Corrosive Carcass - Composition of Flesh

De Profundis - The Emptiness Within

Deathronation - A Soil Forsaken...

Deathronation - Exorchrism

Hellspawn - The Great Red Dragon

Inborn Suffering - Regression to Nothingness

Inborn Suffering - Wordless Hope

Inset - Inset

Sagntid - The Undisciplined Heart of Sagntid

Sagntid - Where The Black Dogs Cease To Bark

Stellar Soul - Cosmic Journey

Band: ABSKE FIDES

Country: Brazil

Title: Abske Fides

Label: Solitude Productions

Year: 2012

Style: Doom Death Metal

Review:

I guess this is Solitude Productions' first Brazilian signing, and although it's my first meeting with their music, I have already met their side-project, Au Sacre Des Nuits, a few years ago, so that's why their band name seems so familiar. Abske Fides started as a Funeral Black Doom Metal band, but I guess playing the same style in ASDN was a bit boring so thsi band developed more on the Doom Death side of Metal to a point where this debut album has almost no trace of Black Metal or Funeral Doom. 6 long tracks totaling more than 50 minutes of depressive and desolate atmospheres pushing you deep in a meditation state of mind but still keeping some hooks here and there (guitar solos, violins, synths, clean vox) to keep it from falling into a lethargic music you'd avoid next time. Although their label markets the keys, occasional violins and vocals as the highlights of Abske Fides, I likes the guitars and bass work much better and I think they are the focus point from where the band will develop. While there still are some less interesting parts in their music, Abske Fides has a great potential to develop into a memorable Doom Death Metal export for a country that's more into the fast paced side of Metal.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8.5/10

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Band: AEONS OV FROST

Country: Russia

Title: Cold Front

Label: Vacula Productions

Year: 2012

Style: Symphonic Black Metal

Review:

Aeons Ov Frost's second album was released by the band in 2008 but it seems Andriy from Vacula liked it so much he decided to re-release it this year. Aeon Ov Frost is a Symphonic Black Metal band clearly lead by the guitarist and founding member Ivan Von Frost. It seems all music is composed in order to give him space to display his technical skills, and that's not necessary a bad thing as he seems to be a quite talented musician and composer, his guitar leads are really nice, his solos are not boring and the mix with the other instruments is good enough to result in a solid material. The bass player is also a good one, the keyboards are a good addition, and I have no complaints about the drum work as well, so all in all I liked this release. The only flaw is the lack of some memorable tunes and in this genre this is a mandatory feature. As soon as you stop playing the CD you forget what you have listened to and maybe only remember some good solos, but that's it. The potential is clearly there but they have to dig deeper to unveil it on the upcoming albums.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 7/10

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Band: ANTIGAMA

Country: Poland

Title: Stop the Chaos

Label: Selfmadegod Records

Year: 2012

Style: Death Grind

Review:

5 new tracks to prove this Polish Death Grinders are still alive, an EP lasting for only 15 minutes but one that shows this is a hell of a band. Everything here is extremely fast and brutal, but the excellent production allows us to experience every little bit of this intense work. A great work, I have enjoyed every minute of its twists and turns, and although is resembles a bit with the new wave of Deathcore/Metalcore it keeps that old-school feeling alive, it doesn't fall into the large mediocre Metalcore pit. A highly recommended band and EP to all of you into fast, twisted and brutal as fuck Death Grind with crystal clear production.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 9/10

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Band: ASTARIUM

Country: Russia

Title: Wyrm of Melancholy

Label: Selfreleased

Year: 2012

Style: Symphonic Black Metal

Review:

Astarium is back with a new, self-released album containing 8 tracks and a bonus cover of Krah's "permafrost" (honestly I have no idea who Krah is...). This is released as a promo I guess with the purpose to find a suitable label for a mass production, but it looks good and that makes me think SiN, the man behind Astarium, is serious about his work and is aiming high. Maybe labelling it as Black Metal is a bit outdated (Astarium used to be Black Metal some time ago), but the atmosphere is there and the vocals too. I would better say Astarium is now a mix of Depressive Doom with Symphonic Gothic Black, the tempo is mostly slow and opressive, and the overall atmospheres are very depressive, melancholic and sorrowful. Although the production is not shiny and polished to the bone, Astarium manages to reek of extreme grief and desolation and at the same time to create its own fantasy world. I like the fact SiN gave up his awful synthetic computer generated guitar sounds and picked up a real guitar this time. There's a lot to improve, but I think fans of Depressive Metal will like this album a lot, it feels much more honest and from the heart than Astarium's previous works.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8/10

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Band: BITTERNESS

Country: Germany

Title: The Final Declaration of the End (Swansongs for the Faithful)

Label: G.U.C. Records

Year: 2012

Style: Thrash Death Metal

Review:

This album will be a real delight for old-school Teutonic Thrash Metal, and not only. Bitterness' fifth album, "The Final Declaration of the End" contains 8 new tracks and 3 bonus tracks for a total of almost 45 minutes of fast German Thrash Metal. Although heavily influenced by Kreator, the band does not limit to this, they also add some Gothemburg styled Death Metal and some Heavy Metal influences too so the end result is both old-school and quite modern (well, as modern as the Gothemburg Metal could be considered). A melodic but at the same time fast and very aggressive piece of Metal based on a Swiss-clock rhythm section and some very melodic guitar leads that make this album very enjoyable. Don't know how powerful it sounds live as they are a trio, but on Cd the band is very headbanging friendly, if it sounds the same on stage than we have here a devastating act we all should see. The album is very entertaining but if you're not into fast Thrash Metal you might get bored here and there. If you're into German Thrash Metal, and you can stand a bit of Gothemburg Death Metal and heavy Metal then Bitterness is exactly what you're looking for, try it out yourselves but I bet you'll love this album.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8.5/10

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Band: BULLETSIZE

Country: Sweden

Title: The Apokalypse

Label: Selfreleased

Year: 2011

Style: Thrash Death Metal

Review:

The first thing that hits you about this album is its low volume, I know, adjust the volume from the speakers, but in comparison to other releases this is like whispered, and that's definitely not the goal of Bulletsize as their music is very energetic and aggressive. Anyway, this is the band's second full-length, a 10 tracks effort totaling 40 minutes. As I said, the production is not the best one around and that could weight a lot on the final results, but the band seems curdled and eager to display its brutality. There are many random riffs thrown inhere, nothing to catch your interest, but the guitar leads and some insane drumming parts are worth listening for sure. The overall atmosphere is not as powerful and catchy as it should/could be, but the album is not bad either. The guitarists and vocalist could do more and it seems the drummer really wants so more from this band, I guess some more melodic guitar leads and less typical guitar riffs would do them very well. To conclude, this is for the die-hard fans of Melodic Thrash Death Metal only.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 7/10

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Band: CHRISTINVERTION

Country: Russia

Title: Embodiment of Goat Blasphemy / Hail Desecration!

Label: Stavropol Nekrodivizion

Year: 2012

Style: Black Grind

Review:

I have no idea if Christinvertion is still an active band, Metal Archives mentiones the band changed its name recently to Sin kruzifix, but that's about all I know about them. This release is actually a compilation of the first and only 2 albums of Christinvertion, "Embodiment of Goat Blasphemy" from 2004 and "Hail Desecration!" from 2005, totalling 53 minutes of bestial, primitive, sadistic Black Metal a la Archgoat, maybe a bit dirtier and more down-tuned than Archgoat though. The sound is raw, demo-sounding, but it's quite perfect for this type of music. Stavropol Nekrodivizion released this material on a nice A5 format pack including a poster, so if you're into Archgoat hurry up and don't miss this piece of blasphemy limited to only 100 copies, maybe you'll still find some as mine is copy no. 81. back to the music, I'm sure only the initiated will be able to understand what's happening here, this sheer unleash of Black Metal and Grindcore brutality is certainly not for everyone, as for me it's a long time since I've heard such a raw and at the same time spot on release, I'd tag it as an excellent piece of underground extreme metal terror.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8.5/10

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Band: CORROSIVE CARCASS

Country: Sweden

Title: Composition of Flesh

Label: Abyss Records

Year: 2012

Style: Death Metal

Review:

I thought this is a new band, but theye were actually formed back in 2004. The release of their 2010 demo "Rot.In.Pieces" in 2010 brought them this cool deal with Abyss Records, and here's the fruit of their labour, their debut album. Containing 13 tracks, 7 of them being the 2010 demo, and lasting for a bit more than 40 minutes, "Composition of Flesh" is a 100% Old-School Swedish Death Metal effort. As highlights of their music I could mention the chuggy guitars sound, the very good vocals (even though I think this guy has even more potential) and the dark atmospheres, perfect for Death Metal. Even though most of the time the rhythms are fast, Corrosive Carcass also adds some mid-tempo parts and some slow moments to spice things up a bit. They succeed up to a point, but the only thing this albums lacks of is one or more tracks to stand out and get to be memorable ("Collector" or "The End of Us All" might just prove me wrong though). Otherwise the album is perfect for anyone in search for Old-School Death Metal with that rotten atmospheres this genre was so proud of. Excellent sound, perfect cover artwork, a nice trip back in time.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8.5/10

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Band: DE PROFUNDIS

Country: UK

Title: The Emptiness Within

Label: Kolony Records

Year: 2012

Style: Progressive Extreme Metal

Review:

I have reviewed another band called De Profundis a while ago, the Hungarian band, but this time I have here the third album of the UK based De Profundis. "The Emptiness Within" is made of 9 new tracks, 2 of them being instrumental, summing up 55 minutes of Extreme Metal. Melodic most of the time, progressive in structures here and there, quite catchy, this album gives us a great display of instrumental skills, but it can also make you loose focus at times. The highlight of De Produndis' music is definitely the outstanding work on the bass lines, and these guys seem to know that so they give much space to the bass player to expose his ideas and even experiment, he definitely knows what he's doing. If the band would have 2 such bassists De Profundis would instantly become a gem in our Extreme Metal scene and I really think two bass players would fit this band perfectly. The other instrumentists are very good in what they do, too (the jazzy parts are a perfect display of this), but I would have liked a bit more variety on the vocal lines too. All in all this is an album many of you will enjoy simply because it makes you discover more and more interesting features each time you listen to it. 

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8.5/10

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Band: DEATHRONATION

Country: Germany

Title: A Soil Forsaken...

Label: Selfreleased

Year: 2006

Style: Death Metal

Review:

This is Deathronation's debut demo released firstly on tape and then on CD, and I have here the CD version of it. Old-School dark and sinister Death Metal with rehearsal type of sound. the drummer is a very good one but the drums' sound on this demo is simply annoying, too loud in comparison to the rest of the instruments. The compositions are really good, the guitar solos are great, the vocal parts are horrifying and there is also a good variety of rhythms and tempos so there are less chances you get bored by it. As a debut demo "A Soil Forsaken..." has proven its point: Deathronation doesn't care for modern trends, they are here to bring out only the ugliest form of Death Metal, no compromises.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 7/10

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Band: DEATHRONATION

Country: Germany

Title: Exorchrism

Label: Dead Master's Beat / Godeater Records

Year: 2011

Style: Death Metal

Review:

This second demo from Deathronation comes out after no less than 5 years since their debut demo, so we have here a slow writing band, not a good option for labels nowadays. Anyway, this demo is professionally released on CD by Dead Master's Beat and Godeater backing up the band's potential. "Exorchism" is composed of 6 long tracks totaling almost half an hour of old-school filthy, raw sounding Death Metal. The sound is unpolished, almost rehearsal sounding but for a demo it's more than acceptable. The compositions are simple but rely mostly on the atmospheres these guys manage to create, the stench of death is overall. I very much liked the putrid vocals and the short guitar solos, but I should also mention the simple but very well driven guitar riffs reaching Black Death moments at times. The rough sound might seem a problem at first but as time goes by and you dive deeper into this release it becomes quite natural and proper for it. Personal fave track: Curse from the Grave. 

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8/10

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Band: DESULTOR

Country: Sweden

Title: Masters of Hate

Label: Abyss Records

Year: 2012

Style: Progressive Death Metal

Review:

"Masters of Hate" might seem a pretty bold title for a debut album, but maybe these guys are really that confident in the music they throw to the World, and I wouldn't say they are wrong about it. These 35 minutes seem to be carefully crafted in order to build Desultor a strong name in the scene; 11 tracks, 2 of them instrumental, a mix of Progressive Death Metal, Modern Thrash Metal, Black Metal and occasional Groove Metal influences. The combination of Extreme Metal instrumental with Nevermore-like type of melodic vocals and the variety presented on this album are real winners, Desultor seems to be a name to remember. I can honestly say the audition of this album was a real delight and to me it seems only the starting point to an important Desultor saga. The sound is crystal clear, no objections whatsoever, but the cover artwork does no justice to the contents of this CD, I'm sure many kids won't even look at it in a shop, it's too random to attrach any glance... If you read this and you're into Progressive Extreme Metal, don't miss this album!

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 9.5/10

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Band: EMPATIC

Country: Poland

Title: Gods of Thousand Souls

Label: Wydawnictwo Muzyczne Psycho / Terrasound Records

Year: 2011

Style: Thrash Death Metal

Review:

Another release from the promised land of Extreme Metal, Poland, "Gods of Thousand Souls", Empatic's debut full-length, is a very good blend of fast Thrash and Death Metal, nothing new under the sun but definitely well executed and enthusiastic to make a good first impression on the fans of this genre. Melodic, groovy, fast and fat sounding, Empatic seems to be a solid band already and their perspectives are bright. Unfoprtunately there's nothing to remain in your memory after a few spins, but at least you'll enjoy this while listening to it, and maybe on the next album they will insert more hooks. All in all "Gods of Thousand Souls" will show the metal community this band is a solid act and they are here to make they mark, and hopefully they will succeed. The execution, the production and artworks are all classy and professional so if you like your Thrash Death with some Melodic touches and quite fresh sounding Empatic might be a good choice. One final mention though, the last track, a cover of OMD's "Enola Gay" from the '80's, is exactly like its title, gay as a pink unicorn, and should have never be added on this album...

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8/10

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Band: GRORR

Country: France

Title: Anthill

Label: Selfreleased

Year: 2012

Style: Progressive Death Metal

Review:

Here we have a mesmerizing album I was and still am totally captivated and impressed by. A band that I haven't heard of, but a band I'm sure I'll keep getting good news on. Grorr comes from France and presents us here a full-length composed of 4 parts, each of them segmented in a few tracks making the whole being a 13 tracks effort. Most probably Progressive Death Metal is not the most accurate definition of their music, but at least it's the closest I can think of. The band is rooted in Progressive Death Metal, but what we have here is much more, a much vider variety of styles and what makes this album an excellent band is the way the music flows seamlessly from start till the end. The ethnic instruments they use all over the place are a fantastic addition to this beautiful music, and this is one of the few, very few, times when I would totally agree with a re-release of this album by a label, a big ass one if possible, this music should and must be heard by a large audience. Sometimes you feel like listening to a traditional Irish inspired metal, other times to a Chinese inspired music and even to some African culture inspired metal, this is sick and I totally love it. The production could have been a bit better but that's about the only not perfect element in Grorr's music. Definitely recommended if you're into prog stuff like Devin Townsend.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 9.5/10

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Band: HELLSPAWN

Country: Poland

Title: The Great Red Dragon

Label: Wydawnictwo Muzyczne Psycho

Year: 2012

Style: Death Metal

Review:

Here's another release from Poland that should make this country's metalheads proud of having such a prolific scene. Hellspawn will be soon celebrating their (first) 10 years of existence as a band and this album could be the perfect "excuse" for starting to tour extensively next year. "The Great red Dragon", although lasting less than half an hour, is an excellent display of old-school US inspired Death Metal with thick guitar tones, fast rhythms, brutal pounding rhythm section and angry hoarse vocals. The guitar twists and turns, the leads and fast but effective solos are in my opinion the highlight of this band. Although US Death Metal seems to be the main inspiration, the Polish style is also blended in, so if you're into Vader or even Behemoth you'll find a lot of common things in Hellspawn's music too. The sound is quite raw, but still crystal clear so you won't have any problems enjoying hellspawn's brutality. Not original but well executed Death Metal.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 7.5/10

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Band: INBORN SUFFERING

Country: France

Title: Regression to Nothingness

Label: Solitude Productions

Year: 2012

Style: Doom Death Metal

Review:

Solitude Productions picked up a real winner here, Inborn Suffering might be the biggest name in their roster so far, and although the band relied on their 2006 album success so far, they are back this year with a new release, and after listening to their recently re-released "Wordless Hope" album I was pleasantly surprised the see the band evolved into a real bulldozer of depressive emotions and still kept variety at a high level, even higher than before. Even Depressive Black Metal bands will have lots to learn from this band, this new album drains you of any and all hapiness you had before the audition... Another excellent feature on "Regression to Nothingness" is the heaviness of all tracks, I'd say imagine the riffs from older Lake Of Tears albums times 10 combined with the heavy emotions from Katatonia, melancholic acoustic guitar parts, Paradise Lost's mourning guitar leads, a fantastic wall of pounding drums, the sorrow of My Dying Bride's tracks and you get Inborn Suffering's latest release, an excellent material recommended to all Doom Death fans. Most probably an album that will last through times.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 9.5/10

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Band: INBORN SUFFERING

Country: France

Title: Wordless Hope

Label: Solitude Productions

Year: 2012

Style: Doom Death Metal

Review:

Solitude Productions recently signed Inborn Suffering and they have agreed, besides the release of their new album, on re-releasing the "Wordless Hope" one initially released by Sound Riot, a very active label in the first decade of the 2000's. Since the band has a pretty solid name now, I guess this album sold quite well 6 years ago and this re-release will please their fans. The music is really, really good, the tracks are long to gigantic (from 5 to 12 minutes long) but you don't get the chance to get bored, there are many rhythm changes, the emotional level is always high, and the band is not afraid to display their instrumental skills. They are constantly building in intensity (the vocals play a major role in this) and avoid as much as possible repeating riffs, which is an excellent feature in my books. The only thing I don't like is the hi-hat sound that manage to ruin a lot of the atmosphere for me. An excellent album you shouldn't miss if you're into traditional Doom Death Metal.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8.5/10

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Band: INSET

Country: Poland

Title: Inset

Label: Selfreleased

Year: 2012

Style: Thrash Death Metal

Review:

Inset is a band founded by Dariusz Kaczorowski and Pawel Adamowicz in Zory (South-werstern Poland). Now this group is a stable five members group, which just complete his first EP from incomplete records. In resulted this material is a very good, technical staff – intro and three powerfully tracks balanced between technical death metal and thrash with a small piece of doom influences and very good bass drive. Inset is just starting underground gigs. Good job !!!

Reviewed by Vilcin

Rating: 8/10

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Band: L'ENDEVI

Country: Spain

Title: An Eternity

Label: Art Gates Records

Year: 2012

Style: Gothic Metal

Review:

Gothic Metal is a vague term for this band but that was the closest thing I could think of labelling this band's music. A full hour of melodic metal, quite strange, unpredictable, catchy at times and a bit hard to get on other. I find Mamen's vocals very interesting; although they could seem a bit forced, her vocals are the highlight of this band, very powerful and at the same time melodic she manages to give the band its own identity and that's what everyone is looking for nowadays, a bit of originality. Some might like it and some might hate it but at least a bit part will remember it. The instrumental part is ok but brings nothing new to the table. Influences from Alternative Rock, Heavy Metal, Extreme Metal and even Grunge can be heard, so they seem not to be really focused on creating a strict path and rather play whatever comes out on each track. Good stuff but they can do better next time.

Reviewed by Adrian

Rating: 8/10

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