2 TON PREDATOR - DEMON DEALER (DieHard Music, 2003)

Produced By: Tue Madsen and 2 Ton Predator

Tracks: 1- Slowly Slaughtered, 2- Pipeyard Killings, 3- Bone Brigade, 4- Demon Dealer, 5- A Funeral Romance, 6- Transparent Venom Addiction, 7- Hell is Where You´re Headed, 8- Henchmen, 9- Hammered, 10- Ready To Die, 11- Killing Flames

Cover Art by Mogge

 Recorded at Antfarm Studios

Last year we reviewed 2 Ton Predator previous recording, a really heavy as hell release. Here we have their new release and here we have a more extreme approach. Here we start at full speed with "Slowly Slaughtered" a really bestial track where Mogge screams at the top of his lungs while Matte deliver bestial and technical rhythms with his drumkit and Mazza delivers ultra heavy riffs while T. Anger follows him with his downtuned bass. Here we have a band whose main goal is pure aggression in the most bestial way but instead of following a brutal death metal path they have followed a more modern approach with modern sounding guitars and drums and taking it to the extreme. I have to remark that the mix by Tue Madsen has given even more power to this band making the isntruments sound louder and clearer. A must for lovers of really powerful music.

Favorite tracks: "Slowly Slaughtered", "A Funeral Romance" and "Henchmen"

Contact: www.diehardmusic.com

ACT OF GODS - DIES IRAE DEMO ( Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Act of Gods

Tracks: 1- Act of the insane, 2- Soaked in Pus, 3- Perverted Cross, 4- Outro

Cover Art by Act of Gods

 Recorded at LB LAB Studio

Extremely fast and bestial death metal. This guys have no mercy!! They start at full speed to demolish your brain with their ultra fast riffs and their incredible blast beats and they will not stop until they have melted you !! This guys also have incredible technique in some of the breaks that make on each of the songs (I really liked the double bass patterns in Guillaume´s drumming). The vocals are guttural and we find on this four tracks also voices more of the screaming type that are combined with the other type. Here everything is brutal, everything is bestial and the good sound that this recording has makes things even more effective. The guitars are low tuned and that is essential for Act of Gods brutal sound. Here is a band that destroys you and leaves you wanting more of their music !!! 

Favorite tracks: The four

Contact: vortexal@hotmail.com

ALL IS SUFFERING - THE PAST: VINDICTIVE SADISMS OF PETTY BUREAUCRATS (Crucial Blast Recs., 2003)

Produced By: All Is Suffering

Tracks: 1- Through Deep Snow Darkness Atalks the Hunters, 2- Crippled, Reviled and Pissed-on by dogs, 3- Massive Violence Upon Seismic Devastation, 4- Pathological Narcisism, 5- Summary Executioner, 6- Mauthausen, 7- Denazification of your weak mind, 8- Dragon of the Black Pool, 9- 600.000 dead, 10- Subjugation of Rich Cunts, 11- Siege Warfare, 12- Swords of Prosperity, 13- Municipal Filth, 14- Spectre of War

Cover Art by All Is Suffering

 Recorded at Mike Bossier´s Oblivion Studios

This band has made a mix of the most extreme styles while creating their own music. Here we have a band whose style is a mix between hardcore, death metal with many grind parts. And this guys spice up their music with incredibly rhythmic riffs as the ones played in songs like "Spectre of War". Everything here is made to devastate the listener with pure brutality, from the ultraheavy riffs to the hyper fast drumming that uses a lot of double bass (an also some blast beats in the grinding parts). The vocals are really extreme and guttural and that adds even more heaviness to the compositions. One thing to remark is the really good sound that this guys have, specially in the guitars and the drums that are essential for this extreme kind of music . An album to blast you !!! 

Favorite tracks: "Crippled", "Summary Executioner" and "Siege Warfare"

Contact: aismob@hotmail.com or www.crucialblast.com

ANCESTRAL LEGACY - OF MAGIC ILLUSIONS (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Ancestral

Tracks: 1- All things must end, 2- Self-enslavement, 3- Of Magic Illusions, 4- When Sense Dies, 5- Separate Worlds, 6- Crash of Silence, 7- Forsaken, 8- The Silent

Cover Art by Eddie Risdal

 Recorded at Eddie Risdal

The guys in Ancestral Legacy play pure obscure music where the raw guitars and the mechanical sounding drums contrast heavily with the excellent female voice. The black metal voices are really extreme and contrast in a really good way with the female ones. There are many guitar arrangements and also a lot of interesting bass passages. It is remarkable that the drums despite being fast and wild leave a lot of space to the other instruments to develope their arrangements and to make changes and fills. There is a good influence of thrash metal and old school black metal in the more rhythmic riffs and it is really good to see epic melodies contrast with the raw sounding riffs. The sound of the recording is raw, specially on the guitars that sound really distorted. Here we have obscure metal with many ideas and well developed compositions ! 

Favorite tracks: "Self-enslavement", "Of Magic Illusions", "Forsaken"

Contact: www.ancestrallegacy.com

APOCALYPTICA - REFLECTIONS (Island Mercury Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Apocalyptica

Tracks: 1- Prologue (Apprehension), 2- No Education, 3- Faraway, 4- Somewhere Around Nothing, 5- Drive, 6- Cohkka, 7- Conclusion, 8- Resurrection, 9- Heat, 10- Cortege, 11- Pandemonium, 12- Toreador II; 13- Epilogue (relief)

Cover Art by Mirjam Haberkorn

 Recorded at Finnvox and Petrax Studios

Here we have the new album by this finnish guys. After their debut playing Metallica covers they developed their own compositions and I have to say that I like more this later albums than the first one. Here we have a band that plays climatic compositions in their own style using cellos, violins and also distorted ones to make them sound like a heavy guitar. Here we have programmed drums and also the help of Dave Lombardo on drums in some tracks. Each of the compositions here have the Apocalyptica sound which is really unique because of the melancholic melodies that they play over the heavier parts and the climatic parts that this guys create with their string instruments. This is an album for all music lovers. 

Favorite tracks: All the album

Contact: www.apocalyptica.com

AURA - THE WAIT (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Aura

Tracks: 1- Miserere Me, 2- The Awakening, 3- Another Word, 4- Aiegey, 5- The Secret, 6- The Wait

Cover Art by Aura

A dark intro with cello sound, a chorus that sings "Miserere Me" and some thunders open this album making a really climatic intro. Then enters the band in a really powerful way with rhythmic riffs. Aura´s music is a good combination of heavy riffs and interesting epic melodies in pure metal vein. Besides the intro we have five tracks of pure melodic metal with many interesting arrangements where the musical ideas are extremely well developed, specially the guitar parts (with killer melodic solos done with great taste). I have to remark the work of Giovanni Trotta both on drums and vocals because he has achieved a great sound and he has a great versatility as singer reaching notes and creating essential melodies that are the core of Aura´s music.

Favorite tracks: All the CD

Contact: aurainfo@virgilio.it

BATTLE RAM - BATTLE RAM (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Battle Ram

Tracks: 1- Burning Lives, 2- The Vow, 3- Dark Command, 4- Battering Ram, 5- Join the Legion (Cirith ungol)

 Recorded at BOB Studio

Battle Ram is pure metal. In fact I think that they are pure classical heavy metal with some power metal elements and many eighties thrash ideas. Their music is epic and fast and they deliver really good compositions here plus a good cover of Cirith Ungol´s "Join the Legion" in a really faithful version. Here we have pure metal riffs with heavy drums and a singer that has done a good job here (this music has some subtle places where if you can reach some notes with your voice you will fail miserably and this guy has achieved good melodic lines and some high pitches without failing). The sound of the recording is good and this helps the results a lot by making each instrument be heard correctly, specially the gutiars that make a lot of solos and riffs.  Pure metal with eighties influences and interesting technical guitars.

Favorite tracks: "Burning lives" and "Battering Ram"

Contact: www.battleram.it

BIG BABY SATAN - BIG BABY SATAN (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Big Baby Satan

Tracks: 1- Lead Us, 2- Commercial, 3- Confidence (4-15-01), 4- Real Men (for Katie), 5- Consumption, 6- Like the Sun, 7- Unmoved, 8- TiBo, 9- Holy Dio

 Recorded at Headphone Prods.

Big Baby Stanp´s music can be defined as modern metal. In fact, their music is a mix of pure metal with some modern influences, specially in the sound and in some of the rhythms. One thing to remark is that this guys have a really weird sound. The guitars are raw and the drumming is extremely rhythmic. This guys have a lot of sense of humour in their music and that is shown specially in the last track that is kind of a parody of Dio´s "Holy Diver". The compositions here are simple but effective preferring to create direct riffs with power than twisted ones. But despite this, Big Baby Satan´s music is weird, specially in the tempo changes that many compositions have. A good original band.

Favorite tracks: "Commercial", "Real Men", "Unmoved"

Contact: www.bigbabysatan.com

BIRKENAU - BIRKENAU (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Angelo Righi

Tracks: 1- Perfect Men, 2- Martyrdome, 3- Pain Valley

Cover Art by Birkenau

 Recorded at Temple of Noise Studios

Here we have three excellent tracks of death thrash metal with a really powerful sound. This guys have developed their own style combining a programmed drum machine with an extremely pounding and loud bass guitar and really fat guitars, developing riffs whose main charachteristic is the heaviness. The riffs are sometimes faster sometimes slower but the main thing here is the heaviness that they achieved. The drumming is fast with a lot of double bass and the bass player is extremely heavy pounding a lot of riffs and arrangements in the bass guitars. It is funny that some aprts of Martyrdome" are a tribute to Slayer´s "Hell Awaits" before developing into a full Birkenau track. One thing that I have to remark is the really good sound that this guys have achieved being an extremely heavy sound that makes things even heavier is that is possible. Heaviness guaranteed.

Favorite tracks: The three

Contact: marcorighi@virgilio.it

BK49 - JOIN THE DEAD (Great White North Recs. / Grind It Recs., 2003)

Produced By: BK49

Tracks: 1- I'll Dig Your Grave, 2- Fleshripping Horror, 3- Death Is The Crown Of Creation, 4- Assembly Of Souls, 5- House On Massgrave Hill, 6- Join The Dead, 7- Funeral March, 8- Morbid Funeral, 9- Buried But Not Deep Enough

 Recorded at Wolkensound Studios

Pure death/thrash metal !! This is an extremely brutal releases with all the elements of death metal, that is fast riffs, guttural and powerful vocals, manic guitar solos, but also with a big dose of thrash metal. Here we have a band that has succesfully mixed fast guitar riffs with many rhythmic parts taht are essential to the heaviness of their sound. There are many ultra fast parts with some drumming blast beats and speed of light like guitar riffs and they are combined with this rhythmic riffs that give diversity to the music. Plus, this guys have combined old school death metal sound with more modern metal creating a really powerful sound with reminiscence of classic bands delivering nine brinmelting tunes. The sound here is really good, specially on the guitars that sound heavier than fuck !!!  

Favorite tracks: "Fleshripping Horror", "Assembly of Souls" and "Join the Dead"

Contact: www.gwnrecords.com or www.grinditrecords.net

BLOOD ISLAND RAIDERS - 16-17 (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Tim Davies and Blood Island Raiders

Tracks: 1- Arguments for the Abolition of God, 2- Circa 3 3- Demon, 4- Closure

Cover Art by Blood Island Raiders

 Recorded At Bonafide Studios

Pure heavier than fuck rock with metal elements with a lot of rocking guitar riffs is what the guys in Blood Island Riders deliver on this album. Here we have heavy guitars that create smashing riffs while a melodic, yet somewhat processed voice delivers some melodies that give a lot of hooks for the ear, specially in the choruses. There are some mini interludes in tracks like "Arguments for the Abolition of God" taht add a different perspective to this guy´s music. The sound is raw and has a lot of the live energy that a band of this style needs to transmit their energy to the listener. I find some Black Sabbath influence but it is mixed along many others in order to create the Blood Island Raiders sound. I liked a lot the riffs, heavy and imaginative and they are the heart and soul of the music here. Pure energy unleashed ! 

Favorite tracks: The four

Contact: www.bloodislandraiders.com

BLOOD ISLAND RAIDERS - FOR THE SAKE OF CLARITY 2 TRACK SAMPLER (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Blood Island Raiders

Tracks: 1- Fear, 2- Master Plan

Cover Art by Blood Island Raiders

This is a recording of two new tracks from the Blood Island Recordings taht will be on their forthcoming EP "For the Sake of Clarity". This two tracks are pure energy with the rocking feeling that this band has through all their recordings. Here we have two tracks with a heavy sound and their heavy feeling combined with the energetic voice that is acharacteristic of this band. This two tracks have a better sound than in their previous "16-17" and they have a lot of power. The guitars sound heavier and deliver more rocking riffs on this one and I hope this guys record even more songs for this EP to continue with their powerful compositions which I liked a lot.

Favorite tracks: Both

Contact: www.bloodislandraiders.com

BLOOD ISLAND RAIDERS - LIVE AT THE MARQUEE 29/11/02 (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Blood Island Raiders

Tracks: 1- Arguments for the Abolition of God, 2- Demon, 3- Circa 3, 4- Master Plan, 5- Galactus - Warrior Snail

 Recorded live at The Marquee 29/11/02

Here is another recording of this band live and here you have all the same comments that I did on their "Live at The Peel" CD. Pure energy unleashed, sounding heavier and much rawer than in the studio version. The recording in "the Peel" has a better sound than this one. Remember that this live albums are not in the official discography of the band but are simply in order to show how good they sound in a live situation. The good thing here is that there are some tracks in common in all three live CDs but there are some different tracks that allows to see other compositions (older and newer) played live. 

Favorite tracks: "Demon", "Arguments..." and "Master Plan"

Contact: www.bloodislandraiders.com

BLOOD ISLAND RAIDERS - LIVE AT UNDERWORLD 31-01-03 (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Blood Island Raiders

Tracks: 1- Arguments for the Abolition of God, 2- Untitled Love Song, 3- Demon, 4- Armageddon, 5- Circa 3 6- Master Plan

Cover Art by Blood Island Raiders

 Recorded live at underworld 31/01/03

This is yet another live "unofficial" recording from the Blood Island Riders. Here we have more live versions opf their classic tunes. And the funny thing here is to see how this guys change the rhythms and the pace of the compositions from one show to the other. This is a show from January 2003 and has a better sound than the one at The Marquee. Here we have also the vocals heavier than in the studio recording and the rawer and heavier sound (not as evident as in the Peel concert). Another showcase of this guys powerful show ! 

Favorite tracks: "Arguments...", "Demon", "Armageddon"

Contact: www.bloodislandraiders.com

BLOOD ISLAND RAIDERS - LIVE AT THE PEEL 15-03-03 (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Blood Island Raiders

Tracks: 1- Arguments for the Abolition of God, 2- Untitled Love Song, 3-Nausea, 4- Demon, 5- Armageddon, 6- Closure, 7- Master Plan

Cover Art by Blood Island Raiders

 Recorded live at The Peel 15/03/03

This is a live recording done not officialy by the band in march of this year. Here you can see how the Blood Isalnd Riders compositions sound when played live. Here you have their raw and heavy sound with some seventies influence in all its magnitude and the songs are played a little bit faster than in their studio version adding more heaviness to the tracks. The voice in this case is not processed and is much heavier than in the studio recording (check for example the "Arguments for the Abolition og God" to see the differences. This is a good testimony of how this guys sound in a live show.  

Favorite tracks: "Arguments...", "Armageddon" and "Demon"

Contact: www.bloodislandraiders.com

BLOODTHRONE - SHIELD OF HATE PROMO 2003 (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Bloodthrone

Tracks: 1- Pagan Holocaust, 2- Betrayed By Blood

Cover Art by Bloodthrone

This guys have evolved a lot since their "Storm of Apocalypse" album. Their music is pure black metal as always but this time they have taken influences from other extreme styles and put them together with the rawest and more brutal black metal. This is not so evident in track 1 where we have the fastest riffs and the most violent drumming blast beats, but in the second track we found this extreme black metal mixed with some death metal style riffing and even some thrash, but retaining the speed that Bloodthrone´s music must have. The band sounds tighter than in their previous release and the sound is much better making things even more powerful. Here we have two tracks that are an advance of their next full length recording and leaves you wanting more of the black metal that this guys deliver. We want more Bloodthrone !! 

Favorite tracks: Both

Contact: www.geocities.com/bloodthrone666

BLOODY PSYCHO - ALL THAT NOIZZ !!! (independent, 2002)

Produced By: Bloody Psycho

Tracks: 1- Wtulony W Mistrza, 2- Murgrabia Robus, 3- Wsród Plaz, 4- DR Ögsbczsn, 5- Wiadro Pasztetowej

Cover Art by Bloody Psycho

Don´t be fooled by the cover of this album !. this guys are not a hard rock band...in fact I was greatly surprised when the first track starts with a death metal riff and gets at full speed. This guys are pure old school death metal with some thrash metal influences and their music is really brutal. The drumming is fast and intense and the guitars create really downtuned riffs with some influences of bands like Sepultura or even Slayer. The third track starts more rhythmical before getting into a mayhemic pure death metal part. Here we have a band that delivers brutality in all the five tracks contained on this album. This is pure death metal done in the old school way...that is crushing rhythm section and devastating guitars.  

Favorite tracks: "Wtulony W Mistrza","Murgrabia Robus" and "Wsród Plaz"

Contact: www.bloodypsycho.prv.pl

BUCKETS OF BLOOD - VOLUME 1 (Bloodbucket Prods, 2003)

Produced By: Bloodbucket Prods

Tracks: 1- Horde of Worms: "Under Blood Red Sky", 2- Castrum: "The Gates of Universal Mystery", 3- Visions of the Night: "Postalled", 4- Adumus: "Besieging Abominations", 5- Impure: "Insidious Malicious Breed", 6- Amors Et Bello: "Il Destare del Diavolo", 7- Tessaract: "On the Depths of Purgatory", 8- Vrykolakas "Zabaniah Nemesis of Jahim", 9- Vigilia Mortum "Shadow...", 10- Eclipse Eternal: "The King", 11- Omnium Gatherum: "Idiosyncrasies of Others", 12- Toxic Holocaust "Demise", 13- Defaced "Victim of the Past", 14- Time of Death "Forever Trapped in a Broken Mirror", 15- Infeccion Cronica "Repulsiva Concepcion", 16- Feral Horde "Sanity´s Mask", 17- Sadistic Kill "Vaginal Grinder", 18 - Brutal Noise "Desmembrando", 19- Scablord "Dr. Parknson´s Microsurgery", 20- Horde of Worms "Firestorm"

Here we have a compilation that has no mercy for the listener and that devastates ears and brains with the most brutal music!!.  Here we have great brutal bands such as Horde of Worms or Visions of the Night whose music we have reviewed in the past. Here we have bands such as Adumus that create a good combination of black metal with death metal and they also add keayboards to their music and then we have also death and grind bands such as Sadistic Kill or Defaced. On this compilation everything is pure brutality and this guys will melt your brain into liquid metal when you listen to this twenty tracks of bestiality. This is a compilation taht I woulkd recommend to those who are not afraid of listening the most extreme side of music.

Favorite tracks: "Under Blood Red Sky", "Postalled" and "Shadow..."

Contact: www.bloodbucketproductions.com

BURNIN´ DOLL - SURGICAL DEMO 2002 (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Burnin´ Doll

Tracks: 1- Intolerance, 2- Surgical universe, 3- Burnin Doll, 4- Friendly Eyes

Cover Art by Simone Perin, Raffaello Indri, Marco Sandron

 Recorded at White Skull Studios

This MCD opens at full speed with "Intolerance", a blast of pure speed thrash metal with a really modern sound and a lot of changes and variations. This guys have no mercy with their fast riffs, their blasting drumming and their vocals thata re a mix of thrash metal voice and high pitched vocals in the style of bands like early Hexenhaus. But they have mixed other types of vocals (middle ranged) and screams in the modern metal vein. The riffs are amazingly powerful. This band has achieved memorable songs with extreme power and really good melodies combined into Burnin´Doll´s own sound. I have to remark the good mix that this album has making the guitars sound even more powerful along with the good double bass drumming and making the solos shine. You have to check this band.

Favorite tracks: The four

Contact: Raffaellox@libero.it

CAEDES - 1 MAL POUR 1 BIEN (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Caedes

Tracks: 1- Intro, 2- Renais, 3- La Seule Solution, 4- Made in Violence, 5-Soldorak, 6- Le Fleau, 7- Belles et Brutes, 8- Down with Chickens, 9- 7 Attempt

Cover Art by Tdu_MST

 Recorded at Christian Carvin, Studio

This albums open very climatically with some noises and sounds before getting into atmospheric riffs. Then comes the heavier part of the track called "Renais",a track that is a mix of modern metal with some combination of deathly vocals with another voice that is more in the modern metal style. The guitars play heavy riffs while the rhythm sections develope rhythms that are for the moshpit, sometimes heavier sometimes more rapping style. I have to remark that the lyrics here are sometimes in french language and sometimes in english and that adds a different feeling to Caedes music. Another thing to point out is the good mix that this album has, specially on the guitars. Original modern metal

Favorite tracks: "Renais", "Made in Violence" and "Le Fleau"

Contact: www.caedes.fr.fm

CALMSITE - STEELPIT ( Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Jani Loikas

Tracks: 1- Asskin, 2- Mudwhip, 3- Concrete Prayer

Cover Art by Calmsite

Some issues back we reviewed the previous Calmsite album and this one is even more powerful !!! This guys polay melodic death metal with an extremely huge guitar sound (one of the most powerful I have listened) and with multiple arrangements thata re the essence of this finnish guys music. Here we have pure aggression done in a majestic way. The really good thing about Calmsite is that they make really memorable tunes. Yes, this songs with their guitars keep spinning in your brain long after the album has finished. This is a three song MCD that leaves you wanting more of this violence done in such a great way. The mix of different types of vocals in tracks like "Asskin" is a trademark as also are the heavy metal influenced riffs. This is pure bestial metal done by great musicians. !!

Favorite tracks: The three

Contact: http://listen.to/calmsite

CAMAROS - ROMANTIQUE (Black Ballon Recs., 2002)

Produced By: Sven Olsen

Tracks: 1- Babe, you got me down, 2- Please mama, please, 3- In a Hole, 4- Cheesecake, 5- Hell-o-hell, 6- Romantique, 7- Poon tang, 8- the loopy loop, 9- Jugs, 10- Drunkness, 11- Crank

Judging by the cover I expected a less powerful band than this one. Thanks God I was wrong! This band is reallly powerful ! Here we have a band that makes some sort of rawer than hell heavy rock, or raw stoner rock with some punk influences. This album sounds really wild and raw letting their imagination flow in many places with their heavier than hell riffs and their manic vocals and guitar parts. The songs here have many hooks and they are memorable long after listening to them. All the compositions have a lot of rhythm and they seem to be designed to be played live (I can imagine a concert with people jumping, moshing and even dancing in many places). The vocals are raw and I specially liked the combination of the amle vocals and the female ones that give a lot of identity to the band. The sound of the recording is raw, specially on the guitars, and has this magic of the power trio (guitar, drums and bass) that makes things raw and wild and where you can feel the bass pumping along with the drums. This band is pure energy and power and each of the songs here is really well constructed delivering eleven good compositions.

Favorite tracks: "In a Hole", "Romantique", "Drunkness"

Contact: www.blackballoonrecords.com

CASTRUM - MYSTERIOUS YET UNWEARIED (Bloodbucket Prods., 2003)

Produced By: Gena Donecki and Cornelius

Tracks: 1- The gate of the universal mystery, 2- The undiscovered Dimension, 3- Sinister Omens, 4- Suffocating Thugs, 5- Unrestrained Power, 6- Desert of Darkness, 7- the Art of Homicide, 8- Invisible Force of Fear, 9- The Essence of the Past Still Haunts Us, 10- Dark paths to the Ancient thrones

Cover Art by Ysserge

 Recorded at Radio 107 FM Studios

Castrum comes directly from Ukraine and as most of the Bloodbucket Prods. Catalogue they deliver one of the most bestial death metal on Earth. But they combine this brutality with a lot of technical riffs and classical sounds that add a different dimension to the band´s music. Each of the compositions here have multiple parts, tempo changes and rhythmic variations. Plus, this guys know how to put some twisted melodies within their riffs to give the exact dosis of melody that their music needs to be even more extreme. I have to remark taht the mix is raw but at the same time makes the band sound extremely tight. I liked a lot the solos and the guitar arrangements that are the esence of Castrum´s music. This is one of the best combinations of brutality and great arrangements in death metal.

Favorite tracks: "The gate of universal...", "Unrestrained Power" and "Invisible Force of Fear"

Contact: www.bloodbucketproductions.com

CATACOMBS - CATACOMBS (Cthulhu Productions, 2003)

Produced By: Catacombs

Tracks: 1- Consigned to Flames of Woe, 2- Echoes Through the Catacombs

Cover Art by Catacombs

Pure almighty DOOOMMMM !!! Yes, here we have a band that delivers two extense track of the most dense and atmospheric doom that exists all over the planet. Here we have a band that goes at a slow pace constructing really climatic compositions through more than a hlaf hour. The guttural voices fit the darker than hell atmosphere perfectly and add a deathly feeling to the music. The guitars here are really distorted and develope riffs that are the essence of the music of the band. Plus here we have a drummer that delivers interesting arrangements in a really slow context creating interesting passages. There are deppressive melodies in the beginning of "Echoes..." that add sadness and loneliness to the tunes. This is a must for any doom metal lover !!

Favorite tracks: Both

Contact: http://cthulhuprod.mercurous.net

CHEESY - BEG ( Little Shark Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Justin Billinger

Tracks: 1- Got Freaks, 2- Backseatboy, 3- Talk, 4- B52, 5- Get Away, 6- Countryside, 7- Seven, 8- Cynical Dimension, 9- Words, 10- Get it On, 11- Your Style, 12- Freebee, 13- Surprise Me

Cover Art by Sander Foederer

 Recorded at Galaxy Studios

Cheesy is a heavy rock band taht has created here thirteen tunes of pure powerful rock with some metal shades, specially in the guitar sound and in some heavy guitar riffs. There are some new metal influences here, particullarly the one of Korn in some of the bass lines and in the vocals. This guys are pure energy and deliver heavy riffs and many ideas through this record ing. I have to remark the versatility in Coen´s vocals taht go from a melodic voice to full heavy screaming within the same song and without hesitation. The songs have a funny sense of humour in the lyrics and in many passages and they have multiple changes within the same song structure. The sound of this recording is really good. Here we have a good option that will appeal to fans of modern metal.

Favorite tracks: "Talk", "Cynical Dimension" and "Get it On"

Contact: www.cheesy.nl or www.littleshark.com

CHRISTOF KURZMANN - THE AIR BETWEEN (Charhizma Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Christof Kurzmann

Tracks: 1- The Air Between

Cover Art by Philipp Arnold

This is an extremely experimental recording that starts with a sound that repeats itself over and over again with slight variations. Then different sounds start to appear on the recording giving shape to this spontaneous composition. It is incredible the way in which this album is recorded because it plays a lot with the different speakers of your musical equipment (an ideal album to listen with a surround system). Here we have Christof Kurzmann who experiments on one track that is over 46 minutes long with every sound and every noise posibility making a really coherent experimentation. This is an album designed to open minds because you start listening the sounds and then you start getting the idea that Kurzmann wanted to transmit and you find the different shapes taht his music acquires. A really experimental release for lovers of experimentation.  

Favorite tracks: "The Air Between"

Contact: www.charhizma.com

CORIOR - THE NEW METAL CHATEL CREW (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Corior

Tracks: 1- Out of Order, 2- Sunstroke, 3- Dead Bodies, 4- Well Come, 5- Saturate, 6- Blizzard, 7- Sentence of Life

The beginning of this album is slow as hell, almost doom but the music of the band does not follow that path, creating instead fast riffs with death thrash metal feeling. The guitars here spill utter heaviness over the listener having no mercy through all the tracks. The drumming gives sort of a classic thrash feeling to the music and sounds extremely raw, and here you can see that this guy is killer behind the drumkit, specially in some passages in "Out of Order" where he shows interesting arrangements in many passages. The vocals are deathly but this guys prefer to be brutal instead of guttural The mix is a little bit muddy and raw and I sugest the band to mix the drums a little bit clearer to fit better the guitars. Pure raw brutal metal.

Favorite tracks: "Out of Order", "Dead Bodies"

Contact: www.corior.fr.st

DAFELDECKER / KURZMANN/DRUMM/eRikm/DIEB13/NOETINGER (Charhizma Recs., 2002)

Produced By: Christof Kurzmann and Werner Dafeldecker

Tracks: 1- Berlin 1,2- Graz 2, 3- Wien 1, 4- Berlin 2, 5- Berlin 3

Cover Art by M. Fineder

 Recorded live at Berlin, Graz and Wien

Here we have a collaboration between five extremely experimental musicians. Here we have in five tracks elements so different as synthesizers, guitars and turntables. The goal that this guys have achieved here is to experiment with the sounds that they can extract from this instrument, creating a collage of noises, sounds and phrases that go beyond any classification. What we have here is pure experimentation of the most extreme kind. Dafeldecker is amazing with his electronics and his bass while Kurzmann does some interesting clarinet sounds. The tracks are recorded live and that gives even more spontaneity to the musi c. This is pure experimentationa nd you have to got a really open mind while hearing this to appreciate it. This is boundarie breaking music.

Favorite tracks: "Berlin 1" and "Wien 1"

Contact: www.charhizma.com

DAHMER - THE STUDIO SESSIONS DISCOGRAPHY (Great White North Recs./ Grind It Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Dahmer

Tracks: 1- Pseudo-underground ,02. Emportez notre race, 3- Richard Ramirez 4- Une bonne 50 tablette, 5- Société industrielle, 6- Ta religion... Tes problèmes, 7- Foncez, 8- Consommateurs leaders, 9- Unabomber, 10- James Oliver Huberty, 11-Donald Harvey, 12- Peter Kurten, 13- Carl Panzram, 14- Marcel Petiot , 15- Tant de bonnes raisons, 16- Premières nations, 17-Herbert Mullin , 18- William George Bonin, 19- Randy Stephen Kraft , 20-Thomas Hamilton , 21- Harvey Murray Glatman, 22- Friedrich Haarmann, 23- Henry Lee Lucas , 24- Edmund Emil Kemper III, 25- Dean Corll, 26- Dahmer, 27- Herman Webster Mudgett, 28- Jonestown, 29- V-gang, 30- Strong or weak person, 31. Albert Hamilton Fish , 32. Strong or weak person, 33. Bastards , 34. Les dieux de l'underground, 35. Gary Michael Heidnick, 36. David Berkowitz, 37- Friedrich Haarmann , 38- Just another dis-clone song, 39. Tueurs en séries, 40. Dennis Andrews Nilsen, 41. Harvey Murray Glatman, 42. Simoneau, 43. Pedro Alfonso Lopez , 44. Jonestown, 45. Edward Gein, 46. V-gang ,47. Herman Webster Mudgett , 48. John Wayne Gacy ,49. In cool branché sensass et flyé, 50. Positif, 51. Jeanne Moulinet Weber, 52. Henry Lee Lucas, 53. Edmund Emil Kemper III, 54. The hillside stranglers, 55. Douglas Daniel Clark, 56. Adolfo De Jesus De Constanzo, 57. Mark Essex/John George Haigh , 58. Albert Hamilton Fish, 59. Jeanne Moulinet Weber, 60. Simoneau ,61. In cool branché sensass et flyé, 62. David Berkowitz

Dahmer is pure grindcore: their music is faster than the speed of light with combination of the typical vocals of grind style, that is a mix of guttural voices and of the most screaming type. Here we have short tracks that are really a burst of sound with uttermost power and we also have longer tracks that are my favorite where the Dahmer guys develope their best ideas in their ultra extreme context. The guitars are chainsaw like going at ultra speed most of the time and are combined with the blast beating drumming. There are some parts like the beginning of "Une bonne 50 tablette" where the Dahmer guys deliver heavier riffs with a more mid paced feeling that add a lot of heaviness to the bands music. The sound of the recording is raw but extremely clear (specially on guitar and drums) and that is fundamental to fully appreciate Dahmer´s power without making the music of the band sound buried in the mix. Pure grind in its most pure form !!!!

Favorite tracks: All the CD is pure madness unleahsed

Contact: www.gwnrecords.com or www.grinditrecords.net

DANZIG - I LUCIFERI ( Spitfire Recs., 2002)

Produced By: Glenn Danzig

Tracks: 1- Unendlich, 2- Black mass, 3- Wicked Pussycat, 4- God of light, 5- Liberskull, 6- Dead inside, 7- Kiss the Skull, 8- I Luciferi, 9- Naked Witch, 10- Angel Blake, 11- The Coldest Sun, 12- Halo Goddess Bone, 13- Without Light, I Am

This is Glenn Danzig´s latest opus and it opens with a dark intro that soon turns into "Black Mass" a heavy and rhythmic tune that is typical Danzig. This album has the feeling of the previous one and also the same as the first Danzig recordings (that is not the semi industrial feeling of "Blackacidevil"), concentrating in the dark feeling as in, for example, "Danzig 4". Here Glenn´s voice makes the melodies that he has accustomed us to. You will not find that much variations here but this is what we expect from Danzig´s music, pure rockin heaviness, pure darkness and Glenn´s typical voice telling his tales about perversions. The recording has a good sound, specially on the guitars that are the essence of the band giving heaviness to the compositions. 

Favorite tracks: "Wicked Pussycat", "Kiss the Skull" and "The Coldest Sun"

Contact: www.spitfirerecords.com

DEFORGE - FREEDOM RELEASE (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Christian Ice

Tracks: 1- Vicious Circle, 2- Catch Hold, 3- Germinate, 4- Immortality, 5- Mindless State, 6- The Sense of Change

 Recorded at Temple of Noise Studios

Deforge is a name that now we can consider a synonim of technical detha metal. This is what I call progressive death metal in the sense that is constalnty evolving, changing and breaking boundaries with the multiple arrangements that this band delivers through all this album. This is a band that has influences of thrash and death metal and they have mixed them into their own complex sound. And this complexity is really attractive. You will be surprised with this album always wondering what ideas are coming nest, what solos, what drums patterns, what tempo changes. This guys are really extremely crafted musicians and their music is really amazing. I have become a fan of this band while listening to this amazing album. A must for any music lover.

Favorite tracks: All the album. One of the albums of the month

Contact: www.deforgeband.com

DEFTONES - DEFTONES (Maverick Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Terry Date and Deftones

Tracks: 1- Hexagram, 2- Needles and Pinds, 3- Minerva, 4- Good Morning Beautiful, 5- Deathblow, 6- When Girls Telephone Boys, 7- Battle Axe, 8- Lucky You, 9- Bloody Cape, 10- Anniversary of an Uninteresting Event, 11- Moana

 Recorded at The Spot

The new Deftones album is very similar to "White Pony". Why am I saying this? Because this guys found a characteristic sound and they have settled in that side of the heavy music spectre and it seems that they are not moving further. Here we have the climatic elements that are essential in Deftones sound. Here we have the heavy riffs and the cold vocals by Chino Moreno. The sound is good and very similar to the one in "White Pony". This is a release strictly for lovers of the band because you will not find anything new here.

Favorite tracks: "Deathblow", "Battle Axe" and "Bloody Cape"

Contact: www.deftones.com

DEIVOS - HOSTILE BLOOD ( Independent., 2003)

Produced By: Deivos

Tracks: 1- Chasm Climber, 2- Hostile Blood, 3- Encircled by Nothingness, 4- Scarcity of Suffering, 5- Throw off the Fetters

Cover Art by Tirex

 Recorded at Marton Studio

An extremely aggressive death metal band coming directly from Lublin, Poland. This guys deliver original riffs played with precission and speed and they mix death metal with a lot of technical parts that add a really good taste to their music. There are a lot of aggressive parts with blast beats and many breaks and tempo changes on each composition. There is a lot of precission here and this guys seem to be really well rehearsed because they sound extremely tight. Each of the compositions here seem to be a combination of multiple ideas and arrangements that this guys have developed in a really good way. The brutal guttural voices give the death metal feeling here contrasting heavily with the more technical guitar riffs and drumming. The recording has really good sound and that allows to appreciate the good music that this guys deliver with brutality. Brutality with really good musicianship. 

Favorite tracks: The five.

Contact: www.deivos.republika.pl

DESPISE / IMPERIAL FOETICIDE - SPLIT CD (Grodhaisn Prods., 2003)

Produced By: Grodhaisn Prods.

Imperial Foeticide: 6- Thundering Before the tempest of demise, 7- Feature, 8- The Story Continues, 9- Two different ways, 10- The seat of the waves of lowness, 11- ....my guide is still inside

This is pure brutality guaranteed!

Favorite tracks: "Room 101", "Separated Entity" and "Confrontation"

Contact: www.grodhaisn.cjb.net

DEVILISH ERA / ZAGHURIM SPLIT - PROLEGOMENA TO THE THEORY OF DEATH ( Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Devilish Era and Zaghurim

Tracks: Devilish Era: 1- The Purifying Cult of the Ancestors, 2- Much to My Dismay, 3- Apocalyptic Eschatology, 4- Impedimenta, 5- Der Abshaum, 6- Delude to Believers. Zaghurim, 7- The Fantasy to Be Dead, 8- Rapture Means Torture, 9- Entangled in Leather Whips, 10- Bondage is the Law, 11- Climax in Alcohol Baths

Cover Art by Lord Naggaroth and Thrall

This split CD is pure experimentation with extreme sounds, electronics and will appeal to lovers of original music with a dark feeling and originality

Favorite tracks: "The purifying...", "Apocalyptic Eschatology", "Bondage is the Law"

Contact: lordnag@hotmail.com

DIGITUS IN RECTO - SWITCH!!! (Crystal Production, 2002)

Produced By: Digitus in Recto

Tracks: 1- Switch!!, 2- How does it feel, 3- Casper, Little Bear and Angel Cookies, 4- Pure Pop, 5- Janeéna, 6- Basket full of Puppies, Kitten and Other Trash, 7- Killer, 8- The Little Commandment, 9- Early Morning, 10- Salvation, 11- "12", 13- Trip to Nowhere

 Recorded at Exponent Studio

I could not believe what I was listening the first few seconds: some keyboards and some electronics sounds...and then comes the hevy guitars and then comes some rapping voices. This guys surely are original!! There are keyboards all over the compositions here. Then the voices turn into more melodic style adding a different feeling to the song. I really liked the contrasts that this guys have developed on this album and the combination of different vocal styles and electronics / keyboards and heavy guitars. There are also many styles going on here: from metal to hardcore and also to some punk rock. Here we have a band that combines a powerful sound with a more mechanical one and also with some accessible riffs thta make the compositions really memorable. But the essence here is the experimentation with new song structures and with moods and contrasts. This is an album for open minded people !  

Favorite tracks: All the album

Contact: www.crystalprod.cz

DISCREATE - DISCREATE (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Discreate

Tracks: 1- Drift in Evil, 2- System Soul, 3- Given Into Sin, 4- SSIIXX

Cover Art by Discreate

One of the first things that gort my attention here is the really good drumming that Discreate has. With a clear sound and interesting passages, changes and rhythms. We have here a band that combines effectively eighties thrash metal with more modern metal delivering five powerful tracks on this CD. One remarkable thing here is the really good vocal work that interacts really well with the creative guitar riffs. Here we have a band that has combined technical stuff with crushing rhythms in order to generate a music that is extremely powerful and at the same time original and with a good sound. The mix here is really good yet raw and gives more power to the band making each of the arrangements fully audible. A good combination of aggression and good musicianship. 

Favorite tracks: The five

Contact: www.discreate.com

DISFIGURED CORPSE - UNITED HELLLAND (Crystal Prod Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Mros and Disfigured Corpse

Tracks: 1- Holy Propagandaa, 2- I, me , mine (selfish signs), 3- Toy Games, 4- Not Understanding, 5- Chill Out, 6-Mind Obsession, 7- Four Seasons, 8- Blood, 9- Deliver/Destroy, 10- Lights Out, 11-Ave Maria, 12- Upper Society, 13- Six Six Six, 14- Life, 15- Instant Purity, 16- Parasites, 17- Obrij Me Majko, 18- Repeater, 19- Four suicides enough, honey (comrades are already dead!), 20- Viva la Nu Metal (666)

 Recorded at Shaark Studios

This is with no doubt one of the most brutal releases of the month !! The guys of Disfigured Corpse are pure brutal death metal from the first second to the last one of this recording. Here we have a band that combineds the heaviest guitar riffs with the fastest ones within the same song. Here we have a drummer that loves blast beats and also loves some thrash style drumming that allows the band to develope even heavier riffs. The musicians here use downtuned guitars and that adds heaviness to their riffing. Plus we have a really extreme voice that is guttural but clear and is used as another instrument to make things even more brutal. This recording has a remarkable good sound that is essential to brutalize even more their sound.

Favorite tracks: "I, me mine...", "Lights Out" and "Instant Purity"

Contact: www.crystalprod.cz

DISTILLED - DISTILLED (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Distilled

Tracks: 1- Rise, 2- Everyday, 3- Deception, 4- Dimm

Cover Art by Distilled

The music is powerful and is sort of a mix between heavy bands like Pantera (mostly because of the most aggressive voice and the ultra heavy sound of the guitars) and some alternative band (in the slower parts). There is also some influence of modern metal, specially on the guitar sound and some harmonizations of the voice. And this mix gives two things to Distilled´s music: power and originality. Power because with their riffs and rhythms this band is extremely aggressive yet subtle and originality because by taking this influences and developing new ideas they have found an original sound that distinguish them from the rest of the bands. The sound of this recording is really good, specially on the guitars that sound devastating. A good, powerful release 

Favorite tracks: The four

Contact: www.distilled.net

DIVINA ENEMA - AT THE CONCLAVE (Great White North Recs./ Grind It Recs., 2001)

Produced By: Vladimir Burakoff

Tracks: 1- Gargoyles Ye Rose Aloft, 2- Down Along The Roots, 3- The Holy Holt, 4- Nightmare, 5- Holy Forever, 6- The Darkest Hour

Cover Art by Divina Enema

 Recorded at i Daemon Inside Labs

This is a weird band whose music I liked a lot. I would call their music progressive death/black/heavy metal because of the multiple riffs and multiple changes and parts that each of the compositions have. Plus, there is also a big influence of heavier bands in the  faster parts that sound really black metal in many places. There are some parts that sound black metal and also parts that are more in the vein of bands like King Diamond (mostly because of the vocals) to give you just an example of the feeling that they get on this album. All the tracks are really well develope and they combine heaviness, complex changes and technical riffs with a dark atmosphere, intense melodies and multiple arrangements. This guys have a lot of technique and that allows them to create this interesting and magnificent compositions. I would recomend this band to every metal lover !!

Favorite tracks: All the CD

Contact: www.gwnrecords.com or www.grinditrecords.net

DIVINA ENEMA - UNDER PHOENIX PHENOMENON (Great White North Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Divina Enema

Tracks: 1- Midnight Horror Factory, 2- A Handful Of Hay, 3-...Of Day And Funeral To Come, 4- P.C. Larvae, 5- Iron Megaira, 6- Demon Mastery Top Level, 7- The Face Of Oranus, 8- No Corpse - No Funeral, 9- God Bless You, Bastards!, 10- Total Core Melting, 11- Impyre Concord, 12- Fee Nicks Fen' Omen On

Cover Art by Divina Enema

If "At the Conclave" was an amazing album this one is even better. Here we have all the elements that are Divina Enema´s trademark such as the ultra technical riffs, the innumerable tempo changes and rhythm breaks, the different kinds of vocals and the extreme technicality of the musicians. Plus here the band has developed even better the compositions that have multiple riffs and sounds (check as an example the masterpiece called "A handful of Hay" to see what this guys are capable of doing with their instrument. Plus we have here the combination of different styles that are the essence of Divina Enema´s music and that gives a lot of originality to their music. This album has a better sound than "At the Conclave", specially on the guitars taht here sound heavier and more compact. This is an album that I would recommend to everyone that loves originality and good musicianship. 

Favorite tracks: All the CD

Contact: www.gwnrecords.com or www.grinditrecords.net

DOL AMMAD - ELECTRONICA-ART-METAL (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Argy and Lightbridge

Tracks: 1- Eclipse (Corona of the Sun), 2- the Veil (Seven Face Danger), 3- Vortex 3003, 4- Boxed Daylight (Part I), 5- Boxed Daylight (Part II), 6- The Hill of Hope

Cover Art by Thanasis Lightbridge

 Recorded at Rain Lab Studios

This is a great experimental band. THe main thing here is the heavy experimentation with keyboards and electronics. Plus here we have also heavy guitars and fast programmed drums that add a heavy, yet machine like sound to the music here. This is an album of experimentation and contrasts and there are a lot of different feelings going on here. And another essential feature here is the Europa choir that is omniprescent through all this recording full of beautiful male and female vocals and adding a classical, yet dark atmosphere to the band´s music. I have to remark the originality of this recording and the multiple ideas that this guys have on all the compositions. A must.

Favorite tracks: ""

Contact: www.dolammad.com

DREADFUL - RIFFS + NEW TRACKS (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Dreadful

Tracks: 1- And God Created Humanity..., 2- Requiem, 3- Spirit Slaughter, 4- Bird of Prey, 5- Insomniac Leeches, 6- Stilldark, 7- Hell vs Heaven. New songs: 8- Death Ceremonial, 9- Man prophecy, 10- An Eye for an Eye

A climatic guitar intro opens this album with "And God Created Humanity..." a seven minutes long track full of dark guitars and mulktiple rhythm changes. And this is the essence of Dreadful´s music: heavier than hell guitars with multiple rhythms and riffs, a lot of guitar arrangements (among them some done with clean guitars) and a singer that sounds really thrash metal (that is a guy that has a powerful voice and uses middle range vocals with some screams). The album has a raw sound and I think that mixing the bass and the rhythm guitar a little bit louder can add a lot of power to the music. The drumming is intense and follows closely the guitars making the band sound really tight and rehearsed. tHis album has an eighties thrash feeling with a modern sound that I really liked.  

Favorite tracks: "And God created...", "Spirit Slaughter" and "Man Prophecy"

Contact: dreadful.riffs@voila.fr

ECLIPTIC SUNSET - ...FROM THESE DRIED LANDS (Furias Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Eduardo Mallada

Tracks: 1- Sanre Voukods Lak Act I, 2- Sanre Voukods Lak Act II, 3- Gales of Tragedy, 4- My Place oin the Dark, 5- Tears Far Away, 6- Deprimenthia, 7- In Nomine Nosferatus, 8- Demons, 9- I Belong to My Loneliness

 Recorded at El Cerro Studios

Coming directly from Salta, in the northwestern part of Argentina, here comes this climatic and full of dark feelings black metal. Ecliptic Sunset is the vehicle for the musical ideas of Alejandro Miguel Medina, who has composed all the music and lyrics of this dark jewel. Here we have many session musicians showing that Alejandro is not afraid of experimenting with many different sounds, with keyboards, violins, contrabass or female vocals. Here everything is really obscure and the keyboards are essential to achieve this dark atmospheres. Plus, Alejandro´s vocals are really black metal giving that blasphemic feeling to this recording. Here we have also interesting guitar melodies that combined with the other instruments give an amazing feeling to the compositions. A black masterpiece.

Favorite tracks: All the CD

Contact: www.orionmusicfurias.com.ar

EL CACO - VIVA (Black Ballon Recs., 2001)

Produced By: El Caco

Tracks: 1- I´ll Play, 2- Suffer, 3- Oh You, 4- Oh Yeah !, 5- Shine (there´s miles ahead), 6- She-man, 7- Cosmic, 8- high on a Low, 9- Mescaline, 10- Monster, 11- Blue Zone, 12- I Spill the Water

Cover Art courtesy of the international museum of childrens Arts, Oslo.

 Recorded at Athletic Sound Studios

This is El Caco´s previous album and it is definitely different of the new one. This is kind of more rockin instead of the heavier side that they showed on the new one. Here we have rocking guitars, a pounding bass and open drumming tat leaves a lot of space for the other instruments to develop their ideas. Good vocals that are melodic and at the same time powerful fitting perfectly the rest of the music. Good sound and mix make the guitars really loud and compact giving that powerful rocking sound that this band has. This is a really powerful release and by listening their newer album I noticed a lot of evolution in the correct direction of this norwegian guys. Pure powerful music !!!

Favorite tracks: "Suffer", "Cosmic" and "Monster"

Contact: www.blackballoonrecords.com

EL CACO - SOLID REST (Black Ballon Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Daniel Bergstrand and El Caco

Tracks: 1- Marionette, 2- The Small Hours, 3- H.A.H., 4- A Nice Day, 5- Blind No more, 6- Mrs. Coma, 7- Get Up (on the sidewalk), 8- Space Station, 9- Please Be Sad, 10- No regrets, 11- Suffocate

Cover Art by Motorfinger

 Recorded at Dug Out Productions

This is the powerful new release by norwegian band El Caco...here we have a band that has guitars that have nothing to envy to the one in bands like Pantera, Machine Head or the top names in the style of the most aggressive modern metal and they combine this aggression with more rocking type of riffs. Here we have a band that combines in a really good way agressive riffs and rhythms and climatic parts with excellent vocals that amke each of the songs here really memorable. Plus I have to remark the powerful sound that this band has achieved on this recording. You have only got to check the opening "Marionette" to feel the energy that this band delivers through all the album. The songs are very rhythmical and that is essential in shows to make people headbang and mosh to this compositions. A release that deserves to be listened by a wide audience. 

Favorite tracks: "Please be Sad", "A Nice Day" and "Suffocate"

Contact: www.blackballoonrecords.com

ELFFOR - SON OF THE SHADES ( Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Eöl

Tracks: 1- Jaboren Basoa, 2- Son of the Shades, 3- Of Wolves and Blood, 4- Infernal Woods, 5- Ravensong, 6- The Nocturnal Moon, 7- Long Winter Days, 8- Unholy Gleam

Cover Art by Igor Muguerza

 Recorded at Tata Studios

An extremely dark composition called "Jaboren Basoa" with a lot of keyboards and an eerie obscure feeling but with a lot of beauty opens this recording. And this is a good example of what Elffor´s music is like. Darkness, extreme darkness and extreme desolation are the main feelings here. But also you will rejoice on the beauty of the sad melodies delivered here. Here Eöl´s keyboards are the main instrument, accompanied by whispering or trollish vocals and some percussion. Here we have a composer that has achieved a way to communicate his feelings in a great way through his music that is full of expression and is done in a really magnificent way. The tracks are slow paced and that adds even more sadness to the compositions. The recording is really good as is the mix and that shows how beautiful this music is. A must for lovers of music done with heart, mind and soul. 

Favorite tracks: All the CD

Contact: www.elffor.xrs.net

ENDLESS TIME - ANCIENT TALES (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Endless Time

Tracks: 1- the beginning, 2- Screaming of my soul, 3- King of the waves, 4- Unwanted treason

Cover Art by Endless Time

Endless Time´s music can be defined as metal with epic elements. And they achieve this epic characteristics in their music through melodies and vocal harmonies that they deliver on all the compositions here. The guitar riffs are simple and effective preferring to construct a lot of arrangements over a simple riff where to develope the good melodies instead of playing complex arrangements. Here we have guitar melodies that are also part of the essence of the band´s music. I have to reamrk the good work of the keyboards and the guitars here giving atmosphere and power to the tracks. Laura Terragni´s vocals fit really well the music and add a lot of feeling to it while her voice is harmonized by male and female ones adding a different atmosphere. The sound is a little bit raw, specially on the guitars and I think that this guys will get better sound with more time in the studio. A good metal album and we want more songs!!  

Favorite tracks: "Screaming of My Soul", "King of the Waves"

Contact: www.endless-time.it

ENJOY SARMA - NO FAKE SMILES (Rock Express Recs., 2002)

Produced By: Enjoy Sarma

Tracks: 1- No fake Smiles, 2- Mirror, 3- Innocence Take, 4- Black Dog, 5- Power Thrashing Mad, 6- Nineteen, 7- Better Days, 8- Empty Shells, 9- Chained Soul, 10- Beer Attesting Day

Cover Art by Milan Zivkovic

Enjoy Sarma is pure thrash with some modern metal influences in the sound and a death metal spirit in some of the vocals. But the main thing here is the most aggressive style in thrash metal. The guitars sound extremely heavy creating a wall of sound against which the vocals are delivered. And the vocals give a lot of thrash feeling to the music too being raw and powerful and at the same time delivering some death metal screaming and also some heavy metal feeling to the songs. The band sounds tight and well rehearsed and deliver the compositions with a lot of confidence. The sound of the recording is good specially on the guitars giving a lot of power to each of the compositions. This band comes from Yugoslavia and it is a good exponent of the metal from that country.  

Favorite tracks: "Mirror", "Power Thrashing Mad" and "Empty Shells"

Contact: www.rockexpress.org

ENTHRAL - SUBTERRANEAN MOVEMENT (Displeased Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Enthral

Tracks: 1- Earth Left Behind, 2- Death Immaculate, 3- Inject Hate, 4- Subterranean Movement, 5- Our Justice Be Done, 6- To the Bone, 7- Slaves of One Tongue, 8- Charge of the I

 Recorded at MLP Studios

Some years ago I listened the first Enthral album "Prophecies of the Dying" and I still got it in my collection as one of my favorite albums. Now here comes this third album and the band has evolved a lot. From the climatic black metal of the first release they have taken all their influences such as death metal and classical metal and put them together into their own music.Here we have fast riffs combined with climatic moments (fundamental in Enthral´s music) with a lot of aggression and a lot of musicianship here. Kjetil´s drumming is thunderous and combined with Gunnhild and Ronny´s guitars are the essence of the band. There are really dark melodies such as the ones in the beginning of "Inject Hate" taht give a darker than hell aura to Enthral´s music. The recording has a good sound that allows all the multiple riffs and drum patterns to be listened perfectly. A must for all lovers of the uttermost dark music !

Favorite tracks: All the album

Contact: www.displeasedrecords.com

ERESIA - MOTO IMPERPETUO (Independent, 2001)

Produced By: Eresia

Tracks: 1- Eresia, 2- Es, 3- Ultima Notte, 4- Nato per Uccidere, 5- Moto Imperpetuo, 6- Acrono, 7- Sei solo, 8- Altrove, 9- Metamorfosi

 Recorded at No Brain Studio

Eresia is pure brutality!!!. I wouldn´t have guessed because of the cover art but this guys are really brutal. Their music is really fast and powerful and the voices are guttural as the most brutal style needs in order to be really bestial and extreme. Here we have a band whose music is made of powerful guitar riffs, fast drumming (sometimes more death metal, sometimes more thrash metal), manic guitar solos full of speed and energy. The lyrics are in italian language and that gives a strange feeling to the music (is not really common in bands of the style). The sound of the recording is raw and energetic giving the music the power that it deserves. 

Favorite tracks: "Ultima Notte", "Moto Imperpetuo" and "Sei solo"

Contact: www.eresia.cjb.net

ETERNAL TRAGEDY - DEMO 2001 (Independent, 2001)

Produced By: Stefania Ponzilacqua

Tracks: 1- Dreamworld, 2- Murder of Souls

Cover Art by Stefania Ponzilacqua

Pure metal is what this band does. Here we have the music coming directly from the mind of Stefania Ponzilacqua. And this is a music full of variations. I have to remark that this music is very difficult to label because you have elements of classic metal, elements of thrash metal bands, some death metal and a lot of technical parts (there is heavy use of ultra heavy guitars combined with clean ones, this is full of guitar melodies and solos too). This is really original music within a metal context. Here we have different vocals, from the more high pitched ones that are sung by Stefy (really powerful, sometimes really thrashing !!!) to the more mid pitched ones in "Murder of Souls". Both compositions are quite long (one over six minutes and the other one is ten minutes long) in order to deliver the multiple ideas that Stefy has created not only instrumentally but also vocally. I have to say that she almost has ready the second Eternal Tragedy that according to her words is even more extreme than this one. Eternal Tragedy rules ! 

Favorite tracks: Both

Contact: metalentity@yahoo.com or www.geocities.com/metalentity/Eternal_Tragedy.html

EVANESCENCE - FALLEN (Wind Up Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Dave Fortman

Tracks: 1- Going under, 2- Bring Me To life, 3- Everybody´s Fool, 4- My Immortal, 5- Haunted, 6- Tourniquet, 7- Imaginary, 8- Taking Over Me, 9- Hello, 10- My last Breath, 11- Whisper

Cover Art by Frank Veronsky

 Recorded at Track Record Inc.

Many of you may have seen the video of the first single of the band in MTV. But Evanescence is much more than that.  And I have to say that a lot of this is due to Amy Lee´s amazing vocals and also to Ben´s guitars (the two only fix members of Evanescence). All the songs here have a lot of feeling and Amy´s voice have a lot of shades and feeling that makes you find new textures in the songs each time that you listen to them. I have to remark that this album is not about heaviness but instead it is about feeling and atmospheres that are the essence of this band. Ben´s guitars sound heavy and develope the rhythms of the songs with fluent riffs and arrangements. The sound of the recording is really good and that makes everything really clear and magnificent. A climatic album with commercial potential.

Favorite tracks: "Going under", "My Immortal" and "Imaginary"

Contact: www.evanescence.com

EXILED ON EARTH - DUALITY CONFLICTS (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Exiled on Earth

Tracks: 1- Where Darkness is Always Pregnant, 2- The Illusory Ground of Betrayal, 3- Duality Conflicts, 4- Turmoil

Cover Art by Antonio Mascelli

Pure metal! Here we have an italian band that developes through this album four tunes thata re pure metal with some thrash influences and an extremely heavy sound in the guitars. The songs are fast and have a classic metal feeling but combined with this modern sound it developes into the Exiled on Earth sound. The singer reminds me of some eighties thrash metal band because he is raw and effective. Plus here the main thing are the guitar, and I liked a lot the guitar solos which have really good note placement and are like a mini song within each of the composition. Here we have multiple rhythm and tempo changes and the compositions are complex and effective. There are some death metal like riffs like the one in 3:14 of "The illusory ground of betrayal" and that adds another dimension to this band´s music. Here we have pure and powerful metal !!!! 

Favorite tracks: The four

Contact: Riskbreaker74@hotmail.com

FËAN TURI - ACUTE SILENCE (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Fëan Turi

Tracks: 1- Acute Silence, 2- The Innermost Secret, 3- Dance of the Nature Blood, 4- Reason threshold, 5- Sword of Conscience, 6- Fëanturi, 7- Deapth of Empathy

Cover Art by Fred

 Recorded at Pierre´s home

An almos tribal intro opens this labum before getting into an acoustic guitar piece with percussion that leads into heavier guitars full of dark melodies. And that is the way in whicjh we can describe Fëan Turi´s music. A mix of black metal and death emtal with mid paced rhythms and riffs and full of dark melodies and arrangements that make this band really unque. And all this is due to the imagination of Pierre, who plays all the instruments here except for the piano on "Fëanturi". This guys has a lot of imagination and knows how to translate his ideas into music. He shows a lot of amazing arrangements here and his combination of heavy and acoustic guitar is essential in the sound of this band. The riffs are complex and played very tight and the sound is really good specially on the guitars. One of the recordings of the month !!!!

Favorite tracks: All the CD

Contact: feanturi@wanadoo.fr

FUCK THE FACTS - BACKSTABBER ETIQUETTE (Great White North Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Fuck the Facts

Tracks: 1- Second Hand Skin, 2- Ballet Addict, 3- A Few Words For The End , 4- N.S.S.T.S. , 5- Si-z'H, 6- Lying Through Your Teeth, 7- Living A Lie, 8- Greed Whore, 9- Smokin' A Fatty, 10- The Burning Side, 11- 23-17-41

Cover Art by Fuck the Facts

We have reviewed the brutal music of Canada´s Fuck the Facts before and we always remarked the brutality that they were capacble of creating in their recordings. This one is no exception. Here we have a band that combines utter brutality with a lot of heaviness delivering a style that can be described as brutal death grind because it has the more compact sound of the most brutal death metal but with some elements of grind such as some screaming and some ultra fast parts. Here we have the fast guyitar riffs that are the main element, specially when combined with the drums that deliver fast blast beats in many parts of the compositions (there is an interesting element here taht are short blast beats in the middle of other fast parts that add a special feeling to the music here, check "Second Hand Skin"). Also we have riffs that are not typical of the styles such as the ones in "Ballet Addict". Here we have a band that is brutality guaranteed with a lot of identity!!! 

Favorite tracks: "Second Hand Skin", "A Few Words..." and "Lying Through..:"

Contact: www.gwnrecords.com or www.grinditrecords.net

GEASA - FATE´S LOST SON / STARSIDE (Acheron Recs., 2003)

Produced By: Jean Claude Bayet

Tracks: 1- Seas, 2- Heavenfall, 3- Divine Reality, 4- Eire, 5- Crawl (into the Sun), 6- Burning the Gates of Rome, 7- Empyrean, 8- Draiochta, 9- Warrior, 10- Starside, 11- Rite of Passage

Cover Art by Dough Houghton

 Recorded at Cosmic Recording Studios and Sonic Studios

This album opens climatically with clean guitars, peaceful drumming and climatic feelings before getting into furious music that is a mix of black metal with other styles and with really good musicianship. The guitars are powerful but what gives the black metal feeling are the screaming vocals that here are combined with a cleaner voice that is essential for Geasa´s music. There are many arrangements and climatic passages with clean guitars and riffs that give place to the melodies to develope themselves into new ideas. I really liked the feeling of the singer that adds melancholy to this dark music. Here we have five new tracks and six tracks taken from their demo called "Starside" which sound a little bit more primitive. The sound is clear and makes the different parts shine (specially in the newer tracks that have more arrangements and variations and have a much more powerful sound). Here we have a band that has developed their own extreme metal with a lot of ideas. 

Favorite tracks: "Seas", "Heavenfall" and "Crawl (into the sun)"

Contact: acheronrecords@yahoo.com

GOTHICA - THE CLIFF OF SUICIDE (Independent, 2003)

Produced By: Gothica