2013

Circle II Circle – Seasons Will Fall Review

Circle II Circle – Seasons Will Fall Review

By Steel Druhm on January 22, 2013 in 2.0, 2013, American Metal, EarMusic records, Heavy Metal, Reviews, Heavy Metal, 9 comments

I’ll run the risk to my metal cred and admit I was a pretty big fan of late period Savatage. Albums like Edge of Thorns and Handful of Rain were so loaded with pre-Trans-Siberian Orchestra bombast and cheese-wizardry, they were nearly impossible to resist (despite my occasional snickers at the unhealthy Velveeta factor inherent therein). One of the big selling points was Zak Steven’s impressive vocal work. Though I always had a soft spot for the ten-pack-a-day rasp of Jon Oliva, Stevens breathed new life into the Savatage sound with his deep, powerful delivery and dramatic leanings. When he split off to form Circle II Circle, I wanted to be a big supporter, but too often the mix of mid-tempo hard rock/metal just didn’t push my buttons the same way. After five albums of material in the same vein as Jorn Lande’s solo albums and the Allen/Lande project, only Watching in Silence and Burden of Truth stood out, with the rest feeling like tepid exercises in mundane writing and generalized malaise. Now comes platter number six, Seasons Will Fall.

Hanging Garden – At Every Door Review

Hanging Garden – At Every Door Review

By Dr. Fisting on January 21, 2013 in 2.5, 2013, Doom Metal, Finnish Metal, Gothic Metal, Lifeforce Records, Rating, Reviews, 9 comments

As I write this, it’s 15 degrees Celsius outside. The sun rises, but does not provide any warmth. Everything in my world is covered in a thin layer of ice, and things seem to be moving very slowly. In other words: it’s cold as shit out here. This is the perfect weather for some gloomy, atmospheric, slow-ass metal. And it just so happens that I have At Every Door, the new album by Finnish sextet Hanging Garden.

Cult of Luna – Vertikal Review

Cult of Luna – Vertikal Review

By Alex Franquelli on January 19, 2013 in 2013, 4.5, Hardcore, Indie Recordings, Reviews, Sludge, Swedish Metal, 10 comments

I started listening to Cult of Luna with The Beyond. The year was 2003, the city was quiet and the light had been swallowed by the sound of an unspecified frequency – an electric wall of sound that made everything glow. And it burned so bright that I remained silent for the following, painful 67 minutes. I stopped listening to Cult Of Luna a year later. It was 2004, the album was Salvation and I couldn’t help but think that everything that had to be told had already been told. I resumed listening to Cult of Luna in 2013. Resistance became futile. And, yes, giving in was the right thing to do.

Voivod – Target Earth Review

Voivod – Target Earth Review

By Dr. Fisting on January 16, 2013 in 2013, 4.5, Canadian Metal, Century Media, Progressive Metal, Releases, Reviews, Uncategorized, Progressive Metal, 15 comments

The prospect of a new Voivod record is something I approached with a fair amount of dread, mostly due to the minor detail that guitarist/bandleader Denis “Piggy” D’Amour passed away back in 2005. A lot of ’80s/’90s bands have buried their dead and moved on, occasionally with decent results (see: Alice In Chains). But Piggy seemed irreplaceable. He was the band’s main songwriter by most accounts, and more importantly, he possessed one of the weirdest, most eccentric guitar styles in all of metal. It seemed that no one could possibly take his place.

Riverside – Shrine of New Generation Slaves Review

Riverside – Shrine of New Generation Slaves Review

By Angry Metal Guy on January 12, 2013 in 2013, 3.5, InsideOut, Polish Metal, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Progressive Rock, 1 comment

Back in 2009 when I started this website, I was really getting back into metal and music in general, after having spent the previous year working on my own music and being really invested in learning a new language and trying to integrate into a new country. Upon having done this, I started up Angry Metal Guy with the purpose of giving myself something to do and a crash course in new music. One of the first labels I actually got a hold of was InsideOut (via Century Media) and received several very cool promos at around the same time. 2009 was actually a really good year, with several awesome releases that still stick out for me. One of these is the modern rock tinged opus Anno Domini High Definition with the slightly embarrassing acronym of ADHD. The record was modern, heavy and progressive. I was impressed and have been looking forward to the band’s follow up since.