Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Cerebral Bore - Horrendous Acts of Iniquity [Single]

Cerebral Bore
Horrendous Acts of Iniquity (2012)
Genre- Brutal Technical Death Metal

Fuck yea, I love that they took the sample from the original version of 'Entombed In Butchered Bodies' to start this one off. Its pretty solid shit, the song sounds very similar to the jams on 'Maniacal Miscreation' they definitely didn't stray from the formula too much. I've already been sold on this band for quite some time now, they seem to be a breath of fresh air in the sometimes over crowded brutal death market. Bree bree.


Monday, February 20, 2012

Unleashed- And The Laughter Has Died (1991)

Unleashed
And The Laughter Has Died (1991)
Genre- Death Metal

Honestly, I didn't even know that this little EP even existed before today and I was very glad when I was actually able to find a link to it. Recently, I've been playing the shit out of 'Where No Life Dwells' which was their debut full length and a fucking classic among old school death metal records. Just for the hell of it today I decided to check them out on metal-archives and what do you know? They have even more early material to track down! It was weird though because M-A has this EP listed simply as a 2 song and all the other websites I checked out (including the blog I ultimately downloaded it from) has it down as a 7 song. Anyway, its pretty damn good so you should check it out. Grab your battle axe.


Saturday, February 18, 2012

It Came From The Cove Part 2 - Intake

Intake
The Insurgence (2001)
Genre- Nu Metalcore

So as you know in the very late 90's the "nu metal" genre was so far beyond shit soaked with poser rapping mainstream bullshit that it became all but completely unlistenable. By anyone. As an unfortunate result, the entire field of bands associated with that horrific term had been gifted a terrible rash of reputation through the ranks of the true metalheads. The entire collapse of the 'scene' was especially unfortunate for bands like New Jersey's Intake who in 2000/2001 had a very strong local following and yet zero label attention. It also may have been that they had a much more core influenced sound and well... didn't fucking rap. They showed hints of Pantera mixed with Alice In Chains and a kind of melodic hardcore vibe with the occasional clean vocal. Either way, these kids used to constantly pack The Cove, and Intake nights were always a good time.


Borknagar (1996)

Borknagar (1996)
Genre- Black Metal

Cold, yet high energy and somewhat experimental black metal from Norway. This album should already be staple for most of you black metal guys by now, and if not you've been really slacking. I think you should also know that session vocalist Krystoffer Rygg often goes by the more popular moniker, Garm. You may be familiar with his work as frontman for the legendary Norwegian (black metal) band, Ulver. This really is a must have album for any true metal collection. Their follow up to this titled 'The Olden Domain' is just as essential.


Friday, February 17, 2012

Behemoth- Sventevith (Storming Near The Baltic) (1995)

Behemoth
Sventevith (Storming Near The Baltic) (1995)
Genre- Black Metal

A long overdue post for sure that I'm sure many of you are already familiar with. First off, Behemoth is the band that got me in to black metal, so i figured I'd show them some love and give you guys the chance to revisit their debut full length. Fans of the albums 'Zos Kia Cultus', 'Demigod', 'The Apostasy' etc will find ZERO similarities here, just a fair warning. Take this album as it is, a 2 man, purely frostbitten journey, deep into the haunted forests of the Baltic. Behemoth would change directions slightly on their next full length album 'Grom' by upping the keys and adding the mystical touch of female vocals. Safe to say that phase didn't last very long and soon enough they emerged yet again and morphed slowly into the Behemoth we all know and love. Enjoy.


bonus songs maybe? I'm not sure because I already OWN it ;)

Dark Funeral/Infernal- Under Wings of Hell (2002)

Dark Funeral/Infernal
Under Wings of Hell (2002)
Genre- Blackened Death Metal

I cant think of a black metal split CD I like nearly as much as this one. In fact, there should be more black metal split CDs! New bands, ya gotta get on that! Anyway, if you're not familiar with Dark Funeral or Infernal, they both play a brutal style of black metal with lots of death metal influence. The DF half of the split was actually recorded in 1994 and was originally released as the 'Dark Funeral EP'. Meanwhile the Infernal side was recorded in 1999 and originally released as, you guessed it, the 'Infernal EP'. Both sides fucking kill shit but I've got to give the upper hand to Dark Funeral on this one. Check it out.



Thursday, February 16, 2012

Autopsy- All Tomorrow's Funerals (video)

Autopsy
All Tomorrows Funerals (2012)
Genre- Death Metal

These guys have been nonstop the last few years! This is the brand new Autopsy music video for the title track off of the new compilation titled All Tomorrow's Funerals. In addition to a whole mess of EP's and rarities, this release will feature 4 brand new songs. This is one of them and personally, I dont love it... yet, but I'm sure it will grow on me. Either way, as far as I'm concerned, this compilation is as good as pre-ordered already. And you should do the same. You can also download the mp3 version of this song over at RCRDLBL but you have to go through all the sign up and bullshit, which is pretty lame so just make sure to buy this at the end of February guys. Enjoy.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

It Came From The Cove Part 1 - The New Mexikans

The New Mexikans
Kidicarus/Broken Eye
Genre- Hard Rock

So I used to haunt this place called The Cove in Roselle, NJ. Shit, I was only a kid at the time but this was my absolute favorite spot for quite a few years. Every single weekend me and my buds would grab some smokes and a couple bucks and walk over to see a show, no matter who was playing (well... for the most part). The Cove was a cozy venue where bands, both young and established, could play to a small but very engaging crowd. The venue did some amazing things for the NJ/local music scene in the late 90's and very early 00's.

The New Mexikans were one of my favorite bands to go see. This young 4 piece hailed from NYC and brought some major talent. To this day, I think 'Kidicarus' is one of the best songs I've ever heard performed by an unsigned band. And as far as I know they never released a proper full length so I highly recommend checking out these 2 tracks. I've never posted anything like this before, a metal influenced hard rock band with psychedelic vibes. This is a young band that should have been signed in their prime. Give it a shot.

Bolt Thrower- In Battle There Is No Law (1988)

Bolt Thrower
In Battle There Is No Law (1988)
Genre- Death Metal

Very old school death metal from the UK, throwin' a classic at ya today. Bolt Thrower formed in 1986 and are well known for having one of the first female members ever in a death metal band. This is the bands first full length release and they achieved a thick and blistering sound (for the day..). Loads of thrashy overtones going on, constantly melding with ferocious guitar solos with a very large and epic vibe overall.


Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Evil AKcoustik- Chronicles (2007)

Evil AKcoustik
Chronicles (2007)
Genre- Black Metal

Hey guys, sorry for the lack of posts lately, definitely been slackin'. Today however, I bring you a strange and twisted tale of horrific black metal fury from the obscure and always enigmatic, one manned acoustic death metal master, Evil AKcoustik. As per mentioned in a previous post of mine, Evil AKcoustik is simply one of the most inventive musicians I've come across, and undeniably one of the strangest. This is Evil's 2nd release, recorded in 2007 and remastered in 2008 and then again (for good) in 2010. Chronicles is a straight forward classic black metal demo, very lo-fi, buzzing, distorted and haunting. Black metal fans, and anyone with an open mind towards music shouldn't miss out on this one.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Abscess/Bonesaw (2008)

Abscess/Bonesaw (2008)
Genre- Death Metal

Picked up this little obscurity over at Vintage Vinyl today. For those who are unaware, Abscess is basically Autopsy after they broke up in 1995. Now that Autopsy are a thing again, poof, there goes Abscess. This is one of their later splits, this time matched with the UK's gore outfit Bonesaw. Both bands kill shit, it was well worth the $3 and 20 minutes.



Adamantium- From The Depths of Depression (1998)

Adamantium
From The Depths of Depression (1998)
Genre- Chaotic Metalcore

So pretend its 1999 again for a minute, pull up your JNCO's and take all your old Converge, A Life Once Lost, Overcast and Poison the Well cds and toss them into a giant blender. The end result is this lost gem. A melodic, high chaos, high energy 'back in the day era' core album that totally doesnt suck. I've still got love for this kind of shit and you should too.


Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Imprecation- Ceremony of the Nine Angles (1992)

Imprecation
Ceremony of the Nine Angles (1992)
Genre- Death Metal

Rare and very sick early death metal out of Texas. Unrelenting and aggressive straight forward songs, later releases from Imprecation tend to have more of a blackened edge. Solid grooves alternate with blasts and heavy double bass drum work, fans of early Immolation should really get down. This demo is the bands first and runs for just over 15 mins. A shallow production/rip hinders the 'blast' value here but I still think this is a great listen for old school fans.


Monday, February 6, 2012

Brain Ass- Primordial Uncouth (2011)

Brain Ass
Primordial Uncouth (2011)
Genre- Brutal Death Metal

Dont worry this isn't some joke bullshit bree bree talent lacking slamfest recorded in some jerk off's basement. Brain Ass is from Indonesia and they fucking kill shit with their relentless debut 'Primordial Uncouth'. I definitely overlooked this one at the end of 2011, the punishing sound assaults you by creating thick walls of brutal death metal accompanied by an excellent mid range barking vocalist. I give this one a solid A. If nothing else check it out because one of the dudes in the band has the 'Suffocation' logo tattooed across his chest.

Eulogy- The Essence (1993)

Eulogy
The Essence (1993)
Genre- Experimental Death Metal

Dark and droning, mid paced death metal with a techy edge. Good, creative usage of guest female vocals too, they come across as truly terrifying and never too abrupt. Definitely some outside the box shit here, above average drumming and great artwork too.


2012 Winter Sampler



Here's something fun I threw together for Angry Chairs last week. I figured it would only be appropriate to post it here as well. 17 tracks to throw on the IPod, hopefully you'll find a few new bands to check out, mostly all of which are already available right here.

Enjoy, and please leave some feedback!

Friday, February 3, 2012

Withered Earth- Forgotten Sunrise (1997)



Withered Earth

Forgotten Sunrise (1997)

Genre- Death Metal

Dark and slightly twisted death metal from upstate New York. Experimental through out and very doom driven at times, heavy as all fuckin hell too. Excellent vocals and atmosphere here as well, you'll see what I'm talking about when the clean acoustics appear to ruin your day. I've got an original copy of the Cryptic Productions release in the collection to jam on so thats the cover I posted above, as you can see by the YouTube clip below there is a more popular re-release cover that you may be more familiar with. Either way, both of them suck and dont do this beast of an album any kind of representative justice. This is an often overlooked gem for sure and definitely something worth banging your head to.




Thursday, February 2, 2012

Ossuary- Fallen To The Pits (1995)

Ossuary
Fallen to the Pits (1995)
Genre- Death Metal

This is the only release that the band went strictly by 'Ossuary' instead of 'Ossuary Insane'. This is really punishing shit, brutal and technical unleashings all around. Low and evil, sometimes layered and alternating vocals haunt each track, hovering above the assaulting (and way above average) drummer who is absolutely abusing his kit in the best way possible. This is a must for fans of early relentless death metal.

link thanks to DeathMetalEternal

Mouth of the Architect- The Violence Beneath (2010)

Mouth of the Architect
The Violence Beneath (2010)
Genre- Technical Progressive Sludgecore

A highly melodic and emotional EP from Ohio's, Mouth of the Architect. I originally purchased this album, fresh from the used bin, solely based on the cover art alone. Previously unaware of the band, I was pleased to find that the material inside was just as intricate, deep and enjoyable. Get ready to be lost in a few long songs that will entrance the mind and scramble your thoughts.. but, fear not, you're sure to snap out of your trip about mid way through the last track, when you begin to curiously sing along. Thinking you're drifting deeper still into your own internal insanity, you then suddenly realize... "oh shit, they've covered a god damn Peter Gabriel song". Anyway, The Violence Beneath is packed with impressive song writing and production, varied vocal styles, folk tendencies and shit tons of encasing atmosphere. Get on this one and support these guys when possible.


Hell Brigade- Hell Brigade (2005)

Hell Brigade (2005)
Genre- Hardcore, Metalcore

Heres a good one for all you hardcore fans. Hell Brigade was a short lived hardcore "supergroup" hailing from both New Jersey (NYC) and Japan. Featuring members of NJ Bloodline, 25 Ta Life, One 4 One, and Everybody Gets Hurt, as well as guest members "Takeshi the Butcher" and "Senor Take" from Japan. The sound is a classic blend of straight forward NJ/NYC HC and East Coast metalcore with a couple breakdowns and plenty of anthemic rhythms. I was lucky enough to check these guys out live and lets just say... you missed out. This is a must have for fans of fun and very obscure hardcore.


Blood Feast- Kill For Pleasure (1987)

Blood Feast
Kill For Pleasure (1987)
Genre- Death Metal/Thrash

Some pretty good East Coast thrash from the late 80's with solid, but slightly buzzy, production. My buddy became friends with the bands ex vocalist, Gary, by random chance and turned me on to them with a few CD-R's. Nothing really ground breaking here but its still a good healthy does of obscure metal and a damn strong release for their debut.


Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Judas Iscariot- To Embrace The Corpses Bleeding (2002)

Judas Iscariot
To Embrace The Corpses Bleeding (2002)
Genre- Black Metal

Some of my favorite USBM, cold and melodic black metal done with absolutely punishing speed and aggression. A one man project for the most part, 'To Embrace The Corpses Bleeding' is very well produced and features a ruthless session drummer making this album a stand out in the Judas Iscariot discography.


Incantation- Entrantment of Evil (1990)

Incantation
Entrantment Of Evil (1990)
Genre- Death Metal

Dark, thick walls of death metal aggression. Thrashing overtones, low barking guttural vocals and all the ambiance of a boat ride straight to hell. Just some classic shit from this legendary death metal band. Newer fans may be interested to know that former Incantation vocalist Craig Pillard (Onward To Golgotha, Mortal Throne Of.. etc etc ) is currently fronting the amazingly brutal band Disma. This and all other early Incantation are essential.


Autopsy- Ridden With Disease (2000)

Autopsy
Ridden With Disease (1987/1988)
Genre- Death Metal

I've been listening to so much fucking Autopsy recently. I recently picked up this hard to come by Necroharmonic release to round out the first half of my collection. This here is a compilation of the bands first 2 demos, the 1987 demo and 1988's 'Critical Madness' as well as 2 superb live tracks from 1990. Everything sounds great, fans of the first 2 full lengths (Severed Survival and Mental Funeral) will feel waves of nostalgia throughout these 9 songs when experiencing early versions of a few staple tracks. As you may know, Autopsy is probably one of the best death metal bands ever, and actually they're STILL fucking shit up, with a killer new release as recently as last year. If you're new to the band, definitely check out one of the before mentioned full lengths and then check these demos out. As for current fans, maybe you've just looked over this release by accident.. I'll let it slide this time. Fans should also know that Autopsy is issuing a monster compilation at the end of this month entitled 'All Tomorrow's Funerals' and it will feature ALL of the bands EP's and rarities.