Idol Of Fear – Trespasser 10/10
Idol of Fear are a Canadian act that has delivered their third independent full-length release, Trespasser. An album free of every form of cliché, that carries the burden of the real and the dismay of knowledge. A simply superb album.
When Austin Delivers the line ‘’Everything’s alive” from the brilliant Trespasser it is not out of hate and anguish but the cold resignation of fact, a solitary voice lost among the guitar lines, despairing keyboards and excellent rhythm. Idol of Fear epitomises the realities of our existence and their consequences with a sombre honesty and bitterness that makes their music personal, thoughts and emotions expressed through the heaviest of rhythms and excellent guitar riffs.
Every track is a natural progression on the last, It is an organic unhurried piece of art that is as breath-taking as it is heavy. Taking components from the extremes of music combining the bleakest of what is known as Black Metal and seamlessly integrating melodies and dissonant guitar that is vital, experimental, and daring, where all parts make the whole, from calming ambience to harsh vocal lines. The production brings timbre to the keys and the percussion has never sounded more primal and alive.
“Phantom,” “In the Cold Light of Dawn,” Alone With You,” and “All Which Can Burn” all superb examples of a cohesive, unrepentant mindset that entrancing as it candid. This is poetry at its heaviest the haunting coda of instrumental ‘’Endless’’ is the perfect denouement to such a record.
Eloquent, frightening and tangibly real, it is the reflection of a lost, fearful mindset that longs for answers. Trespasser is a hostile Masterpiece.
Ravenous Dusk - The Dead Of Night 9.5/10
An unholy union of likeminded souls imbued with darkness Ravenous Dusk is the combination of the ever-prolific Wraith (Naxzul, - vocals, guitars and Sonic terror) and Balaam (Pestilential Shadows- Bass). The result is The dead of Night a four-track demo foreshadowing of that is which to come.
Combining the purest of raw black metal along with the Hammer horrors of dungeon Synth Ravenous Dusk excel in delivering power and fury ‘’Tongues Of Black Flame’’ combines the synth with their visceral assault. It is intense, melodic, and uniquely their own, whilst drawing on the sounds of some greats it is imbued with their own definitive indestructible prowess. Try and deny the hypnotic power of “Poison Shadow’’ a brilliantly executed six minutes of unholy glory that epitomises the power of Black Metal and those who play it.
The Dead Of Night is all consuming yet far too brief ‘’Matriarch of Hell” and the oppressive organ fear of instrumental “Animam Agere” round out the four offerings. Ravenous Dusk is another glorious piece of extreme atmospheric Australian Black Metal, that is chilling, haunting and savagely epic.
Golgothian Remains-Adorned in Ruin 9/10
Sydney’s Golgothian Remains return to terrorize the senses with their Brutal death metal. Adorned in Ruin is their second album and sees the band progress into new realms of heaviness that was only hinted at on their debut “Perverse Offerings to the Void.”
Ugly, cruel, and uncompromising ‘’ Adorned in Ruin’’ is modern death metal performed with a demented zeal that takes from the finest moments of the genre and gives them new unholy purpose. Their music reeks of malevolence and dissonance, there is an undercurrent of violence to their single-minded approach that does not allow for transgressions. The riffs are scathing, the drumming precise with excellent kick work and the vocals purely abominitic in their vitriol.
Coldblooded it may be, but it is also atmospheric that adds chaos and feelings of claustrophobic darkness. Unafraid to take chances that have helped shaped extreme metal. ‘’ …Of Morbid Blood And Serpent Skins’’ drips in seething speed and intent, the vocals barking and yet guttural growling in their bile and revolt. ‘’ Forgotten Lores Of Hatred And Bloodshed’’ is fast, technical and precise,’’ The Malign Hordes Of Abhorrence’’ from its supremely heavy doom intro dials in the classic metal speed assault that is true and fierce in its assault from speed to mid paced pummelation.
Adorned in Ruin is an intense experience from beginning to end and unashamedly proud to be the extreme of death metal in all its perversions. Impassioned, this Australian act has added yet another definition in the Brutal section of metal!
Godless Truth – Godless Truth 9/10
Godless Truth return with their latest full length album after 16 years! The Czech masters of technical death metal have crafted a finely tuned war machine of an album that is intense and lightning quick
Did I say fast? Godless Truth is deadly quick in places! Pedal to the metal exponents of speed with excellent double kick work and shredding guitars that will please the toughest of critics. The music transitions seamlessly between tempo changes without ever loosing direction or intensity. The instrumentals offer little respite, and the band isn’t afraid to add tinges of melody along with the punishing nature of their music.
Its sharp and incredibly focussed, ‘’Scissors”, “Bred in Greed” with its excellent kick work and the hyper intensity of ‘’RIP Cage’’ are examples of a band in full possession of dynamics, with blast beats accentuated by huge brief solos and a haunting piano coda that puts the exclamation mark on the excellent ‘’Wake up to Obey”’
A self-titled release that after 22 years in the crafting of death metal still sees them pushing the boundaries of a genre that is undergoing a resurgence and themselves at the forefront. Technical and brutal without resorting to digital trickery, their prowess lies in crafting excellent musically proficient tracks that are raw, energetic and incredibly heavy.
Viande - L’abime dévore les âmes, 9/10
French act Viande finally reveal their debut album L’abime dévore les âmes, a journey through the bowels of extreme music that is as uncompromising as it is unforgiving.
Emerging from a French scene that is rich in diversity and the ability to challenge Viande continue this tradition. Their music is dense, multi-layered, and enticing in its ability to draw you in. This is not raw death metal as it is pure death metal, ugly unforgiving and foregoing any technical requirements to create a wall of sound that drags elements of doom to the surface along with some old school slow grind to dismay the senses.
Foreboding and to be considered a whole body of work that builds to a crescendo of despair. Their war like marches slow and torturous, its dark and powerfully so, not relying on the comfortable troupes of extreme music but exploring a darker path devoid of light …. and joy. “Mirror Decharne,” “Traitre A la Vie’’ and ‘’Lueurs De Cendres’’ a mere snippet of a nightmare never completely forgotten, that gnaws at your conscious in the light and preys upon you in the dark.
All devouring and encompassing ‘’L’abime dévore les âmes’’ is the stuff of monstrous nightmares. Ugly intense and extreme Viande push the boundaries of Death Metal to even greater lengths. Uneasy listening at its finest.
https://transcendingobscurity.bandcamp.com/?from=btl
Fall of Stasis – The Chronophagist 8/10
Hailing from Montreal Quebec The Chronophagist is the debut album from Fall of Stasis, an ambitious genre bending album that mixes more than just metal genres, but all of the standards recognised as music.
Not an easy album on first listen, The Chronophagist (time eater) bristles with energy and brimstone, no musical stone is left unturned from Black metal thorough to the oddity of the ¾ timing of circus waltz. From Power metal through to carnival, it roars past at a speed that doesn’t allow any pause for effect, every musical moment is the effect which at times can leave you feeling battered and wondering what the hell it was you just heard.
When it works its incredible. The energy of “Swarm of Casualties” is eminently enjoyable yet the circus zenith of “Twilight Carnival” employs too much of this style. The vocals of Jessica Dupré match the hyper kinetic energy of the music, harsh, melodic, and also downright brutal as on the speed terror that is “Baal Arise”. Its multi personalities are all intense and delivered expertly. The psychedelic, the death metal, the folk music, the cabaret.
The Chronophagist is restless and relentless, a bold and ambitious creative firestorm of an album that defies normal description, it will simultaneously freak you out and entertain with enthusiasm, it’s a rollercoasting high speed assault with scant regard for weak minded sensibilities. It may not settle for long but is an excellent gateway into their world of musical mayhem.
https://fallofstasis.bandcamp.com/releases
Comments