From the mastermind behind Galaktik Cancer Squad, today we have Morphinist and their original debut release album from 2013 which didn’t see the light of day until 2016. In “Terraforming”, this one-man battalion delivers 35 minutes of truly skilled Atmospheric Black Metal with some Post-Black Metal and Doom influences. If you are a fan of Argwohn’s unique musical vision with GCS, you will definitely enjoy this one.

Opening with the 15 minute behemoth “Terraforming I”, the album starts in a very Doom-like manner with crushing riffs and a very sluggish tempo. After some more mood setting passages, things blow up with a furious BM pace. The transitions are quite seamless and very well delivered, making such changes not contrasting but rather complementary in an extremely unique way.

Hailing from Italy, today we have the very unconventional Avant-garde Black Metal outfit VIII and their sophomore release “Decathexis”. Featuring over 45 minute of highly entertaining and chaotic music, this release is quite engaging and well crafted, as you never know what to expect next.

Opening with the Black Metal onslaughts of “Symptom”, the band starts punishing the listener with the aggressive side of their music. The throbbing bass guitar line stands out from the band’s relentless onslaughts. The tempo changes featured in this track give it a sinister edge when paired with the extra atmospheric elements.

Brilliantly continuing the 2015 album "Epsilon Aurigae", today we have Monolithe and the crushing “Zeta Reticuli”. Originally recorded back in 2015, this album further expands the band’s refined Doom/Funeral Doom sound into more progressive and experimental territories while preserving their atmospheric elements. Clocking in at 45 minutes, this is definitely one of the most engaging releases of 2016 so far.

Opening with “Ecumenopolis”, the band slowly changes from atmospheric sounds to piercing Doom riffs. This continues slowly as the vocals suddenly appear and the atmospheric elements turn a bit more psychedelic as the crushing wall of riffs lurks in the back. The band does a solid job in keeping things interesting by delivering crafty drum patterns near the end.

Featuring a unique mix of Depressive Black Metal with Alternative Rock, Germany’s Freitod third full-length release “Der unsichtbare Begleiter” is quite a unique one. Clocking in at 44 minutes, this album has a very dreamy and melancholic vibe to it, making it one of the freshest sounding albums we have heard in quite a while.

Opening with the powerful riffing of “Unter schwarzen Wolken”, you can instantly hear that he tempo is a bit different of what you would expect. The harsh vocals and guitar work reminds us a bit of Harakiri for the Sky. The clean vocals are what really make this release magical as they transmit a sense of helplessness that only bands like Katatonia manage to achieve. Perfectly weaving back and forth from semi-aggressive Black Metal passages to more passive Rock-ish soundscapes, tracks like “Die falsche Krankheit” and “Der unsichtbare Begleiter” make this album truly magical.

Arriving all the way from Hungary, today we have Igor’z and their EP titled “All Fades Away”. Featuring three hard rocking songs, this EP serves as a good calling card for this up and coming band. While not too heavy, we appreciate bands filled with attitude and catchy music. Sounding like a lighter version of The New Black, Bombers, Chrome Division, etc., this band is quite entertaining.

Opening with the crunchy guitars of “All Fades Away”, the band sets a very playful and engaging mood. Perfectly paired with the distorted guitars are charismatic lead vocals which add character and definition to the band’s sound. Featuring a lighter opening, “Don’t Care” has a more radio friendly approach with its catchy vocal melodies and straightforward nature.

Hailing from Indonesia, today we have Black Metal battalion Barzakh and a re-release of their crushing 2007 album “In A Meaning the Note”. BM bands from this country have a very distinctive sound and as soon as you listen to one song from this album you can recognize it. Delivering around 26 minutes of devastating music in the span of seven songs, this album is quite intense and not for the faint of heart or mind.

Opening with the crushing catchiness of “Shadow in the Grief”, the band delivers very melodic riffs underneath their fowl harsh screams and intense tempo. This track is a very solid opener as it grabs your attention in a very direct way. Keeping the level of intensity, we have “She's Not Honoured” and “Hatred in Mourn Heart” pummeling the listener while maintaining the band’s characteristic vibe and throwing in some cool guitar leads to keep things fresh.

Six years have passed since the Evig Natt’s previous release “Darkland”. Luckily for us, this means that “Evig Natt” is a very refined and well-crafted that perfectly transmits raw emotions through dark and somber music. Delivering over 51 minutes of a very dramatic combination of Gothic and Doom Metal, this release is caters to the old-school fans of Gothic Metal that prefer raw atmosphere over fancy orchestrations and arrangements.

Immediately after the instrumental intro, “How I Bleed” sets a very dark mood with punishing guitars and atmospheric keyboards paired with harsh vocals. This basic structure is quite traditional of releases in this genre from the late 90’s, early 2000’s, reminding us particularly of the album “Disclosure in Red” by Trail of Tears. The vocal arrangements of tracks like “Silence Falls” make this release more special as they evolve the listener in the band’s musical journey.

Hailing from Italy, today we have two-man outfit Abisso and their debut release “WRNSS” out on Third-I-Rex. Featuring around 40 minutes of soul crushing Black Metal, this release creates a crushing atmosphere that is oppressive and nature and never lets go. Highly consistent, Abisso’s oppressive sound is nicely contrasted by a few experimental elements that the band introduces occasionally. If you like powerful Black Metal which focuses more on atmosphere than speed, this is the album for you.

Opening with the dissonant “I”, the band slowly builds up their atmospheric vibe with incisive riffs and tight drumming. The deeper vocals fit the atmosphere perfectly as they command more attention than your traditional BM shriek. Continuing their atmospheric onslaught, “II” provides the perfect progression in the band’s aural abuse. Avoiding being too linear, the band experiments with intricate bass guitar lines and some interesting guitar leads that change the direction of the track momentarily.

As one of the most expected Melodic Death Metal releases of 2016, today we have Aussies Be’lakor and their Napalm Records debut “Vessels”. Nearly four years in the making, this release showcases a more mature band with a darker and yet more melodic and catchy sound. Delivering over 55 minutes of music, this release continues to separate the band from the rest as their sound continues to be more unique.

The album slowly warms up with the catchy riffing of the short opener “Luma”, which is nicely balanced out by a slow pace and the traditional Be’lakor growls. Instantly following we have the more mysterious and intricate “An Ember’s Arc”, where the band nicely delivers atmospheric and acoustic elements mixed in with the song’s progression. The buildup achieves it sweets stop with the killer catchiness and traditional Be’lakor rhythmical brilliance with “Withering Strands”.  This track delivers 11-minutes of pure melodic magic as it is one of the best in this release.

As one of the few bands we get to listen to from Iran, The Unknown is a very promising Atmospheric Doom /Post-Rock outfit that has managed to craft a very impressive 40-minute debut release titled: “In Search of the Unknown”. Featuring a guest appearance by Thomas Helm, this release is filled with surprises and a very unique progression. If you like highly atmospheric and very melancholic music, you will find yourself lost with this release.

As the album single track opens, the music is framed by dramatic orchestrations and heavy riffs. This suddenly changes into a brilliant spoken word passage with a very eerie vibe. This part reminded us of Anathema in their “Eternity” days. Luckily for us it lasts for quite a while and creates a very unique tension. Moving closer to the last minutes, the release turns into a lush Post-Rock piece with very lively guitars and lush piano sections. The transitions between sections are quite well crafted and create a very unique musical journey.