Album Reviews

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    The Wounded Kings – Consolamentum (2014)

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    With “the power of the riff” being in its highest moment, bands like Electric Wizard and Bongripper are killing it in festivals like Roadburn and Hammer of Doom. Under these circumstances comes The Wounded Kings, a UK outfit that delivers uncompromising Doom Metal with crunchy distortion and a very natural vibe. With “Consolamentum”, the band fourth full-length release, they are looking to consolidate themselves as one of the premiere bands of the genre.

    Wasting no time, the release opens with the 13-minute monolithic “Gnosis” to give the listener a good idea of what the band is all about. With a hearty distortion and excellent pace, the band rips through endless punishing riffs nicely adorned by Sharie Neyland’s captivating vocals. Just imagine a more traditional Jex Thoth and you can picture what The Wounded Kings sound like, as they evidently display on the pummeling “Lost Bride”.

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    Ishtar – From The Gates (2013)

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    Delivering a very unique EP, today we have Ishtar and their debut release “From The Gates”. Hailing from France, this six-piece band merges Black/Death Metal with a hefty dosage of atmospheric elements and passages to create a very unique sounding release. With the French Metal scene gaining more and more exposure over the years, Ishtar is one of those bands that deserve to be talked about.

    After the typical intro track, “Invading Empire” delivers a very unique mixture of Black and Death Metal elements, similar to bands like Kataklysm and older acts like Your Shapeless Beauty (minus the Avant-garde elements). In this track, the band explodes into a very melodic section (around the middle of the song) that has a nice experimental vibe to it and explored their atmospheric power.

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    Sarvas – Sarvas (2014)

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    Completely redefining what we know about Sludge Metal, today we have Sarvas and their self-titled debut release. Fusing elements of Death/Doom Metal with some Groove and a base of Slude, this Finnish band manages to craft a very unique sound that is far from the traditional (and sometimes dull) Sludge Metal genre. Delivering 6 punishing tracks, this release will surely have something that everybody will love.

    Opening with “Kindle”, we get a traditional beginning to this song that slowly that sets up the stage for the forthcoming onslaughts. The album quickly evolves into catchy, groovy, atmospheric brilliance, as we get to listen from the emotional “Dead Pilot”. Don’t you even think for a minute that the Sludgy riffing is lacking in this release, since “Pit” makes it quite clear that you will feel the power of Sarvas’s Doomy riffage.

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    Black Desert – The Beginning (2013)

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    Hailing from Spain, today we have Gothic Metal newcomers Black Dessert and their Middle Eastern influenced debut release “The Beginning”. Originally comprised of two members (Isabel Bermejo y Ángel Agüera), this band has now grown to have a full line-up and touring dates. In a world filled with Symphonic/Gothic Metal bands, it is quite refreshing to hear one that sticks to the basics and delivers an engaging performance.

    Opening with the lush “Death Orchestra”, we are treated to cool atmospheric elements filled with powerful riffs and solid drums. A thing to note is that we are not quite sure who (if anybody) played the drums in this release, but they sound quite solid and if they are programmed drums, they did a great job making them sound natural. Anyways, the band’s main characteristic is the subtle Middle Eastern influences and Isabel’s commanding voice.

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    Azziard – Vésanie (2014)

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    The French extreme Metal scene has been quickly growing in number of quality bands in the last few years. From the likes of Merrimack to Glaciation, tons of bands are emerging with excellent quality. Enter Azziard, a Parisian band ready to steamroll the scene with their savage Black/Death Metal combination and their sophomore release “Vésanie”.

    Pummeling through a no BS intro titled “Allégorie”, the band fully explodes into action with the blistering “Disjonction”. Mixing old school BM riffing attacks with modern production values and a hectic pace, Azziard opens this release with a commanding brutality and engages the listener since the first minute. “De lumière, D'Obscurité” and “Sur La Toile” help establish the band’s crushing onslaughts with vicious guitar work, ripping vocals, and monumental drumming.

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    Beast Within – Adversity/Servitude (2014)

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    Being released in a limited run of 500 vinyl copies, today we have Canada’s old school Black/Death Metal juggernauts Best Within and their two song 7”. Filled with filthy and hateful sound, this release showcases the band’s worship for acts like Celtic Frost and Pentagram.

    The “Adversity” side of things features super catchy riffs, reminiscent of current Black’n’Roll bands but with that extra spunk of older acts. The pace is quite mellow and the vocalist’s snarls are perfect for this kind of music. As “Servitude” rolls in, the band consolidates their sound to be quite punishing and old school, but with their own type of sickness. The guitar work is quite powerful and the bass guitar really stands out in this last track.

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    When Icarus Falls – Circles (2014)

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    Building up on their excellent discography comprised of “Over The Frozen Seas“ and “Aegean”, When Icarus Falls delivers another gem with the EP “Circles”. Featuring three new tracks and a remix of “Nyx”, the band keeps pushing the limits of Post-Metal with their own forward thinking sound in this release. Filled with lush atmospheres and savage riffs, this band deserves a place right next to Neurosis thanks to their music.

    The mood is instantly set with the suspenseful “Erechtion”, a track that perfectly dances around the aggression of Post-Metal and the dreaminess of Post-Rock. The band perfectly crafts a very intriguing atmosphere and the harsh lashings nicely contrast it. Keeping on this tradition, “The Great North” exploits subtle keyboards to further the band’s atmospheric component and create very well paced songs. Jumping back and forth between harsh and clean vocals, this track is quite elaborate and a very unique one.

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    The Bleeding – Rites of Putrefaction (2013)

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    With a hefty dose of blistering riffs and gripping growls, today we have Italy’s The Bleeding and their self-released EP “Rites of Putrefaction”. With over 24 minutes of neck breaking Death Metal, this Italian band does a great job of capturing a mix of Florida and Swedish Death Metal, resulting in a very solid self-released first effort.

    Things get kicked off with the catchy “The Hunt”, a track that is quite enjoyable and has a solid amount of powerful riffs and hateful growls. The band’s style is quite traditional, but very enjoyable for fans of the genre. “Rites of Putrefaction” features a faster pace and tight drums, showcasing the band’s excellent execution of all their instruments.

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    SynoP – 77 Bombers (2014)

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    Making its way from The Netherlands, one man Ambient/Neo-classical project SynoP brings us their fourth release titled “77 Bombers”. Inspired by some paintings of crashed 77 bombers, this release is a cinematic experience that is better enjoyed when watching the video the artist crated of the paintings found here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbI5dsnhZz4). For 13 tracks we get a very healthy mix of Ambient with Minimalist touches, spoken word sections, and some very moving Neo-classical passages.

    The album instantly opens with the title track, a song that features some airplane sounds before it creates some cavernous atmospheric passages. As the release progresses, we are left with plenty of scattered pieces here and there in tracks like “Rumble in the sky”, “Endless view”, “Dark clouds over Europe”, all of the helping to create a very hypnotic vibe and furthering the mistery behind “77 Bombers”.

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    Ecocide – Eye of Wicked Sight (2013)

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    Debuting with the crushing “Eye of Wicked Sight”, today we have Ecocide and their old-school Death Metal from Hell. The band immediately reminded us of Centinex and similar outfits from the 90’s, but with all the production advantages of modern day music. Pummeling through 8 tracks and 33 minutes of music, this is one of those releases that will inflict some pain to your speakers.

    After a trippy/spacey intro, the riffing machine moves full steam ahead with the crushing “Planet Eater”. Shifting away from your typical ‘blood and guts’ of Death Metal, Ecocide choses to focus on aliens/sci-fi in this release. The band’s brand of Death Metal is quite catchy and traditional, something very surprising since the members are 20 or so years old. Delivery a bag of bricks to your face with tracks like “Eye of Wicked Sight” and “Unknown Disease”, the band surely makes a bang with the first 15 minutes of the album.

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