After a very productive 2013 (releasing not one but two albums), perhaps commitments to The Haunted have finally slowed down Ola Englund and Feared. But fear not (pun intended), Feared’s fifth album Read more […]
One of the more intriguing American black metal prospects in eons, Minneapolis crew False have opted to put their music before their image, omitting their names from credits, bypassing promotional shots, Read more […]
“Nu prog” seems to be a term no one is willing to embrace, probably because if throw “nu” in front of anything, it’s like nu metal deju vu all over again. No one wants that. But the movement Read more […]
When an established band veers with a sharp left-hand turn, there’s the potential that it can truly boost them up to the next level or the chance that their fan base is alienated and you see a correction Read more […]
Rarely can a band sound so bleak, angry and bummed out while laying down such thick, polished, professional-strength melodic metal. Sure, most metal bands do not play happy music (if you’d like to give Read more […]
Adjectives like experimental, groove, and progressive have been lobbied about regarding this UK metal band TesseracT since their foundation in 2007. Regaining Daniel Tompkins as a vocalist following a Read more […]
Maybe it’s the nerdiness coming out, but hearing the title of Eschaton’s debut album, Sentinel Apocalypse, just brings about visions of the X-Men. Of course, that’s not what the title is referring Read more […]
With all the current hubbub about old school death metal, the need for bands to expand the palette a bit with different influences is becoming more and more apparent. It’s no longer okay to simply ape Read more […]
Rarely in the melodic metal genre do you find a multi-instrumentalist willing to tackle numerous roles for the benefit of focus and a final product- but this is the case for Finland’s Backhill and their Read more […]
In the realm of power metal, superior musicianship and an upper tier vocalist will always carry you above the masses. Take international act Pyramaze (mostly Danish, partially American)- they’ve been Read more […]
The best bands often invoke a certain imaginative quality to them. Meaning you can listen to their music and be transported away to a time and place that is not your own. Upon the first notes of hearing Read more […]
Early metalcore was just that: Metal mixed with hardcore. It had none of the whiny, and/or trendy elements it has incorporated the last 12 or 13 years, an unfortunate happening that almost ruined the good Read more […]
Entrails is a band that has taken some lumps over the years here at DR. There were some things that were a bit hard to swallow, such as the complete aping of Entombed’s logo (not to mention their music). Read more […]
Combining a slurry of extreme metal influences is nothing new. The blurring of traditional genre-lines has almost become a necessity for new bands nowadays in order to make an imprint of their own on Read more […]
Swedish Viking/black metal warriors Ereb Altor got their act together in 2003, and now release their fifth studio album (the debut releasing in 2008 to high regard). Seen as a continuation of the spirit Read more […]
Edinburgh, Scotland is a wondrous place. This scribe and his darling wife have had the pleasure of visiting Scotland’s capital twice, lavishing in the copious amounts of good food, kilt stores every Read more […]
One-man black metal. By this point, you know the drill pretty well. Instantly, images of trees and mountains, and blast beats come to mind. It’s okay, we are quite familiar with the sensations ourselves. Read more […]
At the end of that ellipsis…who knows? Could be…anything, really. Maybe… “Mercy,” which would be cool, but trademark infringement. Probably not a good idea. But Missouri’s Sisters of… shouldn’t Read more […]
Some bands just keep plugging away, ever so slowly altering their sound until something falls into place. Such is the case with Nox Aeterna. Hailing from the Netherlands, they’ve been around since Read more […]
Privy to long, wide-angled, not-too-obvious funeral doom or even just doom, Seattle’s Bell Witch are very much a singular entity in the underground. Comprised of four spacious numbers (none of which Read more […]
The Devils of Loudun (yes, based upon the Aldous Huxley book of the same name) aim to make quite a splash in the pond with their first EP, Entering Oblivion. Combining symphonic material with melodic Read more […]
Australian extreme metallers Hybrid Nightmares are seemingly out to make 2015 their year. Already having released The First Age (of which we at DR somehow passed over – for shame!), The Second Age continues Read more […]
Observing the tried and true method of waiting a year between records, Satan’s Wrath has returned, following up 2013’s Aeons of Satan’s Reign. The band’s third release (not to mention third for Read more […]
Repetition can be a band’s best friend, or its worst enemy. Certain styles of metal invite it (see: stoner sludge, in particular) making it the mother of necessity, while others, when involving a clean Read more […]
After a successful run with 2013’s To Sail Black Waters and a split last year with Godhunter, California’s Secrets of the Sun managed to impress the fine folks over at Metal Blade, who now bring us Read more […]
Simply as a result of Deafheaven blowing up so quickly, Bosse-de-Nage have enjoyed (or not) the good (or bad) association with the shoegaze black metal outfit (?) because the two did a well-received split Read more […]
Last heard from in 2010 via their redeemable The Flesh, French blackened death ensemble The Order of Apollyon have re-tooled their lineup and returned in a rather big way with their second offering, The Read more […]
Ever yearn for those bands that can hit the proverbial sweet spot? In terms of death metal, this more or less equates to pulling a timeless feeling to the music behind you. No one is quick to pull the Read more […]
Perhaps it’s the video game nerd coming out, but it’s been a struggle to separate this band from the video game series of the same name (though with a space before “space”). But maybe it’s because Read more […]
Gothic/symphonic metal has steadily gained headlining credibility. Sonically throwing a wide dynamic palate in terms of clean or extreme vocals, guitars, keyboards, and orchestration maneuvers beyond the Read more […]
