Suidakra/Book Of Dowth/AFM Records/2011 CD Review

  Suidakra are a band from Germany that mixes melodic black metal with folk music and this is a review of their 2011 album "Book Of Dowth" which was released by AFM Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast with a great amount of brutal blast beats, while the keyboards are very atmospheric and symphonic with some pagan sounding flutes being utilized at times, as for the bass playing it is kind of mixed down low in the mix and seems to follow the riffs that are coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast melodic black/death metal riffs that are also influenced by traditional metal, while the lead guitars are very melodic sounding heavy metal guitar solos, as for the acoustic guitars when they are utilized they use finger picking and full chords to bring a folk music feel to the music.

Vocals are mostly high pitched black metal screams that are also influenced by melodic death metal in the growls with a good amount of clean singing male and female vocals being thrown in at times and the occasional spoken word passages, while the lyrics cover Celtic Paganism and Fantasy, as for the production it has a very powerful and professional sound to it.

In my opinion Suidakra are a very good melodic folk/black/death metal band and if you are a fan of bands that mix these styles together, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Battle-Ciarns" "Mag Mell" "Balor" and "Stone Of Seven Suns". RECOMMENDED BUY.

http://www.suidakra.com

Hyperborean Interview

by Magnus Persson/ Vocalist of Hyperborean

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard of you before?
1 We are from Sweden, we formed 11 years ago so we've been around for a while although the band has not always been active it was on hold for some years before we decided to go and record The Spirit of Warfare. Our music has quite a few influences, I see most people are defining us as melodic black metal and I guess that fits, although I would hesitate to fully use the black metal moniker as we do incorporate elements from other genres such as Thrash metal for example.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how does it differ from previous releases?
2 A mixture of different extreme metal genres, mostly from black metal. The album differs quite allot from our early demos, they were more melodic in nature and had allot of focus on keyboards. The sound of The Spirit of Warfare is harsher, although there still is allot of melodic parts mixed in there. The music is more guitar driven and riff oriented than our previous works. The songs are also generally longer and have more of an epic atmosphere to them.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the new release explores?
3 The overlapping lyrical theme is warfare ( obviously ). Mostly focusing on world war 1. Most of the songs deal with that time period in one way or another. Weapon Mankind is about the preface leading up to the war. Killing Grounds is about the trench warfare and the fevers that plagued the soldiers. Viper and The last stand.. deals with the battle of Thermopylae and are the only songs about pre modern warfare. A new Sun rises deals with the aftermath of the war and the intellectual despair that followed it in a combination of a lost faith in mankind after the atrocities she produced during the war, and also sense of spiritual emptiness left behind by philosophers and scientists that challenged and in some ways discarded religion. The sick man of Europe is about the war torn former Yugoslavian nations leading up to world war 1 and ending with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo in 1914, an event that triggered ( although its important to point our that it didnt cause ) the great war.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?
4 Hyperborea is an ancient greek word describing a mythological extreme north. A Hyperborean would then be a inhabitant of said north. We thought it fit well as most of our early material focused on norse mythology, it would probably have been more logical to pick a name derived from old Norse instead of old Greek, but what can you do, sometimes things doesn't make perfect sense.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and wow would you describe your stage performance?
5 We don't have a full lineup so playing live isn't an option right now, so I guess we are a studio band at the moment, that might change in future though. We did play some live gigs early on but those were years ago so that's not really relevant today.

6. Do you have any touring plans for the new release?
6 No

7. On a worldwide level how has your music been received by melodic black metal fans?
7 Well the album has just been released so its hard to tell at this point, but the reactions so far seems good.

8. Are there any other projects besides this band or is this a full time line up?
8 Hyperborean is our main priority, there are some small projects here and there but nothing of importance.

9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?
9 The lyrical approach wont deal as much with war as I am kind of feed up writing about that subject at the moment. Misery will be the main theme musically so the lyrics will follow on that subject and then there will be some other underlying themes as well( do not worry, there will be no suicidal teenage angst crap ) Also most of the songs on Spirit were written five or six years ago so the next batch of songs we write will probably reflect that.

10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
10 as for musical influences you would have to ask Andreas our guitarist. Personally I mainly listen to older bands like Emperor, old Satyricon, Dissection, Taake and also some classical stuff mixed in there as well, I like Dvorcak.

11. Does Occultism or Paganism play any role in your music?
11 Not really, our first demos focused on norse mythology but we have moved away from that as I find it kind of boring to always write lyrics on the same theme, I would say our world view is more rational in nature, Darwin before Crowley so to speak.

12. Outside of music, what are some of your interests?
12 I read allot of books about history and that's mainly how I find subjects to write lyrics about for Hyperborean.

13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
13 Thanks for this interview, keep up the good work with the zine and keep promoting the underground!
















13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

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Hyperborean/The Spirit Of Warfare/Abyss Records/2011 CD Review

  Hyperborean are a band from Sweden that plays a very melodic style of black metal and this is a review of their 2011 album "The Spirit Of Warfare" which was released by Abyss Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with a good amount of blast beats, while the bass playing has a strong and somewhat powerful tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars, as for the keyboards when they are utilized briefly they bring a very tragic feel to the music.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast melodic black metal riffs that are also technical at times with some thrash death and traditional metal influences, while the lead guitars are very melodic, progressive and technical metal guitar solos, as for the acoustic guitars when they are utilized they use finger picking and full chords to bring another element of war to the music.

Vocals are very high pitched black metal screams with some occasional deep death metal grows, while the lyrics cover Lovecraft style themes and war as for the production it has a very dark and heavy sound to it.

In my opinion Hyperborean are very good melodic black metal band, and if you are a fan of t his style you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Chanelling The Spirit Of Warfare" "Viper" and "The Sick Man Of Europe". RECOMMENDED BUY.

http://www.myspace.com/hyperboreanofficial

Diabolical/Ars Vitae/Abyss Records/2011 CD Review

  Diabolical are a band from Sweden that has been interviewed by this zine before and plays a musical style that mixes melodic black metal with technical death metal and this is a review of their 2011 album "Ars Vitae" which was released by Abyss Records.

Drums are mostly technical slow to mid paced playing with some fast parts but that much in the way of blast beats, while the synths are very dark sounding and don't over dominate the music, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars and at times they sound very powerful.

Rhythm guitars are mostly slow to mid paced to fast technical death metal riffs that are also influenced by melodic black metal and thrash, while the lead guitars are very technical and melodic metal guitar solos.

Vocals are mostly deep death metal growls that have somewhat of a black metal edge to them in the high pitched screams, while the lyrics cover death and the apocalypse with an occult edge, as for the production it sounds very heavy and professional with some songs being recorded live.

In my opinion this is another great album from Diabolical and if you where a fan of their previous releases, you will not be disappointed. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Sightless" "Suicidal Glory" "Guidance Of Sin" and "The Dreaming Dead". RECOMMENDED BUY.

 www.diabolical.se 

 www.facebook.com/diabolicalofficial 

www.myspace.com/religionist 

 www.vkontakte.ru/club23028073 

Amon Amarth/Surtur Rising/Metal Blade Records/2011 CD Review

  Amon Amarth are a band from Sweden that has a very long history and are one of the best known Viking melodic black/death metal bands and this is a review of their 2011 album "Surtur Rising" which was released by metal Blade Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast playing with a good amount of blast beats, while the bass playing sounds very powerful and heavy at times and serves as a perfect background for the rhythm guitars, as for the synths that are only used on the last song, they bring a very symphonic and tragic feel to the music.

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Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast riffs that combine death, black and traditional metal together with a great amount of melodies being added in, while the lead guitars are very melodic sounding traditional metal guitar solos that utilize a lot of skill and talent, as for the the acoustic guitars when they are utilized briefly, they bring a very dark medieval feel to the music.

Vocals are a mixture of high pitched black metal screams and deep death metal growls, while the lyrics touch on Norse Paganism and Mythology, as for the production it has a very heavy and professional sound to it with all of the musical instruments coming out sounding great.

In my opinion this is another great album from Amon Amarth and if you where a fan of their previous releases, you will not be disappointed. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "War Of The Gods" "Destroyer Of The Universe" "Wrath Of The Norseman" and "Doom Over Dead Man". RECOMMENDED BUY.

http://www.surturrising.com

http://www.amonamarth.com

http://www.facebook.com/AmonAmarthBand

http://twitter.com/amonamarthband

http://www.myspace.com/amonamarth

Xereth/II/Candlelight Records/2011 CD Review

  Xereth are a band from the United Kingdom that plays a very symphonic and progressive form of melodic black/death metal and this is a review of their 2011 album "II" which will be released by Candlelight Records.

Drums range from slow to mid paced drumming with no fast playing or blast beats and on the last song there is some tribal drumming, while the keyboards are very symphonic and atmospheric sounding and at times they have a classical feel to them, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone which is kind of mixed down low in the mix and seems to follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars and at times they sound very strong and powerful.

Rhythm guitars range from slow  to mid paced riffing that takes influences from black, death, thrash, groove and progressive metal with a lot of technical riffing, while the lead guitars are very melodic and technical sounding guitar solos, as for the classical guitars when they are utilized briefly, they bring another dimension of darkness to the music.

Vocals are a mixture of high pitched black metal screams, deep death metal growls and some clean singing, while the lyrics touch on science fiction and theology, as or the production it has a very powerful and professional sound to it.

In my opinion Xereth a  very good progressive death/black metal band and if you are a fan of this genre, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "God Of The Frontlines" "Sworn To Sacrifice" "Numbered Among The Dead" and "The Glorious Death". RECOMMENDED BUY.

http://xerath.net

http://www.facebook.com/xerathuk

http://www.myspace.com/xerath

Wolfchant Interview

> 1. Can you update us with what is going on with the band these days?

Nortwin: Actually we are doing fine, as the new album is released now and most of the reviews are are received and very positive.
We are very proud of C.O.T.B.W. as it worked out to be exactly what we imagined when we wrote the album.

> 2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how
> does it differ from previous releases?

Nortwin: Being quite new in the band gives me an interesting view on the whole thing. If you follow all the releases up to now you'll find a clear path that leads to our actual one. All of these albums really sound like Wolfchant but each one creates a different atmosphere which was right for the time when the albums were written. Anyway, the sound as well as the songwriting developed over the years, and of course the fact of having two different style singers now in the band creates lots of new excitement and new ground to explore for us and for the listeners.

> 3. What are some of the lyric topics and subjects that the new releases
> explores?

Nortwin: There is on one hand a strong emphasis on the forces of nature especially in "Naturgewalt" and in the title track "Call Of The Black Winds". On the other hand there are topics related to paganism and for example the relegious persecution that happened in the past ages to heathen tribes: "Black Fire", "Heathen Rise"
The title "Eremit" is about freedom, self choosen solitude and being in accord with nature."The Last Farewell" is about the loss of beloved persons. Among these topics there are of couse also songs which are standing for the typical pagan metal values like honour, victory, unity and fighting spirit.

> 4. You have written songs in both German and English, which language do
> you prefer to write in?

Nortwin: It's kind of a natural process within Wolfchant to write in the language which fits best to the emotions and messages that are carried with the different songs . Some things can be simply delivered better in the native tongue, others sound better in english. It also happens that both languages are used in one song when it feels right, for example in "Stormwolves".

> 5. The new album has a strong sound, where you satisfied with the
> production?

Nortwin: Yes. we were sure from the beginning that the sound will not disappoint us. It's simply a question of having the possibility to work with the right studio and the right producer. Well the result is great in our opinion, no doubt.

> 6. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

Lokhi: We live dirctly in the national park area of bavaria. And the wolves reserve of the park is
very clos to our place. So in the summer time if we made campfires this time, it was possible to hear the screams of the wolves.
So we made the decision to give us the name WOLFCHANT


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

Lokhi: We have a very powerful and strong stage performance. Always in dxirect contact with the audience... We
always want to make a big Party if we are on stage. We always give the best we can. Some of the best Shows was the Ragnarök Festival Shows
und the Summer Night Festival Shows in the last years.

> 8. On a worldwide level how has your music been received by
> pagan/viking/black and melodic death metal fans worldwide?

Lokhi. We got more and more fans over the last years. From album to album the fanbase in the different countries was growing a lot and we
are very happy about this situation. It is an unbelievable good feeling if you can find people around the world listening to your music.
As we started WOLFCHANt nobody thought that is it possible that we got such a huge feedback from People all over the world.



> 9. What are the touring plans for the new releases?

Lokhi: We play a lot of Festivals in Germany and different other countries. In November we make an Tour over Europe and in the beginning of 2012 we make
some Shows in the US.... So i thing we will not be bored in the next time.

> 10. What direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?

Nortwin: We will continue our advanced way as started with COTBW. There are so many things to try and to explore that is very inspiring for the future songwriting. Especially from the vocal side up to now we just scratched all the possibilities which we can have now.

> 11. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your
> music, and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Nortwin: It's difficult to speak for everybody in the band, but we are surly influenced by a broad range of musical styles, or better said metal styles. Some of them are surly black, pagan, power and death metal. It's difficult to name bands here, as there are too many of them. Representative I would say Mithotyn, Dimmu Borgir.

> 12. What role does Viking and Norse Paganism play in your music, and how
> would you describe your views on these topics?

Nortwin: Of course these topics are providing a big part of the inspiration for our music and our lyrics. For me personally paganism is not standing for the believe in some viking gods, but for the ultimate freedom of faith and thinking. A religious belief in a known and experienced way is only limiting these highest values.

> 13. Outside of music, what are some of your interests?

Nortwin: For me it is mainly fitness training, movies and travelling.

> 14. Any final words or thoughts, before we wrap up this interview?

Nortwin: Thank you for the interview. To all the people out there: "Call Of The Black Winds" is in the stores now. Please give it a try and watch out for our coming live shows. Check out our myspace page for actual information. Cheers & Skol

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