Music Style Melodic Thrash Metal

Musical Influences Metallica, Pantera, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Nightwish, Lacuna Coil, Death, Lullacry, Rage Against the Machine, Aria

Similar Artists Metallica, Pantera, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Nightwish, Lacuna Coil, Death, Lullacry, Aria

Albums Feed Me

Press Reviews Here at the Basement Bar, we generally don't review unsigned bands -- basically because they're unsigned for a reason. Plus, there's so much Metal out there nowadays that we don't have time. But once in a blue moon we make exceptions. We'll review an unsigned band if it's a travesty of justice that they aren't signed. Which brings me to the band Tzefa (viper in Hebrew) - five headbanging immigrants from the NYC area. Hailing from Russia, Ukraine, and Latvia, Tzefa brings a sound that is all their own. To describe their sound I'd put it this way, if you add one part Doom Metal, one part Black Metal, one part Thrash Metal, one part Progressive Metal, and one part Gothic Metal, you'd get Tzefa. The band got its start in 1996 when vocalist and guitarist, Oleg, met bassist and drummer, Yuri. Yuri moved exclusively to drums when bassist Alex joined the band a short time later. But the most interesting addition to the band would come later when female vocalist and violinist Slava joined. Slava, a classically trained vocalist, added a whole new dimension to the band. Almost singlehandedly, she lifted Tzefa up from the hordes of talented but slightly generic unsigned Metal acts and into the realm of talented, unique, and promising young bands. Unlike some other acts with accomplished female vocalists, such as Sinergy or Nightwish, Tzefa has kept their music dark and raw. On their EP, Feed Me, "Time Bomb" (perhaps their best track) blends the vocals of Oleg and Slava against a bass-driven power romp complete with a beautiful violin interlude by Slava. With its amazing, bruising beginning, the song "Season of the Rain" tells the story of inner demons wreaking havoc on a relationship. Vocals are performed jointly by Oleg and Slava on every track, with Oleg singing coarsely (not a Black Metal growl, but not Steve Perry either) and Slava singing operatic style at times and more straight-forward at others. They harmonize sometimes for choruses, but sometimes compete with one another ala Lacuna Coil style. Both musically and vocally, Tzefa are constantly mixing things up and this is the most appealing part to me. You don't expect the beautiful vocals of Slava against that punishing guitar riff. You don't expect to hear that haunting violin in the middle of the song. What Tzefa could improve on, I can summarize in three words: production, production, production. As with 99% of unsigned acts, the CD is in desperate need of some experienced producers to bring out that big, full sound. I'm only one meager, unpaid reviewer, but I think Tzefa has a promising career ahead of them. Hey Century Media, do yourselves a favor and pick these guys up!

Location Brooklyn, NY - USA

Copyright notice. All material on MP3.com is protected by copyright law and by international treaties. You may download this material and make reasonable number of copies of this material only for your own personal use. You may not otherwise reproduce, distribute, publicly perform, publicly display, or create derivative works of this material, unless authorized by the appropriate copyright owner(s).