Pig Destroyer Meets Ulcerate Aug. 18, 2015

Abandoned
by Okazaki Fragments

There's nothing like suberbly ordered chaos. Something about a band's ability to harness the raw and dissonant just gets to me. Okazaki Fragments out of Calgary, Alberta have wipped and saddled this wild horse to create Abandoned. The result is some mathy grindcore and technical death metal that ...

Call the Exterminator Aug. 17, 2015

Pest
by Norse

The band: Norse. Despite the name, these are neither gods nor northmen. Welcome to the twisted world of Australian metal. The album is Pest, and it is not for the faint of heart. Honestly, it hurt my ears a little the first time around. But even so, something about it led me to stick it in the ...

Ascend...Into Blackened Death Metal Aug. 14, 2015

Descend...Into Nothingness
by Dalkhu

There are some great bands to hear out of Russia’s label, Satanath, but none of them wowed me quite as much as Dalkhu. This Slovenia-based blackened death metal reigns supreme with both harshness and melody. I came across Descend...Into Nothingness earlier this year, but it got buried in the swarm...

Set the World on Fire Aug. 13, 2015

Supernova
by Sarpentra

So for various reasons, I'm going to keep this one short. The focus of this recommendation is Russia's Sarpentra. If you like Behemoth, you will love Sarpentra. This latest release has every bit of blackened death metal bite as Demigod. It's Sulphur Aeon minus Cthulu. Riffs carry plenty Nile in...

Horror in the Cosmos Aug. 12, 2015

Cosmic Horror
by Antiverse

I needed my face bashed in today. Thank you for that, Antiverse. From Minneapolis, Minnesota, this is some thrashy death metal that belongs in your library today. Regular subscribers to these reviews know I lean more heavily towards sounds that strike me as unique, but to me that just makes the o...

Grower Aug. 11, 2015

Memories of Inexistence
by Piah Mater

I am always interested to hear the wealth of metal that happens outside of my US borders. Today it happens to be Piah Mater out of Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. Late last year, this duo released Memories of Inexistence: 7 songs of progressive death metal goodness. I'll admit that I wasn't entirely boug...

If Only it WAS Endless Aug. 10, 2015

Endless Howl
by Barishi

I'm having a really hard time describing this one. All I know was that I had to have it. I mean, it's a little bit like Cobalt, but with a little more alternative feel. You get a band called Barishi from Brattleboro, Vermont in your mailbox, and you’re bound to check it out. At Name Your Price...

More Like Cloaked in Awesome Aug. 7, 2015

Cloaked in Decay
by Grethor

Grethor is a band from Virginia. Any other knowledge is unnecessary beyond pressing play, 'cuz brother, this is the good stuff. From the album page: Cloaked In Decay takes both traditional and avant-garde black metal and fuses it with a chaotic barrage of dark death metal riffs, laced with hooks ...

Enjoy Incubus Aug. 6, 2015

Incubus
by Dark Ritual

Dark Ritual is a black metal band from London. Formed less than a year ago in September 2014, this group is already hitting hard with their first EP, Incubus. For those not in the know, Incubus is more than just an alternative band from the early 2000's that once knew how to rock hard. An Incubus...

Ami...Amen...census? Whatever. Aug. 5, 2015

Ascension (Amiensus)
by Amiensus

I won't lie. I'm still not sure how to pronounce “Amiensus,” nor do I know what it means. What I due know is that they sent me this LP called Asccension, and it's pretty awesome. Now based on what the band told me, I'm going to put a little disclaimer here: do not go into this expecting a straigh...

The Slow Burn Aug. 4, 2015

Convergence
by Ostrov

Time for some slow-burning, doomy post-metal. It's a good day for music that wavers between soft, clean passages and thick walls of distorted guitars and screaming. Of course, that's pretty much every day for me, but I digress. Ostrov is the subject of this particular outing, and it does not fail...

It's Just Sangwich Aug. 3, 2015

Lung Punch Fantasy
by Jerseyband

"It can be anything that you want. It's just sangwich." So sums up the strangeness that is Jerseyband. Ten points to whoever guesses where they're from. Consisting of three sax players, a trumpet, guitar, bass, drums, and vocals; this is marching band metal. Even when the guitar pulls back, thi...

Do You Hear Me, Major Tom? July 31, 2015

Archivist
by Archivist

If you enjoyed listening to the latest Vattnet Viskar, than I may have another one for you here. Meet Archivist, a post-metal and sludge group with just a touch of black metal to their sound. Members hail from Austria, England, and Germany; coming together to create something they aptly describe a...

Saved the Best for Last July 30, 2015

Teethed Glory & Injury
by Altar of Plagues

I'll admit it, I found myself bored with AoP's previous offerings of basic post-black. It’s a well-trodden genre when sticking to the basics. But here...my God, what a swansong. Fusing post-black, post-metal, and industrial; Teethed Glory and Injury is a truly unique experience that despite all in...

Blackened Folk Benchmark July 29, 2015

The Voice of Steel
by Nokturnal Mortum

Nokturnal Mortum is a band that has been shrouded in controversy. I could go on and on about their NSBM roots, less than culturally-sensitive lyrics, and more recent reform; but I'm not. I'd prefer to stick to the music, and damn that music is good. Despite not agreeing with the content, I enjoy ...

Watch the World Burn July 28, 2015

Untitled
by The Armed

Fancy the hardcore? Once again, producer/musician Kurt Ballou (Converge, etc.) has you covered. All I know about the band is that they are from Detroit, and they rock face. Without a single word, the cover speaks volumes about what you are about to hear. Equal parts gritty, ugly, satirical, aggr...

Harvest Time July 27, 2015

Abject
by Black Harvest

When I started this experiment, I had no idea what the response would look like. I was simply mining through bandcamp and various other sites for groups to reach out to, testing the waters. I still do that, but now much of the search is brought right to my front door. I cannot state thanks enough...

The Conquerer Worm July 26, 2015

Vexovoid
by Portal

Portal. I'm a bit of a geek, so the first time I heard the name, I thought we were talking about the game by Valve. Turns out that the band is not only equally good, but twice as mind-bending. I get sick of using the same old metaphors for sound, so here's some fresh ones: The guitars are a colo...

Purity? Riiiight... July 25, 2015

From All Purity
by Indian

Note that I’ve nicked parts of this review from my own review of Primitive Man’s Scorn that I was not entirely happy with. I think they serve a better purpose here. People sometimes misunderstand the word "melody" to mean upbeat or accessible, and "subtle" to always mean delicate or refined. Qui...

A Modern Progressive July 24, 2015

Two Demons
by Warforged

When I think progressive, and I doubt I’m alone here, I think LONG songs. It’s not a bad thing, but it definitely took me a lot longer to understand the genius of, ro example, Morningrise than it did Damage Done. Going back to the works of King Crimson, or Rush’s “2112,” the genre is known for bui...
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