According to their website, UK-based Xerath has but one purpose: “to remain on the cutting edge of symphonic metal.” Combining bombastic, sweeping film score elements with chunky guitar chug and groove is certainly one way to do it. In fact, the band has referred to this hybrid sound as “chugscore” (although that could also just […]

Apparently, Facedown Records didn’t have the budget to sign another Christian metalcore/deathcore act and Sumerian Records didn’t want another keyboard laced deathcore act on their roster, so Metal Blade swooped in and gave them a record deal, killing two birds with one very mediocre, clichéd stone. Guardiansis the poster child for modern American deathcore/metalcore; except […]

The 2007 debut, Dread Champions of the Last Daysfrom this So-Cal hardcore band was an impressive mix of fervent, righteously rumbling hardcore and more hymnal, sermon-ish, prose that resulted in an aggressive but at times graceful album in the Christian metal genre, and at the time was one of the heaviest Christian metal albums I […]

Anyone who wrote off Nightrage after their last album, A New Disease is Born, would do good to give them another shot. Wearing a Martyr’s Crown sees them once again in top form on par with Descent Into Chaos or even Sweet Vengeance. For starters, the Tomas Lindberg replacement vocalist Jimmie Strimmel is gone, and […]

Years back, most who where lucky enough to hunt this band down regarded their first record, Tears of Mortal Solitude, as an obscure gem. Best described as Opeth-like, this band mixed dreary doom with a blackened atmosphere that really held something esoteric. I was ecstatic, to say the least, when I heard they were releasing […]

What’s not surprising about this release is that considering 3/5 of the band were in Through the Eyes of The Dead, Salarian Gate sounds like a Through the Eyes of the Dead album. What is surprising is that Relapse would release record that sounds like a Through the Eyes of the Dead album, considering the […]

An EP, apparently, at 39 minutes for this fairly prolific British doom trio, both of whose proper albums have exceed the hour mark and who have been fairly well-regarded among doom aficionados. My only prior experience with the group comes from their 2004 split with the excellent and sadly defunct Torture Wheel, who I thought […]

Not being quite certain whether the title refers to the end of the lawsuits related to Mike Scheidt’s interim band, Middian, or whether this is his way of saying that the reformation of the band he is best known for is a one-off kiss this ass goodbye proposition – hope not – I am quite […]

France has churned out some serious experimental shit in recent years and Eryn Non Dae is no exception. Hydra Lernaia is an impressive debut album that shows promise for a young band. Armed with quality production and tight musical craft, Eryn Non Dae sounds as if they are completely comfortable with their skills. Interbreeding off […]

Now more known for having Bjorn “speed’ Strid (Soilwork, Terror 2000) in their ranks, Italy’s Disharmonia Mundi were actually a pretty progressive melodic death metal band before Strid joined the fold, as this re-issue of their 2002 debut shows. While I was impressed with the (vastly under-rated) Strid era albums (2006s Mind Tricks and 2004s […]

One of the first two releases from Italy’s fledgling Coroner Records, (the other being a re-issue of Disharmonia Mundi’s under-rated 2002 debut, Nebularium), despite the cover art and name, I actually came away impressed with Destrage’s take on groovy, thrashy, rocking take on melodic death metal. With a healthy dose of commercial rock, some death […]

How in the fuck is a band like Be’lakor not signed to a decent label? (In the US anyway) Not only did they deliver a stunning self released debut, The Frail Tide in 2007, which was universally acclaimed, they have followed it up with a tighter, better produced follow up. All a label has to […]

Washington D.C. has always been known more as a punk hub than for metal. True, Wino got his start in nearby Wheaton, Md., Clutch hails from Montgomery County and Pig Destroyer resides in Northern Virginia. But when most fans of underground or extreme music think of D.C. they think of Minor Threat, Henry Rollins, The […]

To be honest, I don’t know why I’m bothering with this review. There are two crowds when it comes to this band and deathcore in general- love it of hate it, and most have decided before even checking the sophomore album from Suicide Silence out. The thing is, the deathcore haters and the fans that […]

Well, this is it, folks; the last of the Voivod material. As you’ve probably read in every single review of Infini, these were the riffs recorded by the late/great Piggy and turned into the 13 songs comprising this final album. It is the capstone to a quarter century of greatness. Keep in mind that the […]

Here’s another one of Einheit Produktionen’s belated 2008 releases and while not as impressive as Andras’s Iron Way, Norway’s SorgSvart does offer a very unique and playful take on Viking/Pagan black metal. Comprised of one man, Sorg (not Vintersorg’s Sorg), Vikingtid Og Anarki is actually his second album, but my first introduction to him, and […]

Up until now, I was only familiar with Hacride by name, but had heard much praise. After spinning Lazarus, the French bands third full length, I can see why – these cats have a pretty unique sound that I can only attempt to compare to a few others. There are all kinds of sounds and […]

Tasked with following up the excellent Undoing Ruin and Deliver Us, Washington DC’s Darkest Hour- arguably one of the culprits of the state of the modern American metal scene, at least know how to be consistent. Starting their more refined take of hack and slash At the Gates worship on Hidden Hands of a Sadist […]

I had an axe to grind with this album before I even heard it- not only was it a self titled album, which is one of my pet peeves, it was the second time the band has released a self titled album- are you kidding me? Also, with the band basically writing the same album […]

Heralded as “the new breed of heavy” by guitarist/producer Joey Z, Misery’s Fifteen Years of Aggression should deliver the goods. Technically. While the band is undoubtedly heavy, the tried-and-true brand of metal that they play is anything but original. This is your typical metal/hardcore hybrid, the kind of music that local bands play each weekend […]

Archgoat released the  Angelcunt ep back in 1992 on 12 inch, thanks Necropolis, then promptly disintegrated. One of Finland’s most highly spoken of black bands based on what? vinyl and tape releases? low, low budget primitive black has been done well and not so well, in all honesty Archgoat fits the second category. I’ll acknowledge […]

Stoner Metal fans are certainly no stranger to vocalist/guitarist Spice as a longtime member of Swedish rockers Spiritual Beggars. He and drummer Bob Ruben (The Mushroom River Band) released Spice & The RJ Band’s debut The Will in 2007. Now with Shave Your Fear, the band returns with 15 new songs of raucous, catchy Hard […]

Both formed in 2003, both from California, both have cool logos, both have a full length out and now they shave a split. California’s best kept secret. I’ve never really been a fan of band names of more than two words, if you need to come up with a truncated version for everyday conversation the […]

Celebrating 20 years in existence, Chicago’s Novembers Doom have always delivered. Starting their career in gothic/death/doom, this band has cultivated a sound and veered their career to new levels in recent years. The balance of straightforward death metal and the bands signature discouragement has been perfected in the past two releases and Into Nights Requiem […]

With only a demo in 2004 and a self-released album in 2006, Norway’s Leprous have chimed in on Sensory Records with an impressive debut album. Completely confident with their playing abilities and experimental nature, this band is going to be something to look out for in the near future. Tall Poppy Syndrome maybe the bands […]