Hostis/Self Titled/Miner Recordings/2016 CD Review

  Hostis  are  a  band  from  Montenegro  that  plays  a  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  titled  2016  album  which  was  released  by  Miner  Recordings.

  A  very  heavy  and  melodic  thrash  influenced  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sounding  very  powerful  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  the  solos  and  leads  bring  in  a  very  melodic  and  traditional  style  of  metal  and  the  music  also  brings  in  a  lot  of  old  school  influences.

  Throughout  the  recording  there  is  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  vocals  are  all  death  metal  growls  and  while  the  music  has  its  roots  in  the  past  it  still  sounds  very  modern  and  most  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  the  album  also  remains  very  heavy  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording  and  the  last  track  also  brings  in  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples.

  Hostis  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  old  school  forms  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  mixes  them  together  for  the  modern  times,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  social  issues  against  the  political  and  religious  dogma,  indoctrination  and  media  manipulation.

  In  my  opinion  Hostis  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  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Mutilation  Of  Truth"  and  "Gods  Are  Dead".  8 out  of  10.     

     

Sacramental Blood 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?
Well we did lot of shows, had some line up changes and we recorded/released our 2nd demo "The Second Death" between recording and release of album, since we had few years gap between recording and mixing/mastering and then again till release of album. After the release of album we were forced to focus only on promotion of album through magazines and internet due to our drummer's health issues, but we are looking now for his substitute and hopefully from November we will be able to hit the stage again and tour as much as possible. In other news, in coming weeks Miner Records will release limited edition of single cd "Destroyer of Thought and Form", that will contain title track and experimental version of another track from album, "Sanctimonious", enriched with keyboards.

2.In May 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?
Well it's continuation of what we did on our 2 demos but it has better sound and we captured better performance. Many reviews state it's old school death metal with modern sound of 16th Cellar studio. Musically it's old school brutal death metal in vein of bands like old Monstrosity, Sinister, Suffocation with Obituary/Death and Deicide kind of vocals. Of course there's also more songs so we could deliver more
variety on "Ternion Demonarchy" than on our 2 demos. It's definitely our best work to date.

3.The band took a hiatus for a few years, what was the cause of the break and also the decision to re-group?
After the tour with God Dethroned and Fleshgod Apocalypse in 2009 I realised I could no longer keep the band functional with the same line up since half of the band didn't want to play tours anymore. Still there were too many factors involved so I couldn't just fire those people. We were also not satisfied how was album mixed, but since there was break in communication between band members, we couldn't agree about the future of the band and what to do with album, so I was forced to go on hiatus and just wait until some things come to right place. In beginning on 2011 we got an offer to tour with Disgorge and Natron and I decided to risk and bring new vocalist/guitarist to the band. That was turning point for us because it gave us whole new sound + we stripped band line up to the core that wanted to work hard and continue touring. Hiatus was something I was forced to, so the question was just when will we regroup and continue our mission.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
Our lyrics on "Ternion Demonarchy" deal with religion and destructive nature of mankind, mental and social alienation, cloning and sorcery. Sometimes it's more obvious and sometimes it's multi layer song, with horror stories in first plan and deeper meaning hidden between the lines.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Sacramental Blood'?
I came up with idea for band's name after watching some documentary about Mayan civilisation. For decades general opinion was that they didn't know about violence and cruelty, but then few decades ago some archaeologists found some old Mayan wall paintings showing human sacrifices and blood rituals they were practising everyday. Even their kings had to spill their own blood about 5 times a day in order to please their gods. They believed prosperity of whole community was depending on their sacramental blood. If something went wrong they believed gods needed more blood or that king's blood wasn't good enough. All those rituals and beliefs were perfectly described later in Mel Gibson's movie "Apocalypto". I thought the name sounds great and has meaning that perfectly fits our music and lyrics.

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?
The last run of shows we did in 2011-2012 with new line up were some we really enjoyed because of chemistry we had. Also show with Sinister in Belgrade, our debut show in Sofia (Bulgaria) and shows with Cannibal Corpse and Vader stick in my mind

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
As soon as we find new drummer we are going to start booking shows again. We were forced to turn down many great offers this year and that sucks. We just can't wait to get back in touring mode and try to visit some new countries and revisit some old places

8.The album was released on 3 different labels, are you happy with the support they have given you so far?
Yes,"Ternion Demonarchy" is released on cd through Ghastly music (Japan) worldwide. Miner Records (Swiss) released cd for ex Yugoslavia territory and they will also release it on vinyl, while Rebirth the Metal (Germany) released it on tape. We also got few days ago an offer from some Brazilian label to release cd in Brazil too so album should be available to all metalheads worldwide. We are more or less satisfied with labels by means of releases and distribution, I just wish they do more in terms of promotion since we are responsible for 95% of reviews out there.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death metal?
It has been great so far. It seems like everybody like it. We are getting fantastic reviews and fans are also full or praise for "Ternion Demonarchy". I can't really remember any single bad comment I read about it

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
No big changes. We will continue to do what we do the best, the same way we did in the past. We have never discussed change of direction we will go except when we got the chance to bring Srdjan to band and change the style of lead vocals. We work on one song until it's the best we could make and then we move to the next song. Each song stands for itself and we try to incorporate in each song all elements we have in our music in general: fast,twisted parts, groovier and mid tempo riffs, thrashier riffs, but like I said, without too much planning. It all comes very natural.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
Bands like Sinister, old Monstrosity and Suffocation, Luciferion, Sadus, Morbid Angel, Disincarnate, Dying Fetus, Hate Eternal, Possessed, Death, old Forbidden, Nevermore, Vader, old Slayer, Tony MacAlpine, Vital Remains... basically many, many death metal and thrash metal bands. Right now I'm playing blasting through Sinister - Cross the Styx and Deicide - Legion will be the next.

12.Does Occultism play any role in your music?
No, not really. Some of us had some little experience with occultism but nothing big and important and it didn't affect our music

13.What are some of your non musical interests?
I don't have much interests nor time for anything else besides music and my little daughter. Srdjan is into kick box and soon will become kick box trainer. Drummer Ivan rides bicycle and is internet addict, digging anything related to conspiracy theories, secret societies and new world order

14.Before we wrap up this interview. do you have any final words or thoughts?
We are doing our best to get back on the road and once when we get there be sure to come and check us out. Album is available from band directly and we have some nice T-shirts in stock too, so do not hesitate to get in touch with us and order your copy. For orders, booking or any other information write to sacramentalblood@yahoo.com or visit our facebook page. Thanks for your attention!

Zealot Cult/Karemenian Crypst/Blood Harvest/2016 EP Review

  Zealot  Cult  are  a  band  from  Ireland  that  plays  an  old  school  form of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review of  their  2016  ep  "Karemenian  Crypt"  which  was released  by Blood  Harvest

  A  very  heavy  and  old  school  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  some  blast  beats  when t he  music  speeds up  and  death  metal  growls  a  few  seconds  later  and  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  mid  80's  to  early  90's  era  of  the  genre  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  At  times  a  small  amount  of  melody  can  be  heard on  the  recording  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  stick  to  an  old  school  style  of  death  metal  while  also  having  there  melodic  moments  and all  of  the  songs  sound  like  they  could  of  easily  been  recorded  and  released  more  than  20  years  ago.  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  heavy  musical  direction  and  there is  also  a  brief  use  of  clean  singing  on  the  last  track  along  with  some  technical  elements  while  also  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Zealot  Cult  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  very  traditional  and  rooted  in the  early  90's  era  of  the  genre, the  production  sounds  very  old  school  yet  professional  at the  same  time  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Zealot  Cult  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  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Eternal  Winter".  8  out  of  10.   

Virvum/Illuminance/2016 CD Review

  Virvum  are  a  band  from  Switzerland  that  plays  a  very  technical  and  progressive  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a review  of  their  self  released  2016  album  "Illuminance"  which  will  be  released  in  September.

  Sci-fi  sounds  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  and  technical  direction  and  the  solos  and leads  also  demonstrate  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  utilize  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  the  bass  guitar  also  brings  leads  into  some  parts  of  the  songs.

  At  times  the  music  can  be  progressive,  atmospheric  and  experimental  while t he  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  vocals  are  mostly  death  metal  growls  along  with  some  high  pitched  screams  and  acoustic  guitars  can  also  be  heard  more  as the  album  progresses  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  some  of  the  fast  riffs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  there  is  also a  brief  instrumental  and  on  the  last  track  a  brief  use  of  clean  singing  can  be  heard. 

  Virvum  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  very  progressive  and  technical  sounding  as  well  as  being  more  different  and  original  than  most  bands  of  this  genre,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes. 

  In  my  opinion  Virvum  are  a  very  great  sounding  progressive  and  technical  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Earthwork"  "Tentacles  Of  The  Sun"  and  "II  A  Final  Warning  Sign  -  Acsension  And  Trespassing".  8 out  of  10.

 

Cryptic Shift 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 ep?


Since the release of ‘Beyond the Celestial Realms’ we have been focusing on writing future releases and covering as much as the UK as possible.


2.In April you had released a new ep, 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?


Our previous release was a single called ‘Dustbowl’ which featured a cover of Sepultura’s ‘Arise’ - ‘Beyond the Celestial Realms’ is our first official release as the collective line-up we are now, the music and atmosphere between the single and the EP has taken a massive leap forward and has matured along with the band. There is a constant progression towards our next release.


3.Your lyrics cover a great amount of science fiction themes, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this topic?


Our interest in Sci-Fi all started at an early age with the introduction of films like Star Wars, Alien etc. and books such as Dune - Xander also has an interest in H. P. Lovecraft, a lot of our lyrical themes are built around the idea of combining cosmic horror and fictional alien realms.


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


The name of the band was inspired somewhat by the Atheist album ‘Unquestionable Presence’, one of our favourite records! 


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?


We recently came back from supporting Vektor (US) during their ‘Recharging the UK/Ireland’ tour - that was pretty awesome! Vektor have always being one of our favourite current artists in the Thrash genre, so going out with those guys for the three dates was an out of this world experience (no pun intended). Supporting other artists such as Exodus and Municipal Waste are up there in our highlights! Our stage show is often much faster than on record - so bring a neck brace.


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


2017 is going to see us hitting mainland Europe for the first time, and as always we have plans to tour the UK in-between. We’re pretty excited - keep your eye out for tour dates and festival apperences!


7.The ep was released through both 'Nightbreaker Productions' and 'Fractured Mind Records', are you happy with the support both of the labels have given you so far?


Fractured Mind Records is run by Ryan and Xander - it was founded as a DIY label to help push artists from the UK who we feel deserve the attention! Check out the Bandcamp/Facebook page to hear releases from our friends in Redeye Revival, Desolator and String Villains! Nightbreaker Productions approached us with interest of a re-release of ‘Beyond The Celestial Realms’ with intention to help promote our music throughout Europe, we were very pleased to find that they had interest in our material and have found that working with them is a pleasure.


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


The EP orders have come in from all quadrants of the earth, which was pretty surprising to see! We’ve had very positive responses from new friends, online and at shows, it’s impacting to see our music is inspiring people from all over the place!


9.When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?


As for the full length we currently feel no pressure to release anything longer than an extended-play. We hope to be bringing out a two-track release sometime in the first quarter of 2017, expect to hear a heavier themed sound similar to the likes of Gorguts and Revocation - without losing our Sci-Fi signature.


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?


Collectively we all listen to a lot of musical styles - from Hardcore Punk to Folk, although a lot of our current interests are artists such as Gorguts, Revocation, Obscura, Foreseen, Havok, Death and Defeated Sanity.


11.What are some of your non musical interests?


Going on Hikes, No Man’s Sky, Food, Sci-Fi Movies, Sci-Fi Books, Star Wars.


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


Cheers for reading - keep your eyes on our Facebook page/website for updates on upcoming shows, merch and releases!

Carnophage/Monument/Unique Leader/2016 CD Review

  Carnophage  are  a  band  from  Turkey  that  plays  a  very  brutal  and  technical  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is a  review  of  their  2016  album  "Monument"  which  will  be  released in September  by  Unique  Leader.

  A  very  dark  sounding  intro  starts  off  the  album  along  with t he  sounds  of  humans  being  tortured  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes  into  a  very  fast  and  brutal  death  metal  direction  along  with  some  growling  vocals  and  technical  elements  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  melody  in some  parts  of  the  songs.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording and  when  guitar  solos  and  leads are  utilized  they  stick  to  a  very  melodic  style and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  grim  screams.

  Carnophage  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  very  brutal  yet  technical  at the  same  time  and  they  also  display  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill  as  musicians,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  death  and  torture  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Carnophage  are  a  very  great  sounding  technical  and  brutal  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Second  Genesis"  "Unbroken  Fortitude"  "Ode  To  Corruption"  and  "Inertia  And  Failure".  8  out  of  10. 
 

qip Interview

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

qip is my solo effort. At this moment in life I found it easier working alone and I felt an urge to try doing it on my own to learn new things in the process. It's a result of 3 year production cycle. Long nights of painstaking work. Trial and error. Moments of frustration, doubt,enlightenment and satisfaction. I started off with just an acoustic guitar and wrote most of the riffs that way. The material sounded quite heavy and dark in that primal form already. I demoed the songs and started adding different elements, building soundscapes, evoking
cinematic atmosphere and epic feel. It's a mix of many influences from different kinds of metal but those who know me say it's just my style.

2.So far you have released one album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

Sure. Vocal wise it sits comfortably in death metal domain. The songs are just full of growls and lyrics are long. Apart from death metal, there are elements of bitter doom, industrial metal and sf soundtrack
music. The album is full of melodies, which I think is unique quality in death/industrial genre. This time I decided to make the rhythms straightforward so the songs flow in a catchy way. It's a heavily layered material - a wall of sound which was hard to mix. Guitars are heavy and big - down tuned to C and played in a modified open tuning. The album was mastered (by my friend Darran Thompson) without heavy limiting to preserve the dynamics and avoid crushing. This is important because the songs are very dynamic - building up from mellow, atmospheric parts to roaring climaxes. The perceived loudness levels are close to albums released in the 80ties and it makes the sound more natural and less ear-fatiguing when played back really loud.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you explore with your music?

There is a variety of themes and in 8 out of 9 songs the subjects shouldbe very clear to anyone who reads the lyrics. Every song tells a story. I explored espionage, totalitarianism, psychology of revenge, alien abductions, transhumanism, nuclear holocaust, Kursk submarine disaster. One song - "Ergoregion" has a dual meaning - the literal one which is a venture into a hard sf territory and metaphorical one which refers to my
personal circumstances.

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

It is not a real name. It's an ASCII representation of a symmetrical symbol resembling a house fly head. I did not want any names and went for something like this to avoid cliches ever present in metal.

5.With this musical project you record everything by yourself, are you open to working with other musicians or do you prefer to remain solo?

Yes, in future I would like to start working with other people again.Completing projects takes less time when you can share the workload. There are synergies that I was missing too, but you need the right people to have these.

6.You also took a 13 year hiatus from music, what was the decision to comeback?

I had been writing music for my solo material before but I there was not enough motivation to learn the technical side of the music making process - recording and mixing - until around 2012 when for some reason I found it more interesting and started to learn quickly. The best wayto absorb this kind of knowledge is to put it into practice so the album brought a huge educational benefit but it also meant I had to spend three years until I was happy about the sound.

7.The album is getting re-issued by Arachnophobia Records, are you happy with the support they have given you so far?

Yes. Arachnophobia is a small independent label with great reputation and strong integrity. Renowned of consistent quality output, interesting bands and beautifully packaged albums - they never disappoint and make areal impact with the albums they release. I feel the songs are too good to end up in just an electronic format available for download from bandcamp so I decided to approach some labels and I was very happy when Arachnophobia expressed their interest in releasing my music.

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

I have not reached a bigger audience as I was limited to my own promotional capabilities which are very limited. The album has gathered very positive feedback and some really good reviews so far. I'm having
more publicity these days thanks to the label's support and the fact that it is going to be  released on CD in 3 weeks. This is just the start.

9.Where do you see yourself heading into as a musician in the future?

I would like to try stepping out of my comfort zone as well as improving my skills as a composer, producer, guitarist and growler. I've been thinking of making an sf horror ambient record with impressive melodies
and creepy atmosphere.

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?

Despite my metal background I do not have a favourite genre. I listen to some bands or artists which I found interesting at some point in my life and I am sure all o them influence me in a direct or subliminal way.

You can probably detect some of my direct influences when listening to the album: SYL, Nefilim, Skinny Puppy, Vangelis, Hans Zimmer, Gojira,Celtic Frost/Triptykon. Apart from that I'm into Scott Walker,
minimalist records of David Sylvian, Sarah Kirkland-Snider, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Recoil, Thomas Feiner,

11.What are some of your non musical interests?

My family life is very busy at the moment so there is not much time left for hobbies. I love long distance and uphill running. My house is located at the foot of a massive hill. The views from the top are
stunning. On a fair day you could see the whole province from the Mournes to County Donegal plus the coast of Scotland and Isle of Man and the whole Belfast City panorama. I try to get up there as often as
possible. It's a punishing steep uphill 9 mile run but totally worth it.

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

Check my album. It was recorded in a tiny box room but sounds bigger than many records produced in studios. It's full of information andsonic content, interesting concepts, engaging atmosphere and massive
growls. I hope you will enjoy.