HOLIDAY TREATS: PHIL MCNAMARA ON THE EXOSET, GROUPACTION, REAXIS, AND VEINCAGE CDS

The winter holidays are fast approaching. 2004 has been a great year for local music. To get a snapshot of what's been going on out there, here's a review of a couple of local albums and EPs.

EXOSET – "The Discordant Army from The Dirtlands" (Recorded, Mixed, and Mastered by Adam Sloan)

Is it really that difficult to find a good drummer or bass player in this local metal scene? Apparently it is for Adam Sloan, who played all the instruments and self produced this disk (in his basement no doubt). The disc is 11 somewhat lengthy thrash metal opuses. In the opener "The Exile" Sloan adds what sounds like DJ turntable scratching and then sets off on an electro metal course. His vocals are all over the place as he begins with a hardcore bark, but drifts into a low airy 60s psychedelic voice that's a little off putting. To his credit Sloan enunciates well so you can tell exactly what every song is about. "The Exile" is about…uh, nature. The song drifts from thrash to high winding European sounding classical metal guitar runs. At five minutes this song drags a little, a common trait throughout this disc.

Sloan uses a low raspy hushed voice for "Transparent Hunter," ranting over speedy double pedal drumming. Exoset plays with time and dynamic for something that approaches a Mr. Bungle effect. Exoset stops the song to insert the soundtrack of a war documentary which seems cool at first, then pointless after a few minutes. "Defiance" has a mellow beginning that builds up into an angry rap rock tune. Sloan doesn't rap like a hip hopper, more like Johnathan Davis in Korn only not quite as annoying. "Defiance" continues on as a speed metal song. Sloan's vocals make everything he does sound a little different. He does the Cookie Monster scream as well as anyone else, but in the parts where he sings he has a low vibrating voice that I can't quite come up with a comparison for.

One of those English bands from the late 70s comes to mind. Sloan goes for Metallica like speed and fury with "Erased" and almost pulls it off until those low hushed vocals kick in. The title cut is an interesting mix of guitars as funky guitars that sound like they've been put through one of those Peter Frampton effects melodically mix with heavily distorted guitars. Mid-song Sloan lets his voice go full throttle. Another vocal comparison comes to mind, Gibby Hayes from the Butthole Surfers. It also brings to mind David St. Hubbins from Spinal Tap bombastically pontificating over Stonehenge. It's quite frightening really.

"Chronos Consumer" gives the middle of this disc a crushing heaviness. For lack of a better comparison Korn once again comes to mind. "Pursue the Humility Processor" brings the disc into an experimental phase. The band's need for a real full time drummer shows through as the drum beat appears to be recycled from earlier songs on the disc. By the end of the song it has shifted into a Black Sabbath like stoner blues rock. The band stays with the Sabbath like blues riffs combined with blasts from a Casio keyboard in "Thrivoid," a sort of low budget electro metal sound. The disc begins it's windup with the marching beat of "Memory Worm" a track that sounds like it could have been lifted from the Star Wars soundtrack, combining an orchestral march with what sound like growls from Chewbacca. From there it kicks into the cloudy low-fi stoner rock sound of "Zero Hour."

By the end of this disc it starts to suffer from sameness. Just about everything towards the end of this record sounds like it's been done, mostly at the beginning of this record. The disc goes out with a little diversity as "It Was Once Night Again" brings on a soup of psychedelic fuzz and Sloan's voice takes on an eerie gothic quality as he laments a world full of hate in this five minute epic. For its first time out Exoset has some pretty good ideas. A little bit of editing, an increase in the production values, and finding an actual band could make Exoset something really special. If you're looking to pick up something different for the holidays, drop Adam a line. Also if you play drums or bass and like heavy metal, I'll bet Adam could use your help too.

Exoset01@aol.com


GROUPACTION – "Triskaidekaphoolia EP" (Produced, Engineered, Mixed and Mastered by Roger Lavallee at Tremolo Lounge West Boylston, MA)

We're having some fun now. Group Action is a local quintet of serious musicians who don't take themselves too seriously. The music on this four song EP is all over the map as the opener "All Over Your Face" starts off with frantically rumbling surf guitar licks before shifting into echoes of early '60s garage rock. The vocal harmonies sound like something along the lines of The Zombies or The Hollies (only comparison that I could think of as I'm not really up to snuff on the early '60s). Mid song slows down as lead singer Reverend Sean Revoltah' gets tons of echo in his voice for a hazy smokey vocal. "Sweet Sixteen" would be the obvious radio hit on any other band's record, but all four songs on this Ep are just so catchy. The middle of "Sweet Sixteen" gets a laugh out of me with its high school slang from 15 years ago, especially the song's ending line, "Youth is wasted on the young and dumb and come on baby we could make or break a law or two tonight." They'd probably need to write a hip hop song to capture today's high school slang.

"Keep Talkin" delights with its stepped up ska. The background vocals give it a spacey effect. It's the most danceable song on the record. Guitarist Heinrich von Schtupp shows his range with the song, mixing tight ska riffs with 60s pop. Group Action closes out the disc with the hesitant love song, "You'll Do." Revoltah' seamlessly mixes joy and cynicism in a song that'll make you sing along and give you something to think about. These four songs leave me with huge anticipation for Group Action's upcoming full length "Triskadekaphenia." Until it arrives, these four songs should keep you happy.

http://www.groupactionrocks.com


REAXIS – "Solomon Dividing EP" (Produced, Engineered, Mixed, and Mastered by Skinny J. Reaxis at Blackdog Studios Stoughton, MA)

Reaxis is a quartet from south of Boston that's been making some headway into the local scene via the Lucky Dog's Wormtown Wednesdays. Live they sounded like a tight hard rock band with progressive tendencies. Those progressive tendencies and the energy of their live set aren't really captured on this CD. The bass and guitar buildup in the opening title track has a Tool like tension while singer/guitarist Sean McEvoy's breathy and raspy vocals sound more emo than hard rock. Taking Back Sunday and '90s Boston greats Milltown come to mind. It works…for this song anyway.

"Reflex" goes for a more straight up arena rock sound. By "Pieces of Eight" McEvoy's voice starts to bug me a little. Instead of one of those emo guys he starts to remind me of that guy from Live, or that guy from Nickleback…oh my God, I hate that band. The finale "Care About You" knocks the Nickleback comparison out for something from 1994. Anyone remember that band Collective Soul? This song brings up repressed memories of them and it's not pleasant. I'd really like to listen to more local hard rock to have something to recommend to friends who aren't looking for alternative music, but this just hurts too much.

http://www.reaxis.net


VEINCAGE – "Should Have Seen it Coming" (Produced by Peter DiNardi and Mark Allen Miller, Recorded, Mixed, and Mastered by Peter DiNardi at Syphogene K Studios, Worcester, MA and Wellington, New Zealand)

Considering Veincage's lineup of vets from local heavies Chillum and Sick Dog as well as Peter DiNardi's previous work, I was expecting this record to be really heavy and a little scary. On this CD, Veincage concentrate more on hip hop experimentalism than on being heavy. The opener "Hard Hit Rain" mixes a slow Marilyn Manson sounding version of the Sound of Music classic "Getting to Know You" while lead rapper Norman Wedge lays down a hard edgy rap. "Forgotten" cooks up a psychedelic sounding mixes of organic sounding drumbeats and sampled orchestral and piano sounds. Wedge's quirky nasally rap fits just right with the song and makes it as pungent as an old Cypress Hill Gang classic. DiNardi's low toned rap sounds oddly enough like Tom Waits. That's right, could you picture Tom Waits doing rap? I couldn't really until I heard this.

The bass heavy low toned opening of "Faced" gives it a gothic feel. Wedge gets into some serious hardcore screaming while DiNardi's rap sounds like Del tha Funky Homo sapient. It turns into the mosh pit anthem on the disc with it's heavy driving bass and repeating chunky guitar riffs. Veincage tries their hand at industrial hardcore on "Unwraps." The song is all over the place starting with a whispered rap over ambient guitar and descending into electronic terror like a more hardcore version of Ministry. It's hard and heavy, but really catchy. The song shifts into a hip hop groove while Norm and Pete spit raps back and fourth old school style. Though this CD does a good job of not being overly derivative of their previous bands, this moment in "Unwraps" sounds the most like Chillum. "Gravity" brings out the crunchy guitars and screamed/ rapped vocals that bring Biohazard to mind. Pete breaks this up with a whispered piano driven Nine Inch Nails interlude.

"Unfinished Business" opens up with techno beats and trance like keyboards before Pete and Norm come up with a chest pounding rap over bass heavy electro-metal. I like the opening, but the second part is their most Korn like moment and my least favorite part of the disc. At least it's gone in three minutes. "Walkstay" is a unique mix of Black Sabbath like blues metal with DiNardi's gothic vocals and dense production. Wedge's aggressive vocals mix with the song as it descends into a White Zombie like tribal groove. The disc takes a break from the intensity with the funky hip hop groove and the dour lyrics of "See Through." It's one of the few songs that Pete and Norm both actually sing on. Veincage brings the tone down a notch for the finale with the moody piano driven pop of "Broken and Lost." Over a hoppin' Fat Boy Slim sounding soundtrack Pete and Norm rap about living through heartbreak.

These nine Veincage songs do the trick for me. With few exceptions there's no drag on the record. It all flows through pretty smoothly. I'd say get this disk put it on at parties and don't bother telling people that it's a local band. I think they'll like it more that way.

http://www.veincage.com

Coming Next Week – Give the Gift of Wormtown Featuring Everybody and their Mother (Phil McNamara can be contacted at spaceguy3@msn.com)