September 2014 – Page 3 – Wonderbox Metal

Dysphorian Breed – The Longing for the Tides of Metamorphosis (Review)

Dysphorian Breed is a one-man band from Sweden and this is his début album of Funeral Doom/Death.

This release is all about the atmosphere and the creation of bleak soundscapes full of funereal promise.

Deep, dark vocals erupt over Blackened Doom melodies that reek of crushing despair.

Keyboard highlights mournfully soar over the slow moving dirge as emotive guitars drag themselves through the mire of misery that’s evoked.

Double bass drumming adds a bit of spice and speed to events without losing the overall downbeat feeling.

The album flirts with Gothic moods and the slight Blackened tinge to the guitars gives the songs an edge over similar bands.

As début albums go this is an emotive and resonant expression of dark negativity and the power it can have to fuel the creative.

An enjoyable ride through the desolate.

Ancst – In Turmoil (Review)

Ancst are from Germany and this is a compilation of their earlier work between 2012 and 2014.

The band play a combination of Black Metal and Crust that’s endearing and violent without sacrificing emotional depth.

As a collection of tracks In Turmoil is remarkably consistent with sound and style, although the first two songs are easily the longest and after this their output becomes shorter in length and more condensed.

The music is emotive and heavy, with moments of bleak beauty and violent Hardcore clashing in ways reminiscent of bands such as Hexis, Fleshborn and Protestant who share a similar stylistic space of Blackened Hardcore/Crust.

Intense shouting and blasting drums are the order of the day. Blackened riffs and menacing guitars lay a foundation of darkened melodies over which the drums blaze and the singer roars his diatribes.

It’s not all blasting and hyper-violence however, as not only do the band understand dynamics and the importance of taking the foot off the accelerator now and again, but they even have a few forays into softer territory in between the blast beats.

This is a worthy addition to the ever expanding sub-genre of Blackened Hardcore/Crust. Colour me impressed.

Oecist – XVIII LIII (Review)

Oecist are from the US and play Post-Metal. This is their début EP.

This is instrumental Metal in the style of bands such as Cloudkicker, Red Sparowes, Pelican and the like.

At just under 20 minutes it’s a relatively short listen but it serves as a good introduction to the band and what they’re capable of.

And just what is it that they are capable of then? Well, they create expansive, emotive music that enjoys the freedom and grandeur that Post-Metal offers.

It’s melancholic, expressive and packs a pretty good punch. Unlike some Post-Metal bands who emphasize the Post- part of the style more than the -Metal part, Oecist seem to have the two pretty much equally distributed through this EP. They’re not afraid to let things get heavier when they need to.

This is an enjoyable début. Hopefully future releases will see the band expanding on their sound and building on what they’ve accomplished with XVIII LIII. Here’s to the future.

Execration – Morbid Dimensions (Review)

This is the third album from Norwegian Death Metallers Execration.

So what do we have here then? This is a bit different to what I was expecting. The name certainly implies straightforward Death Metal, but the album cover looks more Black Metal to me. And when you press play…you get a straight up Doom Metal Black Sabbath riff. So far so interesting…

Execration are not your typical Death Metal band. Theirs is the sound of a band experimenting with their chosen medium and pushing the envelope.

They have included elements of Doom, Black Metal and even a bit of Post-Metal into their repertoire. This is Progressive Death Metal that spiritually leaves off where Death ended and builds on the firm foundation left by the masters.

The music on this album is carefully crafted and considered Metal that makes it clear that the band are no longer interested in the old genre restrictions and are more than willing to incorporate whatever Metal influences they feel like to get the sound they want. And more power to them for this.

These songs are very impressive and finely realised. This is atmospheric Death Metal that still has the power of the style but has a firm Progressive edge to it that allows them to ably tread new territory with ease. Blackened riffs, technical solos, blasting drums, slow and building Doom, Post-Metal atmospherics, Progressive meanderings; it’s all here and it’s all done remarkably well.

The mixing of styles never sounds forced and each track sees the band develop their sound into a force to be reckoned with.

Mixing bits of bands like Death, Cynic, Atheist, Enslaved, Morbid Angel, Gorguts; this album is a firm winner.

I highly recommend this album. Seek it out now and prepare to be impressed.

Wömit Angel – Holy Goatse (Review)

Wömit Angel are from Finland and this is their second album of Black Metal.

This is dirty Black Metal fuelled by Punk and raped by Thrash.

The band boast a raw but strong sound and their filthy rage-filled attack comes off loud and clear.

Vocally we get stinging, lacerated shrieks with the occasional deeper, daemonic grunt. They sound authentic and intense.

The songs are short bouts of violence that may be underground blasts of hatred but manage to be remarkably catchy. Some nice hooks are included in the tracks and odd flares of melody are thrown in with the general chaos of the guitars.

It’s as if Impaled Nazarene, Motörhead and Venom have been crushed up, eaten and regurgitated as gooey Black Metal projectile vomit. Eat it. Eat it all back up.

Wömit Angel have produced an enjoyably venomous assault on the ears. Check them out.

Skull Koraptor – Dead Ahead (Review)

Skull Koraptor are a Thrash Metal band from Greece and this is their début EP.

Skull Koraptor play Old-School Thrash Metal with a pinch of Heavy Metal added to the mix. They’re influenced by the old Big Four and wear their influences on their sleeves.

It’s energetic and played with passion. We may have heard this style many times before but there’s no denying the enthusiasm that the band attack the material with.

The instruments are played well and there are a fair few enjoyable solos sprinkled around.

Each song is well written and the band have a good grasp of what it takes to write a catchy Metal song.

The vocalist does a good job and overall this is an authentic recreation of Old-School Metal that should be recognisable to any fan of the genre.

If you’ve reached your saturation point with this type of Metal then there’s probably not much to tempt you here, however if you still carry a torch for this older Thrash sound then Skull Koraptor are actually way better and more authentic than a lot of those in the retro-Thrash movement.

Want some enjoyable and honest Old-School Thrash Metal? Look no further.

7 H.Target – 0.00 Apocalypse (Review)

This is the third album from Russia’s 7 H.Target. They play Brutal Death Metal.

This is modern Sci-fi themed Death Metal with enough brutality to leave you bruised.

The band are rhythmically aggressive and technically devastating. Their fury is unrestrained and each track sounds like it’s going straight for the jugular to rip it out and replace it with complex cybernetics.

There’s a healthy Slam component to their sound only this is not quite as blatant as some purveyors of the style. It’s a strong influence nonetheless but it’s tempered by the sheer brutality of the band. It’s not just heavy groove; there’s some serious blasting and grinding going on here.

Add to this the rather more interesting and inventive touches to the music; odd moments of technicality and Industrial Sci-fi influences and this is more than just “another Slam band”.

The sound is heavy, thick and serpentine like a robotic snake, twisting and coiling around its victims before tightening slowly. 0.00 Apocalypse sounds immense and it’s the perfect aural vehicle for their inventive brand of mayhem.

The vocals are guttural nightmares drawn from the bowels of a festering pit of dying servitors. Enough said.

This is a truly extreme work of Brutal Death Metal cyber-art and the songs on this album need to be heard, preferably at ear-bleeding noise levels.

If you’ve a taste for cutting edge brutality then this is a must.

Siftercide – Self Titled (Review)

Siftercide are from the US and play Grindcore.

This is abrasive, violent Grindcore with everything turned up to DESTROY.

The vocals burp, pignoise and shriek their way through the 19 tracks on this album and extremity of voice and music is the aim of the game.

So far, so Grind. However, Siftercide have an additional weapon in their arsenal – horns. Horns break the chaos like flashes of colour; little excerpts of cleanliness in an otherwise sea of rank odour and corruption.

The horns aren’t overdone and don’t appear on every track but it’s still an interesting addition that surprisingly does work rather than just sounding like some novelty tag-on.

This is Grind for the hardcore Grinders out there who like their music dirty and gritty. Give them a listen.

Listen to them here.

Dying Out Flame – Shiva Rudrastakam (Review)

Dying Out Flame are from Nepal and play Death Metal.

This band are somewhat of a unique proposition as they combine the raw, brute force of Death Metal with traditional Nepalese music, instruments, female singing and influences. This lends the band a distinctly exotic edge.

What’s important here though is the sheer quality of the songs on this release. In the hands of a lesser band this combination of styles could easily sound mismatched and ill-judged, but Dying Out Flame have the talent to merge the two disparate worlds quite seamlessly. It sounds natural and it sounds good. Bloody good.

The traditional instrumentation enhances and adds to the ferocity and pure elemental force of the Death Metal parts. And boy when the Death Metal kicks in it sure does so hard.

The sound and fury of the band is first-rate and the deep growls of the singer are delivered at the perfect pitch. The Nepalese music doesn’t detract from the bite of the Metal at all; in fact it works exceptionally well with it to create atmospheres and moods quite in keeping with the epic and ferocious music.

If you’re a fan of Death/Extreme Metal that experiments with influences that are not typically found in the realm of Metal then this is for you. Think bands like Nile, Orphaned Land, Rudra, Therion, Markradonn, Panopticon, etc. – all quite different but all incorporating wider influences into their Metal sound. Dying Out Flame can safely be added to their ranks.

This is an innovative and creative release with lots of personality and high quality levels. Definitely make sure you check this out.

Onheil – Storm is Coming (Review)

Onheil are from the Netherlands and this is their second album.

Storm is Coming has a strong production with everything sounding crushing and the band easily wreak devastation like a natural disaster, which is partially what the concept of the album is based upon.

Onheil play Black Metal that’s fast and sharp but also surprisingly heavy as they have a bit of a Blackened Thrash/Heavy Metal influence to their sound.

The band I’m reminded of most is Hypocrisy as Onheil have a similar feel to both their style and sound – if you take Hypocrisy circa Into the Abyss and give it a bit more of a Black Metal sheen then you’ll have the right idea.

They’re certainly not Hypocrisy rip-off’s though, as I’m also reminded of bands like Amon Amarth and, (to a lesser extent), Dimmu Borgir, Kreator and Iron Maiden in places.

The vocalist is very accomplished and sounds great whether he’s screaming or growling. Powerful cleans are also used sparingly to add effect and provide good back up to the main shrieks.

The Blackened melodies are played fast and hard, with riffs and leads being in no short supply. Storm is Coming also features an enjoyably Heavy Metal aspect to their sound, mainly in the guitar department. Duelling guitars are prominent and many leads could be straight out of the Classic Heavy Metal rulebook.

This is a band who can play Melodic Black Metal without it sounding jolly or hopeful; this is dark music with an evil tinge to it that all centres around the band’s direct and cutting method of assault.

Overall this is an enjoyable and absorbing listen with good songs and melodies that capture the attention. Check them out and see what you think.