Do you even lift, brah? If so, we have the soundtrack to your bumper plate annihilation. Grow or die at the AMG exercise vault.
Metal Church
Metal Church – Congregation of Annihilation Review
“Metal Church have walked uphill most of their decades-spanning career. Launching in the heat of the 80s thrash explosion, they were never fast enough for the speed merchants and didn’t quite fit in with the traditional metal genre either. Despite very good early releases, they never got the traction or notoriety of acts like Metallica or Anthrax.” Church of missed opportunities.
Medevil – Mirror in the Darkness Review
“Sometimes you stumble upon a band entirely unknown to you (and I suspect, to everyone else) and you hear a lot of good things, yet the overall listening experience falls well short of good. Canadian prog-power-trad metallers, Medevil subjected your Steelness to such an unsatisfying experience with their sophomore outing, Mirror in the Darkness.” Lost reflections.
Dr. A.N. Grier’s Top Ten(ish) of 2022
“You don’t know shit until you read this. It’s not opinion; it’s science.”
Munroe’s Thunder – The Black Watch Review
“Former Metal Church / Trans-Siberian Orchestra and current Vicious Rumors vocalist, Ronny Munroe makes his long-awaited return this month with the debut of his Munroe’s Thunder project. Nearly 6 years in the making, The Black Watch is a loose concept album dealing with Scottish and English history and Ronny’s ancestor’s roles in it. William Wallace, Mary, Queen of Scots, and the wars for Scottish independence are touched on as the backdrop for the project’s ambitious and interesting blend of metal and hard rock, marrying strong Rainbow and Deep Purple influences with the prog-trad idioms of Savatage.” Your watch has begun.
Trauma – Awakening Review
“Founding drummer Kris Gustofson is back with the band’s recent guitar duo, ex-Testament powerhouse Greg Christian, and little-known Brian Allen (ex-Vicious Rumors and the like). And together, these old boys bring the heat. More than any other album in their catalog, Awakening is a true thrasher. While Allen still sports classic high-ends made popular by Hillier, Anthrax, Heretic, and Metal Church, he can also throw down some Zetro Souza-isms and monstrous growls. Awakening sees the band traverse unfamiliar waters that might or might not fracture their fanbase. But this new record feels like the comeback we’ve always longed to hear.” Past Trauma present.
Eruption – Tellurian Rupture Review
“The first time I listened to Eruption was with 2017’s release, Cloaks of Oblivion. That album was a fun introduction to the band’s interesting mix of Forbidden and Metal Church, with hints of Iced Earth-like vocals and aggression. The mix was pleasant, the songwriting solid, and the vocals were vastly improved from previous releases. With 2022 comes Tellurian Rupture. And once again, the band has improved every aspect of their sound.” The floor is Grier lava.
Artillery – X Review
“Denmark’s Artillery weren’t the first thrash band to cross my stereo in the 80s, as they were beaten to the punch by most of the “Big Four” and two-thirds of the big names in Germanic thrash. Still, their Fear of Tomorrow debut hit like a thunderbolt from Thor himself when it arrived in 1985. It was heavy and fast, but also had major hooks and choruses that drilled deep into your skull. The band had a very good run with follow ups Terror Squad and By Inheritance and then inexplicably called it a day in 1990. They resurfaced briefly in 1999, then promptly returned to limbo until 2009. Since then they’ve managed to be productive, releasing an album every two or three years, maintaining enough of their classic sound to keep folks like me interested. Sadly, guitarist Morten Stützer, who along with his brother Michael founded the band and created its distinctive riffing style, passed away in 2019 at the young age of 57. Artillery soldiered on in the aftermath, recruiting a new guitarist and returning with their tenth full-length, X.” The cannons will not be silenced.
![Heathen – Empire of the Blind [Things You Might Have Missed 2020]](https://www.angrymetalguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Heathen-Empire-of-the-Blind-01-768x768.jpg)
Heathen – Empire of the Blind [Things You Might Have Missed 2020]
“Heathen. I’ve got three shirts that say it and nine people that call me that. I liken it to a word like ‘dickhead.’ It’s got great pop and works in all situations. Though it’s maybe more fun to call my mom a ‘dickhead’ rather than a ‘heathen.’ But, I suppose it depends on the day. Speaking of fun, let’s talk about that other Heathen. The one that released Empire of the Blind, and we never got it.” Blind fury.
Goblins Blade – Of Angels and Snakes Review
“I don’t know what prompted me to grab this debut album from Goblins Blade. It could be that I was sick of all the prog I listened to this month. It could be that I wanted to save the world from another Holdeneye 4.0. Or it could be that the lack of an apostrophe in this band name made me cringe enough to want to write about it. Regardless, here we sit with my first power metal review of the year, and with promo blurb name drops like Judas Priest and Metal Church, I am cautiously optimistic.” The problem with goblins.
