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New Album Review

ALBUM REVIEW: Criteria – Years

Criteria by Years album cover

BEST TRACKS: Agitate Resuscitate, We Are The Ones Who Make It So, We Pretend, Tight Rope

FCC violations: Agitate Resuscitate, The Saint, We Are. We Are. We Aren’t., This Reign is Ours, Hands Out

This classic alt-rock album, released on January 17th, has been a long time in the works (it’s Criteria’s first new album in 15 years)! To give you an idea of the kind of music Criteria makes, they toured with the likes of Jimmy Eat World and Minus the Bear following the release of their sophomore album En Garde in 2005. Their sound has stayed pretty consistent throughout the years (not that it needs to change). Years is sweetly reminiscient of simpler times AKA the early 2000s punk rock revival headed by Green Day’s American Idiot and the Offspring’s Rise And Fall, Rage And Grace.

The album opens with my favorite track of the record, lead single Agitate Resuscitate. This song’s monster riffs, toe-tapping hooks, and melody-forward vocals set very high expectations for the rest of the album. Strong bass lines will keep you grounded amidst the explosive drums and intense riffage. The album maintains it’s post-hardcore punk momentum all the way through to the end where it closes on a high note with Peace, ‘through our pain we still celebrate life today,’ and with a final call for world peace, the album fades into silence.

Criteria reminds me of Fall Out Boy, in that you’ll want to not just sing, but shout along to these passionate and anthemic lyrics. Songs on this album encompas the many ways in which we go through life, be it struggling and fighting for the revolution, or struggling with ourselves alone. Listen to this album if you want to feed your rebellious and angry, yet carefree highschool soul. Even though growth and change in music is great and encouraged, there’s something reassuring about knowing that some things in music never change. For every genre, there will always be a core, classic sound that we can revert to for comfort when we are tired of the new. For the genre of post-punk, Criteria encompasses this core perfectly.

In closing, welcome back, Criteria. It’s great to have you back.

-Safia Rizwan

Categories
Classic Album Review

Album of the Week: Dirt (1992) – Alice in Chains

Alice in Chains is one of my favorite bands of all time. My mom used to play them all the time while I was growing up. I remember riding in a Ford Ranger when I was 5 and my mom would play Rooster while we were driving down the road. It is a distinctive memory that I will always cherish.

Layne Staley (RIP) is one of my favorite vocalists because you can hear the beauty, pain, and sadness in his voice. He had such a powerful sound and his voice was like listening to a wounded angel. Mix Staley’s voice with the harmony of Jerry Cantrell (guitarist) and you end up with a masterpiece.

I like the overall sound and variety that is on their 1992 album Dirt. It is one of my 10/10 albums as well! A lot of my favorite songs come off this album (Them Bones, Rooster, Junkhead, Angry Chair, and Would?). Down In A Hole is also another song that is well-known to a lot of music fans.

Dirt is the second studio album that was released by them and it peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album was also well received by music critics. It has been certified four-times platinum and has sold 5 million copies worldwide making Dirt the band’s highest selling album to date. It was also the last album recorded with all four original members (bassist Mike Starr was fired from the band in 1993). Shortly after the release of this album, the band was invited to open for Ozzy Osbourne on his No More Tours tour in 1992.

Rooster was inspired by Cantrell’s relationship with his father, who served in the Vietnam War. It was written from the perspective of his dad while he was traveling through the jungles and trying to survive.

If you haven’t listened to this album in its entirety, I definitely recommend that you do. It is one of the most popular Alice in Chains album and it is not a surprise to me that it is.

What is your favorite song off of Dirt?

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

Categories
Band/Artist Profile

Band of the Week: Cannibal Corpse

Cannibal Corpse is one of the bands that I grew up listening to. My dad would play them all the time because they are one of his favorite bands. I distinctly remember hearing Hammer Smashed Face growing up (and also hearing the Radio Disney version which is hilarious!!!). I also remember seeing Cannibal Corpse on Ace Ventura’s Pet Detective when Ace was in the club. Cannibal Corpse was the band playing and is one of Jim Carrey’s favorite bands!!

Cannibal Corpse is one of the bands that helped develop the Death Metal scene. Originally from Buffalo, New York, the band moved to Tampa, Florida (where American Death Metal was just starting and picking up steam) so they could join this movement. Corpse formed in 1988 and the band has released 14 studio albums: Eaten Back To Life (1990), Butchered At Birth (1991), Tomb of the Mutilated (1992), The Bleeding (1994), Vile (1996), Gallery Of Suicide (1998), Bloodthirst (1999), Gore Obsessed (2002), The Wretched Spawn (2004), Kill (2006), Evisceration Plague (2009), Torture (2012), A Skeletal Domain (2014), and Red Before Black (2017).

Corpse has had little radio and television exposure throughout their career, but developed a cult following after their second and third records were released in 1991 and 1992. As of 2015, they achieved worldwide sales of two million units for combined sales of all their albums. This makes them the top-selling Death Metal band of all time.

Bassist Alex Webster came up with the name Cannibal Corpse. They have had several lineup changes in the band and only Webster and Paul Mazurkiewicz (drummer) are original members. The lyrics are drawn heavily on horror fiction and horror films. Their original singer, Chris Barnes, wrote the lyrics for the band, but when he left and was replaced by George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher, so Paul started writing most of the lyrics (and you can tell the difference in the lyrical content between the two writers). One thing that hasn’t changed is the solid beatings and groovy riffs like only Cannibal Corpse can deliver.

Here is how I explain their sound to someone who (oddly enough) hasn’t heard them: Pound. Pound. Roar! Groovy riff. Gutteral! Scream!! Pound. Pound.

I have seen Cannibal Corpse a handful of times (my favorite time I saw them was on Valentines Day, in Wilmington, NC where they toured with Obituary and Cryptopsy). Around age 8, I met Corpsegrinder (yes his neck is that big in person) and I also met their drummer, Paul! I told Paul that I saw them on Ace Ventura’s Pet Detective. He laughed and said, “That was a long time ago.” And it was a long time ago, now, that he said that!

Have you seen Cannibal Corpse? What is your favorite song? Mine is Evisceration Plague.

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

Categories
Non-Music News

Shawn’s Soapbox: Self Development, Mindfulness, and Astrology With Toni Contini

Season 2 of the Shawn Soapbox starts with a bang, as Toni Contini an entrepreneur and former chair of Union Activities Board’s Speakers and Professional Development committee drops many gems as she discusses self-development and mindfulness with a little astrology talk for the uniformed. Tune in to the season premiere of The Shawn Soapbox.

Categories
Music News and Interviews

The Saw’s Electric Chair: Andreas Kisser from Sepultura

The Saw's Electric Chair WKNC 88.1 FM HD-1/HD-2 heavy metal podcast

In this episode of The Saw’s Electric Chair, The Saw did a phone call interview with Andreas Kisser, the guitarist for Sepultura! They talked about Andreas’ upbringing in metal, learning how to play the guitar, past and future tours, and the band’s new record, Quadra, which will be released on Feb. 7.

Categories
Classic Album Review

Classis Album Review: Metallica – …And Justice For All

The fourth studio album from Metallica; recorded January – May at One on One Recording Studios in Las Angeles, California, and released on August 25, 1988 …And Justice for All (Elektra) amounted to the end of Thrash Metal as it was known at the time. Helping to mold the genre, Metallica, with this record, effectively brought it to its logical conclusion.

Not only was the album a natural progression of the band’s sound – starting with Kill ‘Em All (1983), through Ride the Lightening (1984) and Master of Puppets (1986) –  …And Justice for All was progressive metal (before there was such a thing). When Cliff Burton unexpectedly died in 1986, Metallica was searching for an outlet of sorts, I think, and with this record came an unleashing of rage and torment. It features staggering complexity, fast tempos, multiple time changes per track, eight or more riffs per track, and lyrics concerned with politics, the environment, legal injustice, censorship, and war. Jason Newsted was tapped for the bass position, though the final mix of the record nearly filtered him completely out. Blame for this fact flies all around, but I think it’s a sign of the struggle on behalf of Hetfield and Ulrich (and to some degree, Hammett) to cope.

Though the lyrical content of …Justice covered new ground, this record is all about the instruments! Specifically, nasty riffs, percussion, and double bass. Speaking of double bass, Lars’ double kicks on this album, have been dubbed, double “paper bass.” I love how they sound! The song “One” was the first music video for Metallica and was seen as an anti-war rant. The track “To Live is to Die” is a bass medley of unused recordings by Burton. Newsted played the medley that Burton wrote on the album. All lyrics on the record were written by James Hetfield, except the Spoken Word on “To Live is to die,” posthumously credited to Cliff Burton. All other music is credited to Hetfield Ulrich, and Hammett (Newsted gets co-credit on Blackened).

…Justice reached Gold in Norway; Platinum in Argentina, Finland, New Zeland, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom; 2X Platinum in Australia and Germany; 3X Platinum in Canada; and 8X Platinum, selling 8 million copies in the United States.

Favorite Songs: Blackened; …And Justice for All; Harvester of Sorrow

Rating: 10/10!! And quite possibly my favorite Metallica album!

Stay Metal,

THE SAW 

Categories
Band/Artist Profile

Band of the Week: Slipknot

Ahh, Slipknot, one of the bands that got many people into metal for the first time. When talking to my friends and interviewing members of local bands, almost all of them said that the band that got them interested into metal was, in fact, Slipknot. I found this really interesting and I am trying to figure out why this band has influenced so many people and others did not.

I believe that one of the reasons that Slipknot was the first band that got a lot of people into metal is because they are VERY different. I haven’t seen or heard a band that sounds like Slipknot or that looks like Slipknot. I think this is what attracts people to them because it is like they are characters of a show. They set themselves apart from all the other bands in this realm of music and it refreshing to see. I have seen Slipknot twice: once at the Carolina Rebellion and on their tour with Marilyn Manson and Of Mice & Men.

Slipknot is from Des Moines, Iowa and was founded in 1995. After several lineup changes, the band settled on nine members: Shawn Crahan, Joey Jordison, Paul Gray, Mick Thomson, Corey Taylor, Sid Wilson, Chris Fehn, and Jim Root. Paul Gray died on May 24, 2010 and was replaced by Donnie Steele (2010-2014).

Slipknot is known for their attention-grabbing image, aggressive style of music, and high intensity stage performance. They rose to fame with the release of their debut album, Slipknot, in 1999. Their 2001 follow up album, Iowa, made the band even more popular. Their stage show is what also contributed to their success.

Slipknot is considered a Nu Metal band but their sound distances them from other Nu Metal bands, such as Korn. They describe their sound as “metal metal” and link the connection to Nu Metal as a coincidence since they emerged when that wave of metal was also emerging.  

The members perform wearing unique, individual facemasks and matching uniforms. Each member is typically assigned and referred to by a number based on their role in the band (#0 through #8), although this practice has not been used since the death of Paul Gray. The concept of wearing masks on stage derived from Shawn Crahan. Corey Taylor stated that it’s their way of becoming more intimate with the music. It is a way for the band to escape their normal and everyday lives. The uniforms and masks change when they release a new album.

Slipknot has 6 full length albums: Slipknot (1999), Iowa (2001), Vol. 3 Subliminal Verses (2004), All Hope is Gone (2008), .5: The Gray Chapter (2014), and We Are Not Your Kind (2019).  

Have you seen Slipknot? What is your favorite Slipknot song?

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

Categories
New Album Review

ALBUM REVIEW: The National – I Am Easy to Find

BEST TRACKS: Quiet Light, Hey Rosey, Hairpin Turns, Rylan

FCC clean

I Am Easy to Find scored a 7.6 on Pitchfork and was ranked as the #1 album of 2019 on Sophie’s Floorboard, edging out PUP’s Morbid Stuff for first place, so I just had to check it out. At 64 hours, this album is The National’s longest yet. I admire that this album takes its time. At no point do I feel like the album was hurried or short-changed.

This album is all about subtlety, featuring soft piano, whispering strings, and humble percussion. The emphasis is placed on the vocals and lyrics. Front man Matt Berninger’s baritone voice intertwined with multiple female vocalists, including Gail Ann Dorsey, David Bowie’s backup singer, brings this album in a certain divine direction. Despite all the outside voices, this album sounds undeniably like a National’s album. All monologuing takes place elegantly and compliments the music, rather than stealing away the spotlight.

I Am Easy to Find sounds like a slow drive through the snowy hills of the countryside. This album expertly captures the quiet weightlessness of being alone and the vulnerability of the human condition. I Am Easy to Find would fit perfectly as the soundtrack to a movie about struggling lovers and fates that never line up. In fact, The National released an artful, black and white short film that shares the name of the album, directed by Mike Mill (20th Century Women), and starring Alicia Vikander (Ex-Machina).

In my heart of hearts, Morbid Stuff is still the #1 album of the year and that will never change. However, I Am Easy to Find is seriously amazing too, but in a different way, for a different audience, and I can certainly see why it receives all of the praise that it does. I recommend this album if you are in the process of finding self-love.

-Safia

Categories
Music News and Interviews

UNDERGROUND IS LOOKING FOR NEW MUSIC

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WKNC’s Underground genre is looking for new music to be added to the regular rotation! Send songs or playlists with your fav underground rap music and I’ll review it and (possibly) add!

—cellar door xx

Categories
Weekly Charts

Chainsaw Charts 1/14

Artist Record Label
1 HOLLOW PROPHET “Disembodied Phenomena” [Single] Self-Released
2 DETACHMENT Gaslight Self-Released
3 BURY TOMORROW “The Grey (VIXI)” [Single] For Nations
4 KROSIS “Battles Are Won Within” [Single] Unique Leader
5 AS I LAY DYING Shaped By Fire Nuclear Blast
6 COUNTERPARTS Nothing Left To Love Pure Noise
7 VOYAGER Colours In The Sun Season Of Mist
8 INFANT ANNIHILATOR The Battle of Yaldabaoth Self-Released
9 DOMINANT FORCE Cosmic Denial [EP] Triple B
10 SILVERTOMB Edge Of Existence Long Branch