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    Vomitron – No NES for the Wicked (2011)

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    Just as other people have indicated in the past, once we received a CD with a band named Vomitron and a semi-naked chick in the cover we expected the worst. However, we were quite surprised to hear that almost all tracks in this release are of extreme musical quality and very carefully crafted. Transforming old Nintento music into Metal tunes, Vomitron’s mastermind Peter Rutcho showcases his excellent musical abilities and delivers some of the best re-interpretations of these songs we have ever heard.

    Opening with a filler intro, the first real song of this release is an epic interpretation of the “Contra” theme. Showing Power Metal and Progressive Metal elements, this song will immediately get you psyched about the tracks to follow in this excellent release. “Blaster Master” is a nice combination of powerful riffing and trippy keyboard sections, a very enjoyable track for fans of futuristic Power/Progressive Metal. The song that almost everybody will be waiting for has to be “The Legend of Zelda” theme, and Vomitron does an amazing rendition thanks to Peter’s great guitar skills.

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    Eskeype – Legacy of Truth (2010)

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    All the way from Switzerland today we have a band called Eskeype (is this pronounced Skype?), and their very catchy mixture of Groove Metal and Thrash Metal with some hints of a few other genres mixed in-between. For 13 tracks the band gives us a very in your face approach with hectic drumming, catchy and powerful riffing and aggressive vocals that will exhaust even the most active mosher from our readers.

    Immediately after a very dynamic prologue, the band delivers waves of powerful riffs and aggressive vocals with the first two tracks “The Chronicle’s Origin Part One” and part two. In these two tracks the band quickly demonstrates their ability to craft very catchy guitar sections and pair them with crushing vocals. The melodic passages are excellent and the use of violins (a la Dark Lunacy) is just excellent, giving them a nice Melodic edge to their music.

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    Meden Agan – Erevos Aenaon (2011)

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    As one of the most professional sounding self-released album we have received in 2011, Meden Agan’s “Erevos Aenaon” can easily compete with any big-budget Gothic/Symphonic Metal album this year. With such a rich sound and excellent production, Meden Agan is ready to make a run at the spotlight and they sure have a good shot thanks to this excellent release.

    Opening with “Black Sky”, the band immediately establishes its bombastic sound thanks to heavy keyboard use, pounding guitars, and angelic female vocals. The band’s female vocalist, Iliana Tsakiraki, delivers a very emotional performance that is greatly (and sometimes annoyingly) enhanced by extreme vocal layering. Her voice is very good and has some hints of Amberian Dawn and similar bands, not too sweet and not overly done like many classically trained singers come across.

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    Acelsia – Quietude (2011)

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    Making its way from Norway to our little corner of the world, today we have Acelsia’s latest EP titled “Quietude”. In this four-song EP the band shows their very effective approach to mixing Gothic and Doom Metal influences with some hints of Rock. Lead by the enchanting vocals of Malene Markussen, the band delivers 18 minutes of pure melancholic music that will move you one way or another.

    Opening with powerful riffs on “All these Years”, the band nicely transitions with enchanting female vocals and well constructed Doom-like riffs. While the band’s sound is not fully depressive or as down-tempo as regular Gothic Doom, you can still feel the melancholy behind the hearfelt songs presented in this release. “Happiness Prevails” opens with some weaping guitars and quickly transforms, this skill is probably Acelsia’s most interesting feature since the songs morph from one direction to another very seamlessly and effectively.

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    Plutonium – Devilment Entertainment Non-Stop (2011)

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    Hailing from Sweden, Plutonium delivers merciless aural attacks of pure and chaotic Industrial Black Metal. There is nothing pretty and ‘techno’ about this release, just raw Black Metal energy fused together with some dissonant samples and relentless riffing. While most Industrial Metal bands these days are trying to sound too ‘nice’, Plutonium delivers pure decadence in their very crushing and powerful sound.

    Opening with the crushing “A Tribute to the Tools of the Cosmic Abostionist”, this one-man band delivers some blistering Black Metal elements paired with some crazy electronics at the end of the song. Having been warned, “Devilment Entertainment Non-Stop” delivers more Black Metal elements with very well crafted and credible drums (but we suspect they are ‘fake’). Things start getting weird with the very martial “Peace Keeper”, a very different track that creates a very bizarre atmosphere.

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    Tyrael – Der Wald ist mein Zuhause (2010)

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    Featuring a very unique blend of Black/Death and Grindcore with Melodic passages, today we have Tyrael and their latest release “Der Wald ist mein Zuhause”. With claims by the band of calling their sound “Green Metal”, we found it very interesting that they actually do sound different than the tons of submissions we get every day.

    Blowing up in your face with the opening track “To Isengard”, the band quickly gets into very melodic guitar work, crafted to perfection. The band’s tempo changes and hellish vocal combinations deliver enough brutality to nicely contrast the melodic nature of the track. “Throne of God” moves a bit into Black Metal territory with brutal drumming, but it also has very effective melodic mid-tempo sections that nicely pace the songs.

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    Slaughtery - Path-(t)o-Logic (2011)

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    Featuring 36 minutes of very brutal Death Metal with some technical elements, today we have Slaughtery’s first full-length release “Path-(t)o-Logic”. In this album we have tons of chugging riffs, brilliant technical sections and an overall crushing feeling that will leave your ears bleeding (in a good way) after just one spin of this release.

    Opening in a very traditional fashion with “Nine Minutes”, the band shows their strengths in crafting punishing riffs, a pounding bass guitar line and some hellish vocals. The intricate guitar sections are what immediately sets this band apart from your typical cookie-cutter bands and will surely get Salughtery noticed in the scene. “Chimerism” gives a little of the old-school Death sound but with actually brutal vocals, a feat that only a few bands have come close to doing in the past.

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    Dystrophic – Dystrophic (2010)

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    Delivering five crushing blows of chaotic Technical Death Metal with Grindcore elements, today we have Dystrophic and their self-titled debut EP. For a new band, the members behind Dystrophic are pretty good at the trade and create very brutal and technical songs that will make your speakers bleed.

    Starting with the traditional intro crap, the band fully explodes to full pace with “Total Existence Failure”. The drumming is very well crafted and keeps the pace of this song super hectic and brutal. The guitar riffing is pretty decent and some parts are blazing fast making it very interesting to listen. On “Withering at the Roots” the band kicks-off with a more traditional DM approach and suddenly the pace gets insane.

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    Ackros – Promo 2010 (2010)

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    Today we have here with us a very promising Progressive Death Metal band from Belgium names Ackros, and their short but sweet Promo 2010 four song demo. Boosting powerful and yet intricate guitar work, Ackros is one of the few bands that have submitted promo/demo releases and really have impressed us with the quality of their work.

    Opening with “Drop Trip”, at first the band gives you the impression that you are set to review ‘just another’ Death Metal release, but suddenly the guitar work gets interesting and hooks you immediately. While doing nothing completely revolutionary, Ackros does manage to craft pretty nifty guitar sections that keep the songs very engaging and different from each other. “Axis Antiseptia” immediately starts with the progressive influences with some brilliant guitar work paired with nicely timed drumming. The vocals are typical DM growls, and fit very well the mixture of chugging traditional DM section and the progressive elements of the music.

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    REVIEW: Lapis Lazuli – A Loss Made Forever (2011)

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    Arriving all the way from Sweden, today out of our stack of band-submitted promos, we have Lapis Lazuli and their second full-length album “A Loss Made Forever”. Our first impression was that there was no way this band was not signed. For over 30 minutes, these Swedes treat us to seven very professional songs of emotionally charged Symphonic/Gothic Metal.

    Opening with the traditional introduction “Ascension”, we get some glimpses of the powerful keyboards behind this band as soon as the song starts. With the super catchy “A Loss Made Forever” we finally get to hear the band’s enchanting female vocals, courtesy of Frida Eurenius. While there are hundreds of female vocals emerging every day, Frida’s pipes are very unique in the sense that they mix sweetness with power in a very balanced way. The song also features very nice keyboard arrangements crafting a very emotive atmosphere nicely contrasted by powerful guitars.

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