RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS
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SARCOFAGO – Rotting LP re-release
Å gi ut eldre metalklassikere på vinyl er blitt stor butikk og nå er også brasilianske Sargofago og deres EP «Rotting» fra 1989 kommet ut på nytt. Det er det amerikanske selskapet Greyhaze Records som har fått fatt på rettighetene til det legendariske brasilianske selskapet Cogumelo Records og derfra kom det mye gull på 80-…
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CENTURIAN – Choronzonic Chaos Gods – Re-release
Centurian´s (NL) debut "Choronzonic Chaos Gods" orignially from 1999 is getting the re-release treatment from Hells Headbangers and what a pleasant surprise this was. Centurian was not an unknown entity for me but I´ve never taken the time to give them a proper listen. This is uber heavy second wave death metal with an massive…
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CRIPPLE BASTARDS – Nero in Metastasi
I have known of Cripple Bastards for a long time now but had never listened to them before this (probably because I didn’t particularly like their name!). Generally when I start to review a band I hadn’t heard of before I check them out on the Metal Archives to see what they are all about.…
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DEN SAAKALDTE – Kapittel II – Faen i Helvete
Depressive (and depressed?) Norwegian black metallers Den Saakaldte have returned with a new dark opus that will flush your day right down the toilet. What more could you ungrateful fucks ask for? Right, then. Let’s move on. Kapittel II – Faen i Helvete contains 7 songs that are filled to the brim with dark, twisted,…
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HELSTAR – This Wicked Nest
Poised to continue assaulting our senses in fierce power metal, Texas veterans Helstar appear to show no signs of slowing down on their eighth full length studio album "This Wicked Nest". A lot of times as consumers fear sets in when original members reunite 10-15 years after their first breakup – are the musicians returning…
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DELAIN – The Human Contradiction
The Dutch gothic rock/ symphonic metal scene appears to be very fertile, and this quintet would be one of the main reasons why. "The Human Contradiction" is their fourth studio full length album, hot on the heels of 2012’s "We Are the Others" and last year’s "Interlude" compilation of live tracks, cover songs, and a…
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MERCYLESS – Unholy Black Splendor
Mercyless from France was one of the country´s pioneérs in the early thrash/death genre that developed in the late 80´s. The started out as Merciless but changed their name to Mercyless because of a little unknown band (pun intended) from Sweden with the same name. Mercyless delivered a couple of (now) classics in the genre…
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INSOMNIUM – Shadows of the Dying Sun
The sixth album from Finland’s answer to both In Flames and Dark Tranquillity, does not disappoint. The guys deliver the hooks and offer few surprises, and it is those surprises that elevate it above another Insomnium release. Particularly fantastic is the downright black metal "Black Heart Rebellion", infectious and angry as all get out, as…
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ARCHSPIRE – The Lucid Collective
Kanadiske Archspires nye album "The Lucid Collective" har vi hatt gleden av og streame her på Eternal Terror. Bandet er i disse dager ute med sitt andre album. Dette er teknisk glimrende rask death metal som er blitt ganske typisk for de nord-amerikanske bandene innenfor den tekniske death metal sjangeren. Det går fort for seg…
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EXIT – Face the Enemy
The third album from Swiss thrash/death quartet Exit, "Face the Enemy" has an interesting balance of modern stomp, melodic interludes, and a vocalist who could rival Barney Greenway from Napalm Death in terms of gruff, low growls. The band appear to be adding in more Fear Factory clean parts as a bridge to their heavier…
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OBDURATED – I Feel Nothing
Briefly known in their early years as Obdurate, taking to the past tense in their updated moniker doesn’t mean this French act’s sound is stuck in the past. Although influences certainly abound from the Bay Area and Scandinavian camps, the 10 song "I Feel Nothing" album showcases a sturdy set of compositions that level the…
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SCREAM ARENA – Scream Arena
The tag line on Scream Arena’s official Facebook page couldn’t be more appropriate: proof that men with long hair still roam the earth and plug in and play live. Hailing from York, United Kingdom – it’s refreshing to know in 2014 there are still musicians that believe natural instrumentation sans technology enhancement can still be…
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OGRE – The Last Neanderthal
Feel the snare crack during "Nine Princes in Amber" and the 1-2-3-4 hits a la Kiss’ "Love Gun" – enjoy the somber effects laden solo segments travelling against the evil Bon Scott meets Neil Fallon-like melodies from bassist Ed Cunningham on the 8:21 follow up "Bad Trip" – two songs in and Portland, Maine’s Ogre…
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SERPENT WARNING – Serpent Warning
Serpent Warning hail from Finland and perform doom metal inspired by old gods such as Black Sabbath, Roky Erickson, Saint Vitus, Pentagram…and the list goes on. To my ears Serpent Warning are old-school in the sense that their particular brand of metal is somewhat traditional and vintage-sounding, which is to say that this self-titled album…
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BURNING SAVIOURS – Boken om Förbannelsen
The Swedish occult stoner/doom rockers known as Burning Saviours have once again joined forces with I Hate Records and released a compilation album consisting of four previously released 7" singles that came out between 2011 and 2013. In a sense, "Boken om Förbannelsen" is quite neat if you’re either new to the doomy and hazy…
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EXISTANCE – Steel Alive
Hailing from France, Existance is a quartet who perform in a classic 80’s heavy metal style: the type that makes you break out leather and wave your fist in the air to anthem style numbers. Vocalist/ guitarist Julian Izard is the son of speed metal H-Bomb vocalist Didier Izard, so you know the lineage means…
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PRONG – Ruining Lives
Vitality is a many splendored element to a successful life. New York’s Prong seem to have a second career resurrection following their late 80’s/ early 90’s dominance in crossover/thrash where they regularly slugged it out on the road and had impressive regular rotation of their videos on Headbangers’ Ball. The sound is a little more…
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SAVN – Savn
Det har naturlig nok knyttet seg spenning og forventninger rundt debutalbumet til Savn. Etter å ha hørt på Midnattsol i mange år, vil man uvilkårlig sammenligne Carmens nye prosjekt og Midnattsol. Visse likhetstrekk finner man jo. Savn overrasker positivt. Carmens klare stemme kommer mer til sin rett her, sammen med en gotisk og melodiøs musikk.…
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BELOW – Across the Dark River
Epic doom metal. Black Sabbath started the movement; Candlemass held the torch long and strong for most of the 1980’s and early 90’s ; and since then we’ve seen pockets of bands come and go which keep audiences interested in the style. Below hail from Sweden, a 5-piece act that started in 2012 and thanks…
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PHLEBOTOMIZED – Imense Intense Suspense/Skycontact
Phlebotomized started out as a grindcore outfit but soon changed their style to a form of avant-garde metal around 1990. Phlebotomized can and should be considered pioneérs of the genre and their impact on the bands forming in the mid 90´s is not to be underestimated. The dutch band released their debut "Imense Intense Supsense"…
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MAYHEM – Psywar
Fucking finally! I have been waiting a long time for some new material by the legendary Mayhem following their brilliantly conceived "Ordo ad Chao" masterpiece, which came out way back in 2007. Man, how time flies! Anyway, "Psywar" is a 2-track EP (or single, or depending on your point of view) containing the title track,…
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DEATH – Leprosy – Reissue
Back in the day, ‘Scream Bloody Gore’ almost single-handedly created the template for the death metal genre. Ominous chord progressions invoked the necessary horror, but it was Chuck’s riffs that fully brought it home. Nobody has, even since then, done as half much to create a musical lexicon that somehow manages to capture decapitation, disembowelment…
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ANTI-MORTEM – New Southern
Raised on southern rock and heavy metal, Oklahoma’s Anti-Mortem are a young bunch of musicians as the average age is at the legal United States drinking age of 21. 4 years in, the quintet gain a new deal under the Nuclear Blast Entertainment sub-label for their debut album "New Southern". The 12 songs sit in…