Krisiun

Rebaelliun – Under the Sign of Rebellion Review

Rebaelliun – Under the Sign of Rebellion Review

“It’s always an interesting leap into the unknown to review a band you have no experience with despite them having released several albums. Such is the case with Brazil’s Rebaelliun. They’ve been banging around the South American death metal scene since 1998 but haven’t been particularly prolific, releasing only 3 full-lengths prior to this their fourth platter, Under the Sign of Rebellion. With a sound similar to Krisiun, Morbid Angel, and The Ordher, they aren’t treading any virgin soil, but they’ve been trafficking in thrashy, blasty death for a long time and they know their chosen style well.” Up the Rebaels!

Cambion – Conflagrate the Celestial Refugium Review

Cambion – Conflagrate the Celestial Refugium Review

“There’s a lot going on in death metal: there’s the swampy, smelly, drag-your-corpse through the mire old school sort; there’s the cosmic, existential, ponder-the-time-signatures-of-the-universe sort; there’s the thrown down, bro town, drag-your-grandma-through-the-pit sort; there’s the corpse riding, shriek gliding, casual-blasphemy-on-a-weekday kind. Then, there’s also death metal – the angry sort that starts angry and stays angry. Cambion’s gimmick is angriness and speed.” Spree-Cambion era.

Krisiun – Scourge of the Enthroned Review

Krisiun – Scourge of the Enthroned Review

“Metal fans are fucking hard to please. We bitch when a band becomes predictable, and then we bitch some more when they experiment outside of our comfort zones. But whether you’re a contrary bastard or not, dependability is always a risky approach. We can investigate the paradox, in part, by applying two methodologies. First: the Slayer Equivalency. The act of happening upon a winning formula and then bleeding it to death despite rapidly diminishing relevance. And the second: the Angel Corpse Optimisation. A fast and frantic existence, knowingly brief, but with enough foresight to burn out with a nuclear burst of atomic violence. Brazil’s fatal fraternity, Krisiun, are on the cusp of releasing their latest full-length, but on which side of the hypothesis do they stand?” Brazil returns to wax your ass.

Degial – Predator Reign Review

Degial – Predator Reign Review

“It’s that time of year again where people are scrambling for gifts to buy people, malls to populate, and year-end lists to create. It’s also the time of year when I try to step outside of my blackened, doom-laden comfort zone and try my hand at less bleak, more visceral waters. In other words, I done burned myself out on black metal for a bit, and what better pick-me-up is there than Swedish death metal?” Satisfying like Swedeath Fish.

Nervosa – Agony Review

Nervosa – Agony Review

“Name the first band that comes to mind when I say Brazil. OK, now name a second one. With some countries like Sweden, the choices are endless. The two picks made are usually based on my favorite bands or bands whose albums were most recently spun. In the case of countries like Brazil, my mind goes straight to timeless classics. Old-school Sepultura and Krisiun. But this game only works once. If you ask me again to name the first two Brazilian bands that come to mind, I will give the same answers. But what if you ask me to name a third? In that case, I’d add Nervosa to the list.” This game isn’t a lot of fun.

Necronomicon – Advent of the Human God Review

Necronomicon – Advent of the Human God Review

“Despite being dubbed the “Chameleon of Rock” for his ever-changing style, the late David Bowie didn’t agree with this title. “For me a chameleon is something that disguises itself to look as much like its environment as possible,” he once said. “I always thought I did the exact opposite of that.” But fret not, you fanatical herpetophiliacs out there, Canadian blackened-death trio Necronomicon is proof positive that musical chameleons do, in fact, exist.” Those who deny the existence of musical chameleons may be musical chameleons themselves. Trust nothing.

70,000 Tons of Metal Live Review

70,000 Tons of Metal Live Review

“I don’t agree with my dad on everything, but there’s one thing we do agree about: cruises are the best way to vacation. Free all-you-can-eat buffets, breezy tropical weather, alcohol and entertainment available everywhere, and – most importantly – you’re always within walking distance of your room, so you never have to worry about getting a DUI or throwing up in an Uber on your ride back to the Red Roof Inn. But a cruise with 60 metal bands and over 3,000 fans from all over the world, making a four day round-trip to Jamaica with bars that never close? That’s a whole different beast entirely!” In the Navy, you can rock the seven seas!

Krisiun – Forged In Fury Review

Krisiun – Forged In Fury Review

“Ah, Krisiun. Your militant drumming, battering riffs, and enraged vocals have earned you a place on quite a few of my “wake up the neighbors” playlists over the years. While calling you an institution may be a stretch, you’re certainly a band of workhorses, belching out no-bullshit death metal as a fraternal trio since 1990, and serving as a constant reminder that Brazil is more than just nice tushes, dense rainforests, and a Terry Gilliam film about a dystopian bureaucracy that would make FEMA shiver.” The angry wind came blowing in, from across the sea….

Vorum – Poisoned Void Review

Vorum – Poisoned Void Review

Back in 2009, Finnish death metallers Vorum produced what I think is probably the finest EP ever written. At twenty minutes long, Grim Death Awaits is a veritable tour de force of the kind of evil, heavy-but-groove-oriented death metal with an old school feel that so many bands have tried to imitate but never really could. The riffs were razor sharp, but there was a fiendish furiousness and seriousness reminiscent of the most orthodox of black metal bands. Few songs on Grim Death Awaits peaked longer than 2 minutes, and while some reviewers complained about certain aspects, this was death metal of a pure, distilled form. Twenty minutes of death metal perfection. But of course, you all know what expectations means…