Spanish Metal

Crusade of Bards – Tales of Bards and Beasts Review

By Kenstrosity on November 13, 2019 in 2019, Power Metal, Pride & Joy Music, Reviews, Spanish Metal, Symphonic Metal, Power Metal, Symphonic Metal, 37 comments

“Hello, my name is Twelve. I am an addict. I use symphonic metal and Nightwish. I…wait a second. I’m not Twelve! Silly me. But I too enjoy symphonic metal a whole lot, perhaps too much. Even at its cheesiest it makes me unreasonably happy to listen as richly layered orchestrations mesh with distorted guitars and galloping double-bass kits. I especially love it when, like on the incredible Imaginaerum, the band is able to afford recording with a full-blown orchestra and choir—or at least when part of the symphonics come from actual instruments instead of digitally reconstructed simulations. It is this last feature that drew Spanish sextet Crusade of Bards to my attention.” Symphonomania.

Come Back from the Dead – The Rise of the Blind Ones Review

By Diabolus in Muzaka on October 1, 2019 in 2019, Death Metal, Reviews, Spanish Metal, Transcending Obscurity, 11 comments

“Every Entombed clone thought of themselves as carrying on a lineage, writing riffs in the vein of their favorite albums—not being derivative or boring as we may find some of them. This disconnect is fascinating—an album we may hear and not give a second thought to afterward likely consumed weeks, months, years of every member of the band’s life. When this comes to mind, my chief question about middling releases is ‘why?'” Dead again.

Graveyard – Hold Back the Dawn Review

By Holdeneye on September 19, 2019 in 2019, Death Metal, Reviews, Spanish Metal, War Anthem Records, Death Metal, 46 comments

“The promo in question is Hold Back the Dawn, the fourth full-length — and third of a planned four dealing with Lovecraftian horror — from Barcelona death metallers Graveyard, and it has so many good riffs that it just might be worth getting fired for. As it rises from the depths, you will find yourself powerless to move or even make a sound as the band’s influences writhe and constrict around you.” Tentacle porn is reborn.

The Holeum – Sublime Emptiness Review

By Master of Muppets on September 1, 2019 in 2019, Doom Metal, Lifeforce Records, Reviews, Sludge Metal, Spanish Metal, Doom Metal, Sludge Metal, 18 comments

“One of the only neat things about this angry metal gig is how you can select an album to review and within a spin or two have a pretty good guess as to which of these other cretins will enjoy said album. Today I present to you The Holeum’s somber sophomore escapade, Sublime Emptiness, with the strong suspicion that our silverbackedest scribe will scoff this stuff up.”Embrace the hollow.

Eternal Storm – Come the Tide Review and Album Premiere

By Cherd on August 22, 2019 in 2019, Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Progressive Death, Reviews, Spanish Metal, Transcending Obscurity, Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, 82 comments

“Surround myself as I might with dissonant blasts and angular minimalism, all it takes is the first few notes of a melodic lead by Insomnium or mid-era ,b>Amon Amarth and all of my weirdo-cred moves to the back burner. There’s something about that mix of primal aggression and soaring emotion that scratches an itch no other genre can reach, so whenever I happen upon a new melodeath record of exceptional quality, it’s almost a religious experience. Come the Tide, the incredible debut album from Spain’s Eternal Storm, is just such a record.” Seize the tidal.

Strappado – Exigit Sincerae Devotionia Affectus Review

By Kronos on August 12, 2019 in 2019, Comatose Music, Death Metal, Reviews, Slam, Spanish Metal, Death Metal, Slam, 24 comments

“Torture. As essential to death metal lyrics as it is to oppressive regimes the world over, the simple desire to exact pain has spawned countless obscene and horrific technologies. Strappado take their name from one in which the hands are tied behind the back and the victim is then suspended by them. There’s a lineage of bands out there named after torture devices that – as far as I know – starts with Iron Maiden, but Strappado are pretty far down the line from these forebears musically, instead acting as a sibling to the departed but influential Brodequin.” Welcome to the rack.

Hex – God Has No Name Review

By Cherd on July 9, 2019 in 2019, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Reviews, Spanish Metal, Transcending Obscurity, Death Metal, Doom Metal, 24 comments

“When I look at the cover art for the sophomore full-length, God Has No Name, by Spain’s Hex, I see a hyperbolic metal label distribution PR blurb made pictorial. ‘Riffs so heavy, so scorching, they splinter the Earth’s crust into black obsidian shard,’ it declares. Straight-faced, it adds ‘A sound so singularly malignant, it tears a hole in the very heavens above. As it rends the firmament, fire erupts from blah blah blah,’ you get the point.” Sounds of an apocalypse fading.

Adrift – Pure Review

By Huck N Roll on May 28, 2019 in 2019, Black Metal, Post-metal, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Spanish Metal, Temple of Torturous Records, Black Metal, Post-Metal, Progressive Metal, 73 comments

“You wouldn’t know from my reviews, but I listen to plenty of extreme metal. Pretty much anything that gets a 3.5 or higher from my fellow writers will get a spin in Chez Huck. I don’t often write about extreme metal because, to be honest, pretty much all of my cohorts are more well-versed in that subject matter. I would be doing you a disservice by faking my way through a review. But once in a while, something comes along that a: really grabs my attention, and b: arrives on my doorstep before anyone else can get their filthy hands on it. Last year’s excellent Agrimonia album is a great example. And this year, Adrift struck the same chords. So here I am, about to fake my way through a review about some excellent blackened post-metal.” Fake reviews!

Calyx – Vientos Arcaicos Review

By Master of Muppets on May 23, 2019 in 2019, Black Metal, Iron Bonehead Productions, Reviews, Spanish Metal, Black Metal, 55 comments

“Maybe an album haunts you with its recollective ghosts, maybe a certain genre only dances with you in the frozen dark of a winters night, maybe that song left a scar that only bleeds when you hear the words. The marks and meanings, the songs and sounds… These things vary uniquely from person to person, but we all experience this phenomenon in some way or other. Spain’s Calyx have added yet another piece to my own perpetually expanding puzzle of music mandated mindsets. To wit, their debut Vientos Arcaicos (“Archaic Winds”) makes me want to turn the lights off, smoke my brains out, and play Skyrim til the Nordic cows come home.” Nordic cows will kill you and everyone you love.

Totengott – The Abyss Review

By Mark Z. on April 18, 2019 in 2019, Black Metal, Doom Metal, Reviews, Spanish Metal, Thrash Metal, Xtreem Music, Black Metal, Doom Metal, Thrash Metal, 16 comments

“This Spanish trio’s 2017 debut took great pains to emulate the sound of Monotheist and Triptykon, to the point where I wouldn’t be surprised if Tom G. Warrior applied for a restraining order after its release. Nonetheless, the album was still enjoyable, in part because it had one of the best production jobs of anything I’ve ever reviewed on this site. Given that Totengott began life as a Frost cover band in 2013, it’s unsurprising that second album The Abyss largely continues to worship Warrior like he’s a god in human flesh.” Are you still morbid?