The Promise of Plague – Sleepwalking into Armageddon (Review)

The Promise of PlagueThe Promise of Plague are an industrial black metal band from the US. This is their debut release.

Featuring members of Fatal Step, Astrum, Empyrean Asunder and the mighty Abominant, here we have 16 minutes of raw black metal with industrial/modern influences that place it somewhere between the underground and a more accessible area; not quite polished and commercial, but potentially getting there. Continue reading “The Promise of Plague – Sleepwalking into Armageddon (Review)”

Aborym – Shifting.negative (Review)

AborymThis is the seventh Aborym album. They play industrial metal and hail from Italy.

I love Aborym’s earlier work, but after Generator I lost track of the band unfortunately, so Shifting.negative is my first experience with them in about ten years or so. What a shocking omission on my part! This review will inevitably come from this viewpoint, as I have missed out on their last two albums, which would probably, (I imagine), have given me a more smoother transition to the current incarnation of Aborym. Continue reading “Aborym – Shifting.negative (Review)”

Interview with Unborn Suffer/Kontagion

Unborn Suffer Logo

Kontagion Logo

Damian “Sfenson” Bednarski is behind deathgrind band Unborn Suffer and industrial metallers Kontagion. Both have had albums recently featured on this site, (Nihilist and [R-!-E]elentless, respectively), so now seemed a great opportunity to catch up with him and quiz him about both projects.

Let’s see what he has to say for himself…

Introduce us to Unborn Suffer and Kontagion!

Continue reading “Interview with Unborn Suffer/Kontagion”

Veilburner – The Obscene Rite (Review)

veilburnerThis is the third album from US experimental blackened death metallers Veilburner.

Veilburner have produced a monster of an album. This is 60 minutes of blackened death metal, filtered through a corrupted lens of experimental dissonance and pseudo-industrial undertones.

In a way it’s difficult to separate the disparate influences at play in Continue reading “Veilburner – The Obscene Rite (Review)”

Kontagion – [R-!-E]lentless (Review)

KontagionThis is the second album from Polish industrial metal band Kontagion.

Kontagion play industrial-tinged cybermetal, taking influence from the earlier of strains of the Fear Factory virus, and morphing itself into an altogether darker and more feral breed via some early Slipknot/Mushroomhead influences and a touch of Godflesh, (of which there’s a cover version here of Crush My Soul).

This really does have a late 90s/early 00s feel Continue reading “Kontagion – [R-!-E]lentless (Review)”

Subliminal Fear – Escape from Leviathan (Review)

Subliminal FearThis is the third album from Subliminal Fear, an Italian metal band.

This is modern metal that takes its primary influences from a combination of the cybermetal styles, (Fear Factory, Mnemic), and melodic groove metal, (Soilwork, In Flames, etc.), alongside a pinch of djent and industrial.

With this in mind, the band operate in the more commercial realm of the style, rather than on the heavier end as some bands do when incorporating these influences, (for the most part at least; that’s not to say the band can’t be heavy or more extreme when they want to). The songs work well in this context though, with the band’s clean vocal harmonies being Continue reading “Subliminal Fear – Escape from Leviathan (Review)”

Crowhurst – II (Review)

CrowhurstCrowhurst are from the US, and are an extremely prolific band with lots of noise/experimental/etc. releases. Their self titled album from 2015 was especially of interest, as it was essentially a pure black metal album, and a very good one at that.

Fast forward a year, and they have now released II. This continues the black metal theme started by their previously mentioned album, only this time with a wider scope and with industrial/sludge aspects, as well as contributions from members Continue reading “Crowhurst – II (Review)”

Caïna – Christ Clad in White Phosphorus (Review)

CainaCaïna are a black metal band from the UK. This is their seventh album.

What do you get if you combine raw black metal with industrial and dark ambient? You get Christ Clad in White Phosphorus.

The ugly, intense black metal parts are my favourite bits of this album, as they rage with an underground fury and intensity the likes of which most bands only aspire to. It’s not all about Continue reading “Caïna – Christ Clad in White Phosphorus (Review)”

VIII – Decathexis (Review)

VIIIThis is the second album from VIII, an Italian black metal band.

VIII have produced an ambitious release that spans 50 minutes across three sprawling, ugly tracks. This is not an album for people who like polished, shiny music. Oh no. This is the sound of dying, decay and forgotten dreams.

Decathexis sees the band playing raw, underground black metal with a mean, dispirited edge. Alongside the Continue reading “VIII – Decathexis (Review)”