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 …
Almost thirty years now… For nearly one-third of a century, through five different American presidents (three of them two-termers), through sixteen studio albums and three live releases, through at least seven record labels and thousands …
Originally written by Erik Thomas It’s only thanks to Between the Buried and Me, Within the Ruins, Wretchedand San Diego’s Carnifex (I’m waiting to hear new signing Pathology) that I still have some shred of respect for Victory Records. …
Indulge me, if you would, a bit of anecdote to set the stage for my review of a record that represents everything I hate about what passes for competent heavy music in the realm of …
originally written by Chris McDonald Is it possible these days for a band to proudly display their multitude of influences and still come out with a final product that actually feels original? Some may argue …
My personal opinion of Xasthur is essentially the same as that which Chris McDonald stated in his review of A Gate Through Bloodstained Mirrors. It is almost a kind of enjoyable apathy. Malefic can no doubt create a …
Hellish Crossfire made one hell of a first impression on me. When going through my usual album-to-review selecting process, a quick trip to a band’s Myspace page is always essential. Have to sample the goods. …
Kill the Sun is a re-release of Xandria’s debut LP, introduced originally in 2003, and is just one of three (from among four) of their long players reissued for North America by Artoffact Records in …
Originally written by Jordan Campbell After releasing four albums under the Blaze moniker, Blaze Bayley formed a new band and rebranded himself with 2008’s The Man Who Would Not Die. Though it slipped through the cracks here at MR HQ, …
