“Olympia, Washington’s Mortiferum deliver cavernous growls, the swirling Incantation riffs, the trance-inducing Bolt Thrower rhythms, the chaotic leads, the noodling bass, the thunderous drums—all combining into one big (though brief, clocking in at 39 minutes) auditory beatdown.” Time for the season’s beating!
“If I said that a new 1914 album is a big deal for me, it would be a huge understatement. The band’s 2018 opus The Blind Leading the Blind was one of the first records I covered for this site—and my first 4.0. I was still a probationary writer at the time, and as a brand new music journalist, watching the metalverse collectively lose its mind over what 1914 accomplished on that record was a surreal and humbling experience. 1914 have already demonstrated that they are consummate pros with a clear strategic objective, and I would have been shocked if 2021 follow-up Where Fear and Weapons Meet was anything less than great.” War 4 sale.
“I’d like to start this review with an apology to Eldritch Elitist. I violated his rights by covering Skeletoon’s 2020 album, Nemesis. In Steel Druhm‘s excitement to assign me a goofy album from a goofy band with a goofy name, and in my excitement to receive such an honor, we both failed to realize that Eldritch had covered Skeletoon’s Goonies-themed album They Never Say Die in 2019, giving him the right of prima promo. The gracious Mr. Elitist gently broke the news to me shortly after that review published, and even went so far as to allow me to cover this, Skeletoon’s fifth album in six years. The Nerd Metal Superheroes are headed back into classic film territory, this time tackling the Back to the Future trilogy.” Yucks Capacitor.
“The past week has been magical. Days of heavy rain mixed with days of clear, chilly weather have done wonders to my mood. Cue the magical days of doom and gloom! Death/doom and gloom, that is. My fall of 2019 was filled with releases from quality death/doom acts like Nightfell, Sempiternal Dusk, and Mortiferum, and with the latter poised to release their sophomore platter in November—not to mention 1914’s imminent invasion—I’m hoping that this debut from Hungary’s Rothadás can kick off another season of pulverizing horror.” Chilled spirits.
“Hailing from Austin, Texas, Duel have spent their relatively short lifespan building a strong body of work in the stoner/doom metal/rock style. In Carne Persona is the band’s fourth full-length album since 2016 and follows in the footsteps of 2019’s strong effort, Valley of Shadows. Take a whiff of Duel’s sound, and you’ll detect notes of pure doom in the tradition of Sabbath mixed with the melodic sensibilities of Thin Lizzy and the creepy, doomy rock of Danzig.” Flavored stones.
“Like most blackened speed metal bands, Hellsword channels classic acts like Venom and early Bathory to form the base of their sound, but they also take a few steps into thrash territory, occasionally sounding a bit like debut-era Slayer. Hellsword are just now delivering their debut full-length despite forming way back in 2009, and this extended time together shows in their songwriting maturity.” Blades and Beelzebub.
Today is the culmination of a long, drawn-out chapter in Angry Metal Comment Section™ lore. Years back, a regular reader and commenter began making allusions to their forthcoming album. Virtually any time a record of the heavy or power metal variety was covered, said reader would factor in the ensuing discussion by offering their perspective on the reviewed album…and shamelessly plugging their own project, Master Spy. I couldn’t help but be intrigued and impressed by the gumption with which this person promoted their creative endeavor. So when the promo for Master Spy’s The Train appeared on our doorstep, I felt compelled to grab it and give it a fair shake.” Trainkiller.
“Hailing from Russia, Without God formed back in 2008 and have released a pair of full-lengths, the last coming out in 2014. Reemerging in 2021, the band have already released a nice little EP entitled Siberian Tunes: The Green Light and have made the interesting choice to immediately follow it with related LP Siberian Tunes: Purple Clouds. Without God play a big, burly style of doom metal that manages to include a pretty large range of influences.” From Russian with RIFFS!
“Is it just me, or is Redefining Darkness Records on somewhat of a tear lately? We’ve covered thirteen of the label’s releases since late 2018, and all thirteen have received a score of 3.0 or better. I’ve handled three of those reviews in 2021, and I’ve found them to be good, very good, and fucking awesome. So when the promo for Redefining Darkness act Black Mass came along with its epically sinuous artwork, I threw my head back, cursed the sky, and feasted upon its forbidden fruit.” Rise of the Tree Eaters.
“Oxygen Destroyer is devoted to spreading the terrible gospel of the Kaiju — giant monsters who lay waste to cities, and often, each other — and their music matches that mission perfectly. Blending death metal and thrash metal in their many forms, the band paints with a varied influence palette, ranging from the deathened thrash of Morbid Saint, to the thrashened death of Morbid Angel, to the groovy violence of Demolition Hammer.” R U morbid?
