Forged In Black - Fear Reflecting Fear (2016)

Attempting to follow in the footsteps of influences like Judas Priest, Helloween, Memory Garden, Grand Magus and more, these UK heavy/thrash and progressive (definitely progressive) metallers have offered up four songs and a little over twenty minutes of new material within them. These guys used to play in a band called Merciless Fail, but decided to kick things up a notch with their new moniker and a much heavier band to boot. That being said, we actually get a lot of little prog-jam sessions and even some Maidenisms that I certainly won't turn away. There's definitely a doom feeling to the music here, reminding me a lot of Candlemass with opener “1000 Wings” and the title cut, which almost sounds like it was ripped right from a Candlemass record. Only difference is that we have a little more attention to detail in the form of the prog, which not only gives these tunes more melody, but also allows them to escape into unforeseen and rather brilliant realms. “Renegades Of Last Rites” explores more thrash, while closer “Shadows Still Remain” adds a bit more progressive influence into what brings back the doom feel of the first two cuts. For some odd reason there's an obnoxious harsh vocal roar utilized on the record that just doesn't fit in with the rest of the material and rubs me the wrong way every time it is used. Though I haven't heard the band's earlier debut, I certainly can't find any other problems with this disc other than the aforementioned and would heavily recommend it to fans of the bands I mentioned above, as well as the doom influences like Candlemass (which I'm kind of surprised wasn't mentioned on the band's press leaflet) and numerous others in that vein. It's good stuff regardless, and I wouldn't pass it up. I'm quite impressed otherwise.

(4 Tracks, 21:00)

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

Perihelion - Hold (2016)

Hungarian post-metallers Perihelion never cease to amaze me, which can certainly be said with their beautiful new EP release. Although it's rather short, there's still enough here to fill the void between their next release and I can honestly say that fans will not be upset with this one. If you don't know much about Perihelion, they can be compared to Thy Catafalque, Alcest, Vintersorg, Solefald and even Borknagar. The only difference here is that the black metal sections of each would be removed, as well as the scowls. Perihelion give us more a mix of powerful lines and melodies, where choruses aren't even as necessary as the verses themselves. Anyone can write a hooky chorus, but how many times can you catch someone's attention with mere set of verses? Frontman Gyula Vasvari challenges that with three strong and entirely memorable songs that wouldn't have changed my score one bit if they'd been added to Zeng. There's nothing here that sees the band faltering, and if nothing else, they're sounding even better. I still can't tell you what these lyrics are about, but it's all so wonderfully ethereal that it doesn't even come as a concern. To think that three men can be capable of such a powerfully emotionally performance is nothing short of amazing. There's nothing threateningly heavy or even dark to be found on this one, even though I do sense some deep emotional pain within the vocals here. In other words, it's a performance that you can feel and that's just not something I can say for a lot of bands. There's just no one out there like Perihelion. Interestingly, they covered “Sycamore Trees” from Twin Peaks (still kicking myself for not having watched that yet) in English, which I believe is a band first. The fact that Vasvari can sing in English I don't feel is a real issue, because it's quite obvious that the performance itself is what's memorable, and if the Hungarian dialect sees these verses and choral lines much stronger, than I'm all for it. I learned long ago that music doesn't have to be understandable in order to enjoy it, which is what these gentlemen perform here again. It's a little short, but I'd be shooting myself in the foot if I didn't highly recommend it. Like many of these short records, I'd rather have waited to hear these put on a full-length but certainly won't complain with the performance laden within. This is probably the third time I've heard this record, and every time it has been just as captivating. Very few acts are able to move me like Perihelion, so make sure that you pick it up if you're looking for a real dose of raw passion.

(4 Tracks, 14:00)

9/10

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

Flourishing - Intersubjectivity (2012)

Let us crawl into the infernal depths of the fetid abyss, where we find the rugged and dehumanized sound that makes US trio Flourishing the kind of weird entity that they are. It's awfully funny that these guys would call themselves Flourishing, as there's nothing about this sound that even feels like it should flourish in the way that one might plant a field of flowers of something. There's nothing but a bed of dead roses here, albeit some very well crafted roses with a very rustic sort of feel. Perhaps they're the kind that double as spy cameras or something of that nature. When the harsh vocal approach isn't being utilized, these guys actually treat us to a bit of what I might actually term to be “progressive” instrumentation. I love the approach to the drumming here especially, as it sounds far from the blasts I'm used to and feels more subdued in the sense to build up an atmosphere. This whole EP seems much longer than it is, sheerly due to this more calculated nature of performing music. Flourishing don't sound like they're trying to blast your ears out, and instead make me think of a rather devious form of metallic calculus. The compositions here sound like mathematical equations when they're not wholeheartedly morbid and most certainly misanthropic. I'm not really sure what you would consider these guys in terms of a genre tag, but there's obviously some elements of post-metal to be found within this very terrifying mixture that actually takes enough time out for guitar solos, and what I can consider to be a moment of pure, twisted awesomeness within it's closing note. I really don't want to spoil too much of this one, it's a real treat and a bit of a trick as well... the kind that has you on the floor bleeding, while you're pondering your place within the span of existence. Whatever it is that Flourishing are trying to achieve with this EP, it definitely caught me by surprise and I'd certainly recommend it to all those who are looking for something a little unconventional when it comes to extreme metal and even atmosphere in general. I'd like to hope that this one wasn't just some unfortunate fluke and that we're just starting to ascend a rather rickety, yet elaborate staircase into some kind of tortured grandeur.

EDIT: Unfortunately, it is. Enjoy it while it lasts, as these guys have been split up since the release of this record. It doesn’t seem like either of these three gentlemen are in any other projects. A real loss.

(3 Tracks, 20:00)

9/10

Abstracts - Hologram (2016 Bonsai Bonus)

Actually a full-length album, this nearly thirty minute release is a bit out of my comfort zone, but I'm a huge fan of Japanese tunes (as you know) so I actually found it a bit more interesting than perhaps an American approach to the music. Abstracts are a melodic sort of djent-core that I normally wouldn't review, except for the fact that I found their clean vocals to be rather memorable, as I've always felt the Japanese clean vocal style to be heavily more passionate than that of the English language. Take the title cut for instance. Regardless of the fact that there's a kind of ham-fisted harsh vocal approach utilized on the track, the clean chorus is so powerful that it completely overshadows the background harsh vocals. The same can be said for “Carat” which actually uses the harsh approach a bit more, but seems to deliver in the chorus number. The band also use some electronic effects and filters with the vocals, which I think are pretty cool. Musically, we can't really expect much different than we've heard with several djent acts which is kind of a wash, but that's the sound they were going for. I will say that there's a little bit more melody in the guitar here than with some acts, but that harsh vocal approach is going to absolutely ruin the disc for most of you. Even I can't get around “Vision” which has no cleans and “Mirror” which just didn't gel all that well for me. I did find a pretty killer cut in “Ancient” which almost equals out to the title cut for me and that's more or less the album's closing cut with “Gemini” being a decent enough instrumental. It really takes off when we actually hear a very strong lead melody come into the mix (something they could have used on the rest of the album) but that's really about it, aside from the background electronics which make the piece sound a bit shiny. There's also a bonus cut called “Siberia” which should have benefited from not being a bonus cut at the end of the album. In any case, it's obvious that these Japanese are trying to emulate their western peers and certainly have the style and flow down, it's just not really my type of metal aside from most of the clean portions, melodies and the soft atmospheric vibe that some of these sections contain when they're not being saturated with djent riffs. If you like this kind of music, then you may like the Japanese take on it, but I don't think I'd recommend it to any random metalhead. There are much better acts doing this kind of stuff right now, but perhaps with time Abstracts will branch out a bit more and become something truly unique.

(10 Tracks, 27:00)

6/10

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