RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS
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SNAKECHARMER – Snakecharmer
Six highly esteemed musicians from the UK scene get together to form a bluesy rock act with decidedly strong 70’s influences and modern production technology to allow Snakecharmer to shine. Guitarist Micky Moody and bassist Neil Murray are most known for their early Whitesnake work, drummer Harry James a mainstay with Thunder, keyboardist Adam Wakeman…
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ANAAL NATHRAKH – Vanitas
Vanitas er den syvende fullengderen til det britiske ekstrem metal bandet Anaal Nathrakh og det er uten tvil deres beste så langt i bandets 14 år lange karriere. Denne skiva er en reise inn i den fantastiske ekstrem metal verdenen i alle dens former og fasonger og den vil gi deg som lytter mange herlige…
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NIGHTFALL – Cassiopeia
Do you ever struggle to capture a true essence of an art form when it just elevates your mind into fields never imagined? Be it a dramatic play, a bold cinema experience, breathtaking pictures or a piece of music- there seem to be times where you know something stirs passion, chills, and excitement- yet leaves…
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MISERY INDEX – Live in Munich
Misery Index blir av mange fremstilt som et deathgrindband. Selv er jeg av den oppfatning at bandet er et death metal band der musikken deres har visse spor av grind, men ikke nok til at de kan kalles et grind band. Grensen er tynn, så jeg kan være tilbøyelig med å delvis si meg enig…
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KATALEPSY – Autopsychosis
As a longtime subscriber of the migthy Decibel music magazine, I stumbled accross the name Katalepsy mentioned in their expectations list of releases coming in 2013. About the same time their latest release "Autopsychosis" dumped down in my inbox and I was quite eager to check out what the hype was all about. Katalepsy hails…
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MISTRESS – Brains And Bruises
I received this only a month ago, but do not think that Philadelphia, Pennsylvania’s Mistress doesn’t deserve your attention with this late 2011 "Brains and Bruises" debut full length album. In existence since 2002, it wasn’t until the fall of 2009 that vocalist Deanna Gardas joined the band, and they’ve made a slow, steady ascension…
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MILKING THE GOATMACHINE – Stillzeit
It may be an internal band joke about it or maybe there is something I´ve completely missed but a name like Milking the Goatmachine does not indicate the most serious metal band in the world. I had never heard any of MTG´s music before "Stallzeit" entered my inbox but I knew we where talking brutal…
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HATRIOT – Heroes Of Origin
When you gain acclaim as one of the most memorable thrash vocalists from the Bay Area scene due to your work with Legacy (the pre-cursor to Testament) and then Exodus ("Fabulous Disaster" his discography pinnacle), where do you go in 2013 if you want to make another run? If you are Steve ‘Zetro’ Sousa, you…
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ANGER AS ART – Hubris Inc.
Many of the players within this California thrash band Anger As Art gained acclaim decades before with other prominent acts to those who follow the underground. Vocalist/ guitarist Steve Gaines was in Abbatoir, Bloodlust, and Tactics among others- fellow guitarist Danny Oliverio also played in Abbatoir. Drummer Rob Alaniz is known for his thrash and…
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CENTURIAN – Contra Rationem
Først hadde vi Centurian, så ble Centurian til Nox og nå er jaggu Centurian tilbake igjen. Forskjellen mellom de bandene var ikke så fordømt stor, bortsett fra at Nox hadde en del kulere riff og var vesentlig raskere. Det er lett å høre at det er samme riffmeister som herjer i begge bandene, men det…
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NUCLEAR STRIKES – Megastorm Eyes
Malaysian metal? This country never factored on my radar screen for metal in general- especially a band like Nuclear Strikes who dig deep into the well of 80’s heavy influences for this 6 song EP "Megastorm Eyes". Forming in 2005 and surviving a few member changes in their early years, the quintet possesses one of…
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GAMMA RAY – Skeletons & Majesties Live
Gamma Ray gjør det de kan best, nemlig å gi ut live-, samle- og reutgivelser. Jeg tror ikke det finnes noen andre nålevende band som har gitt så mange av denne typen album som det Gamma Ray har gjort. Og dette er en livesskive. En dobbel en til og med. Egentlig er det en live…
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ENVINYA – Inner Silence
An intriguing six-piece from Germany, Envinya on their debut album "Inner Silence" combine traditional metal with elements of power, speed, and modern heaviness to develop something that could gain a wide spread following. The female vocals of Natalie Pereira dos Santos reside in the Nightwish/ Within Temptation vein, while musically the members approach things with…
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FUEL FOR DISASTER – Chontaraz Khlan Krakatau
After pouring through some background information on the band’s Facebook page, confusion set in a touch regarding the musical description for the Norwegian five-piece Fuel For Disaster and their debut album "Chontaraz Khlan Krakatau". Including ‘svart metall’ as a part of your style would make me think of extreme vocals, blitzkrieg black metal riffs or…
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MASACHIST – Scorned
Jeg hadde store forventninger til debutskiva «Death March Fury», men erindrer at jeg ble en smule skuffet da den kom ut for snart fire år siden. Dermed var forventningene skrudd kraftig ned denne gangen. Jeg hadde ikke engang bitt meg merke til at denne skulle komme engang, og da ble det en fin overraskelse sånn…
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ASTAROTH – The End Of Silence
Transplanting themselves in the late 80’s from their Rome, Italy home base to Los Angeles, California, the traditional, speed oriented metal sound of Astaroth didn’t find favor with the record companies flocking to the commercial hair acts. So breaking up in 1988, three of the members ( bassist Saverio Principini, guitarist Max Cipicchia, and drummer…
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EMBRIONAL – Absolutely Anti-Human Behaviour
Jeg kan ikke si annet enn at jeg rådigger denne skiva her. Hver gang jeg spiller den har jeg flere ganger tatt meg selv i og bare sitte her og smile, headbange eller bare rådigge noe helt for jævlig. Og det har vært ofte så langt i 2013, det skal du vite. Embrional er et…
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YEAR OF THE GOAT – Angels’ Necropolis
On first glance by pure name recognition alone, this Swedish sextet Year Of The Goat conjured up images of occult/ black metal. "Angel’s Necropolis" may be evil and dark in terms of philosophy and lyrical perspective, yet stylistically has more in common with 60’s and 70’s artists like Blue Oyster Cult, Black Widow, and others…
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MY SOLILOQUY – The Interpreter
Certain acts strike an immediate chord with the listener. When it comes to progressive metal/ rock, the oddball factor with the time changes and multiple layers of vocal melodies gives this UK band My Soliloquy instant appeal to my sensibilities. Starting in 2002 with vocalist/guitarist Pete Morten, the quintet has self-released numerous recordings before this…
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SACRAMENTUM – Far Away From The Sun – re-issue
A classic brought back to life for your listening pleasure.Sacramentum´s debut "Far Away From The Sun" did not get released until 1996 but the swedes started playing their melodic black/death metal six years earlier. The trio managed to release three albums before folding in 2000 and Century Media is now re-releasing their fabolous debut.Like their…
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SPACE VACATION – Heart Attack
A traditional metal trio from California, Space Vacation contains in its ranks ex-Vicious Rumors guitarist Kiyoshi Morgan. Their second album "Heart Attack" is a 10 song, 44:32 effort that could have appeared in 1983 just as much as it hits the streets 30 years later. Bassist Scott Shapiro tackles the vocals with a fun loving…
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DANTE – November Red
Founded in 2006, German progressive metal act Dante is a five-piece band that straddles the lines of modern metal and progressive rock. "November Red" is their third album, a 7 track record with a playing time of 61 minutes. In fact three of the song hit the 10 minute plus mark- so prepare for longer…
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VALHALLA – Deathless
A band that impressed me out of the gate with their Cellador/ Dragonforce-like sound a few years ago would be Indiana act Zephaniah. Their 2008 album "Stories from the Book of Metal" happened to be one of my favorite self-released efforts of that year. So when I receive an EP featuring two members of that…
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AUDREY HORNE – Youngblood
It’s difficult to calculate the number of album releases worldwide in the metal/ hard rock movement these days. I do know things have progressed exponentially with bands taking matters into their own hands with home studios and reasonably priced technology developments at their disposal. So for that, Audrey Horne, I apologize that despite the critical…
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VOIVOD – Target Earth
We should all feel fortunate for this Canadian experimental, futuristic, adventurous thrash band and their existence. Always challenging the conventions of the genre, expanding parameters with off kilter progressive chord structures, haunting meets forceful vocal melodies and this overriding sense that with each passing exposure to their material, your brain and body head with Voivod…
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SEPTICFLESH – Mystic Places of Dawn
‘Mystic Places of Dawn’ was originally released in 1994, setting Septicflesh on the road to becoming one of the brightest stars in the pantheon of Greek metal. Their take on melodic symphonic death introduced listeners to what was then and still is one of the most original voices in the genre and the elements of…
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WITCHCRAFT – Hegyek Felettem
Of all the Witchcrafts out there, these guys are the Hungarian Black Metal version and this is their third full-length release (even though the first was a kind of compilation of demos etc). In terms of sound, we are looking at something that harks back to the early 90’s. ‘Hegyek Felettem’ comes across cold and…