Taiwanese Metal

Chthonic – Battlefields of Asura Review

Chthonic – Battlefields of Asura Review

“After five years spent successfully spearheading a successful new political party in Taiwan, Chthonic is back, and no, they do not come bearing gifts of blackened metal. For those of us who were won over by 2013’s Bu-Tik, this is not necessarily bad news. That record, which marked a full transition from peak Cradle of Filth-esque extreme metal to soaring, folk-spliced melodeath, executed the transition with aplomb. Five years on, the latter style remains the status quo, and Battlefields of Asura handles the aesthetic with confidence indicative of half a decade of preparation.” Fog of war.

Crescent Lament – Elegy for the Blossoms [Things You Might Have Missed-2015]

Crescent Lament – Elegy for the Blossoms [Things You Might Have Missed-2015]

“Geisha metal could very well be a legitimate label in future, if Elegy for the Blossoms gains more exposure to the international metal community. As the second full-length studio album by indie Taiwanese symphonic gothic metal band Crescent Lament, this record successfully captures the helplessness felt by Taiwanese women of convenience who had little to no choice but to walk the geisha’s path.” Happy Metal Guy lives, for now….

Chthonic – Bú-Tik Review

Chthonic – Bú-Tik Review

“While first wetting my feet with black metal I came across Chthonic’s 9th Empyrean, Relentless Recurrence and Seediq Bale albums. I felt a distinct pull towards their use of traditional instruments, their dramatic, aggressive, melodic sound and their bleak, nihilistic undercurrent and for a fair while their screams gripped my attention. Eventually though I felt the inevitable allure for darker and uglier and sank deeper and into the blackness discovering Nattefrost, Carpathian Forest, Shining (Swedish), 1349, Marduk and so on and to be honest I got distracted and I guess I just forgot about Chthonic….” Will Madam X have a happy reunion with the once beloved Chthonic or has absence made the heart grow bitter? So much drama!