RELEASE YEAR: 2024 BAND URL: https://utflod.bandcamp.com/album/efterd-nn I absolutely love and cherish pretty much everything about this band and their latest pummeling effort. Not only is Utflod one (if not the) hardest hitting thing since the first Rocky movie and as devastatingly fierce as they come; they have also shaped and perfected a unique sound and a…
PHOTOGRAPHER: John Hesse.Photos copyrights belong to the photographer. No unauthorized usage allowed. Please contact photographer if you wish to reuse images in any context. About a month ago I happily stumbled on a ferocious and relentlessly intense 2-track EP on Bandcamp appropriately titled Entropic, which blew me away and instantly turned into a bit…
BAND URL: https://housecorerecords.bandcamp.com/music The massive joy of seeing the legendary name that is Pantera pop up on various festival posters and tour itineraries and whatnot these past few years cannot be overstated. The two icons and legends that are Philip H. Anselmo (vocals) and Rex Brown (bass) teamed up with the inimitable Zakk Wylde (guitar)…
RELEASE YEAR: 2024BAND URL: https://harrowed.bandcamp.com/album/entropic I rarely bother reviewing singles but this 2-track jewel by the fierce UK act known as Harrowed blew me the fuck away, and I may in fact have become addicted to it. Intensely heavy and punishing yet surprisingly groovy in places also, these gentlemen have spawned a muscular-sounding mixture of…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.brujeria.com/ The Californian grindcore death metal groove act Brujeria (Spanish: witchcraft), which performs their vocals exclusively in Spanish, was formed by John David “Juan Brujo” Lepe, Patrick “Adam Bomb” “Fantasma” Hoed, William David Gould “Güero Sin Fe” Junior (Faith No More) Eric Reed “Jello Biafra” “Hozicón Jr.” Boucher and (until…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://facebook.com/GoAheadAndDieBand It seems ages since the legendary Massimiliano Antonio “Max” Cavalera, the (in)famous ex-Sepultura and current Soulfly frontman, aided by his younger son, Igor Amadeus Cavalera (vocals, guitar, bass) as well as Khemmis’ drummer Zach Coleman, released the explosive bombshell of Go Ahead And Die’s eponymous²⁰²¹ probably because so much…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.6lokust.com/ Since heavy metal was arguably invented in the United Kingdom, and, specifically in England, it’s been fascinating to watch the Americans “hijack” it and arguably make it better but then observe the Britts emulate that previously emulated music in pursuit of their own sound. This complex conclusion I’ve reached…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/prongmusic/ Receiving a promo album by long-running New York metal act Prong always a brings a smile to my face, and not merely because they have a nostalgic effect on me due to their records from the 90s having had a big impact on me but because they always seem to…
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…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/theendreign This utterly fierce and cleverly written debut offering by End Reign not only boasts excellent musicianship but also a compellingly dark atmosphere that is unlike anything else that I have come across. Featuring members of Scour, Fulgora, Pig Destroyer, Exhumed, and Misery Index, and citing influences from thrash metal, hardcore,…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://unearthofficial.com/ When the official Century Media Records release calls the Boston, Massachusetts quintet Unearth “nothing short of standard-bearers and keepers of the faith for American metalcore” it’s not just a suave public relations rhetoric. As metal was largely losing its raison d’etre at the dawn of the XX Century, Unearth…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://utflod.bandcamp.com/album/split-ep-utflod-shaving-the-werewolf Fierce, frantic, and utterly intense, this four-track split EP by the two Norwegian outfits named Utflod and Shaving the Werewolf is as hard-hitting as they come. The ferocious musical attack of both bands is almost overwhelming but certainly not without a sick charm, and I find the material quite interesting…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: http://www.facebook.com/ManMustDie Let’s face it: eclecticism is the future of heavy metal. These days it’s becoming harder and harder to find a truly unique sound so modern originality is defined as a combination of wide range of influences into something greater than the sum of its parts. With their first two…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.inflames.com/ As one of the 3 forefathers of the Gothenburg-based melodic death metal (aka melodeath), next to At The Gates and Dark Tranquillity, In Flames need no introduction. Every melodeath fan, which I count myself as one of, is intimitely familiar with “The Jester Race”¹⁹⁹⁶, “Whoracle”¹⁹⁹⁷, “Colony”¹⁹⁹⁹ or “Clayman”²⁰⁰⁰, while…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://bran-bohemia.bandcamp.com/ When is the last time you heard something as good as Emperor’s 2nd album “Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk”? True, Dimmu Borgir tried to get there on “Enthrone Darkness Triumphant” and Cradle Of Filth on “Cruelty And The Beast”, and those are just the ones I can think…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.lamb-of-god.com/ “You see all these things, don’t you? Truly I say to you, there will absolutely not be one stone on top of another left here that will not be thrown down…And you will hear wars nearby and reports of wars far away…For group will rise against group, and kingdom…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://slipknot1.com/ Whether you like them or not you know who they are. Formed through a very convoluted process of “now you see me now you don’t” musical endeavors which settled at first on The Pale Ones and then permanently on Slipknot in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1995 initially consisted of…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.apollonrecords.no/ The hard-hitting musical collective known as Dang!!! have returned and what a joy it is to have these ugly fuckers tell us that the world blows ass and that absolutely everything is going to hell in a handbasket. Yes, this is some wicked stuff that is anything but pretty, and…
RELEASE YEAR: 2021 BAND URL: https://forthesinofficial.bandcamp.com/ I’m always surprised by bands who consistently want to make as minimalistic music as possible, especially heavy metal and hardcore artists. What is the value of slightly the same riff repeated in every song to the extent that it just becomes an excuse for the “tough guy” streetwise lyrics…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: Undergang | Utflod (bandcamp.com) Thanks to a very cool dude named Ronnie, I got my hands on this superb 4-track EP titled “Undergang” by the Norwegian outfit known as Utflod, and I am forever grateful to him for making sure this musical hand grenade ended up in my mailbox. The quintet…
