Myopic/Self Titled/Grimoire Records/2018 CD Review

  Myopic  are  a  band  from  Maryland  that  plays  a  progressive  mixture  of  post,  black, sludge  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2018  album  which  will  be  released  in  November  by  Grimoire  Records.

  A  very  dark  sounding  intro  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  along  with  the  vocals  also  bringing  in  a  great  amount  of  black  metal  screams  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  A  great  amount  of  post  metal  elements  can  be  heard  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  while  clean  vocals  are  also  added  into  some  parts  of  the  music  along  with  the  slower  sections  of  the  songs  bringing  in  elements  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  as  well  as  most  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  while  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  also  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  progressive  feeling  along  with  the  music  also  having  its  experimental  moments  at  times  as  well  as  the  fast  riffs  also  bringing  in  a  decent  amount  of  tremolo  picking. 

  Myopic  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  post  black,  progressive,  sludge  and  doom  metal   and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Myopic  are  a  very  great  sounding  progressive  mixture  of  black,  post,  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Earth's  Mantle"  "In  Exile"  and  "Resting  Place".  8  out  of  10.

https://myopicdc.com

https://www.facebook.com/MyopicBand

Misanthropic Aggression Interview

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

This is the latest step in my lifetime of music creation. I am currently 35 years old and this is the seventh band I've written original music and recorded with. People who knew me before this band knew me as a drummer. I only moved to bass and vocals as a way to push myself and after meeting Tyler, who is only 20 years old and drumming at a way higher caliber than I was at his age. When Chris first decided to commit to the band I was playing drums and he was on guitar. Our two song demo from 2017 only features he and I. Chris engineers everything in our practice room, and on that recording I played bass, drums and did the vocals. Chris played guitar and engineered the sessions. When Tyler joined we decided to write an EP and push hard for Boris Records to release it. Chris works for the label, my old band Spewtilator had two releases on BR, and it just seemed like a natural DiY / Independent move. So we worked very hard for seven months on the material and spent another two months tracking it. Now here we are.

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

We established a few major ground rules. C tuning so everything we had would be low and heavy. Always black metal shrieks or death metal lows for vocals. Intensity and energy in everything. Other than that there are no rules on metal sub genres. We try to keep it black and I consider us a black metal band. We just add elements of thrash, death, doom and punk. The 80's in Europe were extremely fascinating to me. Between Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Motorhead, Venom, Celtic Frost, Bathory, Sodom, Napalm Death, Extreme Noise Terror, Amebix etc. the major bases of Traditional Heavy Metal, First Wave Black Metal and Grind / Crust Punk are all covered.

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

Social unrest, depression, anger, mental illness. I feel like we're living in an age where everyone feels extremely tribalistic and there's a lot of bad attitudes and shitty people who love to mistreat others. I just found myself getting so fucking pissed off every day I needed to express my frustration and rage. I don't feel like I'm alone in feeling fed up, forgotten about, and just generally pissed most of the time. A lot of times my lyrics come from a first person perspective but I'm not writing from my point of view, I'm writing from the point of view of that stupid prick in traffic that just cut you off and gave YOU the finger or the asshole holding up the line on purpose getting lottery when they can tell people are in a hurry. It's the age of anonymous trolling and everyone hates everyone who isn't exactly like them.

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

The rage I feel at hating man kind so much, and the struggle I feel on a daily basis not to assault people and be locked in a cage.

5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the ep cover?

I like guns, I have a few guns, but let's be honest America is obsessed with them. It's a man sacrificed to the alter of the gun. It was drawn by Warhead Art out of Eastern Europe. He caught my eye from my old friend Kael from the so-cal war metal band Wearg, Cavemancult from Miami and Berator from Chicago (Richard and Adam are from my hometown and we go back over a decade) and I love his style. he was nice enough to do a commission piece for us and I asked him to move away from his traditional medieval style. It came out really well. Sam Leyja (Boris Owner and founder) did the layout and I'm really pleased with how it came out.

6.Originally the band was a solo project, what was the decision behind forming a full line up?

I feel like I'll be playing music until the day I die, and as a drummer you always seem to get chewed up and spit out. Always seem to be getting used to make someone else's dream a reality, but at some point things don't work out and you're no longer in the band that wouldn't have been established without you, and you have very little to show for it. I finally decided I would start my own band no one could ever take away. I hope Chris and Tyler never stop playing with me but if they did I would keep the band going. It was like once I freed myself of the burden of being a team player and decided to be selfish I meet this extremely healthy group with Chris and Tyler and don't have to be selfish. It's working out really well.

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

Probably our Athens, Ga debut with Cloak (more old friends Scott and I go back a decade) it was a huge crowd and a room full of people who have never seen us. We go for intensity and energy live. I go out of my way to head bang and thrash. Black metal is war and even though we aren't a traditional bm band I intended to try to manifest violence, even if it's only against my own body. We have only played 4 shows so far but that is my favorite.

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

Yes we are open to offers. We are close to announcing a Charlotte show and we are networking to try to get a 9 day run up to NYC and Philly next year. We plan to keep this band active as long as we can.

9.On the ep you had also done an S.S.D cover, what was the decision behind doing your own version of one of their songs?

I love a lot of 80's hardcore, and to me even though that band isn't metal at all, they personified violence and rage on that song. The lyrics feel like something I would write. So at practice one day we were fucking around and tried it in C standard and added a blast beat to the chorus. It sounded violent as fuck so we went for it.

10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of underground metal?

I guess like anything some people love us and some think we suck. The punk sound of our music throws a lot of elite black metal guys for a loop. If a dbeat is good enough for Celtic Frost it's good enough for me. If you wanna see me be stupid give me a bottle of whiskey and put on Morbid Tales. I don't think my DNA can allow me to NOT head bang and start single man moshing when Into Crypts of Rays comes on.

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

Now that the EP is done we are not slowing down. I'm already into writing a second song, and Chris and Tyler both have ideas too. We're going to let Inability To Cope run it's course for at least a year, and play as many shows in as many cities as possible. We'll probably wait until Boris has enough money for us to do a legit 12" to record again though. We are open to split or comp offers though and would be interested in recording for them if any offers came in. Musically we plan to progress. we're doing what we're doing now but there's nothing to say we won't go more grim in the future. We also love a lot of Goregrind like Impetigo and Lord Gore / Frightmare / Bloodfreak those Portland guys kill it. So really who knows. No rules, as long as it's heavy as fuck and fast. No bullshit vocals either.

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?

Biggest influence on me is Darkthrone. People love to take shots at them because they're the face of black metal, but they have the most dynamic and prolific discography of pretty much anyone. From Soulside Journey to Arctic Thunder those guys just write and do what they want, no matter who thinks or says what. Also Peter Steele and Carnivore / Type O Negative, his sense of black humor was the best. I identify strongly with him. Also Celtic Frost, their first two albums are amazing but Monotheist is one of the most crushing and depressing albums I had ever heard. I guess I wanted this band to be dynamic and not afraid to be unconventional. As much as I love Judas Iscariot I don't guess I would ever want to play "grim" black metal. Not talking any shit at all about the pure black metal bands. I'm kinda rambling now but also Demoncy. Robert is from my hometown and we have a lot of mutual friends, some how I had never seen them live until last year. They played Mass Destruction Metal Fest and they were so fucking heavy. The old shitty recordings they have are great, but live they sounded louder and heavier than a lot of doom bands I've seen. Really inspiring.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?

I have an almost 5 year old son and wife so a lot of time with them. I'm a PC gaming nerd. You can catch me playing video games a lot more than I should admit. Our song Respite is about how I'm anti social and I don't wanna do anything but sit at home in my basement.

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

Thank you very much for taking to time to check out our stuff and reach out to us. The support is strongly appreciated. - Jake

https://www.facebook.com/MisanthropicAggression/

Night Crowned/Humanity Will Echo Out/Black Lion Records/2018 EP Review

  Night  Crowned  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  ep  "Humanity  Will  Echo  Out"  which  will  be  released  in  November  by  black  Lion  Records.

  A  very  fast  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  while  the  vocals  bring  in  a  mixture  of  death  metal  growls  and  black  metal  screams  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  synths  can  also  be  heard  at  times  along  with  the  music  being  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  Swedish  styles  of  black  and  death  metal  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  great  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  and  whispered  vocals  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  Night  Crowned  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  melodic  styles  of  Swedish  black  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  Night  Crowned  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  TRACK  "Nocturnal  Pulse'.  8  out  of  10.

https://mailchi.mp/e6998aced10c/nightcrowned-single

The Crown/Eternal Death/Dissoance Productions/3028 CD Re-Issue Review

  This  is  a  review  of  another  recording  from  Sweden's  The  Crown  which  continues  their melodic  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  the  album  was  originally  released  in  1997  and  called  "Eternal  Death"  with  the  re-issue  coming  out  on  October  19,  2018  by  Dissoance  Productions.

  Acoustic  guitar  playing  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  direction  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bring  in  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  vocals  being  mostly  black  metal  screams  and  death  metal  growls  are  also  used  at  times.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  spoken  word  samples  can  also  be  heard  briefly  along  with  the  riffs  also  mixing  in  elements  of  thrash  and  speed  metal   as  well  as  a  couple  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  the  riffing  also  brings  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  as  the  album  progresses  acoustic  guitars  also  make  a  brief  return.

  On  this  recording  The  Crown  remained  true  to  their  melodic  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  death,  darkness,  Satanism  and  anti  religion  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  The  Crown  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  melodic  black,  death  and  thrash  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  re-release.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Beautiful  Evil  Soul"  "The  Serpent  Garden"  "Kill  The  Priest"  and  "Death  Of  God".  8  out  of  10.

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The Crown/The Burning/Dissonance Productions/2018 CD Re-Issue Review

  The  Crown  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  on  this  recording  played  a  melodic  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  1995  album  "The  Burning"  which  will  be  re-issued  on  October  19th,  2018.

  War  and  spoken word  samples  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  direction  while  the  riffs  also  mix  in  a  great  amount  of  thrash  elements  along with  the  solos  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  as  well  as  the  vocals  being  mostly  black  metal  screams  and  death  metal  growls  are  also  used  at  times.

   When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  the  riffs  also  bringing  in  some  melody  at  times  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  synths  and  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  as  well  as  the  2  closing  tracks  being  long  and  epic  in  length.

  On  this  recording  The  Crown  took  the  melodic  style  of  black  and  death  metal  and  mixed  them  with  thrash  metal  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  death,  darkness  of  anti  religion  themes  along  with  a  couple  of  songs  being  based  on  the  writings  of  J.R.R.  Tolkien  and  Clive  Barker.

  In  my  opinion  this  was  a  very  great  sounding  recording  from  The  Crown  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  melodic  black,  death  and  thrash  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  re-issue.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Of  Good  And  Evil"  "The  Lord  Of  The  Rings"  "Neverending  Dream"  and  "Forget  The  Light".  8  out  of  10.

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Necroart/Caino/The Goatmancer Records/2018 Full Length Review

  Necroart  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  has  had  music  reviewed  before  in  this  zine  and  plays a   very  progressive  and  avant  garde  mixture  of  goth,  black  and  melodic  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  album  "Caino"  which  will  be  released  in  November  by  The  Goatmancer  Records.

  A  very  dark  sounding  intro  starts  off  the  album  while  also  introducing  avant  garde  elements  onto  the  recording  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  direction  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  along  with  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts.

  Vocals  are  a  mixture  of  black  metal  screams  and  death  metal  growls  while  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  along  with  the  songs  also  bringing  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  When  clean  vocals  are  utilized  they  add  goth  elements  onto  the  recording  will  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  at  times  along  with  some  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  as  well  as  the  music  also  getting  very  progressive  at  times  and  as  the  album  progresses  they  also  start  mixing  the  avant  garde  side  into  the  heavier  sections  of  the  music.

  On  this  recording  Necroart  remains  true  to  their  progressive  and  avant  garde  mixture  of  goth,  black  and  melodic  death  metal,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  esoteric  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Necroart  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  avant  garde,  progressive,  goth,  black  and  melodic  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "An  Invocation  For  The  Horned"  "Caino"  and  "one  Is  All.  All  In  One".  8  out  of  10.

http://www.thegoatmancer.com/
https://www.facebook.com/necroartband/

From Ashes Reborn Interview

FROM ASHES REBORN / Answered by: Thomas / Date Sep 19th 2018

From Ashes Reborn – Interview A Different Shade of Black

1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?
We are still in the promotion phase of our latest release “Existence Exiled” and received overall great feedback so far. We are close to launching the first merchandise pieces and are also evaluating options to play out material live.

2.In April you had released your first album, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical styles you went for on this recording?

The album is a mixture of melodic black & death tunes. We are always striving to create music that people will remember, hum along after they listened to the record. The things that we liked so much when we got into metal – catchy riffs, great melodies, grooving drums with accentuated blastbeats – is what characterizes the songwriting the most.

3.Most of the band members where in 'Badoc', what was the decision behind splitting up the band and forming a new one?

Mainly because the BADOC singer quit and we had kind of a hiatus for a while. In that time, our musical favors and songwriting have developed. Finally, we got exposed to our new singer Ronny, who brings a massive voice on top of our instrumental arrangements, which was another driver that changed our musical direction. So, after all, it was our desire to create a new band from scratch, with a new concept and without references to any history. And it turned out as a good decision, as it gives us full creative freedom to do what we want to do.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
There is no general lyrical concept. Generally, the lyrics are treating individual experiences, reflections on life and humanity and other thoughts, that are moving within in our minds. It´s a mix of melancholia but also a positive outlook on our ability to turn things into good. Like a “Black Clouds and Silver linings” theme so to speak.  We are avoiding topics that are very stereotype or cliché, as this would not fit to our individual personalities.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
FROM ASHES REBORN just focused on the release of the debut Existence Exiled, so there were no shows so far. But we are thrilled to bring Existence Exiled on stage and are definitely evaluating options to do so.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the remainder of 2018 and early 2019?
No, there is nothing confirmed yet. It will most likely not be able for us before early 2019. But we are definitely open for any booking offers.

7.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
We have made no efforts to get label signed so far. It was our plan to self-release “Existence Exiled” to bring the product very soon to life and to avoid any compromises. We wanted to fully control the music, the production, the design and the promotion. Generally, we are interested to work with partners who help us to grow FROM ASHES REBORN in a sustainable manner. It´s a matter of the exact conditions when we would consider to be signed, but we are open to that option in the future. With “Existence Exiled”, it was important to find our style and musical direction, also production wise.

8.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of melodic and extreme metal?
Very Good. Existence Exiled achieved very positive feedback not only in Germany, but also from US, Canada, Australia & Scandinavia, even Japan, both by press and fans. Also, our followers on social media channels and bandcamp are widely spread across the globe. It´s a great thing to see, that FROM ASHES REBORN is able to satisfy listeners to that style of metal globally.

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

Our style is best describes as Melodic Black / Death Metal with a strong Scandinavian influence. This is not exactly intended, but more an output of our musical preferences and the result of working together in the songwriting process. There is a tendency in our songwriting to work a bit more with acoustic elements, we are experimenting with orchestral arrangements as well. In general, I do not foresee a dramatic change in the musical direction. We are five guys in a classic metal line up and want to make the best out of this and our instruments. This is the way we got tied to this music genre and that’s our ambition.

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?
We have a very diversified mix of influences, ranging from old Dissection, In Flames, Dark Tranquillity, Kataklysm to more new bands like Fleshgod Apocalypse or Der Weg einer Freiheit. But there also bands like Cannibal Corpse, Dimmu Borgir, Arch Enemy, Cradle of Filth, Trivium, Kreator or Dark Funeral that are influential for us in a way. We still have an ear on the underground and are permanently listening and digging for new stuff.


11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Music is primarily the main hobby of the band members, as much as family and main jobs allow. Two of us are also playing in other bands such as HIATUS, DER ROTE MILAN, ICHOR. We have one active motor cycle rider in our band, fitness is another hobby of some. But Metal & Music is still the main thing for us.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thanks for the interview and for featuring FROM ASHES REBORN! We are looking forward to stay in touch and hope that there are some maniacs who enjoy Existence Exiled!

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