Reviewed: [March 2021] Released [2021 Metal Blade Records] Rating [4/5] Reviewer: Peter Atkinson Swedish melodic death metallers The Crown have been rolling right along since reforming a decade ago after a five-year hiatus, even if they tend to get a bit lost in the mix as acts like the similarly…
Sweden
Age of Woe – Envenom
Reviewed: March 2021 Released: 2021, Lifeforce Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Demitri Levantis Age of Woe, hailing from Sweden’s death metal capital, Gothenburg, have released their third full-length album, Envenom. This, along with their previous ventures into the worlds of doom, sludge, and crust punk, has made the band stand out…
Cult Of Luna – The Raging River
Reviewed: [March 2021] Released [2021 Red Creek Recordings] Rating [4.5/5] Reviewer: Peter Atkinson Though categorized as an EP, the latest outing from Swedish post-metal/doom/prog sextet Cult Of Luna – and first for their own Red Creek Recordings – delivers a full album’s worth of material by most bands’ standards. With…
Tectonic Displacement – The Futility of Man
Review Date: March 2021 Released: 2021, Independent Rating: 4.5/5 Reviewer: RC2000 Tectonic Displacement are a relatively new band from Kiruna, Sweden, and they’ve released their debut EP called THE FUTILITY OF MAN. The recording, mixing, and mastering was done by Johan Karlsson, and the cover artwork is from Andreas Johansson.…
Interview with Age of Woe
Interview by Demitri Levantis Interview with Sonny Stark, vocals Social Media: www.facebook.com/ageofwoe www.instagram.com/ageofwoe/ shop.ageofwoe.net/ Following the release of their fourth studio album, “Envenom”, Metal-Rules caught up with Swedish Death Metal/Sludge/Crust Punk outfit Age of Woe to see what the band has been up to, and has planned for the future.
Viral – Viral
Review Date: February 2021 Released: 2021, Independent Rating: 4.5/5 Reviewer: RC2000 Hailing from Sweden, heavy metallers Viral have released their first album entitled VIRAL. They describe themselves as being ‘heavily rooted in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, with influences from thrash and power metal’. I’d say that’s a…
Persuader-Necromancy
Reviewed: February, 2021 Released: 2021, Frontiers Rating: 5 /5 Reviewer: JP Persuader stands in a pretty unique position here at Metal-Rules.com. Of the thousands and thousands of albums we have reviewed over a quarter of a century, I believe that Persuader is the only band to get five consecutive, perfect,…
Ablaze My Sorrow – Among Ashes and Monoliths
Reviewed: February 2021 Released: 2021, Black Lion Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Rossy Maguire After four years of incubation, Ablaze My Sorrow announces their triumphant return with a new album. The fifth full length, entitled Among Ashes and Monoliths, introduce new vocalist Jonas Udd, whose aggressive rasp fits the passionate band…
Bhleg – Odhin
Reviewed: January 2021 Released: 2021, Nordvis Produktion Rating: 4.5/5 Reviewer: Demitri Levantis Like all other metal genres, black metal is in a constant state of change, with its numerous subgenres emerging and rising in popularity across the global fandom. With atmospherics and the raw sound marking some of the biggest…
Armageddon-Three
Reviewed: November 2020 Released: June 2002, Toy’s Factory Rating: 4.5/5 Reviewer: Buddy H No, your eyes are not playing tricks on you. I did not accidentally transpose the 2’s and 0’s in the release date. This is not a new release. Rather, I have the honor and pleasure of reviewing one…
Blazon Stone-Return To Port Royal (Definitive Edition)
Reviewed: December, 2020 Released: 2020, StormSpell Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: JP For the working class Metal artist, content is king. Only the biggest bands and artists can survive on past glories and take several years between albums. Cederick Forsberg does not have that luxury. When the global pandemic hit and…
Interview with Eleine
Interview with Madeleine Liljestam – lead vocalist Interview by: Svetlana Likhacheva Eleine Facebook / Youtube Off the back of Eleine’s powerful new album, Metal Rules tracked down the band’s central figure, Madeleine Liljestam, and spoke to her about the inspirations and the meanings of the new record. You are…
Rock Rollas-Metal Strikes Back (Definitive Edition)
Reviewed: December, 2020 Released: 2020, StormSpell Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: JP For the working class Metal artist, content is king. Only the biggest bands and artists can survive on past glories and take several years between albums. Cederick Forsberg does not have that luxury. When the global pandemic hit and…
Shaw, Snowy, -The Book Of Heavy Metal (Book Review)
Reviewed: November, 2020 Released: 2020, WunderWurld Rating: 5/5 Reviewer: JP I was very excited to read the new autobiography of Snowy Shaw. At one point I stopped and wondered why I was looking forward to this book so much. I mean, after all it is ‘just’ another autobiography from a…
Necrophobic – Dawn of the Damned
Reviewed: November 2020 Released: 2020, Century Media Records Rating: 3.5/5 Reviewer: Demitri Levantis Swedish death metal veterans Necrophobic have returned with their ninth studio album: Dawn of the Damned, a title I would find quite fitting given how the world has received a lot of damnation this year by a pandemic…