Eradikal Insane – Mithra (Review)

Eradikal InsaneEradikal Insane are a French death metal band and this is their debut album.

Eradikal Insane play modern death metal that’s high-impact and straight to the point.

The band vary the speeds that they operate in, but always go full-on regardless of what they do. The fast parts are very fast, the mid-paced grooves are generously dense and the breakdown-styled sections are heavy and crushing. Continue reading “Eradikal Insane – Mithra (Review)”

Shodan – Protocol of Dying (Review)

ShodanThis is the début album by Shodan, a death metal band from Poland.

Shodan play modern death metal for the most part, but also incorporate a myriad of other influences and ideas into this atypical release.

The interesting thing about this band is how they develop their style for each song; it all revolves around a modern core of solid death metal, but each track uses this in its own way and incorporates different elements from Continue reading “Shodan – Protocol of Dying (Review)”

Archetype – Mission (Review)

ArchetypeThis is the debut album from Archetype, a Canadian progressive death metal band.

This is a progressive mixture of death and thrash metal that’s not short on confidence or character. Or, for that matter, a rather insane delivery style.

The songs have a decent mixture of aggressive thrash metal, (with a kind of German, Destruction/Kreator feel), and melodic death metal, (Carcass/Arsis), mixed in with more technical and progressive tendencies that see the band producing Continue reading “Archetype – Mission (Review)”

Abominant – Napalm Reign (Review)

AbominantThis is the eleventh album from these US death metal veterans.

Abominant’s last album, Onward to Annihilation, was one of the better albums of 2013, so I had high hopes for Napalm Reign. I have not been disappointed.

The band play an underground death metal style that has both thrash and black metal elements, as well as even some power metal ones. This last aspect of their sound was evident on one track on Onward to Annihilation, and although it’s still only a very small part of their sound, it’s developed a little further Continue reading “Abominant – Napalm Reign (Review)”

Oracles – Miserycorde (Review)

OraclesOracles are a metal band from Belgium, this is their debut album.

Featuring current and ex-members of Aborted, System Divide and Dimlight, as well as guests from current and ex-members of Black Dahlia Murder, Scar Symmetry, Nevermore and Arch Enemy, this is a release that’s something a little different and backed up by a wealth of experience. Continue reading “Oracles – Miserycorde (Review)”

Blood Incantation – Starspawn (Review)

Blood IncantationThis is the debut album from US death metal band Blood Incantation.

Blood Incantation play death metal with plenty of atmosphere and technical skill. This is a band who have gazed towards the night sky, saw the vast darkness, and pay homage to that empty malevolence via the medium of underground music that’s less restricted and more expansive than your average death metal band. Continue reading “Blood Incantation – Starspawn (Review)”

Dimlight – The Lost Chapters (Review)

DimlightDimlight are a symphonic metal band from Greece and this is their third album.

Now this is quite interesting. Here we have a Gothic/symphonic metal band that have some death/black metal elements entwined into the tracks.

This is a modern, updated version of the old, so-called, beauty-and-the-beast vocal approach that twins angelic female cleans with guttural male growls. I always quite liked this approach when it was probably at the height of its popularity Continue reading “Dimlight – The Lost Chapters (Review)”

Warfather – The Grey Eminence (Review)

WarfatherWarfather play death metal and this is their second album.

Warfather’s debut album Orchestrating the Apocalypse was a bit hit and miss. Although it was, overall, an enjoyable affair, over time it revealed itself to be a little unfocused in places and had a rather thin production that didn’t do the music any favours.

Two years later, enter The Grey Eminence. First off, there are no problems with the production this time round. On this latest release it’s thick, chunky and muscular, just as it needs to be. Being produced by Erik Rutan, I would expect no less. Continue reading “Warfather – The Grey Eminence (Review)”

Cicatrix – Suffocated Faith (Review)

CicatrixCicatrix are a Polish deathgrind band, and this is their second album.

Featuring 10 originals and 2 covers of Dead Infection and Terrorizer songs, Cicatrix wear their influences on their collective sleeves and deliver 29 minutes of utter carnage.

This is a mix of brutal death metal and ugly grindcore. The band know how to play fast, but Continue reading “Cicatrix – Suffocated Faith (Review)”