Melodic Death Metal

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    Event Relentless – Cold Black November (2015)

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    Hailing from Pori, Finland, today we have a very exciting young Melodic Death Metal band named Event Relentless. On the debut EP “Cold Black November”, we are taken back to the early days of Children of Bodom with five tracks filled with no bullshit Melodic Death Metal and killer atmospheric keyboards/synth.

    Leading with the acrobatic “Duality”, the band instantly establishes a very melodic and engaging vibe. The riffs are pretty good and the and the overall combination of fast guitars and enveloping keyboards makes it very engaging and enjoyable, very similar to CoB’s earlier days. Delivering another high-octane thrill ride, we have “Beyond the Speed of Light” and its headbanging melodic passages. This track reminds us a bit more of Kalmah and their ‘slower’ paced style of melodic Death Metal.

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    Wakener – Wakener (2015)

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    Receiving music from new and promising relatively unknown bands is one of the best perks of writing for Infernal Masquerade. Today we have one of the good ones with Wakener and their self-titled debut EP. Featuring four songs and around 18 minutes of music, this release showcases a band that perfectly executes Melodic Death Metal and traditional Death Metal in a very old-school way, this allows them to stand out from the hundreds of over-the-top MeloDeath outfits that have plagued the scene in the last few years.

    Opening with the superbly catchy “Life of Fear”, we have a grainy production that perfectly captures the melodic riffs and the rough harsh vocals. The band focuses exclusively in crafting melodic passages that are perfect for headbanging, similar to what The Elysian Fields did many years ago. Continuing with the equally impressive “The Plague”, the band does a great job in crafting nifty melodies alongside tight drumming and the perfect tempo for this kind of music.

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    Forte Ruin – Forte Ruin (2015)

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    Always excited to receive promo materials from new and upcoming bands, today we find ourselves quite entertained with Forte Ruin’s self-titled EP. Mixing Melodic Death Metal elements with some Power Metal influences, this release sounds like Children of Bodom, Tracedawn and Shade Empire had a genetically engineered baby.

    Opening with the lively Children of Bodom-esque “Alienated Humanity”, the band instantly makes an impression with well-crafted guitars and playful keyboards. The harsh vocals are very typical for the genre, but the clean vocals nicely catch the listener off-guard and have a certain Proggy vibe to them. After setting the bar high with the opener, the band continues with lush keyboards and excellent tight drumming in “45 Days”. Being quite catchy and melodic, this reminded us a bit more of Tracedawn and Kalmah, brilliantly smashed together.

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    Enshine – Singularity (2015)

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    After taking everybody by surprise with their excellent debut “Origin”, Enshine returns with a more mature and refined release titled “Singularity”. Comprised of only two members, Jari Lindholm and Sebastien Pierre, this international band manages to craft a very melodic and engaging release that clocks in at 53 minutes of music. If you are a fan of October Tide, Insomnium and Swallow the Sun, this is an album that you don’t want to miss.

    The band opens with the Sci-Fi-ish “Dual Existence” as the barrage of melodic riffs is made present by Jari. The pace is quite mellow, but the harshness and brutality of the music is felt, particularly when Sebastien’s growls come into the picture. With majestically crafted songs like “Adrift” and “Resurgence”, the band sets a very melodic mood with subtle atmospheric keyboards. The band’s resemblance to Swallow the Sun in terms of pace and mood is uncanny, but they make the sound their own by adding more Melodic Death metal elements here and there.

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    Children of Bodom – I Worship Chaos (2015)

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    After releasing a couple of lukewarm releases, Children of Bodom are back in fully force with the brilliant “I Worship Chaos”. The band mixes their early days intensity and naivety with their more modern elements to deliver a high-octane release that is full of memorable songs and brilliant musicianship.

    Opening with the intense “I Hurt”, we get a killer pace set by blistering guitars and very hectic drumming. This track is both fun and precise, keeping the listener headbanging since the first minute. The festive mood continues with the pummeling “My Bodom”, a track that increases in tempo and creativity as it progresses, leading to some signature solo face-off sections near the end. Perfectly blending the band’s “Something Wild”-era antics with their cleaner and more direct recent sound, “Morrigan” is the first track in this release that gets stuff in your head. The melody is quite intoxicating and the atmosphere is just magical, a typical older CoB track but with an edge.

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    The Black Dahlia Murder – Abysmal (2015)

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    Arriving just in time to close the summer, The Black Dahlia Murder deliver their most recent outburst of brutality titled “Abysmal”. Featuring ten tracks of acrobatic Melodic Death Metal, the band finally sheds all remaining elements of their Deathcore days and delivers one of the most destructive and yet melodic releases of 2015. The Carcass worship is clearly present alongside the band’s own devastating sound.

    Opening with the dramatic “Receipt”, the band blasts away at listeners with their relentless drumming and crushing riffs in a demolishing fashion. And immediate standout in this release is the track “Abysmal” that reminds us of a mixture of Thulcandra/Dissection and Carcass with it harsh vocals, melodic guitars, and very oppressive atmosphere. The band’s founding members Trevor Strnad and Brian Eschbach have come a long way over the years and this release is testament of their musical evolution.

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    A.C.O.D – II The Maelstrom (2015)

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    Hailing from France, today we have A.C.O.D and their Melodic-ish Death Metal release “II The Maelstrom”. Delivering thirteen tracks of a very health mix of traditional Death Metal with some more modern and Melodic elements, this band sounds like a bastard child of Grave and Kalmah. We are constantly amazed at the quality of bands that are coming out of France, and this is another one of the good ones.

    The band opens with the groovy “Another Path” before settling for a more Thrash-infused Death Metal sound in “Way of Death”, and then jumping into Melo-Death land with “Abuse Me”. This is the narrative in this release as the band slowly weaves back and forth from Melodic, to Thrashy, to old-school Death Metal, actually pulling it off gracefully and very cohesively.

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    Torchia – Ending Beginning (2015)

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    Greatly improving since their 2013 demo, today we have Finland’s Torchia and their killer Melodic Death Metal with some Thrash elements. We love watching bands evolve over time and Torchia is the perfect example of a solid transition and evolution into a very promising new band. Featuring three songs filled with melodic passages and killer production, this is one of the best demos we have received in 2015.

    Opening with the demo title track, the band instantly sets a very upbeat tempo with catchy guitar riffs and a very melodic vibe. This song has that Finish Melodic Death Metal sound engraved into its core, and we love it. The guitar solos are amazing and pair perfectly with the massive drumming we can appreciate in this release.

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    Killing Gandhi – Cinematic Parallels (2015)

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    Keeping the Scandinavian Melodic Death Metal sound alive, today we have Denmark’s Killing Gandhi debut release “Cinematic Parallels”. Filled with over 40 minutes of superbly catchy music, this band keeps things quite melodic and entertaining through the duration of this release. Formed by Martin Arendal and Kasper Gram of Manticora, Wuthering Heights and others, this band delivers a timeless sound with their own modern elements incorporated to the mix, appealing to any fan of Melodic Death Metal.

    The album is structured around 11 films that Martin Arendal greatly enjoys, but delivering his interpretation of them through the songs of this release. After a short intro, the band gets down to business with the explosive “The Cannibal Corpse”, a track that sounds like a mixture of Soilwork and Tracedawn with some electronic elements thrown into the mix. This super melodic and catchy vibe nicely continues through “What Lies Beneath” and “Drugs for a Mindfuck”, delivering memorable riffs and super tight drumming along the way.

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    Dead Alone – Nemesis (2014)

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    With a great ear for interesting Melodic Metal bands, SCR records brings to us Dead Alone and their fourth full-length release “Nemesis”. In this album, the band has a very melodic retro sound that reminds us of the early days of Melodic Death/Black Metal as well as the beginnings of Crematory and similar bands. Featuring 11 tracks, this album will entertain you from beginning to end, due to the diversity of songs presented.

    Seemingly straightforward, “Nemesis” opens this release with a crunchy dose of Death Metal that suddenly turns melodic with some catchy guitar leads. This track reminded us of bands like Phlebotomized, and even more melodic outfits like The Gathering (when they played Death Doom Metal) as tracks like “Eclipse” and “ Great New World”. The formula of simple and catchy allows Dead Alone to produce tracks filled with crushing melodic passages like “Confession”, “Watch Me Fall”, and “Wreckage”, all filled with fine headbanging passages that will make your neck sore.

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