As Kindred was winding down, the band that quickly became their metalcore-successor in the Limburg area of Belgium was Ashlar. They took Kindred's sound and added an 'evil' element to it, as corny as that may sound. They were more metal than Kindred, with a singer who was nothing short of a maniac on stage. Chewing on the occasional blood-capsule, rolling away his eyes till only the white showed, it was a bit ridiculous even back then but few people cared as the band was a tight metalcore-machine on stage... While the recordings show the potential this band had, this band's true power was on stage, always good times. The guitarist would mostly just chew on some bubblegum and play his riffs like they were the simplest power chords, while the bassist and drummer were laying down the heavy foundation of their sound. Good stuff and memorable shows.
They were around for a relatively brief time and managed to do only one proper release, the 'Enthroned In A So-Called Heaven' MCD, released in 1998. One thing to note here is that the singer sounds different on these recordings than live, because he was down with a cold during the recordings and thus had a sore throat which heavily affected his voice. Apart from that, this is a solid and good record which I still enjoy listening to.
They did record another record which unfortunately is hard to come by as it wasn't properly released. Thanxxx to Sebastian 'xUNBORNx' from the XCatalystX forums I've managed to get mp3's and scans of it. It was recorded in 2004 when they did a few reunion-shows and decided to record a couple of new songs. It's harder and even more metal than their first release, and definitely quality stuff once again.
Members went on to play in (the Dutch) Rancor and
Sons Of Irah.
Ashlar - Enthroned In A So-Called Heaven MCD
Ashlar - self-titled MCD
) and Martyr AD (the speed and discordance) but adding a fresh take on the sound that many bands today seem to lack. Don't get me wrong, the band does draw heavy influences from the aforementioned bands but definitely is not a clone. The recording is excellent, everything can be clearly heard and is distinct. At the time I saw them, they did not have the record available so Eddie sent me the MP3s. I can't comment on the layout since I don't have it but the cover of the record looks like the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Lyrically, the band speaks of Hell and the world going to hell in a hand basket. Very dark stuff. Overall, the record is one of my favorites of last year and I really hope the band continues to get on tours. They are hardworking and are single handedly building a scene in small Yuma. If you still dig bands that play that 90s style of metallic hardcore but with a early 2000's feel, you are probably going to like this. Highly recommended. You can check out songs from the record by clicking here and going to their Myspace.
As Kindred was winding down, the band that quickly became their metalcore-successor in the Limburg area of Belgium was Ashlar. They took Kindred's sound and added an 'evil' element to it, as corny as that may sound. They were more metal than Kindred, with a singer who was nothing short of a maniac on stage. Chewing on the occasional blood-capsule, rolling away his eyes till only the white showed, it was a bit ridiculous even back then but few people cared as the band was a tight metalcore-machine on stage... While the recordings show the potential this band had, this band's true power was on stage, always good times. The guitarist would mostly just chew on some bubblegum and play his riffs like they were the simplest power chords, while the bassist and drummer were laying down the heavy foundation of their sound. Good stuff and memorable shows.
They did record another record which unfortunately is hard to come by as it wasn't properly released. Thanxxx to Sebastian 'xUNBORNx' from the XCatalystX forums I've managed to get mp3's and scans of it. It was recorded in 2004 when they did a few reunion-shows and decided to record a couple of new songs. It's harder and even more metal than their first release, and definitely quality stuff once again.
![Mayday - Victim [demo 1993]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNu1BD8eki-O6k8I4pN5KD6E73RK9aq7z4l4BQs8qSGNa6AB4OhbO-u9ACy-gWD_cwSmLJUqY_l8FtIzl0dYgpxhNH_55rrU5fDoHK9ggKrl4rw_j0Xk4-wMmszw-wokfmB9b1xnOqcB74A_9P2gmv1isDkT0J4jPFGnCnPnVMrVW2MpjPRsPWnMkgORk/s72-c/cover.jpg)
