Sciolism/Released To Chaos/Visionaire Records/2018 EP Review

  Sciolism  are  a  band  from  New  Zealand  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of t heir  2018  ep  "Released  To  Chaos"  which  was  released  by  Visionaire  Records.

 A  very  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  ep  before  going  into  a  faster  direction  which  also  introduces  blast  beats  onto  the  recording  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  while  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and fast  parts  while  the  music  also  brings  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  black  metal  elements  along  with  some  screams  also  being  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  as  the  ep  progresses  a  brief  use  of  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  on  a  couple  of  tracks.

  Sciolism  plays  a  musical  style t hat  takes  melodic  black  and  death  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  heavy  recording,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Sciolism  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Released  To  Chaos"  and  "Experiential  Empiricism".  8  out  of  10.

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Kanseil Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?
We’re still working for some surprises for the fans. An official video clip, a lyrics video and an awesome release party are on their way. We’re excited for the upcoming jigs and we’re looking forward to fill our schedule for the summer.



2.You have a new album coming out in May, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from your previous full length and demo?

We worked on the pieces aiming to a clear and warm sound, trying to express the melody at its best. This album differs from the previous works in the sound quality: much deeper and clearer; and also in the amount of different styles and keys we played in: different moods require different kinds of writing. We are satisfied of the improvements we achieved in these years.



3.Your lyrics cover the local folklore and history of your own country; can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this subject?

Since we were in high school we were keen on legends and old stories, as well as nature, hiking on the mountains, and we were also curious about the way things we take for granted today were done in the old days. Therefore, as well as many other folk metal bands from all across Europe we wanted to tell these stories of our Homeland in our music. Each piece is the result of research and deepening on the subject, which is both an occasion for us to learn something new about a topic we were already familiar with, and also for the listener for discovering a new story.



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

Our name is based what may be the ancient name of the Cansiglio plateau located in the North-East of Italy, which dates back to the pre-roman era. The ancient etymological root of our mountain’s name was something that fitted really well for the purpose. The name is both familiar as it strongly resembles the modern local name and mysterious since the spelling and the sounds that bring to a time when language and culture were something we’re totally unfamiliar with today.

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?

The best memories we have are of course the shows on the huge stages of big open-air festival with big names such as Korpiklaani, Enslaved, Arkona, Omnia and so on, with a large mosh-pitting crowd. Some of the best shows are also those we sometimes play for a very specific purpose or anniversary, in smaller clubs with local bands supporting us, where the fans are really passionate and create a family-like atmosphere. Our performances are very spontaneous, we try to involve the crowd in the show, showing off our instruments and moves fitting on the music. We have a lot of fun playing live shows and the fans seem to appreciate.



6.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?

Yes, we already have a pretty busy schedule for the summer: we planned many shows all across northern Italy.



7.The new album is coming out on 'Rockshots Records', how did you get in contact with this label and how would you compare working with them to your older label 'Nemeton Records'?

Rockshots Records took contact with us when we were still recording pre-productions a year before the recordings in the studio. When time came, they were still interested in our project, so we agreed it would be a successful collaboration. Rockshots Records works very professionally and gives a lot of value to your work. The now late Nemeton Records was a little label that suited best for a small band with its fist demo or album, and we’re grateful to their staff for the years of collaboration and the help we got at the beginning. When Nemeton got out of the business we took the chance to start a new journey with a bigger label such as Rockshots Records.



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

We got a surprisingly good feedback. Most of our fans are from Italy, but we got a lot of reviews, always good, from all of Europe, who appreciates the freshness brought to the genre and the unusual language we sing in. We got purchases on our online store from most of Europe, USA and Japan, and according to the stats of our social medias, a large part of likes and views come from Argentina, Mexico and Brazil, probably because of all the people there who have ancestry from Veneto and find our topics interesting. We look forward to know what the world thinks about the new album and hope to not disappoint the fans expectations.



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

We will continue to develop for sure, producing new music working on a better sound, doing experiments with various styles and moods.



10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

We are mostly influenced by the main bands in the folk-metal landscape of the last decade, both Italian and from other European countries, as well as the medieval and traditional music from Western and Eastern Europe. In both our albums you can hear the influence of post-metal and avant-garde bands such as Alcest or Agalloch, especially in the new one: we enjoyed experimenting the switch between harsh electric and melodic acoustic parts. When it comes to solos and rhythmic there’s still a strong influence from classic heavy-metal bands. These are the bands we still listen to nowadays, along with other non-metal or folk bands such as Italian artists and classic rock.



11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Our common interests are related to the passion for nature and the mountains, like hiking, skiing, biking and photography. Our bagpipe player is also a bagpipe maker, who works wood on the lathe making instruments and any king of wooden object.  



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

Thank you for your interest an attention, we hope the new album will be enjoyed by the old fans and discovered by the new ones, and we look forward to play it on stage!

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Vitam Et Mortem/Sinfonia para el funeral de un Angel/Extreme Cut Records/2017 CD Review

  Vitam  Et  Mortem  are  a  band  from  Columbia  that  plays  a  very  melodic  and  symphonic  form  of  blackened  death  metal  with  some  ethnic  and  ritual  music  elements  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Sinfonia  para  el  funeral  de  un  Angel"  which  was  released  by  Extreme  Cult  Records.

  A  very  fast  sound  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sounding  very  powerful  as  well  as  the  vocals  bringing  in  a  great  mixture  of  death  metal growls  and  black  metal  screams.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and fast  parts  while  the  music  brings  in  a  great  amount  of  ethnic  and  folk  music  elements  along  with  some  acoustic  guitars  and  symphonic  sounds  also  being  added  into  certain  sections  of the  recording  and  clean  vocals  can  also  be  heard  at  times  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  using  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  some  of the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length,  a  couple  of  the  tracks  are  instrumentals  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard.

  Vitam  Et  Mortem  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  melodic  sides  of  black  and  death  metal  and  mixes  it  with  some  symphonic,  folk,  ethnic  and  ritualistic  music  elements  to  create  something  very  original,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Spanish  and  cover  darkness  and  death  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Vitam  Et  Mortem  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  and  symphonic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  with  some  folk,  ethnic  and  ritual  music  elements  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Sinfonia  para  el  funeral  de  un  Angel"  "Sangre  y  lagrimes"  and  "Una  vida  inmortal  en  la  oscuridad".  8/5 out  of  10. 

https://vitametmortem.bandcamp.com/album/sinfon-a-para-el-funeral-de-un-ngel

      

Unflesh/Savior/2018 CD Review

  Unflesh  are  a  band  from  Portsmouth,  New  Hampshire  that  plays  a  very  melodic  and  technical  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2018  album  "Savior"  which  will  be  released  in  May.

  Avant garde and  symphonic  style  keyboards  start  off   the  album  along  with  some  clean  playing  before  going  into  a  heavier  musical  direction  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  along  with  the  vocals  being  a  mixture  of  death  metal  growls  and  black  metal  screams.

  At  times the  music  gets  very  technical  while  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  along  with  the  songs  also  bringing  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  the  solos  and  leads  demonstrating  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them,  one  track  also  introduces  classical  guitars  onto  the  recording  and  as  the  album  progresses  the  riffs  also  start  incorporating  more  elements  of  thrash.

  Unflesh  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  melodic  and  technical  sides  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  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  death  and  suicide  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Unflesh  are  a  very  great  sounding  technical  and  melodic  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres, you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Savior"  "Erosive  Devotees"  and  "Disintragation  God".  8  out  of  10.

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Lagrima/Gilgamesh (The Quest For Immortality)/2018 Full Length Review

  Lagrima  are  a  duo  from  Lebanon  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2018  album  "Gilgamesh  (The  Quest  For  Immortality)".

  A  very  heavy  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  album  while  acoustic  and  classical  guitars  are  also  added  onto  some  of  the  tracks  along  with  the  vocals  being  a  mixture  of  death  metal  growls  and  black  metal  screams  as  well  as  the  solos  and  leads  also  using  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  the  songs  also bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  music  brings  in  a  great  amount  of  90's  influences  along  with  some  elements  of  traditional  and  thrash  metal.

 Some  of  the  fast  riffing  also  brings  in  a  decent  amount  of  tremolo  picking  while  piano's  when  they  are  used  briefly  bring  elements  of  classical  music  onto  the  recording  but  also  keeping  the  main  focus  on  a  heavier  style  along  with  some  of  the  tracks  being  instrumentals  before  return  back  to  vocal  songs  as  well  as   the  drum  beats  being  all  programmed  and  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  On  this  recording  Lagrima  takes  their  melodic mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  into  a  heavier direction  while  also  keeping  the  acoustic  parts,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  are  a  concept  album  based  upon  'The  Epic  Of  Gilgamesh".

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Lagrima  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  melodic  black  and  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Rival  Creation  (Enkidu)"  "At  The  End  Of  Enkidu  Comes"  and  "The  Great  Deluge".  8/5  out  of  10.

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Heron/A Low Winter's Sun/Sludgelord Records/2018 CD Review

  Heron  are  a  band  from  Vancouver  B.C,  Canada  that  plays  a  blackened  and  atmospheric  mixture  of  doom  and  sludge  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  album  "A  Low  Winter's  Sun"  which  will  be  released  by  Sludgelord  Records.

  A  very  slow,  dark  and  heavy  doom  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  while  the  music  also  brings  in  the  heaviness  of  sludge  and  after  awhile  growls  and  high  pitched  screams a re  added  onto  the  recording  and  they  also  add  in  elements  of  black  metal  as  well  as  some  spoken  word  parts  being  used  on a  few  tracks.

  Most  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  while  the  riffs  also  add  in  a  good  amount  of  melody  along  with  one  track  also  introducing  clean  guitars  onto  the recording  and  at  times  the  music  gets  very  atmospheric  as  well  as  some  blast  beats  being  utilized  when  the  music  finally  speeds  up  and  they  also  bring  in  a  piano's  briefly  before  returning  back  to  a  heavier  direction  and  as  the  album  progresses  melodic  guitar  leads  are  finally  added  onto  the  recording  and  atmospheric  drones  are  used  briefly  on  the  closing  track.

  Heron  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  atmospheric  sludge  metal  and  mixes  it  with  black  and  doom  metal  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  insignificance,  existentialism  and  loss  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Heron  are  a  very  great  sounding  atmospheric  and  blackened  mixture  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Of  Gods  And  Goats"  "Uncomfortable  Silence"  and  "Fire  Twin".  8  out  of  10.

https://heronvan.bandcamp.com/album/a-low-winters-sun

Thunderwar/Wolfpack/Lifeforce Records/2018 EP Review

  Thunderwar  are  a  band  from  Poland  that  plays  a  very  old  school  and  melodic  form  of  blackened  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  ep  "Wolfpack"  which  will  be  released  in  May  by  Lifeforce  Records.

  A  very  heavy  and  old  school  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  a  few  seconds  later  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  as  well  as  the  tremolo  picking  bringing  in  elements  of  black  metal.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  and  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  some  of  the  riffing  also  brings  in  elements  of  early  80's  era  traditional  metal  and  atmospheric  drones  can  also  be  heard  briefly  as  well  as  one  track  bringing  in  melodic pagan  vocals.

  Thunderwar  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  melodic  black  and  old  school  death  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Paganism,  Occultism,  Mythology,  War  and  Psychology  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Thunderwar  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  and  melodic  blackened  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Wolfpack"  and  "Circle  Of  Runes".  8  out  of  10.

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