Zealot Cult - Karmenian Crypt (2016)

Ireland's Zealot Cult play a style of intelligent death metal that reminds me of a brainier Leprosy. I'm certainly hearing the Death influence, particularly on the vocal side of things and that works for me of course, but there are other facets of this performance which will keep the listener intrigued, the main facet of that being a band that just plain knows how to play death metal music. Folks, there are song structures within this album. Never are we hearing a band forced to swim through the simplicities of core. Zealot Cult doesn't make it easy for themselves, rather they fight through the muck in order to make an EP that seems worthy enough of their name. Jesus Christ, listen to the guitar playing on this record – that's the example for great death metal. Period. Now I'll admit that it's a little sludgy and pretty slimy in some areas as well, but it fits the atmosphere beautifully. If you're looking for good death metal, you're going to buy this one. Doesn't even matter if it's only seventeen minutes long. You'll play it again. Hell, I would. I'm already listening to this album again after previewing it the first time. My opinion of it hasn't changed.

As I mentioned, these gentlemen have just made their mark on the scene with this debut and other than a demo, it's all they've put out so far. So to tell me that these guys are going to go on to make a full-length soon enough, well... I want to hear it! But fuck my opinion, I want you to hear it. Yes, you – the death metal listener looking for something that actually sounds like death metal, not double-bass and cookie monster vocals and core breakdowns, but authentic death metal from musicians who sound like they've been playing it their entire lives. Originally, the drummer (Declan Malone) and guitarist (Mick Carey) had been playing death/thrash in a now defunct band called The Swarm, and while I can't tell you what that sounds like, I can tell you that what you're experiencing here is going to blow your mind. Now there are a couple of clean vocal portions on the hypnotic closer “Suffocation Of The Mind” but I didn't even feel perturbed by them. They simply added to what was an incredibly well-built and finely performed death metal track that merely serves as the topping on an already impressive cake, such as the one I'm feasting on here. Take a trip down to the pub for this one, gentlemen. You deserve it!

In my professionally unprofessional opinion, I think you'd have to be a complete ignoramous to skip out on this one. Ten more death metal records could come to my inbox within the next few days and I can guarantee that not even one of them would be as good as what I've just heard here. The Grim Tower highly recommends Karmenian Crypt and it's without a doubt one of the best EP's I've heard all year.

(3 Tracks, 17:00)

9/10

Traffic Death/Lurking Corpses - Split Personality (2016)

I don't review much punk here, because I frankly can't fucking stand most of it, or that scene for that matter. Especially now that social justice culture has worked it's way into the scene. That being said, this is a split between two bands from Des Moines and Ft. Wayne with both offering a different approach to punk than I've heard before. Traffic Death started out with a pretty common punk flair, right up there with the Ramones or Misfits, especially in the “whoa-oh” sections. Then they decided to turn a song about their frustration with remakes and new shit into a rather scathing punk cut. The riffs were pretty derivative of the punk genre, but the frontman offered an absurdly harsher vocal approach that I quite enjoyed.

Next we have the equally scathing Lurking Corpses, which aren't strangers to me as I've reviewed them before – but this time around they're experimenting with thick, heavy bouts of doom as well as some death metal growls on “Human Scar.” It's also the longest cut on the disc. Considering the length of this thing, that's not long. After that, they just go into fast numbers that come in and out and don't really leave a mark. It's like when an artist just kind of says, “Eh, fuck it – we'll just write two quick tracks and clal it a day.” But that's what they did. It's a decent disc with slight bits of promise and even though I don't really like a lot of punk, I'll accept this as a relatively decent disc.

(5 Tracks, 8:00)

6/10

Ludicrous - The Stoic Ideal (2016)

This is the sophomore album from the Finnish industrial/death output, featuring members from End Of You, Dead Shape Figure and GAF. According to MA, there's only one member in the act right now and no one knows what he plays. That doesn't seem quite right to me though, and later checking the band's FB profile warrants a much better description. There are five members in the band here who apparently play various instruments. There, now that we have that covered (stifled laughter) let's get to talking about the damn album, shall we?

First off, Ludicrous are not the kind of band to stay stuck in one style for too long, even though they have a base of thumping bass (yes, I made a pun) and furious industrial elements. It can be said that some djent is used on the recording, but it only feels like an element instead of a backbone. Keyboard atmospheres gently decorate sections of the disc, but occasional piano can appear as well as a myriad of other things. Much of the record seems to mirror Swedish death metal, particularly cuts like “Crucifix-State-Of-Mind,” “Deathjog” and the album closer “Delta Male Supremacy.” The band does hit into more alternative rock territory with “Inside Out” and of course, the unexpected Slipknot cover of “Duality” which is definitely one of the act's most mainstream and popularized songs. As for that cover, it does maintain the same vibe, but features more of an industrial background and a much deeper vocal style than Corey Taylor might be capable of.

The record isn't all that long, but it certainly manages something a bit new and different with the death metal genre that people won't be expecting anytime soon. Just in case you passed it up, you might really want to get your hands on it. Bands like Ludicrous are just what we need in the metal scene today, because these are the kind of acts that truly think out of the box. For a real shocker, check out “Ponyrides and Ceilings.” You might not know what to think after hearing that one! Hopefully there will be more of this to come in the future.

(8 Tracks, 31:00)

8/10

Black Royal - The Summoning Pt.2 (2016)

While I don't remember the first part of The Summoning from these Finnish /stoner/death metallers, this second one definitely caught my attention. Musically, we're getting a doom approach with some extra bells and whistles (especially in the vein of melody) that help to accentuate what can be some rather rough growls from the frontman. Maybe there's a little bit of thrash to be found in sections as well, it just depends on the track. We even get some rather ethereal keyboard sections on “Reclaim The Throne” which starts out as a downright pounder. The track pounds you into the ground as if lifts you up and carries you into an enchanted forest. Go figure.

The rest of the cuts after that one are quite heavy, more along the lines of what you were expecting and they all feature a great deal of heavy bass and harsh vocals coupled with some bluesy guitar solos. I don't feel that anything goes as out of bounds as the ending of “Reclaim The Throne” even though “Demonspawn” does have a few more light-hearted moments, particularly when the keyboards return just slightly to give it an unexpectedly angelic feeling right before one last pounding.

Black Royal proves that they've got something a bit more to offer the stoner/death scene, even if that's the mere addition of melodies and keyboard bits. In any case, it's worth checking out if you're looking for a slightly different flavor than many similar bands in the genre.

(6 Tracks, 25:00)

6/10

Detonation - Reprisal (2011)

Netherlands based death/thrash and melodic death metallers Detonation sent me this all of the way back from 2011. It's also the last disc they released before going on a long hiatus, by which another full-length has not yet appeared. I don't think we'll hear anything else from these guys again though, especially seeing as bassist Otto Schimmelpenninck van der Oije is now in a very famous female fronted act by the name of Delain and guitarist/frontman Koen Romejin is is currently playing in four other bands right now. There's still a possibility, but will it ever sound this good? The best of Dark Tranquillity, Dissection and a little bit of Opeth are here, along with some groove bits that really stick. Fans of At The Gates and Nightrage will also find something here in Reprisal, as Detonation will sound like long lost friends that you never knew you had. Without question, everything that I love about melodic death metal is here, but the disc is not overly beautiful. Instead, it's main concern is to plunge your carcass directly into the ground with no remorse or even a hint of a clean vocal. Yes, this is melodic death the way we remember it, albeit with just a few injections of modernism.

These guys are ill-reviewed on Metal Archives, almost as if someone completely forgot that they made two records in 2005 (Portals to Uphobia) and Emission Phase (2007). Their debut (An Epic Defiance) has an astonishing 90% however, which makes me think that it must be even better than the disc I'm reviewing, which only has a 70%. That being said, only one person reviewed each album, so that's a very biased opinion to judge I feel. Autothrall did provide the review for this one however, but he can be a bit biased towards some of the discs I like, himself preferring a much different quality of metal than myself, apparently. I can guarantee that if I sat down with the guy and listened to some of the records he gave 100% to, I'd probably find something wrong with them, or that they aren't quite so good. The likewise could be said about some of my favorite albums as well, because reviews are merely opinions and only resonate with listeners that feel the same. This is just my opinion, it is just my observation. I always encourage people to listen to the discs themselves.

This disc is pretty damn old and from what I can tell, it's certainly not a reissue. Hell, the sound quality is low for this promo, so it's awful fuzzy to begin with. Too bad, because these guys are good and they don't even have a proper Bandcamp. They have a Facebook and ReverbNation as well as a home page, where two of their records have been sold out for quite a while. (They're also the two that have not been reviewed on Metal Archives, strangely. Does anyone have these fucking records?) Apparently, you can buy this disc for thirteen euros along with the debut which only sells for eight. If you don't want to do all that, you'll probably just listen to the damn thing on YouTube. The band's home page hasn't even been updated since 2013 and that was just a “we're not dead” update, so go figure. Anyway, these are a great bunch of tunes in the old school style of melodic death metal and maybe they'll make some more of them in another ten years or so. If you want to hear what the frontman/guitarist is up to now though, you can check out Apophys which released their debut album Prime Incursion last year. They play tech-death, so it's a little bit different than this record though. Give them both a listen, I'm sure they're worth it.

(8 Tracks, 35:00)

8/10

Dakhma - Passageways To Daena (2015)

Swiss blackened death metallers Dakhma are part of something called the Helvetic Underground Committee, which seems to be an underground religious movement dedicated to bringing back pre-Judaic belief in the form of Zoroastrianism. It seems that old Ahura Mazda's coming back after all! Although the music here definitely seems closer to that of his counterpart Angra Mainyu, which is where we eventually found the building blocks for the devil. Setting mythology aside, we have a rather interesting and quite foggy mix of progressive death metal with some black metal elements, as described.
The band is made up of just two people, with Kerberos handling everything but the drums, which H.A.T.T. manages to perform rather well. Seeing as the drumming is a huge part of the record, H.A.T.T. seems to have just as an important a job as Kerberos, especially in the atmospheric cuts which can change the nature of the band entirely and work to slowly chip away the genre tag thrown to these guys by the scribes at Metal Archives. “Ascension II” is definitely more of an atmosphere than a sort of death metal song, even making me wonder how much of it is song and how much of it is an actual ritual. Kerberos's droning mix of growls and scowls actually enrich such a performance even more, making me truly feel witness to something rather awesome and unique. They aren't attempting to be an act like Portal, Aevangelist or Teitanblood even though semblances can be drawn if one wants to look far enough. We could even compare some of the riff melodies here to something like Deathspell Omega and the hordes of other acts in the French black metal scene. The production is raw here, at times very raw – but I feel that this organic approach makes for an absolute inferno that will surely require quite a bit out of listeners.

I happened to read an older review of the disc just before I wrote this one, where the listener claimed the record was too long, but when you have a piece like “Chinvat” which requires you to sit and meditate (no death metal, or any metal to be found on that one, folks – it is a literal soundscape) such a thing can be expected. After all, this is really not a “jam album.” It doesn't really make me want to bang my head or anything similar. Instead, I feel that I am being thrown into something ancient (as I've referenced earlier) and it will require a lot more out of me than throwing up an air-guitar. This is something that nearly transcends the boundaries of music entirely, which is why I feel that it is nearly an essential listen. There are oddly enough, guitar solos in use here, but anything that I'd really consider “metal” just sort of takes a backseat to what is something that you can tell the musicians take very seriously. It's not that “Of Charred Flesh” doesn't have a fiery little guitar solo and flaming hot tremolo riffs, it's that it also contains several elements that might seem just a little out of place for a heavy metal performance. I see nothing wrong with that however, as it shows that Dakhma just want to do more. Even “The Silent Tower” takes a break for atmosphere and melody, showing that the record has much more to offer than what you might expect from the first couple of tracks. There are some rather bizarre occurences here and I hope Ahura Mazda and Angra Mainyu are happy with this, as I would quite be had I been of their stature. An interesting bonus feature in “Call From The Grave” also appears, which of course is a Bathory cover performed in a slightly different style than Quorthon might have intended. It still has the spirit of the original, but is a little bland as far as the lead riffs are concerned. Another bonus cut for the disc is “Ritual Of Daebaaman” which is literally half metal and half ritual, depending on where you arrive in the piece. If metal music can be used as a ritual tool for religion, then such has been demonstrated here on Passageways To Daena. It came out last year, but it's definitely worth tracking down. I'm sure Godz Of War still has some left if you're interested!

(10 Tracks, 67:00)

9/10

Eteritus - Following The Ancient Path (2016)

Hailing from Poland, we have death metallers Eteritus here with their debut album. It's not all that long and it's definitely rough around the edges, but it seems to have the right idea, which is classic death metal. The production is definitely a bit thin though, which is my biggest issue with the album. It feels like all of the instruments have been constricted to a very tiny room, by which there are only slight bursts from the kit and vocal end by which to strengthen the performance. Greg's bass is pushed far to the back, which I think is a very noticeable issue here and takes away from the warmth that such a performance should have. It's just too cool for me, folks and that's where I find that I'm having a tough time getting into it. It's not that Nitro isn't pummeling the kit to literal death, or that frontman/guitarist Liam Tailor isn't belting out some of the most venomous barks I've heard in quite a while (because I'll give him that) as well as some rather capable melodies entwined within the mix. It's just that there's a constricting grain throughout this performance that is making it very hard for me to keep focused.

That being said, there's a definite effort being displayed here and I can't ignore that. This is only their first album after all and I can understand if it doesn't sound exactly perfect. These guys have the amount of skill needed for proper death metal and display that well enough here. It's nothing out of the ordinary, but it is definitely something that I would recommend giving a listen as there are those who will not be as anal rententive about the mix as I am. If we ignore the mix completely, there's a pretty solid death metal disc here that is representitive of that classic Swedish sound and that's what is most important. Eteritus have brought another slab of powerful death metal to old school heads and I'm sure they'll eat it up regardless.

(9 Tracks, 32:00)

7/10

Profanal - Supreme Fire (2016)

Profanal sounded to me like a type of medication and if that's to be the case, then these Italian death metallers have made a pill that will burn immensely as it heads down your throat, resulting in severe convultions and heavy bouts of vomiting. According to Metal Archives, Profanal can be compared to the likes of Dismembered, Entombed a little defunct band called Nirvana 2002 (now Under The Church) and Funeral Whore. They're closely related to Sweden's Dismember however, with the Entombed influence being their earliest work. They definitely know how to play revolting death metal, with all the heat and warmth of yesteryear, jam-packed with guitar solos and literal riffs that you'll actually remember. Supreme Fire sounds like it came out during the heyday of death metal and is definitely a disc you want to get your hands on, just for the sheer amount of work put into the performance. The frontwoman's vocals are absolutely scathing, coupled with pounding drums and bass, along with dozens of bloodcurdling riffs that simply reek of this stuff. The only issue that I had with this disc is going to surprise most of you, being that it is the less than a minute acoustic instrumental “Across Death's Path.” It is literally just a small acoustic number that does nothing more than to take away from such a fearsome performance. I feel that a lot of heads are going to be upset that there's a slight break in the slaughter and I'd definitely skip that cut every chance I got. Maybe they should have placed it at the end, where it wouldn't have taken away from the classic feel they were going for. When you're listening to a cohesive and absolutely unrelenting experience like this, (it's just plain classic) you don't want any frilly pieces getting in the way. If they were going for more experimentation, I could understand – but I'm just not getting that from Profanal right now. Cutting that piece out of the mix, you still have a solid thirty-five minutes of solid death metal and I'm not going to complain about that. Still worth a listen, and I think you'll enjoy it regardless of the acoustic hiccup.

(9 Tracks, 36:00)

8/10

Sea Of Bones/Ramlord - Split (2016)

We have two similar, yet different acts here, the first one being Connecticut's sludge/drone/doomers Sea Of Bones and the other New Hampshire's crust-punk/black metallers Ramlord, which sounds more like Neurosis in their early era, just with more of a blackened tinge. I say that both acts seem similar because regardless of genres, they both seem to be going for the same style of sludge and doom influence on this EP.

Sea Of Bones haven't had a great deal of records, certainly not as many as Ramlord; but they do have the potential to go quite far if they continue to do exactly what I'm hearing here. They consider their band to be “a dissonant wall of sound” and would compare themselves to Neurosis and Buried At Sea, which I would say is most comparable among the others here listed. It sounds exactly like that, feeling like a literal fucking wave of monolithic thunder, replete with hoary roars and what feels like a great fog. When I listen to the record, I feel like I'm in the middle of a storm and about to be demolished by a tidal wave of grease, slime and sludge. There is a bit of a calm after the storm however, which allows the piece to breathe well.

Ramlord definitely pump doom into their performance and I'm getting a sort of blackened punk feel, right from the vocals especially. There's even a bit of death grunt to be had, fronting a performance that feels just as foggy as the other. Ramlord aren't big on sludge, but there's definitely a pounding sense of doom here and that's going to be what matters as a whole. The track does feature a big kick as it continues, observing a much different atmosphere than what we got with Sea Of Bones. You can really hear the punk roaring in along with a big tempo change that completely wipes over the doom and almost carries as sense of grindcore with it. Then the doom comes back in, albeit with a sort of celebratory node. It feels like they're having a little bit of a party towards the end of this song, and that's fine.

Closing out this observation, I think both bands prove their worth rather well on an EP that should please fans of both varities of metal. It's not quite doom, sludge, punk, post, drone or black metal, but there are enough elements of each inside of this grimy snack mix to suit your tastes.

(2 Tracks, 20:45)

8/10

Serpent Ascending - Ananku (2016)

Finland's Serpent Ascending are about to release their first (or I should say, his first) album on I, Voidhanger. There was a little compilation record as well as a demo released earlier, but this is the first offering of completely new material from the one man act, helmed entirely by Jarno Nurmi. I can't really tell if the drumming is programmed or being performed by a real kit, chalking that section of the performance up to technology. This is definitely a death metal performance, but it is not the kind of death metal performance that is afraid to shun texture or melody. The bare-bones of the record clearly sound like any classic death metal act, but there's a sense of progression as well as some occult black metal influence (say Deathspell Omega) that sort of turns the nature of the recording on it's head. Nurmi controls a powerful bark on the record, but he doesn't relegate himself to that approach, sometimes going into a sort of cleaner, yet more hypnotic approach. The record doesn't have a lot of bite, but it doesn't seem to be going in that sort of direction. What I'm hearing here is a little more intelligent than just sheer brutality, and as the record goes on, it just becomes a bit more varied in terms of tone and structure. There are sections where the drums blast a little and allow Ananku to bare it's teeth, but nothing on here came out completely fearsome to me. Serpent Ascending has the right idea I think, but this sounds like a project that I hope will see more evolutions in the future. It is worth a listen if you're looking for something a bit more than unhinged brutality.

(8 Tracks, 30:00)

7/10

Sunlight's Bane/Geist - Split (2016)

This split features two tracks each from Michigan based Sunlight's Bane, as well as Englanders Geist. The difference is that both bands are a bit different than each other, with the guest being a little more intriguing to me than the mainstay act.

Sunlight's Bane starts out the disc with what is an absolutely grueling round of pure musical chaos. It's pretty damn rambunctious folks, with influences ranging from brutal death to black metal and even some core semblances. I'd definitely consider it a flavor of extreme grind, with two vocalists ready to tear your ears off and throw them in a waste receptacle. There IS a little bit of a punk influence here, but only if that punk was fiercely injected with the very blood of a living inferno. Sunlight's Bane is what happens when you mix punk in with hellfire and makes for something that I'd consider leagues better than ninety percent of the punk music I've heard recently. We at The Grim Tower hope that they'll make plenty more of this, as I am all ears.

As for Geist, I'm not going to sit here and trash them. Let's give these hardcore punks a respectable observation. While not as extreme as Sunlight's Bane, they still manage to kick up enough piss n' vinegar to make a mark. The drums frantically pound throughout the release, fronted by a man who reminds me of Jamey Jasta at his angriest. I mean, it's not as preferable to the inhuman approach of the other act, but I think it has just enough firepower going for it to a make a statement. It does sound a little bit more realistic though and may bring listeners back down to earth after surviving the horrifying abyss that was Sunlight's Bane. The drums I feel are the best part of the performance, but at times they are also the only thing that I can hear on the record and even work to drown out the guitars (and vocals even.)

Obviously, I'm going to praise the hell out of Sunlight's Bane as far as this split is considered. But both bands are definitely worth checking out and I'd recommend this split to anyone looking for a short and raucous shot of pure fucking adrenaline.

(4 Tracks, 10:34)

8/10

In Obscurity Revealed - Grim Fumes Of Revelation (2016)

Mexico's In Obscurity Revealed just crawled out of it's demo days with this debut EP release, which you'll be able to pick up in about eleven days when it comes out on September 12th. Putting out a four-track demo just last year, it seems these guys are finally ready to show the world what they're made of. If you're into grueling and certainly grim performances with lyrics based in death, chaos and the occult – then you are in for one hell of a show here. First off, I'm noticing drumer EH, and the way that he seems to barrel right through some of these cuts. Secondly, we have a selection of tremolos in addition to some rather unique distortions courtesy of DC and ER, which really turns the approach on it's head. As much as I like tremolos, I like it more when these guys attempt something that sounds as utterly demented as I'm experiencing right now. As long as these guys continue to play in such an uncomfortable tuning, I think I'm going to be quite pleased with their future releases. I really like when a band go out of their way to sound extremely demonic, and even though FM's vocals aren't necessarily inhuman, they work well with the rest of the performance and I'm not going to count them out so soon. The formula works, and it achieves the kind of atmosphere that I'm looking for. It comes off, vile, rambunctious and completely destructive... and best of all, I'm not bored by it! Like a shot of coffee, this record is made up of compositions that would probably wake the dead (which may not bode so well for the act, considering these are occult based lyrics) and is certianly recommended, even despite it's length. It's just a taste, but it leaves us wanting more obscure and devious atmospheres from these Mexican necromancers.

(2 Tracks, 9:49)

8/10

Demonomancy/Witchcraft – Archiac Remnants Of The Numinous/ At The Diabolus Hour Split EP (2016)

Here we have a split from two black/death acts, one based in Italy with the other based in Finland. We're first going to focus on Italy's Demonomancy which comes across with a powerfully warm and quite abrasive sound. The frontman's vocals don't feel too tacky either, this is an act that really seems to embody that whole spirit of death and black metal, albeit I'll say that there are more doom elements here than I've heard in lieu of black metal, making the classification a bit off. There's also a sort of classic Slayer styled solo bit on the disc, which lends even less to the kind of approach you might expect. That being said, it creates an atmosphere that I think is far more foreboding than what one might expect to be a lot of black metal blasts and tremolo-riffs holding hands with death metal in the same way that we've all heard a dozen times to say. That's not to say that it isn't that, sometimes – but it tries very hard not to be. These guys would rather groove than blast, which sets up a much different and more entertaining tempo than what I expected. That being said, I recommend the nearly nine minute title cut to “Underground Church” because the latter is just pretty much what I expected. Nothing wrong with that, but these guys have already shown me that they can do so much more than just regular old black/death.

As for the other guys, we have Finland's Witchcraft. No, not the “Witchcraft” (and seriously, bands should stop using the names of other acts that have already been signed, popularized and licensed because it is confusing as hell) you were thinking of, but a good Witchcraft nonetheless. Originally they were called Blasphemous Witchcraft, so I hope that maybe they'll decide to be that once again. Especially since they're quite good. The very intro to the piece (the title cut) actually felt like another kind of music entirely, something like mist mixed in with diabolatry as the infernal roars of the underworld erupted in much the same way they do when “Grave Immolation” soon adds instruments into the mix. The sound is awfully raw and tough to hear, but Black Moon Necromancer (of some stuff) has got an incredible vocal approach that features such a deep set of chords that I feel as if I'm not even listening to a man anymore. It's comparable to brutal death metal and works much better on the doom-influenced “Perverted Temple Of Goatsodomy” (seriously, you're playing doom riffs and calling yourself Witchcraft? Can't they sue for that?) then it does on the former, even though it still shows me a band that hasn't yet found their style, their footing and their name. Maybe after this split release they'll decide to hone in all of those things.

Both acts seem to do a pretty solid job, but because Demonomancy seem to have their shit together a little bit better, (even though I love those little keyboard atmospheres that (Blasphemous) Witchcraft perform at the beginning and end of their side of the split) I'm going to have to go with them. I feel that fans of a black and death style that don't mind more of a doom approach to the genre will find something more than those looking for just black/death. Worth giving a listen, there's some definite promise to be found here.

(5 Tracks 27:00)

7/10

God Enslavement - Consuming The Divine (2016)

Hailing from Germany, the debut album from these death metallers is actually quite solid. Now the death metal that these guys produce isn't the kind that you'd expect from many of the cemetery slabs I've reviewed here on a day to day basis, but rather feels a bit more modern and technical, which might make some of you stop reading this review already and that's fine. But what I think really matters here is Adam Jarvis (Pig Destroyer, Misery Index) on the kit, and the extremely technical riff-matter crafted by either Deha (Black Sin, Clouds, Sources Of I, We All Die Laughing – remember that one?) Bjorn Koppler (Maladie) or Kevin Olasz (Aardvarks, Deadborn, Maladie... the Aardvarks are still relevant? That Conglomerate compilation was great, I thought.) In any case, one of these three men is responsible for such awesomeness and it certainly beefs up what can be rather chunky at times. Vince Matthews (ex-Dying Fetus, ex-Criminal Element, ex-Biovore, all great death acts) sounds like he's on a high fiber diet, as a large amount of grunt and groan mixtures vomit out, while familiar death metal (and this is the only real thing about the band that remains classic) riffing and drum pummeling erupts from the kit. The disc is very fast paced, but it feels almost as if a little more work is needed as Matthews' approach sometimes seems a bit heavy handed. That being noted, the amount of solos utilized on the record stands as a strong point, and keeps the material from becoming entirely bland, which it can do every now and again.

When I listen to an act like this, I feel like they're not completely at their prime with this approach and perhaps it will sound a bit more composed next time. At any case, I couldn't turn it down because the disc is real fucking pummeler and definitely will get you pumped for some heavy lifting. As we can see, there are a lot of great musicians here with a very stable that contains a great deal of potential. I just need to hear a little bit more before I can really call it grandeur. Much as I like this, it's no Dying Fetus, Criminal Element, Pig Destroyer or Aardvarks (yes, I really do like those Aardvarks) and therefore doesn't really stand out as a superior project to any of the acts that these guys have already been in, or are still playing in. That's not to say it's bad, because these guys are more or less just going out there and having a great time playing some really gurgly death metal stuff (but not gurgly enough, if you ask me) that I'm sure fans of their other acts will enjoy. I've just heard a bit better, and feel that much of the problem might even be in Matthews' vocal approach, which seems to weaken the whole performance for me. Give it a listen and see what you think, as it's not all that long and offers just enough for the time allotted.

(11 Tracks, 36:00)

7/10

Konflict/Reek Of The Unzen Gas Fumes - Split (2016)

I've been waiting a long time to review this split, which actually came out sometime last year. The first act is a black/death/grind/noise/industrial act called Konflict from Sri Lanka. We know there are three members in the act, but have no idea as to who does what, or what bands they've been in prior to the act – nothing. Yet when you hear a band like this that mixes industrialism with fiery black metal riffs, thick drum abrasions and a sort of gurgling that sounds like they've captured a beast from the Necronomicon and gave it the fucking microphone (seriously, this thing sounds inhuman as hell, what are they up to in Sri Lanka?) you start to get a bit curious. The sound is obviously raw, but it seems to fit the absolutely heinous nature of the material, which is by far unlike anything I've ever heard. I'm telling you folks, if you put the fucking Cloverfield monster on the vocals, this is what it would sound like. This is beyond the normal gurgle... this is something, I just can't even fucking describe. Summon a literal demon from the abyss, give him a microphone and this is what you get. This is the kind of sound that would preachers shit their pants (Not sure if that includes Jesse Custer though) and convince religious congregations that the devil is real. The interesting thing about these demonic pieces is that they all have relatively intelligent titles. For instance, we've got “To Erase The Eelam Parasite” , “Decoding The Aryan Survival Cipher”, “Epignetic Hate Transmission” and others. Sometimes throughout the twenty-four minute EP we'll even get utterances that sound like they're on two different dimensional planes. What in the hell is going on over there? Sometimes we're even barreled over with torrents of noise. Huge mounds of atmospheric noise such as the album's opener “Aryan Cytoarchitecture and The Handle Of A Weapon Or Tool” or the aforementioned “Decoding The Aryan Survival Cipher.” I'm not sure if these guys play live, but they're definitely not the kind of act you hear everyday. I'm rather quite impressed and I hope that we'll get to hear more from this awesome trio in the future. Maybe somewhere deep within this thick monstrosity lies the future of grind itself. That remains to be seen.

The next act we have on the split is Reek Of The Unzen Gas Fumes, which is a blackened grindcore act of complete insanity whose lyrics seem to be based on anti-Buddhism, sadism and radical Japanese nationalism according to Metal Archives. That third one's a real whammy, especially if you're a US citizen because of rather obvious reasons. From what I've researched, some of these right-wing (yes, they have right and left winged political movements in Japan as well) movements are tied directly to the yakuza, which doesn't surprise me. In any case, the approach the listener is getting here is one of force, fire and absolute insanity. It's not always as crazy as “Dehumanizing Cesspool For Future of Humanity” as “Doku” displays with it's weirdness and much slower tempo, but for the most part these guys feature an extremely raspy vocalist that melds with static in a way that he sounds like an angered television set. We do know that INHKR is behind the guitar, bass and drum programming and that 9300FGB is the vocalist, but no one knows what Warcrime Rapist does. At any rate, this an entirely interesting grindcore act with enough depth and originality to stand out among their peers. I realize that while I've mentioned it already, I need to reiterate that these guys are completely fucking insane as far as the performance is concerned and the complete polar opposite of what we're seeing portrayed as Japanese heavy music as far as the media is concerned.

This is the extremely heavy underground shit that you were looking for and you'll be extremely happy to have one of only 66 copies in print of this cassette only release. You'd also be extremely lucky. I'm going to give this the highest possible score I can give as I've heard nothing quite like it in the grindcore scene, but it was released quite a while ago and I can't spotlight it as I normally would have. Just take it as a sign that you need to find a way to get a hold of this split somehow. Some of the material from both of these bands is surprisingly available on Bandcamp, but this split cassette is limited and not even I have a copy of it, just a digital promo with a low bit-rate quality. Even so, that's enough for me to prove to you that these bands are fucking phenomenal in the grind scene and you've really got to hear them both for yourself. I tend to like Konflict more, but wouldn't turn down either act. The Grim Tower highly recommends this split EP, so definitely give it a listen. You'll find a way.

(18 Tracks, 46:00)

10/10

Fister/Teeth - Split (2016)

This split brings Missouri and California together in the name of doom, death and sludge metal. Sounds promising to me just in that regard. It's not a very long split (roughly about thirteen minutes) but these things usually aren't. 

The first act we have is Missouri based doom/death/stoner and sludge metallers, Fister. They come on strong with some extremely pungent nodes, proving the strength of Kenny Snarzyck's bass work as well as Marcus Newstead's (this guy used to play in The Lion's Daughter) extremely melodic, slightly depressive and all around powerful lead work. Opener “We All Die Tonight” actually features one hell of a solo stuffed right into the middle of it. When I say one hell of a solo, I literally mean one hell of a fucking solo, folks. That's the kind of thing that made me take notice. Only problem is that there's about a few seconds after that with what I think is just filler with no real point, unless it was lyrically called. Even so, (and this is nearly a damn first for me) it kind of kills the impact of Newstead's solo work, which should have ended the piece.

California's Teeth are a completely different animal. There's still the doom and death metal elements, but it feels like they wanted to beef these extremities with the magic of post metal. Justin Moore and Erol Ulug (Apparently that's his real name. Perhaps they have a literal cave troll in their band?) both makeup the guitar and vocal end, which seems to meld together to form this inhuman and rather gruff semblance. There's a little bit of crystalline psychosis to these pieces as well, making the approach sound sometimes pretty, but most often insane. To be dreadfully honest, the soundscape is rather creepy and unnerving for an act of this nature, which I find amazing as the hairs prick up on the back of my neck. Two songs and less than seven minutes is more than enough to tell me that there's something very freaky about the music that these guys play. They're the definite winner of the split for me, regardless of the fact that both bands do a great job. This is what I'd consider a great split, just kind of wish these things were a bit longer.

(3 Tracks, 13:00)

8/10

Nocturnal Hollow - Deathless and Fleshless (2016)

Venezuela's Nocturnal Hollow are back with their third full-length album, which sounds like a meat tenderizer in the realms of classic death metal. Think bands like Entombed, Grave, Bloodbath and you've got it. The production value remains classic, but everything is still very audible. Deathless and Fleshless is still a very warm record, a disc that you could use as a heater in most regards and it captures the spirit of old death perfectly. There's some Slayer nods in the solo sections, as well as a slew of doom riffs to mix in with the thrash and pummel of the drums, making for a disc that comes in and does what it's meant to do. Thankfully, all of the songs here don't sound the same and that's going to come as a relief. The disc contains it's share of slow kills as well as quick massacres, as a few melodies are showcased here and there amongst the old-school solos. It's a pretty solid death metal disc in the end and I don't think that many people will be upset with it, even though it doesn't really deliver anything that we haven't already heard before from the genre. If you need another good slab of death, grab this record. If you're looking for something more, than you may want to look elsewhere. That being said, Deathless and Fleshless offers what we expect from classic death metal and it does it without even a hint of modernism. Chances are that you have a lot of records that already sound like this one, however. Maybe you could use just one more.

(10 Tracks, 39:00)

7/10

Dominhate - Emissaries Of Mourning (2016)

Fans of dark and foreboding death metal mayhem will completely devour this new EP from Italian four-piece, Dominhate. The disc is short (or it wouldn't be in the shortlist) but it's quite punishing, throwing us directly into a cavern by which we're forced to sift through all of the dirt and the monsters which lie within it. Doom is very much a focus of this album, with bass riffs that sound so low in the mix that they might be mistaken for the roars of demons along with a drumming performance that feels every bit like we should expect for this kind of music. I'm brought to mind acts like Morbid Angel and Immolation, by which flaming guitar solos rise up from out of the muck and bring the metal pounding right to your face. I've listened to this record twice during the review and I honestly can't find even the smallest issue with it. These four guys know what they're doing and seem to have a good grip on it, which is no doubt going to make for a full-length release that's literally just as good or better. I've heard ten thousand pounds of death metal in the past number of years, but acts like this one are the kind that really stand out. I'd certainly remember Emissaries Of Mourning over bland efforts from others, by which there is no real thought to atmosphere, vocals or composition. The record is certainly a no-nonsense approach and isn't trying to achieve anything new with the genre, but with so much doom and gloom pumped into this oppressive death metal terrorizer, I don't really feel that reaching for new heights is what this band needs to do. Rather, they're doing a damn fine job as it is. If you're a death metal fan, you shouldn't be upset with this one, and if you are, then I'm going to slap you. Suffice it to say, Emissaries Of Misery is definitely an EP worth picking up and spinning a few times before their next full-length, which hopefully won't be too far away.

(5 Tracks, 19:00)

9/10

Maleficence - Realms Of Mortification (2016)

Boasting two tracks on this 7” these Belgian death/thrashers deliver a memorable performance right form the start. After some atmospherics that remind me a little of hell, we get right into the thick of it with driving rhythms, razor-sharp vocal lines and pumping leads. This is the way that The Crown and other acts have done it for years, and damned if I'll complain about it. It's raw, rough and rowdy; which I'd simply have no other way. But that's just the first track. After the death/thrash ensemble, we get into something with a little bit more groove and melody. Obviously these aren't pretty melodies, giving us a record with that same sense of dread and bite that we'd expect. Oddly enough though, it takes about two or three minutes before the vocals come in and I'd almost thought I was listening to an instrumental cut. Then wouldn't you know, these guys go right back to thrashing. What I've gathered here is a death/thrash act that wants to play out of It's comfort zone a little bit, which might be a tough sell for some; albeit a godsend for others. From listening to the album during a quick refresher I can already tell that these guys can play, and they manage to put on a pretty pleasing performance even when it's all said and done. The band's use of atmosphere works very well to bring them in, while the unexpected dips into other metallic territories give them a chance to shine beyond the thrash. As we know, almost anyone can thrash with death metal vocals these days, but only a handful of bands can actually get it right. Maleficence are definitely one of those bands, with this short offering being a great sampler to what will know doubt be an even stronger performance in the future. It's definitely a promising little 7” vinyl and I think you're going to want to get your hands on it.

(2 Tracks, 11:00)

8/10

Qrixkuor - Three Devil's Dance (2016)

The first EP release from these extremely rough and sadistic UK death metallers sees a surprisingly heavy performance that doesn't feels quite as atmospheric as it does blistering, complete with some flying solos as well. M seems to be responsible for most of that, since no one told him to slow down and he's going to keep pounding on that kit like his life depended on it. For some this might be too much, but in all honesty I think they can jump off a cliff if they're not satisfied here. There are usually acts where the blasts seem a bit too out of control, but here there is so much of a keen sense to rhythm and melody that we're not being asked to toil through what are some very long songs in all respects. “Serpent's Mirror” is a little over fourteen minutes in length, but due to the fact that A (guitars, vocals) and S (guitars) aren't afraid to change styles and tempos at the drop of a hat, we get more of a soundscape rather than floating in the mist. Three Devils Dance definitely has it's moments of that, but we can bang our heads as well as pull out our air-guitars. That's not a bad thing in my book, and I really hope that you're not shocked to see an atmospheric metal band actually playing heavy metal music. Three Devils Dance has a lo-fi quality that seems like it would benefit more from a vinyl, and almost feels like an old death metal record from back in the day. As we get into “Crypt Of Illusions Bane” things do get a little bit foggier due to the tone of R's dreadful bass riffs and it starts to sound like you are indeed inside of a fucking crypt; but the leads are still able to shine through it and we're not completely wading through the murk of similar acts. There's nothing wrong with murk or wading in it, but when you start to hear a lot of similar trends in this kind of metal, it often becomes a breath of fresh air (ironic, since we're talking about a crypt) when you start to hear the guitars really giving it their all as if we're watching a classic Slayer performance. But if they want to throw some Hell Awaits in here, I'm not going to be entirely opposed to it. Neither should you.

“The Divine Architect” really throws the mist on top of us, so it seems that “Serpents Mirror” is a bit of a clever fluke and more or less a warm-up for the foggy aftertaste that we're about to receive much later in the album. For the rest of it, you can pretty much think along the lines of Portal or Grave Miasma, which isn't so bad and gets the job done. This is their first EP so it's obvious that they're still getting things set up as far their sound and style is concerned and this is more or less a showing of what they can do. It's definitely enough for a live setting, even though they'd only really be able to play one song if not headlining, but there's just enough mystique here to do that one song justice. That to me really says something about these guys, as it's not exactly easy to craft a song of this structure and length, no matter how much you might think it is in the beginning. A listener that has never really composed music before might come into the line of thinking that just because a song might sound simplistic to them, means that it's very easy to craft. Unfortunately, that is definitely not the case. We often think that because of the foggy tone and texture of the music coupled with the drum blasts, this kind of death metal is very simple and very easy to make but as “Serpents Mirror” described with only a mere hint of the fog that would later fill the album, there's a great deal that goes into each of these pieces, especially if you're a band that doesn't want to bore the hell out of your audience. When I saw Portal, the show was physically draining. It had been an experience like none other that I've seen in my life. Though that wasn't because the band was a slog to get through, it's because they left a major impact on me. That's the same way I feel about Qrixkuor. The band still have a bit more to showcase and I'm sure that they will in time, but this is a respectively solid EP and I'd definitely recommend getting your hands on it, murk raiders.

(3 Tracks, 38:00)

8/10