Frenetically enjoyable debut Death / Thrash from Cincinnati. Tremolo-picked riffs are the name of the game here and they persist in pretty much every tune. The vocals are a shrieked Thrash style which doesn't always work, but I love it on this album. The vocals lend an urgency to the songs. Songs get very samey near the end of the album, but I still never got bored. Production isn't anything special. The bandmembers attack these tunes with youthful aplomb and I can't help but ... read more

Finnish Black Metal newcomers Acolythus have put out a nice debut. Musicianship is very evident as the tremolo picked riffs and melodies are all over the place. The songwriting leans on the guitar work as the basis for all of these tunes, and while I don't mind that, all the songs are very samey and just blur into each other. The band performs these tunes with visceral ferocity, though, so the songs end up being enjoyable even though telling them apart is difficult. Production is fairly ... read more

I really enjoyed this album. The Quill's 12th album over their near-40-year span, it's a great example of Stoner-adjacent Heavy Metal. Fuzzed-out guitars form the base of this platter, and the riffs, in general, are very tasty. The songs, while they get a touch samey due to similar, mid-paced tempos, are generally engaging and fun. The production, while generally typical for the style, is a little more compressed than I would like. I'd also like a touch less effects on the vocals ... read more

OK, some of the good on here: The riffs and musicianship are great. I love the guitar work. The production SOUND is excellent and everything is very clear. The songs are diverse and have many interesting pieces. Some of the bad: The vocals are just not my cup of tea. That howled pseudo-growl has never been my favorite style. Some of the ugly: This album is WAAAAAAAAAAAY too long. Every song loses steam even given the diverse songwriting. I kept waiting for them all to end. I often believe that ... read more

The riffs on this album rule. This is how Stoner Metal should pop. Every tune has something very tasty in the guitar department. The songwriting gets a bit samey as the album progresses and that does impede the listener's ability to just dive in full throttle on these tunes. The riffs will keep you coming back, though, to be sure. Production is a touch murky, and while it works for the vocals, the rest needs to be a little more clear (especially the drums which are kinda buried). This ... read more

This is one heck of a ride. This band has chops to spare and the riffs are enigmatic, dynamic, and all over the place. The songwriting is on par with the musicianship and the songs are varied and never get stale or boring. Some of the songs are a bit long and could have trimmed some of the fat a little, so to speak, but apart from that I love what's going on here. It's unique for sure. The Black / Death style they pin to is almost just a label, as they exhibit Progressive tendencies ... read more

After 16 years, Lair of the Minotaur (creators of the now-legendary "War Metal Battle Master" video) have deigned to produce another slab of brutal and intense Thrash adjacent Metal madness. Well, it's not "War Metal Battle Master", let's put it that way. This album is serviceable, but if you are expecting to get your brain flayed, you'll need to go back in their catalog. The songwriting is dynamic enough to keep the album from being boring, as they touch upon ... read more

French Stoner Metal that is pretty well done, but not very unique. I think fans of the style have probably heard this all before (except, perhaps, the songs sung in French, lol). The musicianship is decent and the riffs are decent, good even when they hit (see "I Am the Black Hole" and "Hollow Child"). Overall, though, I just can't get over the feeling this is retread. By the end of the platter, nothing really leapt out as me as being overly special. A comptently played ... read more

Three piece Metal band from Michigan, and boy do they play around with a lot of different styles. They are at times Sludge, Doom, Progressive Metal, and Stoner Metal. The musicianship is generally up to the task, also. Songs are vastly eclectic, as you might guess. Vocals are a croaked growl and it's intriguing, but gets tiring over the full length. The riffs are very good in general, but the dynamic songwriting doesn't keep some of the more muscular ones around long. It's not a ... read more

Great Black / Thrash album. Riffs are killer throughout the whole platter. Songs get a bit samey, and the overall sound of this band isn't super-unique (fans of the style will have heard this stuff before). I keep coming back to the riffs, though. They are head-banging awesomeness. Even with the sameiness of the tunes, they are simply too much fun. The band members deliver these tunes with viciousness. Production is average, but the guitar tone is ace. All-in-all an excellent good time and ... read more

Out of the frying pan and into the fire it seems. Chicago's Nequient have, in "Avarice", a definite contender for most intense album of the year. Songs blast out ot the gate fully realized in their frantic intent. Every tune is a nonstop barrage of riffs, drums, and barked Death-Hardcore vocal bursts. Riffs are angular, and all over the map. Chugs here, tremolo picked melodies there, and guitar histronics like pick scrapes and harmonics... all within each song. The energy is ... read more

If you took Heavy Metal, made it super-agressive and in-your-face, then doubled the aggression, you would have the album "Beast" by Canadian newcomers Powerrage. The members have been hanging around in other bands for a couple decades (most notably Exciter), and it's clear they learned how to make an impression. While not the most impressive of musicians, they play with absolute craziness and intensity. All the songs are energetic maelstroms of chaos, and just when yout think ... read more

20 years in and these Swiss metallers haven't lost a thing. This is a very good slab of modern Heavy Metal. It has a decided American edge to it, insomuch as it sounds like it could be from some dudes from Los Angeles. The riffs are sharp and melodic, and well played. All the musicians on here offer up tight performances. Vocalist Gianni Pontillo has a gritty, streetwise delivery that works great with these meat-and-potatoes Metal tunes. Songs are suprisingly strong and dynamic, and the ... read more

Surprisingly adroit musicianship and very unique songwriting are the hallmarks of this Black / Death release. The guitars move all over the place, and their are plenty of tempo and time changes to go around. The band proficiently moves around all these songwriting quirks and makes this a quite enjoyable listen. Production is average for the style, and I would have liked a little more separation in the instruments. The band plays with fire and brimstone on here, so it never gets boring. ... read more

Sorta supergroup spearheaded by guitarist extraordinaire Richie Faulkner. Ronnie Romero is on vocals, with Dave Rimmer on bass and Christopher Williams on drums. To say the talent is there is an understatement. Anyone familiar with this band's outstanding debut should be excited to check this one out. While nowhere as good as the debut, the tunes on here feature tasty riffs (duh) and a great vocal performance by Ronnie. The songs fall into a "typical Hard Rock / AOR" trap at ... read more

Great guitar playing on this new album, but wasn't that to be expected? "Yes, but how are the songs?" Well... They are ok. There are a couple burning instrumental tunes (see opening title track "Steel Burner"). Gus certainly has his chops in order. Solos are elegant and flashy. The vocal tunes, though, bring this album down to mid-level. I feel like they get a bit boring (except for the very good "My Premonition" featuring Ronnie Romero). Production is pretty ... read more

Short and to the point. This is a Terror album. It's Beatdown Hardcore at its most visceral. The riffs rip. The vocals are barked and in your face. If you're looking for guitar prowess, this is the wrong place. These guys write brutal Hardcore riffs and breakdowns and that's what you get. Production is perfect as everything is clear and the guitar tone is ace. Completely aggressive in the best way. Very good album and made better by being fairly short.

This is some blast-beating madness for real. Dutch Black Metal that is purely uncompromising. Blistering speed is the name of the game here, and the musicianship is up to the task. The tremolo picked melody riffs are amazing, and the guitar work really drives this album. It creates and keeps the atmosphere throughout. I kept waiting for the riffs to sound too samey but that never happened as they kept evolving over the full length. The vocals are screamed-howled and they are intense. This whole ... read more

Demon Spell have quite the conundrum here. On one side, they have killer Trad Metal riffage and songs. On the other, the have a vocalist that either really loves King Diamond, or just accidentally tries to sound like him. He doesn't always pull it off and his falsetto warbling gets tiring after a full album. I would have loved the production to downplay his vocals a little and focus more on the guitar work, which is very good. This sounds like a former Mercyful Fate tribute band that ... read more

"1640" by Spain's Whirlwind is absolutely excellent Heavy Metal. The riffs are killer. The songs are exciting and authentically energetic. The songwriting is fun and keeps the songs from getting boring as they add unexpected, angular changes here and there. But the real star of this is vocalist Héctor Llauradó. His vocals are quintessentially Metal. His screams soar and his tone makes every song feel epic. The production is average for the genre and neither enhances ... read more