GREYHAWK - Thunderheart review

 

GREYHAWK - Thunderheart

Fighter Records

I've been seeing a lot of interest in what is called The New Wave Of Classic Metal or Traditional Metal. Hell even the Youtube show Sea of Tranquility now has a segmant on it. Which just shows ya the music is getting recognized by the mainstream. The fact is this stuff has florished in the underground for a long time now. And it's been championed by cool underground labels like Fighter Records as well as many others.

So what we have here is the second full length by Seattle, Washington's GREYHAWK. This is a band I've been a fan of for some time. They started out in 2016, put out two EPs and a full length and I liked their style of metal. I mean it's classic as far as old school NWOBHM and early power metal sounds go. But on this latest release things have changed a bit.

First off there's a line up change. Gone is guitarist Jacquelynn Ziel and she is replaced by Rob Steinway. Otherwise the band is the same. Musically things have changed since their last EP which came out in 2022. Half of the cuts on here still follow the whole fantasy classic power metal route. Then you get other cuts like for example "Ombria (City of the Night)" or "Rock & Roll City" which come across as 80's hard rock. 

I'm not knocking on em since they pull it off well. Vocalist Rev Taylor does a great job with his mid-range singing style as well as his shouts and of course falsetto screams. Of course a big plus is the amazing guitar soloing by Jesse Berlin. He still shreds in the Yngwie Malmsteen style, aka: all over the place. In the end it's a decent album although I wish it was more power metal than hard rock.

http://www.fighter-records.com/

LISTEN HERE: 

https://fighter-records.bandcamp.com/album/thunderheart

MORTA SKULD - Creation Undone review

 

MORTA SKULD - Creation Undone

Peaceville Records

Here we have the seventh full length from Milwaukee, Wisconsin's MORTA SKULD. Yeah we're talking about some Midwest death metal legends here. When it comes to US death metal we fans are not a united bunch of lemmings. Sure we like the top tier acts which the mainstream / lame-stream people give lip service to. But we love the acts who just fuckin kick ass and perform for us true believers. And when it comes to that then MORTA SKULD were always one of the best there is. 

To me this album is a fuckin classic in every death metal trope possible. The riffs are diabolical as well as punishing. All hails to mainman Dave Gregor (vocals / guitar) who's kept this band going all of these years. The man has always had this straight up non grunting vocal style which as a DM fan you've gotta like. I also like the amazing drum work by Eric House (formerly of JUNGLE ROT) who's been in the band since 2013.

So yeah this is classic old school brutal DM with great riffs. The song structures have a subtle complexity to them. If you're looking for some sort of modern day innovation then forget it. MORTA SKULD give the basics which are some head banging grooves, a slight technical edge but in the end it's always about the brutality.  

My favorite MORTA SKULD album has always been their debut Dying Remains from 1993. Nowadays this new one falls in right behind it.

https://peaceville.com/

LISTEN HERE: 

https://peaceville.bandcamp.com/album/creation-undone

OR BETTER YET HERE:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FaiPBOReBo

KOSUKE HASHIDA - Justifiable Homicide review

 

KOSUKE HASHIDA - Justifiable Homicide

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

I know a friend who's heavily into what I'd call "gore cinema". In other words he's a collector of the really sick stuff that's made it's way in film. I remember him once telling me he was into watching a lot of Japanese serial killer films. Hey I didn't know that was a thing. But I believe this is an album that could sum it all up. 

What we have here is just short of seventeen minutes of audio Japanese murder mayhem. This is the debut full length by Kosuke Hashida from Tokyo, Japan. On here he's a one man act performing everything obviously. But from I've learned he was / is a guitarist in a death metal act called WORLD END MAN. I can't say that I'm familiar with them.  

Be that as it may, on Justifiable Homicide Kosuke Hashida has created a slash and burn concoction of death grind which is totally punishing to say the least. Not only should this release contain a warning label. But I'd also add recommended dosage instructions. Repeated listening could result in fits of anxiety as well as paranoia. 

Musically this guy provides a fuckin relentless wall of angry, threatening riffs, punishing drum work and barked vocals. Hell he even finds space to fit in some thunderous bass riffs. I thought that was cool being there's an absence of guitar soloing. So if ya got seventeen minutes to kill (pun intended) this one is definitely recommended for a search. 

What's really funny is the fact that what music I have from Japanese extreme music acts whether they be grindcore, black metal or hardcore. My favorite band from Japan has always been GUITAR WOLF. 

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/justifiable-homicide

SAHON - Blood Shall Be Paid review

 

SAHON - Blood Shall Be Paid

Brutal Records

Well a few things to get out of the way. First of all as far as modern day thrash metal goes I'm not too thrilled by it as far being extreme metal. I'd say 5% of the thrash stuff that comes in for review will give interest to write about em. Secondly I do not own anything or know much about metal from South Korea. My bad of course. 

Be that as it may here we have the sixth full length by South Korean thrashers SAHON. While listening to this release for the first time I was like holy shit this is pretty damm cool. After five listens I was like, is their back catalog hard to get? But hey SAHON are a three piece act with Yong-ho on bass and vocals, SUN is on drums and their guitarist is Chang-myung. 

Musically their brand of thrash is completely old school late 80's underground stuff. The riffs and song structures are a total throw back to a time when the genre was filthy and dangerous. I know this is great thrash because I'm old (61) but when this music blasts out from my speakers I wanna get into an old school slam dance pit and hit people. 

Like I said earlier the riff package is excellent. Yong-ho's vocals are gruff as fuck. The drumming consists of too much triggers but the top set work is dynamite. All in all this is caustic thrash which blows away the polished stuff. Chang-myung lays down some killer fuckin solos to boot. Yes this album is great from begining to end. If you really like thrash then SAHON is the band to check out. Blood Shall Be Paid, you're damm right.

https://linktr.ee/brutalrecords.official

LISTEN HERE:

https://brutalrecords.bandcamp.com/album/blood-shall-be-paid

TROCAR - Extremities review

 

TROCAR - Extremities

Selfmadegod Records

OK so I'll first get the baggage out of the way. I learned about TROCAR via the HORROR PAIN GORE DEATH PRODUCTIONS 2023 compilation. They had one song on it "Wonders Cease". The band FLUIDS also appeared on that compilation which bares explanations as well. TROCAR is a side project of FLUIDS members Jan Grotle (guitar) and Walter Hale (synths / programming) but in FLUIDS he's their drummer. 

Just to get this out of the way FLUIDS is a damm good death grind band from Phoenix, Arizona. They've done a split with NUNSLAUGHTER (yeah I have that one), have a ton of short form releases as well as a full length. I've got a compilation from them titled Fluids of Death 2 which came out on Hells Headbangers Records. So TROCAR are not far from their mark. 

Along with Jan Grotle and Walter Hale TROCAR features vocalist Schuler Benson. But there are a few guests as well on this release. So musically this is total psychotic grindcore for the most part. I think the four minute plus "Psalter of Manias" is a great middle finger to any mainstream metal person's face because of it's slow paced grinding aesthetic. Most of these cuts are grind insanity aka: fast dirges with high pitched screamed vocals. In the end it's a cool and something you'll remember to blast to your neighbors.

https://selfmadegod.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://thetrocar.bandcamp.com/album/extremities-2

SKELETAL REMAINS - Fragments Of The Ageless review

 

SKELETAL REMAINS - Fragments Of The Ageless

Century Media Records

If I haven't said it before (?) then I'll state it now. I think SKELETAL REMAINS are one of the best new school death metal act in the US. I became a fan of them back with their second full length, Condemned to Misery, from 2015 and have liked everything they've done since. So here we are with their fifth full length since starting out in 2011. And I've gotta say this California four piece has simply gotten better or at least more diabolical in their DM approach. 

For those of you new to this band we're talking about a musical DM style that remembers the USDM past but doesn't repeat it. Instead they expand on it with diabolical riffs, impressive song structures and some of the best guitar soloing in the genre. I mean opener  "Relentless Appetite" is definitely a kick ass way to start things off. But the guitar solo in "To Conquer the Devout" will melt your face. 

And the band does this throughout Fragments Of The Ageless albeit there's a few subtle parts which are the instrumentals. But hey when they added a HATE ETERNAL cover, "Messiah of Rage", at the end I was like hell yeah Erik Rutan would like SKELETAL REMAINS especially with the maniacal guitar soloing. This is easily one of my favorite DM releases of 2024.

https://www.centurymedia.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPzCwdJ7DIQ

IRON MONKEY - Spleen & Goad review

 

IRON MONKEY - Spleen & Goad

Relapse Records

OK so who here remembers IRON MONKEY? I'd probably be looking at the hand raised by some guy in the back wearing a CHAOS UK shirt. But actually I have some friends who were in a local doom metal band who really liked IRON MONKEY. They kind of were influenced by em a little. But for those of you who don't know this band then I'll explain. 

IRON MONKEY came onto the scene back in the late 1990's. They were an English sludgey doom act who took the US version of the genre style and had it crawled through the English underground hardcore/punk scene. They put out two killer albums on Earache Records. Those being their self titled debut full length in 1997 and the follow-up Our Problem in 1998. Yeah you need to get those releases.

Anyways they continued in 1999 with a few short form releases but then tragedy struck when their singer, Johnny Morrow, passed away. So that was pretty much the end of IRON MONKEY. But in 2017 the band came back as a three piece act with guitarist Jim Rushby taking over on vocals. That resulted in the album 9-13 which I was not a fan of. But I might have to come back to for an obvious reason. This new one kicks ass. 

It's 2024 and IRON MONKEY are back still as a three piece with Jim Rushby still on vocals and guitar. Plus there's Steve Watson on bass now and new drummer Steve Mellor. So the difference now is that back in 2017 it came off as OK we're IRON MONKEY lets put an album. While now it's more like hey we're IRON MONKEY and lets put out a great album befit of our legacy. 

And that's what Spleen & Goad is all about. This is a seething freak show of filthy riffs that crackle with electric sparks. You've got drunken lead guitar solos. The bass is manacle and thundering. And the drum work just falls into place. Opener "Misanthropizer" is a head splinter. And Rushby's vocals come off as a drunk punk doing his best. Hell yeah what more could you want. OK bang your fuckin head to "Concrete Shock". Hell all nine tracks on here are awesome. 

https://www.relapse.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://ironmonkey.bandcamp.com/album/spleen-goad