April 2015 – Page 6 – Wonderbox Metal

Offal/Zombie Cookbook – Dementia Trash/Motel Hell – Split (Review)

Offal and Zombie Cookbook are both from Brazil and both play predominantly Old-School Death Metal.

Offal are first up, with two tracks lasting 5 minutes.

The first song consists of some nice Old-School battery, with plenty of murk and the stench of the crypt about it.

It’s a very well written song with some really good riffs and a thoughtful structure. Good leads enhance the foetid aura and it shows that Offal have learned a thing or two from listening to their old Autopsy and Impetigo records.

Cavernous growls are the vocals of choice, sounding ancient and terrifying with their ominous presence.

The second song, Spinal Extractions Fiend for Blood, is much shorter, with more of a Grind influence, but even this is delivered in an Old-School style.

Zombie Cookbook are next, with two tracks lasting 6 minutes.

First song Motel Hell has an Old-School vibe as well, recalling a rotten mix of old Obituary and Death with a hint of Thrash Metal thrown in for good measure. The vocals lash out as if in pain and the sense of the underground is strong.

The second song, Eredità Maledetta, is shorter, faster and altogether tighter.

Zombie Cookbook sound like an undiscovered band from the late 90’s. That’s a compliment, of course.

A short and brutal split that reeks of the underground and revels in its Old-School nature.

Listen if you dare.

Natanas – Xylophar (Review)

This is the fifth album from Natanas, a one-man Black Metal band from the US.

As I’ve quipped before – another month, another Natanas album…

This time though, as prolific as he is, he’s really outdone himself. Xylophar contains 19 tracks, a whopping 88 minutes of music.

If you’re allergic to challenging, dark music then it’s probably going to be akin to torture for you. However, if, like me, you can’t help but masochistically enjoy this kind of thing, then Xylophar takes on the form of some kind of warped film score with each track representing a different scene and a variation on a malignant feeling.

This is almost ambient work in the sense that it draws you in and relaxes you…well, as relaxing as bone-chilling screaming over an empty abyss can be, of course.

As I sit here writing this on a Sunday morning, it’s absolutely hammering it down with rain outside and the ancient trees I can see outside my window look amazing. I note this as I’m struck by the thought that some Black Metal can act as the perfect accompaniment to nature, seeming to touch on something primal. Natanas, however, is more like the perfect antidote to nature. This is music that seems to want to blacken and despoil nature’s purity and scorch the earth with fire in its wake.

At least that’s my impression.

I find that my review of this latest Natanas release is noticeably less descriptive than previous ones, as once you get to a certain point, (as with any style of music), it becomes variations on a theme. There are differences between releases and songs of course, but it’s more a case of a slow moving progression rather than an evolutionary leap.

Having said that though, comparing Xylophar to the last release смертность, things have moved on, as they always do, and if you compare it to All Is Permitted then Natanas has come a long way indeed.

Building on his earlier work, this is somewhat of a twisted masterpiece. As such, I’d argue that Xylophar is Natanas’ best work, and probably his most bleakly consistent.

There seems to be a theme of a lone, mournful, off-kilter lead guitar running throughout the album too, almost like it’s documenting the activity of the protagonist in the fictional film that this scores in my mind.

As always. Natanas has produced some compelling work, and as always it’s not for everyone. Again though, as always, I highly recommend it.

I’m looking at those trees again. Hmmm…if I could only remember where I put my flamethrower…

False Pregnancy – Dance Your Meat Off!!! (Review)

False Pregnancy are from Estonia and this is their début album. They play Grindcore.

Take a look at the album cover. What’s going on there then?

This is Goregrind. Sorry, I didn’t quite say that loud enough. This is GOREGRIND!!!

There. Now you know.

The band themselves are even less subtle than that.

Heavy, malignant guitars stab out whilst sickening pignoise vocals vomit disgust over everything. You already know what you’re getting into when you listen to a band like this, but each brand of disease is individual and False Pregnancy certainly warrant their own strain.

Here we have 14 songs in 18 minutes, so you know that the tracks are short, violent and crushingly brutal. The band are actually heavier than a lot of Grind bands due to the thick presence of the guitars. It works well with the style and Dance Your Meat Off!!! has plenty of substance.

I like that the band inject a bit of variety into their assault. Sure, it’s all Goregrind, so there’s only so much variety you can have, but within the genre parameters they play the field widely with different tempos and riff choices.

The vocals are a highlight. It may be dirty pignoise but it sounds great and the vocal patterns used are satisfying and nicely paced.

This is definitely above average Grind and False Pregnancy should be on every Grinder’s wishlist.

Get ready to dance.

Ichor – Depths (Review)

Ichor are from Germany and play Death Metal. This is their third album.

Who doesn’t love a bit of Modern Death Metal? I know I do. Sharp and tight, played with just the right hint of Deathcore and heavier than a barrelful of spanners? Sign me up!

Take a look at the album cover – you know what you’re getting yourself into. If you like bands such as The Kennedy Veil, Wormed, Alterbeast, Job for a Cowboy, Bloodtruth, Deep in Hate, etc. then this is another must.

This is brutal music played for the love of carnage and all things destructive. Lightning riffs and chugging menace work alongside inhuman drumming and lethal intent.

The vocals are aggressive growls that trade off with scything screams. The vocalist clearly knows his business and puts in a top-rate performance.

These songs have the requisite speed and brutality to them but I also like the energetic riffing and dynamic nature of the guitars. There’s also somewhat of a Morbid Angel/Behemoth feel to some of the guitar parts, which is a different angle that differentiates them from some of their similar peers.

There are some nice ideas and interesting enhancements on this, a good example is the added orchestration that infuses some of the songs and creates another layer of atmosphere to the proceedings. Top work.

I particularly enjoy some of the lead guitarwork and there are plenty of solos to satisfy as well, which is something I really like too. These chaotic melodics work well with the hardened brutality of Ichor’s core and the songs come alive with a darkness that sometimes even borders on the edge of Blackened Death Metal.

Yes, yes; much like Swedish Death Metal I’m a sucker for this kind of stuff, but this really is a damn fine album. The cutting riffs, growling hatred and superior songwriting mean Ichor will be with me for some time to come.

Here’s to plumbing the depths…

Sulphur Aeon – Gateway to the Antisphere (Review)

Sulphur Aeon play Death Metal. They are from Germany and this is their second album.

I love a good album cover, and this one is just brilliant.

Sulphur Aeon are not your standard Death Metal band. Sure, the ferocious riffs and brutal delivery are there, but they also add a lot more on top of this. Sound enhancements, effects, interesting vocals and chants, etc. add to the feeling of something special, mysterious and subtly disturbing.

A strong feeling of the underworld pervades this release, with mysterious sounds and otherworldly echoes aplenty.

The vocals are bowel-shakingly deep and sound as evil as they do inhuman. Added to this there are various shouts and chants also included that ratchet up the atmosphere and feeling as well as the aura of otherworldly darkness that these songs exude.

Musically this is interesting Death Metal in the grand tradition of bands like Behemoth and Nile; bands that are not content to play generic Death Metal and instead infuse their style with atmosphere and character. Sulphur Aeon have both in spades.

These songs are heavy and brutal yet still manage to make room for atmosphere and no small amount of melody and leads. The musicianship and songwriting skills of the band are all top-drawer and these 53 minutes speed by in a blur of remarkable Extreme Metal.

This is a very impressive release that is guaranteed to make waves in the Extreme Metal scene. There’s not enough individuality and differentiation in the Death Metal scene, (why fix what largely isn’t broken?), but thankfully Sulphur Aeon have produced an album that builds on all of the strengths of Death Metal and takes the genre further than most.

Essential listening. Go and get this now.

Agnostic Front – The American Dream Died (Review)

If you don’t already know, Agnostic Front come from the US and are Hardcore through and through. This is their eleventh album.

This veteran band keeps going and shows no signs of running out of anger and drive any time soon. In fact, I’d go as far as to say that The American Dream Died is more aggressive than ever.

The songs are short and to the point. Muscles are flexed, doors are kicked in and people are held accountable. This is music with a sense of purpose.

A vaguely Metallic element including the odd guitar solo spices up the Hardcore assault and the tracks are heavy enough to have a strong presence.

Agnostic Front are a band that have always written songs before riffs. Anthems, even. This album is full of them.

Various guests also appear, all of appropriate Hardcore pedigree, but this show is Agnostic Front’s alone.

This is classic, Old-School Hardcore with a modern recording and plenty of teeth. You can’t get more authentic than this.

Music with attitude that delivers the goods.

Dark Circles – MMXIV (Review)

Dark Circles are from Canada and play Hardcore. This is their latest release.

This is dark, violent Hardcore with a D-Beat element.

There’s a tendency at the moment for dark Hardcore bands to have a Blackened influence, (like Flesh Born and Protestant, for example), which I’m all for as it sounds great, and although Dark Circles fit in well with this style, they’re also different; they have a very obvious Punk background that mixes with the Blackened influences to sound warped, disturbed and evil in their own charismatic way.

The best word to describe Dark Circles is hostile. Really, really hostile.

The guitar sound is utterly abrasive and seems sharp and rough enough to do some real damage. On top of this the acid vocals spew all kinds of hatred and venom, so much so that you begin to wonder if the singer is in fact human at all. It’s a visceral display of hostility, (yes, there’s that word again).

There’s a boat-load of aggression here for sure, but it’s not a wild, killing rage; this is focused and tight, and all the more lethal for it.

These songs channel what must be a never-ending rage into coherent and dangerous-sounding songs that have more to them than initially meets the eye. The Blackened, harsh melodies and the angular, piercing riffs don’t just exist to assault the listener; there is method and intent to these tracks, the key to which is the quality songwriting.

Energy, enthusiasm and dynamics are displayed in abundance, and the band know how to pace themselves. They never let up the intensity though, as even in the rarer moments of reflection and almost Post-Metal darkness that they occasionally slip into for short moments, there’s still the rage and hatred, briefly and barely tethered whilst the band collectively get ready to resume their terror strikes once more.

This is almost 26 minutes of state-of-the-art Blackened Hardcore horror. Yes, it’s an essential listen for anyone who likes this kind of thing.

Turn the volume up, turn the lights out and let your anger take over. Dark Circles are here to guide you.

Psycroptic – Psycroptic (Review)

Psycroptic are from Australia and play Technical Death Metal. This is their sixth album.

Psycroptic’s brand of Death Metal is sharp and finely edged, honed to a fine killing point through years of mastercrafted precision and expertise.

As such, they offer us 9 tracks of advanced-level Technical Death Metal over 39 minutes.

They’re not a band to get overly technical at the expense of the song though, as there are plenty of songwriting skills on display here too.

They also know how to write some emotive passages that have a kind of modern Blackened feel to them, almost akin to some of the harder, faster sections that bands like Enslaved do so well.

The vocals are aggressive shouts that also bring in semi-cleans and screams as appropriate. It’s typically the semi-clean parts that are the most emotive and remind most of a Technical Death Metal version of Enslaved, if you can imagine such a thing. Well, imagine no more!

They’ve incorporated a decent amount of variety on this release too, which, alongside the well-composed song structures, stops the album from becoming a one-dimensional blur of technicality.

I love the Progressive Metal elements of these songs, which help impart the feeling of a journey through Hellishly complicated waters with only the band as guides.

The playing is impressive all-round, of course, but I feel compelled to give special mention to the drummer as he puts in an astounding performance, especially for someone with, (presumably), the normal number of limbs.

An exceptionally good album.

Hagl – Lenket til Livet (Review)

Hagl are from Norway and this is their début album. They play Black Metal.

Boasting an album cover that’s creepy, mysterious and threatening, the same can be said of Hagl’s music.

This is Black Metal that’s shrouded in esoteric knowledge and forgotten evils.

Impenetrable vocals that somehow seem excreted rather than vocalised rasp out of the darkness that the music wears like a cloak. Indeed, it creates this darkness and wields it like a weapon.

Atmospheric enhancements and subtle sound additions allow the music to have depth as well as mystery.

Lenket til Livet is somewhat of a cross between Naglfar and Khold, if the former was slowed down and the latter had less groove and more of a Doom vibe.

Enter the world of Hagl and feel the darkness slide across you like a shroud.

Garroter – Identity (Review)

Garroter are a Polish Death Metal band and this is their second album.

This is sharp and tight Death Metal that features a modern style and sound, but not overly so.

The songs feature lots of chug and groove alongside the faster sections. This is a band that has plenty of crunch and knows what to do with it.

Think of a cross between Decapitated and Malevolent Creation with a touch of Cannibal Corpse, Hate Eternal and even Behemoth; this is the Garroter sound, and it sounds pretty good.

The band has a slick, professional production that serves them well. Everything has bite and you can even hear the bass, which is always nice. The band can obviously play and there’s a good amount of technical wizardry on display.

Each song is a muscular collection of riffs that are shredded together into a coherent structure and then handed over to an inhuman monster to growl and roar over.

Their music is very precise, with a fair few objects of interest, atypical ideas and areas of mechanical playfulness strewn throughout these 11 tracks.

If you enjoy your Death Metal rhythmically mechanical like a well-oiled killing machine yet still full of infernal life, then Garroter fit the bill. They’ve created a crunchy, catchy album full of Death Metal devastation.

Listen at full volume.