Archive for the ‘Frontpage Feature’ Category

Warmen – Here for None

Warmen – Here for None

Logistically speaking, there’s only so many bands that can reach that legendary status of “true originators,” a band that for a period of time – maybe a few years, maybe generations – creates a sound that gets endlessly copied, replicated, ripped off, paid tribute to, call it whatever you want. Obviously, we’re talking the Black […]

Sorrow- Death of Sorrow

Sorrow- Death of Sorrow

I am unsure if the death metal world was clamoring for a reformation and subsequent new album from defunct NY death/doom metal act, Sorrow, who broke up in 1993 but here are some historical references about my connection to the band, or their other projects;  The band started in the late 80’s under the name […]

Pestilence – Malleus Maleficarum/Consuming Impulse/Testimony of the Ancients/Spheres (Reissues)

Pestilence – Malleus Maleficarum/Consuming Impulse/Testimony of the Ancients/Spheres (Reissues)

Is this déjà vu?  I think it may.  Six years ago Hammerheart Records reissued these Pestilence albums in deluxe 2 cd slipcases.  The bonus content was fabulous and not only did I buy all of these, I purchased an album cover shirt for each of them.  I even did some reviews on Teeth of the […]

Cavalera – Bestial Devastation/Morbid Visions EP

Cavalera – Bestial Devastation/Morbid Visions EP

Back in the 80’s a little known Brazilian act called Sepultura, set out to conquer the metal world, but their early recordings were a tough listen for many.  Their 1985 ep Bestial Devastation and debut album a year later Morbid Visions, caused underground waves throughout the death metal scene.  Chuck Schuldiner, from Death, wearing Sepultura […]

BlackBraid – II

BlackBraid – II

Anyone who’s paid any attention to the world of metal music in the last two years probably needs no introduction to Blackbraid at this point which, in and of itself, is pretty astounding. In fact, we’re not even a full two years removed from Sgah’gahsowáh (AKA Jon Krieger) unleashing the one-man project’s first two blistering […]

Creeping Death – Boundless Domain

Creeping Death – Boundless Domain

When I first heard rumors of Texas’s Creeping Death a few years ago, I stupidly assumed they were just a Metallica tribute band and disregarded them. Then as I heard more and more, and they got signed to a ‘big’ label, I assumed they were simply yet another Bolt Thrower worship band, as is the […]

Teeth of The Divine Presents : Exclusive Exsanguination track from forthcoming album!!!!

Teeth of The Divine Presents : Exclusive Exsanguination track from forthcoming album!!!!

TeethoftheDivine and Horror Pain Gore Death Productions has teamed up to deliver an exclusive song, “The Void” from Burial Rites, the forthcoming second album from Massachusetts’s Exsanguination.!

Read the Official press release below from HPGD Productions:

Before the Dawn – Stormbringers

Before the Dawn – Stormbringers

I generally like to think myself a pretty positive kind of guy – or at least, I try not to add any more negativity to the world than what already exists (and I think we can all certainly agree, it’s already too much). To date, I can only recall one album review I’ve ever done […]

Fathomage – Autumn’s Dawn, Winter’s Darkness

Fathomage – Autumn’s Dawn, Winter’s Darkness

Fathomage is a one-man, Australian, self-confessed Orthodox Christian who goes by the name of ‘Akul’. But don’t let the orthodox Christian thing put you off, as his music isn’t preachy ‘white metal’ at all but rather a Summoning (he has dabbled in Tolkien themes for prior album Minas Morgul – The Nazgûl Awaken) inspired take […]

Arkona – Kob’

Arkona – Kob’

When I was still discovering the musical spaces of the internet back in the early 2000s, MP3 sites were my best friend. I discovered bands that I had never heard of before and experienced a whole new genre: Pagan Black Metal/Pagan Folk and holy shit my brain exploded. It wasn’t long before I was butchering […]

Mental Cruelty – Zwielicht

Mental Cruelty – Zwielicht

Starting as a standard brutal death metal/slam band, Germany’s started adding some keyboards around 2019’s Inferis, but it was for 2021’s excellent A Hill to Die Upon, where they went full-on symphonic deathcore, and on the heels of Lorna Shore‘s genre igniting Immortal, comparisons to Lorna Shore were inevitable…. and warranted. However, they also had […]

Kalmah – Kalmah

Kalmah – Kalmah

As human beings, there’s a certain amount of structure we all crave in our lives. Perhaps some more than others, sure, but even the most ardent agents of chaos amongst us still rely on the wick of that stick of dynamite lighting and leading to detonation. I can’t imagine The Joker would find it so […]

Frozen Soul – Glacial Domination

Frozen Soul – Glacial Domination

I reviewed the debut album, Crypt of Ice, in 2021, from newcomers Frozen Soul.  I really enjoyed their previous demo material and the debut album furthered their sound in terms of musical ability and the songs fleshed out more.  The comparisons to old-school bands like Obituary and mainly Bolt Thrower were some of the reasons […]

Immortal – War Against All

Immortal – War Against All

I do not purport to be an expert on all things Immortal, the long-standing Norwegian Black Metal band, but I do have some interesting things to share, probably more opinions than anything else, before delving into the band’s 10th album, War Against All. Until now I only followed the band from 1992-1996, so that is […]

Cattle Decapitation – Terrasite

Cattle Decapitation – Terrasite

Cattle Decapitation needs no introduction. Their trajectory has been astronomical since The Harvest Floor and they’ve yet to disappoint. Death Atlas let me down, but only because it was simply pretty good, and not the greatest album in the history of mankind. I saw them live back in November of 2022, the new one was […]

Extermination Dismemberment – Dehumanization Protocol

Extermination Dismemberment – Dehumanization Protocol

Boy have I been waiting for this one. Ever since these Russians dropped the killer video for “Protonemesis” over a year ago. I’ve been salivating for this release, as it’s been 10 years since Serial Urbicide and the new song showed a bit of a direction shift into a more ambitious form of slam with […]

Graveworm – Killing Innocence

Graveworm – Killing Innocence

Italy’s Graveworm has been around since the mid/late 90s, plying their form of gothic/ melodic black/death metal, and by all accounts have been a pretty respectable act over their career. They found themselves on Nuclear Blast Records with 200s Engraved in Black when the label was saturated with the likes of Agathodaimon, Godgory, Sculpture, Crematory […]

Overkill – Scorched

Overkill – Scorched

I think it’s safe to say the Tri-State Area East Coast thrashers Overkill regained their mojo with 2010’s Ironbound album.  They were also armed with a new label Nuclear Blast Records, where they have remained since.  The four albums which followed were also pretty damn ass-kicking and that trend continues with Scorched, the band’s…wait for […]

Metallica – 72 Seasons

Metallica – 72 Seasons

Well, well, well, what do we have here?  The 12th album by the biggest metal band in the world.  I consider it their 11th, because Garage Inc., while a great covers album, is an album of.. whelp, covers.  I reviewed the last Metallica album Hardwired… to Self-Destruct in 2016 and I really enjoyed it and […]

Sermon – Of Golden Verse

Sermon – Of Golden Verse

When listening to the latest full-length from Sermon, I am reminded of a few bands. Namely Tool, Enslaved, and Soen. I used to be a huge Tool fan, but now just feel like they believe their shit doesn’t stink. I am still an Enslaved fan, but Soen doesn’t do it for me. Sermon does. This […]

Angerot – The Profound Recreant

Angerot – The Profound Recreant

Swedish death metal played in the USA is more of a needle in a haystack type of deal.  California’s now-defunct Fatalist was one of the better USA type of bands and they had a short run, with minimal output but their material still owns. Trying to find another band that, captured that buzzsaw Swedish sound, […]

Ov Sulfur – The Burden Ov Faith

Ov Sulfur – The Burden Ov Faith

One could argue, that along with Distant’s Heritage, To the Grave‘s Director’s Cuts, Chelsea Grin‘s double album, and Suicide Silence’s newest, the debut from Ov Sulfur is up there as one of 2023’s early high-profile deathcore releases. Featuring former Suffokate vocalist Ricky Hoover (who has beefed up considerably in the 9 years since his Suffokate […]

Suicide Silence – Remember… You Must Die

Suicide Silence – Remember… You Must Die

There is only 1 Suicide Silence album I do not have in my collection and if you guessed it was their self-titled affair from 2017 you would be correct.  I am not a fan of that album or the musical direction they went in.  I was especially disappointed in it after they released the great […]

Gorod – The Orb

Gorod – The Orb

France’s tech-death metal gods, Gorod, return with The Orb – their seventh album.  Holy smokes I did not realize how time has flown by and the band is self-releasing this through Bandcamp. For me, the best tech-death metal bands are First Fragment, Gorod and Obscura.  I know, I know there’s like a bajillion of tech-death […]

Enslaved – Heimdal

Enslaved – Heimdal

In 1994, I was a twenty something working at Best Buy. We had received a copy of the Emperor/Enslaved massive split Hordanes Land and it caught my eye. I had no clue what Black Metal was, had never heard of the genre at all. Of course, Emperor comes first, and those four tracks alone had […]