cd0405b

REVIEWS - JULY 2004

IV LUNA - D´INCANTO (Blond Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Blond Records and IV Luna
	Tracks: 1- Allucinazioni, 2- D´Incanto, 3- Il Dono di Efesto, 4- Dictator Media, 5- A Piedi Nudi, 6- Petali di Cenere, 7- 1945, 8- Ultima Eco, 9- Sull´aria, 10- 1978, 11- Isterica Realtá, 12- Favole
Cover Art by Miki Chessa and IV Luna	Recorded at Elefante Bianco Studios
This is the newest release from italian progressive heavy metal masters IV Luna and I have to say that this is a good step forward compared to the previous album, "Libera Mente". The complexity of the compositions is still here but this time with a better sound (specially on guitars and drums that sound huge and crystal clear). The band sounds extremely tight, which is essential on this type of music making each song really dynamic and defiant with the multiple arrangements. There are some special guests on this album whose participation really bring new elements to the music, such as the vocals of Monica Proietti Tuzia on "A Piedi Nudi" or the flute by Mirko Cicconi on flute. As I said before the mix is almost perfect and that is essential for IV Luna because they deserved this kind of sound to make ach instrument shine. A must.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.quartaluna.com

9^TH PLAGUE - AGE OF SATANIC ENLIGHTENMENT (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: 9^th Plague
	Tracks: 1- Betwixt and between; 2- Beyond the flesh; 3- The Voice of ancient blasphemy
Cover Art by 9^th plague
Smashing your brain brutally since the first second the guys from 9^th Plague are a brutal death machine that destroys everything. Here we have three tracks taht give evidence of the bestiality of this guys. Fast and furious guitar riffs are played over blasting drumming. The band sounds really tight and that extremely rehearsed machine called 9^th Plague succeeds in crushing the listener´s brain with their sheer aggression. The sound of the recording is raw and at the same time clear enough to make the band sound really huge. This is pure brutality done with complete knowledge of how to smash ears and brains.
Favorite tracks: the three	Contact: www.9thplague.com

ABYSS LORD - RISING FROM THE DEPTHS (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Abyss Lord
	Tracks: 1- Cannon Fodder, 2- Abyss Lord, 3- F.F. Terror, 4- Loathsome Dreaming
Cover Art by Jens Dunmann	Recorded at Pivo Studios
Abyss Lord kicks off this CD fastly with incredibly fast rhythms and riffs that show the brutality that this band unleashes from the first second. The band has done here a good combination between the most brutal riffs and other that are more mid tempo and that is essential here for the Abyss Lord sound because it adds a lot of variation and identity to the tracks. There is really fast drumming here but also interesting rhythms where the drums interact cleverly with the guitars letting them develope interesting riffs (there is also plenty of double bass drumming too). The vocals are really death metal, being really of the guttural type....and that leaves you no doubt that you are listening a brutal death metal band. Abyss Lord has achieved here a clear sound that makes things even heavier. Pure death metal unleached !!!
Favorite tracks: The four	Contact: www.abysslord.de

ABYZZ - TERROR MUNDI (Kickass Promorion, 2004)
	Produced By: Abyzz
	Tracks: 1- Intro - Awaking teh Breed, 2- The Breed of Darkness, 3- Buried Alive, 4- Birth of Beauty, 5- Escape, 6- Ignorance, 7- Insektenerde, 8- We Came to Destroy, 9- Your Tears, 10- Zeit Der Welt
Cover Art by Colombo
After the short intro Abyzz starts to deliver their unique kind of death thrash metal full of different guitar riffs, tempo and rhythm changes and dark melodies. On this album the death metal side of the band´s music is more evident than in their "Warmasutra" album. Here the thrash metal influences are a little bit more disguised even if they are omniprescent in the multiple changes and in some of the drumming rhythms. The vocals are really extreme but really clear at the same time which allows you to follow the lyrics perfectly. The sound has a clear mix and at the same time has some rawness typical of wild death metal that fits the music of the band perfectly. A good blend of death and thrash metal with many interesting ideas flowing in the music.
Favorite tracks: "The Breed of Darkness", "Escape" and "Ignorance"	Contact: www.kickass-promotion.de

ABYZZ - WARMASUTRA (Kickass Promotion, 2004)
	Produced By: Abyzz
	Tracks: 1- Loss of All Hope, 2- Warmachinery, 3- Age of the Fading Sun, 4- Ad Nocte Abyss, 5- Inanna´s Sleep, 6- Totenland, 7- Aeon of Fear, 8- Rememberance, 9- Bloodbath, 10- Gods of the Darkest Sky
Cover Art by Sebastian, Alex and www.blue-studio.de	Recorded at Scornlab Studio
This is what I call Death-thrash metal. Despite having certain elements of death metal, this guys have a lot of thrash metal influences and elements that give a lot of variation to their compositions. The combination of really extreme vocals that give the death metal feeling to the music with the more thrash metal guitar riffs and the open drumming that leaves space for developing arrangements are a trademark of this guys music. There are calmer moments such as the beginning of "Rememberance" that add a different feeling to the music that soon turns into a slow paced riff that is extremely heavy and dark, creating one of the band´s most memorable tracks. Abyzz is a band full of creative ideas and whose music can be listened several times getting your attention due to the quality of the compositions and the variations that the music has. A really good album.
Favorite tracks: "Loss of All Hope", "Totenland" and "Rememberance"	Contact: www.kickass-promotion.de

AD NOCTUM - INSANITY FOR LIFESTYLE (Kickass Promotion, 2003)
	Produced By: Ad Noctum
	Tracks: 1- Head On, 2- Infected by Disturbed Believers of a Bygone Time, 3- Alien Element, 4- War, 5- Spiritual Breakout, 6- Interlock, 7- Victimizer, 8- Exposed by Ultrasonic Waves, 9- Insanity for Lifestyle, 10- Fleshy, 11- Out of Favour, 12- Intravenous Systemshock
Cover Art by Ad Noctum and Andy F.
This is pure blasting death metal coming directly from the mind and soul of this power trio. Yes, this is a power trio and here the word "power" is really fitting the music. This guys deliver here eleven tracks full of sonic violence and extreme brutality. The vocals here are really aggressive and guttural and they are used like other instrument in order to make each song more brutal than the other. The bass interacts cleverly with the guitars making the whole tandem sound like a misile coming to your ears and brain. There are interesting ideas like the riffs in "Alien Element" that besides giving a bestial feeling to the music, they also add an eerie element to Ad Noctum´s music. The sound here is raw yet effective giving the conditions for the music to smash directly your brain. Brutality unleashed.
Favorite tracks: "War", "Victimizer" and "Insanity..."	Contact: www.kickass-promotion.de

AD NOCTUM - HOLLOW PEACE (Kickass Promotion, 2001)
	Produced By: Ad Noctum
	Tracks: 1- Unpleasant Sensation, 2- Such a Fucking God, 3- Democratatorship, 4- Clit, 5- Full of Shit, 6- Are you evil?, 7- Within, without control, 8- One of the mighty, 9- Where are the humans?, 10- Lust, 11- Mental Darkness, 12- Take Over, 13- Center of Madness, 14- Beyond Wisdom, 15- Die Away
Cover Art by Ufo
This is Ad Noctum´s previous album (before the "Insanity..." one) and you can appreciate how the band has evolved since this recording. In fact, the band was as powerful on this previous alboum than in the newer one, but the sound here is rawer and less compact. Despite this, the album is really effecive in blowing your brain into pieces with the old school death metal that Ad Noctum plays cleverly. Here you have the heavier than fuck riffs that are the band´s trademark and also the growling vocals that spit the lyrics fullof hate and anger. The drumming is really thrashy letting the guitar riffs be played against them (that is, not abusing blast beats) and sounding heavier than in faster tempos. This is pure energy delivered to the masses by this really tight trio. Pure powerful death metal !!
Favorite tracks: "Such a Fucking God", "Full of Shit" and "Center of Madness"	Contact: www.kickass-promotion.de

ADVENT - THE DAWN (Golden Lake Prods., 2004)
	Produced By: Advent
	Tracks: 1- Paradise Lost, 2- Valholl, 3- Shub-Nigurath, 4- Beyond the Landscape, 5- The Dawn, 6- The thing that sleep in the abyss, 7- Landscape, 8- La lama (the blade), 9- A Closed Room
Cover Art by Anzaldi Riccardo	Recorded at DB Studio and Sub Mix Pro Studio
Last year we reviewed Advent´s previous release called "Valholl". And this one has the main elements that the previous release (besides having some of the tracks) but taken to the next level. For those who doesn´t know Advent´s music is a fusion between death metal, black metal with some elements of classical heavy metal in the gutiars and some of the arrangements. Here you can listen the band playing incredible rhythms and combining them with amazing keyboards arrangements and orchestration (which is one of Advent´s trademarks). Other characteristic are the multiple vocal styles used here in order to fit the feeling of the compositions (sometimes more guttural, sometimes more screaming, sometimes almost gothic). And also the guitars that play fast and slow riffs with a lot of originality. This album is really a masterpiece of darkness.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.adventcomes.it or www.goldenlakeprods.co.uk

AFTER FEED-BACK - AFTER FEED-BACK (Independent, 2003)
	Produced By: After Feed-back
	Tracks: 1- One Road Away, 2- I Can´t Breath, 3- War Bites, 4- A Bullet for a Dolar, 5- Equilibrium, 6- That Old Guitar, 7- Get it Real, 8- Empty, 9- Whiteblack, 10- Faithless, 11- XXX
Cover Art by After Feed-back
After Feed-back delivesrs on this album really modern metal coming directly from Spain. The music the band plays is full of rhythms and killer riffs with influences of bands like Soulfly or Sepultura. The vocals are essential here and sometimes they sound really like if this guy is torning apart his lungs, and sometimes they are more calm. Plus he knows how to sing too delivering good vocal melodies. The guitars have a really huge sound, essential when it´s time to play those rhythmic riffs that are a trademark of After Feed-Back´s music.The drumming is really good full of interesting passages, and the songs are really well developed being a complete song instead of just a bunch of riffs thrown together. A really powerful release.
Favorite tracks: "I can´t breath", "Equilibrium" and "Empty"	Contact: www.afterfeedback.com

AGE OF AGONY - THE DARK CONQUERS ALL (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Age of Agony
	Tracks: 1- Intro, 2- The Dark Conquers All, 3- Answer, 4- Evolution, 5- Till the Last Moment (1966)
Cover Art by Age of Agony	Recorded at Home Studio
Raining sounds, climatic atmosphere opens up this album before the band switchs into the full brutal death metal mode. Age of Agony emphasizes the rhythmic riffs which give a lot of heaviness to their music and uses speed only as another element preferring to create heaviness through really good ideas. The band uses some riffs also that are more typical of black metal bands, contrasting with the ones that have a lower tuned sound more in the death metal vein. Kálmán Pápai is a really guttural vocalist that fits perfectly the music of the rest band, giving a huge death emtal feeling to the music. Plus, the band has really good technique in their playing and that is evident in the multiple change s in rhythm and tempo and also in the good developing of the riffs and drumming patterns. Death metal with really good musicianship.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.synaptx.hu/agony/

AGONIZER - WORLD OF FOOLS (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: A.Kippo
	Tracks: 1- World of Fools, 2- Whatever, 3- Say love, 4- Cain the Slayer
Cover Art by www.genocide.tk	Recorded at Astia Studio A
After reviewing the previous release by this finnish band some issues back I remained wanting to listen more from them, and here is their newest release. And what a killer release it is !!! Four tracks, starting with the title track that is a masterpiece of pure metal. This guys have great musicianship and that is evident in all their compositions where they develope interesting ideas in a really tight way combining multiple ideas. One remarkable thing are Modi´s vocals which are melodic yet extremely powerful and at the same time original with his distinctive type of voice. This "World of Fools" has a really great sound, specially on the guitars that sound huge when they have to and climatic in the slower parts such as in the middle of "Whatever". This is a must album for any lover of metal music.
Favorite tracks: the four	Contact: http://agonizer.cjb.net

AN END TO OCTOBRE - A FEEBLE ATTEMPT (Independent, 2003)
	Produced By: An End to October
	Tracks: 1- X- Rays taken, 2- Television, 3- A Feeble Attempt
Cover Art by Jamie Spinello	Recorded at Mile 5 Studio
A keyboard phrase opens the album and soon the heavy guitars enter to contrast heavily with them. The music of An End to October is realy heavy and at the same time original. The clever combination of heavier than hell riffs with interesting keyboards melodies and the constat change in riffs and rhythms are essential here. Plus here there is use of extreme vocals and also of melodic ones letting each type emphasize the feeling of the composition. And the compositions are so carefully developed that soon enchant your ears and feeling with the intelligence used to achieve this results. How climatic are some passages !! So climatic that you can lsiten this music in pure darkness and let it transport you to this ethereal and aggressive world. The sound is raw but extremely clear letting all the isntruments be heard with full clarity. A band to keep an eye on.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.anendtooctobre.com

APOKRYPHA - TO THE SEVEN (Black Attakk Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Apokrypha
	Tracks: 1- To the Seven, 2- Humiliation, 3- Earth Beneath, 4- Crowd, 5- Oblivion, 6- Moral Sloth, 7- Noctifer, 8- Ignorance, 9- Climax, 10- Black Demons
Cover Art by Apokrypha
This is one of the msot devastating albums of the month! Starting with an enigmatic riff, the band soon gets into the bestial black/death metal. And there is a heavy combination of black/death metal vocals with interesting heavy/power metal riffs that add a lot of power to Apokrypha´s music. This riffs reminded me of some of Arch Enemy´s tracks and I really loved them because they give a lot of strength to the compositions here. There is a contrast between some climatic mometns and the heavier aprt...and this clash of feelings is another trademark of the band´s music. The vocals are real extreme and add a lot of the black/death metal feeling to the music I have to remark the excellent sound that this recording has where each instrument hits you in the head like a hammer, exploding your brain with their sheer aggression. A must
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.black-attakk.de

ARAGON - ETERNAL QUEST (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: J.R.Friede and Aragon
	Tracks: 1- Eternal Quest, 2- The War has Begun, 3- It´s Me, 4- Scream, 5- Last Farewell, 6- Fading Love, 7- I´m Back, 8- Lies, 9- Blade on Blade, 10- Devil´s Dance, 11- Alive
Cover Art by Aragon	Recorded at TTS Media Music Studio
Pure power heavy metal is what this really tight band from Bochum, Germany plays. Stefan Surbir´s guitar is the heart of the music here playing really heavy riffs and fust runs creating a heavy environment where the interesting keyboards arrangements and the epic vocals are played. And the epic feeling is essential here, emphasized by the incredible keyboards played by Dieter Marquardt that contrast with the heaviness of the guitars and the rhythm section adding a lot of meloy and harmony to Aragon´s music. I have to remark also Stefan´s killer virtuoso solos that are another high point of this recording. And the rhythm section is really tight with really good double bass drumming and solid bass lines. I have to remark the sound which I think gives an even heavier sound to the band, making them sound much more aggressive than most ofthe bands in the style. This is pure power metal with excellent musicianship.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.heavy-aragon-2000.de

ARDULPH ARDEBAHR WALD - KOHLRABENWEISSMETALLICSILBER MELIERTE, GESCHECKTE SCHWARZE PFERDE (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Ardulph Ardebahr Wald
	Tracks: 1- Traumwandler, 2- Gewächs, 3-Funkenregen, 4- Silbergift, 5- Rappen, 6- Luftschloss, 7- Kindt, 8- Immer Du Kommst Näher Im Grauen
Cover Art by Ardulph Ardebahr Wald
The two minds behind Ardulph Arebahr Wald surely know how to create extremely dark yet heavy music. They have achieved eight interesting compositions with heavy guitar sound and with haunting vocals that sound sometimes sorrowful in many parts and in others extremely obscure or even aggressive such as in "Gewächs". The main thing here are the atmospheres that are achieved contrasting heaviness and powerful riffs with melodies that add the darker mood to the music here. The sound is a little bit raw and I think that a better mix on the drums can give Ardulph Ardebahr Wald even more power. This is an album full of original elements that surprises at each new listening.
Favorite tracks: "Gewächs", "Silbergift" and "Kindt"	Contact: www.mp3.de/a_a_wald

ATMOSFEAR - INSIDE THE ATMOSPHERE(Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Atmosfear
	Tracks: 1- Inside the Atmosphere, 2- Cisrcumcision, 3- A cry of dismay, 4- Mysterious, 5- Feardrops, 6- Patience, 7-thinking Progressive, 8- Eleanor Rigby. 9-Zephanish, 10- There is love at the end
Cover Art by Henning Fischer	Recorded at Art of Music Studios
Keyboards sounds opens this album with an enigmatic melody in the title track before the guitars enters, then the keyboards enter into a majestic phase. When the vocals enter the main atmosphere has been created and Oliver Wulff can set his vocal lines with his wide vocal range over a climatic part. Then comes the heavier part delivering a killer heavy guitar rif. Multiple changes are shown on each compositions....this is what I call progressive metal: a coimbination of innovative song structures with multiple samples of virtuosism. The keyboards are essential here orchestrating and playing multiple arrangements at each second. There is a cover of The Beatles "Eleanor Rigby" done in the Atmosfear way with multiple heavy riffs and keyboards but keeping the spirit of the song. This is pure musicianship and virtuosism. Listen or die.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.atmosfear.net

BABYLON MYSTERY ORCHESTRA - DIVINE RIGHT OF KINGS (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Sidney Allen Johnson
	Tracks: 1- A habitation of Devils, 2- We Are power, 3- Road to Madness, 4- Whore, 5- It´s My Right, 6- Savages With Cash, 7- Save My Soul, 8- Evado Eversor, 9- Mourning Glory, 10- Divine Justice, 11- Crestfallen
Cover Art by The Design Studio	Recorded at Fallen Angel Studio
Sidney Allen Johnson is the brain behind Babylon Mystery Orchestra. And despite the name of this musical outfit, it is the work of this man who has composed all the songs here and performs all the instruments. The music is pure heavy metal with heavy guitar riffs and mid tempo rhythms full of energy. Here we have some acoustic beautiful moments such as the ones in "Road to Madness". And there are keyboards orchestrating many of the compositions adding majestuosity to them. The combination of the heavy guitar riffs and the keyboards is one of the main ingredients of the music here, and the other one are Sidney´s vocals. The vocals are in the middle range and fit really well the music that Sidney delivers here (much better than using higher pitched vocals). The sound is really powerful, specially on the guitars that are the center of the compositions. A powerful release.
Favorite tracks: "Road to madness", "Whore" and "Mourning Glory"	Contact: www.babylonmysteryorchestra.com

BENIGHTED - INSANE CEPHALIC PRODUCTION (Adipocere Recs., 2004)
	Produced By: Benighted
	Tracks: 1- Bestial Breeding, 2- Stay Brutal, 3- Foetus, 4- Deviant, 5- Perpueral Cannibalism, 6- Self Procalimed God, 7- Dementia (The precocious symptoms of mental perversion), 8- Phlebotomized, 9- Insane Cephalic Production, 10- Insomnies
Cover Art by Benighted
Benighted is what I call a merciless band. From the first riff they step over your brain and reduce it to bloody pulp. Their music is brutal as hell, being death metal but having a combination of the most guttural vocals with others of the screaming type that have some reminiscence of black metal ones. But don´t get me wrong, the band knows how to do really good arrangements adding mid paced parts where the guitars develope solos and other changes. The band sounds extremely tight and well rehearsed through all this album and you know that the main goal is to rip you apart. You have to wonder how this killer band can sound in a live stage....you almost can imagine the mosh pit before the stage while the band is playing their killer brutality. The rhythm section is essential here because the drummer plays incredible fast parts and double bass while the bassist plays closer to the guitars adding an even heavier edge. Pure brain samshing bestiality.
Favorite tracks: "Stay Brutal", "Deviant" and "Self Proclaimed God"	Contact: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/benighted/ or http://www.adipocere.fr/

BETRAYED - THE PURITY OF PAIN (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Betrayed
	Tracks: 1- War of Ages, 2- Gateways to Annihilation, 3- Suicide Rain, 4- Insight, 5- Destroyer, 6- Beyond the Red Line
Cover Art by Betrayed
This is what I call a really direct album. Betrayed plays pure death metal with old school influences and this album has a really live sound. In many places you can almost feel an audience watching the band and see them playing their brutal songs in a stage. Betrayed´s music is pure death metal but it has also some thrash metal influences in some of the riffs and in some of the rhythms. The vocals are guttural as this style of music demands and the drumming sounds really raw and solid. The guitars seem to be recorded almost live because you can not listen many overdubs in them in the recording. There are also some calmer moments like in "Suicide Rain" with clean guitars. As I mentioned before the sound is raw but effective and Betrayed seems comfortable with this kind of sound. Pure brutality with an old school feeling.
Favorite tracks: "War of Ages", "Suicide Rain" and "Destroyer"	Contact: Flo.Hessen@t-online.de

BETRAYED / KARNARIUM - SPLIT TAPE (Into the Warzone Zine, 2003)
	Produced By: Into the Warzone
	Tracks: Betrayed: 1- Fist of Fear; 2- Vergänglichkeit; Karnarium: 3- Offering to Our Kreator; 4- Horrifik Revelry
Cover Art by Into the Warzone
Two tracks from each band are enough to show what they are capable of doing but they leave you wanting more of their aggression and brutality. Starts this split the guys of Betrayed with their killer fast death emtal with thrash influences. Here they deliver two fast songs full of brutality and with an almost live sound whioch I liked a lot because it seems like you are watching them playing live. Both tracks are really solid and there are multiple changes in them that add variation to their music.then comes Karnarium from Sweden with another bestial discharge of ultra grinding brutal death metal. Karnarium´s music is really fast and they are playing bestial blast beats through the two tracks. This two maniacs called Voltage and Funeral Whore have no mercy for the listeners and they unleash all their brutality against your brain. The sound is raw and I think that mixing louder the rhythm guitar would be a good idea. Karnarium are bestial motherfuckers. A great aggressive and brutal split !!
Favorite tracks: the four	Contact: Flo.Hessen@t-online.de

BITTERNESS - SWEET SUICIDE SOLUTIONS (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Christoph Brandes and Bitterness
	Tracks: 1- Architects of the Apocalypse, 2- Burden of Past, 3- Eve of Destruction, 4- the Last Dance, 5- Embrace the Depression, 6- Beyond a Subconscious World, 7- Portal of Haunting Dreams, 8- Sweet Suicide Solution, 9- Twinkling Red Tears, 10- Chain of Command

This is an Aggressive yet climatic release. Here the climatic and atmospheric moments are cleverly combined with the more bestial moments.There are plenty of heavy riffs here, plenty of killer drumming with double bass patterns and plenty of screaming vocals but there are also interesting guitar melodies that transmit a dark feeling to the listener bringing ideas of soprrow and despair to your mind. While listening to this band´s album you will find yourself in a world full of sorrow that is cleverly reflected by Bitterness music and you will listen carefully each note that is played because they are brutal but at the same time really beautiful. The good sound allows to feel all this in its integrity and I have to remark how well mixed this album is.This is an experience for all your senses.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.bitterness.de

BLACK AUTUMN - CULT OF NIHIL (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Black Autumn
	Tracks: 1- Empty Thrones, 2- Serpent King, 3- Blackbirds, 4- The Scent of Graves, 5- A Distant Light Before Dawn, 6- The Seven Gates of Illusionary Vision, 7- Ruins
Cover Art by Black Autumn	Recorded on several locations between 1998 and 2003
I expected a burst of black metal mayhem while looking to this album cover but I was completely wrong. This is darker than any type of metal, this is more dense, this is more sorrowful. Black Autumn knows exactly how to reach that part in your brain and heart where the feeling of sorrow are. Their melancholic music soon transports you into the darkest of worlds....and they don´t need fast riffs and blast beats in order toa chieve this. They use slow or mid tempo guitar riffs (even if there are some fast parts in some of the tracks) and certain melodies that are essential to create that sad feeling that surrounds all their compositions. There are clean guitars that add even more melancholy to the music and the vocals are really distorted and anguished fitting perfectly the feeling of the overall compositions. The sound of the recording is raw but clear making things more obscure aas this guys surely wanted. An aggressive and darker than hell release.
Favorite tracks: "Serpent King", "The Scent..." and "A Distant light..."	Contact: www.blackautumn.de.vu

BLACKGOD / KRIGAR - PRAYING FOR THE DEATH OF MANKIND SPLIT CD (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Blackgod and Krigar
	Tracks: BLACKGOD: 1- Intro, 2- Christian Whore, 3- Blackgod, 4- Hymn 666; KRIGAR: 5- The Holy Blasphemy, 6- The Frozen Darkness, 7- The Sacrificium Offerre Corpus Meum, 8- Battle of Trolls, 9- Gymn
Recorded at Hybreed Studios
Pure black fucking metal is what you will find on this split CD full of hatred and blasphemy. Blackgod starts spitting their unholy bestiality through three tracks at full speed full of blast beats and screaming vocals. Blackgod´s sound is fast and furious and really raw, specially on the guitars that play this fast riffing in an old mayhemic way. The band sounds tight and every note is played in order to devastate the listener. Krigar starts directly with "The Holy Blasphemy at full speed with a rawer sound with louder drums and lower guitars (the drums sounded almost like a drum amchine in many palces). Krigar´s music has more midpaced parts that add to their music a darker side besides the total aggression that their music has. This split CD is recommended to any lover of black metal. Black metal fans will not be dissapointed by this recording from this duo of bands coming directly from the lungs of hell.
Favorite tracks: All the split.	Contact: www.blackgod.fr.st

BLOOD FREAK - SLEAZE MERCHANTS (Razorback Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Blood Freak
	Tracks: 1- Warning, 2- Feast of the undead, 3- Blood, blood and more blood!, 4- Grinding up the dead, 5- Bloodthirsty butchers from beyond, 6- Flesheaters from Outerspace, 7- The gruesome gorehounds, 8- Infested with worms, 9- The cult of the cannibal freaks, 10- I rip your flesh, 11- Gobble up your guts, 12- The slaughterhouse, 13- You are what we eat, 14- Werewolf A-gore-gore, 15- Kill! Kill! Kill!, 16- A Brutal orgy of ghastly terror, 17- Awakening the beast, 18- Insane for gore, 19-, 20- I said...murder, 21- Dr. Cannibal, 22- A Happy ending
Cover Art by Chas Balun	Recorded at Sonic Tracks Studios
This is really insane !!. Starting with a warning about corpses and mutilations the band kicks of with a grinding track called "Feast of the Undead".....this is pure death/grind full of brutality and fast riffs and rhythms recorded in 1990 (mastered and with samples, intros and outros added in 2003)...a classic !!. But they don´t stop with that, cause tracks like "Blood, blood...." combine cleverly the grinding sound with a more rocking part in the middle with an interesting guitar solo (this combination of different styles turned into brutality is present also in many tracks here). But the main thing here is the brutality of the band that is the thing that kicks you in your stomach while listening to this album. The voices are of many different types: guttural, screaming, gurgling and spoken and they follow the feeling of each composition. The sound is really clear and brutal and there is a heavy contrast between the newer tracks and the ones from their 1988 demo (also in the style of playing which it was more of straight forward death metal). Pure brutality and gore.
Favorite tracks: "Blood, blood...", "Gobble up..." and "Bloodthirsty..."	Contact: www.razorbackrecords.com

CARNAL REDEMPTION - PROMO 2004 (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Carnal Redemption
	Tracks: 1- Mass Consuming Lobotomy, 2- All the Echoes
Cover Art by Carnal Redemption
Ultra bestial death metal is what Carnal Redemption does, and as they showed in their previous recording that we reviewed some issues back, they surely know how to play it in an original way combining different types of riffs that are heavier than hell and somewhat innovative. Two tracks are enough to show how brutal this band can be and also how technical they are while changing from riff to riff and from rhythm to rhythm. The vocals are really gutturl and they are used sometimes rhythmically in order to emphasize what the rest of the band is doing. On this release they have achieved a good sound, specially on the guitars that sound really huge and whose riffs are the essence of Carnal Redemption´s music. This is pure brutality delivered by this greek band that will surely make some noise in the worldwide death metal scene.
Favorite tracks: Both	Contact: http://carnalredemption.cjb.net

CHARON - THE DYING DAYLIGHTS (Spinefarm Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Pasi Sipilä and Charon
	Tracks: 1- Failed, 2- Religious/Delicious, 3- Death Can Dance, 4- In Brief War, 5- Guilt on Skin, 6- Unbreak, unchain, 7- Drive, 8- Every Failure, 9- In Trust of No One, 11- No Saint
Cover Art by Travis Smith	Recorded at BRR Studios
This guys surely have a good sound!! I think their music can be defined as a mix between pure heavy metal and gothic metal all played with a really modern sound (the guitars have a really huge sound that adds a lot of heaviness to the tracks). JP Leppäluoto vocals are one of the trademarks of Charon´s music: they are middle ranged and very deep reflecting exactly the dark feeling that Charon music has. There is a remarkable work of the guitars playing not only killer riffs but also really good melodies and solos that add interest to each of the compositions. I have to remark the excellent sound that this recording has, specially on the guitars and the rhythm section. A crushing release.
Favorite tracks: "Failed", "Death can dance" and "Every Failure"	Contact: www.spinefarm.fi

CHRIS BURN / LOL COXHILL / JOHN EDWARDS / PHIL MINTON / JOHN RUSSELL - MOPOMOSO SOLOS 2002 (Emanem Disc, 2004)
	Produced By: Martin Davidson
	Tracks: 1- Brush with Gravity, 2- Pufff, 3- M, 4- Woodcuts,5- Waiting for LOL, 6- Speechless, 7- Traps, 8- Quintet til the end of Time
	Recorded by Tim Fletcher
Well, here we have some work fom great musicians that we have reviewed before like John Russell, Chris Burn, Lol Coxhill, John Edwards and Phil Minton. This musicians are masters of improvisational / spontaneous music and the good thing on this album is to listen them playing solo on some tracks before the climax that is the quintet piece called "Quintet til the end of time". There is also a duet called "Waiting for Lol" between Phil Minton on voice and John Russell on guitar. I have not listened Phil Minton that much before and it is a really surprise to see the way in which he explores with his voice, just like the other musicians do with an instrument. This is a collection album because it shows different improvisational situations where the musician is alone and he must rely on his own innovative capacity in order to develope a composition. This is a musthave for lovers of spontaneous music and improvisation.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.emanemdisc.com

CHRIS FORSYTH / CHRIS HEENAN - S/T (Reify Recordings, 2004)
	Mastered By: Jaime Fennelly
	Tracks: 1- I am not a technologist, 2- I listen, 3- I ask questions, 4- I listen more, 5- I begin to understand, 6- I like the way you use your language
Cover Art by Rebecca Morris	Recorded at Black Helicopter
You coulld only wonder what this spontaneous duo could do with their instruments in an improvised situation before listening to this album. And here you have the answer. Forsyth plays here his guitars and Heenan plays saxophone and clarinets. Every musician here creates different sounds and phrases that are spontaneous and cleverly done creating six interesting improvisational pieces. It is amazing to lsiten Forsyth doing some kind of bassis scratching the guitar strings while Heenan does some phrases that fit perfectly the mood generated by Forsyth. The duo malso works a lot with silences and spaces making sounds and then keeping their instruments silent for a while to make a rest in the listener´s brain. This is master improvisation from a duet that surprises individually and also when playing together.
Favorite tracks: "I listen", "I listen more" and "I begin to understand	Contact: www.reifyrecordings.com

CLERIC - CLERIC (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Cleric
	Tracks: 1- Truth, 2- El Camaron, 3- Eris, Engulfed, 4- Draw (a) Robot
Cover Art by Nick Shellenberger	Recorded at Bowling Otter Recordings
This what I call a really agressive yet climatic release. Opening with some open arpeggios full of distortion the band fastly gets into really fast parts full of screaming extreme vocals. The band sounds devastating combining different vocal styles with a crushing guitar that sounds really crushing while playing the riffs that are the core of Cleric´s music. The first two tracks here are quite long and there are many ideas going on through all the compositions. The changes in guitar riffs and rhythms are essential here (with a certain thrash metal flavour which I liked a lot) and also the parts where agression leaves space for a darker feeling such as in 1:15 of "El Camaron". The band sounds really tight and they have achieved a raw yet compact sound that gives even a more extreme feeling to the music. Pure aggression full of ideas.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.clericmusic.com

COCK AND BALL TORTURE - EGOLEECH (Morbid Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Cock and Ball Torture
	Tracks: 1- Another Arch Abraded, 2- Close ypur eyes and Bear it, 3- Blindfold/ Bare / Submissive, 4- Complex 27, 5- Be Raped / Bereaved, 6- She no longer cared, 7- Sharp and Slender, 8- Sono Sterile Theory, 9- Thickening, 10- Six holes Cut, 11- Thirty Degrees Backwards, 12- Contagious, 13- One Inch Left
Cover Art by Sascha Pahlke
It´s been a long time since I reviewed a Cock and Ball Torture album and I have to say that they surprised me with this album and their evolution. Their sound has changed a lot since the Opus(Sy) VI album that I reviewed before. Now they sound much more compact and their guitars are much more effective in creating the ultra heaviness that is their trademark. The better mix and the better sound that Sascha and his partners have achieved allows them to create ultra heavy compositions full of huge guitar riffs that sound much better than in the past. The voices are as guttural as always but this time they are better used having more impact in the listener, such as supporting the rhythms created by the drums. It is always good to listen to a band like Cock and Ball torture that are not afraid of evolving and sounding better. Pure brutality.
Favorite tracks: "Complex", "Sharp and Slender" and "Six Holes Cut"	Contact: www.morbidrecords.de

COLLISION - ROMANTIC DISPLAY OF LOVE (Bizarre Leprous Prods., 2004)
	Produced By: Collision
	Tracks: 1- Cowboy George, 2- Let the Big Bucks roll in, 3- Hooligan Shit, 4- Fake, 5- Roadkill, 6- Die for a fake god, 7- Bob Ross is Cool, 8- I hate christmas, 9- Out of step, 10- A different kind of hero, 11- Hot Pursuit, 12- Papercupjazzkingkong, 13- Spoiled Rotten 90210, 14- Live free from religion, 15- Trend Called Alternative, 16- Big breasted bimbo´s, 17- Coming Home in a body bag, 18- Child Molester, 19- Radiation is back, 20- Hang teh pope, 21- Hail Satan 666
	Recorded at Tone Shed Studios
I don´t know why I expected a straightforward grindcore band before listening to this album. I was wrong, Collision is much more than that. Take some hardcore, add death metal and then some pieces of grindcore in the fastest parts and then you will have a small idea of how Collision´s music sounds like (some call this grind´n´roll). Screaming vocals, guttural voices, fast drumming with some blast beats in the tracks, crushing guitars with a really fat sound. This are all elements that you will find here. And you will find compositions that are very diffeent one from the other making it easy to listen to the whole album and letting your ears be blown away by this killer band. Plus, the covers of Minor Threat´s "Out of Step" and Nuclear Assault´s "Hang the Pope" add bonus points to this powerful recording. A devastating album....21 tracks of insanity.
Favorite tracks: "Roadkill", "Hooligan Shit" and "Big breasted Bimbo´s"	Contact: http://listen.to/COLLISION or www.bizarreleprous.cz

CONGLOMERATORZ - CONGLOMERATORZ (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Conglomeratorz
	Tracks: 1- Genome Altered Colonies, 2- Anti Grass Theory, 3- Ancient Lunar Oasis
Cover Art by Conglomeratorz
I expected more straight forward death metal but I was completely wrong. Conglomeratorz plays a mix between deathly thrash metal and pure heavy metal making each of the three tracks that this release has really unique because of the combination of different styles of riffs. The vocals give the sort of death metal feeling to the music but the rest of the band creates parts that are completely different from that style delivering really technical parts with mulitiple breaks and tempo changes. There are interludes with acoustic guitars in "Genome Altered Colonies" where the band puts some melodies in the tracks and also some keyboards in "Anti Grass theory". But the main thing here is the originallity of the riffs that give a lot of identity to Conglomeratorz music, sometimes following the keyboards, sometimes the drums, sometimes the vocals. This is pure metal with virtuosism and clver ideas.
Favorite tracks: The three	Contact: www.conglomeratorz.com

CONVICTED - PROMO 2004 (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Convicted
	Tracks: 1- Minds of War, 2- Payback
Cover Art by Convicted
Two tracks are enough to see the full power of this thrashing metal band. Their music goes in between eighties thrash metal and death metal (the vocals are more extreme than in thrash metal but the riffing and rhythms are more rhythmic tan in death metal...got it?). Plus this guys have a modern sound in their guitars and in the mix that distinguish them from other bands of the style. The songs are memorable, specially because of the shouted choruses and because of some of the riffs that stick in your mind really soon. The sound of the recording is really raw and I think that with a better mix the band can sound even more powerful. A killer release that leaves you wanting more from Convicted.
Favorite tracks: Both	Contact: thrashconvicted@hotmail.com

COPPELIUS - 1803 (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Coppelius
	Tracks: 1- I Get Used to It, 2- Be Prepared, 3- Abendstimmung, 4- Dreaming
Cover Art by Coppelius	Recorded at Mute Off Studios
This is what I call a really original release. The music that Coppelius does can not be easily categorized....it has elements of rock, it has elements of metal and it has a lot of harmonies in the vocals and in the instrumentation. Here every melody is carefully constructed giving a weird feeling to the music. Is it a cello what I am listening? I don´pt really know but it is an essential part of Coppelius music since it constructs some melodies and rhythms that are the pure essence of the music here along with the amazing vocals. There is some use of flute in many parts too and there is always good drumming creating the fundamental rhythms that this compositions need. A really original release that leaves you wanting more from this amazing band.
Favorite tracks: The four	Contact: www.coppelius-band.de

COR - FLÜSTERN UND SCHREIEN (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Cor
	Tracks: 1- Einmal mehr, 2- Aufstehen, 3- Stein, 4- 10.000 Volt, 5- Ich Steh Zu Dir, 6- Tod, 7- Ein Mann Verlässt die Stadt, 8- Farben, 9- Rügencore, 10- Gerücht, 11- Gelassen, 12- Mein Herz ist Frei
	Recorded at Sundae Studio
This is pure heavy rock with elements of different metal styles within the context of twelve cleverly developed songs. The basic scheme here is pure rock with heavy guitars. Then you have certain elements of hardcore, thrash and heavy metal in some parts, such as in the choruses or in some of the riffs or rhythms that are played here (an example of this is the track called "Tod"). The vocals here have a lot of identity and just by listening them once you can find out that you are listening to a Cor song. The guitars sound rocking and they are the essence of Cor´s music. Each of the songs here is fully memorable thanks to the catchy riffs and the memorable choruses that are another trademark of Cor´s music. A really good release with great songs.
Favorite tracks: "Stein", "Rügencore" and "Tod"	Contact: www.ruegencore.de

COSTES - HUNG BY THE DICK (Menschenfeind Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Costes
	Tracks: 1- Jacques Cousteau tells the truth to the nation, 2- Anti-costes crusade, 3- Power to me and titi, 4- A Costes Life, 5- A dick in the brain, 6- Big is my Dick, 7- Costes Cock, 8- Take my Sperm, 9- Hung by the dick, 10- Himalaya of Shit, 11- Logic and Mathematic, 12- Melting-Pot, 13- Hollywood Bye-bye, 14- Koreans, part of the plot, 15- Clean Berlin, 16- Europa Please don´t die, 17- this chicken is a nigger, 18- Black baby, white mummy, 19- Heil, Fuck me harder, 20- Send me a truck, 21- Sorry to be so bad, 22- hung by daddy dick, 23-Kill the Races, 24- I Hate my race, 25- Never Lonelette with gillette, 26- Red Jew Dividing in his red sea, 27- Berlin is my bedroom, 28- My Slave titi, 29- Undercover
Cover Art by Costes
This is quite a demented album !! Full of spoken parts and complete texts screamed by Costes. There is some music below the texts and lyrics in a really experimental fashion but the main thing here are the mad lyrics spitted by Costes through all this album. On this album Costes shows all his perversions and his dirty imagination in tracks like "This Chicken is a nigger" or "Hung by the Dick"....this is an album almost impossible to describe. Check it by yourself and be the judge.
Favorite tracks: "A Costes Life", "Koreans..." and "This Chicken..."	Contact: www.menschenfeind.com

CRUCIFIRE - UNBLESSED UNTO HATRED (Independent, 2003)
	Produced By: Crucifire
	Tracks: 1- The unholy Redeemer, 2- unblessed Unto Hatred, 3- Domain of the Haunted
Cover Art by Crucifire	Recorded at Lock Up Studio
One of the most bestial releases of the year. This is one of those recordings that doesn ´t leave you a second to catch your breath because they start samshing you with their fast and brutal riffs and with the intense drumming. Here you will find really extreme vocals and chainsaw like guitars played at the speed of sound. You will also find a drummer that is really a beast behind the drumkit playing really fast through all the tracks. And teh vocals are really guttural but at the same time have some clarity on them that gives even more strength to their work. The sound of the recording is really raw but extremely powerful, specially the guitars (the drums sound really raw, like if Adam was playing right next to the listener). Bestiality unleashed.
Favorite tracks: the three	Contact: crucifire@hotmail.com

DAMAGED JUSTICE - UNHOLY FIRE (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Damaged Justice
	Tracks: 1- Waiting for...., 2- The Dawn, 3- Fairy Tale, 4- Distance to Destruction, 5- Misery, 6- Unholy Fire, 7- Nightcruiser, 8- Leave your fears behind, 9- Heart of Ash
Cover Art by Damaged Justice	Recorded at
Climatic keyboards open this recording with the intro called "Waiting for..." before the guitars enter with some intriguing melody that soon turns into a killer heavy metal riff. Damaged Justice has heavy guitars combined with open rhythms that allows them to do different riffs and solos. Plus, one of the main elements here are Ron Michel´s keyboards that creates a lot of climatic phrases and parts that are essential for Damaged Justice´s music. Christian Michalak´s voice uses a lot of middle ranges in order to achieve a good feeling for the songs. I would mix louder the guitars and give them a fuller sound in order to make things even heavier. The sound of the recording is raw yet powerful as the Damaged Justice deserves. Killer heavy metal with a climatic element.
Favorite tracks: "The Dawn", "Misery" and "Unholy Fire"	Contact: www.damaged-justice.de

DARK EMBRACE - BITTER END (Independent, 2003)
	Produced By: Dark Embrace
	Tracks: 1- Dying Breath (intro), 2- Bitter End, 3- The threat of flesh and its libidinous Storms of Silence, 4- Fragility of Life
Cover Art by Dark Embrace	Recorded at Arbg-Estudios
A short keyboard intro gives a beginning to this darker than hell album full of interesting mid paced riffs and killer keyboards arrangements. And the keyboards will continue through all the recording embellishing and orchestrating the compositions while the guitars create heavy riffs over which the extreme vocals are spitted in a really doom metal way. And the vocals fit perfectly the music being darker than hell when the track needs (using a lto of middle ranges and doing some arcane melodies) it and more extreme (of the early Tiamat type) when the track needs heavier elements. Everything here drips darkness and sorrow, and the essential thing here is the combination of the orchestrating keyboards with the heavier parts and this is what gives a lot of identity to Dark Embrace´s music. The sound of the recording is raw but the guitar mix is really good sounding huge and adding a heavier side to Dark Embrace´s music. Pure darkness revealed.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.darkembrace.tk

DARK FORTRESS - STAB WOUNDS (Black Attakk Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Dark Fortress
	Tracks: 1- Iconoclasm Omega, 2- Self Mutilation, 3- Stab Wounds, 4- When 1000 Crypts Awake, 5- Despise the "Living", 6- A Midnight Poem, 7- Rest in Oblivion, 8- Vanitas...No horizon, 9- Like A Somnambulist, 10- Sleep!, 11- Endtime
Cover Art by Dark Fortress
Some issues back we reviewed another Dark Fortress recording and now is time for this "Stab Wounds". Here the music is pure unholy black metal with raw sound and ultra fast riffing. Dark Fortress is a really pure black metal band with rhythms that have some certain thrash influences but played faster. The band does not abuse blast beats even if there are many of them here, preferring to combine them with other rhythms that add more interest to the tracks. There are original guitar riffs that add crushing rhythms to the music such as the one in the beggining of "Self Mutilation" (which I think the band should play more often because they are devastating). The ultra extreme vocals are essential here too because they add agression to darkness fitting really well the music of the band. I have to remark the pure and direct sound that this album has, with the guitars and drums really well mixed, having an effect of blowing you away if you are standing before the amplifiers. Pure unholy black metal the way it must be done.
Favorite tracks: "Self Mutilation", "Stab Wounds" and "A Midnight Poem	Contact: www.black-attakk.de

DAYS OF GRACE - UNIO MYSTICA (Kickass Promotion, 2003)
	Produced By: Days of Grace
	Tracks: 1- Stuck State, 2- One Voice, 3- Secret War, 4- Chosen View, 5- Spoken Words, 6- One Eyed King, 7- Shades, 8- Unio Mystica, 9- The Game, 10- b. Or g., 11- Flaming Raid

The riff that opens this album is really mid tempo but is extremely heavy, enough brutal to torn your brain into pieces. And this guys know how to make each note, each chord sound extremely heavy us hell. One remarkable thing here is the complex drumming: this guy knows how to be brutal without doing blast beats all the time, doing instead more complex rhythms with a lot of use of the ride cymbal. The vocals are really aggressive and guttural in many parts....but there is a lot of variations in them: sometimes guttural, sometimes screaming, sometimes more spoken. The use of this more brutal slow or midtempo riffs allows the band to make each song really memorable and that is an extra point for them because being memorable at the same time than brutal is not so common in the extreme music scene. I have to say my verdict here: if you want an album with great songs and that will surely crush you with their heaviness then you should check this album by Days of Grace.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.kickass-promotion.de or www.daysofgrace.de

DEADPAD - DEADPAD (Independent, 2003)
	Produced By: Deadpad
	Tracks: 1- In My Shadow, 2- Face the Day, 3- Drown in Hope
Cover Art by Deadpad	Recorded at Roofrops Studios
Killer electronics sounds open thsi release before the rest of the band enters at full force with "In my Shadow". Mick Storrie´s guitars are the essence here with a really huge sound that conmtrasts with the electronics and the programmed drums. The guitars create this rhythms and riffs over which Betty Rogers vocals are delivered. She has a powerful voice that can whisper and sing enigmatic melodies through all the songs being flawless. And he adds a lot of the ethereal feeling that this recording has. Plus John Cook, the bassist, also does more extreme vocals that contrast heavily with Betty´s. Deadpad´s music is a combination of heavier than hell parts and climatic ones. The songs are memorable, having good choruses and lyrics that you can follow really well. I have to point out the good sound that the labum has, specially on the guitars that sound really devastating. A really original release.
Favorite tracks: The three	Contact: www.deadpad.com

DEFILER - EXPIATION IN FILTH (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Tasos Karapapazoglou and Defiler
	Tracks: 1- Expiation in Filth, 2- Razor Vortex, 3- Evil Unspeakable, 4- Manifest of Evil presence, 5- Consume the Chosen
Cover Art by Alex Marinos and Nikk	Recorded at Nemesis Studio
Pure brutality from beginning to end. That is what the guys in Defiler deliver on this recording. The four tracks contained on this CD are mercyless. They spit riff after riff with a lot of speed and extreme aggressive vocals that add an even more extreme feeling to the music. There are some blast beats and a lot of fast riffs that are Defiler´s trademark. The music here is a clever combination of black metal and death metal with ultra speed in many parts. The rhythm section is extremely fat and knows how to do extreme breaks in the music to change tempos. The album has a raw sound, specially on the guitars tat sound really wild yet retaining that dark feeling that this type of metal music must have. This is what I call a really extreme release.
Favorite tracks: "Expiation in Filth", "Razor Vortex" and "Evil unspeakable"	Contact: www.razorvortex.cjb.net

DEMONICIDUTH - POST TENEBRAS LUX (Independent, 2001)
	Produced By: Yvan Piantella and Demoniciduth
	Tracks: 1- Unholy Chants, 2- The Holy Warrior, 3- I The Lord have spoken it, 4- Prepare to Armageddon, 5- Megiddo Massacre, 6- Notre Pére (Our Father)
Cover Art by Pascal Gibert	Recorded at Alchemy Studio
This is white metal. Do you think that this is like white metal was in the eighties with bands like Stryper? You are completely wrong!!! This is pure aggressive music with anti Satan lyrics. Music ally the band has elements of death metal and black metal but lyrically they are completely different from these styles. Here we have midtempo riffs that give a dark feeling to the music and some thrash influence in some of the rhythms, which I liked a lot. The vocals are really extreme of the trollish type adding the most extreme feeling to the music of the band. The drumming uses midtempos and fast parts but without abusing using blast beats all the time, preferring instead to leave more space for the guitars to develope their riffs. The sound of the recording is raw but it fits really well the music of the band. This is a style that was overshadowed in the past but that now has come back with a new attitude and better musicianship.
Favorite tracks: "Unholy Chants", "Prepare..:" and "Meggiddo..."	Contact: www.demoniciduth.cjb.net

DEMONICIDUTH - DOGS OF ANTICHRIST (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Demoniciduth
	Tracks: 1- Oppression, 2- Torrente D´Amour, 3- Dogs of Antichrist, 4- Heaven or Hell

This is a sample of the new Demoniciduth album which is even more extreme than its predecessor. Their music is always really extreme, in the black metal way (despite the lyrics thata re what characterizes the band as white metal) with fast riffs and rhythms that leave a lot of space to the guitars to develope new riffs. Surely there are fast parts but the band goes well beyond simple speed. The vocals sound more extreme on this album being of the screaming/trollish type and fitting the dark atmosphere that the music has on this recording. The sound of the recording is really raw but the guitars are mixed loud giving a lot of power to the music while letting them transmit the feeling of the compositions. I have to remark the good drumming with interesting ideas going on through all the recording. Pure aggressive white fucking metal !!
Favorite tracks: "Oppression" and "Dogs of Antichrist"	Contact: www.demoniciduth.cjb.net

DEREK BAILEY & MILO FINE - SCALE POINTS ON THE FEVER CURVE (Emanem Disc, 2004)
	Produced By: Martin Davidson
	Tracks: 1- Opening Gamut, 2- Extract Before, 3-Extract After, 4- Closing Gambit
Cover Art by Martin Davidson	Recorded by Tim Fletcher
This is alive album recorded in march 2003 and it features a master of guitar spontaneity. He is Derek Bailey, whose music we have reviewed several times in the past. Here he is joined by Milo Fine on drums, clarinets and keyboards in order to deliver four improvisational compositions with great musicianship. The set starts with "Opening Gamut" which is a musical piece of over half an hour long. Here Bailey shows his exploration of the instrument in search of new sounds while Fine does a lot of phrases with the drum kit. From phrases to simple sounds or noises Bailey always finds some new ideas to use in the compositions. You can almost feel each of the compositions going to a climax before ending. This is an album of pure improvisation with two superb musicians (Bailey is almost a legend) who are always innovative and whose music is always inspiring.
Favorite tracks: ""Opening Gamut", "Closing Gambit" and "Extarct After"	Contact: www.emanemdisc.com

DEVIL TO PAY - THIRTY PIECES OF SILVER (Benchmark Recs., 2003)
	Produced By: Devil to pay
	Tracks: 1- Mouthful of Spite, 2- the Lamb, 3- Dinosaur Steps, 4- Whores of Babylon, 5- Angular Shapes, 6- Tractor Fuckin´Trailer, 7- The New Black, 8- Swathe, 9- Lowest Common Denominator, 10- Toreador, 11- Valley of the Dogs
	Recorded at Azmyth Studios
Wow !!! Listening this album while drinking a full bottle of beer is one superb experience. The music of this guys is really rocking and at the same time drug inducing....Heavy yet rocking rhythmic riffs are the essence here with a sort of Black Sabbath feeling and stoner rock sound that are the trademark of Devil To Pay´s music. The songs here are really powerful and at the same time have a certain psychodelic feeling in them which I liked a lot. The vocals are really fitting the music and you can not imagine this type of music with a different type of voice. Eleven memorable songs constitute this album that you can not stop listening until it has ended. The drumming here is really open letting the guitar riffs create the basis of the compositions and adorn them with some melodies that atransport you to desertic lands. A must for lovers of stoner rock and bands like Kyuss.
Favorite tracks: "The Lamb", "Angular Shapes" and "The New Black"	Contact: www.deviltopay.net or www.benchmarkrecords.com

DIABOLICAL BREED - COMPENDIUM INFERNUS (Worldchaos Prods., 2004)
	Produced By: Diabolical Breed
	Tracks: 1- Dies Irae, 2- Descendants of Satan, 3- In Majorent Sathanas Gloriam, 4- Nominis Nocturna, 5- The Night of Shooting Stars, 6- In the Eye of the Storm, 7- Falac Krigere
Cover Art by Diabolical Breed	Recorded at Studio Nord
"Dies Irae" is a dark haunting sounding intro full of keyboards and strange voices that kiks off this really bestial black metal album. Starting with the long track called "Descendants of Satan" the band goes for the throat with their ultra fast riffs and blast beating drums making each of the compositions a true symnphony of chaos. But they don´t stop there, they use more mid paced riffs and rhythms in order to add darkness and heaviness to each of tyhe tracks. And there are also dark melodies created by the guitars making memorable each of the compositions. At the same time, the keyboards add a lot of chord progressions and arrangements that brings more darkness to the band´s sound. The compositions are really long and that allows the band to develope them in its totality adding multiple ideas to them and making much more interesting that in bands that play two minutes songs of pure speed. This is a killer black metal album with the darkest of feelings.
Favorite tracks: "Descendants of Satan", "Nominis Nocturna" and "The Night..."	Contact: www.world-chaos.com

DISINTER - VEDMA - THE DISINTER WITCH PROJECT (Desecrated Prods., 2004)
	Produced By: Disinter
	Tracks: 1- Storm of the Witch, 2- In the Wake of Evil, 3- An Eternity of Pain, 4- Upon the Winds of Vengenace, 5- The Calm Before, 6- Storm of the Witch, 7- Only to Suffer, 8- Tortures of the Damned, 9- Escape Thri Pain, 10- The Place of Bones, 11- Praise to teh Ancients, 12- Upon the winds of vengeance (reprise)
Cover Art by Disinter
This is one of the most bestial releases ever. We have reviewed several times before the work of this killer band and they always surprise with their sheer bestiality. Here we have new tracks mixed with some older ones such as "Storm of the Witch 2001" or the track called "Upon the Winds of Vengeance" which was featured in the "Demonic Portraiture" album. Did you want the most devastating guitar riffs played at full speed with a demonical sound? Here you have it. Did you want blast beats and ultra fast drumming? You have it too with amazing double bass. Did you wanted ultra guttural voices? You have them here, used as another bestial instrument. To sum up, I have to say that this is one of the most brutal release by Disinter which is one of the msot bestial bands on Earth.
Favorite tracks: "Only to Suffer", "Praise to the Ancients" and "In the Wake of Evil"	Contact: www.disinter.com

DISINTER - AS WE BURN (Morbid Records, 2004)
	Mastered By: Peter Neuber
	Tracks: 1- Go away and Rot !!!!, 2- As we burn, 3- Black Seas of Infinity, 4- Born to Darkness, 5- Murals of Horror, 6- Dig Me no grave, 7- A Curse of pain and Hate (Burn With Me), 8- Inferno - as we burn acoustic reprise
Cover Art by Disinter	Mastered at Mega Wimp Studios
This is the newest release from this crushing death metal machine called Disinter. Each album this guys surprise us with more sonic violence coming from their really tight playing, guttural bestial vocals and aggressive riffing. And every time they know how to be more effective in constructing their compositions in order to turn you into a bloody mass. Check track "Black Seas of Infinity" to see what I am talking about (with clever and brutal drumming). The rhythm section sounds as solid and rehearsed as always but their sound is getting better on each new recording. And each note is played carefully in order to crush the listener. This guys have no mercy and their fast and furious rhythms are their essence. The album has a really good sound and that gives even more power to Disinter´s compositions. A really good death metal band full of devastating ideas and good musicianship.
Favorite tracks: All the CD	Contact: www.morbidrecords.de or www.disinter.com

DREAGGAN - GOOD BYE BASTARDS! (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Dreaggan
	Tracks: 1- Descent, 2- Castle of Straw, 3- Dreaggan, 4- Canon Fodders, 6- Goin Mad
Cover Art by Thomas Lombard	Recorded at Jalucine Studio
A Galloping riff opens up the track called "Descent" with full power. And after one listening you can see that the band has evolved a lot since their previous recording that we reviewed some issues back. On this new album the compositions sound much better, specially in the sound that they have achieved (the mix is better on this album, specially on the guitars that sound fuller and heavier). The band continues developing their heavy metal style while putting here and there the thrash elements that are their trademark and creating their own sound that is more personal on each new recording. The guitars have created here interesting riffs that are the heart and soul of Dreaggan´s music while the rhythm section supports them constructing sort of a musical structure where the rest of the band puts their ideas. Dreaggan continues to evolve and each time we listen more interesting and powerful music coming from them.
Favorite tracks: "Descent", "Canon Fodders" and "Goin Mad"	Contact: www.dreaggan.fr.st

DREAMAKER - HUMAN DEVICE (Arise Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Nino Laurenne and Dreamaker
	Tracks: 1- DreamMachines, 2- The Eye of War, 3- Nightmares Factory, 4-Without Angels, 5- Killing, 6- Enemy, 7- Forever in your Arms, 8- Alone Again, 9- Welcome to my hell, 10-Eternal Love, 11- Crystaline Eyes, 12- Awakening
Cover Art by Cavin Fever Media	Recorded at Sonic Pump Studio
A keyboards intro with an epic feeling opens up this album from this spanish band. Then comes the pure power metal that this band delivers full of energy and feeling. I have to say that Dreamaker sounds far better than most of the bands of the style, specially their guitars and rhythms that go well beyond the usual galloping used by others. The voice of Elisa C. Martin gives a lot of power to the music, succeeding where other singers of the style fail to give aggression and magnificence at the same time. The rhythm section is really solid and it is evident that they are extremely well rehearsed keeping good tempos and changing rhythms in the compositions without missing a beat. Dreamaker is a demonstration of how power metal can be done without faling in cliches of the style.
Favorite tracks: "The Eye of War", "Killing" and "Welcome to My Hell"	Contact: www.dreamaker.net

DRILLPOINT - DRILLPOINT (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Jon Van Wingerden
	Tracks: 1- Snapperhead, 2- Eye Awake, 3- Faking, 4- Shoved, 5- Hollow Man, 6- Sick Mind
Cover Art by Drillpoint	Recorded at Audio Valley Studio
Through over twenty minutes this band will surely get into your brain and blow it in pieces with their ultra heavy guitar riffs and their killer rhythms. The rhythms are essential here in creating the ultra heavy environment that is a characteristic of Drillpoint´s music. Over this rhythmic structures are spitted the vocals in a really powerful way following the feeling of the song. Thumbs up for the drummer that is killer in creating new rhythms on each minute of the compositions making the songs rhythmically complex yet retaining the extreme aggression that the band wants to give to them. Thumbs up also for the good sound that this recording has that makes the result even more powerful. A crushing release.
Favorite tracks: "Snapperhead", "Shoved" and "Eye Awake"	Contact: www.drillpoint.net

DRUNKEN ANGELS - GAME OF LOVE (Independent, 2004)
	Produced By: Claus Prellinger and Drunken Angels
	Tracks: 1- Game of Love, 2- Waste no Tears
Cover Art by Christian Nesshold	Recorded at CCP Tonstudio
A pure motherfucking mix of heavy metal and rock´n´roll played with a really heavy sound is what you will find on this two track CD. Guitar riffs that are really rhythmic are combined with others that are much heavier adding the metal feeling to the music. There is plenty of killer keyboards orchestrating the music and doing clever arrangements here. The vocals are of the middle range tone and that is good for the power of the compositions because while fitting the music of the rest of the band they create melodies that have a lot of power by themselves. There are some interesting guitar solos from a player from which I would love to listen more soon. The songs are really well constructed and are trully memorable. The two tracks leave you wanting more from Drunken Angels because they rule.
Favorite tracks: Both	Contact: www.drunkenangels.at

DUAL - DESTROY ALL IMPROV (Toast and Jam Recordings, 2004)
	Mastering By: Chris Jones
	Tracks: 1- Trampled, 2-Bar fight in karaoke, 3- Sin is plenty, 4- Breaking Down the fence, 5- Protest in the bedroom, 6- Chomping on my leg, 7- Corporate Lies and Deceit, 8- Government Led Hegemony, 9- Asian Retreat, 10- Shredded Truths, 11- Time travel, 12- Forever Lost, 13- Light the match, 14- Monkey key, 15- Topography of my rectum, 16- Sit, stay, 17- Break out of the industrial reservation, 18- Changing the System Channel, 19- Bottled Water, 20- Flipside, 22- Hornets Nest, 23- Come and Eat, 24- that´s right, 25- Rebuilding Destruction, 26- Molotov Cocktail the rich, 27- reading Parenti, 28- You can change your mind?, 29- Taking the wrong turn
	Recorded Live in the Studio
Dual is a clever eperimental duo consisting of Ed Chang on electronics and Doug Theriault on guitars. Here, each of the 29 tracks is a small world of experimentation with electronic sounds, noises and guitar phrases. Theriault plays some chords in tracks like "Sin is Plenty" letting Chang deliver his electronic ideas. But most of the time both musicians are delivering dissonances or multiple rhythms at the same time making each track really innovative. It is amazing to listen Chang twisting and smashing each electronic sound that he delivers, such as a sort of horn in "Protest in the Bedroom" that is twisted and turned making eat a completely different sound in just a few seconds. This is pure experimental music with interesting ideas and a lot of variation (each track is completely different from the other). For open minded people.
Favorite tracks: "Protest in teh Bedroom", "Forever lost" and "Come and Eat"	Contact: www.tandjrec.com

DUSTSUCKER - DUSTSUCKER (Zylinder Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Claus Grabke and Dustsucker
	Tracks: 1- Backslider, 2- Bronco Buster, 3- Live to Be Burned
Cover Art by www.blizzard-music.de and Hannes Kröger	Recorded at Upstairs Studio
This trio from hell delivers three tracks here of pure hard rock with a lot of seventies influences and a definite stoner rock feeling. The songs are fast and powerful played really tight by this guys who are really good musicians. The rhythm section is really solid and that adds a powerful skeleton over which the guitar can construct interesting ideas with its riffs and arrangements. I definetly liked the "desert" feeling that Dustsucker´s music has, reminding me in some places of old Kyuss. The album has a good mix and an overallgood sound that gives sort of a live feeling to the music and at the same time a lot of extra power to the music. It would be great if we could listen more music from this guys soon.
Favorite tracks: The three	Contact: www.dustsucker.de

EFZEG - WÜRM (Charizma Records, 2004)
	Produced By: Efzeg
	Tracks: 1- Günz in, 2- Günz Dus, 3- Riss, 4- Mindel Ena, 5- Mindel Dwa, 6- Würm, 7- Schicht (movie)