Disciples Of Extremity/Vol 2/UKEM Records/2012 CD Compilation Review

  This  is  a  review  of  a  compilation  called  "Disciples  Of  Extremity  Vol  2"  which  was  released  by  UKEM  Records  and  we  will  review  the  songs  one  by  one.

  Trifivion  brings  us  "Fucked  In The  Guttural  Vortex"  a  very  fast  and  brutal  sounding  death  metal  song  with  a  mixture  of  technical  parts,  deep  growls  and  high  pitched  screams.

  Next  up  is  Diamorphus  with  "Panopticon  Prison"  another  very  fast,  technical  and  brutal  sounding  death  metal  song.

  Next  up  is  Regurgitate  Life  with  "The  Tempter"  a  death  metal  song  that  is  more  in  the  classic  brutal  early  90's  vein.

  Next  up is  Kyrophere  with  "Doll's  House  Part  1"  a  more  modern  day  sounding  technical  death  metal  song.

  Next  up is  Cultfinder  with  "The  Devil's  Whore"  a  song  that  is  more  in  the  black/thrash  metal  vein and  different  from t he  more  death  metal  orientated  stuff  on t his  compilation.

  Next  up  is  Mordid  Atrophy  with  "Pillow  Talk"  a  song  that  mixes  black  metal,  grindcore  and  death  metal.

  Next  up  is  Aghast  with  "We  Fear  Silence"  a  song  that  mixes  melodic  death  metal  with  thrash  and  groove  metal.

  Next  up  is  Ninkharsag  with  "The  Dawn  Of  The  Age  Of  Aquarius"  a  very  raw  and  primitive  sounding  black  metal  song.

  Next  up  is  Fever  Sea  with  "Ruin"  another  black  metal  song  that  is  very  raw  and  primitive  sounding  with  some  melodies  and  clean  singing  being  added  to  the  song.

  Next  up  is  Blind  Spite  with  "Dethrone  The  Earth"  a  song  that  is  more  in  the  brutal  death  metal  vein.

  Next  up  is  Eradicated  with  "Human  Dismantlement"  a  song  that  mixes  brutal  death  metal  with  deathcore.

  Next  up  is  Living  With  Disfugurement  with  "Hellbent  On  Depravity"  a  more  death/grind  song  with  high  pitched  screams  and  deep  death  metal  growls.

  Next  up  is  Cachexic  with  "Succumbing  To  Disease"  a  very  brutal  sounding  song  that  is  more  in  the  grindcore  vein.

  Next  up  is  Scythian  with  "Pray  To War"  a  very  old  school  sounding  death  metal  song  with  deep  growls  and  high  pitched  screams.

  Next  up  is  Filial  Cannibalism  with  "Writhing  In  Carnivorous Lava"  a  very  heavy  and  brutal  sounding  death  metal  song.

  Next  up  is  Flayed  Disciple  with  "Pig"  a  song  that  is  more  in  the  old  school  death  thrash  vein  with  some  classic  sounding  extreme  metal  guitar  solos.

  Next  up  is  Septic  Trauma  with  "Dajjal"   a  very  heavy  and  brutal  sounding  technical  death  metal  song.

  Next  up  is  The  Infernal  Sea  with  "Malevolence  Of  Our  Lord"  a  song  that  is  more  in  the  raw  and  primitive  black  metal  vein.

  Next  up is  Cryostorm  with  "Destroyer  Of  Ardor"  a  more  melodic  and  technical  sounding  death  metal  song.

  In  conclusion  I  feel  this  is  a  very  great  sounding  compilation  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  death  metal,  black  metal  and  grindcore,  you  should  be  able  to  find  something  that  is  to  your  interest.  RECOMMENDED  BUY.   

Sophicide/Perdition Of The Sublime/Willowtip/2012 CD Review

  Sophicide  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  very  a  very  brutal  and  technical  form  of  death  metal  with  a  melodic  edge  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2012  album  "Perdition  Of  The  Sublime"  which  was  released  by  Willowtip.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  a  great  amount  of  brutal  sounding  blast  beats  being  thrown  into  the  music,  while t he  bass  playing  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  riffing  that  dominates  throughout the  recording,  as  for  the  synths  they  are  only  utilized  on  one  song  and  bring  a  very  symphonic  sound  to  the  music.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  brutal  death  metal  riffs  that  are  very  technical  sounding  with  a  good  amount  of  melody  and  some  groove  metal  influences  being  thrown  into  the  riffing,  while the  lead  guitars  are  very  technical  and  melodic  sounding  death  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads,  as  for  the  acoustic  guitars  when  they  are  utilize  they  use  exotic  sounding  scales  to  add  more  variety  to  the  music.

  Vocals  are  mostly  deep  death  metal  growls  with  some  high  pitched  screams  being  thrown  into t he  music  at  times  as  well  as  some  spoken  word  samples,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark,  violent  and  hateful  themes,  as  for  the  production  it h as  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  Sophicide  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal,  technical  death  metal  band  with  a  melodic  edge  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  style  of  music,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Art  Of  Atrocity'  "Of  Lust  And  Vengeance"  "Freedom  Of  Mind"  and  "Dawn  Of  A  New  Age".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.  

Rocking Corpses Interview

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

Rocking Corpses is a fairly new band and just now releasing debut album called Rock 'n' Rott through Abyss Records. The whole idea was to combine rock, death metal and various horror themes. The trio consists of Tony D.K., Leper Laze and Vile.

2. How would you describe your musical sound?

I think the sound is a combination of the aggression and balls of death metal but also harmonies and groove of rock. Vocals have two main styles with low guttural death metal grunts and cleaner rock stylish vocals mainly in choruses. Also the gain in guitars have been toned down a bit to bring out the rocking side of the music.

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

The first album Rock 'n' Rott is a theme album telling the story of one zombie crawling out of it's grave and rocking out in a city. So the main theme is horror but black humour is also a big part of the lyrics as well. The first album is about zombies doing crazy rocking things but in the future there will be other horror themes also.

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

I think the band's name sums up pretty well what we are all about, rock, death, corpses, zombies, monsters, etc. It's also pretty funny name when you visualize some corpses rocking out but for me it's a strong and coarse name too.

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

So far we haven't done any live shows. In the studio I played all the instruments and we haven't rehearsed all the songs yet with our new drummer Vile, who btw did all the artwork for the album. All the guys have played many shows with different bands and I think it will be great to do shows with Rocking Corpses when we are ready. It will be energetic and crazy rockin' gigs.

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

No plans so far.

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

The album is going to be released on July 13th so there's not that much feedback yet. Maybe for rock fans the death metal side of our music may be too much but for a death metal fan, i'd think our stuff will be something new and exciting. A fresh breath of putrid air.

8. Are there any other musical projects besides this band or is this a full time line up?

All the guys have different things going on too but Rocking Corpses is a solid unit and not just a side project. I also play in other bands but all my creative energy goes to Rocking Corpses.

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

Now with an amazing new drummer we can maybe explore into more extreme death metal also. Without forgetting the groovy rock, of corpse. Also the sound will certainly evolve with future releases as the drums will be real drums and not electronic like the ones I played on our debut. The lyrical themes will be more varied too and not concentrating only on zombies.

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

Maybe I'm getting old 'cause I find myself listening to so much blues and bluesy rock. Motörhead and AC/DC are some of my all time favourites but lately I've been listening a lot of stuff like Clutch, Joe Bonamassa and finnish band Viikate. I also got really excited when I found Ghoultown. Their latest album is just amazing. Also I've been excited about Autopsy coming back with a great album! Other favourites are Pungent Stench, Necrophagia, Rob Zombie, Macabre, Entombed.. So many.

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

It's pretty obvious in our music that I really love horror movies. Everything from classic black & white to new stuff. Laze has been riding motorcycles all his life but just lately I've been getting interested too. I bought my first bike last summer and now I've been thinking about buying a Harley. It's just too bad that the summers in Finland are so short..

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

Be sure to check out our debut album Rock 'n' Rott! Listen with full volume and a case full of beer. More info from www.rockingcorpses.comand www.officialabyssrecords.com - Horror & Gore!

-Tony D.K.

Rocking Corpses/Rock'N'Rot/Abyss Records/2012 CD Review

  Rocking  Corpses  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  death  metal  with  a  rock'n'roll  edge  and  this is  a  review  of  their  2012  album  "Rock'N'Rot"  which  was  released  by  Abyss  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  drumming  with  not  much  in  the  way  of  fast  playing  or  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  range  from slow  to  mid  paced  riffs  that  combine  death  metal  with  rock'n'roll  with  some  riffing  having  a  blues  music  feeling  to  them  as  well  as  some  clean  playing,  while the  lead  guitars  are  classic  rock  style  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  are  mostly  deep  death  metal  growls  mixed  in  with  some  clean  singing  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  high  pitched  screams  in  addition  there  are  some  spoken  word  parts,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  gore  themes  with  a  sense  of  humor,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  to  it.

  In  my  opinion  Rocking  Corpses  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  death  metal  and  rock  music  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  style,  you  should  check out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Up  From  The  Grave"  "Life  For  A  Life"  "Necrophiliacs"  and  "Dead  End".  RECOMMENDED  BUY. 

Southwicked/Death's Crown/Abyss Records/2012 CD Review

  Southwicked  are  a  band  from  Florida  that  plays  a  very  old  school  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2012  album  "Death's  Crown"  which  was  released  by  Abyss  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow, mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  only  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats,  while t he  bass  playing h as  a  very  strong  and  powerful  tone  with  heavy  death  metal  riffs  that  dominate  throughout  the  recording  with  a  southern  feeling  to  them.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  old  school  Florida  style  death  metal  riffs  that  dont  utilize  the  more  modern  or  technical  sound  of  the  newer  bands,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  old  school  death  metal  guitar  solos  or  leads  that  have  a  southern  rock  feeling  to  them  at  times.

  Vocals  are  mostly  deep  death  metal  growls  with  some  high  pitched  screams  and  samples,  while  the  lyrics  cover  serial  killers  and  murder,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  Southwicked  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  style  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  style  of  music,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Death's  Crown"  "Killing  Spree"  "Charming  Karma"  and  "Green  River  Killings".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

Hour Of Penance Interview

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

Giulio : At the moment we're practicing a lot for our next shows , we're confirmed to play at the Hellfest this June , which is pretty much the biggest festival in Europe and we're working on some tours..we keep ourselves always busy !

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

Giulio : As we did with the other albums so far we tried to improve and change things here and there by adding new elements to our music and fixing what had to be fixed and Sedition will be just the results of that kind of work..Of course having a new singer and a new drummer helped a lot with that. Changing “skin” through every album without compromising the band original sound is one of our strong point.  At the same time we kept embedding our influences in our music, staying “death metal” without exceeding in experimentations.

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

Giulio : “Sedition” is a title that explains clearly what is the main theme of this work: rebellion against everything that stands in the way of knowledge, embodied by the serpent in the cover. We want to get back our future and regain the glory of our past, where Italy was the cradle of art, knowledge and power. The catholic church must be swept away for this to happen, since it has dumbed down every positive force in this country, and now we’re left with nothing. So every song tells the story of  a new holy war, from different point of views, to finally destroy the jew-christian ideology and establishment and be again free from all their lies.   

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

Giulio : We had a ton of memorable shows.. one i will never forget is the Death feast open air 2007 where we had more than one hundred metalheads on stage moshing on stage with us during a song - that was fucking unbelievable. it was hilarious to see the next year a warning signs with "Please don't get people on stage with you - this goes to Hour of Penance especially" written on it.

We give our 100% on stage , it's very hard to play such a complex music and in the same time interact with people as well but i think we achieved that doing show after show.

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

Giulio : We're just returned from a very successful tour with The Black Dahlia Murder , Nile and Skeletonwitch.. that was our first tour in the U.s and we're planning to come back as soon as possible. Actually we have already a great option for this fall , we're keeping our finger crossed for that , it's gonna be a kick ass tour.

7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer music by brutal death metal fans?

Giulio : Feedback from the fans is just great , i think we've satisfied our die hard fans as well as reached some new fans with our music. SEDITION received only but good reviews from the worldwide press. We were surprised to see good reviews even in some magazines that usually don't cover extreme metal , like Legacy mag. , and only two months passed since the release date.. so far so good !

8. What is going on with the side projects these days?

Giulio : Paolo is the only one who has a side project , his band Aborym , is probably one of the most innovative and crazy industrial black metal band that you can find out there.. they released an album on Season of Mist two years ago and now they're about to enter the studio to record the newer album.

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

Giulio : It's too early to talk about that , even if we have some ideas already.. We don't sit too much on the table and talk about what to change and what not about our music. I'm sure we will not change too much , we'll stay loyal to our fans without exceeding in some weird experimentations , that's the key behind every successful death metal album.. you got to keep it brutal!

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

Giulio : I tried to stay away from death metal while i was writing SEDITION because i didn't wanted to be influenced by any death metal band to be honest so i also lost some of the releases that came out on the last year. I've managed to get a copy of Torture , the new cannibal corpse album , while we were playing with them in a show in the U.s , and i have to say that i'm literally in love with their new record. Chaos Inception is about to have their new album out , they're a killer death metal band , you should really check them out! 

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

Giulio : Music keeps us busy for the most of the day , when we don't play music you can probably find us at the gym!

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

Giulio : Thanks for having us onto these pages , be sure to check out our new album SEDITION and keep supporting DEATH METAL! 

 

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Master/The New Elite/Pulverised Records/2012 CD Review

 Master  are  a  band  from  Chicago,  Illinois  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  with  a  history  that  goes  back  30  years  and  one  of  the  original  death/thrash  metal  bands  and  this  is  a review  of  their  2012  album  "The  New  Elite"  which  was  released  by  Pulverised  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  being  thrown  into  the  music,  while  the  bass  playing has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  tone  with  heavy  riffs  that  dominate  throughout  the  recording.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffs  that  combine  death  metal  with  thrash  as  well  as  some  punk  influences,  while the  lead  guitars,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  raw  and  primitive  sounding  death/thrash  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  are  mostly  deep  death/thrash  screams  and  growls  along  with  some  more  traditional  death  metal  style  growls  in  addition  there  is  a  brief  spoken  word  part  on  the  last  song,  while the  lyrics  cover  hateful,  everyday  and  anti  religion  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  album  from  Master  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  enjoy  this  one  as  well.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  New  Elite"  "Remove  The  Knife"  "Redirect  The  Evil"  and  "Souls  To  Dissuade".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.