FOR THE LOVE OF METAL
This album has changed my entire perspective on power metal, as I have always viewed it as a cheesy and cliché attempt at applying emotion to music. If there are three things that Sonata Arctica have justified on The Days of Grays, it is that the genre is indeed epic, captivating and genuinely metal. And I don’t need an overly excited narrator to tell me so.
Ola Mazzuca reviews the new release by Finnish power metal experts Sonata Arctica
I have to admit that one of the reasons why I pitched Hellbound.ca a concert review of the Planetary Depravity Tour was because I wanted to see Dying Fetus guitarist John Gallagher and guitarist Michael Keene from The Faceless play live. Would they be able to pull their dexterous guitar feats off or were they simply studio tricks? Does Gallagher look as evil and demented as he sounds? Inquiring minds wanted to know.
Laina Dawes reviews the recent Toronto stop of the Planetary Depravity tour.
Grey Rigorism is the third full-length album from French black metallers Merrimack. The record starts out strong, but over the course of the hour-long running time things become somewhat inconsistent at points.
At its core, New Moon is about what Swallow The Sun have been doing at their best — infectious, melancholy, and swaying lead guitar melodies eventually overwhelmed by crushing fuzz surging against the backdrops of subtle keyboard ambiance. It’s quite possible that there will be time when Swallow The Sun’s sound is in need of a new direction, but New Moon ensures that for now it’s still well worth another trip down the beaten path.
Grave Miasma is the latest proponent of death metal done right. This is nasty, ugly stuff. While not as sharp in attack as Dead Congregation nor as profoundly murky as Mitochondrion nor as surreal as Portal, Grave Miasma entrenches itself in something of a middle ground.
Tate Bengston investigates the new EP by British death metallers Grave Miasma (formerly known as Goat Molestör).
By Ola Mazzuca Whether you feel that black metal bands of today are becoming increasingly predictable or losing their touch, there’s always going to…
This massive three-disc compilation gives the listener a sonic taster of all the flowery praise thrown around Daniel Ekeroth’s book and if that listener is a seasoned Sverige-phile, then Swedish Death Metal Compilation acts as a 3+ hour trip down the left hand path of memory lane. It’s all here, the good, bad, ugly, awesome, marginal and downright terrible
Germany’s Secrets of the Moon win this year’s award for most black on an album cover. Luckily for listeners, there’s as much inky depth to Privilegivm as the packaging’s colour pallette suggests.
I lost interest in Paradise Lost sometime in the mid-90s, and one opening slot for Opeth several years later did nothing to change my mind. But listening to the band’s latest album, Faith Divides Us – Death Unites Us did.
Who knew crack would be so cheap? I’ve never really been a drug taker, the occasional joint when I was in my younger days but never really liked it. So while I’ve never done anythning harder, I imagine this record would be something like taking cocaine or meth. The high is quick and the come down is quick and you come back for more but it is always like chasing the dragon.