The riff is king this week, with a slew of releases vying for your utmost appreciation of their guitar-based escapades.
The Arcane Order – Distortions From Cosmogony
Genre: Technical/symphonic death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
An apocalyptic barrage of technicality and drama, not wholly unlike Fleshgod Apocalypse, but more taken with progressive instrumental approaches.
Aodon – Portraits
Genre: Atmospheric/melodic black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Thoroughly downer-toned, yet instrumentally rather intense, this is highly competent, although not particularly original atmospheric black metal.
Avarice – Avarice
Genre: Thrash/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Enjoyable for sure, there’s a lot of evident inspiration on this one, and not a lot of noticeable innovation.
The Bleeding – Monokrator
Genre: Death/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
If you’re just looking for some high-speed, relentless death metal with the good ‘ol headbang-ability that only thrash can deliver, then this is most definitely for you. Throat-rending vocals, chainsaw riffs, razor-sharp solos and very busy drums all make for a pleasingly aggressive and precise cacophony.
Highlights: “Screams of Torment” and “Mutation Chamber”.
Brahmashiras – Brahmashiras
Genre: Blackened hardcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Pleasingly simple, and with the right sort of occult-y measures in place to make this a successful black metal/hardcore crossover.
Carry the Torch – Delusion
Genre: Melodic death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5
A decent attempt at slightly epic, slightly thrashy melodeath that doesn’t lean too much into the path.
Dead Quiet – IV
Genre: Doom/stoner metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
This is doom driven by stoner groove, and sprinkled with psychedelia-flavored prog playfulness.
Ekrom – Uten Nådigst Formildelse
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
An album, and band, that’s definitely looking to the past, yet realizing it could do with some improvements, this is classic Norwegian black metal with some tasteful melodic and technical buffs.
Max Enix – Far From Home
Genre: Symphonic/progressive metal
Subjective rating: 1.5/5
Objective rating: 2/5
Pretentiously conceptual, with vocals more than occasionally out of tune, you must have a particular penchant for storytelling symphonic metal to enjoy this.
False Memories – Hybrid Ego System
Genre: Symphonic/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5
A vocal-centric, bummer-toned symphonic-ish album with some aggressive elements, but unfortunately very little drive.
Geld – Currency // Castration
Genre: Hardcore
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5
A highly abrasive hardcore album, with raspy vocals and insistent guitars leading a persistent attack on your eardrums, it’s tempered by some rock ‘n roll swagger and the occasional alien, experimental ambience, which gives it an unexpected depth.
Glass Casket – Glass Casket (EP)
Genre: Groove/death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5
Four songs packed with aggressive groove bad-assery. The instruments never seem content to stick to one section longer than a few seconds before a few twists and turns take you to the next one. It results in an eager energy that keeps on producing memorable parts scattered all over.
Highlight: “For the Living”.
Godflesh – Purge
Genre: Industrial/experimental metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 4/5
A plunge into utter darkness, which speaks in a detached, mechanical language, immersed in nightmarish ambience. It’s an album of subtle nuances, crafted very deliberately, and the effect is both hypnotic and disturbing at the same time.
Johnny The Boy – You
Genre: Black/sludge metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
This is black metal riding a doomy wave of sludge, though infused with a morbid rock n’ roll spirit which whips up the mood every now and then.
Legion Of The Damned – The Poison Chalice
Genre: Thrash/black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5
This is nothing but non-stop tremolo-happy thrash metal. Whatever hellish motor is driving this unstoppable riff train seems like it could keep going without pause for years – hissing fiendish vocals and spitting licks like captivating curses. If this doesn’t get your head banging you’ve sure to have some frozen joints.
Highlights: “Beheading of the Godhead” and “Savage Intent”
Rise To Fall – The Fifth Dimension
Genre: Melodic death/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Exquisite melodic work over songwriting that treads very familiar paths dominate this mild melodeath album.
Scar Symmetry – The Singularity (Phase II – Xenotaph)
Genre: Melodic/progressive death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5
Time to dive into the shifting and rather hectic cosmic landscape that is the brand of melodeath of Scar Symmetry. It’s as adventurous as ever, with the instrumental technicality on full display, and presented with crystal clarity. The aggression of the most intense parts stand in significant contrast to the near-power metal clean approach typically seen around the choruses, and certain sections are allowed to strike out on expeditions of progressive playfulness. The result is great variation, although, perhaps, a slight lack of dedication to a cohesive style.
Highlights: “Gridworm” and “Scorched Quadrant”
Slow Fall – Obsidian Waves
Genre: Progressive/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Mid-paced progressive metal see-sawing on the border between aggression and drawn-out dramatic melody.
Torture Rack – Primeval Onslaught
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Quick and dirty, with a Motörhead-like approach to death metal, it’s stone carved bad-assery that you can rely on.
Vortex – The Future Remains In Oblivion
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Fairly heavy-handed even as symphonic extreme metal goes, this still delivers a decent amount of semi-technical brutality in a forceful manner.
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 