A short but spritely week all in all, compensating for the low amount of releases with some serious bursts of energy.
Abaddon Incarnate – The Wretched Sermon
Genre: Death metal/grindcore
Subjective rating: 3,5/5
Objective rating: 3,5/5
This is no-nonsense, rage-induced death metal of the fast and concise variant. The drums are hyperactive and there’s plenty of meat to the riffs. The tone is consistently sinister, just don’t expect anything out of the ordinary.
Amon Amarth – The Great Heathen Army
Genre: Melodic death/folk metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3/5
You’re never really in doubt of what to expect from an Amon Amarth album, although there are subtle differences in the flavor each time around. On this they’ve gone in a more NWOBHM-direction, focusing on memorable melodic riffs and choruses without getting overly anthemic like on some of their previous records. It succeeds to a certain degree, seeing them explore new, more nuanced approaches to structure and variation. A fair deal of aggression and intensity has been lost in the process though, so don’t expect an all out adrenaline rush. A couple of highlights would be “The Serpent’s trail” and “The Great Heathen Army”.
Bong-Ra – Meditations
Genre: Ambient doom
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5
This is all threatening, contemplative, bass dominated ambience with a zest of disharmonic guitars and sax. It moves at the pace of a glacier, so prepare to lower your heartbeat.
Carrion Vael – Abhorrent Obsessions
Genre: Technical/melodic death metal/deathcore
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
This one’s like a shot of pure adrenaline. The speed and intensity on here is such that you’d think the band members’ lives depended on it. But even as the guitars and drums rage, everything’s neatly under control. It’s structured and precise, standing with one foot in the melodeath camp and one within deathcore, sounding like a blend of Black Dahlia Murder and Shadow of Intent. They don’t quite deliver the same level of variation and innovation, but fans of those bands should dig this. Try “Disturbia” and “King of the Rhine”.
Dub War – Westgate Under Fire
Genre: Rap metal/hardcore/reggae
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Ready for a mix of rap, grunge, hard rock, punk and reggae? There aren’t any huge, standout tracks on here, but it’s entertaining all the way through, and their style suits this level of genre fluidity.
Early Moods – Early Moods
Genre: Hard rock/doom
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
A grooved up version of your classic cemetery doom, this is packed with old school hard rock riffs without losing any of the gloomy attitude. The melodies are not the most memorable, which is one of the few things holding it back.
Ether Coven – The Relationship Between The Hammer And The Nail
Genre: Sludge/doom metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5
This one initially struck me as a death doom album, and it’s certainly brutal enough. But the brutality has a different, starker quality to it – rooted in hardcore and sludge. To contrast it the band offers up lamenting atmospheric sections that bleed sadness and wrap the entire soundscape in a dark veil. They’re really well composed and feel like deserved stretches of calm amid the harshness. The sound overall is rich and deep, lending a suitable gravity to the experience. Give it a go with “god Hates Flags” and “The Warmth of Your Bathwater”.
Fearsore – Bloedwyrx (EP)
Genre: Experimental electronic/industrial metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5
A writhing digital worm inhabiting a doomsday device with speakers. It’s weird and unsettling.
Grave Bathers – Rock ‘N’ Roll Fetish
Genre: Hard rock/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
An intentionally janky and jammy classic metal album with a hard rock streak and some tongue-in-cheek doom gloom. The production is thin and a bit tinny, relying on the vigor of the vocal- and instrumental performances to bring the punch. Which they sort of do, but it never reaches a level beyond retro charm for me.
H.E.A.T. – Force Majeure
Genre: Power/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 1/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5
Bottom-level Eurovision lyrics, overproduced and completely reliant on the vocal performances to get it absolutely anywhere.
Liminal Shroud – All Virtues Ablaze
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5
This band is really on to something with this one. The atmospheric sections are epically somber – wanting to travel to places far away to witness dark wonders. So when the blast beats and tremolo hits it almost feels like an interruption. Some more work on their composing skills and I reckon they’ll serve up something great in a few years.
Psycroptic – Divine Council
Genre: Technical death/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5
In a subgenre that is even more notorious than prog for putting its bloated-to-the-breaking-point instrumental talent on full display, it’s not too easy to stand out. Psycroptic does just that, and makes it sound easy. The thrash-infused, groovy riffs that are allowed to dominate and push the progression of the songs are so energetic they practically radiate enthusiasm. More importantly, they instantly provide standout character and an anchor to hold on to as the rest of the performances rage like a hurricane around them. The sound is crisp rather than full, and the entire album sounds focused, which is rare for this kind of stuff. Jump on with “A Fool’s Errand” and “Enslavement”.
Savage Master – Those Who Hunt At Night
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5
When trying to stand out in the extremely well tried and tested genre of classic heavy metal you better be damn confident in your style. That seems to be no problem for this gang – incorporating a very particular amount of janky into their production and theatrics. It serves as an effective contrast to their highly competent instrumental performances and matches the pretend-solemn unholy theme they have going on. They play around with the song pacing to allow the music to breathe, which creates an organic dynamic but also slows things down a bit. Still, a strong contender for the doomy heavy metal crowd.
Shuriken Cadaveric Entwinement – Constructing The Cataclysm
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
A modern death metal offering bordering on tech death territory, where the hyperactive drum work outshines – and outpaces – everything else. They’ve got some maturing to do before landing on something truly memorable.
Soulfly – Totem
Genre: Groove/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5
With all the projects Max Cavalera has going on these days it can get a little difficult remembering what exactly each one is supposed to sound like. But who cares as long as it sounds as good as this. It’s the thrashiest I’ve heard the band in a while, and it suits them beautifully, as the material radiates a to-the-point aggressive energy that keeps the groove motor revving all the way throughout. Sprinkling on some spicy guest performances and layering it all with those trademark tribal beats, squeals and effects, this is one flavorful beast. Dig into “Filth Upon Filth” and “Spirit Animal”.
Toxik – Dis Morta
Genre: Melodic thrash metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Thrash metal is usually quite virtuosic, but this takes it a step further, venturing into proggy territory with prolonged guitar solo work and odd combinations of spacy effects, shrieking vocals and disharmonic melodies, yet quite traditional rhythms.
Turian – No Longer Human
Genre: Experimental groove metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
This is a cool combination of groove metal proficiency, hardcore sense of urgency and a penchant for the jarring. The vocals on here are harsh to the point of being grating, and constantly wants to punch with the beat. Every now and then the musical progression skips onto a completely different path to explore hitherto unfamiliar territory. This brings with it a host of different moods ranging from jubilant to depressive. It’s an album you gotta be prepared for in order to fully enjoy, but with the right attitude, you will. Get a taste with “Snakehead” and “Narcissus”.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
The Metal Dispatch 