Death Metal

Gatecreeper – Sonoran Depravation Review

Gatecreeper – Sonoran Depravation Review

“I haven’t reviewed death metal in a good long time, so I thought I’d get back on the dead horse with upstart Arizona act, Gatecreeper. For their Sonoran Depravation debut they’ve crafted a style mixing equal parts of the D-beat Swede-death style made famous by Entombed, the grit and dirge of Asphyx and the bastard war grind of Bolt Thrower. Sounds tempting, eh?” Tempted by the tank of another….

Noctem – Haeresis Review

Noctem – Haeresis Review

“Boy, does Noctem bring back memories. Back in 2014, Exilium was one of the better albums I reviewed. A lot of this had to do with the fact that I was a n00b in 2014 (Exilium being one of the first reviews I ever wrote for AMG). But, even so, it stuck with me for the rest of the year. So, you can imagine the excitement and nostalgia I felt when this newest album, Haeresis, showed up in my inbox.” Reflections of a semi-former n00b.

Johansson & Speckmann – Edge of the Abyss Review

Johansson & Speckmann – Edge of the Abyss Review

“I like to imagine the absurdly prolific Rogga Johansson’s inner monologue to be similar to Pinky and the Brain’s introductory bit, with him eating whatever the Swedes eat for breakfast, wondering ‘what should I do today?’ and answering, ‘the same thing you do every day, Rogga: write and record a death metal record.’ Our hero would then draw a band name from a hat or make one up depending on his mood, and by lunchtime would have written about seven songs and called up whoever was needed to complete the lineup. Johansson & Speckmann had clearly been drawn from what must be a very large hat by now, and before the traditional Swedish dinner bell rang that day, Edge of the Abyss was born.” Pinky and the Brawn.

Carnophage – Monument Review

Carnophage – Monument Review

“Though billed as a technical death metal album, Monument has little to do with The Faceless-core being oozed out of southern California every few months. Instead, Carnophage plays a not unsophisticated mix of early-’00s influenced death metal, taking cues from Suffocation and Hate Eternal. It’s not a fantastic formula, but the band follows through, and there’s surprisingly little to complain about on Monument.” I’m sure we’ll find something.

Dead End – Reborn from the Ancient Grave Review

Dead End – Reborn from the Ancient Grave Review

“The immense advertising campaign inadvertently carried out by certain English street signs notwithstanding, Dead End is a strange and largely uninspiring name for a death-doom band. A name like Paradise Lost brings to mind Milton’s epic poem about the Fall of Man, Katatonia suggests an inescapable numbness, and My Dying Bride evokes a mental horror show. Dead End, on the other hand, brings to mind seeing a sign that means I have to make a three-point turn before I reach the end of the road I’m driving on. I don’t exactly enjoy three-point turns, but they certainly don’t fill me with dread.” Fear the cvl-de-sac.

Solution .45 – Nightmares in the Waking State – Part II Review

Solution .45 – Nightmares in the Waking State – Part II Review

“Last year Christian Alvestam (ex-Scar Symmetry, Torchbearer) and his Solution .45 project dropped the first installment of a double album that went by the name of Nightmares in the Waking State – Part I. As expected, it was grounded in the same metalcore-tinged melo-death Alvestam’s been associated with throughout his music career. It had a few strong highlights but as a whole it was nothing earth-shaking. Almost a year later he’s back with the second installment of his double creature feature, but should you care?” Caring is sharing.

Demonomancy/Witchcraft – Archaic Remnants of the Numinous/At the Diabolus Hour Review

Demonomancy/Witchcraft – Archaic Remnants of the Numinous/At the Diabolus Hour Review

“Worry not my child for the balm to salve your festering wounds exists in the form of a split from Demonomancy and Witchcraft. Bestial, coarse and outright evil, this 26-minute payload of blackened death offers a brief respite for those needing an outlet for their rancor.” Now available at AMG – Rancor relief.

Volturyon – Cleansed by Carnage Review

Volturyon – Cleansed by Carnage Review

“One of the things I love about death metal is that I always find it appropriate. Walking to work? Absolutely. Working out? Yes please. Spring cleaning? Why not? Volturyon, Swedish purveyors of all things death, are a band clear in their understanding of this and eager to churn out an absolute riff-fest to facilitate any and all spur of the moment gym sessions… or vacuuming.” Make that carpet BLEED!

Inanimate Existence – Calling From a Dream Review

Inanimate Existence – Calling From a Dream Review

“Advice is a tricky thing, really. I try to give only when asked and take only what’s given freely, but the general advice economy moves much faster than I like to. So instead of giving advice, I prefer to just point out issues and have people come up with their own solutions. This works well when you’re reviewing music since most of the job is explaining why that music isn’t as good as it could be. A case in point would be the last album from Inanimate Existence, A Never-Ending Cycle of Atonement, an album about which I had many complaints.” Is this an atonement?