Angry Metal Guy

Deus Otiosus // Murder
Rating: 3.0/5.0 — Old school but not old.
Label: FDA Rekotz (World) | American Line (South America)
Websites: facebook.com/deusotiosus.dk | myspace.com/deusotiosus
Release Dates: Out Worldwide
By: Fisting Andrew Golota

When you hear the phrase “old-school death metal,” you pretty much know what to expect. You can rattle off the usual list of influences (Death, Entombed, Autopsy, etc.) by heart, and you can envision the sound in your mind without hearing a single note. There’s about 9 thousand bands that are playing this style today, and neither you or I give a fuck about them because it was already done 20 years ago, and better. So when Danish band Deus Otiosus describes their debut full-length, Murderer, as “old-school death metal,” you know what you’re in for… right? Continue reading

Thulcandra // Under a Frozen Sun
Rating: 3.0/5.0 —-More Dissection than the county morgue
Label: Napalm Records
Websites: myspace.com/thulcandrametal
Release Dates: Out now!

The Germanic horde Thulcandra is back for another fast and furious bout of Dissection worship. For those who missed my review of their 2010 opus Fallen Angel’s Dominion, these chaps, lead by Stefan Kummerer (Obscura) are huge fans of the late, great Dissection and their debut was a loving tribute to their classic sound. Since I’m also a fan, their authentic and spot-on Dissection-isms (and occasional Immortal-isms) won me over enough to overlook the complete lack of originality. That release stands up well and I still spin it fairly often. Now comes their second album, Under a Frozen Sun and its a whole lot more of the same. Once again, they deliver expertly performed, melodic black metal with all the hallmarks of The Somberlain and Storm of the Light’s Bane albums. This time however, it feels slighty less fresh and engaging. Perhaps their homage schtick is growing old or maybe its the black metal weariness I’m feeling of late. Either way, while less successful than the debut, Thulcandra (or Dissection, I’m not sure which) retains just enough charm and appeal to make for some worthwhile moments of old school Scandinavian blackness, suitable for scowling and frowning in the snow.  It also has several barnburners that rise above the continued pattern of staunch unoriginality. Continue reading

Netherbird // Shadows and Snow EP
Rating: 3.5 —-Angry birds!
Label: Scarecrow Music Group
Websites: netherbird.com/ myspace.com/netherbird
Release Dates: Available for streaming now!

Sweden’s Netherbird is aiming to be the angry black metal bird that revamps the music industry. Although they aren’t particularly well-known yet, their 2010 release Monument Black Colossal met with my approval and I found their Cradle of Filth-meets-Dissection style of symphonic heaviness quite enjoyable. Since that release, they appear to have adopted an unusual marketing approach for their music. They’ve announced their intention to release three EPs over the next year, which together would comprise their next full-length album. As we speak, Shadows and Snow, the first of these planned EPs, is available for free downloading on their home page. It’s unclear if the future releases will be free or not. Whether this new approach will catch on or not remains to be seen but hey, free downloading from the band itself is always damn cool. So, is this worth the price of…free? Yes, it would be worth it even at twice that price (whatever that means). While very short (three songs and a musical interlude), Shadows and Snow features well crafted, engaging black death with enough personality to stand out from the frostbitten, frowning hordes and in these days of black metal malaise, that’s high praise indeed. Oh, and it’s free too! Continue reading

Gloria Morti // Anthems of Annihilation
Rating: 3.5/5.0 — Pretty darn good
Label: Cyclone Empire
Websites: gloriamorti.com | myspace.com/gloriamorti
Release Dates: EU: 30.07.2010 | US: Unknown (Import only?)

One of the best parts about being a reviewer, honestly, is getting a hold of records that you’d've never thought to buy on your own and really enjoying them. 2010 hasn’t actually had a lot of those for me. The year has gone pretty much as expected (and a little worse for certain bands, unfortunately). But one of the big disappointments has been the number of bands that I’ve gotten who I’d never heard of that just never pan out to anything. Because obviously it’s newer bands that keep things going and some of my favorite records of the last few years have been from bands that I didn’t even know existed until I got the record to review (Istapp for example, or In Mourning). Gloria Morti is one of those bands that I’d sorta gotten wind of, but never really heard before. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I received Anthems of Annihilation but I was pleasantly surprised. Continue reading

Netherbird // Monument Black Colossal
Rating: 3.5/5.0 – Crappy name, but this bird can fly.
Label: Scarecrow Recordings
Websites: netherbird.com | myspace.com/netherbird
Release Dates: EU: 09.07.2010 | US: 07.20.2010

One thing that I love about heavy metal is that every time you think you have a pretty thorough knowledge of the overall scene, some band you never heard of slithers out of some crevasse and bites you in the ass. Sweden’s Netherbird is just such an ass biter and their second full length, Monument Black Colossal seemingly came out of nowhere and surprised me with some impressively done melodic black metal, despite the really crappy band name and nonsensical album title. What is it with Sweden and metal these days anyway? That place is crawling with quality, ass biting bands! Continue reading

Thulcandra // Fallen Angel’s Dominion
Rating: 3.5/5.0 — Attack of the Clones!
Label: Napalm Records
Websites: myspace.com/thulcandrametal
Release Dates: Out Now!

At long last, the new Dissection Album!! Well, it isn’t..but it should be! After 2006’s massively disappointing Reinkaos album and the subsequent tragic loss of Jon Nödtveidt, the once mighty and majestic Swedish black metal band was part of metal history. The markers on Dissection’s grave being the highly esteemed albums The Somberlain and Storm of the Light’s Bane. Although there will never be another Dissection, Thulcandra is trying with all their collective might be the next best thing and their debut Fallen Angel’s Dominion comes as close as possible to reviving those fallen heroes of old. If you absolutely detest bands aping the style and sound of a seminal genre icon, cease reading and go find other worthwhile pursuits. However, if you are willing to listen to a quality band that forsakes originality in favor of blatant hero worship, stay tuned folks. Continue reading

Order of Ennead // An Examination of Being
Rating: 3.0/5.0 — Enjoyable
Label: Earache
Websites: myspace.com/orderofennead
Release Dates: EU: 19.04.2010 | US: 05.04.2010 (Import?)

Order of Ennead is the side project of the venerable Steve Asheim, better known as the drummer and primary writer of death metal legends Deicide. While it’s hard to a review like this, particularly on a newer project like this, without referencing the guy’s older work, the responsible reviewer in me thinks that one should probably draw a line here. Instead, I’d like to focus on the content and quality of An Examination of Being, the second record from these Floridians blackened death metallers without taking cheap shots at Glen Benton. So I’ll just take one: Order of Ennead is better because Glen Benton isn’t in it.

Order of Ennead is, indeed, a blackened death metal band. They sound like the kind of thing that could easily be signed to Regain Records these days. A mix of death metal brutality, black metal trem picking and blasting, and the very At The Gates kind of vocal approach that one wouldn’t expect so much from Florida death metal, but instead from the coast of Sweden.  However, unlike some of the misfires in this area over the past few years, An Examination of Being feels extreme and honest while still appealing to individuals who like a bit of melody in their metal with solid hooks and excellent guitar work.

The writing here isn’t revolutionary by any extent of the imagination. This doesn’t necessarily make the album any less enjoyable. Songs like “Conduits to Eternity” and “Lies Upon the Lips of Judas” showcase the groove-based death metal that can still be seen at the root of the music, while “…In the Mirror” and “A Portal to Rapture” sound like they wouldn’t be out of place on a 1349 or Ragnarok CD. These pieces are very well tied together in the best of songs, and sometimes they feel a bit foreign in the same arena, but this is very few and far between. Particularly the piece tying these things together is the guitar work of one John Li who is a highly competent guitar player who litters most tracks with phenomenal solos.

While Order of Ennead does a very strong job of building dark, entrancing songs this record does feel a tad repetitive and long. The problem with that critique is that An Examination of Being clocks in at 39 minutes long. This speaks for itself, I think. After hearing the first few tracks and really liking them, it wasn’t until the final song on the album “A Betrayal of Self” that I  felt really engaged in what was going on again (there’s a really great solo in a clean part that I really liked). Structurally this lull kind of kills the album for me, slipping in one ear and out the other.

So, I have mixed feelings about Order of Ennead, while I certainly like it better than later Deicide, this lands nowhere near the territory of a band like Dissection or Necrophobic. I suspect that these guys could definitely get better, particularly given the obvious skills of the band involved. But if you check out this record and you can’t get over the feeling that you’ve heard this all before and you can’t quite place it, don’t be surprised.

Trident // World Destruction
Rating: 2.5/5.0 — OK, but not special
Label: Regain Records
Websites: trident666.com | myspace.com/tridentofficial
Release Dates: EU: 22.03.2010 | US: 04.06.2010 [?]

An outgrowth of the ideas of a former Dissection guitarist (Johan Norman) and a couple of members of the band Necrophobic, Trident hits the stores on the 22nd of March throughout Europe and hits a totally virgin audience. These guys pretty much came out of nowhere—having basically played locally in Sweden and apparently they circulated a demo or something that got them picked up by Regain. Formed in 2007, Trident is a blackened death band in the veins of the aforementioned bands and is yet another Swedish assault on Christendom and the senses that will surely inflame passion in some corners.

World Destruction is not a revolutionary record that is going to make you want to drop everything and jump on the new wave of Swedish blackened death or anything. It is that good blend of black metal and Swedish death metal that bands like Necrophobic and Dissection have done extraordinarily well over the years. The vocals are raw and evil, high in range and they match the blast beat laden rhythm section well. The guitar work is well done, fast, sweepy with lots of trem picking and staccato riffing and it’s pretty much par for the course. However, the dynamic nature of the record is pretty much fast, faster and fastest. There are very few slow parts, but when they do come up they are more than welcome—interrupting what, at times, can start to lose its extremity because of its uniformity.

Let’s cut right to the core of this record, though: you have totally heard this before and you’ve heard it done way better. While there are standout tracks (particularly toward the end of the record), World Destruction is not a standout record. The riffs are good, the players are excellent and the production is solid. But often times the guitar melodies are weak, the song structures are standard and there are only a few moments that break away from this monotony. Which is sad, because there are excellent ideas on World Destruction. But instead of being executed well and offset by something a little bit more unique or technical, it pretty much just feels like run of the mill blackened  death metal.

Fans of the aforementioned bands and the Swedish black metal scene will probably find things they like on World Destruction. Particularly the tracks “Stockholm Bloodbath”, “Slaves to Anguish” are strong and the title track “World Destruction” is a total fucking scorcher, with amazing riffs, vocal performance and feel. But sadly enough, World Destruction, unlike its title track, is largely unmemorable and uninteresting. We know what the guys in this band are capable of, and therefore look hopefully to future releases—but this isn’t going to replace any of your Dissection or Necrophobic records in your playlists.