Generally Impressed With Riffs
[Album artwork by James Koehnline] As much as I love and appreciate the fact that my metal foundation was fortified by growing up alongside the genre in the ‘80s as a youth, I owe a great deal of my undying …
[Cover art by Fenomeno Design] Did you know that Chile is pretty darn good at death metal? If not, you must be new around these parts, in which case, I say, welcome friend! We’re glad to have you here and …
It’s a magical corner of the musical world where a band can combine an infectious nature with extreme oddness, and it’s in that corner that Idaho’s Seven Chains makes their home. Make no mistake about it, third album Swollen, In …
[Cover art by Claudio Elias Scialabba] Italy’s Into Darkness has been a band for approximately 15 years but is just now releasing its first full length album, Route to the Other Side, but all that time has been greatly beneficial …
Nowadays I approach a new Death Angel album with a combination of the piqued interest of the old-school fan and the steeled nerves of those accustomed to disappointment. I came to this party just before …
originally written by Jim Brandon October is slowly reaching its end. The moon is full tonight, with a lone star shining brightly in the dark blue sky as the strains of Haeresiarchs Of Dis pierce …
Ever since the release of last year’s ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞ, I have not been able to stop listening to Arckanum. Although I’m quite fond of Shamaatae’s (Arckanum’s only member) earlier albums, I immediately thought ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞ would be …
As is often the case when getting to know an album I am set to review, I took the laptop up to my regular house of coffee, scones, and yuppiedom in order to take some …
originally written by Erik Thomas I’m not going to rehash the family tree of Minnesota’s Iron Thrones that includes Nehemiah, Veil of Maya, Dead to Fall and Everest — you can read my review of Iron Thrones’ excellent debut, Visions of Light, and get …
With all the scenester bullshit dominating black metal in the United States, it’s really refreshing to hear a band and album from my home country playing something a bit more geographically ambiguous. California’s Valdur is …
Your Tomorrow has the dubious distinction of being both a decent dose of doom and a dash of disappointment, at least for this dedicated disciple of Corrosion‘s crossover conception. Allow me to dissect these dichotomous …
There’s a neglected little rocky crag just south of Stinson Beach I used to visit when I lived in the Bay Area that provided a welcome escape from the stresses of life. The ridge wasn’t particularly …
