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 Jim Brandon In this world you will never see a blue sky, for every drop of water to be found is tinted a murky grey, and toxic winds which whip across the …
originally written by Chris McDonald After years of maintaining an extremely narrow and linear progression from its roots, black metal has finally started to progress; not just sonically, but visually, aesthetically, and lyrically. Outfits like …
Originally written by Patrick Rennick. One of metal’s greatest strengths as a stalwart sonic form is the enduring musical backbone laid down by its original innovators. Within the major metal genres,characteristic musical elements exist. For …
Heritage is something of crucial importance to Primordial, and it’s not limited to lyrics of Celtic history or the spent blood of their native Ireland. Musical heritage, while less overt, is equally important, as shown …
originally written by Jim Brandon The Hungering Void was my introduction to Stockholm, Sweden’s Withershin, and so after going back and investigating 2008’s Ashen Banners, this three-song EP seems a little less noteworthy than the …
originally written by Jim Brandon With all the gentle grace of Heaven Shall Burn making Hateplow its jailhouse bitch, Gothenburg’s Laethora loudly reappears with The Light In Which We All Burn, a blunt and often …
Originally written by Jordan Campbell Last year, Fleshgod Apocalypse‘s Oracles threatened to make some significant waves. A close cousin of the acclaimed Hour of Penance,Fleshgod crafted a claustrophic blend of ridicu-blast brutality and classical embellishments. The combo raised a unibrow …
originally written by Erik Thomas Much like other 2010 black metal releases by the likes of Necronomicon, Thulcandra, Ragnarok, Nyseius and even respected veterans like Dark Funeral and 1349, the sixth studio album from Sweden’s Setherial isn’t going to change the face …
