Deicide/Scars Of The Crucifix/Earache Records/2004 CD Review

Deicide are a band from Florida that has been around since the mid 80's and are one of the pioneering bands of satanic death metal and this is a review of their 2004 album "Scars Of The Crucifix" which was released by Earache Records.

Drums are mostly fast with alot of brutal blast beats while the bass playing is all rhythm bass and has alot of fast riffs being played, as for the piano when it is utilized it has a very dark avant garde feel.

Rythym guitars are a mixture of midpaced riffs mixed with alot of fast death metal playing that is very 80's death thrash influenced while the lead guitars are mostly fast guitar solos and on some songs they contain alot of melody.

Vocals are mostly low pitched death metal growls that are easy to understand with some high pitched screams while the lyrics are mostly anti christian themes with a touch of satanism, as for the production it sounds very professional and every instrument has a very good sound.

In my opinion this was a really good album from Deicide and it was probably their best album of the 2000's, all Deicide fans probably have this album.

STANDOUT TRACKS INCLUDE "Scars Of The Crucifix" and "Fuck Your God". RECOMMENDED BUY

Deus Otiosus Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?
Henrik: "We’ve just recovered from water flooding our rehearsal place. But now we have re-built the band headquarters at a new location and are back on track rehearsing new songs. We are working on the music for a second album."

2. How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the new album?

Henrik: "I’m not too fond of rigid genres, but obviously it’s death metal. We call it old school death metal to avoid being mistaken for the nowadays typical death metal bands who aim to play as fast or technical as possible. But I think we are old school in the way that we try to concentrate on good, lasting songs, like the ones we know from the classic bands of the genre. Not that we try to sound as close as possible to the sound of any classic bands. I don’t think our sound is narrow and maybe we have parts that some would categorize as black or thrash metal, but it doesn’t really matter. I believe in creativity more than rigid borders."

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the new release explores?

Henrik: "Our music explores all the sinister phenomena of the world, and some beyond. Some of the themes on the "Murderer"-album are violence, hell, torture, Armageddon, the undead and, naturally, murder."
4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?
Henrik: "Deus Otiosus means withdrawn God, and the bandname is simply our concept: All the horrors among an orphaned humankind in a godless world, like I mentioned in the last answer."

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?
Henrik: "It’s not that we have played that many yet, but I think most have been very enjoyable. Our first gig was a bit shaky perhaps. But since then it’s been all mayhem all the way. There is really no stage show or image at these concerts. We just play and go berserk. Sometimes there’s been naked people and things flying through the air, but that has been courtesy of the audience."

6. Do you have any touring plans for the new release?
Henrik: "No real tours are planned. But we will do more concerts and hopefully we will also figure out some dates abroad."

7. The album is coming out on both FDA Rekotz and American Line how did you come in contact with both labels and how would you describe the support that they have given you so far?

Henrik: "We sent American Line a promo, and FDA Rekotz contacted us. Both labels have been very trustworthy and have delivered what we agreed on. That is far from something you can say about every label, as we witnessed in the process of finding a label for the "Murderer"-album. But all is well that ends well and we’re very happy with the support we’ve gotten from these two labels."

8. On a worldwide level how has your music been received by death metal fans?
Henrik: "Many good reactions and reviews, and some people really seem to understand what we’re doing. owever

However I am sure, that there are still a lot of death metal fans out there who have not yet heard our music, so there is a long way to go yet!"

9. Are there any side projects besides this band or is this a full time line-up?

Henrik: "I also play in another band called Exekrator, which has a quite unique black/heavy metal sound. Some of the other guys used to play in a band called Hideous Invasion, but that is on ice, so I’m the only one actively involved in another band, and I think for all of us Deus Otiosus is the most active band."

10. What direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?

Henrik: "Where ever creativity takes us. It’s just a matter of making the best possible music, so hopefully it will get better and better, but beyond that I can’t say. However we have new songs ready for a second album, and they tend to emphasize the strengths on "Murderer" further. Each song is in itself stronger and more worked through, and at the same time there is more variation in the dynamic and character in between the songs. More of everything, you could say."

11. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
Henrik: "I have been playing this kind of music for many years, so it’s hard to find conscious inspirations. I suppose I am generally inspired by the old classics both death metal acts such as Death, Morbid Angel and Pestilence, but also metal in general. For example Mercyful Fate, Slayer, Judas Priest and Black Sabbath. I can easily be inspired by music quite far from what we’re doing, and I think that is the way it should be. If we were inspired solely by bands that are musically close to our own, we would probably just sound too much like something that’s already been done. I still listen to classic metal like mentioned earlier, Cirith Ungol, Master’s Hammer, Deicide etc. I must admit that even though there are many cool, current bands there are few that are really great standouts to me. Among bands that are fantastic today would be Absu, Macabre, Morbid Angel (contrary to everyone else it seems, I like the new album), Melechesh and Grand Magus."

12. What role does Occultism play in your music and how would you describe your views on these topics?

Henrik: "Like all other sinister sides of life and history, occultism is a topic for our music. For example the song "Kult of the Horned Snake" from our demo is inspired by the mystery cults from centuries ago. That does not mean that I hold any supernatural beliefs though."

13. Outside of music what are some of your interests?
Henrik: "Philosophy, history, religion, classic architecture and arts. But that does not mean that I am an expert in all those things. I actually don’t have much time to spend on such interests at this point. Perhaps when I’m retired."

14. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
Henrik: "Thanks a lot for the support, John. Much appreciated! And good luck with Hatred Means War ‘till we speak again."

Deus Otiosis/Murderer/FDA Recotz/2010 CD Review

Deus  Otiosis  are  a  band  from  Denmark  that  plays  old  school  death  metal   with  a  thrash  edge in  the  early  tradition  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2010  album  "Murderer"  which  was  released  by  FDTA  Recortz.

  Drums  range  from  midpaced  to  fast  drumming with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  being  thrown  in,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  is  coming  out  of  the  guitars  and  at  times  they  sound  very  powerful.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  midpaced  to  fast  death  metal  riffs  that  are  also  influenced  by  thrash  with  some  melodies  being thrown  in  at  times,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  old  school  death/thrash  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  are  all  deep  death  metal  growls  with  some  samples  being  thrown  in  at  times,  while  the  lyrics  cover  murder,  death,  violence  and  occultism,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  heavy,  powerful  and  professional  sound  to  it  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  Deus  Otiosis  are  a  very  good  old  school  style  death  metal  band  with  a  thrash  edge  and if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  style,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECEMMONDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "I  Have  Seen  Him  Slay"  "Whore  Limbs"  and  "No  Life".  RECEMMONDED  BUY.

Undead Creep/The Ever Burning Torch/Dark Descent Records/2011m CD Review

Undead  Creep  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  plays  a  Swedish  style  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2011  album  "The  Ever  Burning  Torch"  which  was  released  by  Dark  Descent  Records     and  also  contains  their  self  titled  demo.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  midpaced  to  fast  drumming  with  a  good  amount  of  blast  beats  being  thrown  in  at  times,  while  the  synths  when  they  are  utilized  briefly  on  the  first  song  bring  a  very  dark  and  atmospheric  edge  to  the  music,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  is  coming  out  of  the  guitars.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  midpaced  to  fast  Swedish  style  death  metal  riffs  that  are  also  melodic  at  times,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  distorted  and  melodic  sounding  Swedish  death  metal  sounding  guitar  solos  and  at  times  they  sound  very  powerful,  as  for  the  classical  guitars  which  are  only  used  on  the  instrumental  and  the  intro  for  the  demo  they  bring  a  dark sound  to  the  music.

  Vocals  are  a  mixture  of  deep  death  metal  growls  and  high  pitched  screams,  while  the  lyrics  cover  Occultism,  gore  and  violence,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  dark,  raw  and  heavy  sound  to  it.

  In  my  opinion  Undead  Creep  are  a  very  good  Swedish  style  death  metal  band  with  a  more  dark  and  occult  take  on  the  genre  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  style,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECEMMONDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Immolated  For  Reincarnation"  "Swallowed  Bu  The  Chasm"  "Forbidden  Cult"  and  "Ritual  Slaughter".  RECEMMONDED  BUY.

Pestillence/Doctrine/Mascot Records/2011 CD Review

Pestillence  are  a  band  from  the  Netherlands  that  has  a  history  that  dates  back  to  the  80's  and  has  started  out  death/thrash  then  evolved  into  death  metal  and  later  on  technical  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2011  album  "Doctrine"  which  was  releasedby  Mascot  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  midpaced  to  fast  drumming  with  a  good  amount  of  blast  beats  being  used,  while  the  bass  playing  sounds  very  strong  and  powerful  with  technical  riffing  and  you  can  hear  the  instrument  throughout  the  recording,  as  for  the  synths  which  are  only  utilized  briefly  they  bring  a  dark  sound  to  the  music.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  midpaced  to  fast  technical  death  metal  riffs  that  are  rooted  in  the  mid  90's  and  have  somewhat  of  a  thrash  and  groove  metal  feel,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  technical  and  melodic  sounding  guitar  solos.

  Vocals  are  somewhat  deep  death  metal  growls  but  lack  the  power  of  their  earlier  albums  and  there  are  not  as  brutal  as  most  medern  day  death  metal  bands  in  addition  there  are  some  ocassional  Gregorian  chants  and  spoken  word  passages,  while  the  lyrics  cover  everyday  themes  with  somewhat  of  an  occutl  edge,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound.

  In  my  opinion  while  this  is  not  as  good  as  their  earlier  albums  and  some  long  time  fans  would  be  dissapointed  this  is  still  an  decent  album  from  Pestillence  and  they  still  have  a  good  amount  of  talent.  RECEMMONDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Amgod"  "Salvation"  "Sinister"  and  "Malignant".  RECEMMONDED.

Corpsessed Interview

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard of you before?- Corpsessed is a 5-pieced band from Finland that was formed in early 2007 with the desire and intent to play Death Metal the way that is closest to our hearts, in the old school fashion with nods to early releases of bands such as Grave, Incantation and the ancient Finnish Death Metal tradition.

 
2. How would you describe the musical sound that is on the EP?
- This EP is our first release and is entitled "The Dagger & The Chalice" containing 6 songs of Death Metal returning to the original idea of the genre without too much modern connotations. The sound is murky and dark with a heavy emphasis on the low frequencies. In our music we are concentrating more on creating a dark, punishing and unforgiving atmosphere rather than relying on sweet melodies. We're not that technical or the fastest band around nor do we intend to be, it's a fine balance between blasting, midpaced and slower more doomy parts. The vocals range from deep growls to some higher pitched screams, but remain mostly in the deep end.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and concepts the ep explores?

- Lyrics of the songs on the EP contain themes such as Death worship, brooding and imminent Doom, the Occult, sex, nightmares and the abhorrent ancient gods (with a heavy nod to the mythos created by H.P.Lovecraft).

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

- It's a made up word... Combining possession and death, It depicts a state of being possessed into a corpselike state in a grip of death, certain zombifiement of sort... draining of vitality through demonic inthrallment. I can't deny also the stint of black humour the name contains, though it's not meant to be taken as a joke in anyway.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage perforamnce?

- All of us have played gigs before with our other bands and projects, but as Corpsessed we haven't done any shows yet... which is a matter that will be corrected very soon! We are at the moment rehearsing hard for future live appearances and trying to find suitable gigs, venues and bands we could share the stage with. I don't think we'll be relying on any gimmicks, props or theatric stuff - just the band playing with abandon and power and let the music do the talking.

6. Do you have any touring plans for the future?

- Not for the moment, but who knows what the future will bring.


7. On a worldwide level how has your music been recieved by death metal fans?
- Surprisingly most of the feedback we've recieved this far has been very good. But we are still a quite new and unknown band. The bad reviews are bound to start coming in, now that the EP is out. The music is our view on how we see and like Death Metal and opinions vary from person to person, and you can't please everybody - it would also be foolish to even try.


8. Are there any side projects besides this band or this a full time line up?
- Corpsessed is very much a full-time band and we don't consider it a sideproject of anything. Some of us still play in other bands as well - Matti (guitars) is still active with his funeral doom band Tyranny and Mikko (bass) with his band Azure. Jussi (drums) is playing with some projects. For Niko (vocals) and Jyri (guitars) Corpsessed is the only active band at the moment, though Jyri is also a session member in the Tyranny live lineup, which varies from time to time.

9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

- Everything evolves as it goes onwards, as it has done to this date. It took us perhaps a few years to get things set on the right path, which is why our very first release is coming out now - 4 years after the inception of the band. It took a while to figure out how to channel our potential through this band and now that our vision is quite clear on what we want and can do, we don't see any drastic changes coming in the future. Corpsessed will always play uncompromising Death Metal with the power and passion as we have to this day.

10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

- There's loads of bands, old and new, we listen to and each of the members have their own taste, but where we come together Death Metal-wise are the first albums from Grave, Entombed, Dismember, Tiamat, the Finnish bands like Abhorrence, Demigod, Belial, Purtenance and the American bands such as Incantation, Immolation, early Deicide... Necros Christos and Grave Miasma from the more recent ones. Basically the more darker and evil sounding Death Metal. Also Black Metal and Doom plays huge part in our influences and our vocalist is also into more Grind bands, but our tastes can also range from ambient to some fringes of rock music and to the more experimental - from Pink Floyd to Wesley Willis, hah! Inspiration can be drawn from pretty much anything that sounds good to us.

11. Does Occultism play any role in the music?

- Depends really on how you see it. On a thematic level, very much so... Perhaps though much more in a fictional sense, if you look at the lyrics. But the way I see, through the views of the Left Hand Path, practice of Magick as a way to strengthen ones Will where certain symbology exists to provoke you into a certain wanted mood and this is the same with the creation of music, it is channeling of energies in a very pure form and playing the songs can become a very precise Ritual which can open wanted states.... I don't want to go too deep into this here as the matter is very personal.

12. Outside of music, what are some of your interests?

- Music and our normal dayjobs fill most of our days, but outside of that, our other interests are pretty much what you would expect from guys in their late 20s and early 30s, I guess... Movies, books, arts, videogames, some of us do sports and some are lazy as hell. All of us have their own private interests which I think would be futile to start listing here.

 
13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

- I think that was about it.. nothing more to add for the moment. Thanks for the interview, this was our first!

Corpsessed/The Dagger And The Chalice/Dark Descent Records/2011 CD Review

Corpsessed  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  a  very  dark  and  brutal  form  of  old  school  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2011  album  "The Dagger  And  The  Chalice"  which  was  released  by  Dark  Descent  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  midpaced  to  fast  drumming  with a  good  amount  of  blast  beats,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  is  coming  out  of  the  guitars.

  Rhythm  guitars  are  a  mixture  of  slow,  midpaced  to  fast  death  metal  riffs  that  are  also  very  brutal  and  dark  sounding,  while  he  lead  guitars  are morbid  sounding  death  metal  guitar  leads.

  Vocals  are  mostly  deep  death  metal  growls  with  some  high  pitched  screams  being  thrown  ion  at  times,  while  the  lyrics  cover  death  along  with  some  darker  themes  that  have  an  occultic  tinge  to  them,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  dark  and  heavy  sound  to  it..

  In  my  opinion  Corpsessed  are  a  very  good  dark  sounding  brutal  old  school  death  metal  band,  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  style,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECEMMONDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Nameless Cult"  and  "The Dagger And The Chalice".  RECEMMONDED  BUY.

Xenomorph/Empyreal Regimes Discography /Dark Descent Records/2011 CD Compilation Review

  Xenomorph  where  a  band  from  Omaha,  Nebraska  that  played  a  very  heavy  and  brutal  form  of  technical  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2011  compilation  album  'Emperyreal  Regimes  Diccography"  which  was  released  by  Dark  Descent  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  being  thrown  in,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  is  coming  out  of  the  guitars.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  technical  death  metal  riffs  that  fit  in  perfectly  with  the  90's,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  chaotic  and  technical  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  death  metal  growls  with  some  samples  being  thrown  in  at  times,  while  the  lyrics  cover  war,  mythology  and  science,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  raw,  heavy  and  primitive  sound  to  it.

  In  my  opinion  Xenomorph  where  a  very  good  sounding  90's  technical  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  style,  yo  should  check  out  this  band.  RECEMMONDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Wehrmacht"  "Subspieces"  "Valley  Of  The  Kings"  and  "Cyberchrist".  RECEMMONDED  BUY.

Feral/Dragged To The Altar/Ibex Moon Records/2011 CD Review

Feral are a band from Sweden that has their previous album reviewed and has also had an interview here in the past with a style that I would describe as being Swedish death metal with a rock and thrash edge and this is a review of their 2011 album "Dragged To The Altar" which was released by Ibex Moon Records.

Drums alternate between slow, midpaced to fast playing with a good amount of blast beats, while the bass playing sounds very heavy and powerful with a classic rock feel to them.

Rhythm guitars alternate between slow, midpaced to fast Swedish style death metal riffs with some thrash and rock influences and a great amount of harmonics, while the lead giuitars are a mixture of chaotic sounding death metal and rock guitar solos d on one song there are some middle eastern scales being utilized breifly, as for the acoustic guitar that is used on the outro, it has a very dark and cryptic sound to it.

Vocals are all deep death metal growls mixed in with some horror movie samples, while the lyrics touch on Occultism, Necromancy, Anti-Christianity, and Graveyards, as for the production it has a very raw and heavy sound to it but still retians a degree of professionalism since you can hear all of the musical instruments and they all have a brutal sound to them.

In my opinion this is aother great album from Feral, and if you where a fan of their previous release, you will not be dissapointed. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Altar Of Necromancy" "Judas" "The Curse of The Casket" and "Malevolent Summoning". RECEMMONDED BUY.

Feral Interview

Hook

1. Can you update us with what is going on with the band these days?
We have recently signed a record-deal with a great label (more details will be revealed on our web-sites soon) and we are currently recording our debut album. Things are going really smooth and the work with the recording is going way much faster than we expected it to do, we actually only have the bass and the vocals left to record. All the drums and guitars including solos are recorded.

2. What is the meaning behind the bands name?
Feral is a being once domesticated that has returned into it's wild state, we thought that it would be a fitting name for our musical concept and the general mood.


3. How would you describe your musical sound?
Our music is feral, returned to it's wild state. Groovy and straight forward death metal in the classic Swedish way, though in quite a few reviews people have claimed to hear a lot of thrash metal influences. That might be somewhat true even though none of us listens to that much thrash except for a hand full of bands, but I guess that thrash and death metal are such closely related genres that it's just a matter of opinion. I would call us a genuine death metal band with emphasis of the death'n'roll sub-genre, but everyone is entitled to their own thoughts around or music, if they can hear other influences I guess that's just a good thing.


4. According to a past interview I have read the band was suppose to be more black metal and ended up being death metal, and that your influences were more black metal and regular metal, how did you discover the death metal bands that play a part in your music now?
We didn't really discover that much death metal bands before we started playing it, we simply tried to write black metal and never really succeeded with it and the songs came out as death metal. People started to compare us to death metal bands and we later on started to check out these bands that we were compared with and obviously liked them a lot! We played this kind of music before we even had heard the bands that we listen to and are influenced by today.


5. How would you describe your live performance and what are some of the best shows that you have played so far?
We always play the hell out of ourselves no matter what. Even if the equipment is crap and a few people showed up to the gig there is always someone there that wants to see a god show. You shouldn't punish the people that actually showed up to the gig by giving a bad performance just because other people whimped out. If someone shows us support by paying to come to our shows and buying our merchandise we will do our best to not disappoint this person, anything else would be disrespectful and idiotic.

As for our best show, that's a really hard question. We have had a couple of really good gigs in our hometown Skellefteå the most recent times that we have played, a lot of people coming to show their support for the few local extreme bands that we have here and you really can't get enough of that. In September we played a gig in Jena, Germany together with Six Feet Under and Jungle Rot and had fucking blast! Even though we had some problems with the equipment the crowd went crazy, and when they do, so do we. About a year ago we played with Master in Leipzig which also was a really great gig with good and big crowd. Those are probably my best memories so far.


6. Are there any plans for a U.S tour?
No plans right now, but hopefully our label will be able to help us out with this in the future. We definitely want to go on the road again and playing the US would be great, especially since none of us has ever been there before. I don't know about the other guys but I personally have never been outside Europe.


7. How would you describe the lyrical content of the music?
Well, our lyrics ain't really revolutionary, usually regarding the classic themes like violence, death and religion. It would be quite hard for a metal band to pass off with lyrics about eating your vegetables and doing your homework. I don't really want any political issues or believes in my music either. There is a thin line between god and bad lyrics, I don't want then too deep, but still not nonsense, bad lyrics kill good music if you ask me. I work hard to get my lyrics the way I want them, and if I think that something sounds bad I'll rewrite them until I am satisfied. Though there are some of our lyrics that I would like to rewrite some more, especially our older songs. But when you've sang a song in a certain way for many years it's hard come up with a different way to do it.


8. How would you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the band heading into on future releases?
We are still young, but we were very young when we started the band so we have had a lot of time to find our musical direction and trying different things with the band and I feel that we have finally landed on something that works. Even though our music hasn't changed that much since we started taking the band more seriously, we have simply gotten better at writing and arranging songs. We have grown conferable in our music and I don't see us taking any drastic new direction in the future, though we always do our best to top our previous efforts and not repeat ourselves, even if you should be able to recognize our songwriting between different songs.


9.What are some band or musical styles that have influenced your sound and what are you listening to nowadays?
Obviously we are inspired by bands like Grave, Entombed and so on but also old 70's rock and metal bands like Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and other bands alike. All members in the band counted I'd say that we cover as good as all metal sub-genres as inspiration and a couple of more genres as well. I personally listen the most to, as I said, Swedish death metal and 70's rock but I'm in a doom and stoner metal period right now. A lot of heavy grooves coming out of my speakers at the moment, and I think those influences are quite easy to hear in our music as well. When I'm in the mood for something that becomes almost the only thing I listen to for a long period of time until I get into something else. It keeps on like that until I rediscover the things that I haven't listened to for a while and then I start from the beginning again, with a few exceptions of bands that I listen to in all moods, rain or shine. I'm a huge fan of Grave, and collect any releases and merchandise I can come over by them.


10. Does Satanism or Occultism play any role in the music?
None of us are satanists, but these things definitely influence our music and my lyrics. I've just started to read a bit on occultism (I actually bought The Key of Solomon yesterday), really interesting stuff and surely a good source for inspiration. I consider myself a atheist, but I would be religious I guess I'd rather be a satanist than something else since Satan has horns, that's fucking awesome! When I was young I spent a lot of time in church, and that was really nothing for me, not then and not now. I've always been very interested in viking history and myths, but you will probably never hear any such themes in Ferals music, there are many other bands who does that better than I would. But I am planning some more occult themes in coming songs to vary between the "zombies coming to fucking eat you!"-lyrics. We'll just have to see how it turns out.


11. According to your myspace page, you are heavily interested in books or films, which ones are you a fan of?
Our song Howling that was recorded on both the Grim Winternight!-demo and Graverobber-demo was written when me and Valmer watched the 80's horror movie series with the same name, some nice werewolf action in those. Otherwise we watch loads of horror and gore movies, which mostly are shit with a few exceptions but all have some good entertainment quality. I think it's hard to count how many times we've watched The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. One of my favourite books is Bram Stoker's Dracula, a real classic, and of course HP Lovecrafts stories. I like some of the filmed versions of Dracula as well and actually have one of them tattooed on my upper arm.

12. What are some of your interests outside of music?
Haha, hardly any! I practically live and breath music. But it's standard shit I guess, hanging out with the guys and having a couple of beers, while talking about and listening to music of course. I try to go to as many gigs and festivals as I can afford, in particular the local ones. Since there are so few things happening in the metal scene in our part of Sweden you got to support everything there is, I usually go to at least one bigger festival each year as well. When I was younger I used to do some hunting with my father and some martial arts but that was interest I lost when I got more into music.


13. How has your music been received so far by the death metal community?
Very well so far, especially the Welcome to the Graveyard demo. All our demos as gotten really good reviews, though there wasn't that many for the first couple. But our latest effort hasn't gotten a single bashing so far, which feel very good, not that we would be devastated if someone didn't like it. Surely there has to be someone to dislike it eventually, but that's their problem. The reaction at gigs has been good as well, we're told that we are really good live act, it would be great to have an outer body experience so I could see us myself and get my own opinion!


14. Any final words or thoughts?
Thanks for this interview man, we really appreciate it! And thanks to all those who support us and death metal. Keep an eye open for the news to come on our website and beware because the feral beast lurks in the darkness around you!

Feral/Welcome To Your Graveyard/2009 Demo Review

Feral are a band from Sweden that has toured with Six Feet Under and plays a form of early 90's Swedish death metal with a thrashy edge and this is a review of their 2009 demo demo "Welcome To Your Graveyard".

Drums use a mixture of different beats with some midpaced groove rythyms that end up turning into some real brutal blast beats, while the bass playing can actually be heard on this recording and it sounds very rythymic with some lead bass parts.

Rhythm guitars mix alot of thrash influenced riffs with some really fast classic death metal riffing that utilize alot of palm muting and speed picking mixed in with some slow heavy parts, while the guitar leads sound primal with alot of melody and some exotic sounding scales.

Vocals are mostly deep death metal growls that are easy to understand, while the production sounds very professional and you can hear all of the instruments, as for the lyrics they cover your typical death metal subjects such as graveyards, death, and horror related type of themes.

In my opinion this is a really good band that plays death metal in the old vein but probably will be ignored by some younger people since they actually have talent, guitar solos, and no pig squeels, but if you are an old school death metal fan in your mid 20's to early 30's you will enjoy this band. I am looking forward to hearing more stuff from this band in the future.

Recommended tracks include "The Deathbog" and "welcome To The Graveyard".

Hate Eternal/Conquering The Throne/Wicked World Records/1999 CD Review

Hate Eternal are a band from Florida that play a style that I would describe as fast death metal and this is a review of their 1999 classic album "Conquering The Throne" which was released by Wicked World Records.

Drums are very fast with alot of brutal blast beats as well as some technical drumming while the bass playing has a very dark tone with alot of fast riffing that adds to the heaviness of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars are mostly fast death metal riffs that contain a good amount of melody and the ocassional midpaced riff, while the guitar leads has alot of solos that are very fast but retaining a melodic feel with some haunting sounding scales.

Vocals are mostly deep death metal growls with some high pitched screams while the lyrics cover some occult themes with one song being about the Aztec dieties as well as some anti christian themes mixed in with alot of hatred, as for the production on the album which was produced by Erik Rutan at Greenhouse FX Studios between Febuary through May of 1999 sounds very professional and you can hear all of the musical instruments.

In my opinion Hate Eternal are a very talented death metal fan and if you are a fan of death metal you should have this classic album in your collection.STANDOUT TRACKS INCLUDE "Catacombs" "By His Own Decree" and "Spiritual Holocaust". RECOMMENDED BUY

Hate Squad/Katharsis/Massacre Records/2011 CD Review

  Hate  Squad  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  mixes  thrash,  metalcore  and  death  metal  together  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2011  album  "Katharsis"  which  was  released  by  Massacre  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  a  good  amount  of  blast  beats  being  thrown  in,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  is  coming  out  of  the  guitars  and  at  times  they  sound  very  powerful.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffing  that  combines  thrash,  metalcore  and  death  metal  together  which  some  melodies  and  technical  parts  being  thrown  in  at  times,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  distorted  and  melodic  sounding  guitar  solos  and  leads,  as  for  the  acoustic  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  they  use  finger  picking  and  exotic  sounding  guitar  scales.

  Vocals  are  a  mixture  of  deep  death  metal  and  hardcore  style  growls  with  some  high  pitched  screams  being  thrown  in  at  times,  while  the  lyrics  cover  hate  and  struggle,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful  and  professional  sound.

  In  my  opinion  Hate  Squad  are  a  very  good  sounding  thrash/metalcore/death  metal  band  and  if  you are  a  fan  of  bands  that  mixes  these  styles  together,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECEMMONDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Katharsis"  "Misanthropic  Soul"  "Kill"  and  "Every  Second  Counts".  RECEMMONDED  BUY.

Unleashed Interview

1. Can you update us with what is going on with the band these days?
we just got done with the european paganfest wchich was an awesome tour!and in the forthcoming weeks we will be recording the new album! so timesare busy indeed!>>

2. How would you describe the new material?
well i cant really say anything else than that it's a continuation andprogression of the unleashed sound. but we're definately stepping up oncemore as far as speed and agression!>>

3. I remember seeing you with Morbid Angel and Entombed in 91, how would> you compare the old death metal crowd to the younger crowd?
those were the days huh!? haha! but really, i'm not sure how to comparethat. in any case theres really not a huge difference. we have alwaysworked to have the crowds participate alot and they have since thebeginning.>>

4. What are some of the best live shows that you have played so far?
well thats quite hard to pick...as i say we work hard to get the crowdsgoing and usually succeed and thsat in turn makes most shows really good.but sure some of the early polish and mexican shows we did come to mind...they were so huge and insane in those times so they are 4 really memorable.>>

5. I know a few years ago you take a hiatus, what were you doing during> that time?
yeah well just living really. that was time needed for people to sort outtheir lives more or less. after years of constant touring people had totend to families etc.>>

6. Do you have any plans on coming back and playing the U.S?
definately! soon as the album is done we'll start looking at all thetouring options so keep an eye out for it!>>
7. What are the influences behind you as a musician that made you play> this kind of music?
well everything i could get my hands on at the time i guess! growing up on metal, punk and hardcore and then getting into the thrash, speed and death metal at the time just made you have to play!>>

8. What are you listening to nowadays new or old?
bit of everything i guess. but i must say it can be hard to keep track ofnew stuff sometimes so i will have to say mostly old.>>

9. What role does Asaturu play in your music or life?
well obviously it's a huge part of unleashed lyrically at least. i'm notsure it has any role musically really, but of course the feeling is always there.>>

10. What are some good films or literature that you would recommend?
personally i'm not much into either. there's just no time for it really.>>

11. Any final words?
watch out for the new album in the spring and touring will follow join the battalion!!>>

12. Thanks for the interview?
thanks alot cheers and hail oden!!>>>

Cryptorn/Into The Grasp Of Suffering/Dark Descent Records/2011 CD Review

 Cryptborn  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  death  metal  in  the  classic  European  tradition  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2011  album  "Into  The  Grasp  Of  Suffering"  which  was  released  by  Dark  Descent  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  midpaced  to   fast  drumming  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  being  thrown  in  at  times,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  is  coming  out  of  the  guitars.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  midpaced  to  fast  European  style  death  metal  riffs  that  are  very  dark  and  brutal  sounding,   while  the  lead  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  are  very  dark  sounding  death  metal  guitar  leads.

  Vocals  are  all  deep  death  metal  growls,  while  the  lyrics  touch  on  dark  and  gory  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  dark,  raw  and  heavy  feel  to  it  without  trying  to  sound  like  a  more  modern  and  mainstream  death  metal  band.

  In  my  opinion  Cryptborn  are  a  very  good  old  school  sounding  dark  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  style,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECEMMONDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Gift  Of  Rotten  Flesh"  "Rotten  Gates  Of  Heaven"  and  "Attonement  Of  Hell".  RECEMMONDED  BUY

Entrenched Interview

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard you before?

Charles: Well I like to consider us an old school death/thrash metal band.  We had the mindset of creating death metal but also draw heavy influences from thrash bands, the end result is a mix of both.  Me and Sean got together a few years back in 2009 with the goal of making a sick old school death metal album.  We got to writing and recording almost immediately after we created the band and ended up with our album "Preemptive Strike."

2. How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the album?

Charles: Like a tank that mows you down with a mounted MG42, then rolls over your mutilated corpse and for good measure blasts it into dust with the main turret.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects these music explores?

Charles: The lyrics cover war plain and simple.  Some songs are more ridiculous than others, like Frenzied Amputation is about a man sawing off all his limbs, while others are more serious like Bred to Kill, which is about children being forced into warfare.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

Charles:  The band name comes from a Bolt Thrower song.  I mean we're heavily inspired by them, it's a sick song title and we thought perfect for a band name.  It fit the idea of the band that we evisioned which is an old school death metal band that creates music to depict war.

5. Currently there are only 2 members in the band, are you planning on adding more members or are you going to remain a 2 peice?

Charles: Right now we're looking for anyone who'd be willing to play bass for us on some live shows, if it so happens we get along well and they want to join then we'd love to add another member.

6. Currently, you are unsinged are you looking for a label, if so what kind of label do you feel that would be a perfect fit in the band.

Charles: I think any label that's willing to support us and understands our music would be a perfect fit.

7. Are there any side projects besides this band or is this a full time group?

Charles: Entrenched is a full scale operation.

8. On a worldwide level how has your album been recieved by fans of death and extreme metal?

Charles: Extremely well which is killer.  That's all we could ask for;  for people to enjoy the album as much as we do.  We wrote it as fans of metal wanting to create something any metalhead could enjoy, so hopefully the positive feedback keeps coming in.

9. What direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?

Charles:  Nothing too radically different.  The music will still be a symphony of war, if anything just more extreme, with more groove, and more moshing riffs.

10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Charles:  Slayer, Sodom, Entombed, Obituary, Hail of Bullets, Asphyx, Bolt Thrower, Ghoul, Impaled, Frightmare, Nunslaughter, Carcass, Venom, Napalm Death, Benediction...the list goes on and on.  Recently I've been listening to Horrific - Your Worst Nightmare, Impaled Nazarene - Suomi Finland Perkele, and Pestilence - Consuming Impulse.

11. Outside of music what are some of your interests?

Charles:  Horror movies, Kurt Russell 80's films, the 80's in general, sports (mainly soccer), military history and weaponry...just to name a few.

12. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

Charles: Just wanna say thanks for the interview we really appreciate it.  People can check us out at www.myspace.com/entrenchedusa and keep up with news at www.facebook.com/entrenchedband.

Entrenched/Preemptive Strike/2011 CD Review

Entrenched  are  a  band  from  New  Jersey  that  plays  a  very  brutal  form  of  old  school  death  metal  with  a  thrash  edge  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2011  album  "Preemptive  Strike".

  Drums  range  from  slow,  midpaced  to  fast  drumming  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats,while  the  bass  playing  haas  a  dark  tone  that  is  kind  of mixed  down  low  in  the  mix  and  seems  to  follow  the  riffing  that  is  coming  out  of  the  guitars,  as  for  the  pianos  which  are  only  utilized  breifly  as  an  intro  on  one  song  have  afeel  of  a  black  and  white  horror  film .

  Rhythm  guiars  range  from  slow,  midpaced  to  fast  death  metal  in  the  early  90's  vein  mixed  in  with  a  great  amount  of  thrash  influences  as  well  as  sme  morbid  sounding  melodies,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  chaotic  and  primal  sounding  death  metal  guitar  solos  in  the  early  90's  vein.

  Vocals  are  a  mixture  of  death  metal  growls  and  high  pitched  gore/grind/death  high  pitched  screams  with some  sppoken  word  samles  about  the  war,  while  the  lyrics  cover  war  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  primal,  heavy  and  powerful  sounding  production.

  In  my  opinion  Entrenched  are  a  very  good  death  metal  band  that  goes  back  to  the  classic  sound  instead  of  following  modern  trends,  and  if  you  want  to  hear  some  classic  sounding  death  metal  with  a  modern  touch,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECEMMONDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Breed  To  Kill'  :Frenzied  Amputation"  and  "Dropping  The  Tsar  Bomb'.  RECEMMONDED  BUY.

Destroying Divinity Interview

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard you you before?



The band was founded in January 2001, we started musical path with following members: Erik - vocal, Gassi - guitar, Nagard - guitar, Ommurtag - drums. We recorded first demo "Created" in this formation at the Šopa studio in June 2001. This demo was self-released and send to local labels. After releasing this demo, guitarist Mille was replaced by guitarist Nagard. At the beginning of 2002 Flagin joined us as a bass and guitar player. In this new formation, we played a few concerts and wrote some new songs, which were recorded in the Šopa studio in the spring 2002. Subsequently a czech label Grodhaisn offered us releasing a full lenght debut album, where all material from the the demo and the 4 new songs were used. The CD was released at the end of 2002 under name „...Created...“. After releasing the debut, we played some gigs and worked on new material. After guitarist Mille left the group, Flagin had to reduce his status from bass/guitar player to guitar only. Then, in spring 2004 the second full lenght album "Hell Unleashed" was recorded with this line-up: Erik - vocals, Gassi - guitar, Flagin - guitar, Ommurtag - drums. CD was released by Grodhaisn at the turn of the year (2004/2005). After some gigs a piece of work done we recorded our third album called "Dark Future" in December 2008 with the same line-up in the Šopa studio again. Then we spend almost two years by looking for the proper record label... The newest milestone in our history was signing a contract with Brutal Bands records (USA). BB released the CD "Dark Future" on the 25th June 2010. We are currently composing new material.. Hope this is enough :)



2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new release, and how it differs from previous albums?


Our musical sound? Well, we thnik south moravian dark death metal says everything. Compared to 'Hell Unleashed' 'Dark Future' is not so technical album but it's much more about the atmosphere. Maybe like the debut was.. The most important thing is that we (and our sound eingeneer) are much more experienced now and it's strognly seen on the last album.


3. What are some of the lyrical subjects and topics that the new release explores?


Bigotry and fanaticism, killing in the name of god. Insanity of man. The future of humankind which sure won't be nice. We don't like any kind of Church in the meaning of the assembly or association of followers of whoever or whatever. They're all the same parasitic venom preachers, mind torturing brainwashers and puppetters. However religious shit is not the only thing that's pissing us off so the lyrics are also about wars, exploitation, indolence..the inevitable fall of man.


4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?



Our guitar player Gassi came up with this. It follows Monstrosity song and it definitely describes our bearing to all the churches, sects, cults and all the similar institutions. What brought more wars, death, suffering and pain than these divine cults?

5. What are some of the best live shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?


The best were the gigs where we could play with bands like Dying Fetus, Natron, Misanthrope or Krisiun.. It was also great to play in Prague all the time. And we specialy enjoyed the show at world famous Obscene Extreme festival. Our performance is the death metal classicism, play fast the set with no poser bullshit or great speeches, the music has to say everything. The fans are the only who can judge our performance. Now we are thinking about some true metal proprieties like ammunition belts or some nails, haha.


6. Do you have any touring plans for the new release?


We would like to do some gigs after quite long time we didn't perform at all but our singer Erik is off now because of serious sickness.. We are looking for somebody who will replace him until he gets well /if it is possible at all. However one vokiller you already interviewed is currently in center of our interest and we hope this alternate will succeed. It sure won't be a tour but several gigs, we can't tour because of our jobs.


7. Currently you are signed to Brutal Bands Records, how did you get in contact with this label, and how would you compare them to your old label?


We signed to Brutal Bands almost accidentaly, one of our fans named Johnny (we have no idea who it is) wrote us that he likes our music for a long time and that he would like to help us to a big label like Brutal Bands. He suggested us to Scott Ellingboe - the founder of Brutal Bands - who liked the stuff for which we just were looking a label for and wrote us at once. Unfortunately this was the only thing he did at once, it took whole year from first contact to the final releasing of the CD. Scott fullfiled the date and send us discs and promo discs in time but from that time we don't know almost anything from him. He doesn't reply our emails and when he by chance does it takes several months. We don't even know how many copies has he sold, he refused to say us to which media he send the promos and I'm quite sure it weren't much because we almost didn't see any reviews (and there should be 500 promos send to media and distributors), so now we please media to review 'Dark Future' ourself. There also should be merch, 500 promotional posters, 5000 promotional flyers and adverts in relevant media. Well we didn't see anything of that, we just don't know and Scott just doesn't communicate with us. We wanted some merch at least for us but he didn't reply as usual and removed our merch from the labels website.

Our previous label endeavoured at first but then it also weren't nothing special and now he doesn't even exist.


8. On a worldwide level how has your music been recieved by death metal fans?


As we stated before the are currently not many reviews but we think this is due to shitty work of our label because almost all the reviews that we found are very positive. In future we hope the situation will get better and then we will set the list of all reviews we find on our facebook page which is starting to breathe in these days. None of us is daily user of myspace or facebook as we don't have time for this due to giving a shit about bringing home the bacon so we are sorry for lack of communication there. However we are trying at least to get in this facebook thing with our band profile, just be patient with us please. We are plannig to give our previous albums to free download there.


The situation in our homeland is even worse, signing on american label would just be big thing there but this dark death metal doesn't have any medial support. There are a few very positive reviews but that's all, no reactions, no columns, 3 interviews in ten years. We are medialy nameless band.


9. Are there any side projects besides this band, or is this a full time line-up?


Only our guitarist Flagin has another band - Get Away - which is also death metal band. Ommurtag and Erik had one Satanfather project in which Erik did the guitars but this is also on hold now. It was gory mix of death-black-grind.


10. How would you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?


We think that the fans must make the opinion on their own, we can only say it goes still directly from us. In the future we'll maybe try to have darker, more obscure sound.


11. What are some band or musical styles that have influenced your music, and also what are you listening to nowadays?


Biggest inspiration came probably from Morbid Angel, Immolation, Incantation and Nile.
We still listen to these bands but we have another beloved ones as like Gorguts, Immortal, Deicide, Mithras, Dark Funeral, Ghoul, Lord Gore, Nasum, Impaled etc.


12. I know that the band is very anti-christian but do you also have an interest in Satanism and Occultism?


Not deeply.


13. Outside of music, what are some of your interests?


PC games, internet, roller-skates, mouintain biking, forest walks, walking the dog and drinking of course :)


14. Any finaly ordsor thoughts before we wrapup this interview?


Thak you very much for the views and for this interview and also thank to all the fans who support underground bands. All the best to you.

Destroying Divinity/Dark Future/Brutal Bands Records/2010 CD Review

Destroying Divinity are a band from the Chezch Republic that plays a very brutal and blasphemous form of death metal, who also had their previous album reviewed in this zine and this is a review of their 2010 album "Dark Future" which was released by Brutal Bands Records.

Drums range from slow, midpced to fast drumming with alot of brutal blast beats and more variety than the previous releases, while the bass playing has a very dark tone which is mixed down low in the mix and seems to follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, midpaced to fast brutal death metal guitar riffs which show alot of progression from the previous release with alot of skillful riffing that utilize alot of skill, while the lead guitars are very dark and chaotic death metal guitar solos.

Vocals are mostly deep death metal growls with some high pitched screams being thrown in at times, while the lyrics cover Blasphemy, Darkness, Gore, Insanity of mankind with a strong- anti christian message with more references to demonology and rituals which where not mentioned as much on the previous releases, as for the production, it has a very heavy and powerful sound to it.

In my opinion this is another good release from Destroying Divinity, and if you where a fan of their previous albums you should enjoy this one as well. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "At War With Two Worlds" Cult" Prophecy" and "Undead In The Darkness". RECEMMONDED BUY.

Destroying Divinity/Hell Unleashed/Grodhain Productions/2004 CD Review

Destroying Divinity are a band from the Chezch Republic that plays a very brutal and blasphemous form of death metal and this is a review of their 2004 album "Hell Unleashed" which was released by Grodhain Productions.

Drums range from midpaced to fast drumming with alot of brutal blast beats, while the bass playing which is mixed down low in the mix seems to have a very dark tones with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars, as for the synths which are only utilized briefly as an intro to a song, they bring another dimension of darkness to the music.

Rhythm guitars range from midpaced to fast brutal death metal riffs that are very dark and heavy sounding with alot of talented riffing, while the lead guitars are very chaotic sounding death metal guitars that utilize alot of skill.

Vocals are mostly deep death metal growls with some high pitched screams being thrown in at times, while the lyrics cover Blasphemy,Darkness, Gore, Insanity of mankind with a very string anti-christian message, as for the production it is very heavy and professional sounding.

In my op-inion Destroying Divinity are a very good blasphemous and brutal sounding death metal band and if you are a fan of this style, you should check out this band. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "God's Requiem" "Starting Point Is Massacre" and "More Dead Than Alive". RECEMMONDED BUY.

Brutally Deceased Interview

1. Can you give us an introduction to the band and what you are all about?
Unholy hails! This is Tomas, Brutally Deceased guitarist. What can I say about us? We are bunch of freaks playing some crushing death metal since 2007, although this was kinda side project for a long time. I think we played our first show as a support act for a Gamma Bomb in November 2009. Since then we are pretty active live band I guess. Core of the band is very much the same as it was in the beginning - I and our singer Zlababa, drummer Stefy joined us year later. Patrik joined on bass to complete band line-up in summer 2009, but he lost his interest in the band after studio recordings and left, so we have a brand new member - Burak, who also plays in Jig-Ai and Eardelete. Besides spreading death and violence on stage we are pretty ordinary people with our daily jobs, so I guess there is nothing exciting about it.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the newer album?
It´s raw, straightforward and crushing piece of death metal, for all fans of good real death metal sound of the early 90´s.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and concepts the new releases explores?
Most of the lyrics are my misanthropic views of a society. It ´s pretty tough to live in a city like Prague and to stay content and aware, cause you are daily attacked by hordes of hunters forcing you to sign something, without being asked, all so caring about your money, well-being, health care, etc... , in fact, fuck them! Then you have to face hundreds of stupid brainwashed corpses, talking some senseless shit. Narrow minded imbeciles without their own opinion, doing what they are told to do, expecting the same from you. Fuck no! Fuck you! And of course, some of the lyrics are about spreading esoteric lies, so popular these days. So in general my lyrics are about rising of stupidity and manipulation in society, all converted to death metal terminology and imagery

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name Brutally Deceased?
Well, its track on Grave - You´ll Never See album and it sounds cool, am i right, nah?

5. I noticed that your sound has a more Swedish approach, what made you go for
this sound, as opposed to a more Eatern European death metal sound (I.e Vader,
Krabathor)?
There were no other choice. We are playing good old death metal very influenced by the early 90´s swedish scene, so we need the right sound. Sure I can use sound from my Messa Boogie Dual Amplifier, but it will suck, believe me.


6. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would
you describe your stage performance?
Our best show was probably the one in Slavonice, during our 2010 autumn minitour. All the crowd went crazy and so we did. In the end I was all so wet, sweating like a pig, but it was great. Our stage performance? Violent and intense death metal that will blow your brains out! No silly effects or childish face painting, we keep it simple and honest.

7. Do you have any touring plans for the new release?
Sure we would like to tour, but we have nothing confirmed at the moment as far as I know. We are supposed to play some summer festivals (one really great one), but its too soon to talk details.


8. The new album came out on Lavadome Productions, how did you come in contact
with this label and how has the support been so far?
Honza Fastner is a good friend of us and we knew, that he was interested to release it. So there were never talk about other labels and I can say that we did the right thing, cause he is doing great job, perhaps max that one man label can do for you

9. Are there any side projects besides this group, or is this a full time band?
It´s hard to call our other bands side projects, cause many or most of them are more known than Brutally Deceased so far. Stefy hammers drums for Psychotic Despair, I play guitar in Heaving Earth, Burak is throat and bass of Jig-Ai and Eardelete and drummer of DEOAG and our singer Zlababa has fun project Shampoo Killer.

10. how has the been to your music so far by death metal fans worldwide?
Pretty cool really. Our fan base is growing rapidly thanks to Honza and our singer, who is doing that unpopular dirty job of spending time in front of a computer screen, answering messages and other shit, hahah... and thanks to our killer live shows, of corpse!

11. What direction would you like to take the band into onf uture releases?
Good question, but always hard to answer. I have some few sketches, but not enough concrete to do any predictions. It might be some other interpretation of classic Swedish death metal sound, or maybe just another portion of raw crushing traditional Swedish death metal. Who knows? What I can tell you for sure, that we are not gonna stray from the left hand path.

12. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and
also what are you listening to nowadays?
Well, applying to Brutally Deceased, it must be Swedish scene (surprised anyone?) and bands like Entombed, Dismember, Grave, Crematory (Swedish of course, not that German piece of shit), Demonical and other acts. But if you are asking for my personal faves, than you must count in Morbid Angel, Suffocation, Immolation, Gorguts, Hate Eternal, Autopsy and shitload of others. And nowadays? I don´t think my taste have changed that much, so what I have in my player... Interment, Edge of Sanity, Dissection, Drawn and Quartered, Prion, Mass Infection...

13. how would you describe the metal scene in your home country of Chezch
Republic?
Honestly, I´m pretty sure that I don´t know more than 90% of metal bands from Czech rep. and I don´t regret it. From all the amount of bands from here are very few really good and that´s all that I like to say about czech metal scene. Sorry, this question is my personal dislike, hahah...

14. Outside of music what are some of your interests?
It´s pretty hard to manage to play in two bands while doing daily job, so I have not much space for other hobbies. I certainly prefer to take a trip into woods or mountains, when I´m released from my duties. There´s nothing more exciting than view of a landscape from a god abandoned place, specially landscape drowned in snow at dusk with a few penetrating house flashlights from somewhere far down under... basicly, when I have some spare time, I´m trying to get rid of all the fucking people I have to meet everyday, so I just relax.

15. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
Ok. Thanks for the intie, much appreciated! Don´t stop listen to death metal and support all bands that deserve to be supported... and be sure to hear about Brutally Deceased again!

Debauchery Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

Hey, all the same shit as on the first day, only with more money involved. The artist tries to survive in the music business jungle. But I can`t complain. I make my living with Death Metal music.

Debauchery has released the 7^th record since the beginning in 2003. So everything`s good so far.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it differs from previous releases?

It differs very much to the last record, but that`s because the last records differs very much to all other Debauchery records. So I would say, the new album is the same stuff as all the other Debauchery Cds only new, and better of course.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the new release explores?

Most of the lyrics are still based on fantasy and science fiction themes. Zombie Blitzkrieg is about the Rage Virus Zombies killing million of people in the US. Warmachines at War is about warmachines at war obviously. The war setting is in 2666 but actually you can`t find out too much in the lyrics. Some of the songs are about personal problems and wishful thinking, like Death will entertain or Bloodslaughter Onslaught, and one song is also about cruelty against animals, called Animal Holocaust.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

The name comes from a WASP song. There is some talking in an intro on the Crimson Idol record...blabla..if you don`t stop this fuckin`Debauchery. And that`s it, Debauchery seemed a good choice at that time. Nowadays I would take a much simpler name.

5. What are some of the best shows that the group has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?

The best show was at Wacken last year, but most of our shows are OK. I had a bad one a few weeks ago, when I was so drunken and my guitar playing went awry at the end of the show. But lucky me, we had a strip girl too and so noone noticed that I was totally gone.

6. Do you have any plans for a U.S tour?
   Not really, I would like to come to the US but I have no real plan so far.

7. Your older material was more death metal and the newer stuff has more rock elements would made you decide to add these elements to the music?
   I tried to make Hard Rock/Metal all the time but failed. I´m getting better now, so the songs are more metal/rock than on the first records.

8. Currently you are singed to AFM Records, how did you get in contact with this label and how would you describe the support that they have given you so far?
   We started to work together in 2007 with the Back in Blood album. The support in Germany is good, but unfortunately they are not so interested to bring us to the US so far.

9. On a worldwide level how have your fans reacted to the new album both older and younger fans?

The Debauchery audience likes the new album. The last record had some difficulties, because of all the experiments. But the new one is back to the roots. Very much Debauchery, so the Debauchery people like it.

10. What direction do you see the band heading into on future releases?

I have no idea, all my plans go to Hell anyway, so I do not plan anything anymore.

11. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music, and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Most influences come from bands like AC/DC, Judas Priest, GunsNRoses, Ugly Kid Joe, WASP and Motörhead. I buyed the new Saxon recently, perfect new album really. And today I will check out Black Label Society live.

12. Outside of music what are some of your interests?
    I`m a tabletop wargames nerd. I love Warhammer, 40k, Warzone etc. I go to the fitness centre, but only because I should do it, not because it is so much fun. I like whisky and beer, horror movies, I´m looking forward to the the new Transformers 3..that`s it.

13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
    Yes, check out the new album: Germany`s next Death Metal.....and play it loud!!!

 

Toxaemia/Discography/Dark Descent Records/2010 CD Re-Issue Review

Toxaemia where a death metal band from Sweden that existed around the mid 80's and early 90's and this is a review of all of their demos and e.p's known as "Discography" which was re-issued by Dark Descent Records during the year of 2010.

Drums range from slow, midpaced to fast drumming with alot of brutal blast beats, while the bass playing has a very dark and raw tone which was a common thing for all of the classic death metal bands, as for the keyboards which are only used briefly on a couple of songs they have a classic horror movie feel to them.

Rhythm guitars alternate between slow, midpaced to fast death metal riffs that also have a very thrashy feel to them at times, while the lead guitars are morbid sounding death metal guitar solos.

Vocals are mostly deep death metal growls in the mid 80's to early 90's tradition and not as guttural or brutal like the modern day death metal vocals, while the lyrics cover violence, gore and anti christian themes, as for the production it has that raw early 90's demo feel to it.

In my opinion Toxaemia where a great band and if you are a fan of the classic mid 80's to early 90's death metal bands, you should check out this group. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Evil Rage" "Expired Christianity" "Buried To Rot" and "Crematorium". RECEMMONDED BUY.

Grave/Burial Ground/Regain Records/2010 CD Review

Grave are a legendary death metal band from Sweden that has been around since the mid 80's and has had a huge influence on the genre and this is a review of their 2010 album "Burial Ground" which was released by Regain Records.

Drums range from slow, midpaced to fast with alot of brutal blast beats in the classic death metal tradition, while the bass playing has a very thick heavy and dark tone to it with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars are mostly slow, midpaced to fast death metal riffs that are firmly rooted in the early 90's death metal tradition, while the lead guitars are very chaotic sounding death metal guitar solos that also have a melodic edge to them at times.

Vocals are mostly deep death metal growls that are very easy to understand, while the lyrics cover gory and everyday themes, as for the production it sounds very heavy and professional.

In my opinion this is a good album from Grave, and while I will admit the last album I heard from this band was Hating Life which was considered a sellout by long time fans, I can tell that they have went back to their roots since then, and if you are a fan of the classic Grave albums, you should check out this releases. RECEMMONDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Liberation" "Dismembered Mind" "Sexual Mutilation" and "Bloodtrail". RECEMMONDED BUY.