Band : Apocalypse Now

Album title : Empires Fall

Label : GSR Music

Distributor : Suburban

Release date : 16/05/2008

Release : CD

Paris based Apocalypse Now came together very much in the same way a lot of bands get together, namely through friendship and a love for loud music...in this case Thrash Metal and Metallic NY Hardcore.

After some initial rehearsals, the band, then still under the monicker of Forest In Blood , started playing shows in soon packed venues in and around Paris, with a musical direction which showed a perfect blending of their musical influences for maximum bombastic effect. Soon a quest for the band's music on a sound carrier grew, and so the quintet released a mini-CD (ehrmm...I guess that was the split CD with Cry Havoc ?) to comply to the demand. Following two years of hard work and spreading their name all over France, Forest In Blood released the 2004 What A Wonderful World album through the Overcome Records imprint (If I ain't mistaken, the album got a distribution through Metal Blade as well). An increased gigging profile followed, not only characterized to several short tours, which was to take the band to Belgium and Poland, but also as supports to the likes of Anthrax , Born From Pain , Hatebreed , Madball , Napalm Death , and many more...playing in front of bigger audiences from which the quintet found a new source of fans and a rising status.

With the addition of new members, which did not alter the intensity of the band's music (the current line-up consisting of singer Ellie , guitarists Hervé and Barth , bassist/ backing singer Bogdan , and drummer Boban ), it was felt appropriate to have a name change. Soon after, the band signed to GSR Music for the debut release under their new monicker. With lyrical themes taking influence from the bible Confrontation With God , which is said to be even more crushingly energetic than AN 's material in their life as Forest In Blood , was released in 2006, same year which would see the band support the likes of The Setup (from Belgium), Leeway , Onesta , 25 Ta Life , and Right For Life . 2007 witnessed the boys on a short French tour supporting Knuckledust (whom they would support again on a gig in May) during February, and play at the Belgian Namrock festival in April. What happened after, I'm not sure, since relating info is missing (according to the bio, gigs with Infectuous Groove , Walls Of J eric ho , and Backfire! were to follow). Certain is that the boys recorded, mixed, mastered (and self-produced) their new album during January 2008 at Paris' Sainte Marthe Studio with the aid of Francis Caste (whom would also play some additional guitar on the album and take care, together with one Julien Lignon , of the samples on the album – album opening intro, and the outro of "Dogz Of War" ).

Which takes us full-circle and to the issue at hand, being the 10-track Empires Fall ! Said to bring the band back to its Hardcore roots, the album is rumoured (by the label) to demonstrate the influences of the likes of Biohazard , Suicidal Tendencies , and Agnostic Front on the one side, and equally the influence of Slayer 's Thrash Metal. For mp3-files of two songs off the new album, surf to myspace.com/apocalypsenow666. For additional material by the band, go to either the discography or media section of the out-dates band site korninblood.free.fr (where you'll find the audio and video file respectively of their debut album's "In This World" ). Neither of those will allow you to listen to the very nice instrumental "First Alert" , which leans closer to Doom and Stoner Metal than to either Thrash of Hardcore, and which is in reality the intro to the seemlessly ensuing album title track. No matter, because overall the album is indeed the perfect hybrid of Thrash Metal and Metal tingued NY Hardcore...with a dominance towards the latter thanks to the vocal delivery, which on this album does nót only come from Elie and Bogdan , but from the rest of the band too, as well as from guests Nech , Jay , Medhi , and Fabrice.

When push comes to shove, and no matter whether your preference normally goes to the Metal or the Hardcore side, people into either scene will find something for 'em in Apocalypse Now 's music! The label tags the album "For fans of Killswitch Engage , God Forbid , Maroon , Slayer ", but of course they use those "big" names mostly for promotional purposes. Personally, I feel this band have found their own twist to the whole Thrash/ Hardcore hybrid thing, thanks to the singer's very specific vocal signature! And while fans of the aforementioned might indeed like this, I think the band will be generating a horde of new fans even without that tag! Just give 'em the chance to grace some of the European festivals, and they'll be on their way to "stardom". Talking about live appearances, the first bout of gigs reported (at this time) following the release party in Paris on June 13 (...why so late?) will be starting in October. For Belgium, go to L'Entrepot in Arlon on October 25, and be stunned by the unstoppable Thrash/ Hardcore machine that is Apocalypse Now !!!

95/100

Tony.