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5 Excellent - Masterpiece. A classic.
4.5-4 Great - Almost perfect records but there's probably a lacking.
3.5 Good - Most of the record is good, but there may be some filler.
3 Average - Some good songs, some bad ones at about a half/half ratio.
2.5-2 Fair - Worth a listen, but best obtained by collectors.
1.5-1 Bad - Major problems with music, lyrics, production, etc.
0 Terrible - Waste of your life and time.

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The best way to determine how much you may like certain music is to listen to it yourself.
Band
Black Zodiac
Title
Black Zodiac
Type
LP/EP
Company
Independent
YOR
2004
Style
Death
Popular Reviews
4/13/2005 - Review by: Frank Hill
Black Zodiac - Psychotic Hatred - 2004

Track Listing

1. Psychotic Mind
2. Final Conclusion
3. Awakening
4. Love In Darkness
5. Fanatico
6. Healing With Your Hate
7. Bow To Me
8. My Enemy's Blood
9. Behind My Skin
10. Consequential Hatred
11. Coming Out
Da Vinci's Mona Lisa has intrigued art lovers for a half century with it's lone female smiling ever so slightly. People wonder what's going on behind that serene face with the chaotic background landscape. There's a similar dichotomy here with Florida-based band Black Zodiac and their debut album, "Psychotic Hatred".

Full band info is fairly non-existent with almost all the promo/website material based around female lead singer Mayelin. The CD cover is her in statuesque pose in front of some kind of orange, branchy hellscape. Calm and classically posed in all pictures she seems to be the sole image of the group, but her presence clashes for me with the song material and titles. She's the center of the hurricane and everything comes across as more personal catharsis with the band as an avenue for the violence appearently in her system and background.

The name Black Zodiac "represents all the different personalities of the zodiac, with the darkness behind them", but it feels like more of a clever idea than an incorporation into the sound on this release. I just don't see it in there. Musically, the CD is early death metal that's tight in rhythm, but it's not innovative in sound or structure. Mayelin's vocals range from growls that could use a deepening effect and cleaner singing that is frequently off-key.

Check them out if you're into old-school death and curious about what might be behind those eyes. Bottom Line: Black Zodiac needs more matter and less art.

Score: 5 of 10


www.blackzodiac.net


--Nailer 04.07.05
  • 1 :REVIEW COUNT
    N/A :AVE RATING

ALL REVIEWS FOR: BLACK ZODIAC
TITLE
DOR
COMPANY
 REVIEWER DATE MADE RATING
Black Zodiac
2004
Independent
Frank Hill4/13/2005
-

ALL INTERVIEWS FOR: BLACK ZODIAC
INTERVIEW INTERVIEWER DATE TAGLINE


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