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Harmony Corruption Episode 97-The 1990 Retrospective Part 2-May 27th. 2025

Posted on 2025-06-04 by CelestialEmissary Posted in chsr, Harmony Corruption, Music Shows

Hi Folks! Welcome back to the 1990 retrospective with Stephanie co-hosting! This week’s episode features lots of great tunes from 1990, some discussion about 1990 pop culture including movies, and more.

Here’s the playlist for the week:

Death-Altering the Future

Nocturnus-Andromeda Strain

Obituary-Body Bag

Atheist-I Deny

Deicide-Sacrificial Suicide

Cannibal Corpse-Born In A Casket

Cancer-To The Gory End

Napalm Death-The Chains That Bind Us

Carnage-Deranged From Blood

Entombed-Premature Autopsy

Dopethrone-Spirit Ruiner

Dopethrone-Abraxas

Dopethrone-Power Violence Forever

Tomb Mold-Intro/The Grow Inside

Tomb Mold-Twisted Trail

Tomb Mold-Vernal Grace/Outro

Acid Bath-Toubabo-Koomi

Thanks for listening!

 

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Harmony Corruption Episode 96-The 1990 Retrospective Part 1-May 27th, 2025

Posted on 2025-06-04 by CelestialEmissary Posted in General

Hi Folks! This week’s episode is the first part of the 1990 retrospective with Stephanie! We chat about metal from 1990, the direction it was headed in, and what came next. As well, some of the big changes that occurred between 1985 and 1990. Here’s the playlist for the week!

Judas Priest-Painkiller

Megadeth-Tornado of Souls

Slayer-Seasons In the Abyss

Testament-Souls of Black

Anthrax-Belly of the Beast

Artillery-Equal At First

Razor-Shotgun Justice

Razor-Meaning of Pain

Annihilator-Imperiled Eyes

Annihilator-Sixes and Sevens

Sacrifice-In Defiance

Demolition Hammer-Crippling Velocity

Morbid Saint-Beyond the Gates of Hell

Kreator-People of the Lie

Thanks for listening!

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Mornings Are Hard || 2025-06-03

Posted on 2025-06-04 by Bondo Posted in Mornings Are Hard

Artist – Track || Album
1.) Laamar – Dream/Grief || In The Light
2.) Foxwarren – Deadhead || 2
3.) Tall Juan + Delicate Steve – Brothers || single
4.) mary in the junkyard – drains || single
5.) TOPS – Chlorine || single
6.) Hawksley Workman – Save My Life || Fly Like An Ego
7.) Faint Louis, Eve Jones – I Wish I Knew || Details
8.) Milk & Bone – Deception Bay || Deception Bay
9.) Mint Simon – 2007 || Chimera
10.) Saxsyndrum – As I Wait || Room Of Endless Days
11.) Shriven – Blameless || Saints Rest
12.) Family Man – Company of Portraits || single
13.) Motherhood – Bok Globule || Thunder Perfect Mind
14.) King Gizzard – Dragon || PetroDragonic Apocalypse; or, Dawn of Eternal Night: An Annihilation of Planet Earth and the Beginning of Merciless Damnation

Away From The Mire Episode 80 – That 90’s Show!

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Stephen Dominey Posted in Away From The Mire, chsr, Current Shows, Music Shows

This week’s episode focused on bands that from the 90’s both famous and not so famous.

I’ve got tracks from bands that shook the music world and some that had their one crack at fame on MTV’s 120 minutes but never took off. I think you’ll enjoy this one!

 

Whale – Hobo Humpin’ Slobo Babe
Lucy’s Fur Coat – Treasure Hands
Possum Dixon – Watch The Girl Destroy Me
Fastball – America
The Lemonheads – Deep End
The Age of Electric – Untitled
Sloan – I Love This Town
Thrush Hermit – The Day We Hit The Coast
Sonic Youth – The Diamond Sea
Nirvana – Heart Shaped Box (live)
Pearl Jam – Off He Goes (live)
Rick White – My Favourite Game

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Mornings Are Hard || 2025-05-29

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Bondo Posted in Mornings Are Hard

Artist – Track || Album
1.) PSILK, Thando Zide – With You In Mind || single
2.) Joe Nolan – Wake Up Sleepy Anna || single
3.) Father John Misty – Nancy From Now On || Fear Fun
4.) Sunflower Bean – Nothing Romantic || Mortal Primetime
5.) Car Seat Headrest – Equals || The Scholars
6.) cootie catcher – Friend of a Friend || Shy At First
7.) cootie catcher – Dumb Lit || Shy At First
8.) Frog Eyes – Put a Little Light on the Wretch That Is Me || The Open Up
9.) Casper Skulls – Spindletop || Kit-Cat
10.) Doctor Mother Father – Hard On Systems || single
11.) Radiator – Fortune Teller || 23 PARK STREET LONDON UK
12.) These New Puritans – Wild Fields || Crooked Wing
13.) GY!BE – SUN IS A HOLE SUN IS VAPORS || “NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD”
14.) Lou Tides – Map Maker || Autostatic!
15.) Marie Davidson – Fun Times || City Of Clowns

“You can make art here”: First film shot in New Brunswick to be featured at TIFF since 2013 comes to Fredericton Cineplex

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Aidan Keenan Posted in News

Do I Know You From Somewhere, the first film to be shot in New Brunswick and screened at the Toronto International Film Festival since 2013, is coming to the Fredericton Cineplex on May 30. The opening weekend in Fredericton sold out days before the premiere, prompting Cineplex to add a full week of screenings from June 2 to June 5. The film is the directorial feature debut of local filmmaker Arianna Martinez who co wrote the film with her husband Gordon Mihan. Martinez, Mihan, and Lance Blakney, make up Strike Pictures, the company that produced Do I Know You From Somewhere. All three emphasized that shooting the film in New Brunswick was more than a financial consideration. Keeping shooting locations local meant that film’s crew could maintain a healthy work-life ballance while still finding employment in their field. The trio behind Strike Pictures noted that this production style sharply contrasts the industry norm, which favours long hours in major filmmaking hubs like Toronto and Vancouver. Shooting in New Brunswick also meant that the crew could highlight the natural beauty in the Picture Province, shooting exteriors on the Maquapit lake and interiors at the Fredericton Delta.

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“Let the art breath”: new running club for artists at the Charlotte Street Art Centre

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Aidan Keenan Posted in News

Starting on May 20th, and continuing every Tuesday at 5:30pm, the Charlotte Street Art Centre is offering a free running club for local artists. The Art Centre’s Artreach Coordinator, Oscar Tecu, explained that he wanted to share his love for running and its meditative potential with the Fredericton art community. While art is a much needed creative outlet, Oscar emphasized the importance of staying active and ensuring that the often sedentary process of creating art is balanced with exercise.

Several running club members agreed with Oscar, noting that the act of running itself is often akin to art, allowing one to make mental space for creative thinking while exposing artists to the natural beauty of Fredericton’s trails.

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Fredericton Society of Saint Andrew celebrates 200 years of “Scottish Benevolence” with new museum exhibit

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Aidan Keenan Posted in News

On Sunday, May 25, 2025, the Fredericton Society of Saint Andrew (FSSA) and the York-Sunbury Historical Society (YSHS) unveiled a new exhibit at the Fredericton Region Museum celebrating the 200th anniversary of the FSSA.

According to FSSA President and Second Vice President of the YSHS, Dr. Cynthia Wallace-Casey, the tagline of the exhibit, “200 years of Scottish Benevolence,” is an homage to the FSSA’s early roots when it served as an aid organization for Scottish immigrants arriving in Fredericton to harsh 19th century conditions.

Many of the artifacts on display at the Fredericton Region Museum are related to the FSSA’s pipe band, which was founded in the 1920s and now competes in bagpiping competitions around the world.

Fredericton Mayor Kate Rogers — whose great grandfather and brother were a pipers in the FSSA band — noted that honouring cultural organizations like these helps to preserve the rich history of immigration in Fredericton, and it reminds Frederictonians that cultural diversity contributes to the city’s unique character.

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UNB Community Garden sees increased interest after starting new “Garden Therapy Thursdays”

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Aidan Keenan Posted in News

From May 8th to June 5th, the University of New Brunswick’s Sustainability Office is hosting “Garden Therapy Thursdays,” a drop-in mindfulness program that sees participants weeding and preparing garden beds. UNB Sustainability Engagement Coordinator, Bailey Saunders, explained that this new program is meant as a pilot to gauge interest in guided gardening programs. The Sustainability Office expected a modest response from intermediate and seasoned gardeners, but was surprised by the number of participants with no gardening experience. Bailey noted that this increased interest in gardening could be linked to rising grocery prices and the the personal satisfaction that preparing a garden bed provides. Interest in Garden Therapy Thursdays was high enough that the Sustainability Office has already decided to continue the program next year.

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Fredericton buses move to half hour service on high usage routes after 19% increase in ridership

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Aidan Keenan Posted in News

Beginning on April 14, 2025, the City of Fredericton implemented new half hour service on its busiest bus routes. Previously, buses arrived at stops every hour, but on routes 12, 13, 14, and 15, buses now arrive every half hour during the mid-day rush. Routes 16 and 17 also have new half hour service, but only on the portions of the route located on Fredericton’s South Side. Routes 116 and 216 similarly received half hour service, with their peak hours starting 60 minutes before the other routes. The City of Fredericton’s Manager of Transit and Parking Services, Charlene Sharpe, explained that higher frequency bus service was in direct response to a 19% increase in ridership during 2024, with 1,600,406 individual trips taken last year—up from 1,344,996 in 2023. Nichola Taylor, the Chair of ACORN NB, noted that increasing the frequency of bus services is one step towards creating a convenient and effective bus service, particularly for low income Frederictonians who rely on public transit. Similarly, Warren Maddox, the Executive Director of Fredericton Homeless Shelters Inc. noted that public transit in Fredericton has made large strides in recent years, and anything that makes buses more convenient is a positive change.

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Tokyo Ramen re-opens after ten month hiatus to widespread support

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Aidan Keenan Posted in News

On May 1, 2025, Tokyo Ramen re-opened after closing temporarily in July. Tokyo Ramen is a family run restaurant, and front of house manager Fumi Kamazuka—oldest son of head chef Hirofumi Kamazuka—explained that the closure was due unforeseen health complications that prevented Hirofumi from working. During a family trip, Hirofumi, who has diabetes, visited a hospital for a checkup. The doctor who examined him told his family that Hirofumi required dialysis immediately, and if he did not receive treatment, that he might could die as soon as tomorrow. After resting and recovering for ten months Hirofumi is back in the kitchen, although he no longer works thirteen hour shifts like he did before the closure. The Kamazukas were concerned that their business would not recover after such a long hiatus. However, the family was surprised by the outpouring of support from the Fredericton community, with their announcement post on Facebook receiving over fifty-thousand views—almost as much as Fredericton’s total population—in less than a week.

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UNB Renaissance College celebrates 25 year anniversary with tried and tested traditions

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Aidan Keenan Posted in News

2025 marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the University of New Brunswick’s Renaissance College, which recently changed its name to the School of Leadership Studies. To commemorate a quarter century of the faculty, a special committee of volunteer alumni is planning several events for the UNB reunion weekend, scheduled for June 12th to 15th. The special committee has confirmed two events, both time honoured Renaissance College traditions: a soups-on dinner and a coffee house gathering. The soups-on is an homage to an integral part of all Renaissance College students’ experience, where every week a group of students organizes themselves to cook soup that they serve to the UNB community. One alumni is using the twenty-fifth anniversary to compile a book cataloguing the various soup recipes used over the last twenty-five years and any interesting stories associated with them. The coffee house is another longstanding tradition where students gather to share stories, artwork, and music in a casual inclusive environment. The committee is also considering creating merchandise specifically catered to alumni, a service that the faculty has not previously offered.

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NBCCD Photography and Videography Students win 8 of 20 ArtsNB Scholarships this year

Posted on 2025-06-03 by Aidan Keenan Posted in News

This year, eight students from the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design (NBCCD) Photography and Videography Studio won ArtsNB Scholarships, each valued at $2,500. This year’s cohort took home almost half of the twenty scholarships given out and doubled the number of winners from 2024—when four photo-video students won—and more than doubled 2023’s cohort—when three students won. Students from across New Brunswick are eligible to apply for the scholarships as long as they are pursuing some form of study or training in their given art form. ArtsNB states on their website that the scholarship is, “designed to recognize and encourage New Brunswick students who have demonstrated exceptional artistic talent and potential, and who are pursuing a career in the arts.” Karen Ruet, an Instructor in NBCCD’s Photo-Video Studio, explained that applying for the ArtsNB Scholarship is now integrated into Photo-Video students’ coursework, because the application process prepares students to write grants and proposals as a professional artist. The scholarships offer exposure for young artists and help alleviate economic barriers that can negatively impact students’ ability to study. Both Jesse Curtis and Emily MacDonald won ArtsNB Scholarships this year, yet described how they still need to work while studying to make ends meet.

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The Lunchbox Interview: Rory Taillon

Posted on 2025-05-28 by encaf1 Posted in The Lunchbox

My guest today is musician and road warrior Rory Taillon. Rory is on the tail end of his current Atlantic Canada tour before heading back home to Ontario. He joins me to play a few songs and chat about finding inspiration, looking backward and looking forward.

Rory Taillon is playing at The Abbey Café and Gallery tonight (May 28, 2025) at 7pm.

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Mornings Are Hard || 2025-05-28

Posted on 2025-05-28 by Bondo Posted in Mornings Are Hard

Artist – Track || Album
1.) Lucy Dacus & Hozier – Bullseye || Forever Is A Feeling
2.) Akeeda – I Forget Myself || single
3.) Laura Reznek – Yacht Rock || The Sewing Room
4.) David R. Elliott – Involved || True Love Forever
5.) CLOVER – Atlas || single
6.) The Beths – Metal || single
7.) Destroyer – Hydroplaning Off The Edge of the World || Dan’s Boogie
8.) U.S. Girls – Like James Said || single
9.) Geoffroy – Recuerdo de Ti || Good Boy
10.) Hello Moth – Wouldn’t Do Well || single
11.) Mei Semones – Dumb Feeling || Animaru
12.) Lido Pimienta – Aún Te Quiero || La Belleza
13.) These New Puritans – A Season In Hell || Crooked Wing
14.) Cold War Kids – Hang Me Up To Dry || Robbers & Cowards
15.) Hide and Shine – Hemorrhage and Heal || single

Away From The Mire – Episode 79 – Nuke Toronto

Posted on 2025-05-27 by Stephen Dominey Posted in Away From The Mire, chsr, Current Shows, Music Shows

Back live this week with some great new tunes for ya. Canada’s finest troubadour B.A. Johnston gets things kicked off with my feelings after another devastating Leafs playoff loss, I’ve got new music from former Presidents of the United States of America frontman Chris Ballew, a reconstructed Pearl Jam track from “The Last Of Us” and plenty more great music!

 

 

BA Johnston – Nuke Toronto
Thunder Queens – Teenage Years
The Presidents of the United States of America – Feather Pluckin
Chris Ballew – Melt Into Me
Pearl Jam – Present Tense (Redux)
No Frills – The Scraps
Kylie Fox, Travis J Flynn – No Mow May
Pavement – Harness Your Hopes
Papal Visit – Angry Young Computer
This Is Lorelei – Perfect Hand
Keepy Uppy – So Be It Union
Le Tigre – Deceptacon
The Chemical Brothers – Let Forever Be
Grand Theft Bus – Roses

 

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Mornings Are Hard || 2025-05-27

Posted on 2025-05-27 by Bondo Posted in Mornings Are Hard

Artist – Track || Album
1.) Wintersleep – Forest Fire || In The Land Of
2.) Thanya Iyer – Low Tides || TIDE/TIED
3.) Stereolab – Melodie Is A Wound || Instant Holograms On Metal Film
4.) Basia Bulat – Daylight || Basia’s Palace
5.) Saya Gray – …THUS IS WHY (I DON’T SPRING 4 LOVE) || SAYA
6.) Alexander Gallant – Me And My Oldest Friend || single
7.) Folk Bitch Trio – Cathode Ray || single
8.) The Sympathies – Time Intangible || My World
9.) Unwed Sailor – Monster Collecting || Cruel Entertainment
10.) Mother Mother – Love To Death || single
11.) Said The Whale – Record Shop || Cascadia
12.) Ribbon Skirt – Wrong Planet || Bite Down
13.) Frankie and the Witch Fingers – Dead Silence || single

Testing For Echo – Episode 77 – Let’s Go Back a Bit, Again – Orig. Air Date May 24, 2025

Posted on 2025-05-24 by Tim Scammell Posted in Barry Awards, chsr, Current Shows, General, Music, Music Shows, Testing For Echo

Hello there everyone. I hope that you are well with you and thank you for listening to our show.

This is episode 77 of Testing For Echo on CHSR FM 97.9 in Fredericton and around the world and I am your host Tim Scammell.

Before we begin I just want to mention that this is another episode dipping into a more classic Progressive sound.

It’s another pretty full show so let’s get rolling.

Tim

The World of Music, One Song at a Time, Proudly Canadian – Take Good Care

Episode Song List

  1. 10CC – Rubber Bullets
  2. Jon and Vangelis – State of Indepence
  3. Saga – Bet On This
  4. Keith Emerson and Oscar Peterson – Honky Tonk Train Blues
  5. Marillion – Kayleigh
  6. Jackal – For You
  7. Adrien Belew – Lone Rhinoceros
  8. Chris Squire – Lucky Seven
  9. Lifesigns – Altitude
  10. Gary Numan – The Edge of Things
  11. RUSH – Vital Signs
  12. Styx – Lady 1995 Edit
  13. Nash The Slash – In a Glass Eye
  14. Xenicus – Ghost Town
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Mornings Are Hard || 2025-05-23

Posted on 2025-05-23 by Bondo Posted in Mornings Are Hard

Artist – Track || Album
1.) Great Lake Swimmers – One More Dance Around The Sun || single
2.) Cinephonic – La cite engloutie || Refuge
3.) Cinephonic – Refuge || Refuge
4.) Stereolab – Aerial Troubles || Instant Holograms On Metal Film
5.) Sedona – Baby Run || single
6.) bob junior, Hot Flash Heat Wave – Red || single
7.) Men I Trust – Comes Back Down || Equus Caballus
8.) El Tata y Los Taqueros, Maté – Best Life || single
9.) Lou Tides – Autostatic! || single
10.) Swimming Bell – 95 at Night || Somnia
11.) The Burning Hell – Celebrities in Cemeteries || Ghost Palace
12.) We Should’ve Been Plumbers – Life Of Crime (Side B) || single
13.) Bonnie Trash – Your Love Is My Revenge || Mourning You
14.) Kestrels, Weird Nightmare – Lilys || Better Wonder

Homemade Jams || 2025-05-22

Posted on 2025-05-22 by Bondo Posted in Homemade Jams

Artist – Track || Album
1.) We Should’ve Been Plumbers – Life Of Crime (Side A) || single
2.) Radiator – You Need To Know || 23 Park Street London UK
3.) Motherhood – Sunk || Thunder Perfect Mind
4.) Mike Trask – 40 Fathoms Back || BEET
5.) Silver Wolf Band – Coffee Pots || single
6.) The Hello Crows – Warbler || single
7.) Happy Al – Scared To Know You || SOMETHING OLD
8.) Beauts – Fall In Flight || single
9.) David R. Elliott – Involved || True Love Forever
10.) Nate and the Busy Boys – Birdy Birdy || Busy Doing Nothing
11.) Jacob Rose – Hold Your Head Up || single
12.) Joel Manchester – Suddenly Violently || single
13.) Abigail Joan – Now I Know || single
14.) The Burning Hell, Lee Rosevere – Luna FM (Lee Rosevere Remix) || single

Harmony Corruption Episode 95-May 20th, 2025

Posted on 2025-05-22 by CelestialEmissary Posted in Current Shows, Harmony Corruption, Music Shows

Hi folks! This week’s episode is a variety show with lots of great tunes from different subgenres. Next week will have the first part of the 1990 retrospective with Stephanie as a guest host!

Here’s the playlist for this week’s episode:

Nails-Unsilent Death

King Diamond-The Family Ghost

King Diamond-The 7th Day of July 1777

Deathrow-The Deathwish

Black Curse-Trodden Flesh

Gorguts-Orphans Of Sickness

Gorguts-A Path Beyond Premonition

Dissection-Maha-Kali

Serpent Corpse-Extradimensional Divinity

Serpent Corpse-Amongst Demons

Serpent Corpse-Into the Wasteland

Serpent Corpse-The Gaping Mouth of Madness

Deathevokation-The Monument

Bathory-Shores In Flames

Convulse-Incantation of Restoration

Alaskan-Inferno

Alaskan-Submerged

Pentagram-Wartime

Pentagram-Starlady

Pentagram-Frustration

Vader-Testimony

Sepultura-Stronger Than Hate

Thanks for listening!

 

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Mornings Are Hard || 2025-05-22

Posted on 2025-05-22 by Bondo Posted in Mornings Are Hard

Artist – Track || Album
1.) Lord Huron – Nothing I Need || single
2.) Kate Maki – At Every Sunset || Impossible Knot
3.) The Hypochondriacs – Waitin’ || Waitin’
4.) Mike Trask – Landing Day || single
5.) Campbell & Johnston’s Black Market Band – Righteous || Paisley Hearts
6.) Chris Kirby – Pot Of Gold || What Goes Around
7.) Ryan Marino, Jonathan Marrino – The Grass Is Always Greener On The Other Side || single
8.) King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – Deadstick || single
9.) Deradoorian – Digital Gravestone || Ready For Heaven
10.) Mamalarky – Feels So Wrong || Hex Key
11.) Dan Mangan – Diminishing Returns || single
12.) Foxwarren – Yvonne || single
13.) Nate and the Busy Boys –  Busy Boy Needs You || Busy Doing Nothing
14.) Bon Iver – AWARDS SEASON || SABLE; fABLE
15.) Joel Manchester – Suddenly Violently || single

The Lunchbox Interview: Michelle Tupy, Shelter Movers

Posted on 2025-05-21 by encaf1 Posted in The Lunchbox

Moving can be difficult, especially for those experiencing domestic abuse. There are people who can help.

My guest today is Michelle Tupy, the Chapter Director of Shelter Movers New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. They are extending their operations into the Fredericton area, and Michelle joins me to talk about the work that the organization does, the need for the assistance, and how they go about helping someone.

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Away From The Mire Episode 78 – Live! Tonight! Sold Out!

Posted on 2025-05-21 by Stephen Dominey Posted in Away From The Mire, chsr, Current Shows, Music Shows

Welcome back to another episode of away from the mire. This week we did an hour of live cuts that I hope you’ll enjoy, Everything from The Ramones to Phish!

The Ramones – Any Way You Want It (live)
Josh Bravener and The Hypochondriacs – Just Like Before (live)
Rick White and The Sadies – Here In My Body (live)
The Who – Getting In Tune (live)
Talking Heads – This Must Be The Place (live)
Jimmy Swift Band – Drive By (live)
MJ Lenderman – Tastes Just Like It Costs (live)
Phish – The Squirming Coil (live)
Pearl Jam – Baba O’Riley (live)
Pearl Jam – Yellow Ledbetter (live)

 

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Harmony Corruption Reviews: Amorphis-Elegy

Posted on 2025-05-15 by CelestialEmissary Posted in Harmony Corruption, Music Reviews, Music Shows, Reviews

Amorphis - Elegy

A Bridge Into the Future, A Mirror to the Past – 95%*

Amorphis’ third album released in 1996. As these fabulous Finns continued to let their sound blossom, they broadened their horizons. Elegy is an album I view as semi-similar to Tiamat’s 1994 adventurous “Wildhoney.” Part of me connecting these two albums is that I got both of these albums on CD around the same time. Both represented significant leaps forward in each band’s sound, while marking clear cutoffs in each band’s discography.

“Elegy” sees the clean vocals experimented with on “Tales From the Thousand Lakes” become the predominant vocal approach. The growls aren’t completely gone here (and they stuck around on the next album for a single song), and the interplay between the growls and cleans leads to some neat new songwriting avenues. As well, the guitars fill the gritty, more heavily distorted sound of this album, while the keyboards add a bit of a clean sound that leads to some fun interplay between the two.

For people coming from the previous album, Elegy is definitely a change in sound, but it is still recognizably the Amorphis from “Tales.” Other than the clean vocals, the move away from death metal song structures is more apparent. Heaviness isn’t the point of these songs (although there are still some very heavy moments). The expansion of clean vocals here doesn’t feel like a cashgrab or attempt to sell more records, but more as a natural progression. The followup album “Tuonela” seemed to be too comfortable in one setting for the majority of the album. In some ways, I think that the confusion and blurred lines of “Elegy” led to its brilliance. I don’t know if that was intentional or a Bob Ross-level happy accident, but I wish this album had gotten a proper sequel. I don’t hate mid or modern era Amorphis, I feel indifferent about it.

I’m always a full album listener. Some albums are significantly elevated when listening to them from start to finish, and you can tell the band put in a lot of effort to make an album flow from front to back. Other albums feel like a loose bag of songs (for better or worse). There can be great albums in either of these categories, but the first option is far and away my preference. “Elegy” accomplishes this wonderfully, just like its predecessor.

This album is apparently based on a book of the “Kanteletar,” which is a collection of old Finnish poems and stories. Lyrics in music are rarely the focus of my listening, and I generally see the voice as more of an instrument than a message-carrying device. This album still manages to feel like it tells a story through its music, and in the snippets of lyrics that I do catch, the lyrics seem to be part of the connective tissue holding this album together. I love the cohesion on display here. The ending of the album being “My Kantele” in an acoustic rendition is a very nice capstone on this already great album. In a way, it acts as this album’s “Planet Caravan” or “Solitude,” where it gives the listener a chance to breathe and reflect on the album after the last 50 or so minutes of music passed by. This album has great pacing, and naturally ebbs and flows. “The Orphan” has an incredible, Rainbow-esque introduction that I can’t praise enough, and this album stretches and recedes like waves against a beach.

It’s difficult to point out individual highlights on “Elegy,” as again, this is an album that flows in full. Listening to a single song is like reading a single chapter of a novel. It may be great writing, but context makes the world go ’round. With that, there are some noteworthy songs that are particular standouts. “My Kantele,” “On Rich and Poor,” and the title track may be some of my favourite Amorphis songs. “Cares” gets surprisingly electronic halfway through, which is a fun curveball.

“Elegy” has this mildly psychedelic feel to it that is hard to define. Like an aura at the periphery of your vision, it doesn’t stand out as immediately psychedelic, but the more you focus on it, the more the aura shimmers and swirls. I think this can be attributed to the lush production found on “Elegy,” which is sonically impactful, but also willing to let all the instruments breathe and wash over the listener in a cascade (listen to the first minute of “My Kantele” and you’ll understand). I struggle to define what I’m getting at here, but the production job done here is a highlight, and I wish more metal albums sounded like it (looking at you “Surgical Steel,” “Kingdom of Conspiracy,” and “Labyrinth.”)

I often say this is the death metal album for people who aren’t into death metal. A die-hard King Crimson or Rush fan would be able to find something to enjoy here, as would fans of Scandinavian folk, even if they need to squint a little. I’ve written a lot on albums that were key for me to get into death metal, and will likely continue to do so, but that’s the perspective of someone already into thrash metal and other types of metal at the time. For the person coming from a different musical background than I did (prog rock for example), this album is gorgeous, relatively non-abrasive, but still has all the key elements of a great death metal album, just in a more palatable form. Also, prog-rock fans seem to get funnelled towards Opeth, and as much as I like some Opeth, there seems to be a chilling effect on people’s taste in metal if Opeth is their starting point. Amorphis’ “Elegy” is a brilliantly poetic album, and the name reflects how I view it. It is a reflection of the band’s past, their present, and has glimpses of the band’s future stretching out before them. While I didn’t follow their future footsteps as closely as I did up to and including Elegy, I’m happy that we got this album in the process. Give it a listen on cold, Black Winter Day, and you’ll get why I gave it such a high rating.

 

**Note: Originally posted on the Metal Archives by CelestialEmissary

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