Goddamn The Twentieth Century

A while back, rumors began to swirl about a split between the Infamous Gehenna and Germany's underrated juggernaut VV.egas. It was always going to be extremely limited with out of this world art. Time passed and the rumor grew stronger and stronger until it was revealed Vedavu was handling it. Even more time passed and I wondered if it was ever going to appear. A special edition, limited to a mere 13 copies appeared for the 7.17 show - it was a glimpse of hope. During September - when I was on leave from work - I remember wishing it was coming out until I had enough money. Then official word came down and it went back to a waiting game. Vedavu placed the pre-orders up at midnight (PST; 3 AM EST).



Make no mistake about it, this is a piece of art. Vedavu release records by collectors for collectors. An elaborate sleeve houses this slab of wax. As you can tell from the pictures, there was a lot of detail put into the appearance; the morbid yet vibrant cover is wrapped with a black obi-strip that has album's artwork on it (It's black on black, giving it a really cool effect). Opening the double fold sleeve reveals even more artwork in the same vein as the other pieces. Two inserts, one for each band, contain the lyrics. For grim, melancholic music, the packaging is absolutely beautiful.



Gehenna start things off with "Within The Peyote Cult", a thrashy, psychedelic number. After the first listen, I got a feeling of deja vu. The riffs were familiar and immediately I knew why: "I'll Always Say Forever". The sample-heavy piece has the same, making me believe that "Within The Peyote Cult" was recorded before 7.17. In any case, the track fits in with the more recent "Psychedelic Screwed Thrash Punk" trend. It's not as surreal as the Blind To Faith split, but it's definitely not your standard hardcore. The contribution gets me ecstatic about the new full-length.



VV.egas' "Original Sin" continues down the same path as their other material - Integrity influenced hardcore with tinges of neo-folk. This particular track features Matt Shack of the criminally over-looked Pale Creation. It's a heavy track, one that gets me hopeful for new VV.egas material in the future. I really dug "Verklingen", but in the end it was a cover. A damn good cover, but nothing beats an original, all new track.

Vedavu has a handful of new releases planned, including bands such as DEVIL, Arm And Sword Of A Bastard God, and Hot Pursuit. When I see and eventually hold records like the Gehenna/VV.egas split, it reminds me why I love collecting. Pictures don't do it justice. You have to see it to fully grasp just show crazy the whole package is. This came in a bundle that included the vinyl and an exclusive t-shirt.

This is limited to a hundred copies and is sold out (It sold out in a matter of days) but apparently there are rumors of a possible repress. Keep an eye on Vedavu - they've got some amazing stuff in the pipeline.

MMXI is just days old and I already deem this a top three pick.

+Orrchida

The 7.17 compilation brings together such juggernauts as Integrity and Gehenna in honor of the show in Anaheim earlier this year. It's a great slab of vinyl that came in a handful of variations, ranging from the standard mail-order sleeve to personalized band copies. In addition to the three* standard copies, there's a fourth - almost a special edition of a special edition - that features a picture of Charles Manson in military garb. This was released by the wonderful Hellfish, who recently put up a gnarly pre-order of VVegas vinyl. More on that band in a moment. To my knowledge, this is sold out in almost all forms.

German powerhouse VVegas starts off the record with a killer rendition of Integrity's "Fading Away". It almost feels like it's actually Integrity rather than VVegas. In any case, it's a great starting point. It's violent and savage and acts as a perfect prelude to Gehenna's absolute mind-fuck of a track. "I'll Always Say Forever" is like the bastard child of the band's previous thrashy punk style and sinister witch house. Driving guitar work is accompanied by the Manson girls' sing songy voices; Manson then becomes the forefront with a long sample that features such words as "I'm not your leader" and "If you want to ride, we'll ride." The tracks feels very experimental and a nice companion piece to the Blind To Faith split A389 released. I've always enjoyed how Gehenna took bits and pieces of other genres and created something new - in this case a sample heavy almost instrumental number. It's not 83% with the fat mosh parts and demonic vocals, but it's interesting. Gehenna is in the midst of putting together their third full length and if it contains material like "I'll Always Say Forever", the record is going to slay.

On the flip side, Unreal City's "Oath" continues what the first two bands started. I had originally slept on the band but after hearing their excellent full length "Ephemeral Subsistence", I suddenly checked out their other material - even if it was a mere cassette tape. What you get is a band very influenced by Integrity. From the vocals to the guitar, it's clear what kind of bands help shape Unreal City. This is far from a bad thing as "Oath" is a highly likable track. It's one of the more faster tracks and contains a good level of melody and aggression. In the end, these three numbers - including Gehenna's - are mere appetizers to the compilation's final piece, "+Orrchida".

A lot of bands try and copy GISM and often you get horrid abominations; Integrity's "+Orrchida" is a goddamn masterpiece. Guitarist Rob Orr channels Randy Uchida's spirit to create a minute and half epic solo fest that cannot do anything but brighten one's day. The first solo reminds me of Chelsea of Death Side/Paintbox fame but that second one... There's no mistaking it. For the band's show in November, they performed this number live and it still retained the magic. People knock Integrity for their various line-ups, but 2010 has been a great year. "VVe Are The End", a 7" put out by Magic Bullet, might be the band's best material post-Humanity Is The Devil. And from what I've heard, the Rot In Hell split is no snoozer either. I cannot wait to hear more Integrity and Orr's guitar work.

This is one of my favorite records - not just because I have a personalized copy from VVegas. There is a perfect blend of eccentricity, originality, and it contains tracks from Gehenna and Integrity. Beyond the music, the art is simple yet morbid and busy. With every new look, I see something different.

Like most Integrity material, their contribution is available to download via Holy Terror.

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The next post, which will be sometime next week, will feature a brand new look that'll take out the usual post a boring album cover and random scribbles. Hopefully, that is; I just need my camera to work. Thanks for reading.