Rock

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Messa - The Spin (2025)

    cover

    Facing the herculean task of following up to their ground-breaking release “Close”, Messa returns with “The Spin” and manages to shake things up enough to create awe and excitement. After heavily touring the world after their previous release, the band took a different approach when recording this album, and managed to deliver another Doomy/Jazzy/Proggy offering with a few interesting surprises.

    Quickly turning heads, the release opens with “Void Meridian”, a mysterious track that while having some of the band’s signature elements, it also introduces some intense Darkwave/Goth Rock vibes. With an eerie The Sisters of Mercy meets Tribulation meets Soror Dolorosa, the opener and “At Races”, and “Fire on the Roof” showcase the band’s on a different light, making them more dynamic and perfectly complementing their already hypnotic style. Sara Bianchin’s vocals are a perfect fit for such a style and are as haunting as ever, particularly on the solemn “Immolation”.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Jonathan Hultén - Eyes of the Living Night (2025)

    cover

    Creating a very unique and ethereal release, today we have Jonathan Hultén (ex-Tribulation) and his sophomore release “Eyes of the Living Night”. Perfectly blending dreamy pop and grunge elements with dark rock and ambient passages, this release creates a very engaging and playful atmosphere that while has not much to do with his early Metal days, it does deliver some excellent guitar work and crafty arrangements.

    Setting a very dystopian vibe with the opener “The Saga And The Storm” and its lush atmospherics, we get a certain Hexvessel-meets-Chelsea Wolfe vibe. This opener leads to more ethereal pieces like “Afterlife” with its pastoral/synth pop elements and the dark folkness of “Falling Mirages” and its lush acoustic guitars. The baritone vocals are always front and center and in pieces like “Riverflame” they deliver raw and unfiltered emotion, perfectly paired with subtle catchiness.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Cemetery Skyline - Nordic Gothic (2024)

    cover

    Unleashing one of the catchiest and most engaging releases of 2024, today we have Gothic Rock supergroup Cemetery Skyline and their debut release “Nordic Gothic”. Featuring a line-up with Mikael Stanne (Dark Tranquillity), Markus Vanhala (Omnium Gatherum), Santeri Kallio (Amorphis), Victor Brandt (Dimmu Borgir) and Vesa Ranta (Sentenced), this outfit delivers a very refreshing synthwave-infused 80’s/90’s music unlike anything you have ever heard before. For fans of Depeche Mode, Lacrimas Profundere, End of Green, etc. this release features ten bangers that will be stuck in your head for days.

    The release starts with the bombastic “Torn Away” and its dramatic synths that create a very dynamic and engaging atmosphere. Mikael Stanne’s deeper clean vocals have a certain Ville Valo-esque undertones, but as soon as the chorus section hits, Stanne’s trademark sound appears. Keeping things super lively, “In Darkness” delivers some crunchy Markus Vanhala riffs alongside crafty drumming from Vesa Ranta, the band is showcased having endless fun creating some superbly catchy melodies, and some epic vocal arrangements.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Whispering Void - At the Sound of the Heart (2024)

    cover

    Creating a very unique and intoxicating vibe, today we have Norwegian supergroup Whispering Void and their debut release “At the Sound of the Heart”. Featuring members Lindy-Fay Hella and Kristian "Gaahl" Eivind Espedal on vocals,Ronny "Valgard" Stavestrand on guitars and multi-instrumentalist Iver Sandøy handling the rest, this collective delivers eight magical tracks filled with dark/folk rock influences paired with lush vocal arrangements and enriched instrumentation. Think of Tenhi meets Hexvessel, this release is a gratifying aural experience.

    Opening with the sultry “Vinden Vier”, Lindy-Fay Hella instantly shines as this enigmatic track delivers waves of crafty string instruments alongside dreamy atmospherics and a very hypnotic pace. On “Vi Finnes” the band steps it up a notch with a solemn Gaahl being added to the vocal mix, amongst crafty percussion and a very hypnotic atmosphere. One of the best tracks in this release has to be the eponymous third song, which features some eerie vocal arrangements with a nice Post-Rock-ish vibe, creating a very unique and enveloping vibe.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Soror Dolorosa - Mond (2024)

    cover

    Unleashing the most intoxicating and catchy release of 2024, today we have France’s Soror Dolorosa and their latest opus “Mond”. Featuring nine tracks and nearly 50 minutes of sultry Post-Punk/Cold Wave/Gothic/Dark Rock music, this band will hypnotize listeners with their uniquely enthralling sound. For fans of outfits like Sisters of Mercy, Depeche Mode and Joy Division, this is one release you don’t want to miss.

    Led by Andy Julia, this release immediately sets a very engaging tone with the magical “Tear it Up” and its crafty beats that surround the deep and mysterious vocals. There is just a certain magic on how the band creates a very dark and enveloping world that as songs like “You’re Giving Me”, “Red Love”, and “Souls Collide” unleash their sultriness and atmospheric brilliance. However, it is the vocals that tie everything together alongside dramatic tempo changes.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Brume - Marten (2024)

    cover

    Featuring a very sultry and jazzy sound, today we have Bay Area outfit Brume and their latest full-length release “Marten”. Featuring eight tracks and nearly 50 minutes of music, this release has a very hypnotic and enigmatic pace, nicely mixing Doom/Occult Rock with more experimental influences. If you are looking for something unique with a chill vibe, but with some heaviness to it, this is a very interesting release to check out.

    The release opens with the magical “Jimmy”, a six-minute piece filled with moody tempo changes and hypnotic doomy riffs. Susie McMullan’s vocals are quite sultry and perfectly fit the loungey nature of the music, with tracks like “New Sadder You” and its magical cellos, “Faux Savior” and its melancholy, or the dreaminess of “Otto's Song”, showcasing the bands versatility and uniqueness of their style.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    DOOL - The Shape of Fluidity (2024)

    cover

    After taking the scene by storm with “Summerland”, DOOL had set an impossibly high bar for their follow-up release. Fast-forward four years and the band is ready to unleash “The Shape of Fluidity” to the world, featuring nine tracks and nearly 50 minutes of their signature Dark Rock. Further improving their energy level and songwriting abilities, this release more than delivers on the potential and promise of this excellent outfit.

    From the opening single, “Venus in Flames”, Raven Van Dorst’s presence is immediately felt thanks to her signature vocals and guitar playing chops. The album starts with a bang, thanks to a very well crafted and energetic song with some epic passages and dreamy interludes. The band’s music is very melodic and guitar driven, with pieces like “Self-Dissect”, the album title track, and “Evil in You” delivering highly intoxicating riffs and perfectly crafted tempo changes. While other songs like “Currents” serve to create atmospheric pauses and brace the listener for what follows.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Lucifer - Lucifer V (2024)

    cover

    Keeping the Psychedelic/Occult Rock/Metal revival going, today we have Lucifer and their fifth full-length release. Featuring a very accomplished line-up of members like Nicke Andersson (Entombed, The Hellacopters) and Johanna Claudia Sadonis (ex-The Oath), this release delivers nine tracks and nearly 40 minutes of catchy retro doomy heavy music.

    Opening with the high-octane “Fallen Angel”, we get a nice dose of traditional Heavy Metal riffs with engaging vocals and a catchy chorus section. The band’s music is designed to be crafty, and guitar driven, making for some very interesting and memorable pieces like “At The Mortuary”, “Slow Dance in a Crypt”, and “Riding Reaper”. The mixture of Doom, Heavy Metal with Psychedelic/Occult rock elements is quite well crafted and makes for some very entertaining songs.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Sleep of Monsters - ΓΓΓ (2023)

    cover

    In the last few years we have increasingly gotten into Psychedelic/Occult Rock/Folk bands as the music is quite engaging and different to our regular dose of distorted guitars and harsh vocals. Sleep of Monsters falls in this category, with a very unique and intoxicating sound. Hailing from Finland, the band is ready to drop “ΓΓΓ”, featuring ten tracks and nearly 50 minutes of enigmatic music. For fans of bands like Sabbath Assembly, Årabrot, Hexvessel, King Dude, etc., this outfit will certainly haunt you with its gloomy moodiness.

    Getting down to business with the sultry “Black Blacker Than Black”, the band sets a very mysterious and yet lively mood. With a multi-pronged vocal approach, the overlay of female and male clean vocals works wonders, adding depth to the band’s sound and creating some lush moments on songs like the gloomy “Language of the Birds”, or the more upbeat “Alexandia” and “Melinoe”. Aside from the band’s crafty vocal melodies, the instrumentation in this release is quite warm and fuzzy, creating very unique soundscapes, captivating the listener as hits like “Language of the Birds”, “The Singer”, and the mystical “Nyktophoros” roll around.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Grave Pleasures - Plagueboys (2023)

    cover

    Unleashing somber waves of catchiness and a very engaging vibe, today we have Grave Pleasures and their latest opus “Plagueboys”. Featuring a very unique mixture of Post-Punk with some darkness to it, and even some elements of Surf/Indie Rock, this band has been captivating audiences for nearly a decade now (with this name), and they just keep getting better and better. If you are looking for something ‘slow’, dark, mysterious, and non-Metal, this release will be to your liking.

    Starting strong with the memorable “Disintegration Girl”, we get that gloomy signature vibe from the band, particularly when Mat McNerney’s signature vocals come out. The playful interplay between Juho Vanhanen lead guitars and Valtteri Arino dominant bass guitar line is another strength from this band, making sounds like “Heart Like A Slaughterhouse”, “When The Shooting's Done”, and “High On Annihilation”, just extremely catchy and very diverse.

Pages

Recent Image Galleries