Wonderbox Metal

Interview with Invertia

In my recent review of Invertia’s second album Another Scheme for the Wicked, I wrote that it was intriguing, harsh and exciting; my viewpoint hasn’t changed. This is an interesting and novel band and they have released an album worthy of taking the time to get to know it. Questions were asked, and answers were given…

For those who are unfamiliar with your band – introduce yourself!

We are an industrial metal band from the Northeast USA who write progressive oppressive music that you should be paying attention to because your rights are being deprived from you and will soon be taken away by those who oppress you.

Give us a bit of background to Invertia

When we met we knew it was something different from the metal crowd or other genres or if it would even work…that was the second week. And here we are in week…604…

What are your influences?

Its funny you ask. You can not put us into a box full of hashtags but we are entirely influenced by Sabbat, Hank III, Celtic Frost, Slayer, Black Sabbath, Bathory, and The Misfits.

What are you listening to at the moment that you would like to recommend?

We don’t listen to music because we have been rehearsing for months. You tell us, has anything good come out?

What did you want to achieve with your new album?

We wrote and wrote and wrote and scratched and wrote more and scratched more and rewrote and ripped apart and scratched it all before we wrote this because we wanted to.

What can you tell us about the lyrics?

We write about the exposure of the daily rhetoric of our culture to provoke thought and action. So long as it is not at any of our shows. We are trying to concentrate.

Give us a bit of information on the songwriting process.

Actually we have been writing this way for years but now we have added Kurt Gluck from Submerged & Ohm Resistance our record label to help us write which will change things up in who knows what way.

Tell us about the remixes – how do you think they relate to the originals?

That’s a good question. The artists chosen are some of the best in their genres and you get to see how another artist interprets the song & how their creativity comes out of them through the music that we wrote.

Are you happy with how it all turned out?

It is a fresh take. It’s exciting.

How do you see your songs/direction developing in the future?

We want to grow and expand our sound/style and expertise as much with our next album as we did with our first and second album.

What’s next for Invertia?

Maybe a mini-tour? Thanks, we appreciate it. Now, we need to sleep. Buy the album here: https://ohmresistance.bandcamp.com/album/another-scheme-of-the-wicked

Thanks!

Human Infection – Curvatures In Time (Review)

Human Infection are from the US and play Death Metal.

And what an album cover! Now that’s what a Death Metal cover should look like…

The music doesn’t disappoint. After a perfunctory intro it’s straight into the USDM-style blasting with the nicely named Celestial.

The vocals instantly jump out at you with their character and are more Malevolent Creation than the cookie monster-standard.

This harks back to earlier times circa the 90’s, with short, brutal songs that could have come out of the Cannibal Corpse stable or the Floridian swamps; the band have the USDM blasting down to a nostalgic art, and the mid-paced assaults are authentic and rousing. There is even a subtle Thrash element to some of the riffs. It’s not a huge influence, but it’s there, adding its bite to the attack.

Human Infection also drag the songwriting skills of the bands from this earlier era into their work. These tracks are not merely a collection of riffs; thought has gone into the ebb and flow of the songs, as well as to making them catchy and loading them with hooks.

Like Morbid Angel and Suffocation conspired to produce a bastard offspring; Curvatures In Time is a worthy heir to the throne.

Ferium – Reflections (Review)

This is the début album from Ferium who come from Israel and play Death/Groove Metal with a slight Metalcore-style influence.

This is rabble-rousing groove Metal with a firm Death Metal basis and only a little bit of -core influence added in. A case could be made for calling them Deathcore I suppose, but they don’t share a lot of common ground with most Deathcore bands, (more emphasis on melody and less on breakdowns, etc.), and thus I feel this would be doing them somewhat of a disservice. Genre label quibbles aside, the emphasis is on the Metal, as it should be.

I suppose if you take a cross of, say Lamb of God and Arch Enemy and add more of classic Death Metal influence you’d be in the right area. Or conversely if you take some older bands such as Lipid and Konkhra and add a modern influence you’d end up in similar territory.

The songs are growers; they have an initial impact certainly, but require time to fully appreciate as they are the kind of songs that are unhurried, secure in the knowledge that they’re capable and worthy of repeat visitations.

This is at least partly to do with the fact that a lot of the riffs used here are midway between melodic and brutal, making them stand out and peak the curiosity. The band flirt with Melodic Death Metal but always pull back to heavier climes before fully embracing this destination. It’s an interesting listen.

The vocalist has quite the range, whether it’s deep growls or terror-inducing screams. He has the rhythmic patterns of a modern Metal shouter and the lungs of a Behemoth.

Ferium have produced a quality listen with enough longevity to keep things lively. Let’s see where this band end up as they have a lot to offer the discerning metal fan.

Dead in the Manger – Transience (Review)

Screaming out of the US, Dead in the Manger are an unholy fusion of Black Metal and Grind.

This release is 18 minutes of pure depression and hatred in equal measure.

Unusually the band juxtapose Funeral/Depressive Black Metal against furious Blackened Grindcore. It works due to a skilful weaving together of the two usually disparate genres.

The slow misery of the haunting opening track gives way to the savage, focused Grind of the second. The third and fourth combine aspects of both styles in a way that’s a welcome breath of stinking air; savage Blackened Grind colliding with dirge-like riffs and miserably anger. The fifth is a haunting interlude of samples and dark atmosphere, while the final, (and longest), track is blistering and solemn; blastbeats rage over sorrowful chords.

And what of the vocals? Black Metal to the core. Like static being vomited up by a diseased corpse. Perfect.

Dead in the Manger are hopefully not transient, hopefully they will be with us for some time yet.

North – Metanoia (Review)

North are from the US and play Post-Metal.

Whether it’s build and release or tense and relax; having light and dark or beauty and brutality; these are some of the staples of Post-Metal, that most varied of beasts, and North provide an exemplar of how to do this while layering the entire thing in raw, Sludgy vocals.

Picture a band playing their favourite parts of Isis and Year Of No Light and condensing these resulting compositions into shorter songs than typically either of those bands; this will give you a good idea of the ground that North tread.

The vocals are rough semi-cleans that provide an interesting counterpoint to the clear music. They are expressive and emotive in all of the right ways. The same can be said of the songs themselves. Taken together these tracks explore the emotional depths and heights of whatever the subject matter is. As someone once said of Radiohead – I don’t know what he’s singing about but I can tell he means it, (or something along those lines).

Each of these four tracks is a mastercrafted example of Post-Metal at its best, especially as it doesn’t aim to simply mimic Neurosis/Cult of Luna as a lot of Post-Metal ends up doing to some extent. Here we have a band travelling their own path to the beat of their heroes but with a singular intent all of their own.

I had never heard North before this EP, and I quickly come to the conclusion that this is a crying shame as the quality and effect of these songs is undeniable.

Expand your horizons, and make sure you travel North.

Sioux – The One and The Many (Review)

Sioux are from the US and play Stoner Metal.

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.

Sioux may very well be your new favourite band.

Interview with Akrotheism

Akrotheism have recently released Behold the Son of Plagues, which is a stark reminder of the power and glory of atmospheric Black Metal done in a non-symphonic way. With a path born of both nostalgia and forward-thinking, Akrotheism are certainly leading the way in this genre for my money. Words were exchanged below…

For those who are unfamiliar with your band – introduce yourself.

Akrotheism consists mainly of four beings. Aeon, Naos, Schism and Dagwn. Also Scythe helped us in the recordings of our début album and in some live shows until now.

How did you form?

Our concept started to shape in the midst of 2012 when Aeon, Naos and Schism decided to share their common principles and ideology about black metal both for the music as much as the philosophy behind it. Later, Dagwn came to complete the circle of Akrotheism embodiment.

What are your influences?

Significant role on our creations plays our listenings which varies from 80’s classic heavy metal to late black metal, and dark ambient. Apart from the musical field, humanity, religion and society has a great impact to our minds so as to make us express our selves in the way that is described in our album.

What are you listening to at the moment that you want to recommend?

Svartidaudi, Nightbringer, Dosdsengel, Acherontas, Mgla, Black Altar, Deathspell Omega are some of the bands that we are listening this period and we would recommend them to all those who are interesting in releases which are aggregated in all levels.

Give us some background to the creation process of Behold the Son of Plagues.

After our formation we gathered and started to combine some compositions that we had individually. The final composition though came during the recordings while several ideas was added on. The recordings completed at Devasoundz studios while the mixing and mastering took place at the Necromorbus Studio by Tore Stjerna. After that we asked from Timo Ketola to take care the cover art and from Marco Marov two inlay illustrations. Our logo also came later from Daniel Desecrator.

What can you tell us about the lyrics?

The lyrics are born through our daily contact with the society. The corruption of the mankind, the exploitation of human minds by religion and the sterile hopes to be saved are issues that constrain us to write about them and express our perspective.

In my review I say that you are taking the best parts of the mid-90’s Black Metal elite and making them your own. Would you identify with this statement?

The truth is that many of the bands of the second wave of black metal have affected our music as much as the new ones that I mentioned before. I would say that I agree partly with your statement in your review since I don’t find any similarity with Cradle Of Filth.

Are you satisfied with how the album came out?

Yes we are absolutely satisfied with the whole result and with Odium Records which released it. We feel that it supports us and we are thankful for that.

Would you do anything differently?

Any decision about the album taken after a mature thinking from all of us. Both musically and visually as well. So I think that everything is as we wanted to be.

What is your aim with Akrotheism – what do you want to achieve?

We have no other aim than continue to exist. For us its the necessity to express our dark feelings and thoughts. Its like a purgation for our souls.

What does the future hold for you? Thanks!

We plan to do another split release with Ars Macabra and Septuagint and after that we want to focus on our second album. Thank you very much for the interview!

Thanks!

Fisthammer – Infallible (Review)

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.

Get. This. Now.

Near Death Condition – Evolving Towards Extinction (Review)

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 – II: Void Worship (Review)

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.

Pilgrim rule.