Sunday, June 10, 2018

Oubliette/The Passage/The Artisan Era/2018 Full length Review


  Oubliette  are  a  band  from  Murfreesboro,  Tennessee  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  album  "The Passage"  which  will  be  released  in  July  by  The  Artisan  Era.

  A  very  fast  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  as  well  as  the  songs  also  bringing  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  acoustic  guitars  are  also  added  onto  some  of  the  tracks.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  grim  black  metal  screams  along  with  the  music  also  mixing  in  a  great  amount  of  melodic  death  metal  elements  as  well  as  one  of  the  tracks  introducing  synths  onto  the  recording  and  spoken  word  parts  and  stringed  instruments  can  also  be  heard  briefly  and  as  the  album  progresses  their is  also  a  brief  use  of  female  vocals,  a  few  of  the  later  tracks  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Oubliette  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  melodic  sides  of  black  and  death  metal  and  mixes  them  with  some  progressive  structures  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  a  concept  album  based  upon  loss  and  grief.

  In  my  opinion  Oubliette  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "A  Pale  Innocence"  "Elegy"  and "The  Passage".  8  out  of  10.

www.facebook.com/oubliettemetal
www.oubliette.bandcamp.com
www.instagram.com/oubliette.tn

Saturday, June 9, 2018

Ephyra/The Day Of Return/Volcano Records & Promotion/2018 CD Review


  Ephyra  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  plays  a  mixture  of  folk  and  melodic  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  album  "The  Day  Of  Return"  which  was  released  by  Volcano  Records  &  Promotion.

  A  very  hard  and  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  which  also  having  a  blackened  metal  feeling  to  them  at  times  while  female  vocals  and  folk  instruments  are  also  used  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  as  well  as  some  tracks  also  adding  in  Japanese  And  Mongolian  instruments,  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  as  the  album  progresses  throat  singing  and  acoustic  guitars  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  Ephyra  takes  folk  metal  and  mixes  it  with  the  melodic  sides  of  black  and  death  metal  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Medieval  Fantasy,  Warriors  and  Battle  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Ephyra  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  folk  and  melodic  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Day  Of  Return"  "Wayfarer"  "Dance  Between  The  Rocks"  and  "True  Blood".  8  out  of  10.

http://volcanopromotion.wixsite.com/ephyra

Flood Peak/Plagued By Sufferers/2018 Full Length Review


  Flood  Peak  are  a  band  from  Portland,  Oregon  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black,  sludge,  doom  and  post   metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2018  album  "Plagued  By  Sufferers".

  Atmospheric  sounding  synths  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  and  melodic  musical  direction  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  angry  sludge  style  screams  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  most  of  the  tracks a re  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  A  great  amount  of  doom  metal  elements  can  also  be  heard  in  the  slower  sections  of  the  songs  while  the  vocals  also  utilize  black  metal  screams  at  times  along  with  some  clean  guitars  also  being  added  into  certain  sections  of   the  recording  as  well  as  the  music  also  mixing  in  a  great  amount  of  post  metal  elements  and  all  of  the  music  sticks  to  a  slower  direction.

  Flood  Peak  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  black,  sludge,  doom  and  post  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  bleakness  and  hopelessness  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Flood  Peak  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black,  sludge,  doom  and  post  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Scourge"  and  Veiled  By  Summoners".  8  out  of  10.

www.facebook.com/floodpeakband 
www.twitter.com/floodpeakband 

Wednesday, June 6, 2018

Mordant Rapture/The Abnegation/The Artisan Era/2018 EP Review


  Mordant  Rapture  are  a  band  from  San  Jose,  California  that  plays  a  very  symphonic  and  technical  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  ep  "The  Abnegation"  which  will  be released  in  July  by  The  Artisan  Era.

Tragic  sounding  keyboards  start  off  the  album  and  also  gives  the  songs  a  symphonic  feeling when  they  are  mixed   in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  music  while  the  vocals  are  a  mixture  of  black  metal  screams  and  death  metal  growls  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  also  being  done  in  a  very  technical  style.

  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  some  spoken  word  parts  also  being  used  briefly  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  bringing  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  at  times  the  music  also  gets  very  brutal.

  Mordant  Rapture plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  symphonic  black  metal  and  mixes  it  with  technical  death  metal  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Mordant  Rapture  are  a  very  great  sounding  symphonic  and  technical  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Withered"  and  "Natal  Trophies".  8  out  of  10.

https://www.facebook.com/MordantRapture/
https://twitter.com/MordantRapture
https://www.instagram.com/mordant_rapture/



  

Hoth/Astral Necromancy/Epicurus Records/2018 Full Length Review


  Hoth  are  a  band  from  Seattle,  Washington  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  album  "Astral  Necromancy"  which  will  be  released  on  June  15th  by  Epicurus  Records.

  Melodic  guitar  leads  start  off  the  album  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having a   very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  grim  black  metal  screams  as  well  as  some  back  up  shouts  also  being  used  at  times  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody.

  Throughout  the  recording  a  great  amount  of  melodic  death  metal  elements  can  also  be  heard  while  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bringing  in  blast  beats and  a  couple  of  tracks  also brings  in  a  small  amount  of  classical  guitars.

  The  fast  riffs  also  mix  in  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  while  keyboards  are  also  added  onto  a couple  of  the  tracks  and  also  gives  the  music  more  of  an  atmospheric  feeling  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  clean  vocals  can  be  heard  before  returning  back  to  a  heavier  direction  and  they  also  return  later  on  during the  recording  as  well  as  a  couple  of   the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Hoth  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  melodic  sides  of  black  and  death  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  a  concept  album  based  upon  Black  Magick,  Necromancy,  Forbidden  Knowledge  and  Spiritual  Transcendence.

  In  my  opinion  Hoth  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Living  Dreams  Of  A  Dead  God"  "Citadel  Of  The  Necromancer"  "Journey  Into  The  Eternal  Winter'  and  "Solitude".  8/5  out  of  10.

http://hothmetal.com
http://hothmusic.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/hothmetal

Sunday, June 3, 2018

Mortuorial Eclipse 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?

After finished recordings we did some tours in Chile and Brazil, being part great festivals and performing in small venues. Now we are working on some gigs of presentation for this new release and getting ready for upcoming tours.

2.Recently you have 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?

Once released our first album we had the feeling that something bigger can be created with the same formula but getting deeper into the Orchestra as main element, we explored that universe and as a result we came up with a very eclectic result. URUSHDAUR is a combination of brutal music and dark atmospheres with some ethnic essence.

3.This is your first full length in 6 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time frame?

The band was in a transition process when “The Aethyrs´ Call” was finished. It was my debut as singer, until that moment we had front man singer like part of the band. After the recording I had to develop my skills to take these songs to stage and we needed to make the band ready for a higher level exigence.

4.Your lyrics cover Occultism, Old Wisdom and Ancient Cultures, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these topics?

These topics are very closely related, we can say that you can not talk of any of them without enter in the others. We find a huge inspiration on these topics and an endless fount of knowledge to dig and develop our message using them as a bridge more than a goal or a point of adoration.

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

We were ready to perform live back in 2007 and we didn’t have a name yet. Actually we had a lot of different ideas and combinations but none really convinced all of us and we changed from rehearsal to rehearsal. “Dying Eclipse” or “Thy Tempest” were some of the first choices but I can’t remember how we finished with “Mortuorial”( a not existing word but very graphic). The final choice evokes the death as an ecliptic restless cycle beyond human wisdom.


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?

For sure “Southern Stigma Tour” around Russia and Europe was the most extreme experience the band had. We were part of some amazing festivals as Moscow Black Metal Convention(Russia) and Metal Crowd ( Bealrus ) . Another night to remember was back in 2014 when we supported the Polish Behemoth,band that is a big influence for me.

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

Take URUSHDAUR as far as we can is tha mayor goal now that the album is released. North America and Central Europe are on the eye for next year.

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

As we make some king of Hybrid critics are very disparate. Purists are always against these proposals but it was never and obstacle to develop our style as mind of people is getting more open and the need of new options is constant. We have a Black essence, Death Sound and a strong Symphonic element; this is how band was born and we are getting deeper into this path  with this new material.   

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

We still feel there is a lot to develop in the line we are, even we are very proud of our latest CD we are exploring and going further to take our proposal to a higher level and keeping all time breeding new music .

10.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?

Our influences are brutally open and its very difficult to find where they start and finish, from OSTs to Old School BM. From Middle East Ethnic to Tampa´s DM and this is all time growing. 

11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Wine? So far , everything we do is somehow connected with music and art. It gets very difficult now to think in our lives in a Non Musical Way. We really enjoy what we do and it give us strength to face all the shit of the world without backward steps. 

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

URUSHDAUR is a deep trip that many metalheads will enjoy, we think this work will open a new chapter for the band and we are ready to do all in our hands to deliver this proposal to as far as our strength let us do it. A long journey has just begun. En el caos está la verdad!

Nefass / June 2018

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Thursday, May 31, 2018

[BOLT] 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?

We played a tour in late March with our good friend N and some nice festivals, plus further planning for future releases and some shows.

2.Recently you have 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?

I guess the biggest change or difference would have been the addition of drums respectively an additional band member. Hence, the whole writing process including its approach and sound changed in some ways. Specifically the addition of drums comes naturally with rhythmic changes or, as in our case, the general addition of rhythm. We understand ( 0 4 ) as a journey with recurring musical ideas which are featured throughout the album and tiled together by fuzzed out bass guitars, drums and degraded effects.

3.So far all of your music has been instrumental, would you be open to working with vocals or lyrics in the future?

We already have plans to work with someone on vocals, but rather in the sense of an additional instrument than central element as you would find in a classic band set-up.

4.Most of your song titles are named after numbers, can you tell us a little bit more about this concept?

Actually there isn’t too much of a concept apart from the songs being connected to a consecutive number. Since we don’t have any lyrics, it leaves enough room to the audience to interpret or relate to a song or an album whatever they want. Also, we don’t have too much say, haha.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name [BOLT]?

The name derives from a black beam, which in our early days represented our ‘band name’, but actually wasn’t pronounceable. We then came across an industrial bolt, which came closest to the previously used black beam.  [ ███████]

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?

This year’s Dunk!Festival was remarkably good. It doesn’t happen too often that there is a strong connection between the audience, us as a band AND the place/venue we actually play which in that case was the forest stage and happened to be a special and unique experience.
When it comes to the performance itself, it depends on quite a few things. In an ideal world, we offer an intimate and equally intense performance. But that depends on things like sound, stage, audience, lighting or the like.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the next few months?

16.6. in Leverkusen and 25.8. in Mülheim (Ruhr). Both are festivals which combine art and music. Maybe a long weekend in late October.

8.You have also been a part of a few splits and collaborations, can you tell us a little bit more about the bands or artists you have shared these recordings with?

We met all of our split and collaboration partners before we actually worked on a record. Or it was suggested by one of our labels. Anyway, an important criterion to all of our works with other artists is the creative work and the goal to enhance our, as well as our partners musical horizon. Keep in mind we started as a bass duo which naturally comes with limitations to sound and song writing. Therefore, having the opportunity to work with other artists was (and still is) an endless source of inspiration and enabled us to foster our own creativity.

9.Can you tell us a little bit more about the labels you have worked with on the new album?

Both labels, Dunk! Records and Narshardaa Records, are run by very kind and enthusiastic people and put a lot of effort in our latest album. Dunk is based in Gent/Belgium and Narshardaa in Kiel/Germany.
It was nice to see that both labels were open to work with us and leave their more common path of post rock and hardcore.


10.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal, doom and drone?

That’s quite hard to say. We don’t focus too much on genres themselves, since it would limit or restrict not only our own music, but also views on our music by third parties.
Generally speaking feedback so far has been very good, which we are very grateful for, but again, that’s not really connected to genres. Most people who get back to us or write something about our songs and albums share a general interest in music which tends to move away or beyond genre limitations.

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

Currently we are working on a collaboration with an US film composer, the next album and a theatre project. The recordings to two split albums are almost done, same with two N+BOLT albums.
We like to keep all of that as well as all of our future works quite open. As mentioned before, too many labels on your own musical style might restrict you in one way or the other.

12.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?

All three of us share an interest in what one might describe as heavy and/or atmospheric music. This ranges from black metal, post metal or rap music to pop music. I guess a key element to all genres we are interested in, is some sort of a well created atmosphere and a creative approach to song writing.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?

I guess Andi’s interest in recording and mastering is worth to be mentioned.

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

Thanks heaps for the interview. Equally to the reader for dealing with our messy answers. Hearts.

https://wearebolt.bandcamp.com/music