Being suckers for sappy Black Metal with high levels of keyboards and catchy melodies, we are pretty delighted to have found Nachtblut’s latest release “Dogma” in our review queue. Hailing from Germany, this band plays a more dramatic and industrial version of Siebenbürgen’s, Graveworms’s and Agathodaimon’s dabbles in the realm of Symphonic Black Metal. Nachtblut managed to keep our attentions on their music for the 50 minutes this release lasted... every single time we played it.

The album title track “Dogma” quickly sneaks up on the listener with powerful guitar riffs, hellish vocals and very cool keyboards. There is nothing complex about this song, but the rather simple and direct approach of the track makes it very engaging. The band keeps building on their sound on “Der Weg Ist Das Ziel”, where they add more double-kick sections and a more dramatic synth orchestration background. The same applies to the circus-like “Ich Trinke Blut”.

The legendary Candlemass is back with what they say it will be their last album… ever. “Psalms for the Dead” marks the band’s 11th studio full-length release and closes the chapter on the band’s very influential career. Having influenced tons of bands over the years, it is quite sad to hear that Candlemass is going away, but at least they do so with an impressive and monumental release, instead of a pathetic sad little album or even worst… a best-of compilation release.

Opening with the crushing riffs of “Prophet”, the band delivers a powerful and firm first track that sets the mood for the whole release. The epic keyboards and excellent vocal melodies nicely make this song very catchy and dynamic, but ultimately it’s the riffing that sells the track. The very interesting atmospheric elements make their way into “The Sound of Dying Demons”, giving this track a very eerie and creepy feeling, and when paired with the cavernous riffs, it is plain brilliant.

Hailing from Italy, today we have 5 Star Grave and their most recent full-length release “Drugstore Hell”. With a very interesting mix of Melodic Death Metal with some Glam/Sleaze, old-school Rock, and even some electronic elements, this release offers a very engaging mixture of sounds. For 11 tracks this Italian band has one of the most refreshing approaches to Melodic Death Metal we have heard in quite a while.

With a very catchy opening, “Terminal Bedroom” starts with some funky electronic bits that nicely elevate the spirits of this song. The riffing is catchy and the vocals while a bit on the ‘modern Metal’ side of things, are pretty well fitting. After the next catchy tune “Death Put A Smile on My Face”, the band reminded us of Silent Decent and their hyper-catchy brand of Melodic DM. With a more hard-rocking edge, “Love Affair with the Beast” features a nice combination of relentless riffing and funky keyboards.

Featuring Mathias Lillmåns of Finntroll fame on vocals, today we have The Iniquity Descent and their debut full-length “The Human Apheresis”. Playing a very traditional and average Black Metal, this upcoming band still has a long way to go before we can say they are a force to reckon with.

Delivering ten blows of powerful Black Metal, “The Human Apheresis” is one of those albums that immediately after the first track you start wondering if you already heard the next song, because they are all very similar and repetitive. Don’t get us wrong, the riffing is quite powerful and the drumming is superb, but the quality of the songs is constantly lacking since the band repeats the same sections over and over until you stop caring.

Delivering a wall of crusty guitars and a very decadent (but effective) mixture of Punk and D-beat with Death and Black Metal influences, today we have Sweden’s Martyrdöd and their full-length release “Paranoia”. While we usually don’t like this type of music, Martyrdöd does a great job in making it engaging, brutal, and well sounding, enough for us to be fully immersed in the 11 tracks presented in this release.

Opening with some sick riffs, “Nog Är Nog” fully delivers the unexpected: a five minute song (not 2 minutes like other bands) with excellent melodic elements as well as the traditional crusty sound and punkish edge of these kinds of releases. The band’s focus on the catchiness of the riffing is excellent perfectly contrasting the more aggressive sections. With a more Black Metal influences tracks like “Överkom Er Rädsla” and “Hör Världens Rop” feel like a punkish version of Immortal with some of Satyricon’s edge from the 90’s. These two songs are the perfect example of why Martyrdöd is beyond your typical one-dimensional crust band and can delivers in many different fronts while maintaining their identity.

The craziest band in Metal, Diablo Swing Orchestra, finally returns three years after their last album with “Pandora’s Box”, a true Pandora’s box of a release since you don’t really know what you are getting yourself into until you ‘open’ this release. Continuing with their chaotic brand of Avant-garde Metal with a splash of operatic elements, this release sets them further apart from the competition with 11 of the craziest songs we have ever listened to.

Opening with the playful “Voodoo Mon Amour”, DSO is headed for another round of typical festive music, however, the band quickly expands on their sound by adding more authentic elements with the incorporation of both Daniel Hedin and Martin Isaksson, on trombone and trumpet respectively. With these additions, the band now hits seven full-time members, rivaling only Therion and Haggard, for the title of bands with most members. Regardless of the size of the band, DSO now feels a bit more complete with a richer sound, similar to the Leningrad Cowboys and their super rich sound.

Arriving from France, today we have Memories of a Dead Man and their latest full-length release “V.I.T.R.I.O.L”. Featuring a mixture of Post-Metal with some Hardcore influences, this band fits perfectly with bands like The Ocean, Year of No Light, Rosetta and Cult of Luna. Delivering 11 soul pounding tracks, this release is as heavy as it is complex, and we completely love it.

With soaring guitars and brilliant Post-Metal sections, “Tomorrow, at Dawn…” sets the bar for this release pretty high. The pummeling guitars are nicely offset by some female vocal sections that give a very nice melodic edge to this track, without losing any of the gritty heaviness in it.