Nuclear Blast

Death Angel – Humanicide Review

By Steel Druhm on May 30, 2019 in 2019, American Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Thrash Metal, Thrash Metal, 32 comments

“Despite some understandable fits and starts as they shook off the cobwebs of a fourteen year lay off from 1990 to 2004, Death Angel has had a pretty successful second act on the metal stage. Releases like The Dream Calls for Blood and 2016s The Evil Divide showcased a seasoned band comfortable with their place in the thrasherverse and still turning out engaging material true to their glory days. Those albums are as good or better than almost anything the “Big Four” have released lately, and there’s been growing reasons to look upon Death Angel as one of the few survivors of the 80s Bay Area thrash wave still capable of cutting your throat with an ill-tempered riff. That brings us to their ninth album, Humanicide.” Run with the pack.

Enforcer – Zenith Review

By Steel Druhm on April 25, 2019 in 2019, Heavy Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Speed Metal, Swedish Metal, Heavy Metal, Speed Metal, 50 comments

“Some bands are all about dark moods, some traffic in furious rage, while others specialize in technical, progressive wankery. Over their 14 year career, Enforcer never sniffed any of those categories. Their chosen sound is all about old school, retro metal fun. From the speed metal styling of albums like Into the Night and Diamonds, to the hair metal on biker meth of From Beyond, the band always sought to rock your socks off without having to buy you dinner first. Zenith is the next stage of evolution for them.” Enforcing the olde.

Grand Magus – Wolf God Review

By Steel Druhm on April 16, 2019 in 2019, Epic Metal, Heavy Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Swedish Metal, Heavy Metal, 52 comments

“Every few years, Grand Magus ride out from the snowy wilds of Sweden to wave the flag of epic heavy metal and crusade for genre supremacy. Over the years their sound has shifted from a doom-centric approach to one increasingly informed by the likes of Manowar and Visigoth, and on their ninth album, Wolf God, they find themselves repeating familiar refrains and similar ideas to those heard on recent outings.” Of wolf and meh.

Eluveitie – Ategnatos Review

By Dr. Wvrm on April 5, 2019 in 2019, Folk Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Swiss Metal, Folk Metal, Melodic Death Metal, 149 comments

“Taking in Eluveitie’s closing performance on 70K Tons with sentynel, I recognized something: Eluveitie is popular. Not like entry-level popular, not poser popular (well, maybe), but actually popular. The boat’s Mosh Pit Residentia showed up in spades for that set, but with the floor so choked with the trve and weeb alike, group activities like conga lines and dance parties sprung up instead. Everyone knew the songs—hell, I knew the songs. The nonet put on too great a show to discount, far better than other bias-confirming trainwrecks I witnessed that weekend. Maybe, just maybe, I’ve written Eluveitie and Ategnatos off too soon.” Then again…

Fallujah – Undying Light Review

By Kenstrosity on March 14, 2019 in 2019, American Metal, Death Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Technical Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, 254 comments

“Description: AMG-4165 is the fourth full length studio album titled Undying Light by California-based atmospheric technical death metal band Fallujah. Credits on this recording are listed as follows: Andrew Baird on drums; Scott Carstairs on guitars; Rob Morey on bass; and Antonio Palermo on vocals. Similar bands to Fallujah are listed extensively on several online sources, mainly citing The Faceless and Obscura, among others. The connections this current iteration of Fallujah shares with those bands are tenuous at best.” Initiate lockdown.

In Flames – I, the Mask Review

By Kenstrosity on March 1, 2019 in 2019, Groove Metal, Melodic Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Swedish Metal, Melodic Metal, 244 comments

“Let’s get one thing straight. In Flames is not a melodic death metal band anymore, and they haven’t been for quite a while. This is not in and of itself a bad thing. It’s just the way it is. That being said, The Jester Race was a magnificent piece of Gothenburg melodeath. The band has since become the Law of Diminishing Recordings’ main bitch and haven’t been able to get out from under that role. Yet I, opportunist that I am, was all too eager to snatch their thirteenth effort I, the Mask from the grubby claws of the AMG Consortium.” Snatch and sob.

Nailed to Obscurity – Black Frost Review

By Steel Druhm on January 8, 2019 in 2019, Death Metal, German Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Nuclear Blast, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Progressive Metal, 99 comments

“One of the happy surprises from out of left field during 2017 was a little album called King Delusion by then unsung German act Nailed to Obscurity. It took the base elements of Opeth, Katatonia and Ghost Brigade and skillfully forged them into a humdinger of a prog-death platter brimming with heaviness and dark atmospheres. It garnered a place in my Top Ten for that year and I still play it quite regularly. 2019 sees the band return to greatly elevated expectations with their third album, Black Frost, and I was particularly eager to get my paws on this one.” Tales of frost and fire.

Arsis – Visitant Review

By Saunders on October 29, 2018 in 2018, American Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Technical Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, 61 comments

“Five years since 2013’s solid and thrashy Unwelcome, Arsis make a pivotal return with sixth LP, Visitant. With a stable line-up in tow, Malone has masterminded a visceral, energized collection of tunes, set to catapult Arsis back to the top of the American melo-death pile.” Back to rule.

The Loudest Silence – Aesthetic Illusion Review

By Ferrous Beuller on July 16, 2018 in 2018, Bosnian Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Symphonic Metal, Symphonic Metal, 50 comments

“When reviewing copious amounts of music, you may think that the process engenders a multitude of questions. Sadly, the one I am most wont to ask — and by an abyssal margin — is ‘why.’ Why did I bring this on myself? Why is this happening? Why did they think this would be okay? Clearly in some alternate universe I must have pissed in Jørn’s pocket and told him it was raining, because his wrath has extended beyond all manner of quasar, quantum and quark to facilitate my punishment with Sarajevo’s The Loudest Silence, a symphonic metal band whose name and debut album title, Aesthetic Illusion, have me buckled under the weight of such irony. ” Jørn givith, Jørn taketh away.

Kataklysm – Meditations Review

By Diabolus in Muzaka on June 4, 2018 in 2018, Canadian Metal, Death Metal, Nuclear Blast, Reviews, Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, 92 comments

“There was a time some years ago where I never read anything about metal on the internet. My knowledge of the genre came from the music itself and books like Ian Christe’s indispensable Sound of the Beast. My barometer of taste was my group of friends; a record that we’d spin endlessly and enjoy together was a great one. Kataklysm’s Prevail was one such record, and it’s remained a favorite throughout the years. Entering into the digital wilds of the internet age, I was shocked to find that there existed people who didn’t think the Maurizio Iacono fronted version of Kataklysm was great. All the pedantic arguments in the world never dimmed my enthusiasm for the band, and every new release of theirs is met with great anticipation from me.” Meditative destruction.