Viscera are a death/metalcore band from the UK and this is their second album.
Carcinogenesis follows on from 2020’s Obsidian, which was a record I loved, so I have been really looking forward to hearing this new one. It has not disappointed. Continue reading “Viscera – Carcinogenesis (Review)”
This is the fifth album from Scottish death metal band Man Must Die.
Man Must Die play technical death metal and The Pain Behind It All is a 41-minute assault of vicious riffs, sharp technical blows, and blunt force extremity. If you’re a fan of bands such as Decapitated, Dyscarnate, Cattle Decapitation, Beneath the Massacre, and Misery Index, then there’s much here to enjoy for you. Although, as we’ll see, there’s more than just death metal here. Continue reading “Man Must Die – The Pain Behind It All (Review)”
This is the debut album from Australian death metal band Ashen.
Ritual of Ash is a 38-minute monster of a death metal album. Ashen spend their time on this record carving their way through the killing arenas of the style to appear triumphant and covered in blood by the end of it. The album snarls with Swedish death metal groove and roars with USDM intensity. A few other death metal styles can be heard here and there too, making for a collection of tracks that are easy to replay and enjoy. Continue reading “Ashen – Ritual of Ash (Review)”
This is the debut album from Kassogtha, a death metal band from Switzerland.
rEvolve contains 62 minutes of modern death metal that’s shot through with progressive influences, melodic death metal streaks, and metalcore muscle. It is a engaging mix of modern metallic styles, resulting in an album that ranges from harsh brutality to soaring choruses, atmospheric heaviness, and emotive richness. Continue reading “Kassogtha – rEvolve (Review)”
This is the debut album from Nicolas Cage Fighter, a metallic hardcore band from Australia.
The promo blurb states that Nicholas Cage Fighter combine “ruthless hardcore, late 90s metal and death metal influences”, which sets the scene nicely for the 37 minutes of material on The Bones That Grew from Pain.
Imagine a mixture of Hatebreed, Pantera, and the groovy aspect of bands like Thy Art Is Murder and Decapitated, and you’ll have a rough idea of where Nicolas Cage Fighter are coming from. They specialise is music that takes the metallic hardcore style from the 2000s and adds in more contemporary influences.
The music is full of energy and muscular heaviness. These songs are designed for the live arena, but are well-written enough to survive outside of their natural environment. Crushing breakdowns, heavy riffs, and roared vocals are the main order of business, and Nicolas Cage Fighter know their trade well. The songs are heavy, angry, are catchier than you might expect, and are just plain fun to listen to.
I like the inclusion of ambient, melodic, and atmospheric elements into the band’s brutal sound. These are only small enhancements to the songs and only appear at select moments, but they add value nonetheless. I also really like the singer’s vocals. They’re well-performed and varied enough to hold interest.
The Bones That Grew from Pain sits nicely next to recent records by Malevolence and Cage Fight. If you are looking for an album to hit the gym to, or just something to go and break stuff to, then this is for you.
A highly recommended slab of crushing heaviness.
Blackwater Drowning are a melodic death metal band from the US and this is their debut album.
Featuring a member of Final Curse, Blackwater Drowning play melodic death metal with good riffs, hooks, and vocals. Sonder//Satori contains 33 minutes of material, and ably showcases what the band are capable of a in a tight, professional package. Continue reading “Blackwater Drowning – Sonder//Satori (Review)”
This is the third album from French thrash/heavy metallers Heart Attack.
Described in the promo blurb as “the lovechild of Gojira, Machine Head and early Metallica”, this is a decent starting point for approaching Negative Sun. Across 45 minutes, (including a Genesis cover as a bonus track), Heart Attack unleash a mix of old and new thrash/groove/heavy metal, (with a touch of hardcore), and do so with passion and charisma. Continue reading “Heart Attack – Negative Sun (Review)”
Soreption are a Swedish death metal band and this is their fourth album.
I thoroughly enjoyed 2014’s Engineering the Void, so Jord was high on my list of albums to check out. Clocking in at a lean 31 minutes Jord doesn’t mess around. Rarely have the gods of technical groove found such a fitting outlet as Soreption. Continue reading “Soreption – Jord (Review)”
Azaab are a death metal band from Pakistan and this is their debut album.
Summoning the Catalysm features 38 minutes of professional death metal. It’s brutal and aggressive, and boasts both technical flourishes and progressive enhancements, all delivered in a lean 38 minutes, (and there’s a decent Decapitated cover too). Continue reading “Azaab – Summoning the Cataclysm (Review)”
May saw an unreasonable amount of good metal albums released into the wild. The below are just the tip of the iceberg, but more than worth celebrating in their own right. Continue reading “Monthly Overview – the Best of May 2022”
Wonderbox Metal 