Dark Descent Records

Third Storm – The Grand Manifestation Review

By Carcharodon on November 7, 2018 in 2018, Black Metal, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Reviews, Swedish Metal, Black Metal, Death Metal, 36 comments

“Despite originally forming in 1986, The Grand Manifestation is the first full-length offering from Swedish five-piece Third Storm. After just two years and a handful of shows, Third Storm’s original line-up disbanded. It was not until 2014 that founding member, Heval Bozarslan, gathered a new band around him, releasing the Taritiya Me EP a year later. “Despite its Mayhem-inspired cover and the howling winds and distant siren that open the EP, it is not a black metal offering. Some promising-sounding death groove is short-lived and gives way to medium-paced, funeral doom, which dominates most of the 25-minute runtime. Which Third Stormwould be on display on The Grand Manifestation—the anticipated black metal, the groove-laden death that made a brief cameo or the sludgy doom that predominated?” Precious metals sampler.

Devouring Star – The Arteries of Heresy Review

By Dr. Wvrm on October 28, 2018 in 2018, Black Metal, Dark Descent Records, Finnish Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, 50 comments

“Weight or atmosphere; it’s black metal’s proxy war for form vs. function. Atmosphere is paramount for Finland’s Devouring Star, but the weight inherent in The Arteries of Heresy may be more important. Debut Through Heart and Lung caught my eye in 2015 with heavy-handed dissonance and the makings of something great but in need of a refined approach to the jolly cooperation between atmospheric ethos and riff-mongering showmanship. The Arteries of Heresy steps out of the darkness to fulfill that promise.” Heavy feelz.

Vanhelgd – Deimos Sanktuarium Review

By Kenstrosity on October 12, 2018 in 2018, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Pulverised Records, Reviews, Swedish Metal, Death Metal, 64 comments

“October is here! In one all-too-short month, we receive Halloween, fall colors, pumpkin spice everything, and a veritable smorgasbord of quality metal releases. My first October release comes courtesy of Vanhelgd with their fifth LP, Deimos Sanktuarium. To get a good baseline for the band, I decided to take a stroll down Vanhelgd’s back catalog. What I beheld was doom-laden but familiar Swedish death metal á la At the Gates. I am a fan of Swedeath, but Vanheldg’s more established contemporaries haven’t won me over as of late.” Pumpkins, goblins and Swedeath.

Burial Invocation – Abiogenesis Review

By Ferrous Beuller on July 14, 2018 in 2018, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Progressive Death, Reviews, Turkish Metal, Death Metal, 80 comments

“Truly am I an Angry Metal Malcontent. I haven’t enjoyed ov deep black metal since my early 20’s: I wish folk metal would collectively gather up the pointy ears and LARP the fuck off and, to make matters worse, I’m not entirely sure I’m on board with Lord Yngwie’s position that less cannot be more. While the extreme genres admittedly lend themselves to excess more readily than most, I’ll often wrap up a tech or prog record just wishing the band would take a step back and more fluidly translate their material, or perhaps highlight the weft and warp of the transitions with increased clarity.” Prog-death with extra fluid.

Ritual Necromancy – Disinterred Horror Review

By Ferrous Beuller on June 19, 2018 in 2018, American Metal, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Reviews, Death Metal, 41 comments

“When I’m preparing for a full day of preaching stentorian from the mount, I always make sure said mound is grade A golgothic — nothing more, nothing less. Portland’s Ritual Necromancy are fellow infernals, further bolstering Dark Descent’s ridiculous roster with their second coming, Disinterred Horror. Now, masochist that I am, I rather enjoyed debut, Oath of the Abyss, but it was far from perfect, with a few stylistic choices that perhaps could have been better considered. Seven years later, Disinterred Horror casts a ruby eye to the sky and wisely makes some appropriate alterations, so as to more effectively spread their occult plague.” Can you undig it?

Skeletal Remains – Devouring Mortality Review

By Saunders on April 19, 2018 in 2018, American Metal, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Reviews, Death Metal, 50 comments

“Californian upstarts Skeletal Remains is a solid exponent of old school death, worshiping early ’90s (mostly) American death like Christians cherish the Bible.” Remains of the death day.

Gravehill – The Unchaste, the Profane, & the Wicked Review

By Mark Z. on March 18, 2018 in 2018, American Metal, Black Metal, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Black Metal, Death Metal, Thrash Metal, 145 comments

“Formed in 2001, this California quintet have made a career out of scorching assholes and taking names, with works like 2011’s When All Roads Lead to Hell and 2014’s Death Curse being particularly hard-hitting. Gravehill occupy that perfect niche between black, death, and thrash metal, that general “extreme metal” breed which is more about delivering killer riffs than being grimmer than thou.” Evil art, foul censorship.

Ataraxy – Where All Hope Fades Review

By Madam X on February 12, 2018 in 2018, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Reviews, Spanish Metal, Death Metal, Doom Metal, 1 comment

“Where All Hope Fades is Ataraxy’s second full-length, following on from 2012’s Revelations of the Ethereal. With a promising title, and seeing Where All Hope Fades referred to as “gruesomely textured” harboring “a sense of deep-set misery, almost pushing the record into death-doom territory,” I felt compelled to check it out. What I sampled, proved an interesting nod to 90s era Finnish death metal with notable similarities to bands like Abhorrence and Amorphis.” Is the letter “A” the key to quality doom death?

Desolate Shrine – Deliverance from the Godless Void Review

By Ferrous Beuller on November 14, 2017 in 2017, Black Metal, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Finnish Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, Death Metal, Doom Metal, 65 comments

“It comes as little surprise that Finland, a country whose sun-cycle engenders circadian insanity, is host to a veritable pantheon of definitively heavy bands. Desolate Shrine stand proud amidst their ranks, hoisting aloft a looming colossus of atmospheric death metal to further blot out the sun. Standing on the shoulders of an already potent discography, fourth album, Deliverance from the Godless Void, weaves arcane Incantations through Thergothonian vistas for yet another evocative and doubly crushing outing.” Finland murders the Sun.

Spectral Voice – Eroded Corridors of Unbeing Review

By Diabolus in Muzaka on October 18, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Reviews, Death Metal, 97 comments

“Any reviewer is more experienced with one subgenre than another, and that experience gives a more focused sense of what’s worth hearing and what’s not so compelling. This is why you’ll often see a weird or almost non-metal record get a good review and decent death metal platter an underwhelming one; something merely decent can sound far better without a wide-ranging experience, as what is the benchmark? That begs the question of why you’d have anyone write outside of their wheelhouse, and the answer is simple: because a review is one opinion and not the final word on a record.” Opinions, man….