LED TO THE GRAVE - Pray For Death EP review

 

LED TO THE GRAVE - Pray For Death EP

Horror Pain Gore Death

Basically what we have here is a two song release or an introduction to this Boston three piece act. LED TO THE GRAVE have been around for a while now. Starting out in 2006 and since then they've officially put out two full lengths, a handful of short form releases and a live album aka: Live at Ralphs Diner. By the way hows the chili there?

So like I said this two song release is an introduction to them in the now. Musically it's death thrash without any bells or whistles. I was surprised by the cool ass soloing on the title track. That definitely rocked. The second cut "No Salvation" is decent. The band's last release, Bane of Existence, came out a few years ago so who knows what changes these Mass-holes have done over that time. Either way these songs are catchy. 

http://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/pray-for-death

OLDSKULL - Nether Hollow of No Return review

 

OLDSKULL - Nether Hollow of No Return

Inhuman Assault Productions

When I was researching this band I learned that they're part of something called the Siamese Brutalism collective. That's basically a bunch of death metal, grindcore and goregrind musicians based in Thailand. Their motto is WE BRING YOU MOST UTTER PAIN!!!!! Personally I think that's worth the price of admission. But hey the music is pretty damm good as well. 

OLDSKULL hail from the great eastern nation of Thailand. Their brand of extreme on this their debut full length is death metal. Better yet it's old school influenced. Even better is that sound wise they're a cross between GRAVE and OBITUARY. It's kinda like a hidden gem from 1990. 

OLDSKULL are a five piece act and all members are schooled in the old ways of the genre. The vocals are deep angry bellows. The riffs have that crunch to em. Lead work is a mix of melodic sweeps and short sharp shocks. The rhythm section has a steady and organic sound pounding away. 

This debut has nine cuts, well eight and a closing instrumental. It's an amazing release and hearkens back to the classic era. I like every song on here, the instrumental is OK. But songs like "Perpetual Void", "None Shall Live", "Execution Temple" and "Arcane Serpents" are at perfection level for my old school tastes. This is definitely one of my favorite releases of 2021.

https://inhumanassault.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://inhumanassault.bandcamp.com/album/nether-hollow-of-no-return

CANNIBAL CORPSE - Violence Unimagined review

 

CANNIBAL CORPSE - Violence Unimagined

Metal Blade Records

I've gotta give credit to Metal Blade Records where it's do. For the past fifteen years they've managed to hype up every new CANNIBAL CORPSE album to the point where you'd think it was going to be their last. Granted the band did have a low repetitive period after 1996's Vile. I know I was fuckin bored with em.

But when Kill dropped in 2006 it started a period for the band which creatively was good. Since then every new album has been consistent to say the least. It's still CANNIBAL CORPSE and you know what to expect. But they have a way now of just adding something slightly interesting which makes for wanting to continue checking out. But come on we don't need the hype. 

For Violence Unimagined the interesting part is the major line-up change. Longtime guitarist Pat O'Brien is out of the band because of problems with the law. His replacement is Erik Rutan. Yes the guitarist for HATE ETERNAL and an amazing producer in his own right. I guess the choice of Rutan was obvious. He's been producing some of their albums, is a longtime friend of the band and knows death metal like the Chinese know rice. 

So now finally I get to write about this one after getting a copy. I say finally since everyone and their cousin seem to have already given an opinion. Thanks to the label leaking a song or two on Youtube everyone's either blown away or bored. Honestly I haven't been blown away by this band since 2009's Evisceration Plague. But hey I'm a fan so.....

Opener "Murderous Rampage" and it's follow up "Necrogenic Resurrection" are a perfect one two punch to get things rolling. The band is in death thrash mode on those cuts. "Inhumane Harvest", which was everyone's first taste of the new album via Youtube, is also a winner reminding fans of the brutality the band is known for. What comes afterwards is hit or decent and that's from repeated listens. 

Violence Unimagined is more like re-imagined since we've been here before so many times. Corpsegrinder has been with em for so long now we kinda forget about the early days. As always the riffs and rhythms are well done. The addition of Rutan is noticeable in some leads plus he does some song writing. "Condemnation Contagion" reminds me of HATE ETERNAL a bit as does "Ritual Annihilation". Then again they're Rutan penned tunes which are heavy, punishing and brutal.

On a whole it's consistent CANNIBAL CORPSE. The album cover art is better looking and will make for a cool t-shirt as compared to 2017's Red Before Black. I'll just add this to the collection. It's their fifteenth album in thirty-three years. In death metal terms that's significant. Like I mentioned earlier the band adds just enough excitement in order to stay from being redundant. 

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

LISTEN HERE:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MptVkuh8cQ8

DUKOV - Death Is OK EP review

 

DUKOV - Death Is OK EP

Horror Pain Gore Death

Look out, this band does a G.G. ALLIN cover. Don't tell Merle or he'll try to squeeze some euros out of em. Just kidding, so yeah here we have a trio from Italy who fancy themselves as a Scum punk/metal band. Well it does take more than doing a cover of GG's "Die When You Die" to get an entrance pass. I'm speaking from experience of course.

But anyways they're on the right path. Death Is Ok is this band's latest after a handful of various small format releases. They call themselves Scum Grindrockers. They also "won't stop at nothing until (the) last humanoid will still breathe". Well it's always nice to have goals. 

There's nine tracks on this EP. It's a decent enough mix of Punk, Grind and Noise. The term "scumpunk", or if you will the music sub genre, is pretty exclusive and band releases end up being collectible. So I wouldn't be surprised if people see the words "GG cover" and track this down just for that. They're fanatics trust me I know because I use to be one.

http://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/death-is-ok

MONNIER - Self Titled compilation review

 

MONNIER - Self Titled compilation

Horror Pain Gore Death

There are two camps of people who say they like grindcore. The first one are the actual fans. These are the ones, whether they're new to the genre or have been into it the music ever since the sub genre crawled out from the late 80's hardcore scene, who will tell you the basics. It's loud fast music with someone screaming like a maniac. 

Now in the other camp, and I'll be nice, you have certain types of people who feel the idea of "loud fast music with someone screaming like a maniac" is below their status. They like to invent ideas and themes contrived only by themselves into the music which is just "loud fast music with someone screaming like a maniac". 

I'm part of the first camp aka: fan. I like grind to be loud and fast. I want to hear riffs that are fierce sounding as well as cranking heavy. I like hearing the drumwork as if it were being played by someone with bionic limbs. And of course I want a maniac on vocals. All of that can be heard from this band here. 

MONNIER is a two piece grind band who's members come from opposite sides of the globe. First off there's Jasper Swerts from Belgium who's responsible for the guitars, bass and drums. Jasper's grind style is bare basics but because the production is clean it all sounds fresh. The sound is absolutely old school and killer which is what fans want. 

On vocals there's Makiko Suda from Japan who's also in the death grind act FLAGITIOUS IDIOSYNCRASY IN THE DILAPIDATION. Ah yeah that's a mouthful. But anyways Makiko is an amazing screamer whether she uses her psycho voice, death grunting or those subtle sultry murmurs.

This compilation contains their first two EPs which originally came out in 2018 and 2020. There's sixteen songs with a run time of a little over twenty five minutes. Perfect for some getting ready for work tunes. There's always gonna be some decent grindcore releases to choose from. But every other year there's a standout one. And this is the year and this is the one.

http://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/monnier

HOLY DEATH - The Knight, Death And The Devil reissue 2CD review

 

HOLY DEATH -  The Knight, Death And The Devil reissue 2CD

Old Temple

And here is why reissues are important. HOLY DEATH was a little old black metal band from Krakow, Poland. They started out in the early nineties and called it a day in 2007. Over their career they put out plenty of rarities like demos, lots of demos plus a few split releases. They also managed to release three full lengths over their career. 

It wasn't until after their demise that interest in them, basically from us in the west, started to peak. Actually interest in all Eastern European extreme metal peaked in the late 2000's along with illegal downloads of their releases. But that's another topic. The Knight, Death And The Devil was HOLY DEATH's third and final full length which came out in 2005.

Musically HOLY DEATH's brand of black metal was fairly interesting if you compared em to their contemporaries. They used keyboards sparingly but were not a symphonic act. A lot of ambient atmosphere creating elements along with samples were also implemented. Their sound was heavy almost in a BATHORY way with a duel attack of either mid paced style or full on viciousness. They also added some elements of death metal and thrash to their overall sound. The guitar riffs and soloing are not in the dynamics of traditional black metal.

The vocals, at least on this one, by Necronosferatus Guardian Luciferis came across like sermons from a possessed priest. The original release contained nine original tracks and three covers. The band covered BATHORY's "Call from the Grave", ACCEPT's "Princess of the Dawn" and "Beat of Flame" by HELLIAS. The latter band, HELLIAS, are a Polish thrash act that HOLY DEATH's guitarist was also in.

The bottom line is that the original The Knight, Death And The Devil release was down right awesome. It's also an unheralded classic as far as Polish black metal goes. So now with this reissue, which is two CD's worth of music, you get a lot to deal with. The first CD contains the original release from 2005 plus there's some instrumental versions of this album's songs. That's cool if you're into that.

Now the second CD here contains what sounds like a different and lo-fi mix of the album plus there's an industrial mix of one the album's original tracks, "Standing Under the Crosstracks". If that ain't enough there's two more covers added. One by the old Polish heavy metal act TSA "Heavy Metal Swiat" and "Flower's Red" by SABBAT. So all in all that's thirty-two songs with a run time of an hour and a half plus. One of the best reissues you'll find in 2021.

http://www.oldtemple.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://oldtemple.bandcamp.com/album/holy-death-the-knight-death-and-the-devil

HELLSPAWN - In Agelessness EP review

 

HELLSPAWN - In Agelessness EP

Old Temple

Years ago when I was doing print and was dealing with space concerns I'd just say It's Polish and it's fuckin death metal. I've just spelled it out for ya. Whatafuck more info do you want? But hey it's the internet now and space is not a problem. But still after listening to this six song EP by HELLSPAWN I just wanna say the obvious. It's Polish and it's fuckin death metal, duh?

OK seriously folks HELLSPAWN have been kicking ass with their brand of death metal from the Polish scene since the mid-2000's. I liken them to many USDM acts who never made it to a big label or got on the cover of magazines. But still they were some hard as fuck sounding acts and equal to their peers. HELLSPAWN have three killer full lengths to their credit. Their last one, There Has Never Been a Son of Me, came out in 2016. 

So we're seeing this new new EP as a hey we're still fuckin alive and kicking type of release. And it's fuckin intense to say the least. Of course their style is in sync with their scene aka: brutal Polish death metal. They mix in the old ways with a modern influence as well as some technical flurries. One of my favorite things when listening to HELLSPAWN is when the lead guitar parts kick in. It's either ferocious knife cuts or fluid beauty. It's fuckin amazing as well as exciting. 

Like I said this is just a six song EP but an amazing return to form from a long missed Polish death metal act. You're looking at around twenty five minutes of punishment. Hey it's Polish and it's death metal. 

http://www.oldtemple.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://oldtemple.bandcamp.com/album/hellspawn-in-agelessness

SHAMAEL - Melancholie der Engel review

 

SHAMAEL - Melancholie der Engel

Satanath Records

Imagine if you will a lone musician going up to some forgotten mountain region to record a depressive doom album but had no vocalist. Then suddenly a (choose one: A Bigfoot, Yeti or Sasquatch) came into said cabin to record the vocals needed for this album. Yeah that would sound cool under those circumstances. But SHAMAEL is a one man act from Italy and I don't believe they have any problems with cryto-biology specimens raiding recording studios. 

Yes I said this is death doom with keyboards added to the excess of pain, misery and the utter melancholy of pushing the limits of despair. Pardon me if I don't slit my wrists in welcoming the end. I've gotta type more before this episode ends. Yes this is a one man band with epicness out the wazoo. The bestial vocals are absolutely gross and animal like which brings in the crypto analogy and I've been watching killer Bigfoot movies of late. 

Hey look I'm sure the whole "goth" thing died in a mall near you. Those losers never got MY DYING BRIDE or classic PARADISE LOST. This Italian guy does with more emphasis on pain and misery as opposed to melancholy. This is Raffaele Galasso's debut album. Nice, now kill yourself.

http://www.satanath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://satanath.bandcamp.com/album/sat314-shamael-melancholie-der-engel-2021

BOOK OF WYRMS - Occult New Age review

 

BOOK OF WYRMS - Occult New Age

Desert Records

Well I'm shocked, shocked I say, to have not heard about this band until now. No I'm not some hiptard prick loser who spends his days on the internet stealing. I live in North Carolina and we tend to learn about cool bands from Virginia whether it's from word of mouth or a club show. 

This band has two albums prior to this new one. Their last one, Remythologizer, came out in 2019 which means they could've played a show here in downtown. And if it was on a work night I missed it. They're a four piece stoner psych act from Richmond, VA. Hell with all of the doom acts that seem to come out of Richmond you'd think the place was a dystopian nightmare. 

Be that as it may I like this release a lot. You've got female vocals by Sarah Moore Lindsey which are ethereal in style. She also adds in some keyboard flair on this release. Musically this band is a text book example on how to mix stoner doom and psych as well as some sludgey moments in a pour-age which tastes so fuckin good. First off I like how this band's sound does not pigeonhole em into corners. 

What we have here is an album with some really cool song structures that contain stoner groove, that have a few pounding sludgey riffs when needed and plenty of room to toss in an acoustic melody like on the instrumental "Albrionlilly" which breaks the ice. I'd also say there's some cool psych jazz influence going on with the over eight minute cut "Hollergoblin". 

Their PR info suggests HAWKWIND as an influence. Yeah sure but whenever they throw down it's a great 70's hard fuckin rock act meets a bunch of post hippies leaving a SABBATH concert in 1971 driving a Volkswagen mini bus with a bong. Yeah there's some cool jams like on "Weatherworker". In the end I'd like to see this band perform this whole album live, with a fog machine at a local club. Then again they're probably do it all at Roadburn in Holland. 

https://desertrecords.bigcartel.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://bookofwyrms.bandcamp.com/

BUNKER 66 - Beyond the Help for Prayers review

 

BUNKER 66 - Beyond the Help for Prayers 

Dying Victims Productions

For those of you who are regular readers of this blog (and frankly who isn't) then you know my attitude towards blackened thrash. If it sounds generic like the majority of US bands who's releases have all been produced by the same guy for the past decade then it blows. Sure I'll say it, for the most part it's been European bands who keep this genre alive for me. 

Case in point, here's the fourth full length by Italy’s BUNKER 66. The band has been putting releases out since 2009. Well at least their bassist/vocalist Damien Thorne and drummer Dee Dee Altar have been doing it. Their guitarist J.J. Priestkiller came on board in 2016. So basically we've got some scene vets who know what they wanna sound like when it comes to this sub genre.  

Now don't be stupid and think you're gonna hear something fresh and progressive. It's blackened thrash, a melding of two extremes which at times can rip your face off or simply pound you flat. BUNKER 66 just go back to the roots on Beyond the Help of Prayers. Musically this is MOTORHEAD meets VENOM with a little wiggle room inbetween. I'd say they squeeze in some basic punk/hardcore influence but then that's a given with their use of gang vocal shouts.

Damien Thorne's vocals are either caustic as if be smoked a carton of cigarettes like a harmonica prior to the recording or somewhat clean (?) The riffs are catchy throughout. The drumwork is fuckin solid. Sound-wise you'll be picking out influences so much you make it a drinking game. Nine cuts with a running time of just over a half hour plus the cover art is cool. The only thing missing here is another 6 in their name.

https://www.dying-victims.de/

LISTEN HERE:

https://dyingvictimsproductions.bandcamp.com/album/bunker-66-beyond-the-help-of-prayers

SAXON - Inspirations review

 

SAXON - Inspirations

Silver Lining Music

OK I'm a SAXON fan, love their early stuff from when I was young. I think their last bunch of albums from the mid 90's to the present are fuckin great. And of course the band has been known to drop a cover tune on an album once in a while. I never had a problem with that. I actually liked some of their covers except when they did "Ride like the Wind" by Christopher Cross on Destiny. 

So at this point in their career SAXON can probably do whatever they want. With that all said Inspirations is a full blown all covers album. I have no problem with all covers albums especially if the band makes the song their own. Sadly that ain't happening here. The first song I heard dropped from this album as a single was their version of DEEP PURPLE's "Speed King". OK that wasn't bad but then I got the whole album's worth and I can't say much for the rest of it.

Honestly there's a few more decent covers on here also some cringe worthy ones. As far as decent goes they do a good job with CROW's "Evil Woman" which SABBATH did as well in 1970. "Stone Free" by Hendrix ain't bad. Their versions of MOTORHEAD's "Bomber" and THIN LIZZY's "Rocker" are winners. I'll even say AC/DC's "Problem Child" isn't that bad. 

So out of eleven choices there's six decent cuts. I'll only mention the worst song on here is their version of TOTO's "Hold the Line". I'm saying that because I hate that song and that band. So I could not hear anything from SAXON to redeem it. I'll also say that they really shit the bed with this release. I say that as a fan. 

Now I know Biff Byford has got his HEAVY WATER side project coming out with an album. Sure that's important but something like this covers compilation could've been used as an extra in a proper new studio album package. Plus they could've included their other covers as well. Sure the story about this album is that it's about songs by bands who inspired em to write and perform. Oh Well.

http://sl-music.net/en/

MORBID BREATH - In the Hand of the Reaper EP review

 MORBID BREATH - In the Hand of the Reaper EP

Redefining Darkness Records

I've been starting to see more thrash acts emerging from Sweden to the point where one would think is something huge coming? Secondly it's not that fuckin happy let's go skate thrash which I despise. I want death, destruction and a lot of hatred in my thrash. So when this thing came in let's just say the horned fist saluted.

This is the debut EP from this Swedish four piece thrash act. Just for the record they like the old sounds. It's got the raw crunchy riffs, devious sounding vocals and a punishing rhythm section. There's a touch of SLAYER, a pinch of SODOM and a back handed slap in the face of DESTRUCTION. Five songs, a great looking cover and it's something you'll remember.

http://www.redefiningdarkness.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://morbidbreath-se.bandcamp.com/album/in-the-hand-of-the-reaper

EYE OF PURGATORY - The Lighthouse review

 

EYE OF PURGATORY - The Lighthouse 

Transcending Obscurity Records

The name Rogga Johansson has appeared on this site a lot. To say Rogga is the most prolific extreme metal musician from Sweden is an understatement. If you just had to take in all of the releases from the various bands he's fronted and the collaborations he's been involved with. You would be looking at a year's worth of music to digest, maybe more. 

EYE OF PURGATORY is another project which he started in 2018. The Lighthouse is the second album. On this one Rogga, who on here handles guitars and vocals as usual, enlists some buddies for the fun. On bass is Jeramie Kling from VENOM INC. And on drums there's Taylor Nordberg from another one of Rogga's bands, RIBSPREADER. Nordberg also contributes on lead guitar as well as keyboards. Yes I did say keyboards. 

Musically this is, as always, Swedish death metal with all the savagery and Boss HM-2 thickness. But to play around with it a bit EYE OF PURGATORY comes off as a throwback to classic melodic death metal of the 90's. Or better yet, classic melodic Swedish death metal that's not forgettable after a few listens. I'm not gonna name drop here but if you remember that era then you know what I mean.

Now aside from the riff salad by Rogga which is cool as fuck I like how the guitar leads flow through some of these cuts as opposed to biting your face off. The keyboard use is slight, in the background and is just allowed to give the songs depth. Nothing proggy or symphonic to bog things down although I think Rogga could do wonders with that genre style.

In a way this one reminds me a little of Rogga Johansson's solo album from 2019, Entrance to the Otherwhere. That one was a tour de force of melodic death metal worship with a better edge. I like this one better. It's a perfect release from beginning to end. 

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://eyeofpurgatory.bandcamp.com/album/the-lighthouse-death-metal

OLDE - Pilgrimage review

OLDE - Pilgrimage

Sludgelord Records

Personally after all these years listening to extreme music I must admit. I'm sludged out and stonered to death as far as those two doom sub-genres go. So these days whenever I check out a release by a band playing that style of doom. They've gotta kick some royal ass. And that's coming from a guy who bought his first SABBATH album back in 1974 at the age of ten. So yeah I'm a sucker for bands who got the riffs as long as if they've got a hell lot more. 

Which brings us to this band OLDE and their second full length Pilgrimage. OLDE is a five piece act from Canada. I never heard their debut so this is all fresh to me. So when I was listening to their opening and title track it was like being drawn into something fuckin amazing. You've got the angst ridden barked vocals, bombastic riffs and a huge reliance on atmosphere in their song structures. 

This release is eight cuts worth of all that and plenty of non descriptive genre outliers, fiery guitar noodling and an attitude which defies the would be sludgey elephant in the room analogy if you know what/who I mean. What I love about this band's music is how their songs never get repetitive. A new door is always being opened for the listener to enter and scream "Hell Fuckin Yeah"! OLDE make contemporary sludge metal exciting again.   

LISTEN AND ORDER HERE:

https://sludgelordrecords.bandcamp.com/album/pilgrimage

 

RITUALS OF THE DEAD HAND - With Hoof And Horn review

 

RITUALS OF THE DEAD HAND - With Hoof And Horn

Dunkelheit Produktionen

Time to kick back, relax and allow the sounds of atmospheric black metal to carry you to another plane of existence. Let me tell ya people that's exactly what I need after last fuckin month. Maybe you might need it as well. RITUALS OF THE DEAD HAND is the perfect prescription. 

This is the second full length by this Belgium three piece act. Their debut, Blood Oath, came out a few years ago. Musically overall this is death doom which has been thoroughly blackened. The atmosphere projected is gloomy with a touch of horror. There's a suffocating presence which runs throughout this release.

With five cuts, one of which is the opening instro intro, the band twists the soundscapes which are mostly mid-tempo into a blackened cult ceremony. Everything about With Hoof And Horn is sinister and definitely a late night listen.

https://www.dunkelheit-produktionen.de/

LISTEN HERE:

https://dunkelheitprod.bandcamp.com/album/with-hoof-and-horn

ABJECTION - Malignant Deviation EP review

 

ABJECTION - Malignant Deviation EP

Godz Ov War Productions

Somewhere in the Canadian vastlands this four piece blackened death act has emerged from their slumber to reek havoc. Also they like PORTAL as well. Yeah sound-wise this is pretty awesome aside from an obvious influence. Cavernous vocals are always a cool thing for me and this vocalist is deep in the shaft. Powerful death doom riffs and an offensive production is always a winner in my book as well.

Musically there's some more upbeat song structures from the basic influence presence. Aside from the opening instrumental the release pushes the whole decadent blackend death feel. Then the song "Black Stag" commences and all hell is released. There's a total onslaught of filthy riffage, dynamic soloing and a pile-drive from the rhythm section. Sadly though the drums are kept back in the production.

"Nightmares Awoken" shows some speed which breaks from the slow and gross program. Of course from there onward it's back to a building crawl of a riff cave monster. The rhythm is massive on "The Madness Within" with a slice and dice guitar solo added. Final cut "Darkness Unatterable" contains more madness as if everything done on their previous tracks is piled together for one final death blow to your senses. Nuff Said!

http://godzovwar.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://godzovwarproductions.bandcamp.com/album/malignant-deviation

BAALBERITH - Manhunt review

 

BAALBERITH - Manhunt

Godz Ov War Productions

There are quite a few bands out there who go by the name BAALBERITH. This one hails from the great nation of Poland. But there are times when listening to this, their debut full length, that you'll think really this is from Poland? I mean seriously from someone like myself who's invested a lot in Polish extreme metal I can say there's a sound and style which is unique and distinct. This BAALBERITH could've come from MORTICIAN's neighborhood in NYC or even a suburb outside of Mexico City and I would've believed it.

For starters the first two times listening to this I had a sadistic shit eating grin and my eyes were bugging out. Three more times afterwards and I'm still enjoying the hell out of this. This is totally to hell with you blackened death doom that's brutal with a middle finger salute to your face. And there's these cool embellishments which seep in to blow your attitude away. 

First off musically you've got the brutal DM vocals which are perfect. Next up the song structures are old school 90's death doom riffs which make you feel like you're being buried alive. When the diabolical riffs kick in as well as the mesmerizing solos I'm thinking INCANTATION. Songs like "Day's Covered Eyes" and "Bones and Teeth" carry that idea well. The seventh song on this one, "Tons of Mud", is a culmination of everything produced before it.  

BAALBERITH's Manhunt is an amazing piece of work as far as extreme sounds go. It has sounds of old that make people like me smile and yet it is ready to kick some ass for the modern world. It's death metal with some blackened atmospheric touches added on to lesson the beating you've already been given. I just can't stop listening to this release. 

http://godzovwar.com/

LISTEN HERE

https://godzovwarproductions.bandcamp.com/album/manhunt

WITCHFUCK - Black Blood Baptism review

 

WITCHFUCK - Black Blood Baptism

Godz Ov War Productions

Well after putting out a handful of short form releases (one EP and three splits) Poland's WITCHFUCK finally comes out with their debut full length. Musically this four piece act is necro black metal with thrash influences. But don't call em blackened thrash because this does not fall into that generic sub genre.

After a short opening synth intro the band commences to destroy with the title track. The song comes at you with the insanity of a knife wielding maniac. With tremolo picked guitar brutality, thunderous blast beats and blasphemous filth ridden vocals by Hellscreamaross so yeah it starts off with amazing fury. The album continues on that pace for a few more songs but then they bring out the cooler stuff.

"The Horned Archangel" is a stand out track for a number of reasons. Their sound breaks away from the speed and shows their depth. The tremolo picking adds some melody. The drum work sounds like a giant charging at you. Overall the song reminds me of a past nineties BM great who I won't mention. The next cut "Pentagram in Fire" follows suit. Ferocious sounding BM with a nod to the great old ones.

After another instrumental intro the second half of the album commences with more blackened speed numbers. "Hailing to the Stars" is almost blackened hardcore at times. The next two cuts are the only average moments on here. "Sabbath Of Unholy Lust” is a highlight with it's nod to the old ways again. Finally WITCHFUCK pay tribute to their fellow countrymen BEHEMOTH with a more thrashed out version of “Pure Evil And Hate”. All in all WITCHFUCK take a sub genre ridden in banality and make it fuckin exciting.

http://godzovwar.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://godzovwarproductions.bandcamp.com/album/black-blood-baptism