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 …
Straight out of New York city comes the “epic” metal-playing duo, Realmbuilder. Sadly, the only thing epic about Summon The Stone Throwers is its failure. Its tracks are filled with the type of monotony and blandness …
originally written by Erik Thomas The Relapse PR machine is making no qualms about Black Tusk’s sound. I’ve seen this Savannah, Georgia trio openly advertised and reviewed as ‘swamp metal’ and ‘Mastodon’s back-water brethren’, and if the Jon Baizley cover …
originally written by Erik Thomas If you took 3-4 tracks from each of the last two Keep of Kalessin albums (Armada and Kolossus) you’d have arguably one of the most epic black metal albums of all-time. About half of …
originally written by Jim Brandon Cover albums usually rank about as high as Carnie Wilson’s stomach staples on my interest meter, but even I was intrigued when I learned Steve Von Till’s Harvestman, North Carolina’s …
originally written by Jim Brandon Although I may be in the minority, I think jinxes and curses are a bunch of nonsense, but damn if it didn’t seem like Nevermore was just doomed to fail for a …
I’m late getting to my review of Borknagar’s Universal due to life and other such nonsense, which puts me squarely behind the great tide of thought on the record. My place knee-deep in the wash …
[RapidFire]Dagor Dagorath’s symphonic black metal is dealt with manifold force that belies their count of a mere three members. Their debut LP, Yetzer Ha’Ra, benefits greatly from production that obtains a monolithic wall of sound …
Originally written by Sasha Horn Brain Drill is the pulled-pork sandwich of death metal. So from the first bite of Quantum Catastrophe, until the last which I’ve thrown up in my mouth a little, every attempt …
