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 While recently many popular mid/upper tier forerunners of the death metal scene are putting out killer albums in 2007, the early buzz band has been Santa Cruz, California five-piece kill team, Odious Mortem. …
Originally written by Chris Chellis. After treading in safe territory for far too long, NWOBHM legends Saxon surprised many with the undeniably heavy and modern-sounding Lionheart in 2004. Sure the production could have used more grit to match the …
Well, well, well . . . what have we here? Why, it’s the new Ozzy Osbourne record! I was skeptical how this would turn out following the dreck that was Down to Earth, and actually …
Originally written by Erik Thomas. Holy fuck. I really thought that Canada’s Despised Icon could never top 2005’s The Healing Process, (one of my favorite albums of that year) but with a little line-up tweak plying the same technical …
originally written by Chris McDonald Pelican’s 2005 masterpiece The Fire In Our Throats Will Beckon The Thawwas easily one of the best releases of that year in my book. While I was already familiar with the …
Jim Brandon’s take: Some of us just can’t help but be rebels by nature, even when surrounded by selective kindred souls. With very few exceptions and regardless of my love for the genre, black metal …
Jim Brandon’s take: By now, it’s pretty clear that most people know what they want and don’t want when it comes to Megadeth. Through vodka and heroin-enhanced brilliance, to groundbreaking technical wizardry, to introspective exercising …
originally written by Jim Brandon Even though it’s really not as new of a phenomenon as some seem to believe, the French metal scene has become a thriving melting pot for many diverse, talented bands …
