Thantifaxath - Void Masquerading as Matter

By Justin C. The new Thantifaxath EP, Void Masquerading as Matter, starts with a song called "Ocean of Screaming Spheres." That's all you need to know. Go buy it. O.K., fine, you want more details? I can help you out. This 35-minute "EP" finds

By Justin C.


The new Thantifaxath EP, Void Masquerading as Matter, starts with a song called "Ocean of Screaming Spheres." That's all you need to know. Go buy it.

O.K., fine, you want more details? I can help you out. This 35-minute "EP" finds Thantifaxath once again pushing the boundaries of their dissonant black metal, teetering between the abrasive and the downright chaotic. As with the transition from their self-titled debut to Sacred White Noise, the band makes more strides forward, although "outward" may be a better description. The jagged, off-kilter riffs are still here, as is the audible bass that anchors the songs without pushing too much bottom end. But there's also a new expansiveness. The previously mentioned opener transitions halfway through the song to a slow, somber piano line accompanied by a swarm of angrily buzzing insects. The bass eventually comes back, roughly mimicking the piano line, but ultimately leading into frenzied accelerandos and crescendos as the vocals become more and more desperate.

The second track, "Self-Devouring Womb," uses a similar sense of expansiveness. A mournful section of violin and acoustic guitar puts one in mind of the soundtrack of an old, black-and-white movie. There's a train platform, and the leading man is leaving the love of his life--maybe to join the front lines of World War II--but instead of a bittersweet and predictable ending, seeing the lovers reunite or the woman left behind to mourn him being killed in action, the man throws himself into the machinery of the train before it even leaves the station. Even Thantifaxath's quiet sections lead to a profound sense of unease.

Photos by Carmelo Española.

The performance and compositions are virtuosic--just check out the dizzying guitar lines that run up and down throughout "Cursed Numbers" and enjoy the warm, blissful feeling that comes from part of your brain being liquified and dripping out of your ears. This track is probably, at times, the most traditionally heavy hitting, but there are still bits of what I call in mind "evil twinkling" and a bassoon (or electronic equivalent) adding a plaintive line. The song refuses to be pinned down, nearly falling apart in the middle before moving to full blast again.

And then there's the closing title track--a seven-and-a-half minute choral piece. This isn't unprecedented for the band. The first track of their self-titled debut was also a choral piece, but this one pushes even further into the realms of the bizarre. It's as if the band took Mozart's Requiem and pushed it through some mathematical space just beyond human understanding. The song is punctuated by restless lines in the higher voices, occasionally contrasted with forceful blasts from the low vocalists. As with most of the album, there's often a sense of imminent closure coming up, perhaps in the form of a nice, consonant blast to offset the dissonance, but the song, and the album itself, drift off on a mysterious note rather than ending. A fitting end to another brilliant album for this band at the end of a bizarre, unsettling year.

Heresiarch - Death Ordinance

By Bryan Camphire. Dark Descent Records does it again, delivering another dose of uncompromising apoplectic death metal. Death Ordinance, the debut full length by Heresiarch, is a a forty-one minute set of nine tracks

By Bryan Camphire.

Artwork by Mistanthropic-Art

Dark Descent Records does it again, delivering another dose of uncompromising apoplectic death metal. Death Ordinance, the debut full length by Heresiarch, is a a forty-one minute set of nine tracks with zero clean parts and zero concessions made. The result is unrelenting evil ripping through your speakers.

Heresiarch play chaotic blackened death metal full of aggression and hate. The band hails from New Zealand, home to some of the most terrifying acts working in metal today; bands like Vesicant, Sinistrous Diabolous, Vassafor, Diocletian and Solar Mass. Heresiarch seem to be quite at home among this cantankerous lot. Don't let the tank treads on the cover fool you, though: this is music for sensitive souls. I am being facetious there. This music sounds like getting run over by that tank.

At the risk of sounding reductive, it should be said that this music is indebted to some fearsome Canadian bands like Revenge and Conqueror. To this hellish mix, Heresiarch add extra heaps of filth and dissonance, following along the darkened path laid before them by such devilish bands from down under like Bestial Warlust, Sadistik Exekution and, more recently, acts like Impetuous Ritual. That is a lot of name-dropping. Suffice to say, Heresiarch exist within a tradition of some of the most punishing acts in extreme metal. What they may lack in originality, they make up for in entropy.

For me what shines most about this recording is the production. Death Ordinance sounds humongous. Every instrument is given ample space. This is no easy feat with music that is as suffocating as this. A lot of great bands simply do not manage to sound their best on record. The fact that each amp sounds like it's been turned up to eleven, the drummer is playing his guts out throughout, and the screams still manage to be harrowing on top of all of this... it's impressive. It makes you marvel at what a vicious beast this band must be to behold in the flesh.

The third cut, "Harbinger" is a highlight for me. I am a total sucker for half-time hardcore-style breakdowns in death metal. All the better if these mosh-worthy moments are sandwiched between breakneck blastbeats, as happens to be the case here. The deviations from a straight up 4/4 approach really sweeten the deal here, as well as on several other cuts throughout the LP.

There is a nice variety of tempo over the course of the record, and this keeps the songs from blending together. The song lengths range from as short as two minutes to as long as over seven minutes, and it's precisely this type of variety that makes this set unpredictable and engrossing. All in all, Death Ordinance marks another solid entry in the Dark Descent catalog by a true force to be reckoned with. All hail Heresiarch.

Dynamic Metal Roundup

By Calen Henry. Metal is loud and abrasive, but metal fans like it that way. Over the past 25 years, there has risen a pernicious side to the loudness of metal (and music in general). Dynamic range compression has

By Calen Henry.

Metal is loud and abrasive, but metal fans like it that way. Over the past 25 years, there has risen a pernicious side to the loudness of metal (and music in general). Dynamic range compression has drastically increased in a phenomenon called the Loudness War.

Simply put, during mastering much contemporary music is altered to raise the volume of all parts to the same level as the loudest part, often the drums. The resulting loss of dynamics decreases the overall impact of the music; when you turn it up everything gets super loud, instead of some parts being accented.

A loud master doesn't necessarily ruin an album, and poorly produced dynamic albums can still sound terrible, but there are essentially no examples of more dynamic masters sounding worse than the louder version, provided other factors are not also drastically altered.

Thankfully, since I started paying attention a few years ago the trend has been toward more dynamic masters for metal, though it's far from standard. That being said, a few artists really stand out in both their commitment to dynamics and their excellent music.


I'm a sucker for concept albums and Vainaja take it even further; they're a concept band. Comprised of The Preacher, The Cantor, and the Gravedigger they play absolutely crushing death doom, in Finnish. The concept revolves around Wilhelm, a mysterious (and fictional) cult leader believed to have risen from the dead to corrupt the townsfolk with his blasphemous sermons. The albums are based upon unearthed excerpts of his writings.

Musically, their first album Kadotetut is pretty straightforward death doom while the second Verenvalaja expands the sound with more interesting arrangements and some guest guitar work by Hooded Menace's Lasse Pyykko. On music alone Vainaja have made a name for themselves, but going above and beyond, they've released digital versions of the vinyl mixes for both Kadotetut and Verenvalaja and they sound incredible. Vainaja was the catalyst to write this roundup.

Death doom is far from the first genre one thinks of in relation to dynamics, but the dynamic mixes sound incredible. The drums in Verenvalaja are absolutely thunderous and every filthy guitar note is clearly audible. Plus the dynamic master makes it positively easy to blow through the whole album in one sitting. It will make you yearn for a vinyl mix of every album

Bordering on a household name, at least in the metal community, Horrendous inject just the right level of "progressive" into Old School Death Metal to make super interesting albums without leaving the bounds of "OSDM". In contrast to full on progressive death metal Horrendous stick to the OSDM sound but shake things up with truly interesting melodic compositions. Their two most recent albums, Anareta and Ecdysis were some of the earlier of the "New Wave of Dynamic Metal" and they sound fantastic. Everything from the buzzsaw guitars to the powerful drums and lush acoustic passages sounds phenomenal.

Like Vainaja, Be'lakor made a name for themselves based on their music, then released vinyl masters of older albums. Widely praised for injecting new life into the somewhat stale Melodic Death Metal scene, the vinyl masters of Stone's Reach and Of Breath and Bone sound stellar. Each individual part of the music, right down to the individual drum and cymbal hits comes through with amazing clarity adding another level to already fantastic albums.

Kuaun's latest album, Sorni Nai, sees the Finnish singing Russian band craft a concept album about the Dyatlov Pass incident. In 1959 a group of 9 skiers in Russia disappeared then were found dead with bizarre injuries and the whole story is still unknown. Sorni Nai is a cinematic album flowing through doom, black metal, post rock and even sections broaching on classical. It's all delivered with a huge dynamic mix and is Pay What You Want on Blood Music's Bandcamp (like all their releases).

Auric are another fantastic anomaly on this list. The Arkansas based band play blackened sludge with echoes of early Mastodon (they use the same tuning) and Pallbearer. Their most recent full length, Empty Seas, is absolutely jaw dropping and criminally underrated. They employ an Elder-like ability to incorporate aspects of Stoner metal, sludge, black metal, and post-rock into a cohesive whole, and bless it with a hugely dynamic mix. The drums, though have an oddly compressed character which stands out strangely during slower passages, but helps preserve clarity during the some of the lightning fast sections. Of particular note is the track "Backlit", where they take a filthy sludge riff and build all sorts of levels of melody over top of it. So good.

If this list piques your interest in dynamic metal it's worth noting that Earache records has a large back catalog of classics ranging from the death metal triangle (US, Sweden, Britain), to grindcore available as Full Dynamic Range versions; digital versions of the vinyl mixes. It's worth revisiting classics like Carcass' Heartwork and Entombed's Left Hand Path to hear the dynamic mixes.

Excommunion - Thronosis

By Bryan Camphire. In three month's time, one guitarist will have released three of the most intense metal records you're liable to hear this year. Kyle Spanswick plays in three crushingly heavy bands, all of whom are releasing

By Bryan Camphire.

Cover art by Lauri Laaksonen from Desolate Shrine.

In three month's time, one guitarist will have released three of the most intense metal records you're liable to hear this year. Kyle Spanswick plays in three crushingly heavy bands, all of whom are releasing records in rapid succession. April brought us Terra Damnata by Nightbringer. June will deliver us Holókauston by Bestia Arcana. This month we have Thronosis by Excommunion, and what a ferocious record it is.

Excommunion forges blackened death metal sui generis. Thronosis wastes no time boring its way into your skull like trepanation. The first track begins full tilt with drums blasting relentlessly and guitars pummeling the listener into submission. It's striking when a band can make an odd meter seem smooth; yet it's impressive on a whole different level when a band can take a regular time signature and make it feel off kilter. That's what happens during the first minute of the first track, "Twilight of Eschaton". Weird twists and turns abound. But it's at at the one and a half minute mark when things get really interesting. The guitars cough out a single chord down-stroked. The drums crescendo. The entire band drops out. In an instant the full band returns, the bell on the ride cymbal is hammered relentlessly and the riffage erupts into headbang-inducing lighter-raising fury. This destruction barrels forth until the three minute mark. Then the tempo drops, and the group drops out yet again. A start-stop tremolo-picked death-doom riff chugs in like an archaic army collectively heaving a battering ram, splintering everything in its path. The final riff brings things to close combat. The siege has breached the castle walls, and the violence advances forth into unhinged knife-wielding evil. Seven minutes have elapsed and this band has offered forth more intensity in a single song than most groups offer in an entire album.

Thronosis consists of four tracks and clocks in at under a half hour. You'll find no filler material here. The song architectures are calculated with utmost precision and conciseness. There is no room for the mind to wander. It's best to submit to the onslaught and let yourself be led down this record's destructive path. No detail is left to chance. The production is immaculate. The guitar sound calls to mind the venerable tech death masters Sarpanitum. The moshpit-ready blackened death evokes the Spanish masters of the form, Altarage. Yet, with all their start-stop rhythmic complexity, dynamic tempo changes, pick-squealing riffs, weird phrasing and headbang-inducing riffs, Excommunion definitely chart their own territory. Thronosis throws you headlong into a spiraling morass of dizzying ferocious death metal. A half hour spent in this unmitigated darkness will leave you reeling and thirsting for oblivion.

The cut above: a look back at 2016 part 1

By Bryan Camphire. With Krighsu, Wormed shattered the ceilings of what had been done in brutal death metal. Not since Nourishing the Spoil by Guttural Secrete has a record raised the bar for this extreme subgenre quite so much. I imagine these guys must have eight hour band practices three or four times a week in order to get this tight.

By Bryan Camphire.

Artwork by Phlegeton.

With Krighsu, Wormed shattered the ceilings of what had been done in brutal death metal. Not since Nourishing the Spoil by Guttural Secrete has a record raised the bar for this extreme subgenre quite so much. I imagine these guys must have eight hour band practices three or four times a week in order to get this tight. On top of that, the songs sound like they were made using some William Burroughs style cut-up method. The rate at which the parts change isn’t simply blistering, it can sound downright maddening. The band almost sound like robots reading stock market fluctuations scrolling across the ticker in real time and converting this information into death metal. To think of this music for what it is, as highly rehearsed and extremely exact, is to marvel at this band’s prowess and precision. The stuck-pig vocals aren’t for everyone, it’s true. That said, this band is truly a cut above. Purists often tend to complain about how drum triggers take some of the humanity out of metal making. To that, I say, listen to Wormed, they play inhuman music in the best possible sense.

Clean vocals in heavy metal have become so anomalous that there is a metal blog entitled No Clean Singing. Vocals - especially cleanly sung vocals - can possibly, at best, convey feeling. Sinistro packs more feeling into one tune than most bands pack into an entire album. Lately, across the myriad subgenres of extreme metal, some of the boldest bands are experimenting with clean singing, and the results are often fantastic. Bands like Bölzer or Batushka or Temple Nightside deliver crushing metal with the use of clean vocals without sacrificing a shred of darkness or menace. With Sinistro, the vocals propel the funereal arrangements behind them to produce something truly transcendent. This is extreme metal that you could play in the car with your mom or at other times when Grave Upheaval might not exactly fit the bill. Semente was largely misunderstood and overlooked by the press, and that oftentimes can be a great indicator of a monumental record, so good that people had to sleep on it because they just were not ready.

Cover art by Daniel Corcuera.

For my money, Ruinous set the bar when I think of the real deal in contemporary death metal. I do not intend to throw out hyperbole while acting as though these matters are not completely subjective. I’ll just talk about what sets Graves of Ceaseless Death apart from the masses for me. And the production is as good a place as any to begin the adiscussion. The bass is high up in the mix, which seems to be a trend in metal these days, and I love that. The tones of the guitar and bass are menacing and in your face. The drums are live and direct. The frequencies are a bit compressed, at the expense of things like cymbal decay and dynamic range. Still, this is, after all, a death metal record; which is to say, the dynamic range doesn’t have to be gigantic for the band to sound heavy as all get out. The effect of the kind of production in play here is to make the listener feel like he or she is in a small basement club in the front row, as opposed to a cavernous hall where the sound is coming more from the PA system than from the band’s amps. It feels like being hit by a truck.

The performances on Graves of Ceaseless Death are phenomenal. What is most impressive to me is that the band chooses to leave tiny mistakes in the tunes, rather than whitewashing the performances in the editing process. The result is that the blood sweat and tears that went into the music truly comes across in the playing. As far as the tunes go, repeated listening reveals the fineness of detail contained in this music. The drums seem to change patterns every eight bars or so. Shawn Eldridge is one of the fiercest drummers I know of in metal at present. His drumming sounds truly unhinged and apoplectic. And the riffs are always blistering. The third track, "Dragmarks", is one of the best death metal tunes I’ve heard in recent memory. My favorite part in the entire record might be the riff immediately following the three minute marker in "Dragmarks", because it sounds like the band is about to go careening off of a cliff. Graves of Ceaseless Death is a beast of a record, a tremendously impressive full length debut. One can only imagine how this band will ramp things up going forward.

[Check out Bryan's playing in Bloody Panda and Traducer]

Krypts - Remnants of Expansion

By Craig Hayes. It’s been a few years since we’ve heard from Finnish death and doom metal necromancers Krypts. But here they are again, crawling from the black-hearted catacombs with their grimmer-than-grim new album, Remnants of Expansion. I’ve never understood why Krypts' storming debut, 2013's Unending Degradation, isn’t raved about more often.

By Craig Hayes.

Artwork by Timo Ketola

It’s been a few years since we’ve heard from Finnish death and doom metal necromancers Krypts. But here they are again, crawling from the black-hearted catacombs with their grimmer-than-grim new album, Remnants of Expansion. I’ve never understood why Krypts' storming debut, 2013's Unending Degradation, isn’t raved about more often. That album was released by Dark Descent Records, which is a sure sign of commanding metal, and we all know those fiendish Finns are adept at mixing tar-thick doom with crushing death metal. More to the point, Unending Degradation oozed corruption, and like the music of fellow Finnish doom henchmen Hooded Menace, Krypts' songs feature a spine-chilling tempo and tenor that eclipses many of their peers.

Still, I guess there’s something to be said for cult music made by a cult band only ending up the in hands of the most fervent cultists. In any case, Remnants of Expansion is here now, and it wrenches open the gateways to Lovecraftian terror once again. It’s a steep dive into archaic horrors straight away too. Album opener, "Arrow of Entropy", is a supremely dark and atmospheric trudge under endlessly overcast skies. At 11-minutes long, "Arrow of Entropy" is an epic opening gambit as well. But Krypts have no problem filling the track with extremely heavy and hypnotic hooks.

More melodic and monolithic charnel house riffs await on "The Withering Titan". And "Entrailed to the Breaking Wheel" and "Transfixed" are both hulking and bulldozing in equal measure too. If you're a fan of Scandi death metal, then you'll love the mountain of vintage tone, texture, and weight on all the album's tracks. And mixing mortuary leads with mournful refrains keeps the rack and ruin of doom ever-present as well.

There’s an impenetrable density to Remnants of Expansion that's intimidating too. The album’s riffs, courtesy of six-string mage Ville Snicker, and fellow new(ish) guitarist Jukka Aho, are ultra-grim and gargantuan. But those riffs are made all the more wretched and foul as the two guitarists slowly wring every torturous ounce of despair out of them. Vocalist and bassist Antti Kotiranta growls with all the torment and fanatical madness you’d expect from the clergy of the damned. And Otso Ukkonen’s pounding drums provide the all-important doomsday tempo. Add all that up, and there's no question that Remnants of Expansion brings the heavyweight ambience of classic esoteric death metal. But the claustrophobic air of otherworldly forces steadily closing in plays a big role here too.

Obviously, Finland is home to celebrated death and/or doom metal icons like Demigod, Convulse, Thergothon, Reverend Bizarre, and Skepticism. Musically, Krypts are a different breed to those aforementioned bands. But they do bring a similarly solemn sense of gravity. Certainly, Remnants of Expansion is not a shallow or immediate album. And that’s no deficit. There's way too much cookie-cutter death metal out there, and albums like Remnants of Expansion offer a crucial alternative by ensuring that the Devil really is in the details.

Remnants of Expansion is an album to wallow in. Krypts’ slow and steady subterranean dirges divulge more secrets and evoke more menace the deeper you explore them. So get digging into Remnants of Expansion’s earth-quaking murk. Let the corruption take hold. Let the sepulchral insanity reign. Amen.

Dark Descent Spotlight: Blood Incantation, Nox Formulae, and Ghoulgotha

By Craig Hayes. Colorado-based label Dark Descent celebrated its 7th anniversary recently, and while there are plenty of other great underground metal labels around, it’s rare to find one

By Craig Hayes.

Colorado-based label Dark Descent celebrated its 7th anniversary recently, and while there are plenty of other great underground metal labels around, it’s rare to find one that’s sustained such a consistently impressive run of releases over the years. Dark Descent’s success obviously owes a lot to the astute curating of its roster, but it’s also worth noting that the label’s never bought into trends or fostered any unnecessary drama in order to sell a few more records from yesterday's favourite band. That’s meant Dark Descent has maintained a reputation for delivering authentic music from authoritative artists. And that’s certainly true of the three releases below.


There’s been a great deal of online praise orbiting Blood Incantation since the death metal band released their Interdimensional Extinction EP back in 2015. It’d be fair to say Blood Incantation don’t sound like a band who really care about a bunch of ‘internet’ opinions, as such. They're analog, old school, and more otherworldly than digitally hip. But they’re going to have to get used to hearing a lot of online praise nonetheless, because the band’s much-anticipated full-length debut, Starspawn, is here, and come 2016's end of year list season, that album is going to be talked about a lot.

No question, Starspawn is one of this year’s best metal releases. It’s murky and filthy, and features chaotic abstractions and musical madness taking a 35-minute rocket ship ride into the farthest reaches of outer space, and steep dive into the deepest depths of your own minds too. Starspawn stands out in death metal’s rotten ranks because it sounds utterly unique, and while Blood Incantation have an uglier and more violent sound than death metal legends like Gorguts or Atheist, Blood Incantation have clearly been inspired by those band’s innovational approaches.

The dark void between the stars seems to be a catalyst for Blood Incantation’s creativity, and the band draws a connection between us and the wider cosmos. However, Blood Incantation also deal in the, “inner world of endless dimensions, astral projection, telepathy, remote viewing, walk-in souls, etc”. So their vision is a far cry from stock-standard death metal scenarios.

In essence, Blood Incantation underscore that death metal doesn’t have to be a blunt conceptual instrument. And their cryptic cosmic aesthetic is matched by mind-melting music that smashes open portals to…well, pick your own deranged dimension/destination.

Starspawn is built on a skeleton of macabre vocals and churning old school death metal; and in that sense Blood Incantation’s music is primitive and battering. But the band also hurl complex technical flourishes in amongst doomier and more ambient passages, which brings elaborate –– and I’m guessing, bong-fuelled –– progressive elements to the fore.

There’s jaw-dropping instrumentation and imaginativeness exhibited throughout Starspawn. Welcome to the death metal album to beat this year.

Mysterious Greek black metal band Nox Formulae consider their debut album, The Hidden Paths to Black Ecstasy, to be, “a true sonic grimoire...equal to an actual book of Dark Magic”. I’m guessing that’s good news, if occult communiqués matter to you, but even if they don’t, it’s certainly clear that Nox Formulae are deadly serious about their diabolic mission.

Musically, the band follows a fitting path to deliver their dark missives on The Hidden Paths to Black Ecstasy. Nox Formulae’s sound is orthodox, solemn, and even heavily gothic in parts, but it’s most obviously indebted to the raw tremolo and treble attack of black metal’s second wave. Expect pitch-black melodies, an icy atmosphere, lacerating riffs, and a fair few spine-chilling moments on The Hidden Paths to Black Ecstasy. But Nox Formulae’s real talent lies in getting under the skin.

That’s no easy feat these days. Metal is drowning in more-evil-then-evil posturing, and supposedly ‘satanic’ bands are now winning Grammys. But Nox Formulae shape ritualistic rites into insidious odes. They write songs that worm and worry at the edges of your psyche. And their tracks linger in the mind, tempting you to return.

The Hidden Paths to Black Ecstasy is a deep dark well of music and esoterica. It has all the hallmarks of classic Hellenic black metal, with its power to unnerve while unlocking forbidden secrets. A rare and devilish treat, indeed.

Cover art by Mattias Frisk.

To Starve the Cross is the second full-length album from Southern Californian death metal trio Ghoulgotha. The album is markedly off-kilter, and atonal, but for all it’s eccentricities, To Starve the Cross never becomes lost in its own self-importance.

Like Finnish gloom-mongers Hooded Menace (Ghoulgotha’s most obvious peers), there is a heaped helping of graveyard insanity to Ghoulgotha’s music. To Starve the Cross certainly tips its hat to classic horror themes, and Ghoulgotha inject a heavy dose of aptly vintage and black-hearted doom into their death metal. But while that’s all a mix of metal motifs very well-acquainted with each other, Ghoulgotha are still adept at delivering the unexpected on To Starve the Cross.

Ghoulgotha twist and turn their songs on the album inside out –– launching into bursts of impressively technical riffing, only to excoriate that with a wall of noise. Ghoulgotha take those doom and death metal tropes we’ve heard a million times before and deliver an album that’s familiarly barbaric, in one sense, but entirely idiosyncratic and unconventional in another.

Phobocosm - Bringer of Drought

By Justin C. If I've learned anything in my brief stint as a metal writer, I've learned that when people describe metal as being "atmospheric," it could mean anything or nothing: maybe it just has some quiet/slow spots, maybe it's more melodic than usual, or maybe it's just peppered with some white noise or field recordings.

By Justin C.


If I've learned anything in my brief stint as a metal writer, I've learned that when people describe metal as being "atmospheric," it could mean anything or nothing: maybe it just has some quiet/slow spots, maybe it's more melodic than usual, or maybe it's just peppered with some white noise or field recordings. Phobocosm, on the other hand, embody atmospheric on their latest, Bringer of Drought. Sure, they use some of the tricks of the trade I mentioned, but more than that, they earn it the hard way: by making the music ooze atmosphere with every note and controlling its build and fall with a deft and delicate touch rarely heard in death metal.

Phobocosm 2014. Photo by Carmelo Española.

For one thing, Phobocosm is great with portion control (which, sadly, most of us Americans are not so skilled at). This is slow, doomy death metal about the end of the world, but the songs are eight, nine, and even six minutes long. Where are the endless, 24-minute slog-fests about the apocalypse? Not here. (The closing track is a long-for-this-album twelve minutes, but I'll come back to why that works so well later.) The opening track, "Engulfing Dust," starts out with a simple, melancholy riff accompanied by the sound of a hot, drying wind. A counterpoint riff joins in, and ultimately the song really starts to rumble with the entrance of the rhythm section. But none of this drags--there are no "Riff 1, repeat 120 times" scrawled on their music. It's a perfectly balanced, two-minute build into the song proper. It's hypnotizing, and they manage this over the course of the whole album. The first time I listened to this album, I played it twice back to back, mesmerized.

Phobocosm 2014. Photo by Carmelo Española.

If the opening track seems like not quite enough to be "real" death metal, don't worry. There's plenty of fury to come in the next tracks, often driven by the excellent bass and drums, pushing the riffs along in waves, which is particularly appropriate for a song called "Tidal Scourge." Both of the middle tracks are great, but that album closer, "Fallen," is a perfect gem. The hypnotic, alternating-note riff that starts the song is revisited, built on, and woven throughout with painstaking craftsmanship. The song is always moving, even if it's done subtly, ultimately to the end and back to its opening riff, punctuated by the lines, "Hide in shame / Limp in pain / End in flames / Fallen." In what might be characterized as the one bit of excess here, the track ends with a bit less than a minute of crackling white noise, but on the other hand, maybe that's appropriate for a song detailing someone's exile from society--and in fact the dissolution of society itself--ending the journey with lonely static from a radio receiving no signal.

Tyranny - Aeons in Tectonic Interment

By Kevin Page. If you don't know of the band or never got a chance to hear their debut, that's okay, we're in the same boat. It was after all, a decade ago (2005) when they unleashed their debut, Tides of Awakening on the currently defunct Firedoom Music label. Now, brought seemingly back to life via Dark Descent Records, Aeons in Tectonic Interment is here to swallow you into it's madness.

By Kevin Page.


If you don't know of the band or never got a chance to hear their debut, that's okay, we're in the same boat. It was after all, a decade ago (2005) when they unleashed their debut, Tides of Awakening on the currently defunct Firedoom Music label. Now, brought seemingly back to life via Dark Descent Records, Aeons in Tectonic Interment is here to swallow you into it's madness.

This is a two piece band from Finland featuring Lauri Lindquist (vocals, bass, keyboards) and Matti Mäkelä (guitars, vocals, samples). You may know of Matti from his other bands, Corpsessed and Profetus. I'm going to try and forgo the obvious and not harp upon the fact that this is slow, repetitive and drawn out. I mean, it's funeral doom, those are trademarks of the genre, there's no getting past that. The barrier to entry isn't an easy one to overcome for a lot of people. But there's something about this album that just might pique the interest of those that would normally be hesitant to dive in. A menacing chaotic dirge with an extra layer of grimy evilness pervades all 51 minutes of its runtime. And heck, a funeral doom album under an hour could help the impatient crowd a bit.

The lead track, "Sunless Deluge", lumbers on as you would generally expect for its first 9 minutes before weaving in a ultra heavy yet eloquent guitar pattern for its final 90 seconds, giving you a sense of rebirth and hope. But that optimism is quickly smashed to pieces once the follow up kicks in, "A Voice Given unto Ruin". To play off the album title, it feels like the plates of the earth are slowing opening, while you get sucked into its endless void. My favorite track would be "The Stygian Enclave", whose midsection just emanates a moody nothingness thanks to its use of wonderfully placed keyboards. Overall this tune seems to encapsulate the whole sound and feel of the record. Even though I'm a fan of this style of metal, most funeral doom bands don't really have these moments in songs that you can point to or remember. Aeons in Tectonic Interment bucks this trend, while staying true to what it is.

Crypt Sermon - Out of the Garden

By Kevin Page. Solitude Aeturnus haven't released a new album since 2006. Candlemass released their final studio album in 2012. So if you're a fan of that brand of doom, what do you do?

By Kevin Page.

Cover art by Brooks Wilson

Solitude Aeturnus haven't released a new album since 2006. Candlemass released their final studio album in 2012. So if you're a fan of that brand of doom, what do you do? The only answer is, besides lamenting this sad fact, start your own band! Hailing from Philadelphia, PA and featuring members of Trenchrot, Grass, Ashencult, Infiltrator and Hivelords, these five guys have swung for the fences and hit a proverbial grand slam (Holy tired cliché alert Batman).

Right from the opening riff you'll get an 80's flashback, but not in a "hey, let's mimic the past" but a genuine warm and fuzzy feeling of metal that you may have heard when growing up (assuming you're an old fart like myself - hey, yet another unoriginal idiom). It doesn't stay a retro fest either like many acts these days. You can hear the musicians own individual flair interwoven throughout, which helps give the band their own identity.

Let's talk about vocalist, Brooks Wilson. This is his first attempt at these type of soaring clean vocals. Listen and try and wrap your head around that for a minute. How was he not doing this many years ago? Did he suddenly wake up one day and say, "let's try this"? I dunno, I'm just glad he decided to and we get to go along for the ride. Now mind you, he doesn't sound like Messiah Marcolin (who does?) nor Rob Lowe either, He fits the mold of what you want for this type of music but with some added bite. I know that's hardly a profound description but he is his own man and defies drawing a specific comparison to anyone in his field. Original while being traditional enough.

I like the fact that this isn't one dimensional doom either. Sure they have the heavy drawn out majestic parts, but this is also balanced with your uptempo kick you in the nuts, punch you in the face sections. The solos rip, the cymbals crash, the riffs gallop. You can tell this isn't a bunch of rookies trying their hand at what they think is a flavor of the month.

Yes, the current trend with doom bands are the 60-70 minute albums and that's a barrier for some people. But what we have here are 7 songs spaced out over 43 minutes, ranging from 5 to 8 minutes in length, its actually a fairly easy entry point. It also strikes a near perfect balance between giving traditional doom fans what they want (songs that build tension and then erupt) without wasting any needless time. Therein lies what very well may be the true genius of this album.

Frankly I can't recommend this album enough. I'm genuinely excited about what this band can ultimately become, as they will only get better with more time together and the ability to further put their own stamp on this brand of doom.

Desolate Shrine - The Heart of the Netherworld

Written by Kevin Page.

Cover art by L.L. from Desolate Shrine.

I've noticed a trend with these Finn's. 1st album - 46 minutes, 2nd album - 55 minutes and now their 3rd album, The Heart of the Netherworld, clocks in at 63 minutes. Don't be fooled, the band hasn't gone soft or introspective by any stretch of the imagination. This is dark, punishing Finnish death metal right from the get-go. If you enjoyed any of the bands previous work, you'll feel right at home. If they are new to you, there's no better jumping in point.

In a unique twist, the band is comprised of 3 members: LL, who handles all musical duties, RS on vocals (also a member of Lie in Ruins) and ML on vocals. The dual vocal approach might go unnoticed if you are not paying attention, as there isn't a huge variation in styles. But upon closer inspection you'll hear a deeper growl and a slighter higher shriek. Ultimately I think its something that works on a more subconscious level than anything else, providing a bit of variety.

Musically this is a lengthy record to digest since it's layered, diverse and artfully crafted. Most bands of this ilk would be fine churning out the standard 3-5 minute songs. But Desolate Shrine eschews that idea by spitting forth ones ranging from 6 to 14 minutes. And none of these numbers waste any time with multiple minutes of just pure atmosphere or ambiance to "pad" their length. Each track rumbles along like a expertly designed out of control wooden roller coaster at night in some abandoned amusement park in the middle of nowhere. The main guitars are loud and meaty, the production is superb (with just enough filth), and the serene melodic guitars underneath the brutality really allow you to digest all of the madness properly.

While I have enjoyed the bands previous efforts, The Heart of the Netherworld ups their game considerably, and is simply their finest work to date. A must listen.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

EP madness

By Kevin Page. Belgian black/death outfit, Possession, stormed out of the hellfire gates last year with their His Best Deceit demo. While not anything overly original, it was well done and convincing enough for me to put them on my radar for future releases.

By Kevin Page.

Cover art by Thorncross.

Belgian black/death outfit, Possession, stormed out of the hellfire gates last year with their His Best Deceit demo. While not anything overly original, it was well done and convincing enough for me to put them on my radar for future releases. Well, they haven't wasted any time and are back with a new 2 song EP, titled Anneliese. Without giving up an ounce of their furious nature, they demonstrate how restraint can make your music even more potent. They've mixed it up with slower tempos and catchier material while the reverberating demonic vocals are even more bombastic. I'm a huge stickler for the drum sound on most releases, and the very "live" feel and just that "slap" of the drum here really tickles my fancy. Very impressive.

England's Binah released their debut album, Hallucinating in Resurrecture, in 2012. While I appreciated the style (old school death metal with the Entombed guitar tone) it wasn't something that ever stuck with me or made me want to break out for repeated listens. I enjoyed it, I just wasn't ga-ga. Which brings us to the new 12 minute EP, A Triad of Plagues. Definitely a step up from their past material. Far more memorable and a band that sounds much more comfortable with their style. They retained the same sound you heard on the debut, but refined it and made it just a wee hair less suffocating. Good to see a band 'up their game'.

Furious Scandinavian-esque black metal from Greece. Septuagint reminds me of mid era Marduk. Lots of frantic blasting but with more tempo breaks than you would expect. This is where the band really makes their mark and separates themselves from just being another ferocious black metal blitzkrieg. And when they slow down you can hear the atmospheric guitar tone that almost has a post black metal feel to it. Don't be alarmed though as the material is neither of those two previously mentioned styles. If it makes you feel any better, there's a bassist in the band, but in typical black metal fashion, you can't even tell.

Artwork by Profanum.

Metal Archives lists this as a demo. The band call it a promo. Bandcamp calls it an album. I'm going with EP as that suits this post. Raw, filthy, vicious, and bestial death metal from New Zealand. This sits somewhere between Heresiarch/Diocletian and Impetuous Ritual/Grave Upheaval. The production sounds like it was recorded in your garage in the early 90's, but that only adds to it charm. If you've never heard of any of the bands I just mentioned, I'd proceed with caution before listening. If those bands tickle your fancy, then Vesicant is another band to add to your 'must listen' list.

Emptiness - Nothing but the Whole

Written by Kevin Page.


My introduction to this Belgium black/death metal outfit came via 2012's, Error. While not a bad album, it never quite grabbed hold and swept me off my feet. They weren't able to fully encapsulate what they were attempting to convey. The approach was different, I respected that, and it contained enough intriguing ideas that I was willing to give future albums a listen.

Well that future album turns out to be one of 2014's best releases, Nothing But the Whole (once again being released on Dark Descent Records). This is a record that is as equally good as it is different and interesting. There isn't a single thing "typical" about Nothing But the Whole (vocally, musically, production, etc.). While Error hinted at what Emptiness were going for (and only partially succeeding), Nothing But the Whole, swings for the fences and connects.

Now be forewarned, this album is odd in its approach and not traditional by any means. Will this turn off a few people who are impatient? Probably, but its well worth your time to allow it to sink in over the course of many weeks or months. As I write this review I'm still discovering new things I haven't heard before.

You won't be steamrolled or run over like a freight train. What the band has accomplished is the ability to take you on an alternate journey along what seems to be a well treaded path (but really isn't). It will comfortably stray a few yards away in the bushes on the side of the road, almost ready to jump back on the known path, but never does. It deliberately wants to tease you. You'll experience plenty of moments where you think "Ok, they are gonna kick it into high gear here", yet they don't. Again, this may frustrate some people in our instant gratification world but patience and restraint pays off in the end.

Over the course of its 7 songs and 39 minute run time, you will experience a swirling mass of dark atmosphere. You'll hear background chatter as if you were walking on a busy city street. You'll be hypnotized and mesmerized, yet like everything else about this album, not in a way you would expect.

Death metal with a twist. A grower, not a shower. Immolation if they took a "chill pill" and got all trippy and spaced out on your ass. Whatever you want to call it, just get this album.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

Thantifaxath - Thantifaxath

By Andy Osborn. Flying completely under the metallic radar, Thantifaxath quietly released their debut 12-inch at the end of 2011, which made it too late to appear on just about every annual best-of list. But after stumbling across it

By Andy Osborn.

Photo by Nicéphore Niépce

Flying completely under the metallic radar, Thantifaxath quietly released their debut 12-inch at the end of 2011, which made it too late to appear on just about every annual best-of list. But after stumbling across it a few months after it came out it quickly became one of my favorite releases of that year. The unknown members hide their identity and perform live with countenance-covering robes to obscure their ages and genders; an increasingly popular trend among groups who eschew the modernity of social media and "celebrity" worship.

But within seconds of the first proper track, it's clear this isn't your neighborhood undergound kvlt collective. "Violently Expanding Emptiness" opens with one of the most memorable intros in recent memory. Not only is the bass audible, it's catchy and clean; lending its voice as a guiding force in the sonic onslaught. And this theme continues as you slowly realize the vocals are understandable - though without losing any of the chaotic depravity as is the norm in the genre. The EP continues to confound as it works its way through the next ten minutes, expanding on the beautifully non-canon sound with guitar solos, precision atonality and punishing yet unique percussion.

They fuse their melodic rhythms with odd time signatures and an experimental sheen reminiscent of Deathspell Omega, giving the finger to simplistic black metal that would make the complex French hordes proud. They may have only four recorded tracks to their name, but these clandestine Torontonians have shown a proficiency and sound unparalleled in the sea of North American black metal. With no online presence it's tough to say what the future holds for the band, but a recent live performance of a new song promises there is much more up their dark, flowing sleeves.

Maveth - Coils of the Black Earth

Written by Natalie Zina Walschots. Originally published here by Exclaim.

Artwork by Daniel Desecrator

Active since 2007, releasing an EP, demo and appearing on the Breath of an Abomination compilation, Finnish blackened death metal band Maveth have finally released their debut full-length, Coils of the Black Earth. While the thick, muscular riffing that dominates is reminiscent of the finest Finnish and Scandinavian death metal, frontman Christbutcher is a U.S. expat and his influence is keenly felt in the occasional grooves in the song structures and sour, acerbic tones. Elements of American and Scandinavian death metal are woven together expertly throughout this record. The vocals are a high point, delivered in a monstrous roar that sounds more believable coming from the throat of a 600-lbs. grizzly than a human man. The songs lumber forward, statelier than the frantic blasts of the drums would suggest, and the violence the tracks perpetrate is more inexorable and deliberate than frenzied. In a genre that's often oversaturated, Maveth have created a slab of death metal that remains as fresh and fertile as the black earth it ostensibly crawled forth from.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

The budget conscious death metal connoisseur can find Coils of the Black Earth a little cheaper here.

Thantifaxath - Sacred White Noise

By Justin C. A few years ago, a friend of a friend gleefully proclaimed that they found a "wrong note" in a U2 song. It was in one of the songs off their 2009 album No Line on the Horizon. I didn't press him on the details--he was the kind of person who

By Justin C.


A few years ago, a friend of a friend gleefully proclaimed that they found a "wrong note" in a U2 song. It was in one of the songs off their 2009 album No Line on the Horizon. I didn't press him on the details--he was the kind of person who fancied himself a music scholar, but really only had enough knowledge to be dangerous. His statement made me chuckle for a couple of reasons. The album probably had a production budget the same size of the entire Apollo Space Program with at least 100 times the computing power available, so the idea that an unintended note would somehow end up in the finished product is hard to believe. On a broader level, the idea that a some notes are "wrong" is a funny idea, even if it's common among less-adventurous music consumers. I'm guessing that U2 threw a slightly dissonant note in somewhere, and it was made all the more jarring to my acquaintance because, as a pop band, U2 typically stays well within the vanilla of musical sounds.

Of course, metal knows no such fears of dissonance, and Thantifaxath's new album, Sacred White Noise, demonstrates this handily. The first few seconds of the opening track, "The Bright White Nothing at the End of the Tunnel", gives you a hint of what you're in for. It sounds like the organ soundtrack of a merry-go-round sped up to 10 times its normal speed, and when the first guitar riff kicks in shortly thereafter, its restless dissonance wanders in that realm where music and mathematics intersect. It's a great, satisfying line, but it's jarring and cerebral at the same time. if you're worried there won't be enough black metal, don't be. There's plenty of blast beating and tremoloing to go around, and the vocals are raspy, full-throated, and actually understandable for the most part. But everything is always just a little bit off in the best way possible.

Therein lies Thantifaxath's brilliance. There's always a delicate balance between the immediately satisfying and the bizarre. "Gasping in Darkness" may start with the most evil-sounding Gregorian chant ever, with voices slowly drifting in and out of unison, but when the main rift kicks in, it's an immediately likeable bit of blackened doom made just a bit odd by the changing meter it's played over. The mournful, beautiful strings that open the closing track, "Lost in Static Between Worlds", help balance the hyper-frenzied guitar freakout in the middle of the song. The music is cerebral, but with plenty of emotional gut punches to absorb along the way.

Thantifaxath probably won't be the most dissonant thing you've ever heard. There are always bands like Jute Gyte, with their "We Will Use All the Notes Inbetween the Notes!" approach to occupy the outer edges of what music can be. But Thantifaxath balances the avant garde with more familiar territory, even if it's always just a bit out of focus, giving us an album with plenty of intellectual depth to pour over, but with an immediacy that keeps the whole affair from being exhausting. Their previous EP hinted at this, but as good as that EP is, Sacred White Noise is a quantum leap forward.

Things you might have missed.

Written by Kevin Page.


Punishing French flamenco death metallers return with a 2 song EP, along with a new lineup. If you enjoyed their debut as much as I did (2010's La Iglesia del Odio), then you will surely find lots to love here. Without losing an ounce of their brutal death metal approach, they smartly integrated even more flamenco aspects, which can only help separate them from the countless hordes of bands these days. Let's hope this is a sign of even more new music from them in 2014.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

Whiplash has been plugging away with their brand of thrash since 1984. Their third album, 1990's Insult to Injury, is my personal favorite thrash album of all time. So naturally I've been anxiously awaiting some new material, as their last release was in 2009. Finally we are graced with a single from the upcoming EP, Old School American Way, Volume 1. Sword Meet Skull, Skull Meet Sword was released back in June with no mention of when the EP is actually due (or how many songs it will have). So in the meantime we just have to enjoy a basic, catchy, quality Whiplash tune.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

While we await a new full length in 2014 from these Canadian masters of swirling death metal chaos, we at least have a two song EP to wet our appetite. Picking up right where 2011's Parasignosis left off, its 12+ minutes of brain dizzying madness barbarism. Does this sound even more sinister than they usually do? I think so.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

I love death/doom as much as the next guy, but let's face it, each day brings a seemingly a new band into the fray with a 60+ minute album. My real life commitments prevent me from really absorbing too many of those types of ditties these days (especially since I need repeated listens to accurately judge the product). So it's completely refreshing that Orlando, FL's Druid Lord eschew that notion. They have yet to write a song longer than six minutes. It's death/doom but it gets to the point. After releasing their debut album, Hymns for the Wicked in 2010, they have been busy with three splits and now their second EP, Baron Blood. Featuring their slowest material to date (yet not treading as far into funeral doom as you would imagine), these two songs are the perfect soundtrack to a horror film torture scene. It truly does feel like a rotted corpse has crawled from the earth to terrorize the living [Note: The two songs on the EP are not available together, they must be bought separately].

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

Imprecation - Satanae Tenebris Infinita

Written by Steven Leslie

Cover art by Chris Moyen

Imprecation has finally released their debut full length 22 years after forming. The band released a couple of cherished demos and an EP before disbanding in 1998. Anyone interested in checking out the band’s early works can find them all collected on the compilation Theurgia Goetia Summa. The band announced their return in 2009, leaving underground death metal fans salivating until the release of Satanae Tenebris Infinita via Dark Descent in 2013.

Photo by Carmelo Española.

Their first full length follows the template laid out on their early works, but with a renewed sense of spite and vigor. The easiest reference point for what this sounds like would be Incantation, a band who needs no introduction to fans of blasphemous underground death metal. Eschewing the technical precision of modern day death metal in favor of a demented and sinister atmosphere, this album takes you back to the days when death metal was more about feel rather than who could play the fastest or most intricate riffs. And what a feeling it is.

Photo by Carmelo Española.

Roaring out of the gates with the unrelenting violence of "Blood Dominion", the aural bludgeoning hardly ever gives the listener any chance to breathe. While the tempo varies between speedy dirges to more mid pace stomps, each song hits like a 10-ton brick to the face. Those who like their death metal filled with killer riffs will find plenty to enjoy on this nine-track beast. There are also some tasty solos thrown in to spice things up. Never self indulgent, they fit perfectly into the songs and rarely ever overstay their welcome. The subtle use of synths also aid in creating a harrowingly sinister atmosphere. Death metal bands take note; this is how you use synths without degenerating into the realm of cheesy pompous self-indulgence. The vocals don’t offer that much variety, but Dave Herrara’s (also of black metal bands Bahimiron and Morbus 666) guttural emanations fit perfectly within the bands sonic framework. The production on this album is quite fitting. It is clean enough to make out each instrument without sacrificing any of Imprecation’s sinister atmosphere. Fans of sepulchral death metal rejoice because Imprecation has put out an album worthy of their hallowed legacy. Let’s just hope it doesn’t take another 15 years until we hear from them again.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

Paroxsihzem - Paroxsihzem

Written by Atanamar Sunyata.

Art by Krag from Paroxsihzem

I’m a sucker for guitar tone. The right shade of raging will draw me into an album; the right riffs will make me stick around. On their debut full-length, Paroxsihzem roll out a sound that inhabits a buzzing, balmy circle of hell. The guitars recall the distinct distortion of Tom G. Warrior and the warm swarming of Amon Amarth. The milieu is death and the attitude is bestial; I think you get the picture.

Paroxsihzem are astoundingly heavy at any speed. Bulbous riffs burst with catchy crunch as they twitch in spasmodic bursts. The beefy blasting is far more engaging than the average death sprint. The drums are particularly enjoyable, benefiting from a sound that reflects nicely off of the pungent guitar tone. Paroxsihzem is seething with chaotic fury; this is the rallying cry of an army bent on bloodshed. The incomprehensibly irate vocals are executed with the cadence of a youthful Chris Barnes, enhancing the album’s crazed character.

Paroxsihzem utilize the cryptic-soundclip-as-extra-band-member schtick; it works quite well. This device on top of a grinding-death smorgasbord is evocative of Dragged into Sunlight’s Hatred for Mankind. In fact, this is how I wish a follow up to that album might have sounded. Paroxsihzem is printed without lyrics, so any inherent message is obscured; I’m happy to walk away from the album with a massive, mindless rage-on.

I’ve had Paroxsihzem in rotation since Dark Descent unleashed its magnificence upon the postal system last year. It was quite rightly amongst my favorite albums of 2012.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]