Wolvencrown are a black metal band from the UK and this is their second album.
After 2019’s very enjoyable Of Bark and Ash, Wolvencrown have now returned with the majestic Celestial Lands. Bigger, better, and more ambitious, the Wolvencrown of 2024 is a formidable force. Continue reading “Wolvencrown – Celestial Lands (Review)”
Pestilent Hex are a black metal band from Finland and this is their second album.
After 2022’s enjoyable The Ashen Abhorrence, Pestilent Hex have now returned with the 46-minute Sorceries of Sanguine & Shadow. Continue reading “Pestilent Hex – Sorceries of Sanguine & Shadow (Review)”
This is the debut album from UK post-hardcore band Hidden Mothers.
Genre is a funny thing. Post-hardcore, screamo, blackgaze…all are applicable to Hidden Mothers, yet none of them fully encapsulate the 42 minutes of material on Erosion / Avulsion. I suppose something like atmospheric post-hardcore is probably the closest to it, but let’s not quibble over terms. Besides, all that really matters is the music and the impact it has. Continue reading “Hidden Mothers – Erosion / Avulsion (Review)”
This is the sixth album from US doom metal band The Gates of Slumber.
Reforming after many years dormant, and now with a couple of members of the superb Apostle of Solitude in tow, The Gates of Slumber are back. Containing 36 minutes of new material, The Gates of Slumber is a powerhouse of traditional doom metal. Continue reading “The Gates of Slumber – The Gates of Slumber (Review)”
This is the second album by UK power metal band Fellowship.
Fellowship made a splash with the upbeat power metal positivity of 2022’s The Saberlight Chronicles, so many eyes and ears are now expectantly turned towards The Skies Above Eternity. With a duration of 43 minutes, (over 20 minutes shorter than its predecessor), what does this new record bring to us? Continue reading “Fellowship – The Skies Above Eternity (Review)”
This is the second album from UK death metallers Iniquitous Savagery.
Containing a current/ex-member of Laceration, Party Cannon, and Gendo Ikari, Iniquitous Savagery play brutal death metal. It’s been a long time since 2015’s Subversions of the Psyche, but now the band are back – with a new singer – to cause carnage and mayhem with 31 minutes of new material. Continue reading “Iniquitous Savagery – Edifice of Vicissitudes (Review)”
This is the third album from UK black metal act Ante-Inferno.
Following on from 2022’s Antediluvian Dreamscapes comes Death’s Soliloquy, which contains 47 minutes of new material. It’s Ante-Inferno’s longest album, but also their most engaging and well-realised. Continue reading “Ante-Inferno – Death’s Soliloquy (Review)”
This is the debut album from Icelandic progressive/post-metal band Múr.
Across 54 minutes Múr have crafted a multifaceted record that takes liberally from the progressive and post-metal styles, resulting in a journey that’s very satisfying. Múr should appeal to fans of bands such as Ihsahn, Gojira, Alcest, Devin Townsend, Iotunn, Opeth, The Ocean, and Enslaved, as it touches all of these bands and more in different places over the course of the album. Importantly though, Múr never sound like they’re plagiarising, and instead have managed to forge a personality of their own remarkably quickly. Continue reading “Múr – Múr (Review)”
This is the fourth album from Distant, a deathcore band from the Netherlands.
I always enjoy catching up with Distant. Their brand of downtempo deathcore heaviness has always stood out as better than the norm, (check out Tyrannotophia, Dawn of Corruption, Dusk of Anguish, and Heritage), so I knew I had to check out Tsukuyomi: The Origin. Continue reading “Distant – Tsukuyomi: The Origin (Review)”
This is the sixth album by UK hardcore band Polar.
It’s always a pleasure to catch up with Polar. Ever since 2016’s No Cure No Saviour I’ve been a big fan of the band’s hardcore/post-hardcore stylings. This album was followed in 2019 by the heavier Nova, and then in 2023 by Everywhere, Everything, which developed Polar’s more textured post-hardcore side. Now, uncharacteristically fast, we have Five Arrows, which brings us 38 minutes of new material. Continue reading “Polar – Five Arrows (Review)”
Wonderbox Metal 