Cortez

“Sell The Future” received and 8.5 / 10 on Zephyrs Odem webzine from Germany!

CORTEZ – Sell The Future (2020)

(6.616) Baka (8,5/10) Hard Rock

The third full-length from the Boston band CORTEZ once again fuses different styles of the harder pace. Between the finest hard rock and heavy metal there is also a punk attitude that is all combined with a fat portion of stoner / doom. The distinctive voice shows that it can only be about this band.

The opener “No Escape” hits straight in with full force and grooves incredibly well. After this song you came straight to the right place. On the second track “Sell The Future”, like the previous one, it goes straight forward and in a fat Black Sabbath manner.

The spectrum of the band is very innovative and creative. No song resembles another and yet the style is manifested. “Faulty Authors” is a hard rock number in a slow tempo that stomps hard. The dynamics are so extraordinarily good that every style comes in favor of the songs.

The vocals offer a lot of space and are characterized by strong and sometimes beautiful melodies. The singing couldn’t have been better placed. As is customary in hard rock, you don’t have to grasp repetitive passages around the listener.

Every song is given a full helping of dirt. In general, the recordings are very well produced for what wanted to be achieved. That gives the tracks a lot of character. The arrangements are composed in many ways. The artists show their talent not through overused solo interludes, but through songwriting.

When listening to the record, it seems a bit hasty in the end what is going on on stage. However, that fits the songs and the overall dynamics of the disc and the musicians.

Check out: “Sell The Future” and “Vanishing Point”

Rating: 8.5 out of 10 points

“Sell The Future” gets an 8/10 from Ghost Cult Magazine.

ALBUM REVIEW: Cortez – Sell The Future

Cortez’s third full-length album shows a certain spark that was merely hinted at the Boston group”s previous releases. This is immediately established with the opening ”No Escape,” which comes crashing in with a template more in line with Classic Metal than their usual Stoner Rock. I find myself reminded of Cauldron or Castle as the driving tempo sustains a reverb-friendly production job with a slew of flamboyant guitar leads, gritty bass, and chanted vocals to go around.

While the other songs on Sell The Future (Salt Of The Earth Records/Ripple Music) subsequently bring in more variety, they manage to maintain that energy quite nicely. The title track makes for an immediate contrast with its crawling riffs and ominous atmosphere effectively channeling a Doom spirit.”Faulty Authors” and ”Sharpen The Spear” provide hazy overcast as the former retains the Doom while the latter puts in a more dramatic trot. It ultimately culminates with the closing “Beyond,“ which maximizes a trippy flavor.

Through it all, the musicians keep to a rock-solid, meat, and potatoes dynamic. The drums provide a strong backbone, hitting hard regardless of the style at hand, and the guitars never waver even in the most subdued sequences. The vocals” husky workman quality is also quite serviceable; the performance doesn’t have the most personality but fits in quite well with the shifting moods.

Overall, Cortez skirts the lines between Stoner Rock and Heavy Metal quite nicely with Sell The Future. While the straightforward execution makes it easy to overlook compared to similarly styled groups like Spirit Adrift and Horseburner, the powerful riffs and electrifying musicianship are endearing in their own right. It’s not the sort of album that takes multiple listens to really feel out, but the attitude behind it is poised to win over fans of the genres at work.

8 / 10

CHRIS LATTA

From Nashville, we move on to Boston to close the day with the most effective and nostalgic rock propelled by an old-school war machine such as the musicians of Cortez.

Their new album “Sell The Future” is the third installment for the North American quintet, this time well distributed by the Ripple Music and Salt Of The Earth Records labels. With these premises, you know perfectly what we are going to find inside this new offshoot, authentic North American rock, which respects and breathes the best traditions of the genre, all well orchestrated under the skill and adventures of these 5 heads, addicted to music. Old school.

Eight lashes to the back explode in “Sell The Future”, as a new advance for Cortez in his duties. With all this, fast rhythms, a powerful punch and catchy refrains open their doors to the new show of the North Americans on their new album.

Although the harshness of the raw rock of the 70s is timidly reinforced in some bars of the album, Cortez leaves no doubt that at the beginning of its third offspring, they have their sights fixed on the more energetic rock of the 80s. A heavy production, chord to define the onslaught and winks at times to southern rock and others to a beauty that is simple to listen to, but extremely effective and stimulating.

Of course, the band does not beat around the bush on this third album, I never think they have done it and that NWOBHM is undoubtedly the best description for “Sell The Future”, that despite its long package of elements, He also has time to waver with punk and that brand of riffs that evaporate on the Black Sabbath of the late 70s and early 80s.

For a band that will celebrate 15 years of activity next year, the new record continues to show the background of these components from Boston, with a lot of experience in other projects and leading in the Cortez strain, as their most crystalline project to the most direct influences of these musicians.

“Sell The Future” brings us back to the hard rock / heavy metal passion of the era defining it in an intensity that builds immensely throughout the album, making it an instant classic.
-Ruben Herrera

Album number three from Cortez is Sell The Future and it rides a heavy wave of riff-powered demolition.

From the Boston area, Cortez has been releasing music since their 2006 demo. They have had a couple of lineup changes over the years, as most bands do. For Sell the Future, earliest members Jay Furlo (bass) and Scott O’Dowd {Scotty Fuse} (guitar) are joined by long time players Matt Harrington (vocals) and Alasdair Swan (guitar). Alexei Rodriguez (drums) is newest, dating from 2017 (if The Metal Archives has it facts straight).

Harrington’s voice is powerful and fierce when he wants it to be and yet he can attenuate it for different emotions and effects. The compositions rely on solid grooves and big riffs, with well-placed and clever lead breaks adding nuance to the work. The rippling and surprising percussion bursts that you hear from Rodriguez in unexpected places are a fundamental building block to the unique sound of the band.

“No Escape” is a banger, and the perfect choice for an up-tempo lead off song. The title track is next and sets a serious tone with a purposeful riff up front then pushes on with a heavy swagger. The tempo gets a switch in advance of the lead break, which flays the carcass of reason. “Look At You” has a driving rhythm that just won’t let you turn away, and if you are not hooked on this album by the time the third song is over, I don’t know what to say to you. I cannot pick a single favorite, but I will point to the way the songs dissimilarities enhance the set as a whole – listening to the furiously paced “Vanishing Point” right after “Sharpen The Spear,” which has a more plaintive structure, puts you off balance in just the right way for the closer, “Beyond.” This album was worth the wait. Highly recommended.

Sell the Future is out now. Bandcamp is a good place to look for the digital, and there are couple vinyl variants there, too.

Cortez: Sell The Future (Ripple Music/Salt Of The Earth)

It’s difficult third album time for Boston’s Heavy/Hard Rock five piece. Always a challenge for any band after the album you’ve been working all your careers before signing a deal, then the leftovers are finished, and they have taken their time putting this out, with four years passing since The Depths Below hit the decks. It was clearly time well spent, as the record is absolutely filler free. And HEAVY… I mean REALLY HEAVY. We are all used to that down-tuned stoner touch to the mixing desk, but these guys have really fattened up the gain and compression, so that even at low volume my stack was rumbling. And you know it’s good heavy music, because my kids told me to turn it down….

Firing off with the energetic opener No Escape, which is classic hard rock riffage driven energy, and dripping with Classic rock guitar hooks the album slows right down for the title track. Sell The Future is full of ire at the current state of the world, starting slow and cranking up the pace slightly to create some astounding pounding riffage. The lead breaks aren’t about speed and excess virtuosity, but drip with fat heavy melodic weight and really do the business, carrying the often quite lengthy instrumental sections effortlessly. Look At You turns the speed up again, and has one of the more catchy riffs and vocal hooks on offer here – and it’s a belter. I’m also particularly enamoured of Matt Harrington’s gutsy bluesy voice which compliments the soulful stripped back guitar work from Scott O’Dowd and Alasdair Swan.

Single Faulty Authors takes things back down again, with an opening guitar break that wouldn’t be amiss in a Southern Rock act, before taking a heavier down tuned trippy verse, shortly before bashing you round the face with a pure Metal brick of a chorus… and then back again. The anger continues with Deceivers, very much the theme of the album and once again a more emotive start to chugger Sharpen The Spear. The final pace flip-flop is the pacey Vanishing Point, which is by far the fastest track on the record before closing with the lengthy epic Beyond.

If I have a criticism it’s that the tracks alternate fairly rigidly between a fast one, then a slow one, but it doesn’t jar as the tracks are so richly crafted and mixed, and when they do really mix it up as they do in Faulty Authors, it just works. Uncomplicated and effective, less is definitely more on this album.

7/10
-Simon Black

Cortez (US) – Sell The Future

review translated from German:

The visual design of the third CORTEZ record can lure a band debutant on the wrong musical track. In black and white, the cover features a skeleton enthroned on a chair, while the apocalyptic scene of a burning city emerges in the background. The artwork looks like an old woodcut. In this respect one would bet on Grindcore or Death Metal. The first song “No Escape” offers a completely different listening experience. Immediately the piece gallops away at a rapid pace and merges with a nice melody. In addition, the singing unfolds crystal clear and angelic.

“Sell The Future” by CORTEZ rolls through the ear canals
The shallow intro is not representative of the musical repertoire of the quintet from Boston. The title track is reminiscent of BLACK SABBATH in the 1970s in its hardness and the reduced tempo. “Look At You”, on the other hand, is modern and pleasantly arranged and flirts with fat riffs and wah-wah pedals, while the vocals embodies classic hard rock. It continues with a feverish intro riff and fuzz guitars to “Deceivers”. One quickly thinks of southern rock, which, however, is not – like other genre colleagues – geared towards a broad mass. The production is just too heavy for that and the songwriting is too old school.

Variety and fun, but little recognition value
“Sharpen The Spear” and “Vanishing Point” come like flawless NWOBHM numbers and bear witness to an era in which the “World Slavery Tour” led around the globe. CORTEZ refine their style a little more on “Sell The Future” with each song, but don’t lose themselves in musical ego trips and endless guitar tinkling. So listening to the album brings both short-term and short-term pleasure. The songs have a simple beauty that still lacks a bit of independence.

Promising appetizer for the main course soon?
With “Beyond” CORTEZ reach deep into the southern rock box and put on the pathos garb, which is densely covered with pallets. A long intro, lots of atmosphere, heavy guitars and a scratchy voice adorn the song, which even combines country and heavy metal in the second half. It actually works and reveals a glimmer of innovation. All in all, CORTEZ show themselves to be a very promising band with “Sell The Future”, who will hopefully work on their own style for their next album and take the already very good ideas to a new level.

Rating 7/10
-Oliver Di Iorio

CORTEZ – Sell the Future – 9/10

The Backstory:

Cortez is a Boston-based 5 piece that formed in 2006 from the ashes of several other now defunct Beantown rock bands.  The group debuted with their Thunder in a Forgotten Town EP in 2007.  In 2012 Cortez released their self-titled full length album and followed that with 2017’s The Depths Below.  2020 sees the release of Cortez’ third album Sell The Future.

The Album:

The group kicks things off with drums and guitars roaring on “No Escape.”  Matt Harrington is melodic in his delivery, but has just enough gritty rock swagger thrown in.  The chorus is undeniably catchy with its “hey, hey, hey” group vocal. Guitarists Scott O’Dowd and Alasdair Swan tear it up old school style during the instrumental break.  “Sell the Future” has a dark and sinister tone set by Black Sabbath-esque riffage until the tempo picks up at the halfway point.

“Look at You” has the intensity of a movie action sequence. Alexei Rodriguez‘s drum work is thunderous and unavoidable.  It’s all about the Classic Rock riffs and licks on “Deceivers.”  Harrington’s vocals are just as powerful and intense as the music backing him up.  “Vanishing Point” has a lot of Punk sensibility with its speed and anger.  The 7 minute epic “Beyond” closes out the album.  The track starts off slow and clean and increases in tempo and power as it continues.

The Verdict:

With Sell the Future, Cortez carries the torch for classic Hard Rock and Metal with more guitar riffs than you can handle.  It’s the right balance of intensity and passion.  Cortez is a little bit Black Sabbath, a little bit Armored Saint, a little bit Monster Magnet, and a little bit of the Misfits rolled into one.  If Cortez is selling the future, then we should all be listening.
–George Dionne