avant garde / metal / post metal

Saule is the debut album of the eponymous Polish crossover post metal act, released by Italian record label Avantgarde Music, on May 13. Forty one minutes long, the record has seven tracks: I, II, III, IV, V, VI and O. A brilliantly conspicuous, sagaciously unreserved, pervasively ambivalent and profoundly monumental album, with consistently epic elements, Saule reverberates through the colossal components of its own intrinsic beauty thoroughly exacerbated and melancholically dense desperate devices, that harmoniously shapes the melodic oceans of sensibilities upon which their music is crafted, and intelligently expands the fundaments of its redeemed phantasmagoric labor. 

Marvelously beautiful and thoroughly efficient, the style of Saule has an imperative grandiosity centered in wonderfully shaped and sculpted melodies, that brings at the confluence of its sonorous axis the experience of a sound convergence that reiterates the strength of a formidable and inextricable creativity. Sidelined at the lucidity of its ambitious harmonies, it is possible to observe the birth of entire universes, craving in the linear opacity of its thought the fugacious galaxy of a serenity that dreams way ahead the philosophy of its delightful whispers. In the corners of a delicate and splendidly voracious sensibility, Saule becomes the ethereal veil of melodies covered in dust, upon which the world has buried the coalescence of its unwanted dreams.  

Although the album is deeply submerged most of the time in a beautiful and almost hypnotic density of a marvelous instrumental ocean of deeply saturated sensibilities, there are thoroughly gracious vocal passages, that highlights the subtle style of the group to another path of reflexive grace. Stricken by an aggressive stupor of melancholy, the sound seems to levitate between somewhat inexistent monumental spheres of fallacious agony, and afflictive worlds of dying secrecy, upon which the fundamental principles of our soul becomes diluted, but keeps feeding at the fountain of the music’s essence. 

Despite some sonorous uniformity, Saule’s debut is a great and very unexpected record. A genuine and incredibly original work of art, full of gracious energy and displaying a genuine vortex of melodic infallibility, in thoroughly consistent rhythmical dissonances that creates a very singular dimension of plural expansions, Saule condenses the pressure of a gas giant into a symbiotic strength of versatile proclivities, meticulously engendered to pronounce the fugacious doom of a universe lost at the insensitive fables of our own inhumane hearts. So, summarizing, a formidably creative and astoundingly terrific album. 


Wagner

avant garde / metal

Arisen is an album by Hungarian avant-garde metal project Hant, released on April 4. Forty one minutes long, the album has eight tracks: Desolate, Evolution of Minds, Of Longing and Lust, Black Lake, Arisen, Beyond the Astral Doors, Summoning and Mad World (a beautiful instrumental cover version of the notorious Tears for Fears song [and, in my opinion, the best track on this record]). With an incisive work competently built on guitars, Arisen is an album with interesting shapes and nuances. With generally calmer melodies, the harmonies are conceived in an anxious and afflictive layer of lancinating and acute atmospheric anguish. Somewhat interesting, there is a virtuous degree of skilled technical proficiency holding the musical structure of the work. Unfortunately, since the harmonies are mostly slow all the way through, and the songs are generally very long, a tedious, nefarious and exasperating sense of monotony overcomes the listener, and the album eventually becomes more of a boring task than an actual pleasure.

Nevertheless, there are distinct elements, as well as intriguing passages, in some tracks along the way. With minimalist and neoclassical tendencies, Arisen has charming peculiarities, and the sensational sonorous dilapidations that ostensibly arise in the outer limits of the conclusively splendid exterior layers of the songs reveal, quite surprisingly, a modest, but sagacious level of audacity, originality and creativity, well-worked and majorly conceived in the expansive fields of rhythmic dissonances discreetly dispersed throughout the album. 

Although Arisen can’t be qualified as a majestic record – and you will hardly be surprised while listening to it – this album has, indeed, several qualities. The hazard, dilacerating and meticulous guitar lines undoubtedly are the main force behind the work, and create all the major elements that consecrate the overall musical atmosphere. Taking that away, you don’t have too much components to appreciate on the album, although some harmonies are fulfilled by a lonely, restless, reflexive and poetic appeal. Evidently, if you like slow, melodic, melancholic guitar driven rock’n’roll with avant-garde elements, then Arisen is an album that you should listen. 
     
As far as my personal evaluation goes, Arisen is a good album, but is incapable of going beyond that. Too much accommodated in a common concept, with an ostensibly exacerbated uniformity, with little rhythmic variations, the overall sound, in the end, reclaims an ordinary and inefficient final product, that will probably appeal more to guitar players and guitar students in general.     


Wagner

nu metal

Welcome To The Freak Show is an album by Italian nu metal group Figure of Six, to be officially released by Bleeding Nose Records in the end of the next month, in May 26th, precisely. With ten tracks – Welcome To The Freak Show, The Man In The Dark, The Weak One, Edward Mordrake, The Tightrope Walker, The Mirror's Cage, Monster, The King And The Servant, Clown and But Deliver Us From Evil – Welcome To The Freak Show is a very interesting and uplifting record. With a vivaciously vibrating and spontaneous approach, although retaining all the traditional elements of the genre, the record has strong and creative melodies, genuinely constructive harmonies and a positive sense of musical mordacity. 

With very audacious compositions, Figure of Six is a band bound by no fears. They wisely experiment, and extend the overwhelming beauty of the genre to the frontiers of the possible and the impossible. With a monumental, graceful, sensible and gently emotional sonorous layer, that reveals a creative talent that extrapolates everything you thought you knew about nu metal, they seem to deliberately abolish and virtually exclude all the generic common concepts usually associated with the genre. As a matter of fact, Figure of Six seems to be fully committed with the creation of something new, and, as a result, has conceived Welcome To The Freak Show as an intriguing and genuine record, that revives with an astoundingly lucid intensity the most fundamental elements and principles of nu metal.

Although they retain, evidently, the main components of the genre, they exert no limitations upon their creativity. With lancinating fury, an impeccable sense of direction and tempestuous melodies full of anger, redemption, sorrow and demise, Figure of Six reshapes and redefines with mordacious determination, objectivity and a higher degree of innovations the usual structure and the sonorous tissue of the genre, infusing a surprising level of vitality and revitalization into the nu metal music scene, in general and specific terms as well. 

A very interesting and sagacious record, Welcome To The Freak show is a great gift for each and every individual enthusiast of the genre. With no general faults to be pointed out, this album is full of abundant qualities that were brilliantly combined to create a marvelous record, that has all the necessary requirements – in the creative, musical and technical fields – to be considered a reference and a cornerstone of the genre.          


Wagner

metal

I've been writing about the self-willed metal scene in France a lot in the past, and I feel like I have to do it again and again. For some reason, many French bands come up with a wayward approach to metal, usually in a very creative and interesting way. Right now, another one of those bands is playing, a band that claims to crossover between rock and metal. However, although this album rocks, this certainly is one for the metalheads among us. 

Scritikall has been around since 2012. The six songs on this album have been played live for a year or so, and I can easily imagine an amazed audience witnessing them. To me, it feels like the band members are experienced metal musicians, but in different corners of the scene. The vocalist/guitarist is probably a hardcore, post metal and metalcore fan. The drummer has been listening to Fear Factory and Meshuggah a lot.

Furthermore, there are elements from death metal, black metal, progressive metal and plenty more. In that aspect, this album is a whirlpool of distorted guitars, pounding drums and a decent variation between clean vocals and screams. That being said, opener 'Yelling' is my absolute favorite here, closely followed by 'Disturbs And Manhandles'. If you like your metal intense and immersive, this certainly is your thing.

There are six tracks on 'Draft', five if you count out the dreamy intermezzo 'Max. 1'. But those five tracks blast, that you cannot deny. I can see many people bang their heads to these tracks, be it slowly since the music never gets uptempo. Not that that matters here, 'Drafts' certainly doesn't lack intensity, just listen to closer 'Draft', a song I might consider as one of my favorites too. So anyway, metalheads, check this out. It's different but it's awesome.


​Serge

melodic dark metal

Promise of Autumn is an album by Byelorussian atmospheric dark/ heavy metal group Blaine Rohmer, released in March 31. Forty three and a half minutes long, the record has seven tracks: Misery Storm, Solar Empire, Song of an Apocalypse, Promise of Autumn, Your Secret Shore, The Reaver of Worlds and Fool of Chains. Vibrating, marvelously poetic, delicately enchanting, formidable, exhilaratingly beautiful and serene, the sound of Blaine Rohmer is, by its own genuine definitions, difficult to describe, and specially, to categorize in a specific subgenre of metal. With heavy and dark metal elements, added to this flavor atmospheric and melodic components, their sound has unique features, specially captivating. With more philosophic and reflexive undertones, their style is primarily shaped by slow melodies, consistently punctuated by effusively melancholic clouds. With a wonderful sonorous shape that standardizes the efficiency of their melodies, Promise of Autumn is one of the most intense, poetic, reliable and singular albums ever created in the history of underground metal. 

Simply astonishing, each and every track is more beautiful than its predecessor. With a singular approach that expands their unusual slow, but credible and intense rhythms, the songs on Promise of Autumn are ardently passionate, filled by a vibrating consistency that brings the style of the band closer to romantic ballads, but without becoming ballads de facto. With thunderous and tempestuous, but graceful guitar lines, the songs have a fortifying structure that dwells towards the flexible functionalities of its own essence.     

With an incredible sentimental appeal, Blaine Rohmer’s music is an emotional landscape filled by the insatiable and everlasting beauty of an eternal autumn that never fades away, but remains forever shining in the fields of your heart. With pure, calm and well sculpted harmonies, these formidable songs sounds like the wild freedom of your soul, taking all the pain and suffering away from the known universe, dwelling to protect you from everything that is evil.

Although the harmonies are predominantly slow, their sound is so fascinating that monotony is never felt, not even for a second, all the way through. An exceptional and overwhelming album, Promise of Autumn is an amazing grace in the history of metal. A truly great, evolving and fantastic work, this album deserves all the best possible scores from the audience, reviewers and critics alike. It’s a revolution, a slow revolution, as a matter of fact, but an amazing and necessary one! Never before any other group had made music like Blaine Rohmer does.  


​Wagner

ambient / experimental / shoegaze

metalcore / metal

facebook

hard rock

classical / ambient

drum & bass / industrial metal

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progressive / thrash metal

nu metal

synthpop / new wave

techno / industrial

alternative rock

post rock

death metal

dark ambient / black metal

experimental rock

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gothic / industrial metal

punk

heavy metal

The Second Fall is an album by Greek heavy metal group MAHAKALA, released on March 13. With nine tracks – Army of the Flies, Redemption Denied, Purgatorium, Better to Reign in Hell (Than Serve in Heaven), Darkness in their Eyes, Wrath of Lucifer, Unholy Fight, Blessed Are the Dead and War Against Mankind – The Second Fall is quite an interesting album, not the typical heavy metal record, although following the traditional features of the genre in several aspects of its musical direction, where it becomes perceptive and incredibly predominant which are their driving forces and basic influences. Despite the fact that The Second Fall is not a fantastic or deeply innovative album, it has several qualities, and a force of its own. With cohesive guitar lines and a creative musical guideline of their own, this album proudly aggregates interesting components to the genre, with a spontaneity astoundingly masterminded at the center of a profoundly methodic style.

With authenticity and abrasiveness, MAHAKALA has careful and cautious melodies, more centered on constructive and well-balanced harmonies, than heaviness or aggression, although you are mistaken if you think their sound is soft. Not recommended for beginners, although there is a proficiently inserted tranquilizing component brilliantly installed in their music – whose versatility really outstands itself at the height of an amazing musical technicality – MAHAKALA is unforgiving on their wild side, but always maintaining their compromise with a well-shaped and coherently dilapidated rhythm, with a harmonizing detailed nature, that unravels a band very secure of their style, their capacities, their abilities, their goals, and what they can really achieve, with the perfect convergence of all the qualities they have at their disposition. 

With the discreet insertion of symphonic and power metal elements, MAHAKALA remembers a lot bands like Iced Earth. They are not just another generic act, despite honoring the tradition, especially with overwhelming and astronomic guitar solos, that seems to wander endlessly throughout the whole universe, going back and forth. With a lucid and very prominent sound, this interesting and astute Greek band proves with The Second Fall their relevance, although they really have to crystallize with more strength and sobriety the peculiarities of their own style, to avoid a generic marginalization of classification, that they barely avoid in some tracks. Nonetheless, I think that all enthusiasts of heavy metal will appreciate The Second Fall. Whether you are predisposed to admit this conclusion or not, this is a record that does a lot more for a true rescue and a genuine perception of heavy metal than most contemporary bands of the genre.           

So, despite the fact that this album cannot be categorized as a masterpiece, it stands as a serious, strong, decent, cohesive and interesting album. Different passages in different songs sound too similar, but I think that MAHAKALA is in the right direction, revolving, evolving and consistently developing a genre that really deserves not to die, since it has been for quite some time now relegated to a despicable limb of boredom and unoriginality. If there is a band that can really revive heavy metal, and elevate the principles of its true standards, you can be sure that this band is MAHAKALA. 


Wagner

hard rock / metal

The French hard rock scene is quite amazing if you ask me. That country produces a lot of bands that seem loyal to the old school of the genre and just want to rock, regardless of genre restrictions and boundaries. Not that I mind, on the very contrary. Good old fashioned rock 'n roll is always welcome here. So when this album by Paris residents Dope Oüt reached me, I immediately opened a can of beer, got the barbeque ready and started rocking.

In ten songs, Dope Oüt clearly show what they stand for: rock 'n roll. The band, formed in 2013, comes up with a sound that somewhat reminds me of everything between Skid Row and Black Label Society. Iron Maiden, Metallica, Avenged Sevenfold, Motörhead, Black Stone Cherry  and Foo Fighters also come to mind when I listen to songs like 'Scars & Stripes', 'Dive' and 'Lady Misfits', to name a few.

The latter, 'Lady Misfits' show a bit more of the melodic and song writing abilities of this band, which is a welcome variation from the raw rock songs. Because yes, most of this album consists of grooves, riffs and licks that make you want to go out there and party with these guys. This is dirty rock 'n roll without having to be too complex or too radio friendly. I like that, and I know that there are plenty of people who agree.

I don't really have a favorite song on this album, although I have to say that 'Clan Of Bats' is an awesome piece of work and that 'Nose White' somewhat fuels my interest in nu-metal. I'm quite positive that most of these will end up in my day-to-day playlists, especially the one where I need uptempo rock 'n roll to guide me through those boring household tasks. I suggest you do the same, check this out and just party hard!


Serge

melodic metal / death metal

Sometimes it is as if the French live in a completely different universe than the rest of the world. Their music often follows different rules and restrictions than their American, English or even Belgian counterparts, which obviously makes French bands harder to categorize. Take this album by Arkan for example. It was delivered to me as a melodic death metal band. It's melodic, that is true. It also clearly belongs in the world of metal, but death metal? Don't you need growls and grunts for that? Is't death metal a genre that often goes fast?

Oh oh, that doesn't sound very good, does it?
Well, keep on reading.

Arkan was created in May 2005 by Foued Moukid (former member of The Old Dead Tree). His goal was to mix metal with oriental music. Their previous effort, 'Sofia'  was released by Season Of Mist and was quite well received. Yet, 'Kelem' takes on a different approach. Sarah Layssac has been replaced by Manuel Munoz (also from The Old Dead Tree) who, by the way, does a brilliant job. The death metal references have almost disappeared, making place for a modern melodic metal sound that focuses more on emotion than aggression.

When I listened to opener 'Kafir' for the first time, I was surprised. This gloomy and immersive mid-tempo song contains no grunts, no ferocious tempos, no shrieking solos. Yet, it thrives on this dynamic rhythm and massive riffs. Manuel's voice is excellent here. Somewhere rooted in extreme metal, this track is a prime example of modern day metal. 'Nour' eventually comes up with the grunts, and from there on the songs become more varied, ranging from a heavy version of Anathema to today's metalcore scene.

'The Call' is one of my favorites. It's somewhat faster, comes with plenty of energy and the Arabian elements make this such a great listening experience. It's probably also the most death-metal one on this record. 'Cub Of The Caliphate' is also an awesome track, graciously inviting you to a decent headbanging session. 'Just A Lie', is another possible fan-favorite, another mid tempo masterpiece of melodic metal that will make heads bang and hip shake.

I'll leave the other songs up to you, dear reader. I will definitely recommend this to today's metal fans. Perhaps not to the old school death metal fan because he might find this thing a bit too modern and melodic. Yet, those who love decently written metal from an excellent technical level will easily appreciate this. In all, 'Kelem' is a splendid album, varied, stubborn and immersive. What else could you want?


​Serge

progressive metal

He Gives is an album released on March 3, by German progressive metal project aquila. With eleven tracks – Ambition, Belonging, Confidence, Obedience, Impressions, Wisdom, Home, Priority, Guidance, Clarity and Rehabilitation – He Gives reveals itself to be an intelligent and very resourceful album, with unbreakable and creative guitar lines, brilliantly elaborated in a very progressive and experimental atmosphere. With more fragmented harmonies, and the general layer of an aggressive, but at the same time very subtle sonorous expansion, the sound on this album is generally very calm, and reverberating guitars give a primordial beauty to the graceful and rich nuances that seems to be the stronger elements of aquila’s music. 

Playing in a sophisticated and elaborated style with restless and irrational elements, He Gives features discreetly deathcore and death metal musical components, although the album vehemently sustains its predominantly melodic, experimental and smooth essence, giving precedence to a heavier emphasis on guitar, that displays a sensible, but paradoxically hostile nature all the way through.   

Sincerely, I think that He Gives suffers from too much technicality, and lacks spontaneity. Nevertheless, it’s an interesting album, far above the average score. I think personally, though, that this work appeals a lot more to guitar players than the general public. The musician behind the project certainly is strongly audacious, ambitious and creative, and demonstrates extremely well that he has developed brightly a very personal style. What becomes evident rapidly when you listen to this record is that aquila’s musical style is by no means generic, on the contrary. This album delivers to its audience a greater sense of wonderful and genuine originality, some tracks being far beyond captivating and exceptional. Aquila is an artistic force driven by a talented, enthusiastic and objective musician.  

If you are unfamiliar with aquila’s work, this is already a very good motive to listen to this album. Made primarily with very curious and intensely singular qualities, I really don’t have any faults to point about He Gives. It’s a remarkable album, that certainly can be qualified as a very gracious and creative artistic endeavor. 


Wagner

Industrial / Alternative / Metal

VTT… Vélo Tout Terrain? Not exactly. Voodoo Terror Tribe? Of course! Top shelve music brought by an alternative metal band that already has quite a repertoire. Showing up with bands such as W.A.S.P., Biohazard and more VTT added Il Nino to their list last year. After the ’15 years of revolution’ Anniversary Tour with this last band in 2016 VTT prepared themselves to unleash their newest work, produced by Christian Machado (Il Nino), on the world. 

Lead guitarist Emir Erkal explains in an interview (collegenews.com) that his Turkish and therefore some Middle Eastern and Mediterranean influences unconsciously return in his work. This immediately becomes concrete in ‘Lady In The Wall’ and ‘Edge Of Within’. He also adds that their music progressed over the years making their third and newest album sound more modern and industrial with catchy melodies. An amusing fact: the song ‘No Hell Like Home’ was written backwards. Starting from the title the music was written and later on the lyrics were added. 

This 10-track album is one of my favorites so far this year. ‘City of Sixes’ was the first single released together with a very entertaining music video. I have often caught myself singing its chorus or whistling its tune without even listening to the album. I agree with Erkal when he says that the melodies are catchy. This is not only the fact for ‘City Of Sixes’ but also for songs like ‘Burn More Bridges’ and ‘No Hell Like Home’, which somehow reminds me of Blackstone Cherry. 

My personal feeling about their latest release is that it is a high-quality piece of metal magic. It is an album that varies in style. What does that mean? Well, VTT has a wide reach. The different tracks, in my opinion, cannot all be placed in the same basket. ‘Night Wolf’ and ‘Under The Knife’, songs that are a bit heavier, differ from, for example, ‘Die To The Din Of The Drums’, which is more Danko Jones-like. Does that mean that these mentioned titles do not have any resemblances? No, I will not go that far. VTT always succeeds in producing its own unique sound. 

Because I do not want to withhold any information from you, I have to add one final thing. There is also a cover on the album, a Rammstein one. Not many bands can pull off something like that. VTT gets away with it. Although ‘Pussy’ is not my favorite song, I enjoy the Voodoo Terror Tribe version. Honestly, I have to conclude that I would not have added that track to the album. Voodoo Terror Tribe is enough on its own. Erkal and his companions do not need to be a cover band. They deserve to be covered.  


Michiel

sludge / stoner metal / hardcore

A few days ago, I had a weird dream. It took place in ancient Egypt, but it was different. In my dreams, the Egyptians had discovered the power of sound. Instead of gigantic walls, they kept enemies at bay with massive speakers, blasting out a harsh, pounding noise. Whenever an enemy tribe would approach, the sheer power of the sound would just blew them back to where they came from. The bouldering noise was too much for their puny little bodies to bear. Heads exploded and the ones that got away had become deaf for the rest of their lives.

I don't think it's a coincidence that this dream appeared the night after I first listened to this album by Norwegian steamroller Jagged Vision. With their blend of stoner metal, thrash metal and hardcore, these guys easily blast through walls, and probably your sanity too. From opener 'Betrayal' to closer 'Palehorse', this album is an intense assault on your eardrums. That opener is one brutal mothersludger too if you ask me, drenched in thrash metal riffs and with the energy of a supernova.

The level of aggression is extreme, the riffs and pounding drums seem to come from everywhere while the harsh, brutal vocals bash you down. 'I Am Death' even takes things a little further, borrowing elements from the black metal scene. Perhaps that is why that song is my favorite one on this album. 'Feeble Souls' is another mindboggling piece of work, something between Kylesa, Mastodon and even Arch Enemy.

I know, this is not death metal, but believe me, young death metal fans might piss their pants in sheer distress when they listen to this album. It's aggressive and brutal enough to compete with that scene. Others will quickly start banging their heads to powerhouses like 'Seven Seals' and 'Forlorn'. I can easily see this music cause moshpits, stage divers and crowdsurfers everywhere. So yes, if you like beat-down music, this surely is your thing.


​Serge
  

industrial metal

metal / hardcore

stoner rock / psychedelic

post rock / math rock / progressive rock

alternative rock / hard rock

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electronic / trip hop

post rock / electronic

stoner rock

metal

hardcore / black metal

death metal

dark folk / neofolk

Serge

alternative metal

Enter Escape is an album by Croatian alternative metal group The Ralph, released on February 20. Forty minutes long, the album has ten tracks: End of Everything, Next In Line, Enter Escape, Means End, Detached, Delimiter, Years Away, Reflux, Untouchable and D.I.G. A very powerful, energizing, strong and exceedingly furious album, Enter Escape really inserts interesting components into the genre. With the digression of pop and alternative rock elements infused into their sound, The Ralph has created a very intriguing and promising album, a little reminiscent of acts such as Seether, Shinedown, Nickelback, Creed and Three Days Grace. But don’t get me wrong: they are much, much, much better than those references. With an exponential sound that has a superb, vigorous, free-flowing, fluid and spontaneous synergy, The Ralph easily manages to be superior than all these other bands combined. 

A furious, splendid and very aggressive album, the musical spontaneity of their sound is surprising, They lack the mechanical and mathematical despondency of similar acts, whose aggressiveness sounds forced and artificial. With primitive, but expressively melodic pulses, their music proposes a true and formidable revival on a genre that has been dying for a long time now. Although at first they do not sound innovative, they do insert so many original and authentic components to their music, that their style immediately exposes itself by its unique scope and singularity. With an expressive vitality that shines with a brutal, but marvelous intensity, Enter Escape, song by song, reveals itself as a wonderful album, that has on the verge of a splendidly solicit flame of originality a marvelous ordeal of musical lucidity, artistic ambition and expressive sagacity. One of the best albums of the genre that I have heard, Enter Escape is filled by elements of other genres, that largely contributes to expand the brilliance of The Ralph’s musical style. 

For enthusiasts of alternative metal, Enter Escape is not just a tremendous record, but a gracious and overwhelming personal victory. An album that has everything to outstand each and every possible milestone of the genre, there is not a single moment, a single passage or a single track that could be labeled as bad, mediocre or lazy. This is a very energetic, surprising, elemental, formidable and intense album, that certainly will satisfy at large all the expectations demanded on the scene by the devotees of the genre. I don’t have the slightest doubt about that. 

With that crude vibe that easily combines with the ongoing lone stranger on the ride, but without losing the youngster appeal, Enter Escape carries on the dimension of its artistic capacities everything you can imagine: free and reverberating guitar lines, intense harmonies, exceedingly major impulsive beats and very unforgiving lacerating rhythms. An impeccable album, full of gold and sensational artistic elements, The Ralph really has proved for once and for all why they are astoundingly relevant on the scene.     

   

Wagner

stoner / doom / death metal

I have to admit, the death metal scene doesn't thrill me as much as it used to. There was a time when I devoured albums by Entombed, Dismember, Death, Amorphis and so on. Yet, in recent years, the genre seems to slip through my fingers. At first, I thought that that was age related. I'm just getting older and thus more interested in slow, calmer music. Yet, that doesn't seem to be the cause of my growing disinterest in the genre. The main problem seems to be a lack of originality. Many bands seem to fear trying new things, which results in uniformity. 

Enter Finnish quartet Altar Of Betelgeuze and their green smoke filled approach to the genre. Their new album 'Among The Ruins' is saving the genre for me, blending the harsh and abrasive nature of death metal with the monolithic riff capacity of doom and stoner rock. As if that is not varied enough, they throw in some clean vocals and even some psychedelic guitar solos. It's not often that bands like Black Sabbath & Electric Wizard come to mind while listening to a death metal album, but it sure is pretty damn bloody awesome.

Although opener 'The Offering' is a strong and immersive piece of music, follower 'Sledge Of Stones' is an absolute masterpiece. Somehow, Altar Of Betelgeuze managed to add the groove of bands like Entombed and Dismember to the thick sound of the bands I mentioned in the previous paragraph. At some point even Queens Of The Stone Age come to mind, along with some of their stoner rock colleagues. 'New Dawn' is another favorite, but more a vintage doom metal track than a death metal tune.

Another absolute highlight its 'Absence Of Light', a slow but brutal steamroller of a song, one that will have you on your knees in no time. There is a tiny bit Amorphis in here, enhanced with all of the above. Obviously, the majority of metal fans will classify this album as doom metal and I can't disagree with that. The overall tempo is quite slow. The riffs are almost touchable. The clean vocals remind me of the early days of the doom genre.

Basically, perhaps you can simplify classification by saying that this is "Conan with grunts" but that would be too easy. Fact remains that this is a well-written, well-thought-out and original album that definitely deserves a spot in your collection. So who to recommend it to? Well, doom fans of course. They will adore this thing, no doubt about that. Death metal fans will have to open their mind a bit, but once bitten, Altar Of Betelgeuze could easily become your favorites.


Serge
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power metal / gothic metal

St Matthieu – Remastered & Reborn, is an album by power metal group Mercury Rain, to be released by Bristol Archive Records, on April 7th. With fourteen tracks –Tales From Beyond, Sanctuary, The Messenger, Shadow’s Scent, Chimaera, Sortileges, Eldritch Mirror, Heaven in Sunset, St. Matthieu, The City of Ys, Bride of The Dark, The Boat of The Dead, Incubus and Amber Reflections – what we have here is a very lucid, vigorous and original power metal album, that really works splendidly well, departing from the genuine components of the genre, aligning the strength of melodic elements into a convergence of solid harmonies, that really knows how to interact between the creative intensity of poetic rhythms, and the spiritual alliance of a dense and cohesive musical versatility. 

With an original style, Mercury Rain has clear and profound melodies, that works from the ascendant fluidity of its genuine emotions, towards a pattern that reconcile the heavy passages of the songs with the more poetic and ethereal sonorous enchantments of their art. Impressively dynamic, in any moment you get bored throughout the album. With dense, but free-flowing rhythms, that sometimes evokes the fascination of distant crystal kingdoms lost somewhere in time, St Matthieu – Remastered & Reborn, is a major power metal work, that certainly will get by the heart each and every enthusiast of the genre. A phenomenal masterpiece – if analyzed inside the borders and frontiers of the genre – this album is a colossal work, being amazingly strong and lucid on the technical part as well. With a conscious sonorous outlook, and a verve for a marvelous, but easy minded proficiency, Mercury Rain definitely has to be regarded as an avatar of the genre.

With beautiful female vocals, the intense, ethereal and epic poetry that emanates from their magnificent sonorous artistry goes beyond any epicenter from the halls of imagination. Distant realms frozen in perpetual winter, epical battles that never end and the victorious coronation of kings, rapidly come to mind as you listen to this album. Perfectly aligning its musical sensibilities with the convergence of the epic imagery common to the genre, St Matthieu – Remastered & Reborn, is a powerful album, with no faults whatsoever – whether this would be major or minor – to be pointed out.

Although I do not feel inclined to evaluate the album as perfect, I admit it gets very close. With a greatness of its own, and an astounding creativity that resonates towards a marvelous sense of originality, Mercury Rain, on this album, really have outstood it’s principles as a band, and especially, in the impeccable work done in the improvement of their art. In a close interaction between shorter and objective songs and longer ones, abundant on beautiful melodies, vigorous harmonies and resonating glorious vocals, an authentic approach concerning how creativity can be worked out on the genre, and a major attention on the quality of technical devices, gives credit to St Matthieu – Remastered & Reborn, as a record, to fully deserve a spectacularly giant celebration. Certainly, this is what each and every enthusiast of power metal will think, soon after the album is released.    



Wagner

drone / ambient / jazz / krautrock

drone / krautrock / experimental

singer-songwriter

bandcamp

doom / dark ambient

metal / metalcore

thrash metal / hardcore

doom / sludge

metal / metalcore 

doom / sludge / black metal

doom

sludge / doom

Serge

progressive metal

dark ambient

post rock

shoegaze / psychedelic

symphonic doom

grindcore

alternative / metal

dark ambient

indie rock / pop rock

punk rock

rock / blues

funeral doom / black metal

noise / drone / spoken word

heavy metal

death metal / black metal

Serge

doom / industrial

The first month is not over yet and one thing is already starting to become clear. 2017 will color black, yellow and red (mostly black). There is no denying that Belgian bands are about to dominate the musical landscape and, as a result, plenty of end-year lists in December. Bathsheba and Wiegedood already set the standard in their respective genres and now Emptiness is aiming for the absolute top in whatever genre it is they play these days.

That being said, I have no idea how to correctly describe the music on this stunning full-length. The follow up to their 2014 album 'Nothing But The Whole' simply shatters every genre restriction you can think of, eventually resulting in something between Anathema, Godflesh and Massive Attack. I know, those are miles away from each other, but somehow Emptiness managed to throw these and other influences into something that actually deserves the term "unique".

It opens with the awesome track 'Meat Heart', a dark metal tune with plenty of keyboards and soundscapes but still damn catchy and immersive. I really dig the vocals here, along of course with the pitch black atmosphere. The vocals seem to come directly from a haunting horror movie, which adds a lot to whole concept. 'It Might Be' follows a similar path, but on the same time adds some elements from the whole post-black metal scene.

With the addition of Ashtoreth's Peter to the line-up, Emptiness brought in someone who know his way around drones, noise and soundscapes, something you can clearly hear on this album. 'You Skin Won't Hide You' perfectly illustrates that. This is one of my favorite tracks here, somewhat reminding me of Nadja covering The Cure and using these awesome dark grunts over it. Yep, apart from everything I already mentioned, this album also breathes shoegaze-galore.

So yes, in a way this album contains plenty of variation but at the same time it showcases a coherent and conceptual sound. Even the dark jazz influenced post-doom track 'Digging In The Sky' fits perfectly in this concept, even though this song issues an atmosphere of increscent madness rather than the pitch black darkness in the other tracks. And if all that is not enough, 'Ever' comes up with synthpop meets gothic death metal and still sounds convincing.

After listening to the album a few times, the phrase "I hope this is Emptiness' 'Wildhoney'" appeared in my head. With that, I was thinking about the conceptual feel, the lower tempo and the domination of atmosphere over aggression but also about simply breaking through. With this album, Emptiness added an absolute blast and certainly a landmark in their career. Obviously, this comes highly recommended for every fan of dark metal or "angst rock".


​Serge

shoegaze / dreampop

stoner rock

electronic / ambient

Avian

post rock

black metal / hardcore

heavy jazz / noise rock

alternative rock

doom metal

heavy metal

power metal / heavy metal

hardcore / progressive

symphonic meal / gothic meal

techno

alternative / singer-songwriter

death metal / thrash metal

Serge