A.C.o.D/Inner Light/2016 EP Review

  A.C.o.D  are  a  band  from  France  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black,  melodic  death  and  thrash  metal  on  this  recording  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2016  ep  "Inner  Light".

  A  very  heavy  and  melodic  thrash  influenced  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  soem  blast  beats  and  black  metal  screams  a  few  seconds  later  and  the  music  also incorporates  a  great  amount  of  melodic  death  metal  elements  along  with  a  few  growls  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  when  guitar  leads  and  solos  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  and  when  synths  are  utilized  they  give  the  music  a  symphonic  edge  and  back  up  gang  shouts  can  also  be  heard  at  times  and  the  songs  also  mix  in  a  great  amount  of  Swedish  influences.

  On  this  recording  A.C.o.D  expands  on  their  blackened  thrash  metal  style  by  adding  in  elments  of  melodic  death  metal  this  time  around,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  A.C.o.D  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  black,  melodic  death  and  thrash  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "And  Darkness  Around".  8 out  of  10.

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

Misanthropia 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 did several shows, a lot of promotion, Signed by ‘Via Nocturna’, we designed new merchandise like t-shirts, posters, buttons etc.

2.In April you had released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

It difficult to give an exact description but it it’s probably best described as progressive symphonic black metal with our own twist. The sound is really transparent so every single instrument has its own place into the mix. The keys give it an epic and bombastic sound but not to dominated.
Because of a big line-up change the overall sound is also complete different as our former albums.

3.This is your first album to be released in 6 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time frame?

Those years where not really lost years. We developed our own sound even more, did have a big line-up change and put ourselves to the limit to create a masterpiece product. All of this has taken its time.

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

Our album Omertà has become a concept album. As the name already describes it has all to do with the most evil part of our society. The Mafia. Specially between 1920-1950 in America. Big names will pass the revue like Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, Vincent Mangano, Richard Kuklinski and others.
In our opinion the higher meaning of the black metal division is to overrule everything and create your own freedom.
The Mafia Families overrules everything. What is more evil than this?

5.Originally the band was known as 'Throned By Tyranny', what was the cause of the name change and also the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Misanthropia'?

At that time we were a complete different band, our interest and line-up changed, we buried TBT and Misanthropia was born.
We were inspired by the band ‘Ancient Rites’ and their song ‘Total Misanthropia’.
Misanthropia describes our worldview. We have a very pessimistic view of society. Sometimes it seems there is only hate, war, distrust of each other and so on. It is a morbid world we’re living in.

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

For example we’ve played with Mayhem, played on festivals like Hellfest, Occultfest, Krachtstroom Festival alongside Rotting Christ, Sodom, Shining, Enthroned, Equilibrium, The Hellbound Cremation Tour with Nattas-SE (feats Mike Wead ‘King Diamond’), Veghel DeathFest and DocFest. Those were great shows. We have a little aggressive and tight-playing stage performance.

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

Right now we are in contact with some agencies to arrange shows and maybe tours for in the coming year.

8.The new album was released by 'Snakebite Productions', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

It’s a Dutch label, in the beginning we had a good feeling with this organization but at the end we discovered this label didn’t fit our needs as much as we expected they would do.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of symphonic black metal?

Since we signed the label ‘Via Nocturna’, our music is gone worldwide. The reactions we get from our worldwide fans are really positive. They like the Mafia concept because it’s out of the box. And they are blown away because of the brutal production, done by Mike Wead.

10.Are any of the band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?

Pepijn Heilbron (bass guitar) plays also trash-metal (Dead Man’s Walk), Dennis Schoenmaker (guitar) and Bram Koller (guitar&vocals) have also an old-school black metal side project (Winterkrieg).

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

Our goal is to enter all big stages and spread our word all over the world. Also creating many more new albums will be a part of our future.

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?

Many different music styles have given us inspiration. Classical music, rock music, doom/ trash/ black-metal. Maybe to much to mention.
But some of the bands we prefer to listen to are for example Behemoth, Dimmu Borgir, Kampfar, Cradle of Filth, Fleshgod Apocalypse, Carach Angren (our Dutch colleagues), Dark Funeral, Emperor, and so on…

13.What are some of your non musical interests?

Music is our world but next to that for example American Classic Cars and Motorcycles.

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

First of all we are really happy we’ve found our partner in crime in ‘Via Nocturna’. They give us the boost we need to go worldwide and they spread our word perfectly. We are also astonished by all the great reactions the fans are giving us. Our third album Omertà is just the beginning. From here we’ll blast into the future. Let’s meet at our upcoming shows and join our Membership of Violence and Bloodlust!

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1914/Eschatology Of War/Fur Kaiser,Volk And Vaterland//Mazzar Records/2016 Double Review

  1914  are  a  band  from  Ukraine  that  plays  a  blackened  mixture  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Eschatology  Of  War"  and  their  2015  ep  "Fur Kaiser,Volk And Vaterland  which  where  released  by  Mazzar Records  as  a  double  album compilation.

  World  War  I  era  music  samples  start  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  the  music  starts  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  sludge  metal  direction while  also  bringing  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  as  well  as  a  great  amount  of  black  metal  screams  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  have  a  very  melodic  direction  to  them.

  Death  metal  growls  can  also  be  heard  at  times  and  the  songs  are  also  very  heavily  influenced  by  doom  metal  and  blast  beats  along  with  tremolo  picking  can  also  be  heard  briefly  when  the  music  speeds  up  and  war  music  samples  also  make  a  return  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  clean  guitars.

  Some  of  the  songs  along  with  a few  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  a  couple  of  song  also  brings  in  a small  amount  of  melodic  singing  and  female  vocals while  spoken  word  parts  are also  utilized  at  times  on  the  ep  tracks  which  also  consists  of  2014  demo  and  remix  tracks  which  also  bring  in  industrial and  video  game  music  elements  and  there  is  also  a  cover  of  Nirvana's  "Something  In  the  Way"  which  also sounds  nothing  like  the  original  version.

  1914 plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  black,  death,  doom  and  sludge  metal  and  mixes them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  powerful  while  the  lyrics  cover  World  War I,  trench  warfare,  gas  attacks  and  despair  of  battlefields  themes.

  In  my  opinion  1914  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black,  death,  doom  and  sludge  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Gasmask"  "Caught  in  the  Crossfie"  and  "Battlefield".  8  out  of  10. 

https://x1914x.bandcamp.com/

Mordant/Demonic Satanic/To The Death Records/2016 CD Review

  Mordant  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "Demonic Satanic"  which  was  released by  To the  Death  Records.

  A  very  heavy  thrash  influenced  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  the  music  also  mixes  in  elements  of  first  wave  black  metal  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  grim s creams  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in a  very  dark  and  melodic  fashion  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sound  very  powerful.

  Throughout  the  recording  there  is  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the music  is  mostly  influenced  by  the  80's  and  90's  without  sounding  out  of  date  and  the  music  also  adds  in  a  touch  of  Swedish  style  melodic  black/death  metal  and  the  album  also  remains  heavy  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording.

  Mordant  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  melodic  side  of  Swedish  black/death  metal  and  mixes  it  with  first  wave  black  metal  and  thrash  to  create  a  sound  of t heir  own,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  cover  Satanism,  Luciferian,  Occult  and  Black  Metal  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Mordant  are  a  very  great  sounding  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  "Vengeance  From  The  Dark"  "Evil  Impalers"  "Infernal  Curse  Of  Evil"  and  "Count  Lucifer".  8  out  of 10. 

MORDANT Bandcamp

MORDANT Facebook

Pimea Metsa/No Blood, No Glory/WormHoleDeath Records/2016 CD Review

  Pimea  Metsa  are  a  band  from  Spain  that  plays  a  viking  form  of  folk  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "No  Blood,  No  Glory"  which  will  be released  on  December  23rd  by  WormHoleDeath  Records.

   Symphonic  and  epic  sounding  keyboards  start  off  the  album  and  after  awhile  folk  instruments  are  added  onto  the  recording  and  they  also  mix  in  with  the  heavier  side  of  the  music  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  more  of  a  melodic  fashion  and  the  vocals  bring  in  a  mixture  of  black  metal screams  and  aggressive  pagan  singing.

  A  great  amount  of  melody  can  be  heard  in  the  guitar  riffing  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  death  metal  growls  are  also  utilized  at  times and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  back  up  shouts  can  also  be  heard  at  times  and  some  songs  also  bring  in   a  small  amount of  acoustic  guitars.

  Pimea  Metsa  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  viking  and  folk  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Northern  Mythology,  Epic  Battles  and  Nature.

  In  my opinion  Pimea Metsa  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  viking  and  folk  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Viking's  Creed"  "Einherjer"  "Call  To  Arms"  and  "Cry  For  Freedom".  8  out  of  10.   

www.pimeametsa.com
www.facebook.com/pimeametsaofficial
twitter.com/pimeametsa
www.youtube.com/user/PimeaMetsaOfficial
pimeametsa.bandcamp.com

 

Ithilien/Shaping The Soul/WormHoleDeath Records/2017 CD Review

  Ithilien  are  a  band  from  Belgium  that  plays  a  melodic  form  of  folk  metal and  this  is  a  review  of their  album  "Shaping  The  Soul"  which  will  be  released  in 2017  by  WormHoleDeath  Records.

  Thunder  and  rain  sounds  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  which  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  folk  instruments  as  well  as  some  black  metal  screams  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  the  music  also  incorporates  a  lot  of melodic  death  metal  elements.

  A  lot  of  the  folk  instruments  give  the  songs  a  feeling  of  a  classic  fantasy  or  pagan  based  film  and  the  songs  also  bring  in a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts and  some  tracks  are  long  and  epic  in  length  and  there is  also  a  brief  use  of   bouzouki  and  there  is  also  a  short  folk  instrumental  before  returning  back  to  a  heavier  direction  on  the  following  tracks  and  some  songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  whispers  and  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  and  clean  singing  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  Ithilien  plays  a  musical  style  that  is  mostly  rooted  in  folk  metal  but  also  mixes  the  more  melodic  sides  of  black  and  death  metal  to  take  their  music  into  a  heavier  direction,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  have  a  concept  to  them  and  cover  the  grief  process.

  In  my  opinion  Ithilien  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  folk  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a fan  of  this  musical  genre,you should  check out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Lies After  Lies"  "If  Only" "Hopeless" and  "The  Bear  Dance".  8  out  of 10.

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

 

Spectral/Artic Sunrise/Boersma Records/2017 Full Length Review

  Spectral  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black, viking, thrash  and  power  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "Artic  Sunrise"  which  will  be  released  in  2017  by  Boersma  Records.

  Atmospheric synths  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  spoken  word  parts  a few  seconds  later  and  after  the intro  the  music  goes  into  a  heavier  direction  along  with  melodic  guitar  leads  also  being  added  onto  the  recording  while  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  also  make  their  presence  known  along  with  a  few  death  metal  growls.

  A  great  amount  of  melody  can  be  heard  in  the  guitar  riffing  and  they  also  mix  the  keyboards  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  songs  which  also  gives  the  album  more  of  an  epic  feeling  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard.

  Clean  guitars  can  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  riffs  also  mix  in  a  great  amount  of  thrash  metal  elements  along  with  some  of  the  solos and  leads  mixing  in  an  old  school  style  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  great  amount  of  viking  metal  elements  are  added  onto  the  recording  and  one  track  also  brings  in  a  brief  use  of  air  raid  sirens  and  war  samples  and  the  melodies  are  also  very  heavily  influenced  by  power  metal and  a  later  track  also  adds  in  a  few  seconds  of  acoustic  guitars.

  Spectral  plays  a   musical  style  that  takes  melodic  black,  viking,  thrash  and  power  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create a sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics cover  Norse  Mythology,  Vikings  and  Epic  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Spectral  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  melodic  black,  viking,  thrash  and  power  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Evil  Takes  Control"  "In  Battle  With  Fire  &  Steel"  and  "Fuck  Off  And  Die  (Metal  Is  Forever)".  8 out  of  10.

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