Firewind – The Premonition (Century Media)
All-star guitarist Gus G.’s burst of productivity has carried over into ’08, barely a year after Allegiance was released. Sorta surprising why more bandsdon’t do this – it was commonplace in the 70’s and 80’s and now...
Kreator – At the Pulse of Katipulation DVD (SPV)
Kreator. Pre Coma of Souls, post Berlin Wall. Shot in early 1990, right after the fall of Communism, At the Pulse of Katipulation shows a very hungry and inspired Kreator, who were just getting ready to jump...
Engel – Absolute Design (SPV)
Static-X and several key players from the Swedish metal scene just don’t mix. It won’t work in Sweden, Germany, and definitely not in the States, where boneheaded Nu-metal is on the outs for the...
Burzum – Lord of Darkness: Anthology (Candlelight Records)
Ole Varg is still hanging around some jail in Norway, as his sentence for slaying Euronymous has been extended thanks to a failed escape in ’03 that saw our Pagan lunatic brandish a bazooka...
Children of Bodom – Blooddrunk (Spinefarm/Universal)
Three years removed from one of ’05 best albums in Are You Dead Yet?Alexi and his boys of Bodom return with Blooddrunk, yet another high-profile Euro metal album to hit the shelves for April. In relation...
Indian – Sights and Abuse/The Sycophant (Seventh Rule)
More or less a watered-down version of Mastodon and any other well-serving sludgy doom band, Chicago’s Indian don’t appeal on a whole lot of levels outside of the fact they make a lot of noise and...
In Flames – A Sense of Purpose (Koch Entertainment)
Few can polarize like In Flames; the band’s once flawless underground pedigree has been smeared via a handful of less-challenging and ‘true’ albums, the result of the band growing tired with the simple melodic...
Unearth – Alive From the Apocalypse DVD (Metal Blade Records)
Not your run-of-the-mill DVD release, Alive From the Apocalypse is a two-disc set featuring a live set and a cool documentary that takes us from Unearth’s beginnings in the Massachusetts metalcore scene to where they are...
Farsot – IIII (Lupus Lounge/Prophecy)
Previously known for covering “I Break” by Katatonia for a recent tribute album (yep, Katatonia rules all in this house), Germany’s Farsot have a bit of an unconventional approach to modern black metal. Aside from...
Helrunar – Baldr Ok Iss (Lupus Lounge/Prophecy)
A formula that is as proven as any in metal, epic black metal can do little wrong when performed with the type of care and dare we say, “honor” that it rightly deserves. The...
Bats – Cruel Sea Scientist (Armed Ambitions)
Having first stumbled across Bats playing a lacklustre show supporting Down I Go in a dingy dive bar in Dublin, initial impressions were not good, although they already had the beginnings of a fan...
Meshuggah – obZen (Nuclear Blast Records)
Early reports had obZen marking a return to the unbridled fury of 1998’s Chaosphere, but instead, it’s more of a combination of Nothing, Catch Thirty-Three and the aforementioned sonic maelstrom that thrust Meshuggah into the underground spotlight. obZen, in certain spots...
Satan’s Host – Great American Scapegoat 666 (Moribund Records)
Formed in the late 70’s, well before a lot of us were even a twinkle in our parents eyes (at least in yours truly’s case…), Denver’s Satan’s Host have gone from a hard-nosed, melodic...
Zimmers Hole – When You Were Shouting At the Devil…We Were In League With Satan (Century Media Records)
Essentially SYL without Devin, Zimmers Hole isn’t as new as many think – the duo of guitarist Jed Simon and bassist Byron Stroud have been doing the “Hole” for years whenever Townsend would go...
Dark Fortress – Eidolon (Century Media Records)
Given a ringing endorsement by Tom G. Warrior of Celtic Frost, Germany's Dark Fortress (why such the unimaginative name?) have received a nice little push from Century Media, who must feel like this is...