AN NCS PREMIERE: HARROWED — “BLOOD COVENANT”

 Premieres  No Responses »
Jan 022026
 

(written by Islander)

I suppose I should make one thing clear right up front: The song we’re about to premiere is from a forthcoming album by the Swedish death metal band Harrowed, not the British metallic hardcore band Harrowed about whom our Andy Synn has sung praises here a couple times in the past.

The Harrowed that’s our focus today has an enticing pedigree, featuring as it does guitarist Tobias Alpadie, who has spent time in VAK and previously as a member of Tribulation’s live lineup (among other things), and vocalist/drummer Adam Lindmark, a member of Morbus Chron before their dissolution. Harrowed’s live lineup now also includes bassist Dag Landin (ex-Morbus Chron, Tøronto) and guitarist Estefan Carrillo (Hazemaze, Morbid Breath).

What’s coming our way in February is Harrowed’s debut album The Eternal Hunger, previewed on behalf of their label (Dying Victims Productions) as “a twisted mass of putrid filth, incorporating elements of old-school American and Scandinavian death metal, a lethal dose of punk riffage, and mind-bending weirdness (and even some shattered shards of skewed melody, if we’re counting).” That’s enticing too, isn’t it? Continue reading »

HARROWED + CALLIGRAM + GEIST – LIVE IN NOTTINGHAM, 01/03/20

 Concert Reviews  No Responses »
Mar 022020
 

 

(On March 1, 2020, Andy Synn witnessed the performances of Harrowed, Calligram, and Geist at the Chameleon Bar in Nottingham, UK, and provides this review of the show, accompanied by videos that he made.)

It’s a little-known fact, but Hardcore was my “first love” when it comes to “alternative” music.

In fact, bands like Earth Crisis, Shai Hulud, and Vision of Disorder weren’t just some of my earliest encounters with music outside of “the mainstream”, but were my gateway into Metal too.

And while my tastes have definitely moved on since then, I’ve still retained a lot of love for the more metallic side of Hardcore, especially when/where it collides with other, even heavier, genres (last year’s Fuming Mouth and Totaled albums being prime examples).

My attendance at this evening’s gig was, therefore, pretty much mandatory, as all three of the bands on the bill (all of whom I’ve written about here before) have, over the course of the past couple of years, developed a well-deserved reputation as some of the best proponents of Metallic Hardcore that the UK has to offer.

And how was I going to say no to the opportunity to see them all together in a small local venue no more than twenty minutes from my house? Continue reading »

BEST OF BRITISH 2019: HARROWED/ OPIUM LORD / UNFATHOMABLE RUINATION

 Album Reviews  6 Responses »
Nov 252019
 

 

(Andy Synn has again compiled reviews and streams of new records by bands from the UK.)

It was last week, I think, when I stumbled across another one of those weirdly throw-away lists purporting to feature “ten of the best up-and-coming UK Metal bands”.

Intrigued, and hopeful to discover some new names to help promote in turn, I gave the article a click, only to find that pretty much entire list was made up of bands who were already pretty well known, or made up of ex-members of other bands who’d previously received a fair bit of hype, and/or mates of the band responsible for the article in the first place.

Not only that, but pretty much every band featured played some variant of Death Metal/Deathcore, and clearly all came from a very similar clique. And while I get that it’s not always easy to think of other bands to recommend at the drop of a hat, the UK Metal scene is such a rich and vibrant cesspool of metallic morsels that this seems like a missed opportunity.

Not that I’m necessarily any better. Chances are you’ll all have heard of at least one of the bands I’m about to recommend. But, hopefully, over the course of the last 11/12 months I’ve presented a solid (though far from exhaustive) cross-section of the versatility and variety that represents “the Best of British” in 2019. Continue reading »