In a year chalked full of incredible technical death metal Minnesota’s Sunless present their second full length album Ylem.   If you are not familiar with Sunless, they are a three piece that features former members of the group Australis and The Body Beneath.  What make Sunless unique are their arrangements.  I cannot think of too […]

The name Churchburn probably brings to mind the 90s black metal scene, but that’s not what you’re getting here, just to get it out of the way. Dave Suzuki of Vital Remains is the main man here, along with members and former members of other prominent acts such as Grief and Howl. Howlever (see what […]

When I look at bands doing covers I enjoy bands injecting their own style n bastardizing the original like Hooded Menace did to  a Celtic Frost song a few years ago. When bands try n do spot on takes of originals it can be dicey especially if I love the originals. Deceased have been doing […]

It’s been 5 years since Swedish/German act Abscession released their excellent debut album, Grave Offerings, one of the best slabs of HM2 Swedish death metal of the last few years, with one of the best songs in the genre “Gargoyle” of the last few years also. And now partnered with Transcending Obscurity Records (allowing for […]

Rotpit contains members from Germany’s Revel in Flesh as well as Sweden’s Wombbath.  Both bands I love, who have not issued a bad album in their discography.  I’m friend’s with Revel in Flesh’s singer Ralf Hauber and we’re always very supportive of one another.  Ralf has a great set of pipes and when he told […]

A couple of years ago, I discovered Argentine Symphonic death metal band Mortuorial Eclipse, but they have not released anything since 2018s excellent Urushdaur. However, it appears Italy’s new act Obscura Qalmah (Hidden meaning/tradition) is a more than adequate stand-in with their burly, bombastic take on symphonic blackened death metal. Formed from the members of […]

With helpful ghost bathing tips in mind, here is Ghost Bath with their fourth overall full length, Self Loather. I’ve never quite understood the hate these guys seem to get. While I never fell in love with them, I do own their last two albums and enjoyed them despite some minor quibbles. Luckily, they decided […]

Believe it or not, Norway’s Blood Red Throne has been knocking about for around 25 years and 10 albums now. Initially formed when Tchort of Emperor fame and Død (aka the incredibly affable Daniel Olaisen) met playing in Satyricon, Olaisen is the only remaining member since the band’s formation and Tchort left after 2009s Souls […]

Exodus’ 11th proper full-length album, Persona Non Grata, finally sees the light.  The band opting to delay it twice due to Covid, as well as drummer Tom Hunting’s cancer diagnosis and treatment, so the release could be closer to when the band could begin playing live shows again.  Time really flies and their last scorching […]

Recently, in between beatings for our insolence in the TOTD break room, we had a very brief conversation regarding blackened deathcore vs blackened metalcore. A small distinction, to be sure, but I didn’t have time to think about it before our fearless leader made us fearful, told us to finish up our daily rations of […]

So here is one of my more obscure forays into 2021’s bumper crop of deathcore and it’s from Ukranian act, Lieweaver who split the middle ground between burly mid-paced downtempo deathcore and more technical death metal stylings and also throw in a few atmospheric keyboards here and there. It’s not doing anything particularly original or […]

So here’s an odd one, so bear with me here. I fell in love with this dreamy, ‘whispering’ Dutch atmospheric black metal duo with 2020s Bloem, which made my year-end list that year and subsequently purchased prior albums Dromers and Luwte.  I had no idea this album was even coming out until I found out […]

You know the saying, right? “Opinions are like assholes, everybody has one”. Well, I guess that would be damn near doubly true when it comes to reviewing/critiquing. All I know is that when this asshole saw the new Massacre album, Resurgence, was up for review I jumped at the chance to cover it. It’s not […]

Heads for the Dead are a great band and one of my favorite old school death metal bands from the last several years. If you don’t believe me, check out Frank’s review for their latest full length, Into The Red where I am name dropped as being a fan. I really enjoy their old school […]

Osiah, Lorna Shore, Signs of the Swarm, Crown Magnetar, Worm Shepherd, Lieweaver, Distant, Slaughter to Prevail, Mental Cruelty, Dead/Awake, and others, : “We released the heaviest deathcore releases of 2021!” Bound in Fear: “…Hold my beer”. The UKs Bound In Fear snuck onto my 2019 year-end list with The Hand of Violence (“Stigmata” and “Hate […]

Stop me if you’ve heard this before – the best technical death metal album of the year is Ominous Ruin, no wait! it’s Hannes Grossman, oh no, shit it’s Ophidian I.  That’s it! PHEW.  I hope nothing else comes out that will change that…. Obscura , Archspire, and First Fragment “Oh, Hai!” Shit. Listen, there’s a […]

Do you like Summoning?  Do you llike long songs with epic orchestration over militant, mid-paced black metal with songs of ancient battles and distant lands played by a European duo? Do you wish Caladan Brood would hurry the fuck up and release a follow-up to Echoes of Battle? If you answered yes to any of […]

Greece’s Hail Spirit Noir are one of the most original and weirdest bands out there.  Really out of the box, non-linear type of music.  I have enjoyed their different types of albums, and while they started out as some avant-garde black metal band and their musical influences continued to expand and morph into some Twilight […]

If I had a 2020 “do over” for my top albums of the year, I can confidently say Witnesses’ Doom II would be on it. Not only on it, but easily in the top five. Not number 1, as I picked Unleash The Archers’ Abyss and will stand firmly by it as it’s a god […]

For two albums now, Dani Filth has delivered a reinvigorated Cradle of Filth since gutting the lineup after 2012s forgetful The Manticore and Other Horrors. Both 2015s Hammer of the Witches and 2017s Cryptoriana – The Seductiveness of Decay, with the same re-vamped line-up, delivered classic Cradle of Filth writing and energy that signaled Dani […]

I’ve been covering Inferi since 2009s End of an Era, and since then they have become The Artisan Era’s flagship band and one of the mainstays of the melodic/shredding technical death metal genre in the US scene. They have not been super prolific, with 2 more albums, an EP and a redo of End of […]

“Breathe in through your nose and out through your vagina.” This is the breathing process. At least that’s what I told a former friend who was getting a particular painful wrist tattoo. There’s also a band with the name The Breathing Process, and they may beg to differ. MAY. Anyway, I’ve never heard these blackened […]

I had no idea what to expect when checking out New Jersey’s Replicant, I just had not heard a Transcending Obscurity release in quite a while and while grabbing the killer new Abscession, I checked out Veilburner’s excellent Lurkers in the Capsule of Skull (due to the review here), and Replicant’s second album, Malignant Reality on […]

What can he said about the greatest industrial metal band of all time?  I mean they started out as an alternative band until 1988 when the legendary The Land of Rape and Honey combined metal with industrial to create the benchmark for this style of music. Main man Al Jourgensen is a musical genius. Especially […]

Chicago’s Black Sites make a welcome return with third LP Untrue, the follow-up to 2019’s impressive sophomore album, Exile. Since their inception in 2016, Black Sites have been on a steady upward trajectory, bringing their old school trad metal sound into the here and now, adding modern crunch and progressive elements into the mix. Now […]