I’m not a big fan of rap, and
white boy rap even less. So I was surprised to find that I actually liked this
collection of home recordings by Youngstown based artists J-cees-U. The beats
are extremely simple and primitive, but the rhymes and lyrics are original and
inspired. Team this guy up with a good producer who can lay down some solid
backing tracks and you’d have something. In a way, the laid back delivery
almost reminds me of Beck’s more straight forward rap tracks. Slacker rap, if
you will. J. doesn’t try to be something he’s not, he just raps in his own
style about things that he’s really experienced. This is one guy doing
the best he can with the tools available to him, and while I wouldn’t want to
rave too much about it, the sincerity of J’s lyrics really wins me over. If you
want to hear for yourself, just go to this website. (Bob Ignizio)
If nothing else, these guys are good sports.
An Utter Trash staff writer gave
their last self released CD a pretty harsh review, so I was really surprised
when I found this in the P.O. Box. It came with a note that said, “Your last
review of our CD was awesome. Can you please review this audio turd as well?”
Mr. Lee was the staff member who christened Omega Lord’s last opus an audio
turd, but since I had just given him a small stack of discs to review I decided
to handle this one myself. I didn’t care much for Omegalord’s previous effort
either, which is why I gave it to Mr. Lee in the first place. But you know
what? This latest batch of tunes from Omegalord is not an audio turd. In fact,
“Not Gonna Die” and “Breathin’ Fire”, the up tempo rockers that open and close
this four song demo, are both pretty good. These two tracks remind me somewhat
of Orange Goblin. There’s a stoner rock vibe crossed with more straightforward
metal. “Sins of the Father” and “Already Dead” fill in the middle with a
slower, sludgier approach, and while not terrible just didn’t do much for me.
The band plays well throughout this release, and the production is professional
sounding. The lyrics are pretty typical and the music isn’t especially
original, but overall this is a decent little disc. To get a copy or for
more info go to the band's website. (Bob Ignizio)
Here is an album
that I thought had some real promise, but unfortunately it's just...okay. The
first album from Orquesta del Desierto is a spirited conglomeration of musicians
from the deserts of California, the same area that has bred the likes of Kyuss,
Earthlings? and Queens of the Stone Age. OdD is a septet lead by Pete
Stahl(Wool, Goatsnake) on vocals, and they deliver ten tracks of pretty
forgettable music. There is something a bit different when this album is
compared to other releases on Meteor City. It's refreshing to hear some sax,
trumpets and lots of acoustic guitars coming from an area known for its dirty
guitars, but ultimately there is nothing that catches your ear and makes you
want to listen to more. The songs are kinda upbeat, kinda catchy, kinda melodic
and kinda boring. All in all, a tepid album. (Mr. Lee)
I guess that
it's good to be Dave Grohl. Not only was he fortunate enough to be a part of
Nirvana and stand the music world on it's ear, but since the demise of said
band, he has been one of the busiest and most well-respected musicians in the
biz. Whether it's working with the Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, Tom
Petty or P.Diddy, it's never dull at Dave's house. So there he is one day, in
his home studio working on some metal tunes that he has written, and he decides
to record them so that he doesn't forget 'em. He grew up listening to metal all
through the 80's, and it's still in his blood. Once it's there, it never really
leaves! He then gets the wild idea to call up all of his favorite vocalists
from that era and ask them to handle the vocal duties on all of the songs.
Everyone gets one song to sing and Dave plays the rest of the music. Sounds
simple enough and we all know how often pipe dreams come true...it will never
happen. They all say yes...ALL OF THEM. Three years of recording and waiting
later, Probot hits the shelves and is simply one of the best metal albums that
will be released this year. I am confident of it. It's just that good.
The vocalists are pretty varied so there is something for every metalhead out
there. Highlights are "Centuries of Sin" with Venom’s Cronos (which might be my
favorite), "Red War" with Max Cavalera (Sepultura, Soulfly), "Shake Your Blood"
with Lemmy (Motorhead) and "Dictatosaurus" with Snake of Voivod. I can only
imagine how many different artists would love to get a chance like this, to
record with their musical heroes and then get to release it. Dave's a lucky guy
and a damn fine musician. He should be proud of this pipe dream that got to
come true. (Mr. Lee)
I’m not a big fan of rap, and
white boy rap even less. So I was surprised to find that I actually liked this
collection of home recordings by Youngstown based artists J-cees-U. The beats
are extremely simple and primitive, but the rhymes and lyrics are original and
inspired. Team this guy up with a good producer who can lay down some solid
backing tracks and you’d have something. In a way, the laid back delivery
almost reminds me of Beck’s more straight forward rap tracks. Slacker rap, if
you will. J. doesn’t try to be something he’s not, he just raps in his own
style about things that he’s really experienced. This is one guy doing
the best he can with the tools available to him, and while I wouldn’t want to
rave too much about it, the sincerity of J’s lyrics really wins me over. If you
want to hear for yourself, just go to this 
If nothing else, these guys are good sports.
An Utter Trash staff writer gave
their last self released CD a pretty harsh review, so I was really surprised
when I found this in the P.O. Box. It came with a note that said, “Your last
review of our CD was awesome. Can you please review this audio turd as well?”
Mr. Lee was the staff member who christened Omega Lord’s last opus an audio
turd, but since I had just given him a small stack of discs to review I decided
to handle this one myself. I didn’t care much for Omegalord’s previous effort
either, which is why I gave it to Mr. Lee in the first place. But you know
what? This latest batch of tunes from Omegalord is not an audio turd. In fact,
“Not Gonna Die” and “Breathin’ Fire”, the up tempo rockers that open and close
this four song demo, are both pretty good. These two tracks remind me somewhat
of Orange Goblin. There’s a stoner rock vibe crossed with more straightforward
metal. “Sins of the Father” and “Already Dead” fill in the middle with a
slower, sludgier approach, and while not terrible just didn’t do much for me.
The band plays well throughout this release, and the production is professional
sounding. The lyrics are pretty typical and the music isn’t especially
original, but overall this is a decent little disc. To get a copy or for
more info go to the band's 
Here is an album
that I thought had some real promise, but unfortunately it's just...okay. The
first album from Orquesta del Desierto is a spirited conglomeration of musicians
from the deserts of California, the same area that has bred the likes of Kyuss,
Earthlings? and Queens of the Stone Age. OdD is a septet lead by Pete
Stahl(Wool, Goatsnake) on vocals, and they deliver ten tracks of pretty
forgettable music. There is something a bit different when this album is
compared to other releases on Meteor City. It's refreshing to hear some sax,
trumpets and lots of acoustic guitars coming from an area known for its dirty
guitars, but ultimately there is nothing that catches your ear and makes you
want to listen to more. The songs are kinda upbeat, kinda catchy, kinda melodic
and kinda boring. All in all, a tepid album. (Mr. Lee)
I guess that
it's good to be Dave Grohl. Not only was he fortunate enough to be a part of
Nirvana and stand the music world on it's ear, but since the demise of said
band, he has been one of the busiest and most well-respected musicians in the
biz. Whether it's working with the Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, Tom
Petty or P.Diddy, it's never dull at Dave's house. So there he is one day, in
his home studio working on some metal tunes that he has written, and he decides
to record them so that he doesn't forget 'em. He grew up listening to metal all
through the 80's, and it's still in his blood. Once it's there, it never really
leaves! He then gets the wild idea to call up all of his favorite vocalists
from that era and ask them to handle the vocal duties on all of the songs.
Everyone gets one song to sing and Dave plays the rest of the music. Sounds
simple enough and we all know how often pipe dreams come true...it will never
happen. They all say yes...ALL OF THEM. Three years of recording and waiting
later, Probot hits the shelves and is simply one of the best metal albums that
will be released this year. I am confident of it. It's just that good.
The vocalists are pretty varied so there is something for every metalhead out
there. Highlights are "Centuries of Sin" with Venom’s Cronos (which might be my
favorite), "Red War" with Max Cavalera (Sepultura, Soulfly), "Shake Your Blood"
with Lemmy (Motorhead) and "Dictatosaurus" with Snake of Voivod. I can only
imagine how many different artists would love to get a chance like this, to
record with their musical heroes and then get to release it. Dave's a lucky guy
and a damn fine musician. He should be proud of this pipe dream that got to
come true. (Mr. Lee)