What is it about all these Napalm Death side projects featuring drum machines? Almost all of them do. Is ND planning on going industrial?

I doubt it, myself. These outings are a nice catharsis for the boys. This one features ND bassist Shane Embury, who does everything but sing. Oh, and by the way, Sick of It All's Lou Koller fills in the vocals.

Much like Meathook Seed, this sounds nothing like either band, really, but is an interesting departure. It is closer to an industrial hard core sound, but then there are those little sampling moments. Shane sure had some fun.

This doesn't quite measure up to the Meathook Seed (that sure isn't a crime, though), but it is solid work that deserves attention.

There are those who refer to Reek of Putrefaction and Symphonies of Sickness as the most brutal things they have ever heard.

Heartwork cannot be confused with those discs (actually, in the U.S. they wee originally released on one disc). Because Jeff Walker and pals have decided to try and take death metal to the masses and still stick to some of the roots.

This is the most vicious thing I've ever heard distributed by a major label. And when compared to other folk who are trying to do this sort of death metal, Carcass blows them away.

A few folk have told me they think this album sucks. Obviously not too many, because Carcass almost passed over Sepultura to debut at #1 (#2 ain't bad). But to those of you who don't like the new direction (and it's not that new), compare this to the last Napalm Death album, or even the new Entombed. And tell me what you think.

Still masters of their domain.

I'm not sure what the title of the album means, but that's what it says. What it sounds like is sloppy punk more intent on making noise than music.

And I'm often in favor of such things, except that for some weird reason I smell a distinct lack of talent trying to rip off other less-talented but more famous people.

It's not absolutely horrible, but of the punk records reviewed in this issue, this is the worst of the lot. The lyrics are more stupid than funny and everything just seems to leave this acrid taste in my mouth.

I still wish I could figure out what the hell the title means. If I could do that, maybe I could figure out the rest of this.

What? A rap record from A.T.? C'mon, where do you think the Disposable Heroes came from?

And as for the Bay-area rap scene, how about Paris, Digital Underground, etc.? West coast rap means more than N.W.A. (in all its current forms) and Ice-T.

Chill E.B. has a heavy, pronounced delivery, like many hard-core rappers. But he uses his mind instead of "motherfucker" every other word. The messages are generally positive, and they certainly aren't gangsta tales.

But many songs seem to fade just as they are getting going, like he's just putting snippets of a full-length.

What's here is very good. I just wish there was more.

Three folks from rather well-known bands (read the press for yersef) get together to play a little party music.

While wandering from Seattle to New York, they apparently got the attention of Austin's coolest label, Trance Syndicate (not hard considering the personnel), and this little slice of heaven was ushered into the universe.

Don't believe me, eh? Remember how cool ZZ Top was in the seventies? Well, eliminate the slow numbers, add a little feedback and some intangibles, and here you are. Cool music you can play at a party, and even your friends who think U2 is the coolest "alternative" band around can get into it.

Did I mention this rocks? Well, turn it up, man! (Sorry about that outburst. I really should watch less Up All Night.)

Sometimes you get a single, and you say, yes, this band knows where it's at.

Their "Slumber" 7" last fall really impressed me. Then I got the advance cassette. It's been played more than a few times.

One of the best things about these folk is their music cannot be categorized. Sure, it fits into the general pop side of things, but it's heavy enough to get metal reports (already). There are elements of the punk thing, and Alice Cohen sometimes cranks her voice into an ethereal mode. The whole thing comes off as otherworldly, and I really like it.

A special note: Roadrunner is only servicing this to the "alternative" side of things. Those of you who share your format with the rest of the station (and that's most of you) will obviously be okay. The others just might have to search out a copy. Please do. This is a great band that deserves to be played all over the place.

I knew this was going to be a hot album when a friend of mine whose tastes run more to James Brown and Marvin Gaye told me he thought the advance sounded great. I figured this was an extension of the death-lite found on Hollowman, and that was that.

Oops. While there are some commercial riffs flying around, and the production is immaculate, this is still a real-live death metal record. And a good one, to boot.

Once we've all given up our fantasies of a new grindcore paradise and accepted the current trends in death metal, then this record starts to sound even better. Yes, L.G. enunciates much of the time. The bpm drop under 200 most of the album.

BUT-a big but-this has been coming on for a couple of years. If everyone was so enamored of grindcore, more folks would have played the Anal Cunt record. And comparing the two is absurd. They aren't even in the same time zone.

Well, I haven't heard any bitching from you folks about this record, so I'll just assume part one of my soapbox was unnecessary. Jam this.

As many of your know, the better portion of Olivelawn (with a new drummer) released a full-length last year under the band name fluf. The CD, vinyl and cassette versions each had a different name. The one I had was called Mangravy. It smoked, I said so, and not too many people noticed.

So, let's try this again. fluf is a great band from the San Diego area that has managed to stay on an indie. Not a small achievement. They play heavy pop-punk, or light hard core with nice melodies. I don't care how you classify it. Despite the unfortunate necessity to label things, I really don't like to. This is good, heavy music that makes you tap your foot and sing along, particularly after one too many microbrews.

If that doesn't convince you, I'm just not sure how to do it.

Back in the mid-eighties, Gone was something of a real band, and an experimental one at that.

Welcome to the new Gone. Welcome to a new era in music, generally. The original Ginn sidekicks are absent, and I think the new rhythm section is a little more interested in getting an industrial sound.

Sure, there's Ginn's self-consciously sloppy playing (it sounds great as usual), but instead of wallowing in and improving on the past, this Gone tries to create a future sound.

All instrumentals, so you can play every song here, and they all sound pretty good. New Gone. Good Gone. I'm gone.

Straightforward rock n' roll with some real nice hooks. The kind of stuff you heard from today's aging stars twenty years ago.

Well, it doesn't sound dated or anything, but it sure is catchy and is sure to make you a happy person. I know, you ask how Doctor Dream manages to dig up all these great bar bands, from the Cadillac Tramps and Dash Rip Rock to folk like this.

They're damned good at what they do, that why. And so is Joyride. Oh, I suppose I should mention that a couple of these guys used to be in the Adolescents, though this output certainly supersedes the need to discuss the past.

Smiles all around. Another round, bartender.

Britain's most prolific punk band has pumped another one through the pipeline. And who would be at the knobs? Just a bloke named Steve Harris.

Tuneful yet heavy punk that has a lot more to say than you might guess. And still, a lot of it is certainly silly.

Why would Earache sign a band that has nothing to do with death metal? Well, maybe because THEY'RE REAL GOOD. Or something like that.

There has been this big fence between the metal and punk worlds. "Real punk rockers" use the phrase "went metal" whenever a band they liked used a little too much guitar on a record. And metal folks have reciprocated by mostly ignoring bands like Bad Religion and ALL that are natural for them.

Lawnmower Deth has done a little better, partly because of their label. But their label has also held them back at "alternative", which has embraced punk and punk derivatives of late.

So who will play this infectious disc? Someone better, damnit!

As if punk needed another band led by a (just for show?) transvestite.

Well, if all such outfits sounded like this, then it surely does. LHO Band plays sloppily (and maybe even under the influence at times), but it sure is a lot of fun. A couple of odd covers make this a strange set indeed, but it charms nonetheless.

The obvious fun this trio is having while playing is evident even through the sometimes heavy distortion. A Taste of Prison is perfect for partying or just whenever you want to feel better about things in general.

Ex-Napalmers Michael Harris and (current Godlesh member) Nick Bullen return with another installment of the Scorn saga.

There exists deep in the subconscious of the death metal movement an experimental side. Scorn and Candiru (a member of which was on a previous Scorn project) are the finest and best-known progenitors.

This is difficult music. It demands your attention and makes you conform your ideas about music to its ideal. Challenging your sense of music and reality every step of the way, Scorn has once again created a truly original piece. Would that everyone else had such standards.

This is what techno was supposed to be, before a few freaks threw out a bunch of compilations featuring folk who just threw a lot of beat-heavy crap underneath tons of keyboards.

Yeah, you can dance to a lot of this, but you can also hear the experimentation with the rhythms of the songs. In a word: artistry.

I don't like most commercial techno because it's mostly loads of repetitive crap. I prefer my music to be interesting, and that applies to dance music, death metal or anything. Sect has the talent to make interesting techno. The guys also have the brains to check out the past masters, especially Kraftwerk, for inspiration. It isn't all about "rub your ass right here and make me feel you!" shit. Actually, these are instrumentals, so you don't have any dumb vocals. True techno. Good techno.

These guys have obviously ignored all of the marketing folks who told them how they should sound in order to be "hip" metal guys. There's some grind, some hard core, a couple of death metal tracks, and some shit I don't even want to try to identify. Actually, they will often seg between what people who think too much call subgenres.

With titles like "10 Lbs. of Shit in a 5 Lb. Bag", you know you're not dealing with the sensitive artist type. And the level of humor is somewhat below, say, the "Honeymooners".

This isn't a bad thing at all. Who says a band that plays like their various appendages are about to fall off can't have a little fun (or a lot). You should too.

Guys who like to vary their music. This starts off with some basic Sabbath rehashing (not that good), then merges into more of a pop-punk-grunge sorta thing (much better). Side two is what was described to me as the "spacey" side, and it is. Don't worry, the guitars still make a lot of noise.

In all, mostly rooted in the seventies, but I liked the stuff that wasn't. These guys can play, and a little more work could do wonders. Well-produced, with very little of the typical demo muffling.

They've got that guitar sound that just screams metal, rather entertaining rhythmic workings and decent lyrics.

I know the sometime-semblance to Alice in Chains will get them some airplay, but Adam Marfisi will have to get over that husky, moaning vocal style of his before TWK can establish their own style.

I know a little about these folk, and they are just getting their shit together. They have their chops pretty well established, but there is more than a little room for growth. There are some really hot spots on this disc, and at times I can hear their own sound just starting to emerge.

Give 'em time. And give this a listen.

From what I hear, this consists of songs in demos the band has made the past few years. The production is pretty good, so I figure they must have re-recorded somewhere down the line.

Certainly a little cleaner than earlier efforts, and instead of trying to get on the death metal bandwagon, the boys veer more into the traditional metal vein, following Suicidal Tendencies, Biohazard and Cro-Mags. It's at least as good as those. Accessible yet heavy, I can see reasonable commercial attention.

If you were expecting the old days, you're out of luck. But this is a solid record that deserves to be judged on where the band is today.

Blood
O Agios Pethane advance cassette
(1MF-Cargo)

An honest attempt to combine the speed of grindcore with the mess of death metal. When it slows down and sounds less like Cannibal Corpse it works better.

A lot of buzz on this, mostly from the big boys. Good melodic post-grunge. Kinda reminds me of Kyuss. And then there are the mellow parts.