New Heavy Metal Album Reviews: February 25, 2014
Reviews of the latest heavy metal albums, including releases by Agael, Andi Deris and the Bad Bankers, Aypheros, Crematory, Dinner Music For The Gods, Doom's Day, Folge dem Wind, Hopeless Youth, Horizon Ablaze, Jagged Vision, Lenore S. Fingers, Lethal Dosage, Morfin, One Machine, Ribspreader, Seventrain, Sorcier des Glaces, Stamina, Will Of The Ancients and The Wounded Kings.
Ratings are on a 5 star scale.
Genre: Black Metal
After releasing his debut back in 2009, the German one man black metal project Agael returns with Trost.
He mixes standard black metal with mellow ambient sections. Intense mid-tempo riffs are punctuated by lengthy instrumental parts. Many tracks have a slow build from ambient to moderate to extreme and back again. The vocals are buried rather deep in the mix, with the guitars getting plenty of exposure. While there are some lulls, Agael nicely blends beauty and brutality.
Rating: 3
(Chad Bowar)
Genre: Hard Rock
Longtime Helloween vocalist Andi Deris returns with his third solo album Million Dollar Haircuts On Ten Cent Heads. His backing band are the Bad Bankers, young up and coming musicians that he hand picked for the project. Like his other solo releases, the music is more hard rock based with a heavy modern rock approach.
The record stumbles out of the gate as the album opener, “C**K” & “Don’t Listen to the Radio (TWOTW 1938)” is cliché and gets the album off to a rocky start. The record dramatically picks up with the amazing “Blind,” which features a patented Deris melody that is insanely memorable. The mellower Deris writes the better and more honest the material comes across. The back end finishes very strong for another solid solo release.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Drago)
Genre: Black Metal
It’s interesting to hear the ashen interpretation of black metal from far-flung corners of the world. Santiago, Chile’s Aypheros, crank out the old school Morbid Angel and Satan sound. The production is as evocative of the eighties as the tunes themselves, such as they are.
One of the year’s best song titles, “Shamhamphorash,” appears in front of the album’s eight tracks. The title might be a recitation of evil incarnate or the Chilean name for psoriasis, but it’s a fine jolt of Emperor outtakes and a hint of protean Finnish growlcore.
Rating: 3
(Todd Lyons)
Genre: Gothic Metal
Germany’s Crematory are back after a four year break with their twelfth full-length release Antiserum. Throughout their twenty-three year career, the electronic and gothic influences have increased and added diversity to their songwriting. Pushing the electronic element to its fullest potential, they have collaborated with EBM artist Elmar Schmidt to compose the music.
The band shifted its sound in 1999 with the addition of vocalist/guitarist Matthias Hechler. His vocal approach brings a sense of accessibility and his melodies are immensely catchy. The title track, “Until the End” and “If You Believe” capture the band at its finest. The symbiotic vocal performances between Hechler and longtime growler Felix bring the songwriting to a deeper dimension and the result is one of their best releases in a long time.
Rating: 4
(Dan Drago)
Genre: Instrumental Metal
One of the challenges of instrumental metal is keeping the listener engaged throughout the album. That challenge is met and exceeded by the Las Vegas band Dinner Music For The Gods on Beautiful and Treacherous.
They transition seamlessly from smooth jazz to blazing metal in the blink of an eye. One minute it's a prog fest, the next it's a more traditional take on Zeppelin's "Kashmir." World music influences add even more flavor to the songs. The musicianship is outstanding, especially the guitar work, and there plenty of hooks and clever riffs. A lot of instrumental albums you can appreciate,but not necessarily enjoy. With this one, you can do both.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Genre: Heavy Metal
The resurgence of occult inspired heavy metal has been making a huge impact on the metal scene with Ghost and In Solitude leading the way. Canada’s Doom’s Day are back with their sophomore effort The Devil’s Eyes, and their growth has been tremendous. Lead vocalist DooM utilizes different styles of singing to add a ton of diversity.
Opener “The Offering” is filled with huge riffs, blazing double bass and a classic mid range King Diamond meets mid era Paradise Lost vocals. The doom heavy “Watery Grave” is reminiscent of Clouds era Tiamat with its plodding riffs and the clever use of the organ. A huge improvement over their debut and at just under 40 minutes, the record is easily absorbed.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Drago)
Genre: Black Metal
The French band Folge Dem Wind have been around in various incarnations since the late '90s, and To Summon Twilight is their third full-length.
Their sound is mainly traditional black metal with a lot of variety. There are intense, blast beat driven parts as well as more subdued and melodic sections. At times, like during the title track, there's even a bit of black 'n roll influence. The flow between the mellow and extreme is smooth, a testament to their musical dexterity.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Genre: Crust/Hardcore
On their full-length debut Disgust, Montreal’s Hopeless Youth have found an ideal medium between brooding angst and digestibly adrenalizing punk. The quintet shape melody into their music, but they’re sneaky about it, making sure the brunt of the experience is tense and rapid-fire.
Hopeless Youth waste precious little time delivering their message via granite-rough riffs and bark-gnawing vocals. But the showstopper must be the drums that pound merciless and flawless from start to finish. Even if you were paying strict attention, Disgust will end up catching you off guard with diesel tracks like “Ghost” and “Abomination.”
Rating: 4
(Evan Mugford)
Genre: Death Metal
The Norwegian band Horizon Ablaze includes current and former members of bands such as 1349, Absu and Blood Red Throne. Dodsverk is their second full-length.
The album has a lot of vocal variety, with everything from semi-melodic speaking to death metal growls to high pitched screams. The arrangements shift constantly in both speed and intensity, often in unexpected ways. There's everything from dense, black metal influenced sections to brutal death metal to reflective and atmospheric parts, and even a brief jazzy intro on "Domt Til Frihit."
Rating: 4
(Chad Bowar)
Genre: Stoner/Hardcore
The “suits” at Retro Futurist must have some sophisticated riff radar, as the second release from the new label, Harvest Earth by Jagged Vision, is saturated with riffs you can't help but back 100 percent. They're catchy as a cold, but still pack the aggressiveness of a snarling dog.
Melding genres like countrymen Kvelertak, Jagged Vision fuse groove-heavy aggro-stoner metal with the punchiness and visceral screams of hardcore. Think The Sword with a double-shot of adrenaline coupled with the vocal berating of a steroid freak in traffic. Silky groove, slammin' riffs and boundless energy make Harvest Earth superbly infectious and Jagged Vision a band to watch.
Rating: 4
(Matt Hinch)
Ratings are on a 5 star scale.
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Agael - 'Trost' (Naturmacht)
Genre: Black Metal
After releasing his debut back in 2009, the German one man black metal project Agael returns with Trost.
He mixes standard black metal with mellow ambient sections. Intense mid-tempo riffs are punctuated by lengthy instrumental parts. Many tracks have a slow build from ambient to moderate to extreme and back again. The vocals are buried rather deep in the mix, with the guitars getting plenty of exposure. While there are some lulls, Agael nicely blends beauty and brutality.
Rating: 3
(Chad Bowar)
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Andi Deris and the Bad Bankers – ‘Million Dollar Haircuts...’ (Armoury)
Genre: Hard Rock
Longtime Helloween vocalist Andi Deris returns with his third solo album Million Dollar Haircuts On Ten Cent Heads. His backing band are the Bad Bankers, young up and coming musicians that he hand picked for the project. Like his other solo releases, the music is more hard rock based with a heavy modern rock approach.
The record stumbles out of the gate as the album opener, “C**K” & “Don’t Listen to the Radio (TWOTW 1938)” is cliché and gets the album off to a rocky start. The record dramatically picks up with the amazing “Blind,” which features a patented Deris melody that is insanely memorable. The mellower Deris writes the better and more honest the material comes across. The back end finishes very strong for another solid solo release.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Drago)
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Aypheros - 'Ascendet Novissima Tua' (PRC)
Genre: Black Metal
It’s interesting to hear the ashen interpretation of black metal from far-flung corners of the world. Santiago, Chile’s Aypheros, crank out the old school Morbid Angel and Satan sound. The production is as evocative of the eighties as the tunes themselves, such as they are.
One of the year’s best song titles, “Shamhamphorash,” appears in front of the album’s eight tracks. The title might be a recitation of evil incarnate or the Chilean name for psoriasis, but it’s a fine jolt of Emperor outtakes and a hint of protean Finnish growlcore.
Rating: 3
(Todd Lyons)
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Crematory – ‘Antiserum’ (SPV)
Genre: Gothic Metal
Germany’s Crematory are back after a four year break with their twelfth full-length release Antiserum. Throughout their twenty-three year career, the electronic and gothic influences have increased and added diversity to their songwriting. Pushing the electronic element to its fullest potential, they have collaborated with EBM artist Elmar Schmidt to compose the music.
The band shifted its sound in 1999 with the addition of vocalist/guitarist Matthias Hechler. His vocal approach brings a sense of accessibility and his melodies are immensely catchy. The title track, “Until the End” and “If You Believe” capture the band at its finest. The symbiotic vocal performances between Hechler and longtime growler Felix bring the songwriting to a deeper dimension and the result is one of their best releases in a long time.
Rating: 4
(Dan Drago)
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Dinner Music For The Gods - 'Beautiful and Treacherous' (Self)
Genre: Instrumental Metal
One of the challenges of instrumental metal is keeping the listener engaged throughout the album. That challenge is met and exceeded by the Las Vegas band Dinner Music For The Gods on Beautiful and Treacherous.
They transition seamlessly from smooth jazz to blazing metal in the blink of an eye. One minute it's a prog fest, the next it's a more traditional take on Zeppelin's "Kashmir." World music influences add even more flavor to the songs. The musicianship is outstanding, especially the guitar work, and there plenty of hooks and clever riffs. A lot of instrumental albums you can appreciate,but not necessarily enjoy. With this one, you can do both.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
){kind=link}
Doom’s Day – ‘The Devil’s Eyes’ (PRC)
Genre: Heavy Metal
The resurgence of occult inspired heavy metal has been making a huge impact on the metal scene with Ghost and In Solitude leading the way. Canada’s Doom’s Day are back with their sophomore effort The Devil’s Eyes, and their growth has been tremendous. Lead vocalist DooM utilizes different styles of singing to add a ton of diversity.
Opener “The Offering” is filled with huge riffs, blazing double bass and a classic mid range King Diamond meets mid era Paradise Lost vocals. The doom heavy “Watery Grave” is reminiscent of Clouds era Tiamat with its plodding riffs and the clever use of the organ. A huge improvement over their debut and at just under 40 minutes, the record is easily absorbed.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Drago)
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Folge Dem Wind - 'To Summon Twilight' (Aural)
Genre: Black Metal
The French band Folge Dem Wind have been around in various incarnations since the late '90s, and To Summon Twilight is their third full-length.
Their sound is mainly traditional black metal with a lot of variety. There are intense, blast beat driven parts as well as more subdued and melodic sections. At times, like during the title track, there's even a bit of black 'n roll influence. The flow between the mellow and extreme is smooth, a testament to their musical dexterity.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
){kind=link}
Hopeless Youth – ‘Disgust’ (Candlelight)
Genre: Crust/Hardcore
On their full-length debut Disgust, Montreal’s Hopeless Youth have found an ideal medium between brooding angst and digestibly adrenalizing punk. The quintet shape melody into their music, but they’re sneaky about it, making sure the brunt of the experience is tense and rapid-fire.
Hopeless Youth waste precious little time delivering their message via granite-rough riffs and bark-gnawing vocals. But the showstopper must be the drums that pound merciless and flawless from start to finish. Even if you were paying strict attention, Disgust will end up catching you off guard with diesel tracks like “Ghost” and “Abomination.”
Rating: 4
(Evan Mugford)
){kind=link}
Horizon Ablaze - 'Dodsverk' (Code 666)
Genre: Death Metal
The Norwegian band Horizon Ablaze includes current and former members of bands such as 1349, Absu and Blood Red Throne. Dodsverk is their second full-length.
The album has a lot of vocal variety, with everything from semi-melodic speaking to death metal growls to high pitched screams. The arrangements shift constantly in both speed and intensity, often in unexpected ways. There's everything from dense, black metal influenced sections to brutal death metal to reflective and atmospheric parts, and even a brief jazzy intro on "Domt Til Frihit."
Rating: 4
(Chad Bowar)
){kind=link}
Jagged Vision – 'Harvest Earth' (Retro Futurist)
Genre: Stoner/Hardcore
The “suits” at Retro Futurist must have some sophisticated riff radar, as the second release from the new label, Harvest Earth by Jagged Vision, is saturated with riffs you can't help but back 100 percent. They're catchy as a cold, but still pack the aggressiveness of a snarling dog.
Melding genres like countrymen Kvelertak, Jagged Vision fuse groove-heavy aggro-stoner metal with the punchiness and visceral screams of hardcore. Think The Sword with a double-shot of adrenaline coupled with the vocal berating of a steroid freak in traffic. Silky groove, slammin' riffs and boundless energy make Harvest Earth superbly infectious and Jagged Vision a band to watch.
Rating: 4
(Matt Hinch)
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