Band: ABACINATE

Country: USA

Title: Genesis

Label: Epitomite Productions

Year: 2011

Style: Death Metal

Review:

Brutality and more brutality, how awesome is this right?  You see, I can’t help myself when it comes to brutal and sick bands like Abacinate.  No matter what happens during a band’s reign in Death Metal, hopefully the sickness will stay along with the band’s progression stage!  Anyway, Genesis is the name of this opus and it is for fans of purely sadistic metal.  Just 10 songs of ruthless elements from the influence of earlier bands like Suffocation, Cannibal Corpse, and Immolation.  40 minutes of good old fashioned death metal.  Many bands are stuck in the genre’s shuffle of metal bands trying to claw their way out of the bottom of the barrel.  Abacinate won’t have any problem doing this with tracks like "The Bundy Curse”, "The Natural Disasters” and "Night of the Desirable objects”.  Abacinate plays a good style of brutality!  You’ll love it!

Reviewed by Lex Luther

Rating: 8/10

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Band: AEON OF HORUS

Country: Australia

Title: Exile

Label: Selfreleased

Year: 2011

Style: Progressive Death Metal

Review:

Aeon of Horus is a technical, and very progressive metal band.  Add in some Thrash Metal and some unfriendly vocals, and what we have here is a band full of promise and talent.  Aeon of Horus released a full length entitled "The Embodiment of Darkness and Light which garnered the band a fan base and good reviews for their style.  Now an EP is released by the name of "Exile” and so far Aeon of Horus has continued their quest for he top of the Metal underground.  One thing I noticed was the fact that Aeon of Horus is not afraid to add new elements or influence into their music.  Sure, there is plenty of brutality and ruthless riffs throughout the ep, but there is also hints of symphonic curiosity and electronic talent.  Either way it all mixes well with what the band is doing.  "Exile” consists of 6 tracks totaling 23 minutes.  Fans will be very pleased with the outcome of the ep.  Aeon of Horus has a bright future in the metal realm as long as they keep things brutal along with their adding of instrumental prowess!  Songs like "Symbiosis” and "Light” really show how technically proficient Aeon of Horus is.  All the elements of a fine metal band here.

Reviewed by Lex Luther

Rating: 8/10

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Band: ALNE

Country: Poland

Title: Perunowy Kamien

Label: selfrelased

Year: 2011

Style: Atmospheric Folk Metal

Review:

Alne is a new project of musician from Non Opus Dei. „Perunowy Kamien” is a very good realised three tracks’ demo (Perunowy Kamien, Czarcie Wesele and Taniec). Perunowy Kamien means Perun’s rock and this is connection with old slavic believes and all of this shord demo is maintained in a climate slavic/borussia paganism. These tracks are a combination of atmospheric black, neofolk, pagan metal, medieval folk and folkmetal – with very interesting female vocal. Very good material, I’m waiting for full length album!

Reviewed by Vilcin

Rating: 8.5/10

Band: ANCESTORS BLOOD

Country: Finland

Title: When the Forest Calls

Label: Heidens Hart Records

Year: 2009

Style: Pagan Black Metal

Review:

Ancestor’s Blood is an Atmospheric, Ambient type of band.  A form of Pagan Black Metal and Folk Metal is what derives from this band.  A good quality of production and well played evil show a lot about Ancestor’s Blood.  A raw and primitive vocal style is added to the mix, the elements of influence seem to come from the old ways of Norway or Sweden, maybe Finland as well!  Keyboards, symphonic and electronic metal is part of the mix, but different from the usual high pitched screams and blasting beats of Black metal.  This release takes Pagan Metal to another part of the underground where I have not visited yet!  Fans of Hellveto and Black metal bands like them will certainly enjoy Ancestor’s Blood.

Reviewed by Lex Luther

Rating: 7/10

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Band: BREATHLESS

Country: Spain

Title: Thrashumancy

Label: Xtreem Music

Year: 2011

Style: Thrash Metal

Review:

Spanish Breathless is a quite young band, which is one of  „Backing Thrash” wave. I’ve never heard about this guys later but this is good that I’d got this album. This material sounds as old school thrash from 80th of  XX Century. This is not bad, I like thrash from the past and these sounds make me the phase called „nice at heart”, he, he... Breathless’ new album is a pure extract of the best parts of old school and melodic thrash. Just only it and just all of it. This is a tribute for old thrashers from Megadeth’s „Rust in Peace” to Evildead’s „Annihilation of Civilisation”. Cover of „Thrashumancy” is a the same tribute for thrash’s covers from 80th... 

Good drive without combination. Just thrash, pure thrash.

Reviewed by Vilcin

Rating: 8/10

Band: DESECRESY

Country: Finland

Title: Arches of Entropy

Label: Xtreem Music

Year: 2010

Style: Death Metal

Review:

Heavy, ruthless, and production similar to the old school days of Sweden’s Death Metal rampage like Entombed and Dismember, maybe even At the Gates!  Totally old school here, and Desecresy lives nothing to chance with the style on this record.  I love this shit!  From the start of the song "In the Beginning” through "The Final Realm” and ending with "Through Eternity” Desecresy unleashes the brutal brains of a band 20 years ago, only fast forwarding to the present.  The main point of this review is OLD SCHOOL METAL!  We all know that back in the day Finland has its share of unpolished brutality in the forms of Convulse and Adramelech, and hopefully soon enough Desecresy will join the ranks of some the old time sickness that scorned society so many years ago.  A lot of the older bands are back, and with the push from newer bands like Desecresy, well…Things will be very interesting for the future of Death Metal.  Desecresy is killer old school metal in great form! 

Reviewed by Lex Luther

Rating: 9/10

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Band: EBONYLAKE

Country: UK

Title: In Swathes of Brooding Light

Label: Les Acteurs de l'Ombre Productions

Year: 2011

Style: Avantgarde Gothic Black Metal

Review:

Ebonylake was formed in 1997 and 2 years later they released their debut full-length on Cacophonous Records, back then a pretty well-established and active name in the metal fields. Right after the release of that album the band broke up but a decade later they decided to reform Ebonylake and here it is their second album, a more than an hour lasting album that is actually composed of 6 new tracks (recorded between '09 and '11) and 4 that were recorded in '97 and were supposed to be released as a demo, "As Ghosts We Dance in Thrashing Seas", that never saw the light of the day. The difference between the two recordings is that the new tracks are even more chaotic and thetrical as the old ones, Ebonylake being that kind of band that adds as many instruments and as much complexity in their music as possible to create a different world, their world. And they succeed, they are certainly proud of their world and know exactly how to portray it into music. A fascinating album that is like a blend of Arcturus and Lux Occulta but 100 times more chaotic and crazier. Reccomended if you're into theatrical, horrorish metal.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 9.5/10 

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Band: MEDIOCRACY

Country: Romania

Title: Asoma

Label: Asiluum

Year: 2011

Style: Crust Sludge Thrash Metal

Review:

Mediocracy is a young band formed in 2010 in Bucharest. This material is a mix of thrash, psycho, sludge, black, doom and sth else... Not so bad, this is a bridge beetween old time metal and the new metal’s flow. Schizophrenic vocal is  well integrated into wild guitar sounds. First parts of „Asoma” is fast tracks with a lot of load of anger. Next parts is a little boring for me sounds taken from doom and sth similar to raw/atmospheric black... Summary: interesting material but without „dot under letter i”. Too much noise in the last parts, I think. Hovewer this band is interesting.

Reviewed by Vilcin

Rating: 7.5/10

Band: MORS SUBITA

Country: Finland

Title: Human Waste Compression

Label: Violent Jurney Records

Year: 2011

Style: Thrash Death Metal

Review:

Mors Subita was formed in 1999 but only managed to release their debut album this year, although in the meantime they were active releasing some EPs and demos and I guess touring, as they seem to be a pretty solid team, and that's something you gain best from live activity. A debut album that's 50 minutes long and contains 11 tracks into Thrash Death Metal, a very melodic release, but at the same time fairly aggressive and what I like the best in their music is their capacity to create modern music on old-school skeletons by adding a lot of grooves and of course benefiting from an excellent sound. Although they come from Finland I would better fit Mors Subita in the Melodic Death Metal scene from that country and place their music near the likes of Arch Enemy or Soilwork, and yes, they are that good, they really crefted a great piece of melodic brutality on this album: killer guitar riffs, catchy leads,  hammering drums and aggressive, intelligent vocal lines. If you're into this genre I suggest you don't miss this album as it is faultless.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 9.5/10

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Band: STAR CROSSED

Country: Italy

Title: Relativity

Label: Risingworks

Year: 2011

Style: Thrash Power Metal

Review:

Star Crossed seems to be a Power Metal band making their name known pretty fast.  This latest offering is a straight up Power Metal release with such an old school feeling that reminded me of the 80’s and my days as young metalhead.  Star crossed keep things catchy and groovy throughout the whole record and they do a good job at keeping the metal interesting.  Each track delivers a sound and feeling as if they were hitting the stage in 1989, all the tracks are similar in that they offer a lot of good solo work and interesting parts.  There is not much more to tell about this band, these guys know the style and the old school Power Metal element lives very well in this group.  Tracks like "Sleeping with Satan” and "Everything Dies” are just small examples of what Star Crossed can really do, at least in my metal opinion!

Reviewed by Lex Luther

Rating: 8/10

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Band: TERRORWAY

Country: Italy

Title: Absolute

Label: Selfreleased

Year: 2010

Style: Modern Thrash Metal

Review:

Terrorway is an Italian band founded in 2009 and this is their debut EP, a 5 tracks work totaling 23 minutes of modern aggressive metal how they call it, and I have to agree with that labelling. The recording has a modern sound, very polished and making full use of the technical capabilities of a good studio. Their music, beside being aggressive and modern is progressive-oriented too, so by naming Messhuggah as one of the bands strongly influencing Terrorway's music you won't be wrong. I have to mention here the good technical abilities for the instrumentists and the vocalist who, although not being very versatile, uses many "tricks" to keep his parts interesting and not monotone. I'm very pleased with this band's potential and I can only recommend you their debut EP for a taste of what they can do. Great debut EP, get it!

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8.5/10

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Band: WITHERING SOUL

Country: USA

Title: No Closure

Label: Mortal Music

Year: 2011

Style: Melodic Black Metal

Review:

Chicago, IL is full of history within the Metal Underground, bands like Cianide, Contagion, Sindrome, and Sharon Tate’s Baby are just a small fraction of the many historical metal bands to be formed in the Windy City.  Withering Soul is another Chicago band crawling through the ranks of metal bands these days.  "No Closure” is an album of early style Black Metal, kind of reminds me a little bit of Cradle of Filth or Dark Funeral in a way you know?  I read somewhere in a metal blog that they have been said to have a similar style to Cradle, who cares…Anyway, Withering Soul unleash a symphonic sort of primitive piece of Black Metal here.  A Gothic feeling to it as well during play, but a good Black metal album.  10 tracks at 45 minutes in length gives the fan plenty of raw metal to jam.

Reviewed by Lex Luther

Rating: 8/10

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Band: WOLFCRY

Country: Greece

Title: Glorious

Label: Apollon

Year: 2010

Style: Power Metal

Review:

Power Metallers Wolfcry have been around the block quite a few times since they formed back in 1992.  From the days of Manowar and war haven bands played the venues and filled the seats.  These days anything old school sounds so good when played the right way and Wolfcry has achieved this so far with their release "Glorious”.  Nothing fancy here, the solos, the heavy laden riffs mixed with a melodic soul and strong vocal attack.  The band’s 4th release clocks in at 43 minutes with 8 tracks giving to the mix of metal.  Cool songs, "Fadin Visions”, and "Payback Time” show some of the elements and influence of early 80’s Power Metal throughout the opus from Wolfcry.  If you’re a fan of old school Power Metal then Wolfcry is well worth the time to check out.

Reviewed by Lex Luther

Rating: 7/10

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Band: WOMB OF DECAY

Country: Turkey

Title: Descent Into Obscure Nihilism

Label: Extreminal Productions

Year: 2011

Style: Funeral Doom Death Metal

Review:

Turkey, I am not too familiar with many bands from this country except for Drain of Impurity and Parricide among others.  Either way, don’t be fooled into thinking these guys are a brutal death metal band.  What we have here is a band playing the most drone, depressive, and self-killing funeral doom metal around!  Similar to early Cathedral or Paradise Lost in the old "Lost Paradise” era of Doom Metal.  Womb of Decay doesn’t add the other elements of Doom like keyboards and stuff like that.  It is just plain Doom Metal in a depressive manner.  Only for the most hardcore doom fanatics that’s for sure.  Tracks like "Descent into Obscure Nihilism” and "Unearthly Existence” really show the style of Doom Metal in the rawest form.  Definitely influenced by old school bands like the earlier ones mentioned above.  So if you are fan of total Doom Metal to the purest form then check out Womb of Decay’s newest offering, it will not disappoint. 

Reviewed by Lex Luther

Rating: 8/10

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Band: WRAPPED IN A SHEET

Country: UK

Title: Vultures

Label: Selfreleased

Year: 2011

Style: Blackened Death Metal

Review:

This is a one man project from UK intended to remain this way as far as I understand. I usually pile up promos based on the month I receive them in and Today it was time to review this material (yes, a bit late, I know, but what can I do with hundreds of promos waiting to be reviewed, honestly) and as funny as it might sound, I had a hard time understaning if the name of the band is Wrapped In A Sheet or Vultures, haha. I had no additional info except for the music and somehow Vultures sounded more of a bandname than Wrapped In A Sheet (WIAS). Anyway, to cut the crap, WIAS presents here an interesting debut album available for free download, an 11 tracks effort lasting for 53 minutes. Yes, it's a home recording but curious enough this time it doesn't bother me at all, the drums are not that synthetic as I have expected and the man behind this project has some really good skills on guitars. The vocals, although sounding like recorded with headphones (maybe they are), are exposed as layers of Black Metal-ish comprehensive vocals and multiple types of whispers. The major influence for WIAS is for sure Cradle Of Filth, and for a homemade recording I'm surprised how good it turned out to be, so good that it made me think this is really honest music. If you're into melodic but aggressive underground Black Metal don't hesitate to check this band out when you have a spare hour.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 7.5/10

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