RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS
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EVIL – Studňa
Evil is a black metal outfit hailing from Slovakia that has released so many demos and split EPs and the likes over the past 14-15 years that I am simply too lazy to list them all here, but the album entitled «Studňa» is only the second full-length assault so far. Not that it matters though,…
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HELFIR – Still Bleeding
Helfir is the debut solo project of Luca Mazzotta, the guitarist in an Italian progressive death metal band called Silvered. "Still Bleeding" is truly a one-man affair – all vocals and instrumentation – yet sounds so full of depth and understanding. The description of decadent noir metal can be translated into post, alternative meets ambient…
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TRIBULATION – The Children of the Night
Sad to see, first off that Tribulation have finished their relationship with Irish label Invictus. A step forwards for the band perhaps, as no doubt the marketing machine of Century Media can offer more than one small independent label. Still… It seems like every step taken by Tribulation in the last few years has seen…
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DAN DEAGH WEALCAN – Who Cares What Music Is Playing In My Headphones?
‘Who Cares What Music Is Playing In My Headphones?’ is the debut full-length from this strangely named Ukranian/Russian duo. Their published ethos is: 1 Be unexpected, 2 Be expressive, 3 Do not limit yourself to the arrangements, 4 Do not repeat yourself, 5 Experiment constantly. The sound is progressive, slightly industrial and melodic, with a…
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DJEVEL – Saa raa og kald
Djevel leker ikke black metal, Djevel er black metal. I en verden med stadig nye sjangere, baby metal og satan vet hva, er Djevel tro mot en oppskrift som har fungert, som fortsatt fungerer, og som vil fungere i evig tid. Hvorfor? Fordi det er ekte, det er innlevelse, det er gjennomført og det er ikke…
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TRIBULATION – The Children of the Night
Sweden’s progressive death/black metal Tribulation are carving out an impressive army of followers in all parts of the globe- and with good reason. Their songwriting diversity and occult-oriented themes bring to mind all of the chills and fear that captivate heavy metal audiences in the first place. "The Children of the Night" as their third…
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THIRD ION – 13/8 Bit
13/8 Bit is the debut from progressive metallers Third Ion. As you can guess from the cover the lyrical drive is Sci-fi and computer games. The sound is reminiscent of Devin Townsend, which is hardly surprising considering the involvement of DT bassist Mike Young. In terms of ability, this is a very accomplished group of…
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HOLLOW HAZE – Memories of an Ancient Time
What happens when you lose Fabio Lione to his more pressing activities for Rhapsody (Of Fire) and Angra? Well, if you are Italian progressive metal act Hollow Haze and you are on your sixth album "Memories of an Ancient Time", you pick yourself up and dial in another professional singer in the form of Mats…
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ABUSIVENESS – Bramy Nawii
Abusiveness is a Polish black metal band with pagan undertones to it that performs aggressive, violent, and at times chaotic music somewhat akin to bands such as Marduk, Enthroned, and Blaze of Perdition just to name a few. The band has actually existed since 1991 and released a whole slew of demos, singles, splits, and…
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DIMINO – Old Habits Die Hard
Former Angel frontman Frank Dimino returns to the scene with his first solo album "Old Habits Die Hard" – and it’s packed to the hilt with 11 catchy melodic hard rock numbers. Supplementary support comes in the form of organist Justin Avery, drummer John Miceli, bassists Paul Crook and Danny Miranda, plus a host of…
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VARIOUS ARTIST – A Light in the Black (A Tribute to Ronnie James Dio)
12 bands on the Massacre Records roster pay tribute to the mighty singer Ronnie James Dio, who five years ago tragically passed away due to stomach cancer. This is a double album of 20 songs spanning his time in Rainbow, Black Sabbath, as well as his solo career – and a mixture of bands from…
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HEATHEN FORAY – Into Battle
Pagan metal, melodic Viking metal – label it however you might, leaders like Amon Amarth and Ensiferum have taken the genre to bigger heights through their consistent discography and live performances. Austria’s Heathen Foray play a similar brand of battle metal on their fourth album – appropriately titled "Into Battle". A mixture of English and…
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VARIOUS ARTIST – Great Lefty: Live Forever! Tribute to Tony Iommi – Godfather of Metal
«Great Lefty: Live Forever!» is a 2-disc tribute to the legendary riffmeister and the father of all that is good and brilliant, namely Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi. If it was not for Iommi I would not be writing these words now, and I dare say that you would not be reading about this album…
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MARTIN POPOFF – Who Invented Heavy Metal?
One of my favorite authors, namely Martin Popoff, has written yet another fascinating heavy metal-related book that I simply had to get my filthy paws on. While most other books by Popoff focus on specific bands, «Who Invented Heavy Metal?» is more of an academic exercise in that it traces and chronicles not only the…
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MORGOTH – Ungod
The first album without Marc Grewe on vocals for Morgoth could be a tenuous sell for the stalwarts, because this German band has been through its share of highs ("Cursed" and "Odium" particular early 90’s death metal favorites of mine) and downs ("Feel Sorry for the Fanatic" and its industrial vibe didn’t sit well with…
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SINISTER – Dark Memorials
Celebrating their 25th anniversary as a band, Dutch death metal veterans Sinister decided to look back into their record collections and dust off their interpretations of some classic songs that they played in their early days. As a bonus, they re-recorded two demo songs "Spiritual Immolation" and "Compulsory Resignation" off their 1990 "Perpetual Damnation" demo…
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SKINTRADE – Scarred For Life
Quickly hitting back with their fourth studio record following the more than adequate "Refueled" comeback of last year, Sweden’s Skintrade consistently deliver in the melodic hard rock genre – and "Scarred for Life" is no different. These 10 songs are infectious, energetic, and bubbling from a bluesy perspective while the vocal harmonies and delivery out…
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HARMONY – Remembrance
An interesting stop-gap release here for Sweden progressive/power metal act Harmony here with "Remembrance". This 6 song EP consists of 4 re-recorded songs from their 2003 "Dreaming Awake" debut album, along with 2 new songs. Normally I would question the need for re-recording… but when you have ex-Lost Horizon vocalist Daniel Heiman as your session…
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CULT OF ENDTIME – In Charnel Lights
Formed out of the ashes of the death/thrash band Discard, Finnish quintet Cult of Endtime shift their sonic outlook into more of a 90’s oriented death/doom montage for their debut album "In Charnel Lights". Looking to their domestic history for reference points, a lot of the atmosphere and pacing has much in common with acts…
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TARAN – Taran
Taran is a Polish black metal ensemble comprised of members who are or have been members of bands such as Arkona, Witchmaster, and Throneum among others. Even though the band has existed for 13 years and released a couple of split outputs and a demo, «Taran» is the band’s first full-length assault. Musically speaking, Taran…