Hymn Above Traumatic Emotion/Trauma IX/2013 EP Review

  Hymn  Above  Traumatic  Emotion  are  a  1 man  band  from  Japan  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black/death  metal  and  metalcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  self  released  2013  ep  "Trauma  IX".

  Dark  sounding  keyboards  and  melodic  female  vocals  start  off  the  ep  before  going  into  a  more  heavy  and  melodic  direction  along  with  some  aggressive  shouts/growls  and  blast  beats  which  they  also  mix  in  with  the  female  vocals  and  there  is  also  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  When  solos  and  leads  are  added  into  the  music  they  bring  in  a  more  melodic  edge    and  on  the  second  track  the  song  starts  out  with  a  very  dark  and  tragic  sounding  keyboard  before  going  into  a  more  aggressive  and  melodic  black/death  metal  direction  while  the  vocals  start  incorporating  more  elements  of  metalcore  and  the  guitar  starts  coming  that  element  as  well.

  Hymn  Above  Traumatic  Emotion  takes  a  very  melodic  form  of  black/death  metal  and  mixes  it  in  with  a  more  modern  metalcore  sound  as  well  us  using  female  vocals  and  symphonic  elements  to  create  his  own  sound,  the  production  has  a  very  powerful  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Hymn  Above  traumatic  Emotion  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  melodic  black/death  metal  and  metalcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  project.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Trauma  IX".  8  out  of  10.  

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Nothgard interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the old album?

First of all we’ve had some changes concerning the line up. We’re now playing with three guitars as Skaahl from Wolfchant joined the band in 2012. We were also playing a lot of shows in Europe and took our time to write and prepare for the new album which was some intense and hard work.

2. In September you will release a new album, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical direction of the new recording and also how does it differ from from the previous full length and demo you had released in the past?

There is definitely a big difference between „Warhorns Of Midgard“ and „Age of Pandora“.Soundwise, „Age of Pandora“ sounds way fresher, clearer and more powerful, but not just because of the three guitars. We have tried out a lot of stuff during the songwriting process and only took the best ideas which are hearable on the new album. The songs are more technical, include lot’s of powerful orchestral/symphonic elemtens and feel faster. Also we went more in the direction of epic melodic death metal on the new record.

3.Your lyrics cover some Pagan topics, can you tell us a little bit more about your views on Paganism?

As we´ve changed our musical style into Epic Melodic Death Metal, the new lyrics don´t include anything concerning paganism.

4.The band was originally known as Nordavind, what was the decision behind the name change and also the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Nothgard'/

We’ve changed the bandname into Nothgard as Nordavind was unfortunately already used several times by other bands. The name Nothgard refers to the word „nothgarde“, which also means striking out for a counter attack in sword combat.

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

That’s a tough question. We’ve had some great shows in England where we’ve had fans singing along to every song, knowing all the lyrics and partying hard during the show. Shows in the Czech Republik are also always fun as the people are always having a big party. We also love playing festivals, where we get the chance to perform our songs to people that may have never heard about Nothgard before. The show we’ve had a few weeks ago at the „Runen der Nacht Festival“ has also been a blast!
In general it’s always a pleasure and a lot of fun for us, and that’s what we’re showing on stage during our shows. You can see that we enjoy being together on stage.

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

Yes! We are going to have a tour in September in Spain, which will be called „Black Clouds Over Iberia“. We also have plans for another tour, but right now we can’t tell you any informations about that ;)

7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been so far to the newer music by reviewers of extreme metal?

Until now we haven’t received much feedback from reviewers, because the promotion has just begun, but what we have got by now was really good. For example, we received a very positive album review in the German metal magazine „Legacy“ and in general a lot of positive feedback from the few other people who have heard the new stuff.

8.What is going on with the other musical projects these days that some of the band members are involved with?

Dom R. Crey has just joined Equilibrium and is currently playing some big shows with them. He is also a member of Wolfchant. Same goes for Vik S. and Skaahl. Wolfchant is currently recording their new album which will definitely be another killer release.

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

We definitely want to develop ourselves and become more technical in the future. But right now, we’re very happy with the current music style and want to stick to it.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on 'Nothgard'?

There are several bands, which have had an influence on the music style, especially because they affected the guitar, bass and drum style, which our members have now and which are hearable in the music or rather songwriting. To mention some of those bands, there’s for example Children of Bodom, Arch Enemy, Ensiferum, Kalmah and many others.

11.What are some of your non musical interests?

It depends. Most of our spare time we use to develop our skills on our instruments. Otherwise we like hanging around with friends, partying, listening to music, visit concerts. Also all of our members are busy with studying and working.. Random stuff ;)

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

We want to thank EVERYONE out there who supports us and visits our shows. If you are interested in listening something new, fresh and powerful, you should definitely check out our new album „AGE OF PANDORA“, which will be released on the 12th of September 2014. We keep you updated on our social medias like facebook and also our official homepage. For those who can’t wait until September, we will release some snippets of the new stuff over the next weeks.

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Xereth/III/Candlelight Records/2014 CD Review

  Xereth  are  a  band  from  the  United  Kingdom  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  very  technical,  symphonic  and  progressive  form  of  black/death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "III"  which  will  be  released  in  September  by  Candlelight  Records.

  Epic  sounding  keyboards  start  off  the  album  giving  the  music  a  symphonic  feeling  along  with  some  whispers  and  elements  of  electronic  music  before  adding  in  a  more  heavier  direction  with  the  symphonic  sounds  along  with  some  black  metal  screams  and  back  up  shouts  and  you  can  hear  a  good  amount  of  progressive  metal  in  their  musical  sound.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  after  awhile  you  can  hear  some  aggressive  vocals  that  lean  more  towards  thrash  and  groove  metal  along  with  some  clean  singing  and  the  solos  and  leads  the  band  uses  are  more  in  a  melodic  80's  metal  direction  mixed  in  with  some  progressive  rock  elements  and  the  music  sticks  mostly  to  a  slow  or  mid  paced  musical  direction  and  at  time s you  can  also  hear  violins  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  towards  the  end  a  small  amount  of  acoustic  guitars  can  be  heard  for  a  few  seconds.

  Xereth  expands  on  their  heavy,  progressive  and  symphonic  approach  to  black/death  metal  showing  a  great  amount  of  skill  and  progress  as  musicians  on  this  album,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Xereth  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  enjoy  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "I  Hold  Dominion"
"Death  Defiant"  "Passenger"  and  "The  Chaos  Reign".  8  out  of  10.

www.facebook.com/xerathuk

 

  

Northern Oak/Of Roots And Flesh/2014 CD Review

  Northern  Oak  are  a  band  from  the  United  Kingdom  that  plays  a  mixture  of  folk  music  and  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  album  "Of  Roots  And  Flesh"  which  will  be  released  in  October.

  Nature  sounds  start  off  the  album  before  adding  in  bass  guitars  and  flutes  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  and  a  few  seconds  later  growls  are  added  onto  the  recording  along  with  some  black  metal  screams  and  blast  beats  shortly  after  that  and  you  can  also  hear  a  great  amount  of  melody  in  the  bands  musical  style.

  Acoustic  guitars  when  they  are  added  into  the  music  enhance  the  folk  elements  that  are  present  on  this  recording  as  well  as  giving  the  recording  a  more  progressive  sounding  edge  and  there  is  also  a  decent  amount  of  melodic  chanting  present  on  some  of  the  tracks  as  well  as  a  great  amount  of  melodic  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Most  of  the  music  sticks  to  more  of  a  slow  or  mid  paced  direction  while  the  music  also  has  its  fast  moments  at  times  and  some  of  the  alter  songs  also  sees  the  band  adding  in  clean  singing  along  with  some  spoken  word  parts  and  the  faster  sections  of  their  music  really  show  off  the  black  metal  side  of  their  musical  sound  and  after  awhile  more  violins  and  melodean's  are  added  onto  the  recording  along  with  a  couple of  instrumentals  and  a  few  long  and  epic  in  length  tracks  

  Northern  Oak  creates  a  very  progressive  style  of  folk  metal  that  also  has  a  heavy  black  metal  influence  to  it  along  with  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  some  death  metal  elements  to  create  a  very  original  sound,  the  production  sound s very  professional  for  being  a  self  release d recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  nature  and  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Northern  Oak  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  folk  music  and  black  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Dark  Of  Midsummer"  "Nerthus"  "The  Gallows  Tree"  and  "Only  Our  Names  Will  Remain".  8/5  out  of  10.  

www.northernoak.co.uk
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Cenotaph/Riding Our Black Oceans/Chaos Records/2014 CD Re-Issue Review

  Cenotaph  where  a  band  from  Mexico  that  played  a  melodic  form  of  black/death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  1994  album  "Riding  Our  Black  Oceans"  which  was  re-released  by  Chaos  Records  in  the  year  of  2014.

  Spoken  word  parts  which  also  return  on  some  of  the  later  tracks  as  well  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  acoustic  guitars  a  few  seconds  later  which  leads  up  to  a  more  heavy  and  melodic  blackened  death  metal  direction  along  with  a  mixture  of  growls  and  blast  beats  which  also  leads  up  to  blast  beats  and  melodic  guitar  leads  being  added  into  the  music  as  well  as  some  powerful  sounding  bass  guitars.

  The  bands  musical  style  sounded  for  technical  and  progressive  for  the  time  this  album  was  recorded  and  they  also  bring  in  a  couple  of  tracks  that  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  a  small  amount  of  clean  singing  being  used  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  the  band  also  brings  in  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  All  of  the  tracks  have  a  very  dark  atmosphere  to  them  while  also  remaining  heavy  at  the  same  time  and  you  can  also  hear  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill  in  the  instruments  and  as  the  album  progresses  small  amounts  of  clean  playing  can  be  heard  at  times  along  with  a  brief  acoustic  instrumental  before  making  a  return  back  to  a  heavier  musical  direction.

  Cenotaph  had  a  very  different  sound  for  their  time  playing  a  melodic  and  technical  from  of  black/death  metal  and  this  is  an  early  example  of  that  musical  genre  and  they  had  the  perfect  balance  between  melody,  heaviness  and  darkness,  the  production  has  a  very  dark,  raw  and  heavy  sound  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Cenotaph  where  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  black/death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Soulless"  "Macabre  Locust  Celesta"  and  "Soul  Profundis".  8  out  of  10.

http://chaos-records.bandcamp.com/album/riding-our-black-oceans

The Wolves Of Avalon Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since
the recording and release of the new album?

We are trying to get together a video track for You Tube, and we also have
a Venom cover ‘Die Hard’ that we have as an extra track on a vinyl edition
if all works out well. There will also be a new Meads of Asphodel to write
in the next 6-8 months.

2. Recently you have released a new album, how would you describe the
musical sound that is presented on the new recording and also how does it
differ from your previous album and split?

The music is relatively the same. Mid-tempo pagan folk metal with violin,
mandolin and flutes. The new album is more polished, more subtle and less
abrasive that the first. You can tell it’s the same band, but with all
progressions, you can notice the difference of production and song
structuring.

2.The lyrics on the new recording are a concept album, can you tell us a
little bit more about it?

The album is about the great ancient British war leader, Boudicca. She was
a tribal queen of the Iceni, and lived approximately 2000 years ago. The
land was under the oppressive yoke of Rome

It was an age where the great Druid centre of Anglesey was totally
destroyed and most of the Druid culture wiped from the face of the Erath.
Boudicca rebelled and fought against this invader and although inflicting
terrible casualties ultimately lost her life and hopes in one final
battle.

3.I know that the band name comes from Celtic Paganism, can you tell us a
little bit more about your views on this topic?

I am more inclined to look upon the ancient pagan belief system than the
corrupt and rotten dogma of Christianity. The nature Gods of the ancients
have meaning for the lives that existed at the time, winter and summer,
water and crops, each providing the cycle of seasons that create the
essence of life for the farming tribes. I despise the concept of
worshiping a redeeming deity whose father had a preordained scheme of
original sin followed by penance on a cross, followed by complete
doctrinal nonsense. What’s that shit all about???

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

We have never played live so this question is hard to answer.

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

No, this band has no plans to do any shows.

7.On the new album you have some well known musicians doing some guest
vocals, how did you get in contact with these musicians and also where you
satisfied with what they brought onto the album?

I have been in contact with Thurios and Varggoth for many years through
distro trades or general band respect. I am very honoured to have members
from Drudkh and Nokturnal Mortum doing guest vocals and as we all share a
deep belief in our lands lost identities and ancient ways. It has nothing
to do with politics or racist views as some idiots will no doubt groan
about. We are a band who speak of past events that have shaped out times.

8, You also did a cover of Enslaved's "Essence" what was the decision
behind doing  your own version of this song?

We actually did this track for an Enslaved tribute album that did not sell
very well as far as I can tell.  It felt right to put this track at the
end of this album as the atmosphere and overall feeling to the song is
well balanced.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to the new album by fans
of pagan and folk metal?

It is too early to say, but so far it has been very positive. Only time
will tell.

10.What is going on with some of the other musical projects these days
that some of the band members are a part off?

For me it is, The Meads of Asphodel. We are working on the next album now
and this should appear in mid-2015.

James Marinos is in other bands outside the metal realms but none to be
named.

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

I would like to think we will progress along the same path of folk pagan
metal. Maybe get some other guests that we respect in the music world, and
try out more elusive old style instruments and vocal patterns.

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?

I am listening to a great Polish band, Wedrujacy Wiatr, They are like the
great Russian bands, Walknut, or, Forest. Really good dense atmospheric
black metal.  Many bands have influences us as metal fans, From Hawkwind
to Bathory, Drudkh, Venom, Enslaved, too many to mention, but musically it
is  our style and I would hope you will not be able to compare the Wolves
of Avalon with any other band out there.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?

I read and absorb as much as I can about ancient history, theology and the
shit that goes on and has gone on in this world we wake up to every day.
James likewise, absorbs his own paganism and British landscapes. James
spends much time visiting our ancient landmarks and walking across the
northern hills.

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

Just to thank you for your time in asking these questions and that we all
in the Wolves of Avalon hope people will enjoy the music as much as we
enjoyed creating it.

I bid you well

Metatron

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Lagrima Interview

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

Tarek Yazbek: Currently we are preparing to record our second full album, which also going to be a concept album based on ancient Middle Eastern mythology.

We are also recruiting new members to the band so we can have a complete line up for live shows.

2. For those who have not heard the music can you tell us about your musical sound?

Tarek Yazbek: Well, our musical style is a mixture of many metal styles combined into one unique fresh sound. That should make people who like different metal genre get interest in our music. We also include in our sound lots of classical guitar influences, even classical music compositions in our intros adding even more diversity and interest to our music.

3. On your first album you had lyrics written about The Punic Wars, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in ancient history?

Tarek Yazbek: My Interest in ancient history started at an early age when I was still school. It just got me hooked in, just the idea about ancient civilization, their culture and religion was very intriguing for me. Also it tell us how things became the way they are now. It is also an original subject to use on metal albums as themes and lyrics, which can give more depth to your music.

4. I have read that you have a new album in the works that is going to be based on the Epic of Gilgamesh, how would you describe your interests in Mythology?

Tarek Yazbek: Mythology is what the ancients had left for us to tell how they viewed the world around them from a religious point of view, a way put in Symbolism. Even some Mythologies are Historical facts that got exaggerated by time, or where symbolized to be taught to the next generations. If you compare the religious texts to the mythological Texts you will be surprised how much similarities you will find, but the meanings have changed, although the symbolic factors are left the same. All these factors have pulled me closer and closer to the mythologies of this region.

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

Tarek Yazbek; currently we are only 2 members in the band, but we are recruiting new members so we can do live shows hopefully.

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

Tarek Yazbek: not at the current time, and not sure about the future since it’s hard to get a band from the middle east to play in Europe. But all options are open.

7. Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

Tarek Yazbek: We actually got 1 label interested, but things didn’t work out because they wanted us pay tons of money and they also will get some decent payment from sales. It was just ridiculous offer. For the next album we will try to check out some labels and we’ll see what would happen. Hopefully something would work out, because a label can get you the exposure you need.

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

Tarek Yazbek: Well we got a lot of positive feedback and reviews, but you can’t satisfy everybody as you know. We hope with this second release we can reach more people and open more eyes on our music.

9. What can we expect musically once the new album is released?

Tarek Yazbek: The new album will be more mature than previous one with better production and quality. Musically we are still going on in the same direction but of course its not gonna be a carbon copy of the first album and it will have its own flavor with the Lagrima signature. Also the band vocalist “Bilal Al-Aghar” has contributed very effectively on the music of the album adding his own touch to the band’s sound. I guess this album will leave a big effect on the fans and will get us new fans as well.

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?

Tarek Yazbek: I personally had a lot of bands and music styles that influenced the way I write music, especially in the death/black realm. For example bands like At the Gates, Hypocrisy, Dark Tranquility, Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth, Death, Old Man’s Child ect… to name some. Nowadays there are bands like Kalmah and Opeth which are new influence for me and I try to learn from them. Also am interested in finding and listening to underground metal bands, and lots of them have some great music to offer but didn’t have the chance to get the attention they really deserve.

Other than metal, I really enjoy classic guitar music and I even play that type of music which I try to include in the band’s music to give it that unique touch to makes us a little different than the other band’s out there.

11. What are some of your non musical interests?

Tarek Yazbek: Music and sports are my two major hobbies in life and travelling also. I used to play a lot of soccer in the past but because of work and smoking I haven’t been able enjoy this sport any more, but I still do some body building to keep fit. As for travelling I go like once a year to a different country each time with the wife and enjoy our vacation and just relax.

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

Tarek Yazbek: Well finally I like to thank you for this opportunity and wonderful interview, hope the fans would enjoy it. As I mentioned earlier we have a new album that we will release, most probably at the end of this year, hope it will have a positive impact on metal fans around the world.

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