Reviews written by: Darlene Steelman

Reviews

Shallow Rivers – The Leaden Ghost

Six songs of depressing doom metal with a hint of melodic death metal is what you’ll get when listening to ‘The Leaden Ghost’ by Shallow Rivers. Each track more haunting than the next, this album is a definite add-on to any diehard doom metal/melodic death metal enthusiast’s library. The vocals are black-ish with some infused death growls which...

16/08/2015

Soulnerve – The Dying Light

Soulnerve, from the Eastern region of the Netherlands, formed in 2004 and disbanded in 2008. Some years later, Brus reformed the band, taking it in an entirely different direction. This album is solid with two types of vocals (clean & dirty) that complement each other while neck breaking drums and riffing guitars fill the background. ‘The...

25/10/2014

Black Sachbak – No Pay No Gain

Released in 2013, "No Pay No Gain" delivers that old school thrash metal sound we came to love in the eighties. The songs are short, powerful and bring that feeling of being under a highway overpass with spray-paint cans and skateboards. Black Sachbak hail from Petah Tikva, Israel – just outside of Tel Aviv – and their sound is worth checking ou...

17/08/2014

Dead Man’s Walk – Life Denied

Released July 11, 2014, "Life Denied" has the right amount of thrash tempo and slight death vocals. Each song stands alone with unique catchy riffs and doom worthy bridges. It is really an EP, holding only five songs, but with a doom/thrash sound like this, five is a great number. Dead Man’s Walk, who hail from the Netherlands, really nailed it...

13/08/2014

Destitution – Beware The Fury Of The Patient Man

Released May 2014, ‘Beware The Fury Of The Patient Man’ delivers that neck jerking thrash sound we’ve all loved since the early eighties. There are a couple songs on the album that have power metal overtones, and that fits well, but for the Dutch thrash metal band, Destitution, thrash metal is definitely their forte. 'Alcathrash' (kind of a chee...

10/08/2014

Enfeeble – Encapsulate This Moment

Enfeeble is a melodic metalcore band formed in 2005 in the land of Lingen, Germany.  Classified as ‘melodic death metal’ on some websites, I hear none of that on this eccentric release. Metalcore is more the groove with snippets of death metal vocals on this one as it seesaws back and forth between techno-metal and pop punk grooves. Each song on...

21/06/2014

Catacumba – Animis Mortis

"Animus Mortis" was released March 3, 2013 on Metal Squad Records (tape) and by Blasphemy Production on CD and delivers an interesting mix of black metal infused with some death vocals. Their sound is impetuous with undertones of some doom metal, which makes for a moody listening experience. Reminiscent of Burzum and other black metal vocalists tha...

27/04/2014

Evil Machine – War In Heaven

So, you’re a black metal fan and you long for the days of Venom and Celtic Frost while holding back tears as you look in your closet at the black clothes and denim patch jackets you haven’t fit your fat ass in since 1985. And, if you bring up black metal, you might even get into a conversation about Varg Vikernes and the murder of Euronymous. But I...

03/03/2014

Crawling Chaos – Repellant Gastronomy

Crawling Chaos hail from Italy and deliver an epic sound on "Repellant Gastronomy", released in November 2013. As with all death metal albums, this one comes complete with growing vocals and speedy guitars and drums. This album was produced by Simone Mularoni (DGM, Empyrios) and was released on Memorial Records. The production is true, with each...

10/02/2014

Empire Of The Scourged – Transcend Into Oblivion

Occasionally a band releases an album that leaves music fans scratching their heads in bewildered awe. Empire Of The Scourged hail from Netherlands, formed in 2008 and are going for a different type of ‘death metal sound.’ The combined ‘beneath the gutter’ vocals and keyboards on this album take this album into a dimension unheard of in the deat...

18/01/2014

Diabolical - Neogenesis

Swedish Death Metal masters Diabolical released "Neogenesis" on September 27, 2013 through ViciSolum Productions. The amazing thing about "Neogenesis" is that it is a story and when purchased, even comes with literature to read while listening to this amazing album. Talk about kicking it up a notch on the concept album idea. There are eleven tracks...

13/12/2013

Human Improvement Process – Deafening Dissonant Millennium

They hail from Italy and are considered ‘experimental death metal’ with some screaming, wicked guitar riffs and brutal drums. ‘Deafening Dissonant Millennium’ was released on September 10, 2013 and encompasses many types of metal other than ‘death.’ At times it is melodic, which is a nice break between the utter neck breaking heaviness this album d...

25/11/2013