Canada produces, on average, some of the finest, most killer Black Metal and Death Metal. It’s the home to Black Metal titans Blasphemy, Death Metal tricksters VHS, and hordes of other, equally deadly bands capable of crushing the listener into mulch. Enter Sedimentum. Suppuration morphogénésiaque was at the top of my year-end list that year, […]

Vivè la France! After hosting the most controversial and Metal as fuck Olympics that saw countrymen Gojira performing next to a headless Marie Antoinette and a feast of mythological proportions; all in the opening ceremony. Mercyless are also from France, and although they play a significantly different style of Death Metal than Gojira, they bring […]

Back in 1986, I was just a fledgling Metalhead. I had cut my teeth on Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and KISS, but in 1986 three albums came out that changed my life: Reign in Blood, Master of Puppets and Peace Sells… but Who’s Buying? All of a sudden I wanted the fastest music I could […]

Back in the early 2000s as I was still learning about Eastern European extreme metal I discovered a number of bands that may or may not have sketchy politics. Dub Buk, Nokturnal Mortum (their early days), Graveland and this Arkona from Poland. I was already familiar with the Russian folk band Arkona and wanted to […]

“Between the time when the oceans drank Atlantis and the rise of the sons of Aryas, there was an age undreamed of. And unto this, Conan, destined to wear the jeweled crown of Aquilonia upon a troubled brow. It is I, his chronicler, who alone can tell thee of his saga. Let me tell you […]

It’s finally Fall. The best of the seasons in my humble opinion, especially here in the Southwest where temperatures have been in the triple fucking digits. Granted there have been albums that lowered my mental temperature, but none have done what Mork has done with Seventh album Syv. From the press release: Syv was performed, […]

I’m never sure what I’m going to get when I go into a Ghaal album, whether it’s his Wyrd project or God Seed or even Gorgoroth. I mean, he’s really known for Gorgoroth and his last album with them, Ad Majorem Sathanas Glorium remains one of my favorite releases, it was a bit experimental and […]

One day I’ll visit Finland. This crazy arctic land produces some of the finest Black and Death Metal that the Metal community feeds on daily. Impaled Nazarene, Behexen, Sargeist, and Satanic Warmaster are four of my favorite bands from there, but my top favorite is undoubtedly Horna; this strange, evolving demon that has existed since […]

1349 is the year that the Black Death swept through Norway. It’s only fitting that a Black Metal band would eventually take such a brutal portion of time and name their band after it. 1349 came out of the ashes of Alvheim in 1997 with Ravn (vocals, drums), Tjalve (guitars), Seidemann (bass), and Balfori (guitars). […]

Flotsam and Jetsam https://www.flotstildeath.com/ I’ve waxed nostalgic about the 80s many times. I enjoy being able to watch or listen to something from the decade and say “I remember when that happened” like that time when Flotsam and Jetsam‘s original bassist Jason Newstead joined Metallica. I remember when that happened… Anyway, if you know that […]

“Before the tragedy, no one ever thought this band was going to exist without Trevor.” When Trevor Strnad passed away the world of Metal was shaken to the core. That above quote from TBDM co-founder Brian Eschbach is taken from the press release and it’s a heartbreaking statement. Trevor had such a huge presence, both […]

Black Metal is a finicky genre. It goes through shifts and changes that keep it moving forward and there’s enough bands both established and brand new that it’s creative integrity and spiritual voice of the 90s continues to infect the new blood. El Jefe forwarded the new Hammerfilosofi EP SOLUS (Igne Natura Renovator Integra) to […]

When was the last time an album hit you with such emotion that you felt like it was casually going to rip your heart out and leave you with a gaping hole where your emotions used to live? I have a list of bands that have created music like that, and those are the ones […]

I’m from Kentucky, the heart of Bluegrass and Country music, sort of… I think Nashville would disagree and probably Oklahoma, Kansas and any other state that cuddles up next to the southern states would as well. But to say I grew up around Country Music is an understatement, for years I was immersed in it. […]

There’s been some watercooler conversation about Darkthrone lately at the home office; specifically the difference between new and old and the new bands that pay homage to the early 90s era. I got a couple of recommendations and this is the first review for the newer-than-new debut for Avmakt and it’s called Satanic Inversion Of… […]

Power Metal has been part of my life since Helloween and their Keeper of the Seven Keys albums. A long time, considering that that first album was ’85-’86 I think. Manowar was around then, wearing animal skins and looking absolutely ridiculous. I confused (and wrongly assumed) that Hammerfall were Manowar clones. It might’ve been the […]

Spain’s Totengott returns with their third album, Beyond the Veil, and first for Hammerheart Records.  I have enjoyed their prior two albums, Doppelgänger and The Abyss quite a lot.  The band originally started as a Celtic Frost cover band and their primary influence falls in line with the monstrous Monotheist reformation album as well as […]

I love French Black Metal, and that goes back to the early 2000s when I first heard Mutiilation, Anorexia Nervosa, Deathspell Omega and Osculum Infame. From the press release: Gravenoire was formed in early 2022 by Maximilien Brigliadori (BÂ’A, Diablation, former Hyrgal), Emmanuel Zuccaro (BÂ’A, Verfallen, former Hyrgal), Vicomte Vampyr Arkames (Diablation (former Seth / […]

I’ve loved Dark Ambient Music or ‘Dungeon synth’ music since the first time I heard Mortiis’ Født til å herske, but even before his music, I loved Midnight Syndicate. They were a Halloween and night drive staple, as well as Thou Shalt Suffer‘s Somnium; yes I’m bouncing around years, no I don’t care. I really […]

Ours is a country in turmoil. We are divided as never before in our history, trust in the government is at an all-time low and naturally, the conspiracy theories are whizzing by like… bullets that don’t necessarily hit their marks. But lurking below the heat-baked streets are the CrusHumans, bent on destroying everything in their […]

I’ve been in a weird mood lately, things haven’t been catching my ear, which can be attested to the mountain of material that I could write about. But I got this promo the other day and I can’t stop listening to it, going on three days it’s been in rotation already. The ‘this’ that I’m […]

I saw Amorphis on tour for this album in 1994 or 1995, not too sure, but I saw them at a shitty little club in southeast Albuquerque with Entombed and got to meet one of the guitarists (I’m really straining my long-term memory here.) It was, despite the location, an incredible show. When I think […]

It’s been a few weeks since my deep dive into Helloween’s back catalog and then the killer album from MadHatter showed up, and now I’m going deeper into the Power Metal void with Shadows of Steel and their searing fourth full-length Twilight II. This is a ass-kicker, fast when it needs to be and harmonious […]

I’ve had a few moments where I look at the speakers and ask myself ‘what the fuck am I listening to?’ Of course I already know obviously but in terms of the sounds coming into my ears, it’s a process to process and then decide if I like it enough to stick around. Which brings […]

  The years between 1930 and 1947 are incredibly monumental years for a number of reasons. WWII was a pivotal time in world history, and the rise of fascism was the impetus for the United States to get involved (among other things.) Within Black Metal there lies a hole where politics turn blood red in […]