The Asteroid Bullet Belt

Perhaps a bit less perverted than they’d like. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on May 4th 2024)  I have some rather fond memories of Abraded’s self-titled debut. It wasn’t anything particularly special, it was a simple, yet well-executed, slab of grind that thrived on its brevity and disgusting sound, nothing more. There was the occasional interesting idea here and there but it wasn’t enough to blow your mind. Nevertheless, I decided that I wouldn’t mind hearing anything they might put out in the future. And wouldn’t you know it, they actually did release their sophomore, Unadulterated Perversity a year after the fact. I went in without much in the way of expectations and came out rather confused, certainly not something I expect feeling when it comes to deathgrind. I mean seriously, why the fuck is there shredding in this album? This came as a total shock right from the title track, which is probably the fastest I’ve seen a band declare a mission sta...

A blast from the distant past of 2023. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on May 4th 2024)   I’ve always been a “music first” type of guy when it came to metal music, but it’s a fact that the genre is in no small part defined by its aesthetics, especially when it comes to the musicians’ appearance and the album art. Air Raid is no exception to this rule, and they’re probably among the most committed I’ve seen in the NWOTHM scene, with the band members being dressed in uncomfortably tight leather outfits and the artwork of today’s subject, Fatal Encounter being steeped in late 70s-early 80s chrome sci-fi nostalgia. Unsurprisingly, this sets some expectations as to what awaits the moment you press play, something that the group is more than happy to deliver on. Air Raid’s bread and butter on their fourth full-length is something that has defined the modern Swedish heavy metal scene, that being straightforward and speedy tunes with an emphasis on catchy voc...

They came, they saw, they conquered, they left. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on May 4th 2024)  There’s something to be said about bands that hang it up when they’ve peaked in popularity. On one hand, you can’t help but wonder where they could’ve possibly gone as artists, both musically and commercially, but on the other, there’s a certain grace in acknowledging that your work is done and that you’ve said everything you wanted to. One such case is Gulch, whose short-lived existence left a mark in the extreme music scene, with their sole full-length work, Impenetrable Cerebral Fortress , making quite a splash upon release during the pandemic times. Turns out, it’d also be the least release of any substance we’d ever see from the group. If there is one word to describe Gulch’s sound, it’d be “ferocious”. From the very first seconds of the opener, we’re greeted with Elliot Morrow’s delirious screaming, and some absolutely unhinged percussion driving the...

Brother they do be churning. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on May 4th 2024)  It’s been 2 years since Vindsval has ushered us into Blut Aus Nord’s new era with Disharmonium – Undreamable Abysses , a release that I still find to be one of the group’s best, even after having cooled down on it. Barely a year after its release, we’re greeted with the second chapter of this series in Nahab , which builds upon the thematic motifs that have been already established, while simultaneously taking a different sonic approach. To say that I was excited when it was announced would be an understatement. But where there’s excitement, there’s also the risk of disappointment. Nahab ’s bread-and-butter is grinding its listener to the bone. There’s no shortage of clanging and dissonant chords being thrown over erratic and disorienting rhythms, all working in unison to throw you down a pit of cacophony. Whereas though Undreamable Abysses was rather ornate, with off-kilter...

Thankfully death is sugar-free. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on May 4th 2024)  Imperishable, despite their rather recent arrival to the death metal stage, had quickly risen among the bands I was most excited to see new material from. Following 2021’s riveting, if imperfect, Deathspawn EP, I’ve been curious to see how they’d develop their sound and how they’d evolve. Lo and behold, after a year of radio silence we finally got some new material to sink our teeth into, and it was a full-length at that. To say that I was excited upon hearing the news of Come, Sweet Death ’s release would be an understatement. Mercifully enough, it was one of those times where having expectations didn’t lead to disappointment. For anyone unacquainted with the group (or my review of their EP), Imperishable’s style is heavily rooted in the classic Stockholm sound, albeit with a greater emphasis on melodies, akin to later-era Dismember. It’s not a sound you see bands emula...

Rebirth through destruction. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on March 20th 2024)  Supergroups tend to be quite the big gamble. More often than not they feel like entities founded on their members’ fame, and the results produced from these bands are more often than not half-hearted imitations of older sounds, rather than something that one would expect from musicians of such a calibre. That being said, there are exceptions to every rule, and one of them is Sól án varma, an entity that, considering how many people are involved in it, could be considered a supergroup to end all supergroups. The Icelandic black metal scene is quite incestuous, with artists getting together on multiple different projects, so it’s no surprise that some of the country’s most wanted decided to get together for a work of this scope. “So, how did it turn out?”, I hear you asking. Well, it’s pretty damn good, I’ll tell you what. For how many cooks are involved here, Sól án varma’...

Fretless bass goes "VREEEEOW". (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on March 20th 2024)  I really need to come to terms with the fact that I actually enjoy progressive metal. For how much I tend to deride it on some of my reviews (ironically enough those that are of a progressive nature), I always end up listening to a good handful of releases, specifically those that are combined with death metal. Though some of my complaints about it being a victim of its own excess still stand, there’s definitely a specific niche I am hopelessly in love with, that being “spacey prog death metal”. It’s a relationship that started with Voidceremony’s 2020 debut, Entropic Reflections Continuum: Dimensional Unravel , and has persisted to this day. Needless to say, I was scouring forums and websites in search of albums with fretless bass and wonky song structures on the regular. Thankfully, the quartet returned in 2023 with the much simpler titled Threads of Unknowing , w...

Can't spell "Nunslaughter" without laughter! (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on March 20th 2024)  Nunslaughter are a band I’d define as “underground heroes”. They never quite hit it big, but have nevertheless amassed a small horde of incredibly loyal fans, which they’ve been liberally showering with material over the years. Admittedly, most of it is splits and live recordings, whose importance to the band’s canon is trivial at the best of times, but even this approach has resulted in some gems being hidden throughout their catalogue. That being said, the real meat is in their full-lengths, which are never above the 35-minute mark (discounting disc 2 of Angelic Dread ), of which Goat stands tallest. To anyone who (for some reason) hasn’t been acquainted with the band yet, their sound is as straightforward as it gets. Brief and simplistic bursts of intensity that bring to mind death metal’s formative days, where it was yet to be divorced from t...

Who's gonna cast a miracle on this? (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on March 20th 2024)  2023 was a very productive year for Full of Hell. The deathgrind/noise outfit has always been very active when it came to collaborating with other artists across a multitude of genres, but last year was a particularly interesting one, with the quartet working with bands like Primitive Man, Nothing, and in the case of the other half of this release, Gasp. Truth be told, I was wholly unacquainted with the latter group before listening to this split, and like any self-respecting music fan I decided to visit some of their past work in order to gain a new perspective on this particular project. On the whole, Full of Hell and Gasp operate with a surprisingly unified vision for a split, a format commonly known for somewhat disparate and inconsistent sounds. Both artists emphasise ambience drenched in feedback and noise, Gasp in particular lacing their two songs with some ...

This review is full of shit. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on March 20th 2024)  While the title might make you think I am about to offer very little insight into Tithe’s debut effort, Penance , it’s more about the trio’s irreverence towards this text than anything else. As the group says on “Apostasy”, “the critics are full of shit”, a stance that in and of itself challenges the existence of this review. How do you cover something that outright rejects any opinion one might form about it? All things considered, it’s not even a particularly original stance to have in the context of heavy music, many a band have said they don’t aim for mainstream appeal and want to stay underground, but few are as forward about it. Nevertheless, the purpose of this text isn’t to philosophise about the concept of reviewing music, not to mention the band themselves said that they too are full of shit, thus enabling me to write with impunity. Tithe’s mix of sounds is surpr...

Double the Geddon and double the danger. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on February 7th 2024)   Metal fans don’t really want to admit it, but the genre is tacky at its core. Whether it’s death metal’s comical obsession with viscera and murder, or the fantasy escapades commonly found in power metal, it’s all steeped in an air of -oft unintentional- comedy, Not to mention the visual aesthetics that each genre is defined by. I’ll admit that for a long while I was a little pretentious regarding how seriously I took metal music, but then I learned how to have fun. Which leads us to Doublegeddon’s debut, Geddon Dangerous , whose cover art alone reeks of 80s B-grade sci-fi, further emboldened by the tagline “heavy metal program™”. Had I seen this album a few years back I’d dismiss it as garbage that only perpetuates a stereotype about metal being for nerds. A few years back I was a moron basically. Geddon Dangerous , for how silly and cheesy it is on an aesth...

Ascending to the pantheon. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on February 7th 2024)  When it comes to heavy/power metal, I am always looking for something that manifests what is commonly referred to as “big dick energy”. It needs to have a certain something that I find on the harder-edged works of bands like Manilla Road and Visigoth, to name a few. I don’t actively hunt for stuff like that, seeing as it’s not my go-to genre, but when a release like that falls on my lap I end up getting hooked on it for days on end. Such is the case with Steel Arctus’ sophomore release, Master of War , whose comic book aesthetic made for quite the enticing first impression, and unsurprisingly encapsulated the music therein. The trio presents us with 8 stomping heavy metal anthems, replete with thundering double bass, crunchy riffing, and gruff vocals that aren’t afraid to soar every once in a while. It’s distilled classic heavy metal essence, and it’s unwavering in its cons...

More of a light sizzle if anything. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on February 7th 2024)  I do love my black metal, but it’s no secret that it has the worst good-to-bad music ratio out of all the subgenres, especially in the niche of DSBM. For every good band that comes out, there’s a dozen of terrible demo-only bedroom projects that are helmed by one man. Truth be told, that’s one of the first things that came to mind upon a certain someone sending me Viselnik’s Smouldering Existence demo, seeing as it checked all of the aforementioned boxes. Turns out though, I was wrong to assume that. Mostly. While mastermind Neratoh does on occasion fall in the typical pitfalls of DSBM songwriting, namely dwelling on a single idea for too long, which is especially noticeable in “Illusory Time”, he does actually have a couple of tricks up his sleeve. For one, his drumming is far more involved than just being a more elaborate metronome, with there being some interes...

Forever locked in a war of attrition. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on February 7th 2024)  Chances are I’ll get my “death metal fan” licence revoked for this, but I’m not a huge Bolt Thrower fan. Sure, there’s a couple of their albums I enjoy, but ultimately they never resonated with me quite as much as they seem to have with most extreme metal fans. What’s even weirder is that I have found myself to be more engaged by bands inspired by them, which cropped up with metal’s revival in the 21st century. Among these bands is Trenchgrinder, whose debut, Peace Is Forfeit is a release I found myself listening to far more often than I ever expected for some reason. Now as one might have gathered from my prologue and the band’s name, this is some exceptionally militaristic death metal, filled to the brim with drumming and riffs that, like their main inspiration, sound like a tank running over you. That being said, while they do take a lot of influence from Bol...

Fool's gold falling through my hands. (Originally published to the Metal Archives on February 7th 2024)  It’s scarcely been 2 years since the release of the excellent Nowherer , but that didn’t stop band mastermind Vivian Tylińska from coming out with her fourth release. Victory Over The Sun always explored uncharted territory since its inception, and Dance You Monster to My Soft Song! , along with its mouthful of a title, are no different. If anything, it represents the biggest sonic leap the band has made since its inception, and it’s one I am pleased to say turned out great. One could describe this release as “avant-garde black metal”, but the truth is it doesn’t get anywhere close to describing just how much is going on here. Yes, there’s dissonance in spades here, exactly what you’d expect from the tag, but it feels more like a template for Vivian to apply some truly iconoclastic ideas, even by the genre’s standards. Though some aspects of Nowherer remain, su...

Sinking into unknown depths. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on January 25th 2024.)   There are times where you find an artist whom you want to see get better. Despite them starting off rather disappointingly, there is palpable potential within them, and you just can’t help but root for them and hope they end up realising it. That artist for me is Mork. Thomas Eriksen’s one man black metal project didn’t exactly convince me with its first couple of releases, but the signs of improvement were there, culminating in the engrossing Katedralen , which saw him shed the more plodding and unengaging aspects of his early work and actually write some riffs worth giving a damn about. It’s been a minute since then, and now we have his sixth full-length in our hands, Dypet , an album that I was very much looking forward to. Truthfully though, even so long after it has come out, I can’t quite tell how I feel about it. Dypet , like its predecessors, is unabashedly wo...

What is life without some hardships to endure? (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on January 25th 2024.)  I know it’s been a hot minute since it happened, but to this day I still think about how musicians were affected by the pandemic. So many bands either went on hiatus or outright disbanded, and for a good while I thought Tomb Mold was among them. The Canadians were quite industrious up until 2019’s Planetary Clairvoyance , but the moment 2020 came around they went completely radio silent. Mercifully enough, they broke said silence with the Aperture of Body demo in 2022, and a year later we’re graced with their fourth full-length, The Enduring Spirit . Undoubtedly, the title is a declaration in and of itself, marking a bold new direction for the group, one that we had only caught glimpses of until now. Ever the musical chameleons, Tomb Mold have yet again changed their sound in what is probably the most extreme shift of their career so far. Barring Max Kl...

Boy, these coils sure are tight. (Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on January 25th 2024.)  While the waves of revivalism have been running strong throughout the metal underground for more than a decade now, bands in the traditional metal niche have always been a bit more committed. There’s something admirable about their stubborn adherence to the 80s sounds on just about every level, to the point where sometimes you forget they formed after the 80s. Among those bands, and a personal favourite of mine is Ironsword, who despite being around since the mid-90s only hit their stride after the turn of the century. Despite being five full-lengths deep into their career, they aren’t particularly keen on releasing EPs of any kind, so seeing In the Coils of Set piqued my curiosity quite a bit. While I did originally dismiss it as pointless due to it containing a song that appeared on their (at the time of writing) latest release, it turns out that there’s more than...