Carpenter Brut - Leather Teeth

By Jeff Treppel. After a string of rapturously-received EP’s and a tour with Ghost that helped expose the synthwave sound to a wider audience, it was probably about time for Carpenter Brut to put out their first proper full-length

By Jeff Treppel.


After a string of rapturously-received EP’s and a tour with Ghost that helped expose the synthwave sound to a wider audience, it was probably about time for Carpenter Brut to put out their first proper full-length. In true iconoclastic fashion, of course, they tossed Leather Teeth out into the world with almost no warning. And boy, have they incinerated any expectations.

While the debut trilogy stayed pretty close to darksynth conventions, last year’s CarpenterBrutLive, forged from several US tours, showed more of a focus on a full-band sound and a cover of “Maniac” that served as harbingers of their new direction. The EP’s were a solo undertaking by Franck Hueso; Leather Teeth finds him embracing his newfound collaboration by unleashing a demonic disco extravaganza. In doing so, he succeeds where most synthwave artists fail: each of these eight songs has their own distinct identity, ironically creating more of a cohesive feel than if each track blended together.

The title track skews the closest to previous efforts, with its hard-hitting beats, but after that it’s the Wild West. “Cheerleader Effect” features Ulver’s Kristoffer Rygg doing his best Tears For Fears impression. “Sunday Lunch” invites vaporwave over for waffles. “Monday Hunt” Perturbates furiously. “Inferno Galore” feels like the Blade Runner soundtrack performed by Goblin. “Beware the Beast” takes HIM to Miami. “Hairspray Hurricane” might be the most evil thing Jan Hammer never composed. “End Titles” ties it all back together seamlessly. Members of Hexvessel and Klone provided their voices, metal superproducer Jaime Gomez Arellano (Paradise Lost, Ghost, Primordial) helped record the vocals. In other words, this is a seriously impressive undertaking.

Leather Teeth packs one fierce bite. Already one of the biggest names in the scene, they stake their claim here as not only some of the best songwriters, but some of the biggest innovators in synthwave. As other luminaries like Perturbator and Gost seek to distance themselves from that label, Carpenter Brut take the sound to an entirely new level.

Label Spotlight: Blood Music

By Kevin Page. There's eclectic and then there's Blood Music in Finland. Since it's humble beginning in an attic in 2011, there seemingly hasn't been anything too experimental for them to get behind. Death, black, progressive metal, jazz, or avant garde

By Kevin Page.

There's eclectic and then there's Blood Music in Finland. Since it's humble beginning in an attic in 2011, there seemingly hasn't been anything too experimental for them to get behind. Death, black, progressive metal, jazz, or avant garde, most of their roster defies typical classification. Which brings us to 2015 and three bands that once again are fresh and unique.


Apparently synthwave is a "thing" and there is a burgeoning scene to go along with it. But what Gost seem to be doing differently is adding a horror element to its sound. Baalberith, the sole member of Gost, has a history of playing in metal bands, but was always an electronic music fan. So it comes as no small surprise that even though this isn't a metal album, Behemoth, speaks to me. It feels like a soundtrack to all those 80's horror movies I'd watch with friends at sleepovers in my youth. Throw in some evil album art and the package is complete.




I'm a fan of Gautier Serre and the thoroughly warped, Igorrr, so I anxiously awaited this side project of his, Corpo-Mente. Featuring the lush operatic vocals of Laure Le Prunenec (Öxxö Xööx, Rïcïnn), it's much more, shall we say, "normal", than Igorrr (then again, most bands are by comparison). It's a classical journey of baroque, trip hop & acoustique. But it's also beautifully haunting and mysterious, like some twisted noir. It's by no means aggressive or in your face, but that doesn't stop it from being one hell of a piece of art.

Artwork by Luca F. Carey

Yes, another synthwave band. Although Dan Terminus prefers the term cyberpunk or 'darksynth' (coined by Perturbator, another band of the genre who is also on Blood Music and you can check out here). While it firmly sits in the same genre as it's fellow labelmates, The Wrath of Code has a much more overall sci-fi feel. Think Blade Runner and an the endless amounts of old school video games. For the most part its an uptempo affair, but it does slow down to mix things up on occasion. Perfect cover art really encapsulates the sound and feel of this album.

The Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda albums of 2014

By Kevin Page. I always complete my Best Of list by the beginning of December. But that means there are sometimes a few releases that come out late in the month I can't get to. It also means you probably won't see them on many other lists either.

By Kevin Page.

I always complete my Best Of list by the beginning of December. But that means there are sometimes a few releases that come out late in the month I can't get to. It also means you probably won't see them on many other lists either. Besides all that, there are always albums that just slip through the cracks. Sometimes I overlook an album or it doesn't click with me until much later. In that spirit, here's 4 metal albums you may not see mentioned all that much but definitely need to check out (and one non metal album that's just too good to pass up).

Cover art by Misanthropic-Art

Hollow Dominion is the 4th album from Czech Republic's, Destroying Divinity. Blistering death that almost treads into the brutal death metal realm at times, but mixes things up a bit with some doomy sections and sweeping melodic solos. Definitely not what I was expecting when I initially hit the play button on the first song. They bounce back and forth between these styles without feeling disjointed. It creates an interesting mix that not many bands do (or can pull off).

Art by Zbigniew Bielak

There's no messing around here. Straight up filthy black death from these Irishman on their debut album. ZOM hold nothing back on Flesh Assimilation. The production is a swirling mass of chaos. The vocals reverberate from toxic hellfire. Admittedly when this came out last month I was basically at my saturation point of albums for the year, so it didn't do much for me.. But I would put it on from time to time and the raw energy just won me over. It also helps that they have a plethora of memorable riffs in there, where most bands of this ilk do not.

Artwork by Mark Riddick

If you've been listening to extreme metal for more than 5 minutes over the past 20 years, chances are you heard the name Varathron before. For the most part they have been unfairly overlooked by fellow Greek countrymates Septicflesh and Rotting Christ. Untrodden Corridors of Hades (their 5th full length) is tasteful melodic mid paced black metal with a rock solid production. There's no pretense to try and be the most evil and brutal band on the block. This is a confident and seasoned band that knows its place. The soulful guitarwork shines and helps to infuse the whole experience with such a dark and occult vibe, that other bands only wish they could capture.

Cover painting by Santiago Caruso

I'll be honest with ya right up front: this record is gonna demand more of your time than anything else we've discussed so far. Equal parts progressive, black thrash and death metal, the Australian power trio, StarGazer, has really come up with something unique. A Merging to the Boundless is the bands 3rd full length album and also features members of Cauldron Black Ram and Mourning Congregation. It's by no means straight forward.   I don't even want to list what bands they sound like if you put them all in a blender, as that would do them a disservice. Just go in expecting a musical journey. You'll thank me later.

Artwork by Ariel Zucker-Brull

Hailing from Paris, France, Perturbator, is the brainchild of electronic music artist, James Kent. Dangerous Days isn't something that's even remotely in my wheelhouse, but it just scratches an itch I didn't know I had. If you are a child of the 80's or just love movies/shows like Blade Runner, Total Recall, Terminator or Knight Rider and thought, wouldn't it be cool to get naked and dance, then this is for you! It's not metal but its metal enough for metal fans to enjoy. Clothing optional.