Fiend - Staring Down A Monster
Self-released - 2006
By Philip Whitehouse
Fiend would appear to be proof positive that quality music can still shine through shoddy packaging and a poor production. I mean, okay, it's a self-released album and everything, but seriously, that artwork? There's actually a website credited with the cover design on the back of the sleeve - which implies that the band may well have paid for that. The mind boggles. But I digress. What we have here is straightforward, aggressive, 80s-esque metal played with admirable passion and energy.
Which is handy, since the drums sound kind of like they're coming through the wall to your next-door-neighbour's house, so muffled and distant are the kick drums and so reverbed and largely attack-free the snare and toms. Adding to this rather muted drum-sound is a somewhat over-gained guitar tone that obscures some of the more frantic riffage in a wall of distortion. So, points lost there, guys. The vocals come through pretty nicely, though, and a good thing it is too, since vocalist/guitarist Nino Volpe has an impressively powerful voice, managing to sound quite a lot like Whitesnake's David Coverdale most of the time and belting out tracks like opener 'My Lonely Smile' with gusto.
The band handle covers of Iron Maiden's 'Flight Of Icarus' and Black Sabbath's 'Supernaut' well enough (surprisingly, the Maiden cover seems to work best, despite Nino voice being seemingly unsuited to the demands set by the Air Raid Siren himself), and their own material is pretty impressive too. A more professional production and a few more stand-out tracks, and Fiend could definitely be on to something.
Fiend's Official Website
Self-released - 2006
By Philip Whitehouse
Fiend would appear to be proof positive that quality music can still shine through shoddy packaging and a poor production. I mean, okay, it's a self-released album and everything, but seriously, that artwork? There's actually a website credited with the cover design on the back of the sleeve - which implies that the band may well have paid for that. The mind boggles. But I digress. What we have here is straightforward, aggressive, 80s-esque metal played with admirable passion and energy.
Which is handy, since the drums sound kind of like they're coming through the wall to your next-door-neighbour's house, so muffled and distant are the kick drums and so reverbed and largely attack-free the snare and toms. Adding to this rather muted drum-sound is a somewhat over-gained guitar tone that obscures some of the more frantic riffage in a wall of distortion. So, points lost there, guys. The vocals come through pretty nicely, though, and a good thing it is too, since vocalist/guitarist Nino Volpe has an impressively powerful voice, managing to sound quite a lot like Whitesnake's David Coverdale most of the time and belting out tracks like opener 'My Lonely Smile' with gusto.
The band handle covers of Iron Maiden's 'Flight Of Icarus' and Black Sabbath's 'Supernaut' well enough (surprisingly, the Maiden cover seems to work best, despite Nino voice being seemingly unsuited to the demands set by the Air Raid Siren himself), and their own material is pretty impressive too. A more professional production and a few more stand-out tracks, and Fiend could definitely be on to something.
Fiend's Official Website
