NEVER BREAK THE OATH MERCYFUL FATE will be playing an unspecified number of concerts throughout Europe during the summer of 2020, including COPENHELL. It will be the “9” lineup, featuring: Hank Shermann – Guitar King Diamond – Vocals Bjarne T Holm – Drums Mike Wead – Guitar with Joey Vera on the…
Kryptos – Afterburner
Kryptos – Afterburner Reviewed: August 2019 Released: June 21st, 2019 / AFM Records Rating: 5 / 5 Reviewer: John Haseltine Here ye, here ye. May I take a moment to shout to the masses about this little band hailing from Bangalore, India. The band is Kryptos and the have been…
Visceral Disgorge – Slithering Evisceration
Visceral Disgorge – Slithering Evisceration Reviewed: August, 2019 Released: 2019, Agonia Records Rating: 3.5/5 Reviewer: Aaron Yurkiewicz Distance creates nostalgia, and nostalgia affords certain bands and/or albums a near legendary status simply on the merit of that distance. Visceral Disgorge’s 2011 debut INGESTING PUTRIDITY was indeed a seething slab of…
Axel Rudi Pell – XXX Anniversary Live
Axel Rudi Pell – XXX Anniversary Live Reviewed: August 2019 Released: June 7th, 2019 / Steamhammer Rating: 4 / 5 Reviewer: John Haseltine The man, the myth, the legend Axel Rudi Pell is currently celebrating 30 years as a solo artist. ARP id actually more of a band then a…
Backstabber – Conspiracy Theorist
Reviewed: August, 2019 Released: 2019, Self-released Rating: 5/5 Reviewer: Ambra Chilenwa I must admit, I had a very bad first impression on this release due to the artwork as I am personally not a fan of space and alien imagery. However, I was not ready for the fascination about to…
Eradikator – Obscura
Reviewed: August, 2019 Released: 2019, Divebomb Records Rating: 2/5 Reviewer: Jesse Edwards The first thing to raise an eyebrow was, unsurprisingly, that front cover… the longer you look at it, the more hideous it becomes! God-awful artwork aside, I was impressed by the classy production and musicianship contained within; and…
Obsidian Tongue – Volume III
Reviewed: August 2019 Released: 2019 Bindrune Recordings Rating: 4.5/5 Reviewer: Beandog By Obsidian Tongue’s own account, six years is a long time in the world of metal and music. This is how long it’s been since the band last put out a collection of songs. They acknowledge, with no shortage…
Kavara – Weathered & Lost
Kavara – Weathered & Lost Reviewed: August 2019 Released: 2019 Self-released Rating: 3/5 Reviewer: Peter Atkinson The novelty of the “female-fronted” death metal band has long ago worn off. And that’s a good thing. Thanks to the likes of Angela Gossow and Lauren Hart on the more melodic end of…
Interview with Ramon Martos, author of And Justice For Art-Volume 2
Interview with Ramon Martos Author of And Justice For Art-Volume 2 by JP How long did it take you to decide to do a Part 2? “And Justice For Art – Volume 2” reveals the stories behind some of heavy music’s greatest album covers, as told by the visual artists…
Seraph In Travail – Lest They Feed Upon Your Soul
Reviewed: August, 2019 Released: 2019, self-released Rating: 3.5/5 Reviewer: Bob Davidson Symphonic metal does give me cause for concern as a genre. I’ve commented before that it’s too easy to stray into ‘Andrew Lloyd Webber had he rebelled’ territory. Thankfully, Seraph in Travail has managed to remain aloof from these…
Cerberus (Mexico) – Fire!
Cerberus (Mexico) – Fire! Reviewed: August 2019 Released: July 12th, 2019 / Self-Release Rating: 4.5 / 5 Reviewer: John Haseltine Cerberus was formed in Mexico City, Mexico in 2010 by Paul Wrath at the age of 15. It didn’t take CERBERUS long to find their footing in 2014 with release…
Lee, Geddy- Geddy Lee’s Big Beautiful Book Of Bass (Book review)
Lee, Geddy- Geddy Lee’s Big Beautiful Book Of Bass (Book review) Released: 2019, Harper Design Reviewed: August, 2019 Reviewer: JP Rating: 4/5 Let’s face it. GEDDY LEE’S BIG BEAUTIFUL BOOK OF BASS, when you get right down to it is nothing more than a coffee table book consisting of pictures…
Devourment – Obscene Majesty
Devourment – Obscene Majesty Reviewed: August, 2019 Released: 2019, Relapse Records Rating: 3/5 Reviewer: Aaron Yurkiewicz OBSCENE MAJESTY is one sick, nasty mess of an album. But then again, Devourment has always been one sick, nasty mess of a band. With a history of classic jams like “Molesting the Decapitated”,…
Sludgehammer – Antechamber
Reviewed: August 2019 Released: 2019, self-released Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Kieron Hayes Think of “modern metal” (as a style rather than just anything from the last decade or two) and you’ll likely think of something from a handful of different types: melodic death metal, groove metal, metalcore, maybe even some kind…
Martos, Ramon – …And Justice For Art Volume 2 (Book review)
Martos, Ramon – …And Justice For Art Volume 2 (Book review) Released: 2019, Dark Canvas Records Reviewed: August, 2019 Reviewer: JP Rating: 4.5/5 I feel like when I’m writing a review of Part 2 of a book series, if I wrote a review for the Part I, I feel like…