Dracena/Cursed To The Night/Inferno Records/2017 CD Review

  Dracena  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black,  death,  thrash  and  heavy  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Cursed  To  The  Night"  which  was  released  by  Inferno  Records.

  Nature  and  music  box  sounds  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  and  melodic  musical  direction  which  is  very  heavily  influenced  by  the  80's  and  90's  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  also  bringing  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  old  school  elements  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  grim  black  metal  screams.

  A  great  amount  of  thrash  and  first  wave  black  metal  influences  can  be  heard  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  while  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  when t he  music  speeds  up  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard  along  with  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  little  bit  of  tremolo  picking,  clean  guitars  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  Dracena  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  Swedish  style  melodic  black  metal  and  mixes  it  with  elements  of  thrash,  death  and  heavy  metal  to  create  a  very  heavy  and  retro  sounding  recording,  the  production  sounds  very  old  school  while  the  lyrics  cover  blood,  pain,  anger  and  the  writings  of  Dante.

  In  my  opinion  Dracena  are  a  very  great  melodic  and  old  school  sounding  mixture  of  black, death,  thrash  and  heavy  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "That  You  Fear  The Most"  "Elusive  Madness"  and  "The  Shadow  Of  What  Once  Was".  8  out  of  10.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1hLAFoBkEI   



  

Sacral Night/Darkness Process/Inferno Records/2017 EP Review

Sacral  Night  are  a  band  from  France  that  plays  a  mixture  of   melodic black,  death  and  heavy  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  ep "Darkness  Process"  which  will  be  released  on  October  30th  by  Inferno  Records.

  A  very  heavy,  dark  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the ep  while  the  vocals  bring  in  more  of  a  traditional  80's  metal  style  while  the  music  is  also  very  heavily  influenced  by  death  metal  along  with  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bringing  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  all  of  the musical  instruments  sound  very  powerful.

  Elements  of  90's  Swedish  black/death  metal  can  also  be  heard  in  the  bands  musical  style  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  along  with  the  songs  also  bringing  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  first  wave  influences  are  also  utilized  at  times.

  Sacral  Night  plays a  musical  style  that takes  the  heaviness  of  90's era  black/death  metal  and  mixes  it  in  with  first  wave  black  metal  elements  and  an  80's  traditional/power  metal  form  of singing  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  something  very  original,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  darkness,  death  and  occult  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Sacral  Night  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  mixture  of  black,  death  and  heavy  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Fullmoon  Creep  Sacrifice"  and  "Witness  Of  Death".  8  out  of  10.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdY1VvkwzJM

Xanthochroid/Of Earth And Axen Act II/Earth And Axen Records/2017 CD Review

  California's  Xanthochroid  have  returned  with  a  new  recording  that  continues  their  epic  and  melodic  style  of  cinematic  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Of  Earth  And  Axen  Act  II"  which  was  also  self  released  through  their  own  label.

  Symphonic  sounding  keyboards  start  off  the  album  and  they  also  mix  in  with  the  heavier and  melodic  side  of  the  songs  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  clean  playing  and  operatic  clean  vocals  are  also  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  Black  metal  screams  are  also  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording  while  a  great  portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  along  with  the  music  also  getting  very  progressive  and  avant  garde  at  times  as  well  as  some  songs  also  bringing  in  a  small  amount  of  acoustic  guitars  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  female  vocals  can  be  heard  and  one  song  also  adds  in  a  small  amount  of  flutes  and  death  metal  growls.

  On  this  recording  Xanthochroid  goes  into  more  of  an  avant  garde  and  progressive direction  while still  mixing  in  elements  of  black  metal, the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  their  own  self  created  lore  and  fantasy  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Xanthochroid  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  avant  garde  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Of  Aching,  Empty  Pain"  "Walk  With  Me,  O  Winged  Mother" and  "Toward  Truth  And  Reconciliation".  8  out  of  10.

 http://www.xanthofficial.com/store.html
Facebook: www.facebook.com/xanthochroidmetal
YouTube: www.youtube.com/xanthofficial

  

Xaemora/Pandemonium's Ocean/Black Market Metal Label/2017 CD Review

  Xaemora  are  a  band  from  St.  Louis,  Missouri  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  symphonic  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Pandemonium's  Ocean"  which  will  be  released  on  October  27th  by  Black  Market  Metal  Label.

  A  very  fast  sound  along  with  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  while  the  keyboards  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  symphonic  feeling  as  well  as  the  vocals  being  mostly grim  yet  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  and  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  tradition  of  the  genre.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  along  with  some  songs  also  bringing  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  guitars  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  some of  the  tracks  are long  and  epic  in  length  and  acoustic  guitars  are  added  onto  the  closing  song.

  Xaemora  creates  another  recording  that  remains  true  to  the  symphonic  style  of black  metal  from  previous  releases,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the lyrics  cover  misanthropy, chaos  and  death  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Xaemora  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  symphonic  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Beneath  Frozen  Tombs"  "Pandemonium's  Ocean"  and  "Altars".  8  out  of  10.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxyBEkd9HxA&t=52s

  

LaColpa Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
LaColpa was born in 2014 in Alessandria (Italy) like a sort of creature, a Golem: at first the four piece lineup with Andrea Moio (ex Sùr) at bass, Cecco Testa (Cropcircle) at the elettronics, noise, driller, chains and samples, Davide Boeri (ex Septycal Gorge) at the drums and Davide Destro (ex Infection Code) at the guitar and effects, started as an instrumental band, creating the hard body and structure of the creature, then I joined to the band giving it the voice. All of us came from different experiences in the area of extreme and experimental sounds, from the ambient to the noise passing through the extreme metal, so in some ways, LaColpa has started life by itself.

2.So far you have released a demo and a full length, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings and also how do they differ from each other?
The demo contained a raw version of Soil, the first track of the album, and came out in a 33-copy limited edition CDR. In the album the same track was enriched by Dano Battocchio's work (Last Minute To Jaffna /Tutti I Colori Del Buio) to the mix and Brad Boatright at Audiosiege at the final master. The sound is a mix of Doom, Sludge, Noise and Black Metal and it can be described as a sort of descent into man's inner hell.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
LaColpa explore all those obscure parts in the human beings. It does so with a sense of martyrdom: in the creation of texts I like to sink into deep and dark moods as a sort of shaman, taking them to the surface to amalgamate them to the chaotic sense of the noise.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'LaColpa'?
LaColpa is translatable in English as TheGuilt. In religion, the sense of guilt is very important because it is closely related to the sins committed by man. For religion, we are all guilty, and unlike religion, we think that there is no salvation because this is exactly the human nature.

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 recently made a live with our friends Viscera/// for our full length debut. It was a nice live, we got several positive feedbacks. In our performances, we try to let the spectator fall into the depths of the dark moods we evoke, also thanks to the visual support we select.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
For now we have a concert with OVO on December 8th. We don't have tour dates, because we don't mainly focus on live shows. We prefer to devote ourselves to composing new songs for the moment.

7.The album was released on 'Toten Schwan Records', are you happy with the support that they have given you so far?
Absolutely! Marco at the Toten Schwan Records did a great job! We are very pleased to have worked with him.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal, sludge and noise?
We have received many positive feedback from the lovers of those sounds. This makes us happy because it means that the work we did has arrived where it wanted to arrive.

9.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?
They will continue. Personally I have several noise and power electronics projects like Moana I want to carry on. Along with Davide Destro we started a new project called Macabro Dio more oriented into noise/power electronics sound compared to LaColpa, but keeping dark themes in the black metal style. Cecco will also continue working on Cropcircle and Winter Martyrium , and I think new projects or collaborations will be forthcoming in the future.

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
It's hard to say! I think we will try to keep our style and direction, but who knows, we are all experimental musicians and the idea of introducing new things always fascinates us.

11.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 have a different musical background and maybe that's the reason why our sound is so weird, but we all love noise, experimental music and black metal. Among the bands that influenced us, I could mention Portal, Leviathan, The Body, Khanate and many more.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?
Surely the nihilistic pessimism of authors such as Cioran and Caraco, the intrinsic carnality in the Catholic religion, esoterism, and extreme forms of art: from contemporary art performances to the cinema.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
I can leave you with the words that close our live shows:
WE DON'T EXISTS, WE ARE YOUR GUILT.

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W.E.B/Tartarus/Apathia Records/2017 Full Length eview

  W.E.B  are  a  band  from  Greece  that  plays  a  symphonic  mixture  of  black  and  gothic  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Tartarus"  which  will  be  released  in  November  by  Apathia  Records.

  Stringed  instruments  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  keyboards  a  few  seconds  later  that  also  add  in  touches  of  classical  music  which  also  leads  to  more  of  a  symphonic  direction  and  they  also  mix  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  songs  while  a  great amount  of  grim  black  metal  screams  can  be  heard.

  Death  metal  growls  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  while  operatic  vocals  are  also  used  briefly  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

 Tremolo  picking  can  also  be  heard  in  some  of  the  faster  riffing  while  some  of  the  tracks  are  a  very  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  the  music  also  incorporates  a  decent  amount  of  goth  metal  elements  and  you  can  also  hear  a  great  amount  of  melody  in  the  guitar  riffing  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  clean  playing  can  be  heard  and  one  song  also  adds  in  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  and  the  one  track  that  uses  clean  vocals  are  provided  by  Sotris  Vayenas  of  Septic  Flesh  and  a  later  song  also  adds  in  a  small  amount  of  female  vocals.

  W.E.B  plays  a  musical  style  that  is  mostly  rooted  in  symphonic  black  metal  while  also  mixing  in  a  decent  amount  of  goth  elements,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Melancholy,  Darkness  and  Greek  Mythology  themes.

  In  my  opinion  W.E.B  are  a  very  great  sounding  symphonic  mixture  of  black  and  goth  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Tartarus"  "I,  The  Bornless"  and  "Thanatos  Part  II  -  Epitaphios".  8/5  out  of  10.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INQ3Y98bq4Y 

Pink Mass/Necrosexual/2017 Full Length Review

 Pink  Mass  are  a  band  from  New  Jersey  that  plays  a  blackened  mixture  of  crust  and  grindcore  with  a  touch  of  punk  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2017  album  "Necrosexual".

  A  horror  movie  soundtrack  orientated  sound  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  fast  grind  and  crustcore  direction  along  with  some  blast  bears  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  black  metal s creams  as  well  as  some  death  metal  growls  also  being  utilized  at  times  and  most  of  the  tracks  are  short  in  length.

  A  small  amount  of  melody  can  be  heard  in  some  of  the  riffing  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  the  songs  also  bringing  in a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  melodic  guitar  leads  can  also  be  heard  and  another  track  also  adds  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing  and  spoken  word  samples  and  some  songs  also  mix  in  elements  of  punk  rock  and  doom  metal.

  Pink  Mass  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  black  metal,  doom,  punk,  crust  and  grindcore  and  mixes  them  together  to  create a   sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  BDSM,  Perversion,  Sex,  Punk,  Blasphemy,  and  Sexual  Freedom  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Pink  Mass  are  a  very  great  sounding  blackened  mixture  of  punk,  doom,  crust  and  grindcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Hedonist  Lament"  "Crypt  Perversor"  "Vorified  Master"  and  "Excorciated  Purity".  8  out  of  10.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1CAgcrT-Bc&feature=youtu.be