Deathgrind

Misery Index – Rituals of Power Review

Misery Index – Rituals of Power Review

“Originally spawned from the remnants of the classic Dying Fetus line-up from the monumental Destroy the Opposition, Misery Index wasted fuck all time getting their act together and becoming an immediate force in the extreme metal scene in the early aughts, grinding out a powerful and now lengthy history of their own. Their insightful and vicious socio-political tirades and passionate values matched up perfectly with their grind and thrash-infected style of muscular death metal. Misery Index have managed to deftly shift and evolve their sound along the way, crafting a consistent and high-quality body of work, highlighted by 2008’s vicious Traitors album, and arguably their finest hour, 2010’s modern masterwork, Heirs of Thievery. But nearly 20 years into their career, are these modern-day descendants of Napalm Death still able to muster the strength and power to dominate in 2019?” Misery loves power.

Nasty Surgeons – Infectious Stench Review

Nasty Surgeons – Infectious Stench Review

“I hate to start off by being a Negative Nancy, but past the halfway point of 2018, I can’t squash the feeling that the year has been somewhat of a disappointment thus far when considering the plethora of metal releases that have dropped. Sure there’s been standouts and some genuinely very good to great albums, but these have been in short supply when stacked up against the sheer weight of albums that have filtered through the Angry Metal Promo pit. Of course, there’s plenty of time for the year to take an upward turn and blow us all away, and I for one am hoping the quality of death metal albums gets cranked up as the year progresses.” Less is gore.

DeathgraVe – So Real, It’s Now Review

DeathgraVe – So Real, It’s Now Review

“The question of why we listen to this stuff is asked so frequently as to become quite meaningless. Sam Dunn’s Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey documentary concluded that you either “get it” or you don’t, and that’s fine. Find a seventeen-year-old who’s just heard Nile or Behemoth and they’ll inform you that metal is for the musically elite, wrapping words about history and antitheism in swathes of dizzyingly technical instrumentation (especially the drums). I disagree with both to some degree, and the question being posed by a great friend I have tremendous respect for led me to think more about it than normal.” Why do we metal?

Wake – Misery Rites Review

Wake – Misery Rites Review

“Pop quiz: off the top of your head, name five Canadian bands. If you’re a geezer of some sort, Rush will take top billing, whereas the more brutal among us will have rattled off a litany of Quebecios tech death acts. Few metalheads will think to include a grind act in their list, let alone one from the flyover provinces. And yet, here Wake are, poised to release their fourth LP of brutal grindcore from their hideout in Calgary.” Wake off, you hoser!

Gutslit – Amputheatre Review

Gutslit – Amputheatre Review

“You don’t have to be a metal genius to make an accurate assumption about the genre affiliation of India’s Gutslit. Although it would make a nice surprise, Gutslit isn’t a group of prog metal hipsters or power metal warrior nerds. No folks, Gutslit, as expected, play brutal death bolstered by a smattering of grind. But unlike many run-of-the-mill bands that favor guttural extremity over actual craftsmanship and decent songwriting, Gutslit rise above the pack with their impressively written and refined second LP, Amputheatre.” Sometimes guts are enough.

Leng Tch’e – Razorgrind Review

Leng Tch’e – Razorgrind Review

“A revolving door of members and seven-year break since dropping 2010’s Hypomaniac hasn’t dulled the band’s commitment to keep on grinding, returning with their sixth full-length opus, fittingly titled Razorgrind. But do they still have what it takes to match it with the new breed of talented grinders? Or are Leng Tch’e destined to die a musical death by a thousand cuts?” Shave and a haircut, grind it!

Benighted – Necrobreed Review

Benighted – Necrobreed Review

“After scaling back the blackened and melodic tendencies that marked their 2000 self-titled debut, French loonies Benighted rapidly morphed into the finely-tuned deathgrind butchering machine they are today, releasing a consistent string of high-quality albums drenched in blood-spattered brutality, while keeping the fun and creepy factors cranked. Their sound may be set in stone, but the beauty of Benighted is the distinctive quirks and curve balls they splice into their brutal and musically dynamic brand of pig-squealing lunacy.” Hurls before swine.

Things You Might Have Missed 2015: Okazaki Fragments – Abandoned

Things You Might Have Missed 2015: Okazaki Fragments – Abandoned

“If Luc Lemay wrote a deathgrind album, the early demos would sound something like Okazaki Fragments. Earlier this year, the Calgary-based extreme metal outfit’s debut Abandoned blindsided me like a drive-by at Tim Horton’s by mixing rabid grindcore with the avant-garde tendencies of Gorguts and Pyrrhon in search of an ever more deformed and disgusting style of death metal. They found it.” Colour Kronos impressed.

Slave Zero – Disambiguated Visionary Review

Slave Zero – Disambiguated Visionary Review

Slave Zero is a band I’d never heard of before this review, and I’d wager you haven’t either, despite their thirteen years of brutality. These devious Dubliners are poised to release their second EP Disambiguated Visionary, and it’s about time we all took note, because they’re bringing a new force into deathgrind: Aliens. The dastardly extraterrestrials have spread into slam via Wormed, colonized technical death metal through Rings of Saturn and are now, thanks to Disambiguated Visionary, invading deathgrind. I, for one, welcome our new grayish overlords.” Join Kronos as he leads the pro-alien overlord cheer squad and examines some extraterrestrial themed death grind. Turn on your heart lights!!