2020 Albums

Album Review: Static-X – “Project Regeneration Vol. 1” 8.5/10 (Nu Metal)

One of my chief childhood musical crushes, Static X, and its hallowed image somewhat shattered into a million jagged pieces one, as I grew old and two, once Wayne Static accidentally took his own life in 2014 when he took medicine with alcohol. Static X was falling into the pits of insignificance and the flame was slowly but surely dying out in my heart, only rekindled ever-so-dimmer whenever I spun their older stuff like Start a War or Shadow Zone, but when I heard of the Project Regeneration, I jumped for joy. I didn’t have the faintest idea, and honestly didn’t care much, how they were going to pull this project through; what mattered to me most was what the end result would be. And in short, I am hugely satisfied with this product. […]

2020 Albums

Album Review: Decrepid – “Endless Sea Of Graves” 9.5/10 (Death Metal)

I have had a massive hankering for some good old school death metal lately and Decrepid have heeded my call with this new album. With equal parts Incantation and 90’s influence and a spice all their own, Decrepid have put out one of the best death metal records I’ve had the pleasure of listening to this year. It’s grimy, cavernous, and dark, making for a potent old school blend that doesn’t feel forced or contrived. Also the album art is spectacular, which is always an added bonus. […]

2020 Albums

Album Review: Aversions Crown – “Hell Will Come For Us All” 7.5/10 (Tech Deathcore)

Aversions Crown is one of the bigger modern bands of Australia, among titans like Psycroptic and Disentomb. Much the same as those bands, it’s usually a good few year wait between albums so Hell Will Come For Us All is a much welcomed release to fans of sci-fi death. At the very least, there are many improvements over their 2017 album Xenocide. Gotta love the Burke work though. […]

2020 Albums

Album Review: Void Rot – Descending Pillars 8 (Death Doom)

A pinch on the arse this record is, a solid helping of death doom with an emphasis on the death. I’ve been waiting for this one, waiting. Unfortunately for the rest of you rubes, September is when you’ll be hearing this beast in its entirety. I’d go ahead and call this a safe bet for pre-order, not only does it sound good but you can gauge your expectations by checking out their previous output, a Void Rot/Atavisma split out earlier in 2020 via Everlasting Spew. That split set a tone that I wanted more of, and here it is! […]

Doom metal

Microdose: Clouds, Treurwilg, Gospel Of Death & Loviatar

Verdict: I have been a die-hard fan of Clouds ever since their grand opening in 2014 with Doliu and their third album, Dor, was my 2018’s third best album. Durere, however, is miles away from their grandeur and they are clearly not at the top of their game. My take on this issue is that they have spread themselves too thin and they are releasing albums too often to the point that they have begun to repeat themselves and lose their magic. I do want Clouds to sound like Clouds, but I don’t want them to give me the same thing they have always given. I mean the atmosphere, which is the key element in any atmospheric album, is mostly unimaginative and uninspiring and clean vocals have actually worsened (take Empty Hearts as one example). Lyrics, too, remain as heart-wrenching and tear-jerking as ever, but this one is actually a plus and I am totally in favor of that; Clouds’ lyricism has always had a way to my heart. Overall, it is absolutely a worthwhile effort, but somewhat imperfect. […]

2020 Albums

Album Review: Sopor Aeternus And the Ensemble of Shadows – Island of the dead 7.6 (Dark Folk)

Throughout history have existed many artists with a troubled soul (and at times body) who ventured beyond the realms of artistic norms and created their own version of reality and purpose of art. They have worked within all mediums of art and more often than not, their conception of matters has been a somber, and times even, grotesque one. Maybe most famous among them that one can think of would be Vincent Van Gogh, the Dutch Painter whose personal calamities are as legendary as his art is; Alexander Pope, the English physical deformity led to his aggressively pessimistic outlook on life; Sylvia Plath, the American poet whose suicidal inclinations led to her The Bell Jar and of course her demise at the young age of 30. […]