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Thumbman
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PostPosted: Sat Aug 08, 2015 10:26 pm 
 

Axel Rudi Pell - Devil Zone

Oh man, this sort of stuff is really not my thing. I'll admit that I'm completely biased because Europower is something that's just not for me, but I just found this terribly cheesy. This is not at all bad for what it is I suppose, but it's about as derivative and obvious as you can get. One thing that really bugs me about this is that it's clearly ripping off a pretty famous song in the chorus, but I can't quite put my finger on what it is. Anyway, this song does a lot of expected things, cheesy "medieval" acoustic intro, even cheesier lyrics, lots of Dio-isms, technically proficient but completely replaceable solo . . . this is just pretty meh to me. I'm probably being a grump about this because I don't like this style (not to mention that it largely sounds like a very watered down Dio ripoff), but this did nothing for me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mnI79bh27A
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halfformedfetus
Metalhead

Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2007 2:12 am
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Location: Australia
PostPosted: Sun Aug 09, 2015 5:29 am 
 

Tau Cross - Hangmans Hyll

For the most part this was pretty catchy, although mostly it was boring.
I will admit i am not a massive traditional metal fan, so my opinion on this is probably pretty swayed, but for what this is i liked it but wouldn't buy it, this song is very driven by the vocalist, who has an awesome voice and in my opinion would be better in a doom outfit. The riffs are pretty simple and un moving, without the vocalist i think this would be easily forgotten, the atmosphere has a pretty somber feel to it which was a big saving point, and the lyrics were very cool.
Not really my thing but sure would be great for traditional metal fans.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtcybkaMd4M

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Jonpo
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Joined: Tue Jul 31, 2007 10:05 am
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PostPosted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 11:48 pm 
 

halfformedfetus wrote:


Mordaehoth - Balder

Something please happen soon...something please happen soon...something pl...oh there it is! Whew. That stilted drum beat and lilting guitar lick intro was rough. When things get jazzy with a shuffling drum pattern and a bouncy-fun riff it becomes so much more tolerable. Even if the vocals are heartless and the production sounds wet. And then of course they dump this interesting section very quickly for an unbelievably stiff/boring blast beat and a generic stream of a riff. This shit sounds like it's trying to go fast but someone slipped it a quaalude. Another change-up...going for a stately vibe this time. The wandering bass is kind of cool. It's over in a blink. This is very manic but not in a good way. They bring that part I like back 'round again. Not for long though. I don't know why anyone would want to hear seven minutes of this. It's a cycle of three very short ideas over and over again until the "song" ends. The stately part with the wandering bass underneath is a highlight, because of the bass. Great solo towards the end though, emotive and restrained with a neat riffset underneath. This band does bouncy and fun pretty well, not sure why they (he?) chose to play black metal. Oh it just kinda fades out at the end. I want to end my review the same way...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZBCwALqSHY
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Turner
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 2:47 am 
 

Mercyful Fate - Fightin' for the Knighthood

"it's life Jim, but not as we know it."

Ok so this is evidently a pre-debut album demo. You can hear that now-standard MF rhythm guitar playing/tone from the get-go, and King is buried in the mix but he sounds fairly good - perhaps a little more Halford influence than I've ever heard from him before, and his voice has some power behind it, which is something that always let MF down imo. If he'd screamed like this on their first two albums it'd have been amazing. But that's about all that's really good to say about this song. There are *hints* of those melodies and leads that would come on Melissa, but for the most part the lead guitar is WOEFUL... no-idea-what-i'm-doing-but-here's-a-solo woeful; basically, these are the sounds rhythm guitarists with no background in musical theory make when they try to play leads. What an absolute trainwreck. The song is written in the same style they'd later hone to make songs like like Satan's Fall so fucking amazing, but here that same burgeoning concept sounds disjointed and pathetic, like a garage jam that was being made up on the spot. Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if that's legitimately the case. 2/10

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kI6T2zNLVt0

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Jonpo
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 8:25 am 
 

Spoiler: show
needs more musical theory hahahah you dork
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Thumbman
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 9:31 am 
 

Also got a good laugh out of the "he sounds like he has no background in musical theory" thing.

Hellbringer - Dominion of Darkness

There is absolutely nothing original about this. That said, it was a hell of a lot of fun. Beefed up thrash/speed sort of thing with pretty decent riffs and some nice touches with little guitar flourishes. Very generic lyrics, but totally works with the music. Vocals are decent, something you might expect from an older thrash band but with a nice rasp added. Lead guitar was the icing on the cake. This is normally not really the sort of thing I'd ever go out of my way to listen to, but I'd definitely be willing to give this album a spin if I was in the right mood.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bi2REgByOqs
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Abominatrix
Harbinger of Metal

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PostPosted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 10:44 am 
 

Winter: "Servants of the warsmen"

"RISE!" This starts off really suddenly with a growl and a trudging, painful Celtic Frost-like riff. It's clearly supposed to be led in from the previous track, and I know it's masterfully done on the record in question. The production is, well...quite bad, but in a weird way that makes the music sound very distinctive. They're simply much, much heavier sounding on stage, but something about the way this sounds just works for it and it's sort of become a trademark of Winter's music by now. ANyway, it's not like you can't hear everything, and indeed the clarity of even the cymbal and tom hits is really stark and notable. This sort of seems like a band that fell in love with the really really slow Hellhammer and Celtic Frost stuff and added bits of near-psychedelic guitar noise to the fray to increase the doomful feeling. The bass is really important, moreso than you'd usually find in Tom G.'s music. Kind of too bad the guitar isn't louder; it's something no amount of turning up your stereo will really fix due to the weirdly balanced mix. Basically this rules though. I enjoy the really deep, gritty quality of the vocalist's delivery as well. It has this kind of barely suppressed anger about it..suppressed maybe by an extreme degree of fatalism and hopelessness.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntVaj_1G7Xs
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CardsOfWar
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PostPosted: Fri Aug 14, 2015 10:39 am 
 

Trespass - One of These Days

Starts off pretty nicely, with a meandery, fluttery melody. It's soon subsumed by a pretty normal, but still certainly pretty entertaining 'classic metal' riff. The song's general mood is defined pretty comprehensively by that first riff. Everything is very easy and bouncy, fundamentally underpinned by a sense of fun. It's pretty normal, and doesn't stray far from its stylistic bubble of choice, but it's still great fun to listen to. After the song finishes, however, I really don't feel drawn back to it. Through no qualitative problem with this particular song, I just find it pretty hard to comprehensively give myself over to the NWOBHM style, and it's for that reason that I'd rarely sit down and listen to an entire album from the style. That certainly ain't going to stop One of These Days from being an entertaining three minutes though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHmzgvpx4uY
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Jonpo
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 25, 2015 12:29 am 
 

CardsOfWar wrote:


Stworz - Synowie Slonca

I don't understand this or it's appeal. I'm sorry, I just don't get it. There's no pre-christian pride to it. It sounds like black-metal-by-numbers, Slav-washed in some kind of Pagan skin. Generic black metal vocals alternate with some kind of clean voiced talking-style. A dash of acoustic guitar to make sure you know they're in touch with their ancient heritage...The riffs are mostly faceless, with the odd bit of stiff downpicking to interrupt the tedium. It's honestly hard for me to even pay attention to this, and I'm on my third spin through it. It's like my ears are forming a barrier trying to keep the rounded lump of nothing-music from my brain. It's genuinely hard for me to imagine that someone gets excited to sit down and listen to this with their full attention. Maybe as background noise to a video game or something. But how could you ever give this your full attention and come away satisfied?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MB97GeiFP2I
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iamntbatman
Chaos Breed

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PostPosted: Tue Aug 25, 2015 9:43 am 
 

Rabid Bitch of the North - Defending Two Castles

Had to listen to this on their Bandcamp since I guess that video was taken down. Right away this is obvious to me that this band falls into the general realm of nerdy deadbeat dad sort of metal like Brocas Helm or maybe Cirith Ungol or Realmbuilder or something. Anyway there are some cool riffs but they're pretty damn predictable and not in that "man the exact kind of emotional chords I wanted struck were struck perfectly by the next note choice" kind of way but rather just sort of a stale way. Hard not to love those sort of gallops though, and the super shitty histrionic vocal performance is really endearing, but I don't think this stuff is really up in the upper stratosphere with those other bands I mentioned.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOIGbWcQ4Ho
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Jonpo
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 25, 2015 11:59 am 
 

Spoiler: show
Hmmm, the link still works perfectly for me. Sorry about that. I assume it has to do with whatever country you're currently hoboing about in, corrupting the youth. I'm glad you at least didn't hate it, as with most songs I choose. They HAVE to be huge Brocas Helm fans, even beyond the obvious cover artwork. I'm not sure what more there is to come from this act but their little 3-song tape has been a lot of fun. The vocals are horrid in the best way. They're way better than they oughta be based on their name.
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Zelkiiro
Pounding the world with a fish of steel

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PostPosted: Tue Aug 25, 2015 11:31 pm 
 

Divine Eve - The Ravages of Heathen Men

Pretty solid doom. The intro was a tad too long, but once it got rolling, I was able to dig it. I love the drum work in this track--utterly crushing with great fills--and the vocals are appropriately menacing. If I had to point out something I don't like, it's the sections where the guitarist plays tremolo riffs with some of the most godawful tinny mixing I've ever heard. The rest of the song is so deep, bass-y, and beefy, but then these tinny bits pop out of the woodwork and piss me off. Sounds completely out of place. Otherwise, a good but not mind-blowing slice of doom.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_jXZayVwHQ
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CrushedRevelation
Devil's right hand

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PostPosted: Sun Sep 06, 2015 1:29 am 
 

Zelkiiro wrote:


No idea what I was in for here, I kind of was expecting some kind of power metal or similar, but what we have instead is a mixture of doom and or folk from the Czech Republic - all in their native tongue too. Starts rather sedately naturally, before the chords come crashing in with a violin as an companion alongside the guitars. Plenty of weight and decent production values to help this along, and mixture of male/female vocalists doing their thing. Couldn't tell you what they're singing about, and if I'm honest, it does remind me of something you would almost get as a Eurovision entrant, and, well that is a slight turn off for me. It's all well put together and all, but it doesn't really captivate me, as I find the construction of the song is a little safe and pedestrian for me - just not enough going on, and there really doesn't seem to be enough depth to it. I'm sure if you could understand the lyrics, it may carry more weight, but I would still like something more emotionally powerful for this type of thing.

Something on the more brisk end of the spectrum.
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Turner
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 06, 2015 3:32 am 
 

Ravencult - Snakes Crawls

haha, gotta love a good dose of song title ESL. The uploader even tells me not to be a fag! This wins at being bog black metal. Soundwise, I guess we're making early Enslaved comparisons? It's like Frost with a hint of Dark Funeral. The riffing is a little samey, but I can live with it. Vocalist is neither here nor there; he sounds like thousands of other bm singers. Love the drumming - perhaps a little too much blasting at times, but this dude's doing a lot of the same things I like to hear from guys like Trym. Bit of a black 'n roll vibe to it in places; I'm guessing if I heard a full album there'd be a bit more of that in there. Overall, I give it a solid B+/A-. I'm definitely gonna track down a full album.

VERY short one here, but something I've always thought was terribly underrated and not at all deserving of b-sidedness:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmD1wvY6oRI

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Thumbman
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 11, 2015 11:47 am 
 

Sepultura - Intro (Arise)

Man, it's been so fucking long since I've listened to Arise. While it's a totally legit album (and the last legit one Sepulture released), I usually find myself gravitating to Beneath the Remains which is quite arguably the best thrash album of all time. Anyway, this is a short intro that didn't make the album. It's really good, and probably should been put in. There's not much to it, just some catchy ass guitar and a nice big simple riff. Totally embodies a time when thrash was actually a force to be reckoned with.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaZG4rHBoPg
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 13, 2015 1:38 pm 
 

dystopia4 wrote:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaZG4rHBoPg


Obsequiae - Autumnal Pyre.

I've wanted to check this out for a while now, the cover art caught my eye since it looks a lot like some of the ruins near where I live. The opening is quite promising, too, interesting keyboard sounds and folky melodies. The drum sound, however, is a bit fake sounding for this style, I wouldn't be surprised if it were programmed. It actually reminds me of In Flames circa 1996 or Dissection with a more folky twist. Certainly, it's got a nice medieval flavour that matches and these heavily layered melodies are very nicely done and triumphant. The song builds well and it's not really typical for what I'd expect from this style. Maybe even an Abigor comparison makes sense. I'll definitely get this soon, I reckon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drbaIDUHU0o
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WillyB
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 13, 2015 2:25 pm 
 

Acrobat wrote:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drbaIDUHU0o


kampfar - i ondskapens kunst

Been quite a while since I've listened to kampfar. Right off the bat there's a pretty catchy riff that in my opinion could have flowed into the verse section a bit better. As the song goes on it is definitely up there with some of the better black/viking metal, some nice guitar lines with a hint of bass and great atmosphere, and thankfully without the boring repetition that a lot of bands in the genre seem to fall into. The clean shouting vocals that come in with the growling at the end is a great touch. I do wish the song had a proper outro instead of just fading out but still fantastic melodic black metal from start to finish.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMm3FbGKMXs
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Thumbman
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 27, 2015 12:13 am 
 

Myrkur - Ma du braende i helvede

I've only heard Myrkur once or twice before, but immediately wrote them off as having the same flaw as Deafheaven - good at the non-metal parts but not very adept at black metal. My biggest problem here, is there really aren't any lead vocals and instrumentally it's just not interestingly enough only to be vocally driven only by the occasional background yelp. The black metal is kind of earthy, vaguely melodic - kind of a lot of things, but it doesn't really seem to commit to a full vision. It's just not very interesting. The clean outro with the nice female choir vocals is worthwhile, although it seems to be over before it begins. Overall, I didn't hate this but I didn't like it. Not very impactful either way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPMkitGwcE8
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Eric Olthwaite

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PostPosted: Sun Sep 27, 2015 4:16 pm 
 

Misþyrming - Söngur Heiftar (2015)


Rusty gate metal? Sounds like it needs some oiling. Well, this is some obscure sounding black metal with too much focus on... well, obscurity and not much of interest going on. Lots of reverb and blasting, which doesn't really make for a pleasant experience. It reminds me of Negative Plane's approach to production and melody mixed in with some very hoarse sounding vocals (not very good, either). Things get a bit more interesting when they break from the blasting... but after about 3 minutes it's too little, too late.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Pl4qJSn9EQ
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I_Am_Vengeance
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 01, 2016 9:07 am 
 

Saxon - Deeds of Glory

Well it's Saxon. So it has a high chance of being very fucking good. And unsurprisingly it is. This is an era of Saxon I have not listened to much and it has convinced me to check it out. The riffing is absolutely classic. Biff sounds incredible and the entire band sounds like they haven't missed a beat from their classic period.

Sure, the band had a few misfires in the past, but they are really nailing what Saxon is right here, great basic riffs, great vocals, nice hooks and just good music, anyone who doesn't listen to Saxon and enjoy it is a huge cunt.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf2WpjGdEME
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caspian
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 02, 2016 6:24 am 
 

Axel Rudi Pell- Tear Down the Walls

Man, I'm not really down, but it's not too surprising that a hard rockin' 80s track leaves me a bit bored. The dude can definitely sing, but the constant TEAR DOWN THE WA A ALLS grates a fair bit, the guitars don't really do anything too interesting (the solo is real boring), and the snare is a bit too obviously triggered. Bit of a snooze fest really. More than ever I'm reminded of just how superior Cirith Ungol are to all of their contemporaries..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24J5zejKXkk
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Thumbman
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 03, 2016 10:41 pm 
 

Cannibal Corpse - Followed Home then Killed

I like their classic stuff as much as the next guy, but honestly I had no idea what they've been doing since the classic era. Really didn't mind this at all. The brutal flavouring is still there, but this is some of the most accessible brutal death metal I've ever heard. Very slick/clear production, pretty accessible song structure etc. I would go as far to say as I really liked this, but they do a pretty good job at balancing a brutal and more accessible sound. His growl is still very strong, but for something about his vocal phrasing annoyed me when he tries to cram a million syllables into one measure. The riffs are simple but pretty enjoyable and definitely no complaints about the lead guitar. Obviously this isn't anywhere as good as their classic stuff, but this was pretty alright.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OX73dGH08dU
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CrushedRevelation
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 16, 2016 2:12 am 
 

dystopia4 wrote:


Spooky intro... And then bam! Down-tuned, sludgy riffing, and those vocals are pretty damn demonic. Under the burly riff work there is some quasi-dissonant lead work forming extra tension. The actual riff work itself you could almost call groovy - and relatively simple/repetitive, almost stoner groove like, just... much meaner. The song length hints at this unfolding some more, and it does, though it doesn't open up as it seems to devolve more into the murk, with deeper death vocals as it pummels along at a furiously controlled tempo. The dual vocal attack is... Jesus, rather devastating. With all that being said though, there isn't a lot of variation - it sort of just pounds home the message with unwavering devotion to THE RIFF. I would have liked some extra depth to this, as it seems like they could have done more with the bare bones they have going on here. It's pretty damn effective for what it is, with the vocals being the highlight, and the actual tune being more of a backdrop to this attack, but it is rather one dimensional. Excellent production values are certainly pleasing on this, great separation and power, while still keeping the grime apparent. Not bad, but not massively outstanding either.

My go.
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 22, 2016 5:57 pm 
 

Scythian - Dystopia

Screaming guitar harmonics and then a riff that sounds like it could have been written by Absu (if only it was played much faster). The token-Eastern melody thing is well-worn by now, but it's still effective sometimes. The vocals remind me of Destroyer 666 somewhat - I'm guessing that this is an Aussie band* - they're more of an authoritative bark than screaming of whatever. They add some clean backing "ohhhs" that bring to mind Viking era Bathory or, again, some of D666's more epic numbers. The guitar sound is quite modern, which doesn't quite fit the material at hand. It makes it sound a lot more elastic than it should. Thankfully, they change the pace too - with clean breaks (ala Immortal) and up-tempo sections that have quite a stomping feel to them. The song certainly progresses well. But damn, it feels like it's missing that nice warm 1990s production (imagine this with, I dunno, the sound from Hades's Dawn of the Dying Sun, now that would be much better). Maybe this is a bit too much of a hodge-podge of various cool influences to be really, really good. But it's certainly good and given that they're still a new band I reckon these lot are one to keep your eyes on.

*Nope, I was wrong! The guy still sounds like KK Warslut.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRf94CDqqRo - I'll give a shout to another cool release from last year.
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Metal_Jaw
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 09, 2016 11:40 pm 
 

Macabre Omen- "From Son to Father".

Appropriately epic black metal, with some pagan stuff. Aside from a few booming riffs here and there, this type of metal isn't my cup of tea at all. The spoken part in the middle was way to draggy, the solos were poorly developed and those warbling howls were just grating. Again, a good epic feel all around, as well as good atmosphere, but otherwise just aimless.

A little something from Canada- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FIDzi3aW2o

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narsilianshard
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PostPosted: Wed Feb 10, 2016 1:01 am 
 

Hanker - Confidence Man

Has that very distinct 80s hard/rock metal sound a la Europe or Quiet Riot. Except there are hardly any guitars! Just a boring start-stop three chord riff that shows up occasionally while the bassline and vocalist drone on endlessly - and neither of them are interesting enough to pull it off. FINALLY a full riff kicks in almost a minute into the song, but then disappears just when it's getting good. They decide instead to repeat the same boring parts for a couple more minutes before trudging through a solo and throwing in some lazy drum fills. The new Justin Bieber single is more exciting than this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8iCQ1NOER4
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Abominatrix
Harbinger of Metal

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PostPosted: Wed Feb 10, 2016 10:47 am 
 

Amorphis: "The Four Wise Ones"

I'm very conflicted about the 21st century Amorphis. They do have some nice tunes. But I don't always enjoy the way they seem to want to have it both ways. When I saw them on the Am universam tour they were pretty much pure "spacerock", and to my surprise it was an amazing show, one of the most honest and relaxed and just pure jamming-out kind of shows I've ever attended. I don't even like the album very much, but that show made it hard for me to say anything bad about them. But since they brought back a bit of the heaviness in studio, it's just come off as a bit weird and aimless to me. This song is a good example. Why have these aggressive vocals with such gentle sounding music? Oh, it picks up pace a bit toward the end, but still, as has been the case for years now I think, it's the mellow stuff that sounds best from them. Besides, I miss the distinctive, soft and "wet" sounding growls of the old days, when I guess the rhythm guitarist was doing them. I mean, don't get me wrong, this song has a nice chill vibe to it and the organ sound is very sweet, but there is to me, something "off" and wrong-sounding about the whole experience. Why are the distorted "Planet Caravan" type vocals there? Where's the cool leadwork? The song seems to end just as it is building up to some kind of climax. It almost sounds like someone just turned the master fader abruptly down to zero in the studio when he thought the band had said everything they wanted to. I wish this band would really get it together because when they're really on they can create a near masterpiece, but this left me feeling rathe rempty.

Ok, so not very heavy compared with a lot of stuff posted here, but I've been digging this a lot lately.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5TJuQo2fhk
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Metal_Jaw
Metalhead

Joined: Fri Sep 30, 2011 12:57 pm
Posts: 753
Location: United States
PostPosted: Wed Feb 10, 2016 10:02 pm 
 

Demon- Father of Time.

Actually not too bad of song. Not exactly metal (as Abom implied), but a good, slowish, moody 80's rock song. Vocals are iffy, but the guitar tone is nice and the production is just right in that early 80's European kinda way.

My favorite song off this album- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXN1t86o1dE

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TheMizwaOfMuzzyTah
Metalhead

Joined: Tue Feb 09, 2010 2:18 pm
Posts: 1792
Location: the emerald forest
PostPosted: Wed Feb 10, 2016 11:05 pm 
 

Razor - Eye of the Storm

So this is basically Black Metal (the Venom tune) with a modern sound. Classic speed verging on thrash, like the vocals and rubbery sounding bass. The riffing is meh but I'm not crazy about this style...can't say much else except that it's catchy too. Good guitar tone. Like I said, Black Metal clone. 4.5/10

Something that's been kicking my ass:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l85jRq5seHU

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Acrobat
Eric Olthwaite

Joined: Fri Jul 06, 2007 8:53 am
Posts: 8854
Location: Yorkshire
PostPosted: Thu Feb 11, 2016 2:39 pm 
 

Denner/Shermann - Satan's Curse

Okay, well, it's impossible to go into this one without being somewhat biased. Denner's lead would give this away even if I didn't see the title. First thing's first; the production's too modern for this kind of music (and I pray to Satan that this sort of production won't ever sully any future Mercyful Fate production). That's Snowy Shaw doing a fine job on drums - the tone's not great but I'd certainly like to see him if they can't get Kim Ruzz for a reunion - and there's riffs and solos a-plenty. The leads are certainly cool (what else would one expect from one of the best duos in metal... as good as KK/Tipton and Murray/Smith in my book) but the riffs are perhaps a bit by-numbers. I'm sure Shermann dug out his copy of Melissa. Sean Peck or whatever he's called seems to be shrieking for its own sake and the song lacks any real peaks, it just keeps on coming back to that rather ho-hum chorus. Two of these guys made the greatest metal album of all time, but you wouldn't know from this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ub-S-eUCU8
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Jonpo
Hyperc6l6mb6wler

Joined: Tue Jul 31, 2007 10:05 am
Posts: 7735
PostPosted: Thu Feb 18, 2016 12:22 pm 
 

Virtue - Fool's Gold

The opening intonations have me right away. These guys know exactly how to build tension and capture attention. After the moodiness falls away we're treated to a fucking SMOKING riff. I mean, SMOKING. This thing is on fire. I've always heard that I needed Virtue in my life and now I realize how true that is. This is the rotten underbelly of the NWOBHM. All the angst and passion and drive that never amounted to anything more than a cherished demo. You can hear it all in the pent-up riffing.

I'm going to track down this compilation. This song is astounding and I must hear more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aOrq_SqkMw
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Sepulchrave
Metalhead

Joined: Mon Jul 27, 2015 7:29 pm
Posts: 1994
PostPosted: Thu Feb 18, 2016 1:33 pm 
 

Loudness - Face to Face

The intro leading to the main riff kind of went the wrong way for me to build up anticipation, but that don't matter because said main riff is fantastic. Awakens memories of speedier Judas Priest. We get a bass solo somewhere in the latter half that is done well and certainly helps to that urban mood there. Niihara is pretty damn breathtaking, and I'd be dumb enough to say he's sometimes even better than Halford if you're talking about pure energy. Drumming gets you right there, though production-wise when they stand out a bit the sound is way too flat, but that's just nitpicking. The guitar solos are pretty OK, though maybe a touch too frantic for me, even if it's speed metal
altogether very noice

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZ2zVyGsw6E
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Metal_Jaw
Metalhead

Joined: Fri Sep 30, 2011 12:57 pm
Posts: 753
Location: United States
PostPosted: Thu Feb 18, 2016 6:52 pm 
 

Dark Tribe- "When Fear Turns Into Hate".

Decently interesting, groovy almost doomy black metal. Very loud and atmospheric, though the vocals are utter swill; just a bunch of hoarse, atonal screeches at random. Otherwise this is pretty solid stuff.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jem2jnK1RAs

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I_Am_Vengeance
Metalhead

Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2005 1:11 pm
Posts: 1923
Location: Australia
PostPosted: Mon Feb 22, 2016 8:13 am 
 

Demolition Hammer - Pyroclastic Annihilation

When it comes to old school thrash. Demolition Hammer are among the most brutal. Everything about the band is just incredible, they are like a more brutal Slayer, riffing is non stop and they do not slow down for any reason.

Vocals are your typical shouty thrash vocals but they are top tier. This is basically thrash at it's logical conclusion. Unrelenting brutality.

Great stuff 10/10

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuojxWhmFm4
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Zelkiiro
Pounding the world with a fish of steel

Joined: Sat Apr 18, 2009 5:30 pm
Posts: 7730
Location: Pennsylvania
PostPosted: Mon Feb 22, 2016 10:47 am 
 

Pharaoh - Fighting

Fuck yeah, Pharaoh are the shit! The Longest Night is their best album (if you ask me), and it's intense, kinetic tracks like this that prove it. Aymar's vocals are just so powerful and full of conviction, and the riffs are crunchy and satisfying. Y'know, as per usual. I wouldn't say this particular song is one of the highlights, per se, but it's still an awesome rock-solid slab of USPM.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTgMBcgRjSQ
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Thumbman
Big Cube

Joined: Mon Nov 16, 2009 6:47 pm
Posts: 4473
Location: Canada
PostPosted: Sat Mar 26, 2016 9:22 pm 
 

The Vision Bleak - He Who Paints the Night

Sorry bro, this definitely isn't my thing. First of all I really don't like the production. Very, very modern sounding it seems a bit dry and is just not really the way I like my metal. The riffs are fine I guess if not unimaginative and very middle of the road. The drumming is fine I guess, but like the riffs very unimaginative. They're not really my cup of tea, but the melodic lead guitar is good for what it is. However, what really kills me for this is the vocalist. It's pretty bad gothic vocals. The guy sounds pretty monotone and emotionless and he isn't very convincing when he tries to do harsh vocals. The operatic vocals near the end sound ridiculous. Overall, I didn't like this at all. To be fair, this isn't the type of sound I would ever like, and it would be fine without the vocals I guess.

Spoiler: show
Nevermind the weird intro noise, it's a hidden track and I think they were trying to do a 'your stereo is broken' prank like Type O Negative.

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mirons
Metalhead

Joined: Tue May 11, 2004 12:59 pm
Posts: 660
Location: Latvia
PostPosted: Sun Mar 27, 2016 7:06 pm 
 

I assume the song in question was Siege by Cobalt (the original video does not exist by now)

Cobalt - Siege

Not something I listen to (or am going to) on a regular basis, but I might pay more attention to them in the future; that's not a promise though. Primitive, earthly music that has that raw appeal, with a touch of psychedelics even. It has the aesthetics of sludge/hardcore, but the feel is more that of black metal. By the end of second time listening I find myself enjoying it quite a lot. This is music that I'd say is very hard to do right, at least for the ears of a metalhead, but when it hits the spot, it hits it with force. Still I imagine that there aren't too many fans of this stuff around.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t89OMeGTgjo

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narsilianshard
Veteran

Joined: Fri Aug 14, 2009 12:22 pm
Posts: 3618
Location: PDX
PostPosted: Tue May 24, 2016 6:57 pm 
 

This thread has been dormant for much too long.

Eschatos - In Whole Alone Is Good and Elsewhere Nowhere

Hell yes, Eschatos! I actually love this band but completely forgot to pick up the follow-up to Hierophanies. Excellent proggy black metal with a female vocalist, and the only band from Latvia I've ever listened to. For being 'prog' their songs have always been relatively straight-forward and this one is no exception. The experimentation lies in the and guitar work, rather than the overall structure. Cool, changing riffs and a bit on the atonal side. Solid production. Not a huge fan of this vocal-heavy bridge, Kristiāna's wail just isn't as good as her rasp. Other than the bridge the song is great, with a wonderful balance between slow, doomy parts and blazing black metal ferocity.

Couldn't find this on YouTube, so:

https://inobscurityrevealed.bandcamp.co ... of-thelema
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Tezcat
Metalhead

Joined: Sat Oct 23, 2004 10:39 am
Posts: 433
Location: Colombia
PostPosted: Fri May 27, 2016 2:24 pm 
 

In Obscurity Revealed - Law of Thelema

Slow, morbid, mid-paced riffs... OMG, nice vocals and beat change! (As you can see, this is being written as I listen to the track).

Very raw and primitive death metal (not that I'm complaining) sounds kinda early 90s stuff. I like the sound so far; fuzzy guitars, drums sound trigger-free, keeping it all very 'organic', the way it should be. And the cavernous growls give it that menacing sense of 'danger' I very much appreciate.

(doing a quick search on MA as the song plays a second time)

From Mexico! This is a nice surprise indeed!

You will find no surprises here, as they are not inventing anything, but damn if they do how to deliver catchy, old-school death metal.

My turn now...
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colin040
Metal freak

Joined: Sat Dec 08, 2007 6:00 pm
Posts: 7613
Location: Netherlands
PostPosted: Sat May 28, 2016 4:27 am 
 

Casket Grinder - Wheels of Convulsion

Yet another new death metal band playing the 90's style. I suppose it doesn't really do anything wrong. You've got these grinding furious riffing, a vicious drum attack somewhat reminiscent of Morbid Angel somewhat and guttural-yet-intelligible vocals....but the song itself doesn't really come off as very memorable to me. I bet these guys have the right intention about proudly playing some old school death metal and I'm sure they're not holding back for either but in the end it's just another song that comes and goes. In a time where there's retro death metal all over the place I'd rather listen to some other death metal bands.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBkBwV5SZVc

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