RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS
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LUCIFER’S CHILD – The Wiccan
Lucifer’s Child is a new act comprising members of Greek masters Rotting Christ and Nightfall. You can probably guess from that what the sound is like: although black metal influences exist, the overall offering of this album is mid-paced tracks with a strong emphasis on creating driving rhythms that create an occult but not blasphemous…
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STEREO NASTY – Nasty by Nature
Rare is the day that a debut release from a more traditional heavy metal/ 80’s oriented act comes down the pike from Ireland, but that’s the case currently in front of my ears with Stereo Nasty. The quartet have all the primary tools down – riffing and chord progressions that are lean and mean for…
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BLACK MAJESTY – Cross of Thorns
With a new record deal secured through upstart Pride & Joy Music, Australian power metal quintet Black Majesty release their sixth studio album "Cross of Thorns". Always a favorite for their seasoned musicianship, the band know how to intertwine a great mixture of influences from all sides of the globe and make it cohesive. Classic…
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TSJUDER – Antiliv
The Norwegian black metal trio known as Tsjuder made a pretty strong comeback a few years ago with the album "Legion Helvete", and I am pleased to announce that this brand new 8-track album of theirs entitled "Antiliv" is even better than its predecessor. While still rooted in raw, aggressive, and blasphemous old-school black metal,…
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SLAYER – Repentless
Hva er Slayer uten Jeff Hannemann og Dave Lombardo? Det er det store spørsmålet mange har stilt seg selv etter at Hannemann døde (R.I.P.) i mai 2013 og Lombardo fikk fyken av kongen selv ca to måneder tidligere. Mange av oss har fått opplevd dem på en scene de siste to årene og de fleste…
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SYMPHONY X – Underworld
Symphony X should not need any introduction, as one of the finest, if not the finest, progressive metal bands around. As for the music and genre, it will always be a matter of taste, but I doubt anyone would ever argue the skills and dedecation this band has shown over the years, and still show, after…
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U.D.O. – Navy Metal Night
The well-known German band named U.D.O., which was formed by legendary vocalist Udo Dirkschneider upon leaving Accept, recently released this rather peculiar 2CD/DVD combo via AFM Records, and please note that the word peculiar is not meant in a derogatory sense here. "Navy Metal Night" is a live album that captures a rather special sold-out…
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HEVILAN – The End of Time
Originally hitting the streets independently a couple of years back, the debut album from Brazil’s Hevilan gains bigger distribution and promotion through Massacre Records. Deriving their name from the Hebrew word Hevila, which means full of treasures, the band has been in existence since 2005. I’d describe their sound as a mixture of progressive metal…
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SCYTHIAN – Hubris in Excelsis
The Scythians were a warlike Iron Age tribe from the Black Sea who enjoyed many successful military conquests. This particular duo from the UK possess a similar black/death march template, as "Hubris in Excelsis" is the second studio full-length from Scythian, six years removed from their debut "To Those Who Stand Against Us…". These 9…
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EVIL ARMY – Violence and War
Memphis, Tennessee isn’t the most likely place to expect a speed/thrash metal trio to exist, but that’s the case here with Evil Army. Plugging away in the underground since 2003, the band has a plethora of split, single, album, demo, and EP efforts – only taking a break from 2010-12 as guitarist/vocalist Rob Evil dealt…
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ORKAN – Livlaus
Orkan is a Norwegian black metal quartet that was vomited forth back in 2008 and which includes Gjermund Fredheim (Taake, Syrach) and Rune Nesse (ex-Byfrost) among others. "Livlaus" is the second full-length assault by the band, and let me start out by saying that this is an interesting, diverse, and organic album we are dealing…
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DEMON’S EYE – Under the Neon
"Under the Neon" by the German band named Demon’s Eye is one of the best, coolest, and most memorable albums I have had the pleasure of listening to this year. No, wait a minute, did I say this year? Scratch that! What I meant to say was that this is one of the most brilliantly…
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BERNIE TORME – Blackheart
Legendary guitarist Bernie Torme (ex-Gillan, ex-Ozzy Osbourne, ex-Atomic Rooster) has returned with a follow-up to last year’s excellent album, the one that was named "Flowers and Dirt". This brand new musical output, which is entitled "Blackheart", contains twelve awesome and mindblowingly catchy tunes that are filled to the brim with great riffs, amazing basslines, rum-soaked…
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GRAVEWORM – Ascending Hate
The ninth studio album from Italy’s Graveworm "Ascending Hate" contains the requisite dark metal elements that have established the quintet as a potent presence in the scene. Combining black and gothic outlooks both musically and vocally to allow the band a wide open playing field in terms of these compositions, we get 10 tracks that…
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DEGREED – Dead But Not Forgotten
Can a band exist today that has a little bit of that modern edge while still embodying the classic melodic hard rock/ AOR template that ruled the airwaves in the 1980’s? Sweden’s Degreed possess both elements seamlessly on their third studio record "Dead But Not Forgotten". Where the current electro-pop keyboard portions from Micke Jansson…
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LUCIFER’S CHILD – The Wiccan
Lucifer’s Child is a relatively new Greek black metal quartet comprised of members of Rotting Christ and Nightfall, and I must say that I am most pleased with "The Wiccan", the 8-track debut album by these guys. This is one of those albums that sound delightfully old-school and yet somewhat forward-looking as well. Greek black…
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NILE – What Should not be Unearthed
Nile har funnet tilbake til godformen på sitt nye mesterverk «What should not be Unearthed». Karl Sanders, Dallas Toller-Wade og George Kollias er ferdige med sin litt eksperimentelle periode som de har drevet med i de senere årene. Mange fans er nok fornøyd med det og de kan nå nyte musikken til Nile slik de…
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YES – Like It Is – YES at the Mesa Arts
A sequel of sorts to "Like It Is: Yes at the Bristol Hippodrome" where the band would perform "Going for the One" and "The Yes Album" in their entirety, "Like It Is- At the Mesa Arts Center" focuses on two more complete albums from their 1970’s period: "Close to the Edge" and "Fragile". This double…
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MOTÖRHEAD – Bad Magic
Så er den her da, den 22. skiva fra Motörhead. Det er helt utrolig å tenke på at et band skal gi ut 22. fullengdere/studioalbum og fortsatt klare å levere gode album. Og det på 40 år. Motörhead har klart det. Jeg er imponert. 40 år som plateartist og liveband og fortsatt å være på…
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PYOGENESIS – A Century in the Curse of Time
Diversity is the spice of life- especially when it comes to music. For every artist that subjects its listeners to a steady diet of what they’ve come to expect, you have others who insist on serving up product a little different each and every time. Even if it could be to the detriment of long-term…