The Unconscious Mind/Where Philosophers Fall/2013 CD Review

  The  Unconscious  Mind  are  a  band  from  Montreal,  Quebec,  Canada  that  plays  a  mixture  of  symphonic  black  metal,  progressive  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2013  album  "Where  Philosophers  Fail".

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  some  blast  beats  being  utilized  at  times,  while  the  synths  bring  a  very  dark,  atmospheric  and  symphonic  sound  to  the  recording,  as  for  the  bass  playing  it  has  a  very   strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  and  technical  sounding  riffing  that  dominates  throughout  the  album.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  symphonic  black  metal  riffs  that  combine  influences  from  death  and  progressive  metal  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own  along  with  a  great  amount  of  melody  being  thrown  into  the  riffing  as  well  as  a  great  amount  of  technical  parts  along  with  a  brief  use  of  clean  playing,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  melodic  sounding  progressive  black/death  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads,  as  for  the  acoustic  guitars  which  are  only  used  briefly  they  use  finger  picking  and  full  chords  to  add  more  progressive  touches  to  the  recording.

  Vocals  range  from  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  to  deep  death  metal  growls,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  professional,  heavy  and  dark  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  and  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  album.

  In  my  opinion  The  Unconscious  Mind  are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  symphonic  black  metal,  progressive  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "After  Illusion"  "Tale  Of  Creation"  "The  Demon  Inside  Me"  and  "Where  Philosophers  Fall".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

http://theunconsciousmind.bandcamp.com/

Thousand Year War/Kingdom Of America/2013 CD Review

  One  Thousand  Year  War  are   a  band  originally  from  Alaska  but  now resides  in  California  which also  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  with  a  musical  style  that  I  would  describe  as  being  melodic  black/death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2013  album  "Kingdom  Of  America".

  Drums  range  from s low,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  some  blast  beats  being  utilized  at  times,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  are  coming  out  of  the  guitars and  at  times  they  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from s low,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffs  that  combine  melodic  black  metal  with  death  metal  as  well  as  throwing  in  some  punk  influences  in  the  riffing,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  melodic  sounding  black/death  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads  that  utilize  some  traditional  metal elements.

  Vocals  range  from  deep  death metal  to  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  as  well  as  some  clean  singing  being  utilized  at  times,  while  the  lyrics  cover  a  rallying  cry  against  the  modern  capitalistic  super  powers,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  One  Thousand  Year  War  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  enjoy  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Kingdom  Of  America"  and  "Vulture  Eyes".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.  

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www.thousandyearwar.com

Obscurity/Self Titled/TrollZorn/2012 CD Review

  Obscurity  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  pagan/viking  melodic  black/death  metal  and  this  is a  review  of  their  self  titled  2012  album  which  was  released  by  TrollZorn.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  some  blast  beats  being  utilized  at  times,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  riffing  that  dominates  throughout  the  recording,  as  for  the  synths  they  are  only  used  on  the  last  song  and  they  bring  a  very  dark,  atmospheric  and  epic  sound  to  the  music.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffs  that  combine  melodic  black  metal  with  death  metal  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  melodic  sounding  death  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads  that  utilize  some  traditional  metal  influences  at  times,  as  for  the  classical  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  they  use  finger  picking  and  full  chords  to  being  a  medieval  feeling  to  the  album.

  Vocals  range  from  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  to  deep  death  metal  growls  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  clean  singing  viking  metal  vocals,  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  German  and  cover  Norse  Paganism  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  Obscurity  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  viking/black/death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Obscurity"  "Ensamvarg"  "Fimbulwinter"  and  "So  Endet  Meine  Zeit".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

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Otoño Interview

1.      Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that
have never heard of you before?

Bangulo: We are a metal band based out of Hollister, California. For
people who only know the clothing company. I’ll let you know that we
don’t surf and there is no ocean in Hollister. We are three piece

metal band, we play almost all genres of metal because we listen to
a lot of different music individually plus lots of different metal.
Everything from atmospheric, doom, melodic, post metal, progressive,
everything so you can hear that in our music. We really don’t care to
stay a single style within a song or album but sometimes it works out that
way. We just do what we think sounds cool and fun to play.

Eldred: Bangulo and I met about 15 years ago while working at a local
arcade. we started jamming together playing Metallica and Slayer,
stuff like that. We didn't really start writing music together until
years later. Angel is Bangulo's cousin so when he was available, we
asked him to play bass and do growling vocals. fortunately he said
yes. Since then we have been writing original songs, and I think our
individual styles blend very well together. We don't have a drummer so
I program all the drums and synth and we play to it on an mp3 player.

2.      How would you describe your musical sound?

Bangulo: think I answered that above haha

Eldred: People ask me what kind of music we play and I tell them it's
melodic death metal. that usually gets a raised eyebrow followed
by"huh?" so it's very guitar and bass driven with death metal vocals.

Angel: Yeah, we're definitely a mix of the metal genres we like. It's
really hard to describe our sound to people that aren't familiar with
metal. We're heavy and melodic, fast and slow and everything in
between.

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

Bangulo: That one is mainly the other guys department

Eldred: I get a lot of lyrical influences from films I enjoy to watch.

Angel: As lame as this might sound, but love and heartbreak are two
big lyrical themes. It's easy to write lyrics when you've been there.
I also enjoy the challenge of writing about something I've never
experienced or don't know a whole lot about. We're also heavily
influenced by film and other types of art. As well as nature and the
seasons,  but life is the main topic we tend to write about.
4.      What is the meaning and inspiration behind the band’s name?

Bangulo: The word Otoño  is the word for the season autumn in Spanish,
Since me and Angel are Mexican American and Eldred liked that name as
well so we stuck with it.

Angel: And we were looking for a name to fit the atmosphere and style
of our music. Otoño rolled off the tongue nicely and fit well.

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

Bangulo: I think the best show we played so far for me personally was
probably the house party that we played for one of our friends, It was
one of the early times of the band and every one really got into the
music, our stage performance: usually the first thing people trip out
about is that we don’t have a drummer.

Eldred: I've enjoyed every show that we have played, but one that
stands out for me was "The Barn Bash" which was at a barn that was
converted into a venue. It was pretty cool while it lasted.

Angel: I think the best show we played was at this little bar called
The Longhouse in Gilroy, CA. As Bangulo mentioned, we don't have a
drummer and at that show the stereo that we ran the drums through blew
up and killed the drums haha. Luckily it was during the last verse of
our last song that night. People really don't know what to expect when
they first see us. I'm pretty sure they think 'how can a band put on a
good show without a drummer' but we play just as hard as any band on
stage.

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

Bangulo: If we had a budget for it that would be great! But it is not
feasible at the moment.

Eldred: Right now we are just doing local shows until we have the
budget, like Bangulo said.

Angel: One can only dream.


7.      Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label and if
so, what kind of label do you feel that would be a perfect fit for
your music?

Bangulo: Right now I am not very sure on what a label these days can
really offer, besides promotion. If we found one that seemed to really
help the bands it’s on then it would be a good asset we would consider
that kind of label

Angel: A label that truly is about the bands it has signed would be awesome.

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

Bangulo: Most of our plays and views come from out of country like
Germany, We have minor FM airplay in UK thanks to DJ Beerman. Most of
the feedback is positive.

Eldred: Yeah all the feedback I"ve seen has been great. Its really
awesome to think that our music is reaching around the globe and
people dig it!! That is very satisfying and makes me want to keep on
making new music.

Angel: DJ Beerman of Top Rock Radio has been a huge supporter for
us.Yeah, we've been getting a lot of good feedback.


9.      Are there any other musical projects besides this band or is
this a full time line up?

Bangulo: I work on lots of different projects, The other projects are
not metal. We actually have some songs together as another band that
we are working on with like a post rock or post metal type sound.

Angel: This is my full time band. I work on a little music here and
there, but most of the stuff i write is for Otoño.

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

Bangulo: I don’t think there is any kind of musical direction but I
can tell you that the quality of the recordings and the music will
improve as well as we do! Getting better equipment for recording! We
do everything on our own so as we improve so does everything else.

Eldred: It's anybodies guess as to where we are headed musically. The
writing is so eclectic. We are currently working on multiple albums
all with different sounding styles.

Angel: I only see us growing into future releases. The sound may or
may not be the same, but the writing will mature.

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

Bangulo: I think my main influences for the band are stuff like.
Opeth, Agalloch, Persefone.

Recently for soloing ideas stuff like Andy James, Buckethead and Angel
Vivaldi. Mostly been listening to some Elsaine, Bassnectar, Paul Van
Dyke, Andy James. Ive been listen to those lately.

Eldred: Opeth, Gwar, Persefone, Metallica, Randy Rhoads.
I"ve been listening to a lot of Kauan, Persefone, Red Sparrowes, and
Long Distance Calling.


Angel: Opeth is a huge influence on me. Machine Head and Buckethead as well.
I listen to a lot of styles of music, but In Mourning is currently the
band I'm stuck on. Awesome music structure and harmonies.



12.  Outside of music what are some of your interests?

Bangulo: My other passion is probably video games and computer. Also
video game music,


Video game music is so underated!

Eldred: Music is my passion. I do like to get outdoors, and go camping
and fishing. I am also a member of a historical drinking society
dedicated to the study and preservation of California history.
(Satisfactory!)

Angel: I'm a huge nerd. I really like comics and graphic novels. I'm
really big on horror flicks, reading and hiking. I'll stop. This
sounds like a personal ad lol!

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

Bangulo: Support your local bands because everyone Is struggling out there.
The music scene has changed from years past, Lots of Pay to Play
Promoters killing the scene, Thanks for the interview opportunity!

Eldred: Get out and go see some local bands. There is so much good
music out there, talented musicians that deserve to be heard.

Angel: Yes! Support your local music.  Thanks a lot for the interview.

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Riul Doamnei/A Christmas Carol/2013 EP Review

  Riul  Doamnei  are  a  band  from  Italy  that plays  a  very  orchestra  and  symphonic  form  of black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2013  ep  "A  Christmas  Carol".

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  some  brutal sounding  blast  beats  being utilized  at  times,  while  the  keyboards  bring  a  very  classical,  orchestra,  dark,  atmospheric,  and  symphonic  sound  to  the  music  along  with  some  violins,  as  for  the  bass  playing  it  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  are  coming  out  of  the  guitars.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  symphonic  black  metal  riffs  that  are  very  dark,  heavy  and  melodic  sounding  with  some  death  and  thrash  metal  influences,   while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  melodic  sounding  guitar  solos  and  leads, as  for  the  classical  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  they  use  finger  picking  and  full  chords  to  add  more  epic  qualities  to  the  music.

  Vocals  range  from  grim  sounding  black  metal  screams,  spoken  word  parts,  male  and  female  clean  singing,  while  the  song  lyrics  are  based  on  the  writings  of  Charles  Dickens  "A  Christmas  Carol",  as  for t he  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  with  the  only  song  on  this  recording  being  long  and  epic  in  length.  

  In  my  opinion  Riul  Doamnei  are  a  very  great  sounding  orchestral  and  symphonic  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dH9bqWDlexI

Luna Ad Noctum Interview

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

AN6: hell-o, currently we’re focused on our new album promotion. By the way I’d like to mention we’ve signed a deal with booking agency for shows in Poland & abroad too. There are some gigs already booked, perhaps we’ll go for a tour but no details yet. We’re happy that our album reaches some European countries where we haven’t had chance to get so far. That’s pretty much optimistic, creating our good mood these days definitely (

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it
differs from previous recordings?
AN6: first of all, we reduced keyboard sound a lot, giving more strength into guitars. I guess 5 string bass helped us to obtain much better effect than we supposed.. We did take care about drum section a lot. We found a good passable balance between drums sound and guitars as well. The idea of this album was to get a certain brutal kick parallel with clear sound of melodies without priority of keyboards , as it used to be in our former Cds.. You know, we had enough time to develop the right demanded result. Previous albums were saturated by keyboards & effects; we had different concept for that albums indeed. This time we decided to go in slightly other direction.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores
with the new release?
AN6 : Actually, real life and true emotions create up inspirations for Luna Ad Noctum.  Believe me mate, daily real life in Poland can bring a lot of inspiration towards our music (. Basically, we deal with human behaviours, psychic extreme emotions. Analyze of various human feelings. Sometimes it concerns true human stories, also self experiments are the part of inspiration for either LAN music or lyrics as well. It’s obviously seems to be quite different topic than orderly subject in black metal genre, but I guess our lyrics are much darker dealing with true human stories.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?
AN6: Luna Ad Noctum means Moon towards the darkness. It’s taken from Latin language. We invented this name in 1997 inspired by early black metal bands from Norway and Sweden. Since that time many things changes but the moon still delights, blinding us a lot (

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and
how would you describe your stage performance?
AN6 : hmm actually there have been many shows so far which I could easy describe as good. I remember tour in UK and Belgium, yeah, that was pretty much nice. “Black Diamonds Tour” was very cool as well, we spent unforgettable time. Currently we have changed a little bit our image during shows. Anyway, we still wear corpse painting since the beginning, it’s indispensable part of our live shows.





6. Do you have any touring plans for the future?
AN6:  Yes we do. Our Booking agency is working on tour proposal for us right now. The cooperation looks good so far, we cannot really wait for some good shows announced. Anyway, we have several gigs booked in advance so far. We gonna participate in Castle Party, play some gig with Belphegor and few more. I hope we drop by some other countries as well have a chance to present “Hypnotic Inferno” live version to our fans in Europe.

7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your new album by
fans of extreme metal?
AN6 : so far so good. The album receives very good reviews. We’re very happy and excited of that fact really. Anyway, in our opinion “Hypnotic Inferno” is dedicated not only for black, trash metal fans, I think everyone can find something interesting in this album.

8. Are there any other musical projects besides this band or is this a
full time line up?
AN6 : We have no any project beside LAN, of course we used to participate in some other bands but I think it’s better to focus on one project and drive it well. Anyway, I spoke with Dragor recently about his cult black metal band revival, might be some day we shall make it back to life. Let’s see.

9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?
AN6:  surely we will keep on similar style which we’ve developed through all these years. “Hypnotic Inferno” has exactly everything what we wanted to obtain regarding good sound for the 4th LAN album. I ‘m sure we’ve found the right solution for our music finally, and certainly we shall go on this way. Worth to say, that many ideas for the brand new stuff have been already pending to be composed. So, in near future we will start to prepare music for another album.

10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your
newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
AN6 : well, it’s difficult to say. Basically each of us listens to different kind of music, not only metal even. Actually, creating our sound for this album we mix several different sounds come from modern black metal, trash, and even heavy metal as well. We found out that 5 strings bass added the excellent basis under the guitar parts. Also we test a lot with many different effect for guitars. Anyway, it worked and we got it !
Recently, I’m listening to Susperia, I like this band a lot. The “Attitude” album crashing me down he he.

11. Outside of music what are some of your interests?
AN6 : we spent time with our families mostly during the week time. Dragor and Blasphemo got kids, Infamous is going to be a dad in August. I’m looking forward to be the next one he he (. Anyway, we meet every weekend not only playing but also make some party drinking and talking a lot, just spending time together.

12. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
AN6 : Thank You for support and interesting in our band. Greets for our fans in US
Visit our fan page at HYPERLINK "http://www.lunaadnoctum.com" www.lunaadnoctum.com and FB : HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/lan.official" www.facebook.com/lan.official
We put all info about Luna Ad Noctum plans out there

Otoño /Ghosts Of Smoke/2008 CD Review

     Otoño  are  a  band  from  California  that  plays  a  very  melodic  form  of  melodic  black/death  metal  with  some  progressive  and  thrash  elements  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2008  album  "Ghosts  Of  Smoke".

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  drumming  with  not  much  in  the  way  of  fast  playing  or  blast  beats  being  present  on  this  recording,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  riffing  that  dominates  throughout  the  recording,  as  for  the  synths  when  they  are  utilized  they  bring  a  very  dark  and  atmospheric  sound  to  the  recording.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow  to  mid  paced  riffs  that  combine  melodic death,  black,  thrash  and  progressive  metal  together  to  create  a  sound  of their  own  with  some  soft  and  clean  playing  being  utilized  at  times,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  melodic  sounding  death  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads,  as  for  the  acoustic  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  they  use  full  chords  and  finger  picking  to  add  more  progressive  touches  to  the  recording.

 Vocals  are  mostly  deep  death/black  metal  growls  with  some  movie  samples  being  utilized  at  times  as  well  as  some  thrash  style  vocals,  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,powerful  and  heavy  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on t his  recording  with  a  couple  of  songs  being  long  and  epic  in  length.

  In  my  opinion  Otoño     are  a  very  great  sounding  hybrid  of  melodic  death,  black,  progressive  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Ghosts  Of  Smoke"  "The  Omen"  "Cannibal  Jesus"  and  "Under  A  Grey  Autumn  Sky".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

http://otono.bandcamp.com/