From the cover art by the great Gustave Dore, guaranteed to make me notice, straight through to the very metal album closer piano solo that Beethoven would have loved, Artefact challenges you to listen, no multitasking. Like current Primordial with seven troll steps back toward early Enslaved with a nod toward Ihsahn on the way [...]

Pop this disk in and it takes only about twenty seconds to suspect it is Kampfar and less than a minute to be sure it could be no one else. All pervasive is the Kampfar sound and if you don’t know what that is by now expect to be turned into a frog by the [...]

Bahimiron has two things going for them. They hail from Texas and they play crisp, sharp war black metal. They have been around for a little while but I did not hear them til the As The Sun Burns split though it was not til late 2006 with Pure Negativism: In Allegiance With Self Wreckage, [...]

Singapore can boast of Abhorer, Sadiztik Impaler, Istidraj, and Impiety. The mighty Impiety, it seems, has been around forever. In truth Dominator is just their eleventh release. Impiety has its origins in pre-Darkthrone black metal, when the bass guitar was still a vital instrument and as such they are usually referred to as black thrash, [...]

Replacing all but the rhythm section might spell disaster for any band, especially a symphonic one. Finland’s Alghazanth has weathered more than its share of lineup changes and they take this one in stride as well. When a new Alghazanth disc comes out it is a safe bet as to the style and tone. Slow [...]

Maine’s black death band Shadar Logoth returns with their self released debut full length. The first comment needs to go to the cover art. Yet another hanging. I think the noose has become the most overused motif in black metal. At least this time it is a hanging and not a suicide.
The one facet of [...]

The name Xerión, is from the ancestral Celtic mythology from Galicia. The style is Celtic black metal but not in the sense that Waylander is. Think Berserk instead. This is pure black rage combined lyrically with Galician folklore in the native tongue. According to the label, this is a re-release on cd of the earlier [...]

“Why is it you and not me?” and “but you’re strong enough to live on,” both lines from Destruction pop into my head. I’m undecided if the mighty have fallen or if it is me. On the first few listens the music is too mellow and stripped bare of metalness. I don’t like the new [...]

On first listen I thought Twilight of the Thunder God sounds good but not as good as the last one, by the tenth listen I am anticipating the music, nice catchy riffs, cool melodies, tremendous power, you know the formula, by the twentieth listen it felt like an old friend, a classic and I’ve only [...]

This is old school black crossed with Shatraug metal, or put another way, Mercyful Fate meets Sargeist, can’t go wrong with that. At first I didn’t even read the logo, just popped the cd in and looked at the cover art. It would hold up well as a King Diamond cover and I figured this [...]

First off if I’m to be stranded anywhere it has better be cold, so if I were stranded on an arctic Island, what ten essential albums would I have with me. Obviously these are essential albums that I can not live without so I don’t need to worry about electricity to power the cd player [...]

The more open minded of you that rave about bands like Opeth and Katatonia seriously need to give Galgenfrist a few listens. To most brought up in the western music tradition this is a challenging listen, but one well worth the effort. This is not groundbreaking, after all this idea has been around several hundred [...]

I thought Nåstrond was a thing of the past until I picked up the split release with Myrkr that came out last year. That put Nåstrond back on my one to watch list. I first discovered them back in 1995 when I came across them in a Full Moon catalog and figured no way I [...]

Ten years ago this band released a demo nobody ever saw, then disappeared. Now he is back claiming a 13 year history with Requiem. Apparently this is no longer an NS band.
It all starts with an atmospheric intro called “Intro”. “Cleansed” allows you to focus on instrumentation or quite awhile before the vocals kick in, [...]

Forget second wave, this is throwback to first wave style. The emphasis is on harsh, done through lots of distortion. Aggression and hate, no whining about suicide and depression. The pace is slow and even and the songs are guitar driven not drum driven. They obviously paid attention to the 90’s even though they are [...]

Viking black metal giants that seem to be too often overlooked, Helheim are back with their sixth full length and second on Dark Essence. I have followed Helheim to Muspell and back, or from “Muspilli Strid” to “Svart Seid.” Hellheim lineage shines through. This is a return to Solistitium form. Many old elements are in [...]

You know that noise a screaming baby makes just after you slit her throat? Torog captured it perfectly on Rituale Satanum but has since bled out and now sings with the voice of the demon that possesses him. The most obvious change is more growl less shriek and the vocals are less powerfully rendered in [...]

Keep of Kalessin meets Gamma Ray. Or is it vintage Iron Maiden on the opening track with acoustic guitar thrown in. The production is even more polished and clearer than last time making for a monumental sound that will make Bathory purists cringe. Once again high energy forward driving but not overtly melodic music with [...]

“Sieg Hail Satan”, that says it all. This is slow and heavy keep it simple stupid style self proclaimed true Norwegian black metal with a loud bass with a heavy rumble and chug along guitars. Tom Warrior grunts and roaring vocals round out what fast period Marduk would call a ballad. Lyrics are standard fare, [...]

With over an hour of pleasure ahead of me, I inserted Massive Conspiracy Against All Life into my cd player, lamenting the demise of the band at the same time. I was fully prepared to bump “Shed This Skin”, “It Comes in Whispers”, “Hanged Man”, “He Whom Shadows Move Towards”, and “Ruminating in Hatemagick” from [...]

While being chased after stealing Suttung’s mead, Odin was nearly caught and that close call made him wet himself, the urine raining down upon Midgard to inspire mortal poets. Obviously some spilled directly into Johnny’s glass shard filled drinking horn. Johnny’s vocals are getting harsher again, no mellowing with age here. Hedlund hear my call.
Unleashed [...]

The easiest way to explain Kataklysm of the past decade is a box of Cheerios. Listening to Kataklysm is like eating Cheerios, you know they are not the most exciting death metal band out there but it is a safe bet they are palatable. The most daring they have gotten in recent years is Honey [...]

If early christians had witnessed Belphegor they would not have had to demonize pagans, the truth would have been enough. Someone had to try to live up to the biblical descriptions, why not Belphegor. The bible insists all pagan rituals are abominations and claim pagans are not only apostates and blasphemers but fornicators and baby [...]

Harsh, fast, repetitive, slow, haunting, grim, raw, distorted, minimalist, rhythmic, this is the definitive remastered director’s cut of prolific Malefic’s 2001 demo A Gate Through Bloodstained Mirrors and 2001 promo A Darkened Winter. Unfortunately the promo copy that I am reviewing only includes disc one of the two-disc set so I still have not acquired [...]

Songs to leave you hanging. If you do it right you can listen to the whole album while dangling before you suffocate, but there is not really much point because there is nothing new to discover on later songs, so go ahead and kick the chair out and snap your neck.
Another one man Burzum clone, [...]