More grindcore for spring, this time from Sweden’s Sayyadina (a character from Frank Hebert’s Dune) a trio featuring members of Victims, General Surgery and Nasum, and with that description, you should have a pretty solid idea of Sayyadina’s sound. The Great Northern Revisited compiles all the bands splits, 7” records and compilations dating back to […]

I killed Deacon Frost, I will find you girls as well, Lost in the Shadows, full of shitty pop music, for it you deserve to die.

2009 was a pretty solid year for the ‘shreddier’ side of metalcore/deathcore with a slew of solid releases by The Eyes of a Traitor, Conducting from the Grave, Within the Ruins, Painted in Exile and the second album, Kingdom of Might from Woe of Tyrants. Well, 2010 looks to be as shredtastic already with the […]

Power Metal, when done right, can get the blood flowing like no other genre. The double-kick tempos, the soaring vocals, the shredding guitars… all work together to get your head banging and horns flying. Sinbreed, with When World’s Collide, do just that. Something else about Power Metal is that, as fans who know the genre […]

Swedish progressive hardcore act Burst released two of my favorite albums of the decade, 2006’s Origo and 2008’s Lazarus Bird – both a mesmerizing smash-up of jagged, breathless hardcore and dreamy, ethereal post-rock. However, they broke up last summer, which I only recently found out. Huge bummer. Lucky me then, that Italy’s At the Soundawn […]

Amidst all of this shoe gaze injected black metal and atmospheric black metal abound in the US, the fact has been lost that the Bay Area’s Ludicra have been plying their artistic and experimental take on black metal for four albums now. And while Wolves in the Throne Room, seem to get all the attention […]

For 20+ years now, Katon De Pena’s band of merry mayhem makers Hirax has graced (or scarred) the Metal world with their own brand of venomous, adrenaline-driven thrash metal. Punk attitude, metal spirit and raw aggression have been this band’s mantra since the release of 1985’s Raging Violence. On offer here are three of Hirax‘s […]

First off, Id like to apologize to Black Breath and Southern Lord. I’ve Had Black Breath’s Razor to Oblivion EP now for ages, but never got around to reviewing it. It kinda slipped through the cracks, and frankly nothing about it grabbed me and I most certainly did not see an album like Heavy Breathing […]

I’ve been a big fan of Germany’s Brainstorm since I discovered them with 2003’s Soul Temptation, and their last outing Downburst remains a favorite from 2008. When it comes to power metal with traditional leanings, the band is about as consistent as they come. Their latest effort, Memorial Roots, which came out last year overseas […]

After reading the review of Svarti Loghin’s debut, Empty World by our very own Jordan Itkowitz, I avoided this Swedish group after seeing words like “happy black metal” and “country black metal” used. However, as in my old age I come to appreciate acts like Nuen Welten, Tenhi, Alcest and Amesoeurs I decided to check […]

So it looks like Metal Blade Records is trying to ‘nasty’ up their black metal stable adding Istapp and the second album from Sweden’s Valkyrja to the likes of Goatwhore, Ravage and Razor of Occam. And while Valkyrja features two members of Ondskapt, one of the nastier black metal acts around, Valkyrja is a more […]

Give it up to German-based act Dioramic for breaking the trend of naming their post-hardcore/mathcore band with a three-or-four word phrase. Although I’m not entirely sure how the arty name they’ve chosen fits their sound ― perhaps a reference to the shifting perspective and composition you get from viewing a diorama from multiple angles? In […]

There have been a lot of thrash metal records to come out over the last few years. Some good, some bad, like anything else of course. While a lot of what I’ve heard draws from the crossover, “zombies and beer” type thrash, I haven’t noticed as many new bands playing more in the Testament, Megadeth […]

Spring is officially here. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, flowers are blooming and I’m drowning in grindcore: Wormrot, Jante Alu, Unholy Grave, Sayyadina, Unholy Grave, Psycho and two releases from the always reliable Willowtip; Defeatist’s Sixth Extinction and the second album from Sweden’s Infanticide. If you enjoy Scandinavian grindcore in the vein […]

So after 2009s compilation Sharp Blade Sinks Deep Into Dull Minds collected all of Defeatist’s many split and EP, here is a new album of noisy, feral grindcore chaos from the chaps responsible for Anodyne and Kalibas . While not as structured and power chord as their European label mates and counterparts like Infanticide and […]

This Finnish band should have called themselves ‘Children of Ronin’. They blend symphonic power metal with death vocals and – here’s something new – classical Japanese music. It’s like Children of Bodom meets The Last Samurai, and their debut release, Thousand Swords, is one of the most fresh and exciting albums I’ve heard in awhile. […]

With France’s scourge of black metal, Antaeus on hold since 2006s blistering Blood Libels, Antaeus vocalist MkM has decided to forge on with his on project, one that’s been simmering and brewing now for the better part of a decade and one relatively overlooked full length album. With the help of Bestial Satanic T (ex-Aborted) […]

Sometimes you run into bands that have elements that you really like, but those elements never quite come together completely. That’s the case for me with Nostradameus’ Illusion’s Parade. There’s quite a bit to like, but not enough to raise it above other power metal contenders. For the most part, the music packs more of […]

Life is full of surprises. When the link to download a promo of Krokus’ latest arrived in my inbox, I rolled my eyes. I never was a big fan of the band in their heyday, and I doubted they could do anything to win me over at this late date. But about halfway through the second track, “Hoodoo […]

Finland’s Survivors Zero collects members from Deathchain, The Scourger and Finntroll for a modern metal / brutal death metal hybrid, where groove meets wailing guitars. I have to admit, I haven’t been following the death metal world too closely during the past couple of years, but to me the Zero represents a style that was […]

We seem to be heading into a new era of progressive metal. No longer does the tag exclusively mean bands on the coattails of Dream Theater or Fates Warning. Prog-metal over the last few years has gotten more, well, progressive. Seemingly no longer satisfied with simply blending Iron Maiden and Rush, this new generation of […]

Germany’s Mob Rules fits in that large category of European power metal bands that have just never connected with me personally. Generally, I prefer the mid-tempo style the band employs more than the speedsters, but, despite a few bright moments here and there, I’ve largely been unmoved by their work. After draggy album opener, “Children […]

Slaughter at Lutakko documents the last show of a tour that brought Finnish death metal trio Sotajumala, Deathchain and Survivors Zero together. Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties, Deathchain’s gig was cut from the release, but there’s still an hour and a half worth of material on the disc. Since I’m not familiar with Survivors Zero, […]

Has it really been 3 years since Neige released his debut Souvenirs d’Un Autre Monde and caused quite a stir with his mellow, shoe gaze tempered take on black metal? A form of metal I termed ‘green metal’. How time passes, and with Amesoeurs being disbanded, it appears Neige is using Alcest to channel even […]

The Spearman’s Steed droops under the weight of the Dweller in Frigg’s Embrace as he ponders the wisdom in the runes displayed before him, Gallows’ Burden is refreshed by flapping of wings of the corpse devourer on high, and the Father of Magical Songs is not bothered by the chattering of Ratatoskr or the roaring […]