ALBUM REVIEWS

RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS

  • ARC ANGEL – Harlequins Of Light

    Connecticut AOR act Arc Angel return from their 1983 self-titled debut to release a new album. Main member Jeff Cannata (who sings and plays keyboards, guitars, bass, and drums) along with supplementary help from session guitarists and keyboardists perform on this 12 song effort. I’d describe the material as decidedly American, patriotic at times with…

  • DIESTO – For Water Or Blood

    Portland, Oregon’s Diesto release their fifth full length album in 10 years with "For Water or Blood". A doom/ stoner metal oriented quartet, expect material that drives itself off the giant riff- often accenting jam-worthy instrumental sections and vocals that are melancholy and morose. Mark Bassett and Chris Dunn perform double duty as they also…

  • LITTLE RIVER BAND – Cuts Like A Diamond

    My memories for this Australian melodic rock band go back 30 plus years. Pizza parlors and bowling alleys used to own jukeboxes filled with the latest vinyl singles- and "Lonesome Loser" left quite an impression as an adolescent struggling to come to terms with changing hormones and developing social relationships with the opposite sex. Fast…

  • INFECTED SOCIETY – F IS FOR FUCK YOU – MISERABLE FAILURE – Miserable Fucking Society

    Kaotoxin presents this 3 way split sampler of French Grindcore terrorists Infected Society, F is for Fuck You and Miserable Failure. To be honest, from listening to this, it isn’t always that easy to tell which band is which. The songs are all punkish grindcore played with plenty of attitude and a ‘fuck you’ ethos.…

  • NIVA – Magnitude

    With two previous album releases in Japan, Sweden’s Niva seem poised to capture a broader audience with this third studio effort "Magnitude". Their first effort "No Capitulation" hit the streets in 1994- and the five-piece live for melodic rock, bright vocal harmonies, strong hooks in the guitar/ keyboard department, and an era where AOR ruled…

  • APE TO GOD – Ape To God

    A 4 song EP that contains Fanthrash drummer Radd in their ranks, this Polish quintet Ape To God play a form of groove oriented, low tuned death metal with a sense of tribal conviction. "Doomsday Machine" starts the proceedings with a slower, hypnotic arrangement- but the title track follows with these series of minor chord…

  • SCOUT PARÉ-PHILLIPS – Fields of Ash

    This 7" EP by singer/songwriter Scout Paré-Phillips (The Sterling Sisters) is very interesting and captivating, to put it mildly. It contains two songs that have absolutely nothing to do with metal music as such, but what Scout Paré-Phillips manages to conjure up on this EP musically and lyrically speaking is way darker and more melancholic…

  • FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE – Labyrinth

    The third album from Italy’s Fleshgod Apocalypse illustrates the yin and yang of current metal songwriting/ production values. You have a sincere synthesis of symphonic orchestration and background vocal choir elements smashing headlong into a semi-technical death metal whirlwind- with the male extreme vocals assuredly keeping the quintet from total mainstream appeal. After a while…

  • HUNTRESS – Starbound Beast

    A friend of mine introduced me to Huntress a year or so back but like the sceptic I am I needed to see them live before I was convinced and could join the gang of Jill Janus worshippers (interpret that as you like). Huntress debut album "Spell Eater" had some quality material but much was…

  • SAINT VITUS – Die Healing

    The stoned doom metal quality of Saint Vitus is undeniable, and "Die Healing" is rather unfortunately one of their most overlooked and underappreciated albums to date, which is a damn shame as this album proved that the band were still able to churn out slow, burning doom metal songs filled with great riffs and vocals…

  • SAINT VITUS – Die Healing

    Saint Vitus for me is the period where Wino did the vocals, especially "Born Too Late" witch is my favorite SV album among them all. Original vocalist Scott Reagers is a close runner up and on this re-release originally from 1995 he´s is back in the fold and doing his (maybe) best performance under the…

  • CARPE NOCTEM – In Terra Profogus

    Even though this is my first encounter with the Icelandic entity known as Carpe Noctem I`m willing to declare right here and now that we`re dealing with a pretty special and awesome band. "In Terra Profugus" is the band`s first full-length album and it`s filled to the brim with great ideas, good musicianship, potential, energy,…

  • ILDJARN – Forest Poetry

    The Norwegian entity known as Ildjarn was quite productive throughout its existence and released tons of different shit (demos, EPs, albums and compilations) from its inception all the way back in 1991 and up to the present day. However, the project formally ceased to exist in 2005 as far as I know. "Forest Poetry" was…

  • DEFY TOLERANCE – Stop The Bleeding

    When done correctly, modern metal can display a muscular impact while also delivering some serious catchiness. Arizona’s Defy Tolerance lives in this world with their debut album "Stop the Bleeding". Forming in 2011 and developing their sound and lineup over the next year, imagine if you will a lot of the vocal power of Trapt…

  • KATECHON – Man, God, Giant

    Katechon er mystikk. Det eneste som er sikkert for de som ikke kjenner dem, er at de holder til i Trondheim. Ellers er det kun noen bokstaver og et par greske tegn og et mørkt bandbilde som er å finne av informasjon online. Og det betyr ganske enkelt at det er musikken som er hovedfokus.…

  • CANNABIS CORPSE – Re-releases

    My first encounter with Cannabis Corpse was a couple of years ago when I took the time to check out their latest opus "Beneath Grow Lights Thou Shalt Rise". After a quick listen I realised that Cannabis Corpse have more going than just their name and some hilarious song titles. This is a dead serious…

  • BLISS OF FLESH – Beati Pauperes Spiritu

    The French black/death metal squadron named Bliss of Flesh will soon unleash their 2nd full-length album via Non Serviam Records, and that`s something to be excited about as we`re dealing with a good and well-crafted album here. "Beati Pauperes Spiritu" consists of 9 songs that alternate between moody and atmospheric black/death metal on the one…

  • BURNING SHADOWS – Gather, Darkness!

    Burning Shadows is a Maryland quintet releasing their second independent album in "Gather, Darkness!"- one that I’m familiar with from previous fanzine days way back in 2002 with their debut "The Darkest Winter" EP. Writing an album based on a Fritz Lieber novel with the same name, the band breaks the album up into 4…

  • WATAIN – The Wild Hunt

    There is a considerable body of people out there who hail the first two or three Watain albums as classics of modern Black Metal and feel the band sold out with the Grammy-winning fourth album ‘The Lawless Darkness.’ A similar sized body exists who say they understand and accept Watain’s evolution and feel that their…

  • THE JOKERS – Rock & Roll Is Alive

    Throwback hard rock seems to be the rage these days- as younger generations inspired by the likes of Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Deep Purple, and so forth ignite their brain synapses to churn out their own take for the current scene. The Jokers hail from the UK and wish to wedge their way into…

  • INFANT DEATH – War

    Infant Death er annerledestrønderbandet. Hva jeg mener med det? Vel…..alle vet at trøndere er trege og at det meste tar veldig lang tid. Infant Death derimot, har sluppet to demoer og en LP i løpet av noe som kan virke som ei uke, men som i realiteten er et lite halvår. Imponerende, nesten på grensen…

  • DEADLOCK – The Arsonist

    Album number six from German melodic death metal band Deadlock is entitled "The Arsonist", and one that I’ll admit I haven’t been waiting with baited breath to take in based on the symphonic meets Soilwork template heard on "Bizarro World" from 2011. Add 10 more tracks that go deeper into the pop/ low tuned nu-metal/core…

  • GORGUTS – Colored Sands

    Ahhh, finally! At last Luc Lemay and his Gorguts got their collective finger out and released an follow up to 2001´s "From Wisdom to Hate". Not their best release but a fine addition to their previous three during the 90´s. Gorguts have allways done their death metal with finesse and a massive layer of complexity…

  • SOIL – Whole

    I don’t think this is close to alternative metal- Chicago’s Soil performs modern groove corporate oriented metal, speaking to the lowest common denominator in terms of that low chug, easy on the ears chorus, and thick steamroller guitars. Does it matter that vocalist Ryan McCombs is back in the fold after a 9 year break…

  • GARDEN OF – The Mountain King

    The second album from Norway’s Garden Of, "The Mountain King" is a 7 song, 52 minute exercise in progressive rock/ metal with an old school meets new school outlook. Taking cues from King Crimson as well as Opeth, expect lots of jam-oriented musical interaction and time signature/ dynamic contrasts. Sometimes very quiet and subtle as…

  • SPECTRAL LORE / MARE COGNITUM – Sol

    I love the idea of split releases in that you get the chance to check out two or more different bands at the same time. Once in a while the one band will suck while the other one will rule in which case it hasn`t been a complete waste of time listening to the split…

  • REVOCATION – Revocation

    The fourth full length from Massachusetts technical thrash/death act Revocation is a self-titled effort that continues to see the quartet dig deeper into the realm of creating memorable, vicious arrangements while pushing the parameters of creativity and ingenuity. Rarely do you hear an American act willing to infuse diverse influences from international acts like Coroner,…

  • CHURCH OF VOID – Dead Rising

    According to background research I’ve done regarding this Finnish doom metal band, certain members of Church Of Void have previous metal experience in the symphonic epic metal act Battlelore and the black metal band Horna. So we aren’t dealing with young musicians in this five-piece act, even if the band originated in 2010. "Dead Rising"…

  • EXHUMED – Necrocrazy

    Det er en vesentlig ting jeg har lagt merke til når det gjelder goremetalkongene Exhumed. Det blir mindre og mindre gore etter hvert som gutta blir eldre og nye plater kommer ut. Det blir liksom mer og mer ren death metal og jeg vet ikke helt om jeg liker utviklingen. Nå har skiva surret og…

  • ZAFAKON – War as a Drug

    Recently gaining the chance to witness a show on their North American tour this summer, I immediately picked up this debut album from Puerto Rico’s Zafakon, a thrash band with slight crossover/ death appeal. Guitarist / vocalist Marcus Veit possesses a quick hitting growl and killer screams that recall the veteran voice of Mille from…