Metalegion Issue #1 2015/2016

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2015 / 2016 - ISSUE #1
BLACK . DEATH . THRASH . HEAVY
SPEED . DARK . GRIND . DOOM... H38 PAGES REVIEW SECTION RCANCER SPECIAL REISSUE
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EXTREME MUSIC MAGAZINE
TANKARD
REST IN BEER
PART XVI
MORGOTH
ANTI-RELIGIOUS
DESASTER
25 YEARS LATER
”IT’S OUR MUSIC, IT’S OUR ALBUM”
OBITUARY
WITH A MODERN CONCEPT “INKED IN BLOOD”
IS LITERALLY AN ALBUM FOR THE FANS
“YOU CAN’T FAKE WHEN
YOU COME ON STAGE”
MEKOND DELTA . FALCONER
PORTRAIT . SERPENTINE PATH
GLUTTONY . BLACK TRIP
VANHELGD . DOOM:VS
AXEGRESSOR . SPACE EATER
MORDBRAND . LAMIA VOX
DESTRUCTIVE EXPLOSION
OF ANAL GARLAND
FREE ONLINE MAGAZINE
ISSUE 1 2015 / 2016
9 772183 834000 0 1

EXTREME MUSIC MAGAZINE
LIKE A GOOD RED WINE, AGE ONLY STRENGTHENS THE CHARACTERISTICS OF A SOLID BAND AND
THAT IS PRECISELY WHAT OBITUARY, 30 YEARS LATER, STILL MANAGES TO DO.
.. WORDS: ESTELLE MUSICIAN: JOHN TARDY (VOCALIST) / DONALD TARDY (DRUMMER) ..
this interview for Metalegion Magazine! What do you
think is the main reason of Obituary’s success?
John: “I guess we just like what we are doing. It’s pretty much it.
It’s important just to have fun in what you are doing - if it becomes
a job, it becomes work and it sucks, then don’t do it. Just go out,
have a good time and do what you do.”
If you could start your whole career in Obituary again, would
you do anything differently?
Donald: “No (emphatically).”
Could you tell me about some of the highlights of your career
in metal that you are the most proud of or mostly like to think
back of?
John: “Out of all the albums that we’ve done I can remember where
I was when I got the first copy of “Slowly We Rot”, and was very
proud of it. We also got to see a lot of the world, we’ve been to lots
of different countries, got to meet a lot of cool people. To me it’s
the best part of it, to get to see all the different cultures around
the world.”
How did it affect your relationship with your brother, Donald
throughout the years that you had to work together? Did you
have any massive misunderstanding in connection with music?
John: “Not really, we get along pretty good actually. We have a
studio at my house and he’s pretty much there seven days a
week - not that we never argue, but nothing serious, we get along
really great. I think the good thing that works so well is that we just
talk things out. We talk it out, we argue it out, and then we make
a decision.”
Obituary is one of the most fan-based and active metal bands
out there (you run your own websites, also the facebook page),
you really interact with the fans. In terms of your new album,
“Inked in Blood”, why did the band decide that you would
‘make the music for the fans instead of a label’? Did you have
any bad experiences so far that made you do this?
John: “We’ve been a band for thirty years, we’ve been at multiple
labels, and even years back we’ve just been always wanting to do
4 METALEGION #1
CHALY, THE DARK BAT FIGURE RETURNS... THIS TIME IN THE FORM OF A STONE ALIKE GARGOYLE.
BEWARE, HE WILL HUNT YOU DOWN WITH ITS WHITE DEVIL ARMORY!
.. INTRO: RICARDO AZEVEDO WORDS: ESTELLE MUSICIAN: BOBBY “BLITZ” ELLSWORTH (VOCALIST) PHOTOS: HAKON GRAV ..
By Bobby “Blitz” E lsworth
“I don’t know, I suppose now Overkill is getting a lot of attention,
chart positions have shown that we have a popularity of
the scene in thrash, not just for us but for many of the other
bands, it’s something that is very special in the current day.
So I think that there’s obviously a little bit of a difference; in
the early days we were getting attention based on the genre’s
newness and creation at that time as the scene was developing,
but now I think we are probably getting as much if not
more attention based on its longevity, and let’s say value in
the current day.
You know, this is a thing I’ve done as an adult - my whole adult
life. It’s over a 30-year period now that I’ve been playing in
Overkill. I never really think about what could we have done
better, I think that the key here is if we felt that there was a
mistake, we would comb upon that mistake the next time. This
wasn’t a band that sticks terribly to that one way described
as unpopular, this was something that you didn’t want to do,
and we always found ways to make that happen. The drive
was the popularity of the scene, so I think that the choice was
made, the dice was cast, it was really simple for us: this is
what we wanna do, so I don’t really look at it as what we could
have done better, I just kinda look at it as we’ve always tried
to count what we can improve on what we would like to do,
and I think that someone there might say that is the key of our
personal success.”
14 METALEGION #1
ONE OF THE MOST PROLIFIC,
BELOVED AND LONG LASTING
THRASH METAL BANDS RETURN
FOR ITS 17 TH FULL LENGTH.
THE TRUTH IS... THE METAL
SCENE REJOICES WHENEVER
THERE IS A NEW ALBUM OF
THIS TIME IS NO EXCEPTION.
BEFORE A SHOW AND SHARED
HIS THOUGHTS ABOUT “WHITE
DEVIL ARMORY” AND SOME
EVENTS ON HIS LIFE...
You guys are extremely hard-working (the band puts out
the new albums every 2 or 3 years, tours like mad, you
also run a chocolate shop with your wife) and despite all
these you never stopped thrashing. What do you feel was
the worst period to exist as a thrash metal band?
“You know, just the fact that you’re here this is a great thing.
I think there was a period in the nineties when it was harder
to retain a record field and harder to let’s say keep it growing.
Not ‘94, ‘95, ‘96, because there was still a great underground
popularity of the scene, but then grunge came in and put a
big dirty footprint on the metal scene – it became unpopular
and went back to the underground, so it was a little bit harder
than when its creation happened and what now happens. But
when I think back of those times, just because it was harder
it doesn’t mean it was unsatisfying. To some degree, it’s more
satisfying because of the new methods we looked to put into it;
still there were record deals, still there were tours – we never
stopped touring, we never stopped recording records and we
never were without a record deal. And this was due to our own
work, we were writers in the band and we also self-managed
during this period of time. So we made good moves, they were
hard moves at the time but when I think back on them, I think
of them as the most satisfying days based on the fact that a
lot of people couldn’t do this, but obviously we could.”
don’t really consider themselves or feel like musicians.
Do you?
it ourselves. We finally said “you know what, let’s go ahead and try
to do this ourselves”. Not that we expect to put CDs in the back of
our car and drive around the world to sell them on our own, I mean,
you just still need help from somebody because there are distribution
companies, there are multiple countries and lots of problems.
We met the Relapse people, and the guys at Relapse are super
cool. We got to get the album ourselves, it’s our album, we just got
to kind of using their engine to get it out to the fans, and it really
worked out good for us. There are all those Roadrunner Records,
but we don’t own those things, we can’t even do anything with
them even if we’d want it to. So the cool thing about this is that it’s
our music, it’s our album, we get to do what we want to do, and we
get Relapse to help us to get it out to the people.”
Your new album, “Inked in Blood” was released in October
2014, what was the main goal you wanted to achieve with it?
Donald: “The main thing we wanted to do is make sure that it
sounded like Obituary and that the songs were written in the
Obituary style - and that’s an obvious answer, but that was the
main goal, to make sure that it was a true Obituary album. And
then along with that came making sure that when we recorded the
album we stayed true to what recording albums used to be and
kept it very old-school. We did not use too much modern technology
with the recording, we only used microphones and instruments
so we did not do any sound replacing or triggering of bass drums
or anything, we kept it very very true to what we used to do back in
the day – so those were the two main goals.”
Do you bother reading critics on the new album or Obituary in
general?
Donald: “I don’t mind reading, I know you’ll never make everybody
happy. I think Obituary fans love the new album and that’s all I
care about. If you read everything you’re going to find people that
cry and complain and bitch about things - and they’re allowed to,
it’s freedom of speech.”
You recorded the album in your own studio called RedNeck.
How was the recording or writing session different from any of
your previous albums’?
Donald: “The main thing was that it was relaxing and it was
enjoyable. In my career I’ve always experienced that sometimes
“Obviously there’s music here because I write the melodies to
the popular music, so each vocal has a melody. Now what’s
telling the correctness what to sing, it’s more how I interpret
that, so sure, that becomes my musical input to it, therefore
of course I’m one of the musicians in the band to complete the
formula.”
Besides singing, you also play the bass. Did you ever
consider really playing in a band as a bassist?
“I did for a while. I was in university at the time and in high
school, so I watched the others bass and loved the base gear,
and played in cover bands. When I was in university, it was
because we were trying to meet girls. It’s really simple, it’s
something to do on the weekends. When I was in high school,
it was because it was cool, it wasn’t anything, it was just fun. gressiveness, but it doesn’t have the groove. Did you plan
But I was singing the tunes of songs when I was playing the “White Devil Armory” to be similar in this aspect?
bass, I wasn’t just playing the bass, I was singing tunes like “I think that when I gave that answer, that was for sure my
a ZZ-Top song, we were playing music that was popular at the commitment to add a certain groove to what I am to it, not the
time. So yeah, I had played as a bassist in those bands.”
groove, the vocals in between that the other guys were doing.
So for sure I did, and I think Overkill is made up with different
elements, and even though I’ve highlighted The Electric Age as
a two-dimensional record, I do feel it’s a great thrash record,
energetic and dynamic as you were back in the eighties, I really think that it was really something special for 2012. So
similarly to the past few albums of yours such as “The sure, I instilled groove in that.
Electric Age” or “Ironbound”. In one of your earlier interviews
you said that “The Electric Age” is something like for a new record: I think as long as you’re challenging yourself,
There’s not a lot of talking when it comes to Overkill’s planning
two-dimensional – it has the speed and it has the ag-
you’re going to get better results. And I even think that “White 4
#1 METALEGION 15
“Thrash, fun and beer. (laughs)”
In what aspect do you think you are different from the
other old-school thrash metal bands?
“I think the main difference is that we had a lot of humour
from the very beginning of Tankard. We called our second demo
just “Alcoholic Metal” because at the time there were a lot of
new metal styles, black metal and speed metal, and posers
against all the others... And you know, we never took ourselves
too seriously, we always had a lot of fun and I think it wouldn’t
really fit for us to have an evil kind of image or something like
that.
We have a lot of serious lyrics, a good combination of funny
stuff and serious stuff, but we still have a lot fun in playing
that kind of music. I think this is the biggest difference between
us and some other bands.”
In one of your earlier interviews you said that in a case of
beer there is space for twenty bottles. You just released
your sixteenth album, “R.I.B. (Rest in Beer)”, are you still
determined about doing four more?
“At the moment it looks like it. (laughs) We still have a lot of
fun, we still have good things happening, we keep going now
for 32 years and I can’t see the end with the band, I could not
imagine my life without Tankard, so I guess the case will be
full some day.”
22 METALEGION #1
THERE IS PROBABLY
NO OTHER BAND
THAT SO PERFECTLY
REPRESENTS WHAT
THRASH METAL IS
ALL ABOUT THAN
THE GERMANS
TANKARD. FUN, METAL
& BEER WAS ALWAYS THEIR
MOTTO FOR MORE THAN 30
YEARS BY NOW. WE CAUGHT
BEFORE ONE THE SHOWS
PROMOTING THE ALBUM “R.I.B.”
FOR AN EXTRA DOSE OF FUN!
#1 METALEGION 5
THE QUARTET WENT ON A DEADLY MISSION TO RESCUE THE MAD PROFESSOR FROM AN HIATUS OF
MORE THAN 25 YEARS... HE’S BACK TO CONQUER US WITH HIS FINAL FORMULA OF TOXIC BEER!
.. INTRODUCTION: RICARDO AZEVEDO WORDS: ESTELLE MUSICIAN: ANDREAS “GERRE” GEREMIA (VOCALIST) ..
one new album? You seem to go pretty easily with it, even
besides the fact that none of you is a full-time musician.
“This is a very hard period for us, but it’s actually not planned
to put out a new album every two years. I mean I think it’s cool
releasing a new album two or three years in between, but now
“R.I.B.” is out, we’ll see what we’ll do with the next album. I
think it will take another ten or twelve years to keep Tankard
alive for the 20th studio album to get the case full.”
How is it different to work with Nuclear Blast from how
it was when you were at Noise, Century Media or AFM
Records?
“Nuclear Blast is the biggest one among the heavy metal labels,
they have a lot of power, so I think this was really another
step forward for Tankard. They do a lot of promotion stuff and
it was really a kick for Tankard, we are very very satisfied and
hope that we can stay much longer with Nuclear Blast.”
The cover of “R.I.B.” is kind of an obvious ‘recommitment’
to your classic album “Chemical Invasion”, as well as the
continuation of some of the lyrics and the insane professor
character. Is this a sign of the fact that you are not willing
to distance yourselves from your roots, from the simple
and brutal thrash metal?
“No, we never distance ourselves from our roots. You know,
it was a funny idea to bring the mad professor back on a
cover, but I think this album sounds different than “Chemical
Invasion”. The story is totally weird because the professor
failed in ‘87 to stop the chemical invasion and now he’s back
to take revenge on mankind and poison everybody with free
beer. I actually really like the stuff that we did back in the
eighties, but I’d never do that again in these days because a
lot of things have changed with the sound and everything. I
think we will never forget about our roots, we always play a lot
of old songs live, yet we always try to do a good mixture of old
and new stuff.”
Could you choose one song from the new album and
describe what it means to you?
“This is a very personal song on this album, it’s called ‘Hope
Can’t Die’, it’s one of my favourite songs on the record. I lost
a very good friend two years ago, at that time you have this
confusion of feelings, anger, sadness and hope... “What did go
wrong?”. I had two years ago a mixture of emotions when I lost
that very good friend of mine.
the hell did we go wrong” and saying “We played our asses
off for more than thirty years, but now our patience’s gone,
we want cash, keep the beer!”. Is this just a fun track
again, or do you mean what you are saying with the song?
“No, this is a totally fun track again. That was my idea, because
it’s really interesting to see that there are some musicians
who only had one song in their lives and they can live all
their lives from the money for it because the track is always
played in the radio. And of course, Tankard will never do a
‘one-hit wonder’ song, because we play for so long, so the idea
was born to call this song ‘No One Hit Wonder’ and of course
the lyrics are totally funny.”
Besides the funny lyrics, you have some serious stuff going
on in the lyrics again, for example in ‘War Cry’, ‘Hope Can’t
Die’ or ‘Clockwise to Deadline’. Do you want or try to prove
the fans that you also have this mature side of songwriting?
Or do you think that if they still haven’t noticed that
Tankard is not Tankard only because of the beer, it doesn’t
even matter?
“We had that kind of beer-image since “Chemical Invasion”,
we did everything for it, but later on we wanted to get rid of it.
We totally failed in the nineties of course. Nowadays we do a
lot of jokes about our own image, we see it with lot of parody
and stuff like that. Since “Chemical Invasion” we always had a
good mixture of serious lyrics and funny lyrics. If you watch the
news every night and if you walk in the world with open eyes,
then it’s not only fun, there are a lot of bad things happening
on this planet.
We will always write also some serious stuff. First of all we are
a band with a lot of humour and a lot of fun, but we are also
a band that can play serious songs on stage while having fun.
But we would never do an album only with fun lyrics.”
began to try getting rid of this concept, of this image that
the band built around beer. Nowadays you accepted that
it probably became the largest characteristic of the band.
In general, do you guys usually stick to the key things that
seem to work for you, or do you still have the desire to try
something new?
“We never have a plan when we start the songwriting, about
which direction it goes. For example if we did the next album
totally seriously, nobody would believe that it’s Tankard. Somehow
the old Tankard is reduced only to this beer stuff and we
did everything at the beginning for it, but now we have to live
with it, and as I told you before, nowadays we make a lot of
jokes about our own image, so of course nobody has to take it
so seriously. We really can live with that Tankard is sometimes
just reduced to this kind of beer image, but we still keep on
going, writing good songs, trying to do the best and hoping that
the fans like it and expect Tankard to continue the music.”
How seriously do you guys take yourselves when it comes 4
By Andreas “Ge re” Geremia
#1 METALEGION 23
EDITORIAL : WORDS FROM THE CRYPT
f
Despite the inconceivable event that affected
the core of the Metalegion staff that lead to a
constant clash of vicious, sometimes almost
deranged inner battles (such is the ravenous power of
Death among the living...), Metalegion sees finally its
first issue available after an unforeseen delay to the
rejoicing of the metal fans.
The very first thing that we noticed when we started
this overwhelming journey was the immediate interest
from the metal scene in general (labels, bands, etc)
towards a new publication. Most of us already had or
have some sort of direct connection with the metal
scene and some even explored the amazing world of
the fanzine scene of the mid 90’s, but to be completely
honest the whole reaction surpassed our initial
expectations. That resulted mostly in being flooded
with new records for review and appreciation purposes.
We will make all efforts to include all submissions
(giving priority to the physical promos sent to our
headquarters. Don’t you love the smell and sound of
vinyl in the morning? Well, we do!), with the exception
of low quality digital files or music genres that have
nothing in common with the “Extreme Music Concept”
(please read: metal music and some forms of dark
music) where Metalegion Magazine lies upon.
On this first issue we had the opportunity to chat with
some of the most charismatic names of the metal
scene, brothers John and Donald Tardy from the mighty
Obituary before a show, Bobby Blitz from the old
thrashers Overkill (look at my pose a la “We don’t care
what you say, Fuck You!”) or Andreas Gerre from the
always in a good mood (Nooo, its not only due to the
large doses of beer... I guess!) Germans Tankard.
We feel that there is still space for improvement and
we are eager to put in practice some ideas that are
cooking in our rusty cauldron, nevertheless the basis
of Metalegion Magazine are somewhat traced with
this first issue. Feel free to get back to us with
any suggestions, opinions or whatever. Read
on and until the next issue... Increase the
volume of your stereo and HORNS UP!
zS icardo zevedoj
R
U
Ricardo Azevedo,
the editor-in-chief
A
COVER
FRONT COVER OBITUARY PHOTOS
Ester Segarra
DIGITAL MANIPULATION
Ricardo Azevedo
qe
Hello John, first of all thank you very much for doing
THE D.I.Y. ATTITUDE
T
"I WASN'T JUST
PLAYING THE
BASS (...) WE
WERE PLAYING
MUSIC THAT
WAS POPULAR
AT THE TIME"
firstly I would like to ask, are you
satisfied with what you have done throughout
the years? What do you think could have Bobby,
gone better?
OVERKILL COMING OUT AND
VOCALIST BOBBY “BLITZ”
ELLSWORTH WAS SEIZED
MUSICIAN OR VOCALIST?
Some vocalists who I interviewed so far said that they
4
FIVE YEARS AFTER,
OBITUARY STRIKE
THE FANS WITH THE
NINTH OPUS ENTITLED
“INKED IN BLOOD”.
DURING THEIR LIVE
PROMOTION WE HAD
THE CHANCE TO TALK
IN TWO SEPARATE
OCCASIONS WITH
VOCALIST JOHN
TARDY & DRUMMER
DONALD TARDY
WHERE THEY REVEALED
SOME DETAILS AROUND
THEIR SUCCESSFUL
ONLINE KICKSTARTER
CAMPAIGN TO FUND
THE RELEASE PROCESS
OF “INKED IN BLOOD”.
OVERKILL
14
BLENDING DIFFERENT STUFF
Your new album, “White Devil Armory” is close to being as
one of the bands with the hardest white
devil armory available on the market
e
FEATURES
BLACK TRIP
10
OFFICE
METALEGION MAGAZINE
Av. G. Humberto Delgado, nº5, 5ºA
2745-281 Monte Abrãao
PORTUGAL
www.metalegion.com / info@metalegion.com
STAFF
PUBLISHER & MANAGING EDITOR
Ricardo Azevedo / ricardo@metalegion.com
CONSULTANT EDITOR
Petra Chaves / petra@metalegion.com
DESIGN & DIGITAL MANIPULATION
Ricardo Azevedo / design@metalegion.com
DEPARTMENTS
NEWS: submit@metalegion.com
straight from the late 70’s
early 80’s, it’s quite under
PORTRAIT
18
wicked heavy metal spells
done at crossroads
AXEGRESSOR
26
last is most likely a new
era for the Finns
GLUTTONY
30
the purveyors of old
school death metal
DOOM:VS
36
perfect mix between
beauty and cruel tragedy
SPACE EATER
38
after the tragedy the
thrashers return
FALCONER
42
"IT`S OUR MUSIC, IT`S OUR ALBUM,
WE GET TO DO WHAT WE WANT TO DO,
AND WE GET RELAPSE TO HELP US"
By John Tardy
solidifying their place
among the best
MORGOTH
46
saying goodbye to an
iconic vocalist
SERPENTINE PATH
48
heavy hypnotic sounds
of doom and despair
MORDBRAND
52
overflows influences
from the Swedish past
DESASTER
56
celebrating 25 years of
medieval darkness
VANHELGD
98
VOCALIST ANDREAS “GERRE”
Gerre, first of all thank you for doing the interview
for Metalegion Magazine! If you had to
Hi
describe the work of Tankard over all the years in
three words, what would you say?
GOING FOR THE 2OTH ALBUM .
How much work and time does it take for you to record
obscure relics from a
creeping beast
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CONTRIBUTORS
Eszter Sz. (Estelle), Arjun Arman, Felix 1666
Guenther, Kevin Akstin, Alex Ross, Don Anelli,
Evan Spayd, Nenad Kobal, Alex Roy, Ian Berling,
Conor Fynes
PHYSICAL PROMOS / LETTERS
MAIL ADDRESS
RICARDO AZEVEDO
Av. G. Humberto Delgado, nº5, 5ºA
2745-281 Monte Abraão
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DIGITAL PROMOS/REVIEW GUIDELINES
100% inclusion only for physical promos
ISSUE # 1 : CONTENTS
CONCEPTUAL SONGS OR NOT
In the song ‘No One Hit Wonder’, you are asking “Where
OBITUARY
the legacy of the
04 Floridian quintet
continues to expand and
while the music business
has suffered severe strokes
during the past years,
Obituary return with a
new album and a singular
way to release music with
the help of the fans. The
devilish pact was signed
inked in blood...
CHASED BY BEER
As you said with your album “Two-Faced” from 1994, you
TANKARD
22
104
f
from Czech what can
we expect? Grind!
LAMIA VOX
108
summoning demons
couldn’t be easier
MEKONG DELTA
110
the progressive edge of
thrash metal
REGULARS
SPECIAL REISSUE
35
the emblematic three
from CANCER
SLICE & DICE
60
only the strongest will
survive our scrutiny
"HE'S BACK TO TAKE REVENGE ON
MANKIND AND POISON EVERYBODY"
most likely the metal band with the
healthiest relationship with beer... or not
DESTRUCTIVE EXPLO-
SION OF ANAL GARLAND
MINIMUM BITRATE ACCEPTED
CBR 192 kbps / VBR V1
RECOMMENDED BITRATE QUALITY
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r
© METALEGION MAGAZINE, No part of this
magazine may be reproduced without the prior
consent of the publisher. The publisher cannot
accept responsibility for the advertisements in
this publication.
ISSN: 2183-8348
f / MetalegionMag U / MetalegionMag
d e

LIKE A GOOD RED WINE, AGE ONLY STRENGTHENS THE CHARACTERISTICS OF A SOLID BAND AND
THAT IS PRECISELY WHAT OBITUARY, 30 YEARS LATER, STILL MANAGES TO DO.
.. WORDS: ESTELLE MUSICIAN: JOHN TARDY (VOCALIST) / DONALD TARDY (DRUMMER) ..
Hello John, first of all thank you very much for doing
this interview for Metalegion Magazine! What do you
think is the main reason of Obituary’s success?
John: “I guess we just like what we are doing. It’s pretty much it.
It’s important just to have fun in what you are doing - if it becomes
a job, it becomes work and it sucks, then don’t do it. Just go out,
have a good time and do what you do.”
If you could start your whole career in Obituary again, would
you do anything differently?
Donald: “No (emphatically).”
Could you tell me about some of the highlights of your career
in metal that you are the most proud of or mostly like to think
back of?
John: “Out of all the albums that we’ve done I can remember where
I was when I got the first copy of “Slowly We Rot”, and was very
proud of it. We also got to see a lot of the world, we’ve been to lots
of different countries, got to meet a lot of cool people. To me it’s
the best part of it, to get to see all the different cultures around
the world.”
How did it affect your relationship with your brother, Donald
throughout the years that you had to work together? Did you
have any massive misunderstanding in connection with music?
John: “Not really, we get along pretty good actually. We have a
studio at my house and he’s pretty much there seven days a
week - not that we never argue, but nothing serious, we get along
really great. I think the good thing that works so well is that we just
talk things out. We talk it out, we argue it out, and then we make
a decision.”
THE D.I.Y. ATTITUDE
Obituary is one of the most fan-based and active metal bands
out there (you run your own websites, also the facebook page),
you really interact with the fans. In terms of your new album,
“Inked in Blood”, why did the band decide that you would
‘make the music for the fans instead of a label’? Did you have
any bad experiences so far that made you do this?
John: “We’ve been a band for thirty years, we’ve been at multiple
labels, and even years back we’ve just been always wanting to do
it ourselves. We finally said “you know what, let’s go ahead and try
to do this ourselves”. Not that we expect to put CDs in the back of
our car and drive around the world to sell them on our own, I mean,
you just still need help from somebody because there are distribution
companies, there are multiple countries and lots of problems.
We met the Relapse people, and the guys at Relapse are super
cool. We got to get the album ourselves, it’s our album, we just got
to kind of using their engine to get it out to the fans, and it really
worked out good for us. There are all those Roadrunner Records,
but we don’t own those things, we can’t even do anything with
them even if we’d want it to. So the cool thing about this is that it’s
our music, it’s our album, we get to do what we want to do, and we
get Relapse to help us to get it out to the people.”
Your new album, “Inked in Blood” was released in October
2014, what was the main goal you wanted to achieve with it?
Donald: “The main thing we wanted to do is make sure that it
sounded like Obituary and that the songs were written in the
Obituary style - and that’s an obvious answer, but that was the
main goal, to make sure that it was a true Obituary album. And
then along with that came making sure that when we recorded the
album we stayed true to what recording albums used to be and
kept it very old-school. We did not use too much modern technology
with the recording, we only used microphones and instruments
so we did not do any sound replacing or triggering of bass drums
or anything, we kept it very very true to what we used to do back in
the day – so those were the two main goals.”
Do you bother reading critics on the new album or Obituary in
general?
Donald: “I don’t mind reading, I know you’ll never make everybody
happy. I think Obituary fans love the new album and that’s all I
care about. If you read everything you’re going to find people that
cry and complain and bitch about things - and they’re allowed to,
it’s freedom of speech.”
You recorded the album in your own studio called RedNeck.
How was the recording or writing session different from any of
your previous albums’?
Donald: “The main thing was that it was relaxing and it was
enjoyable. In my career I’ve always experienced that sometimes
4
FIVE YEARS AFTER,
OBITUARY STRIKE
THE FANS WITH THE
NINTH OPUS ENTITLED
“INKED IN BLOOD”.
DURING THEIR LIVE
PROMOTION WE HAD
THE CHANCE TO TALK
IN TWO SEPARATE
OCCASIONS WITH
VOCALIST JOHN
TARDY & DRUMMER
DONALD TARDY
WHERE THEY REVEALED
SOME DETAILS AROUND
THEIR SUCCESSFUL
ONLINE KICKSTARTER
CAMPAIGN TO FUND
THE RELEASE PROCESS
OF “INKED IN BLOOD”.
4 METALEGION #1

"IT`S OUR MUSIC, IT`S OUR ALBUM,
WE GET TO DO WHAT WE WANT TO DO,
AND WE GET RELAPSE TO HELP US"
By John Tardy
#1 METALEGION 5

1980
DIO
Holy Diver
“It’s my first choice ‘cause it’s the best
album in the world. It’s the best drumming
record I have ever experienced, it is still
my favourite drum album”
1969
LED ZEPPELIN
Led Zeppelin II
“Led Zeppelin II” because of John Bonham.
As I was a child, he really showed me how
rock ‘n’ roll music or heavy metal doesn’t
need to be the most technical as long as the
drummer plays very solid. John was just
one of the best drummers in the world.”
2012
PSYCROPTIC
The Inherited Repression
“I think they are an incredible band that is
so technical and the drummer does things
that I could only dream of doing because
he’s so fast (laughs).”
HIGHLIGHTS BY DONALD TARDY
the studio can be a bit intimidating and a bit nerve-racking
for band members. And because we practiced at the studio,
we would live at the studio, we were always there - it made
things very easy-going and it made it actually fun. It’s not
often you can use the word ‘fun’ while recording songs
because sometimes it really is nerve-racking, but the own
studio made it very enjoyable for the band members.”
Some people still seem to be quite suspicious in connection
with your Kickstarter campaign and the fact that you
were planning to put the album out completely yourselves
and when it came to distributing it, you made a partnership
with Relapse. What would you say to these people?
Donald: “Well, if people are confused they can simply see
how much money was raised and the amount of awards that
Obituary had, because everybody that contributed got what
they wanted which was the t-shirts, the hats and the albums
and everything we gave. So it is very obvious how much
money was spent on all the material, to buy all the hats and
the t-shirts; along with the amount of money that we needed
to actually record, mix, produce, master the record – we got
the album cover paid for at the same time, so that was just
a portion of the amount of money that is needed to actually
release an album on your own. Hundreds of thousands of
dollars go into marketing campaigns and to literally print the
vinyl and print the CDs and distribute them around the world.
It’s hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars; with the
amount of money we raised we were able to record the entire
album AND pay for the material needed for the Kickstarter
campaign. But if anyone does research they can look at how
expensive it is to truly do an album on your own. To get a
distribution deal with the company and the thing that you are
going to put it in every record store in the world takes much
much more money than what Obituary raised. We tried to do
it, we looked into it but it simply was too expensive to actually
pull it off. That’s why we partnered with a record label – we
simply used the record label to distribute and to print the
actual physical CDs and that’s what Relapse did for us.”
What is your opinion about the fact that some people say
you “begged” for money to do this album?
John: “Actually, it’s just about as much money as we got to
now go ahead and get everybody everything that they ordered;
so that rumour was a little bit weird. We have a lot of work
to do, there’s just so much stuff now that we owe fans. The
amount of money that we’ll see after the fact, it’s not gonna
be very much. It was very cool though, to see this fan support
and all the people who did what they did, and as soon as we
get home we’re going to start going through that and getting
all those things out to the fans.”
THE EARLY DAYS
As far as I know, the artwork of your classic album from
1990, “Cause of Death” was supposed to be the cover of
Sepultura’s record “Beneath the Remains” from 1989.
Why did Roadrunner let Obituary use the Michael Whelan
cover first?
John: “It was not our decision. There was actually two albums
coming out at the same time, they had two pieces of artwork,
and Roadrunner was the one that made that decision, it really
didn’t have anything to do with us.”
So you didn’t talk with Sepultura at all on this matter?
John: “No.”
Was there any tension between the two bands because
Obituary used the artwork? As far as I know, you also
worked as a guest on Sepultura’s “Beneath the Remains”
(you helped with the vocals in song ‘Stronger Than Hate’).
John: “I don’t know, it’s kind of odd, they once asked me that
question so long ago, so I kind of heard that Sepultura wanted
to use that artwork - at the time I had no idea, I didn’t even
see the other artwork, I just know that we got stuck with what
we got. No tension, I mean it was all before. The album was
actually recorded in Brazil, Max Cavalera sang, he did the
lyrics and he mixed the album at Morrisound studio in Tampa.
That was the first time I met them. Max didn’t speak good
English at the time, he stayed at our house, we hung out, the
whole time he was doing that while I sang them some lyrics
of the album. That was awesome, we were taken motocross
races and monster trucks and all kinds of crazy shit. That
was pretty funny.”
If you could change one thing on any of your previous
works with Obituary, what would it be?
John: “Obviously our early albums, we were still in high
school when we recorded “Slowly We Rot”, so if you go back
and listen to the productions throughout the years, there are
always things you wish you could re-change or re-do. On our
earlier albums, we just wrote the songs and then recorded
them. With the new album we really took our time, like three
years of writing the songs and then jamming the songs, and
giving yourself the chance to hear them, make changes, let
your mind really fill the song out - so we really had the luxury
with this album, we’ve really taken our time, and let the
natural progression of our writing.
There are always things you can change, but at the same
time you listen back and there are different points in your
life, different times in your life... After all I wouldn’t change
anything, even though I’m not happy with any of our albums
played. (laughs hard) I don’t think I would ever be, nor would
anybody in the band, there is always going to be stuff that you
don’t like, that you wish you could do again or do better.”
BLOODY VISIONS
‘Visions in My Head’ was the first track to be released
from the new album. Do you think it was the catchiest?
“Yeah, it was. It was an obvious choice. At the minute we
wrote it, it only took me and Trevor maybe five or ten minutes
and we knew that the song was going to be the first one
released. There was a strange feeling we had, we knew it
was very catchy and very simple. When we recorded it, all
the record label people, all my friends, everyone that came in
contact with ‘Visions’ – we knew that was the one that stuck
out. And so we knew to grab the world’s attention we wanted
to grab a catchy song that isn’t the heaviest song on the
album, but it definitely grabs your attention and it has all the
pieces to a good song. It has a middle part, it has a great solo
and it has a terrific ending.”
I’ve read in some of your recent interviews that you guys
were listening to Obituary’s old albums in order to get
the same kind of sound and vibe for the new album as
for the earlier ones. Is it because you didn’t really want
to risk much and didn’t want to distance yourselves from
something that seems to work?
“Actually we didn’t listen to the old albums to try and get
the sound, we were in the process of writing the new album
for many years. We took three or four years writing the new
songs and at the same time we were invited to play a classic
setlist. So when we were recording, we took a break from
recording the new songs and we had to listen to the old songs
to re-learn them because we had an offer to come and play
at a festival, but they wanted songs only off of the first three.
So I had to go back and listen to the old ones to re-learn the
songs, not the production but I had to go and really re-learn
because they were twenty years old. (laughs) So I think
what happened was, we went and played at the festival and
played all the old songs and when we came home we kept
writing new material – and I think whether we knew it or
4
6 METALEGION #1

"THEY CAN LOOK AT HOW EXPENSIVE IT IS
TO TRULY DO AN ALBUM ON YOUR OWN"
By Donald Tardy
#1 METALEGION 7

not, re-learning the old songs gave us some really cool ideas that
brought back that old Obituary sound. And we didn’t deliberately do
that but there was definitely some influence from the old stuff by
having to re-learn some of the old ones while writing new songs.”
John, you mentioned in some of your earlier interviews that you
were influenced by Savatage and Nasty Savage, because even
though they were not as heavy as Obituary, they were different
from the traditional metal styles at the time. Did you always
have the desire to just be different and unmistakable, or do you
just do your thing and don’t think about it?
John: “I don’t think you can go out and say “I want to be different”,
or “I wanna be fast”, or “I wanna be this, I wanna be that” because
I think if you try to set that goal, you are never going to get anything
done. We met Nasty Savage and Savatage, they were young, we
were even younger, we were still back in high school. Riding our
bikes on the street and hearing them jam in their garage, and it was
just like, we kept running back and forth hoping that they would
come outside. It’s cool because like you said Nasty Savage and
Savatage - nobody sounds like those two bands. Nobody. Most of
music that I like, that’s what I like to see, I like a band like the AC/
DC, or Lynyrd Skynyrd - they are who they are, there’s nobody else
like ‘em. But you can’t practice that, you can’t work at that, it’s just
what happens.”
What was your greatest fear in connection with Obituary
throughout all the years?
Donald: “God, there was never fear. You’re always going to get fans
that will listen to your music and compare you, whether they think
it’s great or they are okay with it or they think it should be something
different or that’s just not what they want. But I never let that bring
fear into me because I have a very good ability of playing drums,
I know what I do well and I know that I’m doing the right thing for
Obituary’s style of music. So I don’t bring fear into it, because again
I think there are many, many metalheads that love Obituary and
love my drumming; and that’s enough for me, I don’t need to win
everyone’s heart. (laughs)”
FUTURE ( UN ) CERTAINTY
If we can talk about a next album, do you plan to record and
distribute it in the same way as “Inked in Blood”?
Donald: “I think the partnership that we have right now with Relapse
makes a lot of sense because the band is able now with their fan
support to record albums completely on our own - and nobody does
that. In the history of rock ‘n’ roll bands write records and they
tell the record label “we’re finished writing the album, we need to
borrow money to go into the studio and record”, and the record label
says “okay, here’s X amount of money, we will pay ourselves back
when the album comes out before the band sees any money”. This
time with Obituary we actually did it on our own with the support of
our fans so it is a really good chemistry and solution that we found
here because the band pays for the album, the record label pays for
the printing of the CDs and the distribution around the world and
the marketing campaign. So we both put the same amount of effort
and time into the recording and then we’re a partnership so we split
the profit - so it’s working out very well for Obituary right now. We’re
very happy.”
In which aspect do you think that Obituary will change the most
in five or ten years’ time?
Donald: “Or bodies, because we’re getting old so the only thing
that’s going to change is maybe the tempo of songs in the future
because I can no longer play fast. But seriously, Obituary is so solid
right now and I’m very proud to say that with the addition of Kenny
Andrews and Terry Butler in the band we are a very tight band right
now. We’re very close friends, there’s a hundred percent respect
with and for each other and we are having so much fun. That’s what
is amazing about it, I know there are bands that are successful and
can do it for a living but not all the band members get along – but
they make it work because it’s a business and they can go and
make money. Obituary right now is very lucky because we’re making
a living doing it but we love each other, we are having so much
damn fun on stage every night. It’s a wonderful feeling. So that’s the
main thing that I’m very proud to see in the future. I know for a fact,
this is a very tight band right now and we’re best of friends.”
You’re like a family, literally.
Donald: “We are, yeah. (laughs) I’ve known Trevor since I was
eleven years old so he’s also like a brother to me. We’re just very
excited about the future and it’s very exciting for Obituary fans too
because more music is being created and the future is looking really
bright now for all of us.”
That’s great to hear. Okay Donald, John, thank you so much for
the interview,
John: “Thanks for the support, take care!” c
“Inked In Blood” available via Relapse Records [www.relapse.com] /
Obituary [www.obituary.cc]
“INKED IN BLOOD”
RELAPSE RECORDS
Obituary is a reckoned force to be feared among the death metal
community. Not only they were and still are one of the leaders of the
Floridian death metal scene (together with names like Morbid Angel,
Death or Deicide) but they were also one of the pioneers of the genre.
30 years after their formation as Executioner and after releasing cult
albums like “Slowly We Rot” or “Cause of Death” the quintet couldn’t
be healthier, however age does not forgive or forget, right? In the case
of Obituary, it looks like, to some extend it’s a misconception because
they remain pretty much faithful to what they started and the strength
of “Inked in Blood” is a clear evidence of that. Nevertheless I cannot
stop thinking that for instance, John Tardy’s voice is not as menacing
like it was on “Cause of Death”, production wise I miss some of the
rawness of the early days or that they keep washing the same clothes
over and over to a point where it is starting to become grey...
“Inked In Blood” is marked by several things; firstly for being funded
using a Kickstarter campaign, secondly for being the first album since
“Cause of Death” without long time bass player Frank Watkins and
thirdly for the entry of two new members, Terry Butler (Death, Six Feet
Under) to fill Watkins’ vacant place and Kenny Andrews as second
guitar player after the left of Ralph Santolla. For the moment the addition
of these two new members do not reveal any impact on their own
sound trademark (probably they never will) and “Inked in Blood” is
pretty much what the fans expect from a new Obituary album. Downtuned
guitars with plenty of groove, the peculiar vocal lines of John
Tardy, a solid mid-tempo rhythmic section interrupted with detailed
guitar leads and the surgical drum work of Donald Tardy.
‘Centuries of Lies’ opens the record with an incredible intensity and
strength almost foreseeing an up-tempo record until it stops around
the 2 minute mark. As soon as ‘Violent by Nature’ kicks in restores
the mid-tempo groovy approach that we are already familiar with
and ‘Pain Inside’ rests the case by slowing the tempos even more. This
ninth album shows a band that still manages to write interesting songs
with enough details (the guitar work is always an highlight and the
crisp production helps) to keep the listener excited, although I cannot
stop thinking that I miss some of the initial death metal savagery and
crudeness in detriment of the constant slow to mid-tempo groove of
the recent albums. Still songs like the short ‘Violence’, ‘Minds of the
World’, ‘Visions in my Head’ or ‘Deny You’ with its hypnotic riff will
certainly ignite the pits anywhere in the world.
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
8 METALEGION #1

DONALD TARDY UNVEILS INKED IN BLOOD
“I’M SUPER PROUD OF EVERY SONG SO I COULD TALK ABOUT ANY OF THE SONGS
ON THE NEW ALBUM, YET I WILL PICK...”
CENTURIES OF LIES
“The first song on “Inked in Blood” was one of the
last ones we wrote for the album and when I recorded
it drum-wise, I’m proud to say I did it in one try. One
take, we call it. You know usually you can get almost
through a song and you mess up, you have to back
up a little bit and the engineer can fix the end of the
song with you. And on ‘Centuries of Lies’ I did it in
my first try (raises his hands, looks around proudly
then laughs). I’m very proud of that.”
INKED IN BLOOD
“Also, Inked in Blood is the title track,
it’s one of those songs where when we
first wrote it, I didn’t know if the song
was complete. I didn’t know how good
of a song it was until it was recorded
and now that we’re playing it live it’s
one of my favourite songs on the album.
So it went from my least favourite to
almost my favourite song.”
#1 METALEGION 9

Ten years after the formation, is Black Trip
everything like you have planned back in
2004?
Sebastian Ramstedt “Well it started out as a solo project for
Peter to get all of his ideas our while learning to play the guitar.
There was no intentions of forming an actual band in the
beginning so it has developed way beyond the original plans.
The reception of the album “Goin’ Under” has been high over
expectations, and the interest in the band is still growing. I’d
say that nothing went as planned. It tops everything we could
dream about.”
The band was formed by you and ex-Wolf drummer Daniel
Bergkvist. What seemed a promising project by two talented
musicians was put on hold for several years until a
7”Ep was released back in 2012. However during this long
process Daniel Bergkvist vanished and the “Tvár Dábla”
Ep was released without him.
Peter Stjärnvind “Black trip started out as an idea, a concept
of our vision to start a band with influences from the early
NWOBHM era mixed with influences from bands from the
eastern block of the 80’s. I wrote all the songs in the beginning,
and record all the instruments on the demos and then
sent them to Daniel. So he actually never played on anything,
he was more of a wall to pitch ideas with. The distance from
where we live, and the problems with his shoulder made us
WHEN SWEDISH VETERANS GET TOGETHER TO DRINK A FEW BEERS THE RESULT CAN BE
TREMENDOUS... THE SPIRIT OF THE 70’S MIXED WITH HEAVY METAL
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: PETER STJÄRNVIND (GUITARIST) / SEBASTIAN RAMSTEDT (GUITARIST) ..
"HE'S ONE OF
THOSE ANNOYING
DRUMMERS THAT WILL
CONSTANTLY PICK UP
YOUR GUITAR IN THE
STUDIO, BACKSTAGE
OR WHATEVER AND
PLAY IT UNTIL IT'S
OUT OF TUNE OR THE
STRING BREAKS"
By Sebastian Ramstedt
NO ONE OLD SUSPECT THAT
EX-ENTOMBED, MERCILESS,
NIFELHEIM, NECROPHOBIC OR
DISMEMBER MEMBERS (AKA
THE CREAM OF THE SWEDISH
DEATH/BLACK/THRASH SCENE)
WOULD JOIN TOGETHER
WITH ACTUAL ENFORCER
MEMBERS AND STRIVE ON A
70’S INFLUENCED HEAVY METAL
PATH. PETER STJÄRNVIND
& SEBASTIAN RAMSTEDT
EXPLAINED US WHY “GOIN’
UNDER” TOOK 8 MONTHS TO
BE RELEASED ON EUROPE AND
WHEN AND WHY BLACK TRIP
TOOK SHAPE.
10 METALEGION #1

take the decision to part ways and continue as the band we
are now.”
Sebastian Ramstedt “Daniel was only loosely with the band.
Peter had the intentions to use him on both recordings and
live shows but in the end Daniel could not find the time for
the project. The 7” was finished with only Joseph and Peter as
members and shortly after that Black Trip was offered to play
at the fantastic Muscle Rock Festival. By then Daniel could not
make it again so Jonas was asked to fill in for that one gig. But
we felt that Jonas was just right for the spot so he stayed.”
The full line-up was gathered before the recording of your
debut “Goin’ Under” and was filled by two old buddies of
yours, Sebastian and Johan who played also on Nifelheim
and by two Enforcer members, Joseph and Jonas. I know
that Joseph was the first member jumping in and the
reason for taking Black Trip out of the paper again. What
about the other band members?
Peter Stjärnvind “I have played with Sebastian and Johan
for so many years. And I know how good they are at their
instruments, and we get along so well in every way. So that
was a easy choice to ask them.”
Sebastian Ramstedt “As the songs turned out more serious
than Peter first had planned he realized that he would need
other musicians to participate in the project. Daniel Bergkvist
was asked to join as Peter only wanted to do the guitars. A
couple of other musicians were meant to participate in the
project. Necro (Pest), Erik Danielsson (Watain), Tyrant (Nifelheim)
and JB Christoffersson (Grand Magus) to name a few.
Still at that stage Black Trip would only exist as a project and
not as a band. But as the first gig offering came Peter decided
to put a real band together and he had to find musicians that
could be in a long term working band. Peter met Joseph on a
trip to Germany where both Nifelheim and Enforcer played. For
some reason Peter asked Joseph about his vocal abilities and
it turned our Joseph is a fucking brilliant singer. Since Peter,
Johan and myself has played together for so many years it
was only natural that we also did this together. After the first
rehearsal we decided that we would start the Black Trip project
over again as a serious band. We started reworking the sound
and found out that we could do so much more with this line-up
than what was possible on the 7” “Tvar Dabla”.”
CHANGING WEAPONS
On Black Trip you have switched your usual place behind
the drum kit for guitar duties. More than 20 years behind
the drums are you looking now for a different exposition on
a band (laughs)? What lead this change of instrument?
Peter Stjärnvind “Of course it felt weird at first switching
instruments. But since I wrote all the songs on guitar, and
wanted to do something totally different it all felt naturally.”
Sebastian Ramstedt “Doing the same instrument and music
style in so many bands gets you thinking of doing something
else. Also songwriting is much easier if you have an instrument
that you can create harmonies on. Me and Peter sat backstage
after a Nifelheim gig many years ago and I tried to learn him
the riffs and licks of “Hallowed Be Thy Name”. I realized Peter
was a fast learner and really talented on guitar. He’s one of
those annoying drummers that will constantly pick up your
guitar in the studio, backstage or whatever and play it until
it’s out of tune or the string breaks. But you will not last long
behind his drums if you ever get the idea of trying them out.
Then his tolerance is all of a sudden lost. I think it was about
time that he got a guitar of his own and stop terrorizing the rest
of us in the band. (laughs)”
Not to mention that during your career as musician you
played on some of the most vicious and aggressive bands,
like Merciless, Entombed, Unanimated, Pest, Nifelheim
or Regurgitate. Now on the imminence of completing 41
years, do you see and feel music differently?
Peter Stjärnvind “Yes, and no. Writing this kind of music on
guitar was never, ever a goal. I just came up with these songs
without any special thought. The band started from the fact
that I had the songs, and I did not know what to do with them.”
Sebastian Ramstedt “For me I think its the same. Its all
under the banner of heavy metal no matter how extreme it
4
#1 METALEGION 11

might be. Its still the same force. But it’s difficult to play hard
rock/heavy metal. You know, you compare yourself to the musicians
in your favourite bands like Iron Maiden, Judas Priest,
Scorpions and so on, and there is quite a step from what we
have been doing in extreme metal band to what these bands
do. The groove, feeling and slow harmonics are hard to master
when you are used to bash out as many notes as possible
from your poor instrument. I have always been afraid to try this
out. I have felt that I could never match the works of my idols.
But Peter had guts. He just started writing whatever songs he
wanted and called us to make a heavy metal record. I think the
feeling of creating Black Trip is no different from forming any
other band in the past. I have always loved hard rock/heavy
metal so this is no different either.”
EUROPEANS GOIN' UNDER
“Goin’ Under” was initially released only on Scandinavian
market through Threeman Recordings on November of
last year and only on July 2014 on the European market by
Steamhammer. Why this huge gap between Scandinavian
and European editions?
Sebastian Ramstedt “This was not on purpose. We planned
to get it out in Europe quickly after. But the reception of “Goin’
Under” in Scandinavia was so great that we had to think twice
about which partners to use for the European release. Alex
Hellid of Threeman told us to hold our horses and keep it calm
until we found the right channels. Looking back I’m glad that
we did this. It’s never fun to work with a great album if you
have released it through a bad label that will hold you back. I
think now that the European market lays open for us.”
Do you think that, the 8 month gap between the two
editions brings any advantage in terms of promotion for
the band and for the fuzz around “Goin’ Under”?
Sebastian Ramstedt “It might be, but I don’t know. I think it’s
better to get it out everywhere at the same time as downloading
will be greater otherwise.”
What about signing with Threeman? They haven’t been
very active on the latest years and if I’m not mistaken
“Goin’ Under” was their first release after an hiatus of 6
years. What’s the story around this record deal?
Sebastian Ramstedt “When we decided to make a full length
album we had not been in contact with many labels. Peter
had sent some songs to High Roller who for some reason
turned Black Trip down. As Peter and Alex Hellid (Threeman
Recordings) have been long time musical business partners in
Entombed, it was natural to sign with Threeman.”
Entering the top 20 chart in Sweden for one week must
have been quite an extraordinary event inside the band.
Is this usual in Sweden for a new band with just a debut
album to climb to the higher positions of the charts?
Sebastian Ramstedt “That was totally crazy! We could not
believe what happened. I think its very unusual for a new band
to achieve that success in the charts.”
Unfortunately besides some occasional gigs, Black Trip
hasn’t been a very prolific live band. What is happening on
this topic? Touring some European countries to promote
the album is out of the question at this point?
Sebastian Ramstedt “We are booking gigs right now. But it
might be true that it will be too late for a “promo” tour. Since
both Joseph and Jonas play frequently live with Enforcer there
are less room for Black Trip to go on tour. But we will try and do
as many shorter weekend tours around Europe and the rest of
the world as possible.”
You have chosen to record a video clip for the song ‘Radar’
that simulates a live performance. ‘Radar’ in your opinion
sums everything that Black Trip is all about and thus the
decision to shoot this particular song?
Peter Stjärnvind “The story about ‘Radar’ is special. I did two
demo recordings with that song but I wasn’t very pleased with
the outcome. Nevertheless I thought, lets at least record it and
see how it turns out. I actually considered throwing it away
before we went into the studio. How wrong I was! It turned out
to be the perfect first single.”
Sebastian Ramstedt “We all felt that it was a perfect song
for a performance video. We tried to give the clip the feeling of
the old Top of the Pops performances around 1980. Bands like
Saxon, Motörhead and Iron Maiden did fantastic shows using
the small stage and Corny/cool lightning. We had an idea of
recreating that. I think we succeeded quite well.”
THE GENESIS OF BLACK TRIP
‘Black Trip’ was the opening song for the incredible album
(and one of my favourites) “Ceremony of Opposites” by
Samael. Although completely different in genre is there
HIGHLIGHTS BY Sebastian Ramstedt
1984
1982
1984
JUDAS PRIEST
Defenders of the Faith
“This album just reeks of heavy
metal. Just about every song is
perfect. This is the end station
before heavy metal goes onward
to extreme metal. If someone in
200 years asks how heavy metal
was all about, this album would
be perfect to explain it. I used
to listen to the original cassette
in my walkman in school
around 1984. Its to this day an
album that I often put on the
turntable.”
SAXON
The Eagle has Landed
“The best live recording I have
ever heard. I came across this
album around 1983 and I was
blown away by the power of
the guitars and the attitude of
Biff Byford’s speech between
the songs. I had never been to
a metal concert myself but after
this I could hardly wait.”
METAL CHURCH
Metal Church
“My first encounter with
extreme metal. This of
course is still an heavy
metal album, but it was
rawer than anything I had
heard when it came out. Got
it as a Christmas gift from my
father around 1985. Still one of
my favourite albums of all time.
“LISTEN TO THE ORIGINAL
CASSETTE IN MY WALKMAN”
12 METALEGION #1

any relation between Samael and Black Trip? Were you
inspired by this song when you have chosen your name?
Peter Stjärnvind “You’re actually the first person to ask
this question. I was just thinking of band names while I was
listening to Samael, and got the name from there. It sounded
good, and sort of answers what we sound like. Heavy rock with
a twist of the dark.”
Sebastian Ramstedt “Most people tend to think its about
drugs but it’s actually about spiritual work and astral travelling
on the dark paths below/within.”
“Goin’ Under” breeds and feels the spirit of the late 70’s,
early 80’s NWOBHM. You were quite young when seminal
albums like “Iron Maiden” or “Killers” by Iron Maiden or
“Sad Wings of Destiny” by Judas Priest were released. Do
you remember when had your first contact and reaction to
this type of sonorities?
Sebastian Ramstedt “For me it was in forth grade during the
spring 1982. There were some guys at school that brought cassettes
with bands like Accept, Saxon and Iron Maiden that we
listened to during the breaks. I remember that we listened to
the intros of “The Number of the Beast” and “Fast as a Shark”
over and over again. We did not really understand the music
fully but we loved the attitude and atmosphere. The first band
that I really understood was Saxon. I listened to “Crusader”
and “The Eagle has Landed” over and over again. The later is
still one of my favourite records of all time.”
“Goin’ Under” is also a sort of tribute to the analogue, fat
and lively productions made back in the 80’s. Can you
give us some details around the recording and production
process of your debut album.
Sebastian Ramstedt “We tried to do this as true to the past
as possible. We used vintage guitars and high cranked Marshalls.
No effect pedals and no modern gain. We tried to keep
it as simple as possible. The sound may be a bit dry, but that
makes it even closer to the sounds that bands like Scorpions
and Judas Priest produced back in the days.”
Music sometimes sound so digitally manipulated that
loses its own charm and feeling. Do you think that music in
general is being killed by the exaggerated use of Protools
in studio?
Sebastian Ramstedt “I think its very possible to get a good
sound using digital recording and Protools. The big problem is
that the producers try to make the recording louder than any
other recordings using compressors, distortion and clicked
drums. This kills the production and the dynamics.”
Do you think that your music, due to the mix of influences
from hard rock and NWOBHM of the 80’s, has also inevitably
a specific and perhaps older target audience?
Sebastian Ramstedt “I’m not so sure about that. It might be
true but even extreme bands like Nifelheim attracted a lot of
older persons. I think metal is timeless, and that even the most
underground genres are accepted by most ages. But of course
we do not attract the same audience that modern “radio”
metal bands does. We have no intentions of doing that ever.”
To end, what will be your next moves? Are you already
working on new tunes?
Sebastian Ramstedt “We are working on the next album right
now. We have almost all of the songs ready. Still we have
to do some changes in the arrangements. We will start the
recordings this fall and hopefully we will perform as much live
as possible.” c
“Goin’ Under” available via SPV [www.spv.de] / Black Trip
[www.blacktrip.se]
“GOIN’ UNDER”
SPV / STEAMHAMMER
Here’s a nice change of pace. Five
Swedes playing retro heavy rock a la
Graveyard and Kadavar, verging on
metal but ultimately landing somewhere
between Sir Lord Baltimore and early
Scorpions. The production isn’t the most
“authentic” I’ve heard for this style, but
more importantly, it’s clear and strong
and belongs to no particular era. The
riffs, none of them obviously stolen, flow
from these guys’ amps with a pleasingly
crunchy, fuzzy tone, and the abundance
of catchy choruses (‘Voodoo Queen’,
‘Putting Out the Fire’, etc) serves to seal
the deal. Nothing groundbreaking here,
but “Goin’ Under” is a hugely enjoyable
listen almost start to finish (the last couple
of songs are a little too slow back to
back). Tracks like ‘No Tomorrow’ boogie
with a vengeance, featuring shredding
lead guitar and a leather-and-chains
biker rock vibe straight out of On Parole/
self-titled era Motörhead. I know this
style has pretty much reached saturation
point by now, with the international
success of countrymen Witchcraft among
others, but if you have any affection for
the bands I’ve name-dropped so far, you
almost certainly won’t regret buying this
CD. Song after song hits the mark, each
one catchy and rocking with that little
bit of classic heaviness, and it’s only the
aforementioned lull near the end that
prevents me from rating this even higher.
If you’re not yet burn out on the retro
rock thing, this is probably one of the
better new releases you’ll come across.
8 | KEVIN AKSTIN
#1 METALEGION 13

CHALY, THE DARK BAT FIGURE RETURNS... THIS TIME IN THE FORM OF A STONE ALIKE GARGOYLE.
BEWARE, HE WILL HUNT YOU DOWN WITH ITS WHITE DEVIL ARMORY!
.. INTRO: RICARDO AZEVEDO WORDS: ESTELLE MUSICIAN: BOBBY “BLITZ” ELLSWORTH (VOCALIST) PHOTOS: HAKON GRAV ..
"I WASN'T JUST
PLAYING THE
BASS (...) WE
WERE PLAYING
MUSIC THAT
WAS POPULAR
AT THE TIME"
By Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth
ONE OF THE MOST PROLIFIC,
BELOVED AND LONG LASTING
THRASH METAL BANDS RETURN
FOR ITS 17 TH FULL LENGTH.
THE TRUTH IS... THE METAL
SCENE REJOICES WHENEVER
THERE IS A NEW ALBUM OF
OVERKILL COMING OUT AND
THIS TIME IS NO EXCEPTION.
VOCALIST BOBBY “BLITZ”
ELLSWORTH WAS SEIZED
BEFORE A SHOW AND SHARED
HIS THOUGHTS ABOUT “WHITE
DEVIL ARMORY” AND SOME
EVENTS ON HIS LIFE...
Bobby, firstly I would like to ask, are you
satisfied with what you have done throughout
the years? What do you think could have
gone better?
“I don’t know, I suppose now Overkill is getting a lot of attention,
chart positions have shown that we have a popularity of
the scene in thrash, not just for us but for many of the other
bands, it’s something that is very special in the current day.
So I think that there’s obviously a little bit of a difference; in
the early days we were getting attention based on the genre’s
newness and creation at that time as the scene was developing,
but now I think we are probably getting as much if not
more attention based on its longevity, and let’s say value in
the current day.
You know, this is a thing I’ve done as an adult - my whole adult
life. It’s over a 30-year period now that I’ve been playing in
Overkill. I never really think about what could we have done
better, I think that the key here is if we felt that there was a
mistake, we would comb upon that mistake the next time. This
wasn’t a band that sticks terribly to that one way described
as unpopular, this was something that you didn’t want to do,
and we always found ways to make that happen. The drive
was the popularity of the scene, so I think that the choice was
made, the dice was cast, it was really simple for us: this is
what we wanna do, so I don’t really look at it as what we could
have done better, I just kinda look at it as we’ve always tried
to count what we can improve on what we would like to do,
and I think that someone there might say that is the key of our
personal success.”
You guys are extremely hard-working (the band puts out
the new albums every 2 or 3 years, tours like mad, you
also run a chocolate shop with your wife) and despite all
these you never stopped thrashing. What do you feel was
the worst period to exist as a thrash metal band?
“You know, just the fact that you’re here this is a great thing.
I think there was a period in the nineties when it was harder
to retain a record field and harder to let’s say keep it growing.
Not ‘94, ‘95, ‘96, because there was still a great underground
popularity of the scene, but then grunge came in and put a
big dirty footprint on the metal scene – it became unpopular
and went back to the underground, so it was a little bit harder
than when its creation happened and what now happens. But
when I think back of those times, just because it was harder
it doesn’t mean it was unsatisfying. To some degree, it’s more
satisfying because of the new methods we looked to put into it;
still there were record deals, still there were tours – we never
stopped touring, we never stopped recording records and we
never were without a record deal. And this was due to our own
work, we were writers in the band and we also self-managed
during this period of time. So we made good moves, they were
hard moves at the time but when I think back on them, I think
of them as the most satisfying days based on the fact that a
lot of people couldn’t do this, but obviously we could.”
MUSICIAN OR VOCALIST?
Some vocalists who I interviewed so far said that they
don’t really consider themselves or feel like musicians.
Do you?
14 METALEGION #1

“Obviously there’s music here because I write the melodies to
the popular music, so each vocal has a melody. Now what’s
telling the correctness what to sing, it’s more how I interpret
that, so sure, that becomes my musical input to it, therefore
of course I’m one of the musicians in the band to complete the
formula.”
Besides singing, you also play the bass. Did you ever
consider really playing in a band as a bassist?
“I did for a while. I was in university at the time and in high
school, so I watched the others bass and loved the base gear,
and played in cover bands. When I was in university, it was
because we were trying to meet girls. It’s really simple, it’s
something to do on the weekends. When I was in high school,
it was because it was cool, it wasn’t anything, it was just fun.
But I was singing the tunes of songs when I was playing the
bass, I wasn’t just playing the bass, I was singing tunes like
a ZZ-Top song, we were playing music that was popular at the
time. So yeah, I had played as a bassist in those bands.”
BLENDING DIFFERENT STUFF
Your new album, “White Devil Armory” is close to being as
energetic and dynamic as you were back in the eighties,
similarly to the past few albums of yours such as “The
Electric Age” or “Ironbound”. In one of your earlier interviews
you said that “The Electric Age” is something like
two-dimensional – it has the speed and it has the aggressiveness,
but it doesn’t have the groove. Did you plan
“White Devil Armory” to be similar in this aspect?
“I think that when I gave that answer, that was for sure my
commitment to add a certain groove to what I am to it, not the
groove, the vocals in between that the other guys were doing.
So for sure I did, and I think Overkill is made up with different
elements, and even though I’ve highlighted The Electric Age as
a two-dimensional record, I do feel it’s a great thrash record,
I really think that it was really something special for 2012. So
sure, I instilled groove in that.
There’s not a lot of talking when it comes to Overkill’s planning
for a new record: I think as long as you’re challenging yourself,
you’re going to get better results. And I even think that “White
4
#1 METALEGION 15

Devil Armory” contains more of that groove coming with the
thrash than The Electric Age did.”
What was the newest thing you guys added to the recording
of “White Devil Armory”?
“We have a formula, and I do think that when the formula
works that’s something that we stick to, let’s say maybe trying
to improve upon it – I find that when I record demos along with
touring, on the tour bus, then I get really good results. That’s
something I’ve been doing for a few records now, I just like to
have something I can record with.
There’s an energy you can’t fake when you come on stage. I’m
coming on stage in San Antonio, on the Overkill/Kreator tour,
and two hours later I’m in the back of the bus and I’m recording
down some demo vocals to the song ‘Pig’. It’s going to
come out with a live energy, because that’s the last thing I did
on Overkill’s live show. So I think that’s probably the newest
thing that I personally add to this: that I like to record several
demos when I’m doing live shows.”
You have two new clips recorded for the songs ‘Armorist’
and ‘Bitter Pill.’ Could you tell me a few words about the
making of them?
“We recorded them in New Jersey with director Kevin J. Custler
(Testament, Suffocation - he previously worked with Overkill
on the ‘Electric Rattlesnake’ and ‘Bring Me The Night’ clips).
We shot ‘Armorist’ in a really old factory with big windows and
with a lot of natural light. On the same day we did ‘Bitter Pill’
in the bowels of a separate section of the complex, in which
the walls were actually carved out of the bedrock.”
Is there anything that you do not like to do when it comes
to making a new album?
“I can’t say it specifically. As time goes on, it becomes easier,
but then at other times, it becomes harder and I think the
hardest part is non-repetition. Writing a song or my part of
the song like ‘Freedom Rings’, let’s say “oh, it shouldn’t be
minutes,” because that’s what I would have done in 1990. I
don’t like thinking in it, I’m just trying to push myself out of
the box. And that becomes a little bit harder, and sometimes it
becomes something I don’t want to do in that particular time
because it would be easy to put 1990 into ‘Freedom Rings.’ So
I think the idea is that the satisfaction comes when you still
push yourself. And when you pull it through, it seems like this
is a harder test than doing it the natural way as in 1990.”
PUNKS NOT DEAD
As far as I’m concerned, your early covers (especially the
ones done under the name Virgin Killer) were mostly punk
songs, including selections by the Ramones and The Dead
Boys. Did punk music stay with you in any way?
“It’s funny because with the whole Virgin Killer thing, I think
there was one gig that we ever did under that name. I think
Virgin Killer lasted as a name for this band for about 36 hours
(laughs). I do think that the punk stays with it, I think that this
band back in that era when even the name Virgin Killer was
around was a fan of NWOBHM, and some punk rock stuff. And
we were kind of the child of those two genres, we were into the
Tygers of Pan Tang, or Europe, also Tank and we were also into
the Sex Pistols or the Damned. The result is Overkill between
those two kind of genres, and I think we surely carried with it.
So when I hear songs like ‘Pig’ off the new record I hear that
punk word, so I hear “it’s all yours,” I hear kind of an odd
groove that is still there. So for sure I think that punk would
stay with us for the duration of our career.”
Not long ago you said that you like this modern vibe to
your newer albums, and I also read you are usually a fan
of new-school thrash metal bands and this whole new
scene going on nowadays. Is there anything you miss
from the old times? Can the feeling be the same for you
nowadays?
“Good question. I do like most of the new stuff that comes out,
I like it obviously because it’s reflective of us and reflective
of the a scene that was from the past, and something that I
was a part of, so it’s obviously easy for me to like it – it’s not
something that I had to search for, it showed up and I was
like “wow I know that!”, and that’s where my attraction leads
to. What’s different is that it was created in another time, if it
was from 1985 or 1987, whether it be Overkill or Megadeth or
Death Angel, it was being created then. I think that becomes
the main difference, the thing that it’s probably missed. It’s
more of a reflection to me, which is cool to me, but what was
being created, there was a certain danger, risk, excitement that
"I HAVEN'T
HAD A HEART
ATTACK YET
(LAUGHS HARD)"
By Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth
16 METALEGION #1

went along with it, that was unexplainable.”
Would you ever consider taking a fresh face, a young
guy in the band?
“Right now the youngest guy is like 46 (laughs), and it’s
funny, I would call him the ‘kid.’ But what we are sure
about is that this line-up jams pretty well and I think the
evidence is there in “White Devil Armory”, “The Electric
Age” and “Ironbound”. This line-up is probably the strongest
Overkill line-up, today. When “The Electric Age” was
created, we figured out how to keep it loaded. And at some
degree that’s more important even than its creation, at this
particular point in our career. In a way it was necessary, I
don’t see why not, I don’t think it’s a wrong thing to have
the right guys, specifically in the right place.”
THE YEARS OF DECAY
After overcoming cancer, a stroke and 34 years, is there
anything you can think of that could stop you from
thrashing and going on with Overkill?
“Well, I haven’t had a heart attack yet (laughs hard). You
know, I had a really unique time, a dirty cancer period I
went through, and now I’m over 15 years cancer-free. I
was a sober individual at the time, I hadn’t drunk in many
years or taken any drugs. It was a cool time for me because
my head was clear during this episode. I didn’t tell I had
cancer, I was just sitting in the bar and enjoying my time, I
was a person that was hanging out with guys from motorcycle
clubs who were also sober guys. I remember sitting
with this guy, we were sitting in a bar with our bikes behind
it and both having cigarettes and he said to me, first, “You
shouldn’t be smoking if you have cancer,” and, second,
“It’s not the problem, it’s getting through the problem.” And
it was like I was hit with a word of light: right, it has nothing
to do with the problem, it’s getting around the fucking problem,
going through it, going over it. It gives another side,
I mean I’d like to be put on the other side of the problem,
but I have to be able to get through it. And it gave me a
real good perspective on where I am with regard to lives
and I think it was a great lesson for me to learn because I
knew from that moment that it had nothing to do with the
problem, it had to with me getting through to the problem.
I don’t think that there is anything that could stop me with
regard to if I can physically do it, I will do it. I love Overkill,
this is my drug, this gets me high. So if I can get through my
problems, then I won’t be stopped by something.”
Is there anything that you would still like to say about
‘White Devil Armory?’
“Somebody asked me “Could you tell us why people should
listen to White Devil Armory?” and the only thing I could
come up with was “Because I said so.” (laughs)”
Thank you very much for this honour and for your time
Bobby. I wish all the best to Overkill, keep thrashing!
“Thanks for the support!” c
“White Devil Armory” available via Nuclear Blast [www.
nuclearblast.de] / Overkill [www.wreckingcrew.com]
“WHITE DEVIL ARMORY”
NUCLEAR BLAST
The boys from New Jersey released their seventeen
album dubbed “White Devil Armory” on July 22.
How does this album separate itself from others in
Overkill’s catalogue? Well, for one, this is a fine
blend of old-school and modern sounding thrash
from the past three Overkill records. While keeping
their distinctive sound that has made the band
famous, Overkill have crafted something that is hard
hitting, precision like thrash with a more modernised
sound.
Nowadays, the heavy metal landscape has changed,
so many bands have come to make their mark, and
the sound of metal is more modern with plenty of
genres. Yet despite all of this, Overkill, with every
new record still manage to retain that same raw in
your face energy, aggressive pulse pounding sound
that makes you head bang from start to finish. The
record is skilfully put together by these thrash icons,
and this being their seventeenth album, it’s quite
impressive that they have maintained a solid standard
of quality metal when so many bands become
stagnant and uninspired after reaching their peak.
With this band in particular, you really don’t get that
feeling whatsoever. Their music doesn’t seem to age;
even their classic albums are still relevant in today’s
grand musical landscape of metal. Overkill is one
of the few bands that never disappoints and, they
are a band that constantly strive to be at the top of
their game. The band always try something new and
refreshing, yet while maintaining that edge that have
made them who they are today.
Vocalist Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth leads the charge
with intense ferocity with his trademark razor sharp
voice, and the rest of the band D.D Verni, David
Linsk, Ron Lipnicki, Derek Tailer follow suit. After
releasing the albums “Ironbound” and “The Electric
Age”, the band have pushed themselves even further
and their efforts have culminated into a brilliant,
adrenaline soaked record that deserves a spot in any
metalheads collection.
The album’s production is superb as well. Every
instrument from the vocals, guitars, bass and drums
are crisp, clear and tight. The band have self produced
the record themselves yet again, and as a
whole you really get a sense that these guys are
having fun with performing these new songs that are
just lots of fun, energetic and intense.
There is not much filler on the album. That’s a great
thing because, some albums tend to have far too
much of lacking material that can leave the listener
disappointed. The records off with ‘XDM’, a short
instrumental to set the stage of the chaos to come,
then we the first single of the album, ‘Armorist’,
which is the type of tune that you need to listen to a
few times so it can grow on you. However, the tracks
that really happened to stand out and are sure to
be fan favourites are ‘Down to the Bone’, ‘Freedom
Rings’ and ‘Another Day to Die’. Closing the record
on a high note is ‘In the Name’, which rounds out the
album to a wonderful finish. “White Devil Armory” is
destined to be recognized as one of the band’s finest
records and with that being said, 2014 is a standout
year for the genre, with many of metal’s finest bands
releasing top-notch albums. However, Overkill’s
“White Devil Armory” is in a league of its own, and
is a slab of ferocious heavy metal is a powerful statement
that this band is a force to be reckoned with.
8 | ALEX ROY
#1 METALEGION 17

"I THINK IT WAS JUST
A MATTER OF TOO
MUCH ALCOHOL"
By Christian Lindell
SINISTER AND WICKED HEAVY METAL QUINTET RETURNS
AFTER SOME LINE-UP CHANGES THAT DICTATED, ON
THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR, THE RELEASE OF A
TREMENDOUS THIRD ALBUM ENTITLED “CROSSROADS”.
HUNGRIER THAN EVER, THE FORMER GUITARIST
CHRISTIAN LINDELL, EXPLAINS THE CONCEPT OF
THE NEW ALBUM AND HOW ROB HALFORD ENDED UP
BEING A PORTRAIT “FAN”.
18 METALEGION #1

THREE YEARS AFTER THE RELEASE OF “CRIMEN LAESAE MAJESTATIS DIVINAE” THE
SWEDISH METALHEADS STILL BREATHES THE SPIRIT OF EARLY MERCYFUL FATE
.. WORDS: DON ANELLI & RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: CHRISTIAN LINDELL (GUITARIST) PHOTOS: STEFAN JOHANSSON ..
Third album “Crossroads” is out for a few
months now and I belief that its been
very well accepted. Are you pleased with
its reaction so far?
“Yes, it seems to have been very well received. I don’t
read a lot of reviews myself but many of our fans seem to
like it a lot and that is good of course!”
Mikael Castervall and David Olofsson are the two new
band members, did they had any active role on the
composition process of “Crossroads”?
“Yes, Mikael wrote the song ‘Ageless Rites’ and both of
them have been involved in the writing process when it
comes to arrangement of songs and such things.”
This new line-up has lasted for the longest time so
far. Do you think that all the past changes affected
negatively the evolution of the band?
“Maybe. I mean, if the changes had not been necessary,
people might have had a different “relation” to us now,
and it must be somewhat weird to see new faces on
almost every new release, with the same band. On the
other hand, many bigger bands have gone through a
lot of line-up changes as well even before that which
is considered their “original line-up” manifested (Iron
Maiden, Judas Priest etc.)”
We can say that Mikael Castervall is almost a veteran
on the Swedish metal scene, I remember him back
from the Hypnosia days. How did you end up meeting
and inviting the two new members?
“I had met him a lot of times before at shows. First time
was maybe 10-12 years ago or something. He was the
first guy we asked to take over the bass player role and
we’re all very glad that he said yes. David has been in
the band for a few years now, he joined us the same year
as “Crimen Laesae Majestatis Divinae” was released.
We had also met him several times and one of them
was when he was thrown out from our release party for
“Crimen...” before the show started.”
(laughs) Can you tell us why? Was he causing some
sort of trouble or conflicts?
“I think was just a matter of too much alcohol or something.
At least it made us notice him...”
Both David and Mikael have played on bands from
more aggressive metal genres, like thrash, death
and even grindcore. Do you think this influence will
benefit and be present on future Portrait releases?
“Well, we all know what would fit in Portrait and what
would not fit. I cannot see that we will use any grindcore
elements, but some death metal-like breaks and stuff
could easily be incorporated, and Slayer has some of the
best riffs in the world, so thrash influences could be good
too. With that being said we will always stay pretty much
within the same frame as we had up until now, as I still
believe there are a lot of areas within it to explore.”
What originated the left of Joel Pälvärinne and
Richard Lagergren?
“As for Joel I think one could say that it had to do with
“personal differences” between him and parts of the rest
of the line-up, and the same goes for
Richard actually. It’s mostly personal
though and not a very interesting
story.”
TORE'S MAGIC...
How was working with Tore Stjerna
at Necromorbus Studio? If I’m
not mistaken you have only used
on “Crossroads” his mixing and
mastering services.
“Yes, you are right. We recorded the
album in three different studios and
then had it mixed and mastered by
Tore. He is very easy to work with and
he has a lot of visions regarding productions. We actually
just sent the recordings to him and let him do whatever
he deemed fit, and from the first teaser of the mix that we
got to hear we knew that it was going to be great. And it
turned out even better in the end of course, we are very
pleased with his work.”
The recording process this time differed in any way
from the one used on the previous album?
“Yes, we wanted a bit more time with everything for this
album and therefore we chose to record in three separate
studios (one for the drums, another for bass/guitars and
a third for the vocals) that were located closer to our
4
“CROSSROADS”
METAL BLADE RECORDS
Sweden is an amazing country, not only
because of its unspoilt landscapes. It seems like
that everyone plays an instrument and half
the population rocks the heavy way without
falling below a more or less high quality level.
Thankfully, this applies to Portrait, too. They
know how to write interesting song structures
without losing the thread. The songs range
between speed metal and heavy metal without
major defects. According to my taste, the guitars
sometimes lack a bit of power, primarily during
the melodic solos. But there is no reason to
panic, because the overall impression of the
album´s sound is alright. All instruments are
well balanced so that the musicians roll out
the carpet for lead vocalist Per Lengstedt. His
expressive singing covers a broad spectrum
while easily reaching the high notes. I am not
the greatest fan of these high pitched screams,
but this might be my personal problem. Even if
comparisons are sometimes misleading, it goes
without saying that the album breathes the
spirit of the early Mercyful Fate. Of course, in
contrast to a band like Attic, Portrait are no imitators
of the Danish legend. But the vocals and
the songwriting formula show some parallels.
The lyrics could have been written by the King
himself so that the album delivers a dark aura.
However, being compared with Mercyful Fate
is definitely no reason to complain. And some
melody lines of Maiden also shine through,
what is acceptable.
The riffs achieve a high degree of catchiness
without being simple or stereotyped. A lot of
powerful guitar lines and the vigorous drumming
are the main reasons for the pure heaviness
of this album. In view of the large number
of breaks you have got to be fully concentrated
to keep a clear overview. The well presented
tempo changes are no end in themselves. Quite
the opposite, they are the
cherry on the cake. Notwithstanding
the fairly progressive
approach, Portrait successfully
keep an eye on memorable
choruses. The gloomy ‘Ageless
Rites’ or the very dynamic
‘Our Roads Must Never Cross’
prove this fact impressively -
which does not mean that the
remaining songs must stand
in a queue behind. The only
restriction is that I would have
liked to be confronted with a
more powerful opener after
the intro. ‘At the Ghost Gate’ constitutes a solid
yet somewhat cautious entry. Last but not least
it is necessary to mention that the album offers
an almost perfect flow.
This full-length shows a band that has reached
a high level of maturity without commercial
integration. If you are a Mercyful Fate supporter,
you will doubtlessly enjoy this album.
But even if you simply like metal with a sinister
atmosphere and, by the way, an adequate cover
motif, your money will be well invested here. In
any case, it feels good to listen to this album.
8 | FELIX 1666
#1 METALEGION 19

1982
JUDAS PRIEST
Screaming for Vengeance
“I remember sitting in my parents
garden (I think I was 11 or 12) and
hearing ‘The Hellion/Electric Eye’
for the very first time and I was
completely blown away. They had
a sound and overall “metal” feeling
that I had not (and still have not)
heard from any other band. Before
I heard this album I had only
been listening to Iron Maiden and
Metallica and I liked them both a
lot, but this was something very
different and they have been my
favourite band since that listening
session.”
1998
NIFELHEIM
Devil’s Force
“Some years after my experience
with “Screaming for Vengeance”
I bought this milestone. I did
not really know what it was,
but I bought it at a record fair
(I remember buying “Operation:
Mindcrime” at the same time). I
had heard Venom and Dissection
before but other than that I did
not really get into any other
black metal bands until I heard
this one. This was also at my
parent’s place and I did not even
have my own record player, so
I listened to it in their living
room. It was the sickest thing I
had ever heard, from that first
snare drum in ‘Deathstrike from
Hell’ until the end it is madness,
totally liberating madness. The
production is great, especially the
vocals and I have always liked
that they mix some primitive
riffing with really technical parts
and great guitar solos.”
HIGHLIGHTS BY Christian Lindell
“I WAS MARKED FOREVER BY THOSE
ALBUMS AND BOTH BANDS HAVE
REMAINED BIG INFLUENCES SINCE THE
FIRST TIME I HEARD THEM”
20 METALEGION #1

respective homes. It was good because we could record some stuff, listen
to it for a couple of days and then go back to change and add things, etc.”
There are bands that probably prefer the stress of rigid timings
and during the booked studio period, they are mainly focussed
on recording, mixing and breading music 24 hours a day. In your
perspective the relaxed way you have done things in “Crossroads”
enriched the final outcome? For you its the best option when
recording an album?
“I can only talk for myself but I am pretty much focused on Portrait
24 hours a day, so that is not a problem. This time around this way of
recording was the most suitable for us and it felt good, but we will see
how we feel next time. Now at least we know that this worked very well
for “Crossroads”.”
There was a pronounced break between the release of the last two
albums. What did you do during that time off?
“No, there was never any break. Maybe on the internet but not in reality.
We did festival shows and a tour after the release of “Crimen Laesae
Majestatis Divinae” and then came the line-up changes. The “silence” on
the internet was due to a certain ex-member trying to have it look like the
band was dead by closing our website and stuff like that. Maybe we could
have done more to clarify the situation but we did not consider it necessary
and in hindsight it was just a feeble attempt to stop us anyway. We
took some months to rehearse with the new line-up and then we started
working on “Crossroads”.”
So there was definitely some hostility between Portrait and a unsatisfied
ex-member? Have you tried to reach an agreement with him?
“Yes, there was but most things are solved now.”
Nevertheless you have just opened your new website. On an age
where everything has smaller and smaller expiration dates, I guess
its important to have your own internet channels up and running?
“Yes, it probably is and it gets easier for people to contact us etc. So that
feels good.”
THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE EIGHTIES
One of the most impressive elements about the album is its unrelenting
atmosphere that captures the 80s sound so well. What was
the reasoning for the band to initially tackle that quality when you
first formed?
“Well, we are big fans of heavy metal and heavy metal has always
sounded the best with this type of productions. There is quite a variety in
our influences and in the songwriting, so it is important to get a timeless
production that suits the versatility. That is the hard part of it and why it
is so important to be able to work with a skilled guy like Tore.”
In the end, would you say that the producer is almost like a “guest”
member for each particular record?
“Yes, one could almost say that. Especially in our case as we have had
the pleasure of working with someone who really understands our music.”
If you had to reduce your musical influences to only one band, would
you for sure state Mercyful Fate?
“No, I would say Portrait, as everything must come from within and from
beyond in order to turn out good enough.”
Ever since you’ve formed the band, it has been lumped in with the
‘retro’ scene of 80s-era metal worship. Do you consider yourselves
leaders of this particular style or is it something you aim to
accomplish?
“This is nothing I care about at all. If people can’t hear the difference
between us and most bands in that “scene” it is their problem, not ours.
We have nothing in common with most of those bands; not musically, not
lyrically and not ideologically. One day this might come to be obvious to
everyone, but most likely not. The only important thing however, is that we
know the differences.”
Since antiquity crossroads are associated with places for rituals and
gathering of spirits. Juanjo Castellano managed to pass that image
perfectly with his (once again) superb artwork. The visual concept
for “Crossroads” was this from the start?
“Yes, it was and we gave him quite clear instructions on how we wanted
the cover artwork. There are a lot of details in there, and that is where the
importance really lies...”
Do you have plans to promote the album with tours or a video-clip?
“Yes, we do. We hope to record a video some time during the autumn.”
Have you already chosen the song for this purpose? Can you unveil a
bit your plans for this?
“It will probably be a new song instead of one from “Crossroads”, and
that song will be released before the end of this year. We have not
decided for any topic for the video yet now, but you will notice it when it is
released, that’s for sure!”
HALFORD HEARS PORTRAIT
What was the reasoning behind the recording of the unreleased
Judas Priest track? Why was it released only to subscribers of
Sweden Rock Magazine?
“We wanted to have a CD single included in that magazine and in order to
have that, you must (as a band) include an exclusive song on it. We didn’t
want to write a new one and only have it released with the magazine so
we decided to go for a cover, and as Judas Priest is a band that we are
all big fans of we chose ‘Mother Sun’, one reason being that Judas Priest
never recorded it themselves and thus no “perfect” version exists. It
would be useless to record any song that they have already included on
their albums, as there is nothing to be added anyway.”
What’s your opinion then regarding bands that cover well known
classics? Bands like Venom, Slayer, Kreator, Judas Priest have been,
and are constantly being covered both on record and live.
“Well, I guess I don’t have any opinion about that really. For me there
would be no need to cover a well known classic and record it. In live
situations it is a bit different though. But other bands can do as they
please of course.”
What about having Rob Halford commenting the version you have
made of ‘Mother Sun’? Have you submitted your version to him?
“Yes, we sent some copies of the CD single to their management and it
reached him. It felt great to hear his comments of course!”
The last song ‘Lily’ is some sort of allusion to the song ‘Melissa’ from
Mercyful Fate?
“No.”
Do you have any pre-defined themes or topics that fits lyrically into
a Portrait song? Do you create any sort of boundaries on this matter,
things to and not to write about?
“Yes, but it has always been obvious what to write about. Both the music
and the lyrics are inspired by the same source and that has always
been the case, at least for me. And as that source has become a bigger
and bigger part of my life the lyrics have become more important too,
of course. There is nothing that I would not write about, as the lyrics
will always be viewed from my own perspective, but certain topics lay
closer to my heart than others and it should be quite obvious to everyone
reading the lyrics what those topics are in general, I hope.”
I dare to say that its a common process of maturity that most musicians
go through, don’t you agree?
“Yes, I guess it is a crucial part of developing yourself. It’s just that those
things are so personal you know, so it is never the exact same thing for
every musician.”
Do you have any type of methodology when writing songs? It starts
naturally at the rehearsal room jamming together or its a solitary
process?
“It differs, but most often an idea starts as a solitary process and then we
try things out at the rehearsal place and develop and arrange the songs.
Sometimes the music comes first and inspires the lyrics, but for most
songs off the new album it has been the other way around.”
Three albums after, is there already a song that stand out by the
public’s reaction when playing live? Or that you truly enjoy playing?
“I mostly enjoy playing the newest stuff and it has been like that from the
start. I think that ‘Beware the Demons’ and ‘Beast of Fire’ are the songs
that our audiences seem to react the most to.” c
“Crossroads” available via Metal Blade Records [www.metalblade.com] /
Portrait [www.portraitmetal.com]
#1 METALEGION 21

THERE IS PROBABLY
NO OTHER BAND
THAT SO PERFECTLY
REPRESENTS WHAT
THRASH METAL IS
ALL ABOUT THAN
THE GERMANS
TANKARD. FUN, METAL
& BEER WAS ALWAYS THEIR
MOTTO FOR MORE THAN 30
YEARS BY NOW. WE CAUGHT
VOCALIST ANDREAS “GERRE”
BEFORE ONE THE SHOWS
PROMOTING THE ALBUM “R.I.B.”
FOR AN EXTRA DOSE OF FUN!
THE QUARTET WENT ON A DEADLY MISSION TO RESCUE THE MAD PROFESSOR FROM AN HIATUS OF
MORE THAN 25 YEARS... HE’S BACK TO CONQUER US WITH HIS FINAL FORMULA OF TOXIC BEER!
.. INTRODUCTION: RICARDO AZEVEDO WORDS: ESTELLE MUSICIAN: ANDREAS “GERRE” GEREMIA (VOCALIST) ..
Hi Gerre, first of all thank you for doing the interview
for Metalegion Magazine! If you had to
describe the work of Tankard over all the years in
three words, what would you say?
“Thrash, fun and beer. (laughs)”
In what aspect do you think you are different from the
other old-school thrash metal bands?
“I think the main difference is that we had a lot of humour
from the very beginning of Tankard. We called our second demo
just “Alcoholic Metal” because at the time there were a lot of
new metal styles, black metal and speed metal, and posers
against all the others... And you know, we never took ourselves
too seriously, we always had a lot of fun and I think it wouldn’t
really fit for us to have an evil kind of image or something like
that.
We have a lot of serious lyrics, a good combination of funny
stuff and serious stuff, but we still have a lot fun in playing
that kind of music. I think this is the biggest difference between
us and some other bands.”
In one of your earlier interviews you said that in a case of
beer there is space for twenty bottles. You just released
your sixteenth album, “R.I.B. (Rest in Beer)”, are you still
determined about doing four more?
“At the moment it looks like it. (laughs) We still have a lot of
fun, we still have good things happening, we keep going now
for 32 years and I can’t see the end with the band, I could not
imagine my life without Tankard, so I guess the case will be
full some day.”
GOING FOR THE 2OTH ALBUM...
How much work and time does it take for you to record
one new album? You seem to go pretty easily with it, even
besides the fact that none of you is a full-time musician.
“This is a very hard period for us, but it’s actually not planned
to put out a new album every two years. I mean I think it’s cool
releasing a new album two or three years in between, but now
“R.I.B.” is out, we’ll see what we’ll do with the next album. I
think it will take another ten or twelve years to keep Tankard
alive for the 20th studio album to get the case full.”
How is it different to work with Nuclear Blast from how
it was when you were at Noise, Century Media or AFM
Records?
“Nuclear Blast is the biggest one among the heavy metal labels,
they have a lot of power, so I think this was really another
step forward for Tankard. They do a lot of promotion stuff and
it was really a kick for Tankard, we are very very satisfied and
hope that we can stay much longer with Nuclear Blast.”
The cover of “R.I.B.” is kind of an obvious ‘recommitment’
to your classic album “Chemical Invasion”, as well as the
continuation of some of the lyrics and the insane professor
character. Is this a sign of the fact that you are not willing
to distance yourselves from your roots, from the simple
and brutal thrash metal?
“No, we never distance ourselves from our roots. You know,
it was a funny idea to bring the mad professor back on a
cover, but I think this album sounds different than “Chemical
Invasion”. The story is totally weird because the professor
failed in ‘87 to stop the chemical invasion and now he’s back
to take revenge on mankind and poison everybody with free
beer. I actually really like the stuff that we did back in the
eighties, but I’d never do that again in these days because a
lot of things have changed with the sound and everything. I
think we will never forget about our roots, we always play a lot
of old songs live, yet we always try to do a good mixture of old
and new stuff.”
Could you choose one song from the new album and
describe what it means to you?
“This is a very personal song on this album, it’s called ‘Hope
Can’t Die’, it’s one of my favourite songs on the record. I lost
a very good friend two years ago, at that time you have this
confusion of feelings, anger, sadness and hope... “What did go
wrong?”. I had two years ago a mixture of emotions when I lost
that very good friend of mine.
CONCEPTUAL SONGS OR NOT
In the song ‘No One Hit Wonder’, you are asking “Where
the hell did we go wrong” and saying “We played our asses
off for more than thirty years, but now our patience’s gone,
we want cash, keep the beer!”. Is this just a fun track
again, or do you mean what you are saying with the song?
“No, this is a totally fun track again. That was my idea, because
it’s really interesting to see that there are some musicians
who only had one song in their lives and they can live all
their lives from the money for it because the track is always
played in the radio. And of course, Tankard will never do a
‘one-hit wonder’ song, because we play for so long, so the idea
was born to call this song ‘No One Hit Wonder’ and of course
the lyrics are totally funny.”
Besides the funny lyrics, you have some serious stuff going
on in the lyrics again, for example in ‘War Cry’, ‘Hope Can’t
Die’ or ‘Clockwise to Deadline’. Do you want or try to prove
the fans that you also have this mature side of songwriting?
Or do you think that if they still haven’t noticed that
Tankard is not Tankard only because of the beer, it doesn’t
even matter?
“We had that kind of beer-image since “Chemical Invasion”,
we did everything for it, but later on we wanted to get rid of it.
We totally failed in the nineties of course. Nowadays we do a
lot of jokes about our own image, we see it with lot of parody
and stuff like that. Since “Chemical Invasion” we always had a
good mixture of serious lyrics and funny lyrics. If you watch the
news every night and if you walk in the world with open eyes,
then it’s not only fun, there are a lot of bad things happening
on this planet.
We will always write also some serious stuff. First of all we are
a band with a lot of humour and a lot of fun, but we are also
a band that can play serious songs on stage while having fun.
But we would never do an album only with fun lyrics.”
CHASED BY BEER
As you said with your album “Two-Faced” from 1994, you
began to try getting rid of this concept, of this image that
the band built around beer. Nowadays you accepted that
it probably became the largest characteristic of the band.
In general, do you guys usually stick to the key things that
seem to work for you, or do you still have the desire to try
something new?
“We never have a plan when we start the songwriting, about
which direction it goes. For example if we did the next album
totally seriously, nobody would believe that it’s Tankard. Somehow
the old Tankard is reduced only to this beer stuff and we
did everything at the beginning for it, but now we have to live
with it, and as I told you before, nowadays we make a lot of
jokes about our own image, so of course nobody has to take it
so seriously. We really can live with that Tankard is sometimes
just reduced to this kind of beer image, but we still keep on
going, writing good songs, trying to do the best and hoping that
the fans like it and expect Tankard to continue the music.”
How seriously do you guys take yourselves when it comes
4
22 METALEGION #1

"HE'S BACK TO TAKE REVENGE ON
MANKIND AND POISON EVERYBODY"
By Andreas “Gerre” Geremia
#1 METALEGION 23

to writing and recording a new album? Do you
just have fun during the recording, or are you
rather the hard-working types?
“The songwriting and the recording stuff is very very
hard and needs a lot of work, of course sometimes
we have the moments in the studio when we are
laughing and having a little bit of fun but it’s 95%
totally hard work, you really have to concentrate on
it. To tell you an example, I don’t drink any alcohol
in the studio. I just open my first beer when we
finished, when we are in the last minutes of finishing
the last song.”
Now that’s dedication! Counting from 2000, the
line-up of your albums are always the same.
Have you ever thought about having some kind
of a refreshment?
“We are now together since 1998, especially with
our guitar player Andy, he wrote most of the songs
of the last couple of albums. I could not imagine to
play with another member in Tankard, so I hope we
are all getting old together.”
I read that you are working as a social worker
together with drug addicted people, it can be an
interesting situation for you day by day. Can you
draw influence from the happenings at work for
the lyrics of the band?
“No, I would never do a song about that because
this is my normal work and Tankard is a totally
different world and I don’t really want to mix that.”
In the end I’d like to know: Is there any question
that no one asked you before, and you would like
someone to ask it from you?
“(laughs) This is a really good question. I did so
many interviews and now I had to think this over
for a moment. Nobody asked me, actually nobody
knows that I was a really good football player when I
was young, and I really wanted to get a professional
player. And nobody asked me about that! When I
was getting older around 15-16, the partying started
and then my career as a football player was over.
But concerning the music and singing, I think if you
asked me that question at the moment, I would
have to call you back in two hours maybe. (both
laughing)”
Thank you very much for the interview Gerre,
have a good time with Tankard and put out some
more albums because we are curious about you!
“We will, thank you very much! Thanks for the
support and have a nice evening!” c
“R.I.B.” available via Nuclear Blast [www.nuclearblast.de]
/ Tankard [www.tankard.info]
"I WAS A REALLY
GOOD FOOTBALL
PLAYER WHEN I
WAS YOUNG"
By Andreas “Gerre” Geremia
“R.I.B.”
NUCLEAR BLAST
After 15 full-lenghts mostly two years in between,
plenty of work and years of true dedication, Tankard
released their 16th album on the 20th of June 2014.
“R.I.B.” is, as a consequence of the same line-up, quite
similar to Tankard’s other albums from the new era.
It’s an intense yet typical and ordinary thrash metal
record with a fairly common modern sound - probably
no more and no less than what you would expect
to hear from a veteran thrash metal band on its new
album in 2014.
There is an obvious reference to Tankard’s classic second
album from 1987, “Chemical Invasion”. The crazy
professor returns both on the cover and in the lyrics of
the title track, ‘R.I.B. (Rest in Beer)’ - to “take revenge
on mankind and poison everybody with free beer”, as
Gerre told me in the interview I made with him before.
Even though the return of a former key character is
a rather hackneyed idea, it does seem to work in the
sense of promoting the new release and bringing some
nostalgic feelings to the old fans.
The songs on “R.I.B.” don’t differ in many ways from
each other: the riffs and the song structures are usually
nothing new, they’re rather predictable and repetitive
after the first two songs, we can feel it’s even enough
after the first half of the album. A few outstanding
tracks would be ‘War Cry’ which starts off intensely
and gives a huge kick to the album with the pounding
fast drums and powerful thrashy vocals, and the
surprisingly speedy and aggressive ‘Enemy of Order’
and ’Clockwise to Deadline’ double; but Tankard still
doesn’t manage to hold our attention with the same
kind of structures throughout the whole record. The
lyrical themes didn’t change either: the lyrics alternate
between serious and fun subjects, the guys write about
politics, partying, society or a death of a friend; doing
this in a somewhat amateurish, frivolous way, though
- but of course, we better not expect any thrash metal
band to be lyrical geniuses (unless we are talking
about a band like the English guys Sabbat).
As Gerre also told me, Tankard puts a lot of effort and
work in putting out new albums every two or three
years - he, for instance, doesn’t drink any alcohol
in the studio before finishing the recording session.
Which is admirable, yet the question comes: are all
these new records required by the fans? Gerre knows
himself that despite the references, the new album
naturally sounds different than “Chemical Invasion”.
With the return of the professor they show that they
are not willing to distance themselves from their roots;
however, they are not trying to be something they are
not or do something that they cannot do in the same
way anymore.
Even though Tankard is probably not going to get
more attention or admission through any of their
recent albums, and even though the golden ages of
thrash metal are long over (and it’s really difficult to
bring something new to it), after all it’s nice to see
that these guys still manage to maintain the level
they have reached with their newer albums in
the 2000s, and still play the same kind of thrash
metal music they have planned to do and are
dedicated to. On the whole, I would say “R.I.B.”
is an enjoyable thrash metal record for those who
like the softer, clanking guitar sounds combined
with aggressive vocals and some fast riffs; but
it doesn’t give the listener much of what they
haven’t heard before.
8 | ESTELLE
24 METALEGION #1

"IT'S MORE DIFFICULT
TO SPOT THE GEMS
AMONG THE
MEDIOCRE ONES"
By Johnny Nuclear Winter
THE WORD LAST DOES NOT HAVE THE CLOSING CONNOTATION IN THE AXEGRESSOR’S DICTIONARY, IN
FACT THE NEW ALBUM “LAST” GATHERS SOME OF THEIR STRONGEST AND FIERCE SONGS!
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIANS: JOHNNY NUCLEAR WINTER (VOCALIST) / SEBA FORMA (GUITAR) ..
FEROCITY AND INTENSITY
ARE SOME OF THE WORDS
THAT DESCRIBE A GOOD
THRASH METAL BAND.
AXEGRESSOR MAY
NOT BE DISCOVERING THE
WHEEL YET THEIR THIRD
ALBUM ENTITLED “LAST”
REVIVES FLAWLESSLY THE
CHARM OF THE EIGHTIES.
VOCALIST JOHNNY
NUCLEAR WINTER
AND GUITARIST SEBA
FORMA SPEAK ABOUT
THEIR NEW ALBUM, THE
METAL SCENE AND HOW
THEY ENDED UP IN JAIL...
Axegressor is a band that has slowly built a good
reputation as the next Finn thrash metal force to
be feared. People are comparing you guys with
amazing bands like Kreator, Sodom, Exodus. I guess it
can’t be more rewarding than that?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “Sure, it’s cool that somebody
compares us with the bands we’ve grown up with and being
fans of for more than 20 years. And it’s even better if the
reviews say that we are in the vein of those bands but not
“just another thrash clone”. We strive to keep up with some
kind of own identity as well, yet our purpose is certainly not to
be totally one-of-a-kind band. It’s quite impossible within the
certain guidelines of this genre which has been a birthplace for
thousands of albums during its existence in 30 years.”
Nevertheless is your aim to slowly move away from the
shadow of the mentioned bands and try to break new
ground or you are sticking to what you do best, which is
good old thrash metal?
Seba Forma “There is no intention to move to any other direction.
As you read reviews of new thrash metal bands, there is
often the same sentence ‘this has been done already’, ‘nothing
new here’ or something like that. But it is the same in death,
black, heavy metal too. I don’t want to put some jazz or funky
parts into songs, just to be different from the genre. So better
just to concentrate on doing good songs. You can also think
this is a tribute to old gods of heavy metal (laughs)!”
Do you think that people in general expect too much
from bands and are ceaselessly looking for the next
ground-breaking hit? Its not originality that make
tremendous albums but the whole vibe and energy of the
songs, especially in thrash metal.
Johnny Nuclear Winter “We are not here to invent the wheel
again or create radically experimentally unique and superbly
innovative new style of metal. We aim to stick to the basics
and twist and turn the good old elements in a bit different
position to create good heavy/thrash metal songs.”
What’s your opinion regarding the whole wave of new
thrash metal bands?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “There are many good bands, but as
the amount of newcomers keeps piling up, it’s more difficult to
spot the gems among the mediocre ones. For many new thrash
bands the main purpose seems to be ultra true to the thrash
metal imagery and clichés, so sometimes the most important
thing, strong and interesting songs is being forgotten.”
If you had to trace a state of the health of the old metal
gods, what’s your generalized opinion about them? Some
kept playing and releasing records since the early days,
others split-up and returned several years later.
Johnny Nuclear Winter “Well, two examples of ancient bands
being in very good shape nowadays are Judas Priest and
Accept. Both have managed to release magnificent “comeback”
albums during this century and are not showing any
kind of weakness or tiresomeness. Also Overkill’s latest
albums are certainly one of the top-notch thrash metal
releases of 2010’s. For the Morgoth comeback I had really big
doubts since they quit and “left the scene” with a really shitty
alternative rock wannabe album in the mid-90’s, but today
I listened to their brand new 7” and I have to say the death
metal roots are showing really strong!”
“Last”, is the name of your new album and it sounds like
something is lacking or is it a simple goodbye? What’s the
story behind the chosen of this title?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “You can think of it also as a verb
“to last”, for example. Also it’s kind of a continuation to the
previous album titles ‘Command’ and ‘Next’ and their cover
artwork. But it’s certainly not to be meant our swan song.”
Once again an album with a one word short title. Will this
be a rule in all Axegressor records?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “Less is more. Fuck off Yngwie Malmsteen
(laughs). I think the album titles so far have expressed
well enough the contents within (music, lyrics) so there’s no
need to expand the titles if we don’t need to. Of course they
could have been called “Thrashaholic Extermination Command”,
“Next To Perish In Flames” or “The Last Triumphant
Archmosher”... Though I fucking hate myself for not noticing
back then that also this US alternative metal band Sevendust
has an album called “Next”. Damn! (both laugh)”
BIGGER IS BETTER
You were previously signed to Dethrone Music but judging
by their two year silence, moving to the bigger French
Listenable Records was probably the right decision?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “It just took a bit longer for us to complete
these nine songs for ‘Last’. Also we decided that we were
not going to continue with Dethrone Music - though the label
owner is a good friend and he did a good job for us with the
resources he possessed. We wanted to try out if some bigger
26 METALEGION #1

label would be interested in our works to spread our thrash
gospel further to potential fans all over the world. Hope we
can achieve some kind of “level-up” now with the help of
Listenable Records.”
I know that when you got in touch with Listenable
Records you already had the record finished (even
the mixing, mastering and cover made). Nevertheless,
were they able to give you better working conditions
than your previous record label?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “Well, as you said, we had the work
done already and had the complete package to offer for
Listenable. They have certainly given us more exposure
promotion-wise.”
Would you say that, the real only benefit with signing
with Listenable for now, is an increasing interest
towards Axegressor and the new album? Perhaps more
gig offers and media coverage?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “Not too many direct gig offers so
far, but we are working on that area as well to spread our
shit outside Finland’s borders as well (laughs). There has
certainly been a lot more media coverage than before,
especially abroad. We are not looking for any other benefit
with this deal than the possibility to have our music heard
by a wider audience. The money related benefits are not so
important (laughs).”
Still when I asked, if they were able to give better
working conditions I was already thinking on future
releases. The deal with them also covers future
releases and if yes do you think they can give you
different and better working possibilities?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “We have option(s) for future
releases as well, but naturally everything depends how the
new album does sales and promotional wise I think.”
Its probably a bit too soon, but how are things going on
with the new album in terms of sales? I mean Listenable
Records must have a broader distribution channel
and different means to promote bands.
Johnny Nuclear Winter “As a matter of fact it is too soon,
because I have no idea about the sales yet. As the music
business struggles more and more every year with the
physical format sales, I doubt we have topped any charts
anywhere (laughs). But surely Listenable has better
channels and contacts in terms of promotional exposure
and distribution channels. We haven’t talked much with
them about sales, and I hope we do well enough for them
so they would support us later as well.”
In the end it comes down to sales and on the last ten
years the music business have been progressively
affected at this level. How do you see the future of
bands, labels and do you have any idea to solve or
minimize the scourge of illegal downloading?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “For smaller bands like us the free
downloads, YouTube, piracy and so on, don’t play a very
significant role when thinking about loss of record sales,
royalties etc. In my opinion it is even better for us that our
music is “available” at torrent sites and other unofficial
places, so people can hear the stuff first and if they are
up to buying physical albums anymore, they hopefully find
a webstore from where to order the album. There are lots
of people who don’t buy Cd’s or vinyls anymore even if
they like the music, so if they download all their collection
illegally, it means nothing because they wouldn’t buy the
album in the first place.”
INFERNO RULES
Been chosen among 140 demo bands to play at Inferno
Festival in 2008 at the side of Overkill or Satyricon,
would you say that was a forecast of more things to
come?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “It really was a blast and a lightning
from the clear sky for us, in a positive way. Good experience
well, though we couldn’t afford staying for the whole
festival, because Norway is such an expensive country. I
hope it was a long-term forecast of things yet to come!”
Is there a particular country or festival that you really
aim to play in? Perhaps the cradle of thrash metal
Germany and Wacken Open Air?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “Well, any big metal festival in
Europe or anywhere else would be fantastic, of course.
Maybe some smaller festivals, with emphasis on thrash
and old-school metal, would be a cool experience as well.”
Seba Forma “Everything works (laugh). Personally I prefer
smaller clubs, because the intensity is always higher there.
But then again, I have never played in one of those big
festivals, so I might be totally wrong.”
Still you have been quite active in your homeland,
Finland. On a country where for many years black
metal and death metal were kings how is thrash metal
being treated?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “The new wave of thrash metal has
been quite visible in the Finnish underground metal during
the last years and spawned even a quite big international
band in the form of Lost Society. Many bands play often
live at small clubs, so there’s a somewhat “scene” been
built in Finland also.”
RELAXING IN JAIL
Moments ago we were talking about forecasts, however
you never anticipated that you would got arrested
after a show for being... Illegal workers (laughs)! Tell
us about that specific episode in Russia.
Johnny Nuclear Winter “This was basically the same that
happened to Behemoth last Spring. We had only tourist
visas, because we were told that nobody cares about
them over there in Russia and all bands tour with those
only. We should have had an “artist visa” or shit like that.
Even though the immigrant officials had confiscated our
passports they still had us to be taken to a local jail (in
Krasnodar, where flooded like hell a couple months later...
Thrash gods’ revenge!), maybe they were trying to teach
the long-haired Finn metalloids a lesson. Next morning our
tour manager went to a bank to pay the fine which was
something ridiculous like 50 EUR per person and we were
thinking like, fuck, we had to stay for 6-7 hours in that
stinking jail for a silly price like that. Maybe the total fine
was a month’s salary for the fat official pig who was in
charge that night, I don’t know. Later and nowadays, when
looking back to that situation, it really made our friendship
even tighter within the band, to experience and survive shit
like that together.”
This means Russia no more?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “Why not, some day. But not
without proper artist/musician visas.”
Seba Forma “The incident was rather annoying, but in the
end it was an experience you can laugh about afterwards.
And the people in Russia were very polite and very nice, so
I have no bad feelings. Lot of good guys there, hope they
are doing okay! Also the arrangements for the gigs were
always well organized and we were treated very well. Too
bad we had to cancel those few shows in the end of the
tour.”
Following the topic of jobs (laughs). What do you guys
do for a living?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “I work in a record store (www.
4
“LAST”
LISTENABLE RECORDS
I am very interested in Axegressor’s work since I have
heard their fantastic self-titled band anthem that was
published on their thrilling debut. Their second album
was even better than their first output. I am therefore
delighted that their third album called “Last” has
now been released. Initially, I was afraid that it could
actually be their last full-length because of its title.
But now I hope, that “Last” just refers to “Next”, the
title of their second album, and the all-clear can be
given. Or, better still, the title means that Axegressor
will last for many years to come. Wonderful idea!
Axegressor offer nine tracks with a running time of
36 minutes. This alone smells like old-school, doesn’t
it? And it’s true, the Finnish aggressors are definitely
old-school, they are ugly and make no compromise.
The guitars and the almost omnipresent bass characterize
the intense music while the voice of singer
“Johnny Nuclear Winter” (these Finnish names are
really strange...) still sounds like the noises of an
injured animal on the run. Don’t get me wrong, he
can take that as a compliment. The backing vocals
are used in a targeted manner and they sound strong,
too. All songs are running more or less in the same
vein without being predictable. Axegressor act with
an exceptional degree of aggression and they will
therefore surely energize every fan of rude thrash
metal. If you expect a minimum of sweet melodies or
harmonic singing, you are not in the right ballpark.
May I dare to say that, for example, some brief
acoustic parts would have increase the variety of the
album? No? Okay, then I’m quiet.
Admittedly, it is difficult for me to figure out the best
songs. The album works as a whole. It hits you like a
lasting act of violence that is used to demoralize you.
At the latest now I have understood what Exodus
preach for decades. Axegressor celebrate “good
friendly violent fun” - naturally without touches of
humour according to the general understanding. It
goes right the other way round, their riffs are dry to
the bone and move constantly forward. The song title
“A Fistful of Ignorance” symbolizes their attitude in a
very precise manner. Perhaps the solos could leave a
greater impact, but that remains negligible due to the
strong overall impression.
You do not have to like this album, but no one will
be able to claim that these guys did not do their job
properly. “Last” does not lack of energy, enthusiasm
or technical skills. The cover motif (heavy metal skull
number 21.341, I guess) pictures the only vapid detail.
8 | FELIX 1666
#1 METALEGION 27

1980
1988
1990
recordshopx.com - free ad!), Aki works at a
cd/dvd/games etc. retailer company, Seba
is a system administrator or something
like that and Atte just recently quit his job
as a storage worker. So, we are all decent,
tax-paying citizens, except Atte who is now
full-time drum pornaholic and IPA beer
drinker.”
JUDAS PRIEST
British Steel
“If I had to say the best band in the
world, Priest would be it. My first
heavy metal cassette I ever bought
among Mötley Crüe’s “Too Fast For
Love”, but I am not sure what was
the year. Wild guess ‘82. I must have
listened those records like ten times
a day back then (laugh)! Never got
bored of it after more than 30 years.
This is how it all started, although
as a kid I listened to Elvis and some
Finnish rock bands.”
1987
ANTHRAX
Among The Living
“I could name a thousand records
from this era, but this was the time
the puberty literally hit (laughs). This
record has so much power that it was
the first time I considered buying a
guitar to start playing stuff like this.
I also started smoking cigars and
drinking beer at the age of 13 so it
was an important era of my life I
guess (big laugh)!”
RUNNING WILD
Port Royal
“This was the very first FULL album
of heavy metal I heard. Before that I
had heard random songs from Kiss,
WASP, Metallica etc. but this was the
really first complete album I listened to.
And instantly fell for it! My friend won
this LP at some local radio station’s
competition and when he picked up
the package at the post office, we went
to his room to listen to these magical
pirate metal songs. Still to this day,
“Port Royal” remains one of the best
album entireties to me.”
1985
THE SISTERS OF MERCY
First And Last And Always
“I discovered the Sisters and The Fields
Of Nephilim in the beginning of this
century or something like that. Through
melodic black metal to dark metal
to gothic metal to the roots of gothic
rock... This album is an ABC of gothic
rock in all aspects: dark and ill-fated
vocals, catchy songs, melancholic
atmosphere.”
DEICIDE
Deicide
“Deicide’s debut was among the first
that got me into death metal back in
the days. I had never heard before
such brutal and intense stuff. For
many years from that on I listened
to only death or black metal with
grunting or screaming vocals, no
clear vocals were allowed! I even
overdubbed my Anthrax tapes with
Obituary, Morbid Angel, Entombed!”
BATHORY
Hammerheart
“When I first heard this album when
it was released, I hated it. I loathed
the “new” vocals of Quorthon
who sounded like a whining faggot
to my 14-year-old purist ears (I
had the death metal period going
on, remember) and it was so
different compared to the previous
two albums I had heard before.
However, in time I learned to respect
and dig this album and “Twilight
of the Gods” aside the black metal
era of Bathory. The fact is that this
one fucking guy is responsible for
being an innovator for two such
powerful metal genres and nothing
can ever change that. I remember,
ten years ago, when Quorthon had
suddenly passed away I was having
a summer cabin weekend with my
friends by the seaside near where
I live, we started to listen to ‘One
rode to Asa bay’ and despite the
drunken madness and silly jokes
just minutes before the moment,
we all got very serious and just
concentrated on listening to the
songs. Maybe a few drunkemotional
tears were also
shed. That song is the only I
wish to be played at my funeral.”
1990
HIGHLIGHTS BY Seba Forma & Johnny Nuclear Winter
THE THRASH WAY
One of the aspects that slightly changed
on “Last” is that you now sound more
vile, sharp and “German” than the
predecessors records, “Command” and
“Next”. Was this a conscious move?
Seba Forma “Yes. We had to concentrate
on sounds on ‘Last’, because we were not
too happy with the sounds on previous
albums. No matter how long it would take,
we wanted to be absolutely satisfied before
releasing anything. I also changed my gear
almost entirely to get rid of the “death
metallish” sound. My good friend Jari Laine
from Torture Killer helped me a lot with
that, so big thanks to him too. Of course
there are many things you can do better,
but at least we have found our way.”
I guess an artist is never truly satisfied
and seeks constantly perfection. If you
had the opportunity now to change
something on “Last” what would be?
Seba Forma “I would say to Atte to play
‘Merciless Reality Check’ with open hi-hat,
AC/DC style (big laughs)! I am quite
satisfied with what we did, but of course
there’s always something to improve.
Maybe the guitars are too loud considering
drums, but the balance is always the
problem. It is hard to listen objectively your
own music and maybe it is too early to say
what would you do otherwise. I am just
happy we improved so much from “Next”
and “Command”, so I’m gonna enjoy it
for a moment (laugh). I definitely want to
continue making records with Mr. Lukala
as he clearly knows (at least now) what
we want.”
On the new album you have chosen
to work again with Joona Lukala at
Rockroom Studios as producer. You have
already worked one or two times before
with him, so the fact that he already
knew Axegressor helped in anyway to
achieve the powerful and fierce sound
that “Last” has?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “We were supposed
to have the album mixed again by Mr. Mika
Isotalo, who mixed ‘Next’, but in the end
the soundscapes Joona provided were
more in the direction we wanted Axegressor
to be. Also Joona was with us from the
beginning to record everything, so we had
already talked a lot at the studio how we
would like the end result to sound like.”
Seba Forma “Joona understood that we
wanted to have some natural old-school
sound more than modern metal, where
28 METALEGION #1

drums sound plastic and everything has to sound
so damn loud (laughs)!”
It was a simple matter of perception regarding
how good old thrash metal should sound, that
dictated your choice?
Seba Forma “We just wanted to sound as natural
as possible. I don’t like when bands sound plastic
and too produced, it is an instant turn-off, and we
tried to avoid it. But if you use preferences, it is
mostly the new records like new Testament’s LP,
so we didn’t give records like “Bonded by Blood” to
Mr. Lukala and said “this is how it should sound”.
Second thing is that we were only a week in the
studio, so there was no time to perfect the takes.
It has lots of errors and it is kind of ‘punkish’ that
way, suits us.”
BUILDING RIFFS
During the song writing process is there a
member that takes the lead on that matter
or everybody contributes with their share of
ideas?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “Seba writes some riffs and
plays them with Atte when they jam together with
some (dozens of) beers and in that way the songs
take their shape little by little.”
Seba Forma “Yeah, I might have some riff (and lots
of beer) before venturing to rehearsals. I cannot
do anything at home, I hate composing songs with
computer doing drums etc. Since “Command” it
has been like this. But every idea is taken under
consideration, everybody can make riffs/lyrics/
whatever, so there is almost full democracy.”
Do you think alcohol liberates the mind to
create killer riffs and the whole consciousness
of musicality? Either people like it or not
metal was always associated with booze, we
even have the mighty kings of beer... Tankard
(laughs)!
Seba Forma “Yeah, probably (laughs)! It opens
your mind a little bit, so you get a bit crazier ideas
when you have taken a few beers. For example
when Stephen King stopped using drugs and alcohol,
his books got worse in my opinion. (He almost
died, but luckily survived.) Well, that’s maybe not
the best example, but artists through the ages
have expanded their minds. For us it is just beer,
but it kinda ‘helps’.”
To end, during the years you have played
in different bands, your first band Crimson
Midwinter dates back to 1994. This learning
process has for sure helped Axegressor on
different levels, don’t you agree?
Johnny Nuclear Winter “Well, a couple of years ago
I suddenly noticed that since Crimson Midwinter I
have “always” been a member of at least one band
- now for more than half of age! During these years
I have gathered quite a bunch of contacts with
fellow metalheads in Finland an abroad, arranged
and played hundreds of gigs etc. and in some level
this of course helps Axegressor also, because I
have had direct contacts with gig organizers and
other bands and metal media, for example. It is not
to be denied.” c
“Last” available via Listenable Records [www.
listenable.net] / Axegressor [www.axegressor.net]
Johnny Nuclear Winter
UNVEILS “Last”
Photo by Ville Ruusunen
“THE BASIC INFLUENCE FOR MY LYRICS IS
SIMPLY THE FRUSTRATION FOR THE SILLINESS
OF MANKIND AND MANY UNFAIR ASPECTS IN
NOWADAYS SOCIETY. THERE ARE TOO FEW
WINNERS OF DARWIN AWARDS AND TOO
MANY FACELESS FUCKS WHO ARE ALIVE BUT
DO NOT LIVE. THIS GOES FROM THE
BOTTOM-FEEDING OUTCASTS TO THE VERY
TOP OF OUR SOCIAL CHAIN OF COMMAND.
NONE OF US IS WORTHY UNTIL PROVEN SO, NO
STATUS CAN SAVE YOU.”
01. FREEDOM ILLUSION
In western society people are considered
to be rather free to think and
act how they like to, whenever they
like to. However many people chain
themselves with the expectations
and unwritten rules of the community
and won’t express their true
selves in fear of being overlooked
and talked behind their backs or
whatever excuse there may be.
02. LEAD JUSTICE
This is a fictional story about a
breaking point of a person who
had been mentally oppressed and
silenced for years and kept all
anguish, hatred and pain inside -
until one day he had had enough and
solves the problem by killing people
around him. This kind of mentality is
quite usual in Finnish society, people
don’t talk about their problems and
they just keep piling up year after
year and when the breaking point
comes, it’ too late to search for
peaceful solutions to the problems.
03. MIND CASTRATION
Sometimes it would a lot easier just
not to care about anything. Being
lobotomised (“mind-castrated”)
seems like the only state where there
would be no problems caused by
other people around you. The more
you know and are aware of things,
the more pain it can cause to you.
04. MERCILESS REALITY
CHECK
This text is about the point in one’s
life where you realize nothing can
be done anymore. All is lost, life is
wasted either by your own wrong
choices (or not having chosen at
all!) or being dried out by the
societal system and bureaucratic
madness.
05. 15
The first verse explains it all in a
nutshell: “if procreation would be
set subject to license would there
be brighter expectations for all of
us?”. It’s fucking insane how difficult
and time-consuming it is to adopt a
baby if you cannot have children of
your own, when even the stupidest
dirtbag in this planet can reproduce
without any limit or license that would
make him/her a capable parent. For
some people their only achievement
in life is to have children and thus
keep that scumbag bloodline alive,
unfortunately.
06. SOCIAL PRESSURE
When elections are coming, people
are encouraged to vote to “make a
difference”. I don’t believe in making
a difference in that way. The politicians
are always a representation of
the lesser evil, no matter how great
causes and principles they may have
in their programs. There are always
sides and details in their manifests
that you cannot agree upon. Yet you’re
still encouraged to vote for the “best
possible alternative” which means
“least worst alternative”. No matter
what colour the Finnish government
has been during the years or what
kind of fuck-ups being elected as
ministers or secretaries, the changes
in the every day life of a normal
human being are very minimal in a
society which is based on many political
compromises instead of extreme
opposites or even dictatorship.
07. A FISTFUL OF IGNORANCE
(No explanation given - Ed.)
08. COMMAND TO LAST
Circle pits are pathetic. Metal concert
is not a fucking running event, but a
meeting of blood, sweat and beers in
form of malicious mosh pit madness.
These are a bit tongue-in-cheek kind
of lyrics but carry a certain message
anyway: respect the tradition and real
cause of metal and forget the modern,
safe and polished merry-go-round.
09. DETERMINATOR
Maybe the only song in our catalogue
with a positive vibe (laughs). This is
about the fact that no one else but
you cannot rule your life and if you
want something worth aiming for, you
will get it by being determined about
it and focusing on your goal. However,
if you care too much about general
opinions, other people’s comments
and ridicule during your journey, you
will not achieve the goal.
#1 METALEGION 29

"THE ESTABLISHED
BANDS SOUND A LOT
DIFFERENT NOW"
By Anders Härén
ITS UNDENIABLE THAT SOME
OF THE BEST METAL RECORDS
WERE RELEASED BY SWEDISH
BANDS. GLUTTONY
EXPLORES THE FACT MANY
OF THE CULT ACTS ARE NOW
DEFUNCT OR SIMPLY MOVED ON
TOWARDS OTHER DIRECTIONS
AND RELEASED A DEBUT ALBUM
OF STRAIGHTFORWARD OLD-
SCHOOL SWEDISH DEATH
METAL. THE FOUNDER MEMBER
ANDERS HÄRÉN TALKS
ABOUT THE WHOLE PROCESS.
THE COMBINATION BETWEEN DAN SWANÖ AND A SWEDISH METAL BAND COULD NOT RESULT IN
NOTHING ELSE THAN A FURIOUS RAW EFFORT OF OLD-SCHOOL DEATH METAL
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: ANDERS HÄRÉN (GUITARIST) ..
I
have to start this interview by asking you, how the hell
an old-school death metal band end up covering ‘Paint
It Black’ from Rolling Stones?
“I’m not a Stones fan but I’ve always liked that song in
particular. The main melody has a hidden darkness and also
the lyrics can be quite brutal if read in the right context:
someone who just wants to paint the whole world in darkness.
I’ve heard a few extreme metal bands covering ‘Paint it Black’
over the years but I haven’t liked any version. First of all
none are able to capture the uneasiness of the melody which
reminds me a lot of ‘Dreaming in Red’ by Dismember. Second
of all, the other covers of ‘Paint it Black’ usually have difficulty
with the chorus and they usually make it sound too much like
the original and it becomes too catchy which ruins the dark
atmosphere of the song.”
Good music can break boundaries and influence generations,
that’s the case of ‘Paint it Black’ originally released
in 1966. To tell the truth, I didn’t remember that so many
metal bands had already covered that particular song. I’m
talking about bands like Judas Priest, W.A.S.P., Anvil, Rage,
Grip Inc and even the furious Marduk. Do you think that
metal can achieve the same sort of influence?
“Hmm, probably not. There’s a lot of mainstream music and
then there’s rock and then there’s metal and so on. For each
niche the number of listeners and potential tributes drop.”
Your debut album “Beyond the Veil of Flesh” is out through
30 METALEGION #1

Vic Records. A few weeks after, what’s the feeling inside
the band?
“We are proud of this album, it turned out just the way we
wanted. Catchy, raw songs. Solid production by Dan Swanö,
and incredible artwork by Jeffrey Zornow. Also there’s been a
big interest in the band and we’ve sold all our merchandise
and had a lot of good reviews and many interviews so all in all
we’re really happy with the result.”
DEMONICAL OUT, SETHERIAL IN...
During the recordings of the album the band part ways
with vocalist Johan Jansson. The pointed reasons are the
long distance that he had to travel to rehearse and record.
How the band and Johan handled this decision?
“It was a tough decision to make but it became obvious that
the album would take too much time to finish with Johan as
vocalist due to the long distance. I called him up and explained
this and there were no hard feelings. Johan’s still a great
singer, guitarist and friend and he’s got Interment to keep him
occupied.”
Its cool to know that things were sorted out for the best.
Johan has a vast repertoire of bands, its quite impressive...
Demonical, Centinex, Dellamorte, Interment,
Regurgitate to state just a few. Do you picture yourself
being as active as he is?
“(laughs) Definitely not. At the moment I play with Gluttony
which is active and Godless Glenn & The Astro Zombies which
is semi-active as well as My Own Grave and Retorture who are
somewhat dormant. I’ve always been impressed by Johan, that
he can combine so many active bands.”
Gladly a replacement was quickly found on the form of
Magnus Ödling. He has been handling the vocal duty on
black metal act Setherial and was the original Diabolical
singer. How did he joined the band?
“I’ve known Magnus for many years and he’s done some
guest appearances with My Own Grave and we’ve toured with
Setherial. He was my first choice since I wanted death metal
vocals that weren’t as deep as Aron’s (My Own Grave) or
Fredrik Söderberg’s (Soreption). It was a great opportunity for
us to play in the same band. We’re the same age and from the
same town so we share a deep understanding of the kind of
death metal we want to make with Gluttony. In a way Gluttony
is homage to the bands we grew up with and it’s really fun
to write this kind of music together with the other guys as we
have the same musical references.”
Being him a member and ex-member of well known bands,
I guess that his entrance also channelled some attention
towards Gluttony?
“Probably, but then again Johan was a bigger name in death
metal circles so maybe we lost some fans too.”
Unfortunately I haven’t heard your previous material and
cannot compare the old vocalist with Magnus. Still Magnus
sound on “Beyond the Veil of Flesh” so sick, twisted and
perfectly framed in the band and style of music.
“Yes, Magnus is incredibly skilled and professional and like I
said, knows exactly how it’s supposed to sound. I wrote all the
lyrics but Magnus together with Max made them work and took
them to a whole new level.”
What sort of approach do you use when writing lyrics? Do
you let your imagination run wild and create twisted scenarios
or use any sort of direct inspiration? I’m referring
to books, movies, real life events and so on.
“I start out with sounds and vowels that result in the chorus
and then I craft a good chorus and work backwards from that
to come up with the theme and the rest of the lyrics. They
are usually based on my imagination and seldom from any
particular movie or book.”
Did Magnus had the opportunity to work also on the songs
and contribute to the composition process?
“This time I had already written all the songs and all the lyrics
but in the future he will be more involved in writing lyrics and
affecting the music.”
THE VOID OF EVOLUTION
During the last years old-school Swedish death metal as
well as other forms of metal music, like thrash metal for
instance, have gained more and more exposition. Do you
feel that fans and the scene in general benefit from this
cyclic interest?
“If you look at death metal or thrash metal, or even black
metal, the established bands sound a lot different now than
they did at the start. And that’s a good thing since most bands
need to evolve, as musicians and let their music evolve as
well. This however creates a void for people like me and many
others who miss the golden days and the early, raw albums.
I think it’s positive that veterans like us as well as the kids,
start bands that are focused on sounding like the early days of
thrash or death metal. However the bands that do it just to ride
on a trend can go fuck themselves.”
On the other hand, some critic younger bands because
they are simply rewashing old ideas and copying legendary
bands like Entombed, Dismember or Unleashed. What
do you have to say about this and how do you position
Gluttony on the metal scene?
“We’ve had a lot of positive feedback both from older metal
fans and kids so obviously there is a demand out there for oldschool
Swedish death metal. I’ve also seen some reviews who
think we’re just rewashing old ideas and that’s fine, everyone’s
entitled to their opinion. Gluttony will exist as long as it’s fun to
get together with the other guys and play the kind of music we
grew up with and love. I won’t make any money doing this and
that was never the reason behind forming Gluttony. As long as
4
#1 METALEGION 31

“THE ANCIENT
HUNGER
CONSUMES ME
ONCE AGAIN
THE GATES TO THE
ABYSS UNFOLD
CLAD IN
SHADOWS
THEY DARE NOT
SPEAK MY NAME
I AM THE
REVENANT”
“BEYOND THE VEIL OF FLESH”
VIC RECORDS
This debut album from Swedish death
metal band may not necessarily be
the most original or impressive act
playing straightforward Swedish
styled death metal but provides
enough to remain solid and enjoyable
throughout. The most prominent
aspect is in full-effect here as this
utilizes those grinding buzz-saw
grooves to great outcome. Their
appearance manages to produce many
damaging patterns throughout as this
whips through devastating high speed
tempos like the title track, ‘Raise
the Dead’ or ‘And Then You Rot’, all
graced by the simplicity and furious
energy of the punk roots of the style.
Following up is the sprawling, midtempo
bruisers of ‘Eaten Alive’ and
‘Coffinborn’, using the kind of tempos
and riffing found in doom metal to
provide this with a varied approach.
Those faster tracks pack an urgency
to the arrangements with those punklike
rhythms and speed which makes
them far more enjoyable, while the
doom-like rhythms manage to employ
a tight chug-like pattern throughout
them to really make for a more
well-rounded sound than expected.
The drumming here is top-notch, with
that kind of pounding performance
that manages to accompany whatever
is going quite nicely. During the
faster numbers, this has a reckless
speed-driven power that matches
the ferocity of punk rhythms with
the way it charges forth through the
raging sections, while the doom-laden
segments are given a generally-loud,
thumping crunch to match the
plodding pace so that there’s a heavy,
pounding undercurrent to the music,
and these all make for a fine effort.
Frankly, there’s not a whole lot to
this that doesn’t work. “Beyond the
Veil of Flesh” manages to successfully
recall that Swedish styled atmosphere
quite well, using the familiar pattern
arrangements we are all used to.
This does have a rather sinister air
to it, as the churning chainsaw riffs
and dynamic drumming creates a
dirty, dark breeze. That said, this also
exposes the band’s one big issue in
that it’s all pretty much been done
before. There’s very little originality
in the band as pretty much everything
in the record was attempted by those
that came twenty-plus years ago when
the Swedish scene was first populated
with countless legendary bands that
are still going strong today while
all these guys do is ape that original
scene. Most of the riffing patterns,
arrangements and even the structure
of many of the songs are taken
straight from that original ground
years ago and remains quite typical of
the modern proponents of the Swedish
scene, which don’t really push things
even further or try to delve into new
territories. Being a competent player
and utilizing those familiar rhythms
might work for the die-hard Swedish
death metal fan, still its undeniable
that the recognisable blur of chainsaw
riffs and energetic punk-like rhythms
graced with the occasional mid-range
epic loaded with sprawling tempos
doesn’t really strike all that many
original notes.
While this may indeed be another
run-of-the-mill Swedish styled death
metal act, the fact that it’s certainly
a confident and well-played variant
on the scene should not go unnoticed
as this goes along. This does make
“Beyond the Veil of Flesh” more of an
effort for the aficionados of the scene
based on the familiarity and overall
cliché nature of the band, but if that
can be overlook it isn’t an altogether
awful representation of the Swedish
scene by any means.
7.5 | DON ANELLI
"WE DON'T PLAY FOR GAS
MONEY SINCE EVERY GIG
MEANS TIME AWAY FROM
FAMILY AND WORK"
By Anders Härén
I know that and we still like the songs we make I have no problem
with other people thinking this and that, I know we are true and loyal
to our roots.”
Do you think that during the years some of that magic of playing
together with friends just for the fun of it was kind of lost? Even
the whole live experience has changed during the years, gigs
were much more intense 20 years ago...
“Maybe, I’ve met a lot of legendary extreme metal musicians over
the years and in some cases it seems that the passion goes out the
door the same day you decide to play death metal for a living. It’s
hard to gain that success in such a niche genre that is also crowded
with many great bands.”
You were considering doing a video clip for one of the songs of
the new album and you even asked the fans about which song
32 METALEGION #1

should be. At what point is this?
“The video was meant to be shot this summer but it won’t
happen. Instead we filmed our show in May with 4 cameras so
we’ll put together some live footage of different songs instead.”
Can I suggest releasing that live footage as a bonus DVD
on a future release? Have you considered that possibility?
“No I hadn’t considered that, that’s a great idea! We’ll look
into that.”
When did Roel van Reijmersdal, owner of Vic Records,
showed his interest in signing Gluttony?
“I think it was Rogga Johansson who tipped him off after
hearing the “Coffinborn” demo. I am very grateful to Rogga for
that and it’s really flattering when such a death metal legend
says he likes your stuff, that means a lot!”
Wasn’t the album supposed to be out via Raw Skull?
“Yes, initially it was meant to be released by Vic’s sub-label
Raw Skull but then Roel moved it up to the main label.”
The record deal with Vic Records was just for this album
or can we expect some more stuff released through them?
“Right now we are writing two new songs for an upcoming
split with Sordid Flesh that Vic Records will release and after
that we’ll see what we do. And we have a cassette release of
“Coffinborn” coming up on a Chilean label.”
MASTER OF ALL CRAFTS
The mixing and mastering process was handled by no
other than Dan Swanö himself. He truly understands the
essence of old-school death metal like no one else and the
final result could surely have been pulled from early 90’s.
How the name Dan Swanö was brought to the table?
“Dan mixed and mastered the last My Own Grave release
“Necrology” so he was the obvious choice for me. That, and
his impressive knowledge of death metal and the Swedish
scene. He’s been involved in so many great releases it’s sick!”
How was working closely with Dan Swanö in Unisound
Studios? Did you felt that he had some sort of empathy
with your sonority?
“The album was recorded by us in two different studios in
Sundsvall, engineered by our drummer John who is a sound
technician and the drums by Daniel Mikaelsson (Syn:drom).
Swanö took care of mixing and mastering and all the contact
with him was carried out over e-mail. As for the sound he got
everything right at first except the drums that sounded too
modern so we gave him input and he changed them and also
we made the guitar clearer, more raw and with less bass.”
The extremely talented comic book artist Jeff Zornow
produced the cover artwork of “Beyond the Veil of Flesh”.
Due to the late huge popularity, it reminds me of some raw
scenes from The Walking Dead TV series (laughs)!
“I wrote the title track back in 2010 and then I got the idea
for the cover: A zombie feeding of himself. I’ve always liked
Zornow’s comic book style horror graphics so I contacted him
and explained loosely what I wanted him to draw. He drew the
cover and I paid for it, as early as 2010. Then when it was
time to record the demo I wanted to save “Beyond The Veil Of
Flesh” for a future full-length since I thought it was a great
title, and I didn’t want to waste the incredible cover on a demo
so I saved the cover as well and just drew the cover artwork
for “Coffinborn” myself.”
That’s almost like building a house and start from the
roof (laughs). I’m wondering if the other band members
also had an active voice on this choice or you as founding
member have complete control on this matters?
“It’s a combination of democracy and dictatorship (laughs).
Some things we decide together, like setlist for instance, and
some things are totally in my control, like which labels we
should work with. We know each other so well and it hasn’t
been an issue so far.”
Besides some occasional one time shows, you haven’t
been that much an active live band. Is this something that
you would like to change on the future?
“Gluttony is a killer live band since we have so many years of
live experience. We like to play live and to tour but we’re not 16
anymore. That means we don’t play for gas money since every
gig means time away from family and work. It has to be worth
it. We’ve had some offers for gigs and touring but so far we’ve
turned them down. If the right offer presents itself we will
definitely come and put on a hell of a show, spit some blood on
you and give the crowd value for their ticket money!”
To end, the name Gluttony, for you represents...
“The unquenchable thirst for death.” c
“Beyond The Veil Of Flesh” available via VIC Records [www.
vicrecords.com] / Gluttony [www.gluttony.se]
4
#1 METALEGION 33

HIGHLIGHTS OR “DESERT ISLAND” LIST BY ANders Härén
1995
UNANIMATED
Ancient God of Evil
“This is a record I never grow
tired of and definitely one of
the best Swedish death metal
albums. I traded this CD for
some record, can’t remember
which one, back in ‘95 and I
will never forget when I put it
on for the first time and ‘Life
Demise’ blasted out of my
speakers. It’s just so raw and
evil, really a no bullshit intro
kind of like Ulver’s ‘Wolf and
Fear’ or Satyricon’s ‘Du som
hater gud’. This record has
been a big inspiration for me
as a guitarist and in writing
music both for My Own Grave
and Gluttony. It’s definitely
up there with Like “An
Everflowing Stream”, “Into The
Grave” or “Clandestine”. Other
strong songs on this record are
‘Eye of the Greyhound’, ‘Ruins’
and the massive final track
called ‘Die Alone’.”
1999
“I HATE THESE QUESTIONS
SINCE IT’S TOO FUCKING
HARD TO PICK THREE
RELEASES. I’VE DONE A LOT
OF THESE LISTS BEFORE
IN INTERVIEWS SO THIS
TIME AROUND I’LL DO
THE DESERT ISLAND LIST
INSTEAD (LAUGHS). THREE
RECORDS THAT I NEVER
GROW TIRED OF AND THAT
I WOULD TAKE WITH ME
TO A DESERT ISLAND”
1990
DANZIG
Danzig II: Lucifuge
“I bought this on a vacation
to the US in the early 90’s and
I played it nonstop on my CD
Walkman. I own everything
with Misfits and Samhain and
the good releases with Danzig,
and this one is my favourite
out of them all. I never grow
tired of it. It’s a solid album
that shows Danzig’s variety
and it’s got the classic line-up
before Danzig kicked everyone
out and started making goth
/ industrial shit. When people
hear the groove in Gluttony
they credit that to Entombed or
Dismember but for me groove
is synonymous to Danzig and
AC/DC. Me, Max and John
of Gluttony actually have a
Misfits/Danzig tribute band
called Godless Glenn & The
Astro Zombies.”
IMMORTAL
At The Heart of Winter
“This is an epic release and I imagine it would sound great to put on
the opening track ‘Withstand The Fall Of Time’ on a desert island and
just blast it out over the forlorn plains. It’s hard to pick just one release
out of the Immortal catalogue but this one has such solid songs that I
usually mention it. Despite being the one without Demonaz riffing and
with the new logo. Immortal have been a huge inspiration for me as
a guitarist, I’m a big fan of their quirky, thrashy riffing. You probably
won’t hear any Immortal vibes in Gluttony but in My Own Grave there
were lots of them. Besides the opening track we have of course ‘Where
Dark And Light Don’t Differ’. The opening riff of that song is the one
I’ve been playing on every soundcheck for more than 10 years...”
34 METALEGION #1

SPECIAL REISSUE
Finally one the early British death
metal bands sees his first three
classic albums re-released through
German CYCLONE EMPIRE RECORDS.
Each reissue available on CD & VINYL
was remastered and includes bonus
material, revised artwork as well as
liner notes by the band.
CANCER re-united with the classic
line-up for the sole purpose of
promoting these reissues and are
playing live in prime festivals and gigs
around the world.
Grab a copy of these long lost yet not
forgotten jewels of the British scene!
Cyclone Empire [www.cyclone-empire.com] / Cancer [www.facebook.com/CancerBandUK]
“READY TO DIE, TAKE YOUR LAST BREATH
ROTTING CORPSE, CANCER FUCKING CANCER”
TO THE GORY END
Cancer’s debut, first published in 1990, did not
leave a massive impact in the scene. Maybe the
band thought that they had a lack of musicality.
They tried to compensate this with an overdose
of provocation. The band’s name, the cover motif,
the song titles and the lyrics - all that could not
be taken seriously. Otherwise the guys would had
been really sick.
Now the re-release of this debut has been
published. I am not sure whether this was entirely
necessary. “To the Gory End” was (and still is)
a good album, but it does not offer outstanding
tunes that demand to be heard again and again.
Nevertheless, there are some highlights. To pick
out the best one, ‘C.F.C.’, a kind of unofficial band
anthem, appeared as a torpedo. Due to its simple
straightness and its up-tempo, it hit the mark with
enormous speed. But Cancer managed also slower
tunes. Without celebrating technical wizardry, they
played their songs in a solid manner. The simplicity
of the pieces could be explained by the status
of the young band. But however, the first steps had
been successfully done. You can recognize this
by making the comparison of the debut’s songs
with the demo tracks, that have been added on
the re-release. These tunes really do not meet the
highest requirements. From my point of view, they
do not enrich the debut. If you are fundamentally
interested in the early works of metal bands, you
can listen to these semi-professional tunes. But I
do not think that you want to listen to them more
than once, not at least because of their powerless
drum sound.
Cancer did not follow the approach of the Swedish
death metal bands that arose in the beginning of
the nineties. These bands offered always some
eerie moments. Cancer did not. They were exclusively
focussed on speed and heaviness. Maybe
they should have paid more attention to more
catchy choruses, but that’s no problem at all.
To summarize, this album did not turn the world
upside down. Today it might sound a bit antiquated.
But if you want to know a very authentic
piece of British death metal, this debut should
become part of your collection.
7.5 | FELIX 1666
DEATH SHALL RISE
I will never understand the re-release practice
of those greedy labels that add two or three live
tracks or a half-baked demo song to the original
album while calling them a bonus. This is ridiculous
and annoying because their approach just
damages the compactness of the original. Unfortunately,
the same applies to “Death Shall Rise”.
The bonus tracks are completely unnecessary.
It is about my imagination that any reasonable
metal freak buys the same album twice just to get
useless tracks such as the live versions of ‘Hung,
Drawn and Quartered’ or ‘Gruesome Tasks’.
This is not to imply that the songs itself were bad,
definitely not. Cancer performed a mature style
of death metal. Each and every song seemed to
be well thought-through. The fairly anarchistic
approach of their debut was not present any
longer. I would not rule out that the songs would
have benefited from a less accurate calculation.
But to re-emphasize it, the pieces achieved a
more than solid level while just lacking a bit of
liveliness.
The record companies often present a further
argument for their “oh so exciting” re-releases. Of
course, they do not speak about their easily earned
money. Making the fans a gift is the name of the
game. Thus, it is much more to bluster about the
remixed sound. This argument can be accepted in
exceptional cases. But Cancer’s second full-length
did not suffer from a weak production. The album
sounded heavy and powerful. All instruments as
well as the voice had been put in the right light.
Therefore, this re-release was not really necessary
at all. It goes without saying that the album still
sounds well, but I cannot identify significant
improvements.
Mid-tempo dominated the majority of the songs
while James Murphy performed more than passable
solos. However, even more than this, there was
nothing left to desire in view of the technical skills
of the band. As a more or less logical result, Cancer
offered some pretty good crushers such as the
songs mentioned above. The coherent compositions
reached a remarkable level due to their bone-sawing
riffs and the memorable choruses. Only the
lyrics remained a bit simplistic. They were therefore
almost as stupid as the publication policy of some
record companies. And so the cycle closes.
7.5 | FELIX 1666
THE SINS OF MANKIND
In my humble opinion, the third album of the
British gang with the fairly catastrophic name
marks the climax of their discography. It starts with
the tasteful cover which does not look as stupid
as those of their previous albums. The opener
confirms the good impression. ‘Cloak of Darkness’,
a bastard of thrash and death metal, follows a
halfway melodious approach while creating an
intense atmosphere, especially during its fantastic
bridge. But the hymnal chorus is the icing on the
cake. Without exaggeration, this tune represents
one of their most stirring compositions.
And it gets even better: the opener can be seen
as a blueprint for the remaining songs. That does
not mean that they all sound the same. But you
will discover plenty of outstanding riffs as well
as superb melodies. Of course, I am speaking of
melodies of the harshest kind. Although a few
songs deliver a slightly weaker compositional
level, the album is more or less fully convincing. Of
course, the production plays also an essential role.
It is flawless on the re-issue – but it had also been
faultless on the original album that was released in
1993. In this context, I have to admit that the live
recorded bonus tracks are useless one more time.
They do not improve the album in any way. This is
also true for the lyrical outpourings that reflected
the spirit of its time. But who cares seriously about
lyrics? The most aggressive track is called ‘Tribal
Bloodshed Part I the Conquest’. A short outburst
with blastbeat-like drumming and a compact
guitar solo. But the more multi-layered ‘Pasture
of Delights / At the End’ will draw you under its
spell as well. After a calm start, the song turns
to an untameable beast that digs its claws deep
into you, at the latest during the excellent chorus.
The stoically hammering ‘Tribal Bloodshed Part II
Under the Flag’ leaves its mark because of some
desperately sounding guitar lines. But while speaking
about highlights, I could mention almost each
and every song. The pieces do not offer exceptional
song structures, but they are constructed in a more
than technically clean manner. In other words, you
will not have the intention to skip a (studio) track
of this album. There is no downer on this short but
compact and coherent album. If you want to give
Cancer a chance, I recommend this output. But
listen to my warning: avoid the lame successors
of this album.
8 | FELIX 1666
#1 METALEGION 35

LONG TIME DRACONIAN MEMBER VENTURES AGAIN INTO THE TORTUOUS
PATHS OF DOOM... SADNESS CAN’T BE MUCH MORE THAN THIS!
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: JOHAN ERICSON ..
THE LONG WAIT IS FINALLY OVER...
“EARTHLESS” IS SIMPLY AN OVERWHELMING
YET OPPRESSIVE JOURNEY THROUGH
DESOLATION AND DESPAIR. JOHAN
ERICSON PUSHES THE BAR EVEN FURTHER
WITH ITS SOLO PROJECT ENTITLED
DOOM:VS. EVER WANDERED WHAT CRAWLS
AMONG THE SHADOWS? LOOK NO FURTHER...
Almost 6 years later there is a new
DOOM:VS album out entitled “Earthless”.
The very first thing that comes
to mind to any fan is: why it took you so long
to record a follower of “Dead Words Speak”?
Didn’t you felt the drive to compose new songs?
“Yes, I almost felt like I needed a break to concentrate
on other stuff. I wasn’t sure if wanted to do
another Doom:vs record or something different but
suddenly the inspiration came to me.”
Nevertheless I must say that the long wait was
rewarded with a tremendously profound and
intense new album. I feel that you have grown
both vocally and in production-wise aspects.
What are your thoughts on this?
“Thanks, I think so. When I felt it was time to
write some music again it all came kind of natural
and I wrote all the songs within two weeks or so.
Production wise I really wanted it to be clear, rich
sounding but not overproduced in anyway. It still
is doom metal and my personal taste is that a lot
of emotion disappears when the sound seems to
be “good”.”
On the new album you have a very special guest
musician, no one else than Thomas Jensen,
vocalist of Saturnus. To what extent does he
take the lead vocals on “Earthless”?
“First I just wanted him to sing one or two songs
but he felt like doing the whole album so I’m only
singing the traditional vocal parts on this one. I
always liked Thomas and Saturnus so that was
fine with me.”
Was “Earthless” also recorded at the Draconian
studios like on “Dead Words Speak”? Did you
took care of all aspects of the production this
time also?
“Yes, all the production is done at our studio
except for Thomas vocals, which was taken care by
him in Denmark where he lives.”
I know that you have now opened your own
studio together with Jerry Torstensson, called
Dead Dog Farm. How is going on your career
as producer?
“You know, the studio is mainly for our own
music to cut down recording budgets and so on
but we occasionally do various mixing jobs and
production.”
“Earthless” is also your first record for Solitude
Productions, a Russian label specialized in
doom metal. How did you end up getting signed
with a Russian label? Were you approached
by them?
“After the previous label Firebox had to close down
I was looking for a label with the same unique
interest for doom music. Solitude Productions was
the best option for me. A label that doesn’t say
“EARTHLESS”
SOLITUDE PRODUCTIONS
I guess that surpassing the last record and push things forward
are probably some of the major goals of each band or in this case
solo project. Even if moving through the putrid swampy waters of
doom metal where the paths are narrow and slippery, the multi-talented
Swedish musician Johan Ericson (one of the founding
members of Draconian) strikes back with another pearl. After
the successful 2008 sophomore album “Dead Words Speak” and
the long hiatus, most of us weren’t expecting a new full-length
from this crushing entity. The fact is that not only he returns but
also releases a layered version of Doom:VS where the listener is
crushed not only with the slow, tortuous guitar riffs and guttural
vociferations but also by the massive epic moments and nebulous
melodies. But “Earthless” does not only impress by the amazing
instrumental section, the vocal department follows the ascending
line that “Dead Words Speak” already denoted, in fact this time
Johan invited Saturnus’ vocalist Thomas Jensen which gave an
expressive boost on that level. Thomas has a creeping yet vigorous
growling dimension, something that all Saturnus fans are
acquainted, and together with the clear parts of Johan (where he
is now fully comfortable, like on ‘Oceans of Despair’ or ‘The Slow
Ascent’) creates a refined vocal antithesis.
Nevertheless resuming “Earthless” to the addition of Thomas is like
stripping a tree of all its leaves. The self-titled opener sums up perfectly
in only 2 - 3 minutes the symbiosis that exists throughout
the whole album between beauty, sadness, melody and savagery.
What stands out on “Earthless” is the ability of Johan to compose
delicate songs that crush the listener with utterly slow coldhearted
guitar driven melodies (still, the fast riffing section of ‘The Slow
Ascent’ is simply breathtaking) and emotional drum patterns.
This third album is a monument to all things deprived of colour
and sad... The superb front cover is a true example of my words
and how professional the whole package sounds. Definitely a must
for fans of melancholic yet emotional funeral doom/death metal.
9 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
36 METALEGION #1

what to do and just trust in your vision.”
The new album is also adorned with a very impressive
artwork. I can’t imagine “Earthless” with a
different look, its undeniable the strong bound
between the title and the front cover. What can you
tell us about this dark rooted character and the
person who designed it?
“It was inspired by an American artist who does a lot of
installations and horrorish sculptures. I wanted to use
some of his creations but his lawyers said no, so I made
my own version of it myself. It turned out good and I
think it’s a bit original in this kind of genre so that’s
even better.”
After the announcement in late 2012 of a replacement
found for the Lisa vocalist spot on the Draconian
camp, I guess no one would imagine, you could
record something before Draconian. What’s going on
inside Draconian?
“Lisa’s departure was a big change in the Draconian
camp and it almost took us two years to get back on our
feet. Mainly we struggled with getting our new singer
Heike her permanent visa to stay in Sweden. Now we
are in pre-production for the new album and studio is
getting booked for recording right now.”
A GLANCE AT THE FUTURE
I have read somewhere you saying that you would
probably just release one or two more DOOM:VS
albums and then move on. At this point do you
feel there is still space for something more? Was
“Earthless” your last record?
“Yes, I felt that for years after “Dead Words Speak” was
released but with this one I feel the wheel changing
again and I feel inspired and want to develop the sound
of Doom:vs further. At this point I know that I want to do
another album real soon as well.”
Compared with a six member band like Draconian,
how differently is the process of composition, on a
project like Doom:VS where you handle everything
yourself?
“The composition process is almost the same because
I usually write most stuff in Draconian myself before
presenting it to the other members. The big difference is
that I don’t do the lyrics for Draconian. I always prefer
to sit and make music of my own. Especially this kind
of emotional and melancholic stuff. It’s easier to go
inwards while working alone.”
“Earthless” as well as your two first albums will
be released on a limited vinyl edition by Wretched
Records. During the last years we have seen vinyl
releases grow considerably. In your opinion, are
fans demanding more releases on this format or
have labels found a way to counterbalance small
CD sales?
“I think the interest in vinyl is a healthy counter reaction
to all the streaming and bad quality youtube uploads.
When you buy a record you want something more then
some mp3 files. So the fans are surely demanding it.”
As a producer yourself, what’s your opinion about
vinyl soundwise? Are you a vinyl collector yourself?
“As I grew up with vinyls myself at the beginning of the
CD age, I really enjoy buying them and I never quit. I
love vinyls and with a good turntable and system, a good
transferred vinyl will sound great. Some music I enjoy a
lot more on CD, like classic or ambient music.”
Would you ever consider a one time gig with
Doom:VS? Is there any extraordinary situation where
you could take into account a live performance with
guest musicians?
“I always said no to all offers but you can never say
never. I think about from time to time but we’ll see in
the future.”
To end, what is the next big thing to expect from
your side?
“Working real hard on the new Draconian album as I
mentioned and also trying to get some bonus songs
together for the re-releases of the first two Doom:vs
albums. Also thinking of releasing two songs on 7”
single.” c
“Earthless” available via Solitude Productions [www.
solitude-prod.com] / Doom:VS [www.facebook.com/
deadwordsspeak]
HIGHLIGHTS BY JOHAN ERICSON
“MAYBE NOT MY ALL TIME FAVOURITES
BECAUSE THAT’S A TOO HARD NUT
TO CRACK, BUT THREE ALBUMS THAT
MEANT A LOT OR FORMED ME INTO
THE MUSICIAN I AM TODAY”
1980
AC/DC
Back In Black
“First album I ever bought myself
around the age 10. Classic stuff though
I prefer Bon Scott era to Brian Johnson.
Not so much of an AC/DC fan today but
I listen to it from time to time.”
1989
CANDLEMASS
Tales of Creation
“What can I say... DOOM! The masters
of traditional doom. Melody and
melancholy as it’s best. Epic stuff.”
1991
PARADISE LOST
Gothic
“This album among some releases
by My Dying Bride and Anathema
shaped a whole new genre of doom/
death. This is the thing I fell for
back in the early 90’s and inspired
me the most as a musician. I
knew this was the type of music I
wanted to play, before that I was
heavy into thrash and punk.”
#1 METALEGION 37

"MY JOB IS ONLY
TO OPEN A BEER
AND ENJOY"
By Karlo Testen
AFTER SURPASSING THEIR OWN TRAGIC SACRIFICE TO THE GOD MOLECH, SERBIA IS BACK
AGAIN ON THE MAP WITH ANOTHER DOSE OF 80’S INSPIRED THRASH METAL TUNES!
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: KARLO TESTEN (BASSIST) & LUKA “TOWER” MATKOVIĆ (GUITARIST/VOCALIST) ..
A DECADE AFTER...
THE RAGING RIFFS,
FIERCE INSTRUMENTAL
DYNAMICS AND
VERSATILE SINGING OF
THE SERBIAN WILD BEAST
SPACE EATER WILL
SURELY IMPRESS THE
OLD-SCHOOL BAY AREA
THRASH METAL FANS.
THE REMAINING FORMER
MEMBER, BASSIST
KARLO TESTEN &
THE “NEW” VOCALIST/
GUITARIST LUKA
“TOWER” TRAVELLED
BACK AND FORTH IN TIME
AND SHARE THEIR MOST
UNDISCLOSED FEELINGS.
Karlo, 10 years after the creation of Space Eater, the
band during this time has faced quite a few step
backs in terms of line-up. Sadly, you are the only
remaining member from the original formation...
“As a big football fan, I look to some things in life through the Football
prism, and in my favourite club Partizan, we like to say: ”Badge on
the front of the jersey is more valuable than the name on the back”.
I believe that the band has a great foundation, and that we are doing
a good job keeping the idea and spirit alive, so even tomorrow with
no original members, the band should still exist and keep the same
track. Now, after 10 years, we have kind of two eras, 5 years with
Bosko, and 5 years after.”
When talking about thrash metal or metal in general, to be honest,
Serbia isn’t on the top of the list. Do you feel that you need
to work twice as hard than the rest of the bands to get noticed?
“Good point. Serbia is small and poor country, we don’t have money
to buy expensive equipment, we don’t have good clubs, no labels, in
short, we don’t have the infrastructure for metal. Still, we manage
to have great bands and musicians, and, in some way, it’s more
interesting and challenging. The problem is, when you want to go on
proper tour today, you have to pay.”
Nevertheless a supportive record label is of crucial importance
to defy this nationality aspect. Each of your albums was released
on a different record label, Pure Steel Records is the third. What
is your opinion about the work that they have developed for
“Passing Through The Fire To Molech”?
“I know Pure Steel for many years now, one good, stable label from a
country that has a good taste for metal, that’s my opinion. We had a
very good collaboration and understanding so far. Promotion is going
very good for our level of story.”
The deal inked with Pure Steel Records includes following
releases or it was just for the release of your third album?
“It’s just for the release of our 3rd album. The album was just
recently released, so we’ll have to wait another year or two for
the next one, but who knows, maybe we continue with a mutual
agreement.”
How did you managed to gain their interest?
“We were sending promo packages to 13-14 labels, some of them
answered, some of them not. Pure Steel was the one who answered
and offered a deal. Their friend organized our concert in Austria on
last tour, so I suppose that he also said a few nice things about us.”
FATAL MORNING...
One of the sad episodes that I mention earlier was the loss of
lead singer in a fire accident. Can you tell us what happened and
what was the feeling inside the band during that period?
“A woman on the ground floor in their apartment building left some
heating device incorrectly turned on (the official version, but we really
38 METALEGION #1

don’t know what exactly happened), and her apartment
was caught on fire, and it begun to spread. Bosko lived
on 7th floor, and he and his sister rushed out of their
apartment, and as the smoke was too dense they got
lost in the corridor and suffocated (address to the song
‘Afterlife’, kind of prophecy). They just shouldn’t have
done it, but the fatal decision was caused by the panic
for sure. Maybe it’ll sound stupid or pathetic, but I
think that I found out what happened in the worst way.
My girlfriend woke up at 6 am to get ready for work,
and I woke up too, turned on the TV (the only thing I
watch on the TV is football, but I needed something to
wake me up) and in the news they said: “Fire accident
in Kraljevacka 38 (the address), brother and sister
found dead between 5th and 7th floor”, and I was like,
“hmm, that’s Bosko’s address, and they live on the 7th
floor”, but, you know, not for a moment I thought that it
was them. 15 minutes latter I was getting nervous, and
search on the internet for news to find the names of the
two who died, but nothing. Then I called Bosko on his
cell phone but it was unreachable, like it was switched
off, after that I tried to call his house phone, but it was
broken, and I’ve sent him an sms to call me as soon
as he wakes up. About an hour later, my girlfriend went
to work and I stayed home nailed to the TV, on the next
news they announced their names and showed the
corridor and Bosko’s corpse. I don’t have a word to
express the shock, I called Stanislav, and in one hour,
all my phones started to ring furiously. I think that
about one hundred people called me with one question:
“Did it really happened, and is it really Bosko?”. After
one day, the second question was, would and should
we continue with the band, and how? One month later,
we decided to give it a try. As every football fan, I like
to play a video game called “Football Manager”(earlier
called Championship Manager). So, you always scout
other teams in search for young talents when some of
your actual players go to the other club or stop playing
football. And the same thing I do in real life with the
band, scouting other bands and having in mind some
people, because here in Serbia it is very hard to have a
band. People work for very little money and don’t have
time to play, and sooner or later they quit the band.
Although we have had a stable line-up, you never know
what tomorrow brings. That’s how Luka got in the band
as a singer. After the first rehearsal, Stanislav (guitarist)
told me: “That’s not it, it’s not a pleasure to me to
play again”. And he quit. As Luka was playing guitar
in his old band, we tried if he could play and sing our
songs in the same time, and he could, so, the natural
solution was found. Vladimir (drummer) was getting
bad as the time was passing, because he wasn’t much
interested in music anymore, he didn’t practice. In the
time of great cuts, wanted and unwanted, we realized
that the time was right to change the drummer too, we
thanked Vladimir and brought Marko Danilovic “Tihi” to
the band, as he was friend and bandmate of Luka so
we knew what kind of man and drummer we are dealing
with. Nemanja (the original guitar player) agreed
with me completely that we should continue with the
band, and I am very thankful for that.”
After Boško’s dead and the departure of the
remaining members have you ever considered
ending Space Eater and simply move on?
“I would lie if I say no, but it was one very very short
moment. Metal was the biggest part of his life, and
quitting something that he started but was prevented
to continue, wasn’t an option. We were absolutely prepared
for the comments like “that’s not the same band
and that we should change the name or quit the band”,
but, personally, I didn’t care, and still don’t. He started
one idea, and although he died, the idea should live on.
Of course, there are people who can, and people who
can’t understand that.”
TAMED BEAST
The new vocalist Luka Matkovic didn’t had the possibility
to prove its value on your previous record
“Aftershock” since he only sang on two songs. Now
on “Passing Through The Fire To Molech” all heads
turn to his versatile singing and chorus...
“As I mentioned earlier, I was aware of his talents. Yet,
after a few rehearsals, I realized that I was dealing
with a beast! He is 6 years younger than me, and at
that time 19 years old, he was kind of an unpolished
diamond, completely out of control and undisciplined.
We had numerous fights during the first years, but he
never misunderstood me and took the things that I was
saying in consideration, both musically and personally.
Today, I am very proud to have him as my friend and
bandmate, as I am thankful to him and Marko for
making the rehabilitation process of the band easier.”
However, for some music journalists what I consider
versatile singing, for some is considered lack
of focus on a particular way of singing. What do you
have to say about this?
Luka “I was really surprised to find out people reacted
negatively about versatile vocals on the album. Vocal
arrangements was something I always thought was
extremely important, and I used different vocal styles
to express different emotions and to get a different
effect on the listener for each part of the song. It comes
natural to me and I plan to continue doing it.”
Your addition was a smart move because not only
you brought your skills as guitarist and singer but
also as producer. “Passing Through The Fire To
Molech” was recorded, mixed and mastered by
yourself on your own recording studio. Being a new
member and having the responsibility to produce
the record must have been a stressful situation?
Luka “It was very stressful, it’s hard to sing, play
rhythm/solo guitar and produce an album. There are
many upsides and downsides to doing this. You get
exactly what you want, but sometimes, you get stuck
with only one pair of ears, not knowing whether what
you’re doing is good, or not. Also, the whole process
4
“PASSING THROUGH THE FIRE TO MOLECH”
PURE STEEL RECORDS
Showing that the old-school scene still has some life
left, these Serbian thrashers’ third full-length release
carries a lot of energy and influence from the originators
of the scene. Reeking with Bay Area styled patterns,
mostly in the guitar tone of material like on ‘Unjagged’
and ‘A Thousand Plagues’ provide this with plenty of
fiery rhythms, tight chugging and the blend of hyperspeed
tempos that cause the tracks to remain frantic
and up-beat throughout, it truly feels placed into the
same space as those legendary groups. Likewise, others
as the title track, ‘Exhibition of Humanity’ and ‘P.O.W.’
tend to change things up with the introduction of far
more frantic and urgent tempos to their riffing that
causes them to burn with an intensity missing from
the already blazing work on “Passing Through the Fire
to Molech”. Those tend to be dominated by the frantic
patterns from the chug-heavy riff-work which is what
tends to drive the speed and intensity in these tracks as
well as other efforts like ‘Ninja Assassin’ or ‘Ultra-Violence’
where the heavy dominance of the chugging
guitars don’t lead into the more frantic sections but still
provide this with a solid framework nonetheless. When
it does get to more relaxed efforts as ‘Daisy Cutter’ it
really allows a melodic touch to the music that really
brings the old-school tendencies into play a lot more
by off-setting the fiery riff-work against more melodic
chugging patterns and molten leads, which nicely
utilize those earlier thrash arrangements even more.
Given an effective sheen with their clanking bass-work
that oftentimes overshadows the guitar rhythms and a
dynamic, pounding drum attack this one gets in quite
an effective sound.
While the music does tend to come off rather well, the
fact that this is pretty similar in feel to the original
workers in the scene is something to get over. There’s
so much taken from the Bay Area style of thrash, that it
can cause this to feel as though there’s not a whole lot
of originality in the band being so blatant and unforgiving
with their rhythms and guitar work taken straight
from those legendary groups. The main change in the
music does come from the fact that a large majority of
the tracks do switch up the tempos throughout but that’s
not really all that impressive when the material still
comes off as urgent and intense as it does here. Since
so many tracks feature that kind of intense, frantic patterns,
all it really does is highlight their familiarity even
more by focusing on many similar sounding patterns
and arrangements played at pretty identical tempos to
each other. That is more present in the later half, as several
tracks can conceivably be nothing more than fillers
and doing nothing else for the album. That still doesn’t
change the fact that this one is such an impressive bout
of old-school thrash that manages to effectively capture
that sound and attitude quite well. The kind of production
afforded is quite demonstrative in keeping that feel
alive with clanking bass-lines, dynamic drumming and
a heavy guitar crunch that effectively keeps everything
centred and balanced effectively, with all these elements
coming into play nicely on the album.
While this one may tend to come off a bit too familiar
at times, there’s little denying how effective this is at
capturing the old-school train of thought in regards to
thrash and comes off incredibly well due to that. While
this really makes it appeal quite heavily to ardent supporters
of Bay Area styled thrash or the retro movement
in general, more original acts should be looked at for
those being introduced to the genre.
8.5 | DON ANELLI
#1 METALEGION 39

“FIRST OF ALL, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT ALL OF THESE SONGS ARE PRETTY OLD. THEY
WERE WRITTEN FROM 2008 (FIRST ONE BEING ‘IN HOSPITAL’) TO 2011 (‘A THOUSAND
PLAGUES’ WAS THE LAST ONE), SOME EVEN DATE BEFORE I WAS IN SPACE EATER.”
01. UNJAGGED
Nobody knows this, but this song was actually created after a
rehearsal where Karlo and our former guitar player Nemanja
criticized the songs we had for the album at that time for being
“not fast and energetic enough” and “not having enough riffs
with fast guitar sixteenth notes”. I went home pissed off and
instantly blasted out this one from start to finish. The vocals
came somewhat later though, there are some intense melodies
in this one. There have been multiple times where my brawls
with Karlo would lead to great songs/lyrics. Once we were
arguing an entire night, and inspired by our discussion I wrote
lyrics for a song. Karlo said: “Well, now I’m not sorry I stayed
up all night.” As far as lyrics for ‘Unjagged’, it’s basically about
a guy who runs through his life using nothing but violence and
in the end, ends up paying the toll for such a lifestyle.
02. PASSING THROUGH THE FIRE TO MOLECH
It was the song that stood lyricless the longest. When the idea
came, though, it was clear that this was it and that it was the
album song. It’s our favourite from the album. This is one of
the songs that has some death and black metal moments with
the chorus influenced by Attila Csihar’ singing style. Tihi also
contributed an awesome mid section.
03. DAISY CUTTER
This is the slowest song on the album. It was originally
influenced by Overkill’s “Years of Decay”. It was written back
in 2009 when I practiced a lot of shred soloing, so I included
a minute and a half long solo in the middle. The chorus was
way simpler before Tihi introduced his awesome drum track.
The lyrics deal with one of the heaviest and largest bombs ever
built and tell a story about a pilot who dropped it on innocent
civilians and went mad.
04. P.O.W.
The first song I wrote after joining Space Eater. The song itself
is pretty chaotic, because it is supposed to be an epic tale
about a war veteran. I must say that this song turned out a
million times better after Dorđe introduced his solos. The lyrics
were my attempt to copy Boško’s style of writing, I was new
in the band and didn’t really know in which direction to go
lyric-wise. The song had some of the fastest riffs I’d written by
that time. I must also say we are pretty surprised by the fan
feedback, ‘P.O.W.’ turned out to be one of the favourites, even
though it’s far from a simple “hit” kind of a song.
05. NINJA ASSASSIN
I was always impressed by the far east, especially China
and Japan, their culture, mentality and way of life. One day I
decided to look up something about historically accurate ninjas
and was surprised to find that it was not Hollywood who made
the pop culture ninjas, but Japanese 18th century artists. The
real ninjas were rarely assassins, but mostly spies and wore
regular clothes to fit in the crowds. This was my ode to them.
The verse riff in this one was inspired by Marty Friedman’s
“Japanese scales”, and the whole song went on from there.
06. A THOUSAND PLAGUES
When we played with The Stone in 2011, I saw a guy walking
around the club who looked creepy as hell, almost like a walking
corpse. It turned out to be Nefas, the band’s then studio
singer who made his live return that night, after several years of
not touring. He reminded me of an X-Files episode I saw as a kid
where there’s a monster who has all the illnesses in the world.
My friends also always made fun of me because I’m sick all the
time, so all these things inspired the lyrics to this song. As for
the music there’s a lot of double Arabian scales and that oriental
feel, which I’m a big fan of when used in the right context. I also
think this is the most mature song on the album, and it’s pretty
technical, yet simple and memorable. That’s one of the reasons
we picked it for the video.
07. EXHIBITION OF HUMANITY
This is probably the fastest song we’ll ever have. I was pretty
hooked on fast riffs and under Karlo’s influence (Slayer, Slayer,
Slayer!!!) when I wrote this. It has the harshest vocals, and yet
has a slower mid section which doesn’t ruin the song, I believe.
It was great having Kozeljnik of The Stone and Vandal of Infest as
guests. The lyrics were inspired by a chat Tihi and Karlo had one
day when we were driving to Sofia for a gig. Today, Hitler is considered
the “all time biggest villain”, but how is he different from
the conquistadors, or the crusaders? We cherish the European
tradition so much, but it’s founded on killing and pillaging.
08. ULTRA-VIOLENCE
Warriors, come out to play! One of Karlo’s favourite movie is
“The Warriors” from 1979 and he had the famous Cyris’ speech
as a ringtone on his mobile. This made me watch the film, and
I ended up writing a song about it. The first section is a mixture
and almost a mess of different thrash styles, but the second half
is pretty much as Slayer as you can get without actually playing
one of their songs. At least that’s what Dorđe says.
09. MEDEA
Medea is a mythical Greek witch who destroyed everything and
everyone she could (including her family and children) to lure the
man she wanted. In the end she escaped punishment, she was
saved by the gods. This song is pretty much dedicated to all the
Succubuses out there, even though it was inspired
by a particular one. Dorđe says this is the most
“rock’n’roll” song we have, but I tend to disagree.
It has some very intense riffs in the style of Kreator
and Sepultura and Tihi’s riff for the chorus with gang
shouts. This is also one of the oldest songs, dating
back to 2008.
10. IN HOSPITAL
When I had a nose operation due to difficulties while
breathing, something got messed up and I ended up
almost bleeding to death. This led to a prolonged stay
in the hospital. I stayed there for almost two months,
listening to Sodom, Agent Steel and Bombarder the
entire time. Those were the bands that would inspire
riffs for the first part of the song. It describes the
stay at the hospital. The second part was a riff I had
before I even listened to metal, I just had it recorded
in my computer as a melody I came up with. I had
a girlfriend at that time who wouldn’t even call me
to see if I was alive, because “the phone bill would
have been too expensive”, as she later said. The
second part pretty much deals with that. It’s a pretty
personal song, written when I was just 17 years old.
Luka “Tower” UNVEILS
“PASSING THROUGH THE FIRE TO MOLECH”
took a lot longer than we all would have liked.
However, Karlo, Dorđe and Tihi helped me a lot
and in the end, the album turned out just the
way we wanted.”
Karlo, compared to working with other producers
how was working with him? It must
have been for sure a more relaxed process
since he is part of the band.
“Of course! I brought Marko to play drums and
to do the artwork, Luka to sing, play guitar and
to do the recording and production. So, my job
is only to open a beer and enjoy (laughs). The
feeling of having a complete package “made by
Space Eater” is great.”
THE ROOTS
American thrash metal is a major influence
on all Space Eater members. Are there any
particular bands that stand out from the
pack in terms of influences?
Luka “There are a lot, and I mean a lot of bands
that influenced me while writing this album.
However, the biggest influence is how you feel
and what you want to express and say in a
song. American thrash is my favourite genre
as a whole (especially Anthrax, Forbidden,
Megadeth and Intruder), but you can hear a lot
of Kreator style riffing and even some black and
death metal moments on the album.”
I feel that the song arrangements have
improved on “Passing Through The Fire To
Molech”. The process of writing songs have
changed during the years and especially
after the entry of the new band members?
Luka “Well, I wrote all of the songs for the last
album, with addition to some riffs from Tihi.
I usually record a song as a demo at home,
and then I send it to all the guys for feedback.
Karlo’s response is usually: “The song is
awesome”. Tihi usually has some ideas, and
then he writes the drum lines based on the
simple demo recordings I make with computer
drums. I’m always glad to get awesome riffs
from anyone in the band and arrange them in a
song. For example, the song ‘Relationshit’ from
the previous album was a bunch of Karlo’s riffs
I put together to form a song, and it’s one of my
favourites from that album.”
At first sight, mythology plays again at some
extend an influence on the base theme of
the new album. Would you like to expand
what “Passing Through The Fire To Molech”
represents at this level?
Luka “The ritual called “Passing
through the fire to Molech” has
a lot of versions according to
various sources. In short:
A newborn child is
sacrificed to the god
40 METALEGION #1

Molech by throwing it in a huge bull-like
“oven” while the masses watch. The
screams of the child are overpowered by
loud drums played by priests, making it
appear not-as-terrible to the audience.
We used this myth as a metaphor. The
child is an ordinary everyday person. The
fire is war, famine, poverty, everything
that people around the world struggle
with. The priests are world leaders,
whoever you believe they are. The drums
are the entertainment industry blinding
the masses to see the horrors that the
priest put you through for their personal
benefit. This is also what the song itself
is about.”
You are organizing for November an
European mini tour together with the
Serbian thrash metal band, Alitor. At
this point can you give us some more
details about it?
Luka “I can’t tell you much more than you
can see on the tour poster for now. The
official first album promotional gig is to
be held in Belgrade in Dom Omladine just
before the tour. We are planning to record
this concert and publish it as a DVD,
maybe including some tour footage as
well. We are planning to add some stage
props and backdrops to our appearance.”
During the years you have shared
stages with several prominent bands,
like Suicidal Tendencies or Necrodeath.
Is there any particular show
that brings back special memories?
Luka “I love playing, I love every gig we’ve
ever had. However, my favourite one is
maybe the gig with The Stone and Infest
in Dom Omladine last year. Or the gig in
Austria where the guys wouldn’t let us
get off stage. The whole 2013 tour with
Infest was probably the best experience
I’ve had.”
To end, you have recorded your
very first video clip, for the song ‘A
Thousand Plagues’. Besides the usual
youtube and online broadcasting
are you expecting any other kind of
exposure, like TV coverage?
Luka “We tried with some of the local stations,
but had no response whatsoever.
Thrash metal is definitely not something
TV stations are interested in. However, I
think that that video is very important for
fans who never had the chance to see
Space Eater play live. Also, many fans
nowadays discover bands via Youtube
and won’t even click on something unless
it’s a video. It was a very cheap, DIY
video, and it turned out pretty well for our
first effort.” c
“Passing Through The Fire To Molech”
available via Pure Steel Records [www.
puresteel-records.com] / Space Eater
[www.facebook.com/SpaceEater]
HIGHLIGHTS BY Luka “Tower” & Karlo Testen
1987
ANTHRAX
Among The Living
“The most energy-filled album of all time.
When I first played this, I couldn’t sit still.
It has everything, the riffs, the speed, the
singing (I always preferred it over screaming
and growling), the political themes. I bought
it at the same time I first saw Anthrax live
with Belladonna and it launched them to the
top of the list of my favourite bands, where
they remain to this day.”
2011
THE STONE
Golet
“The recent addition to this “list” for me.
This is actually a black metal album by a
Serbian band. However, there are a lot of
influences and you can hear anything from
heavy to death metal in their songs. The riffs
are amazing, but the thing that makes this
stand out is that often extremely melodic
and depressive riffs are combined with
atonal energetic ones to create a special
kind of atmosphere. The strong point are
also the lyrics which are mostly in Serbian.”
1985
ATROPHY
Socialized Hate / Violent By
Nature
“I must put both albums side by side,
because I can’t decide which one is
better. It was 2005, I was preparing for a
long journey and ask a friend to lend me
his Nuclear Assault CD’s. As he did that,
he also gave me these two Atrophy CD’s
with the comment: “Give them a chance,
you’ll probably like it”. The journey
started and I was listening to some other
stuff. Near the end, I had a bus trip that
took 26 hours. In the night I couldn’t
sleep and gave Atrophy a chance...”
MEGADETH
Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!
“Back when I was a kid listening to Metallica and whatever I could dig up from any older
metalhead, I saw that a band was coming to town. A band I knew for being of the man kicked
out of Metallica, I bought a ticket and picked up their first album to give it a listen. At first, I
didn’t understand it, mostly because of the production. But when I actually heard the songs...
I thought: “You can actually have riffs like this?”. It was overwhelming, it was everything I
wanted to hear at the time. It’s the album that defined me as a metalhead and a musician in
my beginnings. It had a certain “me-against-the-world” vibe I could relate to back then.”
2003
DEW-SCENTED
Impact
“Another Bosko’s recommendation. He
wasn’t much of a fan, but he knew that
I would go crazy... And I did. When you
press play... Big, hairy balls come out of
the speakers. Perfect thrash metal for
the 21th century !”
1989
GAMMACIDE
Victims of Science
“They re-released this album on CD in
2005. Bosko gave me this CD. It was
winter, very cold, and I was supposed
to go to some party at my friend’s
house. I was listening to this album
during the bus trip. I liked it so much,
that I took another full bus drive from
beginning to the end, just to have
the time to listen it one or two more
times. In the end I went to the party 2
hours later then I was supposed to.”
1988
#1 METALEGION 41

"FOR A WHILE I
DIDN'T CARE ABOUT
MUSIC OR THE
BAND AT ALL SINCE
I HAD MY MIND
ELSEWHERE"
By Stefan Weinerhall
THE SHARP ATTACK OF A TWIN GUITAR DUEL, VARIED VOCALS, BLASTING DRUMS AND A POUNDING
BASS ON A LESS FOLK ORIENTED POWER METAL ALBUM. A RETURN TO THE ROOTS OF METAL.
.. WORDS: DON ANELLI & RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: STEFAN WEINERHALL (GUITARIST) ..
THREE YEARS OF RECLUSION
FORCED STEFAN
WEINERHALL TO THINK
ABOUT THE EVOLUTION,
DIRECTION AND CONTINUITY
OF THE BAND. THE RESULT
OF THIS UNFORESEEN
INTROSPECTION IS “BLACK
MOON RISING”, AN ALBUM
THAT PUSHES AGAIN
FALCONER TO THE TOP OF
THE POWER METAL SCENE.
Well Stefan Weinerhall, first off, let’s talk about
the new album. Are you pleased with its
reactions so far?
“Oh yes. It seem like the feelings I have of the album are
shared by the fans since many opinions speak of “back in
form”, “hungry”, etc.”
It took you three years to spit out “Black Moon Rising”,
I know that unfortunately this break is due to a family
tragedy. Was it hard to focus again on Falconer and return
to the band routines and compose new material?
“No, it wasn’t hard since I did it when I was ready. I was
hungry and really wanting to prove to myself that I knew how
to do great metal songs again. Sometimes something need
to shake you up a bit in order to make you see that you have
dozed off a bit. If I would have started the creative process
earlier, when I wasn’t ready I think it would just have led to
irritation and frustration.”
Did you felt any pressure from the other band members for
a fast return? And did you ever considered the possibility
of departing from Falconer?
“For a while I didn’t care about music or the band at all since
I had my mind elsewhere. We have never been a very active
band in between albums so I never felt any pressure to come
up with material. I did feel that everyone including fans, label
etc, expected an album every second or third year. For a
while I thought that I should end Falconer since I had no feel,
inspiration or goals for the band I were to continue.”
This was recorded once more at Sonic Train Studios. Is
it much more comfortable and productive to return to
a familiar studio? I guess, it must take out some of the
unnecessary stress that would be entering on an unfamiliar
studio.
“Yes it does. Since we are not a new band trying to make it
big and trying to find a selling sound we are quite fine with
feeling good in the studio, knowing what the end result will be.
Falconer is something we do out of interest and love for music
on a hobby level.”
Andy La Rocque’s influence on the metal music scene is
undeniable, what about as producer? Did he bring out
anything special to the material while you were recording?
“This time he managed to push Mathias to sing some stuff
he didn’t realize he could. He somewhat metalized him a
bit. Otherwise I must admit that our music is pretty much
produced as we enter the studio, it’s just a matter of getting it
on tape. Sonic Train is like a great vacation for us, a feel good
place. Just like the constant use of Jan Meininghaus for the
cover paintings. It’s ingredients in the Falconer product just as
Martin Birch and Derek Riggs was for Iron Maiden. The big difference
between us and other bands is that we know what we
like and that’s what counts. Not what we appeal to the fans or
what can get new fans, keeping up with genre styles or trying
to sell more albums. We have found our place and like it.”
I was in fact going to ask you about Mathias’ singing on
42 METALEGION #1

“Black Moon Rising”. Do you think that his job in musicals
and theatres limits his “metal” singing side or it works the
way around?
“Both of it. Doing more screaming or hardening up his voice
or maybe getting some occasional bluesy stuff does not come
by itself. If we would do it more I think we would lose some of
the originality with our sound. His interpretation of my writing if
he’s let alone gives the material another touch. I guess his lack
of knowledge is more in our favour.”
BACK TO THE ENGLISH RECIPE
Your last album, ‘Armod,’ was entirely in Swedish. What
was the decision to not continue releasing albums that
way and go back to English-sung lyrics?
“That was an official statement as we decided to make
“Armod”. It’s an one time thing. It was just something I knew
we had to do at some point, we had gotten the request ever
since the beginning. And during 2010-2011 it felt that it was
the right time. I don’t want to do the exactly same thing for
each album and it felt great to really devote an entire album
to Swedish and the Scandinavian folk music influences. Going
back to English sung power metal felt very great and home
bound so to speak.”
Was Mathias Blad eager to return to the English formula
and add a more aggressive metal approach after a completely
sung record in your mother tongue, Swedish?
“I was a bit surprised when he said he loved that the new
tracks were more aggressive and fast and darker than in many
years. I have always thought that he’d prefer the more subtle,
softer things since he is not a metal guy from the start. This
time he had to work for it more than on “Armod”, and I know
myself that you tend to love the stuff more if you just don’t
shoot from the hip.”
You produced some amazingly poetic and gorgeous
lyrics for “Black Moon Rising”. What was the inspiration
behind them this time? Were Swedish historical
events also a basis for some lyrics, like on the past?
“Some of the lyrics on this album are among the best I
have written, I think. Especially those where I manage to
write in that medieval English quasi-poetic style (laughs)!
For the last 2 albums all lyrics have been historical and
often based upon true events or legends. For this one I
have returned to writing more about environmentalism,
some personal perspectives and of course some historical
stuff. What never seems to change is the language and the
medieval way I try to write all lyrics. I guess no one will
understand right away that for example the song ‘Black
Moon Rising’ really is about mankind’s greedy flight into a
global downfall, or a collective suicide if you want to just
since the profit is instant while the price and consequences
is yet to show later on. It’s a lucrative way of dying.”
Are you gaining a more conscious side of the world?
There are for sure certain life events that change people’s
perspective of themselves, others and things...
“I think I have had that conscious thought all along, but
maybe I have gained some more knowledge through the
years and thereby have a bigger chest to dig in when it’s
time to write lyrics.”
‘Armod’ was famous for bringing a lot more of the folk
elements into the music while this new effort is more
4
“BLACK MOON RISING”
METAL BLADE RECORDS
To be completely honest, I must say that after
the seventh album “Armod” my expectations
towards this Swedish quintet were somehow
reserved, mostly because the concept of creating
an entirely Swedish sung album didn’t
convinced me entirely. Even if it was an album
that instrumentally followed the rich line of the
previous efforts with a slight more prominence
on folk elements, Mathias’ Swedish singing
withdrew, at least for me, the full potential of
“Armod”. However rejoice because “Black Moon
Rising” not only returns entirely to the English
recipe but it also shows a guitar driven and
sometimes heavier version (with blastbeats)
of Falconer. I had the privilege of follow the
band since the release of the debut album, and
even if I’m an undeniable fan of Mathias Bald’s
“rawer” voice on “Falconer” and “Chapters from
a Vale Forlorn” I must say that his evolution
as singer is quite impressive and fully unveiled
(if there was still anyone with doubts) on this
eighth album. “Black Moon Rising” blends
perfectly and constantly wanders between mid
and fast tempos, melody and fierceness, straight
forward fast riffing to more complex guitar
solo moments (courtesy of Stefan Weinerhall
and Jimmy Hedlund). ‘Wasteland’ is a perfect
example of this, a piece that starts with a fast
guitar tremolo riffing (with reminiscences of
Swedish black metal) that mutates severely but
smoothly during its five minutes into different
melodic and furious power metal directions and
a heavy drumming following. This is what truly
sets them apart, in one moment they can all be
singing along almost cheerfully (I bet that you
will too), like on the amazing ‘There’s a Crow
on the Barrow’ (with a guitar part that reminds
me of Blind Guardian) or ‘In Ruins’ but without
neglecting the headbanging side of their power
metal with intense riffing and drumming. With a
powerful and once again production courtesy of
Andy La Rocque, “Black Moon Rising” enters
directly to the chart of the best records of 2014.
9 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
#1 METALEGION 43

"I GUESS WE SHOULD HAVE USED THE TIME TO
PLAY ONE OF OUR OWN SONGS INSTEAD"
guitar-driven and energetic, like your first albums were.
Was that a natural decision or something that transpired
in the writing stage and then expanded upon?
“It was natural, and planned. Then of course I think that the
tragedy we went through fired up the inspiration to making it
more intense.”
Although even if “Black Moon Rising” is harsher and a
much more guitar driven album, there are still some Folk
bits and plenty of melody marks inside. I know that you
are the main composer, so my next question would be from
where comes this Folk and melody driven inspiration?
“I have always had these questions. I don’t know where it
comes from. When I started playing music with Mithotyn the
folk-oriented stuff were already there, although I didn’t listen to
folk music or anything like that. I guess it comes from within.
Along the years I have looked it up just to see what they talk
about but I wouldn’t say it’s something I have got stuck in.
In the late 90’s I discovered Jethro Tull which is my all time
favourite band, they are somewhat folk inspired and I think
some of my inspiration comes from Jethro Tull, but the folk
influences were there before that.”
Do you think that those innate folk influences that you
mentioned are due to the fact of being Swedish and with a
strong cultural folk heritage?
“I don’t know. As a Swede I’m not aware of any direct folk
heritage but for an outsider it might look more obvious. For me
it is just as it is. I do like some of the folk music we have in
Sweden but there are a lot of crap or at least stuff that I don’t
find appealing to my ears. I don’t think that liking has coloured
me much since I barely had heard real folk music at the time
when I started my musical interest.”
Earlier you mentioned the constant use of Jan Meininghaus’
paintings for the cover artworks. The artwork and
album title are clearly linked, however is there any deeper
symbolism around the flaming eagle with the moon at the
back? The concept is based around the phoenix?
“Not more than a quite figuratively meaning of the title track.”
Unfortunately Falconer isn’t much active in terms of
playing live, however do you have any plans to promote
the album as far as tours or videos?
“No. We might do a video this fall though.”
What is the reason to not to play live as often as we (fans)
desire? Do you see it as a not so fundamental part on a
band’s career or your jobs and personal lives simply do
not permit it?
“We started out as a studio band and that’s actually what we
always have been with occasional exceptions. In the beginning
we were sort of tied down by Mathias’ schedules in the
theatres and musicals but as time went by it just fitted our
“grown up lifestyle” with loans, lawns to mow, kids to drive
to soccer practice, and houses to rebuild. A live gig is always
a highlight, but the writing and recording has always been
the goal in whatever band I’ve played in. I have always seen
myself more as a writer/producer than an artist. It’s not that I
dislike playing live but it’s not what the essentials of Falconer
is about. The live thing is more like a fun thing that you might
do every now and then, like a party out with the guys. We had
plans to play some festivals this summer but I was just too
lazy and when I got my ass up to ask around for interest many
festivals were already full booked so we’ll look ahead into
2015 to see if there is any interest and if the festivals we have
time to play in, do want us.”
Yet, if you had to make a retrospective and analyse the
occasional live gigs you played and pick your all-time
favourite Falconer track to play live, could you tell us
which one and why?
“Well, then I would have to pick the one that get the most back
from the fans and that is ‘Clarion Call’. Maybe not my favourite
song but it feels good to get that sort of response and I guess
that is what live gigging is all about.”
What about covering one of Cher’ songs on your very first
gig back in 2002 at Bang Your Head festival? That most
have been quite hilarious...
“A great track but it felt like the audience didn’t really get it. I
just wish we had it recorded from the show. For our first show
I guess we should have used the time to play one of our own
songs instead.”
NOT RISKING PERSONAL LIVES
During the years with Metal Blade Records have they tried
to force you to play live more often? Have you ever felt that
Falconer could be on another level if tours were made?
“No, they haven’t actually. It’s a bit surprising since touring
helps sell their product. I’m sure that if we had accepted all
offers to play live and do tours, we would have sold many
times the amount of albums that we do today. If you don’t
promote a band you certainly won’t reach new fans and buyers
44 METALEGION #1

1980
1978
BLACK SABBATH
Heaven and Hell
“I think I heard it when I was 22
years old or something. Coming out
from a death metal scene starting
to look around the old band. No
brutal sound, no fast drums, but
everything was just oozing of
quality. Has Ronnie James Dio ever
sung better than he did on that
album? For me it is the best album
ever made, even the bass player
makes a difference instead of just
playing a lazy man’s guitar. Listen
to “Wishing well”, it’s perfect. I get
goose bumps. We have a saying
in the family: When Dio sings you
shut up!”
JETHRO TULL
Heavy Horses
“Listen to the drummer! Not a dull
moment! This was the first album
I heard by Jethro Tull back in
1995. Progressive rock with Folk
influences, it’s just a perfect mix.
I felt so enlightened when I heard
this since I was used to listen to
simpler heavy metal and death/
black metal where speed and
attitude was of such importance.
Here we had goofy geezers from
the 70’s playing some odd kind of
music and it felt they just played to
my heart. There are so many details
and twists to discover as you put
the headphones on.”
either. Some shows has been really sad to decline, even to the
extent that I wished I never had gotten the proposals. Well, now
after 8 albums our lives look differently and I don’t think many
of us want to risk or sacrifice what we have in order to pursue
the dream of a teenager. We don’t take it that bloody seriously,
it’s an interest and hobby and not a life. In the beginning you
build your life around music, when you’re 40 you adapt the
music around your life.”
But in any particular moment of Falconer or earlier did
you strive for a career as musician that paid all the bills?
“When I started out I was of course dreaming of becoming a
star like my idols in Motley Crue, Kiss, Iron Maiden. I think
I quite soon dropped that seriously but still had a wish of
at least making a living out of music. I guess that’s a long
gone wish to. What I can hope for now is to remain being
able to breaking even with the studio times, travels and other
expenses. Not everyone has a hobby that pays for itself, you
got to be happy for the small nuggets of gold the gods throw
at us. I can’t be bitter about it since I haven’t really made any
serious attempts or sacrifices to come further than I have. You
really have to work at it to make it big and I’m just to lazy.”
To end, do you have a favourite track off the album or a
track that in your opinion stands out and can perfectly
summarize what “Black Moon Rising” is all about?
“The best chorus I have ever written is the one for ‘Halls and
chambers’ but my favourite track from the album is ‘Locust
Swarm’. It is very representative of the album, it was the
first song I wrote for the album. The intensity and great riffs
is really what carries that song. Also a big plus to have some
blast beats thrown into my song writing again.” c
“Black Moon Rising” available via Metal Blade Records [www.
metalblade.com] / Falconer [www.falconermusic.com]
HIGHLIGHTS BY STEFAN WEINERHALL
1988
IRON MAIDEN
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
“Every song is of single quality. The most
“intellectual” Iron Maiden album. It might
not have the same roughness to it as the
earlier albums have but the songwriting
is top notch. Just sad that it proved to
be the crest before the fall. To follow up
this one with “No Prayer for the Dying”
should be criminal! Bruce on top, before
he had screamed out his lungs.”
#1 METALEGION 45

"FANS WERE DISAPPOINTED
BECAUSE IT WASN'T
SOMETHING THEY EXPECTED"
By Marc Grewe
ON THE “EVE” OF BEEN KICKED OUT FROM THE BAND, WE HAD
THE CHANCE TO CHAT WITH LONGTIME VOCALIST MARC
GREWE DURING THE TOUR WITH BOLT THROWER WHILE
PROMOTING THE NEW EP “GOD IS EVIL”. MORGOTH REUNITED
A FEW YEARS AGO TO CELEBRATE THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF
“CURSED” AND WHILE THE FANS EAGERLY WAITED FOR THE NEW
ALBUM THE BAND WAS ROTTING INSIDE. WHAT FOLLOWS IS A
PERFECT EXAMPLE THAT APPEARANCES ARE DECEPTIVE...
CURSED BY THE CHRISTIAN GOD, MORGOTH STRIKES BACK WITH A NEW
DOSE OF DEATH METAL. READ ON ONE OF MARC’S LAST INTERVIEWS...
.. WORDS: ESTELLE MUSICIAN: MARC GREWE (VOCALIST) ..
Firstly I would like to ask, in which period do you think
Morgoth was on the highlight of its career, creativity
or composing capability?
“It’s hard to say, of course in the very early stage when we were really
young and all that new metal influenced us very much, when the
first death metal bands showed up and also bands like Bathory that
inspired us to form our own band back in 1987. We had a lot of creativity
even in the early days, then it took us to the “Cursed” album,
and after that creativity was getting into different directions too,
because to us it got boring to “cover ourselves” so we tried something
different. Industrial bands influenced us and that lead us to “Odium”,
and after that to “Feel Sorry for the Fanatic” which was even more
drastic - a lot of people don’t like that album, but on a creativity base
I would say it’s still a creative album. After that we kind of lost the
belief in it and we had a pause for a long time; but now the creativity
is back, we are writing and we have written new stuff and the new
album is almost ready.”
Which industrial bands do you think of when you say they
influenced you?
“Godflesh for example, also a band like Atari Teenage Riot, or some
early Ministry stuff.”
You talked about people not liking ‘Feel Sorry for the Fanatic’ -
personally, do you care about fans’ opinions on the album? Do
you or would you ever regret releasing it?
“No no, we don’t regret anything. It’s just that at that certain point of
time it was exactly what we were able to do and what we wanted to
do. At that time fans were disappointed because it wasn’t something
they expected from us, it was different - but we don’t regret anything.
Of course we listen to the fans, but on the other hand we are not a
band that would say “people expect something from us so we’ll do it”,
we basically just do the stuff that we want to do.”
CURSED/ODIUM ERA
Back in those days there wasn’t really a death metal scene in
Germany, we can say you were one of the pioneers of the genre
46 METALEGION #1

in your country. How did the crowd firstly react to
this brutal style of music and appearance back in
the day?
“When we showed up, there was no internet and there
was a lot of tape trading going on. The reaction was
actually really good. It was a small scene, there wasn’t
too many people who were into that certain extreme
style of music, the shows we booked were all ‘do it yourself’
kind of shows. Most of the shows were great, even
if they were way smaller than nowadays. Nowadays we
play in venues like this (Arena, Wien) which can give
place to 800-2000 people, and back in the day it was
only maybe 150 or 200 people coming to the shows. But
they were also very into that stuff, and then those fans
developed the scene by getting the message that there
is an extreme style of music. Especially Germany was
really thrash influenced - Kreator, Sodom, Destruction;
these kinds of bands - so it was something new to the
thrash scene as well. Some people wanted to get even
more into the extreme style and they liked what came
out of Morgoth in the early days.”
This is your first proper tour for 17 years. What
are the things which are new for you after being
‘Isolated’ (laughs) from this kind of lifestyle for a
long time?
“There is nothing new on the tour, it’s like the same as
our last tour. Of course it’s great to be on the road with
Bolt Thrower - I’ve been on the road with Bolt Thrower
before with my other band called Power of Expression,
it’s more of a hardcore band, we’ve been touring with
Bolt Thrower back then. When I got the call from the
guys if we wanted to join them on the tour, it was a
great honour and of course I knew that this tour would
be great for us. It’s a perfect timing for us as well
because we just have new songs written, we have a
7” out (‘God is Evil’), it’s like a collector’s item, and in
February-March the album (‘Ungod’) will be out. We’re
going to play two new songs tonight as well.”
FIRM CONVICTION
And can we expect the same style on ‘Ungod’ as on
the single ‘God is Evil’?
“Pretty much, yes. I mean, I hope the songs that we are
going to record will be even more brutal, but let’s see.”
In what aspect is it different to release or work on
an album in our days than how it was when you were
working on the last one, “Feel Sorry...”?
“We recorded the “Feel Sorry...” album in a huge studio
and now we went back to a smaller one because the
budget isn’t there anymore for bands to record, and
also the recording equipment is way more affordable
than back in the nineties. A mixing board for example,
that was hundreds or thousands of Euros sometimes,
and nowadays you can get a good mixing board for
half of the price. The studio we found now is a studio
where we come from, where we grew up. We are from
the countryside and before that we always recorded in
a studio in the city, and this time we chose going back
to the roots and going back to our own hometown and
record there. I think it’s even sounding better than in the
nineties. The sound is more massive, and we have two
new members in the band which is also a reason why it
does sound differently.”
I read that you only had 2 days to record “God is
Evil” this year. How did you manage to work so
quickly together?
“We practiced a lot before and knew what we wanted
to sound like. We actually recorded three songs but only
two made it on the record. We had one day for recording
and one for mixing which is a very short period of time. I
hope it’s going to be like that for the album as well.
We started to record the album last year, the first
recordings were already done in the studio where we are
now, we booked the studio to check it out if they were
able to record our songs. We wrote the first tracks last
year, in the summer of 2013. We actually went to that
studio just to rehearse there, we recorded stuff but it
never meant to be on an album, we just recorded those
for us. Anyway, we’re glad we’re here, the studio is good
and we have the basis for upcoming tracks. Then the
guitar players wrote riffs and they attached it to riffs
from before, so it all went kind of naturally.”
What advice would you give to your younger self who
just started to write the “Pits of Utumno” demo or
the first EP “Resurrection Absurd”?
“(large pause) It’s hard to say, but well when we were
really young and recorded that early stuff, we didn’t have
a clue about anything about studios. The old one was
a really shitty studio, nowadays you probably wouldn’t
go into a studio like that anymore - but you know, as I
already mentioned we are from the countryside, there
was no internet, we didn’t have any connections, there
was only us five in our world that were interested in
metal, we didn’t know anybody else because there was
no scene existing then, especially where we lived. So
we just looked into the Rock Hard magazine and there
was some advertisement for little studios sometimes,
and we picked one which wasn’t too far away. It was a
basement of a guy and he didn’t have a clue about how
to record this brutal sound, he never heard that before
and I’m sure he didn’t like it (laughs). But hey, he had
to record it. So, I guess nowadays I would just go to
a better studio and spend a bit more money on good
equipment.”
Is there any question that you would like me to ask?
“That’s a question that actually a lot of people ask...
Perhaps, why we took so long to come back?
We are close friends too, we know each other since we
were 9-10 years old, and when the band got to an end
in 1998, it was a bad split for us. There was a shitty
tour we did, something was always wrong, it was long
and totally shit, so it was a bad ending for the band.
And nobody said we were ending the band, it was never
spoken out as a sentence, but everybody was just so
sure that it was like “that’s it, no more”. But back then,
after that, after 3-4-5-6 years, we all in the band had
the feeling like we would probably like to do some gigs
more, maybe another album... But we knew that two
other members of the former band wouldn’t be into
it - and we accepted that too. Harry the guitar player
and myself, we are two of the founding members, and
the other guy Sebastian came into the band in 1990, so
we are the three of the old core of Morgoth. We said “us
three wanna do it”, then it was a democratic decision,
3 against 2, and they said “okay, we don’t care, you can
do it” and that was also clear - but we are still friends
with them anyway.
This wasn’t really a question right now, but well if you
want me to say a question that would somehow embarrass
me, that would totally not be something I would
answer. (laughs)” c
“Ungod” available via Century Media [www.centurymedia.com]
/ Morgoth [www.morgoth-band.com]
NEW VOCALIST
KARSTEN JÄGER
“UNGOD”
CENTURY MEDIA
The mid-late period of 2014 was a prolific and tumultuous
chapter for the German band Morgoth. In one hand they
reissued their second album “Odium”, they were playing live
on well-known metal festivals, toured together with Bold
Thrower as well as spit out fresh new songs after a long
hiatus of eighteen years in the form of a 7”EP entitled “God
Is Evil”. The band seemed on the right path for a tremendous
comeback album when unexpectedly they part ways with
their longtime vocalist Marc Grewe on the imminence of
a new album being recorded, leaving the fans completely
perplexed and apprehensive. Once again! Remember the
faces of your friends back in 1996 when hearing for the first
time “Feel Sorry for the Fanatic”?
“Ungod” picks up right where “God Is Evil” scratched lightly
at the surface. They travelled back in time picking up things
where they left after the amazing debut album “Cursed”
and leaving the new influences of “Odium” and especially
the oddity, to say the least, of “Feel Sorry for the Fanatic”
buried on the past. The first question that instantly pops up
is, how are the vocals sounding like? Well, Karsten Jäger
who is also the vocalist of Disbelief, deliver the goods right
from the start of ‘House of Blood’ with a ferocious death
metal attack that for moments will make you forget about
Marc’s depart. Nevertheless I must confess that I prefer
Marc’s singing style more akin to what Chuck Schuldiner
did in Death, it had an oppressive raw grim edge that turned
“Cursed” back in 1991 into a landmark of the European
Death Metal scene, still they are quite similar to be honest.
Being “Cursed” my favourite Morgoth album its hard not
to compare “Ungod” to it, the lack of a strong drum punch
is the most severe and evident flaw for me on this new
album resulting on a dry crunchy wall of sound instead of
the massive obscure agony that “Cursed” transmitted. The
intense beginning of ‘Voice of Slumber’ with its dry metallic
punch looses part of its ferocity, ‘Snakestate’ and ‘Descent
Into hell’ for instance would have a bigger dimension if
they had a powerful drum kick. I guess the quintet tried to
mix the old school basis with an up-to-date production and
to be fair, “Ungod” turns out a solid release. Instrumentally
follows the path of the old days, raw mid tempo groovy
rhythms with the occasional slow and faster passages (the
song ‘Ungod’ covers thoroughly all the tempo spectrum,
from slow tortuous riffing to faster and barbarous rhythms)
blended with the raging vociferations of the new vocalist.
The guitars are much more prominent than in the past due
to the mixing and twenty years later both Harald Busse and
Sebastian Swart are able to deliver some dexterous riffing
and lead passages that are able to keep the listener interested
and provide plenty of memorable moments, ‘Nemesis’,
‘God Is Evil’ or ‘Traitor’ are fine examples of that. Altogether
“Ungod” is a solid return from a band that had its
momentum back in the early 90’s and judging by what they
offer here do not show any signs of aging, even if soundwise
they appear more “accessible”...
7,5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
#1 METALEGION 47

T
wo years after the split of Unearthly Trance
and with two albums under the moniker Serpentine
Path, Unearthly Trance is still a topic
of discussion around press and fans. What’s your and the
rest of the band’s feeling towards that?
“I am very glad that people still remember Unearthly Trance.
Serpentine Path is a totally different band from Unearthly
Trance and I think that the abrupt ending of the band might be
the reason people still remember us. I also would like to think
the we created some interesting music and recordings that
people appreciated.”
Usually when a band split up their members seek or create
other projects, that wasn’t the case in your situation.
In fact Serpentine Path was created before the split of
Unearthly Trance and using all its members (you, Jay and
Darren). The creation of Serpentine Path back in 2011 was
already a sign that something was wrong?
“Hmm. Interesting question. I think if something was really
wrong we would not have even played together again. I think
Unearthly Trance was becoming more and more operationally
dysfunctional toward the end and Serpentine Path represented
doing a side project just for fun originally. Perhaps it was, at
the time, a diversion from the pressure and expectations of a
band that was around for well over a decade.”
After a monstrous 2010 album on the form of “V” and the
tremendous success that Unearthly Trance was having,
was there a real reason that lead the creation of Serpentine
Path?
“The only real reason we started Serpentine Path was to
jam with Tim. Tim came over to the States and wanted to
get together. He was in New Jersey and we were in New York
city area so it made sense and was totally possible. We had
become close friends over the years after touring with Electric
Wizard first in 2002 and then with Ramesses many times over
in Europe. Tim had songs and we were down to jam. For me
there was no connection between what Unearthly Trance was
doing musically and what we started with Tim. Serpentine Path
was and is always a vehicle for Tim Bagshaw’s music.”
DUAL GUITAR ATTACK
“Emanations” marks the entrance of Winter guitarist
Stephen Flam. There aren’t major changes in the sonority
crafted on your self titled debut album, in fact I would say
that you have simply refined the used formula. Having
said that, do you think that the entrance of a second guitar
player established new possibilities in your sound?
“Yes, new possibilities, but that the same time nothing has
really changed. Having two guitars allows us to explore the
sonic landscape of our band but he really just enhanced our
existing sound in a subtle yet effective way.”
After so many years working as a trio, were there severe
adjustments in order to welcome two new members?
“No. I like working in a trio the most but adding new people to
the mix made things easier and ultimately I am enjoying having
way less responsibilities as all I have to do is write lyrics and
scream. It makes me really focus on my sole task and I take
it very seriously. Tim is very easy to work with and Stephen
brings his own experience to the table. So I have looked at this
new band as a learning experience and the chance to grow.”
Serpentine Path must be an extremely oiled machine, I
mean, the fact of having 3 band members that have been
working and writing songs together for more than 10 years
must simplify the whole process. How is the method of
writing new songs?
“Well the writing of the music is almost always the same. Tim
demos songs at home with a drum machine and then presents
his song ideas to us. The guys jam it out and I would say within
one or two practices the song is alive and sounding killer. Its a
very simple process that works for us yet quite different to how
I work with other bands I have been in.”
The vast experience of both guitar players, Tim Bagshaw
and Stephen Flam in writing and playing songs on well
known bands like Electric Wizard, Ramesses and Winter
should be noted during the song-writing process. On
“Emanations” what role they had?
“On “Emanations” every song was musically written by Tim
except for ‘Systematic Extinction’ which was a song Stephen
WHEN H.P. LOVECRAFT PLAYS AN ESSENTIAL ROLE IN THE IMAGINARIUM OF A BAND COMPRISED BY
EXPERIENCED MUSICIANS YOU CAN BE SURE THAT SOMETHING TENEBROUS WILL EMERGE...
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: RYAN LIPYNSKY (VOCALIST) ..
THE SOPHOMORE ALBUM
“EMANATIONS” IS PROBABLY
EVERYTHING YOU WISHED
FOR ON THEIR SELF-TITLED
DEBUT ALBUM AND PROBABLY
EVEN MORE. SERPENTINE
PATH MAY HAVE NOT REACH
(YET) THE CULT STATUS OF
THEIR PREVIOUS PROJECTS
(UNEARTHLY TRANCE OR
ELECTRIC WIZARD), BUT
THEY ARE QUICKLY GAINING
THE RECOGNITION THEY
SURELY DESERVE. VOCALIST
RYAN LIPYNSKY LEADS
US THROUGH THE CRYPTIC
DOOM/DEATH METAL PATHS....
BEWARE THE BEAST!
"I AM ENJOYING HAVING WAY LESS RESPONSIBILITIES
AS ALL I HAVE TO DO IS WRITE LYRICS AND SCREAM"
By Ryan Lipynsky
48 METALEGION #1

brought to the table that actually totally fit in with the Serpentine
Path vibe and sound.”
THE SOUND OF SUCCESS
I’ve seen many heads turning towards Serpentine Path
just by the fact of been considered a “super-group” or
having a sort of “unearthly pedigree”. This sort of used
terminology only increases the “stress failure” syndrome
inside the band or this is something meaningless?
“I think the whole super group thing is nonsense. I would
rather people judge us through what our album sounds like
not what they think of our old bands. Some people who love
Unearthly Trance might really not dig Serpentine Path and
the other way around. Some Winter fans may like Serpentine
Path but others may not. I see the biggest connection to
Serpentine Path in the form of Ramesses which has Tim’s
signature guitar playing style. Tim played bass in the Wizard
and I played guitar in Unearthly Trance. So obviously neither
of those bands sound like Serpentine Path musically. Winter
is an influence of ours and there was a bit of that sound even
on our first album. But, it has been helpful to get people’s
attention in a sea of thousands of bands in 2014. A double
edged sword I suppose. I am not too concerned if we don’t
live up to peoples expectations at the end of the day.”
During the years you have been an extremely active musician,
playing in different bands and styles. Do you have
a need to be an active person in order to feel fulfilled or
is your artistic vein that pushes you towards different
projects and sonorities?
“In a way both of those options are true. Because I have such
and artistic drive inside of me I always feel compelled to
create as much music as possible. I really enjoy playing with
different people and in different contexts. I like to co-write,
dictate or take a back seat and let others write. I think all
roles in music are interesting and I feel I have learned a lot
from all of my past and current band mates. I like that, I have
done varied music as The Howling Wind sounds nothing like
Pollution and Force & Fire sounds nothing like Serpentine Path
even though I was/am the vocalist in all of those bands. I’m
also into the creative side of experimental music and really
enjoy creating music/sounds all on my own at home. I hope to
put out more of that kind of stuff in the future.”
One of the things that I noticed was that in comparison
with your debut, “Emanations” sounds less pristine,
tortuous, contained and oppressive. In the end it sounds
like a refined and layered version of “Serpentine Path”.
“We didn’t do that consciously but I do agree with your
assessment. I think this second album has a more refined
sound and approach just through experience.”
Your collaboration with Relapse Records goes back to
the days of Unearthly Trance where you released 3 full
length albums. Did you approach other labels when you
signed with them? You left an open door with them when
Unearthly Trance split-up?
“Relapse has always been very good to Unearthly Trance
and Serpentine Path. I have almost zero complaints about
4
“EMANATIONS”
RELAPSE RECORDS
It’s undeniable that the self-titled debut album
from this NYC doom/death band formed from
the ashes of Unearthly Trance sounded like a
colossal journey through the desert during a
deadly sand storm. The heaviness and sense of
oppression coming in waves is something that
categorised Serpentine Path perfectly and the
second opus entitled “Emanations” continues
that legacy however nowadays the listener builds
the idea that could survive a similar pernicious
night. Nothing could be more deceitful, because
even if the addition of Stephen Flam (Winter) as
second guitarist manages to give new dimensions
to a narcissistic sonority, the sonic guitar battle
between him and Tim Bagshaw is quite impressive
to say the least and follows the cruel riffing
style delineated on the debut album. The attention
nowadays converges almost immediately
to their ominous work on the six strings and
songs like ‘Essence of Heresy’, ‘House of Worship’,
‘Claws’ or ‘Torment’ result on a menacing
beast that slowly but steadily crave your death.
However any attempt to reduce the impetus of
Serpentine Path solely to this twin attack could
not be more far from the truth and “Emanations”
only stand out as a whole. The rhythms are
layered almost surgically and even if the tempos
are constantly slow and dragged (I almost feel
the despair of Darren Verni behind his drum
kit during the sluggish tortuous sections or the
malignity of Ryan Lipynsky in his guttural vocal
approach) they do possess the necessary dynamics,
strength and fearless level of craftsmanship
to sustain the interest of the listener.
The coup de grace is given through the production
and sick cover artwork that immediately
transport us to the sombre world of H.P. Lovecraft.
Production wise this sophomore album
reveals a band that can truly drain all your
energies without sounding constantly like they
are behind a dense melancholic wall of rhythms
and riffs (the heaviness of the debut resided on
that aspect and on the extremely slow tempos),
mostly due to the clarity of the guitars and
Ryan’s slightly less guttural vocal approach.
“Emanations” is without any doubt a refined
formula determined by the experience of the
previous album but also by the vast background
of its members straight from bands like Electric
Wizard, Unearthly Trance, Winter or Ramesses.
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
#1 METALEGION 49

that label despite what people may gossip and speculate about them. They are
smart and professional, I respect that very much. We didn’t approach any labels
when we signed with Relapse. The only thing we did before that was a 7” vinyl
EP with Parasitic Records from Oregon and that label is run by my bandmate in
The Howling Wind; Tim Call. I think when Unearthly Trance split-up they were
disappointed but they always told us they were interested in checking out any
other music we may be working with. It was basically a no-brainer and a very
simple solution to putting out our music. I am really pleased to still be working
with Relapse Records!”
Once again the bass player Jay Newman recorded/mixed the new album.
I’m sure this is more comfortable for the band, probably also not meeting
tight studio deadlines but this does not put more pressure on Jay?
“Yeah we enjoy recording with Jay and this time it was even easier as he moved
into a new house of his own and were able to basically track everything in one
place. The previous album we had to secure various locations to record drum
and guitars and had a limited amount of time to complete those recording
sessions. Not having any deadlines or having to pay “the studio guy” is always
a laid back process but can also be a daunting process as its all on our own
shoulders to make it sound good. Especially Jay. He really enjoys recording and
bettering his process each time around so I think at the end of the recording he
was pleased with the result and all the pressure and stress was worth it!”
THE DOOM OF MANKIND
The imaginary where Serpentine Path lives must be a very cruel, dark,
grievous and despotic place. Can you unveil us around the themes that
you write about?
“For me I write themes that reflect the doomed nature of the riffs. I personally
think that it would only appropriate me to mate the horror of the music with the
horror of music. Themes are about the oppression of man through power and
religion as well as more fantastical things like inter-dimensional beasts and
inevitable extinction of humanity.”
As lyricist from where do you drain your influences from? Regular day
events? Horror movies? Literature?
“My lyrics come from my brain. I think the regular day things have quite a bit
of influence in my words. There is nothing more horrific than the things that go
on this planet. I am not much of a horror movie guy but most of the guys in the
band certainly are. I think I try to go for that kind of vibe without directly using
any specific movie or books as influence. Occasionally one of the guys may
have a rough idea for a song title and then I will expand upon that idea.”
Coming again to Orion Landau for the artwork proved once more to be a
wise decision. What’s the story behind the half women/serpents versus
grotesque monks? It invokes on me an H.P. Lovecraft imaginarium...
“You basically hit the nail on the head. We wanted something like some sort of
reptilian alien like unspeakable beast. The vibe is very Lovecraftian and I think
that is a great influence for this band. Orion did a killer job with just taking our
music and lyrics and making great images out of processing it all. We give him
full freedom and both times he has blown us away with his ideas.”
Recently you have confirmed your appearance on next year’ Maryland
Deathfest at the side of bands like DRI, Master, Sodom, Tsjuder, Napalm
Death, Triptykon to state just a few. However if I’m right, there hasn’t been
much movement on this area for you guys?
“If you mean, are we planning any live shows, the answer is no. I think we will
be the kind of band that only plays live on the rare occasion. I don’t think we
ever had aspirations to become this typical touring band that goes everywhere.
We are an obscure ugly underground band that does things when the situation is
right. I look at a Serpentine Path gig like a comet that comes around from time
to time (laughs). Better catch it while its in view. Having said that, we are very
excited to be playing Maryland Death Festival. I have a feeling it will be
a great time!”
To finalize, is there anything else you would like to advertise
or say to the readers of Metalegion Magazine?
“Thanks to everyone who takes the time to check out our music
and give it a listen. We appreciate any and all support! I raise my
glass of Ale to you all!” c
HIGHLIGHTS BY Ryan Lipynsky
1970
BLACK SABBATH
Black Sabbath
“I mean what else can be said about
this massive ultimate album. The
birth of doom metal, the birth of
metal. Iommi is a riff genius, Ozzy
is the perfect vocalist, Geezer and
Bill are the ultimate heavy metal
rhythm section with swing and
style. When I first heard the first 3
notes of this song, it was all over
in a way. So influential that it is
impossible to properly explain...”
1988
KISS
Alive
“Kiss are one of my all time
favourite bands. Love them or
hate them you cannot deny how
influential their 70’s records were to
many generations of metal and rock
fans. “Alive” is the quintessential
live album (even though its not
totally live) but it is the point
in time where Kiss absolutely
exploded in fame. I am too young
to have experienced Kiss in the 70’s
as I was born in ’77 but hearing
“Alive” the first time I was hooked.
From intro to the end, the album
is pure high energy rock and roll.
Some of my favourite Kiss songs
are also on it like ‘Black Diamond’,
‘Hotter Than Hell’, ‘Watching You’,
‘100,000 Years’ etc.”
DANZIG
Danzig
“This album is something I heard in 5th or 6th grade. I was immediately into it.
One of my good friends form my neighbourhood had all these awesome tapes
like Danzig and Samhain and when he first played me this Danzig album I was
immediately taken. I love the songs, the great simple riffs and of course Glens
awesome voice and vibe. I especially remember being freaked out by ‘Possession’
as it seemed absolutely evil to my young ears.”
1975
“LOVE THEM
OR HATE
THEM”
“Emanations” available via Relapse Records [www.relapse.com] /
Serpentine Path [www.serpentinepath.blogspot.com]
50 METALEGION #1

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TERRORIZER #262
7

LURKING IN THE MUDDY
WATERS OF THE RED RIVER
THAN DWELLS A TENEBROUS
THREE HEADED ENTITY
CALLED MORDBRAND
THAT AWAKES FROM TIME TO
TIME TO INVOKE THE SPIRIT
OF THE SWEDISH DEATH
METAL SCENE. THE SCENARIO
IS CLEARLY FICTIONAL
HOWEVER THE DEBUT ALBUM
“IMAGO” HAS THAT SORT
OF CRYPTIC ATMOSPHERE...
BASSIST/GUITARIST BJÖRN
LARSSON & VOCALIST
PER BODER EXPLORE THE
CONCEPT AROUND “IMAGO”.
After several splits and EPs released during the last
4 years, your debut album is finally out. Building
a solid foundation and name before risking into a
full-length was some sort of strategy?
Per Boder “Not really, we want to be an active band and
there’s less work with fewer songs so its a rewarding way to
do things. Its hard to sell full-lengths today, especially if you’re
an unknown band so the motivation wasn’t there from the
beginning.”
I guess that is how things should be made in a band. I
believe that many bands commit the mistake of speed
up things just for the sake of spitting out a debut album,
instead of giving themselves time to grow and mature,
don’t you agree?
Per Boder “Its probably a wise thing to do, yes. Build some
foundation and work from there.”
"WHAT TRIBULATION DID WITH THEIR LATEST
RECORD DEMANDED SOME BALLS, AND THEY
GOT WELL DESERVED CRITICAL ACCLAIM"
MIXING H.P. LOVECRAFT WITH SWEDISH DEATH METAL METAMORPHOSED INTO A INSECT ALIKE
CREATURE THAT STRIKES AT FIRST OPPORTUNITY INTO YOUR JUGULAR. BEWARE!
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: BJÖRN LARSSON (BASSIST/GUITARIST) & PER BODER (VOCALIST) ..
By Björn Larsson
Yet, earlier you talked about motivation. What’s the feeling
inside the band, now that your debut album is out and
been praised by worldwide media?
Björn Larsson “Honestly, even though we are very happy with
the fact that people in general seem to like the album, we’re
also quite amazed that so many reviewers still consider us a
“tribute band” of sorts. We’re not reinventing the wheel, sure,
but we’re not regurgitating the past either. But it’s selling well
which is an indication that people enjoy our work and that’s of
course very satisfying.”
The opener ‘Revelate’ has some riffs written by Per on the
early 90’s, probably during his God Macabre period. Why
have you decided to use that material and recycle it on a
Mordbrand song?
Per Boder “Yeah, its some old riffs I actually remembered from
back then, I presented it to the band and it was incorporated
into the song straight away. Björn already had that odd chorus
with choirs, so it became a nice mixture of old and “new”.
Björn Larsson “Yes, and for me it was also a symbolic way to
leave things in the past and look forward. We’re not as oldschool
as many like to think.”
THE "LOST" ART OF METAL
With the increasing interest on old-school death metal
and the hundreds of albums released on the latest years
under that banner, do you fear to be mistaken for a bunch
52 METALEGION #1

of youngsters that simply jumped on the recent
bandwagon?
Per Boder “Nope, I think its known already (somewhat
due to my past in God Macabre) that we’re not spring
chickens.”
Björn Larsson “And I think that most people that listen
to our stuff hear much more things than classic Swedish
death metal. If not, listen again.”
You get frustrated when you are approached by fans
and media with a completely incorrect notion of what
Mordbrand’s all about?
Per Boder “It seems impossible to write about Swedish
death metal without mentioning some of the classic, bigger
bands of the genre. It goes with the territory apparently, so
I tend just to shake my head at some of the comparisons,
good or bad. I’m hardly objective here, as I’ve worked for
a long time with the songs and view them from a different
perspective than a casual listener.”
Björn Larsson “Exactly. A 10 out of 10 review saying that
we sound exactly like Unleashed is a poor review. Nothing
at all against Unleashed, quite the contrary, but we just
don’t sound like them. Sometimes I think reviewers are a
bit lazy and don’t pay attention to what they’re actually
listening to. I have no respect for that. People put a
lot of hard work into their releases (or, at least some)
and deserve a fair review. So does the readers. It’s a
conundrum to me that some don’t have more pride in what
they’re doing.”
What is your opinion about this kind of cyclical revival
in metal? Do you consider more fruitful and useful,
the reminder of the old metal heroes or the insane
experimentation of the new generations?
Per Boder “Personally I like when there’s a mixture of
both, not too much homage and not too hellbent on being
original. Its a fine line, but someone has to draw it.”
Björn Larsson “I think that it’s a problem when it turns
into a trend. Those who hop on the bandwagon destroys
it for everybody else since people are going to look at the
genre tag and lose interest. I don’t blame them though.
Who wants to hear the same thing regurgitated over and
over again?”
Do you think that music trends are somehow manipulations
from the music business itself?
Per Boder “No, they just have to catch up with it to stay
in business. These are tough times for small labels, and
today with the internet and everything readily available,
labels and reviews aren’t of the same importance as it
once was. I don’t visit the Relapse website or Blabbermouth
(and so on) when I’m looking for new music. I’ll
check in on some forums I know will deliver.”
THEIR PERSONAL TOUCH
Where others have failed on the past, your debut
album “Imago” blends perfectly the inspiration of
the old-school Swedish death metal with a personal
Mordbrand sonority. Giving a personal touch on a
old-school sonority was a fundamental requirement
since the beginning?
Per Boder “We said from the beginning that we didn’t want
to limit ourselves too much, to be able to incorporate some
“unorthodox” stuff was important.”
Björn Larsson “I think we’re definitely a death metal band
through and through, but we’re not limiting ourselves, and
I think that we make better death metal for not doing
that.”
30 years after the birth of death metal, its important
to have an open mind and not be afraid to push it a
little further?
Per Boder “I don’t think its negative if you do, but there are
certain limitations for what I can accept. Its not going to be
automatically great just because you go full on krautrock
or whatever. I shy away from the most experimental bands
and rather stick to basic brutality if I have to choose.”
Björn Larsson “It depends on a lot of things I guess. But
if you truly want to reinvent yourself, go ahead! If it turns
too shitty, you’re (probably) not gonna get good feedback.
But if you change in order to follow what’s the latest
flavour, it’s gonna show and it’s not gonna be good. What
Tribulation did with their latest record demanded some
balls, and they got well deserved critical acclaim for it.
They could’ve played it safe but chose to do what they felt
like instead. They have zero responsibilities to their fans
in that context.”
The song ‘Imago’ is a strange hypnotic hymn that
builds a raw path for the last song ‘Sever The Limbs
That Grace’. Explain us the concept around that
particular song.
Per Boder “When Björn and Johan were in the studio laying
down the drum tracks I called and asked for a straight,
doomy drumbeat to work with. I planned to try out just
doing a track out of samples and different sounds. Björn
put down some bass for it and later it turned out almost
as a song more than the initial experimental-thing it had
going.”
And it’s a peculiar song because after 30 minutes of
intense death metal no one is expecting a “trance”
induced tune. The surprise factor is crucial and
results perfectly in creating the right mood for the last
song. Was that the whole intention/concept?
Per Boder “Yeah, its a breather for the final onslaught. We
had a couple of those on the God Macabre album, and I
tend to enjoy these “interludes” of sorts. It adds to the
pacing and structure of an album.”
Setting the right atmosphere on an album is probably
one of the most important tasks to end up with a
record that creates an instant empathy between the
listener and the band. “Imago” is filled with songs that
contain little nuances that enrich its hearing, like the
opener ‘Revelate’ with its vicious subtle keys, ‘Join
Them In Thralldom’ with some black metal riffing or
‘Their Name Are Myriads’ with an unexpected heavy
solo. What’s the recipe to create a killer song?
Per Boder “For me the song structure is always very
important.”
4
“IMAGO”
DEATHGASM RECORDS / CLAWHAMMER PR
After quite a few exciting smaller releases, like the
EP’s “Kolumbarium” and “Necropsychotic” or the
split with Bombs Of Hades entitled “No Life”, I guess
it was just a matter of time for the Swedish trio
to sign a record deal and vomit a stunning debut
album. Even if some of the attention towards them
was derived by the fact of having a former member
(vocalist Per Boder)of the now cult band God Macabre,
“Imago” demonstrates, if doubts still persisted,
that Mordbrand goes to war with its own combination
of destructive weapons. For a trio I must say
that they have quite a dense obscure sonority that is
able to keep the listener interested until the very last
raw riff, not to mention “Imago” reeks a true sense
of excitement and youthfulness not found easily
on the “daily” dose of new death metal albums that
proliferate on the metal scene. That’s definitely one
the aspects that the trio is able to transfer perfectly
to their songs (and not only on the debut album)
resulting in a record fully charged of emotion,
irreverence and passion for death metal. Compared
to the previous efforts, “Imago” is probably less
raw and slightly more polished production wise,
nevertheless it retains all the cruelness and rawness
of the late 80’s, early 90’s Swedish death metal
albums. “Imago” is an album released by a fully
mature band that took the time to develop their own
sonority and that explores their technical skills as
musicians with their refined sense of crafting good
songs that will quickly make you headbang like a
maniac. They are not utterly fast nor brutal, they
prefer to keep it grotesque and intense and within
the mid to fast tempo range with the occasional
faster riffing and drum moments topped by Per
Boder’s incredible growling skills, which shines on
“Imago”. This is one of those albums that each song
has that sort of stand out moment (some insane
solo, a subtle piano or keyboard tune or simply a
memorable tempo pattern) and you will be forced to
hear songs like ‘Revelate’, ‘Their Name Are Myriads’,
‘Bastion Of Blood’ or the grand finale ‘Sever The
Limbs That Grace’ a dozen times in a row. They are
not breaking any rules within the death metal genre
(even if they sometimes combine different influences
like black metal and even a raw punkish impertinence)
nor I believe its their goal, still “Imago” is
such a personal and well crafted record that I’m sure
will please old-school fans of bands like Entombed
or Dismember. Fear not because Mordbrand are not
cloning once again the typical Boss HM-2 guitar
pedal sonority, although the link with the Swedish
buzzsaw sonority on the guitar is more than evident
(and even more on the previous releases), still Björn
Larsson was able on “Imago” to give its own vision
of Swedish death metal without falling too much
on the raw buzzsaw cliché. Horns up also for the
guitar lead participation of Eric Cutler from Autopsy
and Christian La Rocca from Gravehil on the song
‘Their Name Are Myriads’ which if not stated would
probably pass unnoticed... So, next time you hear
that song try to figure it out who plays each guitar
lead... (laughs)
If you suddenly feel a vicious urge to set fire to a
nearby building (laughs) or to desecrate your local
graveyard, I can recommend “Imago” and especially
the song ‘That Which Crawls’ with its ferocious
riffing as your partner in crime...
8.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
#1 METALEGION 53

1982
ACCEPT
Restless And Wild
“The opener took things to a new
level, truly fast as a shark and more
power than I’d ever heard before. The
heaviness of ‘Shake Your Heads’ and
the haunting ‘Princess Of The Night’
made it an instant favourite that I
still carry with me.”
1984
EXCITER
Violence & Force
“After Venom this was the next big thing
for me. And what an album... The title
says it all, I terrorized my friends with
this album for years. ‘Evil Sinner’ is the
standout track for me, but the album
rates 10/10. Mordbrand covered ‘War is
Hell’ and I could easily do 5 more covers
from this album. In fire and hate they
came to burn the sky.”
1987
NAPALM DEATH
Scum
“Opened my eyes for the underground and
inspired me/us to really create something of
my own. Without this record, there would not
exist God Macabre. I think the A-side has a
narrow advantage over the second part of the
album, but its a classic that changed my world.
I saw them in 1988 on the FETO-tour, and it
was amazing. Saw them on 2014 at Party San
and they still deliver a hell of a beating.”
“I TERRORIZED
MY FRIENDS
WITH THIS
ALBUM FOR
YEARS”
HIGHLIGHTS BY PER BODER
Björn Larsson “Swedish song writing has a lot of common traits no matter what
genre it is. Simple and to the point seems to be a tradition, all the way from
ABBA to Anti Cimex. You’re not going to hear anything too technical, but you’re
gonna hear classical song writing with obscure, ghastly melodies. Oh, and some
crushing heaviness thrown in for good measure.”
THE RIGHT ELEMENTS
Björn, after the split-up of God Macabre in 1992, I believe that Per Boder
wasn’t involved in a metal band until the day he entered Mordbrand. How
did you and Johan managed to convince him to join in?
Björn Larsson “He heard our stuff, liked the attitude and that was it. I was in the
room when God Macabre remixed “The Winterlong” in the early 2000 for the first
Relapse Records re-issue. I had the feeling that Per wasn’t finished with death
metal even though he was far from being in a band at that point. God Macabre
was a big inspiration for us when we started Mordbrand and we felt we had
nothing to lose by just asking him. Luckily he said ‘yes’.”
Per, after the release of “The Winterlong” were you disappointed with
music? Why did you decide to stay away from any metal musical projects
for so many years?
Per Boder “I continued to play heavy rock alongside Ola Sjöberg in Space Probe
Taurus for some years. I was fed up with the extreme music right then, I thought
it became something it wasn’t meant to be. I didn’t enjoy the melodic bands,
neither the death’n’roll stuff. The excitement was gone basically. When the
mainstream hits an underground movement its never a good thing.”
The legendary “The Winterlong” debut and only album of God Macabre was
once again re-released by Relapse Records and this time with an unreleased
track. Back then you weren’t on the band, so what is your opinion
about it?
Björn Larsson “I think that “The Winterlong” is one of the best death metal
records of all time. It doesn’t sound like any other record from that era either
and I hear a lot of influences that other Swedish acts lacked. They weren’t
all out focused on aggression and speed, but instead let the music “breathe”
without losing it’s brutality. It also has a gloomy atmosphere which makes it very
special.”
Back in 1993 it was one of those albums that completely pass aside to most
metal fans. Do you remember its importance on the Swedish metal scene?
Per Boder “It didn’t have a major influence on the Swedish scene, we weren’t
pioneers. But I think it was/is regarded as a lost underground jewel. We recorded
it in ‘91 and when it was released in the end of ‘93, death metal was kinda
dead for the time being. No one really cared about it at that point, the band was
deceased and the scene was fading quickly.”
THE FUTURE AHEAD
You have played several live shows with God Macabre during this year. Do
you see Mordbrand being contaminated with the same stage “bug” and
start playing live also?
Per Boder “Yes, we’re definitely looking into that.”
Can we expect any developments on the near future regarding this? Being
signed with Deathgasm Records doesn’t create some “cross continent”
playing live possibilities?
Björn Larsson “Not really. Touring the States is a financial setback however it’s
done. We have families and responsibilities which comes first. But a festival
gig is not out of the question. We’ll see what the future brings, but the will to
perform is there.”
Despite some non Deathgasm Records releases you keep returning
to the US based record label and “Imago” was released under their
"DEATH METAL
WAS KINDA
DEAD"
By Per Boder
54 METALEGION #1

wing. It has been a fruitful relationship?
Per Boder “Its been hassle-free, that’s what I care about the
most.”
Björn Larsson “Yeah, exactly. Deathgasm Records has delivered
the goods every time and don’t promise more than they/he can
keep. They deserve all the respect and success they can get.”
Do you think it’s a label that can lead Mordbrand to the
next level? I’m referring to a wider exposure, bigger sales
or this is something you don’t think or care about?
Björn Larsson “Deathgasm Records is an underground label
but a good one at it. “Bigger sales” is something we in the
band never discuss. We feel that if we can do music on our
own terms, have someone release it in the acquired formats,
that’s enough for us. But, we already worked with other labels
as well and we have not signed anything that forces us to work
with anyone in particular. We take it from release to release
and decide what we wanna do. We have some releases that’s
gonna be out on other labels in the near future, ‘cause we want
to work with others as well.”
METAMORPHOSIS
At first sight, I believe that the title “Imago” and the cover
artwork are deeply connected. If I understood correctly the
word Imago is related with an idealized image of another
person or something similar. Can you share the vision and
the link between the word and the artwork created by Juan
Castellano?
Per Boder “Imago is a transitional stage for insects. The
general theme of the album is venereal horror, parasitism of
the organic and the transformation into something new. I found
the cover on Juanjo’s website and it fit perfectly with what we
wanted.”
Per, you were responsible for the lyrics on God Macabre.
What about in Mordbrand? The topics are somehow similar
to the ones used in God Macabre or during the years your
interests and influences have changed?
Per Boder “It has changed, the lyrics on “The Winterlong”
where more personal and teenage pretentious. I have no problem
with that, I know why those lyrics are the way they are.
Today I usually come up with an idea that I cover in a couple
of songs, and then I change the subject for the next couple of
songs. But now I draw more from my interests in literature and
movies and try not to make it too obvious. Somewhat abstract,
but still recognizable.”
How did you manage to have guest participations from
both Autopsy and Gravehill members? Being both Americans,
Deathgasm Records had anything to do with it?
Björn Larsson “Gravehill are our buddies. We were supposed
to do a split with them last year, but it didn’t happen for
various reasons, but our songs turned into the “Unmake” EP. I
heard some samples from the then upcoming Gravehill record
(“Death Curse”) and CC DeKill’s solos blew me away. So I just
asked him if he wanted to do something on the album and he
liked the idea. Eric Cutler is one of my favourite guitar players
of all time and Autopsy are as close to legends as you can get. I
e-mailed Eric and he was also keen on the idea.”
Per Boder “Sometimes its just that easy!”
To finalize, your next move will be a 7”EP entitled “Vastation”
to be out through To The Death Records. What can we
expect from that particular release and for the future of
Mordbrand?
Per Boder “More dirty and mean death metal, expanding on
what we’ve done so far.” c
“Imago” available via Deathgasm Records [www.deathgasm.
com] / Mordbrand [www.facebook.com/officialmordbrand]
Björn Larsson UNVEILS “IMAGO”
01. REVELATE
As mentioned earlier, the crusty riffs were written
by Per in the early 90’s. I incorporated them
with some eerie stuff I had written prior to when
Per sent these for me. A d-beat number with
some Bolt Thrower-esque stuff in the middle.
Perfect opener for “Imago”.
02. JOIN THEM IN THRALLDOM
The marching intro for the song sets the
unsettling mood and then comes the mayhem.
We’re fans of the fast, Slayer-ish stuff too,
which inspired this track. Per’s unique vocals
mixed with the heavy choruses sets this track
apart in my opinion.
03. THAT WHICH CRAWLS
May very well be the best Mordbrand track to
me. The eerie melodies and the heaviness of
it turned out really cool. Again, Per’s vocals
are a highlight on this one too. I really like the
simplicity of the structure.
04. THEIR NAME ARE MYRIADS
Is also somewhat of a simpleton. I wanted to
do a really punky number with some slow grind
a la early black metal (Darkthrone) thrown in. I
think we managed to make what we set out to
do with this one. The solos from CC Dekill and
Eric Cutler makes this track very special to me.
05. HOARDING THE GROTESQUE
Is a grinding fucker. The catchy chorus riff
was written by Johan. For some weird reason
this is one of the few Mordbrand tracks that
reminds me of early Dismember. Perhaps it has
to do with the melodies ‘cause it CERTAINLY
has nothing to with the drums. I don’t think
Dismember ever made a grinding song.
06. BASTION OF BLOOD
Is by far the most ‘out there’ track on the
record. With some great help from our brothers
in Rite it’s as black metal as it can get. I really
don’t know what inspired the riffs on this one,
but the verses makes me think of early Paradise
Lost and the weird disharmonic riffs makes me
think of Inquisition. Unintentionally though.
07. THE SPAWNING (BORN OF ROT)
To me the most standard death metal track
on the album. Nothing too weird going on, just
high speed metal of death. Per’s vocals shines
again.
08. IMAGO
The title track and more or less an interlude of
sorts. Some voice samples from the legendary
Swedish actor Ernst Hugo Järegård reciting H.P.
Lovecraft and other assorted disturbing things.
09. SEVER THE LIMBS THAT GRACE
Ends the album on a high note. A pretty straight
forward d-beat track infused with dark atmosphere
and eerie melodies. Keys by B. Kignell
ends the record on a high note.
“H.P. LOVECRAFT
AND OTHER
ASSORTED
DISTURBING
THINGS”
#1 METALEGION 55

"IF YOU HAVE ANY SORT OF
ASPIRATIONS TO BECOME A
ROCK STAR, IT WOULD BE
VERY DISAPPOINTING"
By Sataniac
TWO YEARS AFTER THE SEVENTH ALBUM “THE
ARTS OF DESTRUCTION” THE FANS ARE STILL
EAGERLY WAITING FOR ITS FOLLOWER. IN
BETWEEN, DESASTER CELEBRATES 25 YEARS
OF EXISTENCE AND TOGETHER WITH HIS PALS
AND FANS DEVASTATED A CITY IN GERMANY
CALLED BAMBERG. THAT UNBLESSED NIGHT
WAS RECORDED AND HIS NOW UNVEILED TO
THE WORLD VIA HIGH ROLLER RECORDS. THE
“YOUNGEST” MEMBER OF THE BAND, VOCALIST
SATANIAC, REVEALS EVERYTHING...
56 METALEGION #1

THE CELEBRATION OF A QUARTER OF A CENTURY THROUGH THE RELEASE OF A CHARISMATIC LIVE
RECORD PROVES THAT THE QUARTET STILL HAS A TOUCH OF MEDIEVAL DARKNESS...
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: SATANIAC (VOCALIST) ..
Ten years after the release of the live album/
DVD “Brazilian Blitzkrieg Blasphemies”,
Desaster returns with the celebration of 25
years of existence and a new live record entitled “Live in
Bamberg”. The celebration of a quarter of a century of
existence is not a very common thing to happen on the
metal scene and should be seen as an important date in a
band’s career. Making a quick retrospective, how do you
see these last 25 years?
“First of all thank you for your interest in Desaster! Ok, I’m
in the band since 2001 and this is also a long period. We are
very happy that we still have enough passion to do a band like
Desaster. We didn’t sold our soul to anybody, and we still love
the things we do.”
Do you think that you lasted this long because as you
said, you haven’t sold your soul to anyone? The history
of metal is full of examples where bands split up simply
because the business side of things ruins completely the
passionate side.
“I don’t really know, but maybe if you expect too much, if you
have any sort of aspirations to become a rock star, it would
be very disappointing if you won’t. Maybe that’s a reason. But
blame it on the passion for the music we love.”
25 years later and considering the evolution of the band
do you feel you have reached the peak of your career as
band and musicians? Or there are still unaccomplished
goals?
“I think we have reached a lot of goals that once was set,
but I know this is different to any member. Personally I have
reached all goals that I wanted to reach with a band like
Desaster.”
Can you tell which were your main goals when you joined
Desaster back in 2001?
“My goal was to release a really good album with them.
Nowadays not only I managed to release one but four really
good studio albums and a lot of other shit.”
I believe that the celebration of these 25 years of existence
with the release of a live record was something planned
beforehand, correct? I remember seeing posts on the
internet several months before the show.
“Of course, this show was planned especially for doing the DVD
live recording.”
What about the choice of Pentacle and Delirium Tremens
as supporters on that show? Pentacle have been long time
friends of Desaster...
“That’s it! We are friends since many years, and we think that
their sound fits very well with what Desaster plays. It’s a little
different to the style we do, but it has the same roots and the
same enthusiasm.”
THE ARTS OF THE UNDERGROUND
Your cooperation with High Roller Records started with
the release of the vinyl version of your 2012 album “The
Arts of Destruction”. Did you presented the opportunity to
release “Live in Bamberg” to Metal Blade Records or High
Roller Records was your first and only choice?
“Metal Blade Records was not interested in releasing a DVD
neither a live album. High Roller Records had done a fine job
with the vinyl version of “The Arts Of Destruction”, so we
asked them if they were interested to release a live album.”
In my opinion they have been doing a tremendous job
by re-releasing long lost metal albums on vinyl format.
I’ve been a vinyl collector myself since I bought “Fatal
Portrait” by King Diamond back in ‘86 and judging by the
quantity of limited editions and labels/bands focusing
their releases only on this format, and on contrary to what
people thought, vinyl stands strong and healthy!
“Of course, vinyl is the format that you can’t copy that easily
since you need specific tools. You can duplicate a CD or rip it to
you hard disk. And today lots of people only have mp3 on their
computers, its handy. Nevertheless vinyl still shows that you
have bought the music you love and care about.”
During the years you have released several live recordings
from different parts of the world. What’s the meaning for
the band to have the possibility to celebrate these 25 years
with a recording of a special gig in your own country?
“This was possible, because we WANT it. We wanted to celebrate
this anniversary with a DVD and a live album release.”
During your performance the crowd is gifted with the
participation of older band members like Tobias, Okkulto,
Alexander Arz or Creator Cassie on several tracks. This
means that everybody is comfortable with the past and
there isn’t any sort of hostility...
“I think so. Everybody who was involved was comfortable
4
#1 METALEGION 57

AVAILABLE IN:
2DVD / DCD / DLP
“LIVE IN BAMBERG”
HIGH ROLLER RECORDS
REVIEWED VERSIONS: 2DVD / DCD
It seems almost like yesterday that I got
the chance to grab a copy of their ‘94
demo “Lost In The Ages” and by the
time “A Touch Of Medieval Darkness”
came out I was completely hooked
with their medieval raw mid-tempo
black thrash assault. The guitar driven
dark melodies and especially the misty
middle age atmospheres were something
that back in ‘96 aroused everybody’s
attention. These guys were definitely
breaking new ground in a period
where black metal was in its highest
peak and all heads were turned to the
prolific grim Norwegian scene.
25 years after its inception I must say
that I’m delighted that these bringers
of the apocalypse stand strong (with
minor line-up oscillations during the
years) and true to its roots. After seeing
the idea of ​releasing a live album
be declined by Metal Blade, they
partnered again with High Roller to
release in three different formats one
hell of a evening. We at Metalegion
had access to both 2DVD and DCD
versions. Since both share the same
audio quality and line-up of songs,
I will focus the review on the video
version. Composed by two DVDs; the
show with 2 hours plus some older
bonus footage (from different band
periods) and a lengthy almost 3 hour
documentary where the band and past
members talk about the whole evolutionary
process. The documentary
itself was organized chronologically
yet in a way that keeps everybody
interested with the insertion of footage
from the early days, crossing some
important events (like the Wacken
gig or the 20th anniversary party at a
boat) to the present days.
For this special night the band managed
to gather all past band members
with the exception of Luggi who
played drums on the demo period. I
have to say that the audience, as well
as myself, were eager to see Okkulto,
vocalist of the first three albums again
on stage. During his five song performance
the explosion of enthusiasm
from the crowd is infectious on songs
like ‘Call on the Beast’ or ‘Teutonic
Steel’. A presence that truly marks an
amazing night.
The setlist is compose by highlights
from all periods of the band, ‘In a
Winter Battle’, ‘Fields of Triumph’
(Tobias “Thorim” replaced Tormentor
behind the drum kit), ‘In the Ban of
Satan’s Sorcery’ (vocals by Samme
Johansson of Orcivus and 2nd guitar
by Simon Seegel of Witchburner),
‘Metalized Blood’ (the final song
where all guest and past members share
the stage), ‘Tyrants of the Netherworld’,
‘Divine Blasphemies’, ‘Satan’s Soldiers
Syndicate’, ‘The Arts of Destruction’
and even a cover from a classic Slayer
song, ‘Black Magic’. What marks “Live in
Bamberg” is the intimacy of the venue,
there is a true sense of communion
between present, past members, guest
musicians and the crowd. For me it only
lacks some mosh and stage diving!
The show is filmed with several professional
cameras giving the possibility of
different and interesting image angels.
The fact that its not a big venue and
that some camera operators are on the
first row (with no pit in between stage
and crowd) and almost at the same level
it passes a realistic thrill of being among
the crowd for the viewers.
“Live in Bamberg” is a raw and true
celebration of a quarter of a century
from a band that waves up high the
flag of the underground since day one.
This is HIGHLY ESSENTIAL not only for
Desaster fans but “real” metal maniacs
in general.
9 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
with this gig, otherwise they won’t be on stage that evening,
I guess.”
Was it a hard task to join everybody together on the same
night?
“All of the old and new members live around the area of
Koblenz. So, there was no member who lives in South Africa or
something like that. Everybody was brought to Bamberg by bus
or car, no problem at all.”
The only former member that did not appeared was
drummer Luggi which participated on your first demos
“The Fog of Avalon” and “Lost in the Ages”. Any specific
reason for that?
“He doesn’t want it. That’s the only reason.”
“Live in Bamberg” was released in 3 different formats,
Compact Disc, Vinyl and DVD. Are you completely satisfied
with the final outcome on all three formats?
“Of course, High Roller Records did a great job again. The
artwork is also pretty cool, and the quality of the pressings is
excellent.”
The DVD version has also something that I considered to
be an essential piece for all Desaster fans. I’m referring
to the documentary covering all aspects of the band and
also unveiling a few more. Visions in Fear, the company
that produced/edited the DVD, made a tremendous work
putting all pieces together!
“Yes, they did. Bomber and his crew did an amazing job, and
we are very happy with the final result. Especially, as you said,
the documentary part which turned out quite interesting and it
won’t bore anyone who likes the band.”
The extremely talented Axel Hermann was again the
designer chosen to create the artwork of “Live in Bamberg”.
Did you had a concept for the cover or was a design
built together with Axel Hermann?
“We hired him again to do the artwork because we love the
work he did for the “The Arts of Destruction” album. There was
no theme around the cover concept of “Live in Bamberg”. He
simply did a painting for a Desaster live album, and we liked
and accepted what he created.”
One of the positive characteristics of “Live in Bamberg” is
that production wise there wasn’t much “cleaning” made.
You have kept the raw, intense and unpolished spirit of a
true Desaster gig. Was this a fundamental aspect for this
release? To keep it real and true?
“Of course, that’s what Desaster is all about. We try to do
authentic and real music. We are not very professional and
not a business band, if you know what I mean, we just set
the demons free when we started the concert. Also there is no
need to “repair” every mistake that was played, that would kill
the atmosphere.”
I have read that some of the songs sung by Okkulto on
this show were subject to a poll on your facebook page.
How did you end up having this idea? Pleasing the fans is
always one of your concerns?
“The fans are always the most important part on a concert.
And we decided to let them choose the songs that Okkulto
should do.”
TRIBUTE TO JEFF HANNEMAN
During the years you have always paid homage to great
bands by playing and recording their songs. Some of the
covered names were Cancer, Death, Sabbat, Unleashed,
Razor, Kreator to name just a few. On the newly edited
“Live in Bamberg” record, ‘Black Magic’ from the mighty
Slayer was chosen. Do you feel that when playing these
classics, besides having great fun, you are also passing
the right “message” to the younger generation?
“Old Slayer was the beginning of real extreme metal and they
are still my all-time favourites. But the most important thing to
play “Black Magic” on that evening was to give a tribute to Jeff
Hanneman, who did most of the killer songs for Slayer!”
The sudden death of Jeff Hanneman on 2013 was a shock
to the metal community. Nevertheless, despite the uncertainty
around Slayer’s future they have already announced
that they are working on new material and a new album is
planned for 2015. Keeping Slayer alive is probably the best
way to remember Jeff Hanneman, don’t you agree?
“From that point I agree with you, but this is not a guarantee
for quality. I don’t know how the album will be without Jeff and
of course without Dave. We will see.”
What do you think of the arduous task, now more than
ever, Gary Holt has in hands? He is probably one the few
guitarists up to the task of filling the vacant spot left by
Jeff Hanneman.
“Gary is a great guitar player, a titan of thrash metal. We will
see what he can do for a new Slayer album. I will hardly miss
Dave, because Paul can’t do the job like Dave would. That’s
the biggest problem in my opinion.”
A tribute album entitled “We Worship Desaster” is being
prepared as we speak... Do you feel honoured that other
musicians/bands refer your music as an influence?
“Of course that is a big honour. What else? Even if we can’t live
from the music we make, there are a lot of people and musicians
who loves our music, and name us as a big influence.
That’s more than just cool... (laughs)”
Tormentor (the band member with most side project/
bands) has joined forces with the cult band Asphyx this
year. How is the band dealing with this new situation?
“That’s not really a problem, because Desaster haven’t much
booked shows this year. We will see how it works in the future,
but this year it wasn’t a problem at all.”
More than two years have passed since the release of your
7th album “The Arts of Destruction”. My final question
would be; when can we expect a new album out? Can you
already unveil something for the readers of Metalegion?
“Not really. We have almost 4 new songs written, but it’s too
early to talk about a new album. In my opinion there is no need
to bring an album every two years. In fact I can’t tell you when
a new album will be unleashed.” c
“Live In Bamberg” available via High Roller Records [www.
hrrecords.de] / Desaster [www.total-desaster.com]
58 METALEGION #1

HIGHLIGHTS BY SATANIAC
1985
1989
1994
SLAYER
Hell Awaits
“As I listened the first time to “Hell
Awaits” I was just blown away,
because this was real dark, evil and
sadistic music. Not to be compared
to Venom which sound always a
little “funny” to me. I love Venom
too, but Slayer managed to bring the
most powerful and dark sound with
a professional musicianship. This will
always be my album no.1!”
MORBID ANGEL
Altars Of Madness
“Morbid Angel was able to bring
death metal to a new level. The
unique guitar style, well done blast
beats and a truly morbid and sick
atmosphere. Every song on “Altars
Of Madness” is a hit! No need to say
more about this.”
EMPEROR
In The Nightside Eclipse
“This is the best black metal
album (together with “De
Mysteriis Dom Sathanas”)
which was ever made. A new
dimension of hate, a unique
style compared with a strong
will and musicianship. Excellent!”
“A NEW DIMENSION OF HATE...”
#1 METALEGION 59

44MAG
OUTLAW PSYCHOSIS
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
This second album from the Williamsport
thrashers delivers a wide range of influences
that don’t necessarily result in a cohesive
mixture of good thrash even if there are some
good parts thrown into the mix. The main focus
of the music side is the decided shift away from
traditional thrashing patterns in favour of more
hard rock vibe full of simple drumming patterns,
static riffing and commercialized vocals that
don’t offer any sort of vile spirit or bite that’s
usually associated with the thrash world. It’s not
really all that interesting at times, despite the
occasional dip into faster realms when it calls
for this type of energy, like both ‘Heroes of the
New Aeon’ and ‘Hands of Misery’. But there’s
not a lot of emphasis on playing with more
traditional thrash rhythms or patterns here as it
showcases a cocky swagger like in ‘D.U.I.’ and
‘Rock Smoker’ into the tracks. Several tracks,
most notably ’50 Miles’, delves into the sludge
realms with sprawling bass-led tempos, simple
rhythms and a southern-rock tinge to the guitar
tone that really compliments the hard rock
material well, but really tends to hamper the
intent of going for the jugular as it favours more
simplified sequences that are nowhere-near as
pounding, as devastating or dynamic as most
thrash tends to get where it lays on the rather
frantic devastation. There’s still some thrash
involved here with the faster rhythms, raucous
energy and charging riff-work at times but the
sprawling, doom-like paces really saps a lot of
the energy found in those thrash rhythms.
Overall, this is a pretty eclectic mix of influences
but the problem is that it’s not a good one.
Normally, thrash is tight, dense and energetic
with dynamic riffing and dexterous drumming
propelling a song along, and in spurts it gives
off the tight crunch but more-often-than-not the
rather bland hard rock really conflicts with this
type of music. The commercialized, simplistic
patterns are kept as the primary focus here and
are a wholly different set of rhythms that off-set
the type of influences to be gained from the
thrash metal base of this as the lower tempos,
swaggering riff patterns and energetic-but-simplistic
melodies really make for a hard rock
album mixed with minor amounts of thrash. This
lowered form of the music tends to cause the
songs to be so sluggish and lacking in energy
that it’s so deprived of active tracks it’s varied
influences and widespread canvas of work is
not enough to save it. This is not at all helped by
the fact that the music is obviously not recorded
with a big budget and the tone of the guitars
is the biggest offender here with an irritating,
up-front tone that really doesn’t do the music a
lot of good. There’s just a pretty painful tone with
the hard rock and sludge influences providing a
harder edge to the music that differs greatly from
the pleasing tones that thrash usually have. With
the types of swagger and sprawling paces that
flow, it can get pretty irritating quite quickly.
While kudos must be given to the band for having
a large amount of influences and the courage to
paint such a varied canvas with such works, the
sad fact that the influences chosen don’t really
mesh well together by the inherent differences in
their tone and approach, end up colliding pretty
heavily and making this a generally disappointing
effort. Though it does have some solid points
about it at times, the overwhelming amount of
flaws here do keep this one from being all that
rewarding and only really recommended for
hardcore fans of the style.
5 | DON ANELLI
ABYSSAL ASCENDANT
UNLEASHING THE OUTER
PLAGUES [EP]
SELF RELEASED / DOLOREM RECORDS
With a logo not unlike what one would see on
a 16-bit video game title screen (and a band
name one “a” short of alliteration), one can
easily dismiss France’s Abyssal Ascendant as
one beast in the larger legion of death metal
bands that seek to replicate the old-school
masterworks of the genre. This action would do
this humble monster a disservice, because the
band’s EP “Unleashing the Outer Plagues” is not
unlike a young and ambitious netherworld entity
with an eye (or eyes) on making a name for itself
amongst its legion of brethren. With a full length
due out in summer 2015, this six song debut is
very promising as a statement of intent.
At the first sign of blasting violence, the listener
knows this recording is going to be a punishing
effort, one that sounds similar to mid-period Nile
in its murky compression. Try not, I meant TRY
NOT to break something as ‘Interdimensional
Predation’ ratchets up along with an old-school
death snarl from vocalist “Flo” (I imagined the
progressive Insurance lady gone horribly cosmic
Brundlefly) and try, TRY not to rip your own
arm off and kill the nearest living poser with it
10 - OUTSTANDING
09 - VERY GOOD
08 - GOOD
07 - SOLID
06 - SATISFACTORY
05 - BEARABLE
04 - DISAPPOINTING
03 - MEDIOCRE
02 - VERY BAD
01 - TERRIBLE
during the chugging of ‘Webcrafting the End.’
It all makes for very physical and provoking
listening. But the strongest aspect of this set
of songs lies in their ability to set the mood
with interludes and sound effects. Right off the
bat, ‘Abysmal Cadavers Procession’ uses some
squishy and slimy sound effects to simulate the
otherworldly physicality of the entities described
within. ‘The Beyond One’ begins with a really
cool monologue delivered from the perspective of
Yog-Sothoth, one of the those scary Lovecraftian
deities that can state with confidence its ability
to be “both the key and the door.” For one not
well versed with the mythos, the interludes are
nevertheless mysterious and enticing enough to
invite further inspection and also enhances the
already immersive material. The monologue ends
up being the most memorable moment during
the running time, but that doesn’t lessen the
other highlights “Plagues” has to offer. Key cut
‘Down to the Abyss’ is a beautiful and mystical
track that is strongly reminiscent of Nile’s
best moments (down to the bells, choirs and
chugging) and hints at a knack for multifaceted
songcraft. There is much to find and enjoy even
in the record’s short running time.
A lesson learned: what self-respecting metal
fan can know little to nothing about the Great
Old Ones and their reality warping abilities? This
author resolves to make an effort to learn sooner
rather than later, so he can properly enjoy the
ritualistic atmosphere presented by these priests
of Yog-Sothoth with much more fervour.
9 | ARJUN ARMAN
AGGRESSIVE TYRANTS
NARCOSURREALISMUS
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTION
Smack-dab in the middle of Europe lays
the Czech Republic, a continuing hotbed for
awesome extreme music. Aggressive Tyrants
(perhaps a bit redundant) play gory and zesty
deathgrind. A prospective listener can expect
blasting rhythms, crazed multi-vocals and lots
of sexy/gross samples from assorted horror and
porn films (try not to get a hard-on at the end
of ‘Pitva Otýlie Vranské’). When applicable, they
aren’t in English, and not knowing the language
does add a bit to the mystique (samples are
usually the only discernable linguistic emanations
that result from a collection like this). I
mean, what exactly is going on in piece before
the chicken-clucking ‘Ko Ko Ko Ko Dak?’ There
are audible avian actors in the sample, which
suggests a farm/rural setting. The dialogue
(German?) suggests some nasty/hot tomfoolery
involving/not-involving chickens is afoot. And
then the clucking starts: slow, then less slow,
and then very fast. Annoying, but also entertaining
and fun. But the mystery haunts still.
The kitchen sink approach is employed here, and
as a result the work is about twice as long as it
should be. There isn’t a rule that says one has to
listen to everything front to back though. Still, the
album begins to drag about halfway through, just
as the band seems to be repeating themselves
and sticking to the genre formula pretty closely.
And when they don’t, ‘Mass Murders Anal Sperm
Terrorists (Remix)’ and ‘Stará Píča!?!’ becomes
possible outcomes. With electrified percussion
worthy of a European dance floor and catchy
gang shouts/gurgles etc, they both break up the
energy developed prior but also prove interesting.
Humour is a likely motive. There is a dead- on
parody/tribute to Godflesh entitled ‘God flesh is
Maryjane’ that proves to be an album highlight.
Not the most efficient album, but in the end it
gets the job done in its own nasty and grimy way.
Worth a listen for fans of goregrind/deathgrind,
but probably not essential to metalheads of
different interests.
7 | ARJUN ARMAN
ALBOR
UNKNOWN [DEMO]
GRAVADORA INFERNO
Sadly there isn’t much info about the current
status of Albor and judging by their non-updated
official Facebook page it looks like nothing is
happening. This is quite sad because the 2013
demo “Unknown” is a serious testimony of
good Brazilian doom metal with a true vintage
touch. To tell the truth besides a few bands like
Mythological Cold Towers, Serpent Rise, Óraculo
or Silent Cry I don’t really remember hearing any
other doom metal related bands coming from the
sunny lands of Brazil. What is even more curious
around Albor is that out of nowhere they hit you
with a serious slab of doom metal influenced
by bands like Black Sabbath, Saint Vitus,
Candlemass or Uriah Heep. As first release
“Unknown” truly impresses to say the least,
the clean yet dynamic vocal work by Wellington
together with the almost 70’s psychedelic
keyboard melodies of Tiago (thus the Uriah Heep
connection) levelled Albor’s music to high ranks
and leave the listener wishing for a debut album
really soon. Of course “Unknown” isn’t flawless
but that’s a normal state for the large majority
of bands that release something for the first
time, however the dedication, freshness and
intensity of the songs surpasses any weakness,
especially at the composition level. The songs
have a pleasant rough analogue sonority and are
mainly slow to mid-paced with the occasional
focus on psychedelic synths or a guitar lead but
always retaining a dismal edge like on ‘Reflexes’,
‘Twilight Apocalyptic’ or the closing ‘The Voice
60 METALEGION #1

of Death’ which opens with a long dramatic
keyboard line and then slowly transforms into
a vicious pounding beast (courtesy of bassist
Josivan and drummer Müde). The charm of Albor
relies on its simplicity, spontaneous heaviness
and gloomy ambiance. I can surely see Albor
signing with a label like I Hate Records for
instance; just give these guys a chance!
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
ANGMAR
CÉNOTAPHE (LOST TRACKS)
ARMÉE DE LA MORT RECORDS
APHONIC THRENODY
WHEN DEATH COMES
DOOMENTIA RECORDS / SURE SHOT WORX
ALFAHANNE
ALFAPOKALYPS
DARK ESSENCE RECORDS / KARISMA
RECORDS
Fortunately I’ve been cursed with an
open minded attitude and I’m able to
either like old-school Darkthrone as
much as The Sisters of Mercy or The
Misfits. This to say that the apocalyptic
punk black rock that the new Swedish
band Alfahanne plays, unlike other
metal journalists or fans, doesn’t left
me perplexed or didn’t collide with
unreligious (laughs) musical tastes at all,
still I can comprehend why Alfahanne are
creating so much fuzz around. In one hand
you have a band that is able to attract the
interest of notable black metal musicians
as guest vocalists like Hoest (Taake), Niklas
Kvarforth (Shining) or V’gandr (Helheim) but
on the other with a sonority so distinctive
from plain metal that it makes it hard for the
usual brutal or aggressive metal music fan
to like it. Nevertheless the metal influences
couldn’t be more ostensive and present...
Put a perverse black metal guitar riffing
mixed along with a punk attitude, a slow
menacing 80’s gothic rock vibe plus some
rough Swedish vocals and you are probably
halfway to picture what Alfahanne is all
about. NO, its not post-black metal! I guess
that the beauty of “Alfapokalyps” resides
precisely on that odd mixture of styles and
Swedish accent, in one moment you can
be trapped inside the sharp black metal
tremolo picking riff of ‘Syndarnas Flod’ and
in the next dancing at the sound of the 80’s
gothic rock Music feeling of ‘Rocken Dör’.
It’s not a new thing that metal musicians
embark on different paths; we have for
instance Shagrath from Dimmu Borgir that
formed the Motörhead influenced band
Chrome Division. Alfahanne might be a new
band however their background couldn’t be
heavier, Pehr Skioldhammer for instance
played on names like Maze of Torment or
Vinterland. If you are brave and tolerant
enough to give this a try, I recommend it
during a party after a few beers. And by
the way this was mastered by Tore Stjerna
at Necromorbus Studio, so it should mean
something...
8.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
“A PERVERSE BLACK
METAL GUITAR
RIFFING MIXED
ALONG WITH A PUNK
ATTITUDE, A SLOW
MENACING 80’S
GOTHIC ROCK VIBE
PLUS SOME ROUGH
SWEDISH VOCALS”
France has had its share of extreme metal greats
for some decades now. It can therefore honestly
be said that French bands have a lot to live up
to, particularly black metal groups, as one is
given to unconsciously hold them to the standard
of the legendary cult, Les Légions Noires. And
in many ways, Angmar attempts to reach back
to the very soul of black metal, back to when
LLN itself was still unknown in the wider scene.
Its name itself is derived from Tolkien’s epics,
and its most recent album titled, ‘Cénotaphe
(Lost Tracks)’ closes out with a Bathory cover.
So, essentially, we have a group with powerful
foundations and a proud legacy to live up to.
The question now is how well Angmar lives up
to the standards it sets, and after listening to
“Cénotaphe” several times, I believe it very
nearly does. The album starts off with a storm of
powerful guitar chords and distorted riffing. The
guitar work is very nice, almost reminiscent of
Amon Amarth, and the percussion offers a fastpaced
backing to the rest of the instrumentation.
The vocals take some getting used to, since
they’re neither a growl nor a true shriek, but a bit
like a strangled yell. I found this rather annoying,
but more on the vocals later. We really do reach
back to the soul of metal in the third song,
though. Arpeggiated guitar work implemented in
a remarkably creative manner create a curious,
wandering, exploring sort of introduction. Then
the chaos begins again, but the first part of the
song is a nice intermission in the otherwise
rapid-fire album. It seems like Angmar finds its
sound around this point. For the remainder of
the album, the vocals and guitar start to come
together and find a rhythm. In later songs, it’s
easy to picture the Witch King and his subordinates
plotting among one another about the fate
of their realm. The atmosphere gets better too.
Pacing remains exciting and rapid, but precisely
executed, not at all muddled or uncertain or
turbulent. The transitions are strong and smooth,
rather than disjointed, and the Bathory cover
reminds of the Russian circle Blaze Birth Hall,
which is one of my very favourite black metal
circles. Chilling minimalist guitar work interplays
with clean vocals in a salute that sends Quorthon
off to his fate in Valhalla. I look forward to
listening to the group’s further evolutions in the
years to come.
8 | ALEX ROSS
The first image that crossed my mind when
reaching the end of “When Death Comes” was
of a last remaining leaf on a tree forced to fall
due to the gentle breeze on a moribund autumn
day... The second song ‘Death Obsession’ is
probably the metal hymn to all things rotten
and decaying on this puzzling world, such is the
contrast between slow tortuous sonic paths and
beautiful driven melodies on a 17 minute almost
epic composition. Having said that you probably
have already figured it out what style of music
Aphonic Threnody are playing... Surprise! Funeral
doom/death metal! Like myself, I’m sure that
most of the fans haven’t heard about this six
piece beast spread through four different countries
earlier, nonetheless with a debut album as
strong as this one I can for sure state that they
will quickly get the deserved recognition among
the fans of the genre. The band builds a strong
musical tension and wanders through desolate
fields of nothingness during a bit more than an
hour without any sign of weariness and this is
what places “When Death Comes” among the
best albums of the genre. One of the singularities
of Aphonic Threnody relies on the cello, keyboard
and piano work of Abel and Kostas which in the
end stand out completely on songs like ‘Death
Obsession’, ‘The Children’s Sleep’ or ‘Our Way
to the Ground’. The guttural vocals of Roberto
give the necessary contrast to those moments of
instrumental melodic fullness while the sinuous
arrangements create the necessary slow paced
mood that will lead the listener through a long
dreary acoustic journey. This debut album
features two guest participations from members
of famed bands like Esoteric and Shape of
Despair. Those names alone give a clear vision
regarding the sort of sonority to expect on “When
Death Comes” but I could also trace similarities
to names like Skepticism, Evoken, Doom:Vs or
Ahab. They are not discovering the wheel neither
it’s expected on a genre sometimes faced to
itself, however they sound fresh with a palpable
heavy dose of enthusiasm, memorable riffs and
guitar leads that together with elaborated compositions
pushes almost without notice Aphonic
Threnody to the upfront of the “funeral” scene.
9 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
BACKWATER
TAKE EXTREME FORMS
IRON SHIELD RECORDS / PURE STEEL PROMOTION
Backwater are back after a very brief pause...
That took just 27 years. To be specific, only
guitarist Thomas Guschelbauer returned. It´s
nice to know that he still likes to play metal,
but quite honestly, this album has nothing to do
with the old Backwater sound. Of course, further
development is not forbidden. Nevertheless,
it would had been a good idea to release this
album under a different name.
4
#1 METALEGION 61

Instead of creating new pieces at the interface
of punk and metal, they seem to be stressed
while playing a kind of old men metal. After a
lively start (‘Arise’), they offer the viscous ‘New
Fire’ that sounds like the last breath of a dying
man. It seems like they had to work very hard to
record this song, any form of creative lightness
is missing. Unfortunately, this does not remain
an isolated case. More songs sound as stale
as if they had been recorded 20 years ago.
This comes together with the mediocre voice of
Oliver Hirsch which is powerful but anything but
extraordinary.
Some of the choruses create suspense (‘Deepest
Black’, ‘Take Extreme Forms’), but a good chorus
alone does not lead to a convincing song. Not
even the fact that the modern production knows
how to please can change this dissatisfying
situation. There are just too many songs that
don’t get straight to the point. Unfortunately,
the prevailing mid-tempo and the somehow
blurry riffs are not helpful, too. Even though their
second album had already neglected their punk
roots, it generated a great amount of energy
while “Take Extreme Forms” exactly lacks of this
element. To be honest, Backwater were at no
time an important part of the German thrash /
speed metal explosion of the mid-eighties. I liked
their albums, but in general, they were regarded
as the clowns of the scene. Despite the fact, that
the band delivers a few fairly appealing tunes
like ‘Run or Die’, I fear that this reunion will
remain largely unnoticed.
6 | FELIX 1666
BANE OF BEDLAM
MONUMENT OF HORROR
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
These Australians’ debut full-length, following
up their 2011 EP “The Last Testament”, offers
a fairly seamless blend of “retro” and more
modern thrash styles, with a touch of old-school
death metal (mainly in the raspy, growly vocals)
and a pleasingly strong, thick production. Along
with the mix of “old” and “new” musical elements,
they also combine the heavier, harsher,
more Teutonic strains of thrash metal (a la
Sodom, Kreator, etc.) with a more melodic, epic
side vaguely reminiscent of American classics
like “Master of Puppets” or “Rust in Peace”. So
far so good, right? Well, I don’t know if it’s just a
matter of comparing this independently produced
album (perhaps unfairly) to the greats of the
genre past and present, but even if everything
here is perfectly competent and adequate,
there’s not a great deal about “Monument of
Horror” that truly excites my inner thrasher.
‘Woken by the Horde’ is a quite solid opening
track, with some classic (if not very original)
headbanging riffs and a nice sense of focus and
momentum, at least, for the first four-and-a-half
minutes or so. This, for me personally, is maybe
Bane of Bedlam’s greatest flaw: the tendency
of their songs to meander on a bit too long,
losing a lot of the energy they’ve previously built
up, as well as the listener’s attention. As I’ve
already stressed, there’s nothing wrong with
the component pieces of these tunes, but in
my opinion, trimming the majority of them by a
minute or two would likely make for a better listening
experience. There are enough cool thrashy
riffs here (not to mention some pretty badass
extended screams from the vocalist) to at least
show promise of something better to come.
6 | KEVIN AKSTIN
BARBARIAN
FAITH EXTINGUISHER
DOOMENTIA RECORDS / SURE SHOT WORX
The beginning of 2014 sees the Italian trio, Barbarian,
returning with the follower to their split
with blackened thrash metal sensation Bunker
66. “Faith Extinguisher” is marked by a clear
attempt to move away from their muddy and raw
Hellhammer / Celtic Frost influences and shows
a band diving into a more speed / thrash sonority
with a strong heavy metal heritage. I’m sure
that as soon as the opener ‘Faith Extinguisher’
creeps in and Borys Crossburn pulls out some
undeniably influenced 80’s “classic” guitar leads
you will understand what I’m trying to transmit
on paper. Still, rest assure all those demo-period
fans, Barbarian have grown and tried to give
a more personal feeling to their music, though
keeping their mid-tempo old-school black
metal rotten aura (a la Venom, Bathory, Celtic
Frost) that was so praised on the first self-titled
release. This debut album is one of those records
that needs a few spins in order to hit you on the
face big time. “Faith Extinguisher” has its own
relentless melodic raw charm (the final track ‘We
Are the Profane’ is a real example of that) on the
same proportion as a pure sense of primal and
even naive heavy metal structures. During half
an hour the listener is (nearly) mesmerized with
the constant speed tempo changes, where in one
moment Borys Crossburn is conjuring vicious
black/thrash riffs, on the next melodic heavy
metal leads and ending on crushing doom laden
harmonies (‘Crux et Circenses’). The vocals was
another of the improved aspects, Borys still has
that effective harsh edge however he timely left
all the serious similarities with Tom G. Warrior.
He sounds groovier and thrashier than before,
just hear the song ‘Total Metal’ and I’m sure
you will end up singing along on the chorus...
‘Toorrmentor’! Sorry, ‘Total Metal’ (laughs).
BARBARIAN
SWORDS
HUNTING RATS
BLOOD FIRE DEATH
This is not your typical metal band and
that is precisely what sets these guys
apart from the rest of the wolfpack. I
must start saying that I was a bit sceptical
on my first listening, especially
because I found Von Päx’s harsh grim
voice and singing almost spoken style
a bit hard to digest and sometimes
slightly baffling. Although I’m glad
I pushed myself and gave “Hunting
Rats” the possibility to grow because
it’s actually a valuable slow journey
into the vengeful pits of hell. This debut
album is composed by the “Crusaders
of the Apocalypse” 2012 demo plus
5 new tracks reaching the one hour
mark of total black doom annihilation.
The band manages to blend the best
of the two mentioned worlds and
this is what catches the attention on
the first listening, as it builds a very
strong dark almost funeral vibe and
its own peculiar mesmerizing tortuous
charm. The pace is slow, pounding with
penetrating raw guitar riffs however
retaining a menacing structure and little
details here in there to keep the level
of enthusiasm high and the lengthy
songs interesting even if they aren’t
overly distinctive from each other. ‘For
My Honor’ is for sure the black sheep
(not in a depreciative sense) because
not only triples the speed but also adds
a prominent and enjoyable punk’n’roll
vibe to the mix. There are also one or
two moments where the band goes
beyond the slow rhythmic boundaries
of the sludge doom like on ‘Putrid
Whore - The Holy Church’ adding also a
rock’n’rollish vibe to the alcoholic raw
brew or on ‘My Realm - The Frostland
Inquisition’ where the black metal
influences are a lot more present with
a foreground grim riffing. In the end I
must confess that even if it took 1 or
2 extra spins to get used to Von Päx’s
slow harsh shrieking vocal style (it can
be a dissuasive aspect for some fans),
it’s definitely one of the strong and
valid reasons why “Hunting Rats” turns
out quite distinctive from most albums.
If you cope well with atrocious audio
pain, this blend of Hellhammer with
Grave and Darkthrone will be playing on
your stereo for quite some time.
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
For a debut album that it is (with its good and
bad things) and crawling on the rotten analogue
depths of primal black / thrash I’m sure that you
will be attracted towards their simplistic and
retrograde metal approach.
7 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
BESEGRA
INFORTUNIUM [EP]
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
This debut effort is a fantastic starting point
for a band and shows a tremendous amount of
potential. This is decidedly energetic melodic
death metal that aims for loftier goals that
include scores of technically-proficient rhythms,
ranging from tight chugging in ‘The Beast Submits’
to sweeping melodies found in ‘Divisions’.
The majority of the tracks do manage to hit off
on rather-complex rhythms at a high speed. The
melodies are still the main point, with a variety
of slower to mid-range tempos that perfectly
allow these to come through nicely in ‘Master of
Attrition’ while the occasional dip into the faster
speeds still come packed with melodies. The
impressive part about it, is that they’re generally
harmonious riffs and leads running throughout,
which feature furious speed-driven intertwined
soloing on many of the tracks (best found in
‘Blood Lust’). The tracks here manage to feature
some complex rhythms and soaring melodies
throughout, and I can certainly highlight the kind
of tempo changes found in ‘Open Arms’ and ‘This
is What Killers Are Made Of’. They allow a fine
intensity after the frequent changes of the rest of
the material. With only six tracks it seems way
too short, going by too soon, as this is rather fun
when it goes along but suddenly stops without
really feeling like an appropriate finish. As far as
debut releases go, this is certainly not all bad.
As stated, the only thing off on this one is the
fact that, as an EP it’s perfect as it is, but
the band is so good at this melodic brand of
technically-proficient death metal that you want
more than what you got. It works for what it is
but leaves you feeling unsatisfied. Things should
pick up considerably on the next effort if the
band continues this strong onslaught of songs
that show a remarkable depth for a newcomer
band and certainly sets them off on a bright
future ahead, definitely making them a band to
watch out for in the future if they can keep this
kind of quality going.
8 | DON ANELLI
BETRAYER F.T.M.
FULL BLAST
BORN OF CHAOS RECORDS / VLADPROMOTION
One of the many promising bands in the vibrant
South American scene. The second effort from
Colombian thrashers Betrayer F.T.M. is an
overall solid outing that contains some rather
impressive features but is still a somewhat
bland album. There’s a retro-style feel to this
one as the prime focus here is on tight, energetic
62 METALEGION #1

old-school thrash metal rhythms fuelled by
heavy doses of punk that give off that definitive
streak of Bay Area-flavoured music (best found
in the Spanish-language ‘Tridente Satanas’).
There’s a tight, heavy crunch that really propels
the songs through a rather frenetic pace, such as
both ‘Green Fire’ and ‘Raising Power’, that really
stays locked in the mid-tempo quite regularly as
the punk influence really lowers the dexterity of
the rhythms. This is straight from intro ‘City Hell’
and ‘Filthy Sam’ where it’s all mid-tempo paced
old-school thrash. It’s pretty straight-forward
and doesn’t really weave a great deal of technical
prowess into the music as the select riffs
are built off each other to the point of little-to-no
variation whatsoever so that by the time it gets
to the solo sections these dynamic riffs and
surging rhythms inject a far greater energy into
the music, like on ‘Evil Hounds’ and ‘Thunder in
the Night Sky’, rather than the mid-tempo flurries
that the punk influences put in. This makes
the music quite flashy and generally up-beat
at times, even though the majority of the tracks
are stuck in that mid-tempo pace that is part
of the genre, just in more simplified manners.
Regardless of the speed or general tightness of
the rhythms, its more extraneous speeds being
reserved for the dynamic series of high-velocity
soloing comes against the more restrained and
low-key sections along the remainder of the
tracks, so the quick change of speed accounts
for the only real dynamic quality of the music,
further reinforcing its simplicity.
As a whole, the album is solid enough but does
have some limitations. The biggest issue is the
rather flat production which really does this
material no favours. While this is to be somewhat
expected coming from a South American
band, where it’s not common for good-sounding
albums to come from, there’s still a couple
problems. The guitars are given the biggest level
of sheen with a tight crunch that effectively
mimics the late-80s Bay Area sound effectively
and accurately, but nothing else has that same
bite to it. The bass rumbles along but never
really engages the music all that much, generally
tending to clank away on different rhythms
instead of blending into the guitars while the
drums are worse off, sounding low-key and sluggish
so there’s no power or thunder from them at
all. It’s where a large amount of the energy from
the genre comes from as the powerful rhythms
and dexterous patterns are supposed to merge
into a forceful unit, but this never reaches that
level anywhere. The vocals are quite weak, as
the same inflection is carried throughout with
no range, no dynamics and is really just a bland
overall tone that blends in with the rest of the
music quite well and highlights the other flaw
to this one. There’s not a whole lot of difference
in the music as a whole, as the variety is based
on bouncy, energetic up-tempo rhythms and the
low-key tracks being simplistic, punk-like feel
riff-work in the rhythms, and this doesn’t have a
lot of chances to spice up the tracks.
While not the best example of South American
thrash, this is still quite impressive nonetheless
and becomes an overall enthusiastic account
for the style. Had this one fixed its production
problems, the fact that the music is a lot less
lively than normal is a big hurdle to get over and
the rather relaxed atmosphere generally offers
up more trouble with the pronounced similarity of
the tracks being even more of an issue, leaving
this one generally more for the old-school thrash
collector or South American bands in general.
7.5 | DON ANELLI
BLACK ALTAR
SUICIDAL SALVATION [EP]
DARKER THAN BLACK
It’s always a nice surprise when you come
across a powerful band from a country with a
proud legacy in extreme metal, that is in fact not
connect with the most famous bands or circles
active in the country around its inception. Black
Altar, though formed during the heyday of the
legendary Temple of Fullmoon cult, seems to
have no connections to bands like Fullmoon,
Legion, and others. Stylistically there are
profound differences as well, so I had to listen to
“Suicidal Salvation” without any context.
I was fairly impressed. This is an album that
creates really good, devastated atmosphere
through excellent guitar work. Instrumentation is
fast, almost chaotic for the most part, but there
are slower sections that give the listener time
to “breathe”. This serves to drive up the chilling
aura created by the music. Also contributing to
the atmospheric elements of “Suicidal Salvation”
are the vocals. They’re deep, death-like growls,
and though I think they would have benefited
from variation, I can’t complain about them.
In fact, the only real complaint I have about this
album is that it doesn’t do anything particularly
exciting. It’s plain, brutal, chaotic black metal.
The riffing doesn’t do anything creative, nor does
the drum work, so the high points of the music
are smoothed out by the fact that experienced
listeners of black metal have heard it all before.
Furthermore, there are parts of this album that
seem cheesy, for example the last song. I found
the lyrics to be almost funny, and the lack of
severe guitar distortion fails to maintain my
suspense of disbelief. So overall, I’d say that
“Suicidal Salvation” doesn’t quite hit the nail on
the head. Nothing is particularly new or different,
and while the music is compositionally solid, I
just wasn’t very excited by it at all. It’s worth a
listen, but don’t expect a powerful experience
from this album.
6 | ALEX ROSS
BLACK PROPAGANDA
PSYCHOLOGICAL SUBJECTION
NADIR MUSIC
Almost three years after their self titled debut
album being released, the Italian quartet returns
4
“THIS ALBUM HAS
A SIMILAR FEEL
TO GOATWHORE’S
WORK”
BLACK ANVIL
HAIL DEATH
RELAPSE RECORDS / PETTING ZOO
PROPAGANDA
I am a black metal fan. I love the
rapidfire blastbeats, distorted tremolo
picking, and shrieked vocals common
to the genre. Black metal itself is a
derivation of thrash metal, but I have
done little enough listening to thrash
that I can rarely confirm it for myself.
Black Anvil’s “Hail Death”, however, is one
of those albums that shows the evolution
of black metal from its thrash roots. There
are several points in which the drummer
produces the unmistakable angry blast
beat that’s now a staple in black metal, but
these are few and far between enough that
the music itself is not black metal overall.
Similarly, there are a few points where the
guitarists engage in unmistakable tremolo
picking, but it’s not quite enough for me to
call “Hail Death” a pure black metal release.
Instead we have something that’s between
black metal and thrash metal, with a dose
of hard rock thrown in just for fun. Pacing is
often harried in a similar vein to the black
metal hits of the early 90s. I think this is a
net positive for the feel of the album, since
it adds quite a chaotic feel to the music.
In addition, the growled, distorted vocals
often employed by the vocalist are quite
pleasant. It makes me feel as if I am not yet
at the point where black metal artists have
developed the signature shriek of the genre;
instead, I’m standing alongside the thrash
artists who slowly felt their way toward
what would become black metal.
There’s a punkish sound here and there
in the album. I won’t say where these
moments are, but they are both surprising
and enjoyable. All in all, this album has a
similar feel to Goatwhore’s work, and the
accomplishments of that band ought to be
enough to let you know that I appreciate
“Hail Death”.
It’s not without fault, though. There’s nothing
truly creative about “Hail Death”. We’ve
got thrash metal moments, black metal
moments, a few punkish moments, and
musical ideas common to other forms of
extreme metal. We’re making our way down
well-trodden paths here, and the musicianship
isn’t technical enough to bring anything
quite new to the table, either. Furthermore,
I felt that the more black metal parts of the
album weren’t always fast enough to really
create any excellent atmosphere.
With that said, some of the slower songs
do offer pretty good moments. These often
have pleasant gothic feels, which were not
expected, but well appreciated. This creates
another problem, though. The album doesn’t
have much flow to it, and even changing the
order of the songs might not have fixed this
issue. There are just a hair too many conflicting
ideas at play here to create a really
serious, solid offering that you must listen to
from beginning to end. The individual songs
have strong ideas, so composition overall
is good. But nothing in “Hail Death” is truly
superb, not quite.
Overall, “Hail Death” is more than
enjoyable. It’s certainly worth listening to,
and if you’re a fan of the general style of
this music, go ahead and pick it up. As for
fans of faster or more technical metal, or for
people who are looking for real atmosphere
and powerful emotions, you might consider
passing. Good, but not great!
7.5 | ALEX ROSS
#1 METALEGION 63

with a new dose of furious thrash metal blended
with some hardcore hints and light death metal
brush strokes. In between there were some
line-up changes, both guitar and bass player
were replaced, that definitely led to some
internal adjustments. Instrumentally the band
furiously convinces the listener with their energetic
song arrangements and some guitar savage
details, like the solo part on ‘Hand of God’, ‘God
Rape The Queen’ or ‘Lose Your Balance’. However,
the Jacopo Battuello’s screaming vocals a
la Phil Anselmo create a massive wall of sound
that doesn’t work entirely for me. Don’t get me
wrong, I consider “Cowboys from Hell” and
“Vulgar Display of Power” two ground breaking
albums, the difference is that the Texas quartet
were able to compose very distinctive songs. On
this aspect I wouldn’t go as far as saying that
Black Propaganda failed completely, because
they know how to handle their instruments and
introduce nice twists and details. Still I believe
they need to refine the formula in order to create
more memorable songs. That’s probably what
“Psychological Subjection” lacks, songs that
grab you by the balls on the first listening, songs
that stick easily on your head. On the other hand
if you are able to appreciate or surpass Jacopo’s
“hardcore” and intense way of singing, I can see
the massive charm of “Psychological Subjection”
lurking from behind and slowly taking you over.
This is the sort of band that I totally understand
why they have opened (in 2014) for a band like
Sepultura. I rest my case!
6.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
BLITZKRIEG
BACK FROM HELL
METAL NATION RECORDS
The eighth full-length from NWOBHM legends
is pretty disappointing and really could’ve been
a lot better, but is really just stuck in such a
low-gear that it’s hard to generate more interest.
This is due in small part to the pace of the
album, since for the most part of tracks like
‘Sahara,’ ‘Complicated Issue’ and ‘V’ are just so
plodding and dull-paced that regardless of how
good their riff-work is the pace sinks these quite
heavily. This is quite a shame as one of the most
impressive elements on display here is that finely-crafted
riff-work that still manages to contain
that classy feel of their past while charging forth
quite nicely on rare occasions, like the title track
or ‘Call to the Priest’. The fact that the melodic
BLACK JESUS
EVERYTHING BLACK...
EVERYTHING DEAD
GRINDHEAD RECORDS
During the past 30 years Australia has
pulled out some giant rabbits from the
hat. Bands like Mortal Sin, Deströyer
666, Sadistik Exekution, Hobbs Angel
of Death, Gospel of the Horns or Bestial
Warlust are just some of the unavoidable
names coming straight from a small
yet valuable and furious metal scene.
Black Jesus follows that same rotten
and tenacious tradition that all Australian
metal bands have and releases
through the also Australian label
Grindhead Records a vicious debut
album of almost oppressive old-school
death metal without compromises or
direct influences from any particular
band. This peculiar and genuine aspect
is what makes “Everything Black...
Everything Dead” fit perfectly on the
worthy category of new records with a
strong mouldy scent. The name Black
Jesus may not be that much impressive
yet the musicianship and relentless
mid to fast tempo intensity of their
putrid anti-christian death metal that
mixtures influences from several parts
of the world and styles (ranging from
death, black, thrash and punk) will
certainly convince you. This is the sort
of record that will probably not grab you
by the balls on the first listening but
will inflame the curiosity for consequent
hearings especially with songs
like ‘Reek of Crucifixion’, ‘Righteous
Indignation’, ‘Scorch the Sky’ or ‘Born
in a Tomb’. Everything inside directs
you to an imaginary of rotten corpses,
crypts and foggy nights... The slight
guttural vocal approach of Adrian
intermingled with frantic drum patterns,
dual low riffing attacks and a prominent
bass section is the backbone that gives
a decaying shape to their music. All in
all this is a band that managed with
a relaxed spontaneous attitude and
a vile production to create something
that truly impresses by its simplicity,
rottenness and putrid ambiance. If you
manage to mix Autopsy, Nunslaughter,
Celtic Frost and Entombed on the same
rusty cauldron, I’m sure you will have
a nice idea of what Black Jesus have
accomplished with “Everything Black...
Everything Dead”. Definitely a band to
keep an eye on!
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
nature of their rhythms is the most important
aspect of this album does tend to make a pretty
interesting showing for itself on ‘Return to the
Village’ and ‘Buried Alive’, but never really gets
a lot out of this. It’s more about the fact that the
songs are kept from reaching their full potential
as they’re being saddled with warm, infectious
melodies rather than hard-charging rhythms
and heavier patterns. The heavier sections
are mostly based around a steady mid-tempo
chug that easily gets the closest to generating
any kind of metal-leanings on the album over
the melodic tendencies. While these melodies
do tend to offer a warm, vibrant sound here
and are actually incredibly-well composed and
arranged throughout the album by using a slew
of technically-complex arrangements for the
melodies amongst the heavier metal sections,
they don’t compensate for the lack of energy
imparted on the music.
Frankly, there are a couple of things that hold
this one down somewhat. The main issue with
the melodies overtaking the heavy metal on
display becomes quite apparent on “Back From
Hell” due to the dreary, plodding tempos. The
album is mostly filled with bleak, lifeless songs
utterly lacking in energy or urgency. This is also
due to the rather overlong running time, with
little need to pack the album with as many songs
as there are here, since many of these are joke
songs that were based around such ridiculous
themes, that there’s hardly any reason to believe
they were ever considered serious.
Although this is surely not even close to the
worst they’ve been, it’s also quite far from what
the band was capable of in their heyday. In the
end, this is really only for hardcore band fans
or NWOBHM aficionados more than the general
metal fan who will find the problems too much.
5.5 | DON ANELLI
BRUTALLY DECEASED
BLACK INFERNAL VORTEX
DOOMENTIA RECORDS / SURE SHOT WORX
Who said Czechs couldn’t play old-school
Swedish death metal? A few months after
the split release with the oldsters Swedish
Interment, the quintet returns with a fine new
dose of pure and raw death metal. We all know
that Swedish death metal absorbed influences
from the D-beat punk/hardcore scene nevertheless
it’s still curious to see members of extreme
grind Czech bands like Destructive Explosion of
Anal Garland, Jig-Ai or Feeble Minded playing
this style with an impressive accuracy and thrill.
“Black Infernal Vortex” follows the same line
drawn on the 2010 debut album “Dead Lovers’
Guide” with the remark of a well-deserved
improved sound production. The concept behind
Brutally Deceased couldn’t be easier... To play
buzz-saw and crusty old-school death metal
with a putrid smell of Dismember, Entombed or
Grave. The tribute to those unprecedented bands
is so huge that the band, if you aren’t aware,
used an old demo Grave song for its name. On
this sophomore album you can be sure to find
all ingredients that made albums like “Left
Hand Path”, “Into The Grave” or “Like an Ever
Flowing Stream” to be considered landmarks
on the metal scene; the raging enthusiasm and
freshness, the vomiting fast guttural vocals,
the massive buzzing guitars based on tortuous
double-edge riffing, fast tempos with the occasional
hold and the crusty drumming filled with
some double blast beats. During thirty minutes
a journey into the past is served on a silver plate
with no restrictions, no progressive moments, no
intent to create original tunes or compromises.
Just you, the painful imposing groove that comes
out from the speakers and some very old ghosts!
“Black Infernal Vortex” is the sort of album that
needs a careful listening to be fully aware of
its little nuances and different directions that it
proposes, especially on the guitars. Only then,
songs like ‘Divinity and Decay, ‘Day of Darkness’
with its sick guitar solo, ‘Serve the Labyrinthine
Tombs’ (probably the song with the catchiest
riff), Regurgitation of Blood, Devoured Flesh and
Gastric Juices’ or ‘Below the Adversary’ will be
fully valued and enjoyed. If you still live by the
spirit of early 90’s Swedish death metal, this is
for sure a good album to have into account.
7 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
CHRONOSPHERE
EMBRACING OBLIVION
PUNISHMENT 18 RECORDS
Chronosphere hail from Athens, Greece (no, not
Athens, Georgia-USA) and under the moniker
Homo Sapiens belonged to the so called Manifesto
Music Movement (you can check some
of the movement’s results at its Reverbnation
page). On the first positive note, I really like the
band’s name a lot, the techno-thrasher in me
soon felt aroused, and though things are not
set straight this way, there is some potential to
eventually get there. Although the band probably
didn’t come to it on it’s own (I wonder, have they
heard that Black Cobra album or just read about
it?), it already fits well but could even better.
Frankly, I expected something of a Coroner in
“Embracing Oblivion”, but then expectations
are seldom met today. The second positive note
is that the band does indeed play very well.
Musicians express tightness, musical prowess
and are well-rehearsed, audibly they could play
whatever they would want. However, they are
opting for something seemingly more fruitful (in
terms of earnings), safer and strive to win the
hearts of the generation that is slightly younger
than they are, although I’m not sure, if the
course is to pay-off in the end.
As said, modernized old-school thrash metal
that is on display here, is played so well, it
aches; usually very fast (for most of time the
tempo is abnormal), and production is on par
with the biggest names in thrash or even better.
Initially I was reminded of Bay Area sound as a
64 METALEGION #1

whole, of “Among The Living”, one track spotted
with some Voivod riffing and at least once in
a while the good old “deathrashy” shredding
stepped at the very front of the sonic picture.
But by the third listening things crystallized,
the mentioned elements mysteriously vaporized
or went to background and it became clear:
“Embracing Oblivion” is no more and no
less than a sincere Testament worship. “The
Legacy”, “Souls of Black” and last two albums
scream right into your face. From time to time
Spyros Lafias even manages to sound almost
completely like Chuck Billy (‘Frenzied From
Inside’). Chronosphere’s thrash is well soaked in
“death” component and thrash tropes (e.g. whole
band shouting chorus) abound, yet “legacies”
are resurfacing continuously as the album
unfurls. One that knows opus of Eric Peterson
and company well enough, could tell piece by
piece the puzzle that goes under title “Embracing
Oblivion”. Yet the bottom-line is that Chronosphere
sound better than Testament do today.
And then again, the tracks that sound less like
them, are also of slightly lesser quality (‘Seize
Your Last Chance’). There is also a structural
error: track ‘City of the Living Dead’ should be
album’s closer, yet it is placed as number 7.
Let’s make no mistake, for kids who feel it is
mandatory to have a chance to play old-school
thrash metal, because they weren’t born 35-45
years ago, this is very good stuff, worthy of 8,
but from a perspective of everything recorded
it doesn’t add any value. Also, it doesn’t get
the listener ecstatic or wanting to shout along.
For instance D.A.M.’s album I re-reviewed
elsewhere, isn’t even half as well played as
this one, yet it feels infinitely more pristine,
23 years after its release. In a consequence
myself sinking wishfully, I would rather see, if
contemporary old-school thrash bands would
ape groups of yore more obscure, or even better
that they would continue where certain groups
simply did not had option to do so and the gaps
left that way are still very wide. What course will
Chronosphere take and what heights would be
attained, remains written in the stars.
6.5 | NENAD KOBAL
CONTAMINATED
PESTILENTIAL DECAY [DEMO]
CRAWLING CHAOS PRODUCTIONS
A brand new Australian duo playing doomy,
gloomy death metal in the old Finnish style
(think Convulse or Abhorrence). What’s really
cool about this short (16 minute) demo is how
convincingly “authentic” it sounds - if you played
this for me out of the blue, I’d probably think
it was some obscure, forgotten band’s demo
from 1990 or so. The production isn’t quite as
rough as Abhorrence’s culter-than-cult “Vulgar
Necrolatry”, but it’s not a world away either.
Inevitably, this does suffer somewhat from lack
of originality (not to mention sonic similarity
to some pretty classic releases) but if you’re
inclined toward raw, old-school Finnish death
metal then this is one more solid disc to add
to your collection. Much like those grimy lo-fi
demos of yore, Contaminated’s debut exudes
a genuinely creepy, putrefactive atmosphere,
the vocals serving as the bassy, guttural roar of
a long-interred corpse come to life, his rotted
larynx giving his voice some of the timbre of a
throat cancer patient from an anti-tobacco ad. If
nothing else, “Pestilential Decay” provides some
of the coolest growls I’ve heard in a while - they
really put the “death” in death metal, if you
follow me. Add to this plenty of sinister tremolo
riffing in the vein of the twice-aforementioned
Abhorrence, and the result is a clearly above
average OSDM release. Perhaps if it were a little
longer, its ideas a little more developed, then I
could award it more than a merely “good” rating.
7.5 | KEVIN AKSTIN
COUNTESS
ANCIENT LIES AND BATTLE CRIES
BARBARIAN WRATH
Whenever I hear the word “countess” in terms
of metal, I have to think of Venom’s outstanding
classic. Maybe this is the reason why I feel
disappointed after listening to this album. But
honestly, I believe that there are other causes
why I cannot get used with it.
Where to begin? The vocals? Okay. The emotionless
voice, which is kept in the background,
is a nuisance. While being completely expressionless,
it does not even reach an average
level. I always thought that black metal vocals
must be hateful, at least up to a certain degree.
But Countess obviously do not agree to this
statement. The vocalist sounds as if he is at
risk of falling asleep. And the record displays
further defects, for example the uninspired riffs.
With very few exceptions, they are boring. Even
when they try to score with a very traditional riff
(‘Pray for the Cult’), they are not able to create
a metal atmosphere. This is particularly sad
because “Ancient Lies and Battle Cries” does not
represent their debut. Far worse, it is full-length
number 14 (!) in the discography of Countess.
Thanks to a happy destiny, I instinctively avoided
their previous albums...
The below-average compositions were combined
with an almost sadistic approach. Quantity
before quality seemed to be motto of the
Dutch boys. For example, the last song lasts
15 minutes while omitting exciting moments
completely. I still wonder that I had the strength
to endure this situation. Honestly, this band has
no feel for composing coherent songs and they
are unable to create songs that come to the
point. Unfortunately, the same must be said with
regard to the shorter tunes. Admittedly, there are
some pleasing moments - but they are very rare.
To round things off, I have to mention the almost
unbearable keyboards. Its tiring tone sequences
create neither intensity nor tension. They are
just there without contributing much. To bring it
4
CÓNDOR
NADIA
SELF RELEASED
Cóndor is a Colombian death doom act
hailing from Bogotá. Their first recorded
material is a self released full length
album called “Nadia”. It was released
August 9th, 2013 to very little fanfare
besides their local following in Bogotá.
However it was spread around and I
happened upon it from a review at a
metal web zine which praised it. The
web zines followers began to include
it on their end of the year “best of” lists
and so I decided to track it down and give
it a listen to figure out what all the hype
was about.
Kicking off with the title track, ‘Nadia’, the
album begins with some noteworthy guitar
leads by one of the two guitarists. Who ever
has the leads on this album brings forth a
rich understanding of scales and progressive
rock techniques. The song sounds
something akin to Autopsy meets Black
Sabbath. As the song advances it descends
into some black metal tremolo riffing and
finally ends with some nice rhythm work in
a death metal style as it alternates between
high tempo and mid paced phrasal riffing.
How the band pulls this off is miraculous.
But what’s even better is this is just the
first song. The second and third songs are
very death metal in structure and delivery.
The riffs go from phrasal tremolos in high
tempos down to mid paced barrages similar
to Cianide. The doom in these songs is less
pronounced as it was in the first song, but
the atmosphere is just as rich. The band
ties the different sections and influences
together with progressive rock jam outs and
guitar solos/plucking/strumming. Meanwhile
the supporting cast filling out this band all
apply their knowledge and talents evenly.
Drummer Andres Lopez provides drum work
ranging from blast beats and hefty double
bass death metal rumbling to the slow
turtle paced rhythmic framework necessary
for funeral doom metal. Rayner Valera’s
bass gets lost in the mix, but when the
music slows to the progressive sections,
his bass tone and performance is up front
in the mix. His performances during the
progressive sections are actually some of
the best parts of the album. Following the
initial three song barrage, the two minute
instrumental ‘Eowyn’ is an atmospheric and
“IT IS VERY ORGANIC, ALIVE, AND
EXTREMELY ATMOSPHERIC”
very moving piece of music. Its essence
is essentially an ambient rock jam out. On
paper it wouldn’t seem to fit a metal album,
but it does here, thus showing how effective
this bands songwriting skills are. Closing
out this album though, is a the longest song
clocking in at over 10 minutes. It is cut from
a similar mold as the first song as its roots
lay in death doom metal and funeral doom,
however its second half is not blackened
death metal. Instead it ends with a long
section of atmospheric guitar plucking and
then goes into one final epic death doom riff.
The final riffs sums up the album perfectly
in that it contains a very effective lead riff
with accompanying rhythmically minded
death doom chord work. The drumming of
Andres is spot on perfect in a varied jam
out sort of way. It ties up the loose ends of
the album and brings closure in the best
way possible.
The production sounds like a live set and the
band is extremely tight. The snare does get
dominated during the blasts and the kicks
get lost to. At the same time, the vocals
don’t sound too good at times, so I do blame
the mixing or lack thereof. Despite this, the
sound is very warm, almost too warm, but
that’s not a bad thing. It is very organic,
alive, and extremely atmospheric.
It comes as no surprise this album was
featured on a few year end “best of” lists. It
is very dynamic and varied, but it all flows
so well together. These young men are well
versed in their song writing skills. This is
an enormous first step for this band as I
hear they are working on new material at
this time. It is easily the best death doom
album in recent years and it wasn’t even
released on a label. If you want a true piece
of the current underground, obtain this
album anyway you can! Essential modern
underground metal!
9 | EVAN SPAYD
#1 METALEGION 65

to an end: if they had shortened this album to a
maximum of 40 minutes, we would probably talk
of mediocre output. But the sheer opulence of
long drawn-out melodies which offer nothing but
lame simplicity leaves me slightly irritated. What
a pity for the pretty nice cover.
3 | FELIX 1666
CUTTERRED FLESH
DYING IN PIECES
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTION
The third album from this brutal death metal
act from the Czech Republic is certainly quite
confident in delivering that kind of brutal attitude
that’s a norm on today’s death metal scene.
Essentially its the same tight, crunchy riff-work
that’s become the norm for the genre with a
tight, frantic series of rhythms that can be found
in songs like ‘Progressive Body Adjustment’,
‘Punished Divinity’ and ‘Second Round of Decapitation’
allowing the brutality to come through
on these fever-pitched tracks. Those rhythms
are incredibly tight, dense and feature that
crunchy pace that allows this to go into either
slow, sprawling sections that allow the tempo
to gesticulate and wash over the listener as in
‘Enslave the Dead’ or go into the faster, more
dynamic realms of ‘Whispering Death’ where it
can offer an influx of technicality amongst the
speed. That dynamic quality throughout “Dying
in Pieces” allows the mid-tempo chugging to
become the featured model used with plenty
of arrangements favouring this style that really
allows the dense layers to come into focus quite
easily and making this a lot darker and more
in tone with the heavy arrangements. The few
touches of technicality present, with ‘Scattered
Seeds of Plague’ being the main one here, are
actually quite tastefully utilized providing a touch
of complex arrangements that offset the singular,
simplistic chugging rhythms so frequently used.
It isn’t about how many riffs can be shot off in a
few-seconds-long rhythm but rather in a form of
injecting variation into the rhythms provided by
the album’s main chug-heavy attack.
Overall, this is certainly a fine assault of brutal
death metal but that’s also the album’s biggest
argument. This just tends to run the gamut as
a prototypical example of the genre without
really doing anything to really stand out. This is
pretty much just the way most bands approach
the genre, with an influx of tight, dense riffing
augmented by the odd technically-precise effort
to break things up and generally only alternating
on the tempo of the pieces to differentiate
from each other. None of this is in anyway an
indictment against the competency of the band
which is surely a plus taking in consideration the
quality of the material presented, but all it really
does is play a brutal style really well without getting
into a mindset that really makes it stand-out
from the crowd when there are numerous other
bands out there giving a more engaging effort
in the style. Otherwise, this is definitely a fine
overall entry in the genre with some enjoyable
tracks in the first half before really breaking
loose in the second half and allowing those more
brutal rhythms to come through a little better.
Not nearly as impressive as others in the genre,
but still manages to feature enough to make it
a tight, frantic blast of death metal that has a
lot to like. Certainly a worthwhile addition to any
brutal death or Eastern European metal discography
even if is somewhat a challenging effort
for newcomers to the scene to start with.
7.5 | DON ANELLI
D.A.M.
INSIDE OUT
DIVEBOMB RECORDS
Destruction And Mayhem (D.A.M.) were hardly
an original outfit back in their prime, but judging
from the eventfulness on “Inside Out”, they have
listened very carefully to a lot of heavy metal
albums of the time and musically they could
be seen as a UK/Euro answer to the building of
bridges between thrash and power metal, maybe
even progressive power, more common on the
other side of the ocean.
23 years after its release, it can be confirmed:
“Inside Out” has aged very well. Though British
band, they took into its mixture predominantly
influences from American bands, both from West
and East coast, some great and some greatest.
Among which were the most important those
with “Bay Area” sound, of course. Past listener
ears fly reminiscences (not even citations or
copied excerpts) of Death Angel, Heathen,
Testament, Exodus, Overkill, as well as their
country-mates Xentrix. Put to effective use are:
dual guitars, eerie keyboards and gang shouting.
Killer riffs abound, pretty good solos too, only
two fillers at most are included. It runs very
smoothly.
However, it’s the singer that has the main role
and can transform name-dropping of bands into
a veritable voyage to the front of vocal chords
of US (thrash) metal shouters. To shorten, here
can be heard echoes of vocals from Overkill,
Arcana, Vio-lence, Abattoir, Flotsam And Jetsam
and possibly others. Yet Mr. McLoughlin also
reminds in his own way of certain John Stewart
(‘The Innocent One’) and certain Buddy Lackey
(‘Beneath Closed Eyes’). He does not exactly
copy their voices, but it comes close enough to
them and keeps the distance at the same time.
Influences are knitted together not with care
and precision, but with unbelievable rate of
feeling, trying to emphasize all the best and even
more profound. Stated shortly, this is excellent
vocal-dominating thrash.
Some info exists on a contemporary activity
of the band and I wish a resultful reunion that
would yield an album at least. Which would,
take “Inside Out” as its departing point; use, as
much as possible, vintage equipment and thus
retaining old sound.
8 | NENAD KOBAL
DEATH DEALER
WAR MASTER [LP REISSUE]
PURE STEEL RECORDS
With a pedigree of impressive musicians
gathered from equally-impressive projects,
there’s little surprise at how great this
debut release from the US power metal
band bearing the name Death Dealer really
would be. The guitar-work here is utterly
impressive with tracks like the self-titled
‘Death Dealer,’ ‘The Devil’s Mile’ or the
blistering title track offers up a rampaging
mixture of charging heavy metal played
with the spirit and melody found in power
metal, which results in these being utterly
raging speed-mongers that contain wailing
falsetto wails, thumping bass-lines and
ferocious pounding drumming that really
makes for a fine time. Others, like ‘Never
to Kneel,’ ‘Hammer Down’ or ‘Head Spikes
Wall’ change the blistering tempos for more
of a heavy mid-tempo chug that switches
into heavy, pounding rhythms that tend to
make these feel like commercialized forms
of their tracks. This is equally matched
in ‘Liberty or Death’ and ‘Wraiths on the
Wind’ which offer such commercialized
patterns alongside more frantic rhythms and
fiery paces that become quite a bit more
enjoyable alongside the rest of the more
frantic, charging material. Coupled with a
fine ballad in ‘Children of Flames’ and this
becomes a well-rounded blast of heavy
metal-infused power metal that couples
charging patterns with harmonious melodies
all wrapped up with a professionalism and
DARKTRANCE
PESSIMUM
BADMOODMAN MUSIC / SOLITUDE PRODUCTIONS
A recent trend in extreme metal, and in the
genres of music often associated with extreme
metal, is the general motion towards post metal.
I am not sure about how I feel about this in general,
but some albums in this genre are slowly
dragging me towards the pro-post metal camp.
“Pessimum” by Darktrance is, increasingly, one
class that befits its line-up.
Frankly, there’s a lot to like here but it does
raise a rather pressing question. While its
primary reasoning here as a side-project
to utilize the friends and colleagues does
work well, the fact that the material played
is so closely related to their other bands
makes its existence feel more like a union,
meant only to release material that wasn’t
good enough to fit there in the first place.
There’s no change in appearance or pattern
arrangement between this and Cage, so
the question arises as to the purpose of the
project’s conception. The musicians here
already come from projects with similar
backgrounds so there’s no real chance to
offer a cohesive melding of various genre
off-shoots gathered from the diversity of its
members, it’s Cage with a different line-up.
There’s no reason they shouldn’t come
together, as simply a way to play around
with friends and this really is passionate
and competently-played material, but the
fact that this remains so close in spirit
and tone to the other projects already in
existence is a little troubling. Beyond this,
a small little minor note is the fact that
the second half seems to be a little lighter
in ferocity than the first half does become
noticeable. For the most part, the second
half is seemingly composed of tracks that
contain more commercialized tones and
arrangements of their work and this is
where the exposure efforts are placed. While
the first half gets packed with fiery, frantic
and generally more explosive tracks. This
is a slightly puzzling effort from a band that
really should know better considering the
experience of its members, so to do this is a
little confusing.
There’s plenty to like about this band once
one gets over the fact that the project really
serves no purpose as it simply rehashes
work from its members’ other bands, but
that serves no bearing on the music as a
whole. Fans of generally-heavy power metal
or a combination of the two genres are
heartily advised to give this a listen, as well
as fans of its members and their accompanying
bands.
8.5 | DON ANELLI
of these offerings. As far as I can tell, this album
is the brainchild of one man, Dmytry Gubsky,
from Kiev, Ukraine. The origin of this band is a
bit of a surprise, because there are many points
in “Pessimum” that sound like they’re straight
out of the Gothenburg melodic death metal
scene. It is no surprise at all that Dmytry’s other
acts are squarely in the melodic death genre.
As for “Pessimum”, I enjoyed a few themes that
seem to show themselves over and over again.
Screamed vocals, slow, grating guitar patterns,
and remarkable electronic elements create very
powerful atmosphere almost immediately. But
instead of focusing overmuch on guitar work, like
a true melodic death metal band would, “Pessimum”
often leaves the music minimalistic and
open, so that the listener’s mind can wander.
Compositionally, I found it fairly impressive.
Arpeggiated first guitar parts overlapped with a
second guitar the plays chords convince me that
Dmytry knows what he’s doing. The introduction
66 METALEGION #1

of clean singing and further electronic elements
at several points in this album really round it
out into a powerful, pleasantly creative release
that straddles the line between post metal and
melodic “dark” metal. There are even sections
that I’d analogize to upbeat black metal, where
tremolo picking and fast percussion expand the
boundaries of “Pessimum”.
Remarkably, Dmytry doesn’t stop there. There
are doomish feelings here and there, and the
very well thought out layering of instrumentation
doesn’t prevent any single part from having
its time to shine. I should note that while this
album isn’t quite as technical, say, Behemoth,
the execution leaves very little to be desired!
What we have is one of those rare albums
that combines several feelings (melodic death
metal, post metal, with elements of electronic
music and more) into a single, serious effort.
“Pessimum” is a great album for fans of post
metal, melodic death metal, and many others,
and I strongly suggest giving it a chance. You
won’t be disappointed.
8.5 | ALEX ROSS
DEATHINITION
ART OF MANIPULATION [EP]
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
Finally getting around to the EP stage, Polish
thrashers Deathinition’s first release certainly
shows a band that is serious about becoming
a major player in this style in the future and
doesn’t have a lot hampering this brief thrash
onslaught. The main selling point here is the
current craze of retro-thrash revival, as the band
certainly follows quite well by bringing along the
old-school penchant for stellar riff-work with
the typically tight, dense guitars that manages
to keep things blazing along at a high-speed
for the majority of the time. They are quite
adept at frantically utilizing raging speeds for
the betterment of the tracks, as the intro ‘My
Personal Maniac Fear’ best shows. Giving a
high-level blast of frantic energy they’re able to
generate velocity while maintaining the tightness
with the riffs firing off constant volleys towards
each other, best demonstrated in both ‘Art of
Misunderstanding’ and ‘Priest’ in the attempt
to get this kind of speed. The riff-work is kept
pretty standard and straightforward for the most
part and really only tends to display any sense
of variation when shifting into new melodies
or accented rhythms, as on the devastating
Polish-sung ‘Klamstwa Dla Mas’ and when the
band really starts firing off their soloing. The
molten lead work is granted a lot of freedom to
work in rather dynamic and soaring sections,
filled with absolutely devastating drumming
and guitar work that weaves through those
slightly more dexterous and technically complex
rhythms. This allows a grander display than
the regular riffing patterns, even if the band
doesn’t forget the tight thrash crunch part. These
points, along with stellar drumming and a loud,
ringing rhythm section adequately convey that
old-school feel and tone quite well although
the group does have one nagging problem.
The singer isn’t the greatest and has a pretty
irritating tone at times, which does limit the
enjoyment. With the nasal inflection at the worst
times when he tries to sound angry but instead
comes off as somewhat wimpy. Otherwise,
there’s not too much to dislike on this EP.
A lot goes right for the band on this release,
which is somewhat shorter and doesn’t really
showcase a wide variety of material instead of
the raging, tight thrash that has become quite
common place in the genre and the briefness
is really the only flaw. Despite that, those good
elements do come through brightly enough for
this to be one of the more promising entrant in
the suddenly burgeoning European faction of
old-school thrash revival and really becomes
quite prominent for fanatics of the genre or those
looking for the “next-big-thing” to come along.
7 | DON ANELLI
DENIAL
BURDEN OF LIES
BUIL2KILL RECORDS
How many more in Denial bands will we have to
deal with until those six letters are completely
drained? Besides the unoriginal name I must say
that some of the elements behind this quartet
rang immediately a bell on my mind, especially
after reading Francesco La Rosa as drummer.
For the ones more distracted, during the latest
years he has been quite requested among the
Italian scene (abroad also as M-Pire of Evil live
session 2014 drummer) and I have followed
his career since his participation on both Spite
Extreme Wing “Vltra” (tremendous record) and
Janvs “Fvlgvres” albums. Obviously his presence
on “Burden of Lies” does not pass unnoticed
however the icing on the cake belongs to the
female vocalist, Julie Ann. This debut album
introduces a new band that knows thoroughly
the serpentine death metal path with slices of
progressive and thrash metal that they want to
tame. The band relies on intense and furious
hymns that are constantly in your face with
some moments of refreshment. Having said
this, it is expected that all band members have
enough technical skills to keep things diverse
and interesting. And they sure do! Instrumentally
“Burden of Lies” is a razor sharp album with a
vicious intensity only contrasted with melodic
guitar leads (courtesy of Olly Razorback) and
furious drum tempo changes like on ‘Rapid Eye’,
‘Temporary Retirement’ or ‘Embers of Hate’. The
band manages to push and trap the listener into
the boundaries of technical death metal since
the very first moments of ‘Morphogenesis’ only
to free them from their forced captivity on the
last instrumental piano driven song ‘Echoes’.
Vocally, I found Julie’s voice on the same league
as the one of Angela Gossow (ex-Arch Enemy)
however it has a squeaky or shrill edge that
4
“BLAST OF OLD-SCHOOL BRUTALITY”
DESECRATION
CEMETERY SICKNESS
METAL AGE PROD. / SURE SHOT WORX
This eighth full-length from the Wales
death metal crew plays much like their
previous works as the band opts for a
charging blast of old-school brutality.
Bristling with a dynamic guitar tone,
the riff work again contains a slew of
brutal structures and rhythms that
dance throughout at fine up-tempo
paces, much like ‘Coffin Smasher’
and ‘Recipes of Horror’ which makes them
appear quite dynamic and brutal while
remaining at that pace. In conjunction with
the drumming, the main facet of offering
tight chugging patterns in ‘Grave Secrets’ or
utterly-frantic razor-wire riffing arrangements
in ‘Cabletie Castrator’ is turning the
music incredibly dense and dynamic. This
provides an extra hint of brutality that’s
a few steps beyond the more old-school
work as the hyper-speed tempos play a
large part of that crushing brutality. Despite
working with that kind of guitar tone that
recalls the old-school scene, there’s a more
modern brutality displayed with those riffing
patterns featured throughout the title track,
‘Mortuary Debauchery’ and ‘Cut Up and Fed
to the Dogs’. That makes the music quite
dark as well as being the kind of album
filled with rampant, blistering brutality. The
band uses a thrash based pattern found
in ‘Rotten Brain Extraction’ that marks the
band’s influences as the rhythms drip with
the kind of dark, occult atmosphere in the
guitar arrangements, which are among
the better qualities. There’s an added
intensity that comes along through this kind
of arrangement making the music more
impressive, intense and primitive thrash
metal oriented in conjunction with the
darker brutal filled rhythms that propels this
one along quite nicely. It’s fast, intense and
dripping with an infectious atmosphere of
dread that runs through the early offerings
in the genre producing a charging record.
For the most part, the album as a whole
doesn’t really have a lot of problems.
There’s one potentially troubling part that
does pop up here which is, that the second
half tracks do tend to come off more
intense than the first half. The riff work
and drum patterns throughout this section
tend to focus on more extreme rhythms
and generally have more dynamic variation
changes than the first half. Those tracks
tend to roam around in the mid-tempo realm
far more which can make these seem a
little uneven in terms of balance where it’s
slightly skewed to the second half more than
the first. However, it’s not just pounding
away at more extreme territories for the
sake of doing it but there’s a reason for the
build up that gives a more dynamic and varied
approach which is greatly under-realized
by the majority of the bands. This is a pretty
underrated technique on display where a lot
of bands do attempt this pattern quite often
but most haven’t nailed it like Desecration
does. There’s a somewhat greater degree
of intensity and insanity building into those
upper-half tracks that just simply explodes
in the second half in a great fashion, making
it quite enjoyable. This is the way it should
be and helps boost the score for that
reason. Likewise, there’s a reliance in using
sampled effects and dialogue as an intro,
and while it’s thankfully not used on every
track, the times they use it becomes pretty
troubling. Very few times it has anything in
common with the song in question and gives
the impression they’re used only for the
sake of their dark content matter. Thankfully
they only really last a few seconds so their
impact is lost even before getting to the real
song. On the whole, this gives the samples
on the tracks an overall negative score as
only one of them really manages to do its
intended function. Beyond a few hit-or-miss
tracks, this is a rather impressive display
of sickening, charging old-school death
metal that really scores quite well due to
the impressive nature of the material. This
is certainly a fine addition to their catalogue
and is worthwhile to fans of the band as
well as this generally dark, heavy brand of
death metal who will find a lot to like here.
9 | DON ANELLI
#1 METALEGION 67

I find a bit hard to digest sometimes. They
sound like a mixture between Chuck Schuldiner
and Angela Gossow. Still from someone out of
nowhere she already denotes the attitude and
vocal “character” to push things beyond her
limits. A very good starter that will please fans of
bands like Cynic, Death and even Arch Enemy.
7.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
DESGRAÇA ETERNA
CATARSE DIABÓLICA... REVE-
LAÇÕES MALIGNAS DO EXTERMÍ-
NIO SATÂNICO [DEMO]
GRAVADORA INFERNO
And here we go again... Another band from the
Brazilian Inferno Records alignment that has
almost zero information around it. Desgraça
Eterna (in English, Eternal Disgrace) fits on the
old chaotic and utterly raw black metal category
where bands like Sadistik Exekution, Bestial
Warlust, Impaled Nazarene, Mystifier or Sarcofago
ruled years ago on their demo and debut
periods. Soundwise they remind me of some
late 80’s early 90’s black metal demo-tapes
that lay on my basement... Composed by the
2005 “Catarse Diabólica” and 2006 “Revelações
Malignas do Extermínio Satânico” demos this
release does not stand out by its immense sound
quality and even if they do not sound entirely
like a shitty 80’s demo tape, unfortunately the
production does not make them any justice. The
vocals are quite on the forefront in comparison
with the rest of the instruments that seem to
have been recorded from a different room, thus
the constant echo sensation. Despite the utterly
hateful vociferations of Averno Tormento, the trio
on both demos, due to the annoying instrumental
sound limitations do not manage to transmit on
its fullest the brutality that their fast raw black
metal seems to incorporate. For that reason I
don’t understand why Inferno Records decided to
release this (even if it’s a “cheap” CD-R professional
printed envelope release) without a proper
sound masterization or ultimately a proper
re-recording. I’m not sure if they still exist but I
really would like to see Averno Tormento backed
up by a decent production... Maybe next time!
4 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
DYSNOMIA
DYSNOMIA
SUSPIRIA RECORDS / BLOOD FIRE DEATH
I guess that now it’s understandable why these
guys decided to change their name from Dark
Eternity to the present form, Dysnomia. One year
later the Spanish quintet offers a tremendous
share of well-produced melodic death metal
and above all a major leap forward from their
previous and somewhat archaic framework.
The ease with which new bands appear from
nowhere and release nicely composed albums is
overwhelming to say the least; this is the case
of Dysnomia and also the delight of the metal
scene. The band is strongly influenced by the
Scandinavian melodic death metal scene and
names like Dark Tranquillity, Insomnium or Mors
Principium Est burst in your face while listening
to this self-titled album. The distinctiveness
of this young band is how easily they transmit
their enthusiasm and dedication to the songs
and how they unconsciously manage to keep
the compositions vibrant and dynamic without
sounding forced. There is a good chemistry
around both guitar players Rodrigo Blas and
Jorge Fernandez and the songs tend to have an
emphasis on their compelling dual guitar work
with clear melodic Scandinavian influences and
energetic rhythmic patterns. They are definitely
not breaking new ground nevertheless they
sound fresh and detailed enough to keep the
interest levelled up from the first minute to the
last. This is probably one of the best characteristics
on Dysnomia and also the fact that they use
keyboards to diminish the power and aggression
of their compositions with sometimes almost a
progressive strong edge, like on ‘Into the Void of
Your Eyes’ or ‘Reach Clarity’. The voice of Alex
de la Sota is harsh and incisive yet keeping a
modern approach that strangely I do appreciate
and is fully able to make you tremble with its
inner strength. This debut album is full of little
details, constant twists, rhythmic changes that
are not common for such a young band and
this is what makes the blood pump therein.
Songs like ‘Baptized In Rain’ with its unexpected
female vocal facet and piano or the beautiful
instrumental piece ‘Serenade’ truly embellishes
a relentless album that speaks on its own. This
is one of those albums that without sounding
ground breaking neither absolutely original,
becomes on the first listening a refreshing
presence on your stereo.
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
EARDELETE
DEVILOLOGY
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTION
Formerly known as Negligent Collateral Collapse,
these Czech veterans, on their third album under
the Eardelete moniker, play a fun, catchy, and
always irreverent hybrid of brutal death and
downtuned, groovy grind. The vocals are nothing
special, being pretty standard studio-enhanced
goregrind belches, but the stomping, primal
simplicity of the music makes this record, at
the least, a worthwhile listen for those who
like goofy, tongue-in-cheek Czech grind. To be
DOMAINS
SINISTER CEREMONIES
THE SINISTER FLAME
There are certain releases that you simply
known just by hearing a few minutes
of the first song that will totally shred
your soul apart. “Sinister Ceremonies”
fits perfectly on that vicious category
and I must confess that I was blown
away just a few moments after pressing
the play button.
Domains took form somewhere in
2005 and during the first years they
struggled like any other band to find a
stable and fitting (now three-headed)
line-up. On 2009 released the first demo
“Towards Pleroma” which is already a rough
sketch of what to expect as debut album.
The addition of Nocturn, owner of Spanish
Antichristian Front Records and member of
bands like Martyrum Omnium and Profundis
Tenebrarum, as drummer produced an
intense, monstrous and obscure symbiosis
named “Sinister Ceremonies”. The band
blends perfectly the intensity of the raw
mazes of death metal with the dark, obscure
and oppressive aura of black metal. Imagine
melting in a furnace at 1600°C Morbid
Angel, Nile and Hellhammer, now drop the
resembling to hot lava liquid in a mold and
while drinking a few beers or a glass of red
wine see Domains solidifying while it cools
down. This Spanish trio have managed to
incorporate all the good points of the mentioned
bands: the intensity, magnitude and
acuteness of Morbid Angel, the swarming
oppressive guitar leads and sometimes epic
arrangements of Nile and the morbid doomy
rawness of Hellhammer. It’s hard not to be
mesmerized by how three guys can pull out
such an intense and vicious sonority. The
self-titled track and first song on the album
is self-explanatory... Interesting frightful
riffing with the occasional colossal solo
directing all the attention to skilful guitarist
Francisco, the titanic raw guttural vociferations
and bass lines of David “Aggressor”
and the blistering Nocturn behind the skins
with its twisted tempo changes.
Domains achieved with just one album what
most bands seek ceaselessly throughout
its existence... A degree of precision and
excellence bordering on perfection!
9.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
“DOMAINS
ACHIEVED WITH
JUST ONE ALBUM
WHAT MOST BANDS
SEEK CEASELESSLY
THROUGHOUT ITS
EXISTENCE”
68 METALEGION #1

honest, I can’t take this stuff all that seriously
(not that the band would want me to, I’m sure)
but I do enjoy it quite a bit while it’s on. And
though the use of samples from “The Exorcist”
and “South Park” may not be very original, they
are at least well-placed and mildly amusing.
Certain tracks, like ‘Ironic Punishment Division’
or (more so) the hilarious and completely
out of place ‘sABBAth (Radio Version)’, have
an unabashedly rock’n’roll structure, being
less concerned with brutal grinding than with
ear-catching riffs and all-around fun. Ultimately,
while I’m fairly sure this won’t be appearing
on many “best of” lists, I can’t find very much
wrong with it either. Gore freaks with a sense of
humour should check this one out.
7.5 | KEVIN AKSTIN
ELM STREET
BARBED WIRE METAL
MASSACRE RECORDS
There seems to be resurgence in old-school
sounding heavy metal nowadays. Talented bands
have already been signed, and new ones are
popping up everywhere it seems. Some of the
most prominent bands to really embrace this
sound are Sweden’s Enforcer, Canada’s Skull
Fist and Cauldron and now it seems Melbourne,
Australia’s Elm Street. They have combined the
traditional elements of the New Wave of British
heavy metal with the sound of the Bay Area
thrash movement. Using that vibe of bands from
those movements and adding their own style,
Elm Street have forged a sound that clearly
conveys the traditional sound of the genre with
a new, heavy sound that can be seen as some
serious competition for many bands that are
currently making their mark on heavy metal
today. The band writes intense, catchy songs
that stand out in the genre because there seems
to be resurgence in the more traditional sound of
80’s metal, which Elm Street captures on their
debut album. This is a surprising debut record,
one that offers listeners a chance to experience
a familiar, yet refreshing sound that has made
heavy metal a timeless genre of ear splitting
music, and in a way brings you back to the genre’s
finest decade. This debut is a collection of
heavy hitting energetic heavy metal and it’s an
accomplished record with excellent musicsmanship
from these young head bangers. The album
starts off with the title track and it sets the tone
for what’s to come. With the third song, however,
the band have got their first “rocker” type tune
in Elm’s Street Children, which boasts a catchy
riff, and tight rhythm playing from guitarist Ben
Batres, who is also the band’s vocalist. The
rest of the tracks are skilfully put together and
there seems to be a dull moment that makes
“Barbed Wire Metal” lacking in quality. Other
standouts are ‘Heavy Metal Power’, ‘Merciless
Soldier’ and the epic sounding metal is the way
that closes the record on a high note, leaving
the listener wanting more from this band. With
such a stellar debut under their belt, these
musicians are keen to carve their place in
heavy metal lore. With “Barbed Wire Metal”, we
have a collection of tunes that bring back the
old-school elements that made metal so much
fun to listen to. This is the type of album that
should be in every metalheads collection. The
songs are tight, melodic and refined with a vibe
that captures what is so great about the genre.
In their short, but impressive career, the band
has toured with Iced Earth and has amassed a
strong following in Australia. With such a solid
debut album, it’s interesting to see what these
headbangers will do to outdo themselves, and it
that regard, we are all awaiting their follow-up to
this impressive, confident slab of pure sounding
heavy metal. We can all expect that Elm Street
will continue to deliver the same raw energy that
they’ve displayed on “Barbed Wire Metal”.
8 | ALEX ROY
ENTRENCHED
INGURGITATION
GENESIS OF HETEROGENEOUS
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTION
Just glance at that band name and take a wild
guess as to what kind of music they play. Brutal
death metal? Goregrind? Actually, surprise! It’s
a little of both. Like other recent Bizarre Leprous
releases, “Genesis of Heterogeneous” combines
the crushingly heavy guitar tone of modern brutal
death with the simplicity and grooving drums
of goregrind. And even if I find the album as a
whole somewhat cookie-cutter (not to mention
skimpy, with less than 20 minutes of actual
music) I can’t hate on the primal catchiness
of the riffs, nor the consistently dank, fetid
atmosphere which fits the music perfectly. Listen
to the bass drop at about 1:25 of ‘Discarded
Post-Autopsy Viscera’, the sense of menace
there is palpable. Mainly I just wish some of
these songs were longer and more developed;
the closing track, for instance, has some great
grinding riffage, but after barely a minute gives
way to a far-too-lengthy noise piece. I have
nothing against noise per se, but if I want power
electronics I’ll put on a Whitehouse or Sutcliffe
Jugend album. Really, it’s the overlong intro and
outro that prevent me from giving this the extra
half-point I’d like to. Overall it is a good album
that should satisfy most fans of goregrind or
simplistic-but-catchy death metal. Just don’t pay
too much for this mere 23-minute CD.
7 | KEVIN AKSTIN
ETERNAL JUDGMENT
FATAL VIRUS [EP]
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
Making it to the first EP for the Canadian heavy
metallers Eternal Judgment, there’s some good
stuff at play here and the band clearly has an
idea what to do. The main charge on “Fatal
Virus” is sprawling, epic heavy metal rhythms
that offer an old-school feeling due to the
spacious melodies they present. That is fully
evident in the title track and the barrelling ‘Kill
to Survive’ bringing in a classy, harmonious
vibe to the material in the lower paces to stay
interesting and exciting during these segments.
There’s an insistence on relying on a tight
chug-based riffing attack during these moments
to compliment the lighter, more sprawling
arrangements, as on ‘PowerDrive’, this track has
the muscle required to overcome the plodding
paces it usually finds itself in while playing at
that particular speeds. The faster sections are
handled incredibly well by the incorporation of
fluid and dynamic thrash patterns, again on
‘PowerDrive’ but also found on the more smooth
‘War Planet... Prisoners of Hell’ which manage
to drop the sluggish energy with a biting force
that’s far more spindly and engaging than the
heavy metal material which remains the central
premise since the thrash is basically kept in the
background more than being fully incorporated
into the music. This effectively renders the
music as a solid and enjoyable mixing of the two
distinct styles between heavy metal and thrash,
and that even lends itself to the singing as well
with a range that includes a few shrieks and
gravely mid-tempo styled vocals alongside the
more vile and biting thrash growls and generally
makes an interesting mix between the two
worlds. Blazing along with thumping drumming,
wicked bass clanking and more of a thrash style
in regards to the song arrangements, it turns out
quite enjoyable. The main thing that inadvertently
kills this more than anything is the fact that
the final track ‘On My Own’ is an absolute rager
but ends up featuring this oddly hard rock driven
hidden track at the end which is grossly out-ofstyle
and pace with the rest of the material.
Frankly, there’s a lot to like on “Fatal Virus”
even though it does include a few problems in
the compositions, but that’s to be expected and
really doesn’t detract since this is only an EP. A
little more honing things down and tightening up
the right areas, this could be a golden band in
the years to come, which makes this a solid bet
for those looking for the next-big-thing or hardcore
fans looking to see what else is out there.
7.5 | DON ANELLI
EVIL MASQUERADE
THE DIGITAL CRUCIFIX
DARK MINSTREL MUSIC
The once envelope pushing world of heavy
metal is now characterized by an unflinching
orthodoxy and reflexive nostalgia-quenching.
Things don’t really seem to change much in
many corners of the metal den. Those seeking
alternatives usually end up immersed in fusion
genres enjoyed by the flannel wearing crowd
or the watered down oatmeal that over-coiffed
teenage scenesters eat up. In either case, heavy
metal is generally somewhat anachronistic in
that it remains doggedly against the flow of
popular music. None perhaps more so than
what Denmark heroes Evil Masquerade have put
out on their new full length. The album sounds
like something Savatage (or one of Jon Olivia’s
other projects) would have put out in the early to
mid 90’s, albeit a bit less on the “brainy” side.
And like those classic albums, ”Crucifix” ends
up being a cool record with lots of catchy and
memorable tunes that one’s own mother would
probably also enjoy. Even now in 2014, there
remains the presence of that semi-intoxicating
atmosphere of past rock-epochs. The dramatic
Broadway lighting, the frilly shirt-cuffs and the
world-weary lamenting smack the nostalgia
bone hard and dexterously. And as time goes
on and times change, metal of this kind still
survives. This stuff is admittedly pretty cheesy
(what isn’t really?) and it seems a little out of
place in a world that has embraced the newer
and more abrasive/abstract metal sub-genres.
This feeling of being left behind comes up a few
times in concepts explored, ‘Bad News’ voices
weariness towards the media, and ‘Sign of the
Times’ explains the new-age cross-to-bear as
one of technological advancement. The music
is at its best when it focuses on headier topics.
As for the rest, an eyebrow admittedly arched
upward when ‘Like Voodoo’ and its annoying
melody (sounding like some chopsocky motif)
opened up. ‘The Extra Mile’ ends up as a
throwaway groupie narrative and some of the
other topics and sounds don’t link up as well as
they could. Things look up pretty quickly as the
album moves briskly along, and luckily there is
much more to enjoy here. ‘The Nature is Calling’
is a very cool mini-prog epic that showcases the
tightness of the rhythm section and the melodic
aspirations of the band. This same can be said
about excellent album closer ‘Sign of the Times.’
This is old-school, and not in a way that those
seeking to “out-metal” each other will gravitate
towards. In addition, those looking for something
more extreme will pass this one up. Yet, there are
tons of people that won’t, if they could catch ear
of it. Fans of older/traditional heavy metal/hard
rock and the several power metal variants might
find a little gem of hope in Evil Masquerade.
7.5 | ARJUN ARMAN
EVOKE THY LORDS
DRUNKEN TALES
SOLITUDE PRODUCTIONS
It seems that Russia is slowly developing into
something of a metal superpower, or at least
4
#1 METALEGION 69

into a metal power with extreme potential and
this last characteristic is nowhere as detectable
as in the doomy metal subgenres (any epithet
attached, e.g. funeral, stoner, psychedelic,
progressive, etc.), thankfully to such a prolific
record label as Solitude Productions.
And indeed, this quartet from Novosibirsk region
is playing some sort of stoner-doom embellished
with post-metal, psychedelic, funeral doom,
some (almost) progressive elements and with
deathly grunts that are actually sub-deep growls
mastered by one and only Disembowelment. This
same stoner doom is sometimes stretched to
sludge, post and shoegaze. Those more openminded
listeners have heard this combination
before, though perhaps in a less full package,
with one or two ingredients missing.
Anyway, as wont in serious doom metal, be it
stoner or else is to grind a listener into a formless
pulp, this album shouldn’t be and is not an
exception. To securely augment this, the tracks
are long, three go by the 9 minute mark. However
on initial listenings everything sounds much
more menacing. Have to admit, the damn thing
is no reward to my synapses in such appalling
weather conditions of constant cyclones forming,
rain and low air pressure - all in the midsummer.
The balance sometimes sways from stoner
toward other components, most precariously to
so called “post”, shoegazy side that carries the
band away above dreamy and arid territories,
which can cause death by boredom alone.
Since tracks are only five, I can go scan them
one by one. The first track ‘Routine of Life’ is
classic stoner/Cathedral with too much tremolos
from flute. ‘Dirty Game’ continues in the same
vein and one can easily think it’s still the first
one, until guitar starts to ramble, but not for long,
also vox start to wane. Flute is added to achieve
more drama, but can cause annoyance, even
when it plays lines of core section, as in ‘Down
the Drain’, that starts most promisingly. ‘Dregs’
is the dreamiest track, where flute can sound
almost like a feedback (thick, if short plus!). On
‘Cause Follows Effect’, the last track and also
the best, everything is employed, and the highest
rate of diversity is achieved. Also to note, tracks
have tendency to crack in the middle, but the
consequences are not to call for an alarm.
Of special note is the cover, showing an astronaut
in full suite with helmet on, sitting in a bar
holding a glass of vodka (or is it spirit), which
adds to the slight mystery that is Evoke Thy
Lords. All in all, a record more monolithic than
expansive, and though way more interesting than
its predecessor, I’m still waiting to be impressed.
7.5 | NENAD KOBAL
EXODIA
HELLBRINGER
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
Storming through album number two, Spanish
Melodic thrashers Exodia plow through a wholly
impressive and dynamic offering that sits
comfortably between the old-school and the
new-school. The general framework found here
is the Bay Area school of attack, littering this
effort with tight guitar riffing through a rather
nice amount of tempos, from quick to slow,
sprawling paces though the main format is
really a tight mid-tempo crunch. Typically flying
through fluid patterns that maintain a rather
impressive speed, there’s enough of a buzzing
through the songs with a sense close to groove
styled picking that makes for a tighter variance
in the attack. This comes off with more of a
modern sensibility than the loud-and-proud
crunch found in the older formats. In turn this
creates a rather impressive showing since the
typically faster, more fluid and dynamic riffing
occupies the better sections of the tracks while
the tight, dense riff work that slows the pace
down, highlights the differing moods quite well
and typically makes the melodies even more
harmonious than otherwise would be. They seem
more naturally suited to the music by appearing,
as quite obviously, built around the different
modes of attack throughout, and with the fiery
dynamic they provide sweeping and diving over
the barrelling solo sections or out of normal
tempos and rhythms quite nicely. This results in
highly melodic thrash against the raging tempos
and is overall quite pleasing.
Still, the band is part and parcel of the thrash
genre which leaves them in a really good spot.
The quick paces still shine brightly with a vast
majority of the tracks employing those blistering
tempos for the mainstay and utilizing those
faster riff patterns and that old-school crunch
keeping the intensity up even further which truly
helps this flow along very well. The Bay Area
crunch afforded by the band offers a framework
of familiarity that really suits them well in
keeping things going along nicely and generating
a lot of momentum through the high speed pace
that this style allows. However, rather than going
for simple old-school worship as so many bands
do nowadays, there’s a more modern sensibility
with the influx of melodic lines, whether it be
natural buffers through the different riffing
styles for the varying tempos or actual melodies
through the swirling leads and lighter flares
injected into the rhythms, leading to a highly
impressive mixture. It sounds good because
none of this seems forced, but rather comes
across as simply a band that thrashes away
with abandon and then decides on throwing
in melodic leads along the way to showcase a
different mood than just straight, intense thrash
and that’s a highly impressive skill set on “Hellbringer”.
The band doesn’t just focus on infusing
melody into the music but also manages to offer
straightforward thrash whenever possible for
stand alone tracks that offer so little melodic
sections. That offers a distinct dynamic where
you’re expecting the melodies to come through
based on previous songs but it never comes as
it focuses on the intensity instead, and to play
with the listeners like that is a wholly impressive
deed for such a young band.
Overall, the album does have enough to make
a lasting impression for there’s a lot to like in
their attack and manners with their decidedly
old-school format hoisting along sterling
melodic leads and rhythms for a powerful and
harmonious listen. A bit goofy in places but still
serious enough to pack a powerful punch before
flowing through enjoyable melodies, this is a
solid enough outing to be pleasing to thrash fans
ELECTROCUTION
METAPHYSINCARNATION
GOREGORECORDS / AURAL MUSIC
Much like their initial phase years ago,
this second full-length release from the
Italian technical death metal legends
manages to work in plenty of influence
from the original Floridian death metal
scene. That means this one contains
plenty of thrashing amongst its guitar
work, raging through those upper tempo
workouts in ‘Phylogenesis’ and ‘As a
Father to a Son’ quite regularly which
tends to bring the speed and aggression
into play. This is mixed along nicely with the
later stage of the band’s career where they
adopted a much more pronounced technical
bent to their sound, as ‘Bloodless’, ‘Panopticon’
and ‘Logos’ are more in how difficult
and complex the rhythms are arranged
rather than demonstrating endless rounds of
wankery on the guitars. This riffing pattern
of mixing in the Floridian model of having
technically complex riffs with a thrash
based attack makes this band a lot more in
tune with the old-school atmosphere than
most bands really attempt, so songs like
‘Nature Obliteration’ or ‘Spirals in Tension’
offer a singular space where the group is
capable of going into rather impressive
technical displays with a tight, dynamic
crunch that’s afforded by their thrashy patterns.
In the end, this is a wholly impressive
feat and provides them with more avenues
of attack than just simply standing around
wanking away with abandon like the more
modern technical/death scene accomplishes
while giving off slight hints of brutality for an
extra added flair.
Overall the album does have a lot to like
with regards to its’ mixture. There’s a
rather ravenous old-school approach that’s
quite gloriously used to make for an overall
monster of an album that really sounds a
lot more enthusiastic of its’ past than most
modern bands claiming to be old-school
influenced. “Metaphysincarnation” is a
continuation of their original sonority that
was actually part of that original scene and
making this so energetic and appealing.
Featuring those thrashing rhythms with a
slew of complex riff patterns and the occasional
bent of more modern technical death
metal styling by using the wanking approach
only in the most appropriate places. That
touch makes for a more dynamic approach
when it’s not too focused on having the
technicality serve no purpose, managing to
work in both the showcasing of their skills
while letting the atmosphere breathe and
causing this a great deal of good but also
digging up its one lone flaw. The fact that
it does tend to favour those old-school
rhythms and arrangements does tend to
place a lot of songs into the same familiar
pattern, which is a little disconcerting, in
that many of the songs can tend to bleed
into each other with all the blasting drum
work and frantic riffing. There’s enough to
change things up, but this does run into
familiar ground quite easily, so several of
these songs can bleed together, or even
worse off, feel like lesser versions of other
tracks already on here. This is quite rare but
props up enough to become an issue, which
is enough to lower this one slightly. While
there’s not a whole lot to really get upset
with, there’s also not a whole lot that really
pushes this past the upper-tier of where
they could’ve gone with their sound which
is to be expected after this long lay-off.
While not as dynamic or important as their
earlier efforts, “Metaphysincarnation” is still
enough of a raging slice of old-school death
metal to let fans enjoy immensely while
those looking for blazing death metal are
also advised to seek this one out.
8 | DON ANELLI
70 METALEGION #1

while those looking for something outside the
traditional retro thrash worship likewise.
8 | DON ANELLI
EXPULSION
CERTAIN CORPSES NEVER DECAY
VIC RECORDS
Expulsion started life as a band in 1988 as
River’s Edge in Taby, Sweden. They changed their
name to Expulsion a year later and delivered
two crude demos in “Cerebral Cessation” and
“Veiled in the Mists of Mystery” which begin
this recently released compilation album on Vic
Records. The band is composed of three main
members in Anders Holmberg on bass and
vocals, Calle Fransson on drums and Stefan
Lagergren on guitars. Anders and Stefan had
played on Tiamat’s debut, “Sumerian Cry” a
year later in 1990 so one might expect the early
Expulsion output to be good. Unfortunately it’s a
mixed bag, especially early on in their career.
Both “Cerebral Cessation” and “Veiled in the
Mists of Mystery” were released within months
of each other in 1989, so I’ll take them both at
the same time since they really are quite similar
in production and musical achievement. Right
from the start, one can see how clumsy the early
days were for this group of musicians. Mixing
some grinding death metal with some UK styled
doom, the band seemed at a loss for direction
here. This mix of influences does not come
across smoothly on this first demo despite a few
tasty riffs. This is not high tempo death metal
which was the norm for the late 80’s. It takes the
doom riffs popularized by Anathema, Paradise
Lost and Candlemass, basic mid paced death
metal riffs, and the grindcore riffs heard a few
years earlier from the UK, and mixes it all up.
The band is focused on creating extensive songs
with complex construction whilst keeping the
riffs simple. However their contemporaries such
as Nihilist and Carnage were making shorter
and more focused songs during the same time
period which propelled them ahead of the pack
in Sweden. I believe the reason Expulsion never
was a leader of the Swedish death metal scene
was they never made an iconic song. You can’t
fault them for trying, but these songs frequently
take to many detours. A prime example is ‘Old
Time Entombed’. It has a really cool opening
acoustic section and some nice laid back
drumming by Stefan, but the metal that follows
does not form a cohesive song. The riffs are just
pieced together aimlessly. As I said earlier, there
are some nice riffs here and I want to like this
more than I do. The first demo might be good
for people who enjoy primitive and crude death
metal without any extensive thrashing speed.
“Veiled in the Mists of Mystery” shows the band
tightening up their song constructions but loosing
some of the riff work that made the first demo
listenable. I can sort of sense a slight change in
direction on the second demo to more of what
this band would turn to later in the 90’s which
is expansive song writing incorporating more
doom and melody. They would perfect this in the
90’s, so on “Veiled...” they struggle to pull it off
effectively. Comprised of just four songs, all of
them are over 5 minutes and feature many of the
same traits as the prior demo. Smoother song
constructions mean these song digest better,
but after a few listens the riffs don’t jump out at
you as it seems they are trying to hard now to
fuse doom melody and chug riffing into the mix.
The band lost their sense of riff craft but they
improved song flow. I guess you win some and
you loose some. Overall I would say “Cerebral
Cessation” may be the better demo here but not
by much. There are some shorter songs and so
the band had less of a chance to detour somewhere
where they can’t get it back on track. The
time-frame between demos was not long enough
for the band to develop more as musicians, so
the individual performances are not particularly
any better on “Veiled in the Mists of Mystery”.
I applaud their enthusiasm and conviction and
love their drive to make long songs work with a
wide range of influences and differing tempos.
However their immaturity shines through in the
first two demos. Rounding out this compilation
are the three final songs. Two are from an
unreleased 7” single and another is a badly
recorded song from a 90’s compilation album.
Now here is where Expulsion’s back catalogue
gets intriguing. After the demos were recorded, it
appears Stefan and Anders focused on the debut
Tiamat album and so Expulsion took a 4 year
hiatus. I guess at some point the unreleased 7”
was recorded between 1990 and 1994. Before
this compilation album, I had never listened
to anything else from Expulsion but their 1993
EP “A Bitter Twist of Fate”... a true classic
underground death doom gem. It seems to me
that on that EP, the band perfected the melodic
UK styled doom and grinding death metal parts.
They gelled it all together with smooth song craft
and overall the three songs contained on it leave
you wanting more. So how do these final songs
stack up? Well one of the songs, ‘Lain Hidden’
can also be found on the EP, and I believe it to be
the better of the three songs, so I was excited to
hear how the new track, ‘Soul Upheaval’ sounds.
I was impressed, the song is great, incorporates
some early blast beats and good rhythm work.
It has more of a Swedish death metal vibe than
anything else they did, but it actually works well
for the band. It has less melody than the songs
on the EP but it still would have fit alongside
them on an that album. The final song here is the
namesake song, and was released on some sort
of underground compilation that I cannot find
any information on. This is a song I am unfamiliar
with, and it’s sure hard to get antiquated to,
due to the horrible production. I’m usually all for
primitive productions but this one is just bad. I
was unimpressed with the song writing and the
riffs, as this could really be the worst song they
ever wrote, it just seems lazy to me.
At the end of the day, this compilation is decent,
but if you really want to hear Expulsion, go with
their EP “A Bitter Twist of Fate”. The demos do
have a restored sound quality here, so if you are
a collector of all things morbid and underground,
then Expulsion might deliver your needs. The
demos are the bulk of the material here and to
me, they just are not good enough to listen to
many years from now. It’s passable material, but
in the end, its forgettable.
5 | EVAN SPAYD
FACEFUCK
DOMAIN OF PERVERTED
PLEASURES
ROTTEN MUSIC
When you are in one of those days that you truly
need to compensate your inner healthy insanity
with uttermost sick derangement I guess a few
moments of goregrind will appease your most
savage and bloodthirsty thoughts. The first run
from the Australian duo Facefuck is a mature
experience into the realm of brutal porno crime
sceneries and atrocious medical pathologies.
What surprises on “Domain of Perverted
Pleasures” is the level of ability and maturity
that Ewza Lambert (the brain behind Facefuck)
already shows on his compositions and songs
like ‘Infected Labial Secretion Obsession’ or ‘Fallopian
Excrete Intoxication’ are clear examples of
that. My first run on “Domain...” carried me to
the first time I heard “Hacked Up for Barbecue”
by Mortician on 1996, I was so perplexed with
how the American duo managed to incorporate
programmed drums into their massive sound.
Facefuck follows that same goregrind tradition:
hypersonic programmed drums, extremely
guttural vocals (probably the most impressive
aspect of Facefuck), lyrics dealing with all sort of
obscenities, relentless rhythms and being a duo.
Unfortunately “Domain...” with its 11 minutes is
only a very brief encounter, even for an EP, with
what Facefuck is able to deliver and to tell the
truth this is what really annoys me at the end,
especially after visiting my favourite metal store
and seeing older full-length albums at sale for
just €5 EUR. Still this is highly recommended
for fans of bands like Mortician or Vulvectomy if
you don’t mind paying £9 GBP/ €12 EUR for 11
minutes of music... One point less just for that!
6 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
FATHOMHELL
KVRX [EP]
COLD RAW RECORDS
Second effort from the young Spanish black
metal band, Fathomhell. They follow the same
line of the previous release “Non Pietatem
Erit”, mid to fast tempo Scandinavian black
metal with slight reminiscences of bands
like Dissection or Mayhem (some vocal lines
remember Attila Csihar on “De Mysteriis Dom
Sathanas”). The three new songs are once again
composed entirely by Ludwigar (which is the
mastermind behind this project) and even if
he has the talent to create songs that overflow
fury and hate (especially on the faster parts),
the second release still denotes (even if on a
lesser scale) the lack of proper maturation and
a decent drummer. The new tracks are longer
in length yet Ludwigar is able to maintain the
listener interested with constant tempo changes,
a furious black metal riffing (some evolution
is noted at this level) and deep vociferations
(influenced by Mayhem). The almost 8 minute
song ‘Serpent II’ is with no doubt the highlight of
“Kvrx” (it has a sinister atmosphere with some
interesting tempo changes) however I cannot
end thinking that Fathomhell would improve its
sonority with a real drummer. At this level, its
undeniable the effort of trying to disseminate the
use of a drum machine with the addition of some
dynamics, twists and little details (sometimes
successfully), still the path that Ludwigar is
tracing demands a good drummer to mark a
strong position particularly on a scene that has
seen this formula over and over again during the
last 20 years. On a period where the post-something
is turning into a big trend (especially on
the younger metal generation), feels good to see
some venturing on the black arts.
6.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
FECALIZER
ZOMBIE MANKIND EXTERMINATION
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTIONS
Hailing from the Mexican state of Nayarit,
Fecalizer play a sludgy, downtuned hybrid of
brutal death and goregrind that’s about as
heavy and nasty as it gets. As the title suggests,
there’s a Romero-esque zombie apocalypse
theme running through these 13 tracks, and
the ultra-deep, rancid vocals and overall horror
movie/nightmare atmosphere fit this perfectly.
Following a (thankfully) short spoken intro, the
opening song kicks in with an ominous, bassy
death metal riff and an almost Will Rahmer-esque
subterranean growl, and it’s easy enough
to see that these guys know what they’re doing.
Alternating between slower, riff-heavy grooves,
mid-to-up-tempo thrashy bits, and occasional
moderately fast blasting, the music never really
loses its momentum or gets dull. Unlike many
“brutal” bands, the songwriting has a sense of
logic and direction to it, and when you combine
this with the band’s knack for uber-heavy, killer
riffs, any fan of death metal infused goregrind
is bound to enjoy him/herself. Samples appear
intermittently, but are generally short and
discreet enough not to annoy - in fact, they often
add a little something to the vibe of the music.
All in all, this a well-produced release, definitely
recommended for those who enjoy the genre.
8 | KEVIN AKSTIN
FORGERY
WITH THESE FISTS
BATTLEGOD PRODUCTIONS
The intensity that Forgery embodies on its songs
4
#1 METALEGION 71

is quite impressive. After clarifying that aspect
it’s with no surprise that I see the second album
from this Norwegian quartet opening with sheer
brutality and making no prisoners by the form
of ‘Effigy’. Their slightly modern and fast paced
thrash metal version leaves no place for losers
or injured, its kill or be killed!
Four years after the release of the first album
entitled “Harbouring Hate” these guys return
with a new record label (now signed to Australian
Battlegod Records) but the same raging
and contagious groovy attitude. Composed by 9
songs of epic furious thrash metal proportions,
“With These Fists” stands strong among all
the other thrash metal albums coming out on
the past months. Forgery incorporates all those
elements and details that grab the attention
of fans on the first listening: a massive twin
wall of guitar riffs of sonic proportions with a
slight industrial edge, a strong and prominent
pounding bass, an intense and brutal drum
work full of little details and the in your face
savagery of Anders Moen’s voice (reminding
Robb Flynn from Machine Head on steroids).
Songs like ‘Effogy’, ‘Mind of Rape’, ‘Shadows of
Fear’, ‘Black Mourning’ (great bass section) or
‘Fading Thoughts’ (some cool and unexpected
guitar leads) are clear examples of a refined
song structure yet without neglecting not for one
single second their own trademark: sharpness,
rage, speed and a natural groove.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Forgery getting
signed with a major label for their third album!
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
GRINNED
GRIN AND BEAR IT!
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTIONS
This Irish quintet plays fairly standard (albeit
catchy) grindcore with a bit of a punk/D-beat
influence. While you won’t find anything too original
or fresh here (theirs is, after all, essentially
a decades-old style), the songs switch up riffs
and tempos often enough to avoid monotony,
and some of the hardcore-ish grooves they hit
upon (see ‘This Will Make Your Blood Run Cold’
or ‘H1N1 - Sick of Pigsty’) are pretty vicious
and headbangable. Also worth noting is that the
songwriting is relatively varied (by grind standards,
mind you) and not every track begins with
all-out blasting. ‘Rotting Sculptures’ for instance,
starts out mid-tempo and death metalish before
gradually picking up speed. Two vocalists trade
FECAL BODY
INCORPORATED
PATHOGENESIS [REISSUE]
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTIONS
Sex and violence are a thematic pairing that
is constantly explored in the varying realms
of metal. Varying from the vanilla of power
metal (i.e. kill the bad guys, get with the
princess into bed) to the ultra depraved/
fetish chronicles of gore/pornogrind (i.e.
put love interest in blender, empty, stir and
enjoy!), the space between the two topics
has and will continue to prove fertile. Fecal
Body Incorporated fall firmly in the latter
camp, and supply a vile and sickening
collection with their full length “Pathogenesis.”
A re-release of the 2010 recording, a
returning listener can expect new artwork
and six bonus tracks culled from the “Sadistic
Acts of Depravity” split from 2013 and
one track (a cover of Cocklush’s ‘Designer
of My Identity’) from the “Necromorphosis”
split. The newcomer on the other hand will
get a compilation of sorts that will serve as
a fairly deep introduction to this haunting
band from Bulgaria. And there is a major
reason why there should be new listeners.
Atmospherics. Often reserved as a
subgenre-prefix for the more literal minded
ensemble, “Pathogenesis” pays no heed
to the word and instead makes it happen
off with the typical high shrieks and low growls,
although the vocal lines (as on the title track)
are frequently quite catchy, and occasional
punkish shouts add a bit of variety to tracks like
the closing ‘No Jobs, No Hope, No Future’ (which
also features a pretty sweet guitar solo). In the
end, there probably isn’t much to say about this
album other than that, lack of distinctiveness
or no, it’s generally a lot of fun. The production
is clear and powerful, the riffs hit hard on a
consistent basis, and when it comes to their
genre of choice, Grinned do basically everything
right. And as befits a Bizarre Leprous signing,
there’s even an occasional dose of humour, as
in the song title ‘Grind Core Gangstas’. Not really
essential stuff, but as an extreme metal fan
just looking for an enjoyable listen, you could do
far worse.
7.5 | KEVIN AKSTIN
HAMMERCULT
STEELCRUSHER
SPV / SONIC ATTACK
The second release from Israeli modern
thrashers pretty much continues right where
they’ve left off on their debut and refines
pretense-free in their music. A choice to
keep the scenery solemn and even somnambulant
produces a surreal experience
that is different from the usual viscera-infested
brutal death metal/goregrind album.
One of the contributing factors is the
uniformly excellent non-metal interludes
and introductions. Each one (‘Into the Deep
Realms of Pathology,’ ‘Maggots Infestation,’
‘Goremageddon’ etc) is expertly crafted
and conceived and creates a much more
cohesive listening experience than the usual
sample+squeals/blasting formula. Another
plus is that the instrumentals and metals
sections are mastered at the same volume,
which doesn’t happen as much as it should.
For these reasons the album is addicting
and immersive. A comparable experience
can be found in Funebrarum’s “Beneath the
Columns of Abandoned Gods” in that there
is a positive level of monotony that ends up
bettering the album. There is a little bit more
variation in the newer material, along with a
more mechanical atmosphere (thanks to the
drum machine) that doesn’t reach the well
conceived album proper in quality. An industrial
bent might be something the group can
check out in greater detail later on.
The metal itself is delivered at a mid-pace
chug that is strongly reminiscent of Jungle
Rot’s less grooving transitional bridges
(highlight ‘Something Rotten for Dinner’
for example). At other points, a certain
death-doom aesthetic becomes apparent,
with opener ‘Removal of Rotting Fetus from
Womb’ striking very close to the vibe of
‘Altars in Gore’ from Japan’s Coffins. The
vocals are of the ultra-gurgle variety and
also are delivered at a monotone manner
that gives the impression of a narrator
describing the horrors in an objective
manner. As a result, this cool collection
ends up being a must hear for fans outside
of goregrind due to the even-keeled sound
and dank atmospherics.
8.5 | ARJUN ARMAN
their approach quite well. Utilizing a far more
energetic and refined approach to a mixture of
death and extreme thrash metal, the result is
utterly raging riffs that flow through the tracks
and providing a boundless energy that really
scores plenty of intense patterns, like the title
track and ‘We Are the People’. The death metal
influences are lightly added, in a way just to gain
intensity rather than bringing to the table riffs
and death metal patterns. This is firmly rooted
on thrash and really doesn’t even need truly to
be called death metal having songs like ‘Metal
Rules Tonight’, ‘Burning the Road’, ‘Ironbound’ or
‘Damnation Arise’ which are so stoically extreme
thrash metal that it really produces little need
for that classification. It’s all surging razor-wire
riffing with the occasional rhythm change into
a tight chugging blast with furious energetic
rhythms that recall the vigorous riffs of punk,
with ‘Satanic Lust’ and ‘Into Hell’ providing
plenty of those. Offset this with clanking bass
lines, furious vocal shouts and the smartly
placed series of gang backing vocals and this is
a raging brand of extreme thrash metal.
There isn’t much to dislike on “Steelcrusher”,
though it does have some issues. The first most
noticeable factor to overcome is the utterly
obnoxious and irritating vocalist which is quite
possibly one of the hardest, most unendurable
voices in the genre with its falsetto-shrieking
from the onset which doesn’t match the music at
all, other than sounding extreme yet never makes
a conscious effort to keeping it in tone with the
rest of the music nor in making it listenable.
It’s nearly impossible to sit through this entire
record the way he constantly shrieks and howls
as his pitch is so aggravating and off-key that
it becomes a challenge to listen to three or four
songs in a row. Of course, that ties into the other
major factor with the album having way too
many tracks so that it really seems loaded with
filler material in the second half. Granted, many
of the songs are quite short overall and really
struggle to reach up to four minutes in length but
the fact that these second half tracks are lacking
the kind of energy and enthusiasm that populated
the first half is where this falls remarkably.
This is what really causes “Steelcrusher” to drop
off somewhat.
Having firmly decided on their style long ago,
there’s a lot to like here, with this one carrying
on their extreme thrash route with a strong
collection of raging, tight tracks packed with
plenty of solid moments. This isn’t really for the
more melody minded fans of the old-school style
of thrash (those elements are ignored here),
in favour of appealing to more extreme forms
of modern metal and is thus recommended for
those fans than thrash aficionados in general.
7.5 | DON ANELLI
HIGH PURITY
Z EUFORIE VEZENÍ
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTION
Some of the coolest bands out there are the
ones that aren’t afraid to play a combination of
styles and meld them together into a successful
hybrid. For fans of deathgrind and its variants,
the Czech group High Purity are sure to impress.
Their new album, entitled “Z Euforie Vezení”
is lean and focused attack that stands at just
above twenty minutes in length. Some extended
length acts would barely consider this release an
EP, but being amongst a grindier class that celebrates
brevity, it is right at home. At the same
time, the work is technical and powerful enough
for the death metal crowd. And effective use of
hardcore shouts co-exist with the usual metal
roaring to create an entertaining mixture. As a
72 METALEGION #1

result, a tangible energy of creativity colludes
with an audible sense of enthusiasm for a signal
of great promise.
“Z Euforie Vezení” translates (thanks to
that wonderful little thing called Google) to
“The Euphoria Prison.” Bringing to mind cult
Christopher Walking vehicle “The Happiness
Cage/Mind Snatchers,” the cool cover artwork is
given further context to the non-Czech speaking
crowd and furthers the atmosphere of protest
suggested. After all, what good is euphoria when
it is expected or even enforced upon a populace
or test subject? The title track likely begins with
a musical sample from said film, and while
being completely furious and awesome also suggests
more development to come in the future.
This band is also very well equipped to kick
some serious ass; the mosh-pounding of opener
“Hlanvne zdarvi” reminds of the power of the
NYDM formula when done correctly. Breakdowns
and chugging are best when they don’t distract
from the momentum of the song as a whole.
Again, there is a lot of variety in what is offered.
Case in point, each track is great as part of the
whole, but it is ‘Obet Doby’ that ends up being
the highlight. Beginning with a soundscape that
transitions into a melodic passage that serves
as the main motif for the duration. Alternating
powerful blasting sections with a striking bridge
pattern stimulates a strong set of emotions in
the listener. The manner is similar to legends
Rotten Sound or Nasum’s use of punctuating
melody, and is employed elsewhere to great
effect (‘Krivda’ and its moderated textures or
the title track’s emotive conclusion). Taking the
speed up a notch or creating deeper chasms of
sonic dissonance could make the effect achieved
on ‘Obet Doby’ to even more fascinating levels.
As with individual stylistic choices, the production
of the album could benefit from a more
decisive choice to bring the carnage forward
or suspend it even further in oblivion. This is
because the album exists in a somewhat airy
and distant universe that lessens its potential
impact. Atmospheric death metal and grindcore
grow ever more popular with the resurgence of
old-school aesthetics; and this could be a good
place for a band with melodic inclinations. In the
other direction, increased rawness and extremity
would push them elsewhere. The snare drum
production might be a potential snag to those
who find fault with its “popping” as a distraction
from the rest of the instruments (think
“Blasphemy Made Flesh”). This can be rectified
or lessened with subsequent recordings, but it
can help or hinder depending on the preferences
of the audience. The aforementioned use of
hardcore gang shouts and the air of conceptual
righteousness might bother the more fantastical
imaginations out there. That shouldn’t stop this
radical band from doing what they want to do.
8.5 | ARJUN ARMAN
HOLOCAUSTO
CANIBAL
LARVAS [EP]
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTION
The Portuguese death/grinders continue their
almost 20 year old gore legacy that is so well
known especially after their successful fulllength
album “Gorefilia” released in 2012 by
Xtreem Music. “Larvas” is their latest release
and even if it’s not a full length album it has a
total running time similar to it. Comprised by
4 new songs (which were most likely recorded
4
GOD MACABRE
THE WINTERLONG [REISSUE]
RELAPSE RECORDS / PETTING ZOO PROPAGANDA
Starting off in 1988 as Botten Pa Burken
and playing grindcore in the vein of Carcass
and Napalm Death, these young Swedes
from Valberg soon jumped aboard the train
bound for the classic Sunglight Studio death
metal sound. In 1989 they changed their
name to Macabre End and began to play
this form of straight ahead death metal. This
produced one demo called “Consumed by
Darkness”, which I consider quite good.
The band changed their name yet again
to God Macabre in 1991 and they signed
onto M.B.R. Records to release their debut
full length album. “The Winterlong...” was
originally recorded in mid December 1991
but it was not released until roughly around
two years later in December 1993. I mention
this because this is a key piece of info
in understanding this album and judging
it correctly. For the music contained on
“The Winterlong...” is extremely derivative.
However when placed amongst the other
Swedish death metal albums released in
1991, it stands up nicely. Also keep in mind,
since Swedish death metal was all but dead
in 1993, the year this album was finally
released, one can begin to understand
why it is not heralded except only by those
fanatical underground record collectors.
I’ll review this album for what it is; A
re-release. It contains the Macabre End
demo/EP entitled “Consumed by Darkness”
and also an unreleased song. The CD opens
with “The Winterlong...” full-length, and
right away as the first chord comes crashing
down and the vocals roar out, you can tell
this is going to be a heavy dose of Swedish
death metal. The familiar guitar tone is
there, and it’s mixed quite well with all the
parts of the drum set being mixed evenly.
Per Boders vocals are really good as I have
always loved his performance on the demo/
EP from the year prior. The first two songs,
‘Into Nowhere’ and ‘Lost’ are similar in that
they build around a verse/chorus/verse/
chorus. The early riffs in these two songs
are the classic formula with the hammering
d-beat drum patterns Dismember and
Entombed used on occasion. God Macabre
drummer Niklas Nilsson actually uses this
style quite extensively throughout the album.
Both songs then flow into some new territory
with solos and double bass sections and
even a faster section or two. The band wrote
two instrumental tracks in ‘Teardrops’ and
‘Lamentations’. ‘Teardrops’ is a lead and
solo heavy metal instrumental with a Chuck
Shuldiner and Death type vibe to it. Pretty
good guitar work, however it does come
across as shaky at times. ‘Lamentations’ is
an acoustic piece with extensive synth to add
atmosphere. Neither are very remarkable, however
their sole function seems to be in providing
a seamless flow between the songs. In between
these two instrumentals is the albums core in
‘Ashes of Morning Life’ and ‘Spawn of Flesh’.
‘Ashes of Mourning Life’ is arguably the best
song on the album, as it is rife with double bass
churning riffs and some great lead work. ‘Spawn
of Flesh’ is a re-done song from the Macabre
End days. To be honest, this song does not sound
good here at all. With the modern Sunlight crisp
production and a lazy performance this song
gets no justice. Its main riffs are accompanied
by the d-beats Nilsson has been using, and on
the demo they were feral and heavy. Unfortunately
on this album they are weak and lack
aggressiveness. The performance of this song on
the demo/EP is a lot better, so this was a huge
disappointment. Finishing off the album in ‘In
Grief’ and it’s the only song which does not follow
the same structural flow as the prior songs.
It’s good in this regard because it changes things
up albeit waiting till the very end of the album to
do so. Good lead driven riffs with some dynamic
drum work we haven’t heard from Nilsson are
this songs key components.
Overall “The Winterlong...” is a bit overproduced.
It seems to not have an edge to it. This can
be exemplified in how bad the song ‘Spawn of
Flesh’ sounds on the album. I can’t listen to it. I
wonder how much better all these songs would
have been with the old demo/EP production. It’s
a decent run, but “The Winterlong...” lags behind
the heavyweights of the scene back in 1991.
Now we get to the bonus songs and this is where
I must say, things are starting to shine. Starting
off with ‘Life’s Verge’ the unreleased song. Pure
Swedish death metal with a filthy production.
“FOR THOSE WHO HAVE
LIVED TO TELL THE TALE,
THE EARLY 90’S DEATH
METAL SCENE WAS AN
EXCITING, VIBRANT AND
REWARDING PERIOD”
Extract taken from the booklet’s
liner notes written by Tom Hailey
(Relapse Records)
I really love this song. The pace is more
aggressive and the bridge riff right before
the solo is so tight and thick. One of my
favourite riffs ever in the classic Swedish
death scene. I had never heard this song
until this re-release and I have fallen in
love with it. Then onto the demo/EP. I have
listened to this release a lot over the years.
The opening instrumental is way better than
the instrumentals on “The Winterlong...”.
The lead work is better written and the riffs
are catchier. The pace is more deliberate
and punishing. ‘Cease to Be’ is the second
song and first true metal song. It is one of
my all time top five Swedish death metal
songs. Blast beats, leads, solos and Per
Boders beastly growls ensure this song is a
classic. Finally ‘Spawn of Flesh’ is here in
its infancy, but because the production is a
dirtier Sunlight variety, it’s so much more
filthy and brutal. The d-beat riffs are not
weak sounding and the blast beat and solo
combination in the middle is quite heavy.
So there you have it. The bonus songs are
the real gem here. “The Winterlong...” is
a polarizing album. I have talked to many
people that say it stands up well against
the classics of the Swedish death metal
scene. I have talked to many who despise
it. So I can’t really recommend this album
on its own, however the bonus material is a
must own. Whether you buy this re-release
or you hunt down the original demo tape or
EP when they were known as Macabre End,
obtain that material at any cost. Be warned
the original demo and EP do not contain
the equally outstanding ‘Life’s Verge’ song
which I have recently began to love, so
buying this re-release might do the trick.
7,5 | EVAN SPAYD
#1 METALEGION 73

during the “Gorefilia” recording and mixing
sessions), 6 live songs captured at their performance
on Obscene Extreme 2013 festival and
3 remixes from the “Gorefilia” album. “Larvas”
is the sort of release that will most likely only
appeal to the fans of the band rather than a serious
entry level to the sick and perverted world
of Holocausto Canibal, nevertheless you get the
chance to experience their music on different
perspectives: studio, live and remixes which
is definitely a plus. The 4 new songs follow
faithfully the path traced on “Gorefilia”, not only
composition wise but also production wise, leading
me to conclude that those 4 songs are sort of
leftovers from that recording and mixing session
(both in Portugal and at Hertz Studios). The live
part on “Larvas” is probably what stands out the
most and even if we don’t get the chance to hear
the complete set of the band (that would give a
good value for the money) they selected songs
from different periods of the band plus two covers
from Blood and Dead Infection. Live as usual
the band uses a different vocalist (Ricardo Silva)
which meets perfectly the fans’ expectations
and gives a slightly more grinding edge to their
music. The final part of “Larvas” will certainly
not please all metal fans due to the club beat
sort of remixes, even so this is something that
Holocausto Canibal have done on the past. The
band considers “Larvas” as a sort of transition
between “Gorefilia” and the new material that
will be released during 2015. The mastering process
of the new material will be handled by no
one else than the all-time reference, Dan Swanö.
For the moment they stick to their last known
recipe: hyper speed drum patterns, monotone
growling vocals, intense short Portuguese
songs and a mix between extreme (sometimes
dynamic) death metal with Grind influences. This
is a band that has built a strong reputation in the
midst of the Portuguese scene and during their
existence they have slowly progressed reaching
an international status that few Portuguese
extreme bands have.
7 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
ÍMPIOS
TOTAL HERESIA [DEMO]
GRAVADORA INFERNO
From this side of the Atlantic sea a band like
Ímpios is always something to congratulate
simply because they aren’t afraid to sing on
their mother tongue, Portuguese. During the
years many have raised their voices against
and in favour of bands that sing on their mother
tongues however black metal has been a style of
music that many prefer to express themselves
on their mother tongues and quite successfully.
The very first thing that crossed my mind when
hearing for the first time “Total Heresia” was
that the vocalist Thiago Impuro reminds me
a lot of the Portuguese band Filii Nigrantium
Infernalium during the “Era do Abutre” period.
For the vast majority of you the comparison
will not help in having a real perception of how
wicked this sounds, nevertheless the vocalist
Belathauzer and the music of Filii Nigrantium
Infernalium (also with Portuguese lyrics) were
quite “rebellious” back in 1995 in Portugal,
unfortunately even if they are still active they
remain quite underground. “Total Heresia”
shows a band that knows how to create a fitting
profane atmosphere with vicious vociferations,
fast riffing, blast beats, good dynamics and
suitable arrangements. They do have at times
the freshness and naivety of the younger bands
(just hear the uninspiring start of ‘Deusa da
Luxúria’ and some guitar parts of ‘Ao Negro Rei
das Profundezas’) but they quickly overcome it
with intensity and an ultra-ungodly attitude. They
do have some influences from Scandinavian
black metal but they choose to layer them with
a fat, raw, almost thrashy edge. On the vast sea
of black metal, Ímpios does not truly stand out
even so I would give them a chance only to hear
Thiago Impuro’s wicked vocals.
6,5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
ION VEIN
S/T
MORTAL MUSIC / CMM GMBH
The awaited follow up to 2003’s second opus
“Reigning Memories” is now available! 11 years
is definitely a long time and I’m sure most of
you had probably forgotten this Chicago based
progressive power metal band. The explanation
for the long silence can be obtained simply
by listening to the new album... The founding
guitarist Chris Lotesto had to rebuild the band
from scratch! Between old band members (bass
player from first album, Brian Gordon, helped
on the recordings) and brand new additions
the self-titled third opus was composed and
recorded with acclaimed producer Neil Kernon
(Judas Priest, Cannibal Corpse, Flotsam and Jetsam,
Nevermore, etc). What the fans can expect
in 2014 is a modern, groovier version of Ion Vein
with less focus on the progressive side of the
music, yet it can be found sometimes like on the
song ‘Alone’. Prior to the release of this self-titled
record the band had the awareness to present
the new path of Ion Vein to the fans by releasing
2 digital EP’s, perhaps with the aim of testing
the reaction of both fans and press. Those 2 EP’s
passed me completely aside but now I’m glad
that it happened because the surprise factor
couldn’t be greater. Ion Vein traps the listener
HIRAX
IMMORTAL LEGACY
SPV
With a legacy lasting back to the early
80’s, the fifth full-length effort from
California thrashers Hirax is quite easy
to determine that there is almost no real
change in the bands’ approach or style.
Essentially the band is firing off mid 80’s
style speed metal rhythms that tend
to whip through several intense stages
rather than the flat one note approach
which more than effectively showcases a
blending of speed and traditional thrash
metal, rendering this with a slight hint of
technicality. There’s a dramatic series of
pattern variations and tempo changes,
found in the title track, that evoke some
of the complexity and energy of the thrash
realm, including scorching opener ‘Black
Smoke’, while the band’s reliance on tight,
aggressive and frantic up-tempo chug riffing
in ‘Hellion Rising’ is one of the genre’s most
adhered to doctrines. Each of these features
is found in such abundance that there’s a
healthy cross selection of material to please
fans of either disciples, as the thrash metal
brings along tracks like ‘Deceiver’ and
‘Gallows Pole’ that are the tight speed metal
while ‘This World Will Burn’ and ‘Thunder
Roar, the Conquest, La Boca de la Bestia
- The Mouth of the Beast’ show off the
lengthier compositions and more dynamic
patterns that are favoured in thrash,
therefore appealing to both genres yet never
fully commit to one or the other. The fact
that these issues crop up in the music to
keep it barrelling along in really up-beat,
frantic paces is where the best features are
found since the tracks on display are given
that burst of energy through the influx of the
furious thrash rhythms. Of course, nothing
from the band would be complete without
the utterly relentless, wildly enjoyable vocal
performance that puts the majority of these
tracks into the upper end of the echelon
with their general fervour and enthusiasm,
making routine lines seem utterly irresistible
and making for one of the most enjoyable
parts of any release from the band which is
again featured here.
Now, on the music side of things this is
quite a bit of fun but as a whole this does
come down somewhat. Among the continuous
onslaught of high speed thrash is a
series of brief, minute-long instrumentals
that pop up, full of fiery heavy metal riffing
and soloing that occurs at selected points
and jars you out of the whole experience by
stopping the flow. The sudden influx of more
traditional patterns really seems to be done
out of a different band or style instead of
the typical tight, raging speed metal blasts
that the band has become known for and
really don’t add much of anything to the
tracks as a whole. The general practice of
these interludes isn’t the issue here, but by
encroaching along the tracks causes the
issue of weakening the second half of it.
The only other real issue to be found here is
that the majority of the up-tempo tracks do
tend to use the same patterns and rhythms
throughout their running time and tends
to make them bleed into each other. This
is mostly notable on the upper-intensity
tracks for they seem to utilize the same
guitar rhythms over and over as if the band
doesn’t seem to understand how to play at
that speed under any other circumstances
beyond the one reused pattern. The only true
variation found within this is the different
tempos of the tracks. It’s a little disconcerting
but the fact that this is part of the genre
is mostly forgiveable since the material here
is rather fun regardless of how similar it
sounds to each other.
Another strong set of relentless speed metal
anthems from one of the more consistent
and enjoyable bands in the genre, that may
not top their all-time best work but certainly
stands up to the majority of it and definitely
tops some of the weaker efforts. There’s
not a whole lot that really keeps this one
down, beyond the slightly noticeable dip
in intensity through the second half with
a better series of songs placed up top and
less instrumentals compared to the second.
But these are really middling problems
that have little-to-no bearing on the songs
themselves which are finely tuned blasts of
speed metal with sharp thrash influences,
and as a result is definitely recommended to
fans of the band as well as general thrash
and speed metal fans.
8.5 | DON ANELLI
74 METALEGION #1

into a world of non-existing dungeons and
dragons (the power metal cliché) and delivers an
album full of emotions and real life events courtesy
of the new singer Scott Featherstone (ex.
Enertia). I must say that this new and sharper
version of Ion Vein fits perfectly within the
boundaries of a great comeback record, especially
having in consideration the amount of time
that these guys were in the shadows. The opener
‘Fools Parade’ sets perfectly the mood for a
pummelling attack of power metal (with a thrash
metal edge) riffs and dynamic leads crowned
with Scott’s impressive singing abilities (I have
the feeling that he will impress even more on
the next album). ‘Seamless (A Transition of the
Mind)’ kicks in with a strong pounding rhythmic
section then Scott’s menacing voice explodes
without warning, that was the moment that these
guys grabbed my attention! The record is full of
songs that will stick on your head, like ‘Enough’,
‘Face the Truth’, ‘Alone’, ‘Love/Hate’, ‘The Will of
One’ to state just a few. This self-titled record
is for sure a good turning point, hopefully and
without moving back I hope they can squeeze in
a bit more of the progressive element on the next
album as well as encourage Scott to progress
deeper into vocal twists and new ranges. This
is the sort of power metal that will please fans
of bands like Brainstorm, Nevermore or Eidolon.
Watch out they are back!
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
IRON KINGDOM
GATES OF ETERNITY
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
In a time where being considered “old-school”
doesn’t carry much significance beyond a genre
tag, this second effort from the Canadian heavy
metallers is an absolutely enjoyable old-school
styled heavy metal album that recalls the glory
days of the past without being too retro about
it. Once again, the band is astutely aware of
what they’re doing and having a lot of fun with
their chosen genre. The sound is the blistering
wails and screams of mid 80’s American heavy
metal, which right off the bat is introduced in
‘At the Gates’ with heavy yet melodic riff work
that melds both traditional and power metal into
the mix, thrust through a mid paced tempo that
really scores favourably on the material. The
heavy metal keeps the material aggressive and
heavy, mostly dominant in ‘Chains of Solitude’
and ‘At Home in the Dark’ with the weighty
crunch that requires such a heavy bottom end to
build the lighter, more melodic harmonies found
in the power metal realm. On nearly every other
account, though, the band is clearly aping the
old-school brand of melodic interludes off the
churning heavy metal, clearly found in ‘Chains of
Solitude’, ‘Demon of Deception’ and ‘Egypt (The
Time is Near)’ which is certainly helped along
quite well by the penchant for weaving it all
through epic, sprawling tempos that range from
doom-like crawls to triumphant glorious hymns
and everywhere in-between so it brings out all
the familiar trappings and guidelines in that
style. By being so tuned with the screaming guitar
lines and wailing vocals as well as the loud,
energetic bass lines and heavy, dexterous drum
patterns that pound throughout, it manages to
cross that fine line between the traditional end
of the spectrum while carrying on the lighter,
melodic side with plenty of the power metal nods
all wrapped into a rather fun old-school feel.
Working alongside is the screaming, high-falsetto
wailing that definitely carries a powerful battle
cry that matches the tone perfectly, even if there
are selected occasions with evident straining to
hit the shrieks while the mid range register is
loud, clear and proudly defiant whilst managing
to stand alongside the rest of the highly melodic
material.
For the most part, the album’s pretty straightforward
about what you get in terms of the music
though it does offer up some surprises throughout
that do help to make it a little more memorable.
The fact that it manages to feature as many
different styles is the biggest facet, which is
quite surprising. There are tracks that manage to
run the gamut from slow, sprawling epics riddled
with doom like passages to a few tracks that go
for higher tempos and rhythms with absolutely
ferocity as well as brief interludes and light,
acoustic passages. The band also manages to
run through the entire cycle of song lengths here
with nearly all the tracks bridging past the five
minute mark except for three. A brief mid-album
instrumental ‘Candeloro’ and the two biggest
efforts, the shorter three minute effort ‘Shadow
of Death’ and the massive, majestic fifteen
minute epic ‘Egypt (The End is Near)’. Managing
to hold the interest level in a sprawling epicness
is quite an achievement and this is handled
quite well here as ‘Egypt (The End is Near)’ goes
through about eight different sections of music
that fit together into one enjoyable-yet-exhaustive
experience that crams a lot into it yet still
comes off quite fun. This makes for a remarkable
variety here that should offer up enough to
appeal to a wide-ranging audience as there are
tracks for those that like the faster stuff, those
that partake in slow, heavy works and those
that enjoy the attempts at experimenting with
their sound and aren’t content with a series of
rehashed songs and riffs throughout an album.
Even more important, none of these interfere
with their old-school sound at all and readily fit
into this style seamlessly, never really offering
a track that sticks out and managing to keep
everything pretty together and coherent.
This is a confident, enjoyable release from a
group of old-school die-hards who clearly and
unequivocally love this style, making this a
solid release for those that are really affixed to
heavy metal or more traditional metalheads who
need a strong shot of what made the classics
so enjoyable.
8 | DON ANELLI
IRREVERENCE
SHREDS OF HUMANITY
NADIR MUSIC
The very first thing that will grab your attention
on “Shreds of Humanity”, even before hitting
the play button, will definitely be the sick cover
artwork... The upper part of a human being with
both forearms nailed on his chest and trapped
on a clockwork mechanism and making the
seconds and minutes hands. How sick his this?
HOLY MOSES
REDEFINED MAYHEM
SPV
Making it to album number eleven, the
German thrash forefathers are not about
to deviate from the plan now as this is
certainly a higher quality release than
expected. This is certainly filled with their
traditional type of devastating thrash full of
tight, raging chugging much like ‘Hellhound,’
‘Triggered’ and ‘Process of Projection’ ably
demonstrate with their stylized rhythms and
tight grooves throughout while managing
to feature those up-tempo paces. As well,
‘Undead Dogs’ and ‘Redemption of the Shattered’
showcase those tight riffs in a slightly
lowered tempo while still managing to feature
their signature riff-work which makes
this an equally dynamic offering. Whether
it’s in ‘One Step Ahead of Death’ where the
pace opts for more of a doom metal-like
sprawling crawl or ‘Delusion’ which brings
in discordant styles of riffing patterns full of
chaotic energy through the jagged, angular
patterns, there’s a fine amount of dynamic
energy running throughout this which fully
keeps the streamlined rhythms full of
dynamic arrangements packed with plenty
of power. From the power-packed brutality
of ‘Into the Dark’ to the shredding madness
of ‘Whet the Knife,’ this one definitely
contains a fine variety of styles and tempos
that keep this charging along pretty well.
Of course, any mention of the band without
the shredded throat of Sabina is farce as
Have I already awaken your attention? Great!
These guys are no new kids on the block, in fact
the band was formed back in ‘95 by the actual
vocalist (Riccardo Paioro) and drummer (Davide
Firinu) and “Shreds of Humanity” is already
their fourth album. They are probably not the
most prolific band around, but in their defence,
quantity most of the times doesn’t stand for
quality. These Italians are mostly influenced by
thrash and death metal yet giving a large if not
entirely emphasis on furious thrash with a hint
she absolutely slays here, evolving from
the witch shrieks of ‘Sacred Sorrows’ and
vile demon rasps of ‘Liars’ that continue
to stand up to any of her contemporaries,
regardless of gender and truly employing the
greatest strengths of the band quite well.
All-in-all, there’s a rather ripping thrash
assault through this one.
Frankly, there’s not a lot to dislike with this
one, except a small issue... The fact that the
album is just way too dense and cramped
from their previous efforts which has a
pretty downer effect on the material. Since
the majority of the tracks are all around the
same length with the same kind of tempo
and pace on display, it can really feel as
though this one is all crammed together and
never really gets a chance to let the rhythms
and arrangements breathe throughout
here. The material is so tightly wound as
well that the heavy, dense crunch of their
chugging rhythms seem to be on constant
blast throughout here and never give a
rest except for the odd melodic interlude or
variation change-over which can make for
an exhausting listen while this gets to pound
out its series of brutal patterns. Perhaps
even have a few less tracks on the album
which tend to run through the same type of
arrangements on here which is another way
to break up the rather stuffed, tight feeling
throughout this one. As well, the fact that
the band experiments with that finale track
on here is certainly not to be frowned upon
in practice, but by being so different that it
never fits in with the rest of the tracks, this
one never really makes its purpose known
and causes this to end on a confusing note.
One of the finest and most explosive entries
in the scene, this is certainly a good enough
offering to fit alongside their classics while
not being content to rely on those to carry
the success of this one. As a whole, this
is certainly recommended to old-school
thrash fans as well as hardcore followers
of European thrash in general, while those
looking for a starting point into their catalogue
should look to the classics first before
attempting this one.
8 | DON ANELLI
of groove. The band focus their songs on creating
a constant, intense and in your face version of
thrash metal with aggressive harsh vocals and
a tremendous bass section. The bass guitar was
indeed the very first thing that grabbed my attention
on the opener ‘The Dark Fields’ because
its quite audible on the final mix resulting on a
hefty sonority. At this level Tommy Talamanca
made a very good job in capturing and mixing the
essence of Irreverence at Nadir Music Studios
since all instruments are layered and sounding
perfectly. Overall what we have here is an album
at full throttle with the occasional mid-tempo
injections (some nice guitar leads, solos and
rhythmic changes, showing that they know
how to handle their instruments) and a good
sense of balance between old and new thrash
especially after the first 3 or 4 songs. My only
remarks must be made towards Ricky’s harsh
and constant vocal attack; I feel that sometimes
a little more variation and range would back
up and enrich even more the compositions.
4
#1 METALEGION 75

Instrumentally “Shreds of Humanity” would have
also benefited with the addition of a few more
stand out or “irreverent” parts. Notwithstanding,
a nice surprise from an robust thrash metal band
that I’m afraid is probably passing aside to most
metal fans, just give it a try and a few spins.
7.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
JIG-AI
RISING SUN CARNAGE
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTIONS
Bizarre Leprous Productions is behind yet
another 2014 Czech goregrind release in Jig-Ai’s
“Rising Sun Carnage”. Contemporaries of
Destructive Explosion of Anal Garland, Jig-Ai
are also late comers to the Czech scene having
started in 2005. Their debut album came along
in 2006 and was well received by legions of
worldwide grind fans, although to these ears
it did not match up to some of the other grind
albums of the time period. Two years later in
2008, their sophomore effort, “Katana Orgy”
blew me away. I enjoyed that album a lot from
start to finish and felt the production was like
a bulldozer. It had the perfect running time and
unlike other Czech grind albums, it left out the
funky stuff for more of a streamlined death grind
assault which added to its charm. On their third
album, Jig-Ai return utilizing roughly the same
exact production as “Katana Orgy” which is the
first sign things may not go so well. The band
also uses the same song writing formula, and in
doing so, they create a tedious listen.
The themes of the lyrics and the overall lyrical
prose is the same once again as is the thematic
image of the band. They are still telling gruesome
stories of female Anime characters getting
ripped to pieces. The only thing different this
time around is a new drummer. Kaspy joins
stalwarts Burak and Brain, and puts on a decent
performance but it is nothing special. In the
death grind genre, drummers have few beats
to choose from, and so the inventive nature of
the drum fills and cymbal work becomes their
claim to fame. As a case in point, Chad Walls’
performance on Brodequin’s first two albums
is some of the strongest drum work ever in this
limited genre. Previous Jig-Ai drummer Stefy,
employed some inventive fills and sections that
spiced up the many of the songs on the previous
albums. Here, Kaspy does well with the riffs he’s
working with, however his fills are the run of the
mill generic stuff we have heard all to much over
the past 10 years.
As previously stated, the formula has not
changed. Jig-Ai bulldoze the listener with
grinding blasts, and weave in some hammer
beats and a few groove sections from time to
time and there’s a song. On “Katana Orgy”, the
band seemed to edit their material better, as
here they seemingly check in and go through
the motions. Where “Katana Orgy” transitioned
from song to song smoothly with plenty of great
grooves and breaks to split up the grinding, here
HOODED MENACE
GLOOM IMMEMORIAL
DOOMENTIA RECORDS / SURE SHOT WORX
I cannot start this review without stating
that I got to know Hooded Menace back
in 2008 when they released “Fulfill the
Curse” through Razorback Records.
For one reason or another, even if they
impressed me back then I totally lost the
track of this band until now. The concept
behind the “Gloom Immemorial” couldn’t
be more valid. To gather all the songs
released only on vinyl editions (splits,
7” and 12”Ep’s) which are now sold out
and have them compiled on one unique
release. In theory works and amazingly
also in practice, the final product is
nothing else than 75 minutes of pure
menacing joy without the soundwise
sensation of wandering through the
years (various line-ups or different
mixes). That’s probably what stands out
the most, I mean, for the more distracted
fans or for the ones who are getting into
Hooded Menace for the first time this
could easily pass for a full length record
since the songs were worked in studio
(at least some levelling was made) for
a better and uniform outcome. Hooded
Menace during their career have been
building some solid foundations based
on tortuous penetrating rhythms and
deep growling vociferations. The incisive
guitar work of the former member Lasse
Pyykkö together with the puzzling song
structures and his agonizing vocals
brings back some serious rotting
old-school influences from bands
like Autopsy, My Dying Bride or even
Paradise Lost on their early age (‘Abode
of the Grotesque’ is a fine example).
He definitely knows how to sustain the
breath of the listener using slow and
putrid arrangements without any trace
of monotony to be seen. This is the sort
of band that even if playing slow there
is always little details to keep things
interesting, either a pounding bass line,
a hair-raising guitar lead or solo (‘The
Haunted Ossuary’), a subtle bell (like on
‘Instruments of Eternal Damnation’) or
a plain tenebrous pulse that forces you
to headbang like an animal. Most likely
even if you are a fan of this crushing
Finnish death/doom metal band since
day one you probably haven’t bought
all those extremely limited releases, so
here is your chance without spending too
much of your worthy money!
9 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
the band lacks imaginative mid paced riff ideas.
The groove riffs on the previous album had more
of a visceral edge to them. I found myself getting
tired of this album quickly. It is basically groove
laden, straight forward death grind in an American
style. If unfamiliar with the band, you might
think they are signed to Razorback Records or
Unmatched Brutality.
In all actuality, this album is 22 songs clocking
in at almost 40 minutes and that’s way too long.
“Katana Orgy” was kept shorter and more to the
point. Brain and company compiled maybe 11
songs which are worthwhile, as the other half
are a total miss. This album sounds exactly like
the last album production wise save for a few
minor differences. The production is so similar
you could interchange songs in your playlist and
loose sight of which album they came from. The
guitars are a bit more lucid here and the low
end is more pronounced which is a remarkable
achievement in mixing, however that’s not
enough to save this album. One last note. In
comparing this album and the last one, I find the
band to be less energetic on this offering. Brain
and company were psychotic maniacs telling
tales of female Anime toons being torn to shreds,
and the maniacal dual vocal performance on
“Katana Orgy” shows that.
I came away quite disappointed with this album.
For long-time fans of the band and those who
like to have modern metal albums bulldoze
you into the ground, then this album will be
enjoyable. For those of you like myself who like
a little dynamics in your metal, this album will
bore you quickly. Try Destructive Explosion of
Anal Garlands recent album over this.
4 | EVAN SPAYD
JUDECCA
AWAKENED BY AN ETERNAL DEATH
AND BEYOND
DAN’S CRYPT RECORDS
This is a fine example of a Floridian death metal
band dreaming big on the early 90’s but that
either was ripped off by the unpopular Wild
Rags Records or they were simply affected by
the lack of a proper and raging production a la
Morrisound recording studios. Without having
the facts I would probably vote for the second
option judging by what “Awakened by an Eternal
Death and Beyond” is all about. Nevertheless the
effort of Dan’s Crypt Records in grabbing a piece
of death metal’s history and wrap it on a nice
CD version is remarkable. The concept behind
this CD is quite simple and it’s not different
from other anthologies or compilations, yet what
makes this a nice addition to your catalogue is
the fact that compiles all (with the exception
of one track from the split 7”EP with Horror of
Horrors) the discography of the band. On the
other hand a band that is able to fit its entire
discography on one CD is probably not a sign
of amazing deeds... “Awakened by an Eternal
Death and Beyond” gathers all releases starting
from their first extremely raw and unpolished
’92 demo-tape “Eternal Rest” to their debut ’96
album “Beyond, What the Eyes Can’t See...”,
crossing their ’93 CD-EP releases “Scenes of an
Obscure Death” and “Awakened by the Stench of
the Dead”. Musically the band fits perfectly into
the “Tampa, Florida” death metal stereotype with
clear influences from bands like Deicide, Cannibal
Corpse, Death and Massacre. I guess what
lacks here is the strong production that albums
like “Altars of Madness”, “Deicide”, “Tomb of
the Mutilated” or “From Beyond” had on the late
80’s early 90’s. Even so this is a good testimony
of the American underground scene (if you care
about those things) of the early 90’s, in a period
that death metal was on its highest peak and
showing a young band comprised of mostly fast
tempos with the occasional slow down to create
the necessary stand out mood. Through all the
raw vibe you get this dark doomy vibe that is
what creates some nice touches here in there
like on ‘Trauma Inducted Coma’, ‘The Black
Blood of Christ’ or ‘Evil Born’. If you like a good
dose of extremely raw and unpolished old-school
American death metal perhaps you can check
this out, however do not expect anything else
than primitive and sometimes even uninspiring
death metal.
6 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
KUAZAR
WRATH OF GOD
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
From the seemingly-endless scene in Central
America, this debut album from the Paraguayan
thrashers is a little rough around the edges and
feels inconsistent at times. Quite clearly in the
retro thrash revival, the furious riff work comes
with a wide range of work, with a tight chugging
riffing being the primary focus in tracks like
‘Truth of Reality’ and ‘My Life is My Own’. While
there’s the occasional riff that spills into faster
territory, namely in the excellent efforts ‘Kuriju’
and ‘Hunter and Prey’, the main reliance on the
chugging keeps the material at a mid-tempo vibe
which isn’t all that dynamic due to the slower
tempos it’s played at. This becomes central to
the majority of the tracks and is certainly the
main riffing pattern on display through ‘Alcatraz’
and ‘Light of Damnation’, as even though there is
the occasional dip into faster, more fluid riffing or
a tightly series of melodic riff work, it still reverts
back into those patterns quite easily. The fastest
track here, ‘Black Soul’ is still quite heavily
steeped in mid-paced chugging when it gets into
those quicker paces and tempos, and there’s a
rather sluggish feel at times to these rhythms.
The times where it really allows the music a little
more room to breathe is during the solo sections
which are quite fiery, intense and certainly
deliver the biggest speed drenched patterns.
‘The World is Destroying Itself’ and ‘Twenty Days
in Hell’ are best at really getting the energy up
with a slew of enjoyable patterns and generally
76 METALEGION #1

quick paces that sound even more enjoyable
against the sluggish material. There are also
far greater displays of technicality in those solo
sections that are far removed from the clumsy
rhythms elsewhere, as it gets a chance to
showcase more the skill set of the band. The rest
of the music, including the pounding drumming
and tight, loud bass lines are there to really add
more of an old-school feel to the music rather
than stick out on their own despite plenty of
rather frantic activity throughout from both which
makes it so fun and enjoyable.
Certainly there’s some good stuff here, but
there are a few problems that do crop up. The
band is not able to escape from the rather
clumsy rhythms throughout this with a rather
alarming amount of time they’re featured here.
This is mostly in the guitars which are full of
stuttering, start/stop dynamics which are simply
shoehorned at random intervals without regard
and never really featuring the kind of fluidity and
grace required for how to properly build such an
element, so there’s a rather disjointed feeling
to the riffing in those moments. As these are
played in mostly slower, dragging tempos there’s
a real lack of speed here that really takes quite
a toll on the intensity that could’ve been utilized.
Considering this is a debut, it’s forgiveable that
this tactic can be fixed with experience in the
future as the band can certainly tighten up their
rhythms quite easily and have something going
for them. What can also be fixed here is the
most puzzling, confusing manner of pushing the
more intense and enjoyable tracks towards the
second half rather than the front. The tracklist is
all sorts of backwards, with the blasting, intense
tracks found all throughout the second half while
the same band is able to sound so lackluster
and amateurish with their initial tracks which
are stuck in those clumsy rhythms and turning it
quite lopsided and uneven.
It’s certainly not as terrible as it could’ve been
after giving off that impression initially, but it
gets fixed and manages to get this boosted up
quite a bit in the second half with a stronger performance
there. This is still a fine enough debut
offering and is a solid enough base, to build on
in the future, with plenty of solid points to bridge
their future works. This is for the more discerning
and forgiving thrash fan, rather than the general,
sweeping metalhead, as well as those fans of
Central and South American metal.
7 | DON ANELLI
LUNA
ASHES TO ASHES
SOLITUDE PRODUCTIONS
Curiosity is a trait common to many metalheads,
a curiosity that is morbid and perhaps masochistic.
Without it, many of us would not be fans.
Just as one watches the news for its reports of
violence and braving a monotonous auto-race
for a potential accident, the dread mystery generated
by metal is captivating. And to those who
chose to create the music, the pull must be even
more powerful. In Ukraine’s own Luna, pushing
the length of a song (and an instrumental one)
to the limits seems to be the motivating curiosity
here. At just short of hour, it ends up being a
background excursion that can exist whilst one
completes other important or unimportant tasks.
There are many moments of gravitas, ranging
from ominous choirs and haunting piano trickles
to a notable lack of vocals.
Uninterrupted songs of this length are going to
inspire a narrative by virtue of the act of listening.
The problem is that without accompaniment/
context that narrative remains very vague and
therefore uninteresting. We the listeners have
little besides the cover art, the band’s own name
and the title of the work to use in figuring out
what the music is about specifically. One will
certainly argue that the use of one’s imagination
is more important in such an instance, and that
seeking to define and catalogue motivations and
product into categories is against the spirit of
metal. But in a world with so much music, there
has to be something that can draw more than
just faithful devotion.
It isn’t easy making a song this long. And it is
a larger task to find listeners undaunted by the
task of setting up for an uninterrupted hourlong
session. And sole band member DeMort
deserves credit where it is due. However, as a
whole, there isn’t much in the way of variation or
surprises of note that make ‘Ashes to Ashes’ a
path to take over and over again. It is impressive
in its ambition, but perhaps more ambitious
path to take for the next release is to build a well
realized context and world where the listener
will be drawn.
6 | ARJUN ARMAN
MAD AGONY
CHERNOBITCH
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
Being strong proponents of the 80s heavy metal
scene, this debut album from Italian heavy
metallers comes in screaming with a multitude
of elements straight from the heart of the scene.
There’s a boundless energy that runs throughout
this that comes straight from the guitars which
are quite effective with a multitude of different
elements screaming. This one tends to focus on
a dominating speed-metal chug in ‘Boundaries
of Death’ or the title track which includes a lot
more chances at variation than the traditional
one-note-minded speed metal. This variation
tends to make the material bounce along with
infectious rhythms far more often at those
faster paces, specifically ‘Back in Town! 86’ or
‘Tribute of Blood’ when the material is really
given a chance to fly at much faster and more
enjoyable paces, while the slower material is
given a churning, heavy sprawl that mimics the
pace and tone more akin to doom metal, as ‘The
Poetry of Rage’ certainly demonstrates. It still
retains the heart and soul of traditional metal
4
IMPERIAL
TRIUMPHANT
SHRINE TO THE TRIDENT
THRONE
CODE666 / AURAL MUSIC
American black metal ensemble
Imperial Triumphant are a true monster
of the contemporary scene. This 2014
collection, enigmatically entitled
“Shrine to the Trident Throne,” includes
the 2012 full length “Aboninamentvm”
along with 2013’s “Goliath” EP. It also
has to be some of the most punishing and
acidic black metal that America can offer
the world, while also doing its part to be
intelligent and literate. In addition, the
band and its music also fulfil the “mysterious”
impulse with gusto; look upon the
haunting and almost drug induced visage
of a vaguely classical mask that threatens
through ceremonial smoke. The same
mask is visible in some equally compelling
photography online, and only adds mystique
to an already obscured bandwork.
The lumbering opener ‘Hierophant’ gives
way to the all out mangling of ‘Manifesto,’
(the first reference among several to the
Futurist movement) which showcases a fair
amount of Deathspell Omega in its chiming
guitar tones and cavernous atmospheric
middle section. The formula is expounded
upon in the tracks that follow, none perhaps
as well as ‘Bellvm,’ which uses air raid
siren samples to horrifying effect and a
droning framework to create a tangible
sense of destruction and suffering. The
use of Latin is important to the ideological
positioning of the album as well, because
Italian Futurism, Roman decadence and
an approaching perfect storm of war and
machinery are images and themes that
come through in the excellent lyrics of this
recording.
‘Crushing the Idol’ melds off kilter and subdued
instrumental passages with exciting
tremolo attacks and even mosh chords
as does ‘Manifesto’ which contains some
of Filippo Marinetti’s own 1909 Futurist
declaration, using many of the key phrases
and words a century later in the context of
“EVERYTHING
MUSICALLY ON THIS
COLLECTION HITS HARD
AND RUTHLESSLY”
American black metal. It is an interesting
choice, as Futurism is paradoxically in the
past is one of the lesser known of the movements
to come from the modernist vanguard
(probably because several key members
were killed during World War I, a war they
eagerly awaited no less) and is by several
measures different than its brethren. Among
them War (with a capitol “W”), was seen
as a positive, one that would propel society
into an idealized future of machinery and
dynamism. Black metal by tradition aims
backwards into time, but here, like some
of the more mechanized variants of the
genre, the future holds promise for a martial
utopia.
At the core, Futurism is still a rebellion and
gleaming alternative to a materialist/pacified
world a minority continue to despise.
And frankly, the knowledge needed to be a
(Neo?) Futurist requires more thought than
ignorance. It is due to this continual conceptual
erudition that black metal remains
so fascinating to its admirers, and perhaps
out of touch by its detractors. ‘S.P.Q.R.’ (ya
know, the Roman insignia?) keeps the Italian
theme going and refers in lyric to a “new
Rome to burn,” again signalling a desire for
the cleansing fires of destruction following
megalomaniacal urges on the part of the
vocal orator. Nearly everything musically
on this collection hits hard and ruthlessly
even if all the lyrical inspirations are ignored
as well.
Since the release of this compilation,
Imperial Triumphant has released a full
length entitled “Abyssal Gods,” which is on
this reviewer’s radar.
9.5 | ARJUN ARMAN
#1 METALEGION 77

INCUBUS
INCUBUS [REISSUE]
VIC RECORDS
This is the Incubus that Mike Browning
of Morbid Angel and Nocturnus fame
formed in 1986 with Sterling von
Scarborough. Gino Marino served as
guitarist for this outfit as Browning did
drums and Sterling was on bass and
vocals. This self-titled demo is their
one and only release. It contains just
three songs clocking in at under 12
minutes.
The first song, ‘God Died on His Knees’
contains some real nice riff work. These riffs
are played at a very fast tempo for 1987 and
there are some Trey Azagthoth styled solos.
Gino Marino seems to be at his best when
he’s playing breakneck speed tremolos. His
mid paced riffs are not nearly as creative as
the Morbid Angel gang. This can be heard
in the second half of the song as the band
seems to plod along lazily and Sterling’s
vocals are yelled in a thrash metal method.
Still, this song is a good listen despite these
drawbacks.
The second song, ‘Reanimator’s Mutilations’
is really chaotic and fast with lots of Morbid
Angel styled solo accents and raging drum
work. Mike Browning plays at the speeds of
Commando Pete, but his drumming lacks
a certain personality we always hear in
Sandoval’s work. Gino Marino can play a
mean guitar, especially at high speeds. His
riffs are catchy and flow real well. Good
phrasal riff notation, especially for 1987.
This song is short but very sweet.
‘Engulfed in Unspeakable Horrors’ is the
final track. Once again the high speed
tremolos are ahead of their time being well
rooted in phrasal notation. There’s even a
‘Visions From the Dark Side’ type lead riff
that really rules here. The solo in the middle
is different on this song being less Morbid
Angel style and more rooted in traditional
metal. After the solo they introduce another
thrash metal influenced mid paced section.
Sterling sings less here so this is a better
section than the section in the first song.
The production is very muddy. The bass is
audible, but the muddiness blurs it into a
rumble in the background. The guitars in
turn sound muddy, but things can be made
out even after the first listen. The drums are
buried as the snare disappears in the blasting
sections and the kicks are all around
non existent. It’s okay however as this is
a demo from 1987, and so we shouldn’t
expect much more. It sounds better than
Necrovore’s 1987 demo.
At the end of the day this is a great demo. It
plays well right alongside Necrovore’s 1987
and Morbid Angels 1980’s releases. The
Morbid Angel influence is obvious, in fact it
shines through in every song, but who can
blame them. They add their own identity to
it in the form of Gino’s tremolo style which
is different than that of Richards and Trey’s.
The only complaints I can say are Sterling’s
vocals don’t fit to well and Gino doesn’t
bring forth good riffing during the mid paced
sections. Despite these minor complaints,
this is an essential and foundational piece
of death metal history.
8 | EVAN SPAYD
“IT SOUNDS
BETTER THAN
NECROVORE’S 1987
DEMO”
in these sections, but the fact that the variety
found in these arrangements as the album winds
through the various tempos found in ‘Subconscious
Fear’ or ‘Presence’ makes for a highly
enjoyable time. This is loaded with a dynamic
series of bass-work alongside the guitars as
this rumbles along at a loud, blaring tone and
remains a central part of the old-school tone on
“Chernobitch”. Pounding along with blistering,
absolutely infectious hard-hitting paces in the
drumming, this certainly maintains the power
and force of the old-school which makes this a
highly enjoyable offering altogether yet it does
have some issues. The band’s youth is clearly
on display here as they are seemingly unable to
master the little things that made the 80’s era
metal scene they’re such huge fans of, so prominent
in the first place, and this is evident in their
handling of the tempos. When the band is firing
off up-tempo numbers and generally getting the
energy loose and free, there’s a lot to like but
never does this get that same kind of energy and
enthusiasm in the slower tempos with many of
the rhythms simply draining on the rest of the
music. For the most part, they do tend to shift
away into quicker, more rousing segments quite
well so it’s not a detrimental decision to load up
on slower, droning paces here but the difference
in the enthusiasm level is quite apparent. A
second issue also pops up here in that the album
is stacked so that the slower efforts are in the
first half with the faster numbers in the second
half. This really makes little sense as they’re not
spread out over both sections. The last issue
in here is rather the pretty lousy production job
that really renders this quite unfairly. The riffs
are muddy, the bass is mixed way too loud in the
overall sound and the drums are turned down
with the type of sound afforded to demos where
it lacks the proper punch to sell the material.
Granted, this effectively apes the sound and feel
of the 80’s quite well, but it really just sounds
a little off from that time, much like the rest of
the album.
While there are some rather large problems,
the enjoyment factor present does make this a
far more exciting release than initially expected
and certainly gives them a solid base to build
off of as they continue along. Taking what works
here and expanding that in the future is key, as
this definitely has a potential to generate some
absolutely amazing stuff that will really appeal to
the old-school diehards upset about the death of
the 80’s metal scene.
7 | DON ANELLI
MAJSTER KAT
MEMENTO
SUPPORT UNDERGROUND / VLADPROMOTION
The second album from these Slovakian
thrashers is a highly enjoyable effort that has
plenty going for it. Though quite far removed
from the traditional thrash scene, the main
elements at play here are the guitar riffs which
are way above expected for this kind of band
and rather impressive. Equally at home with the
frequent use of acoustic guitars to allow a sense
of melancholic mood accents many of the songs,
whether an instrumental interlude as ‘Hodnoty’
or an intro segment in ‘Zlo v Nás’ building
frequently moments of tight, dense patterns. The
songs are allowed to move through mid-tempo
gallops in ‘Podlé slová’, blistering full-throttle
paces in ‘Kto Si Bez Viny’ or ‘Spoved Knaza’
that coincides with heavy, pounding rhythms.
This allows an incredibly appealing kind of
variety, displaying quite far ranging moods and
dynamics as the differing tempos are utilized
with great effect. The different arrangements
provide this with numerous opportunities for
those tempo changes or patterns switch-ups,
most notable in the epic ‘Smetisku Civilizácie,’
display a variety of sweeping technicality
throughout which further enhances the variety
within this. Never forgetting to keep the songs
up-tempo and energetic regardless of the
amount of technicality present is another rather
important feature present, as the songs do tend
to have large portions of their arrangements
playing around in the upper tempos and letting
the heavy rhythms get plenty of work-outs in
the intense paces normally associated with the
genre. Apart from the guitars, the band is clearly
at home displaying their nationalistic roots, both
through the native language supplying the lyrics
but also through the use of localized rhythms
and instrumentation. The use of a fujara, a
local flute-like instrument that adds an ethereal
quality to the music, is a part of the feeling here
of incorporating the native melodies and tones
to the typical thrash being pounded out. The rest
of the instrumentation is purely thrash through
and through, with the drumming providing
this with plenty of impressive moments as it
absolutely rages with blistering double-bass
lines that deliver devastating dynamic patterns
and arrangements through the faster tempos
while displaying the kind of simple pounding
melodies that can accompany the more technical
mind-set quite well. Along with some spindly
bass lines that can still be quite heavy as well,
the music is solid, thoroughly enjoyable and on
overall has a lot going for it. That the band is
knowledgeable enough to continually apply a
brand of technical riffs and patterns into their
thrash metal workouts is a clear move above
the norm as this blends in complex patterns
and rhythms throughout that are far more
accomplished than the majority of other thrash
bands of this age. The Slovakian language is
rarely used and offers them an edge by being
recognizable for that facet which actually fits the
genre quite well as the guttural quality meshes
nicely with the speed and intensity of the genre.
Beyond this element, though, there’s the fact
that this one utilizes the local instrumentation
and melodies for an extra appeal by really going
against the grain and being truly unique and
original. Most won’t know what to do with the
kind of instrumentation on display here much
less how to include it in the manner Majster
Kat has done. Make no mistake, this is still a
quality thrash album full of the raging tempos,
energetic riffing and dynamic patterns found in
the genre but it’s the way these are incorporated
into a creative entity makes “Memento” more
enjoyable and appealing.
It’s a criminal shame that a band as wonderfully
creative and unique like this is held deep in the
78 METALEGION #1

underground for there’s so much to like with this
one that it really needs a chance to be heard and
enjoyed. Hopefully this gets them a little more
exposure for there’s a lot of great tracks and
hidden surprises to be found on the album that
it really should be in the hands of most thrash
aficionados or even those that enjoy hidden
gems from unexpected locations.
9 | DON ANELLI
MANZER
LIGHT OF THE WRECKERS
ARMÉE DE LA MORT RECORDS
Making it to their debut full-length, this release
is certainly a raucous slice of primal black/
thrash metal that really manages to get a lot
more going for it than would be expected. Graced
with their black metal roots, this one comes
packed with those ever familiar tremolo-picked
rhythms that are offered through ‘Terror Squad’
and ‘Underage Witch,’ both of which are coincidentally
the album’s best tracks as they utilize
those rhythms alongside charging speed metal
riffing and punk-like energy for overall rocking
and enjoyable moments. Mostly, though, this
tends to remain firmly in plodding mid-tempo
range, like on ‘The Death Lantern’, the title track
and their self-titled ‘Manzer’, all of which feature
sterling melodic work alongside their attempts
at forging up-tempo patterns. There’s really no
great dynamic riff work or dexterous patterns
throughout this, much as the instrumental
‘Pictavia’ tries to accomplish they do with its
varying mood changes and dynamic lead work,
but once it gets fired up for the solo sections in
‘Hell’s Most Wanted’ or ‘Primal Instincts’ it really
loses the intent on trying those more engaging
arrangements, as the rest of the time is spent on
infusing that energetic punk-like mentality into a
rocking variant of black and thrash metal.
As a whole, the music is certainly appealing
but it does have a couple problems. One of the
biggest issues is the rather choppy playing style
throughout. A lot of times, the material is played
with the kind of loose, reckless feel that sounds
great in a live setting but strangely comes off
inordinately sloppy on a record. The riffs are
simplistic, but so loose that there’s never a
chance to really gain a true sense of what
they’re trying to do with this being as jarring as
it is. Whipping through the energetic patterns as
it does here manages to really lose a sense of
what the riffing is supposed to be, as this dips
and dives through the various tempos which just
get shut down by the rather sloppy playing along
the album. That plays right into the second flaw,
which is the rather obscure production job on the
album that further enhances the sloppy playing.
It has the power and appeal of a home-room
recorder as the guitars, as zipping as they are,
are just a flurry of riffs but have no bite, no
charging crunch and have such a layer of fuzz on
them to a point where on numerous occurrences
it drops off altogether to let the clanking bass
and simplistic drumming through instead. These
several issues create a rather amateur taste
instead of a professionally done job and simply
furthers their home made appeal.
Frankly, there’s some good stuff but overall
this manages to leave a more sour taste in the
listener rather than an enjoyable one, which can
be down to several other factors that plague the
band. If these issues can be resolved, they can
definitely grow with their rather raucous attitude
being quite enjoyable when it works and somewhat
decent when it doesn’t, really only leaving
this one for the hardcore genre enthusiasts.
6 | DON ANELLI
MEDUSA’S CHILD
EMPTY SKY
PURE STEEL PUBLISHING
Offering a truly dynamic release, this fourth
release from German melodic power metallers is
certainly a fine example of the genre even though
it tends to fall back into too many flaws to really
showcase much more. The main impetus here is
that the music be as melodic and harmonious,
and that’s taken throughout the album as a
whole. The guitar and keyboard lines are just
so inherently light and melodious, especially on
tracks such as the title track, ‘Remember Me’
and ‘Credi in Dio’ that it completely overthrows
the rest of the music so that these two elements
can take centre stage in the bands’ arsenal in
exploring the remarkably melodic tones. The guitars
really take on a reduced role here in concentrating
more on light chugging in their riff work,
much like which is utilized throughout ‘Seeds
I Sow’ and ‘Nevermore’ with the occasional
mixture of tight speed metal styled picking to
bring in a sense of energy into the paces. While
the continuous neoclassical-style keyboard work
does continue throughout here which is what
really allows the melody in the material to take
precedent like in the back-to-back punch of
‘Slave of Memory’ and ‘Paradise Eternally’, the
two album’s best tracks. The neoclassical take
on the keyboard rhythms matches up nicely with
the brand of guitar chugging employed to make
for a rather healthy brand of melodic tones and
rhythms and when mixed nicely with the soaring,
clear vocals makes things even more harmonious
like in the second half of the title track.
With all the simplicity in the patterns, as none of
this is really all that technically accomplished or
dynamic even if there’s some really wonderfully
done arrangements along the way with the
matching of these melodic elements creates an
incredibly light and musically appealing entity
which goes a long way towards dealing with the
exceptionally easy going nature of the songs,
allowing more room for the melodious nature of
the material to shine through.
There’s not a whole lot that really sticks
out too bad here but there are a couple of
issues. Throughout the album it’s pretty much
straight-on flurries of neoclassical keyboard
MAJESTY OF
REVIVAL
IRON GODS
POWER PROG RECORDS
The second effort from Ukrainian Neoclassical
influenced progressive power metal
outfit is certainly a dense, bloated offering
but is still highly enjoyable in its’ own right.
Firmly utilizing both elements to their fullest,
the progressive metal side brings out the
tight, dense chugging so common in the
genre with ‘Lost Empire’ really utilizing those
dense rhythms and dynamic paces quite
well. The power metal side features explosive,
up-tempo paces and fluid riff work
thrashing throughout which is best featured
in ‘Nameless Guest’ and ‘Infernal Grays’
and when they get mixed together in ‘Nocturnus
Gate’, the effect is quite stunning.
Normally running at faster tempos with the
power metal serving up a huge portion of the
album, ‘Wicked Gates’ and ‘Close Your Eyes’
both score well with these two elements
providing swirling, complex arrangements
and dynamic rhythm changes alongside
absolutely blistering speed drenched paces
that rarely slow down to rest and making
these highly enjoyable efforts overall. With
the influx of Neoclassical melodies and
keyboard use best featured in the title track
and the two part ‘Masked Illusion’ that
carries over from the debut, there’s a highly
enjoyable mixture on display due to highly
technical and complex rhythms armed with
heaviness and speed offset by gorgeous
melodies over light hearted power metal chugging,
and this raises a pretty big issue. Since
the majority of the album is pretty much content
on following the same basic formulas and
styles, it never really deviates from their chosen
patterns all that often and it’s sometimes hard
to really know where you are in the course of the
running order, with so many of the songs based
on the same principle rhythms with little to no
deviation. This makes for quite the uneven, and
sometimes boring run-through of the album
when it all just seems like the band following the
same course for each song and only changing
things up slightly enough to make for different
song lengths. This is certainly not helped along
by the fact that this one never really manages to
change paces all that much, with things pretty
much running along in the same general tempo
with the occasional burst into speedier realms
or a soft, romantic ballad to even things up, and
that really just hits home how close in spirit the
music is to each other. Unfortunately, there’s one
melodic tones. By utilizing those elements at
different lengths and running times there’s
plenty of opportunities for this one to really
offer a lot of enjoyable moments by keeping
these elements front-and-center in the
rhythms and playing on for long sections
in ‘Masked Illusion’, enhancing it even
further. That said, there are still some minor,
fundamental flaws on “Iron Gods”. The main
focus is on the progressive metal influences
throughout so they tend to run songs for
far longer than needed. Being the only
track under five minutes a lame throwaway
bonus, really speaks to how bloated this
is, as the winding rhythms and dynamic
arrangement changes are continually used
to expand tracks into the six and seven
minute length which just seems to be done
simply because that’s the way the genre
works, without really offering much in the
way of true progressive material. It doesn’t
really lead to anything or progressing beyond
its main rhythms, it just keeps utilizing
guitar-hero solo styles, overlong keyboard
use and extensive atmospheric interludes to
stretch the songs out when it’s quite possible
to keep them at a more manageable
length. The title track, in particular, features
over ten minutes of such material to stretch
it out needlessly when it could’ve easily
been condensed into several other tracks
without the need for such an extended,
overlong effort. Otherwise, this one does get
into the faster realms quite often which can
make several of those songs a little hard
to distinguish when they play at the same
tempo without really differentiating them all
that much in terms of arrangements.
While “Iron Gods” is certainly an overall
enjoyable offering, those few missteps do
tend to hamper this one somewhat and
really hold it back from reaching the full
potential the dynamic material cries out for.
I guess there’s not a whole lot to do to fix it
either, which leaves this with a band that
really scores well having a truly enjoyable
second album that should really appeal
to any fan of either three of its primary
influences and elements.
8 | DON ANELLI
other big flaw to this album that really takes it
down to how great it could’ve been. The incessant
nature of the melodic tendencies in the riff
work causes this one to be seen as way too light
and fluffy for the majority of fans out there, as
the riff work drops the heaviness of this quite
significantly, almost to the point of being inessential
to the rest of the material at hand. This
favoured approach of keyboards over the guitars
manages to do the biggest harm by encouraging
the lighter tone in favour of the heaviness it was
written for, almost leaving this without the power
metal influence in favour of more traditional
melodic tinged metal. While some of this is due
to the pacing issues mentioned earlier, that’s not
all that really doesn’t work with this one.
While the music as a whole tends to bleed itself
together quite often, the melodic nature of the
material here is quite enjoyable enough to make
more of an impact on the music than would be
expected. Those overly familiar tracks do tend
to lower this one somewhat from what could’ve
4
#1 METALEGION 79

PAGANIZER
CADAVER CASKET (ON A
GURNEY TO HELL) [12” MLP]
CYCLONE EMPIRE / SURE SHOT WORX
Paganizer’s “Cadaver Casket (On a
Gurney to Hell)” is an old-school Swedish
death metal release with touches
of tasty New York combat riffage
(the phrases in “It Came From the
Graveyard” will get the heads banging),
which lets the listener know what to
expect right away. ‘On A Gurney to Hell’
wastes no time by introducing us to the
beloved guitar tone that might be the most
easily identifiable churn of all the regional
scenes. It is the same muscular and warm
grind that first reared its ugly head on
the classic releases from Entombed and
Dismember (and all the rest you know and
love) and changed the world. With muscular
vocals and varied percussion, Paganizer
(which in one form or another celebrates
its 20th anniversary this year) keeps their
playing tight and economical. The music is
more than capable, and a brief and to the
point release by the veteran band sums up
the appeal of the style. In short, badass. But
also more suited to the live environment and
without many surprises.
Like the awesome cover artwork (the figure
facing us screams “Scream Bloody Gore”),
tracks like ‘Rot’ or ‘Afterlife Burner’ invoke
the same nightmare experiences that
delight the world’s depraved and devoted
metalheads. Every one of the six cuts
works well in this way, with no surprises,
which will keep the faithful comfortable
in these familiar yet savage waters. Vinyl
only bonus track ‘Deranged World’ ends up
being the standout due to its brevity and the
outstanding intensity that boils over during
the closing break. A successful break is one
that inspires one to break things around
them, or at the very least imagine other
people breaking things. A kind of moment
that occurs at a live setting; that change
of atmosphere as a sizeable portion of the
attendance devolves several hundred thousand
years and the rage becomes too much
to hold in. We all know those moments well.
Even as the revival of European protean
death metal continues, a band like
Paganizer should be recognized for being a
part of the second-wave of the style, which
separates them from their forbearers as
well as the myriad nostalgia fuelled youth
acts. This makes such an act a link between
the past and the present, an answer to why
people like this stuff. For someone out there
OSDM never went out of fashion! Any fan of
the hallowed old-school would do service to
themselves by picking this one up.
8 | ARJUN ARMAN
“MUSICALLY AND
SOUNDWISE THIS IS
THE BEST
PAGANIZER STUFF IN
MANY YEARS”
By Rogga Johansson (vocals/guitars)
been on tap throughout here so it isn’t as good
as it could’ve been but it’s still enough for fans
of the style where they fit into.
7 | DON ANELLI
MEFISTO
THE MEGALOMANIA PUZZLE
VIC RECORDS
Mefisto was a Swedish speed metal band which
formed in 1984. They were not too well known
outside the early Swedish metal circles as far
as I can tell. However their influence upon the
young Swedish death metal scene which was
yet to form in the mid 80’s, is widely known. The
band would go on to release two demos only 5
months apart with each consisting of four songs
in 1986. These two demos are compiled here on
Vic Records re-release entitled “The Megalomania
Puzzle”.
The first demo called “Megalomania” opens
this album up with a extremely odd and sort
of unsettling intro. We have an acoustic guitar
playing a melancholic guitar line while some
adults (who sounds like the band members
themselves) ask for “mommy” and people
shriek. To me it’s a stupid and childish intro,
but hey, who cares if the rest of the demo is
good right? Eventually the metal enters and
guitarist Omar Ahmed begins to riff. The first
song, ‘Missing in Action’ is a decent attempt at
speed metal. We get some nice riff work from
Omar and the vocals of Sandro Cajander are
prototype death/black metal in their raspy and
frantic delivery. Drummer Roberto Granath does
a decent job of keeping pace as the music goes
from fast speed metal to slower more reflective
passages complete with solos and those classic
mid paced chug/alternate picking lead riffs that
Iron Maiden utilized so well.
As the demo moves along one can tell these guys
may be a tad bit late to the party considering
the era. A year prior, fellow Swede, Quorthon
and his solo project Bathory had delivered “The
Return...” That album melted speed metal and
prototype black metal together into one very
evil sounding album. At the same time Slayer’s
“Haunting the Chapel” and “Hell Awaits” laid
the foundation for the death metal genre to
come. However “Megalomania” is pure speed
metal. The vocals are similar to Max Cavalera’s
performance on Morbid Visions, but other than
that, these young men deliver pure unadulterated
speed metal. What this really means however
is they are not evil sounding nor do they play a
part in the evolution of metal music. I still put on
early Bathory and Sepultura and I feel impending
evil surround the room and engulf me. This demo
does not do that. I feel like popping a cheap
malt beer and getting wasted listening to these
teenagers deliver some frenzied speed metal
riffs and wild solos.
However the real story here is the dramatic
decrease in quality song writing as the demo
continues. The second song called ‘Frost of the
Inferno’ is not as strong in the riff department
as the first song although after a few listens, the
song structure does prove itself to be somewhat
decent. The final two songs have random structures
and no real closure to themes. These songs
are to amorphous for their own good. I couldn’t
even make it through the final song on a few
occasions while listening. There’s a lot of energy
here and Omar stands out as the best musician,
but the demo is to random. By the time the
fourth and final track finishes the listener is
exhausted from trying to figure out what the
songwriting was trying to communicate.
The first half of this compilation which is devoted
to the first demo, is not very good. The musicians
are energetic and quite good on their instruments
but they lack the songwriting prowess needed to
be relevant in the speed metal realm circa 1986.
The second half of the compilation is devoted
to the second demo released 5 months later in
November 1986. Off the bat we get a nice ambient
and acoustic intro and this much improved
over the previous demo’s intro. Another thing
noticeable once the actual metal kicks in, is the
better production. While nothing was inherently
a problem with the first demo’s production, this
demo is actually reminiscent of a full length
albums’ level of production. It’s actually better
than any production Bathory had until this
point. The drum set is well preserved with a fine
dungeon echo on all pieces of the kit. The bass is
in the mix and stands out more than on “Megalomania”
and the guitars are razor sharp and quite
clear with plenty of low end.
As for the music, it’s still speed metal. The
vocals are sounding more akin to Quorthon now
so they definitely had heard Bathory at this
point. The vocals help to push the music in a
direction that is a darker and more evil sounding
speed metal. But as stated before, the albums
by Sepultura, Bathory and Slayer in 1985-1986
were still more evil than this.
The first song ‘Hunting High, Die’ is cut from
the same fabric as the songs from the previous
demo. An intro riff followed by a verse/chorus
and repeat. They then go into a long section of
various riffs and a solo to end the song. The solo
on this song is not as energetic as the ones from
the previous demo. However the overall song
flows better and is easier to digest as a whole
than any of the previous songs.
The title track, ‘The Puzzle’ finally cracks into
death metal as the first riff is a prototype death
metal riff complete with a double bass barrage
and a little lead work in the second half. I was
quite surprised at this considering the first song
was just like all the previous songs as it was
pure speed metal. But the song doesn’t stay in
the death metal realm long as it soon turns back
to speed metal for the follow on riffs. Omar’s
solo here is way better, and the band even
utilizes some church bell type sounds later in the
bridge to add an evil vibe.
The band decided to throw in a 4 minute
instrumental/acoustic track. This was a mistake.
It goes nowhere and offers nothing. I was quite
disappointed in this song. But after that, the
final and longest song in the bands discography
called ‘Underground Circus’ begins with the
same church bells as before and some nice bass
and guitar work. The main riff is one of the best
and most original riffs they came up with. It’s a
real tight cadence type riff with tight drum work
and the vocals of Sandro mimicking the riffs
movement. This song may be long but it is pretty
80 METALEGION #1

good. They do a better job of making this song’s
individual pieces fit together. It’s not a classic by
any sense of the word, but it is a good listen for
speed metal freaks out there.
Overall “The Puzzle” is better. Not by much, but
it is a step above the previous recording. I am
toying with the reasoning behind this lies in the
superior production of “The Puzzle”. All three of
the main metal songs are also more listenable,
however they are not evil sounding nor do they
possess originality. The instrumental brings the
overall rating of the demo down as it seems to
not be well thought out.
So it seems Mefisto didn’t get the memo. They
were playing speed metal at a time when the
leading underground bands were branching into
more extreme territory. And while it may have
been okay to still deliver speed metal in 1986,
these guys did not have the song crafting skills
to make it out the demo stage. These songs
are very derivative and easy to dismiss and so
your money is best spent elsewhere on metal
music. If you’re a speed metal collector, than
these guys would be a fine addition, however
original pressings would be preferred. In a metal
collection where quality rules over quantity, this
compilation (or the individual demos separately)
is not highly recommended.
4 | EVAN SPAYD
MEMORAIN
SEVEN SACRIFICIES
TOTAL METAL RECORDS
The fifth album of Memorain leaves a rather
weak impression. The band seems to be unable
to position itself clearly. The lead vocalist sounds
like a power metal singer while the guitarists
commute between thrash approaches and
melodic sequences. The drummer delivers a
powerful performance, but what’s that worth if
the musical framework does not fit? The songwriting
skills of the band need to be optimized as
soon as possible and that’s a damned verdict on
an experienced band that releases albums since
the year 2002. But in my humble opinion, the
Greek horde is unfortunately not able to deliver
remarkable melody lines. The compositions
lack of catchy hook lines and the single parts
are simply not compatible with one another. To
describe it differently, the few good sequences
end abruptly and the respective song takes an
other direction. Real joy does not appear when
listening to the uniform tunes, although the band
avoids more or less successfully to present
throwaway tracks. The songs are just neither
brilliant nor shitty.
The quality of the production matches perfectly
with the mediocrity of the songs. It does not do
any harm without compensating the songwriting
deficits so that there is nothing to write home
about.
I am sorry that I am not able to mention
outstanding highlights. But maybe their first tune
called ‘A Stitch in Time’ is the one I appreciate
the most due to the simple fact that it is an
instrumental. If you think now that I do not like
the more or less monotonous singing of lead
vocalist Andreas, then you are right. He sounds
like the incompetent brother of Mystic Prophecy’s
lead singer R. D. Liapakis. However, I enjoy
some of his lyrics. For example those of the fairly
decent title track’s chorus: “I don’t know where
I am / I can’t run away / I don’t know where I
am / Tell me why I’m chosen”. I like these lines
because the same goes for me while reviewing
this lengthy output.
At the end of the album, hidden on position
nine, the band offers a heavy metal ballad that
does not enhance the overall appearance of the
full-length. Nevertheless, it shows that Andreas
is able to deliver a more expressive performance.
Therefore, from my point of view, the Greek guys
would be well advised to prefer a more melodic
direction in future. I cannot see that they will
leave an impact on the thrash scene.
5.5 | FELIX 1666
MISTRESS
BRAINS AND BRUISES
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
Firmly entrenched in the old-school, these
female fronted newcomers from Philadelphia
offer up enough nods and respect to come off as
genuine worship without being complete clones.
The riff work is the biggest example here, carving
out classic, screaming heavy metal leads that
employ those same traditional patterns and
flow that were found in the genre’s heyday, are
arranged incredibly well given their age and stay
rather interesting thanks to the extended running
times present. Given a large space to work with,
the dexterity of switching from melodic, quiet
intro segments to lengthy segments of tight,
muscled riffs in a variety of flashy tempos that
are given extra weight through the use of speed
metal styles of playing, shows an amazing
versatility for a young band and makes for a
wholly dynamic affair. Being able to sound in
tune with itself through the differences makes
for one of the album’s strengths as the majority
of the tracks’ extended running times allows for
more riff work that contains a slight technical
bent which comes off rather nicely against the
dense, chugging guitars that all combines into a
classic heavy metal feeling before dealing with
the air-raid siren female vocals. Deanna Gardas’
voice display just as much range as the rest
of the music, from fiery and shrieking patterns
complete with near falsetto wailing to the softer,
more romantic arrangements which pop up
from time-to-time in the mix, creates a vicious,
fiery onslaught that matches the majority of
the music.
On the whole, there’s a lot to like about this kind
of music and becomes rather fun throughout the
course of “Brains and Bruises”. The fact that the
majority of the tracks flow through energeticbut-mid-tempo
rhythms, off-set slightly by truer
PERVERSIFIER
PERVERTING THE MASSES
ARMÉE DE LA MORT RECORDS
In simple terms, Perversifier’s debut
offers old-school thrash metal. It reminds
me of Nuclear Assault’s epochal “Game
Over”, because these French aggressors
are focussed firstly on riffs, secondly
on riffs and thirdly on riffs again. To get
the statement more precisely, they are
mainly focussed on high speed riffs. Some
eternal moaner might say that they are
narrow-minded. Maybe that even is right.
But from my point of view, there is nothing
wrong with that, because guitar riffs are
nothing less than the quintessence of thrash
metal. They are therefore the primary reason
why we love this style of metal, if I am not
mistaken. Seen in this way, it would not surprise
me if you would share my enthusiasm
for this band after listening to their amazing
first full-length.
Their songwriting skills know how to please.
The tunes do not follow a progressive
approach without avoiding the necessary
amount of breaks. They sound fresh and
belligerent while bridging the past and the
present of the thrash genre. Taking into
account the highlights of this album, we can
report that this style is still characterized by
thrash metal paces brought on by the tight chug
of speed metal through those classic heavy
metal rhythms and the occasional fake ballad
for variety, brings the tracks to life in a fine way
but really hammers home how much of a love
affair they have with multi-sectioned epics. It’s
quite apparent by their frequent appearance
throughout that there’s a ton of ambition and
drive to showcase a strong range of influences
in their work. Nevertheless there’s a distinct and
noticeable shift in quality through the two halves.
While there’s plenty of notable and extraordinary
work on the second half, on the whole they
feel like weaker versions of their earlier tracks.
Perhaps an EP release would’ve been better in
order to fine-tune their work a little more, since
when pressed like a full album these tracks do
drag the energy down somewhat. Those issues
are fine if not for the production flaw, as whether
it wasn’t recorded at the time or just mixed so
as to be inaudible, the bass is not present that
much overall and either explanation can be the
cause. This deprives the album of a thumping
rhythm section to really bring the old-school feel
of this one, as the screeching guitars having
nothing to bounce off. These are issues that can
be fixed over time.
an enormous liveliness. Honestly, this keeps
me young, despite my biological degeneration.
But sorry, I did not want to make a
digression. Let’s get back to the highlights.
Although all the songs achieve a good level,
I want to emphasize ‘Raise the Black Fire’
and ‘Evil Speed Thrashing Madness’. As
you may have guessed, the latter is nearly
perfectly described by its programmatic
title. I can just add that it explodes after a
mid-paced start due to its fantastic riffs.
Furthermore, it offers a nice mosh part
after the solo. To be honest, the songwriting
formula of ‘Raise the Black Fire’ is not
much different from ‘Evil Speed Thrashing
Madness’. Both tunes also benefit from
the hoarse and raw vocals of Perversifier’s
singer and songwriter KD who shows a solid
performance during the whole album. Small
restriction: two songs serve as (instrumental)
intros. The lyrics of the other pieces
deal with the genre typical subjects. You will
therefore find a characteristic buzzword in
each and every song title.
The old-fashioned cover does not appeal to
me. How many threatening evil monsters
did we already have to face during our
metallic existence? Moreover, the picture is
not artistically valuable. However, this does
not have a significant impact on the overall
impression.
One could come to the idea that “Perverting
the Masses” is perverting the original
rebellious approach of heavy metal because
of its tradition-conscious songwriting that
pays tribute to the heroes of the previous
generation instead of revolutionizing the
genre. This might be true in a sense, but
as long as the result sounds so explosive, I
do not care about this. Instead, I would be
happy if Perversifier would release a worthy
successor whose songs follow a similar pattern,
because thrash metal - please forgive
me for using this phrase - will never die.
8.5 | FELIX 1666
Frankly, this is an extremely enjoyable and
certainly worthwhile start to a band with a strong
collection of songs, some sterling moments and
a few small, easily fixable problems that can be
ironed out as they continue on their career. Certainly
a bright spot in the ever increasing sea of
female fronted traditional and power metal acts,
this is a band that, once they have everything
figured out, should be one of the top-tier acts in
the style and a worthwhile investment for those
into such material or those looking for quality
metal regardless of the lead singer’s gender.
7 | DON ANELLI
MISTRESS
HEAVY MENTAL
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
Following up on the potential displayed in the
debut, this is a slight departure from the fun and
enthusiasm of the first album but certainly gives
off enough positives to make this listenable.
That means what worked the first time around,
the classic heavy metal played with a chugging
speed metal riffing style alongside screaming
leads and plenty of energetic rhythms, is still
very much present here only in slightly altered
forms. The riffs are structured away from the
4
#1 METALEGION 81

their next album if they can sort through the
positive from their two releases and put them
into a cohesive whole.
6 | DON ANELLI
MOLOCH
VERWÜSTUNG
METALLIC MEDIA
PHLEBOTOMIZED
IMMENSE INTENSE SUS-
PENSE / SKYCONTACT
HAMMERHEART RECORDS
The great Phlebotomized was
resurrected sometime in 2013 to some
fanfare, and has been re-releasing
its short catalogue in various formats
(including a beautiful purple double LP
of “Preach Eternal Gospels” and the
“Devoted to God” demo). Prior to this
release, one had to fork out $40 - $70
on ebay for the rare and sough after original
versions. I was into the band enough that
I probably shelled out $300 total for the
bulk of the band’s discography (in true
metalhead fashion, no regrets!). And now,
a savvy buyer can obtain both albums, the
doomy and mysterious “Immense Intense
Suspense” and the beautiful and organic
“Skycontact” for less than 30 dollars. Both
albums are lost classics of the 90’s Dutch
scene, and are essential for any metal fan
that enjoys thoughtful music.
Even though it is only partially metal, the
stronger album here is “Skycontact” in my
opinion. Being a seven piece at its peak,
Phlebotomized can be characterized as
a band with clashing angles and parts.
This results in moments on the first full
length (and earlier recordings) that can be
described as disjoined and awkward, and
will perhaps dull the experience for listeners
who demand complete ease and effortlessness
in their music. Most of these moments
disappear on the latter record, which is
much more fluid. Yet for those who enjoy
beautiful imperfection, “Suspense” (complete
with its lovably goofy artwork) quickly
becomes an extremely immersive experience.
Somewhat comparable to Amorphis’
beloved “Tales From the Thousand Lakes,”
it is thick with captivating sounds (and the
signature violin of Maartin Post) and evokes
deep emotions in the listener. Excellent
brooding and complex tracks like ‘Dubbed
Forswearer’ and ‘Subtle Disbalanced Liquidity’
intrigue with their many movements,
and moments of peacefulness and sorrow
are also exemplified by ‘In Search of Tranquility’
and ‘Gone...’ ‘Barricade’ destroys
the gates as an opener and the epic ‘Mellow
are the Reverberations’ is a journey unto
itself. Listing the tracks individually does
not do the work justice, as it is meant to be
heard from front to back. ‘Gone...’ ends on
an extremely devastating note, with shouts
and roars of “IT’S NOT FAIR!” lamenting the
loss of loved ones and cursing the cycle of
life and death created by God.
This brings us to “Skycontact,” (which also
has goofy artwork), a fusion album that covers
a great swath of 90’s musical genres.
While “Immense” was all over the place for
a vaguely death metal album, “Skycontact”
achieves both forcefulness and subtlety as
a vaguely alternative/hard rock album. Perhaps
secondary to the aesthetic differences
is the far ore natural and organic chemistry
between the members (now a lean six piece)
and therefore a more natural sounding
album. I am biased, as it is a personal
favourite of mine, but the mix the band
releases here is really something special.
As with their first full length, it is pointless
to name highlights, but a few things to
look out for include a ‘Videodrome’ sample
that makes ‘Sholestolesoul’ an effective
mediation on the nature of media-inhalation,
the guitar-melody that comes to beautiful
life on ‘Sometimes,’ and the catchy and fun
‘Achin’ as a whole. Upon hearing about the
re-release, I had hoped that the secret track
‘Dizz-Tanse’ would be included as part of the
regular track listing, and it is. But this time,
it appears as a “break” between the first
half of the album and the four song suite
(now one track) ‘I Hope You Know,’ which
takes some getting used to. The suite itself
is a masterpiece of emotion and beauty that
is probably best uninterrupted by divisions,
but having bookmarks always helps (the
Bathory disks come to mind).
Bands come and go, and come back, and
they will continue to do so, but fans of
Phelebotomized are surely looking forward
to a new recording. Will the band create
something closer to their earlier grindier
material? Their mid-period death-doom or
even a more whacked out ‘next-step’ along
the lines of ‘Skycontact?’ I look forward to
hearing new things from this older band.
10 | ARJUN ARMAN
extended running times and the exaggerated
lengths that were found on the debut are a lot
more simplified, not being as concerned with
the somewhat brief flirtations with technicality
in favour of a more speed metal influence with
tight, dense chugging riffs. Since this in effect
drops much of the thrash influence which gave
the speed and energy before, there’s far more
emphasis on the mid-tempo efforts throughout
which really calls upon their sense of consistency
in style by really honing into the elements
of their particular sound into a streamlined effort
without a large dose of the variety or dynamics
that came through the first effort. This allows
the band to play around with some of the same
work as before only in a slightly different context
to where it goes, featuring traditional lightthen-dark
styles and fake ballads before turning
into more pounding metal efforts based around
simple patterns and rhythms. Basically, there’s
not a large difference between the two albums,
but those that do crop up are pretty significant.
Despite having a more simplified approach to
the music, the rhythms and structures here tend
to sound way too similar to what came before.
There’s no real progression or expanding of their
music at all, which tends to make the tracks
almost like a series of bonus tracks or extra cuts
that were recorded in the same session and just
makes this feel like a retread with slightly less
energy. As a whole, there’s a lot to like here but
it tends to come off so close without any change
or evolution in their music that really causes a
band to stand out, as the only change here is a
play on those light-then-dark into a surging blast
of heavy metal structures. Here, this switches
the tender ballad-like effort into a lighter surfrock
style diddy with similar-sounding riffing
before blasting into pounding metal. That’s
certainly not a mix most people would attempt,
and the effort sounds as bad as it seems to
suggest that would be, although there’s certainly
brownie points awarded for the creativity and
originality displayed to think of doing that, even
if the end result is truly horrid. Due to the more
streamlined songs as well as the generally
improved production, the album has a heavier,
meatier sound that still creates the same level
of classic feel and energy that the original
provided but it has a much stronger bite with
the newfound improvement by having the type
of thumping rhythm section that would’ve made
the first one a lot more enjoyable. As a whole,
though, this is a slightly lower-quality album
than the previous. Still, a quite enjoyable album,
as this brand of old-school heavy metal worship
is quite infectious at times and certainly gives off
a great fun factor that goes a long way towards
helping these guys improve. The deviation from
the first album works in spurts but when it
fails, it’s quite troublesome how bad it does fail
and that leads to a bit of a scattershot album.
There’s still enough here that works to hopefully
allow them the ability to put it all together for
Sergiy Fjordsson is probably the most prolific
musician of the past 10 years... I mean almost
100 releases in such a small time frame it’s
definitely not for the common mortal man. But
in fact what we must analyse isn’t the quantity,
even if the numbers are quite impressive, but
the quality that each composition holds. To tell
the truth, the one man band Moloch didn’t grab
much my attention probably until their 2008 full
length releases “Misanthropie ist der einzige
Weg zur Reinheit” and “A Journey to the Vyrdin”.
The previous material was too raw, sometimes
with sloppy playing and badly produced for my
liking, even if he states that it was recorded on
the deep Carpathian woods with cheap material
on a full moon Friday 13th creepy night, it didn’t
amazed. As a big Burzum fan that I am, Moloch’s
latest full length does not fill entirely the void
left by masterpieces like “Det Som Engang Var”
or “Hvis Lyset Tar Oss” and I’m sure Sergiy’s
aspirations after all this years are not those
either, but after the unimpressive ambient driven
full length “Abstrakter Wald”, this sets again the
destructive depressive black metal pace that
I like more on Moloch. “Verwüstung” doesn’t
follow particularly the primal path traced of the
early albums, instead we get a much more incisive
and tight black metal version of Moloch (the
opener song ‘Blutmond’ leaves the impression of
listening to a different band) with a real drummer
(Gionata Potenti from Frostmoon Eclipse
or ex.Handful of Hate), a second guitar player
(Azathoth), a fitting cruel production and lesser
ambient driven moments. This new album focus
more on creating a tight and well played instrumental
section (the previous releases lacked that
aspect, especially the earlier albums) topped
with the vicious, tortuous yet always eerie vocal
style of Sergiy. The daunting ambiance is now
created solely by the use of intense riffing, out of
this world screaming vociferations, well-structured
songs with variation and little synth details
(like on the song ‘Spiritueller Selbstmord’) that
keep the listener coming back for more rather
than long solely synth based atmospheres. On
“Verwüstung” the synths are mostly present by
the form of an intro, which in my opinion doesn’t
set the desirable initial menacing mood, an outro
and a “hidden” Chopin bonus track symphony.
Those last two pieces take more than half of
“Verwüstung” and in total honesty I would prefer
to see that space spent, especially of the hidden
track, on a few more hellish songs.
Compositions like ‘Spiritueller Selbstmord’, ‘Nur
der Tod ist wirklich’ or ‘Die Kälte der Ewigkeit’
are fine examples of the singularity of keeping
82 METALEGION #1

things simple and focussed on a single objective:
the establishment of a sense of physical grim
terror with music! This is by far the best Moloch
effort or at least the release that levelled all
aspects of Sergiy’s music, production, consistency,
structure and deliverance. A record that
will please the fans of depressive black metal!
7.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
NEDERHAAT
HET WROK DER VOLKEN [EP]
SELF RELEASE
Mark Stam, the sole member of Holland’s Nederhaat,
appears to be a newcomer to the black
metal world, and with his 2013 EP “Het Wrok
Der Volken” attempts to prove his competency
in creating a convincing personal interpretation.
He is quite successful in this goal, despite the
nearly insurmountable pressure of standing out
or innovating biting at the heels of thousands
of similar bands. This should never stop a
motivated individual or a group from working
though. Black metal is about expression more
than any other extreme metal genre and is also
the most suited to lone-wolf creativity. It is full
of misanthropy (both the cause and the product
of myriad isolations) and can’t really cater to the
tastes of others by its own general aesthetics.
Yet, it seems that the popularity of the music and
its mindset is a sign that more and more people
hate each other and have the means to express
that. This leads to the inclusion of an opening
and closing (‘Intro’ is spoken over marching
fascist/communist boots off to war while ‘Outro’
gives us an aural glimpse of the desolate
aftermath) narration which can be summarized
(with Google’s help) by the old credos that “man
is the only animal that hates his own species”
and “man is the devil himself” respectively. And
the existence of black metal is perhaps evidence
enough to corroborate. In the spirit of this hatred,
Stam wastes no time in kicking our asses with
the title track. Most effective are the perfectly
employed mechanized percussion, which tumbles
and counts down to additional violence over
perfectly produced guitar passages. It’s enough
to make an impression.
Not everything following this solid opener is of
the same quality, but the momentum is set and
carried onward with the multi-paced ‘Neerlands
bloed, vergoten.’ Therein, a subtle chord melody
(bringing Immortal to mind) conjoins the more
furious sections. There are other aspects to the
work that remind one of the various works of
the BM pantheon as well. Vocally, the rasped
whisper in which Stam delivers his venom is
comparable to the weakened bile of postprison
Varg (‘Ten slag’ for instance) and ‘Een
argwanend verwelkomen, bedrog’ central riff
pattern is highly reminiscent of the twisted and
unique guitar compositions of Snorre. These
musical “tropes” are not original, but they sure
do work, as there are several well telegraphed
transitions that work competently as mid-paced
black metal hypnotism. As a result, this is a
well-made, interesting and promising effort that
could lead to even better work as the years go
by. Hate on, Mr. Stam.
7.5 | ARJUN ARMAN
NIGHTHUNTER
HUNTING THE CHRISTIAN SCUM
GRAVADORA INFERNO
Having heard their 2007 demo “The Return of
the Evil Empire” is with satisfaction that I see
the Brazilian Nighthunter maturing and spicing
a bit more their raw alcoholic black thrash
attack. The band returns after a long hiatus and
with a few line-up changes that reveal by itself
during the listening of the album that mark a
new page for the band. “Hunting the Christian
Scum” is an album of furious proportions based
in a raw riffing twin guitar assault with the
occasional solo evasion, a violent drum work,
a salient bass by the new member Rômulo and
Hunter’s recognizable harsh vocals. Compared
to the previous release “The Return...” the band
with its debut made a significant improvement
at the composition level with the introduction
of memorable moments like the vicious riffing
and solo explosion on ‘Profanation’, the baffling
beginning of ‘Deny Your Gods’ and its savage
rhythm or the chorus of ‘Nascido para a Guerra’.
Despite the clear evolution that the 6 years gap
and line-up changes provided to the band at
the composition level, “Hunting the Christian
Scum” is far from being perfect or an amazing
album but it surely has some powerful moments
where you will end up banging your head like
a maniac. One of the clear down points is the
slight discomfort of LC Hunter to sing in English
or perhaps he is trying too hard to disguise is
Brazilian accent that the words do not flow completely
and trying to follow him, even with the
lyrics, can be quite frustrating. Nevertheless he
shows is full raging potential on the Portuguese
songs ‘Psicopata Homicida’ and ‘Nascido para
Guerra’. Nighthunter is a good mix of the old
raw sonority of the Brazilian black thrash metal
scene (Sextrash, Sarcofago) with the intensity
of the German thrash (Destruction, Sodom)
and the obscurity of bands like Hellhammer or
Acheron. Production wise “Hunting the Christian
Scum” produces a vibrant massive wall of
sound with guitar solo outbursts which is the
complete opposite of the previous work, where
they sounded quite thin and less voracious. This
debut album reeks an honest thrashing (sometimes
slightly punkish and innocent) attitude,
some memorable moments and a warm charm
coming straight from the sunny lands of Brazil!
7 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
NYCTOPHOBIA
RITUAL II: THE WILL OF
DARKNESS [EP]
NEGRA NIT DISTRO
I must confess that I miss all the fuzz around
black metal of the early 90’s; all the bold
statements, the controversies, the church
burnings, the continuous press coverage and the
amazing breakthrough albums. Like all cyclic
musical trends black metal crawled back to
his dark oppressive desolate cave (with a few
mainstream exceptions) nevertheless there are
those who keep the black flame burning for the
next incursion. The Spanish quintet Nyctophobia
is giving the first steps on that murky mud and
return with a new Mcd entitled “Ritual II: The
Will of Darkness”. This new opus follows at
some extend the raw path already traced on the
previous demo “Ritual I” with a clear effort on
ending up with better song arrangements and a
stronger production. On these points “Ritual II”
is for sure a good improvement, however it fails
to bring a distinctive sonority that would make
the band stand out. I’m sure that as it stands
nowadays, they are simply playing the music
they love and grow up with.
Nyctophobia plays the sort of black metal
influenced by the European scene: fast riffing
with the occasional slowdown of tempos and
melodic leads, a dark grimness instead of icy
cold atmospheres and enraged vocals instead
of high-pitched shrieking. The production by
Aggressive Studios set side by side with “Ritual
I” deviates the band from the home made alike
productions (a tremendous improvement on the
drum sound) reminiscent of the first Norwegian
black metal albums and sets a fat violent
atmosphere to “Ritual II”. In fact the atmosphere
(the H.P. Lovecraft thematic also) is what truly
embellishes this new opus, the quintet is able to
sustain a constant dark melodic riffing aura and
songs like ‘Earthbound’, ‘Embers Dawn’ or ‘The
Idiot-Crawling Chaos’ are fine examples of how
easily they manage to keep things interesting.
At this point and if they work on developing their
own sonority I would say that “Ritual III” might
be already a debut album. In the end this Mcd
will please fans of bands like Setherial, Svartsyn,
Ofermod and even Dissection!
7 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
OCEAN CHIEF
UNIVERSUMS HÄRD
I HATE RECORDS
If you are a fan of this Swedish monstrous
sludge doom metal driven band, the very
first thing that you will probably notice is
that “Universums Härd” is filled with several
unprecedented and extremely short tracks. When
I refer short, I’m talking about between 3-4 minute
pieces that taking in consideration the long
and tortuous 15-25 minutes journeys into the
abyss that the listener is used to from previous
records the new material sounds like a cheerful
walk in the park on a Sunday morning. From this
perspective this fourth album denotes already
clear evidences of mutation when compared to
all previous efforts, but it does not remain solely
to this aspect. One of the things that I liked
considerably in Ocean Chief was the unbelievably
raw, dragged and emotive vibe that the songs
had and also on this topic the new material
tends to speed up things a bit, still rest assure
always within the doom metal framework.
I find “Universums Härd” a very dynamic
album, giving once again greater emphasis to
the instruments with just some scarce vocal
moments throughout the album. The cleaner
yet heavy production of “Universums Härd” has
definitely one thing in their favour that probably
some of the previous and rawer material lacked,
the possibility for the listener to keep track and
follow easily all transitions and dynamics of the
songs. Songs like the title track, ‘Oändlighet’
(probably the best song on the album, where the
band blends almost perfectly rawness, intensity,
dynamism, memorable riffs, melody and a good
dose of austral mysticism), the instrumental
hypnotic piece ‘Färden’ and the thundering
‘Mörker’ with its intense and vicious drum
patterns and sonic guitar leads.
From a band that has a strong death and black
metal background (with members from well
known Swedish bands like Thy Primordial,
Dawn, Unmoored, Maim or Vanhelgd) I must
confess that I feel a strange satisfaction to see
these guys taming a different horse. If you are
more into the less noisy spectre of the sludge
doom metal genre, I recommend buying this one
because the band already stated that the next
album “will not have up-tempo bullshit”!
7.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
OLTRETOMBA
THE DEATH - SCHIERÀTI CON LA
MORTE
FISTBANG RECORDS
Formed originally in 2007 as a one-man band by
Lucas Demon (a member of some black metal
Italian bands, like Voices from Thaumiel, Black
Faith or Athanor), this project has slowly taking
shape through the release of some demos and
the addition of new band members. “The Death
- Schieràti Con La Morte” is the culmination of
several years of work and having that in consideration
and at first glance isn’t as impressive
as we all wished. Nevertheless, Oltretomba’s
charm relies solely on building a dark mid-tempo
raw atmosphere rather than ultra polished
songs. In fact the band describes their music as
retrograde metal and I couldn’t agree more with
them. Influenced by the early period of the black
4
#1 METALEGION 83

/ thrash / death movement, where the borders in
between styles were as thin as an ice cube left
outside on a 40 degree Summer day. Oltretomba
tries to capture the raw legacy of the early 80’s,
being mainly influenced by bands like Celtic
Frost, Sodom, Hellhammer or Venom. I must say
that Lucas Demon and company have a great
sense of the eighties blasphemous attitude and
that is clearly transported either at a lyrical and
instrumental level. The album starts with a dark
intro and as soon as the first ritualistic drum
beats and slow torturous heavy riffs of ‘Crash
the Disincarnated’ step in, the listener is trapped
in a dark malicious corner and completely fulminated
on the faster parts of ‘Silence... People are
Dying’ or ‘Lustful Skin’. I guess that the charm of
“The Death...” rely on its dark sometimes almost
ritualistic essence, deep snarling vocals and the
according analogue production.
Despite all these positive aspects, I must say
that sometimes the songs lack a bit more
complexity and structure (sometimes they can
be seen as naive), and what was the idea of
including a tambourine on the drum kit?! After
a while the tinkling sound will for sure start
to affect your nerves! Even if not completely
convinced, I can for sure recommend Oltretomba
for all the old bastards that crave for the daily
dose of mid-tempo filthy, raw, evil sounding old
fashioned black/thrash metal.
6.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
ORDO INFERUS
INVICTUS ET AETERNUS
DOOMENTIA RECORDS / SURE SHOT WORX
After the initial buzz around an intercontinental
band featuring top class musicians (Necrophobic,
Funebrarum, Abazagorath or Nifelheim) and
the release of an EP entitled “Damnati” they now
return one year later with an exclusive Swedish
line-up and a debut album again influenced
by the Roman Empire. Having not heard their
previous and only release, I must admit that I
was curious to see how a bunch of “oldies” that
have been around for the past 25 years would
transmit their experience and talent on a new
band. Ordo Inferus is a serious attack of fast
and dynamic death metal influenced to a great
extent by the Polish scene with some slices
from the US and Swedish death metal scenes.
In fact there are times that Tony Freed sounds
so much like Peter from Vader that is hard not
to trace their aggressive influences to that
prolific metal scene. Unfortunately they haven’t
succeeded on the conception of a authentically
distinctive sonority, especially for an old bastard
like myself, nevertheless what they deliver, they
do it with passion, intensity and undeniable
quality. At least lyrically they explore a not so
much delve into thematic, I do not remember
that many bands using the events of the Roman
Empire to build an album around. “Invictus
et Aeternus” opens with a call to battle using
some epic synth atmospheres and a distorted
guitar on top until it bursts with the beginning of
‘Lingua Silentium’ and its mid-tempo melodic
solo. From that moment onward and until the
brief acoustic brake on the middle of the record
entitled ‘Antequam Porta Aperiatur’, the listener
is reduced into pieces and given to the lions.
‘Divinatio Tuscalana’ recovers, even if in a slowly
raw doomish style, the twisted and savage pace
until the grand finale ‘Saturnum Salutamus’
erupts with its contemplative beauty. “Invictus
et Aeternus” is a vicious album packed with
sinuous drum and guitar patterns, solos (they
aren’t afraid to include one or two solos on each
song) and tempo changes that inevitably give a
substantial embellishing and dynamic touch to
the compositions.
Ordo Inferus is one of those death metal bands
that it surely does not disappoint (I’m sure that
they kill live) and if the dexterity of Vader, the
groove of Bolt Thrower, the intensity of Deicide
with the tenacity of Slayer sound like a good
mixture, you should give “Invictus Et Aeternus”
a try or two...
7.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
PRIMORDIUM
GATES OF RE-STAÚ: CONJURATION
OF DAEMON APOPI [EP]
GRAVADORA INFERNO
Ten years after the second demo tape “The
Sacred Valley of the Kings” the Brazilians’ Primordium
return with the EP “Gates of Re-Staú:
Conjuration of Daemon Apopi”. This is a bit
outdated since it was released back in 2012
and the band has already the opportunity to
release the debut album “Todtenbuch” via Dying
Music. Nevertheless it shows a band, or the only
remaining founding member Gerson Carvalho,
struggling to keep the band alive and well. This
is my first and only encounter with this five piece
death metal band and to tell the truth it doesn’t
help in providing a final and clear opinion about
these guys simply because it doesn’t have
enough substance to obtain a proper opinion.
The two new songs featured are too small for my
liking in what concerns death metal, breaking
only the 2 minute barrier by around 10 seconds.
The band is brutal with some nice rhythmic
variations and blast parts, but it doesn’t truly
impress or creates enough impact to be remembered.
The front cover showing some Egyptian
hieroglyphs sparked my interest on this release,
hoping to find something similar like Nile or
Orphaned Land, but unfortunately the Egyptian
influences are not seeing instrumentally. I guess
that the most memorable moment on “Gates of
Re-Staú: Conjuration of Daemon Apopi” could
be the solo guitar segment of ‘Mummified’. I just
hope that they dive more into the world of Egyptian
mythology and besides the lyrics they try to
incorporate musical elements that could create
a fitting atmosphere, not to mention enough time
for the songs to grow and have some impact.
Hopefully the debut album “Todtenbuch” will
PRONG
RUINING LIVES
SPV
Prong have returned - for real, not only
as being carved in stone. From the
opening riff of ‘Turnover’ onward I was
mildly surprised by the overall sound,
not too different from years 1994-96.
But what really took me by surprise,
were neat harmonic embellishments,
especially in vocal department, which
make wonderful hooks. These songs not
only have potential to be remembered, some
of them can actually be. Mr. Victor got stuck
on a short-song format, that I’m totally pro,
since I’m well fed up with contemporary
standard of more than 6 minute long tracks
with a riff and a half, repeated ceaselessly
over and over again, a practice I dislike
even in the case of British epitome for
heavy metal.
“Ruining Lives” continues where “Rude
Awakening” had ceased and it altogether
sounds like the better parts from the first
four full-lengths. Sound production is
also as in best of times, there’s literally
NOT a sign of over-distorted, down-tuned
nu-groove-sludge constipation-relief
(which still influenced its predecessor).
Surely, reminiscences do fly by or flutter
around, sometimes nailed onto the point
of self-citation, yet this can be accepted
with joyous approval, and on the other hand
self-citation comes across more welcome
than citation from other bands, which is
something Prong does not need and should
not use.
Lyrically, the album may come somewhat
short, but having in mind, that it had to be
put together very quickly, lyrics actually
pull off. Besides, one has to bear in mind,
that lyrics must go with the flow of music,
as smooth as possible. Regardless, some
verses and rhymes are painfully sharp
and accurate. The title-track and hence
album title hints at the present condition
of societies in a so called developed world
with emphasis on living in the States, with
a main outcome of human individual or
better said human unit being used and
ruled until ruled out, very purposefully and
unscrupulously. As an alternative (which is
not that) the album reports on a possibility
to seek consolation even in a virtual world,
of course, only to postpone and succumb to
the same consequences in the end, if not
trying to do something against the whole
situation. Twenty years after “Cleansing”,
things have only got worse, dystopian novels
such as ‘1984’ have become dystopian
reality.
With a chance to sink wishfully, I hope Prong
will continue to release albums of similar
standards or higher (I hope they will also get
the chance), but at this moment I can only
say: They have already saved the year.
8.5 | NENAD KOBAL
“I AM PARTICULARLY
PROUD OF
THE VOCAL
PERFORMANCE AND I
THINK WE CAPTURED
SOME OUTSTANDING
SOUNDS ON THIS
ALBUM”
By Tommy Victor (vocals/guitars)
PHOTO: TIM TRONCKOE
84 METALEGION #1

already show some evolution; still I would not
have too much high hopes.
5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
RAUS! / PERUNWIT
UNDER THE SIGN OF THE BLACK
SUN [SPLIT]
ODIUM RECORDS
The legacy of the Temple of Fullmoon, a black
metal circle that existed in the early 90’s
in Poland, is more or less summed up by
Graveland. There are connections to Behemoth,
of course, but the underground acts from that
cult seem to have withered away into obscurity
forever. The exception is Perunwit. Although its
volume of releases plummeted after around
1996, it never officially split up, and has continued
to put music out here and there over the
years. The most recent release is a collaboration
with Raus!, another Polish group that now
operates in the UK.
The result is interesting, if dull at a few points.
Consider Lord Wind, a dark/martial ambient act
that shares great similarities with the modern
Perunwit. Consider also films like 300 or Conan
the Barbarian. Listening to “Under the Sign of
the Black Sun” often made me feel like I was
listening to a soundtrack from one of those films.
And that’s a really good thing, in my opinion.
Good music takes me places, and this release
took me either to films set in ancient times, or
to those ancient times themselves. I am not
sure how political Perunwit and Raus! are, but I
think it’s very important that both groups share
Polish roots. Heritage and nostalgia play a great
role here, and it’s important for me that these
emotions are genuine. There are problems,
though. One is that this album is not metal at all.
It’s dark ambient, or possibly orchestral if you
want to be pretentious. I suspect that most, if
not all of the instruments are synthesized, and
while the music doesn’t sound bad, it loses out
on authenticity when you consider that the songs
were likely made, start to finish, on a computer.
This really dulls the strong points - take the
percussion, for example. I very much wanted to
picture a group of transplanted Poles beating on
drums somewhere out in the wilderness, but I
couldn’t, because I know that’s almost certainly
not what happened. Compositionally, though,
Rob Darken has a rival in this release. It flows
well, it’s got great emotion, the transitions are
smooth but significant, and the songs are varied
enough to take listeners on a journey.
7.5 | ALEX ROSS
RUSTED BRAIN
HIGH VOLTAGE THRASH
SLANEY RECORDS / VLADPROMOTIONS
Another band in the thriving retro thrash scene,
this debut album from the Polish thrashers is
pretty easy to identify immediately. This manages
to incorporate the spirit and tone straight
from the late 80’s Bay Area scene, with the riff
work taking that same, dynamic quality that was
found in those old-school releases. The majority
of the tracks, most notably ‘Caught in the Fire’,
‘Waiting for Death’ and ‘Burn ‘Em’ employ
a tight, up-tempo series of densely picked
patterns that keep the intensity up throughout
as the few small-yet-distinct rhythm changes,
continue to pile on the speed. Indeed, these
tracks manage to up the brutality by showcasing
pounding, frenzied riff patterns that brings far
more intensity to the material than their more
relaxed, sprawling material which brings in a
little slower series of riffs that offer a sort of
buffer against those harder, more intense ones
and forging the only variety on the album. Mostly,
though, the songs are based on rather frantic
speed driven rhythms that flow through blistering
tempos quite readily, as ‘Juggler’ and ‘Terrorzone’
demonstrate adeptly and making this a high
velocity album. There’s not a lot of chances
for riff work or dazzling displays of technicality
but instead there’s a refreshing mentality of
keeping the tracks streamlined as the blinding
nature of the tracks keeps it charging along
without any sort of excessive or dragging riffing,
with both ‘Bloodpath’ and ‘High Voltage Drunk’
displaying those features quite well. The rest of
the material is what’s to be expected from this
sort of genre, led by surging, clanking bass lines
that are loud, boisterous and certainly generate
the thumping bottom end required for the genre
yet never intrudes on the material as a whole.
The drumming is certainly in fine form of simply
pounding out rhythms and delving into blasting
double bass patterns when necessary but never
overcomes the rest of the material.
As for the album itself, there’s not a whole lot
of defining features found here. The main issue
with this one is that it’s quite short and really
straightforward how it presents itself which is
a blessing and a curse. There’s a no-nonsense
factor that’s imminently appealing, this pretty
much delivers exactly what’s promised without
too many exceptions throughout, as the material
is certainly high speed thrash metal with an
old-school touch which certainly sets this in
good graces for those that approve this sort
of material. There’s not really a lot of chances
for the band to really explore much on this, as
the songs struggle to maintain a three minute
running time which severely saps a lot of their
musical chops. Most of the songs fire away
with relatively little riff changes or dynamics at
all in favour of a streamlined approach that’s
immensely gratifying as well as troubling with
this routinely finishing a track and diving into
the next one right when the last one was getting
interesting. The speed these run through is
another factor as it never allows them to really
develop or explore the potential riffs within these
rhythms since it winds through the traditional
patterns so rapidly that it condenses these into
brief songs without really exploring in depth
despite plenty of opportunity to really bring out
PUTERAEON
THE CRAWLING CHAOS
CYCLONE EMPIRE / SURE SHOT WORX
This third full-length from the Swedish
death metallers is like most of their
Swedish brethren and is pretty obvious
what to expect from “The Crawling Chaos”.
Charging throughout are those ever present
melodies providing this with the chance
of utilizing the most prominent aspect of
the Swedish style of death metal in those
grinding chainsaw like grooves throughout
the music. Whether it’s in the two different
tempos traditionally played at in this style,
raging in fiery, frantic up-tempo numbers
as in ‘Path to Oblivion’ or ‘The Abyssal’ or
oozing through slow, churning crawls from
‘Pickmans Model’ and ‘Welcome Death’,
that same grinding pattern is consistently
featured. While not nearly as prominent as
most would like, the fact that the tracks
do work in raging tempos does make for
some enjoyable sections even though this
seems to be far more in the background
as other tempo varieties get more focus on
“The Crawling Chaos”. The varying tempos
throughout certainly allow this to contain
a far more well-rounded sound than just
simply producing tight chug-like patterns
and puts the chainsaw grooves into action
with a slew of dynamic rhythms, marching
along at a furious mid-tempo gallop in the
title track and ‘Wrath’ or slung low into
slow, sprawling crawls in ‘From the Ethereal
Vortex’ that bring in heavier patterns than
more involved dynamics. Beyond these issues,
the only other part to worry about is the vocalist
which is quite laughable and really isn’t all that
impressive, stuck in a one-note shout throughout
the material that doesn’t display any range,
strains to hit notes outside its’ register and
comes off whiny and aggravating at times.
This is the basic definition of no-frills styled
music played with enthusiasm and energy
throughout, which is what’s the case here as
this one really seems to offer up no true deviations
from this style at all. While there may be
some flaws present here because of this, there’s
still plenty to like here that makes this a rather
strong look for those into the revival thrash
scene or Euro-centered thrash in general.
7.5 | DON ANELLI
SABATON
HEROES
NUCLEAR BLAST
By this point in their career, it seems as if
the majority of the other sections. Rather
than opting for a series of blazing technical
displays, this opts for putting the riffing into
different tempos and arrangements instead,
and the results pay pretty big dividends.
Frankly, there’s not a whole lot to this that
doesn’t work. “The Crawling Chaos” has
a sort of repetitive pattern for the different
types of tracks. There’s a few blazing,
full-throttle speedsters in here, and they all
tend to rattle through rather short paces,
so their running time is quite a bit shorter
from the longer, more dynamic and engaging
songs. It’s not a distracting or detrimental
element, but more of a sneaking issue that
tends to crop up from time to time.
The album’s successful Swedish styled
atmosphere also exposes the band’s one
big issue, that it’s all pretty much been
done before. Most of the riffing patterns,
arrangements and even the track structures
used in most songs are taken straight from
the pillars of Swedish scene done years ago.
They remain quite typical of the modern
proponents of this scene which don’t really
offer up much of anything all that original
themselves. The only change here is the
fact that this one is much more comfortable
seeming playing at the slower end of the
spectrum based on the numerous amounts
of such rhythms against the more frantic,
furious areas in the album. There’s enough
of these to break up the slow, sprawling
tempos and stand out from other works
so it doesn’t get thrown together into an
unrecognisable blur of chainsaw riffs and
energetic punk-like rhythms. It might not be
enough of a change for some but it does get
featured on “The Crawling Chaos”.
While many of the new bands are nowhere
near the kind of impact that was ushered
forth from the early Swedish bands, Puteraeon
remain one of the better examples of
the current wave in that scene by at least
offering a few small differences to stand
out. This makes it quite a solid pick for purveyors
of this style of death metal as well
as proponents of all manners of old-school
death who don’t mind the familiarity.
8 | DON ANELLI
Sabaton are virtually beyond the point of
criticism. Say what you will about these
military-obsessed Swedes; in the near-decade
since “Primo Victoria”, they have seen fit only
to consolidate and refine their chosen style, and
it doesn’t seem as if they’ll be having a change
of heart anytime soon. With that having been
said, “Heroes” is a perfectly fitting continuation
of the band’s legacy. The album’s onslaught of
fistpumping choruses, overproduced hooks and
machismo feels all-too familiar and will surely
4
#1 METALEGION 85

PROTECTOR
REANIMATED HOMUNCULUS
HIGH ROLLER RECORDS / PURE STEEL
PROMOTIONS
It’s good to see another Protector
album out, this is their first one in 20
years or so and it can be said that
Martin Missey and crew have a lot to
prove with this album. For the most
part they do a fairly good job with their
material, although I will go on record as
saying that “Reanimated Homunculus”
has a few problems that keep it from being
a flawless return to the metal scene. One
thing I wanted to mention real quick is that
the only original member of this incarnation
of Protector is Martin Missey and his
vocals are honestly the best thing about
this album, they actually have a bit of a
biting “black metal” tone to them at times,
it’s refreshing to hear him back on a new
album. The other members are all new but
they all play their parts fairly well. Michael
Carlsson does a decent job with the guitars
here, his solos (while few and far between)
are very nicely handled and his riffs range
from headbangingly awesome to somewhat
underwhelming and generic. The drums
are handled very well and are by far the
heaviest thing about this album, they range
from a borderline blastbeats (i.e. ‘Calle
Brutal’, ‘Lycopolis’) to some pretty heavy
double bass work and a few very interesting
drum fills throughout. Carl-Gustav Karlsson
impresses here with his nimble and dexterous
drum work. The bass is decently played,
but the problem is that you can barely hear
it unless you’re using headphones!
But, no matter how good it feels to hear
Martins scorching vocals again, there are
a few negative aspects of this album that
need to be pointed out. First off, there
are a few songs that feature dangerously
generic thrash riffs, for example ‘Lycopolis’,
‘Birth Of A Nation’ and ‘Antiman’ all feature
many palm muted thrash segments that
seem generic almost to the point of being
boring. The blame for this I squarely place
with their new guitarist Michael Carlsson
(ex-Sadistic Grimness). While many of his
riffs can sound pretty badass and they are
all 100% old-school death/thrash riffs (in
the vein of Slayer, Possessed and of course
early Protector), the overall composition
of the tracks on this album come off as
lackluster, simply put, Michael seems to
be playing it safe here and you can tell
rather easily. The production is clean and
you can hear everything fairly well (except
the bass, which you almost certainly will
be unable to hear unless you listen to this
album with high quality headphones), but
fans looking for a raw and dirty sound like
you can find on Protectors early releases
will be disappointed in this sleek and rather
modern production.
The best moments on this album can be
found in the first four tracks, which are all
amazing! ‘Son of Kain’ kicks this album
off perfectly, maintaining a heavy and
old-school thrash feeling throughout while
still being very catchy, the same goes for
‘Deranged Nymphomania’, ‘Holiday In Hell’
(to a lesser extent) and the title track. The
last three song are really great as well with
‘Calle Brutal’ specifically standing out as an
incredibly heavy and fast song. For barely
being a minute and a half long it’s impressively
catchy and the gangshouts used in
the chorus are literally infectious, you will be
humming it afterwards. Overall, I think Protector
has forged a decent comeback album.
It’s not overly impressive and probably
won’t win them over too many new fans, but
if you like old-school death/thrash and don’t
mind it being a tiny bit on the generic side
than I can recommend you “Reanimated
Homunculus”. Old fans have nothing to
worry about either, the album may not live
100% up to their seminal glory days, but
they certainly don’t sell out and they know
what their audience is looking for.
7.5 | IAN BERLING
fail to sell anyone on Sabaton who hadn’t bought
into them albums ago. In spite of that, it’s a
formula we were all expecting from them, and
they haven’t faltered yet. Sabaton, as the saying
goes in faux-military parlance, holds the fort with
this one, and they do it quite well at that.
Although Manowar seems to have been
largely (and somewhat unfairly) dismissed by
contemporary metal listeners for their over-thetop
image and self-referential kitsch, they’re
actually the closest band I’m reminded of while
listening to Sabaton. For what it lacks in nuance,
this is heavy metal at its most ecstatic and
triumphant. Relative to much of the other power
I’ve heard drop in 2014, “Heroes” is fairly instrumentally
conservative by contrast; at the risk
of sounding redundant, Sabaton lets the vocals
do the talking. Joakim Brodén’s voice is far and
away the strongest element of the band, with
proper enunciation and commanding presence
befitting a member of the professional military
class. Full-bodied harmonies and Brodén’s
own charisma make the vocals on “Heroes” a
pleasure. Unfortunately, many of the songs feel
otherwise bland. Particularly given the band’s
same-y-ness throughout their career, it’s to the
album’s discredit that so little has changed.
‘Hearts of Iron’ is a standout if I had to pick one,
but Sabaton’s songwriting here doesn’t amount
to much more than a bombastic rumble towards
a given sing-a-long chorus.
It’s something I usually only say in the context of
rock operas, but to enjoy “Heroes” to the fullest
extent, it helps to read the lyrics. Sabaton’s
lyrical presentation has never been particularly
nuanced or technical, but it’s clear they’ve
done their research. Returning to the Manowar
comparison; behind the layers of heavy metal
pomp and bravado, both bands offer historical
depth and knowledge beyond the context of
flashy Hollywood movies. The lyrical content
is the strongest part of “Heroes”, and they’re
quite likely the most engaging to be yet heard
on a Sabaton album. This is in no small part
due to the (slight) change of emphasis in the
lyrics- whereas songs on past albums focused
on particular battles, wars, or war in general,
“Heroes” goes one step further and concerns
itself with (in the words of Pär Sundström) “[i]
ndividuals who we think basically went beyond
their call of duty, put themselves into harms way
for the good of others.” Every song tells a story,
praising the exploits of a person or group during
the Second World War. Many of the stories are
inspiring on their own, such as the German ace
pilot who spares a disarmed American bomber
and escorts it home (‘No Bullets Fly’) or the
struggle of German military remnants to break
a hole through the Soviet offence so refugees
could retreat and surrender to the West (‘Hearts
of Iron’). Axis and Allies alike are shown to have
had immense heroism. Sabaton doesn’t feel the
need to take sides. Instead, war is depicted here
as a contest between humanity and the horrifically
dehumanizing effect war has on people.
“Heroes” simply offers ten examples wherein
humanity came out victorious.
I suppose my thoughts towards “Heroes” are
mixed. There’s nothing inherently weak about
what Sabaton has conjured here, but it’s been
a long time since the band’s sound was fresh.
“Heroes” does not impress or disappoint so
much as it continues what was started on
albums past. They’ve stuck to their guns, and
who could really fault them for that? For what
it’s worth, there aren’t a great number of power
metal acts who can boast a distinctive sound.
Sabaton are among the few. It’s just a pity
they’ve never pushed the limits with it.
6.5 | CONOR FYNES
SADHAK
SADHAK [DEMO]
SHADOW KINGDOM RECORDS / CLAWHAMMER PR
The one man project Sadhak 2013 demo
recording provides haunting and dark doom that
pounds along at deliberate pace. While less than
twenty minutes long, the two long-play tracks
are built upon a strong and simple instrumental
foundation and worked upon artfully with
production effects. Power chords and cymbal
heavy beats make ‘On the Arrival of Man’ splash
along like footsteps in a bizarre dream. This is
a very lyrical work, along with the entrancing
movements that come from the instruments;
the descriptions of esoterica are enticing and
mysterious.
The Indus Valley civilization is part of the
subject matter. That pre-Vedic India of deep
antiquity has brought upon much identity conflict
within that part of the world for millennia. That
civilization’s influence is mostly lost due to the
(now questioned also!) migration/invasion of
the Indo-European peoples. As someone who is
interested in this subject (heritage included), it
makes for a thoughtful listen. The subcontinent’s
mytho-history has found a place in the European
centred world of heavy metal. It would be great
to hear more of what South Asian metal bands
(Vedic metal should hopefully catch on soon)
have to say about their past rather than those
from other cultures and histories.
‘The Perfection of Wisdom’ captures the attention
very quickly at the sound of an excellent
opening riff, and then reaches higher with a
beautiful (non-operatic!) choral that is out of
the norm for most doom metal. Combined with
the chiming guitars, the effect is haunting and
hallowed. An excellent use of “droplet” sound
effect about a third of the way through the work
opens up space (in a similar manner as Lunar
Aurora’s ‘Findling’) and adds further gravitas
to the themes being explored. A very ambitious
lyric uses antonyms to negate the purpose of a
contrasting imperfect wisdom’s continuing rumination.
Again, the passage’s theme is probably
influenced by Eastern philosophy and religion,
and presents a continuing interest in the subject
by the more intellectual/expressive sub-genres.
Of special note are the vocals, (“Zombie-Vocals”
as pioneered by The Prince of Darkness
Himself) which are sung at a droning cadence
that are quite melodically married to the gloomy
sounds of the instruments. This voice can even
be described as a warm and even kind, yet
saddened. It does not seek to alienate like many
other voices and roars heard in the sub-genre.
Even keeled, and well blended/obscured by the
production, this human instrument completes a
86 METALEGION #1

well-balanced and engrossing work. A full-length
release is and should be eagerly awaited.
8.5 | ARJUN ARMAN
SAVN
SAVN
CDR RECORDS / INTERGROOVE
I recall that my very early introductions to the
extreme metal world involved gothic metal.
Bands like Sirenia, Nightwish, and a few others
combined powerful distorted guitar with symphonic
elements in a manner that, inch by inch,
prepared me for less forgiving genres of metal,
such as black metal and death metal. But that
doesn’t mean that I no longer enjoy gothic metal.
In fact, I recently had the pleasure of attending
a Leaves’ Eyes concert, where the female
vocalist’s skills seriously impressed me. They
were still in my mind when I listened to Savn’s
eponymous album, so for some time I thought
that I had mislabelled my music or something.
I quickly found out that the female vocalists of
these two bands are sisters, and that explained
quite a lot.
We begin Savn with interesting, folk-like
elements. Violins and very subdued guitar work
bring us into the album and quickly pave the way
for a release that can be described as gothic,
symphonic, and folkish at the same time. I must
re-iterate the similarities to Leaves’ Eyes (which,
to be honest, is significantly better), but there’s
less symphonic work here. It’s more about the
violins and the guitars, with the lion’s share of
the vocals taken care of by the female clean
singer. And that is a shame. One of the biggest
allures of gothic metal for me is beauty and
beast vocals: where a female vocalist’s high
pitched clean singing is answered by powerful
death growls. This dichotomy is stitched together
by guitar backing and symphonic elements,
which creates a very strong, well rounded musical
idea. Unfortunately this just doesn’t happen
in Savn. In fact, Savn tries to be more folk than
symphonic, which is to its own disadvantage.
The violin parts are great, but more instruments
would have provided a more epic feel. We’re
not quite hitting the nail on the head here, and I
think that’s a fair way to characterize the whole
album. A good, but not great attempt that wants
to be gothic and symphonic but is a hair too
close to folk for comfort.
Compositionally, I’d say that the guitar parts
(rather than providing a backing layer of distortion
and chords) tend to muddle with each other,
as well as the violin and piano parts. They also
compete with each other, rather than supporting
each other, just below the vocals. This is a
common issue in gothic metal. The music is
made more complex and it’s a great attempt at
creating a stronger atmosphere, but in practice it
can be difficult to follow and sound confused.
All in all, there are gothic and symphonic bands
that I like more, but this album is fairly compelling.
There’s great nostalgia and emotion (thanks
to the female vocalist) in many places, and while
there are flaws that keep it from being a great,
it’s pretty good overall, and I wouldn’t hesitate to
listen to it again.
8 | ALEX ROSS
SEPTICOPYEMIA
SUPREME ART OF GENITAL
CARNAGE
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTION
Being one of the oldest bands playing a style of
music on a particular country not always reflect
on global exposition or recognition. This is even
more understandable when we are talking about
one of the sickest and insane metal genres,
grindcore. I haven’t followed particularly their
long 20 year career, nevertheless I do remember
seeing them playing two or three songs on a DVD
released by the Russian Coyote Records and
also some hilarious live clips from their 2009
performance at Obscene Extreme Festival. I
wouldn’t call “Supreme Art of Genital Carnage”
a full-length album if Septicopyemia weren’t
a porno grindcore band, so with this you can
already deduce that this second record is quite
short under the usual standards, having only
23 minutes (slightly too short if you ask me).
From the beginning to the very end the listener
is totally brutalized with the insanely fast blast
beats, the brilliant dual vocal attack consisting
of growls and high-pitched shrieks and vicious
breakdowns. There is also the necessary high
dose of groove and both death and hardcore/
punk influences that are so common on this
style. What I do appreciate on Septicopyemia is
their natural ability to induce sexual chaos and
hyper speed tempos with the mandatory amount
of groove and diversity, still if you are a constant
listener of the genre one of the things that you
will surely notice is that they aren’t inventing
the wheel. “Supreme Art of Genital Carnage”
is one of those brief experiences that you will
keep coming back often to discharge adrenaline
unto your system at the sound of lightning
speed songs like ‘Colostomy Bag Breakfast’,
‘Emetic Sappho-Rough’, ‘Cardioslam’, ‘Exclusive
Excrements’ or ‘Menstrual Intoxication’.
Production wise this second album was mixed
and mastered by Brain from Jig-Ai and is quite
an improvement compared to their raw and
filthy 2007 debut “Vomiting Swamp”. All in all
an album that will surely please the fans of the
genre even if they aren’t trying to push the limits.
7.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
SKINFLINT
IKLWA
PURE STEEL RECORDS
To be honest, one hardly ever thought about
hearing a band or something firm from a
Botswana band. Although neighbouring
infamous South Africa and its apartheid, nothing
was heard of this country. No news, actually
(logically, no war or crisis there, reportedly it
SAMMATH
GODLESS ARROGANCE
HAMMERHEART RECORDS
This fifth album from the Dutch black metal
stalwarts furthers their already quite intense
career with another raging effort. The main
focus in here is on the fact that this is tight,
intense guitar riffing with furious blasting
drum-work that bares more than a few
semblances to the “War Metal” scene,
though there’s a more pronounced and
traditional old-school element to the band.
Much like in ‘Shot in Mass’ or ‘Thrive in
Arrogance’, the guitar riffs bring about more
of those tremolo picked rhythms that have
that cold, frosty edge to them. Elsewhere
in here, ‘Fear Upon Them’ uses that brand
of tremolo picked melodies for a sense of
melodic droning that still retains a violent
black metal feel throughout, ‘Godless’
brandishes rather majestic mid-tempo
hymns amongst the blasting and ‘Death
(Hunt Them Down)’ features guitar work
that remains eerily more in tune with
bands like Marduk and Dark Funeral as
their patterns and rhythms flow straight
from that hyper-violent Swedish scene.
Likewise, as in both bands, the featured use
is a stable democracy of African variety), and
honestly Skinflint may be the first news reaching
Europe after Botswana achieved independence
back in 1966, if independence had penetrated
Euro-media at the time at all.
Hearing Skinflint pleases me a lot, for I am
utterly convinced that heavy metal belongs to
every country and every, even the remotest part
of this world. Musically, metal priests of Botswana
do not bring much new, yet again, if they
would persist, they could deliver in the future.
“Iklwa” (pronounced ikloah, with very long ‘o’),
is their second full-length and also the second
re-released by Pure Steel Records. In general
it sounds quite “Final Frontier”-ish with mostly
longer, repetitive tracks. Bass is very Maidenish,
just listen to ‘Mbube the Great’, while some
parts call to memory Black Sabbath. Giuseppe
of hyper-excessive blastbeats in the music
is a topic of great focus with ‘This World
Must Burn (Hammer of Supremacy)’ and
‘Nineteen Corpses Hang in the Mist’ using
the intensity of the guitar-work providing
a perfect balancing act for the kind of
driving drum attack that really furthers their
connection to the devastating “War Metal”
scene.
While all of this is quite fine and certainly
provides this with enjoyable music, there’s
still one major issue present in “Godless
Arrogance” that washes over everything.
Since the majority of the music is so intense
and blaring, this brings up the factor of it all
seemingly being too similar to each other.
The frequent use of the same patterns and
rhythms don’t help matters all that much,
but the fact that there’s a lot of rather
similar tracks to each other does tend to
wear thin quite easily as it really makes it
hard to distinguish the songs. Almost all of
them features similar sections or rhythms
without much difference in between. Likewise,
there’s a lessening of the brutality and
intensity with the amount of time Sammath
spend in these familiar rhythms, as it just
washes over with the repeated feeling of
having been done earlier in the album.
Another entry in the stakes for a band with a
lot of intense efforts in their catalogue, and
with this release it’s a simple effect overall
in that there’s no way to discern this from
anything else they’ve done so far. This is all
about deafening, intense, raging black metal
with a blistering series of speed drenched
efforts and the occasional sense of melody
thrown in to break it up. That leads to this
being a strong and enjoyable release that
can be problematic for those not into this
style, leaving this really only useful for those
that do like the extremity on display.
8 | DON ANELLI
“Juice” Sbrana’s voice sometimes reminds
me of Sakis Tolis from Rotting Christ and the
production also resembles that of early BM
Greek efforts, neither of which is bad in my book.
And yeees, his shouting could remotely point
to Cirith Ungol comparison, while Manilla Road
could be found in improvisatory approach to
guitar-soloing. On the less approving side, guitar
solos are the real weak point and some songs
end too abruptly (‘Burning the Soul with Diesel’
for instance - contender for best HM song-title in
this decade along with ‘Profit Making Funeral’).
‘Burning...’ speaks of contemporary brutality
that album conveys, and the legend of Iklwa -
local warrior/hero if I understood correctly, is
brimming with violence, bloodshed and gore.
However, there is something to emphasize.
The track ‘Iron Pierced King’, which otherwise
features Maidenisms prominently, incorporates
south distinctly African, if well concealed at
the same time (afrobeat? afrorock?), but well
fitting. I guess this would be a part of at least a
distinguishing, if not, a winning formula for the
future. Tribal rhythms are not utilized as much
as I would like, but they do come to the fore, as
in first two minutes of bonus track ‘Army Of The
Dead’, but the execution of the bridge to more
metal part of the song is again too sudden and
too crude.
4
#1 METALEGION 87

I perceive a relying on Iron Maiden sound not
as a particular transgression, for the British
institution stands for know-how in heavy metal
in general, and is welcome for comparison and
direction, especially when one is looking for
different, possibly upgrading approach.
On a sidenote, I wonder, will Pure Steel unearth
other talents from African continent (Vale Of
Ammunition, anyone?). I find “Iklwa” a quite
enjoyable record. I haven’t heard Skinflint’s
2012 release ‘’Dipoko’’, but have read about
improvement, that could be furthered on their
next album, which is surprisingly already
scheduled for September 2014. Keeping fingers
crossed.
6 | NENAD KOBAL
SKYDANCER
LAND OF THE GRIM
SUSPIRIA RECORDS
work towards achieving that goal, but if this is
Skydancer’s best work then I’m surprised that
they managed to get signed at all! The synths are
pretty bad as well and are actually very intrusive
towards the overall sound, they completely
ruined ‘Ancestral Lands’, changing it from a
decent (yet underwhelming) melodic death metal
song to something that sounds like Attack Attack
meets COB. I really can only recommend this to
people who really, really like third rate melodic
death metal and don’t mind bands brazenly
stealing from COB and mid-era Soilwork. It’s a
pretty bad experience overall with the only songs
that are worth listening to the opening track
‘Swamp Tomb’ (which actually has some pretty
good riffs) and the closing track ‘The Galician
Exile’ (which admittedly isn’t very good, but it is
more tolerable than just about everything else
on the album).
3.5 | IAN BERLING
SLEGEST
LØYNDOM
DARK ESSENCE RECORDS / KARISMA RECORDS
SARKOM
DOOMSDAY ELITE
DARK ESSENCE RECORDS / KARISMA
RECORDS
Despite the comings and goings that
affected Sarkom’s line-up during the
years, the band managed to release 5
years after their second album “Bestial
Supremacy” a new dose of their black
metal lethal injection. If you have followed
this Norwegian band during the
years I’m sure that you have detected
an ascension factor when it comes to sound
production in each new release. For the
“recorded in your basement” black metal
purists (are there any left?) “Doomsday
Elite” goes against all the pre-conceived
utterly raw and unmixed patterns, however
30 years after the release of the self-titled
Bathory album (I still play my vinyl copy of
this amazing album frequently), the production
standards have evolved immensely
even among the black metal bands. On this
aspect “Doomsday Elite” follows the same
song structural guidelines laid on “Bestial
Supremacy” but with an extra effort to have
a punchy, better produced and in your face
black metal album. Though the band have
been cursed with the usual constant line-up
changes (nowadays the vocalist is the only
remaining former member) sound wise
Sarkom have kept their mission and deliverance
with just a few keyboard melodies (the
final song ‘Stigma’ closes this chapter with
an epic ambience leaving the listener wishing
for more) or subtle little details added to
the destructive mix. “Doomsday Elite” starts
off with an amazing furious intensity that
quickly falls into mid-tempo patterns with
addictive melodic riffing and back again
into raging instrumental fury and shrieking
vocals. During 40 minutes the band explores
the changes of tempos and guitar melodies
constantly in order to achieve the sense
of uniqueness on each song. This is what
makes “Doomsday Elite” a quite enjoyable
album even if it fails completely on setting
new standards or entering into unknown
black metal territory. Songs like ‘I Utakt
Med Gud’ with its furious intensity and
momentary peculiar dark synths, the fast
melodic guitar driven ‘No Loose Ends’, the
initial drum explosion of ‘Inside a Haunted
Chapel’ and its metamorphose into a few
singular astral guitar leads are little details
that song after song builds consistency and
individuality. If you like your black metal well
played with enough details, melody and constant
tempo changes, the third album from
the quintet Sarkom can certainly satisfy your
dark voracity.
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
“SARKOM HAVE KEPT
THEIR MISSION
AND DELIVERANCE
WITH JUST A
FEW KEYBOARD
MELODIES”
Now Skydancer is a band that I knew absolutely
nothing about when I listened to this CD for the
first time. Many things about this album remind
me of Children Of Bodom with less keyboards
and slightly lower styled vocals (they’re growls,
but they don’t seem to be very well performed).
Skydancer is a band that confuses me a little bit,
they’ve got obvious talent (mainly the guitarist/
vocalist, although not for his vocal skills), but
they also seem to fall into rather boring passages
and dull Children Of Bodom inspired moments
(example: the horrible chorus in ‘Ancares’, the
terrible synth section in ‘Ancestral Lands’ and
the generally lackluster melodic death and
thrash riffs throughout the album).
Skydancer is the brainchild of original member
Daniel Soengas who is a wonderful guitarist
but a pretty bad vocalist. His clean vocals are
pretty cheesy (I.e. ‘The Ferryman’) and his low
vocals sound very forced, like he’s struggling to
keep his growls in the low register. Literally the
only real good moments on this album come
from the guitar solos and a few of the melodic
passages throughout (although most of them end
up sounding like 3rd rate COB riffs), the solos on
‘Swamp Tomb’, ‘The Ferryman’, ‘Ancares’ and
‘The Galician Exile’ are really impressive and
you can tell that Daniel has a knack for melody.
The production on this album is very clear, you
can clearly hear every guitar note (although not
one second of bass anywhere) and if it weren’t
for the fact that the band clearly states that
they have a drummer for this album, I would
swear that it was a drum machine. Daniel Diaz’s
drumset sound processed to the point of me
almost accusing him of not being a real person!!
The snare sound flat, the cymbals sound
condensed and processed and it just does not
sound natural at all.
“Land Of The Grim” suffers horribly from the
boring knock-off Children Of Bodom riffs and the
truly abysmal vocal performance. I hate having
to give bands bad reviews because I know how
hard it can be to have a musical goal and to
Complete creative control is an ideal for many
artistic people because of how rarely it is
available. Compromises with labels, collaborators,
scene pressures and work schedules can
work against any set of ideas. That is where the
“one man band” tradition in heavy metal comes
in. “Løyndom,” a new offering from grand old
Norway, is harvested, prepared, cooked and
served by none other than Vreid’s own Ese (who
did not serve with the beloved Valfar) in his
project Slegest. What results is an unfussy and
straightforward work that will sate the needs of
the individual looking for the very same.
Ese’s intent with Slegest is to create a hybrid
combination of old-school black metal and
classic heavy metal/hard rock. And he succeeds
quite well, because “Løyndom” ends up very
contemporary (the mash up grows more popular
by the moment) while also being classicist.
We are treated to an opening riff on ‘Ho som
haustar aleine’ that would not be out of place on
a latter day Iron Maiden album, which is soon
rounded out by gruff vocals akin to the newest
phase of Darkthrone’s storied career. The central
melody/coda of ‘I slike stunder’ is straight out
of Black Sabbath’s playbook (almost quoting
the bent guitar tone of the band’s eponymous
masterwork) and is also a highlight. However,
one cannot help but feel that more can come of
a person of Ese’s talent and perhaps he is still
searching for the right way to express himself by
his own rules.
The album is somewhat simplistic overall, even
when it picks up some steam in its middle
section as the textures and complexity ratchets
up a bit. Case in point is the beautiful ‘Faceless
Queen.’ It succeeds in developing itself past the
“classic metal riffs with black metal vocals”
tagline to include some well-needed tremolos
with its leads and a more urgent rhythm. ‘Path of
88 METALEGION #1

No Return’ makes use of the melodic and flows
easily into the ear. Even these two tracks feel
somewhat underwhelming compared to what
they promise. Fans of this sub-genre will likely
take something away from this, but for the rest
a promise of continual development will have
to do. And with complete creative control, who
knows where Slegest may go in the future.
6.5 | ARJUN ARMAN
SLOWRUN
PROLOGUE
SLOW BURN RECORDS / SOLITUDE PRODUCTIONS
In recent years, many extreme metal bands have
dabbled in post metal, though I am not sure
why. Extreme metal is so dense, and fast, and
chaotic, whereas post metal often strikes me as
unfinished and bleak. Some bands do pull off the
transition, though, and that’s enough for me to
approach post metal with an open mind and give
it a serious listen. I understand that it might not
be as exciting as what I’m used to, it sometimes
does create interesting atmospheres and the
emotions that go along with them.
This is what Slowrun’s “Prologue” attempts to
do. The album begins in a very trendy manner,
with minimalistic guitar work that errs on the
upbeat. Soon, there are elements of ambience,
and the result is essentially white noise. I used
“Prologue” to help me focus on some other
things, but as far as keeping me interested and
waiting for the next passage of music, the album
quite failed.
Fans of Intronaut and similar acts might enjoy
this a lot more than I do. The music feels
very esoteric and there are attempts to create
atmosphere with the absolute minimum amount
of actual guitar and otherwork. Overall, I’d
characterize “Prologue” as rather trippy, and
I suspect that listeners who use certain drugs
would find the relative openness of the music
more enjoyable than I did.
There are a few high points. These happen at
those rare occasions when the minimalism of
the music is just right, and there’s just the right
amount of guitar work, and it’s placed perfectly
between long bouts of too little of everything. But
these don’t quite salvage the album. “Prologue”
ended without me quite realizing it. There’s just
not enough going on musically to keep me listening.
It’s alright, I suppose, but that’s about it...
6 | ALEX ROSS
SPERM OF MANKIND
GODZILLA
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTION
These Slovakians offer up a well-produced
platter of catchy, groovy goregrind infused
with D-beat hardcore and vaguely Swedish
old-school death metal. Think of Squash Bowels’
“Grindvirus”, albeit maybe with a slightly less
overpowering (thought still heavy as shit) guitar
tone, and you’re not too far off. I’ll be the first
to admit that I’m not an expert on this genre,
certainly I am familiar with early Carcass,
General Surgery, Regurgitate, Dead Infection and
a few others, but goregrind isn’t exactly the first
extreme metal genre I reach for, listening-wise.
That said, I know good songwriting when I hear
it, and these guys provide enough simple, catchy
little riffs to justify a repeat listen or three. Not
to mention plenty of the expected grotesque/silly
humour, just check out the song titles, or the
faux-rap-metal breakdown on ‘Hammer’. Tracks
like ‘Born Pregnant’ and ‘Romantic Date’ could
almost serve as a primer for the gore neophyte,
ranging from slow grooves to mid-tempo thrash/
polka bits to admittedly clumsy blasting. And
even if part of me frowns at the title, ‘Nice
Shoes Faggot’ does feature perhaps the best
riff on here. Overall, not extremely original, but
recommended for fans of this stuff.
7.5 | KEVIN AKSTIN
STIGMHATE
ZODACARE OD ZODAMERANU
BAKERTEAM RECORDS
In all honesty I’m struggling a bit for things to
say, good or bad, about this one. It’s perfectly
solid, competent modern black metal with
terrific production reminiscent of Watain’s “The
Wild Hunt”, but at the same time, that’s kind
of all it is. These three Italians don’t boast an
especially original or distinctive sound - in fact,
their songs often resemble a pastiche of various
popular BM and blackened death bands, from
the previously mentioned Watain, to Immortal to
Behemoth. The vocals are a harsh bark midway
between a “black” rasp and a higher death
growl, and a death metal influence often comes
through in the riffing as well, even if there’s still
plenty of treble and tremolo hovering over the
blast beats. In this case, though, the blending of
genres serves partly to blandify the actually-notbad-at-all
music. Things start out promisingly
enough, first proper song ‘The Third Obsidian’
comes in sounding maybe a bit like 1349 at
their blast-happy best, and even as the track
slows down early on and stays there, things
keep grooving along with some possibly (to my
ears) Mayhem-derived riffs. By a few songs in,
however, you’ll likely to start to realize that these
guys have a somewhat limited formula - the
songs, with few exceptions, either begin fast and
end up slow, or vice versa. Luckily, the riffs are
pretty consistent in their middling catchiness,
and even if nothing on here is going to blow
STEEL PROPHET
THE GODDESS PRINCIPLE
[REISSUE LP]
PURE STEEL RECORDS
Forming in 83’, Steel Prophet is one of those
bands that steadily perfected their sound
while finding the right members. Releasing
three demos between the years 1986-1989,
it wasn’t until 1995 that the band’s debut,
“The Goddess Principle” finally saw the
light of day. What is it about this album that
separates itself from other power metal
classics? Well, for one Steel Prophet has a
very interesting sound, adding an old-school
thrash vibe mixed with elements of the New
Wave of British heavy metal while taking
inspiration from bands like Fates Warning,
and Jag Panzer among others.
“The Goddess Principle” has consistent,
powerful songs with various tempo changes,
catchy, galloping rhythms and top notch
vocals. Lyrically the band tackles various
subjects, most notably religion, which
seems to be a prominent aspect of each
song. Despite the fact that this subject
might seem unappealing to some listeners,
the band don’t seem too concerned and
focus more on tightening the song writing
so that each track manages to resonate
with the listener and with so much musical
diversity, this is one powerhouse debut,
of which makes Steel Prophet a band that
needs to be heard.
The vocal style of lead vocalist Rick
Mythiasin is reminiscent of Ex-Helloween
singer Michael Kiske and Manowar vocalist
your mind, likewise none of these 11 tunes
(disregarding the intro) can remotely be called
terrible. While I’m quite sure there will be plenty
of better albums released in 2014, if you just
can’t get over that modern strain of aggressive,
death-infused, slightly polished BM, then you
might want to pick this up.
7 | KEVIN AKSTIN
STUKA PARTY
SCHMEISER SMASHER
HAMMERHEART RECORDS
“The Battle of Britain is about to begin...” a
voice informs, crackling with analogue and age,
barely giving us time to prepare for machine gun
blasts and flak explosions delivered directly to
our earholes.
Stuka Party is a side project courtesy of the
mighty Gadget’s William Blackmon, and their
debut joint, “Schmeiser Smasher,” gifts the
world with an instrumental (save a few roars
Eric Adams among others, with Mythiasin
bringing his own style to the band. The
album’s standout tracks are ‘Prophecy
upon Us’, ‘Devoid of Logic’ and ‘To Grasp
Eternity’. The record features a slow piano
piece, which is a fine change of pace to
the rest of the album due to the fact that
showcases the talent of and diversity of
Steel Prophet perfectly. ‘Ruby Dreams’
works more as a short break between songs
as it is the album’s slowest track. The song
permits the listener to catch a breath before
the sonic assault resumes once again. The
other songs are great as well, and there
are no filler tracks that are here to fill up
space. Steel Prophet have managed to do
something quite rare, pull off a record where
each song is strong. However, the ones
I’ve mentioned are the ones that really can
resonate with the listener.
“The Goddess Principle” is a strong album,
with heavy compositions, raw production,
great guitar playing by Horacio Colmenares
and Steve Kachinsky Blakmoor which have
a similar approach to other metal guitarists
such as Adrian Smith and Dave Murray of
Iron Maiden as well as K.K Downing and
Glen Tipton of Judas Priest.
Steel Prophet have steadily gained a
following in the heavy metal underground,
and with this impressive and remarkable
debut, fans will surely appreciate the band’s
unique brand of metal. Guitarists Colmenares
and Blakmoor have great energy
when they hammer through each track,
which is always exciting for the listener. Add
to that the vocal delivery of Rick Mythiasin
and you have a winning combination for a
band that seem to embrace the challenge of
being overshadowed by more prominent and
popular power metal bands, and the band
seem all too keen on proving themselves
that they belong among the genre greats.
After being out of print for years, Steel
Prophet’s debut now has been re-released
by Pure Steel Records on Vinyl. For metal
collectors who want to add an overlooked
classic to their ever growing vinyl collection,
Steel Prophet’s “The Goddess Principle” is
a wise a choice.
9 | ALEX ROY
on the attack track ‘Warspite’) and sample
heavy-history concept album. Just about
everything about this release is eye/ear catching
(the great cover artwork!) and perhaps even
completely unique as far as content and execution
is concerned, even if it needs a bit more
musical muscle in some places.
On a non-musical level, the tunes, working best
while at ramming speed, take a backseat to the
detailed historical allusions and atmosphere.
4
#1 METALEGION 89

“ONCE AGAIN KVARFORTH
EXTENDS HIS MIDDLE
FINGER TO ALL NORMS”
SHINING
8 ½ - FEBERDRÖMMAR I
VAKET TILLSTÅND
DARK ESSENCE RECORDS / KARISMA
RECORDS
And Kvarforth’s promise is now
fulfilled! That was probably the very
first thing that crossed my mind when
I heard about the concept of the new
release from Shining entitled “8 ½ -
Feberdrömmar I Vaket Tillstånd”. If
you are a fan of this band you probably
remember Kvarforth stating that he had
a project of recording and older album or
songs with several different vocalists... So
here it is! The six songs featured belong to
the “Livets ändhållplats” and “III - Angst
- Självdestruktivitetens Emissarie” period
and are pre-production versions with newly
recorded bass and guitars lines and on top
of it the inclusion of keyboards courtesy
of Lars Fredrik Frøislie (Ásmegin or Angst
Skvadron). After the release of the controversial
eighth album “Redefining Darkness”
in 2012 and after all the years of polemical
statements and attitudes on stage I guess
that no one is no longer in shock when
something like “8 ½ - Feberdrömmar I Vaket
Tillstånd” gets released. The concept on its
essence can certainly be interesting especially
because it derives completely from the
usual re-issue rigid boundaries. However
it’s curious to see those extremely primitive
and raw songs, even more than the original
cuts, to get released after “Redefining
Darkness” had shaken some ground and
cut the chains with some older black metal
fans. From this perspective I can say that
once again Kvarforth extends his middle
finger to all norms and pre-defined Shining
concepts and embarks on a journey that has
clearly only one objective, to further inflame
the audiences. This time he joined forces
with well-known vocalists, Famine (Peste
Noire), Attila Csihar (Mayhem, Tormentor),
Pehr Larsson (Alfahanne), Gaahl (ex. Gorgoroth,
God Seed) and Maniac (ex. Mayhem,
Skitliv) and gave complete freedom for
them to interpret 6 classic Shining songs as
they wished and even in their own native
language. I must confess that after the
initial shock of such a grim and unexpected
release by a band that has developed
outrageously its own sonority, I was able
to fully appreciate it. As a fan of the older
material and especially grim black metal,
I couldn’t be happier with how the songs
turned out and above all by the fact that
even if each vocalist gives its own personal
touch all songs flow quite well and without
the impression of hearing a different band
on each song. I must stand out the remarkable
work done by Famine on ‘Terres Des
Anonymes’ (featured on “Angst” as ‘Fields
of Faceless’), Atilla Csihar on ‘Szabadulj
Meg Önmagadtól’ (featured also on “Angst”
as ‘Mörda dig själv...’) and Maniac on ‘Black
Industrial Misery’ (featured originally on the
“Through Years of Oppression” compilation
as an instrumental piece but it dates back
to the “Angst” recording sessions). Along
this I must state that the keyboard work
of Lars Fredrik Frøislie fits perfectly on the
Shining menacing mood and in some cases
truly exceeds the expectations like on the
song ‘Black Industrial Misery’ where it gives
a surreal dark cosmic flow to an already
killer riffing song. If you are not already a fan
of the band, this is the type of release that
will not convert you into one however this
is for sure a collector’s item! Give it a few
spins and tell me this is not special...
8.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
Major plus points for compelling this listener to
learn a few things to make the album make more
sense. I had no idea what a “Stuka” is/was.
Turns out it is a Luffwaffe two-man dive bomber
formally known as the Junker Ju 87. While an
offbeat moniker choice, I admitted that Stuka
Party as a name was better than ‘Junker Ju 87
Rave-Up’ or any equivalent. But lo, turns out that
an actual ‘Stuka Party’ took place on July 3rd
1942 and during the First Battle of El Alamein
(waged on the Egyptian coastal areas). The RAF
SAAF 1 squadron shot down 13 Stukas and a
bf109 (a fighter) in quick succession, spelling a
major victory against the Africa Corps... Oh yeah,
and the ‘Quattara Depression’ is the world’s
largest sinkhole.
On a supersonic level, listening to the work
reminds of hearing a war story from an elder
processed through the milieu of the younger
listener (i.e. grindcore). Despite being without
vocals, the story is told vividly through various
archival samples from the period. These
samples run from a few seconds to several
minutes and are expertly woven into the
musical narrative. Among the best transitions
between a sample and the music occurs during
‘Quattara Depression,’ where a correspondent
comments on shelling happening overhead,
which is then demonstrated by the bursting of
the instruments in such a fashion. The music
itself is mostly comprised of blast-beats (think
the front mounted machine guns) and rapid bass
picking (the buzzing of the propellers) that are
well suited to explosive aerial combat. To add
some variation, the band uses several subdued
passages that are probably necessary, but are
simply not as exciting. ‘Oh Kif!’ sounds a little
too close to a Linkin Park saranwrap melody over
Michael Bay aerial cinematography, but greatly
improves as the radio chatter is intertwined.
‘White Cliffs of Dover’ consists of an extended
sample (describing an attack by German warplanes)
that into leads to highlight ‘Black Skies
Over Dover,’ a stunner with kicking bass grooves.
Such grooves take the title track into sludge territory
that serves as a bit of a reprieve from the
bombing earlier tracks. And with an ending fitting
of a V-Day celebration (using clips from the
actual one in Piccadilly Circus), ‘London Bridge’
gives a summary of ‘Schmeiser Smasher’ and
its virtues, with ‘God Save the King’ as the coda.
Very, very much worth listening to.
And to close with a Protip: Que up some period
combat footage (or even some Macross or
vintage Jane Fonda skin) and strap in for extra
immersion.
8 | ARJUN ARMAN
SUBORNED
FROM SPACE
SAOL MUSIC / CMM MARKETING
Here’s a nice surprise coming straight from
the Swiss offshore lands. It’s interesting to
see a young band that has almost no music
background (or at least a recognized one abroad)
pulling out a debut album that even if it’s not
a groundbreaking thrash metal record has its
share of strong points that make it quite valid.
For a start has a strong sense of humour...
Just look at the front cover of “From Space”
and tell me you will not be eager to look inside
and make you meditate about it. The songs are
well produced (courtesy of Little Creek Studio
where bands like Destruction or Pro-Pain have
recorded some of their albums) and composed
having a tremendous focus on the dynamic work
of Valentin Mossinger on the guitars and even
permitting the band as a whole to have a good
slice of technical moments, rhythmic changes
and some heavy metal influences. Have I already
stated that they have a female vocalist? This is
also a strong point on Suborned, because I really
like the mix between Holy Moses, Arch Enemy
and Exodus that Lucie Werlen incorporates on
her voice, especially on the full attack blasts,
which could be more frequent I must say. She is
able to give a very dynamic raw edge throughout
that will please the fans of the genre and even
without falling into the “cheesy” category of
thrash metal they do incorporate frequently
vocal chorus. If all this wasn’t enough, the band
invited Schmier from Destruction to sing on
‘Sexolence’ and ‘My Step’. Suborned is definitely
one of those new bands that are trying to create
their own sonority on a scene that has seen it
all. Have they succeeded? Some of the ideas
sound a bit forced and naïve (removing some of
the needed thrashing vibe), but at least they are
trying. If you are looking for a grooving thrash
metal album that do not focus solely on speed
and jugular riffing attacks but rather on a more
mid-tempo approach with getaways at full speed
(like for instance on ‘Hit It’, the self- titled track
or ‘Demon’), a rich guitar work with different
patterns and solos “From Space” might be your
thing. Give it a try!
6.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
SUICIDE WATCH
THE ALIENATION ZONE [EP]
SLANEY RECORDS
And again British thrash metal combo returns
with a new small dose (meaning tiny MCD) of
good humour. Only a bunch of pranksters could
start a release with a sentence like “I have
come here to chew bubble gum and kick ass” or
cover a song with a title like ‘Student Wankers’
(originally released by the punk band Peter and
the Test Tube Babies). Joking aside, I’m not
aware of the reasons that led to, five years after
the release of their second album “Figure Head
of Pain”, keep showing they are alive through
the release of mostly re-recording versions of
older songs or cover versions (they released also
on 2010 a MCD with a similar framework). This
time at least they have revamped their crappy
logo to a more fitting and old-school lettering.
Fans of bands like Exodus, Accuser, S.O.D., Acid
90 METALEGION #1

Reign, or Exumer will be for sure delighted with
these seventeen minutes. In fact, Howard “H”
Smith from the mighty Acid Reign sings on the
two songs ‘This Cursed Earth’ and the entertaining
‘Student Wankers’. It’s obvious that these
guys breed and live by the spirit of the early furious
thrash/crossover metal which is fine by me.
However, I feel that “The Alienation Zone” might
disappoint the fans simply because after all the
years of waiting they return once again with what
looks like a seventeen minute filler. Judgements
aside, you can be sure that these guys know
how to handle their instruments and write good,
catchy and even fast thrash metal songs. Let’s
hope that after all the years crawling around
(both Richard ‘Rid’ White and Simon C. Godwin
were also active band members on the early
90’s) they are rewarded with a third and massive
album really soon! In their defence... I guess
that for the price that Slaney Records is charging
for this on their website (5 EUR) this is a decent
addition to your collection if you don’t have
nothing else where to spend your money and
want to hear another cover version of the classic
Metallica song ‘Motorbreath’. Good thrash but
unfortunately only a small length rash!
6.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
SUPER MASSIVE
BLACK HOLES
CALCULATIONS OF THE ANCIENTS
MINOTAURO RECORDS / CLAWHAMMER PR
Claiming the name of one of the known
universe’s most powerful forces an ambitious
choice for a band. And while the music of a
pack of humans does not rival the namesake,
it is the mysterious horror that surrounds the
Super-Massive Black Hole (cue the “Vertigo”
theme as used in an early 2000’s documentary
on SMBHs) as a nonliving entity that feeds this
band’s imagination. This can also be said of
those who will be drawn (pun?) to the resulting
product here. As for the album title, Pestilence’s
classic “Testimony of the Ancients” might be
the drawing point. Is this a sequel of sorts that
exists in the same universe as that memorable
album? Perhaps.
Album opener ‘(Sub-molecular) Transmogrification
of the Oriphy’ will blow your pants off while
you hit Wikipedia or dictionary.com for some
clarification (as will others). Part of the intrigue
is in not knowing exactly what the themes are
at first glance (I now know what the ‘Dyatlov
Pass Incident’, ‘The Great Attractor are), which
earns the band points for forethought. ‘Distance
to the Great Attractor’ should be noted for its
somewhat whimsical electric jazz passage. It
is perhaps the most memorable moment in an
album full of beginnings and endings of ideas
placed closely together. There is a fairly long
stretch of calm that occurs between ‘Mathematics
of Emotions’ and ‘Refracted Kaleidoscopic
Photons’, that doesn’t slow down “Calculations
Of The Ancients” much, but might have benefited
from some re-ordering.
‘Ghosts of Bhopal’ proves to be another highlight,
that is marred somewhat by some strange country-blues
licking during an otherwise excellent
ascending riff pattern that tells the audience
that big things are going to happen. And closer
“Lift The Veil” is an end of life account of
what is probably a Stephen Hawking expy that
contemplates his “next task” as he moves
beyond the mundane and misguided struggles
of this life. The monologue is followed by some
more of the jazz noodling that made itself clear
prior. These sequences, while memorable and
well played, could be more diverse with a little
added intensity. The unusual punkish vocals
(perhaps New York’s Flourishing would be a good
comparison, or Between the Buried and Me as
according to the band) are an element that help
to break a bit of the monotony however, and
should be explored next time round.
In any case, “Ancients” is pretty solid. It is
also (impressively!) totally self-produced and
financed by its band members, which is usually
the means of decidedly raw subgenres, but
difficult to pull off on a tech-death record. Due
to a little bit of that scruffy rawness, ‘Ancients’
comes out as capable contemporary update of
2000’s hyper-tech death and the jazz derived
rhythms and syncopation of the early 90’s
classics. Fans of the more spastic tech-death
of Gigan or Baring Teeth will find much to love
in this album’s heavier and angrier sections,
while lovers of atmosphere and fluid prowess
will enjoy the numerous restrained interludes. It
has unusual vocals that lean a bit to the punkish
hardcore side (perhaps New York’s Flourishing
would be a good comparison, or Between the
Buried and Me as according to the band) that
also add to the diverse aura present. Sadly, this
band might become a conversation piece by
those who seek novelty due to its thematic and
musical choices. The more hardcore/orthodox
often jettison acts that find acceptance in nonmetal
crowds, which often robs said groups of
their due. It is early in the game for SMBH, so the
future remains open, much like the all-devouring
maw of their namesake.
8 | ARJUN ARMAN
TEMTRIS
SHALLOW GRAVE
BATTLEGOD PRODUCTIONS / SURE SHOT WORX
This was a very long wait! Seven years after
their sophomore album “Masquerade” the
Aussies are back with a dreadful heavy metal
vengeance, I dare to say! One of the things
that I noticed on their previous album was the
somewhat redundant dry production, rest assure
that “Shallow Grave” not only gives a major leap
on that aspect but also sees the vocals of Genevieve
Rodda uplifted like never before. I would be
inaccurate if I said that the soul of Temtris does
not lie largely on her dynamic and beautiful vocal
approach, in fact this is what makes you come
SUBLIRITUM
DOWNFALL
BATTLEGOD PRODUCTIONS
Don’t be fooled with the somewhat
uninspiring front cover artwork! This
is probably the very first thing that
crossed my mind when the opener
‘Death of a Sun’ speeded up for the
very first time and revealed a wolf in
sheep’s clothing. “Downfall” is the third
album by the Norwegian quintet (having
a session member named Vegar Larsen
for the drums, known for playing in
Keep Of Kalessin) and I can definitely
say that it’s quite an ambitious album.
If you had the chance to hear their first
album “Dark Prophecies” (with a killer
front cover artwork) I can guarantee
that its miles away from it and if you
enjoyed their debut album, you must
definitely hear “Downfall”!
To some extend continues the growth
process started in the second opus
“A Touch of Death” with the addition
of a strong progressive edge to their
already symphonic black death metal.
Subliritum is nowadays a monstrous
piece of black metal with death and
thrash metal elements layered with
a strong progressive and symphonic
foundation. There are two aspects that
are really prominent in “Downfall”, the
amazing job done by guest drummer
Vegar Larsen and the labyrinthine,
sometimes even progressive dual guitar
work. Vegar Larsen is known for his
amazing fast drum patterns for the Norwegian
beast, Keep of Kalessin and...
He does not betray in here. “Downfall”
keeps a very fast, sometimes even epic
pace and Vegar Larsen is able to show
off is brutal footwork and technique
behind the drum kit. When you add
this to incredible progressive guitar
moments of Dag Müller and Sverre
Berntsen, you can be sure that you
get something quite special and brutal
at the same time (like for instance on
‘Downfall of Empathy’, ‘Managing Evil’,
‘Dirt and Stone’ or ‘Into the Deep’ with
his tiny dose of chanted Arcturus kind
of vocals). If you like your music brutal
however retaining a good amount of
symphonic complexity, I’m sure that
Subliritum with his fast black metal
tempos, huge doses of technical death
metal and rough aggressive vocals will
be a constant presence on your stereo.
Indeed, a really nice surprise!
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
back to “Shallow Grave” for several listens and
be magnetized with songs like ‘Captured’, the
melancholic ‘Silent Tears’ with its explosion of
fast almost black metal riffing style or the titletrack
with his haunting and daring atmospheres
and diverse vocal approach. Temtris fits perfectly
on the female fronted metal band category with
the usual male turning of the heads, but what
sets them apart from the “too much melodic”,
“cheerful” or “gothic” frontier is the powerful
and straight heavy metal compositions that the
band provides to the listener. The expectable
male cliché is also present on “Shallow Grave”
however even if Llew Smith’s presence is way
more subtle than the norm his deep death metal
growling provides a nice vocal barbaric divergence.
Temtris has a strange old-school classic
heavy/power metal aura not very common on
female fronted bands, bringing back memories
from the 80’s when acts like Warlock, Hellion
or Zed Yago had some success. But don’t you
dare to think that these guys (and girl) have any
intention to recreate long lost hymns, they have
a modern aggressive edge with a twin distorted
guitar attack and somewhat dry drumming that
gives all the necessary twists for all songs to be
fully remembered. The instrumental empathy
between Llew Smith and Anthony Fox is also
something to be fully appreciated and provides
all the ingredients (solos, constant tempo
changes, brutal riffing, melodic leads and even
contradictory directions) to create stand out
and catchy compositions. “Shallow Grace” is
an album that blends different influences and
marks quite positively the growing career of this
Australian band under a record label acknowledged
for his heavy metal expertise. Eagerly
waiting for what comes next!
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
TERRIFIER
METAL OR DEATH [EP]
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
Taking a name change from Skull Hammer to
Terrifier, this new release is more in line with
how their old sound came about and doesn’t
really offer a big change. This is charging full
throttle thrash that contains a pretty healthy
dose of traditional heavy metal patterns. The
title track brings in a feel closer in spirit to the
80’s metal era as the rampaging rhythms and
tight riffing careen through the up-tempo pace
with a charge akin to speed metal, such is the
tightness of the guitars. These tight, crunchy
patterns featured make for quite a devastating
mix when added to the loud, thumping bass
lines and swirling series of technical riffs from
‘Infernal Overdrive’ that play with more of those
heavy metal patterns. However, when the band
wants to stay more firmly rooted in thrash like
‘Wretched Damnation’ it proves that the bands’
style is perfectly capable of maintaining that kind
of speed and intensity quite well, as it leaves
the heavy rhythms off the track all together and
4
#1 METALEGION 91

keeps this back in the tight, dense thrash realm.
All of this good, energetic music is bolstered
by the old-school production job present that
makes for a tight, dirty affair that firmly keeps
the spirit of the 80’s alive but really serves to
highlight the fact that the band really deserves
to release an effort with more material next time.
The three tracks of “Metal or Death” are just
quite effective at wanting more and that leaves
this with a somewhat lacking impression overall,
because music this intense, raging and energetic
surely needs more to work and that could easily
be rectified in a longer release next time.
Frankly, there’s not much to this other than being
an introduction to the new band following the
name change, with very little differencing from
their previously ushered work. Putting only three
tracks here does this one a slight disservice with
a pronounced lack of really charging songs, but
the feral energy and relentless speed does some
good, counterbalancing the effect of the brief
running time. It becomes wholly listenable even
if the hardcore fans of the previous incarnation
are going to be the target audience.
8 | DON ANELLI
THE ANAL TREATMENT
XXXPERIENCE /
ACEPTIC GOITRE
GANGRENOUS MASS FROM AXE &
HOOK EJACULATION [SPLIT]
ROTTEN MUSIC
When you see something like “a split-release as
bad as you think!” printed in capitalized letters
on the booklet of a CD it will most likely make
you think if they aren’t simply telling the truth...
“Gangrenous Mass from Axe & Hook Ejaculation”
gladly isn’t as bad as they promote, however
it has is good and bad moments. The opener
band, The Anal Treatment XXXperience sounds
like a massive and slightly noisy grindcore
indigestion while Aceptic Goitre goes more under
the brutal death metal banner with grindcore
urine influences. Be prepared for the first half of
“Gangrenous Mass from Axe & Hook Ejaculation”
to be spent with a massive diarrhoea, such is
the effect of the anal treatment that this Greek
trio is able to sustain during almost 15 minutes.
Soundwise The Anal Treatment XXXperience
offers a raw and excessively noisy grindcore
experience that will either make your ears bleed
or make you suffer a serious case of trichotillomania,
especially because the vocalist Toum-Ra
uses a cybersonic vomit that is not easy to cope
with at times. After the instrumental driven intro,
‘Black Metal Boy-Toy’ explodes in your face with
its fast tempo, rhythmic variation and direct
anti-corpse paint (read: black metal) attack.
‘Advanced Level Penetration’ is the best songs
featured where the band alternates musically
between a fast noisy attack to pounding
mid-tempos that truly stand out and back again
to pure fury (make me headbang for a moment).
The Anal Treatment XXXperience would perfectly
THY WORSHIPER
CZARNA DZIKA CZERWIEN
PAGAN RECORDS
The legacy of the Temple of Fullmoon
has almost burned out. Graveland
carries on, and we recently saw the
highly anticipated re-releases of demo
cassettes by Legion and Fullmoon.
Perunwit is still alive and kicking, but
only just, and most of the surviving
bands are missing the uncompromising
ideology and emotion that made the
music of those who worshipped the full
moon great.
The exception may be Thy Worshiper, and
I do not say this lightly. I take Polish black
metal quite seriously, in fact I own all copies
of Fullmoon’s legendary “United Aryan Evil”
cassette, including the much-coveted promo
cassette and the LP.
But first, a warning. “Czarna Dzika Czerwien”
can hardly be considered an extreme
metal album. It’s in fact more of a pure
pagan album. It has elements of world or
ethnic music. Think about a less compromising
Yanni with occasional harsh vocals
and other metal-like elements.
But these are not bad things at all. “Czarna
Dzika Czerwien” begins with catchy
passages involving death growls intertwined
with pagan cries that aren’t unlike what
Temnozor’ and Arkona occasionally produce.
The lyrics themselves are actually very
good, and the translations that I have seen
posted online do them justice.
There’s really interesting minimalism
created with the guitar work. Although
tremolo picking is employed, the guitars
are not distorted enough to create walls of
noise, and this leaves a lot of music as open
air for the rest of the notes to flow through.
There’s also a great contrast between male
chanted vocals, later in the album, and
female vocals.
Overall, the instrumentation benefits from
excellent composition. There’s never too
much going on, and the vocals and the
instruments don’t crowd each other out
at all. You can clearly hear every single
instrument being played (which is a rare
enough thing to say about metal) and each
piece compliments the others.
This is a very, very pagan album. I already
mentioned Yanni, but if you have spent any
time listening to native American ethnic
CDs, you’ll find yourself enjoying at least
several of “Czarna Dzika Czerwien”’s songs.
This is the best of ethnic/pagan music
combined with metal elements, and for this
reason, I give Thy Worshiper’s most recent
effort a very well-deserved 9.5, with points
off only because I wish there were just a
few more instruments involved and because
choir vocals would have added even more
power to this already powerful release.
9.5 | ALEX ROSS
“CZARNA DZIKA
CZERWIEN” BEGINS
WITH CATCHY
PASSAGES INVOLVING
DEATH GROWLS
INTERTWINED WITH
PAGAN CRIES THAT
AREN’T UNLIKE
WHAT TEMNOZOR’
AND ARKONA
OCCASIONALLY
PRODUCE”
fit among the bands and music style that a
festival like Obscene Extreme provides in Czech
Republic, just a hint (laughs)!
The Greek duo Aceptic Goitre is another story...
At least I feel much more comfortable at their
side even if they scream “Hip Hip Hip Uriiine!”
(laughs). Chris Dimopoulos has been an active
band member on the Greek underground scene,
playing in brutal death metal bands like Incineration
for instance (with two full lengths already
released). Aceptic Goitre combines mid to fast
tempo brutality with a groovy sonority and some
sick growling, grunting and pig squeal verbalizations
done by the lovely Teddy (laughs)?! This
split features the two songs from the 2013 EP
“Expropriation Chambers”, which already had
the potential to stand out especially the titletrack
and three new hymns. If brutal death metal
with pigsty vocals is your realm, I’m sure that
even if they don’t bring anything new to the table
you will be extremely impressed with Teddy’s
intense growling and the ease with how Chris’s
compositions are able to keep the listener
banging their heads almost without noticing. This
is definitely a band to keep an eye on.
6.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
THERMIT
ENCEPHALOPATHY [EP]
SELF RELEASED / VLADPROMOTION
Like most bands do when they finally get the
chance to record an EP, this band takes it in
stride to offer a fitting culmination of their
sound to display to all what they’re about and
generate interest in ushering forth a full-length
to enjoy. That’s precisely what happened here,
as these Polish newcomers have certainly gotten
the proper attention with this release meshing
together furious, raging thrash with blistering
heavy metal. Starting with the guitars, the
attention they get for not ripping and soaring
about the music while firing off a thousand riffs
a minute is impressive for they do this while
generating an amazing sense of speed with
some really impressive and overall melodic
leads courtesy of their heavy metal influences.
With guitar patterns straight from the Bay Area
in the late 80’s, it propels tracks like ‘Zombie
Lover’ and ‘Other Man’ into furious and energetic
tempos that gives this a powerful, dynamic
crunch alongside the screaming metal lead work,
and the effect is quite devastating. Other times,
tracks like ‘Now You See’ and ‘Second’ that play
around with more of the heavy metal side of
things so they’re not quite as speed-driven but
more a chance to play with varying melodies and
tempo changes for a different vibe comprised of
that infamous light-then-dark style so common
in that genre rather than the straightforward
crunch of thrash, and that affords this with a
wholly satisfying degree of different elements.
The last track on “Encephalopathy” is more of
a homage than an original track, with ‘Thermitallica’
comprised of about a dozen Metallica
92 METALEGION #1

tracks in varying segments, some several verses
while others get a chorus or so while the band
plays through the underlying rhythm. While this
is certainly one of the most novel ways of going
through a cover song, the different snaps through
the tracks do get a little difficult to handle and
could potentially pose problems. Still, the rest
of this one comes complete with a loud-andproud
series of riffing and a wailing banshee of
a frontman so there’s a vastly different set of
dynamics within this than the usual thrash band
can afford, and this gives it a wholly original
stance in the genre.
An overall enjoyable mixture of tracks that really
only offers one real downbeat track and one
rather novel but disorienting cover version, the
remaining original tracks are impressive and
dynamic enough that the band should start
getting a foothold on their career as they carry
on. This is certainly a worthwhile and enjoyable
enough release that doesn’t get too much wrong
so it’s definitely something for the old-school
thrash fanatic to get into while those looking for
something to follow in the future will find a lot to
like with this one.
8.5 | DON ANELLI
THRASH BOMBZ
MISSION OF BLOOD
IRON SHIELD RECORDS / PURE STEEL PROMOTIONS
To come right to the point: the first album of this
Italian band is a disappointment from start to
finish. I am sure that all of us know better ways
to kill forty minutes. But this can be a very long
forty minutes. Nothing truly fits together. Without
going into too many details, I want to focus on
the main weaknesses of this output.
Most of you would agree that thrash firstly needs
excellent riffs. Well, it is maybe too much to
demand that each and every song has to have a
riff of the highest quality. But at the very least,
an album needs some good riffs. “Mission in
Blood” lacks of this element. This alone means
the death sentence for this output. I wish I could
write something more positive, but I think I have
to tell the unvarnished truth. The ordinary guitar
work is particularly noticeable while listening to
the instrumental piece at the end of the album. It
is just entirely superfluous.
The vocals mark the next week point. I would be
happy for any kind of diversification. But the guy
named “Thrash Maniac” is just a very mediocre
singer. He stays true to his own style, but this
style is just a heavily punk-influenced emotionless
shouting. The punk approach is underlined
by the boring back vocals, which are used from
time to time. Even worse, each and every chorus
fails to convince the listener. Some are unobtrusive,
some are really atrocious and they are all
without long-term effect. The acoustic beginning
of the tenth number marks the most memorable
part of the album. But its atmosphere is quickly
destroyed as the miserable vocals come in.
While playing a quite simple style of metal,
they are not able to offer any catchy elements.
A lack of catchiness may be commendable for
progressive metal bands. But for a band like
Thrash Bombz, this is more or less a damning
verdict, as much as I regret it.
Believe me, I tried hard to find some positive
aspects. I have listened to this acceptable
produced album for more than five times but it
leaves me absolutely cold. These guys surely do
not lack of enthusiasm, but they are just not able
to write coherent songs with memorable parts.
The interchangeable tunes sound like a fairly
ambitious trial of a pupil band. In conclusion, the
band is light years away from the well executed
punky thrash metal of their compatriots named
Violentor who know how to master this genre in
an inspiring way.
2 | FELIX 1666
TORTURE THRONE
STENCH OF INNOCENCE [EP]
OBSCURE DOMAIN PRODUCTIONS
Wow what a surprise! With a name like Torture
Throne I was expecting brutal death metal/
slam, but these guys play a very fun old-school
death metal style. Hailing from France, Torture
Throne is a rather unknown band, and this is
their second release (both releases are EP’s
with the first one being released in 2010). While
Torture Throne may not be the most original band
around, their potent blend of Grave worship with
some old-school US death metal tendencies
thrown in is fun to listen to and will keep you
entertained throughout the EP’s full duration.
The slow, doomy sections (i.e. ‘Morbid Wrath’,
‘Stench Of Innocence’, ‘Sempiternal Spear Of
Salvation’) are crushing and very heavy sounding.
This mainly comes from the driving drum
beats and the completely killer Swedish death
metal guitar tone, mixing these two elements
during the slow, churning moments makes
them incredibly memorable and the badass
tremolo picked riffs really help to accentuate the
crushing, evil atmosphere that this EP conjures
up so well. Now I do want to warn you guys real
quick that if you don’t enjoy old-school death
metal or really don’t enjoy this “New Wave Of Old
School Death Metal” bands then you won’t really
find anything you’ll want to listen to here. The
music isn’t overly melodic and guitarists Damien
and Xavier mainly stick to either evil sounding
tremolo picking, slow doomy moments and the
occasional scorching guitar solo. They are very
good at the style they play and are obviously
familiar with the bands that they worship on this
record (Grave, Dismember, Autopsy, maybe a
little bit of Marduk’s debut album).
Fabrice does a wonderful job on the drums, the
double bass is pummelling and is present on a
large portion of the material, the only downfall
of his is that he doesn’t seem to be interesting
in using drum fills very often and sometimes
his blastbeats can lag a tiny bit behind the rest
of the band although this is only noticeable for
a few seconds on songs like ‘Sempiternal’ and
‘Arma Christi’. The bass is rather well played
as well and can be heard lurching around the
background of the music for a good portion of
the album, it never really gets a moment to shine
(it’s usually following the guitar for the most
part and can get easily buried under the double
bass) and sometimes it’s very hard to pinpoint
in the songs, but it’s noticeably higher in the mix
than most of the “old-school revival” bands out
there. The production on this EP is wonderful,
the guitars sound full and thick and prominently
feature the duelling chainsaw guitar fuzz/crunch
that Sweden is so well known for.
Other than the occasionally lagging drumbeat,
the only real flaw in this album is that it ends too
quickly. A measly 22 minutes is not enough time
to do more than make you beg for a full length
album in the near future. I’d recommend this one
to any fans of old-school death metal out there
and anyone interesting in listening to some of the
more underground and overlooked bands in the
French metal scene. I really do hope they put out
a full length album soon!
8 | IAN BERLING
TRIUMPHANT
HERALD THE UNSUNG
CYCLONE EMPIRE / SURE SHOT WORX
It cannot be said that the Austria proudly
presents one of the leading metal scenes in
Europe. There are however some noisy bastards
that are rewarding to discover. Triumphant
belong to these groups. Well, the cautious intro
has become somewhat long. But all hell breaks
loose as soon as the second track, namely
‘Nachzehrer’, kicks off. The song starts a frontal
attack against all sweet and romantic things
in life while offering pure high-speed black
metal with a memorable and hateful chorus. An
excellent start, but Triumphant are not able to
deliver such strong outputs permanently. Already
the next piece, ‘Život Ispod Obrnutog Krsta’,
offers surprisingly a heavy metal break, which
means there is a rather inappropriate change in
style. Thankfully we do not have long to wait for
the next furious outbursts of black metal.
Songs like ‘Necromantic Force’ and the short
‘Fullmoon over Transylvania’ exhibit strong and
powerful riffing as well as a hostile atmosphere.
The varied ‘Devotion’ is basically heading in the
same direction, but it includes a middle-part
which is slightly melodious. Although the less
ravaging parts are well structured, I would prefer
to listen to a consequently harsh output. To
give you another example, the mighty title track
kicks off with an outstanding riff that leaves a
trail of devastation. But it leads to a part with
acoustic guitars so that the feeling of intensity
gets somewhat lost before the guys return to
the opening riff inferno. The self-titled band
anthem completes this release. Lively riffs and
forceful drums ensure that this song is a fitting
conclusion, although the band presents its soft
4
UNAUSSPRECHLI-
CHEN KULTEN
BAPHOMET PAN
SHUB-NIGGURATH
DARK DESCENT RECORDS / CLAWHAMMER PR
Continual fascination the phantasms
that plague the human imagination is
what inspires the more subterranean
and otherworldly varieties of extreme
metal. Far removed from the paths that
human feet tread lay worlds and dangers
unknown... Except to those who seek
them the best they can. Unaussprechlichen
Kulten’s “Baphomet Pan
Shub-Niggurath”, (which might win an
award for “Awesome McCool Title” in the
near future) is an intense and haunting
experience that wins points for its economy
and richness. Instead of going the
epically themed=epically lengthened
route of many other bands, these Chileans
reel in their otherworldly pummelling
to about three minute attacks. Each
cut is diverse and addicting, ‘La Recta
Provincia’ features an excellent melodic
break and haunting chants that back
up the impressively murky lead vocals.
Almost everything going on its very heavily
influenced by the Incantation/Autopsy
school and its brand of underworld
demagoguery. Tremolo riffing is used
excellently in the searing ‘Spirals of Acrid
Smoke’ and make the spine tingle in a
pleasurable manner. The opening attack
of ‘The Hooded Baphomet Bleated’ is
absolutely radical and out of control,
and the chaotic riffing throughout is
reminiscent of Portal and their ilk. Taking
cues from “Altars of Madness,” chants
of “Ea! Ea!” punctuate ‘Yogge Sothothe’
and ‘Epilogue’ and take the occult
atmosphere to grandiose levels.
Shifting musical form on a dime like one
of the malevolent bestial forces detailed
within the fantastical lyrics (‘Madness
rides the star-wind... Claws and teeth,
sharpened on centuries of corpses’
being a keeper) within, the album is over
quickly and never overstays its welcome.
One well versed in the Lovecraftian
universe (or a Spanish speaker) will get
more mileage out of these incantations
than a layperson such as I. For instance,
I remarked outloud, “Ooooohhh, this
Yogge-Sothothe guy must be pretty
scary!” which no doubt infuriates Him/It/
Whatever and its acolytes. Best to stay
on the good side of these cosmic/infernal
evils and give this a well-earned listen.
8.5 | ARJUN ARMAN
#1 METALEGION 93

spot for traditional heavy metal once again. This
influence is expressed by Maiden-like guitar
lines and a scream (minute 3:21) that could be
used for demonstrating the prototype of metal
screams.
With regard to the production, I am pleased to
state that the sound of this debut is flawless.
Looked at from a distance, maybe the band itself
would like to change some details. But I have
nothing to complain about. The Austrian horde
acts professionally in every aspect.
To put it in a nutshell: this album, which is
equipped with an aesthetic cover painting, marks
a good start for the band. Black metal purists
will moan about the traditional influences. But
due to their rarity and not least because of
the convincing songwriting, all maniacs with a
weakness for black metal should give the band
its chance. I bet that they will not repent it.
7.5 | FELIX 1666
machine causes since I believe that some songs
would have a different magnitude (especially
the material from the “Dark Awakening” demo)
if a skilled drummer was used instead. Until
these guys do not reform the band... I guess we
all have to be pleased with what this quartet
accomplished within just a few years.
7 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
UNDER THE CHURCH
UNDER THE CHURCH [EP]
PULVERISED RECORDS / SURE SHOT WORX
UNCONSECRATED
UNCONSECRATED CEMETERY /
DARK AWAKENING
DAN’S CRYPT RECORDS
Unconsecrated and this particular release are
not new to me, in fact I remember hearing this
particular compilation at a friends’ house a few
months after its initial release on early 2008.
What I didn’t knew was that the Spanish young
band disbanded a few years later which is a
shame because they already had some strong
compositions. What is curious on “Unconsecrated
Cemetery / Dark Awakening” is that it
features only the demo material of the band
(the only releases available back then) and they
already showed great potential and above all a
meticulous strong production not very common
for the demo period of a band. Unconsecrated
belongs to that dark, twisted, moody and raw
old-school Swedish death metal category that
we all know so well, especially the fans of bands
like Unleashed, Grave, Dismember or Entombed.
They are certainly not breaking into new territory
but who needs that when the level of musicianship
and tightness for a demo band is incredibly
high? Certainly not me! It’s true that this release
cracks in with an uninspiring creepy synth intro
but as soon as ‘Recremated by the Sunlight’
explodes in your face with its nasty rotten riffs
and multiple tempo changes throughout its 4
minutes it’s time to forget those initial fruitless
tunes. ‘Journey into the Crypts of the Dead’ starts
with a refreshing speed and brute force that will
shake your ground. During almost an hour the
listener travels through the burning domains of
a profane mountain with its gigantic peaks and
bottomless pits. Unconsecrated follows the dark
tradition left by the early 90’s Swedish death
metal bands with vicious riffs, guttural vocals
and constant speed changes that create the
necessary dynamics to maintain the focus and
raw intensity. My only remark must be made
towards the limitations that the use of a drum
VADER
TIBI ET IGNI
NUCLEAR BLAST
Making it to album number ten, Polish
death/thrash legends Vader are one
of the most powerful, consistent acts
in the genre and this is perhaps their
finest work. There’s no mistaking, it’s
just pure, plain and simple what this
band delivers and that’s a searing
assault of tight, frenzied riffs that
incorporate tremolo-picked rhythms
and heavy chugging, that’s part of their
wholesale sound as it fires these through
their intense thrashing energies. The
barrelling riffing is whipped through a series
of traditional styles through “Tibi Et Igni”,
like in the brutal, shorter blistering ‘Where
Angels Weep’ and ‘Armada on Fire’. Both are
filled with the high-speed paces the way
they’re accustomed to, off-set by thumping
mid-tempo efforts like in ‘Triumph of Death’
and ‘The End’ or the multi-sectioned epics
‘The Eye of the Abyss’ and ‘Hexenkessel’
that create a rather impressive collection of
songs with a remarkable feel of their past
works. This feels and sounds like a rather
strong collection of tracks from the band
and maintains that quality throughout the
album, as there’s nary a true bad song on
“Tibi Et Igni” even with their playing being
so familiar. This sparks to their consistency
being able to utilize their traditional patterns
but still creating high quality material
using this series of elements to be found
on all their albums so far. The guitars zip
and soar through a dazzling variety of riff
work from tremolo-picked flurries, tight
chugging and ferocious thrash rhythms
while pounding drumming careens through
the whole affair, and this is all great to hear.
While this certainly provides a lot to like
from the music stand-point, there’s a lot
to like elsewhere also. The fact that there
are different riffing styles here means that
the album offers a wide range of work that
spices up the effort quite well and never
falls into the ploy of being an inconsistent,
half-hearted affair. This is all backed by
the wide range of efforts displayed here by
including tracks like those tight, frenzied
thrashers but also managing to include
several multi-sectioned songs that feature
different elements from eerie keyboard
interludes to higher paced thrash that mixes
nicely with heavy, mid-tempo work. And
then all those varied influences turn into
solid, stand-alone tracks themselves. What
all these different track formats provide is a
dynamic soundscape with which the band is
able to play with, and while this is in really
familiar patterns which the band has worked
over quite often in the past, it never really
results in a lot of experimentation overall in
the album. It’s dynamics are found in the
familiar, and that’s where the consistency of
the music comes from here in generating an
incredibly strong effort that follows in a long
line of such albums featuring these kinds of
tracks all along in their career, and couple
this with a powerful production job for an
even better overall presentation.
This band has been at the top of their game
for a while now, and there’s certainly no
stopping them anytime soon with their
remarkable ability to create music of this
calibre. There’s a drive and fury placed over
these tracks which rivals the intensity of
bands just barely starting their careers, and
this is certainly among the top reasons why
this one is so enjoyable.
Heartily recommended to all Vader or death
metal fans or fans of the style in general,
while those looking for a perfect introduction
to the band can certainly use “Tibi Et
Igni”as a starter course.
9.5 | DON ANELLI
Autopsy worship with a side of Swedish death
metal. If I had to describe this EP/mini-album
in ten words or less, that’s what I’d go with.
Featuring seven tracks in just over 20 minutes,
this is way too short-‘n-sweet to ever really get
dull, lack of originality or no. On the other hand,
the fact that it comes and goes so quickly is
somewhat of a potential negative, if this stuff
is your cup of tea. And of course, the usual
corollary to a lack of lowlights is a lack of
highlights - each song goes down pretty easy,
with catchy (if not very distinctive) riffage and
lots of head-banging aggression, but picking one
or two out of the pile seems like an arbitrary, if
not pointless, exercise. Also, keep in mind that
when I mention Autopsy, I’m not referring to the
crawling death/doom dirges of “Mental Funeral”
but rather the more punkish feel of “Acts of the
Unspeakable” or “Shitfun”. In fact, one small
quibble is that the drumming on here (which
mainly consists of fast D-beat rhythms) could
stand to be a little more varied. Really, whether
you pick this one up or not is your call - if you’re
not yet burnt out on the whole retro-Swedeath
thing (complete with Sunlight Studios-esque
chainsaw guitar tone) then this should give you a
pretty good time, though most likely it’ll get a bit
lost in the shuffle of neo old-school death metal
releases I assume you already own. If these
guys could have managed to tack on at least
one really excellent track - making this more or
less a full album - then I would have no problem
awarding them a higher rating.
7 | KEVIN AKSTIN
UNEARTHLY
FLAGELLUM DEI [REISSUE]
METAL AGE PRODUCTIONS / SURE SHOT WORX
The fourth album of the Brazilians Unearthly has
finally put them on the map. Unfortunately the
band had to wait almost 3 complete years after
94 METALEGION #1

its original 2011 release date to see “Flagellum
Dei” crossing continents for a killer European
digipack version via Metal Age Productions.
Stating this and considering that 3 months after
the European release date the Brazilian quartet
were ready to strike again on a worldwide scale
with its fifth album entitled “The Unearthly”,
I guess that the release of “Flagellum Dei” on
the first half of the year works like an appetizer
for what the European fans might expect a few
weeks later.
The very first thing that you will notice if you
had the privilege of grabbing a copy of the
previous releases from Unearthly is that the
sound production of “Flagellum Dei” overcomes
anything that the band has made on the past.
This time the band travelled to the icy cage of
Wojtek and Slawek at Hertz Studios (Poland) to
create what can be considered a vicious fusion
between the Polish and Brazilian sonorities! So
in one hand we have a killer album that sounds
as destructive as an AK-47 but on the other we
have a band that lost most of his raw Brazilian
identity in an attempt to become an ultra-polished
Behemoth Siamese twin. The founding
45 year member M. Mictian has suffered quite
a few injuries during the years with constant
line-up changes and perhaps this trip to Poland
also shaped his vision towards what Unearthly
would end up sounding like. Even so, do not
get me wrong, these guys are extremely prolific
in obtaining a slashing sonority with constant
brutal and fast double bass drum patterns and
a menacing guitar work. It’s impossible not
to bang your head at the sound of songs like
the vile ‘My Fault’ with its tempo changes and
sinister guitar leads, the explosive ‘Baptized
in Blood’, the violent ‘Osmotic Haeresis’ where
Steven Tucker (ex. Morbid Angel) also slays
some vocal lines or ‘Insurgency’ where the
band incorporates some interesting guitar solo
moments. Unearthly is an undeniably professional
and talented band that even if “Flagellum
Dei” would not be the next big candidate for the
originality award can certainly leave scars on all
Behemoth or Vader fans. Let’s see what “The
Unearthly” unveils...
7.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
UNHOLY GRAVE
GRINDCREW WARHEADS
GIVE PRAISE RECORDS
On top of being some totally righteous dudes,
Unholy Grave are also the champions of
releasing audio in bulk. Fans of the band will
ALWAYS have a recording in rotation and will
probably never ache for a new release. And
here we have another live document of those
legendary Japanese mincers (perhaps second
only to genre namer Agathocles) that accurately
captures the fury that erupts during one of the
millions of appearances that they have made
over the years. This specific live album was
recorded during their 2007 tour with the late/
great Insect Warfare (a shout out can be heard
during the close of the Side B) at California’s
Showcase Theater, and showcases a band that
can simultaneously play loose and tight at the
same time.
In true grind fashion, the 20 track set lasts about
a half hour and as a sort of “best-of” from that
period, there are many highlights to enjoy here.
Among them are ‘Motorcharged,’ which will
stick into the memory due to the signature goofy
clean (or whatever they are) vocals as well as
the vicious assault of ‘Maniacal Discharge.’ A
tradition of the band is close their shows with
Ramones covers (‘Teenage Lobotomy’ here),
which translate very well. The band does sound
a bit tired, especially the abused vocals of lead
vocalist Takaho Komatsu, which give evidence of
the wear and tear a band undergoes during their
travels. No studio trickery here, just raw and true
music for the fans that adore it. A live recording
doesn’t really do them justice however.
One thing that should be said about this band
is that they live their ethos out. As mentioned
before, the sheer amount of stuff these gentlemen
have put out points to their band being a
full time job, one that runs contrary to the largely
conservative nation in which they hail (at least
from an American perspective) and even the
part-time/hobby culture that the underground
music scenes of the world seem to produce.
Who knows what struggles they went through
in taking the position they have on political and
social issues and choosing to use music, nay,
EXTREME music as a vehicle for it? Instead
taking part in Japan’s large-scale service and
manufacturing economy (and that of the world,
also), they instead chose to create their own
brand, one that has taken twenty years to build.
I had the pleasure of witnessing the group
headline at Berkeley’s legendary Gilman several
years ago, and saw a group of men somewhat
older and more worn than their fellow co-liners.
My memory tells me that bassist Yasutaka
Kajihara even held a disenchanted frown for
most of the show, one that led to discussion
amongst my comrades. It must be hard, and the
band’s humanistic and sensitive outlook makes
me feel sensitive to them. But I also remember
buying “Terroraging Crisis” from the hands of the
charismatic Takaho, who smiled when I told him
that I thought his band was “fucking awesome.”
I wasn’t lying or exaggerating. Support!
7 | ARJUN ARMAN
USURPRESS
ORDAINED
DOOMENTIA RECORDS / SURE SHOT WORX
I guess that by now a name like Daniel
Ekeroth rings a bell in most metalheads’ heads,
especially the ones into the extreme sonorities
or the ones who have read his acclaimed book:
Swedish death metal. The entity Usurpress
might not have reach yet the level of his other
bands, Dellamorte and Insision (he left the band
in 2009) however already shows a bunch of old
bastards that are not resigned to the usual death
metal trademarks. With “Ordained” the Swedish
quartet injects a few more musical influences or
layers and produces an album that even if it follows,
to some extent, the same Swedish line of
“Trenches of the Netherworld” manages to sound
darker, far more oppressive and hefty. I would go
as far as stating that sometimes they cross the
boundary and end up sounding like a completely
different band. This second record is not the sort
of album that will blow you away immediately
like “Trenches of the Netherworld” did with its
vigorous and old-school Swedish death metal
guitar tone and D-beat/crust patterns. This new
one needs time to mature, grow and digest also
the palpable raw doom metal influences (like
on ‘Fire in the Minds of Men’, ‘Ritual Warfare’
or ‘Fan The Flames of Madness’). One of the
particularities of “Ordained” is the ease at which
the band is able to toggle between moods and
rhythms throughout the album. I must stand
out the instrumental pieces ‘The Undeification’
and especially ‘Lóthlorien’ (a Bo Hansson cover)
as clear exuberant examples of this astute
variation that truly gives the necessary breeze
of fresh air into a dense menacing album. In
total honesty I cannot state that ALL fans of the
previous album will embrace “Ordained” with
open arms, nevertheless even if the Swedish
death metal influences are not served on a
golden plate like before, there are plenty of
old-school qualities, song structures and even
slight progressive moments to be impressed
with. This second opus is definitely a balanced
album with a robust production where the band
is able to complement its d-beat death metal
with doomy elements without compromising at
all the aggression of the compositions. A nice
one indeed.
7.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
VICIOUS RUMORS
LIVE YOU TO DEATH 2 AMERICAN
PUNISHMENT
STEAMHAMMER / SPV
Is there anybody out there who needs live
albums? To be more precise, is there anybody
out there who needs live albums of Vicious
Rumors? I am quite not sure. Yes, the band
released two fantastic albums at the beginning
of its career. And this happened just more than
25 years ago. Due to this, Vicious Rumors share
the fate of bands such as Flotsam and Jetsam.
They started like metal gods and turned slowly
to supporting actors. Therefore, this record is a
wistful reminiscence of times past.
The first five songs of this album are taken from
“Digital Dictator”. Sorry, but I do not understand
this running order. To me it seems like a
declaration of creative bankruptcy concerning
their work since 1988. This is especially the
case with regard to the fact that these songs are
the highlights of the record. Of course, the final
4
VAHRZAW
TWIN SUNS & WOLVES’
TONGUES
CRAWLING CHAOS PRODUCTIONS
The second proper full-length entitled
“Twin Suns & Wolves’ Tongues” from
this long-running Aussie band presents
an aggressive, crisply produced blend
of black, death and thrash metal.
While comparisons to countrymen like
Destroyer 666 and Abominator aren’t
out of bounds, Vahrzaw’s style of
extreme metal is distinctive enough for
them to carve their own niche within a
somewhat crowded scene.
Much like The Furor’s bound-tobe-overlooked
new album entitled
“Impending Revelation”, it’s not that
this music has anything wildly original
to it, but rather how they manage
to combine familiar influences in a
fresh and somewhat unique fashion.
Not to mention that the whole thing
is over and done with in just over 30
minutes - after one listen, you may
find yourself wanting to start over from
the beginning. Fast-paced thrashing/
blasting tempos are, of course, liberally
put to use, but a track like ‘Endroom’
takes a more mid-tempo approach,
alternating melodic leads with crushing
death/thrash riffs to great effect.
‘Acta Non Verba’, on the other hand,
switches from brutal blast parts to a
wicked midsection breakdown worth
of Angelcorpse’s “The Inexorable”,
all the while maintaining a full head
of steam. Really, in some ways the
best part of this stuff - aside from the
killer riffs - is its unstoppable forward
momentum, that runaway-locomotive
feel that runs through Venom and
Motörhead all the way back to the birth
of rock’n’roll. The old-school-but-notthrowback
musical niche they occupy
is perhaps not unlike that of Gravehill,
though Vahrzaw display a lot of newer
(i.e. 90’s) death metal influences,
compared with Gravehill’s unabashed
updating of Possessed and “Obsessed
by Cruelty”-era Sodom.
Those who enjoy the raw sound of classic
blackened death/thrash metal really
can’t go wrong here, and really, extreme
metal fans in general should give this a
listen. “Twin Suns & Wolves’ Tongues”
probably enters directly into my top 10
best albums of 2014. Looking forward
for what comes next!
8.5 | KEVIN AKSTIN
#1 METALEGION 95

ZAUM
ORACLES
I HATE RECORDS
“Oracles” is one of those albums that
will instantly channel you into an exotic
world of spiritual hypnotic enlightenment.
I’m not sure if the Canadian guys
behind Zaum do long hours of meditation
or if it’s just the effect of hallucinogenic
drugs (laughs) but one thing I’m
sure Zaum’s sonority carry a genuine
sense of astral peace and serenity.
What is most impressive in “Oracles”
is the proficiency that a two man band,
which appeared from nowhere (at least
for me) has the ability to conquer all
doom metal fans easily with just one
debut album. The melancholic yet exotic
slow atmospheres that embellishes
“Oracles” from the very beginning is
what sets Zaum apart from the rest of
the pack (comparisons can be made
with Om and The Wounded Kings) and
even more knowing that we are talking
about a duo, something that is not
perceived in any circumstance. The four
long songs included on this first take
stand quickly in sight mainly by the use
of constant Sitar textures and melancholic
synth ambiences giving a clear
oriental influence to their music. On
top of that Zaum has the sort of slow
tortuous dark pace, even when they are
mainly using synths, that annihilates
completely your own will and holds you
from the first moment of ‘Zealot’ to
the last of ‘Omen’. Vocally, “Oracles”
is what can be pointed as a dynamic
or rich album (‘Omen’ is tremendous);
Kyle McDonald’s performance includes
small variations of his clean singing
style, echo effects and chants, however
everything fits perfectly. Zaum is the
sort of slow paced band that doesn’t
require any particular predisposition to
listen to it, you simply press the play
button and the ominous melancholic
mood is set!
9 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
“(...) MEDITATION
OR IF IT’S JUST
THE EFFECT OF
HALLUCINOGENIC
DRUGS”
tune - the title track of their debut - can compete
with the tracks from “Digital Dictator”, but the
rest is more or less significantly weaker. The
compositions lack of quality without being totally
bad. But is it necessary to celebrate mediocrity
live on stage? I do not think so. For example, just
listen to ‘Don’t wait for me’. The song starts with
some nice power metal riffs before it turns out
badly due to its clumsy bridge.
However, the record offers a good sound. How
much is live, how much is overdubbed? Sorry, I
cannot give you the answer. And I do not believe
that this is the crucial thing. They had to create
a product for domestic use and it goes without
saying that you cannot establish the atmosphere
of a live concert. Apart from that, there is hardly
any interaction between the band and the
audience. They just play their style of American
power metal and that’s it.
In winding up, this live recording is worth a
listen, but I do not think that you will listen to it
very often. If you did not get in contact with the
band yet, you should prefer to check out their
best studio album. Of course, I am speaking of
the glorious “Digital Dictator”.
6.5 | FELIX 1666
VILIFIER
RITUAL OBSCURATION [EP]
CRAWLING CHAOS PRODUCTIONS
Incantation’s essential “Onward to Golgotha”
is a benchmark upon which much of the most
sinister, dread atmospherics in death metal
emanates. It is hard not to be thrilled by the
barely discernable rumble of chords and tremolos
over muffled percussion led by deep and
guttural “whispers”. And Australia’s Vilifier’s
sound is heavily indebted to those same stylistic
choices that have again found favour in recent
years. Even though the mixed growl/scream of
vocalist (aka Daniel Stone) does not match the
much-imitated vomit of Craig Pillard, they are
more than appropriate. The result is impressive,
subterranean muck similar to what many other
Australian bands like Impetuous Ritual, Grave
Upheaval or Canada’s Antediluvian unleash
currently upon the hapless world. In keeping with
lower level fidelity is of course a plus, as without
it the totality of darkness would be interrupted
by light. There are moments of varying intensity
however: mosh riffs/rhythms played at fuzzed
out levels is effective in ‘Lacerated Flesh of
Ancient Wisdom’ as a bridge between abstraction
and physicality. The excellent clanging blasts
of opener ‘Bloodvomit Evocation’ are thrilling
and should be used more in my opinion. The
title track is both a highlight and a dead ringer
musically for the aforementioned “Golgotha”,
and would not be out of place in early 90’s New
York death metal scene.
There is nothing revolutionary here, but as users
of one of the most menacing and abstracted
of death metal’s many varieties, Vilifier prove
themselves capable stewards. Intelligent use of
atmospheric space (the cacophonous echo that
all sounds fade into) and subdued elements like
buried leads in ‘Twilight Dancer of Cosmic Devastation”
add to the recording. Without thought
like that, the murk would appear shallow. The
struggle for such a band is to play a part in the
further development of the style without losing
themselves within potential monotony. How
will the band will evolve (or devolve) further
into the dark kingdoms which they have sworn
themselves to? Keep it coming gentlemen.
7 | ARJUN ARMAN
VIN DE MIA TRIX
ONCE HIDDEN FROM SIGHT
SOLITUDE PRODUCTIONS / HYPNOTIC DIRGE REC.
Ukraine’s progressive doom metal ensemble Vin
De Mia Trix (whatever that means) offers up a
‘big, epic, cinemascope with cast of thousands’
type of recording with their full length debut
“Once Hidden From Sight.” Extended running
times, heavy lyrics and a general sense of
gravity permeate the whole experience, and
exhaustion of some kind is inevitable. Opening
with the grandiosity of ‘A Study in Scarlet,’ and
concluding with the... Grandiosity of ‘matr’
(Hindi for ‘Mother’), there isn’t a moment where
the experience doesn’t reach for great heights.
What adds to the scope of the album is the genre
straddling at work here; there are lovely and
melodic guitar emanations over slowly pounding
rhythmic progressions and atmospheric effects,
fairly typical of epic doom metal. However, the
work tangentially reminds of the warmer tones
of mid-90’s progressive metal experimentations
via Dark Millennium or Disaffected as well.
Being both sombre and colourful at the same
time is quite a feat, especially at this tempo. Yet,
something is missing here, or more accurately:
there is too much.
The album can be broken up into thirds by way
of two extended instrumentals (the rather nice
and expansive piano journey of ‘Là où le rêve
et le jour s’effleurèrent’ and the somewhat
redundant but still involving ‘La persistència
de la memòria’), with the longest vocal cuts as
bookends. The length of the instrumentals is
nevertheless inflated, and somewhat slows the
progression of aggression in the metal present.
As shorter vignettes (a common choice in heavy
metal, but a wise one) the momentum could
survive intact. In the same way, ‘The Sleep of
Reason’ and its more moderated length might be
template the band could visit in the future, as it
also ends up being the most immediate of all the
cuts in the batting order because it gets to the
point relatively quickly. That point could lead the
band in many different directions.
The big guitar chugging near the end of ‘Nowhere
is Here’ is pretty radical as a stop gap between
two longer and more drawn out passages, and
eases a bit of the fatigue that could have set in
at the quarter hour mark. A more direct attack
is also well employed throughout the massive
‘Metamorphosis,’ which has an entrancing
urgency that is missing in other tracks, becoming
another highlight on the very first listen. The
guitar soloist sounds truly inspired here as does
the rest of the band. The use of “2001: A Space
Odyssey” themes and imagery are melded
well to the relative intensity, culminating in an
effective echoing guitar coda. A little variation
can go a long way in lengthy tracks. While on the
topic of lyrics, it is important to point out that
while being a bit workmanlike, are tailor-made
to fit the music and the presentation. There
is a mixture of choir-like clean vocals akin to
what mid-period Enslaved did, the semi-sung
narrations and tough growls that are ordered and
placed quite well throughout the compositions.
This is a very polished and well played release,
but in order to fully occupy the lofty realms in
which it invokes, there needs to be some more in
the way of experimentation and even risk taking.
It of course is up to the artists to decide what to
do with their work. This is especially true in the
worlds of underground music: nobody does this
stuff for big bucks. The artcraft is paramount,
and Vin De Mia Trix are obviously committed and
should be commended on their ambition.
7 | ARJUN ARMAN
VOMIT YOUR BRAIN
BEAUTY OF MORGUE
ROTTEN MUSIC
It is not very common for a band with just two
demos out to be able to release a “compilation”;
however the Polish quartet teamed up with the
British also young extreme label, Rotten Music
for a dose of brutal death metal. What is most
remarkable on “Beauty of Morgue” is the sound
quality that both demos “Slaughtered” and
“From Morgue with Love” have. 30 years ago
a demo was basically a shitty low-budget tape
recorded at a friend’s garage or just a “one take”
live section on a crappy studio, but Vomit Your
Brain summons perfectly the level of quality that
is expected even on demo releases nowadays.
This quite young Polish band mix the brutality
of the old-school brutal death metal with the
modern attitude and fierceness of today’s
extreme metal scene. I cannot say that you will
find inside a ground-breaking release, Vomit
Your Brain delivers a consistent rhythmic section
(‘Manic Mutilation’ is a fine example of that)
supported by a vocalist that covers the guttural
side as much as the screaming almost pig
squeal one. However their groovy mid-tempo
down tuned formula with the occasional speed
attacks to spice up things isn’t enough to create
truly stand out moments and the songs keep
coming one after the other without major notice.
On the other hand let’s be fair and not forget that
we are dealing with a band that has not released
yet its debut album. Considering that we are
talking about demos, they already show potential
and musicianship to compose sick death metal
tunes influenced by the US scene, let’s hope
96 METALEGION #1

they explore more the intricacies of the good old
death metal in detriment of the modern attitude.
7 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
WITCHFYRE
LEGENDS, RITES AND
WITCHCRAFT [EP]
INFERNÖ RECORDS
This is certainly a pretty enjoyable and rewarding
effort from a band that is capable enough at
producing this brand of modern thrash, which
makes for a somewhat confusing time as to why
this doesn’t stick out as much as it should. The
fact is that Witheria are part of a crowded scene
that’s offering a lot of elements that they’re
providing and really leaves this for hardcore fans
of the band or the style.
7.5 | DON ANELLI
During the last years we have been witnessing
a revivalism around old-school heavy metal
through the appearance of many new names like
Enforcer, Skull Fist and recently Black Trip. Heavy
metal stands strong since the early 70’s however
with the creation and development of all sorts
of sub-genres like death, black, thrash, doom,
speed, etc, it was left on an almost hibernation
state, with a few strong exceptions. So it is no
surprise to see that all members of the Spanish
quintet Witchfyre had a more aggressive black
or death metal background yet the new EP
“Legends, Rites and Witchcraft” is a passionate
testimony of a past that is not forgotten. ‘Beware
of the Witch!’ opens this release with a brief
instrumental piece showing an interesting
crossover between Iron Maiden and Motörhead
however the first time ‘Salem’ steps in and
Emi sings the initial lines I’m sure you’ll frown
either with amazement, stupefaction or clear
disapproval, depending if you are an old-school
classic heavy metal fan or not. I must confess
that his shrill thin vocal attack sometimes really
gets on my nerves, especially when he tries to
reach higher notes and I had to spin “Legends...”
a few times before completely entrench their
sound. Witchfyre is undoubtedly firmly rooted
on the late 70’s, early 80’s classic heavy metal
sonority (with prominent bass lines and a raw
guitar attack), blending influences from the
early works of bands like Diamond Head, Saxon,
Satan, Raven, Motörhead or Warlock with a
dark almost evil rock ’n’ roll aura. This new
work also includes the two songs feature on the
2013 “Banshee” 7”Ep and proves that if they
keep working and writing such vibrant hymns
(the killer songs ‘Sacrifice’ and ‘The Spell’ are
good examples of that, where the band manages
to incorporate diverse song elements such as
chorus, dynamic tempos, melody, solos and good
classic riffs) they will arouse the interest of fans,
media and a bigger record label. After surpassing
the initial shock of Emi’s long forgotten
70’s-80’s vocal style attack and a lame front
cover artwork, Witchyfire’s music has a raw
charisma not common on younger bands and
this is what makes them distinctive and raises
the bar for the debut album to come. Once again
Infernö Records managed to sign a band that will
probably have something to say on the future.
6.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
WITHERIA
DEVASTATING RETURN
VIOLENT JOURNEY RECORDS
Finally managing album number four, these
Finnish thrashers certainly provide yet another
vicious, biting modern thrash assault. As songs
‘Mind Compressor’ and ‘Some Wounds Will Not
Heal’ clearly showcase, the focus here is on
biting mid-tempo tight crunchy riffing which can
feature harsh, jagged razor-wire patterns for a
series of speed-drenched numbers. Otherwise,
the point of convergence is on both sweeping
chugging riffing and mid-range grooves like on
‘Passenger of Thought’, ‘Burn to Ashes’ and
‘Raft of Desolation’ ably provide, so there’s a
tendency within this to go for a more modern
thrash assault. The grooves play a little larger
role on “Devastating Return”, making this tend to
charge forth with a violent intensity that’s wholly
appealing to more modern inclined fans, due to
the really frantic tempos and paces that pack
none of the melodic intentions of the old-school
scene. When it does get to the melody, the tendency
of ‘Thrown Down the Well’ to offer those
intertwined solos that are packed full of melodies
and lighter sections give a somewhat contrasting
viewpoint to the harder, more violent rhythms
and cause this to stick out quite nicely. Still, the
jagged-edged thrashing is the more common
feature and is generally among the more intense
elements featured when it comes to what gives
the band it’s more enthusiastic passages, and
causes them to be one of the more pertinent
forces in the scene.
Overall, there’s not a whole lot stylistically on
“Devastating Return” that really warrants this
one to stick out which is both its one most
important facet and biggest downfall. The fact
that this is a cohesive and dynamic it manages
to cause the feeling of a complete album and
really seems to be packed with the kind of work
that fans of the band will undoubtedly love. The
variety packed within, from tight chugging and
mid-paced grooves to full-throttle barn burner
thrash is a part of their sound and really doesn’t
do a lot to drop their influences into strange,
fantastic realms. This sense of consistency and
efficiency makes for some rather impressive
offerings being so thoroughly enjoyable and
rewarding as it winds itself throughout. That,
though, is the one big factor against it as this
really plays itself by the book and doesn’t really
do a whole lot to really make this come through
in any important manner. It’s yet another album
in their growing catalogue of impressive outings,
but it really seems so solely set against doing
anything new or remarkable that there’s a
feeling of redundancy that runs throughout this
in relation to both their catalogue and the scene
at large. This is a vicious, biting thrash album
with tons of energy, groove and with a modern
touch to the riff work, and there’s a lot of albums
out there that fit perfectly on this category. It’s
really only separated from those efforts by the
competency of the band rather than anything
else, and overall this can cause the album to get
lost in the shuffle by not offering a whole lot to
really make itself be known.
XTHIRT13N
A TASTE OF THE LIGHT
SAOL MUSIC / CMM MAR
There is probably no better advertising, when
you are checking the novelties on a record store
than a sticker strategically placed on the front
cover of a CD screaming: with members of! This
result even better when the bands printed in it
are known to the rest of the mortals, and this
is clearly the case. Xthirt13n features members
of well-known bands like Control Denied (Tim
Aymar was the vocalist of the incredible debut
and only album “The Fragile Art of Existence”
which featured for the ones who aren’t aware,
Chuck Schuldiner and Steve Di Giogio), Circle II
Circle and Doctor Butcher. As you have already
probably figured it out this band is comprised
mostly by members that have already some
history on the scene which results on a very
solid debut album and high expectations for
the future. “A Taste of the Light” is succinctly
a melodic record that blends heavy metal
with the aggression of power metal with slight
progressive music influences (there are, what I
can describe as “old-school” sci-fi synths here
and there that enhances that edge and provides
atmosphere) and a good dose of southern
groove. Instrumentally the album stands out with
its abundant rhythms, not to mention the sense
of detail that the band had into the compositions
and the sharp balanced production, however
unfortunately Xthirt13n sound a bit too conservative
and repetitive at times and even more when
considering that we are dealing with experienced
musicians. Nevertheless as a first album, “A
Taste of the Light” stands quite strong on its
own and marks the road that the band intends
to pursue on future releases. Tim Aymar does
again a tremendous job using his colossal voice
and provides enough dynamics (sometimes a bit
too much and even going into different directions
from one song to another like on ‘Repeatlessness’
and the furious ‘Unreality’ that follows)
to keep always an eye on his performance. If
you are a fan of the genre (Savatage, Circle II
Circle, Crimson Glory, Nevermore and so on)
you can put Xthirt13n on your “keep an eye of”
list because if given the chance and necessary
time to grow musically, this quintet might turn
quite big. I just don’t understand this constant
obsession of metal bands covering The Rolling
Stones...
7 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
ZOMBIEFICATION
PROCESSION THROUGH
INFESTATION
DOOMENTIA RECORDS / SURE SHOT WORX
One year later the Mexican duo Zombiefication
return after the successful
second album “At the Caves of Eternal”
which already showed some development
of their crude old-school Swedish
death metal. “Procession Through
Infestation” is a completely different
story and mark the band with a vibrant
and layered sonority and conscious
attempt to escape from the boundaries
of the Swedish scene. The third album
is denser, richer, doomier and filthier
without compromising the rawness
and intensity of the approach that the
Mexican duo incorporates on the song
structures. Again with the helpful hands
of guest musicians Fernando from the
band Piraña as drummer and Markho
Kim from the mighty Disgorge as lead
guitarist they accomplished a sense
of individuality with this new opus
which was something that lacked on
the previous releases due to the clear
Swedish connections. Still, do not get
me wrong, they are still highly influenced
by the old-school death metal scene
however they are making a real effort in
adding elements from other styles, like
doom for instance on the slower parts
(there are moments on ‘The Divine Door’
that they even remind me of old Paradise
Lost on the “gothic” era) or some intense
riffing reminding black metal to create
some nice contrasts with a personal
and mature edge. As a plus, they have
a dense dreadful atmosphere which is a
particularity of many Mexican bands like
The Chasm, Disgorge, Denial, Cenotaph,
Ravager, Hacavitz and so on. Tore
Stjerna from the famous Necromorbus
Studios mixed again this third album and
was definitely a good choice because
he was able to pull out the killer guitar
details and the dynamic harsh to guttural
vocal approach of Mr. Hitch through
the muddy and thick bass and drum
lines. I wouldn’t go as far as stating that
“Procession Through Infestation” is a
progressive death metal album but it
surely as its moments that go beyond
the rigid path of “normal” death metal
and for that reason Zombiefication with
all its intensity, furious brutal intensity
and obscure groove are definitely on the
growing path for better things to come.
8 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
#1 METALEGION 97

DARKENED DEATH METAL IS
UNCONDITIONALLY ONE OF
THE MOST EXTREME METAL
SUB-GENRES AND PROUDLY THE
SWEDISH HORDE VANHELGD
PICKS UP WHERE MANY OLD-
SCHOOL BANDS LEFT AND
RELEASES A THIRD ALBUM
ENTITLED “RELICS OF SULPHUR
SALVATION” THAT WILL
OBLITERATE EVERYTHING ON
ITS WAY. VOCALIST/GUITARIST
MATTIAS TEAMS UP WITH
GUITARIST JIMMY FOR AN
OBSCURE TRAVEL THROUGH
CHAOS, DARKNESS AND
DESPAIR.
The very first thing that any Vanhelgd fan will
notice on the new album “Relics Of Sulphur
Salvation”, is the sound improvement in comparison
with the previous releases. This time the process
of recording and production was different, tell us about
the changes that existed at this level.
Jimmy Johansson “The new songs needed another production.
On the previous albums we wanted a dirtier sound.”
Mattias Frisk “Jimmy came up with the idea of a less
distorted, more clear production, something he had in mind
during almost the whole writing process. I also thought that it
would work well with the songs. But when we were trying to
find the right guitar sound in the studio we changed our mind
and recorded some really distorted guitars...”
Jimmy “The equipment used is actually quite the same as
on “Church of Death”, Boss HM2, Bigg Muff, and a Marshall
amp, but instead of having a mix between the Muff and HM2
(through a Marshall amp) we only used a mix between HM2
and the Marshall distortion and used the Muff for the bass.”
Mattias “We recorded “Church of Death” on our own, except
for the drums, so we had some issues with the whole thing.”
Those improved conditions are directly related with the
change of record label? Is Pulverised Records able to give
you different conditions than your previous label?
Mattias “Yes, we had a larger budget and were able to enter a
fully equipped professional studio. But the answer above also
still goes... I guess that the change of label also had much to
do with the budget for the recording.”
Three releases after, what lead the part ways with Nuclear
War Now Productions?
Mattias “We actually only did one recording session for
Nuclear War Now! Two of the songs from that session ended
up on the “Praise the Serpent” EP since they didn’t fit with
the other songs on “Church of Death”. The songs are actually
re-arranged “Ceremonial Execution” songs. Crematorium
Records released “Cult of Lazarus” on CD and we got in touch
with Nuclear War Now Productions for the LP. I guess we didn’t
really fit in the Nuclear War Now Productions line-up, and at
the same time we wanted to reach another audience, we felt
that there was a lot of focus on USA.”
I have the feeling that you are slowly drifting away or
simply refining the darker and obscure formula (with clear
Autopsy influences) that was present on your first album
“Cult of Lazarus”. Would you say that the vision you had
for Vanhelgd is changing, the goals and expectations are
also different or its a simple process of evolution?
Mattias “It’s a step that we deliberately took while writing
the first songs for “Relics of Sulphur Salvation”. We have
started to learn what happens when we feed the monster, what
kind of shit that comes out on the other end. The change of
focus, or the decision not to make certain things, is a natural
consequence of getting to know the band and how it works. On
“Cult of Lazarus” we were more like, “fuck off, let’s play some
dirty old Autopsy death metal”. In some aspects that album
is almost a demo, don’t get me wrong it isn’t a demo, but it
suffers a bit from some infantile diseases that a demo often
THE RELICS OF A PROUD SWEDISH DEATH METAL PERIOD ARE STILL INTACT WHEN VANHELGD
EXPLODE FROM YOUR SPEAKERS OR ULTIMATELY IF YOU ARE LUCKY TO SEE THEM LIVE!
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: MATTIAS FRISK (VOCALIST/GUITARIST) & JIMMY JOHANSSON (GUITARIST/VOCALIST) ..
98 METALEGION #1

cures. While writing for “Relics of Sulphur Salvation” we had a
plan, an atmosphere that we wanted to explore, something that
had consequences for how we made some of the songs.”
Even so, there is still a tremendous dark vibe around the
melodies of “Relics Of Sulphur Salvation”. Do you think
that this aspect is one of the little details that sets Vanhelgd
apart from the rest of the newer breed of old-school
death metal bands?
Mattias “What is old-school death metal? I think that we play
the kind of death metal we grew up with, plain death metal,
I’m not really sure how new-school death metal sounds... And
I’m not sure that we sound any different than other bands. But
anyway, I guess that we focus a lot on melodies instead of riffs
and on atmosphere rather than technique. We work a lot with
having dynamic songs without breaking a certain mood within
a song, sometimes it works sometimes it fails, it’s hard to
know until the song is properly recorded.
We have been listening to black metal since the early nineties
so I guess these kinds of influences come natural for us.
I think that the black metal sounding parts are not always
deliberate from start, we don’t do so much “riffing” but rather
“melodies” and that kind of song writing might be quite close
to some black metal.”
DOING WHAT'S BEST
The entry of a new bass player, in the form of Jonas
Albrektsson, is also one of the novelties around “Relics Of
Sulphur Salvation”. It was the first change of line-up since
the formation of the band back in 2007. How have you deal
with it and what motivated the left of Viktor Gustafsson?
Mattias “Viktor moved to Stockholm and could not rehearse
on a regular basis as the band needed to develop and write
new material. He had to go so that the band could function
properly. It was quite a hard decision for us to take but it was
necessary. Jonas were in Ceremonial Execution for a short time
and we have known him for many years, we are really glad
that he wanted to join Vanhelgd.”
Jonas Albrektsson is a very experienced musician and
have been playing in death and black metal bands since
the early 90’s. Did he already had any involvement on the
composition process of the new album? It differed in any
way from the previous efforts?
Mattias “Yes and no. Half of the album was written when
Jonas joined and I don’t recall that he wrote any riffs for the
album, but I can be wrong. What is a difference though is that
he writes his own bass lines, something I used to do on previous
albums. I don’t think he have any intentions on changing
the direction of the band, there would be no point in wanting
to join a band just to change it into something else. But I think
that we all got a bit more concentrated and focused with the
line-up change.”
Have you considered the possibility of him bringing new
sound elements to Vanhelgd? I mean, he has also a clear
black metal background and played in bands like Thy
Primordial or Niden Div. 187.
Mattias “Of course we welcome his creativity since it’s not a
4
"WE FOCUS A
LOT ON MELODIES
INSTEAD OF
RIFFS AND ON
ATMOSPHERE
RATHER THAN
TECHNIQUE"
By Mattias Frisk
#1 METALEGION 99

“RELICS OF SULPHUR SALVATION”
PULVERISED RECORDS
Vanhelgd is a Swedish death metal group comprised of a
few members of the now defunct Ceremonial Execution from
Mjolby. This is my first taste of either of those two bands despite
Vanhelgd making a small stir in the current underground metal
community with a few recent full length albums.
As the album begins, it’s easy to hear these guys have their
legendary BOSS HM-2 peddles going full blast. They have
decided to enter the domain of old-school Swedish death metal
and in doing so, they have either set themselves up for failure
or moderate success. Any band who forms and decides to play
this brand of death metal knows full well, it’s an over populated
field with little to no room for improvement upon the original
formula. All they can do is play it with conviction, energy and a
scant bit of applied knowledge (songwriting prowess). Vanhelgd
are champions of the first two, but as with most all contemporary
Swede death bands, they struggle a bit in the third aspect.
However it’s not all bad, as this band delivers a pummelling
death metal album for 2014.
This album is pretty strong overall with buzzing guitars and the
lead work typical of Swedish death metal. It is derivative, but
it’s played with power and a strong spirit. They apply a drum
technique I haven’t heard used this much in death metal before.
Instead of relying on double bass to accentuate the rolling
grooves in the rhythm riffs, they use single kicks to punctuate
each rhythmic section of the riff. This allows the band to swoop
right in and grab the listener when it’s time to blast beat which
the band uses quite a bit also. This song writing practice is
exemplified the first track ‘Dodens Maskatna Anlete’. Throughout
the duration of the album, this technique of alternating the blasts
between the wide open rhythm riff work allows the band to write
dynamic and forceful songs. This is what separates them from
the old-school field of Entombed, Dismember and Unleashed.
The band changes things up on ‘The Salt in My Hands’ and the
title track. Here, they use punchy rhythms and dual leads to
create a catchy, yet primitive attack. Blast beats are not prevalent
in these songs, and instead, the band opts to envelope you like
a snake and beat you down with battering grooves. The middle
of the album (tracks 3-5) is the strongest. The third song, ‘Where
all Flesh is Soil’, stands above all others as the only iconic song
of the whole album. It has a Septic Grave (now defunct Swedish
melodic death metal act) vibe going on through much of it, with
a good grasp of evolving, melodic tremolo riffing. But that’s the
real story here. The band does not write iconic songs. Put this
album on your stereo in a play list alongside the classics of the
ancient Swedish death scene, and there’s a marked difference.
Yes, there’s a slicker production here, but these songs don’t stand
up next to Dismember, Carnage and Nihilist in terms of song
writing. This album also suffers a big drop in quality at the very
end. The second to last song is their most atmospheric song on
display here, but it’s construction goes nowhere and seems to be
the worst written song of the bunch. A whole three minutes, or
half the song, is a doom passage featuring sterile leads as it fades
away at the end. The final song tries to hard to be like the d-beat
ridden God Macabre or Carnage albums of old. However, as with
the other songs, it lacks the quintessential songwriting to make it
comparable to those bands.
Fans of lead driven, rhythmic guitar work with a cavern sounding
production will eat this up. Individuals tired of Swedish
death metal will want to stream a few of these songs first before
making a decision on buying the album. I applaud the bands
motivation and desire, but they knew full well before even entering
this genre, the standards have been set by the old guard. No
one has expanded upon said standards since, and unfortunately,
Vanhelgd also fall short of doing so. This album won’t win any
awards for 2014 despite its vigour, character and enthusiasm.
However, it is a strong death metal album, and should at least be
given a shot by all who live, eat, and breathe old-school death
metal. You just might end up liking it!
7.5 | EVAN SPAYD
100 METALEGION #1
"A MORE
MALEVOLENT
TUNE WHEN
YOU SING IN
SWEDISH, AT
LEAST WE FEEL
THAT"
By Jimmy Johansson
solo project; we all play a part in shaping Vanhelgd. I guess
we have tried a bit of the most subgenres of extreme metal
already in our first two albums, some kind of Frankenstein’s
monster of death and black, even though it might not be
obvious for the listener... We got everything from Darkthrone to
Bolt Thrower inspired stuff. I don’t think that him being a part
of Vanhelgd will change the direction so much, but you never
know what happens.”
Third album out and the third time you have chosen to
include songs written on your native tongue, Swedish. Is
there any statement or message behind this decision?
Mattias “We also had lyrics in Swedish on our previous
albums, so there is nothing new about it for us. The thing is
that I really like the way our native tongue works to canalize
the emotions, way better than English.”
Jimmy “Its more interesting, a more malevolent tune when you
sing in Swedish, at least we feel that. It probably depends on
that it’s our language.”
STRONG VISUAL LANGUAGE
You have once again created the artwork that adorns the
front cover of a Vanhelgd release. Is there any relation
between the album title “Relics Of Sulphur Salvation” and
the artwork? As an artist do you think its necessary to exist

that sort of connection?
Mattias “There are some connections but I guess they are not
that obvious, text and image works together even when they
really don’t match, sometimes that makes the reading of the
image more interesting and challenging.”
Being a musician yourself and also an illustrator, do you
think that this symbiosis works on your behalf when you
are approached by labels or bands for creating artworks?
Mattias “I don’t know, since I’ve been playing music and making
art for so long I can’t tell how it would be like if I was not
a musician. I’m not even sure that all of the labels and bands
that contact me knows that I play in a band. At the same time I
don’t see myself as a musician; I think I am foremost an artist
that also happens to play in a band, which is quite strange
since I’m more “successful” with the music than the art
(laughs). But I guess it has to do with me being trained in art
and art history but not as a musician.”
Since you created your own company, Mattias Frisk Visual
Communication, and during your experience with different
clients, needs and products, do you find the metal related
costumer more or less demanding?
Mattias “It all depends on the specific client; I guess that in
some way it’s more challenging when working with bands
since the budget often is very tight. At the same time you want
to squeeze the most out of yourself even if the budget really
doesn’t allow it, many times the bands pay for it themselves.
But some people don’t seem to understand the value of the
artwork as a part of the whole record. When you think of, or
listen to, a record the artwork also often comes to mind. I think
that the visual part of the band could influence the perception
of the music. Some bands and labels seem to be willing to
spend more money on the pub on one evening than on an
artwork that should be there forever, I think it’s strange.”
The rest of the band is comfortable with the fact that
you handle the visual side yourself? All Vanhelgd visual
projects are discussed beforehand with the band members
or you come up with the ideas and also the final result?
Jimmy “Mattias has complete freedom in this part, if we find
something that we might not like we usually point it out, and
maybe he consider changing it, he is somewhat of a visual
dictator.”
Mattias “I think that they know that it would be much more
laborious if we were putting someone else on the job, and I
don’t think that they would dare to put that idea on the table
(laughs). I always try to discuss the ideas with the others and
often show them what I work on, but if there is little time I
just go with my gut feeling and show them the end result. If I
would be unable to do the artwork I would probably ask Paolo
Girardi to do it, or go back in time and ask Derek Riggs or Larry
Carroll.”
After the depart from Nuclear War Now Productions it
looks like you are playing live less than you were on the
past (not that you were extremely active at that level). In
conjunction with Pulverised Records are there any plans
being made to change that?
Mattias “We have never played much live, just 2-3 times
a year, only 12 shows in total. A mini-tour or some festival
gigs would be perfect for us. Our private lives, jobs and the
geographical location of Sweden makes it a bit hard for us to
go on tour.”
On “Relics...” do you continue to pass the message of
blood, darkness, gore, war and hate towards religion?
Mattias “Yes but maybe on a more personal level, it’s mostly
about tragedy, death and destruction in general.”
To end, the days of D.I.Y. videos are over or do you consider
making a video clip for one of the newest songs?
Mattias “We made one for ‘Where all Flesh is Soil’, minimalistic
but that’s about what is needed.” c
“Relics of Sulphur Salvation” available via Pulverised Records
[www.pulverised.ne] / Vanhelgd [www.mattiasfrisk.com/
vanhelgd.html]
4
#1 METALEGION 101

HIGHLIGHTS BY...
Jimmy Johansson
1999
Mattias Frisk
THE CROWN
Hell is Here
“Presumably the ultimate party album. I have
followed them since the first Crown Of Thorns album
and I think “Hell Is Here” is the peak of their career.
The production is really weird in a good way. Best
song: Dying Of The Heart”
1989
MORBID ANGEL
Altars of Madness
“Just magnificent and brilliant. This album is full of
great songs. When I first heard it back in the days I
thought it was okay, but it really grew a ton on me
over the years. Best song: ‘Chapel Of Ghouls’”
1991
ENTOMBED
Clandestine
“When I first heard this album back in ‘91 or
early ‘92, I could not really understand anything
but I totally drowned in the dark and ominous
production. It was quite unlike anything I had
listened to earlier. The artwork was amazing and
I remember listening to the whole album with
headphones and reading the lyrics with just a
single candle light on, outside it was raining,
cold and dark. ‘Chaos Breed’ is the ultimate death
metal song in my opinion, the opening riff is
genius and the break in the middle is sublime.”
1993
PARADISE LOST
Icon
“Flawless. I was disappointed at first since
I was expecting something like “Gothic”
or “Shades of God”, this sounded a bit like
a depressed Metallica. But after a while I
could not defend myself against the perfect
atmosphere, songwriting and superb guitars,
it’s the ultimate soundtrack to the autumn.
I could also have put “Gothic” on this list
but “Icon” has meant a bit more to me and
I still hold it as the number 1 Paradise Lost
album.”
1991
PARADISE LOST
Gothic
“When I bought the “As I Die” single which was the
first thing I heard by them, the song ‘Eternal (live)’
was on that. I thought it had such cold atmosphere.
After that I was hooked. Best song: ‘Eternal’”
1994
SAMAEL
Ceremony of Opposites
“This album had a huge impact on me when it
came out. I thought it was a totally different
approach than anything I did listen to at the
time, in some aspects they follow the regular
metal songs but the tunes are very different and
the sound is unusual. I return to this album over
and over again; I can’t get tired of it and I still
think it is as evil as the first time I heard it.”
“What is interesting is that all the albums
that could be on this list (At the Gates “With
fear I kiss the burning darkness”, Entombed
“Wolverine Blues”, Dismember “Like an ever
Flowing Stream”, Obituary “Cause of Death”,
Bolt Thrower “The forth Crusade”, Death
“Human” and so on) all have the one thing
in common that I first heard them around
92-94, few albums have had that much
long lasting impact on me later on... Except
maybe from Autopsy “Mental Funeral”, that
I didn’t understood the greatness of until
more recent years.”
102 METALEGION #1

Photo: Henric Ottosson
Jonas Albrektsson
MAYHEM
De Mysteriis Dom
Sathanas
“I was immediately blown
away by this record and still
it has the same impact on
me though twenty years and
countless of spins has passed.
Despite the killings, the
headlines, arsons and all hell
that followed with, this album
stand victorious and outlive
the myth as the true story.
An absolute and perfectly
executed album from the very
first until the last second in
all manners. A masterpiece
and an influential source both
for me personally as well as
for the whole scene and all
surrounding it. A monster
never to be conquered!
All hail Satan. All hail De
Mysteriis Dom Sathanas!”
1994
1985
BATHORY
The Return...
“My first and most memorable
entry into the world of extreme
music. What a perfect way to
begin a downward spiral!”
Mattias & Jimmy UNVEILS “Relics of Sulphur Salvation”
01. DÖDENS MASKÄTNA ANLETE (The Worm-Eaten Face of
Death)
Mattias “I remember having the chorus made up in my head while
walking home from a rehearsal, it’s quite often like that, getting
ideas after we are done for the day.”
Jimmy “I recall that it was a easy song to arrange and rehearse. This
is a song that would have fit well on “Church of Death”, it reminds
the structure of the songs on that album. We decided to put it first
since it got an “intro” and have a lot of aspects of Vanhelgd in it.”
02. THE SALT IN MY HANDS
Jimmy “I think this is the best song of the record. This is the only
song that was done as a whole by Mattias. Me and Björn just had
some small adjustments to add. I think that this song pretty much
changed and shaped the way we write songs.”
Mattias “Jimmy might think like that about it just because you get
another experience of the song when you have not been so involved
in the arranging process, it might feel a little bit more “done” than
when you have been battling with it. The vocal parts were also
done at an early stage, but not the lyrics. I was listening a lot to
Necros Christos at that time and I think that you can hear that in
the chorus.”
03. WHERE ALL FLESH IS SOIL
Mattias “We had a couple of songs that in some sense were quite
similar to each other and had a couple of riffs that were a bit more
black metal. We were experimenting a slow riff that reminded us
of My Dying Bride. We started to put it all together and changed
the My Dying Bride part into a fast chorus. We often improvise and
play around with the ideas to begin with, we strip things down,
add, adjust, change tempo and drumbeats until we find the right
atmosphere and feeling. I recall walking down the stairs in the
building where our rehearsal is, I was going to unlock the door for
Jonas, Jimmy was playing the melody in the verse over and over
again (Björn was probably adjusting his drums). I thought that it
sounded really good when it echoed in the stairwell, so we made
the intro like that. The Hans Holbein quote is read by David Torell,
a great photographer (Van Pelt Photo) that was visiting us in the
studio to take some pictures. I knew that he is a bit of an actor and
asked him if he would like to do some reading, we recorded four
quotes (three were used).”
04. ETT LIV I TRÄLDOM (A life in Serfdom)
Jimmy “The main idea for this song came from Jonas, he thought
that we needed a grumpy, boring song for the album. We
deliberately made it a bit boring, dragging the riffs out and made it
monotonous.”
Mattias “Jimmy came up with the idea of the chanting choirs in the
chorus when we were heading home from the studio and more or
less in panic tried to come up with an arrangement for the vocals
on this song. I think it was after a pizza around one o’clock when
we finally got it right. This was the song I had to struggle most with
regarding the vocals. I think the lyrics were ready but it was hard
to make it work, it was the last song we wrote and we had not
rehearsed it with vocals at all. Jimmy were sitting on the other side
of the glass in the studio counting syllables and thinking out phrasing
then coming in to me and giving me ideas, he even recorded
some guides, one of them we forgot to remove (laughs). The lyrics
are partly based on the transcendental experience communicated in
Mark Rothko’s Seagram Murals.”
05. MAY THE WORMS HAVE MERCY ON MY FLESH
Jimmy “The riff in the chorus is from around 2007, intended for
Ceremonial Execution. From the start I intended it to be quite influenced
by Morbid Angel but we have made it into a more of a Autopsy
sounding riff. We have tried it in almost every song we have been
working on since then and finally it worked out. The song as a whole
is quite alike ‘The Salt in my Hands’. I think its like a trademark
song, it sums up the whole record.”
Mattias “The lyrics are classic zombie/christ bashing Vanhelgd
lyrics. Jimmy sings a lot in this one.”
Jimmy “The outro is similar to stuff on “Church of Death”.”
06. RELICS OF SULPHUR SALVATION
Mattias “The third song that we made for the album, a lot of black
metal in this one, I think that I listened a lot of Demigod while
writing the chorus. There is a great amount of lyrics in this one”
Jimmy “This one was a hard one to puzzle together...”
Mattias “I would have liked to rearrange some stuff in it, shorten it
a bit. It’s the only song with a proper solo in it. The end of the song
is arranged from a vocal idea... Not that usual for us, we almost
always come up with the vocals after the song is done.”
07. SIRENS OF LAMPEDUSA
Jimmy “Half of the song is built on slaughterhouse waste, the most
”sprawling” and unfocused song on the album. The initial idea was
to have it as the last song on the album.”
Mattias “I was quite unhappy with this song but it turned out better
when recorded, I think it would fit better on ”Cult of Lazarus”, it’s
quite similar to ‘Dead... But Still Alive’. It’s not our best moment for
sure, I don’t think we will ever play it live. I like all the parts but I do
think that we could have done it much better.”
Jimmy “But we have to say something positive about it... It has a lot
of nice riffs and transitions.”
08. CURE US FROM LIFE
Mattias “This was the penultimate song we wrote for the album and
we were about to save it for another recording session since we had
no other song like it on the record.”
Jimmy “We made it work by putting it as the final song.”
Mattias “It’s a bit similar to ‘Total Apokalyps’ and to the first song
we ever wrote, ‘No Salvation’. I listen a lot to Tragedy and From
Ashes Rise and so I can’t help myself from writing a song or two like
that once in a while.”
Jimmy “It’s more fun to play songs inspired by them than listen to
the actual bands you mentioned...”
#1 METALEGION 103

"I SOMETIMES LOSE
CONTROL ON STAGE AND
MOVE AROUND LIKE A
CRAZY AND SOME TIME
AGO IT WAS FATAL"
By Wokatej
104 METALEGION #1

ANYONE STILL REMEMBERS WHEN METAL WAS SUPPOSED TO BE FUN? FOLLOWING THE
TRADITION OF THE GRINDING CZECH SCENE... HERE’S THE NEXT FURIOUS GARLAND EXPLOSION!
.. WORDS: EVAN SPAYD MUSICIAN: WOKATEJ (VOCALIST) PHOTOS: JIŘÍ VESELÝ (SORROWDY) ..
WITH A NEW ALBUM
COURAGEOUSLY ENTITLED
“TOUR DE ANAL” AND
BEING FROM CZECH
REPUBLIC IS WITH NO
SURPRISE THAT WE
PRESENT YOU THE
NEW GRIND SENSATION
DESTRUCTIVE
EXPLOSION OF ANAL
GARLAND.
SIX YEARS AFTER THE
RELEASE OF THE SECOND
ALBUM AND CONSTANT
LINE-UP CHANGES,
THE NEW VOCALIST
WOKATEJ PROVES THAT
THEY HAVEN’T LOST ITS
GRINDING HUMOUR.
Destructive Explosion of Anal Garland have
been a bit silent since 2009, what have
you been up to? Was it because you were
searching for new members?
“2009 was full of changes. The first to leave was the singer
Kolouch followed by the guitar player Pavel and the last coffin
nail was the departure of the bass player Malý John. There was
nothing for it but to search for new members. Once Kolouch left
it was Pavel from Eardelete who did several gigs with DEAOG
behind the microphone. Then there was again the question
who to take care of the microphone. Then I came end of 2009.
It may have been in autumn. In 2010 our guitar player Pavel
announced to leave the band due to personal reasons. He was
substituted by my long-time friend Jonda (ex-Epicardiectomy).
Everything looked like having been fixed when in 2011 Malý
John departed. The question was what to do now? We were
playing just the three of us for some time but we knew it was
not the right thing. We desperately needed a new bass player.
After searching a lot we were able to find Kašpy (Jig-Ai) but he
only played a handful of gigs, so we were again only three of
us. There came a variant to add a second guitar. It was taken
care of by a great guitar player Géba. This line-up looked very
well and it seemed to stay so but... Due to internal issues our
guitar player Jonda leaves the band in 2011. We felt quite
annoyed because of all the changes and I think the fans also
felt negatively about that. We were really devastated. This
line-up kept going until the guitar player Géba left due to
reasons of health. In 2012 the atmosphere cleared up and the
guitar player Jonda returned and we started to work hard on
new songs. In 2013 Mr. Dan (Diphteria) joined us. His contribution
was great. It was a good new beginning and we worked
with a big enthusiasm again. The current line-up and hopefully
the one to stay for a long time is Burák (drums), Jonda (guitar),
Dan (guitar) and me (vocals).”
This is a whole new line-up since the first two albums, so
how has this affected the song writing?
“It had an influence on us. The first two albums were done
by the guitar player Pavel. Now the music is done by all of us.
Everybody thinks about the riffs at home. They are brought
to the rehearsal where they are adjusted if necessary, a
framework is made and a song is born. Or when jamming in
the rehearsal room there appears a good riff so we just use it
somewhere. So the process is very standard as it is the case
with lots of bands.”
ANAL(YZING) THE TOUR...
How do you feel about the way “Tour de Anal” turned out?
“It was a success for me. We got an offer from Mexico after
the release of the album they would like to do official t-shirts
for Mexico for us. We agreed of course and would like to use
this occasion to thank them for the interest and support.
The reviews were quite positive. CDs do sell. We have new
merchandising out right now that is been sold as well.”
To me this is the best production I have heard in a while
for a Czech grind album. Otyn did a great job, and so how
do you guys feel about it?
“We are glad you like our actual CD. Otyn is a guarantee of
quality for the scene. Many Czech bands use him and leave
satisfied. We are sure to go to him with further material again
as it builds up continuously.”
I hear some old-school death metal riffs on the new album
and of course the ‘Wolverine Blues’ cover is there, so how
much are you guys into the old Swedish death metal scene
and death metal in general?
“We have not thought about death metal riffs being on the
album that much. Either we like the riff or not and it does
not matter if it sounds more like a death metal or a grind
one. However, I like very much death metal like Benediction,
Carcass (“Heartwork”, “Reek of Putrefaction”, “Symphonies
of Sickness” and “Necroticism”), Asphyx, Hail of Bullets, etc.
and also from Scandinavia like Grave, Dismember, Interment,
Vomitory and the aforementioned Entombed. We have planned
to do this cover for a long time and I am glad it is on the CD. I
am also a fan of thrash metal, grind, goregrind in the vein of
4
#1 METALEGION 105

Squash Bowels, Regurgitate, Jig-Ai, Dead Infection (“A Chapter of Accident” and “Brain
Corrosion”).”
What were some of the other major influences on this album?
“We try not to copy anything but I think the well of riffs has dried out. It is more important
what vibe you give it, the structure you build and so on. We have been compared to
Dead Infection in some reviews and we are not against that at all. I love this band and
consider them one of the best gore grind bands ever existed. I am not a big fan of their
new production but “A Chapter of Accident” and “Brain Corrosion” are great albums.”
What’s going on on the cover of “Tour de Anal”?
“Mobilisation for an intestinal inspection.”
How’s the Czech grind scene nowadays? You guys seems like a brotherhood.
“Damn right. The bands here try to support each other and we are one big family. The
Czech scene is great and I think it is one of the best in Europe. The gigs are normally on
a very good level. You are well taken care of, food, beer, everything is at your disposal.
So there is no problem to keep drinking with your friends until morning. You can find
a lot of quality music like Ingrowing, Lahar, Gride, But, March Of The Hordes, Brutaly
Deceased, Exorcizphobia, Kaosquad, Jig-Ai, V.O.H., Psychotic Despair, Needful Things,
Contrastic and many others. Concerning the attendance at gigs it has gone down quite a
lot. There are too many gigs in my opinion. Anywhere I look, I can see a concert. So the
people choose and I am not speaking about the summer festival season at all. Another
factor is the fans grow old, some of them have families, other duties and have no time
to go to gigs and festivals where you leave a lot of money. It is up to the younger generation
like me now. I go to gigs all the time, to clubs or open air festivals. The big four CZ
fests I visit are Obscene Extreme, Brutal Assault, Czech Death and a one day open air
Fekal Party. The bands I like, I support by buying their CD or some merchandise.”
Do you guys like to party, and how’s the partying in the Czech metal scene?
“Loud and full of beer (laughs).”
"MOBILISATION FOR
AN INTESTINAL
INSPECTION"
By Wokatej
GRINDING STAGES APART
Do you have any funny stories from playing live? As I said the Czech scene seems
like a big happy family and brotherhood.
“There is a fresh story I have just recollected. I sometimes lose control on stage and
move around like a crazy and some time ago it was fatal. I was running around on the
stage and kicked a beer that spilt. I slipped on that and fell on the stage monitors with
my back. Fucking crash. The guys laughed like hell (laughs). There are much more
stories but this was the first to come to my mind.”
Have you toured outside the Czech Republic? What’s your favourite country to
play in?
“The last tour was in Russia in 2009. Nothing else since that time. Just some gigs
abroad. We are going to Italy for the September to Dismember festival and then we
have a concert in Brno, CZ. We do not think about concerts much. We are satisfied
playing several gigs a year. We are quite busy due to the jobs we have. I am free once
in 14 days, Jonda is on a maternity leave and is out of Prague all the time. Burák lives
in Rakovník building a house and playing with Jig-Ai too. Dan also has a second band
that has quite a lot of gigs. We have our girlfriends we must spend some time with too
(laughs). So when you look at that there is not much time left.”
What’s the bands favourite mode of travel, plane, train or automobile? And why?
“It depends. If it is close, we use a car. If it is an offer like now to Italy, we use an
aircraft. It is much more comfortable and quicker. It would be about 15 hours with a car
but it takes just 1,5 hours by plain.”
What’s the best metal festival in Europe today?
“Definitely, Obscene Extreme!”
Any current and up and coming grind bands you guys want to give a shout out to
from the Czech?
“Lately I have seen the guys from Kaosquad playing a proper old-school Grind Core in
the vein of Repulsion. I can recommend them.”
What’s the plan for the future of Destructive Explosion of Anal Garland?
“When you compare the previous two albums with “Tour de Anal” you will hear we are
somewhere else. A band should always evolve and go forward as for me. Now our aim is
to play aggressive, straightforward grind core. I want to have a whole album with texts I
am involved in. Let us see the result but I am looking forward to that very much. We will
be a bit further again.”
Any last words for readers of the magazine and your fans?
“Stay grind and thanks for the support and to all fans! See you soon!” c
“Tour de Anal” available via Bizarre Leprous Production [www.bizarreleprous.cz] /
Destructive Explosion Of Anal Garland [www.facebook.com/DEOAG]
106 METALEGION #1

“TOUR DE ANAL”
BIZARRE LEPROUS PRODUCTION
Fans of goregrind know that the
Czech scene in the early to mid
2000’s was incredibly productive
and it seemed like all the bands were
having quite a fun time. Bands such
as Negligent Collateral Collapse,
Ahumado Granujo, Mincing Fury
and Guttural Clamor of Queer Decay,
and Alienation Mental made some
of the best gore drenched grindcore
ever. Destructive Explosion of Anal
Garland came along a little later
than the aforementioned bands, but
they kept the scene going strong.
Their debut, “Sealing of the Vagina
by Sewer Lid” not only had the best
title of an album ever, it was a wild
ruckus of pitch shifted and down
tuned gore soaked madness. All the
usual ingredients of the European
goregrind recipe were found there but
they were spiced up with the Czech
Republic’s sordid, pornographic gore
humour. This energetic group didn’t
stop there because the second album
was even better. “Cutterclit”, released
2 years later was even more brutal
and frenzied, and it boasted an even
meatier production.
A split came out in 2009 that I know
little about, and now in 2014 we
see Burak, the long-time drummer
return with a few new characters on
vocals, guitar and bass to attempt
and propel Czech goregrind to the
next level. Right off the bat I can tell
the production is the most balanced
and well mixed yet for this group.
Everything resonates perfectly. The
bass guitar is distinguished in the
mix as this seems to be an instrument
which is always hard to hear
in goregrind albums, the guitars are
crisp and clear with a nice low end
which does not muddy anything out.
Otyn did the mixing and mastering
and he did a hell of a job as this is
the best sounding goregrind album I
have heard coming out of the Czech
scene ever.
As far as the music goes, what we
have here is certainly not a deviation
from the original formula this band
employed back in 2006. They spiced
it up a bit this time with some death
metal and some polka groove and it
comes out good. Early on through
the first few songs, I was a disappointed
in the song writing though.
There’s nothing here we haven’t
heard before from any band in the
European goregrind scene. I kept
waiting for something to happen, yet
nothing special occurred. You know
those classic European goregrind
“moments” where the band does
something so over the top catchy,
that the song is forever immortalized
for said “moment”? This band has a
history of such habits, but early on
these “moments” are missing from
the equation as the songs are just
straight forward goregrind. The band
does deliver a super catchy fifth track
called ‘Bamboo Cannon’, which is
a 100% groove song. They always
do this on their fifth song of their
albums, and this one will stand as the
best in their discography.
As the album progressed into songs 6
through 10, the band picks the intensity
up a bit, and now I can honestly
say I began to enjoy the album more.
This span of songs feature more
ferocity and a few classic “moments”.
These songs are better arranged and
stand out more than the first few
tracks did. They are catchier upon
first listen, and they are guaranteed
to get your toes tapping and head
nodding with the beat.
The band members themselves are
competent on their instruments.
Burak is well known inside the scene
and out for his involvement in many
Czech goregrind bands and even a
death metal act. The new blood is
Vokatej on vocals, Dan on guitar and
Jonda on bass. Dan delivers some
death metal riffs in the second half
and some hook filled groove riffs, but
other than that its straight forward
no frills goregrind riffs most of the
time. Jonda backs him up perfectly
on the four stringer, but he does not
go beyond the norm for this genre.
I was really quite disappointed with
Vokatej’s vocal work. His Dead Infection
style inhales are sort of boring
and lack a certain spirit. His pitch
shifted vocal work lacks the same
spirit and the tone of the pitch shifter
is really not exciting like Ahumado
Granujo or Jig-Ai’s was/are.
The second half of the album is
where this album really shines. The
vigour of grindcore is there, and
Dan’s riffs while not being original,
are livelier. Each songs individual
sections flow effortlessly, and the
increase in “moments” allow these
songs to stay with the listener long
after the album ends. ‘Dick Punch’,
‘Miss Petra’s Farts’ and ‘Ureterakhamun’
are three of the albums best
songs. They each feature a section
of double bass death metal riffing in
a Swedish death style like it’s 1991
all over again. In all actuality, this
section of the album, from song 10
to song 12 is the best. They could be
three of the bands best songs ever,
however, it is odd the band bunched
these songs together how they did.
I personally would have dispersed
them throughout the album. Another
stand out song is ‘Glans Repurchase’
with its awesome porngore type
groove and grindcore riffs mixed
with a final death metal riff. This
song has a lot of influences being
poured into its mix, but the band
constructs a great song out of it
all. ‘She Has Hermackerel-Like’ is
the final long song, and like ‘Glans
Repurchase’ the band melts all their
favourite influences into one song
filled with groove and death metal
riffing. I even caught some punk
drum work in this song.
The cover of ‘Wolverine Blues’ by
Entombed is a nice addition, and it
shows the band was definitely all
about groove and the old-school
Swedish death metal scene. I would
say it’s the perfect cover song for
this band to do. They perform it
well and Otyn, the guy who handled
production, plays bass this time
around. They do the original version
justice, so they deserve props for this
awesome cover.
As I stated above, this album takes a
while to get going. It’s odd how three
of the best songs are placed right in
a row in the middle of the album.
Another oddity is there are around
five death metal riff sections, and all
five are in the back half of the album.
I find this weird as it seems the band
didn’t think about song placement
and how much that affects a good
metal album. The album just doesn’t
flow well song to song. Despite this,
it is a good album. Just don’t go
into it expecting anything new or
original. The death metal touches and
the cover song are great additions
but the band does seem strapped for
ideas. The vocals are weak, and the
delivery is forced, thus it lacks the
energy the other Czech bands have
displayed in the past. You can’t fault
them though. The genre of goregrind
is extremely limited in what you can
do technique wise, before you are
now outside the genres’ boundaries.
So in the end, Destructive Explosion
of Anal Garland return with a solid,
spirited, and well executed goregrind
album in 2014, all while having a
boat load of fun!
7 | EVAN SPAYD
#1 METALEGION 107

THE DISMAYING DARK AMBIENT MUSIC OF
LAMIA VOX EXPLORES THE PATH OF
TERROR BY TRAVELING THROUGH A
OBSCURE PLACE WHERE FEAR IS SO REAL
THAT TAKES THE SHAPE OF A HUMAN
FIGURE... ALINA ANTONOVA.
“SIGILLUM DIABOLI” MARKS HER NEW
PATH UNDER THE WING OF CANADIAN
RECORD LABEL, CYCLIC LAW. THE
RESULT IS A TREMENDOUS RECORD
WHERE THE LISTENER IS HUNTED AND
DEVOURED BY A BLOODTHIRSTY CREATURE.
THERE IS A DARK CORNER ON PEOPLE’S MIND WHERE FEAR GROWS, FEEDS AND LIVES ON ITS OWN...
“SIGILLUM DIABOLI” HAS THE MECHANISMS TO OPEN SEALED DOORS, PLEASE BEWARE!
.. WORDS: RICARDO AZEVEDO MUSICIAN: ALINA ANTONOVA PHOTO CREDIT: UNDINA ..
Lets start by giving some information about the creation
of this project and yourself. Did you had any
musical background before creating Lamia Vox?
“Frankly, Lamia Vox as a creative project started not with the
music itself. I was overwhelmed with strong emotions, and my
decision to bring them into the world required embodying them
in some form. I chose the musical form because I had the education
that allowed me to realize my musical ideas. Anyway,
I am still continuing my education. Sometimes I need some
extra knowledge and skills in certain areas and I take private
lessons or attend the appropriate courses for that matter.”
Being a woman and originally from Russia is a negative
point on your path of recognition? Do you think that people
are still stigmatized in that sense and you will need to
work twice as harder in order to reach your goals?
“You are very right, actually! There is certain preconception
and obstacles on my way for being a woman and Russian in
addition. Worth mentioning that it is “negative” not only for
being a musician in general, but it extends on the style of my
music (which sometimes is quite strict) and my beliefs. It is
well-known that there are certainly less independent women in
the industrial/underground genre. Therefore, it is correct to say
that this stage is dominated by men. So we can conclude that
a woman has to do her art on such a high level that the rightful
place among men in the genre becomes really inevitable. To
realize this fact can sufficiently demoralize on an early stage
of the musical career. But these are the laws of the genre,
and we should deal with it! I can add that the nature of the
music in this particular genre is mostly aggressive or extremely
melancholic. Both of these are extremes and as any extreme in
our life would require a certain degree of bravery or madness
to work with these musical spheres. For the female nature both
are not specific, rather it would be a harmonious and comfortable
ambient with melodic vocals, so it is logically difficult
for women to occupy a prominent place in this genre simply
because of the different nature of their creative energy.”
FOLLOWING A MUSIC PATH
How did you end up influenced by this particular music
genre in the first place? Were there any music projects
that had a serious influence on the creation of Lamia Vox?
“My introduction to these styles of music began with Death in
June; then were bands like Raison D’etre, Deutsch Nepal, Der
Blutharsch. I think I’ve made some decision for my own style
due to the first impression I got from dark ambient. I realized,
that this music can really efficiently express the most sincere,
deep and dark feelings I had in my heart.”
On dark ambient sonorities do you belief its even more
crucial for the artist/band to communicate musically with
the listener on a conscious or subconscious level?
“Of course. The genre is very much based on such a communication.
The project allows me to activate and embody magical
energies as a result of personal studies and my own practices.
This is my personal example of how music transforms into a
magical instrument in order to affect listeners on the spiritual
plane. Normally, I use music as a mechanism, and if my work
is successful, it may affect man on the mental plane. The
certain laws in accordance to which I act, had been vastly
elaborated and described by such folklore researchers and
musicologists, like Joscelyn Godwin for example.”
VAMPIRIC GREEK MYTHOLOGY
The name Lamia Vox has any link or influence from the
Greek mythology? Where Lamia was a queen who became
a vampire and kidnapped children to drink their blood.
“Happy to see this question! Not so often people are interested
in the true meaning of things. Your mythological observation
is absolutely correct. Anyway I should give some more
explanation on the term. The word Lamia (Λάμια in Greek)
is believed to derive from the Greek word for pharynx or gullet
indicating in a certain way the devouring function of the
mentioned Daemon. We can clearly see the link to the essence
of Kabalistic Demon Lilith, whose specifics was to devour the
creations of god and embryos of light, giving birth to Shedim
instead. The Demonic entity with such a specifics ‏(םידש)‏
could be found among any mythology or religion of the world.
Many names She has, but the meaning of Her as the devouring
chaotic force devastating the world of god is still the same.”
What’s your relation with religion in general and how do
you see the need of people in believing on god(s)?
“In my opinion any religion expresses the human’s “profound
nostalgia” for the sacred. And I think that in order to achieve a
certain degree of knowledge on this topic, the religion becomes
a precious object for the research as it is the product of
spiritual experience of society for centuries. Also, any of the
serious religion concepts hide mysterium tremendum protected
from the eyes of the uninitiated. I am afraid of atheists, I think
they are completely lost.”
How did you end up getting signed by the Canadian label
Cyclic Law?
“I met Frederic (Cyclic Law’s owner) when I performed at
Wave Gothic Treffen in 2011. Since that time we’ve been more
or less in contact permanently.”
Compared to your 2010 debut album “Introductio”, on
“Sigillum Diaboli” there is a clear effort to incorporate
more layers or sound elements, giving a dynamic that
“Introductio” didn’t had. Did you had a clear vision of what
to pursuit for your second album?
“Yes, I had a vision, yet it was a spiritual conception. Since
all my music grows on magic and occult soils (it is of course
relevant to both albums), it also has been the main sense and
conceptual core of my second work. Originally, “Sigillum Diaboli”
consisted of eight tracks (the ninth one was added much
later) linked to the eight points of the year wheel (solstices/
equinoxes and four more, alchemically dividing the year into
four seasons), which are essential for me from both practical
and philosophical points. My work was to fill the conceptual
sheath with musical content based on the personal experience
of those celebrations.”
In your opinion which are the main differences between
“Introductio...” and “Sigillum Diaboli”? Would you say that
you have also grown as musician?
““Introductio...” was created as a musical reflection of nigredo
stage in the process of alchemical transformation of the
soul. Nietzsche said once, “Man is something that shall be
overcome”, and it is very relevant here. These are the most
painful and destructive transformations, when every single
step is made through the death of the ego and by the cost of
blood. To evoke these feelings I have chosen suitable sounds
and instruments: I wanted to create abysmal and obscure
atmospheres. Anyway, the final track ‘Follow the fallen stars’
is a manifestation, and a peculiar transition to the next album
sounding, more martial and symphonic.”
108 METALEGION #1

It’s curious to see you quoting Nietzche, he is one of my favourite
philosophers. He is also an influence to you personally?
“Yes. His book “Thus Spoke Zarathustra” is absolutely prophetic
to say the least. Every time you come back to it, it always shows
you the new keys for your own spiritual researching, as they were
hidden before, yet always have been on the surface. I can’t help but
mention also “Ecce Homo” where he mentions the most fundamental
conception of “the eternal recurrence of the same” without going
into details. It was one of the most inspirational concepts behind the
new collaboration song.”
EXPLORING NEW LAYERS
One of the dark elements that you have explored on this album
was the introduction of your vocals/chants, giving almost a
summoning edge to it. Is this something to be deeper explored?
“Yes, it is definitely a part of the plan for the third album.”
The fact that “Sigillum Diaboli” has been mastered by Frederic
Arbour (which besides being the owner of Cyclic Law and also a
musician, has already worked with bands like Arcana, Sophia,
Northaunt to name just a few) helped you in any way to achieve
the sound that you were looking for? I mean all layers of sound
are crystal clear yet they remain raw and extremely powerful?
“Frederic did a great job to polish the sound into a finished sound
landscape where all the elements are perfectly placed. It is
wonderful when the owner of the label is such an experienced sound
engineer with a perfect taste in addition. I think it should be one of
the reasons why all releases of Cyclic Law really sound so good.”
“Sigillum Diaboli” is out for some time by now. In terms of sales
it meet your and the label’s expectations?
“Honestly I hardly ever asked Frederic about how the sales go. I
understand very well that it has very limited sense today, in the era
when digital distribution of the individual independent art in a form
of depersonalized free web content has become an imperative...”
It took you more than 3 years to have a new album out. Did you
need all that time to compose new songs and find a new label
or were there other reasons for the huge gap?
“It took probably about a year to compose whole the track list.
Mastering and designing of layout took additional time, so we have 3
years as a result. The main reason actually was that I’m genetically
unable to make anything in a hurry or push myself and I believe that
every element of the work should be done in a right period of time.
I have never regarded the time as something crucial in creative
cases. And to be honest I think that it is the only way to be creative
if you really make something sincere.”
I agree with you. Nevertheless don’t you think that people’s
interest due to the huge gap between albums, may diminish
or do you feel its exactly the opposite, it only increases the
expectation? What’s your opinion as a music fan?
“I can’t say that such gaps in the time between releases really
disturbs anybody. Everybody live their lives instead of being busy
waiting for the new album of one or another band. And when the
album shows up, all that makes sense in this case is how pushy
and extensive the promotion is and is the album really good, which
is much more important.”
SUMMONINGS IN FRONT OF...
The highest point of your live career was when you performed
at the well known festival, Wave-Gotik-Treffen in 2011? What
memories do you have from that performance?
“It was a great responsibility for me, as it is always twice as hard
when you have to perform single and are in charge for everything
that happen on stage. The festival itself is unique. It leaves a very
special impression also because of the city, crowded with thousands
of people dressed gothic or military. During the period of the festival,
people dressed normally are regarded as ‘freaks’. When it comes to
the technical or organizational support and the team itself I would
say that it is really perfect.”
When performing live, do you prefer the intimacy of a smaller
venue or a bigger event with several bands?
“I prefer both. It has very different mechanisms of energy exchange
in both cases and I love it.”
Your work has been featured in a few compilations, you even
participated on a split Cd with 2 other black metal bands.
What’s your relation with metal and do you consider compilations
a good way to spread your name and music even if
sometimes not all participants have the same level of quality?
“Yes, and it is definitely not the last time you see me collaborating
with black metal bands. The most important reason for it is that we
share our faith in a certain degree. Black metal scene is the closest
to me in spirit, philosophy and faith, also in my path, my hunger
and my love to the Devil. As for the compilations, I think it’s a good
way to keep the creative mode. Sometimes you submit some old
tracks, sometimes new and it is never-ending process.”
Since you have a close relation with black metal, would you
consider mixing black metal elements into your own sound?
“No. I was never addicted to the black metal sound itself. When
I listen to it, I mostly perceive the energy stream that the band
expresses; and when they have it, it always comes from the dark
source to which they play the role of mediator (mostly due to their
black faith, but sometimes even unconsciously). Literally, I want to
see the darkness and Devil in the eyes of the band members. I don’t
listen to the bands which doesn’t carry the Devil’s seed inside.”
FUTURE COLLABORATIONS
You have a new song ‘Return’, which is a collaboration between
you and the neofolk Norwegian one man band Solstorm. What
can you tell us about the creative process around it and how
did you end up teaming with E. Blix/Solstorm?
“We teamed up due to a certain degree of like-mindedness.
Besides, we were working together on some ambient pieces (I
wouldn’t disclose any details yet). The lyrics are based on the ideas
of M. Eliade and F. Nietzsche. Regarding the working process, the
song was made in a very fast way, from the idea to what you hear
now. The whole work took maybe 2 or 3 evenings, which is quite
fast, especially taking into account that we had to work via email.”
The Austrian artist Krist Mort is also working on a dark video
for the song ‘Evil Comes from the North’. The visual side of your
art is also of major importance!
“Yes, you’re right. I have always paid great care to the visual part,
as it’s also a powerful tool for achieving the public’s attention.
Often my performances are accompanied with video mixes, created
for me by an experienced video engineer.
For “Sigillum Diaboli” we made a special video, consisting only
of our “field” material filmed by us in right time and place, and it
should have certain energy in it.”
Judging Krist Mort’s dark visual creations (www.kristmort.
com) I would definitely say that its probably the right visual
“partner” for your creations. How did this cooperation started?
“It started with the guidance of a common friend. I made some
chants and ambient excerpts for the one very special book release,
and the publisher came to the same conclusion as you stated.”
“Sigillum Diaboli” is already out for quite some time and you
have already announced the artwork of Krist Mort for your next
work if I’m not mistaken, so I’m sure you already had time
to work on new material. To end this interview, what can we
expect for a third album?
“The album is in progress and will show up in the proper time.
Frankly speaking I mostly wanted to share work of Krist Mort who
granted me the right to use some of her wonderful works for my
next album cover. I cannot set any date yet, as I am not very much
into releasing as much albums as possible.” c
“Sigillum Diaboli” available via Cyclic Law [www.cycliclaw.com] /
Lamia Vox [www.facebook.com/LamiaVox]
“SIGILLUM DIABOLI”
CYCLIC LAW
I discovered the obscure magickal
world of Lamia Vox almost by
accident and how am I glad about
that! This lead me to clean the old
dust that was covering the CD cases
of some of the very first releases that
were laying around on the shelfs of
my music collection from the cult
Swedish label, Cold Meat Industry.
“Sigillum Diaboli” offers the same
type of obscurity and darkness that
were characteristic on albums from
projects like Puissance, Aghast,
Raison D’Être or Brighter Death Now
without neglecting her own music
path. “...Introductio” which was
released back in 2010 was certainly a
good starting point for a newcomer
into the realm of dark ambient
music but to tell the truth “Sigillum
Diaboli” raises the bar really high in
what to expect next. The introduction
of martial elements as well as
vocal parts gives a new soul, a darker
and hunting one, to Lamia Vox. In
fact one of the aspects that really
grabs my attention on “Sigillum
Diaboli” is the ritualistic, predator
and dark pulsation that Alina’s
music carries, clear examples of this
are songs like ‘At the Crossroads of
the Worlds’, ‘Witches Night’ or ‘Evil
Comes from the North’. The mastering
done by Cyclic Law’s owner, Frederic,
gives also a very powerful dimension
in comparison to the debut album,
where all layers of sound are crisp
and clear and given the necessary
profundity when needed.
The only image that comes to mind
when hearing “Sigillum Diaboli” is of
a bloodthirsty beast... Will you be the
next victim?
9 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
#1 METALEGION 109

ESTABLISHED IN A PERIOD WHERE METAL MUSIC HAD INTRANSIGENT BOUNDARIES CONCERNING
BLENDING STYLES AND INFLUENCES, THESE GUYS WERE AMONG THE TRUE PIONEERS!
.. INTRO: RICARDO AZEVEDO WORDS: NENAD KOBAL MUSICIANS: RALPH “RALF” HUBERT (BASSIST) / ALEX LANDENBURG (DRUMMER) ..
RALPH “RALF” HUBERT
[BASSIST]
ALMOST 30 YEARS AFTER
THE DEBUT SELF-TITLED
ALBUM, GERMAN TECHNO
THRASHERS MEKONG
DELTA DEMONSTRATE
WITH THEIR 10TH ALBUM
WHY THEY ARE STILL
ONE OF THE LEADING
FORCES ON THE METAL
SCENE. CONTINUING
THE LEGACY OF THE
PREVIOUS ACCLAIMED
RECORD, FOUNDING
MEMBER AND COMPOSER
RALPH “RALF”
HUBERT (BASSIST) &
ALEX LANDENBURG
(DRUMMER) DISCUSS WITH
US THE CONCEPT BEHIND
“IN A MIRROR DARKLY”
“
In A Mirror Darkly” is Mekong Delta’s 10th studio album, 11th
if we count “Intersections” as one, and 3rd/4th in a “new” era
of Mekong Delta. Are you satisfied with it? I think you should
be, as it sounds to me as the most rewarding of the new bunch.
Alex “Thank you! Personally it is my favourite of all the “new” ones
so far as well.”
Ralf “I am never satisfied with the result, but this is normal for me
after finishing a production. If it comes to the point where I would
say “This is it” I could stop making music. Evolution never stops,
just have a look at the nature (although I got my doubts if I look at
mankind, see the actual political idiocy).”
How difficult it was to reconnect and actually to accommodate to
modern standards both in sound and production?
Ralf “Sound and production is all the time a concession to the
ordinance and the spirit of time, and this can change dramatically. I
remember on the first productions I preferred a high, cutting snare.
As at that time the common snare sound was a deep one, people
said the snare sounds bad (even if most of the listeners in the past
and specially today never heard a real drum kit), so we changed the
sound that way, that it was OK. 10 years later a high cutting snare
with less kettle (the one I liked) was suddenly top notch. Anyhow,
with the equipment which I, and specially Erik, got in our computers,
it is quite easy to get that what you call “modern standard”. To give
you a picture, that what I got in my computer for 10.000 Euro would
have cost nearly half a million in the past (1985 -1990).”
Comparing the new album to “Wanderer on the Edge of Time”,
you decided to make it more compact and less classical. Do you
plan to gradually return to a more techno-thrash way of your
beginnings? Or will the next album be a classical suite again?
Ralf “You can never say how the next album will sound and I never
"CLASSICAL RULES ARE ONLY A TOOLBOX WHICH
YOU SHOULD KNOW AND MASTER BEFORE YOU
START COMPOSING YOUR OWN STUFF"
By Ralph “Ralf” Hubert
say it will be more classic like or more trashy, it depends on the
major theme the album deals with. And, not to forget, each new
composition consists of all the knowledge of the past albums. Actually
I still work on “Into the Heart of Darkness” based on the story
of Joseph Conrad. Beside that I already have re-arranged 2 pieces
which I liked very much over the years and played on classical guitar
only, ‘Sevilla’ and ‘Asturias’, both from the fantastic Spanish composer
Isaac Albeniz and in origin composed for piano. This idea came
up as I worked on “Wanderer on the Edge of Time” and first was
planned as the classical add-on Mekong got on most of the albums.
As “Wanderer...” grew, I noticed that both pieces would not fit into
the general musical concept of the album, so I put the first drafts on
hold but kept them in mind. The reason is, that I beside the normal
composing work on an instrumental album which will include the
‘Suite’ from “Visions Fugitives” rearranged and the orchestra done
with the possibilities we got today, way above the things you could do
in the 90’s, its already done from the orchestral side. This album will
include “5 Fragments for Group and Orchestra” also, 2 pieces you
already know from “Lurking Fear”, ‘Allegro Furioso’ and ‘Moderato’,
and the final arrangement of ‘Sevilla’ and ‘Asturias’. The guitars have
already been checked out by Erik and bass is ready to be taped.”
ORDERLY WAYS OF CONCEPTION
Its clear by now that the current line-up is working perfectly
together, so during the last years the composition process has
changed towards a more active role from the other band members
or do you still take care mostly yourself about this part?
Alex “Ralf composes all the music, everything you hear from the
string instruments. I then get to work out my drum parts on top of
that and I must say I have a lot of freedom concerning them. The
same goes for Martin’s vocal parts. Of course, Ralf has the final
word, but I can basically bring in my own parts 100%.”
Ralf “The most work starting a new album still is on my side, as I
compose the stuff, and this mostly is a process which starts 12, 16
months before we finally record the album. The first point is that
I sort out the ideas which I think are usable for a new album. As I
got tons of ideas written down, this mostly takes about a month.
When themes are sorted out the next point is to find out where new
techniques for guitar are used. Then the selected ones are passed to
Erik, and after he checked out which kind of technique could be used
110 METALEGION #1

ALEX LANDENBURG
[DRUMMER]
MARTIN LEMAR
[VOCALIST]
ERIK GRÖSCH
[GUITARIST]
(or must be invented) on the e_guitar to realize the riffs, we
sit together and discuss whether that matches what I meant
while composing or if I have to go over the theme again. This
all mostly happens over a year before recording. After the main
riffs are clear, Alex get copies of them so that he can prepare
himself for special rhythm patterns. After this, there is a long
period where the rest of the group do not hear too much from
me. That is the time where I finished the base songs, this
mostly takes 6 to 8 months. This material is the starting point
for a discussion between guitar, bass and drums. The vocals
are the latest which are involved (of course Martin get copies
of the actual stand all the time). So we got about 3 months
left for recording, so everyone can record when he got time.
Fortunately we have the luck to have own studios to record.”
Mekong Delta albums were never overtly dissonant, but
today this element is used more like a “spice”. When and
how did you actually decide to use it? Or better said, when
do you feel it is appropriate to use it when writing a song?
As we know in classical music there exist certain rules for
their utilization.
Ralf “Separating music in tonal / atonal is for sure a mistake
which only results in limiting your scope in composing. For me
every note fits in every note, its just a question of interpretation.
And classical rules are only a toolbox which you should
know and master before you start composing your own stuff,
‘cause it helps a lot but its not a “must”. No one will sit down
and start a composition that way. The most important thing is
to get a good idea, this cannot be forced. If I got a substantial
base theme the rest of the song comes itself, one theme forces
another, and (I can only speak for myself here) as composer
you know, or better, you will feel which theme fits best to
theme A if you got 20 variations of B. So writing a song is at
least a constant flow where the base rules can help to get
more logical results in a faster way, you do not have to go
through the process of try and error.”
What composers do you listen to today, that you haven’t
twenty or thirty years ago?
Ralf “From the orchestral side mostly composers dealing
with movie soundtracks. Hans Zimmer composed some real
impressive tracks (besides the normal bombast standard he
is doing). Listen to the main theme of “Inception” for example,
this is quite genius for me. Rock / pop I still listen to my old
favourites since I don’t feel that there are remarkable new
ideas which are worth to get my attention.”
Do you perceive today’s heavy metal as less “in your
face”, less spontaneous, less honest, especially due to the
financial pressures that are permeating human lives in
general, not only music industry?
Alex “Well, less honest for sure. But I actually don’t like to
generalize too much. Also today you can find fantastic new
bands, that are just as fresh and honest with their music as
the bands back in the day.”
OTHER INTERESTES
What do you do nowadays besides composing for/playing
in Mekong Delta? How it is to be a (progressive) musician
in Germany anno 2014?
Alex “I love a wide variety of musical styles, so I actually
like the fact that I’m also a member of other bands, such as
Rhapsody or 21Octayne. Besides that, I’m still teaching drums
every now and then.”
You were one of the founding members of Aaarrg Records
which, as far as I know, is now closed. What can you tell
us about working on the other side of the music business?
Many musicians consider that aspect (even if fundamental)
the worst part of the music business...
Ralf “I was the founding member, there where no other
members when it started. Aaarrg Records is not closed, but
it is quite difficult to find music which is worth to be released
today. Aaarrg Records does not release something every
month, but once in a while there is something I like and this is
than offered through Aaarrg Records. See for example, Concept
Insomnia, a band which I think is very interesting. At least the
deal is that today you have to find a new concept for a label,
CDs are down due to all the illegal downloads, so what is the
new deal? Vinyl and legal download? Only download with more
live participation of the label? I actually do not know, if this will
be clear for me, Aaarrg Records will be more active again. Concerning
the rules of the music business, every musician should
at least know the basic roles of a record label, a publishing
company, etc. It surely helps during a contract discussion and
to have a picture of how everything works together.”
After more than a decade of Aaarrg Records inactivity, the
release of “Wanderer on the Edge of Time” in 2010 through
your label was the “last nail” on Aaarrg Records’ coffin?
Ralf “To release “Wanderer on the Edge of Time” through
Aaarrg Records was planned from the start as I noticed on
“Lurking Fear” that we did not benefit from the promotional
side with AFM as most of the reviewers contact me personally
for interviews. But what I also noticed was that it is quite
impossible to get a good distribution deal in the States as
small label, and that’s a big issue. So we discussed that and
decided to go with SPV as they got a good distribution there
and are smart guys. Furthermore I know this company from the
past and have positive experiences with them.”
GRAPHICAL INTERCONNECTION
Some disapproving comments could be read about the
cover of “In a Mirror Darkly”. Personally I like it, especially
the usage of green fluorescent colour, both for logo
and the flame. The triangle is an ever-present part of your
cover regalia, but what does it stands for? And has the picture
a more profound meaning than the one it represents?
Ralf “The triangle was created as symbol for the group by
the artist who created the logo and the first cover for Mekong
Delta. For me, it shows the trinity of the most important points
in music: creativity, vision and high musicianship. Everyone
should feel free to make his own thoughts about this as you
can project it on a lot of different scenarios.”
As far as I know the cover artwork is borrowed from an
animation created for the album. Can you unveils us a bit
more regarding this?
Ralf “Since years I work with 3D graphics which I like to use
more for the future. The first step was the animated spot for
“Wanderer on the Edge of Time”. The actual cover is out of an
animation, which I hoped to get ready for the release, but this
did not worked since rendering complex animations cost a lot
of time. Actually the artwork of “Into A Mirror Darkly” consists
of eight different pictures taken out of the animation (the other
artwork is inside the gatefold and inside the booklet). That the
triangle is the front cover now, happened by time pressure. As
this time we are distributed in the US too, in one evening I was
confronted with the fact that the US company needed the front
cover draft until the next morning, otherwise the release had to
be postponed again for 3 months (we already had postponed
2 times and we didn’t liked to do it again). The only picture
that was rendered at that time was the triangle, so we decided
to use it. If I can realize for the future, I would like to blend
Mekong Delta’s music and animations. That, in my opinion
#1 METALEGION 111

would be a very interesting way to go.”
It was said, the lyrics are not interconnected, but in
the end, they are on same album. What is exactly the
punchline of the album? I thought I figured it out at
first, but the more I read the lyrics, the less sure I am.
Ralf “This is quite hard to explain, especially for me in a
foreign language (its difficult enough in German). Lets try
it this way... “In A Mirror Darkly” is the exact opposite of
what you are normally doing. For example, if you have never
hurt someone as a way of living, your reflection in a mirror
darkly would portrait you on that scenario, beating someone,
for instance. Or if you are living in a Democracy, the
dark mirror could be Fascism. “In A Mirror Darkly” points to
the negative aspects of what you think is positive.”
I noticed rhyming is very present in the lyrics, I dare
say rhymes aren’t mandatory in lyrics of progressive
music. Seeking rhymes for rhymes’ sake may also produce
a less wanted outcome. How important are lyrics
vis-à-vis music for Mekong Delta, and for you (Ralph
Hubert) in particular?
Ralf “This changed over the years. In the early days my
guideline concerning lyrics was “If you like to put your
message in words, go and become a penman not a
musician”. Furthermore I mostly wrote the melody lines
last and put them on top of the already existing song, just
as one more instrument. That may also depend on the fact
that I preferred orchestral music without vocals (I didn’t
liked operas in the past). Another point was that I never
really took care of vocals as the possibilities of the rock
shouters I know were quite small or even did not existed.
This changed after we started working with Martin. He is
a trained classical tenor and I noticed that this could open
new doors. The result was that I studied several classical
pieces with vocals and tried to find ways to integrate the
vocals much more into the compositions. So today I compose
parts where vocals should be different and leave more
room for the voice. The advantage is that you can create a
guideline for the listener this way. With this in mind, lyrics
become more important as I do not like to let Martin sing
crap. And for rhyming, rhymes give you a special kind of
intonation which I like.”
“In A Mirror Darkly”
was recorded at
the bands’ own
recording studio
and produced by
you (Ralph Hubert).
As an artist and
leader of the metal
institution that
Mekong Delta
certainly is, do you
find it crucial to
have complete control of every aspects of the music?
Ralf “If you have a clear picture of the songs and if you
really know what the outcome should be, it is crucial to
have complete control.”
How do you accept the fact that literary fiction is
slowly turning into every day reality? And unfortunately,
in my opinion, not a pretty one at all.
Alex “You’re right. Many aspects of the dystopian literature
from the 70’s or 80’s are unfortunately already a
reality today. I believe it is important to acknowledge this,
but not to accept it as a given thing. We can still change
the world one piece at a time with our everyday actions.
I wish people would for example realize the power they
hold as consumers. If we all decided to avoid certain
brands for example, you would see changes very quickly.”
Martin LeMar is also endeavoured with Lalu and
Nachtgeschrei, you (Alex Landenburg) with Luca
Turilli, Erik Adam with Straight from Hell. Are Mekong
Delta thus less a priority and the coordination of all
projects comes around as a bit challenging?
Alex “I don’t judge my bands in this way. There is no
priority. Especially musically speaking, what could be
more interesting as playing for Mekong Delta? If at all,
the priorities have to be economical, unfortunately. But
Mekong Delta is important to all of us and we all try to
keep windows open for it.” c
“In A Darkly Mirror” available via Steamhammer [www.
spv.de] / Mekong Delta [www.mekongdelta.eu]
“IN A MIRROR DARKLY”
STEAMHAMMER / SPV
Since early on I learned never to judge a book
by its cover or in this case an album. Mekong
Delta’s new piece of art might not be a consensual
winner in terms of graphic expression yet
it clearly reveals that music-wise, Ralf Hubert
is still able (if anyone had doubts) to sustain
the high expectations that the fans have while
waiting for a new Mekong album. “In A Mirror
Darkly” follows the same line of “Wanderer on
the Edge of Time” with the difference that this
time is slightly more straightforward, intense,
thrashy and with less classical music influences yet
retaining all the progressive aspects of the later period.
That doesn’t mean the band is going after its raw techno-thrash
80’s root, in fact “In A Mirror Darkly” has less
that dissonant edge of their early period (“The Music of
Erich Zann” or the great “The Principle of Doubt”) and
is boasted by a powerful contemporary production with
the plus that they sound so incredible tight and reinvigorated.
I was never a major fan of extremely dissonant
or technical sonorities and this is probably why “In A
Mirror Darkly” suits me like a glove. The compositions
have a true sense of balance between progressive elements,
melody, lightly strokes of dissonant aspects while
preserving the vicious and aggressive edge of thrash
metal (the songs ‘Janus’ or ‘Hindsight Bias’ are probably
the best examples of that). I believe that because
in between albums the band managed to keep a steady
line-up, improved considerably the chemistry of the
new material. Not that “Wanderer...” lacked that facet, I
guess its now far more grandiose. The vocals of Mekong
Delta was also one the points that never convinced me
completely, but nowadays Martin LeMar takes it into
a completely new level (more epic), akin to bands like
Nevermore or Sanctuary not to mention the intricate
and dynamic drum work of Alex Landenburg. “In A
Mirror Darkly” is surely a strong album that proves that,
even if underrated by the large majority of the metal
fans, Mekong Delta in their 30 years of existence were
probably never so alive and kicking like they are today.
Just give a spin or two and you will see...
8.5 | RICARDO AZEVEDO
HIGHLIGHTS BY Alex Landenburg
1992
1988
1989
DREAM THEATER
Images And Words
“I was about 13 years old when I
first heard that album. A musical
revelation to me. Until that point I
had only listened to classical metal
bands like Iron Maiden, Metallica,
Helloween, etc.”
QUEENSRŸCHE
Operation: Mindcrime
“My first encounter with a conceptual
record. I must have listened to it at
least 500 times between my 15th and
17th birthday. You simply cannot be
a better singer than Tate was in his
prime. Unreal.”
FATES WARNING
Perfect Symmetry
“One of my biggest, if not my single
biggest, drumming influence in
progressive music, Mark Zonder,
gave his debut with Fates on this
record. From start to finish it’s just a
masterpiece.”
112 METALEGION #1

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