REINCARNATEDOf Boötes Void Death Spell Inhuman Assault Productions (2022)Rating: 8.5/10 I never saw this coming, this being the debut full-length album from Thailand’s Reincarnated. This is some seriously heavyweight death / doom blessed with doomy fringes, but for the most part it has an abysmal death metal churn to its nature. This foul five-track release […]
DEVILS HENCHMENControl EP Self-released (2022)Rating: 7/10 This punky-cum-heavy metal-cum-thrash act is from Liverpool in England and this is their fourth EP to be issued since their birth seven years ago, although this particular outing features re-recordings of four previously released tracks. This won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but if you like bruising, no nonsense […]
HEADS FOR THE DEADThe Great Conjuration Transcending Obscurity (2022)Rating: 8/10 This international death metal act came to my attention via the ‘Death Calls’ track which appeared on their 2018 debut album Serpent’s Curse, and I always liked the way they dabbled with horror movie themes as exhibited on tracks such as ‘Halloween’ from last year’s […]
MEGADETHThe Sick, The Dying… And The Dead! UMe (2022)Rating: 8/10 I guess I’m getting old because the last time I got excited about a Megadeth album was in 1990 when the brilliant Rust In Peace was released. Since then my interest, just like Dave Mustaine’s thrash, has waned and I’ve been on and off for […]
IN GRIEFAn Eternity Of Misery Iron Bonehead Productions (2022)Rating: 8/10 Creaking like a heavyweight coffin lid finally disturbed after centuries of dormancy, An Eternity Of Misery harkens back to the rainy days of the UK Peaceville label when bands such as Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride and Anathema were sprouting from the sodden soil. Daubed […]
THE OBLIGING VICTIMSAutumn Creeping EP Self-released (2022)Rating: 8.5/10 Here’s one of 2022’s most compelling releases. The Obliging Victims are the brainchild of one Kelley Kombrinck, a Cincinnati dude who, in rather eerie fashion, mashes together 60s psychedelia, satanic 70s brooding, proto-doom rock, and trippy, lo-fi oddness. Considering the amount of bong-obsessed clones attempting occult rock […]
MANTIC RITUALHeart Set Stone EP M-Theory Audio (2022)Rating: 7/10 While I appreciate the cover versions of G.B.H.’s ‘Race Against Time’, Mercyful Fate’s ‘Black Funeral’ and Razor’s ‘Cross Me Fool’, I’d much prefer to concentrate on the punky thrash delivered via the trio of original tracks; ‘Life As Usual’, ‘Crusader’ and ‘Heart Set Stone’. This is […]
METAL CRUCIFIERThe Strike Of The Beast Evil Attack (2022)Rating: 7.5/10 I first stumbled upon this Peruvian act a few years ago through the video for their namesake track ‘Metal Crucifier’. Although it was one of the worst videos I’d seen, I did like the catchy chorus of what was a nifty little track. However, I […]
ZYANIDERed Haze Self-released (2022)Rating: 7/10 War-torn Costa Rican wild thrash is the order of the day here. Zyanide rake the ears with machine gun fire riffs, which in tandem work well with the fully armoured tank percussion and violent vocal shouts which shift into crossover realms of violence. These guys have been around since 2009 […]
RIFFCOVENNever Sleep At Night EP Cospe Fogo Gravações (2022)Rating: 5/10 Say what you want about the over-crowded “doom / stoner” scene and its plethora of unoriginal, weed-drenched artists, but it’s clearly a genre that’s refusing to die. Riffcoven play their part in bulging the sides of the box that is brim full of similar bands, […]
