I looked for all sorts of quotes about change when preparing to write this review. From Benjamin Disraeli to Heraclitus, but eventually settled on tech guru Robert Scoble, as the addition of inconvenience and opportunity seemed pretty apt for the 5th album from Germany’s Mental Cruelty.

The inconvenience? The band is no longer deathcore.

The opportunity? There is a whole new fanbase available.

If you heard the band’s 4th album, 2023’s Zwielicht, you already knew this was a very different-sounding band from the band’s debut, Purgaturium, as the band leaned hard into the ‘blackened’ element of blackened deathcore, but songs like “Symphony of a Dying Star” teased something more, something even more black metal-based and epic.

And now on Echoes of a Forlorn Land, the transformation into a full-on symphonic black metal band is complete.

Of course, if you follow the band and have heard the first three singles, “Helheim”, “Raise the Raven Banner”, and “Frost”, you were already clued in to the style shift, and of course the Viking/Nordic themes the album and songs were taking on.

But what you might not be ready for is how fucking good the band is at this new style and how fucking great the rest of the album is. Basically, it’s a whole album of songs like “Symphony of a Dying Star” (minus the breakdowns).

Whereas Zweilicht has about a 50/50 split between black metal and Lorna Shore -ish deathcore, with massive breakdowns and super deep guttural squeals, growls, and snorts, Echoes is a solid 95-99% melodic/symphonic black metal melodic death metal affair. Vocalist Lukas Nikolia has a 100% black metal/ melodic death metal rasp, and the riffs here are riffs you would hear on a Dark Funeral, Necrophobic, modern Hypocrisy, or even Anaal Nathrakh album. Then throw in the Viking gloss (in the riffs and the lyrics), including traditional Viking instruments like the Tagelharpa /Kravik lyre (which the band learned how to play); you can also get some Mithotyn and Thryfing moments to top it off the affair.

After the intro, “Fenrir” comes blasting out of the gates, with searing black metal riffs that would fit on any recent Dark Funeral album, then “Blood For Blood” ups the ante even more with utterly furious riffs that could have come from Anaal Nathrakh’s Eschaton.

The back third of the album might be even better. There’s the biblical/angelic detour of “Cry of Batariel” (one of the original 22 angels cast out of heaven), an absolute scorcher of a track that sees the symphonic elements cranked up to 11. Then there is the stunning end cap, “Flight of the Valkyries”, where, as you’d expect based on the song title, choral arrangements and orchestral arrangements come together over a simply stunning array of riffs, and even a stomping chorus/riff that would make Johan Hegg of Amon Amarth proud. It’s easily as good as “Symphony of a Dying Star”, still one of my favorite songs of the last few years.

I admit initially the first singles didn’t do much for me, until I got the promo and just embraced the album as a whole and fully realized there would be no deathcore here, and took the album for what it is; fucking fantastic. And when countless bands are leaning into the Lorna Shore sound (including Mental Cruelty themselves for 2 albums), I’m impressed by the fact that Mental Cruelty leaned away, and decided to forge a different path for this album. Now I’m just curious if they stick with the sound and Viking motifs for the next one.

“Twas Always a Plan” opens the album with squealing guitars before the classic Master sound comes bludgeoning forward with Paul’s signature raspy, throaty vocals. He still sounds great after all these decades. He does a nice job with his enunciation so you can make out the lyrics. The monstrous speedy double bass, which has been a band trademark, is ever present here. The song has some nods to the first two classic Whiplash albums and that is most welcomed by these ears. This opener is only here to thrash the listener from side to side, with a plentiful helping of death metal. Great and catchy son. And Paul yelling “Fuck off you assholes, and Fuck You” at the start of the song is just plain fun!

The title track has a nice death/thrash opening gallop, which slows down with a weird guitar part around the 1.25 section, that I really dig. There are some cool guitar harmonies and then some speedier drums taking over. The song returns to a slower mid-paced moment, Ite a rather cool mid 80’s gallop enters into the picture, having a bit of a NWOBHM bite to it. Very classic and supremely catchy. A scorcher of a title track.

“Injustice and Lack of Remorse” has some nice isolated bass guitar, showing how he has honed his craft over the years. The death/thrash metal joins in and Paul’s vocals berating us as if we double dipped a chip at some party. The classic gallop is one of the reasons why I love the band still to this day. This gallop screams 1990 and never sounds dated, but it reaches all the way back to simpler times. So, these classic nostalgic moments Paul throws in are nods to the earlier renditions of Master and shows he has not forgotten his roots. And as an old codger, like myself, I respect these moments greatly.

“Within My Grasp” has a classic gallop to it that is worthy of you headbanging your head off that pathetic body of yours, you piece of filth! The song slows back down with Paul’s anguished vocals coming in and the gallop returning. You have to headbang and throw up your horns, in unison while you headbang, to get the true effect. Hell, if I can do it you can as well. “Let’s Revoke” ends the album with some strong Autopsy like moments rhythmically speaking, which takes me back to Severed Survival. So classic, especially with that heavy undercurrent bass sound. The slow down moments are incredibly heavy and that main riff is crucial AF! This is how you end an album folks, strong!

Among the Seeds of Death bests the last Master album and I find this album to be a bit catchier and overall better production. Super fun and Paul has the band firing on all cylinders as usual. With shows lined up and an upcoming overseas tour with Napalm Death, it’s always great to see classic bands touring together. Paul, ya bastid, you did it again. Excellent album!!

Certainly, The Great Heathen Army felt less like a genuine effort to write a complete album, and more an exercise in writing big arena-rockers for fans to pretend to row along with, while holding imaginary drinking horns aloft.

In other words, Amon Amarth got a little… hokey.

Listen, I’m all for having a good time, even more so for not taking oneself too seriously – and sure, you can argue that the whole Viking thing has always been a little bit on the side of cheesy, I guess. But what Amon Amarth has always excelled at (particularly since their breakthrough With Oden On Our Side), is finding that real sweet spot between genuinely great songwriting and album-building, and leaning in just enough to the Viking aura to make the whole thing all the more engaging and fun (particularly in a live setting).

Alas, recent efforts like The Great Heathen Army and Berserker (and many would argue Jomsviking – I personally disagree), though boasting a few bangers on each respectively, overall felt like a band going for style over substance.

Which is why it brings me IMMENSE joy to tell you, Amon Amarth has rediscovered that critical balance. I think The Allfather Awakens is the best Amon Amarth has sounded in a LONG time. I’m talking, like, 15 years here, when they dropped my personal-favorite AA album, Surtur Rising (I realize this in and of itself might be a controversial opinion, but that album fucking rips and you can’t convince me otherwise).

Now look, I’m not saying this is a complete return to With Oden On Our Side or Twilight of the Thunder God era AA. The band that has slowly but surely embraced more melodic, anthem-heavy elements of the last few releases – that’s just part of the reality of who this band is in 2026. And that’s great! Who doesn’t love a great friggin’ anthem?! And we sure as hell get a couple here – particularly the immensely catchy and bouncy “We Rule the Waves” with its sing-along chorus and simple, super-effective riffing. But it also carries a bit of a sense of self-assuredness that was lacking in recent efforts.

Ditto for the titular “The Allfather Awakens”, which, sure, the riffs are certainly lifted and slightly rearranged from past AA work, but god damn if they don’t sound tight as hell with drummer Jocke Wallgren, who, to these ears, sounds the most in sync with the band as he ever has. And hell yeah, we get a banger of a drinking track with “Kvasir’s Blood,” a nice and heavy down-tuned headbanger featuring some of Johan’s lowest, most menacing vocals to date (more on this shortly) and a rollicking chorus about drinking mead made from the blood of the gods which, how is that not going to bring a smile to your face? It’s fun as hell.

But it’s not all just arena-friendly anthems this time around. Album opener “Gjallarhorn” (the best opener the band has had in a minute) strikes a perfect balance – featuring some awesome sing-along “woah”-ing that will sound amazing in a crowd of thousands of metalheads, but also puts some of the band’s signature tremolo-picking riffs on full display with absolute glory. I honestly haven’t felt my blood pump and heart race like this from an AA track in a long time, and it’s a welcome return – and it only continues with the follow-up “Eight Legs of Thunder” coming hot on its tail –  a fitting ode to Odin’s eight-legged horse Sleipnir (not their first, but maybe their best), boasting appropriately galloping riffs, and genuinely one of Olavi Mikkonen’s most epic, inspired solos of his career. It’s such a fun track that, again, sees the band leaning into the Viking fun without crossing over into being too cheesy.

And then there’s the punishing “Die with a War Cry” that may genuinely be one of Amon Amarth‘s heaviest tracks to date (certainly of their modern era) – showcasing more of Johan’s apparent new mastery of deep, growling lows that sound straight out of Helheim itself. Say whatever you will about any of AA‘s more recent work, John Hegg continues to get better and better with every release and deserves his flowers.

I also really like the addition of the band’s first acoustic track in “Upphaf.” It’s a perfectly placed break in the middle of this record that brings an unusual sense of reflection and serenity to the otherwise furious affair. If anything, I see no reason this couldn’t be integrated more into even more traditionally heavy or epic Amon Amarth tracks (not that it needs to be a focal point; it’s just another nice wrinkle). I think it also let the band feel confident on closing out the album on two absolute friggin’ scorchers – first with the blazing “Oden’s Hunt,” which sends the band on a full-throttle attack of tremolo-picking and relentless double-kicked drumming. Again, Johan sounds absolutely monstrous on this track, particularly on the crushing bridge leading up to the final chorus.

Closer “Ascending Like An Eagle” features some riffing that could easily have found its way on some of the band’s earlier albums, before switching into some more modern soaring leads in the chorus, a nice nod to the old while embracing who they are as a band now, and a super strong end to what was such a well-balanced and crafted album.

I can’t tell you how nice it is to be this excited about one of my favorite bands’ new albums, and to see them, this late into their career, settle into a groove they’ve struggled to find, to deliver such an immense album. I want to stress that this album isn’t just good because of how much better it sounds than their recent output (not just from a songwriting perspective, but from a production standpoint, this album just sounds so much more full and robust as well), this album stands tall just fine all on its own. Amon Amarth got serious again without sacrificing the fun that has always made them such a compelling act, and we can all only hope that they can continue to strike this epic balance.

Odin, The Allfather has awoken, and so has Amon Amarth.

The Hollowing of Godflesh picks up right where last year’s aptly named Punishment EP left off: blasphemous, punishing, bludgeoning deathcore that’s a relentless beatdown. No atmospherics, no epic keyboards or synths (though there are some teeny tiny bits buried here and there, ie “Dead Crown”, end of “Godkiller”), just a sub-30-minute pummeling.

And with Dan Tucker’s massive presence (vocally and physically), the whole thing is just disgustingly heavy. Starting with the slow and low menacing rumble of “Gun Eater”, an intro of sorts, then kicking off properly with “Desecrate Infinite”, then ending with “Dead Crown”, the album is a jackhammer to the face of blistering blast beats and teeth-shattering breakdowns from start to finish, in short, 2-3 minute-ish bursts.

Highlights are hard to find as the bludgeonings all run together, but certainly “Godkiller” and “Torture Engine”, with early Decapitated “Day 69”-ish razor-sharp riffage and massive breakdowns, are worth revisiting. But like being punched in the face repeatedly, all the punches feel the same; they hurt and leave you beaten and bruised afterwards.

But unlike being punched in the face, I’m ready for more once the album ends, and hit ‘play’ or ‘please start punching me again and again.

With their 12th album, Cursum Perficio, there have been plenty of delays with this sucker. Drummer, Charlie Benante, went on to drum with the Pantera reunion act and that took a lot of time away from Anthrax, as they toured and opened up for the likes of non-other than Metallica, so his priorities were elsewhere. It’s been 10 years since their last album, the magnificent For All Kings and the same line-up returns on Cursum Perficio. Admittedly, outside of the previously released singles, this album did not hit me between the eyes like the band’s last two efforts. This was more of a slow burner, and after several listens I became hooked. The band incorporates some of the most extreme Anthrax moments in terms of speed and crunchy stomping mosh parts. So, let’s get to the review, dang it.

11 songs in 53 minutes, the album opens with a minute long intro, “Persistence of Memory”, that goes into “The Long Goodbye”. I was expecting the band to come outta the starting gates with a fast thrashy song, but they do not. A mid-paced crunchy number that has some commercial appeal to it. The chorus is exceedingly catchy, and the guitar riffing is outstanding, Ian on fire, as usual. Charlie lets loose with some cool drum rolls and there are some creative stop and start moments and soloing going on that is courtesy of Jonathan Donais. The rhythm section tight with Frank Bello’s killer bass lines and Joey’s vocals sound as great as ever. Overall, though, the intro and this song are both more of a whimper, rather than a rallying cry, from a band that has not released an album in a decade.

“It’s for the Kids”, was one of the singles previously released. After a little squealing guitar action, the song rips into the thrash the masses have grown to love and expect from the band with an aggressive and catchy chorus, that slows things down, into a killer circle moment. The squealing guitar returns, a nice drum roll, then BAM!!! Right back into the thrash speed. The Holy Shit moment is the 2.20 marker, and it hits, this is one of the best mosh/slam moments Ian has ever written. So much so, this takes me back to NYHC, with the groove. It is crucial. The pits will be monstrous during this part. Then a nifty and super killer guitar solo erupts that takes us over the speedy parts. This song should have come right after that opening intro, imo. But what do I know?!

“The Edge of Perfection” is that song folks… On Worship Music Anthrax had a little blast going on and this song brings it. At 6:46, this is the longest song, and the soft opening will fool you. The blast at the 32 second marker is fueled with black metal riffing. Something that was bound to rub off on the band with all the more extreme metal acts they have played with in the last 15 years. But that is pure black metal, and it brings a huge smile when Joey is doing some aria ahhhs over these moments. The song slows down with a super heavy lead guitar riff, that has an abundance of melody too. The blast returns with Joey singing over it and the song slows back down with terrific vocals and gang shouted vocals to accompany him. The back and forth of the varying speeds is breathtaking, making this the most extreme Anthrax song to date, and these bastids are in their 60’s now. This is my favorite song on the album.

“Infectious”, takes us back to Among the Living , with the groove and crunch and catchy vocals. The band also showcasing more of their melodic edge, they have also incorporated over the last two albums and I can see this song being played live. There are many points where I can picture the spotlights coming on and the fans headbanging in unison to this song. “NYC 93” brings back the speed and is a banger as it thrashes all over the place with the gang shouted vocals of It ain’t worth doing unless you do it to death is gang shouted over and over with Ian’s parts piped in a little louder, or else he is just much louder than everyone else. Another great song to be in their live set.

“My Victory” closes out the album with it’s tremendous double bass moments and lead guitar riff which will embed in your brain for days on end. The crunchy guitar tone is one of the heaviest Anthrax moments, ever. It is brilliant and Joey belting out the vocals, perfectly timed. This song must be in their live set. It is super catchy, fun, thrashy and has a cute little groove/stomp at the end. That lead guitar riff…..damnit it, Ian, you did it again, you crafty bastid.

Cursum Perficio is an excellent thrashy Anthrax album with the band bringing in all their decades of expertise and moments into this sucker. I’m not a fan of album covers without a band’s logo, therefore I wish the band logo was on here. On the virtual interactive album cover, on Apple Music, it’s actually super cool to look at what’s going on when the music is playing. The production is top notch and honestly if you never liked the band in the past, you’re not going to start liking them now. Although “The Edge of Perfection”, you should listen to for the black metal riffing, over the blasting. It’s not something you have ever heard Anthrax do. And that is why out of new ones, from the bigger bands this year, like Lamb of God, Megadeth, Kreator and Exodus, Anthrax have the best album. They are doing different things and incorporating new ideas, still all these decades later. Welcome back Anthrax, what a scorcher of a crushing album!!

You’re welcome, good sir, and thank you in turn! I am honored to be interviewed by the animal who spewed such killer gutturals on early Internal Bleeding. Voracious Contempt is such a fantastic album.

There is a lot of meaning and passion driving Achtung! Destroy The Weak. A motif running throughout the album is the necessity to avoid victimhood and to celebrate and achieve self-actualization and success through will to power and strength. Modernity is plagued with victimhood. It’s a disgusting, weak mindset. Yes, there is a great deal of suffering, challenges that affect people in different ways, etc. People are handed different cards in life. Equality does not exist. With all of this in mind, why choose the path of weakness, curling up in the fetal position and giving up? When life hits you hard, and it hits all of us, don’t be sad. Be mad. Let that rage inspire you. Push yourself through adversity. Be a lion. Be a wolf. “Take life by the balls and squeeze until they crunch.” I just quoted Biohazard’s Urban Discipline. Some in our scene may scoff at me for quoting Biohazard. I really don’t care. They can SMD. That’s a killer lyric from a killer band. And I don’t have any “guilty pleasures” in life. I like what I like, and without apology.

I discuss some Machiavellian concepts and Carl Jung’s psychological discussion of the importance of bloodline, ancestral memory, and connection. I value my father to no end. He was just a small, premature baby born in a hut in Africa, and he worked hard, moved to the West, and became a very successful physician and clinic owner who was recognized by members of Congress. So, I really have no time nor patience when hearing BS about how some people can’t make it in America. Anyone can become anything they want if they desire enough in this beautiful land of opportunity.

Anyway, there certainly was an extensive period between our first album and this — seven years. Trench isn’t going anywhere, though, and while we definitely favor quality over quantity, you better believe that we will never take that long between releases again. In short, a variety of factors are linked to the long wait for the album to come out: Familial deaths, career changes, distance between members, and traveling time involved in getting together. This isn’t a diss to any previous member, but we finally have the right lineup in place with members who are able to write, record, perform, and hit the road with more relative ease and with more ambition. In the meantime, we are eager to showcase this new material on stage.

We were in talks with a few labels, but we ended up choosing Conjuring Records because it’s a smaller label that’s driven by passion, and they’re putting a strong focus on us — an optimal situation rather than being on a larger label that would just neglect you.

As for the artwork, imagery from older warfare, we wanted something simple and true to our aesthetic so that it will remain in your mind’s eye.

How does this album differ from your debut album, and did you achieve the goals you wanted to?

Our demo “put us on the map,” so to speak. I mean that relatively speaking, of course. No one has lofty rock star dreams, and we will always have day jobs and daily hustles. But I digress… When I say that it put us on the map, within our corner of war metal, bestial black metal, and black/death metal, it caught a lot of people’s attention. We have always maintained our war metal roots but never wanted to be boxed in. So, our first album, Hatred Prayer, revealed our passion for death metal and black metal.

I think we will always have continuity and avoid taking any drastic left turns. So, I think the new album is a refined version of the debut but with more elaborate song structuring and phrasing. Vocally, I wanted the lyrical storytelling to come across as though it’s being narrated, to an extent. I remember reading a few Steve Tucker interviews—a huge influence upon me, by the way—when they were promoting Gateways to Annihilation, and he said that he wanted to have that approach, so that it wasn’t necessarily cutthroat and relentless throughout. There needs to be contrast to the extremity in music; otherwise, the potency just gets stale. So on Achtung! Destroy The Weak, the cadence and timbre move according to the underlying thematic tone, very much like a conversation or monologue would flow. While the album as a whole is absolutely savage, it does the same thing on a musical level. I think we achieved that goal. We always want to be extreme, but to make music that is memorable.

Trench Warfare has been around for several years now. Explain what is important in being in a band, writing music, developing your own lyrical and vocal style, which I think you have a Martin van Drunen flair, and what Trench Warfare adds to the scene?

The importance of being in a band varies significantly from person to person. For some people, that may involve fame and fortune or chasing tail. Even in underground metal, some people seem to have those lame goals without admitting it. For us as a band and for me personally, and without intending to sound pompous, creating art that’s meaningful, powerful, and lasting is what matters. It may not reach that many people, but I want as many people to hear it as possible. Some people, including a former member, claim that they don’t care about others hearing the music or what their opinions may be. Bullshit. If that’s the case, recording music wouldn’t be a goal at all. Anyway, the artistic expression, the performance, matters. I enjoy that aspect more than the writing and recording, actually. It’s cheesy to use this term, and it’s overly abundant in our scene, but it is very ritualistic. Everything involved in the process is very cathartic, and I absolutely do need this. If I didn’t have this, the gym wouldn’t be enough of an outlet for my aggressive side. Hell, I’d probably wind up dead or in prison if I didn’t have this outlet. Sure, writing, recording, and performing can be a great deal of fun. But considering the content and intensity involved, there are certainly moments where it doesn’t feel that good. It can be quite uncomfortable, like the feeling a snake may have when shedding its skin.

It was definitely important for me early on to develop my own style and approach, both lyrically and vocally. Good call on spotting out Martin Van Drunen as an influence! I love Pestilence and Asphyx. Along those lines, John Tardy from Obituary has impacted me, Marc Grewe from Morgoth to a lesser extent. And there are a host of others like, again, Steve Tucker. Who else? Barney, Kevin Sharp, and I listen to a lot of hardcore. Lou Koller from Sick Of It All (RIP) and Jon Gula from Turmoil come to mind. Phil Anselmo, of course. My friend in Belgium, Kevin Lerminiau from a band called Wolfskull, and I wrote and recorded a song many years ago when I was over there. He said my vocals sounded like a cross between tough guy hardcore and John Tardy. I can see that.

In terms of lyrical content, so many bands of our general ilk seem to be content to peddle such generic tropes and clichés involving war, death, and satanism. We definitely tackle all of those subjects, except the latter, but I’d like to think we do so in a manner that is much more rooted in reality. I’m not opposed to fantasy lyrics entirely as far as my listening consumption. When I discuss the darker side of existence, however, it is based in reality. We aren’t one of these bands made up of corpse-paint-covered wankers who are essentially engaging in nothing more than vampire cosplay.

Certain references to military and war are oftentimes metaphorical, because life is a battle. Then again, some of it is literal in the way that we want the West to win during conflict, whenever that may be referenced. To that end, we want America to win ultimately. America will win. War will never end, and we need to stay on top. The third World War is already here. It has just begun in a soft sense. I’m not wearing a tinfoil hat. I’m just a realist.

When you put it all together, I think it’s clear that Trench Warfare offers a lot to the scene, synthesizing desired and familiar sounds into an uncompromising expression that is individual and unique.

The scene and fans are ever-changing. With the band splintered in various parts of the country, what are your plans for shows, touring, challenges, and your personal lives? Is full-on touring feasible?

It’s interesting that my recent move from Austin to rural Oregon places us bandmates further apart geographically at the precise time that we have never been as poised to play out and about. What I mean by that is that we are no longer restrained by the work schedules and job constraints of former members. Those factors are understandable barriers, but now that they aren’t in our path, our current line-up is eager to play more shows, fests, and yes, now we can finally tour once the right opportunities are in place.

How serious are you all in wanting Trench Warfare to achieve the next level of success?

Success can mean very different things to different people. Is it measured as far as commercial reach and number of units sold? That’s important for some, not us. In our eyes, success is creating art, performing it, and having it connect with as many people as possible for whom the music really matters. We have had elements within the band who have held the band back, and we aren’t going to put up with that ever again. We are eager, and we are hungry.

Let’s skip around a bit and let the readers know all about your metal reviews and writing for magazines such as Pit, how you got into it, why you did, and the challenges as a writer — like ,did you ever review a band’s album, only to then have them talk smack about the review online or send you their take on how the review should have gone?

After I got my first academic degree, I had all this knowledge about metal, and I just wanted to do something to take my love for it to the next level. I had been in several terrible short-lived bands over the course of a summer, so I didn’t think that was the path at the time. I was a rabid consumer of metal and music journalism, the magazines, fanzines, and webzines; so that made sense. I dove balls deep into it and, as with anything, there have been lulls here and there, but I’ve been at it for more than half my life at this point. I’ve been an editor for Pit Magazine, I wrote for Metal Maniacs, Unrestrained, Hails & Horns, AMP, and Outburn, as well as many webzines. These days, I’m writing for Blabbermouth and Metal Underground. I’ll branch out further in due time. I did news journalism years ago, including crime reporting, and I’m sure I’ll dabble in that again down the road.

There have been challenges, as with anything in life, but I wouldn’t consider disgruntled interview or review subjects as being challenges. You know me, so you’re well aware that I don’t take myself very seriously, but I take everything I do very seriously, including singing and music journalism. I can understand why a band may be upset in the face of a negative review. But at the end of the day, however serious or not a reviewer takes the process, it’s their opinion, so it shouldn’t stick with a band. The most outrageous response to me was when a hardcore band once messaged me following a negative review, saying, “You better not ever show your face in Philly if you know what’s good for you.” I mean, c’mon, dude…

The talented multi-instrumentalist Darren Cesca reached out to me following my less-than-stellar review of Arsis many years ago. He’s primarily known as a drummer, and he did that for them around that time. He had a brief, mostly respectful back-and-forth with me. I didn’t find the album even remotely catchy, to which he seemed frustrated. He insisted that it was catchy and kept pressing me to almost… cave in and agree with him? It was absurd, and I just “left him on read,” as the kids say.

Sean Malone, formerly of Cynic, is another great talent who wasn’t necessarily that pleasant. I was interviewing him for his Gordion Knot prog metal/fusion project, and we were emailing back and forth. Many musicians can be assholes, as you know, so there are a million small situations I’m sure I can’t even remember nor care about, but this comes to mind because he was just exceptionally snooty in his conversational tone. I had no beef with him, really, though. May he rest in peace.

As seldom as I ever see or speak with him, I get along with Phil Anselmo quite well. He was upset and publicly expressed that sentiment when I spilled the beans in a blog about one of his upcoming projects, the nature of it, and so on and so forth. I reached out to him to talk about it, and the beef was squashed essentially.

Those are just a couple of things off the top of my head.

Quick fun question: you’re moving to a secluded island, and you’ve overpacked. You can only take 5 albums. Which would they be and why?

I despise these questions because they’re so fun yet so frustrating! How can I narrow it down? I’ll begin by throwing out some bands who could be included as honorable mentions. Those bands would be, I guess, Soilent Green, Acid Bath and Blasphemy. This could change on any given day, but let me give you five albums in no particular order:

Type O Negative – October Rust

Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath

Pantera – The Great Southern Trendkill

Brutal Truth – Sounds of the Animal Kingdom

Napalm Death – Enemy of the Music Business

As you get older, how are your vocals holding up playing shows and recording? Do you take care of your voice? Any vocal exercises? When was the last time you played live, and what’s on the horizon for touring and shows – do you have a booking manager?

I’m pleased with my voice these days. I think I will continue to improve over time, and my voice has certainly gotten stronger. I do my best to stay well hydrated for general health, gains in the gym, and for singing. Before practicing or playing shows, I always go through melodic vocal warm-ups, about 20 minutes’ worth. I used to do a bit of choir in high school. (In due time, I’d like to perform in other kinds of bands, perhaps doom-related, noise rock or otherwise. I’m not sure. That will happen whenever the time is right.) Anyway, I lifted a lot from those old choir, melodic vocal warm-ups and I’ve supplemented that with YouTube videos. I know that screaming has become an “art” of sorts. I haven’t yet done so, but I like improving my skill set in all that I do in life, so I definitely want to dive into those screaming tutorials at some point.

We played at the end of June in Austin at the Lost Well with our longtime friends in Imprecation. We’ve done many shows with those legendary satanic death metal maniacs. We don’t have anything on deck at the moment other than Mark Madness Fest in Illinois that’s slated for June of 2027, but as mentioned before, we are eager to do as many shows and make the most of any touring opportunities as possible. And no, we do not have a booking agent, but we are open to that sort of thing as long as the arrangement would make sense for us.

Moving musically forward, how do you see Trench Warfare expanding in sound, style, vocally and lyrically?

We will always maintain an element of war metal at our very core, around which we have allowed the growth of death metal into our sound as well as aspects of black metal. Going forward, Dustin Putz will be the primary songwriter musically, and he is doing exactly that. He has already started working on some stuff where the foundation is war metal, but his great passion for bands like Dismember, Autopsy, and Pestilence is also informing the direction. And our drummer JP Campo is fantastic. He is a rabid maniac, but his style is so controlled.

There are some other ideas in mind. I’d rather not spill all the beans, but suffice it to say, it’ll be intense, and we really want to push the envelope of what extreme music can be. Vocally, I’m sure my hardcore influences will continue to shine through. Lyrically, without straying from the subgenres at hand completely, there will continue to be a tapestry that involves history, literature, psychology, and personal experience.

Since your debut album, coming from a band and fan perspective, how has the scene changed? Are you happy with the changes? Too many bands — have shows changed, and what are some current bands you enjoy that are new, as well as older bands that you listen to, regardless of genre?

There is a lack of originality and boldness in all of extreme music, which is annoying. I don’t want to say that’s the case across the board, but it does seem to be the norm, unfortunately. Homogeneous sounds, imagery, and ideals plague the underground, and that’s never what it should be about. Groupthink is lame and weak. That’s the opposite of what we are about. We preach and celebrate the power of individual strength and identity. Of course, there can be pride in some form of group identity, but build upon that legacy. Don’t just be a carbon copy of all that inspires you. Be yourself. That goes for music and life overall, generally speaking.

I’m sure some may say, “Okay, boomer,” about this following point. I don’t care. I keep it real. (I’m Gen X, by the way, but that’s neither here nor there.) Underground extreme music, and I’m talking about virtually every subgenre and style, is inundated with “woke” scene tourists. There needs to be more gatekeeping in that regard. It’s weak and pathetic, and it shouldn’t be tolerated. Sure, you can see how some of that infiltrated hardcore and grind, but it is radical in an absurd way that ultimately isn’t benevolent. It doesn’t belong. It certainly doesn’t belong in darker-themed styles. Music should be extreme, but political extremes are always collectivist in nature. All of that is for weaklings. Celebrate the individual. Equality is a myth. Everyone is handed a different hand in life. Make the most of life. Build your own empire and live on your own terms. I’m speaking about underground music scenes and society at large. And this goes back to the meaning of the album. Self-defeating ideologies and victimhood need to be demonized. Be a lion. Be a wolf. Celebrate the self and free will. The notion of “Will To Power” is fascinating, endearing, appealing, and it needs to be championed.

As far as specific bands that we have been into as a band and as far as my own taste goes, let me see here. I can bring up Blasphemy, Beherit, Deiphago, Diocletian, Nuclearhammer, Genocide Shrines, Tetragrammacide, Wargrinder, Ritual Genocide, Triumph, Archgoat, Morbosidad, Imprecation, Obeisance, Satanik Goat Ritual and Nunslaughter.

Let me add some stuff that I’ve been listening to very recently: Abominator, Atomic Aggressor, Atomicide, the new Neurosis and the new Butthole Surfers, as well as Shane Embury’s solo album. Also, I’ve really been digging some aggressive African hip hop: Nigeria’s ODUMODUBLVCK and Kenya’s Wakadinali.

Before we go, Jay, what would you like the readers to know about Trench Warfare that they may not know? Maybe about all your ridiculous and funny memes on social media and, well, let’s be honest, you sometimes are pretty outspoken on there – ever get any flack for that?

Trench Warfare is your worst nightmare, reader! Jajajaja Again, I don’t take myself too seriously, but I take everything I do very seriously. Social media is great escapism from the BS that we all deal with in our daily lives and with regard to the daily grind. So, it should be fun. I joke around, and I’m outspoken for sure, about life, sociopolitical matters, and pretty much everything. I’m always myself, as everyone should be. I can understand that some need to be mindful of saying certain things due to work-related obligations, family matters, et cetera. That is all understandable. But if one feels the need to self-censor for a metal audience, they are no longer metal. They are just pussies. Full stop. Never let metal be defanged. Metal is a wild beast. May she forever roam free and unrestrained.

I have interviewed Ralf before, reviewed all of his bands, and have talked to him on the phone as well. The man loves death metal, and the Revel in Flesh breakup did not last long, as he put a new band together last year. He brought in Simon Abele (Inner Earth) on guitars, current Rotpit drummer Erik Barthold,

But how do you still capture that Boss HM-2 Pedal classic Swedish death metal tone, Revel in Flesh is known for???? Well, you bring in a longtime veteran and who I consider a friend, Jonny Pettersson, to handle the bass and, most importantly, the buzzsaw guitars. The man is in a ton of current and past bands. Current and past, check out this man’s resume: Henry Kane, Massacre, Heads For The Dead, Rotpit, Wombbath…I mean, I can go on all day. He is another death metal worshipper, and he knows this style of death metal amazingly well. So much so that the Revel in Flesh sound is preserved, mastered, and in some ways a bit angrier on this sixth album. I reviewed their last album, The Hour of the Avenger, and hot damn, that sucker is heavy AF. That was a tough one to beat. Flesh for the Kult of Death beats it.

No cute intro, just a total ‘Fuck You’, we are back. The title track erupts. Getting right into the speed, it’s not long before a brutal blast beat is tossed in. Ralf sounds great, throaty, and alters his vocals back to Revel in Flesh, as he does sing a tad differently in the other bands he is in. There is an exceedingly strong Dismember – Like An Ever Flowing Stream guitar tone on this album, and it’s monstrous. The main tempo of the galloping is sure to keep the headbanger happy. There are a few moments of slowdown with the atmosphere and beautiful guitar harmonies. Melodious, and that is what Jonny knows how to toss in, amongst the brutality.

“Bodybag Inferno” is next with a scorching opening guitar riff that is pounding heaviness. Slow, groovy, and will see some pits moving about here and there. The isolated guitar riff around the 2.20 section is excellent as it gives way to the isolated bass guitar. This stop-and-start moment is a great testament to the rhythm section. It will be a true test to play this sucker live. This is a great middle of the live set song.

“Pool of Blood” brings forth the speed. The buildup is short and right into a blast beat, then into a monumental galloping attack. Then right back into a brutal blast beat. Stupendous lead guitars and soloing. More blast beats, and this is a full-throttle death metal assault on the senses.

“Priest of Flesh” offers a slower and more melodic edge that the band has now incorporated on this new album. This song is moody and has a great double bass rumbling heaviness during the mid-paced moments. Guitar harmonies throughout this song, and quite honestly, some spoken word moments, would have actually worked if they had tried it out. The song gallops towards the end with an ethereal, emotive section that calls to mind what fellow countrymen, Chapel of Disease, started doing on their later albums. Truly is amazing.

The band always closes out with a cover song, and this time it’s Crowbar’s “All I Had (I Gave)”. A very heavy original song, and it’s great to hear the Dismember guitar tone in this song. All the elements and pacing of the original are intact, and Ralf lets loose on some extra growling. Such a fun cover.

Flesh for the Kult of Death is not only a terrific return and improved Revel in Flesh I am very happy to see the band continuing with their color-themed covers. This time we get blue, and the artwork is amazing as the reaper makes a return on this album, as it presides over the festivities.

The production and musicianship are impeccable. I am wondering if the band will be laid to rest maybe next year? The song preceding the Crowbar cover is called “The Last Farewell”, which I am unsure insinuates in any way that this is the last Revel in Flesh album? I am just speculating. Suffice it to say, this album owns and must be in your collection pronto!

Now, certainly, techno and dubstep beats/programming in metal, specifically deathcore, have been used plenty over the years ( The Browning, Beyond All Recognition), but Disfiguring the Goddess, I feel, is one of the first (I’d say The Berzerker, but while they used techno drums they had little dance/programming beats, and yes I know about Fear Factory‘s and Avulsed’s cyber efforts), to really lean into the dubstep influence, despite starting as a standard deathcore/slam band.

But of late, he and his more recent songs have been all over social media, with some even going a bit viral (namely the 2025 EP Galapagos). Especially with the popularity of bands like PeelingFlesh, Infectious Jelking, and Filth, where programming and rap are now commonplace.

So I went back and checked out post-Katerpiller albums like Softly With You, Blood Era and the Brutal Machine – and it’s all pretty consistent; massive, groovy slam/deathcore with oodles of samples, beats and programming. And that’s what Bloom offers, though it appears singing to Seek and Strike has given him a bigger production budget after being pretty independent for his career.

Most of you will hate this. But if you like the aforementioned PeelingFlesh, you will eat this up, as while not using rap, there are tons of dubstep beats and programming/samples amid the generally mid-paced, massive, loping slams. And those bite-sized slams (16 songs in 50 minutes) are pretty satisfying and head-bob-inducing; I imagine the likes of “Samba of the Faceless”,  “Echoes Fade, I remain”, “Deathcore Song”, “Mask off (feat. J-Figure)”, the lumbering “Goddess Box (feat. Bodybox)”, “Low Slam Low”, and “Black Widow Spider” would be pretty fun in a live environment.

That said, there are a few more ‘out there’ tracks like “AWOL”, “Sweet Dreams ” and “Dapper” (both feat. Four Stroke Baron)”, “Permission to be Claimed”, “Kiss the Dice” and reggae-laced “Pleasure Island” with either a lot more…. weirder? programming and some other vocal styles used than the brutal slam growl/burp.

Admittedly, 50 minutes is a bit long for this. Around “Pleasure Island”, the schtick wears off a bit, and I’ve heard the same riff a few times now (but I could see he t “Penance” being a live fixture). But like the albums before, this will be a random guilty pleasure of mine when I want something a little different if I want to shake my booty for a bit. (Ewwww, sorry for that visual).

Norway’s Dimmu Bongir is new to me, but you can tell by their moniker, the Hordanes Land-based album cover, and prior album titles like Hvis pipen tar oss and Dark Medieval Hash, what scene and bands they are parodying, all based around marijuana of course.

Even though the Jaldaboath songs are listed second, I’ll start with them. I thought they had called it quits after The Further Adventures…, They teased a comeback with three singles in 2023: the pub questing “Alehorn Battalions” (of which I am a member, owning the namesake shirt), bouncy “Fayre Robin”, and the catchy “Ogre of Ogmore” (though I can’t place the song it is parodying). Those three songs are contained here, as well as a new song called “Beefeater” (a very English food chain as well as the Royal Guard you probably know).

They deliver what you’d expect from Jaldaboath;  ‘Hammering Heraldic Metal’, \’Crusader-core’, ‘Tumultuous Teutonic Templar Thrash’. Their words, not mine. Though the first three are lacking the usual UK TV/ kids show stuff as before, they are still catchy, folky jaunts with sing-along moments. The new song “Beefeater”, however, does return to the band’s very English roots and references, even the child’s hymn “He’s Got the Whole World in his hands”, and another kids’ playground song you’ll recognize. I hope it’s a sign that a new album is in the works.

Dimmu Bongir‘s songs are all new, and as they have on their two albums (i.e “Bongblåst”), are much more pot parody-based, with song titles like “Her Ghost in the Smoke” and “Inno a Marijuana”. Of course, they play a tinny, early 90s form of Symphonic black metal, and it’s OK.

Early, more raw Dimmu Borgir is the backbone of the style, but certainly Satyricon, early Emperor, and Cradle of Filth are in their crosshairs. The keyboards are suitably and possibly intentionally hokey, but as they werer back then, they work. Sound-wise, if you didn’t know they were a parody band, you’d be forgiven for thinking they were just a band paying homage. Which they, of course, could be as well.

“Her Ghost in the Smoke” actually has nice riffs and synths I enjoyed (and a parody Dani Filth screech), and the mid-paced “Alt mekk er svunnet hen” is actually a pretty cool little song as well, with clear early Dimmu influences that could have been on Enthrone Darkness Triumphant. “Inno A Marijuana,” of course, has a take on the classic Emperor song’s clean chorus as well as a guest spot from The Grand Master Jaldaboath delivering his special take on TheLord’s Prayer.

I’m just glad to see Jaldaboath ‘back’, though they never officially went away. The Dimmu Bongir material was a pleasant benefit, if even if just for the sound they are parodying, as the whole weed theme didn’t do it for me.

And in 2024, Canadian act Apogean joined the roster and released Cyberestrictive, a perfect fit for the label, and now we have the relatively quick turnaround of the follow-up, Waste Where Life Begins, and they are still a perfect fit for the label, as the band’s second effort picks up right where the debut left off and delivers exactly what I stated in my opening paragraph.

Also, the fact that vocalist Mac Smith is involved here adds some real street cred to the band, as his involvement with bands like Decrepit Birth, Alterbeast, and the killer, Gears of War-themed tech-deathcore project Hammer of Dawn, ensures the vocals and lyrics are top-notch.

Generally, for me, 33 minutes is a tad short for an album, but here it’s the perfect length. The 8 songs, once again produced by Zach Ohren, are crisp, clear, and technical, with just a hint of keyboards here and there, and enough memorability to warrant multiple listens — often a problem with this tech style (i.e the recent The Absolution Sequence).

You get pretty epic blasters like opener “Daughter of the Oak” and “White Trees, Black Leaves”, some crunchier moments like the title track “Lie In Cinder”, the Jay Kristoff-inspired “Nassaru” and, of course, tracks that do some of everything – which, if I’m being honest, most do, but I’ll single out the killer “Hologram (Singing Silently on an Empty Stage)”.

The album’s final 2 tracks, the ambient interlude “Ritual” and “Black Smoke, Bleeding Earth”, add just a little more experimentation to an already complex album that should be on your radar if you like The Artisan Era bands or top-notch technical metal.

Six years after the excellent, previously mentioned album, the Canadians are back with… Within. I’m here to tell you there’s no loss of potency, energy, or quality from the extended break.

You can quote me on that and listen to “Fishhook.” It’s upbeat and infinitely relatable. The chorus is one of those that sounds cheesy at first, which it is, but they’re no stranger to it. In case you didn’t know or had somehow forgotten, the band’s musical chops are on full display with stellar performances all around. Rody expresses more optimism than I do as far as bridging the partisan divide that plagues the planet, but especially the United States.

I’d rather talk far less about my country, so I’ll move on to track five, “The Orchard.” There’s another excellent hook in the song’s refrain, but it’s also another display of their stellar musicianship. There’s a quick turn into power metal territory during the instrumental section not long after the first chorus, which shows the band can pull off anything if they wish. It’s excellent, but not quite on the same level as the closer; not much is.

That last track in question, “The Mariner,” I am appropriately going to feature at the end of the review. It’s quite an anthem. There’s enough technical brilliance to take the breath away of any accomplished musician. However, there’s a succulent, meaty chorus on which the casual fan can feast. It might impact your stomach, butit  will assuredly hit you in your heart, then get stuck in your brain.

It’s difficult to label Within as anything other than Album of the Year material. It displays ina  stunning fashion a band that is firing on all cylinders. They’re pissed off, but who can blame them? However, there is an underlying optimism permeating the entire album. This isn’t your typical 2026 “end times approaching” masterpiece. Sure, there’s some doom and gloom, although you’d never know it because of how up-tempo Protest The Hero’s signature sound truly is, but there’s hope.

Not Your Kingdom is the band’s 10th full-length and first one in eight years, their last being For the Cause, in 2018. Joining Freddy is: Paul Delaney – bass, Mike Gurnari – guitars, and Mike Justian – drums.

The band has remained intact for quite a while, and Freddy sounds absolutely maddening on this album. 14 songs in 30 minutes, the band wastes no time, ripping right into “Tethered”. You can feel a NYHC pit starting immediately as this song opens with a killer groove. The band opted to have the album produced in Nashville, TN, and Andrew Baylis really helped to get the best Madball sound possible. Lee Rouse did a stunning mix/mastering job, as this ensures Madball sounds as relevant as they did when first starting out as a bunch of kids.

“Flammable” is next and is ferocious. Blistering speed opens the song, and then out of nowhere, a fuckin blast beat. At 59 seconds, this song swoops in and levels the playing field. Intense NYHC!

“Rebel Kids” is a nod to the band, former members, the NYHC scene, and the philosophy of growing up in NY, back then and how kids thought and felt. One of the catchiest songs the band has ever written, it’s only a matter of time before the entire crowd is singing along live to ‘Let me hear your voices say I’ve been led astray, been led astray’. The grooving and hoppy moments go along with the emotive nature of what the lyrical content is meant to convey. I love this song, and this will be an excellent connection between the band and the live audience.

“Don’t Misstep” was a song selected to be one of their singles, and the speedy opening hardcore attack eventually simmers down to allow that excellent groove to hit, then back into the hardcore galloping attack. This will be a great circle pit song. The song has nods to the band’s earliest material as well as Agnostic Front, no surprise there.

“Life’s a Mural” is a great song, with true NYHC lyrics talking about hypocritical people. If you’re gonna talk the talk, you’d better walk the walk and be true to your values and not be a chameleon. Always improving oneself and basically don’t talk outta your ass. Some excellent guitar moments with an excellent breakdown showcasing the strong rhythm section. The song gets into a rather nice gallop, then slows back down, and once again his track screams, play me live!!

“Chase a Dream” closes out this terrific NYHC album, with some phenomenal drumming as the galloping takes us on a speedy opening path. Awesome and aggressive vocals help move the song along. The song slows down, and we get a nice little isolated bass guitar that is rooted in classic 80’s NYHC, as well as on the west coast, D.R.I. hardcore bangers. The song speaks about staying true, following a good path, and not allowing naysayers to try and tear you down. Excellent album closer.

Before I finish up this review, I must mention the passing of legendary NYHC singer, Lou Koller, from NY’s Sick of It All. He recently passed away from cancer, after it returned last year. Fuck cancer! Lou was a purveyor and staple in the NYHC movement, and the band is taking the time to mourn and some time for themselves. RIP NYHC Brother!

Not Your Kingdom is a ferocious and fun hardcore album from Madball. The band is hellbent to come outta the starting gates swinging and slamming, and that is exactly what they do. Releasing one of their strongest and most intense albums with terrific lyrical content and meaning. You all need to run out and get this scorcher asap!!

And if there’s any band in the world of metal that can truly be broken down and so clearly defined by eras of their work, Moonspell certainly deserves a deep dive.

Portugal’s most famous and prolific metal export, Moonspell have made no bones about the fact that the band is in the twilight of their careers. While they’ve given themselves no specific expiration date, knowing that an inevitable end is in the near future makes every new release an even more fascinating listen – especially when you consider how the band has progressed and altered their sound through the years (I won’t waste time breaking down the band’s whole catalog AGAIN, just go here for the basics).

Appropriately, 2021’s Hermitage saw the band present a much more sobering, introspective sound that really did seem like a band coming to terms with their own mortality after years of some of their most bombastic and epic work (and also spawned an amazing live recording of the album from a show literally underground in a Portuguese cave – tell me that doesn’t fucking rule). It was a clear shift in the band’s approach, seeming to mark yet another new era in the band’s sound.

As it turns out, Hermitage was not necessarily setting the stage for a new era, but perhaps instead clearing it altogether to let the band cook with a whole new blank canvas. While the album’s first note on “Cross Your Heart” does indeed feature some of the bluesy, slide guitar flavors leftover from their last album, things quickly go completely vintage Moonspell. The Irreligious and Sin/Pecado vibes? OFF THE FRIGGIN CHARTS. I’m instantly thrown back to the first time I heard “Opium” and fell in love with this band. Everything from guitar tone to those dramatic synths to Fernando Ribeiro’s moody-as-fuck vocal approach just SCREAM a certain era of the band’s sound that we haven’t heard in about 25 years, and while I adore Moonspell’s more epic contemporary work, I’m tickled pink to hear this version of the band again in 2026. Chalk it up to nostalgia or whatever you’d like, it’s a fucking VIBE.

And it’s a vibe that only kicks into higher gear on “Far From God,” what with its whispered-word and synth-backed intro that makes me want to throw on some white foundation and heavy eyeliner and go dance around an abandoned warehouse with a bunch of other black-clad antisocials. It’s the unmistakably catchy sound of 90s and 2000s Goth Metal that made bands like Tiamat, The Kovenant and Theatre of Tragedy all the rage during that time. Even the production seems to be trying to cull some of that yesteryear magic. Yes, this sounds more polished, per se, than a release from earlier time periods may have, but the mix itself is spot-on for that era, with Fernando’s vocals coming in clean and clear, and given just enough effect to create an even more ominous, creepy atmosphere. The track is an absolute goth rock/metal anthem that should quickly become a fan favorite. Hell, throw “Promise of Light,” “For the Love of Mortals”, and closer “Reconquista” on your spooky Halloween Dance playlist too, each giving superb melodrama and theatrical panache.

But Far From God is far more fulfilling than just “vibes.” This is a thoroughly engaging and fulfilling record, with lush atmospheres and super solid songwriting that begs repeat listening. “Biblical,” the album’s first track to bring Fernando’s excellent harsh vocals into the mix, bears all the hallmarks of Moonspell‘s sound that you could ever really hope for, with building, earworm melodies that crescendo into a burst of energy that offer a cathartic release. And the song FUUUUUCKS in every sense of the word – speaking to a love so intense and forbidden that it becomes its own mix of ecstasy and tragedy. It oozes with tension and desire, and I’ll just say it – give this one a shot next time it’s go time with your, uh, special friend. Thank me later. Really, this entire album would make for an INTENSE night in the bedroom. Like, it’s not horny, per se, but every track just oozes with a kind of anxious desire and passion that should get you, uh, going, regardless.

Then there’s the superb “The Great Wolf in the Sky,” featuring some beautiful string work from Spanish composer Alicia Nuhro – it culls every bit of spiritual and mystical energy you’d expect from a track with such a name, and pulls in some of the more epic drama you’d expect on albums like Extinct and 1755, making for an intoxicating and immersive listen. It’s really everything you could want from a Moonspell track – drama, emotion, bombast in spades – it’s the kind of track that only a band with so much experience and confidence in their craft could pull off, and we’re all lucky enough to be around to see a band like this, after so long, continue to really shine. Ditto for “Our Freedom to Fall,” the album’s heaviest and, perhaps best track (honestly I think this is the best song Moonspell have made in a long time, which is certainly saying something given their pedigree). It’s just so perfectly crafted and put together, with infectious, doomy riffs and synths that just won’t relent, and Fernando deploying all his various vocal tricks and talents to create the album’s most dynamic offering.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect after Hermitage, and I certainly don’t think it was THIS, but you’re gonna get zero complaints from me. It’s not just a well-performed throwback, it’s a celebration of Moonspell through the years that any fan of the band should be able to fully appreciate and enjoy. Whenever Moonspell does call it quits for good, it’s gonna be a sad day – but I feel confident and content in knowing that the band will go out the same way the band always existed – on their own terms, and with their own unique voice. Far From God is easily one of my favorite albums so far this year, and I think over time could prove to be a classic, even for a band as decorated and beloved as this.

The first track, “Ashes of a New Dawn”, while good, sounds like a B-Side from 2022’s Divine Council. It’s safe to say they have stumbled into their sound, which is not necessarily a bad thing, if they know what to do with it. If you’re unfamiliar, their brand of tech death is based on actual song structures, instead of just cool parts. Before three minutes pass, the slower section breaks up the speedy aggression, but only too briefly.

Many of the gripes I hear regarding Psycroptic are that many people don’t like Jason Peppiatt’s vocals. If you agree, it won’t change with The Pulse of Annihilation. I want to clarify that I don’t think there’s a need for change. He’s unique, and it’s difficult to mistake him for someone else. My issues fall in line with, yes, everything sounds similar. If you’ve heard the last few Psycroptic albums, you’ve heard the new one.

Are there times when they stray from the path? Well, maybe a little. Take for instance, the first two minutes of “Our Pillars Fall,” which begins with an acoustic guitar intro that builds into the main riff. There’s also a splash of keyboards, but if you close your ears (however the fuck one may do that) for just a moment, you’ll miss it. Howevvverrrrrrrr, that main riff from Joe Haley sounds like nothing, if not familiar.

Guys, I’m trying my best here to list standouts and great moments, so maybe “Annihilation Pulse,” the de facto title track, will have them. I do enjoy the fretboard wizardry that makes up the main riff. It stands out because everything sounds so clean that it’s almost sterile. I guess if you want to know how the rest of the album sounds, you’ll know immediately after it.

I hedged my bets on some experimentation to happen on the final track, “Forging the Crown.” It does have a cool intro where one can hear the tension building into the main riff, which is another scorcher. Taken in isolation, perhaps on a playlist, I can see this one standing above the rest. At first, I thought there were keys in the background, which pop up for a quick “hello” on occasion, laying the atmospheric, darker groundwork. However, after time with it, I found it’s just the guitars ringing out a bit too long. Just like that, in a stout 39 minutes, the album is over.

Ughhhhh! I didn’t want to do this but felt I had no choice. While I still love Psycroptic, The Pulse of Annihilation has done nothing for me. The nearly 40 minutes go by without even thinking about it, wondering what happened. Perhaps it’s the combo of the “too clean” production, along with the same style of riffs I’ve heard from them for years, but I just can’t recommend it heartily. If you want a better representation of what the band is capable, check out their early stuff with Chalky, as well as ObServant, The Inherited Repression, and Divine Council. Perhaps their previous work spoiled me.

Unfortunately, I’m not sure The Pulse of Annihilation grabs me. It just kind of exists.

I covered their split EP with the mighty Fluids in these hallowed pages back in 2023. That came hot on the heels of Red is the Color of Ripping Death (2021), which just so happens to be their last full-length until now, and their brand-spanking-new album, Satanic Chaos Legions.

I was recently asked if there’s any album I don’t like; it does feel like I like most of the albums I have covered (including this one). I didn’t like the new Sepultura… there’s that. I don’t know, but it’s a true story that this album kills, and the only reason I didn’t mind it being a streaming promo is that my device is out of memory, so I don’t have any choice in the matter.

So yeah, this is another one of those maturation albums. If the new Darkthrone is their Black Album, as I opined in my review for THAT album in these pages as well, then Satanic Chaos Legions is Nunslaughter’s finest hour and their most mature album to date.

So from the title track, you already have a baseline for how things are going to go down. It’s a blistering Death/Thrash number that’ll get your head rattling right away. The production is on point with the move to BLKIIBLK, and this being Nunslaughter’s debut on the label, it had to be good, right?

“Jesus Fucking Dies” is track numero dos, and it is just as brutal as a song bearing that title should be. It’s a short track too, running 1:20. Which is perfectly fine; the whole album has a runtime of 34:11 and so it shows up, metes out some blasphemy and moves on. “Unsacrament” scoots along pretty fucking quickly as well. A slice of diabolical Death Thrash, it’s an intense bloodbath taking place in just a few minutes.

Bands like Nunslaughter get the fucking job done right away. No niceties for you here, only bludgeoning OSDM, and isn’t that what should be expected? By now, yes. These guys are legends in the Pittsburgh/Ohio area, and it’s easy to see why. They’re consistently good whether it’s a full-length or a split EP.

”Christian Ruse” is the most Slayer song on the album that’s also balls-to-the-wall Death Thrash in sort of a Malevolent Creation sort of manner, so think of those two bands having a bastard offspring; there’s a tasty blast section near the end of the track as well. Meanwhile, “Die Your Own Death” comes barging in like a drunken rhino with an attitude.

Satanic Chaos Legions checks all the boxes for what makes a great OSDM release in 2026. “Rotten Messiah”, “Peukharist” and “In the Flames of Inferno” form the guts of the album, ripping open gates to Hell and dancing with demons. Each track on this record seethes with rage and hatred for the Christian Church.

“Heavenless” is a knuckle-dragging spectacle of neck-snapping destruction, while “Lucifer the Light” is a Slayer-esque thrasher that’s got a slew of killer riffing going on in its short runtime. “Cathedral of Stench” brings some crazy time changes: first, it’s mid-paced and almost friendly until the middle of the song, and it’s blasting drums twisting and turning, smashing into a hypnotic blast of doom before cranking it up again.

Rounding out the end of the album, it’s “Listen to the Lies” for the fastest track. From the count-in to the abrupt stop, it’s a Death Grind, rude sonofabitch. I eat shit like that up; it’s like being hit by a train, in the ears…

“Infernal Reign” is a fucking Punk waiting to stab you and take your money or your life. It’s followed by “The Spear of Satan”, the last track, and it’s a shredder. There’s this cool skanky beat before the track ends. There’s your money gone.

Satanic Chaos Legions is a solid OSDM album from a band who have been spreading their Satanic devotion for years. Nunslaughter doesn’t have to prove a fucking thing; they’ve stayed true to themselves and the scene as a whole. Their videos on Facebook are interesting as hell, so if you don’t follow them, you’re missing out.

By now if you love bands like Mortician, Deeds of Flesh, Fleshgrind and of course… Slayer. Always Slayer. Get this apocalyptic beast and be scorched by Hell’s flames.

For years now, they’ve toured the earth keeping the memory of Death Metal legend Chuck Schuldiner alive (as if anyone could forget those classic albums). There is another Death “cover band” with former Death members in Death to All, but as far as I know, they have yet to put out an album. Probably for the best, honestly. But here I am reviewing the debut from Left to Die, and trying to decide how I feel about it.

I’m impressed with the production; straight out of the box, the album sounds good. The bass is perfectly in the mix, and it all sounds lush and warm. And some of these songs/riffs are ones Chuck had apparently written back in 1984 and never got to use, so it’s only fitting that this is going to at least sound like early Mantas/Death, which it does. A lot.

That’s not completely a bad thing, as there are some pretty killer riffs going on, but my question is: do we need another Death? Personally, I see it kind of like this whole resurrection through hologram craze. There comes a point where homage becomes parody, and Left to Die is straddling that line pretty damn close.

Initium Mortis is the title, and musically it sticks to the Scream Bloody Gore and Leprosy blueprint. Also, not a bad thing, but I’m wondering if this will be a one-off release or the start of something else? How much can you farm the Death ‘sound’?

Let’s see what we have here… “Legion of Doom” is the first track and of course it’s a banger, Matt Harvey sounds exactly like Chuck, his understandable rasp lends itself to following the lyrics. It’s got soaring leads courtesy of Rick Rozz, Terry Butler’s bass rattles the walls with unrelenting force; it’s all very nostalgic and sticks to the Death formula to the point where it’s almost like reciting scripture.

“Archangel” sounds so much like “The Final Command” from Slayer’s eponymous Show no Mercy, but it comes across as lackluster and uninspired.

Meanwhile, “Power of Darkness” sounds like Venom, but again it’s a bit dull. If Left to Die can get out of Chuck’s shadow they could make a solid banger of an album. I know this is a debut, but these guys are veterans at this point. Just saying…

“Zombie” is a pointless instrumental that once again sounds like Slayer. It’s not a horrible track, but goddammit; it should be better than it is. I’m starting to get the impression that these songs and riffs from the early days were left out for a reason at the time of the recording process. I remember hearing Scream Bloody Gore for the first time and it knocked me out with how good it was/is. Maybe if Left to Die do another album they’ll try and make it their own. Time will tell.

“Witch of Hell” could’ve been on Massacre’s From Beyond, sounding like “Corpsegrinder”, I mean Rick Rozz is a precise motherfucker so his writing is all over this song. I have to say it’s one of the more ‘original’ tracks on Initium Mortis, even though it sounds like Massacre… it is what it is though. Lots of dive-bomb solos are peppered throughout which makes me think of Massacre even more because literally every solo on From Beyond has dive-bomb solos.

“Rise of Satan” and Summoned to Die” could have been on Leprosy, but this is a by the numbers version of Death, so it isn’t as good as it should be. Which is sadly the case with Initium Mortis. Man, I wanted to love this album… but it’s really hard to. This is a meeting that could have been an email.

“Mantas” is the name Death had before they became Death. That should tell you all you need to know about the song, it’s just ‘meh’ unfortunately.

Last two tracks, “Slaughterhouse” and “Death by Metal” close out the album with a little bit of Possessed showing up in “Death by Metal”. Honestly I’m glad it’s over.

My problem with Left to Die and Initium Mortis is that it’s the “we have Death at home” version and it makes me wonder why Death to All hasn’t made an album yet. I mean, two touring acts doing their version of Death and only one makes an album of ‘original’ material? C’mon man, be serious now.

At the end of the day I can only recommend this for… well I’m not quite sure. I guess if you like Death and want to hear from the people who played on those seminal albums, then yeah it’s going to be your jam. But if you’re looking for an album that takes what Chuck did with Death and advances on it; this is not the album for you. Or maybe it is, I don’t fucking know, I guess if you like what you’ve heard then you’ll eat it up. Enjoy your day.

But then nothing for 5 years, other than an instrumental digital-only EP and a single. But, as the saying goes, good things come to those who wait. And now on newly formed German label, Vesperian, and again produced/mixed by Arioch from Secrets of the Moon, I’m happy to report that The Nocturnes of Iswylm is indeed worth the wait, as the band continues on thier D & D inspired journey, and this time gets even more adventurous and confident.

As with the debut album, the band is still locked into 90s symphonic black metal with the usual suspects like Dimmu Borgir, Arcturus, Old Man’s Child, Abigor, and Emperor (heck, even the back panel of the album mirrors Emperor’s Nightside) as the base, and certainly at times, the development of the songs here mirrors Emperor’s growth from Into the Nightside Eclipse to Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk and IX Equilibrium, with shades of more progressive, controlled and adventurous song writing interplaying with the symphonic metal bombast.

Clear examples of this can be heard on “Saccharine Subjugation” and surprisingly restrained”Imperious Sanguine Eroticism”, where Otheyn Vermithrax delivers some Ihsahn-ish croons (which also appear on closer “The Ballad of a Fallen Star”).

But for the most part, the songs are classically inspired symphonic black metal, like “The Black Dragons of  Iswylm”, which has a pure mid-era Dimmu stomp or the Ancient – ish canter of “Echoes in the Vasts of Sequestration”. The more furious “Carnal Tapestries of Nailtorn Flesh” covers all the bases and inspirations, including a little thrashing Cradle of Filth, into the album’s most direct track.

And there may even be hints of power metal, just with harsh vocals – for example, the opener “The Taste of Immortal Blood”. That’s a power metal chorus right there.

As the rangy and varied 9 and a half minute closer “Ballad of a Fallen Star” wraps up the album, I’m left impressed, but I prefer the more classic keyboard style from the debut, and I’m still wishing the band would write those one or two genre or career-defining songs. All the songs are great, but they need that “Progenies of the Great Apocalypse”, or “Inno A Satana”, to cement their legacy a little more (I will say, “The Seer” from the last album is really close).

Hopefully, we won’t have to wait 5 years to get it on the all-important third album.

And now, after 7 years, some tragedy (vocalist Sven “Svenson” Gross passed away in 2021), and some significant lineup changes (2 new guitarists in Christian Kalbrecht and former Revel in Flesh member Apu Justin Reisch, and a new vocalist in Borisz Sarafutgyinov), they are back again delivering more Dismember worshipping goodness on their 10th album, Epitome of Carnage.

Not much else really needs to be said. There are plenty of bands vying for Dismember’s crown, like front-runners Demonical as well as Iron Flesh, Come Sweet Death, Carnal Savagery, Lik, just to name a few, but on Epitome of Carnage, Fleshcrawl appear to be back at the top of the discussion with complete and utter commitment to the sound.

First off, the all-important guitar tone, here self-produced in the band’s own ‘Scumlight Studios’. It’s perfect; buzzing, fuzzing, and razor sharp, and when it’s isolated to start a song or riff or groove- it’s utterly killer. Second, the songwriting; it’s the perfect mid-era encapsulation of Dismember‘s Massive Killing Capacity, Death Metal, and Hate Campaign. There are oodles of semi-melodic razor-sharp riffs and equal amounts of groove.

Now, the album does take a couple of songs to warm up, as it’s not until pure Dismember, “Patrol 17” worship of the 3rd track “Grave Messiah” that the revamped line-up starts to catch my ear and deliver something more memorable. Then, after that, the album really takes off with scorchers like the stern, mid-paced march and somber lead work of personal favorite “Embers of Wrath” (which recalls Demonical’s “Välkommen undergång”), doomier, moodier “Committed to Suffer”, slicing “Reign Forever”, another “Patrol 17”-ish number in “Orphan God”, “Let the Napalm Reign”-ish “Path of Thorns”, and album ending “Of Fire and Flesh”, where they end the album on a more atmospheric, moody note similar to “Dreaming in Red” or “Life – Another Shape of Sorrow”.

This summer has seen two damn solid albums from some HM-2 death metal veterans, In Pain and Fleshcrawl, and I wholeheartedly recommend fans of the sound check out both.

“Invocation of the Dreamer” opens the album and was the first single released. The song gets right into a nice thrash gallop with amazing vocals and guitar solos. The guitar harmonies and riffs from Ben and Phil are as exceptional as ever. We even have some dual-layering of vocals, and Zach still punishes the drums as if his life depended on it. After the thrashing, the tune settles into the doomier elements with some mystical moments too. This song goes perfectly with the somber album cover. A knight who has seemingly acquired riches, however, is melancholic due to probably how such riches were obtained. The song is helped out with a monster production to boot.

“Corpsebloom Garden” is also an aggressive number, with some polyrhythmic time changes and a doom-laden atmosphere with terrific soaring vocals early on. Very catchy, and the pitch is pretty good. I mean, the vocals do have reverb and EQ on them, but they do not go out of key. That is tough with these types of singers. I hear a lot of singers who are good, but not in key. The dual vocals of Ben and Phil continue to make Khemmis stand out from the pack in this genre of metal. Around the 2.10 mark, the ever-present gruff death metal vocals come in, which have been present across their releases, and add the extra oomph. Around the 3.25 mark, there are some guitar melodies taking us back to Helloween’s Keeper of the Seven Keys albums. Most excellent, and the guitar solos continue to get more creative on each album.

“Gilded Chambers” kicks things into thrashtastic fashion. Excellent opening drums and then right into the thrash. The song slows down for those soaring and epic vocals to resonate with the listener. Excellent vocal harmonies and intricate and melodic guitar work move the song along, as the doom metal takes over. The chorus and vocal tones will stay in your head, as well as the death metal vocals, midway through the song. They capture the emotion of the song, and after that moment, a most excellent guitar solo takes hold. Slow atmospherics permeate through the dense fog with acoustic moments and soft drum patterns. This section carries an Egyptian tone until the metal returns and the song ends soon thereafter.

“Benediction Tones” ends the album in an amazing, doom-like fashion. Heavy, brooding, emotive – the song takes no prisoners if you are listening to this on a depressing day. The vocal tones deliver huge on this track and are even more bombastic in the delivery. There are some spoken-type vocal parts in the middle of the song, all between the harmonizing. The song gets slower and quieter until trailing off, ending the album.

This self-titled Khemmis album is a monstrous metal album. They carry the torch of metal loud and proud. The production is top and the music is once again brilliantly delivered. They are leaving other bands in the dust, who are usually lumped into this genre. First is Visigoth. A most excellent band, but they have not released anything in seven years. Then, Eternal Champion with their Friend of War recent EP– quite honestly, that is a mess of sorts of an EP running over thirty minutes. One of the songs is an eighteen-minute-long ambient instrumental, and the title track is over thirteen minutes, which honestly goes nowhere – stinks cause their album owns.

Regardless of those bands, Khemmis are at the top of the pack and are one of the leaders of this style of metal. I would love for a bigger band to take them out on tour. Khemmis needs to be seen and heard on a bigger stage. What a great album and band.

Would it be their Master of Puppets or Reign in Blood? Or would it crumble under the pressure of following up such a great second album? Or would the band succumb to the pressure of the genre and change up style a la Paradise Lost’s, Shades of God, or My Dying Bride‘s The Angel and the Dark River? Especially with both bands being a clear influence on Fires in the Distance’s melodically tinged take on doom/death metal.

Come on down, Master of Puppets and Reign in Blood.

Now, to be clear, I’m not putting Circadian Promise in the same categories as those legendary, genre-defining, classic albums, but fuck me, this album is good; album of the year good, and in a few years, I think we will be talking about it as a hallmark album in the death/doom genre.

As with the last album, Randy Slaugh has been brought in to help the already talented composer, guitarist/songwriter Yegor Savonin, with some of the orchestral compositions, which, as before, are simply magnificent (although I don’t think the 4-piece string orchestra was brought back?). And also, as with the last album, it is front-loaded, and the back half of the album struggles a bit to catch up, but it does this time. But for crying out loud- how do you even top the opening two tracks here?

Opener “Of Radiance and Levitation” is about as good as it gets for delicate hues blended with a stern mid-paced trundle and some chord progression to simply die for. The little post-verse arpeggio at 2:18, which repeats a few times, is just knee-wilting. The song also introduces new guitarist/vocalist Brendan Hayter (Obsidian Tongue, Thrawsunblat) and his clean croons, which appear a few times on the album and are spectacular. His growls and rasps are not quite as commanding or low as his predecessor’s, but the music here is the star of the show as the band leans into their tangible Insomnium, Opeth, Rapture, Swallow the Sun, Katatonia, and such.

And speaking of Insomnium, the second track, “To You, Author of My Fade”, is by far my favorite song of the year so far. It’s the most urgent track the band has penned, with an utterly stunning opening riff that has a fiercely melodic canter that would make Insomnium or even bands like In Flames, At The Gates, Dark Tranquillity, Wolfheart, or Countless Skies blush. Another svelte Hayter chorus adds a level of deep introspection.

The third song, “Lightless Days of a Songless Bird”, has a tough 2 acts to follow, but holds up with a more airy, elegant pulse and lope, with a main riff culled straight from Paradise Lost‘s more gothic rock phase. We then get “By This Time Tomorrow”, which features Johan Reinholdz of Dark Tranquility on a guest solo; it’s the album’s first more pure doom track, with a wondrous, swaying main riff and sonorous melody that you would hear on a My Dying Bride song, and when it transitions from the little spoken word/sample to the epic lead solo- it’s truly breathtaking.

The more lumbering, choppy “Once the Silence Takes Your Place”, while still a solid track, is probably the only song that has no moment or riff that made my knees weak, and the little programming part about 5 minutes in is a bit out of place (but the riff that follows it is damn good). But it’s a solid, despondent, Rapture-ish number that again highlights Hayter’s clean vocals perfectly.

The album ends (albeit too suddenly for my liking) with “Agonal Dreaming”, a brilliant, gorgeously somber track, where the delicate piano interplays with a riff similar to the opening song, just a perfect, perfect blend of sternness and melancholic beauty. Just listen to that riff at 3:31, and then the subsequent orchestral bridge/solo, and staggeringly emotive blast beat. My god. Just fucking perfect.

Circadian Promise is a perfect album in every way, and is indeed their Master of Puppets or Reign in Blood. It’s going to be a sure-fire AOTY contender for me, and for many folks I imagine. One can only hope they follow it up with an … And Justice For All or South of Heaven.

But with 2019’s Embrace of the Godless Aeon, Joe Stamps was brought in on vocals, and he delivered a true homage to original Hecate Enthroned co-founder, vocalist, and  former Cradle of Filth member, Jon Kennedy (RIP), with his high-pitched screams and bellows, and thusly, the band returned to the style that they started with, with stellar results

Now, with the second album with Stamps, would the band stay true to their style, or dabble back with thrash and death metal? Well, I’m happy to report that Hecate Enthroned are still back to the sound of the first two albums, and as I said in my review of Embrace the Godless Aeon, considering the line-up and style change with Cradle of Filth, these guys sound more like classic COF than COF does.

Driven by original members Nigel Dennan and Andy Milnes (guitars) and bassist Dylann Hughes, as well as long-time keyboardist Pete White, the classic, bombastic Hecate Enthroned sound is in full force again, and at times it’s brilliant. Of course, Stamps’ shrieks, as Kennedy’s were all those years ago, as well as Dani Filth’s, are an acquired taste, but the songwriting (and production) here is top-notch.

Starting with “Spirits Stir Within Our Ancestor’s Tombs”, which, around the two-minute mark, gets a truly classic moment going, and the album never lets up for its near-hour run time. Standouts include “Steed of the Still Water”, with its stern opening stomp, then another truly classic 90s Slaughter of Innocence/Dark Requiems moment at around the 3:45 mark, as well as the savagely majestic “A Gallery of Rotten Portraits”, where Stamp’s deeper bellows dominate the vocals, and the emotive chord progressions near the track’s climax are really well done.

Another killer track, “Deathless In A Dryad Glade”, might be the most ferocious song the band has delivered, and the bridge into a regal arch at 3;25 is pure, classic Hecate Enthroned gold. And closer “Into the Vale of Endless Snow” really shows off Pete White’s synths with regal, sweeping intensity and bombast.

Only the 6-minute “Pwca” loses my interest a bit as it’s sort of a mid-album interlude and largely acoustic/ instrumental spoken word. And the band still tends to linger on a song’s intro/outro for a little too long (i.e., “The Boreal Monastry”). Get the fuck to those killer riffs, man (which “Into the Vale of Endless Snow” absolutely does).

I’ll come out and say it, this is waaaay better than Dimmu Borgir‘s Grand Serpent Snoozing, which I have not listened to, since I wrote the review. Also, with other former Hecate Enthroned members delivering 2 fine, expectedly Hecate Enthroned-sounding albums since 2019 with Argesk, Hecate Enthroned needed to come back strong and deliver a killer album, and indeed they have.

The UK’s Ingested was the latest in a concerning, long, and consistent run of deathcore vocalists being douche-y, with Josh Davies, who replaced original vocalist and co-founder Jason Evans in 2024, being promptly removed from the band after barely 2 years for the allegations of …now stop me if you’ve heard this before….being a shitty human being. I hope I’m not denigrating him with that statement.

Unfortunately, the new album Denigration had been recorded, but the band decided to redo the vocals and replace Davies with new guitarist Andrew Viruetta, and OG guitarist Sean Hynes co-handling the vocal duties for the re-recording. Honestly though – I mean, it’s deathcore vocals; they have all the deep growls bellows and screams that are now required for the genre, and they both do pretty well. I doubt anyone can really tell.

Musically, Ingested seems to have mirrored Whitechapel’s more introspective forays (The Valley, Kin) with the last couple of albums, especially 2022’s Ashes Lie Still. But as with Whitechapel’s last opus, Hymns in Dissonance, Ingested has returned with arguably one of the more brutal and direct albums of their career, imbuing the likes of Level Above Human and Where Only Gods May Tread with simple, bludgeoning, breakdown-heavy deathcore.

The focus on Denigration is massive, almost down-tempo lopes and lurches, and boy, do they deliver. The Nicolo Beninato (Worm Shepherd, Art of Attrition, Hate Within, Immortal Disfigurement) production is absolutely devastating from opener “Dragged Apart” to closer “Cold Sun”.

Every single song here punches you in the fucking face. And while there are blast beats scattered around (i.e., “Beaten Beyond the Veil”, “Dredge The Dark”, “Cold Sun”). But like say, the last Signs of the Swarm album, they are just transitions until the next lumbering, grooving breakdown as heard on the huge opener “Dragged Apart”, “Watch You Fold”, standouts “Stitch by Stitch” and “Steel Toe Truth”, stammering “We Are All Inherently Evil”, and lumbering “Oaths Betrayed”. Don’t get me wrong, the pummeling gait is pretty similar throughout, but it’s oh so satisfying. And there are no ‘personal’ or introspective moments that Evans introduced on the last two albums, which were fine by me. This is just bruising, hateful, shoulder bobbing heft.

As is the norm nowadays, there is a host of guest vocalists from Skyler Conder of Cell, John Gallagher of Dying Fetus, Kyle Medina of Brand of Sacrifice, and PeelingFlesh‘s Damonteal Harris. But picking them out or the bits they do, don’t really jump out or add much to the burly, bludgeoning material.

In a slow year for killer, big-name deathcore, Denigration is going to be one of the top deathcore releases of the year, and kudos to the band for doing the right thing.

Now, Shagrath and Silenoz have dealt with major members leaving throughout their career, from Hellhammer and Nick Barker to ICS Vortex and Mustis. Now, they responded with the loss of Mustis and Vortex with the pretty by the numbers In Sorte Diaboli in 2007, but the addition of Galder seemed to stabilize the band after he found his feet on Abrahadabra and Eonian.

So how would the addition of session players in drummer Daray (ex-Vader), bassist Victor Brandt (ex-Entombed, Firespawn), keyboardist Gerlioz (ex-The Kovenant), and guitarist Damage (Chrome Division) affect the chemistry, which, based on press I’ve seen, touts Shagraz and Silinoz, doing the core writing over the last few years and  ‘getting back to their creative roots’ (there are two songs with Norwegian titles, harkening back to the band’s early albums), etc, etc.

It’s a Dimmu Borgir album. Take that as you will, based on your response to #2 in the opening paragraph. 

Like most, I feel the band’s discography up to Death Kult Armageddon is un-fuck-with-able, but, like most (I think?), everything after that seems to be treading water. And what we have here is an album that lines right up with the band’s last three albums; It’s a safe, sometimes really good, unmistakably Dimmu Borgir album.

First off, unlike Abrahadabra, where the band tried to overcompensate for something with a 100-piece orchestra/choir, the band has noticeably reigned in the choirs and symphonics, a fact Silenoz has publicly stated. But Gerlioz still delivers plenty, and they do add some bombast appropriately as needed; it’s just not utterly drenched like prior efforts, even with the Bratislava Symphony Orchestra helping out on three songs and a full choir used sparingly. Second, the band has returned to Fredrik Nordström, who produced two of the band’s classics in Death Kult Armageddon and  Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia. It sounds fantastic.

Now, song-wise, it’s similar to recent past efforts where you have a few bangers like “Born Treacherous,” “Ritualist,” “A Jewel Traced Through Coal”, and “Gateways” from Abrahadabra. Or “Alpha Aeon Omega” and “Archaic Correspondence” from Eonian. But also, like those albums, there is quite a bit of rather dull filler.

The bangers, as they tend to, hit all the Dimmu sweet spots with theatrical grandeur and veteran Norwegian black metal composition that just works; the blistering true opener “Ascent”,  the killer Abbath/ Immortal-ish stomp of “Ulvgjeld & blodsodel”, grandiose mid-paced “Repository of Divine Transmutation”, the almost pure/simple Norwegian black metal riffs of “The Exonerated” and “Recognizant”, and surprisingly melodic “Slik minnes en alkymist”. All quality Dimmu songs, but as with the last three efforts, of course, nothing is as classic/iconic as say “Mourning Palace” (still one of my top favorite songs in the genre of all time), “Kings of the Carnival Creation”, “Progenies of the Great Apocalypse”, etc, but what is, with that classic lineup?

But there are also completely forgettable, by-the-numbers tracks like “As Seen in the Unseen”, “The Qryptfarer”, “Phantom of the Nemesis”, “At the Precipice of Convergence”, “Shadows of a Thousand Perceptions”, or the wasted eight minutes for intro and outro “Trident” and “Gjǫll”. Also, the absence of an ICS Vortex, Snowy Shaw, or even an Agnete Kjølsrud means Shagrath’s mystical musings are all there is vocally. 

And because the album ends with the boring “Shadows of a Thousand Perceptions” and then “Gjǫll”, the album ends with a bit of a forgetful whimper, which tends to be where I lean on the album ultimately as a whole when I take it all in. It’s just there with the last 3 albums as Dimmu albums I don’t mind, but simply don’t come back to, unlike the band’s early efforts.

I found out about Darkthrone through the classic Transilvanian Hunger; picked up from an Albuquerque bookstore, used. It wasn’t some hole-in-the-wall store either; no lit candles guided my way, nor were there Goth girls.

That was 1994, and the Black Metal gods were smiling on me. I immediately wanted everything from them, and I was able to get my fiendish little paws on Panzerfaust, Ravishing Grimness, The Underground Resistance, and anything else this savage Nordic horde spewed forth from Necrohell Studios.

This is their 22nd full-length, and I fucking love it! Here’s something I noticed over the course of its 41:07-minute runtime. This is Darkthrone’s Black Album. Hear me out before you call for my crucifixion. The last few albums have been leading to this point: Eternal Hails……, Astral Fortress, and It Beckons Us All.

The Black Album (Metallica’s seminal 1990 release that skyrocketed the band to obscene heights) showed them slowing down and getting way heavier in a “Thing that Should not Be”, “Harvester of Sorrow” sort of vein. So why am I comparing this new Darkthrone album to Metallica’s bestselling album? In a word… maturity.

There’s a level of ambience on a Darkthrone album that’s new to me. Pre-Historic Metal is a menacing, pitch fucking black Norwegian Troll striding across the icy mountains. From the count-in on “They Found One of My Graves”, a Black Thrash number that will have your head banging so hard your brain will be sloshing around in your skull. It’s that good, and Fenriz adds some interesting fills, keeping it thrashy with not a blast beat in sight.

The title track bursts along with suitable speed and ferocity. Nocturno Culto’s voice is gritty and… older. Older than time? Not that old, but it’s got the weight of years behind it, so semi-old. “Siberian Thaw” has a bit of a “Quintessence” feeling to it; there’s a cool part where it’s all slow and brooding, and then the song bursts forth like a demon baby from an infected womb.

“Deeply Rooted” is more of a ‘standard’ Darkthrone track and throws back a bit to Hate Them and Sardonic Wrath. ‘Standard’ because it seethes with barely contained hatred and bile, so you know… a Darkthrone song.

It’s funny how in the press release it says “for fans of Darkthrone”… like no shit, you don’t say? But it’s funny because you’ll have a mountain of Darkthrone impersonators, bands who stick to the formula: Esoctrilihum, Embers Of Ouroboros, and An Autumn for Crippled Children. But at the end of the day, there’s only one Darkthrone.

“The Dry Wells of Hell” and “So I Marched to the Sunken Empire” are my favorites on Pre-Historic Metal. They crawl and writhe across the sound waves, fat and smelling of suffering and Brimstone. Especially the latter, which is utterly frightening in how good it is, bringing in some reminiscent memories of Thorns, Arcturus, and later Ulver.

“Eat Eat Eat Your Pride” is a raucous, abandon sort of track, a bit punkish and angry as a swarm of wasps with rabies, also has Fenriz doing his best Mercyful Fate-era King Diamond voice. The song even has a Don’t Break the Oath vibe. But it is closer “Eon 4” that shocked the ever-stinking shit out of me. It’s a light, ambient journey, a trip through Hell, and it’s Darkthrone at their most vicious since “Snø og granskog (Utferd)” from the mighty Panzerfaust album.

Out of their recent releases, this is by far my favorite. It’s a culmination of decades of Black Metal mastery and shows why these fuckers are at the top of their game. I don’t know if the comparison to the Black Album was made clear, because this could also be mentioned in the same sentence with Satyricon’s Age of Nero or Now, Diabolical, and not be out of place at all.

With stellar production, this is a Darkthrone album for the ages. So I wholeheartedly recommend it to keep the heat at bay this summer. Horns up!!

Original bassist/vocalist Cronos has been keeping things going, and the band itself, with Rage on guitars and Dante on drums, has remained stable for over 15 years. I love the first four Venom albums. Welcome to Hell, Black Metal, At War with Satan, and Possessed were all monumental in the merging of NWOBHM with a style that Venom started, called Black Metal. After Possessed, the band never reached the heights of those albums, releasing lackluster albums with no memorable staying power. Venom has remained a cult phenom and I was lucky to see them at MDF years ago; however, due to the band not doing tours in the USA, they have remained, still more of an underground entity. I feel that if the band had released good albums over the last several decades and had been touring, we might have seen Venom touring with the likes of Slayer, Exodus, etc, you name it. But major acts are not going to take out non-touring artists. Facts.

Knowing how Venom’s last albums have been, I was not expecting much from this 13-song, 43-minute-long album. The first single released months ago was “Lay Down Your Soul”. Going into the song with zero expectations, and I mean zero, considering the band had not put out anything good in four decades, this song knocked me on my ass. Going all the way back to their Welcome to Hell debut, this song brought back the raw NWOBHM and Black Metal that the band created. Galloping madness with an extraordinary lead riff and super catchy chorus with lyrics tying into their earlier works…’Lay Down Your Soul…To the Gods Rock and Roll’. The music is updating the original Venom sound, and the song is fast and has excellent guitar solos to boot. Cronos sounds like a man rejuvenated, and he sounds flawless on this. I even played their original four albums back to back and then played this song, and honestly, this song could have been on any one of those tunes. It is that excellent.

We can rewind to the song opener, the title track. With its atmospheric buildup, the song quickly gets into the speed with organic and well-timed double bass drums. True headbanging moments and some pinch harmonics as well. This song takes their 80’s sound and gives it a bit of a facelift. We even have some cool guitar harmonies happening on here. The NWOBHM ever-present sound, which helped define Venom, is all over this sucker.

Before I get into another song, let’s speak about the album cover. Seemingly, AI-generated, keyboard killaz out there are already panning this album and other albums using AI imagery. I have been roped into some online battles recently, and I told these punks it’s up to the band to use the art they wanna use. Now, if you wanna be a purist and not listen to the music or drag down the band, because of the art they are using, then that is your fucking loss. I only draw the line when it comes to the music. AI is being used for music, which I am not supportive of. Anyway, the AI imagery of the Devil is ok, but if you have the album through Apple Music the cover is interactive with the Devil’s head moving and opening its mouth. I was looking at this at night, and it’s pretty creepy. Love it. Off soapbox now.

“Man & Beast” is a slow cruncher of a tune, and with the guitar slide and the song title being gang shouted, it is perfect and the perfect song to put in the middle of their live set. One of the catchiest songs the band has ever recorded. This is also one of the heaviest songs Venom has ever written. I can see the band and fans headbanging in unison while the song is being played live. The song gets into a quicker gallop, over the guitar soloing, before getting back into that catchy beat. Terrific song.

“Kicked Outta Hell” is a nice, cheeky number with an excellent opening guitar moment, then traversing to an all-out thrash assault. The song slows back down, and this song has 1982 Venom written all over it. The song picks up the pace with the song title being screamed out. There are tempo shifts galore, with excellent mid-paced and fast moments sprinkled throughout the song. The repetitive nature keeps the song catchy and memorable. There are a lot of other terrific songs on the album, and the brooding “Unholy Mother” closes out the album with catchy bass lines. Memorable synths and a doomy song overall. This is a very cool song to close out the album. Live, I am unsure how it would go over. On a recording, it’s great, but it may lose the focus of the crowd.

If Venom’s prior output, after Possessed was anything close to Into Oblivion, I feel there would have been demands for them to tour and bands taking them out. This would have translated into the Venom name being spoken in the same breath as let’s say Slayer, etc., Exodus, Testament, etc.. This album sounds as if it could have been released after Possessed. With its strong ties to their 80’s legendary sound and the strong songwriting on this album, this album is the top of my list for 2026. To hear the band return to form with such a strong album, this sucker smokes other new 2026 albums, of their long-time brethren – I am looking right at you, Exodus. Venom – welcome back for Devil’s sake and thank you, thank you, for welcoming us all back to your Hell!!!!!!!!!!!