Imagine a band like Mastodon had gone full on Stoner Metal and you’ll have the right idea. Sioux inhabit this special place, where the foundations of Stoner are laced with exquisite vocal melodies and spikes of aggression to create wonderfully enjoyable songs full of pace, dynamics and life.
Each of these tracks sparkles with an inner light that comes from a core of pure molten Metal, distilled though layers of desert Rock.
The vocals are reminiscent of Mastodon in places, as mentioned, but never in a plagiarised way; merely a shared debt to captivating melody and depth of voice.
All of the six songs that make up this 28 minute release are well written and hold attention easily. The band have lots of ideas and the talent to back it up with hooks and powerful arrangements.
This is the second album from US group Fisthammer, who must surely have one of the best names ever.
Fisthammer deliver us Death Metal with a lot of different influences at play throughout the 10 tracks on this album.
Sometimes it’s a bit of a Blackened influence on some of the riffs; sometimes they play something from the Technical Death Metal genre; sometimes they have a Progressive tendency; sometimes an Old-School vibe creeps into proceedings; sometimes a melodic section uplifts and inspires; sometimes a furiously modern breakdown/riff rears its head; sometimes an acoustic/softer passage relaxes things…I could go on but suffice to say Fisthammer are no one-trick pony.
All of these diverse elements are woven around a thoroughly brutal Death Metal core and swathed in a filthy yet powerful production and drenched in unholy blasphemy. Such a range of ideas and quirks could lead to a lesser band sounding a bit sloppy or unnatural, but Fisthammer give a coherent performance throughout and consistently deliver exceptional songs.
And exceptional songs they are – there are simply so many highlights it’s just silly. It’s hard to identify a favourite, although at this precise moment, (and it changes quite frequently), I favour Automation of Flesh as it’s just got an absolutely amazing riff in it. Listen to it. You’ll know the one I’m talking about.
Calling your album Infallible is a risk in some ways, as it opens up the band to easy attack had they released something sub-par. However, as they have released what will probably be referred to as a Death Metal classic in years to come, it instead gives people like me an easy way to compliment the band. Yes; this album is Infallible in both name and nature.
Overall this is inventive, interesting and basically incredible.
This is the third album from Swiss Death Metallers Near Death Condition.
This is very brutal and very heavy, just as we like it. Coming across as a mix of Hate Eternal, Immolation, Behemoth and Morbid Angel; Near Death Condition have all the essential ingredients of a very filling and very tasty meal.
The vocalist is the proverbial icing on the cake. Whether he is growling or screaming his voice is immense and immediately engaging.
The songs are ultra-brutal with the blast beats played to precision and the guitars aiming to utterly destroy. They have lots of slower riffs that speak of an Immolation/Morbid Angel influence of slightly unusual structures that work very well. The band also throw in some more restrained sections with solos and even a bit of Behemoth-style orchestration here and there.
Near Death Condition offer us the complete package and Evolving Towards Extinction is the kind of album any Death Metal fan should relish getting their teeth into.
Pilgrim play Doom Metal and come from the US. As the name suggests, this is their second album.
The band play a classic form of Black Sabbath-inspired Doom Metal that has a vaguely retro feel, but not overly so like some bands of this ilk.
Pilgrim have an epic feeling to their songs, but not in the same way that Power Metal can be epic, or Black Metal can be; this is more in the form of a terrible majesty and awesome horror, frightening but enlightening to behold. The tracks definitely have that otherworldly feeling.
The vocals are highly accomplished and are stronger than the average for this kind of band; the singer has range, depth and nuance.
The second song Master’s Chamber is the longest and my favourite of the 8 tracks on offer. It is slow and steady; a winding collection of gargantuan riffage that could move mountains with its heaviosity and burn heavens with its occult aura. This isn’t merely Doom, but DOOOOOOOM!
It’s important enough to say again.
DOOOOOOOM!
That’s better.
This album’s a bit of a belter really, the kind of album where the riffs suck you in, slooowly chew you up and slooowly spit you out. Slow isn’t their only speed and they know when to raise the tempo and rock out a bit when the mood is right. And you’d better get out of their way because when they do they mean business.
King Parrot are from Australia and play a combination of Thrash Metal and Grindcore.
Harsh and energetic; this is the sound that greets you upon pressing play and the first song Bozo rips itself out of the speakers. Kind of like a more Thrash Metal-influenced Pig Destroyer; the songs are short, 2 minute-ish slabs of spiky riffs and throat-damaging screams.
Speaking of the screaming vocals – they’re demented, chaotic and absolutely insane; the perfect counterpoint to the focused assault of the music.
There’s no denying the sheer exuberance on display here. The band are no one-trick ponies however; they have a fair amount of ideas and relative variety within these 17 tracks and the high-octane ride is fuelled by a powerful rhythm section that propels the songs along at frenetic velocities.
They know a good riff when they shred one; mixing crunchy Thrash attacks with melodic licks and chuggathons the band have a firm grasp of dynamics and make the utmost of their short playing time to get the most out of each song.
Frozen Dawn are a Spanish Black Metal band with a penchant for all things Swedish.
The band are influenced by bands such as Watain, Naglfar and Dissection, and as such the guitars are scything and icy, with the vocals as sharp as a barb and a solid rhythmic underpinning.
Frozen Dawn have a good grasp of melodics and the tunes melt through the hands like thawing snow.
A lot of these songs are surprisingly catchy; tracks like Blackened March have infections guitar riffs and Blackened grooves to die for. This is a theme repeated throughout the 53 minutes of this enjoyable album.
The band ably create the atmosphere of a Blackened winter’s day, with ice crystals as far as the horizon.
A good album, and recommended. Give them a listen.
In The Wake of Pestilence is the début album from Canada’s Deformatory.
Deformatory play Technical Death Metal and they play it well.
The songs are heavy and blur by in a dazzle of intricate technicality and blasting drums. They don’t forgo a decent bit of melody when necessary either though, although other times the emphasis is firmly on pure fretboard brutality.
These Canadians have taken the blueprint drawn up by bands like Cryptopsy and Yattering and from these plans created their own castle of Death Metal impenetrability.
The musicianship is first rate and the playing may be technical but it doesn’t smother the soul of the band; the songs have intricate but involving structures. The band know when to simplify things as well, as sometimes you just need to feel the guitars!
The vocalist is a guttural joy to listen to; deeply satisfying and deeply bowel-loosening. He has a very impressive voice.
This is an excellent example of Technical Death Metal done right. Listen to Deformatory.
Helmsplitter are from the US and play a filthy blend of Black and Death Metal.
Boasting a powerful sound the band waste no time in attacking everything around them with fierce blasting and razor sharp Blackened riffs.
The band’s songs combine many different aspects of Metal; predominantly Black and Death, but also elements of Sludge, Thrash and Crust. This means that we end up with a very dark, dank album that has the darkness of Black Metal, the brutality of Death Metal and the songsmithing of classic Metal.
There are catches and hooks aplenty in these songs, all delivered wrapped in barbed wire and with snarling vocals. The band know how to write an enjoyable song and vary tempos, styles and delivery to suit their nefarious needs.
There are stand-out moments in pretty much every song. Some examples; Panzram is the shortest song on the album and has blasting and belligerence written into its DNA; Aura of Suicide has a Hellishly good groove-based Darkthrone-esque riff that’s enough to blow away all-comers; The Ground Bleeds Sorrow piledrives along before splitting off into rumbling psudo-Southern groove; the list could esily be expanded to all 11 tracks here.
44 minutes of quality, well-written Metal; enraptured by Helmsplitter.
Germany’s Gamma Ray are somewhat of a Power Metal institution. This is the band’s 11th album and I must confess I’ve been looking forward to it.
As soon as I noticed that the first track Avalon was the rather epic length of 9:22 I was excited, and the song is exactly what I was hoping it would be. Epic, stirring and memorable in all of the right ways.
After more than two decades of creating quality Metal, it’s great to see that Gamma Ray are not wanting for ideas or passion. They still have the hunger and devotion to Metal that is not commonly present in bands who have been around for half this amount of time.
So what do we get then? State-of-the-art sound? Yes. Rousing anthems? Yes. Guitar wizardry and fretmanship? Yes. Catchy and memorable hooks and melodies? Yes. Sing-along choruses? Yes. Riffs to pound chests to? Yes. Keyboards that enhance but don’t overpower? Yes.
The band spend time emphasising their Speed Metal aspect on some of the tracks, with Hellbent in particular showing a Judas Priest influence. The next song Pale Rider has an almost AC/DC feel to it, albeit heavier and with a distinctly non-AC/DC chorus. Time for Deliverance is more in the power ballad territory, with even somewhat of a revival feeling to it in places.
These are good demonstrations of the fact that Gamma Ray may have a distinct style but within this they vary things and keep things interesting so that they’re not simply playing what is effectively the same song over and over again.
The best songs are the bookends of the album – Avalon and I Will Return. This doesn’t invalidate anything in the middle of course, as taken holistically this is a thoroughly enjoyable slab of Heavy Metal.
How many other bands are on their 11th album and still capable of shredding with the best of them? Not many.
Gamma Ray still have a lot to offer the world. Empire of the Undead is the latest, and a top listen at that.
Nihil are from Spain and play Technical Progressive Death Metal.
The band give us a collection of relatively long tracks with a good sound and some twisting riffs to help propel the songs along.
Although undeniably heavy, brutality is not the main focus of Nihil’s assault. Instead they attack a bit slower, and from unexpected directions. Some of the riffs betray a slight Black Metal influence, while others are just nicely restrained, content to let the melodies do the talking.
It’s an approach that is freshly creative and frees the band up from a lot of standard genre restrictions that they might otherwise be plagued by.
Frozen Hope, the second longest song on the album, is a good example of this. It starts out quite brutal with a sound not unlike Behemoth but progresses into other heavy soundscapes, including parts that remind of Gorguts and Opeth on occasion.
Good musicianship helps the songs live up to their potential, and all of the various parts deliver as they should.
A quality release from a talented band that need support. Add them to your playlists today.
Sioux are from the US and play Stoner Metal.
Wonderbox Metal 