Album Reviews

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    Ulysses Siren – Justifiable Homicide (2015)

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    As one of the most underrated Bay Area Thrash Metal band in the scene, today we have Ulysses Siren and their EP “Justifiable Homicide”. Featuring some songs of their 2011 demo and three live songs, this release was slated for a couple of years back but the loss of Jon Torres derailed all the band’s plans. A few line-up changes and a couple of years later, we are finally able to get our hands on a few songs from the demo and some live goodies.

    Opening with the title track, the band delivers an intense punch of old-school Thrash brilliance. The guitars are quite vicious and the drumming delivers the perfect tempo for this great piece of period music. The band’s experience allows them to deliver their timeless sound with an unspoken authenticity that only the real Bay Area Thrash bands have. “Bludgeoned Mass” keeps things nice and heavy with some killer guitar acrobatics and very tight drums. Paired with a very upbeat tempo, this track is quite enjoyable.

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    Mord'A'Stigmata - Our Hearts Slow Down (2015)

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    After being quite intrigued by the band’s 2011 release “Antimatter”, this band released the lukewarm “Ansia” back in 2013. Fast forward two years, now we have their latest EP “Our Hearts Slow Down” which features three songs and around 30 minutes of Post-Metal/Post-Black Metal songs. Not too much better than their 2013 release, this album sees the band move away almost entirely from their Avant-garde influences into the fertile Post-Metal/Post-Black Metal realm with three so-so songs.

    Opening with the hypnotic “The Mantra of Anguish”, we are presented with very powerful riffs and a bleak landscape. The band keeps things simple by attacking the listener with ravaging guitars and spacey drum. There are some brilliant melodic passages that make the track more interesting, but still fails to fully impress. Things get a bit more hectic and enjoyable with the chaotic “Those Above” and its high-intensity drums. The riffing in parts is more on the traditional Black Metal side, making this track quite crushing and powerful.

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    Huntress – Static (2015)

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    Heavy Metal amazon Jill Janus and crew returns with yet another solid and superbly catchy release with “Static”. Featuring a more mature sound, Huntress has clearly evolved over their meteoric rise in the last 5 years and with this release they aim to solidify their status as one of the premier modern Heavy Metal bands. Pleasing fans and luring bystanders into their sound, this release is one fin example of Huntress and their power.

    Quickly blasting away with superbly catchy and energetic tracks like “Sorrow”, “Flesh” and the soaring “Brian”, Jill Janus is again the most iconic feature of the band, but the riffing also entices the listener. The band specializes in crafting catchy and simple tracks that are full of melodic guitars and a very upbeat tempo that makes you want to start headbanging. The uber catchy “I Want to Wanna Wake Up” has that old-school Heavy Metal vibe that some of the NWOBHM band brought to the scene back in the day.

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    Poois – Soul Spook Collector (2014)

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    With a larger than life attitude, today we have Poois and their latest release “Soul Spook Collector”. Featuring 10 songs of very diverse and crafty music, this album has tons of influences mixed into a very cohesive and party-like sound that you rarely hear these days. By further enriching their sound, this American band manages to provide a very unique and energetic album that people will greatly enjoy.

    The album opens with very unique and engaging tracks like the hectic “Fuckin’ Job” and the superbly catchy “Love Gun”. This clearly shows that the listener is in for a treat thanks to the wide variety of sounds and styles they will hear. The song lyrics are quite quirky with songs like “$19.95” and the funky effects of “Crack the Whip”, this gives that extra dimension to the music, and makes up for quite a hilarious time when trying to follow them.

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    The Black Dahlia Murder – Abysmal (2015)

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    Arriving just in time to close the summer, The Black Dahlia Murder deliver their most recent outburst of brutality titled “Abysmal”. Featuring ten tracks of acrobatic Melodic Death Metal, the band finally sheds all remaining elements of their Deathcore days and delivers one of the most destructive and yet melodic releases of 2015. The Carcass worship is clearly present alongside the band’s own devastating sound.

    Opening with the dramatic “Receipt”, the band blasts away at listeners with their relentless drumming and crushing riffs in a demolishing fashion. And immediate standout in this release is the track “Abysmal” that reminds us of a mixture of Thulcandra/Dissection and Carcass with it harsh vocals, melodic guitars, and very oppressive atmosphere. The band’s founding members Trevor Strnad and Brian Eschbach have come a long way over the years and this release is testament of their musical evolution.

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    Slayer – Repentless (2015)

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    As THE most expected album of 2015, today we have Slayer’s first release in six years titled “Repentless”. After the loss of Jeff Hanneman and the departure of Dave Lombardo, many people wondered how the band was going to push forward, but for this release the band brought back Paul Bostaph on drums and enlisted Gary Holt to handle guitar duties. Keeping up with their tradition of intense and well-crafted releases, the band manages to deliver a very cohesive album that is considerably better than their 2009 effort.

    Opening with “Repentless” after a short intro, the band lays down the law with a crushing vocal performance from Tom Araya in this intense Thrash-tastic track. This song reminded us of Slayer from their best years thanks to the awesome riffs and furious pace. The drumming is quite hectic and the overall riffing onslaught is stellar. The band continues their onslaught with very solid pieces in “Take Control” and “Vices”, but the guitar leads of “Cast the First Stone” really deliver the second standout track of this release.

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    Eltharia – Innocent (2014)

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    Featuring a very unique combination of almost every genre in metal, minus all the ‘heavier’ ones, France’s Eltharia delivers their sophomore release “Innocent”. Delivering 11 songs filled with memorable moments and solid musicianship, this band has been around since 2001 and only released two full-length releases in the process. Luckily, all this experience translates in a very solid and well-crafted release that has high replay value.

    Opening with the Power Metal anthem “Third World War”, the band sets a pretty high bar for this release. Moving into more Progressive territories, “Spite Still Remains” gives us a very interesting mixture of soaring clean vocals and growls in a Stratovarius-like environment. The band’s ability to mix styles is quite good as they produce some very memorable tracks, such as the epic album title track “Innocent” and its excellent guitar leads.

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    Kaiserreich – Cuore Nero (2015)

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    Mixing violent Black Metal outburst with a hefty dosage of Melancholy, today we have Italy’s Kaiserreich and their third full-length release “Cuore Nero”. Achieving some intense levels of brutality, this band’s music is testament to the very intricate balance of aggression and melancholy that only a handful of bands can gracefully achieve. Recommended for fans of Der Weg einer Freiheit and Wiegedood.

    Opening with the brutal “Unico Sole”, the band immediately unleashes a barrage of riffs and very well crafted drums that weave back and forth between total aggression and melancholy. Reminding us of Horna and older Satyricon, the band pummels through tracks like “Senza Luce”, “Ombra Infanta” and the melancholic “Vuoto Assoluto”. The vocals are just perfect for this release as they are harsh and firm with a very consistent pitch.

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    Hourswill – Inevitable (2014)

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    Arriving from Portugal, today we have Hourswill and their debut full-length release “Inevitable”. Playing Progressive Metal, this band has good command of the genre but they are still missing a signature sound that makes them stand out from the rest. If you like bands like Symphony X and Leprous, Hourswill will be to your liking.

    After an initial intro track, the band fully comes to life with the catchy “Vows of Submission”, a very proficient track filled with solid guitars and soaring vocals. As “Inevitable Collapse” and “Dead End Memory” roll by, the band combines some growls into their music to make it more diverse, but they ultimately fall second place to the Progressive vibe of the music. There are also some riffs that are more along the lines of Modern Metal outfits, but they also feel a bit out of place.

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    Wederganger - Halfvergaan ontwaakt (2015)

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    Dutch Black Metal is not something you hear every day; however, today we have Wederganger and their demoralizing debut full-length “Halfvergaan ontwaakt”. Featuring eight tracks of punishing Black Metal that has influences from the Norwegian, the Swedish and even the Latin American scenes, all bundled into one destructive wall of sound. Formed in 2013, this is one of the revelation BM bands of 2015, so be warned.

    Opening with the crushing dissonance of “Dwaallichtbezwering”, the bone chilling riffs are nicely offset by the hellish vocals of Botmuyl perfectly combined with the clean efforts of Alfschijn (ex-Heidevolk). The band’s vocal variety just adds an extra layer of originality to a very powerful mixture of BM styles. “Gelderse drek” leads with some very Taake-esque riffs that will infuse instant head banging.

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