Reviewed: April, 2021 Released: 2021, Massacre Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Erich Helstar’s last studio album VAMPIRO was released in 2016, the longest stretch between releases for the band since they reunited in 2008. Sadly, the pandemic has had an impact on all bands, including delaying album releases and tours. Fortunately,…
speed metal
Interview with Johnny Cyriis of Agent Steel
Interview with Johnny Cyriis of Agent Steel. by JP It has been a few years since the announcement that you were going to be active again. What inspired you to release an album now? Johnny Cyriis: First and foremost, I would like to thank you for this opportunity to…
Agent Steel-No Other Godz Before Me
Reviewed: March, 2021 Released: 2021, Dissonance Productions Rating: 4.5/5 Reviewer: JP I can not wait for someone to write the book of the Agent Steel story. The career of the storied band has had more than it’s fair share of drama. Despite this the band, even in name only, surges…
Sodom announces new album GENESIS XIX
Altenessen, a social melting-pot deep in the heart of the Ruhr Area. From the mid-19th century, the region supplied Europe’s industrialization with the required raw materials, mined under back-breaking conditions below ground in coal pits named Carl, Anna, Fritz-Heinrich, Helene, and the like. Altenessen is also the musical domicile of…
Raven – Metal City
October 2020 September 18th, 2020 / Steamhammer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 Reviewer: John Haseltine There is no denying the influence and impact Raven’s early albums had on the hard rock and metal community in the ’80s. Early ’80’s that is. Raven was right up there as one of my…
Evilcult – At The Darkest Night
August 2020 June 6th, 2020 / Awakening Records Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 Reviewer: John Haseltine Evilcult metal! With a name like this and a cover like that, only one thing comes to mind. Pure thrash metal, right? For the most part, yes. But of course, these days, we must…
Ice War – Defender, Destroyer
Reviewed: July, 2020 Released: 2020, Fighter Records Rating: 3/5 Reviewer: Jack Merry ICE WAR is a speed metal project formed solely by Jo Capitalicide shortly after his previous group IRON DOGS disbanded in 2015. Since then, he’s been releasing demos, EP’s and albums at a relentless pace! Now, ICE WAR…
Stallion – Slaves Of Time
Reviewed: May 2020 Released: February 28th, 2020 / High Roller Records Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 Reviewer: John Haseltine We have another blast from the past for your metal hearts. That statement is about as played out as any these days. With the surge of traditional or classic metal sounds by…
Sölicitör – Spectral Devastation
Reviewed: May 2020 Released: 2020, Gates of Hell Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Kieron Hayes “If it ain’t broke…” Oftentimes, the classics are classics for a reason, and that goes for styles as much as specific bands or albums. Traditional, classic heavy metal worked and captured so many people’s imaginations for…
Interview with Amy Lee Carlson of Sölicitör
Interview by Kieron Hayes Interview with Amy Lee Carlson of Sölicitör www.facebook.com/solicitor.speedmetal solicitor-speedmetal.bandcamp.com www.facebook.com/gatesofhellrecords www.gatesofhellrecords.com Hey and thank you for your time! Please state your name and position in the band. ALC: Hey! This is Amy Lee Carlson, and I am the vocalist and front woman of Sölicitör. Okay, so…
Road Warrior / Gravebreaker – Death Promise / Death In Heels On Wheels (7″ Split)
April 2020 February 21st, 2020 / Gates Of Hell Records Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 Reviewer: John Haseltine I was a bit indifferent to the 2018 release of Road Warrior’s POWER when I first listened to it. One thing that happens from time to time is I will continue to listen…
Midnight – Rebirth By Blasphemy
March 2020 January 24th, 2020 / Metal Blade Records Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 Reviewer: John Haseltine My first introduction to the Cleveland Ohio based cult hero Midnight was 2017’s SWEET DEATH AND ECSTACY. I was blown away by what this one-man band had to offer up, and that led me…
Bütcher – 666 Goats Carry My Chariot
Reviewed: February, 2020 Released: 2020, Osmose Productions Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Jack Merry BÜTCHER is quite an apt name for this Belgian four-piece. Wearing their influences on their sleeves, they have created a satanic speed metal monster on sophomore album “666 Goats Carry My Chariot“, as they rip and tear riffs, solos…
Mefisto – Octagram
Reviewed: January, 2020 Released: 2019, GMR Music Group Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Ambra Chilenwa The second I began streaming this release from Swedish Blackened thrash group Mefisto, I was already grasped by its melodic opening dancing with the acoustic, atmospheric rhythms. It opens with such an uplifting first track, providing hair-raising…
