Saunders

Unleashing Hell from Down Under: Blood, sweat, venom & beers
Bloodphemy – Dawn of Malevolence Review

Bloodphemy – Dawn of Malevolence Review

“So here we are again. End-of-year shenanigans are nearly upon us, as we AMG folk get geared up and frantically weed out the pretenders and consolidate our end-of-year lists for what is sure to be another actioned-packed and contentious edition of Listurnalia. But let us not get too carried away. Although the primo releases start to dry up as we close in on December, there are usually a handful or more of key releases to fuck up your list preparations. Enter Netherlands band, Bloodphemy.” List breaker or list faker?

Suffocation – Hymns from the Apocrypha Review

Suffocation – Hymns from the Apocrypha Review

“Legend has it, if you say Frank Mullen’s name in the mirror three times after dark, the seminal vocalist appears behind you and unleashes an almighty roar into your bloody earholes. For the first time in the lengthy career of the New York brutal death pioneers, the immense, muffled growls of Mullen are absent, as a new era begins in the Suffocation camp.” Old pros restricting airflows.

Kill the King – Kill the King Review

Kill the King – Kill the King Review

“Emerging as an underdog in the budding Indian metal scene, upstart thrashers Kill the King come armed and ready to unleash a self-titled, self-released debut thrash platter. Formed in 2016, Kill the King have done the hard yards toiling in the underground, sharpening their tools in readiness for the five-piece outfit to put their skills to practice and rumble with the big dogs of the modern thrash scene. It certainly isn’t easy to stand out in the crowded field of modern thrash, a scene that splinters off into various offshoots such as retro thrash, blackened thrash, death-thrash and modern thrash territory.” Rabid Regicide.

Kadaverficker – Superkiller (A Musical Journey Between Life and Death) Review

Kadaverficker – Superkiller (A Musical Journey Between Life and Death) Review

“After reviewing a slew of bigger releases and personal favorites in recent months, it’s nice to reconnect with the underground and plunge into the dank, mysterious corners of the promo sump. In doing so I stumbled across Germany’s Kadaverficker and their fifth full-length album, Superkiller (A Musical Journey Between Life and Death). Kicking around the traps since forming in 1993, Kadaverficker released a hefty collection of demos, splits, compilations, and various other shorter-form releases, eventually dipping into full-length territory on 2012’s Exploitation Nekronation. What can you expect on an LP that leaves nothing left in the tank across a whopping 71-minute runtime.” Ficking around,

Cannibal Corpse – Chaos Horrific Review

Cannibal Corpse – Chaos Horrific Review

Cannibal Corpse is a death metal institution, with their legendary status cemented in the death metal halls of fame. And a new Cannibal Corpse album still remains a big fucking deal in the death metal world. I can’t claim to be the rabid fanboy like a couple of my colleagues, however, I have a long-held history and respect for the band, so it is a sweet deal to pen my thoughts on their sixteenth (!) album, entitled Chaos Horrific.” Death walking chaos.

Alkaloid – Numen Review

Alkaloid – Numen Review

“German collective Alkaloid bucks the trend often associated with bands fitted with the ‘supergroup’ tag. With a line-up boasting members of such lauded acts as Spawn of Possession, Obscura, Necrophagist, Eternity’s End, Dark Fortress, and many others, on 2015’s striking debut The Malkuth Grimoire, and 2018’s phenomenal sophomore opus Liquid Anatomy, Alkaloid ascended to elite status in the modern progressive and technical death metal scenes.” Dream team on paper (but see the N.Y. Jets).

Dying Fetus – Make Them Beg for Death Review

Dying Fetus – Make Them Beg for Death Review

“Entering the supposed twilight years of a lengthy career, Baltimore death metal legends Dying Fetus show no signs of losing their edge or slipping into a set-and-forget comfort zone. If anything, the veteran trio, consisting of band leader John Gallagher (guitars/uber low vox), Sean Beasley (bass/mid-low range growls), and Trey Williams (drums) have been on a tear since consolidating their slimmed-down power trio set-up back on 2009’s Descend into Depravity.” From Fetus to legend.

AMG Goes Ranking – Dying Fetus

AMG Goes Ranking – Dying Fetus

“The life of the unpaid, overworked metal reviewer is not an easy one. The reviewing collective at AMG lurches from one new release to the next, errors and n00bs strewn in our wake. But what if, once in a while, the collective paused to take stock and consider the discography of those bands that shaped many a taste? What if multiple aspects of the AMG collective personality shared with the slavering masses their personal rankings of that discography.” UnDying Fetus!

Horrendous – Ontological Mysterium Review

Horrendous – Ontological Mysterium Review

“Between twenty-twelve and twenty-eighteen, Philadelphia’s Horrendous morphed from a straightforward old school death unit into a sophisticated and elite progressive death metal force, boasting a trio of gripping LPs on the back of a solid debut that hinted at Horrendous’ potential without fully preparing listeners for their stunning evolution.” Victory and mutation.