Sangus - Vengeful Brutality [Demo] (2013, Self-released)

Holding high the tatteret banners of thrash-encrusted black metal are Sangus of Rhode Island, USA. Vengeful Brutality seems a fitting title for the kind of furious black metal ablaze with the naked flames of crust punk that we find under their moniker. But the intensity of the raw abrasions comes at the cost of the atmosphere often found inherent in black metal, gambling with the wholesomeness and entirety of the debut, often making it a cacophonous mess of blasting drums and hostile guitars.

It is neither sophisticated nor majestic. Rather, it is clandestinely concrete, dirty and almost graphically visceral. Without any of the subtleties of black metal, and with all the hard-wired tropes of crust, the general thinking seems to be "go fast or go home", and as such Sangus makes a convincing case of what a bulldozer going 100 mph would sound like. For a 10-minute dose of face-blasting black-thrash-crust, look no further than Vengeful Brutality by Sangus. 6/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Bonecollector
2. Gaspipe
3. Si Brucera

SANGUS official Facebook page

Non Opus Dei & Morowe - Dwizki Dwie [Split] (2013, Witching Hour Productions)

Since the late 90's Non Opus Dei have graced Europe with several albums of black metal from their stronghold in Poland. They represent the old school of the genre, but aren't shy of pushing the boundaries a little every now and then - Something that they make evident on their split with country-mates Morowe. And when I say that Non Opus Dei are more old school I mean that strictly in the sense that their approach to song writing is more straight forward. Morowe hail from a different part of Poland, and in the same manner as Non Opus Dei, their approach is tinged by the tendencies of the time in which they started out. In Morowe's case, that means a much more modern take on black metal, often lending them the definition "post-black metal".

Using the split-release format for something particular is always more interesting than two bands that sound exactly alike or that are worlds apart making a split for no apparent reason. On the Dziwki Dwie split-release, we find two bands from the same country, but from two different currents of the black metal subgenre. While not entirely removed from one another, the stylings of Morowe and Non Opus Dei compliment each other sufficiently to communicate the general idea and to promote each band and their individual strengths.

Both bands offer up three choice cuts created especially for the split. And both offerings are good for quite a few listens.
I suppose you have to be into simple song progression with a clinical edge for it to have lasting appeal, because mostly I found especially the songs of Non Opus Dei to be a little too ordinary. The highlight on Dziwki Dwie for me remains Kat Kota by Morowe after many a listen. The riffs presented there are unique and interesting while being easily recognizable and different - Something that precious few bands master. This, coupled with their unusual rhythm section has swayed in their favor, which is something that isn't easily done as I find the whole "progressive-posty-wosty black metal" thing to be usually more of a shitty gimmick than a descriptor that holds any real merit. What it usually means is riffs starting and stopping awkwardly to the sound of poorly timed drums and drugged out vocals, or extremely long stretches of useless noise or acoustic guitar. Yuck.

Dwizki Dwie is a great example of exactly how to make a split. The bands compliment each other without overlapping too much in regards to style and purpose, and it certainly helps when the songs don't sound like throwaway garbage that wasn't good enough for the upcoming album. While the great old ones of the genre are busy reinventing themselves as a speed metal outfit or playing opera houses accompanied by huge orchestras and choirs, this is the part of the scene that still knows what it's all about. Ass-kicking blast beats and gruesome riffs. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Non Opus Dei - Dziwki Dwie
2. Non Opus Dei - Kres Hanby
3. Non Opus Dei - Szaleniec Glupiec Opeetany
4. Morowe - Czij to Glos
5. Morowe - Kat Kota
6. Morowe - Obustronne Oczy Patrza

MOROWE official site
NON OPUS DEI official site

Rape on Mind - Downwards [Full length] (2013, Self-released)

Experimentation is the essence of progress. Some musicians take this to heart and always seek to push boundaries, and some are content to just fine tune what has been done before. What is worth remembering is that experimenting with no real goal or purpose probably won't yield any usable results.

My initial reaction to Downwards by Rape on Mind was something along the lines of "huh, I wonder where this is going". These notions of experimentalism were however quickly exchanged with a feeling of disappointment. Downwards starts out with some atmospheric saxophone, which I tought was pretty interesting, bringing to mind darkjazz groups like Mount Fuji Doomjazz Corporation. But I found that these fleeting moments of intrigue were few and brief. Before long the music of Rape on Mind degrades into mindless chugs with late-era Max Cavalera vocals, like a thugged-out Soulfly. To me, Downwards seems like a rancid misinterpretation of what death metal and grindcore are about, jazzed up with aweful groove-core elements.

It's not like chugging riffs are the bane of all that is holy. But chugs only work if they're used as interludes between more meaningful songwriting. Otherwise the music will just be an amorphous mass of start-stop pseudo-riffs with no real merrit. Deathcore bands usually take the heat for being too chuggy, using downtuned strums at irregular intervals at every possible climax, but at least most deathcore has climaxes, varying intensity and temper. Instead, Rape on Mind just jerks around on the floor in a half-hour seizure to the sound of a malfunctioning jackhammer, making even the simplest deathcore acts seem like gracious ballets.

Perhaps I'm being unfair. The second half of Downwards shows a more varied approach to songwriting, and bands like Portal (Which I quite like) have very little variation in intensity, and their music is exactly just an amorphous mass of riffs. But at least their music has wanderlust, purpose and atmosphere, which is something that can't be said of this Polish group. Keep in mind that I don't particularly care for this kind of music at all, so take that into consideration whilst reading this. But I think Downwards by Rape on Mind is complete rubbish. 4/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Downwards
2. Remorse
3. Steps
4. ......
5. Nothing
6. Lost
7. Memories Always Burn
8. Break or be Broken
9. Question

Rape On Mind on Bandcamp
Rape On Mind on Facebook

Incarceration - Sacrifice [EP] (2013, F.D.A. Rekotz)

I suppose you could say the Brazilian/German death metal band Incarceration are on the verge of breaking through within the underground of heavy metal. Having garnered much praise through numerous reviews Incarceration is now more or less a household name within certain circles of the underground of old school death metal. I had the extreme pleasure of witnessing their performance at the last edition of the Danish death-festival Kill-Town Death Fest where they played the smallest stage, Dødsmaskinen. Witnessing their savage performance seemed like a privilege in itself, especially with frontman Daniel Duracell smiling broadly the entire time, obviously enjoying what he does even if death metal is of course very serious business.

But enough of this, let us get back to the matter at hand: The band's 2013 EP "Sacrifice". Despite the title, nothing was spared in the production of this EP. From start to finish, this is roughly 10 minutes of death metal the way it's meant to be. Incarceration draws heavily upon the sinister regional sound Duracell's native Brazil became known for in the 80's, but presented in a much more varied and well-produced manner. Though Sacrifice mostly consists of classic death metal songwriting, there are definite hints to other genre tendencies as well. Especially the closing track Cemetery of Lies relies on some hardcore punk-derived mosh parts, letting go of the mainstay two-beats for just a little while. There's not much going on in terms of slowing down except for a few breaks here and there, always keeping things lightning fast and precise.

Most early extreme metal bands like Bathory, Hellhammer, Venom, Sarcófago or Sepultura weren't at the time known for their dedication to being tight. In fact, most were infamously sloppy. Back then that was just how things were, it was part of the scene, a side effect of extremity. As time passed and the genres got more defined, so did the musicians writing and performing the music. With Incarceration, there's absolutely no trace of sloppiness. The trio performs way beyond was is expected from old school death metal throw-back bands of today, and does so without losing one single ounce of the malevolent and chaotic feel those bands had back in the 80's.

I cannot stress enough just how much fans of early death/thrash should check out Incarceration. Whether or not they'll be the next big thing in the underground really doesn't matter, because this is where you will get your fix of flesh-rending guitar hooks, demonic screams and blasting battery. 9/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Forsaken and Forgotten
2. Sacrifice
3. Cemetery of Lies

INCARCERATION on Facebook
INCARCERATION on Bandcamp

Plaguewielder - Plaguewielder [EP] (2013, Self-released)

Luxembourg is not known for its wealth of metal bands. As a matter of fact, Metal Archives states that the small European country has had as little as 76 metal bands, under half of which are currently active. I don't remember ever having heard of a metal band from Luxembourg, and yet here we are, talking about Plaguewielder, a band formed by Discordant System members Maxime Weber and Nicholas O'Connell.

Crushing guitars and a varied take on drumming, plus a sharp and heavy production are mainstays with the sound of doom aswel as with Plaguewielder. Their take on the genre through their debut self-released EP of the same name casts light on how to alleviate the insufficiencies of many other upcoming bands within the genre. Keyboards, organs and choirs aren't at all new to the genre, but Plaguewielder's keyboardist utilizes his instrument to its fullest when adding atmosphere to the tracks. Lurking in the background with the synths are the painfully whispered screams that are the vocals, while drums and guitars take the helm. A classic approach, some may argue. Some do it better than others. Mostly I'd say Plaguewielder barely resembles any metal band. Their music swirls around post rock elements, and the most metal song on the EP is arguably The Funeral March.

There are many great doom bands out their that master the art of atmosphere, and Plaguewielder's music is indeed just that - Atmospheric. Their music features some interesting use of eerie synth, but with long stretches of tedious melodies and meandering riffs their music often borders on becoming generally uninteresting in nature. The flow found in the songwriting on Plaguewielder's debut isn't always up to par, and as such the EP feels very ambivalent. On the opening track, Drowning, one minute we're listening to a crushing tune that fades into a passage of thinly veiled synths, and the next thing you know a bland guitar chimes in with a whiney melody. Where exactly are they going with this? I get song progression is key, especially in songs of extreme length like with Plaguewielder's take on atmospheric funeralesque doom metal, but the whole latter half of Drowned is barely even rock music as much as it is just a 6-minute wank fest of arpeggiated "solo" pieces set to a seemingly unrelated drum track with a few screamed vocals joining the keyboards in the background once in a while.

Luckily the remaining two tracks are of superior quality. Though very different from each other, they present the band from its best sides. Casket of Dying Flesh shows their capacity for drive, passion and zest with its use of pumping 70's organ-keyboards and catchy melody. The Funeral March is a testament to the great old ones of the genre, a true set-piece of doom, and portrays savage intensity, eerie piano passages and maddening screams.

Plaguewielder's debut album/EP/whatever is a lengthy one. At times it serves best merely as background music, but once in a while they take a step forward and force their way into your consciousness. But these moments are a bit too far between. Realistically this is what will separate the bands of tomorrow. But the band from Luxembourg has definite potential hidden away within their music. More force, less tip-toeing around. 6/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Drowned
2. Casket of Dying Flesh
3. The Funeral March

Plaguewielder on Facebook
Plaguewielder on Bandcamp

Black Rock - Black Rock [Demo] (2013, Self-released)

Something is stirring in Finland, disturbing the peace. Apart from the vast horde of great black metal bands, in the later years Finland has been home to several thrashing, rocking speed metal groups such as Speedtrap and the almighty Ranger. Another band, which at the time of writing remains on the demo stage with just one small release, joining them is Black Rock from Hyvinkää.

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say they're pretty fond of Hellhammer and crust punk. Black Rock's simplistic blackened speed metal riffs coupled with a raw, shouting-styled vocal brings to mind other similar bands, and the bridge parts in The Forbidden Portal and Into the Dungeon even bears strong resemblance to newer Darkthrone material, albeit in a very crude way. One could easily imagine Nocturno Culto or Tom Warrior groaning these occult lyrics to the sounds of Black Rock's prominent guitar and drums.

The band itself is a duo consisting of Vehmaa behind the drumkit and Willberg shredding the guitars and screaming the vocals. On the demo they were joined for a brief period by Kuusisto on bass. People familiar with Hellhammer's history will know that this almost sounds like the early incarnations of that classic band. Black Rock's music is obviously more punk-inspired than that of the other bands mentioned, and where the real resemblance comes in is in the structures of the songs.

To be honest, the brute directness of the music takes some getting used to. Darkthrone have great production and Hellhammer were just incredibly brutal for their time. Seen in the light (or darkness) of metal today Black Rock positions themselves dangerously close to sounding dated and sloppy. One must not forget that the reason late 80's production sounds so gritty was the absence of the possibility to sound any better. Nowadays everybody and their grandma can conjure up something that sounds pretty good soundwise. The gritty production in this case is a matter of reverence for the bands of yore.

Taking in Black Rock and fully appreciate their beastly compositions took quite a few listens. If the demo EP hadn't been so short, I doubt I would've given it the benefit of the doubt and listened to it as much as I ended up doing. It falls just short of fourteen minutes with four tracks, and that results in a much more easily digestible piece of metal. Don't expect too much in regards to advanced songwriting or anything, and just sit back with a beer or six and enjoy the oddly beseeching choruses, bridges and elementary riffs. 7/10 guitars.

Final sidenote: The cover isn't necro enough.

Tracklist:
1. Black Rock
2. The Forbidden Portal
3. The Phantom Sailor
4. Into the Dungeon

Black Rock on Facebook
Black Rock on Bandcamp

Frozen Realm - Frozen Realm [EP] (2013, Self-released)

Once the acoustic guitar intro to Frozen Realm's debut EP of the same name breaks into an orgy of flashy guitar melodies, there can be no doubt as to the nature of the Swedish band. Balls deep in the long-standing tradition of the Gothenburg sound, Frozen Realm break into full-fledged melodic death metal complete with everything the definition entails.

In that regard, the Swedish band's EP is a textbook example of the modern take on melodic death metal. And by that I mean that it has very little in common with actual death metal, save perhaps the growled vocals. The pompous drumming greatly accentuates the rest of the musical body, which consists of about fifty-fifty amounts of ill-composed melodies and mindless chugs.

The main problem with most melo-death bands is the lack of hooks. When you add substantial amounts of melody to your music it subtracts greatly from the heaviness and brutality, so you'd better make damn sure your melodies are catchy as fuck. As a result, the tracks on the Frozen Realm EP don't stand out from each other - There are plenty of melodies, though none of them are particularly catchy. The hookless compositions bring to mind a watered down In Flames, a less edge-seeking Dark Tranquility, or a less epic Wintersun.

What really sets bands such as Frozen Realm apart from the heroes they worship is their lack of flair for the flow and focus of the songwriting in itself. Where In Flames perfected the straight-to-the-point approach with groovy riffs satiated with the adding of melodies on top, Frozen Realm fool around with melodies at the helm, only relinquishing it's weak grip to allow equally uninspired chugs to take over. 4/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Iceshaper
2. Thirst
3. The Pawn
4. Abandoned by the Sun

Should you want to listen for yourself, you can do so by following the link below
http://frozenrealm.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/FrozenRealmMalmo

Uncoffined - Ritual Death and Funeral Rites [Full length] (2013, Memento Mori)

The mix of doom metal and death metal has arguably been around in some form since some time in the 80's and has since been perfected by notable and influential bands like Asphyx and Autopsy. The Finnish scene especially is known for it's gloomy ways in death metal, and much in the same way we find the British band Uncoffined, who've subscribed to the old ways of down-doomed metal of death.

Spanish label Memento Mori heeded their growling calls and released their debut album "Ritual Death and Funeral Rites" in the autumn of 2013. Treated to a few classic quotes from the British school of horror flicks, we're sent on a journey through heavily distorted and down-tuned guitar melodies and roaring, cavernous vocals. The whole thing is set at a murderously slow pace, showing no signs of ever halting its forward momentum.

The churning chugs mixed in with a few darkly melancholic melodies are adequately accentuated by a powerful bass. One can only guess whether the immensely simple yet compelling songwriting is the result of one man's effort or the orchestrated endeavor of the entire band, but the musicianship in itself speaks of a band seasoned in the arts of metal. Indeed, all the members of the heavy quartet have play in several bands of varying nature - Something that is highly evident on Ritual Death and Funeral Rites.

Were I to compare the accomplisment of Uncoffined to a more established act, it would be Finland's shooting stars Hooded Menace. However, this is also where the British band's shortcomings are revealed. Hooded Menace are a result of the international death/doom scene booming in these last few years, probably reaching its all time high in popularity. And by that standard, Uncoffined have joined the movement in the eleventh hour, almost completely missing the boat. Were it not for the great craftsmanship with which their material is presented, they would by now already feel very dated, like a band seeking to cash in on a trend.

What Ritual Death and Funeral Rites really lacks are more tempo changes. The distorted convulsions of guitar are of the essence in this manner, but without even slower or some faster passages to emphasize their meaning and effect it's hard to fully appreciate the crushing broadsides of sluggish overdrive and fuzz in the long run, which in this case of just above forty minutes of murky horror-worship. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Twisted Shape of Creeping Terror
2. Night of the Witch Childe
3. Ritual Death and Funeral Rites
4. Blasphemous Execration of Holy Ground
5. The Devil and the Old Cursed Tree
6. Frustrations

Visit Uncoffined on Facebook
Visit Memento Mori

0 The Experiment - Simplifying A Demon [Full length] (2013, Self-released)

Whenever I see a band or project labeled as drone my warning bells start ringing. Much too often drone has been used as a cloak for lazy songwriting, blaspheming against great acts like Boris or Sunn O))).
Supposedly the idea behind 0 The Experient is seeing how far you can take music with just a bass. Apparently the answer to that conundrum is "not very far", because most of what Simplifying a Demon presents is a mimic of what you might as well do with a guitar in much the same manner. Disguised in a veil of treble distortion, sometimes accompanied by pseudo-jazzy bass fiddling, the bulk of the work presented might as well have been a regular bedroom black metal band. Add to that the weak nature of the vocals, and you've got yourself a long, boring album.

0 The Experiment affiliates itself with tags such as drone, black metal, minimalistic and experimental. Indeed, there are tracks that are veritable feasts of reverb and distortion delivered in an appropriate wall-of-noise manner. And black metal too has an obvious presence among the seven tracks the project's first album. It's all presented in a very minimalistic and simple manner. What I don't see is the experimental part - Experimental for the practitioner perhaps. But there's hardly anything progressive, avant-garde or otherwise experimental in nature about a guy rubbing out some mostly mediocre basslines to unengaging lyrics and unending wads of boring drone. Simplifying a Demon is really basic stuff, and "The Experiment" simply lacks the ritualistic ambience that makes black metal and drone great, without adding anything else to take its place.

Looks like the ol' warning bells were right. But then, in the midst of all this mediocrity comes the two last tracks, Demon and Ritual to Nothingness. The latter portrays a great entrancing feel of cosmic psychedelia while still maintaining an odious core of something a bit more sinister hidden away among the meldoes, while the former feels like a downright study in the bass' capabilities as a more analog counterpart to the synthesizer, bringing to mind some of Burzum's finer works in black metal and ambience in spirit. I don't particularly care for the lifeless black metal aspect of Demon, but there is still a bounty of quality to be found therein. And while the two works show great promise and showcase the diversity of the bass as a versatile instrument, the same cannot be said for the rest of the album. It baffles me that the rest of the album is such a mess of coma-inducing boredom.

Those two tracks that I have praised seem like they should be the main core of 0. With or without the help of computerized effects, the modern electric bass can provide astounding amounts of diversity... Something that is for the most part poorly expressed on Simplifying a Demon. 4/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Prophet In Blood
2. Black Elf
3. D.I.E. (Death Is Eclectic)
4. I, The River
5. Waiting for Something to Die to Eat
6. Demon
7. Ritual to Nothingness

Listen for yourself on Bandcamp
Visit 0 on Facebook

Deathlord - Maximum Perversion [Demo] (2013, Self-released)

When you get down to business and back to basics with death metal what you're left with is indisputable. Stomache churning vocals, gut wrenching instrumentals, loathsome melodies and ass kicking drums. It's been like that since day one. There's absolutely nothing abstruse or profoundly intelligent about it, and neither does there need to be. That is indeed the modus operandi of the Dutch band of death metal motherfuckers Deathlord. Even the name in itself seems to be giving the middle finger to overly thought out, image-based hipster metal.

The warm gusts of burly attacks can seem downright primitive, so much so that tracks like the immense opener "War" and "Into the Depths" have incredible impact just from the sheer brutal rhythm that underlines the entire demo. The vocals are nothing if not honest - It's basically just a guy screaming his guts out, spewing all kinds of filth about death, gore and even more obscure subjects. Lastly of course, the demo is garnished with a cover of Nunslaughter's "Burning Away". At this point it seems almost obvious, like we'd all seen it coming miles away. And that's what Maximum Perversion is all about; Deathlord pervert the very notion that you have to be smart about your music and not just play what sounds fucking awesome. Combine Morbid Angel's ominous melodies and Asphyx's sturdy rhythms, add dual vocals, and there you have it. The bastard child is Deathlord.

The unceremonious arrangements found on Maximum Perversion viciously deals with any pretention. Herein lies both the strength and the weakness of Deathlord. For were it not for their twist with two very different vocal styles spewed forth by the lead singer and the bassist - who both remain unnamed - their style in itself would be rather anonymous. The rough screams put forth as vocals serve as a great identifier for the band, but is as Maximum Perversion is presented one of the only elements that set Deathlord apart from similar bands - Their churning rhythms and steady war-machine beats aren't quite enough. The guitar work is quite astounding on tracks like "Cursed to Live", and I only wish that this element would be used to greater effect on the release as a whole.

In the end Deathlord's mix of short and longer songs mix things up at regular intervals, always ready to assault with something new. Be it slow-burning, steady grinders, gloomy doom-laden bursts or explosions of violent death, Maximum Persersion has anything a good death metal album needs. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. War
2. Maximum Perversion
3. Altars in Flames
4. Lord of Death
5. Into the Depths
6. Cursed to Live
7. Kill is the Command
8. Burning Away (Nunslaughter Cover)

Visit Deathlord on Facebook
Get Maximum Perversion for pay-what-you-want on Bandcamp

Critical Insanity - Through the Infinite Darkness [Demo] (2013, Self-released)

They say imitation is the highest form of flattery. In thrash we've got our fair share of Big 4 imitators, obviously with varying degrees of success and skill. But there's little imitation to be found with Critical Insanity, a band of youngsters who've been roaming the streets of Poland since 2012. Instead they've crafted their own unique sound, a feat many spend years trying to accomplish.

Mind you being unique isn't inherently a good thing. Describing Critical Insanity's music on Through the Infinite Darkness, the band's first release, seems simple at first; Gunning all engines, it's full speed ahead through the wastelands, crashing through ruins guns blazing to the sound of tightly knit, no nonsense guitars and drums beating like a diesel engine revving up. At a glance most will write it off as standard thrash metal.

If we peel off the outer layers of Critical Insanity's album length debut demo their inner workings are laid bare. The vocals are oddly creeping, like a stalker lurking outside your window, noisily masturbating as you're trying to fall asleep. This pseudo-melodic half-crooning somehow fits the slower paced songs like Goblet of Gore, but at other times seems like a fish out of water when paired with the high speeds that the band otherwise present in their assortment of compositions. And the compositions in themselves are immaculately cunning.

It is demo material at best, and requires a lot of work. The bass fulfills its thankless role in the most captivating of ways, providing volley after volley of the thrilling rumbles that metal builds upon. The riffing is brutal and fast - All the fundamental building blocks of thrash are present. However the more brain-tingling aspects gleam in their absence. There are a few tracks which adequately fill the void of boredom created by the majority of the demo, but only just so. With nine tracks coming to a total of about 35 minutes, the FUCK YEAH moments are too few and far apart. I suppose it could be excused with the fact that Through the Infinite Darkness is, after only, just a demo, but it's a dog-eat-dog world with thousands of bands more or less competing against each other, and in that regard Critical Insanity still needs an edge to be able to compete. 6/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Hopeless
2. Slavedriver
3. Harbringer of Calamity
4. Haunting the Idolators
5. Through the Infinite Darkness
6. Goblet of Gore
7. Aboriginal War
8. Proselytism Real
9. Critical Insanity

Visit Critical Insanity on Bandcamp
Visit Critical Insanity on Facebook

Menschheitsdämmerung - Cleaver of Skies and Tenets [EP] (2013, No Sleep Till Megiddo Records)

I lament the direction many black metal groups have taken. In an attempt to achieve atmosphere in the name of depression and deep dark forests, many have taken to ridiculous amounts of distortion in what seems almost a deliberate attempt to obscure their own inability to write compelling material. Burzum's Filosofem had crystal clear production with every instrument standing out, the compositions easily holding their own regardless of sound. Xasthur's Telepathic with the Deceased may well be the album that for many people has incited this infatuation with thick shrouds of noise and an abundance of effects on vocals as well as strings, but even this modern classic has obvious hooks and captivating songwriting.

But thankfully, a band like Menschheitsdämmerung comes along, showing us that not all one-man black metal project are bedroom DSBM wannabes. The style is so far removed from this whole ordeal, focusing largely on huge, swarming riffs in a thrilling environment of envigorating compositions, tempo changes aplenty and variation coming out the ass. Cleaver of Skies and Tenets offers us long-stretched black metal opuses in the spirit of Carpathian Forest, Immortal and other northern acts, revelling in the same groupings of blast beats overtaken by commitment and vigor. It's a veritable surfeit of great, genre-loyal tracks, gripping you right by the balls, pulling you in with sheer force rather than enticing you with long streaks of ambience and atmosphere.

Cleaver of Skies and Tenets is a half an hour of black metal, distributed equally into five tracks. Those thiry minutes are well spent, as there's almost never a dull moment in the company of Frederik, Menschheitsdämmerung's sole member. It has more or less become an artform of knowing when to stop. Slayer should've quit years ago, and the same goes for countless other bands. This release stops just short of becoming an uninspired, watered down shadow of its glorious self. There are times when the progressions come off as predictable and re-used, and the vocals could be clearer in the mix as they mostly remain far in the background to the point where they at times seem almost pointless, contrasting so vividly against the effortless riffing produced on the guitar. Do not cheat yourself out of listening to this. This is black metal with finesse and brutality in equal measures. 8/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. The Pick
2. The Hunt
3. The Catch
4. The Kill
5. The Feed


Visit Menschheitsdämmerung on Bandcamp
Visit No Sleep Till Megiddo Records

Armagedon - Thanatology [Full length] (2013, Mystic Production)

Go digging around in Poland's heavy metal history and you'll come up with quite a few gems. Only a few Polish metal bands exist in the mind of the general populace, some of the more prominent ones being Behemoth, Vader, Dead Infection, Graveland and Kat, only a few of which have their roots in the 80's. Then there's Armagedon from Kwidzyn, Poland. Their carreer originally stretched from 1987 to 1994 where they released a few demos and the album "Invisible Circle". In 2006 the original members, the Maryniewski brothers, again picked up the mantle of Armagedon, going on to release the moderately appreciated "Death Then Nothing" album in 2009 and finally "Thanatology" in 2013.

Aside from an introductory section of the opening track, Helix, which sounds like something lifted from a Paul W.S. Anderson film, the new incarnation of the band offers brutally chiseled death metal, carved from the same material that gave us Vader, Sphere, Embrional, Empatic and Hate. The album reflects a certain respect for where death metal has come from, but also a desire to show where death metal should go. Through a presentation of highly kinetic songwriting and commendably immersive production the various fluctuations between grave melodies and simpler, more primal elements the Thanatology album achieves the fine balance between various subgenres to make the release an everflowing stream of interesting and modern angles on a genre that has already been thoroughly mapped and explored.

There is a certain duality to be found within the music of Armagedon. This schizophrenia comes mainly at the hands of the many different elements brought to use in their tracks. Where songs like Cemeteries focuses on eerie, drawn out aspects, a shorter opus like Self Destruction feels significantly more primitive and primordial in both its composition and its delivery. Slawomir's hollow growls neatly puts the finishing touches on the glorious monument to death metal created by the effective rhythms and gruesome riffs provided by the rest of the band, convincingly showing off the internal dynamics achieved between the band members. But - Because there's always a but - in the long run and the grand scheme of things Thanatology lacks hooks. The album deserves a few listenes from any death metal fanatic, but it never soars above being merely thoroughly enjoyable. The grueling song Altar of Death and Vultures both have the gist of classics in them, but common between all the tracks is that they arbitrarily shift between tremolos, chugs and various melodies set to blastbeats or double-pedal punishment at the drummer's discretion. The inaudibility of the lyrics makes it feel like the lyrical content doesn't matter at all, and when held to the incredibly high standard set by many of their peers, Armagedon just doesn't quite compare. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Helix
2. Vultures
3. Cemeteries
4. Self Destruction
5. Altar of Death
6. Black Seed
7. Corridor
8. Tragic Journey


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Lord Impaler - Babylon Whore [EP] (2013, Self-released)

Since 1998 the greek trio known as Lord Impaler have unleashed grueling black metal upon the world, culminating in their 2011 album "Admire the Cosmos Black". Lord Impaler have no permanent drummer, resulting in each release using a different session member filling in roll of drummer; On the Babylon Whore EP from 2013 the title befalls George Trakas, who normally kicks ass in Mass Infection. Lord Impaler's primary body of work consists mainly of demos and generally smaller releases, and indeed the two songs found on the Babylon Whore EP were also released as a split wither Athos, another Greek black metal band.

Babylon Whore and The White Dream of Ziz blast away with immediate and unrelenting explosions of blastbeats and tremolo riffs, which paired with the traditional bleak sound creates an overall pretty standard take on blasting black metal. And in that sense the EP has it all, and little else. Babylon Whore is by all means a tribute to and a study in black metal ruthlessly beating your mind, and it excels in just that.

For the tracks to go on for four and five minutes respectively Lord Impaler end up repeating themselves over and over. The White Dream of Ziz has a slower, quieter part about halfway through, providing a glimps into more thoughtful songwriting territory, but when it almost immediately culminates in a return to the main riff the atmosphere almost built seems entirely unnecessary. This is the sad story of how most of the EP goes. The riffs are monstrously enjoyable, but when repeated ad nauseam it gets too much - There are simply too few riffs, resulting in many repeat offenses. As such the Babylon Whore EP, one of the Greek band's newest offerings, is fit only for sparse enjoyment. The material warrants more focus on variety and feels like it should instead be condensed into shorter tracks where the melodies could moreso come into their own and take the spotlight place they deserve, instead of being condemned to hatred at the hands of repetition for the sake of making the songs longer. 5/10 guitars

Tracklist:
1. Babylon Whore
2. The White Dream of Ziz

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Bone Fragments - Blood Spatter Bone Scatter [Full length] (2013, Self-released)

Through a carreer spanning eight years Bone Fragments from moonshine country Virginia have produced a demo and three albums of black metal with the theme of... Clowns and carnivals? I could scarcely believe what my eyes beheld in the promo material; A bunch of youngsters in varying degrees of clown-like get up, synth-based metal melodies washing ashore somewhere in the borderland between eerily cheery and creeping melancholy. My immediate thoughts were something along the lines of "you have got to be fucking kidding me".

But no, they are not kidding. While Bone Fragments at first glance keep a healthy ironic distance to their chosen themes, the amount of work put into their third album tells an entirely different story. Disturbing synthesized ragtimes take the helm while start-stop guitar grooves lazily hang back in search of something better to do, only to emerge on pseudo-virtuosic soli every once in while whenever the guitarist feels like it. Once or twice the Virginian band brings to mind the works of Emperor or perhaps Arcturus, but these moments are - regretably, I might add - few and far apart.

The project known af Bone Fragments is essentially a take on black metal that wants so hard to be boundary-pushing, different and modern that instead it comes off as comically bad, which wouldn't be so bad if it didn't seem like there had been so much work put into making it sound good. The production in itself is quite commendable with everything balancing out nicely, but why anyone would waste the sound's potential on music so wholeheartedly awful is beyond me. Their exploration of a silly gimmick does not seem to stem from musical wanderlust, but moreso like a vain attempt at being different in some way that their skills as songwriters does not permit.

This is especially evident in the fact that almost every track is incredibly long without needing to be. There are only two reasons for a track to be very long; Either you are experimenting and exploring vast vistas of instrumentation or melody, or you're building atmosphere. The songwriting on Blood Spatter Bone Scatter does neither. Most individual passages of instrumentation go on forever and ever for the sake of meandering through samey synthesizer melodies. I get it. You thought it'd be funny to make a melodic metal album rife with synths over a joking gimmick. You didn't have to make it an hour long.

Where do you go when you have no good ideas? Well, maybe you can come up with a terrible one that is at least original! That seems to be exactly what the ensemble known as Bone Fragments did. Maybe they were too hopped up on moonshine to realize there's a reason no one ever thought it was a good idea to make a clown black metal band. Either way, Blood Spatter Bone Scatter is an underground piece best left unattented. And for the record, no, I don't think I take music too seriously. I just think that gimmicks mostly serve as placeholders for actual talent. 3/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Laughing as You Get Sick and Die
2. The Weeds, the Reeds, and the Muck
3. Cryptosporadic
4. Kathleen
5. The Frail and the Demented
6. The Lure
7. Would You Like Some Candy?
8. Aliens and Clowns
9. The Clown with the Bleeding Eyes
10. Euphoric Delirium
11. Even More Deranged
12. Solstice
13. Island of the Dolls
14. The Boneyard

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Cvinger - Monastery of Fallen [EP] (2013, Self-released)

It is not often Slovenia makes itself heard on the international metal scene. Indeed there seems to be barely over a hundred active metal bands today, according to Metal Archives. Among these one hundred bands are Cvinger; A band that remained a trio from its conception in 2012 until 2014, where founding member Lucerus gave up his bass-duties to focus on vocals, the roll of bassist being filled by Skalph.

Traditionally schooled, their reliance upon the by now almost archaic customs of second wave black metal weighs in as the most prominent feature of Cvinger. Monastery of Fallen builds confidently on a foundation of cascading torrents of furious blast beats set to the devout teachings of ruthless tremolo riffs, with Lucerus' vocals chiming in with the raw doctrines of every black metal curse and lyrical subject in the book, including - but not limited to - death, anti-christianity, blasphemy, darkness and misanthropy.

Cvinger's gravitation toward the old news of black metal means there's little enjoyment from originality to be had on Monastery of Fallen. Incessant pyres of hatred and decay aside, the 20-minute EP doesn't so much feel like the satanic apex predator it appears like as it does an aging beast nearing extinction, lazily dangling around at the bottom of the food chain, whilst leisurely grazing at the once-green pastures of tirelessly re-used ideas.

The faintest gusts of originality come at the behest of the rich monk-like chants that intermediate and close the EP. It is an element that comes a bit more unexpected than the rest of the obvious second wave worship presented on the release, and it is a very welcome sight on the sea of generic blast beats and mediocre tremolos that Cvinger have set sail upon. Even so, with all their fervor and all their might, the eight tracks of unholy black metal on Monastery of Fallen have not produced one single noteworthy song. Cvinger relies too heavily on elements that are only great when paired with arduous songwriting, and the roaring riffs found here linger only for seconds in their boring habitat among the deepest notes on the fretboard, never daring to seek the adventures of higher notes or more audacious melodies. 5/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Chapter One: Into the Depths of Arcane Sanctuary
2. Blaspherion
3. Among the Crucified
4. Salvation in the Darkest Wrath
5. Chapter Two: Of Ashes and Dust
6. In Thy Kingdom's Shadow
7. Monastery of Fallen
8. Chapter Three: Amen

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Sporadic Slaughter - Thoughts On Our Significance [EP] (2013, Self-released)

Sporadic Slaughter have been lurking in the British scene around Yorkshire for about ten years now, and in celebration of their ten year anniversary chugging out death metal riffs their name was shortened to just "Sporadic" in 2014. Their latest release, the EP "Thoughts On Our Significance" landed on my desk in the summer of 2013, emanating a sense of cosmic purpose, the cover art suggesting a theme of science fiction and astronomy.

Most bands aim to distinguish themselves from similar groups or from any obvious trends, whether they're following them consciously or not. But in that way it seems almost as though Sporadic Slaughter are doing everything in their power to just shoehorn themselves in a spot right in between most half-technically alligned modernized death metal bands, with especially the closing track Devolution of Consciousness bringing to mind something along the lines of Carnifex or Ingested. But time and time again it has been proven that being different isn't necessarily a sign of quality, or vice versa, and in that regard the British quintet excel in their chug-feting brand of death metal. Their sound is crisp and warm, their grooves appealing and their rhythms tight. As it should be.

During my first listening session I had inadvertently listened to the EP four or five times without even realizing it. The formularic nature of Sporadic Slaughter's songwriting makes it harder to discern the songs from each other, groovy as they may be. The dense production also makes details not stand out as much as what would be preferable, meaning that the chugging grooves and grooving chugs of Thoughts On Our Significance prevail in their domination of the soundscapes presented. This only further cements the notion that Sporadic Slaughter's latest EP is a bit "run of the mill" in regards to songwriting, enthusiastic execution or not.

By the time I had written this review I had listened to the EP in its entirety about nine times, and by now certain features of familiarity become apparent, but still only in the sense that it sounds so bloody similar to so many other groups out there. As mentioned earlier the British band play with adequate enthusiasm and dynamics within the band, as is custom and necessary within the genre, but in the long run it's not quite enough to keep things afloat all by itself. 6/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Astral Advancement
2. To Become Stardust
3. Progression Through Regression
4. Devolution of Consciousness

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Rozamov - Of Gods and Flesh [EP] (2013, Self-released)

In 2011 a gathering of four created Rozamov, and since then two EPs have been released. Since the release of the latest offering, Of Gods and Flesh, the group has been reduced to a trio with guitarist/vocalist Liz Doom no longer being a part of Rozamov.

Atmosphere ranks highly on the list of aspects to the EP. The massive walls of distorted guitars, bass and drumming provide the solid core of the manufacture, formed with mood-setting gusts of ethereal vapors around it. Rozamovs boons of bountiful distortion are like sludgy mires of doom metal infused with the thick musk of stoner metal. The simplicity of the songwriting doesn't reflect a lack of talent or will to play within the band, but is moreso a statement bent on dense heaviness. No, their craftsmanship as musicians more than adequately becomes apparent through the massive appeal of the mastodontic nature of their cro-magnon riffs.

Even so the EP is more or less the very definition of hit-and-miss. Basically what you've got is four tracks, two of which are fantastic doom-laden sludge-mounds, the other two being easily written off as boring fillers. Rozamov convinces even the most elitist sludge freaks with their beseeching hymns of disaster, but take a few unnecessary detours down Tradition Avenue on the way there. They're not reinventing anything, nor are they trying to. In that way their 2013 EP is a well spent 20 minute experience into Sludge Country. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Famine
2. Empty Sky
3. Shadow of the Vulture
4. Of Gods and Flesh

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Silent Carrion - Suprematism EP I - IUPITER [EP] (2013, Self-released)

Silent Carrion has always been progressive and boundary pushing. It's the bread and butter, the heart and soul of the project. An amalgam of trip hop, electronica, dark ambient, prog and trace amounts of a myriad of other components. Established upon the first release, Ruins, in 2010 in Northern Italy, 2013 welcomed the beginning of an EP-based trilogy starting with IUPITER, the first Suprematism EP.

Right off the bat the Suprematism EP starts off heavier than previous Silent Carrion incarnations. Caustic aggression and hostile chaos ensues through heavily distorted guitars, programmed blast beats and an assortment noisy invocations, a bleak piano sometimes finding its way through the cacophony. There is a rich theme of turmoil and anxiety embedded in this work, a subject that may very well continue on or contrast with the remainder of the trilogy.

But where previous efforts were finely balanced, well-adjusted dark symphonies of careful instrumentation, Suprematism's discord borders on the outright offensive. Noise and industrial can achieve some sort of appeal through atmospheric courses and harsh moodsetters, but in that sense Silent Carrion belittles the very notion that this could be classified as structurally sound. It's entirely possible that their is a point to be made once the EP trilogy is complete, but at the time of writing that point is lost to me.

It is not until the final track (the live recording of "The Ground Seems Hollow" from Andras being considered a bonus track) that we can finally recognize the Italian ordeal. Silent Carrion has come full circle and yet again relies on synth-driven ambience, which again contrasts highly with the first ten minutes of IUPITER. There is little structure to be found, and even so the compositions don't even feel complex as much as merely disorganized anarchy. 3/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Suicide
2. I'm Calm Now
3. Malphas
4. Human Maggots Swarming Round Her Bed of Death
5. Suprematism (Mercy)
6. The Ground Seems Hollow (Live)

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Ancst - The Humane Condition [EP] (2013, Dark Omen Records)

Ancst are nothing if not productive. In the short time their carreer has spanned hitherto the German duo has produced no less than 7 releases, 5 of which were released in 2013. The prime question that springs to mind is whether or not this productivity comes at the cost of creativity and originality.

Though seeming to take a turn for bleak atmospherics, as is so trendy nowadays, Ancst narrowly avoid the usual clichés of the modern scene. The tempestuous vocals provided by Torsten tend to sound exceedingly hardcoresque in their crude, shouted manner, and at times - even if they're in the back of the mix - they detract attention from the formidable threads of guitar laid down presumably by the second part of the duo, Tom. The EP consists of the songs Ascetic and Entropie, two tracks that at first glance are so immaculate in their execution that they come off as aimless attempts at a modern trend. Only through further delving into their sound do the tracks open up for the immense detail work that lies hidden in the exceptionally well-crafted riffing.

Writing, recording and releasing only a few songs at a time looks to be the way Ancst get around being making a slew of uninteresting, mass-produced tracks. For the most part on The Humane Condition EP, it works. As mentioned the riffs are strong and creative, but this is where the fun ends. The lack of an actual drummer leaves Ancst at a disadvantage with programmed drums that never quite fills the roll appropriately. In much the same manner the vocals feel like a fish out of water. While this type of shouted vocals isn't entirely out of the ordinary in this genre, Torsten's screams never quite penetrate the misty atmosphere the same way the guitars do.

All in all every instrument feels well-balanced within the mix, but this doesn't mean every part that makes up this machine are equal in quality. It's all put together in a way that diverts attention from any shortcomings, and the vocals and drums aren't as such a complete blunder. But they never come through and prove their point. Entropie, the EP's last track, is arguably the best of the two songs due to variation crafted in a sleek and stylish manner and a great use of momentum and sense of pace. The Humane Condition is by no means a terrible EP, and it's entirely worth the roughly 12 minutes it takes. 7/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Ascetic
2. Entropie

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