Demonic Obedience/Nocturnal Hymns To The Fallen/Satanath Records/Sevared Records/2016 CD Review

  Demonic  Obedience  are  a solo  project  from  Greece  that  plays  a  blackened  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "Nocturnal  Hymns  To  The  Fallen"  which  will  be  released  in  May  as  a joint  effort  between  Satanath  Records  and  Severed  Records.

  Clean  guitar  playing  starts  off  the  album  and  after  a  few  seconds  the  music  goes  into  more  of  a  dark  and  brutal  direction  along  with  some  demonic  death  metal  growls  and  the  songs  also b ring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  the  faster  sections  using  a  great  amount  of  brutal  blast  beats.

  Morbid  sounding  melodies  can  be  heard  in  some  of  the  riffing  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to them  and  when  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  dark  and  melodic  fashion  while t hey  also  have  their  chaotic  moments  and  you  can  also  hear  elements  of  doom  metal  in  the  slower  guitar  riffing.

  When  tremolo  picking  its  adds  in  elements  of  black  metal  and  clean  playing  also  returns  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  some  of t he  tracks a re  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  black  metal  screams  are  utilized  more  as  the  album  progresses  and  while  the  music  is  mostly  rooted  in  the  90's  it  still  sounds  very  modern.

  Demonic  Obedience  plays  a  style of  blackened  death  metal  that  is  very  dark,  heavy  and  brutal  and  mixes  the  old  school  dark  death  metal  style  of  the  90's  with some  of  the  modern day  brutality,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark,  blasphemous  and  occult  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Demonic  Obedience  are  a  very  great  sounding  blackened  death  metal  solo  project  and if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Portal  Of  The  Sacred  Kan"  "Nocturnal  Imagery"  and  "Gehenna".  8 out  of  10.        

https://www.facebook.com/demonicobedience

Skeleton Wolf Interview

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


Brett:

Sure, no problem. Skeleton Wolf started with just simply tracking riffs. I originally had been tracking them just for myself. Later as I sorted through them focusing on the ones I thought had potential, I began to really see things in a much bigger picture. After arranging some of the songs you’ll hear on the album, I sent them to Tim and asked for his opinion and asked if he might be interested in laying down vocals on the songs. He really liked what he heard and he began writing his parts immediately. After Tim shared some of the tunes with Jeff, we gained a solid bass player to add to our newfound crew. Our sound is heavy…very heavy. We take black metal and thrash metal and blend the two for a very powerful sound. We work over distance, which is a new challenge to all of us. We have to be well practiced in playing our parts without each other so things go smoothly during recording. In the end, I really feel like it made us better musicians, which benefited the upcoming album greatly.



Tim:

We are a band of a few different metal minded guys. It kicked off when Brett sent me a few songs and said he could hear my vocals going with it. I listened and really dug what he was putting together. I wasn't doing anything musically at the time and with past experiences of playing metal, especially in the Midwest, I really didn't know if I wanted to or not but Brett's such a good musician and I still missed playing deep down inside, so I said "Hell yeah, let's do it!" And then one day we were talking about bass and I said I know an old school metal minded guy, Jeff, who's an actual bass player and the rest is history.



2.In June you have an album coming out, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?



Brett:

Our debut album drops June 10th. The new album is very much blackened thrash that consists of mid to fast-paced songs paired with mid-high black metal style vocals. The songs generally have a lot of double-bass action all-throughout our driving tunes with spots of melodic riffing. At times you may hear clean and eerie guitar work intricately picked for a very atmospheric vibe, only to be followed by a blast of heaviness.



Tim:

Very diverse. We didn't want to play one style with there being so many different genres that we all like. We're trying to not fit in with the metal elitists/purists who only focus on one sound. If that's you then party down with it but I like more than just black metal, death metal, thrash, hardcore, punk, etc etc...and I want the music to portray that and I think the others guys feel that way too. Whatever we feel at a given moment is what our sound is going to be not to be pigeonholed into one genre.





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



Tim:

In previous bands it was all evil… satanic. I'm not a religious person myself but I also don't care what people practice. Be open minded and we'll get along. The evil/satanic dynamics in metal is over played. It has its place, sure, but I know I've tried using themes that apply to everyday life. There are dark themes and there will almost always be some evil undertones but for the most part I wrote about things we all go through...things we all struggle with. Insomnia, war, politics/shit leaders, death and so on.





4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Skeleton Wolf'?



Brett:

Trying to find a name that really defines the music is a lot harder than it may seem. In my opinion, the name of the group is just as important as the music. Fans of this genre of music can generally get a feel for what they can expect musically by the band name and the cover art. When the name Skeleton Wolf came up it was almost an instant “fuck yes!” It’s memorable, it has attitude, and it’s just fucking aggressive. Our music is exactly that.



Tim:

Honestly what's a name that hasn't been used!! It just sounds like a cool metal band name to me. It can be read/pronounced, also. I've been in a few too many bands where the name can't be pronounced or actually even read. You know what I mean...the names that look like tree roots. Looks cool but what the fuck does it say and mean?! Haha. In all honesty though the whole wolf pack feeling is cool to me too. It will offer some really neat imagery and we all know us metal heads love our imagery!



5.What part of the United States is the band from?



Tim:

The Midwest or as I like to call it "Satan's Asshole"! You know, it is what it is but we went into this project knowing we don't come from a very metal friendly area of the good ol US. Big metal tours usually pass right over our states and cities. The local scenes kinda just keep going by revolving members swapping bands here and there. Hey, we do what gotta do, metal's just not real lucrative here.



6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?



Tim:

As of right now we have not played any shows. We will cross that bridge when and if we get there. We originally got together as a long distance band in a previously mentioned bad area for shows to just get some music out there. We'll see where it goes. I know playing live isn't off the table and this music would be so badass and energetic live. I can promise that! But we'll patiently wait for the right opportunity and keep pumping out music in the process.



7.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?



Brett:

We do not. We fully intend on focusing on writing new tunes for the next release while we manage shipment of merch to all of our followers.



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



Brett:

So far everyone that has gotten to listen seems to be all about it. Which is phenomenal. We receive messages daily from people of all different areas such as the Ukraine, Mexico, and Canada telling us they heard us on one of the internet metal radio stations like MetalNationRadio.com and that they can’t wait to get the full album. It’s also great to get messages from people who have received a copy of the unreleased album (for promo purposes) saying that they have had it cranked since they’ve received it.



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



Tim:

We're gonna keep writing and promoting and trying to do it all on our own. We'll see where that goes. And I know having fun is cliche in metal, but I think with this group of guys that's where we're at. We wanna make good metal and have fun doing it. In the past it's been difficult to enjoy the whole process...with Skeleton Wolf it's been so nice how enjoyable and easy it's been. If that's not metal than so be it...but I believe Bow Down to Death will change your mind!



Brett:

I fully intend to continue to write music in the same style that we’ve come to find ourselves in. I think we show a great variety in sound on the new album without writing a collection of songs that shouldn’t be featured together. The songs may be different and stand on their own, but the style, aggression, and attitude is still the same throughout. Going forward, I would expect a similar approach in sound with maybe a different take on song structure as the music progresses. Only time will tell.





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?



Tim:

For me there are few bands who influenced me wanting to do vocals: Killwhitneydead, Heaven Shall Burn, Emperor, Integrity, The Misfits, to name the biggest influences.

In metal I'm not really limited to any styles...I legitimately love metal. Metal also isn't the only genre I listen to. You can find everything from Anal Cunt to Iced Earth to Hypocrisy to Ice Cube to Tech N9ne to Jack White to Hank III to Mozart to SRV to Billie Holliday in my record collection. I honestly love music man. Nowadays...the new Cattle Decapitation is amazing as usual and digging Ihsahn's new one as well.



Brett:

As a musician, it really benefits you to have influences from different walks of musical styles. Immortal has had a great impact on my music writing and approach. I would also say Dissection, Watain, and  Kvelertak have been quite an influence, as well.



Personally, I’m the type to listen to full album front to back a few times a week for several weeks. The latest albums I’ve been rocking to are Watain’s The Wild Hunt, Heaven & Hell’s The Devil You Know, and Surgical Steel by Carcass.





11.What are some of your non musical interests?



Brett:

Other than playing music, I can usually be found in the garage messing with my motorcycle or pounding beers while stripping down a guitar to revamp and add to the collection. You can never have to many axes, right?



Tim:

I'm really into drinking all different craft beers out there. What a time to love beer! I also like doing outside things...while drinking craft beers....ok I like drinking beer!! Slainte!



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



Tim:

Give us a listen and know you're getting real good metal from fans of the craft!! We are genuine non elitist metal heads bringing you head banging jams for as long as you'll have us!! Cheers!



Brett:

Hit us up on Facebook for the most up-to-date info on Skeleton Wolf. June 10th the album will be available for purchase through our website at www.SkeletonWolf.com. Each album purchase will come with a digital download card, as well. Instant downloads will be available on release day, watch our FB page for updates on where you can get those as we near the release date.



I also want to thank everyone who has been following us so far. You all have been a great encouragement along the ride of this self-released album. Thanks to Blackened Death Metalzine for the great review and interview. A raised beer goes to all the metalheads out there cranking the tunes and raising your horns. Cheers!


Check out all things Skeleton Wolf here: www.skeletonwolf.com

Defiant/Morbid Spiritual Illness/Miner Recordings/2016 CD Review

  Defiant  are  a band  from  Croatia  that plays  a blackened  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a review  of  their  2016  album  "Morbid  Spiritual  Illness"  which  was  released  by  Miner Recordings.

  Ritualistic  sounds  and  clean  playing  starts  off  the  album  and  you  can  also  hear  pianos  being  mixed  in  after  a  few  seconds  and  they also  bring  in  the  atmosphere  of  a classic  horror  movie  and  after  the  intro  the  music  gets  more  heavy  and  goes  for  more  of  a  blackened  death  metal direction  along  with  some  growling  vocals.

  Black  metal  screams  can  also  be  heard  at  times  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  the  riffs  also  bring  in  some  morbid  sounding  melodies  and  the  faster  riffs  also use  a  decent  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  clean  playing  also  makes  a  return  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  on  a  few  tracks while  the  main  focus  remains  more  on  a  dark,  heavy  and  brutal  sound  and  one  of  the  riffs  also  adds  in  a  touch  of  thrash  and  amost  towards  the  end  there  is  a  brief  use  of  melodic  guitar  leads.

  Defiant  plays  a  music  style  that  takes  the  darkest  style  of  death  metal  and  mixes  it  with  black  metal  to  create  their  own  blackened  death  metal  style,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  anti  christian,  occult,  supernatural  and  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Defiant  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  "Origen"  "The  Gospel  Of  Ninevah"  "Earth  Cancer"  and  "Elusive  Serpent".  8  out  of  10.

FB: https://www.facebook.com/defiant.croatia
BANDCAMP: https://defiantcro.bandcamp.com/releases

 

Ljosazabojstwa Interview

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

LSZB: Ljosazabojstwa emerged in 2014 in Minsk with intention to desecrate the land with some proper black/death metal.

2. Recently you have released a demo, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

LSZB: It is ancient sounding black/death metal with simple and raw production.

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

LSZB: Our lyrics deal with death, Armageddon, Satanism and blasphemy.

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

LSZB: It's in Belarusian and can be roughly translated as "murder of fate" or something like that.

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

LSZB: We are not a "live" band at the moment. If there would be a Ljosazabojstwa gig one day, it will be simple as fuck, without any grim black robes, torches or other pseudo-occult annoying stuff so popular nowadays.

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

LSZB: No such plans currently.

7. Recently 'Hellthrasher Productions' re-issued your 2015 demo, what are your thoughts on the final product?

LSZB: It's not out yet but we think it will be fine. We've got some of Hellthrasher's previous releases and they are cool.

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

LSZB: The feedback was surprisingly good actually, we've got only positive letters and reviews so far.

9. When can we expect a full length and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

LSZB: We're working on the second record at the moment. Not sure about it being the full-length now but something is surely coming. We aim to keep our actual riffing and drumming style in future.

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?

LSZB: Beherit and Archgoat, also Mortuary Drape, Master's Hammer, Blasphemy, Torr, Root, Mystifier and Sacrofago were a influence, music- and sound-wise. We are addicted to extreme and old-school metal of any style.

11. Does Satanism or Occultism, play any role in your music?

LSZB: Perhaps not in music, but in lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are utterly satanic/blasphemic. You could also notice the artwork concealing some symbolism.

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

LSZB: Hail the Dark Spirits!

Bandcamp

October Tide/Winged Waltz/Agonia Records/2016 CD Review

  Sweden's  October  Tide  have  returned  with  a  new  album  that  continues  the  melodic  doom,  black  and  death  metal  mixtures  of  previous  recordings  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "Winged Waltz"  which  was  released  by  Agonia  Records.

 Clean  guitars  start  off  the  album  before going  into  more  of  a  heavy,  melodic  and  depressive  doom  metal  direction  and  after  awhile  death  metal  growls  make  their  presence  known  on  the  recording  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  melodic  fashion.

  Most  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  grim  black  metal s creams  can  also  be  heard  at  times  and  the  music  also  brings  in  a  great  mixture  of  both  clean  and  heavy  parts  and  the  whole  album  also  sticks  to  a  very  slow   musical  direction  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording  along  with  the  music  being  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's.   while  there  is  a  brief  use  of  blast  beats  on  the  last  track.

  October  Tide  creates  an  album  that  is  mostly  rooted  in  the  melodic  doom/death  metal  direction  while  still  adding  in  a  touch  of  black  metal,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  sadness  and  sorrow  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  October  Tide  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Sleepless  Sun"  "Nursed  By  The  Cold"  and  "Coffins  Of  November".  8  out  of  10. 

https://agoniarecords.bandcamp.com/album/winged-waltz

     

Ljosazabojstwa/Starazytnaje Licha/Hellthrasher Productions/2016 Demo Review

  Ljosazabojstwa  are  a  band  from  Belarus  that  plays a  blackened  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  demo  "Starazytnaje  Licha"  which  was  released  by  Hellthrasher  Productions.

  A  very  dark,  heavy  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  a  few  seconds  later  and  atmospheric  sounds  can  be  heard  in  the  background  and  elements  of  doom  metal  can  also  be  heard  in  the  music  at  the  same  time  and  when  guitar  leads  are  utilized  they  stick  to  a  melodic  direction.

  Epic  sounding  keyboards  can  be  heard  briefly  and  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  at  times  along  with  most  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in length  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  are  utilized  and  they  add  in  more  of  a  black  metal style  to  the  songs  and  the  vocals  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  screams  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  Ljosazabojstwa  plays  a  musical  style  that  is  more  on  the  darker  side  of  death  metal  and  they  also  mix  in  black  and  doom  metal  elements  to  create  a  very  heavy  recording,  the  production  sounds  very  old  school  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  their  native  tongue  and  cover  anti  Christianity,  death  and  cruelty  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Ljosazabojstwa  are  a  very  great  sounding  blackened  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  demo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Starazytnaje  Licha"  and  "Dzien  Nawi".  8  out  of  10.

Bandcamp

 

Earth Rot/Chthonian Virtues/2016 EP Review

  Earth  Rot  are  a  band  from  Australia  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2016  ep "Chthonian  Virtues".

  A  very  distorted  yet  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  some  solos  and  leads  and  the  songs  have  a  very  dark  atmosphere to  them  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes into a   heavier  musical  direction  that  also  uses  a  great  mixture  of  both  death  metal  growls  and  black  metal  screams  as  well  as  the  riffs  use  melodies.

  Throughout t he  recording  there  is  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  with t he  faster  sections  using  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording  and  some riffs  also  bring  in  a  touch  of  thrash  while  some  of  the  faster  riffing  is  influenced  by  grindcore  and  the  vocals  also  bring  in  more  of  a  grim  black  metal style  at  time  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  also  always  melodic.

  Earth  Rot  creates  a  recording  that takes  black  and  death  metal  and  they  add  in  their  own  touch  to  these  genres,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recoridng  while  the  lyrics  cover  darkness  and  Lovecraft  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Earth  Rot  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out t his  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE "Chthonian  Virtues" and  "Slave".  8  out  of  10.  

http://earthrot.com.au
https://www.facebook.com/earthrotband