Angry Metal Guy

Dodecahedron // Dodecahedron
Rating: 1d12+5
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: ddchdrn.com | facebook
Release Dates: Out Worldwide

When I was first cutting my teeth as a reviewer over at the long defunct Unchain the Underground, I had the distinct honor of reviewing Blut Aus Nord‘s 2003 opus The Work which Transforms God. I recall it distinctly being one of the most difficult reviews I ever had to write. The music the band created was new, extreme, pummeling, challenging and ultimately difficult on a level which few records I’d ever heard before were. It offered up an extremity for which I was not prepared. I could tell, though, that it was a revolutionary record. It was something special; incredibly special… Extreme, abstract, brilliant, innovative and done in a way that I was not ready for. I really, really hated it.  Continue reading

Nothnegal // Decandence
Rating: 2.0/5.0 – Not good atoll!
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: nothnegal.net | myspace.com/nothnegal
Release Dates: EU: Out now! | US: 02.28.2012

Sweden this, U.S.A. that. Its always the same countries churning out the metal that lands on the cluttered desk of Steel Druhm. Sure, every now and then a Middle Eastern or Asian act tosses a spiked glove in the ring, but it’s predomiantly Europe and the Americas tasked with carrying the metal standard these days. That’s why its such a treat when we get a promo from someplace new and exotic. Nothnegal clearly qualifies, since they hail from the tiny Maldive Islands, way out in the Indian Ocean (their location is actually listed as an atoll, which counts as mega-exotic). Decadence is their first full length and its all about modern melodic death with loads of keys, bells and whistles. They take the basic melo-death concept and mix in semi-industrial Fear Factory-like riffing, loads of electronic effects, keys and even synthesized guitars. The big mystery is how this remote isle act wrangled drum services from Kevin Talley (Six Feet Under, ex-Hate Eternal, ex-The Black Dahlia Murder) and keys by Marco Sneck (Poisonblack, ex-Kalmah, ex-Charon). Sounds interesting so far, right? Well, it may be interesting, but sadly, it ain’t too good. Despite the endless array of interesting keyboard noodling and effects, things never really work out and Decadence quickly sinks below the waves of mediocrity. This is a real shame, since there are some interesting ideas on hand and some talented folks involved. But, as the saying goes, no band is an island (sorry, island jokes are rough going). Continue reading

For me 2011 was a year devoid of a death metal record that really knocked it out of the park. While Vomitory produced a pretty damn solid album, and Diocletian and Ulcerate were really good, but they didn’t exactly get me writhing around on the ground in ecstasy like a lot of other people seemed to have experienced it. So when I was digging through my unopened promos, I stumbled upon Nader Sadek‘s debut record which came out in 2011 from Season of Mist Records. And let me just say that I wasn’t even mildly prepared for what I was going to get. I’ll give you a hint though: it was 100% win. Continue reading

As we’ve done the last two years, it behooves us to point out all the shit that we’ve missed in the last year. And 2011 has been mighty full of oversights from our side. This has been a pretty crazy year, but let me just say that I apologize and hope we can really make it up to you by throwing out a few awesome or pretty awesome records that we’ve managed to overlook due to time constraints or limited attention spans.

Andorra is not a large country. But a couple of years ago Persefone blew progressive metal fans away with Shin-Ken and now in 2011 fellow countrymen Nami have released a record that has been inexcusably overlooked by this Angry Metal Guy. Fusing together melodic death metal, progressive and acoustic tendencies à la Opeth and adding in a layer of Meshuggahesque riffing and polyrhythm Fragile Alignments is a truly interesting and pretty damn unique melodic/progressive death metal record. There is plenty to love here, but there are also a few things that don’t sit as well with me. Let me explain.  Continue reading

Cynic // Carbon-Based Anatomy
Rating: 3.5/5.0 — Apparently Cynic entered the hanging-out-with-Ravi-Shankar-phase of their career.
Label: Seasons of Mist
Websites: cyniconline.com | facebook.com/cyniconline
Release Dates: US: 11.15.2011 | EU: 2011.11.11

Well, since the release of Traced in Air, I can’t think of a band that has higher expectations for their next full length than Cynic. Really, I don’t know a single non-Cynic fanboy among the reviewers that I frequently read, and this is because their two records are fantastic. The EP they released last year (Re-Traced) was a neat little foray into other styles and I really loved it. But I don’t think that anyone is quite ready for the band to stay in those other styles. Carbon-Based Anatomy is raising questions as to whether or not they will come back to the techy metal for which they’re supposed to be known. Continue reading

Ghost Brigade // Until Fear No Longer Defines Us
Rating: 4.0/5.0 —Soundtrack to a brood n’ brew
Label: Season of Mist Records
Websites: ghostbrigade.net/  myspace.com
Release Dates: EU: 19.08.2011  US: 08.23.2011

Another depressive, bleak band from Finland? What a surprise! Although they don’t seem to a band on everyone’s lips yet, Ghost Brigade have staked out their own little corner in the doom rock genre. Their first two albums were entertaining platters of doomy metal with a notable rock/post-rock edge and nods to death metal. Some lauded 2009′s Isolation Songs as a genre defining classic. I wouldn’t go quite that far but it had some great moments of downcast unhappiness. Along comes Until Fear No Longer Defines Us and they’ve really outdone themselves and reached a whole new level. Featuring a more laid back (but still highly morose) sound, Ghost Brigade drifts away from the heavier aspects of their sound and toward a more moody, rock-based style. Now, these guys were never what I would call knuckle smashing heavy to begin with. Sure they would toss in some deathy snarls and some heavy riffing but the focus was always on sullen, despondent vibes with enough rock sensibility to keep things moving. That hasn’t changed here, just reached a more effective, accessible phase. At times they sound similar to recent Katatonia, Rapture and the less deathy moments of Swallow the Sun. Does it work? Absolutely it does and most of Until is a testament to what quality songwriting will do for a band. Continue reading

Some records are so monumental that you need more than one opinion on them, particularly if those records have created this kind of feedback. In this case, we will be reviewing Morbid Angel‘s newest record. This is monumental, there is no other way to put it.

Continue reading

Septic Flesh // The Great Mass
Rating: 4.0/5.0 — (Torture) chamber music
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: abstrata.net | myspace.com/septicfleshband
Release Dates: EU: 18.04.2011 | US: 04.19.2011

Yet another highly anticipated 2011 release is upon us! This is the eighth crusade by the Greek masters of blackened death Septic Flesh and they brought a few new tricks with them as they refine their crazed classical music meets brutality approach. 2008′s Communion was hailed as a highly creative accomplishment and The Great Mass is a continuation and enlargement of that sound and concept. Taking their basic blackened death style and merging it with performances from the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra and a full choir, Septic Flesh have now become a full blown orchestral/symphonic death metal juggernaut. With a full orchestra involved, this is obviously going to be a bigger, more bombastic album and its hardly easy listening. While they traffic in the same over-the-top, dramatic theatrics as Therion, they manage to keep things much more linear (and therefore much more listenable). While bands like Cradle of Filth and Dimmu Borgir have long employed symphonic orchestration to accent their sound, Septic Flesh have now embedded it into their core and made it an integral part of their make up and identity. Continue reading

Ava Inferi // Onyx
Rating: 3.5/5.0 — Good for you, good for ennui
Label: Seasons of Mist Records
Websites: myspace.com/avainferi
Release Dates: EU: 14.02.2011 | US: 03.08.2011

Gothic metal, or as I’ve come to think of it, hot-babes-with-epic-pipes metal. I used to love it but admit to getting burned out on it over the last few years due to the over proliferation of these types of female fronted acts. Of course, some bands do it way better than others but it just seemed like there were a million generic, plastic imitations running around and I eventually washed my hands of the whole style. So when I was assigned the new Ava Inferi album, I didn’t have high expectations to say the least. Onyx is the third album by this Portugal based crew which features the guitar work and song writing of Rune Eriksen (Aura Noir) and the vocal stylings of Carmen Susana Simoes. Although these folks are usually classified as gothic/doom, there’s really no doom in their sound in the conventional sense. No crushing riffs, no mournful dirges. Instead, they strive to create a somber, melancholy feeling by playing sedately, with minimal aggression. While I wasn’t blown away by their previous material, this one managed to get under my skin and really grew on me. I must caution however, although I liked it more than expected, I get the feeling many metal minded individuals will not feel the same way. Continue reading

The Project Hate MCMXCIX // Bleeding the New Apocalypse (Cum Victriciis in Manibus Armis)
Rating: 3.5/5.0 — Gonna take a while to digest this one entirely…
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: theprojecthate.net | myspace.com/theprojecthate
Release Dates: EU: 14.02.2011 | US: 02.15.2011

A few months back I posted something which amounted to me shilling for money for The Project Hate‘s new record. What you, as a reader here, probably didn’t know is that at the time I’d never even heard The Project Hate. I was not a fan at all, actually, I just thought the idea was cool and I believe in supporting underground bands doing cool shit and I think that what Lord K Philipson was doing was, in fact, cool as hell. Things, of course, ended up getting worked out and I now have a copy of The Project Hate‘s new disc in my possession and it has possibly the longest title ever: Bleeding the New Apocalypse (Cum Victriciis in Manibus Armis). I will not write that again. Continue reading