Angry Metal Guy

Wykked Wytch – The Ultimate Deception Review

By Natalie Zed on February 22, 2012 in 2.5, 2012, American Metal, Black Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, 3 comments

Wykked Wytch are based in Miami, Florida, have been active since 1994. The band was founded by vocalist and frontwoman Ipek, who has helmed the band artistically and remained the one static member for almost 15 years. The Ultimate Deception is their fifth full-length record. The first thing that struck me about The Ultimate Deception is the jagged, clumsy hybrid that is the sound, composed of a death metal backbone, meaty black metal riffs and blasts, and aching hardcore vocals with a smattering of synth and symphonic elements.

Rage – 21 Review

By Angry Metal Guy on February 21, 2012 in 2012, 3.0, German Metal, Heavy Metal, Nuclear Blast, Power Metal, Progressive Metal, Reviews, NWOBHM, Power Metal, Thrash Metal, 3 comments

Rage has been around for fucking ever. If you consider that this is the band’s 21st record (I’ll bet you could’ve never told from the name), that means that these guys have been one of the most productive bands in the history of metal. Where other bands seemingly get to the point in their career where they’re putting out an album every four or five years, these guys have just continued being productive. However, just because they’re productive doesn’t mean that everything they’re putting out was golden. One can think about the drop off from 2006’s Speak of the Dead to 2008’s less than stellar Carved in Stone. But, of course, the band recouped and put out Strings to a Web with all the gumption a band of their caliber should have. So now here we have it, the band’s 21st record, named for the event, and coming out in just a few days.

Corrosion of Conformity – Corrosion of Conformity Review

By Dr. Fisting on February 20, 2012 in 2012, 4.5, American Metal, Candlelight, Hardcore, Heavy Metal, Reviews, Sludge, 7 comments

Corrosion of Conformity fans can generally be divided up into two teams: aging hardcore guys who only enjoyed the band’s first few records from the early ’80s, and metal dudes who prefer the band’s more recent incarnation with Pepper Keenan on vocals. These two teams don’t like each other, and Team Hardcore really doesn’t like latter-day COC. This conflict has been going on for decades, but the battle lines shifted recently when the three founding members of COC decided to reunite, sans Keenan, to record new music as a trio for the first time since 1986. Would the band finally deliver some crossover thrash to satisfy the old-schoolers? Or will they continue along the sludgy path they’ve been traveling since 1994’s Deliverance?

Pharaoh – Bury the Light Review

By Steel Druhm on February 17, 2012 in 2012, 4.5, American Metal, Cruz Del Sur, Heavy Metal, Power Metal, Reviews, Heavy Metal, Power Metal, 11 comments

I’m a fan of Pharaoh, have been since their 2003 debut After the Fire. These Philly fanatics are the present and future of the new retro wave of traditional heavy metal (NRWOTHM) and over their short but solid career, they’ve fused retro ideals with prog and enough thrash sensibility to kick the required ass quotient.

Pallbearer – Sorrow and Extinction Review

By Steel Druhm on February 15, 2012 in 2012, 4.0, American Metal, Doom Metal, Profound Lore Records, Reviews, Doom Metal, 7 comments

My oh my, doom is getting more and more epic (read as long-winded) and it seems the genre is increasingly stricken with chronic Metallica-itis (inability to edit or cull songs). With bands such as Pilgrim and Swallow the Sun releasing albums loaded down with mega-long, droning numbers, attention spans everywhere are being tested and found wanting.

Gazpacho – March of Ghosts Review

By Angry Metal Guy on February 14, 2012 in 2012, 3.5, Kscope, Not Metal, Reviews, Not Metal, Progressive Rock, 0 comments

Gazpacho has to be the worst name for a band ever. The soup itself is frankly a little on the unexciting side as it is, being a vegetable soup served cold. It’s actually Spanish or Portuguese, isn’t it? Being Norwegian, couldn’t they have chosen say, lefse or something? Not only is it tastier (Mmm, a bit of sugar and butter and I’m a Happy Metal Guy! NOMNOMNOM!), but it’s Norwegian! Like the band! Get it!? Well, anyway, needless to say I was less than stoked to actually dig my ear-fingers into this record. How could a band that can’t come up with a decent band name come up with good music? I mean, this is an existential question… really.

Orange Goblin – A Eulogy for the Damned Review

By Steel Druhm on February 13, 2012 in 2012, 3.5, Candlelight, Doom Metal, English Metal, Heavy Metal, Reviews, Doom Metal, Heavy Metal, 5 comments

We all have those bands we’re aware of for years but never make an effort to hear. I’m not even talking about bands you’re pretty sure you’ll hate (i.e. Korn). I’m talking about the bands you hear about, make a mental note to check out, only to be distracted by something shiny. The U.K.’s Orange Goblin is one of those bands for yours truly. I’ve heard of ’em forever, heard mostly good things, but just never got up the gumption to track down their stuff.

Woods of Ypres – Woods 5: Grey Skies & Electric Light Review

By Steel Druhm on February 10, 2012 in 2012, 4.5, Black Metal, Canadian Metal, Doom Metal, Earache Records, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, Doom Metal, Heavy Metal, 20 comments

Life (and death) can certainly be strange. How else do you explain one of 2011’s most unfortunate events giving rise to 2012’s most unusual listening experience.

Earth – Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light II Review

By Dr. Fisting on February 9, 2012 in 2012, 3.0, American Metal, Doom Metal, Reviews, Southern Lord, 5 comments

To those in the know, the arrival of a new Earth record comes with a lot of baggage, mostly due to bandleader Dylan Carlson’s well-known personal struggles and his infamous role in Kurt Cobain’s untimely demise. More significantly, there’s the fact that Earth’s recent output is surprisingly laid back, and bears almost no resemblance to their pioneering doom-drone works of the ’90s. Old-school Earth fans can forgive Carlson for giving Kurt that shotgun, but they cannot abide by this mellow hippie shit, man. So with the release of Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light II, the question becomes: will Carlson a) give the people what they want, or b) continue with the current musical direction, unencumbered by giving a fuck about what people think?

Aborted – Global Flatline Review

By Angry Metal Guy on February 8, 2012 in 2012, 3.5, Belgian Metal, Century Media, Grind, Reviews, Grind, 0 comments

I’d been holding off on writing this review because, well, to be frank I’m no grind expert. While I have a working knowledge of most genres and pretty deep knowledge in a several, grind is not one of them. In full disclosure, I’ve not listened to the classics (except Carcass and Napalm Death and Nasum), and I’m probably even fucking up genres when I have discussions about what I think the classics are. So, to pretend to be authoritative on the subject would be disingenuous at best. Against my better judgement, when I got Aborted’s Global Flatline I decided that I should review it anyway. But after listening to it about 10 times I realized I wasn’t quite sure how to put what I thought of it, which is kind of my.. job. So, that’s kind of awkward. I went back and listened to the band’s older material