NECROGORE - Ectoplasmic Rape Phenomena review

 

NECROGORE - Ectoplasmic Rape Phenomena

Awakening Records

Well with a name like NECROGORE how could I not resist checking it out. Of course after a boring instro intro it didn't take long for me to figure out what's up with this band. Ya know there was a time when the Old School Swedish trident of Death Metal (aka: ENTOMBED, GRAVE and DISMEMBER) were merely considered influences. Nowadays they're being heralded to a position similar to H.P. Lovecraft's elder gods. Yeah this isn't respect anymore it's fuckin worship.

Now sure I'd expect a newer band from Sweden to follow along with their roots. But this is a three piece act from Italy who are totally killing it sound-wise. To put it bluntly this is damm better than a recent Swedish DM album I heard earlier this year. Musically it's obvious this trio likes DISMEMBER with that furious wall of HM-2 Boss pedal sound. I mean the fuckin riffs are there plus that thunderous bass which was the clincher when blasting Like an Ever Flowing Stream and Indecent and Obscene. 

But lyrically these guys are like VOMITORY who are number four to me as far as Old School Swedish DM goes. I mean with a song like "Raptured, Tortured and Chained". that's very close to Terrorize Brutalize Sodomize. And let's not forget VOMITORY's debut full length Raped in Their Own Blood. But as far as these guys you've got "Forced to Eat Shit" as well as "Leeches on My Dick" which is not a love song. 

All in all yeah this album hails with only one complaint. There are times when the snare drum comes off as sounding like beating upon Tupperware (nowadays for you young people we'll just say a plastic container). Other then that oh yeah this rules. I'll also say by looking at the cover artwork. I'm surprised this release did not come out on two other labels which I am a regular fan of.  

 

https://awakeningrecords.cn/

LISTEN HERE:

https://awakeningrecordscn.bandcamp.com/album/ectoplasmic-rape-phenomena

CULTIST - Spiritual Atrophy review

 

CULTIST - Spiritual Atrophy

Awakening Records

Just for the record I'm old. How old you ask? Well I was into Death Metal before people coined the phrase Death Metal. Seriously back in the day when we first heard POSSESSED or MANTAS / DEATH we didn't know what to call it at first. So with that said when I listen to a newer Death Metal band now my attitude towards em is either One: I like it. It's killer as fuck. Two: it's interesting. Or Three: I'm fucking bored by this point. 

CULTIST, who hail from Calgary, Canada, fall into the number two category because sound-wise this band is interesting as fuck.Which by the way is damm good. On this the band's second full length since starting out in 2015. CULTIST you're gonna hear a genuine mix of Death Metal sounds from the old to the early Tech Death days. Which to me is the perfect era of Death Metal.

This album starts of with an atmospheric instro intro and of course I hate that. Once the actual first song "Coursing Between Worlds" kicks into gear then the fun starts. First off lets give props to guitarist Betzi Poitras because this guy is an evil riff master as well as a deliverer of diabolical solos. This guy is just as good and should be named along side some of Florida's elite DM guitarists. 

Next up is the twisted vocal style by bassist / singer Vanessa Grossberndt who can roar like a maniacal beast, scream like a witch and can growl like a bear. Although the rest of the band does add vocals. Add to the that the dynamic drum work of Jim Petigo. 

In the end you've got a nine song album albeit with two instrumentals. Still it's a kick ass listening experience to say the least. I'm not gonna say it's one the best but it's close to the top and worth checking out.

https://awakeningrecords.cn/

LISTEN HERE:

https://awakeningrecordscn.bandcamp.com/album/spiritual-atrophy

HELLION - Rebel's Curse review

HELLION - Rebel's Curse

Awakening Records




I'm going to get through this review without using the term "thrash revival". I'm going on a diet as far as that term is needed. With that said I guess it's obvious I'm about to talk about a thrash release. HELLION are a cool three piece thrash act from Colombia. Back in the day when thrash started out I was a huge consumer of goods from Columbia. But I won't go into details.


What we have here is the third of a reissue line from Awakening Records. That label has reissued this band's The Rising of Wizards demo from 2016, their debut full length Hordes of Witchery from 2017 and this one here from 2019. I checked out those releases but decided to talk about this their most recent one.


The tagline on this one is (once again) blackened thrash but don't let your mind become numb with bias opinion. This is not your typical US generic stuff. HELLION are true followers of the raw old school sounding thrash which will not push boundaries of this age. On the other hand this is something cool for people who acknowledge the greatness of South American extreme metal meets old school Teutonic warfare with just a hint of West Coast swagger.


Personally I think this band likes some early KREATOR. As far as a more modern take I'm thinking MERCILESS DEATH. Either way it's a handshake to the past's raw attack with some evil incarnate. The vocals, which come across as vile spirited hate, are the main stand out. The leads are OK. Which all culminates in the riffs, this is thrash you know, that are reminiscent of the past. Amazing rhythm section that totally knocks this up a notch. Welcome to 2020 people and to be a decent enough thrash band you've gotta check out.


https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningRecordsCN/

https://www.facebook.com/HellionMetalMedallo/

BONEHAMMER - Black Crust Invasion EP review

BONEHAMMER - Black Crust Invasion EP

Awakening Records




Well my first reaction to this was there's eleven songs on here. It's not a grindcore release and it's almost thirty minutes in length. So how is this an EP again? Hailing from the great nation of Argentina, where I've heard some great stuff from over the decades, we have a three piece called BONEHAMMER who pretty much do what the title of this debut EP says.


This release falls under the banner of Scumfeast likable material because of a number of factors. First off the vocals are cool as fuck. The lead ones are taken over by bassist Odnufuck (now that's a cool Metal name) who has this deep, brunt singing voice. Then you have backing vocals by guitarist Onahiram who sounds like a fucking enraged satanic banshee. The vocal trade offs run throughout this release. Onahiram also sings lead on "Victims of War".


As far as the music goes it is everything the title suggests and more. Surprisingly a lot of these songs are built around old school metal and hardcore style riffing. Toss in some thrash touches for good measure but this is more Punk infused Metal then say generic blackened thrash. Sound-wise this is low fi to the tits. Hell they even throw in some doom for good measure on "Invocation". There's also some great lead work forced in at times which is beyond cool. As well as some sick fucking blues.


It's only mid January and I'm already picking year end favorites. This one is a winner in my scumfuck book. They even cover MOTORHEAD's "March or Die" for good measure. Why this is not on Hells Headbangers is a mystery. But I'll bet ya it'll be in their distro catalog.
  

https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningRecordsCN/

https://bonehammerblackcrust.bandcamp.com/releases

https://www.facebook.com/Bonehammer-114936406534038/

ANCESTOR - Lords of Destiny review

ANCESTOR - Lords of Destiny 

Awakening Records




I don't normally get any extreme music from China to check out. So when this band's promo people sent this in for review I was kinda excited. Just to get the basic info out of the way. ANCESTOR hails from Beijing and started out way back in 2007. Due to some early line-up problems (their explanation) they never put out a proper release until last year with the six song EP Age of Overload. Fast forward to 2018 and now they have this full length.


Now here's where things really get interesting. ANCESTOR are a thrash band who openly admit to be heavily influenced by the Teutonic Thrash scene from years ago. Nothing wrong with that since it's some of my favorite thrash. So this release starts off with an instrumental intro which then bleeds into the track "Deathlike Silence". No it's not a cover song but who does that remind you of? (waiting.......) Ok if you guessed SODOM's Obsessed by Cruelty LP then you would be correct. 


Along with their SODOM worship these four guys also like some KREATOR, the early Endless Pain / Pleasure to Kill type of stuff. Once again there's nothing wrong with that because listening to this release you can tell sure ANCESTOR like those bands and that sound. But there is some of themselves obviously crawling inside the influences. The riffs are old school savagery but the fluid like soloing on a few cuts displays a vicious modern feel. 


Add to all of that the rhythm section is killer. The drummer is a jackhammer and you can actually hear some bass. Vocals are a cross between Tom Angelripper and Mille Petrozza which is very cool. Hey look Lords of Destiny is just a fantastic release. OK sure it's old school out the wazoo but let's reflect shall we.


It's 2018 and in my not so humble opinion thrash sucks. Not the music of course but the new creators of it. 99.9% of the bands out in the world who play thrash are just fuckin boring. A decade ago we had the thrash revival which I supported. But after one year of hearing SLAYER, EXODUS and MEGADETH clones it got boring. Next up came the blackened thrash generic offense.


So here we have a band out of nowhere who obviously are dedicated and play a brand of thrash that in the past decade nobody even thought of touching. Oh yeah and it sounds cool as fuck. If you still pine for cool sounding thrash then ANCESTOR is your answer.


https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningRecordsCN/

https://ancestorcn.bandcamp.com/album/lords-of-destiny

https://www.facebook.com/AncestorCN/