Sunday, March 29, 2020

Baron SAMEDI/The Priest Devar/Nailed Nazarene Industries/2020 Full Length Review


  Russia's  solo  project  Baron  SAMEDI  has  returned  with  a  new  recording  which  shows  the  music  going  into  more  of  an  experimental  mixture  of  black  and  dark  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  2020  album  "The  Priest  Devar"  which  will  be  released  in  April  by  Nailed  Nazarene  Industries.

  Programmed  beats  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  industrial  elements  and  demonic  growls  a  few  seconds  later.  The  riffs  also  add  in  a  decent  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  while  the  keyboards  also  give  the  songs  more  of  a  gothic  touch  as  well  as  some  melodic  singing  also  being  used  at  times.

  Elements  of  doom  metal  can  also  be  heard  in  the  slower  sections  of  the  songs  along  with  some  blackened  screams  also  being  utilized  at  times.  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  dark  and  melodic  style  while  the  music  also  adds  in  a  decent  amount  of  90's  influences.

  One  track  also  introduces  Gregorian  chants  onto  the  recording  along  with  the  music  also  getting  very  experimental  at  times.  All  of  the  tracks  also  sound  very  different  from  each  other  and  all  of  the  music  sticks  mostly  a  slow  or  mid  tempo  direction  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  fast  playing  and  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard.  The  production  sounds  very  dark  and  old  school  while  the  lyrics  cover  darkness,  death  and  occultism  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Baron  SAMEDI  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  experimental  black,  doom  and  dark  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Aryan  Golem"  "Rage"  "Kammala"  and  "Mass  Graves".  8  out  of  10.

https://nailednazareneindustries.bandcamp.com/album/the-priest-devar  

Wolfheart/Wolves Of Karelia/Napalm Records/2020 Full Length Review


  Wolfheart  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  has  had  music  reviewed  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black,  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2020  album  "Wolves  Of  Karelia"  which  will  be  released  in  April  by  Napalm  Records.

  A  very  heavy  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  album  while  the  slower  sections  of  the  music  also  bring  in  elements  of  doom  metal.  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  the  vocals  bring  in  a  mixture  of  death  metal  growls  and  blackened  metal  screams.

  Symphonic  elements  can  also  be  heard  at  times  while  the  songs  also  add  in  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  along  with  one  track  also  introducing  clean  playing  onto  the  recording.

  Tremolo  picking  can  also  be  heard  in  some  of  the  faster  riffing   along  with  the  music  also  having  its  atmospheric  and  melancholic  moments  as  well  as  a  couple  of  tracks  being  long  and  epic  in  length.  As  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  classical,  acoustic  guitars  and  stringed  instruments  can  also  be  heard  on  a  couple  of  tracks  and  one  of  the  songs  is  also  an  instrumental.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while the  lyrics  cover  winter,  nature,  apocalypse,  wolves,  warriors,  bloodshed,  battle  and  melancholy  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Wolfheart  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  enjoy  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Hail  Of  Steel"  "The  Hammer"  and  "Ashes".  8  out  of  10.

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Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Inherently Lost Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
Originally started as a side project with the members from Torso Murder/Orwellian(Mark), Khai/All In(Joe) and Psyclosarin(Ian). Took a couple years but we finally got the debut Ep done.

2.Recently you have released an ep, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical styles you went for on the recording?
Really we were just trying to be as original sounding as possibly with still letting our individual influeces shine through. Noreen brought in all the clean vocals with the symphonic metal singing sound on parts; Mark added a melodic death metal and blackmetal feel; Joe added groove and melodic metal guitars; with Ian showing his blackmetal and death metal blast beats pounding away.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band has explored so far with the music?
The title track Our Last Midnight is about the rise of machines to the point the eliminate all humans that they see as a virus. The breakdown in this song is pretty epic. Overall the songs are a pre-apocalyptic warning.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Inherently Lost'?
After a year of jamming together in between our other projects started some hard brain storming. I was reading a lot about Sigmund Freud's theorys about how humans Inherently know how to do things straight out of the womb. Mixed with other days thinking about humans being programmed to consume and then bam! Narrated like the begining of a scifi movie "In an world filled with endless consumption, there is no wonder why, We are all Inherently Lost" just popped in my head.

5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the ep cover?
The artwork was inspired by images of the nebulus galaxy's that NASA released. With the Inherently Lost (IL) symbol. Being a metal band we were looking for different imagery versus the normal doom and gloom metal ideas.

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance? 7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
With being a side project we only managed few shows last year together in Inherently Lost. However once this Covid-19 pandemic calms down we are getting on track for a string of dates hopefully.

8.The ep was released on 'Entwined Recordings', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
Entwined Recordings is Mark's independant record label and music production studio. Since there is no need for Major labels these days; Orginally only a recording studio, he decided to fully dive in to music marketing with the same name. They had a couple releases with different bands over the years, one of which included Joe's old band Khai.

9.On the ep you also did a cover of Cradle Of Filth's "Nymphatamine", what was the decision behind doing your own version of one of their songs?
The main drive was that it was dark, heavy, and 50/50 on clean/heavy vocals. Along with never hearing anyone else covering, it was the perfect song for us.

10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of symphonic, black and death metal?
Pretty positive so far. You'll always have metal "elitists" that hate anything the isnt a carbon copy of a specific scene. You know the type "Its not kvlt, I hate clean vocals, I hate keyboards, etc." We are not playing music for them. We are playing for ouselves.

11.When can we expect a full length and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We are going to record 1 more Ep then follow it up with a full length. We are still continuing to evolve, right now it feels we are in the post-black metal, melodic death metal area. I can see some doom type riffage in our near future.

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?
Influences? Really too many to list but to just pick a handful; Epica, Lacuna Coil, Gojira, Heaven Shall Burn, Cradle of Filth, & Dimmu Borgir.
We are listening to new releases by Lacuna Coil, In This Moment, Code Orange, Heaven Shall Burn, Tool, Insomnium, and Cattle Decapitation

13.What are some of your non musical interests?
Traveling, Craft Beer, Wine, Mortal Kombat, Scifi,Horror shows and Art Museums

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
If your reading this and enjoy our music, follow us on any social media and leave a comment saying hello.

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Consumer/Self Titled/Fresh Outbreak Records/Mother Ship/Impeto Records/Boned Factory/Nut Records/2020 EP Review


  Consumer  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black,  sludge  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2020  ep  which  will  be  released  in  April  as  a  joint  effort  between  Mother  Ship,  Boned  Factory,  Fresh  Outbreak,  Impeto  and  Nut  Records.

  A  very  slow  and  heavy  sludge  metal  sound  starts  off  the  ep  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.  Death  metal  growls  are  also  used  quite  a  bit  on  the  tracks  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard.

  Black  metal  screams  are  also  utilized  at  times  while  tremolo  picking  can  also  be  heard  in  some  of  the  faster  riffing.  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  all  of  the  tracks  also  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length,  all  of  the  music  also  sticks  to  a  heavier  direction.

  Consumer  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  black,  sludge  and  death  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Consumer  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black,  sludge  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Witchslayer".  8  out  of  10.

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Friday, March 20, 2020

Golden Blood/Cum, Coke & Blasphemy/Witching Hour Productions/2020 EP Review


  Golden  Blood  is  a  solo  project  from  Austria  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black,  thrash  metal  and  punk  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  2020  ep  "Cum,  Coke  &  Blasphemy"  which  will  be  released  on  March  30th  by  Witching  Hour  Productions.

  A  very  dark  and  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  some  melodic  guitar  leads  a  few  seconds  later  while  the  riffs  also  use  a  great  amount  of  melody.  Elements  of  thrash  metal  can  also  be  heard  in  the  guitar  riffing  along  with  the  vocals  being  mostly  angry  sounding  black  metal  screams.

  The  songs  also  add  in  a  great  amount  of  Swedish  influences  while  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard  during  the  faster  sections  of  the  music.  Keyboards  can  also  be  heard  in  the  background  briefly  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  At  times  the  music  also  captures  the  raw  energy  of  punk  rock  as  well  the  recording  having  a  lot  of  roots  in  the  80's  and  90's  era  but  keeping  it  modern  at  the  same  time,  clean  vocals can  also  be  heard  briefly  on  a  couple  of  songs.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  darkness,  blasphemy  and  drug  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Golden  Blood  is  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  mixture  of  black,  thrash  metal  and  punk  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  solo  project.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Cum,  Coke  &  Blasphemy"  and  "Empress  Of  The  Unholy  Reich".  8  out  of  10.

https://witchinghourproductions.bandcamp.com/album/cum-coke-blasphemy    

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Inherently Lost/Our Last Midnight/Entwined Recordings/2020 EP Review



  Inherently  Lost  are  a  band  from  Ohio  that  plays  a  very  melodic  and  symphonic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2020  ep  "Our  Last  Midnight"  which  will  be  released  on  Entwined  Recordings.

  Symphonic  sounding  keyboards  start  off  the  ep  and  also  mixes  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  music  while  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  at  times.  Clean  female  vocals  are  also  utilized  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  while  also  bringing  in  a  touch  of  gothic  metal  and  the  riffs  also  add  in  a  good  amount  of  melody.

  When  aggressive  vocals  are utilized  they  also  introduce  elements  of  black  and  death  metal  onto  the  recording  while  a  slight  industrial  influence  can  also  be  heard at  times.  All  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them while  one  track  also  introduces  clean  playing  onto  the  recording  and  as  the  ep  progresses  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard  briefly  on  a  couple  of  tracks.

 Most  of  the  music  focuses  more  on  a  slow  or  mid  tempo  style  and  they  also  bring  in  a  cover  of  Cradle  Of  Filth's  "Nymphetamine"  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.  The  production  sounds  very  dark  while  the  lyrics  cover  apocalyptic  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Inherently  Lost  are  a  very  decent  symphonic  melodic  and  symphonic  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  "Requiem  For  The  Lost  (Dream)"  "Senseless  Sacrifice"  and  "Carnage  Of  Your  Sins".  7/5  out  of  10.

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V:XII Interview


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

V.XII was created in 2018 and was initially meant to be music for a new Deadwood album. But early on it became quite clear that this was something I wanted to have a moniker of its own, and a project that I will be able to invest more time in than Deadwood. The music itself is a mix of Death Industrial, Ambient, Doom and Black Metal with emphasis on Death Industrial. I have been involved in multiple bands and projects during my years in the sonic arts. Ranging prom primitive Black Metal in Blodulv and Doom/Death in Culted to more experimental industrial sounds in Keplers Odd and Black Ambient/Death Industrial in Deadwood to name a few. And V:XII is a combination of all.

2.Recently you have released a new album, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style you went for on the recording?

I wanted to combine the elements of Death Industrial music with the atmosphere of Doom and Black Metal. Using a more beat oriented and structured approach to the tracks then I had done before. Without losing the atmosphere and intensity that I achieved in other projects before V:XII.

3.You are also involved with a few other musical projects, how does the music you do with 'V:XII' differ from the stuff you do with your other bands or groups?

V:XII is, as stated above a more structured and beat oriented creation then my previous efforts doing Death Industrial type of music. Something I think Deadwood lost along the way. And its not by any means Metal based music like Culted even if it draws some influence from genres like Doom and Black. So, it is a whole other entity. This will be my go-to project when doing solo albums from now on.

4.Some of your lyrics touch on Occultism, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this topic?

I have always been inspired by the occult and the symbolism that comes with it. In my youth I was experimenting with different types and branches of systems out there. Today not so much. But it keeps being a big influence on lyrics be it figurative or not.

5.You also have a few runes on your bandcamp page, how would you describe your interest in runology?

As mentioned above, that was one of the branches that I explored in my youth and it had a deep impact on me. Today its more it is more of a lyrical inspiration then anything else.

6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover/

I had Max Winter (Teratogen) to do the artwork. He usually does designs for metal bands, but I think he did a great job with the layout. I sent him my tracks and the lyrics. And I let him come up with his interpretation of the music. The only part I played was to let him know my preferences and ideas. But he had, creative control over the layout.

7.With this project you record everything by yourself but also have experience working with other musicians, how would you compare the two?

It a whole other thing when one has complete control and don’t have to compromise about anything. Both has its pros and cons though. When recording with other people you get a direct feedback about what you need to re-work and record again, so you always have the opinions of others to fall back on. Good or bad.
But when you have 100% control and no one else’s opinion to take into consideration you get everything exactly the way you want. You can’t blame no one, but yourself if it doesn’t sound good. There´s a lot more pressure to perform at a higher level, there´s nowhere to hide. It´s just you.

8.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of underground metal, experimental, noise and ambient?

The Rom, Rune and Ruin album was just released so I have yet to get proper feedback on that album. But in my opinion, it’s one of my best albums up to date, so I’m very eager to get some proper reviews. But other than that, I think I have had a good response in general for most of my albums. Reviews have been positive for both Culted and Deadwood in the past. Sure, there are always some people that dislike what you do but that’s inevitable. I create music that I myself want to listen to and its an outlet for me. If you don’t like it, don’t listen to it.

9.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that you are a part of?

Culted is working on a new album, if things go according to plan it will be done in summer 2020. I will be recording vocals in the next fem months.

I have started to work on a new V:XII album but it’s on hold until the Culted album is done.

Deadwood is on ice but will most likely be an outlet for more Black Ambient music in the future.

Aum Arrhythmia is working on a new album, but I have no idea when that one will be finished.


10.Where do you see yourself heading into as a musician during the future?

Only time will tell.

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?
Too many to bands and genre´s to give you a list but here are three bands that have had a huge impact on me over the years:
Darkthrone
Tool
Brighter Death Now

Some of the records that I have been listening to the last few days are:
Kjellvandertonbruket – Doom Country
Blut Aus Nord-Hallucinogen
Wolfbrigade-The Enemy: Reality
Trepaneringsritualen-Kainskult
Human Impact-S/T

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

I’m good, thanks!

Descent Into Maelstrom/Iconoclasm/Club Inferno Ent,/2020 CD Review


  Descent  Into  Maelstrom  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  has  had  music  reviewed  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  very  melodic  and  progressive  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2020  album  "Iconoclasm"  which  will  be  released  on  March  25th  by  Club  Inferno  Ent. .

  Acoustic  guitar  playing  starts  off  the  album  while  folk  instruments  can  also  be  heard  briefly  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction.  Vocals  are  a  mixture  of  blackened  metal  screams  and  death  metal  growls  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats.

  The  riffs  also  utilize  a  great  amount  of  melody  while  the  tracks  also  add  in  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.  At  times  the  music  also  gets  very  progressive  sounding  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  also  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  as  well  as  the  songs  also  bringing  in  a  decent  mixture  of  both  old  school  and  modern  influences.

 There  are also  two  instrumental  tracks  presented  on  the  recording  along  with  a  couple  of  the  songs  also  being  long  and  epic  in  length.  As  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  synths  can  also  be  heard  and  acoustic  guitars  also  return  in  some  parts  of  the  music.  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  briefly  on  the  closing  song.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  life,  death,  consciousness  and  dram  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Descent  Into  Maelstrom  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  melodic  and  progressive  black  and  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Misanthrope"  "Forgotten  Wisdom"  and  "The  Portal  Of  The  Elsewhere".  8  out  of  10.

 http://facebook.com/descentintomaelstromband 

  

Sunday, March 15, 2020

Mystherium/Zemsta Natury (Revenge of Nature)/War Productions/Werewolf Promotion/2020 CD Review


  Mystherium  are  a  band  from  Poland  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  on  this  recording  plays  a  gothic  and  pagan  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2020  album  "Zemsta  Natury  (Revenge  Of  Nature)"  which  will  be  released  on  March  20th  as  a  joint  effort  between  War  Productions  and  Werewolf  Promotion.

  A  very  dark,  heavy  and  epic  sounding  intro  starts  off  the  album  while  also  introducing  synths,  spoken  word  parts  and  whispers  onto  the  recording  while  the  heavier  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody.  Most  of  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  era  and  the  vocals  are  done  in  mostly  a  grim  black  metal  style.

  The  synths  also  gives  the  music  more  of  an  epic  and  gothic  atmosphere  while  blast  beats  and  tremolo  picking  can  also  be  heard  when  the  music  speeds  up. Touches  of  classical  music  can  also  be  heard  in  some  parts  of  the  recording  as  well  as  the  songs  also  adding  in  a  great  amount  of  pagan  metal  elements  and  most  of  the  album  sticks  to  either  a  slow  or  mid  tempo  style,  stringed  instruments  can  also  be  heard  briefly. 

  On  this  recording  Mystherium  plays  a  musical  style  that  goes  back  to  the  90's  era  of  gothic  and  pagan  black  metal.  The  production  sounds  very  old  school  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Polish  and  cover  Nature  and  Paganism  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Mystherium  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  gothic  and  pagan  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Ancestor's  Beliefs  (Wiara  Prozodkow)"  and  "Crows  And  Ravens  (Kruki  i  Wrony)".  8  out  of  10.

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Oath Of Damnation 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?
At the time of writing this, the new album has just been released, so it's early days yet, but we're pretty stoked to finally be unleashing it upon the world! We had actually finished the recording back in June/July of 2019. Since then we've been working with Carlos of Gore House Productions steadily building up promotion for the album release and getting our name out there. We've also been busy rehearsing and gearing up for live shows again as we've been away from the stage for a while now. Our first show coming up is the official album launch here in our home town of Adelaide March 21st. While things are still relatively quiet on the live show front we're already getting stuck into writing new material for the next album. This time it won't take six freaking years, haha!

2.Recently you have released a new album, musically how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
Whereas our first album, 'The Descent' was a much more black metal album atmospherically, 'Fury and Malevolence' still carries that through, but with a much more brutal edge to it. There's certainly more death metal sounding elements this time around, as well as an emphasis on more technical aspects. Overall it's taken what we established with 'The Descent', I feel, to the next level. The songs are stronger, the recording itself is night and day compared to the first album, being a lot clearer and more powerful sounding compared to the first one.

3.This is also your first release since since 2014, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time frame?
It wasn't too long after the release of our first album 'The Descent' that we had to go through a line up change. Our previous vocalist/keyboardist, Formosus decided to call it a day, and we parted ways on friendly terms. He and I still play together in a couple of different projects, actually. We sort of floated in a bit of a limbo for a while really until we made the decision that I take on the vocal duties as well as continuing on bass. That just left us with searching for a keyboard player, and eventually Haemorrh joined to fill the role. With the line up once again secure, we set to work rehearsing the set, writing material for the new album and getting back out there playing shows again. Constantinos, Necromancer and myself also play in another band called Shadow Realm, which during a lot of that time took more of a priority over Oath of Damnation as we were writing and recording an album with that band plus playing quite frequently.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you explore with the new album and also how would you describe your progress as songwriters over the years?
Something I like to do with lyrics is take a theme from either a personal or objective point of view and add a great deal of artistic license, ranging from concepts of ancient mythologies, horror themes, history, religion and the occult. Imhullu for instance comes from ancient Sumerian/Babylonian text. 'Imhullu' is the name of a wind weapon that Marduk used to help slay Tiamat as described in the classic tale. 'To Crack the Earth, and Bring Down the Sky' is based on a black magic spell designed to give one control over extreme weather. 'I Curse Thee, 'O Lord!' is a twist on the classic biblical tale of Abraham being commanded by his god to sacrifice his son, Isaac. In the original tale of course, an angel comes down to stay his hand at the last minute, but in our own horrific tale, the deed is carried through in grim fashion. One thing I would avoid though is injecting personal opinions or beliefs into the lyrics. Where we may tackle some subjects related to, say, the occult, or satanic themes as we have done and may continue to do is purely from an outside perspective as an actor in film or theatre would play a demon or sorcerer. With these new batch of songs, compared to those of the last album, I feel we've managed to work a more natural flow and balance between the different genres you can hear in our music compared to that of the last album. Obviously the dominant sounds you can hear are death and black metal in nature, but the shred guitar and progressive elements are there also, and we've been very mindful that none of it feels forced in any way.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Oath Of Damnation'?
It's pretty much meant to be a curse. The idea for the name came from the earliest foundation of the band, which was a concept thought up by our previous singer about the vengeful spirit of Pope Formosus, (who was Pope of the catholic church from 891 to his death in 896 ad) turned dark and wrathful against his former religion. “Curse and damnation be upon ye, who wear the cloth and cross of those that defiled my corpse!” In 897, by the order of his second successor Pope Stephen VI (his immediate successor Pope Boniface VI lasted only fifteen days!), Formosus' body was exhumed and put on trial, sentenced and stripped of his papal title and decrees, buried in a commoner's grave, but then dug up again and thrown in the Tiber river. Ninth Century Papal politics at its finest! With this whole concept, we were thinking very much along the lines of something like out of a horror movie (King Diamond is also a big influence on us when it comes to concepts). An earlier moniker that we were going under was Popecorpse, but we were never really a hundred percent settled with that name, and through the evolution of lyrical and conceptual imaginings, the wrathful spirit Formosus' 'Oath of Damnation' was born, and has since remained.

6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover?
The art was done by the mighty Jenglot Hitam, who's done a huge amount of work for a lot of bands out there now, and is an absolute master at his craft! This particular piece I came across on my social media news feed one day. Its image depicting demons and angels engaged in battle with one another instantly jumped out at me and just fit the album title and the song 'With Fire and Malevolence' perfectly, which lyrically, is a war in the heavens type of song. Luckily it was available for purchase, so I snapped it up straight away. We've since commissioned him to produce the artwork that you can find on the lyric video of 'I Curse Thee, 'O Lord!', which turned out a goddamned masterpiece.

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?
Two shows I can recall that I really enjoyed playing was with Dead Congregation in Brisbane back in 2016, and opening for Psycroptic and Archspire here in Adelaide. Also the first show we played as Oath of Damnation back in 2012 with Impiety and fellow locals Tzun Tzu and Cauldron Black Ram. Our live show, in line with our earlier concept I mentioned earlier was more theatrical, garbed as dark priests and monks and complete with a lecturn that our previous vocalist used to stand behind and scream forth his sermons. We've toned it down quite a lot visually since then, but stepped it up quite a bit in musical brutality, engaging more with the crowd and bludgeoning their senses like a hammer.

8.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?
At the time of writing, our home town album launch is now only a week away, March 21st at Jive bar on Hindley St. The next is April 18th, also in Adelaide and is part of an all day festival called Heavy S.A. Fest, which is a showcase of a variety of metal acts that our state of South Australia has to offer. We're just starting to secure dates for elsewhere around the country. Early days there, but plans are forming. We'd love to get out of Australia and tour anywhere that'll have us, but as we're still relatively unknown, the gameplan is to build up a name for ourselves with this album which I'm confident will help put us more within the global metal community's radar.

9.The new album was released on 'Gore House Productions', how did you get in contact with this label?
Purely by chance. We were still in the process of finalizing the recording, when Constantinos sent a track to a friend of his, Walter Greggs, who is a DJ for Cranium Radio based in the U.S. Walter is also a friend of Carlos, who runs Gore House Productions, and he sent him the track. Carlos got in touch with us almost straight away. We got to talking and could see right off that working together would be mutually beneficial, so here we are! It's obvious to us he works hard for the bands on his label and already he's done a lot to help increase our exposure to new fans out there in the metal world, so much more than we could ever do ourselves.

10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black and death metal?
So far, particularly with Fury and Malevolence, the feedback has been great. Like I said, it's early days still, but reviews are starting to trickle in, and they've been really positive. We're starting to get a lot of listener feedback from fans of both style also, which has also been so far very positive.

11.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?
Myself, Constantinos and Necromancer also have a band called Shadow Realm, which is more of a fusion of classic heavy metal with thrash/bkack/progressive elements. We've been busy playing a fair amount of shows and have just about finished recording a new EP. On top of that, I play guitar/vocals in a death metal band I've had going for many years now called Beyond Mortal Dreams, and am working towards having a new album out later this year. Haemorrh plays keys in another band called In The Burial, which has recently put out a new album and has also been quite active on the live scene of late. Between us all we keep ourselves quite active musically.

12.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
For now, I see us continuing down the path that Fury and Malevolence has put us on. I feel like we've hit our stride musically, so I'd love to carry on and build on that. Some of the new material that's beginning to emerge is already taking a bit more of a brutal turn, but that's not to say we'll be moving away from our more atmospheric side.

13.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?
For as long as I've been playing in bands, I've always been inspired by death metal styles. With what we produce in Oath of Damnation, we're obviously we're quite driven by both the death and black metal genres, and we do listen to a lot of music that fall in those realms. Of course, other music you really enjoy are gonna influence and rub off you in a sub-conscious way naturally, so I guess you're always gonna hear similarities with other things out there. Collectively we listen to a wide variety of music, from classic metal, to thrash, death, black, prog, even rock, jazz, funk and orchestral music.

14.Does Satanism or Occultism play any role in your music?
Only as I mentioned earlier on, portraying these themes as an actor would play the role of a demon or sorcerer, or any other dark type of role. These concepts are not reflective of any personal spiritual beliefs held by anyone in the band, but are held as a point of interest in a fictional sense.

15.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Just to say thanks for the interview and the opportunity to further spread Oath of Damnation's name and music out amongst the metal hordes at large. To everyone who knows us, or just discovered us, a huge thanks to you all! We really appreciate all your support and we hope to see you on the road one day soon. Until then, play loud and destroy!


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Bofo Kwo/Space/Time Carnivorium/Sliptrick Records/2020 CD Review

  This  is  the  final  review  of  a  recording  from  Finland's  Bofo  Kwo  which  shows  the  music  bringing  in  a  symphonic  mixture  of  black,  death  metal  and  traditional  rock  and  the  album  was  released  in  2020  by  Sliptrick  Records  and  called  "Space/Time  Carnivorium".

  Symphonic  sounds  start  off  the  album  and  also  mixes  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  songs  while  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  in  some  parts  of  the  recording.  All  of  the  musical  instruments  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  some  tracks  also  adding  in  female  vocals.

  Vocals  are mostly grim  black  metal  screams  while  the  riffs  also  mix  in  elements  of  death  metal.  Melodies  can  also  be  heard  in  some  of  the  guitar  riffing  along  with  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  as  well  as  the  tracks  also  adding  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  Some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  the  guitar  leads  being  done  in  a  very  dark  and  melodic  style  as  well  as  the  music  also  showing  some  influences  of  traditional  rock  at  times  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  clean  male  vocals  can  also  be  heard  and  the  music  also  captures  a  sci-fi  atmosphere  in  some  parts  of  the  recording.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  space travel,  war  and  violence  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Bofo  Kwo  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  symphonic  black,  death  metal  and  traditional  rock,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Plate  of  Hate"  Green  Leviathan"  and  "The  Massacre".  8  out  of  10.

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Bofo Kwo/Second Sun/Sliptrick Records/2019 EP Review


  This  is  a  review  of  another  recording  from  Finland's  Bofo  Kwo  which  continues  shows  the  music  going  into  more  of  a  symphonic  mixture  of  black  and  death  emtal  and  the  single  was  released  in  2019  by  Sliptrick  Records  and  called  "Second  Sun".

  Distorted  sounds  and  female  vocals  start  off  the  song  before  going  into  a  heavier  death  metal  influenced  direction.  Grim  black  metal  screams  are  also  a  very  huge  part  of  the  track  while  the  music  also  mixes  the  symphonic  elements  into  the  heavier  sections  of  the  song  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  tremolo  picking  can  be  heard,  evil  laughter  can  also  be  heard  briefly  as  well  as  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing,  spoken  word  parts  and  female  vocals  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.

  On  this  track  Bofo  Kwo  cuts  back  on  the  traditional  rock  elements  and  goes  into  more  of  a  symphonic  mixture  of  black  and  death  emtal.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  space  travel  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  track  from  Bofo  Kwo  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  symphonic  black  and  death  metal, you  should  check  out  this  single.  8 out  of  10.

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Bofo Kwo/Legend Of A Cannibal King/2017 EP Review


  Bofo  Kwo  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  a  symphonic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  with  some  elements  of  tradsitioanl  rock  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2017  ep  "Legend  Of  A  Cannibal  King".

  A  very  dark  sounding  intro  starts  off  the  ep  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  and  melodic  musical  direction.  All  of  the  musical  instruments  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  the  music  also  mixes  the  symphonic  elements  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  songs  as  well  as  some  touches  of  traditional  rock  also  being  used  at  times.

  Vocals  are  mostly  grim  sounding  black  metal  screams  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  music  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats.  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  the  solos  and  leads  also  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.

  Death  metal elements  are  also  added  into  some  parts  of  the  recording  along  with  a  couple  of  tracks  also  introducing  clean  playing,  female  vocals,   spoken  word  parts  and  acoustic  guitars  onto  the  ep  and  a  couple  of  songs  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length,  most  of  the  music  is  also  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  era  and  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  cannibalism,  death,  power,  devastation,  war,  space  travel  and  violence  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Bofo  Kwo  are  a  very  great  sounding  symphonic  mixture  of  black,  death  metal  and  traditional  rock  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Enduring  The  Smell  Of  Burning  Flesh"  and  "Black  Unicorn".  8  out  of  10.

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Friday, March 13, 2020

Misanthropic Aggression/Alcoholic Polyneuropathetic Freaks In Hell/Boris Records/2020 EP Review


  Misanthropic  Aggression  are  a  band  from  Atlanta,  Georgia  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  on  this  recording  plays  a  mixture  of  black,  thrash,  death,  doom  metal,  d  beat  and  crust  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2020  ep  "Alcoholic  Polyneuropathetic  Freaks  In  Hell"  which  will  be  released  in  April  by  Boris  Records.

  Spoken  word  samples  start  off  the  ep  before  going  into a   heavier  direction  while  elements  of  doom  metal  can  also  be  heard  in  the  slower  sections  of  the  music.  D  beats  are  also  utilized  at  times  while  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  thrash  metal  and  the  vocals  are  mostly  blackened  metal  screams.

  Death  metal  growls  are  also  added  into  some  parts  of  the  music  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  old  school  style.  Tremolo  picking  can  also  be  heard  in  some  of  the  faster  riffing  along  with  the  songs  also  adding  in  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts,  all  of  the  instruments  also  have  a  very powerful  sound  to  them  as  well  as  touches  of  crust  also  being  added  into  some  pars  of  the  recording.

  On  this  ep  Misanthropic  Aggression  remains  true  to  the  mixture  of  black, doom,  death,  thrash  metal,  d  beat  and  crust  that  they  established  on  their  previous  release.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  alcohol,  depression  and  sociopathology  themes.
 
  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding recording  from  Misanthropic  Aggression  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  black,  doom,  death,  thrash  metal,  d  beat  and  crust,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Blacklisted".  8  out  of  10.

https://borisrecords.bandcamp.com/album/alcoholic-polyneuropathic-freaks-in-hell 

  

Vortex Unit/The Bringer Of Sun/Slovak Metal Army/2020 CD Review


  Vortex  Unit  are  a  band  from  Slovakia  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2020  album  "The  Bringer  Of  Sun"  which  was  released  by  Slovak  Metal  Army.

  A  very  dark  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  female  vocals  a  few  seconds  later  which  also  mixes  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  songs.  Death  metal  growls  are  also  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  music  also  adds  in  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording.  Black  metal  growls  are  also  brought  into  some  parts  of  the  music  along  with  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  the  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  one  track  also  introducing  stringed  instruments  and  classical  music  elements  onto  the  recording  as  well as  the  music  also  bringing  in  a  good  mixture  of  both  modern  and  old  school  influences,  some  of  the  faster  riffing  also  adds  in  tremolo  picking  and  as  the  album  progresses  an  instrumental  is  also  added  onto  the  recording  and  a  later  song  also  adds  in  a  small  amount  of  acoustic  guitars.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Vortex  Unit  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  "Into  The  Saturnine  Realm"  "I  Speak  With  Verity"  "Visions"  and  "The  Fall  Of  The  Gilded  City".  8  out  of  10.

http://vortexunit-sma.bandcamp.com

Wednesday, March 11, 2020

Thy Despair/The Song Of Desolation/Rockshots Music/2020 CD Review



  Thy  Despair  are  a  band  from  Ukraine  that  plays  a  dark  mixture  of  black,  gothic,  doom,  symphonic  and  melodic  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2020  album  "The  Song  Of  Desolation"  which  will  be  released  in  May  by  Rockshots  Music.

  A  very  heavy  and  symphonic  sound  starts  off  the  album  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.  Female  goth  metal  style  vocals  are  also  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording  along  with  some  blackened  metal  screams  also  being  added  into  some  parts  of  the  songs.

  Elements  of  doom  metal  can  also  be  heard  in  the  slower  sections  of  the  songs  while  keyboards  are  also  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording.  All  of  the  musical  instruments  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  as  well  as  some  spoken  word  parts  also  being  used  briefly.

  Touches  of  melodic  death  metal  can  also  be  heard  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  along  with  one  track  also  introducing  clean  goth  male  vocals  and  growls  onto  album  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of clean  playing  can  also  be  heard,  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard  briefly  and  most  of  the  music  sticks  to  either  a  slow  or  mid  tempo  direction.  The   production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  a  mixture  of  Ukrainian  and  English  and  cover the  war  in  Eastern  Europe.

  In  my  opinion  Thy  Despair  are  a  very  great  sounding  dark  mixture  of  black,  gothic,  doom,  symphonic  and  melodic  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Sabbath"  "War' "Army  Of  Dead"  and  "Ghost  Rider".  8  out  of  10.

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Tuesday, March 10, 2020

Warlust/Unearthing Shattered Philosophies/Dying Victims Productions/2020 CD Review


  Warlust  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2020  album  "Unearthing  Shattered  Philosophies"  which  will  be  released  in  April  by  Dying  Victims  Productions.

  A  very  dark  sounding  intro  starts  off  the  album  while  also  adding  in  a  brief  use  of  synths  and  clean  playing  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction.  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  great  amount  of  melody.

  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  also  done  in  a  very melodic  style.  The  songs  also  add  in  a  great  amount  of Swedish  influences  along  with  the  tracks  also  adding  in  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  Vocals  are  mostly  blackened  metal  screams  along  with  the  music  also  mixing  in  a  great  amount  of  death  and  thrash  metal  elements.  Most  of  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  but  still  captures  a  modern  atmosphere  as  well  as  couple  of  the  tracks  also  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  they  both  also  add  in  a  small  amount  of  classical  gutiars.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Satanism,  Occultism,  War,  Devastation  and  Torture  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Warlust  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Burning  Eyes  Of  Satan"  "In  The  Shadow  Of  The  Alchemyst"  and  "To  Fall  Aprt".  8  out  of  10.

"My final Sacrifice":