Let's take a fast look at some recent DVD releases; this time out: METAL!Metalmania 2007
(Metal Mind Productions)
This generous 30-track film covers the action from last year's Metalmania Festival in Katowice, Poland. The headline act was Testament and they get five songs at the end of the show but there is plenty of fun leading up to that climax. Finnish band Korpiklaani starts the show; their name translates to mean "forest clan" so it's no wonder that the lead singer's microphone stand has a pair of reindeer antlers attached. The band's take on metal has a Celtic feeling thanks to liberal use of violin, accordion and bagpipes and they get three slots to show off their rather unique style. From there it's a little speed metal from the face-painted Crystal Abyss then into proggy head-banging with Darzamat. Death metal act Vital Remains works the crowd into froth before turning over the stage to Entombed who perform a delightful version of their anthem "When in Sodom." Blaze Bayley perform a set of Dio-influenced rock then old-timers Sepultura pound out "Convicted in Life," "False" and "Dead Embryonic." Paradise Lost perform one song as sort of a palate cleanser after Sepultura and then Testament takes it home, finishing with the double-whammy of "Electric Crown" and "D.N.R." Also appearing are Destruction and Zyklon. All of the camera work and editing here is top notch. A bonus CD featuring side-stage bands like Sphere, Carnal, Horrorscope, Root and Forever Will Burn is included.
iCrusher Complete
(Earache)
This compilation is actually the previously released iCrusher 1 and iCrusher 2 put together and with a little bonus material added. There's so much material here (200 minutes) that I can't begin to list it all---probably the best thing to do would be to check the track listing out on Earache's Website. Most of the cuts are videos but there is also plenty of live footage including vintage stuff from Napalm Death ("Scum" recorded in 1989) and tracks from Carcass ("Tools of the Trade") and Entombed ("Stranger Aeons") from 1992. The videos cover a wide range of styles with outrageous footage from the monster-masked Berzerker taking the cake with "Forever" and "No One Wins" while Mortiis come in a close second as their inquisitive demon character mugs his way through "Parasite God" and "Mental Maelstrom." Godflesh didn't really go out of their way making the video for "Christbait Rising;" watching the footage is (purposely) not much better than watching a scrambled cable TV program. Some of the other offerings come from Decapitated, Hate Eternal, Gandalf, Linea 77 and the Haunted. This package comes as a double-sided DVD and at the end of the film work on each side a few audio cuts are appended from the likes of Ultraviolence, Cult of Luna, December Wolves and Corporation 187.
Society 1 - Fearing the Exit
(Earache)
Society 1 is fronted by Matt "The Lord" Zane who is also known for his involvement in the porno film industry. He talks about that a little in one of the bonus segments here but the real draw is Zane's other interest. He is a "suspension artist," and if you don't know what that means this film will definitely shock you. Society 1 plays extreme music and during a regular set Zane hops about the stage shirtless in an act reminiscent of Iggy Pop's. But during a suspension set Zane performs his vocals while dangling high over the stage, hanging by six meat hooks that are pierced through the skin of his back. Also not for the squeamish is the footage of Zane actually being pierced and attached to the suspension device and the removal of the hooks after the set. Shots of the crowd show most people watching the sadism in disbelief but indeed they get what they came for. The DVD contains various performances, videos and interview segments but obviously the attraction is in the freak show.
Aural Amphetamine: Metallica and the Dawn of Thrash
(Sexy Intellectual)
This is a documentary and although it does include brief segments with the members of Metallica in their very early days it is really about the beginning of a scene more than the beginning of a band. The film clocks in at about 90 minutes and for the first third of that there is very little mention of Metallica; instead there is an explanation of how the thrash scene in America came to being out of the "New Wave of British Heavy Metal" movement that featured groups like Iron Maiden. In a nutshell, Lars Ulrich of Metallica is given credit for bringing that sound back to the States after spending some time in the U.K. devouring every metal album he could find. This film is part of an extensive ongoing series from Sexy Intellectual, a label that's released similar titles chronicling various scenes or the works of various artists at critical periods in music history. And that's really what this film and all the others in the series are---history lessons. Not for everyone but a worthy piece for the fanatic.
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