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    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Condemned To Live – Nuke First…Ask Questions Later (2009)

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    Every once in a while we get tired of listening to over produced albums Death Metal that sound so good that sometimes we even forget we are listening to Metal, something that has to be brutal and aggressive, not pretty sounding. For those occasions we have found the perfect solution: Condemned To Live’s debut album “Nuke First…Ask Questions Later”.

    The band hails from San Jose, California, and it’s formed by a very peculiar group of individuals (so they claim). Featuring a Porn Star and a Cannabis Cup participant as the most notable one, the band plays Death Metal with some Grind and Black Metal influences. With 8 tracks and 35 minutes of music they have a solid calling card with “Nuke First” and hopefully will allow them to generate enough buzz for them to keep releasing albums like this.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Post Mortem – Message For The Dead (2009)

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    As one of the first underground Death/Trash Metal bands in the USA, Post Mortem has left a handful of cult releases, most notably “Coroner’s Office” back in 1986. The band never reached its full potential and being in hiatus for most of the 90’s due to internal conflicts we are left only with pieces of what could have been an even more influential band.

    Reforming back in 2003 with their “Coroner’s Office” line-up the band was set for a comeback, only to be set back by the death of John McCarthy, the band’s vocalist. Fast-forward several years; we get “Message For The Dead”, the band’s long awaited latest release. A release that is a tribute to McCarthy and to apace the longtime fans of this band.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Aenaon – Phenomenon (2009)

    After a very enticing intro, Aenaon does not waste any time in showing what they are made off. The second track opens furiously and shows the true beast hiding within the Aenaon moniker. You can clearly listen to the Zyklon, Emperor and Behemoth influences in this band.

    However, they are not just another clone of the previously mentioned bands. They just take all the best elements of them and fuse them with such grace that the 24 minutes that this EP presents will leave you with an extreme thirst for more.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Sokrovenno - De Rerum Natura (2009)

    The shit-storm of bands like Agalloch, Negura Bunget and Wolves in the Throne Room has finally reached monsoon status, and now it’s harder than ever to pick out the good bands from all these clones popping out of every dark corner in the world. Luckily for us, Sokrovenno is a very good band that this storm has produced.

    Hailing from Italy, this “Philosophical Pagan Black Metal” band is actually one of the best we have reviewed this month. Alongside the new albums from Negura Bunget and Alcest, “De Rerum Natura” is one of our favorites this year when it comes to the “Atmospheric Dark/Black Metal” genre combination.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Kratornas - The Corroding Age of Wounds (2009)

    Coming from the Philippines we recently received this very brutal and chaotic release names “The Corroding Age of Wounds” from the one-man band Kratornas. The band furiously mixes Black Metal with Grindcore influences creating a very think cloud of chaos.

    Kratornas has been around since 1995 has released a countless number of demos, Ep’s and split albums before releasing their first full-length album “Over the Fourth Part of the Earth” back in 2007. While the band’s style is nothing new or original, it will surely turn heads because of its brutality and restless drumming.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Burzum – Belus (2010)

    Disclaimer: Many things can be said about Burzum’s mastermind Varg Vikernes and while we DO NOT SUPPORT in ANY means his political and ideological affiliations. We will review his music like any other band that we would get a promo/cd from.

    Back in 1992 when Burzum’s self-title album came out it was one of the most interesting releases of it’s time. The band kept getting better and better with time, releasing their best album with “Hvis Lyset Tar Oss”. After that the Burzum style was refined and “Filosofem” was released amidst Varg being in jail.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Negură Bunget – Maiestrit (2010)

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    Negură Bunget hails from Romania and their musical style has evolved into a completely autonomous beast that many try to emulate but nobody can quite get. The mysticism behind the band’s sound creates chilling passages that freak out even the bravest metal heads of the world.

    Maiestrit is a re-interpretation of the band’s legendary album “Maiastru Sfetnic”, plus two unreleased acoustic versions of two tracks of this album. As you can expect from the band, you get a master piece in Atmospheric Black Metal that is definitely better than the original incarnation of these songs.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Heathen – The Evolution Of Chaos (2010)

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    Eighteen years have passed since the band’s last full-length “Victims Of Deception” and legions of fans were left hungry for another release of this amazing band. After releasing an EP/Best Of compilation the band presents us with “The Evolution Of Chaos”, a brilliant masterpiece that every Trash Metal fan, and even every metalhead in general has to listen.

    Featuring 11 tracks of Trash Metal brilliance we don’t think there will be another album this year that can rival what Heathen has managed to do with “The Evolution Of Chaos”. Clocking around 70 minutes, this album is one of the best releases we have heard in quite a while.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Ptahil - Ortus (2010)

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    We are usually very weary of releases that feature two songs and 30 minutes of music. Unless they are Funeral Doom Metal releases or Ambient releases it usually means two things: 1) They suck so bad that our ears will bleed from listening to them at least 3 times, or 2) They are very good and get you completely involved in the atmosphere created by the band. Ptahil’s “Ortus” falls under number 2, from start to finish you are hooked and taken aback by a ritualistic Black Metal experience.

    The atmosphere created by the Satanists behind Ptahil is unparalleled to any other Black Metal release we have heard in years. While the music is simple and somewhat repetitive, it creates a hypnotic trance that will transport you to a different place in moments. We don’t even notice these repetitive elements until we only listen to parts of songs, as a whole they are part of the experience behind “Ortus”.

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