REVIEW: TERATISM - EX INFERNUS

 

TERATISM - EX INFERNUS (Root of All Evil Records, 2002)

Produced by Teratism

Tracks: 1- Resurrection Denied, 2- Hate, 3- Children of Scorn, 4- Resurrection Denied (live)

Here you have more than sixteen minutes of unholy black metal bestiality from this guys. Teratism is a band that have in its lineup members and ex members of bands like Theatre of the Macabre, Anal Blast, Mourning and Azrael...sort of a black metal dream team. The CD opens with an intro for "Resurrection Denied" and when the band enters the sound becomes lower (I think this guys must mix everything higher in order to make the music be listened better). The music on this MCD is pure raw black/death metal with fast guitars with one note riffs, blast beats in some parts and many dark elements. There are some slower moments but pure blasphemic black metal is the main rule here. One of the best thing here is the combination of different types of vocals (all adding brutality) .The tracks have a lot of fury and I think that with a better sound the result can be more devastating (in fact some of the tracks come from Teratism´s demo, I think they can be remixed a little bit). Black metal madness is here!

Favorite tracks: "Resurrection Denied (live)" and "Children of Scorn"

Contact: www.rootofallevil.com

REVIEW: TEARS OF DECAY - SAPROPHYT

 

TEARS OF DECAY - SAPROPHYT (Cudgel Agency, 2002)

Produced by Tears of Decay

Recorded at Audiocheck Studios

Cover Art by Thomas Westphall

Tracks: 1- Intro, 2- Blind Reality, 3- Tears of Decay, 4- Der Übermensch, 5- Bellum Ominum Contra Omnes, 6- Homo Homini Deus Est, Pt. 2, 7- Soul Suicide, 8- Saprophyt, 9- Kill Fuck Die, 10- Outro

Ultra brutality!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is what we have here. It is amazing how Tears of Decay has managed to express all their anger, hate and despair in one CD. Here we have all the elements that can make a release extremely brutal. Specially if you like double bass drumming here you have a master class from this killer drummer that is Dirk Bakker. Crushing fast riffs are the main thing here but there are slower temnpos like the ones at 0:40 of "Bellum Ominum Contra Omnem" that are heavier than an elephant!! The vocals on this CD are guttural at the most extreme level and also we have vocals of the screaming type. The mix is good and I would like this guys to mix a little bit louder the snare drum and some of the toms (just a little bit...to fit perfectly the guitar avalanch that Tears of Decay creates). You wanted brutality, here you have Tearsd of Decay

Favorite tracks: "Tears of Decay", "Soul Suicide" and "Der Übermensch"

Contact: www.tears-of-decay.de or www.cudgel.de

REVIEW: TAETRE - DIVINE MISANTHROPIC MADNESS

 

TAETRE - DIVINE MISANTHROPIC MADNESS (Mighty Music, 2002)

Produced by Taetre, Andy La Rocque and Tony Felencovich

Recorded at Los Angered Recordings

Cover Art by Aurelien Palice

Tracks: 1- A Veil of Madness, 2- Virus, 3- Paint a Whore as a Saint, 4-No love, 5- Opathetic Organic, 6- Diabolical Age, 7- Destroy the Dreamvoid, 8- Paradox, 9- Fathers Foe, 10-Reclaiming The Spirit, 11- Living the Dream, 12- Deathportal

If you want a perfect definition of what modern death/thrash metal means then you have to listen to this CD. Here we have a lot of death metal in the vocals, in the sound and in a lot of drumming patterns, then we have also a lot of thrash metal in some riffs, in some of the clean guitar parts in some of the vocal lines and also you have a modern sound. I think that this guys have used all this elments to create powerful songs which have been helped by a great mix (King Diamond´s Andy La Rocques is behind the mixing table and he knows what to do with all the volume and equalizing knobs). Here we have solos that are similar to those played in the golden age of thrash (by guys like Exodus´Gary Holt, Testament´s Alex Skolnick and others). On this CD everything is designed to make things powerful: I have one expression for this...."controlled brutality", because they are extremely brutal but they don´t abuse speed and they don´t become soon a ball of noise like many other bands. A great choice.

Favorite tracks: "Opathetic Organic", "Reclaiming the Spirit" and "Paradox"

Contact: www.mightymusic.dk

REVIEW: SOMNUS - THROUGH CREATION´S END

 

SOMNUS - THROUGH CREATION´S END (Root of All Evil Records, 2002)

Produced by Somnus

Tracks: 1- The Gate of Wolves, 2- Warlock´s feast, 3- Dawn of Spirits, 4- Tribunal of Woe, 5- The Deceiver, 6- Lament for Winter´s Passing, 7- Creation´s End, 8- Unfullfilled Prophecy (live), 9- CD ROM Bonus Track

Somnus new album starts powerfully with "The Gate of Wolves" at full speed with all the elements that have made the music of the band known in the underground scene. Here are the guitar riffs which are complex and have some swedish death metal influence, here are the brutal vocals combined with the excellent female vocals, here is the drumming with heavy use of double bass and ride cymbal patterns (really original way of playing). And above all here are the keyboards and the guitar melodies and solos. And if the drumming the heavy riffs and vocals are the skeleton around which Somnus music is constructed, then the keyboards and the guitar melodies and solos are the flesh and soul of it. The complexity of the songs is essential for Somnus sound as also is the sadness and darkness that everything transpires here. A must.

Favorite tracks: Every single note played here

Contact: www.rootofallevil.com

REVIEW: SIC SEED - AKA THE DEVIL BABY

 

SIC SEED - AKA THE DEVIL BABY (Sinternational Recs., 2002)

Produced by Sic Seed

Tracks: 1- Subliminal Envy, 2- Disconnect, 3- Last Right

Here you have three tracks, a little bit more than nine minutes of pure bestiality. The music here is pure brutal death metal with some modern metal influences from the heaviest bands of the genre. Powerful double bass drumming (with some modern metal influences in some of the rhythms tat make more powerful the music than a blast beat would do), a bassist that is really tight and has a really clean sound that fits really well with the guitars and the drums, guitars that are heavy as hell and an ultra wild and screaming vocalist that adds a lot of the brutality to the bands music. I hope this guys release soon a longer CD because their music is ideal to listen at full volume and we want more of their songs!

Favorite tracks: The three.

Contact: www.one40.com/sicseed or www.sinternational.net

REVIEW: SHE´S GORE - SHE´S GORE DEMO 2001

 

SHE´S GORE - SHE´S GORE DEMO 2001 (Independent, 2001)

Produced by Thanit

Recorded and mixed by Thanit

Cover Art by Thanit

Tracks: 1- God on Fire, 2- Fuck me, fuck my dog, 3- Hair in Teeth, 4- Fuck With Hate, 5- Wet Dream may Cum, 6- Tonight

Here we have another project from thanit Thepsitrakon who is also a member of Deathguy (whose CD we review on this issue too). The music here is brutal death with no subtle elments and some grindcore touches in some parts. Here we have extremely brutal death metal riffs played at super speed and with guitars that are tuned really low in some places. Here we don´t have the melodies from bands like Deathguy because this is a pure brutal holocaust demo. The vocals are extremely guttural (not at the point of some grind bands where you can not discern if it is the vocals or another noise) and add a lot of bestiality to the tracks. Maybe the mix is a little bit low for my taste (specially the drums) but I think that Thanit can solve this problem easily. For lovers of utter brutality.

Favorite tracks: "God on Fire", "Hair in teeth" and "Tonight"

Contact: thepsitrakorn@hotmail.com

REVIEW: SHELLYZ RAVEN - DESOLATION

 

SHELLYZ RAVEN - DESOLATION (War is Imminent Prods., 2000)

Produced by Shellyz Raven

Tracks: 1- Falling, 2- Lady of Shadows, 3- Heavenly Torment, 4- Sweet Sister Torment, 5- Desolation, 6- Frost, 7- Forlorn, 8- Nihilist, 9- Monochroma

Shellyz Raven is aband in the vein of bands like The Gathering ("Nightime Birds" era), full of keyboards, with heavy guitar riffs and a great female vocalist (with this middle pitch voice that don´t abuse the higher notes). In fact, here we have nine songs that rely heavily on the keyboards passages along with the crushing guitar riffs which are the axis along which spins Shellyz Raven´s music. The songs are really well constructed and have many elements that catch inmediately the lsitener´s attention and don´t let it go until the end of the recording. First of all are the enchanting vocals, then the riffs that are really open so the keyboards can develope progressions and melodies over them along with the vocals. I habve to say that the mix is really good, specially on the keyboards and vocals which are essential here.

Favorite tracks: "Lady Of Shadows", "Desolation" and "Monochroma"

Contact: www.unholycross.com

REVIEW: SAXORIOR - SAXOT

SAXORIOR - SAXOT (G.U.C. Prods, 2002)

Produced by Kai Uwe Schneider

Recorded at Polygamstudio

Cover Art by Saxorior / Tibor Pallagi

Tracks: 1- Welcome to Another World, 2- Roots of Time, 3- Misguided Promise, 4- Battle of Wittekind, 5-Vicious Circle, 6- Hic Nulla Pax, 7- Fire of Retaliation, 8-Siegfried (Oberture frei nach R. Wagner), 9- Tubular Bells (frei nach Mike Oldfield)

This is one of the albums of the year!!! This CD starts with an epic intro full of keyboards and orchestration before getting into one of the best combinations of brutality and epic melodies that I have ever heard. Imagine for example a band with the riffs of Carcass (era "Heartwork") with some elements of pure heavy metal and death metal and add to it a lot of keyboards for this epic feeling that I have mentioned before and you will have a little idea of what Saxorior´s music sounds. Add a huge guitar sound and a great drumming with lots of double bass parts and you will be closer. Then you have different types of vocals one that sounds lower than the other and that helps a lot to the feeling. Also you can add to the mix two free versions: one of Richard Wagner´s "Siegfried Oberture" and the other one to Mike Oldfield´s "Tubular Bells" both in epic and heavier than hell versions and then you will know how is the sound of one of the best bands I have listened.

Favorite tracks: A masterpiece. Each tracks is amazing!

Contact: www.saxorior.de or www.guc-area.de

REVIEW: SATARIAL - HEIDENLARM

 

SATARIAL - HEIDENLARM (Beyond Prods., 2002)

Produced by Giovanni Indorato

Cover Art by Sephiroth Graphics

Tracks: 1- Lover of the night, 2- Russian Traditional Song, 3- In the Flame of Sabbath, 4- Russian traditional Ballad, 5- Satarial, 6- Satarial untradition Ballad, 7- Do not Baptize my land, 8- Russian Traditional Ballad, 9- The Cup of Heady Pain, 10- Russian traditional Song, 11- Divine Race

I have listened some music from Satarial before, but this is much better.In fact here we have a great mix of metal music with ancient music and sounds. It is great to listen to "Lover of the Night" with the heavy guitars and the flute and keyboards playing melancholic melodies over them while the deathly vocals clash against the female operistic vocals creating a great feeling. One thing that I liked a lot from this recording is that they have mix Satarial´s music with some traditional Russian songs that have a great ancient feeling on them and helps a lot to create the atmosphere that Satartial wanted to create on this album. The sound is amazingly clean and the guitars are really well mixed as well as the other instruments....you can hear every instrument perfecly in a re ally clean way! I can say with no doubt that this is one of the albums of the month!

Favorite tracks: The whole CD is great!

Contact: www.beyondprod.com

REVIEW: SACRIFICIAL - AUTOHATE

 

SACRIFICIAL - AUTOHATE (Mighty Music, 2002)

Produced by Asmus Thomsen

Recorded at Riamuf Studio

Cover Art by Frederik Risom

Tracks: 1- Angel Eyes, 2- In Front of Turmoil, 3- Out of Touch, 4- Confrontation Zone, 5- Victimized, 6- My Kingdom Arise, 7- Away With the Skies, 8- Unadapted, 9- Soul Sale

Here we have one of the best sounding bands of the month (and maybe of the year). This band proves what I been saying for a long time. A band with a perfect crystal clear mix like the one that Sacrificial has sounds much more brutal than bands that sound much more dirty. Here we have a powerful drum that creates heavier than hell rhythms while the guitars play devastating riffs that combined with the bass guitar creates this world of death/thrash metal that Sacrificial plays. Here we have a vocalist that spits with a lot of hatred the vocals through the nine tracks that make this powerful CD. The tracks are fast wbut speed is not the main thing here because I think the band reaches its heaviest point when they play some sort of breaking or some rhythmic riffs that are maybe slower but have a lot of heaviness. If you want a brutal band with great sound then Sacrificial is a good option for you.

Favorite tracks: "Angel Eyes", "Confrontation Zone" and "Soul Sale"

Contact: www.mightymusic.dk