January 2022 – Page 4 – Wonderbox Metal

Wiegedood – There’s Always Blood at the End of the Road (Review)

Wiegedood are a Belgian black metal band and this is their fourth album.

Featuring current and ex-members of Living Gate, Amenra, and Oathbreaker, There’s Always Blood at the End of the Road features 44 minutes of new material. I really, really liked 2017’s De Doden Hebben Het Goed II, so I was looking forward to this new one, (apparently there was also an album after this from 2018, which I somehow managed to miss out on). As we’ll see below though, the Wiegedood of 2022 is a different beast to the one I knew. Since I last heard them Wiegedood’s sound has changed, and they have now become more extreme and more idiosyncratic. Continue reading “Wiegedood – There’s Always Blood at the End of the Road (Review)”

Enterprise Earth – The Chosen (Review)

This is the fourth album from US metal/deathcore band Enterprise Earth.

Enterprise Earth walk a line between modern death metal, deathcore, and metalcore, and on The Chosen the band deliver a whopping 71 minutes of meaty material for listeners to get their teeth into. Continue reading “Enterprise Earth – The Chosen (Review)”

Worm Shepherd – Ritual Hymns (Review)

Worm Shepherd are a blackened deathcore band and this is their second album.

It’s been less than a year since 2021’s In the Wake of Sol, but here we are already with another Worm Shepherd album. Not that I’m complaining, as that album was a solid slab of blackened atmosphere and crushing deathcore heaviness. Continue reading “Worm Shepherd – Ritual Hymns (Review)”

Mizmor (מזמור) – Wit’s End (Review)

This is the latest EP from US solo blackened doom band Mizmor, or מזמור.

This new 29-minute EP contains just two big tracks. The release combines blackened doom with drone and ambient, resulting in tortured dark landscapes that are paradoxically not without beauty or light. Continue reading “Mizmor (מזמור) – Wit’s End (Review)”

Apes – Lullabies for Eternal Sleep (Review)

Apes are a grindcore/hardcore band from Canada and this is their latest EP.

I really liked 2017’s Lightless, and I can’t quite believe it’s been so long since it came out. Lullabies for Eternal Sleep is well-received by yours truly, and I hope there’s even more where this came from, lurking in some underground bunker somewhere, ready to explode into the world. Continue reading “Apes – Lullabies for Eternal Sleep (Review)”

Oar – The Blood You Crave (Review)

This is the debut album from Australian post-black metallers Oar.

Oar’s brand of post-black metal is expressive and dark. There is a sizeable doom influence, which is great to hear and works really well in the band’s blackened context. Elements of blackgaze and hardcore can also be heard, and these succeed in broadening the palette with which Oar paint their soundscapes. Continue reading “Oar – The Blood You Crave (Review)”

Necrophagous – In Chaos Ascend (Review)

This is the debut album from Necrophagous, a death metal band from Sweden.

Featuring ex-members of Visceral Bleeding and Entrails, In Chaos Ascend contains 45 minutes of groove-laden, blast beat-driven timeless death metal.

The promo blurb compares Necrophagous’ sound to a combination of the above two bands, along with Continue reading “Necrophagous – In Chaos Ascend (Review)”

Wilderun – Epigone (Review)

This is the fourth album from Wilderun, a progressive metal band from the US.

Wilderun play progressive metal with elements of death and symphonic metal, and touches of folk. This simple description does little to fully describe how good Wilderun are at weaving these various influences together on Epigone. Continue reading “Wilderun – Epigone (Review)”

Akelei – Een Van Ons (Review)

This is the latest EP from Akelei, a doom metal band from The Netherlands.

Although billed as an EP, and despite the fact that there’s only three tracks here, this is actually a 37-minute release – longer than some albums. This is the the band’s first release in 11 years, and I really hope they don’t leave it as long as that until the next one comes out, as this is exceptional. Continue reading “Akelei – Een Van Ons (Review)”