FOR THE LOVE OF METAL
Formed five years ago by founding Dark Tranquillity guitarist Niklas Sundin and three former members of goth veterans the Provenance, Laethora wastes absolutely no time in giving Swedish death metal fans exactly what they crave: bruising, punishing riffs and grooves reminiscent of great bands like Entombed and Unleashed.
Purulent Reality is best compared to an unstoppable force that can take a great deal of abuse, simply shedding off its damaged layers while continuing the charge. The album makes no apologies about the fact that it demands to be played from start to finish and allowed to burn itself out.
Hellbound readers, we’re sure that by now you are all familiar with our Natalie Zed, right? Natalie was our big grand prize winner back in January, taking home more than 50 CDs + and shortly after she received her huge box ‘o CDs, Ms. Zed asked us over at Hellbound HQ if we’d be interested in running reviews of her winnings if she did postcard sized reviews of the albums. How could we say no?
So, without further adieu, here is Natalie’s third installment (reviews #21 – 30 for those keeping stats at home) in what Hellbound likes to refer to as “Postcards From Natalie Zed”…
Overkill focused upon their latest effort, Ironbound, clearly one of their best albums in years, and one of the best albums of the year thus far. And they did justice to classics like “Hello From the Gutter” and “Elimination.”
“Israel is not an easy place for a normal life, but OL’s music can emerge only from a place such as the Holy Land. The multi cultural life here, being a spiritual center, a center of religious wars and conflicts and even being a Jewish back to his homeland after 2,000 years. I’m in a heaven of inspiration.
Being an artist is always a struggle, especially in a country where the army is needed much more than art. Sometimes it’s very hard for us to get support or any attention to what we have to say. It’s a sacrifice and a choice we took, so we don’t complain. At the end of the day, I feel lucky to have a band and to give people some hope and moments of happiness.”
Adam Wills in conversation with Orphaned Land mastermind Kobi Farhi about their latest album, The Never Ending Way of ORwarriOR.
“We all listen to progressive rock, so it’s natural that it comes across in the music. It was clear from the start that progressive elements would be featured in the band’s sound. And that was the reason for me to join. I remember seeing Opeth in 2006, and being very impressed by not just the music, but the whole presentation, and the juxtaposition of metal and prog. I thought then that this is would be an interesting musical path to explore. And Barren Earth has provided me with that path.”
Laura Wiebe Taylor in conversation with Barren Earth keyboardist Kasper Mårtenson about the band’s creation, their debut full-length album and more, exclusively for Hellbound.ca
[Infanticide’s] Scott Hull-produced debut doesn’t traffic in grotesque songs that are the equivalent of dead baby jokes set to stale death metal riffs and pedestrian drumming. It’s more like a potent combination of the misanthropy of Weekend Nachos with the anarchist impulses of Leftover Crack
The answer to whether or not a listener is satisfied by We Are The Void will boil down to individual taste; some will find it phenomenal and some will find the offering paltry and mawkish.
As opposed to the combination of muscle and nuance that Eluveitie excels at live, Amon Amarth is always strictly about brute force. No frills at all, just five guys taking the stage and hammering out an hour and a half’s worth of rousing tunes. Led by the gregarious, downright jolly Johan Hegg, the band hunkered down and regaled the hot, sweaty crowd with a considerably longer set than their first North American tour, which was certainly a nice touch.
Despite the fact that the album title reads as if Impetuous Ritual chose it using Death Metal Mad Libs, this album is anything but random in concept and performance. No, this soul-rending slab of doom-laced death metal is a calculated carnage machine of the first order.
Tate Bengston reviews the new album by Portal side-project Impetuous Ritual, released earlier this year by Profound Lore Records.