Oct18

Megaton Leviathan – Mage Review

By Huck N Roll on October 29, 2018 in 2018, American Metal, Blood Music, Doom Metal, Drone, Reviews, Shoegaze, Ambient Metal, Doom Metal, Drone, Shoegaze, 26 comments

“Unless you’re a polar bear, six straight weeks of below average temperatures will destroy your spirit. Rather than hunting for fun, uplifting, Record o’ the Month-caliber albums, you will find yourself dredging the promo bin for anything bitter and morose. Thus I stumbled across Megaton Leviathan, a band specializing in all things doom, drone, and shoegaze. Mage is mastermind Andrew James Costa Reuscher and his ever-changing band’s third album, and if the promo blurb is remotely accurate, its “borderline narcotic compositions” should be just what I need to push me even further into early winter doldrums.” How much does a gaze weigh?

Lascar – Wildlife Review

By Dear Hollow on October 28, 2018 in 2018, A Sad Sadness Song, Black Metal, Chilean Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, 27 comments

“My relationship with Deafheaven is “it’s complicated” on Facebook. I don’t even know if that’s a thing anymore, but you see, I enjoyed 2015’s Sunbather for its heart wrenching combination of post-rock and black metal. However, what really grinds my gears is the carnage that the band left in their wake, as suddenly legions upon legions of fanboys, ripoffs and mimics started flooding the scene. Lascar, clearly one of these fanboys, is a one-man post-black act from Santiago, Chile, signed to Italy’s A Sad Sadness Song Records.” Sunbathing and trend aping.

Devouring Star – The Arteries of Heresy Review

By Dr. Wvrm on October 28, 2018 in 2018, Black Metal, Dark Descent Records, Finnish Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, 50 comments

“Weight or atmosphere; it’s black metal’s proxy war for form vs. function. Atmosphere is paramount for Finland’s Devouring Star, but the weight inherent in The Arteries of Heresy may be more important. Debut Through Heart and Lung caught my eye in 2015 with heavy-handed dissonance and the makings of something great but in need of a refined approach to the jolly cooperation between atmospheric ethos and riff-mongering showmanship. The Arteries of Heresy steps out of the darkness to fulfill that promise.” Heavy feelz.

Cognitive – Matricide Review

By Akerblogger on October 28, 2018 in 2018, American Metal, Death Metal, Reviews, Unique Leader, Death Metal, 30 comments

“Glaring faults have surfaced after revisiting Cognitive’s 2016 release Deformity. At the time of my 2016 review, I was taken aback by Deformity’s barrage of brutal death metal merged with playful yet apt spurts of technicality. I complimented the vocal approach, too — using disgusting hyperbole I labeled vocalist Jorel Hart a monstrous vocal shapeshifter. However, upon my recent revisit, Deformity’s mix sounds dense in an obscuring, impenetrable way, the vocals are way too forward in the mix and carry a distracting monotony at times, and the technical escapades are either too brief or twist a song into an unnatural gait. Still, moments of exciting power remain, but they’re not as prominent or convincing as when experienced in 2016. I’ve become much more jaded since then. Fast forward 24 months and Cognitive are back with Matricide, their third full-length.” Time does not heal.

Striker – Play to Win Review

By Diabolus in Muzaka on October 27, 2018 in 2018, Canadian Metal, Heavy Metal, Record Breaking Records, Reviews, Self-released, Heavy Metal, 77 comments

“Among the dearest casualties of the politicization of everything is fun. When the cultural and historical illiterates suggest that all art is political, they neuter the possibility of art as a universal language and instead make it speak in partisan tongues. What could bring us together – the “language” of metal is spoken as fluently in Rio as it is in Quebec, just with different accents – is instead used to rip us apart. For the above reasons, I’m glad Striker exists.” Does anyone remember fun?

Chthonic – Battlefields of Asura Review

By Eldritch Elitist on October 27, 2018 in 2018, Ciong Zo, Melodic Death Metal, Reviews, Taiwanese Metal, Folk Metal, Melodic Death Metal, 41 comments

“After five years spent successfully spearheading a successful new political party in Taiwan, Chthonic is back, and no, they do not come bearing gifts of blackened metal. For those of us who were won over by 2013’s Bu-Tik, this is not necessarily bad news. That record, which marked a full transition from peak Cradle of Filth-esque extreme metal to soaring, folk-spliced melodeath, executed the transition with aplomb. Five years on, the latter style remains the status quo, and Battlefields of Asura handles the aesthetic with confidence indicative of half a decade of preparation.” Fog of war.

Bloodbath – The Arrow of Satan Is Drawn Review

By Ferrous Beuller on October 26, 2018 in 2018, Death Metal, Peaceville, Reviews, Swedish Metal, Death Metal, 105 comments

“We all know AMG‘s policy on supergroups, but if ever there was an act that continues to entice, it has to be the Swedish Modern Prometheus, Bloodbath, a band responsible for creating two of my very favorite death metal albums and reliably catering to all my HM2 needs. Our very own Steel Commander saw fit to furnish their previous release with a favorable review, and while I didn’t enjoy it quite as much, I can’t say they have ever truly disappointed me. Four years drinking deeply of the grave has re-energized the quintet to return and beguile those of a buzzsaw bent with another foray into the old-school.” Bloody arrows of death.

Haken – Vector Review

By Angry Metal Guy on October 26, 2018 in 2018, Djent, English Metal, InsideOut, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Djent, Progressive Metal, Progressive Rock, 116 comments

“My introduction to the band was on The Mountain, which found the band dropping incredible songs with deeply creative compositions and amazing performances. But The Mountain‘s follow-up—Affinity—has never really established itself in my listening rotation. Unfortunately, while Affinity was full of ideas I loved and things I appreciated intellectually, it was like the girl who’s “perfect” for you but that you can’t get into. So I’ll admit mild consternation when Vector arrived. I wondered if Vector would continue in Affinity’s footsteps or if Haken had stayed on the move.” Moving and remaking.

Terrorizer – Caustic Attack Review

By Ferrous Beuller on October 26, 2018 in 2018, American Metal, Death Metal, Grind, Reviews, The End Records, Death Metal, 104 comments

“Whenever a band like Terrorizer drops an album, I always wonder if their material gets by on individual merit or on legacy alone. World Downfall is rightly regarded as one of the first and greatest examples of death/grind and has remained a staple in any worthy metalhead’s collection. Unfortunately, nearly thirty years after that seminal record, the re-formed band’s quality has been spotty at best.” The Founding Fathers of Grind are back with a state of the union.

Cryptopsy – The Book of Suffering – Tome II Review

By Kronos on October 25, 2018 in 2018, Canadian Metal, Death Metal, Reviews, Self-released, Technical Death Metal, Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, 194 comments

“Much as they, and we, desperately want to move past it, Cryptopsy have for a long time been known for questionable, if not outright awful, stylistic decisions. Even with the music back on track, The Book of Suffering series of EPs insists on having some of the shittiest cover art imaginable, apparently under the impression that breasts decay far slower than the rest of the body, and that we’re all really into that sort of thing. I’d consider taking points off but the sad fact is that if I docked the score for every misogynistic album cover we’d probably stop getting promo altogether.” In the crypt, less is more.