FUNEREUSReturn Of The Old Goat Forever Plagued (2014)Rating: 8/10 The Forever Plagued label has put out some fantastic extreme releases over the years, namely albums from the likes of Graveland, Krieg and Nightbringer. Mexican duo Funereus are the latest clan to be snapped up, and Return Of The Old Goat is their sophomore effort, following […]
MARTYRVOREMalevolent Desolation EP Iron Bonehead (2014)Rating: 8/10 It’s always nice to hear a record from a band you’ve never heard before, especially when it turns out to be very good. Martyrvore may have a rather awkward sounding name, but if you want to have your ears sliced and diced by a belligerent cacophony then look […]
HALCYON WAYConquer Massacre (2014)Rating: 8/10 Hailing from Atlanta, Georgia, Halcyon Way is the sort of band that could effortlessly fit into any era when it comes to metal. While offering the much needed doses of weight, there is also an element of traditional metal here walking hand in hand with thrashy outbursts, power metal oomph […]
UNDERJORDSheol Massacre (2014)Rating: 6/10 Underjord is a Finnish, experimental doom metal band consisting of five members; vocalist Thomp Finholm, guitarist Niklas Norrgrann, bassist Jonas Frilund, drummer Markus Rosenberg and keyboardist Joakim Finholm. Sheol is the debut effort from these guys, and it’s one which should prick a few ears. The band offers up nine songs […]
STATE OF SALAZARAll The Way Frontiers (2014)Rating: 8.5/10 With a band name that sounds as if it was plucked from some intergalactic fantasy, Swedish rockers State Of Salazar have released their debut full-length opus All The Way, coming two years after 2012’s Lost My Way EP. This is an album which continues with that uplifting […]
X-DRIVEGet Your Rock On Frontiers (2014)Rating: 8.5/10 Get Your Rock On is the debut offering from Los Angeles-based project X-Drive, the brainchild of guitarist Jeremy Brunner. Although Brunner is somewhat of an unknown quantity, he’s joined on this outing by vocalist Keith St. John (Montrose, Quite Riot, Burning Rain), bassist James LoMenzo (White Lion, Black […]
THY RITESInvoker Of The Venomous Unlight Deathrash Armageddon (2014)Rating: 7.5/10 To what murky pleasure do I owe thee? Thy Rites come spouting algae and flesh at the same time with their putrid, bubbling cauldron of a new album Invoker Of The Venomous Unlight; a squelching, gothic blend of weirdness and cavernous blasphemy. Straight from Brazil’s […]
JOY Under The Spell Of Joy Tee Pee (2014) Rating: 6.5/10 I’m not going to lie; when I see the words “blues” or “psychedelic” used in conjunction with contemporary hard rock bands I’m always concerned that I’m going to be bombarded by another tiresome tirade of stoned, 70s-styled triteness. This category boasts so many ordinary, […]
PROVOCATORAntikristus Moribund (2014)Rating: 6.5/10 With its snippet of a sample from horror film The Exorcist (1973), the debut lump of rancid flesh from Slovenian black metal band Provocator is upon us. Born from the cancerous depths of Haliaetum, this atrocious noise is the brainchild of Hellscream, who is responsible for every bludgeoning riff, every hate-filled […]
BUCKCHERRYFuck EP F-Bomb (2014)Rating: 8.5/10 Having courted controversy for many years, Los Angeles-based sleazy rockers Buckcherry have once again stepped on toes with their new six-track EP Fuck, which by its very title alone should offend just about anyone who doesn’t get it. But beyond its expletives, Fuck is another swaggering smörgåsbord bursting with attitude, […]
