Mortals - Cursed to See the Future (2014) Review

Album | Cursed to See the Future
Country | United States
Genre | Sludge / Crust / Black Metal
Label | Relapse Records

Coming from New York, the all-female trio Mortals release their second full length record Cursed to See the Future under the Aegis of Relapse Records, which is also the first release of the band through a certain label (all their previous records were self-released). One can't say Relapse hasn't proven itself exemplary these years and here is another valuable newcomer band they found and promoted, as this record fuses the unconventional parts of sludge and black metal naturally and perfectly as they are.

The tracks of the record range from four to nine and a half minutes and clock up to fourty seven minutes in total, making Cursed to See the Future the longest and most important release of the band so far. The production here is very clean and pleasant, giving the distorted guitars and the vocals a bit higher attention into a direct and full sound. The album carries a unique essence when it comes to it's content, flowing perfectly as it progresses and constantly offering divergent moments as well as memorable parts.

Mortals grew from a metal / punk outfit to sludge / hardcore and now something like blackened sludge and their earlier steps still have a spot in their music. There are plenty of hardcore and sludge elements in Cursed to See the Future, mainly in the prolific and distinct riffs of the tracks that are aimed to bulldoze the listener with their heaviness, as one of the finest characteristics of the record. The guitars sculpt the characteristic sound of the record and the switching of lines is so natural as if it was meant to be, a truly remarkable effort compiled of a bunch of amazing riffs, not a poor one included.

The turn towards black metal is also apparent in the album, unfolding during it's very first moments in the opening track “View from the Tower”, which also serves as a first taste of the devastation the album causes. There are sparse moments and sparse riffs inside the various guitar melodies, while “Series of Decay” is a composition strongly into the black metal temperament. Mortals have a gift in creating solid compositions the same way as the all powerful Darkthrone and that's what makes this record so easy listening and organic.

Apart from the guitars, another amazing point of the record is the screams of the vocalist, high pitched screams moving between black metal and crust, they are accurate and legit through the whole album. Mortals did a great job with Cursed to See the Future, which has elements of various genres very well mixed together. 

DAMAGE: [8.5/10]

Verivala - Voittomme (2004)

Album | Voittomme
Country | Finland
Genre | Black Metal
Label | Autistiartili Records

~ There is a fluttering flame ~

The two members of this project have been involved in many projects and most of them sound nothing like this one. Verivala was founded in 2003 and the first album was released only a year later, named Voittomme, which should be "profit" in Finnish. All the song titles and lyrics are in Finnish and the front cover resembles the logo only, a really nice logo indeed. As far as obscurity goes, this act is ideal and it turns out the music is just the same. Verivala serve a ridiculously traditional sound of unfiltered punkish black metal in the vein of early Bathory and Darkthrone, true opposers to anything permissive in the genre.

With a main focus on black metal, there are a few punk and thrash metal elements in the tracks, mainly in the middle-fast paced riffs they use that remind a lot of the genre's early era. This does not change as the album progresses, the band chooses to keep the same style for as long as it lasts and the result is a foul record that belongs to the early nineties, and to the likes of the more angry fans of the scene. Voittomme clocks at half and hour of edgy and lively black metal against it's time, with as simple characteristics as possible in terms of music and lyrics (going with satanism and the occult).

As Verivala are probably a side project of the members, who give more attention to their main bands, Voittomme might have been recorded and composed really quickly. Yet, it's a very good continuation and addition to classic albums, being great listening to even if the references are quite strong. The production of the album is noisy but really balanced, as you can hear all instruments including the bass, which is not left out but present at all times. The sound of the guitars is cold and cutting, creating the distinct sound of the album as well.

I think the most remarkable aspect of this record is the disgustingly painful and agonizing vocals. If pure hatred and severity can be expressed by a voice, this man's here is surely a great example, to a point that it makes the record even more difficult to approach on a first level. It pushes the intensity of the record to the edge of the cliff and is the main element that makes Voittomme a more personal and crooked effort by the band. Their music reminds a lot of bands like the ones mentioned above but it still is unique, and a refreshing piece of two lunatics' fury.

Bands like Verivala are always interesting to listen to, especially when black metal has taken so many different directions after the 00s. Goat Tormentor, one member of the band, has also played in Swallow the Sun and Barren Earth, while Atvar is also in Circle of Ouroboros and Prevalent Resistence, their talent can't be ignored. Voittomme flows nicely once you get the grip of it and pass over the vocal barrier and after that, it's a true beauty for all black metal freaks. The best tracks here are "Liekkeihin (Into the Flames)" and "Sasta (Filth)", while the last is named "Jeesuksen Muistolle", which means "In the memory of Jesus". Way to go there.

DAMAGE: [8/10]

Cancer - To The Gory End (1990) Review

Album | To The Gory End
Country | UK
Genre | Thrash / Death Metal
Label | Vinyl Solution

~ Legacy of his tragedy ~

There were a lot of bands with tremendous potential back in the early nineties, who faded away with time and all we have now is the legacy of their first years. I'm not sure if Cancer is a good example of the fact, but still their first records are more or less amazing for their kind, especially for fans of a more thrashy version of death metal in the nineties. Their debut To the Gory End is exactly that, a good dose of impulsive thrash / death with a sweet retro feeling of what was shining back then.

The simplistic and direct cover of To The Gory End pretty much describes the title of the album, with graphics reminding of low-budget horror movies of the eighties. The band was still young and it's highly possible they were influenced by films like that, when the artwork actually points towards the beloved blade of Jason Voorhees and was based on 1978's movie Dawn of the Dead, a personal favourite as well. The lyrics revolve around such movies and gore, death, witches and the likes, so their attention can be projected there anyway.

The record lasts thirty four minutes, which is a standard length, and it contained nine tracks in total. The production does not differ much from was being released then and it contains all the punching and intimidating moment an album like that should have. 1990 was the year death metal was starting to open it's wings towards the sky of metal, yet Cancer did not fully adjust their sound to immaculate brutality, blending enough thrash metal elements into their music to show the world where all this originally started, as well as the band's tastes, to a certain level.

Given that, it's not difficult to recognize the thrash metal riffs in the vein of bands like Nuclear Assault at some songs, as well as the fast paced riffing and group shouting lyrics often used in the genre. Apart from that, the vocals, done by John Walker, at times have a Carcass-ish tone in them and the compositions themselves include both genres enough. The music of Cancer could be in favor of the early Sepultura records, in the Schizophrenia - Beneath The Remains era mostly. I can't say there is a bad track in To The Gory End, in fact everything in here is splendid.

The guitar work includes enough riffing in each song, as well as a couple of solos here and there, focusing mainly on heavy sounding melodies, and less but enough on very fast / speed jamming. Great work has been done in the changes of the lines and the record doesn't get repetitive, while a short sample (in the self-titled track) and clean guitars (in "Sentenced")  are used in a couple of songs. Needless to say, that the main chorus of the second track "cancer fucking cancer" is catchy enough to randomly scream it while walking days after you have listened to the album.

I was very pleased with the steady vocal work in the album, offering great harsh, spitting word screams. The drum work is affecting enough, while the bass isn't that present to the front lights generally. For a debut, it's a great release by the band that dragged them into the club of the many talented bands of their years, compiling a bunch of amazing records for us to listen today. Notable and not to be missed, highlight tracks are "Imminent Catastrophy", "To The Gory End" and "Body Count".

DAMAGE: [8/10]

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Disma - The Vault of Membros (Demo, 2009) Review

Origin: New Jersey, US
Genre: Death Metal
Album: The Vault of Membros
Label: Independent

I found out about Disma from their full length in 2011 and it was the reason I decided to search more about this band, and the fact that it seemed like my ears enjoyed apocalyptic, unearthly death metal even more than it's straightforward form. The band's debut release is this demo and it was released in 2009, containing three tracks and seventeen minutes of music in total.

The band's sound is thick, heavy and agressive in a way that not many bands achieve, giving away the feeling of bands like Dead Congregation and Funebrarum. Despite being a demo, it has a fairly legit production and the sound is drilling into the ears, bleeding it's way to pleasure as the first riffs unfold in "Lost in the Burial Fog", all great signs for a newcomer band that it was back then.

Getting drawn in their atmosphere, each track has plenty of deep melodies, with the touches of doom / death present at times (i.e. in the second track "The Vault of Membros" which also has an awesome bass introduction) that of course remind a darker side of Autopsy, while the changes are accurate and the musicianship is quite solid, with breathing growls, blasting drums and powerful riffs, as well as a couple of solos.

Disma show their intentions right away it they're not to impress with technicality or win a fanbase of the modern sound. They play a kind of spotless old school death metal, which should have made the anticipation of their massive Towards the Megalith hard enough. All three tracks would be used in the full length and the band stated their place with confidence after this really good demo.

DAMAGE: [8.25/10]

Pyathrosis - Fields of Unceasing Death (Demo, 1991) Review

Album | Fields of Unceasing Death [Demo]
Country | Netherlands
Genre | Death Metal
Label | Independent

| Eradicated evil |

Only three demos were released by this Dutch band, back in the early nineties. Fields of Unceasing Death is the second release which was of course independent, containing five compositions and a total of twenty three minutes of direct, tape worshipping death metal.

Among the countless worthless demos of that era, Pyathrosis managed to release an actual gem that worths discovering and preserving as one fine example of the energetic underground. The production is noisy enough but let's the sound of the instruments to make do, making the guitars, the vocals and the drums audible and enjoyable. It's sound does not differ from the recordings of that time, if not slightly deeper, and covers a collection of nice compositions and ideas as a whole.

Fields Of Unceasing Death never stepped into the spotlight but it could be a collector's item, as it's not just something rare, it actually has some quality music to be listened. The vocalist Wiebe van der Veen offers painful growls and stays focused to the traditional way of singing and his talent is a highlight of the whole demo, as it was exactly what I wanted to hear over the fuzzy instrumentation.

Moments of groove are not missing from the demo either, especially in the introduction tracks. Yet, the band does not stray from pure death metal and it reminded me of Bolt Thrower or early Unleashed at some points, if comparisons are necessary. The work on the drums is satisfying while the guitar lines present catchy and poweful riffs, making the listener want to come back to the record after it finishes.

To sum up, I think Pyathrosis nailed it with this demo and I'll look into their other two ones as well, to see if they are as good as this. They have a steady sound and good tracks, a fine and efficient length and a cool, simplistic appoach to the genre. The hounds of early demo metal should already be on the job.

DAMAGE: 8/10

Conan - Blood Eagle (2014) Review

Album | Blood Eagle
Country | United Kingdom
Genre | Stoner / Doom Metal
Label | Napalm Records

| Seek eyeless dwarf |

Conan are one British act that slowly grows into a powerhouse for stoner metal these years, setting their mark with Battle in the Swamp EP in 2007 and releasing material since then. Their debut full length album in 2012 a remarkable statement, working on hypnotic, slow music for pill enthusiasts and stoner freaks. Now, Blood Eagle seems efficient and tight at first glance, while the music is nothing less than what's expected of them, through it's fourty four minute length.

This band knows how to take a single note and repetitively make it awesome, focusing on it's bottomless distortion rather than musical variety. They move above the border of stoner rock, into some really heavy sludge / stoner metal location, maybe as heavy as that genre can be if it has to be listenable as well. Listening to Blood Eagle is all about a riff or two, a stomping bass sound, far chanting vocals and a fuzzy atmosphere, while the speed rarely dares to step further than a standard snail pace, only throwing a couple of a little faster moments, like in the tracks "Total Conquest" and "Foehammer".

The job of Conan seems easy but it's not random and really acute. Their songwriting is not extremely crazy and not even extraordinary for the genre, but still it's production and down tuned aggression is what characterizes it's powerful and outstanding sound. What is regurarly loved in stoner will be highly appreciated here as well, like the monotonous drones, the cymbal rides and of course, the guitar melodies. It's all about them in fact, thick as if you need to lay back, relax and enjoy the album.

The durations of the tracks vary from five to nine minutes and lyrically, the band revolves around mythology instead of typical stoner subjects. The lyrics are not that many either, apart from a few words in each track. Yet, the vocals are amazing and appear as much as they are needed (the less vocals / lyrics, the better. Instrumental equals tripping here), comfortably yelling the words from somewhere far away. I'd rather say it's an album for fans only, because it doesn't leave any space for unaware listeners to indulge, when being that... stoner.

To me, Blood Eagle is a notable release by Conan, already being one of my favorite albums in that area. If you're looking for actual heavy music in stoner, these guys fit all the parameters and know how to slowly distort the reality around you into something more colorful and depressed too. The record shows confidence and stability, that's why it's one of the most legit yet. In the name of doom!

DAMAGE: 8.5/10

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Töxik Death - Speed Metal Hell (2014) Review

Album | Speed Metal Hell
Country | Norway
Genre | Black / Thrash Metal
Label | Demonhood Productions

| Sergeant of the wasteland |

As much as I like present-day thrash metal, a dose of the relentless, old school touch is always fine to listen to, especially from new and crazy bands that are formed solely for that reason. From the land of Deathhammer, comes this band named Töxik Death, which lets the album's title and art to speak for itself: Speed Metal Hell  is an anti-poser black / thrash statement that will keep the die hard fans busy for some time, in case they discover it.

The band has released a split with three other bands (Deathhammer, Nekromantheon and Carniwhöre) named Nekrothrash and that's exactly what these guys play. The fast-paced tempo of Motorhead, fused with the aggressiveness of Venom and an addition of the fruits of black / thrash all these years, the mix of Töxik Death is familiar and never getting old, especially when it's done by enthusiasts like them.

All the tracks are catchy riff after catchy riff, torn vocals and fast drums, a couple of solos an underground extreme metal atmosphere. Yet another album for freaks with Speed Metal emblem tattoos and patches, it will not disappoint and it has plenty of enjoyable music during it's half hour of length and total of nine tracks. Of course, the roots of the genre are what dominates the album, all punk / rock n roll / thrash / black are partying alike.

Speed Metal Hell does not introduce the listener to anything new and that's the point of the record in the first place, worshipping it's style to the last bit. From what you might have understood, fans of Witchburner, Aura Noir and the above bands will also love this one. Made by fanatics, for the fanatics.

DAMAGE: 8/10

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Burial Hordes - Incendium (2014) Review

Album | Incendium
Country | Greece
Genre | Black Metal
Label | Hellthrasher Productions

I could not envisage the evolution of this band from their previous material the last eight or nine years, judging mainly from their other two full length albums. They are raw and unforgiving, ravaging upon the familiar patterns of the genre and leaving the expected, used but still welcome impact. However, the last split release with Enshadowed had something to show for the band and with their new album Incendium it's in broad daylight. They have changed their sound into something more orthodox and Scandinavian, adopting a couple of their most classy characteristics that really work any time / any place, if played honestly.

The musical structure of the album does not stray from the path that was hatefully conceived by the legendary, colossal bands of the genre, the ones that I dare not say their name. Powerful and melodic riffing is dominant in every song, very much flourishing from Swedish melody and Deathspell Omega intelligence kind of roots and there is not a single non-intense moment in it's entirety. Apart from the highly toxic guitar lines, the ghoulish vocals are are also skillful and competent, focusing on harsh screams as well as deep growls. For the most part, they differ from the regular and really high pitched screaming of black metal, even though they have the correct tone.

As I already said, the feeling Incendium leans a lot towards northern black metal of the twenty first century, in terms of sound and compositional variety. To that conclusion aids the fact that the mixing and mastering of the album was done at Endarker Studio in Sweden, it seems like more and more bands choose certain locations for their album's editing, we all now the Swedish know the way like the palm of their hand. Since the tracks probably sound like something else you have already heard, I guarantee they don't grow boring any time during the album, as they are still wealthy and well written. As for the drums, they're systematic and accurate, filling the parts with pleasing blasts when needed.

Incendium lasts as much as I enjoy an album in terms of length, which is mostly between forty and forty five minutes. The first three tracks are fast paced and aggressive, except for a part in "Nailed Curse" which is slower brutally painful, such as the parts I really like. There are also middle paced moments like in "Path of Bloodshed" while there is a priest prayer in "Scorned", the longest track in the record. The slow moments of the self-titled track were something I enjoyed quite a lot from the whole album, and the tracks "Abomination and "Black Shrouds of Depravity" contain riffs that remind a lot, maybe a bit more than the rest, of Swedish black metal.

Lastly, this is one hell of an album cover. That baphomet figure at the top of the wretched building and all the demons torturing mortals is really wonderful and people should not ask for anything less than such and associated concepts, we're not in the -take a photo and make it ridiculously black and white to be used as a cover- era anymore. You are neither Transylvanian nor hungry, artistic covers are appreciated and I thank Burial Hordes for that. Incendium is a solid album that gains in entertainment what it lacks in originality, it's respectfully atmospheric and I consider it a step up from what the band had us used with.

DAMAGE: 8/10

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Innsmouth - Consumed by Elder Sign (2014)

Album | Consumed by Elder Sign
Country | Australia
Genre | Death Metal
Label | Abysmal Sounds

This is an obscure band I found about by listening to their excellent demo The Departure of Shub-Niggurath in 2010, but I didn't know about this album until I saw the label flyer the day it was released. Innsmouth keep a low profile and seem to avoid excessive promotion, since they don't have a personal webpage at all. All the fans can learn about them is through the news of their label, unless they choose to create a digital headquarters some day. Consumed by Elder Sign is the debut full length release by them, containing six tracks and a sum of thirty eight minutes of music and it is a very good starting point, after six years of activity and three solid mini releases.

Their whole musical approach is based on the old-fashioned and cherished sound of the past decade, staying away from a crystal clear and often too loud result. The production of the album constitutes an atmosphere of a time thought to be long dead, it offers a dynamic and sincere sound for the fans of vintage instead of triggered, studio metal. I'm not very strict when it comes to this subject and I'm not crossing out records or approving other just solely from the fidelity, but i surely appreciate one more when I see a high score, especially in new albums. Consumed by Elder Sign has a legit sound and I totally enjoyed it, it's very close to what underground black and death metal bands had during the early nineties.

Despite it's label as death metal, there are sparse elements of black metal in their music, without missing an ounce of doom here and there, all coming from the depths of the nineties of course. Apart from a couple of times, they do not tend to play very fast and they stick on a middle paced rhythm, similar to groove or doom / death metal, like in the opening song "Dead In the Water" or "Thrice Blessed Shub-Niggurath", which is the only track they re-recorded from their first demo. The last one, "Borne By The Winds" contains groovy riffs that fit to the early U.S death metal, even though it has great shrieks and weird reciting vocals. The track "Five Branches Against Doom" is very similar to the Satyricon of Dark Medieval Times - Shadowthrone, and the vocals used there, which are pure black metal typed, are used frequently in the whole album.

For some reason, I kept thinking of Marduk's Dark Endless era, which was close to death metal in terms of the instrumentation, but had high screams instead of growls. Innsmouth go further and add some doom / death lines, along with some child yells and introduction samples, making a remarkable album. In the veins of classic bands, their first effort is delicate and full of entertaining moments, shrouded in a cloak of mysticism that all the metal nerds enjoy the most. It is an unknown band that you might have found first and probably all the people of tradition in metal will enjoy it, go and suggest it to them. DR14 is a rare thing too, one can't really go more decent than that!

DAMAGE: 8.75/10

Eastern Front - Blood On Snow (2010) Review

Album | Blood On Snow
Country | United Kingdom
Genre | Black Metal
Label | Candlelight Records

| Pools of frozen blood |

One of the many subjects bands deal with in this music is war, forwarded as history, awe or just the epitome of pain and suffering (which they are). It's one of the least tangling paths to choose and it's rather easy to acquire, given that you avoid unessecary genocide worship or racial hatred that will turn you into a moving target. Personally, I don't get why people go near extreme metal if they have not decided to come in terms with extreme ideologies and I support any band that holds tight to some beliefs, regardless of my thoughts on them. Eastern Front are a relatively new, British and warfriendly black metal band, as you can suspect from their name, and they are good storytellers as well as musicians. Their album Blood On Snow has an obvious concept around historic wars of the modern times, dealing with that in the entirety of the album, so there isn't any anti-religious / satanic/occult bubble talking here.

They have been promoting their 2008 Promo very much before releasing a new album and their efforts were awarded, as they signed to a big label like Candlelight for their debut release. Therefore, the production of the band has been positively predisposed towards a nice and clean balance, avoiding the no-fi syndrome of black metal and instead building it's own wall of disastrous noise. The instruments are audible and the sound is pleasingly polished, widowing the album as gratifying and easy to follow. I don't believe Blood On Snow sounds that bad, even though it has not escaped the vortex of modern mixing tricks and it certainly has some volume of it's own, but still I was happy listening to the various musical elements it contains and the intriguing "soundification" of it's concept. Within it's eight tracks and almost fifty minutes of length, one might as well attend a trip to cold and somber battlefields of wars.

The basic component of the album's compositional structure is definitely the variety of the guitar melodies. They aim a lot on creating epic and powerful riffs in each song so that the feeling of war is captured right away, especially in the amazing lines that have been written for the self-titled track "Blood on Snow" and "Where Warriors Once Fell". Along with the heavy, distorted guitars, lie a couple of acoustic filler parts in the songs, like in the latter of the previously mentioned or the introduction of "Motherland", also adding a lot to the atmosphere of the record. Generally, the fact that the band tries as much as they can to use their own ideas in their songs and avoid repetition and rip off techniques, is apparent and self-evident. They have a personal style in terms of structure and complexity.

I am also very fond of the distinct vocals. They are executed perfectly and in various forms, as the record contains cutting shrieks, ferocious growls and manly clean parts, the last being mostly in a narrating sense than any other. The tongue of the singer Nagant (a name also related to World War II, look it up) is delicate and forceful at the same time, varying a lot throughout the tracks and autharitarian at moments. An example is again the song "Blood On Snow" which is one of the top tracks of the record, for it's epicness, it's breathtaking main riff and the war sound samples. The use of various army, gun and battle samples used in the tracks, as well as in the wonderful instrumental "Dvenadtzat kilometrov ot Moskvy", which has synths and a piano, voice chants, a parade pace, are very accurate and give the album a whole better character.

The combination of the above characteristics is blended wonderfully here, creating a solid and very interesting album structure to listen to, as one doesn't feel as they know what's coming, a common weakness of other black metal bands. Not only that, I think it succeeds in shaping a warlike feeling, since the compositions and the melodies are not vaguely dynamic, but instead infuential and targeted to that particular direction. Blood On Snow could easily be used as a background or soundtrack to a documentary / movie / video collection (if the audience is intimate with the sound of course, hahaha). However, I was a bit balked by the distressed, simplistic lyrics, which are sadly not very effective on their own. I always expect some poetry behind the unfathomable screams, but I didn't get it here. Yet, that hardly reduced my joy listening to it.

In general, the album includes well thought ideas, presenting strong riffology and variety in it's style, while the musicianship is acute and direct. I had the chance to watch these guys live once in 2008 when they participated in a local festival around here, from what I remember they delivered really cool, despite the technical problems and the broad daylight. I'm not sure about the musical plans of the band but they are still active and I hope to see new material some time soon, as Blood On Snow grew on me and it's one of the records I come back to from time to time. If you want to take a break from purely religious themed bands and want something a little bit closer to reality, give this album a spin.

 DAMAGE: 8.5/10

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Slaughterday - Nightmare Vortex (2013) Review

Album | Nightmare Vortex
Country | Germany
Genre | Death Metal
Label | F.D.A. Rekotz

| Corpses in shallow graves |

The newborn child of F.D.A. Rekotz stoop up out of nothing and released a first demo, to let the fans know their message comes from the underground and they are not here to play around. That demo had a fair impact on me but not more than a band's obscure debut, short before they disappear, so I chose to wait and see what the Germans would do next, hoping for a record in 2014. They did not fail to surprise me with a full record ready the same year, which was promoted more than enough for a previously unknown band and yet it has the merit is was credited beforehand.

The album welcomes you with this gripping and captivating album cover (done by no other than Mark Cooper), depicting a rotten kingdom in chaos, surrounded by thick clouds and rivers of blood. The details and the combination of blue and red are amazing, providing the record with a wonderful and positive first look. Nightmare Vortex contains eight tracks (plus a limited edition Pentagram cover) and it involves forty minutes of  heavy and straightforward death metal. It's the full outfit, from the art, to the feeling, to the music, to the lyrical themes, everything praises the notion of not being friendly and easy going.

Slaughterday (the weird name must be taken from an Autopsy track, if anyone wondered) come from a place a little souther than the usual suspects in Sweden, but the ground is not unharmed in Germany either, since it's a country that has been trampled again and again by huge metal acts of all subgenres, still suffering brutal quality to this day. I'm not surprised when an adept and brilliant band comes from these lands, especially when they nourish their freshness and creativity, like these guys do. Their music is extremely powerful and it's not looking up to other bigger bands, instead it freely moves around combinations of menacing melodies and it creates a really cool, comforting piece of work.

I'm not saying that Nightmare Vortex is something new entirely, as the common progressions and patterns are often used throughout the album, maintaining a standard structure of fast and middle paced moments. Still, the main content of the album is very well factual and skillful, undergoing series of concrete riffing that is played in a way that it's memorable, personal and unmistakable. You  might as well squeeze your mind a little harder trying to find the exact band(s) that Slaughterday have a strong similarity with and maybe you'll come up with nothing, since they have made a chemical of 10% influences and 90% own inspiration.

Axiomatically, the guitar work in the album is bone-breaking. I can't choose with certainty among these crushing riffs that characterize every single song, with "Nightmare Vortex", "Unearthly Evocation", "Morbid Shroud of Sickness" and "Cult of the Dreaming Dead" being severely barbarous. Of course, the solos in various moments have a certain beauty and destroy in their own way, like in the opening "Unearthly Evocation" and in "Cosmic Horror", while the punishing slow paced part in "Obsessed with the Undead" is an intense twist that can be found in other tracks as well.

There is also a great vocal delivery as well. Over with the groovy rhythms moans a deep, powerful voice that goes from growls to semi growling / shouting at some points, spitting comprehensible words most of the times, so you probably won't have a problem singing along. Take "Addicted to the Grave" (which is definitely among the album's best moments with it's bell sample and a catchy chorus) and follow the lyrics to get an idea. Moreover, the drumming is rather standard but not poor, with lot's of know-how demonstration going on. I don't think Bernd Reiners lacks the voice or the drumming skills.

I could not point out any highlights when it comes to the bass playing, since it doesn't make itself present that much, possibly due to the loud and thick production. Listening to the tracks carefully will let you know that there is a grumpy noise going on behind the guitar sound, but it didn't make a big difference to me and there is not much attention to be spent in that direction, as the awesome distortion melodies will fill any blank spots in the album. This is some well written brutality and has all the potential to get bigger in the near future, if the band doesn't give up for any reason. Nightmare Vortex is everything a death metal fan loves and more, without necessarily relying on a heavy sound or studio atmosphere tricks, but aiming to melt your face from start to finish. It's sound is crystal clear, it's compositions amazing and nothing could possibly go wrong with you partying on this for a long time.

DAMAGE: 8.75/10

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Satan's Host - Virgin Sails (2013) Review

Country | USA
Genre | Blackened Heavy Metal
Date | November 19th, 2013
Label | Moribund Records

| Darkness casts its shadow on man |

I thought I would never fully enjoy heavy metal again because of the bands' constant and maybe unwilling struggle to get too shreddy or too old school, with ballarina singers and unexceptional songs, effect-driven, lacking spirit. Even when a new band arises that I find solid, it's because of their passion to bring the eighties back and succeeding in that. Now, Satan's Host avoided all this and made their way to a new album that I enjoyed the most for this year when it comes to clean singing metal. Maybe because they went through a period of black / death in the nineties, which is pretty much a Midas touch for any band. Just kidding of course, but with a sincere perspective.

The band was created in 1977 and I have only heard their debut album Metal from Hell that was released in 1986, which was right on the spot for it's time but yet not completely bewitching. I lost track of them and only came across the new release because of the amazing cover (as usual) and the funny album title, hoping for something at least bearable. Lot's bands fade away over the years and these guys have a huge run already.

Right of the back, the concept revolves around darkness and evil with some shots of occultism, the perfect and appropriate themes of bands into the originator of extreme metal, much better than fairy tales and pink make-up, as most of the mainstream bands do nowadays. Finally, I get to read some wonderful lyrics from a newcomer heavy metal band, since i'm way too critical on the matter, this is serious business. The have done Necronomicon references in the past and their approach once again is poetic. Naturally, they are accurately embellished by the marvelous voice of Leviathan Thirisen, the band's singer (who played in Jag Panzer before Satan's Host). The vocals sound direct and powerful, hitting high notes as well as a few torn out screams and growls, as If the guy was born for this position. The double singing in various moments in the album is magnificent and the whole performance delivers exquisite singing fortitude.

Musically, Virgin Sails is one interesting and mauling composition after the other. The production is polished and presents a very friendly environment for the listener to headbang on, while the songs offer plenty of neckbreaking moments, built on furious riffs and solos, as well as pummeling beats all the way. The drummer of the band is called Evil Little Hobbit and seems to be influenced by classic heavy and death metal drumming all the way. While the main fills are close to the regular pattern, there are several moments where he gets more intense will blast beats and complex playing, making the contribution of the drums notable during the album. The reason they are now labeled as blackened heavy metal is not only because of the lyrical theme, but because of the music itself, which is one step further than most of the scene's bands, with more variety as well.

I noticed allusions to various genres in the songs, like the stoner-like riff in the middle of "Dichotomy", the harsh vocals refering to black / death in "Reanimated Anomalies", the Enslaved-driven introduction guitar melody in "Infinite Impossibilities" and the black metal part of "Vaporous of the Blood", not to mention the grungy interlude "Taromati". The groovy beginnings of "Of Beast and Men" and the self-titled track remind of modern groove / death metal too. The overall guitar work is astonishing and worthy of any title, because of the hammering riffing that co-works with the coming and going, wondrous solos.

From what I heard, this is a great album with lot's of ingredients for everyone. I guarantee you won't be listening to the same song again and again, more like you'll be astounded by the variety. It focuses and stays close to the core of heavy metal, but often wanders off in other subgenres without losing track of the flow, keeping up a standard of quality as a whole.

DAMAGE: 8.0/10

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Ravencult - Morbid Blood (2011) Review

Country | Greece
Genre | Black Metal
Date | March 18th, 2011
Label | Hells Headbangers Records

| Ancient gospel of the unblessed |

The cauldron of Ravencult had been boiling for about a decade when the information of a sophomore album spread, by the looks of it, we would be dealing with a precise, polished and factual record. Good compositional signs had already been known with their debut Temples of Torment and this one was highly anticipated by the underground scene here and abroad, as the skillful aspirations of the band were about to be shaped into sound. Morbid Blood came like a blast, with an excellent cover and artwork (the booklet reminds a lot of Watain's later albums) and slightly different music than the raw and arduous debut, more catchy but fairly cold in it's own way.

With an improved sound, the band has abandoned the primitive black metal approach many bands follow at their first steps (because it's cheap and accepted) and constructs a piece of well-written, personal compositions, relying on the notes and the headbanging moments instead of the poor quality. Apart that, the tracks completely present European tradition, this time closer to the black / thrash sound of bands like Desaster and Nifelheim, or Aura Noir.

The band has a talent in creating memorable riffs and Morbid Blood is full of them, when several choruses or rhythms might stay in your head after a few listens and while the music is not completely innovative, it's really distinctive. If a track comes up and you listen to it somewhere, you will recognize the band even if you haven't heard that particular track before. The record is not overburdened with introductions, acoustic parts and other silent moments, it's riff driven and created to move a little bit more when listening to it, instead of sinking into it's atmosphere at a cold corner of your house. Again, it's black / thrash, bravely stepping into the rock'n'roll area with some Venom references in songs like "In Sacrilege of Death", "Black Rites of Execration" and "Morbid Blood". I always feel excited to read the lyrics of the band, mainly revolving around darkness and satanism. A dose of grim poetry can be found here as well, featuring some killer lines here and there in the songs.

The tempo is mostly fast and sometimes uplifting in it's entirety of 37 minutes, mainly depending on the delicate guitar lines and bitter, distinguishable vocals. Ravencult does not stop for a moment to catch a breath, they throw one solid melody after the other, combined with violent words and punching drums. The album is at it's peak in "Snakes Crawl" and "Hail Revenge", my two favourite tracks, even though each one of them has something to offer. Morbid Blood might not contain breathtaking, life-changing moments, it might not be a classic in fifteen years or so. It does have it's own pace and offers plenty of entertainment though, worshiping old gods and having numerous above average ideas. I leave you with this:

Deep in the veins of this earth
In solace we're breathing for ages
Underground unearthly seed
Aborted through past congregations

DAMAGE: 8.25/10

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Ravencult - Temples of Torment (2007) Review

Country | Greece
Genre | Black Metal
Date | April 30th, 2007
Label | Dark Essence Records

| Where gleaming shadows crawl |

Even though the formation of this band came later than the era of the second wave, it does not differ that much from the early bands and is a high quality act in the extreme underground. Ravencult have been riveting from their first demos and EP in 2000 - 2005, a force slowly gathering strength only to unleash it in 2007 with their debut full length album Temples of Torment. The band bows to the northern legends of the genre, fueled with an old school, pure anger and resentment.

The guitar work here is very much influenced from the Norwegian scene and bands like Immortal or Enslaved, missing a bit of variety in the long run. However, there is an immense success in the collection of riffs that makes the album quite amazing, while the sound is edgy, agressive and forthright, crushing the distorted melodies into your head. From that angle, the album is a non stop bombardment of the time honored cacophony that we all love. Each track has memorable moments and the overall vibe represents what the music is all about perfectly, from the aesthetic to the lyrics and the compositions themselves. It might not be the most original album you have ever heard, but it is produced in a way that the similar points can easily be ignored, providing a highly enjoyable outcome.

While the band has studied well the ideas of the Nordics, something that can be recognized from their immidiate, cold riffs, personal nuances are not amiss. The album contains fast paced tracks as well as slower, agonizing moments and there is a slight punk influence in "Onlsaught Command", mainly because of the speed and the drum pattern. Moreover, tracks like "In Times of Demise", "The Nightsky Codex", "Utter Cold Void" (which reminds a bit of the introduction of Gorgoroth's self-titled track on the guitar) are painfully stagnant, while "The Sigil Of Baphomet", "Blessed In Heresy" and "The Needles of Truth" are swift and cadaverous. The last track, which is "The Needles of Truth", is 31 minutes long in most versions of the CD, but it's mostly silence and contains a hidden track somewhere at minute 23 with a cover of Bathory's "Sacrifice". The main song also has one of the most incisive and powerful riffs in the whole album.

I personally like all the tracks of the album except "Blessed In Heresy", which is a bit fuzzy and unplanned, maybe meant to be used as a filler track only. It still has some kick ass lines and apart from that, the remaining seven tracks are exactly any blackster's cup of tea. It starts and ends with church chants, alluding a connection with the orthodox black metal scene, where bands often use such samples for the appropriate atmosphere. Played by exquisite musicianship and accurate song writing, Ravencult is all you loved of the original Scandinavian scene with some extra, sprinkled throughout the whole record. The band was not eager to re-record tracks from their demos (which are full of amazing tunes) to fill up their debut, instead they built one from scratch and did a fine job with it.

DAMAGE: 8.0/10

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Eulogy - Three Dead Sheep (EP, 1993) Review

Country | Canada
Genre | Old School Death Metal
Date | 1993
Label | Body Bag

This is a band trampled by time and with very few information to look for, other than the Metal Archives profile. The band had a short life of five years with one official release and a faceless demo, making this EP the only record available by them. There are many bands with the name Eulogy but only these guys come from Canada, just to avoid the confusion. The band landed a record deal with Body Bag for Three Dead Sheep, which is a label as unknown as the band.

These guys embody an old school and enticing form of nineties death metal and especially American death metal, from it's compositional ideas to the song structure and overall sound. A sound that has not been buried under poor, low badget production, in fact it's actually quite legit and at the same level as the sound of other big bands' full lengths around that time (Kataklysm for instance, who are also from Quebec).

Most of all, there is an audible, stomping bass in every song, which is important when many bands just ignore it. The bass lines are clear to listen to in most parts of the whole mini album. The work of the drummer is fairly fascinating, with awesome fills and good blast beating, most of all for his busy lines and awesome  guitar followings. The two elements I am usually let down by, the drums and the bass, are translucent and unclouded, given the proper attention and played sweetly. The guitar always deliver solid riffs, very much in the spirit of their era and location and under a lawful variety, while the rooted growls sound like they come from the depths of the pits, brutal and demonlike.

It's possible that the title Three Dead Sheep referes to the three songs of the EP, I don't know what they have in common with sheep or their corpses, but still it's a funny title with a great cover artwork. There is one sample of screams used in the introduction of the self-titled track which does the job for a short, creepy beginning of a good journey. I enjoyed all three tracks a lot, but mostly the last one "Crematorium", since it has a great, big balled groove in some of it's parts. Also, it has a solo-like moment, something that is missing from the EP and is somehow surprising. Many bands had solos then and still do.

Who knows why Eulogy had to split up with such few tracks produced? I am sure that if this EP was a full length album with eight or ten tracks, it would be a cult album for death metal archaeologists today and it's first press copies would be rare and expensive. It might be a bit early to say that this is one of my favourite pieces of forgotten extreme metal, but it's definitely on the list. You won't be disappointed.

DAMAGE: 8.0/10

Oranssi Pazuzu - Valonielu (2013) Review

October 11th, 2013
Svart Records

| Woe of cannibal galaxies |

Rough days need rough music and I was not anticipating a new offering by this band, it totally caught me sleeping. Do you know Oranssi Pazuzu? If not, you should. They are the patronizers of psychedelic black metal, adorning a whole new side of the genre with their peculiar incarnation of sound. Formed in 2007, the Finnish surrealists arrive to question your standards once more with their third album Valonielu, which to me, is a mysterious gateway full of enigmas and riddles. Judging from the band's statement "Oranssi Pazuzu makes music that invites all the arsonists and smokers to hold hands", I think their vision fits this blog perfectly and I'm definitely re-examining their older albums as well.

The band's music emphasizes on a bizarre amalgamation of various unconventional styles while mainly revolving around black metal, forging a unique and intriguing sound, which gives them an identity among numerous look alikes in the scene. Coming from a non-metal background (the members were playing in weird rock bands before this) and having no knowledge on how to create traditional black metal  is a bliss and a key element for them to go on and create something that amazing. The psych here is enormous and unexpected sounds pop out of every corner of the album, introducing elements of ambient, space rock and 90s black metal.

Oranssi Pazuzu dare to prolong some of their tracks up to eleven and fifteen minutes, challenging the listener's patience and fooling them into one bottomless pit of psychedelic utopia. After several listens, I still feel I have not fully consumed the tasty content of the album, which appears to have more and more hidden sequences that need close attention to grasp on. The album was produced under the aegis of Jaime Gomez, who has also worked for Ulver, Hexvessel, Gates of Slumber... So it was in the hands of a professional. I sensed the band's potential with the first two albums but this is overwhelming, I am impressed.

The reigning atmosphere during the album is this of the late sixties and early nineties, achieved by plenty underground prog / phychedelic rock bands as well as the ultra legends Pink Floyd. Or, to be more exact, it goes a little deeper and darker than that old scene, not only with the doses of black metal but also with the synths themselves. Absorbing all sorts of bizarre noises, the tracks contain catchy guitar riffs melded with hypnotic keys and screeching screams, driven by a smooth rhythm giving drum work.

Over it's 42 minute length, it offers a trippy experience into your subconscious as you're swallowed by it's alluring beauty and smartly executed compositional variety. New bands with a strongly personal and monumental sound like Oranssi Pazuzu are the ones who own the future for their delicate visions, as I would gladly swear that you have not heard something like this before. Combining their influences flawlessly, they build an addictive album that flows as a calm river and is probably going to stick in the listener's ears for some time. Instead of a fast-paced tempo, they move in a moderate speed so that the droning components can be experienced, giving time to grasp on the more than enough samples and synth lines.

A good example of my aforementioned comments is the opening track "Vino Verso", which kicks off with a druggy and a simplistic note riff, going on for almost it's whole length. The keyboards hold the leading role and characterize the song, launching new tones one after the other and establishing the band's elements all together on the table. A druggy/space feeling is created and the pure black metal elements are a minority, mainly in the vocals.

The second track "Tyhja Tempelli" is one of my favourite on the album, due to it's sick and dark vibe, deriving once again from the synths. It's slow and ailing, like the instrumentation of a dying junkhead, or a soundtrack to a deranged psychological movie. Their focus on mind games and creating hallucinations via their music is more than obvious on this brilliant four minute track.

"Uraanisula" begins with a slow, depressive introduction that fits the black metal pattern, then comes a small great sample before it's main part. Here, the clobbering melodies and riffs can be relegated to modern Swedish Shining, evenly painful with more electronic characteristics. The middle of the song is subdued by unclear samples and jamming guitar randomness, with a steady tone from the bass and the drums. Towards the end, it speeds up and leads to one of the most frenetic moments of the album. The track is quite long, as it reaches eleven minutes.

Track four "ReikA Maisemassa" is purely psychedelic. It's gloomy and fearful with lot's of unexpected notes that refer to complete technological disorder, it features simple toms and keyboards, painting the room with several, brightly-coloured lines, circled and squared. Bringing back the original vibe, "Olen Aukaissut Uuden SilmAn" is dangerously digging inside your brain with grinding sc-fi synths and the same, stinky way that they have by now made known.

The final track "YmpyrA On Viiva Tomussa" climbs up to fifteen minutes in length, above every other in the record. The calm, vivid intro that slowly builds into a main part sounds like a post-black metal song but much more maniacal, similar to a product of dementia. A bunch of unbalanced synths dominate the battlefiend again, involving bulky instrumentation, even when the sky seems to clear. It portrays the band in it's entirety, as they have used time in their favor to include all the major characteristics of the album into one, solid construction. It might seem chaotic and random, but the album has a high level of consistency, each track rendering to the album's flow by leaving and open connection with the next one, thus being a great all together listen.

All in all, Valonielu elucidates how talent and originality can create an astonishing piece of art, in any form of art, as well as music. It is fairly reasonable that Oranssi Pazuzu have not reprinted the pure and raw style of their country's scene like Behexen, Sargeist or Horna, so don't expect this kind of black metal here. It is more psychedelia and less metal with bits of science fiction and drugs, a legit sound and a ridiculous assortment of concepts. Influenced by unrelated bands, this musical hodgepodge is to be played and replayed until reality can't be distinguished from dreams and matter is no more.

DAMAGE: 8.5/10

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Nightbringer - Hierophany of An Open Grave (2011) Review

Nightbringer "Hierophany of an Open Grave"
Summer 2011, Season of Mist

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I can't decide if time favors this band's ideas on writing and releasing albums. Only one year passed since the release of "Apocalypse Sun" and Nightbringer unleashed their third full length, and maybe their best work to date. This is an album that puts to the test theories like "Only the European BM is true", which is of course false, but just for the sake of arguement. I knew these guys were amazing musicians and i'm glad they decided to quit goofing around and get down to serious business. All the objections i had in the previous albums have been diversified and transformed to something greater and complete, which puts them among the top of their field.

Despite its length being a little bit over the top with one hour of music, the album is full of intriguing musical uances. They have perfected the art of switching tempos during the songs, improving the dynamics and comforting the listener that the listening experience will not be staggering this time. It has finally stepped into a room of real cosmic darkness, violently claiming the throne, as the tracks vary from chaotic fast melodies into tormenting doomy ones.

The blending of the two is perfect and almost goes unnoticed, making the album's flow truly amazing. The musicianship reigns supreme, erases any signs of mechanical studio recreation of the music (something that did not achieve in the previous releases) and all the instruments are alive with flesh and blood to praise the recording. 

Nightbringer experimented with new progressions and added some acoustic guitars while keeping the pattern of riffs they followed in their older albums. Some of the tracks on this album, like "The Gnosis of Inhumation", "The Angel of Smokeless Fire" and "Psychagogoi" are the best the band has ever released so far.

The ideological content of the album is a malicious presence, haunting the music. It is enshrouded in a mysticistic aura that is a painful burden to someone not familiar with their music, it is unfriendly and aims for the highest values of life and death, via a path of thorns. The band is exposing itself to serve the music, with a glorious vision of the genre as a unique art. Ritualistic chants, scourging sounds, demonic synths, never used before and invoke into an overwhelming result.

The difference is that this record is full of variety and wealth of melodies. It has become even harder to assimilate their music now, but that doesn't prevent them from getting the credits they deserve for it. As far as i'm concerned, the album was welcomed with open arms in the underground community, and i'm glad. This album has given birth to the wings that evolved the band from something unclear to a true, majestic band.

DAMAGE: 8.5/10

Elysian Blaze - Blood Geometry (2012) Review

Elysian Blaze "Blood Geometry"
Summer 2012, Osmose Productions

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When we're talking about really long album, Elysian Blaze's Blood Geometry should come to mind. This funeral doom/depressive black metal one-man project from Australia released this album last year in two CDs/parts, each one of them lasting around an hour. A monotonous drone is needed in albums like these, but if you decide to listen to this particular album as a whole, prepare to sink in the deepest void.

I am convinced that this is their best album to date. There is finally the perfect balance between the instruments and the guitars, in the first albums the guitar work was a bit unlear and cast aside by the synths. This is not the case here though, a previous flaw has been fixed and Elysian Blaze are even closer to excellence. The atmosphere of the whole album is magnificent, through its variety of synths, gloomy melodies and a sorrowful woe of screams. The whole idea is that the music stays slow, thick and depressive, so i would say its for the fans only. Inside the dark vibe of the whole album, i noticed an ounce of epicness at the end of the first CD in the self-titled track, an elegant ray of light between oblivion.

I personally love the way Mutatiis handles the pianos and the synths behind them. The ambience he creates is remarkable, and that places him among the top artists of funeral doom/depressive black. His music is complex and inspirational, by all means artistic. He is not hesitant to compose long tracks that go up to 36 minutes, a true manifest of pianos, orchestral parts, guitars, percussion and organs. Intriguing instruments are also used here and there, like this somewhat xylophone in the middle of "Pyramid of the Cold Sun". The ambient and black metal parts are close to depressive black metal, in terms of speed and sound, whereas there are groundbreaking funeral doom riffs as well. A surprise might be, that some guitar lines in the album are glorious and shiny, meticulously placed at the correct places, that can tend be uplifting, despite the general despair it provokes.

I didn't give this the attention needed the first time i listened to it and i came back accidentaly, now i can see what a fool i was. It is an amazing album by an amazing band, that will please the fans and not only. It is also one of the best active one-man projects out there, look out.

DAMAGE: 8.5/10

Moonblood & Deathspell Omega - Sob A Lua Do Bode / Demoniac Vengeance (Split, 2000) Review

Moonblood & Deathspell Omega "Sob A Lua Do Bode / Demoniac Vengeance"

2000, End All Life Productions

Listening Needs

Both of these bands have their own popularity in the scene and they are respected by many, for their ideological stability and musical consistency, with releases way above average each. This union took place thirteen years ago and it was one of the last official Moonblood releases before they disbanded. Of course, all of us know the path Deathspell Omega have followed since then and we are very pleased about it.

Even if the official copies were limited to vinyls only, some other distros printed bootleg CDs of it and i happen to own one of them. Kris Verwimp was the one that designed the spectacular art of the Moonlbood cover, a famous illustrator for metal bands. The split contains four Moonblood and three Deathspell Omega songs, lasting a little bit over fourty six minutes. I always have high hopes for quality bands like these and once again i was not let down.

The ceremony begins with the Moonblood side, which contains, to me, some of the best songs they ever recorded. The production is deliberately as dirty as it should be to give the appropriate feeling, and shrieked vocals combined with yells and screams make the tracks even more obscure than they were with the freezing instrumentation. Some of my favourite black metal riffs are contained here, and all the songs are amazing, if you are in the mood. The known habit of black metal artists to wander around forests (which is often mocked by everyone) aches in these tracks, and it wakes the urge inside you to do it yourself. "A Silent Dream of Impurity" and "I Hail The Night" are my favourite Moonblood songs and "Forgotten Spells In The Forest" is right behind them. The titles and lyrics are quite graphic and have become a cliche today because of the repetition, but no one reaches the level of these two guys.

We continue, as the Deathspell Omega side rises. It is definitely straight forward like most of the french bands back then, with very nice variations and riffology. It gives away a bit of the majestic sound they would produce some years later, but it is not fully shaped by that time. They can be described as the LLN descendants, with about the same sound but extremely improved musicianship. Three solid songs showing the first steps of this band, a must for the collectors.

If i was to compare the two sides, i'd definitely go with Moonblood. Their stuff here are mindblowing, so good that they make the mighty Deathspell Omega sound opaque. I enjoy the whole split and it has always been in my playlist, because of the effort these two bands have put into it. The fact that i prefer the one band over the other, doesn't mean that i don't like them both, a great collaboration that every black metal fan should listen.

DAMAGE: [8.0/10]

Svart Crown - Profane (2013)

Svart Crown "Profane"

Spring 2013, Listenable Records

Listening Needs

Physical Needs

I've been meaning to write something about this but kept canceling it, until today. Svart Crown hail from the uprising and growing scene of France, formed in the middle 00's and this is their third full length album. From the first recordings i recognized immense talent all over them, i was curious to see if they would assimilate their ideas nicely in their music. I am a witness to this band's creative journey that has gave birth to three albums and who knows how many more, i can say it worths it. So, Profane.

Regarding the front cover art, its magnificent. A simple black and white drawing provoking a sinister aura that moves your attention even more about what's going to follow. The look on the woman's face is amazing, definitely gives you the chills.

What we have here is a splendid combination of black and death metal, covering areas of several styles like Behemoth, Deathspell Omega, Blut Aus Nord, Mitochondrion, Aosoth etc... They have some parts clearly influenced by the thick sound of their country's black metal scene, having added death metal elements with dissonant black/death metal riffs and screaming vocals. One can hear growls, shouts, shrieked yellings, even some deep cleans. With the proper attention, one can also admire the part of each instrument performed here, cooperating perfectly together. A load of magic tricks are performed by the insane drummer they have, certainly boosts the album's beauty with his fills and bass drum beats. There is an introduction lasting around 90 seconds opening the album, which consists of both fast and slow songs. I listened to the whole thing again and again, its not at all boring and i can't make any complaints about the compositions whatsoever.

Profane is a demonstration of the musical maturity and intelligence of the band, granting the listener with an approach of blackened death metal that is not outworn or overplayed. Compared to their previous releases, it depicts the progress of the band in the songwritting section, since the new songs have all kinds of interesting passages, avoiding repetition or mononoty. I personally enjoy the work done in the studio, the result of the production is extremely pleasing to me, not to mention the quality of the musicians here, just remarkable.

I can't imagine a fan of the above mentioned bands to be disappointed with this album. It has been on my playlist since its release and its here to stay.

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DAMAGE: 8.5/10