Incantation

Suffering Hour – In Passing Ascension Review

Suffering Hour – In Passing Ascension Review

“Certain labels are championing the exciting and ugly new breed of death metal bands, led by Dark Descent and Blood Harvest Records, taking the dense and claustrophobic bent of classic Incantation and the Florida death metal scene, while adding blackened, experimental or progressive elements. The latter label is handling the anticipated debut LP from rising Minneapolis crew Suffering Hour, entitled In Passing Ascension.” Good labels find good bands.

70000 Tons of Metal: One Man’s Journey

70000 Tons of Metal: One Man’s Journey

“My friends ask me what happened, but my ability to verbally communicate has been reduced to moaning and a weeping noise that sounds something like a baby panda crying for milk. I wonder how I’m going to make it through the final day of this floating festival. I wonder when the aching will subside. I wonder where my life went so wrong. How did I end up here, on the 7th annual 70000 Tons of Metal cruise, weak with exhaustion and feeling like my body has been bludgeoned with a sledgehammer? My mind drifts back…” Tales from a 70000 ton heavy thing.

Gorephilia – Severed Monolith Review

Gorephilia – Severed Monolith Review

“Gorephilia. Just the word, let alone the cover, should clue you in as to what genre this release belongs to. Like most people, it’s not a term that often finds itself in my daily vocabulary, heard only by local restaurant staff when instructing them as to how to cook my fucking cow. Turns out in Finland it means grim, Morbid Angel worshiping death metal.” Gore is hell. [Gorephilia. What else can we really add to that one? Rich man, gore man, Incantation man, die!]

Svart Crown – Abreaction Review

Svart Crown – Abreaction Review

“‘Malevolence.’ That word resonated through my mind as I listened to the fourth full-length by French death/black outfit Svart Crown. A word so mundane and exploited in adjective-laden reviews that it appears frivolous when used to describe metal. Yet, when Abreaction is concerned, the seeping and creeping feeling suggested by the word seems almost palpable, venturing beyond just a cool appellation and into territories of real unease.” You merely adopted the evil.

Ritualization – Sacraments to the Sons of the Abyss Review

Ritualization – Sacraments to the Sons of the Abyss Review

“Listening to Sacraments to the Sons of the Abyss fills me with equal parts excitement and dismay. Excitement because, for a fan of Angelcorpse-style blackened death metal, Sacraments is a pretty impressive debut. Dismay because, let’s face it, trying to convey the value of an album like this can be a daunting task. It’s a bit like listening to your beefy friend describe a particularly good hamburger he had last week.” I take mine blackened with extra hot sauce and Satan on the side.

The Ominous Circle – Appalling Ascension Review

The Ominous Circle – Appalling Ascension Review

“The disturbing rumble of old school, dark and brooding death metal is a familiar one. Burrowing, buzzing riffs, inhuman growls, and tumultuous drums and bass lines are encased in a constant, over-the-top imagery of torture and dread. But why are we so attracted to this blacker than black despair and sense of suffocation?” Embrace the horrors.

Ruinous – Graves of Ceaseless Death Review

Ruinous – Graves of Ceaseless Death Review

“With the relative ease in which bands are able to record and self-release, on top of the multitude of established artists and independent labels on the scene, I’m pretty much constantly playing catch up and trying to absorb as much quality metal as I can get my grubby hands on. All the while trying in vain to siphon out the bullshit that inevitably pops up in the endless flood of artists emerging.” That siphon’s not gonna clean itself.

Krypts – Remnants of Expansion Review

Krypts – Remnants of Expansion Review

“For reasons I can’t quite pinpoint, the band’s solid debut didn’t wow me like it did others, leaving me a touch underwhelmed after diving headlong into the thick as a brick stew of churning riffs and unsettling atmosphere. Repeat listens after an extended break have been kind and my opinion of the album is a little more positive. So being a persistent trooper I jumped on Krypts follow-up platter, Remnants of Expansion, hopeful they could capitalize on their considerable potential.” Talk to the monster hand.