Wonderbox Metal

Ignotum – Larvas Mortal God (Review)

Ignotum are a Black Metal band from Italy and this is their début album.

This is aggressive and ugly, but not without melody. As well as their Black Metal sound they also incorporate licks and riffs that have a more Classic Metal feel as well as having some pretty good leads and solos.

Due to the above additions to their sound, this is not the usual pitch-black purist Black Metal affair, yet nor is it some jaunty, upbeat Melodic Black Metal one either; the truth lies somewhere between these two extremes. The band are Metal enough to have some driving riffs and strong melodic leads but Blackened enough to be ugly and uncompromising in other areas of their delivery.

The band definitely have a harsh streak to their sound, brought to the fore with no small assistance from the snarling vocals. And really, snarl is the best word to describe them. The singer goes about his task with all of the pent up threat of a dog about to pounce.

Ignotum have crafted an interesting album that combines a slick molten Metal delivery with the ugly Blackened nature of the really grim. It’s an interesting combination that makes for an enjoyable listen.

Be sure to check them out and see what you think.

Archgoat – The Apocalyptic Triumphator (Review)

This is the third album from Finnish Blackened Death Metallers Archgoat.

This is raw, underground music filled with a horrific vibe and lashings of brutality. Blackened Death Metal, for the most part, usually means a Death Metal band with some Blackened influences. Archgoat have found that rare middle ground though that straddles both genres equally.

The Black Metal influence lends the songs a grim atmosphere and the Death Metal influence provides the aggression and ugliness.

Archgoat have created a very good listen with this album. Each song blurs the line between the two parent genres and we’re left with something that most people would just abort, but not Archgoat; they love, nurture and sculpt this malignant offspring into something worthy and deadly.

The deep growls seem to belch out malevolent black smoke and they seem to erupt out of the guitars like cancerous evil.

The riffs are captivating as they combine that Black Metal groove with Death Metal attack. It’s a winning combination.

Overall verdict? A great listen.

Triumvir Foul – An Oath of Blood and Fire (Review)

Triumvir Foul are a Death Metal band from the US, and this is their début demo.

At just under 16 minutes in length this is a decent taster for the band that comprises 3 original songs and an Autopsy cover.

This is blistering Old-School Death Metal with a filthy disposition and vocals that sound like Satan gargling acid.

The putrid riffs and disgusting vocals combine to ensure that these tracks deliver the goods and at the end of the playing time you’re left wondering what just happened and why you feel soiled and sullied.

Grime-ridden guitar leads and solos are included for that extra bit of rotten flavour and the band successfully create a miasma of pestilence and sickness wherever they go.

It’s only a demo, and even though the sound could do with a few sonic tweaks here and there it’s still a great representation of a band who clearly know their style and intend to dominate it.

One to check out for sure.

Greensleeves – Inertial Frames (Review)

Greensleeves are a Brazilian Progressive Metal band and this is their second album.

This is quality Progressive Metal with a proper Metal edge. The band aren’t afraid of being a bit heavier than the norm and the songs make the most of this, mixing the forthright nature of Metal with the wandering, exploratory Progressive edge of the style.

If you like bands such as Dream Theater, Threshold, Pagan’s Mind and Nevermore then Greensleeves should be your thing too.

The singer has a really, really good voice; coming off somewhere between the singers of Pagan’s Mind and Nevermore his voice rises to the challenge again and again. Frequently the weakest link in bands such as this is the singer and I’m very pleased to say that isn’t the case here.

The songs are very well played, as you would expect for a band in this genre, and there are plenty of leads and solos to satisfy. I should compliment the chunky rhythms also; as mentioned previously they’re heavier for the norm and certainly bring out the Metal aspect of their sound.

Decent melodies and layered harmonies combine with thick guitars and melodic know-how to create exemplars of the style.

There are 12 tracks in total and they’re all composed so that the album as a whole is a very good listen. At over 72 minutes in length it’s a long listen but one that’s very rewarding.

I’ve really enjoyed listening to this and will continue to do so again and again in the future.

Definitely one to check out for your next Progressive Metal fix.

Masochist – Condemned to Grovel (Review)

This is the latest EP from Masochist, who are a Brutal Death Metal band from the UK.

The intro track Prologue to Prolapse is nicely heavy and really clears the cobwebs away. Phew. It’s enough to crush a rhino. Not that you’d want to, but if you did this would do it.

From here the rest of the EP picks up the pace but is no less heavy, with thick guitars raging and blaring out.

This is Brutal Death Metal with the modern, heavy sound of Deathcore. To be clear, I’m talking the aural feeling and production of a modern Deathcore band, not the style; Masochist are firmly in the Brutal Death Metal camp. Yes there’s a lot of crossover of course but Masochist’s Death Metal comes from an older lineage than Deathcore’s relatively young one.

The vocals are deeply satisfying. Or satisfyingly deep. Both actually. They’re added to with high screams that aren’t too far away from static.

The music pounds, batters, rips, tears and destroys; these and other similar words. It all adds up to the fact that these songs are not only Hellishly brutal but Hellishly brutal in a way that says “Masochist know how to knock you down whilst writing top songs that hold attention and reach down deep into your stomach into your happy place and grab hold hard”. It’s a bit of a mouthful but that’s what they certainly do say, yes sir.

Oh but this is too good. Masochist are spoiling us. If they can keep their songwriting skills up and replicate this crushing, heavy sound on their début full length then the UK will have a real player on its hands.

I can’t recommend this highly enough. Top work. Now if I could only find a rhino…

My Shameful – Hollow (Review)

This is the sixth album from Finnish Funeral Doom/Death Metallers My Shameful.

My Shameful craft dark and atmospheric Funeral Doom containing elements of Death Metal that are completely bent and broken to Doom’s single-minded will. Even the faster sections carry an aura of depressive longing and tragic woe that no amount of blast beats can erase.

The songs slowly build in intensity and atmosphere using textured guitars and eerie melodies. The band do a great job of stamping their own identity on the Doom/Death template and although it’s obviously recognisable as the genre it is, My Shameful don’t sound generic or stale at all. Kudos to them.

One of the key things about this band which sets them apart from others in the genre is the guitars; Rather than settle for the ever-familiar heavy rhythms with winding leads approach that so many go for, My Shameful have rhythms and riffs that are more nuanced and subtle than the norm for this style. Add some spectral effects and otherworldly sounds, mix in the expressive vocals and wrap it all up in some quality songwriting and Hollow is an album to savour.

This is haunting, strangely beautiful music that fosters a morbidly oppressive mood. Even the vocals, which are brutally evil growls, add to this feeling of ethereal heaviosity where the band seem to strike the right balance between darkness and light. It’s certainly not an equal balance, probably 85/15, but it’s one that allows them to work their Doom Metal magic.

As far as Doom/Death goes it doesn’t get much better than this.

Ahamkara – The Embers of the Stars (Review)

Ahamkara are from the UK and play Atmospheric Black Metal. This is their début album.

This is Black Metal with epic length songs and a windswept feel.

This is the kind of album that’s the soundtrack to exploration. It’s the Blackened equivalent of a map of uncharted territories and frost-worn mountains.

The Embers of the Stars is bitingly cold and achingly sensual in equal amounts. These songs are emotive and expressive, infused with the raw energy of nature and the passion that goes along with this.

Heartfelt guitars and subtle synths provide the rasping vocals with a rich background on which to scream out into the heavens.

This sweeping music is perfect for Black Metal that’s inspired by nature and seeks to channel it via a darkened Metal route. Each of these songs is extremely well composed and gives the feeling of really being in the raw, dangerous outdoors.

This is the kind of epic, atmospheric music that has been characterised well by the Cascadian scene, even though this is from the UK. Fans of Wolves in the Throne Room, Altar of Plagues, Agalloch, Fen, Skagos, Fauna, Wodensthrone, (who share a member), etc., will be very at home with Ahamkara. However, whereas a lot of these bands have Post-Metal qualities to their sound, Ahamkara substitute these for shades of the mighty Emperor and thus are more “pure” Black Metal than not.

Really top quality work like this should always be supported. Listen and become enthralled.

Grimoire – L’Aorasie des Spectres Rêveurs (Review)

Grimoire are from Canada and this EP is their second release. They play Black Metal.

Grimoire have an epic sound that consists of melodic grandeur, atmospheric keyboard highlights and frostbitten blasting.

This EP contains 4 songs totalling just under 25 minutes; 3 actual songs and an instrumental/ambient piece. It’s well-recorded and sounds like a labour of love for the band.

Vocals are primarily the standard rasps, performed well. Other styles occasionally appear for added variety.

Affecting leads and emotive riffs are the bedrock of Grimoire’s foundation and there’s a streak of Depressive/Funereal Black Metal in their sound due to this.

L’Aorasie des Spectres Rêveurs is full of celestial textures and enchanting melodies. This is haunting, powerfully atmospheric music when the band want it to be. And when they don’t? That’s when the icy blast beats and more aggressive guitars make appearances.

The songs here have an obscure, otherworldly quality to them, in keeping with the EP cover. Barren and cold yet magical and enthralling; the land of Grimoire is for hardy adventurers only.

My favourite parts are when the band slow down and the full grandeur of what they are capable of is unleashed like some grand and terrible funeral march, such as near the middle of Les Rumeurs des Astres.

A very enjoyable release.

Stheno/Grassroll – Wolfkind – Split (Review)

Stheno are a Blackened Grind band from Greece.

They start this split off with just under 7 minutes of Crust-fuelled terror the likes of which will have most people running for the hills. It’s underground, brutal and terrifying.

The vocals are savagery incarnate and come off completely unhinged; serrated growls that don’t sound even vaguely human. Crikey. Sharp high vocals occasionally cut through the meat of their sound too but it’s the deep vocals that do it for me.

The songs are very energetic and I like how it’s not all blasting; the band pace themselves well and give a very aggressive display without resorting to Grind-by-numbers.

These short songs hit the spot and the Blackened Crust influence in the riff department is a welcome change from the Grindcore norm.

A very enjoyable few minutes of ultra-violence from Stheno.

Grassroll are also from Greece and play Grindcore with a dash of Sludge. They contribute just over 6 minutes of fast, insectile Grind to the split.

The singer has a voice that’s so high and maniacal as to sound scarily barbed. Her vocals scar, maim and lacerate. Deep growls occasionally punctuate the tracks but for the most part it’s static-like screams, reminiscent of Discordance Axis. Overall it’s the opposite of Stheno really, who mainly use the deeper vocals.

There’s a slight Sludge hint to their sound in some of their riffs; enough to perk the interest but not enough to detract from the pure demented aggression of these songs.

Grassroll like to play fast and hard, and who can blame them?

Short and to the point, this is a worthy split between these two bands. Both contributions are different enough that the songs on this split are obviously by distinct bands yet their shared base genre allows them to complement each other well.

This is one split to check out for sure.

Extinctionist – Portals of Extraterrestrial Invasions (Review)

This is the second album from German Brutal Death Metallers Extinctionist.

Ugly, brutal and devastating Death Metal; this is for fans of Deeds of Flesh, Defeated Sanity, Suffocation, Cannibal Corpse, Dying Fetus, etc.

Extinctionist have a good line in groove, chug, technical flourishes and pure demolition-style blast beats. It’s enough to keep any Death Metal fan sated and full.

The recording is clear and strong, with everything sounding crisp and tight. The sci-fi theme does them no harm either, and interludes like Selection sound genuinely malevolent.

Deep, guttural vocals ride alongside the heavy music. The growls are just a shade or two above pignoise, (mainly), and the singer sounds totally committed to the cause.

The songs are largely short and to the point; this is about battering down all defences and causing as much destruction as possible in as short a timescale a possible. The band make good on this threat too.

This is enjoyable Brutal Death Metal that will groove, chug and blast its way into your collection.

Close off the portals and prepare for extinction.