Unleashing over 50 minutes of crushing Symphonic/Atmospheric Funeral Doom Metal, today we have Luna and their latest opus “On the Other Side of Life”. Hailing from Ukraine, this one man show delivers waves of brilliant atmospheric passages filled with crushing Doom riffs and proficient tempo changes.

The first part of this release comes under the 21-minute long “Grey Heaven Fall”, a highly atmospheric piece that nicely sets the mood. While there are not vocals in this release, the heavy riffs and powerful ambiance makes you forget about this and allow you to enjoy the release without even noticing.

As one of the biggest surprises of 2015, today we have the infamous Cradle of Filth and their 12th full-length release “Hammer of the Witches”. Bringing us back to when the band was turning heads left and right with their “Dusk and Her Embrace” and “Cruelty and the Beast” releases, this is by far the best release from them in over 10 years. Delivering 11 punishing tracks of lush Symphonic Black Metal we are sure that most old fans of the band will come flocking back to them.

After the warm-up intro, things are blown wide open with the intense drumming of “Yours Immortally…”, courtesy of Martin Škaroupka coming quite close to the glory days of the band with Nick Barker. The mood is as magical as on “Cruelty and the Beast” with crushing tempo changes and the howling of Dani Filth. The band finally got back to their mojo of crafting songs with tons of tempo changes and perfect combinations of howls, growls and clean male and female vocals as in “Enshrined in Crematoria” and “Deflowering the Maidenhead, Displeasuring the Goddess” (one of our favorites).

Delivering one of the most bombastic and ridiculously epic releases of 2015, today we have Luca Turilli’s Rhapsody with “Prometheus”. Vastly improving over their 2012 “Ascending to Infinity” the band elevates its game to reach new heights in terms of lush cinematic experiences. If you could imagine Therion paired with Blind Guardian and old Stratovarius, that is exactly what this album sounds like.   

Building a very dramatic opening with “Il Cigno Nero”, the band’s signature intense tempo and theatrical vibe is felt instantly through Alessandro Conti’s vocals and Luca Turilli’s talented musical composition skills. The extreme usage of orchestrations and choir arrangements greatly pays off on tracks like “Anahata”, the dramatic “One Ring to Rule them All”, and the majestic “Prometheus”. The basic Power Metal core aspect of the band’s sound is kept very tidy through Alex Landenburg’s drumming and Patrice Guers’s bass guitar lines.

Arriving from Italy, today we have newcomers The Hillinoise and their superbly enjoyable EP “My Sleeping Butterfly”. Fusing elements from bands like The Gathering, The 3rd and the Mortal, early Xandria and even some Slowdive influences, the band delivers three excellent tracks filled with melancholy.

The release starts with the mellow “Lighter”, a very melancholic piece that has some touches of early The Gathering meets Sylvaine. The vocals of Dana Stefanelli are quite innocent sounding, giving the music that certain sense of bleakness that we greatly appreciate. However, it is the pulsating bass guitar line that shines though out the release, in particular “Nymphetamine”.

Arriving from France this week we have Evolvent and their sophomore release “Whatever Happens”. Catering to fans of Visions of Atlantis, Trail of Tears and Voices of Destiny, this band delivers ten excellent tracks that are quite enjoyable thanks to their commanding female vocals and creative song structures.

Immediately after the intro we have the superbly catchy “Win or Die”, a song that showcases Emma Elvaston’s talents and the band’s knack for atmospheric compositions. As things progress to catchier and craftier songs like “Hurricane” and “Love Doesn’t Love Me”, the band shows their versatility with solid riffs and very precise drumming, with some growls thrown into the mix.

Hailing from Austria, today we have Amestigon and their soul crushing sophomore release “Thier”. Featuring almost one full hour of music divided in four tracks, this release delivers waves of old-school Black Metal packaged between atmospheric passages that nicely create a very oppressive vibe.

Slowly warming up with “Demiurg”, we are treated to demoralizing riffs and hellish vocals. The combination of some clean chants nicely allows this track to be extremely eerie. The band’s raw and old-school Black Metal is very effective and brings back memories of bands like Horna meets old Satyricon. Stepping things up, “358” features a pulsating bass guitar line and in some part, higher intensity moments than on the first piece. The atmosphere is again nicely worked into the song, allowing it to change the direction of the music at any given time.

From the creative mind of Heidi Parviainen (ex-Amberian Dawn), today we have a very diverse and refreshing Symphonic/Gothic Metal album titled “Behind the Black Veil”. With more of a cinematic/theatrical approach than your traditional Symphonic/Gothic Metal band, Dark Sarah delivers a very engaging release filled with guest appearances and expertly crafted melodies.
                                  

Telling the story of Sarah, this release sets the backdrop of the story with the opening tracks “Save Me”, “Poison Aple” and “Hide and Seek”, all of which feature a more passive and theater-like approach to them. The music is quite well crafted and Heidi’s vocals instantly charm the listener into continuing their journeys. Things move into more familiar territories with “Memories Fall”, a song that features a guest appearance from Manuela Kraller. While more of your typical song for the genre, it nicely keeps the album and story progression going with a more bombastic and explosive piece.

With a flourishing Metal musical scene in France delivering very diverse bands like Gojira, Dagoba and Alcest among many others, it is quite refreshing to hear a promising Progressive Death Metal band named Kera. With this self-titled EP, the band explores an interesting experimental take on Death Metal with some solid progressive elements and a knack for melodic brilliance.

Opening with the pummeling “Masters Enslaved”, we are treated to excellent riffing that is quite crafty in nature and perfectly rounds of the well-tailored drum patterns. The vocals have that old-school raspy vibe, not necessarily the cleanest growls, but they get the job done. The second track, “Architect of Chaos” is probably the band’s most straightforward song blistering leads and a very playful melodic approach.

Arriving from Finland and being heralded as the next big thing, today we have Abyssion and their third full-length release “Luonnon harmonia ja vihreä liekki”. Released via Svart Record’s imprint Secret Trees curated by Mathew "Kvohst" McNerney, this album delivers a very unique sounding Punk-fueled cracked-out Psychedelic Black Metal that is equally weird as it is brutal. Clocking in around 35 minutes of music, if you are a true explorer of Black Metal, this is one you haven’t really heard before.

Opening with the sonic abuse of “Luonnon harmonia”, you get your standard fare of Black Metal riffing with some odd atmospheric elements thrown into the mix. The vocals are quite disturbing and greatly enhance the level of brutality crafted by the tight drumming and punishing riffs. As the Burzum/Dark Throne vibe of “Kosmoksesta tuli hautani” arrives, we are totally hooked on this band’s crushing sound.

Featuring five out of seven members of one of our favorite bands of all time: Jess and the Ancient Ones, Svart records present The Exploding Eyes Orchestra and their enigmatic debut release “I”. Delivering seven brilliant tracks of moody Occult/Pscychedelic Rock/Metal, this new band has a similar energy behind them than JATAO, but with an extra exploratory and nature and a more relaxed and freely defined style.

Opening with the sultry “The Smoke”, the band makes a very quick impression with this trippy schedelic piece masterfully guided by Jess’s talented vocals. Things get jazzier and mellower with the emotional “Crazy Heart”. This track flows perfectly with very subtle guitars and a relaxing tempo. The fuzzy guitar leads are excellent and perfectly set you in a very hypnotic mood.