British Metal

Sermon – Birth of the Marvellous Review

By Huck N Roll on March 22, 2019 in 2019, British Metal, Progressive Metal, Prosthetic Records, Reviews, Progressive Metal, 213 comments

“I’ve said it before: we love finding gems amongst the post-apocalyptic ruins of the promo bin. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does it is glorious. Perhaps the name Lör rings a bell? How about The Reticent? Heck, we can throw King Goat in there as well. All examples of unknown acts whose music blew us away. It’s a big part of why we review albums, to be honest. Sure the 0.5 and 1.0 reviews can be entertaining, but we would much rather have people talking about (and buying) the music rather than the review. Which makes me pretty happy to say I’ve found my latest gem in Birth of the Marvellous.” You look…Marvellous!

Ty Morn – Istor Review

By sentynel on March 22, 2019 in 2019, British Metal, Power Metal, Reviews, Self-released, NWOBHM, Power Metal, 113 comments

“Another day, another record palmed off generously donated to me by Steel. In this case, I was convinced to give it a shot by the gorgeous cover art. Take a moment to admire it. It’s certainly not particularly brvtal, but it is very pretty. Despite the Viking art, though, the music doesn’t particularly draw on the tropes of Viking metal. This is classic power metal in the vein of Hammerfall, Dream Evil, and the like. Yet, sole permanent band member Aron Biale describes it as an homage to golden age metal.” Ear raid.

The Mute Gods – Atheists & Believers Review

By GardensTale on March 20, 2019 in 2019, British Metal, InsideOut, Progressive Rock, Reviews, Progressive Rock, 37 comments

“With some exceptions, in a rule-of-thumb sort of way, the ‘technical’ modifier means ‘this was harder to play’ while ‘progressive’ means ‘this was harder to write.’ As such, experience is highly valued among progressive musicians especially, and progressive supergroups seem more common than other genres. The Mute Gods is another one of those, consisting of Steven Wilson’s bassist Nick Beggs and drummer Marco Minnemann, who also performs guitars here, and keyboard player Roger King who played with Nick and Steve Hackett of Genesis fame.” Great expectations.

Omicida – Defrauded Reign Review

By Holdeneye on March 18, 2019 in 2019, British Metal, Reviews, Self-released, Thrash Metal, Thrash Metal, 44 comments

“Why fight such labels? It’s far easier to lean in and double down! With this in mind, I’ve been champing at the bit to issue my first 5.0 rating because I’ve found that dismemberment is best handled like ripping off a Band-aid. Why wait? Naturally, I picked up the sophomore album from London (via Los Angeles) band Omicida, as two of its members have spent time in AMG darling White Wizzard, with one of them (drummer Giovanni Durst) even attaining Happy Metalperfection.” You were told not to speak of them.

Venom Prison – Samsara Review

By Kronos on March 18, 2019 in 2019, Death Metal, English Metal, Grind, Prosthetic Records, Releases, Reviews, Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, 135 comments

“The band’s grindy, slammy death metal draws many parallels to Cattle Decaptitation, whether it’s their everything-but-the-kitchen sink approach to riffing, their sudden outbursts of groove, or their vicious takes on social injustice. Samsara has no dull edges, no safe entrances, and a complete lack of regard for your safety.” Limited safe spaces.

Forged in Black – Descent of the Serpent Review

By Holdeneye on March 15, 2019 in 2019, British Metal, Fighter Records, Heavy Metal, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Heavy Metal, Thrash Metal, 44 comments

“My foray into the world of metal music proceeded with a two-pronged approach. Killswitch Engage ushered me in through the metalcore gate by which many of my generation have found their metal calling. It didn’t take long for this path to lead me into the rich territory of modern extreme metal, and I surveyed the land and found it to be good. But around the time that I was first hearing “The End of Heartache” on the radio, a friend of mine showed me a band that he had seen on VH1’s 40 Most Awesomely Bad Metal Songs. The band was Manowar, and what my friend meant for laughs struck a very serious chord within me.” Heart of steel and serpents.

Rock Goddess – This Time Review

By Lokasenna on March 10, 2019 in 2019, Bite You To Death Records, British Metal, Heavy Metal, Reviews, Heavy Metal, 54 comments

“As one of those obnoxious feminists, it’s always bugged me how much of a boys’ club the metal scene can be. It’s much less so among the fans, for sure, but be honest with yourself: excluding the legions of cut-rate symphonic metal acts and battalions of woman-fronted acts in other subgenres, how many prominent non-vocalist musicians can you name of the top of your head that are women? So any time I find a band with women, or better yet, one that’s all women, that’s a sure way to perk my ears for a listen or three. Even better is what we have here; Rock Goddess is a band from back in original NWOBHM era.” The time is late.

Damnation’s Hammer – Unseen Planets, Deadly Spheres Review

By Kenstrosity on February 25, 2019 in 2019, British Metal, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Heavy Metal, Massacre Records, Reviews, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Heavy Metal, 71 comments

“As per the usual and against all wisdom, I judged an album by its artwork. I liked the high detail monochrome planet-scape. I liked the logo. I liked the name of the album. And just like that, all requirements for entry into TheKenWord’s listening queue lined up in perfect syzygy. Anyway, here I am with Damnation’s Hammer and their sophomore record, Unseen Planets, Deadly Spheres, knowing absolutely nothing about the band or their sound other than that they call the UK home and that their label tags them “heavy metal.” What do I discover? This is far more complex than just “heavy metal.” Yet, it’s all so simple. Let me explain.” Crouching planet, hidden sphere.

Mastiff – Plague Review

By Cherd on February 24, 2019 in 2019, APF Records, British Metal, Doom Metal, Grind, Hardcore, Sludge, Doom Metal, Hardcore, Sludge, 34 comments

“My first review under my own moniker here at AMG LLC Sole Proprietorship & Sons was for an unholy mix of plodding sludge doom and breakneck hardcore. If you can remember lo those many weeks ago, I concluded that however much you enjoyed each individual component, the combination never truly gelled. Well, if there’s one thing I’ve learned about metal, it’s that if a hybrid style exists at all, someone out there is doing that shit right. I submit to you now Plague, the second full length from misery making monsters Mastiff (Muppet, meet thy match) who play just such a mix.” Dog bites metal.

Dead Witches – The Final Exorcism Review

By GardensTale on February 21, 2019 in 2019, British Metal, Doom Metal, Heavy Psych Sounds Records, Reviews, Stoner Metal, Doom Metal, Stoner Metal, 55 comments

“The years have not been kind to Electric Wizard. After the monumental fuzz-fest Dopethrone, the band’s quality has slowly scooted downhill, owing allegedly to drama behind the scenes causing the band to coast endlessly. Drummer Mark Greening left after a high-strung tour in 2003 and, though he briefly rejoined in the early 2010s, in the end he decided to follow his heart to greener pastures. This quest ended with the founding of Dead Witches, whose sophomore slab of burly stoner-doom lands this month.” Which witch?