Friday, July 13, 2012

Week 29 (Backtracking)

Anaxes - Antithesis (2010) - Here’s something you need to take note of. Anaxes is probably one of the best progressive metal bands I’ve heard since Symphony X released “The Odyssey.” These guys are absolutely fucking phenomenal. Beyond phenomenal, absolutely fucking ridiculous from track to track to track. Even the tracks that aren’t so good in the beginning go into progressive chaos, in which every instrument in the band is put to the test. I haven’t heard theatrics of this nature since early Dream Theater, and these guys are every bit as good, if not BETTER than Dream Theater.

The first song on the disc “Cause/Consequence” is absolutely spectacular, and you’ve got to hear it from beginning to end just once. It will remind you a bit of Symphony X, but the band certainly innovates even more, pushing things to the mind boggling stunts that DT used to do all those years ago. The next track, “To Believe” features very good female vocals, but also goes into complete chaos with instruments losing their bloody minds.

If you are looking for a fantastic release of progressive metal that went completely under the radar for some reason, please check this incredible disc out. As I said, not every song on here is perfect, but even the ones that aren’t so good still offer plenty of progressive instrumental mayhem. My mind was completely blown by parts of this disc, but others I felt were kind of decent. I think this is a good demonstration of what they can do, but I’d love to see what a little more season would do to an act like this. We could definitely, without a doubt be looking at the next Dream Theater, Symphony X, or Fate’s Warning here. This is not for the squeamish. (59:00)

4/5

Aosoth - III (2011) - Aosoth’s third album (I’ve never heard of them until now) proves to be a very evil disc of black metal. These guys remind me quite a lot of earlier Deathspell Omega, but with a much more thrashy and crunchier edge. There’s still plenty of atmospheres used on the disc, but it’s not full of electronics or any other real oddities.

These gentlemen seem to be influenced by the blackest chords of doom, and the blackest and most evil chords I’ve heard in a while. I really like when black metal can sound like black metal, and really can use that “devil’s chord” that Sabbath made so damned famous years ago. The songs on the album are all numbered, with no track names at all - but they’re all over the five minute mark.

The best songs on the disc in my opinion are the deliciously evil “V” and the closer, “VI.” These songs are the real metal on the disc, sounding like a cacophony of demonic rage, with the closer adding the thrash back into the mix. While the others tracks are good and feature more of a doom and atmospheric nature, the latter tracks are what really makes this album worthy of your ears. But, if you get possessed by something, I apologize. (45:00)

4/5

Brulvahnatu - Menstrual Extraction Ceremony (2011) - These gentlemen might as well be on a live bootleg album. If this isn’t free or cheap as hell, I’m not paying for it. It literally sounds like this all came from a show the band played and some guy recorded it for them. It’s extremely raw, and so raw that you can’t hear much of anything but the gravelly death metal vocals. Everything else sounds like fucking static.

There’s just five tracks on this album, one of them being 18:36 long, which includes a saxophone. From what I can hear of the riffs, they sound like there’s potential - but gentlemen, it is 2011! Could we please have a little more consideration on the production value this time? There’s bands that have hardly any money at all and sound better than this. What in the hell is all this supposed to be?

The band also has a doom influence, with very slow and crunchy riffs, but I’m ultimately not crazy about this production. I will say that the song “Fluids” sounds a little more tolerable than the rest, and at least I can discern the riffs. I can hear the cymbals pretty well also, so I guess it’s an alright doom/death track, but I’ve heard much better.

This is a band that has some talent, but here it is not clearly represented. I understand most of the world is broke (time to do something different besides money, perhaps?) and no one seems to have enough to put into a recording. The album art also looks like it was drawn in crayon or something. Like a crayon vagina on the front cover. I shit you not, ladies and gentlemen. But there is some talent on this disc, if you’re willing to endure it, not awful, but pretty hard to hear.

UPDATE: You must listen to “The Gland” (18:36) as it is quite a song, if you listen to anything off this album, I recommend this one most of all. This is a sure sign that the band does have talent, even though the disc is awful raw. (50:00)

1.5/5

Christian Epidemic - Pusztitastan / Primordial Soul (2011) - This band reminds me of a band that I’ve definitely heard before, but is still a great symphonic melodic black metal act nonetheless. The bands thrashes with the best of them, and despite the Russian lyrics -(the other disc of English tracks was not included in my file) the band offers some great melodies, and a great deal of rage on the vocals. The vocal lines come in as fierce as the music on the disc, which is for the most part unrelenting. There are no soft pieces to speak of, and it’s all a melodic assault of black metal.

I’ve mentioned symphs, but you’d barely hear them unless you listen real closely. The band isn’t interested in over the top theatrics, or keyboards having all of the fun, this is honest brutal black metal the way it used to be. I guess I could say older God Dethroned, before they went death metal.

The band offers a second disc with this compilation called “Primordial Soul” which contains lyrics in complete English. As I stated before, I was not fortunate enough to get that disc in my file, so I don’t have it to review - just the Russian disc. I will say however, that if the second disc is ANYTHING like the first, which is a brutal, but also very melodic and very hooky type of symphonic black metal that might put more popular bands of the genre to shame - I would highly have to recommend it also. There’s potential here.

Perhaps the first couple tracks on the disc don’t offer as much as the later tracks, or perhaps I wasn’t really absorbing it at first, but I will honestly say that these gentlemen are indeed a breath of fresh air to some of the much more boring and expectable black metal. Yes, you may have heard bands that sound like this before, but it is a certainly better style to revert to, rather than to retread 96 or to copy Enslaved.

Whatever the case, I enjoyed the album, and perhaps you will as well. (42:00 First Disc)

4/5

Crocell - The Wretched Eidola (2011) - For some odd reason, I only have a few songs from this album due to some sort of file mishap. Regardless, a few songs is better to review than none at all. From the three songs I have heard on this album, Crocell is an impressive and definitely notable death metal band. This is the way that I like death metal to sound, personally and I’ve rather enjoyed these three tracks immensely.

The first track after the intro is called “I Know The Taste Of Your Tears” which introduces a band that uses a lot of groove, a scream and growl style (that really kills on the choruses) and some good melodies and solos. This is a band that is right up there with some of the best death metal I’ve heard in my life. It’s not overly fast or technical, and it has that sort of flair that Michael’s second Bloodbath album had, that sort of Entombed, Grave, Unleashed feel.

There are many bands that try to emulate the style, but this band comes along with something great. The vocals really make me feel the lyrics, it’s not just random growling screaming miasma, and the riffs are as deathy as they need to be. Shit, this is only three songs, and I’m really enjoying this one. I wish there were more albums like this. I’ll tell you right now, I could probably listen to this one another couple hundred times, but I can’t do that with all of the other grab-bag releases I’ve got to do.

But if you like groovy death metal with a vocal emphasis on the lyrics, classic death metal riffs, and isn’t just technicality - the way things used to be, check out Crocell. You’ll be wishing that there was more music out there like this.

5/5

Iperyt - No State Of Grace (2011) - Iperyt really interested me. In the short list, (which will be released soon) I reviewed a band by the name of N.K.V.D. and their new album, “Vlast.” It was very much in this vein, but lacked so much. A few days later, I happened upon this one, which made me glad I junked N.K.V.D.

Iperyt plays a style of fierce, but somewhat melodic and sort of catchy industrial death/black metal. The mechanical drumming of this album brings back Ministry, but it’s even more extreme. They also use a drum machine. The band hasn’t a lot on riffs, and there’s no solos to speak of, but there are some great melodies in the music which match the chorus lines. Songs like “The Player” with some of my favorite black metal lyrics so far, “I challenge Jesus - To the game he always loses - I challenge God - To the game he can never win” will definitely stick with me.

This band uses some very unconventional riffs and delves into prog which actually works well with their style, despite the fact that some of you might not like the drum machine and mechanized drum kicks. (sort of like I used in my album) The vocalist rages like a thrash metal vocalist with a background in black metal, and sometimes you could even call it death metal and make some Carcass references.

Fans of industrial death metal, death metal, black metal, or industrial black metal should definitely give this one a whirl. It’s a killer disc with a lot of interesting riff experimentation, brutal drum machine work, and a vocalist that wants to stuff his words right down you fucking throats and hopes that you choke on them. Think The Crown or Carcass, as I’ve said before. Definitely worth hearing, even if you don’t fucking like drum machines. (40:00)

5/5

Cuntworm - The Inhuman Condition (2010) - Cuntworm plays a very interesting and extremely with a capital “e” style of electronic black metal. They may say “industrial” but I hear more electronic influence than anything. I’ve even heard a few tracks on the disc that remind me of Grendel’s older work.

The band doesn’t always use guitars, and hell - half of this album is metal, and half of it is just really strange atmospheres and electronic drum beats. There is some really freaky shit on this record, and I’ve loved every damned minute of it. Alright, well the thing didn’t start out so good in the beginning, but as the disc wore on, I noticed that the band went every which way that they could on this album, using electronics and black metal in a way that I wished that I could, myself.

This very impressive disc features some interesting voice clips, and I have no idea where they came from, but it’s interesting stuff dealing with conspiracies, inter-dimensional beings, and how we’ve all be conditioned and need to break our condition, because they are coming for us. Whoever they are. Yeah, some really freaky shit. If you’re a conspiracy nut, you might like this disc, in the fact that it really tries to put the fear of the unknown in you with the clips.

Also, there are some so/so black metal riffs, but this disc isn’t about the riffs, it’s about the electronics. Yeah, so if you pass on it - that’s alright with me. Just know that this is a rather interesting and unique album, even if it still has some signs of amateurism. I also noticed some brief death metal growls on the album. There’s use of choirs, and some woman singing, the whole nine yards on this thing. It’s a dark Picasso, something I thought was going to suck badly and didn’t. (44:00)

Give it a try, if you’re up for it. Not everyone likes electronics.

3/5 (Due to the fact that this is barely a metal album. As an electronic album alone, it would get a 5/5, because it still shows some very amateurish sections to receive a 666 rating.)

Hellish Oblivion - 9 Circuum Mortis (2011) - Alright, with this one I’ve only got three songs: Tracks 1, 4,and 5. If you don’t feel my review sufficient on this one, or the same with Crocell, go visit the band’s webpage/myspace and check their music out for yourself.

This blackened death metal band is actually quite good. The songs have definite variation, and thought and work was definitely put into this recording. There are a few guitar sweeps and some rather good playing at times, the drummer bludgeons the kit, and there’s some really nice outros like on the fifth (and last track that I have to review) track.

For the most part, I would have to say that Hellish Oblivion is exactly what they are supposed to be. There’s not a ton of mindless technicality, or progressive tinkering or anything like that. It’s just very fast and well thought out, as well as melodic (as there is a ton of melody) blackened death metal. The vocals on the disc are very raspy, but in a good way, the way that a demon or insane man might holler while he is feasting on the carcass of another.

It’s definitely going to be worth checking out if I’m sold on the first two fucking songs. Much better than some of the stuff I’ve reviewed in the past, and definitely puts the “black” into blackened death metal, (which is normally death metal growls and more death metal influence with mere tinges of black metal) despite the fact that the disc might not sound a produced as it could. It’s not raw, just not polished. No big deal though, as the music holds it’s own, and even in three songs the band offers a good chunk of material.

As I said, work was put into this one, and thought - most important. Any band can make any album, but to make a good one, you’ve got to put some fucking thought into how things could be made more interesting or appealing to the listener. Nobody wants plain old vanilla ice cream, especially with all the “metal ice cream shops” we’ve got these days. The band tried this simple method, and it seems to have worked.

5/5

Dememberance - Inside (2010) - Decemberance is a progressive/technical doom/death band with a very slow sound, but there are some faster portions as well. Take note that the band likes to create atmospheres and uses their guitars in odd and funny ways to create things that sometimes sound rather trippy, and other times, rather beautiful. Melody is no stranger to this band, who mixes brutality and splendor so well.

The band definitely must believe in their work, being as it’s extremely long of an album to get through, yet I did not grow bored of it, and that’s a good thing. The atmospheres created in each and every song sort of set the mood for editing, and that can’t be a bad thing. At times though, the gravelly death metal vocals and some of the slower riffs got a little grating, and made the album seem as if it was going to go on forever.

If there had not any experimentation on this disc, or it didn’t have the prog drumming or atmospheres “Rain” , I would’ve probably cast it off. Nox Aurea’s last album bored me to tears, and I’ve been weary of death/doom since listening to that last one. Despite the fact that this album isn’t as well produced as one would like, does not mean that the music suffers, because everything seems to register well in the long run.

All in all, the band uses what little they have to make things interesting enough to be able to sit through the 67 minute playing time, which may even sound longer when you listen to it. Not thrashy, or groovy, but still very dark, heavy, technical, beautiful and foreboding with some unexpected acoustic instrumental pieces and songs like “Sunset” which really add experimentation to the mix. Definitely a step in the right direction for this band, with a very odd closer “Premonition” (17:36 - Three tracks on this disc are over 14:00) which sounds at the end like the band just randomly playing nonsense and everything just seems to slowly “unravel” at the last second of the disc. Interesting, indeed. (67:00)

4.5/5

Demontage - The Principal Extinction (2011) - Demontage is like a blast from the past. It’s very intricate black metal/death metal/thrash/power with some tinkerings in a little bit of everything else as long as it’s still in the metal category. The vocals are really poor, and at times horribly in the wrong keys, plus (since there are multiple vocalists) some of these guys can’t even sing to save their lives.

Vocally, it’s a train wreck, but musically; it’s a masterpiece. Trust me on this one. These are highly crafted, fine tuned and well created riffs that I just couldn’t help but like. The solos on the disc are also very good, as is the drumming and everything else in the musical category. Sure, it sounds like it was made in the 80’s with some really raw recording, but that’s part of the band’s image, as they seem to have a nostalgia or longing for the past days of metal. Some of the riffs here date back to much earlier bands, and I imagine that there’s people out there who’ll fucking love the re-imagining that they’ve done on this disc.

There’s a bit of death metal, black metal, thrash, prog, and even some power metal portions on this disc that despite the vocal wreckage (which not all of it is bad either, you can tell that these vocals were from the heart in places) still make it something you won’t be able to stop playing. I didn’t want to like this disc, but so help me, I couldn’t fucking help it.

If you get a chance, check this one out because it’s a good step in the right direction for this band, and possibly a second disc could see things even finer tuned in the vocal area, which would make the disc a must have. (46:00)

4/5

Die Apokalyptischen Reiter - Moral & Wahsinn (2011 Ltd. Edition) - Oddly enough, I have no idea the full span of the track list for the limited edition of this disc, because my file was missing a few tracks, or my unzipper couldn’t recognize the names. Regardless, I’ve only got eight tracks from this disc, but that’s just enough to review. I will be re-d/loading this one, because it sounds rather badass to me. But as for the review:

DAR sounds like a much more epic and experimental version of the popular and most well known German metal band, Rammstein. DAR is different because they seem to take things in a much more metal direction, and even include some growls in portions. There is also the fact that the band uses some foreign instruments that aren’t present in the industrial based music of Rammstein. The vocal approach is a little lighter here than Till’s dirty grunts, even though there’s certainly influence from Till on the vocals of a few songs, namely “Gib Dich Hin” and the title track, among others. I am only missing three tracks from this album, so I feel that I’ve heard more than enough to come to this conclusion.

Acoustic pieces are used in the songs, as are mariachi horns and some Arabian instrumentations as well. The first song on the disc “Die Boten” is probably one of my favorites, because of the sheer amount of heaviness used, and “Gib Dich Hin” also reminds me of Rammstein could be if they’d just gone a bit heavier, even though their last album was not bad. I also need to point out that there is an interesting whistle effect in that song, which really seems to work for it. The experimenting works for the most part, and some songs feature a full orchestra at times as well, or just a whole lot of symphonics. It’s tough to tell these days.

Fans of Rammstein, Subway To Sally, Eisbrecher, Disillusion (Gloria Era), and about a hundred and fifty thousand other German metal bands of this nature should really enjoy this album. I’ve enjoyed it much more than other new releases I’ve heard from the bands I’ve named off. It’s definitely worth a try, even though not every song on the disc is going to amaze you. Yet there are some very good tracks.

4/5

Epoch Crisis - Rex (2011) - This one man Russian instrumental project is pretty much just fast paced melodic technical death metal with some electronics, electronic symphonic orchestrations and some great drum programming skills. I’m not sure if it’s a free project or not, so check here:

http://www.myspace.com/epochcrysis
http://www.lastfm.ru/Epoch+Crysis
http://www.drugmetal.ru/blog/epochcrysis/
http://vkontakte.ru/epochcrysisrusofficial

If you’ve got time, check it out. But I’m going to throw some vocals on a few of these tracks like I always do. As this isn’t a necessity, it’s not going to recommend it, but check it out if you want. As I said, I’ll upload a version of the first track “Routine Glory” with myself on vox using Audition. (40:00)

3/5

Godog - Tell Me A Story (2011) - Cellos anyone? If you thought that Apocalyptica had become total-sellouts-tica, then Godog might be for you. The band still uses their cellos throughout every song, but the riffs are much heavier and everything is just a great deal more metal than anything I’ve heard from Apocalyptica in quite a while.

Both classical, beautiful, and heavy, the band doesn’t miss a note with this very interesting metal meets metal’s roots (classical) mix. Fans of either genre should appreciate this album, as well as people that don’t like metal music at all. There are no vocals to speak of, and I personally don’t think there need to be any on this one, for they would kill the whole damn musical work itself.

The album isn’t very long, and it’s certainly one you play again and again, maybe even while sipping a nice glass of tea with your beloved. Or perhaps it would be good for a dinner for two, just with a little more guitar, bass, and drums than one might expect. Classy and brutal at the same time, it’s like the system decided to merge into the dirtiness of metal and reminds me of an old man in a three piece suit that was pushed into a muddy mosh pit, and happened to enjoy himself in it.

Bon a petit. (40.00)

5/5

Hive Destruction - Secretvm Veritas (2011) - This instrumental sludge album from ex members of the band Amera (of which I’ve never heard) is a pretty decent slab of metal for fans of Pelican, Neurosis, and exc. The band has some good points on their album, with “Thy Will Be Done” (The longest track on the disc at 12:05) having some clips on why someone joins the Taliban, and how destructive we actually are when it comes to war. The closer also has some interesting information from a public speaker “At The Top In The Fog” of who’s name I’m not familiar with.

The disc is full of all sorts of sludge experiments, with some electronics and other sorts of things, but it is nothing really new or original. Most of this I’ve already heard done before, but sludge is sludge. There’s not a whole hell of a lot you can do with it. Granted there are plenty of oddities on this disc, and it’s supposed to sound better when you’re high, it’s certainly musically not much different than the aforementioned bands I’ve already named.

All the experimentation in the world could’ve been done with this album, but without vocals and a concept to tie all this together, it just feels a little empty. Yes, it’s good to listen to when you want to get high and chill out. Other that that, there’s not a whole lot more to say about this disc. (59:00)

4/5

Images Of Eden - Rebuilding The Ruins (2011) - These gentlemen sound rather promising, but the recording quality is still rather amateurish, though it can be forgiven. This is a very good progressive metal act, sounding rather decent at the current moment, and quite possibly could be as good as some of the better prog metal bands that are out there.

That is not to say that this hard hitting prog metal is not full of any surprises, as the songs do have plenty of musical ear candy to offer, and the vocal approach is good for the most part, very expectable. There are some deathlier portions and some female vocals, but it’s nothing we haven’t already heard from prog metal before.

For the most part, it’s just a “meh album” with some interesting parts in places, and some people may enjoy the disc more than others. I’d say it’s more towards classic prog metal with some modern influences, and sounds much more basic than some of the later albums I’ve heard from prog.

This isn’t anything like the current age of prog metal, since I wasn’t aware that groups like BTBAM, Periphery, and The Human Abstract were classified as prog, where as I’d consider them experimental death metal/core. This is about as classic as it gets, and honestly, it’s not half bad. Nothing we haven’t heard before, but certainly not an album just to pass on, as the band did work rather hard in crafting this album. It’s no “Heavenly Ecstasy” or “The Antithesis” but it’s a good attempt nonetheless. Give it a spin, it can’t kill you. (61:00)
2.8/5

Ixion - To The Void (2011) - I was rather impressed at this very cosmic influenced atmospheric doom/death metal. The melodies in this band are their key point, as well as the piano playing (and flute usage on the final track) which really helps this band to sound completely beautiful. The songs on this disc are very slow, but still very majestic and wondrous at the same time.

The vocalist has a very gravelly vocal approach that is somewhat hard to hear over the beautiful instrumentations, and even tougher to understand, except when he goes into a very humble clean vocal. This is probably one of the best doom albums I’ve heard in a very long time, and should greatly appeal to fans of the genre, as it seems to define exactly what doom music of this caliber should sound like.

Not every song is perfect, and many of the songs are more towards the growls than the clean vocals, but this is still a monumental effort, and definitely worth your ears despite the fact that the production isn’t necessarily perfect, but I’ve heard plenty of albums that sound like this production-wise, and I’m perfectly okay with it. I will say that it’s not a raw production value though, by any means.

Fans shouldn’t care either way, and if they keep making great atmospheric doom like this, they might become a household name. Definitely check this one out fans of atmospheric doom / funeral doom (except that this isn’t depressing) because it’s a keeper, for sure.

Machinae Supremacy - A View From The End of The World (2010) - I thought to make a note to review this one, because it’s probably their best release thus far. On this album, the band definitely shows signs of maturity and takes a couple more risks, making every song sound different from the other. The chip is still heavily used on the album, even making the drums and bass a sort of background music for the chip music, like what might provide a interesting and still very retro NES style soundtrack for a retro remake game. The biggest example of this is on “Shinigami.”

Don’t think it’s all just a bunch of chip music on this disc though, as there is plenty of metal, even though the band seems to delve into a few parts of hard rock territory. The band has always been quiet fluent with guitar melodies, and I believe there is definitely some great dual guitar work on a few songs of these songs. The solos are for the most part very good, and quite frequent. Just about every song has a solo, with some being full blown metal solos, and some more rock, but it still seems to work well for the band.

Vocals are a lot easier to handle on this one, with the vocalist not resorting as much to his emo-like screams, and actually showing off his choruses in a clearer format, since the production on this album is the best in the history of the band. This makes things come out extremely well, and singles such as “Force Feedback” (of which there is a video on you tube) sound so good, I’ve played them dozens of times.

Yes, it’s still not going to be for everyone, and not all of the songs on the disc are perfect. There is some filler, but even the filler has some good guitar work and some experimentation. The concept of the album is odd, seeming like the rejection towards a modernized god, and an embracement of the internet and technology. “The Greatest Show On Earth” and closer “Remnant (March Of The Undead IV)” are good examples of this, with the closer probably being one of the best tracks on the whole album, both chip wise, vocal wise, guitar-wise and everything else. They saved the best song and put it at the end. BTW, it’s a 4 part “March Of The Undead” saga started back in the band’s early years. Should be self explanatory.

Though they might come off as emo, they aren’t. Remember, the band personally considers themselves “SID Metal.” It’s jut the vocalist’s fucking pipes. Not everyone’s going to like them. But still an interesting and unique metal experience here.
Worth a listen, at least check out the video for “Force Feedback” on youtube. (62:00)

4/5

Mandragora - Carnal Cage (2011) - Mandragora is rather promising progressive death metal act, much in the vein of Opeth or Rapture in terms of melody with still a somber feeling. The band seems to pull all the bells and whistles of prog death metal as much as you would expect and still can execute some quite tasteful guitar solos. This is the kind of death metal, like Opeth where people begin to equate “taste” with metal.

There are no clean vocals to speak of, and the band doesn’t use very many acoustics, but clearly has plenty of musicianship to make them the Opeth of Italy, if there could be such a thing. Just don’t expect a great deal of theatrics, since these gentlemen seem very serious and take this as a very stolid attempt. That is not a typo either, look it up if you’re unsure as to what that means, or you lack a certain class.

Alright, now I’m just making jokes here - but yes, if this is the kind of very cold and very serious progressive death metal that you crave, you might very much enjoy this band. Sure, there have been better, and there have been much worse, but for the most part, this band delivers exactly the kind of progressive death metal that inspired them.

By the way, check out “After” for a serious nod to Opeth.

4/5

Kvelertak - Kevelertak (2011) - Alright, saving one of this year’s most interesting and unique albums for last. This Kvelertak, a band that I noticed was high up there on Liquid Metal’s chart. I don’t listen to LM much, because they don’t play enough black/death/prog or avantgarde - it’s usually just popular metal/metalcore, unless they play classic metal which of course is good..

This band is definitely one to keep watch on. Imagine a Norwegian black metal infused Dillinger Escape Plan with progressive touches like Enslaved/Opeth, and you’ve basically got it. That’s still a lot to wrap your head around though. Sometimes the band rocks and rolls as well as any other rock/core band would, and other times they go full on black metal. But there’s some very interesting progressive and experimental riffs thrown in that even Dillinger wouldn’t think of.

This is top-notch shit, even if you can’t understand the lyrics. Black and Roll with prog and experimentation isn’t something I’ve exactly heard before, and I didn’t think it could be done right, without going too much in one way, but songs like “Sultans Of Satan” which actually feature some clean vocals (because there are clean vocals on this album that aren’t what you’d expect) prove that the band can use hair metal style parts and prog rock/very trippy style portions in the same fucking song. “Nekroskop” is more towards black metal, and the closer “Utrydd dei svake” adds a little bit of blues to the mix too.

Well, these guys are fucking awesome. Definitely one of the best and most original bands of the last few years. It’s only a matter of time before the media embraces them and they turn to shit. Enjoy it while it lasts, kiddies - this is good stuff. (48:00)

666

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