Death Metal

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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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    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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    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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    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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    Behemoth – The Satanist (2014)

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    Having lost interest in Behemoth since their 2004 release “The Apostasy”, it is quite refreshing to hear they have recovered their brutality and desire to deliver the most sickening, and perfectly produced, release they could with “The Satanist”. Featuring nine tracks of Behemoth at the top of their game, this is one hell of a demolishing aural experience that no Metal fan would want to miss.

    Opening with the first single of the release, “Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel”, the guitar sound is quite piercing and Nergal’s vocals are as commanding as ever. The use of choirs greatly enhances the atmosphere and gives it that “The Omen” kind of unholy vibe. The band’s aggression continues through demoralizing tracks like the punishing “Furor Divinus” and the massive “Messe Noire”, both of which are filled with pummeling drums and an intense bass guitar pounding away.

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    Shrapnel Storm – We Come in Peace… (2013)

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    Steamrolling their way from Finland, today we have Shrapnel Storm and their monstrous two song demo titled “We Come in Peace…”. With the Death Metal scene being invaded by tons of posers and pseudo-Death Metal, it is quite refreshing to hear a release that goes back to the basics of imposing riffs, brutal vocals, and a very polished traditional sound.

    The release immediately sets a brutal tone with the commanding old-school inspired riffing of “Detracked”. In this track the band quickly sets a very traditional Death Metal mood with crunchy riffs and imposing guitars. The production is quite clear and allows every detail of the song to show.

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    HELK – The Chronos (2013)

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    Arriving from Mexico, today we have HELK and their very unique debut EP “The Chronos”. In this 6 song release, the band showcases a mixture of Black/Death/Thrash Metal that creates a melodic yet aggressive atmosphere very unique to this peculiar band. With a high dose of melodic riffs and epic headbanging moments, this is one EP that should not go unnoticed.

    Opening with “Dark Funeral”, the band showcases their melodic aptitudes with incisive riffs, tight drumming, and catchy harsh vocals. With a certain air of bands like Kalmah and Carcass the release keeps pushing forward with “Freedom”. The combination of deep growls and harsh BM-style screams is quite engaging and allows the music to grow in different directions. Other playful tracks play off to the Thrash Metal strengths of HELK like the blistering “Vistrera”.

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    Empire of the Scourged – Transcend Into Oblivion (2013)

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    Hailing form the Netherlands, today we have a very strange collective named Empire of the Scourged. Mixing Death Metal with Industrial elements, this band delivers their debut EP “Transcend Into Oblivion”. Featuring five tracks of deranged music filled with punishing Death Metal riffs and crazy electronic elements, this release will push your senses to the max.

    The EP opens with the punishing “Der Wanderer über dem Nebelsee” mixing powerful DM growls and riffs, all packaged into weird electronic atmospheric elements. There is also a very present melodic vibe to the riffs allowing them to be more accessible.  Things get heated up with the playful “Hollow Machinations of the Foul Spirited”, a track that reminded us of bands like Shade Empire in their heyday. Here you notice a bit of a disconnect between the atmospheric elements and the traditional instrumentation/vocals. While this sounds odd, it also gives that uniqueness to the band’s sound.

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    MaYaN – Antagonise (2014)

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    After a long album cycle with the last Epica release, Mark Jansen returns with his Symphonic Death Metal outfit MaYaN and their sophomore release “Antagonise”. In a release that is larger than life, we find ourselves somewhat lost with how many different elements and styles are put together in this album. While not being bad, but confusing and sometimes a bit dull, this is a most have release for any fans of Jansen’s previous work after a few listens to settle things in.

    The album kicks off with the Death Metal riffing intensity of “Bloodline Forfeit”, with the heavy elements getting offset by Henning Basse’s commanding vocals. The album keeps rolling filled with lush orchestrations in dramatic tracks like “Burn Your Witches”, “Redemption – The Democracy Illusions”, and “Paladins of Deceit”, all of these tracks follow the same formula with some Epica elements bleeding into some of the aspects of the music.

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