High on Fire – Electric Messiah (Review)

Electric Messiah - High on FireThis is the eighth album from High on Fire, a US stoner/sludge metal band.

Dark and heavy, Electric Messiah will crush you as soon as you get near it. With thick, weighty grooves and plenty of punishing speed, this is an album of sludgy energy and elemental power.

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Maligner – Attraction to Annihilation (Review)

MalignerMaligner are a Swedish death/thrash metal band and this is their debut album.

On Attraction to Annihilation Maligner offer up 30 minutes of savage death/thrash metal. This is some quality stuff. Continue reading “Maligner – Attraction to Annihilation (Review)”

Arcticcircle – Where Ice Meets Ocean (Review)

ArcticcircleThis is the third album from Arcticcircle, a Canadian metal band.

This is my first encounter with this band. Apparently they have a black/thrash metal background, but this newest album is essentially 25 minutes of something quite different. Think along the lines of an Continue reading “Arcticcircle – Where Ice Meets Ocean (Review)”

Venues – Aspire (Review)

VenuesVenues are a post-hardcore/metalcore band from Germany and this is their debut album.

This is an enjoyable 47 minutes of modern heaviness, with a style that fits somewhere between post-hardcore and metalcore. Continue reading “Venues – Aspire (Review)”

Seven Sisters – The Cauldron and the Cross (Review)

Seven SistersSeven Sisters are a heavy metal band from the UK and this is their second album.

They say you should never judge a record by its cover, (do they say that?), but it was the album cover of The Cauldron and the Cross that made me want to listen to it more than anything else. Continue reading “Seven Sisters – The Cauldron and the Cross (Review)”

Ultra-Violence – Operation Misdirection (Review)

Ultra-ViolenceUltra-Violence are an Italian thrash metal band and this is their third album.

Ultra-Violence play ripping thrash metal, pumped up to the max with a love of extremity and good tunes. Yep, this is fast, sharp, and energetic stuff. Continue reading “Ultra-Violence – Operation Misdirection (Review)”

Redemption – Long Night’s Journey into Day (Review)

RedemptionThis is the seventh album from Redemption, a progressive metal band from the US.

2016’s The Art of Loss was a compelling and engaging listen, skilfully weaving together melodic metal with progressive know-how. Well, a couple of years and a change of singer later, and we have a 66 minutes of new material in the shape of Long Night’s Journey into Day.

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The Lion’s Daughter – Future Cult (Review)

The Lion's DaughterThe Lion’s Daughter are a progressive blackened sludge metal band and this is their third album.

The Lion’s Daughter always seem willing to try out new things, enhancing their core of heavy sludge with all manner of different elements depending on their mood and interests at the time. Thus far, for me their most striking Continue reading “The Lion’s Daughter – Future Cult (Review)”