Refusal are a Finnish death metal band and this is their second album.
Here we have 32 minutes of old-school death metal mixed with elements of grind and hardcore. It’s nasty, savage, and packs a mean punch. Entombed and Napalm Death are your reference points here, along with bands like Rotten Sound, Crawl, and Lik. Continue reading “Refusal – Epitome of Void (Review)”
This is the fourth album from Polish blackened thrashers Bloodthirst.
Blackened thrash metal frequently disappoints me. I think I just expect more than I get, as the mix of black and thrash metal seems to usually end up lacking the power of either. Bloodthirst are different, however, as both Chalice of Contempt and Glorious Sinners demonstrated to me quite effectively. Continue reading “Bloodthirst – I Am Part of That Power Which Eternally Wills Evil and Eternally Works Wrong (Review)”
Boundaries are a metal/hardcore band from the US and this is their latest EP.
Boundaries are heavy. Like, crush your skull into a bloody pulp heavy. Add to this the fact that they can also write a good song, and you have a pretty damn satisfying EP. Continue reading “Boundaries – My Body in Bloom (Review)”
This is the debut album from US black metal band Ringarë.
Featuring a member of Chaos Moon, this project was originally named Ringar and in its original incarnation warped into Chaos Moon itself. Continue reading “Ringarë – Under Pale Moon (Review)”
Vircolac are an Irish death metal band and this is their debut album.
2016’s EP The Cursed Travails of the Demeter was an enjoyable introduction to Vircolac. The band were notable for crafting old-school death metal that focused on atmosphere and feeling, some often neglected aspects of the style. Continue reading “Vircolac – Masque (Review)”
This is the debut album from Holding Absence, a UK modern metal band.
I had no intention of writing about this album. Described as a metalcore album themed around love, it did not push my buttons, I confess. However, I made the mistake of actually listening to the band, and ended up being firmly hooked. Continue reading “Holding Absence – Holding Absence (Review)”
Misery Index are a death metal band from the US and this is their sixth album.
Playing furiously brutal death metal with aspects of grindcore added for savage flavour, Rituals of Power contains 36 minutes of raging aggression. Continue reading “Misery Index – Rituals of Power (Review)”
This is the fourth album from US progressive death metallers Fallujah.
I’ve been waiting for this one. Both 2014’s The Flesh Prevails and 2016’s Dreamless were superb albums, so the bar is set high for Undying Light. A change in singer and loss of a guitarist can potentially be a challenge for a band, but when I saw them live recently it sounded as if Fallujah’s new vocalist had easily made his mark. So now we have the new album in full, how does it all manifest? Continue reading “Fallujah – Undying Light (Review)”
Gorgon are a symphonic death metal band from France and this is their second album.
Symphonic death metal shouldn’t work, and mostly doesn’t. Elegy is different, however.
Imagine Orphaned Land if they were powered by death metal; this is my simplistic, overall Continue reading “Gorgon – Elegy (Review)”
Forged in Black are a UK heavy metal band and this is their second album.
Featuring 48 minutes of material, Descent of the Serpent is well-crafted heavy metal with wide scope. Some elements of thrash are mixed in, for example. Also, occasionally the songs veer into classic doom metal territories in their more atmospheric moments, or sometimes adopt a power metal stance of epic force. Whatever they do this is pure heavy metal goodness all the way. Continue reading “Forged in Black – Descent of the Serpent (Review)”
Wonderbox Metal 