The Phantom Lodge

n the '90s and 20th century, there has been no shortage of women providing loud, aggressive rock. No one has ever mistaken L7, Babes in Toyland, 7 Year Bitch, the Donnas, the Lunachicks, Bikini Kill, Courtney Love, Luscious Jackson, Veruca Salt's Louise Post, Soraia's Sue Francia, the Genitorturers' Mistress Gen, or Evanescence's Amy Lee for Celine Dion. But extreme metal (which includes death metal, black metal, and metalcore) remains a very male-dominated part of the rock world, and the fact that Gallhammer are an all-female trio with an extreme metal orientation makes them a rarity (at least as of late 2007). Exactly what type of extreme metal Gallhammer provide on Ill Innocence has been debated; some have described this 50-minute CD as black metal, while others have called it doom metal. But it's best to describe Ill Innocence as a combination of black metal, doom metal, and punk because it contains elements of all of those things. The album's slower tempos are very doom metal-inspired, while the faster tempos clearly underscore Gallhammer's debt to black metal -- and lead singer/bassist Vivian Slaughter favors a sinister black metal rasp (as opposed to death metal's "cookie monster" growl or metalcore's tortured screaming). The black metal that Gallhammer have been influenced by is not symphonic black metal or black metal with lush melodies and an abundance of keyboards, but rather, the pioneering black metal bands of the late '80s and early '90s. In the beginning, black metal was extremely raw and was quite enamored of punk's rawness; Gallhammer clearly feel the same way. Ill Innocence is not perfect; the disc is mildly inconsistent, although there are more ups than downs on this generally decent effort. ~ Alex Henderson|