This week is all over the place, bringing nostalgia as well as fresh surprises – predictability on one side and untamed experimentation on the other. Test your palate, how much of it will be to your taste?
Belushi Speed Ball – Stellkira
Genre: Hardcore/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Some real speed freak crossover thrash that’s not holding back on the silliness. But it’s also got the energy and instrumental chops in case you really want to take it seriously.
Borer – Bag Seeker
Genre: Doom/sludge metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5
Near-funeral doom-tempo sludge that’s got the fuzz up to 11. There are moments you can really sink into on here, but it takes forever to get there.
Crownshift – Crownshift
Genre: Melodic death/progressive metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
New Finnish supergroup Crownshift sets off with this self-titled release, which seems like an attempt to combine defining elements of their respective (former) bands (Nightwish, Children of Bodom, Wintersun). In many ways it works, producing a highly vibrant, precise and hard-hitting sound, and striking a good balance between melody and aggression. Overall though, some parts, or even whole songs, differ to such a degree that it’s hard to perceive a cohesive style.
Darkness Everywhere – To Conquer Eternal Damnation
Genre: Melodic death metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5
I’m a sucker for this kind of stuff, I can’t help it, and I don’t care. This is early In Flames and At the Gates brought back to life and whipped into present day shape with a crisp, full production. The main thing that differentiates this from its inspirations is the sheer precision of the instrumental performances, which makes it feel very direct and to the point, rather than fully organic. All the melody that you want is there, and the tone of everything is so specifically classic Gothenburg that it’s almost a bit over the top. It doesn’t take the style anywhere new at all, but the bliss you will feel as a fan of this sound is going to overpower any such concerns.
Highlights: “Retaliation” and “To Conquer Eternal Damnation”.
Dødsferd – Wrath
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
A classic 90s style black metal record in pretty much every way but the production, which is actually quite decent. There is little to fault in thematic og technical approach, although large portions of the album end up feeling fairly interchangeable.
El Moono – The Waking Sun
Genre: Alternative/progressive metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
A mood-dominated sort of prog album that seems to exist in some space just outside of reality, It both is and isn’t heavy, borrowing as much from alternative rock as it does from doom-tinged progressive metal. Perhaps a tad bit too introspective and circling at times, it’s also really exciting in parts, and is never predictable.
Freedom Call – Silver Romance
Genre: Power metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5
This is the very essence of power metal right here. It’s an incredibly reassuring sound, leaning far into the magical, positive and colorful, all the while making all the right moves in order to avoid the valley of clichés and cheesiness. Everything works in perfect harmony, delivering strong, uplifting melodies, subtle but expertly executed rhythm transitions and exciting instrumental feats that don’t distract from the overall experience.
Highlight: “In Quest of Love”.
The Hazytones – Wild Fever
Genre: Stoner/doom metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Mildly psychedelic stoner metal that will take you both in to the doomy gloom and the galloping plains of traditional heavy metal. Not incredibly varied, but solid.
Illusion of Fate – Portals to Kur
Genre: Black/death metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5
Atmosphere-rich blackened death metal that doesn’t quite seamlessly meld the two subgenres, and struggles a bit with its rhythm precision.
Ivanhoe – Healed By The Sun
Genre: Melodic progressive metal
Subjective rating: 2/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5
Very classic prog metal that might as well have been made in the early 2000s considering the synth elements. It’s got some good grooves, but feels a bit like a repeat.
Like Moths To Flames – The Cycles Of Trying To Cope
Genre: Metalcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Quite mature-sounding modern metalcore, that’s brimming with aggression. They do well to let the energy bleed into the softer and more emotionally charged sections, which means the experience feels powerful throughout.
Machiavellian God – Beyond The Void
Genre: Melodic/symphonic death metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Fairly dark, modern melodic death metal that tries to sound epic and bleak at the same time, and only partially succeeding.
Anette Olzon – Rapture
Genre: Symphonic metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Anthemic symphonic metal executed pretty much exactly how you’d expect. There’s grandeur, but it’s mostly from backing effects rather than any effectively rousing melodies. It is very catchy though, thanks to its straightforward rhythms.
Paradox Rift – Ensnared
Genre: Groove/death/progressive metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
This one might be a case of one too many tricks in one bag. It’s trying to be groove, tech death and progressive, and adding a fair dose of mathcore complexity on top of that. It sounds good piece by piece, but struggles a bit to get anywhere of note.
Powerman 5000 – Abandon Ship
Genre: Industrial metal/alternative hard rock
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Wait, what year is it again? This feels weird, like I should be downloading this to my mp3-player. They make it work though, filling it with dance beats and a metric shit ton of too-cool-for-school alt-attitude. But I can’t for the life of me figure out what it’s actually for.
Primitive Warfare – Extinction Protocol
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Hey, I’m a death metal fan all day long, but this one runs me out of the room with a bayonet while firing on full auto. It’s an incredibly harsh and hostile album, but for those that can get with the brutality, it really delivers.
Red Rot – Borders Of Mania
Genre: Experimental sludge/death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
A brutal and atmosphere-rich blend of “clean” sludge and death, with a hint of progressive black metal in the style of Ihsahn. It keeps impressing with expert transitions between rhythms and different levels of intensity, offering some really chunky riffs coated in a bitter tone. It could do with a bit of trimming down, but is for the most part commendably engaging considering the somewhat limited melodic range.
Highlight: “Not in Control”.
Sarcoughagus – Remnants
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
A fairly small serving of evil-as-can-be, oldschool brutal death metal. The tone is right where you want it, the vocals are spot on and it’s got some great riffs, but it really doesn’t bring much new to the table.
Six Feet Under – Killing For Revenge
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5
Let’s get it out of the way immediately – this album has a bunch of failings. It’s highly uneven, the flow is dismal, and the vocals really just aren’t up to snuff. But if you just want some banging, thrash-infused riffs and evil groove, then this should provide a solid serving.
Syk – eartHFlesh
Genre: Progressive death/black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
A forceful, well-produced blackened death metal album that’s all in on those proggy odd rhythms. But on here the rhythm shifts do serve a purpose, as they abruptly steer the intensity in new directions, and the band’s performances follow these cues perfectly. A bit monotone in its dramatically dark tone, perhaps, but the rest is varied enough to make it interesting.
Svneatr – Never Return
Genre: Black/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5
This album gets off to an incredibly good start, with some nice and sharpened black metal atop some epic riffage in the style of Abbath, and added some heavy metal flair. Then, on the third song, it all kind of falls apart, with stumbling songwriting, misplaced dissonance and some terribly off-key clean-ish vocals. Unfortunately, it never really gets completely back on its feet, but there’s real promise here.
Unleash The Archers – Phantoma
Genre: Power metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5
Time for a cosmic adventure! As is their strength, Unleash the Archers very successfully blends the epic scale and light-heartedness of power metal with a serious attitude to crafting solid melodies of a kind of cinematic quality. Some of the rhythms on here are perhaps overly accessible, but still not overused, and it all ties in to the fun, sci-fi theme. You get hints of a heavier approach in some of the more forceful peaks, and it remains just enough to invoke a shadow of gravitas that elevates the experience a good notch.
Highlights: “Blood Empress” and “Green & Glass”.
Vaticinal Rites – Cascading Memories Of Immortality
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5
A wicked mix of old school, jagged death metal, some thrash and modern technicality. The intentions are good, and the performances really promising, although the rhythms get really rather clunky at times, harming the flow.
Warlord – Free Spirit Soar
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5
Epic heavy metal with mild storytelling-prog ambitions, this is light-hearted, adventure-calling kind of stuff.
Waste – In Bloom
Genre: Deathcore/hardcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
A short, 7-song album that still leaves absolute wreckage in its wake. It’s got all of the brutality of deathcore, with the rhythmic beatdown-approach of hardcore. All the energy and violence you could want is there, although it doesn’t have a ton more tricks up its sleeve.
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, why not pop a comment down below?
The Metal Dispatch 