Nightshade/Sounds Of Dark Matter/My Kingdom Music/2021 CD Review

 

  Nightshade  are  a  duo  from  Switzerland  that  plays  a  blackened  form  of  industrial  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2021  album  "Sounds  Of  Dark  matter"  which  will  be  released  in  November  by  My  Kingdom  Music.

  Classical  guitars  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  musical  direction  while  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording.  Vocals  are  mostly  angry  sounding  black  metal  screams  along  with  elements  of  industrial  and Keyboards  also  being  mixed  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  songs.

  Melodies  are  also  added  into  some  of  the  guitar  riffing  while  a  couple  of  the  tracks  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length.  Clear  vocals  are  also  added  into  some  parts  of  the  album  which  also  add  in  some  touches  of  goth  rock  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  also  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  when  they  are  utilized  and  operatic  female  vocals  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  At times  the  music  also  brings  in  some  orchestra  and  new  wave  touches  along  with  some  of  the  riffing  also  showing  an  influence  of  thrash  metal  as  well  as  one  of  the  tracks  also  being  a  cover  of  The  Kovenant's  "Chariots  Of  Thunder",  when  the  music  finally  speeds  up  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard  and  some  songs  also  add  in  a  small  amount  of  growls.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  scientific  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Nightshade  are  a  very  great  sounding  blackened  industrial  metal  duo  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Set  To  Destroy  The  Heart  Of  The  Sun"  "Andromeda  Defiled"  and  "A  Call  From  Distant  Skies".  8  out  of  10.

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Thulcandra/A Dying Wish/Napalm Records/2021 Full Length Review

 

  Thulcandra  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of t heir  2021  album  "A  Dying  Wish"  which  will  be  released  on  October  29th  by  Napalm  Records.

  Acoustic  guitars  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  melodic  guitar  leads  a  few  seconds  later  while  the  riffs  also  add  in  a  great  amount  of  melody.  When  the  music  speeds  up a   decent  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  as  well  as  the  music  also  showing  some  influences  of  the  classic  90's  Swedish  style.

  Tremolo  picking  is  also  added  into  some  of  the  faster  riffing  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams.  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  The  music  also  mixing  in  elements  of  the  more  melodic  side  of  death  metal  along  with  both acoustic  and  classical  guitars  also  return  on  some  of  the  later  tracks  as  well  as  a  couple  of  brief  instrumentals,  when  synths  are  utilized  they  also  give  the  music  more  of  an  atmospheric  feeling  and  both  of  the  closing  songs  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Death  and  Darkness  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Thulcandra  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Funeral  Pyre"  "Nocturnal  Heresy"  "A  Shining  Abyss"  and  "A  Dying  Wish".  8  out  of  10.

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https://youtu.be/w9_85TqVQ6Y

  

  

       

Carnival Of Flesh/Anthems Of Extinction/2021 Full Length Review

 

  Carnival  Of  Flesh  are  a  band  from  Serbia  that  has  had  music  reviewed  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  very  symphonic  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2021  album  "Anthems  Of  Extinction"  which  will  be  released  in  November.

  A  very  dark  yet  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  album  while  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording.  Vocals  are  mostly  grim  sounding  black  metal  screams  along  with  some  songs  also  adding  in  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  and  whispers  and  symphonic  and  keyboards  elements  are  also  utilized  at  times.

  A  lot  of  the  music  is  also  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  mid  90's  without  sounding  outdated  while  some  songs  also  add  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing.  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  dark  yet  melodic  style  along  with  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  adding  in a   decent  amount  of  blast  beats.

  Melodies  are  also  added  into  some  of  the  guitar  riffing  along  with  the  songs  also  adding  in  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  some  tremolo  picking  also  being  added  into  some  of  the  faster  riffing,  whispers can  also be  heard  briefly  and  a  later  song  also  adds  in  a  brief  use  of  clean  vocals.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  misanthropy,  environmental  and  social  decay  themes.  

  

  In my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  album  from  Carnival  Of  Flesh  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  symphonic  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Angst"  "Can  Of  Sorrow"  "The  Great  Escape"  and  "Requiem  For  A  World".  8  out  of  10.

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Breaths/Though life has turned out nothing like I imagined, it is far better than I could have dreamt/Trepanation Recordings/2022 CD Review

 

  This  is  a  review  of  another  recording  from  Richmond,  Virginia's  Breaths  which  continues  the  progressive  mixture  of  post  black,  doom, alternative  metal,  post  hardcore  and  shoegaze  and  the  album  will  be  released  in  2022  by  Trepanation  Recordings  and  called  "Though  life  has  turned  out nothing  like  I  imagined, it  is  far  better  than  I  could  have  dreamt".

  Melodic  riffing  and  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  start  off  the  album  while  elements  of  doom  metal  are  also  added  into  the  slower  sections  of  the  songs.  Clear  alternative  metal  style  vocals  are  also  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording  along  with  some  growls  also  being  used  in  some  part  of  the  recording.

  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  post  metal  style  while  the  clean  sections  also add in  touches  of  shoegaze.  Some  of  the  tracks  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  the  mid  tempo  sections  of  the  songs  also  showing  an  influence  of  post  hardcore.

  The  music  also  has  its  progressive  and  atmospheric  moments along  with  some  songs  also  adding  in  a  small  amount  of  synths  as  well  as  most  of  the  music  also  sticking  to  either  a  slow  or  mid  tempo  musical  direction.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  anxiety  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Breaths  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  post  black,  doom,  progressive,  alternative  metal,  post  hardcore  and  shoegaze,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Elders"  and  "The  Wayward".  8  out  of  10.

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Breaths/Lined In Silver/Trepanation Recordings/2021CD Review

 

  Breaths  are  a  solo  project  from  Richmond,  Virgiania  that  plays  a  progressive  mixture  of  post  black,  doom  metal,  post  hardcore  and  shoegaze  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  2021  album  "Lined  In  Silver"  which  was  released  by  Trepanation  Recordings.

  Clean  playing  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  elements  of  shoegaze  and  post  rock  a  few  seconds  later.  Clear  vocals  are  also  utilized  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  as  well  as  the  slower  and  heavier  riffs  also  mixing  in  the  heaviness  of  doom  metal  and  the  riffs  also  add  in  a  lot  of  melody.

  Most  of  the  tracks  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length  while  grim  yet  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  are  also  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording.  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  along  with  the  music  also  adding  in  some  prog  and  alternative  metal  touches  at  times.

  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  along  with  some  spoken  word  samples  also  being  utilized  briefly.  Influences  of  post  hardcore  are  also  utilized  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them,  on  some  songs  the  music  also  captures  the  atmosphere  of  dark  ambient  and  when  the  music  finally  speeds  up  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  can  also be  heard.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  anxiety  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Breaths  are  a  very  great  sounding  progressive  mixture  of  post  black,  doom,  alternative  metal,  post  hardcore  and  shoegaze  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  solo  project.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Weight  &  The  Bellows"  "In  Nightmares'  and  "In  Repose".  8  out  of  10.

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Huronian Interview

 

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

We formed in early 2020 in the middle of the first pandemic wave. The urge to do something musically fresh during that terrible period has led me and Umberto to put our huge passion for the early nineties swedish melodic Death Metal and Black Metal into Huronian. We released a demo containing two songs plus a Dissection cover during that year and now we are ready for the release of our first full album "As Cold as a Stranger Sunset"!

2.So far you have released one ep and a full length, musically how do they both differ from each other?

Not much actually,  because the demo Ep simply contains tracks that were written for the full length and were eventually included in It. Of course the production of the full length Is a huge step forward, thanks also to Damian Herring's (Horrendous) mastering contribution! Apart from that, the full album has a songwriting  diversity we could not express in a two tracks Ep of course.

3.Most of the music is heavily rooted in the classic and melodic Swedish black/death metal style, what was the decision behind going into this musical direction?

We all love the early nineties melodic Death and Black metal records. The problem Is that we hardly find something interesting that was released after 1996/97. So we decided to bring back those atmospheres, while trying to avoid being simple imitators without personality. It's spontaneous after all, we try to create something that we would have liked to hear! 

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band has explored so far with the music?

Lyrically I wanted something that could lead the listeners far away, avoiding topics related to society or "daily issues". Most of the inspiration comes from literature, especially the sci-fi and supernatural one. We wrote the material during the First european lockdown, and my mind simply wanted to fly away toward other worlds! There are songs inspired by E.A. Poe and Lovecraft novels, another one by Milton's "Lost Paradise" and a couple reminiscent of Gene Wolfe's "Book of the New Sun" saga. 

I think they fit the atmosphere Umberto created with the music very well.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Huronian'?

It Is inspired by the "Huronian Glaciation", an event that covered earth's surface with ice completely more than 2 billions of years ago. The name alone evoked images of desolation, distance and solitude in my mind. A lot of the band imaginary deals with time...ancient past, distant future, time travels. 

6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover?

I painted the cover in the middle of the songwriting process. Umberto was sending me new material continuously and I didn't want to be less active than him! It depicts a cold, alien world where colors and details are not the one we use to know as humans. The cool thing Is that It Is open to any interpretation. It could represent the earth in an unpredictable, far future, or a completely different Planet.

7.HGas the band done any live shows or open to the idea?

No live shows yet, but a full line up has Just been completed with the addition of Gianluca T. (ex Voids of Vomit) on bass and long time friend and guitar maestro Tommy P. on second guitar. We hope to hit the stage as soon as possible, "As Cold as a Stranger Sunset" deserves a good live promotion.

8.On the ep you also done a 'Dissection' cover, what was the decision behind doing your own version of one of their songs?

We wanted to cover  something that could sum up all the influences and Umberto came up with the idea of "Heaven's Damnation". I immediately agreed, It Is one of Dissection's more Death Metal oriented songs, and represents a killer mix of everything we like in the genre.

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

It a bit early but so far a lot of people seemed to appreciate the material. Many of them said that there Is not much similar stuff around nowadays and I'm really pleased to hear It. We have to wait the release of the full album to have a more precise idea of the reaction, but I'm definitely optimistic!

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

We will continue to develop our style but we would not change the concept, both musically and lyrically. We don't want to re-invent the wheel, our aim Is writing the best music possible within our stylistic margins. There are still tons of blast beats, melodies to deliver and weird, obscure stories to tell!

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?

Early Gothenburg scene was definitely an influence, as well as early/mid nineties 

Blackened Death Metal. Svensson era At the Gates, skydancer era Dark Tranquillity, Eucharist, first In Flames album and, on the other side, Dissection, Sacramentum, Unanimated, Necrophobic. But of course our songwriting Is not a scientific formula. Marcello drumming for example carries some very aggressive american Death Metal influences to the table. It's a mix of different sensitivities.

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

Thanks for the interesting  interview! Follow Huronian at www.facebook.com/huronianofficial

and www.instagram.com/huronian_deathmetal

Morgul Blade/Fell Sorcery Abounds/No Remorse Records/2021 CD Review

 

  Morgul  Blade  are  a  band  from  Pennsylvania  that  plays  an  epic  and  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  heavy  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2021  album  "Fell  Sorcery  Abounds"  which  will  be  released  in  November  by  No  Remorse  Records.

  Epic  sounding  synths  start  off  the  album  and  also  mixes  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  music  at  times.  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  while  the  music  also  adds  in  a  great  amount  of  80's  era  traditional  metal  elements  and  the  vocals  also  add  in  a  great  amount  of  grim  black  metal  screams.  

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  the  black  metal  side  of  the  music  is  also  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  second  wave  era.  Clear  traditional  metal  style  vocals  can  also  be  heard  on  some  of  the  tracks  along  with  a  couple  of  songs  also  introducing  acoustic  guitars  onto  the  album.

  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  along  with  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody   as  well  as  a  later  song  also  being  a  ballad  as  the  album  progresses,  stringed  instruments  can  also  be  heard  briefly  and  most  of  the  music  sticks  to  a  mid  tempo  direction  and  a  later  track  is  also  an  instruemntal.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  J.R.R  Tolkien's  Middle  Earth,   History,  Folklore,  Magick  and  Might  themes. 

  In  my  opinion  Morgul  Blade  are  a  very  great  sounding  epic  and  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  heavy  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "A  Last  Waltz  Of  Gevaudan"  "The  Five  Will Ride  At  Dawn"  and  "Fell  Sorcery  Abounds".  8  out  of  10.

https://youtu.be/S-cOPiwlEKg