Aug22

Lugnet – Tales from the Great Beyond Review

By Huck N Roll on September 7, 2022 in Reviews, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, 11 comments

“Look who’s back! Our favorite crazy uncle band from 2019, Lugnet. The Stockholm boys have made it through the last few years relatively unscathed (perhaps without a haircut) and have put together a follow-up to 2019’s surprisingly strong Nightwalker album. I’ve waxed on in the past about how tiresome it can be to have bands aping the salad days of the 70s or 80s hard rock and metal scenes, but the songwriting is always the key to success – not just in this genre, but music in general.” Lug nuts.

Bad Baron – Ace of Hearts Review

By Itchymenace on September 4, 2022 in Reviews, 51 comments

“Bad Baron pay tribute to the B and C list artists who littered 80s movie soundtracks with vapid rock anthems and forgettable saccharine power ballads. It was a strange and wonderous time for those of us who lived through it. While artists like Peter Cetera, Phil Collins and Kenny Loggins found renewed popularity on the silver screen, countless unknown artists tested their metal on the soundtracks to the endless VHS atrocities that littered the local mini mart’s back corner. What attracted Finnish masochists Bad Baron to the bottom of the barrel in one of music’s most terrible eras? Who knows?” Baron of the 80s Wastelands.

Hierophant – Death Siege Review

By Dear Hollow on September 3, 2022 in Reviews, Black Metal, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Noise, Sludge Metal, 10 comments

“I was first introduced to Italian noisemongers Hierophant with their 2013 sophomore effort, the provocatively titled Holy Mother: Holy Monster. An absolutely punishing release, it included all the hallmarks of acts like Oathbreaker, Celeste, and Hexis in its blackened hardcore/sludge combo. However, with a cutthroat crusty edge, it forsook all subtlety for punishing vitriol, excruciatingly dense and brutal.” Death sieges us all. Hold fast!

Red Rot – Mal de Vivre Review

By Dolphin Whisperer on September 2, 2022 in Reviews, Gothic Metal, Hardcore, Progressive Metal, Sludge Metal, 15 comments

“The dissolution of Davide Tiso’s flagship project, Ephal Duath has left a scar, a gloom, that has festered in memory and stained the landscape that Red Rot oozes forth. Though not usually steeped in this depth of emotion, Tiso (also of Howling Sycamore) has a knack for writing music that challenges, even aiming to frustrate the listener, and, quite frankly, doesn’t always land—but that’s precisely why I’m excited to at least try what this Italian expat has to offer.” The rot inside a sad heart,

Intent – Exile Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier on September 1, 2022 in Reviews, Thrash Metal, 41 comments

“I love to hear a band adjust their sound slightly and deliver a better product than the previous record. Vox Populi is utterly unmemorable. So, when I grabbed the thrashy Exile, I was concerned. But seconds into the opener, ‘Victims of Conquest,’ all doubt faded.” Vicious Intent.

Eaten by Sharks – Eradication Review

By Carcharodon on August 31, 2022 in Reviews, Death Metal, Deathcore, 55 comments

“The odds of getting bitten by a shark are 1 in 3,748,067, significantly lower than the chances of being killed by fireworks (1 in 340,733) or normal, non-selfie related drowning (1 in 1,134). Indeed, if you want a good reason to stay out of the water, it’s lightning, which is 47 times more likely to kill you than a shark. What then are the chances of St. Catharines, Canada natives Eaten by Sharks catching lighting in a bottle on their self-released debut album, Eradication?” Sharkratio: Eaten by Stats.

Hexis – Aeternum Review

By Dear Hollow on August 31, 2022 in Reviews, Black Metal, Hardcore, Post-Metal, Sludge Metal, 16 comments

“While Hexis undoubtedly draws much comparison to the blackened hardcore/sludge of Celeste, Oathbreaker, The Secret, and even Amenra, there’s a liturgical element about them. Although its lyrics draw from the well of blasphemy and trod the well-worn path of nihilism, pitch-black reverence settles like cancer in the blood.” Hex marks the sore spot.

Might – Abyss Review

By Thus Spoke on August 30, 2022 in Reviews, Sludge, 16 comments

“Take a look at that incredible Beksiński art, and tell me what music you think it represents. Did you say stoner and sludge-infused alt-rock? I didn’t think so, but that’s what Might serve up in their sophomore record Abyss. The duo have certainly branched out from their more overtly sludgy eponymous debut, switching from stoner, to crust punk, to black metal, to prog rock, and to post-metal both within and between tracks.” Horse of a different void.

Auriferous Flame – The Great Mist Within Review

By Maddog on August 28, 2022 in Reviews, Black Metal, Post-Metal, 13 comments

“Before listening to The Great Mist Within, I thought I knew a thing or two about Ayloss, the prolific mastermind of Spectral Lore and Mystras. Ever since Spectral Lore’s III swept me off my feet in 2014, I’ve been an avid follower of his work. Ayloss has described his new project Auriferous Flame as a 90s black metal act, a “continuation of many of the ideas and music styles in Mystras” minus the folk influences. This description made me suspect that The Great Mist Within would be digestible but unimaginative,” Mist predictions.

Consumption – Necrotic Lust Review

By Ferox on August 27, 2022 in Reviews, 29 comments

“Someone forgot to put the surgical steel away, so Consumption grabbed it and started cutting. On Necrotic Lust, Hákan Stuvemark of Wombbath applies his gift for blending the heavy and the catchy to an album of straight-up Carcass-core. These nine symphonies of sickness aren’t trying to hide their debt to the English masters of grinding death metal; the promo copy makes the connection explicit, and Jeff Walker himself takes over lead vocals on “Ground Into Ash and Coal.” The band exists somewhere on the Gruesome Continuum–they’re willing to flirt with tribute act status if that means they can pump out new variations on the jams that inspired them.” Necrofanciers unite.