3.0

Throane – Plus une main à mordre Review

By Roquentin on October 25, 2017 in 2017, Avante Garde, Black Metal, Debemur Morti, Drone, French Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, 16 comments

“In retrospect, Throane’s tantalizing début Derrière-Nous, La Lumière is one of those records whose piercing splinters, given time to gestate, have a tendency to deeply ingrain themselves into thoughts. Almost imperceptible at first, its monochromatic strokes paint uncomfortable rooms of the mind. Rooms filled with anguish and darkness, shaped equally by fears of the void and an existential dread of the mundane. Spaces hidden behind walls upon walls, repressed but always present. The idea of revisiting this world is one that is simultaneously exhilarating and frightening.” Splinters in the mind’s eye.

Xanthochroid – Of Erthe and Axen: Act II Review

By Saunders on October 22, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Melodic Black Metal, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Self-released, Symphonic Metal, Melodic Black Metal, Progressive Metal, Symphonic Metal, 53 comments

“Nevertheless, the stronger moments from Act I are powerful examples of the band’s capabilities. So, here we go again with round two. Can Xanthochroid pull off this ambitious project with a worthier second act? Or is Of Erthe and Axen gearing for a spot on my ‘Biggest Disappointments o’ 2017′ list?” These double and triple albums, man.

Altarage – Endinghent Review

By Kronos on October 20, 2017 in 2017, Black Metal, Death Metal, Reviews, Season of Mist, Spanish Metal, Death Metal, 45 comments

“Altarage’s debut turned quite a few tar-covered heads, each new adherent drawn in by its tendrils of sticky ooze, a concoction of lo-fi hideousness that languished in the bogs somewhere between Portal and Teitanblood. Not the most original of albums, but it pounded a chord for metalheads oppressed by melody and clean production.” The sound of chunder.

Power Quest – Sixth Dimension Review

By Eldritch Elitist on October 19, 2017 in 2017, Avalon, English Metal, Inner Wound Recordings, Power Metal, Reviews, Power Metal, 72 comments

“In my personal pantheon of guilty pleasures, Power Quest reigns supreme. Formed in 2011 by ex-DragonForce keyboardist Steve Williams (lead songwriter and sole remaining original member), this band made a name for themselves in the early-to-mid 00’s by redefining the meaning of cheese, mashing Teutonic power metal together with synth-drenched glam rock—think Van Halen’s “Jump,” by way of Freedom Call, and you’ll have a reasonably accurate idea of what to expect. ” The cheese quest never ends.

Masters of Disguise – Alpha/Omega Review

By Steel Druhm on October 19, 2017 in 2017, German Metal, Heavy Metal, Limb Music, Reviews, Speed Metal, Thrash Metal, Heavy Metal, Speed Metal, Thrash Metal, 66 comments

“Hey look, the weirdest inside joke in all of metal is still going strong. Backstory: Masters of Disguise is a throwback speed metal act living and breathing to pay homage to a particularly obscure band from the 80s called Savage Grace. Who, you ask? Exactly. They were a good band but barely got any traction or notoriety despite a pretty solid outing with 1986s After the Fall From Grace. Now Masters of Disguise (named after Grace’s debut album) seek to revive their hero’s nonexistent legacy due to some highly tenuous ties to the original singer.” First Will and Grace comes back and now Savage Grace too?

Enslaved – E Review

By Angry Metal Guy on October 13, 2017 in 2017, Black Metal, Norwegian Metal, Nuclear Blast, Progressive Rock, Reviews, Black Metal, Progressive Rock, 149 comments

Enslaved is Norway’s biggest and most successful (currently active) metal band. They have garnered a following of intensely loyal fans who adore their every release with the fervor of the newly converted. In fact, I once counted myself a huge fan. There was a string of records that Enslaved released between 2000’s Mardraum: Beyond the Within and 2008’s Vertebrae which are practically unassailable. Not every one of those albums was perfect—Isa and Ruun were both only great records when sat side-by-side the excellent Below the Lights and Vertebrae, but they were consistently addictive listens from a band that could do no wrong. And I, along with everyone else, lathered Axioma Ethica Odini with praise, only to declare it one of my biggest disappointments of the year in 2010. I meh’d the hulking RIITIIR, and ¯\_(ツ)_/¯’d its follow-up In Times, declaring it a testament to the excesses of the modern recording industry. In sum: Enslaved went from being one of my favorite bands in 2008 to being a band whose newest release almost didn’t get reviewed by me. But with all the ranting and raving about how E is the best album they’ve put out in a while, I couldn’t keep myself away.

Sarke – Viige Urh Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier on October 12, 2017 in 2017, Black Metal, Indie Recordings, Norwegian Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, 25 comments

“Well, the cold has begun to settle in. Which means dark, frigid, unforgiving black metal will soon permeate the air of the Grier home. You can expect nothing less than the raw, primitive output of old-school Mayhem, Darkthrone, Enslaved, and Celtic Frost. It’s the right metal for the right season. The kind that you can almost feel blow through the pines as you walk over the fallen needles. The kind ‘Where Cold Winds Blow’ ‘Under a Funeral Moon,’ just ‘(Beyond the) Northern Winds.’ It’s the time of the year where I find myself once again—burrowing under cottonwood leaves until the warm suns of spring arrive to dry them out. So, it’s only fitting that one of my favorite black metal vocalists is back with an October release.” Winterize your ears.

Battle Dagorath – II – Frozen Light of Eternal Darkness Review

By Eldritch Elitist on October 11, 2017 in 2017, Avantgarde Music, Black Metal, International Metal, Reviews, Atmospheric Black Metal, 27 comments

“Space is fucking big, and there’s an appropriately sizeable array of space-themed metal bands to match. Some artists approach the infinite blackness with a sense of child-like wonder, with bands like Star One and Keldian playing up sci-fi tropes in admiration of the majesty of the star ocean. Others, like Darkspace, channel the cosmos as an unparalleled force of nature; empty, suffocating, and impossibly cold. Battle Dagaroth, a band I had expected to be pure Summoning worship based on their name and ‘atmospheric black metal’ tag, is yet another act intent on aurally replicating the incomprehensible vastness of space.” In space no one can hear you frown.

Siberian Meat Grinder – Metal Bear Stomp Review

By GardensTale on October 11, 2017 in 2017, Hardcore, Reviews, Russian Metal, Self-released, Thrash Metal, 35 comments

“Recently I’ve developed a newfound appreciation for thrash metal. I never used to dig it, but somewhere in the last few years, something must have clicked. However, the sub-genre of crossover thrash was still foggy to me, which made me hesitant to review it. But the combo of the ridiculously cool nameSiberian Meat Grinder and title Metal Bear Stomp were too much to resist. Topping that with an equally ridiculous album cover, with a 60 foot bear dressed in bullet chains and a cape stomping his soldier boots into a panicking mob, I felt it was my sworn duty to brush up on my crossover and expose the masses to the Russian quintet.” The right to bear arms.

Nocturnal Rites – Phoenix Review

By Steel Druhm on October 9, 2017 in 2017, AFM Records, Heavy Metal, Power Metal, Reviews, Swedish Metal, Heavy Metal, Power Metal, 53 comments

“Back when I was a carefree graduate student, the band was a fairly typical sword and sorcery themed Euro-power outfit. Despite an artery clogging cheese quotient, the sheer infectious strength of albums like Tales of Mystery and Imagination and The Sacred Talisman all but forced you to get your Balrogs to the wall. Everything changed when Jonny Lindqvist joined as vocalist for 2000s Afterlife opus, slowly shifting the style into a more hard rock oriented sound.” Back from the ash hole of metal history.