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.