3.0

Noumena – Myrrys Review

By Steel Druhm on April 24, 2017 in 2017, Death Metal, Finnish Metal, Haunted Zoo Productions, Melodic Death Metal, Reviews, Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, 59 comments

“Noumena is the little Finnish melo-death band that never says die. After cranking out three quality albums in relatively quick succession from 2002 to 2006 (including the awesome Anatomy of Life), they went into cryo-limbo for six years, finally emerging with 2013s Death Walks With Me. The long layoff didn’t derail their charming approach to melancholic death metal, and I welcomed them back with open arms and hearse while hoping for another extended bout of regular releases. Well, I had to wait some 3 years and change to get the next installment, but they’re finally back with Myrrys.” Hibernate then eradicate.

Pale King – Monolith of the Malign Review

By Grymm on April 24, 2017 in 2017, Death Metal, Reviews, Soulseller Records, Swedish Metal, Death Metal, 17 comments

“Assumptions. No matter how hard we try not to make them, we always end up drawing conclusions about something without checking it out beforehand. In this case, with a description in our promo list as “melodic death metal,” and seeing that they hail from Sweden, I grabbed >i>Monolith of the Malign, the debut album from Pale King, expecting some twin-guitar Gothenburg melodies. And man, was I off. After much investigation, Pale King is a side-project of Jonny Pettersson and Håkan Stuvemark of long-running death-dealers Wombbath, aiming to capture an old-school melodic death metal feel, but with modern-day songwriting chops.” Olde school, new school, so many educational options!

Pyramaze – Contingent Review

By Steel Druhm on April 21, 2017 in 2017, Danish Metal, Inner Wound Recordings, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Progressive Metal, 63 comments

“Pyramaze has made a career out of defying expectations and being impossible to anticipate. With constantly shifting styles and revolving door vocalists, each new album promises something totally different. Enigmas that they are, it still seemed they’d found a near-perfect sound and a killer front man on 2015s excellent Disciples of the Sun, and since it was such a compelling, addicting album, I hoped they would tinker sparingly with their approach when it came time for a sequel. Alas, it was clear early on the band wanted to take what they did on Disciples and expand on it ten-fold for Contingent, going for a kind of post-apocalyptic conceptual piece with cinematic soundtrack elements and a greater symphonic presence.” Every contingent has a contingency fee.

Artificial Brain – Infrared Horizon Review

By Kronos on April 20, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Black Metal, Death Metal, Profound Lore Records, Progressive Death, Reviews, Technical Death Metal, Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, 82 comments

“With the release of Labyrinth Constellation in 2014, New York’s Artificial Brain won themselves an immediate following of fans and critics alike, myself included. With a shudder and a scream, Labyrinth Constellation pulled me by the throat out into a borderless realm of cavernous sci-fi horror as bizarre as it was enticing. The album managed to feel vast without losing the down-to-earth grit of death metal, and even among other Gorguts-influenced groups, Artificial Brain had created a unique sound and a fantastic debut. Following that up will be difficult.” Upgrade or system error?

All Hell – The Grave Alchemist Review

By Mark Z. on April 18, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Black Metal, Prosthetic Records, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Black Metal, Thrash Metal, 21 comments

“Say what you will about Adam Clemans, but Skeletonwitch really lost something when they kicked Chance out, leaving me hungry for bands that captured the rowdiness of their early days. Enter All Hell.” Skeletons, witches and Hell, oh my!

Lacerta – Lacerta Review

By Kronos on April 16, 2017 in 2017, Australian Metal, CDN Records, Death Metal, Reviews, Technical Death Metal, Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, 24 comments

“Since Psycroptic helped put the Australian metal scene on the map, several acts like Ne Obliviscaris and Ulcerate have become darlings of the metal scene worldwide, experimenting with their own unique sound. But whatever happened to the rabid, thrashy tech-death that first emerged from Tasmania?” Aussie shock and awe.

Troubled Horse – Revolution on Repeat Review

By Huck N Roll on April 15, 2017 in 2017, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Reviews, Rise Above Records, Swedish Metal, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, 15 comments

“Informal poll: who here is getting tired of the whole “retro rock” scene? It seems everyone and their dog wants to be in a retro band — especially those pesky Scandinavians. Whether it’s the proto-metal stylings of Sweden’s Saturn or the Survivor-core of Finland’s Brother Firetribe, or a litany of other bands flying the retro-core banner these days, retro seems to be the flavor of the month. Troubled Horse looks to add their crest to the mix with Revolution on Repeat.” Isn’t a troubled horse just a unicorn?

Longhouse – II: Vanishing Review

By Madam X on April 13, 2017 in 2017, Black Metal, Canadian Metal, Doom Metal, Post-metal, Reviews, Sludge, Doom Metal, Post-Metal, Sludge Metal, 19 comments

“It’s worth remembering that the past shapes the future and every story has a takeaway, be it uplifting or perhaps more sobering. As the creative genius behind Longhouse, Joshua Cayer, uses a mixture of doom, sludge and post-metal to recount stories of the Algonquin First Nations and more specifically, of his family’s community, the Kitigan Zibi. Situated in Maniwaki, a town developed on land that once belonged to the Kitigan Zibi Reserve, Longhouse focuses on Quebec, though they hail from Ottawa, Canada.” Blackened roots.

Anewrage – Life-Related Symptoms Review

By Treble Yell on April 9, 2017 in 2017, Alt-Metal, Italian Metal, Reviews, Scarlet Records, Alternative Metal, 22 comments

“Hey, you! Yeah, that’s right, I know you and your ilk, only scurrying out of your hatch for a new record if the music is heavier than a dying panda reading Sartre and the album is only available in limited release as sheet music stapled to the bathroom door in an abandoned hospital. Well, you better slink back to your cobweb-ridden hovel as Life-Related Symptoms by Anewrage is none of those things.” Time to appreciate the gentler things in life.

Horte – Horte Review

By Akerblogger on April 7, 2017 in 2017, Finnish Metal, Reviews, Rock, Svart Records, Rock, 13 comments

“Scant information about Horte can be found online. Presumably Finnish but definitely human, Horte perform a difficult-to-define noise-ridden electronica-infested female-fronted bass-led fuzz-rock that combines both dreamy beauty and startling harshness. Horte, their debut release, is essentially one long song that flows from minute zero to minute 38 with an organic continuity.” GMO-free avant-rock ripe for the picking.