Review by Chris Pratl on June 27, 2018.

It’s sort of hard to believe that Master has been around for 20-years now. I remember seeing these guys at nearly every club in Chicago back in the day, and front-man Paul Speckman and crew seldom disappointed. The discography is an impressive collective of honest, brutal death metal that is straight from the book of said genre. From 2000 to 2005 Master has produced a solid release every single year, so they’ve never gone away and have only gotten more brutal with age. 

The latest effort, The Human Machine, is a mild kick in the chest void of subtlety or reserve. It’s well-produced, fast-paced death metal that has a technical side emanating from it, quite polished I might add. Maturity through death metal often means a band either waters down its style and subject matter in accordance to some imaginary borders or they manage to progress from the roots and grow from within. Master has managed to grow without letting up. Chuck Schuldiner’s Death comes to mind if pressed for a viable comparison. From Scream Bloody Gore in 1987 to Sounds of Perseverance in 1998 is an amazing example of how maturity in death metal doesn’t mean dumbing-down the music or selling out the ideal. In fact, Master’s The Human Machine could stand up well against death album from the past year or so. It’s both viable and stirs the senses.

The songs are typically Master: free-thought-promoting, sensible dirges, and violent reactions to all things inane or unjust. In the long lineage that is Master’s discography, the ever constant theme is subjugation, be it internal, mental or governmental. “Supress Free Thinking” from the CD is a full-on bitch-fest about losing the ability to think for one’s self. Speckman’s vocals are so reminiscent to Tom G. Warrior from Celtic Frost it’s haunting. His influences show throughout the CD, as does the proficiency of the band he’s assembled with Alex Nejezchleba on guitars and Zdenek Pradlovsky drumming. The trio is amazingly talented and produces through a mere trio what some bands can’t accomplish with five members. 

Heavy metal has always prided itself on being cerebral, thought-provoking music, insisting that one thinks outside the proverbial box and finds answers not always conducive to popular collective thought. Master accomplishes this through the barrage of heaviness that could crush a Sherman tank. Especially evident on the track “A Replica of Invention,” the headbang-inducing track gets under your skin and provides an additional outlet for suppressed rage and strife that might be lingering inside somewhere. 

From start to finish, The Human Machine is a death metal lesson in coloring outside the lines. This is the way death metal should be presented: fast, thought-provoking and legible. Another fine release from a vastly underrated band is ready for ingestion.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

(Originally written for http://www.metalpsalter.com)

Review by Chris Pratl on June 27, 2018.

It’s sort of hard to believe that Master has been around for 20-years now. I remember seeing these guys at nearly every club in Chicago back in the day, and front-man Paul Speckman and crew seldom disappointed. The discography is an impressive collective of honest, brutal death metal that is straight from the book of said genre. From 2000 to 2005 Master has produced a solid release every single year, so they’ve never gone away and have only gotten more brutal with age. 

The latest effort, The Human Machine, is a mild kick in the chest void of subtlety or reserve. It’s well-produced, fast-paced death metal that has a technical side emanating from it, quite polished I might add. Maturity through death metal often means a band either waters down its style and subject matter in accordance to some imaginary borders or they manage to progress from the roots and grow from within. Master has managed to grow without letting up. Chuck Schuldiner’s Death comes to mind if pressed for a viable comparison. From Scream Bloody Gore in 1987 to Sounds of Perseverance in 1998 is an amazing example of how maturity in death metal doesn’t mean dumbing-down the music or selling out the ideal. In fact, Master’s The Human Machine could stand up well against death album from the past year or so. It’s both viable and stirs the senses.

The songs are typically Master: free-thought-promoting, sensible dirges, and violent reactions to all things inane or unjust. In the long lineage that is Master’s discography, the ever constant theme is subjugation, be it internal, mental or governmental. “Supress Free Thinking” from the CD is a full-on bitch-fest about losing the ability to think for one’s self. Speckman’s vocals are so reminiscent to Tom G. Warrior from Celtic Frost it’s haunting. His influences show throughout the CD, as does the proficiency of the band he’s assembled with Alex Nejezchleba on guitars and Zdenek Pradlovsky drumming. The trio is amazingly talented and produces through a mere trio what some bands can’t accomplish with five members. 

Heavy metal has always prided itself on being cerebral, thought-provoking music, insisting that one thinks outside the proverbial box and finds answers not always conducive to popular collective thought. Master accomplishes this through the barrage of heaviness that could crush a Sherman tank. Especially evident on the track “A Replica of Invention,” the headbang-inducing track gets under your skin and provides an additional outlet for suppressed rage and strife that might be lingering inside somewhere. 

From start to finish, The Human Machine is a death metal lesson in coloring outside the lines. This is the way death metal should be presented: fast, thought-provoking and legible. Another fine release from a vastly underrated band is ready for ingestion.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

(Originally written for http://www.metalpsalter.com)

Review by Tobias on February 26, 2014.

Monsterworks' Universe doesn't shroud its grand aspirations in supercilious pretense or stoic seriousness, nor does it lose itself in misery or darkness. In paradox to its complex arrangements and varied styles, Universe is, simply, big and fun. It’s a slightly heady experience with an almost snarky tone that manages to avoid the pitfalls of cheese overdoses, despite it’s blending of many different rock and metal elements.

Mosterworks is often described as prog-thrash or something of the sort. The concept of "progressive" works, but no other label mash-up fits them like a glove because the band seems to be Frankensteining the best of some of their favorite musical elements: progressive, thrash, psychedelic, death, rock n' roll, and a working-man's passion. The range of vocals alone is demonstrative: a clean baritone, a nasal proggy croon, a classic euro-thrash scream ala Kreator, an occasionally trippy use of deathly growls, and the very distinct and welcome influence of Rob Halford all make appearance, and quite often all in the same song.

The music, while noted for changing up a lot, is actually more laudable in the way that it transitions from one place to another; there is no shock treatment or spastically sharp contrasts to jar the listener as one would find in a Dillinger Escape Plan or Mr. Bungle record, instead there is a distinctly connected flow.

It would've been nice to get a little more of the intergalactic psychedelia in the album, but the balance provided was well struck. The riffing was probably the least impressive, but it wasn’t unimpressive, and certainly not boring. What it lacked was made up for in lead guitar that ranges from the melodic speed of Iron Maiden's Dave Murray to the slow spacey rock swoon of Funkadelic's Maggot Brain.

If one were to reverse-engineer the Frankenbaby here, I bet the formula would look something like this: (Disillusion + Kvelertak) / Devin Townsend = Monsterworks Universe

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 7
Atmosphere: 8
Production: 7
Overall:8

Rating: 7.5

Review by Michael on February 28, 2025.

Floris, the mind behind Dutch black metal band Schavot is a busy guy. Already releasing his third full-length album Verstrickt In Halflicht within four years, he is also active in bands like Asgrauw, Meslamtaea or Sagenland. I guess he doesn't have too much boredom in his life.

First of all you probably have a look at the beautiful cover which shows some of the stories to be told on the album (but later a little bit more about that). Again the artwork was created by Kris Verwimp who was already responsible for many other legendary artworks of some metal bands like Enthroned, Absu, Marduk and many more. So we get trapped in semi-darkness (with both the cover and the music) and this is some really spooky ride. Underlined with scary keyboards we must face some nightmarish songs. Deep growls and blasphemous, mocking female vocals (is that you, Lulu Reedfield?) also create a dense, almost feverish atmosphere. In contrast to these sinister elements you can find many synthesizers in the songs to emphasize a more fantastic yet cinematic touch, too. Of course this isn't the biggest surprise if you know that Floris is a huge fan of symphonic black metal of the 90s. But what also comes to mind is some newer stuff like …and Oceans that have quite some similarity to what is offered here.

Scahvot is a one-man-project but this time Floris got a lot of help from some friends. So it is quite comprehendible that the biggest surprises are more progressive elements like a trumpet in "Geestenjacht" (done by Izzy Op De Beeck who is also member in Maeslamtaea) and more classic heavy metal guitars (e.g. "Met Een Haak Naar De Diepte", "Verzwolgen"). All guitar solos are performed by Gerhans Meulenbeld and you might guess in which band he is involved). What I really have to confess is that it took me some time to dive into this more avantgardistic approach that you can find not only one time here. Of course it isn't that avantgardistic like stuff that Ved Buens Ende did with "Written In Waters" of the latest Dodheimsgard stuff but sometimes it is quite tough to get into. Or like what Metallica did when they cooperated with Lou Reed on the unspeakable album (not that I would call Metallica or Lou Reed black metal in any case of course).

Fortunately most of the songs are furious black metal though and not too much progression in comparison to Galgenbrok and Kronieken Uit De Nevel. In many ways there are catchy parts, a lot of melodies in the guitar lines and the keyboards so that traditional symphonic black metal fans who are deeply rooted in the 90s and albums like "In The Nightside Eclipse", "The Shadowthrone" or "For All Tid" won't be too challenged with the new Schavot.

Lyrically (and this also matches quite well to the music) because they deal with a lot of Dutch folklore. "Geestenjacht" is about the Wild Hunt, "Met Een Haak Naar De Diepte" tells us about the "Waternekker" that is a malevolent water spirit that drowns his victims or "The Lantaarn Spreekt De Weg" which is about one of my favorite mysterious creatures, the Will-o'-the-whisp. But some of the lyrics are also based on more psychological aspects like "Striijdend Voor Het Bestaan" or "Waar Schimmer Immer Dolen" so it seems to be a good combination of dream and reality.

What is left to say after the 39 minutes of this psychotic and irritating trip through folklore and real personal nightmares? Well, like the title already tells – you are trapped in the album, maybe because of its slightly more complicated approach or maybe because of the beauty that is to be found in the twilight. Verstrickt In Halflicht is a more unconventional approach to set black metal to music. It is interesting, challenging and once you get caught by the "Waternekker" also rousing. Let's see where the road for Schavot is leading to.

Rating: 9 out of 10