“On Heaven into Dust, Knife have done what many bands refuse to do: grow. Don’t get me wrong, there’s still heaps of Motörhead and Venom worship; plenty of gang chants and blackened vocals; oodles of speed metal chugging, heavy metal galloping, and thrash riffing; almost everything endearing about their debut still applies here and the changes are relatively minor, but they’re impactful.” Stab or prod?
“Death metal, for all its vast influence, can be a chore. Walls of distortion, thick riffs, and roars all on the same plane of the low and gurgle assault the ears with reckless abandon, and I have long needed breathing room to fully appreciate it. While The Gorilla God Himself prefers it putrid and slimy and the gone-but-unforgotten Kronos prefers it layered and intricate, I prefer a death metal experience that takes me places. Saskatchewan five-piece Augurium is willing to throw their crusty platter of death metal into the ring.” Death on the road.
“Here I go again, going down the only road I’ve ever known – reviewing 80s era metal heroes trying to recapture lightning in a Zima bottle. If you had MTV in 1987, then, in-between Tawny Kitaen’s automotive gymnastics and David Coverdale’s expertly waxed chest, you witnessed Dutch guitar maestro, Adrian Vandenberg play one of the most iconic solos of the era.” Heart burn redux.
“According to Colony Drop’s Bandcamp page, the band’s motto is “High Speed, Twin Lead.” This isn’t just a promise that gets my heart all aflutter; it’s also an honest declaration. Time and time again, you’ll hear this maxim take mighty musical form on Brace for Impact, often to crushing effect.” Space must be colonized!
“I know what you’re thinking. That cover, those outfits, the absolutely killer orange-tinted glasses—they must be Italian. And it’s-a true, the members of Sinheresy hail from Trieste, which technically, in its annexed sliver, flies il Tricolore all the same. Also technically, Sinheresy plays metal, albeit in a variety that resembles the anthemic sympho-ish bounce of Olzon-era Nightwish smattered about with Björiffs to provide a kind of glossy crust.” Sinners bleed orange.
“Till the Dirt is comprised of Atheist members Shaefer, guitarist Jerry Witunsky, and bassist Yoav Ruiz-Feingold, as well as Soreption guitarist Ian Waye and Fermentor drummer Dylan Marks. With an Atheist-heavy lineup, what can we expect from Till the Dirt? Well, death metal with nu-metal was not on my Bingo card.” Things that should stay buried.
“Ah, Noveria. When I first encountered this talented bunch on sophomore album Forsaken, the clash between the overt melodrama and the serious subject matter forced me to leave a middling score. But 2019’s Aequilibrium was a huge improvement. It was almost like the band had used my review as a template for what to fix, making strides in songwriting, execution, and production alike.” Peak and Death Valley.
“2021 saw the birth of Stockholm HM-2 worshipping Swedeath act Grand Cadaver, composed of veterans of notable groups like Katatonia, Tiamat and Dark Tranquillity. Their Into the Maw of Death debut was a loving tribute to the early days of Entombed and Dismember and had more buzzing than a landfill in an Arizona summer. It brought nothing new to the well-trod d-beat death community beyond star power, but it was competent and aggressive enough to make for an entertaining spin, and the presence of Dark Tranquillity’s Mikael Stanne on vocals was reason enough to check it out. Now this group of super troopers are back with second release, Deities of Deathlike Sleep and the formula remains the same.” Corpus delicti.
“The NYC instrumental quartet Fall of the Albatross hides much behind their progressive metal label. Prog has always been a melting pot of any genre that wanders too close, but the genre mosaic of Fall of the Albatross is especially vivid. Their newest LP Rite evokes a diverse swath of influences ranging from the crushing mathcore of Car Bomb to the jazz fusion of Masayoshi Takanaka, with some dreamy Sithu Aye post-rock to round things out.” Prog bombing.
“Orphalis has everything a band could want–except for a bigger audience. Over the course of three prior albums, this German quintet honed their take on “brutal technical death metal” into a potent force. Their sound consists of chops and hooks served in roughly equal measure, riffs on riffs on more riffs stuffed into the sausage casing of three- to -five-minute song structures. The band flashes songwriting prowess alongside technique that never devolves into wheedly-deedly indulgence, and they coat everything with a shellac of genuine aggression.” Malice at the Phalis.
