Metal – Page 98 – Wonderbox Metal

Shadow Host – Apocalyptic Symphony (Review)

This is the latest album from Russian veteran Thrash Metallers Shadow Host.

The album has a good, chunky sound and everything is clear, crisp, crunchy and very Metal.

This is mainly melodic Thrash with a riff-heavy sensibility, although there is the odd splash of Power Metal in the mix as well. They also have a nice selection of solos scattered across the 10 tracks, which is always a bonus.

Shadow Host concentrate their songwriting powers on hooks and catchiness, meaning that we get songs that stick in the brain and make you want to pound your fist and shout along.

A perfectly enjoyable romp through the Thrash Metal glory days via a modern crunchy sound and production. Shadow Host have written an album they can be proud of. Give them a listen.

Epistasis – Light Through Dead Glass (Review)

Epistasis are a US band that play experimental Metal.

It’s relatively hard to classify; combining elements of Black Metal, Hardcore and Progressive Metal. With a trumpet.

Let me see…if you take the urban decay and atmospheric barrage of a band like Red Harvest, mix in the experimental extremity from some of Converge’s work and add splashes of Ephel Duath you’ll be on the right lines. Add to that a singer who screams with the best of the Black Metal/Scream-core elite and you’ll have a package for a very interesting and gratifying release.

There is a lot going on in these songs and although they have brutality and intensity in spades they also offer a whole lot more than that. When they want to they can be very atmospheric and create darkened moods ripe with promise of arcane fulfilment, if only the price is right of course.

The use of the trumpet is inspired and is nowhere near as intrusive and incongruous as you might expect; its contributions are relatively subtle and work wonders in adding a further layer to their labyrinthine sound.

Unfortunately this release is only 26 minutes long, which is a shame as the band clearly have a lot to offer. However what they do give us as exceptional and worthy of repeat listens.

Individual and distinctive. Highly recommended.

Rotengeist – Start to Exterminate (Review)

Rotengeist are from Poland and play Thrash Metal.

The band have a good, strong sound that they use to launch their Thrash attack from. I also quite like the album cover.

This is heavy, aggressive Thrash with almost a Progressive edge to some of the songs. This additional penchant for melodic and interesting instrumentation scattered across the album pushes the band above the average, and is definitely something I would be keen to see the band develop and build on for future releases.

The vocalist’s voice is pitched somewhere between singing and shouting, almost like the singer of Testament on occasion.

The instruments are well played and the riffs and licks are endless. You can hear the bass and it makes an above-average contribution to the songs rather than just following the guitar at all times. They have some good solos on offer as well.

A strong album that is a bit of a grower, as all good albums are.

Junkyard Lipstick – The Butcher’s Delight (Review)

Junkyard Lipstick are from South Africa and play Thrash Metal.

The band have some quality Old-School Thrash riffs in their repertoire and know how to use them.

The vocals are similarly Old-School, with good melodies and lots of character. Her voice reminds me of a female version of the Agent Steel and Pagan’s Mind singers somehow mixed together. Add to this the odd raspier L7 moment and you have a voice laden with personality. Vocal experimentation rears its head on occasion though, especially on House of the Holy and when it does it’s just wonderful; she can do more than just rasp for sure.

The songs are short and the band wear their their Metallica/Anthrax influences on their denim sleeves.

The combination of youthfully exuberant vocals and passionate Thrash hero-worship means this short EP is very infectious. As I listen to it I can’t help but feel my heart filling with Metal and the urge to mosh along rising.

Check them out and give them your support.

Favourite Track: House of the Holy.

Lucifer’s Hammer – Night Sacrifice (Demo MMXII) (Review)

Chilean band Lucifer’s Hammer have released this EP/Demo full of Traditional/Classic Heavy Metal.

First thing I want to note is the excellent cover – simple and effective. Love it.

As for the music? One could almost apply the same terms to it. This is resolutely Old-School Classic Heavy Metal, taking cues from Iron Maiden and Judas Priest.

For a demo the sound is not that bad, although they could certainly benefit from a slightly better recording. The songs work however, regardless of this.

Each track is straightforward and has enough catch and hook to be enjoyable. The vocalist sings with gusto and appears to have gotten the Old-School Metal attitude and harmonies exactly right. He lives up to the images of his idols well, as do the band as a whole.

It will be interesting to see how they develop when they eventually put out a full length album. Time to keep an eye on this band I feel.

Hounds of Annwn – Stirling (Review)

Hounds of Annwn are from the US and play Folk Metal.

This is chirpy, Folk inspired Metal that uses plenty of non-standard instrumentation to bring the themes and images that it wants to portray to life.

The vocals are clean, clear and nicely done. The singer’s voice is restrained and laid back but has depth and power readily available when needed. He has talent in abundance and is one of the main highlights of this release for me.

There are only two songs on this EP but it’s still a meaty 14:43 of music to get your teeth into. The songs are catchy and well written, as well as being high energy and with a lot going on. To my ear they come across as a kind of mixture of Primordial and Korpiklaani and it works really well.

A really enjoyable couple of songs. Hopefully the’re building up to a full album; if they can keep up the standards set on this EP then it should be something good.

Enfeeble – Encapsulate This Moment (Review)

Enfeeble are from Germany and play Melodic Metal mixed with a more modern Metalcore style and a good helping of Heavy Metal.

The first thing I notice is how varied the vocals are; there are high shrieks, hardcore-style chanting, deeper shouts, grunts and clean singing.

The music is proficiently played, with the guitarist clearly knowing his way around the fretboard. There are lots of slick riffs and Melodic Metalcore standards in place, as well as mixing in more of a Classic Metal approach on some songs, (Flashedever, for example), although in typical Enfeeble fashion they mix this up with some modern heaviosity.

I enjoy how the songs are written. They mainly use elements of modern Metal, Melodic Death Metal and Metalcore, genres which have high-transferability, but you are never quite sure which bit of which of the genres they are going to ransack for the next part of the song. It’s a fun journey of discovery, but once you do know what’s coming next you are thankfully still left with something of substance as the tracks are enjoyable riff-alongs in their own right.

This is essentially a band that values variety a bit more than the average one-genre group, and by-and-large they manage to pull this off with flair and remain coherent.

An enjoyable release that combines a few different permutations of modern Metal to create an enjoyable album that may Encapsulate This Moment but also pays fealty to the past. Have a listen.

Fossils – Flesh Hammer (Review)

Fossils are a two-piece drum/bass combo from Denmark that play instrumental Punk/Metal.

Flesh Hammer is the sound of controlled aggression and groovy tunes.

The bass has such a heavy, electronic quality to it that it’s almost like listening to a heavily distorted arcade game – and I say that purely as a compliment.

This is a short release at only 20 minutes, but this is all that’s needed when the creativity and imagination of the band is channelled so specifically into creating instrumental pieces that pile on the rhythm and heaviness. It just doesn’t have time to get dull.

An interesting and strangely addictive diversion from the well-trodden paths of the standard Metal music walkways; this will make a worthwhile addition to anyone’s collection.

InfiNight – The Vision (Review)

Here we have a gem of a Power Metal release from Germany – InfiNight have released a Rockingly good EP of solid Metal.

Containing 5 tracks and 3 actual songs, (2 interludes), their brand of Power Metal is based not on histrionic vocals or flashy music, but rather it’s all about creating a good song and a catchy hook.

Hideaway is the first song and it’s a corker! A quality Metal song; it’s melodic and catchy with infections riffs. The singer has a voice that’s on top form and he knows when to hold back and when to let loose.

A Loss of Love has more of a restrained opening than the first song, but not to its detriment. Once again it’s incredibly catchy and very well written. The vocals really lift an already good song into almost chart-topping territory.

Final track The Vision sees the band up the tempo and take on almost a Thrash aspect.

Based on this EP InfiNight should be bigger than they are. Much bigger. This EP is an absolute cracker and is 13 minutes well spent for any Metal fan.

Burning Shadows – Gather, Darkness! (Review)

Coming from the US Burning Shadows treat us to 45 minutes of Power Metal.

This is a concept album, (which could probably be gathered from the sub-sectioned song titles alone), and the rather excellent album cover sets the scene perfectly.

The first song Overture – Hymn to Sathanas is all orchestration and builds up to some nice martial pomp that gets the blood pumping and the juices flowing.

After this we’re off into the land of Power Metal for A Thousand Lies – A New Dark Age. The start of this song is nicely written and at this point I remember thinking “so far so good, I just hope it’s not all ruined by a substandard singer”; the idea, of course, that quality music deserves quality vocals, and as I’ve opined about previously the weakest link in Power Metal for me is usually just that – substandard vocals.

When the singer of Burning Shadows does make an entrance I was relieved as it wasn’t the average vocals I was fearing and impressed that he’s also quite different to what I was expecting. He’s more restrained than a lot of Power Metal vocalists, and not as high pitched. Even when really going all out he’s still in control of his voice. It’s refreshing to hear and it makes for a better experience than another band simply fronted by Mr. High-Pitched-Generic-Vocalist-Person.

The music follows the concept and creates a suitable narrative of the story the band wish to tell. The songs combine elements of Power Metal and traditional Heavy Metal and are wonderfully composed. You feel part of the action and it’s easy to get swept away with the passion and excitement the songs elicit.

Everything here is well written, well recorded and well played. Burning Shadows have been an eye opener for me and I’m so happy that there are still bands out there who are doing this kind of music so brilliantly.

One of the best Power Metal albums to darken my door in a long time. Don’t miss this.