Repulsive Vision/Look Past The Gore And See The Art/Bret Hard Records/2017 CD Review

  Repulsive  Visions  are  a  band  from t he  United  Kingdom  that  plays  an  old  school  form  of  death  metal  with  a  touch  of  grindcore  and this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "Look  Past  The  Gore  And  See The  Art"  which  will  be  released  in  2017  by  Bret  Hard  Records.

  Horror  movie  samples  start  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  high  pitched  screams  and  guitar  leads  are  added  onto  the  recording  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  grindcore  elements  can  be  heard  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Dark  sounding  melodies  can  be  heard  in  some  parts  of  the  music  and  the  songs  also  bring  in a   great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  after  awhile death  metal  growls  are  added  onto  the  recording and  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  and  spoken word  samples  also  return  on  some  of  the  later  tracks and  some  of  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  tremolo  picking and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  musical  direction.

  Repulsive  Vision  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  old  school  death  metal  and  grindcore  and  mixes them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production sounds  very  professional  while the lyrics  cover  gore  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Repulsive  Vision  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  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  "Repulsive  Vision"  "Half  Starved,  Half  Killed"  "Corpse Decay"  and  "Each  To  their  Own".  8  out  of  10.   

Conflict Theory/Monologue/2016 Full Length Review

  Conflict  Theory  are  a  solo  project  from  Rhode  Island  that  plays  a  very  brutal  form  of  death  metal  with  a  touch  of  hardcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  self  released  2016  album  "Monologue".

  A  very  fast  and  brutal  death  metal  sound  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  and  high  pitched  screams  and  the  music  also  brings  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  while  the  solos  and  leads  also  demonstrate  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and f ast  parts  while  some  sections  of  the  songs  add  in  elements  of  hardcore and  some  of  the  mid  tempo  sections  also  adds  in  a  touch  of  slam  and  at  times  the  music  also  brings  in  influences  from  the  more  brutal  side  of  90's  death  metal  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  album  also  remains  very  heavy  and  brutal  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording.

  Conflict  Theory  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  very  brutal  in  the  east  coast  tradition  while  also  mixing  in  a  touch  of  hardcore,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark,  violent  and  real  life  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Conflict  Theory  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  death  metal  solo  project  with  a  touch  of  hardcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Shadows  Of  The  Financial  District"  "Substance  Abuse"  and  "Monologue".  8  out  of  10.   

Slamophiliac/Perihelion/CDN Records/2017 CD Review

  Slamophiliac  are  a band  from  Texas  that  plays  a  very  brutal  and  slamming  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "Perihelion"  which  will  be  released  in  2017  by  CDN  Records.

  A  very  fast  and  brutal  sound  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  starts  off  the  album  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  deep  guttural  death  metal  growls  and  the  riffs  also  use  a  decent  amount  of  groove  and  melody while  slam  elements  are  added  into  the  mid  tempo  sections  of  the  songs  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Some  of  the  riffing  gets  very  technical  at  times and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a great mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  you  can  also  hear  a  great  amount  of  east  coast  influences  in  the  bands  musical  style  and  only  onr  of  the  songs  ever  uses  any  guitar  solos  and  leads  while  the  album  remains  very  brutal  form  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  guttural  screams.

  Slamophiliac  plays  a  style  of  slam  death  metal  that  is  very  brutal  and  guttural  while  they  add  nothing  new  to  the  genre  they  have  captured  the  perfect  atmosphere  for  the  genre,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  gore,  torture,  violence,  metaphysical,  anti  religion  and  cosmology  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Slamophiliac  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  slam  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Extiprate  Morality"  "Metaphysical  World  Of  Abstract  Constructs"  and  "Total  Annihilation  Eminent".  8  out  of  10.    

Symmetric Organ Interview

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

Philip: We where busy with different things. We restarted the writing of new material with one  song almost ready. Besides that we are still trying to get mailorders and distros to take a few copies of our recent CDs plus we played a few shows to promote the new record.

2.Recently you have released a new album how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how do you feel you differ from most bands mixing death metal and grindcore together?

Philip: Musically we consider our selves as a Grind Death Metal band. Most important ingredients  of our sound are Death Metal and Grindcore. But there is no such thing as a blue print of any certain band or sound that we try to reproduce somehow. We've got three songwriters in our band and we often throw things together during the writing process. Maybe that keeps up a certain variety. To us it's all about the energy level a song can reach. We try to keep it as high as we can all the way through.


3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
Philip: The lyrics are inspired by everyday s news and what's going on in modern day society. By the way the topics have to fit to Death Metal but that's easy, because nothing is more brutal then reality. The world we created is dark place and it's decaying in many many different ways. That's the idea behind STATES OF DECAY. Palace Revolution for example is inspired by the Russian Riot-Girl-Movement all around Pussy Riot. Other songs generally deal with the darker sides of contemporary society.
 
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Symmetric Organ'?

Philip: Andreas (drums) came up with the name. We wanted something with a certain kind of ambivalence. It’s a description of how we want to sound like. Symmetry stands for the cold, sharp and precise rather technical side of Brutal Death Metal. Ogran stands for vivid and energetic „grindish“ part of how we want to sound: rough, angry and belligerent.

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

Philip: One of or best shows we had so far was the opening-slot for Dying Fetus this year. A perfect audience for us plus a great time before and after the show. Dying Fetus and their crew are really nice guys. To me personally it's always a big pleasure to be on stage. A few people say I turn into a complete maniac during our gigs, hahaha.

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

Philip: We're always looking for gigs and hopefully the CD will open a few doors according to that. A few gigs here in Germany are already planned or confirmed for 2017 We'll see what near future will bring...


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

Philip: Looking for a label was not part of our plans when we started to get serious with doing the album. We simply wanted to have something to offer at shows and to give people out there an idea of what we sound like. There has been some interest but we had no serious negotiations with any label. Being unsigned makes it a little harder to get noticed within the scene at the very first place but internet and social media changed things for newcomers for the better. So right now we are happy with our situation.


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

Philip: We received a lot of good reactions for example from South America, Russia the US and various parts of Europe as well as Asia. We did a video single for Palace Revolution in 2015, that got a few things going.


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

Philip: States Of Decay to us is just the first chapter of our story. We'll continue to play blistering High Energy Death Grind. And there are various ways to get the stuff more even more intense.

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?

Philip:On the one hand Bands like Monstrosity, Pestilence, Torture Division, early Vader or early Gorefest as well es Misery Index and Dying Fetus have left their mark within our sound. On the other hand there are Grind Bands like Brutal Truth, Terrorizer, Lock up, Gaget, Phobia and others that may have been an influence to Symmetric Organ. Besides that all of us have different musical tastes besides Death Metal. I personally for example also like experimental music and instrumental Post Rock. But the nearly all albums I bought in 2016 have been Death Metal albums. If you ask for any recommendation I'd say try out the current albums form Kronos (France), Unmerciful (USA) and Orphalis (Germany)All in all great strikes of Brutal Death Metal.


11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Philip: Besides music I have my family and we like traveling around from time to time.

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

Thanks for your interest and support! We really appreciate that a lot.

Desecrate The Faith Interview

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

The band has been busy with all the finalization of the record. Photos, layout, and most importantly the promotion of the new album. We just released our first track "Shrine of Enmity" about a week ago. The band has decided to not play any shows until the CD release show in March. Hopefully this will keep our fanbase hungry for the next show, and the debut of the new tracks. But the band is definitely ready to get back out there and showcase our new record.




2.You have a new album coming out in 2017, 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?

This album captures the essence of brutal death metal. An all around experience. From black metal to thrash metal. To unrelenting blast beats and crushing grooves, that will pound your face into a brick wall. A 50 min roller coaster sent directly from Hell! I would say this new album differs in the level of musicality and orchestration. The song writing is much more mature on this release.




3.Your lyrics cover some blasphemous and occult themes, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these topics?

I have always been a believer of all things dark and evil. This world is blinded by religion. Religion is the main curators of death, war and greed on this earth. Even though the lyric content is slightly more hateful and spiteful towards Christianity. It's important for people to understand the meaning of our message. Individuality and self reliance can give you greater power than any god.




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

Plain and simple the desecration and destruction of all things holy and religious haha. Mostly Christianity being from Texas of course.




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

Some of the best shows we have played would have to be Nice to Eat you Death Fest  in the Czech Republic. Metal music is very alive in Europe. The fans are so sincere and alive at the shows overthere. It's just a whole different experience at the European festivals. Building Temples from Death Fest 2015 and 2016 was awesome for us.  That's a festival hosted by Brian Ferell once a year In Houston TX. NY Death Fest was great for us too. That followed a nice little east coast tour with our good friends in Dehumanized. We also played a great show with Suffocation in Houston earlier this year that was nice and rowdy!




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

We have a CD release show to do in early March when the album comes out. We are also scheduled to play Chicago Domination Fest in late July. We hope to plan a small tour around that fest. Other than that we don't have too much planned for 2017, but I'm sure shows will start to fall in place. We are hoping this new record will open the doors to bigger shows and a support slot a big tour.




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

The feed back has been great! The first album really got our foot in the door in this scene. We got to play alot of big fest with people and bands from all over the world. That then led to our fist trip to Europe with the band in early 2016. The release of the first single has gone over very well. We've been compared to some of the pioneers of death metal, and mentioned as bringing death metal back to its true form.




8.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?

Myself John have a side project Sadistic Butchering. We just released our second album "Murderous" on Nice to Eat You Records. Jon our guitarist has been working on a bunch of Blasphemer songs directly with the band. So maybe that could spark something. Our bassist Cole is in a cover band that plays bars on the weekends here and around Texas. Our drummer Mike has filled in for a few drummer here and there and also recorded Drums on the most recent Diminished album.




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

We see this band progressing more and more moving forward. As I mentioned before the song writing has matured to a whole new level. But you can be certain that we will always stick to our roots of Brutal Death metal.




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?

Some bands that influence us are Suffocation, Aeon, Abominable Putridity, Deeds of Flesh, Hour of Pennance just to name a few. Anything new and brutal with good musicianship is something we all enjoy. We listen to all sorts of music not just death metal. We are very diverse when it comes to the music we listen too. It's good not to let one certain kind of music influence you in your writing or creation.




11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Well we all like to drink cold beer and smoke good weed haha. But some of us like golfing and UFC. Our guitarist Jon is addicted to buying new music gear. Seems like he always has a new toy. We all stay pretty grounded. We are all mostly married and have kids or are working on families. Our drummer Mike doesn't like anything except playing drums,and being the best he can be at it. Haha




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

Yeah just wanna say thanks for the interview. Hope everyone keeps an eye on Desecrate the Faith. We will be releasing 2 more songs before the official release of the album. Support the underground and all the bands and promoters working there ass off to keep it alive! Long live T.X.D.M  Comatose Music and fuck Jesus Christ! That's kind of our slogan! Cheers!
https://www.facebook.com/desecratethefaithofficial/
www.comatosemusic.com

Gutted/Martyr Creation/Xtreem Music/2016 CD Review

  Gutted  are  a  band  from  Hungary  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  mixture  of  technical  death  metal  and  grindcore  and  this  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "Martyr  Creation"  which  was  released  by  Xtreem  Music.

  A  very  dark  stringed  instrument  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  symphonic  elements  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes into  a  very  heavy,  brutal  and  technical  direction  along  with  deep  death  metal  growls  and  screams  making  their  presence  known  and  the  riffing  also  gets  melodic  in  some  parts  of  the  songs.

  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  remain  true  to  a  technical  style  of  death  metal  while  the  faster  sections  of t he  songs  bring  in  elements  of  grindcore  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  their  is  also  a  brief  use  of  classical  guitars  and  spoken  word  samples  along  with  the  string  instruments  also  making  a  return  before  returning  back  to  a  more  heavy  and  brutal  style  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Gutted  creates  another  recording  that  remains  true  to  the  technical  mixture  of  death  metal  and  grindcore  from  their  previous  release,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  gore,  death  and  morbid  humour  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Gutted  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  brutal  and  technical  death  metal  and  grindcore,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Cosmos  Of  Humans"  "Deeper  Than  Hell"  and  "Hell  Dwells  Inside".  8  out  of  10.

Symmetric Organ/States Of Decay/2016 Full Length Review

  Symmetric  Organ  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  mixture  of  death  metal  and  grindcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2016  album "State  Of  Decay".

  Spoken  word  samples  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  which  also  brings  in  a  small  amount  of  melody  at  times  while  the  vocals  are  death  metal  growls  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  grindcore  elements  can  be  heard  and  the  solos  and  leads  demonstrate  a  great  amount  of  melody,  talent  and  skill.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  music  also  gets  very  technical  at  times  and  mixes  both  old  school  and  modern  influences  together  and  spoken  word  samples  also  return  on  some  of  the  later  tracks  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  heavy  musical  direction.

  Symmetric  Organ  plays  a  music  style  that  takes  brutal  death  metal  and  mixes  it  with  grindcore  and  some  technical  elements  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording while  the  lyrics  cover  real  life  themes  in  a  negative  manner.

  In  my  opinion  Symmetric  Organ  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  "Truth  be  Told"  "Reboot"  "We  Are  The  Blind"  and  "Blessed  be  The  Blind".  8  out  of  10.

Desecrate The Faith/Unholy Infestation/Comatose Music/2017 CD Review

  Desecrate  The  Faith  are  a  band  from  Texas that  plays  a  very  brutal, guttural  and  technical  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "Unholy  infestation"  which  will  be  released  in  2017  by  Comatose  Music.

  A  very  dark  yet  ritualistic  sound  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  along  with  some  guttural  death  metal  growls  and  screams  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  the  songs  also  mix  slam  and  old  school  elements  together  at  times  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording.

  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  brutal  blast  beats  can  be  heard    and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  the  riffs  also  getting  very  technical  at  times  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples  and  none  of  the  songs  ever  use  any solos  or  leads  and  one  track  also  brings  in  a  brief  use  of  distorted  yet  clean  playing  before  returning  back  to  a  brutal  style.

  Desecrate The  Faith  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  very  blasphemous,  brutal  and  technical  sounding,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Satanism,  Occultism,  Darkness  and  Blasphemous  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Desecrate  The  Faith  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  and  technical  death metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Predatory  Impalement"  "Unholy  Infestation"  "Angel  Eater"  and  "Ascension  Of  Belial".  8  out  of  10.   

Beheaded/Beast Incarnate/Unique Leader/2017 CD Review

  Beheaded  are  a  band  from  Malta  that  plays  a  very  brutal  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of their  album  "Beast  Incarnate"  which  will  be  released  in  2017  by  Unique  Leader.

  A  very  heavy  and  brutal  sound  starts  off  the  album  before  speeding  up  and  also  introducing  blast  beats  and  death  metal  growls  onto  the  recording  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  all  of  the  songs  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  some  of  the  faster  sections  add in  a  touch  of  grindcore  and  the  music  is  also  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  while  also  sounding  very  modern  at  the  same  time and  a  couple  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  one  song  also  brings  in  a  brief  use  of  high  pitched  screams  and  the  whole  album  remains  very  heavy  and  brutal  from  beginning  to  ending of  the  recording.

  Beheaded  plays  a  style  of  death  metal that  is  very brutal  and  melodic  and  also  bringing  in  a  mixture  of  both  old  school  and  modern  influences,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover internal  suffering, supernatural  abominations,  chaos,  and  obscure  visions.

  In  my  opinion  Beheaded  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  and  melodic  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Beast  Incarnate"  "Reign  Of  The  Headless  King"  and  "Punishment  Of  The  Grave".  8/5  out  of  10.

Wormhole/Genesis/Lacerated Enemy Records/2016 CD Review

  Wormhole  are  an  international  band  with  members  from  U.S.A,  United  Kingdom  and  South  Africa  and  plays  a  brutal,  technical  and  slamming  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of their  2016  album  "Genesis"  which  was  released  by  Lacerated  Enemy  Records.

  A  very  brutal  sound  along  with  guttural  death  metal  growls  start  off  the  album  and  the  mid  tempo  sections  of  the  songs  bring  in  elements  of  slam  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  deathcore  style  vocals  are  also  used  at  times  and  high  pitched  screams  are  also  added  into  some  parts  of  the  songs.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast parts  and  the  riffs  also  use  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  while  also  being  very  technical  at  times  and  all  of  the  musical instruments  have  a very  powerful  sound  to  them  and there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  and  one  track  is  all  instrumental  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  heavy and  brutal  style.

  Wormhole  plays  a  style  of  slam  death  metal  that  is  also  very  brutal  and  technical  as  well  as  being  very  heavily  influenced  by  the east  coast style,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  SciFi,  Technology  and  Aliens  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Wormhole  are  a  very  great  sounding brutal  and  technical  slam  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Battle  Logic  Disrupted"  "Automated  Distress  Signal"  and  "Existence  Gap".  8  out  of  10.

 

 

Maggot Twat/8 Bit Apocalypse/Seeing Red Records/2016 CD Review

  Maggot  Twat  are  a  band  from  Chicago,  Illinois  that  plays  a  humorous  mixture  of  death  metal  and  grindcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "8  Bit  Apocalypse"  which  will  be  released  on  December  30th  by  Seeing  Red  Records.

  Horror  movie  style  organs  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  evil  laughter  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  and  after  awhile  screams  and  death  metal  growls  are  added  onto  the  recording  and  the  riffs  also  mix  in  elements  of  thrash  and  video  game  samples  can  also  be  heard  at  times  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  melodic  fashion.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound to  them  and  some  songs  also  bring  in  spoken  word  samples  and  the riffs  also  get  technical  at  times  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  and  keyboards  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  the  vocals  also  use  a  great  amount  of  angry  shouts  and  they  also  bring  in  a track  that  is  over  20  minutes  in  length. 

  Maggot  Twat  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  death  metal,  thrash  and  grindcore  and  mixes  them  together  along  with  some  humor  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  gore,  sex,  and  bizarre  humor  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Maggot  Twat  are  a  very  great  sounding  humorous  mixture  of  death  metal,  thrash,  and  grindcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "A  Vampire  Bit  my  Balls"  "I  Fucked  A  Train"  "I  Wanna  get  Laid"  and  "Fuck  That  Bitch".  8  out  of  10.

Brain Spasm/Toxic Monstrosities/CDN Records/2017 CD Review

  Brain  Spasm  are  a  band  from  Toronto, Ontario, Canada  that  plays  goregrind  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "Toxic  Monstrosities" which  will  be  released  in  2017  by  CDN  Records.

  Horror  movie  samples  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  very  fast  and  brutal  grindcore  direction  which  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  the  vocals  are  guttural growls  which  also  gives  the  old  school  sound  a  more  modern  feeling  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Most  of  the  tracks  are  very  short  in  length  and  horror  movie  samples  are  also  used  on  some  of  the  other  tracks and  throughout the  recording  you  can hear  a  great mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  screams  can  also  be  heard  at  times  and  none  of  the  songs  ever  use  any  solos  and  leads  except  for t he  last  song and  all  of  the  tracks  stick  to  a  very  brutal  style.

  Brain  Spasm  plays  a  style  of  goregrind  that  is  very  old  school  and  brutal  while  also  mixing  in  guttural  vocals,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  horror  movies and  gore  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Brain  Spasm  are  a  very  great  sounding  goregrind  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Toxic  Creation"  "Human  Ooze"  and  "Lakeshore  Strangler".  8  out  of  10.

Undrask/Battle Through Time/2017 Full Length Review

  Undrask  are  a  band  from  North  Carolina  that  plays  a  very  melodic  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  album  "Battle  Through  Time"  which  will  be  released  in  2017.

  Horror  move  samples  start  off  the  album  before  adding  in  melodic  guitar  leads  and  riffs  while  the  vocals  bring  in  a  mixture  of  death  metal  growls  and  high  pitched  screams  and  the  music  also  brings  in  a  great  amount  of  both  Swedish  and  Finnish  influences  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  A  lot  of  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  while  also  sounding  modern  at  the  same  time  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  they  also  bring  in  a  brief  classical  guitar  instrumental  before  returning  back  to  a  heavier  direction  on  the  following  tracks  and  some  songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  back  up  shouts  and  the  last  couple  of  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  pianos  are  also  used  towards  the  end.

  Undrask  plays  a  style  of  melodic  death  metal  that  is  very  old  school  and  traditional  sounding,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  are  a  concept  album  based  upon  a  man  lost  to  eternity  and  forced  to  die  repeatedly  through  time  and  alternate  realities.

  In  my  opinion  Undrask  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "No  Graves  For  The  Dead"  "Black  Ocean"  "Faceless  Eyes"  and  "Battle  Through  Time".  8 out  of  10.  

   

Mass Hypnosis Interview

Q

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

A:

Hey, we are in the process of making our new album, single and also new video for our last song on the album called "Codex Alimentarius".

Q

2.Recently you have released a new album, 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?

A:

Yes, in the past we have one album called "DISIN4MATION". I'm personally not very proud on that material, but it is behind us now. We are trying to sound dark, cold and also groovie. People like to say that we play Industrial-metal.

Q

3.Your earlier stuff was more in a death metal or deathcore direction, but the music on the new album is more closer to industrial and groove metal, what was the decision behind going into this musical direction?

A:

Yes, in the past i have few other people in the band who want to be up to date with the music style, but popular styles changing really fast, and after few years the music sounds really silly, and all bands sounds the same in the end. Not all, but a lot of bands in the particular genre, exactly that happened to us with the first album, we have a death-core album in the sea of death-core albums, and i'm not happy about it at all. It was not decision, i just start to make almost everything by my own.

Q

4.This is the first release to be put out in 3 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time frame?

A:

It was not a easy period for me at all, i was in the big struggle to find people who will play live shows with this kind of music with me. Croatia is really a not good place to be if you are in this genre of music that we are now, or in any genre of art at all.

Q

5.The lyrics cover some new World Order, Political, Dystopian and Conspiracy Theories, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these topics?

A:

I was always love really direct and honest lyrics, i never was into some kind of fantasy stuff like lot of metal bands are into. And i really hope that i will stimulate someone to think what's going on in the world during listening to our stuff, maybe to change some views in good direction.

Q

6.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'mass Hypnosis'/

A:

Of course it is an old Sepultura song.

But it is also really well showing us what is going on in the world right now, we are all in the really deep state of Mass Hypnosis and the name is going really good with our lyrical expressions. Also it is very simple and direct, youknow., tells the story.

Q

7.What are some of the best shows that the band ha splayed over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

A:

The best show for me was in the "Metal Camp" festival, just because we have a proper equipement on stage. Our stage performance is to try to not to play wrong tones during headbanging.

Q

8.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?

A:

Yes, we have, but as we are independent it is very hard to plan any tours, we are still living here, in the bottom of the europe and struggling to

survive, i have a great luck to even have a equipment.

Q

9.The new album was self released but the band has been on a record label before in the past, are you open to working with another record label again in the future?

A:

Yes, we was on the record label with the first album, but the label do 0 effort for us, so it is better to be independent

that on the label like that. Yes, we are very open to work with some serious pople in the future.

Q

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

A:

I'm very satisfied with the feedback from now on. Let's take the fact that the album is out for very short period of time.

Q

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

A:

I can not see where is going i can only hope that we will replace our livingrooms with real studios.

And i would also love to work with professionals in the future.

Q

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

A:

I really often had a really strange periods of music listening, so right now i'm in some kind of Reagge period. I'm also hooked up on early Static-X albums, first two to be particular.

Q

13.What are some of your non musical interests?

A:

I have no interest except musical.

Q

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

A:

I would like to thank to all the people who read this interview to the end and i hope you will heard of us more in the future.

FUCK THE SYSTEM

p.s.

thank you  for thinking about us!

Beating Dead Meet Interview

Answered by Iikka, the vocalist.

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

Well, it all began years ago, when I met our drummer in high school, and we started playing some death metal together. Quite a few years later in 2013 Beating Dead Meat, or BDM, was formed when our guitarist and bassist came along.


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

The band is a combination of different musical backgrounds, since our guitarist has his roots in blues and rock, while our drummer and bassist have their roots in technical death metal. The sound has pretty effortlessly formed in the combining of these elements.


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

In the first album, the lyrics didn’t really have much meaning, which I had to fix in the upcoming album. Most of the themes are in touch with everyday life, concerning mostly things that may make one irritated. One of the carrying themes was the obvious lack of strength in today’s people. People tend to be oversensitive about everything, and the only thing they manage to do correctly is complaining about every goddamn thing. Sometimes it’s just better to grow a pair and get over whatever it is that’s troubling you.
   
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Beating Dead Meat'?

Someone once said, that making metal music is a complete waste of time. Beating Dead Meat is kind of a metaphor for that, so that’s basically it. Of course it can be thought of as some erectile dysfunction kind of thing, but to each his own. Every good name must have more than just one meaning, you know?

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

The best show has to be the first one we ever played in our home town. There were a lot of our friends there, so we had a pleasant evening of drinking and brawling. Our stage performance has been described as energetic and humorous. No one wants to see a band, where the players stand in one place with a fuck on their faces.    

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

There is to be a couple of shows here in Finland, and we’re planning on touring in Europe at some point. I can’t really say much about these, since the they’re still a work in progress.

7.On the album you had done a 'Pantera' cover, what was the decision behind doing your own version of one of there songs?

There was actually a couple of reasons. The first one was the fact, that there really aren’t a lot of Pantera covers out there. Secondly, we had to think of a song from them that suited the overall message and the music of the album. Also there was my gentle voice to consider, since it really doesn’t work with some of their songs. Overall, the cover was a great way to end the album.

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

It has actually been a lot better than we expected. Since it’s a bit hard to define our genre as purely death or whatever metal, we were pretty sure that the more “OG” death metallers wouldn’t be too happy with all the genre mixing. Luckily it wasn’t so, since the feedback has been really positive. I guess the whole “define this, define that” bullshit is finally dying down. After all, to define is to limit.  

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

Our drummer has another metal band called Systematic Sickness Kin, and our guitarist plays guitar in a party rock band called Soviet Onion. Our bassist and I have each other, which is more than enough for one lifetime.        

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

It’s a bit hard to say. I myself would see the new material being a combination of the first two albums, including some blast beats from the first album, and some groove from the new album. I think it would be cool to make a couple of songs that are more complex to play and to write, since the technical metal force is pretty strong in this band. (Star Wars pun intended).

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?

I think they’d have to be blues/rock, and a hell of a lot metal subgenres, mostly extreme and groove metal. I myself still listen quite a lot of metal music, but I also enjoy game soundtracks, like Morrowind and such. Pretty much anything goes except Punk. Guess I should say that I only listen to whale cries infused with Norwegian black metal, but let’s leave that to the elitists.    

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

I enjoy reading quite a lot, and I’ve been playing guitar since I was fifteen, so those two take most of my spare time. Our drummer goes hiking in the woods or something, since he’s more of the outdoors kind of guy. I guess our guitarist and bassist just try to keep on breathing. Overall we enjoy Jim Beam and other sports.

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

Guess there really isn’t anything that’s been left unsaid. Since the year has been full of events like Trump been elected as president, and DiCaprio winning an Oscar, I guess it’s not impossible to wish that someone would even buy our new album. I think that’s pretty much it. Sorry for the long post, have a potato, and stay metal af.

Ambivalence/Hyena's Breath/PRC Music/2017 CD Review

  Ambivalence  are  a  band  from  Ukraine  that  plays  a  very  brutal  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "Hyena's  Breath"  which  will  be  released  in  2017  by  PRC  Music.

  A  very  fast  and  brutal  sound  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  start  off  the  album  along  with  a  great  amount  of  guttural  growls  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  melodies  at  times  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  and  pig  squeals  can  also  be  heard  at  times  and  elements  of slam  are  also  added  into  the  music.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording  and  some  songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  high  pitched  screams  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  atmospheric  synths  and  when  acoustic  guitars  are  utilized  they  give  the  music  more  of  a  progressive  feeling  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  get  very  technical  at  times  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  Asian  style  scales.

 Ambivalance  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  very  brutal  and  guttural  while  also  taking  the  genre  into  a  different  direction  and  adding  some  originality  into their  songs,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  problems  of  morality  and  frustration  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Ambivalance  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  and  original  death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Size  Does  Matter"  "Swallowers"  and  "The  Splinters".  8  out  of  10. 

The Descent Interview

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

We have been really busy with all the preorders of the new album and the new merch. We also played a gig with Angelus Apatrida and we are scheduling more dates for the end of this year and the beginning of the next.

2.Recently you have released a new album, 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?

It's and evolution of our sound, we keep the foundations on the melodic death metal but taking a huge step up. In this four years since the first album we changed a lot, three members of the band left and new people join up aporting his own style and ideas so now we got new influences as your will see in the new songs.

3.This is your first album, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during this time span?

Since the recording of the first album (cuz this is the second one) we have been playing a lot with bands such as Nightrage, Onslought, Angelus Apatrida, Izegrim, Mors Principium Est, Rise to Fall... and in the maintime creating the new songs and working hard to get this new album out. Although as I said before, some of our bandmates left the band due to personal and professional issues so we spend some time looking for the new members Xavi, Iñigo and Borja

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

We go from social criticism to the esoterical and terrorific world of H.P Lovecraft, and thats why we choose the name "The coven of Rats" cuz it gather all the topics in one phrase.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'The Descent'?

The name came from a german terror film (pretty bad film if i had to say, but our got a really awfull taste), it came up one day when we were having a brainstorming to search a new name for the band and when Ander came up with it we all love it so there it is, now we are The Descent.

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?f

It's hard to choose one as the best show... If I have to choose it will be the show with Angelus Apatrida in Zaragoza due to the crowd that went completely mad and it was awesome then with Mors Principium Est in Vigo the sound was awesome and we were touring with one of our favorite bands and it was the last gig so it was special and the last one will be with Nightrage and Methedras in Bilbao for almost the same things than before, we were playing with one of our favourite bands in our hometown and it was really awesome. And then... what to say about our performance, we jump on the stage and play our music as we feel it so its an explosion of rage and aggressiveness.

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

Yes, we are now  scheduling some dates around Spain and Portugal as something on Europe but we cant announce anything yet.

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

We have been receiving messages and orders from all around the world and then there's people like Kumi from Tokyo or Igor from syberia who is supporting making us known in their countries and trying to take us there to play so in general therms it has been awesome and we would like to thank you and them all for the support.

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?

Well Xavi is playing also in Rise to Fall, The Flying Scarecrow and Rat-Zinger so he is playing all around the country almost every weekend and Ander is playing a lot and currently recording a new ep with Knives, a crust band.

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

God knows... for now on we will try to live the present and work out to have a busy future.

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

Basically melodic death metal band like Nightrage, Dimension Zero, Dark Tranquility, In Flames (old stuff...), Insomnium, and band of other genres such as Hardcore, Black, Death...  Nowadays I'm hearing a lot of genres but the main bands could be Heaven Shall Burn, Social Distortion, Ignite, Hypocrisy... and a lot of etc...

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

Ummm.... Beer, Whisky, Vodka, Rum, Jaggerfreakingmaster, Weed, Hash, girls... Well you know, the good things in live, haha.

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

Yes, we will like say that it has been an pleasure to make this interview and thank you, and for the guys who did'nt know us yet but are going to read this lines, check us on youtube or on spotify and hopefully you will enjoy our music as much as we do.
Good bye and keep it metal.
Charly // TD.

Inquiring Blood Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
Daniel: Hi, we are INQUIRING BLOOD, a groovy death metal band from Hanover, Germany. Our band was founded in 2004 and we are Daniel (vocals), Marco (guitar), Lars (bass) and Florian (drums). This far we have a demo ("Fear"), a EP ("Raping the Silence") and a full-length album ("Born in a Grave").

2.You have a new album coming out in December, 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?
Daniel: Our new album "Morbid Creation" has got a very different sound than our last album "Born in a Grave". The mix was made by a very famous studio in Germany, which is known for its brutal productions all over Europe. We want to raise our own bar every time we record something new, so this was just the next step in our band-evolution. We are very happy with the outcome of it.

3.This is the first album to come out in 6 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time frame?
Daniel: Lars had just joined us shortly we recorded our last album and jumped right into it. After the record was released, we needed to adjust our songwriting due to the new influences he had on our music. We wrote loads of songs and had many to choose from when we actually started to getting closer to recording a new album.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
Daniel: Most of the lyrics are genre typical stereotypes that you would expect from a death metal band. It's all about destruction, devastation, the end of the world, murder and so on. It's all fictional, but some songs have got a personal touch. Sometimes when you're really angry inside and you need to let out your frustration and you don't know how...that's when I write lyrics where somebody has to suffer a lot, that helps, haha.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Inquiring Blood'?
Daniel: Marco once came up with a new song and it had a working title with this two words in it. We didn't think about it very long and chose to keep that combination for our band name. We had another name before, when we just started, but we didn't like it very much. And due to our first show coming up and the promoter urging me to give him our logo we just changed it. We never put much thought into it, it just felt right at that time.

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?
Daniel: There were some cool shows and some bad shows, that's just how it goes. Every show is different and has got something special. I guess if I would choose a specific show to talk about, I would go with our first gig in a very cool and big venue in our hometown. It's called MusikZentrum and every big metal band played there during that time. We played a festival there and there were so many people banging and had their fists in the air, that was truely one of the coolest things I ever experienced in all the years.
I think our stage performance is not very different to other bands in our genre. There's some headbanging and some shouting and that's about it. We like to be reduced to our music and don't want to be relevant because of a special show or something, maybe that changes sometimes, but i doubt it, haha.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?
Daniel: I'm planning shows for the next year right now. We want to play a lot to present our new album, so that's the main goal for the next year. There are already some shows booked in january and february, but as far as I'm concerned, there can never be enough shows to play.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death metal?
Daniel: "Morbid Creation" will be our first worldwide release (digitally), so we're excited to know after it's out. There were some reactions to our latest album "Born in a Grave" though, which were very cool to hear. But I think, to really know that, we just need to wait a little bit longer.

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
Daniel: I would love to tour with some big bands, play big festivals or just have some very cool gigs. We love what we do and I think we are very grounded and have very low expectations. In this day you really need to be like that. There are sooooo many bands out there, waiting to be heard and that makes it difficult for every single one of us. So we'll just see how it works out with "Morbid Creation" and then we'll talk again.

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?
Daniel: I think the biggest influence in our early days were bands like Kataklysm and Sepultura/Soulfly, but that changed, when we developed our own style. We come from very different kinds of music, and by that i mean VERY different. I was listening to Cannibal Corpse and Immortal, Marco was more the grunge rock, alternative rock guy, Florian was listening to the Red Hot Chili Peppers and so we had a variety of influences. After we found our own style and Lars joined us (his roots are more typical than ours, he was listening to the music of Morbid Angel and stuff like that) we never really looked aside and tried to remain true to our style.
Nowadays we're all listening to rock and metal in almost all their facets.

11.What are some of your non musical interests?
Daniel: Some of us have other bands we play in, have pets or girlfriends we need to take care of, haha, everybody likes to play some video games once in a while and we all like to support our local scene in one way or another.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thanks for having us! And to everybody reading this interview I just wanna say: keep supporting the underground and the local scene, it's where the true art is found and the bands of tomorrow are born. Maybe one day, thanks to you, the bands you've supported down the road can play the festivals you want them to play. Keep buying our music. Stay brutal!

Infecting The Swarm/Abyss/Lacerated Enemy Records/2016 CD Review

  Infecting  The  Swarm  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  very  brutal  and  slamming  form  of  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016 album  "Abyss"  which  was  released  by  Lacerated  Enemy  Records.

  A  very  dark,  heavy  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  guttural  death  metal  growls  a  few  seconds  later  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sound  very  powerful  and  after  awhile  elements  of  slam  are  added  onto  the  recording.

  Throughout  the  recording  there  is  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  brutality  and  none  of  the  songs  ever  use  any  guitar  solos  and  leads  while  some  of  the  riffing  gets  technical  at  times  and  the  whole  album  remains  heavy  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording.

  Infecting  The  Swarm  creates  another  recording  that  remains  true  to  the  brutal  and  slamming  style  of  death  metal  from  the  previous  release,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  science  fiction  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Infecting  the  Swarm  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  brutal,  slamming  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Entropy"  "Innate  Divinity"  "Obscuring  The  Seventh  Sun"  and  "Descension".  8  out  of  10.

   

Devast/Apocalyptic Human Extinction/Gore House Productions/2016 CD Review

  Devast  are  a  band  with members  from  Algeria  and  Argentina  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  very  brutal  and  technical  form  of  gore/death  metal  and  this  is  a  review of  their  2016  album  "Apocalyptic  Human  Extinction"  which  was  released  by  Gore  House  Productions.

  A  very  dark  sounding  intro  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  touches  of  noise  and  avant  garde  music  before  going  inno  a  very  fast  and  brutal  direction  that  also  introduces  blast  beats  and  deep  death  metal  growls  onto  the  recording  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  technical  fashion  and  you  can  also  hear  melodies  at  times.

  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  touches  of  grindcore  can  also  be  heard  at  times  and  as  the  album  progresses  elements  of  slam  are  added  into  the  mid  tempo  parts  of  the  tracks  while  the  vocals  also  start  getting  more  guttural.

  Devast  creates  a  recording  that  remains  true  to  the  technical  and  brutal  style  of  death  metal  from  their  previous  release  while  also  showing  some  progress  and  dropping  the  deathcore  elements,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  death,  murder,  extinction  and  apocalyptic  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Devast  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  technical  and  brutal  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Chaotic  Proliferation"  "Chapter  Of  Neverending  Torment"  "Catashropic  beastSpawn"  and  "Apocalyptic  Human  Extinction  III".  8  out  of  10.  

   

Beating Dead Meat/With Full Force/Inverse Records/2016 Full Length Review

  Beating  Dead  Meat  are  band  from  Finland  that  plays  a  brutal  and  melodic  mixture  of  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "With  Full  Force"  which  will  be  released  in  December  by  Inverse  Records.

  A  very  hard,  heavy  and  modern  sound  starts  off  the  album  and  the  riffs  also  use  a  great  amount  of  melody and  after  the  intro  high  pitched  screams  are  added  onto  the  recording  and  the  songs  also  mix  in  a  great  amount  of  groove  in t he  riffing  as  well  as  a  great  amount  of  modern  day thrash  metal  influences.

  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  as  the  album  progresses  the  songs  start  bringing  in  a  decent  mixture of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  only utilized  almost  towards  the  end  and  the  album  remains  heavy  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording  and  they  also  close  the  album  with  a  Pantera  cover.

  Beating  Dead  Meat  plays  a  musical  style  that takes  melodic  death  metal  and  mixes  it  with  a  modern  day  form  of  thrash  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  angry  and  real  life  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Beating  Dead  Meat  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  melodic  death  and  modern  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Straight  to  Hell"  "The  Few  And  The  Proud"  "The  Powers  That  Be"  and  "The  Great  Northern  Djentkill".  8  out  of  10. 

Irate Architect Interview

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

We started Irate Architect in 2003. The first step was to give the underground scene our debut single (7" & CD) "Born Blood Portrait" in 2005, which got great reviews, also festivals and labels were interested in us since the output. Then we signed a deal with "War Anthem Records" and released our first full length album (CD) "Visitors" in 2007, afterwards we played more festivals and little tours. In 2010 our drummer Philipp suffered from a disease so Irate Architect paused for a while. In 2013 got back on track and recorded new songs and one coversong for a split with the powerviolence band Yacopsae. The release lately came out in the beginning of 2016 via "Haunted Hotel Records" (NY) as 10", CD or "die hard edition" with a bonus 5" and got a worldwide distribution. Before the release came out our drummer Philipp quit and we found a new talent and friend in Zlatko, together we wrote the brandnew track "Circle of Exile" and created a video for this song (you´ll find it on youtube).

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

The "Born Blood Portrait" output is a raw piece of deathgrind with a groovy punk attitude.

"Visitors" is more technical death metal with a very transparent sound and different bunch of songs and feelings (from fast and brutal to slower and ambient).

The split songs with Yacopsae have a really brutal and modern sound and combine the styles of the previous both outputs with great hooks, atmosphere and song structures.


3.The band has been around since 2003 but so far has only released an ep, full length and a split, can you tell us a little bit more about the gap in between releases?


The gap between the first two outputs (2005 & 2007) is pretty usual. We have done some touring and songwriting, but we were also a bit burnt out. In 2010 we had a long break. After this period we started writing the split stuff from 2013-2014. In 2015 our drummer Philipp quit and we did a restart in the end of 2015 with Zlatko. Now we are motivated as hell and hope to release a new full length album in the end of 2017.


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


The most of the lyrics are personal or fictional short stories and gives enough space for interpretation.
Some stories are bloody or mystical, others are more emotional and with depth.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Irate Architect'?

We are irate against the system, mankind, world order, our selfs and putting this aggression into our own architectural wall of sound.

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?

The festival show at Party-San open air was outstanding, Deathfeast open air and many more were also good, but we also love passionate club gigs.
We try to put our personal and musical aggression on stage but with a more serious touch.

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

First we are focusing on songwriting for a new Album. After that we will do the plans for upcoming shows and tours, but request are always welcome.
Right now we have got 2 external requests for festival shows in 2017.


8.All 3 of your releases have came out on different labels, can you tell us a little bit more about the labels you have worked with?

"Third Alliance Records" was the label from our guitarist Jens.

"War Anthem Records" gave us whole musical and conceptional freedom. We have chosen and done all the artwork, layout etc. by ourself. Luckily we got a worldwide distribution of "Visitors" and a great promotional work.

"Haunted Hotel Records" (NY) led by Ralph is a very likeable supporter of the underground scene and gave us whole musical and conceptional freedom too,
so an artist from Hamburg (Sebastian Feld) created the complete split artwork and layout. We have chosen output formats (10", 5", CD), cover songs…


9.Recently you where a part of a split with 'Yacopsae', what are your thoughts on the other band that had participated on the recording?


Yacopsae are longtime friends from our hometown Hamburg, we met them in 2005,
since then we stayed in contact and did also some gigs together. Also the contact to Ralph of "Haunted Hotel Records" was caused by Stoffel of Yacopsae. Furthermore they are very friendly and freaky guys who play a complete unique style of music, a mix of punk, grind, stop motion, aggression and speed as hell, so check them out!!!


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

The feedback was almost entirely great from all around the world but didn´t achieved the big audience yet.

11.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?

Our Guitarist Jens and Bassist Kai have two other projects. One is a instrumental acoustic guitar project called Aenima. The total opposite of Irate Architect. Peaceful, sensitive and unhasty, but very listenable and just great music. The other project is a sludge band. Currently without a name, but they are working on an output. So in the near future, there will be more information to come.
Our drummer Zlatko is involved in a death metal project, which is, at the moment, just a rehearsal room band, but will release some recorded songs in the future.


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

We´ll follow our current path and try to create heavy and unique music to be a serious part of the death metal scene.


13.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?

All band members brings different influences into our music.
The earlier IA songs were more influenced by punk and grind,
nowadays we are writing more variable death metal songs.

We´re listening to very different styles of music, but with the priority on death metal.
Here´s a small list of some bands we listen to: Suffocation, Cryptopsy, Napalm Death, Satyricon, Entombed, Acid Bath, Grand Magus, Morbid Angel, Rotten Sound, Ulcerate, Gorguts, Origin, Nero di Marte, EyeHateGod, Triptykon, Cro-Mags, The Dwarves, Down, Alice in Chains, Bohren & the Club of Gore, John Grant, Queens of the Stone Age, The Heavy, Portishead, Vitalic...


14.What are some of your non musical interests?

Non musical interest are movies, books, red wine, exhibitions, theater, eating well, art, culture, whisky, museums, concerts, life.


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

Thank you for the interview!
Be who you are, stay tolerant and reflected

Burn Down Eden Interview

1. For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
Sure. When Burn Down Eden was founded in 2012, we were four guys trying to do some Death Metal alongside our studies in Dresden. But it was more like meeting to practice which ended up in drinking lots of beer, haha. After a while we´ve had personal changes. Our friend Jakob left the band and part-time bassist William became the lead guitarist. He´s the musical brain in our formation now and a very, very good guitarist. So, as we all wanted to do more melodic stuff, we improved our skills and simultaneously our ambitions grew. That all started in April 2014. At this time we had to write a lot of new stuff, because we were booked for a show in August 2014 as support for Misery Index in Dresden. That was our sword of Damocles! If this show would have been a real disaster, Burn Down Eden wouldn´t exist anymore, haha. But luckily for us, we´ve got lots of good feedback, so we decided to keep things rolling. In December 2014 we hit the studio and recorded the EP "Memoirs of Human Error". It was more kind of a DEMO, because we sent it to a couple of labels, where we found Sliptrick Records as a partner. Playing a couple of shows in 2015 and being always quite productive, we hit the studio again in December 2015 to make the next step and to record our first LP "Ruins of Oblivion"! This was released by the German label 7hard for the German speaking countries and is gonna be released by Sliptrick Records to the rest of the world.

2. So far you have released an ep and a full length, how would you describe the musical sound that is represented on the recordings?
The sound on "Memoirs of Human Error" is pretty rough, but not that bad at all. On "Ruins of Oblivion" we´ve re-amped the guitar and bass signals, so that we´ve had more scope to play with the sound. We have three different ENGL sounds on there. But overproduction is not. We kept a little bit roughness alive. What you hear is what you get, also live! But the most ear-catching change is the voice. Our former vocalist Jules decided to leave the band in September 2015, but in Kai we found a suitable substitute.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
The lyrics are covering a broad variety of topics. From criticism about society like in "Cosmogyral Miscarriage" or "Omnivorous", over to depression and the drug abuse coming along with it to handle the pain like in "Pandemonic Overture", up to hanging out with the guys and drinking tons of beer like in "Sons of Isengrim". We like to tell stories from every point of view. Sometimes we just jump into a serial killer´s mind telling his story ["Kronossphere"], haha. All in all, it´s very figuratively. You have to think about it once or twice to understand the subject matter behind the told story.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Burn Down Eden'?
The ‘Eden’ stands for our superficial, consumeristic society, figuratively. Like the Bible suggests us a place, where every wish comes true, all the commercials try to sell us that consumption is paradise. So, it´s against both hypocrisies, church (whether Christian, Islamic or whatsoever) and capitalism.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
The show as support for Misery Index was definitely a highlight. As I mentioned earlier, it was our first show with new line-up, new songs and the band´s consistency on the line. Lots of pressure, haha! Apart from that, we had our record release show at Evolution of Metal (a concert series organized by our friends in the band "The Last Hangmen") in Dresden on October 22nd.  That was pretty awesome, too.
Yeah, how to describe your own performance!? That’s a tough one. What we´ve got told is (what you see from in front of the stage) that we have fun and are very passionate in doing this. We try to play with the audience, as long as the licks allow it (haha), but in Kai we also have a lead singer, who´s always doing a great job!

6. Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
Yes we have. But unfortunately reality differs with your own imagination. The scene now has changed over the last decade. We´ve all played in different bands before and it was definitely easier to book shows for your band 10 years ago. All the small town venues died out because of the urban sprawl and promoters' won´t pay for a support band which is from 200 km away. Instead they usually charge a fee.
But we´re always in in close collaboration with Fylo [booker of Sliptrick Records], so I think there´s something coming in the near future.

7. Currently the band is signed to 'Sliptrick Records', are you happy with the support that they have given you so far?
I´ve to be honest, we didn´t had the best start at all, but that´s history and all the issues are solved. So, we´re pretty happy now, yes!

8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of melodic death metal?
Until now it is pretty good. We´re glad that the fans like what we do! We´ve also got great reviews by the German magazine´s RockHard and Legacy. That confirms you in your work and to keep things rolling.

9. Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
I guess we just keep our style…melodically and fast but maybe a bit more deepness at some point! We´re still a very young band and have a lot of space to improve our technical skills, our sound and our songwriting. As I mentioned earlier, we´re quite productive. “Ruins of Oblivion” is recently out of the press shop and our second LP is already in the making. This one is going to be more technical, more extensive and more complex at some point, but still typical “Burn Down Eden”-style.

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?
We´re definitely influenced by At the Gates, Arsis and the old In Flames. I guess you can hear that. But we´re also influenced by lots of 80´s metal. Especially William listens to all the big shredders like Yngwie Malmsteen, Greg howe, Guthrie Govan, Paul Gilbert and Buckethead.
The music we´re listening to nowadays is a wide variety. For me, Vektor is one of the best bands we have right now! Or in times where I like to listen to more Heavy Metal kind of stuff, I always come back to 3 Inches of Blood…it´s a bummer that they´d quit last year. William also likes to listen to some Jazz sometimes. But because of his job he is forced to listen to every kind of music.

11. What are some of your non musical interests?
We really like to drink beer! A lot, haha!!!

12. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Actually, we´d really like to thank all the people who are interested in our sound, what we do and who supported us so far. Hopefully, we will see all of them on a show nearby their hometowns very soon.