Generally Impressed With Riffs
[Artwork by Caroline Harrison] “Nonsense” opens with a slow fade-in of distorted guitars and seismic drums — the chaos before the swarm. It’s a trick of the trade, the extreme metal equivalent of a camera operator calling out “speed” before …
[Cover artwork by Luca “Zeero” Zironi] There was always something uniquely charming about Konquest’s brand of traditional heavy metal—an almost whimsical breeziness that still felt like a near perfect balance of playful and substantive. A long-lost Italian cousin to Sweden’s …
[Cover art by Beyond Art] There are bad musical moods, and then there’s Mylingar. Over the course of the last decade this group of anonymous Swedes has concocted the type of ill-meaning black/death that makes Diocletian seem like a Care …
[Cover artwork by Subhuman at Desert Dungeon] Let’s talk about our love for quirky metal. Okay, sure, any definable level of ‘quirk’ is obviously subjective, but I’m guessing you know we’re not talking about the guy who loves The Black …
Originally written by Chris Chellis. Black Anvil occupies that corner of extreme metal that has become increasingly hard to define or put a finger on sonically. Celtic Frost influences will do that to a band. So will covering …
originally written by Chris McDonald Going into this review, I realized I could analyze the long-awaited conclusion to Deathspell Omega’s trilogy in two ways; as some mystical statement of philosophical intent miraculously bestowed on the …
Given the presence of twin Celtic Frost covers, the seemingly unofficial “Into The Panzermonium” subtitle of this new EP from Boston punk-thrash outfit Panzerbastard is both amusing and apropos. (That addendum came along in my …
Diskreet is a technical death metal five-piece hailing from Topeka, Kansas, presenting here their full-length debut, Engage the Mechanicality. Certainly students of the modern game, they sweep, chug, blast, gurgle, squeal, and growl their way through …
originally written by Jim Brandon Although it’s not as prevalent as, say, three years ago, melding Middle-Eastern influences into metal can still throw an invigorating and potent twist into a well-worn style of music. Where …
It’s been about four years since we last heard from Xathagorra Mlandroth, the brainpower behind seminal funeral acts Hierophant and Catacombs, but the years have apparently been no less cruel or weighty, as his latest …
Nescience was/is the full-length debut from Greek doom/trad/power/smorgasbord five-piece Heathendom. Originally released in 2008, Metal On Metal Records is giving it a fresh issuing here in 2010 with one big spice-up (more on that later). Despite …
In their twenty-five-year existence, Belgian grind act Agathocles has amassed a truly staggering release catalog—their Metal Archives entry lists more than 200 titles, from demos to LPs to copious split releases to compilations of those …
