Occam's Razor said:
How's David DeFeis doing? I heard that the production was awful. I see that the cover definitely is...
It's only awful if you consider the guitar a really important thing to hear in the mix.
It's still an interesting listen. And that "concept" twist at the end... ay ay ay.
Anyway, I feel all underground again. Got some unsigned Italian band's new pro-pressed CD (including ANNOYING LITTLE FOIL STICKER that's on ever Italian CD). Those always make me feel good, "Somebody doing something for THEMSELVES!" The enthusiasm doesn't usually last after I've pressed play, but us jaded bastards will take any warm fuzzies we can get.
Also, four CDs from I Hate Records, with the latest from The Gates of Slumber, Burning Saviours, Fall of the Idols, and Isole. Just reading the short descriptions sent with the CDs and reading the label site's news is giving me DOOM WOODIES.
This is the shit I
really enjoy getting in the mail.
Get a load of these taglines:
Fall of the Idols: "Mellow low key parts with a DOORS vibe blends with crushing walls of bombast echoing CANDLEMASS and COUNT RAVEN."
The Gates of Slumber: "VITUS, PENTAGRAM and FROST are still steady at the core of TGOS sound on this, their second, album. Vintage currents of MANOWAR,RAINBOW, THIN LIZZY,and CIRITH UNGOL can also be sensed by those anal enough to analyze."
Burning Saviours: "60/70s vintage Rock music with clear parallels to SABBATH, PENTAGRAM and JETHRO TULL"
Isole: "The 7 songs on Throne Of Void will once and for all cement ISOLEs place among the genres elite acts (CANDLEMASS, SOLITUDE AETERNUS, SOLSTICE, FORSAKEN, WHILE HEAVEN WEPT)."
I mean, they are obviously aiming for a specific audience. (Selling your CD by calling While Heaven Wept an elite act? That's narrowing your audience down, eh?

) But doesn't this sound a bit more down to Earth as far as selling your bands than, say, the promotional chatter of Nuclear Blast or Century Media?
Let's see:
Scar Symmetry: "...a brand new constellation that would express a fresh and heavy form of catchy death metal without any boundaries whatsoever. The band wanted to incorporate huge synthesizers into the music, along with blazing vituoso guitar soloing, which would all be backed up with complex but catchy rhythms and every style of singing known to metal in general."
HammerFall: "When we talk about todays Heavy Metal scene, we have to talk about Swedens HAMMERFALL, which are one of the most important bands today." (wait... the bio on the NB Europe site is from TWO ALBUMS AGO. haha!)
Belphegor: " BELPHEGOR emerges as one of the most extreme line ups to ever come out of the death black metal scene."
... and this gem for TO/DIE/FOR, which doesn't fit my point at all but this is too awesome to not mention: "It seems like Gothic Metal became the national music for Finland, as so many excellent acts showed up within the last years and convinced with their typical style."
Wow, that's quite a rant inspired by looking at stuff in envelopes without even turning the stereo on.
This better not suck!