1914/Minenwerfer - Ich Hatt Einen Kamaraden (2016)

This split between California's Minenwerfer and the Ukraine's 1914 is certainly something I wouldn't have expected. Two bands on completely opposite sides of the world making war themed metal, of course in 1914's case, their country has literally become a warzone. So I'd assume that 1914 have actual experience with such a subject by now that it isn't just the product of several WWI books and documentary films. Unfortunately. My thoughts on the war are not very pleasant, but I won't get into them here. In any case, we have two bands that are both worthy of promotion.

The first of course is California's Minenwerfer (Minethrower) and they do produce a style of black metal that I'd describe as raw, dissonant and slightly technical. Though the band mainly use droll tones, there are also some obscure riff compositions that create a sort of slightly progressive sense to the music. They also love to thrash, blast and generally cause a ruckus. It's twenty minutes of extremely dark chaos with some unexpected nods to rock n' roll shredding (Iron Cross) that sound very similar to other acts in the genre. It isn't until “Second Battle Of The Masurian Lakes” that things really start to pick-up for me and I'm suddenly aware of their talent. Considering that members of funeral doomers Lycus are here (Nick Liuzzi plays the guitar in both bands) and Liuzzi's penchance for shredding up a storm during some of these admittedly rather punchy numbers, you're definitely getting everything you could want from a black metal act. It doesn't get much more dark or depressing than this without going into howl territory, and I'm glad that the record never reached that level of stupidity.

The next act we have is of course 1914, who have given us a much different sort of performance this time around. Aside from and intro and an interesting electronic remix, there are only two songs here, “Karpathenschlacht” and “8 × 50 mm. Repetiergewehr M.95.” Yeah, that's a hell of a name for a song and it sounds much more like a loaded weapon – which it is, of course. Fortunately, this one is a good mix of doom, black metal and atmosphere. It tends to stick towards more melodic and somber tones, but this just goes to show the listener that 1914 are more than the basic black metal affair of blasts and tremolo riffs. These unexpected excursions are what will propell the band further into relevance, and by all means; they should be blowing up by now. This is essentially well-crafted work that a great deal of thought was put into, not to mention the soundclips sometimes used in order to create the atmosphere of war. As I said, the electronic remix for “Gas Mask” is interesting and not just something thrown in for filler. Though dubstep is certainly used a bit within the piece, I found it extremely interesting when chiptunes came into play and it began to sound like these gentlemen were soring a classic Nintendo title. I love chiptunes obviously, and the fact that these guys decided to give that a go here is something I found quite inviting,

All in all, both bands have recorded decent efforts on their respective sides and you can't go wrong with a disc like this. I definitely feel that the 1914 side is much stronger than the Minenwerfer, but I would not turn either side away due to just how intriguing they can be in their respective styles. Though the two acts are similar in sound, they are by and large different in style, which you'll notice quite early on. This EP might be hard to come by as far as a physical release is concerned, but you can always pick up a digital copy on Bandcamp.

(8 Tracks, 43:00)

7/10

Snogg - Qivitoq (2016)

A weird sort of mixture of black and death metal from Slovenia, this duo created not one, but two EP releases last year. To be honest, I don't know why they even bothered to split them up as there was enough music on both the earlier released Snogg EP and this one to release as a full-length album. Perhaps the rest of the music wasn't quite finished yet, but I do very much hate the idea of being nickel and dimed for another half an hour of music. In any case, the four tracks that we receive here are quite interesting.

The disc starts out with an odd sort of static and keyboards, later heading into familiar black metal landscapes and even progressing right into death metal mayhem. When we arrive at “Nun Attack” we find that we're getting more of a noise approach, not uncommon to the atmosphere albums that I also review here alongside the metal numbers. It's good to hear a good mix of both, and frankly rarely happens. I will say that it is a bit peculiar when we are getting essentially raw scowls mixed in with noise in a way that does not come off like other noise or industrial recordings, but those sectons eventually see a transference into familiar black metal landscapes as the listen continues. These gentlemen also like to take us up into space with their music, as occurs later via the keyboard and rhythm sections in “In Death, Erection!” (Don't think too much about that title, please.) The last track here sounds like the kind of metaphsyical occult rantings I'd remember from early Killing Joke, but it works well with the background music and brings out that authentic occult feel. Later the track turns into something a bit more black metal, which is undoubtedly raw, but nevertheless an exciting listen. I love the amount of progressive elements here, reminding me of some of the mid-era works from Enslaved (Isa and Ruun in particular) and will also add that these progressive bits are splotched throughout the album, so there's plenty of enjoyment for fans of that kind of work as well. I still have no idea what the shave buzzer and rooster crows towards the end of the record are supposed to symbolize, unless it's the band's idea of a joke (referencing a shaved rooster) but it's also here that I would have felt the band's namesake track (Snogg (28:00) could have fit rather nicely, rather than it having been put on a separate EP.

In any case, if you're looking for something very different, I have a feeling that Qivitoq and the earlier released EP will be right up your alley. Again, they should have been packaged as one single recording, but what can you do – right? I'll have to reiterate that the recording quality here can still be a little more raw than some of us would like, but it definitely fits the gritty nature of the genre. Worth checking out, if you're up for the experiment. Not your father's black metal album, that's for sure.

(4 Tracks, 28:00)

7/10

Carved - Kyrie Eleison (2016)

I have been meaning to cover this one for a while now and I knew that I couldn't simply hold off any longer. When I first saw that Italian metallers Carved were described as “melodic death metal” I didn't really expect much seeing as many melodeath acts just seem to copy each other these days, but this one really blew me away. According to Metal Archives, Carved are actually considered symphonic death metal and the SepticFlesh and Fleshgod Apocalypse similarities are certainly here, making this act seem like a bit more than just a normal melodeath act. There's also a bit of a folk element here, which brings up obvious nods to Amorphis. Symphonics obviously lie heavy on the record, combining with folk elements to make it seem as if some sort of monumental war is being waged through each of the tracks. This is also produced with such a clarity that Carved do not feel like some bottom of the barrel underground act that you simply forgot about, instead they're the kind of metal act that has the ability to rise to the very summit of the mountain. What I like most about this record is how bombastic they've made it, almost reminding me of early Battlelore. But that bombast doesn't seem to come into blandness like Ex Deo for example, and it instead measures a sort of satisfaction in it's attention to detail. Carved aren't necessarily trying to be the most brutal act that ever smashed you in the face, and would prefer to dazzle your ears with many different shades of color and flavor. The guitar solos on this one are simply astounding at times, and when they double with the piano as in “Malice Striker” you can certainly feel the very passion on this album. That's not to say that they've completely stripped out pummeling sections of death metal, there's just a bit more offered here in lieu of bands who seem to only know how to do one or two things on an album. Yes, I know that a drum kit can be played realitively quickly to sound uncompromising. But there's more that can be done with a kit than that. There's also more that can be done with a bass guitar than to creat thick, heavy grooves, but some bands just want to throw everything into downtune and seem to forget that people love to hear the sound of a guitar simply played well. I get that with this album. Damiano Terzoni and Alex Ross (Souldeceiver) perform the dual-axe wield that decorates that point to me, and it decorates it beautifully. Unlike some reviewers out there, I haven't forgotten that a big part of heavy metal still lies in riffs melodies and leads, which Carved have not forgotten about.

Christian Guzzon performs both the harsh and clean vocals, with bassist Lorenzo Nicoli performing the backing growls. Their style is definitely more tinged to death metal, but that doesn't mean that Guzzon doesn't get a full-on clean moment in “Heart Of Gaia” which offers a much different side to the band than we might have expected judging on the previous cuts. Some bands would be content to continue the metallic onslaught throughout, but giving us a little more as Carved tend to do, is just what separates them from so many of their peers, even the more popular of those. The band also manages to mix saxophones together with djent riffs and hefty growls on “Swamp” which comes off as something else I wouldn't expect. Another thing I wouldn't have expected is the band's cover of The Bloodhound Gang's “The Bad Touch” which is going right on my phone playlist right after this review. Not only does it have the Carved touch to symphonics, but the death growls actually translate well into the rapped vocals, and the guitars actually emulate the keyboard sections in the original piece quite well also. It's definitely folkier than we expected, but much more interesting than some of the out of touch covers Andy Rehfeldt has done lately. It follows the tone of the original, which I love.

It's safe to say that Carved have much to offer to fans of symphonic death metal, folk instrumentation and unexpected pop covers. There is an increasingly large amount of bands jumping on the symphonic death metal bandwagon, but these guys actually know what they're doing. As with most records of it's type, it could use a bit more differentiation and is certainly no Mystic Places Of Dawn, but what is these days? Kyrie Eleison is a disc that gives us more than most bands in this genre, at least those I've heard for the past couple of decades – and that's a good thing in my book. It's the band's sophomore album and shows that they're still going strong. It would be great if someone recognized them or even decided to review them (reviews are a bit scarce for this one) but often acts, even of a great caliber get left behind for more popular or more heavily publicized acts. Don't worry though, as Carved are just as good as any of those bands, if not even better.

(12 Tracks, 63:00)

8/10

Viranesir - Supports Flag Burning and Female Raping (2017)

The Turkish experimental black metal project Viranesir has returned with a new album, this one more influenced than black metal than the previous disc I reviewed. It's a bit different, a little more raw and far less experimental than the previous as well. I can't say that I like it as much, but nor would I suggest Viranesir repeating itself, which to my knowledge has not happened. Emir Merdumgiriz recorded the record earlier in 2016 and it's filled with treatises on everything from politics to an overall hatred of the modern metal scene. The Turkish born composer has been through quite a lot during his career, and mostly the dissension seems to come from him being the exact opposite of politically correct. Some artists apparently fear for their image and have obviously taken a strict liberal basis (metal is far more liberal by nature) which actually feels more conservative in the sense that they're almost afraid to be on an album release with this artist. Such a dispute was handled in the same form similar of a hip-hop diss track, entitled “Metal Is Full Of Faggots” which comes off pretty well until Emir starts using the high pitched vocal for the other unnamed band member that he was quoting, and it becomes a bit funny. Emir seems to be going for an almost G. G. Allin approach to black metal in a politically correct age, which is going to lead to more and more issues in the future. I don't take issue with it, rather I champion it. Because Viranesir is taking a path that artists seem afraid to do. Satan no longer really invokes fear among metallers, so in order to upset and offend them in the way that early black metal records used to do, uncomfortable topics like rape, murder and siding with terrorists are satirically hinted around at, more than likely in a way that will offend and upset the scant few who actually pick this one up. I haven't seen anyone actually covering this record nor this artist, and it maybe be all the Bandcamp hassles as a reason for it. I think Viranesir was also banned from social media. Hell, just mentioning these guys for some reason may result in people thinking I support the myriads of horrible things talked about on a record, but I also know the difference between reality and fiction, satire and the actual intent or belief in these items. The record explores many instances of raw black metal, death metal, doom and even some experimental quirks in places – but it's definitely not as uncomfortable as the last and feels full of anger. Emir is seriously pissed.

To some, the record might come off a little bit soapbox, but that's fine as I've made similar records and will continue to do so. It allows Emir to get some things off his chest, which I think is truly great art. Even when the message may come off as grossly offensive, rather harsh and undoubtedly pungent, it is still art at it's core and must absolutely be respected. Viranesir has made an album by which to shock and upset a great number of people and we're certainly not going to shame him here for doing it. There's no money here, no big corporate agendas and most certainly no safe space garbage to be had over at The Grim Tower.
Judging it in the vein of raw black/death record, it's pretty strong and I think that fans of extremely raw approaches to what can be considered heavily aggressive genres well find something in it. If the song titles turn you off or suchlike, there's not much I can say there. Obviously not everyone is going to love this thing, but it hearkens back to the days when metal was actually considered evil and dangerous. To be honest, the last couple of tracks (in native Turkish) were my favorites on the album and definitely show the act's strong suites. If you can get around some of the more comical sections of the disc, you'll find that it's what we need in extreme metal today. Viranesir makes no compromises here and the entire album is better because of it.

(10 Tracks, 37:00)

8/10

Khonsu - The Xun Protectorate (2016)

Earlier we reviewed the 2012 debut album from these Norwegian electronic experimental metallers entitled Anomalia, and now after several years, we finally have a follow-up in The Xun Protectorate. This album marks their second release and could very well be their last one, at least from what I observed while reading a recent interview with the band. If that is to be the case, this album sees the Nords with an impressive amount of attention to detail, vibrancy and downright variety. Regardless of the album's overall concept, there isn't a necessary structure that flows in between all of the songs here and it is a bit of a Baskin Robbins album. But you really can't go wrong with thirty-one metallic flavors instead of vanilla, and when I describe each of them to you, I think you'll have even more of an interest in this material.

The first track here is “A Jhator Ascension” which is also the first single released from the band. The track pounds with blazing drums and blaring black metal tremolos. In all instances, it is the essential “black metal” track on the disc and feels inspired by Emperor. After that, things dramatically shift to a sort of electronic/industrial metal in “The Observatory” which features the first of many clean vocal spots from Rune Folgero of Manes. It sounds almost like eighties industrial, and I would have never expected it here. But as I am a huge fan of that style, I welcome it. With the guitars and electronics combined here, it almost sounds a bit like the final satellite stage from Mega Man X4 in some areas. There is still some black metal to be had here, and even some death metal bits before an astonishing solo effort. After that unexpected moment comes yet another in the fearsome black/death of “Liberator.” This is what happens when Khonsu fuse with latter-era Behemoth and tack some Cannibal Corpse onto the end of that. It's also nearly ten minutes long, so you're getting more than just a pummel. S. Gronbech knows his way around entertaining melodies, which have so far been one of my personal favorite things about this album. The track is still going to pound your face off, but then it goes straight into Manes style territory complete with a barrage of trumpets that almost sound like a king is being welcomed in. As the track ends, it gets hugely theatrical, which you may not expect – but keep in mind that this one battles between pomp and pulverisation at the same fucking time. It's quite unprecedented. The death metal continues as well, with frontman T'ol showing his hefty pipes on what soon sounds like a mixture of old-school Swedish death, robot rumblings and even more of Gronbech's melodic and moon-faced riffs. That guy knows how to write one hell of a nighttime melody and proves it here. There's even another strong clean vocal performance from Folgero.

I know that Manes is dead (I have no earthly idea why) but it's good to hear Folgero still able to perform similar material today. Do you even remember Manes? Have you heard any of their albums? Even the disc where they experimented with more modern and alternative approaches (it has rapping, for instance) is worth checking out. I'm not going to mention it by name, as I kind of want you to do that research and start from their first record, working your way up as I did. It is also necessary to do that with the band I'm supposed to be reviewing here as well (No, I didn't forget about you, gentlemen.)

Getting back to the record, we get a nice mix of harsh and clean sections within “The Death Of The Awakened One” as well as a decent solo section in the middle. Gronbech doesn't use a solo on every cut, but he does utilize similar melody lines, which manage to bring a little bit of uniformity to the album. Perhaps it is not quite the chaotic mess I may have described in the beginning, but it is still chock full of variety nonetheless. “Visions Of Nehaya” throws the most extreme moments of black and death metal together for a little less than three minutes and offers a filthy sledgehammer to the face. There are no clean vocals to speak of here. “A Dream Of Earth” sounds like it was written in space and is wonderfully filtered in the vocal region to sound like a machine is singing the lines. This piece heads even deeper into electronic territory as a female vocalist (uncredited, but a wonderful perfomance!) comes into play and fades out leaving us with a very familiar sound effect around the 4:15 – 4:19 mark. Yes, that very much sounds like the noises that the metroids made in games like Super Metroid and AM2R which only gamer nerds like myself will probably notice. Let's just hope Nintendon't!

Without spoiling any more of the listen, it's safe to say that the work done here is nothing short of exemplary. If you're looking for something heavier than you might be getting with other electronic metal acts, you're definitely going to find it here. As a matter of fact, I need to mention that some of the solos and riff-melodies I've accredited to T'ol may actually have been performed by Keep Of Kalessin's Obsidian C. That's because he performed additional guitars throughout the entire record, along with Rune Folgero's many clean moments. Altogether, it sounds like a full band with a highly produced and undoubtedly professional level of production quality. I'm surprised that I didn't hear much about Khonsu in mainstream heavy metal news media, but seeing as they are too busy talking about bands that I listened to back in my teenage years, it makes perfect sense. I think it goes without saying that the late release of this album might have placed it well under the radar for many of you – and since it seems to be their last, you may want to pick up on it now. If you're a fan of acts like mid-era SepticFlesh, mid-era Satyricon and of course Manes, then you'll definitely want this one in your collection.

(10 Tracks, 58:00)

9/10

Wings Of An Angel – Princess Of The Nile Returning From Manhunt In Honor Of Her Particular Religion Of Peace (2016)

It's absolutely impossible to keep up with albums from both Scott Lawlor and Wings Of An Angel. These musicians nearly release a new album every month or so, and that means there are literal dozens of albums from each. Wings Of An Angel actually offer their entire discography (which is nearing a hundred albums) for a name your own price equivalent, but you should first know what you're getting into with this kind of music. Of the many albums, he particularly chose to submit this one and I'm not really sure how much of these tracks I could stand for a long period of time. But keep reading, as this dark cloud does have an intriguing silver lining. The beginning of the record began with an almost unbearable and excruciating noise that felt far worse than nails scratching on a chalkboard. It took an awful lot of willpower to make it through, and there were times where I just had to completely tune it all out to preserve my sanity. You have to understand that these pieces are very long, most of them ranging in the double digits and one in particular being a half an hour.

Fortunately, the record eased up as I went on (and yes, I listened to this disc from beginning to end) and by the time I reached the third of four tracks, (the song titles are ridiculously long, so let's just call it the third track) I was starting to hear something of an intriguing sound pattern. I mean, this record can carve your soul. It is downright painful to listen to and not meant for the squeamish. If this is the sound of terror, as horrifying and pungent as such a thing can be – well, Wings Of Angel have done a fantastic job capturing that. There are people who might succumb to madness if left alone with this kind of music for too long. You might even be able to turn a sane and relatively normal person into a raving lunatic after long periods of exposure to these albums (if they are similar, I do not know) and I'm not kidding. Obviously the composer works very hard on these pieces and I don't want to shame his art here as I wouldn't like it very much if mine was torn to pieces either; but I will say that it makes for a very taxing listen to which only those with a cast-iron stomach would be able to endure without issue.

Hence, there is a silver lining in the only real track that I liked here, but felt was phenomenal – namely the finale entitled, “In A Typically Histrionic Despair Attack, She Joined Circus Training For Sexually Vulnerable Clowns” which rounds out to a mesmerizing and wholly deep meditative atmosphere. The artist here in question does consider himself a magician and most likely seems to delve into that of chaos. The music here must then be an extension of his own emotions, whether they are that of severe trauma or meditative tranquility. In any case, the finale for this recording consists of what I might consider to be one of the most relaxing and overall uplifiting pieces I've heard outside of my personal atmosphere collection. I am hoping there are more pieces like this within the artist's lengthy discography and I will enjoy using this music for the doctor recommended meditation that I was asked to undergo regarding my severe anxiety regarding the world and society at large.

"What begins as utter insanity ends with the most lulling and unexpected feeling that I could have ever foreseen from a disc of this nature." I'm quite sure he'll add that quote into the Bandcamp along with the many others sampled there, of which John Zorn is mentioned, but I don't really think you can speak about these kinds of approaches if you don't thow it to people like Zorn, Roach and several others who've made this music what it is. Quite obviously the chaos in the beginning is not very indicative of Zorn's work, but that isn't to say that he wasn't an influence.

Oddly enough, what is actually more interesting to me than the piece itself, is the title. When I first saw it, I kept thinking that it translates roughly to “Isis or what we should say ISIL/Daesh and of course, Islam which is referred to it's followers as a religion of peace.” Alan Moore always called them “Mohammedans” and they've of course been fighting the same wars since man was a thing. Yes, it's been that long. Even more peculiar was the fact that I happened upon a man practicing Zoroastrianism. Apparently that is also coming back. So I'm waiting on people to start anointing graves with menstrual blood again as they worship the Venus of Willendorf. Let's just go all the way fucking back, why don't we? Obviously, seeing a man (here in the US, actually) seriously practicing Zoroastrianism (he apparently came into an occult group asking for some sort of way to increase the size of his member, which is how I happened upon him – but that isn't important) in this day and age was something I thought was profound, as it literally predates both Christianity and Islam by a vast number of years. In any case, mankind is certainly changing for some odd and unknowable reason, by which I find myself kind of stumped on. In this day and age, I wouldn't be surprised if the news over in the Nordic regions started reporting frost giants. I'd simply sip my coffee and watch as they over powered our frail human armies and played basketball with their rolled up tanks. Slam Dunk!

In all honesty though, you should really give this one a listen as I find it quite disagreeable and agreeable to my senses at the same fucking time. It literally is a bizarre sense of balanced chaos, by which I am a bit curious to further discover. But I only have ninety-three more albums on this list to go, which you can also check out when you give the artist's Bandcamp page a view. Just make sure that you search for “Wings Of An Angel” and not “On The Wings Of An Angel” where you will find that ridiculous Sarah Mclachlan track which played repeatedly on oversaturated and unbearably long ASPCA commercials. I've heard that most of those animals are sent off to China anyway, and if that concerns you, then you should probably get your pets spayed and neutered as the great Bob Barker recommended. Blam!

(4 Tracks, Over 100:00)

7/10

Nick Noro - Vietnamm (2016)

Nick Noro of Survival1 fare is back with a new solo EP project which was supposed to be released earlier this month. It's only about eleven minutes long, but shows that he's still got it. The very beginning of the record revolves around a man who was shot in the head (was this Nick Noro?) and apparently survived (as it is quite possible to do, depending on where you were shot – rare, but the human body can be a bit more resilient than you'd expect) as it then began to play with punk, a little bit of thrash and even some kicking guitar solos that I would not have expected. It actually feels a little more streamlined, if I can say that. Bits of electronics can be heard here and there, but they aren't a primary factor of the act so much as the guitars are. The vocal approach oddly consists of many duets, which can be hit or miss and sound often like spoken word. So say what you want about it, but this is definitely different.

Though at the same time, Vietnamm reminds me just why it is that I like Nick Noro's music in the first place. Even though I'm still upset at the $100 price tag for No Grief, this (still unreleased) EP release is quite fairly priced at just five bones. That's a fair deal, as you get several different and unique tracks here. “Daywalker” and the Kiling Joke inspired “Yugen” are definitely two of the best songs I've heard from the three-piece (also, there are some nice little “tings” in the latter which I felt added depth) which seems primed to conquer the world with their next one. While this record is a bit bizarre in some instances, it still mixes together metal, electronics and classic punk in a way that rounds out to a much more accessible experience. I'm quite surprised to see this released by Turkish label Merdumgiriz, but it's also coming out on his own label, NBRD.

The music here is definitely good, and it's worth giving a listen for sure. I actually think this work is a bit better than the Survival1 material of the past, and I'm not sure if he's going back to that project anytime soon as this one sounds so similar to it. But however Nick chooses to brand himself, it still comes off entertaining, unique and unlike several other artists out there, even those of a similar style. I recommend giving Vietnamm a chance, if and when it finally releases. There's always been something here as far as I'm concerned, and I am continuously curious to what the future holds for this act. No matter what they choose to call themselves.

*I recieved an email notice today stating that the record is now available for purchase. So check it out!

(6 Tracks, 10:39)

8/10

Cult Of Fire - Life, Sex and Death (2016)

Let's not get this wrong twice, folks. Cult Of Fire are a Czech epic black metal act (not Indian, like you may expect) even though I'd hesitate to call them “epic black metal.” They feature members of Death Karma and Lykathea Aflame (have to bring up that underground legend) among others. They're very synth-heavy on this EP and even bring out an oddity called “Chinnamasta Mantra” which isn't anything like you would have expected from them. Perhaps. Not only do we have some female vocal chanting here, but what I'd consider to be a sort of keyboard ambience. In addition to this, chimes are used as well as backing element of light guitar melodies. Keep in mind, just before this very light and moody place plays on the disc, you'll hear a rather traditional slice of raw black metal entitled "Life" which entwines with some playful synths. The frontman also has a terrifying scowl, which feels very “black metal” and brings me that same sense of fright that I feel I should expect with the genre. Just remember that there are some lighter guitar melodies utilized within several of these tracks, which brings us a more light-hearted feeling as compared to something where hope is completely vacant. After all, there's nothing on the record that lyrically seems to speak to what one might consider darkness and evil and the whole of Life, Sex and Death seems to revolve around Hinduism and Vedic ritual.

It still pummels, especially three quarters of the way through “Death” but might be a little too twinkly for some of you, I'm sure. Cult Of Fire offer something different than most bands, which I think says a lot about them. It's a style of black metal that is certainly grim, but not necessarily filled with despair. As a matter of fact, the disc's last track (merely titled “Tantric Sex”) is something altogether different and nearly redefines the impact of black metal. I'm sure that some of the greats might be a bit upset with this happy approach to the music, but it comes off pretty damn refreshing. I'd also suppose that the massive influx of abrasive drumming is the climax portion in this musical sex act. Not too shabby. Let's hope that there will be more to come in the future, as I think Cult Of Fire is just the kind of thing that a stale black metal scene needs right now.

(4 Tracks, 20:00)

8/10

Aenaon - Hypnosophy (2016)

This record doesn't come out until Thanksgiving (November 25th) and that feels fitting as it is certainly something to be thankful for. Really thankful for. As in, we're about to replace the lighthouse wallpaper and by the time you read this, we'll already have a new background. So is this a ten, then? Is that what you're saying? You're damn right it is. But first let me explain a little bit about why that is. As far as Aenaon is concerned, The Grim Lord is no stranger to them as I believe we gave their last record Extance another unbelievably high score. So has lightning struck twice? Well, you already know it has and I'm just as amazed as you are. This Grecian combination of Arcturus and Sigh is just un-fucking-real, folks. There's nothing at all quite like it, and it only becomes grander as you continue through the record.

The soundscapes that these gentlemen create are nothing short of fantastic, which give us a record that not only traverses black metal, but several types of music in general. We will definitely hear massive amounts of horns, saxophones and powerful keyboard sections which remind me of all things, the mighty Sigh. The clean vocals and synth pieces also help to remind me of Arcturus, covering both their earlier days and their more bombastic periods. We could also mention Emperor/Ihsahn, Enslaved, Ved Buens Ende, Dodheimsgard and several others throughout the history of the genre – it's all here, folks. Hypnosophy isn't just a great album, it reminds me why it is that I love music in the first place.

That being said, let's talk about what the album does aside from pomp – it actually offers black metal. Huge, hefty mounds of it. Blasts still roar from the kit, harsh vocals still emanate from the mouth of the frontman and even if cleans are being used, we still manage to get that loathsome scowl that brings us face-forward into extreme music to begin with. Now there are some female vocals on this record in certain areas, but I don't feel that these gentlemen are shouldering their way into becoming a female fronted act with these pieces. They are just there simply because the guys felt that a female vocalist belonged on areas of the album. In my opinion, there's nothing wrong with that. We should embrace these sorts of decisions and allow artists to make the kind of music that they wish to make. Even though these fine gentlemen are signed to a label like Code 666, I really can't imagine those guys pushing the band in one diection or the other. Obviously these men are tremendously talented in their own right and there's no real reason to tell them what to do, or how to make an album. They've already got that pretty much downpact.

Again, Hypnosophy is still black metal (I have to stress that) and it is still rife with familiar tremolos, but there is just so much more here to explore. The solos alone are outrageous and that includes far more than what is done on the guitar. I can sense that some people might feel there is too much going on in this record for them and that's understandable. Some people just aren't open-minded enough for such brilliance, where music become more than music – it becomes art. I'm even reminded of extremely experimental acts like Estradasphere on this one, which just makes it all the more exciting. In all of the boring black metal acts I hear these days that are just playing the same thing over and over, it's good to hear such a refreshing hurricane of sound and style like this.

The record itself is only about ten minutes less than their last (which still rounds out to an hour) but so much is done within that time period that the hour often passes by without you realizing it. It's just such a good record with a memorable atmosphere that you'll get wrapped up in it. It'll take you away to a realm by which you'll enjoy any task that you're doing while listening to it. I'd recommend soaking it in alone, but if you'd like to play it while doing housework or while playing a game, possibly even while reading or writing – that would work as well. These guys just set up such a wonderful sort of aura with their music that really seems to put an already fantastic metal scene further on the map.

I recently discovered a copy of Metal Hammer Greece's A Tribute To Iron Maiden's Somewhere In Time buried out in the backyard and realized that there were just so many mind-boggling covers of what was already a classic album to begin with on it. Every single band listed was a Grecian act, which blew me away even further. What in the hell is going on in the Greek metal and rock scene? There are some real heavyweights over there and I'm not even going to mince words. We already know that acts like SepticFlesh and Rotting Christ are fantastic, but just from what I heard on that little sampler it soon became apparent to me that we've heard nothing yet.

So another new year, another good Aenaeon record. You know, I'd personally have to chalk Hypnosophy up as being one of the best moments of my year, even though it's been a decidedly shitty one all-around. It feels like this record is treasure chest full of gold and jewels, but is placed high on the top of a steaming mountain of manure. We all know that 2016 wasn't exactly a great time to be on Earth, but this record certainly seems to soften the blow. After you're done with Thanksgiving dinner, go down to the nearest record shop and pick up this one. Or go online and order it from your favorite retailer.

The disc is only seven euros and while The Grim Lord isn't really happy about having to buy a twenty-four euro special vinyl version for a bonus disc with six more tracks (Holy shit, there's six more songs here! What else did they do? That's like a full album) on accompanying CD (yeah, you read that right) there is actually more than enough material here to satiate you without having to pick up that version. (Kind of upset that the CD version doesn't have the bonus tracks either – why not? They might be great!)

Regardless of another awful maketing scheme, this is still a wonderful record and I'm serious – it's good enough that you actually don't need all that bonus stuff to check it out. Even so, the special edition vinyl version limited to ninety-six copies actually is pretty cheap (it's $26 USD – the price that the metal shop around here used to charge for one disc before it was shutdown) compared to what other bands charge for similar, and arguably the music here is far better than bands with special edition boxes that you've already purchased this year, so go for it if you have the money.  Make this purchase your last big one of the year.

Aenaon's Hypnosophy is definitely worth it for fans of experimental and avant-garde black metal everywhere, and I do mean everywhere. The Grim Tower highly recommends Aenaon's Hypnosophy and it's my favorite album of the year. I'd recommend it to anyone.

(7 Tracks, 55:00)

10/10

Army Of The Universe - 1999 & The Aftershow (2016)

Italian born (now based in LA) Army Of The Universe are back with their first record in three years, even though just by judging from the band's last album title The Hipster Sacrifice (2013), I'm going to have to go back and check that one out. Getting back to the recording, I find that it seems to be a mix of electronic dance music and rock, much in the vein of earlier Prodigy. Yet then again, there are some more gothic moments as well, like we'll hear on “Late Detroit Nights.” Yet then again, we'll hear some rather annoying dubstep influence in the background on “Down Till Dusk.” Thankfully, that's the only song on the record that really contains that kind of influence, or as least so much of it. I can do with a little dub, but too much is too much. There are thirteen tracks on this disc though, so one dubstep track isn't exactly going to kill it for me and the band offer enough of a varied mix of styles to keep me interested.

“1999” might come in like a roaring inferno, but most of these pieces seem to take a little bit more of a groovy and more dance-laden KMFDM nature, which definitely keeps the listener's attention as there's nearly something for everyone. When you pick up this disc, you're not getting the same song every time and it'll often sound like several different types of electronic acts. On “Another Escape” we get electronic Europop with nary a guitar riff in sight, which might turn off some fans, but that's okay. It's pretty catchy and shows that they can do more than electronic rock. “Digital Slag” comes in right with guitars however, certainly reminding me not only of KMFDM, but E1M1 from Doom. It doesn't stay that way however, as beats come in and the piece takes a more commercial vibe. That's fine though, as this is the kind of commercial electronic pop-rock I can stand. Also, those small clean sections (they have a watery feel to them) played by the keyboards almost have that spacey Super Metroid vibe which reminds me in part of the game's intro theme right after you start a new game (this is essentially the music that plays during the briefing section of the game and describes the events of the past two titles) which is something that might even surprise the band when they realize how close those keyboards sound to the piece. I'm not sure if this is intentional or not. We also have “The Aftershow” which has radio single written all over it. That chorus reverberates more than is entirely necessary, but I'd be a fool to tell you that I didn't enjoy it. Perhaps some of the verse material there is kind of filler, but they have to throw something in there to balance out the chorus.

“Snake Was Right” seems to be an anti-censorship cut, and in the age of PC culture, we could very well use it. Unfortunately, it's not really so much of a song as it is a long interlude with KMFDM inspired spoken word pieces. “Nobody 2.0” gives off that kind of electro-goth feel, which once again comes off a bit unexpected, as with anything else on the album. I can't say that I'm crazy about the disc's last track, “The Albert Hotel” but I can't say that I loved everything on the disc either. I will say that I found the majority of it easily digestible and for the most part, it's a solid act who've been at this for a long time. I can't really talk about their prior releases, so I don't know if this is departure from that kind of material or not, but I can say that I'm quite pleased with such a uniquely diverse electronic act. Metropolis has a great one on their hands, that's for sure. Check these guys out if you haven't.

(13 Tracks, 48:00)

8/10

Finsterforst - #Yolo (2016)

Finsterforst went from making one of the most interesting albums I've ever heard to, well... this. I'm scratching my head just as much as you are, I'm sure. But this is definitely the same band. I don't think we're in a time warp. In any case, there's definitely more of a folk vibe towards this one, possibly more like that of Tyr or Ensiferum, actually. The record sounds quite mighty at times, yet it can also have a bit of an Alestorm style kind of pirate vibe. What's more, is that there are two very interesting covers here, which you may not expect. There's also a cover here that I thought Tyr and Cruachan did much better, but I'm very particular on covers of classic folk songs, especially “The Wild Irish Rover” (here called “Wild Rover”) and very few covers really work for me. I'd love to hear them take on “Spancill Hill” though. Despite the record being a bit playful and full of ten thousand horns as well as happy world music, lyrically it's quite harsh. The music itself might appear a bit cheery, but the frontman seems to have just went right on with the ferocious snarls as if he was still performing experimental black/death. Now the first cover we have here that I'd like to talk about is Miley Cyrus's “Wrecking Ball” which I've heard covered online by various bands as it is (I'm a junkie for metal pop music covers) even though I'll say that Finsterforst really knocked it out of the park. It does carry on the electronic pop nature of the original, but with the combination of strong lead melodies and unexpectedly powerful symphonics. Yes, that sounds silly that I'm even suggesting such a thing, but if you haven't heard the original, you'll like it.

Now as for Michael Jackson's “Beat It” I actually love this song better than the original. Yes, but there's one thing. The band totally ruined it at the very beginning with some weird dub-electronic shit. I actually recommend fast-forwarding the piece a couple of seconds until you actually hear the first set of riffs, which begins the song. This is actually such a big deal to me that I'm going to carry the track over to a program I have and cut the whole beginning of it off. I've done this before with cuts that I add to my personal collection and if it makes me enjoy the song even more, than it's worth it. As for the cut, the clean vocals are awesome here. I didn't expect the horns, but that solo is actually better than Eddie Van Halen's. I wish it was a little longer. I told you guys, I'm a real stickler about metal pop covers, especially since “Beat it” got me into guitar based music around the age of five. I'll applaud their experimentation, but less is more here. We also have some rapping on the record in the form of “Der durch die Scheibeboxxxer” which is definitely not something I would have expected from this band. The rapping is in German, but will probably turn off fans of their previous works for sure. It almost seems like they went from a serious act to JBO territory. In any case, this short but sweet little experiment is going to come at fans like a punch in the nose and hopefully they'll recover after such a hefty blow. I can't say that I hated it, but it wasn't a terrible record either. Just a bit different than I would have ever expected from the act. Definitely listen to a few songs first if you're on the fence. I still have no idea what came over them to make this recording, but it's definitely strange.

(10 Tracks, 41:00)

7/10

Throne Of Pestilence - Two Singles (2016)

As I was attending a release party show for some Little Rock metalcore act that I hadn't really heard of (there were several other bands though, one of which surprised the hell out of me – Legions Await) I wound up talking with a member from this metal act, which prides itself on being different. Considered tech-death, the only real technical death metal cut that I heard from this act was a piece called “Untitled #1” which was a real bruiser, I can say. Though people's names often escape me, I do know that the gentleman I spoke with is the guitarist of said act and he's definitely got his chops down. I particularly enjoyed the dissonant riffing structures prevalent in “Collapse” even though the piece really felt more like that of a death/groove session with a very hypnotic backbone, than that of a tech-death track. This being said, the man did inform me that he was interested in making each track sound differently than the others, a formula that I certainly stand behind. The drummer here is an absolute beast as he showcases heavily throughout the mix in “Untitled #1” but there are certainly places that could use a bit of growth. These aren't my songs, so I'm not going to make suggestions of that nature, but I will say that there needs to be a little bit more musculature here and I'm sure that this will come in time. “Collapse” actually feels a bit jam session in the latter half, which is where I feel that more needs to be added. Perhaps with vocals it would sound better as well, but unfortunately the band's former vocalist left. The mastermind behind this project is a very inventive individual and he even plans a sort of “alien music” side project, which sounds increasingly interesting to me as well. There's not much here yet, but there will be when the songs are further built and the vocals added. Still, Throne Of Pestilence seem to have quite a bit to offer and they do manage to stand out, like some of the other bands in our local Arkansas scene. Give them a listen and let me know what you think.

(2 Tracks, 7:00)

Stench Price - Stench Price (2016)

Considered a “grind revolution” on their official Bandcamp page, this mostly Russian lineup contains several guests in order to make a sort of grind that is pretty much unparalleled to anything that I've ever heard in my life. Considering that I'm really picky with grind, that's a great thing. Featuring members of Escapethecult, Kamlath, Nebesbiesnami, Necrophagist and others, this three-piece is bound for some sort of unknown and bizarre glory that you'll never understand until you've gotten this record in your hands. It's quite short at just a litte under twenty minutes, but considering “The Vitality Slip” manages to play for an entire five minutes, that's a Nobel Prize moment for the genre. The best way to describe an album like this is to take it song by song, and we'll start out with “Living Fumes” which features Danny Lilker of Brutal Truth. The track starts out like black metal, before it teases us with hints of lounge music. Lilker's vocals sound absolutely scathing here and the track pummels before it goes right into elevator music. Guitars are played furiously, almost in a thrashy atmosphere which leads into machine-gun drum explosions, right before bringing us back to an elevator. It makes me think that there's a war inside of a shopping mall, and though people in the mall are fighting off and being devoured by ravenous monsters, there's still one group of people who are just patiently waiting to get to the floor where all the hell is taking place. Hints of solos appear, as well as one massive breakdown. Next we have “Furnaces Burn” which features “Revolting” Rogga Johansson of Paganizer (and several other bands, like the one in quotations.) This one is a little short, but it delivers a fast and heavy approach regardless of a hint of elevator music. They could have done a little better on this one I feel, Rogga deserved a much stronger track. I'm not really familiar with Karin Utomo of High Tension, but she appears on “Pressure” by which there's a video for. Being female, we actually get a little bit of a clean feminine vocal approach in sections, but when she's not doing that, she's tearing your fucking head off. This woman is simply ravenous, but at least she has the good nature to apologize for it. Next we have “4.27.15” which features Matt Phelps of Cynic who is proving his age here, unfortunately. It sounds like Phelps is trying his best Schuldiner impression, with the days of monumental debut Focus long behind him. It almost feels like a punk performance and more or less a common grind track. You wouldn't even know it was a member of Cynic if you hadn't looked on the Bandcamp page.

“The Genocide Machine” features Dave Ingram of Hail Of Bullets, and it more or less seems to back the death metal frontman rather well. His heavy growls give the drudging track just what it needs. There's some definite experimentation within the riffs, but then it flows right into blistering death metal where the performance just feels right. The album ends with what I think is it's best track, featuring an unexpected merit in Child Bite frontman Shawn Knight. I saw Child Bite back in '14 and they didn't really catch me, but I absolutely love this performance. I'm reminded of a cross between Mike Patton and Dave Brockie, which sounds as mind-blowing as you'd expect. The elevator music (ahem) bossa-nova that is featured here, actually works very well too. I'd love for project mastermind Peter Shallmin to make a bossa-nove album as well, as I quite like that kind of music and it's relaxing. I love the fact that he can create complete and total chaos, a veritable shitstorm of unruly fucking hell – but I can really get into these cheery tunes as well. Also, the ending of this one is pretty masterful. I almost feel like Brockie's there and it means a lot. Knight almost channels him right towards the end of this one, and I love it. I'm pretty sure that the former GWAR frontman would have given his blessed flatulence on this project and that makes it well worth checking out. Unless you've got a time machine, you'll have to wait until the end of November for this one. But don't fret folks, as it's definitely worth it for the most part. “The Vitality Slip” is worth the price of admission alone.

(6 Tracks, 18:00)

8/10

Viranesir - Dad's Choking On My Vomit Of His Semen (2016)

Viranesir went from being an obscure act that pressed it's own albums to a band that everyone loves to hate. Who's everyone? Well, how about Facebook and Bandcamp? The band have been kicked off of Facebook (which isn't a big deal as bands make new pages all of the time) but they did get removed from Bandcamp, which is a first for me. I'm sure it happens, but not often. So why am I reviewing these guys? Because this is absurdity, it gets under people's skins and makes them uncomfortable. Checkout the Merdümgiriz website and you can see mastermind Emir Toğrul's writings for yourself, in all of their interesting glory. Keep in mind that Toğrul also has a couple of other bands, and they've all created a new album this year as well – Blliigghhtted, Funeral Of God and Red Bible Black (compilation, but still a new release) all have new material to check out, so if you like this odd release, perhaps you will like those discs as well. Now Viranesir has had a history of explicit album titles, even though debut Fountain Of Uncertainty wasn't all that bad. I never really expected the guy to go this far, but hell – it got them attention and that's the best you can hope for in this industry. Let's see, we have Kill Your Repulsive Child, Shoot On Mom's Corpse, Raping Lesbians For Freedom, Kaos Garden: Burn The Homeless, You Jewish Bastards, Children's Suicide Music ((Ritual of (Love) Is The Key)) and finally, this one. Now most of this shit cracks me up, because I can take a joke and understand black humor. Then you have the Blligghhtted release, Into The Cunt Of The Witch (which really isn't all that bad, to be honest) which carries the theme onto other albums. Though I hope he would kind of keep it to Viranesir, as they've named albums like this in the past. The most odd thing about this record though, is it's name. I don't understand it. I understand what it's supposed to mean, but as an editor I'm confused. Is the semen vomit? Because how does that work? If someone coughs up semen, we don't necessarily call that vomit, like something related to food, blood or bile. I've never even heard the term, “vomit semen” before. So it has me confused. A better title for this might be, Dad's Choking On My Semen While I'm Vomiting On His Dick. I know, I just made that ten times worse and I'm a horrible individual. But as a writer, you have to work with what's presented.

As for the album, it seems to consist of a great deal of oblong keyboard mannerisms which more or less serve as the musical background here. It is not a guitar-laden release, nor does it contain any black metal. Sure, Viranesir might have been black metal in the beginning, but with this one, he decided to go for something of an electronic acid trip with weird squeaky vocals. It almost sounds like he's making fun of American pop music and homoeroticism, in a way that probably “triggered” a lot of writers. Better yet, I'm sure some emailed him back at the Merdümgiriz address and wondered what in the hell they had just been sent. It is certainly abstract, somewhat bizarre. I want to feature this in a print magazine I work for, but because of all the crap regarding the Bandcamp/Social Media situation as well as the title, I wouldn't want to be blacklisted. That's just the way it goes sometimes, so just consider this review to be more or less my article on one of their weirdest records ever to grace my inbox this year. If I want to put this into perspective, and even attempt to give you a proper display of the disc by which you're curious about (or you wouldn't be reading this review) then I could just tell you that the whole thing is like an out of body experience. It feels like you're on heroin or something. I just can't really put this atmosphere into proper form without telling you that it's demented. This isn't the kind of music that you play when you're looking to feel happy, it is instead a sort of record where it feels like something very wrong is occurring. If you play this in the background of well, I mean – I really don't even want to describe the scene in which a track like closer “Bourgeois Beleaguered II” would appear, but I'm sure that you can find such situations that may very well be going on from various conspiracy pages by which to decorate such unpleasant music. I don't believe that this is a bad record, it's just exceedingly uncomfortable. It feels like Toğrul has gone more into realms of horror than black metal here, which is great as Blliigghhtted more or less captures the early black metal element of this band. There's nothing wrong with changing hats and adapting new personalities and I do wish Toğrul the best on this one. I really don't know what that means as a whole considering everything that has happened, but perhaps these decisions gave the project a bit of an image booster and he needed it. 

I honestly don't care for many of the high-pitched squeals as you might expect from my rather explicit thoughts on their usage in other records, but here it comes off as part of the atmosphere. Conceptually it's just a bunch of weird keyboard and drum compositions, with all sorts of vocal iterations that almost seem to parody DSBM. Yet strangely enough, it all works and brings with it the sort of atmosphere that feels much creepier than several of the horror-influenced soundscapes that I receive on a montly basis from various bands and labels. Considering there is no Bandcamp page for this recording, you should be able to find it on the Merdümgiriz site as well as the writings I mentioned earlier. I do have my own personal opinion on the entire Viranesir image, but I'll actually hold my tongue on this one, as I have an inkling of what is going on here and would rather keep that to myself. At any rate, bands like this who are out to upset the status quo and really distort the minds of common individuals are definite winners in my book. Maybe they'll call their next one Licking Out The Excrement From Christ's Asshole in order to continue on with this grotesque and uncomforting imagery. As for the record itself? It'll include accordions and xylophones. Why not?

(7 Tracks, 37:00)

8/10

Spreading Dread - Age Of Aquarius (2016)

Though you may not have heard of them, (and the only review that exists in English is a three-star from Metal Temple) this is actually the sophomore release from the Czech based power/thrashers. (Am I reading that right, Metal Archives?) So the idea of this review is pretty simple. Should I go along with what the temple scribes consider to be a realitively decent record, or should I look a little further? First of all, this record seems about the furthest thing from power/thrash. It sounds instead like more of a mixture between melodic death metal and modern metalcore. Except for the fact that it changes from that quickly after album opener “Devolution” and mutates into a more neo-classically influenced style that reminds me of a mixture between the music of Castlevania and Undertale. Of course, that's just the long intro. We later get clean vocals and more of a Gojira or Tesseract progressive metal feel to the music that I just wasn't expecting at the start. This is much better than the opening note and I personally think they should have thrown that one in the garbage.

Starting the disc on a note like “Oil Stained” (it comes with it's own intro) would have been a great way to open the performance as a whole. I know for certain that there are a few reviewers who have admitted to only listening to the first track on a record to see if they like it. Do you understand what that means, guys? I know it sounds pretty pathetic, but because some people can't be bothered to check out more than one track on a damn record, they probably missed out your more interesting material due to that unnecessary opener. As I continue listening to the rest of the album, it only gets more interesting and features more venturing out into different realms far beyond the normalcy of the opener. “Conspiracy” begins with a hypnotic riff as it goes into what I could consider something of a hefty death/thrash and then builds into a sort of atmospheric rock. Spreading Dread show us that yes, you can go from a death/thrasher into atmopsheric rock, but it's not common. Then the track carries us right into a core-influenced death pummeler that is far more brackish than the death/thrash offered in the beginning. They could have opened the album with this one as well. “Karmic Wheels” rolls right into technicality, as well as what could be a sort of filtered vocal.

You've got to hand it to these guys as they really are trying to make a complex record, which is exactly what Metal Temple reviewer Lauren Fonto had an issue with. She said, “I think they are trying to do too many things with one song.” Good thing there are second opinions, right? You see, the one thing that Fonto seemed to not care about, is what attracted me to this act. Sure, they seem to go a little bit radio on some of these cuts, but I like that. I still think that they should pretend that they never wrote “Devolution” because it doesn't really mirror the mostly progressive nature of what has been achieved here, the mostly technical nature of what has been achieved here – and even though there are sections of modern and core influence, much has been accomplished in forty minutes than a slew of similar acts have tried for in the past.

Once again, I do believe that more people probably would have picked this one up if they had put the melodic deathcore track on the bottom and gave writers a real example of their talent. I'm not going to mince words here though, as I've never been a fan of core atmospheres, especially a disc that crunches so heavily on deathcore when it wants to be heavy. I'd have to be a fool not to see that there was something promising budding out here, and Fonto seemed to say the same thing in her review of the disc. We both seem to agree that these guys have potential, but she thinks they're too rambunctious and I think they're just too damn core. Did you forget that death metal existed? If they would fuse with death metal, there might be more of an applicable palette for me, but all of these breakdowns and such can even take away from the wonderful progressives and astonishing solos that these guys manage to pull off. Spreading Dread didn't really get the respect they deserved this time around, and maybe if they decide to switch the tracks around next time (and I honestly do recommend several bands to do this, because it is true of several reviewers – this is why the single is normally the first or second track on an album) on the promo, they'll get more coverage. I definitely that you give Age Of Aquarius a listen though, as it is a real diamond in the rough that can cause as much surprise as cringe. It just depends on how you like your metal, because this record is a buffet of sorts.

(8 Tracks, 43:00)

7/10

Ad Nauseam - Nihil Quam Vacuitas Ordinatum Est (2015)

Originally known as Death Heaven, these Italian technical death metallers have rebranded themselves with a new moniker and a new style of playing as well. '07's Viral Apocalypse was considered a pure death metal record, whereas this disc is far more artistic. There's nothing wrong with traditional death metal, but this is an album which certainly took a great deal of time to acomplish and the structures within it are nothing short of amazing. It's not even about the heavy sections of the disc, as those really don't seem to sell it for me. Instead, I think I'm getting a more abstract and unique perfomance here, similar to Ephel Duath except a little easier to follow. Andrea and Matteo more or less decorate these songs in the most obscure almost Dali-esque fashion, making this record almost a literal musical interpretation of surrealism. There are certainly burly moments to be found and the drumming can get a little fiery at times, but for the most part you are going to be exposed to the kind of performance that demands multiple listens. There are even sections on this record that I can't even describe in a sane manner, they seem to remind me of horror film scores and have a great deal of what I'd say are cello/violin influence. For some odd reason, the screech of a cello still works to send shivers down my spine and that doesn't change with this album. Gorguts fans will definitely want to get their hands on this, and I'll add that I've certainly enjoyed this record a fair bit more than anything from Gorguts as of late. It feels as if you're swirling through a void at times, which make the experience something of a hallucination.

Towards the latter half of the record, the performance becomes a bit more rough-edged and perhaps doesn't appeal to me as much as the first couple of cuts, but this might be the kind of material that death metal fans were expecting. After all, not everyone wants Picasso or Escher from a death metal act and that I can understand. Personally though, I think that these unexpected references are what makes the music so interesting to me as a whole. I use the term “atmosphere” quite a bit, but that is definitely the feeling I'm getting from this one. Perhaps I can't quite understand the harsh vocal elements, but it's about being immersed inside of this awesome atmosphere that seems to go every which way possible, branching outwards into several different directions all at once as it seeks to nearly transcend the boundaries of death metal. It's nearly avant-garde in some instances, yet stays grounded in the death metal world thanks to the machine-gun drumming and pounding bass riffs. Ad Nauseam still play by the rules, but they have no problem coloring far out of the lines and even creating a completely different picture on the other side of the page. Say what you want, but there just aren't many bands out there quite like this and I'd definitely consider giving a couple of tracks a listen here, so that you can see for yourself just what an awesomely unique act this is. It is true that they wear some of their influences on their sleeves, but even so, it all comes together to make an impressive death metal album. If you haven't hear this one yet, then you probably need to.

(8 Tracks, 55:00)

9/10

Assailant/Ubiquitous Realities - Bringers Of Delusion (2016)

We have here a split between two acts from Costa Rica, the first one being Assailant which is technical thrash metal with Ubiquitous Realities which is technical death metal.

Assailant reminds me a bit of Sepultura fused with latter-era Death and with maybe a hint of Cynic. Most of you are going to hear the Death influences though, which I think are quite apparent and show just how well these guys can play. Not only is guitar work completely abstract, but the drumming seems to line-up perfectly with what can be some rather bizarre compositions at times. Assailant have a vocal end as well, but he's not doing anything that I haven't heard from Chuck Schuldiner before and the band make a better instrumental act. It just depends on how you like your technicality. I can say that I would rather listen to the hard-edge of Assailant over a mainstay like Voivod which just bores me to tears and that's saying something. Yes, I'd rather listen to an act that just started out than one who's been around for decades because I think that the act sounds better than the legend. There, I said it. Crucify me. I had the chance to see Voivod live and walked out. They just were never that interesting to me and these guys seem to capture the essence of technical thrash much better.

Next we have Ubiquitous Realities, which is by and large different from the Assailant. First of all, these guys aren't just technical death metal – they're technical brutal death metal. After a slight movie quote, the record takes off into what can be considered the most extreme realms for the heavy metal genre. The bands that you know for playing this kind of music are those that have surgical procedures as monikers and intense gutturals. Also, I might mention that Ubiquitous Realities aren't a one-trick pony. The songs here actually have depth, and even some solo numbers. Opener “Bringer Of Malevolence” at one point had a sound that made me think the frontman was grinding his teeth, an approach I haven't heard in this genre before, even though it sounded pretty silly. There's definitely a lot of kick-drum here, but the fact that I am hearing a slight bit more than that makes these guys a bit more interesting. Sometimes they dip into breakdown or djent territory, but at least they're thinking out of the box. Especially on the spacey instrumental closer “Alterated Perception II” which I don't think anyone wwill see coming. If you like acts like Fallujah and Animals As Leaders, you'll find something there too, but they're still a BDM band. I promise!

Such an extreme partner on the disc makes for an odd split, I must say – but neither band disappoint and there's something for thrash and BDM fans here that I feel both will be happy with. I tend to like the Assailant part more as I think I've heard several better technical BDM acts like Wormed and 7.H Target, but these guys aren't half bad and at least it isn't the same old shit. I could see myself really getting into these guys after they've gotten a full-length out to show what they can really do. Yes, I'm saying that there's something in Ubiquitous Realities that could be very promising if they stick with it. Definitely give this record a listen, as this is a very strong Costa Rican split that just very well might surprise the living hell out of you.

(8 Tracks, 31:00)

9/10

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

Pit Of Carnage - The Rise Of The Fallen King (2016)

Danish brutal deathers Pit Of Carnage have returned with their second full-length, just two years after 2014's The Beginning Of The End. The band are made up of just two guys, but GoreDrummer handles the drumming, guitars and vocals relatively well, while Peter Juelsgaard makes himself known in the bass department. He only plays the bass, but his licks are very much a part of the entire performance. Sometimes these guys break the forumal completely for some airy keyboard atmospheres, but I think that's part of the charm. They crush, but leave room for a little more, which is what I like. Even when I take a look at their compositions, I can see that there's quite a bit of technicality and groove as well as melody in some areas that you don't hear quite all the time in this kind of music. We also get some solos from time to time, which you may not ever hear in this genre, depending entirely on the act. There are more bands than I can count that give a stable performance (which almost always include the same song regurgitated in ten different ways) in the BDM genre, but Pit Of Carnage are standing out for doing their own damn thing.

Sometimes it sounds a bit Nu-Metal with the downtuning (which might upset people) and there are even some breakdowns here and there as well as some prog touches, but it's not a record that I feel has an absence of overall riff-matter or inspiration. When I mean “riff-matter” I mean that I can actually hear some riffs on the disc, not just an overload of bass and drums. Pit Of Carnage don't seem to be playing any kind of style beyond that of their own, which is something worth considering if you're looking for a record in this genre that goes out of it's way. It's not exactly perfect, but open-minded fans of technical death metal and brutal death should come together on this one. Just be sure to keep your ears peeled for the odd effect near the end of “Reflection Of Desire.” That's the kind of experimentation I'm all about. No doubt you'll hear several more of these little experiments incorporated in various places on the disc, so you'd better give it a listen if you're tired of bland bands.

(10 Tracks, 28:00)

8/10

Nox Formulae - The Hidden Paths To Black Ecstasy (2016)

Hailing from Greece, The Hidden Paths To Black Ecstasy is the group's debut release on Dark Descent. The act consider themselves to be a bit more than an act, actually and would consider The Hidden Paths To Black Ecstasy to be a “sonic grimiore” of some sort. As in, it is a literal book of black magic in the form of black metal. They also consider themselves to be Luciferian fanatics, and seem to have developed an entire foundation based on several orders of LHP. While that is all well and good, I'm not here to review the disc for it's occult qualities, but for it's musical qualities – and I found those to be quite pure and fresh. Nox Formulae sound like the kind of black metal act that actually has force and feeling behind it. It has that “raw yet produced” quality that makes it stand out, especially in craftsmanship.

Wolfsbane 1.1 is a hell of a guitarist and he's capable of bringing out some very bright leads to what can at times be rather dark and oppressive soundscapes, just like we like them. Mezkal also stands out well in the mix, utilizing a large variety of drum frills which change the music from everything to standard-fare black metal, to something a bit more groove-laden, like mid-era Satyricon. If you're looking for something truly traditional from these Greeks, beware – because you're not going to find it here.

As far as the band's frontmen, they perform in much of the same fashion that we'd expect from occult black metal, like theatrical shouts and spoken word sections in addition to the harsh scowls (which are definitely the best point of their vocal work.) It's a bit unusual for a band to have three vocalists, but Monkshood 333 (which I am assuming is responsible for the scowls) along with added bits by Nightshade (probably not named after the NES classic) and Kurgasiaz seem to work well enough together to make a listener believe that these three voices are coming from just one individual. In my book, that's quite stellar.

The record itself is only about forty-five minutes long, but it's approach of mixing what at times can be bludgeoning black metal with more disco-friendly beats (and hey, I'm not judging here – I love that kind of approach) while at the same time peppering the disc with sections of atmopshere and lead melodies (we might as well call them guitar solos, even though they seem to be pushed towards the back a bit) makes for a listen that doesn't get old.

Most of what I've read as far as the concept of the record is concerned seems to mix various occult schools in with something like H.P. Lovecraft, but that to me represents not only a modernization of the sound as a whole, but of the occulticism behind it. It would not be foolish or erroneous to consider The Hidden Paths To Black Ecstasy a new-school approach to black metal, as by all means; that is what we are getting here. It still resembles black metal to me, but it doesn't leave me with many of the lumbering approaches that I have heard from hordes of black metal acts on a day to day basis. I still cannot tell you why most of the end sections of these tracks, which consist mainly of a notable guitar solo or melody, sound so muffled in the back – I'm still not sure why that is. Even the creepy melody that begins “O.D. Dominion” sounds a bit muffled, but it's really nothing to complain about too much. At least it is an audible melody, which is more than what I would get from some of the other bands in the genre.

Greece has always had a certain touch which black metal that I've always considered very interesting and efficient, which might have something to do with how popular the Luciferian archetypes have become over there within it's rock scene (keep in mind that Rotting Christ are considered a rock band in Greece, and are considered one of the country's best) and the possible influence that many of those could have within the collective subconscious of these musicians. Greek black metal aways seems to have a very artistic and sometimes even a beautiful approach, depending on the act – which I think has much to do with that beautified Luciferian egregore by which an entire belief basis has been molded from. Truly Greece is becoming Lucifer's country, which I see no issue with, especially if they continue to make impressive black metal like this for many more years to come.

It's worth mentioning that aside from the large number of atheists in France, there had been (and still is to some extent) a great deal of Luciferian related occult black metal acts there as well. I don't tend to like the French approaches as much as the Grecian ones though, there's just something truly unique about them. However, I do not think it's fair to say that Greek black metal has ever had a subpar release, or that French black metal has never had an amazing release. The reviews on this blog would allow a listener to discern both of those points easily.

In any case, I think Dark Descent really found a great acquisition here with Nox Formulae and they continue to show the strength of that mighty Luciferian archetype, by which I hope never falters or fails to inspire these great works of modern art.

(9 Tracks, 45:00)

8/10