(Andy Synn introduces our premiere of the self-titled debut EP by the western U.S. black metal trio Devil With No Name, which is set for release on May 22nd.)
Unlike most Black Metal bands, Devil With No Name take their inspiration not from the chilling heart of winter but from the burning heat of the Arizona desert, whose desiccated desolation is, in its own way, just as bleak and inimical to human life as the icy vastness of the frozen wastes. Continue reading »
(This is Vonlughlio’s review of the new album by Detroit-based Syphilic, which was released on May 15th.)
Today’s subject is a project that in my honest opinion is one of the sickest bands, in terms of of shock value, due to the cover art for their albums throughout the years (we’ll talk more about this in a bit). That band is Syphilic and it was formed back in 2005 in Detroit, Michigan by Brian Forgue, and to this day has released nine albums. We are going to talk about Syphilic’s latest effort Empty Nest, which from the cover to the titles and the lyrics tells a story that is not for the faint of heart. Continue reading »
Bombs of Hades – photo by Susan Wicher
(DGR prepared this collection of reviews, focusing on six 2020 EPs across a range of metal genres.)
If you’ve been reading the site recently you might’ve caught fellow writer Andy Synn doing a deep dive on six EPs that had seen recent release (here). Well, that wasn’t the only one of those on the docket, and what you’re looking at is a second collection of EPs: Stuff that I’ve noticed we haven’t dived into in print, stuff that might’ve glanced by us, and one or two that are basically on the DGR radar by proximity alone.
Musically, we’re all over the map – hell, Ovaryrot’s presence alone was likely to have that effect – as we travel through crusty death metal realms, thrashier-death and black hybrids, to black metal itself and all of its post-genre cousins, even making a trip to the tech-death world to say hi to those over-complicated goofballs and their tendency to try to write everything and the kitchen sink into five-minute chunks, before finally winding up on the doorstep of some nightmare music, because who the hell needs to sleep?
So if you saw the previous six EPs and thought, “Wow, what a fantastic idea”, then settle in my oddly specific friend because do we have a treat for you, another six EPs of music that have hit over the past few months for you to check out and bang your head to. Continue reading »
Uprising
(Andy Synn wrote each of the three reviews collected in this post, singing the praises of the new albums by Afsky (Denmark), Odraza (Poland), and Uprising (Germany).)
Black, as we all know, is the best colour.
It’s slimming, effortlessly classy, and goes with pretty much everything. Which I guess is why Black Metal fans are renowned as the sexiest, suavest-looking motherfuckers on the planet…
All joking aside, while conventional wisdom and common consensus seems to be that 2020 has, thus far, been a big year for Death Metal, it’s also been a banner year for Black Metal too, and I’ve already written about several absolutely stunning entries to the canon (for example, here, here, here, and here) that will doubtless end up on many year-end lists.
Well, now I’m about to add three more contenders for the crown to those lists, with the new albums from Afsky (DK), Odraza (PL), and Uprising (DE). Continue reading »
On their new EP A Blunt Description of Something Obscene, Protosequence have created a genuine musical spectacle, a fusion of tech-death and progressive metal that manages to be both jaw-dropping and beguiling, both head-spinning and bone-smashing. It creates pyrotechnic displays of breath-taking instrumental agility that often seem completely deranged or utterly alien, accompanied by bestial vocal ferocity, but it also seduces the listener with elements of mesmerizing melody. And around every corner (of which there are many in these labyrinthine compositions), a new surprise awaits.
The EP will be released tomorrow by Lacerated Enemy Records, but today we bring you the chance to hear all the music. Get prepared for a wild thrill-ride — and of course we have our own thoughts about these tracks to help you prepare, though no one will blame you for skipping over them and pounding the Play button down below. Continue reading »
(Andy Synn has compiled reviews of six recently released EPs that will make your shut-in time more bearable)
In the unending onrush of new albums coming out every month it’s easy to lose track of some of the smaller, though no less stellar, examples of ravaging riff-craft being released at the same time.
The thing is, sometimes what you want is more of a snack than a full meal, which is why it’s important that we make room in our schedule, now and then, to really appreciate some of the sweet metallic morsels like the six I’ve selected here today. Continue reading »
The first track on the album we’re about to premiere is entitled “Manifest“. In it, a woman delivers a depressing introductory statement, but one that’s difficult to deny. She observes that wars have raged throughout human history, spilling blood in vast rivers, followed by waves of despair and hate, but that somehow history always seems to leave us blind and ignorant. We are preceded by columns of shattered souls, and countless generations of shattered souls will follow us. And so, she says, “every generation will be blinded by mnemocide….”
As to the meaning of “mnemocide”, it seems to refer to the willful erasure of memory. It brings to mind a line in Greoge Orwell’s 1984: “Those who control the present, control the past and those who control the past control the future.”
That first spoken-word track on the debut album by this Swiss death metal band, who have themselves taken the name Mnemocide, could be understood as a manifesto for the album as a whole, both lyrically and in the dystopian and dismal atmosphere that the music itself generates while, at the same time, the humongous pounding grooves of the songs are ruining our necks. Continue reading »
(Our friend Vonlughlio returns with this review and recommendation of the new album by the death metal band Unmerciful from Topeka, Kansas. The album is out now via Willowtip Records.)
This time around I have the great opportunity to write about Unmerciful’s third album Wrath Encompassed, released via Willowtip Records on April 28th. This band from Topeka are well known in the BDM scene due to their 2006 debut album Unmercifully Beaten, which is considered a timeless classic in the genre.
As with many projects, Unmerciful suffered a long time through the hazards of time and life with no new music and lineup changes, until their 2016 sophomore effort Ravenous Impulse saw the light of day. When it was released I must be honest and say that I had mixed feelings about it. Musically it was good, and yet somewhat different from their debut. In particular, the vocals did not go well with me, not that they were bad, but just did not click with me. The drums were handled by Origin’s John Longstreth (keep in mind that Origin was also formed in Topeka), through a relationship with some of the members from Unmerciful who used to play in the band in the early years. Continue reading »
(We present Andy Synn‘s review of the new album by Paradise Lost, which will be released on May 15th by Nuclear Blast Records.)
Every time a legendary, much-loved band releases a new album there seems to be a race as to who can be the first to declare it “their best album ever”.
Some of these people are, of course, the type of overly ardent fan who’ll take any opportunity to demonstrate their devotion to the band (and to anyone else who’s watching), but others, or so I like to think, are simply blinded by the glare of something shiny and new (which, as we all know, is always alluring).
Case in point, I’ve already seen umpteen write-ups of Obsidian declaring it to be a “masterpiece” – it’s not, though it is very good, which I think people will realise once the hype has died down a little and they’ve had time to reassess – largely, or so it seems, due to the fact that it leans further towards the band’s gothier side (think their Draconian Times/One Second period) than the pure Death/Doom of 2017’s Medusa. Continue reading »
As you can see, it’s time for another gigantic round-up. I took extra time and included artwork for this installment. I’m also very happy with the variety of what I chose, which I’ll forewarn you includes a batch of songs at the end which include singing.
QUESTION (Mexico)
Two tracks off the new album by this death metal band from Santiago De Querétaro, Mexico, are now streaming. They provide vivid reminders of just how good Question are, providing ravaging vocals, unpredictable rhythmic shifts, and equally surprising fretwork that moves the music in eerie and freakish directions while also generating an atmosphere of unearthly menace and unhinged mania. Continue reading »