Straight out of Brooklyn, NY and featuring members of Darkest Hour, City of Caterpillar, Majority Rule and Verse Em Coma comes Ancient Sky. I don’t know if I’d call it any kind of trend, maybe I’m just now noticing, but I’m starting to see bands begin to combine Stoner, Psychedelic and Prog Rock. Bands like Astra, […]

Originally released on vinyl back in 2008, this re-issued split features 3 songs from Bay Area sludgsters Stormcrow and 14 tracks (including 5 bonus tracks for those that own the original Agipunk Records release) from Vancouver grindcore acts Massgrave. The 3 lengthier Stormcrow tracks are festering, crusty, sludgy numbers that are self described ‘stenchcore’ and […]

In the deep south of these United States of America a man known as Mortigan stands defiant in the midst of trend whores and mall metal junkies, opting instead to (basically) go it alone and make raw, minimalist black metal rife with sordid tales of sadomasochism and bizarre fetishes. Performing under the moniker Octagon, new […]

I really wanted to like this. After all, it’s on Profound Lore Records, features the legendary Dan Lilker (Nuclear Assault, Brutal Truth), members of doom act Orodruin and they play a totally old school form of death/black/thrash metal culled straight from the early wave of extreme acts likes of Venom, Celtic Frost, Nifelhiem, Sodom, Bathory […]

The newest addition to Italy’s Supernatural Cat/Malleus Art collective musical and graphic arts family are these five homeboys from Pistoia who join psychedelic sludgies Ufomammut and proggy instrumentalists Lento to represent some of the best of modern Italian innovative heaviness. The group has elicited some blips on the international underground radar, with Converge‘s Kurt Ballou […]

With an ever-changing roster of members, the only constant in Vader’s lineup for the duration of the band’s 26-year history has been guitarist/vocalist Piotr “Peter” Wiwczarek. While the man must be either completely dedicated or insane to grind the axe that long, it’s clear that his vision has remained focused through the years and leagues […]

Even after two utterly punishing albums in 2005s The Healing Process and 2007s The Ills of Modern Man, Canada’s Despised Icon have a bull’s eye directly on their back for the deathchore haters and scene haters to take pot shots at. From their cocked hats and Vans to their clinical triggered sound and shift from […]

Do you see that grainy picture of a creepy looking forest on the cover of Tarm’s Nad Tulevad Kääpaist? Well somewhere in there is bound to be a dilapidated old farmhouse converted into a makeshift analog studio where these Estonians recorded this platter of Pagan black metal. I’m telling you, there seems to be a […]

Man oh man, this some heavy shit. Sitting squarely in the middle of the sludge genre, California’s Armed For Apocalypse, (featuring Cayle Hunter of Will Haven and The Abominable Iron Sloth) cull heavily from Crowbar and the expected gamut of down tempo, earthy, lumbering sludge bands like The Abominable Iron Sloth (duh), Blessing the Hogs, Blutch, […]

Did you know that New Jersey’s Whiplash formed in 1984 and went on to release a handful of albums during thrash’s heyday in the 80s and a few during thrash’s mere existence in the deep underground during the 90s? I did, and that’s about all I knew. One of a slew of lesser known, but […]

Many of Porcupine Tree’s recent albums have centered around a theme or mood, but it’s been quite awhile since Steven Wilson and crew have delivered a full-on concept album. Here, it’s not just a narrative concept album, but a structural one as well, as The Incident is less a collection of songs than a loosely […]

Though regarded along with Heaven Shall Burn as one of Germany’s premier metalcore outfits and having been around since 1999 with 6 albums under their belt, Caliban have yet to garner huge success in the US and get the acclaim of their stateside metalcore peers. And while I don’t see that really changing with album […]

As a reviewer, I’ve set down an immutable law to follow as of late: if I find myself quite amazed at what I hear from an entirely unfamiliar band that has been around for a while, I go on to check out some other releases from this band to dot my i’s and cross my […]

It’s interesting how, sometimes, listening to something in a different language doesn’t initially catch you off guard. Such was the case with Thornafire‘s Vorex Deconstrucción, which is sung (if you can call it that) entirely in Spanish, a language that I myself am in the process of learning, although not quickly enough to understand what’s […]

Though not quite as awe-inspiring as country mates Be’lakor, here’s some more quality Australian metal , this time in the form of unsigned but high quality Melbourne melodic death metal act, Orpheus. Though only a 6 track (one being an intro), 21 minute affair, Orpheus show enough skill and song writing ability to play with […]

I’ve long been an admirer of Jorn Lande’s voice. It’s classic in every sense of the word — powerful, distinctive and memorable. He also surrounds himself with top-notch musicians who can deliver solid hard rock numbers. So I always look forward to a new record, and Spirit Black doesn’t disappoint.The title track lets the listener […]

An eclipse – for many cultures, a symbol of terror and transformation – is an appropriate image for this New York-based black metal act. Their seething, caustic sound ripples and sloughs off the death, thrash and punk roots of the genre and launches skyward into the expansive realms of drone and post-rock – and then, […]

I feel a little like I’ve stepped into a time machine on hearing the title track from White Wizzard’s High Speed GTO. It’s a song that’s uncompromisingly and unabashedly devoted to the NWOBHM era — in composition, in execution and in production. It’s upbeat with catchy riffs and a huge chorus and makes a solid […]

I think Dave Mustaine might be trying too hard. Don’t get me wrong – Endgame, his twelfth studio album, isn’t a bad album, but it’s also not the epic-return-to-form masterpiece that he’s been peddling it as over the past several months. This isn’t Rust In Peace Part 2, no matter how bad he wants it […]

Not too long ago, I was wondering why we hadn’t yet seen a metal band simply called The Black. Turns out that I just hadn’t heard of them, which is not surprising, since they haven’t released an album since 1994. (Funny, considering I just reviewed the new Nazxul, which has also appeared after a fourteen-year […]

So, album number four from Vancouver’s heavy metal stalwarts has some major changes from 2007s Fire up the Blades; a change in label from Roadrunner to Century Mediocre, the departure of ‘harsh’ vocalist Jamie Hooper, bassist Nick Cates and Saxon fighting drummer Alexei Rodriguez, a change from Joey Jordison (Slipknot) to a Jack Endino (High […]

I rather enjoyed the 2005 self released second album, Rebirth from these Cali deathcore mongers who have/had strong ties to All Shall Perish. However, a lack of productivity since the bands 2001 debut, the immense growth of the genre and numerous line up changes, put the band behind the eight ball as far as the […]

The members of Hardcore Superstar pitch their music as a blend of thrash and 1980s sleaze rock. I grew up on sleaze rock and thrash is my favorite metal genre, so that idea intrigued me. It’s a bit of false advertisement, though. While they’re on the heavier end of sleaze rock, their sound has much […]

Of all these young retro, thrash “revival” bands, Evile was not one that I expected to take their game to the next level. No, I expected them to release a rehash of their debut, Enter the Grave, which in turn would be just another rehash of Metallica, Exodus and Slayer ideas and accomplishments. How wrong […]

If Depeche Mode, A-Ha or Ultravox, all of a sudden, grew long hair, join their forces and started playing metal, they would probably be able to rival one of the most original and daring groups on planet, that is Australian Melodic Metal five-piece Voyager. Yet, it would be a cold day in hell if it […]