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and hell followed with

Deathcore. The mere mention of the word sends many metalheads into fits of rage. While I am typically not a fan of the style, I can tolerate the style if it is done well. Detroit's And Hell Followed With are a deathcore band that don't do the style in a way that I would consider well done. They basically just string together breakdowns with generic and boring riffs, and then throw in an oh so lame bass drop whenever they feel the need to. What is it with bass drops, anyway? They add absolutely nothing to the music, and just sound completely out of place to my ears. The drumming is also totally generic here, complete with the clicky triggered sound I've come to completely despise. There are a couple of positive things I can point out about this disc - the lead guitar parts are sometimes quite good (the ending of "This Night is the Coroner's" and the middle of "A Welcome Displeasure", for example), but having to sit through breakdown after breakdown and bassdrops galore are not worth it for those few fleeting moments.

I am sure this disc will do well, and the band will probably constantly tour and draw decent crowds. Deathcore somehow seems to do that. I am also sure that the pits for these shows will be full of people karate chopping, donkey kicking and fighting the invisible ninja - another thing I just fail to understand.

D- -Goz

ANNIHILATOR

Annihilator

Nuclear War Now! Productions

annihilator

Can someone please explain to me how Annihilator continue to release albums? I can’t understand how any right-minded record label produces this crap. 2007’s Metal ranks as one of the worst albums I’ve ever heard, a truly horrendous record that was more nu-metal than actual metal. Everyone seemed to agree that it was an insufferable release, following up another terrible album, Schizo Deluxe. It came to my surprise that a major label would release another album by the once glorious outfit. Here we have their recent self-titled album. It’s not as bad as Metal -- frankly, nothing can be, but it’s still really bad. For any other band, this would be jaw-dropping -- a shocking display of creative ineptitude and senselessness. But for Jeff Waters and crew, this is sadly expected.

The only thing making this better than their previous atrocity is the occasional enjoyable melodic passage. The beginning of the album, for instance, actually sounds damn good. Before long though, Dave Padden’s moronic shout rears its ugly head, and it doesn’t leave. His vocals sound like a 15 year old’s poor attempt at being tough and angry. The solos are simple-minded and often flat out irritating. This is far from thrash, and sounds something like a hybrid of Arch Enemy styled modern metal, and even slam metal, all coming together to create a third-rate groove metal sound. This really sounds like a thrown together, curtain jerking local metal act destined for nowhere, but it’s Annihilator. Some albums are boring and uninteresting; this album is actively bothersome.

No band has declined as severely as Annihilator, not even Sepultura, In Flames, or Metallica. Annihilator were once a good band. In 2010, they are one of the worst bands in metal, possibly the worst band.

F -Adam

ARES KINGDOM

Incendiary

ares kingdon - incendiary

If you like your metal old school style, then look no further than any release from Nuclear War Now! Productions. The label puts out some of the most consistently good old school metal, and the latest disc from Ares Kingdom, Incendiary, is no different. Blending thrash and death metal with some good old straight up heavy metal is what Ares Kingdom does best, and this long awaited follow up to 2006's Return To Dust delivers it well.

A great example of how the band blends various metal styles together can be found in the tandem of "Descent of Man" and the instrumental "The Destruction of Sennacherib". The former has some killer thrash riffs strung together by great classic dual guitar parts, and some really amazing guitar leads. The latter has a somewhat Iron Maiden feel to it, and again allows Chuck Keller to showcase some of his great lead guitar work. "Ashen Glory" is just flat out vicious. The quiet, clean guitar intro belies what is coming for the remainder of the song. Fast paced, the song just totally rips, with a kick ass main riff that repeats throughout, and a couple of instrumental breaks where Chuck can exercise his lead guitar skills once again. "Beasts That Perish" squeezes a whole lot of amazingness into its 7 minute running time. Once again blending classic heavy metal riffs and leads with more modern thrash elements, this song stands out as the best track for me. There is just so damn much packed into this song - numerous memorable riffs, great vocals, killer drum work, and intense guitar leads - there is no filler at all in there, either.

While Incendiary may not be destined to be a classic, it pretty damn well could be. Ares Kingdom deliver a near perfect combination of metal styles on Incendiary. This disc is not to be missed.

A- -Goz

ARMA GATHAS

Dead To This World

arma gathas - dead to this world

Arma Gathas is a relatively new band from Switzerland, comprised of members from Born of Pain, Cataract and Machinemade God, among others. With lineage like that, you'd expect the band to be somewhere in the -core realm, and they are, to an extent. They are more of a groove type band, but with more hardcore type vocals. Think earlier Hatebreed with a bit of Machine Head thrown in with it, and you wouldn't be too far off from what Arma Gathas sound like.

"The Rise And Fall" gets things started with a nice, groovy riff and a pretty catchy chorus part as well. The grooves are thick and chunky, the vocals chanting and powerful, and the drums pounding. Pretty much par for the course in this style of music. After a couple more songs, the downside of this style becomes apparent (for me at least). The music here tends to get repetitive pretty quickly, with very similar sounding chugging riffs in nearly all the tracks, and the same vocal delivery used throughout the disc. By the midway point of the disc, the songs are all blurring together and putting me into a groove induced catatonic state. This isn't really a bad thing if you like this style, as I find most music in this style to get too repetitive and uninteresting.

Overall, this is a decent debut for Arma Gathas. Maybe with some more time together, they'll come out with some more interesting music on their next release.

C+ -Goz

AS I LAY DYING

The Powerless Rise

as i lay dying - the powerless ride

Modern American metalcore from sunny San Diego. As I Lay Dying have a surprisingly East Coast-core sound that still harbors just enough sun in it to keep them at a level of success they should have surpassed by now. Their style reminds me of Trivium [before they went all Metallica on us], KXE, ATR, COB and sometimes Unearth or LOG, just not quite as good. And, no that wasn't a cryptogram. If you know and enjoy some of those bands you'll probably like The Powerless Rise. As long as you don't mind a percentage of the metalcore standard; clean vocals. Which could be the only thing holding AILD back from a more substantial reputation in today's metal scene. You won't catch Lamb of God or Unearth sullying and softening up their metal like that.

AILD have been touring with renowned metal bands and festivals these past few years. Thankfully, they are now showing that they've learned a substantial amount and have applied it to The Powerless Rise. I can definitely hear a fervor and a more mature sound that wasn't present in AILD before. They're much more memorable, even slightly anthemic with some thrash elements that I adored. The guitars have more soul. I have absolutely no complaints about the hard vocals which were not growly or cookie monsterish and very fitting. Everything seems to meld together well, even the kid- ...err clean-vocals. Enlisting the mad skills of Adam D. (Killswitch Engage) in the production seat might have much to do with AILD's new, advanced sound. The album had a variety that prevented the songs from running together. Some tracks start out ferocious, such as the opener “Beyond Our Suffering” and the most fierce tracks on here; “Without Conclusion”, and “The Plague”. Scattered in between, others start out with cool guitar melody that carries like “Anger and Apathy”, “Upside Down Kingdom”, “Vacancy” and “The Only Constant is Change”. I admired more tracks on this album as it drew to it's close (minus the clean vocals mussing them up somewhat).

The kid vocals was another thing that helped differentiate tracks and, in my case, detracted from each as an individual. Blah. It's still a distraction and a turn off for me no matter how hard I try to be open and acclimate to it. Like around 3 minutes into “Parallels”, AILD sound a little too much like Stinkin Fart... [I mean] Linkin Park to do anything but slightly repulse me. A little too close for comfort guys, WTF? I know the clean stuff is selling to the kids these days, but I just can't understand the draw. Either sound heavy metal or sound nice.
Keep making the brilliant guitar melodies and brutal, driving metal all around, just please, quit smothering it with 'nice'. That's like putting marshmallow on a big, juicy Angus burger.

For some reason, most clean vocals makes me want to feed it to the dumb dog who'll gobble anything or drop it in the dirt so I don't have to eat it. But, I guess some will eat whatever you put in front of them. All I'm saying is keep it real. Kids grow up quick. I feel that one characteristic is definitely holding them back from getting the respect of the older, wiser, harder-to-please fan base. That's where the longevity is. I heard some groundbreaking instrumentation throughout and the songs were all very good. “Anger and Apathy” could have been an A track because it had great melody and some A+ thrash blended in, then clean vocals brought it down to a C. Same with “Vacancy” which started off with a really cool guitar solo. Early in the album, “Parallels” and “Anodyne Sea” had so much clean harmony in it, they ended up my least favorable. Clean vocals can come off sounding pleading, reaching. Sometimes young, whining or even happy. It can ruin a song or an entire album. It can be OK in moderation, especially if it's done right. It just seems like a plague nowadays. A constant. Puts me off of a shameful amount of good, new metal. Yet, if the instrumentation is fantastic, I can get used to any kind of vocals. That said, AILD are not quite there yet.

Not to bitch about metalcore in general all over this review or anything, but that was the major reason I never gave AILD much attention before. I'm pleased to note, it sounds like AILD is starting to pull away from that. This album could be at least an B+ or even an A-. Nearly as good as Unearth or Lamb of God, but just shy of proper reverence. They certainly seem to be heading in the right direction, I just lose some interest when I hear the kid stuff. This may be one of those albums where I could possibly try get used to it or at the least, not mind because they do have the chops this time around. This is a new side of AILD, but they still have more to accomplish.

Often times, with metalcore, I'll find that the guitars are the only thing that carries an album for me. I'm pleased to say that the guitars are not the only thing that gives The Powerless Rise it's momentum. I was impressed with the majority of it. Let's hope AILD will continue on in this direction while they hone their career. The Powerless Rise is certainly more palatable than anything I've heard from them so far. It had a good amount of memorability and motivation throughout and a few fitting breakdowns. Some surprisingly catchy thrash and brutality as well. I'm just still trying to wipe the marshmallow off it.

B -Alesha

AT VANCE

Ride The Sky

AFM

at vance - ride the sky

After listening to At Vance’s new album, Ride the Sky, I had an overwhelming sensation of “yuck.” If the genre of “AOR metal” ever came into existence, this would be its prime example. Tepid, watered down, and uninspired, this album is full of lackluster riffs that seem designed for radio airplay. Much like the recent musical nosedive that Edguy has taken, At Vance has become a simple-minded band unable to retain to their glory days. Many of these songs focus on one riff (sometimes a good one, but not usually), that is repeated throughout the song, with Rick Altzi’s bland voice meandering its way through their clichéd structures. The band’s former neoclassical power has been replaced with humdrum arena rock posing as metal. The only resemblance to the style is halfway decent Vivaldi cover, where they overtly try to show their roots – at a time where nothing is left of their roots.

Another problem I have with this album is with some of the song titles. With eponymous song titles such as “Ride the Sky” and “Last in Line,” you’d think this is a cover album. Despite the fact that “Last in Line” is the album’s best song, it’s still pretty stupid, like much of this album. After “Last in Line” comes “Wishing Well,” the album’s most idiotic song. If would be laughable if Altzi’s sorry attempt at sounding throaty and pained didn’t make me slightly nauseous.

Rick Altzi is not Oliver Hartmann. At Vance doesn’t have its voice anymore, and they seem to not have their inspiration, either. It’s time to lay this once glorious band to rest. Yuck.

D -Adam

AVSKY

Scorn

avsky - scorn

Sweden's Avsky bring us their third full-length release, Scorn, via Moribund Records. The band dubs themselves "Malignant black metal" on their myspace page, so let us give this a listen and see what the malginancy is all about.

With six songs and a total running time of over 48 minutes, the average running time here is quite long. You'll understand why as soon as you hear the first track "As The Mountains Collapse". The standard black metal sound - that is blast beats and tremolo picked riffs - isn't what Avsky delivers (at least not in a constant form). Their black metal is a slowed down, doomy version, with repetitive and slow guitar riffs doing the majority of the work here, and massively reverbed vocals delivering the blasphemies with no compassion and no regrets. The title track is the one I find the best here, with its varied pace from the slow beginning, to the high speed middle part, and then back to the slowness to end the track. It also happens to be the shortest true song (I'm leaving out the instrumental), so maybe that has something to do with it, as I don't have as much time to lose interest as I found myself doing with some of the other tracks here.

As a whole, Scorn is a decent dose of black metal. The slower pace and long, drawn out songs makes it a bit of a tough listen at times, but they do tend to change things up a bit here and there to keep it more or less interesting.

B- -Goz

BISON B.C.

Dark Ages

bison bc - dark ages

"Stressed Elephant" kicks off the new Bison BC with a melodic intro and isn't as aggressive as they're known to be but quickly picks up the pace and kicks it up a notch or three. "Fear Cave" hits you in the face like a cinderblock tied to a chain with it's faster paced tempo and then slows down to a sludgy riff that would have me headbanging pretty hard in front of the stage. The song picks up faster to give us another dose of punishment and locks into a sick groove before breaking down into a noise-filled part that kicks back into slower riffage. "Melody, This is For You" has a cool almost banjo intro to it which then kicks into a heavy bass line and guitars that is totally signature Bison. "Two-Day Booze" rips it up and "Die of Devotion" does the same with a fury only these Canadians can muster. "Take The Next Exit" keeps the heavy flow going and "Wendigo Pt. 3" continues their saga of the Wendigo and ends the album on an epically heavy note complete with acoustic interludes.

Bison B.C. really have a signature sound and this album proves they have the mettle to survive in this world of copy cat bands and watered down nu-metal.

A -Matt Smith

BLEEDING FIST

Macabrum Bestia Ex Abyssus

bleeding fist - Macabrum Bestia Ex Abyssus

Slovenia's Bleeding Fist return with their follow-up to last years Bestial Kruzifix666ion. This one is a 6 song EP entitled Macabrum Bestia Ex Abyssus, also release by Moribund Records.

Following along the same lines as their previous release, Macabrum Bestia Ex Abyssus fires raw, vicious black metal at you from all sides. There is no relenting, no melodic interludes, no fancy pants crap here - just 22 minutes of flat out blasphemic black metal attacks. "Defender of Satan's Honor" takes the title of best original track here for me. It just has an overall bombastic sound that caught my fancy from the first listen, and has kept me coming back to that track time and time again. The band, however, saves the best for last, as the final track here is a cover of the mighty Hellhammer's "Messiah", which they do a worthy job of interpreting.

Bleeding Fist didn't waste much time between their latest releases for Moribund. While this EP is an improvement over the LP that it follows, the band still has plenty of room to improve with future releases.

B- -Goz

BLOOD CULT

We are the Cult of the Plains

blood cult - we are the cult of the plains

Kenney, Illinois based Blood Cult dub themselves redneck black metal. One listen to their latest offering, We are the Cult of the Plains, and it is quite a fitting attribute for the band. On the offering table here are 10 tracks at a bit over 50 minutes in length. Songs range from true black metal ("My Forest Home") to 70's rock ("Devil's Sabbath") to a strange hybrid of 60's psych-rock and black metal (the 8 minute "Ludi Ceriales") - and that is just the first three songs on the disc! So, basically, strap yourself in for a journey into the wild and weird - a musical journey with Blood Cult.

Alright, so we know the disc kicks off with more or less a straight ahead black metal track in "My Forest Home". Next up is "Devil's Sabbath", which wouldn't sound completely out of place on a Ted Nugent album. It is and all out 70's arena rock sound, complete with wailing guitar solos and sing along chorus. Rock on my friends! "Seeds" brings us back to the black metal, while "Illinoisan Altar" has a country bass line with a Dick Dale like surfing guitar sound as it's prominent musical ideas. Stay tuned after the final track "Never Said Goodbye" ends for some crazy ass alien sounds, too.

Blood Cult obviously has great musical talent, and a wealth of musical ideas. The fact that they can put all of these seemingly random styles together and come out with something as cohesive and enjoyable to listen to as this disc clearly demonstrates both of those facts. The only real downside to this disc is the production, which is a bit "distant" and a bit weak. You get used to that pretty quickly, and once you do, this is a most enjoyable ride.

B+ -Goz

BRAIN DRILL

Quantum Catastrophe

Brain Drill - Quantum Catastrophe

After I reviewed Brain Drill's debut disc, Apocalyptic Feasting, some two years ago, I vowed to never subject myself to the torture of their music ever again. Shortly after that, it seemed as if the band was done for anyway, as everyone quit the band and it seemed as if Brain Drill would be no longer. Alas, guitarist Dylan Ruskin rounded up some other musicians to fill out the band and back up his near endless noodling and sweep arpeggio playing. The resultant disc is Quantum Catastrophe, and I've decided to give the band another chance, seeing as how this is pretty much another band all together. Does this disc live up to the title?

Ok, so the band might be almost completely different, but the music is still the same mess as their previous release. There is hardly a riff to be found on here - every spare moment is just stuffed with lead bits. You get it all here - sweep arpeggios, scales up and down the fretboard, and other times just plain old jumbles of notes slammed together seemingly haphazardly. The few times a decent riff is played (like around the 2:40 mark in the opener "Obliteration Untold"), it hardly lasts long enough to be enjoyed before it is eschewed for another endless collection of wankery. Hey, at least the drums sound somewhat real on this disc, unlike the clicky, plastic sounding samples used on the previous disc.

The title of this disc sums up exactly what it is - a Quantum Catastrophe. They even wrote a song about what the album is and called it "Monumental Failure". Really guys, you shouldn't make it that easy on us. Save yourself the agony and skip this.

F -Goz

CAULDRON

Chained To The Night

cauldron - chained to the night

Here’s the debut full length from traditional metallers Cauldron, Chained to the Nite. After the demise of the heralded Goat Horn, many of the members strapped up in leather, put on their studs and jean vests, and formed this band, furiously belting out metal hymns as if it were still 1985. Now with only one member of Goat Horn remaining, Cauldron is striving to become their own unique act. Sounding much like the greatly underrated Cities, Cauldron is spearheaded by the wailing whine of singer Jason Decay. Backed up by the equally ridiculous names Ian Chains and Chris Rites, one must question whether or not Cauldron’s replications of 80s metal anthems is slightly ironic, lacking the sincerity of their supposed heroes. That said, Cauldron are competent. Decay’s voice carries the album, guitars soar, and the drums never let up.

Despite Cauldron’s innate ability to replicate the 80s, there’s a distinct feeling of limpness and tepidness throughout the album. Cauldron are a young band, and the feeling of youth runs through this entire release, while youthful energy does not. It sounds like the band got together and decided to make a collection of traditional metal songs, and that’s exactly what they did. It doesn’t feel original or heartfelt. It feels forced. That isn’t to say that these songs are bad -- far from it. “Chained Up in Chains” hearkens back to “Metal Heart” era Accept, while the sounds of Judas Priest, Angel Witch, Manowar, and even King Diamond are to be found scattered throughout the rest of the album. Cauldron make these songs very catchy, but aren’t able to do it as Cauldron. They only do it dressed as their heroes.

Cauldron have a craft, but that craft is based in replication. They need to find the sound of Cauldron, and not the band they choose to sound like for each song.

B -Adam

CELESTIA

Archaenae Perfectii - L'Arche Arcane des

Drakkar Productions

Celestia - Archaenae Perfectii - L'Arche Arcane des.jpg

France's Celestia are back with their latest release, Archaenae Perfectii - L'Arche Arcane des. Picking up where their last release, Frigidiis Apotheosia : Abstinencia Genesiis, left off, Celestia continue to make the same melancholic type of black metal that they've been dishing out for over a dozen years now.

For those familiar with Celestia's last disc, you should be familiar with what you're going to hear on this one. Driving, rhythmic drums and bass provide the backdrop for the layers of distorted and melodic guitar lines, all of which are trumped by the insane raspy vocals by Noktu. The bleak landscape created by the music is a near perfect accompaniment for the vocal style used here, and what it all adds up to is a collection of songs that set a grim mood from beginning to end. "Dominus Cruz Spiritus" gets my nod as the best track here. No real specific reason, but it is the one that I always seem to remember the most after I've finished listening to this disc.

For fans of the band, this is a must have. For casual listeners, it's probably worth checking out if you are into the melancholic side of black metal that Celestia plays.

B -Goz

D.I.S.

Critical Failure

Deep Six/Power It Up

DIS Critical Failure

D.I.S. is a D-beat band from California, consisting of members from Exhumed, Impaled, Phobia and some other fine bands. Bringing influences from Swedish D-beat bands, and mixing in some thrash elements, the music here is face ripping in its ferocity, and pummeling in its pure power and aggression. From the opening notes to "Speak of Hate" to the final vocal roar of "Bleed Forward", not a single second goes by without some sort of massive and powerful sounds ripping forth from your speakers. Songs like "Lamentations" stand out for me, as they incorporate a little more of the thrash elements in the song, while "Extend This Misery" features some short lived, but outstanding blast beats to liven things up a bit more.

Anyone into D-beat should get this. If you just want to get your face ripped off by some incredibly vicious music, you should get this, too.

B- -Goz

DODSFERD/MORTOVATIS

Until Your World Go Down

Dodsferd-Mortovatis-Until-Your-World-Go-Down

This split release between Greek black metal veteran Dodsferd, and newcomer Mortovatis showcases two unreleased and one live track from the former, and the debut track from the latter. Apparently, this release is just to wet your whistle for the new full-length Dodsferd release, due out sometime later this year.

Of the three Dodsferd tracks, I think the first one, "Only Thorns Can Embrace..." is the best one. It is fierce, heavy, and still has some good melodic hooks in it, and the vocals are, as you'd expect from Dodsferd, absolutely insane. "Another Two Of Your Scars..." is a bit more despondent and melancholic. You can almost feel the sorrow and despair from the music, and when the vocals kick in, you can definitely sense it. Good stuff there, I must say. The live track is "You Called It Resurrection, I Call It a Fairytale for Human Parasites, Your Kind!", from 2007's Cursing Your Will to Live, and is a rather raw recording, but still comes across as quite listenable and pretty intense.

The lone track from Mortovatis is a 20+ minute epic of droning noise and black metal. Lots of synthesized sounds creating all sorts of noises to begin, then keeping the noise running after the guitar and drums join in. This goes on and on and on, and while the guitar riff doesn't change much at all, the noisy parts change up a good bit throughout the length of the song. Good if you like that kind of stuff, probably not so much if you don't like droning, repetitive noise.

As a whole, this disc is decent. I prefer the Dodsferd stuff to the Mortovatis track, but I am sure there are others who will say the opposite. This split release offers good teaser of what is to come from both bands in the future.

B -Goz

EREB ALTOR

The End

ereb altor - the end

Ereb Altor is what every anti-doom metal person fears. The songs are long, drawn out, and sometimes, not much even happens. It’s not dissimilar from their main band, the magnificent Isole. Most of the time however, the songs are slow builders mounting to powerful climaxes that reward the most alert and invested of listeners. Losing focus for a moment can cause the listener to lose the song’s progress and become out of sync with the song and album’s deceptive intensity. While there may not be as many notes squeezed into a small time frame or lightning quick guitar solos, Ereb Altor’s The End reflects painstakingly meticulous songwriting and composition. These songs flow with a simple, yet grievous grace that wouldn’t be possible with the overwrought glitz of most metal music. Casual fans will hear this and pass it off as boring with “nothing going on.” I pity them. They’re missing out.

As I’ve said, this sounds very similar to the two man band’s main project, Isole. On that project, Crister Olssen and Daniel Bryntse split the guitar and vocal duties, but here the two of them split all instrumental and vocals. It’s a true two man band. The unmistakable pained croon of Olsson (known as “Mats” on this project) is present, as well as the harsh counterpoint of Bryntse. Even the guitar work isn’t too different than Isole’s sound. But where the difference lies is in the album’s pacing. Ereb Altor’s songs are drawn out into immense soundscapes that require persistent attention. They grow into conclusions that are depressed, triumphant, or enrapturing. With a tinge of folk/viking metal as well, Ereb Altor makes their music even more unique, separating themselves from so many other depressive doom bands.

Opening up with a four minute prologue, they seamlessly flow into the excellent melancholy of “Myrdving,” whose powerful moaning climax is one of the album’s high points. The next two songs are epics beginning with gentle acoustic passages that climb into heavy riffing. Despite how good these songs are, they also become a tad undistinguished. This ends in the end, as Ereb Altor puts together a three song, 24-minute trilogy to end The End. As cool and potentially awe-inspiring as this is, it only sounds like three vaguely similar songs (albeit very good ones) strung together as a trilogy. I can’t say that I’d think they were intentionally connected unless I looked at the CD booklet.

Olssen and Bryntse have proven themselves to be two of metal’s most consistent composers. They’re always doomy and very depressed, and they have a real knack for making their listeners pretty depressed too.

B+ -Adam

GAMMA RAY

To The Metal

earMusic

gamma ray - to the metal

My power metal start came in the mid to late 1980’s with Kai Hansen and his genre-changing work with Helloween. To know that a few years ago I’d get the chance to see him play in my local area on a co-headlining tour with Gamma Ray and see multiple generations taking this music to new heights in the land where like Rodney Dangerfield, traditional metal ‘gets no respect’ is also mind blowing. Here we are with the tenth studio release for these German veterans- solid in terms of their sound and devoid of any lineup changes since 1997.

At this point in their career, you know you are going to get a couple of double bass dominant speed riffing songs like “All You Need To Know” and “Chasing Shadows” as well as the mid-tempo, more traditional influenced fare such as opener “Empathy” and the very Judas Priest-ish title track. Then there are songs that recall his “I Want Out” songwriting heydays, such as “Time To Live” which contains the sing-a-long/ shout-a-long chorus or “Shine Forever” with some of Kai’s highest Halford-like pitch work to date.

The record ends on a ballad with “No Need To Cry”- great for the dynamic balance a band needs but I have to admit this track would have been better left on the cutting room floor as the acoustic/ Queen vocal bridge isn’t in this foursome’s skill set. People who want Michael Kiske to return to the metal kingdom should be happy to hear his appearance on the chorus of “All You Need To Know”- the pipes still strong two decades plus away from the Keepers saga.

The pinnacle of the band’s career was Somewhere Out In Space- and while To The Metal doesn’t quite hit that inspirational level, you will not decry ‘sellout’ or ‘cheese-fest’ with these 10 songs.

B+ -Matt Coe

GRAVE

Burial Ground

Regain Records

grave - burial ground

Early Swedish death metal is some of my favorite stuff to listen to. Entombed, Dismember, Unleashed and Grave are all in pretty frequent rotation in my CD player, MP3 players and turntable. The fact that all of them are still around after 20+ years, and still making good music is testament to the staying power of their music. 2010 sees the release of Grave's 9th full-length studio recording, Burial Ground. The 9 songs here total about 50 minutes, and this could pretty much be the aural definition old school Swedish death metal. Why fix what ain't broken, right?

Two things always stood out for me with Grave - the guitar tone and the sheer heaviness of everything that they've ever recorded. Even their faster songs tend to be overbearing in their heaviness, a feat not easily achieved. Burial Ground still has the classic buzzsaw like guitar sound, and the extreme heaviness is also still present in droves. Check out the closing title track to see just how heavy things can get. It is a doomier piece, but the heaviness threatens to dislodge unsecured items from your walls or countertops. The opener, "Liberation", is a much faster paced track, but is masterfully heavy at the same time, and sets the stage well for what is to come. The opening riff to "Conquerer" is possibly the catchiest riff the band has ever written, and it will get your head moving upon the first listen. Just to show a little bit more diversity, "Sexual Mutilation" has a bit of a grind feel to it at times.

Grave once again shows us that they still have it, and that they aren't going anywhere anytime soon. Let's hope they can get hooked up for a US tour in support of this disc. It's been quite a while since they've been over here.

B+ -Goz

HEATHEN

The Evolution of Chaos

Mascot Records

heathen the evolution of chaos

Few albums have been embraced by the metal community this year as well as Heathen’s new album The Evolution of Chaos has been. People have been declaring it a modern thrash classic, one where the veteran thrashers show the young ones how it’s done. The fact of the matter is that I want that to be the case, but it isn’t. Nevertheless, it is a good album. It’s got all the elements of a thrash classic, but it isn’t executed with the passion it needs. It seems like Heathen made an album with the intention of proving that they were better than the young thrash bands. That mentality bleeds through this music. In turn, the quality of the music suffers. I hate to play the role of the finger wagging naysayer among such widespread reverence, but The Evolution of Chaos is simply not as good as people are saying it is.

I don’t want to make it sound like this album is bad. It just doesn’t live up to the hype and adulation thrust upon it. Lee Altus and newcomer Kragen Lum make a great dual guitar team. The riffs scale upwards and downwards, creating some pounding headbanging anthems. When they are given the spotlight, they shine. They seem to feed off each other, creating some tightly woven, slithering instrumental passages. But David Godfrey’s voice isn’t what it used to be, and it cannot carry this album. In fact, it’s outright irritating at moments. He doesn’t bear the necessary passion for songs like “Fade Away” or “Undone.” Yet, at the same time, his blunt and primal anger heighten the sincerity in songs like the Metallica-ish “No Stone Unturned.” Later on in the album, they get political, which isn’t a problem, but they do so idiotically. The blind patriotism on “A Hero’s Welcome” is just imbecilic. Regardless of political affiliation, this song is entirely stupid.

I do enjoy this album, just not all that much. It’s by no means an album of the year candidate, but it’s a memorable comeback album. The Evolution of Chaos suffers from weak execution whilst maintaining a fast paced, angry thrash theme throughout.

C+ -Adam

HEIDEVOLK

Uit Oude Grond

heidevolk - uog

Last year I got really lucky one night after a show in my hometown of Worcester, Massachusetts. I found myself at a bar with the members of Korpiklaani and Primordial, along with a group of my friends. Before long, we tired of the asinine cover band playing at the bar and headed over to a seedy party at the Hampton Inn. As Alan “Nemtheanga” Averill looked over a girl’s hard drive of music, he came across Heidevolk. He immediately averred, “Ah, Heidevolk. Now that is a proper band.”

It’s no wonder that Nemtheanga loves the band so much, as they’re the darlings of the folk metal movement of which he is a part. The band has created music typifying the genre, complete with traditional instruments and chants juxtaposed with harsh vocals and simple rhythmic riffing. Their style might not be too much different from the plethora of folk bands occupying the scene, except that they can create the sound of folk metal without excessively using traditional instruments. Instead, Heidevolk use traditional chanting as the predominant vocal style, alternating it with death growls and screams. On their last few albums, this has worked well, garnering a devout fan base and critical acclaim. However, on Uit Oude Grond, the formula isn’t as well executed, not to mention that it’s getting old as well.

Heidevolk open the album right where they left off, with their strong vocal style leading the way, accentuated by their violinist Irma Vos. One word I’ve loved to use for this style of music is “jiggy,” in that it can incite the listener into a jig. That suits this album perfectly. But “jigginess” is pretty limited, and a band can’t sustain a full album on that trait alone. Uit Oude Grond repeats itself throughout the second half, becoming stale and even boring. The music Heidevolk makes is undeniably cool, but its coolness doesn’t last. For only so long can music that makes you want to jig be entertaining, unless you’re dancing with a couple dozen people, but that probably won’t be happening. As a result, the music is confined to this jiggy formula. The best song on the album is actually the instrumental “Alvermans Wraak,” where Heidevolk break free of this formula, and pursue folk (as in not folk metal) territory. It sounds new and refreshing, and hopefully where they’ll end up going in the future.

I don’t want to be the curmudgeon reviewer wagging his finger at folk metal, though. There is a lot to like here, and my guess is that fans of folk metal will like it. Maybe not as much as their last few albums, but they’ll still like it. Frankly, Heidevolk does have a cool sound, but they just overdo it. The low pitch chants are ridiculous, but let them be ridiculous. This style can be really fun. Hearing the music brings to mind a bunch of guys (who happen to fat for some reason) swaying around singing together, assumedly with beers in their hand. If you can’t find the fun in that, then I’m sorry for you.

Heidevolk have something going here. They always have. But what they have going for them is the same formula that they (and a few other bands) have been utilizing for a while now. It’s becoming tired. That said, they still convey a fun and jiggy atmosphere that only the surliest of metal fans can deny.

B- -Adam

INQUISITION

Into the Infernal Regions of the Ancient Cult

Nuclear War Now! Productions

INQUISITION - Into the Infernal Regions of the Ancient Cult

Hells Headbangers Records saw fit to release a remastered version of Inquisition's debut full length, Into the Infernal Regions of the Ancient Cult, which was originally released in 1998, and re-released numerous times since then. This, however is the first time it has been remastered, and also features new artwork and a new layout.

Musically, the band plays pretty straightforward old school black metal, although maybe a bit slower than you'd expect from the old school tag. Sure, they branch out into some different stuff here and there - take the middle eastern tinged acoustic guitar and the catchy, melodic riff in "The Initiation" - but they don't tend to really catch you by surprise with anything. You probably won't have too much trouble predicting what is coming next, most of the time at least. The vocals - oh, the vocals....they are far from your standard black metal rasp. If only they were that good, it might make this disc a bit more listenable. The only way I can describe the vocals here are boring and disinterested. It truly sounds like someone was sitting in the studio with a lyric sheet, bored out of their mind, just letting out small croaks and groans when the time came. There are a couple tracks where backing vocals are used, and they are much more interesting than the main vocals ever will be. A little over half way through the disc, and I am ready to give up, mainly because of the vocals. Thankfully, I soldiered on and made it to the title track, which is a kickass 5+ minute instrumental - no crappy vocals make this the standout track on the disc for me.

Having never heard this before, I can't comment on how the remastering job went, but the sound here is decent for something that is probably meant to sound pretty primal and lo-fi. I guess if you are a fan of this band, you will need to get this, but I can't recommend it to much of anyone else.

D -Goz

KERASPHORUS

Cloven Hoofs at the Holocaust Dawn

Kerasphorus - Cloven Hoofs at the Holocaust Dawn

Pete Helmkamp is fairly well known in the extreme metal ranks. First, he was bassist and front man for legendary extreme metal pioneers Order From Chaos. After that band dissolved, he played the same role in another great extreme metal band, Angelcorpse, which actually had to break up twice before completely going away. Not one to rest too long, Helmkamp formed Kerasphorus when he moved to LA, and Cloven Hoofs at the Holocaust Dawn is the debut EP for the band, released by Nuclear War Now! Productions.

With Helmkamp fronting the band, and NWN releasing this, you can pretty well assume that it is going to be some kickass old school styled blackened death metal, and damn straight you'd be right. Containing 4 songs and clocking in at just over 18 minutes, this is a short, yet extremely brutal collection of amazingly good metal. "The Abyssal Sanhedrin" starts off with a slow intro, but the slow pace doesn't last long at all. When the pedal is mashed down, the band lets it rip with so much aggression that your speakers might have trouble containing it all. The guitar riffs shred, the bass thunders, and the drums are beaten with seeming reckless abandon - all the while Helmkamps delivers some of the harshest vocals to ever emanate from his larynx. All four songs follow this same pattern - basically unleash as much fury as poss bile for the duration of the song, then repeat for the next one. I'll have to pick "Disturb The Furtherst Stars" as my favorite track here, simply because it has an amazingly good riff in the middle of it, and the drumming is beyond superb. At only 18 minutes, though, you should just play this straight through a few times - it will blow you away each and every time.

A- -Goz

KMFDM

Krieg

KMFDM Records

kmfdm krieg

KMFDM follows up last years Blitz with Krieg, a collection of remixes of tracks from Blitz. What you get here is almost an hours worth of dance worthy remixes of 12 KMFDM songs, with some songs done multiple times, but by different mixologists.

I am immediately drawn to the heavier tracks, such as "Potz Blitz! (Harmonic Tremors Mix)" and "Never Say Never (Naughty Habit Mix)", but I did find myself digging some of the more dance oriented mixes as well - "Strut (Disco Ball Mix)" is pretty cool with a total 70's dance fever vibe going on at times. There are others that I will likely never listen to again, such as "People Of The Lie (Requiem Mix)", which is far too hip hop for my tastes. But, that diversity is what you get with remix albums like this, where they have people from all sorts of backgrounds tweaking the songs to whatever style they want.

This is pretty much a mixed bag for me. There are a few standout songs, a bunch of stuff that I though was just ok, and a couple of flat out clunkers. I recommend this only for fans of KMFDM, although I am sure it might appeal to some others as well.

C+ -Goz

LANDMINE MARATHON

Sovereign Descent

Prosthetic Records

Landmine Marathon - Sovereign Descent

I reviewed Landmine Marathon's last disc a little while back, and while I liked it, it wasn't something that stood out as amazing, and I don't think I've revisited the disc more than a couple times since then. So now we have their Prosthetic Records debut, Sovererign Descent. Let's take it for a ride and see where it takes us.

Landmine Marathon is often compared to Bolt Thrower (at least in the guitar sound and riffing), and right from the start, you get a bit of that Bolt Thrower feeling. The fade in to "Exist" kind of reminds me of "Cenotaph" - I know, they weren't the first band to do this, and won't be the last, but it did bring that song to mind a bit. There is also a riff right smack in the middle of "Shadows Fed To Tyrants" that is eerily close to many Bolt Thrower riffs. Anyway, I don't consider this a bad thing, as Bolt Thrower is one of my favorite bands, ever. One of the things I mentioned in my earlier review was the vocals, and I still am not a real fan of them here. The constant screaming/shrieking gets old real fast for me, and becomes a pretty big distraction. Another thing I noticed right away is that the drums seem to be way overdone, to the point that they produce distortion. That, to me, is a major strike against the production/mastering of this disc. I'll pick "Steadfast Hate" as my favorite track on this disc - it is slow, heavy and just has the best feel out of all the songs here. I don't know how often I'll be going back to this one, though, unless something can be done to clean up the messy drum sound.

C+ -Goz

LET THE NIGHT ROAR

Volume 2

self-released

let the night roar - volume 2

Let The Night Roar quickly put themselves on my list of must listen to bands when their debut disc landed in my mailbox late last year. It has been in near constant rotation since then, garnering somewhere north of 100 plays if I had to estimate. Then, I was told by one of the guys in Black Pyramid that he was lining up a tour with the band, and would have a couple of local dates. Holy shit, was I psyched. I figured I'd never get a chance to see Let The Night Roar, with them being based in Atlanta and me here in New England, but lo and behold, they were playing multiple shows right near me. I was happier than a clam (are clams really happy?). That brings us to the bands new EP, Volume 2, which they recorded and released themselves to have something to sell on the aforementioned tour.

Since recording their debut, the band has added a second guitarist in Greg Knap (who also shares the vocal duty) and recruited a new bass player in Adam Gleason, joining guitarist/vocalist Jeff Juszkiewicz and drummer Hunter Cook. The addition of a second guitarist made a heavy band even heavier (a feat not easy to accomplish), and the dual vocals add depth and emphasis for certain vocal lines. For example, in "Seven Heads" - "When darkness comes, seven heads will rule the skies. Bring new life - from blood" - the dual vocals just make it stand out a bit more. They continue to pay tribute to those who influence their sound quite a bit, too. The Celtic Frost/Hellhammer comparison is ramped up quite a bit on this EP as compared to their debut, and the High On Fire influence is still pretty easy to spot as well. Every riff on this disc is heavy as hell, and still memorable enough so that you won't soon forget it. The chorus to "Destroy Us All" (an apt title for a song, as that seems to be exactly what this band aims to do) will have you screaming along with it, and probably banging your head, too.

Volume 2 is but a taste of what is to come from this band. Hopefully you were able to catch them on their tour with Black Pyramid, or some other time. Their live show is intense, and will likely get even better as the band plays together more with the current lineup. Grab a copy of this disc, listen to it, then listen to it again, and again and again...that's what I've been doing for the past 2 weeks or so.

A+ -Goz

LUX DIVINA

From the Tomb to Nature's Blood

Ars Magna Recordings

lux divina - From the Tomb to Nature's Blood

Kvlt fans clinging to the primitiveness of black metal’s heritage baffle me. Now, I understand that over hyped and overrated bands like Dimmu Borgir and Cradle of Filth are somehow dishonoring and killing the genre. Right? Therefore, all black metal bands have the moral imperative of being early Darkthrone clones.

It’s this unforgivably dumb and elitist mentality that can kill a genre. Spaniards Lux Divina partially eschew this sentiment, but for the most part fall victim to it. They employ some “Viking” style clean vocals that skims over their minimalistic black metal assault. It can be really interesting when these vocals become the focus. The best song on From the Tomb to Nature’s Blood is “Serpent’s Philosophy,” a beautifully sang vocal solo, but it’s only one minute long. Their singer (some guy known simply as “Norax”) proves that he has a great voice, but it’s thrust into the background and barely utilized. As a result, the listener is left with a very dull and mediocre album, mindlessly adhering to the framework laid out by the Inner Circle bands almost twenty years ago. The majesty of many of those bands is rarely present, often sounding like nothing more than a poorly made clone.

D+ -Adam

MARTRIDEN

Encounter The Monolith

self-released

Martriden - Encounter the Monolith

Following their 2008 debut, The Unsettling Dark, Martriden found themselves free of any ties to record labels. What is a band to do in this case? Why not write some new music and release it yourself! That is exactly what the band did, and the result is Encounter the Monolith.

Featuring 6 songs totaling just over 45 minutes in length, the first thing you'll notice that is different from the bands debut is that the songs are, on average, quite a bit longer and more intricate. The music here would best be described as technical and progressive death metal with some black metal influences - mainly from the vocals. They've definitely ramped up the progressive tinges and technical aspects of the music a good bit. The multitude of keyboards on this release adds some really nice layering to the music, while not detracting at all from the heaviness of the guitars and bass. The opening track, "The Three Metamorphoses", showcases all of these things quite well. The band goes for a more straightforward approach with "Human Error?", which is just a total bombardment of the senses for four and a half minutes. The title track has some really good keyboard/organ usage that gives it a kind of dark and dreary atmosphere - aided by the cleaner/sung vocals lines during the middle of the song. I also really the like fake ending where it starts to fade out, only to come back stronger than before with a raging outro part. The close out this release, Martriden treats us to a 10 minute instrumental track, which is far and away the most progressive stuff they've ever recorded. It is basically an exercise in how to write a really heavy, progressive song. Other bands should take notes from this one.

Martriden is progressing nicely with their sound from release to release. With Encounter The Monolith, the band shows that they are definitely hitting hard on all cylinders. They also show that they can keep up with some of the best out there in terms of technicality and progressiveness, all the while keeping the music interesting and not falling into the "see how many notes I can play in 30 seconds" type of wanking that a lot of bands are doing nowadays. Go to Matriden's website now and order this one, you'll be glad you did.

A- -Goz

MASTER

The Human Machine

Pulverised Records

master - the human machine

Few people have been around the extreme metal scene longer than Paul Speckmann. He's been going at it since 1983 with his main band, Master, and was also an integral part of Abomination, Krabathor and Martyr, to name just a few. Master has been more or less active all these years, with a few bits of downtime and a multitude of lineup changes. One thing has remained constant for the band, and that is front man and bassist Paul Speckmann. Jump ahead to current day, and Master is now on their 10th studio release, this time with Pulverised Records delivering the goods.

Master's formula is pretty simple - write fast, brutal music and spew forth some vicious vocals about politics and religion on top of said music. Repeat that formula and you have the makings of some damn good old school sounding thrashing death metal. It comes without saying that The Human Machine follows that formula. As soon as the opening title track starts, you will be blown back in your chair (or whatever it is you are using to support your weight at the time), and remain that way until the song ends. The guitar work here is fast and brutal, yet contains some downright groovy and memorable riffs - especially during the slower breakdown part in the middle of the song. Speckmann's vocals are as venomous and hate filled as ever, maybe even more so. Speaking of memorable riffs - the riff at the beginning of "The Lack Of Space" is downright ridiculous. It actually wouldn't be out of place on an Orange Goblin or Electric Wizard song if it were slowed down a little bit. Because of that riff, it gets my pick for best song on the disc, although the blast beat laden "Worship the Sun" and supreme heaviness of album closer "Impale to Kill" are right up there fighting for the title.

Close to 30 years after forming the band, Paul Speckmann is still going strong (maybe even STRONGER) with Master. The 45 minutes of brutality on The Human Machine are proof enough of that fact. The great live show that they put on is even more proof. If you get a chance to check out the band live, by all means cancel all other plans and go do it.

B+ -Goz

MASTERPLAN

Time To Be King

AFM

masterplan - time to be king

Jorn Lande’s return to Masterplan couldn’t have come at a better time. In retrospect, former Riot vocalist Mike DiMeo performed admirably on 2007’s Mk II - and yet even guitarist Roland Grapow probably concedes the difficulty with replacing such a majestic voice as Mr. Lande. He has the toughness and grit that David Coverdale conveys along with the power comfort to hit the upper echelon like a Russell Allen or Roy Khan.

So just in time for the summer festival floodgates, Time To Be King strides from a familiar, confident plateau- taking the band’s first two studio offerings and reaching an even higher peak with their songwriting and performances. Grapow understands epic parts sitting side by side with catchy hooks and instant listening experiences- as first single “Far From The End Of The World” illustrates with slight neo-classical overtones marrying a furious Rainbow meets power arrangement.

The title track opens with a quick choir chant before Jorn showcases his chameleon approach- occasionally stretching into exotic melodies while always bellowing with that 70’s rock star framework he’s been known for most of his career. Meanwhile “Lonely Winds Of War” emphasizes Masterplan’s slower, full epic proclivity- giving drummer Mike Terrana and keyboardist Axel Mackenrott a chance to drive home the subtle heaviness of the proceedings.

We may not have Dio/Blackmore or Plant/Page at our current beck and call, but rest assured with Time To Be King the newer generation as well as the faithful can stand at the alter of metal immortality knowing they’ve witnessed excellence. Early album of the year contender.

A+ -Matt Coe

MELVINS

The Bride Screamed Murder

Ipecac

melvins - the bride screamed murder

The Melvins are back with their newest opus and as always I welcome them with open arms, and an open mind, which always comes in handy when listening to them. The ever present heavy guitar riffs are there, the eclectic song writing and vocal lines with Dale's awesome drumming.

"I'll finish You Off" has a great organ section with some very interesting vocals to add to the creepy vibe of the overall song's sound. "Electric Flower" is probably the most typical Melvins song on the album but that is saying a lot as they've always been so eclectic. "Inhumanity and Death" is probably the fastest paced and most rocking song on the album and puts a huge fuckiug smile on this Melvins fan's face. Their take on The Who's "My Generation" is an interpretation I've neve heard before as it is slowed down to about have the tempo and the vocals are gang vocal style. About mid-track they go into a mellow breeze sound-effect section that morphs into a slow, noisy guitar solo. "P.G. x 3" is by far the most ethereal and mournful I've heard the Melvins, but it also is one of my favorite tracks on the album.

All in all another winner from one of my favorite bands of all time!

A -Matt Smith

MICROTIA

Spacemaker

microtia - spacemaker

Any band whose CD sleeve is made from remnants of beer packaging will get my interest. Microtia is one such band. They also made the track listing insert from old cigarette packaging. They claim to have consumed 1650 beers and smoked a ton of cigarettes in order to make the packaging. I guess that is being eco-friendly, right? Anyway, the disc I was sent used a PBR box for the sleeve and the track list on an a Camel box. I'm gonna crack open a beer (a Maine Logger Lager, if you care to know) myself and write this review.

Based in Portland, Oregon, Microtia play a mix of metal, punk and pop with some pretty progressive overtones at times - check the last 2 minutes of "Early Fish Gets The Worm" for a really good example of this. "Tone Mtn. Vs. The Body of Riffage" is my pick for standout track here. Starting off fairly quiet, the song builds into a monster riff, with some pretty cool spacey sounding synths bouncing around in the background. The crescendo that it builds up to is amazing good - the guitar work here is insanely good, and superbly catchy. I also love when the guitar and bass are playing lockstep with each other, even if it's only for a short bit.

This is some good, solid rock here. It is overall a good disc, with a few standout parts (mentioned above) and a lot of stuff that is decent, yet unspectacular. I would like to check this band out live, though. I figure they'd be cool to have a few beers with, and would likely put on a pretty entertaining show.

B -Goz

MÖRBID CARNAGE

Night Assassins

Pulverised

morbid carnage - night assassins

Mörbid Carnage are a new band out of Hungary standing amongst the thousands of thrash bands that continue to pop up worldwide. Instead of falling into the midst with nothing to separate them from everyone trying to recapture the feeling of the Bay Area in the 80s, Mörbid Carnage play a much heavier, even brutal style, sometime indiscernible from death metal. This is as maniacal and bestial as Thrash gets, bringing to mind some of the angriest and nastiest sounds produced by Demolition Hammer. That said, Mörbid Carnage are for the most part uninteresting and monotonous. Each song on the seven song debut album Night Assassins bleeds into one another, sounding undistinguished. Then, before you know it, the album is over, waking the listener from his boredom.

There’s no doubt that Mörbid Carnage’s intention is to create Thrash that bludgeons its listener’s ears. While they do that, the music becomes frustratingly boring. While there are a few riffs sprinkled throughout the album that get the read rolling like good thrash should, for the most part they are simply constructed and meshed together. The band seems more intent on brutality than quality, which is their greatest fault, hindering their sound into dull but forceful onslaught. Their punch is ferocious, but it needs a little added swagger to stay fresh.

C+ -Adam

MOUTH OF THE ARCHITECT

The Violence Beneath

Translation Loss

Mouth of the Architect - The Violence Beneath

Ohio based Mouth of the Architect give us a new four song EP, The Violence Beneath. The EP is comprised of 2 new songs, a live track, and a cover of Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes". An interesting choice for a cover song, if I do say so myself.

The opening track, "The Violence Beneath", shows Mouth of the Architect in fine form - with heavy, technical guitar parts that seem to circle around each other and yet flow seamlessly. Vocals are tied in well with the drum beats, emphasizing the heaviness and providing even more attack to the music. "Buried Hope" is up next, and it is a good bit more progressive. Starting off with acoustic guitars and sung vocals for the first three minutes or so, the song then changes gears with a much heavier attack, but is still leaning quite progressively - just listen to that kickass bass playing going on in there. The great dual guitar work at the end is also amazingly well done, and the bass and drums throw down some majorly good work in there, too. Great stuff, and definitely the focus for this EP. Their cover of "In Your Eyes" is quite interesting. It is a slowed down, much heavier version than the original, with cleanly sung lyrics that are at times somewhat monotone in nature. Definitely a much gloomier sounding version that Peter Gabriel's original version.

While only containing four songs, The Violence Beneath delivers a whole lot of good music. Some may not care too much for the cover song, I always like to hear bands do covers in a completely different way than the original song was done.

B -Goz

NECRONOMICON

The Return Of The Witch

necronomicon - return of the witch

Canada's Necronomicon are not a band to rush things. The Return of the Witch is only the bands third full-length release (plus an EP and demo) in the nearly 20 years that the band has existed. No matter, though, as sometimes taking your time to do things right results in a better final result, and it certainly seems to have done so here.

Listening to Necronomicon will bring memories of many bands - Vader, Behemoth, Morbid Angel and a bit of Dimmu Borgir come to mind right away. The opening track brings us straight "Into The Fire", with unrelenting double bass drums attacks pounding you in the mid-section, frantic fretwork and rumbling bass work carry the tune, all the while the growled, but very understandable vocals deliver the message. Then comes a brief segment of choir vocals, which at first caught me by surprise, but actually fit quite well with the musical theme at that point in the song (and are used at other points in the disc, as well). The guitar and bass interplay during the lead part in "The Awakening" is as top notch as it gets. "Necropolis" has some eerie keyboards that sound like they are coming straight out of an old horror movie, and the creepy vocals to match, too. For those who want a little melody and a good catchy riff, check out "The Order Of The Moon" - a couple of really nice riffs in there, and a bit more of a traditional heavy metal feel to the music. They really deliver the brutality well, but also show that they can bring the technicality when need be - like in the intro part of "Alpha and Omega", great guitar work starts off, then the bass is allowed to shine with some great low, burbling runs.

Necronomicon may have taken their time with this release, but the wait is definitely worth it. This is top notch blackened death metal from start to finish. Highly recommended for fans of the bands mentioned above.

B+ -Goz

NEGURA BUNGET

Maiestrit

Prophecy Productions

Negura Bunget - Maiestrit

Romania's Negura Bunget nearly stopped being about a year ago. You see, the founding members of the band, Sol Faur, Hupogrammos and Negru, decided to break up. Drummer Negru decided to take it upon himself and recruit new musicians to keep the project going, while the other two teamed up to create Dordeduh. This recording marks the final time the original three line-up appears together. With Maiestrit, the band is doing a modern "re-interpretation" of their 2000 release, Maiastru Sfetnic. While not just a straight re-recording, a la Exodus' atrocious Let There Be Blood, this is not only be redone in order to achieve better production than the muddy original, but the music has been re-composed and orchestrated to fit more inline with what the band had hoped to achieve with the initial release.

Right from the first track, "Vremea locului sortit", you know that what you're going to get from Negura Bunget is no simple black metal. The music here is far more progressive and intricate, and at times it is epic and majestic as well (and yes, I did just use majestic). The intertwining of the heavy guitar riffs, melodic guitar parts, up front bass line, keyboards and just the overall feeling presented by the music is huge - it completely wraps around you and enthralls with its grandness. It is, however, the second song that totally sold me on how great this record was going to be. "În-zvîcnirea apusului" is a haunting song - at least somewhat because of the freaky keyboard stuff that sounds like a UFO sound used in 50's sci-fi movies. The music here is quite a bit more progressive leaning than the opener as well, with a lot more of a layered sound. The black metal is still definitely there, but this sounds as if it is black metal done with an orchestral accompaniment. Simply brilliant. "Bruiestru" has en extended folky intro, then transitions to become one of the heaviest songs on the disc, with a bit more of a straightforward black metal sound. There are two bonus tracks on the disc as well, those being acoustic versions of two of the songs here. They are certainly an interesting listen, and showcase a very different take on the songs.

This is, simply put, and amazing album. The combination of ambience, orchestration, heaviness and melody makes this a truly unique and unforgettable sounding disc. This is destined to be a classic.

A -Goz

NEFARIUM

Ad Discipulum

Agonia Records

Nefarium - Ad Discipulum

When I first put in Nefarium's latest disc, Ad Discipulum, I thought I might have made a mistake and put in some Dark Funeral or Behemoth. This Italian black metal quartet sure do sound an awful lot like a combination of those two bands. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, mind you, as both bands are quite good. But the fact is, if I want to hear Dark Funeral or Behemoth, I'd grab one of their discs and listen to it.

With that said, I guess it should be pretty easy to figure out what you'll be hearing on here - basic black metal with some brutal death styling's thrown in. That pretty much sums up the entire disc. There are plenty of blast beats, growled vocals, and tons of shredding guitar to be found, but none of it really stands out from the rest. I guess I shouldn't say none of it there, because there is something a bit surprising during "Servus Servorum Satanae (Benedictus XVI)" - a violin joins the brutal guitar/bass/drum attack for some mean fiddling during the first half of the song. Pretty cool and that makes it my standout track for the disc.

The 8 songs on here are all average length, with the disc only playing out to 35 minutes in total. This makes for a pretty quick listen, and also tends to stave off the tedium that a longer recording would certainly bring on. The production (by Andy Laroque) is ok at times, but it also varies widely, with the guitars often getting buried in the mix and struggling to shine through as they should. This disc will appeal to many, but it is a bit too similar and completely unoriginal for me.

C+ -Goz

NIGHTBRINGER

Apocalypse Sun

The Ajna Offensive

Nightbringer - Apocalypse Sun

American black metal band Nightbringer's second full-length disc, Apocalypse Sun, is now out on the Ajna Offensive. This Colorado Quintet spin ten rather lengthy tracks of occult black metal, with some pretty good technical and progressive elements thrown in.

If you only listen to the first two tracks, you may think this is a pretty boring, run of the mill black metal disc. Continue on, though, and you'll see Nightbringer really start to shine. With the 9 minute "Serpent of the Midnight Sun", the band rages through numerous tempo and mood changes, and typically has what sounds like 10 or more layers of guitars blaring away to create a thick and oppressive atmosphere to the music. They also use tremolo picked guitar runs over much slower drumming, which, to me at least, adds a feeling of discomfort or fear, or maybe it's just some weird anticipation of what might come next, but never really does. They actually use this technique in some other places on the disc as well, with similar results each time. "Litany of the Devouring Earth" is one of the most dauntingly dark songs I've heard in a long time. Very slow paced, with more spoken word vocals, and a lot of discordant guitar lines fluttering around everywhere - just has a really dark and haunting feel to it. The discordance carries on with the tremolo picked guitar parts in "Globlet of Sulfer and Poison" (great song title, too).

While this disk is very dark and haunting, it starts to feel overly long during the latter half. There is a lot going on here, but not a whole lot that sticks in your head as memorable, which takes its toll on these ears when the running time of the disc is almost 70 minutes. Overall, though, this is a pretty good disc, but just isn't overly memorable, and is a bit too long.

B -Goz

NYSEIUS

Militiae

ATMF

Nyseius - Militiae

Nyseius debut disc is entitled Militiae, and consists of 6 tracks (with two of them being the intro and the outro) and 36 minutes of pretty standard, old school black metal. If you just looked at this by the length of the songs (averages almost 8 minutes for each of the 4 proper tracks), you'd think that there would be all sorts of atmospheric stuff, or a bunch of progressive bits thrown in, but there isn't. This is pretty much just standard fare black metal, but in long form. Sure, there is the slowdown in the middle of the title track, complete with a militaristic marching drum part, and excessively drawn out endings to "Lueur d'une Lune Morte" and "Endless March", but for the most part, this is pretty forgettable and uninteresting.

C- -Goz

ORDER OF ENNEAD

An Examination Of Being

Order of Ennead - An Examination of Being

Order Of Ennead is a band formed after Council of the Fallen broke up, and is comprised of three members from that band - Scott Patrick on Bass, Kevin Quirion on guitar and vocals, and Steve Asheim on drums - the latter two also in Deicide, and John Li on lead guitar (who also showcased his talents on the Tardy Brothers recent disc). This is the bands second disc, following 2008's self-titled debut.

Order Of Ennead play melodic (and slightly blackened) death metal, sounding a bit like a darker At The Gates mixed with a bit of Dissection, or something similar to that. The guitar riffs are precise and cutting, the drumming (as you'd expect from Asheim) is spot on and tight as hell. There isn't really anything here that is going to catch you by surprise - this is simply well put together death metal with slightly screechy, blackened vocals. The real shining star here, though, is John Li and his immense lead guitar talent. Every time he takes control of the song to break out in a guitar lead, it immediately catches your attention. This guy can shred, but it isn't a total wank-a-thon, like many other bands lead guitarists end up breaking down into. Li's solos fit very well into the songs that they enhance, not detracting from the heaviness that lead up to them - check out the solo that starts at 2:15 of the title track for a perfect example of this. It starts off nice and slow with the backing music, but then picks up speed as the song ramps back up to a breakneck pace.

Overall, this is an ok second effort from the band. While there isn't a whole lot than stands out, aside from the lead guitar work, there isn't anything bad about it either. I would say this is somewhat above average, but that is helped a lot by Li's guitar playing skills.

B- -Goz

ORDEN OGAN

Easton Hope

AFM

orden ogan - easton hope

Power metal is a genre in recovery. In the late 90s and early 2000s, it was all the rage. But a few years later, the genre became over saturated and people lost interest. Also, many of its fans grew up and found music that they found to be more mature. That’s unfortunate, because there are still plenty of great power metal bands out there. They just have a much harder time promoting themselves and getting heard due to the lack of major label interest. The top bands in the genre aren’t doing tours beyond Europe, if even there. It’s not catastrophic, however. Plenty of genres have become relegated to underground status, and they’re fine. They remain popular with their core fan base, one that devotedly remains intact, and will forever remain so. Orden Ogan is a band that has sprouted up during this recovery period. Creating interesting melodic, progressive power metal, they’ve gained a following while still flying under the radar. Their music is epic, engaging, and at times elegiac. Without doing anything special or wildly original, they’ve created a fine concept album in Easton Hope.

Flying in the face of the genre’s powerhouses like Sonata Arctica and Dragonforce, Orden Ogan don’t rely on hyperspeed soloing and various extravagances to dupe listeners into loving their music. They don’t go back to the basics, either. Focusing on strong, vivacious riffing and grandiose choir sections, Orden Ogan transcend the genre’s oversaturation whilst employing its frequent (and oft stereotyped) aesthetic elements. Opening with the modern sounding “Nobody Leaves,” the sound of the band is immediately established. Sometimes it’s built upon, and sometimes left to be simpler. Whatever the case may be, they follow up on this sound, creating a sense of eager anticipation as the tracks flow from one to another. Before long, the engaging and vigorous title track “Easton Hope” comes on, and the album reinforces its story while retaining its musical prowess. The bombast continues with songs like the deliciously cheesy “We are Pirates,” whose refrain is as catchy as music gets.

Despite the fact that the majority of this album is great, it goes on far too long. By the time “We are Pirates” ends, Orden Ogan have exhausted their welcome. This music isn’t that original, and it can only sustain itself for so long. There are two songs after “We are Pirates,” and they aren’t memorable at all. This isn’t because they’re mediocre, but because Orden Ogan’s sound has become tired. The last song, “Of Downfall and Decline,” is over eleven minutes. I’d love to see the band tackle this sort of epic, but not after listening to ten similar songs. There are some clunkers on this record, too. Orden Ogan struggles when it comes to ballads. “Requiem” is a poorly executed attempt that comes across forced and wimpy. On another track, “All These Dark Years,” the band try to emphasize going through emotional struggle. It seems ridiculous and even unintentionally funny. It’s that type of sympathy seeking music that often receives the blanketing term “emo,” even when the adjective is highly undeserved.

Even though I’ve spent a while pointing out this album’s faults, it’s a great release. The benefits far outweigh the drawbacks. This is a needed step towards recovery for the power metal genre.

B -Adam

OVERMASTER

Madness Of War

Cruz Del Sur

overmaster - madness of war

Italian metal certainly receives modest appreciation in my household, especially with artists like Eldritch, early Rhapsody and Labyrinth. Most of the musicians I’ve heard from this country play with a great degree of passion, theory and skill all rolled into one. What makes or breaks the longevity of Italian bands and their careers would be a combination of the right management/ label in place along with the conviction and English skills of the vocalists.

Overmaster may be a new act on our metal radar, but the main musicians have years of experience in other label ready Italian bands. Vocalist Gus Gabarro spent 2002-2006 fronting White Skull for three albums, drummer Carlos Cantatore played with Skylark, and guitarist Alessio Berlaffa also plays in Doomsword. On Madness Of War the sextet Overmaster play a brand of traditional, double bass driven metal- emphasizing war themes lyrically and American meets Teutonic guitar displays.

Songs like “Marble King” and “Battle Prayer” have that jacked up frenetic pace that reminds me of older Helstar meeting up with Blind Guardian, while a slower number such as “Nameless Hero” contains that acoustic guitar/ keyboard atmosphere done brilliantly by Judas Priest during their Sad Wings of Destiny era. Gus’ vocals have the grit and gusto, yet I feel his effort will be very hit or miss with most metal veterans as he can’t rise to the challenge in the upper register - it’s too shriek-oriented and needs to be smoother.

I’d put Overmaster in the better than average yet not quite essential category with their debut.

B- -Matt Coe

OV HELL

The Underworld Regime

Prosthetic

Ov Hell - The Underworld Regime

Ov Hell was formed when the post-Gorgoroth band God Seed (itself formed by King and Gaahl when Gorgoroth imploded upon itself) split up before ever really doing much of anything. This could be a black metal "all star" band, consisting of King ov Hell on bass and Shagrath (Dimmu Borgir) on vocals, with session guitar help from Teloch and Ice Dale, and drums by none other than Frost, who seems to have his drumsticks in just about everything these days.

Ok, on to the music. You expect black metal from these guys, and that is what they give you. It is pretty formulaic black metal, at that. Really, though, what would you expect from music composed by King? While this music is typically a bit slower paced than what he wrote in Gorgoroth, it follows pretty much the same principles. Rumor actually has it that much of the music on this disc was intended to be for Gorgoroth, but with the band splintering like a telephone pole that got run into by an out of control 18-wheeler, it ended up here. Standout tracks for me are "Post Modern Sadist", which has a bit of a rock n' roll riff in it, but is still pretty damn evil sounding, and "Krigsatte Faner", which has a very old school feel for about the first half, and a slightly more modern tinge in the middle of it - and the bass sound on this track is gut rumbling goodness.

Ov Hell's debut is a mixed bag for me. There really isn't anything wrong with it, but there really isn't much that stands out, either. Maybe it was rushed out to try and compete with the new Gorgoroth disc, who really knows? Maybe with a little more time together, King and Shagrath will come out with something a little more impressive and unique next time out.

C+ -Goz

PORTAL

Lurker at the Threshold

Chrome Leaf Records

portal - lurker

Chrome Leaf Records has re-released Portal's 2006 demo, Lurker at the Threshold, as a limited (only 500 copies) edition picture disc 7", featuring the first two songs from the demo - omitting the third, all noise track.

The two songs are a combination of technical death and black metal, with all sorts of other weird shit thrown in - which is what you'd expect from Portal anyway. I personally like "13 Globes" better than "Omnipotent Crawling Chaos", simply because the discordant riffing in that song just does something that makes my ears happy. The production on this release is anything but polished, but doesn't detract from the mayhem that is going on in the least - it might actually enhance it a little bit.

If you already have the bands Outre' album, so you've probably already heard them before. But, that isn't a snazzy, hand numbered picture disc, now is it? This is definitely aimed at collectors, and comes out just in time for Portal's brief US tour, including a stop at the insanely good Maryland Deathfest. Be there with clocks on.

B -Goz

PROSANCTUS INFERI

Pandemonic Ululations of Vesperic Palpitation

Prosanctus Inferi - Pandemonic Ululations of Vesperic Palpitation

Hells Headbangers Records has been delivering a ton of the most ferocious, raw and nasty old school metal lately. The latest offering from Prosanctus Inferi (the bands debut full-length), Pandemonic Ululations of Vesperic Palpitation, is another in the seemingly endlessly rotting stream of release from the label. Aside from having one of the longest, and hardest to pronounce, album titles I've seen in a while, this disc has some really raw blackened death metal on it.

This brings me back to my tape trading days, when most of what you got wasn't all that good, but then you'd drop a demo from some band you'd never heard of before in the tape deck and be surprised all to hell at how good it actually was. This reminds me a lot of those one in 50 or so good band that you'd hear. Raw, dirty and fast is where it is at on this release. The songs are short and quick, most are under 2 minutes long, with the longest peaking at just over 2:30. Kinda like punk rock death metal. Short and to the point, with no filler or crap to get in the way. Check out "Depraved Machinations" for one of the best songs on this disc. A fast, catchy riff carries the song for the most part, then with about 30 seconds to go, the songs slows down and gets much heavier through to the fade out at the end. I'll give some honorable mentions for killer song titles to "Conjugal Orgy in the Sacred Heart of Vespers" and "Pontifical Undulations of Blasphemic Gesticulation".

If you want your fix of old school, raw black/death metal, this is where to get it. In fact, any release from HHR will get you what you need.

B -Goz

PSYCHO

The Grind Years

Selfmadegod

psycho - the grind years

I've been a fan of Psycho for a long time now. They've been around for what seems like forever, playing shows in the Boston area all the time, and releasing music at a pace that is nearly unmatched. The Grind Years is a compilation consisting of 52 tracks that the band released from 1990-1994. Those tracks made up 2 EPs (the Mass Consumption 7” and the Shrunken 7”), 7 split releases (with Anal Cunt, Meat Shits, Agathocles, Rot, Satan’s Warrior, Nasum, and Blood) and compilation tracks from Bllleeeaaauuurrrggghhh, Apocalyptic Convulsions, and Audio Espionage. There are also 5 video recordings on the disc from Psycho's 1992 tour of Australia. Quite a treat to have all of this stuff in one place, I must say.

While this is called The Grind Years, a lot of this could be dubbed some sort of crossover, as Psycho always teeters on the border of punk, hardcore, grindcore and even some thrash. The most grind label worthy tracks on here are the 7 songs from the Mass Consumption 7" - especially "Tortured Souls" and "Extracting Your Dimensions" - they even use vocal effects here, a la Carcass' first album. The sound and styles vary greatly from recording to recording here, which is obviously to be expected, given the nature of the original recordings, and the likely lack of budget used to make said recordings.

This is a great compilation for fans of the band - to have all of this stuff on a single disc is really convenient. If you have never heard the band, this is also a good way to get into them and sample their music from the 4 year period that this disc covers. Recommended.

B+ -Goz

ROSETTA

A Determinism of Morality

Translation Loss

Rosetta - A Determinism of Morality

Call Rosetta whatever you want - post-metal, math rock, shoegaze - just don't put them in the second tier of bands in that style anymore. Rosetta shows that they need to be mentioned right up there with Isis, Mouth of the Architect, Cult of Luna et al with their latest opus, A Determinism of Morality.

Featuring all the stuff you expect to hear from this style - the driving drum beats, the melodic, floating guitar melodies, the hardcore-ish vocals, and the thick, rumbling bass lines - Rosetta don't miss the mark once on this release. Some of my favorite parts here are the bass/drum syncopation that really becomes apparent about 5 minutes into "Je N'en Connais Pas la Fin", and the ensuing bombardment of crushing guitar that closes out the song. The numerous time changes in the latter half of "Release" are simply brilliant, and make the song feel huge, and longer than the five and a half minute running time. The best song here, by far, is the title track. At almost 11 minutes long, it covers a wide range of styles, emotions and musical themes, all the while never allowing you to lose interest - even with the extended running time.

Rosetta cranked one out of the stadium with A Determinism of Morality. This is a must have for anyone who is into the aforementioned bands. As I said before, this disc should propel Rosetta into the upper echelon of bands for this style.

A- -Goz

THE ROYAL ARCH BLASPHEME

The Royal Arch Blaspheme

the royal arch blaspheme

The Royal Arch Blaspheme is a collaboration between vocalist Imperial (Krieg, Twilight, and a million other bands) and multi-instrumentalist John Gelso (Profanatica). So what happens when you get these two together to create some old-school black metal? Well, if you ask me, you get a mess - at least on this, their self-titled debut recording.

The music is primitive and derivative, having no melody and minimal memorability. The guitar work is as basic as it gets, and overly repetitive. The drums sound as if animal from the muppet show could have recorded them, or, as it sounds like was done here, programmed them into the computer. The vocals are extremely basic croaks, all belched out in the same manner for the entire 40 minute running length of the disc. It almost sounds as if Imperial is bored most of the time. Speaking of bored, that is exactly how this disc makes me feel.

I suppose that Imperial and Gelso were going for exactly what they achieved here, and good for them if they accomplished their goal. I just don't hear much of anything here that makes me want to hear it again.

D- -Goz

THE RUINS OF BEVERAST

Foulest Semen of a Sheltered Elite

Ván

The Ruins of Beverast - Foulest Semen of a Sheltered Elite

Here we have a one-man band from Germany, comprised solely of Alexander von Meilenwald, drummer for the now defunct Nagelfar. This is his third full-length release under this moniker, with a couple of splits thrown in between. The 10 songs here max out the length of a single CD, running to almost exactly 80 minutes in total. Given that three of the tracks are short ambient interludes, the songs here are LONG - the average length is north of 10 minutes. This isn't a problem though, as the severely doomy black metal that Alexander writes and performs works perfectly well in long form, and never feels tiring or boring.

The album opener is "I Raised this Stone as a Ghastly Memorial", and upon listening to it, you might say "where is all the black metal at?" This track is a monumental doom track, with chanting, trance-like vocals and hauntingly dark music. Dark might not be a strong enough word for this, actually. The music here just might force the sun to go into hiding - it is that morose. "God's Ensanguined Bestiaries" has more of what you'd expect to be dubbed black metal. The blast beats are there, the tremolo picked riffs, and the effect laden vocals all deliver what you would expect, but the atmosphere surrounding everything is still doomy and despondent - feelings that shroud this entire release from beginning to end. The 15 minute "Arcane Pharmakon Messiah" brings the disc to a close in massive form. Slow (slower than slow even), plodding riffs carry the beginning of the song, then there is a damn good rock n' roll riff (after a great death grunt) just shy of the mid-way point that ushers in a brief quicker paced segment of the song. The song has an extended fade out consisting of synth and piano, bringing to a close a fine piece of music.

The sheer vastness of this album is a bit overwhelming at first, but once you listen to it a bit and get into it, it grows on you like mold on bread. Remove any sharp objects from your reach, dim the lights (or let the music suck the light out of the room, if you want), and prepare to be haunted by the dark and desperate hauntings of The Ruins of Beverast.

A- -Goz

SABBATH ASSEMBLY

Restored To One

The Ajna Offensive

Sabbath Assembly - Restored to One

Sabbath Assembly is a collaboration that counts Jex Thoth amongst the bands members. I mention her first, because that is what drew me to this band. You see, I've listened to everything I can from her band on a very frequent basis. She has a voice that I could listen to constantly, and never tire of it. So there, I said it. I am absolutely mesmerized by her voice, and will seek out anything that Jex has to do with. That being said, Restored to One is a modern response to the musical activities of a cult known as The Process Church of the Final Judgment, who used music to spread their visions of Gnostic reconciliation in a time of cataclysmic change (to borrow heavily from the PR blurb that came with the release). So what we end up with is the bands interpretation of the cults hymns, turning them into a kind of psychedelic gospel of sorts. Put aside all of your religious beliefs (if you have any), and sit back for a pretty trippy ride.

As I said before, I am a sucker for Jex Thoth's voice, and man, does it shine on this release. These songs are all lyrically heavy, seeing as they are based on hymns from a "church", so the vocal parts make up most of the songs. To this, I am very happy. The lyrical content is a bit out there, with references to more than one god going on and all manner of cult type stuff being preached (no surprise there), but the manner in which it is delivered is nothing short of amazing.

The music is nothing to ignore either. There is a pretty good mix of psychedelic rock going on all around here, with plenty of Hammond organs rumbling away, and lots of funky guitar stuff, too. Mind you, this isn't metal at all, but I am sure you've figured that out by now.

If you, like me, are enthralled by everything Jex Thoth does, then this is something you need to hear. The music may not be right up your alley, and the lyrical content is way out there, but those vocals make it all worth your while. At least all worth my while.

B -Goz

SOUL REMNANTS

Plague Of The Universe

self-released

soul remnant - plague of the universe

Note to all the veteran death metal acts struggling to find the energy of their classic releases: this is how it’s done. Massachusetts death metallers Soul Remnants invoke the anger, frenzy, and scummy attitude of early death metal on their debut album Plague of the Universe. The album’s slick production aids them in a modernization of old school death metal: being angry, yet empowering and grand. So many bands seem to have incorporated influences from deathcore to their sound, creating an irritating and idiotically macho brand of death metal. Soul Remnants eschew these vile influences, carving out their own blend of harsh, pissed off music, complete with the bestial vocals of Mitch Fletcher and the serpentine guitar riffs of Tom Preziosi.

Ignoring the common ultra simple yet ferociously brutal death metal permeating into every local scene, Soul Remnants meticulously craft their songs with winding riffs. Their songs are built with multiple layers, sometimes too much so, sounding almost contrived and engineered, rather than natural. That’s merely a small quibble, though. Almost entirely, this is an invigorating and creative release, which has clearly had many hardworking hours put into it. “Chopwork,” the opening track is short for a reason. It jolts the listener into the frenetic pace the album maintains. Fantastic songs like “Bloodsick” and “Remembrance” furiously hearken back the animalistic glory days Malevolent Creation and Morbid Angel.

The field of death metal has become muddled due to proliferation. Few bands stand out above the pack. Because of their creativity, and meticulous care to detail, Soul Remnants have been able to stand out.

B+ -Adam

STIGMA

Concerto for the Undead

Pivotal Rockordings

stigma - concert for the undead

Italian horror-metal returns with Stigma's second full length album. Both of the bands releases are horror-concept albums. While When Midnight Strikes! was based more on horror in general, this album is based on the comic book series Tales from the Crypt. The album even opens with the unforgettable chittering of the Crypt Keeper before breaking into a new, more advanced and polished installment of Stigma deathcore.

Definitely melodic. Meaty breakdowns are present (but not too many). And loads of motivation dappled with some punk/hardcore chants here and there. Right off, opening with “Chop His Head Off!” solidifies the apparent guitar talent in Stigma. Clean, fulfilling melodies that carry, last and surface often along the album. There's punkcore tinges, like in “Prove You Are A Man!” and “A Monstrous Feeling”, but the definitive European base is always present. The crisp guitar gives off a Scandinavian feel to their metal even without any of the symphony and keyboard stuff present. Quite a feat if you ask me.

Stigma sounds a bit like Children of Bodom without the keyboards. Or more like Unearth and early All That Remains. Guitarist Andrea Bailo's style is as soulful and distinguishable as Oli Herbert, though not quite as memorable. They've certainly stepped up the production this time around which greatly adds to their listenability. Though they may sound like modern American metalcore on the outside, Stigma also manages to give off an unmistakable, classic, death vibe throughout. There's zero clean vocals. And I thought I heard some stuff during “...And They Died Happily Ever After!” and closer “Doctor Skeleton”, that brought me back to early Stigmata-era Arch Enemy [hmmm... Stigma... Stigmata? I wonder if I hit upon an influence there]. So, because Bailo can definitely shred, then add the unsullied vocals, and the European metal side outweighs their deceiving, modern-core sound.

Concerto for the Undead was consistent through to the end. Maybe a little too consistent as the favorites were hard to single out on initial impression. I would have to say the strongest tracks were, appropriately, opener and closer; “Chop His Head Off!” and “Doctor Skeleton”. Stigma's focus this time around was more about the music than all the horror stuff they blended into their debut release, When Midnight Strikes!, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I would have liked to hear more such goofing around with Concerto for the Undead and must say I was a tad disappointed. After all, the comic book style of the artwork, and knowing their last album had tons of horror flavoring, I didn't expect this album to be so serious. And all metal. But I guess that's a good thing, too.

B -Alesha

SVARTSOT

Mulmets Viser

svartsot

I enjoy folk metal, or whatever it’s properly called (viking metal?). But there has been an unnecessary onslaught on folk bands proliferating through the annals of major metal labels lately. Plenty of them are Finntroll clones, and only a few of them have a bit more to offer than that. Svartsot fall somewhere in between. A genre’s derivativeness has always coincided with it reaching its popular acme, and this is no different. It’s no surprise that folk metal has become one of metal’s most popular genres, but it’s now become stale and bordering on insignificant. It’s a genre without legs, stuck within its own stagnation. This isn’t because it’s bad music, but because it’s copying itself over and over. Svartsot is stuck in this muddled mess, playing a style that I’ve heard before, but doing so earnestly. Sadly though, it’s so commonplace that their album Mulmets Viser does little to stand alone, despite its fun qualities.

Svartsot sound a lot like every other band, but do so with genuineness that other bands don’t have. They sing in their native tongue like everyone else does, so their lyrics aren’t what separate them (at least not to me). The vocals are no different than the undeniably Nordic barks employed by seemingly every “extreme” folk metal band. There’s a strange twanginess to their guitar tone, not unlike genre forefathers Hollenthon. Once again, this music is outwardly and overtly danceable, like much of the genre is. Sometimes though, their melodies last for longer periods of time, especially the guitar lines. Subtle nuances like these that extend them away from the mediocre core of folk metal. If they’re playing in this slightly odd, off-kilter way, then you know they’re doing it because they feel artistically led to do so. That’s admirable. They aren’t just taking Korpiklaani songs and switching them around a bit; they’re copying those songs and adding their own touch. It’s slightly original, but not by much.

Svartsot are fun, but it’s a generic fun that gets boring. In a muddled field, they struggle to find breathing room. The swathe of other bands will be too much for them to overcome. They won’t be the next Korpiklaani or Finntroll, but this genre has peaked, and we aren’t going to see another premier folk metal band again. You can’t blame Svartsot for being only slightly different.

B- -Adam

THULCANDRA

Fallen Angel's Dominion

Prowling Death/Century Media

Thulcandra - Fallen Angel's Dominion.jpg

Thulcandra is a German blackened death metal band, fronted by Obscura front man Steffen Kummerer, and filled out by two of Kummerer's former band mates from Helfahrt. They've been around for quite a while now, but have just now released their debut, Fallen Angel's Dominion. They are labeled as "the heir's to Dissection's throne" (see the banner at the top of the page for proof), which is quite a label to slap on a band that hasn't released anything until now. Does their music match the hype?

From the opening riff in "Night Eternal", your answer to the above question should be a resounding "Yes", or even better "FUCK YES!" The band almost sounds as if they are channeling Jon Nödtveidt somehow with many of the riffs that they are playing, and Kemmerer's voice is eerily reminiscent of Nödtveidt. That said, they aren't a complete Dissection clone, as they weave in some of their own superb technical skills at times, with numerous standout guitar solos spread out across the various tracks. The dual guitar harmonies in "Frozen Kingdom" are a good example of this. The title track is my pick for standout track here, although there really isn't a weak spot to be found here. The title track, though, is a concise, five minute exercise in how blackened death metal should be done. Just the right amount of blast beats, massive melodic riffing, and intense vocals. Straight and to the point, this song kicks ass. The band even includes a cover of Dissection's "The Somberlain", and they do a damn good job of it.

I am not usually a fan of bands that are almost near copies of another band. In this case, though, Thulcandra add enough of their own touches to the sound so as not to sound completely like a Dissection tribute band. This is a damn impressive debut.

B+ -Goz

TRIPTYKON

Eparistera Daimones

Eparistera Daimones

Tom G. Warrior is back with his new musical incarnation. I have never been skeptical about what this project would be. Tom was the leader of my favorite band and I have told him on numerous occasions that I would follow him until the end. His forthright honesty in that much of the material on the band’s debut was intended for Frost’s follow-up to their brilliant ‘comeback’ album Monotheist is clearly visible, yet Tom embraces we loyal hoards with the Hellhammer drone right off the bat during the first track “Goetia”. It’s the stuff that sends chills up your spine! Other standout tracks include “A Thousand Lies”, “Myopic Empire”, and the monumental 19-minute “The Prolonging”.

Don’t expect Eparistera Daimones to sound as polished nor as complete – and dare I say somewhat rushed – compared to Frost’s last masterwork, but Tom’s vision and intention is crystal clear and those he has surrounded himself with appear able to keep up.

And, fuck me, I still LOVE seeing HR Giger’s artwork on album covers!

A- -Mike Baronas

TWILIGHT

Monument To Time End

Southern Lord

Twilight - Monument to Time End

Twilight is a US black metal "supergroup" of sorts. Featuring members of Krieg, Nachtmystium, Minsk, The Atlas Moth and Isis, amongst others, this is the bands second release, following 2005's self-titled debut. The lineup is a bit different here, and the results show the differences a good bit, too.

While at its roots, this is black metal, the various band members all bring in little bits and pieces of their main bands styling at times, which makes for a decent and different sound. A song like "8,000 Years" has a bit of an Isis influence to my ears, and the synths that are used extensively in the track could be something that was planned to be used on a recent Nachtmystium track. Speaking of Isis, the opening guitar part of the opening track, "The Cryptic Ascension", can easily be picked out as belonging to Isis' Aaron Turner, who is one of the newcomers to the band. The only straightforward black metal song here is "Convulsions In Wells Of Fever", which is a pretty damn fierce song as well.

Twilight's latest incarnation is far and away better than the debut. Monument To Time End showcases all of the bands varied elements quite well, and should appeal to not only black metal fans, but fans of other types of metal as well.

B -Goz

THE VISION BLEAK

Set Sail To Mystery

Prophecy Productions

the vison bleak

German duo The Vision Bleak sail into port with their latest gothic horror offering, Set Sail To Mystery, the bands fourth full-length release to date. Now, this isn't what people consider "gothic" nowadays, like Hot Topic gothic crap. This is downright dark gothic, the way it was before it became hip to be gothic. Think of Bauhaus or Siouxsie and the Banshees style gothic, but with more metal elements thrown in, and eerie, poetic horror themed lyrics.

After an intro track, we "Descend Into Maelstrom" with the first proper song on the album. Chugging guitars, layers of synths and sound effects, and varied vocals - from a bassy singing voice to an almost black metal rasp - make up the music that brings life to the rhyming, verse driven poetry. The best track on here "A Romance With The Grave" has some killer poetic and picturesque lyrics:

"Up on the hill

In picturesque light
Lies beautiful, still
A burial site

The gateway creaks
I scare myself
Some doubtful peeks
The clock strikes twelve"

Those lyrics, to me at least, create all sorts of pictures in my head, which I always like. All of the songs have lyrics like this, which simply add to my enjoyment of the disc. "The Foul Within" has a great warbling synth sound in the beginning (and throughout) that brings up the spooky atmosphere quite a bit.

This was my first exposure to The Vision Bleak, and we'll just say that it in no way will be my last. I like the combination of dreary, doomy gothic music with the well written and picturesque lyrics. Yeah, you may have to read a little bit to get them all, but they are so damn good and conjure up all sorts of images. These guys should write a horror movie and have their music be the soundtrack to it. I am sure it would be brilliant. Hope on board the deathship with The Vision Bleak and prepare for a great and mysterious journey.

B+ -Goz

VOMITOR

Devils Poison

vomitor devils poison

Australian trio Vomitor blast out with their latest disc, Devils Poison, a follow up to their 2002 debut Bleeding The Priest. The half hour of music here is pure German thrash worship from start to finish. Early Sodom and Destruction are the target, and Vomitor hit it pretty well. The problem is, the sound on this is worse than early demos of either band. The music here is pretty decent, although the over the top whammy bar soloing gets old pretty quick, but continues on and on throughout the entire disc. If you want to hear early Germanic thrash, you're better off pulling out some old Sodom, Destruction or Kreator than getting this disc. One of the rare misses for Hells Headbangers, if you ask me.

D -Goz

WOE OF TYRANTS

Threnody