Album Reviews

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    Made of Hate – Pathogen (2011)

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    Hailing from Poland today we have a very refreshing band: Made of Hate. This band plays Melodic Death Metal the true way, not the pussy Melo-Death shit that new bands play these days. With influences of older In Flames, CoB, Soilwork, etc, the band has a very guitar driven sound that does not feel like a complete rip-off of their influences, something very rare in this genre.

    “Pathogen” contains 8 tracks of very solid guitar driven compositions that will have you head banging in a matter of minutes. Since the opening track “Friend” you can start to notice the riff-athon you are in for. Featuring ‘manly’ vocals the band has a strong sound that has the late 90’s Melodic DM feel all written over it.

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    Onslaught – Sounds of Violence (2011)

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    With the current Thrash Metal revival we have seen bands like Exodus, Forbidden, etc, release very impressive albums. Onslaught brings their A-game and manages to release a pretty solid effort with “Sounds of Violence”. This album marks their best effort to date, after a long break and return to the scene in 2005.

    Getting into “Sounds of Violence”, we are presented with 8 tracks and two filler intro songs. For around 45 minutes the band does a great job in bringing back the old-school Thrash Metal vibe with some more up-to-date production values. This release sounds like a million bucks thanks to the help of Jacob Hansen and allows the band to fully showcase its technical abilities and songwriting chops.

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    Emerald Sun – Regeneration (2011)

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    Hailing from Greece, next up in our review queue is Emerald Sun’s third full-length album “Regenration”. While Emerald Sun is nowhere near the ‘original’ category, this band does a killer job in crafting Power Metal songs with an old school vibe.

    “Regeneration” features nearly 50 minutes of very enjoyable and flawlessly executed music that can surely please the most demanding fans of the genre. Of particular interest in this CD we have a cover of Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding out for a Hero” song which is pretty entertaining to say the least.

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    Pictures of Pain – The Reckoning (2010)

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    Today we have a very interesting (and little known) band from Norway with the name of Pictures of Pain. The band plays a very strange mix of Melodic Metal with Heavy and Death/Black Metal influences, yes, we know it sounds confusing, but they do an average job in creating a very diverse and original sound.

    “The Reckoning” marks the band’s first full-length release and they managed to fill up this CD almost entirely with 67 minutes of music. Most of the band members have ‘other band’ experience, but the only name that rings any bells is Rune Fredriksen from Thundra and session for Evig Natt, needless to say, all musicians do a great job in this release.

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    Serenity – Death & Legacy (2011)

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    In the band’s most ambitious release to date, Serenity sets out to create a release around historical figures such as Christopher Columbus, Giacom Casanova, Sir Francis Drake, Queen Elizabeth I, in a very electrifying and symphonic fashion. “Death & Legacy” is hands down the band’s best release and it’s also one of the most dynamic and rich sounding albums we have received this 2011.

    The overall Symphonic feeling of “Death & Legacy” is one of the main ingredients to set this release apart from your average album. However, the ingredient that really sets them apart from the rest is the amazing duets with Charlotte Wessels (Delain), Ailyn (Sirenia), and Amanda Sommerville.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Lifelover – Sjukdom (2011)

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    After their brilliant “Konkurs”, it seems like the band ended their life and sent over some cheap copycats with “Sjukdom”. As you all might know, Lifelover is one of the most interesting bands when it comes to playing depressing experimental Metal. But with “Sjukdom” the band succumbs to mediocrity by playing the same things as on “Konkurs” and using cliché elements for shock value.

    The brilliant guitar driven atmosphere is missing for most of the album, and on songs like “Expandera”, it sounds like a carbon copy of what they did on “Konkurs”. The band’s consistency is also put to question with uninspired filler songs like “Homicidal Tendencies”, where the band leads off with basic guitar riffs and the cliché samples of little kids in the middle of the song.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Visions of Atlantis – Delta (2011)

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    As one of our most anticipated releases from Napalm Records in 2011, today we have Visions of Atlantis with their fourth full-length album “Delta”. As an habitual reader of Infernal Masquerade, you should know that we have a weak spot for Symphonic/Gothic Metal releases and “Delta” is hands-down the most impressive one we have listened in the last few months.

    After a few line-up changes drummer Thomas Caser brought back Werner Fiedler on guitars and added Mario Lochert (Emergency Gate) on bass guitar and on vocals we have the sweet voice of Maxi Nil (ex-Elysium) from Greece. This vocalist change is probably what makes this release be even better than their previous ones since her voice contrasts amazingly with Mario Plank’s clean vocals.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Odd Dimension – Symmetrical (2011)

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    Jumping out of the blue, today we have a very promising Progressive Metal band with the name of Odd Dimension. Hailing from Italy, this ‘new band’ is ready to make a strong introduction with their debut album “Symmetrical”. Featuring 47 minutes of music, this release is one of the strongest Power Metal releases of 2011 we have received so far.

    Featuring lush keyboard arrangements, powerful singing, solid guitar work and tight drumming, this band has all the elements needed to be successful in such a competitive genre. One of the best elements of “Symmetrical” has to be the solid songwriting abilities that the band has, since ‘everybody’ can be great at their instruments, is how they put the songs together that separates a great band from the rest.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Quicksand Dream – Aelin: A Story about Destiny (2010)

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    When we first started listening to this album we noticed that it sounded a bit dated and ‘older’ for some reason, little did we know that it was originally recorded in 1999 and very limitedly released back in 2000.  Taking that into consideration, we are even more amazed on what sound this band had back in those days and can’t help but wonder where it would have taken them back then.

    If you are a fan of Epic Heavy Metal and you like bands like While Heaven Wept, Equinox ov the Gods, Fates Warning, etc, then Quicksand Dream will surely grab your attention. The band mixes Heavy Metal elements with some Psychedelic rock influences and the overall Epicness of the band’s sound is greatly enhanced by the vocals of Göran Jacobson.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Burzum – Fallen (2011)

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    Looks like Varg Vikernes was very active writing music in the last few years and delivers the second post-prison Burzum album in two years. With “Fallen”, Varg seems to dig back into the early Burzum material and delivers a very solid and impressive release with some upgrades to the older sound.

    One thing that will come as a huge shock for people expecting pure and raw Black Metal is the use of some clean vocals and humming. While this might seem confusing at first, it actually enhances the mood of the album greatly and makes the harsh vocal sections more grim and meaningful.

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