“‘There are few things in this world as pleasant as raw black metal.’ What foolish KenWords those were. I was young then, impressionable and naive. Akantha has since extinguished the innocent light from my eyes. In my newfound wisdom, I now believe that raw black metal is one of the ugliest things in this world.” Ugly is as ugly does.
“Diviner’s Fallen Empires debut was one of the happy little surprises of 2015, offering a burly, beefy and catchy fusion of Iced Earth and Brainstorm. It was easy to digest traditional metal with a bit of Euro-power flair – simple, straight forward and heavy enough to satisfy. Now these Greek metal warriors return with the followup, Realms of Time and it seems the band used their down time wisely. All the things they did well last time have been improved upon. The music is heavier, but even catchier, and the hooks dig deeper than before as they pull out all the stops to make a humdinger of a classic heavy metal album.” Divine right.
“Until Rain deal in progressive metal and have been doing so since 2009, with four full-length albums already under their belts prior to Season V. I confess, I am only familiar with their most recent release, 2017’s Inure, which offered up dark, moody prog, featuring heavy bass lines and, at times, even flirting with djent and blastbeats (see, for example, “This Solitude”). I didn’t love it but I certainly liked it and there is no question Until Rain showed some vision and genuine songcraft on it.” Who’ll stop the rain?
“Power metal is one of those genres that promises a lot but has a tendency to under deliver. Progressive power — prower? — metal promises more and delivers less often still. While the key constituents, including soaring guitars, prominent keyboards, bombastic drums, and faux-operatic vocals, are all welcome, the manner in which they are stitched together is often where it comes apart. Add to this the risks inherent in making a concept album and you have quite the heady mix.” Watership down.
“Mystical. Archaic. Melodic. Militant. Triumphant. All words that could be used to describe Greek black metal, and all reasons why albums like Macabre Omen’s Gods of War – At War and Rotting Christ’s mid-00s material hold a special place in my blackened heart. Funeral Storm aren’t technically a new name on the scene, though you’d be forgiven for never having heard of them given they’ve released virtually nothing other than a few splits since their 2002 formation.” Putting the Hell in Hellenic.
“The name Constantine brings to mind the ancient Roman emperor who first adopted Christianity, but that’s not what we’ve got here. This Constantine is a young Greek guitar hero, and Aftermath is his second album (his first, Shredcore, came out almost ten years ago). Citing influences from Yngwie Malmsteen to Joe Satriani and more, we can expect some serious guitar fireworks on Aftermath. But amazing axemen are a dime a dozen, and blazing through tapping-arpeggio solos doesn’t always equate to great music: one has to be able to write good songs, not just good solos.” Keanu RIFFS!
“It seems to me that there are really only two doors that need to be sought in the hunt for black metal of real quality. One leads to a well whose mechanism is complex and unconventional. But, with patience and a deft touch, it reveals a spring of challenging and creative potential. The other leads to a charred room whose blackened walls contain a particularly fecal Mark Z, resplendent in bullet belt and lobbing liberal handfuls of sickle cell anemia with feral abandon. Greece’s Akrotheism predominantly stand in the former, but somehow manage to channel a little of both.” Two corners, one trvth.
“Greek prog/alt quintet Mother of Millions have two albums under their belt, and now Artifacts is their third, and while (full disclosure) I haven’t heard the first two, I now have them queued up for future spins. Those of you who only like your metal fast and brvtal, carry on. But those of you who might’ve enjoyed last year’s Kontinuum release, keep reading: Mother of Millions are right up your alley. Think equal parts cinematic (Kontinuum), progressive (Katatonia), and alternative (Dead Letter Circus), and you have a rough idea of what’s to come.” This mom’s no joke.
“I want to start off this review on a different foot. You see, in 2016 I reviewed Rituals by Greek black metal institution Rotting Christ, and I was not kind. As someone who jumped on board the Rotting bandwagon after 2007’s incredible Theogonia, I noticed Sakis Tolis, his brother Themis, and company repeating that grandiose, come-at-me-fucker battle-ready style with diminishing returns on every album after that. I called it out both in the review and its comments section that a change of course, or at least a needed spike of adrenaline, could do wonders for the band. Even more so, exploring different motifs and tempos, not to mention lyrical ideas, would also help. But after listening to The Heretics for a solid week, I realized I was wrong to call Rituals a boring album at the time, and I want to apologize for that…” Heresy is an ugly word.
“Dødsferd is one strange duck. If there was a band you could sue for false advertising, it would be this one. I still remember the shock of hearing the band’s debut, Desecrating the Spirit of Life. I mean, how did this one get by me? I thought I’d heard every ’90s Norwegian black metal gem out there. After my friend realized I wasn’t joking, he gently corrected me. ‘Dude, these guys are from Greece and this is brand new.'” Contract the disease.
