RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS
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JORDAN RUDESS – Wired for Madness
Progressive keyboard maestro Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater) is about to unleash this intricate and rather complex musical affair of his appropriately named "Wired for Madness", which is a most fitting title for this convoluted opus. Countless different genres and styles are woven together and the music constantly shifts and mutates from one thing to the…
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DWARROWDELF – Of Dying Lights
In the fiction of J.R.R. Tolkien, Dwarrowdelf, also known as Khazad-dûm or Moria, was an underground kingdom beneath the Misty Mountains. It was known for being the ancient realm of the Dwarves of Durin’s Folk and the greatest kingdom ever built by the Dwarves. Tom O’Dell may not be a dwarf or headed that way…
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ACCURSED SPAWN – The Virulent Spawn
When you are a fairly new brutal death metal band you could go either of the two ways: 1. release an over the top brutally technical material and kill them all with shock and awe, or, 2. release a substantially brutal yet catchy material to signal the arrival of a new sheriff in town. The…
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S91 – Along The Sacred Path
No matter how deep the divide between Roman Catholic Christianity and Protestant Christianity, and no matter how deep the divisions within the Protestant Church, there will always be those Christians who’ll seek to unite them all under one banner, seemingly oblivious to the reasons why the divisions formed and exist in the first place. Sometimes…
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BLACK MAGIC – Wizard’s Spell
"Wizard’s Spell" by the Norwegian underground death dealers of speed metal/NWOBHM known as Black Magic has been out of print and unavailable for quite some time, but luckily, Dark Essence Records have taken it upon themselves to re-issue this truly wicked gem. If you dig early Mercyful Fate, early Iron Maiden, Angel Witch, and Exciter,…
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ROBIN TROWER – Coming Closer to the Day
Legendary guitarist Robin Trower (ex-Procol Harum) surely needs no introduction and he has been more prolific and creative than ever these past few years. His latest record entitled "Coming Closer to the Day" is firmly rooted in the blues and starts off well with the groovy "Diving Bell". "Truth or Lies" follows suit and hangs…
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FROZEN CROWN – Crowned In Frost
I’m going to be as forthcoming with you as I can be, Mr. Anderson: I hate power metal. To me, a seasoned metalhead since 1991, this genre is as deep as Dead Sea is an actual sea. The choruses tend to be lame, haphazard or big, bombastic and pompous, the, admittedly skilled, vocalists only serve…
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IRON MAIDEN – 2018 Re-masters
Late last year, the amazing ensemble that is Iron Maiden remastered their first four records and issued them via the ever-reliable Parlophone Records, which is fucking great news even if you already have some of the earlier re-masters such as the ones from 1998 somewhere in your collection. Housed in nice albeit simple-looking digipaks, the…
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TNT – Encore – Live in Milan
"Encore" by the renowned Norwegian hard rockers TNT is quite special in that it captures one of the very last performances with the insanely talented Tony Harnell fronting the band. Shot and recorded at the Frontiers Rock Festival back in 2017, I guess the reason this cool live offering has not seen the light of…
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NERVENBEISSER – Alles Gut
The German act Nervenbeisser presents us with a 6-track EP that falls somewhere between hard electro rock and industrial metal. However, things never really turn nasty or unpleasant here. Rather, the compositions are driven by huge riffs, thick and dense layers of synthesizers, and those booming yet slightly cold vocals that one usually associates with…
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ASHEN HORDE – Fallen Cathedrals
Although this Californian/Hollywood progressive technical black/death metal outfit is driven by practically one man, Trevor Portz (all instruments, clean vocals), Stevie Boiser helps exclusively with "harsh vocals", that is the deathy growls recalling Peter Espevoll (Extol) or Stian Tomt "Shagrath" Thoresen (Dimmu Borgir) for the black metal rasps, leaving Portz filling the gaps with a…
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ILLIMITABLE DOLOR – Leaden Light
Illimitable Dolor. Pain and sorrow without end in space and time. A horrifying perspective but what an apt name for this Australian deathened atmospheric melancholic doom metal ensemble, which formed in 2014, the year of conception probably something to do with the closing track "2.12.14", a possible tribute to a too soon departed dearly beloved…
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EAMONN FORDE – The Final Days of EMI: Selling the Pig
Author Eamonn Forde recently published this thought-provoking account of the final days of the highly respected EMI Records via the ever-awesome Omnibus Press and this is one of the more interesting literary pieces that yours truly has come across lately. The story of EMI is both long and convoluted, which is not surprising given just…
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REEF – In Motion
A warm and vibrant live recording by the skilled British rock ensemble Reef that encapsulates the band’s raw edge on stage is essentially what "In Motion" is all about. Captured and shot at the storied Hammersmith Apollo in London back in May 2018, this 17-track offering shows a band at the height of its powers…
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VIRCOLAC – Masque
Vircolac means "werewolf" in Romanian, but why should it be since this death metal ensemble is Irish? Nor are any of the Vircolac members, Darragh Laoghaire (vocals), Brendan "BMC" McConnell (guitars), Jason "JK" Keane (bass) or Colin "NH" Purcell (drums) remotely Romanian, so where did they get that particular inspiration? That must remain a mystery,…
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1349 – Dødskamp
This 2-track vinyl and digital single release by Norwegian black metal stalwarts 1349 is something out of the ordinary. The ensemble’s interpretation of Edvard Munch’s bone-chillingly beautiful painting entitled "Dødskamp" (which translates to "Death Struggle") has a strong and prominent aura of melancholy to it that sets it apart from so many other compositions by…
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MISERY INDEX – Rituals of Power
Misery Index is an economic indicator created by Chicago economist Arthur Melvin Okun in the 1970s and is the unemployment rate added to the inflation rate. As both rise so does the misery index while economic performance declines. As for the death metal/grindcore ensemble Misery Index, it formed when vocalist/bassist Jason Netherton made one of…
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HEART – Live in Atlantic City
The renowned Heart featuring the hugely talented Ann and Nancy Wilson captured this interesting live offering of theirs on tape back in 2006 and fortunately, earMUSIC recently released the whole thing in various different formats. The cool-looking digipak that yours truly is looking at right now houses both the CD and the accompanying Blu Ray…
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NINE SHRINES – Retribution Therapy
US outfit Nine Shrines is a relatively new band in the sense that it was conceived less than five years ago, but these guys have been creative and prolific since the 2017 "Misery EP" and this upcoming full-length assault of theirs clearly shows that they have developed as musicians and songwriters since then. Musically and…
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BLOOD RED THRONE – Souls Of Damnation – Daniel “Død” Olaisen’s series
Another chapter in my pre-announced series of reviews of works which involved prolific guitarist Daniel "Død" Olaisen, the fourth album from his main squeeze, the death metal Blood Red Throne (BRT), marks a significant progress in the development of their sound. What a difference can 2 years make! We need only mention Kreator with the…
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STARBREAKER – Dysphoria
"Dysphoria" by Starbreaker is some explosive shit and it damn-near knocked me off my feet when I pressed play and opening track "Pure Evil" blasted forth from the speakers. With the superb vocals of Tony Harnell (TNT, Skid Row) and the strong and charismatic guitar playing of Magnus Karlsson (The Ferrymen), how could this 10-track…
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FIDDLER’S GREEN – Heyday
The lovable German outfit named Fiddler’s Green dabbles in something pretty cool and exotic, which is Irish speed folk. Take all your favorite Irish drinking tunes and traditionals and then leave it to these wonderful dudes to fuck them up in an entertaining way and what you get is "Heyday". Essentially a collection of fifteen…
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REFUSAL – Epitome of Void
They say imitation is the highest form of flattery but is that true in metal? In case of this Finnish death metal outfit I just don’t know. I don’t know why every track on "Epitome Of Void" has to sound like Napalm Death, some more than others, to say nothing of the album cover. This…
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EQUIPOISE – Demiurgus
Technical/progressive death metal can be a tricky genre: complicate it too much and you exchange a song for a display of skills without much substance behind it. Loosen it up too much and it comes undone. It really takes great skill, a sense of purpose and balance to play this genre and these seven Pennsylvanians,…
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TOBY HITCHCOCK – Reckoning
The skilled Toby Hitchcock (Pride of Lions) recently released this 11-track album of his via Frontiers Records, and as it turns out, "Reckoning" is very much in the vein of Pride of Lion’s superb 2017 record entitled "Fearless". With Hitchcock’s strong and powerful vocals way up front in the mix, the instantly catchy tunes incorporate…
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FORGED IN BLACK – Descent Of The Serpent
Sometimes it takes a new band, trapped between influences and aspirations, a good while to find its own sound, the struggle not rarely continued up to a third or fourth release (vide: Slayer). Then there are those who find it on their first record. Black Sabbath or Mercyful Fate certainly come to mind in this…
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RIPARIAN – Riparian
Riparian means something related to or situated on the banks of a river and the Pennsylvanian death metal ensemble, formed in 2017, can feel this way when you listen to their brand new debut eponymous EP. We are treated to something between All Shall Perish’s "The Price Of Existence" and Mastodon’s "Remission", technical death core…
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LEFT HAND SOLUTION – Through The Mourning Woods
Minimalism in music is seldom a good thing in my book and this is why this Swedish doom quartet formed in 1991 has taken me by a sweet surprise in no small part due to their tremendous latter My Dying Bride influence. But there’s something different about them, something so incredibly sad that they invoke…
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FIND ME – Angels in Blue
Find Me’s take on the classic AOR recipe falls somewhere between Foreigner, Survivor, Pride of Lions, Journey, and to a lesser extent Europe, and in its own rather cool and charming way it works. Stadium-sized melodies, anthemic choruses, and airy keyboards are littered all over the record and there is something uplifting and spirited about…
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FERVENT MIND – Tranquilize
The quintet named Fervent Mind from the thriving progressive music scene in Oslo is a most interesting acquaintance. Words such as atmosphere and depth instantly come to mind upon listening to the opening track entitled "A Series of Fragments" and it is damn-near impossible to describe or summarize what we are dealing with here. If…