RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS
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HEXVESSEL – Polar Veil
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.hexvessel.com/ Hexvessel is undoubtedly one of the most fascinating and musically adventurous entities that I have had the great pleasure of listening to since the debut offering entitled Dawnbringer from 2011. There is an enigmatic aura to every single output of theirs, and with the gifted Mathew “Kvohst” McNerney in charge…
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SLAAMASKIN – Trollveggen
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://slaamaskin.bandcamp.com/track/du-2 I friggin’ love these mad Norwegian bastards and their energetic and spirited take on explosive metal, hardcore, and punk rock. With fierce riffs and even fiercer vocals, Slaamaskin mean business and are clearly out there to melt our faces and pummel us to death, and the cool thing is that…
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JOEL HOEKSTRA’S 13 – Crash of Life
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: http://www.joelhoekstra.com/ The brilliant songwriter and guitarist Joel Hoekstra has not only done wonderful things for Whitesnake but also released a couple of fabulous solo records, the latest being this 12-track effort titled Crash of Life where he is joined by a stellar cast of friends and musicians, namely Vinny Appice, Tony…
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SHORES OF NULL – The Loss Of Beauty
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.shoresofnull.com/ In my review of the Italian melodic death/doom metallers Shores Of Null’s one track third full length Beyond The Shores (On Death And Dying)²⁰²⁰ (5/6) I necessarily compared it to both Edge Of Sanity’s Crimson¹⁹⁹⁴ and Insomnium’s Wintergate²⁰¹⁶ the former had inspired, but I concluded that it was inferior…
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AUGUST BURNS RED – Death Below
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: http://www.augustburnsred.com/ Believe it or not, progressive metalcore bands are hardly a dime a dozen these days, especially those worth listening to twice. Arguably Between The Buried And Me were the first band to marry hardcore to progressive metal, what with their chaotic but still quite original self-titled debut²⁰⁰² followed by…
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Houston – Relaunch III
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/Houstonsweden/ Melodic rock and AOR of the highest order are what this fabulous and utterly talented act from Sweden offers, and while the previous full-length disc named IV was an amazing and expertly crafted opus, this 2023 output of theirs is just as wicked due to its enticing atmosphere, melodic strength,…
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SCREAM MAKER – Land of Fire
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/screammaker Polish heavy metallers Scream Maker re-issued their enjoyable BloodKing album via Frontiers Records not that long ago, which was a solid effort, and I was looking forward to cranking Land of Fire (their fourth and latest LP) up loud and see how they had developed since then. Rooted in classic…
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ROBLEDO – Broken Soul
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/JAMESROBLEDOOFICCIAL/ ROBLEDO – Broken Soul I was and still am quite fond of James Robledo’s previous album, the one named Wanted Man, and I am pleased to announce that his latest solo effort titled Broken Soul sounds like the natural successor and follow-up to the 2021 release. Broken Soul is very…
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BORGARTING – Beist
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/borgartinget/ Review by Gamil 1.- Band Name: The band’s name is related to the Borg region, present-day Sarpsborg, in Norway, which was the site of one of the regional general assemblies in medieval Norway. Political and legal decisions were made in these assemblies and were fundamental to the legal and political…
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JANET GARDNER & JUSTIN JAMES – No Strings
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/JanetGardnerofficial/?locale=nb_NO Not being familiar with the previous offering titled Synergy by the skilled and musically powerful duo consisting of singer Janet Gardner and guitarist Justin James, I had no real idea what to expect when I popped this CD into the record player, but fortunately, I was in for a nice…
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DESCENT INTO MAELSTROM- Dei Consentes
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://facebook.com/DescentIntoMaelstromBand/ Although I had never visited the dodecaphonic metaller’s Andrea “Bigna” “Maelstrom” Bignardi’s independently released (later also on Maculata Anima Records) debut Descent Into Maelstrom’s eponymous²⁰¹⁷, Bignardi handling everything as a sole member after the 2016 conception, I liked the sophomore Iconoclasm (released on Maculata Anima Records in 2019 and…
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SHE BURNS RED – Out of Darkness
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: http://sheburnsred.com/ Having not yet had the pleasure of listening to the previous offering by this Scottish hard rock act, namely the debut EP named Take Back Tomorrow from 2020, I had no idea what to expect from this upcoming album by She Burns Red. What I can tell you is that…
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VARIOUS ARTISTS – Steel Bars – A Rock Tribute to Michael Bolton
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.frontiers.shop/new-releases/1580/v/a-steel-bars-a-tribute-to-michael-bolton-cd-jewelcase I was not entirely sure what to expect when I popped this CD, which is a melodic rock/AOR/hard rock tribute to none other than Michael Bolton, into the record player. Truth be told, I have fond memories of listening to Bolton’s songs on cassette tape when I was a kid,…
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ART NATION – Inception
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/artnationswe/ Hard-hitting Swedish rockers Art Nation are back with a brand-new batch of energetic and hook-laden tunes that are stuffed with fist-pumping riffs, big vocal melodies, and punchy choruses. There is nothing radically different nor particularly original to what these guys does compared to many other acts out there, yet they…
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THE DEFIANTS – Drive
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/TheDefiantsOfficial/ One can never really get enough of big, loud, and unapologetically catchy hard rock when it is well-written and charming, and that is exactly what the energetic Drive is. Featuring Paul Laine, Bruno Ravel, and Rob Marcello – all of whom you may associate with Danger Danger – and boasting…
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STILLBIRTH – Homo Deus
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://stillbirthofficial.bandcamp.com/ As you listen to the German brutal death metal and death core act’s Stillbirth’s new album Homo Deus²⁰²³ released on April 7th, you may get an impression you’re dealing with one of those young highly skilled ensembles at most on their 3rd installment, stylistically somewhere between All Shall Perish,…
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MAGNA CORPOREA – Bliss of Non-Temporal Condition
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://magnacorporea.bandcamp.com/album/bliss-of-non-temporal-condition This debut album by the mysterious Argentinian entity known as Magna Corporea is a most impressive and well-composed piece of underground darkness that is borderline spellbinding at times due to its strong riffs and excellent vocals, and I must say that I find it all rather alluring. Hypnotic is definitely…
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RING VAN MÖBIUS – Commissioned Works pt. II: Six Drops of Poison
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://ringvanmbius.bandcamp.com/album/commissioned-works-pt-ii-six-drops-of-poison Even if you remove this wonderfully evocative opus from its natural context and intended setting, it works as a cohesive piece of music that is full of surprises and captivating twists. The Norwegian prog rockers composed and arranged the material that constitutes Six Drops of Poison for a modern dance…
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ERSTWHILE – Steeling of a Soul
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://erstwhilebm.bandcamp.com/album/steeling-of-a-soul Atmospheric black metal of the depressive variety is just what the mood calls for today, and as luck would have it, the CD version of Erstwhile’s Steeling of a Soul popped up in my mailbox this afternoon. Perfect timing, right? Trance-inducing, utterly morose, and repetitive in the best way possible,…
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LURK – Aegis
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://lurkdoom.bandcamp.com/ The Finnish psychedelic doom and death rock and metallers have an interesting genre trajectory, active since 2008. Their debut Lurk²⁰¹² (on Totalrust/Svart Records) was more of a hardcorish straightforward death/doom affair with just a bit of sludge, but the Crowbar-ic and Ulcerate-d Kaldera²⁰¹⁴ (on Doomentia Records) already swayed more…
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CHRISTBANE – Christbane
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://christbane.bandcamp.com/album/christbane This my first encounter with the foul and unholy Australian/Canadian combo known as Christbane, and I must say that their barbaric and filthy brand of straightforward black/death metal is right up my ugly alley. The ten-track (and 20-minute long) effort, which was released on CD by Regimental Records and digitally…
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NETHERMOST CAVERNS – Ancient Spells within a Stalagnate Crypt
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://nethermostcaverns.bandcamp.com/album/ancient-spells-within-a-stalagnate-crypt This ceaselessly grim and melancholy eight-track offering by the US black metal horde known as Nethermost Caverns is one that I have been looking forward to ever since they released the Shadows of Seclusion demo a few months ago. Ancient Spells within a Stalagnate Crypt is an unpolished and raw-sounding…
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PRIDE OF LIONS – Dream Higher
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://aprideoflions.com/ I am still quite enamored with Pride of Lion’s superbly crafted Fearless LP from 2017 and to a slightly lesser extent the follow-up from three years later entitled Lion Heart. Dream Higher bears all the hallmarks of its predecessors in terms of its sound and style, but sadly, the songwriting…
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STARDUST – Kingdom of Illusion
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/stardustaor Hungarian hard rockers Stardust impressed me with their stellar Highway to Heartbreak opus from 2020, so naturally, I was excited about this brand-new offering named Kingdom of Illusion and curious as to how the eleven-track effort would compare to its predecessor. How do these compositions fare then? The short answer…
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MEDEVIL – Mirror In The Darkness
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://medevil.bandcamp.com/ The Canadian progressive power thrash metaller’s debut Conductor Of Storms²⁰¹⁶ was already a fiercely original record although the influences were also quite easy to point out. I thought what made Medevil original was their approach to metal: they clearly loved it and were inspired by it but it wasn’t…
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FALSE MEMORIES – Hybrid Ego System
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/falsememoriesband The Italian dark metal quintet known as False Memories have been keeping busy these past couple of years, and it feels like only yesterday that I reviewed their last opus, the gloomy The Last Night of Fall. Hybrid Ego System, which is their third full-length record, pretty much picks up…
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HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES – Live in Rio
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.hollywoodvampires.com/ Recorded in Rio back in 2015 by the magnificent Hollywood Vampires, this CD/DVD is a riveting and massively entertaining experience that sees Alice Cooper, Joe Perry, Tommy Henriksen, Johnny Depp, Matt Sorum, and Duff McKagan tear through some of the best and most beloved rock songs of all time with…
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PILEDRIVER – Live in Europe: The Rockwall Tour
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.piledriver.eu/en/ This review of mine is way overdue as this 3 CD/DVD/Blu Ray box set by the German boogie rockers Piledriver came out in late April, so we shall keep things short and to the point here. Consisting of three gigs from the group’s Rockwall tour in 2019 and early 2020…
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TRUTH DECAYED – Faded Visions II
REVIEWER: Asher Locketz RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://linktr.ee/truthdecayed Following their critically acclaimed EP ‘Faded Visions’ Truth Decayed return with follow-up ‘Faded Visions ll’, a barn storming compendium of immaculately constructed Thrash Metal ferocity. Produced by Kris Xenopolous and featuring four feral slabs of smouldering warfare, this work of sonic wildfire is due to…
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FOLLOWING THE SIGNS – Conflictions
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/FollowingTheSignsCork/ Cork natives Following the Signs released this groove-laden, pummeling offering of theirs just a few days ago, and it turned out to be a rather interesting and cool listen packed to the rafters with juicy riffs, crushing breakdowns, and some inspired vocals. Although it would be easy to compare the…