Relapse Records

Mammoth Grinder – Cosmic Crypt Review

By Mark Z. on January 25, 2018 in 2018, American Metal, Death Metal, Hardcore, Relapse, Reviews, Death Metal, Hardcore, 34 comments

The first time I saw Mammoth Grinder live, I was wasted at a bar in Portland and had to laugh as the band announced every song as a Deep Purple track to see if anyone would notice. The second time I saw Mammoth Grinder live, I was shithoused in Brooklyn and had a Warriors-style adventure trying to find my way home on the New York subway system after the show. Point is, apparently being drunk and seeing Mammoth Grinder live is the best way to get hooked on them, because I’ve been anticipating Cosmic Crypt since before I started writing for AMG.” Fat, drunk and at a Mammoth Grinder show is no way to go through life, Z.

Exhumed – Death Revenge Review

By Saunders on October 26, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Relapse, Reviews, Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, 33 comments

“Like a fine wine, the mighty Exhumed keep getting better with age. The career parallels with their idols Carcass are obvious but not debilitating, manipulating their worship into their own finely honed death metal machine. From the grimy days of their fun and gruesome 1998 debut Gore Metal, through to 2013’s excellent Necrocracy, Exhumed’s career has been on a constant upward trajectory of consistency, refinement and dependable quality. With the focus of Matt Harvey and co on various other projects in recent years, the band finally dusted themselves off and returned to the studio to record a goddamn concept album!” Feeling offal? Try more gore!

Myrkur – Mareridt Review

By Saunders on September 18, 2017 in 2017, Ambient Metal, Black Metal, Danish Metal, Folk Metal, Relapse, Reviews, Black Metal, Doom Metal, Folk, Post-Metal, 61 comments

“Like or hate her heavily indebted style of enchanting folk and atmospheric, Scandinavian blackened metal, talented Danish singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Amalie Bruun has taken the metal world by storm since her inception operating under the Myrkur moniker. Moving from strength to strength in a relatively short period, her potential began to crystallize on 2015’s debut full-length, M. Despite her share of detractors and some ignorant bashing of her supposed black metal credentials, M revealed a musician in a rapid mode of artistic development, where prominent influences were largely trumped by Myrkur’s confident, charismatic vocals and improving song-writing skills.” Myrkuring in the shadows.

Usnea – Portals into Futility Review

By Akerblogger on September 8, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Doom Metal, Relapse, Reviews, Doom Metal, Sludge, 19 comments

“Like labelmates Graves at Sea and Lycus, and fellow American’s Bell Witch and Samothrace, Usnea live life in the slow(er) lane. Their brand of doom features a rotating spit of tasty off-shoots: funeral doom, black metal, sludge, and progressive metal all permeate through the five dense and atmospheric tracks of Portals into Futility, the band’s third full-length. A vague and ethereal science-fiction concept runs through the album, too. I’ve deduced this not from the lyrics but from the reading list supplied by the band: the works of Gene Wolfe, Ursula Le Guin, Carl Sagan, Margaret Atwood, Philip K. Dick, and Frank Herbert are expected to be cosmically crumbled into this curious concoction.” Sci-ops.

Poison Blood – Poison Blood Review

By El Cuervo on August 12, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Black Metal, Punk, Relapse, Reviews, Black Metal, Punk, 28 comments

“You may not have thought it but Beherit brings people together, much like Christmas and accounts of drunken excess. A mutual affinity for the Finnish blackened barbarians drew Neill Jameson of Krieg and Jenks Miller of Horseback into collaborating on a new project called Poison Blood. Tales of the occult are spun through the medium of black metal but Miller, particularly, draws from a repertoire far beyond that which is typical for the genre.” Punk up the blackness.

Incantation – Profane Nexus Review

By Ferrous Beuller on August 11, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Death Metal, Relapse, Reviews, Death Metal, 33 comments

“Once again, Incantation have returned to drop another platter of death metal denser than the Earth’s mantle and more noxious than whatever genetic twist of fate finds us sharing a world with Kardashians. Previous album, Dirges of Elysium, was described by Steel Druhm – the one man guaranteed to bring a gun to a knife fight – as “accessible;” a relative term when discussing any metal band, but particularly one like Incantation.” Art in the abyss.

Integrity – Howling, For The Nightmare Shall Consume Review

By Ferrous Beuller on July 25, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Hardcore, Relapse, Reviews, Hardcore, 29 comments

“If you’ve followed the band’s thirty year career at all, you may think you have an idea of what you’re in for; but Howling demonstrates a disregard for convention as flagrant as my indifference for sentence length.” Run-on with the pack.

Tau Cross – Pillar of Fire Review

By Grymm on July 20, 2017 in 2017, International Metal, Post-metal, Punk, Relapse, Reviews, Post-Metal, Punk, 35 comments

In 2015, the multi-national post-punk supergroup Tau Cross captured our ears and hearts with their self-titled debut, blending the crustiness of classic British punk rock with the soul of Killing Joke and the nigh-shamanistic vocals of former Amebix frontman/bassist, Rob “The Baron” Miller. So effective was this mix that their debut found its way to my #2 slot of my Top Ten(ish) list of 2015. Two years later, and with a slight line-up change, the band returns with their eagerly-awaited follow-up, Pillar of Fire. The fire still burns.

Dying Fetus – Wrong One to Fuck With Review

By Saunders on June 22, 2017 in 2017, American Metal, Death Metal, Relapse, Reviews, Slam, Death Metal, Slam, 60 comments

“Despite the myriad of line-up changes and a couple of sub-par albums, Dying Fetus have kept on trucking, paring themselves down to a lean and destructive trio and bouncing back to top form with 2012’s Reign Supreme. Now, some five years in the making they return with their eighth full-length release. So how does Wrong One to Fuck With stack up in the Fetus canon?” Load the Fetus cannon!

Yer Metal is Olde: Today is the Day – Temple of the Morning Star

By Grymm on June 17, 2017 in American Metal, Noise, Relapse, Sludge, Yer Metal Is Olde, Noise Rock, 79 comments

“Angry Metal Guy is angry. That was very meta and meme-ish, I know, but when he started the blog back in 2009, he had a lot of opinions about our favorite music of choice, and he was not afraid to share them. You know who else personifies Angry Metal Guy? Today is the Day’s Steve Austin.” Angry isn’t always a lifestyle choice.