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Alright ... I suck at reviewing, but if nothing else this'll hopefully spur a backlash which results in more (and higher quality) reviews. I probably bitched too much about production for some people's taste, and it's just a personal thing that I have trouble listening to music that doesn't "sound right" (hearing ZZ Top on CD is just painful because of the godawful triggered drums).
Cutthroat Humor - Thumper's Blues: I can't really review this as it was my contribution ... while I have to wonder about putting a plodding 12-minute monolith as the first track, I won't complain.
The Day The Earth Stood Still - On The Verge Of Dreaming: Wow. Amazing female vocals, insane rocking guitar, and a few touches of psychedelia make this a hard act to follow even if it does get a little over the top at times
Lupu Negru - Marble Angel: Strongly reminiscient of Unida (right down to the thick, thick guitar) with more sedate vocals ... I'd love to hear more stuff from them.
Winterrun - Lighter: If these guys aren't the house band at some little hole-in-the-wall bar, they should be. Strong vocals and subtlely hyperactive drumming make this something I'd want to get drunk while listening to.
Navajo Code Talkers - Bellbottom Blues: Horn comes out of fucking nowhere! The jazzy overtones provided by the baryton (what looks like an oversized trumpet) and the female vocals really make what's otherwise a fairly standard rocking tune stand out. It's an odd blend, but surprisingly enough it works.
King Valley - Drawing Flies: The vocals here don't settle with me for some reason ... one minute they sound a lot like a hybrid of James Hetfield ca. the Black Album and Layne Staley and the next they sound like something I'd hear on modern rock radio. Fortunately, it's offset by the killer riffage towards the middle of the song.
Palace In Thunderland - Into The Maelstrom: I can definitely see these guys turning out a massive 4xLP musical epic (with a similarly massive handpainted gatefold cover) ... the overall atmosphere is equal parts 2112 and Master of Reality, with killer vocals and even better guitar work.
Saturnalia - Buzzy: This song isn't too bad, but the mix needs a lot of work ... the guitars are muddy, the drums are too sharp, and the vocals are mixed a bit too loud making everything sound unbalanced and sloppy.
Green Mars - 440 Bulge: Again, the song is good but the mix isn't ... the guitars are loud to the point of clipping, and their low-end overshadows most everything to where it's uncomfortable to listen to on anything but low volumes. Fix that and I think it'd be one of the highlights of the disc ... just a good, simple, rocking tune.
Suns Of Thunder - Last Of The High Rollers: These guys should've formed 30 years ago, because this is the kind of thing I want to hear more of when I listen to classic rock radio ... gruff vocals, bluesy riffing, and cowbell.
57 Chevy - Diemansion: I'm definitely digging this, but I'm not sure why. To me it sounds like a mixture of 80's pop (you know, the kind where everything was layered with chorus/reverb/delay) and Kyuss ... and somehow it works. The production could be a little more crisp, but I can let that slide just because of how oddly cool this is.
Ditchliquor - The Universal Veil: Atmospheric and sludgy ... I'm a sucker for really clean vocals over ugly, downtuned guitar, and this delivers in spades.
Assrockers - Thor: The first thing that came to mind was Spinal Tap, albeit at half-speed ... if I saw these guys play live, I'd demand a refund unless I saw some fuckin' rock star moves and a stadiumful of lighters in the air.
Whores Of Tijuana - Trip Manhattan: Another song with a weird mix ... the heavy guitars overpower everything and tend minimize the power of the drums and vocals. That aside, it's a really good tune ... laidback and still pretty catchy.
Cudamantra - Beyond Continuum: This sounds like Fu Manchu mixed with Judas Priest, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it. I'm not a big fan of guitar solos, but I've listened to just the leads at the end four times so far and I can't get enough of them.
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