Axxen Conners are a progressive death metal band from Turkey. This is their debut EP.
This short, sub-13 minute EP is an interesting listen. Professionally recorded with a solid sound, the band effectively showcase their metal vision.
The band play a sort of death metal that has a progressive/melodic edge, with elements of black metal stirred into Continue reading “Axxen Conners – Nowhere to Escape Sins (Review)”
This is the fourth album from US death metallers Allegaeon.
This is an ambitious, epic release; 72 minutes of science fiction-themed grandeur and technical aggression.
The band’s music is technical, melodic death metal that features a lot of engaging content and some quite virtuoso playing. For a band like this, the level of technicality on display is always going to be high, but Allegaeon never Continue reading “Allegaeon – Proponent for Sentience (Review)”
Seventh Station are a band that like their intricate playing and involved compositions. This is perfectly exemplified on their debut album Between Life and Dreams. With a varied and nuanced approach to songwriting, the band take the listener on a roller coaster ride though multiple feelings, moods and experiences, as they traverse the musical landscape with veteran ease. Dmitri Alperovich, lead guitarist extraordinaire, gave me a bit more information about his band…
Seventh Station is an international progressive metal band, founded by me and the bass player Alexey Polyansky in 2008 at Jerusalem, Israel. The band is based in Slovenia today and its members are from Israel, Slovenia and USA. We are using lots of different types of music to form our ideas and the main aim is not to be limited to any kind of expression we want to play. Continue reading “Interview with Seventh Station”
Hailing form Sweden, this is the third album from Usurpress.
I like Usurpress. Both their split with Bent Sea and their last full-length, Ordained, were very enjoyable, and now they’re back with a new album that features a very good cover.
But what of the music? Usurpress are not a normal death metal band, including elements of crust, sludge and progressive/psychedelic music in their delivery, as they do. Continue reading “Usurpress – The Regal Tribe (Review)”
This is the debut album from international progressive metal band Seventh Station.
The band clearly know what they’re doing with their instruments, and the high level of quality playing on this album is evident from the very start.
I love music that feels like it’s taking you on a journey, and this is very definitely one such album. Through a blistering display of virtuoso playing, the band navigate all manner of musical soundscapes in an attempt to get across their artistic vision. Continue reading “Seventh Station – Between Life and Dreams (Review)”
Inter Arma are a US post-metal band and this is their third album.
Well, here we have something that has a massive amount of expectation attached to it, at least from me. Their 2014 release The Cavern was a single 45 minute track that came close to attaining perfection. It was, quite simply, the best thing I heard that year, which is why it was my album of the year for 2014.
So, it’s with no pressure, (hehe), that I pressed play on their latest release, and let the band’s involved soundscapes take me away. Continue reading “Inter Arma – Paradise Gallows (Review)”
This is the début album by Shodan, a death metal band from Poland.
Shodan play modern death metal for the most part, but also incorporate a myriad of other influences and ideas into this atypical release.
The interesting thing about this band is how they develop their style for each song; it all revolves around a modern core of solid death metal, but each track uses this in its own way and incorporates different elements from Continue reading “Shodan – Protocol of Dying (Review)”
Jinjer are a metal band from the Ukraine, and this is their second album.
King of Everything mixes metalcore, hardcore, thrash metal, groove metal, melodic death metal and djent…Okay, that’s a lot of sub-genres. Let’s just say they cover a lot of bases.
That’s putting it too simply, though; in reality, Jinjer have managed to produce a complex and diverse album that has a whole lot more going on than you might expect for a band that’s labelled Continue reading “Jinjer – King of Everything (Review)”
Elyria are a symphonic metal band from Germany. This is their début album.
With a Classically-trained female vocalist in the ranks, you already know that her singing is going to be first-rate. With her Classical training it’s clear from the off that she really knows what she’s doing. How well this works for you depends on your take on the style and how you feel about these kinds of vocals.
There are some really nice vocal melodies strewn about these tracks, reminding me sometimes of older Kamelot in their delivery, and her voice is very enjoyable.
The music is largely of the Gothic/symphonic variety, but interestingly Elyria spice Continue reading “Elyria – Reflection and Refraction (Review)”
This is the second album from Third Ion, a progressive metal band.
Third Ion’s début album 13/8bit was an atypical slice of progressive metal that took a lot of inspiration from video games and chiptune. It shouldn’t have worked, by all rights, but in the band’s skilful hands the album avoided becoming some nonsense novelty and instead they produced an enjoyable 55 minutes of music that offered the listener something a little different.
So what’s changed? Well, they now have a new singer – Dave Padden – Continue reading “Third Ion – Biolith (Review)”
Wonderbox Metal 