Cyclone Empire

Isole – The Calm Hunter Review

Isole – The Calm Hunter Review

“What’s with all these “calm” themed titles lately. We had The Calm Hatchery a few weeks back and now this. For whatever reason I always read them as “clam,” which results in unintended hilarity. I mean, who hunts a freaking clam, right? They’re mollusks and just lay around waiting to be harvested. I live on an island so I know of what I speak. Anyway, this band is made up of the same guys that bring you the excellently blackened Viking metal of Ereb Altor. Isole is their traditional doom project, though it also has more than a little epic Vikingness running through its cold Norse veins.” Does your holiday wish list include melodic doom? If so, shove this in your stocking, chug some yule ale and get in the spirit.

Autumnal – The End of the Third Day Review

Autumnal – The End of the Third Day Review

“Kindly overlook the album cover you see to the left. Not only does it lack the good grace to include some kind of cool spherical object, but it also resembles something from a Christian new age rock group (the kind they play at inoffensive volumes in Christian, new age-y coffee joints). Worse still, it doesn’t give the slightest indication that Autumnal is a winningly morose, melodic doom act from Spain, or that The End of the Third Day is destined to be one of the sleeper hits of 2014.” Are you ready to feel those gloriously sad feels?

Ophis – Abhorrence in Opulence Review

Ophis – Abhorrence in Opulence Review

“Five doom/death songs comprising sixty minutes of music is a risky proposition that lives and dies by one thing: riffs. If you’re going to write songs that average out to twelve minutes in length, the riffs contained within had better be interesting, dynamic, and, of course, crushing.” That means some long, potentially ADHD offending tunes. Can Ophis hold the interest of the busy metaller?

Shakhtyor – Shakhtyor Review

Shakhtyor – Shakhtyor Review

“In an age where gimmicks run rampant, from Black Veil Brides to Shitfucker (two bands, if you think about it, that are basically brothers from different mothers), it’s refreshing to see a band get noticed merely on the basis of craftsmanship. Shakhtyor are so no-frills it hurts. They’re painfully unmarketable: three German dudes that look like, well, dudes, with an unpronounceable-to-most Russian moniker and a blatant disregard for the value of vocals.” Jordan Campbell weighs in with his first review for Angry Metal Guy — the obscure German sludge act Shakhtyor out in a few days from Metal Blade Records in the US.

Ereb Altor – Fire Meets Ice Review

Ereb Altor – Fire Meets Ice Review

“With little or no fanfare, the trolls of Viking/doom/folk/black metal known as Ereb Altor storm back from the frozen wastes with their hybrid sound and more tales from Norse mythology. Though they began life as an epic-sized, Viking metal act with a strong doom influence (check out By Honour because it’s badass!), they added more and more black metal over time, culminating with 2012s Gastrike opus. As before, they worship the sound and mood of Bathory’s Hammerheart opus (and to a lesser extent Twilight of the Gods) while also incorporating early Darkthrone influences and doom stylings similar to While Heaven Wept.” A fusion of Viking, black and doom metal pretty much sells itself, but Steel Druhm still showed up to grab a paycheck and examine the heady brew that Ereb Altor cooked up. Tastes like…wictory.

Paganizer – World Lobotomy Review

Paganizer – World Lobotomy Review

“More Rogga?? With Mr. Johansson being involved in one of every three reviews I write lately, maybe we should change the website name to Rogga o Rama. I’ve recently examined his Megascavenger and Just Before Dawn projects and here he is again with his main outfit, Paganizer (he also has a collaboration with Paul Speckmann of Master coming in a few weeks). The man is an omnipresent force in the Swedish death scene (hell, he IS the Swedish death scene) and he’s been responsible for lots of rich, creamy death metal. In all honesty though, I’ve always found Paganizer to be a pretty spotty act. Some of their early output was solid and some of the more recent stuff was less so.” So does World Lobotomy cause brain damage or suffer from it? Our resident Rogga expert Steel Druhm is back from the nervous hospital to provide his diagnosis.

Saturnus – Saturn in Ascension Review

Saturnus – Saturn in Ascension Review

Saturnus is back after a six year hiatus to pummel us once again with their painstakingly sad and tragic variety of doom death. If having a dying bride is sad, these guys are more like My Dying Wedding Party and Flower Girl. Yeah, that sad! Steel Druhm got us this review before volunteering for 48 hour suicide watch. Don’t fear, they took his bullet belt.

Things You Might Have Missed 2011: Mythological Cold Towers – Immemorial

Things You Might Have Missed 2011: Mythological Cold Towers – Immemorial

As under the radar and below the Earth’s crust as a band can get, Brazil’s doom/death stalwarts Mythological Cold Towers may have crafted an album capable of getting them some serious attention. Immemorial is their fourth release (available from Cyclone Empire) and like their previous works, it’s slow to mid-paced, atmospheric doom/death with a fair amount of melody and a smidgen of goth influence. The end result is like a cross between Swallow the Sun, Candlesmass, old Katatonia and really old Paradise Lost (some of this sounds like their Gothic album but with more finesse). If forced to describe their sound in a mere two words, those words would be “fucking” and “morose.” Though not the least bit cheery or hopeful, Immemorial is so well executed and laden with dark atmosphere, it ends up far more addicting than it should. In fact, it reminds me of Loss’s Despond. Both are crushingly doomy, heavy affairs that somehow stick in the head and demand repeat spins (this is way more melodic though). While not reinventing the death/doom wheel, Mythological Cold Towers manages to find that elusive sweet spot between heavy and subtly melodic and proceeds to milk it for all its worth. This is their best material by far and good enough for an honorable mention for 2011’s best, so Steel Druhm feels some shame for getting to it so late. If you were looking for quality doom/death in 2011 and missed this, you should also feel shame!

Black Sun Aeon – Blacklight Deliverance Review

Black Sun Aeon – Blacklight Deliverance Review

Tuomas Saukkonen is clearly a man concerned with the dangers of idle hands. To stave them off, he’s forever toiling in various musical projects (Before the Dawn, Dawn of Solace, RoutaSielu) and his highly underrated Black Sun Aeon project. While primarily known for his work in the excellent Before the Dawn, Tuomas has always used this project to explore more morose, gothic-tinged doomscapes while taking cues from fellow countrymen Insomnium and especially Rapture. As with the previous two Black Sun Aeon releases, Blacklight Deliverance is a compelling mix of death, doom and goth, with hauntingly beautiful melodies, ample heaviness and razor-sharp songwriting. It doesn’t break any new ground and at times veers very close to the aforementioned influences, but its a highly enjoyable journey nonetheless and has a few moments of absolute brilliance. It’s also a much more tightly focused work than 2010’s double album Routa and as a result, feels more immediate and accessible.