Reviews – Page 564 – Wonderbox Metal

Stormnatt – Omega Therion (Review)

This is the third album from Austrian Black Metallers Stormnatt.

Stormnatt immediately score points by not messing around with pointless intros; first song Ascension of the Scarlet Angel gets straight down to business and introduces the band with their fast and atmospheric style of Black Metal.

Influenced by the second wave of Black Metal, we have plenty of darkly melodic riffs and more evocative guitar parts than you can shake a stick at. The guitars are the foremost feature of Omega Therion for me as they carry the songs along on waves of darkness and have a warmer than average sound for Black Metal. Like liquefied crushed velvet.

The riffs are even quite varied on occasion; everything from the standard Darkthrone-template-riffs, to a touch of Blackened Thrash to Blackened Trad Metal to Blackened Doom Metal…it’s all here. The key word is Blackened, of course, as everything sounds as Black as night and twice as evil. This works wonders for the songs as it keeps things interesting. The band know their chosen style and know it well, but these added variations on the theme help keep things fresh and the listener engaged.

Works for me. This is an album I’ve really enjoyed.

This is not experimental, or avant garde, or pushing new boundaries, or whatever; this is Black Metal done with purity and strength of purpose. Backing this up you have songs that are comprised of emotive riffing and a singer who knows how to rasp a good performance. This is Black Metal done well and done right.

At just under 40 minutes in length this is a storm of night and blackness that it’s easy to find yourself lost in.

Listen to Stormnatt.

Haate – As The Moon Painted Her Grief (Review)

Hailing from Italy, Haate is a one-man project playing Dark Ambient music.

I must confess to being naturally suspicious of releases of this nature as so often they can be excuses for basically doing nothing for minutes on end and I just get bored. However, when done right such as with the latest by Wolves in the Throne Room it can be very good indeed.

Haate immediately impress by actually having changes and progression in the tracks. There are three long songs here, (34 minutes in total), and even a few minutes into the first song there’s a fair bit going on.

Haate specialises in dark atmospheres and gloomy introspection. It’s like someone has really paid attention to all of those musical proto-Classical interludes/intros on 90’s Black Metal albums and decided to create a full album out of it all. This is merely an observation, however, not a criticism, as the resulting work is surprisingly, (to me), good.

There’s a fair bit of substance here, and we even get some low-in-the-mix Black Metal vocals and blastbeats. This is most unexpected but most welcome.

In addition to the synths and keyboards there are other, quasi-industrial sounds and noises accompanying proceedings and these add a level of darkness to the textured music. It sometimes gives the impression of inorganic breathing, which is a vaguely unsettling sound and really enhances the songs.

I’m impressed with this. Cynically I didn’t think it would be very enjoyable and I’m very pleased that I’m wrong. And do you know what? The more I listen to it the more I like it. It’s shockingly good.

For Black Metal fans who don’t always need the Metal part.

Atara/Miserable Failure – Hang Them Split (Review)

This is a split between French Grindcore bands Miserable Failure and Atara.

Atara are up first and they give us 6 tracks of Punk and groove influenced Grind.

These are enjoyable short, sharp adrenaline shots of modern Grind with Punk attitude and a touch of Nasum added in.

The singer is particularly acerbic and he heads the tracks here like the focal point of devastation.

Scathing vocals and a rounded, heavy sound that’s not overproduced means that the band shine filthily and so do the songs. Top work by Atara.

We’ve met Miserable Failure before with their last EP Hope. They continue to impress here with 8 tracks of furious Grind that mix the best of the extreme nature of Grindcore with the violence of modern Hardcore.

The utterly demented vocals are present and the music sounds just as unhinged. Slabs of distortion that pass themselves off as riffs crash into your skull and before you know it you’re left wondering what the hell just happened. And then, without warning, Miserable Failure loom in suddenly for the killing blow.

There’s no reason at all you shouldn’t get this. None whatsoever.

Slaughterday – Ravenous (Review)

Slaughterday are a German Death Metal band and this is their latest EP.

After thoroughly enjoying their début album Nightmare Vortex I was looking forward to listening to this.

This EP is 4 tracks long and features 19 minutes of music; 3 originals and a cover of an Acheron song.

Slaughterday play Death Metal that’s brutal, heavy and has a firm Old-School influence to it.

The band are on fine form here with the music sounding as crushing as ever. The vocals also sound particularly savage when the guttural deep growls are twinned with the higher screams. Pulse-raising stuff.

When they slow the pace Slaughterday manage to foster a real air of menace with their crawling, oppressively heavy delivery.

The songs are well-written, memorable and played proficiently. Some nice solos make an appearance too. The riffs are nicely done and there are some choice cuts amongst these tracks.

One thing I like about Slaughterday is their ability to combine a good vocal rhythm with a perfectly matched mid-paced riff. In themselves each of these things is a desirable result, but combined together the effect is greater than the whole. They did this to great effect on their début album and judging by the tracks on Ravenous this is something that they are getting even better at doing.

A very strong EP that builds on the hard work done with their début album and promises good things for their next.

Don’t miss this.

John Gallow – Violet Dreams (Review)

John Gallow is from the US and this is an album of Doom Metal.

This is a Doom Metal album that’s full of Doom and has lots of Doom Metal in it. The Doom is strong and the Doom is heavy, with lots of Doom Metal making an appearance and a liberal Doom sprinkling of Doom on the Doom side.

This Doom album is of the Traditional Doom variety with Classic Doom and Old-School Doom also being represented. Black Doom Sabbath are a good Doom starting point as well as other Doom members of the Doom pantheon used as Doom influences.

Doom. Doom. Doom.

Okay, enough of that. You get the idea.

There is just over an hour of music on this album and it’s a pleasure to listen to. The man has a powerful voice and the music has a good amount of variation and interest to it.

The riffs are good, the melodies bold and memorable and the production punchy and crisp. The songs are well-written and there are plenty of interludes, solos, leads, keys, effects and even bass shenanigans to keep the listener enthralled.

John Gallow has produced an album that manages to encapsulate all of what it means to be Traditional Doom Metal whilst managing to actually sound current and relevant at the same time. It may be resolutely Old-School in source material but this is an album that can stand proud in the 21st century as a exemplar of how this kind of music should sound.

Hail!

Inexorable – Morte Sola (Review)

This is the latest EP from German Technical Death Metal band Inexorable.

It starts with Doom. First track, Praeludium Mortis, is 2:39 of slow, agonising crawling through broken glass and razor shards. It sets the scene perfectly for Inexorable’s brand of impenetrable Black Metal-tinged assault.

This is no normal Death Metal. This is for fans of Gorguts, Portal, Mayhem, Axis of Perdition, etc. – bands that are interested in pushing the boundaries of traditional genre restrictions and will do so in their own way. If Mayhem went Death Metal, Inexorable might be what they sounded like.

The riffs congeal together to produce dark, murky feelings and the guitar lines almost seem alive with malignant presence.

Vocals are kind of an ethereal growl that reside half in our reality and half in some other, twisted dimension; or sometimes a plaintive semi-clean sung from the depths of a churning abyss. Either way they are not the standard for this kind of music, with the semi-cleans in particular coming across strongly.

The songs, and the EP in general, is a holistic experience; a nightmare reality to visit but hopefully to escape from at the end. Sometimes bands which attempt music like this can come across as unfocused or messy, but I’m pleased to say this is not the case with Inexorable.

Throughout all of the evil, grim sounds and communing with other realities is a firm foundation in, (atypical), Death Metal. This serves them well and keeps them grounded whereas they might otherwise carried away by the dark and lost to us forever.

This is not music for the weak hearted. If you can stomach it, however, there are some evil delights to be had here.

Very highly recommended.

Collision/The Rotted – Split (Review)

Collision are a Grindcore band from the Netherlands and The Rotted are a Crust-influenced Death Metal band from the UK.

This is a short split at just over 6 minutes in length that shows off what both bands can do, so let’s see what we have here.

Collision have two songs. The sound is raw and brutal, with serrated vocals screaming and shouting out over speedy Grind. Both tracks are a fast and furious blend of Hardcore-influenced Grind and angry outbursts.

Both are good songs that have plenty of blastbeats mixed with moments of heavier restraint. The riffs are solid and the band seem to be having a blast.

I’m sold. Bring on The Rotted!

After Collision’s barrage of ferocity The Rotted pound out Rotted Fucking Earth which is a d-beat Punk-esque song with a good sound.

It has a drunken swagger and an aggressive temperament; it’s probably not something you want to mess with.

Simple-but-effective songwriting is powered by decent riffs and pure attitude. As Metal songs go it’s a veritable anthem.

Short but oh so sweet, this is a worthy split to add to your collection.

Azooma – A Hymn Of The Vicious Monster (Review)

Azooma are from Iran and play Death Metal.

A nice acoustic intro starts us off, shortly followed by the opening track Self-Infected. It’s immediately apparent that the band can play well, and also that the type of Death Metal they play is non-standard.

Azooma play Progressive Death Metal with Technical Death Metal clearly playing a role, but rather than the schizophrenic complex-for-the-sake-of-it route that a lot of Technical Death Metal goes down, Azooma have chosen the arguably more interesting Progressive Death Metal route. This means more coherent song structures and more emphasis on the song itself and its accompanying feelings and moods. With this in mind A Hymn Of The Vicious Monster is a roaring success.

Think old-Opeth if they were more Death Metal. Think Gorguts and Death mixed together in a Progressive Metal melange. Tasty.

As mentioned; the musicianship is top-notch, which even includes a noticeable bass. The band proficiently play Death Metal, Progressive Metal, acoustics, Jazz-style interludes, and essentially everything else with pure class.

The vocals are deep and satisfying and the band even find space in their expansive songs to include a couple of low-key cleans that enhance proceedings on a couple of occasions.

A strong sound and production rounds of the package and Azooma have a winner on their hands here.

This is a supremely impressive release and one that you should definitely get if you’re even remotely interesting in challenging, stand-out music.

Astral Winter – Perdition (Review)

Astral Winter are an Australian Black Metal band and this is their second album.

But not this time; normally Astral Winter is Melodic Black Metal, but for this album things have taken an ambient turn and this release is all about dark soundscapes and sombre melancholy.

These tracks are mournful, droning, slow and relaxed. Light guitars, effects, keyboards, piano, strings and all manner of other instruments and sounds make appearances on this impressive album.

The songs presented here are wonderfully emotive and filled with feelings of darkness and hope intermingled. This is not a miserable album, this is one of darkened allure and ambitious scope.

Although this is an album of 8 tracks it could just as easily have been one long song as the tracks flow into each other and the entire album is a night-time journey into the mysterious and sublime.

Normally when bands take left-tuns like this it’s usually a misstep, but this is the work of a talented musician. This is a quality release by someone who knows what Neo-Classical should sound like and how it must progress and remain interesting to not bore the listener.

The sky at night has been shaped into an album of reflective beauty.

Get this.

Unisonic – Light of Dawn (Review)

Unisonic are from Germany and this is their second album. They play Power Metal.

Confident and mature Power Metal floods the speakers when you play this album. It’s the product of absolute veterans who know their genre and know their roles. Even more importantly, however, they also know how to write good songs.

This is the kind of Power Metal that’s distinctly European in flavour and is powered by upbeat drums and high vocals provided by Michael Kiske of Helloween/etc. fame, no less. Also featuring other past members of bands such as Helloween, Gamma Ray, Pink Cream 69 and Krokus; you can see the calibre of the people involved in this project.

The vocals, as would be expected, are typically professional and flawlessly delivered. The choruses soar. The musicianship, also as would be expected, is tight and proficient. The sound is professional and slick, and nothing is left to chance.

For the most part the songs are in the 5 minute mark, with each track feeling like an epic-in-miniature. These are rocking, catchy tunes with highly memorable sections and hooks aplenty. In their competent hands, even the dreaded “power ballads”, (Blood, You and I), are handled well.

This is an album of greater depth than some might credit it with; on first listen it’s obviously highly accomplished and very good, but the more you listen the more the melodies seep into your consciousness and the more you want to listen to it. It’s downright addictive! The vocals in particular are deceptive. Michael Kiske is known for his exceptional voice of course, and Light of Dawn is no different, but the impressive thing is that there’s no showboating or ostentation with his voice; his talent is born from simply being a great singer and having a voice that flows smoothly like the finest wine.

Light of Dawn is an exemplar of the European Power Metal style. There are no surprises here but if you’re a fan of European Power Metal then there’s a wealth of treasure contained in this album.

This is a band destined to do well.