Evolution is a necessity in the natural world. For any species to continue life, it has to continually reinvent itself, and since humans are the ultimate evolution, this includes Death Metal bands as well. See how I weaved that to be an introduction? Effortlessly. Anyway, today has brought me a promo for an album I’ve […]

I’m going to be brutally honest, I’ve never listened to Party Cannon until now. Send any hate mail to the circular filing cabinet; I’m not kidding, though. This is my first time listening to these guys from always sunny Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. Do I like it? Yes, it is weird as fuck and extremely in-fucking-sane. […]

I was all set to cover Distorted Reflection and their first album, Doom Rules Eternally, back in 2024, and then life happened, and I missed my window of opportunity. Since I don’t want that to happen again and also since Doom Zone is a pretty killer album, I’m jumping on it now. Living somewhere between […]

There used to be a restaurant chain here in the States called Steak and Ale. They served traditional American food, a staple of the menu being meat and potatoes. No, this isn’t a review for A La Carte, it’s for Rogga Johansson and his main band Paganizer; I say ‘main’ because dude has a few […]

Okay, so think about your favorite Dimmu Borgir album- for me it’s Enthrone Darkness Triumphant; okay, now think of your favorite Cradle of Filth record- mine is Dusk and Her Embrace. The Great Elven War, however, is the best album neither of those bands ever made. This is an album that could’ve come out between […]

Guess what? It’s officially 2026! Yay, right? Whether you like it or not, time is marching on, and whining about it won’t make it stop… just thinking of the new music to be released this year gives me a small bit of hope for the future. Sunday morning finds me jamming the new album from […]

I first heard Eximperitus back in 2016 when they released their full-length Prajecyrujučy sinhuliarnaje wypramieńwańnie Daktryny Absaliutnaha j Usiopahłynaĺnaha Zła skroź šaścihrannuju pryzmu Sîn-Ahhī-Erība na hipierpawierchniu zadyjakaĺnaha kaŭčęha zasnawaĺnikaŭ kosmatęchničnaha ordęna palieakantakta, najstaražytnyja ipastasi dawosiewych cywilizacyj prywodziać u ruch ręzanansny transfarmatar časowapadobnaj biaskoncaści budučyni u ćwiardyniach absierwatoryi Nwn-Hu-Kek-Amo (that’s the album title and yes I […]

2024s Black Metal Cult was a perfect slab of French Black Metal from Meyhnach’s Mütiilation, and it was my first time covering one of the long-standing powerhouses of French Black Metal. Pandemonium of Egregores is the more melodic follow-up to that church-burning masterpiece, and it’s a certified crusher. Five tracks in 32:05 is just long […]

It’s safe to say that I’ve never heard of Italy’s Dawn of a Dark Age until now. Ver Sacrum mixes two genres that I love: Black Metal and Jazz. Vittorio Sabelli is an ubër talented mofo, and it’s his warm-as-butter Clarinet that elevates this album to Avantgarde status. Ver Sacrum marks nine albums since 2014, […]

Today we’re going to Sweden. It’s a free trip; all you have to do is read this review. That’s easy enough, right? I’m not asking for anything too crazy, just two minutes of your precious time. I picked Havamal with the hope that I would get a Falkenbach type of thing, because Falkenbach has a […]

Back in 2023, I reviewed Dead and Dripping’s Blackened Cerebral Rifts, and I was pretty rough on it. I didn’t like it/ didn’t get it, what-fucking-ever. Anyway, today I went back to it before listening to Nefarious Scintillations, and goddammit, I started to like it. I blame my fellow scribes for my newfound love for Deathcore. They all […]

I could just address the elephant in the room and talk about the artwork for Subcutaneous Tomb, and if that’s what happens, then it happens. That’s the most important part, right? Not how the album sounds, but whether or not it resembles Gorguts’ eponymous debut, Considered Dead, and the artwork for that album… That’s silly. […]

I didn’t know that I needed Decrepit Altar in my life… until now. I love the cavernous, murky, and downright swampy vibes that these Croatian death/doom dealers are spewing out into the unsuspecting world. Egregious Defilement is their brand spanking first EP, and let me tell you what: IT’S FUCKING GREAT! I probably didn’t need […]

I recently got to see Los Angeles’ Lamp of Murmur with Dödsrit and the mighty Blackbraid. It was my first exposure to their brand of Black Metal craziness, and I wasn’t disappointed, not only are they fun to listen to, but they’re insane live. The Dreaming Prince in Ecstasy is their 4th full-length after a slew […]

I’ve heard some weird shit this year, admittedly, I hear weird shit every year because that’s what I look for on promo day. Weird shit. Well, I got super excited this last time because guess what I got? The promo from the Czechian legends, Master’s Hammer, entitled Maldorör Disco… YEAH, BOY! I’m about to admit […]

Hello! Welcome to my review of the brand spanking new Testament album entitled Parabellum. I plan on being as fair as possible. This is their fourteenth album, so they have a sizeable back catalog to compare Para Bellum with previous albums. The first thing I notice right off the bat is the amount of blast […]

I last sang the praises of Mystic Circle in 2023 for the brutal beating that is Erzdämon, and they’ve been covered previously by our own El Jefe for Mystic Circle back in 2022. Hexenbrand 1486 sees the band once again flexing their Symphonic Black Metal muscles. This is album eleven for these unholy Germans, and […]

The first time I talked about Hammerfilosofi was for their EP Solus last year, and now they’re back with a soul shredding new album called Signum. Eight tracks of well-crafted blasphemy that surpass what they’ve done to this point. Signum sees the band flexing their muscles in the most Marduk way possible, and that’s from […]

Well, now, friends. What we have here is a swollen, pus-oozing freak of nature. A demon from the foulest depths of Hell, ugly and mutated beyond all imagination; something straight out of an H.P. Lovecraft book. Of course, I’m talking about the new Chained to the Dead… what did you think I was talking about? […]

Centinex has been spreading OSSDM (Old School Swedish Death Metal) to the masses since 1991 with their aptly titled Stupid Humanity demo, it came out the year I graduated, as a matter of fact. Now that I’m feeling old as fuck, I’m loving the nostalgia brought on with their amazing new album, With Guts and […]

When I picked this album, I didn’t have a clue what it would sound like. I love Americana (Bluegrass), whatever the fuck you want to call it, being born in Kentucky I was kind of immersed in it and old school Country, and before I get hate mail (there’s always that one motherfucker); Nergal from […]

Vocalist Ralf Hauber and Jonny Pettersson (guitars/ bass/keys) have been slinging their twisted brand of horror death metal that is Heads for the Dead since 2017. For this album, Never Ending Night of Terror – their fourth album – Evan Daniele was called in to play the drums, and Matt Moliti is the second guitarist. […]

Not too long ago, I spoke at length about the Balls to the Wall RELOADED album that Udo Dirkschneider put out. Guess what? I loved it. C’mon, that’s such a great album, the defining songs of a generation. Is Babylon just as killer as that album? Yes, but in its own way. Allow me to […]

Meat and potatoes Death Metal should be its own sub-genre by this point. A dish served in a chipotle sauce with eyeballs stuffed with foie gras and finger sausages, and a nice blood pudding for dessert. Santa Cruz natives Torture Hammer are back, following a Demo called Dormant Horror released last year (I haven’t heard […]

I had an itch for Power Metal that needed to be scratched the other day. So I went and checked out Terra Atlantica, and that pretty much did it for me… for that day. Yeah, I needed to scratch the itch again; this time with the ultra-Helloween-ish (from the Walls of Jericho era) band Armoured […]