Reviews

Record reviews

Steven Wilson – 4½ Review

By Angry Metal Guy on January 14, 2016 in 2016, Kscope, Not Metal, Progressive Rock, Reviews, Progressive Rock, 51 comments

“Steven Wilson is one of music’s best producers and, as I ranted and raved last year, quickly becoming one of progressive music’s best songwriters, as well. Hand. Cannot. Erase. was, as I’ve just recently written again, a triumph. However, like all triumphs—yes, all of them—part of honing in on the “triumphant” is knowing when to edit. That doesn’t always mean that what was cut was bad, of course, and 4½ is Steven Wilson and his trusty (and ridiculously talented) backing band knocking out 37 minutes of excellent leftovers.” Yeah, I guess you should probably just expect a lovefest.

Manimal – Trapped in the Shadows Review

By Steel Druhm on January 14, 2016 in 2016, AFM Records, Heavy Metal, Reviews, Swedish Metal, Heavy Metal, 51 comments

“This is quite a surprise, as I never expected to hear from these guys again. Manimal (who’s name I hate because it reminds me of the ultra cheesy 70s sci-fi show) dropped a promising debut in 2009 then proceeded to fall off the edge of the world. I forgot them, life went on and then, BOOM! A new Manimal album arrives in my promo bin.” No one knows when the Manimal may strike!

Rhapsody of Fire – Into the Legend Review

By Angry Metal Guy on January 13, 2016 in 2016, AFM Records, Italian Metal, Power Metal, Reviews, Power Metal, 42 comments

“It’s sometimes hard to keep up with the entity we call [Luca Turilli’s] Rhapsody [of Fire]. Starting in the late ’90s, these Italian cheese-mongers took the power metal world by storm with their bombastic, orchestral power metal. The young, bright-eyed Italian maestros reeled off four albums that added an epic, operatic flair to the neoclassical metal of the 1980s they’d grown up on. While the band’s near-demise is one of the greatest scares of my adult fandom, Rhapsody of Fire’s return from the near annihilation was celebrated with two excellent records and an EP in short succession. Then tragedy struck. Luca Turilli and Alex Staropoli would each get their own version of the band—with Turilli’s staying on Nuclear Blast, and Staropoli’s moving on to AFM.” What became of these poor, Italian maestros in the big, cold, dark world? Click to find out!

Pil & Bue – Forget the Past, Let’s Worry about the Future Review

By Dr. Fisting on January 13, 2016 in 2016, Hard Rock, Indie Recordings, Norwegian Metal, Not Metal, Post-metal, Post-Rock, Reviews, 17 comments

“Every now and then, amidst the non-stop barrage of mediocre death and black metal we review here at AMG, we get something that’s a little bit out of the ordinary.” And since we’re all such elitist snobs, we like that.

Gygax – Critical Hits Review

By Grymm on January 13, 2016 in 2016, American Metal, Creator-Destructor Records, Hard Rock, Reviews, Hard Rock, 24 comments

“When AMG himself dropped a promo on me from a new band from former Gypsyhawk members called Gygax, named after the Godfather of D&D himself, E. Gary Gygax, I was both intrigued and skeptical. I love my metal and nerd tendencies, and Gygax had better come in with a decent THAC0 and saving throw if they wanted to withstand a lashing from yours truly.”

VOLA – Inmazes [Things You Might Have Missed 2015]

By El Cuervo on January 12, 2016 in 2015, Danish Metal, Djent, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Things You Might Have Missed 2015, Unsigned Bands, Djent, Progressive Metal, 21 comments

“VOLA are highly unusual in their approach to modern progressive metal. The most apt description I can define is prog-power by way of djent, offering the catchy melodies of Anubis Gate and Voyager but executed with the staccato, modern heaviness of a post-Meshuggah era.” Some things just sell themselves.

Lycus – Chasms Review

By El Cuervo on January 11, 2016 in 2016, American Metal, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Relapse, Reviews, Doom Metal, 45 comments

“Tempest was one of those remarkable underground metal debuts which developed sufficient hype to breach the upper echelon of popular online publications despite its apparent lack of commercial appeal. The oppressive funeral doom, courtesy of the plucking, hitting and growling gents over at Lycus, was positively received by Pitchfork, Decibel and theneedledrop, ultimately garnering a Relapse record deal. Some of us didn’t quite get Lycus before. So did we get on the hype train yet or what?

Raw – Battalion of Demons Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier on January 10, 2016 in 2016, Death Metal, German Metal, MDD Records, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Death Metal, Thrash Metal, 3 comments

“I know this will be a shocker to many, but it appears that Dr. Grier’s second review of 2016 is a thrashy one. This time, however, it’s not a by-the-numbers release of straightforward Metallica, Slayer, or Exodus brown-nosing.” The Doctor and his thrash are like conjoined twins and just as cranky.

Brainstorm – Scary Creatures Review

By Steel Druhm on January 9, 2016 in 2016, AFM Records, German Metal, Heavy Metal, Reviews, Heavy Metal, 37 comments

“I’ve said it before and now I’ll say it again: there are only a few bands I know won’t disappoint me and Brainstorm is the vanguard of those few precious dependables. Sure, some albums are more massive than others, but they’ve yet to let me down with a weak or uninspired effort.” Steel loves his dependables and his Depends.

El Caco – 7 Review

By Grymm on January 8, 2016 in 2016, Hard Rock, Indie Recordings, Norwegian Metal, Reviews, Stoner Rock, Hard Rock, Stoner Rock, 23 comments

I’ve been in the mood for some killer stoner rock as of late. Ever since the almighty Kyuss went belly-up in 1995, I’ve been on the lookout for some killer jams to race cars, drink a few IPAs, and clean some demons to. The deserts of California were a ripe breeding ground for desert jams, and Kyuss’s disbanding left a gaping hole. Roaring down the highway in a souped-up, cherry-red Camaro comes Norway’s El Caco, who bring with them their seventh full-length, imaginatively entitled 7. Do they have what it takes to become the new stoner rock kings, or should you just hush them all away?