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Belphegor – Conjuring the Dead Review

By Steel Druhm on July 30, 2014 in 2014, Austrian Metal, Black Metal, Death Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Black Metal, Death Metal, 16 comments

“Hey look, everybody’s favorite necromantically inclined, goat bondage enthusiasts are back from the latex boutique to unleash another wave of blackened death on the tied and naked masses. Austria’s Belphegor are one of the leading voices in mega-extreme music and 2011s Blood Magick Necromance left quiet an impression on my steely cranium, ending up one of my best albums of the year. While these fetish freaks don’t do anything all that different from contemporaries like Behemoth, their simple, utterly savage blend of Morbid Angel pummeling and Marduk like blitzkrieging blackness really resonates with me in a way even the Polish Demigods do not.” Steel doesn’t always listen to blackened death, but when he does, he prefers Belphegor.

Panopticon – Roads to the North Review

By JF Williams on July 29, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Black Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, Progressive Metal, 12 comments

“With 2012’s Kentucky, Panopticon became among the most interesting black metal projects operating in the U.S. Unlike many USBM lynchpins that stubbornly ape the sound and ethos of their Scandinavian influences, Austin Lunn’s one-man black metal project took a full-fledged approach to the genre as tied to his own home and hearth of Kentucky as that of his Scandinavian forefathers. For those out of the loop, the result was an ambitious, politically-charged concept album centered around Kentucky’s blood-soaked history of coal mining, soundtracked by an unprecedented mix of black metal and bluegrass music.” Black metal and bluegrass sounds as good a mix as peanut butter and mayonnaise, but hey, you gotta try it to know!

Vardan – Enjoy of Deep Sadness Review

By Madam X on July 22, 2014 in 2014, Avante Garde, Black Metal, Italian Metal, Moribund Records, Reviews, Atmospheric Black Metal, Black Metal, 15 comments

“”Do you realize that if you fall into a black hole, you will see the entire future of the Universe unfold in front of you in a matter of moments and you will emerge into another space-time created by the singularity of the black hole you just fell into?” Neil deGrasse Tyson probably didn’t picture those words describing the unfolding, infinity of one-man black metal artist Vardan’s latest journey into heartbreak and isolation, but they certainly do.” Black holes, ESL failures and a one man black metal act with awful corpse paint. It’s all here, folks.

Overkill – White Devil Armory Review

By Steel Druhm on July 19, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Thrash Metal, 24 comments

“Pugnacious. That’s what Overkill are and what they’ve always been. From the early days bumming around places like L’Amour in Brooklyn, boozing with the fans and hoping to finagle a slot on stage, on through a slew of influential, punky, neo-thrash albums that became minor classics, this crew of New Jersey ne’er-do-wells always had a big chip on their collective shoulder. Maybe that’s why they’re still hanging around the thrash scene like neighborhood thugs on the street corner, looking for more trouble after a lifetime full of it. They’ve stuck around long enough to release White Devil Armory, their seventeenth goddamn album, and they’re showing no signs of giving up their turf without a bloody fight.” Ready for a back alley mugging? Come to Overkill.

Wolvhammer – Clawing into Black Sun Review

By Grymm on July 5, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Black Metal, Profound Lore Records, Sludge, Black Metal, Sludge Metal, 5 comments

“You have to love it when you work so damn hard on something for a while, and all of a sudden, without any reason or explanation, things start to gel together in a satisfying fashion. Not in that sort of “right place at the right time” bullshit, but rather the amalgamation of street-level honesty, soul-bearing sincerity, and watching ideas becoming fully realized right before your eyes and hands.” Is it coming together for Wolvhammmer or falling apart?

Vintersorg – Naturbål Review

By Angry Metal Guy on July 4, 2014 in 2014, Black Metal, Napalm Records, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Melodic Black Metal, 30 comments

Vintersorg’s Naturbål had the misfortune (for long-time readers) of being released while I was off getting straight-married. In the run up to this major life event, I managed to squeeze in quite a few listens, however, as I was given a promo copy of it quite early from the band. Long-story-short: Naturbål is a continuation of these Skelleftebos’ string of successful releases that started with Jordpuls in 2011, improved with Orkan in 2012 and that continues in full force now in 2014.

Deathwhite – Ethereal EP Review

By Steel Druhm on June 24, 2014 in 2014, Doom Metal, Gothic Metal, Reviews, Doom Metal, Gothic Metal, 15 comments

“Every now and then you get a promo from an unheralded band with zero press and no buzz whatsoever and it kicks your ass all over the damn monkey farm. Deathwhite’s debut Ethereal is one of these unexpected ass kickers, and it’s a truly impressive dose of gloomy, post-modern gothic rock. It’s works by straddling the line between the seemingly defunct and sorely missed melo-doom of Rapture and depressive post-rockers like Ghost Brigade and Aoria, with traces of Tool and Katatonia added for sumptuous emphasis. Now THAT’S a spicy meatball!” Do you love surprises? How about a good old fashioned mystery?

Mournful Congregation – Concrescence of the Sophia Review

By Grymm on June 16, 2014 in 20 Buck Spin, 2014, Australian Metal, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Funeral Doom, 3 comments

“June is never a good month for the Grymm household. Between the rapidly increasing temperatures, even more rapidly increasing humidity, and BUGS EVERYWHERE, I’m not exactly what you would peg as “walking on sunshine.” I just want to stay inside, shun the sunlight, and get some dirge-and-purge going. And here comes Australia’s Mournful Congregation, with their stop-gap 2-song, 30-minute EP, Concrescence of the Sophia, bridging the distance between 2011’s all-encompassing somber funeral march, The Book of Kings, and their next full-length album. Should you stay in and harvest the sorrow, or would it be better for you to go outside, put on Coppertone SPF100, and flamethrow some 8-legged critters?” Grymm is far too fair for the scorching suns of summer.

Wretched – Cannibal Review

By Kronos on June 12, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Victory Records, Technical Death Metal, 8 comments

“Wretched’s thrash-influenced yet unmistakably modern take on death metal puts them in an interesting position between extremity and accessibility. By mixing thrashy riffing with top-notch melodic death metal in the vein of Black Dahlia Murder and Arsis and paying tribute to, though never falling victim to, metalcore tropes, their last three albums have been of a consistently high quality and the band has never failed to impress.” Tech-death with some interesting bells and whistles? Could be worth reading about….

The Atlas Moth – The Old Believer Review

By JF Williams on June 6, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Profound Lore Records, Reviews, Sludge, Stoner Rock, Sludge Metal, Stoner Metal, 3 comments

“The Atlas Moth is not your average “genre” band. More than being another entry in the long list of throwaway stoner doom acts, the Chicagoan five-piece’s sophomore LP An Ache for the Distance was a gorgeously rendered amalgam of sinewy sludge, painterly post-metal and heavy-handed psychedelia; a lushly psychedelic heavy metal record impossible to pigeonhole and just as easy to love. It’s the kind of record that screams “classic” in its first couple of seconds and could possibly reaffirm one’s faith in modern metal.” Can this release entrench The Atlas Moth as the savior of modern metal?