RECENT ALBUM REVIEWS
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DYING AWKWARD ANGEL – Absence of Light
Italian melodeathsters Dying Awkward Angel (henceforth DAA) having released one album so far, are back with Abscence Of Light, which guitarist Edoardo Demuro described as "heavy, fast, powerful, dark and bright at the same time". Taking clues from Detonation, Dark Tranquillity, In Flames, Hypocrisy and Morbid Angel DAA is a mix of classic, familiar and…
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BAN BIANCA – Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is
Sweden’s Ban Bianca have been at it for a handful of years now and churned out a number of EPs, but "Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is" is their debut offering and contains seven rather groovy tunes with a lot of enthusiasm and attitude to them. Musically and stylistically speaking, these guys sound as…
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DEADLY CARNAGE – Through the Void, Above the Suns
The Italian post-black metal/doom metal mongers known as Deadly Carnage have spat forth a brand new 9-track soundtrack to the end of days. With a somewhat metaphysical approach to both the music and lyrics not to mention some strong and prevalent cosmic vibes coursing through the entire musical affair, "Through the Void, Above the Suns"…
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GHOST – 1988
How about that? Another Swedish musical entity by the name of Ghost albeit a totally different one to the more famous and renowned outfit that is currently all the hype all over the world and on everyone’s lips in all corners of the metal milieu. Long before Mr. Forge launched his act, there was a…
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LED ZEPPELIN – How the West Was Won (Remastered & Reissued)
Originally issued back in 2003, this superb and scorching hot live album by the mighty Led Zeppelin containing material from their legendary 1972 concerts at the Long Beach Arena and L.A. Forum is undoubtedly an iconic release that brilliantly showcases the depth and talent of the British rock overlords. The ironic thing about the title…
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PHANDROM – Victims of the Sea
The Norwegian entity bearing the name Phandrom consists of four skilled dudes who clearly know their way around a musical instrument and this debut offering of theirs entitled "Victims of the Sea" is comprised of six relatively long and dynamic compositions that harken back to late 70s/early 80s hard rock and heavy metal. One can…
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VALYRIA – Into The Dying Of Time
Valyria is a Canadian melodic death metal band combining Dark Tranquillity, Soilwork and Children of Bodom with a strong folk metal approach akin to Ensiferum without getting too obnoxious in either direction while sounding positively Scandinavian. Their name comes from a city in "A Song of Ice and Fire" series of fantasy novels by George…
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KING WITCH – Under the Mountain
UK’s newcomers King Witch, while doom per excellence, are far from your average genre conveyor, the sound built around Soundgarden’s Badmotorfinger/Superunkown albums suffused with its own special thickness which marries Black Sabbath and Mastodon along with some bonafide thrash of Megadeth/Anthrax. There is a number of key components that sets them apart from the pack…
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FLORIAN GREY – Ritus
German artist Florian Grey recently released this sophomore record of his through the label Echozone and the result is quite solid and satisfactory. This 12-track effort entitled bearing the cryptic title that is "RITUS" blends dark rock with electro pop and throws a few industrial metal elements into the mix as well. The songs are…
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Acârash – In Chaos Becrowned
The Oslo-based occult rockers Acârash is a rather interesting outfit with a deep-seated esoteric aspect to it. There is a tinge of both psychedelia and melancholy to the band’s fluid and eclectic mix of dark rock, black metal, stoner rock, and doom metal. Think weird avantgarde rock from the 70s with an unsettling 80s black…
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MIND ENEMIES – Revenge
It takes trust to assert that God created the Universe – the heaven, the Earth and, after all, man in His image – out of nothing, but this trust comes easier when you look at the Creator. It takes trust to assert that a single musician created "Revenge" – the rhythm guitars, the bass, the…
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KENOS – Pest
In a very real sense derived from several applications of the Italian progressive technical death masters’ new album, "Pest" feels like the soundtrack to the Apocalypse in eight tight installments. As I listen, I imagine The Spirit looking down from heaven only to see the world in the hands of the few, the rich oppressing…
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INFRARED – Saviours
The Canadian trashers Infrared have been around for as long as the San Francisco Bay Area Thrash Metal scene, having begun around the time Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax (later collectively known as The Big Four of Thrash Metal) were just getting over their influences and developing their own unique sound, while Exodus, Testament and…
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JEFF BECK – Live at the Hollywood Bowl
Few artists have meant as much to rock music as the highly talented legend that is Jeff Beck has. From The Yardbirds and further on to his magnificent solo career, his recordings have helped shape the landscape of music for decades now. The fact that he is still out there, touring and recording and whatnot,…
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SUDDEN DEATH – Stillborn
Blistering death metal hailing from the darkest pit of Italy is the order of the day here. The explosive quintet known as Sudden Death are back with yet another devastating attack in the shape of this 5-track EP of theirs entitled "Stillborn". There is plenty of variation to the song material conjured up by these…
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SKOGEN – Skuggorna Kallar
The blackened folk metal outfit known as Skogen released this splendid eight-track effort of theirs via the ever-reliable Nordvis Produktion a couple of days ago and if heartfelt and passionate music with strong rural and pastoral qualities to it appeals to you then you had better pay attention to this one and pick up a…
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STEELMADE – The Stories We Tell
The Swiss rock band known as Steelmade recently released this 12-track record of theirs via Fastball Music and although there are a lot of well-crafted riffs, catchy melodies, and cleverly arranged tunes on it, it does not quite live up to my annoying expectations, which essentially comes down to two things. First of all, the…
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COR SCORPII – Ruin
It has been quite a while since the Norwegian exponents of melodic and epic metal known as Cor Scorpii last graced us with an album. Luckily, the wait is now over and this eight-track opus of theirs is about to be released via the ever-reliable Dark Essence Records quite soon. Ten years is a long…
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PLANET EATER – Blackness From The Stars
One of the reasons the postmetal/groove Canadian band Planet Eater exist is because Troy Breich was not content to merely be singing and bassing for Into Eternity, but, evidently, wanted to do something totally different. Planet Eater is closer to early Mastodon with generous texture of Meshuggah but, thankfully, in an interesting way. Contrary to…
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NOX INTERNA – A Minor Road
A rather charming and entertaining affair, this EP by the goth rock outfit Nox Interna is worth checking out if goth rock with a slightly dark vibe to it appeals to you. Truth be told, I had no idea what to expect from this one, but it turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Although…
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UADA – Cult of a Dying Sun
Second installment from the American melodic black metallers offers a great even journey through sophisticated melody, huge old school death riffs and a variety of vocalizations, with excellent production bearing repeated listens. Uada (latin: haunted) may be wearing their influences on their sleeves but what they lack in originality they more than make up for…
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MAGICAL HEART – Another Wonderland
The melodic hard rockers that are Magical Heart from Germany recently released this 11-track debut offering of theirs via the ever-reliable Fastball Music, but although the record boasts some titanic-sized riffs, huge choruses, and a solid dose of testosterone, it lacks something in the vocal department. As such, it is one of those rather frustrating…
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TSJUDER – Throne of the Goat
Rarely if ever have Norwegian black metal stalwarts Tsjuder let yours truly down. Their icy and sinister take on raw and pummeling black metal has been sharpened and honed to perfection over the years and 2015’s “Antiliv” proved a high point in these ugly fuckers’ career. This 8-track effort, which is scheduled for release in…
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NATE BOHNET – Therapeutic Destruction
While it is still too early to identify this year’s best metal album, I am fairly sure I am reviewing the worst, courtesy of Nate Bohnet, his solo debut a way for the man to exorcise some personal demons. He plays all the instruments, vocals and even crafted this abstract cover Pablo Picasso would shoot…
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DE PROFUNDIS – The Blinding Light Of Faith
The fifth installment from the British artisans of fierce death metal shows them at their creative best. The band sounds incredibly fresh, powerful and inventive harkening back to classics yet refashioning them into their own art where thrash, death, black and melodic metal are indistinguishable from one another, with jaw-dropping skill, musicianship and originality, as…
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KNELT ROTE – Alterity
On their fourth and final album (according to Encyklopedia Metallum they split-up after this release) Knelt Rote unleashes such a ferocious slab of extreme industrial grindcore/death/black laced with thrash metal that it almost makes me think it ought to be illegal, seven tracks of some of the most extreme and truly savage metal you’ll ever…
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PUREST OF PAIN – Solipsis
Having established its sound somewhere between the likes of In Mourning, Dark Tranquility, The Absence, and their own country men Detonation, Purest of Pain (featuring guitarist Merel Bechtold of Delain), aims to redefine and restructure melodeath from within rather than without, using strictly guitars to create the most unusual and atypical sounds and effects normally…
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SUFFOCATION – Of The Dark Light
Since the 2006 eponymous devastating come back album, Suffocation has been on a roll. Both “Blood Oath” and “Pinnacle of Bedlam” have been exercises in ordered brutality which showed signs of progression and even successfully flirted with unlikely genres such as hard core and thrash to get the point across. Considering that this is one…
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RISE OF AVERNUS – Eigengrau
Apparently still working on their own identity, Australian Rise of Avernus draws from variety of influences on their second album; mostly death/doom with black and melodeath. The genre medleys don’t always work and still sound unnatural most of the time, plus the keys/synths can get annoying and overbearing, killing the power of guitars, although not…
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JESSE FINK – Bon: The Last Highway
Author Jesse Fink presented us with an excellent and thought-provoking book on the Young brothers of AC/DC a few years ago, namely the one entitled "The Youngs: The Brothers Who Built AC/DC", and this fourth book of his focuses on the enduring myth and legacy of the sadly missed Bon Scott. Contrary to other books…