ALBUM REVIEWS

RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS

  • PACT – The Infernal Hierarchies, Penetrating the Threshold of Night

    Back in 2012, I gave the first Pact full-length one of only perhaps 3 full mark sixes I’ve ever handed out. I was impressed by the brutal, occult assault perpetrated by the US trio. I loved the cold, otherworldly rawness they managed to infuse their music with. Even more, I loved the demonic intensity with…

  • TENNESSEE MURDER CLUB – Human Harvest

    We can forgive you if you’ve never heard of TMC before – this Dakota Death Metal act has kept a relatively low profile since its inception in 2009. But perhaps with a little luck and their second full-length release things might be set to change…‘Human Harvest’ is death metal played straight down the middle –…

  • MANILLA ROAD – Mystification

    ‘Mystification’ was the sixth full-length release from seminal metallers Manilla Road, put out back in 1987, which many consider to be within the golden age for the band. Although, I still rate their new stuff, I agree – along with ‘The Deluge’ and ‘Open the Gates’ this is MR at their very best. Firstly, Mark…

  • HELMSPLITTER – Enraptured by Suffering

    Amerikanske Helmsplitter oppgis til å være et death/thrash metal band. Det kan for så vidt stemme, men jeg vil nok si at det er mer death enn thrash. Mest death, litt thrash, litt mindre black og enda litt mindre 70-talls. Jeg vil si det låter mer som en merkelig blanding av Marduk a la "Panzer…

  • PILGRIM – II: Void Worship

    Ah, the many shades of doom and stoner metal these days. The classic template laid forth by Black Sabbath has shifted, transformed, and mutated through the generations. Pilgrim is a duo who live for the new breed of doom, often funeral-esque with as much love for Sabbath as Electric Wizard, early Cathedral, and the long…

  • REALITY GREY – Define Redemption

    Active since 2004, the Italian modern melodic death metal unit Reality Grey have been carving their way up the ranks through demos and EP/ self-released album output. "Define Redemption" is their second full-length, and first in eight years. Securing a new second guitarist Albo in 2012, these nine songs aren’t your typical melodic death metal…

  • WOLVES LIKE US – Black Soul Choir

    An interesting amalgamation of post-hardcore fueled alternative rock/ punk, Oslo Norway’s Wolves Like Us has a lot of addictive qualities to their sound on this second album "Black Soul Choir". Remnants of Quicksand, Hüsker Dü and the like who propel grooves through hypnotic rhythms and drone-like, alternative vocals should savor "When Will We Ever Sleep",…

  • PRIMAL FROST – Prosperous Visions

    Starting out as a one man project in 2012, Dean Paul Arnold has set about an ambitious aural entity for Primal Frost. The Toronto, Canada act actually performs live as a four piece- but in a studio setting Dean is the sole writer, composer, vocalist, and performer – handling all instrumentation. "Prosperous Visions" is a…

  • EDGUY – Space Police- Defenders of the Crown

    Change- evolution – it’s a constant throughout humankind. We are born, we grow into adulthood, we hopefully mature, and eventually we need to come to terms with the finality of our lives here on Earth. Throughout vocalist Tobias Sammet’s musical career, he’s set out to establish a style, and quietly evolve based on experience and…

  • THE DRIP – A Presentation of Gruesome Poetics

    The Drip er ikke som andre grindcoreband. De spiller fort, har korte låter, har helt uforståelig vokal og de er under Relapse sine vinger, den er grei. Men de har kun gitt ut tre utgivelser på syv år, og det er tre EP-er. Det er fryktelig laber produktivitet sammenlignet med de fleste andre band innenfor…

  • GAMMA RAY – Empire of the Undead

    Not even a devastating studio complex fire will stop the Gamma Ray metal train in 2014. Fortunate for us listeners, the studio masters for the 11th Gamma Ray album "Empire of the Undead" did not smolder into oblivion, and as such we welcome this 10 song record with open arms. Longtime drummer Dan Zimmerman stepped…

  • FISTHAMMER – Infallible

    Fisthammer er et death metalband fra Philadelphia, USA. Bandet har eksistert siden 2008 og «Infallible» er bandets andre fullengder. Her handler det om veldig variert god death metal med flust av temposkifter, gode riff og headbangervillige partier i forskjellige tempo. I tillegg er musikken krydret med gode innslag fra både black og thrash metal, litt…

  • MONOLITH – Dystopia

    Germany certainly remains one of the biggest supporters of all genres hard rock and heavy metal – and their domestic bands also have a lot to put on the table for product and ideas. Monolith is a psychedelic doom rock trio living for that 70’s vibe on this seven song album "Dystopia". You can expect…

  • CRYSTAL TEARS – Hellmade

    The third album for Greek speed/power metal band Crystal Tears also represents another vocal change, as Soren Nico Adamsen takes over on "Hellmade". Musically the 11 songs have a faster, heavier, and slightly speedier nature, although there are standard mid-tempo power efforts such as "Out of the Shadows" and swing shuffler "Rock N Growl" to…

  • STAMINA – Perseverance

    You don’t often get the chance to hear slap bass in a melodic progressive metal band- but during the instrumental break for "Higher" the opening song on Stamina’s third album "Perseverance", new bassist Lorenzo Zarone makes his ability a calling card. Still traversing a keyboard-oriented neo-classical platform that resides between Royal Hunt and Symphony X,…

  • CRADLE OF FILTH – Total Fucking Darkness

    To be honest, I´ve never been a big fan of Cradle Of Filth. Their gothic formula to black metal with that shrieking vocal on top have annoyed me more than most. Their debut "The Principle of Evil mad Flesh" from 1994 was quite promising with some fresh ideas to the allready dragging black metal genre.…

  • LOUDBLAST – Burial Ground

    Loudblast er et fransk progressivt death thrash metal band som har holdt på siden tidenes morgen. Med nesten 30 på baken som undergrunnsband har Loudblast opparbeidet seg et enormt rykte og fanbase. De begynte å spille thrash metal som en rekke andre band på midten av 80-tallet, men hadde klare spor av det som senere…

  • IRON SAVIOR – Rise of the Hero

    The sci-fi power metal band Iron Savior returns for their eighth full length studio album in "Rise of the Hero". For guitarist/ vocalist Piet Sielck, his heart remains steadfast for the traditional elements that make the genre so revered. There’s a certain mechanized production style, guitar tone, vocal inflections, and double bass work from drummer…

  • MAGNUM – Escape From the Shadow Garden

    18 studio albums and charging forward – it’s the semi-progressive hard rock veterans from the UK otherwise known as Magnum, aging appropriately like a fine wine. It’s nice to see older musicians willing to pump out studio albums on an annual to semi-annual basis – proof that creative minds do not diminish as the hair…

  • THE EXPLOITED – Fuck the System

    To celebrate the signing of punk legends The Exploited, Nuclear Blast have put together re-releases of their last 3 studio albums, all with bonus material. Apparently the band were also set to release a new album this year, although where that stands in the wake of Wattie’s heart attack isn’t entirely clear. It is expected…

  • THE EXPLOITED – Beat the Bastards

    To celebrate the signing of punk legends The Exploited, Nuclear Blast have put together re-releases of their last 3 studio albums, all with bonus material. Apparently the band were also set to release a new album this year, although where that stands in the wake of Wattie’s heart attack isn’t entirely clear. It is expected…

  • THE EXPLOITED – The Massacre

    To celebrate the signing of punk legends The Exploited, Nuclear Blast have put together re-releases of their last 3 studio albums, all with bonus material. Apparently the band were also set to release a new album this year, although where that stands in the wake of Wattie’s heart attack isn’t entirely clear. It is expected…

  • BEASTO BLANCO – Live Fast Die Loud

    I would like to start out this little review of mine by stating that Beasto Blanco rules and that I love it. Chuck Garric (Alice Cooper) is the man behind the whole thing and he has done a great job when it comes to creating and releasing an extremely energetic, intense, catchy, raw, and 100…

  • DREAD SOVEREIGN – All Hell’s Martyrs

    ‘All Hell’s Martyrs’ is the debut full-length from Dublin doomsters Dread Sovereign. The band features Primordial’s Nemtheanga on bass and vocals and Sol Dubh on drums along with Bones from Wizards of Firetop Mountain on guitar. By this stage you’ve already checked out the score and know that I’m not 100% convinced by this one.…

  • KING OF TROLLS – The Cave

    King of Trolls spiller en blanding av fengende rock n roll, gitarrock og poprock, ikke helt fjernt fra det jeg vil kalle «husmorrock». Spor av tradisjonell power metal finnes også. På sitt beste er dette meget bra men på sitt svakeste bringes minnene fra 80-tallets bygdefester tilbake. Jeg blir fyllesjuk bare med tanken. Jeg blir…

  • BOMBS OF HADES – Through The Dark Past

    Just to be clear, I like Bombs of Hades. Their last full-length "The Serpents Redemption" was one piece of massive old school death metal. (Read my opinon here: http://www.eternal-terror.com/reviews/index.php?id=3162). "Through The Dark Past" is an compilation album containing material from demo7´s & EP´s + unreleased songs. The sweet thing that makes this mandatory for BoH…

  • TWITCH OF THE DEATH NERVE – A New Code of Morality

    Det er få promoer som har fått så mye spilletid som det Twitch of the Death Nerve «A New Code of Morality» har fått her i heimen den siste tiden. Skiva har surret og gått på repeat den siste uka, kun avbrutt av et akutt vinylbehov ved to anledninger. Og da skulle man tro at…

  • RANGER – Shock Skull

    Ranger hails from Finland and play´s some of the best speed metal I´ve heard in many years. This is true to the bone, fast and relentless metal that go fast as a shark (pun intended). "Shock Skull" is an EP that only contains two tracks on a total of 11 minutes but it feels like…

  • D’ACCORD – D’accorD III

    D’accorD is a Norwegian progressive (hard) rock band, and as the title of the album indicates, this is the band’s third full-length release so far. I have never listened to their music previously, and I must admit that I have never actually heard of the band either, but that does not change the fact that…

  • SARKOM – Doomsday Elite

    "Doomsday Elite" is actually my first encounter with the Norwegian entity known as Sarkom, even though I have often come across their name in the underground press these last few years. Anyway, this album, which came out in October last year (2013), contains 8 interesting, diverse, and intensely dark black metal tunes that are quite…