Alpha Wolf are an Australian metalcore band and this is their third album.
I thoroughly enjoyed 2020’s A Quiet Place to Die, as well as 2022’s split with Holding Absence The Lost & the Longing, so more new material from Alpha Wolf is very well-received. I dislike the album art, but ignoring that, what do Alpha Wolf have in store for us this time around? Continue reading “Alpha Wolf – Half Living Things (Review)”
This is the seventh album from UK death metallers Ingested.
So, if you’re a fan of deathcore-edged brutal death metal, then you must surely know of Ingested by now, (if not, acquaint yourself with The Level Above Human, Where Only Gods May Tread, Ashes Lie Still, and the rest). Ingested seem to be on a bit of a creative binge over the last few years, pumping out albums like nobody’s business, which brings us to the 45 minutes of heaviness that is The Tide of Death and Fractured Dreams. Continue reading “Ingested – The Tide of Death and Fractured Dreams (Review)”
Aborted are a death metal band from Belgium and this is their twelfth album.
I can’t help but love Aborted. Their addictive blast and groove approach to death metal is tried, tested, and brutally efficient. I’ll link my reviews for Retrogore, Bathos, Terrorvision, and Maniacult, and urge you to check them all out, as they’re definitely all worth your time. Which brings us to Vault of Horrors, the new 40-minute Aborted offering. Continue reading “Aborted – Vault of Horrors (Review)”
This is the debut album from US death metal band Apogean.
Cyberstrictive contains 44 minutes of modern technical death metal. As a lazy intro, I’m just going to quote the blrub on their Bandcamp page – “Apogean drew their inspiration from such groups as Soreption, The Faceless, Obscura, Necrophagist, The Black Dahlia Murder, Archspire, and The Zenith Passage. It’s a safe bet that fans of those bands will thoroughly enjoy what they have to offer.” Continue reading “Apogean – Cyberstrictive (Review)”
Defocus are a German metalcore band and this is their second album.
Following on from 2021’s In the Eye of Death We Are All the Same comes There Is a Place for Me on Earth, bringing us 32 minutes of aggressive new material. Continue reading “Defocus – There Is a Place for Me on Earth (Review)”
This is the fifth album from US death metal/deathcore band Enterprise Earth.
2020’s EP Foundation of Bones was a solid introduction to the band for me, but I really enjoyed 2022’s The Chosen. Yes it was too long, but I really liked the band’s ability to combine deathcore and death metal with a range of different ideas and influences to create something above the norm for the style. Two years and a new singer later, and Enterprise Earth have returned with Death: An Anthology, which delivers 59 minutes of new material. It has not disappointed. Continue reading “Enterprise Earth – Death: An Anthology (Review)”
Here’s a tasty show that I knew I wanted to catch. Both Viscera and Cabal are extremely well-regarded at Wonderbox Metal, so this was one for me to not miss. It was, however, one of the less well-attended gigs I’ve been to in a while. A shame, but it’s other people’s loss, as this was a damn good night out. Continue reading “Cabal/Viscera/Vexed/Lifesick – Rebellion, Manchester – 16/01/24 (Live Review)”
This is the latest EP from Alluvial, a modern death metal band from the US.
Following on after 2021’s Sarcoma, Death Is But a Door contains four new songs and has a total duration of 17 minutes. Strap in, it’s gonna get heavy. Continue reading “Alluvial – Death Is But a Door (Review)”
Welcome to my annual attempt to make sense of the ridiculous amount of good metal albums out there, awaiting discovery by intrepid metal explorers.
2023’s best of list has been one of the more difficult ones to put together, placing-wise, which is one of the reasons that I’m posting it later than I usually do. Even more so than normal many of the slots are interchangeable, and I especially struggled with positions two-nine – if such a thing were possible, they all deserve to be higher! In the end I decided to stop overthinking it and go with my gut, but the usual caveat of these lists being very subjective and subject to change depending on mood, feelings, etc. is larger than normal here.
There are some notable acts missing form the below. Not because they’re not worthy of inclusion, but because there are only so many spaces to be had. In fact, I almost ended up limiting this list to 20, rather than the now-customary 30, as I found it really difficult to know who to include and who not to. In the end I went with the standard 30 so that I could promote a few extra bands, as they absolutely all deserve it.
As for the top position, I wasn’t expecting it to be filled by a band I’d never heard before, playing a style that I don’t listen to as much as I used to. However, I suppose after last year, I shouldn’t have been too surprised.
I do hope you enjoy this list and find some new music to obsess over. Like always, thanks for your support if you have ever visited this site before, and here’s to a great 2024 for as many of us as possible. Continue reading “Wonderbox Metal End of Year List – Best Metal of 2023”
This is the debut album from US death metal band Distention.
Featuring current and ex-members of bands such as Equipoise, Rivers of Nihil, The Kennedy Veil, The Last Ten Seconds of Life, and Virulent Depravity, you know a lot of experience has gone into the 30 minutes of brutal material on Nothing Comes from Death, and it shows. Continue reading “Distention – Nothing Comes from Death (Review)”
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