VITRIOL: “PAIN WILL DEFINE THEIR DEATH”

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  4 Responses »
Nov 102017
 

(This is TheMadIsraeli’s review of the new EP by Vitriol from Portland, Oregon, with a complete Bandcamp stream on the day of its release.)

Ted O’Neill of Oblivion tells me about this guy, Kyle Rasmussen, and his band Vitriol and says I should look into them, tells me he thinks they’re going to be a significant band to pay attention to. I get these recommendations all the time, and of course as a music journo or blogger of any sort your instant thought is to think someone’s just trying to signal-boost their friends. I still check those recommendations out, of course, because I’d be close-minded to take the cynical route. I hit up Kyle for his band’s debut EP and… it did not disappoint.

Vitriol hit a death metal note that’s not really been struck for a while now, that brand of out-of-control, rabid, and schizophrenic tech death some of us associate with the likes of Cryptopsy and Cephalic Carnage — structured delirium, organized chaos, encapsulated insanity. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): LETHVM — “THIS FALL SHALL CEASE”

 Album Reviews, Premieres  2 Responses »
Nov 102017
 

 

In late September I learned of the first advance track from the album we’re about to premiere from starkweather, and still smile over his description of the music, which jammed together three references in saying it has “the Cult of NeurIsis sound”, though with even more unhinged vocals. But the music isn’t the kind that makes one smile, no matter how much you respect the band’s relentless dedication to their vision and their powerful skill in making it such an apocalyptic reality.

The album is This Fall Shall Cease, and it’s the debut full-length by the Belgian doom/sludge band Lethvm. We’re presenting a full album stream in advance of its November 24 release by Deadlight and a consortium of other labels. Continue reading »

SHOW REVIEW: EMPLOYED TO SERVE (AND SVALBARD) – NOTTINGHAM, NOVEMBER 9, 2017

 Concert Reviews  1 Response »
Nov 102017
 


Employed To Serve

 

(Andy Synn prepared this review of the performances by Employed To Serve and Svalbard in Nottingham, England, on November 9, 2017.)

I’m not sure whether it’s due to my increasing age, or the regular quantities of alcohol which I consume, but for some reason I was certain – 110% certain – that we’d already covered Employed to Serve and their flabbergastingly good second album, The Warmth of a Dying Sun, here at NCS earlier this year.

So you can imagine my surprise when, as I was gearing up for this show, I discovered that we haven’t written a single word about the band all year!

For shame.

Still, at least I have a chance now to redress the balance somewhat. Continue reading »

AN NCS EP PREMIERE: FUNERAL HEARSE — “THE FIST, THE SPIT, THE SWORD”

 Album Reviews, Premieres, SHORT BUT SWEET  4 Responses »
Nov 092017
 

 

In the space of a compact, three-song EP of less than 13 minutes, the Singaporean band Funeral Hearse create a dramatic, unearthly, soul-shivering experience — a black metal furnace of fury, terror, and desolating delirium, laced with solemn ecclesiastical chants and choirs that seem to represent the target of the assault.

This new EP, The Fist. The Spit. The Sword., will be released on November 10 (tomorrow!) by Redefining Darkness Records, both digitally and on tape, but you can (and should) listen to it right now, at the end of this post. Continue reading »

UNDERKRIPT: “SUFFERANCE AND SORROW”

 Album Reviews  No Responses »
Nov 092017
 

 

(Here’s TheMadIsraeli’s review of the debut album by the UK band Underkript, which was released yesterday.)

The Brits had a mini scene explode for a short period of time a few years back; a combination of progressive thrash metal, melodic death metal, and various metallic hardcore elements came into play. Sylosis is the most notable name in this movement, and they’ve been the best at it. At least until now.

Underkript are an impressive rookie band hailing from Hull, UK, who label themselves somewhat incorrectly if you ask me. While touting a melodic death metal label, Underkript play more a brand of technical progressive thrash metal with a good bit of New York Hardcore and modern extreme metal sensibilities. The songs are pretty lengthy, the riffs are relentless, the vocals are scalding with angst and militancy, the melodies stoic and somber, the drums like inter-dimensional artillery fire. Underkript have got the “it”factor, if you ask me. Sufferance and Sorrow is the name of the band’s debut. Continue reading »

HIDEOUS REBIRTH: “LA FOSA COMUN”

 Album Reviews  1 Response »
Nov 092017
 

 

(This is Vonlughlio’s review of the new second album by the California death metal band Hideous Rebirth.)

As I was looking at Bandcamp for new music, I decided to check out Gore House Productions (a label in Los Angeles, California) and saw that Hideous Rebirth were about to release a new album entitled La Fosa Comun. At first I was a little bit hesitant, because I’d only heard one or two earlier songs by the band, and they were just ok for me. Despite that, I pushed play and was surprised at how different the music sounded on the new track from the album that was then available.

Then they released a new song, “Haunting Carnal Illusions”, featuring the talented Mr. Frank Zelada (Ossification), which premiered here at NCS. This impressed me as well, and the production of both this and the previous track enhanced the songs’ appeal.

Yet I still did not place an order then. Time passed, the release date arrived, and I proceeded to give it a listen (keep in mind that I was not that familiar with their previous EP and album, having only heard a couple of songs), and after one listen, I decided to order it. Continue reading »

ALL PIGS MUST DIE: “HOSTAGE ANIMAL”

 Album Reviews  1 Response »
Nov 092017
 

 

(This is Todd Manning’s review of the new album by All Pigs Must Die, which was recently released by Southern Lord.)

Anyone who claims that Hardcore is incapable of reaching the levels of extremity produced by Metal obviously hasn’t heard All Pigs Must Die and in particular their latest full-length Hostage Animal. Make no mistake, the lines between Metal and Hardcore are becoming ever more blurry, but the roots of this album are unmistakable. Hostage Animal is born of pure Punk fury.

With a line-up boasting luminaries from such other outfits as Converge, Trap Them, and The Hope Conspiracy, All Pigs Must Die deftly combine an overwhelming sense of visceral violence with songwriting chops that successfully walk the tightrope between chaos and focused execution. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): NO AMNESTY — “PSYCHOPATHY”

 Album Reviews, Premieres  2 Responses »
Nov 082017
 

 

Psychopathy is the debut album of the Barcelona band No Amnesty. It will be released on November 14th by Xtreem Music — and it’s an explosive metal fireworks display, one that just gets more and more eye-popping the deeper in you go.

We’re told that when the band formed in 2012 the average age of the members was 15, and now it’s 20 — other than the “old man” of the group, new vocalist Albert (ex-Fuck Off), who is 30. (Since the band’s 2013 debut EP, A New Order For Attack, they’ve also recruited a new drummer and a new bassist.) But their relative youthfulness is part of what makes the album so surprising, because it really sounds like the work of far more experienced hands. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): SPOOK THE HORSES — “PEOPLE USED TO LIVE HERE”

 Album Reviews, Exceptions to the Rule, Premieres  1 Response »
Nov 082017
 

 

Sewing confusion and discord seems to be a persistent part of our mission statement, wholly apart from all the misspellings and typos. And so it’s time once again to flummox people who take our site’s name literally or have become used to receiving severe audio punishment at the hands of most bands whose music we recommend. Even people who are familiar with the previous albums of the band who are the subject of this post may be surprised by what they’re about to hear.

What we have for you is a full stream of People Used To Live Here, the enthralling new full-length by Spook the Horses from Wellington, New Zealand, which will be released on November 10th by Pelagic Records. Continue reading »

SEITA: “MALEDICTUS MUNDI”

 Album Reviews  No Responses »
Nov 082017
 

 

(In this post TheMadIsraeli reviews the new album by the Dutch band Seita, which will be released on November 9.)

Seita have quickly become one of my favorite bands from The Netherlands. They exhibit a firebrand combination of death, thrash, hardcore, and groove metal, united into a form of frantic obliterating terror that not many bands can rival. These guys are like being force-fed adrenaline by the gallon.

I reviewed their debut Asymmetric Warfare back in 2012, lavishing it with great praise. Since then, the band have been rather quiet. They released some stand-alone songs from an unreleased EP this year, which I expected to be the next release. Instead, they are coming out the gate with a full-length album, the one in question here, and that EP will be arriving later. Continue reading »

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