Generally Impressed With Riffs
[Cover artwork by Old Hag] When I initially realized that Arckanum’s first album after a long hiatus—and, technically, its breakup—would be released on All Hallows’ Eve, I devised this rather cutesy and far-fetched idea to compare the entire album to …
[Album artwork / art direction by Joseph Niet / The Creative Corporation] Offering up a textbook definition of “holy crap, time flies,” Black Sabbath’s swan song, 13, was released 13 years ago, on June 7th, 2013. In a curious move, …
If you’re just now catching up, well, we’re just now catching up. Seth Buttnam and I (plus one uninvited guest) are rounding up some of our favoritest grindcore (or grind-adjacent) releases of the past however many months, since we (read: …
[Album artwork by Truls Espedal] It’s 17 albums for Enslaved now, comprising a discography I find exceptionally challenging to wrap my arms around. What’s going on here? Does anyone else forget that the relatively rote and by-the-numbers Frost is actually …
Very few bands or artists in any form of music can claim to be truly unique. Some break new ground and some expand upon the work of others, contract it, distort it, or merely replicate …
Originally written by Matt Longo How much of an introduction does Fear Factory need? Not only are they cemented in the memory of the old guard as touchstones of the Industrial Metal genre (if not …
For this EP, the Polish tech-grinders in Antigama are back on former label Selfmadegod, following two full-length releases for Relapse. Former vocalist Lukasz Myszkowski returns after sitting out 2009’s Warning; one-time Vader drummer Pawel Jaroszewicz …
I first dove into this crazy world of underground metal in the dying light of the 1980s, so I had a little bit of catching up to do. Since then, I’ve spent countless hours and …
This being the tenth installment of Riffology, I thought I would celebrate this mini-milestone by covering one of my favorite bands: Mercyful Fate. I could go on for days about how great this band was …
Phobia’s back with another blast of crusty grindcore – it’s what you expect; it’s what you want; it’s what you need. Okay, so maybe that’s a bit dramatic, but still, it’s not too terribly far …
Unisonic’s major talking point is that it’s a collaboration between former Helloween bandmates Kai Hansen and Michael Kiske – this marks the first time they’ve worked together on a full album since Keeper Of The …
Uh oh… It wasn’t hard to see this coming, but unfortunately it’s now been confirmed: Grand Magus has drifted dangerously off course. Now I know a lot of you were sounding the alarm two years ago after …
