I’m pretty sure everyone goes through some degree of a dinosaur phase during their childhood, right? I know I sure as shit went through a pretty big one. Look around long enough in my parents’ house and you’ll probably still stumble across some plastic dinosaur figurines, dinosaur bed sheets, probably a few books. Then at […]

Andrew D’Cagna is in many bands (Nechochwen, Brimstone Coven, Icarus Witch, Unwilling Flesh etc) out of Ohio and seems to be some sort of musical maestro genius.  With Ironflame he plays all the instruments and also sings.  He does have an actual live line-up, but in terms of putting out the three Ironflame albums, Lightning Strikes the Crown in 2017, Tales of Splendor […]

Lansing Michigan’s Recorruptor return with their 2nd full length release The Funeral Corridor.  I must admit I had not been familiar with these guys but saw in the liner that Josh Moore of Summon is their drummer.  I was a big fan of Summon’s 2005 Fallen album and wanted to see what these guys were […]

It’s 1995 and every Friday night three close teenage friends gather in a typical suburban basement.  Each bring a homespun costume representing their character.  Old drapes for a cape, modified used cowboy boots, metal pans from Goodwill re-worked into armor, and sharp, real weapons bought from the big flee market last summer.  The two 30 […]

Jesus, Unique Leader is having/had a fucking ridiculous summer of releases. From the reliable,  slammy duo of Ingested and Katalepsy to the vastly improved duo of Athme and Exocrine to the monstrous Stillbirth, the label killed it (not even counting the upcoming Humanity’s Last Breath remaster and reissue of Detestor EP and self titled album […]

To say I am a fan of Black Crown Initiate would probably be an understatement. They were originally scheduled to play a small craft beer festival I attended but had to back out. They were replaced by the mighty Byzantine, so no big deal. Regardless, I am a big fan of their previous full lengths […]

Much like Connecticut’s Fires In The Distance, Austin, TX’s Hinayana (‘Lesser Path’ in Sanskrit) is a US based band playing an excellent  melodic doom death style that sounds like they come from Finland or some other Scandinavian shore that perfects this style of metal in their sleep. Deep vocals, crunchy guitars, layers of somber melody […]

Well this definitely on my list for most improved tech death bands of 2020.  Kansas City Missouri’s Ahtme return with their 2nd full length album Mephitic.  I must admit I was a bit ho-hum regarding their 2018 debut Sewerborn.   It beyond clear that the sound of the group has matured a bit and the song […]

I was and still am a big fan of Finland’s Convocation debut album Scars Across from two years ago.  I am already a huge fan of LL from Desolate Shrine and his work with them as well as Lie In Ruins.   Convocation fall into the doom/death category and the debut album enveloped such depressive, heavy […]

So earlier this summer, I got 2 Quebec Black Metal releases to review from Sepulchral Productions, both beginning with ‘S’, both featuring members of other Quebec bands and both being pretty good, atmospheric black metal. First up was Sombre Heritage and the one-man debut Alpha Ursae Minoris, which is pretty solid, and then this debut […]

At this point, Enslaved can do pretty much whatever they want and need no introduction. If you don’t subscribe to that theory, I will fight you. Naked (I do all of my fighting in the nude exclusively). They’re no longer what one would necessarily consider black metal, although they have those influences creep up. At […]

While not overly familiar with Germany’s long-running brutes  Stillbirth, I’ve checked some of their releases via promotional material in the past but never been really impressed to put pen to paper and express my opinion about them, especially as they came off with a bit of a weed-based, tongue in check vibe (i.e song titles […]

Ah, another review that has suffered the effects of long term tardiness due to an extremely hectic life schedule these past few months. Nevertheless, the term “better late than never” does not aptly due justice to the transgression of not getting the word out sooner on the fantastic second full-length offering, Usurper, from the Netherland’s […]

Redemption can come in a lot of different forms. Maybe it’s a worker who was overlooked for a much-deserved promotion, who leaves goes on to find a better job in a better environment. Maybe it’s the closer who gave a up a game-winning home run to a bitter rival during the regular season, only to […]

Fires in the Distance just a few short years ago could have been a metaphor for the United States. Everything was going to burn, but it not yet. I doubt that was the inspiration behind the band’s moniker, but if it was and they decided to change it today, might I recommend the more appropriate […]

Are you ready for some Long Island NY Thrash Metal??  Then give me a Hell Yeah!!  I still can’t hear you!  HELL YEAH!!!.  That’s more like it.  Ok, a little bit of personal info and then onto the review.  I grew up on Long Island and seen Maelstrom live several times on the island back […]

Boy, I have not reviewed a Kataklysm album in years, not since the Digitalmetal.com days. But after rather enjoying 2018s Meditations, I thought I’d give Unconquered a go and see if the band’s 14th (yes 14th!) album grabbed my attention as their last effort did. And yes it has. I’m squarely in the Kataklysm camp […]

Artist: Jesus Wept Filthy. JUST FRIGGIN’ FILTHY. Pull out the surgical tools, maybe tease out that hair? And strap in for this sleazy slab of Carcass-meets-Quiet Riot Death ‘n’ Roll that’s purpose built for sadistic fun. Detroit upstarts Jesus Wept have clearly being doing a lot of homework taking in and learning the ways of […]

So I got three cassettes, the first 3 releases, from new label, Gurgling Gore. So rather than review the 12 songs individually, I thought I’d combine all 3 into a Cassette extravaganza!!!! First up is Wharflurch’s 5 song debut Lurking Doom EP. Hailing from Florida, the curiously named duo (a theme for these releases it […]

I’m not really sure how I missed the release of The Inhabitable Dark, the debut full-length album from Obscene, Indiana’s purveyors of acidic old-school death metal, but I’ll be damned if I didn’t do just that. In fact, it was actually my recent review of the 4 Doors to Death II split that made me […]

Ars Magna Umbrae’s previous album, Lunar Ascension, was a good, but not great representation of post black metal. One standout is that the cover looked like a duck-billed platypus. If you take one piece of information from this review, let that be it. You can’t unsee it. Once you’ve stopped laughing, you need to wipe […]

I thoroughly enjoyed the debut LP, Relinquishment, from Finland’s Ordinance, and it made my year-end for 2014. However, I never heard anything this else for the next 6 years- no splits, no EPs, no news, nothing. Then out of the blue, I get a promo from The Sinister Flame for a brand new album. And […]

Incantation return with their 11th full length album, yes other than track order, Mortal Throne of Nazarene and Upon the Throne of Apocalypse is the same album except for the changed track order and different album cover.  I do digress for a moment – Relapse put out a stunning remaster of Throne… with a bonus […]

While 2020 will stand as a year most of us would rather forget, thankfully amidst the worldwide chaos, metal has been a shining light of catharsis and hope. The death metal scene has enjoyed another particularly potent year, with no signs of slowing down. Australian power trio Faceless Burial offer a bludgeoning antidote to the […]

So already this year I’ve talked about how HM2 pedals have surfaced in the unlikeliest of places like Indiana (Psychomancer), Chile (Soulrot), and even Ireland (Fleshwolf). Well, here is yet another surfacing in an unexpected place; Tokyo Japan. My experience with Japanese metal, let alone old school Swedish death metal from Japan is virtually zero, […]