DEATHSTORM - Cascophonies review

 

DEATHSTORM - Cascophonies

Dying Victims Productions

So here we have the fifth full length by Austria's Thrash veterans DEATHSTORM. I originally got into this three piece act years ago when they were on another label. But it was their fourth full length from 2020, For Dread Shall Reign, which really made me go holy shit this is cool. 

Now let me bore you with a thing I've said for years now. Mainstream Thrash sucks. Twenty years ago you had that Thrash revival which was cool for a moment and then the genre just blew chunks. The only reason I still give a fuck about Thrash is because of bands like DEATHSTORM as well as some Blackened Thrash acts who are not generic. 

So what's cool about this new album by DEATHSTORM? Well let's be honest here. The people of the great nation of Austria are very nice except for these three guys. Hate is the handshake they give to the world and it shows well on tracks like "Body in a Barrel", "Horripilation", "Mask of Sanity" and the final cut "Mortuorum Flies".

Musically it's speed infused hate filled old school Thrash. To me that's the best of the genre with plenty of cool soloing and riffs that want you to punch someone in the face. The drum work as well as bass lines are cool as fuck. The vocals are angry, pissed off and totally real guy sounding. 

The bottom line is if you're into Thrash in 2026 then this is the band you should be listening to. Nuff Said. 

https://dying-victims.de/

LISTEN HERE:

https://dyingvictimsproductions.bandcamp.com/album/cascophonies

NIGHT SPECTRE - Self Titled LP review

 

NIGHT SPECTRE - Self Titled LP

Dying Victims Productions

So this is the debut full length by a Greek five piece act who are on a nostalgia trip back to the late 1980's. Well hell yeah I like it and I'll get into name dropping later which needs to be addressed. But first I must admit that the promo info given to me was kinda cool. "NIGHT SPECTRE was forged in 2024, when a group of stubborn metalheads united with one goal, to unleash pure old-school heavy metal, burning with passion and true devotion."

Yeah I'll give em that but in all honesty this sounds like early IRON MAIDEN meets JAG PANZER. That was also mentioned in the promo info. So in essence this is first wave Power Metal. You've got the galloping riffs by the Brits with the US power heavy assault and hollowed vocals. In the end it pretty much rules. 

NIGHT SPECTRE basically are traveling on familiar territory which has been forgotten as far as original intent. In other words it's one thing to see / hear a band from the past replay their old stuff live. It's better when you see / hear a new band play that same sound which cranked you up decades ago and does it again. 

So yeah this release rules! 

https://dying-victims.de/

LISTEN HERE:

https://dyingvictimsproductions.bandcamp.com/album/night-spectre

SANDSTORM - Dungeon of Death Mini LP review

 

SANDSTORM - Dungeon of Death Mini LP

Dying Victims Productions

I've listened to this short LP release a few times. But in all honesty when I first heard the opening title cut I was in another world aka: my past. I was young again. I had long hair and banging my head. Yeah this release is nostalgic as white on rice. It's NWOBHN style but not the more popular bands from that 1980's era. No this is what we use to call Underground. You would be in the record store and see a cool looking album cover in the Import's section then buy it. I know, it was a innocent time back them. 

But anyways SANDSTORM, who started out in 2017, is a three piece act featuring two brothers from Sweden on guitar / vocals / bass and a drummer from Canada. Ah yeah I know it's kinda weird but hey it's 2026. The two Swedes are Stevie Whiteless on guitars / vocals and Reptile Anderson on bass / vocals. Their drummer from Canada is PJ “The Butcher” LaGriffe. 

Musically this is very melodic sounding stuff. In fact it does fall into PAGAN ALTAR territory a bit. In all I gotta say a Mini album is cool but not enough. Since starting out this band has released a handful of short form releases prior to this new one. I say put em all together on one CD. That's my suggestion but hey if you're really feeling nostalgic then check this release out. 

https://dying-victims.de/

LISTEN HERE:

https://dyingvictimsproductions.bandcamp.com/album/dungeon-of-death

MORTUARY - Great Black Earth EP review

 

MORTUARY - Great Black Earth EP

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

Alright so there's a bunch to unpack here. First off there are a ton of bands world wide with the band name MORTUARY. This one here hails from Mexico. The original band (that's a key point which I'll explain later) started out in 1988. 

Now if you're one of those people, like me, who years ago decided to invest huge sums of money into buying reissued demos as well as obscure releases by Death Metal bands from way back when. Then you might have this band's debut full length release, Blackened Images, which came out in 1991 on some obscure label. I have the reissue from 2020 which came out on Iron Bonehead Productions. The cover art won me over better than the music.

Anyways here we are now with some new stuff by these Mexican Death Thrash vets. I mean prior to this they have released some stuff. They had a second full length, Shine of the End, from 1995 which I never heard. And they have some short form releases as well. But this is new stuff which basically says "Hey we're still around." "We're a nostalgia act and we head line shows for once. And we opened for SLAYER".

Be that as it may on this latest four song release modern day Mexican MORTUARY sounds pretty good. Basically it's an early version of SLAYER meets Death Metal soundwise. The only original member, like I pointed out earlier, is lead guitarist Alberto Martinez. He's still doing these dive bomb solos, like on the first album, like Kerry King on coke. 

With that said the new band Alberto Martinez has surrounded himself with are damm good. Musically it's still Death Metal SLAYER but props to bassist / vocalist Coke DeadMan. Whowever he is does a great job with the DM and Thrash style vocals. All in all it's a great release but more need to be done. 

Mexico's MORTUARY needs to put out a new full length. Secondly some label, maybe this one, needs to reissue the band's first demo from 1989 as well as all of the band's short form release material. Get your Metal Head credit card out there and buy, buy, buy! Nuff Said. 

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/great-black-earth

WHIRLWIND - 1640 review

 

WHIRLWIND - 1640

Dying Victims Productions

So the promo genre tagline on this is Heavy Metal. OK sure it's that but if I played this to some certain friends of mine, the types who buy HELLOWEEN tickets a year in advance. They would say it's Power Metal. After a few listens I kinda agree.

This is the second full length by WHIRLWIND who are a four piece act from the great nation of Spain. Musically it doesn't remind me of the classic 80's era of Heavy Metal. Instead it's a ringer for those early days when Power Metal was first coined. I mean it was thrashy, great guitar soloing and the vocals were powerful.

That's what WHIRLWIND is all about. Starting with Hector Llaurado who is an amazing vocalist. He's got what I always call that "real guy" sound and could reach some higher octaves but not to Halford levels. Secondly you've got guitarist and original creative mainman of this band Mark Wild. He is the mastermind / songwriter which is on point on all of these cool songs. 

Whether it's the 80's Metal style power classic cut "Through Fire and Blood", the full on early Power Metal sound of "Rage of the Conqueror" along with "Ready to Explode" or the thirteen minute epic "Marching to Victory" which ends this album. This release is a winner. Great looking album cover to boot.

https://dying-victims.de/

LISTEN HERE:

https://dyingvictimsproductions.bandcamp.com/album/1640

PIG'S BLOOD - Destroying the Spirit review

 

PIG'S BLOOD - Destroying the Spirit

Dark Descent Records

Of course I've known about PIG'S BLOOD. I've got their first two full lengths which came out on Godz ov War Productions. Normally Godz ov War Productions puts out stuff by Polish or Eastern European bands. So it was a shocker they released something from a Milwaukee, Wisconsin Death Metal act. I'm guessing someone in PIG'S BLOOD is Polish. 

PIG'S BLOOD started out in 2015 with a demo. Then came their first full length in 2017. Musically their sound was Midwest American Death Metal heritage of old. Their second full length, A Flock Slaughtered, came out in 2019 also on Godz ov War Productions. Still the band sounded the same with what I called a newer touch on the brutal side of the genre. Add to that you had some deathly doom blasting's. 

So here we are now and this third full length by PIG'S BLOOD is their best as well as more into what their new label, Dark Descent Records, produces on a yearly basis. Now is that an insult to Dark Descent Records? Yeah it is because four years ago I started having a problem with that label's releases sounding generic. The past two years I'm satisfied to say yeah I'm right and I'm bored with their stuff. 

Be that as it may PIG'S BLOOD pretty much rule on this release. The opening cut, "Standing in Depravity" sets the stage with blackened death vocals, a punishing sound which later rips into the next cut "Destroying the Spirit". There's plenty of tremolo picked riffs, trigger drum assaults, bestial / beast vocals. Actually this is the type of DM release you need to turn down late at night or the cops will show up. 

https://www.darkdescentrecords.com/shop/

LISTEN HERE:

https://darkdescentrecords.bandcamp.com/album/destroying-the-spirit

VOMITORY - In Death Throes review

 

VOMITORY - In Death Throes

Metal Blade Records

They're back...! Yes it's VOMITORY's tenth full length and if you could just see the sick sadistic grin I'm sporting while blasting this new full length release. Now for those of you who read this blog (and frankly who doesn't) then you know I love my Old School Swedish Death Metal to the hilt. Also if the so called Big Four of Old School Swede DM are DISMEMBER, ENTOMBED, GRAVE and UNLEASHED. Then VOMITORY is number five hands down. 

Now aside from rehashing the past, well fuck it. Terrorize Brutalize Sodomize from 2007 is still my favorite release by em. Raped in Their Own Blood from 1996 is number two. There was that period of loss after 2011's Opus Mortis VIII came out. VOMITORY were gone until their comeback in 2023 with All Heads Are Gonna Roll. That album showed that the band were still worthy of kicking your fucking ass. In Death Throes not only has you assholes on the ground but this band is stepping on your face.

Yes VOMITORY (aka: bassist / vocalist Erik Rundqvist, drummer Tobias Gustafsson, guitar riff maniac Urban Gustafsson and new lead guitarist Christian Fredriksson) have released an ultimate follow up as well as proving once again they refuse to change to wimp melodic times or asshole progressive, hipster bullshit. You've got ten cuts of ferocious, uncompromising Old School Death Metal. Yes VOMITORY is far more brutal sounding then their predecessors. 

Hey every track on here is killer but my favorites are "For Gore and Country", “Wrath Unbound" (the head banging slam pit starts here). The same can be said about "Two and a Half Men" and damm I do miss slam dancing, The real shit not that push and shove crap or that moronic dance assholeness. Yeah VOMITORY is back and just as bad ass as before. I'll be blasting this one for the rest of 2026 and beyond. 

https://www.metalblade.com/us/

LISTEN HERE:

https://vomitory.bandcamp.com/album/in-death-throes