Nile – Page 7 – Wonderbox Metal

Sulphur Aeon – Gateway to the Antisphere (Review)

Sulphur Aeon play Death Metal. They are from Germany and this is their second album.

I love a good album cover, and this one is just brilliant.

Sulphur Aeon are not your standard Death Metal band. Sure, the ferocious riffs and brutal delivery are there, but they also add a lot more on top of this. Sound enhancements, effects, interesting vocals and chants, etc. add to the feeling of something special, mysterious and subtly disturbing.

A strong feeling of the underworld pervades this release, with mysterious sounds and otherworldly echoes aplenty.

The vocals are bowel-shakingly deep and sound as evil as they do inhuman. Added to this there are various shouts and chants also included that ratchet up the atmosphere and feeling as well as the aura of otherworldly darkness that these songs exude.

Musically this is interesting Death Metal in the grand tradition of bands like Behemoth and Nile; bands that are not content to play generic Death Metal and instead infuse their style with atmosphere and character. Sulphur Aeon have both in spades.

These songs are heavy and brutal yet still manage to make room for atmosphere and no small amount of melody and leads. The musicianship and songwriting skills of the band are all top-drawer and these 53 minutes speed by in a blur of remarkable Extreme Metal.

This is a very impressive release that is guaranteed to make waves in the Extreme Metal scene. There’s not enough individuality and differentiation in the Death Metal scene, (why fix what largely isn’t broken?), but thankfully Sulphur Aeon have produced an album that builds on all of the strengths of Death Metal and takes the genre further than most.

Essential listening. Go and get this now.

Sarpanitum – Blessed Be My Brothers… (Review)

Sarpanitum are a UK Death Metal band and this is their second album.

Sarpanitum take a three-pronged approach to their Death Metal that combines traditional Death Metal, melodic atmospheres and a touch of Black Metal’s heart of darkness.

The band’s melodic edge is a sharp one and it’s incorporated directly into their heaviness rather than seeming like an addition to it as is frequently the case with other bands that combine brutality and melodics.

Added keyboard sounds subtly enhance this already keen melodic sensibility they have and I really like the sense of atmospheric brutality that they create. There’s a Middle Eastern feel to a lot of the melodies that adds an exotic touch to the songs, as well as no small amount of epic grandeur.

The vocals are as dark as night; thick, deep, malevolent growls that are so low as to be akin to rumbling thunder.

Blessed Be My Brothers… has a thick, dense sound that’s uncompromising and combined with the band’s complicated riffing is impenetrable to the casual listener. This is Death Metal for real Death Metal fans who want something a bit more interesting than the standard generic fare.

Fans of Nile, Mithras, Lelahell, Gorguts, Morbid Angel, Sidious and Dying Out Flame should love this.

Highly recommended.

Decimation – Reign of Ungodly Creation (Review)

Decimation are from Turkey and this is their third album. They play Brutal Death Metal.

Is it wrong that I knew I was going to like this album as soon as I saw the album cover? No? That’s okay then…

This is Brutal Death Metal at its most devastatingly direct. They have a Technical Death Metal side to them but it’s the raw brutality that makes up the lion’s share of their sound. There’s something timeless and eternally gratifying about Death Metal like this. Sometimes I just can’t get enough.

If you think that a mixture of bands like Suffocation, Insision, Defeated Sanity and Nile would make for a good listen then you’d be right and Reign of Ungodly Creation is the album for you.

The songs are tight, condensed balls of ferocity and blasting destruction. They’re not interested in taking prisoners that much is clear. They rip, tear, chug, blast and flail their way through over 37 minutes of prime brutality and long, complicated song titles.

The vocalist is a guttural beast who sounds like he chews on souls for snacks. With a deep growl that’s instantly satisfying his is a voice that’s easy for any Death Metaller to get on board with.

Decimation boast a strong production that sounds like granite has come to life and started crushing cities. There’s something hard and immovable about their sound yet it’s also imbued with life and doesn’t sound stunted or lacking in energy.

Well I have thoroughly enjoyed this album. With lots of heaviness, energetic riffing and blasting mayhem what’s not to like?

Time to get decimated.

Hideous Divinity – Cobra Verde (Review)

This is the second album of Death Metal from Italian band Hideous Divinity.

Here we have a blistering Technical/Brutal Death Metal band that plays crushing music with furious abandon.

Mixing elements of Hate Eternal, Decapitated, Nile, Behemoth and Hour of Penance; Hideous Divinity have come to destroy.

Hideous Divinity have a powerful sound and seem more than comfortable with their playing skills. Importantly, the band never neglect the songs themselves; although they have a Technical side to their sound they know that a song is more than just playing in a complex way.

As such, these songs are structured well and use their playing time to good effect. Emotive riffs and studied brutality is the name of the game here, and the band do it expertly.

The band’s twisting, dark music is an exemplar of what intelligently crafted Death Metal can sound like in 2014. Songwriting skills, technicality, brutality and the occasional nod to subtlety – these are key elements in the Hideous Divinity sound and the band have really taken them to heart.

This is an album the band should be proud of, and one I’ll be spinning for a good while to come.

Calm Hatchery – Fading Reliefs (Review)

Calm Hatchery are from Poland and this is their third Death Metal album.

Calm Hatchery play Eastern-tinged Death Metal that’s brutal and precise. Their Death Metal is one that falls into the timeless school of music; it has elements of Old-School Death Metal but not enough to be considered retro and it has enough modern influences without sounding like one of the new breed.

Simply, these are proper Death Metal songs with an Eastern flair and if you’re a fan of bands like Nile, Hate Eternal, Morbid Angel, Behemoth, etc. then Calm Hatchery should be on your “to get” list.

The recording is top notch with everything sounding clear and crisp. The drums give a capable beat down and the guitars crush and destroy as they should. The skills of the band are set at a high level and I particularly enjoy the squealing solos and rhythmic riffing.

Deep growls are used well to work with the music and complement it well. Some of the riffs are quite inventive and atypical. The vocalist does his part in the mechanics of the whole song by allowing these moments to shine by themselves when necessary.

Calm Hatchery have produced an enjoyably brutal album that honours its Death Metal past yet glints with a personality all of its own.

A recommended listen for any Death Metal fan.

Innsmouth – The Shadow Over Innsmouth (Review)

Innsmouth are from Denmark and play Technical Death Metal. This is their début album.

This is Technical Death Metal with programmed drums and added subtle keyboard highlights.

Think bands like Nile, Necrophagist and Obscura and you’ll be in the right place.

The musicianship is impressive with shredding guitar solos peeling off all over the shop. The solos feel like an integral part of the band’s identity and they make a good impression.

The music is nicely varied with a healthy amount of brutality offsetting the technical capabilities of the band. Quality riffs and some good atmospheric sections rub shoulders with moments of chuggery and melodic leads. Inssmouth seem more than capable of keeping the listener interested and the songs on this album show a high degree of maturity of delivery and composition whilst simultaneously keeping things aggressive and direct.

The band have plenty of energy and show that they can use dynamics to good effect. These songs actually feel like songs rather than stitched together riffs, which is always a danger with the more technical side of Metal. Thankfully they seem to realise that the song comes first and everything else is just enhancement.

The vocals are quite daemonic and evil sounding, both deeper growls and higher screams.

The album’s production values are good and the music has a satisfying sound that hits the spot.

A most enjoyable release. This is Death Metal with interest, depth and a whole bucket-load of guitar shenanigans. I Like.

Noctem – Exilium (Review)

Noctem are from Spain and this is their third album.

The band play Blackened Death Metal with a bit of pomp and plenty of bite.

After a symphonic intro the first track proper Apsu Dethroned wastes no time introducing you to the band’s particular brand of blasting and heaviness. What is not quite as expected, however, is the orchestral accompaniment that forms a nice link to the intro.

It’s a great touch that precedes the actual singer who belches out occult growls with the fervour of the possessed. His is an unrelenting, uncompromising style that gives no quarter and knows no mercy.

The rest of the album continues the theme of a Death Metal band with Blackened influences that incorporates plenty of interesting ideas and sounds into their Extreme Metal repertoire.

The brutality and blast beats of their core Death Metal sound share space with more melodic riffs and a healthy dose of Black Metal influences. The orchestral sounds/choirs/keyboards add a deeper layer to Noctem’s identity and are embedded well rather than just sounding tacked on.

The musicianship is first rate, with the drumming being a precision assault and guitar solos and leads flashing by like lightning. It’s all wrapped up in a stellar production job that allows everything to shine and just sounds crushing.

None of this would have any longevity of course if it wasn’t for the songs themselves. The band show quite capably that they can write a good tune and Exilium is full of them.

If you take elements of bands like Behemoth, Nile, Atrocity and Septic Flesh, mix them in a blender and make a tasty hate-filled frothy shake then Noctem would be the cream.

A high quality, ambitious release; Noctem have proven they have what it takes to become forerunners in the Extreme Metal world.

Watch them go.

Oath of Damnation – The Descent (Review)

Oath of Damnation are from Australia and play Blackened Death Metal.

This release features a heavy and dense sound, as if the band condensed a planet’s worth of matter and used it to fuel the recording process.

The deep vocals sound equally impressive, with a depth of guttural growling seldom seen. This is coupled with higher Black Metal shrieking that offsets them.

The music is fast and furious, combining the intricate riffing of Nile, the claustrophobia of Immolation and the Blackened bite of Arkhon Infaustus. It’s a heady mix and the resultant cocktail is as intoxicating as it is venomous.

The band also incorporate symphonic elements into their brutal repertoire. These are used to punctuate and accentuate the churning maelstrom of chaos that the band create. These are used sparingly to good effect and never sound over the top or out of character with the rest of the music.

Oath of Damnation have released something special here. Seek them out and listen to them today.

Beyond Mortal Dreams – Lamia (Review)

Death Metal – this is the latest EP from Australia’s Beyond Mortal Dreams.

Having previously heard their very enjoyable Dreaming Death EP I stated at the time that I couldn’t wait to hear more from them. Well here we have it, albeit only a taster. Two tracks in just under 9 minutes.

The first song Lamia is a new one. It rolls out of the speakers like a steamroller and flattens everything. There’s a older-Nile vibe to this track; a sort of atmospheric brutality that sounds like it’s being filtered out through a black hole. Quality stuff. Hopefully this bodes well for the next album…

The second track Demonsword Infernal is new version of a song from their The Demon and the Tree of the Dead demo. I haven’t heard the original but this version is a top quality rhythmic pulser with dark melodies and swirling riffs.

Beyond Mortal Dreams have delivered the goods again. Only next time we want, nay, we demand, more!

Beyond Mortal Dreams – Dreaming Death (Review)

Beyond Mortal Dreams are an Australian Death Metal band treading their own path on their own terms with this 18 minute, 4 track EP.

Three original songs and a Beherit cover are what we get, and this EP is over far too quickly as Beyond Mortal Dreams deliver the goods.

And those lead guitars! I love a good solo and there’s plenty of fretwork on these songs to keep me happy. The guitars generally are both aggressive and atmospheric, in the way that Nile manage so effortlessly; yet also take aspects of bands like Immolation. These are the bands that are not just concerned with aural bludgeoning, but who are also interested in immersing the listener in the mood of the song as well.

The drums form the bedrock on which everything else is built and it’s clear that the drummer is not human but rather some form of multi-armed cyber-mutation that’s been programmed to pound skins for all it’s worth. Impressive stuff.

This EP is a fantastic listen and I can’t wait to hear more from them in the future.