When it comes to gloomy and sorrow-fueled melodic death metal, it never hurts to have one more option to check out. The Italians of Black Therapy have been crafting their particular take on the genre Read more […]
Good to discover some new bands in the symphonic metal style that don’t take themselves too seriously. Reading up on Luminatus’ Facebook page about their nerdy and fart grenade tendencies puts this Read more […]
Appropriately saluted as the bastard child of every sleazy hard rock band under the sun, Sweden’s Sister would also pass as visual Black Veil Brides lookalikes if a keen eye was not employed. Their look Read more […]
Much of the time, the lone wolf acts (read: one man bands) are relegated to the black metal regime. But over the years, due to recording technologies, it’s permeated other genres as well. To the case Read more […]
Old-timers, or those approaching such status remember the influence of Sweden’s Black Mark Production. Owned by Stig Börje Forsberg, the label at its peak housed Bathory, Edge of Sanity, Necrophobic, Read more […]
Vancouver-based progressive death metal band Riftwalker know how to stand apart from the crowd. Just one gaze at their starkly bright cover art alone should convince you of that. But cover art alone Read more […]
Certifiably not metal, so move along if dreamy Italian shoegaze isn’t your bag. Relevant because they’re on Prophecy Productions and because they’re quite good (that sounds a bit vague, doesn’t Read more […]
As the days get shorter and the temps get colder, there’s no better time of year to check out some doom metal. When it comes to doom, of course one of the labels that has continued to strike gold is Read more […]
Containing veteran players from Canada and the United States (who have had seasoning in recording or touring capacities with Annihilator and Pyramaze among others), Malacoda seek to develop an intoxicating Read more […]
Watching an act rise from self-financed, unsigned infancy to stand shoulder to shoulder with national/international output that has reputable label support behind itself has been a much more common occurrence Read more […]
The side-project of Therion’s Christofer Johnsson, Luciferian Light Orchestra plays what amounts to a ’70s flavored Therion, just without the symphonic pomp (and circumstance). Johnsson, of course, Read more […]
It’s pretty much a known fact at this point that many of the DR staff have a hankering for the melodic death metal genre, despite how we may branch off in our musical preferences from there. So we usually Read more […]
These days it’s not easy to stand apart from the pack in the metal realm. So, if gold-themed visual band promo photos garner another look-see for Enbound on their 2011 debut album And She Says Gold, Read more […]
Falling into the same sweet spot of bands like Delain, Within Temptation, and Lacuna Coil, the American/Dutch symphonic act of Mercy Isle practically has a built-in fanbase ready for the taking. Of course, Read more […]
Surely the first time the words “wild” and “misery” have been used in an album title, the aim, obviously, is to portray how deep one can exactly plunge into the throes of despair. It backfires Read more […]
In the late 1990’s, a series of European power metal bands made major strides to release valiant product. Chances are records like Return to Heaven Denied, Visions, and Ecliptica fight for airplay today Read more […]
From the “What can we dig up next?” file comes Dutch classic death metal throng Beyond Belief. Formed in 1986, the band took their sweet ‘ol time in releasing a full-length, the first being 1993’s Read more […]
While some may start to doubt the relevance of good cover art as we move towards an increasing reliance on digital music, it still provides the same means to drawing the eye in a crowded space such as Read more […]
Metallica hasn’t been a creative force to be reckoned with since the back-side of The Black Album. Songs like “Don’t Tread on Me,” “My Friend of Misery” and in particular, “The God That Failed” Read more […]
It’s often noted that slamming death metal has its limitations, so what happens when a band realizes this and decides to add elements of tech death, progressive, and some good ole shredding to boot? Read more […]
When will these U.K. black metal dudes learn? You can’t have names like Luke, Olly, and Ryan, and expect to enter the (infernal) gates of BM love-dom. Actually, that’s not true whatsoever, although Read more […]
Back in 2012, Indiana tech metal act Dawn of Dementia introduced themselves to the scene with the highly praised Residuum. It’s been a long road since that point, with a number of line-up changes and Read more […]
A Dethklok-esque idea where its members are based on Alec Worley’s recent Realm of the Damned graphic novel, Sons of Balaur are pretending to be a Norwegian black metal band from the early ‘90s when Read more […]
To celebrate their 20th anniversary as a band, Germany’s Perzonal War decide to re-record 11 songs from their first two albums and issue Inside the New Time Chaoz. Considering the relative small numbers Read more […]
A new project for ex-Amberian Dawn singer Heidi Parviainen, Dark Sarah combines a love of symphonic metal with obvious film and musical theater leanings on their second album The Puzzle. A continuation Read more […]
Creating original music is a difficult thing to do, just look at the droves of bands in metal giving it their all each and every release. Some proudly fly the flags of their influences on their sleeves Read more […]
Defined as “a sailor or militiaman from South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Arab world, and other territories located to the east of the Cape of Good Hope, who were employed on European ships from the 16th Read more […]
Here’s a thought: Randy Blythe should sing more often. With virtually everyone used to the man’s spit-growl antics (which, thankfully, are more listenable than they were during the band’s early days), Read more […]
Never a band to rest on their laurels…or rest much at all for that matter – they’ve been a part of five smaller (EP/demo) releases since their first full-length, last year’s Eternal Sleepwalker, Read more […]
Norway is obviously known for its black metal export these days, so it’s not a huge shocker Ubruren hail from the mighty motherland with this style firmly it tow. Formed in 2010, these Norsemen harken Read more […]
