Review: SPACE CADAVER – ‘Void Moon’ [Album Stream]

This New Orleans band are fantastic cinematic metal with a sludgy panoramic sound that blasts and bewilders in equal measure.  Lead by the ever thoughtful John Baleine (guitars/vox), ‘Void Moon’ is their second release, following their self-titled debut.

There are four songs completing with release and they are weighty tomes for these dark times. “Beginning of the End” is an eight minute opener which reaches many different valleys and plains with its doom focused arrangements.

The release takes off into further spheres with the beautiful lush instrumental “Another Family“. It creeps in and swells with wonderful arrangements. This is a real tearjerker as you can imagine it being the soundtrack to a modern day Western.

Void Moon” casts a sci-fi vision and stalks from the speakers after the quiet entry. The middle section is a spoken word part about religion, which then moves into a fusion of static.

Evil of Man” finishes the record with deliberate dissonance and a brutal bookend about a plague being unleashed – very topical for these troubled times. “Killer of spirit, killer of spirit!  Lies the memory of the life never known!” Not easy listening, but a headfirst dive into the horror of the present.  The song is hypnotic and starts to unnerve with its extreme soundscape.  There is never an easy ask for real art and this song is art in action.

Space Cadaver are a band unafraid to experiment and make you unsettled by their beauty and brute force. Don’t enter without a safety hat of wonder!  They are a band that take your preconceived ideas and make them turn on their head.  They have a sound that is hard to define, but they don’t make music for the masses and are focused on their art alone.  A refreshing change of pace from the norm.

 

State Of The Art: SPACE CADAVER [Album + Video Stream]

*This is a part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured state.*

This month’s state is Louisiana!

New Orleans’ Space Cadaver are a band that have fury and finesse, with a groove that stomps all over their songs. They have a sci-fi style and power to match the best in the universe. Guitarist/vocalist John Baleine, bassist Beto Arias and drummer Jason Meserole bring dark and light in equal measure.  Formed in 2015, Space Cadaver have shared the stage with heavyweights such as Conan, Acid King and Ufomammut. Their message of spacey doom is spreading quickly!

Their debut self-titled album has been available since 2017.  Guitarist/vocalist Baleine commented that “this album is a benchmark of 3 years of hard work and determination – an opportunity to grow…and have closure with a lot of dark things… It was a cleanse to purge the pent up frustrations around the suicide and murders of loved ones, drug addiction and the struggle to break free from the things that are no longer serving me.

Space Cadaver have a sound that melds Death, Doom and Stoner in a rock hard package. Their self-titled debut album is a tour de force of genre-defying metal. They may only have a bass, guitar and drums to work from, but they know how to work that to make an amazing cinematic sound that sonically destroys everything in the mainstream metal world.

The album kicks off with the riffy ‘The Infinite Black Sun‘.  This sets the band’s stall out, with Baleine’s growling vocals and thoughtful lyrics.  The sound that a three piece make is genuinely impressive.  The bass is high in the mix and the drums splatter through the fuzz storm of guitar.  There are light passages that bring the sound into a different sphere and the dark parts take you to a back alley and mug you.

The guitar dominates “Day Ruiner“, as the groove is augmented by a superb guitar solo that is full of heart and power.  “Storm” follows with the sound of hell coming out to play.  A grunge-type melody lends the song a spirit that cannot be dismissed easily.

Insufficient Reward” is a masterpiece in cinematic metal.  It ebbs and flows with an approach that composers of movie scores love.  I can imagine a video of someone escaping evil forces, running down dark corridors in space.  The drumming is superb on this tune.

The commercially accessible “Clock Hoarder” continues with its fantastic bass/guitar interplay. It also manages to tip its hat to old school thrash.  “Nowhere, Now Here” continues the album with a progressive, minor key insurgency. Once again, a cinematic sound, focusing on a picture in space of desolation and regret.

The closing two numbers, “Sword of the Lord” and “Draco’s Revenge” are urgent, epic sound songs that veer from blast beats to progressive jazz in the space of minutes.

Overall, Space Cadaver are a band that everyone should check out, before they check out (in space, naturally).

State Of The Art: Louisiana’s ORIFIST [Official Album Stream]

*This is a part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured state.*

This month’s state is Louisiana!

Providing a powerful boost of energy and creativity to old school death metal, is New Orleans own, Orifist. The trio consisting of Devin Jones (guitar/vocals), Matt Fogarty (lead vocals), and Dominick Mora (drums) present a murderous sound, reminiscent of the classics, with names like Suffocation, Morbid Angel, and Death immediately coming to mind. Continue reading

State Of The Art: Louisiana’s THE ARBITRARY [Track Stream]

*This is a part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured state.*

This month’s state is Louisiana!

Any fans of progressive instrumental are severely missing out if The Arbitrary is not a part of their lives. The New Orleans two-piece has been self-releasing since 2015. Together, Jeffrey Fisher (guitar) and Adam Sauter (drums) have continued to boggle the brains of prog fans, yet quench the thirst for musical excellence with their 2017 EP ‘Identity.’ It may only be four songs, but those four songs are all the listener needs. A touch a djent, a brush of tech; it’s about time for a Ph.D. in music theory. Continue reading

International Guitar Month: JIMMY BOWER

Photo by: by Ronan Thenadey

Photo by: by Ronan Thenadey

If you are a fan of any New Orleans band you should be thanking Jimmy Bower. Jimmy has been one of the forefathers of metal in Louisiana. You may know him from Eye Hate God, Down or Superjoint Ritual. Jimmy is one of the most celebrated guitar players in heavy metal, and while he is a legend on that instrument he is also a well accomplished drummer as well (as you may have seen in Down). Jimmy has often been called “The Godfather of Southern Metal.” If the iconic bands mentioned above wasn’t enough he also had brief stints in the bands Corrosion of Conformity, and Crowbar. Another band that Jimmy has shredded for was The Mystick Krewe of Clearlight. It was an instrumental project so it allowed our ears to consume even more of Jimmy’s sacred sound. Continue reading