read online #225 of Metal Bulletin Zine

Here is the link to the PDF of issue number 225 of Metal Bulletin Zine. Number 225 features: In The Woods, HolyName, Tone Glass, Air Raid, Lawrence Wallace, The Temple, Contrarian, Downfall of Gaia, Ardent Nova, Devangelic

https://issuu.com/metalbulletinzine/docs/mb225

Winterhorde - progressive, melodic extreme metal from Israel

Winterhorde

Neptunian

Noble Demon

December 8th, 2023

Winterhorde (1999-2001 [as Autumn Palace], 2001-present) caught my interest with the quality of the music, a certain elocution that stands out, but that does not mean that I fully understood what I was hearing, given the sophistication of the Israeli band’s fourth album. Actually, it was a just a feeling; a sense that there was more to be heard with additional listens. Thus, repeated listens did, in fact, confirm intuition. As it turns, there is quite a range of musical expression to be experienced, including the blaring sounds of the [sampled?] trumpet on the first song! That's a nice way of introducing the listener to the amorphous blend of black, progressive and neosymphonic extreme metal comprising the personality of the album.

The work, a contemporary recording showcasing a refined form of extreme metal, provides various layers for discerning audiences. In general, fans of progressive, intelligent, skilled extreme/black metal should find that the music meets rather high standards in terms of songwriting. An abundance of exquisite melodies also help the listener to navigate the complexities of the progressive strain in the songwriting, which does require an attentive approach on the part of the audience; however, the wise use of melodies assists tremendously in the enjoyment, in particular on the first several listens, given that without such melodies, the music might veer too much into the überprog field, which would make things more difficult for listeners that are not musicians nor devoted fans of prog in general.

The listener should expect segments in which the black metal heritage is mani-fest. Personally, I do enjoy that, as I would not want that element to be discarded. Expect extreme vocals, but also lots of melodic singing, and tons of riffs and some virtuoso guitar playing. The progressive components are indispensable for the music, but fortunately the prog is engaged in an interplay, an interaction with the melodies and black metal. To end, the album is not experimental, it is not weird. It is heavy metal music, of the black, melodic and progressive variety, with an emphasis on delivering a memorable, balanced, quality recording that is worthwhile not just now but for years to come.

Neptunian by WINTERHORDE

https://www.facebook.com/winterhorde/wall/

Maldisdeun - eugenics.deviation.death.doom.

Maldisdeun

Anti-Access World Denial

November 3rd, 2023

During documentaries about animals in the wild, when the action kicks into high gear, and the chase is on, and your blood boils in anticipation (you sicko) of the battle for survival in the merciless chaos of the jungle, there may be suspenseful classical music that evokes fright and tension, and the blood pressure increases (you sicko). What if the filmmakers chose music that itself sounded savage, just like the moving images that you are watching-contemplating fantasizing?

I submit to you, dear reader, Maldisdeun: Rotten compositions from the vermin-infested malodorous streets of Bellingham, a decaying postapocalyptic metropolis, also known as the Windy City, overrun by wild packs of hyenas and cancerous thermonuclear squirrels that poison the city's already contaminated water supply. Maldisdeun, according to Metal Archives’ ministry of propaganda, consists of Walker Eberdt (ex-Melancholia) on drums, Dan Fitzgerald on guitar and Drake (Draghkar, Kömmand, Overwrought, Serpent Rider) on bass and vocals. The album is seven songs in 48 minutes of primal death doom to represent the ruins of Bellingham, a sprawling megalopolis with skyscrapers of six, nay, seven, nay, nay, sometimes even eight stories high, and otherwise known as the Big Apple.

After hearing this album, its toxic fumes of a severed survival and of rancorous gnashing of teeth, you should make sure to stay away from the homeless raging buffaloes that flagellate Bellingham, or as some people like to call it, the City of Angels. Going for a rawer, minimalist heaviness, Maldisdeun promises to make you howl in delight, as you sit in front of your television, savoring the brutality of nature documentaries, you will growl and scream, play air guitar and air drums to the ghastly rhythms emanating from Bellingham, also known as the Mile High City. Sometimes the songs chug along, only to speed up to headbanging rhythms. The drums sound good (Let’s hope it’s the real drums of their drummer; fans don’t need another album with plastic, computerized, fake drumming). Don’t expect sugary melodies, expect unrobotized heaviness, expect quite a bit of uptempo rhythms, and here and there, you might hear a tiny bit of melodies. Know, this is not snail’s pace doom. This band does want you to bang your head and they give you plenty of reasons for doing it. Then, if you dare to enter the charred walls that surround the hills of Bellingham, a city commonly known as Azkaban, you must make your way to the town's taverns, filled with unsavory characters, located near the prison complex, in the chamber of secrets, and find your way to witness Maldisdeun with your own eyes and ears. After the show, be sure to quickly depart Bellingham, for if not, you will have to dwell forever there, incarcerated in the city walls, a prisoner in Azkaban.

Anti-Access World Denial by Maldisdeun

https://www.facebook.com/maldisdeun/

Receiver - hear ye, oh brethren, the call of odysseys from Cyprus

Receiver

Whispers of Lore

Gates of Hell Records

10 November 2023

After initially hearing this album I had a good feeling about it because the music sounded real. The band says that they do not use autotune on the singing. Therefore, what we hear on the recording is meant to be the real voice of Nikoletta Kyprianou. That's the sensation I got, that she is singing naturally with her own voice, and I like the sound of it. In fact, the music sounds like the band wants to be able to perform these songs live in a faithful way. For instance, listeners will notice that the rhythm section is vibrant, the bass lines are clear and the drums do all sorts of interesting details, when a drummer employs all four extremities for the craft. Metal Archives lists Loizos Koukoumas on bass and Yiannis Xanthou on drums (the band says that these are real drums, too), a rhythm team that provides the anchor for guitarists Charalambos Vassiliou and Andreas Kyriacou.

On the topic of riffs and leads, while there are lots of riffs for headbanging, there is also a specific melodic strain in the guitars, melodies that Thin Lizzy/Iron Maiden/classic rock fans will enjoy. In other words, while there is a crunch to the riffs, it is not all crunch and muscle, a song like "Arrow" is so smooth in its melodies, which the band calls folk melodies. Thus, Receiver uses "folk" melodies in the sense that the smooth melodies of Thin Lizzy, UFO, Boston, 80s Omen (U.S.; Metal Blade Records), some Manilla Road or some Iron Maiden are "folk." Lyrically, they work with concepts that read like stories or poems of personal or collective struggles, while keeping the IQ level good for all audiences, regardless of age, which metal parents with children will appreciate, as they are able to play this music as general entertainment. To conclude, in the eastern Mediterranean Sea there is the island nation of Cyprus, there in the city of Nicosia, you will find Receiver. If you, like Odysseus a long time ago, find that sailing to Cyprus is a difficult endeavor right now from where you live in boondocks of Walla Walla, this album is a fantastic alternative to witnessing Receiver rocking out in the bars of Nicosia.

https://www.facebook.com/ReceiverCY

Voided Reality - metalcore from the U.S.

Voided Reality is a metalcore band from from Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. So far, Metal Archives shows a song from 2019 and an EP from 2021 called Hate Culture. Their sound is between metalcore and deathcore, probably a bit heavier than metalcore, but they focus more on some headbanging parts, like the sounds of thrash and death, and do not go for the all-out breakdown of deathcore. For instance, while it is true some metalcore fans may like this sound, some Pantera fans might like the attitude and groove of this music. The vocals and instrumentation certainly have that U.S. groove sound, especially the "angry-man" style of heavy sound. Anyway, it is not clear from Metal Archives, Bandcamp or Facebook if there is newer music, but this 2021 EP provides a pretty good demonstration of their characterics in the six songs in 24 minutes.

Hate Culture: Reloaded by Voided Reality

https://www.facebook.com/voidedreality

Elegy of Madness - Broken Soul (official music video)

Below is the video for the Elegy of Madness song "Broken Soul" from the October 20th, 2023 album XI. Active since 2006, XI is their fifth album and it marks the debut of their new singer Kyrah Aylin (Chiara Di Mare). The video below is a pretty good representation of the band's neosymphonic sound with gothic elements and operatic singing. Some of the songs lean more in the direction of neosymphonic elements, while others showcase the singing, demonstrating that they are happy to convince the longtime fans who have been wondering about the future of the Italian band. There are other interesting details to notice on the album: a bit of blasting speed, some lush passages, and a tiny bit of growled vocals in some spots, and other small spices sprinkled throughout the album. The lyrics, coupled with the music, read like gothic poetry. Amazon Music does not register that there are explicit or curse words, and I have read the lyrics, and they deal with a type of fantasy/sinister setting that fits the music. There is only word that is a curse word on the album: "I don't give a damn." Overall, this is an album that you can play in your car while driving the little ones to basketball practice and games and let them hear some metal music.

Elegy of Madness

XI

Scarlet Records

20 October 2023

ELEGY OF MADNESS - Broken Soul (official music video)

XI by Elegy Of Madness

https://www.facebook.com/elegyofmadness/

Xoth - the final countdown to the fourth mission has begun

Xoth

Exogalactic

Dawnbreed Records

3 November 2023

After their third mission some four years ago, it was not clear that they would procure more fuel for future exploratory voyages, given the amount of energy and resources necessary to power up Xoth missions. Somehow they located a new source of fuel, at great expense, of course, but the spacecraft has launched its fourth mission. The velocities achieved on this new mission are quite fast, often blasting through, enough to reach warp speed, a range that they like to engage as a modus operandi, but not exclusively, considering the number of stops that they need to make on their way to their destination. Xoth originates from the planet Deathrash, and of which they are proud. Nevertheless, on their journeys they have discovered some new interesting sources of fuel that these explorers have found useful. For instance, the planet Shred has provided them a constant source of boosters that make segments of their journey a lot smoother. They speak the language of the inhabitants of Shred, and at times they would be able to communicate with tribes like the Dragonforcians or the Vanhalians, if Xoth needed to. Xoth functions at a few different dimensions from other Deathrasians because they use the low frequencies at considerably larger quantities than life forms are accustomed to, especially from this particular race, the Deathrasians, often known for other traits like the ability to blast and a forceful approach to their missions but who are often not very capable with other traits. Perhaps it is this characteristic about Xoth that makes them so indefatigable: their adaptability to thrive in a wide variety of planets on their way to their destination on their fourth mission, their most successful yet.

Exogalactic by Xoth

https://www.facebook.com/beholdxoth

Grot - black metal from the Town of Chicago

Hymns of the Woodland (2021 EP; 19:06)

Beneath the Waves of Eternity (2023 album; 35:32)

line-up:

Houston -guitars, bass, vocals

Hunter - drums

Here in the Washington Territory the mail wagon does not come by often; therefore, after plowing the land ahead of planting or after harvesting, I like reading the newspaper several times, writing long letters to friends back East and listening to the music of Grot. Grot, which reportedly originates from the Town of Chicago, has provided a much needed distraction from my quotidian tasks. Their first work is called Hymns of the Woodland is some 19 minutes of frenetic velocities, with a short mellow intro and outro. Given my affinity for traditional-classic raging black metal, I enjoy the moonmad shrieking. The guitar work moves at wrist-breaking speed but it is also melodic. I wonder how the hustle and bustle of life in the Town of Chicago, which reportedly now boasts a population of six thousand people, influences the music. Be that as it may, there is a second Grot recording called Beneath the Waves of Eternity and it is some 35 minutes of raging black metal, too. Last month the mail wagon came to my farm and the delivery man told me that the vocals reminded him of the sound of the wind rustling through these forests, which is a curious way to think of the shrieking. The compositions function at blasting speeds, with tremolo picking spiraling throughout the frenzied tempo of the entire recording, with a small amount of slower segments. Once I learned to focus on the guitar melodies, then I was ready for the speed. I have enjoyed Grot so much that I have neglected to keep up with latest news about the political conflicts of the Northern and Southern States. It seems like the political infighting is as bad as ever, from what the mail wagon man tells me. Anyway, I better finish writing this letter now because the mail wagon is supposed to be here tomorrow morning. I would recommend Grot to zealous fanatics of high-speed, lo-fi tremolo-and-shriek black metal.

https://grotblackmetal.bandcamp.com/album/beneath-the-waves-of-eternity

https://www.facebook.com/GrotBlackMetal/

Antioch - Antioch heavy metal will meet the Saracens with blood and steel

Antioch

Antioch VI: Molten Rainbow

July 21st, 2023

Iron Shield Records

I missed the boat on this album by the Canadian heavy metal brigade by the name of Antioch. They have two EPs and four albums, including this one. They have been at it since 2013. They get good reviews on their recordings, especially from fans of headbanging, rocking heavy metal, and in 2023 the band continues to deliver the fun energy that their audience expects. If you are looking for a band that likes to keep the music rocking, with the spirit of heavy metal, then you are probably going to enjoy the new music. The vocals are kind of wild, not super clean, and the songs do not waste time going off on tangents. I, for one, find that the recording is entertaining and keeps up the good energy for the entire duration. This is another solid effort from the band.

Antioch VI: Molten Rainbow by Antioch

https://www.facebook.com/antiochmetal

Necronomicon Ex Mortis - death thrash of gorillas, werewolves and swamps

Necronomicon Ex Mortis

Silver Bullet

11 August 2023

I have not heard this EP enough to know it very well, but the couple of times that I have been listening to it now, it sounds like a good proposition for fans of thrash riffing and shredding, done with a death metal vibe, including the vocals. They seem to be horror movie nerds, or at least the person writing the lyrics and doing the artwork is. I don't really keep up with movies, and don't know enough about horror movies to know the references. Yes, the artwork looks stupid and the lyrics are probably really dumb, too, because what do you expect from horror movies, anyway? Regardless, if you want to hear guitar players that have spent time really learning their instruments and pouring their blood, sweat and tears into giving people metal that shows attention to detail, quality and songwriting, then you might be pleased by this band.

Silver Bullet by Necronomicon Ex Mortis

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090172921055

Sinheresy - ear-friendly catchy songs from Italy

Sinheresy

Event Horizon

Scarlet Records

25 August 2023

On their fourth album Event Horizon the melodic band Sinheresy (Italy; 2009-present) presents a solid collection of catchy tunes featuring female and male singing and songs that tend to stay in memory after the music ends. The band turns in a great effort to make audiences sing along on song after song. In large part, they achieve their objective. A contemporary band, they use the pairing of female and male singing to win over the listener. In terms of style, this is ear-friendly melodic music, heavy rock that sometimes showcases the riffs, sometimes the grooves, with a direct, pop-oriented approach. Check out this band, if you want catchy, uptempo and melodic songs.

In my opinion, the following song exemplifies their melodic style and their vocals.

SINHERESY - Brighter Days

Below are some videos from the album.

SINHERESY - Castaways (Official Video)

SINHERESY - The Life You Left Behind (Official Video)

Event Horizon by Sinheresy

https://www.facebook.com/sinheresy

Nuclear Winter - melodic extreme metal from Zimbabwe

Nuclear Winter

Seagrave

MMD Records

21 July 2023

Active since 2011, Nuclear Winter (Zimbabwe) is now at four full-lengths and two EPs. At this point the sound of Nuclear Winter is Gary Stautmeister's vehicle for whatever he wants to do, working by himself for a groove-oriented melodic extreme metal. While some of the music may sound like melodic death metal, there is a certain element of machine music going on, from the programmd drumming and background sounds. In addition, Gary Stautmeister has some melodic singing, and a certain attachment to doing some unexpected things, like covering pop music or adding a few unexpected twists every now and then. There is probably no one genre that the music fits in really well, and that likely one of the main of objectives of Nuclear Winter: to keep the heaviness, but add melody, some backgrounds sounds, and sprinkle things with some pop infuences, even though the pop sounds are not always upfront, certainly not as much as the grooves and growling.

Seagrave by Nuclear Winter

https://www.facebook.com/NuclearWinterZim/

Trouble - Run to the Light (Expanded Edition)

Trouble

Run to the Light (Expanded Edition) (CD, vinyl and digital)

Metal Blade Records

16 June 2023 (first released in 1987)

In the 1980s the Chicagoland area band Trouble was rather different with their decidedly traditional and anti-trend sound. At a time when bands were following mainstream and smaller-scene fashions and trends, whether glam or thrash, as is often the case, trends were pervasive. In other words, Trouble sounded rather unusual in the 1980s because everything else around them was so typical 1980s, in one way or another. However, Trouble did not sound like a typical 80s band at all. They sounded like a band weaving together three different decades of music into a whole new package called Trouble. They made no secret of their love of The Beatles and Cream, of 1970s heavy and classic rock, and of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.

Here is the album, as well as some videos that you might find interesting because they present the sound of the band and how they represented themselves, as something along the lines of heavy metal hippies promoting peace and love, an anti-war and anti-violence aesthetic, and also a message opposed to the glorification of evil.

Trouble - Run To The Light

Run to the Light by Trouble

Trouble (US) - 1982 TV Cable Show (Full)

Shepherds Reign - bringing the grooves from the streets of Auckland

Shepherds Reign

Ala Mai

Golden Robot Records

25 August 2023

Folk metal band Shepherds Reign is ready for the world with their new work Ala Mai. Known for their particular interpretation of folk metal; in their case, they take the sound of heavy grooves and work it into a specific conconction of ear-friendly heaviness. An interesting possibility is that American fans of Pantera, Sepultura, Fear Factory and Machine Head may end up liking the sound of this band, given the emphasis on groove. One way to think of it would be to imagine that type of groove linking up with some folk elements, such as in the percussion in some places and in the language of the lyrics. Imagine the sound of Sepultura's Chaos A.D. and Roots being repurposed by a band from South Auckland, New Zealand with one foot in metal and the other pointing towards indigenous Maori culture, and you might just find yourself enjoying Shepherds Reign.

Check out these two videos to get an idea of what to expect.

Shepherds Reign - Aiga - OFFICIAL VIDEO

Shepherds Reign - Nafanua - OFFICIAL VIDEO

https://www.facebook.com/shepherdsreign/

Kuyashii - instrumental melodicism from Georgia, U.S.

Kuyashii

Dreams

January 27th, 2023

This melodic-melancholic instrumental album (45 minutes) has good potential for audiences that understand or enjoy subdued melodicism expressed through guitar. It is very easy on the ears. The pace of the drum programming is rather uptempo as a general rule, not very fast, but certainly not slow, while at times there are segments of faster, more extreme speeds. The melodies are not meant to be sugary, but there is an abundance of melodies in every song. There seem to be background sounds to fill out the mood for smoothness. Even when the music is going in the faster tempos the overall feel is not aggressive nor obnoxious but rather friendly on the ears. I mention all this to say: all those components accompany the center piece of the music, namely, the guitar playing. Sometimes it is more prominent, at other times the background music comes forward to allow other things, like atmosphere or keyboards. The guitar work tends to find nothing pleasant melodies. There is some tremolo or shredding in some spots but expect abundant subtle melodicism throughout.

Dreams by KUYASHII

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063571175257

Krigsgrav - melodic extreme metal from Texas, U.S.

Krigsgrav

Fires in the Fall

Wise Blood Records

23 June 2023

According to the information on Metal Archives, this Texas, U.S. black metal band began in 2004. Now in 2023, including this new album (seven songs in 53 minutes), they have seven albums. Metal Archives shows that they used to be black metal, then changed to post-black metal. Their current direction is more along the lines of midpaced melodic extreme metal, with substantial components of black. The band is multi-instrumentalist David Sikora (2004-present), who is or has been associated with Giant of the Mountain, Heimar, Obsidian Throne, Of Oak, Valsgarde, Black Mass Ritual, and Ophian. Justin Coleman (Heimar, ex-Dagon, ex-Demure, ex-Nightworks, ex-Valsgarde, ex-Rape Pillage and Burn) plays guitars and does vocals. Cody Daniels (Dour, Giant of the Mountain, The Argonaut, Wings of Dahak) plays lead guitar. The album seems to have programmed drums. For purposes of efficiency, let's focus solely on this album, without attempting to compare and contrast their discography. It is a melodic and often melancholic album with uptempo, faster tempos and also an abundance of midpaced segments that contain lots of melody. However, it is not slow and dragging doom? The vocals feel like black metal, perhaps some of the growling could be closer to death, but most of the time, the growling sounds like a lower, gruff black metal growl. I would say that black metal audiences are the most likely demographic for this album, but maybe fans of melodic death and/or doom might also enjoy this album. Lastly, the guitars focus on melody and giving the listener a pretty polished, quality listening experience.

Fires in the Fall by Krigsgrav

https://www.facebook.com/krigsgrav

Sunshine Lollipop - grind rhythm is gonna get you

Sunshine Lollipop is a grind band from Washington State, U.S. They formed in 1776 in Philadelphia, right after the Second Continental Congress and then they toured in France in 1789. After France, they toured all over the world bringing their brief message of grind to the masses. Now in 2023 they have a new song called "Friendship Is Magic," which, in a few words, states that:

"When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. -That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,—That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."

Sunshine Lollipop further declares:

"Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. So even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood."

Friendship is Magic by Sunshine Lollipop

https://www.facebook.com/sunshinelollipopgrind

Black 7 - Break up (official video)

Aficionados of melodic guitar virtuosity may want to hear the new song "Break up" by Black 7 (Germany). Black 7 is instrumental heavy metal guitar that emphasizes riffs, melodies and songwriting. This song is taken from the upcoming album "The 2nd Chapter“ with SODEH Records.

Black 7 - Break up (official video)

Mike Milan Dedic - shredder goes back to the future with "Over the Top" (no arm wrestling involved)

Mike Milan Dedic (Canada) is a guitarist that's been playing since he was 12 years in Toronto's west end, teaching himself guitar listening to Uli Jon Roth, Randy Rhoads, Eddie Van Halen, Ritchie Blackmore, Yngwie Malmsteen and so many more.

This particular song called "Over the Top" is a recording from 1986. It is not a re-recording, he says: "This track was originally pressed to a vinyl record. How this all came about is that the owner of the 'Museum of Canadian Music' had the song file digitally extracted from vinyl & provided it to me. I took the track and had it remastered at a 'Mastering House' to give it more sparkle! It is the original recording from 1986, just having some of today's technology making it sound sonically better." Rick Smith plays drums on the song, and Mike plays all guitar and bass on it. The song is an instrumental shredding piece for guitar aficionados, and the drum work is really nice, too!

The albums that he has recorded are: The Pleasure's Yours - 1987 Axis Records (Vinyl Release); Fingerfood album - 1995 (Marshmallow Records); Mike Milan Dedic - Self Titled - 2014. His singles are: Escape - 2017; Launch (Re-Launch) - 2018; Shall We Dance Too? - 2019; Run - May 12, 2020; Over The Top - May 3, 2023 Energy - August 12, 2021.

Over The Top - Mike Milan Dedic

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100005652195327

Tyrants Blood - Canadian death/black (ex-Blasphemy and ex-Infernäl Mäjesty)

Tyrants Blood

Into the Kingdom of Graves

Vic Records

22 June 2023

Vic Records (Holland) is reissuing this 2013 album that features former members of Canadian cult bands Blasphemy and Infernäl Mäjesty. The guitarist is Marco Banco, who was with Blasphemy from 1989 to 1991 and played on the 1990 album Fallen Angel of Doom. The vocalist is Brian Langley, who was with Infernäl Mäjesty from 2005 to 2011. Vinnie Borden (Process, Shattered Throne, ex-Omega Crom) plays bass and on drums is Matt Modder, who according to Metal Archives, has since been replaced by Stephen Shaw. However, according to Vic Records, the drums were recorded by Terry Murray, who they say is or was with Infernäl Mäjesty and also 3 Inches of Blood.

The vocals are full-on brutal death and the music is all-out primal death/black/thrash with a bit of a certain technical-brutal vibe. The drumming is hard-hitting blasting. The guitar work is a barbed wire fireball of brutality, headbanging and crunch, lots of crunch, in the category of war metal. It is a relentless, frenetically paced album of ten tracks in 48 minutes, including a two-minute respite of melodic guitar. Besides the performances that are convincing beyond all doubt, the sound quality is rather surprising. You can hear the bass guitar and the recording feels like you can hear everything well, which is no easy task when the music is total savage energy, like on here.

Into the Kingdom of Graves by TYRANTS BLOOD

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063485232579

Holz - How heavy is too heavy?

Here on the western side of the mountains of the state of Washington there is a band called Dilapidation featuring the crushing heaviness of death doom and they drive up and down the freeways, eating street tacos and gas station chili dogs, between Olympia and Everett (and have most likely driven much further south and a bit further north, too) bringing their sound to any number of people gathered in the taverns, pubs, bars, backyards, parks and abandoned bridges in this region. Anyway, I recently learned from Dilapidation’s Abraham Watson about another endeavor that he calls Holz. Who is Holz? He explains, “Holz is just me in the studio. I play guitar, bass and do the vocals with programmed drums. Live I bring in my longtime friend and collaborator Jerald on guitar and I do bass and vocals along with a drum machine.”

It turns out that Abraham has a bunch of other projects. In an effort to compile a list of his works, he gives the following: Chromatic Death (guitar/vocals, 2004-2011); Wreck 'em Killed 'em (drums, 2011-2015); Pesado Ranchero (bass, 2014-2016); Misuse of Power (bass/vocals, 2010-2018); Jen's Tits (guitar, 2013-2018); Large Marge (guitar, programming, 2009-present); Dilapidation (bass/vocals, 2012-present); Schmutzhund (guitar, 2017-present); Holz (bass/guitar/programming, 2018-present).

Holz is a bit like the soundtrack of factory assembly machines in rhythmic patterns of industrial production. In my opinion, fans into big-time mechanical-like heaviness could be an audience for Holz. The growled vocals and the dominance of the guitar/bass/programmed heaviness may appeal to a person that wants no melody, just forms of massive heaviness and a sense of machine movement. So far, there are four demos of four tracks each, and the duration times range from some 14 to 20 minutes.

DEMO IV by HOLZ

Here is one Facebook page to begin connecting with the projects involving Abraham Watson.

https://www.facebook.com/dilapidation1

HOLZ - Live at Le Voyeur (Olympia, WA) - 06/10/2023

Carma - see this funeral doom recruiter to find out if you are the right material

Carma

Ossadas

March 3rd, 2023

Monumental Rex

Satellite surveillance shows that these battalions have been flanking the hills by the Mondego River in Portugal for years, since 2012. In 2015 they organized their debut self-titled incursion of six tactical units in 38 minutes, and the cannons went silent again until 2023 when a new 77-minute detachment was amassed again in the territory of Coimbra. Footage of the action on the field reveals a slow-gathering wave moving across the region, patiently, at a snail's pace of melancholy and misery. The tactical units consist of funeral doom that require that the infantry advance as slowly as possible.

Carma is looking for a few good soldiers for funeral doom. To join the newest campaign you must be physically fit to last 77 minutes of heavy exercise. Bootcamp begins promptly at dawn by the Mondego River. You must have the ability to work laboriously and patiently through the tremendously slow paths of the Coimbra hills. Funeral doom is not for weak minds nor for instant gratification. Charlatans and dilettantes need not apply. The reward is to crawl in the rain through the mud, dragging your exhausted body through this test in patience that is Carma. The few, the proud, the Carmines.

Ossadas by Carma

https://www.facebook.com/carma.doom

Y&T - Yesterday and Today Live (Expanded Edition)

Y&T

Yesterday and Today Live (Expanded Edition)

Metal Blade Records

9 June 2023

The legacy heavy metal band Yesterday and Today (Y&T), which formed in 1972 in Oakland, California, U.S., is a great lesson in hard work and the desire to become great at your craft. In 1976 and 1978 they had their first pair of albums. They are good albums and those early songs have been in the setlist for a long time, but the improvement in the singing on the second album is a wonderful change. I believe that I remember singer/guitarist Dave Meniketti explaining in interviews that he came to the realization that he needed to take singing more seriously. Then, on the third album called Earthshaker (1981) the entire sound got tighter, and now the singing was even better, stronger, with Dave singing in a full voice and the music tightened up to the new sound of the young heavy metal of the time. The moral of the story is that musicians are able to become better at their craft if they take their art more seriously by working harder at it.

Regarding this recording, at one time Y&T had made the silly decision to call it quits. Thankfully, they rectified, it was not permanent and they continue to this day. This album at the time (1991) was made as a testament to the band up until that point in time. It is a wonderful set list full of fan favorites. The only complaint is that it could have easily included a dozen more songs that are also cool Y&T songs from all their albums. The production is great, the performances awesome, the songs fantastic, and the singing by Dave is a treat to the ears. Dave has one of those voices that sounds powerful, not strained, not thin, and not annoying, and it stays at such an ear-pleasing range. This album is an excellent place to start for people not familiar with Y&T.

https://www.metalblade.com/us/releases/yt-yesterday-today-live/

Tombstalker - Come come to the cemetery, down by the ruined bridge

Tombstalker

Age of Darkness

Boris Records

29 May 2023

In 21 minutes Tombstalker provides an immensely enjoyable serving of something like a hybrid of Entombed and Dissection or like Entombed covering Dissection or a band combining Swedish death metal with Swedish melodic black metal. The production is death metal and this duck quacks like a death metal duck, but once you look closely at the legs and feathers of this duck, this duck has black metal heritage in some of the riffing and melodies, and some of the drumming. Devoted fans of death/black/thrash should be very entertained by the ways that these Kentuckian-Americans prepare such a headbanging-friendly concoction. It must be all those nighttime shifts working at the local cemeteries and part-time side hustles at the Lexington mortuaries. At this point, I do not know how many times I have heard this EP because it’s just goes on and on, on repeat, and pretty soon I will have this whole thing memorized from beginning to end. It’s three songs of headbanging material, and one instrumental mellow clean or acoustic guitar song. Let’s hope this EP is a sign that an album is in the works. If not, I'm going to Kentucky, I’m going to take my iron horse to the old town roads and ride gas pedal to the floor and talk some horse sense into these guys.

Age Of Darkness by Tombstalker

https://www.facebook.com/tombstalkerband

Frostnatt - How can black metal be a sound of the Urals?

Frostnatt

Den russiske frosten

April 7th, 2023

I enjoyed the 2022 EP Dette stedet kjenner bare kulden (“This Place Only Knows the Cold”) of instrumental melodic black metal by Frostnatt, a solo entity by one Alex Evenson in Yekaterinburg, Russia. This new 2023 album Den russiske frosten (“The Russian Frost”; all Frostnatt songs have titles in Norwegian) is eight tracks emphasizing melody, mostly played at an uptempo speed for headbanging or physical movement (sometimes launching into all-out black metal blasting frenzy), although one can just as easily focus on the melodies for a type of meditation through tremolo-guitar black metal music. Here’s the thing: Frostnatt seeks to convey the imagined interpretation of the Ural region (the city of Yekaterinburg is located about 880 miles to the east of Moscow [a distance comparable from Seattle to Bakersfield, California] {some 100 miles from Los Angeles}). Yekaterinburg is on the Iset River between the Volga-Ural region and Siberia, in the Ural Federal District. Generally, the region is seen as a type of border between what is considered Europe and Asia. Put it this way, the Ural Federal District, which is an enormously huge territory of some 700,000 square miles, is not considered cosmopolitan, to say the least, even though Yekaterinburg itself is the fourth largest city in Russia. The Ural Federal District is bigger than Alaska; by comparison, Alaska is some 663,000 square miles, and Alaska is 3.7 times bigger than California; Alaska is more than twice the size of Texas; Alaska is bigger than California, Texas and Montana combined. Thus, how could black metal be as a sound of the Ural region, of the landscape and especially of the winter, a vast land of frozen forests and mountains? This album right here is the answer provided by Frostnatt. I would say that this music depends on the melodies to make its mark. It's really the guitar melodies that are the central attraction for the audiences interested in uptempo melodic black metal. Come away with Frostnatt to a land of ice and snow.

Den Russiske Frosten by Frostnatt

https://www.facebook.com/frostnattofficial/

Sacred Outcry - the majesty of excellence has arrived

Sacred Outcry

Towers of Gold

No Remorse Records

19.05.2023

I often listen to new albums without looking into the details. I like to hear the music and make a judgment call on the songs, the skills and the sound quality, and see where things go from there. So, I was listening to this music and it sounded awesome, but there was something very interesting taking place. After some time, I had to look it up. I’ll come back to this point in a minute.

Anyway, in 2020 Sacred Outcry debuted with a strong album titled Damned for All Time, a tour de force of riffs, melodies, singing and epic traditional heavy metal, all marked by a certain quality to make people sit up and take notice. The new 2023 album Towers of Gold (10 tracks in 55 minutes) is even better, if that is possible. The music remains the sound of heroic traditional heavy metal in all its glory, with the aim of delivering to the audience nothing short of excellence. The standards that this band sets for itself are rather high, and the beneficiaries of such compulsive, demanding objectives is the listener.

So, back to my earlier story. The one thing that I got my attention was the singing. It sounded familiar and very good. I had to look it up and what do you know?! The new singer on this album is none other than Daniel Heiman, the singer who captured the attention of the heavy and power metal audiences with Lost Horizon’s two albums in 2001 and 2003, both nearly perfect albums. Besides nearly perfect music, there was the beauty of the acrobatic singing, with a voice as luxurious as the most elite beautiful voices in all of metal. The reason why Sacred Outcry is noteworthy is because they seem to have convinced Daniel Heiman to sing in the style of Lost Horizon (and even use the words “lost horizon” on one of the songs), to use his voice in all of its grandiosity, to showcase its elegance. It is quite the achievement to behold. Come for the songwriting and lyrics, stay for the marvelous singing.

Towers of Gold by Sacred Outcry

https://www.facebook.com/SacredOutcry/