Search - Martyr :: Extracting the Core: Live 2001

A truly awesome find!

Robert Bledsaw | Nevada | 08/17/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"One day amidst my seemingly fruitless search for my favorite genre of metal(technical death),I happened to stumble upon an invaluable gem of information.I had been reading a review online for the band Illogicist(a pretty good tech/death cd),and the reviewer mentioned some other bands in the genre.Among those listed was Martyr,and as per usual I googled the band names to find any official sites and mp3 samples.

Much to my suprise,as many people mention tech/death bands left and right,these reviewers were correct.I'm also ashamed that I never bothered investigating this band before,as one of it's members is in Capharnaum(another incredible tech cd that gets better with age).I listend in harmony to the samples and knew I had to get just about every cd they ever made.I checked here at amazon,the major place for me to buy from,and I found Extracting the Core:Live 2001,the only cd they have unfortunately.

After reading the review(I actually love browsing reader reviews),I wanted to see if this cd was worth it.Now personally,I dislike live cd's as they usually aren't mixed very well,but just like Iced Earth's Alive in Athens cd,this one is killer.Just like AiA,Martyr's cd is straight to the point,exactly how I like it.No overdone/fake crowd noise here,but instead it plays through incredibly well.

Before most songs and inbetween,the vocalist speaks in a badass french voice and announces the songs.The best thing to me is that the songs are clear and clean,and the production was handled really well.Also of note is all the nice extras on the disc if you pop it in your pc.There are even a few hidden songs available,as well as some live videos.

As for the band's sound itself,I love it.A close comparison might be Capharnaum,as I can really hear the influence,but some more clean jazzy parts make an appearance here and there,lending almost a sort of Atheist,Cynic,Alarum vibe,but nothing relatively lengthy.Then it's back to the awesome headbangin' parts and then an incredible solo or two.One thing I love about this genre is the variation and difference each song carries,and these guys certainly don't disappoint.So,if your into this genre as much as I am,please check out any of Martyr's work.It's worth it.

I also want to thank the reviewers who mentioned this and any other great bands,it helps alot.A recent release worth checking out would be Gorod's Neurotripsticks,another favorite of mine.Thanks for reading,Stay Heavy!!"

Martyr > you

Chris 'raging bill' Burton | either Kent or Manchester, United Kingdom | 02/01/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"OK, I'll be honest. I've never heard this album and I may never will. However, Amazon doesn't list the superb Warp Zone so I thought I do my bit in promoting a criminally underrated death metal band. Quite why retared orangutans like Deicide and Mortician have a plethora of albums on this site while Warp Zone goes unlisted is anyone's guess. But I digress...



Apparently these guys are jazz trained and you can hear it. However, they have a certain X-factor that far too many death metal bands lack (which may also be why I'm rarely impressed by death metal any more) - feel. You can actually feel this music. When they want to be melodic, they are. The music has so much energy to it that is missing in these days of endless blast beats and recycled riffs. Not to say that Martyr aren't technical - they wipe the floor with most other bands out there.



If you're looking for a great death metal album or you're getting tired of the genre then, if you can find anything, buy something by this band. I can't recommend this particular album as I simply haven't heard it (though I'm sure its great), but Martyr are a band well worth looking at. For the sake of name dropping, one member played in Gorguts (who are listed here on Amazon) and I think one or two of them played with Capharnuam (not sure where I heard that so I may be wrong). Anyway, the message is clear - if you like technical death metal then you need to hear this band."