Tag: Black Metal

Posted on by

KARMANJAKA – Gates of Muspel – REVIEW

 

Karmanjaka and their metal as fuck unreadable band logo come to us from the land of great melodic metal, Sweden. That Swedish influence of melodic, rocking and catchy riffs can be felt throughout the entirety of this recording. Black Metal is often seen as the grimmest of the grim but this album has an almost, “fun” feel to it. Listen to the standout track, “Sorcerer King,” and judge for yourself. With its outstanding guitars and howling vocals it feels like a mix of classic era heavy metal and black metal. With such a melodic approach to their sound Karmanjaka have put together a very accessible black metal listen to many who may not be a fan of the genre. In addition, the production on this album is slick and crisp making it even easier to pass it on to your friend who still hasn’t given a black metal band a fair listen. The themes on this album are still bleak, evil and pagan, so purists should night be scared off by Karmanjaka’s diverse sound. Easily one of the more engrossing and energetic black metal album to come out in some time. Highly recommended!

Posted on by

AUTOKRATOR – Persecution – REVIEW

Autokrator are  back and ready to rattle your eardrums with some intense dark, murky and plodding Doom Metal to get the new year started off on the right path. The vocals are low and inhuman matching perfectly with they muddled guitar tones present on this release. Tracks like “DCLXVI, ” and “The Great Persecution”pick up the pace and send the sound into more of Black/Death combo with punishing blast beats and haunting solos giving the album some more variety. “Caesar Nerva Traianus,” was the real stand out song for me. Starting out with an epically powerful march with some really cool battleground sound effects thrown in for good measure that sounds like it belongs on the score of a big budget movie. The droning guitar tones and eerie chanting vocals make a haunting and eerie listen. The album in full hits like a bulldozer thanks to how smooth the tracks blend into each other.  “Persecution,” is raw and punishing with enough mix of style to remain fresh and accessible to all fans of Extreme Metal.

Posted on by

MYRDOD – The Mourning Hollow – REVIEW

The Pennsylvania duo unleash a portal into a dank a swampy void of Hell with their latest release, ” The Mourning Hollow.” Myrod provide plenty of thick Black Metal atmospheric chaos that warps the mind as they take you with them beyond this realm. The recording is just as thick and murky as any good ol’ classic Black Metal sound should be with echoing rasps and tortured screams oozing through each track. “Orb Weaver,” starts the album with a somber and eerie tone that gradually adds in blast beats drums and guitars like a rolling storm. “Drom,” is the standout song here with sick guitar riffs that make you want to put your fist through a wall, inhuman garbage disposal sounding lyrics  It’s a brutal assault on the senses that will leave you scrambling to pick your brains off of the floor. (Naturally, in a good way.)  “Diabolical Ancient Blessing,” closes things out with enough adrenaline and speed to leave you thirsty enough for another spin.

Myrod’s blending style of raw Black and touch of Death Metal is a brutal and spiritual assault that is as melancholy as it is savage. A must listen for this Holiday season.

Posted on by

TRYANNUS – It Taketh -REVIEW

“It Taketh,” is a three song Demo from the Scottish duo Tryannus. Included within is just a taste of what is to come when they release their debut album next year. “The Flood,” starts out with a frenzied Black Metal style with a haunting and icy crawl in the mid section. Title track, “It Taketh,” is filled with plenty of blast beats, buzzsaw guitars and sickened vocals. The demo ends with the eerie instrumental, ” Lake of the Undying,” that utilizes some great synth work merged with a softer guitars that paint a dreamlike sequence.

Tyrannus definitely fit the mold of Lovecraftian style they are looking to achieve and it will be interesting to see what they come up with when they release their full debut album next year.

Posted on by

HATEMONGER – The Vile Maxim – REVIEW

Hatemonger’s “The Vile Maxim” is simple, short and savage as fuck. The Chicago based group performs a killer style of no frills, no fads, no holds barred Death Metal that is set to stomp your skull into the soil. Their sound is fresh and familiar without the “retro” Death Metal sound that many bands are trying to emulate these days. Vocals are are vicious, the guitar work has plenty of thick and heavy riffs and the drums are filled with great blast beats, all the ingredients you need in your Death Metal stew. If you listen carefully enough, you’ll notice a hint of some early Swedish Death Metal style amongst the carnage. The songs within are both brutal and on topic with such titles as, “Plague for Days,” and “Disinformation Campaign.” If there is at least one good thing to come from the Pandemic, it has provided plenty of material to keep bands busy for years to come.

 

Posted on by

KRIGSGRAV – The Sundering – REVIEW

 

Wise Blood Records are killing it with releases this year. Dallas, Texas based Krisgrave have released their sixth full length album, “The Sundering,” on the label and it is an absolute monster. Their latest effort includes a new lineup featuring sole returning member David Sikora on the bass and drums and new members,Cody Daniels on lead guitar and Justin Coleman on vocals and rhythm guitar. Krisgrave takes some of the best elements of Doom and Black Metal and combines it with an impressive amount of Melodic Death Metal vibes. There is also plenty of atmospheric tones throughout this release that keep it from getting stale. Vocals alternate between deep bellows and high, raspy shrieks. The rhythm sections provides the familiar blast beats which blend in well with the impressive twin guitar attack of ferocious harmonies and head banging riffs. That is what sets this album apart from the many different bands that have developed a similar style of Black/Melo Death Metal. Krisgrav excels in blending both styles without sounding forced or sterile. The Doom elements are haunting and covered in a thick haze with plenty of different layers of instrumentation woven in. The Melodic parts will leaving you pumping your fist to the catchy riffs and incredible hooks.

Posted on by

VACIO – El Destituta Mortis – REVIEW

“El Destituta Mortis,” is the debut EP from a mysterious Spanish duo of Black Metallers known only as A.84 and L.77.  I am not sure what their names mean or even refer to but what I am certain of is, this is an EP of solid and effective Black Metal. With only 3 songs and a run time of roughly 15 minutes Vacio provide a brief and bleak stylistic interpretation of modern Black Metal. This recording is fast enough, raw enough and has plenty of blast beats and tremolo picking to keep even the Trvest Black Metal purists satisfied. The vocals on this recording are full of high pitched shrieks and the lyrical themes focus on occultism and general human misery. Perfect listening for a Monday morning.

Posted on by

EMPTY THRONE – Review – GLOSSOLALIA

 

The debut EP from Empty Throne only contains 3 tracks, but with over 20 minutes of incredible and unrelenting blackened Death Metal, your extreme musical appetite will be satisfied. There is little question as to why this EP slaps so hard given the pedigree of the band members involved. Abbath, Possessed, Draconis and Angelrot are just a few of the past or current bands that members of Empty Throne has played for. In fact, if they didn’t come up with something awesome with this lineup, it would have been a crime against not just Metal, but music itself.

The band plays extremely well polished Death Metal that has a hard traditional 90’s feel to it with thrashy riffs and strong melodies. All the hooks are in the right places and tied together with some impressive guitar solos. While there are plenty of old school vibes, Empty Vibe includes a few Black Metal elements that give this EP a darker feel, like the haunting piano intro on, “The Day has Come,” that adds some great variety to an already impressive debut.

Posted on by

SHROUD OF VULTURE – Upon a Throne of Jackals – REVIEW

Indy’s Shroud of Vulture’s debut release, “Upon a Throne of Jackals,”  overflows with plenty of oozing, sludgy, thick monstrous Doom/Death Metal. Starting things off with the dark and plodding instrumental, “Final Spasms of the Drowned” The faint screams heard in the background of this song really give it a haunting pulse and perfectly set up the mood and feel for the rest of the album. “The Altar,” has an incredible groove that you’d have to be dead not to bang your head to. (even then, that’s not much of an excuse.)”Perverted Reflection,” starts of with a creeping crawl before changing things up and adding some Black Metal influenced blast beats. Clearly the guys in Shroud of Vultures are comfortable in experimenting by adding many different styles and elements to their Doom fueled rage. “Invert Every Throne,” includes some elements of Thrash with its sickened and nasty riffs. “Stone Coffin of Existence,” finds the band at their sickest and darkest. There are still plenty of heavy, plodding caveman riffs to found out throughout this release that keep the album thick heavy and nasty. The vocals are deep, haunting and full of unhuman anger that pair up perfectly with the songs on this album. Perfect listening to pair with a nice black cup of Trve Kvlt Coffee.

Posted on by

GIRSU – Rotten Earth – REVIEW

Coming out of Philadelphia is the debut EP from Girsu, “Rotten Earth,” the group dosent waste anytime trying to reinvent the wheel with their sound and instead use that time to unleash some brutal and riff heavy songs. From their pummeling opening track, “Remains,” Girsu lay down some killer Progressive Black Metal that slams right through your skull.  “From Blood to Ash” adds some thrash elements to the mix that showcases some impressive guitar work. “Bodies Upon the Tide,” slows the temp down a bit and brings the heavy, vocals become a little more desperate and full of despair at the midpoint, the track takes a turn and ups the tempo and finishes with a fury. The EP closes with the final track, “The Carcass of Consciousness,” a nearly 8 minute long epic that comes in with a frenzy and slows down to a heavy groove before going into some hard hitting blast beats. This song is a great showcase of what Girsu is capable of by highlighting their Progressive Black Metal style as the guitar work here is clean and technical but clearly deeply rooted in the Black Metal vein. Is that even allowed? This EP is worthy of a few spins and Girsu should remain on your radar.