Familiar voice in One Way Mirror

Hey, everyone! I'm back for another year of brining good tunes (mostly metal) to the forefront and hopefully make you get out of the rut of pretentious, boring dribble that the industry pushes to the tweenies.

I have a bunch of stuff that I got over the summer that I'll be running down over the next couple of issues. As well, this year, I'll alsoo be featuring essential albums that should be in anyone's collection.

One Way Mirror:
Self Titled

This is one out of three CDs that the kind and most excellent folks at Metal Blade sent to me (the next two will be featured in upcoming editions). I popped in my car and for five songs I was thinking to myself, “Who in the hell is singing? I KNOW this person's voice.”

Then it hit me! It was Guilaume Bideau (who is also the front-man for the awesome band, MNEMIC). After realizing that, it came as no shock that the band's sound (and touch of electronica) actually mirrors MNEMIC's sound (excuse the pun).

That's not to say that the band rips off MNEMIC or anything. The band writes some pretty melodic and groove oriented riffs whereas MNEMIC focus more on mind-boggling time changes and even heavier material (kind of like Messuggah).

I'm going to say that there's no real stand out track on the disc because I find that the songs blend well together and give a complete album package.

There are some songs that will stick in your head more than others due to repeated melodies (like “Empty Spaces) but overall, the thick guitars, groove breakdowns and double bass drumming will keep most metal fans happy.

There's one real big shock on this CD, though. The band cover's Frankie Goes to Hollywood's “Relax.” I've never been a big fan of the tune, but they make it their own and turn it into one heavy Mo-Fo. Cool stuff.

Essential for your collection:
Raging Speedhorn
Self Titled

This disc, from 2001, is a groove metal lover's wet dream. Mix in C-tuned guitars with simple, yet effective groove riffs and throw in two vocalists that sound like a mix of Phil Anselmo and Chris Barns and you have yourself one awesome disc.

Make sure to sample “Redweed,” “Superscud,” “Thumper” and “High Whore” for a good idea of what the band and their other CDs are like. Turn this up and party.