MIDNIGHT - Steel, Rust And Disgust Compilation review

 

MIDNIGHT - Steel, Rust And Disgust Compilation

Metal Blade Records

So I'm a MIDNIGHT fan ever since a great friend of mine turned me onto their Complete and Total Fucking Midnight release back in the 2000's. And from then on I pick up everything by em. I'm not saying every release of their's is a favorite of mine. But hey ya gotta buy em to find out. Anyways this one here is something completely different. It's a compilation of songs by old Cleveland bands/artists that MIDNIGHT decided to cover. 

There's two originals on here, opener "Cleveland Metal" and the title cut. As far as those songs go I like the title cut better. "Cleveland Metal" just sounds cheesy. Now as far as the covers go if ya know the original than you can compare and judge. If ya don't then it's a thumbs up or down decision.

So as far as the songs by bands / artists I don't know, "Iron Beast" by KRATOS and "I'm Insane" by SYNASTRYCHE actually come across as MIDNIGHT songs. I wanna say the band RUBBER CITY REBELS is familiar but I never owned anything by em. "Child Eaters" is MIDNIGHT doing Scum Punk and it's cool as fuck. I never heard of FALSE HOPE but MIDNIGHT does a song by em titled "Carrions Keep" which is a decent Metal cut and something different for the band style wise. 

On to the ones I know, MIDNIGHT covers two songs by THE ELECTRIC EELS. In all honesty they do justice to these songs because the originals, as far as the recordings go, are bottom of the barrel early Punk Rock. Next you have covers of ROCKET FROM THE TOMBS' "Final Solution" and THE DEAD BOYS' "3rd Generation". The connection here is that when ROCKET FROM THE TOMBS broke up some band members went on to form THE DEAD BOYS and PERE UBU. PERE UBU would do their own version of "Final Solution". By the way I've seen both ROCKET FROM THE TOMBS and THE DEAD BOYS. As far as the cover versions go MIDNIGHT does a fair version of both bands but not winners. 

Finally there's SCREAMIN JAY HAWKINS' "Frenzy" and "Rock n' Roll Fever" by DAVID ALLAN COE. OK these are not well known hits by both artists and that's probably a good thing. Both cuts are done well. In the end listening to this from start to finish if you're ignorant of the covers then you'd think it's a decent MIDNIGHT album. Obviously I'm not ignorant.    

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

LISTEN HERE:

https://midnight-ohio.bandcamp.com/album/steel-rust-and-disgust

MESSA - The Spin review

 

MESSA - The Spin

Metal Blade Records

Back in 2024 I got into this cool band from Italy called PONTE DEL DIAVOLO. Their full length debut, Fire Blades from the Tomb, came out on Season of Mist Records. They've got a second album coming out in February which I'm looking forward to. Basically I described em as a Doom / Black Metal version of SOUIXIE & THE BANSHEES. So here we are a year later and this fourth release by Italy's MESSA came recommended to me because supposedly they're a similar sounding band and I would like em. 

Well they're no PONTE DEL DIAVOLO by a long stretch. In fact I will say a lot of things to boot. But let's get the basics down. Years ago MESSA started out as a Sludge Metal act with a sultry yet airy vocalist named Sara Bianchin. That was in 2016 with their debut full length, Belfry. All in all it was basically a continuation of late 2000's US hipster Sludge Metal with some female vocals. They were a decade late and a hundred Euros short. 

Fast forward to 2025 and MESSA are still about as original as spaghetti in Italy. On this album they're straight up influenced by SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES to a point. Now their vocalist, Sara Bianchin, is no Siouxie Sioux but she's a good singer. I do like her vocals on this release. As far as the song structures / melodies go they're mostly part jangly post punk and hard rock. Their lead guitarist, Alberto Piccolo, comes from a Stoner Rock background. His guitar work is the standout part throughout this album. In other words he can be and yeah is over indulgent like a 80's Heavy Metal guitar hero. His lead work overwhelms on every cut. 

There's plenty of Goth pop style going on with songs like "At Races" and "Immolation". The final cut on here, "Thicker Blood" reminds me of France's AMESOEURS. This band's last full length came out on Svart Records. Then they jumped to Metal Blade obviously because of better distribution and notice. But there's something I learned a few weeks ago that really didn't shock me but since I'm not part of their scene it was interesting to hear about. According from insiders, the whole new Goth and Industrial music scene has been invaded by hipsters / woke people. Yeah that's funny, they've ruined another underground scene. 

MESSA's The Spin is a decent wannabe Doom / Post Punk revival album. It's actually more Hard Rock than Metal. I believe if you're into Goth then yeah you'll like this release. Although I have to laugh at the thought of woke hiptards getting into Goth and Industrial music. I mean there's so much of that early music which is so politically incorrect. Even the late 80's / early 90's politically correct Punk crowd got offended. Losers!

 

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

LISTEN HERE:

https://messa.bandcamp.com/album/the-spin

HOODED MENACE - Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration review

 

HOODED MENACE - Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration

Season of Mist

Imagine you are one of those bands which helped re-introduce / recreate a sub-genre style of Extreme Metal (aka Death Doom) that a decade later would see a hundred copy-cats? Back in 2010 I wouldn't have guessed that while I was blasting this Finnish band's second album, Never Cross the Dead. Since then I've been a fan of HOODED MENACE and have no problem mentioning em whenever I hear another band influenced by them as well as others.

Fast forward to a few years back and HOODED MENACE decided to be Finland's version of MY DYING BRIDE. That started with 2015's Darkness Drips Forth. OK that might be a bit of an exaggeration but the band did move away from the crush kill and destroy style to a more wide ranging exploration of Death Doom. They embraced the meloncholy and standard Metal styles to progress themselves forward in order to be exciting. 

Hey let's be honest here. How many Finnish Death Metal or Death Doom acts do you know who started out heavy as fuck only to mellow out an album or two later? I can think of a dozen plus. The difference is HOODED MENACE move onward at a snail's pace as opposed to past acts who just flipped a switch. The fact is that 2015's Darkness Drips Forth was an experiment which worked. Ossuarium Silhouettes Unhallowed from 2018 was a step backward but still a great release. But then on 2021's The Tritonus Bell, an album I liked a lot, the band were like hears the path we're following now. 

Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration is simply a continuation of experimenting with their Death Doom sound without going off the template. I'm sure some people will question them covering a DURAN DURAN song, "Save a Prayer". Hey at least it ain't "Hungry Like A Wolf" which I obviously despise. The traditional Metal style thrown in here reminds me of stuff KING DIAMOND use to do. Of course when you hear the keyboards and cello work you think MY DYING BRIDE. 

In the end hey since Harri Kuokkanen took over on vocals which allowed Lasse Pyykko to concentrait more on compositions as well as great guitar work. This band has become more of a surprise which each album as oppossed to a stick in the mud. I'm sure they like that new bands are copying their old style to the hilt. Which is why they're creating new sounds for people to enjoy. Great Album!  

https://www.season-of-mist.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hoodedmenace.bandcamp.com/album/lachrymose-monuments-of-obscuration

VARIOUS ARTISTS - HPGD 2025 Full Year In Review 24 Track FREE Sampler Compilation review

 

VARIOUS ARTISTS - HPGD 2025 Full Year In Review 24 Track FREE Sampler Compilation

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

Well it is that time of year when Horror Pain Gore Death Productions releases a free compilation of tracks from the releases by bands who they've put out stuff by that year. This works out in two ways. The first is obviously they appreciate their fans and wanna show that maybe there's a release by one of their bands that you missed. 

The second is simply showing everyone how great an Extreme Metal label they are. Of course that's just my opinion. I have to say that because I wanna give praise to people who do good before my time comes when I can't do it anymore. In my not so humble opinion I thought their roster of 2024 releases were incredible. But in 2025 they surpassed that. 

Some of my favorite bands which appear on this compilation and have great if not amazing releases this year are as follows. There's some damm good Black Metal / Blackened Thrash from Florida's ANCESTOR OF KAOS. Chicago's BLOOD OF THE WOLF put out one of my favorite Death Metal albums of the year.  As far as Grindcore goes there's no denying KOSUKE HASHIDA's release as greatness. 

Also there's no denying that the reissues by ORGAN DEALER and PERCUSSOR are mandatory. Also if you don't already own a copy of that HEMDALE reissue then why are you even reading this? Next of course were the compilations. The first being BOCC's Obrint el taut EP collection and of course the King Of The Kill 3 compilation.  

The bottom line / the truth is that I'm not gonna say every release by Horror Pain Gore Death Productions from January to December 2025 retained some overpowering quality to be reminded of like a tattoo on your face. I definitely have my favorites which nothing can deny and will be seen in my year end favorites listings. 

Be that as it may when I listen to this compilation from the label's 2025 artist releases. I wonder if I mis-judged a few acts like MUDSHOW, EMBERS OF OUROBOROS or MENTAL FUNERAL. Either way this is an amazing compilation of Extreme fuckin Metal with a variety of sounds awaiting to kick your fuckin ass. Nuff Said!

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/hpgd-2025-full-year-in-review-24-track-free-sampler

1914 - Viribus Unitis review

 

1914 - Viribus Unitis

Napalm Records

Here's a Ukrainian Black Metal / Blackened Death Doom act who I got into mid-way through their career. This five piece band started out in 2014 and their music is themed around World War One. Now just for the record the two bands I respect the most who are into the whole WW1 thing are MINENWERFER (USBM) and GOD DETHRONED (from the Netherlands) who came out with their Blackened Death WW1 trilogy years ago from 2009 to 2017. 

My introduction to 1914 came in 2018 with their second full length The Blind Leading the Blind. I didn't think too much for that album considering that it did not go beyond what their peers created. Oddly enough, because they're on Napalm Records, I got their next album Where Fear and Weapons Meet from 2021. That album is where I thought they really got their shit together. 

This latest one, Viribus Unitis, the band continues where they left off. In other words producing a compelling piece of work via story telling with sounds ranging from the symphonic range of Black Metal, melodic Doom and of course Blackened Death Metal. The release is book ended by some old traditional WW1 songs. There's a few sound-bites intermixed within the album. But there is a cool bottom line to it all. 

Because this release has so much variety and contrasts it's basically a concept album like their last one. The band invited a few guest vocalists to interpret some songs. On one of the latter cuts it's totally Gothic influenced Doom and it was easy to identify MY DYING BRIDE's vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe as the vocalist. 

Now be that all which it is, Viribus Unitis has a good quality late night sound. It wants to be a true tale of war but ends up being a romantic melodic styled version. It's not horrific enough which bands like MINENWERFER do in a serious Black Metal style. In the end it's decent.

  

https://napalmrecords.com/deutsch/

LISTEN HERE:

https://x1914x.bandcamp.com/album/viribus-unitis

ENTHRONED - Ashspawn review

 

ENTHRONED - Ashspawn

Season of Mist

So if you're a long time fan of Belgium's Black Metal titans ENTHRONED then you might be inclined to agree with the following premise. This band has two eras. The first is their early days (aka: mid 1990's to mid 2000's) when Lord Sabathan was on vocals. I mean band membership flew by and by but they did have a handful of decent releases. At least two of em I'd call mandatory classics. 

Then when Lord Sabathan left the band in 2006 it was like OK what happens now? Well the new band with Nornagest now on vocals came out with 2007's Tetra Karcist which was a damm good release. Now since then ENTHRONED have continued putting out decent BM releases. But for me 2019's Cold Black Suns was a turning point for this band. 

On that release the band took a huge step forward into the present Black Metal day. The sound was brutal, sophisticated and down right menacing with it's atmosphere. Fast forward to 2025 and the band just took it all to another level. On this new one the lyrics and themes are helped by the band's collaboration with occult author Gilles de Laval. I mean this is some hellish, filth ridden sounding stuff.

Sound-wise this is a brutal punishment thanks to some amazing guitar work and an amazing rhythm section. Nornagest's vocals come across as his best blood vomiting, fierce screaming and hate filled beast like sounds which no human is supposed to achieve. 

The first time I played this release I knew it was cool as fuck. The second time it was on continuous play for hours because it was so hypnotic. Right now it's on never stop. In a personal way this is my third favorite album by ENTHRONED.

https://www.season-of-mist.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://enthronedsom.bandcamp.com/album/ashspawn

DECEASED - March of the Cadavers: 40 Years of Death Metal from the Grave 2x CD Compilation review

 

DECEASED - March of the Cadavers: 40 Years of Death Metal from the Grave 2x CD Compilation

Hells Headbangers Records

So I've said this before but it bares repeating. DECEASED are the greatest US Metal band of all time. Now sure there's gonna be people who would disagree with that opinion. But from what I've seen over the years by detractors is that they were never fans of DECEASED. Therefore their opinions are null and void. In other words shut up and go away. You are False Metal or in other words lame-stream mainstream Metal fans.

As far as people into the extreme who wanna debate well fine. Many of those people would say METALLICA or SLAYER hold the title as the best. I say no because since they started out forty years ago DECEASED have never compromised their sound to corporate standards, musical trends or label demands. SLAYER did and well we know METALLICA did as well to a worse extent. 

DECEASED were always a Death Metal / Death Thrash act who never toned it down over their career. In fact I think they've gotten way better over time. Their last full length, 2024's Children of the Morgue, was a masterpiece. You can't even say anything close to that as far as the above bands I've mentioned.

So here we have a compilation to celebrate DECEASED's 40th anniversary. It's a double CD with 26 cuts spanning two and a half hours of music. It's a great release and mandatory for a fan to have in their collection. But as a fan I'd rather listen to DECEASED's full lengths and EPs from start to finish. I mean their albums are just so good that a "best of" selection across the band's sizable and formidable discography just doesn't work for me.

But this comp is a great offering given to your kids in order for them to hear some True Fuckin Metal. Or hey you might know a friend who likes DECEASED but can't afford all of their releases so here ya go. And of course there's that mainstream lame-stream fucker who you know. He wants to see JUDAS PRIEST on their 2026 tour but can't max out his credit card to afford the $400 ticket price. Yeah this is for that fucker. 

Ya know what's even funnier, on here DEACEASED includes their covers of BLACK SABBATH's "Die Young" and VENOM's "Lady Lust". While METALLICA was doing a LOU REED cover. So yeah people, who's real fuckin Metal.

https://shop-hellsheadbangers.com/

LISTEN HERE: 

https://the-true-deceased.bandcamp.com/album/march-of-the-cadavers-40-years-of-death-metal-from-the-grave

PERDITION TEMPLE - Malign Apotheosis review

 

PERDITION TEMPLE - Malign Apotheosis

Hells Headbangers Records

So PERDITION TEMPLE, from Tampa, Florida, originally started out in 2009. Their debut full length, Edict of the Antichrist Elect, came in 2010. In all honesty I didn't know about this band until 2020 when they released their third full length release, Sacraments of Descension, also on Hells Headbangers Records. The sole reason I checked em out is because their bassist Alex Blume is also in ARES KINGDOM a band whom I'm a huge fan of. 

Be that as it may back in 2021 when I picked up Sacraments of Descension I was like damm this album is great. I mean US style Blackened Death Metal which basically sounds like early USDM but blackened to a touch. Their last album, Merciless Upheaval, from 2022 was great even though half of it was covers. But now on this latest release it's fresh, it's kick ass and probably the best thing they've done since their third album.

Malign Apotheosis contains eight cuts which are the epitomy of US Blackened Death. Which for you newcomers is totally different then what the Euro acts have been doing for decades. US Blackened Death is punishing in sound with savage riffs, diabolical melodies, dive bomb guitar solos, a hate filled rhythm section attack and nihilistic vocals. 

This three piece delivers all of that in spades. So when I listen to this one I wanna scream, I wanna punch someone and I wanna run out into the street with one of my firearms to light up the neighborhood in gunfire. I mean this album fuckin rules in so many ways of hate. It's a perfect full length from start to finish. 

https://shop-hellsheadbangers.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://perditiontemple.bandcamp.com/album/malign-apotheosis

ZOMBIE EATER - Faces review

 

ZOMBIE EATER - Faces

Argonauta Records

Here's another Finnish band delving into old school Sludge Metal with cool results in my not so humble opinion. ZOMBIE EATER are a three piece act who don't play fuckin games. They just play Sludge Metal from it's original form with the volume turned up to 11. 

On this their debut full length ZOMBIE EATER deliver the goods as far as solid riffs, serpentine vocals and a fuckin great groove throughout this eight cut album. The musicianship is fuckin fantastic. The only sad note is that it's a great Sludge Metal album twenty five to thirty years passed it's born on date. 

For me personnally this band is great, I like this release a lot. It's great Sludge Metal. But it's honestly retro all the way. Hopefully some fan's of this genre will see past their jaded attitudes and enjoy the living fuck out of this one.  

https://www.argonautarecords.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://zombieeater.bandcamp.com/album/faces-2

BLUT AUS NORD - Ethereal Horizons review

 

BLUT AUS NORD - Ethereal Horizons

Debemur Morti Productions

So here we have the sixteenth full length by the French Black Metal band BLUT AUS NORD. Out of all of the second generation French BM acts I've always stuck with BLUT AUS NORD because they started out weird in the mid to late 90's. But I believe it was their sixth full length, Odinist - The Destruction of Reason by Illumination, which put them to the forefront of the French BM scene. 

Fast forward to 2011 when the band started that 777 trilogy which lasted to 2012. The first two albums were good but the third blew. From then onward BLUT AUS NORD has tried to erase everything Black Metal about themselves. 2022's Disharmonium - Undreamable Abysses full length is were I got tired of it. And this new one seals the deal for me to stop being a fan.

BLUT AUS NORD started out as a cool BM act into progressing their sound with atmospheric touches and an avant-guard smack to the face. As of now with this release they're shoe-gazer bullshit. I mean sure if I was high on pot or tripping on some hallucinogenics then I'd really like this. But I'm not a fucking post hipster wannabe hippie. Also I hate those types of people. 

Sure the production on here is outstanding. You've got a wall of sound akin to those Euro BM shoe-gazers of decade or so ago. There's plenty of synth work. Oddly enough there's a touch of depressive French Post Punk going on here. In the end I chalk this one up to the same feelings I had for 2022's Disharmonium - Undreamable Abysses. It's avant-garde BM to fall asleep to.

https://www.debemur-morti.com/en/

LISTEN HERE:

https://blutausnord.bandcamp.com/album/ethereal-horizons

REVENGE - Night Danger review

 

REVENGE - Night Danger

Dying Victims Productions

For those of you who haven't figured it out yet. Germany's Dying Victims Productions is that one label for people who love 80's underground Metal. "Troo Metal" as a friend of mine would say as he'd flash an album cover of a reissued rare band release in my face that he paid a hundred bucks for on Ebay. 

But the bands on this label are all fairly new and keeping the spirit of the 80's underground Metal scene alive and kicking. With that said here we have the tenth full length by Colombia's REVENGE. This band started out in 2002 and have kept the spirit of 80's Speed Metal alive and well in a revivalist way. 

This latest full length is down right fantastic. The songs remind ya of NWOBHM meets early Power Metal which is what most Speed Metal in the early 80's was all about. I like the production on here because the sound reminds me of vinyl albums from then which I have in the racks getting dusty. 

Then of course comes the songs, eight in all, with headbanging riffs, a perfect rhythm section to say the least and some dynamic guitar soloing as well. This is another winner to own. 

https://dying-victims.de/

LISTEN HERE:

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

DEPRAVITY - Bestial Possession review

 

DEPRAVITY - Bestial Possession

Transcending Obscurity Records

Well it's been five years since we've heard from Australia's most Brutal Death Metal act. While listening to this their third full length I see they've taken on a torture side to their musical performance. What I'm saying is at most times they're brutal imterpretors of pain and sufferring. But then they'll allow some elegant guitar come forth. Although most of the time it's dive bomb solos which are cool.

I like how when one song ends and it's as the beating torture is over. But then boom it's starts all over again. When I was in the military years ago we called that the Soviet / Commie torture technque. Be that as it may DEPRAVITY's third full length is a pit of Brutal Death Metal deprevity that goes unmatched in their nation.

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://depravitydeath.bandcamp.com/album/bestial-possession

BLOOD OF THE WOLF - V: Indomitable review

 

BLOOD OF THE WOLF - V: Indomitable

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

Fall season albums are always the surprise killers that show up unanticipated and reek fuckin havoc. This one here covers my yearly thirst for Eastern European Blackened Death to the hilt but hey they're a four piece from Chicago, Illinois. So sorry to my friends in VADER and BELPHEGOR but this US band is vintage sounding brutality with a blackened edge.

BLOOD OF THE WOLF started out in 2013. Their full length debut, I: The Law of Retaliation, came out in 2015. Since then the band title all of their full lengths with Roman numerals and then a worded title. Their first two full lengths were self released. In 2019 the band released a four song EP with was III: Blood Legend and came out on Horror Pain Gore Death Productions. Since then the band has stayed with the label with releasing 2022's IV: The Declaration of War and this latest one. 

Like I mentioned earlier this is Euro-centric Brutal DM with touches of blackening. These eight tracks are perfect in that realm of extreme. The vocals have that brute force aggression. The riffs are part diabolical and on the attack. Add in the drum work which is on par with the riffs as in punishing or machine gun firing. The guitar soloing is where I'd take a point off since they're not out there in for the kill as opposed to what the band is doing for the most part.  

Yeah this album is fucking amazing. There's no atmospheric breaks, no instro intros or boredom. It's a relentless attack which is made to beat you down to pulp. I like this album a lot. You would like this album a lot if you're an Extreme DM fan. If you've read some of my recent DM album reviews on this blog (and frankly who doesn't). Then you would know I've been bored with a lot of DM these days. This album by BLOOD OF THE WOLF shatters all of that. It's one of the best fucking sounding DM albums of the year. 

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/v-indomitable

DWELLING BELOW - Wearisome Guardians reviews

 

DWELLING BELOW - Wearisome Guardians

Transcending Obscurity Records

Back in the mid to late 2000s you had a new league of bands giving the sub-genre of Death Doom a new set of legs to stand on. The sound was cavernous and had a claustrophobic atmosphere ridden with filth. The riffs were slow and heavy but once in a while they became psychotic. The guitar soloing was unpredictable as in lighting strikes. Finally the vocals were bestial and the rhythm section were either perfectly timed or totally eradic. It was definitely Death Doom with some blackened bits slipped in for fun.

Now since then every year there's a new band reproducing the same sound over and over again with not much progressive changes. Also you still have a few of that old guard trying their best to stay relevant in a scene with so many imitators. Then there's the fans who buy (hopefully) the records / CDs who are like wow this new band is just as good as the band I liked last year. 

Look I've never been accused of being jaded in the past but I have friends who are. They gave up on most new Extreme Metal a decade or so ago. I've always been the believer in new bands reinventing the old and giving it some open air to breath as well as infect the minds of young listeners. But as of now well this type of Death Doom has hit a brick wall just like most Black Metal and Old School Death Metal. 

With all of that said here's the second album by the US Death Doom act DWELLING BELOW. They're a three piece act who started out in 2023 and are also together in a Prog Tech Death band called HIERARCHIES. The three guys are guitarist Nicholas Turner, bassist Anthony Wheeler and drummer / vocalist Jared Moran. Also these guys are in a ton of other bands especially Jared Moran. 

These guys created a damm great sounding fifty plus minute dissonant Death Doom album.The musicianship is extraordinary. The soundscapes are all about dread as well as destruction. I've listened to at least a dozen full lengths this year doing this type of Death Doom style and I have to say this second album by DWELLING BELOW is the best. It also hits that brick wall I mentioned earlier. This is as best as it gets for this sub-genre. Everything after this one will be decent.   

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://dwellingbelow.bandcamp.com/album/wearisome-guardians

DETERIOROT - Awakening review

 

DETERIOROT - Awakening

Xtreem Music

First off there's a lot to unpack here. So as far as history goes back in the late 1980's there was a Death Metal band out of New Jersey called MORTUARY. Now since that name has been used by more than a few other bands this one changed their name to DETERIOROT. That was in 1990 and the band continued onward. It wasn't until 2001 when the band released their debut full length, In Ancient Beliefs, on a small California label. Interested parties should check out the 2016 reissue of this album on Xtreem Music. 

Now fast forward to 2010 which is when I first picked up a CD by DETERIOROT. It was their second full length which also came out on this label. Basically it was old school Death Metal which at that time was making a come back after many years of bullshit alterations. The band did come out with a third album, The Rebirth, in 2023 but I never heard it. 

Which brings us to the now and this the band's fourth full length over all. Basically you've got the mainman Paul Zavaleta from the old days, who now lives in Charolette, North Carolina, on vocals and guitar. With him are are a  bunch of younger die hards who've rercently joined him on this Old School DM journey. You've got Arthur Reid on guitar, Travis Meredith on bass and James Goetz on drums. 

So musically yeah this is an Old School Death Metal bone being gnawed upon by a beast from the underworld. Paul Zavaleta is probably one of the better DM vocalists out there who's never gotten the credit he's due. His singing style is bestial, sinister and downright creepy. I like it a lot mainly because it reminds me of what others I like have been doing over decades. 

Next up there's eleven songs, although the opening cut is an instro. As far as the songs go what you clearly have is a massive amount of Death Doom brutality joined with diabolical atmosphere. It's a combo of early USDM and early Finnish DM. The riffs are sinister, the guitar leads cut through the eeerie fog like knives stabbing an unknowing victim. Sometimes they're slow and foreboding but will kick into a speedy run. 

All in all it's an amazing release. In my type of world it would be one of the best US Death Metal albums of the year. Better yet it's a down right classic which should sit beside all of the others which came before. Nuff Said!

https://shop.xtreemmusic.com/english.main.index.php

LISTEN HERE:

https://xtreemmusic.bandcamp.com/album/awakening

VEILBURNER - Longing for Triumph, Reeking of Tragedy review

 

VEILBURNER - Longing for Triumph, Reeking of Tragedy

Transcending Obscurity Records

If you're a fan of this blog (and frankly who isn't) then you know over the past bunch of years I've sung the praises for this two piece Blackened Death Metal act from Pennsylvania. Mainly because they're not cliche in style of what you would expect. I don't like using hiptard terms like "experimental" or "avantgarde". Previously I've said VEILBURNER are a Blackened Death experince that will weird you out. 

Now I thought their last album, 2024's The Duality of Decapitation and Wisdom, was like H.P. Lovecraft put to Extreme Metal music for late night listening pleasures and haunts. This new one goes a bit further into the realm of complete hysteria. I mean the opening title cut is so fucking pychotic and angry sounding that you're like what the fuck at first and then it get's jazzy to a point which is weird. 

But from there this album grows to peak insanity. There's absolutely brutal sounding cuts and then it's Blackened filth meets Tech Death. Cross that with BAUHAUS meets FUNERAL MIST in an ecletic theater of hallucinagentic drug extesy. I thought their last album was a masterpiece. But hey "That Which Crypts Howls Grandeur" is so fuckin out there. The final cut "Reeking of Tragedy" just blows up your pitiful mind. 

This is an easy pick for Exreme Metal greatness. VEILBURNER either get better with each new release or they just get creepier. If you wanna fuck with people's minds then play this. 

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://veilburnerband.bandcamp.com/album/longing-for-triumph-reeking-of-tragedy

GLORIOUS DEPRAVITY - Death Never Sleeps review

 

GLORIOUS DEPRAVITY - Death Never Sleeps

Transcending Obscurity Records

So after work I always stop at my favorite convenience store for a six pack of good beer (aka: IPAs) to finish the night off. At the store I always frequent they've got a new clerk who works two nights a week. On this one night the guy is wearing a Metal band shirt. So I'm like "So you're into Metal"? He was like yeah. Now while the transaction was going through I told him that I knew of the band on his T-shirt (it was WHITE CHAPEL ala Death Core). I then told him I'm not a fan of them. 

When I was leaving he told me to have a good night. To which I told em "well yeah I'm gonna drink this beer and listen to some fuckin Death Metal"! Then I threw him the horned fist salute and walked out the door. The DM band I ended up listening to that night was GLORIOUS DEPRAVITY and hell yeah it's some great stuff.

GLORIOUS DEPRAVITY are a five piece USDM act who hail from New York (I don't know if it's from the city or up state). They started out in 2017. Their debut full length, Ageless Violence, came out in 2020 on Translation Loss Records. By the way Translation Loss Records is a good label. I've got more than a handful of releases by bands on that label. But switching over to Transcending Obscurity Records is a good thing because, in my not so humble opinion, they're a great label that knows Death Metal. 

With that said Death Never Sleeps just starts off with a face ripping cut "Slaughter the Gerontocrats". That's right, no boring instro intros just a straight fucking DM attack that's old school NYDM as hell. What's really funny is that 3/5th's of this band was in a New Jersey BM act called WOE. While another band member spent time in New York's Blackened Death act MUTILATION RITES. There's no BM influences at all on here. 

Death Never Sleeps is a perfect nine track DM album that runs a few seconds over thirty four minutes. In that time span you've got cool brutal yet monster like vocals by Doug Moore. He also adds a few harsh blackened screams. Musically is where the DM fun erupts. The riffs diverge between crushing, headbanging fun to thrashy I wanna start a slam pit and hit somebody type of stuff. The guitar soloing is typical lightning dive bomb stuff which is classic. 

In the end overall this year I've listened to a bunch of DM acts who in the past I was a huge fan of. But in 2025 they bore me. GLORIOUS DEPRAVITY is a damm good sounding DM band. I mean play this release in the morning play it at night. Hell play it while you're fucking. Yeah this is one of the best DM releases of the year.

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://gloriousdepravity-label.bandcamp.com/album/death-never-sleeps

CASTLE RAT - The Bestiary review

 

CASTLE RAT - The Bestiary

King Volume Records

I first learned about this New York City act back in 2024. There was a lot of hype about em on the internet, mostly by hiptards. But I first checked out a live performance video they did at a hipster club in Brooklyn, New York City. Now despite the hype I thought they were decent. 

Their debut album Into the Realm from 2024 was pretty good. It was basically that whole NWOBHM meets Occult Doom style. I liked it especially The Rat Queen's (aka: Riley Pinkerton) vocal style. But that was then because on my first listen to this their second album I can say things have changed. After a few more listens you can understand the changes. 

Basically CASTLE RAT have become more atmospheric and bombastic in their overall sound. In other words it's like the difference between a club sound band and one that plays arenas. The NWOBHM style has been replaced with an almost Power metal influence. The Doom edge is still here and there. The production has been amped up especially on their drum sound which is thunderous. 

The collaboration of The Rat Queen's dynamic vocals as well as guitar riffs, The Count's (aka: Franco Vittore) cool lead guitar work, the thunderous bass by The Plague Doctor and newest member (Charley Ruddell) and drummer extrodinare The Druid (Josh Strmic) make this a powerful fuckin album. 

To me this feels like a concept album with instro interludes that break from the explosiveness conveyed musically. For me I do like the rawness of their first album. But after a few listens this one is an epic piece of work. How you surpass this one is another story and good luck to em. In the end it's a damm good release.

https://www.facebook.com/kingvolumerecords

LISTEN HERE:

https://castlerat.bandcamp.com/album/the-bestiary

ILON LAPSET - Mykka pimeys review

ILON LAPSET - Mykka pimeys

Visceral Circuitry Records

For me personally my appreciation for Sludge Metal died in the late summer of 2021. That was the night when I was at a show and a quarter of the way through the headlining act's set I walked out. Now the headliner was a big name band of the Sludge Metal scene who I had seen three times over their long career. Now that night the first two bands were great and both well known as well as me being a fan of. But the headliner was just the same old thing again. Actually I think I've seen em four times before that show.

If you've been in the Extreme Metal scene for four or five decades you will find yourself jaded even though you just don't want to be. So for the past couple of years while I ignore the generic stuff from this genre I'm always looking for an outlier. I do find one per year and here we have another cool one. 

This is the second full length by Finland's ILON LAPSET. They are a four piece act who started out back in 2020. So what's cool about this band is that their sound / style reminds me when Sludge first started. The sound had it's roots in the underground Punk / Hardcore scene in the late 80's. Some bands would come out playing it SABBATH-IAN low and slow with a maniac on vocals. 

That's what ILON LAPSET are doing on this six song release. You've got crushing music with tortured vocals and it's an old school reminder for me. I saw bands like this back in the day at local shows who never went further than releasing a demo tape. The HC kids were left fucked up because they couldn't slam dance to the music. I'd be in the back standing there with a beer going "this is insane and I like it". 

ILON LAPSET bring about this claustrophobic intense sound which fuckin rules. There's an atmosphere of pain and dread throughout this release. There are a few US bands from the late 1990's who they remind me of but I am not name dropping here. This is just great Sludge Metal that's not generic as legendary acts are doing. If you're a fan of Sludge Metal than this is the release you need to get. 

LISTEN TO & ORDER HERE:

https://ilonlapset.bandcamp.com/album/mykk-pimeys

 

RITUAL MASS - Cascading Misery review

 

RITUAL MASS - Cascading Misery

20 Buck Spin

Imagine tossing PORTAL, INCANTATION and HOODED MENACE into a blender. Out of it you would get an act that's horrific oppressively subterranean sounding Death Doom. And that act would have a release out on Dark Descent Records. I'm not kidding because I know I have at least two dozen or more releases by bands on Dark Descent Records who have that sound. 

I won't stop there because I have plenty of releases by other labels who have bands sounding like this. The whole sound structure permeated around the late 2000's. And here we are today well over a decade later with new bands still repeating something they heard a few years ago and maybe adding a few points of nuance. 

Case in point, this is the debut full length from RITUAL MASS who are a four piece act from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that started out in 2016. Prior to this the band released a self titled demo in 2017, an EP "Abhorred in the Eyes of God" in 2019 and a single in 2021. If you're interested you can find all of that material on a compilation they have titled It Ever Turns which is available on CD and cassette. 

Now Iike I said earlier I've heard all of this type of Death Doom before. So on this six song release all of the cuts encapsulate the description I said earlier. While the first part of the album is fairly cut and paste. The second part is where the band decides to inject some self worth into the mix. The culmination is a fourteen plus minute final opus of everything they've done over the past five cuts but more brutal sounding. 

Yeah sounds like a great way to end a performance. But with so much of this style of Death Doom out there it's hard to justify it by saying "well it's good for 2025". As if we've forgotten the good stuff from last year a couple of which sound like this. In the end this debut by RITUAL MASS is decent.

https://www.20buckspin.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://20buckspin.bandcamp.com/album/cascading-misery

SHOCK NARCOTIC - My Flesh Is Afraid But I Am Not review

 

SHOCK NARCOTIC - My Flesh Is Afraid But I Am Not

Housecore Records

SHOCK NARCOTIC are a four piece US Grind act featuring musicians from acts like DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, PIG DESTROYER, BATTLECROSS and CHILD BITE. They started out in 2019 with a fourteen song debut EP titled I Have Seen the Future and It Doesn't Work. Back then I heard about the band but never decided check out their music.

Now after listening to this their debut full length I have a few things to say. First off musically this is a very generic style of modern Grind being put forth. Also you hear bits of Groove Metal, Death Thrash, bad 90's Hardcore and wannabe Old School HB1 DM crunch all entered into the mix. I didn't find anything exciting about the thirteen cuts on here. At best it's average.

Vocalist Shawn Knight does have a loud vicious maul when it comes to his singing style. Unfortunately he comes across as more of a 90's era Hardcore vocalist then his Grind vocalist peers from Poland or Finland. As far as the musicianship goes it's average. 

https://housecorerecords.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://shocknarcotic.bandcamp.com/album/my-flesh-is-afraid-but-i-am-not

ENTRAILS - Grip of Ancient Evil review

 

ENTRAILS - Grip of Ancient Evil

Hammerheart Records

I've been looking forward to this new one by Sweden's ENTRAILS. I'm not going to go into my whole fan history with this band. Just for the record I've been into em since their debut full length album came out back in 2010. That was "Tales from the Morgue" and they were part of that whole old school Swedish death metal revival scene.

Fast forward to 2022 and the band, fresh with new members, released An Eternal Time of Decay also on this label. And I liked it a lot since it wasn't just a band recreating the past as a homage which I don't mind too much. Instead ENTRAILS were defining themselves as a Swedish Death Metal band and fuckin veterans. 

So this new one starts out with the title song being a violin instrumental. The violinist is none other than Thomas von Wachenfeldt who is also the guitarist of another great Swedish Death Metal band WOMBBATH. It's a beautiful sounding opening. And then the old school chaos begins. As the saying goes, may the Boss HM-2 be with you. Then look out because a slam pit is starting. 

With that said the line-up has changed again. There's new bassist Benjamin Hjort Andersson and new vocalist Julian Bellenox. Now as far as bass duties go Benjamin Hjort Andersson fits in well. But as far as vocalist Julian Bellenox goes it's different since he is / was in the Swedish Thrash band MORPHETIK.

Musically this is more Death Thrash oriented with great soloing by Markus Svensson. But even with that I am not a fan of Julian Bellenox as a vocalist. I'm also not impressed with the drum work on here as well. Whatafuck happened to this band? Even when they throw in some decent DM atmosphere aspects to their sound it doesn't register with me.

In the end there's a couple of cool tracks on this the band's eighth full length. They're Death Thrash to the hilt on here and in my attitude which is pissed off I don't care to mention em. I'm totally bored with this album and really wondering about what they're up to. Are ENTRAILS trying to appeal to a new audience or are they just tired. I just don't care for this. I'm sure some younger newbie DM kids will enjoy this but not me. 

https://www.hammerheart.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hammerheart.bandcamp.com/album/grip-of-ancient-evil