Spawned from Hate are a UK death metal band and this is the debut album.
So here we are then, the long overdue first album from Spawned from Hate. I enjoyed 2015’s EP Accelerated Butchery, as well as their 2018 promo, but then…the slaughterhouse went silent.
No longer. Continue reading “Spawned from Hate – Elective Amputation (Review)”
This is the second album from Aronious, a death metal band from the US.
I listened to and enjoyed 2020’s Perspicacity far more than I expected to, so when Irkalla appeared I was keen to explore it. Two things struck me about the band’s new release before I’d even pressed play – the first was the difference in length, (Irkalla‘s 41 minutes/8 tracks vs Perspicacity‘s 59 minutes/13 tracks), and the second was the significant lineup changes, including a new Continue reading “Aronious – Irkalla (Review)”
Heaving Earth are a death metal band from Czechia and this is their second album.
Seven long years have passed since we last heard from Heaving Earth on 2015’s crushing Denouncing the Holy Throne. The band have finally returned with 49 minutes of new material, as well as a new line up, (including a new singer who is also in Brutally Deceased and Somniate, and session drums from the drummer of Hideous Divinity/Nero di Marte). Do they still have what it takes to pulverise and destroy with their mere presence? Continue reading “Heaving Earth – Darkness of God (Review)”
This is the third album from, Cosmic Putrefaction, a one-man death metal band from Italy.
Following on from 2020’s The Horizons Towards Which Splendour Withers, Crepuscular Dirge for the Blessed Ones contains 42 minutes of new material. Brought to us by the artist behind Summit and Vertebra Atlantis, Cosmic Putrefaction’s music consists of progressive death metal augmented with doom and black metal highlights. Continue reading “Cosmic Putrefaction – Crepuscular Dirge for the Blessed Ones (Review)”
This is the third album from Nero di Marte, a progressive metal band from Italy.
Six years after the rewarding Derivae, Nero di Marte have finally returned with 67 minutes of new material in the shape of Immoto. Continue reading “Nero di Marte – Immoto (Review)”
L’Incendio are an extreme metal band from Italy. This is their debut album.
L’Incendio have a death metal core that they build on with elements of other sub-genre styles, fleshing out their well-rounded assault in a wider-ranging way than many of their peers.
Combining atmosphere and accessibility into their Continue reading “L’Incendio – L’Incendio (Review)”
Minsk are a Post-Metal band from the US and this is their fourth album.
I’m a big fan of Minsk’s 2009 album, With Echoes in the Movement of Stone, so have been eager to hear this latest release of theirs.
Coming from a Post-Metal view that takes in the stunning panoramas of Isis, Neurosis and Cult of Luna, Minsk were never as well-known as their contemporaries but still managed to hugely impress those lucky enough to hear them.
They have now roused themselves from their six year slumber and produced a hefty piece of work in The Crash & The Draw – 11 tracks, 75 minutes of music.
Well, there’s a lot going on here. Minsk certainly don’t lack for either ambition or talent. This is an album of moods and atmospheres. In the best Post-Metal tradition they know how to build you up and then knock you down.
Psychedelic, Progressive and heavily percussive elements work alongside the crushing guitars and expansive sense of space that the band create.
Emotionally these tracks take in pretty much everything, from the beautiful to the nightmarish, sometimes even in the same song.
The songs are varied, multi-textured and rich with evocative and emotive soundscapes. There’s a lot of depth and nuance to these compositions and it takes a good few spins to fully grasp what’s going on here in some instances.
Much like Nero Di Marte‘s latest work, The Crash & The Draw seems to build upon itself with each listen until the music acts like waves, reinforcing itself so that eventually it just drowns everything else out and you truly begin to wonder how you ever thought there was anything else.
This is truly an album of wonders and otherworldly journeys.
What’s stopping you from listening to this right now?
Nero Di Marte are from Italy and play Progressive Metal. This is their second album.
This is complex and dense music. There’s a lot of substance here, a lot to take in. Nero Di Marte are not your conventional band; they do things differently.
Rather than catchy riffs or hooks, instead they play riffs that merge and flow with each other to build up a complex tapestry over time. As the songs progress it becomes clear very early on that a lot of thought has gone into these compositions.
This is modern, heavy Prog; more akin to Gojira, Mastodon and Memories of a Dead Man than Dream Theater. This isn’t Post-Metal, but the band borrow the sense of dynamics and momentum-building that Post-Metal does so well and fuses them into their own sound.
These are masterfully crafted tracks that are as engaging as they are entrancing. The low-key vocals almost get lost in the churning maelstrom of guitars and percussive treats, yet they’re there, they add a lot to the already busy music and they help the band connect to the listener in a very visceral way.
Derivae sounds very warm, with the drums in particular having a very satisfying feel to them. This feels like real music, not just something pieced together and let loose with minimal feeling.
Overall, this is a thunderously strong album.
A rewarding and entrancing listen.
Wonderbox Metal 