Withering Soul/Adverse Portrait/Mortal Music/2015 CD Review

  Withering  Soul  are  a  band  from  Chicago,  Illinois  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  melodic  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Adverse  Portrait"  which  will  be  released  in  June  by  Mortal  Music.

  Avant  garde  sounds and  synths  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  melodic  guitar  leads  a  few  seconds  later  that  dominate  throughout  the  recording  and  after  the  intro  the  music  gets  a  lot  more heavier  while  still  using  melodies  as  well  as  adding  blast  beats  into  certain  sections  if  the  recording  and  grim  black  metal  screams.

  Throughout  the  recording  there  is  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and fast  parts  and  the  band  also  mixes  the  melodic  styles  of  black  and  death  metal  together  and  the  music  also  bring s in  deep  growls  and  times  along  with  a  great  amount  of  symphonic  elements  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  use  a  small  amount  of  clean  singing  vocals  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  gothic  atmosphere  and  some  of  the  heavier  riffs  also  show  an  influence  of  thrash  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  clean  playing  is  added  onto  a  couple  of  tracks  before  returning  back  to  a  heavier  direction  and  there  are  also  a  couple  of  tracks  that  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Withering  Soul  creates  a  melodic  black  metal  album  that  also  incorporates  a  decent  amount  of  symphonic  elements  along  with  some  goth,  thrash  and  death  metal  influences  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Ghosts,  Horror,  The  Paranormal  and  Death  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Withering  Soul  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "No  Longer  Within"  "Hour  Of  Obstinacy"  and  "In  Absence".  8  out  of  10.

www.facebook.com/witheringsoulband

 

   

I Am The Trierme/Gnosis: Never Follow The Light/Horror Pain Gore Death Productions/2015 CD Review

  I  Am  The  Trierme  are  a  band  from  Pennsylvania  that  plays  a  mixture  of  symphonic  black  metal  and  melodic  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Gnosis:  Never  Follow  The  Light"  which  will  be  released  in  June  by  Horror  Pain  Gore  Death  Productions.  

  A  very  melodic  and  technical  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  solos  that dominate  throughout  the  recording  and  blast  beats  and  a  few  seconds  later  grim  black  metal  screams  are  added  onto  the  recording  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  you  can  also  hear  acoustic  guitars  being  utilized  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  A  good  portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  you  can  also  hear  clean  singing  in  some  parts  of  the  songs  while  the  riffs  and  solos bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  there  is  also  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  the  band  bringing  in  a  lot  of  elements  from  the  90's  style  of  both  symphonic  black   and  melodic  death  metal  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts.

  I  Am  The  Trierme  plays  a  musical  style  that  combines  a  more  guitar  orientated  style  of  symphonic  black  metal with  melodic  death  metal  to  create  their  own  sound,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  I  Am  The  Trierme  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  symphonic  black  metal  and  melodic  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Trusty  Noose"  "Grey  Fields  of  Ash"  "A  Sullen  Reflection  Of  Purity"  and  "Tamelane  (Chapter  2)".  8  out  of  10.

 http://www.iamthetrireme.com
www.facebook.com/iamthetrireme    

Keeper/The Space Beneath Your Teeth/Crown And Throne Ltd/2015 EP Review

  Keeper  are  a  band  from  Fresno,  California  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  mixture  of  black  metal,  sludge  and  doom  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  ep  "The  Space  beneath  Your  Teeth"  which  will  be  released  in  May  by  Crown  And  Throne  Ltd.

  A  very  dark,  heavy  and  melodic sound  starts  off  the  ep  and  after  a  couple  of  minutes  grim  black  metal  screams  start  to  become  a  huge  part  of  the  recording  and  when  solos  and  leads  are utilized  they  use  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  add  a  touch  of  post  metal  to  the  songs  and  there  are  only  2  of  them  and  they  are  both  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Both  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  slow  and  heavy  sludge/doom  metal  sound  and  there  are  no  fast  parts  or  blast  beats  ever  being  utilized  while  you  cna  still  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  presented  on  both  of  the  songs  which  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  distortion  and  reverb  sounds.

  Keeper  creates  another  very  heavy  sludge/doom  metal  recording  while  also  keeping  all  of  the  vocals  in  a  black  metal  direction,  the  production  sounds  very  dark,  heavy  and  powerful  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Keeper  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  black  metal,  sludge  and  doom,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "The  Fool".  8  out  of  10.

Facebook - Facebook.com/keeperdoom
 Bandcamp - Keeperxdoom.bandcamp.com   

Leucrota/Sentient Ruin Laboratories/2015 Demo Review

  Leucrota  are  a  band  from  Santa  Cruz,  California  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black  metal,  sludge,  crust,  d  beat,  hardcore  punk  and  noise  rock  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  demo  which  was  released  by  Sentient  Ruin  Laboratories.

  Clean  playing  starts  off  the  demo  and  after  a  minute  reverb  is  added  onto  the  recording  and  takes  the  music  into  a  heavier  direction  along  with  a  great  amount  of  high  pitched  screams  that  are  heavily  influenced  by  hardcore,  black  metal  and  sludge  and  you  can  also  hear  a  lot  of  noise  rock  elements  in  the  bands  musical  style.

  Throughout  the  recording  there  is  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  some  blast  and  d  beats  in  the  faster  sections  of  the  music  and  the  vocals  also  bring  in  deep  growls  at  times  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  melodies  at  times  and  some  of  the  songs  also  use  a  small  amount  of  guitar  leads.

  Leucrota  takes  black  metal,  sludge,  crust  and  post  hardcore  and  mix  them  together  along  with  a  variety  of  many  influences  to  create  a  sound  of  their own,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  raw  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  violent  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Leucrota  are  a  very  decent  sounding  mixture  of   black  metal,  sludge,  crust,  d  beat,  hardcore  punk  and  noise  rock  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Never  Again"  and  "Systematic  Violence".  7/5  out  of  10.

https://www.facebook.com/leucrota/?fref=ts

Pavillon Rouge/Legio Axis Ka/Swamp Records/2015 CD Review

  Pavillon  Rouge  are  a  band  from  France  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black  metal  and  industrial  with  a  touch  of  new  wave  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Legio  Axis  Ka"  which  will  be  released  on  April  20th  by  Swamp  Records.

A  very  atmospheric  and  symphonic  industrial  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  melodic  yet  heavy  guitar  riffs  and  grim  black  metal  screams  a  few  seconds  later  and  you  can  also  hear  some  programmed  beats  in  the  background  and  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  Some  of  the  tracks  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  singing  vocals  and  back  up  shouts  and  when  solos  are  utilized  they  are  in  a  melodic  industrial  metal  direction  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  most  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  mid  paced  musical  direction.

  Pavillon  Rouge  takes  a  more  melodic and  mainstream  form  of  black  metal  and  mixes  it  in  with  industrial  and  new  wave  style  synths  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in   French  and  cover  beauty,  innocence,  purity  and  ecstasy.

  In  my  opinion  Pavillon  Rouge  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black  metal  and  industrial  and  if you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Prisme  Vers  I'Odyssee"  "Mars  Stella  Patria"   "Droge  Macht  Frei"  and  "Klux  Santar".  8  out  of  10.

https://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=H3vZM7tKX0A    

Miellnir/Incineration Astern/Stygian Crypt Productions/2014 CD Review

  Miellnir  are  a  band  from  Ukraine  that  plays  a  mixture  of  viking  and  folk  metal  with  a  touch  of  black  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Incineration  Astern"  which  was  released  by  Stygian  Crypt  Productions.

  An  epic  sounding  synth starts  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  the  music  remains  atmospheric  but  gets  a  lot  more  heavier  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  after  awhile  death  metal  growls  and  black  metal  screams  start  becoming  a  huge  part  of  the  recording,

  Clean  playing,  acoustic  guitars  and  melodic  viking  vocals  can  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  along  with  a  decent  amount  of  folk  instruments  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  and  the  synth  also  makes  the  music  sound  very  epic  at  times  while  the  solos  are  very  melodic  and  the  vocals  can  also  be  very  guttural  at  times  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  also  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  soem  of  the  faster  sections  bringing  in  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  and  they  also  close  the  album  with  4  bonus  tracks.

  Miellnir  plays  a  musical style  that  is  mostly  rooted  in  folk  and  viking  metal  but  does  add  in  elements  of  black,  doom  and  melodic  death  metal  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Norse  Paganism  themes.  

  In  my  opinion  Miellnir  are  a  very  great  sounding  folk/viking  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Prey"  "Journey  Through  the  Nine  Worlds"  "Embraced  By  Ire"  and  "Valhalla  Awaits".  8  out  of  10.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfx8UbWzVn4

Macerie Interview

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

Hi everyone we are Macerie, 4 guys from around Florence, we've been playing together for a year. All of us are really active in music, we had and have at least two bands each. the band started as a joke, while drunk one night we decided to form an "extreme music" band, me (Ivan) and Lorenzo put bass and guitar in various tones, Giuliano started doing blast beats and Alessio (the first singer who recorded the demo) started doing growls and screams.

2.Recently you have released an ep, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

Yes our EP came out on tape for two labels (Sentient Ruin Laboratories and Yambushi Recordings) and we are happy about this release! Alex (who plays with me in Carlos Dunga and xDeloreanX) recorded the EP DIY-style at his house. What came out of the recording is a dark and evil sound, it sounds open in some parts (especially the slow ones) but closed in the parts with blast beats.


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

The lyrics are simple and direct, in Italian. Alessio our old singer had written some very dark lyrics, with very few words repeated. They are hermetic (obscure) and about worms, ruins and wreckage. The new lyrics by Eugenio are longer and obscure...


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

After playing for a while we couldn't find a decent name. One night after practice we were drinking and smoking, and after thousands of senseless names (i remember “Rosafante" was an option, Barney's drunk pink elephant friend) we found the name Macerie which represents the kind of music we make. (Macerie means "ruins" or "rubble" in Italian)


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

I wouldn't know which was our best concert, but we are a young band, we went on tour once, and in Italy we've only played in our region, Tuscany.
But i have good memories of all our tour dates, even the ones with not so many people, playing around Europe is always fantastic! Especially when you go and play in Holland and you smoke some good stuff before, during and after the gig!


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

We don't have much planned for the future, we are all busy with jobs and other bands. Soon we'll play with Eyehategod in Livorno and we can't wait to open for such an incredible band! Then we want to go on tour again soon!

7.In the US you have Sentient Ruin Laboratories and in the UK you have Yambushi Recordings, do you feel these 2 labels have been very helpful when it comes to getting your music out there heard?

Yes these labels have been very helpful in getting our name out! They both put out good music, ​I​ liked the latest release from Sentient Ruin, by Abstracter, and the tape of our friends Buioingola. I appreciated Sesso Violento released on Yambushi. And anyway both these labels are nice underground scenes, it's nice when someone from the other side of the world (we are Italians, they are american and english) appreciates your music and decides to release a record of it!​ W​e really hope we can meet Mattia and Umberto in person, maybe on tour in USA or England (this is a veiled request to bring us to play over there!)

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

We've had good feedback from different parts of the world! you know now with internet it's all global and you don't just get feedback from your friends or from people who come to your gigs. now everything is available to everyone (this is good on some levels, and bad on others.. but that's a different story). Basically lots of people added us on Facebook and complimented us on our music, so I’d say the feedback has been positive!


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

We were thinking of recording our soon pieces soon, and doing a split (on vinyl) maybe with one of our friends' bands from around here. I think we'll need some more time for the full-length, but after the split we'll definitely get down to work making enough pieces for an LP!


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 all listen to music that's different, but similar. Recently I’ve been into slow/drone/experimental stuff, I’m going through all the releases of Donovali Records. Giuliano is more into grind, and Euguenio has been slaughtering his ears with black metal and doom for years; Lorenzo is a hipster (ahahah). The band's influences are: everything we listen to, mixed together: black metal, doom, drone, grind, and a bit of crust which never hurts!


11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Our non musical interests are different and mixed, Lorenzo love​s​ fishing, ​G​iuliano ​is a hot-air balloon​ enthusiast​, Eugenio lives in an ​squat and is an anarchic activist, and I (Ivan) am trying to get my degree (it's going to happen soon and I’ll be the only one in the band with a degree).


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


​F​
inal thought: METAL!
You buy our beautiful tapes that will be out soon, and we hope to play as far from home as possible! See you soon and thanks a lot for the interview!

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