Eternal Suffering – Recollections of Tragedy & Misery (Pathos).  So once in a while I’ll peruse the MetalHit.com virtual distro and grab a $4.99 download. That’s how I ended up with Eternal Suffering’s complete discography. The Kingston, MA death metal band called it quits in 1994, but left us with 1997’s Remain Forever in Misery and 1999’s Drowning in Tragedy, both of which are included here.  Jagged, pointy, grooving, sludgy, and leaving a thick layer of muck on the bottom of your shoes, the tunes remind of a less guttural Rottrevore with references that point to various NYDM acts, including Internal Bleeding, intentional or otherwise. Some early Cannibal Corpse similarities as well, especially those nasal Barnes’ screams. Eighteen tracks (including two bonus cuts) of gnarly underground USDM history for $4.99 or $10.00 for the digipak. Great gangbang for the buck.

Headrot – Gulping the Remains (Pathos). Complete discography from this early 90s USDM act. Stinking and filthy death that is – once again – along the lines of Rottrevore and Impetigo. Features the always cool artwork of Mark Riddick. Decent enough, but didn’t grab me like the Eternal Suffering collection.  “He’s Dead” is just funny with lyrics more ridiculously literal than anything Glen Benton has ever written: “Jesus died and I don’t care” and “The Bible sucks!” Skip Bradshaw of Gut Bucket fame plays drums on it, which is only notable because I like the name Gut Bucket. Also purchased as a $4.99 download from MetalHit..

Bloodthrone – Shield of Hate (Forever Underground). Purchased for the going-out-of-business price of $2.00 from the Epitome Productions distro, Shield of Hate is straight ahead, tremolo picked and blasting USBM, not unlike Thornspawn and Kult ov Azazel, though maybe not quite as viciously over the top as the former or as well written as the latter. Solid nonetheless.

Blood for Blood – Outlaw Anthems (Victory). Came out in ’02. Society-hating Boston HC with multiple tunes that hit the lyrical sweet spot and a melodic sensibility that might cause socially awkward folks to dance.

Ramallah – Kill a Celebrity (Thorp). It hasn’t left the list, even though I forgot to include it on the last installment. This one would be on my best-of-the-decade list. Rob “White Trash” Lind’s sociopolitical commentary is as truthful as it is pointed and anyone that doesn’t want to believe it is “lost in a world of fantasy,” as Triumph’s Rik Emmett sang on 1983’s Never Surrender. “I want to hide in an opium sunrise” from “Oscar Cotton” is the line currently wedged between layers of gray matter inside my skull.

Havok – Time is Up (Candlelight) – Damn right it’s still on here! This is thrash metal with teeth bared and knuckles bloodied!

Evergrey – Glorious Collision (SPV). In the early to mid part of the first decade of this 21^st Century, I was a huge Evergrey fan, but over the years I’ve lost a measure of interest. It’s been three years at least since I really spent any time with the band’s releases, but back in the day I devoured everything that I could fit between my (mouth) cheeks. So I gave Glorious Collision a spin and found that it is pretty much classic Evergrey; more so than 2008’s Torn and (especially) 2006’s Monday Morning Apocalypse. Final verdict: good album, but still not digging this stuff like I used to. Never fear; the mood will strike again.

Believer – Transhuman (Metal Blade) – First Believer album with which I’ve spent any time listening and I am thoroughly impressed. I know of the Believer reputation as one of the original (good), non-preachy Christian metal bands playing progressive thrash metal, but on the new album the spectacular, angled and knotted riffing is only occasional close to what most would define as thrash. Even then it’s stretching it. Dynamic, often unconventional arrangements with beautiful keyboard work and catchy melodies to go with an approach that is technically accomplished, yet in no way overkill. Great stuff.

Wooden Stake – Black Caped Carnivore (Sorcerer’s Pledge). Vinyl 7” limited to 500 copies that includes two new Wooden Stake tracks. I ordered it from the Razorback distro. My copy is #184.  Love the artwork and the tunes are spooky keen.

Trap Them – Darker Handcraft (Prosthetic). You put your Stockholm death metal chocolate in my U.S. hardcore peanut butter! Another band that critics seem to love to an almost uncomfortable extent, but in this case it is not without justification. Listen closely and you’ll hear the sound of Trap Them expanding their repertoire into something that is not as easily categorized as that first sentence would indicate.  Black Breath could still take ‘em in a street fight, but Darker Handcraft is the most well-rounded album of their career and a cinch for year-end lists the world over.

Inquisition – Ominous Doctrines of the Perpetual Mystical Macrocosm (Hells Headbangers). Vinyl version, baby! Oh wait, I’d better write more so that the band name-album title-record-label line above doesn’t end up with a higher word count than the content of the entry.
Mercyful Fate – Melissa (Roadrunner/Megaforce). Pure Satanic heavy metal genius from a band I didn’t appreciate enough back in the day. That’s changed drastically over the years. “Curse of the Pharaohs” is among the hookiest tracks they’ve ever written and the 11-minute “Satan’s Fall” among the most dynamic.  What the fuck were Sherman and Denner thinking when they formed Forbidden Evil? I must have been drunk when I gave a decent review to the 2004 self-titled album or maybe it wasn’t that bad (can’t recall now), but sobered up enough to recognize 2005’s Black Empire for what it was: Rubbish.

Mercyful Fate – Don’t Break the Oath (Roadrunner/Combat) – Just obtained the 180-gram vinyl remaster to make up for my short-lived ownership of the original pressing that I purchased when it was released, a decision that still causes me great mental anguish. I won’t lie; Don’t Break the Oath scared the shit out of me as a kid. Oh great White Light Father in the Sky, forgive me for this cardinal sin.

Wormrot – Dirge (Earache) – Excellent grindcore from Singapore. Pay attention!

Kampfar – Mare (Napalm). Still pagan, still folky, and still catchy, but a glossier sheen from Peter Tagtgren sands off the grit that made Kvass such a great album.  Heimgang hinted at the direction. Fortunately, they’ve not thrown out the ugly baby with the scalding bathwater.

Brian Robertson – Diamonds and Dirt (SPV) – Remember Robertson for his work on the underrated Another Perfect Day (Motorhead) and his contribution to some great Thin Lizzy music, instead of for this bowl of tepid blues-rock soup.

Obscura – Omnivium (Relapse). Nobody balances uber cool technicality with a song-based focus like Obscura. Omnivium is their masterpiece and no tech-death album in 2011 will top it…guaranteed.

Motorjesus – Wheels of Purgatory (Big3). Ballsy hard rock with shiny Nickelback-esque choruses, though much more tolerable. Honestly, it is halfway decent, though devoid of staying power for dirt lovers.

Cannibal Corpse – Global Evisceration (Metal Blade) Another terrific Cannibal Corpse DVD that offers an insightful view into the group’s world tour supporting Evisceration Plague; 10 of the 40 countries visited are featured, interspersed with live performances from the Albuquerque and Denver shows.  Kill is a better album (one of the best, if not the best of the act’s career), but since Cannibal Corpse has never made a bad album, then it goes without saying that Global Evisceration is good as well, which is why I wrote this instead of saying it.

Ted Nugent – Double Live Gonzo (Epic) Specifically the MP3 versions of “Just what the Doctored Ordered,” “Stormtroopin’” and “Stranglehold,” all of which knock the snot out of the studio recordings. I still own the now well worn double-vinyl release. That’s right!

Stryper – The Covering (Big3) – “Fatherrrrr! Why have you forsaken me!?”

Dripping Slits – Short Skirts & Long Nights (Thinker Thought) – Stop referencing The Stooges and MC5, kids. You ain’t all that. Loud and rowdy does not in this case equate to memorable. Dripping Slits…just had to write that one more time.

Please accept my sincerest apologies for making it this far. You are not to be commended. You wouldn’t stab a horse, right? So why are you still purchasing blood diamonds through black market channels? You’re dead to me.