Reviews – Page 526 – Wonderbox Metal

Khemmis – Absolution (Review)

Khemmis are a US Doom Metal band and this is their début album.

Now this is an interesting release. The album cover might lead you to believe that Khemmis are a Traditional Doom Metal band, and although this is certainly a big part of their sound there’s also more going on here than that.

Khemmis combine Traditional Doom Metal with Sludge Metal. This is not a common thing to do and it works much better than you might think.

What does this mean in real terms? Well, it means the ancient Traditional Doom approach is melded together with a heavier, Sludgier sound that’s partially one and partially the other. Imagine a cross between 40 Watt Sun and a cleaner version of Primitive Man.

The vocals also display this duality of Doom purpose; dreamy, traditional clean vocals are occasionally supplemented with deeper growls that seem like they’re about to tear the Earth apart with their ferocity.

I love the way the band manage to take the clean Doom Metal sound, mix it with the dirty Sludge style and come up with a winning combination of the two. This is usually within the same song too. Southern-inspired riffs share space with heavenly cleans, (the singer has a top quality voice), before descending into the pit once more and the Deathgrowls rule the roost for a while.

This is an album that cries out for repeated spins, and repeated spins it gets. In addition to its obvious charms there’s a lot of hidden gold on Absolution.

Extremely highly recommended.

Coffins – Craving to Eternal Slumber (Review)

Coffins are a Death Metal band from Japan and this is their latest EP.

This cult band have returned once more with another 30 minutes of Doom-infused Death Metal that’s pretty much essential listening for anyone who likes their Death Metal grim, Sludgy and heavy as Hell.

Their prolific nature means they already have a number of releases under their belts since 2013’s The Fleshland, and on this new one they continue to refine the style that has made them so revered in Death Metal circles.

Their formula is straightforward enough – take the rotting core of Death Metal, add a Doom/Sludge influence and play everything as heavy as possible. Simple! What they excel in most though is not just this in isolation, but rather the fact that they manage to imbue everything they do with such a nasty, gritty evilness that the music comes alive in malevolent raptures.

The vocals are still as pitch-black as midnight and growl their way from underneath the songs like an ominous shape rising through the waters. The singer has what can only be described as a great Death Metal voice.

Coffins seem to manage to concurrently embody the essence of Death Metal and Doom; Craving to Eternal Slumber lives in both worlds and masters both of them too.

This is a must.

Shrapnel Storm – Mother War (Review)

This is the début album from Finnish Death Metallers Shrapnel Storm.

Ever since I first heard of this band I’ve been looking forward to hearing them as I really like their name.

This is Bolt Thrower-inspired War Metal that lives in the no man’s land between Bolt Thrower, Obituary and Six Feet Under. This is 38 minutes of carnage that carries off the familiar themes with a grim determination.

The formula may be recognisable, but one of the things I like about Mother War is that it has a certain youthful charm and energy about it. Sure, the War Metal sub-genre may be firmly rooted in the Death Metal Old-School, but this is played with such passion and enthusiasm that it seems to jump out at you, weapons in hand and ready to fight.

Although War Metal may not be as commonplace a thing as, say, Swedish Death Metal, it’s still a well-worn sub-genre and if you’ve had your fill of it I imagine you’ll stay away from Shrapnel Storm. This is a shame though, as there is a lot of enjoyment to be had on Mother War and I urge you to give it a try.

The production is solid and the riffs chunky. The singer has a decent growl and everything works together to bring the sounds of the battlefield alive with distortion and pounding drums. It ticks all of the boxes for this kind of music, but as I say; there’s something else here, animating this war-torn corpse with an unholy, unnatural life. Shrapnel Storm have come to make war and I won’t be standing in their way that’s for sure.

Top marks for this, I really enjoyed it.

Palinopsia – Murmurs From the Well Nothing More (Review)

This is the début EP from US Sludge Metal band Palinopsia.

This is dirty great Sludge with a Blackened Doom component and a Hardcore backbone.

The scathing, acidic vocals sound utterly inhuman and are frequently layered upon each other, screaming and shouting for all they’re worth.

The recording is extremely heavy, making the most of Palinopsia’s ugly, downtuned sound. It’s unpolished and teeming with viral life, seemingly writhing with diseased lustre.

Southern Sludge riffs mix with a Blackened influence to result in venomous songs that don’t have any pure intentions at all. The Hardcore backbone of the band gives them an upbeat edge that is as sharp as any blade.

The Black Metal influence works as an undercurrent to each song, spreading darkness as it works deep into the marrow of the guitars. The Hardcore elements allow the band to speed up on occasion, as if the attack hounds are being unleashed once more. All of this is tethered by a swampy Sludge presence that’s as big as it is bold.

They’re not without subtlety or introspection though. It’s not an obvious part of their sound and it doesn’t happen very often, but occasionally the distortion fades and they offer some light along with the shade. It’s a welcome enhancement to their music and when the guitars roar up again it sounds heavier than ever.

This kind of nasty Sludge is always an enjoyable hate-fest. Turn up the volume and tear down the house.

Expenzer – Kill the Conductor (Review)

Expenzer are a Swiss Metal band and this is their début album.

This is modern Thrash Metal with a sound that’s somewhere between Darkane, Dew Scented and The Haunted. Indeed, the final song is a The Haunted cover.

The songs are well written and done in the classic verse-chorus style. This makes for easily digested Thrash songs that are quite catchy.

The songs are riff-heavy and are full of shredding licks, leads and solos. It’s mainly a heavy assault, but the band do insert the odd touch of melody here and there. They don’t do this often, so it’s noticeable when they do.

Kill the Conductor has a tight production, with all instruments sounding good. The drums pound away and the guitars rage and crunch. The solos have a fluid, flowing feel, which is something I always enjoy.

This is a decent Thrash Metal album that has a workman-like ethic of just getting down to it; no nonsense, no frills. The style works in their favour and Kill the Conductor is 49 minutes of gratifying Metal.

Sanzu – Painless (Review)

Sanzu are an Australian Death Metal band and this is their début EP.

This is Progressive Death Metal with a modern slant – kind of like a more extreme Gojira; Gojira mixed with Morbid Angel would be a good starting descriptor.

The grooves and heavy rhythms are immediate and effective, but there is more than meets the eye here and subsequent spins reveal deeper layers to the songs.

The meaty guitars pummel and destroy and the production on this release is absolutely immense. With this recording they could be playing anything and they’d still demolish buildings. As it is, combined with these huge, monstrous riffs they seem to peel off with wild abandon, Sanzu sound unstoppable.

They have the songs to back this up though, otherwise it would be all sonic carnage but no longevity. Gojira have such a distinctive sound that it’s easy for any band that even comes close to their style to sound like a rip off; although Sanzu are clearly influenced by Gojira they avoid sounding too much like them due to the more aggressive delivery and the other Death Metal influences in Sanzu’s sound.

Well. Listening to this for the first time on a Sunday morning I can faithfully report that it blew all of the early-morning cobwebs away and left me feeling energised. This is an EP that bears repeated listens though, as the first time around it’s all too easy to get fixated on the colossal guitars and miss a lot of the other stuff that’s going on.

If this is just their début EP, what’s next for Sanzu? For their first album I hope for the same huge sound and a further development of their Progressive Metal side, while still keeping the Death Metal brutality. If they can pull this off then we may just have a modern masterpiece on our hands.

Until then we have Painless. It is enough. For now.

A must listen.

Starless Night – Lost in Life’s Endless Maze (Review)

Starless Night are a Black Metal band from the US. This is their second album.

This is Depressive Black Metal that is a little less Shoegaze than a lot of bands of this ilk and a little more aggressive instead. It’s a depressive aggression, filled with negativity and woe, but aggression nonetheless.

The songs are long and the melodies grim. Starless Night are not filled with hope it seems.

The vocals are Blackened screams that sound like the singer is gargling acid. They fit nicely with the venomous interpretation of the Depressive Black Metal style and seem to cut through the music like serrated bile.

Added to this, very occasionally, are some clean vocals that are far more angelic and despondent in nature. These counteract some of the poisonous effects of the main vocals and switch emphasis to the woeful nature of the main theme once again.

The drums blast or double-bass roll their way through the playing time and the guitars unleash their razor-sharp melodies on a bitter, bleak world. One of the things I really like about this release is that Starless Night are just more stinging and evil sounding than most Depressive Black Metal bands. The misery and anguish is here in spades, but it’s barbed and dangerous to approach.

Lighter and Ambient/Drone sections are also incorporated into their sound; this allows the band to draw out every last drop of grief while also allowing the distorted parts to sound heavier and more powerful by comparison.

The music is a long, drawn-out journey through Blackened upset and vicious sorrow. It tugs at the heart while simultaneously slashing at it with fiery claws. Ultimately though the listener emerges, better for the experience, drowned in negativity but enriched by sadness.

Check this out.

Grieving Mirth – Calamitosvs Omine (Review)

Grieving Mirth are an Atmospheric Black Metal band with a multinational lineup. This is their début EP.

This is Black Metal that has speed and melody, neither of which are the main focus for the band though; this comes, instead, from the creation of dark atmospheres.

Even given that though, there is still bite here and the band manage to inject a certain savagery into the proceedings, even given the non-aggressive emphasis of the main themes.

It’s this inclusion of faster and harsher influences into the Atmospheric Black Metal style that marks Calamitovs Omine as separate from similar releases in the sub-genre as it combines these dark moods and atmospheres with an aggressive core that does its Blackened heritage justice.

The vocals have an innate power to them and there’s strength in these vocalisations that flows into the music and vice versa, working together to provide a foundation of muscle onto which the softer, traditionally more brittle, fragile elements of Atmospheric Black Metal are woven.

The songs take the listener into grim, foreboding places and illuminates them with a light that has real presence and force. Also included are a few nods towards Post-Black Metal, and even some clean vocals; both elements are skilfully incorporated into the whole.

This is a charismatic and impressive first release from a clearly talented band. Check them out and give them a listen.

The Big Jazz Duo – Enemy (Review)

The Big Jazz Duo arre from Italy and this is their début album.

Looking at the album cover and knowing the band’s name, you’d probably never guess that they play Death Metal. But they do; Experimental/Atmospheric Death Metal/Deathcore.

This is sickeningly heavy with grooves and breakdowns aplenty. Speed and brutality are also present, as are pignoise vocals and scathing screams.

There’s a Djent aspect to their sound too, which seems to go hand-in-hand with a lot of Deathcore.

The band also include orchestral interludes, atmospheric sections and the like in their sound, which immediately makes them more interesting and raises their game.

Deathcore and Djent are two sub-genres that can get very stale, very quickly, if not handled well. The Big Jazz Duo avoid this trap by mixing these up with more traditional Death Metal and a melodic edge, as well as the more experimental aspects of their sound.

The songs are well written and the band understand the need for dynamics and pacing. A very polished and strong production rounds off the package and ensures that the songs have the best chance to shine.

These songs may be largely quite short but they’re packed to the rafters with goodies. Heavy groove, blasting carnage and atmosphere all merge together to create a listening experience that, in all honestly, makes me really fucking happy. I can always tell when I’m getting into an album when I start spontaneously bouncing along to it without realising. As you do.

If you imagine a cross between The Black Dahlia Murder, All Shall Perish and Xehanort then you’ll be on the right lines.

So, Brutal Death Metal, Djent, Deathcore, melody, atmosphere, orchestration…all in 31 minutes and all very well-written? I’m sold!

An extremely impressive album, especially considering the oft-dreaded Deathcore/Djent aspects of their sound.

Very highly recommended.

The Vintage Warlords – The Invisible Foe (Review)

The Vintage Warlords are a Doom/Death Metal band from the US and this is their début EP.

The Vintage Warlords play old, ancient Death Metal that’s slowly consuming the rotten husk of Doom.

The band’s sound is cavernous and heavy, yet a lot cleaner than I was expecting for this style. It’s Old-School and Doom-laden but a lot more polished than is usually the way for some similar bands.

The professional veneer of the music carries over to the vocals too; the singer has a tight, focused growl that is more like a surgical slaughter than a shotgun message. It’s a really satisfying voice and he uses it well.

The songs merge the best parts of Death Metal’s songmanship and Doom’s cranky demeanour. As such, slower parts vie for place with groovier sections and there’s enough rhythmic mayhem here to get the listener bouncing around quite nicely.

The Vintage Warlords are adept songwriters and there are plenty of good ideas on these three tracks. Each song has its own identity and the band capitalise on this well.

I’ve really enjoyed this release. If they can translate this success into a full-length then it’ll be a real treat.