Italian Metal

Hour of Penance – Misotheism

Hour of Penance – Misotheism

Hour of Penance have always been a great representation of Italy’s brand of death metal. Whether or not you enjoy that particular approach is down to personal preference, but their quality can’t be disputed. In an effort to fend off stagnation, the band have actively attempted to refine their sound since Sedition. Regicide and Cast the First Stone showcased a much more succinct pummeling. Without wanting to carve a potential rut, Misotheism sees Hour of Penance subtly shifting shape once more.” Killing time.

Karyn Crisis’ Gospel of the Witches – Covenant Review

Karyn Crisis’ Gospel of the Witches – Covenant Review

“Over four years ago, Karyn Crisis released Salem’s Wounds, the debut album of her new project, Gospel of the Witches. While I found it to be an overly long, lopsided album, it was still awesome to see Crisis return to making heavy music again, and I was eager to hear more from this project. Fast-forward to 2019, and the Gospel are down to a tight three-person line-up, with Crisis once again teaming up with husband Davide Tiso, who handles the guitar, bass, and songwriting this go-’round, rounded out by Skinlab drummer Fabian Vestod. With four years between albums, are we looking at a stronger, more concise Gospel?” Out of the crisis, into the coven.

Juggernaut – Neuroteque Review

Juggernaut – Neuroteque Review

“When you hear about certain genres, do you have an image that pops into your head? It’s not always fair, but the most obvious one is black metal. You just got an image of a corpsepainted weeboo hanging out in a dark forest. Boom. I’m a fucking magician. What about sludge? Did you see a backwoods redneck with a twelve-gauge and a six-pack? Sporting beards, greasy locks, and enough flannel to challenge Saskatchewan?” Not your hick uncle’s sludge.

Lacuna Coil – Black Anima Review

Lacuna Coil – Black Anima Review

“In his 1848 tract Human, All Too Human (Menschliches, Allzumenschliches: Ein Buch für freie Geister), Fredrich Nietzsche wrote that “hope, in reality, is the worst of all evils for it prolongs the torment of man.” So many of the bands I enjoyed as a young metal fan have demonstrated time and again just how right Nietzsche was.” Oh yeah, a double review and a Nietzsche quote? This is gonna be good.

Esogenesi – Esogenesi Review

Esogenesi – Esogenesi Review

Esogenesi is an elemental doom machine that grinds along like heavy earth mover equipment, alternating between standard death doom and a more funerary style. The band is a classic four piece of vocals, guitar, bass and drums with each member sticking to their role. When I say they are no-frills, I don’t mean they lack creativity, rather they let each instrument stand on its own as an irreducible component.” Weights of the world.

Tenebrae In Perpetuum – Anorexia Obscura Review

Tenebrae In Perpetuum – Anorexia Obscura Review

“Black metal bands love to talk about how their take on the genre is the coldest, the harshest, the scariest, the blackest black metal that ever blacked. More often than not, all that talk of evil scariness is just braggadocio. Little variation separates one icy tremolo from another, and if you’ve seen one skinny corpse painted croaker, you’ve pretty much seen them all. That guy contorting his body into tortured positions, pulling at his face and rolling his eyes back while rasping about the annihilation of the psyche probably winds down backstage with a cucumber water and Candy Crush. Italian band Tenebrae In Perpetuum on the other hand might just be on to something sinister.” Fear the mind.

5Rand – Dark Mother Review

5Rand – Dark Mother Review

“Regardless what the band name means, I bet those who dabble in guessing a band’s genre by their name can guess this one. With simple melodeath riffs set atop typical metalcore ones, 5Rand’s unique trait is the alternating rasps, growls, cleans by vocalist Julia Elenior. Toss in headbanging licks of Shogun-era Trivium and some rather impressive drum work, and you’ve got the band’s second full-length release, Dark Mother.” Mother knows beast.

Elvenking – Reader of the Runes – Divination Review

Elvenking – Reader of the Runes – Divination Review

“While checking out a music video for one of the lead singles to Elvenking’s latest record, Reader of the Runes – Divination, I stumbled across a comment that deeply resonated with me. To paraphrase: “This is pretty good, but I still feel like a Pagan Manifesto widow.” It’s rare for a band to drop their best album seventeen years and eight LPs in their career, but 2014’s The Pagan Manifesto was precisely that.” Everything’s runed.

Astralium – Land of Eternal Dreams Review

Astralium – Land of Eternal Dreams Review

“Not often do shivers ripple up my spine on my morning commute. I’ll admit this feeling isn’t alien to me. Discovering transportive music that makes my heart swell is my lifeblood. I seek out shiver-inducing music, so much, in fact, that I wonder if I will one day grow immune to it. Despite this, I couldn’t contain my excitement when I rediscovered the response, known as frisson (French for “shiver”), while listening to the orchestral intro track of Astralium’s debut album Land of Eternal Dreams for the first time.” Wishes and dreams.