Annihilation/The Undivided/2014 EP Review

  Annihilation  are  a  band  from  Portugal  that  plays  a  very  brutal  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  ep  "The  Undivided"  which  will  be  released  in  November.

  A  very  dark  sci-fi  orientated  sound  starts  off  the  ep  and  after  the  2  minute  intro  the  music  starts  adding  in  more  melody  along  with  some  high  pitched  screams  and  melodic  guitar  leads  which  leads  up  to  more  of  a  brutal death  metal  direction  along  with  a  great  amount  of  growling  vocals  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  At time s the  music  can  be  very  technical  sounding  and  the  sound  effects  from  the  intro  also  make  a  return  on  some  of  the  other  tracks  along  with  the  band  adding  in  more  fast  parts  and  blast  beats  while  the  main  focus  is  more  on  a  brutal,  mid  paced  and  technical  style  of  death  metal  which  also  goes  back  to  the  98-99  era  of  this  genre  and  the  ep  closes  with  an  intro  they  uses  mostly  water  sounds.

  Annihilation  plays  a  very  heavy  style  of  death  metal  that  can  be  very  technical  and  brutal  at  times  as  well  as  having  some  melodies  and  a  sci-fi  atmosphere,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  the  writings  of  David  Icke.

  In  my  opinion  Annihilation  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE "Holographic  Paradigm"  and  "The  Great  Cycle".  8  out  of  10.         

Horrified Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

We are a death metal band based in the United Kingdom (Newcastle Upon Tyne). Our members consist of an ensemble of musicians from other acts in the scene. It originally started out as a studio project but naturally evolved into a full band with the current line up we have now.



2.You have your first full length coming out in October, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the demo you had released in 2013?



The first big difference is the vocal sound, with me stepping up to vocal duties I went for a higher register style heavily influenced by Martin Van Drunen, David Vincent Chris Monroy, Damian Herring and so on, I wanted to encompass an “anxious” vocal delivery. Another big difference is the overall energy and vibe on the release, having recorded it as a full band there's the feel of a real band playing these songs.

As far as the overall sound goes you can expect riff based death metal heavily focused on memorability and catchy vocal lines to go along with it. Imagine Pestilence and Dismember jamming together...



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

The songs tell a story or describe something I come up with influenced by various different things such as video games, movie scenes and my own personal experiences. The lyrical content ranges from post apocalyptic survival to anxiety and sleeping disorders.


4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Horrified'?

Nothing much really, the lyrical themes on the album all contain different elements of horror. But that came on its own naturally when I started writing lyrics. I chose the name because it sounded cool to me and I thought it fit the music perfectly when I first began writing the material back in 2012.



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

We have actually only played one gig so far, which was the first edition of a local music festival called “Byker Grave” towards the end of 2013. The set went about as good as it could have gone considering how rushed we were to play and we only had 20 minutes of material from the album ready, but the venue was full and the response was could and it was our first introduction to the live circuit in our local scene. So I was extremely relieved that it went down okay and thankful of the promoters for putting us on.



6.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released

We have plans to gig again after the album release in October and we already have a weekend double set of gigs happening in Newcastle and Manchester with three other bands on the same label as us. But are we looking for more shows in the future.



7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of old school death metal?

So far it has been great, people have said really positive things about it in press and early reviews. The comparisons we get and the descriptions of our sound have been really humbling to so far. I’m also really happy with people’s response to my vocals since it was my first time doing them on a record.


8.What is going on with some of the other musical projects or bands these days that some of the band members are involved with?

Each member play in different bands, I drum in a power metal band called Starborn and I used to play in a band called Plague Rider with our drummer Matthew, who play a much more technical style of death metal. He also plays in another doomy death metal band known as Live Burial.  Ross our other guitarist is involved in two bands, Risen Prophecy and Vacivus. The former have just completed their second album and should be released shortly. The latter are just returning to the live scene after releasing their debut album. Our bassist Dan Hughes plays bass in Winds of Genocide who have their debut album coming out via pulverised records shortly, he is also in Prolfeed a punky hardcore band who have done a bunch of EP’s and splits he also works on a solo black metal project Rotting Bull.



9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We are currently writing new material and its a lot more dynamic than the debut album, including more melodic elements from bands such as Dismember, Edge of Sanity and Horrendous my biggest influences right now. The new stuff is a lot more ambitious and accomplished. I’m setting my ambitions farther than any other material I have wrote for a project.



10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening  nowadays?

Back in the day was heavily influenced by the original US death metal bands such as Death, Morbid Angel, Atheist and so on. My musical influences have expanded a lot with age and I listen to a vast amount of different metal ranging from death, power, prog, prog power, doom, epic metal and black metal. I’m not always constantly listening to death metal although i’d say it is my favorite style and in my opinion the most diverse of all the metal sub genres.



11.What are some of your non musical interests?

I enjoy reading, film, video games and some select sports. I’ve also recently got back into reading up on ancient history.



12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Thank you for conducting the interview & the kind review on your website. The album is due out late October and will be available on CD and digital download from our bandcamp page which will be set up closer to release, cheers! 

Amoklauf Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Nico and me formed the band before I even knew to play drums, we started playing together and through several formations we learn to play. We debuted live in 2010 but we have a stable formation since this year 2014.


2.Recently you have released your first ep, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

We make Death Metal. We don’t try to make it sound like modern or old school or any of those labels that people look for. People will tune in and enjoy Death Metal.

3.The band has been around since 2005 but so far this is the first release, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time period?

We were basically learning to play our instruments, getting ready a place to rehearse. We rehearse in a room that was entirely built by us from scratch! After debuting live in 2010 we suffered several changes in our formation, we couldn’t find the right singer. So after trying and failing we decided ‘fuck it we’ll do it ourselves’, like we did with the rehearsal room and both guitar players take the lead voices. We didn’t want to release anything with a voice that would ultimately change, because we feel it’s the soul of a band.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

We try to reflect in the lyrics what the music is saying, for example a short in-your-face song would have straight aggressive lyrics talking about a killer or something, and a more complex song would have deeper lyrics. Our main themes are death, revenge, war, addiction and insanity. We like to get inside the mind of a killer.


5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Amoklauf'?

Amoklauf is a german word that they use when someone loses it and starts killing and hurting people around him. We like to represent with our sound the exact moment when this person cracks, that point of no return.

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

A nice gig that I remember was opening for Decapitated in Buenos Aires. That was our first time in a large stage and we had great sound too so it was very enjoyable.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

After releasing the EP we will play on october 18th and we are planning a lot of shows in Buenos Aires and other cities in Argentina

8.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

No, we are independent in every sense of the word.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death metal?

We have received a lot of good feedback from Europe, Australia and USA, and that made us very happy. We are looking to spread the word and to get as many metal fans as possible to listen to our EP.

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We will continue to play Death Metal. But we want to get better at our instruments so we can play faster and heavier songs in the future.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

We all love Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation, Deicide, Malevolent Creation, Decapitated, Death, Morbid Angel and death metal in general. We like to listen to Black and Thrash metal too, we look for and listen to new bands every day.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

The guitar player is a graphic designer, a tattoo artist and a guitar builder. The drummer is also a graphic designer and is an expert cannabis grower. Our intrests beyond music go from football (soccer) to several hobbies.



13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?


We just want the people out there to give it a try and listen to our band, we would love to tour and play everywhere. and like Chuck said, Keep the metal faith alive!

Dungortheb/Extracting Souls/Great Dane Records/2014 CD Review

  Dungortheb  are  a  band  from  France  that  plays  a  very  technical  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Extracting  Souls"  which  was  released  by  Great  Dane  Records.

  Water  sounds  and  horror  movie  samples  start  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes into  more  of  a  brutal  death  metal  direction  along  with  some  growling  vocals  as  well  as  a  good  amount  of  thrash  elements  which  leads  up  to  some  high  pitched  screams  and  the  music  getting  more  technical.

  There  is  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  present  on  this  recording  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  solos  are in  more  of  a  melodic  death/thrash  metal  direction  which  also  bring s in  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill  as  well  as  the  music  being  more  closer  to  the  90's  style  of  technical  death  metal.

  All  of  the  tracks  sound  like  they  could  of  been  recorded  in  the  early  to  mid  90's  while  the  production  makes  the  bands  musical  style  have  a  more  modern  feeling  and  one  of  the  later  tracks  uses  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  that  have  almost  a  ritualistic  sound  to  them  and  the  band  also  keeps  all  of  the  music  in  a  heavy  direction  throughout  the  recording  and  there  is  never  a  soft  moment  present  on  the  album  and  on  some  of  the  songs  the  guitars  get  more  melodic  and  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard  at  times.

  Dungorheb  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  goes  back  to  the  beginnings  of  the  technical  genre  of  the  early  90's  as  well  as  adding  in  elements  of  thrash  to  create  an  album  that  is  very  old  school  and  brutal  sounding  at  the  same  time,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Dungorheb  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  technical  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Inside"  "Sad  War"  "When  I  believe  i  Live"  and  "Heaven  Can  Hate".  8  out  of  10.    
  

Horrified/Descent Into Putridity/Memento Mori/2014 CD Review

  Horrified  are  a  band  from  the  United  Kingdom  that  plays  an  old  school  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Descent  Into  Putridity"  which  will  be  released  in  Memento  Mori.

  A very  dark  and  heavy  old  school  death  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  morbid  sounding  melodies  and  a  few  seconds  later  the  music  speeds  up  a  bit  and  adds  in  growls  and  blast  beats  and  the  bands  musical  style  is  heavily  rooted  in  the  mid  80's  era  of  death  metal  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  bring  in  the  classic  Florida  style  while  the  blast  beats  have  more  of  a  Swedish  feeling  to  them  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  All  of  the  tracks  have  more  of  a  raw  and  old  school  style  of  death  metal  going  back  to  the  true  original  style  of  this  musical  genre  as  well  as  all  of  the  band  members  being  very  young  and  more  than  likely  that  alive  when  this  style  of  death  metal  was  the  most  dominant  force  in  the  underground  but  they  can  play  just  as  well  as  the  originators  and  you  can  hear  a  bit  of  the  Dutch  style  growls  in  the  vocals  and  all  of  the  songs  bring  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  Horrified  goes  back  to  a  very  early  era  of  death  metal  bringing  back  the  original  true  style  of  this  genre  and  creating  an  album  that  is  very  heavy,  raw  and  old  school  sounding,  the  production  has  a  very  powerful,  raw,  heavy  and  old  school  80's  sound  while  the  lyrics  cover  fictional  horror  stories,  death  and  disease.

  In  my  opinion  Horrified  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Narcolepsy"  "Buried  Among  Purified  Flesh"  and  "Repugnant  Degeneration".  8  out  of  10.    

Amoklauf/Mournful Prophecies Of A Dying World/2014 EP Review

  Amoklauf  are  a  band  from  Argentina  that  plays  a  very  brutal  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review of  their  self  released  2014  ep  "Mournful  prophecies  of  A  Dying  World".

  A  very  brutal  and  old  school  death  metal  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  a  mixture  of  screams  and  growls  as  well  as  some  melody  and  blast  beats  and  the  band  also  brings  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  Once  solos  and  leads  are  added  into  the  music  they  bring  in  more  chaotic  death  metal  elements  while  also  having  a  touch  of  melody  to  them  and  all  3  songs  on  the  ep  remain  true  to  a  very  heavy  and  brutal  style  of  death  metal  that  goes  more  towards  the  mid  90's  style  of  this  musical  genre  and  on  the  last  track  there  is  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples  being  utilized.

  Amoklauf  goes  back  to  the  mid  90's  style  of  brutal  death  metal  on  this  recording  and  they  also  display  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill  as  well  as  avoiding  all  modern  trends  to  create  some  pure  death  metal,  the  production  sounds  very  powerful  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  violent  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Amoklauf  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musicla  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Mournful Prophecies Of A Dying World".  8  out  of  10.     

Baptists/Bloodmines/Southern lord Recordings/2014 CD Review

  Vancouver  B.C's  Baptists  have  returned  with  a  new  album  which  shows  them  continuing  their  mixture  of  hardcore  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Bloodmines"  which  will  be  released  in  October  by  Southern  Lord  Recordings.

  Dark  drone  sound  effects  and  distortion  start  off  the  album  before  adding  in  drums  and  after  the  intro  the  music  starts  to  get  a  lot  more  heavier  and  goes  for  more  of  a  brutal  hardcore  direction  along  with  some  aggressive  screams  that  also  bring  in  elements  of  death  metal  and  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  amount  of  melody  in  the  bands  musical  style.

  There  is  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  throughout  the  recording  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  on  some  of  the  tracks  you  can  hear  a  small  amount  of  melodic  guitar  leads  and  a  heavy  influence  from  both  noise  rock  and  post  hardcore  while  having  none  of  the  mainstream  elements  of  the  later  mentioned  genre  and  they  also  keep  the  raw  energy  of  punk  rock  that  was  present  on  their  previous  recordings.

  Baptists  remain  true  to  their  mixture  of  hardcore  and  death  metal  while  showing  some  progress  as  musicians  as  well  as  adding  more  melody  into t heir  musical  sound  this  time  around,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  emotional  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Baptists  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  enjoy  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Wanting"  "Vistas"  "Festered"  and  "For  Profit".  8  out  of  10.    

Misanthrope Monarch/Self titled/2014 EP Review

  Misanthrope  Monarch  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  very  brutal  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  and  self  titled  2014  ep.

  Clean  acoustic  guitars  start  off  the  ep  along  with  a  good  amount  of  finger  picking  and  after  the  intro  the  music  starts  going  for  a  very  heavy  sound  that  combines  brutal  death  metal  and  thrash  together  along  with  some  growls  and  blast  beats  and  the  band  also  brings  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  Screaming  vocals  can  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  you  can  also  hear  a  great  amount  of  the  90's  death  metal  sound  in  the  music  which  they  update  with  the  more  modern  and  brutal  version  of  the  style  and  the  solos  and  leads  they  use  are  in  more  of  a  melodic  musical  direction and  they  also  bring  in  a  couple  of  intros.

  Misanthrope  Monarch  takes  the  90's  styles  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  update  it  with  a  more  modern  and  brutal  sound  to  create  an  ep  that  is  very  heavy,  the  production  sound s very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  anti  religion  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Misanthrope  Monarch  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Crushing  the  Unbeliever"  and  "Father,  Sin  And  The  Holy  Spirit".  8  out  of  10.    

Deserted Fear/Kingdom Of Worms/FDA Rekotz/2014 CD Review

  Deserted  Fear  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  mixture  of  both  modern  and  old  school  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  2014  album  "Kingdom  of  Worms"  which  was  released  by  FDA  Rekotz.

  Dark  sound  effects  start  off  the  album  and  they  give  the  music  and  epic  feeling  and  after t he  intro  the  band  starts  going  for  more  of  an  old  school  Swedish  style  death  metal  sound  along  with  some  growling  style  vocals  that  are  more  closer  to  the  mid  80's  to  early  90's  style  and  they  also  bring  in  a  good  amount  of  blast  beats.

  You  can  hear  a  good  amount  of  melody  in  the  bands  musical  style  along  with  a  good  mixture  of  slow,,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  when  solos  are  added  into  the  music  they  add  even  more  to  the  melodic  side  of  the  bands  approach  to  death  metal  which  also  has  influences  from  the  German,  Dutch  and  English  bands  of  the  early  90's.

  While  the  music  is  mostly  rooted  more  in  the  old  school  style  of  death metal  it  does  have  a  more  modern  edge  with  the  way  the  music  is  produced  and  halfway  through  the  recording  a  brief  instrumental  acoustic  piece  is  added  onto  the  recording  while  the  following  tracks  sees  the  music  returning  back  to  a  heavier  direction  along  with  a  good  amount  of  the  raw  old  school  brutality  and  some  of  the  later  tracks  also  use  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts..

  Deserted  fear  remains  true  to  their  old  school  approach  to  death  metal  creating  an  album  that  is  very  heavy  and  melodic  sounding  but  with  more  modern  technology,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  death,  war  and  occultism  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Deserted  Fear  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  enjoy  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Forging  Delusions"  "Wrath  On  Your  Wound"  "With  Might  And  Main"  and  "Last  Of  A  Fading  Kind".  8  out  of  10.  

Infection/Necrokindergarten/2009 Full Length Review

  This  is  a  review  of  an  older  recording  from  Peru's  Infection  which  is  also  in  the  brutal  death  metal  of  their  new  material  with  the  album  being  self  released  in  2009  and  called  "Necrokindergarten".

  A  very  heavy  and  brutal  death  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  growling  vocals  and  a  few  seconds  alter  the  music  starts  speeding  up  and  adding  in  blast  beats  while  also  sticking  to  mostly  a  90's  style  of  death  metal  as  well  as  adding  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  At  time s the  music  can  be  very  technical  along  with  some  high  pitched  screams    and  when  solos  and  leads  are  added  into  the  music  they  bring  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  into  the  bands  musical  style  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to them  and  as the  album  progresses  you  can  also  hear  a  small  amount  of  thrash  influences  in  the  bands  old  school  approach  to  death  metal.

  Infection  goes  back  to  the  90's  style  of  brutal  death  metal  on  this  recording  as  well  as  adding  in  some  technical  parts  as  well  as  remaining  heavy  from  beginning  to  end  of  the  recording,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  violent  and  gore  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Infection  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  old  school  and  brutal  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Cannibals  Death"  "Necrokindergarten"  "Brain  Infection"  and  "A  Hooker  is  Slaughtered".  8  out  of  10.     

Infection Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?
Once again we are in a weird predicament. The album was recorded from 2012 to 2014 during the time I was still living in Peru. Once again, I’m living in another country so the album had to be released digitally (as a side note, we expect to produce physical copies of "Acrotomophile Mutilator"). It is clear that we’re not going to be able to play it live, at least not until I return and we find permanent members for the bass and drums positions. So it can be said without hesitation that we’re a studio band at this very moment.

2. In July you had released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
Instrumentation is one of the biggest differences between our first and second full-length album. For instance, there’s a more conscious work on the guitar department: the use of a broad palette of dissonant chords apart from the classic fifths; there are melodic passages where the axes harmonize with each other; the songs in general have different motifs and incorporate influences from thrash metal and black metal… all of that can be appreciated after several spins of the disc. Concerning the bass, it has a more predominant role on the mix, even doing his own thing here and there. Finally, something that was noted by many reviewers of our first production was the lack of changes in the vocals. This time Giuliano, our vocalist, did his best to demonstrate that he can growl like a caveman and screech like a demon!

3. This is the first album to be released in 5 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time?
Five years is a lot of time, too much I’d say... Well, “Necrokindergarden” was released in 2009 while I was living abroad. When I came back to Peru in 2010 our drummer was not anymore in the band. The bassist was overwhelmed with personal things and became an intermittent member of the band. We played some time with a new drummer but he also had to left the group due to personal issues. In the absence of stable members, it was difficult to rehearse on a regular basis. We even had a session drummer but he also had a band so Infection wasn’t his priority musically speaking. As you can see, it was a trying period. Nevertheless, in spite of that (and the lack of money) we continued working hard and managed to record “Acrotomophile Mutilator”. We had to do it in stages: first drums, then guitars, bass and vocals at the end. All that I‘ve told you contributed to the big gap that separates our two studio albums.

4. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
The original idea behind this new album was to speak only about young killers. Those stories of children harming and killing their peers was fascinating, a demonstration that there’s no innocent soul on this planet. So, "When Children Murder," "Kidnapped and Kill," and "Psychopath" are examples of that. As time passed, the main theme branched out. This is evident in "Rape... Kill... Rape" and "Beheaded Children Contest," both are about children predators. These songs were ultimately not included in this production, but we expect to release them some day. With the rest of the tunes the themes are varied, ranging from cannibalism to zombification. Horror stories and disgusting topics are always part of our repertoire!

5. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Infection'?
That’s a good question! In the beginning, the chosen name was “Infected.” When I was talking to a friend about it, he told me that some year ago there was another Peruvian band with the same name. I didn't know that, so I decided to change it to “Infection” to avoid misunderstandings. In both cases, an infection is something that spreads inside the body, ultimately killing the person if no treatment is received.

6. Currently there are only 2 members in the band are you planning on having a full line up again in the future or do you choose to remain as a duo?
It is sad to say this but in Peru we don’t have so many musicians that are willing to be in a metal band. Among those, there are a just a few ones who can follow a metronome, if you know what I mean. Moreover, it's rather complicate to find a skillful drummer who can cope with the constant changes in tempo and signature, and that isn’t playing with another band. We don’t want to wait years for the chosen one. I have no problems recording the bass myself and programming the drums in MIDI. Yes, it is better to have real musicians but at this very moment is not happening so we have to resolve to the issue. We released “Acrotomophile Mutilator” in that way, and we’re happy with the results.  So, answering your question, there are no plans to incorporate new members in the short term.

7. What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Well, well, it has been a long time since we played live. However, let me tell you that metal shows in Peru are wild, totally insane. Concerts as a general rule occur in remote locations, on the skirts of the city. To get to those places one have to travel a lot. Even though the provided musical equipment is usually not the best, it’s really fun to play in front of a crazy mosh-pit. We hope to get back to play live, definitely.

8. Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
A few months before the release of our new album I began looking for a label but after some research I stop doing that. You see… it represented no benefit for us. Furthermore, without a strong fan base it would’ve been almost impossible for a label to sing us up. Fortunately enough, a band can nowadays release their own music and keep the (small) revenues to themselves.  Although we acknowledge that money isn’t the thing that drives us, it is always necessary for the recording process and manufacturing of future albums.

9. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death metal?
Metal music is universal. In that regard, fans from around the world have shown interest in our stuff. Our Facebook official page has received good comments and support from headbangers around the world. To this date, magazines and webzines have given positive comments to our new album. We didn't make too much effort to promote our music in the past, but this time we’re doing it differently, our goal is to reach a bigger audience.

10. Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
Basically, we want to continue releasing brutal music. Of course we won’t shift our style; death metal is what we love to play. We're not interested in trends... what is hype now isn't necessary good stuff. Just see what happened with some legendary bands and their catastrophic attempt to make “modern” music.

11. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
I can mention three bands that are the main inspiration to our music: Death, Cannibal Corpse, and Monstrosity. However, we are not interested in cloning exactly what they’ve done or what they’re doing now. As a musician, you should be really opened to all kinds of genres and styles; otherwise you’ll end up biting your own tail, doing the same over and over again. There are plenty of bands that are stalled (you know which they are.) I mean, having a recognizable style is good, but repeating yourself is not. Besides metal, I listen to rock, country, and electronic music. I also love jazz and I can say that music had influenced my soloing style (for example, the insane chops by saxophonist John Coltrane). I’m not saying I play like Coltrane or that I’m as good as him, I’m just saying I like chromatic long runs when it comes to soloing. As for bands that I’ve been listening lately, I can mention you some: Tacit Fury, Vektor, Vomit the Soul, and Internal Bleeding.

12. What are some of your non-musical interests?
I do graphic design for a living, so I'm always analyzing websites, magazines, and everything that has a visual aspect on it. I also like architecture and art. Thus, traveling and visiting museums is one of my greatest pleasures.

13. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
First of all, we'd like to thanks “The True Bringer of Death Zine” you for this interview. This opportunity to frankly speak about our music and future plans means a lot to us. Secondly, we invite all metal heads that haven't listened to our music yet to grab our new album and give it a try. We deliver good old death metal spiced up with some technical stuff, what can go wrong?

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Morthra/Desecrated Thoughts/Vic Records/2014 CD Compilation Review

  Morthra  where  a  band  from  the  Netherlands  that  played  a  very  heavy  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  compilation  album  "Desecrated  Thoughts"  which  will  be  released  in  November  by  Vic  Records  and  consists  of  their  2  demos  and  a  2  track  promo  from  the  90's.

  A  very  dark  sounding  synth  intro  starts  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes  into  more  of  a  heavy  death  metal  direction  along  with  some  growls  and  they  also  use  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  some  blast  beats  and  you  can  also  hear  a  thrash  metal  influence  in  the  bands  musical  sound  at  times  along  with  some  melody  being  added into  the  guitar  riffing  at  times.

  The  solos  and  leads  the  band  uses  on  the  recording  are  what  you  would  expect  from  a  death  metal  recording  that  came  out  of  the  90's  and  they  add  a  bit  of  chaos  into  the  bands  musical  sound  when  they  are  utilized  while  some  of  the  tracks  only  use  rhythms  and  as  the  album  progresses  the  band  starts  having  more  of  a  raw  and  aggressive  approach  than  what  most  death  metal  bands  had  from  that  era  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  acoustic  guitars,  synths  and  spoken  word  parts  on  some  of  the  tracks.

  Morthra  where  a  very  underrated  band  for  their  time  with  their  music  being  some  very  great  sounding  death  metal  from  the  90's  and  if  they  did  not  break  up  early  they  probably  would  of  been  a  very  well  known  name  in  this  musical  genre,  the  production  has  a  very  raw  and  heavy  sound  while  the  lyrics  cover  violence  and  anti  religion  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Morthra  where  a  very  great  sounding  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  compilation.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Choking  Screams"  "Tale  by  The  Antichrist"  "Paganistic  Dismemberment"  and  "Slay  The  Vicar".  8  out  of  10.    

Sinners Burn/Disturbing Creatures/Vic Records 2014 CD Review

  Sinners Burn  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  very  old  school  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Disturbing  Creatures"  which  was  released  by  Vic  Records.

  A  very  raw  and  old  school  death  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  growling  vocals  and  blast  beats  and  after  awhile  the  band  starts  adding  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  you  can  also  hear  a  small  amount  of  melody  in  their  musical  sound  at  times.

  All  of  the  tracks  are  heavily  rooted  in  the  early  90's  Swedish  death  metal  style  and  the band  avoids  using  any  solos  and  leads  and  focus  more  on  a  raw  and  heavy  approach  to  death  metal  and  all  of  the  songs  sound  like  they  could  of  easily  been  around  more  than  20  years  and  there  are  also  a  great  amount  of  catchy  rhythm's  being  presented  throughout  the  recording  and  on  one  of  the  later  tracks  they  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  horror  film  samples  and  the  close  the  album  with  a  hidden  track  that  is  an  all  acoustic  instrumental..    

  Sinners  Burn  creates  a  very  old  school  sounding  Swedish  death  metal  album  that  is  heavy  from  beginning  to  end  of  the  recording  as  well  as  focusing  more  on  rawness  and  heaviness  than  melody,  the  production  has  a  very  old  school  sound  to  it  while  the  lyrics  cover  darkness,  death,  gore  and  evil  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Sinners  burn  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Once  Upon  A  Time  (In  Human  Flesh)"  "Sweet  Stench  of  Death"  "Hellraiser"  and  "Baptized  by  Evil".  8  out  of  10.

  

Exoto/Beyond The Depths Of Hate/Vic Records 2014 CD Compilation Review

  Exoto  are  a  band  from  Belgium  that  plays  a  mixture of death and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014   compilation  "Beyond  The  Depths  Of  Hate"  which  will  be  released  in  October  by  Vic  Records  and  consists  of  new  recorded  tracks  from  the  demos,  the  first  2  studio  albums  and  brand  new  songs.

  An  intro  with  children  voices  and  40's  style  music  starts  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes  into  more  of  a  raw  old  school  death  metal  direction  along  with  some  vocals  that  utilize  both  thrash  and  death  metal  elements  and  the  band  also  uses  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  solos  and  leads  the  band  uses  are  in  a  more  melodic  musical  direction  and  at  times  you  can  hear  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  in  certain sections  of  the  recording  and  they  are  more  in  the  80's  direction  as  well  as  the  band  adding  in  a  slight  hardcore  influence  and  melody  into  the  guitar  riffing.

  Acoustic  guitars  can  be  heard  briefly  on  a  couple  of  the  tracks  along  with  a  small  amount  of  melodic  Gregorian  chants  and  as  the  album  progresses  spoken  word  parts,  samples,  synths  and  sound  effects  can  be  heard  at  times  along  with  a  brief  atmospheric  sounding  instrumental  before  making  a  return  back  to  a  heavier  musical  direction  and  the  music  also  starts  having  more  of  a  technical  feeling  on  some  of  the  later  tracks.

  Exoto  brings  in  a  mixture  of  both  old  and  new  tracks  that  show  a  very  raw  and  old  school  style  of  death/thrash  metal  and  you  can  also  hear  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill  with  the  way  the  band  approaches  their  musical  instruments,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  violent  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Exoto  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  the  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Necromantic-Love  Affair"  "Culture  Of  Death"  "Escape  the  Eternal  Sleep"  and  "After  Death".  8  out  of  10        

Infection/Acrotomophile Mutilator/2014 Full Length Review

  Infection  are  a  band  from  Peru  that  plays   a  very  brutal  and  old  school  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  album  "Acrotomophile  Mutilator".

  A  very  heavy  and  brutal  90's  style  death  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  growling  vocals  and  a  few  seconds  alter  the  band  starts  adding  in  melody,  technical  riffing  and  blast  beats  along  with  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  you  can  also  hear  some  high  pitched  screams  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  band  sticks  to  a  very  heavy  style  of  death  metal  throughout  the  recording  as  well  as  demonstrating  a  good  amount  of  talent  and  skill  in  the  riffing  and  drumming  and  when  leads  are  added  into  the  music  they  enhance  the  technical  feeling  of  the  bands  musical  style  and  towards  the  end  of  the  recording  they  bring  in  an  instrumental  before  closing  the  album  with  a  track  that  has  vocals.

  Infection  play  a  style  that  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  era  and  brings  in  a  perfect  balance  between  heaviness,  melody  and  technical  parts  and  they  also  show  they  can  play  their  musical  instruments  very  well  throughout  the  recording,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  violent,  gore  and  serial  killers  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Infection  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school,  technical  and  brutal  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "When  Children  Murder"  "Kidnapped  And  Killed"  "Regurgitating  Human  Parts"  and  "Worse Than  Being  Dead".  8  out  of  10.  

https://infectionmetal.bandcamp.com/album/acrotomophile-mutilator



   

Lavatory/Morbid Terror/Pulverised Records/2014 CD Review

  Lavatory  are  a  band  from  Malaysia  that  plays  an  old  school  form  of  Swedish  style  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Morbid  Terror"  which  will  be  released  in  October  by  Pulverised  Records.

  A  very  dark  sounding  intro  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  classical  guitars  a  few  seconds  later  and  after  the  intro  the  music  starts  going  into  more  of  a  heavy  and  melodic  direction  along  with  some  blast  beats  and  the  band  also  uses  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  throughout  the  recording.

  When  vocals  are  added  into  the  band  they  bring  in  the  death  metal  style  of  88-91  era  as  well  as  using  some  deeper  growls  and  screams  as  well  as  having  a  more  original  approach  with  the  way  the  vocals  are  utilized  and  they  also  put  a  decent  amount  of  melody  in  the  riffs,  solos  and  leads  and  you  can  hear  a  good  mixture  of  both  old  school  American  and  Swedish  death  metal  influences  being  mixed  into  their  musical  style  along  with  a  great  amount  of  raw  aggression.  

  Lavatory  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  heavily  rooted  in  the  mid  80's  to  early  90's  era  of  the  genre  taking  the  melody  of  rawness  of  the  Swedish  bands  and  mixing  it  in  with  the  heaviness  of  the  American  variation  of  this  genre  to  create  an  album t hat  is  100  percent  death  metal,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  corpses,  gore  and  death.

  In  my  opinion  Lavatory  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Descent  Into  Madness"  "Morbid  Terror"  "Miserable  Life"  and  "To  The  End  Of  The  World".  8  out  of  10.

Imperious Malevolence Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?
ALEX: Hail Maniacs! We¥ve been focused on the last year, and a half of 2014 in playing live and the same time, in promoting and divulgation of our official vÌdeo 'Doomwitness', and the newest one 'Seek For Mephisto', these two songs are included on our recent work. Our shows and set-lists are based on it¥s album, and some older songs from all  albums.

2.A year back you had released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
ALEX: Well, this album 'Doomwitness' was largely composed by former members of the Imperious Malevolence, and some adjustments were made by this current line-up. Overall, we believe this is the most mature work of the band, and where the songs are easier to assimilate, comparing with the ancient works. Surely is the best album so far, from Imperious Malevolence in almost 20 years of existence.

3.This was the first full length to be released in 7 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what was going on during that time?
A.DEATH: In that time we still playing around brazil and we made 3 europe tours, when we played in big festivals like party san, brutal assault etc. but in the year 2011 the bass vocalist geed out from the band and leave with me the mission to found another singer and start to organize the objectives.we were with the
new album totally ready before the vocalist get out, so we must to pass this songs to the new one,,who make a perfect work, to release the album Doomwitness.

4.Your lyrics cover some satanic and occult topics, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these subjects?
A.DEATH:this are more the band style, because we just like the theme and of course to play a real death metal you must to talk about these topics, but its just a curiosity about we don't practice satanism or occultism.
ALEX: The themes of the band involving many points of view, and always with an extremely radical thinking on religion and society. We are totally anti-religion and their behaviors through the book written by man (Bible) and his lies. Obviously issues involving anti-religion and the occult are often used by us in the lyrics. We emphasize that along with the brutal sound that Imperious Malevolence always did, and always will be remembered as a band of Death Metal harsh and violent!

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Imperious Malevolence'?
A.DEATH: this name was an idea from the first vocalist at the year 1995, its sound good and represent the theme and the band style, showing a evil empire who evolving us all day.

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
A.DEATH:PARTY SAN OPEN AIR, BRUTAL ASSAULT OPEN AIR, BLACKLAND FESTIVAL(BERLIN), METALHEADS MISSION , POLAND CONCERTS , ETC…we in stage try to show aggressively how our songs crossing
our bodies and mind, transmuting this energy to our instruments and to the public.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
A.DEATH:we are planning to make a new europe tour, to see our friends than we got since 2000, when we made our first europe tour, and play again and big festivals there, here in Brasil we don stop to make concerts never.

8.The new album was released on Rock Brigade Records, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
A.DEATH: this label are from the magazine Rock brigade, an icon in brazilian metal scene, and good friends also.you can see more about at the web site, www.rockbrigade.com.br.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of brutal death metal?
A.DEATH:this new album was a big surprise for us , because all the fans really like it, and we like too, but the fans are very cool and enjoy all the I>M works, and this make us growing up and continue with the force to
keep going on with the band.

10.What is going on with some of the other musical projects these days that some of the band members are involved with?
ALEX: All members have other bands active, I play in Doom Metal band called Lachrimatory, which has existed for 15 years and at the time we are publishing the re-launch of our latest work 'Transient' by Russian label (Solitude Productions).
A.DEATH:I play in another band called MOTORBASTARDS(Motorhead tribute), AND DANMENTED play in a band called AXECUTER, trash old school.

11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
ALEX: In Brazil where we live, the pace of things is always slower than elsewhere in the world. So if we want to get a greater range of our work, always come in our head trying to play in Europe where there is a large direct and indirect return for any underground band that wishes to emerge and be seen with greater respect through work.
Imperious Malevolence has achieved many goals in the past and still has great potential to win new and big goals in the future, and it all depends on our hard work for extreme music we make.

12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
ALEX: Always listened very old school Death Metal, Death Metal 90's, and also Doom Metal. Are the genres most influential in my musical style and in my life.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?
ALEX: Movies

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
ALEX: Hail Death Metal! Support brutal underground music!
Listen to our music, and keep in touch for more info> FB page, youtube channel and soundcloud page.
Cheers+

Trascendental/Nothingness/Xtreem Music/2014 CD Compilation Review

  Trascendental  where  a  band  from  Spain  that  played  death  metal  with  a  technical  edge  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  compilation  album  "Nothingness"  which  was  released  by  Xtreem  Music  and  consists  of  their  90's  albums  "Behind"  and  "Dimensions".

  A  very  dark  and  distorted  sound  starts  off  the  compilation  before  going  into  more  of  an  early  90's  death  metal  musical  direction  and  a  few  seconds  alter  screams  and  growls  are  added  into  the  music  and  they  are  in  the  early  vein  of  this  musical  direction  and  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  technical  elements  in  the  guitar  riffing.


  The  solos  and  leads  the  band uses  are  in  the  early  technical  death  metal  vein  and  the  band focuses  more  on  a  slow  to  mid  paced  style  of  this  genre  and  you  can  also  hear  elements  of  thrash  in  their  musical  sound  at  times  and  you  can  also  hear some  clean  playing  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  On  some  of  the  later  tracks  the  music  starts  to  speed  up  a  bit  and  add  in  blast  beats  when  they  are  needed  and  they  also  bring  in  an  acoustic  outro  before  going  into  the  second  album  on  the  compilation  which  starts  out  with  a  synth  intro  and  acoustic  guitars  as  well  as  adding  in  some epic  sounding  synths  before  going  into  a  death  metal  direction   along  with  some  melodic  leads  and  the  music  is  more  in  a  fast  and  rawer  direction  than  the  first  album  as  well  as  being  more  thrash  influenced.

  Trascendental  played  a  very  underrated  style  of  death  metal  for  their  time  playing  a  style  that  was  not  as  technical  as  Atheist  or  as  heavy  as  Morbid  Angel  or  Obituary  so  they  where  kind  of  ignored  in  their  time  and  forgotten  about  but  this  is  some  very  good  sounding  death  metal  from  the  90's,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  the  time  it  was  recorded  while  th e lyrics  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes.  

  In  my  opinion  Trascendental  where  a  very  great  sounding  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  compilation.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Gods  (False  Answer  II)"  "Sorrow"  "Uncertain  Future"  and  "The  Last  Day".  8 out  of  10.  

 

 

  

Innsmouth Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Well, we are a trio, all deriving from the outskirts of Denmark, and we've known each other since we were teenagers. The idea behind forming this band started when Kim (vocals) and Thor (guitar) way back in 2006 wanted to form a black metal band. That never happened, but in 2012, after playing in other constellations, they decided to form Innsmouth. They asked me (Martin, bass) and a few other guys, if we wanted to join. I've always had a tremendous amount of respect for the musical talent of these guys, so I said yes, and I've stuck with them ever since. Kim (vocals) is living and breathing metal, and even though i don't like the word, he is the most "true" metal fan i know. Thor (guitar) is a technical genius, definitely the best guitar player I have ever seen, and he is extremely dedicated to both the band, but also to constantly developing his guitar skills. I myself have been playing a lot of different styles of music, including groovejazz and jazz fusion, but I've always returned to metal, because I deeply value the virtuosity that is at play. Which especially is the case when you listen to a band like Innsmouth.


2.You have a new album coming out, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

We'd describe our music as technical death metal with heavy amounts of shredding. Our music is for everyone who likes brutal metal, but also value virtuosity. I feel like we have a good mix between the guttural, brutal stuff and the more melodic side of things. If you are planning on buying the CD, be prepared : There is tons of stuff going on. I swear, sometimes there are 2 lead guitar tracks on top of bass, drums, vocals and rhythm guitar. I won't go as far as to say, that we are a "more is more" kind of band, but you better be able to hold your breath for a long time, because there isn't immense amounts of breathing room. The sound is definitely influenced by the mastermind behind the CD Thor (guitar). He, and in fact we all, like it when there's some flashy stuff going on.


3.The lyrics and band name both come from the writings of H.P Lovecraft, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this author?

Well, I must admit, that it is mostly Thor that have read the H.P Lovecraft stuff. But what I can tell you, is that the lyrics are horror-filled, and some of the lyrics are downright sickening. But I feel like we stand out, because we don't have gore-filled lyrics for the sake of being gore-filled. In contrast, they derive from something, there is a story being told, and I know that Thor has chosen this lyrical theme out of great respect for the author. Even though this sounds very serious, I must admit, that I found some of the lyrics to a song such as "Vomiting a Hole In The Soul" quite amusing.


4.Recently there has been plenty of technical death metal bands popping out on the scene, do you feel you stand out from other bands of this genre?

Well, I feel like we stand out on the grounds that we aren't purely death metal based. We have the prodigy Thor, who is deeply influenced by the 80's shred scene. This have given an approach to the music where the guitar is more in front than in other bands. By this, I mean the lead guitar. In spite of the guttural, brutal vocals and often dark rhythm section, there is more often than not some higher pitched lead guitar going on at the same time. I can imagine this would be confusing to some. But I really feel it is a strong element in Innsmouth, because this makes the songs easily distinguishable. Sometimes when I hear technical death metal bands, especially the very brutal ones, I find it hard to hear the difference between the songs if I don't concentrate extremely much. I think our approach gives a uniqueness to each song, and I think that fans will appreciate that.


5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Well, this constellation, as for know, is a studio-based project only. This means, that we focus our energy on writing, recording and releasing music. So we haven't played any concerts. But with other bands we've played a lot of concerts. The concert I remember the best was with a band at the local band battle. We'd made it to the finals ONLY because the judges loved us. The audience, on the other hand, couldn't stand us. At the show people were climbing on the stage and stage diving. People in formal shirts were headbanging and screaming as well. It was the first time I'd experienced that, and I remember thinking to myself: "These people don't like metal. But damn, they love the energy!". It was as if we'd lulled people into some sort of trance, except they were going crazy. Alas, we lost the finals to another band, but never mind that, it was a great experience. Funny enough, that band was with Thor as well.


6.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?

No, we are sorry to disappoint our fans. Everyone keeps asking us when we are going to play live. But there are no plans for touring at the moment. For the time being, we will focus on creating our next album.


7.The new album is coming out on Crime Records. Can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

First off, I want to say, that it has been a fantastic experience working with Crime Records. They have supported us and believed in us from the moment we send them our material. Crime Records is a Norwegian based record label, that focuses on metal. Their slogan is "Keeping Metal Alive", and we've definitely found that they are true to their word. They've helped us with a lot of stuff regarding the release of the album, and have really done a lot of work for us, that we in no way could have managed ourselves.


8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of technical death metal?

At the moment, there has only been released 1 track from the album for promotion, but the feedback has been really, really good. We've gotten a lot of new fans since the release of the track.


9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

The plan is to continue writing, recording and releasing music. We are currently working on the 2nd album. We've always been unwilling to compromise our musical values, which means, that we will play the music that we like, regardless of what is trending at any given moment. But of course, the 2nd album is going to be the same style of music. Thor (guitar) is also working on a solo record.


10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

What we all can agree on is Necrophagist, Death and Obscura. Kim (vocals) is into death and black metal. Thor and I listen to a lot of different styles in the metal genre, and we've both heard a lot of Dream Theater. I personally really dig the album "The Aura" by Canadian group "Beyond Creation" at the moment. I'm also in to Death core, and nothing makes me more hyped right now, than the album "Eyes Of The Archetype" by french group "In Arkadia". Some elements in the song "Reanimator" on our upcoming album is inspired by that genre. Needless to say, Thor is greatly inspired by the giants of shred, including Marty Friedman, Jason Becker, Yngwie Malmsteen and the likes.


11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Kim is into growing plants, especially chili. He has his own little green house in his apartment. Thor and Kim both have girlfriends to care for. We also like to drink beer, and I especially tend to hit up downtown every weekend. At the moment though, I'm taking a break from drinking to focus on a detox diet. Thor and I are also both students, so a lot of time is spent on doing homework and attending classes.


12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

We'd of course like to thank everyone who supported us. Also everyone who plans on buying the album, and everyone who buys music instead of downloading it illegally.

Kadar/Infidel/Metal Scrap Records/2014 EP Review

  Kadar  are  a  duo  from  Kazakhstan  that  plays  a  progressive  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  ep  "Infidel"  which  was  released  by  Metal  Scrap  Records.

      Acoustic  guitars  start  off  the  ep  giving  the  music  a  progressive  edge  before  adding  in  bass  guitars  which  leads  to  a  more  heavier  musical  direction  along  with  elements  of  thrash  metal  and  blast  beats  which  leads  up  to  some  deep  death  metal  growls  and  melodies  being  added  into  the  music  which  also  brings  in  a  groove  metal  feeling.

  After  awhile  high  pitched  screams  become  a  part  of  the  bands  musical  sound  and  the  solos  and  leads  the  band  uses  are  in  more  of  a  melodic  direction   after  awhile  the  band  starts  adding  in  a  small  amount  of  synths,  clean  playing  and  spoken  word  samples  as  well  as  bringing  in  a  mixture  a  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  Kadar  plays  a  very  interesting  style  of  old  school  death  and  thrash  metal  which  they  also  add  in  a  good  amount  of  progressive  elements  along  with  a  touch  of  groove  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  political  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Kadar  are  a  very  great  sounding  progressive  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  duo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "I  Am  Infidel"  and  "The  Child's  Salvation".  8  out  of 10.