RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS
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VANDEN PLAS – Chronicles of the Immortals: Netherworld (Path 1)
German progressive metal quintet Vanden Plas are a living testament to their craft. Never dealing with a lineup change since their inception in 1986, this seventh studio album is a part one of a two part saga based around author Wolfgang Hohlbein’s "Chronicles of the Immortals" novel series in more of a rock opera format.…
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SKYLINER – Outsiders
Florida may have been a hotbed for death metal in the late 80’s and early 90’s, but they’ve also had their fair share of breakthroughs in the traditional, power, and progressive metal realms: Savatage, Crimson Glory, Iced Earth, and Kamelot among others. Will Jacksonville’s Skyliner be another band to add to this illustrious list? If…
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MASS INFECTION – For I Am Genocide
Brutal death metal and Greece aren’t probably synonymous terms that go together on a regular basis, but Mass Infection live up to the moniker on this third album "For I Am Genocide". Mincing no words, "Praised by All the Entities" opens in blasting fashion as the guitar whirring high notes fly by your headspace faster…
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TRENCHROT – Necronomic Warfare
‘Necronomic Warfare’ is the debut full-length from US DM act Trenchrot. In terms of sound, it kind of reminds me of Asphyx with a side of Bolt Thrower and a dash of Autopsy thrown in. There are slow, staggering riffs made all the more effective by the monolithic guitar sound. Trenchrot can blast too, but…
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LACUNA COIL – Broken Crown Halo
I remember the early days of this Italian band very well. Back in the 1990’s, Lacuna Coil slowly built awareness of their sound, inspired by the likes of Paradise Lost into an amalgamation of gothic metal with hard rock leanings. Vocalist Cristina Scabbia gained a lot of attention due to her impressive multi-octave siren range,…
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THUNDRA – Angstens Salt
The Norwegian entity known as Thundra has released a string of pretty decent and entertaining albums previously, so naturally I was quite looking forward to checking out this latest viking-esque assault of theirs. "Angstens Salt" contains seven rather long compositions that are all pretty damn epic, bombastic, and catchy in my humble opinion. I quite…
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ANIMATOR – Blacklisted
Hailing from Ireland as I do, I am happy to report that I have had the chance to see these Waterford Thrashers live on more than one occasion and have been awaiting this release eagerly. And I am even happier to say that I am not disappointed with ‘Blacklisted’.The music on offer is melodic thrash…
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SHEAR – Katharsis
The second album "Katharsis" from Finnish sextet Shear is a multi-layered aural journey that traverses many sub-facets of the metal world. Brimming with melodic charm, the 11 tracks on here run up and down the flagpole from semi-progressive/ symphonic metal through the intriguing "Heaven into Hell", an almost Symphony X-like "Last Warning" to semi-acoustic meets…
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PURTENANCE – Awaken from Slumber
Finnish cult deathsters Purtenance is allso having an revival and releasing their second full-length since their debut back in 1992. The debut "Member of Immortal Damnation" was an instant classic back in the days and it´s been on regular rotation on my discplayer since. They captured some of the true old Finnish sound with their…
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BLACKBIRD – Of Heroes and Enemies
An air of similarity reigns supreme as I take in the debut album from German hard rock quartet Blackbird "Of Heroes and Enemies". Angus Dersim is the lead guitarist/ vocalist, and the sonic outlook for these 10 songs has plenty of Airbourne/ AC/DC raw rock ‘n roll charisma through electric, 3 chord orientated structures that…
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BOOZE & GLORY – Bold As Brass
Booze & Glory has been going for a few years now and after releasing two strong albums and a handful of singles, they’ve really made a name for themselves, and the expectations for this third album was pretty huge.B&G is, only next to Cock Sparrer, probably one of the catchiest PunkOi! bands of all time,…
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BEHEMOTH – The Satanist
There was a time a couple of years ago that I feared we would never hear from our friends Behemoth again. So I rejoice with all of you out there who supported Nergal during his battle with ill-health and offer thanks that he is still here to lead his infernal horde forth once more. My…
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APOKALYPTIC RAIDS – Only Death is Real
Here you have the ultimate in Hellhammer worship. Brazilian Apokalyptic Raids´s first full-length "Only Death is Real" from 2001. Re-released on vinyl by Hells Headbangers and a sworen testemony of the greatness of the music Hellhammer released before turning into Celtic Frost (and yes, still continued to release perfect music). This Brazilian outfit got their…
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DARK FOREST – The Awakening
Looking back on my previous review for this UK band’s second album "Dawn of Infinity", I remember thinking that this quintet could be much stronger with a more promising vocal presence. So Dark Forest on their third album "The Awakening" introduce two new members: second guitarist Patrick Jenkins and vocalist Josh Winnard, and as a…
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ACHERON – Kult des Hasses
US based Acheron with frontman Vincent Crowley has allways been an oddbal of interrest for me. Since their debut back in 1992 ( "Rites of the Black Mass") they have have kept the satantic death metal flag high and kept their music semi interresting. Not to complicated but straight forward without being to extreme in…
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TEMPERANCE – Temperance
Modern melodic metal with extreme nuances for dynamic flavor appears to be the hot genre – given the impact of Sweden’s Amaranthe in terms of sales, touring, and general buzz, I expect this trend to continue. Italy’s Temperance on their debut self-titled album wish to grab their share of audience through a similar template: dual…
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PRIMEVAL REALM – Primordial Light
Recording most of his own material out of necessity due to a lack of musicians in the New Jersey area sufficiently into doom, vocalist/ guitarist Joe Potash released three demos for Primeval Realm in 2009 playing, writing, and producing it all (keyboards, bass and drums included). Now in 2014, Joe has a secure lineup in…
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HOUSE OF LORDS – Precious Metal
The ninth studio album from melodic arena rock/ AOR veterans House of Lords is crisp, clear, and strong – just as vocalist James Christian and company have been known for since the beginning years. "Precious Metal" contains 12 songs that vary from straight ahead rockers like "Battle" (love the B.J. Zampa thunderous drum roll opening)…
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AGIEL – Dark Pantheons
Det er ingen hemmelighet at jeg ikke liker synth I metal, men er har vi et band som faktisk klarer å bruke det på en tøff mate. Vel, for det meste. Se på det som en extreme versjon av Fleshgod Apocalypse. En kaotisk extreme versjon. Mindre melodiøs, kun brutalitet og kaos. Se for deg et…
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ARMAGEDDON REV.16:16 – Sundown on Humanity
Wow, almost 30 years in the business and finally your debut album comes out- kudos to commitment from this Cyprus power metal quintet. Lineup changes and the mandatory government military duties put a little crimp in their output – but Armageddon Rev. 16:16 finally unleash a 12 track, hour long record with "Sundown on Humanity".…
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DOMAINS – Sinister Ceremonies
Domains er en dødsmaskin som kommer fra den spanske østkysten. Valencia er hjembyen til dette litt annerledes men brutale death metal bandet. Bandet ble dannet i 2005 og de har kun en demo på samvittigheten før sitt debutalbum «Sinister Ceremonies» som jeg nå sitter med i mine hender. Og for en debut det er. Jeg…
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SLOUGH FEG – Digital Resistance
Nine albums in but Slough Feg don’t seem to have moved on much in recent years. ‘Digital Resistance’ doesn’t really provide much in the way of stylistic advancement or any change in the way the songs are put together. The epic Thin Lizzy vibe is the same as ever, but this time around it feels…
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SCIBEX – Path to Omors
Brazilian extreme metal band Scibex issues their debut album "Path to Omors", and oh what a mighty avant-garde 61 minute album you will undertake should you choose to stay the course. I know that latter day Death and Opeth will come to mind most on "Cryptic Comfort Zone", the maze mind-number "Mermaid Serpent" and slightly…
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VOIDHANGER – Working Class Misanthropy: Of Rapture and Disgust
Voidhanger er et nytt bekjentskap for meg, men med litt hjelp av internettet, fant jeg raskt ut at dette er et sideprosjekt til et par av folka i Infernal War. Det er vokalist Warcrimer og gitarist Zyklon som har slått seg sammen med Priest, en trommis som også spiller i Massemord. De har fått litt…