American Metal

Riot V – Unleash the Fire Review

By Steel Druhm on October 26, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Heavy Metal, Reviews, Heavy Metal, 14 comments

“Riot is a legendary name in the New York metal scene with a career spanning almost 40 years. They’ve released genre classics like Narita, Fire Down Under and their crowning moment, 1988s Thundersteel. I’ve banged on about how great that album is since joining AMG and to this day it remains one of my all time favorites. The Thundersteel lineup reunited in 2011 for the brilliant Immortal Soul, which earned a very rare 5.0/5.0 from yours truly and it seemed the world was about to witness a major Riot renaissance. Then tragedy struck and founder and guitarist supreme Mark Reale passed away, leaving Riot in limbo.” The New York titans have been resurrected along with their seal faced mascot. But will it earn Steel Druhm’s Seal of Approval?

Obituary – Inked In Blood Review

By Madam X on October 26, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Death Metal, Relapse, Reviews, Death Metal, 26 comments

“Way back when Obituary were big, they delivered the kind of ripping death metal that rivaled Florida peers Malevolent Creation, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel and Deicide. To say that they once peeled the skin from your face is no understatement… think back to the pungent stench of Slowly We Rot and Cause of Death. It was them along with Winter that first incorporated the Celtic Frost dirge element into death metal, and when combined with John Tardy’s lunatic vocals left you wondering whether music could get any heavier.” The old boys are back to kill once again, but are the tools still sharp enough?

While Heaven Wept – Suspended at Aphelion Review

By Steel Druhm on October 22, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Doom Metal, Epic Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Doom Metal, Epic Metal, 18 comments

“While Heaven Wept is a band I expect excellence from and actively root for them to achieve it, almost as if I was in the damn band myself. Their Of Empires Forlorn album is one of the best doom releases ever and one I return to religiously whenever I need a good soul drubbing. Follow ups Vast Oceans Lachrymose and Fear of Infinity were very good, sometimes great doses of highly polished melodic doom, though neither could replicate that special something Of Empires possessed. With all the hype surrounding the writing and recording of Suspended at Aphelion, and the fact it’s a conceptual piece composed of one song with eleven movements, a fanboy could dream this would be their magnum opus rex.” Ah, the dreams of a fanboy…so fragile, so precarious.

The Skull – For Those Which Are Asleep Review

By Dr. Fisting on October 22, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Doom Metal, Reviews, Tee Pee Records, Doom Metal, 3 comments

“The Skull has an origin story that’s weirder than most. A few years back, several members of doom legends Trouble found themselves out of the band, and decided to form a “tribute” to their former group. Besides the irony of a tribute band containing 3/5ths of the band they are tribute-ing, The Skull quickly proved their credentials onstage. At a packed hometown gig in Chicago, I witnessed the band deliver a set of long-unheard Trouble classics. Eric Wagner (vocals), Jeff Olson (drums) and Ron Holzner (bass) sounded predictably solid, while Lothar Keller and Matt Goldsborough handily replicated the guitar interplay of Trouble’s recorded work. But when the band announced an album of original material, I was skeptical at first…” Can The Skull give us more trouble than Trouble? One can only hope.

Abazagorath – The Satanic Verses Review

By Al Kikuras on October 19, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Black Metal, Eternal Death, Reviews, Black Metal, 14 comments

“There was a time before the Internet when musicians were scary. Glen Benton was an animal killing, Satan-worshipping maniac instead of an angry divorcee. Slayer were about to slit open a woman’s throat, all in spikes and leather instead of looking like they are on line at Chuck E. Cheese’s in a Spongebob t-shirt. The only scary person left in extreme music now that GG Allin is dead is Gaahl from Gorgoroth/God Seed and I’ve been too out touch to not know if he’s considered frightening these days.” Out of touch and scared of Sponge Bob is no way to go through life, Al.

Encoffination – III-Hear Me O’ Death (Sing Thou Wretched Choirs) Review

By Mark Z. on October 18, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Reviews, Selfmadegod Records, Death Metal, Doom Metal, 1 comment

“It’s no surprise death is such a common theme in metal. Whether through global religious institutions or personal musings on mortality, it’s something we struggle with both individually and as a society, a looming black unknown that begs questions about what happens when we pass on. Encoffination, however, do not ponder questions of life and death. Instead, the duo work within the mausoleum of extreme doom metal to embrace death head-on….” Death is as death does.

Burn The Army – The Tide to Sink the Summit EP Review

By El Cuervo on October 17, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Metalcore, Post-metal, Reviews, Mathcore, Metalcore, 10 comments

“Citing likenesses to Isis, Converge and Tool, Indianapolis’s Burn The Army drew me with its promo blurb promising technical and progressive post-metal. Someone notify The Official Metal Categorisation Agency™ because it’s taken twenty years, but technical and progressive post-metal has officially been redefined! Unfortunately, what you’ll find on The Tide to Sink the Summit, their first EP, is fantastically average metalcore.” Once there was a time when Steel Druhm had to review all the metalcore. Now, we have people who do that for him.

Rigor Mortis – Slaves to the Grave Review

By Steel Druhm on October 14, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Thrash Metal, 4 comments

“Rigor Mortis is about as cult a name as there is in the annals of thrash. Unable to capitalize on the genre’s first wave in the mid 80s, the band’s 88′ debut was a wild, almost cartoonish dose of speed with death undertones that arrived just in time for the entire thrash genre to go over the proverbial cliff due to oversaturation.” This may be the surprise of the year right here.

Horrendous – Ecdysis Review

By Saunders on October 12, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Reviews, Death Metal, 20 comments

“Of all the throwback forms of metal that conjure warm fuzzy feelings of nostalgia, the famed Sunlight Studios sound, pioneered in Sweden during the late 80s/early 90’s, remains the most endearing yet oversaturated styles around. For every Bloodbath, Entrails or Blood Mortized there are countless other derivative bands bogged down by their lack of songwriting finesse and fresh ideas. So when East Coast death metal crew Horrendous burst onto the scene in 2012 with their accomplished debut album The Chills, it gave the tired style a welcome shot of adrenaline.” Can this be just as horrendous as their debut? More horrendous even?

Pig Destroyer – Mass & Volume EP

By Kronos on October 10, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Avante Garde, Death Metal, Relapse, Reviews, Avante Garde, Death Metal, 13 comments

“Pig Destroyer. EP. Are you ready for 20 minutes of aggravated, misanthropic deathgrind anthems in the vein of Phantom Limb? Because you’d better not be.” What the hell does that mean? Kronos is such an enigma.