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CRADLE TO GRAVE :
LIFESPAN SESSIONS 2003

Cradle To Grave was given birth to in February of 2002 by guitarist Denis Barthe AKA "Sasquatch" (ex "Aggression"), vocalist Greg Cavanagh, bassist Eric Green, and drummer Marc Majorel (all ex members of "Bottom Feeder"). Since the completion of this recording, Marc has been replaced by new skins master, Matt Fowler. This is their first recording, a 5-song demo that shows a wide verity of influences. Although this band is from Canada, there is a heavy dose of southern-fried Metal, you can see similarities to bands like "Down", "Superjoint Ritual", and all the others that make up the NOLA scene. Cradle To Grave have also pillaged what they wanted from the Thrash, Hardcore, and Nu-Metal genres, mixed it all together, and have forged a powerful sound. Some songs are a little odd, "Nuclear Flowers" has a passage that almost sounds disco-ish??? But when you hear tracks like "Southern Oak", and "Just Cause", you know they have hit upon something great. Greg's vocals are harsh, and almost cross the line into Death-Metal territory, but just as they are about to cross over, he rains himself back in. The rest of the band is pretty damn solid as well, and for a demo, this sounds bloody great. If I were you, I'd start pimpin' this band to your friends now. That way, when they make it big, you can say you were there from the beginning. For more info on this fine band, check 'em out at cradle-to-grave.net.
RATING = 8 Thrash-Metal (Released 2003)

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CRADLE TO GRAVE :
CTG

Well ditty-well, ditty-well, the four lads from Vancouver have managed to put out a full-length disc, and what a damn fine disc it is. If you heard the bands five-song demo from last year, then you basically know what to expect, as there haven't been any big direction changes in the past 12 months. The band still tends to pick and choose the elements they like from the last 20 years of extreme Metal, and make them their own. There is a large nod to the heavier side of the Bay Area Thrash scene of the late 80s. Influences from the edgier bands such as Vio-lence can be heard throughout the disc. Then there is an obvious love for Phil Anselmo and all his related NOLA-based bands. All the tracks from last years demo made their way to the full-length, including the bizarre track "Nuclear Flowers", which still sports a jaw-dropping disco-esque interlude. This is either a joke I don't get, or the boys in the band are seriously warped... I'm guessing the later. Nu-Metal traits are kept to a minimum, but are scattered about, and used when needed. There is even... shutter... a ballad! Now don’t freak out, "Wounded" is not a sappy ode to some chick, and it's not gay like that lame grasp at a radio hit Testament attempted with "The Ballad". Wounded is just a cool, depressive little tune. The best thing about this disc is that every track is highly unique. No two songs sound the same, some are fast, others have a nice moshable mid-pace rhythm. Some scream all out Thrash-Metal, while others have a more traditional Rock n' Roll feel to 'em. I guess in trying to label this sucker, we'll have to call it modern Thrash, with old-school influences. CTG is a great debut, and as I said last year, start pushing them on your friends now, as Cradle To Grave is a band ready to explode.
RATING = 8 Thrash-Metal (Released 2004)

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CRADLE TO GRAVE :
TEXAS MEDICINE

Now, many of you may have noticed that I don’t post reviews any more. Not that I don’t love music, in fact, it’s because I love it so much, that I gave up reviewing it. You see, I was just spending too much time analyzing CDs, when I just wanted to enjoy them, period. So you might ask, why am I typing this, and why are you reading it? Well, I’ve got kind of a soft spot for Vancouver’s Cradle To Grave. Why you ask? Well, they just have this quirky coolness about them that’s hard to explain. They refuse to dedicate themselves to a specific genre, and they just seem to do what they want. Plus, the guitarist (Sasquatch aka Denis Barthe) has a secret admiration for the band Love/Hate, which is a band I’ve been pimpin’ to all that will listen for the last 18 years.. .. ..well, I guess its not a secret anymore (sorry dude). So, when they asked me to give a listen to their new disc, and spew my thoughts regarding it onto the ol’ inter-tubes, how could I refuse? So let’s get down to it shall we? You might want to ask why a Canadian band, from the lushly forested and mountain-centric province of British Columbia has named their CD “Texas Medicine”, when they live about as far from Texas as you can get (both figuratively and practically). Well, there are two reasons. First of all, Texas is just cool. For example my good friend used to front a Psychobilly band out of Toronto called The Texas Dirt Fuckers, not because they had a link to the lone-star state, just ‘cause it sounded cool. Secondly, the band’s sound is very much in line with all the recent Texas / southern bands such as Pantera, Damageplan, Hell Yeah, and any other band that Phil Anselmo or ex-Pantera members can be even remotely related to. The band still likes to mix it up, bringing us aggressive, balls-out thrashers, and slightly slower moshers. When they really hit their stride is when they decide to let down their “we’re-faster-than-your-band" defenses, and engage that quirky quality of theirs, such as on the track “Light” which showcases an odd little clean vocal verse. I said before that these guys could explode, and I still stand by that. With the right management/exposure, there is no reason why these guys shouldn’t be household names in North America. Of course, one thing that might be holding them up when trying to break into the U-S of A, is their infernal luck trying to get across the boarder. The band was turned back as they attempted to cross a couple weeks back (Aug. 23, 2008). This is not an isolated incident, on another attempt, they were refused entrance because their music lacked any artistic merit!? You got to be kidding me! Artistic merit? I mean hell, they let in Celine Dion, and Nickleback for Christ sakes, and they are soulless, dried up musical hacks! . . . . . but I digress. The bottom line is that Texas Medicine slams just as hard (if not slightly harder) than it’s predecessor (see above). So if ya dig the whole southern sound that’s been flourishing for the last decade or so, but think it’s gotten a tad stale, reach for your medicine, Texas Medicine that is, for your much needed cure. Make sure what ever you do, you check out the stand out track “Fuck It Up”, which is guaranteed to get your fist pumpin’, and your noggin’ a bangin’.
RATING = 8 Thrash-Metal (Released 2008)

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