Death Metal

  • Aborted - Vault of Horrors (2024)

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    With almost 30 years of existence, Sven de Caluwé’s Aborted is one of those quintessential Death Metal bands that while it has kept their sound fresh, it also delivers chugging tracks that will leave your neck sore from all the headbanging. With “Vault of Horrors” the band plays homage to horror movie classics in a well crafted manner. Clocking in at 40-minutes, this release delivers ten tracks of sheer brutality that any fan of the genre will enjoy.

    Opening strong with the intricate drumming/riffs combo of “Dreadbringer”, the album sets a very high-octane tone and never really lets go. The band enlisted one guest vocalist per track, giving Sven’s vocals that extra kick and allowing their sound to have a more diverse range, as tracks like “Condemned to Rot”, “Brotherhood of Sleep”, “Hellbound”, and “Death Cult”.

  • Besotten/Funerelic - Abyssal Synodality (2024)

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    There are some days that you just want to play the foulest and most ravaging thing you can find to get through the day. For those days, “Abyssal Synodality”, a split release between Besotten and Funerelic, is just what the doctor ordered. Featuring four tracks, two a piece and nearly 20 minutes of music, this release is quite engaging and punishing.

  • Necrowretch - Swords of Dajjal (2024)

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    Unleashing over 37 minutes of pure hell, today we have France’s Necrowretch and their latest release “Swords of Dajjal”. Spread over eight tracks, the band delivers swift and well crafted onslaughts of Black/Death Metal brilliance, with a style similar to outfits like Necrophobic and Destroyer 666. However, these guys are far from a carbon copy of the previously mentioned bands as they add their own sinister twists to their music.

  • Ravenoir - Cultus Inferi (2023)

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    Unleashing a highly effective Death Metal release with some atmospheric and melodic touches, today we have Czech Republic’s Ravenoir and their third full-length release in a span of three years, titled “Cultus Infer”. For the uninitiated, the band creates an interesting amalgamation of old-school DM with some more modern influences. If you are looking for a nice release that has a modern Morgoth-esque vibe, be sure to check this one out.

  • October Tide - The Cancer Pledge (2023)

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    Since leaving Katatonia in 2009, the Norrman brothers reactivated their melodic Death/Doom Metal outfit October Tide and have been releasing killer albums since then. On “The Cancer Pledge”, the band unleashes over 45 minutes of crafty melodic music with a hefty dose of heaviness. The band’s sound is quite timeless, as they have continued to add minor tweaks and refined it over the years.

  • Linus Klausenitzer - Tulpa (2023)

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    Delivering over 52 minutes of intricate Technical/Progressive Death Metal, today we have German virtuoso Linus Klausenitzer. As one of the best 6-string fretless bass guitar players (the other has to be Jeroen Paul Thesseling), Linus manages to craft ten very engaging, and diverse tracks, that while they always highlight his staple instrument, they are very well rounded with tons of guest guitar solos, variety of vocal styles, and Hannes Grossmann on drums. If you like proggy/jazzy extreme metal, and are a fan of bands like Obscura, Obsidious, etc. this release will blow you away.

    Opening with acoustic guitars and quickly jumping into incisive riffs, “King of Hearts” sets the stage for a very engaging and crafty release. The bass guitar lines are superb, as to be expected, but instead of just banking on this ability, Linus has composed very intricate tracks like “Axiom Architect”, and the extremely catchy “Our Soul Sets Sail”, which has a certain Soilwork-esque vibe. Other pieces like “Sister in Black” are quite playful and exploratory, creating a sultry atmosphere, while delivering insane technical proficiency.

  • Cryptopsy - As Gomorrah Burns (2023)

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    Fully righting their musical ship, today we have Canadian legends Cryptopsy and their first full length release in over 10 years: “As Gomorrah Burns”. Returning to that vicious Brutal Death Metal sound from their earlier years, the band delivers eight tracks and 33 minutes of crushing brutality. While the band showed their mettle with a new lineup during “The Book of Suffering - Tome I and II”, this release perfectly blends their old style with newer and fresher Technical DM elements that nicely polish their sound.

    The band quickly makes a statement with the pummeling “Lascivious Undivine”, and follows it with the even more blistering “In Abeyance”. The best part of this opening pair of tracks is that you can hear the old-school Death Metal from the band perfectly blended with a fresher and more modern edge of current Technical Death Metal/Deathcore productions. Blasting the listener away, one of our favorite tracks has to be “Godless Deceiver” and its intense drumming, perfectly flanked by chuggy riffs and hellish vocals.

  • Crypta - Shades of Sorrow (2023)

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    Following up an epic release such as “Echoes of the Soul”, is a hard job, luckily for us, Crypta manages to not only match the intensity but also surpass it with the killer “Shades of Sorrow”. Featuring 13 tracks and over 50 minutes of high-octane music, the band keeps leveling everything in their path to greatness.

    Leading with the pummeling “Dark Clouds” after a short intro, we are instantly incited to mosh and headbang with the blistering guitar work of Tainá Bergamaschi and Jéssica Falchi. Chuggy riffs, crafty drums, and hellish vocals mark tracks like “Poisonous Apathy”, “The Outsider”, and “Stronghold”. All filled with intense tempo changes and waves of old-school DM mixed in with epic melodies and throbbing bass guitar lines.

  • Akercoke - Decades of Devil Worship (2023)

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    Unleashing their characteristic levels of insane brutality, today we have UK’s Akercoke with their live offering “Decades of Devil Worship”. Like a bag of cement to the face, this release perfectly captures the band’s vicious and relentless musical onslaughts, delivering 64 minutes of some of their more hellish songs. If you never experienced the band live, this album gets you right in front of the action, making you want to start breaking things and moshing incessantly.

    After the eerie “Conjuration” intro, the band fully discharges their punishing aggression with “Hell”, “Nadja”, and “Marguerite & Gretchen”. While the band’s sound is piercing, their technicality and execution is brilliant, making sounds sound very crisp and direct, as “Zuleika” and “Il giardino di Monte Oliveto Maggiore” demonstrate.

  • Cattle Decapitation - Terrasite (2023)

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    With a highly polished and equally crushing Progressive Death Metal/Grindcore sound, today we have Cattle Decapitation and their latest demoralizing release “Terrasite”. Unleashing 50+ minutes of music in 10 tracks, the band unravels their most punishing release to date. Aging like a fine wine, this outfit has constantly evolved their sound to be a great balance of brutality with technicality and atmosphere, creating some of the nicest sounding imposing releases in the scene.

    Opening with the dramatic “Terrasitic Adaptation”, we get some chilling atmospheric keyboards, courtesy of Dis Pater, aka Tony Parker, alongside imposing riffs and the insanely dynamic vocals of Travis Ryan. We particularly love how the band goes from 0 to 100 in seconds, unleashing hellish drumming, diverse vocal styles and an overall sense of brutality unlike no one else. Perfect examples of this devastating style are songs like “We Eat Our Young”, the more traditional DM “The Insignificants”, to the extravagant bombasticness of “A Photic Doom”.

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