The Canadian sailors first announced their shipwreck in 2013 when they had to throw overboard some heavy cargo that was endangering their trip. They left the flotsam called We're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat, but were still lost at sea for five years until 2022 when they made it to shores of Ontario once again. This time they brought back something called Eradication, which contains stories of their adventures at sea.
When will they do a cover of "Baby Shark"?
EATEN BY SHARKS - DEAD WEIGHT [OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO] (2022)
Eradication
by Eaten by Sharks
https://www.facebook.com/eatenbysharksband
Finland-based gothic extreme duo Upon Shadows is hinting at a possible new album in the near future with a couple of singles in 2022. "Virtus Dormitiva" (see below) is a 2022 song. Below is their 2020 recording called Encuentro. For an additional and longer expression of their gothic extreme check out their 2019 album Modern Obscurantism. The duo began in Uruguay in South America and since 2013 they have been based in Finland.
Might a new full-length be on the way in 2022 or 2023?
Virtus Dormitiva
by Upon Shadows
Encuentro
by Upon Shadows
Modern Obscurantism
by Upon Shadows
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063636974177
"Killer Faith" is a song from the 2022 album Killing For Pleasure Forever by Mexican melodeath Death Scythe. The album is a re-recording of their 2009 debut album Killing For Pleasure. They had been active from 2003 to 2009 and then ended. They returned in 2018 and in 2020 recorded their sophomore work Descending into Xibalba (10 songs in 42 minutes). The new version is meant to be a clearer, beter recording, which is safe to say that it is, as one would expect, with all the experience that has been accumulated in two decades.
The album might be the most enjoyable for the die-hard audiences that think fondly of 1990s Swedish melodeath, as this Mexican group is devoted to capturing the sound of that style as it was conceived in the earlier period of its rise in Europe.
Anthea
Tales Untold
August 26th, 2022
Rockshots Records
Anthea (2015-present) has an EP in 2017, the debut album in 2020, and this new one (10 songs in 45 minutes). The California, U.S. band features, broadly speaking, a type of melodic songwriting that relies on the groove and keyboards for the skeleton of the tunes, while pushing to the forefront the guitar solos and especially the singing to make it memorable for the listener. The melodic singing is in the male midrange/upper midrange; melodic, strong, pleasant, without annoying traits. There are some higher passages, but they are brief, not abundant and with the voice controlled. The music is a balance between melodic, prog and rocking. It is not headbanging, but it’s not super proggy. Al the songs stay within 3-5 minutes. Most importantly, the songs have hooks and should not need more than a couple of listens to reveal themselves. On the other hand, they use some growling as a secondary vocal element, and here and there, the band launches into some headbanging moments, melodeath moments.
As is, the album is a strong statement and audiences into bands like Evergrey, Kamelot or Symphony X would enjoy it, one would think. The differences might be two: Anthea certainly sounds more youthful than those bands; and the second issue is the growling, which those other bands do not use as a part of their overall sound. Trivia: The last song is called “In Time,” a very nice Robbi Rob cover, the song from 1989’s Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.
The album can go from mellow or melancholic songs like “Memoriam” and “In Time” to uptempo material like “Empyrean.” That’s a wide spectrum, especially for people not used bands with such a range of songs. Picky listeners opposed to metal with a pop music production will probably not like the synth/keyboards-happy neosymphonics. The drum sounds will not impress those strict listeners, either, given the soft, flaccid, plastic feel of the drum sampling/programming. The last potential problem is the growling. It is melodeath growling, and audiences against all growling will most likely not approve. In truth, the band would sound just fine without the growling, including for the fast, headbanging segments, which can be carried by the strength of the melodic voice (Can the singer carry these tunes for real in a concert or is it auto-tune/effects?). If the band were to eliminate the growling (which is competent), their appeal, with the right marketing, would open up considerably, as demonstrated by their cover of “In Time,” which is better than the original if the listener prefers a more ro-bust voice with more horsepower, as it were, and also with more energy.
1. Tales Untold 04:09
2. Ascendence 03:21
3. Song for Winter 04:03
4. The Deceiver 05:11
5. Sapiens 05:29
6. Memoriam 04:13
7. Looking Glass 04:15
8. Empyrean 04:02
9. Sunder Heart 04:53
10. In Time (Robbi Rob cover) 05:33
45:09
Anthea - In Time
ANTHEA - Tales Untold (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)
ANTHEA - Empyrean (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)
https://www.facebook.com/antheametal/
Varlok
Nefarious Arts of the Necromage
October 1st, 2021
Even though this is a debut full-length (eight songs in 35 minutes) (and Metal Archives and Bandcamp show no previous recordings), the music proves to be the work of an experienced squad. The sound quality and execution of the headbanging, traditional black metal leave no doubt. This Kansas, U.S. band is the sound of what traditional black metal is all about. True and fast, grim and necro, Varlok should be on the agenda of audiences looking for no-nonsense, classic-style black metal built for banging your head. The harsh, shrieking vocals; the frenetic drumming; and spiraling style of the guitar work all contribute to the traditional sound, which the band carries out in a skilled manner. Readers might like to know that this is not a one-person project nor a demo-level recording. Rather, the band consists of musicians with at least 10 years of experience in bands in their region of the country: Jotanar on bass and vocals [Cataphract, Verräter (live), ex-Stonehaven, ex-Typhon, ex-Mürderhead]; Ghargoyle on drums [Cataphract, Emerald Eye, Garoted, Verräter, Vänlade, ex-Typhon, Chafed Taint, Relic]; Beithir on guitars; and Strigoi on guitars [Cataphract, Garoted, Verräter, ex-Typhon, Chafed Taint, Dr. Fvck, ex-Ritual Combat]. A satisfying listen.
Nefarious Arts of the Necromage
by Varlok
https://m.facebook.com/varlokblackmetal/
Behold the Washington state cavernous death of unmelodic, simplistic low-growling barbarity. The first demo is from 2020 and a live recording in 2020 (six songs in 26 minutes), and in 2021 a split with fellow Washington reptiles Re-Buried. They have a new song in 2022 called “Buried under the House.” Along with song titles like “Dissected to Death,” this band won’t be writing lyrics telling you to “make sure you vote,” “rescue our democracy,” read the news or reduce the amount of water that you use in your 37-minute shower of growling along to Autopsy and Mortician. The best representation of their sound so far is the previously mentioned split (four songs by Deconsecration). Looking forward to more from these knuckle-dragging zombies.
Trivia: Check out their best impression tribute to Obituary’s art of the cave voice. Deconsecration begins “Priestess of the Void” in the same way that Obituary ends “Infected” going into “Body Bag.” Good job, Deconsecration. Good effort on the art of the voice of the cave of death.
On Bandcamp there is a 2018 EP before this 2022 full-length (eight songs in 36 minutes). Metal Archives shows that the band is Jaime "Jimi" Susanna on drums, Jonjo Negrete on guitars, Sara Carretero on bass, and Selene Perdiguero on vocals. This melodic, uptempo heavy metal from Madrid, Spain may be a very good discovery for listeners looking for some catchy, rocking songwriting. Direct, uptempo and with good singing, the songs don’t need much to be remembered because they are written to hit the ground running with galloping rhythms, some shredding and plenty of rocking, melodic soloing. The band itself names Judas Priest, Dokken, Dio and Warlock as reference points. Their Dio-Dokken assessment is right on. The music is bass, drums, guitar and vocals. Therefore, it is easy to hear everything, including the guitar work and the good singing. One advantage for the band is that the songs remain uptempo and efficient. Here and there, there are some slower segments, but they are brief, and do not bog down the songs. The last song is more of a power ballad, but not a cheesy love song. Unfortunately, this drum sampling/programming sounds artificial and soft. Anyway, this is music for audiences looking for melodic songs with wide appeal, from the grandparents to the children, including as gateway metal for children. The lyrics are available on Bandcamp. I have not found the lyrical stupidity (cursing, horror, glorification of violence and other low-IQ buffoonery) that might make this inappropriate for kids and general audiences. In that respect, credit to the band for not shooting themselves in the foot.
Sons of a Lie
by Rave In Fire
https://www.facebook.com/raveinfire/
Arizona, U.S. thrashers Intent (2016-present) lay out frenetic, shredding guitar work, with a bit melody in some places. Generally, it is the type of wrist-breaking intensity that starts movement and action amongst the listeners. Vocally, it is an intelligible semi-growl scream, similar to classic Sepultura from 1987 to 1993. The recording is rowdy, headbanging and sounds like gritty thrash. The band has its feet firmly planted in the riffing of aimed at the moshing, headbanging lunatics, the same as the band.
What is thrash in 2022? Intent answers that question with this, their second album. Here and there, the speed decelerates a smidge for some midtempo-uptempo segments. Lastly, some people have observed that the drum work sounds different from weak drum sound prevalent in sampled/programmed drumming in metal music. Listen for yourself and see what you think of Intent’s toxic waltz of an album.
Intent - Victims of Conquest (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)
Exile
by Intent
Vox Populi
by Intent
Below is the video for "Slay the Hostages" by traditional heavy metal band Tyrants of Chaos (Canada). The track comes from their third album Relentless Thirst for Power released on 19 August 2022. As you can hear, bands like Judas Priest are influences in their direct, headbanging style of songwriting, certainly in the vocals. The music is a type of chunky, heavy grooving combined with traditional riffs, for sound that is more contemporary, as opposed to straighforward retro or vintage. If you like the song, perhaps you may really enjoy checking out the entire album that is up on Bandcamp.
Tyrants of Chaos - OFFICIAL VIDEO - Slay the Hostages
Relentless Thirst for Power
by Tyrants of Chaos
https://www.facebook.com/tyrantsofchaos/
Splintered Throne
The Greater Good of Man
19 August 2022
The Portland, Oregon, U.S. classic-style band has been rolling out the albums since 2014: two studio works (2014, 2017) and a live one (2019). They are a veteran act and members have been doing music for decades in this and other entities. On this third studio album they have a new singer, Lisa Mann, replacing the original singer Brian Garrison. The new music provides rockers and anthems as the foundation, and some slower segments, everything that traditional, melodic heavy metal is supposed to deliver. The guitar playing is perfect for this style, with a solid, audible rhythm section; the soloing is very good, as is the singing. The recording sounds professional (not like a demo recording). The drum sound is not flaccid nor mechanical, which should please audiences tired of the pop rock drum sound in metal (I hope the band is actually using their human drummer’s real drum work!). The singing is a bit of a strange story, you see. Lisa Mann, a blues musician whose work I do not know enough to comment on intelligently, first came to my attention with White Crone, a cool project with which she manifested her love of metal in 2020, including a Venom cover. White Crone has also done a cover of Rainbow’s “Stargazer”. I mention these covers for a reason: Lisa Mann, according to Wikipedia, is a blues musician who has won a bunch of awards and has at least five studio albums. It turns out that her voice fits heavy metal splendidly. The singing voice has no annoying qualities. It is not nasal, not thin, and not showing off with irritating unnecessary high screams. It is strong but also melodic, a naturally pleasant, ear-friendly mature traditional heavy metal voice. When the voice goes higher, it does not peter out. Rather, it remains strong throughout. What a difference it makes when heavy metal is executed properly with strong singing.
Splintered Throne is professional-minded, serious heavy metal with melody, and good singing worth remembering.
1.Perpetual War 03:31
2.Death Age 05:44
3.Famine Driven Thirst 04:01
4.Plague for Days 04:41
5.Disinformation Campaign 04:24
total time 22:21
The Illinois, U.S. death squad Hatemonger enters Metal Archives with this five-song 22-minute recording. Bouncing between uptempo brutality and blazing speeds, the contrast keeps the highs high, with a few well-placed high valleys to remind the listener to appreciate the differences. The Chicagoland band does a good job of keeping a heavy but uptempo, downtuned guitar buzzsaw speed, including blasting. Certainly, fans of no-nonsense, headbanging extremity should consider finding out what this recording has to offer. It is not melodic, but it is also not technical nor prog, which means that the energy and the solid songwriting keeps the moshing listener entertained. The vocals are rather low, a bit more like a cavernous style, as is the whole recording. However, it does not sound like a no-experience-no-money bedroom death grind demo, and there is a level of seriousness and professionalism that is easy to notice. Fans of downtuned buzzsaw guitar and blasting may want to turn their steering wheels towards Hatemonger.
The Vile Maxim
by Hatemonger
https://www.facebook.com/hatemonger.band
