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This record hit
me early and hit me hard right from the first listen. If I received
a bio with this, I somehow lost it. So it is not that surprising
that it was not until after my initial listen that I realized and
remembered I had heard The Accursed before. A long time ago a
contact of mine (who I used to hang out with from time to time at
metal fests) George Pacheco the bassist of this band sent me their
demo back in 2002. I must say these boys have come a long way since
then. Apparently I missed out on this the first time (no surprise
George and I lost touch quite a while ago – get in touch brother!)
in 2005 when it was originally issued by Screaming Ferret records.
It gets a new life through Locomotive Records. These boys know how
to their instruments that is for damn sure. You do not often hear
this many guitar solos and fills on a death metal record even if it
is a little thrashy. But they make it work well within the context
of the song, nothing seems forced and it does not come off as a wank
session, amidst some great heavy head bang riffing. The vocal
styling alternates between the main gruff ones, that are part 80s
raspy yells and more modern death metal growling, along the with the
more sparsely used (thank you for that) clean vocals which are not
very good. The Accursed showcase the bass guitar more than most. In
fact the intro to “I am Famine” is played on the bass and is a real
nice touch sounding great. A few of the songs on “Seasons of The
Scythe” could use a little more flow but otherwise this is just an
excellent album I can honestly recommend to you. – Dale
www.locomotiverecords.com http://www.myspace.com/theaccursed
|
I was not sure
what to expect from these British blokes. I was pleasantly surprised
when hitting the play button. I was greeted a fistful of raunchy
attitude and a side order of raw sloppy metallic soup. It is some
tasty shit too. But I mean wow this has to be first new crossover
band I have heard in a decade at least! As music styles go crossover
I find is a love it or leave it alone style. It does not always
appeal to metal purists or die hard punk and hardcore fanatics.
Crossover generally does not display the depth or emotion some look
for in their music. But it is catchy, energetic, rocking and heavy
and it is memorable, it always has the ever important head bang
factor. I like the production on here. It is good in general but
definitely has a little bit of the old school organic feel to it and
I like that a bunch. This is the way it was meant to be. I will take
this raw gritty feel over pro tool overdub to death stuff any day
and twice on Sunday. Adrenicide would be aces live I am sure. I am
sure the adrenaline would be pumping and it would be rather
difficult not to sing along with these crude and in your face lyrics
and signature choruses. I think fans of DRI, Cryptic Slaughter, Gang
Green, early COC and the like will be well pleased with Adrenicide.
It is a simple recommendation you know how scarce good crossover is
so you know what to do. – Dale
http://www.myspace.com/adrenicide1
adrenicide@googlemail.com
|
Aetherius
Obscuritas descend upon us from the mists of Hungary. This is
essentially a one man band with a studio drummer. So that quickly
answers my first question and always a general fear when you hear
the term one man band. That would be does it employ a drum machine?
No to that question is a good start off on the right foot with me.
What did get me worried was the bio claiming that Ancient “The
Canian Chronicles” as a large influence. Thankfully it is not that
noticeable, in fact, I actually think A.O. sound a lot more like
Burzum on here and that I can deal with. “Viziok” is not a bad album
though neither is it particularly good either. It is decent yet just
average black metal and a tad run of the mill. It has it’s moments
here and there and some quality material is to be found among whole
if you are listening for it. So I would say if you are not too picky
and like to grab just about everything you can get your hands on in
this genre. Then you will not go wrong adding this as well. If like
me, you do not fall into that category, then just go play some of
your fave black metal albums. As you likely already own this album
in some form or another spread across your record collection. -
Dale
www.paragonrecords.net http://www.arkhorrl.hu
|
Ahh, the
Carpathians, a world of wonder of isolation and elemental unfound
dark forces emanating around me. Home of Omega wolves, a netherworld
of uninhibited by man stretching to the frosty skies and mists
untrodden in Ukraine not unlike the dark greetings of the rockies in
North America. Vocally, the Hungarians remind me of Massacre meets
“Maximum Violence” era Six Feet Under and forget Napalm Death
already! High produced and more talented than many bands already
signed, old school riffs, early Death leads behind the killer drums
that lay waste like early Immolation and old Suffocation, a real
black and decker pecker wrecker. This is what death metal is all
about and it’s the incredible vocals of unmatched brutality that
makes the album fly or die, don’t miss out on this or you’ll be
kicking your own ass otherwise. Bigger things are going to happen to
AOA if labels have to the brains to help them. My copy is 110 of
333, it will likely be sold out when this is printed. Make contact
anyway, you never know. – Clayton
misanthrop@freemail.hu
http://synaptx.hu/agony/
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I should start
off mentioning the fact I became an Agnostic Front fan back in 1992.
During that time period for a few years my pathetic hardcore
collection consisted of and did not travel much beyond bands like
Agnostic Front, Sick Of It All, Black Flag and a scant few others. I
was on a strictly metal trip for the most part. But when I bought
the then brand new “One Voice” I was pretty well fucking hooked ever
since. In the years since I have gotten my grubby paws on most of
their back catalog and in my mind A.F. are hardcore legends and help
define what is hardcore. While they are hardcore as fuck. They have
always been a fast band and driven by rather metal guitars and they
are not ashamed of it or to my knowledge ever strayed from it.
Agnostic just always hits you hard with massive pounding drums,
razor heavy riffs and the vocals that emanate Roger Miret’s throat
are without any doubt some of the most distinctive hardcore vox
ever! So you ask what has changed with Agnostic Front in the last 15
or 20 years? The answer is not a whole fucking lot and I must admit
I like it that way. They are still just as energetic, pissed off and
these old bastards still hit you harder than most. A fair warning
that you will have those chant choruses ringing and bouncing around
in your noggin for hours after hitting the stop button. I have
nothing but respect for these pioneers. - Dale
www.agnosticfront.com www.nuclearblastusa.com |
Here we have
some death metal with some grind elements dredging up from the mirth
and might of the Czech Republic. There are some great brutalizing
riffs on here and some killer dynamic drumming. But I must confess
over all Alienation Mental is just not really my thing. The flow of
the songs and structuring remind me a little too much towards the
boring metalcore sound that has flooded America in recent years.
Some have even taken to call this mallcore. I do not really keep up
on the hip terminology of youngsters. But if this is mallcore then
it sounds like metalcore to me and almost no bands in this style
interest me very much. If you like this sort of thing then
Alienation is probably as good as most of the bands out there that
play this way. The album is kind of short at just over 30 minutes
including a final track that is just sound sampling. From what I
understand their old material was pure grind. They should have stuck
with this way, it is what the mighty Czech scene is best at! –
Dale
http://www.khaaranus.wz.cz
http://www.alienationmental.com/
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I am surprised I
have not heard of this band before. This is without doubt some of
the best death metal I have heard in the last 5 years. I mean these
Ukranian wizards of brutality are just not fucking around. They have
the whole package really. Except for one, key flaw, in my opinion or
in my tastes, depending upon your view. That is their usage of
synthesizer. I am generally not a fan of their use anyway and
especially in a heavy handed way. On “Kravia” if they were used just
a little more sparingly as an accent then I would have no problem
with it. However, it seems in some songs they have synth stuffed
into them come hell or high water, no matter the consequence. Okay I
got that out of my system, I am probably being a little stubborn
here. Ambrazura do an amazing job of riding the line between
traditional death metal (I mean the brutal as all hell variety). All
the while being very adventurous and almost progressive in their
song structuring and time changes etc… The intense control they
maintain is impressive as well. What I mean is it is difficult to
produce such powerful dynamics while staying ultra heavy and
produces a very dark and suffocating atmosphere that keeps troops
marching in lock step. Oh, did I mention, the killer guitar soloing?
Just get this fracking thing already and you will be impressed too. – Dale
www.ambrazura.ru
Label Email = torture13@gmail.com
|
That long and
kind of over dramatic band name had me thinking this might just be a
straight goth band. With second lingering thoughts of an
atmospheric, sort of dreamy, emotional metal band with some black
metal style mixed in. I was wrong on the first count, but nailed it
with the second wave. AAFCC (sounds like an electrical term or
something) are full of moody atmospherics, but can be heard with the
odd burst of aggression and speed, via traditional instrumentation
from time to time. At first I was not sure I was a fan of the fuzzy
guitar tone, but it has gradually has begun to grow on me. It surely
beats the plastic, carbon copy sound that has been all the rage in
recent times (though maybe I am just showing my age and old school
nature here?). The vocals are fairly standard fair for the style,
you know the obscure yelled rasps, floating in the background like a
muted, far off Varg Vikernes or some such. Some of the guitar
harmonies do it for me, yet much of the music is too far on the soft
and trance like side of things to realize their full potential. They
could probably learn a few things in this arena, from label mates
Semen Datura, who are a wonderful band. I may be being a tad harsh
on them, as for the most part this is a good record and they have a
good grasp on what they are trying to achieve. I probably just would
have them take a slightly different path and that is probably more
down to personal taste, than anything else. If you like this style
of music you could do worse. I find myself left wanting just a
little more, as I think the band have it within them to give more.
They are a young band so… we will see. – Dale
http://www.atmf.net
http://www.myspace.com/crippledchildren2009
|
Angmar
– 3 hymns of punishing Finnish black metal from each band. Angmar’s
music is really loose and pretty rough around the edges but the
atmosphere of hate and darkness manages to shine through. They
actually remind me a little towards a lot of American black metal
bands. “The Act In Worship” even has American death metal riffing
running smack through it. They need work but pretty good
nonetheless.
The True
Endless – An epic sort of feeling from these Italian black metal
beasts. By that I mean long songs that have monotonous riffing with
little to no dynamics or variation. Which is a formula that can
really work sometimes ala early Burzum but I would say Endless miss
the mark a little here. I like obscure vocals but on here they have
been so over hidden in the mix, to the point of near non-existence.
I would pass. – Dale
www.bestialburst.blackmetal.fi/
bestialburst@blackmetal.fi |
During the early
days Arckanum was written off by some as nothing more than a Burzum
clone. While there is no denying a similarity in sound and style. I
feel that is selling Arckanum a little short. There is a lot more
depth there and it is not like they came on the block a decade later
like many bands worshipped these days. The first demo (spell) was
cast upon us in 1993. Just in case there is anyone reading this that
does not know of Arckanum. I should mention this is the debut album
and of course a re-release with more to come. One of the areas
people sell them short, in my opinion, is the overall emotion and
dark atmosphere this album and band exude. It grabs you and grows on
you, it envelopes you like a swallowing mist and takes you into a
trance state. The guitars on here are fantastic and just flow with a
melodic quality to them that keeps your attention fixed. Shamaatae’s
vocals are great, quite abrasive hoarse yelling with a touch of the
black metal rasp. Despite the uncompromising and rough nature of the
vocals it does not distract too much from that trance-like spell the
music holds over you. In fact, it is a welcome counter point to it
all. I really like this album and it is very good for a first
release, especially if you consider when it was released. This debut
album does not have the perfect production for the Arckanum style,
but it is good anyway. It could be a little more raw instead of
being as clean as it, but it is still good nonetheless. I am
thinking this must have been one of the early recordings at the soon
to be famous Abyss studios? It seems like the perfect amount of time
has passed for a set of Arckanum re-releases. It is surely an
underrated band that deserves to be well known once again in the
scene. – Dale
http://www.arckanum.se/
http://www.debemur-morti.com/
|
Listening to
these re-releases of old, reminds me to the early days of Arckanum.
It was when the so called black metal mafias were running around and
pointing fingers at all who were not true. I recall bands like
Fluerety and Arckanum labeled as the untrue and unserious. “He runs
around with a paper mache mask in the woods, pretending he is a
troll!” It is all humorous for me to think about now. Anyway, on to
the topic at hand, this is the 1997 sophomore follow-up for Arckanum.
The sound here for my taste is much more suited to the band. It is
more heavy and raw and powerful, it suits the guitars very well and
the drums have more ‘umph’ too. As I am sure some fans will mention
an Arckanum album must be listened to as a whole to get the full
experience. Just picking out a song or two in isolation produces a
great disservice to Shamaatae’s seamless vision. I would say the
pace on here is more intense and aggressive than the debut album.
You would think that might kill some of the atmosphere from the
first album, but really it just morphs it into a new feeling or
aura. An aura you soak in through your skin and not just your ears.
Shamaatae seems to really be perfecting his tortured spirit, emotive
yelling and rasp to perfection at this point in the Arc evolution.
With the lyrics all having been written in ancient Swedish, it
definitely gives a vibe all it’s own with the distinctive vocal
style and pronunciation. Something I have always respected about
Arckanum is the organic nature of it all and the resistance to take
the thin and easy way out with synthesizer all over the place.
“Kostogher” for me is an important release in black metal with real
vision and is surely a must own album. – Dale
http://www.arckanum.se/
http://www.debemur-morti.com/
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When you make a
lasting and let us not split hairs here, legendary mark upon the
scene, for better or for worse that legacy follows you around and
becomes the measuring stick by which all future accomplishments.
Your new bands cock is only 6 ½ inches but your old band is a porn
star worthy 9 inches of raging meat & muscle. Of course I am
referring to Order From Chaos, the classic band of wonderful chaotic
torment, whose members Chuck Keller and Mike Miller propelled into
prominent position of the metal history books. It will always linger
around them like the after taste of fine wine (or a cheap vintage
depending upon the view), matching that wonderment is a lofty goal
likely pushed into the back of their minds. A new day is dawning and
amusingly enough, despite a somewhat paltry output, Ares Kingdom has
been around at this point about as long as Order From Chaos. How
does A.K. fair to these biased ears? Pretty damn well by my measure
and I am not new to Ares as one of my best friends released their
demo tape (not to mention a 7 inch from Chuck’s other post OFC band
Vulpecula) in wonderful pro packaging (Keith Dempe where are you my
friend?! The Dark Lord whispers your name!). A much more middle
paced and introspective yet harsh (yes I know those do not go
together but you need to listen to this music to see what I
profess!) sound that peel back the flesh and meat, one sinew at a
time rather than just beating you over the head with a shovel ala
OFC, they protract your pain before unconsciousness. Vocalist Alex
Blume belts out his sandpaper howls with emotion and brute force, it
really adds a rough around the edges quality which juxtaposes itself
nicely on top of Keller’s wonderful guitar work (some of those
piercing solo fills had in ecstasy) and flowing structures.
Speaking of the guitars they are heavy as hell itself and roll over
you full force but with an underlying finesse and reflective aura
which wonderfully counterpoints the blunt force trauma. It is true
one minute you headbang and the next you are swept away to some
distant plane letting your grey matter go for a swim in the calming
seas of eternity. This is mandatory and should do any OFC die hard
proud with it’s quality. No surprise it is on a great label like
Nuclear War Now, you know what to do, get this and the D.H. vinyl
too. – Dale *I threw this up here as a companion for
the review of the new album below...
www.areskingdom.com www.nwnprod.com |
When I see that
album title, it reminds me of one my fave movies Almost Famous. If
you like that flick then you know what why. It has been almost 4
years since the last Ares Kingdom album. I must say, it was well
worth the wait. The band has taken their sound to new heights I had
not imagined. You can tell they used that time to perfect their
craft and give the material the attention it deserved. AK has never
been ones to rush things before their time, as evidenced by
Incendiary being their second record since their 1996
formation. They have taken the time honoured tradition of thrash
metal and molded it into something most remarkable. I was not
provided with lyrics, but I can make many of them out and as can be
expected from these fellows, they are intelligent and well thought
out. I love the lyrics to “Abandon In Place”, it is about the
Chernobyl meltdown and includes an actual emergency call from the
event. Which is all brilliantly executed and the emotion in the
music reflects the lyrics and the incident itself. It is not an easy
task to marry all of these elements in unison, but Ares Kingdom do
so masterfully. I enjoyed Alex Blume’s vocals and his growls are
clear and decipherable and at times remind me to early Grave (and I
fucking love Grave). They are not all over the place, but there are
some amazing guitar solos/fills on here that absolutely smoke and
yet add poignant emotive depth to the music at the same time. I
would be remiss not to mention the superb and tasteful drum
performance from Mike Miller. He supports the guitars wonderfully
and leaves enough room for the compositions to breathe. I like the
epic feel to Incendiary and how they kept things on the straight
forward side and not get tangled into too many riffs or a run away
train speed. It is not just epic in scope though. There are also a
number of quite somber and melancholic sections that really add
emotional dynamics to the whole. I know it is early in 2010, but
Incendiary for me, already has record of the year candidate written
all over it. - Dale
http://www.areskingdom.com
http://www.nwnprod.com/ |
I have been a
fan of Arghoslent for many a moon – probably around 15 years now!
That means I am old and it goes back to my tape trading days when I
traded for their demo tapes. They can be called death metal, but at
times in their history I have had a hard time nailing that down.
Some of their stuff seemed very traditional heavy metal influenced
to me despite always having vocals that never fit that mold. In the
past they have had some really obscure sounding vocals that melt
into the scenery. Though not any longer, now they have more of
classical death metal growler not from the belching school, but
rather from a Euro deep brutal origin. One thing that has never
changed is they do not give a fuck lyrically and image wise and
always stick to their guns. “Hornets…” is a fairly quickly paced
album and it is heavy, but also there is a lot of melody and
memorable structuring to be had. Yes this album is probably one of
the more easily digestible Arghoslent records and I think it shows
hints of European influence more than in the past. The antithesis of
in the past was part of the charm for me with Argho, but nonetheless
“Hornets…” is growing on me. Just because it is so easy to get
comfortable with does not mean it is not good. This is not my fave
‘slent work, but it is staying in my collection, let me put it that
way. Before I go, I need to mention the guitar work on here is so
good and worth the price of admission alone. A really emotional
performance that just tore at my soul. Just one listen and you know
I speak the truth. A quote from their bio that sums up the band up
“…yielding to no one, apologizing to nobody, and offending
everyone.” –
Dale
www.drakkar666.com http://drakkar666.com/arghoslent/
|
I can not endure
listening to this over and over, but I’ve learned that with enough
patience and perseverance you can fuck a cat. This isn’t atmospheric
noir black art orchestrated metal entwined with ceremonies as your
tricked to believe. I believed Cradle of Filth was the worst band
ever, what the fuck is this? Seriously, what I think of
France is what Huskies think of poodles; that they belong to some
kind of weird chainsaw worshipping cult. It feels like I’m walking admist some tinker-bell gay parade, namely the pianist. This is the
commercially saturated shit balloon band that us true metallists see
scourging our beloved metal commands today. Soft voices and a
vocalist that sounds like a Raptor being corn-holed. The piano /
keyboards / effects is un-metal and perpetual shit that is really
pointless. This album makes Dimmu Borgir and Ancient sound extreme
which is sadder than hell. It’s all in French lingo too and gives me
more reasons to hate this poser crap. At least in Quebec, Canada
those French acts know their shit. Lock and load and eat lead you
assholes! The other day I had severe food poisoning and felt like I
would die. After hearing this I wish I had! This is over priced at
free! – Clayton
http://richardperel.free.fr/ |
This album was
actually released originally in 2003, but has now been given new
life through Obsidian Records. This time in digipak format with a
bonus of a live video of the song “Arborescence” as well as a photo
gallery in CD-ROM format. I guess one thing you will notice
immediately is the recording is pretty much picture perfect. I often
like a little rougher recording with my black metal, but it does
seem to suit Astriaal just fine. The music is generally pretty harsh
and fast, but always keeping an element of melody ala the old
Dissection style yet a little cleaner and slick. It is clear to me a
lot of thought and work was put into this album as it woven with a
lot of emotional tapestry and hatred. The vocals are done in the
classic raspy, shrieking black metal way with the occasional use of
cleaner vocals. I can see why this received a re-release, this is
some quality music, well worth checking out. Probably even more so
these days as the scene does not seem to be as flooded with bands
playing this style as it was in the past. Apparently the band has
been “on hold” for the last six years since this albums release – I
wonder why? – Dale
www.obsidianrecords.com http://www.elementalist.net/astriaal/ |
|
This would have
to be, hands down, some of the best thrash I have heard in the last
5 years. I think I need to play some catch up with their back
catalog now. As I mentioned Audiopain is definitely a totally pure
thrash band. They do not sound much like this band or that band. You
can hear some general influence but they have a sound of their own
which is a good and rare thing these days. “The Switch…” is really
good straight ahead dark thrashing that keeps the foot tapping and
the head nodding in mini-headbang. I am really digging Sverre
Daehli’s high throaty rasp vocals as they take me right back to my
roots in the 1980s. Which is a welcome and comfortable place for me.
Not to mislead anyone as the music is not retro made to me but
rather is modern thrash made by some dirty old Norwegian thrashers.
This is some high caliber music that you will not soon forget. Now
my only 1 small problem with this record is it is only 26 minutes,
which is a little short, to be passing off as a full length record.
I need to hear more from these guys soon. - Dale
www.vendlusrecords.com http://www.myspace.com/audiopain
|
I would suspect
most people reading this have heard the Finnish Azaghal by now. They
have been doing it a long time now. They formed in 1995 and released
their first demo tapes in ’98. I will admit this is the first
Azaghal release I have got in hand and in my head in a few years. It
is good to see they are still delivering harsh, fast and dark black
metal like always and as was masterfully set out in the old days.
The vocals are striking and slashing classic black metal rasps, but
they help keep the atmosphere cold and mean. There are some sections
where Azaghal get a little too liberal with their use of synth, but
thankfully those times are short-lived and well spread out.
“Teraphim” is a cruel record but there is also plenty of melody
woven into the hate. A song like “Filosofi” is an excellent example
of this, some great texture and melody, but keeping the dank
atmosphere strong. You will be presented with ambient moments and
dramatic passages, but it all serves the greater good. That greater
good being a heaping plate of excellent black metal with great
emotional depth. I guess the quality after eight albums should be
this high, but I greatly appreciate excellence nonetheless.
– Dale
www.moribundcult.com
www.blackterrormetal.cjb.net
|
More great
fucking American Black Metal! Bahimiron features the almighty Blaash
from Where’s My Skin zine which is one of the best American zines
and has been going for ever or least 12 years or so… Any regular
Assault reader knows I am a big follower of this band, demos, 7
inches have all been great and now I get to cleanse my palate with
the harsh and bitter sounds on this full length ball of fire,
straight from the pits of the Southern USA. Bahimiron loves to cut
and slash at you with some truly vile guitar lines that forge ahead
with speed and rhythm reminding me of early Emperor, old Immortal,
early Beherit and other old school Scandinavian scoundrel. Pure
Negativism… definitely has a flow to, much like the river of Acheron
and cannot be dissected into parts, picking out only one or two
songs to listen to is detriment to the overall journey and cold, oh
so cold ambience which rises from the band like a deep fog. The
vocals provided by Grimlord are vicious and hurl through the air at
like 100 metal pellet balls from a 12 gauge shotgun tearing and
rending your eardrums into exhaustion and defeat. Often mid paced
setting a hypnotic atmosphere yet interspersed with healthy doses of
speed and juxtaposed sparingly with some moody contemplative
passages. As mentioned this album must be listened as whole to get
the right experience bled into it’s framework. Bahimiron bring
affliction to the afflicted, Bahirmiron bring sickness to the sick
and Bahimiron spread their plague to the welcome it and force it
upon those who do not. Get this now. – Dale
www.bahimiron.cjb.net www.auramystique.com |
It is good after
all these years, to see that my comrade Blaash (creator of the
mighty Where’s My Skin? Fanzine) and his horde, are still pumping
out horrific black metal. For me outside of Thornspawn & Absu,
Bahimiron has to be the best black metal band that Texas has
produced. I think in some ways you can say they play normal, early
90s black metal. Which is true and they do it very well. But there
are also some smaller touches of the war metal sound and even a
little doom. Just check out the track “5 Chambers Empty” for the
fantastic doom touches and it works better than I would have
thought. It is also no surprise, knowing Blaash as I do, that there
are songs dealing with weapons and specifically guns. The music is
always heavy and dark, but as I alluded to there is a fair range of
emotional depth within musical maelstrom. The vocals have dynamics
as well and you will hear bm rasps, growls and screams that remind
me to the wonderful early works of Impaled Nazerene. Maybe the
vocals do not match the over the top insanity of Impaled, but it is
very similar feel and works nicely. Bahimiron are evil and yet they
are also just a bunch of raunchy scoundrels. Which is also reflected
in their song lyrics and titles such as “Halo of Fliez”, “Pills and
90 Proof”, “War, Whiskey, Sodomy” would attest. They have been going
nearly a decade and this, their second album, sees them at their
best. “Southern Nihilizm” is a cold hearted black metal record I can
endorse completely. - Dale
http://www.bahimiron.com
http://www.moribundcult.com/ |
The booklet for
this CD is awesome. It flips outwards in four directions and then in
the middle reads like a book. I am sure the pressing plant were like
“You want to do what?!” *grumble* *grumble* haha. The artwork is
kind of bizarre too, but good like a warped Frank Miller graphic
novel or something. So what about the music then? You would think
with that kind of build up, it would be rather amazing. But at times
it is one huge jumbled mess of industrial, electronica, and just a
metal mish-mash. The other times when they really hit on a good
industrial part with some solid metal foundation mixed in it really
works for them. Now I like some old industrial stuff (Ministry, old
Fear Factory, Skinny Puppy, Lard, Godflesh, old Pitchshifter and a
couple more) so it is not like I am against this genre entirely by
any means. But I have to admit it, there are sections of material on
here that are truly boring. They have a good aura about them in this
style, but seem to lack that step to turn their musical bits into
something interesting or memorable. To take it to that next level if
you will. I guess I am being a little bit hard here, but I also
suppose I am little bit picky when it comes to this style. I mean
the bands I listed above pretty much make up my entire industrial
collection. I generally only go for the best, the cream of the crop.
BBYB are just not quite there yet, but surely there are signs they
could get to that level in the future. This is after all their debut
just going by the album title (I have no bio to work off of so…). I
think what they are missing besides more interesting song
arrangements, is emotion, they convey very little emotion in their
music. I think back to the old albums of Godflesh, Ministry, Fear
Factory and the like. They are positively dripping with emotion,
have infectious song structures and keep one hooked every step of
the way. If BBYB can manage to grasp that, then they have all the
fundamentals to make a great industrial metal band. I will be
looking forward to their next release to see how things come along. - Dale
http://www.myspace/khaaranus
http://www.myspace.com/bbyb |
A re-release
from the Satanic Swede’s debut album, of insanity and anarchy that
first came to us back in 2002. Yes on this first strike they have a
clearer, ever so slightly polished sound. This statement is a bit of
a misnomer however, if you have heard their past material (demos)
and knew just how hellishly raw, chaotic and lo-fi they were! There
is a bit less chaos and lust musically speaking. Though this surely
does not apply to attitude, lyrical content or overall conception of
sickness, which has been this bands calling card all along. They
carry on ripping and delivering it all with a delicious sadistic
spirit. Bestial Mockery could be called a wall of noise, but I mean
that in a good way. Musically and execution-wise, they are very
loose, mean and caustic. But it is now more in the frosty fire
bloody knuckled & whiskey soaked raunch of bands (in their early
days of course!) like Motorhead, Venom and Bathory mixed with punky
bits of war metal. All of which had an influence upon this ripping
slab of hatred I now gorge upon. Stylistically I would label them
classic old school speed/thrash war metal as well as some bits ‘o
Swedish brutal death such as old Grave (listen to the beginning of
“Morbid Invertation” to see my point). It most definitely is a
chugging metallic razor of an album with a headbang inducing sound. – Dale
http://www.hellsheadbangers.com/
http://www.myspace.com/bestialmockery666 |
|
Wow, Demilich,
now there is an old ass band I like a lot that I have not really
thought about lately and certainly have not heard mentioned,
literally in years. But Biolich took their original inspiration and
modified moniker from that great old Finnish band. This has to be
the first time I have heard a term like ‘Avant-garde death/grind’
and not listened to it and proclaim ‘okay that was as gay as the
description sounded!’ No Biolich are fucking fast and harsh and
brutal but they do get adventurous. Yet they stand on their own two
feet, they do not use a bunch of gay looping, keyboards and shit all
over the place. No they tend rely on their traditional instruments
and musical creativity, something to be respected. Beyond the old
‘lich, I would have to say, especially drum wise they often remind
me of Cryptopsy, from their earlier days when they blazed a trail
around the competition. For me what makes Biolich most effective is
they make avant-garde to augment their brutality and headbang crush
and never lose sight of that, which makes the whole more effective
and it’s spread out use gives the speed and aggression that counter
point which makes it pop all the more. This is only a MCD but it is
healthy taste of what is to come and shows us why we should watch
out for Biolich in the future. Kudos as well to Paragon, who do
great work on their releases and aggressively promote their bands.
– Dale
Paragon Records,
Box 354, Commack, NY. 11725, USA www.paragonrecords.net
|
You do not hear
bands from Slovenia every day. As one can gather from the title this
is a war metal style band. As is the custom it seems with this style
the album is fairly short at 30 minutes. Though I will say this for
them, they do have some semi-slowed down moments which definitely
adds a little more dynamic than your usual war chaos metal band.
Maybe even a small nod to Hellhammer perhaps? Yes not a lot of
originality or own sound, but I still found this slashing hate a
good listen. If nothing else, there seems to be, a lot of passion
behind the compositions. The vocalist sounds like some kind of mean
and evil black metal biker that spent too many hours downing brews
and smoking everything he can get his hands on. Yeah I like those
vocals a lot. Bleeding First also have an interesting look, judging
from the pic on their website, they look like a cross between
Leatherface mixed with the road warriors and some traditional metal
draping. They may not bring a lot of originality musically, but
visually they combine some classic stuff into an image of their own.
I guess it depends on how much you like that style. If enjoy a lot
of bands like this, you will probably like this one too. There are
certainly a lot worse out there. But, if you only like the more
elite, cream of the crop, in this genre then you can probably do
without Bleeding Fist and not lose any sleep over it. –
Dale
www.moribundcult.com www.bleeding-fist.com
|
Could this
possibly be the Blood Cult I remember from way back in the 90s?! If
it is, then I do not recall them sounding like this - at all. They
proclaim themselves as southern rock & country influenced black
metal rednecks!? What an incredibly dumb sounding term that is and
they willingly label themselves as such? Ouch. I feel embarrassed
for them. The vocals are actually pretty damn funny. They come off
sounding like the result of Axl Rose pretending to make demon voices
from cheesy 80s horror movies. With repeated listens the vocals grow
on me a little, but still it is a little hard to take seriously. I
mean hearing Axl…er…Preston yelling “Satanic Rites!” in that voice,
it has to be a joke right? There are some sparsely used more
traditional black metal rasps and the band should think about
sticking to those a little more. The music is all over the place. It
is kind of southern rocking, kind of black metal riffing, some
frantic solos, and country tawngy elements to some of the rhythms.
To be honest at times, it is just one big mess and a little hard to
listen to. Sort of like if you made a huge pot of soup and started
randomly throwing in food stuffs that do not go well together. It
does not end up tasting like complete garbage, but it is a confusing
mish-mash and not at all satisfying. Which I think describes Blood
Cult’s music fairly accurately. I mean a song like “Illinoisan
Altar” probably could go on some lousy country album and if there
were no vocals, no one would bat an eye. Sorry I tried to like this,
but there is just no way, it is quite simply crap. - Dale
http://www.myspace.com/redneckblackmetal
http://
www.moribundcult.com/ |
Looking at the
picture of these Japanese blokes I am not sure if they are trying to
look metal or attempting to imitate their favourite new RPG video
game. They look like they just walked off the Mortal Kombat movie
set. I just checked out their website and one of them is dressed
like a woman on it. Reading their bio it would seem if they are
rather obsessed with sounding Scandinavian, even going so far as
hiring a Finnish producer to record their album. In my opinion they
have not really succeeded in their goal of trying to fool anyone
listening to think “hey they must be Swedish or something”.
“Idolator” is chock full of melodies, not a lot of change up or
variation but melody after melody. Sort of like that episode of The
70s show, where every door or drawer, his girlfriend opens endless
amounts of women's panties come falling out. I guess you could call
their style melodic aggression (though those 2 words should not go
together but I digress…) on top of some pretty florid synth that
makes you want to dance like a giddy girl, not me but you will want
to dance like that ha ha! Seriously though, no joke, some of these
melody lines are so fruity they would probably be quite popular with
the MTV robot masses. Far too one dimensional and commercial leaning
for my tastes. How about yours cup cake? – Dale
Dockyard
Records, Box 20 31 46 - D - 20221 Hamburg – Germany
www.dockyard1.com
|
The first word
in BLACK METAL! This band is legendary. They formed in 1988 and have
a reputable amount of demos out which gave them European worldly
underground notoriety and a fusillade of band problems at times
giving them a disdainful name. They played SA almost entirely with
bands from abroad resulting in the first official CD, FTD, recorded
in Columbia. Musically, it takes me back to 1986 and has the
Sarcofago sound with the true SA sound and for once more slower than
those who’d do 200 BPM for the sake of it. Think of even one more
tuned down Hellhammer meets 1990 Samael. The well played killer
riffage and the incredible solos remind me of ‘Jesus of Nazareth,
King of Jews’ (oops – I mean I.N.R.I) Sarcofago meets “Anno Domini”
Tormentor, and I am just referring to the solos alone! Sometimes the
drums go out of timing, but this is the UG, so fuck off. To focal
point for Black Angel is the vocals. Hector Corpus outdoes
Australian Hellspawn (2000 era) and hints somewhat to ’85 Becerra of
Possessed. Even “Flag of Hate” Kreator, and this is the vox only
that has outdone Abbath Doom Occulta from 1992’s “Diabolical
Fullmoon Mysticism” Immortal! When most of Hector Corpus’
regurgitations and growls end as Enslaved “Frost” era, he can go
from normal to extreme deepness. The vocalizing is so infectious and
inhuman, I believe he’s cursed by price Beezelbub or touched by
Pazuzu. Check out Black Angel as sit on the same pedestal as
Sarcofago had that’s not easy to do. I want to personally thank the
label for giving BA a chance so we may all hear these legends and to
Hector Corpus for sticking it out this long, sometimes you have to
stick your arm out, even if you lose your hand! Till next time and
fan and a writer – Comas Lima Peru!! - Clayton
blackangelcorpus@hotmail.com
http://es.geocities.com/blackangelperu
|
Bloodthirst
- Apparently this is a CD promo of a split cassette full length.
Anyway, the sound for the ‘thirst portion is a bit hard to listen
to. The drums and guitars are really low yet the vocals are
really freakin’ loud and pretty much completely drown out the
music. Also the sound over all tends to fade in & out from time to
time. Getting back to the vocals, it is a shame they are so loud
because to be blunt, in addition to the being deafening they also
suck. Just terrible garbled screaming. The music on the other hand
is very good even though it photo-copies Slayer a bit too often. The
music was still enjoyable nonetheless.
Bestial Raids
– Not that much to report except Bestial Raids do a competent job of
copying Blasphemy. They even dress like ‘em. A decent Beherit cover
of “Grave Desecration” wraps up proceedings on their end of the
split. I kept that short as there are actually some bonus Bestial
Raids tracks tacked on but apparently not a part of this release. It
is in fact their demo 2003, apparently also releases on Kampf
Records as well as their 2004 demo on Time Before Time Records. All
I have to say about all of this demo material is it puts to shame
the live show on this release. Sorry but it just does, destroying
war metal! – Dale
www.kampf.ws kampfrec@go2.pl
info@kampf.ws
|
I have to admit,
I am just now discovering Brown Jenkins. So it came as a bit of a
surprise and shock to find out they have already broken up some time
ago. This is apparently the result of their final recording. The
band name is apparently that of a familiar of the Witch in the HP
Lovecraft story “The Dreams In The Witch House”. In fact, originally
the band was a sort of a concept band based on only Lovecraft
stories. It did not start out that way, but eventually Brown Jenkins
morphed into a one man band as it stands on this recording. The
music gets me into an amazing trance-like state and just sends my
mind swimming in its gorgeous hypnotic flow. This is almost entirely
due to the freezing, droning guitars which are justifiably out front
of the mix and hog all the attention. In fact, the vocals and drums
are extremely minimal and actually add only a small amount of
usefulness to “Death Obsession”. I see some people say it is
insulting to even compare this band to anyone, but fuck let’s be
honest guys there is a lot of classic Emperor, Darkthrone and
especially Burzum going on here. It is only fitting the one man of
the band Umesh Amtey admits to it by wearing a Burzum shirt on the
back cover. I see some listing Hellhammer as an influence but
outside of the fuzzy guitar tone that seems way off base to me. They
are correct in the fact that the band manages to take those borrowed
sounds into something at least approaching their own direction. The
music or guitars may be repetitive in overall sound, but in their
own flowing way they often change up their rhythm and melody. While
never missing a beat, nor approximating anything resembling a
conventional structural change. At times the pace is a bit slower
and contemplative, but for such an atmospheric sounding record with
that kind of aura, the pace surprisingly is mostly moderate to
speedy. It is a very abstract sort of black metal record, but one I
enjoyed very much. I could listen to those guitars for hours and I
did just that. – Dale
http://www.myspace.com/brownjenkins13
http://www.moribundcult.com/
|
On the current
time frame, in the midst of my horrid and abhorrent life, I’ve
always believed death metal was based on evil. “Narrow minded shit
with nothing significant to show besides our cocks”, they say. Oh-fuckin-kay,
these fuckers are a few bricks shy of a load. “This is Satanic punk
‘till bestial death!” Uh, umm, hmm, alright then, let’s pop this
fucker in. Whoa, this is fuckin’ “A” DM! Think vocally of 1991,
early Necrophobic “Unholy Prophecies” demo ’90 and their debut, let
alone Macabre End “Consumed by Darkness” 7” ep and though the
production is mediocre, it fits with the killer vox and instruments,
perfectly. Melodic, yet in your face, laced with killing leads,
pounding drums are displayed in a way they are really adding to this
sickening mess! On “Side Chaos”, Goat Devil is an evil pleasure as
the Sacred Spear is an instant favorite. Crucitatus on grrr and drrr,
Johan on vrrr and brrr and Necrophiliac Bonegrinder on drrr as 2nd
grrr. Vocallly on “Side Desecration”, Vital Remains Jeff Gruslin
comes to mind on “Worship The Demon”. At times it’s like Impetigo
meets Carnage and check out the solo on WTD. Musically, “Witchcraft
Bloodbaths” reminds me of very early Incantation meets Acheron (USA)
riffage with hints of “Dawn of Possession” Immolation ~ fuck me!
Alas, “Death Metal or Die” is just what the title indicates,
memorable, to end an album I could play all night. Buy this for the
true DM feel alone, Cacodaemon rule!! Now what do you say, Mika Akim?
Long live the pigs of Sadistik Impurity, Slaughter the rest!! –
Clayton
http://cacodaemon.dy.fi
cruciatus_@hotmail.com |
|
Generally I am
happy to see a release by a Canadian band show up in my mail box.
Despite where they are from I often wonder how releases like this
even manage to find their way to me. Seriously. We are a mix of
commercial radio rock and poppy ska-raggae emo type shit, let’s send
it to Canadian Assault they might love it! Lots of energy and a good
recording that is about all I can think of to say positive about
this feces. Hey get this out of the cd player quick, it is starting
to draw flies. – Dale
www.capdown.net
www.fiercepanda.ca
|
The Carnival
– Three tracks from each band. The Carnival play crazy and violent
old school speed / thrash metal. We should expect nothing less from
Bestial Burst. The music kind of reminds me of some sort of twisted
take off on the classic Sacred Reich stuff. I do not come across
many bands playing this sort of style so this is a breath of fresh
air.
Enormity
– Extremely sadistic thrashing metal with catchy as fuck riffing.
Also intermingled with the thrash base is some chunky death metal
influence and the balance they find is a good one. The vocals are
diabolical, following suit with the music. This release is just
chock full of mayhem and it is a good time listening to it. –
Dale
www.bestialburst.blackmetal.fi/
bestialburst@blackmetal.fi
|
A large
smattering of blackened death metal is offered up this time,
straight out of the swamps of Louisiana. It would be rather
difficult to list the influences here. Due to the fact Catholicon
sound like a mix of just about everything out there. It is task to
detect anything of their own within the 13 tracks presented. That
does not necessarily make “Treatise on The Abyss” a bad album. Quite
the opposite and is a really solid piece of hate and malicious
aggression. Standing out in this scene is going to be a problem for
them as there just is nothing here to say “hey check this out,
despite having no sound of our own, you have never heard it done
this way before”. So I would unfortunately expect Catholicon to end
up one of those bands who put out some good albums but slipped
through the cracks largely unknown. I would only recommend this to
die hard freaks that have to have just about everything that comes
out (I have met and have been friends with some of you and I am
always amazed you come up with the money for this haha) in the black
/ death scene. –
Dale
www.negativityrecords.com www.fuckyourgod.com
|
It has been a
while for me since I have heard any Celestia stuff. I think the last
thing I got my hands on may have been their 2001 promo tape. Which I
quite enjoyed thoroughly. Despite that 8 year gap, I see, looking
through their discography that they only released an album, ep and
demo during that period of time. Though of course let us not forget
the band leader is quite busy with his label Drakkar Productions.
One thing I always liked about Celestia is they play black metal but
somehow always managed to imprint a touch of their own sound and
identity into the style. Something that is much easier said than
done these days. I would have to confess these days they are
probably less black metal than in the past but all of those elements
are still here in smaller doses. Celestia is very atmospheric and
melancholy in an epic emotional sort of way. They also thankfully do
not solely rely on synth to attempt cheat and create cheap
atmosphere. There is some real thought put into the compositions and
playing. A fact that is certainly not lost on me and adds another
layer of enjoyment to my appreciation of this release. I can
definitely recommend this album and it comes out on an excellent
dedicated label as well. Check this out. – Dale
http://membres.lycos.fr/celestia/
http://paragonrecords.org/
|
|
England and
death doom go together like leather and spikes and Centurion’s Ghost
are one hellbent incendiary bulldozer of creeping metal. I was
struck immediately by the quality of this band, the fluidity and
nose for knowing when to keep the songs simple to increase the skull
crush factor, call it the Asphyx principle. There are a lot of great
influences wrapped up in this record, in the biography they list
Venom as a big influence, I can hear it but not in a strong way in
my opinion. They also list Cathedral, Candlemass & Celtic Frost and
all those are fair but I also hear traces of Benediction (way
underrated band!) alongside traces of early Afflicted or Disharmonic
Orchestra. For that matter very early Paradise Lost or My Dying
Bride, you know before they went all commercial and keybored-y , may
not be completely out of line. The guitar work going on in the
background is actually more involved then one would notice upon
first listen but really accents the uplifting moments and keeps our
eyes filled with gray during the emotional melancholy passages. The
vocals of Mr. Begley are utterly fantastic and are some magical
doomy mix of early Kreator Mille, Martin Van Drunen, Goatlord and
others I cannot even explain, my ear knows it but my tongue and
finger tips get confused. I just dig these vocals a whole lot! I can
sense the confusion? Why all the thrash references and doom, it is
because their sound is rooted in dark thrash but make no mistake
this is a doom metal band, first, second and third but they have
denim filled with stitched on patches, in their minds and know how
to induce a headbang fury. One other thing that strikes me, is for a
young band they have mastered flow to their songwriting and
incorporate fleshy nuances and vision that is beyond the bands
paltry few years existence would suggest. I am finding myself
increasingly more enthralled with each listen, I am beginning to
think an interview might not be out of the question here. Is there
any better recommendation for a band then that? – Dale
I Hate Records,
Box 13023, S-60013, Norrkoping, SWEDEN http://www.ihate.se/ www.centurionsghost.com
|
It has been a
long, long time since I have heard any new Cerebral Turbulency. For
those keeping score, I reviewed their split tape with Gride and
Malignant Tumour, in Canadian Assault. That was a 10 years ago! I
guess both myself and the band are turning into old bastards in this
scene. The layout of the booklet is very interesting. The lyrics
come on a smaller, separate book, it is strange but cool. Part way
into this album on the first listen I found myself saying what
happened to Cerebral Turbulency? Where did the all out grind attack
go? There are still some small signs of it but it is mixed with a
lot of American sounding metalcore and some hardcore vibes and even
some industrial overtones. It almost feels a little bit so called
lousy ‘nu-metal’ like at times (but no rap vocals, thanks to hades
for some small favours). You know I really hate this sort of thing.
To be quite honest I find myself rather disappointed with this
album. I wish if bands are going to change this much they would do
their fans a favour and change their name. It is the respectful
thing to do for their fans and their own legacy. I suppose some
might consider this an expanding of their horizons but to me it is
like they erased the horizon completely and painted over in the
colour of blank boredom. There are some small and short decent bits
on here but they are too far and few between to enjoy. Do you like
groovy, dance-y music that you can jump up down to on an imaginary
pogo stick? If yes, then “Crash Test”, might just be for you. I am
hoping on the next album of Cerebral Turbulency, which I will review
soon, will be much different and closer to the old grinding days. –
Dale
http://www.khaaranus.wz.cz
http://bandzone.cz/cerebralturbulency |
Czech grind is a
thing of legend in the UG and one of the best and most prolific
grind scenes around. One of the good ones and one of the well-known
are Cerebral Turbulency. Who are coming fresh from going off the
rails last album with the semi-awful and decidedly bland “Crash
Test” mallcore train wreck. Will Cerebral look to get back on track
and make amends to the loyal followers who were disappointed and
dejected? I am happy to report that Turbulent ones are back steaming
ahead on the right path. The real aggression and trademark grinding
have thankfully returned in a big way. Some sections of the album
are an intense rape ‘n pillage assault with chainsaw guitars and
lightning quick, scatter shot drumming. There is a lot of very good
things going on but it is a mixed bag as well. Because they
incorporate so many different things (samples, effects, tons of
different vocal styles etc…) into the songs. Some of the off the
wall things really work and other times it does not and seems like
they were forced into the song just to have it there. But do not let
that statement keep you away as there is plenty of good material to
go around and Cerebral Turbulency give you a taste of what made them
so good in the first place. Yes this is some intense shit. Which is
all the more pity with this being the bands final release as they
have decided to split up after 15 years of grinding. – Dale
http://www.khaaranus.wz.cz
http://www.myspace.com/cerebralturbulency
|
Ever commit
brain-death, coma-inducing suicide without heart palpitation? I have
(yes, seriously!) and if I had a mic in my valediction, this is what
it would have been. Following “Tormented Belief”, both main man
Horrendous and Necromorbus have unleashed their second opus into a
conceptual 2nd of trilogy album affair. A vinyl version
of this album is available in a limit of 500 copies, which are
pragmatically sold out by now. “All Hail (Master Satan)” from the
“Saeculum Domini” CD is present on this disc. The vocals sound like
a homicidal dying mortal gone insane while having suicidal mental
breakdowns rarely captured in BM, no matter how many times you
repeat this; it don’t let up. This consists of such atrociousness
and sorrowful emanating that one may point at “Salvation”-era
Funeral Mist, yet you can not. The neurotic higher pitched vocals
sound savage, rabid, coldly and hatefully unto anyone that bears
human flesh, it detrimental to your life! Add this to with musical
moments from 1990-94 Nordic-era true BM and Satanic metal on their
behest of black-heartfelt riffage and we’re getting there! The
grievance of many fallen angles, the extraordinary torture of
existence, the hatred upon all mankind, the exiled dementia-precox’
souls, unavenged Demoniacs, that now have increased a ten-fold more
than that and you fathom what CC sounds as the more it molests you.
I am certain these two travel amidst their native Portugal with
razor blades deeply embedded through their ‘skin suits’. I’d partake
razor raping my own pelt with this release, but Corpus Christii has
already done a fine job of that! Satanist myself, their name in the
Roman Catholic church, CC is a festival in honor of Eucharist (the
fucking Messiah!) on the first Thursday of the trinity; the eight
Sunday after Easter. Posers beware, this isn’t the Funderground,
this is pure Satanic BM formed from the scorned souls of Hell in
earthly form. Professional, well produced and one of the best out
there today, question is, have you got the guts? - Clayton
www.undercover-records.de www.corpuschristii.com |
Count Raven is a
name well-known to doom heavy metal merchant followers like myself.
The Raven had been silent, for some, long thirteen years now!
Apparently the original band tried a reformation, but despite some
good live appearances was once again not destined to continue. The
mainman of Count Raven, Dan Fondelius decided to carry on regardless
and recruited new members Fredrik Jansson on bass and Jens Bock on
the skins. What with so much time passing and some original pieces
falling by the way side. Has the old magic faded away? It is the
question swirling in my mind as I prepared to play “Mammon’s War”
with muted anticipation. The biggest positive for me is Fondelius
staying, as he is the vocalist and much of the character of the old
foundation. His Ozzy Sabbath-era vocals, are perfect for this style
of classic doom, and, I am admittedly a sucker for this vocal style.
The opening track, “The Poltergeist” grabs you straight away as a
hooky, traditional heavy metal burner that should please fans of
old. You get some of everything, from the heavy to the emotional,
melancholy and introspective. But you are snapped out of the trance
with great rocking as well and memorable riffs. It is hard not to
enjoy the sullen, epic atmosphere on this album and some of the
nuanced and classy background guitar accents of Fondelius are not
lost on me. This is a grand return to form for Count Raven in my
view. I hope the new line up is solid and they stay around for
another long run. Get this. – Dale
www.ihate.se
www.myspace.com/ihate666
|
At times is an
unfortunate statement that black metal has become a watered down,
caricature of itself. There is an absolute grey mass of bands
littering the landscape like some beaten down, demoralized war torn
country about to surrender. The problem for me is too many bands and
not only that but too many bands who do not even really care about
black metal, who do not truly believe in black metal but do it for
fun and do not take seriously. In addition, the influx of fruity
synth heavy “atmospheric soundscapes”, goth infusion, and fancy
studio recordings via pro tools etc… have sapped black metal of all
the reasons we worship it in the first place. Raw feeling, utter
darkness and evil strangled out of traditional instruments and the
depths on one’s own wicked soul. Clean productions / recordings is
like stoking a huge bonfire and when it is really blazing reaching
for water instead of more wood and throwing it on the fire. The
result is a pathetic smoldering glow. Enter Cryfemal, not overly
talented, they keep things simple and straight forward attacking you
head on. “Perpetua Funebre…” blasts forth with a certain diabolic
energy and Satanic ritualistic atmosphere, striking at the heart of
my discontent with determined ferocity. I really like the drumming
too, it has an off kilter, loose charm that brings back early Judas
Iscariot memories. The guitars have a hint of the “Deathcrush” gut
fuck to them and wind their way through the material like a snake
being charmed by a piercing yet melodic musician. The vocals are
decidedly for me a twisted mix of early Burzum and present day Lust
with a touch of something else I just cannot put my finger on. Yes,
those black rasps really stand out and accentuate a fine malicious
record. Cryfemal stock the coals and keep a bit of the igniting fuel
missing in so much of our scene and no I am not referring to the
rumours that certain past & present Cryfemal members are facing
incarceration for various crimes. – Dale
Oniric Records,
c/o David Prado, C/Olmo N. 1, 7 I, 06400 Don Bento (Badajoz), SPAIN www.oniric-distro.com oniricrec@yahoo.es
www.cryfemal.cjb.net
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CWAF
– Play a simplistic and stripped down but very heavy metallic style.
They like to keep things rhythmic and unchanging for long periods.
Which when they do change things up, it has a much larger impact
than technical bands, who stop on a dime, a dozen riffs and time
changes in each song. I love the Police State intro on here, check
that shit out. Cwaf is a little hard to pigeon hole, they have some
connection to death metal yet also are owing of their origin to
sludge bands like Cavity or Eyehategod. The drumming on here is
massive, a great performance. I would say this disc is worth picking
up just for the 4 Cwaf tracks.
Noosebomb
– is a band I had not heard of either. Noose, are purveyors of
Sludge metal as well, so the pairing is a natural one. Though, they
have a very different take, on the style than Cwaf. Noosebomb are
more active and have a much more traditional heavy metal base. The
last song on here entitled “What is the World Coming To” is an epic
doom influenced masterpiece. It is probably worth mention that Noose
features members of Disrupt and Grief in their line-up. – Dale
http://noosebomb.com/
www.bestialonslaught.com
|
Cryptic Tales
are quite an old band from Poland, and was formed back in 1989!!
They are existing for some years, then stopped doing music, and now,
7 years of silence the band is again upon metal throne. I didn't
hear the music they played early in its path, but I hear music now
which they created, and I'm totally satisfied with this record! The
music CT plays is amazing yet original death-doom metal mix, with
keyboards as well. The whole stuff consists of fast killing guitar
riffs, as well as drumming, and great keyboards together with good
growl vocals are here. Lots of fast and slow parts, really unearthly
atmosphere of despair and depression… I was really killed by this
CD, I listened to it many times, and I can't stop to listening to
this CD. The death-doom metal scene nowadays isn't the best, and our
guests decided not to play in a modern way, but in that truly
obscure old one! Music is really "live", catching and just amazing!
Each chord, each tune is totally filled with ALL means which should
be in such music as death-doom metal. And I think soon this band
will get high level here in the UG! So let's support them!
-
Aleksandr Maksymov
cryptictales@interia.pl
www.cryptictales.pl |
I am not sure
why the label bothered with a promo sheet as the info on there is
scant and mostly useless. It is just a lot of talk about how much
they love their Hermetic beliefs. It took me a little while to get
used to the vocals of Blood Moon. They are sort of a strange mix of
Mortuary Drape, early Immortal, the deeper growling portion of King
Diamond’s style and more. They will likely be an acquired taste. But
I found after a couple of listens they really grew on me. Yes it may
be a weird mix, but I am a fan of all those vocal influences I
named, so it was probably no surprise I like them. I think this
vocalist was also once in Crimson Moon and also has done the logos
of bands like Black Funeral & Xasthur. I guess I would call the
music itself sort of ritualistic & mystical in nature with a touch
of the theatrical. The way they use the drums definitely helps
re-enforce the ritual like feel. If they were trying to create a
soundtrack for an HP Lovecraft book as the band name might suggest –
then they have achieved their goal in my opinion. “In Desolationem…”
is not the most digestible and easy to get into music, but that is
not necessarily a bad thing. This is the case with Dagon and each
new listen brings the whole picture into clearer view for me. But it
will of course take some patience. Some of the riffing sections
definitely remind me to early 90s Norge black metal. Which when it
is me who is reviewing, it is never really a bad thing. This is a
pretty interesting piece of work that should appeal to those into
strange atmospheric black metal with old school 80s touches and many
layers to attempt to peel back. - Dale
http://www.cultofdagon.com/
http://www.myspace.com/cultofdagon |
I read a review
of this Australian band from Unbound fanzine. I could not agree more
that The Dead seem to have adopted the slapping bass sound of
Cryptopsy on their first two records “Blasphemy Made Flesh” & “None
So Vile”. It is a great sound when used right like Cryptopsy do. I
guess The Dead agree with that and have implemented it. They kind of
go over the top with its use though and in general, it sounds really
good. But there are times when it becomes the focus too much and is
a little too pronounced and hurts things. Thankfully those moments
are few and are far enough in between so as not to hurt the overall
enjoyment. But make no mistake it is a central part of their sound
so you need to like it as I do. That is where most of the Cryptopsy
comparison stops however. The Dead amble their deceased corpse at a
slower pace and decidedly less technical. But it is still some solid
brutal death metal that has its own style and dynamics. There is
also some tasty emotive guitar work that kept my interest up. There
is some groove mixed in as well, but thankfully that is not too
overdone either as when it is I do not have the stomach for it. Just
like the music the vocals are fucking thick and chunky growling and
kind of remind me a little to another old, but little known Canadian
band I dug named Immortal Possession. Somewhat garbled and gurgled,
but they have a really infectious tone to them. The more I listen to
this record the more it is growing on me. If you like some
memorability and depth to your death metal with little bit of
adventurous flair then The Dead is something you have to get. If you
are purist put your head down and do nothing but straight forward
brutal blasting then you might want to pass it up. – Dale
www.obsidianrecords.com www.myspace.com/lordofthelivingdead
|
 
I was struck by
the beautiful packaging, absolutely stunning on both releases but
the colours on the digi release are mind blowing brilliant. I can
only imagine the band are very happy with the labels work here.
“Doomsday Comfort” is on seriously raging, a maelstrom of furious
blast beat death metal splatter platter, ala early classic Napalm
Death mixed with the frantic insanity Nasum. Punch you in the face
juggernaut death metal from these Swedish denizens of barbarity.
With “To Cure The Sane….” we get much of the same, these boys are
getting better and better at turning a heavy riff ass over tea
kettle and making you head want to bang along with it. I was
surprised just reading that “To Cure…” was actually released on the
Finnish Woodcut records (being the main label of black metal legends
Horna) back in 2003. Man oh man, is the drumming (apparently this is
the Rotten Sound drummer?) on here vicious and relentless, not to
mention the vocalist sounds like a mad dog getting to chew through a
fence to maul you. This guy is a really good death metal singer. I
think I may hear some Vomitory influence on this one in the riffing
and I like it. It is not the easiest of tasks to remain brutal yet
not lose memorability or melody but Deathbound manage this just fine
and wrap it up in tidy but brutalizing grind package. It is hard not
recommend this band to followers of the death / grind scene. –
Dale
D.A. Records,
Box 168, FIN-33101 Tampere, FINLAND www.dynamicartsrecords.com |
“We Deserve…” is
the bands 3rd album from this Finnish band of savages. I
know them quite well as you can see I have reviewed those as well.
As time passes Deathbound are becoming masters of able to insert
some catchiness & groove into the body of their sound. That being
technical, fast and fucking brutal death metal, all backed up with
fantastic pounding drum work. The vocals of Kai Jaakola are splendid
yelling growls with energy and are decipherable. I would say fans of
Napalm Death & Benediction vocals will love his work. Deathbound
are just a well rounded great band – Dynamic Art indeed. – Dale
www.officialsear.com www.dynamicartsrecords.com
|
The “Lords of
Battle” kicks off the bloodbath with a catchy, righteous olden head
bang designed sound. It is replete with traditional title, chorus
repeated chants. Yes, make no mistake, the vocals are still brutal
death metal and the song structures themselves mix in some dynamic
elements among the ritualistic repetition. One thing I enjoy about
Debauchery is how they employ their guitar solos. Just a short ‘n
sweet running hit attack which is as quick as it is lethal, which is
kind of a microcosm of their style overall. Debauchery make sure
they always keep it heavy, catchy and flat out simplistic. Even the
lyrics are as eloquent as a spiked baseball bat upside the head. For
example the catchy in the song “Butcher Bitches! Slaughter Sluts!” a
Neanderthal chorus which would any sadists charcoal black heart. No
buttering you up and sneaking up behind you with a length of piano
wire, no, Debauchery just bash you over the head with a spiked bat.
“Back In Blood” is not shy to slip once in a while into a nice
hypnotic groove adding some dynamics and depth. Okay they are not
the most amazing band in the world but I still get pleasure from
simple things in life and death.
– Dale |
It is hard to
believe they Deiphago apparently have been around for 20 years and
this is the second album?!?. “Filipino Antichrist” is some heavily
influenced Blasphemy mixed with Sarcofago chaos metal from the
Philippines of course. I hate to say it, but this comes off sounding
a little like a train wreck, a real mess and not in a good way. You
almost get the feeling with it being so loud and chaotic, if each
member can even hear the other playing. As much of the individual
instruments do not sound like they belong together or that they all
got confused and started playing separate songs (or ‘things’ might
be a better word than songs). Do not get me wrong I love Blasphemy
and Sarcofago and that style for a long, long time. Yet, compared to
those bands this kind of sounds just a tad better than the
equivalent of warmed over garbage. Probably the most interesting
part of the presentation is the maniacal, heavy breather vocals
which convey a lot of confused emotion and raw anger, while
ultimately going nowhere. The production is loud, but kind of
treble-y and hissing which for me is headache inducing. I do not
think I can listen to this mess any longer as just because you can
play noisy, chaotic and loud does not automatically make it any
good. Deiphago are a sparkling example of that and after twenty
years of practice too! I think I will go listen to the real deal and
put on some old Blasphemy and Beherit. – Dale
http://www.deiphago.hellsheadbangers.com
http://www.hellsheadbangers.com/
|
Bands from down
under have always owned their own style and sound, Destruktor is no
exception. Indeed, they are an apocalyptic brew of barbarous,
bestial old school death cult speed spewed with Aussie tradition and
perform like a well oiled machine. 4 songs, 1 intro totaling 16:34
may seem short yet it is better than 70 minutes of poser crud!
Nuclear mushrooms are pictured here and features (on this recording)
ex-Destroyer 666 skinsman Jarro, but you couldn’t tell as there are
many great ways to describe the mighty Destruktor. Jarro does vocals
with main man Glenn (on guitar) on the title track and on “Fight
Like The Devil” in an all out attack of BM hatred, bands from this
continent can only execute. Is it the drinking water, isolation,
heat or all three that creates such windpipes? All out brutal
fukking DM from Glenn on “Nuclear War” and “Strive To Conquer” is
seasoned and heavily salted, laced with years of work resulting in
near perfection. The intro is a metallic masterpiece of a battle
march which showcases the extreme talent this band possesses. Great
MCD and I can’t wait to see what happens next. Support Destruktor or
I’ll have you gang-banged by a pack of demonic red eyed Kangaroo’s
you sluts! – Clayton
www.destruktor.cjb.net www.hellsheadbangers.com |
I must say
getting a new release from Destruktor, for me, is like hearing from
old friend you lost connection with for a time. In way, it literally
is as the mainman of Destruktor, Glenn was an old friend of mine. We
used to write letters on paper to each other, not sure if anyone
remembers archaic tradition? We lost touch, but he still reaches out
with his music and reminds me he is still around the scene from time
to time. Glenn definitely has an old school sort of mind set and it
shows in his music. This is some fine dark, but brutal death metal
just like in the early days. It grinds you down with rolling riffing
and death marching drum runs. Glenn’s vocals are tortured and
guttural growls which compliment the raging music nicely. It all has
a very organic feel to it and the band will probably be well pleased
to hear that. As if fans of modern metallic plastic machinations are
unhappy, despite the sound being well clear on here, it likely is
too rough and heavy for their slick ears and mass media junked up
minds. Then again Australians always seem to have a deep respect for
the old metal traditions. If you are looking for something fresh and
innovative and smooth, well, just keep on looking. If you want
something that is vital and heavy and dark as it is mean, then you
have found what you were looking for. I mean who does not enjoy a
spiked glove first to the teeth? It is hard to believe Destruktor
has been around for over a decade releasing demos, eps and a split.
Yet, this is their debut album and they did it up right. Congrats
Glenn and get in touch you old goat. – Dale
http://www.destruktor.com/
http://www.hellsheadbangers.com/
|
Everyone should
know deep inside the depths of Sweden, many a moons ago and ages
since the festival fires to the gods burned bright - out of those
ashes was born a legendary band named Pagan Rites. Now Pagan Rites
raped the scene with delight and always staying true to their
Autopsy Torment-ed roots. The lead tormenter of the rites and
rituals and heart of those old bands was Devil Lee Rot, after a time
of in-activity the Mr. Rot decided to strike out on his lonesome,
naming his latest and at the risk of backlash unto me, greatest band
yet, aptly named after himself. Deeply rooted in traditional metal
both clean and dirty, everything from Judas Priest and Saxon to
Piledriver and Anvil – yes I admit the black metal roots of Devil
Lee Rot appear to have been shed, though the Satanic image was not,
yet the band is no less lethal for sharpening it’s focus further
down the deep root systems. Yes, yes my demons, this is pure old
school heavy metal hellfire that will have you breaking out your
spiked wrist bands and drawing sick logos on your tattered school
binders! I fucking dare you to listen to songs like “Man Made of
Steel”, “Prepare For War”, “Blade In The Night” and “Metal Avengers”
and not want to headbang, and not want to sew a Devil Lee Rot patch
on your Denim and not play air guitar!! Do not let my retro chants
and nostalgic musings fool you, this album has depth, it is gloomy
emotion where called for and the vocals have dynamics to them in a
way bands of today just can not understand, that is not even
mentioning some of the tasty guitar work and timely ‘n tasty drum
licks. A classic record in the making, this much is certain. Though
that seems to be becoming a mere routine for Devil Lee Rot, can this
legend do no wrong?! Maybe I am becoming stuck in my ways, but I
live for this stuff, a lot of other new music in an interesting
distraction but this is the kind of music that lasts and that is the
greatest honour I can bestow! – Dale
Iron Fist
Productions, c/o Thomas Nyqvist 8a, 417 02 Goteborg, SWEDEN
ironfist@hotmail.com www.ironfist.cjb.net |
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