It’s been a turbulent year for straightedge moshers Liferuiner. After releasing No Saints,  arguably the heaviest hardcore album of 2007, the singer was kicked out for allegedly having sex with a minor, then a label change and then fill in singer Danny Surjanac and drummer Shane Tyrer were recently arrested for 28 counts of graffiti. […]

London, England based experimental metal band CAPRICORNS have completed work on their impending new album. Hauntingly-titled River, Bear Your Bones, the record will see a September 30, 2008 release via respected independent label Rise Above. The sound of CAPRICORNS is a heady mix of crushing power and dark, subtle beauty that has won over fans […]

AS A THANK YOU TO FANS, HATEBREED WILL AUTOGRAPH EACH AND EVERY COPY OF THE DVD SOLD AT THESE RELEASE SHOWS LIVE DOMINANCE SLATED FOR RELEASE TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2008 ON KOCH RECORDS (New York, NY) — To celebrate the release of their first-ever DVD, metal hardcore pioneers Hatebreed will hit the road in support […]

I actually reviewed this album at another website a couple of years ago after it came out on Hope Prevails Productions, but now with a re-mastered sound, new artwork and a cover of Cynic’s “How Could I?”, I’m recalling how good this actually was and how well it stands up 3 years later. If the […]

I’ve always admired Deepsend Records, for their DIY ethic and ability to release records from fairly obscure bands that manage to compete with the larger named, larger label releases, and releases by the likes of Porkfarm, Dawn of Demise, Lecherous Nocturne, Exitium and such show the band has an eye for talent, and the debut […]

So, lets say you are one of the picky bastards that thought Opeth’s Watershed was too soft or too progressive, and wish bands like Dark Suns, Orakel, The Morningside, Farmakon, Adytum and such were even more like Opeth, just go ahead and grab the superb debut from Sweden’s, very, very talented newcomers In Mourning. While […]

Sometimes you see an album cover and just hope that the music inside matches the imagery. In this case, the graphic of five masked phantoms, convened like some interdimensional alien tribunal, could have just been another slapped-on gimmick – but thankfully, it’s the perfect visual for one of the more harrowing and hypnotic tech-death albums […]

There is absolutely nothing wrong with The Diseased and the Poisoned, sophomore effort from Carnifex (derived from the olde English word for ‘Executioner’). In fact, its arguably one of the better deathcore releases of the year-up there with Whitechapel’s This Is Exile-and therein lies the problem. The Diseased and the Poisoned and This Is Exile […]

GOJIRA announce the track listing from their upcoming album, The Way of All Flesh, which is set for a worldwide release on Oct. 13 via Listenable with the US release arriving in stores on Oct. 14 via Prosthetic Records. TRACK LISTING : 1) OROBORUS 2) TOXIC GARBAGE ISLAND 3) A SIGHT TO BEHOLD 4) YAMA’S […]

This review is going to start off with a weird comparison, but here it goes. I cannot help but feel that there is a kindred spirit between Terror and Cryptopsy on their latest full lengths. Even if they occupy totally different musical spectrums, there are a series of factors aligning them on their new releases. […]

Wow – here we have an unsigned act from Hamburg, Germany called Storm of Sorrows that labels need to snap to attention and watch, because these guys are loaded to the brim with talent. Their second LP, Slave to the Slaves really caught me off guard with the massive amount of skill contained within. Melodic […]

Norway’s 1349 will return to the US to participate on the highly anticipated Carcass tour this fall. Beginning September 5 the tour, also featuring Necrophagist, Suffocation, Aborted and Rotten Sound, marks the band’s third visit to America in support of their third and most successful album, Hellfire. Seven performances as of press time are confirmed […]

This was probably my most anticipated album of 2008. After all, not many albums have managed to move me as much as 2003’s Choirs of The Eye. Though a challenging listen, the melodies and structures soon became identifiable and revealed a complexity of emotion rarely explored. 2006’s Dowsing Anenome With Copper Tongue seemed to be […]

For most bands, releasing a double disc studio album comprised of solely new material, and clocking in at an hour and a half, would be an amazing feat. But for England’s extreme doom gods, Esoteric, this is just another day in the park. In fact, it’s not the first time they’ve released a two disc […]

I stumbled upon Wold after Screech Owl was released last year. Out of curiosity, I opted to give them a listen. Judging by Profound Lore’s other artists, I expected something avant-garde and, well, profound. After all, this label houses some high quality acts, including Nadja, Alcest, Portal and Asunder. What came out of my speakers […]

I’d heard of this band years ago, when they started gaining recognition during the tail-end of the ill-fated nu-metal movement. Never bothered to check them out, but seeing as If, their fourth album, is being released by The End Records (that bastion of iconoclasts and experimental goodness), and that it also debuted at #27 on […]

Orange County, California — On September 30, Bleeding Through will unleash their definitive album, Declaration. Where many bands at this stage in their career start talking about melody, accessibility and radio airplay, Bleeding Through resists the trends and walks where many artists fear to tread. Declaration is heavier, darker, angrier, more pissed off, faster and […]

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 […]

If you heard Pharaoh’s last effort, The Longest Night, you probably won’t be very surprised by what you hear on this record. Be Gone is a continuation of what the band has always done, an Americanized power metal that pays heavy tribute to both Iron Maiden and Iced Earth. The record opens with a slight […]

This sophomore release from Swedish outfit Machinery shows a great deal of promise, even if it’s a bit bipolar. There are really two bands at work here. One is a dark, progressive and interesting sounding act. The other is a blazing thrash/melodic death band. Fortunately, both show a good deal of talent and are quite […]

Female-fronted bands, especially the soprano-style, haven’t fared very well in my reviews recently. By and large, I’m a little tired of that style, but just as I’m ready to write it off completely, along will come a record that really connects with me. That’s the case with the latest from Todesbonden. This is how the […]

This might be one of the most unique releases that’s landed on my desk this year. It opens with the funk-thrash mouthful of a song, “When You’ll Realize that the Sun Will Rise Up Being a Black Hole.” Imagine Max Cavalera providing vocals for Primus, and you might have a rough idea of what this […]

Viva la thrash revival! Here’s the Bay Area’s own Hatchet with their debut full length, Awaiting Evil, a real barn stormer filled front to back with face melting riffs, leads, solos and quite possibly my favorite vocalist I’ve heard yet from the movement in Marcus Kirchen. His delivery isn’t entirely unique or distinctive, but he’s […]

I wasn’t expecting much from Man Made Paradise coming in, as a name like Ticket to Hell is as cliché and generic as metal band names come. I thought for sure I was in for something cheesy and/or boring, but the second I pushed play, my jaw dropped and I was locked in. Man Made […]

Personally, (and I’ve thought this way since 2006’s Pride of the Wicked), Pennsylvania’s War of Ages are a far superior act to the far more hyped As I Lay Dying when it comes to Christian metalcore with a heavy Gothenburg lean. That fact is only cemented with the band’s excellent third album (not counting last […]