CONNIPTION - A METHOD TO MADNESS
ROCK IT UP RECORDS
Metal To Infinity
Wow,
this is some fantastic acoustic piece of Music to start a CD with, I just adore
it! For some reason there are more traditional Thrash Metal bands that recorded
this kind of instrumental arrangements into their CD’s in the past. At least
they’ve proved the world there are fantastic Thrash Metal musicians out there,
capable to write amazing stuff, no matter how hard and fast the rest of their
music sounds. The whole world? Not exactly because only Metallica had the right
to show what they’re capable of to the entire world. The rest, especially the
underground, couldn’t even dream about it but do we really care? I don’t…
Forbidden and Flotsam & Jetsam also used this kind of acoustic pieces before
and to me the effect was immense. I suppose you already figured out also
Conniption is a Thrash Metal band too and they’re heading from Milwaukee/USA.
This ain’t exactly the neighborhood of the San Francisco Bay Area but musical
wise they should have fit this movement perfectly. Anyway this is the band’s
first release.
There
isn’t so much to discover, on the Internet, about Conniption and that’s a
pity. I was wondering if any of these musicians played in another band – we
should know – before. It must be because these lads sound way too experienced
for a new formation. I can tell you Conniption is a two guitar Metal band and
Michael Brigham plays the leading role as guitarist / singer. The band is mainly
playing Thrash Metal, in different tempi and they remind me strongly of bands
like (old) Metallica, Megadeth, mid tempo Anthrax, Death Angel and Mordred. What
they also have in common with Mordred is the fact that sometimes they experience
a bit in what they’re doing, not on a funky way but more on a Rocking way. I
like it, especially because the band doesn’t exaggerate being experimental.
The
tracks are well written and I’ve heard several catchy songs. I know we can’t
expect from every band to release a masterpiece but I’m sure Conniption is
able to deliver this kind of
quality in the future. In every track you will discover sharp riffs,
often sophisticated guitar arrangements, even more cold shivering acoustic parts,
technical played percussion… To be honest I had the feeling there was even
more into it, more to maintain a mind-blowing album. Right now Conniption
delivered a great record and I expect much more from these guys in the future.
“Selective
Amnesia” for example totally blew me away. This is pure technical, Progressive
Thrash from a very high level and this is indeed a very catchy song. Conniption
uses what have been invented so many years ago – when Thrash Metal was golden
– but it’s cool to hear the band is creative, expressive and pure. Other
tracks that are worth checking out are for example “Eye For An Eye”,
“Successor To The Throne”, a more traditional Heavy Metal song and “The
Illusion”. This record contains two bonus tracks too (live).
Conniption
is a typical band Thrash Metal fanatics will adore but they don’t belong –
musical wise – to the new wave of US Thrash bands. Conniption is therefore too
musical and this isn’t the harsh kind of Thrash Metal. To be honest I prefer
this melodic kind of Thrash Metal and that’s the main reason why Conniption
will stay a band to keep my eyes on. Check them out at http://www.conniption.us
or http://www.myspace.com/thebandconniption
or http://www.rockitup.org.
My Points: 85 / 100 (Review by Officer Nice)