 
 |
|
Various Artists
Century Media - Covering 20 Years of Extremes
March 2009
Released: 2008, Century Media Records Rating: 3.5/5 Reviewer: Lord of the Wasteland Along with Metal Blade Records, Roadrunner Records, Nuclear Blast Records and Earache Records, Century Media Records rounds out the “big five” of metal indie labels. This group essentially brought the metal underground to a global audience and maintained a solid lineup of artists that helped shape heavy metal as we know it today. In celebration of its twenty-year anniversary, Century Media Records has done something unique and original. Since they already compiled a box set of tracks from its past for its tenth anniversary, CENTURY MEDIA – COVERING 20 YEARS OF EXTREMES takes songs from the label’s rich history and has other bands currently on its roster cover them. Some have been heard before on various artists’ releases but most are new and unreleased, so fans of both the original artists and the artists who have reworked the songs will find plenty of interesting material here. Like most cover versions, sometimes they work and sometimes they don’t. First the good… Arch Enemy really takes Dream Evil’s “The Book of Heavy Metal” and makes it their own by turning a tongue-in-cheek power metal anthem and twisting it into a vicious thrash assault. Angela Gossow’s vocals are as demonic-sounding as ever (listen to hear wrap her venomous pipes around Snowy Shaw’s lyrics) rendering Arch Enemy’s version nearly unrecognizable to the original. Wolf take on Moonspell’s “Alma Mater” and the high-pitched power metal vocal style of Niklas Stålvind adds a different angle to Fernando Ribeiro’s dark, baritone-sung original. Brand New Sin turn in a faithful cover of Iced Earth’s “Watching Over Me” as (now ex-) vocalist Joe Altier does his best Matt Barlow impression. Likewise, Greek metal gods Firewind do little to reinvent Nevermore’s “Believe In Nothing” but that song is so strong, it would be difficult to improve upon. Fans of Vancouver’s Zimmers Hole should take note of the radical step from their frantic, comic take on the genre by wading through Old Man’s Child’s “Doommaker” and really doing a great job. On the negative side, Finnish gothic/forest metal newbies Kivimetsän Druidi messes with The Gathering’s “Leaves” and the appallingly bad vocals destroy everything, leaving Anneke van Giersbergen every right to litigation. Others like The Agonist’s version of Dark Tranquillity’s “Monochromatic Stains” and Cryptopsy putting its stamp on Strapping Young Lad’s “Oh My Fucking God” are so instantly forgettable that they can be classified as “filler” at best. The absolute low-point, though, is the collaboration between Manntis and In This Moment’s Maria Brink on Lacuna Coil’s “Heaven’s A Lie.” Whoever green-lighted a metalcore version of an electro-Goth hit should be forced to endure the merciless of tortures. If nothing else, CENTURY MEDIA – COVERING 20 YEARS OF EXTREMES serves as a great marketing tool for people who will seek out the original versions of the songs here or get turned on to the newer acts. Buoyed by the marquee names of Shadows Fall, Arch Enemy and Lacuna Coil, it won’t take much to get people to take notice of this collection but it certainly is a mixed bag, as is to be expected. The lineup here runs the gamut from early dwellers like Asphyx and long-forgotten acts like Stampin’ Ground to new-school thrashers Warbringer and metalcore upstarts The Agonist, so there are a great many styles and interpretations to wade through in well over two hours of music. Century Media Records gets a big “thumbs up” for originality, though, by letting its artists stretch a little and pay homage to those who helped put its name on the map. 
Track Listing
DISC# 1
Lineup
n/a
Contact
Other reviews
» Slave to the Power: The Iron Maiden Tribute » Monster Madness » Mercyful Fate Tribute » War Dance-A WAR Music Compilation » Statements of Intent » Straight to Hell - A Tribute to Slayer » Identity Five » For Lucio Fulci-A Symphony of Fear » Death is Just the Beginning Vol. 5 » Metal Dreams » "Dio - Holy Dio...A Tribute The Voice of Metal, Ronnie James Dio" » Kiss of Death: A Sikk Tribute To Kiss » Power from the North – Sweden Rocks the World » The Second Coming...A Millennium Tribute to 80`s Heavy Metal and Hard Rock » Progressive DisDURPance Vol.2 - Die Ultimative Review Page (webzine) » Metal For Muthas: Volume I & II » Heart of Metal » A Tribute To Judas Priest - Delivering The Goods » Tales From The Crypt: Monsters Of Metal » Dehumanized Witch » Death is just the Beginning VI » MTV Return of the Rock Vol2 » A Tribute to the Scorpions » Ball One Strike Two » The Keepers of Jericho-A Tribute To Helloween » Identity 7: Deadly Sins » Twisted Forever-A Tribute to the Legendary TWISTED SISTER » Power From The Underground Vol. 1 » Progressive Disdurpance Vol 3 » Warmth in the Wilderness-A Tribute To Jason Becker » Beauty In Darkness Vol.5 » Dream Ballads » William Shakespeare`s Hamlet » Power of Metal: Symphonies of Steel » 2001 CHRISTMAS REVIEW FEATURE » Metal Christmas » Visionaires Of The Macabre Vol.2 - An Evil Elite » 2002 Melodic Hard Rock Feature » Union 3 » Death Knell » The Keepers of Jericho: A Tribute to Helloween » PowerMad Sampler Series. Volumes I-V » Century Media X (10th Anniversary 3 CD box-set) » Voyager: The Nuclear Blast 10 Year Anniversary Collection » A Tribute to Accept Volume II » A Tribute To The Beast » The End Records: At The End of Infinity [Echos and Thoughts of Wonder] » THE WEST COAST METALFEST » 2002 MELODIC HARD ROCK FEATURE/OVERVIEW PART II » Screaming Ferret Wreckords Sampler, Volume 1-Oh Say Can You Scream » Diehard Music – Checkpoint #4 » Spin The Bottle: A Tribute To KISS » A Tribute To the Creatures Of The Night (KISS) » Identity 8 » Phases » Blackmores’s Castle: A Tribute to Deep Purple and Rainbow » “Hey, That’s What I Call Sludge!” Volume 1 » Influences and Connections Volume One: Mr. Big » Order of The Tyrants-Celtic Frost Tribute » Hollywood Hairspray II » Rebirth of the Heavy » Covered In Filth: A Tribute to Cradle Of Filth » Gore Metal Feature: The Six Pack of Sickness » When Worlds Collide Inside Out Music Sampler 2 » V.A New Found Power Compilation » Beyond Inspiration: A Tribute To Uli Jon Roth » Shrouded In Silent Omens » Armageddon Over Wacken – Live 2003 (DVD) » Black Mark – Metal By Metal (DVD) » Fenriz Presents...The Best of Old-School Black Metal » Fenriz Presents... The Best Of Old School Black Metal » RASKASTA JOULUA » Metal Mania 2003 DVD » The Hive » Saw: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack » Give Us Moore: A Gary Moore Tribute » Apocalypse » Metal On Metal » Hollywood Rocks-Boxed Set » Armageddon Over Wacken 2004 » Rainbow Six: Lockdown » Hollywood Hairspray Vol.5 » Metal: A Headbanger`s Journey » MTV2 - Headbanger`s Ball: The Revenge » Metal`s Darkside: The Hard and The Furious Volume 1 (DVD) » Sounds of The Underground Live From The Starland Ballroom Sayreville, NJ July 2, 2005 Volume One (DVD) » Butchering The Beatles » Metal on Metal 2 » Drum Nation Volume 3 » Butchering The Beatles - A Headbashing Tribute » The Music of Artisanship & War Volume One » Nuclear Blast Allstars-Into The Light » Metal Blade Records 25th Anniversary: Live in Worcester, MA (DVD) » Thrashing Like a Maniac » The Unholy Alliance - Chapter II: Preaching To The Perverted (DVD) » United in Annihilation » Hollywood Rocks (DVD) » Live At Wacken 2007: 18 Years In History (DVD) » We Wish You A Metal Xmas And A Headbanging New Year » ISRAEL UNLEASHED » Building a Legacy 2 » Century Media - Covering 20 Years of Extremes » Grind Madness at the BBC » Metal on Metal III - Third Warning of the Storms » We Wish You A Metal X-Mas EP » Grind Madness at the BBC » Bon Appetite Vol.2 » Rising Of Yog-Sothoth: Tribute to Thergothon » Sucking The 70s: Back In The Saddle » We Wish You A Metal X-Mas And A Headbanging New Year » We Wish You A Metal Xmas » Sin-atra » Whole Lotta Love:: An All-Star Salute To Fat Chicks » SIN-ATRA » Embrace The Sun » This Is Black Metal (DVD) » Cy-Metal.com Presents: Cyprus Metal Scene United » The Music Remains The Same » Speed Metal Kills » Hideous Gnosis (Book Review) Next review: » Various Artists - Century Media X (10th Anniversary 3 CD box-set) Previous review: » Various Artists - Butchering The Beatles - A Headbashing Tribute
|
