Aura Noir

Speedwhore – Visions of a Parallel World Review

Speedwhore – Visions of a Parallel World Review

“The band’s 2015 debut record, The Future Is Now, is a predictable platter of one-dimensional black/thrash riffs with gravelly vocals and the occasional Slayer pig squeal. That album flowed like one thirty-eight-minute track, barely allowing you to process a song before throwing you into the next. In general, the album is standard-fare black/thrash. Eight years later, the band returns with a new outing in the form of Visions of a Parallel World. But, this time, the production is far superior to its predecessor. The rawness is still there, the vocals are lower in the mix, the guitars rule the roost, and the dynamics are pleasing to the ear. The only thing that remains is the songwriting.” Speed kills ladies of the evening.

Cruentus – Fossilized Review

Cruentus – Fossilized Review

“I stare up into the desert sun, already exhausted from the thought of searching the pit for something to review. Covered in sweat and reeling from the hangover induced by the hourly AMG hobo wine IVs, I approach the pit. I close my eyes, anticipating the bite and venom in my veins, and grab the first promo off the top. It reads: CruentusFossilized – black/thrash metal.” Gems in the bone pit.

The Day of the Beast – Indisputably Carnivorous Review

The Day of the Beast – Indisputably Carnivorous Review

“The almighty riff. While I’m not entirely convinced of its importance, masochists like Diabolus in Muzaka and Ferrous Beuller spend their days raking the dregs of the Skull Pit’s outer limits in the vain hopes of discovering it laying amid the rusty needles of tech-death or beneath the gore and grime of OSDM, only to return empty-handed and receive yet another beating from the all-knowing ape. While the foundation of countless styles of metal, it’s a frail thing, as its weak implementation or absence can violently derail a song or an album. Worshipers of the almighty and ever-elusive riff, does The Day of the Beast succeed or will they crash and burn with the hordes of Nifelheim-copycats?” Nice to eat you.

Yer Metal Is Olde: Nifelheim – Servants of Darkness

Yer Metal Is Olde: Nifelheim – Servants of Darkness

“There’s something immensely satisfying about listening to musicians who are utterly devoted to their craft. In the realm of blackened thrash, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who fits that description more than Nifelheim’s founding members, Swedish twins Erik “Tyrant” and Per “Hellbutcher” Gustavsson. These are the guys who apparently kicked out their first guitarist for being “wimpy” enough to have a girlfriend, the guys who once claimed that Venom is the most recent band they actually like.” Trve darkness.

Alcoholocaust – Necro Apocalipse Bestial Review

Alcoholocaust – Necro Apocalipse Bestial Review

“It’s Monday. 8:24 A.M. I pull my Toyota into the Magazine Street parking garage, fifth floor, the only spot in the shade that still has cell phone reception. Aura Noir’s Out to Die is blasting on the stereo. I pay the parking fee on my mobile app and sigh as I prepare myself for another day at the office. And then, I stop. What if I don’t go in? I think to myself. What if I just turn the car back on and drive away? What if I forget my job and spend the rest of the summer guzzling booze, getting hairy, and banging my fukkin head for the Master in Hell? It seems radical, but a group of people have actually done it.” Down with adulthood!

Anticosm – The Call of the Void Review

Anticosm – The Call of the Void Review

Deströyer 666 and Hellripper opened my eyes to the sheer energy and surprising hooks which can be present when linked with black metal, while the likes of early Slayer overlapped with an old favorite in classic metal. I saw more clearly the interconnected map of styles in the ’80s and was lured in with the treats of genres with which I was better accustomed. The prospect of a new blackened thrash release in the promo bin was therefore exciting and so it was that I turned to New Jersey’s Anticosm and their third full-length entitled The Call of the Void.” Jersey boys in the void.

Nocturnal Breed – We Only Came for Violence Review

Nocturnal Breed – We Only Came for Violence Review

Nocturnal Breed are everything I’ve ever wanted to be in this life. They’re old-school, they don’t give a shit about anybody or anything, and they’re Norwegian. Making their start with ‘97’s Aggressor, these hateful sonsabitches haven’t changed a goddamn thing in over twenty years. Their albums are way too long, there’s no fluidity from one track to the next, and they’re still kicking the combination of Bathory, Venom, and Motörhead mixed with first-wave black metal and thrash.” Breed in the night.

All Hell – The Witch’s Grail Review

All Hell – The Witch’s Grail Review

“Comfort food. Whether you’re a cuisine snob who frequents Michelin-star restaurants or an amateur cook trying new recipes for the family, odds are that there are times when you don’t want anything too fancy. Food you can fall back on that hits all the right spots without being too challenging or demanding. Mac and cheese, if you’re like me. The kind of blackened thrash that North Carolina’s All Hell produces is my musical equivalent of comfort food. It’s not mind-bending in its complexity (like, say, Dodecahedron) or emotionally demanding (lookin’ at you, Bell Witch and Ataraxie). But when you’ve had a bad day at the office, or life’s getting you down with its quotidian mundanity, All Hell and their ilk are there to get put a contented smile on your face while those neck muscles flex in appreciation.” Feel the Hell.

Verwüstung – Gospel ov Fury Review

Verwüstung – Gospel ov Fury Review

“Nothing gets me going like blackened thrash metal. The mere sight of a promising promo that places the words “black” and “thrash” together is enough to manifest a throbbing pillar of flesh in my britches, the magnitude of which is rivaled only by the tower of Isengard. Belarus quartet Verwüstung take things a step further by describing their second album Gospel ov Fury as “a fucking firestorm of blackthrashing metal.” Jesus. Suddenly I need a cold shower.” Rage-gasms.