Saturday, May 30, 2015

We Worship Desaster-A Tribute To The Tyrants/Grom Records/2015 Double CD Compilation Review


  Desaster  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  has  been  around  since  the  mid  90's  and  plays  a  mixture  of  black  metal  and thrash  and  this  is  a  review  of  a  double compilation  that  shows  plenty  of  bands  doing  cover  versions  of  their  songs and  was  also  rleeased  by  Grom  Records  and we  will  review  the  songs  one  by  one.

CD 1-
1.Intro-Crowd  noises  and a  live  concert  are  featured  on  this  intro  that  starts  off  the  album

2.Kolac  brings  us  "Crypts  Of  Dracul"  which  starts  out  with  wind  sounds  before  adding  in  synths  a  few  seconds  later  and  after  a  few  minutes  the  music  gets  heavier  along  with  some  black  metal  screams  and  melodic  riffing  and  the  song  is  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length  with  the  faster  sections  using  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats. 

3.Slaughtered  Priest  brings  us  "Metalized  Blood"  which  starts  out with  some  German  style  thrash  riffing and  grim  black  metal vocals  a few  seconds  later  and  the  music  goes  for  a  retro  style  of  black/thrash  metal.  

4.Guerra  Total  brings  us  "The  Swords  Will  Never  Sink"  a  song  that  uses  a  great  amount  of  melodic  guitar  leads  and  also  has  an 80's  feeling  that  reminds  me of  some  of  the  Brazilian bands  of  that  era  and  the  song  also  remains  true  to  a  blackened  thrash  metal  direction.   

5.Volcanic  brings  us  "Sworn  To  Avenge"  a  song  that  goes  for  more  of  a  first  wave  style  of  black  metal  while  also  mixing  in  a  good  dose  of  thrash  and also  utilizing  a  great  amount  of  meldic  riffing  into  the  song.

6.Bloodthirst  brings  us  "Beasts Of  Wrath  And  Victory"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  an  old  school  80's  style  of  death  metal  while  the  music  is  still  very  heavily  influenced  by  black  and  thrash  metal.

7.Bonehunter  brings  us  "Venomous  Stench"  another  song  that  remains  true  to  a  Germanic  blackened  style  of  thrash  metal.

8.Fatal  Embrace  brings  us  "Hellbangers"  a  very  raw  and  heavy  black/thrash  metal  song   that  also  has  a  very  heavy  80's  atmosphere  to  it.

9.Extirpation  brings  us  "Hellfire's  Dominion"  a  very  heavy  raw  and aggressive  old  school  black/thrash  metal  track  that  also  brings  in  a  bit  of  the  early  90's  second  wave  style  and  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats.

10.Satanika  brings  us  "Symphony  Of  Vengeance"  a  song  that  has  a  very  heavily  90's  orientated  German  thrash  metal  sound  to  it  while  the  vocals  are  in  more  of  a  black  metal  direction   

11.Invocacian  brings  us  "Spare  No  Coward"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  some  very  grim  sounding  black  metal  screams  which  they also  mix  in  with  an  80's  style  of  thrash  as  well  as  adding  in  a  touch  of  death  metal.

12..Triumphant  brings  us  "Past...Present...Future..."  a  song  that  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  black  and  thrash  metal  but  done  with  a  more  catchy  approach  as  well  as  adding  in  a  bit  of  the  more  raw  second  wave  style  at  times.

13.Terrorhammer  brings  us  "Devil's  Sword"  a  song  that  is  a very  old  school  and  80's  orientated  black/thrash metal  song.

14.Nocturnal  Witch  brings  us  "Witchcraft" a  song  that  goes  for  a  raw  style  of  black  metal  but  also  havign  a  mid  80's  death  thrash  vibe.

15.Tirani  brings  us  "And  The  Powers  Above"  a song  that  starts  out  with  some  clean  playing  and  exotic  sounding  scales  as  well  as  adding  in  a  small  amount  of  synths  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavy  and  melodic  black/death  metal  direction. 

16.The Meads Of Asphodel  brings  us  "Casteland"  a  song  that  starts out  with  clean  playing  and  atmospheric  sounds  and  a  few  seconds  later  the  music  starts  getting  more  heavier  along  with  some  melodic  leads  and  the  song  also  goes  for  an  old  school  style  of  black  metal.

17.Sanctifier  brings  us  "Profanation"  a song  that  goes  for  more  of  an  old  school  mixture  of  death.  thrash  and  black  metal.

CD-2

1.Futhark brings us "Hell-born"  a song that  starts  off  with  a  very  ritualistic and  demonic  sound  before  going  into  a  first  wave  black  metal  direction  along  with  a touch  of  thrash. 

2.Speed Command  brings  us  "Face  Of  Darkness"  a  song  that  goes  for  a  mid  80's  style  of  black  metal.

3.Hellocauster  brings  us  "Teutonic  Steel"   a  song that  starts  out with  a  very  melodic  guitar  lead  and riffs  that  also  follow  the  same  pattern  before  going  into  more  of  an  old  school  style  of  black  metal.

4.Lux  Divina brings  us  "In  A  Winter  Battle'  a  song  that  goes for  a  very  retro  and melodic  style  of  black/thrash metal  which  also brings  in  a  small  amount  of  acoustic  guitars and  clean  singing  vocals.

5.Witchburner  brings  us  "Divine  Blasphemies"  a  song  that  goes  for  a  very  raw  and  primitive  black/death  metal  direction  as  well  as  utilizing  a  great  amount  of  blast beats  and  a  touch  of  thrash.

6.Nocturnal  brings  us  "Tears  Of  An  Old  Wizard"  a  song  that starts  out  with  a  very  dark  and  melodic  sound  and  a  powerful  bass  guitar before  going  for  a  more  old  school  style  of  black  metal t hat  is  more  closer  to  the  mid  80's  or  early  90's  style.

7.Hellsword  brings  us "Alliance  To  The  Power  Throne"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  violins  and  the  sounds  of  war  before  going  into  more  of  an  80's  black/thrash  metal  direction  along  with  a  great  amount  of  melody.

8.In Corpore  Mortis  brings  us  "As  The  Deadwood  Calls"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  an  atmospheric  sound  and  clean  playing  before  going  into  a  grim  and  melodic  style  of  black  metal.

9.War-Head  brings  us "Nekropolis  Kartago"  a  song  that goes  for  more  of  a  raw  old  school  style  of  black  metal  as well  as  adding  in  a  touch  of  thrash   and  melodic  death  metal.

10.Incinerador  brings  us  "Into  A  Magical  Night"  a  song  that  goes  for  an  80's  style  of  black/thrash  metal  as  well  as  adding  in  a  touch  of  early  death  metal. 

11.Dirges  brings  us  "Except  No  Release"  a  song  that  goes  for  more  of  a  dark,  heavy  and  melodic  style  of  black  and  death  metal  while  also  adding  in  a  touch  of  German  thrash.

12.Enoid  brings  us  "Sacrilege"  that  has  more  of a  raw  black/thrash  metal  sound  than  what  they  have  with  their  original music.

13.Evil  brings  us  "Thou  Shalt  be  King"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  clean  guitar  playing  before  going  into  more  of  a  raw  black  metal  direction that  also  utilizes  a  great  amount  of blast  beats.

14.Siculicidium  beings  us  "A  Skyline  In  Flame  -  A  Touch  Of  Medieval  Darkness"  a  song that  starts  out  with  clean  playing  that  almost  has  a  pagan  feeling  to  it  and  once  melodic  guitar  leads  are  added  into  the  music  the  song  starts  getting  heavier  as  well  as  bringing  in  grim  black  metal  screams.

15.Graves  Of  Saints  brings  us  "In  The  Ban  of  Satan's  Sorcery"  a  song  that  has  a  very  vintage  early 90's  black  metal  sound to it.

  In  conclusion  I  feel  this  is  a  very  great  sounding compilation  and  I  would  recommend  it  to  all  fans  of  Desaster,  black,  death  metal  and  thrash.  8  out  of  10.     

https://www.discogs.com/Various-We-Worship-Desaster/release/6897879

Monday, May 25, 2015

Kontinuum/Kyrr/Candlelight Records/2015 CD Review


  Kontinuum  are  a  band  from  Iceland  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  progressive  form  of  post  black  metal  with  elements  of  doom  and  ambient  music  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Kyrr"  which  was  released  by Candlelight  Records.

  Melodic  post  rock  style  guitars  start  off  the  album  and  start  going  into  a  heavier  direction  a  few  seconds  later  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  and  also  use  ambient  style  synths  and  when  vocals  are  added  into  the  music  they  are  in  a  clean  singing  direction  and  also  add  a  touch  of  goth  to  the  bands  musical  sound.

  When  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  in  a  melodic  post  metal  direction  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  both  clean  and  heavy  parts  and  a  good  portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  the  cleaner  parts  also  bring  a  lot  of  progressive  rock  elements  into  the  bands  musical  style  and  as  the  album  progresses  aggressive  vocals can be  heard  in  certain  sections of  the  recording.  and  all  of the  songs  stick  to  either  a  slow or  mid  paced  musical  direction.    

  Kontinuum  focuses  less  on  the  black  and  doom  metal  elements  of  previous  recordings  and go  for  more  of  a  progressive  and  post  metal  direction  on  this  recording,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while the  lyrics  are  written  in  both  Icelandic  and  English  and  cover  nature  and  sadness  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this is  another  great sounding  recording  from  Kontinuum  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  enjoy  this  album. RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Breathe"  "Kyrr"  and  "In  Shallow  Seas".  8  out  of  10.

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Disfago/Self Titled/Witch Ghetto Productions/2014 Double 7 Inch Review


  Disfago  are  a  band  from  the  United  Kingdom  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black  metal,  punk  and  thrash  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  titled  2015  double  7  inch  which  was  released  by  Witch  Ghetto  Productions.

  Punk  style  drumming  and  bass  and  electric  guitars  start  off  the  ep  along  with  some  d  beats  and  aggressive  vocals  that  have  an  early  80's  hardcore  vibe  to  them  along  with  the  grimness  of  black  metal  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  very  melodic  and  are  more  rooted  in the  old school  style  of  punk  rock.

  At  times  the  vocals  use  some  clean  singing  while  also  remaining  aggressive  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  elements  of  crust  and  thrash  as  well  as  bringing  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts along  with  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  and  the  songs  always  utilize  a  great  amount  of  raw  energy  and  also  bring  in  elements  of  black'n'roll  at  times  and  the  last  track  also  brings  in  a  small  amount  of  death  metal  growls.   

  Disfago  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  second  wave  style  black  metal  and  mixes  it  in  with  the  raw  energy  of  80's  punk  and  thrash  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  raw  and  old  school  while  the  lyrics  cover dark and  real  life  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Disfago  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black  metal,  punk  and  thrash  and  if  you  are a  fan  of  those  musical  genres, you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Midnight  Marauder"  and  "Whiskey  Breath".  8  out  of  10.

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Thursday, May 21, 2015

Sagverk/Sahataan ne kaikki/Dead Center Productions/2015 Full Length Review


  Sagverk  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black'n'roll  and  crust  and  this  is  a  review  of  their   2015  album  "Sahataan ne kaikki"  which  was  released  by Dead  Center  Productions.

  A  very  punk influenced  black  metal  sound starts  off  the  album  along with  some  angry  crust  style  screaming  vocals  and  d  beats  and  at  times  rough  yet  melodic  vocals  can  be  heard  in  the  music  at  times  along  with  some  guitar  solos  and  leads  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  At  times  the riffs  use  a  decent  amount of  melodies  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound to  them   and  on the  later  tracks  the  vocals  start  adding in black  metal  screams  and  the  music  starts  going  for  more  of  a  black'n'roll  vibe  and  the  songs  also  bring in  a  touch  of  hardcore  punk  at  times  and  they  close  the  album  with  a  cover  of  Metallica's  Motorbreath"..

  Sagverk  plays a musical  style  that takes  a  rock  influenced  form  of  black  metal  and  mixes  it  with  the  energy  of  crust  punk  to  create  a  sound of  their  own,  the  production sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording,  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Finnish  and  cover  angry  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Sagverk  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black'n'roll  and  crust  punk  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Suo"  "Pullo"  and  "Rotat".  8  out  of  10.

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Saturday, May 16, 2015

Nidra/K.M/Epitaph of Solitude/Casus Belli Musica/2015 Split Album Review


  This  is  a  review  of  a  split album  between  Russia's  Nidra  and  K.M  called  "Epitaph  Of  Solitude  which  was  released  by  Casus  Bella  Musica  and  we  will  start  off  the  review  with  Nidra  a  band  that  has  been  featured  before  in this  zine  and  plays  a  blackened  form  of  doom  metal.

  Their  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with      tribal  style  drumming  and  atmospheric  ambient  sounds  and  a  few  seconds  later clean singing  vocals  are  added  into  the  music  which  also  leads  up  to  a  heavier doom  metal  direction  while  also  keeping  around  the  synths  and  after  awhile  death  metal  growls  start becoming a huge  part  of  their songs.

  When  solos  and leads  are  utilized  they  are very  dark  and  melodic  sounding  and  most  of  their  songs  are  long  and  epic  in length  as  well  as  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  black  metal  influences  and  on  the  last  track  they  team up  with  K.M  to do  a  Bethlehem  cover,  the  production on  their  side  of  the  recording  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  nature,  personal  feelings  and  misanthropy.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Nidra  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  black  and  doom  metal,  you  should  check  out  their  side  of  the  split.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Prisoner"  and  "Abyss".

  Next  up  is  K.M  which  is  short  for  Kathoros  Melancholin  and  is  a  solo  artist  that  plays a  mixture  of  dark  ambient,  black  metal and  doom.

  His  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with  neo  classical  style  synths  which  also  have  a  blackened  ambient  feeling to  them  at  times  before  adding  in  black  metal  style  riffs  and  after  a  few  minutes  grim  sounding  growls  are  added  into  the  music  and  most  of  his  songs  are  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  a  decent  amount  of  clean  parts being  added  into  his  songs  at  times and  the  solos  and  leads  he  uses  are  very  dark  and  melodic,the  production  on  his  songs  sound  very  powerful while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  misanthropic  themes.

  In  my  opinion K.M  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black  and  doom  metal  with  some  elements  of dark  ambient  and if  you  are  a  fan of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  solo  project.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Having  Begun  To  Hate  This  World".

  In  conclusion I feel  this  is  a  very  great  sounding split  and  I  would  recommend  it  to  fans  of  black and  doom  metal.  8  out  of  10.

https://casusbellimusica.bandcamp.com/album/epitaph-of-solitude

                 

Friday, May 15, 2015

Mercy Brown Interview


Josh:  I am drunk.


1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Josh:  We've been around for about 5 years, primarily playing in Spokane, WA and other areas in the northwestern part of the US.  Chris (guitar) and I (bass) branched off from a prior band we had been playing in, to form Mercy Brown with Sera (vocals).  Lunden is our most recent member, replacing our former drummer about a year ago. 

Lunden:  Mercy Brown was well established before I entered the mix. I heard them as a raw but technical approach to the metal genre, and not really sticking to one subgenre or another. That's all I knew prior to joining. If you like variety, I'd give us a listen.

2.Recently you have released an album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

Josh:  Well our only prior release was a three song EP, so the the main difference is primarily body of work and overall dynamic.  The songs are a mix of 5 year old tracks and ones that were written during the recording process, so there is a wide range of song writing progress in there.  As far as the musical sound, it's pretty diverse in that in ranges from fairly fast, extreme metal to very mellow and ambient rock.  A large focus on the album was making everything flow together perfectly so nothing seemed out of place and the songs didn't seem thrown together.  It has a very storyline-like musical dynamic and all of the songs compliment each other very well, despite the wide-ranging musical diversity. The overall vibe of the album is pretty dark.

Sera:  I think our music has really grown with in the past two years of us being in the process of recording the album. It's our first full length consisting of a lot of songs that we've had written since we first started so I'm not sure exactly how different it could be since our EP was released. But I feel like when listening to the album all the way through, you can hear how our music has matured through the recording process. I would describe our sound on this album as starting out very heavy and in your face and then it really mellows out into something dark and ambient.  I'm really happy with how it all turned out.

Lunden:  The LP is much more thought out and technical than the older tracks I had to learn. There's an edge of efficiency and polished sound to the album as compared to the slower thrash or groove approach on the older tracks.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

Sera:  I write a lot of poetry, so there's some poems I've turned into lyrics. There's some about my personal life, relationships, my views on our world like our society here in America such as the song "Where the Fire is". That's more about how I feel that I'm overly aware of the subliminal messaging that we're being fed as a society to be desensitized to things such as violence and horror and the fact that people are too caught up in petty things and how the media is playing an extremely large part in that.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Mercy Brown'?

Chris:  Sera watched something about the Mercy Brown vampire incident during the first few weeks of us jamming.

Sera:  We chose it because it sounds like a Funk band.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Josh:  Well as far as turnout, our best shows have been at the Knitting Factory in Spokane, WA.  We did a couple with Machine Head and Mushroomhead that both had pretty decent turnouts.  Personally some of the gigs in smaller clubs tend to be a little more fun and interactive.  We don't go to crazy live but I try to be as energetic as possible, given the amount of stage space we have.  I'll run around and muster up a good coat of sweat either way.  It might be whiskey or meat sweats though, not activity sweats.

Sera:  I think the few times we have opened up for some national acts have been really fun and we've definitely gained more of a fan base when we do. 

Lunden:  Opening for Machine Head, and really every show after that has been the best shows. It felt like we went from trying to master the technicality of the album in a live setting to just going balls to the wall, full tilt. I've dropped and broken more sticks and cymbals since the Machine Head show.

Chris:  I think my favorite was our show at The Kraken in Seattle last month.  I would describe my personal stage performance as disappointing because I have really long hair and can't do a windmill while playing our songs.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

Josh:  Hopefully getting some shows lined up throughout the northwest part of the US over the summer.  We just need to get a touring rig and some dates lined up.

Lunden:  We'll get on the road eventually. I have a lot of faith in this band. Mercy Brown is leagues above and beyond prior bands I've played in, and I've performed with some exceptionally talented individuals across a multitude of genres.

Chris:  We have a show coming up with Eight Bells from Portland, and hopefully we'll be playing out of town a lot this summer.

7.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

Josh:  We haven't received any interest from anything major, just some local labels.  But we're currently promoting and pushing our album out to whoever may be interested.

Lunden:  A label would be nice. Festivals usually require representation from a label to get on the lineup.

Chris:  We're pretty self-sufficient, but it would be nice to have some support to upgrade our live production/play bigger shows and release our catalog on vinyl.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of extreme metal?

Josh:  Actually, it seems we've been getting very good feedback from outside of the US. Europe and Mexico especially. There seems to be a larger audience for our style of metal outside the US, as opposed to locally, so it's always nice to hear a very positive reception coming from around the world.

Sera:  Well so far the feedback we've gotten has been really good and I think it's because there is something a little deeper to our sound. I wouldn't label us as extreme metal but certainly progressive.

Lunden:  The response has been good. Extreme metal isn't our overarching genre so I've been pleasantly surprised.

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Josh:  I imagine we'll stay very similar to where we are now.  We've never really focused on trying to hit a particular style or genre.  We just write music that we would personally enjoy.  The diversity of our influences really keeps our songwriting wide open.  I wouldn't be surprised if we did a complete death metal/thrash album or a complete calm, ambient album next.

Sera:  Hopefully we start touring around and continue to explore different sounds and express new ideas.

Lunden:  Harder, more diverse, more dynamic. I want to widen my playing style as much as possible.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Josh:  As far as heavier stuff goes I've always been a huge fan of the entire Devin Townsend/Strapping Young Lad catalog.  Opeth, Behemoth, Meshuggah, and Fear Factory are also big ones, to name a few.  For more mellow stuff, I would say Nine Inch Nails, Massive Attack, and Porcupine Tree are my primary influences for that aspect of our music.

Sera:  I think there is heavy Deftones influence among many others of course. For me personally whatever I'm into vocally at the moment of writing a song I'll try to incorporate it somehow. I'm very into Portishead and Mike Patton. But lately I haven't really been listening to much music, I've been more enjoying silence lately.

Lunden:  I've been listening to a lot of Lamb Of God and Gojira lately. I love the monstrously heavy, yet precise approach both of those bands take.

Chris:  Dub Trio, Bloodbath, Cloudkicker, Aphex Twin, and Portal are played a lot in my car at the moment.  I'm an audio engineer so I don't get to sit down and enjoy recorded music as often as I'd like, but I'm exposed to new stuff all the time which I think helps to keep me open minded.

11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Josh:  I'm an avid sports junkie, but I also try to do a fair share of traveling and exploring the outdoors.  The northwest US is awesome for camping out in the mountains or along the Pacific coast. Oh, and there are a shitload of good breweries up here!

Sera:  I love to paint, lately it's been all I can think about.

Lunden:  I'm in school for automotive technology and absolutely love cars. Anything with 4 wheels and an engine, sometimes more, and I'm interested immediately. I like exercising and just kinda chilling out. Nothing too special.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Lunden:  I once had Chris Motionless pop up in my suggested friends on Facebook. I almost deleted my account. (You don't have to put this one in)

Josh:  I'm not really drunk anymore.

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Thursday, May 14, 2015

Vulcano/Bloody Vengeance/Greyhaze Records/2015 CD Re-Issue Review


  Vulcano  are  a  band  from  Brazil  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  has  a  history that  goes  back  more  than  30 years  and  are  also  one  of  the  first  bands  that  play  a mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  1986  album  "Bloody  Vengeance"  which  will  be  re-issued  on  May  18th  by  Greyhaze  Records.

  A  very  fast,  heavy  and  raw  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  early  death  metal  style  growls  that  are  very  easy  to  understand  and  the  music  also  brings  in  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  back  up  gang  shouts  and  at  time  thrash  style  screams  can  be  heard  and  the  solos  and  leads  remain  to  true  a  raw  and  underground  80's  metla  style.

  Throughout  the  recording  there  is  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  while  the  music  is  very  much  in  a  first  wave  black  metal  direction  it  brings  in  more  of  a  heavier  feeling  than  those  early  bands  and  also  mixes  in  with  the  beginning  days  of  death  metal   while  the  thrash  elements  that  where  very dominant  are  still  a  very  huge  part  of  all  of  the  songs.

  Vulcano  where  very  much  ahead  of  their  time  on  this  album  taking  the  rawest  and  heaviest  style  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  to  create  a  recording t hat  had  a  very  huge  influence  on  both  future  black  and  death  metal  bands,  the  production  sounds  very  raw  yet  heavy  at  the  same  time  while  the  lyrics  cover  Satanism,  Occultism,  Darkness  and  Death  Metal  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  was  a  very  great  sounding  and  if  you  are  interested  in  the  roots  of  both  black  and  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Spirits  Of  Evil"  Death  Metal"  and  "Bloody  Vengeance".  8/5  out  of  10. 

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Sunday, May 10, 2015

Saccage Interview


1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new ep?
We are writing our next LP right now and are preparing for a summer tour with many cool festival for the next 3 month.

2.A few months back you had released a new ep, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
This EP was logical following to our first LP. It was written shortly after DEATH CRUST SATANIQUE album. We just add more heavy distortion and this was the end of a chapter for us and the begining of new era for the band. VORACE is more mature, but is not far from what we did in the past.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
EVIL, SEX, DRUGS AND ROCK N ROLL. SACCAGE is fucking destruction.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Saccage'?
SACCAGE was created at  a after show when the bar was closing and everyone in the place was drunk as fuck. There was a Pantera song on the radio and everybody start to break table, beer bottle, stole alcohol, threw chair, you see the kind of party... SACCAGE mean pillage, destruction. That is exactly what we are creating with our music.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Every show from SACCAGE since the begining were a fucking mayhem. We are not playing too much show, we like to keep it exclusive and only bring the best to our fans. SACCAGE live is a threesome with two porn stars. Its brutal, intense and there is no love, only harsh sex just like in porn movies.

6.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
Not too far from what we are doing right now. Just a little more technical, mature and always fucking face ripping music.

7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of underground metal and crust?
We have a big following worldwide, a lot of our release are distributed by underground distro everywhere. I'm always stocked to see people from everywhere in this filthy earth writing to us and asking us to play in their country... maybe one day!


8.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?
Our drummer just left the Black Metal Act HAERES to focus on SACCAGE. We have two of our guys also in the blackened crust band NÉVROSE. check them out!

9.When can we expect another full length and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
A more brutal album but still the intense Death/Crust/Black/Thrash that stick to us. We love what SACCAGE is and we dont want to change to much, musically but also in the lyrics.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
A lot of old school Death Metal, Black/Thrash, Crust/Grindcore. We like it old school and evil.

11.Does Satanism or Occultism play any role in your music?
Satanism for us is more a way to express the evil that we all have inside of us.
Society represent Satan as the ultimate evil, but for us there is no good or bad thing in life. Fuck off and die! Hail Satan.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?
Sex, beers, food, goons, musical gear.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thanks for everything and the support. Cheers from the french canadian bastard of Québec, TABARNAK!

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Monday, May 4, 2015

Mercy Brown/Self Titled/2015 CD Review


  Mercy  Brown  are  a  band  from  Spokane,  Washington  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black,  death  and  groove  metal  with  a  touch  of  punk  and  ambience  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  titled  and  self  released  2015  album.

  Dark  ambient  sounds  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  distorted  drones  and  noises  a  few  seconds  later  which  also  leads  up  to  some  heavier  guitars  and  grim  vocals  and  after  the  intro  the  music  starts  going  for  more of  brutal  blackened  death  metal  direction  along  with  a  great  mixture  of  growls  and  screams.

  Blast  beats  can  be  heard  in  some  parts  of  the  songs  along  with  some  clean  singing  female  vocals  being  utilized  in  the  more  melodic  side  of  the  songs  and  the  music  also  brings  in  elements  of  groove  metal  and  mainstream  modern  metal  at  times a s  well  as  adding  ambient  sections  in  some  parts  of  the  songs.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  vocals  also  bring  in  shouts  at times  while  some  of  the  riffs  bring  in  elements  of  punk  during  the  semi  fast  sections  of  some  songs  and  the  riffs  can  also  be  very progressive  at  times  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  as  the  album  progresses  a small  amount  of  clean  playing  can  be  heard  at  times  and  there  are  also  a  couple  of  instrumentals  present  on  the  recording.

  Mercy  Brown  plays  a  musical  style  that  mixes  black,  death  and  grove  metal  together  with  a  touch  of  punk  and  alternative  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  depressive  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Mercy  Brown  are  a  very great  sounding  mixture  of  black,  death  and  groove  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band. RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Birds"  "In  The  Dark"  "Never  Mind"  and  "Stigma".  8  out  of  10. 


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Sunday, May 3, 2015

Tyranny Enthroned/Our Great Undoing/Blast Head Records/2014 CD Review


  Tyranny  Enthroned  are  a  band  from  Missouri  that  plays  a  very  brutal  form  of  blackened  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Our  Great  Undoing"  which  was  released  by  Blast  Head  Records.

  A  very  dark,  melodic  and  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  elements  of  brutal  death  metal  and  growls  and  the  music  also  bring s in  blast  beats  at  times  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  both  American  and  European  influences.

  At  time s the  music  can  be  very  progressive  and  the  solos  and  leads  that  are  utilized  are  in  a  very  melodic  musical  direction  and  also  add  in  technical  elements  at  times  and  as  the  album  progresses  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  can  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  one  of  the  tracks  is  long  and  epic  in  length  and  in  some  of  the  faster  sections  you  can  hear  a  touch  of  thrash  metal.

  Tyranny  Enthroned  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  European  black  metal  and  mixes  it  with  American  death  metal  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  anti-theism  and  post  apocalyptic  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Tyranny  Enthroned  are  a  very  great  sounding  blackened  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Incubus"  "Mark  of  Conjured  Divinity"  and  "Our  Great  Undoing".  8  out  of  10.    

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Saturday, May 2, 2015

Bloodlust/Cultis Diaboli/ Iron, Blood & Death Corporation/2015 CD Review


  Bloodlust  are  a  band  from  Australia  that  plays  a  blackened  form  of  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Cultis  Diaboli"  which  was  released  by   Iron, Blood &  Death Corporation.

  Drum  beats  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  blackened  thrash  metal  direction  and  also  adding  in  high  pitched  screams  and  blast  beats  and  you  can  also  hear  a  lot  of  first  wave  black  metal  elements  in  the  bands  musical  style  and  both  the  riffs  and  leads  also  use  a  great  amount  of  melody  while  the  vocals  also  bring  in  back  up  gang  shouts  at  times.

  Throughout  the  recording  there  is  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  samples  while  the  vocals  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  second  wave  black  metal  vibe  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  whole  album  also  sticks  to  a  very  heavy  musical  direction  from  beginning  to  end  of  the  recording.

  Bloodlust  plays  a  musical  style  that  mixes  first  and  second  wave  black  metal  with  thrash  to  create  an  album  that  is  very  heavy,  old  school  and  retro,  the  production  sound s very  powerful  while  the  lyrics  cover    black  magick,  satanism  and  and  occultism.

  In  my  opinion  Bloodlust  are  a  very  great  sounding  blackened  thrash  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Sworn  Servant  Of  The  Devil"  "Crowned  In  Black  Fire"  and  "Iron  Tyrants".  8  out  of  10.  

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Friday, May 1, 2015

Graveyard After Graveyard/Hellhound On My Trail/Chaos Records/2015 EP Review


  Graveyard  After  Graveyard  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  is  another  one  of  Rogga  Johansson's  numerous  bands  but  instead  of  the  d  beat  and  Swedish  style  death  metal  of  his  other  groups  this  one  plays  more  of  a  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  ep  "Hellhound  On  My  Trail"  which  was  released  by  Chaos  Records.

  A  very  fast  and  aggressive  blackened  thrash  meal  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  a  good  mixture  of  both  death  metal  growls  and  black  metal  screams  and  the  music  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  morbid  sounding  melodies  as  well  as  adding  in  a  great  mixture  of  both  80's  and  90's  influences  and  you  can  also  hear  the  Swedish  style  in  the  songs.

  While  the  songs  are  very  old  school  orientated  the  production  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  modern  day  feeling  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  when  guitar  leads  are  utilized  they  remain  true  to  a  very  old  school  style  of  death  metal  and  on  one  of  the  tracks  the  vocals  also  get  melodic  for  a  few  seconds  and  you  can  also  hear  a  touch  of  doom metal  in  some  of  the  slower  riffs  while  a  alter  track  also  brings  in  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples.

  Graveyard  After  Graveyard  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  90's  black  and  Swedish  death  metal  and  mixes  them  with  first  wave  black  metal  and  thrash  as  well  as  adding  in  a  modern  touch  to  create  an  original  sound,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  gore  and  horror  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Graveyard  After  Graveyard  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Giant  Of  The  Undead"  and  "Learn  To  Burn".  8  out  of  10.

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