Album Reviews

  • Tenhi – Saivo (2011)

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    After five years of ‘silence’, Tenhi band finally returns with another mystical exploration into the dark realms of neo-folk music with “Saivo”. Keeping their very dark yet lush sound intact, the band delivers 12 tracks of majestic compositions that push the boundaries of Tenhi’s sound into less traveled areas of musical exploration.

    Four years in the making, “Saivo” marks the band’s best release to date. This is due to the complexity of the songs presented and the amazing atmosphere created in this release. The dark and minimalistic passages are always present while the enigmatic vocals push the somber atmosphere into darker places. If you never heard of Tenhi before, it is very hard to find a way to explain how something this somber can be as beautiful as it is, so we strongly recommend you check out some of the band’s earlier material.

  • Nucleus Torn – Golden Age (2011)

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    Just one year after their excellent release “Andromeda Awaiting”, Nucleus Torn returns with another brilliant excursion into Avant-garde Folk Metal but now with a Progressive twist. Making homage to 70’s Progressive Rock/Metal bands, “Golden Age” is a lush release that will intoxicate you since the first minute with its very intricate and yet exquisite songs.

    Being considerably more diverse and exciting than any previous Nucleus Torn release, “Golden Age” delivers six beautifully crafted tracks that showcase the band’s ability in combining stunning musical passages with harmonious vocals. With Fredy Schnyder handling most of the instrumentation and the production work, “Golden Age” sounds as good as you can ever imagine Nucleus Torn sounding.

  • Svarti Loghin – Sea of Green (2011)

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    Blowing past the boundaries of Depressive Black Metal and ending up on the Alternative Rock side of things, today we have Svarti Loghin and their latest skillful release “Sea of Green”. The band since their last release “Drifting Through the Void” was showing extreme signs of moving away from BM, and on this latest release they complete the transition.

    Evoking elements from Alternative Rock to Grunge, “Sea of Green” features five very interesting tracks that need your complete open-mindedness or you will completely hate this release. The depressive vibe of the band is totally present in this release; this is excellent since the band has a very unique sound. However, you will have to deal with almost no Metal elements, and a very mellow and ‘alternative’ approach to things.

  • Black Cobra – Invernal (2011)

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    As hard-hitting as a bag of bricks, today we have Black Cobra’s fourth full-length release “Invernal”. Following the same devastating path as in “Chronomega”, the band delivers 40 minutes of relentless riffing and crushing drumming all packaged in eight well balanced tracks. Not reinventing the wheel or anything, Black Cobra excels at what they do and do not try anything pretentious a very effective approach due to their own sound and power.

    Getting right down to business, “Avalanche” delivers punishing riffs and well paced drums. The band’s power is made known since the first track and never goes too soft or two slow, like most Sludge/Doom bands these days. Jason’s vocals are very fitting of the music and deliver the band’s message in a powerful way. But his guitar skills are what make this release quite interesting to the ear.

  • Dark Suns – Orange (2011)

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    In this 2011 we have been treated to excellent Progressive album so far: Leprous “Bilateral”, White Willow’s “Terminal Twilight” and Dream Theater’s “A Dramatic Turn of Events”, however Dark Suns latest opus “Orange” comes just in time to find its spot between these gems in our top progressive album’s list of the year. After somewhat consolidating their change to Dark Progressive Metal/Rock in their last release “Grave Human Genuine”, the band comes back with a very cohesive and interesting sounding album with “Orange”.

    Featuring all the elements of Progressive music we all have grown to love but with a dark and sinister twist, “Orange” delivers 10 tracks of excellently composed tracks that will demand your attention since the first minutes of this release. Opening with the very psychedelic “Toy”, the band quickly delivers crazy keyboards and very effective guitar riffs. The overall atmosphere of this song is very retro and magical. The vocals are excellent since they fit the music just perfectly.

  • Nychts / Mortualia – “Nebelstern Des Nichts” (2010)

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    Featuring one monolithic track of 40 minutes of pure depressive (and ‘kozmik’) Black Metal, today we have Nychts and Mortualia’s split CD “Nebelstern Des Nichts”. Combining the two bands in a very unconventional way, Sun and Moon records has release this behemoth of emotional music that is not for the faint of heart.

    Providing 13 minutes of music, we have Finland’s own Mortualia, a side project band from the one and only Shatraug of Horna, etc., etc. fame. The remaining 27 minutes of music (and instrumental section) is provided by Switzerland’s Nychts, a band that is excellent at creating atmosphere, but should get a better singer or replace him with a cat getting hit by a car.

  • Graveworm – Fragments of Death (2011)

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    Continuing on the right path after their very impressive release “Diabolical Figures”, today we have Graveworm and their latest opus “Fragments of Death”. Most of the Gothic Metal pleasantries away, “Fragments of Death” delivers 11 punishing tracks of very well balanced Death/Black Metal with a high melodic content, but always aggressive enough to make your speakers explode.

    Opening with the high intensity “Insomnia”, the band shows fierce Death Metal influences with a nice Melodic edge in terms of riffing and some atmospheric keyboards. Stefan’s vocals are as good as always and his mixture between growls and shrieks is just excellent. The melodic/brutal assault continues with the ‘slower’ “Only Death in our Wake”, but quickly picks up with some excellent chorus section on “Absence of Faith”. In this track, the melody makes a huge different in making a repetitive song very catchy and powerful. Some sections in this track even feel a bit like their sound back on “As the Angels Reach the Beauty” but will less flair.

  • Midnight – Satanic Royalty (2011)

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    Presenting a very interesting mixture of Speed, Heavy and Black Metal with some occult/psychedelic Rock elements, today we have Midnight and their debut full-length release: “Satanic Royalty”. After achieving a great kvlt/underground status for years it is about time that Midnight comes to the spotlight with their super catchy music. Having only released EP’s and singles, the band has perfected their sound over the years, and with “Satanic Royalty” they will storm the scene by surprise with their hard-rocking tunes.

    For over 30 minutes and 10 tracks, Midnight brings back that good old sound of bands like Venom and Motorhead, but making it their own with some occult Rock elements. Since the opener “Satanic Rotalty”, the overall hard-rocking feeling is very evident. The ‘harsh’ vocals are more of a powerful scream that can easily be understood and the overall production of this song (and album) is a very effective mixture of old-school with modern cleanliness giving it a very crisp and authentic sound.

  • Eskeype – Legacy of Truth (2010)

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    All the way from Switzerland today we have a band called Eskeype (is this pronounced Skype?), and their very catchy mixture of Groove Metal and Thrash Metal with some hints of a few other genres mixed in-between. For 13 tracks the band gives us a very in your face approach with hectic drumming, catchy and powerful riffing and aggressive vocals that will exhaust even the most active mosher from our readers.

    Immediately after a very dynamic prologue, the band delivers waves of powerful riffs and aggressive vocals with the first two tracks “The Chronicle’s Origin Part One” and part two. In these two tracks the band quickly demonstrates their ability to craft very catchy guitar sections and pair them with crushing vocals. The melodic passages are excellent and the use of violins (a la Dark Lunacy) is just excellent, giving them a nice Melodic edge to their music.

  • Ordo Obsidium – Orbis Tertius (2011)

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    During our reviewing sessions it is very interesting to find bands that make us wonder where they come from and why we haven’t heard from them before. Ordo Obsidium is one of those bands that after listening to their devastating debut album “Orbis Tertius made us wonder where they come from since they have a very interesting Scandinavian/European sound. However, to our surprise the band comes out from the Bay Area in the USA.

    Delivering five aural assaults of Doom-influenced Black Metal, this band means serious business since they can keep the kvlt side of things alive while bringing the tempo down a bit and not sounding dull or repetitive. The crushing opener “Nequaquam Vacuum” delivers the first 11 minute attack of powerful riffing and bestial drumming all surrounded by a melodic and nicely paced atmosphere. The vocals are as hellish as they can get, but they never get in the way of enjoying the underlying melody behind this track. The dreamy passages (i.e around the 6:45 mark) create excellent contrast with the high paced section.

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