Descend into Despair – Synaptic Veil (Review)

Descend into DespairDescend into Despair are a Romanian funeral doom band and this is their second album.

2014’s colossal The Bearer of All Storms was a huge, monolithic slab of atmospheric funeral death/doom. With over 90 minutes of material, it was a weighty, substantial listen that matched its quantity with an equal amount of quality. Continue reading “Descend into Despair – Synaptic Veil (Review)”

One Master – Lycanthropic Burrowing (Review)

One MasterOne Master are a US black metal band and this is their fourth album.

After the extremely enjoyable blackened assault of 2015’s Reclusive Blasphemy, we finally have some new One Master to satisfy our dark cravings. Continue reading “One Master – Lycanthropic Burrowing (Review)”

Apes – Lightless (Review)

ApesApes are a dark hardcore band from Canada and this is their debut album.

I love it when you find a band that don’t limit themselves to what they play, exploring multiple genres and bringing everything together with a love of extremity and savage delivery. Continue reading “Apes – Lightless (Review)”

Chrome Ghost – Reflection Pool (Review)

Chrome GhostChrome Ghost are a doom metal band from the US and this is their latest EP.

This is sludgy doom metal that has heart. It’s heavy music that doesn’t skimp on the emotive qualities that make sludge so compelling. Continue reading “Chrome Ghost – Reflection Pool (Review)”

Scalpel – Methods to Delusion (Review)

ScalpelThis is the second album from Scalpel, a death metal band from the US.

We haven’t heard much from Scalpel since 2013’s Sorrow and Skin. This was one of the earliest reviews I ever did, (as you can probably gather by reading it), so the band have always stuck in my mind. It’s great to catch up with them almost four years later. My, where does the time go? Continue reading “Scalpel – Methods to Delusion (Review)”

Unseen Faith – Waver (Review)

Unseen FaithUnseen Faith are a deathcore band from Denmark and this is their debut album.

This is deathcore that’s brutal and dark, but not without melodic or atmospheric elements that help save the band from one-dimensional obscurity. Continue reading “Unseen Faith – Waver (Review)”

Unclean One – I, Tyrant (Review)

Unclean OneUnclean One is a one-man grindcore outfit from Sweden and this is his debut release.

Now here’s something short, barbed, and nasty for you. There’s less than two minutes of material compressed into these four tracks, but what this short release lacks in quantity it makes up for in quality. Continue reading “Unclean One – I, Tyrant (Review)”

Interview with Dead Label

Dead Label Header

Dead Label are somewhat of a rarity these days in metal – a band that has the ability and potential to have quite a wide appeal, while still staying true to themselves and what metal is all about. Throne of Bones, their second album from 2016, exemplifies this.

We caught up with them fresh from their recent appearance at the Download Festival in the UK. The band’s drummer – Claire Percival – shared her rather infectious enthusiasm with us… Continue reading “Interview with Dead Label”