Hammerheart Records

Ereb Altor – Ulfven Review

Ereb Altor – Ulfven Review

By Steel Druhm on July 19, 2017 in 2017, Black Metal, Epic Metal, Hammerheart Records, Reviews, Swedish Metal, Viking Metal, Black Metal, Epic Metal, Viking Metal, 53 comments

Ereb Altor is a band I’ve reviewed more than almost any other since joining the AMG metal collective in 2010. They’re a prolific bunch and stick to a regular release schedule despite also releasing albums under the moniker Isole, and their material is consistently good if not great. Ulfven is their newest release, following 2016s Blot Ilt Taut which was a series of Bathory covers. This was appropriate as Quorthon has always been the wellspring from which the band draws their inspiration.” Reforge the sword.

Dead Head – Swine Plague Review

Dead Head – Swine Plague Review

By Dr. Wvrm on June 20, 2017 in 2017, Dutch Metal, Hammerheart Records, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Thrash Metal, 14 comments

“I’ve liked Dead Head for nearly a decade, though I haven’t thought of them in nearly that long. During one youthful torrent rampage, I collected an album for every letter of the alphabet; 2009’s Depression Tank served as the D. Titillated by the delightful mix of Panzer riffs and bullet belts, I patiently anticipated a follow-up, my naive exuberance skating right over Dead Head’s spotty release pattern.” Plagues before Swine.

The Monolith Deathcult – Versvs 1 Review

The Monolith Deathcult – Versvs 1 Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier on May 18, 2017 in 2017, Death Metal, Dutch Metal, Hammerheart Records, Industrial Metal, Reviews, Death Metal, Industrial Metal, 39 comments

“Two years ago, I had the pleasure of reviewing The Monolith Deathcult’s 2015 EP Bloodcvlts. And by ‘pleasure,’ I mean something else entirely. The band is everything Leave It to Beaver’s Eddie Haskell would be in reality. At first, the band seems like a serious, straight-laced Dutch death metal group. They seem polite and always outgoing, straight-to-the-point and never misleading. Then you discover the truth: that’s all bullshit.” Bloodcvlts, BS, Beaver.

Dreaming Dead – Funeral Twilight Review

Dreaming Dead – Funeral Twilight Review

By Kronos on January 25, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Death Metal, Hammerheart Records, Melodic Death Metal, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Melodic Death Metal, 13 comments

“Being at the bridge between traditional and more extreme forms of metal, death-thrash isn’t a style with a lot of clout. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the sub-genre, but its middle ground status means that most peoples’ preferences fall to one side of the genre or the other. While there’s no denying the beauty of heavy metal, readers will recognize that I fall on the brutal side of the scale.” Brutality is a deathstyle choice.

Brutal Unrest – Trinitas Review

Brutal Unrest – Trinitas Review

By Dr. Wvrm on January 13, 2017 in 2017, Death Metal, German Metal, Hammerheart Records, Reviews, Death Metal, 15 comments

“Once upon a time, this writer, still a wet-behind-the-ears thrash aficionado, met his first brother-in-metal. He was a lanky fellow who’d rattle his neighbors’ windows with sessions of Cannibal Corpse and hit the pits so hard he’d be out of class for a week. So strong was our bromance that I cut my very first class to hit my first real show with him — I even had a beer (underage!) — what a rebel I was. I owe him, specifically his deification of Glen Benton, for a good portion of my listening habits.” Beers, Benton, bromance, Battlestar Galactica.

SIG:AR:TYR – Northen Review

SIG:AR:TYR – Northen Review

By Steel Druhm on April 9, 2016 in 2016, Black Metal, Canadian Metal, Folk Metal, Hammerheart Records, Reviews, Viking Metal, Black Metal, Folk Metal, Viking Metal, 53 comments

“SIG:AR:TYR are one of the most criminally overlooked acts in the Viking/folk/black metal arena and even after three high quality albums they still seem woefully under-appreciated. Taking the best elements of Bathory’s Viking era and fusing them with influences ranging from Immortal, Falkenbach and Primordial, founder and sole member Daemonskald crafted some amazingly epical moments on unsung classics like Beyond the North Winds and 2010’s Godsaga.” Prepare to feel the Hammer o’ the North.

Collision – Satanic Surgery Review

Collision – Satanic Surgery Review

By Diabolus in Muzaka on February 15, 2016 in 2016, Dutch Metal, Grind, Hammerheart Records, Hardcore, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Hardcore, 24 comments

“Sometimes I feel like a wine critic. Not because I spit booze into a bucket like a drunken ibex and pretend it’s a real job when I write about it, but because I’m describing what I hear and then telling you good folks about how my “palate” reacts to it. Although it would be substantially easier to just sniff, taste or write “a bold 90s flavour, Good/5.0” and call it a day, this metal gig actually lets me reference hamburgers, beer, and philosophy at a frankly ludicrous frequency so I can confidently say I made the right choice. With that in mind I’ve taken many sips from the boxed Merlot of Dutch thrashcore merchants Collision’s fifth full-length Satanic Surgery, and much like a baffled wine critic (Diabolus in Vino?) I had one Hell of a time figuring out why it tasted funny.” Time for speed tasting!

Cirith Gorgor – Visions of Exalted Lucifer Review

Cirith Gorgor – Visions of Exalted Lucifer Review

By Grymm on February 7, 2016 in 2016, Black Metal, Dutch Metal, Hammerheart Records, Reviews, Black Metal, 17 comments

“There’s something to be said for toiling away at your craft for a long period of time, sacrificing goats and virgins your time, energy, and the relationships in your life in order to hit that Holy Grail of recognition and notoriety. Regardless of the degree of success, you can’t deny that a bit of respect is to be had for those who refuse to quit.” Then again, a little self-insight never hurt anybody…

Wormed – Exodromos Review

Wormed – Exodromos Review

By Alex Franquelli on March 21, 2013 in 2013, 4.0, Death Metal, Hammerheart Records, Reviews, Willowtip, Technical Death Metal, 3 comments

“It is brutal, rather technical and it has its roots in death metal. But is Exodromos a pure brutal technical death metal album? A lazy, complacent answer would be: yes. A more elaborate response – and one you would expect to read on these respected pages – is: not quite.” Alex Franquelli reviews the new Wormed record, in all its brutal, technical glory and asks “What next?”