Nuclear Blast

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Keep Of Kalessin – Reptilian (2010)

    cover

    After releasing amazing albums like “Armada” and “Kolossus”, we have Keep Of Kalessin’s latest offering with “Reptilian”. And let us tell you that the band did not failed to deliver another brilliant Black Metal assault that will make all the Black Metal posers weep in despair. Keep Of Kalessin is back with a very brutal release that will surely be considered one of the top Black Metal albums of 2010.

    With it’s unique riffing style (for Black Metal), this band revamped the genre back in 2006 with “Armada” and continues to keep pushing the boundaries of Black Metal to the extreme. “Reptilian” opens up with a very epic song “Dragon Iconography” and it’s immediately evident that the band has been taking more influences of old-school Trash/Heavy Metal and NWOBHM bands for their riffing assaults.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Exodus – Exhibit B: The Human Condition (2010)

    cover

    Two years have passed since the so-so “Let There Be Blood” and now we have Exodus back in full swing. The band has managed to produce a very impressive album with “Exhibit B: The Human Condition” that it reminds us of their earlier days, but with that modern edge that the band has been incorporating into their sound.

    This new release is both more Melodic and Brutal, but the best part is that it sounds like Exodus all the way, no filler songs, no disconnection between track, “Exhibit B: The Human Condition” is a brilliant album from start to end. The listener is in for an impressive Trash Metal riff-a-ton courtesy of Gary Holt and Lee Altus.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Avantasia – The Wicked Symphony (2010)

    cover

    After the lackluster “Scarecrow” we finally get the real Avantasia back with “The Wicked Symphony”, one of the two albums released by Tobias Sammet super band. As you all know the band features legendary drummer Eric Singer alongside Sascha Paeth on guitars, and Michael Rodenberg on Keyboards.

    Aside the super band behind Avantasia we have an impressive amounts of guest musicians and vocalists such as Michael Kiske, Tim "Ripper" Owens, and André Matos just to mention a few. The music in “The Wicked Symphony” is closer to “The Metal Opera” than to “Scarecrow”, making this release a brilliant example of what can Symphonic Power Metal should sound like.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Avantasia – Angel Of Babylon (2010)

    cover

    Being the second release of Avantasia this 2010 (by one day of separation) “Angel Of Babylon” is much less bombastic and impressive than “The Wicked Symphony”, putting this release closer to “Scarecrow” because of it’s bigger hard rock influences. All the core musicians remain the same as on “The Wicked Symphony”, and the guest musicians/vocalists list is much shorter and a bit different than for the previously mentioned album.

    The first thing that came to our minds was that it was a great move that Avantasia left all these ‘weaker’ tracks in a separate release instead of putting a dent into the greatness of “The Wicked Symphony”. Having a greater Rock influence in these songs, the band looses a bit of its sonic power and goes slower than the first release, but this does not mean that the songs are bad at all; they are just ‘slower’.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Cathedral – The Guessing Game (2010)

    cover

    Five years have passed since the band’s last effort “The Garden of Unearthly Delights” and Cathedral has returned with another brilliant release with “The Guessing Game”. Having been around for 20 years and evolving unlike any other band of their time, Cathedral breaks the mold of Stoner/Doom Metal music by adding more progressive and psychedelic elements to their already diverse sound.

    Lee Dorian and folks have never made a single album that had disappointed us and “The Guessing Game” is no exception to this rule. Released as a in a double CD, we have over 80 minutes of brilliant music that will surely please Cathedral fans. While the band is less ‘Doomy’ than before, they do a great job of combining Doom Metal riffs with a wide variety of instruments and sounds.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Unleashed - As Yggdrasil Trembles (2010)

    cover

    Swedish Death Metal legends Unleashed are back with another great album, “As Yggdrasil Trembles” marks another great release in the band’s career. If there is one thing you can count on with Unleashed is consistency. The band has managed to maintain their original style for almost 20 years, and yet they still sound fresh.

    Forming over 20 years ago, Unleashed has played a major role in the development of Viking Metal and bands that talked about Scandinavian mythology in general. Since the band was the first to use this topics in their lyrics, instead of the traditional ‘blood and guts’ approach, this has made them very unique since the beginning.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Immolation - Majesty and Decay (2010)

    cover

    In terms of Death Metal, Americans have been showing the world how it’s done in the past 20 years. And Immolation’s “Majesty and Decay” is another fine example of why this gene was so popular and has not gone away in the States.

    “Majesty and Decay” features an Immolation, that like wine, it’s only getting better with age. The band has never lost it’s edge and every release they put out is around the same level as the last one. Something extremely rare in the DM scene since you have the ‘big players’ of the scene like Cannibal Corpse and Six Feet Under releasing shit albums every once in a while.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Eluveitie - Everything Remains As It Never Was (2010)

    cover

    After their acoustic album “Evocation I - The Arcane Dominion” we finally get a new ‘metallic’ release and it’s a great one. Eluveitie has managed to craft its sound to a near perfect fusion of Folk music with Melodic Metal.

    While playing music in this style is not original by any means. Eluveitie does it with such grace that blows the competition out of the water. The eight piece Swiss band has released their most mature album to date and it can only get better from here.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Meshuggah – Alive (2010)

    cover

    Recorded during the band’s 2008-2009 tours of the USA, we have “Alive”. This review is for the CD that comes with the DVD, not the DVD itself. Featuring 12 tracks of the band’s very impressive catalog of songs, we couldn’t have made a better selection into which songs made it to this CD.

    The recording quality for this live CD is very impressive, and sounds crystal clear. We might add that the songs sound way better than when we saw them live. You clearly get the full Meshuggah aural assault when you listen to this CD.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Annotations Of An Autopsy - The Reign Of Darkness (2010)

    cover

    Today from the UK we get Annotations Of An Autopsy a handful or pissed off Brits that have taken the Death Metal scene in the UK as their own and made it their bitch. After their some what weak debut album “Before the Throne of Infection”, the band is back with their latest aural assault and is a big improvement.

    “The Reign Of Darkness” features 11 tracks of Death Metal at it’s most brutal. Filled with meaty hooks and catchy riffs, this album is ready to blow your head clear off.

Pages

Recent Image Galleries