Tag Archives: black metal

Album Review – Heaven Abhorred / Opening The Gates EP (2015)

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This promising American Black Metal band wants to open the gates of hell with their solid and raw feast of extreme music.

Rating5

heaven-abhorredIf you’re a fan of bands such as Behemoth, Darkthrone, Gorgoroth and Dissection, and if you’re one of those people that think Black Metal should sound as raw and evil as possible, you’ll have a great time listening to Opening The Gates, the new EP by American Black Metal band Heaven Abhorred. Formed in the winter of 2012 in Sayre, Pennsylvania in the United States by multi-instrumentalist Chris Marshall, the band is for the most part a solo project, occasionally joined by Josh Chacona on vocals and Jeremy Marshall on bass, but more important than that it’s an amazing fountain of dark and extreme music.

Although Heaven Abhorred sing about Satanism, misanthropy and other controversial topics, it’s their music that truly stands out. Their raw Black Metal, mixed with other sinister and violent genres like Doom Metal and Death Metal, keeps the band loyal to the foundations of extreme music and to their own beliefs. As stated by Chris Marshall about the overall progress of their music, “The quality of the work is still very much raw and original. We don’t mix any of our tracks yet and we like to keep that raw black metal feel.” When you read something like this coming directly from the leader of the band, you know the music is going to be at the same time very honest and bestial, right?

The obscure Full Moon Ritual kicks off the EP offering the listener some of those low-tuned mesmerizing riffs that are an intrinsic trademark of Doom Metal, with the visceral growling by Chris Marshall enhancing the song’s dark and diabolical atmosphere even more. Although it is far from being traditional Black Metal, no one can say it’s not as blasphemous and disturbing, which I’m pretty sure was the main objective of Heaven Abhorred with this song. After this nocturnal tune we have a wicked display of raw Black Metal entitled Opening The Gates, where the vocal lines transpire suffering and evil. Moreover, it fires those crude blast beats the exact way fans of old school Black Metal love, almost as if Heaven Abhorred were saying they really want to open the gates of hell with their sick music.

heaven abhorredFocusing on Blackened Death Metal vocals and guitar lines similar to what Behemoth do nowadays, Father Of Lies keeps up with the obscurity crafted by the band in their previous songs. Not even the programmed drums are capable of reducing the song’s rawness, and there’s even time for a pretty decent guitar solo to add an extra layer of complexity to it. And then we have Children of The Night, a 9-minute spectacle of pure extreme music, showcasing harsh vocals and blast beats in a wicked sync, dark riffs keeping up with the speed of the song, and lyrics that are obviously not about beautiful or positive topics. It’s an apocalyptical ending to a diabolical EP, leaving the listener completely disoriented when it’s over.

It’s noteworthy how Heaven Abhorred were capable of traveling through so many different types of extreme music in such a short amount of time in this EP. If you think about it, none of the songs sound the same, each having their own uniqueness and electricity, and we’re talking about only around 20 minutes of music. The band has already started working on their debut full-length album, and if this EP is any indication of how creative and skillful this band is we will soon have another awesome Black Metal album available in the market. For now, go to SixSixSix Music’s official BandCamp page to listen to and purchase Heaven Abhorred’s music and, who knows, witness the gates of hell opening right before your eyes.

Best moments of the album: Opening The Gates.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2015 SixSixSix Music

Track listing
1. Full Moon Ritual 5:53
2. Opening The Gates 3:04
3. Father Of Lies 3:41
4. Children of The Night 9:12

Band members
Chris Marshall (Q) – vocals, guitars, drums
Jeremy Marshall (J) – bass
Josh Chacona – vocals

Album Review – Apostate / Time Of Terror (2015)

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It’s time for some old school Doom Metal with this nefarious Ukrainian band.

Rating5

FrontCover620pxIn case you have no idea what an “apostate” is, it means an individual who renounces, abandons or betrays a religious or political belief or principle, as for example a Catholic person who chooses to violate the Ten Commandments without any remorse. That’s an excellent definition for the massive and dark music found in Time Of Terror, the new album by old school Ukrainian Doom Metal band Apostate. If you are a fan of the eccentric heavy music by bands such as Anathema and My Dying Bride, you’ll love the eerie fusion of Doom, Death and Black Metal delivered by those guys.

Formed in the year of 1993, Ukraine’s oldest protagonists of old school Doom Metal, who started as Black Moon Frankness but quickly changed their name to Apostate, are back with more of their damned musicality after a long pause since the release of their debut full-length album Trapped in a Sleep, from 2010. Not only that, although Time Of Terror looks like an EP at first glance mainly due to the fact it comprises only five tracks, each one of its songs easily surpasses the nine-minute barrier, resulting in over 50 impressive minutes of epic and doomed metal.

Starting with a “classic horror movie” intro, Solar Misconception opens the album offering us primeval Doom Metal riffs and slow-paced beats dictating all obscurity developed in over 10 minutes of music. Furthermore, Lead singer Bohdan Kozub makes sure his vocals are truly inhuman, which together with some interesting background voices and sounds make the whole thing even more macabre than usual. When the following track Pale Reflection begins, full of melancholy and sorrow, you know nothing joyful will come out it: this is the type of song that blackens your mind, with highlights to the relentless guitar lines by Vlad Filimon and Yuriy Savchuk maintaining the song at the darkest level possible, the cavernous vocals by Bohdan, and the Death Metal breakneck speed at the end of it.

ApostateBandPhotoPain Served Slow doesn’t make things any lighter or less horrid. Let’s say the name of the song pretty much summarizes what Doom Metal is in its true essence, with an amazing mesmerizing riff complemented by the traditional drumming by Nikita Holovin. In addition, the second half of the song sounds totally apocalyptical, coming to a crescendo of despair that gives an awesome finishing touch to this excellent track. In Memory Eclipse, darker notes, wicked guitar solos and deeper growls take the listener to a sad world where the entire band also seems to be; followed by the last track of the album, World Undying, which starts with an ominous religious narration before the bass guitar by Alexander Kostko initiates another feast of darkness, with highlights to another killer performance by Bohdan with his somber growls. Also, the faster excerpts and some extra religious narrations amidst the low-tuned riffs are very effective, with the message in its lyrics lacking any sign of hope. That feeling of pure disheartenment was probably what the band wanted to transmit in its 13 minutes, and when this song and consequently the entire album are over you won’t feel quite well.

Highly recommended for metalheads with a true passion for Doom Metal, Time Of Terror can be purchased at Apostate’s BandCamp page and at the Ferrum Records’ webstore, and you can also visit their official Facebook page for more information on the band, check out their tour dates, listen to their music, among other cool stuff. Get ready to have your hellish heart darkened to a new level, because it’s time for some old school Doom Metal with one of the oldest and most nefarious bands from Ukraine.

Best moments of the album: Pain Served Slow.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2015 Ferrum Records

Track listing
1. Solar Misconception 10:03
2. Pale Reflection 10:54
3. Pain Served Slow 9:05
4. Memory Eclipse 9:35
5. World Undying 13:32

Band members
Bohdan Kozub – vocals
Vlad Filimon – guitar
Yuriy Savchuk – guitar
Alexander Kostko – bass
Nikita Holovin – drums

Album Review – Gian / All Life Erased (2015)

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A cohesive and aggressive mix of Thrash and Death Metal by a band with only one objective in mind: erasing all life from this toxic world we live in.

Rating4

gian_cover2255pixThe story of Finnish Death/Thrash Metal band Gian is not uncommon in the world of heavy music: lots of dreams and a gigantic amount of effort put together by the band in their beginnings in Finland in 2005, many live performances which I’m pretty sure didn’t result in any decent money for them, the inevitable conflicts of interest that ended up splitting up the band a couple of times, and so on, including a “hibernation” period between the end of 2013 and mid-2014. However, after all those years of blood, sweat and tears, struggling to survive and to make their Heavy Metal dream come true, Gian are now releasing their debut full-length album, All Life Erased, and based on the music those guys brought into being in this album their golden years seem to have finally arrived.

The band members themselves like to call All Life Erased a “mutated and demented nuclear freak”, and let’s say they’re not exaggerating when describing the album with such lovely words. What you’ll witness during the entire album is a cohesive and aggressive mix of Thrash and Death Metal that will pierce your ears and strike your mind without a single drop of mercy. The album art also tells you so, with the gas mask being one of the best contemporary symbols of our violent and noxious society, providing the whole album an extra touch of brutality.

The gas mask also appears in the opening track, Trauma, represented by a heavy breathing sound right before lead singer Jampe Honkonen begins growling directly in your face amidst a melodic sonority that reminds me of the music by many famous Swedish Melodic Death Metal bands, followed by a true metal storm entitled Bloodstorm. There are many elements from different metal genres in this song, from its Black Metal blast beats by drummer Konsta Vehkala to its Metalcore clean vocals, turning it into a first-class choice for both headbanging and slammin’ into the circle pit. The title-track All Life Erased is another fast and furious assault by Gian, where its Slayer-ish guitar lines by Lassi Pollari and Tuomo Laulainen guide the listener through all the band’s sonic madness.

And there are more fuckin’ razing riffs to make you want to crush everything around you in ZombieChrist, where it’s interesting to notice how guitars and bass guitar follow almost the same notes, while Self-Immolation Party shows us Gian are also good at selecting the names for their songs. This time, instead of nonstop riffs and drums, the band focuses on more consistent beats and especially on the anarchic vocal lines by Jampe, with a great chorus tailored for pepping the fans up during their live performances. Burn presents a band on fire once again, and despite being a violent track there’s a lot of harmony in it, just as expected from any European band.

ryhn1____1pienempiSounding like a hybrid of Cavalera Conspiracy and Slayer, the band offers more of their rousing modern metal in the following track, A Perfect Shot, with highlights to Konsta for his performance on drums and to the guitar duos by Lassi and Tuomo, and in the amazing Pain and Pleasure: it’s indeed a pleasure to listen to this track, but be warned it leaves a huge pain in your neck so hardcore it is, similar to the old school Punk Rock played by Black Flag.

Aggression Unleashed is another good song with interesting tempo changes, huge doses of cruelty in the vocals, and dense riffs inspired by 80’s Thrash Metal, whereas when the music starts to grow slowly but steadily in No Absolution you know hell is about to break loose, sounding even more modern than its predecessors with elements from Industrial Metal and some melancholic passages halfway through it. And as the band’s final blast of animosity we have Capital Punishment, a very metallic and thrilling song where Jampe lays much more emphasis on his harsher screams than his usual guttural vocals.

If you want to know more about this diehard Finnish band and purchase a copy of All Life Erased, visit their Facebook page, YouTube channel, SoundCloud, BandCamp or the Inverse Records Store. Those guys want to erase all forms of life from this toxic and wicked world we live in with their metal music, and with our support they will surely succeed in their crazy and audacious mission.

Best moments of the album: Bloodstorm, All Life Erased and Pain and Pleasure.

Worst moments of the album: Aggression Unleashed and No Absolution.

Released in 2015 Inverse Records

Track listing
1. Trauma 4:58
2. Bloodstorm 4:41
3. All Life Erased 2:14
4. ZombieChrist 3:07
5. Self-Immolation Party 3:10
6. Burn 3:03
7. A Perfect Shot 2:53
8. Pain and Pleasure 2:12
9. Aggression Unleashed 4:12
10. No Absolution 4:41
11. Capital Punishment 3:47

Band members
Jampe Honkonen – vocals
Lassi Pollari – guitar, vocals
Tuomo Laulainen – guitar
Henri Rahm – bass, vocals
Konsta Vehkala – drums

Concert Review – Cannibal Corpse & Behemoth (Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015)

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If you want to live in the bitter cold of Toronto, you have to kill or become.

OPENING ACTS: Tribulation and Aeon

cannibal corpse_behemoth_winter tour 2015If you live in Toronto or anywhere nearby you know how bitterly cold the past couple of months have been. For instance, I personally don’t remember when we had temperatures above the freezing mark (or even above -5°C) for the last time, and it looks like February 2015 is about to become the coldest month in the history of Toronto. Well, nothing better than a hotter-than-hell extreme music night to warm up the hearts of lots of headbangers in the city, right? The venue chosen for this awesome gathering was the always welcoming Phoenix Concert Theatre, where friends wearing the T-shirts of their favorite extreme bands and even a group of girls with their well-crafted corpsepaint were able to enjoy some beers together, headbang like motherfuckers and especially slam into the circle pits.

The bands chosen to liven this mini-festival up were the excellent Swedish Death Metal bands TRIBULATION and AEON, both raising the flag of Scandinavian metal really high with their ferocious performances. If you truly love extreme music but have never heard of either Tribulation or Aeon, I kindly ask you to please go check these two bands: you’ll be surprised with how good they are. The first band was Tribulation, playing a very technical and progressive Death Metal permeated with elements from Black and Doom Metal and singing about darkness, horror, vampires, death and all other of those “beautiful” themes. In case you want to know more about this great Swedish band, my suggestions are the songs Beyond the Horror, Rånda and When the Sky Is Black With Devils, masterfully executed by this four-piece act in front of an avid Torontonian crowd.

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Aeon @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015

After a short break it was time for Aeon to deliver their infernal music, blasting everyone’s ears and necks with each and every song played. Lead singer Tommy Dahlström is a beast on vocals (and you can easily notice he’s a huge fan of Cannibal Corpse by his stage performance), perfectly vociferating the violent lyrics of all songs of their brutal setlist, with highlights to the opening song Satanic Victory and also to the amazing Kill Them All and Blessed by the Priest. In addition, how can I describe the performance of drummer Emil Wiksten? That guy is like an unbelievable human stone crusher behind his drums so fast and precise he is, which added a lot of power and fury to the band’s performance. As I said, go after the music by Tribulation and Aeon as quick as the blast beats by Emil!

BEHEMOTH

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Behemoth @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015

It was around 8:45pm when the iconic Nergal and his horde of darkness hit the stage with an incredible concert, both in terms of their ominous music and their unique theatrical performance, and it’s amazing how they were capable of delivering so much content in such a limited space. Still promoting their most recent album, the impeccable The Satanist, which even after one year of its release it continues to astonish me, Polish Black/Death Metal masters BEHEMOTH proved why they’re one of the most influential and portentous groups in the world of extreme music.

Although they didn’t play the best song of The Satanist in my opinion, “Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel”, the songs selected from the album were just as superb live, with highlights to Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer and Ben Sahar. Older classics also helped keep the audience mesmerized by their obscurity, such as Chant for Eschaton 2000 and Slaves Shall Serve. However, I believe almost everybody will agree with me when I say they simply kicked all possible asses with the already classic O Father O Satan O Sun!, a song that live sounds even more grandiose than its studio version, augmented by the band’s special satanic attire worn during its execution. This might sound stupid for a lot of people, but Behemoth performing this song at the Oscars would have been beyond spectacular. Unfortunately, the world and all mere mortals that live in it don’t seem ready for Behemoth yet.

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Behemoth @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015

Also, it’s undeniable that Nergal is a true Extreme Metal leader and he’s passionate about what he does, and consequently he had almost all eyes staring at him during the whole concert, but the other band members are also wonderful and skillful musicians who help Nergal achieve the level of excellence he has in his mind for the band. Who didn’t enjoy the performance by bassist Orion, who looked like an even more devilish version of Gene Simmons’ stage persona The Demon? And what about the dark riffs by Seth or the rhythmic drumming by Inferno? What an awesome band, and if you missed them this time, may Lucifer have mercy on your soul. Or not.

Setlist
1. Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer
2. Conquer All
3. Ben Sahar
4. Decade of Therion
5. Messe Noire
6. Ov Fire and the Void
7. At the Left Hand ov God
8. Slaves Shall Serve
9. Chant for Eschaton 2000
10. O Father O Satan O Sun!

Band members
Adam “Nergal” Darski – lead vocals, guitars
Tomasz “Orion” Wróblewski – bass guitar
Patryk Dominik “Seth” Sztyber – guitars
Zbigniew Robert “Inferno” Promiński – drums and percussion

CANNIBAL CORPSE

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Cannibal Corpse @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015

In order to properly close the night and pulverize anyone or anything that was still alive after Behemoth, Death Metal titans CANNIBAL CORPSE arose from the crypts of hell to transform the entire venue into their own “skeletal domain”, obviously promoting their most recent album, the visceral A Skeletal Domain. If there’s one thing that I love about Cannibal Corpse is the fact that they’re a band that always moves forward, despite having a solid past which they could live on forever like many classic bands do. All their latest albums are brutally superb, and technically speaking they’re getting better and better year after year.

Their setlist was an awesome mix of old classics and newer songs, including almost one track from each one of their albums, from Eaten Back to Life (1990) to last year’s A Skeletal Domain. Mosh pits and pure headbanging erupted with classics such as A Skull Full of Maggots, Demented Aggression, Make Them Suffer and The Wretched Spawn, while the selected songs from their new album for this tour, in special the great Sadistic Embodiment and the steamroller Kill or Become, intensified even more the hurricane that was happening on the “dance” floor.

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Cannibal Corpse @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON, 02/24/2015

Moreover, anything I say about the band members will just be pure repetition of common sense: they are all really talented musicians that love Death Metal above all things (well, Corpsegrinder said he loves pussy above all things), and that translates into pure electricity when they’re performing on the stage. You can barely see Alex Webster’s face, but he’s there delivering the most intricate bass lines you can find in extreme music, while Pat O’Brien and Rob Barrett keep firing their evil riffs and Paul Mazurkiewicz his nonstop beats. And as I always say, Mr. George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher is the face of Cannibal Corpse and the one to give life (or death) to the band’s gory lyrics while headbanging like a fuckin’ chopper in a way only he is capable of. Besides, seeing him scratching himself with one of Paul’s drumsticks due to an incontrollable itch in the middle of his back, and you know he’s not a small guy, was priceless.

When Cannibal Corpse played their last two songs, the unparalleled classics Hammer Smashed Face and Devoured by Vermin (my top Cannibal Corpse song of all time), they turned the whole venue into a fuckin’ monstrous mosh pit with absolutely no place to hide, showcasing how awesome those songs are. But do you think anyone in the audience complained about it? There were so many smiles and so much sweat everywhere when the show was over I’m pretty sure the fans of the Corpse cannot wait for them to storm Toronto once again and heat up our chilly winter with their perfect Death Metal. Fire up the chainsaw!

Setlist
1. Scourge of Iron
2. Demented Aggression
3. Evisceration Plague
4. Stripped, Raped and Strangled
5. Kill or Become
6. Sadistic Embodiment
7. Icepick Lobotomy
8. The Wretched Spawn
9. Pounded into Dust
10. I Cum Blood
11. Make Them Suffer
12. A Skull Full of Maggots
13. Hammer Smashed Face
14. Devoured by Vermin

Band members
George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher – vocals
Pat O’Brien – guitar
Rob Barrett – guitar
Alex Webster – bass
Paul Mazurkiewicz – drums

Album Review – Venom / From the Very Depths (2015)

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Unfortunately, a huge lack of depth is what you will find in the new album by the trailblazers of Black Metal.

Rating6

venom_from the very depthsThe beginning of the 80’s witnessed the birth of the most obscure form of extreme music, Black Metal, thanks almost exclusively to British Black Metal pioneers Venom. For instance, Heavy Metal icons such as Slayer, Cradle of Filth, Kreator, Candlemass, Paradise Lost, among several other Thrash, Speed, Black Metal and NWOBHM bands, were heavily influenced by their music, with songs like Welcome To Hell, Black Metal, Witching Hour, In League With Satan and Countess Bathory becoming legitimate satanic anthems.  Now with From the Very Depths, the fourteenth studio album by this Newcastle-based band formed in the distant year of 1979, Cronos and his crew want to keep the fire of their venomous kingdom burning and disturbing the minds of the weak.

However, if Venom’s first two albums, Welcome to Hell (1981) and Black Metal (1982), are the epitome of this devilish subgenre of heavy music, pretty much all of their following releases lacked innovation, intensity and, consequently, importance (I doubt you can name a relevant song of any of their other albums). From the Very Depths is no exception to that, with its musicality being so rudimentary they seem more like an amateur garage band than those trailblazers of Extreme Metal with so many decades on the road. Cronos, La Rage and Dante stick to the very basics of heavy music, with not a single moment of creativity showcased throughout the album. That would not have been an issue if they were as good as Motörhead or AC/DC, but their extremely limited skills make From the Very Depths an album with absolutely no depth.

But is From the Very Depths really that bad? Well, if you keep your expectations really low you might enjoy some parts of the album. After the intro Eruptus, which really transmits a sense Venom are rising from the very depths of hell, we have the title-track From the Very Depths, which despite not being Black Metal per se (it feels more like Thrash Metal) it’s a very good exhibit of dark and extreme music, with the resonant bass lines by Cronos setting the tone during the whole song. The following track, The Death of Rock ‘N’ Roll, has a dark Hardcore/Punk Rock atmosphere, with lyrics that couldn’t sound more Venom than that (“We met the devil at the gates / Not at the crossroads or by humiliate / The man of blues can sell his soul / We’d rather party with the demons… down below”). In addition, its nonstop instrumental helps enhance the electricity of this song, which in my opinion is the best of the album.

venomAfter that satisfactory start, the issues start to appear in From the Very Depths. Smoke is not only generic, especially its lyrics, but it also lacks that wickedness so necessary in Black Metal and it goes on for grueling five minutes. A song so long should have presented more variations or at least a minimum of energy in its riffs, don’t you agree? Temptation sounds like a rip-off of Venom themselves, where the bass lines mess its harmony instead of boosting it, turning it into another disposable track. Leastwise, Cronos’ harsh voice is still in good shape and the song doesn’t go on for torturing five minutes.

The band sounds a lot more cohesive and tuneful in Long Haired Punks, a tribute to Punk Rock and Heavy Metal that connects the heaviest and most deranged aspects of both music genres, with Cronos singing how Venom (and all other metal bands) are punks too (“Fight for survival, hitting the road, get out my way, time for a show / We blast metal, no hip hop or funk, demons from hell, long haired punks”), while Stigmata Satanas, with its very old school sonority, might be nothing outstanding but it’s quite nice, with its crude riffs and vocal lines blending really well with the lyrics, in special with its extremely simple but demonic chorus. On the other hand, Crucified is an awfully uninspired track with a flat rhythm that almost forces you to skip to the next song. The drums by Dante are sadly elementary, sounding like Meg White from the White Stripes without Jack White to salvage the song with more elaborate guitar lines.

Maybe with a more complex (or less monotone) instrumental, Evil Law could have been a really good song, because it contains that trademark devilish aura by Venom, including the wicked noises in the background. In regards to its lyrics (“Fakaa enday yay badah / Urka temeway tado / Coorza onyay femlay / Keelay spray ohapa do”), the only thing I can say is: what the hell is this supposed to mean? Anyway, Grinding Teeth brings back a decent mix of Thrash, Speed and Black Metal, which might sound interesting if it’s chosen for their live performances. Moreover, the band finally tries some different riffs and breaks, helping making the song more delightful.

After another short intro, Ouverture, we have another example of how amateur Venom still sound in Mephistopheles, which despite having a badass attitude it doesn’t offer anything really exciting to the listener. The same can be said about Wings of Valkyrie, a boring track where drums and riffs are negatively overshadowed by the extremely loud bass lines. Lastly, the good song Rise closes the album with the live audience in the background making it sound a lot more organic. If only they had added more of that rawness and brutality to the whole album, From the Very Depths could have been one of the best Extreme Metal albums of the year.

From a technical standpoint there’s almost nothing to be analyzed in From the Very Depths: it’s an album as basic and bland as it can be, with no memorable songs or fresh elements offered in its more than 50 minutes of music. As already mentioned, if you lower your standards (or if you love Venom more than your life) you will actually have some fun listening to From the Very Depths, but it’s hard for anyone else to get thrilled by an album that above all things lack any real depth. Sad to say, after almost 40 years of existence it looks like Venom will continue to be known just as the band who recorded Welcome to Hell and Black Metal.

Best moments of the album: From the Very Depths, The Death of Rock ‘N’ Roll and Long Haired Punks.

Worst moments of the album: Smoke, Temptation, Crucified and Wings of Valkyrie.

Released in 2015 Spinefarm Records

Track listing
1. Eruptus 1:01
2. From the Very Depths 3:54
3. The Death of Rock ‘N’ Roll 3:09
4. Smoke 5:01
5. Temptation 3:52
6. Long Haired Punks 4:02
7. Stigmata Satanas 3:26
8. Crucified 4:06
9. Evil Law 5:03
10. Grinding Teeth 4:11
11. Ouverture 1:16
12. Mephistopheles 4:06
13. Wings of Valkyrie 4:00
14. Rise 4:34

Band members
Conrad “Cronos” Lant – vocals, bass guitar
Stuart “La Rage” Dixon – guitar, backing vocals
Danny “Dante” Needham – drums, backing vocals

Album Review – Aethyr / Corpus (2015)

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A “lecture” in Occultism crafted by a very competent band from Russia that will satisfy your craving for freakish heavy music.

Rating4

AETHYR - Corpus cover artAethyr, a reference for the fifth element (or spirit) in various forms of Metaphysics and Occultism, is already a magnificent name for any heavy music band simply due to its meaning and pronunciation. However, it gets even more suitable when the band is capable of transferring all those mystical principles to their music, which is the case with Russian Doom Metal band Aethyr and their brand new album, the dense and ominous Corpus.

On their first full-length since their 2010 album Messio, this talented quartet from Moscow goes beyond the boundaries of darkness, with exceptional doses of heaviness loaded with a spine-chilling ambience not recommended for the faint-hearted. Just take a look at the album art, designed by Rotten Fantom, and you can have a very good idea of the level of despair Aethyr offer us all in this excellent release.

The obscure sonority found in the opening track, Nihil Grail, with its slow and somber riffs and drums, epitomizes the dark side of Doom Metal. In addition, the demonic vocals by Mr. D give this “polished wickedness” a touch of Black Metal, with its last part being at the same time mesmerizing and disturbing. I’m pretty sure Tom G. Warrior, the mastermind behind Triptykon, would love this song. Following this amazing tune, it’s impossible not to bang your head to the heavy riffs found in Sanctus Satanicus: whatever Mr. D is singing he sounds possessed by an evil entity, and when the band speeds up the music it becomes almost pure raw Black Metal so harsh it sounds.

AETHYR band photoThe epic 10-minute eerie track ATU showcases deeper guttural vocals maximized by cryptic riffs in the background, with a melancholic break at around four minutes. There’s a lot of progressiveness, tempo changes and mysterious passages skillfully played by all band members which are definitely worth our attention. Then we have the awesome CVLT, a song that’s Doom Metal at its finest, with sludgy riffs, strong beats and, more important than that, a depressive feeling that’s essential for good dark music.

But the maleficent aura created by Aethyr gets even stronger in The Gnostic Mass, which is not exactly a song but just weird sounds from what seems to be a black mass; and then in the title-track CORPUS, another 10-minute badass song that kind of continues with the weirdness from the previous track for over a minute, before the low-tuned guitars by Mr. D and Mr. W evoke all the hopelessness and sorrow of Funeral Doom while drummer Mr. S and bassist Mr. Y dictate the song’s wonderfully wretched rhythm. You can get a sense of how lugubrious this track is just by the fact that there are very few vocals lines in it, only after six minutes of music and not for too long. Finally, in order to darken your mind and your heart even more, Aethyr offer us lots of traditional Doom Metal elements in Templum, where the band gets “infuriated” halfway through it, generating chaos and havoc to close the album on a high note.

Take a shot at the album trailer HERE and at the band’s official BandCamp page for a taste of Aethyr’s music, and of course visit their Facebook page for more details about the release of Corpus and the band’s upcoming concerts. More than just a Doom Metal album, Corpus is a “lecture” in Occultism that will satisfy your thirst for creepy and deranged heavy music, and you will get addicted to it without a shadow of a doubt.

Best moments of the album: Nihil Grail, CVLT and CORPUS.

Worst moments of the album: The Gnostic Mass, but only because it’s not an actual song.

Released in 2015 Cimmerian Shade Recordings

Track listing
1. Nihil Grail 7:03
2. Sanctus Satanicus 4:28
3. ATU 10:21
4. CVLT 5:23
5. The Gnostic Mass 6:11
6. CORPUS 10:05
7. Templum 6:29

Band members
Mr. D (Denis Dubovik) – vocals, lead guitar
Mr. W (Vladimir Snegotsky) – rhythm guitar
Mr. Y (George Meshkov) – bass
Mr. S (Anton Sidorov) – drums

Album Review – Marduk / Frontschwein (2015)

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3

The Babylonian gods of Black Metal return with more of their blasphemous and apocalyptic war-themed music.

Rating3

coverWhen Swedish Black Metallers Marduk added interesting topics such as Third Reich history and World War II to their lyrical/conceptual themes, starting with their 1999 album Panzer Division Marduk, I guess many of their diehard fans weren’t really sure what was going to happen to those guys that once stated they wanted to become the most blasphemous band in the world. If you look at their very first demo, the controversial Fuck Me Jesus, which was banned in several countries following its release due to its explicit cover art, and look at their brand new album, Frontschwein, it’s noticeable they’re not as blasphemous as before. But who said that change wasn’t for good?

Following their excellent 2012 release Serpent Sermon, Frontschwein (their thirteenth studio album) is not only a lesson in Black Metal, but also in Military and World War History, and let’s face it: no other music genre can represent the agonies and destruction caused by any war better than Death/Black Metal. Frontschwein is a war-themed concept album with every single song talking about a specific fact related to war, all of course impregnated by Marduk’s obscure musicality. If you love reading and studying about war, and if you’re a metalhead whose blood boils to the sound of nonstop blast beats and harsh growls, this album is perfect for you.

Despite its melodic intro, the opening track Frontschwein (which by the way means “frontline soldier”) quickly turns into badass Black Metal, with the unstoppable drumming by Fredrik Widigs and the truly devilish vocals by Mortuus (especially during the chorus) making sure any candy-asses stay away from this album. On the other hand, I have no idea what the band wanted to do with The Blond Beast: what the hell are those horrible “pop music” drums? I mean, the riffs and vocals are quite decent, but those lame commercial beats ruin the entire song.

bandFortunately, that’s the only mistake the band made in Frontschwein. In the bloodcurdling Afrika, Marduk offer us an extremely dense music carnage, with Morgan and Widigs redefining the word “wicked” with their sick guitar lines and bestial drumming respectively. The slower but completely demonic tune Wartheland, which talks about a Nazi German administrative subdivision formed from Polish territory annexed in 1939, focuses on the desperate screams by Mortuus boosted by a maleficent atmosphere. Following that lesson in vileness,  in Rope of Regret the band returns with their “heavy artillery”, and in spite of all the sonic insanity their music is far from being a mess, as you can perfectly listen to and enjoy each instrument throughout the entire song.

Between the Wolf-Packs couldn’t sound more traditional, displaying all those unique elements that fans enjoy in Black Metal, whereas Nebelwerfer (or “Smoke Mortar”, a World War II German series of weapons) emanates darkness, with an incredible Doom Metal ambience mainly due to its slow-paced grim rhythm. And Falaise: Cauldron of Blood gets back to straightforward Black Metal, with highlights to the interesting addition of some slower breaks amidst the furious blast beats, and to Mortuus sounding even more amazing with his 100% barbaric guttural vocals.

mediabook

Frontschwein Mediabook Limited Edition

The longest track of all, Doomsday Elite, is another “anthem of despair” without a single second of peace, with all band members giving their best and adding a lot of power to the song, while the excellent 503, which I believe talks about German Tiger Tank Battalion 503 in World War II, sounds actually like a tank: it’s slow, extremely heavy and very imposing, with its Doom Metal elements and gruesome bass lines by Devo turning it into an outstanding moment of the album. And finally, the last regular track in Frontschwein, Thousand-Fold Death, makes sure no one survives the band’s brutal assault. It’s a nonstop tune that will put a huge smile on our faces and an even more gigantic pain in our necks, with kudos to Morgan for his awesome guitar riffs.

The mediabook limited edition of Frontschwein comes with a very generic bonus entitled Warschau III: Necropolis (a variation for the city of Warsaw, Poland), an instrumental track with some obscure growls, but nothing that adds any value to that version of the album. Anyway, it doesn’t matter if you’re a huge fan of Black Metal or not, the new album by Marduk is worth a listen. If you don’t know the band that well, you’ll be surprised by how entertaining their apocalyptic dark music can be, and if you’re a longtime fan of the band, I guess I don’t need to say this is a mandatory addition to your evil collection.

Best moments of the album: Frontschwein, Afrika, 503 and Thousand-Fold Death.

Worst moments of the album: The Blond Beast.

Released in 2015 Century Media Records

Track listing
1. Frontschwein 3:12
2. The Blond Beast 4:26
3. Afrika 4:00
4. Wartheland 4:17
5. Rope of Regret 3:52
6. Between the Wolf-Packs 4:28
7. Nebelwerfer 6:17
8. Falaise: Cauldron of Blood 4:58
9. Doomsday Elite 8:11
10. 503 5:12
11. Thousand-Fold Death 3:46

Mediabook Limited Edition Bonus Track
12.Warschau III: Necropolis 2:59

Band members
Daniel “Mortuus” Rostén – vocals
Morgan “Evil” Steinmeyer Håkansson – guitar
Magnus “Devo” Andersson – bass
Fredrik Widigs – drums

Album Review – Goatchrist / She Who Holds the Scrying Mirror (2014)

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5

Fans of extreme music, behold the rise of this extremely talented and obscure Black Metal band.

Rating5

goatchrist-coverHailing from Wakefield/Halifax, in the UK, comes Blackened Death Metal band Goatchrist, a group that despite having started as a one man band is now coming together as a full band, re-releasing their debut demo album from earlier 2014, She Who Holds the Scrying Mirror. And I don’t know if this album should be called only a “demo”, so professional and consistent it is compared to many other more experienced Black Metal bands. In other words, why not treating it with a little more respect as a full-length album already?

And it really deserves to be considered as such, especially if you take into account the fact vocalist/guitarist Dominator Xul’Ahabra was just 16 years old and when he was the sole band member. Not only this means it’s an awesome opportunity to enjoy the creations of a musician at the very beginning of his career, but also a chance to acknowledge his amazing talent for crafting extreme music in a way lots of veterans are not capable of even after so many years on the road. But don’t worry, Dominator and his “herd” stay true to the foundations of extreme metal, keeping an enormous distance from any type of commercial or pop stuff.

A smooth piano intro helps set the atmosphere for Through Flames, We Invoke Him (awesome song name, by the way), with its very dark and dense Black/Doom Metal musicality enhanced by the desperate vocals by Dominator, followed by the even rawer Catacombs, with more intense drums by Kaahl and riffs by Dominator and a melancholic break with an interesting duo of guitar and bass lines before an apocalyptic ending. This song can be really disturbing for non-fans of Black Metal, I should say.

goatchrist-logoAnd the derangement goes on with The Four Horsemen, another very decent and solid dark tune with harsh vocals again conducting the havoc, with the addition of some keyboard notes to lighten up a little the overall result. Then we have Bloodletting, Part 1, an intro to the title-track focusing on some interesting guitar lines, followed of course by the title-track, She Who Holds the Scrying Mirror, a demonic and atmospheric track where harsh vocals blend really well with traditional Black Metal instrumental, with highlights to bass and drums for being really strong and in total sync.

There’s still a lot more to come, beginning with a 3-minute fuckin’ violent massacre entitled Fatal Equinox (Perpetual Resplendence), a very professional cover version of one of the songs by Brazilian Black/Death Metal band Goatpenis. The next song is another intro, Bloodletting, Part 2, this time more atmospheric due to its organ and keyboard notes, “opening the gates” for the awesome Inferno. How do you think a song called “Inferno” would sound like? It’s truly infernal, with drummer Kaahl violently pounding his drums and Dominator delivering some dark riffs and solos while he screams like hell during the entire song. And for the total delight of fans of extreme metal, this re-issue of She Who Holds the Scrying Mirror also includes a brand new instrumental track, The Triumvirate’s Flight To Nippur, a feast of blast beats and traditional riffs where not even a single second sounds weak or empty.

In order to acquire this sonic storm, simply visit Goatchrist’s BandCamp page, or also visit SixSixSix Music’s official website and Big Cartel page, who by the way does an amazing job with tons of other truly underground metal bands. Fans of Black Metal, behold the rise of Goatchirst, a band that will surely leave their mark in the world of extreme music in the years to come.

Best moments of the album: Catacombs, She Who Holds the Scrying Mirror and Inferno.

Worst moments of the album: The Four Horsemen.

Released in 2014 SixSixSix Music

Track listing
1. Through Flames, We Invoke Him 7:43
2. Catacombs 4:51
3. The Four Horsemen 6:39
4. Bloodletting, Part 1 2:02
5. She Who Holds the Scrying Mirror 6:55
6. Fatal Equinox (Perpetual Resplendence) (Goatpenis cover) 2:39
7. Bloodletting, Part 2 2:08
8. Inferno 6:05
9. The Triumvirate’s Flight To Nippur (Instrumental) 5:18

Band members
Dominator Xul’Ahabra – guitar, vocals
Blood-Count Aamon Vetis – bass guitar, backing vocals
Kaahl – drums

Album Review – Cadaveria / Silence (2014)

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3

A sinister parade of heavy music led by the reigning succubus of Black and Doom Metal.

Rating4

cadaveria_silenceI got to know Black/Gothic Metal band Cadaveria a couple of months ago while listening to The Metal Moose Show, and basically after that I had to go after more of their excellent obscure music. The band is led by the diabolical Italian beauty Cadaveria (aka Raffaella Rivarolo), known for being the former singer of Symphonic Black Metal band Opera IX. Now, after over ten years in action, the band releases their fifth full-length album, Silence, a sinister parade of Black and Doom Metal, with Gothic influences from the 80’s and the unique feminine touch by Cadaveria.

Despite being extremely hard for bands to stay relevant in Heavy Metal doing this type of dark music, more due to their demanding fans rather than to the music itself, Cadaveria somehow manage to reinvent their musicality with each release, avoiding that feeling of “I’ve heard that before a million times” from any person that gets in contact with their music, no matter if it’s a diehard fan or a brand new listener. Of course the music by Cadaveria is not light-hearted or commercial at all, so do not expect to listen to it anywhere, but only where it really matters: in the underground music world.

The opening track, Velo (The Other Side of Hate), which by the way is probably a play on words with “LOVE”, is the perfect representation of Melodic Black Metal with devilish feminine vocals (can I say Cadaveria is like the reigning succubus of Black Metal?), alternating traditional Black Metal with more symphonic parts and with Frank Booth and Dick Laurent doing an awesome job on guitars. Following that great start, as the name of the song says Carnival of Doom has an awesome Doom Metal punch, being brutal but delicate at the same time, with Cadaveria’s clean vocals redefining the meaning of the word “mesmerizing”, while in Free Spirit there’s a slight change in the band’s approach, with its guitar lines and vocals focusing on a more melancholic tune inspired by Gothic/Doom Metal from the 80’s.

cadaveriaThe Soul That Doesn’t Sleep emanates despair and darkness, with Cadaveria beautifully switching between harsh and clean vocals while the rest of the band maintains a morbid rhythm, solidifying the overall result, followed by Existence, which gets closer to apocalyptic Black Metal with drummer Marçelo Santos conducting the rhythm. In the modern and amazing Out Loud, the band offers us a heavy and furious tune with hints of Thrash and Death Metal, sounding like an even more wicked version of Arch Enemy and making it a perfect choice for circle pits, while Death, Again, which begins in the darkest and most melancholic way possible, has that type of hypnotizing melody, with Cadaveria making it even more enjoyable.

The last part of Silence brings to the listener an interesting mix of good, bad and, of course, dark tunes, starting with Exercise1, too generic compared to the rest of the album; Almost Ghostly, a feminine version of Paradise Lost blended with Tristania, with highlights to its amazing vocal lines; Loneliness, another excellent technical track with Gothic elements dominating the entire song; and finally Strangled Idols, again a more melodic and dark song, with its raw Rock N’ Roll vein being very beneficial to the overall energy of the song.

You can check the official album trailer HERE, visit the band’s official Facebook page, and of course buy their music and merchandise at their webshop or on iTunes. If there was a parade of Black and Doom Metal, Silence would definitely be its sinful and delectable soundtrack.

Best moments of the album: Carnival of Doom, The Soul That Doesn’t Sleep and Out Loud.

Worst moments of the album: Existence and Exercise1.

Released in 2014 Scarlet Records

Track listing
1. Velo (The Other Side of Hate) 4:14
2. Carnival of Doom 3:28
3. Free Spirit 4:44
4. The Soul That Doesn’t Sleep 3:34
5. Existence 4:56
6. Out Loud 3:16
7. Death, Again 5:04
8. Exercise1 3:54
9. Almost Ghostly 4:22
10. Loneliness 4:42
11. Strangled Idols 5:00

Band members
Cadaveria – vocals
Frank Booth – guitar
Dick Laurent – guitar
Killer Bob – bass
Marçelo Santos – drums

Album Review – Sarpedon / Anomic Nation (2014)

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Get ready for this Progressive Doom Metal band with a strong theatrical vein directly from the beautiful Norway.

Rating4

Sarpedon-coverAfters years in the making, the music journey named Anomic Nation, the debut album by Norwegian Progressive Doom Metal band Sarpedon, is finally among us. For those of you who don’t know Sarpedon, this very technical band is led by brothers Torgeir and Eirik P. Krokfjord, who have been working together on this project for several years, influenced by distinctive bands such as Savatage, Emperor and Queen, and adding their own experiences and emotions into their music to give it a fresh taste.

Despite its Black Metal-ish album art, Anomic Nation is a lot more melodic and less violent than pretty much all Black Metal bands you might think of, thanks a lot to the “theatrical” vocals by Eirik P. Krokfjord. The guy, who has two singing degrees from the Norwegian Academy of Music, doesn’t limit himself by only singing the songs, he basically declaims the lyrics in all of them, as if the the Phantom of the Opera decided to form a heavy music group. That might be one of the greatest strengths of Sarpedon, and definitely what will hold your attention throughout the entire album.

When the music kicks off with the very atmospheric and eerie title-track Anomic Nation, it’s impossible not to think of bands like Swedish Epic Doom Metal Candlemass or Danish Heavy Metal icons Merciful Fate, as all of their characteristic elements are present in Sarpedon’s music boosted by some traditional Black Metal blast beats. If you don’t understand what I’m saying, take a listen at this powerful song by Candlemass and everything will make sense. This great Doom Metal track is followed by The Lusk Letter, where the band showcases an even more progressive musicality, guiding the listener through a theatre of virtuosity and darkness, and The Claustrophober, which gets even more obscure thanks to its church organ keyboard notes, moving towards more traditional Doom Metal. And pay close attention to the beautiful lyrics in this song, it’s totally worth it.

MONSENSarpedon speed things up a little in Dead Birds, with its lyrics being even more freakish and drummer Carl Engstrøm kicking fuckin’ ass: it’s impressive how he can go from raw Black Metal to smooth progressive music in a matter of seconds, without sounding robotic or generic. Then we have the beautiful A Seed of Evil, an inspiring work of art that could be summarized like a “forbidden tenderness” (if that expression even exists), and The Carnival, where what seemed to be a melancholic tune suddenly turns into fast and raw metal, getting back later in the song to pure progressiveness with some interesting rhythmic breaks, somber guitar riffs and a nice theatrical chorus (“Look behind the mask / Before it is too late”).

The band saved for last the duo comprised of My Mysteries Unwind, Part I, a smooth but sinister “intro” to its second part, focusing heavily on its intense keyboard notes, and My Mysteries Unwind, Part II, the boldest and most symphonic of all tracks. It’s indeed a mysterious journey that transpires Doom Metal, varying between heavier riffs and more melancholic passages, with its precise drumming keeping it energized and all elements of the last part of it showcasing how crazy and progressive Sarpedon can be.

If you’re a fan of Candlemass, Mercyful Fate, Queen and all other rock and metal bands with a ravishing theatrical side, don’t wait any longer and go grab your copy of Anomic Nation at the official Inverse Store. It’s good music that will satisfy your craving for a good story while you bang your head, do some air guitar or keep tapping on your desk, and if you let yourself go with each song you will probably find yourself doing that for hours, completely enthralled by Sarpedon’s full-bodied music.

Best moments of the album: Anomic Nation and A Seed of Evil.

Worst moments of the album: The Carnival.

Released in 2014 Inverse Records

Track listing
1. Anomic Nation 6:02
2. The Lusk Letter 5:08
3. The Claustrophober 6:19
4. Dead Birds 4:23
5. A Seed of Evil 5:01
6. The Carnival 6:43
7. My Mysteries Unwind, Part I 3:14
8. My Mysteries Unwind, Part II 9:45

Band members
Eirik P. Krokfjord – lead & backing vocals, keys
Torgeir P. Krokfjord – all guitars & bass
Andreas Wærholm – keys
Carl Engstrøm – drums