Wonderbox Metal

A Thousand Sufferings – Stilte (Review)

A Thousand Sufferings are a Belgian blackened doom band and this is their third album.

I’ve enjoyed seeing the development of A Thousand Sufferings over the years. Starting with 2015’s sludgy Burden, and then on to 2018’s increasingly blackened Bleakness, the band made a good impression. It’s now 2021 and we have Stilte; the synthesis of black metal and doom has reached its logical conclusion, and the 41 minutes of material on this new album is the band’s richest and most engrossing so far. Continue reading “A Thousand Sufferings – Stilte (Review)”

Kehlvin – Holistic Dreams (Review)

Kehlvin are a progressive hardcore band from Switzerland and this is their third album.

Holistic Dreams contains 35 minutes of material. Kehlvin’s style is a progressive form of hardcore that also has post-hardcore and sludge metal flavours in it. For lack of a better description, imagine a mix of Knut, The Dillinger Escape Plan, and Mastodon, and that will give you a rough starting point for Kehlvin’s sound. Continue reading “Kehlvin – Holistic Dreams (Review)”

Razoreater – Purgatory (Review)

This is the latest EP from UK grindcore band Razoreater.

I like grind a lot, but there has been a distinct lack of it in 2021. At least, nothing that’s really crossed my path at any rate. In fact, I haven’t reviewed a single grindcore release this year, which is a shocking state of affairs. Time Continue reading “Razoreater – Purgatory (Review)”

LLNN – Unmaker (Review)

This is the third album from Danish post-metallers LLNN.

Having not caught up with the band since 2016’s very enjoyable Loss, it seemed like a great time to check out what LLNN are up to with their latest release. Continue reading “LLNN – Unmaker (Review)”

Orbit Culture – Shaman (Review)

This is the latest EP from Orbit Culture, a Swedish metal band.

Following on from 2020’s Nija, Shaman contains 25 minutes of new material. If you’re a fan of modern metal that mixes groove metal, thrash, metalcore , and deathcore together, then Shaman is a meaty and satisfying hit of heaviness. Continue reading “Orbit Culture – Shaman (Review)”

Rivers of Nihil – The Work (Review)

This is the fourth album from US progressive metallers Rivers of Nihil.

The Work is a 64-minute journey into the increasingly ambitious world of Rivers of Nihil. 2018’s very well-regarded Where Only Owls Know My Name introduced more progressive elements then the previous album did, and the end result of this same evolution is showcased on The Work. Continue reading “Rivers of Nihil – The Work (Review)”

Signs of the Swarm – Absolvere (Review)

This is the fourth album from US deathcore/death metal band Signs of the Swarm.

Both 2017’s The Disfigurement of Existence and 2019’s Vital Deprivation were crushingly effective records, which has made me quite excited for Absolvere. With a change of album art style, has there been a change of sound too? Continue reading “Signs of the Swarm – Absolvere (Review)”

Label Roundup: Vendetta Records – Gespenst, Aristarchos & Lurid (Reviews)

Wonderbox Metal gets sent a lot of new music, (which is great), but there’s no way that everything can get covered unfortunately, (which is not so great). This new column hopes to redress this balance, if only slightly, by taking a look at a handful of releases that a record label has recently sent out that might have otherwise slipped through the cracks.

For the very first one of these columns I thought I’d pick the below three from Vendetta Records. I have a high opinion of this label’s output, and these releases reinforce that. I would ideally have covered each one of these individually, but sadly there’s just not enough time to give everything its proper due. In lieu of that, let’s see what you think of these three below… Continue reading “Label Roundup: Vendetta Records – Gespenst, Aristarchos & Lurid (Reviews)”

Employed to Serve – Conquering (Review)

This is the fourth album from UK metallers Employed to Serve.

Across 48 minutes Employed to Serve dish out eleven tracks of energetic damage. Combining metal and hardcore together like it’s something fresh and vital, the band manage to avoid the tired metalcore tropes and instead deliver an album of crushing tunes and anthemic heaviness. Continue reading “Employed to Serve – Conquering (Review)”

Cognizance – Upheaval (Review)

This is the second album from UK/Austrian death metal band Cognizance.

Despite enjoying Cognizance’s early work, (such as Inquisition), I somehow managed to miss out on the band’s debut album Malignant Dominion. As such, when Upheaval appeared, lest I miss out again, I greedily took it to one side and hungrily devoured it. Continue reading “Cognizance – Upheaval (Review)”