Incarnated/Try Before Die/Selfmadegod Records/2014 CD Review

  Incarnated  are  a  band  from  Poland  that  plays  a  very  brutal  form  of  gore/death  metal  with  elements  of  grindcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Try  before  Die"  which  will  be  released  by  Selfmadegod  Records.

  Hospital  sounds  start  off  the album  and  after  a  minute  the  music  starts  going  for  a  more  fast,  raw  and  brutal  death  metal  direction  along  with  some  melodies,  blast  beats  and  deep  growls  as  well  as  adding  in  grindcore  elements  into  the  brutal  sections  and  once  guitar  leads  are  added  in  the  music  starts  having  a  more  Swedish  style  death  metal  feeling  to  it.

  On  the  following  tracks  the  music  really  starts  going  for  a  more  brutal  death/grind  direction  while  also  keeping  around  a  good  amount  of  old  school  death  metal  elements  in  the  Swedish  tradition  as  well  as  adding  in  more  brutal  structures  to  update  the  classic  death  metal  sound  while  also  ignoring  all  modern  trends.

  Incarnated  show  a  very  heavy  sound  with  their  music  taking  the  brutal  gore  form  of  death  metal  and  mixing  in  old  school  Swedish  influences  and  grindcore  blast  beats  to  create  an  album  that  is  very  heavy,  raw  and  brutal  sounding  while  also  displaying  a  good  amount  of  melodic  structures,  the  production  has  a  very  professional  sound  to  it  and  the  lyrics  cover  violence,  death  and  gore  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Incarnated  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  and  old  school  death/gore  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should c heck  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Zombieland"  "My  Brother  Cain"  "Death  Machine"  and  "Madness".  8  out  of  10.  

Process Pain/Outcast Of Society/inverse Records/2014 CD Review

  Process  Pain  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  a   mixture  of  death  metal  and  deathcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Outcast  Of  Society"  which  was  released  by  Inverse  Records.

  A  very  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  and  guitar  leads  and  a  melodic  death  metal  direction  along  with  a  mixture  of  both  clean  and  heavy  parts  and  after  awhile  blast  beats  become  a  huge  part  of  the  recording  along  with  some  hardcore  and  slam  elements.

  On  the  following  tracks  the  music  really  starts  to  find  its  sound  mixing  melodic  and  slam  death  metal  with  deathcore  along  with  a  great  amount  of  mid  paced  sections  and  they  also  bring  in  elements  of  groove  metal  at  times  as  well a s  speeding  up  again  on  later  tracks  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  guitar  leads  are  only  utilized  on  some  of  the  tracks.

  As  time  goes  on  by  shouting  style  vocals  are  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  almost  of  all  of  the t racks  have  a  different sound  to  them  while  you  can  still  tell  that  it  is  the  same  band  playing  all  of  the  songs  and  towards  the end  spoken  word  parts  are  added  onto  one  of  the  tracks  along  with  the  last  song  utilizing  a  small  amount  of  clean  parts

  Process  Pain  show  a  good  amount  of  diversity  with  their  music  taking  the  slam  and  melodic  death  metal  styles  and  combining  them  with  deathcore  and  groove  metal  to  create  a  sound  that  is  very  heavy  yet  catchy  all  at  the  same  time,  the  production  sound s very  professional  and  the  lyrics  cover  violent,  hateful  and  everyday  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Process  Pain  are  a  very  decent  sounding  mixture  of  death  metal  and  deathcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Life  Beyond  Reason"  "Selfconfidence"  "Moment"  and  "Final  Escape".  7/5  out  of  10.

Gladenfold/From Dusk To Eternity/Buil2Kill Records/2014 CD Review

  Gladenfold  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  a  mixture  of  melodic  death  and  power  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "From  Dusk  To  Eternity"  which  was  reelased  by  Buil2Kill  Records.

  Classical  guitars  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  epic  sounding  synths  and  after  a  couple  of  minutes  spoken  word  parts  are  added  in  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes  into  a  more heavier  and  symphonic  power  metal  direction  along  with  some  blackened  death  growls  and  clean  vocals  and  they  also  keep  the  classical  guitars  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  add  in  prog  style  synths  and  traditional  metal  guitar  leads  along  with  all  of  the  musicla  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  The  music  really  starts  to  find  its  sound  on  the  other  tracks  combining  symphonic  elements  with  melodic  death  and  power  metal  as  well  as  having  a  black  metal  element  to  their  music  and  they  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  avant  garde  structures  as  well  as  the  vocals  using  a  mixture  of  clean  singing,  growls  and  screams,  on  some  of  the  later  tracks  the  band  starts  bringing  in  more  pagan  style  chanting,  and  when t he  classical  and  acoustic  guitars  are  utilized  elements  of  folk  music  are  added  onto  the  album and  the  last  track  is  an  instrumental  classical  music  piece..

  Gladenfold  have  a  very  original  sound  with  their  music  taking  a  very  heavy  and  melodic  form  of  death  metal  and  adding  in  symphonic  elements  as  well  as  taking  the  more  aggressive  side  of  power  metal  and  making  it  a  huge  part  of  their  sound  and  the  band  also  shows  a  black  metal  influence in  some  of  the  riffing  and  vocals,  the  production  is  very  professional  sounding  and  th e lyrics  cover  darkness  and  fantasy  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Gladenfold  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  symphonic,  melodic  death  and  power  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Fate  Escape"  "Where  Fires  Burn  Frozen"  "Six  Soldiers  Stand"  and  "Dementia".  8  out  of  10.   

Fragarak/Crypts of Dissimulation/Transcending Obscurity India/2014 CD Review

  Fragarak  are  a  band  from  India  that  plays  a  very melodic, progressive, brutal and old school form of death metal  and this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Crypts  of  Dissimulation"  which  was  released  by  Transcending  Obscurity  India.

  Avant  garde  sound s start  off  the  album  along  with  some  acoustic  guitars  and  background  synths  and  after  a  couple  of  minutes  the  music  goes  into  a  more  heavy  and  melodic  direction  along  with  some  powerful  sounding bass  guitars  which  also  leads  up  to  technical  guitar  leads  and  death  metal  growls  becoming  a  part  of  the  music.

  The  fast  parts  and  blast  beats  bring  in  the  brutal  element s of  the  recording  and  the  band  also  has  a  black  metal  influence  in  the  guitars  and  screams,  once  acoustic  guitars  are  added  onto  the  album  the  music  starts  having  a  more progressive  and  psychedelic  rock  approach  along  with  a  small  amount  of  melodic  singing,  while  the main  focus  is  still  on  the  heavier  and  technical  aspects  of  the  music.

  On  the  other  tracks the  band  really  starts  mixing  in  a  more  brutal  and  old  school  approach  to  death  metal  with  their  melodic  and  progressive  sound  and  most  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  being  added  onto  the  later  songs  along  with  a  couple  of  instrumentals.

  Fragarak  show  a  great  amount  of  diversity  with  their  music,  taking  elements  of  both  the  modern  and  old  school  forms  of  death  metal  and  mixing  them  with  more  technical  and  melodic  structures  as  well  as  having  a  slight  black  metal  feeling  and  acoustic  parts  that bring  a  progressive  side  to them,  the  production  is  very  professional  sounding  and  the  lyrics  cover  dark,  philosophical  and  metaphysical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Fragarak  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic,  progressive  and  brutal  sounding  death metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Insurgence"  and  "Cryptic  Convulsion".  8  out  of  10.

Furtherial/Destroying Atropolis/WormHoleDeath Records/2014 CD Review

  Furtherial  are  a  band  from  Turkey  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Destroying  Atropolis"  which  was  released  by  WormHoleDeath  Records.

  Drum  beats and  clean  singing  start  off  the  album  and  after  a  minute  the  music  goes  into  a  heavier  direction  along  with  some  screams  and  power  metal  singing  which  also  use  some  death  metal  growls.

  On  the  following  tracks  clean  playing  is  brought  into  the  music  at  times  while  the  music  sticks  mostly  to  a  heavier  direction  and  they  also  start  bringing  in  solos  and  leads  along  with  small  amounts  of  blast  beats  and  the  band  finds  its  sound  with  a  mixture  of  power,  thrash  and  modern  melodic  death  metal.

  As  the  album  progresses  the  band  starts  bringing  in  a  good  amount  of  power  thrash  elements  and  adds  in  some  early  groove  metal  along  with  the  heaviness  of  death  metal  to  update  this  old  school  sound  for  the  modern  day  and  on  one  of  the  later  tracks  acoustic  guitars  are  brought  into  the  music  briefly  for  an  instrumental  and  the  band  returns  to  a  heavier  direction  on  the  following  track  while  the  last  song  utilizes  a  small  amount  of  acoustics.

  Furtherial  bring  a  sound  to  the  album  where  the  old  school  meets  the  modern  day  form  of  metal  with  the  band  combining  thrash,  groove,  power  and  melodic  death  metal  together  to  create  an  album  that  is  very  diverse  and  heavy  all  at  the  same  time,  the  production  is  very  professional  sounding  and  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  violent  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Furtherial  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  melodic  death,  power  and  modern  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Shadow's  Riot"  "Sworn  For  Revenge"  "Longing  Spirit"  and  "Defeat".  8  out  of  10.  

Inhuman Remnants/Inattentional Blindness/Eschatonic Records/2014 EP Review

  Inhuman  Remnants  are  a  band  from  Australia  that  plays  a  very  heavy  and  brutal  form  of  death/grind  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  ep  "Inattentional  Blindness"  which  was  released  by  Eschatonic  Records.

  A  very  heavy  and  brutal  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  technical  guitar  leads  and  blast  beats  before  adding  in  a  mixture  of  screams  and  growls  and  after  awhile  the  band  brings  in  a  mixture  of  both  slow  and  fast  parts.

  On  the  other  tracks  the  band  finds  the  perfect  balance  between  technicality  and  brutality  as  well  as  adding  in  a  small  amount  of  melody  and  grindcore  elements  in  the  faster  sections  of  the  recording  and  the  music  also  has  a  United  States  east  coast  slam  death  metal  feeling  at  times  and  there  are  only  4  short  tracks  present  on  the  recording.

  Inhuman  Remnants  take  a  brutal  form  of  death  metal  mixes  in  grindcore  elements  and  melody  and  will  it  is  not  very  original  sounding  it  is  still  very  well  put  together,  the  production  is  very  professional  sounding  and  the  lyrics  cover  gore  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Inhuman  Remnants  are  a  very  great  soundign  brutal  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Inattentional Blindness"  and  "Rotten   Fruit  From  A  Dying  Family  Tree".  8  out  of  10.

Scarlet Embrace/Talio/Metal Scrap Records/2014 CD Review

  Scarlet  Embrace  are  a  band  from  Ukraine  that  plays  a  very  symphonic,  progressive  and  melodic  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Talio"  which  was  released  by  metal  Scrap  Records.

  Dark  nature  sounds  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  symphonic  elements  a  few  seconds  later  which  also bring  an  epic  and  medieval  feeling  to  the  recording  along  with  elements  of  folk  music  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes into  a  more  melodic  death  metal  direction  while  also  keeping  around  the  symphonic  sounds  as  well  as  adding  in  a  mixture  of  growls  and  clean  singing.

  The  band  also  starts  adding  female  vocals  on  some  of  the  tracks  along  with  a  great  amount  of  progressive  rock  elements  while  the  main  focus  is  still  on  melodic  death  metal  and  they  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  high  pitched  screams  that  bring  a  black  metal  feeling  to  the  recording  and  on  some  of  the  alter  tracks  acoustic  guitars  and  spoken  word  parts  are  added  in  along  with  a  few  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  the  music  starts  to  find  a  perfect  balance  between  melody  and  heaviness  and  on  some  of  the  tracks  closer  to  the  end  there  is  a  brief  use  of  blast  beats  being  utilized.

  Scarlet  Embrace  have  a  very  interesting  sound  with  their  music  with  the  heaviness  and  melody  of  death  metal,  the  acoustic  structures  of  progressive  rock  and  folk  music  and  a  very  heavy  symphonic  and  classical  sound  being  mixed  in,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  and  the  lyrics  cover  Mythology  and  Occultism.

  In  my  opinion  Scarlet  Embrace  are  a  very  great  sounding  symphonic,  progressive  and  melodic  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Earth's  Sigh"  "The  Obscure  Hermetic's"  "Ancient  Tales"  and  "Burning  One".  8  out  of  10.

  

Hirsipuu/Ihmisesta/2014 EP Review

  Hirsipuu are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  a  very  violent  and  brutal  form  of  gore  death/grind  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  ep  "Ihmisesta".

  A  very  heavy  sound  and  brutal  blast  beats  start  off  the  ep  along  with  a  mixture  of  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  before  adding  in  vocals  that  combine  screams  and  growls  together  and  the  band  sticks  mostly  to  a  fast  death/grind  direction  on  the  other  tracks  as  well  a s mixing  brutal  and  melodic  death  metal  together.

 The  music  on  this  ep  is  in  the  more  modern  death  metal  direction  while  also  having  the  speed  of  grindcore  in  the  faster  aspects  of  the  recording  and  the  average  length  of  each  song  ranges  from  2  to  3  minutes  while  they  also  bring  a  good  amount of  diversity  into  the  tracks  they  provide  for  the  recording.

  Hirsipuu  show  a  good  amount  of  diversity  with  their  songs  combing  the  modern,  brutal  and  melodic  forms  of  death  metal  together  along  with  small  traces  of  grindcore,  the  production  is  very  professional  sounding  and  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Finnish  and  cover  gore  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Hirsipuu  are  a  very  great  sounding  death  metal  band  with  traces  of  grindcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Ravo"  "Turha  Uhri"  and  "Akti".  8  out  of  10.

  

Septekh/Plan For World Domination/Studio 508 Productions/Abyss Records/2014 CD Review

  Septekh  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  has  been  featured  before  that  plays  a  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  with  some  black  metal  influences  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Plan  For  World  Domination"  which  was  released  as  a  joint  effort  between  Studio  508  Productions  and  Abyss  Records.

  A  very  heavy,  aggressive  and  melodic  old  school  death/thrash  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  high  pitched  screams  and  blast  beats  and  you  can  also  hear  growls  and  a  small  amount  of  punk  influences  before  adding  in  early  80's  metal/rock  guitar  solos  and  leads  and  powerful  bass  lines.

  The  band  gores  back  to t he  early  to  mid  80's  with  the  sound  on  this  recording  with  the  vocals  being  more  close  to  modern  death/black  metal  and  they  also  bring  in  a  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  songs  as  well  as  mixing  in  elements  of  NWOBHM  with  their  death/thrash  metal  sound  as  well  as  going  back  to  the  70's  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  on  some  of  the  tracks  you  can  hear  a  small  amount  of  back  up  shouts.

  Later  on  during  the  recording  the  band  starts  mixing  some  modern  elements  with  their  old  school  death/thrash  sound  and  mixing  in  a  more  raw  sound  and  the  bass  guitars  bring  an  Iron  Maiden  meets  Motorhead  sound  to  the  recording  and  the  last  track  is  over  10  minutes  in  length.

  Septekh  remains  true  to  its  melodic  and  raw  old  school  death/thrash  metal  sound  while  still  having  a  black  metal  feeling  in  the  vocals  along  with  a  powerful  sounding  production  and  lyrics  that  cover  violent  and  hateful  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Spetekh  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  raw  and  aggressive  death/thrash  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Into  the  Void  Of  My  Mind"  "Don  Asshole"  "Eyes  of  the  Grave"  and  "Plan  For  World  Domination".  8  out  of  10.

Storm Cry/Beginning Of Darkness/2014 EP Review

  Storm  Cry  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  plays  a  very  melodic  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  ep  "Beginning  Of  Darkness".

  Electronic  music  sounds  and  acoustic  guitars  start  off  the  ep  along  with  some  spoken  word  samples  shortly  after  that  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes into  a  more  heavy  and  melodic  death  metal  direction  along  with  some  growls  and  screams  and  after  awhile  the  band  adds  in  prog  elements  and  solos  to  their  modern  take  on  melodic  death  metal.

  On  the  4  songs  and  intro  the  band  mix  the  melodic  death  metal  sound s from  the  early  90's  to  modern  day  as  well  as  adding  in  thrash  and  prog  metal  influences  and  they  also  mix  in  blast  beats  and  back  up  shouts  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  on  the  4th  song  they  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing  before  returning  back  to  a  heavier  direction  as  well  as  bringing  back  a  small  amount  of  electronic  sounds  and  on  the  last  track  the  bass  guitar  brings  a  very  heavy  sound  to  the  ep.

  Storm  Cry  are  another  young  band  that  goes  for  the  modern  melodic  death  metal  sound  but  with  a  less  mainstream  approach  and  while  there  is  not  much  in  the  way  of  originality  the  music  is  still  very  well  put  together  along  with  a  professional  sounding  production  and  lyrics  that  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Storm  Cry  are  a  very  decent  sounding  melodic  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Sun  Dies  here"  and  "Beginning  Of  Darkness".  7/5  out  of  10.   

Circle Of Chaos Interview

Interview with Thomas Jonsson (bass), Circle of Chaos.

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band
since the recording of the new album?
Since the recording we have focused on recruiting a new drummer and a new guitarist. We have tried out quite a few really good musicians and now we have found “Sillen” and Kenneth, two really awesome guys that will contribute to get Circle of Chaos to the next level.  At the moment we are rehearsing intensively to be ready when we hit the roads and go on tour later this year.

2.Recently you have released a new album, can you tell us a little bit
more about the musical direction of the new recording and also how does
it differ from your past releases?
Well, this album is more compact and really should be listened to from the beginning to the end, in one sweep. Almost like a concept album. It´s very intense and will leave no one indifferent, that´s for sure. I would say that we have refined our sound a bit as this is our third release, but you will find all the Circle of Chaos characteristics, cool riffs, melodies, thrash/death influences and really intense vocals. All in all, furiously angry. Just as it should be.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores
with the new release?
If you try to sum up the essence of our lyrics, you´ll mainly find topics that occupies the dark side of the human mind. Foremost written from a fictional point of view, sometimes with an undertone of social criticism and the shortcomings of mankind.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Circle Of Chaos'?

We worked for a very long time to find a suitable name for the band. We wanted the name to let everybody know what we were all about just by looking at our name. Somewhere along the way, HG (guitar player and founder of the band) told us about a name he had thought of for a while, Circle of Chaos, and no matter how much we tried to work with other names, we felt that Circle of Chaos defined everything we wanted the band to stand for. As someone also described it; Circle of Chaos could be described as having a wall of death coming towards you. That´s ok with us.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Two years ago we played in Poznan (Poland) at the Bazina club and to this day it´s the most intense gig we´ve ever done. The crowd was really awesome and after that we decided that every time we go to Poland, we will try to play in Poznan, that´s how big of an impact that gig did to us. We also did an amazing gig at the Bremer Metal Festival (Germany) in 2011. Hopefully when we go back to play BMF in November this year, it will be as great as last time.

On stage we really give everything we´ve got to make it a happening together with the fans. Regardless if there is two persons or five hundred people, we always give on hundred percent for the people being at the show. If you have never experienced us live you have missed something. So when you get the opportunity next time, don´t let it slip away. See you front row!

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?
Yes. Tour plans are in the making and we really can´t wait to go on tour and play the new material with the new line-up. As soon as the dates get confirmed we will post them at our website (circleofchaos.se) and at our Facebbok profile (facebook.com/circleofchaos).

7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans
of melodic death metal
The new album has just been released, but our first two releases got really god reviews and attention worldwide. Within just ten months after the release of our debut album (that we distributed all by ourselves) we made our first live shows abroad. We also got airplay in every continent of the world, so we are really pleased with the reception we´ve got so far. But, the best feedback has come from the fans at our shows around Europe. Even though many people haven´t heard us before they see us at a show, they go crazy after just a couple of songs. That´s feedback!

8.What is going on with the other musical projects these days that some
of the band members are involved with?
Circle of Chaos is the priority for all five members of the band. “Julle” (vocals) lends his voice to a black metal project called Nazghor and I, Thomas (bass) is a live session member in Blackshine. That´s it. We are really focused on the band and our progress so there is not an option to be fragmented on different projects.

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We´ve recently started working on some material for the new album, but it´s a bit too soon to say where we are going with it. If you listen to all out three releases you can follow the progress up until today, where I would say that we have found a sound for ourselves. Perhaps we´ll just try to refine it a bit more. You just have to wait and see.

10.What are some bands or musical styles that have had an influence on
your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
All of the guys in the band are really big fans of Testament so that´s our mutual favorite band. So, generally i would say that thrash is a big influence when it comes to the bands music. But, we all individually listen and appreciate almost all kinds of music, not just heavy metal. If I speak for myself, I really appreciate the new stuff from bands like Kataklysm and Deicide. And of course everything that Iron Maiden have ever released.

11.What are some of your non musical interests?
We all have families and most of us also have kids, so that´s something really important to us. HG has a boat, i´m a soccer coach for kids, and I guess all of us also like to have a beer or two. Unfortunally we also still got regular jobs … even though it´s not an interest, but something that´s essential if we are to continue playing music.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or
thoughts?
Thanks for giving us the opportunity to present the Swedish Metal Chaos! We really hope to see you all on tour really soon – don´t forget to check us out at Facebook so you don´t miss any news or current tour dates.
Stay metal!
Facebook: www.facebook.com/circleofchaos
Website: www.circleofchaos.se

Icethrone/See You In Valhalla/Black Tears Of Death/2012 CD Review

  Icethrone  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  plays  a  melodic  form  of  pagan/viking  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2012  album  "See  you  In  Valhalla"  which  was  released  by  Black  Tears  Of  Death.

  The  sounds  of  wind  start  off  the  album  along  with  violins  and  acoustic  guitars  and  after  the  intro  the  music  starts  going  for  more  of  an  early  90's  Swedish  death  metal  sound  along  with  some  growls  and  you  can  hear  some  atmospheric  sounds  in  the  background  and  the  leads  that  are  brought  into  the  music  are  very  melodic  and  old  school  sounding  and  at  time s you  can  hear  some  melodic  pagan  vocals  being  utilized  at  times.

  On  the  other  tracks  the  band  brings  a  very  epic  and  atmospheric  sound  to  old  school  death  metal  along  with  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  they  also  mix  in  some  powerful  sounding  bass  lines  and  modern  extreme  and  black  metal  influences  at  times  and  in  some  of  the  tracks  the  faster  material  will  also  utilize  some  thrash  influences.along  with  a  great  amount  of  brutal  blast  beats.

  On  the  5th  track acoustic  guitars  are  finally  brought  onto  the  album  and  bring  a  folk  music  feeling  to  the  recording  as  well  as  the  heavier  parts  having  more  medieval  pagan  melodies  to  them  as  well as  bringing  in  a  small  amount  of  folk  instruments  on  some  of  the  other  songs  which  does  not  take  away  from  the  heavy  death  metal  this  band  creates  and  the  album  closes  with  an  acoustic  instrumental.

  Icethrone  have  a  very  different  sound  to  them,  while  their  main  focus  is  old  school  Swedish  style  death  metal  you  can  hear  some  black  metal  and  epic  folk  music  influences  in t heir  sound,  along  with  a  very  powerful  sounding  production  and  lyrics  that  cover  Nordic  and  Viking  Paganism.

  In  my  opinion  Icethrone  are  a  very  great  sounding  epic,  pagan  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album. RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "From  the  Sea"  "Red  Giant  Slayer"  "No  Sacrifice,  No  Glory"  and  "See  You  In  Valhalla".  8  out  of  10.    

Dark Century/Murder Motel/2014 CD Review

   Dark  Century  are  a  band  from  Canada  that  plays  a  mixture  of  death  metal,  thrash,  grind  and  hardcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  album  "Murder  Motel".

  The  album  starts  off  with  a  very  heavy  death/thrash  sound  along  with  a  mixture  of  screams  and  growls,  blast  beats  are  also  used  on  a  regular  basis  as  well  as  some  slower  hardcore  breakdowns,  the  grindcore  elements  are  mostly  added into  the  faster  sections  and  at  times  the  band  utilizes  some  melody  and  groove  in  certain  parts  of  the  album.

  Once  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  brought  in  you  can  hear  more  80's  and  90's  influences  while  the  music  also  stays  in  touch  with  a  more  modern  sound  while  still  being  in  a  great  amount  of  old  school  death  metal  and  grindcore  elements  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Dark  Century  have  a  very  interesting  sound  to  them  which  can  be  brutal  at  times  while  also  having  some  diverse  elements  that  would  also  appeal  to  fans  of  other  genres  of  extreme  metal,  along  with  a  professional  sounding  production  that  sound s like  it  could  of  been  released  on  a  bigger  label  and  some  lyrics  that  cover  violence  and  murder.

  In  my  opinion  Dark  Century  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  death  metal,  grind,  thrash  and  hardcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Cholesterol"  "Ice  Breaker"  "Kill  the  Crowd"  and  "Murder  Motel".  8  out  of  10.  

Vanhelgd/Relics Of Sulphur Salvation/Pulverised Records/2014 CD Review

  Vanhelgd  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  very  old  school  form  of  melodic  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Relics  Of  Sulphur  Salvation"  which  will  be  released  by  Pulverised  Records.

  From  the  early  beginnings  of  the  album   the  music  goes  back  to  the  mid  90's  with  some  heavy  old  school  death  metal  riffs,  melodic  leads  and  deep  growls  along  with  some  blast  beats  and  there  is  also  a  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the band  seems  to  be  heavily  influenced  by  both  the  Stockholm  and  Gothenburg  scenes  while  staying  away  from t he  happier  parts  of  the  later.

  The  album  really  shows  off  a  true  old  school  death  metal  sound  with  their  music  sounding  like  it  could  easily  be  recorded  in  the  90's  and  the  band  also  have  melodies  that  remind  me  of  early  Dismember  and  Hypocrisy,  while  the  slower  sections  also  bring  in  a  very  dark  atmosphere  to  the  recording  and  after  awhile  screams  are  added  to  the  recording  along  with  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts,   and  at  times  the  music  also  has  a  ritualistic  and  occult  feeling  to  it  in  certain  parts  and  at  times  you  can  hear  small  traces  of  black  metal  being  utilized  in  the  guitar  riffing.

  Vanhelgd  go  back  to  the  beginnings  of  melodic  death  metal  with  their  music  focusing  more  on  the  dark,  raw  and  heavy  sounds  of  that  genre  and  staying  away  from  the  happier  and  more  mainstream  elements  that  style  utilizes  these  days  along  with  a  very  heavy  and  old  school  production  as  well  as  having  lyrics  written  in  both  Swedish  and  English  that  cover  anti  religion,  death  and  horror  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Vanhelgd  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  melodic  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Salt  In  My  Hands"  "Relics Of Sulphur Salvation"  and  "Cure  us  From  Life".  8  out  of  10.