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Bloodbath
Resurrection Through Carnage |
9.0 |
From the first track on, you can tell this will not be your regular death metal album; awesome guitars with a very particular effect that makes every tune sharper and more permanent.
With Mikael Åkerfeldt on vocals, Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström on Guitars, Jonas Renske on Bass and Dan Swanö on Drums you can’t go wrong... Read all |
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Intestinal Strangulation
Pathological Brutalistic Fermentation |
7.2 |
Now days is getting harder and harder to box bands inside genres, but what the hell I’m still gonna give it a shoot; Pathological Brutalistic Fermentation is brutal death metal with some gore added to the mix and a couple of progressive attempts that could have been better exploited if Intestinal Strangulation had have a little more... Read all |
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Theatres des Vampires
Pleasure and pain |
8.2 |
Many fans thought they have seen the last of Theatres des Vampires once Lord Vampyr decided to leave the band; well like the undead they are, these vampires refuse to embrace eternal sleep and came back with a solid Goth album.
Before Pleasure and pain these Italians had Lord Vampyr and Sonya Scarlet doing the singing for them... Read all |
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Dreams of Damnation
Epic Tales Of Vengeance |
8.3 |
Jim Durkin is back…who’s Jim Durkin you ask? Hey I asked myself the same question; well he turns out to be one of the most important pieces on the now extinct Dark Angel a thrash Los Angeles band from the glory days of American thrash metal (the 80’s I mean).
Ok after a short history lesson is time to talk about Epic Tales Of Vengeance... Read all |
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Sonata Arctica
For The Sake Of Revenge |
8.0 |
Here’s a tip to watch a double live album (because this record is actually two, a live cd and a live DVD, both on the same location, both with pretty much the same songs, except that the DVD has a couple of extra songs), you first watch the bonus material on the DVD where the guys from the band are goofing around, drinking like maniacs and generally just having... Read all |
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Wolfcry
Warfair |
6.5 |
This is the third record from the heavy power metal band Wolfcry, and is certainly a good effort from these Hellenic metalheads; still there is much work needed for Warfair to become a favorite album in your cd player.
The good: Clear, clean production, nice keyboards and some inspiring solos and scared all over this record. Good heavy power metal blend... Read all |
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Cult of Luna
Somewhere along the Highway |
7.8 |
There are many records that lead you to analyzed and appreciate the musicianship, the technique, the “groove”, well all those things that you can write in a normal review, like for example “the melodies complement each other in a great blend of guitar riffs, deep desperate vocals and atmospheric sounds” that description is not completely false in Somewhere along... Read all |
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Blind Guardian
Fly |
9.0 |
If you heard A Night at the Opera, the 2002 full length album from this Germans, and you tough it was cool, then you are in for a surprise, because Fly is nothing like that album.
True Blind Guardian has a unique sound and you will recognize this band at first listen, but remember how A Night at... Read all |
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Avalanch
El Hijo Pródigo |
8.0 |
Avalanch has changed a great deal since their debut in 1993 with Ready to the Glory, back then it was a more power metal oriented band, now days with a new singer, the Spaniards are hard rock, and if you ask me there is not so much difference between the two.
“El Hijo Pródigo” is a natural evolution from “Los Poetas Han Muerto”... Read all |
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Månegarm
Vredens Tid |
10 |
Our record of the year, it’s very ironic how a little label like Displeased Records managed to beat the big names in metal like Nuclear Blast and Century Media; well they did and they did good, off course all the work was done by Manegarm but the label believed in them, and so they deserve some of the... Read all |
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Neaera
Let The Tempest Come |
7.6 |
What I loved the most about this album were the lyrics, the message or opinion this guys are trying to send in this album; it’s funny how metal has increased in sound quality and genre wise but when it comes to a message metal has somehow stay a little behind.
Well Neaera has taken upon themselves to write a heavy, fast, metalcore album that deals with some important... Read all |
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Arch Enemy
Doomsday Machine |
8.6 |
It seems that every melodic death metal band that decides to launch a new record and is highly supported by its record company its doom to be called a “sell out”, it happened to In Flames, Dark Tranquillity, Nightrage, At the Gates all bands that not only helped create the genre but that are liked to each other in some way or another. Well that... Read all |
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GHOUL
Maniaxe |
8.5 |
Ghoul "Maniaxe" is by far a stand up from the last album "we came for the dead" (2002). This is the Second full length album, and first appearance as a four piece. The spread of death metal thrash a combination at its best, heavy rapid guitars, insane solos, howling vocals, tormenting drums this cd has it all to headbang like mad. Not... Read all |
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Gnostic
Hatewar 666 |
5.5 |
Just a few years back I started to get into black metal, you know the basics: Emperor, Marduk, Dark Funeral, Venom, Immortal, 1349, so I’m not an expert YET but I’m getting the hang of it. One thing that I learn very early is that black metal is not just about the music, is about the image, about how evil and blasphemous one can be, and this guys try to... Read all |
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Dark Tranquillity
Character |
9.3 |
From the Start this album gets you going; hard, fast, brutal and atmospheric sounds welcome you to one of the best works done by this Swedish band in recent years.
Character has exactly that… character; this is a melodic death metal album done with great consideration towards the atmosphere and the... Read all |
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Gojira
From Mars To Sirius |
9.9 |
It’s so hard to review a progressive/death/thrash metal album, and Gojira is something like that…but not quite.
From Mars To Sirius goes through a lot of changes, it has a lot of different sounds, atmospheres and weird tempo changes that are hard to understand at first listen. The first thing that comes to your mind is Meshuggah’s complexity... Read all |
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Pissing Razors
Pissing Razors |
7.3 |
If you have never considered Pantera to be one of the most influential and legendary bands in the
USA
metal scene, then you are going to hate this group of copycats from
El Paso
Texas
.
Yes Pissing Razors sounds just like Pantera, even the vocals are very Anselmo alike, the guitar doesn’t quiet get to the level of the late Dimebag Darrell but it... Read all |
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H.I.M
Deep Shadows & Brilliant Highlights |
8.0 |
Trying to avoid the wrath of the metal gods, you can honestly said this, HIM is in the worst place they could be, they are too soft and stylish to be called gothic metal, and very, very, very well done, inspired, professional, artistic to be called pop. Its true that this record in specific can called the attention of people who listen to... Read all |
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Amon Amarth
Versus the World |
9.6 |
“Death in Fire” this is the albums first song and its simply amazing, epic, unforgettable, well you get the idea. This is melodic death metal with a very unique sound.
Many have catalogue the band as Viking metal, but they have time and time again corrected that label by emphasizing that their roots lie in melodic death, and just their lyrics are of Viking origins... Read all |
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1349
Hellfire |
9.7 |
Raw black metal, but done in a very control environment. Ok let me explain, this is a black metal album; a hard, cold, satanic and piss off black metal, but done with a nice sound and a mayhem that knows its boundaries (I know it sounds weird but its true) the boundaries are provided by the production, that doesn’t let the whole thing get all over the place because of the brutality of the music... Read all |
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Horned Almighty
The Devil's Music - Songs of Death and Damnation |
8.7 |
No more sitting on a dark corner reciting old demonic chants…it’s time to take action, headbang with your corpse paint on until the sweet melts it away leaving only your tired and satisfied face.
This is Horned Almighty ladies and gentlemen, a black metal band with a lot of groove on every track; each... Read all |
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Zyklon
Disintegrate |
7.5 |
Technical, precise and aggressive death metal, maybe too technical leaving little room for a natural and violent reaction from the listener.
Zyklon can create a nice blend of black metal atmospheres and death riffs, and manage them with precision, making every album a perfect harmonization of styles and influences, the problem is... Read all |
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Goatholocaust
Satan Jugend |
6.3 |
If you buy this cd, even before actually listening to the music you should take a look at the art work of the album, pretty cool drawings in the front cover as well as nice pictures in the booklet; there is this really hot naked girl crouching looking at you….crap she’s got a nice ass!!! Ok, ok, let’s focus on the music for a second before going back to the booklet... Read all |
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Little Dead Bertha
Way Of Blind |
7.5 |
Ok I’m gonna break it down for you as easy as I can, doom metal with death and black vocals, a lot of keyboards, some violins and very gothic atmospheres.
Little Dead Bertha is a Russian band from Voronezh to be more precise, and this is their fourth studio album; according to the press sheet, the band has experimented different stages in their music... Read all |
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Edguy
Rocket Ride |
7.9 |
I first heard Edguy in the album Vain Glory Opera, and I just listen to that album once; to me they were juts another power metal band playing the same way as the other 10 000 power metal bands around the world during the explosion of the genre in the late 90’s. After that I never really expected this band to get “big” but for some reason, playing by the rules... Read all |
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Scar Symmetry
Pitch Black Progress |
8.2 |
I like In Flames, Dark Tranquillity, Arch Enemy…well I like melodic death metal, so is was kind of hard not to like this album, even if it sounds a lot like Soilwork, and it doesn’t bring anything new to the melodic death metal movement.
Scar Symmetry is one of those bands conformed by many members of other know bands like... Read all |
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Arcana
Le Serpent Rouge |
8.0 |
I hate reviewing albums like this, they are way to artistic for my understanding, yes I admit it; I’m just a frustrated musician that loves to critic those who have the talent I don’t.
First of all, why is Arcana consider metal? No fast drum work, no heavy guitars, no growls, screams or anything like that. I guess they are taken... Read all |
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Autumn
Black wings |
7.1 |
Melancholic, sad, winter depressed doom metal from Russia; too bad this band has just split, because Autumn had the right idea and some nice talented musicians. This is the re-release of their 2000 second full length album; Stygian Crypt decided to re-release this material and they actually pulled it off quite nicely, adding a new and more artistic look to the cover of the album... Read all |
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One Man Army and the Undead Quartet
21st Century Killing Machine |
8.1 |
A mid paced mix of thrash and melodic death metal with a weird but understandable fascination with THE KING (Elvis of course).
21st Century Killing Machine is a very nice album; with great solos, nice death growls, and a couple of rock & roll guitars that make it very interesting and fun to listen. The production like any... Read all |
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Hemnur
Satanic Hellride |
8.0 |
This could be called a “One man show”; Hemnur is a band created by Frediablo (Grimfist, Gorelord, Wurdulak, and many other bands), and Satanic Hellride is an album produced, mixed, engineered, and master by Frediablo and co-produced by Heksblod, well so I guess is not completely a One man show... Read all |
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The Heretic
Gospel Songs In E Minor |
9.4 |
This album caught me by surprise; I didn’t expect such amazing song writing from a melodic black metal band, mainly because the word black was involved in the description given by their record label.
You know how many claim that simple is better, or that less is more; well Gospel Songs In E Minor is just the opposite of that, is complex and... Read all |
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Green Carnation
Acoustic Verses |
10 |
The title says it all; this is an acoustic album, sweet, mellow and full of emotions.
Green Carnation has never been a predictable band, and so they always manage to surprise us; this new release is more than a good record is a statement of modern metal music and all his different branches... Read all |
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The Gathering
Accessories - Rarities And B-Sides |
7.0 |
This is one of those albums that only a true, die hard fan is going to appreciate, and thank god I’m not one of those.
The Gathering is obviously a very…extremely talented band, you can’t dispute that, but they seem to overwhelmed you to the point in which you just want the music to stop, not because is bad, is just that they... Read all |
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Vorkreist
Sublimation 29A |
8.3 |
There use to be a time when black metal and death metal were two completely different things, well not anymore. With the raise to popularity of bands like Behemoth, death and black metal are closer than ever, and they seem to be getting closer as the months go by; a perfect example of this is Vorkreist and this their second full length album Sublimation 29A... Read all |
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Demirigous
ONE |
7.7 |
Press play, stand a little far from your stereo and let’s ride. A mix of death/thrash and I don’t really know why but some hardcore in the vocals (just at some points, mainly when everything gets too damn fast); great guitar work, the solos are well placed and they never get over played, basic drumming here, fast, hard and with no complications, they are just there to blast as... Read all |
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Infinited Hate
Heaven Termination |
7.0 |
First impressions are an important part in every relationship. The first thing to notice on this album is the twisted cover: Jesus Christ being ripped apart by hideous demons. I spend several minutes finding out little details before actually listening to the record. The cover is brutal and blasphemous, It's so natural that makes one wonder about the music... Read all |
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Behemoth
Zos Kia Cultus (Here and Beyond) |
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The polish beast begins a little tired this time around, even though the great and famous speed of Inferno behind the drums. The first song on this record is very Behemoth just with less horse power than normal, thankfully this doesn’t keeps up for long and it doesn’t affect the rest of the album, and when “Modern Iconoclasts” hits you... Read all |
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Novembre
Dreams d'Azur |
9.0 |
I got to know Novembre by the band itself!!! I have this profile on myspace.com, and one day there was a message from the vocalist saying that I will probably like the band and that I should check them out (a good way to advertise themselves by the way), so I did, and I never expected how much I was going to like it, there it was an... Read all |
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Babylon
Tales of Doom chapter I |
6.0 |
A nice mix of modern and classic heavy metal comes in a rather small package; “Tales of Doom chapter I” is part of a trilogy of EP’s that Portland, Oregon's Babylon will be releasing.
The songs are really a quick visit to the spirit of heavy metal, going through all stages of developing in just two songs (since the first one is just a nice... Read all |
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Sabaton
Primo Victoria |
9.3 |
Just by listening to the first track “Primo Victoria”, you know this is not your normal power metal album. The lyrics are epic and full of battle cries; this is fast, crunchy power metal with a great vocal approach to every song.
This album is historic and different, the sound of Sabaton will stay with you and the lyrics will make you go look at your... Read all |
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