ALL OUT WAR – CRAWL AMONG THE FILTH

 Album Reviews  No Responses »
Jul 242019
 

(Andy Synn gets filthy with the new album from seminal Metal/Hardcore band All Out War)

As some of you may know, All Out War easily rank among my favourite bands of all time.

And I know I say that a lot – look, when you listen to a lot of bands you have a lot of favourites – but in this case I really mean it, as it was bands like All Out War, Ringworm, and Earth Crisis (and many more) who played a seminal role in defining my taste in Metal/Hardcore in the early days.

Which is why it’s crazy to think that this is the first time I’m writing about them for the site.

I’ll grant you that by the time I actually started writing for NCS they were once again on hiatus, and in the years to follow would only release one EP (and you know how terrible I am at keeping tabs on those… though I’m trying to do better) and an album which, to be honest, I’m not a massive fan of.

But, still, it feels weird to think that this is my first time properly reviewing the band… so I’d better make it count, right?

Continue reading »

SERPENT OF GNOSIS: “AS I DRINK FROM THE INFINITE WELL OF INEBRIATION”

 Album Reviews  2 Responses »
Jul 222019
 

 

(Here’s Andy Synn‘s review of the new album by Serpent of Gnosis, which was released by 1126 Records on June 14th.)

Let’s be honest, there’s considerably more stigma than stardust surrounding the concept of the “supergroup” these days, due to most bands of this sort suffering from such a painful lack of anything resembling chemistry or creativity that they inevitably end up producing something far less than the sum of their parts.

There are exceptions to this though, and while the various members of Serpent of Gnosis may not be quite famous (or infamous) enough to truly call themselves a “supergroup”, musically speaking they’re still miles ahead of most of those who do. Continue reading »

SHORT BUT SWEET: WORMED — “METAPORTAL”

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  3 Responses »
Jul 192019
 

 

(This is Andy Synn‘s review of the new EP by the Spanish technical death metal band Wormed, which was released on July 19th by Season of Mist.)

Wormed are, without a doubt, one of the more ridiculous acts in Metal.

And I mean that entirely as a compliment.

Despite conventional wisdom that “less is more” the Spanish quartet have made a career out of their seemingly endless pursuit of ludicrous excess, with practically every song (and album) attempting to be faster, heavier, and louder – more beats per minute, more notes per second, more babbling sci-fi nonsense – than the one before it.

It’s perhaps ironic, then, to find that the band’s latest EP strongly suggests that sometimes less IS more, as these four tracks prove to be just the right bite-sized portion to allow both new and old listeners to get their fill of brutal techstravagance without feeling like their overstuffed brains are going to explode at the end of it. Continue reading »

SHORT BUT SWEET: REBEL WIZARD (“HARK! HARK! HARK!”) AND OSSUARY (“SUPREME DEGRADATION”)

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  4 Responses »
Jul 192019
 

 

Before we move into the weekend I want to recommend two EPs. The first was released last night — I happened to notice the Bandcamp alert in my e-mail not long after it landed there, and bought it immediately. The second was released in May, but I overlooked it until a friend pointed me to it earlier this week — and it was love at first listen.

REBEL WIZARD: “HARK! HARK! HARK!”

To any regular visitors at NCS my admiration (okay, “adoration” is probably more accurate) of Rebel Wizard‘s music is well-known. Having been so consistently enthusiastic about B. Nekrasov‘s previous releases under this moniker, I was predisposed to like this one (I’ve already confessed that I bought it before listening to it). Conceivably, I could have been disappointed, in which case you would not be reading these words. Obviously, however, I’m very happy with my impulsive purchase. Continue reading »

SHORT BUT SWEET: MARBURG — “POLEMICIST”

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  No Responses »
Jul 192019
 

 

(This is Vonlughlio’s review of a debut EP by the California technical death/grind band Marburg, which was released in a CD edition by Vargheist Records on July 5th.)

This time around I would like to talk about the band Marburg from Los Angeles, California. They are a Tech Death/Grind group that formed back in 2015 and digitally released their debut EP Polemicist in 2016. At some point they signed with the South Carolina label Vargheist Records, which has recently released the EP on CD.

Getting the chance to listen to their music, I did not have any idea how it would sound, and ohh boy, this turned out to be a pleasant surprise, to say the least. For me, the sound is natural, and all the instruments play a key role in delivering in-your-face grind with tech ingredients that make it even more enjoyable. The first song, “Fuck You”, is the perfect introduction, giving the listener a taste of the wild ride they are about to experience. Once I hit play, the energy in the music was unquestionable, and the talent showcased here is superb. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): THE NEGATIVE BIAS — “NARCISSUS RISING (A METAMORPHOSIS IN THREE ACTS)”

 Album Reviews, Premieres  No Responses »
Jul 162019
 

 

The new album by the Austrian alchemists The Negative Bias is so ambitious in its conception, so extravagant in its composition, and so tremendously powerful in its execution that it merits the often-overused term “visionary”. It becomes a form of breathtakingly dramatic musical theater that seems calculated to create shock and awe, to assault and bedazzle the senses, forcibly shattering commonplace perceptions in order to make the mind more receptive to new and unexpected visions.

The name of this monumental work is Narcissus Rising (A Metamorphosis In Three Acts). It follows the band’s debut album Lamentation of the Chaos Omega (2017) and a 2018 split with Golden Dawn. It will be released on July 26th by ATMF, and today we premiere a full stream, preceded by further thoughts about this stunning experience. Continue reading »

ARCTIC SLEEP: “KINDRED SPIRITS”

 Album Reviews, Exceptions to the Rule  3 Responses »
Jul 152019
 

 

(This is Andy Synn‘s review of the 7th album by the solo project Arctic Sleep from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which was released on July 12th. It is a significant exception to our “rule” about singing. The cover art was created by Jennifer Weiler.)

Some of our readers may not be aware of this, but the Metal blogosphere (of which we are but a small part) is kind of like its own separate ecosystem, with all the various sites and zines and writers sharing and interacting within the same digital space, by turns feeding, and being fed upon, and occasionally coming together to copulate, exchange information, and (hopefully) create something new.

This doesn’t mean we’re all “in cahoots”, by any means. I’ve questioned and criticised the work of others just as much as I’ve been questioned and criticised in turn. But it does mean that, sometimes at least, the circle of life – or the circle of riffs, as it were – moves us all in similar ways.

Case in point, I have to give full credit to those brave lavatorial adventurers at The Toilet ov Hell for introducing me to the music of Arctic Sleep, whose latest album I’ve been listening to pretty much non-stop over the weekend. Continue reading »

NO ONE KNOWS WHAT THE DEAD THINK (SELF-TITLED)

 Album Reviews  6 Responses »
Jul 112019
 

 

(This is Todd Manning‘s review of the new album by No One Knows What the Dead Think, which is set for release on September 20 by Willowtip Records.)

All hail the new flesh, the new band that is a merciless reincarnation of the insane and mighty Discordance Axis. No One Knows What The Dead Think contains D.A. alumni Jon Chang on vocals and Rob Marton on guitar, and they are joined by Kyosuke Nakano on drums, and the band make no bones about this being the culmination of the original series of albums by Discordance Axis.

For those not familiar with Discordance Axis, they produced some of the most stunningly original Grindcore albums of the nineties. The sound was utterly unhinged, partially due to Chang’s vicious and wide-eyed vocal approach, but also because of Marton’s almost Godflesh-like riffs being paired with Dave Witte’s blasting drum work. And just like before, the vibe here is suitably Post-Human, a sort of logical conclusion to Cyberpunk, where Earth’s hellscape is primarily populated by swarms of of artificial intelligence. Continue reading »

ECLIPTIC VISION: “ECLIPTIC VISION”

 Album Reviews  1 Response »
Jul 102019
 

 

(This is Vonlughlio’s review of the new second album by Ecliptic Vision, which was released on July 6th.)

This time around I have the opportunity to review the self-titled sophomore effort of Ecliptic Vision from Syracuse, New York. Prior to listening, I had no idea what the sound would be like, other than a description of the music as a mix of technical and brutal death metal, nor anything about the band, for that matter.

Now, the good thing about getting into this project with so little knowledge is that for me it was a pleasant surprise, to say the least.  I won’t say the material is groundbreaking or something we haven’t heard before, but the musicians in the band are very talented, and the end result shows their skills and how well they work together. Continue reading »

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