siLLy puPPy A true San Francisco original, HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE you never know what you’re gonna get with a new album as musical steelworkers forest molten metal into various shapes and forms. One thing is for sure and that is that each album sounds a bit familiar yet rather distinct and the party never seems to end as this musical project has been around for more than a quarter of a century if you count the days as Unholy Cadaver that is. Essentially the brainchild of guitarist / vocalist John Cobbett of Slough Feg, Ludicra and VHOL, this band has been hammering out exquisitely original metal since it’s blackened folk metal debut “The Bastard: A Tale Told In Three Acts” all the way back in 2001.

A true juggling act of eclecticism, HAMMERS has sallied forth onto the metal battlefield with an arsenal of sound effects and stylistic creativity. Ranging from trad NWOBHM and psych fueled hard rock of the 70s to blackened folk metal and technical thrash, this band and its rotating cast of characters never ceases to amaze with a new spin on its rather distinctly brash yet melodic ambit of colorful cleverness. Just when fans thought the band was down and out and devoid of any life, along comes OVERTAKER, the seventh release a mere six years after “Dead Revolution” took the band into a more energetic direction with technical thrash metal bombast as the canvass to paint upon.

Always one to take the path least tread, Cobbett continues down he path of “Dead Revolution” into the hybridizing orgy of technical thrash metal with an unholy threesome of progressive rock and psychedelia. Gone are the airy folk elements of yore and in are damaging stampedes of decibelage and uncompromising speed metal leanings bringing a bit of 80s excess to the world of creative complexity. Psychedelic thrash metal hasn’t exactly been a huge thing but that’s exactly where HAMMERS takes the deep plunge with OVERTAKER. Wasting no time getting to the point, the title track openings with a thunderous roar with galloping guitar riffs pummeling the senses like a war of the gods replete with chariots of fire lambasting the serene placidity of contentment leaving all but the adventurous listener along for the wild ride.

In many ways this album is like a family reunion of sort. Ex-bassist / vocalist Jamie Myers (now of Sabbath Assembly) is back and sounding like a she-demon exhaling flames of passion as she shreds her vox box as if she’s exorcising demonic forces. So too does former guitarist Mike Scalzi also of Slough Feg join in for a couple vocal performances. Other than keyboard wizard Sigrid Sheie, this rendition of HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE is a completely new beast with none other than drummer Blake Anderson and bassist Frank Chin from the tech thrash powerhouse band Vektor. No wonder this album is an Earth-scorcher. Ironically the keys point to classic Deep Purple which makes this sound like Ritchie Blackmore and Jon Lord have had their consciousness downloaded into more youthful thrash metal devotees. A strange yet satisfying mix indeed.

This album proceeds at a breakneck pace thrashing and flailing about like a wounded dragon spitting fire storms. There are fleeting moments of psychedelic dominance however. You know, nice little rest stops during a dreaded battle between forces. “Don’t Follow The Lights” offers an intro and outro of downtime as well as some trippy key action in the middle. Since prog rock is a key element into the entire HAMMERS playbook, of course off-kilter time signature freakouts punctuate the thrashy insouciance that only unrelents for the occasional neoclassical gymnastics or metal exit stage-lefting. Add some mellotrons and Hammond B3 and you have a recipe for the most bizarrely performed thrash metal album since well, i guess ever! Almost like a clash of the titans moment here. Thrash metal, prog rock, psychedelia, female vocal classic rock. Better than i was hoping for! HAMMER on, people!

siLLy puPPy After making a splash in the world of progressive metal with its debut album “The Bastard,” the San Francisco based HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE led by guitarist John Cobbett began writing an even more ambitious rock opera that was supposed to rival or exceed the grandiosity of an epic tale such as Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” but the record companies who release these albums simply were not having it and Cobbett and his project were forced to start from scratch when crafting a sophomore release. The result of taking a new approach led them to the musical workouts that would appear on THE AUGUST ENGINE which while not quite as ambitious as what had been planned still ended up as a concept album that revolved around a continued conversation between the microcosm and the macrocosm and how each individual in society amounts to being a mere cog in a greater design that is referred to by the title.

Well, ok then! Concept albums are fun and often nebulous in the philosophical wankery but the good thing about albums like THE AUGUST ENGINE is that the themes lend a lot to the listener’s interpretation. While “The Bastard” was basically set up like an rock opera in three acts, THE AUGUST ENGINE is basically the sum of the parts of seven disparate tracks that borrowed a lot from the debut’s sound such as the classic Lord Weird Slough Feg heavy metal that guitarist / vocalist Mike Scalzi brought to the table as well as the folk elements but this time around the folk is less medieval sounding and the progressive aspects have been turned up making this album seem much more like a progressive metal album than the debut. Despite the more daring compositional twists and turns and time signature zigzagging, THE AUGUST ENGINE retains the heavy metal bombast of the debut.

The instrumentation on “The Bastard” was performed only by four musicians: John Cobbett (guitar, producer), Mike Scalzi (guitar, vocals), Janis Tanaka (bass, vocals) and Chewy Marzolo (drums). THE AUGUST ENGINE found the same lineup with three extra musicians on “Rainfall” which included extra vocals, violin and cello. No credits for keyboards are presented but there are a few piano runs but the keys haven’t been fully integrated like they would be on the band’s following album “The Locust” which added the extra elements needed to make HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE feel like a bona fide prog metal band. The metal and folk elements tended to trade off on the debut while on THE AUGUST ENGINE they have become more integrated with alterations between the two as well as simultaneous weavings of the two styles. Same goes with the vocals of Scalzi and Tanaka who compliment each other’s harmonies as often as they take the lead. The guitar runs are much more adventurous this time around with just as many long-winded space rock styled solos set in metal fashion as well as the expected crunchy riffing sections.

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE succeeds in crafting a worthy epic sounding album after it’s magnanimous perfect debut but in many ways THE AUGUST ENGINE sounds more like a transition between the prog laced metal and folk interludes of the debut album and the full-fire prog assaults of the following “The Locust” however the album instills its own charm and works for what it is and also established the band as one that would not be happy simply repeating what came before and displayed a true passion for progressing beyond what had been established before. Given the fact that “The Bastard” took the idea to its logical conclusion on the first try meant the band had to seek out a slightly different path and THE AUGUST ENGINE displays the band taking on more progressive workouts with sludgy thrash metal riffs that wouldn’t sound out of place on an early Mastodon album along with the classic 80s heavy metal sounds as well as atmospheric moments that remind of atmospheric black metal and even moments of doom metal. Even the folk is darker this time around as the flavors of the Renaissance had been completely abandoned in favor of a darker more sinister vibe.

To be honest, i’ve had a hard time warming up to THE AUGUST ENGINE as i find the debut and the following album to be superior but i have found this to be a personal choice and after giving this several spins i have to admit that despite my preference for the other albums, THE AUGUST ENGINE is nevertheless a very professional sounding album that exceeds on many levels even if not taking things to the places i would prefer they go. The vocal team of Scialzi and Tanaka create beautiful melodic harmonies that sweeten the fast tempo metal assaults and doomy dirge effects along with the soaring guitars that pacify the pounding bass and drum action. The folk elements are scarcer on this second album however “Rainfall” is completely in the realms of dark folk and the beautiful intro on “Insect” shows how tastefully the band had steered these sounds into a darker arena. Ever so often such as on “Doomed Parade” a few medieval tinged moments do emerge. Once again the tracks are not overweeningly lengthy for the most part. Only the title track “Part 2” which nears nine minutes and the 11 minute “The Trial And The Grave” deliver extended prog formats. THE AUGUST ENGINE is a worthy followup to the perfection of “The Bastard” and although doesn’t quite hit that high mark, is still an excellent slice of progressive metal that sounds like no other.

siLLy puPPy The progressive metal band HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE actually got its start way back in mid-90s San Francisco under the name Unholy Cadaver which consisted of only guitarist John Corbett and drummer Chewy Marzolo who also shared vocals. The project then took on new life as new musicians joined the ranks. The first was Mike Scalzi better known as the vocalist / guitarist of another legendary San Francisco band, The Lord Weird Slough Feg. The trio practiced and recorded a lot of demo material, none of which would end up on the future projects of HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE, a name that was adopted in the year 2000 from one of the track titles. While the demo material would be scrapped and later released in 2011 as an archival release under the moniker Unholy Cadaver, as HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE, the trio welcomed bassist and vocalist Janis Tanaka to the club and set out to record a new more interesting progressive form of metal.

The band’s first album THE BASTARD (often with a the subtitle “A Tale Told In Three Acts”) was quite the undertaking and an adventurous journey in the form of a metal opera that takes place in three acts much like a Shakespearean play or some other epic tale that requires an expansive narrative to convey, however THE BASTARD was not released as some ridiculous sprawling three disc set or anything of the sort. The band had the good sense to keep this an album’s length and at a normal playing time of 46 minutes, it hits all the high notes without a lot of fluff which makes this a pretty decent start for this eclectic band that would change its sound dramatically on each album throughout its career. It’s worth noting that despite the excellent production that graces THE BASTARD, this entire album was simply recorded in a rehearsal studio on an 8-track analog machine in San Francisco from July 1999 to February 2000. The album itself didn’t emerge until 2001 but got rave reviews from the metal world and put HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE on the metal radar right from the start.

While considered a progressive metal album, this isn’t the kind of stuff Dream Theater or Symphony X were cranking out. THE BASTARD was an unholy union of traditional 80s heavy metal along with what sounds like medieval English folk music however the band does manage to tease in more progressive elements and extended proggy fills. Upon first listen i was wondering why the singer sounded so familiar as did some of the guitar riffs and then it became clear that it was because of the Scalzi connection as the Slough Feg sound is strewn throughout the album’s run. Basically what THE BASTARD excels in as the narrative unfolds is basically alternate between beefy metal guitar riffs, beefy bass chops and stellar drumming narrative with the male vocals and then follows with the contrast of more light and airy folk sounds with the female vocal charm of Janis Tanaka who also plays some pretty tight bass. The connecting tissue that binds the two disparate styles is where the progressive runs tend to gravitate along with an occasional solo. At times the metal drifts into power metal territory and also an occasional black metal moment.

The album consists of three acts and fourteen tracks but for the most part the tracks run together and it’s impossible to distinguish them from each other as the melodies simply carry over and the song sort of drifts into a new one as the storyline proceeds. Exceptions occur when abrupt changes such as the bombastic metal heft of “Tyrant Dies” completely ends and the gleeful mandolin folk cheer of “The Witch’s Dance” follows. The continuity is really quite well laid out as the tracks capture all the essence of a rock your socks off heavy metal album but also cools off with exquisitely sublime moments of medieval folk music as if you left the metal concert and walked into the Renaissance fair. The brevity of the tracks is the album’s greatest strength as THE BASTARD never lags in overblown pompous cycles that many rock opera’s suffer from. Only the grande finale “Sacrifice The End” has a lengthy playing time near nine minutes and as a result is the most progressive with many differing movements, tones, timbres and elements of surprise.

Everything about this album works quite well actually. The musicianship is outstanding. The cleverly crafted compositions are all interesting by both keeping a unified feel of the entire album yet adding different elements to give each track its own personality. The contrasting vocal styles of Tanaka and Scalzi are perfectly matched and the progressive elements are tastefully woven into the big picture instead of simply adding proggy workouts for their own sake. Best of all this is metal that you can bang your head to. The metal is the real deal but the down time is quite welcome and beautifully performed. The band mastered both the metal and folk aspects perfectly and yet somehow found a perfect way to meld it altogether and craft a concept album that runs as tightly as some classical score from the distant past. Add to that the fiery passion of all the performers and this one is a true winner and perhaps my favorite HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE album of all as this one has most energetic deliveries. This was a surprise coming to this after the more famous albums that follow but i love this one a lot better. There are no weaknesses on this at all.

voila_la_scorie What would have happened if in, say, 1975 a band decided to marry the musical complexity of Yes and Emerson, Lake & Palmer with the heaviness of Black Sabbath and Judas Priest? The result may have sounded something like this double album offering by Hammers of Misfortune.

Knowing nothing about the band previously, my eye caught sight of the cover for Church of Broken Glass while sampling prog bands on Amazon. I gave the song samples the usual quick once over to see if anything caught my interest and it certainly did. There are many points worthy of praise here but also a few criticisms as well. Let's consider the strengths first.

This double album of two short (about 35 minutes each) albums is packed with the kind of intricate and complex music you'd expect from a symphonic prog band but with the heaviness of a progressive metal band that puts an organ up front. A big nod goes to multi- instrumentalist Sigrid Sheie whose organ and piano work is heavy and serious. She has classical training and plays flute as well but also has punk experience. (There's an interesting interview with her at canadaartsconnect.com). Sigrid also contributes backing vocals.

The guitar is heavy and driving but with a lot of interesting riffs and passages. This is not your typical muted-string duh-duh-duh metal. It's more like Iron Maiden but with the heavier sound of a talented 80's speed metal band at times.

The rhythm section holds its own, and while the bass doesn't stand out in particular, the drum work is appreciatively busy without being overdone.

The style of the music ranges from complex speed metal to slow stoner metal but always accented by that Hammond B3. There are more delicate moments too with acoustic guitar and some beautiful piano work. Musically speaking, this is a well-balanced album that defines its parameters in a comfortably broad scale without straying into "that doesn't suit the album" territory. Any classical passage or even the eastern sounds in parts of "Too Soon" don't sound out of place at all. Songs range in length from the straightforward 4:02 heavy rock of "Train" from "Church..." to the 10:19 of "Butchertown" from the same disk.

There are perhaps three strikes against the album. The first depends on how you like your modern prog metal to sound with respect to recording quality. Both disks capture the more unpolished sounds of an 80's metal band that didn't have major label backing or the slightly garage-like sound of some 70's recordings such as what I have heard on, say, Atomic Rooster albums. If you like this sound or if you can forget that we're talking about an album from 2008 then it's not an issue but a plus. As the band seems inclined to capture a heavy 70's atmosphere then maybe a more polished sound like that on Dream Theater, Fates Warning, or Threshold albums wouldn't work. Personally I have mixed feelings about the sound. I like it but maybe a bit cleaner would be better?

My second gripe is that some of the best songs have choruses that just repeat and repeat as the song makes a long journey to the end. "Butchertown" appealed to me because of its "Black Sabbath" (song) approach with slow, doomy and heavy chords combined with lighter acoustic parts. But the chorus repeats over and over while the music slowly climbs toward a promised climax that never really reaches release. "Motorcade" and "Rats Assembly" also have this though not as long as "Butchertown".

Finally, I have to say that the biggest disappointment is the vocal department. With male and female lead vocalists (Patrick Goodwin, Joe Hutton and Jesse Quattro) and Sigrid on backing vocals there are wonderful opportunities to combine male voices ("Motorcade"), female voices ("Rats Assembly"), and male and female voices, as well as solo vocal parts. Sadly, the production of the vocals is weak. They are treated more like a rhythm instrument than the voices of the songs. The lyrics are at times difficult to make out and the voices just another sound in the music. When members sing together it comes across as punk gang singing instead of the beautiful mix it could be. Additionally, neither lead vocalist comes across as particularly remarkable, though perhaps this has something to do with the production or mixing again. It seems Jesse Quattro is capable of maintaining a solo career, so maybe there's talent to speak of.

Overall the album could score five stars for the musical effort but loses on the vocals and on recording quality in general. I recommend fans of heavier symphonic prog and experimental metal to check this one out.

AtomicCrimsonRush A mixture of experimental metal riffing, folk and Gothic doom.

Hammers of Misfortune are an experimental metal outfit with some innovative prog riffing and very complex lead soling. The rhythms are broken and are often quick tempo with very slow lead guitar overlayed by Cobbett's guitar and a steady beat. "The August Engine" is one of the best albums from the band beginning with the amazing fast and creative instrumental August Engine No. 1. There are short blastbeats on this with the oddest time sig, and some acoustic pieces merge it into the next track.

Rainfall is acoustic and piano at the beginning and then the female vocals of Sheie smoothly and gently chime in, with beautiful harmonies. The contrast from tension to release is astounding.

A Room and A Riddle returns to the blistering metal riffs with a chugging pace and pounding drums. The vocals are a male and female harmony sounding quite dark and foreboding. The rhythms are fractured and as strange as the vocal style.

Another great track is Insect beginning with folky acoustic guitar and estranged harmonised vocals. The monotone melody is off kilter and it builds gradually to a loud distorted guitar chord progression and lead soloing. The song takes off with strong vocals and riffing. There are some weird time sigs on drums from Marzolo and the track fades eventually.

Doomed Parade has some of the best vocals of Cobbett, and nice trade offs from Sheie. The beat is broken by pauses and the lead break is wonderful, echoing twin lead guitar solos and harmonics over acoustic flourishes. There is a majestic feel with the vocals and then it settles into a minimalist acoustic with the Gothic female vocals taking over. Eventually the main motif returns with male vocals and it ends with a crashing finale.

The Trial and The Grave is quite doomy with a downbeat chord structure. At 11:12 it is the longest track on the album and features many different mood swings with time shifts and splintering musical structures. The female harmonies are strong; "was it a dream, is it just I or the world that's gone mad, I searched for a headstone, what did I find in time, nothing but a blackness." The Gothic essence is captured in the main verses at the beginning, quite stark and chilling; "standing condemned, the trial commenced, none to defend her and no evidence, the sentence was passed, a barrister laughs, when they had killed her they cut her in half." The chilling words are overlayed by doom laden Sabbath-esque chords. The vengeance of the corpse is inevitable here and it gets into some dark territory. The atmosphere is ethereal and the music consistently feels downbeat, including the repetitive lead solo.

Overall the album features a huge range of styles, is highly experimental and very dark overall. The front cover with German gassings and apocalyptic bombings from screaming jets paints the tormented picture of war and pain. The music reflects this in places, and as a newcomer to the band I can recommend this for those who like their metal forged with a dark blade, and sliced up with folk and Gothic influences.