Forsaken Legion - Seeds of Black Dawn [Demo] (2012, Self-released)

Once Switzerland was a place where legends formed, with Hellhammer - and subsequently Celtic Frost and Triptykon - being the reigning kings of metal there. Recently the country of Switzerland has begun stirring anew with the miasmic sounds of Bölzer resounding through proverbial catacombs. But enough talk of Switzerland's exports of metal - Everybody knows, or at the very least should know of, bands like Samael and Coroner. Let us instead deal with the Swiss underground, Forsaken Legion in particular.

Forsaken Legion formed in 2012 and released their first album in december that same year. Though their sites and profiles are tagged as black metal, there's a bit more to it than that. Tracks like Crow has a definite thrashy edge, while something like Human Decay - like you may have guessed - has a strong death metal influence. These variations lend great strength to the music found on Seeds of Black Dawn. Forsaken Legion refuse to conform to the standard practices of the genre, and while they may not be wholeheartedly legend-material their debut album makes promises of great things yet to come.

There's no use shoehorning the quintet into genre conventions. It's not that there is anything new and exciting about the way they mix extreme metal genres, but they are entirely their own, doing exactly what they please. The songs are built on a strong foundation of blackened metal, empowered by thrashing riffs, blast beats and death-like growls, a few creeping melodies lurking in the background.

While the drums are executed at profound speeds and with a fair bit of force, they could be utilized better to underline the powerful rhythm section. The title track stands out as the best use of tempo changes and the "classic" black metal sound, bringing to mind bands like Dark Funeral and Marduk. All in all, though, without a more tight rhythm section and more attention to flow of songwriting, Seeds of Black Dawn falls through as a modern classic. It should be enjoyable to most fans of blasting black metal mixed up with a bit of the ol' death n' thrash combo, but apart from a few well-made compositions the album holds little merrit as anything but background noise. 6/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Human Decay
2. Mountain's Massacre
3. Seeds of Black Dawn
4. Crow
5. Deserve to Die
6. Azathoth
7. Ambassador of Chaos

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Karonte - Paraíso Sin Fe [Full length] (2012, Self-released)

Since 1994 Karonte have unleashed a slow but steady stream of death metal upon the Spanish masses from their homebase in Cantabria. Except from one change of drummer back in their demo days, Karonte has had a highly stable lineup.

The quartet is most often labeled as melodic death metal, so it may come as a shock when you're met with a fat, simplistic and grooving guitar as opposed to the squeaky clean hyperactive wankery that has been made a custom by especially the Swedish scene. Karonte strive to meet the genre in the old school way, meaning exactly what it is: Death metal with a slightly more melodic tinge. As such they aren't as susceptible to the weaker elements of the genre, namely overly melodious solos and riffs that border on metalcore.

On Paraíso Sin Fe flashy melody comes second to groove-laden passages where guitars, bass and drums go hand in hand. But there are times on their second album where it only seems suitible to go a little more overboard on the whole spectrum. Even when the tide is high their grooves feel a bit too controlled and as such it seems like they're restraining themselves. I get that it's not all about speed and brutality, but Paraíso could stand to benefit from just a tad bit more in that department.

I wouldn't offend Karonte by putting them in a box neatly marked "melodic death metal", because they are much more than that. Tracks like Falaris and Carme show their affinity for the heavier aspects of the genre, while Mercado Infecto's marching pace brings back memories of certain death/doom groups.

Paraíso Sin Fe feels like the product of a band sure of what they wanted to do. It adequately mixes enough different elements to keep things interesting for the almost 40 minutes the album consists of. It seems sincere and doesn't follow modern trends. But even so, with the little variation in tempo evident on Paraíso does as times make it feel like a long journey. With the arguably fastest track starting things off, each songs is more or less a step down, culminating in the bluesy closing track, Gris. I found myself often tempted to take a break from the album because it felt like nothing exciting was going on anyway, and without the promise of a greater track later on the album, there's little reason to listen to the album in one sitting. There seems to be only little thought-process behind the tracklisting, because the flow feels uneven and weird. The title track serves nicely as an album closer as Gris (the actual album closer) is too unlike anything else heard on the album and therefore feels like more of a bonus track or intermission. 6/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Carme
2. Mercado Infecto
3. La Piedad De Los Débiles
4. Falaris
5. Repta Humano
6. El Día De Las Alabanzas
7. Paraíso Sin Fe
8. Gris


Visit Karonte's official website

Drug Honkey - Ghost in the Fire [Full length] (2012, Transcending Obscurity)

Drug Honkey evolved from the 1997-project "Chronic Illogic" with Paul Gillis and Adam Smith at the helm, handling vocals and drums respectively. The band was designed to merge together several musical currents, most of which would be considered metal. Ever since the first album, the self-titled 2002 release, electronics in the form of excessive sampling and abrassive synths as well as an industrial, sludgy death metal sound have been the heart and soul of Drug Honkey. Through lineup changes and live performances the band from Chicago has endured to see the release of their fourth album in 2012, and have a new EP coming out in 2014.

When it comes to heaviness, bands like Triptykon, Conan, Hooded Menace, Sunn o))) or Coffins often come up as prime examples. But those that have witnessed the gospel of Ghost in the Fire know that Drug Honkey are giving all these acts a serious run for their money. The loathesome American quartet grudgingly strikes up an atmosphere of a psychedelic inclination, carved from a body of fuzz and reverb. More than once the speakers threatened to give in under the stress and booming rumble of the downtuned strings, the paranoia-inducing ambience adding reality-shattering depth to the otherwise lonesome drones of the bass and guitars.

Describing Drug Honkey's sound means reaching deep into a vocabulary that seems almost dried out of adequate adjectives. The cavernesque vocals sound at times like Asphyx's Martin Van Drunen being firmly pressed through a rusty grate. The drums eeriely accompany every track like the ever-present stalker haunting his victim. The album comes to a steadily paced halt on the second-to-last track "Twitcher", which is also where it is at its most far out stage. The stygian darkness of this psychedelic track builds up to the grand finale: Saturate/Annihilate, the culmination of everything shown thus far by Drug Honkey. The contrast between the two is where the mix becomes most volatile and seductively dangerous, being both the highest and lowest point of Ghost in the Fire. Every "song" is in itself a parody of life and a mockery of sentience, yet I couldn't imagine listening to Ghost in the Fire for the sake of a single track. The album works best as a whole, each track providing its own element to the final result. A fine specimen indeed. 8/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Order of the Solar Temple
2. Ghost in the Fire
3. Weight of the World
4. This Time I Won't Hesitate
5. In Black Robe
6. Dead Days (Heroin III)
7. Five Years Up
8. Out of My Mind
9. Twitcher
10. Saturate/Annihilate

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Fathomhell - Non Pietatem Erit [EP] (2012, Runenstein Records)

I have previously reviewed Balmog and Amnion from Spain, but the country itself is hardly known for its black metal scene. Perhaps it has something to do with the sunny weather, although the country's economic crisis in recent years and its towering youth unemployment rates should provide enough frustration, drive and lyrical material to go around. Or maybe those subjects are instead fueling thrash metal, punk and grindcore bands. Who knows. In any case there is something intriguing and exciting about extreme metal bands from unlikely places, and if black metal from Spain isn't an unlikely match I don't know what is.

Non Pietatem Erit is thus far Fathomhell's only release. The duo started in 2010 and by 2012 had their first EP ready, centered around a cold atmosphere with a small amount of modernity added through the use of sparsely used synths and carefully programmed drums. More often than not programmed drumming is a product of laziness and as such often sounds completely terrible and poorly thought through. A few bands can bear this simplistic, inhuman, cold and mechanical approach, but most bands cannot. But with Fathomhell the drumming really isn't an issue; It feels thoroughly worked through and well-considered, and above all it is commendably well-integrated.

This is not the only feat of Non Pietatem Erit, obviously. The sounds brought forth by the Spanish duo is that of a traditional approach to black metal without leaning decisively on any regional sound. It proposes glimpses into the melodic side of black metal, followed by deluges of distortion and blast beats, all neatly arranged into immaculate sequences. The track Illusions of Death reaches for titanic and epic magnificence with one of Fathomhell's most ambitious riffs, while "Devours the Light, Eats their Soul" goes a more traditional way with uninterrupted grittiness.

The overall expression of Fathomhell's music is pretty good, although a tad bit ordinary. Even when they're feeling adventurous they're still just clinging to the same vestiges of melodic black metal. Even if the EP is well-crafted it feels like they're playing it safe and as a result comes across as completely inoffensive. Only rarely does Fathomhell break the veil of inocuousness, and whenever this happens it only leaves the listener with a feeling of wanting this part to play a bigger role in the grand scheme of things. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Intro ad Tartarum
2. Devours the Light, Eats their Souls
3. Illusions of Death
4. Fall to the Infinite Depths of Abyss
5. Dante's Inferno
6. Fathom Hell


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LISTEN BELOW

Apocryfal - Ravens [Demo] (2012, Self-released)

In regards to death metal Finland is primarily known for the filthy, doom-laden kind, but Apocryfal from Jyväskylä go in the opposite direction. Featuring the classic lineup of 5 people - you guess their respective roles - 2012 saw the release of the band's first demo, one that had been underway for 3 years. The result? 3 songs that add up to 12 minutes all in all of full-throttle death metal.

The style on Ravens is hard to pinpoint. It's somewhere in the grim borderlands between decisively old school and shamelessly modern without leaning to heavily on either. Their sound is centered around heavy guitars and bass forming the core with sprawling 6-string melodies changing things up a bit every so often, once or twice leaning on some technical and blackened elements giving the demo a few ounces of variation. The rhythm section itself feels well-rehearsed with the drums forming a laudable basis for the rest of the instrumentation through a fast and modern approach. The guitars have the spirit of the early-to-mid 90's about them while at the same time augmenting the modernized sound of the vocals.

This brings me to my next point. When the vocals work and the singer is creaming his lungs out it sounds fine, but once or twice his superficial growls made me physically cringe because they sounded like weird groans painfully wrenched from the vocalist's throat. The vocals aren't as such bad, but they're just bland. Some more definition and vocal variation could really bring some depth to the Apocryfal demo that the smooth transitions that otherwise permeate the music can't do by themselves.

In the end Apocryfal sound like a band with lots to offer and a band that are sure of themselves. A certain feel of confidence imbues the demo and with good reason - The songs are well-crafted and it is a first effort worth being proud of compared to those of countless other bands. The production is a bit too compressed and as a result lacks the kind of punch and definition a wider sound spectrum would give, but in the grand scheme of things it's a small thing. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Dark Matter
2. Ravens
3. The Script

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2013, Part I: Stuff I Missed in 2012

For the past couple of years I've done top 10's as well as some other stuff in one long post. This form just isn't very easy on the eyes, so this year I've decided to split the end-year post into 5 parts, which are as follows:

Part I: Stuff I Missed in 2012
Part II: Disappointments of 2013
Part III: Top 10 - Non-metal
Part IV: Top 10 - Metal
Part V: Honorable Mentions & Runner-Ups

Part I: Stuff I Missed in 2012
I have found that some of the best albums are also some of the less known. As such years sometimes go by before I notice them, and indeed some of my current musical obsessions are top 10-worthy albums that I missed last year.

Conan - Monnos
A few years ago I had seen the cover of Conan's third release, "Horseback Battle Hammer". It had me somewhat enthralled, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what the band was called. When I found Monnos I immediately began binge-listening the British band's entire discography which counts a few esoteric EP's and a few other releases as well. I was astounded at the mammoth sound of Conan, everything from their far away haunting vocals to the droning guitar and bass and to the dragging drums. The intensity and heaviness of their debut album seemed like the perfect culmination of the first few releases in the way that it neatly sums up the crushing and captivating atmosphere that Conan had previously brought forth. Count me as severely stoked for their forthcoming album "Blood Eagle", set to be released in 2014.

Dawnbringer - Into the Lair of the Sun God
Most people would classify Dawnbringer as a somewhat unusual band, I think. Their brand of heavy metal often relies on themed albums and a weird affiliation for blackened riffs in a dry style. Into the Lair of the Sun God, the follow-up album to their acclaimed 4th album "Nucleus", features 9 tracks with Chris Black's signature bleak vocals, insanely catchy riffs and some weird organ work that brings to mind that of Deep Purple's Jon Lord, which is especially evident on the track "VI". 2 years, which is the time between Nucleus and Into the Lair of the Sun God, is the shortest time they've ever taken to write an album, but it certainly doesn't show. Their 5th album may well be their best yet, and it shows enormous potential to be one of those albums you keep coming back to.

Dodecahedron - Dodecahedron
Progressiveness and technicality often comes at the cost of listenability. Many artist and songwriters become so obsessed with their music being "weird" or "unusual" that it becomes out of place or otherwise unnecessary. With Dodecahedron this was at first the feeling I got, but after letting the album sit for a while and letting it fall into place I found that there was more to it than that. Every strike of the drum, every shred on the guitar, every faint howl seems thought through and deliberate. Though there are no songs that stand well on their own, the self-titled debut album from the band previously known as Order of the Source Below is a phenomenal listening experience when taken in as a whole.

Rattenfänger - Epistolae Obscurorum Virorum
When your band features the members from Drudkh, Blood of Kingu and Hate Forest you have quite a reputation to live up to. Contrary to the preceding bands, Rattenfänger is a death metal band with crushing doom influences. Epistolae Obscurorum Virorum is the band's only offering thus far but shows insane songwriting skills complete with cavernous growled vocals, an archaic beastly sound and some of the most varied drumming I've heard on a death/doom album for a long time. This album is an absolute must have and is criminally overlooked.

Witchcraft - Legend
Most of those who delve into the realms of doom metal and psychedelic rock will at some point have heard one of Witchcraft's previous albums. Though Legend is a lot less doomy and a lot less psychedelic there's still room for plenty of enjoyment as they've found themselves a niche in the worship of 70's hard rock. Legend is a testament to great riffage and could well be considered a modern classic.




Think I missed other albums too? Comment here on the blog to let me know!

Avulse - We Are All Code [Full length] (2012, Broken Limb Recordings)

Patrick Hasson from Maine, USA, has numerous releases and various projects under his belt, including the atmospheric black metal experience Auspicium and the funeral death/doom getup Black Chalice, both of which I have previously reviewed. Having now listened to the next in line of Hasson's projects, Avulse - which is supposed to be crusty black metal with a firm punk vibe, I can now say that Hasson (or "Diseased" as he calls himself in Avulse) has a somewhat recognizable sound and style born from, as he states, copious substance abuse and simple songwriting with a gritty guitar sound. Hasson's style is so profound that all his projects seem like small variable aspects of the same thing.

Hasson himself describes Avulse as "a drunk asshole with a guitar jerking off to Von", which seems like a proper summary of the music found on We Are All Code, the third full length album from the band. The self-proclaimed punk vibe could well be attributed to the, for the most part, short song length, gritty production and shoddy playing. In all honesty the album sounds exactly like what you would think it sounds like from the description. Half-assed "riffs" on top of the distant clicks of what I assume is the drum track with whispered, raspy vocals in the background. There is little form, rhyme or reason to be found with the band, and the album consists of 12 tracks of unnoteworthy, quantity-over-quality tracks of punked up black metal with no hooks.

The lengthiest songs (and I use this term loosely) are by far the most well-written. The album's title track isn't half bad, and the second track, Flames of Liberty, is a tiny bit above the rest in terms of quality. From experience I know that the man behind the band can in fact write some pretty good songs, and the title track in particular attest to that. Hasson is a somewhat accomplished songwriter, but only in the songs where he has actually put in a little effort does this show. The rest, I'm afraid, is a slobby mess. As such the title track and the two cover tracks are also the only ones that show any semblance to actual musical structure.

Alcoholic or not, We Are All Code seems like a waste of effort. The Auspicium and Black Chalice releases I've heard speak of more coherent songwriting skills, and as such Avulse may just be a way to vent frustration whilst in a drunken stupor, but most of the tracks on this third album would probably be better off not being released. It boggles my mind that there are at least 2 other albums, a split, two EP's and a demo more of this stuff out there, because if this album is at all representative of the overall quality of the songwriting in this one-man band, it's not worth checking out. 3/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. I Drink, Therefore I Am
2. Flames of Liberty
3. Youth is Wasted on the Stupid
4. False Flag
5. Now or Then
6. Phagocytosis
7. Veteran's Day
8. 100 MpH
9. Black Denim
10. No Friend of Mine (Slapshot cover)
11. Hope (Descendants cover)
12. We Are All Code

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Ragehammer - War Hawks [Demo] (2012, Mythrone Promotion)

Poland's Ragehammer don't waste time, having existed only for a short period of time before unleashing their beastly debut demo "War Hawks". If anything is black/thrash it's Ragehammer, and their lyrics deal with somewhat standard metal subjects like hate, war and religious hipocrisy. However they aren't as such the usual kind of black/thrash Bathory/Venom/Deströyer 666/Desaster clone stuff as they've left room for some pseudo-hardcore based riffs and grindy d-beats which definitely underlines the entire sound of Ragehammer.

Ragehammer immediately assail the ears of the hapless victims listening to War Hawks for the first time. Not knowing what to expect, Ragehammer Rising pounds your eardrums with totally unhinged, maniacal vocals, and the demo is mixed loud as fuck, so you don't even have to turn up your stereo to get fucked. Talk about convenience. There is constantly stuff going on in multiple layers. It's a demanding yet rewarding listening experience in the sense that the band's music is mostly high speed high intensity stuff. Ragehammer have a way of piecing together a song to have a high amount of momentum and energy, never leaving a dull moment even when they slow things down. An example of this is when the second song tunes in. Prophet of Genocide is a song that contrasts strongly to the fast-paced brutality of the first track, Ragehammer Rising, by having a much slower pace and a heavier gait. This track in particular slows things down to a more deliberate heavy-black kind of deal more akin to modern Darkthrone, barring Underground Resistance.

There seems to be a pattern on the War Hawks demo. It seems there's more or less a fast song for every slow song, and that these alternate. It's a surprisingly good way of keeping things interesting, and while the menacing sounds of The Wolfpack as such isn't exactly crawling in tempo it still has a higher capacity for calculated evil rather than the "usual" chaotic approach that Ragehammer takes.

This completely unrelenting, fast as fuck style of black/thrash works well for getting you worked up and ready to go, and it can generally be said for War Hawks that whatever Ragehammer are doing, they're doing it well.Feeling like relaxing with some rockin' tunes where you can sing along to the chorus? Get the fuck outta here, Ragehammer is NOT for you. 8/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Ragehammer Rising
2. Prophet of Genocide
3. Hate Command
4. The Wolfpack
5. Gospel of the Scum

Mythrone Promotion official site

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Gates of Eternal Torment - Imprisoned Beneath the Ice of This Cold Black Void [Demo] (2012, Contaminated Tones Productions)

Little is known about Gates of Eternal Torment. Firthornn, the sole member in the band, hails from New Jersey, USA, and his lyrics seemingly draws inspiration from terminal illness, desperation and suffering. Gates of Eternal Torment released their first demo "Imprisoned Beneath the Ice of This Cold Black Void" in 2012 through US label Contaminated Tones Productions, a label that has a history of releasing black metal demos and EPs of the depressive and atmospheric kind.

Given the label's history one is hardly taken by surprise when the bastard tunes of depressive black metal fade in with "Dungeon of Tortured Souls". It is immediately obvious where Firthornn is coming from musically. It's a musical universe where acts like Burzum and Xasthur are king, and though there are a lot of different influences in the music it is by far the influence of the top dogs of the genre that shine through on "Imprisoned..."
Gates of Eternal Torment makes use of a few layers of instrumentation, usually comprised only of vocals, guitars and drums. By no means unusual, but used effectively with ponderous drumming and fairly long guitar tremolo-laden riffs.

It seems to be a general theme with Gates of Eternal Torment that it really is nothing out of the ordinary. "Imprisoned..." doesn't feel unique enough in a genre where there are so many bands, and the fact that it doesn't sound nearly as bedroomy as many others isn't enough to carry the music on its own. It's a good example of textbook DSBM, but it really is too much like some of the bands that have already been established within the scene. Apart from a few strange samples here and there it might as well have been an early Xasthur demo. The band has a lot of potential, and it's not the songwriting in itself that's lacking, but moreso the lack of cultivation. The band and the demo would benefit a lot from working out all the minor kinks and finding that thing to make it special and stand out. 6/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Dungeon of Tortured Souls
2. Imprisoned Beneath the Ice of This Cold Black Void
3. Upon the Rails of Terminal Illness (Part 1)
4. Where I Suffer

GATES OF ETERNAL TORMENT on Bandcamp
GATES OF ETERNAL TORMENT on Facebook
Contaminated Tones Productions official site

Serpenthia - Beyond [EP] (2012, Self-released)

Scandinavia is rich with black metal history. A country that has always been a bit overlooked when talking about the history of the black metal genre is Finland. A lot of good bands like Satanic Warmaster and Horna originate from this country, but they have always been overshadowed by their Swedish and Norwegian counterparts aswel as Finland's tremendous export of folk and power metal bands.
The Finnish style of black metal is often associated with a very tinny and raw sound, but Serpenthia from Joensuu are pretty far removed from this tendency. Since they formed in 2002 they have had somewhat of a revolving door lineup but have in spite of this released a steady flow of demos, ultimately culminating in the release of their 2012 EP "Beyond".

With a name like Serpenthia and a genre description going something along the lines of "melodic dark metal" I was half expecting some female-fronted symphonic metal atrocity, but what Serpenthia actually present on Beyond is a fairly diverse take on melodic black metal. While the majority of the material can be described as black metal with various melodic and symphonic inputs there are places where the riffs and vocals in particular border more on death metal while at the same time keeping the same feeling as the rest of the EP.

The guitar sound has a thick tone to it which is pretty unusual for most black metal. It goes great with the swarming riffs and further accentuates the tenebrous death metal feeling that some of the parts have, and the riffs in particular are what makes the Finnish band noticeable. Serpenthia have a tendency of taking a riff or melody that sounds mostly simple and then turning it inside out which makes for some really interesting songs.

Beyond is actually really long for an EP being almost 40 minutes long. If I recall correctly Slayer's magnum opus Reign in Blood is only about 28 minutes, and this is considered a full length album. It's by no means a bad thing that Beyond is a lengthy release, because the band manages to keep renewing their black metal efforts throughtout the EP (or album if you will). Beyond sometimes misses a bit of consistency, but the divergent flow of their songs are at the same time one of the strongest points of Serpenthia. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Them
2. The Spectre
3. Nightbringer
4. Beyond the Veil
5. Tragedy
6. The Fall (Deception pt. 2)

SERPENTHIA official Facebook
SERPENTHIA on Bandcamp

Phidion - Flesh of the Forsaken [EP] (2012, Self-released)

Ominous aggression, menacing fury, focussed anger. These are the moods Phidion, a 5-man strong death-thrash outfit from Sweden's capital city, set on their third release, the Flesh of the Forsaken EP from 2012.

Exploring a lyrical universe of the recurring history of humanity's affinity for warfare and other fitting topics the Swedish band has a barbaric way of delivering mid-paced death metal with a few thrash riffs here and there to spice things up. Flesh of the Forsaken gives the impression that Phidion are a band of well-versed songwriters, and as such there's no time wasted on lackluster melodies or bland gimmicks. The Flesh of the Forsaken EP is heavy when it needs to be, and fast when the flow demands it.

Though the songs are generally well written and easy to follow, the same cannot be said about the guitar riffs. They work well with this kind of no-bullshit thrash-infused death metal, and helped along by some surprisingly interesting bass lines the riffs provides a fine platform for a good EP, but it's missing that extra something. The riffs are generally bordering on banality, but they're played with enough fervor and precision to provide a sort of quality. I'm tempted to say that the same goes for the drums, without going into too much detail because these are programmed.

In closing it can safely be said that Phidion have procured an ample set of songs for an EP that doesn't leave much to be wanted, but at the same time has room for improvement. The band's skills in songwriting and flow definitely work to their advantage, and that ever so familiar tinge of Sweden's rich metal history is also highly present on Flesh of the Forsaken. The great bass-work is a great bonus as well. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Warzone
2. Slaves to Eternal Insomnia
3. Monomanic Mind
4. Anthropophagus
5. Dr. Butcher, M.D.
6. Strontium Dog

PHIDION on Facebook
PHIDION official website

Available for purchase on Bandcamp

Stranglion Rot - Rotten Heart of Evil [Full length] (2012, Fatal Judgement Records)

It's no secret that Finland is home to a large cache of great death metal bands, and the scene as a whole seems to benefit from a gloomy, doom-inspired grittiness. Stranglion Rot is a one-man project in which the man Hietala is behind everything.

Though the band is a Finnish one the music in itself has a more Swedish feel to it than many other bands from this regional scene and realies more on sheer riffing and d-beats rather than chugging heaviness. Though the vocals are generally weak and the songwriting suffers from what seems like inexperience Hietala gets the message of death across due to the hellish catchiness of the guitar riffs.

With most solo projects there is one part that always dominates in terms of quality and skill. Like many other bands of this type the drums suffer from being played or programmed by someone who isn't a well-versed drummer, and the lack of imagination and variation, both in regards to speed and fill-ins, is a striking deficiency that detracts from the overall image of the album. Another thing is the bland production which together with the other elements mentioned above further numbs down the experience otherwise ensured by the main attraction, the guitar riffs.

It's a pleasing experience listening to the riffs of Rotten Heart of Evil, a name only fitting of the atmosphere of the album. It's a shame for the material to be weighed down by boring drumming and vocals, because it really deserves more and would benefit a lot from being accompanied by skilled musicians. All in all an effort that leaves some to be wanted, but delivered with enough engagement and zeal to make up for some of it. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Nightmare Begins
2. Message Written in Blood
3. The Gathering
4. Through the Valley of Despair
5. Rotten Heart of Evil
6. Cauldron of Gore
7. Impaled
8. Clouds Drifting Away

Visit STRANGLION ROT's official site and download Rotten Heart of Evil

Durvasag - EP Promo 2012 [Demo] (2012, Self-released)

From the cold wastes of Canada comes Durvasag, a highly productive band of the black/thrash subgenre. Having existed for only 3 years at the time of writing this review they've already released an EP and 3 demos, one of which I have previously graced with my attention. Their leanings toward certain elements of extreme metal means they have a lot in common with the early Teutonic thrash scene, and at times this demo EP reminds me a bit of Kreator or Sodom.

What goes on with Durvasag is they went from sub-par blackened thrash with boring, repetitive riffs, annoying vocals and vocal patterns, sloppy playing, horrendously muddy production and most of all bland songwriting. They haven't changed any members since last time (though lead singer Mark Arruda has since left the band), but what we find on the 2012 EP promo is entirely different quality-wise to their first demo. Durvasag pretty much turned up the dial on everything on this promo. It's faster, it's tighter, it's barbaric. The 2012 incarnation of Durvasag has the forceful aggression and tightness that the previous demo lacked, and the songwriting itself is clearly better as if they went from using the same bland rehashed riffs over and over to actually writing worthwhile material. If only the production had followed suit in this increase of quality we would be left with a great fucking thrash dem.

A gritty production can serve in a band's favour, and I've heard good demos with worse production that Durvasag's EP Promo, but overall it gets tiresome having to listen to cymbals and hihats so much, and it feels like the riffs don't really come into their own with the current state of things.
You can easily tell that the band is still in every way Durvasag. They have the same aggressive vocal patterns, insistent drumming and fast guitar playing that you know them for, but their music has become much more varied. They show their flair for easy to follow choruses which mostly consists of a few shouted words, and it works. As a release on its own, without comparing it to their previous efforts, I'd say it's a solid 7/10.

Tracklist:
1. Nuclear Winds
2. Sacrifice

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Haiduk - Spellbook [Full lenght] (2012, Self-released)

A lot of one-man projects suck. Adding black metal to the mix mostly doesn't help. Haiduk is the project of Canadian metalhead Luka Milojica, and this band has only been active since 2009 releasing a demo entitled "Plagueswept" in 2010. When the time had finally come to release another torrent of epic blackened death metal we had entered the year of 2012, and this incarnation of Haiduk is entitled Spellbook.

Haiduk could well be described merely as extreme metal. The Spellbook album offers a great many variations of the same mix: Black, death and thrash metal. The way Milojica holds a chord on one level while playing a more vivid thrashy melody on top of it on another level gives the music a lot of depth, only encouraged by the adding of hoarse growls straight from the grave. Haiduk is in essence lightning fast with epic riffs coming out the ass, and ultimately there's something kind of honest and pure about the music on Spellbook. It's not trying to be something it's not and as such comes across as a flow of something that comes natural to the mastermind behind it all.

There are very few things this album misses, but one of the areas it is found lacking is in the vocal department. The Bolt Thrower-esque vocals sound awesome whenever they're applied, but the problem is the scarcity. It'd be a shame for the vocals to overshadow the riffing, which is by far the album's strongest point, but throwing in some more vocals once in a while couldn't hurt and would probably also relieve the problem of some of the melodies blending together a bit.

Haiduk's Spellbook is good for what it is. The black metal-infused torrents that make up the riffs, the abyssmal vocals and the machinegun-drums form a straight up gratifying album that is sure to please any fan of blackened death metal with a tad bit of melody. If you're looking for originality or technical prowess you won't find much of either on Spellbook, but what you will find is tight as fuck metal without any acoustic interludes, overly long atmospheric intros, outros and/or intermissions and generally no bullshit. The melodic riffs tend to get a little bland with time, and for the most part the lack of vocals for variation makes some of the tracks a tad bit tedious to listen to, just short of becoming a chore. It's a problem limited to a few tracks, but it feels like the vast momentum Milojica builds up in certain songs remains unresolved for the most part. But all in all it's a phenomenal effort, and the negatives aren't even close to amounting to the positives. 8/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Lich
2. Stormcall
3. Black Wind
4. Maelstrom
5. Forcefield
6. Hex
7. Tremor
8. Fire Wield
9. Lightning
10. Vortex

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Aum - Of Pestilence... [EP] (2012, Le Crépuscule du Soir Productions)

Black metal from China? It's from Hong Kong, but yes. Aum consists of three members, one of which is also in the death/thrash band Aortic Regurgitation. The band has only existed since 2010 and had their first EP out the end of 2012. 2 years seems like a lot to write 6 songs, but the overall quality of these tracks is by far good enough to justify it.

It's obvious the band has its influence-wise roots in the Scandinavian scene of the 90's, but then again Aum have a certain touch of melody that makes the EP entirely their own. The riffs are like a mix of Immortal and Satyricon, the vocals a mix of Tom Warrior and Abbath, and the fast drumming is just short of reaching critical mass and causing a meltdown. This is tempo-focussed black metal with a thing for thrashy hooks and ruthless riffing, and it works. "Of Pestilence" may not be a titan of modern black metal, but Aum take all the best elements from various bands and put them together for some straight up good black metal.

To pinpoint the main weakness of the EP it is the fact that they build a lot of momentum within each song but don't utilize it properly. The songs fit together, but not sufficiently so to create a good flow between the tracks. Another thing is that some of the tracks have varying quality which makes me think the EP has been recorded during different sessions, or maybe even at different studios or handled by different personel. While this practice is not entirely uncommon it does give the EP a too diverse feel. They're small complaints in the grand scheme of things, but it does subtract from the overall score. 8/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Temple
2. Place of the Skull
3. Sheath to All Swords
4. The Forge of Zurvan
5. The Thawing of Pestilence
6. Aum (Acolytes to Eldritch Dimensions)

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Le Crépuscule du Soir Productions official site

Eldjudnir - Angrboða [Full length] (2012, Schattenkult Produktionen)

Denmark has had a great recurrence of black metal in the latter years, some good and some bad. Bands like the very prominent Solbrud and the upcoming Arescet are taking a route mostly influenced by the tendencies of atmospheric black metal, and so too are Eldjudnir from their lair in the Capital-area.
Eldjudnir is primarily being the brainchild of Jakob Sture, who draws on the many other Danish musicians from other prominent metal bands such as the folk metal act Huldre and various death metal bands, but ultimately the band is entirely their own.

Eldjudnir draws inspiration from mid-90's black metal with hints toward a more modern with talented musicians and a more polished sound. On Angrboða, the band's album debut, the Danish band presents itself not as a band with innovative and groundbreaking ideas, but rather as a band that knows which elements to use and how to use them. The result is a greatly varied album with immersive songwriting and well-written compositions with the gritty, naturalistic riffs of early Satyricon, the ritualesque chants of Wardruna combined with the blasts and atmosphere of Wolves in the Throne Room.

It's hard to really put a finger on anything negative about Eldjudnir. If anything it's the lack of new thinking, but it is clearly evident on Angrboða that you don't need to think out of the box to create immersive metal. The entire album is only 38 minutes in length, which is highly appropriate for black metal of the atmospheric sort. It's short enough to keep things interesting for the duration of the release and long enough to make it a fulfilling listening experience. 9/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Angrboða
2. Jörmundgandr
3. Hel
4. Bundinn
5. Fenris

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Dying Inside - Dystopia [Full length] (2012, Estelí en Llamas Records)

There aren't many metal bands from Nicaragua. It's often the case with bands from a country that has a low export of metal that the band will be immensely awesome or suck beyond belief, but with Dying Inside none of those two scenarios are the case.
Dying Inside's first studio album "Dystopia" is melodic death metal with more of an emphasis on melodic than death. They follow certain Swedish traditions but aren't as such a band directly inspired by the Gothenburg scene.

A fair use of powerful drums makes for some equally powerful metal, and there are times when the headbanging factor reaches critical mass, in no small part thanks to heavy and simple processions of guitars, bass and drums. These headbang-friendly parts are by no means rare on Dystopia, but at the same time aren't used to their full potential. It's like they are building up a mood and hinting at a coming climax, but the climax is just never truly achieved.

This is a running theme on Dying Inside's debut. They've got the groovy parts down for sure, but it feels as though the band aren't able to properly feed on the energy of these parts to make an immersive track.
Dystopia is a rather long effort. 11 tracks coming to a total of just above 50 minutes isn't incredibly much, but it comes off as bland. There are some issues with the drumming, meaning that when things do get a bit fast they come off as mechanical. This is especially the case with the blast beatin El Ritual.

It's not that I have something inherently against melodic death metal. There are a few fairly good melodeath bands out there (none of which are from Sweden), and Dying Inside does have some easy-to-follow grooves and riffs, but often the songs on Dystopia are taken down a notch by unnecessary synths and a lack of feel for flow. The whole thing is a bit lacking in "wow!" factor and lacks variation. They keep to their speed-wise comfortzone throughout the album, and their fear of reaching higher (or even lower) BPMs makes for an unvaried journey into the heart of Nicaraguan metal. After listening to Dystopia I found that I, too, was dying inside. 5/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Dystopia
2. Cancer
3. El Ritual
4. Arcano XV
5. Mascara de Barro
6. Nacido Muerto
7. Historia Ordinaria
8. Muriendo por Dentro
9. Reflexion de Invierno
10. A Memento Mori
11. Apoteosis

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Beyond Mortal Dreams - Dreaming Death [EP] (2012, Lavadome Productions)

Beyond Mortal Dreams may sound like a gay gothic metal band, but in reality they are the crème de la crème of what Australia has to offer death metal-wise. They've been around since the early 90's as "Suffering" but changed their name to Beyond Mortal Dreams in '95 only to go on a break from '99 to '03 before finally releasing a demo in 2004. Dreaming Death is only the fourth release from the band as Beyond Mortal Dreams.

Variations in speed, heaviness and intensity are what keep things interesting on the Dreaming Death EP. They have the filthily heavy, gut-churning guitar sound and base for their riffs as Mitochondrion, Portal and Antediluvian, and yet they have a sound that is entirely their own. Their compositions aren't completely straight forward, but at the same time they don't sound that technical or progressive, and the drums and guitars work in perfect unison to create that intense and imposing atmosphere that many Australian death bands are known for.

Beyond Mortal Dreams are neither high, mid or low tempo death metal. Part of the destructive beauty of Dreaming Death is the fact that the band play whatever the hell they damn well please as long as it fits in the song in question. The drums form a fearsom foundation for the veritable meat-grinder that is the guitar tracks, which in turn are spiced up with the gurgling roars of the lead singer.
Often this type of metal has a severe lack of hooks which makes the music bland in the long run, but stuff like the pumping guitars and drums in the second half of The Filth of Their God and the sinister guitar solo in Dreaming Death are more than enough to make this EP memorable.

Dreaming Death is a phenomenal EP and a carnal show of ferocity and aggression, but with the EP being only 4 tracks long the otherwise well-executed Beherit cover song feels a bit unnecessary. The track in question, Beast of Damnation, does fit their overall theme well and has been adapted nicely to Beyond Mortal Dreams' style, but... I'm grasping at straws really, this EP is awesome. 9/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Feast of Carrion
2. The Filth of Their God
3. Dreaming Death
4. Beast of Damnation (Beherit Cover)

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Lavadome Productions official website

Morgue of Saints - Sleep/Death [Full length] (2012, Drowning)

From the vast nature of Canada comes Morgue of Saints, a band created by Elliot C as an output for his own droning, ambient doom tendencies. The album in question here is Sleep/Death, a three track conceptual piece that can potentially bear a rather large number of tags. Other written mediums aswell as Elliot C himself have referred to Morgue of Saints as both minimalistic funeral doom, drone doom, cinematic ambient, experimental noise and avant-garde.

In the strictest sense of the term "avant-garde" it doesn't fit Morgue of Saints. As it says in the liner notes some of the music is heavy influenced by early Earth, and I detect several other inspirations from other drone, funeral and ambient groups. Whatever you want to call it, Morgue of Saints primarily consists of droning guitars and ambient moods. The album contains the tracks "Death" and the two-part epic "Sleep". The two parts of Sleep are split by the lengthy drone track "Death" which is made up of nothing by a single guitar track. The bleak existance in the track so aptly named is underlined well by that sole, desolate guitar, but ultimately the track feels a bit too minimalistic and uneventful to justify being almost 24 minutes in length, and while drone has never been about grandios songwriting I feel at the same time that other bands have done this better in the sense that they still manage to create a feeling or atmosphere that the simplicity of the track emphasizes. One of the key elements in this type of music is depth, and the track "Death" simply isn't deep enough. The single guitar track and lack of any background ambience doesn't build up any tention, feeling, atmosphere or otherwise.
The track "Sleep" was split into two tracks - Sleep I and II - and is by far the most interesting track of the Sleep/Death album. The way the two parts contrast each other and at the same time feel so alike is astounding. Listening to the first part I can see where this "cinematic ambient" term comes from - The desolate mood part I sets for the album is very fitting and could well be featured on a soundtrack for a fitting movie. In the second part Morgue of Saints moves more into traditional funeral doom territory, and Elliot C does this rather well. His compositions on this track has a somewhat abyssal depth that fits so well together with the void-like intro to the album, Sleep I.

I mentioned that Death feels rather shallow. Sleep I and II are more or less the exact opposite in regard to atmosphere, and perharps this is the point of putting Death in between the two parts of Sleep. Starting the album out with the film-like epicness of Sleep I only to disrupt that mood with the simple drones of Death, and then finally returning to the mood set by Sleep I with Sleep II, only in a far more abrassive form. It's a bit far-fetched to be honest, and if this is the case I think the point will be lost to some. When judging the album as a whole I dislike that the middle track disrupts the otherwise great flow and atmosphere the other two tracks create, and I would much rather just listen to those two songs in continuation of each other and cut out Death entirely. 6/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Sleep I
2. Death
3. Sleep II

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Manifestor - Old Monster [Demo] (2012, Self-released)

A death/thrash band from Gothenburg, Sweden... "Oh boy, here's another wannabe old-school Swedish death metal band" was my immediate thought regarding Manifestor when their newest demo "Old Monster" arrived in the mail. "A two-man band? Yeah, this is gonna be great" I thought sarcastically to myself. I could just imagine sloppy, fuzzed out guitars, the trashy bass sound, bland vocals and programmed drums. I was in for a surprise.

Hatetriot and Asbest, the two minds behind Manifestor, released their first demo in 2010 and followed up with Old Monster in 2012. 2 years to write and record 3 tracks may seem like a long time, but what the long period has resulted in speaks for itself. Manifestor may not be innovative in the traditional sense, but it goes against most current trends regarding death and thrash metal. Sure, they could have taken the obvious route and paid tribute to their legendary countrymen, or they could've jumped on the 80's thrash revival band wagon. But what they've chosen to write is death/thrash with heavy hints of early 80's grindcore. Sound familiar? One might connect this description with other acts like Frightmare, Ghoul, Macabre or Blood Freak, but in reality Manifestor is quite different from these groups. Manifestor's focus lies on a thick atmosphere of old school death metal with the rioting guitar riffs of thrashier bands like Morbid Saint which makes the demo both heavy, hard hitting and fast. But the main attraction for me is when they throw in some good old grindcore for good measure. The grindier parts of Old Monster bring to mind classics like Brutal Truth, Terrorizer, Repulsion, Extreme Noise Terror and especially early Carcass, and it's this kind of variation that makes Manifestor stand out.

The way they handle their instruments isn't exactly virtuosic, but it is completely ruthless and adds that certain element of aggression that many bands lose in their quest for a clean production. There's something honest about the way Manifestor mix the three genres and show blatant disregard for current trends. I feared that Manifestor's music would be ruined by programmed drums, but with Asbest playing drums Old Monster has the necessary amount of authenticity to be good. I love how the band never linger too long on one part of a song, and the dual vocal efforts from the band's two members grants the demo great variation. Their mix of grind, death and thrash is a fun mix indeed and stands out as a focussed effort. My only complaint is that the demo is too short and sometimes sounds a bit too chaotic for my tastes. They don't mess around lingering with the same two or three riffs in every song, but listening to the demo I sometimes wish they would've cared a bit more for the flow of the individual tracks and perhaps a greater concern for the delivery of each part of the songs. 8/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Black Sabbath (Note: Not a cover of Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath)
2. Old Monster
3. Manifestor

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