Taake (pronounced “Toah-keh”), the one-man black metal band out of Bergen, is the music of Hoest (AKA Ørjan Stedjeberg) who has been cranking out seminal releases in the genre since his first full Read more […]
Remembering the early days of this German power metal institution when you had to buy their albums such as Tales from the Twilight World and Somewhere Far Beyond through import channels (as no North American Read more […]
A workhorse, who despite countless career setbacks (including this most recent terrible van accident), has managed to remain standing, Today is the Day mainman Steve Austin wouldn’t be blamed for giving Read more […]
Here at the tail-end of 2014, combining death metal with black metal and synths isn’t exactly groundbreaking. At the truly symphonic end, you have bands such as Fleshgod Apocalypse and Septicflesh who Read more […]
Bleak and hopeless. That’s the impression that one is left with after Aeon Unveils the Thrones of Decay concludes its last note. Dank and grey in all things, particularly the cover, Downfall of Gaia Read more […]
Last year, Soilwork really came out of the gates with their double-album The Living Infinite. The double disc format truly allowed them to test some new waters (as well as revisit some old ones) and was Read more […]
A rather full and voluminous-sound power trio from Portland-to-Los Angeles, Wizard Rifle fashion themselves as an esoteric doom/prog proposition, which in these convoluted times, may not be such a bad Read more […]
Funeral doom, in its ever-limited scope, has no issue in producing new bands. So aside from the top-tier acts (Ahab, Esoteric, Mournful Congregation, etc.), there’s a rash of sub-bands who at least abide Read more […]
Somewhere along the specialization train, the art of no-frills death metal was inherently lost. Sure, some of the older bands are around and kicking (Cannibal Corpse and Obituary surely delivered the Read more […]
Found these Cleveland/Austin gents to be real players in the occult rock/metal scene; a chip off the forward-looking/sideways-leaning block thanks to all of the percussive elements in their cadre. But Read more […]
Cloudkicker is the one-man project of Ben Sharp, who has done all of the writing, recording, mixing, and mastering for the band since its inception in 2007. Of course, in the live setting it would be Read more […]
Humorous lyrics within thrash parameters probably began in part due to the crossover success of Anthrax side project S.O.D. in the 1980’s – and now that the floodgates have opened, acts like Italy’s Read more […]
Admittedly, upon viewing the title, cover art, and song titles, this one was already pegged as either a tech death or deathcore release (you know, because there’s “blood” in the title after all, Read more […]
Is it Kall in here or is it just me? Indeed, they are here and they are cold. Kall in Swedish literary translates to cold, by the way, but that just begins to explain a fraction of this band’s brilliance. Read more […]
German metal musicians seem to have this mutual respect and comradery that has allowed the scene to survive trends or economic woes that turn up elsewhere; guesting on albums, performing at festival shows Read more […]
2014 has given us some rather quality releases in grindcore. We’ve had Gridlink, Columns, and even SSS providing some solid diversions from the usual grind. Now Cretin returns from an 8 year absence Read more […]
Ugly doom sure has had a bright year, hasn’t it? Albums from Pallbearer, YOB, Eyehategod, and now Portland, OR’s Usnea should been more than enough for anyone who likes to roll around in the sludge Read more […]
The atmospheric/progressive oriented metal act Witherscape containing guitarist/bassist Ragnar Widerberg and the ubiquitous vocalist/keyboardist/drummer Dan Swanö unleash what many in the business would Read more […]
At this point, everyone and their brother is trying to get a piece of the Agalloch action. Even more US bands are veering towards the Cascadian black metal sound. So what’s a young American band to Read more […]
The pride of Irish metal, Primordial, the Dublin black metal doomsters release their eighth album since their debut in 1995, with Where Greater Men Have Fallen. Kicking things off in strong fashion Read more […]
Oftentimes, there’s a degree of authenticity in Viking metal that has gotten since the genre’s explosion over the last decade. This is no concern to Iceland’s Skálmöld, who have been going their Read more […]
A Sweden-by-way-of-Italy female-fronted, horror/occult act, Hands of Orlac might be a year or two late to the party. That “party,” of course, is the witchy woman fronting a 70s-flavored rock band shindig, Read more […]
Dense and shadowy black metal is certainly the way to go at this time of year in the northeast regions of the US-of-A. While we’re totally entering into cliché-ville with such alignments, the bleak Read more […]
The return of Centinex hasn’t gotten as much attention as some of the other heavyweights of the genre. Probably due to the more “spotty” track record of the band, they never really stole the spotlight Read more […]
Brazil’s Nervochaos has been around for about twenty years at this point and The Art of Vengeance will be their sixth full length record over the years. It’s worth noting due to the fact that it’s Read more […]
Mr. Roy Z is involved here, which gives Kattah automatic credence, for it’s not like the ultra-successful producer takes on just any random project. The man’s production career shall forever be defined Read more […]
Now that we’re close to wrapping up 2014, some kind of term to describe the year that was in death metal is needed. The term shall be “weird,” and nothing else. The likes of Morbus Chron and Horrendous Read more […]
Some bands are quick on the draw to get their name out there, while others take their time and refine their craft before unleashing it on the unsuspecting public. Count Australia’s Hadal Maw as one Read more […]
A not-so-subtle take-off on Agalloch, Colorado’s (really had thought they were Cascadian) The Flight of the Sleipnir are named after one of Odin’s horses, an eight-legged creature considered to be Read more […]
With the power of the Internet and all of our high powered means of communication, we’ve sort of grown accustom to the quantity over quality debate. The death metal genre is flooded by bands hoping Read more […]
