Disma - The Vault of Membros

From the US of A comes a magnificent slab of chunky old school death metal. This band is formed by well a really veteran crew, the vocalist is no less than Craig FUCKING Pillard! With that being said the quality of this demo is already known. That's not it though, the guitarists are from Incantation and Funebrarum, does it get any better than this? Well the drummer is also the current drummer of Funebrarum. A lot of people tend to say, I'm one of them, that metal bands formed by 'metal stars' don't tend to work, but this time is not the case. This is death metal in a really morbid, dark, and sinister way. The riffs are most of the time mid paced, but also slow paced which feel like a sledge hammer crushing one's skull time after time, again and again. The solos are also pretty fucking good. The drumming is extremely good, but that's something to expect. Craig Pillard like usual, delivers great vocals that can't be compared to anyone else. His growls are deep, evil, and extremely gassy. Enjoy this new release, and hopefully we shall write reviews more often.




















Disma - The Vault of Membros

Decrepitaph - Condemned Cathedral

"The book of Death gives the power to summon

From the graveyard they are beckoned to live again

Smell of rotting flesh is in the night air

Up from hell they rise to feast on your skin"

Decrepitaph are a US-based death metal band. They describe themselves as playing ancient, primitive dark death metal influenced by the old masters Incantation, Asphyx, Derketa, ... . They are part of the Razorback catalogue and as is custom with that label their lyrics take inspiration from old horror flicks. When Elektruktioner was asked wether they would ever write a song that doesn't involve zombies, he promptly replied "No!". Decrepitaph came to life in 2004 with their Grotesque Dwellings demo and by the time they released the Ancient Death Metal promo they managed to spark the interest of Billy from the Razorback label. I am personally not the biggest Razorback fan, but at least they support death metal in it's most ancient form and that's always a good thing.

On a band picture of Decrepitaph you can see Elektrokutioner supporting a Nortt shirt. That should give you somewhat of an indication, that Condemned Cathedral is going be pretty heavy. The guitar tone is incredibly distorted and very vile. The vocals are mostly deep guttural growls with some filthy snarls in between and the drums are interesting all the way through. Mostly venturing in mid-paced territory, sometimes a bit faster and at times devestatingly slow like on the closer track Crawling Out From The Crypt or the ending of A Burial In Hell. The slower moments make for a perfect template to add some really morbid riffs and leads and that's exactly what is being done, just listen to the ending of Crawling Out From The Crypt. Crushing heavy death metal while a morose guitar lead graces the background solemnly. Decrepitaph don't try to cram a thousand riffs into one song. They use repetition to their advantage, but still provide the necessary variety by throwing in particulary effective guitar leads and changing the paste frequently. Condemned Cathedral is heavy and doomy, but the whole album supports a sickening kind of groove (Worship The Dead), which makes it perfect for your headbanging pleasures. This is a blind purchase for anyone who likes their death metal ancient and primitive. And from what I gather, a new album is in the works and to be released soon!

Decrepitaph - Condemned Cathedral

Imindain - Monolithium

Imindain released their second demo a year prior to And The Living Shall Envy The Dead. The reason why I chose to review the demo instead of the full-length is because I prefer the somewhat rawer sound the demo has. Monolithium consits of three tracks. All tracks are also featured on the debut album. Now, Imindain are immediately the proof that to achieve a sick sound, you don't have to have a minimalistic or repetitive nature. Monolithium is quite melodious and relatively accessible. Vocally we have no less than four approaches. You will hear standard grunts and blackish screams both are executed very well. Now, the special thing about Imindain are the two other vocal styles. The cleaner ones are superb and it's amazing to find a vocalist in this kind of extreme doom that has such a good voice. Tastefully added are the super high screams. You will hear them seldomly, but that is a good thing, because in that way the effect they are supposed to create remains special. Now, as you might expect these sound quite insane and well...sick.

Monolithium is most of the time mid-paced with some speedier parts to be found here and there, as well as fairly headbangable moments woven into the anguish and gloom. This Empty Flesh starts just like that, up-tempo with clean vocals and generally solid memorable riffing. The first half of the song continues in the same fashion, some small differences in paste and good riffs that will linger in your head for quite some time. Some time in the second half of the song, things take a grim turn, as a melanholic clean breaks presents itself with anguished screams in the background. It sounds like this might be the climax to which the song builds, but you are mistaken. A gripping guitar lead comes into play when the most foul, anguished and insane screaming ever heard is coming from all sides in the background. Absolutely amazing! Black Water features great militaristic drumming and again top-notch vocal performances. A great, saddening riff enters the mix at around one minute, surely one of the headlights of Black Water, while again the venomous vocals spring forward. Towards the middle of the song you'll hear dual vocal action of the standard screams and the higher ones, followed again by a militaristic drumming style. Imindain have continued with their high quality doom on their debut. I urge everyone to purchase that one and be on the look out for the coming split with Ataraxie!

Imindain - Monolithium

Reverend Bizarre - In The Rectory Of The Bizarre Reverend

In The Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend is a monumental chapter of doom and a lone highlight in the musical career of the Reverend. This is a mammoth of an album, that most of the times crawls forwards in a slow to extremely slow paste, almost funereal in its execution. The absolute focal point of Reverend Bizarre remains Albert - the man has a throat like no other and has an incredible range, going from softer more mellow parts to complete epicness in just a matter of time. His voice fits the music completely and takes it to unseen heights. I especially liked his vocal performance during Doomsower. But, of course, a good album needs more than just a really good vocalist. First of all, the drums, Earl of Void is a very competent drummer, his play is slow and crushing, that seldomly speeds up. The riffs are, however, what truly make this record a future classic - just listen to In the Rectory, a perfect build-up leads to more up-tempo part, where we see the guys rocking out, accompanied by a memorable riff evoking a rare moment of cheerfulness amidst the gloomy setting, but then, as a real tsunami, all joy is washed away, the rare moment of hope has completely faded and we're given one of the most memorable moments of the album, a very moving riff, sets the beginning for a short, but absolute haunting passage. Really, simply those couple of minutes alone, are reason enough to buy this album. It's difficult to put to into words, how it makes you feel, I can only suggest you give it a listen yourself.

Next to the excellent riffing, In The Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend, is a highly bass-driven album, again a reference has to be made to In The Rectory, specifically to it's intro, but just the entire song does justice to the earth-shattering bass-lines. So far i've only been talking about In The Rectory, which only makes up for roughly 13 minutes of this album, while In The Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend has a play-time of almost 75 minutes and each minute is equally memorable as In The Rectory, wether it be the touching, saddening The Hour of Death or the hate-filled Burn In Hell and lets not forget the gigantic monster Cirith Ungol. In The Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend is an album that is consisent throughout, something which has been a bit of a problem for the Rev during their entire career. While the follow-up was by no means bad, it couldn't reach the same level of the debut. After that Reverend Bizarre quickly declined in quality and began releasing a lot of filler material with some occassional highlights, but moreover the material became inconsistent and too ambitious for it's own good. People who were amazed with Warning's second album, released and praised in 2007, might find solace with In The Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend, although they are two seperate entities, they both manage to create a true, unsurpassed, blackness, that will crush even the most enduring souls out there! A good alternative for the now defunct Reverend Bizarre would be finnish Fall of the Idols, who have already beaten the Rev at their own game or British band The River, who released a superheavy doom album with Drawing Down The Sun that should definitely appeal to Rev supporters. In The Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend remains one of the best doom metal albums out there and a personal favorite. BUY IT NOW!

Reverend Bizarre - In The Rectory Of The Bizarre Reverend

Fall Of The Idols - Womb Of The Earth

The River - Drawing Down The Sun

Dolorian - Dolorian

Dolorian, an obscure finnish act part of the italian Avantgarde Music label. Dolorian have always been somewhat of an enigma and this also reflects itself in the music. To classify Dolorian isn't an easy task. The music they produce on their self-titled album is again oppressive as fuck, a trait which also the two other albums share, but perhaps not as much or as clearly present as on this one. Looking at the lyrics and listening to the music require a certain ability to think in abstract forms and to think outside the traditional confinements that the doom or black metal genre generate. Describing the music of Dolorian is an impossible task due to it's abstract nature. To recommend this simply to anybody would be unwise, because in reality Dolorian haven't got the usual aspects of Heavy Metal that we have all come to love. This is some damn inaccessible metal and yet it's not that extreme at all. A band like Wormphlegm is inaccessible due to the extreme nature of it, but such is not the case with Dolorian. The thing with Dolorian is, you won't find any catchy choruses, riffs or melodies. There are no upbeat parts to be found and no singing whatsoever (there are vocals however). And yet words cannot describe just how awesome this is. Like on When All Laughter Has Gone they play a slow, dark and evil type of doom metal with mystifying keyboards; the blackish screams that were present on their debut have been replaced by haunting whispers, giving the music an oppressive sound that is unrivalled. Dolorian wave psychedelic soundscapes with complex and avantgarde song structures and slight ambient touches while never forgetting the heaviness. The result is a deranged and psychotic piece of music that has got the most evil vibe going on and will leave you empty, alone and inhuman. Many will be put off by the abstract and inaccessible nature of this beast, however...

"Therefore, it is recommended that you attempt to forget all the initial unconsious and conscious preconceptions that you might have – try to destroy the fixed patterns of your personality and eventually the material will reveal its ultimate form to you – the most primal and fundamental form." -an extract from a rare Dolorian interview with French Metallian magazine

Dolorian - Dolorian

Cruciamentum - Convocation of Crawling Chaos

This is a living proof that not everything that is old in metal rules! Cruciamentum is a band hailing from UK, and boy they deliver one of the best demos of black/death that I have listened to in recent years. This is not your typical modern black/death band that only talks about worshiping the devil and so on, these guys took a lot of time and effort to do this. This can be felt through their riffs, which deliver an atmosphere comparable of bands lie Dead Congregation's demo, it might not sound as evil as them, but sure as hell is good. Another interesting aspect of them is the use of synthesizer to create an even more haunting experience, the vocalist kicks ass, the growls are exactly the kind that I enjoy, long, deep, and "gassy." The music is pretty much mid paced, sometimes it gets very slow others extremely fast, this doesn't bother me, the tempo changes are always interesting, and it's always good to see how a band would sound and if the musicians can do it with no problem. The production is pretty flat, which is good for a demo, every instrument can be heard with no problem. I recommend to listen to this band with earphones, why? The reason for that is pretty simple, the atmosphere just gets better and better with them, with speakers there is too much space between the actual music and the listener. Enjoy and lets hope for a full length somewhere soon.











Cruciamentum - Convocation of Crawling Chaos

Marblebog - Forestheart

Marblebog are a relatively well-known and highly praised entity in the black metal underground scene. Active since 1998 and since then released 3 full lengths and a plentitude of splits and a lone demo in the beginning of their existence. Marblebog have achieved the creative peak during this album suitably titled Forestheart. The type of black metal they play is one that's rather repetitous (in a good way) and hypnotic, creating tremelo picked riffs that flow naturally into one another and will evoke images of lone forests and mountainous regions. Marblebog excel at using the repetitive nature of the music to their advantage and as a consequent of this Forestheart is very consistent, with little to no faults. What attracts many black metal fans to Forestheart are the excellent riffs that aren't out there to create a frostbitten, grim or cold atmosphere, but more one of solitude, nature and everything relating to introspective themes, almost sounding ambient-like at times especially during the longest track Closing where Marblebog make use of droning ambient backed up the gutwrenching vocals that reek of despair and hatred. Forestheart has an almost ritualistic feel to it, often making use of typical samples such as wind, birds, etc. that are tastefully added. To keep the entire hypnotic feel going, it's necessary for Marblebog to make frequent use of blast beats, therefore the drumming isn't technically much interesting, but sometimes it's better to sacrifice technical proficiency and to go for a certain element of your music that you feel like highlighting, in this case the entire feel of the record. Some slower moments are however present as well as for example during Flame Of Wisdom. I would recommend Marblebog to those who can appreciate a sound similar to Velvet Cacoon, but performed a lot more consistent and well...more interesting or to those who have enjoyed the shoegazing quality of one-man band Trancelike Void, who were also previously discussed here (july 2009).

Marblebog - Forestheart

Ocean - Pantheon Of The Lesser

Ocean have taken the sludge genre to extreme forms and have injected a heavy dose of doom in their sound. As you might expect Pantheon Of The Lesser starts off with quite a bit of feedback, making the listener slightly uneasy and wary of what is to come. Ocean may be a very heavy band (quite a statement), but they remain however interesting enough in the riff department. They break the earth-shattering heaviness with a strangely melodious approach that makes the music at least a bit pleasant to the ears and somewhat accessible. There's no doubt that Pantheon Of The Lesser is all about the atmosphere that the heaviness manages to create and puts the listener into a hypnotic state where repetition and well....heaviness form the main ingredients. This repetition gives the album a very ritualistic setting and to add to that the guys of Ocean have chosen to include Bloody Panda vocalist Yoshiko Ohara who also adds to the entire mystical religious feel. The percussion is as to be expected minimalistic and simple. At certain times you will get the impression that the drummer speeds up a tiny bit, but that will only last a couple of seconds. Then it's back to bashing your head into a bloody pulp. At certain times the massive distortion will make way for a cleanly played melody, providing for a nice variety and relieving the listener for a short while from the gutwrenching heavy guitars. Ocean manage to not exaggerate with the feedback during the entire playtime and tries to keep it to a tasteful minimum and instead focusses on perfecting the couple of riffs that are present here. As previously stated, don't expect a rifffest or just another headbang session, no, this is a record that should be played when you have the time to fully emerge yourself into a particular sound and atmosphere. Only then will Pantheon Of The Lesser fully reveal itself to you and prove what it's capable of.

Ocean - Pantheon Of The Lesser

Deadbird - Twilight Ritual

Deadbird are an off-spring from the established slugde masters Rwake. Deadbird is similar to Rwake because both of them can be placed under the sludge category and both of 'em are heavy. There ends the comparison. Deadbird has more similarities with bands like Thou or Minsk. It has the basic heavy-hitting sludge sound, but mixes it up with more introspective post-rockish melodies without coming across as homosexual in any way and the ocassional lonesome punk riff. What Deadbird seem to have mastered is a quality that is also shared by a band like Minsk; they produce songs that have a perfect and well thought out build-ups that reach epic climaxes that will blow your mind. Despite the ocassional post-rock influence, Deadbird remain a sludge band that is out there to help us get rid of any anger or frustration that may dwell in our heads and therefore remains aggressive to the core, which for me still remains the major appeal of the sludge genre. Like no other genre, it manages to bring across hatred, disgust and anger perfectly and this is also what Deadbird does. Another not so far off comparison would be Burning Witch. While Deadbird certainly doesn't reach the uncompromising heaviness of said band, they are pretty damn heavy nonetheless. Deadbird are clearly influenced by Eyehategod and obviously Rwake. What I appreciate about them is their straight-forward approach and skipping all the technical and at times experimental touches that Rwake have made part of their sound and as such created their own identity, one that is almost completely detached from Rwake and gives its own interpretation of the sludge genre.

Deadbird - Twilight Ritual

Nehëmah - Light Of A Dead Star

Nehemah are part of the established french scene and have been around since the early nineties. In 1995 they released the demo Light Of A Dead Star, which featured roughly everything present on this full length. The official debut album was then released 7 years later. If anyone wants an idea of what the french scene is capable of then continue reading. I'm fortunate enough to have seen these guys live at UTBS fest and together with Urfaust they were without a doubt the best bands of the entire weekend.

Nehemah are typical french black metal. This mysterious touch surrounds their music and was also present during their performance. They incorporate keyboards very tastefully in their sound, without going to far. This entire atmosphere is even further enhanced by some sections where the bass guitar shines. The guitar tone they use is incredibly vile and certainly one of the most vicious I have had the pleasure of hearing. Production-wise everything is almost perfect, raw, but not to the extent where some instruments simply become inaudible. A good variation is provided with the difference in paste, some songs have a slower approach to them, while others just furiously and unrelentlessly blast away like the opener Light Of A Dead Star. Nehemah are at their best when they incorporate both the slower as well as the faster aspects of their music in one song; slowly building-up to a climax that usually ends up with devestating blast beats blowing your brains out. Nehemah mostly excel at producing some eerie riffs that linger somewhere in mid-air and keep repeating itself. For some it might be a little repetitive, but that's the strongest aspect about this album. The constant repetition of certain riffs allows the music to fully develop and obtain a rich texture. At times the distortion makes way for a cleanly played guitar riff, such as during the intro of Nehëmah In Vulva Infernum, after which an incredibly thunderous, chaotic riff is played which immediately reminded me of the same memorable passage at the beginning of the song Akyr Zaman by Darkestrah. Definitely an album highlight.

Nehemah have also added some clear vocal lines to Light Of A Dead Star, they only appear twice and rather briefly. For a lot of black metal bands clear vocals are "not done", because they are either totally misplaced and just there for the sake of them being there or the band in question is too ambitious and uses the vocals constantly turning an entire album into a complete travesty, but luckily here we won't find the type of homosexual excesses you would find on an Agalloch album. No, the cleanly sung lines here are epic and incredibly gloomy. Nehemah are a band that are firmly rooted in the french scene and with Light Of A Dead Star they continue to help establish France as one of the best black metal countries out there.

Nehëmah - Light Of A Dead Star

Bloodaxe - Bloodthrone

3 years prior to releasing Raping The Ancient, Bloodaxe produced their debut Bloodthrone. Again the same formula is present, but a little more extreme perhaps. Allow me to clarify what I mean by that. Production-wise Bloodthrone is a lot rawer than Raping The Ancient. Amidst the distorted sound we hear the typical Bloodaxe whirlwind riffs that are highly effective and create that cold atmosphere perfectly, something which a lot of second wave band have tried to achieve. Vocals are again completely distorted, making them sound like someone who is lost in a destructive, cold blizzard. Bloodthrone is a lot blast heavier than Raping The Ancient. This is in fact an album that basically blasts away from beginning to end. It's true that the drumming isn't very inspirational and technically interesting, but all of that has been sacrificed to enhance the cold atmosphere that is present on Bloodthrone. Besides the occasional acoustic parts, there's only one song 1030 that doesn't blast away all the time, but still manages to have that freezingly cold ambiance. I feel the acoustic parts (they only appear twice on Bloodthrone) don't add much, instead I feel they make the entire concept and atmosphere on this album less consistent, than I would have perhaps liked. Despite this small point of criticsm Bloodaxe have again released an album that should appeal to all second wave supporters and those who are looking for an atmosphere similar to Pure Holocaust. Cold, freezing and frostbitten!

Bloodaxe - Bloodthrone

Previous Bloodaxe review: Bloodaxe - Raping The Ancient

Pale Divine - Cemetery Earth

Pale Divine have been gracing the doom scene with some of the best contemporary doom metal since 1997. Cemetery Earth their last effort was released on the quality label I Hate Records. Cemetery Earth seems to be totally focussed on bringing one thing; producing riffs that are some of the best in its genre and this for the entire duration of 60 minutes. To say you don't like this, is to say you don't like riffs and then I suggest you stay away from Heavy Metal. When they released their first album Thunder Perfect Mind, they excelled at creating some of the most epic hymns, by combining solid riffing with amazing gang type of vocals. They even had Bobby Liebling himself doing some guest vocals back then. Cemetery Earth is not as epic as their debut, but goes for a slightly different feel. There's little use in me pointing out several key riffs in the album, because basically it's crammed with 'em and they are all as awesome as the last one. Personally I think they are at their best during Broken Wings, a song which contains one of the best main riffs found on Cemetery Earth and a general nice build-up towards an epic climax which for a brief moment will remind you of the epicness of their debut and this is mainly thanks to the incredible singing capacities of Greg Diener. Or the self-titled song, a little darker and a little slower as well with some great bass passages and a bunch of solo's that will no doubt amaze you. Yes, Cemetery Earth offers plenty of solo's and they really feel like they are part of the complete package and never feel out of place, everything flows naturally, like it was destined to be this way. Broken Wings is again a good example of this. The recipe which Pale Divine have exploited to their advantage remains the same like they've ever done. Mindblowing in the riff department, often preferring a mid-paced progress and incredibly catchy choruses and it never gets dull at all on the contrary I guarantee you that will be bobbing your head to the groovy sound that Pale Divine manages to produce and perfect again with each coming album and this for the entire duration. Cemetery Earth is a psychedelic journey through death and decay that brings hommage to the great legends Pentagram, Black Sabbath, Witchfinder General and will no doubt make these old geezers proud of their legacy.

Pale Divine - Cemetery Earth

Fall Of The Idols - Womb Of The Earth

Fall Of The Idols have been shot as the true heirs to the finnish throne of Reverend Bizarre. Stylistically there are certainly resemblances between the two, but Fall Of The Idols makes the difference, by performing very consistent and bringing quality again with each release, something which can't be said about Reverend Bizarre. I would place both Womb Of The Earth and The Séance on the same level as the monumental In The Rectory Of The Bizarre Reverend. Fall Of The Idols have mastered the same quality as Reverend Bizarre, by using a postive rock 'n roll vibe to their advantage, so that it in the end the truly gloomy moments that grace Womb Of The Earth turn out to be a devestating and emotionally exhausting journey. The strongest aspect about Fall Of The Idols are undoubtly the heavy guitars with no less than 3 guitarists. This shit is heavy and without compromise. Womb Of The Earth is crammed with memorable riffs, solo's and moving guitar leads. Atonement For The One is for example a typical Fall Of The Idols rifffest, where one badass riff follows the other and in the background you'll constantly hear another riff developing until it reaches a stunning climax by the end of the song. Another random highlight would be Keep Wandering The Night with its terribly catchy chorus and stunning guitar lead. A good thing about Womb Of The Earth is that it's constantly varying between more mid-tempo parts and slower segments. On The Séance they didn't use this particular change of paste as often and was just one piece of total blackness, that might be a little inaccessible for the untrained doom ear. Jyrki (vocalist Fall Of The Idols) has a suitable voice for Fall Of The Idols and has a decent enough reach to change his tone when necessary. Don't be expecting a Messiah or Rob Lowe, though. In the end Fall Of The Idols remains a band who worked their way up the ladder the old school way. They began by releasing a multitude of demo's before bringing out full length albums. Over the years they have gotten more and more recognition and now that Reverend Bizarre is no more, it's time these guys get all the recognition they deserve, because as far as i'm concerned they are one of the true masters of finnish doom.

Fall Of The Idols - Womb Of The Earth

Griftegård - Psalm Bok

"Look I am your mind, see me I'm your nature

and this is how I paint your day

with strokes of black upon the grey."

I first got to know about Griftegard at the DDD festival (a doom festival in the Netherlands) last year. We were walking from the station towards the venue, but seeing as this was the first time we were frequenting this particular venue, we were kind of lost. So it took us much longer then expected to arrive there, which sucked quite a bit, because that meant that I had missed Subrosa. It was only afterwards that I heard that they called it a day after two songs, due to technical issues, so I didn't miss that much. Upon arrival at the venue, I bought my ticket and was waiting for my friends to pay for theirs, when I heard something unbelievably HEAVY in the background. This was my first encounter with Griftegard and their no-mercy-heavy-as-hell doom metal. I ended up seeing them for only about 10 minutes, but it were the best damn 10 minutes of 2008! Psalm Bok is heavy. Really heavy. It could just end my review here, but perhaps you prefer a more in-depth description? Ok. Griftegard has a religious theme and imagery, they may not be wearing a thousand crosses like Reverend Bizarre, but they are nonetheless an orthodox doom metal band. To add to this religious feel, we can hear a choir singing at the beginning of Charles Taze Russell – the absolute heaviness that follows the chants tells you pretty much all you need to know about Griftegard. Looking back at those 10 minutes in Rotterdam I was not only impressed by the sheer heaviness, but even more so by the super vocals of Thomas Eriksson. He delivers them in a clean fashion, but also some harsher ones appear to give the extra bit of emotion at certain times during a song. The fact that the music is so heavy, but the vocals fairly melodious makes for a great and surprising combination. Musically this is some of the slowest and heaviest doom metal that you'll come accross. This doesn't speed up at all and yet it's fantastic all the way. When their performance was finished I remember standing in complete shock, staring in front of me, not quite fully grasping what I just saw/experienced. I thought I had seen it all, little did I know that later that day Worship had plans to destroy everything on its path with their performance…So I guess my statement about those 10 minutes being the best of 2008 wasn’t really true. It was however a real memorable performace and the same can be said about Psalm Bok.

Griftegard - Psalm Bok

The Lamp Of Thoth - Cauldron Of Witchery

The Lamp Of Thoth are a bit of a newcomer to the doom metal scene, but immediately managed to impress with Cauldron Of Witchery. They had already released a demo the year before, but recognition only really started coming with this. Cauldron Of Witchery features only 2 The Lamp Of Thoth songs, the third song being a cover of Frost & Fire by Cirith Ungol. The rerelease has 2 more live songs; Blood On Satan's Claw and Into The Lair Of The Gorgon. Of the two songs created by these guys themselves, I feel Sunshine is the stronger one. But by no means is the self-titled song a bad one, on the contrary, it's a real epic heavy metal song not unlike what Manilla Road used to do. Sunshine, however, has a real doomy riff dominating most the song, shying away from the epicness of the previous song. The second part of the song is a little more up-tempo and continues to throw around spectacular riff after riff, which reaches a peak at about 3 minutes in the song. Headbanging ensured! Then another highlight follows; Frost & Fire, a song by enfant terrible Cirith Ungol, covered here. The Overtly Melancholic Lord Strange (vocalist The Lamp Of Thoth) hasn't got the best voice out there, but performs in an honest and down-to-earth manner that demands respect. The rerelease is a wide-spread item and should be easy to track down. Those were lucky enough, managed to get the die-hard limited version which contained a certificate with a number and the name of the owner, a shirt and a patch. True dedication!

The Lamp Of Thoth - Cauldron Of Witchery

Gospel of the Horns - A Call to Arms

Hailing from Australia comes Gospel of the Horns, which is formed by veterans from the Aussie black/thrash scene like Kill for satan, Funerary Pit, Deströyer 666, amongst many others. As a rule for the Aussie black/thrash these guys are highly influenced by Punk music and to be honest it works great! I hate most punk, but here it works great. Why does it work great? Pretty simple its excellent for headbanging and the beat of the music is excellent. The music itself is pretty thrashy and midpaced and with a lot of hate and dislike for religion, this is very noticeable at the beginning of Absolute Power when Houwitser says in his raspy scream "We are the hatred Lucifer's fury combined." For the ones familiar with Deströyer 666's first album, this is not similar to that album, the music here is more 'mainstream' don't let that turn you down, this is not mainstream at all it is just more catchy. The riffs are incredible good a bit too much in the background for some reason, the vocalist seems to be more in the front than the guitarists and the drumming is also a bit higher in the production than the guitar. One interesting aspect of this album is the feeling that some of the songs have, especially Slaves which it's incredibly emotional for some reason, it feels like some one is telling you a story where something really really bad happened. The riffs in Slaves are also unbeliavable good, they are slow for thrash, but it works in phenomenal way. The leads are also good, they are not exactly brilliant or intricate, but they manage to give something very special to the music. Houwitser gives a lesson to a lot of vocalist from the black metal scene and of course of the black/thrash scene, his vocals are raspy yet they don't sound like many other vocalist that don't transmit anything, Houwitser on the other hand gives something more than hate, an unique feeling. Understanding what this band is about? Is about feeling, that's it, just feelings on the music, no it is not anything emo or melancholy it's just a different kind of feeling. The production here could have been better, but it's good enough for me, the maim problem is that the guitars sound in one speaker, the drumming in the other speaker, and houwitser in both, probably that was their idea who knows. Enjoy an amazing release from Australia and lets hope they keep improving.














Gospel of the Horns - A Call to Arms

Sanguis Imperem - The Stagnation of Centuries

This is perhaps one of the most interesting new acts from the US of the recent years. Sanguis Imperem play an extremely aggressive form of death metal that is heavily influenced by military marches, war, genocide, and similar topics. As expected the atmosphere of the music is incredibly militaristic, especially the drumming department where is noticeable the most. The music is very simple and unique, there are only two bands to whom I can compare this guys with. The music itself sounds like if it was immersed in a battle where hate, revenge, and killing is all that matters. The ep starts with the Fall of 66 which is by far their best song, from the very beginning the military influence can be felt. The riffs are very modern sounding, and of course when I say that I'm not talking about bands such as Disgorge, Benighted, and so on, but as in Martial Barrage, Dead Congregation, and so on. They riffs itself are very dissonant and they vary from extremely fast tempo to slow almost doomy, these changes of tempo keep the listener interested and focused on the music. Although the riffs are not trashy the beat is perfect for headbanging. The drumming is perhaps the most interesting aspect of this band and it's also one of the reasons of why I like them so much. The drumming is by no means your average one, not technical yet not simple, it changes a lot from the tempo, pattern, and the style. The intro of Fall of 66 is a good example. The vocalists are also extremely proficient at what they do, the growls are very different and on the low spectrum and sometimes in the high,but for the most part in the low. The production is also good, every instrument can be heard without trouble. Again as a rule or something in modern bands the bass is nonexistent. The particular weak aspect of this album is its length, only 5 songs that only last near 30 minutes. Enjoy a great release and hope these guys releases an album in the incoming months or next year.




















Sanguis Imperem

Impureza - Inquisition Demos

From the land of cheese comes Impureza an agressive act of death metal with some of the most hilarious song names, or is it because I'm a Spanish speaker, whatever is the reason do not care for the song names. What I find interesting about them is how they use flamenco solos in their music, I did try a band on the past that was formed by members of Sadist (Ita) and was a total crap. These guys; however, sure know how and where to use those flamenco moments. This is modern death metal, but don't let that be a turn off, they play it exactly how most of us old school death metal fans enjoy it aggressive, hateful, and excellent riffs! There is only one band to whom I can compare these guys and it's no other band than Martial Barrage, Canada's finest act of death metal in this very moment. The riffs are not trashy, yet they are perfect for headbanging and also the fore mentioned solos are extremely good some of the best that I have heard from new bands, not that I listen to a lot of modern death metal though. The drumming is excellent, lot of blasting yet it doesn't bother due the production that the demos had, which is something extremely weird in metal for the most part. The vocalists are perhaps what makes this band ahead from many other modern acts, both vocalist use two different growls, the main one uses a extremely deep growl while the second one uses a raspy and screechy growl. Both vocalist sing in a different patter, sometimes in duo other times one after the other, like I said before, is pretty interesting. As mentioned before the production is pretty good for demos, actually incredibly good if we take into account how's the quality of most demos. Every riff can be heard without trouble, the drumming sounds good, the bass is absent like in many modern bands. Keep an eye on these guys and their full album,these demos are just an appetizer of how their full length its going to be.




















Impureza - Inquisition Demos

Trancelike Void - Destroying Something Beautiful

Trancelike Void first saw the light in the year 2007 and quickly came up with a surprisingly good debut full-length. S. (the main character behind this project) didn't feel like wasting much time with demo's, EPs and such, but immediately went for the ambitious choice and created this album. A bold decision, that many similar bands choose nowadays, but unfortunaly it usually ends quite horrificly and in the end proved to be a way too ambitious effort. Luckily, this is not the case here. S. is a quite experienced musician (also the main driving force behind the promising Kilte, who have been discussed here during June 2009) and therefore took the right decision when he chose to immediately release Destroying Something Beautiful. On this album we find 3 parts, each divided by an additional interlude. Together it forms a cohesive ensemble and especially the different interludes give it a rich texture. Trancelike Void creates a kind of black metal that drones fairly heavily and puts the listener into a trancelike state. Drum patterns are simple and minimalistc, as is pretty much everything found here. The vocals are quite distorted and sound perfect alongside the shoegaze-y and again very simplistic riffs. Despite being fairly basic, this feels rather complete. The interaction between the different parts and interludes is reponsible for creating this effect. While the general execution is rather simplistic, the overall texture remains rich and that is an accomplishment that only the talented few can achieve. It's clear that this album was created with a specific sound and concept in mind. A lot of the time when a band tries this it usually ends up being way too ambitious and generally sounding rather disjointed. This is however not the case here. The fact that this album ends with a quote from fight club is a testimony as to how awesome Destroying Something Beautiful is. If you don't mind a repetitive and minimalistic take on black metal, then get this, but let it be clear that these elements make for a rather inaccessible listen and only a select few will be able to value this accordingly. Simplicity is the key here and it does wonders for this project. Whereas others have to incorporate a dozen different instruments and special symphonic effects to impress, this band merely relies on the basic instruments and creates music that easily surpasses all of that bullshit out there.

Trancelike Void - Destroying Something Beautiful

Verloren - In Zalvend Onmin

Verloren are a short-lived band part of the talented Goatowarex roster. After 5 years of existance they released their only full length titled In Zalvend Onmin. In Zalvend Onmin starts with a highlight after the intro called Doelloos Dwalen; rather catchy song with an almost rock 'n roll feel to it, a bit groovy even and riff-fucking-tastic. A contrast with the lyrical themes and vocals. Lyrically Verloren tap from the same pool as many contemporary colleagues. Subjects as misanthropy, solitude, etc. are all over the place, but instead of being an uninspired Burzum or Bethlehem rip-off, they opt for a slightly different approach. Doelloos Dwalen is a perfect example of this. Verminking starts with a cleanly played guitar riff, after which the devestating vocals and distortion kick in. The vocals are not that special, but are nonetheless perfect for this album. They aren't the ridiculous high shrieks that seem to be a common approach nowadays, but instead are a more traditional black metal scream filled with emotion and despair. With Verminking the album drops paste significantly and will hypnotize the listener into a state of complete apathy, until about 5 minutes in the song, when some fast-paced tremelo's make an introduction and the music again goes up a few notches and treads into mid-paced territory. This constant change in paste provides for a nice variety and constantly highlights different emotions. Vloek Der Negatiefheid starts in a similar fashion as the previous song, again clean guitar lines with in the background the excruciating screams. Paste again slow for about a minute or two, until a mid-paced part presents itself again backed up by the trancelike riffs that will keep repeating itself in your head, long after this album is over. They are pretty simple, but highly effective. Vloek Der Negatiefheid is a perfect example of this, at about 4 minutes into the song, a riff comes crawling up that's easily one of the best to be heard on In Zalvend Onmin and perfectly portrays all the negativity present in this song. It's a shame Verloren never continued what they had started. They are obviously a talented bunch and were a musical highlight of 2006. Like so many talented bands, Verloren quit the underground scene with just one album, but by now it's common knowledge that usually those albums (and bands) end up reaching a legendary status. Future will decide wether Verloren will continue this trend or not. Verloren are recommended to those individuals who enjoy mid-paced / slow riff-based black metal with highly effective screaming in the background and a general gloomy and despondent mood.

Verloren - In Zalvind Onmin

Elysian Blaze - Levitating The Carnal

The last couple of years I can count on one hand how many times i've played this album. I rarely listen to it, because it requires something extra. This is weird music, which can only be enjoyed if all aspects are in your advantage. You'll soon notice why this is such a monstrosity of an album and I mean that in a good way. Elysian Blaze play black metal, but a very unique type. Mutatiis - the man behind Elysian Blaze - experiments not only with the music itself, but especially with the production. He makes Levitating The Carnal sound really distant and the entire thing has this sort of echo effect to it. It almost seems like i'm listening to this album in a cathedral, like the one depicted on the album coverart. So this clearly was a move intentionally done by Mutatiis and he completely succeeds in creating this. The value of the production is very important to notice, as without this particular type of effect, it would lose a lot of it's unique strength. Levitating The Carnal progresses in a mostly mid-tempo and slow fashion, but has some faster sections as well (Macabre Be Thy Blood). The guitar tone sounds exactly like everything else, distant and echoing and creates long-winded, but moving and slightly melodious riffs that make up for a very solid basis for Mutatiis to work on. Extra depth is created by frequently using a piano. The hard part about Levitating The Carnal is that it's so goddamn inaccessible. Even listening to it is a nervous experience. Not one factor in your own surrounding can change as it might ruin the whole listening experience. Combine that with the fact that this album has a playtime of almost 70 minutes and you know chances of you listening to this a lot will be pretty slim. It demands your entire attention. When it eventually has your full attention it will allow you to sink in the entire atmosphere and experience the brilliance of Levitating The Carnal.

I should say that this should possible be experienced as you might experience some Lustmord or Northaunt or basically anything similar. Even though this is unmistakingly heavy metal, the complete package has a very ambient feel and should therefore also be considered as something along those lines. Don't expect to be headbanging 70 minutes to this, because that will not happen. If you prefer your black metal thrashy or of the scandinavian school, then think twice as to wether you really want to try Levitating The Carnal, as it might turn out to be a frustrating experience. If you like the french or perhaps to a lesser extent the greek scene and enjoy the typical mystical atmosphere those scenes are known for (I realise that this might be a stretch for some people, but i'm purely comparing moods generated by the music and not the music itself), then by all means, add Levitating The Carnal to your collection. Be prepared to be entranced by this repetitive, minimalistic and unique take on black metal!

Elysian Blaze - Levitating The Carnal

Grimfaug - Defloration Of Life's Essence

The Defloration Of Life's Essence kicks off in a very promising way. Thick, fuzzy guitars immediately begin with a nice riff, backed up by a doomy tolling bell and prominent bass action, which further develops this doomed atmosphere. After about a minute one of the best riffs on this album comes into play and prepares the listener for a complete onslaught of destructive blast beats and mystifying riffs. As many bands, Grimfaug follow the scandinavian school of black metal. Fairly heavy on the blasts, terribly fuzzy guitar tone and vocals that remind me of Skamfer of Heresi fame. Grimfaug have passed by fairly unnoticed, but are however a member of a respectable and well-known labal such as Eerie Art Records, which features bands such as Hypothermia, Nachtmystium, Lyrinx and enigmatic Icelandic act Vhernen. While Grimfaug play a style of black metal which has been done to dead, they do manage to bring a high-quality variant of it. Good solid riffs, nothing outstanding, but at least they are consistent all the way, drumming that is pretty vile and blasts away most of the time, with some occassional fills and some nice thrashy drum rythms here and there as well as some good double bass action. A production that is rather raw, but creates a real misty ambiance, where you really do get lost in. The 3-minute Despoiler Of Hope is an ambient piece that enriches the entire atmosphere this record is going for and contrary to a lot of bands who incorporate something such as this in their music, it's no filler material. The highlight of Defloration Of Life's Essence is definitely the last track (also the longest track) Apocalypse... which again continues in the same way as this album started, slower paste and moody. A perfect sinister way to end this solid effort. Kudos to these guys for realising the importance of a bass and how it can add something to even a genre such as black metal. The bass is not present all the time, but is audible when appropriate. The guitars have this over the top buzz saw tone, which I can greatly appreciate, it allows the listener to sink in the moody atmosphere. Grimfaug won't be breaking any new grounds, but remains faithful to the roots of the genre and creates with Defloration Of Life's Essence something that should be valued for what it is; a good, solid effort.

Grimfaug - Defloration Of Life's Essence

Unearthly Trance - Season of Séance, Science of Silence

"The counter of creation resets to zero."

With their recent works Unearthly Trance have been referred to as the modern day Celtic Frost. When they first started out, however, they had a totally different sound and approach. They started out playing really grime and filthy blackish sludge doom, over the years they gradually softened a little bit if that's the right thing to say here and continued onwards in their own direction moving away from what they had done on their debut. This leads to a logical conclusion that Unearthly Trance have a following that is usually divided into Season of Séance, Science of Silence followers and those who think their best period lies in their future works, meaning everything that came after this. I would situate their peak around In The Red; the album that followed the debut. It took the harsh and heavy aspects of the previous album and mixed them up with what eventually would become their new sound. Unearthly Trance have some firm rooting in the black metal scene (Thralldom is perhaps USBM best kept secret) and those influences find their way into Season of Séance, Science of Silence as well, especially in the vocal area. Season of Séance, Science of Silence is at times incredibly slow and heavy, having a kind of ritualistic sound while this guy is screaming in the background. This basically sums up Mass of the Phoenix. The screams are fairly standard and could be those of any good black metal vocalist, but where Lipynsky differentiates himself from others is with his clean howls. They provide a melodic touch and help balance the riff based music and the excruciating heaviness. As always heavy metal revolves around the quality of riffs present and this is where Season of Séance, Science of Silence proves its worth. While the drums aren't anything spectacular on the technical level - they do manage to create this very ritualistic atmosphere - the riffs are very well performed and not in the least bit as simple as the drums. Throughout the album there are moments where these guys decide to speed it up a little as well, mostly during shorter songs such as When Anti-Humanity Flourishes and Black Heart/Black Lung. As you might be able to tell from the song titles, this once again, deals with nothing but the most deep-seeded misanthropy. A constant theme throughout the career of Unearthly Trance. Some more Crowley inspired songs are present as well. I would suggest giving this one a try and then switch to The Trident, then make up your mind as to what camp you belong to. If you end up liking both then you are one of the fortunate souls, such as myself, who just praise everything Unearthly Trance have released up until now. A last bit of advice. If they ever happen to play somewhere in your area, then make sure you are there, because you are in for a blast!

Unearthly Trance - Season of Séance, Science of Silence