Japanese Metal

Coffins – The Fleshland Review

By Happy Metal Guy on July 8, 2013 in 2013, 3.0, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Japanese Metal, Relapse, Reviews, 1 comment

“Japan is better remembered as the country of eclectic and elaborately dressed, KISS-inspired metal bands. But it is also home to extreme metal bands with a straightforward musical approach. No gimmicks; just plain clothes, unshaved faces, silly lyrics, cartoonish album artwork and bulldozing riff after bulldozing riff. Coffins is such a band, and they are a 17-year-old, vomitey death/doom metal band from the Japanese region full of Pidgeys, Rattatas, Geodudes, Tentacools and Zubats. Despite being surrounded by dozens and dozens of cutesy critters, their music is anything but for the Gameboy- or Nintendo-DS-wielding toddlers.” Death metal from the Isle of Japan loaded with big, ugly riffs and vomitus vocals. Are you sold yet? Happy Metal Guy is here to close the deal and win those steak knives!

Fastkill – Bestial Thrashing Bulldozer Review

By Dr. Fisting on July 6, 2012 in 2.5, 2012, Japanese Metal, Pulverised Records, Thrash Metal, 5 comments

F.A.G. isn’t too sure about the merits of the retro-thrash movement, so naturally, he invented a drinking game!

Interview with Mirai Kawashima from Sigh

By Happy Metal Guy on April 22, 2012 in 2012, Avante Garde, Black Metal, Candlelight, Century Media, Interviews, Japanese Metal, The End Records, Black Metal, 10 comments

Enigmatic and uncomfortably cheerful, gregarious and ambitious Happy Metal Guy managed to catch up with Mirai Kawashima from the Japanese avant-garde black metal band Sigh. He bombarded him with positivity, amusing anecdotes and uncomfortable questions about steel phalli until Mr. Kawashima relented; answering the questions and talking about… flowers? This fucking blog gets weirder and weirder every day.

Defiled – In Crisis Review

By Angry Metal Guy on January 18, 2011 in 2011, 4.0, Death Metal, Japanese Metal, Reviews, Season of Mist, Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, 0 comments

I’ll admit it, I’m a biased motherfucker. When I think of Japan, I think of anime and J Pop and bands like over-the-top shit like X Japan and the crazy clown lookin’ girls, not brutal death metal bands like Defiled. I guess I should have learned this lesson already from bands like Gore Beyond Necropsy and Sigh and others who break against this stereotype in their own way, but no, my bias remains. Though I guess you can really say that Defiled is over-the-top, as they are an excellent, but also very brutal and pretty technical death metal band that is releasing their fourth full length. However, I can say that I was right surprised to get this record since I had no idea it was coming out and it has been 8 years since their Season of Mist debut Divination. But whether or not I had warning, Defiled has put out another ball breaking slab of death metal crushingness.