Kafirun are from Canada and play Black Metal. This is their début demo.
This is True Black Metal. It’s aggressive and grim and takes its cues from the likes of Mayhem.
With riffs sharp enough to do yourself an injury on, the darkly melodic guitars churn and rage their way through the playing time of the songs as the drums pound or blast appropriately.
The vocals have a a touch of Mayhem about them as well and the singer seems quite at home whether he’s performing semi-clean chanting or high pitched screams.
For a demo release there’s nothing wrong with the production at all. It’s got a good Black Metal tone that allows the guitars to sound as if they’re sliding over each other and everything else to sound like it’s filling in the spaces.
There’s only three songs here but they’re good ones and the band ably show what they can do.
If you’re not sated on Mayhem-influenced Black Metal then there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy what Kafirun do. Check them out.
Nothgard are from Germany and this is their second album of Melodic Metal.
Nothgard specialise in epic and stirring Melodic Metal. They have a Melodic Death/Black Metal base with a Power/European Metal covering. Think of a Power Metal band who have Symphonic leanings. Then, make them heavier and give them a vocalist who uses serrated screams as his main form of attack. This is Nothgard.
It’s technically proficient and rabble rousing at the same time; a rare combination of clinical application and emotional drive. As I listen to them I can’t help but just get swept away with their enthusiasm and passion of delivery.
The songs are typically catchy and high energy. It’s immediately apparent that this is a quality album with lots of hooks and memorable melodies; the more you listen to it the more this reinforces itself.
The vocalist mainly screams his way through the songs, although he also has a versatile enough voice to deliver deeper grunting and some semi-cleans for added effect.
The guitar playing is flawless and the amount of solos and leads is like the most sugary of treats.
Symphonic and keyboard ostentation is constant and seems to sometimes even merge with the guitars at a cellular level. It’s exciting stuff!
Of course not everyone enjoys this very European-styled Melodic Metal, but if you’ve a taste for this kind of thing then Nothgard do it better than most. As for me, I haven’t heard an album in this style that I’ve enjoyed this much for quite some time.
Bloodstrike are from the US and this is their début demo. They play Death Metal.
For a demo the production is very good indeed; strong and heavy. They have a very dark sound and the songs sound better than some albums.
The band play aggressive Death Metal with a preference for the Old-School and a nod towards the Swedish style. It’s an addictive sound and the band play it with an expertise that belies their short existence as a new band.
The vocals are cavernous guttural roars that sometimes are straight growls and other times have a snarling quality to them. She is capable of a fair degree of diversity as higher vocals are also used on occasion as well. They all sound very good.
The music is straightforward Death Metal with some good riffs and melodies. Combining blasting and groove, the band have birthed three very enjoyable tracks that show a maturity of songwriting and an intimate understanding of the Death Metal genre and of what makes a good song.
This demo showcases the massive potential of Bloodstrike. Their first album should be very good indeed if this is any indication.
Ann My Guard are from Hungary and play Melodic Rock/Metal. This is their début album.
Mixing the extravagance of bands like Evanescence and Lacuna Coil with the Earthy grit of bands like Hole, Ann My Guard have produced a very impressive début.
The singer has a very powerful voice that’s versatile and strong. The vocals seems to seep from every pore of the music, however they don’t overpower it as the band has a core of Rock/Metal that refuses to be subdued.
This is richly melodic and falls on the more commercial side of the Modern Metal spectrum, although that certainly doesn’t intrinsically mean anything is wrong with it. Quite the reverse in fact, as the songs are strongly written and well-produced.
Although the vocals are undoubtedly the central focus, the music doesn’t slack. The instruments are well played and have a good sound to them. The fact that the guitars are not completely watered down like some bands of a similar style to this should tell you all you need to know. Rather than a vehicle for a singer this is a real band, as the coherence of the album attests to.
The band create very lush and textured soundscapes, with plenty of piano and subtle sounds to accompany the traditional drums/bass/guitar triad. This is an album of memorable tunes and good songs.
Although a lot lighter and considerably less extreme than a lot of the stuff that makes its way onto this site, this is nonetheless a worthy acquisition for when you want something a bit less intense and a lot more floating-ly melodic.
Apocrophex are from the US and this is their début EP. They play Technical Death Metal.
This is only a short release; 2 songs in just under 5 minutes.
With such short tracks it’s a brutal and dense affair straight from the start.
The band make a good impression with their deep vocals and rhythmically pummelling brand of Death Metal, all backed up with some fretboard wizardry and blastbeats.
The second song Halos of Light surprises by having some interesting melodic riffing and some semi-cleans in amongst the blasting and brutality. It’s unexpected and shows that Apocrophex are willing to experiment with areas not typically of the Death Metal template. This is to be encouraged, of course.
For a first release the production is functional but could do with giving the band a bit more room to breathe next time. Only a small thing but something they could benefit from.
Other than that this is an all-to-brief hint at what this band is capable of. My interest is peaked. Bring on the full length.
Natanas is a one man Black Metal project from the US. This is Natanas’ second album.
This is atonal, obscure, underground Black Metal that’s more focused on creating particular moods and feelings rather than songs in the traditional sense.
The vocals are deep gargles and spewings; barely-human sounds and daemonic mutterings are the stock in trade of this warped intellect.
The drums are off-kilter and sometimes seem quite out of place with the more organic guitars and bestial vocalisations. I get the impression that this is done intentionally however, thus fostering the strange atmosphere that All Is Permitted shows off.
This is not a release for everyone, not even necessarily the hardened Black Metal fan. This is for people who enjoy bands that put uncomfortable feelings and sounds before everything else, even production values and traditional Black Metal.
Think bands like Xasthur, Portal, Mitochondrion, Enbilulugugal, Ævangelist and the like, and although I don’t think the guy behind Natanas is currently playing at their level just yet, given enough time and development he could be.
If this is the kind of Black Metal that does it for you then check out Natanas and see what you think.
This is the début album from Italian Stoner Rock band Elevators to the Grateful Sky.
This is a groovy and rocking release from this band.
A warm, happy sound emanates from the album and even in the band’s heavier moments the sound still manages to capture the heat of the desert in every note.
The singer has a good voice that’s as welcoming and familiar as the style itself. Not too high and not too low, it’s in that sweet spot where it doesn’t grate at all and fits the songs like a glove.
The songs are catchy and memorable and altogether a relatively relaxed affair. Even when the band rock out with their riffs at full throttle they still manage to foster a laid-back vibe at the same time.
The tracks have the usual Stoner Rock-styled riffs and composition that’s so definitive of this genre as well as having a bit of a Grunge feel in places. They do throw in the odd curve ball however; horn sections, for example.
Whilst not reinventing the genre this is still a solid and enjoyable release for anyone who likes this style.
Johnny Touch have recently unleashed their stunning début album to the world. Inner City Wolves is the kind of throwback to a bygone era in Metal that has no business being as good as it is. It has the timeless appeal of pure, original Metal, however; that and the fact that it’s just a great collection of songs mean that this is an album that everyone should be getting their grubby mitts on. Determined to find out a bit more about this seeming anachronism, I grilled Denimal about the wonder that is Johnny Touch…
For those of you unfamiliar with your band – introduce yourself!
There’s 4 heavy metal maniacs in JT; Ramrod Hodgson on vocals, Jamie Whyte on guitars, Inphiltrator on bass guitar and Denimal (me) on drums/cowbells.
Give us a bit of history to Johnny Touch…
I started JT sometime during 2009, effectively a mere project at that point. I had collated enough material of the heavy rock/metal ilk since the late 90’s, to warrant some form of project at the very least. Along with a couple of session members, I recorded a demo called ‘Fight For It’, which was released on pro-cassette by Abysmal Sounds Productions.
It was soon thereafter that the primary band members wove their wicked ways towards JT! From that point on we became a focussed and deadly laser beam, having wrought 2 more split 7 inch records released and more recently the début album.
Where did the name of the band come from?
I think I construed this name on a whim, it kind of stuck! It is inspired by 80’s street gangs, the leader of such bearing the name, Johnny Touch.
What are your influences?
Rock, metal, martial arts, classic action films, big haired ladies.
What are you listening to at the moment that you would like to recommend?
Rainbow – ‘Long Live Rock n’ Roll’ Realmbuilder – ‘Blue Flame Cavalry’ Pariah – ‘Blaze Of Obscurity’
That’s what I’ve been listening to this week, and heck, I’d recommend them all!
So, a bunch of Australians manage to faithfully recreate the glory days of the NWOBHM in style and with quality. How did that happen?
Hahahaaaa jesus man! They were the ‘glory days’ for a reason. We aspire and work hard! Simple. Whether that be in relation to our skill level, performances or song writing.
In my review I also state that if this album had actually been released back in said NWOBHM glory days, you’d probably be very big indeed and famous to most Metal fans. Discuss.
Maybe, it’s hard to know, but I appreciate the sentiment nonetheless mate. It seems to me, the biggest ‘metal’ bands worldwide are still the traditional heavy metal bands. The music appeals to a broader range of music lovers due to it’s quality, catchiness, conviction, and less extreme nature. Though I remember hearing Twisted Sister’s track ‘I Wanna Rock’ when I was a kid, and seriously believed that to be the heaviest song in existence! There’s a more extreme perspective nowadays, but that song is still really fucking powerful, no doubt. If you doubt, watch them play it live!
Unfortunately many of the great metal bands are disbanded so there may be necessary voids to fill in the near future!
What did you want to achieve with Inner City Wolves?
We wrote and recorded what we would want to hear from a new heavy metal band. There’s no good reason why traditional heavy metal should be dead. So we took our own high expectations and forged something that vintage metal and rock fans would froth at the mouth for. Interestingly we also have a large cross section of extreme metal fans into JT. Especially when we play live, is the power of classic heavy metal most apparent.
And that album cover! Tell us about that…
A fantastic artist called Andrei Bouzikow painted that up for us. It’s a vista of earth in post nuclear/war ruin. Fallout having altered the local flora and fauna, huge wolves are abound. The scantily clad warrior-ess has claimed this one from a pup, riding down men for mating and food.
Are you happy with how the album turned out?
Pleased enough. It’s a snapshot of that time I doubt we could really improve on without destroying the feel of it. Everyone whom we have spun it too has thought it was an album from the late 80’s…mission accomplished.
Give us a bit of information on the songwriting process.
Jamie and I write about 50/50. So either he or I will demo the tune, give it to every member to get acquainted with, then we work on that sucker until everyone has made it their bitch! I think songs should age a little bit too. Nothing like Father Time to weigh in on the formation and depth of a song.
How do you see your songs/direction developing in the future?
In all ways one could respectfully imagine. We’ll produce speed metal songs, some 60’s/70’s sounding rock ballads, some overtly technical tunes. It really comes down to what the album needs to keep it interesting from start to finish.
What’s next for Johnny Touch?
JT had a quiet year in 2013 due to Inphiltrator being in hospital, so there were no live shows we could play. With the album fresh out we are now playing select live shows nationally and booked some shows outside of Australia. Hopefully ‘Inner City Wolves’ will earn us some invites to any of the myriad traditional metal festivals the world over. New material is currently being put together, we have a title and album cover concepts for this album, but who knows when we’ll be ready to record. Why rush?
Oath of Damnation are from Australia and play Blackened Death Metal.
This release features a heavy and dense sound, as if the band condensed a planet’s worth of matter and used it to fuel the recording process.
The deep vocals sound equally impressive, with a depth of guttural growling seldom seen. This is coupled with higher Black Metal shrieking that offsets them.
The music is fast and furious, combining the intricate riffing of Nile, the claustrophobia of Immolation and the Blackened bite of Arkhon Infaustus. It’s a heady mix and the resultant cocktail is as intoxicating as it is venomous.
The band also incorporate symphonic elements into their brutal repertoire. These are used to punctuate and accentuate the churning maelstrom of chaos that the band create. These are used sparingly to good effect and never sound over the top or out of character with the rest of the music.
Oath of Damnation have released something special here. Seek them out and listen to them today.
Apnea are from New Zealand and this is their début EP. They play Post-Black Metal.
This combines Black Metal with Post-Metal and Shoegaze to create an evocative EP of fragile beauty and delicate power.
The songs build, crest and blast their way to moments of melancholy and bitter negativity. Apnea’s sound is the sound of a mellow summer’s day being clobbered to death by an unruly dusk. It’s this mix of beauty and harshness that gives this kind of Shoegaze Post-Black Metal such a haunting sound and such a lasting appeal.
Apnea have a good production that bucks the trend that these kinds of bands usually follow of having a paper-thin sound. The drum presence in particular is immense and it is refreshing to hear a band like this with a rather crushing sound in many respects.
Apnea also stand out from the crowd in having some real moments of Black Metal fury in their sound. This ferocious attack combined with the softer moments and Post-Metal explorations make for a highly enjoyable listening experience.
Overall this is a hugely impressive EP, especially for a first release.
As this EP is a couple of year old now, let’s hope that they will have a début album ready soon. If they can replicate what they’ve achieved with Silent Cities then it’ll be something I’m quite excited to hear.
Kafirun are from Canada and play Black Metal. This is their début demo.
Wonderbox Metal 