And Seek), but that doesn't mean they're bad tracks; they're just not as memorable as the superlative tracks lurking on this album. With a few notable exceptions, most of the parody here is both affectionate and fairly non-specific, but no less wonderful for that. If I have to criticise something, it would be that some of the genres and bands lampooned here are easy targets to say the least, but they've a whole career to work on that.
Finally, nitpicking aside, how can anyone not buy an album that contains tracks like Godzilla's Lament and features Robototron '09 as the best bonus track I've heard in years?
Official Evil Scarecrow Website
Official Evil Scarecrow MySpace
Official DeadBox Records Website
Deadbox Records
By Ellie McGee
Let’s be honest, with a name like Evil Scarecrow, I was never going to pass up this promo. Going by interesting names in the absence of bands you know anything about is a risky strategy, but one that I feel has paid off this time. It's paid off because, quite frankly, this is a superb album. It takes no small amount of guts to take the piss out of metal quite so comprehensively, but Evil Scarecrow have done it anyway.
For starters, anyone who's ever encountered the more angsty, eyeliner-driven end of metal surely can't fail to crack a smile at Blacken The Everything with lines like "I've lived a hundred lives more miserable than yours!". As a (whisper it) former HIM fan, I was almost literally in hysterics. Then there are further gems like March Of The Spider God, with its wonderfully menacing drums, mocking lyrics and more than a touch of Cradlesque histrionics. Unusually, given that I usually hate such things, even the intro, Inseminate ("Psychos do not explode when sunlight hits them, I don't give a fuck how crazy they are!"), is brilliant and sets the tone perfectly.
Yes, there are a few slightly forgettable tracks (I personally can't warm to War And Seek), but that doesn't mean they're bad tracks; they're just not as memorable as the superlative tracks lurking on this album. With a few notable exceptions, most of the parody here is both affectionate and fairly non-specific, but no less wonderful for that. If I have to criticise something, it would be that some of the genres and bands lampooned here are easy targets to say the least, but they've a whole career to work on that.
Finally, nitpicking aside, how can anyone not buy an album that contains tracks like Godzilla's Lament and features Robototron '09 as the best bonus track I've heard in years?
Official Evil Scarecrow Website
Official Evil Scarecrow MySpace
Official DeadBox Records Website
