FLOTSAM & JETSAM - UGLY NOISE (*NEW-CASSETTE, 2022, Brutal Planet Records) *1st time on Tape!
FLOTSAM & JETSAM - UGLY NOISE (*NEW-CASSETTE, 2022, Brutal Planet Records) *1st time on Tape!
BPT1579 FLOTSAM & JETSAM - UGLY NOISE TAPE 637405145557
- Authentically licensed and faithfully reissued
- 1st time ever for the to be officially released on cassette
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Limited to just 200 cassettes world-wide
- The original 2013 recording released on Metal Blade Records.
- Remastered in 2022 by Bombworks Sound's, Rob Colwell (The Metal Round-Table)
- 4 panel layout by NoLifeTilMetal's Scott Water
- Color BLACK (with metallic gold print) cassette and full color layout
- Part of the exclusive Metal Icon Series on Brutal Planet Records
Few artists have had the impact of FLOTSAM & JETSAM. The band put the Power Metal & Thrash crowd on its feet with the 1986 iconic classic, DOOMSDAY and the band never took the foot off the gas - building a legacy of brilliant FULL-ON HEAVY METAL! Mentioned in the same breath, with hushed reverence as Slayer, Anthrax, Metallica, and Megadeth - Brutal Planet Records brings you elite remasters with all the stuff collectors crave!
FLOTS TIL DEATH!
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT UGLY NOISE....
The new album is good, certainly evidence that this band has fuel left in the tank. The best songs on this album are those that have the highest levels of energy. I wouldn't describe the music here as thrash so much as just straight up heavy metal. For me, the best tracks on this album were "Ugly Noise," "Gitty Up," "Rabbits Foot," "Rage," and "Machine Gun." Flotsam and Jetsam certainly continue to demonstrate that they aren't merely old news. Give it a listen.
SEA OF TRANQUILITY REVIEW
Ugly Noise is a career-defining record.
METAL FORCES MAGAZINE
"Ugly Noise" is a nice mix of Flots old and new. There are the fast parts that bring to mind the classic days of the band and some more melodic moments that can be chalked up to maturity, or even progression. Though it may not be breaking any new barriers in sound and style, "Ugly Noise" is a solid effort from Flotsam & Jetsam. It's dark, heavy and one of those albums that has drawn me in and begs for repeated listens.
SCOTT WATERS - NOLIFETILMETAL REVIEWS
ABOUT THE ALBUM
After a decade of existing as an afterthought to metal fans, Phoenix, Arizona’s Flotsam And Jetsam go for broke on Ugly Noise. Featuring the return of original members Michael Gilbert (guitars) and Kelly David Smith (drums), this is the first Flotsam And Jetsam record they have appeared on since 1997’s High.
Initially, the band jammed with their former colleague Jason Newsted (ex-Metallica, Voivod and Echobrain, and currently of Newsted – in case you haven’t been paying attention for the last 30 years) as well, but he ultimately decided not to reunite with the band. Newsted is listed as a co-writer for some of the album’s material however.
Everything on Ugly Noise is a little off-kilter, heavy (although not always fast), groove-oriented, and intense. In that sense it reminds me a good deal of the Drift album (1995). Kicking off with the piano-laden title track, a haunting tone is immediately set. The band tear it up in epic proportions declaring “ugly noise and beautiful lives”, a seemingly intimate idea that should strike a chord with well-adjusted heavy metal fans worldwide.
‘Run And Hide’ is another mid-tempo, bluesy-in-spots, gem that hits you just right, while the vocally adventurous (at least for a Flotsam And Jetsam record) ‘Cross The Sky’ serves as a firm reminder that the boys still have plenty to experiment with. Overall, the song is an affair that doesn’t manage to take off in my opinion, but I love hearing something new from such a classic band.
‘Motherfuckery’ moves along at a fast clip and reminds me of a cross between the angrier moments on The Cold (2010) and Drift, while managing a much tighter and crunchier sound than the material on those albums. It’s a little more pissed off than some of the other tracks. While I’m excited to not hear that sound from start to finish, ‘Motherfuckery’, the slightly more anthemic ‘I Believe’, and ‘Machine Gun’ give fans plenty of reason to raise their fist during the second half of the album. Eric “A.K.” Knutson’s vocals are perfect throughout this album, but these three songs prove his balls are just as big as they were in their heyday. He’s a lot more well-rounded in 2012 (yelling, singing, grunting a bit here and there), keeping him ranked among my very favourite metal vocalists.
While it’s tempting to see this as an immediate return to form, it’s certainly been a process as many of the better elements of The Cold and Dreams Of Death (2005) are present here. The fact is that Flotsam And Jetsam have settled gracefully into the next era of their evolution. Still heavy, still thoughtful, still angry… just not all the time. While I’ve enjoyed all of the band’s albums, Ugly Noise is a career-defining record.
This remastered BLACK (with gold metallic print) cassette-only reissue comes with a full-color layout in a 4-panel insert, and is limited to just 200 units world-wide. It is part of the elite Metal Icon Series on Brutal Planet Records. For fans of early Deliverance, Forbidden, Metal Church!
TRACK LISTING
SIDE A
1 Ugly Noise
2 Gitty Up
3 Run And Hide
4 Carry On
5 Rabbit's Foot
6. Play Your Part
SIDE B
7 Rage
8 Cross The Sky
9 Motherfuckery
10 I Believe
11 To Be Free
12 Machine Gun
REVIEWS
Flotsam And Jetsam – Ugly Noise (Brutal Planet Records, 2022)
Placing my hand on a stack of old dusty bibles, I declare Ugly Noise to be the most accessible Flotsam And Jetsam album to date. It took a few listens before I surrendered to its magnitude. But now I am a confirmed believer.
One of the appealing signatures of Ugly Noise is how Eric AK’s voice took the songs to their fullest capacity on every track. There is very little filler material. This album also brings back the original line-up of Michael Gilbert on guitar (the best they ever had, in my opinion) and Kelly David Smith on drums. You even have Jason Newsted co-write on some of the songs, but that is as far as that goes.
Nuance and complexity are notable on Run & Hide, with keys dominating the melody line, and gritty guitar incrementally finding its place. Brilliant stuff. AK’s vocal array literally surfs effortlessly. Likewise, Rabbit’s Foot is mid-tempo metal with a crazy hook-laden chorus. Play Your Part is a crunchy number, reminiscent of British-styled metal. Rage is intensity and speed the way we like our Flots to be. The guitars, bass and drums are in perfect sync, and the singing spin off into multiple orbits.
Irrespective of how one feels about the band’s thrash roots, Motherfuckery takes the intensity of their metal reputation and adds an industrial vibe for a modern spin. Last but not least, Machine Gun addresses random gun violence, the plea of a crazed person who has “gone past the point of no return.” The song leans a bit towards Ministry but is very much the musical output of F & J.
Now Ugly Noise is reissued and available for the first time on cassette. Grab one while they last. You will not regret it.
--Doug Peterson, Down The Line zine
