Areat Summit Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
We are scattered around Sweden and meet up for rehearsals and shows. We released our first album 2014 (Feast Of The Wicked) and released the EP Frostburn as a preview of what is to come.

2.How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recordings?
With its base in the Gothenburg melodic death metal sound we incorporate parts from black, death and hardcore. Fast drumming, guitar solos, no clean vocals and some heavy parts. The mixture of genres and our technicality sets us apart from other Swedish bands. We try to keep a DIY style and record and produce as much as we can ourselves.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
Manly about the problems with religion combined with classic death metal themes rooted in horror and the mythical.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Arreat Summit'?
It is a name from Diablo where the ancients dwell. As huge Blizzard fans, hopefully we will be asked to write some music for a new release.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Home town shows in Linköping are always the best. Besides that we have had some cool shows with great response in Gothenburg and Uppsala. We we preform its a no-nonsense kind of thing, we keep a high tempo and intensity to let the songs do the talking.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
We are playing a couple shows this spring. The largest is a festival in Stockholm in March (Dark Days of Stockholm) with Sodom, Rotten Sound, etc.

7.The last ep was released on 'World Vs. Comet', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
FOTW was released through WvsC and they helped us spread our music in the US, Germany, Japan etc which was really cool. They have earlier distributed music by Orson Sparks (Sonnys previous band) and focus mainly on hardcore. Both Swedish and foreign bands. Unfortunately, as from 2016, the label has been put to rest.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of technical death metal and deathcore?
We have gotten great reviews of Frostburn, mainly from different magazines and blogs based in Europe. We seam to have our biggest fanbase on the other side of the Atlantic in the US & Mexico.

9.When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We are pre-producing our new record which we expect to be released early 2017. From how its sounding, less deathcore with more prominent black metal vibes.

10.Are any of the band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?
Everybody plays with other people as well, some rock, hardcore and more downbeat deathcore. But nothing as serious.

12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence o your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
The Black Dahlia Murder, Whitechapel and early As Blood Runs Black are old favourites. Nowadays its diverse, but Periphery, Black Tongue, Angelmaker and the new Between The Buried And Me album to name a few.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?
Gaming, soccer, weight lifting & sampling different alcoholic beverages.

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Listen to Frostburn and check out our merch at:
http://arreatsummit.bigcartel.com/
Thanks !

Efpix Interview

1. For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

The band was formed not so long ago, it was in the summer of 2013. However, our drummer had to leave the band in 2015 for some reasons. But the idea of the band and creating most of the materials began in far 2009. During this time I was able to develop a specific concept and sound, and I finally decided what I kind of music I wanted to play.

2.How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recordings?

It’s quite hard to describe the musical sound which I changed at least four times or even more during the recording process, until I finally said to myself “That’s it. I like this sound”. But I am totally sure that the sound is the most suitable to this material that is presented on the album. It is heavy, brutal and I guess it is a flawless composition without any excess elements.


3.Your lyrics deal with science fiction, space and parallel worlds, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these topics?

Yeah, sure. I’m a huge fan of science fiction, especially the Strugatsky brothers books. One of my most favorites is "Noon, XXII Century". It seems like I’ve been addicted to the space themes since I was a child. I always wanted to figure out and to grasp its greatness, what is impossible, of course. And at the moments, when I’m sick and tired of everything I look at the sky and remind myself  that my problems are just the dust, as we all surely are.


4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Efpix'?

Let it be a little mystery for mystery lovers. I guess, they’ll find the answer very soon.


5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

We haven’t played many shows yet, so I can’t tell you which one was the best, but we’re working hard to start touring again.
As for the stage performance, it really turns me on. Every time I step onto the stage I feel so excited and overwhelmed with emotions that I want to share them with the audience. The best feeling ever.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

Yeah, we plan to play a release party  soon and go touring through Russia.


7.The album is coming out on 'Sliptrick Records, can you tell us a little bit more about how you came in contact with this label?

It took us pretty long time to find a suitable label. We had negotiated with at least 20 labels before we found these guys. They offered us the most attractive working conditions and we made a decision to sign the contract with them.


8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of industrial and death metal?

There are always a lot of different opinions whatever people do. Luckily, we get great support from our fans and the feedback from metal magazines and metal fans of industrial and death metal is very positive. At least I haven’t heard any negative things about messing up the genres or something like that. It shows that we are on the right track in the development of our band.



9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Everywhere. At least somewhere.


10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Of course, it’s all Peter Tägtgren’s projects. And also such bands as Bloodbath, Septic Flesh, Amon Amarth and Rammstein. Nowadays, I’m into raw old-death metal, but sometimes I really like to listen to some classical music.


11.What are some of your non musical interests?

I like to take photos and make photomontage. I think I took up photography while making the photoset for our album. I liked it a lot. Maybe I’ll arrange some exhibition in my hometown someday. Besides, being an old gamer, I’m really interested in the game development process. Now I have a  project which will require my skills in photo and sound production and it makes me very happy because I really wonder what I can do.


12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Listen to your parents and to metal music. And if you have a dream, don’t let it die and do your best to make it come true.

Educated Scum Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Educated Scum was formed by Mikhail “MishGun” Kuznetsov and me, Dmitriy “Dimebag” Dasov in 2000 as a fun home grindcore project. They’ve already had some experience working together in some nameless
school thrash-metal band – Dimebag as a lyrics author and MishGun as a guitar player and singer. By
that time the band’s split-up and so we decided to test some new home studio software and try some
extreme grindcore. I took on growling and lyrics and MishGun – all other instruments. The efforts gave
birth to 6-track demo. It took 3 years to put ideas together and record a “full-length” album
consisting of 16 tracks 16-minute long. “From Chaos To Disorder” was recorded in October-November 2003 and it took a couple of months to put some samples between songs and make limited CD-R edition just to handle it to friends.
In October 2004 “From Chaos To Disorder” was released by Not Like Most Records as part of “Educated
Scum vs. Fight Back” split CD and live Educated Scum line-up (without me on stage) was ready to grind!
Some successful gigs (first 4 in October 2004, by the way) followed in local clubs (supporting Vader
and Behemoth, to name a few) and festivals such as Petrogrind. Things started to look really bright as
critics and public gave a warm welcome to the new extreme band, but in late April of 2006 live line-up
has eventually split-up and the whole project was put on hold for 4 years.
In spring of 2010 me and MishGun reunited to work on a new Educated Scum studio album with guest
session vocals by Konstantin Devilhead (of Human Device fame). It took a year to record, find the label
and release the second “React” album on Musica Production in December of 2011. With no interest from
Kosarev in the band’s future, Evgeny “Jack Vegas” Tkachev was recruited in 2012. Me and MishGun came up with an idea to re-record and re-release “From Chaos To Disorder” also keeping up the work on some new demos with Jack Vegas and then (maybe) try to build-up a new live line-up but… Jack Vegas emigrated toGermany and the whole project was again suspended for more than a year…
Still hoping to re-record the famous first album, we found session drummer Vladimir “Vile” Lyashkov who
played in dozens of bands such as Exult, Grace Disgraced, Beheaded Zombie etc. He took only a few weeks to learn the material and then recorded all songs in one day in Primordial Studio. Then Jack Vegas
visited Moscow to play a gig with a drone band A Foggy Realm and recorded all vocal lines in a couple
of days.
“The Chaos Complete: From Chaos To Disorder Re-Visited” was released on May 2015. This compilation
included original recording with original sound (and bonus tracks) from the first promo-CD; the new
re-recorded version; some rehearsal recordings of the last line-up and the 2000 demo never ever
released. Now the band still tries to find new members and continues putting together some new material
for another album…

2.How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recordings?

The first release "From Chaos To Disorder" (recorded in 2000, re-recorded in 2014 and re-released in
2015) was a fast riffy grindcore with classic death metal basics. The next release "React" was still
grind/death-oriented but also with some metalcore/deathcore touch to it. In the future we plan to stay
brutal but pretty open to other metal genres.

3.There seems to be a great amount of gaps in between releases, can you tell us a little bit more about
it?

This low activity in the project was due to constant problems with live line-up that I mentioned. So
other side projects of Mikhail, our regular jobs and families (I have a daughter and he has even two
now) - also the factors that don't allow us to be too active. But we still try and work on some new
songs from time to time and plan to play on Fuck and Destroy festival in May with Jack Vegas that will
come to Moscow to share a gig with us.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you have explores over the years with your music?

Well, of course, the main lyrical influence is Napalm Death. The "political" or "social" grindcore is
what really inspires me as a lyrics writer. The real problems of the real people. The issues that
concern everybody and the problems within our society that an adult shouldn't ignore. Gore-oriented
lyrics are not the way we wanted it, so politics and social issues are the main themes in our songs
(and the samples in Russian between them).

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Educated Scum'?

Educated Scum are what, in fact, most of the politicians are. Educated but often not civilized,
intelligent but ignoring the needs of their own electorate, sophisticated but corrupt and deceitful.
That's what it's all about.

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would describe
your stage performance?

The stage performanes were pretty funny because of the hardcore background of our previous singer
Andrey Shmorgun - he was pretty active on stage and even stagedived into the moshpit and sang some
songs amidst the moshing people. Some of the best gigs were opening shows for more established bands
such as Behemoth, Squash Bowels and Dead Infection in local Moscow clubs.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

We only played thrice outside of Moscow (but always in Russia) and never toured - it was all small
local clubs and mini-festivals. So far the only gig that we plan is Fuck and Destriy festival in May
and then we'll try to find a new singer... once again.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death metal and grindcore?

In fact it's our first interview in English, so we were always a local act never known worldwide. But
with such huge help and support from our new label Symbol Of Domination (sublabel of Satanath) and
personal efforts to promote Educated Scum from Aleksey Korolev make us believe that it's only a
beginning for us as a musical project.

9.Are any of the band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects?

Yes, Mikhail always had side projects - always more "soft" because it was my idea to play grindcore and
he was more well-rounded guitarist interested in many other genres of metal and even rock. He
participated in gothic metal band Repentance (recorded one EP and one digital full-length album with
them), had couple of metalcore/modern metal projects released only demos and now he's playing something
soft-rockish in a band called Summer Arctic. I personally write lyrics for a couple of bands too:
thrash metal band called Maic Depression and international modern metal project Forces United produced
by established musician Kirill Nemolyaev.

10.When can we expect new material and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the
future?

For now we have 4 recorded demo-tracks without vocals recorded (but all lyrics written) and we present
one of them in Summer especially for Russian Death Metal compilation vol.4. And then we plan to record
live drums for these songs in Summer or Fall and release it as a digital EP, maybe. The direction is
still grinding death metal with some modern groove parts but still fast and brutal mostly.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what
are you listening to nowadays?

We both were influenced by classic thrash metal of 80's - Metallica, Slayer, Sepultura, Exodus and so
on, classical death metal - Death, Carcass, Pestilence, Benediction and many others. I listen a lot of
different music nowadays - from classic art rock of 70's till grindcore. I like progressive metal, epic
doom metal, even avantgarde. Mikhail is not too melomaniac, he prefers something like Foo Fighters and
other modern American rock stuff.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

Regular jobs (that's what the real "grind" is huh?) and growing kids are priority, of course, and the
music is a hobby. It requires more free time that we lack so we're always busy, to say the last.
Besides, I write reviews for some internet resources and once a month or two I appear as a guest
commentator in Moscow metal radio show called Dream Keeper.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Well, it's not the best times for the underground music today in terms of commercial success. But there
are new possibility of promotion worldwide so the listeners would have more chances to discover your
music and start supporting you. Anyway, it's the survival of the fittest and we still hope for the
best, we still create music and we don't want to stop as long as we've got something to say. So, stay
tuned and support the underground!

Dead Edition/Network Failure/Farn Black Productions/2016 EP Review

  Dead  Edition  are  a  band  from  Ukraine  that  plays  a  mixture  of  melodic  death  and  groove  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  ep  "Network  Failure"  which  was  released  by  Farn  Black  Productions.

  Static  sounds  start  off  the  ep  before  going  into more  of  a  heavy  and  melodic  musical  direction  which  is  also  very  heavily influenced  by  thrash  and  after  a  few  seconds  groove  metal style  vocals  are  added  into  the  music  that  also  bring  in  aggressive  growls  and  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard  in t he  faster  sections  of t he  songs.

  A  lot  of  modern  metal  elements  can  be  heard  in  the  bands  musical  sound  and  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of the  recording  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  while  the  music  has  its  fast  moments  it  sticks  mostly  to  a  mid  paced  musical  direction.

  Dead  Edition  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  modern  groove  metal  and  mixes  it  in  with  melodic  death  metal  to  create  a  style  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  real  life  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Dead  Edition  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  melodic  death  and  groove  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE "Marching  Under  Their  Flags"  and  "Cut  to  black".  8  out  of  10.

Sacred Sin/Darkside/Satanath Records/Envenomed Music/Rebirth The Metal productions/2014 CD Re-issue Review

  This  is  a  review  of  another  recording  from  Sacred  Sin  which  shows  their  early  technical  and  atmospheric  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  the  album  was  originally  released  in  1993  and  called  "Darkside"  which  also  saw  a  re-issue  put  out  in  2014  as  a  joint  effort  between  Satanath  Records,  Envenomed  Music  and  Rebirth  the  Metal  Productions. 

  A  very  heavy and  atmospheric  sound  along  with  some  keyboards  start  off  the  album  and  a  few  seconds  alter  melodies  and  death  metal  growls  are  added  into  the  music  while  the  faster  sections  of t he  songs  use  blast  beats  and  thrash  influences  and  you  can  also  hear  a  touch  of  early  black  metal in  the  bands  musical  style.

  Spoken  word  parts  can  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  they  also  give  the  music  more  of  a  ritualistic  feeling  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  very  melodic  and  technical  sounding  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  some songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing  and  a  great  amount  of  the  tracks  also  use  the  keyboards  as  a  lead  instrument.

  On  this  recording  Sacred  Sin  played  more  of  a  raw  style  of  death/thrash  that  was  style  technical  and  atmospheric  while also  having  a  touch  of  black  metal,  the  production  sounds  very  raw  and  old  school  while  the  lyrics  cover  Occultism  and  Darkness  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Sacred  Sin  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  technical  and  atmospheric  black/thrash  metal  with  a  touch  of  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Darkside"  "The  Chapel Of  Lost  Souls"  "Suffocate  In  Torment"  and  "Carnage  Forsaken".  8  out  of  10.  

 

Sacred Sin/Eye M God/Satanath Records/Envenomed Records/Darknagar Records/2015 CD Re-Issue Review

   Sacred Sin  are  a  band  from  Portugal  that  played  an  atmospheric  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  on  this  recording  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  1995  album  "Eye  M  God"  which  was  re-issued  as  a  joint  effort  between  Satanath  Records,  Envenomed  Records  and  Darknagar  Records.

  Horror  movie  samples  start  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes  into  a  heavier  thrash  metal  direction  that  also uses  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats when  the  songs  speed  up  and  after  awhile  death  metal  growls  make  their  presence  known  on  the  recording  along  with  a  small  amount  of  high  pitched  screams.

  Keyboards  and  melodic  guitar  leads  that  also  demonstrate a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill  can  be  heard  in  some  parts  of  the  songs  and  you  can  also  hear  elements  of  black  metal  in  the  bands  musical style  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  and  as  the  album  progresses  the  songs  start  bringing  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  music  also  mixes  in  a  style  that  was  considered  technical  in  that  era  and  a  couple  of  songs  also  brings  in  a  small  amount  of  female  vocals  while  a  later  track  adds in  a  few  seconds  of  clean  playing.

  Sacred  Sin  played  a  style of  death  metal  that  was  very  atmospheric  and  technical  for  its  time  on  this recording  and  also  brings  in  a  touch  of  black  and  thrash  metal  to  create  a  style  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Occultism,  Personal  Experiences  And  Beliefs  and  Emotional  Relief  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Sacred  Sin  played  a  very  great  sounding  atmospheric  and  technical  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  along  with a  touch  of  black  metal,  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  re-issue.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Evocation  Of  The  Depraved"  "The  Nighthag(Nocturnal  Queen)"  "Guilt  Has  No  Past"  and  "The  Endless  Path  Of  Hecate".  8  out  of  10.    

The Ward Interview

 1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
1. We are The Ward from the town of Tiraspol, Moldova, Transdnistria. We play atmospheric death metal.


    2.So far you have released 2 ep's and 2 full length's, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recordings?
2. Our albums and EP's differ in meaning, but in general heavy guitar riffs, atmospheric keyboard melodies and stiff drum sound are the essense of our music.

    3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
3. Problems of modern society, its' vices and its' harmful influence on people and the consequences of all this.

    4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'The Ward'?
4. We had been choosing this title for a long time and probably because of this title there are such topics we explore in our songs. We understand "The Ward" as some closed area where a person is held and due to some circumstanses he cannot leave it. And what is going on in his mind in the moment when he realizes his situation...

    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?
5. It's a pity, but we have very few concerts because such musical genres are not widespread in our region, but still there were some shows that were really memorable. For example we were warming up Terminal Prospect and Negura Bunget, and it was really cool.

    6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
6. We are planning to play at some fests this year and to go on tour somewhere but due to some circumstances we couldn't do this before. We hope we'll be able to do it soon

    7.How would you describe the metal scene in your home country of 'Moldova'?
7. In fact, there is no metal scene in our region (Transdnistria). There are 2-3 band that play corresponding genre, but metal concerts take place very seldom and there are few listeners. The situation is much better in Kishinev. There are good bands, good listeners and specialized clubs where metal concerts take place.

    8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of atmospheric death metal?
8. There were different kinds of responses. We had good ones and bad ones. But the fact is that we learned about what we have to work on.

    9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
9. It's difficult to say it now, but most likely it will be the same genre but it will be more brutal, more diversified with some influences of other genres.

    10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
10. Septic Flesh, Opeth, Swallow the Sun, Tiamat.

    11.What are some of your non musical interests?
11. Music is our only hobby.

    12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
11. Music is our only hobby.
12. We want to thank metal scrap records. We also want to thank our listeners. Expect our songs and come to our shows. Thank you!

Ad Vitam Interview

ADVITAM

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?


Sure, Ad Vitam is a band from Italy, exactly from Sardinia. We started our project
during 2011. We had some changes before having the actual line-up. In these years we grew up in our musical genre and we tried to have our personal identity in music.
We recorded our first EP in 2014. Now we had the pleasure to introduce to our fans and friends Stratosfear via Revalve Records, currently our label.


2.So far you have released both an ep and a full length, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings and also how do they differ from each other?

We recorded Edge of Memory as our first EP some years ago. This work was entirely written by Mattia (singer), in fact it reflects the real genre that belong to him. Stratosfear was instead designed and realized by the band. We talked for a long time about the concept and the method for the takes and mix. The LP was written entirely in studio, step by step. It contains ideas from all the members of Ad Vitam. This makes us very proud.
Stratosfear also contains many changes, compared to Edge of memory, about technologies of mixing and takes.




3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

Usually in our lyrics we talk about introspection and meditation. Stratosfear examines the Fear as the most important feeling that belongs to humans. We tried to explain this through a personal vision of the Fear like the atmosphere. We think that the Fear has many layers that focus on the person. The man is like a planet and the fear orbits around him. Through our Music you can travel from the outermost part of the fear to the innermost. At the end we try to explain that men are forced to submit their life to the Fear with the last track named "Fall of Collective Consciousness".


4.I know that the band name means 'for life' in Latin, how does this name fit in with the musical style that you play?

I know, "Ad Vitam" for a "Death Metal" band is paradoxal. We like to think that this name can bring us all the luck we need. We are Friends as well as band mates, then we hope to continue in this adventure for a long time... Ad Vitam Maybe...

Damn, in Italian it sounds better!




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?


In these years we had the pleasure to share the stage with some bands that belong to international environment. I can surely say that all of us have something to learn by these bands. We met bands like Fleshgod Apocalypse, Destrage or Forgotten Tomb and is amazing to see the behaviour of these bands before, during and after their shows. They have an unbelievable professionalism during their work and we try every time to emulate this behaviour. It's not easy, but it permits performing your work in peace and in time.



6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?



Yes, we are planning an Italian tour to promote Stratosfear. We are also thinking to planning some shows in Europe. Nevertheless, this is our first time and we need to plan all details very well. We hope to succeed in this venture!


7.The new album was released on Revalve Rcords, are you happy with the support they have given you so far?


We consider the feeling with Revalve Records as a luck. We are satisfied with the work being done by the label. We just started our collaboration some month ago, but we can already see results. We hope to continue in this way and why not, maybe we can submit our next Album!



8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of extreme metal?

I think that the more fitting word is "Unexpected". In this first month of Stratosfear we looked in a world that didn't belong to us. We discovered many fans around the world. Today we can check these results through our fan pages in social network and through videos and reviews. We discovered fans following us from Russia, America, North Europe, Canada... we knew only fans from our land before Stratosfear. This event pushes us to continue to our way and try to do better!




9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We think that the growth in all spheres must be seen like steps. When we started this venture we didn't know what would have been our last goal... and we still don't know.
Our first step was to play on a stage for the first time. Then our second step was to write our songs and make an EP. Now, i really don't know what will be our place in music on the future, but i know that our next step is to play outside our country and finish to write songs for our next Album.



10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Surely we are affected by many styles by our favourite bands. There are some favourite bands common to all of us like Lamb of God, Opeth or Dark Tranquillity. Moreover, while writing songs we discuss styles. For example Lorenzo likes Core music and Breakdown, I love classical death metal and Black Metal, so we try to find the right balance between this different styles.
Stratosfear is the product of this mixture.




11.What are some of your non musical interests?

We love to play music but we love also to organize it. We have a cultural association named 200BPM and we organize concerts and festivals in our land. This activity permitted us to know many bands from Italy and not. The most important event that we organize is an Open Air Festival on Summer named Solk'n Roll. In 2016 we will have the honour to accommodate Carcass in July. In recent Years we had the pleasure to know Carnifex, Fleshgod Apocalypse, Extrema and many more.




12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Simply thanks. Thanks to you to gave us the opportunity to say our. Thank to All the staff that worked behind Stratosfear. Thanks to All the bands who shared the stage with us in these years and Thanks mostly to all the people who follow us. I think it's very important their support and our work is also the product of these people.

Carnac Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?
- Of course! We are currently preparing for a couple of shows in the future and we are almost done with the writing of new material at the same time. We are planning to start recording in the beginning of June, so that’s really exciting!

2.How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the ep?
- I would say it is death metal, but with influences from both its old-school style and its modern style; I guess the modern style is more prominent though. The sound also flirts a little with black metal.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with
the music?
- Every song has a different concept. Hericide tells the story of a lord being exiled and his death in a forest. Menhirs of Enmity is about our band name “Carnac” and its story. Debaser is about those who do not chase their dreams enough and get humiliated for it. And finally, Servant to the Void is about a man who is stuck in a cave and his process of becoming one with the void around him.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Carnac'?
- It is a commune in France. It consists of menhirs which are rumored to be pagan soldiers petrified by Pope Cornelius.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also
how would you describe your stage performance?
- We only played one show so far, haha. Though I definitely think that it was very successful. I can describe it as “dynamic”, but further than that, we want each of our performances to be an experience for our audience. I really believe that we are a “live” band; as in, a band that can truly be understood only by watching live. Right now we may only have one EP out, but that doesn’t stop us from giving our best with the covers on the setlist as well.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
- We have a show in Istanbul on March 19th, and there are plans to play in Ankara again in a short while. We are actively seeking summer festivals as well. But at the end of the day, we just want to play as many shows as possible. That’s why I hope that we can become a touring band in the future. I know that it is a looong way to go, but we absolutely love playing shows and we would do it every day if we had the chance.

7.Recently Sliptrick Records, re-issued your 2015 ep, what are your thoughts on the final product?
- Sliptrick has been very supportive of us, and we can’t wait to have the EP in a physical format as well.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death metal?
- It has been very good, especially considering that it is our first EP. Most of those who listened to our EP said that they were looking forward to the full-length album. I hope they love the album even more, and we can live up to their already great support.

9.When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
- We are planning the release date to be sometime around the end of 2016. We will be recording it and having it mixed and mastered in the summer. I’d say that it is definitely going to be more diverse than the sound on the EP. There is a straight-up death metal song, a song with post-metal influences and an atmospheric 7-minute closer at the same time. I think it’s going to be really intense from start to finish, hope our listeners think of it that way too.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
- Bands like At the Gates, Enslaved, Opeth and Gojira had big influences on us. Currently everybody in the band is listening to a lot of Neurosis and we definitely look up to their intensity; both in live performances and in songwriting. Other than that we are spinning a lot of rock records lately; from Queens of the Stone Age, Foo Fighters, Them Crooked Vultures and Muse to name a few.

11.What are some of your non musical interests?
- Our guitarist Ozan is a teacher, and the rest of us are students in the fields of Computer Engineering, German Translation, Law and Psychology. We occasionally go on island trips (a bit random, haha) and attend gigs nearby.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
- Thank you for this interview, we hope you like what you hear in the future!

Upcoming Devastation/Trilogy Of Human Decay/2016 EP Review

  Human  Decay  are  s  band  from  Spain  that  plays  a  brutal  mixture  of  death  metal  and  grindcore  and  this  is  a  review  of t heir  self  released  2016  ep  "Trilogy  Of  Human  Decay".

  A  very  fast  and  brutal  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  as  well  as  some  very  guttural  sounding  growls  and  the  music also mixes  in  a  great  amount  of  slam  elements  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the r ecording  and  the  leads  also  bring  in  more  of  a  technical  style.

  Elements  of  grindcore  can  be  heard  in  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  while  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  melody  at  times  and  the  songs  also bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  songs  also  mix  in  a  lot  of  east  coast  influences  as  well  as  always  remaining  very  heavy  and  brutal  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording.

  Upcoming  Devastation  plays  a  music  style  that  takes  the  brutal,  slam  and  technical  sides  of  death  metal  and mixes  it  with  grindcore  to  create  a  style  of  their  own, the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  misanthropy  and  human  annihilation  themes.  

  In  my  opinion  Upcoming  Devastation  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  brutal  death  metal  and  grindcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Return  to  the  First  Day".  8  out  of  10.

 

Morgue Supplier/Self Titled/Obscure Musick/2016 CD Review

  Morgue  Supplier  are  a  band  from  Illinois  that  plays  and  old  school  mixture  of  death  metal  and  grindcore  and  this  is a  review  of  their  self  released  2016  album  which  was  released  by  Obscure  Musick.

  A  very  fast  and  brutal  grindcore  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  high  pitched  screams  and  after  awhile  the  music  starts  bringing  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  pacced  and fast  parts  as  well  as  adding  death  metal  growls  into  some  part  of  the  songs  and  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's.

  Some  of  the  tracks  are  very  short  in  length  and  also  add  in  a  small  amount  of  melody  at  times  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  they  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill  that  is  rarely  heard  in  this  genre  and when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  bring  in  even  more  of  a  melodic  style  to  the  bands  musical  style  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples  and  why  the  music  sound s very  old  school  the  production  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  modern  feeling  and  the  whole  album  also  sticks  to  a  very  heavy  sound  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording.

  Morgue  Supplier  plays  a  style  of  death/grind  that  has  its  roots  in  the  90's  while  also  having  more  of  an  up  to  date  take  on  the  style  along  with  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  insanity  and  death  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Morque  Supplier  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  death  metal  and  grindcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres, you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Cultic  Rape"  "Graveyard  Filler"  "Dead  Room"  and  "Broken  Gods".  8  out  of  10.

Hemotoxin Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?

Right now we are preparing for the next shows we have coming up. We're rehearsing a 3 piece set for some of the Bay Area shows we have coming up, as our guitar player is in Europe at the moment. We will have help however from JC of Deceive when we play L.A. April 2nd and Riverside April 3rd.



2.In April you have a new album coming out, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

I think the only thing that’s changed is time, the recordings now compared to what we were doing a few years ago are a lot more mature and structured. The sound has been the same to me, violent progressive deathrash. And as time goes on my influences change, so that element along with the other four guys in the band will always bring a certain twist in the sound that hopefully can set us apart from everyone else, and make Hemotoxin something unique to the listener.



3.Some of your lyrics cover religion, the Illuminati, Lovecraft and Science Fiction, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in those topics?

All through high school I was obsessed with conspiracy theories, sci-fi and horror. Myself and the rest of the band along with our friends were really into the Lovecraft collections; his frantic writing style influenced the way I write lyrics. The Illuminati has always been an interesting concept and in some way, form or fashion I believe the world is run by a secret society of elite human beings who have a better understanding of the world we live in and what truth is, and from there you can choose to believe how deep that rabbit hole goes.  For me it’s a great subject to write about and explore. Some songs I've written have come true like "Postwar Civilization".



4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Hemotoxin'?

When I decided to use the name I chose it because of the sheer brutality of what hemotoxins do to your blood, and I couldn't find another band with the same name so I decided it was a perfect word to associate with the music we made. Plus when Stephen Grajeda sent me the logo he deisgned, I knew it was perfect for us in every way, so we've stuck with it.



5.Originally the band was a solo project, what was the decision behind hiring a full time line up?

At the time I had been playing shows for almost two years with my first band Aeon of Death (which included Nathan and Brandon at the time). After holding my guitar way too low on stage I developed a terrible shoulder problem that plagues me to this day, so I decided at the time I should stop playing live and spare myself the pain, but I couldn't deny how much I loved it and decided to buy a lighter guitar and make it happen. As far as going from a one man project to a full band, it was all circumstantial; my friend Joey Banducci wanted to jam when he found out I quit AOD, so we jammed and the rest of it kind of fell into place. When Joey quit we were just beginning to develop our sound and I had absolutely no plans on stopping, so recruiting Brandon was a no-brainer. Since our first band broke up, he and I still jammed during the time Joey was in Hemotoxin; we're very much like-minded, and he's one of my closest friends next to Nathan. So to sum it all up, this band is a result of four like-minded guys with the same goals in mind. I didn't really hire anyone.



6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

There have been a lot of great shows. A highlight will always be Slaughter by The Water 3 in 2012 which was our first big show. Lately it has to be playing with Belphegor and Kataklysm at the old Oakand Metro; we watched so many of our favorite bands play that stage, and everything from the sound to the crowd itself was perfect. The guys in Belphegor and Kataklym were very cool to us, fortunately we haven't had to deal with too many big egos. Our live show is stripped down, just the four of us playing as a unit, bringing whatever gimmick we don't have and presenting it within the music itself. We are very much in the crowd’s face almost every time, so although we're up on stage playing fast crazy thrash, we'll still get up in your face and make sure everyone has a great time.



7.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?

For now the closest we have to a tour is our two date run in Southern California. We are open to any tour offers, but just like any band all of us have full-time jobs, so in order for us to tour it requires us to have to make arrangements to make that happen. When we get a good tour offer we will hopefully make this happen and take our music to every end of this world.



8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer music by fans of death and thrash metal?

Overall it’s been positive. I think people understand what we're trying to accomplish musically. We wanna bring back the 80's metal philosophy of going straight ahead and blasting you in the face with heavy music. At the same time we also want to bring a musical quality that gives what we do a little more credibility beyond being just metal, and the people who see that I think will appreciate that and hopefully like the music. The people who don't, won't.


9.Are any of the other band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?

Brandon is currently involved with a project featuring Kyle Wallinger who played drums in bands like Archea and Dismembered Carnage. Michael Rohwer does session work from time to time, but I know right now he's doing some work for our friends in Obastra. Myself I've been involved with a Death cover band called "Voice of the Soul" featuring Adam from Ion, Justin from Warscythe and Skizzy from Repulsive Infestation; we've been playing together on and off for two years, and I play the role of the second guitar player on each album so getting to emulate guys like Masvidal, Kobel and Rozz is a blast. Other than that, Nathan and myself have joke bands and we exchange garbage recordings that hopefully will never see the light of day.



10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

It's always about creating the next evolution. Taking our old stuff and building on top of it, that’s where we will always head musically. Ballads aren't really our thing and I have no clean singing skill. I think our next album or EP will be a lot more technical, not in the amount of sweeps and blast beats we can fit in a song, but musically more technical, involving theory and structure in song arrangements. We will probably never let go of our death/thrash core in the music.



11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Anyone who listens to 30 seconds of our music can hear the influence from bands like Death, Slayer, Metallica, Megadeth, Sabbath, Cynic, Forbidden, Obituary, Sadus, Dark Angel, Destruction, Exumer and Pestilence. From a personal standpoint, besides all those bands I take influence from bands like Pink Floyd, Camel, Naked City, Blowfly, Funkadelic, The Isley Brothers, Quincy Jones, Ron Jarzombek, Anvil Chorus, Sacrilege B.C., Ulysses Siren, Warning S.F., Bad Religion, Ice Cube and Brotha Lynch. I take inspiration for music even from movies like Miracle Mile, The Revenant and The Hobbit.



12.What are some of your non-musical interests?

Music is the center of my life, but pro wrestling is also a passion of mine. I'm a lifelong fan, as well as Nathan. I'm not sure how to justify my love for it, but pro wrestling is one of the most unique performance arts out there. I appreciate it almost the same way I appreciate music. I love everything from WWE to NJPW, Nathan and I attended Wrestlemania 31 in 2015. It will probably always be my second to music.



13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Just to send my gratitude to everyone who's helped us get to this point so far. We've been doing this for 5 years and it hasn't been without the help of a countless amount of people, and to all of you we say thank you and watch out for "Biological Enslavement" and much more.

www.facebook.com/Hemotoxin

www.unspeakableaxerecords.com

Bloodshed Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
1. Bloodshed was formed in late 2011, four members of broken groups Immoralist and Millefolium. The band defined their style as death metal, however, the music shows the influence of thrash and black metal. During almost five years of existence in the composition was changed only a bass player.

2.In 2014 you had released your first album,how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
2. I would describe it as close to old school death metal.

3.The band has been around for 5 years but so far has only put put one release, can you tell us a little bit more about it?
3. It is better to release albums less frequently, but to make them as good as this can make the group. It is that position we adhere to. It is also worth noting that Bloodshed is actively engaged in live performances that, in turn, slows down the creation of new compositions.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
4. Lyric is one of the most interesting aspects Bloodshed! If you pick up a booklet from the album "The Hunger And The Agony", you can see that each composition is a separate story written on the topic of ritual murders, cannibalism, the adventures of maniacs, zombies and so on.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Bloodshed'?
5. "Bloodshed" is a very simple and memorable name, at the same time, it fully reflects the essence of our music and lyrics.

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
6. Used for scenic image we wore bloody clothes, which created a certain atmosphere of the performance. Now use the more classic look, camouflage and so on. And, of course, try to give of yourself to the audience by 200%!

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
7. At the moment, we fully immersed the creation of new songs for a second album, and therefore that the date of the release took place as early as possible, we don't plan concerts.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death metal?
8. The reaction can be judged by the reviews of different magazines from many countries. Evaluation about 4 and it is a very good indicator for us!

9.Are any of the band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?
9. Yes, there is a black metal project Drake Passage the guitarist and brutal death metal formation Phlebotomy our singer.

10.When can we expect another album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
10. We hope that its release will take place by the end of summer, and then followed by active interventions in support of it. If all goes well, and the third album to venture.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
11. I wouldn't single out any specific team, which influenced our music. But I can say that the main composer of our songs guitarist Alex fan of black metal, the other participants listen to music from heavy and thrash metal to brutal death grind, so in our songs you can hear blotches of different styles. From recent releases I would pick Aborted - Termination Redux (EP), Fleshgod Apocalypse -King, Obcura - Akroasis, Iron Maiden - The Book Of Souls.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?
12. Perhaps, this is home, family, film and tourism.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
13. I want to wish all teams a successful creative work, as many interesting albums and crazy live performances! Thank you for your attention, bye!

Carnac/The Frail Slight/Sliptrick Records/2016 EP Review

  Carnac  are  a  band  from  Turkey  that  plays  a  very  progressive  and  melodic  death  metal  with a  touch  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  ep  "The  Frail  Sight"  which  will  be  released  by  February  26th  by  Sliptrick  Records.

  A  heavy  guitar  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  some  growls  and  screams  that  have  a  black  metal  edge  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  the  riffs  also  mix  in  a  lot  of  prog  elements  and  the  riffs  are  also  very  heavily  influenced  by  melodic  death  metal.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  use  you  great  amount  of  melody  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording  and  some  songs  also  be  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing  and  the  fast  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking.  

  Carnac  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  prog   and  melodic  death  metal  and  mixes  them  together  with  a  touch  of  black  metal  to  create  a   style  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover death,  philosophy  and  abstract  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Carnac  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  prog  and  melodic  death  metal  with  a  touch  of  black  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Hericide" and  "Servant  To  The  Void".  8  out  of  10.

  

 

Cerebric Turmoil/Neural Net Meltdown/Amputated Vein Records/2016 CD Review

  Cerebric  Turmoil  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  very  technical  and  brutal  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Neural Net Meltdown"  which  was  released  by  Amputated  Vein  Records.

  Sci  fi  sound  effects  start  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes  into  a  very  heavy  and  technical  musical  direction a long  with  some  screams  and  growling  yet  understandable  growls  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical instruments  on  the  recording  while t he  fast  parts  utilize  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats.

  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  technical  style  and  some  riffs  also  bring  in  a  touch  of  prog  while  the  cleaner  sections  bring  in  jazz  elements  and  the  vocals  also get  guttural  at  times  while  some  songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  and t  throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  you  can  also  hear  an  influence  of  grindcore  in  the  bands  musical  style.

  Cerebric  Turmoil  plays  a  style  of  technical  death  metal  that  is  very  brutal  and  diverse  and  if  they  could  could  back  on  the  extra  guttural  vocals  and  breakdowns  they  could  evolve  into  a  very  great  band,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  chaos,  society  and  technology  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Cerebric  Turmoil  are  a  very  decent  sounding  technical  and  brutal  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Twitching  Eye  Staccato"  "Discordian  Equilibrium"  and  "Vile  Effect  Momentum".  7/8  out  of  10.

  

Spirit Of Rebellion/The Enslavement Process/PRC Music/2015 CD Review

 Spirit  Of  Rebellion  are  a  band  from  Canada  that  plays a  very  brutal  form  of  death  metal  with  a  touch  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "The  Enslavement  Process"  which  was  released by  PRC  Music.

Dark  sound  effects  start  off  the  album  along  with  the  sounds  of  human  torture  which  also  leads  up  to  a  heavier  musical  direction  that  also  utilizes  a  great  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  and  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording  and  after  the  intro  the  music  starts  to  speed  up.

  In  the  faster  sections  of  the  music  a  great  amount  of  brutal  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  the  vocals  are  death  metal  growls  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  when  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  bring  in  even  more  of  a  chaotic  death  metal style  and  some  riffs  also  bring  in  a  touch  of  blackened  death  metal  and  one  track  also  brings  in  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  high  pitched  screams  and  all of  the  songs  also  remain  true  to  a  very  heavy  and  brutal  style.

  Spirit  Of  Rebellion  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  very  heavy  and  brutal  while  also  bringing  in  a  blackened  touch  at  times,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  violent  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Spirit  Of  Rebellion  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  death  metal  band  with  a  blackened  touch  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE "The  Apology  to  Nothingness"  "Kingdom  Of  Cowards"  and  "Bringer  Of  End".  8  out  of  10.

Ad Vitam/Stratosfear/Revalve Records/2016 CD Review

  Stratosfear  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  plays  a  very  progressive  and  melodic form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their 2016  album  "Stratosfear"  which  was  released  by  Revalve  Records.

  Natrure  sounds  and  tribal  beats  along  with  some  synths  start  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes  into  more  of  a  heavier  musical  direction  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  and  high  pitched  screams  and  you  can  also  hear  a  lot  of  melody  in  the  music  and  they  also  mix  the  symphonic  and  heavy  parts  together.

  When  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  remain  true  to  a  very  melodic  musical  direction   and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  they  also  mix  in  a  great  amount  of  progressive  elements  and  song  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid paced  and  fast  parts.

  You  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording  and  some  of  the  songs  also  mix  in  a  great  amount  of  modern  metal  influences and  a  couple  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in  a  brief  use  of  acoustic  guitars  and  a  couple  of  the  tracks a re  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  they  also  bring  in  2  brief  instrumentals  and  towards  the  end  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  clean  singing  along  with  a  small  amount  of  violins. 

  Ad  Vitam  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  very  melodic,  progressive  and  symphonic  while  also  mixing  in  a  great  amount  of  modern  metal  elements  to  create  a  style  of t heir  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  introspection  and  divine  meditation.

  In  my  opinion  Ad  Vitam  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  and  progressive  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should c heck out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "There  Was  Blood  Everywhere"  "Six  Feet  under  My Sins"  "Plagues  Of  Nothing"  and  "Fall  Of  Collective  Consciousness".  8  out  of  10.

 

Hemotoxin/Biological Enslavement/Unspeakable Axe Records/2016 CD Review

  Hemotoxin  are  a  band  from  California  that  plays  a  melodic  and  progressive  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  along  with  a  touch  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "Biological  Enslavement"  which  will  be  released  in  April  by  Unspeakable  Axe  Records.

 Melodic  and  technical  guitar  riffs  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  drum  beats  before  getting  even  more  heavier and  also  adding  in  screaming  vocals  and  th e music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  early  90's  and  spoken  word  parts  can  be  heard  at  times  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  it  also  brings  in  a  great  amount  of  blast beats.

  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  add  even  more  melody,  talent,  and  skill  to  the  recording  while  also  being  very  progressive  at  times  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  a  lot  of  the  vocals  and  riffs  go  back  to  a  mid  80's  style  of  thrash  while  also  being  very  close  to  the  earlier  death  metal  style  of  that  time  period.

  You can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording  and  some  songs  also bring  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing  and  some  songs  also  bring  in  a  touch  of  black  metal  and  the  also  bring  in  an  instrumental  track  which  also  demonstrates  how  talented  they  are  on  their  instruments  before  closing  the  album  with  another  vocal  song. 

  Hemotoxin  plays  a  musical  style  that  goes  back  to  the  mid  80's  and  early  90's  styles  of  death  and  thrash  metal  while  also  taking  the  music  into  more  of  a  progressive  and  melodic  direction  and  adding  in  a  touch  of  black  metal  to  create  a  style  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  old  school  yet  professional  at  the  same  time  while  the  lyrics  cover  death,  gore,  science  fiction  and  Lovecraft  themes. 

  In  my  opinion  Hemotoxin  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  and  progressive mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Regression"  "Forgotten  Faces"  "The  Alchemist"  and  "Transparent  Lies".  8  out  of  10.

Ahtme/The Demonization/Unique Leader Records/2016 CD Re-Issue Review

  Athme(formerly  known  as  The  Roman  Holiday)  are  a  band  from  Kansas  City,  Missouri  that  plays  a  mixture  of  technical  death  metal  and  deathcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2013  album  "The  Demonization" which  will  be  re-issued  in  March  of  2016  by  Unique  Leader  Records.

  Sci  fi  sound  effects  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  musical  direction  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  and  blast  beats  and  you  can  also  hear  a  lot  of  melody  and  technical  elements  in  the  bands  musical  style  and  the  music  can  also  get  very  progressive  in  some  parts  of  the  songs.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  songs  also  mix  in  a  great  amount  of  groove  elements  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  As  the  album  progresses  high  pitched  screams  start  getting  mixed  in  the  songs  a  lot  more  and  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  in  more  of  a  technical  style  onto  the  recording  and  you  can  hear  a  lot  of  deathcore  influences  in  the  mid  tempo  sections  of  the  songs.and  they  also  bring  in  a  brief  acoustic  instrumental  before  making  a  return  back  to  a  heavier  direction  on  the  remaining  tracks.

  Athme  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  a  modern,  brutal  and  technical  form of  death  metal  and  mixes  it  with  deathcore  while  also  adding  in  melody  and  groove  to  make  the music  stand  out  a  bit  more,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  violent  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Athme  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  technical  death  metal  and  deathcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Trainwreck"  "The  Demonization" and  "Blood  Turned  To  Saline".  8  out  of  10.

Verment Interview

1. For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?



We are a four piece band that formed in 2012. We have elements of death, thrash, and black metal. We have been playing shows in the Cincinnati metal scene for a while and are now expanding into other cities.



2. So far you have recorded 2 ep's, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings and also how do they differ from each other?



The first EP we did was titled “The Filth EP” the songs are very fast with some grind and slam elements. That one was recorded and put up to stream in 2013. We were very happy with the performances on the demo (recorded live in studio at 3rd Street music Hamilton, Ohio) but the production quality just wasn’t there, nothing against the engineers but our sound was something way different from what they normally worked with. So we passed it out at shows but decided not to press it. Maybe on day it will be some bonus tracks.

Death’s Domain is slated to release officially on April 1st 2016. We have been recording it over the course of 6 months or so on the weekends whenever we had time off of work, so it took a little while to get everything together. We tracked, mixed and mastered with Brian “Bone” Thorburn at his studio in Indianapolis, Indiana called Threshold Studios. We are over excited with the quality of our recording.



3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?



Death’s Domain covers topics about human failure, evil entities, and metaphorical darkness.



4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Verment'?



Verment is a combination of the words, ferment and vermin, which means to become vermin like, representing the devolution of man.



5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?



We have shared the stage with a lot of awesome bands from the Cincinnati area like Lucis Absentia (formally Gomorrah), Valdrin, and War Curse. Those are usually the most fun with the best turnouts. Our stage performance is fast and aggressive. We try to keep the energy up from start to finish.











6. Do you have any touring or show plans once the new e.p is released?



With the EP releasing soon, we haven’t had much time to book shows, although we do have a big show coming up opening for Rivers of Nihil in Dayton, OH, where we will begin selling Death’s Domain. We hope to begin booking more shows as soon as possible.



7. Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any have interest?



We have been fortunate enough to be able to release Death’s Domain independently. We hope this release will give us exposure and lead to an opportunity to work with a label.



8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death metal?



Since this is our first official release, we haven’t had very much exposure outside of Ohio. We are looking forward to bringing our sound across America and beyond.



9. Are any of the band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?



Our bass player, Eric Payne, is currently playing with War Curse.



10. Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?



Progressing the sound is crucial. We hope to continue bringing elements of death, black and thrash together to create a unique, extreme sound.



11. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?



Bands like Morbid Angel, The Black Dahlia Murder, Suffocation and Dying Fetus have been big influences for us. Current favorites include Behemoth, Black Breath, Spawn of Possession and Obscura.



12. What are some of your non musical interests?



Some things we like to do outside of the band include; bowling, climbing, frisbee, checking out movies and documentaries, going out to eat, video games, the gym for some of us, and just kicking back and having some laughs.





13. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?



Check out all the bands we mentioned earlier, follow us on social media where you can check out Death’s Domain and find out where you can see us live.

Efpix/Evil Sides/Sliptrick Records/2016 CD Review

  Efpix  are  a  band  from  Russia  that  plays  a  mixture  of  industrial  and  melodic  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "Evil  Sides"  which  will  be  released  on  February  26th  by  Sliptrick  Records.

  Underground  industrial  sounds  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  heavy  guitars  a  few  seconds  later  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  and  high  pitched  screams  a  few  seconds  later and  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  they  also  mix  in  a  lot  of  electronic  elements  with  the  heavier  parts.

  Clean  singing  can  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them and  the  synths  bring  in  an  atmospheric  sound  to  the songs  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great amount  of  melody  and  when  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  very  melodic  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  the  music  focuses  more  of  a  mid  paced  direction.

  Efpix  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  brutal  and  melodic  death  metal  and  mixes  it  with  industrial,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark,  science  fiction  and  Occultism  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Efpix  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  industrial  and  melodic  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,   you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "God  Is  Our  Entity"  "Evil  Sides"  "Space  Invaders"  and  "The  Slave  Of  Satan".  8  out  of  10.   

 

Mythrias Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?
1.    As of now we are kind of lying low and getting some writing in as well as rehearsing new songs. In fact, after I am done typing this I will shovel my walks and get to work on new material. Haha!

2.SO far the band has released 2 ep's, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings and also how do they differ from each other?
2.    Well as far as direction went for the writing, the songs on both releases were actually all written around the same time. In fact the title track off of Absolving the Treacherous was the first song we wrote yet we felt it would be better on the second release. I would say if you were to compare the two, our first demo The Rise of Mythrias might be more of a kind of “showcase” if you will, of the style of songs we write. It goes from outright thrashy to more melodic yet still aggressive, to epic and more melody-driven. Absolving the Treacherous has more of a melodic, aggressive vibe I feel. The Rise of Mythrias is maybe more calculated and precise, while Absolving the Treacherous is more of throwing care to the wind and is just an all-out assault.

3.The lyrics cover Occultism and Mythology themes, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these  topics?
3.    I’ll be honest, I don’t have my singer with me here and he writes almost all of the lyrics, so I will try to do my best to answer that question. I personally love mythology and I am sure Taylor (our singer) will agree that what draws me to it is the grandiosity and timelessness. This can be applied to occultism as well, I feel that we may touch on that subject a bit, but for the most part the mythology theme is the more prominent in our lyrics. Mythology gives us insight to other cultures and can reveal that culture’s values and fears. You can learn much from it, but even without all of that, they are just really cool stories.

4.I know that the bands name comes from an ancient religion that was once practiced in India, Persia and Rome, how did you get interest in this subject?
4.    Again, this was our singer’s doing. Haha! The religion you’re speaking of is the Mithraic Mysteries as it’s come to be known.  From what Taylor has told me, it was a religion that anthropologists have not found much about. The one thing that is constant in their findings is that the followers worshipped the god Mythras. Taylor basically used the ‘mysteries’ as a sort of inspiration and thought it could be adapted into a story. A few of our songs have a reoccurring theme based on this. Taylor came up with the name “Mythrias” to mean the new world that the followers of this religion will bring about as they rise to power.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
5.    Mythrias had some incredible shows in 2015, I dare say some of our best and easily the best shows I have personally been a part of! The beginning of the year was a little rocky, we were still testing the waters with our new drummer at the time, Matt. Come May, we opened for Septic Flesh and Moonspell at the Agora Theater in Cleveland and it was absolutely exhilarating! In September we opened for Insomnium and Omnium Gatherum at the Agora Ballroom and had our EP release show at Annabell’s in Akron. I think it’s safe to say the Insomnium show may have been our best we played, the crowd reaction was astounding and we sold almost half of all the merch we had! Haha! The EP release show was awesome as well, Annabell’s is a small venue, but that didn’t stop so many people from going nuts while we were playing. I absolutely loved it!

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
6.    Right now we only have one other show booked in March. I’m not sure if a full-blown tour is possible for us at the moment, but one of my goals for the band is to broaden our horizons for sure. Playing in Pennsylvania, Columbus, and even the Toledo and southern Michigan areas are goals for sure. I want to try to do at least one of those before the year is over. After that, who knows?

7.On the ep you had done a cover of The Offspring's  "The  Kids  Aren't Alright', what was the decision behind doing your own version of one of their songs?
7.    We talk about doing a lot of covers among the band, usually with mixed reactions between the members. I actually don’t even remember who first brought up the idea of doing The Kids Aren’t Alright. Someone sort of reminded me about it at one of our practices and played the song on youtube. The rest of the guys were up for it and I was too. I went to work trying to see how I could ‘Mythrize’ the song so to speak (please pardon the terrible pun.) After I had a sort of working arrangement and showed it to the guys, everyone was completely on board and it just went seamlessly. It’s an extremely fun song and it seems to get a lot of positive reaction from crowds and reviewers alike.

8.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
8.    For the most part, we are not desperately looking for a label. If something comes up that is very much in our favor, then we might jump on board. But for the most part, we are not actively pursuing anything. We were approached by a label based in our area with a deal that wasn’t terrible last year, but we figured that it’d be better for us to do those tasks by ourselves for the time being.

9.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?
9.     For the most part the only one of us in another band is Matt. He plays drums in Fully Consumed and has since the band’s inception in 2003. They released their second full length last year called Incendium and have done fairly well with it. I personally think it’s a great album! I don’t have him with me at the moment, so I’m not sure what their plans are for the future.

10.When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
10.    A goal of mine for the band is to at least start working on a full length this year. I’d love to have one out by the end of the year, but I’m not sure if we’re ready. In my perfect world, we’d have one out early 2017. I have some potential ideas for songs that might be on a full-length. Musically, I’d like to “broaden our extremes” so to speak. Our heavy, evil-sounding stuff gets heavier and eviler and our melodic, epic stuff gets more so. I’d love to introduce some atmospheric elements and clean passages in some of the new stuff as well.
11.What are some of your non musical interests
.    Non-musical stuff for me is fairly boring. Haha! Lately I’ve been playing video games for the first time in probably a couple years. I have a passion for microbrews, wine, and mead as well. I watch some TV shows like Game of Thrones and Vikings to name a couple. I’ll indulge in some anime from time to time too. I just finished one yesterday called Steins;gate and if you are a fan of that stuff, I highly recommend it! I know I probably went down a few notches on the ‘kvlt’ meter with that one. Haha! Between work and band stuff there’s little room for much else really.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
12.    Thanks so much for having me on! Really great questions! Be sure to check us out at Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Mythrias/
Bandcamp: https://mythrias1.bandcamp.com/
and Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdugB9om_KkLrW5hNpRqudQ
Thanks again! \m/