Finland’s Demilich are considered a legendary band, yet only released 1 album, the 1993, Nespithe. How can this be?? Well if you have lived under a rock your entire existence and never heard this album, you need to be dealt with. This is a classic album in the sense that after its release it is […]
I really respect what The Ukraine’s Metal Scrap Records is doing. They recently celebrated 20 years of existence and they promote the shit out of home grown/local bands. The thing is, 95% of them are terrible. In their most recent slew of offerings albums by Navalm, Ram-page, Halberd and Vadikan made me literally cringe. However, […]
Kuolemanlaakso, a hell of a mouthful if you’re not Finnish, means Valley of Death. Tulijoutsen, their second full-length and third release, is a wholehearted, enjoyable slab of the slower side of extreme metal. Opener “Aarnivalkea” puts all of Kuolemanlaakso’s proverbial cards on the table – what is featured in this song is a fair summary […]
This US band has been around for years and years and it has mostly released albums via its own label, Nightsky Productions I remember the founder Ron Vento struggling to promote their music on forums back in the day and tracking its progress, each album was largely an improvement over the earlier ones. They play […]
Cognizance is a brutal technical death metal duo from the UK. Their 2013 debut release was a 4 song ep that the record label just sent me and my god this is some of the best and most memorable tech-death metal music you will hear. The ep features some guest musicians, with The Faceless drummer […]
Los Angeles Californian, grind/punk/crust act Nausea, FINALLY return with their sophomore album, hell it’s been over 2 decades since the unleashing of Crime Against Humanity, for crissakes. But we know how life is. It’s really tough to keep a band going, especially when you throw in life responsibilities, on top of band responsibilities. I will […]
Spain really does not have a definitive ‘sound’ when it comes to metal. Like its culture, it’s a wide array of interesting mixes and styles, and the debut from Valencia’s Domains is a perfect example of the rich tapestry of Spain’s culture and history. While old school death metal is the obvious back bone here, […]
The one man band image from the past is usually that of a oafish, disheveled man with a bass drum on his back and various instruments strapped to his body. These days you get a leather clad metalhead crouching in front of a tombstone. So, yeah the times have changed. Funereality is a singular operation […]
Formerly known as Gary Busey Amber Alert, California Alterbeast has released an album that adds to Unique Leaders killer 2014 so far which has included the outstanding Soreption release,The Kennedy Veil, as well as the upcoming Near Death Experience and Beneath albums. However, this isn’t quite as much of a brutal death metal affair as […]
Throughout the years Poland has been a steady war factory, churning out quality metal bands of various genres. Though the country known mostly for delicious pierogi is hardly – if ever – mentioned in the same breath as its neighbor Germany when speaking of the sheer amount of terrific metal bands, Poland certainly has a […]
Good things come in small packages. That’s a tried and true homily that has worked it’s way into our collective lexicon since… forever. Why am I quoting homilies in a Metal review? Because Nux Vomica have created a luxurious sounds cape of an album in just three songs, so small packages, indeed. This is a […]
Death By Burning, the debut from Hamburg-based German/Turkish duo Mantar, is an arresting album of raw power, electric energy and ironclad riffage. Hanno (vocals/guitar) and Erinc (drums/backing vocals) showcase the intuitive chemistry and songwriting gift of any great duo, delivering colossal sludge rock grooves reminiscent of classic Melvins, coupled with the blackened attitude of later-era […]
On paper, Khroma might not sound that awe-inspring as they route heavier grooves through industrial and electronic synapses, dedicating most of their time to the pummeling mid-paced groove rather than any sort of delicate melodies or touchy feelings. Sure, ‘this’ has been done before. Hell, probably multiple times at varying degrees of success. And at […]
When the former vocalist of Internal Bleeding and current teethofthedivine staffer recommends a band and album for me, I usually take notice, even if released in 2013. Especially when I’ve been in a real brutal death metal/slam death metal frame of mind of late, and Frank Rini pretty well eats and breathes the style. Even more […]
First off, congrats to Doug Moore, vocalist for Pyrrhon and former co-scribe at metalreview.com for getting a deal with the mighty Relapse Records, and second, apologies to Doug for not getting around to reviewing the band’s solid debut album, An Excellent Servant But a Terrible Master, released on Selfmadegod Records back in 2011. Now, on to […]
Conan have been making waves in the thriving UK doom metal scene for a number of years, making appearances at my former local, The Royal Park pub in Leeds, in a dingy basement no bigger than your living room. They were rewarded for their persistence with a slot at the esteemed Roadburn festival in April […]
“The demon Abalam is a King of Hell and an assistant to Paimon. He takes possession of a human’s body to encourage the human to commit lust, he would defile humans during the possession and the only way they could escape was death.” Hailing from the Denmark, Hexis (a term related to or meaning ‘possession’ ) […]
“Allo…………cunt” And so begins “Upon Your Mountains of Flesh My River of Life Shall Flow” the opening track from Australia’s Wretch, a grindcore band featuring Duncan Beard, former drummer for doom act Futility, and this is a hell of a departure from that project. And as you’d expect any grindcore from Australia to sound like, […]
The debut album from Italians Hiss from the Moat has been described as blackened deathcore, because that’s exactly what we need in the metal world is another sub-genre. Well fear not and don’t stop reading now, as I’m here to tell you there’s nary a ‘core element to this one, and if you’re a fan […]
From the always reliable purveyors of fine vinyl, Halo of Flies, comes a repress of the second album from Germany’s Deathrite. It strays a little away from the label’s norm delivering less hardcore and a more crust/d-beat/grind/death metal assault that will appeal to fans of Trap Them, Enabler, Nails, Dead in the Dirt and Black Breath, […]
I started this review with the feeling that after about seven listens I had grasped what was being conveyed and therefore I would be able judge and critique. The more I kept on listening, though, the more this album seemed to present itself; as if it were a shy child (who had tendencies of acting […]
Following their self titled LP in 2009, The Strange Innerdweller is Romanian post-metal Kultika‘s debut album, and despite being a decent effort, it doesn’t really grab you by the balls as much as you’d want it to. Unlike fellow countrymen Negura Bunget, who create music that isn’t just unique but that also pays tribute to their […]
Aeon of Horus is a progressive metal band that has built a solid reputation on the Australian metal scene in recent years. Formed back in 2006 the band released their solid yet understated debut, The Embodiment of Darkness and Light in 2008, and despite a rather limited recorded output (their debut is wedged between a […]
Cynic’s polarising shift away from their technical death metal roots has created enormous debate since they reunited with the largely successful but divisive Traced In Air in 2008. The trio of Paul Masdival, Sean Malone and Sean Reinhert made their new found intentions very clear with the increased experimentation, strong melodic sensibilities and progressive bent […]
I have not really got into the whole smokey female fronted , cultish, 70s inspired ‘vest’ metal scene that’s been prevalent over the last few years. Other than the first Serpentcult album and a smattering of Blood Ceremony or Demon Lung, it just has not sucked me in. And it’s a shame, as Texas’s excellently […]