Customer Reviews

Condemned

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Or so it was to be for Raleigh, NC's CONFESSOR. They were influenced by the doom metal stylings of Black Sabbath and Trouble but utilizing constantly changing riffs, chugging melody and odd timesignatures. The five piece emerged in 1985 and with the addition of Steve Shelton on drums, the band found a unique sound. Confessor released 3 major demos and in 1990, they inked a deal with Earache Records, at the time, one of the big underground labels. They recorded, Condemned, their debut. I'll break it down here:
ALONE-Great opener. Vocals will take you but surprise. but I like 'em. 5/5
PREPARE YOURSELF- This is probably my favorite song on the cd. The drumbeat has groove to it but is very metal. 6/5
COLLAPSE (IN TO DESPAIR)- ANother great song. WHat more can I say. 5/5
DEFINING HAPPINESS- My other favorite on the album. The riff is sooooo heavy. I like the changes between slow and med. fast parts. 6/5
UNCONTROLLED-This is my least favorite song on the album. IT's STILL better than anything you've probably listened to in forever. 4/5
CONDEMNED- I saw him play this drumbeat BACKWARDS at the benefit for Ivan (dead guitarist) show. Forwards, this is one of the most confusing drumbeats. Sheltons signature style. 5/5
EVE OF SALVATION- GReat melody. Med. pace song 5/5
THE STAIN- ANOTHER great song. 5/5
SUFFER- GREAT CLOSER. the opening has Scott's scream which sets in shortly after get go. Depressing and powerful. 5/5

The album overall, I give a 6(66) out of 5 for it's awesomeness and pure originality. As it is out of print, you will be hard pressed to find it for the time being.

After a tour of Europe, on the Gods of Grind tour and the release of the Confessor EP (title track for Condmened, 2 Trouble covers and demo for Collapse...), the band began work on their second album. THey had become metal underground giants and were quickly rising in fame and even touted as the NEXT METALLICA!!! Unfortunatley the band fell apart, with Scott Jefferys leaving and bassist Cary Rowells formed Fly Machine with Shelton. Confessor disbanded in 1995. Early 2002 brought the death for guitarist Ivan Colon. The band reunited with original guitarist Graham Fry (who left just prior to the recording of the album) and now is staging a comeback. Earache is even supposed to rerelease the album and the EP with bonus tracks. Regardless, get this cd...

This is one of those hidden treasures from back in the day. Wouldn't consider this thrash and its not death metal. Maybe doom metal!? Not sure but what you will find with this band is that they really knew their music theory well. Many people have said the vocals are horrible. Well I can't say I enjoy them fully but they are "different" and he goes out of key unpurpose. The guitar riffs aren't technical per se but the actual time sigs are complex and hard to grasp at times. One thing should be mentioned is the drum work. Its over the top and complex/technical. This guy has chops! He has a signature snare / cymbal grab technique that will make you go "Huh?? How'd he do that?" and he really does do it as I've seen live footage of this guy play and its cool! If you can get past the vocals and are into metal that is different and complex with over the top drumming. Go get this album online for $10 from Earache, you can download them right to your computer then to your iPod. Do not pay no $100 for this CD, its readily available for download for only $10 and I've seen it on eBay for $30 if you are in dire need for the actual CD.

This band kicks ass! I saw them a bunch of times back in the early 90's. It is definitely worth it to pick up this album. They Were truly one of the all time great underground bands. My old tapes of them wore out a long time ago, so if they do re-release their demos I'll be getting two!
11 out of 10!!

Before that I' ve bought "Condemned", I knew this band for its amazing drummer, which is considerate one of the best in Heavy Metal scene, and being a drums fan, I can say that Stephen Shelton is one of these. Anyway this drummer is not the only one strenght of Confessor, in fact Scott Jeffreys is an incredible singer, with a powerful voice, not growl. Overall Confessor's "Condemned" is a Doom Metal masterpiece with its dark and suffering atmospheres.

This is a great CD and no fan of complex music should be without this in their collection. The rhythmic patterns will keep you interested from the first beat to the last. I would highly recommend the CD to anyone who would be interested in a cross between prog-rock and doom metal. Prog-Doom, perhaps? It's not an easy CD to classify.

One warning, though: Due to the complexities of the rhythms, the vocals can make the CD a difficult listen; however, it's worth the effort.

I've read the reviews and I have to disagree with the guys who said that Scott Jefferys was a poor choice. First of all, it was not a "choice", Scott was one of the original members and the band first started when they were in high school. So they are friends, not just band mates. Secondly, I think Scott adds a nice change to the genre (if you can place Confessor in a genre). I can go out and buy a whole slew of 'technical' bands and get the same effect...a bunch a dillweeds screaming into the mic with absolutely no harmony or talent for that matter. Scott brings more than just harmony (though I agree it is three toned), he brings emotion to the music. All of the members do. And yes...if you love drumming, you're gonna be blown away by Shelton. And yes, they were, and still are revolutionary. Thought I'd point out that they have joined together again and have produced an EP for their upcoming album later this year. I'll be reserving my copy fore sure!!! 14 years is too long to wait between albums!