Shadowdoom9 (Andi)'s Reviews

I can find brilliance in many places. Some filled with upbeat energy, others filled with downbeat despair. Doom metal/death-doom has developed in several countries like Sweden, the UK, and the US. Fans of the genre can handle the sadness and mortality detailed in the songs. Death-doom is considered quite unique for mixing the wickedness of the former genre with the melancholy of the latter. One of those bands was Katatonia at that time, but I gave up on listening to that band and much of The Fallen genres because I had enough of the depressiveness. I might just make a comeback though, with the spin-off band of Jonas Renkse and Fred Norrman, October Tide!

This album can be considered by many to be a bridge between the first two Katatonia albums, though the album was released two years after it was recorded, with Brave Murder Day released in the middle year. With this October Tide album encounter, the perfection of those heavy guitars and atmospheric keyboards from those Katatonia albums re-entered my mind, along with the more deathly elements. Renkse performs his final growled vocals before health issues restricted him to only clean singing in subsequent Katatonia albums. With those vocals perfectly fitting the melodic atmosphere, it made me regret my move away from the earlier albums of his main band. The guitars sound heavy while staying spacey and aren't as meandering as Opeth, which is why that band became another one I lost interest in just recently (SAD).

Opening the album is the grand "12 Days of Rain" with perhaps one of the strongest slow doomy riffs ever. The verses have a similar vibe to early 90s Paradise Lost, with Renkse's vocals unleashed. Keeping that stage set is "Ephemeral".

Same with "All Painted Cold" which has some Sabbath/Maiden-like mid-tempo heavy metal in the opening riffing before slowing down as expected in this album. You can almost think of this like In Flames at the time, but slower. When "Sightless" appears, you can imagine 80s Queensryche blended together with Edge of Sanity, sounding graceful in this sea of brutal somberness.

There's more of the slow decay in "Losing Tomorrow". It is more of a short ambient gothic rock track with a bit of Renkse's clean singing that would replace his growls as his main vocal style in subsequent albums. That song is this album's "Day"! Then "Blue Gallery" takes on a faster pace, though it's not without its lyrics of suicidal lamentations. "Infinite Submission" will keep you aware in attention as the melodies play while Renkse performs his last ever growls before they crumble away. With beautiful ambience, you might think there should be something like an ambient score. One final riff ends the album, sounding huge yet with a simple chord that carries you to the finish line.

Rain Without End is one of the best early Swedish death-doom albums I've heard in a long time. Anyone looking for melodic doom metal with deathly riffs and growls have come to the right place. Sweden is a country with one of the most diverse metal scenes around, with lots of different sounds like the melodic black/death of Dissection. The earliest releases of some genres are ones that really embrace them and prove to be prime examples of their respective scenes. This brand of death-doom is the right kind of doom I need, never as droning as funeral doom and never as old-school as traditional doom. So come one come all to the bleak Swedish death-doom realms. Rain Without End shall be your starting point!

Favorites: "12 Days of Rain", "All Painted Cold", "Sightless", "Infinite Submission"

The tough thing about checking out some demo EPs from bands, including splits, is that you end up thinking "What the f*** happened there?!" and then you realized, "Oh this is just a demo" while irritated about a band you love sounding this sh*tty. In saying that, Parkway Drive would definitely improve in a short matter of time and start making killer albums that cement them as one of my favorite metalcore bands.

The only track that closely matches their later better quality is "Hollow Man", which would be re-vamped in their 3rd album Deep Blue with more anger and improved production. A couple other tracks, each from one of two other bands in the split, Think Straight and Shoot to Kill, are also quite solid. Think Straight's "Make a Move" is a full-on blast of melodic death metal/metalcore that I can definitely rock out to as much as Parkway Drive's material. Shoot to Kill's "D.J.C." is the 5-minute closing epic of the entire EP, and there's even a bit of influence that I can hear from This Day Forward at that time.

But other than those 3 tracks, this split EP has only as much quality as the only images of its cover that can be found on the internet. Nonetheless, I'm glad to let out my thoughts about the EP here on this site, so thanks Ben for adding it. All I'm gonna say is, Parkway Drive's official discography is so much f***ing better....

Favorites (only one song per band): "Hollow Man", "Make a Move", "D.J.C."

Despite being a fan of an industrial metal and enjoying a few Ministry albums, I still prefer the genre when it's more experimental or, in some cases, cyber. With that said, I've realized that I have not yet took on what is considered one of the most essential albums in all of industrial metal, Ministry's Psalm 69. It is the final piece of the band's first industrial metal trilogy puzzle, so let's get right on it!

Psalm 69 is a step up from both of the band's previous two albums. It carries on the industrial metal direction that the duo of The Land of Rape and Honey and The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste kick-started. The thrashy instrumentation in Psalm 69 is something to enjoy, though it wouldn't make its comeback until Houses of the Molé which is one other great album but not as full-form as this one. The album, officially titled ΚΕΦΑΛΗΞΘ, is pretty d*mn excellent. Following the band's successful live album In Case You Didn't Feel like Showing Up, Al Jourgensen was determined to make an album so explosive yet appealing to the mainstream.

Opening things up in madness is "N.W.O." It starts with a sample of a siren alarm over the first riff, and the band set up the stage. "Just One Fix" is a pretty great song, especially during that hard-hitting breakdown over the 3-minute mark. It really can be worth "driving down the highway at night". However, there might be something missing, I don't know. Vocalist Al Jourgensen can do sinister laughing. This industrial rock/metal tune can also work well for fighting a zombie apocalypse, or at least that's what it sounds like. The f***ing world needs to be fixed, doesn't it? Also it reminds me of Rammstein's "Du Hast". Co-written by Chris Connelly, "TV II" shreds through pure anger. And holy f***, those are some blazing black metal-level blast-beats there!

"Hero" hops along with some thrashy riffing and D-beat drums. While not really the best here, this is one that can get you headbanging or at least head-nodding. Still this track is quite fun and it has a great midsection solo. The crazy highlight "Jesus Built My Hotrod" I'm already familiar with via the Lamb of God/Burn the Priest cover. The song has an interesting narrative and fun lyrics, sung by the Butthole Surfers' Gibby Haynes. Another favorite here, "Scarecrow" is an 8-minute slow industrial metal epic with samples from the 1973 film of the same title. There are some harmonic guitars and a bit of a gothic-ish vibe. A pleasant slow trip through hell-fueled harmonies.

The title track has the best of the band's heavy side. However, what kills the song's highlight status are those f***ing opening samples! As much as I find the background choir epic, the repeated sample of a child saying "I think that my heart has been touched by Christ" is quite annoying, going on for the first minute and a half. But at least the mind-blowing moshpit-inducing drumming makes up for that. And of course, samples are still a nice essential touch in industrial metal. "Corrosion" is much more of a plain industrial song with a dance-y beat. It's not weak at all, sounding quite interesting as a different track towards the end of the album. "Grace" is the perfect ending here. While the more industrial sound is still on, samples of "armageddon, doomsday, apocalypse" can be heard before some crushing harmonies to wrap things up.

The band started falling off a bit in creativity a few years after this album was released, when Jourgensen was arrested for drug possession and subsequently moved away from drugs and alcohol for some time. However, their later material would still please some fans while not reaching the f***ing heights of the first industrial metal trilogy. A few might argue about the EBM Twitch or even the synthpop With Sympathy being the band's breakthrough in the commercial perspective, but Psalm 69 is considered by many to stand as the true pinnacle of the Ministry's tenure. H*ll, there is more sludgy heaviness than there is pretty melody, and that was the band's right move!

Favorites: "Just One Fix", "TV II", "Jesus Built My Hotrod", "Scarecrow", "Grace"

Power metal was my favorite genre when I was a young teen. I even liked the more cheesy and uplifting kind. But of course, my taste changed into heavier and more serious modern metal genres. I had a couple-year attempt in reviving my interest in power metal that ultimately fell apart. Nonetheless, I'm sometimes up to making an occasional revisit to one of the power metal bands I used to like, and one cool band honoring the uplifting kind is Freedom Call!

Released around the band's 25th anniversary, The M.E.T.A.L. Fest is a live CD/Blu-ray recording of two live shows from the prior year, the first one at the titular Metalfest in the Czech Republic and the second one at Regensburg’s Eventhall in Germany. Get ready for a smooth ride of 14 speedy anthems with happy melody and magical choruses...

But before this live presentation, we have a brand-new studio track from the band in honor of the festival, the title track of this release! It's quite smooth with infectious vocal delivery from frontman Chris Bay. And I'm not ashamed to admit that this is the ultimate highlight of the entire album! The main live part of the release begins with an "Intro" to get you pumped up as the crowd chants "M! E! T-A-L!" Then comes the strong opener of the show, "Union of the Strong". Fast bass and drums and melodic guitars speed along in catchy verses and anthemic choruses. As you listen to the song, you can already the band rising to the top of glory. Great hooks and high-level guitars makes the song one of the best of the band. There's some more true glory in "Tears of Babylon", with galloping background melody from background horns like a medieval fanfare. The memorability of the album Eternity can be heard even before we can hear songs from that album. "Spirit of Daedalus'' has some excellent power metal that isn't too far off from earlier legends like Gamma Ray and Edguy, even adding some heavier guitar riffing to the melodic music. "Sail Away" has more of the band's signature sound within the same mid-tempo marching tempo as "Tears of Babylon", while having effective guitar melody and background choir.

Get ready for some action-packed adventure in what's pretty much this release's epic "Metal Invasion", that can be as kick-A as the epics from the band's first two albums. There's lots of speedy riffing and drums that start after a massive choral intro, a glorious Blind Guardian-like combination! The title track of Freedom Call's latest studio album M.E.T.A.L. honors this classic melodic side of heavy metal with lyrics centered around the genre, the way HammerFall would do it. With such addictive honesty in these lyrics, you know how much power metal joy you're getting. This German band can make a somewhat Christian power metal anthem with ''111 - The Number of the Angels''. You'll be happy to hear such optimistic melody, as the rhythms and vocals keep you in attention. "Ace of the Unicorn" is a strange as sh*t title, and the same can be said for the song itself that sounds way too sweet compared to the other songs in both the studio album and its live release, especially in the chorus. The immortal "theme song" for the band, "Freedom Call" makes up for that a lot as a brilliant power metal anthem, beginning with a rising alternating melody between the guitars and the audience.

The heavy yet uplifting power metal tune "Power & Glory" has perky bagpipe that once again makes the song too happy and worth skipping. The glorious next track "Metal is for Everyone" has most of the more melodic metal genres formed into one. There's a bit of crushing riffing, but the catchy chorus shines among it all. "Warriors" shows Chris Bay's melody in both the vocals and guitars with not much technical. It is an upbeat rock-on track plays out quite as well as Edguy and Stratovarius along with the catchier hits from the band's first two albums. Now "Far Away" I have mixed feelings for. It throws back to the positivity of Crystal Empire, a little too much with the overwhelming bagpipes, but some sections are still well-done. One final standout "Land of Light" can be considered the "Final Countdown" for this band, with the mid-tempo mix of horns and guitar and the fact that it's the band's signature song. Then the "Outro" ends the adventure, with a reprise to the "Intro" and the opening melody of "Spirit of Daedalus''.

Freedom Call can make anyone smile with their happy good-mood power metal sound, whether in a small concert or big festival. Although this live release is a pretty great throwback to when I enjoyed power metal so much, I think replacing a few happy-joy-joy songs with ones from Stairway to Fairyland and The Circle of Life is all I wish for....

Favorites (one per album including new studio track): "The M.E.T.A.L. Fest", "Union of the Strong", "Tears of Babylon", "Metal Invasion", "M.E.T.A.L.", "Freedom Call", "Power & Glory", "Metal is for Everyone", "Far Away"

Well I decided to give some listening and a review to Unbroken's debut Ritual, and it's just not meant for my ears. It sounds too much like they tried to combine the hardcore of Strife at the time with the thrash of Anthrax and the in-between of Suicidal Tendencies, with less metal emphasis, in more of a thrashy hardcore mix than metalcore, close to Neurosis' first two albums. "Zero Hour" is a decent metallic standout, but that's pretty much it. I like their second album Life Love Regret far more than this hardcore sh*t....

Favorites (only one I decently like): "Zero Hour"

There was one song from this album that I discovered via a YouTube ad that made me up to checking out this band's material, which we'll get to later in the review. I decided to check out their debut album Vastaus before getting to this album. It was decently good, but there were a few odd aspects, to me anyway, one of them being Finnish lyrics. After that, I knew I would have to go their second album that includes the main reason for my discovery of this band. It was only A MATTER OF TIME...

Alase is a Finnish post-/progressive metal band. They blend different styles in atmospheric melody, even beyond what's conventional in metal. A Matter of Time is a pretty good 9-song journey, and the English lyrics make things more understandable.

First song "Understanding the Waves" starts in soft light before the heavy darkness. The music and vocals seem to connect differently from one another. "Clear Sky is Not a Curse" has slow atmosphere despite its short length. The clean leads in the middle have good weight. There are nice harmonic vocals, but again, it's not music-connected. "Fate's Intervention" is heavier with harsh vocals, almost like they're blending Katatonia's recent material with Brave Murder Day. They shine against those parallel cleans.

"Unburden" has better consistency, but it seems like any excitement is out of reach. The atmosphere really could've had a greater approach. However, "Life Ahead" has a nice developing charm. "The Source" is the song that made me up to checking out this band. Atmospheric bass and vocals lead to a well-done blend of heavy and ethereal.

"Out of Place" takes on a darker tone. Sadly, the direction is, like the title suggests, out of place. Some sections can be a bit confusing. "Feeling Free" is short with consistent melody. Despite being a soft ballad, it's quite favorable. "Ajan Kysymys" is a heavier closing track. It's basically the album's title track as it's the title in Finnish. Bass, leads, and vocals are all in a nice blend. It's a very cohesive song and my second favorite here behind "The Source".

All in all, A Matter of Time is good but in need of some improvement. This atmospheric progressive metal sound is quite nice. While the vocals have diverse variety, they should've connected better with the music. No matter the band's intentions, anyone should experience this ethereal melody....

Favorites: "Fate's Intervention", "The Source", "Feeling Free", "Ajan Kysymys"

Alase is a practically unknown yet underrated band. They had released a string of singles with drummer Janne Kusmin before he left to continue his focus on Kalmah. Taking his place was Toni Paananen, and then the time came for the band to make their debut album...

This band is quite atmospheric, the same kind of atmosphere you would find in The Ocean and 21st century Katatonia. Alase cooked up a cauldron in Vastaus (Answer) that isn't about disharmonic cacophony, but instead, smooth post-progressive metal atmosphere. The vocals that alternate between clean and harsh perform mostly Finnish lyrics, which doesn't let me enjoy the album as much as I should, but it still comes out decently well.

The title track is a short slow intro. "Näkyvä" (Visible) is the first full song, and it has dark melancholy mixed with dreamy air to make a unique blend. "Binary Stars" is the only song in the album to have English lyrics. With that and its blend of beauty and heaviness, it's a well-done highlight.

The ethereal "Osa Minua" (Part of Me) is not something to dance to in a party. It's worth listening to while floating in your stream of consciousness. A mentionable track to start the second side is "Vaienneet" (Silenced). It's a soft intermission of beautiful atmosphere. It offers all that you need, but there's not much to say about it.

Harsh vocals can be heard greatly in "Vapaaksi Merkitty" (Marked as Free) (why am I visualizing a mermaid kid cat?) push things along like a tidal wave. That's probably the heaviest song in the album! What I enjoy is "Riisuttu" (Stripped) which, despite its title, builds up slowly high, approaching the album's climax. "Haukka" (Hawk) ends the album with a solid blend of the ethereal space of Hawkwind and the metal serenity of 2000s Amorphis.

Vastaus starts the band off in a somewhat good level, but I feel there could've been a lot more improvement, along with more English lyrics. The band would achieve that potential with another release to follow....

Favorites: "Binary Stars", "Vaienneet", "Riisuttu", "Haukka"

If you thought Chapter I was bizarre and disturbing, let me tell you, there's more of that in Chapter II. Electronic rhythms come in to guide you through a surreal yet pleasant nightmare. This unique motive of adding true crime lyrics to gothic-ish industrial rock/metal I have more leeway towards than I would have when I was younger.

"Jim Jones" is based on the Jonestown Massacre, a mass murder-suicide in which approximately 909 people died, a 3rd of that amount being children, and most of them drank Flavor Aid cyanide. Jim Jones was the cult leader, and he shot himself in the head. The song is darker than even the more extreme metal genres, and yet I'm intrigued. Just remember, life is too precious to be laid down.

"Tyler Hadley" is one of the most disturbing songs I heard in industrial metal, and metal in general. An industrial metal gone trap song about a teen who bludgeoned his parents to death with a hammer, hid the bodies in the closet, and threw a party, then he was arrested the next day and sentenced to life in prison. The song is pretty great though. "You should feel lucky, why don't you feel lucky?" Finally, the emotional "Katherine Knight" has a bit of a Lady Gaga-like pop vibe. It's based on a woman who murdered her husband and was intending to make herself and her children cannibals to that man. So crazy, yet the song mesmerizes me.

Innovative melody is twisted with the darkest real-life stories to ever occur, thanks to Skynd and the ongoing industrial party they've been having. It's an amazing experience that's filled with horror while quite inspiring!

Favorites: "Jim Jones", "Katherine Knight"

This here is gonna be a two-part review as I explore one of the darkest non-extreme metal bands I've heard in my life, the first part being their first EP. Skynd is known for basing their songs on true crime, including notable real-life deaths and murders. The creepiness may not be for the faint of heart, but it works well for the experienced...

"Elisa Lam" is based on a college student whose body was mysteriously found in a cistern at the Cecil Hotel. It's a little too deranged for me to love, but still quite solid. "Gary Heidnik" is based on a murderer who brutally tortured and/or killed several women and hid them in a chamber under his basement. The song features Jonathan Davis of Korn, and has more of an electro-industrial sound with a bit of pop and trap. With that said, I like it!

The clever "Richard Ramirez" is my favorite of this EP. Skynd herself sings more naturally here, and it's quite fantastic, though I'm OK with the strange effects. Richard Ramirez was another serial killer, known as the Night Stalker.

So far the music is so disturbing, and while I do enjoy it, I can understand why other people don't. To be continued in Chapter II....

Favorites: "Gary Heidnik", "Richard Ramirez"

Lard's final release before a 20-year hiatus is, similarly to The Power of Lard, a 3-track EP with each track having a different style. They're a few outtakes from their two full-length albums. Is this EP worth closing the initial part of the career? Well...

The 7-minute title track is, in a word, HILARIOUS. Let me tell you, this is the band's attempt to parody the cheesy classic 70s rock of Aerosmith and AC/DC. The lyrics are quite ridiculous, especially the chorus that keeps declaring that this kind of sound must die. Biafra seems to do a good job impersonating Axl Rose of Guns n' Roses. You never usually hear something both headbanging and hilarious at the same time, and people say only Spinal Tap could do something like that. It's definitely a break from the punky attitude of bands like Dead Kennedys (Jello Biafra's former band). It's just so d*mn funny. I'm not sure what I was thinking adding that song to the next Sphere playlist.

The next track "Volcanus 2000 (We Wipe the World)" has the band's usual industrial rock/metal first introduced in the 1988 Ministry album, tackling those who want to imitate Nine Inch Nails. There are some people who think this kind of sound is stinky garbage, but if you get more to the sound like I am, you might some decent enjoyment. "Ballad of Marshall Ledbetter" stomps with the industrial metal sound once more.

So we have one track parodying 70s rock, and two industrial rock/metal songs. All I can say is, Lard could've had a much better way than this EP to sign off.....

Favorites: all tracks, though the title track isn't too well-fitting

Anyone who thought the Firestorm EP was the beginning of the band's career would be surprised to find this EP from 1992 that has the metallic hardcore sound the band is known for, but not as much impact. This EP was re-released nationwide via Victory Records in the same year as the release of their debut album Destroy the Machines. While it's not as strong as their subsequent releases, All Out War has good ambition. The straight edge themes of war for animal rights having already started from the lyrics and cover art, attacking humanity's cruelty and greed. Karl Buechner and co. have their hardcore charm despite the drums and guitars sounding a bit wandering here.

The title opener stands against the sloppy production and comes close to surpassing "Firestorm" as the band's best classic track. "Ecocide" is another special track. There are stronger lyrics that won't go too well in a modern recording as it had when it came out 30 years before this review. What makes this really special is, it was re-recorded for their 3rd full album Breed the Killers.

The last two songs are not as spectacular as the first two, but nonetheless, the EP shows a solid start of the band's journey greatly improved by their mid-90s material. Although I wouldn't recommend All Out War to newcomers, unless they're going chronologically, the EP will interest fans of the band that have made straight edge history....

Favorites (only songs I really like): "All Out War", "Ecocide"

Those crushing Danish doomsters Saturnus seemed to have disappeared for a decade between this album and the last. Their comeback album can also mark my solid return to one of the most depressive genres around, doom metal, specifically death-doom. A couple years ago, I decided that I was not up for the slow sadness of this band and the Peaceville 3, but maybe this album has a glimmer of hope (ironic, right?) in my rediscovery of the genre. Saturnus has proven themselves to be the Danes' response to My Dying Bride and the early/mid-90s eras of Anathema and Paradise Lost with their first 4 albums, each with an average 5-years interval in between.

Fast forward through a decade of silence, an EP of Evinta-style remakes of earlier songs and demos of new ones were made, hinting at something big coming up... And finally came album #5, The Storm Within! As usual, vocalist Thomas A.G. Jensen and bassist Brian Hansen lead their emotional gothic death-doom group through the modern harshness of our world. Will they still carry the storm?

The title opener is one of two 11-minute epics, and it displays the band's haunting darkness from the start. Soft piano and acoustic melancholy make a sweet opening buildup in the first 3 minutes. Then the storm begins as the death growls and guitar heaviness pour down like massive rain. Jensen's cavernous vocals have strong potential, along with dramatic spoken passages. The slow pacing allows the guitar shines in stellar chords and heavy doom riffing. A massively effective opening piece! "Chasing Ghosts" is the second 11-minute epic here blends in bleak atmosphere with soft guitar air, almost like both the early and late eras of Anathema combined, together with traces of My Dying Bride's doomy sound. It's so monstrous yet beautiful, especially in the death growls and guitar that any of the darker metalheads can be up for. Just from those first two tracks alone, you're already getting a lot of dark doom and gloom!

Adding more of the northern European melodeath-doom into the mix, "The Calling" stands out with a more upbeat rock-like pace similar to the mid-90s albums of Katatonia and Amorphis. It's a nice change of pace after those slow epics, that's worth total replay value. The upbeat guitar shines like a warm sun over the cold world. The soft ode "Even Tide" has clean singing by Paul Kuhr of Novembers Doom. Perhaps the darkest song I've heard in a long time is "Closing the Circle".

Focused on mid-paced melody again is "Breathe New Life" that once again keeps things animated (not like a cartoon of course). It's shorter than all the other tracks at just 5 minutes in length, yet it seems to go downhill a bit. The final track "Truth" reaches a searing intense climax before a gentle ending.

Honestly, I've forgotten all about Saturnus until I found out about this album that I didn't expect would come but I'm glad it did. It's a very good accomplishment to continue this band's dark journey. The more depressive metalheads can dwell for eternity in the nice melodic bleakness. Doom metal fans should definitely get chase this great storm. I don't know if I'll be up for a sequel in the future (hopefully not too distant), but it's great to hear the Danish death-doom masters strike again....

Favorites: "The Storm Within", "Chasing Ghosts", "The Calling", "Closing the Circle"

Time for my next attempt at finding the appeal of crossover thrash. I find a couple genres like crossover thrash and grindcore easier to digest in small amounts like EPs. When those genres are focused on small abrasive songs, they work best when the tracks are the same amount as in a typical album of most other genres while keeping the track lengths, and sometimes even lower than that. That's why I barely had any trouble with the Corrosion of Conformity album I reviewed.

And now for this EP by modern crossover thrashers Municipal Waste! The Last Rager was released between the band's 6th and 7th albums. I was hoping to feel the hype thrash fans had over this release, but the first half turned out be a disappointment for me...

"Wave of Death" shows what I mean by playing the EXACT SAME RIFF in two minutes, spiced up only slightly by gang vocals including the title occasionally being shouted and a guitar that's just too abruptly short. Other than those two aspects, that song sounds more like one of those riff loop tracks than anything. Next up, "Car-Nivore (Street Meat)" has what fans of the band would expect, relentless yells and stampeding riffs. They're not totally bad, but I wished they could've interested more.

"Rum for Your Life" is far better! Here we have some wonderful riffing played fast with a bit of groove. There's great taste in the bass, drums, and vocals as well to remind fans of the band's earlier material and me of the heavier thrash bands I've encountered. The best song here! What's also great is the title finale. The first minute might remind some of the "O.D." crossover thrash bands (fans of the genre know what they are), and the raging combo continues on with great guitars. It actually sounds really unique here, almost as if the band were from 35 years prior to the EP and brought their sound to life in these modern times.

All in all, the first half of the EP comes out as disappointing, yet the second half clearly shows a better side of crossover thrash. This EP was a nice thing to keep Municipal Waste fans' spirits up while waiting in that 5-year gap between albums. A little more variety wouldn't hurt though....

Favorites: "Rum for Your Life", "The Last Rager"

Recently, Godflesh founder Justin Broadrick has been diagnosed with autism and PTSD. There are some people (such as myself, diagnosed with autism at age 2 instead of 52) who are a little surprised, while others, mostly long-time fans, had that suspicion for some time. His anxiety and shyness when it comes to live performances is one hint, having once gotten to the point where a panic attack caused the band to come to a halt for around a decade. But during that split and beyond, he created more projects. Then he reformed Godflesh with two more albums in the 2010s. And now it all leads up to the new album Purge! The title is already a giveaway about the modern updates provided to the concepts of their 1992 album Pure. Broadrick has worked together with Ben Green once again to let out some temporary relief...

Long-time fans and pretty much anyone familiar with the band's earlier material can definitely recognize the Pure sound, almost like these two albums can be connected! I'm sure some listeners can recognize some of the more classic tracks from the Pure album. Broadrick and Green's task at hand since the beginning is to unleash the robotic rhythms that have shaped up the genre they played their part in pioneering, industrial metal. Also looking back at the 80s/90s is the occasional hip-hop-ish groove that can ensure the album's variety without sounding too odd.

That rhythmic effect opens the album's first track and single "Nero", which is quite strong when mixed when the crushing vocals/guitar. The more abrasive "Land Lord" is a true standout for me, having some killer harmonic bends in the strings. "Army of Non" has the band's unabridged purity. It throws back to the glory days of Streetcleaner with the hammering and screeching guitars alongside the harsh vocals of Broadrick. The diversity in the heaviness adds to their bleak aura.

What's a bit droopy for me is "Lazarus Leper". However, the driving "Permission" is the opposite, in which noise-ridden electronic beats and dark chords, alongside the choir-like vocals sung by Broadrick.

The crawling "The Father" has an epic God/Slayer-sounding mix (I meant a mix of the bands GOD and Slayer) while in a Hymns-esque mainstream throwback. The crushing "Mythology of Self" marches with its slow drum pattern that blasts into your face with every hit. "You are the Judge, the Jury, and the Executioner" is the 8-minute epic, yet sounding simple in the beat and chord in a mesmerizing way.

The legacy of this band that has quite a 3 or 4-decade journey shows that as the two main members grow older, they can experiment with other music styles without giving a sh*t what the more critical critics think of their studio material, though live performances are a different story. Many of the band's albums are amazing with barely anything weak, but they don't reach the perfect glory of their late 80s releases. Purge is not an album that I would expect to have that past glory, while it comes close to being the best album of the new era!

Favorites: "Land Lord", "Army of Non", "The Father", "You are the Judge, the Jury, and the Executioner"

Before we get to the point of my Killswitch Engage review journey, there's one more release I forgot about until after my Atonement review. Ever since the band's switch from Roadrunner Records to Metal Blade, they stopped doing the whole "special edition" business. Fortunately, there came an opportunity to release those 6 leftover tracks. When the pandemic hit, they decided to release them as an EP in which sales would be donated to a COVID relief organization. Hence the B-Sides for Charity!

So this is kind of like what happened with Epica's The Holographic Principle and The Solace System. But here we have KSE's usual melodic metalcore. Come to think of it, the EP would've fit nicely alongside Atonement as a special edition if Metal Blade allowed that. Still I would let them be, because why jinx Atonement's perfection?

First track "To the Great Beyond" starts off sounding like the most Amon Amarth-sounding metalcore song ever, with epic-sounding guitars and drums. However, the rest of the track sounds a bit hollow when put outside of Atonement and its diverse side. "Hollow Convictions" fits better outside of Atonement due to its sludgy pace, while still a powerful highlight. The guitarwork and death growls sound not too far off from their early material. "Killing of Leviathan" is a more thrashy track, and that kind of sound I think would be better suited for a different band like As I Lay Dying. Still we have that awesome blend of deathly and melodic, and some audible bass too.

I enjoy the screaming by Adam D. in "No Devotion". Then "I Feel Alive Again" is more lively with some melody that can found in other bands like Bleeding Through, Memphis May Fire, and Demon Hunter, albeit sounding uplifting. "Prophets of Treason" is another sludgy march while having some melody from Haste the Day and a bit of the progressiveness of Anacrusis' later albums.

Half of these songs sound like they could greatly blend in with Atonement, while the other half stands perfectly where they are. And it's quite diverse for a 6-track EP, standing on the line between heaviness, melody, and experimentation. The Atonement era is still one of a couple perfect eras for this amazing band!

Favorites: "Hollow Convictions", "Killing of Leviathan", "I Feel Alive Again"

I always thought the two best Killswitch Engage albums were the best by the band. While that's still the case, Atonement has joined the 5-star club, bringing back the perfect glory of that earlier era.

You really gotta thank Jesse Leach for leveling up the awesomeness in this band. Though Howard Jones is also amazing in his vocals. The emotional majesty comes from both the melodic and hardcore sides coming together. Atonement shows the band switching from Roadrunner to Metal Blade, which I guess is why what would've been special edition bonus tracks ended up in a separate EP. This album is the band's best in over 15 years and might just be an exciting groundbreaker!

The first track and single "Unleashed" already has what's to come in this offering. Then "The Signal Fire" lights up the heavy fire, and Howard makes a small but amazing comeback in the second verse with his massive screams. The drums and guitars are so fast and furious with intense variation. Next song "Us Against the World" can provide motivation and strength for you to fight against different challenges. In the majestic highlight "The Crownless King", Killswitch Engage continue bringing back some of the earlier heaviness. Chuck Billy of Testament has brought forward enough fury for this song to have potential in the DOOM soundtrack.

"I Am Broken Too" still shows the band intensifying their sound while mostly having melodic emotion. "As Sure as the Sun Will Rise" follows that motive with more brutality in the verses. We also have the catchy "Know Your Enemy" with more hardcore yells. The mid-tempo "Take Control" shows the band having the pleasure of reinventing the wheel without breaking the original wheel.

"Ravenous" doesn't lose any melody yet they still have their metal heaviness. "I Can’t Be the Only One" has the power to inspire you to be brave enough to battle against your personal issues. "Bite the Hand That Feeds" is a killer way out.

All in all, there aren't any problems at all in Atonement. Everything is well-composed with the band's usual blend of brutal and melodic. Atonement has its strengths to give listeners the strength they need. So intense while so inspirational! This solid offering shows that the band has not lost any steam, and I look forward to reviewing the next couple releases. Bring on the fire!

Favorites: "The Signal Fire", "The Crownless King", "I Am Broken Too", "As Sure as the Sun Will Rise", "Take Control", "I Can’t Be the Only One"

The album before this one, Disarm the Descent, is a near-perfect comeback for Jesse Leach leading these melodic metalcore innovators Killswitch Engage. It's like this earlier incarnation of the band was reincarnated! And it continues on into their next album Incarnate. Although it might be a small step back for what you're expecting from this band. Still it's the right path...

While barely any of these albums can surpass the first two, it's great seeing them bringing home the delicious metalcore bacon that they're still serving all these years. And with Jesse staying with the band during the writing process, it's the first album since his earlier era in which has fully contributed.

Rising from the silent void in the intro is "Alone I Stand", blasting off with the band's signature energy. Absolutely killer! Then another favorite, "Hate By Design" has lyrics striking back against the dark hateful side of politics. "Cut Me Loose" lets loose with its beautiful riffing. Unfortunately, the chorus is too radio-friendly. It is followed by a great bridge, but the outro is also problematic. "Strength of the Mind" is about facing your past struggles head-on and overcoming them for a stronger future, "Gather all your pain and suffering, turn them into strength and weaponry". The intro melody of "Just Let Go" almost throws back to their 5th album. Fortunately, there are powerful melodies from the vocals and guitars. Nice vocals by Adam D. too! The masterpiece highlight "Embrace the Journey... Upraised" truly stands out as a strong progressive mini-journey.

"Quiet Distress" starts soft and quiet before really cranking up the speed. "Until the Day" is also fast with audible bass, though having a more simplistic structure. "It Falls on Me" hits hard and slow, sounding heavy as f***. The bridge strikes deeply with the audible bass and Jesse's cleans. The outro breakdown absolutely destroys! "The Great Deceit" fights back against the injustice of rulers. "We Carry On" has simple atmosphere with nice texture. Again, Adam's vocals give the bridge nice depth. "Ascension" is another well-done track with a fun chorus. What's also fun is the audible bass and Adam performing deep growls. The ending breakdown also rules!

Now heading into the special edition bonus tracks, "Reignite" sounds as heavy as the band's debut while having catchy melody. This hardcore side of the band never disappoints. I enjoy the riffing here. "Triumph Through Tragedy" doesn't triumph at all, sounding generic with only Adam's growls being its saving grace. "Loyalty" pummels through before making space for Jesse's clean vocal melodies. Plus one more heavy breakdown to rule them all. There's also a live performance of "In Due Time".

It's clear that Killswitch Engage continues to impress longtime fans and newcomers in this album Incarnate. While there are a few downs compared to their many ups, this album will make you up for the ride and enjoy Jesse's vocal passion. In the metalcore scene, Killswitch Engage continues to make their stand!

Favorites: "Alone I Stand", "Hate By Design", "Strength of the Mind", "Embrace the Journey... Upraised", "It Falls on Me", "Ascension", "Reignite", "Loyalty"

Killswitch Engage came back and have since continued to stay front in the melodic metalcore scene! A lot has happened in the 4 years since their strong but somewhat disappointing 5th album. All That Remains vocalist Phil Labonte took over for touring in 2010 after Howard Jones stepped down due to illness. Howard would ultimately leave the band during the writing of the band's next album Disarm the Descent. He would later form his own band Devil You Know ( Light the Torch). Labonte dismissed any rumors of joining KSE full-time. After many different auditions, original vocalist Jesse Leach decided to return. At the time, he was in a side-project with Adam D., Times of Grace. And drummer Justin Foley recorded drums for the Unearth album Darkness in the Light. Plus several other side-projects that are all different stories for another day...

Disarm the Descent is a true treat for KSE fans wanting to hear both the earlier hardcore era and the later melodic era. This album comes close to reaching the perfect glory of those first two albums. We have the usual vocal melodies, heavy riffing, booming bass, and powerful drums. Jesse still has his strength in his screams and cleans, and in some songs, Adam has his own clean singing plus some death growls. This album is quite well-thought for one leaning into the hardcore side of metalcore. Everything has gone according to plan, thanks to Jesse and his stunning voice in which barely any other vocalists can reach the same height!

Proving that last statement right, "The Hell in Me" shows that the band are indeed back, with pulverizing riffing straight from the intro onwards. Another one of my favorite tracks here is "Beyond the Flames". I enjoy the balance between growls and cleans, the latter appearing the most prominent. The riffing sounds so catchy here. We also have audible bass and killer blast beats. "The New Awakening" once again crashes in with its heavy verses and melodic chorus, and some more of the audible bass too. The main riff of "In Due Time" is pure heavy metalcore bliss. Awesome music, awesome lyrics! The motivational anthem "A Tribute to the Fallen" is also underrated with its aggressive verses and melodic choruses making a memorable blend, along with its outro that makes the song as a whole sounds like one of Parkway Drive's tracks.

"Turning Point" continues that verse/chorus aspect while adding more screams in the chorus. The riffing in the intro is also some of the best, as are the melodic chorus and soloing. Excellent drumming there too! Next track "All We Have" really fires away in the instrumentation and vocals. We have another thoughtful track in "You Don't Bleed for Me" with its ethereal bridge and more of the audible bass striking through. "The Call" is another one of the best tracks here, with his destructive growls and screams in the pre-chorus. Some of the greatest heaviness there can be found in the drums. "No End in Sight" goes speedy while staying catchy in the riffing.

"Always" is yet another one of the best songs from this band, as well as one of the first that I've found, via a music video on TV. See, fury isn't always everything in metalcore... "Time Will Not Remain" continues the fast beats, but unfortunately, it lacks some strength and originality. The clean melodies are just too generic. It just doesn't work for the standard edition that would've had a perfect 5 stars. At least one of the special edition bonus tracks "Blood Stains" captures Jesse's vocals well. The brutality and beauty fit well for the riffing rhythms and melodic leads, respectively. The drums also sound great here. "Slave to the Machine" is another weak-ish track. In an attempt at adding all they're good at into a simple 3-minute formula, it still comes out as a mess. If we were to make Disarm the Descent a perfect album, "Blood Stains" should've closed the standard edition instead of "Time Will Not Remain", which then should've been separated as a different EP along with "Slave to the Machine" and the live tracks.

Despite these slight mistakes, I would consider Disarm the Descent KSE's 4th best album behind Atonement and the first two albums. It's an impressive comeback with almost the same kind of impact as Jesse Leach's first era. He has made his return, and the heart and soul he has made for this band is unbreakable!

Favorites: "Beyond the Flames", "In Due Time", "A Tribute to the Fallen", "Turning Point", "The Call", "Always", "Blood Stains"

You know how amazing a band is when their weakest album is still strong. One tip-off of how Killswitch Engage's 5th album stands below the others is the fact this album if self-titled. Nothing wrong with that, but they already have a self-titled debut. Fans have called this 2009 album "KSE II", since it's their second self-titled album. I think it would make sense to just call this album "KSE V", since it's their 5th album overall. Still you shouldn't judge a book by its cover.

Killswitch Engage has had their music spread through both the underground and the overground, and KSE V has helped them continue their reign. Again it can never top any of their other releases, but it's another proud work and the band still have their way...

One of the band's strongest opening tracks is "Never Again" with full-on guitar aggression and a clever breakdown-gone-solo. Up next, "Starting Over" is tear-jerking banger filled with metalcore emotion. Then we have another great anthem in "The Forgotten", having a bit of jazzy experimentation in the tempo changes and more of the screaming-singing vocal alternation. Next track "Reckoning" kicks things up in monstrous vengeance. However, it ends up being a bit generic.

Then things lighten up in "The Return". It's quite strong despite having just clean singing along with the pop-ish chorus. Still it's a great ballad similar to a few that they done in the past (that one reader be like "Says you not being a big fan of ballads!"). "A Light in a Darkened World" has some of their strongest guitars, drums, and vocals yet, leading to brutal breakdown and beautiful acoustic bridge. Sh*t, that song's so phenomenal! "Take Me Away" starts with strong guitar shredding, then it flops into full-on weak vocals. My least favorite of the band. Coming close to that fate is the heavy "I Would Do Anything", but it saved by the vocals regain their strength along with heavy rhythms.

I don't have much to say about "Save Me", which is great though nothing noteworthy. One more ballad-ish track "Lost" drives through in sorrow and passion from Howard's vocals singing lyrics of love and loss. "This is Goodbye" is a more typical track with only what is expected from the band. It's still good, considering its balance amongst the more experimental tracks. The special edition bonus track "In a Dead World" is one of my favorite tracks by the band in general. The melodies, riffs, screams, cleans, and drums, all in a brilliant balance! The impact even comes from the light bridge. The darkness and light all lead into an powerful outro. If that glorious highlight was in the standard edition, replacing "Take Me Away", I would give this album rating an extra half-star.

The special edition also has a few live bonus tracks, but that's not important for this review. KSE V is, like all the band's other albums, something for longtime fans, hardcore listeners, and metalheads. Not the strongest but it still rules. All before Howard Jones' goodbye to the band....

Favorites: "Never Again", "The Forgotten", "The Return", "A Light in a Darkened World", "Lost", "In a Dead World"

While not as perfect as the initial Jesse Leach era, As Daylight Dies is probably the best of the Howard Jones trio of albums. Many different anthems can be found in this offering, and one of them I'm actually familiar with 10 years before I started listening to this band full-time. If you wanna hear Jones at his best in his time with the band, it's time to dive right in!

The hooks and grooves sail smoothly alongside Jones' vocals. Sure his role might divide the longtime side of Killswitch Engage's fanbase, and some metalhead purists might turn away, but there's a lot to enjoy in As Daylight Dies, and there's no point in denying.

The somewhat title opener "Daylight Dies" greatly blasts with the solid guitarwork of Adam Dutkiewicz and Joel Stroetzel, from pummeling riffs to monumental leads. We also have the sonic bass of Mike D'Antonio and the stampeding drums of Justin Foley. An epic start! I also enjoy track #2 "This is Absolution", another great track worth replaying. Then "The Arms of Sorrow" has some mellow sorrow while getting more complex. It's almost like the band's challenge of making a progressive track while staying under 4 minutes in length. The drums continue to keep me hooked. We have some more of the heaviness in the short "Unbroken", with drums blasting all the way through. However, clean vocals seem to be out of place in what's supposed to be scream-fest. After that is "My Curse", the song I've actually known since over a decade prior, and I still love it! There's an alternate version for radios that have all the screams replaced by cleans. Of course, you know which one I prefer. F***ing awesome melodic metalcore! And there's more of that in the other tracks...

"For You" starts off sounding a little more typical, then it gets more melancholic in the bridge, in which Howard continues his vocal melodies while balancing them out with his heavy screams. The one track that keeps the album away from being 5-star perfect is "Still Beats Your Name". It's not bad, but it doesn't really strike hard despite the heaviness and speed. "Eye of the Storm" is another perfect highlight, and once again this high-quality melodic metalcore sound hits me much more than it would've 10 years before this review. "Break the Silence" has more of those great screams and cleans from Howard, the latter especially shining in the chorus. The outro has Adam D., who has occasionally performed some background cleans, sneaking in some death growls behind Howard's singing. Fantastic! "Desperate Times" has heavy verses while marching in a slow atmospheric pace, the atmosphere having more light in the chorus. I also like the layered vocal melodies and Mike's audible bass in the bridge. It's almost hard to talk about "Reject Yourself" in detail, but basically, there's more of the heavy riffing and drums. Still there is some melody and Adam's vocals being more prominent than ever. The bridge quiets down then Howard unleashes one of his most intense screams of his career, "EYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!", all leading into a beautiful outro.

Once again, I decided to explore the special edition bonus tracks, the first of which, "Be One", being a heavy banger with more of those cleans and screams catching my attention. The next bonus track, "Let the Bridges Burn", is my favorite one. Although we have the usual clean melodies, the heavier side with those blasts and growls remind me a bit of As I Lay Dying's "Within Destruction" when performed in E-flat tuning. There's also the usual dramatic chorus and hardcore bridge. Next up, "This Fire" is another popular track. It's short while still great, striking with melodic riffing. So heavy while still catchy. Love it! The final one of all, "Holy Diver", well... Although I usually love these "metalizing" covers, it's not too bad, but kind of a misstep. Great catchy melody, yet it feels like it could've been better. It's probably just comfortable staying as a bonus track.

With lots of variation, As Daylight Dies shows the band diversifying their sound while keeping themselves firmly in metalcore. I can definitely understand its success, and it definitely took the band's direction to the next level!

Favorites: "Daylight Dies", "The Arms of Sorrow", "My Curse", "Eye of the Storm", "Break the Silence", "Reject Yourself", "Let the Bridges Burn", "This Fire"

A couple years have gone by since I started listening to Killswitch Engage full-time, and all of their albums have really grown on me. Many age well and a couple others don't. As I continue listening to The End of Heartache, their 3rd album and the first with Howard Jones on vocals, a bit of my interest in this album has worn off. Fortunately, my decision to review the special edition has made me understand its success.

The re-release that came out almost a year after the original album has several bonus tracks, a couple of which are so timeless that they can please fans in 2025 as they had in 2005. This thrashy melodic metalcore offering that would've ended up having just 4 stars in the standard edition has been brought up back to 4.5 stars here!

Starting off a bit poorly is "A Bid Farewell", which kinda comes out as repetitive in the drums, guitars, and vocals, not having much of the melody except in the chorus. But don't worry, there are greater tracks coming up... "Take This Oath" impresses me with its riffs and melodies, though I wish there was slightly more than that. At least then-former vocalist Jesse Leach has snuck in some of his own vocals. "When Darkness Falls" is a little more predictable. The instrumentation and vocals sound like they've bled from the first couple tracks. It's still good though. "Rose of Sharyn" is a greater highlight, showing how professional the band is when it comes to melodic metalcore. "Inhale" is a calm acoustic interlude before more of the heaviness storms in later tracks...

"Breathe Life" is perhaps my favorite highlight here. I love how the solo can sound beautiful without fast technicality! The title track soars through with intense emotion, especially in the breakdown. However, it should be noted that later on in the special edition, that incredible track ends up receiving a single edit appearing in the soundtrack of Resident Evil: Apocalypse, taking away all that's great about it. Glad I just commented on that version early! "Declaration" ends up falling back into the predictable trap. Same with "World Ablaze". It segues to "And Embers Rise", but adding in a second acoustic interlude is rather unnecessary.

"Wasted Sacrifice" makes up for the mistakes of the past few tracks as another one of the best tracks here, with a killer opening verse followed by awesome riffing. "Hope Is..." is a rifftastic ending track for the standard edition, featuring All That Remains' Phil Labonte. He and Leach guest appear in the first special edition bonus track, a re-recording of "Irreversal", where brutal blasts level up the intensity, defining the sound from the debut. "My Life for Yours" is a killer leftover track from the Heartache sessions.

And the rest of the re-release is that aforementioned hollow radio edit of the title track and a few live tracks. The 4.5-star rating goes to that special edition which is an amazing release for new and longtime fans. You gotta thank Roadrunner for that!

Favorites: "Take This Oath", "Rose of Sharyn", "Breathe Life", "The End of Heartache", "Wasted Sacrifice", "Hope Is...", "Irreversal", "My Life for Yours"

No disrespect to Howard Jones, he's still awesome, but if there's one member I think is the heart and soul of Killswitch Engage, it's Jesse Leach. Some of my favorite KSE albums are the ones with Leach as vocalist, especially his initial era of the band's first two albums. Too bad he had to leave the band for 10 years after this release due to health issues. Alive or Just Breathing shows his vocals at his best.

In the era where nu metal was on the rise, one band was determined to have their genre take the throne with its crushing yet melodic metalcore sound. Heavy riffing and screams battle against clean singing and melodies, a fascinating metalcore depiction of Heaven vs. Hell!

The album comes to an amazing start with "Numbered Days" with its ravaging riffs and lovely leads. "Self Revolution" is practically a Revolution anthem, and I like how after the first 30 seconds, we have a quick percussive break before more of those catchy vocal melodies. "Fixation of the Darkness" is also interesting in the chorus. The only thing that throws me off is how abruptly ends. Then it leads to one of my favorite tracks, "My Last Serenade". I think during the pandemic and its tail-end, I became more in the mood to find some bands to cure my part of that global depression. Thanks to that great boost, I'm able to appreciate masterpiece highlights like this one much more! Things continue to flow well in "Life to Lifeless". The slow acoustic intro of "Just Barely Breathing" is a bit out of line, but the rest of the song is still crushing.

"To the Sons of Man" is a shorter 2-minute hardcore track. Everything everywhere all at once kicks through in "Temple from the Within". Without an intro, the instrumentation hits you non-stop. An experience as perfect as its original version from the debut! "The Element of One" has their metalcore sound done well from the start, but I'm not sure if putting it between two re-recordings from the debut was the right move. Still I won't object. A good thrashy track, "Vide Infra" has more spoken/shouted cleans to fit with the screams. "Without a Name" is an interlude that's not too necessary but doesn't detract the album's perfect score. It segues to the beautiful closing epic "Rise Inside".

The 2005 re-release comes with many different bonus tracks, the first being another 2000 debut re-recording track "In the Unblind", with more effective mixing. The powerful screaming, guitar soloing, and drumming is a great reminder of that album's strength. "When the Balance is Broken" is a bit repetitive, and if this ended up in the standard edition, the perfect 5-star rating would end up losing a half-star. Same with the acoustic instrumental "Untitled and Unloved".

And the rest of the re-release is just demos, a re-recording with Howard Jones on vocals, and some studio outtakes. The 5-star rating goes to the standard edition that is a masterpiece so beautiful and brutal at the same time. Recommended to all Revolution members!

Favorites: "Numbered Days", "Self Revolution", "My Last Serenade", "Just Barely Breathing", "Temple from the Within", "Rise Inside", "In the Unblind"

What's expected in one of those "post-" genres is the immense atmosphere. It helps you live through the enjoyment of such a journey. Cosmic Doom Ritual is a title that may sound simple yet promising in the dreamy atmosphere. It also sums up what you might find in this offering; the cosmic ambience of Darkspace, the sludgy doom of early Isis, and the post-metal ritual of Neurosis, all combined into a savory space-doomy post-sludge sound...

Cosmic Doom Ritual is the debut album by Hexer (whose band name appears to be inspired by The Witcher franchise). The band has projected their sound through the conceptual tale of a giant sea creature devouring its prey. They can really make a story similar to a Mastodon or Ahab album with a cosmic twist.

The atmospheric opening track "Merkaba" has some light beauty before exploding into the post-sludge sound that has shaped the album. The loud doomy despair of Thou is in good alternation with the post-rock melancholy of Russian Circles, the latter appearing midway through. Subtle keys make a good counterweight for the guitar dissonance and synth pulse. It's a somewhat low point for the album, yet it has some destined potential in the cosmic doom influences.

Then we hear the expansion getting stronger in "Pearl Snake". A psychedelic blues vibe is injected into the guitar rhythms and leads, as the lightness is darkened by the death growls. The oriental melodies might remind some of Om. Clean acoustic melancholy is heard in lengthy sections as the percussive rumble and thick bass groove plays along. The rhythm loops over and over with no sign of a building crescendo. However, the rhythm continues to dwell, and the heavier strength eventually makes a comeback in steady form. The vocals definitely remind me of Godflesh and, to a lesser extent, Napalm Death.

"Black Lava Flow" starts off with demented dissonance from the atmospheric guitar. This droning experimentation might make you think of The Body, while having some crust-infused vocals. Halfway through, we experience more of the cosmic psychedelia and the last of the heavy sludge until it ends just before the last minute. The atmospheric steam seems to have been lost, and therefore does not reach the earlier intensity.

3 tracks, each with an average length of 12 minutes, will give you good cosmic doomy post-sludge to enjoy. The melody has created an interesting soundscape. However, the tedious production, especially in the last track, is why I don't find it as awesome as the doomy metalheads would. Still the immense atmosphere has kept the band growing....

Favorites (the strongest one): "Pearl Snake"

For the past couple years, I've stumbled upon a few tracks by this band Shadow of Intent to add to the monthly Revolution playlists. I enjoy deathcore mostly when it's mixed with progressive or symphonic elements, my interest boosted up from getting a kick out of it from Lorna Shore. However, Shadow of Intent has some maturity in their symphonic deathcore, and there's some great stuff in their new album Elegy!

Elegy shows what Shadow of Intent are made of. It's packed with enough symphonics from the orchestration and keyboards to have the Fleshgod Apocalypse symphonic death metal part of the sound, and helping out with that is the man responsible for that band's orchestral aspects, Francesco Ferrini. The melodeath comes from the guitars.

The opening track "Farewell" starts the album like Lorna Shore would, with a one-minute epic orchestral mood-setting intro, before the heaviness storms in triumph. While the deathcore sound might not attract those not used to the sound, it's balanced out with the soft melodic parts, and that's easy to recommend. The melodeath guitar work appears in "Saurian King". The ending of "The Coming Fire" is one of the most memorable parts of the album. It's "Gravesinger 2.0"! It segues into the equally memorable intro of the song "Of Fury" that continues the symphonic melodeath/deathcore sound. There's sonic maturity within the deathcore that's still around, especially in the vocals. "Intensified Genocide" is one of the most intense songs here, with fast heavy energy.

You might wanna check out "Life of Exile" for some clean vocals that appear alongside the usual growls and screams. "Where Millions Have Come to Die" has more dynamic brutality. The variation makes sure there isn't any unneeded repetition, along with vocals by Phil Bozeman of Whitechapel. "From Ruin...We Rise" has more of those varying vocals. This vocal maturity is suitable for the album's earlier concept of inhumane genocide. The powerful cinematic deathcore of that track is set aside for something more groove-laden in "Blood in the Sands of Time". Is that a symphonic deathcore attempt at groove metal? Likely so, with vocals by Chuck Billy of Testament!

The 5-minute instrumental "Reconquest" sounds like there should've been vocals in the first 4 minutes, but it's still pretty great, and the last minute has cool guitar. The 13-minute 3-part title suite is the album's climax, starting with the short clean "Adapt", continuing with the rising "Devise", and ending with the powerful 6-minute "Overcome". Epic, while only almost reaching the glory Lorna Shore's Pain Remains suite.

Elegy is a mature offering from Shadow of Intent in the music and lyrics. The symphonic deathcore bounds continue to expand, and it's worth great listening. Top-notch orchestration is uncommon in deathcore, but I'm determined to continue my journey of discovery!

Favorites: "Farewell", "The Coming Fire", "Of Fury", "Where Millions Have Come to Die", "From Ruin...We Rise", "Elegy" (full suite)

Danzig is a band that shouldn't be taken lightly. They're one of the more satanic classic heavy metal bands around along with Mercyful Fate and Ghost. As someone who's not into that kind of theme, whether or not I find greatness in this album, I don't expect myself to fully dig in to the rest...

Longtime Danzig fans were wondering what the h*ll the band was thinking when they made Blackacidevil, an electro-industrial album with barely anything metal. For this album Satan's Child, while there's more of those industrial elements, the metal guitar is back in prominence. This time, the riffing has a pummeling lower tuning. It may sound a bit like nu metal, but the riffing is so strong that calling any part of this album nu metal would be blasphemy.

Glenn Danzig's vocals first appear soft in "Five Finger Crawl" during the vocals, before having his usually wailing in the chorus, and that's a prime example of his vocal usage in that smashing opener. "Belly of the Beast" continues to have strong fun in the verses. "Lilin" goes on for 6 and a half minutes with some bluesy vocals coming out nice and fine. Adding in some synths and vocal distortion is "Unspeakable". That track is one of my favorites in the album. That opinion might not make part of the Danzig fanbase, but that's OK, I don't intend to.

"Cult Without a Name" shows how well Glenn Danzig can blow listeners' minds away with his voice. He can sing clean whispers and then roar like a bull in smashing intent. An excellent way to lead the drums, guitars, and bass! A weird creepy electronic intro starts "East Indian Devil (Kali's Song)", but then heaviness bashes through. "Firemass" sounds fitting for their earlier material and comes out as another favorite for me. The more trip-hop-ish "Cold Eternal" has Glenn's most moving despite the song's softness.

The title track is actually a mighty highlight! "Into the Mouth of Abandonement" is quite good too despite sounding different from the previous track. "Apokalips" is strong in the bass and drum during the doomy intro and verses. Then in the choruses, the funk/hip-hop-ish pace makes a brief comeback. The electronics are pretty much absent in that song. The final song "Thirteen" is quite good. Glenn Danzig originally written and recorded that track for Johnny Cash, and he recorded it again with the band to close this album with its blues groove.

Any earlier Danzig fan who lost contact with the band's music fearing the possibility of the band going full-on industrial after Blackacidevil should give this band another chance and listen to the band's later material starting with this album Satan's Child. I'm telling you, you'll feel way more relief than disappointment....

Favorites: "Five Finger Crawl", "Unspeakable", "Cult Without a Name", "Firemass", "Satan's Child", "Apokalips"

I enjoyed listening to Samael, but it wasn't really for so long. As I made my brief exit from listening to black metal, Samael was one of the bands I discarded due to their black metal material last fully demonstrated in Ceremony of Opposites. Anyway, after that dark satanic trio of albums from the first half of 90s, they began their ascent to the symphonic industrial metal cosmos with the Rebellion EP and Passage, the latter establishing the band's transcendence beyond what metal had reached before. And despite avoiding the alternative/groove metal trend of other bands at the time, it worked! They gained enough fame and motivation to close the millennium with another album...

Of course, there was one more small offering made before Eternal, the Exodus EP. Though the songs in that EP are leftover tracks from the Passage sections, they served as a bridge in their evolution. They hinted at an important step, discarding pretty much all the earlier black metal elements (an exception being the re-recording of the Ceremony of Opposites title track), all done while staying faithful to their new direction.

Eternal opens with the atmospheric highlight "Year Zero". Beginning the album in shining light, this is excellent high-quality loud industrial metal! "Ailleurs" will have you dancing along. It's almost close to the cyber metal sound The Kovenant would pioneer in Animatronic! Though some might also be reminded of Front Line Assembly. "Together" cuts down on the upbeat optimism for a slow sinister pace. There's more of the brightness in "Ways" that smoothly points out the stylistic ways of their melodic industrial metal. And there's more of that coming up...

Soft piano begins the next song "The Cross". People seem to mistake this song as a Christian hymn, even though the band was going for the opposite. A good reason for me to leave behind all of black metal last year. I'm glad that I still find enjoyment in that song and might be up to making a return to that band and black metal someday... "Us" soars through the industrial metal cosmos once again with a memorable chorus despite it being a bit too noise-ridden in the background. "Supra Karma" makes a comeback to the band's previous album Passage with solid riffing. Then we switch to "I" which is another Kovenant-like dance-metal track. See if you can play that song in dance clubs for all the club members to dance the night away!

"Nautilus & Zeppelin" has more operatic keyboards in the lead, with not much space for heavier riffing. "Infra Galaxia" continues the album's direction, though it seems to lose some strength as it progresses. "Being" isn't too shabby, though it might cause some red flags. "Radiant Star" has some harsh guitar aggression to end this space journey.

Anyone who thought Samael would go full-on KMFDM/Ministry can have that fear set aside. After a 5-year gap, Eternal gained a stylistic sequel in Reign of Light, which had made those fans relieved. Era One followed as a two-disc experiment, with the second half being just ambient electro-industrial. Another album continue the Eternal direction is Solar Soul, expanding their horizons so they don't repeat too much of their past. They would then return to their earlier 90s evil black metal misanthropy in Above. Lux Mundi would return to the industrial metal era from between Passage and Solar Soul. Same thing with Hegemony 6 years after. Will they have a new album this year to keep up that sound? Fingers crossed there! But for now, soar through the cosmos with the soundtrack to this universal exploration....

Favorites: "Year Zero", "Ailleurs", "The Cross", "Us", "I", "Radiant Star"

So here I am at the final part of Red Harvest's underground trilogy, before they became more popular with Cold Dark Matter. Some say going chronological when checking out a band's discography is one of the weaker methods because the earlier material before the famous era is often highly different. They may be correct, but HyBreed ended up being an exception to that rule. A newfound perfect favorite of mine as my industrial metal collection grows!

HyBreed shows that the band is no longer as speedy as they were in their debut album and part of their second album. The album is slow in a lot of songs, and the tempo stays the same in even the long 10-minute epics.

The short opening track "Mazturnation" is a fast yet mature track that I enjoy. "The Lone Walk" is a long epic in which the verses have a drum pattern and the chorus is more riff-focused. It just goes on throughout those 10 minutes, and there's never anything bad about that at all! Despite being a bit repetitive, that's the kind of repetition that appeals to me. This band can be catchy while only having one d*mn idea. It's quite brilliant that the band can show talent from just one or two riffs! GENIUS!!! Yeah, that chorus is quite epic along with the verse drum pattern. The other fast track "Mutant" bounces through great guitar riffing and drum kicks.

Another track, "After All..." has a haunting dark cellar vibe. "Ozrham" is almost 10 minutes of ambient instrumental. You might think I would get bored from that, but surprisingly I didn't! By the end, you soar through rain-stormy heights. "On Sacred Ground" starts slow and melodic in the riffing and beat, and continues that way throughout the song that is another one nearly 10 minutes long. However, having the last minute being an intro to the next track is a bit of a risk to take. But all in all, a true masterpiece track of melodic doom! "The Harder They Fall" is another superb bleak industrial metal track. It's amazing how my taste in modern metal developed from the metalcore of Trivium and Bullet for My Valentine into this genre.

"Underwater" has a bit of the slow yet progressive ambience Maudlin of the Well would later have. "Monumental" has a lot of that monument melody, and I love the splash cymbal used here. Another one of the best tracks of the album! There's still two more tracks left, starting with the 12-minute ambient track "In Deep", which is nothing special but still nice and soothing. "The Burning Wheel" is the righteous ending of this long trip. It's a heavier blast while not building actual speed. This can really fit in a live setting, and both new and longtime fans can look back at it in the decades following its release. Like now, perhaps?

All I'm gonna say is, no matter how perfect HyBreed is for me, some people might not like it due to its heavy repetition and lengthiness and think this could cause a dent in the genre. However, this album has the motherload of many things that solidify the melody and dark ambience of industrial metal/post-sludge. The simply structured songs can keep you hooked until the end. Any fan of Red Harvest and industrial metal should get it, and if you want to appreciate it as much as I do, it just takes patience!

Favorites: "Mazturnation", "The Lone Walk", "On Sacred Ground", "The Harder They Fall", "Monumental", "The Burning Wheel"

Let me just say that going through the first part of a band's discography when you haven't heard of the band before may be both a good and a bad way to get around. Anyone starting with the band's early-2000s material can shake their heads at me disappointed for this route. That's OK because I like witnessing the evolution from the beginning!

It's amazing how constant the band can keep their unique ability of turning things around, so that each song is unpredictable in direction. In one song you can hear bleak slowness, and the next one you can the band's earlier hellbent thrash. There's Beauty in the Purity of Sadness shows the band mixing things up quite a bit. You can almost consider the music to be a slightly more deathly Ministry, among other sounds that are the dreams of many bands.

Already bringing you onboard is the fantastic opener "Wounds"! I still can't believe I hadn't discovered this band sooner. This extreme industrial metal banger ends with an epic one-minute guitar/drums outro. "Naked" is another song I absolutely love! "Resist" is what I would describe to a blend of Sepultura at that time and Circle of Dust.

"Mindblazt" has a similar vibe to the mid-paced earlier songs of Earth Crisis in the slower sections while the rest of it is firmly industrial metal. "Mastodome" is a slow sludgy 8-minute epic that sounds like the seed planted for two bands, Mastodon and Gothminister. "Shivers" is another awesome track that gives me shivers. "?" is as confusing as the one-character title says, being just a strange interlude.

"Mother of All" almost reminds of Mushroomhead in the pace and vocals. Now, "A.B.G.L.E.A.K."... I have no idea what that acronym stands for. I do know the song sounds like one Opeth's acoustic interludes. "Sadness" is also awesome! "The Art of Radiation" is another 8-minute epic, and the best way to end the album. Worth lots of praise!

See? Industrial metal can go extreme and dark with out going as blackened as Aborym. The muscular strength comes from the music and not the aesthetics. I can someday try to build up my potential for the band's more popular albums like Sick Transit Gloria Mundi, but for now, I can admire how influential this album is despite how rare it was at the time of its release. Of course nowadays, industrial metal goodness is easy to find on the web....

Favorites: "Wounds", "Resist", "Shivers", "Sadness", "The Art of Radiation"

In a land where black metal rules them all, progressive metal has also been taking Norway by storm. Since the 90s, Norwegian progressive metal bands have come around to sweep the globe, such as the power metal-influenced Pagan's Mind and Communic, the melodic Spiral Architect and Leprous, and the extreme Arcturus and Enslaved. A warm progressive light shines over the cold darkness! There's also a Norwegian thrash metal band called Equinox. A progressive thrash metal style is quite rare in Norway, but that's where Red Harvest's debut Nomindsland comes in! Red Harvest would later be known for their strong industrial metal sound with dark atmosphere, harsh noise, and cold riffs. Nomindsland is a much different debut. This is avant-garde-ish progressive/technical thrash metal not too far off from Coroner and late 80s Voivod!

This thrash sound isn't too surprising considering the band started in the late 80s as a Slayer tribute band called Arctic Thunder. After switching to a more original band known as Red Harvest, they stormed in with some demos, combating the mainstream menace as they stood by the Norwegian thrash sound of their fellow countrymen Equinox. As the original classic thrash dies out in the year 1992, these original innovators from Scandinavia are determined to have that dream rolling one more time. And they twist it up to with some avant-progressive metal as they strive for uniqueness.

"The Cure" kickstarts the album and lets listeners know that not everything that year is grunge/groove metal, there is still classic thrash with a mighty progressive turn. The avant-garde aspects arrive with a flamenco bridge in the middle to spice up this grand opener. Aggression should also be expected in the sharp riffs and leads, though you can find catchy choruses worth singing along to. "Righteous Majority" continues running the thrash bullet-train while having a bit of the progressive atmosphere that another Norwegian prog-metal band In the Woods would later have. "Acid" has the more abstract sound of Equinox, keeping up the progressive thrash dissonance. The frantic rhythms and catchy choruses will surely delight fans of the sound.

"No Next Generation" actually hints at a bit of the industrial metal the band would switch to and Deathstars would also later be known for. "Machines Way" reminds me a bit of Sadus in the thrashy parts. "(Live & Pay) The Holy Way" is a true avant-garde tech-thrash highlight, especially in the second half to reminds some of Mekong Delta.

What confuses me a bit is the idea of sneaking in "Crackman", a one-minute hardcore track, but it's still OK. "Face the Fact" is just straight up technical thrash from the get-go, a Coroner-like masterpiece of a song. The closing track "Wrong Arm of the Law" is another short eclectic hardcore track. It certainly repels a few of the more strict listeners, but nonetheless, it's a good way out.

Red Harvest had a much different stylistic nature that their more famous era. Regardless of that change, it's great to look back at the old-school as much as you can enjoy the modern stuff. Nomindsland shows the band's strength even when they didn't yet have the industrial sound that carves their name in stone!

Favorites: "The Cure", "Righteous Majority", "Acid", "(Live & Pay) The Holy Way", "Face the Fact"

I've tried! I've tried to get into Oomph!, but what do I expect? It's just the unsettling and barely understandable (for me) German industrial rock/metal subgenre Neue Deutsche Härte that has ended up popular via Rammstein. Still, Wunschkind (German for "Desired Child") is quite heavy in both music and lyrics.

As we only go through the songs I truly like, "Born-Praised-Kissed" starts with an innocent music box before you hear guitar heaviness everywhere. The title track has that kind of riffing too! Guitars and synths are blended together in dark atmosphere. However, it's not something you should be bring to dance parties because of the dark mood and slamming heaviness. The instrumentals might have better potential though...

"Wälsungenblut" (Blood) is the more interesting of the two interludes, having a didgeridoo and choir. One song really worth talking about is "Krüppel" (Cripple). Dero's vocals sound close to growling as he details a story about getting kicked, punched, crippled... basically getting beaten up by vicious bullies. Now this is the Oomph I need in the lyrics that are heavy as the gradually distorted music. The emotion is what makes the song special in its own right. Sadly, there's no later song like that in this album. The other interlude "Filthy Playground" has piano to add to the sad mood of the concept.

The songs I've mentioned make me understand why fans of German industrial metal see Wunschkind as a classic. However, I just can't get into a lot of this band or other Neue Deutsche Härte bands like Rammstein, Megaherz, and Eisbrecher. I'm fan of industrial metal, but NDH still ain't for me....

Favorites: "Born-Praised-Kissed", "Wunschkind", "Wälsungenblut", "Krüppel", "Filthy Playground"

OK, this one is slightly better that the previous album. Defekt has heavier guitars and drums, and more powerful vocals that have more shouting than singing. There are some more songs that are pretty cool, including the lyrics, despite still using German often.

However, not all of the songs are any good, so I'll just talk about the ones that are, starting with one of the best here, "Willst Du Hoffnung?" (Do You Want Hope?). Another track "Hast Du Geglaubt?" (Did You Believe?) has a more experimental vibe almost like what Dir En Grey would have a few years later at the other side of the globe. Perhaps the true best of the album is "Come and Kick Me". I don't have much words to describe its beauty!

"Mitten Ins Herz" (Right in the Heart) continues that experimental vibe. "Your Love Is Killing Me" sounds strangely like 2000-era Embodyment in the clean-sung verses, but then the usual heaviness is still around. Another one of my favorites is the 7-minute closing title track, ending the album in amazing young genius!

As heavy as this music is, it doesn't measure up to bands that I like such as Hatebreed. Fans of Rammstein, and to a lesser extent Slipknot, might dig this....

Favorites (only ones I like): "Willst Du Hoffnung?", "Hast Du Geglaubt?", "Come and Kick Me", "Mitten Ins Herz", "Your Love Is Killing Me", "Defekt"

Need some Oomph in your German industrial rock/metal? I don't. The idea of producing a German mix of the industrial of the Laibach, the metal of Pantera, and the in-between of Ministry doesn't cut it for me. Nonetheless, the then-newly created subgenre of Neue Deutsche Härte would motivate bands like Die Krupps and KMFDM to push their metal direction further and spawn the second NDH band and the most popular, Rammstein!

Only a few tracks in the album stand out for me, one of them being the best here, "Sex". Another good track is "Feiert das Kreuz" (Celebrate the Cross). "Breathtaker" is indeed what the title suggests. "Ich Bin Der Weg" (I'm the Way) is quite underrated and deserves some listening.

As interesting as it is to hear an innovative start of Neue Deutsche Härte, Sperm exemplifies why it's not for me. The lack of consistency in the writing, along with the German sex-ridden lyrics, can be a struggle most of the time. Nonetheless, I can witness how influential the album is at starting something different....

Favorites (only ones I like): "Sex", "Feiert das Kreuz", "Breathtaker", "Ich Bin Der Weg"

The 90s was when different possibilities were really expanding beyond metal's classic 80s genres. The decade started with the introduction of groove metal that, along with alt-metal and later nu metal, would take the place of thrash metal in the reign of fame. Then by the mid-90s, industrial metal has just ascended out of the underground and gained global prominence. Vocalist Patrik Wiren has covered all those metal tracks in earlier bands leading up to this one to vent his anger, Misery Loves Co.

The band formed around 1992/1993 and recorded a song for the compilation Extreme Close Up. Gaining some good reception as a result of that, the band consisting of Wiren, guitarists Örjan Örnkloo (who also does drum programming) and Michael Hahne (who also plays bass) and ready for some industrial action!

At the start of "My Mind Still Speaks", you already know what a great industrial metal journey this is gonna be. The abrasive metal guitars play through the vocal blend of the growls of death metal and the singing of alternative metal. "Kiss Your Boots" has heavy rhythm marching on. "Need Another One" is more of a goth/alt-metal ballad-ish song in which Wiren's singing make the softer sections sound like a more industrial HIM. "Sonic Attack" starts off in a ballad-like pace, then the sharp riffing aggression continues.

"This is No Dream" is a memorable heavy thrasher in this industrial environment of theirs. "Happy?" is another ballad-like song. Wiren sings an excellent chorus over guitars as bleak as Ministry at that time. Then there's the FX-ridden intermission "Scared".

The dynamic "I Swallow" is a heavy pounder with a bit of melody. Next up, "Private Hell" is a winning standout with sharp riffing especially in the chorus. "The Only Way" is pleasantly aggressive, as the fast guitars can level up a mosh pit quite well along with the p*ssed-off vocals. I enjoy the headbanging heaviness that occurs in "2 Seconds", having some of that 90s groove to end this industrial metal ride.

After released two more albums, the band split up during the millennium turn. He could've reformed his earlier thrash band Midas Touch to keep up with the thrash rebirth, but that didn't happen. Misery Loves Co. didn't return until 2016. Still the band's 1995 debut is quite interesting and has made up for classic-era metal's temporary death....

Favorites: "My Mind Still Speaks", "Need Another One", "This is No Dream", "I Swallow", "Private Hell", "2 Seconds"

It's interesting how the creators of the first side of Napalm Death's Scum, known as the founding album of grindcore, would go on to make their own industrial metal acts. Justin Broadrick would focus on Godflesh, and Mick Harris and Nick Bullen would create... SCORN.

The debut album from this project fits well at home in the Earache label. Although Vae Solis mostly shows its industrial direction, there are slight traces of thrashy death metal that Harris was moving away from for the project. This is heard vocally from Bullen's growls though they're not too far from Broadrick's vocals. Also giving the album a Godflesh vibe is the guitar contributions from Broadrick. However, most of what happens in the album is strong spacey ambience with occasional reverb within the metal.

"Spasm" rolls with a bit of thrash similar to Meshuggah at that time, while staying firmly in industrial metal. One of the more basic Godflesh-sounding tracks is "Suck and Eat You". There's more of the fast thrash in "Hit", having a great connection to Napalm Death in the band's punky side rather than their hyperspeed.

There's some extra percussion used in "Walls of My Heart". The single "Lick Forever Dog" is not really worth DJ usage but it's one of the best of the album. "Thoughts of Escape" is another Godflesh-like tune. The exceptional "Deep in - Eaten Over and Over" is one of the most dreadful-sounding tracks I've heard in industrial metal, almost like funeral doom before the genre was fully developed, though some might be reminded more of Swans than Skepticism. A solid break from the fast pounders!

"On Ice" is a bit sh*tty but still OK. "Heavy Blood" is more mid-paced, but it slowly rises in heaviness, sounding like Godflesh at that time mixed with one of the slower and more melodic Fear Factory ballads. The album rating would've been higher if not for the filler CD bonus tracks, which I don't wanna mention, and the only one of the bonus tracks I enjoy is "Scum After Death". Napalm Death fans might recognize the opening bass from their song "Scum". The 3 voice samples that appear in the song are from I Drink Your Blood: "Do we pray?" "Satan was an acid head." "Together we'll all freak out!"

Bullen's vocals are what stand out in the original tracks, ranging from direct singing to deathly snarls. Again I would've given the album a higher rating if I was only rating the LP edition, which is filled with decently solid industrial metal that can sometimes be brutal or ambient....

Favorites: "Hit", "Lick Forever Dog", "Deep in - Eaten Over and Over", "Heavy Blood", "Scum After Death"

Just when the Christian metal scene seemed to start dying down, with the temporary split-ups of metalcore bands like As I Lay Dying and Underoath, the deathly progressive metal side has boosted it back up with Extol's first comeback! This excellent memorable band reappeared with their first album in 8 years since The Blueprint Dives.

What's noticeable about the band's self-titled album is, the harsh vocals are back in full usage after their singing-dominated previous album, not just the growling side but also the blackened shrieks of the awesome Burial. That and the usual cleans help maintain the deathly progressive balance. Once again, the guitarwork is technical as h*ll, fitting with the drumming speed and tempo changes expected in progressive metal, not to mention the breakdowns having some flavor.

"Betrayal" is the perfect starting track, with a sense of danger and chaos to give you motivation in life. "Open the Gates" opens the deathly progressiveness further in the structure. "Wastelands" follows suit. "A Gift Beyond Human Reach" is a well-done composition of mind-f***ing drumming and riffs.

"Faltering Moves" is almost an extension to the Undeceived instrumental "Where Sleep is Rest", this time with vocals. None of Extol's songs are weak in any way, but "Behold the Sun" comes close. I can't stand the barbershop vocalizing appearing often, and it's because of that this album is a half-star missing from perfection. Following this is "Dawn of Redemption", an acoustic interlude in a similar vein to Synergy's "Aperture", a gentle break from the punishing heaviness.

"Ministers" throws back greatly to the band's earlier style from the late 90s era. The title track can indeed be considered the band's theme song, looking back at all different eras, mostly Undeceived. Enjoyable but slightly predictable. It segues to the twisty "Unveiling the Obscure", in which the Yes-ish vocal harmonies are much better performed.

Once again, Extol knows how to make an extreme progressive journey, as demonstrated in their 2013 album. They certainly sound more mature than they were previously. While it can't beat the perfect glory of their earlier material, there's no doubting the amount of death/progressive metal fans digging this offering. Anyone who thinks metal can't be Christian is dead wrong. As we wait for the band's next album to come after over a decade-long gap, enjoy this progressive adventure I would highly recommend!

Favorites: "Betrayal", "Open the Gates", "A Gift Beyond Human Reach", "Ministers", "Unveiling the Obscure"

My first experience with technical progressive metallers Extol was when I checked out The Blueprint Dives two and a half years before this review. That album is an alt-ish prog-metal masterpiece. But somehow it wasn't until a year later when I finally embraced the greatness of their discography. Many of their albums are so f***ing perfect! And I'm not kidding about that; Burial and Undeceived are a one-two punch of atmospheric technical/progressive death metal, the latter expanding on that sound with complex ideas. Their catalog has truly made this band an unstoppable force!

Now here we are at their 2003 album Synergy. It is the band's first move to a different style from their earlier deathly sound, taking on more melodic thrash. This change of sound has turned away some earlier fans while winning some new fans who wanted to hear the continuation of progressive/tech-thrash after bands who have attempted that style in the early/mid-90s have faded out. It's safe to say that Extol took a lot of inspiration from fellow Christian progressive thrashers Believer. If Extol kept going with the violins from their deathly first two albums, they could've easily made "Dies Irae 2.0". At least they had first shown their Believer influences in songs like "And I Watch" and their cover of "Shadow of Death". Extol have executed their tech-thrash sound very well in Synergy, with only a fairly short amount of death remaining.

From "Grace for Succession" on, stunning guitars leap around, with ideas extracted from the 1990/1991 albums of Believer and Coroner. The harsh vocals continue their blackened death range, while the cleans have sweet flavor as they shine in the Opeth-like mellow sections. Tech-thrash reaches its height in "Paradigms" which also has lovely female singing by Maria Solheim. "Psychopath" has psychotic shredding and rhythms, while continuing the amazing blend of technical heaviness and more of that Opeth atmosphere. "Blood Red Cover" has more melodic progressiveness ala Fates Warning, hinting at Extol's direction in The Blueprint Dives.

"26 Miles from Marathon" is a fast riff marathon as different speeds collide. You can definitely hear some early 90s Atheist there, especially in the technical labyrinth that then leads to searing shredding. "Confession of Inadequacy" continues the progressive thrash, though they switch from rhythmic aggression to serene balladry for one section. Then we have a full-on thrash attack in "Scraping the Surface". They get closer to their early deathly drama while having some of the operatic drama of Arcturus.

The thrashy diversity sounds so excellent in the somewhat title track "Thrash Synergy". The technical guitarwork definitely has Believer all over, though the speed slows down when they have more psychedelia. "Aperture" is a nice acoustic break from all that madness. Then "Emancipation" snaps you back to riffing aggression while having slight balladry, followed by more of that Atheist-like guitar versatility. "Nihilism 2002" combines the best of both of Extol's worlds with a tech-death/thrash blizzard, then this progressive offering ends with the last bit of psychedelic soloing fading out.

As of this review, I had already reviewed The Blueprint Dives a long time ago and will take on their self-titled comeback album next. But for now, Synergy has really shown the band dialing back the deathly brutality for some dynamic progressive tech-thrash with some Rush-like psychedelics. It also shows an early hint of the accessibility of The Blueprint Dives. There's barely anything awkward about Synergy, and Extol shall continue to delight their audience from time to time!

Favorites: "Grace for Succession", "Psychopath", "26 Miles from Marathon", "Scraping the Surface", "Thrash Synergy", "Nihilism 2002"

Extol was formed in 1993, the year Atheist, Pestilence, and Cynic released their respective prog/tech-death classics. After those bands' activity came to a halt the following year, Extol started expanding the sound left behind, beginning on a more deathly note. Back then, one of the only other Christian death metal bands was Mortification, whose lead vocalist/bassist Steve Rowe signed them to his record label for a 1996 compilation album. This would then lead to their fantastic debut Burial, followed by their second one Undeceived, which expands their sound much further and surpasses the debut by a slight point! While the extreme brutality is still there, dark insane progressiveness takes the lead. There's more prominent violin and cello in some tracks that make the doomy sections sound like My Dying Bride.

Undeceived sounds as if those Christian musicians were hypnotized to take their violent anger out on playing their instruments. The harmonic techniques stand together at once. The fury comes from the power God blessed them with. The preaching lyrics are a little stretchy, but they fit well for the implied battle between God and Satan. The clean singing by guitarist Ole Børud is quite pleasant, and they touch upon the more melodic progressive metal bands like Leprous. They also put the vocal scale in balance together with the growled vocals by Peter Espevoll.

The first track "Inferno" is a beautiful start, especially with the violins in the intro. The title track is a brilliant highlight and might just go down as one of my favorite songs in all of progressive metal. It has everything from the classical intro to deathly aggression, powerful vocals, and thrashy soloing. It's a shame they would completely discard violins from Synergy onwards. Still I'm glad to hear them in all its beauty and bliss. "Time Stands Still" is similarly structured, this time starting with medieval-ish acoustic before the violent storm. "Ember" is another memorable track, and where Børud starts singing his clean vocals. It should be noted that he has had two decades of experience before this album, starting off in a children's singing group.

"Meadows of Silence" is a relaxing acoustic interlude as a nice break from the heaviness. Then "Shelter" has a slower pace that almost reminds of the more sludgy Neurosis. "A Structure of Souls" is a well-structured highlight, once again having Børud take the front stage. "Of Light and Shade" attacks with more of a progressive melodeath sound closer to what Persefone and Insomnium would have a few years later. "Where Sleep Is Rest" is another interlude, this one having beautiful metallic melody that can compete with other progressive and non-progressive metal bands like Burst, Sikth, Sylosis, and Mercenary.

"Renewal" is another one of my favorite tracks in this album. The band can motivate you better than other bands can, especially when Børud's singing sounds inspiring. "Abandoned" is one more interlude that can fit well in a video game soundtrack. "And I Watch" seems to be shaped up by early Believer as well as Trail of Tears and Underoath at that time, thus stirring up another deathly classic to end this masterpiece!

Any non-metal person who thinks metal is the Devil's music would be proven wrong with bands like Extol. Christian metal is real and can be enjoyed by anyone, whether they're Christian or not, whether they're a metalhead or not. This band and their music shall never be forsaken!

Favorites: "Undeceived", "Ember", "A Structure of Souls", "Of Light and Shade", "Renewal", "And I Watch"

I'm not gonna lie, Extol is very much the true definition of Norwegian of black-ish progressive death metal. The more deathly metalheads can get their tech-death from bands like Suffocation and Nile, but I can get it from progressive masterpieces like Extol's debut Burial. One of the greatest albums of extreme technicality!

When it comes to progressive/technical death metal, extreme hyperspeed is often the key. Just as long as it remains progressive and not heading into too much of the brutal side. This album has all of that in savage fury. The heavy brutality also comes in contact with some melody and experimentation. Everything is blended together as it should be, and nothing is out of order.

"Into Another Dimension" is the intro that takes you through just that in a brief minute and a half, the way Into Eternity would but more extreme. It segues to the diverse blackened "Celestial Completion" that I enjoy. The insane title track follows through. "Renhetens Elv" (The River of Purity) is another blackened track with more folk.

The lyrics of God are more prominent in "Superior". Then "Reflections of a Broken Soul" continues the amazingness with more cleans and lyrics of depression. "Justified" takes on the Devil. "Embraced" shines with more heaviness and lyrics of depression.

"Innbydelse" (Invitation) starts off in the first minute sounding somewhere between doomy and almost a slam deathcore breakdown, and then launches into more of the black-ish tech-death. Sadness and sorrow covers "Tears of Bitterness" while maintaining the speed. "Work of Art" is exactly that! And a crushing one too. "Jesus Kom Til Jorden For Å Dø" (Jesus Came to World to Die) is a clean doomy hymn originally written by session keyboardist Arnold Børud, father of guitarist/clean vocalist Ole Børud.

All the extreme technicality you can find is in Extol's 1998 debut. It is one of my favorite albums of progressive/technical death metal, and it's just the start of the band's incredible discography. Extol can really show that extreme progressive greatness exists!

Favorites: "Celestial Completion", "Renhetens Elv", "Reflections of a Broken Soul", "Embraced", "Innbydelse", "Work of Art"

Imagine the look of shock on the faces of many Whitechapel fans when their ears first encounter this album. I didn't have the same feeling since it's only recently when I started listening to and paying attention to this band. They've had quite an active career for over a decade and a half, and since their debut, they've been known as one of the heaviest, toughest, breakdown-fueled deathcore bands around. Although the band's name and that debut album The Somatic Defilement is based on the infamous legend Jack the Ripper, I still enjoy their early brutal material, just as long as it's balanced out by the recent melodic direction. The Valley definitely puts the latter up in great use, suitable for vocalist Phil Bozeman's lyrics about the tragedies of his childhood. Their deathcore in that album is more melodic, atmospheric, and progressive than any of their earlier material, already hinting at a brand new tone the band would have in the following album...

For their new album Kin, the band still have their usual deathcore, all within the low-tuned guitars and bass, and explosive breakdowns. However, the writing here is simplistic yet dramatically detailing more of Bozeman's feelings of his young struggles. The music is actually radio-friendly rather than made for the deathly underground. Once again, they really bring the tone down and became a much different band from the one that made their debut album. This is different from other bands such as Carnifex and Job for a Cowboy that both also released their deathcore debut album in 2007. The former stuck with their blackened deathcore sound, while the latter switched to prog-death. Kin shows Whitechapel taking on more of a progressive/alternative metal sound for the most part, it's not really bad at all. It's something wonderful to embrace!

The opening song "I Will Find You" already makes their new sound clear by combining the distorted heaviness with beautiful cleanliness. Up next is "Lost Boy" which brings back some of the band's earlier intensity, especially in the drumming. "A Bloodsoaked Symphony" is the closest the band has gone to deathcore in this album. The typical heaviness of that genre can be heard again in the drumming, though in a djenty marching pace. "Anticure" is a perfect emotional lament. It kinda reminds me of some of the slower ballad-like Trivium songs!

"The Ones That Made Us" then showcases a bit of the heavier side of Trivium mixed with All Shall Perish. "History is Silent" is another wholesome power ballad. "To the Wolves" leans into a melodeath-groove combo to remind some of DevilDriver, including a melodic and technical guitar solo.

I must admit, "Orphan" is quite a tear-jerker. Bozeman's vocals and lyrics sound so emotional, though the music is a little too soft with barely any steam and no crushing heaviness at all. "Without You" has nothing going on except serene acoustic guitar. "Without Us" mixes clean atmosphere with stomping djenty deathcore aggression. Don't expect too much viciousness in the title track, with the first half being practically acoustic. However, the second half reprises the melodeath heaviness in the instrumentation.

All in all, we get to hear more about Bozeman's journey to fight the demons of his past. Kin can be a bit bumpy in some places, but the experience is never heavily soiled, unlike a couple ugly mid-2010s albums. Kin is a pleasant surprise, and I hope in the future, Whitechapel can take this new direction to the next level....

Favorites: "I Will Find You", "Anticure", "The Ones That Made Us", "To the Wolves", "Without Us"

Since the mid-2000s, Whitechapel has proven themselves to be a true developer in deathcore, a metalcore genre so extreme yet controversial in the metal community. As much of a plague people might consider the genre, it's innovative forces like Whitechapel that lessen the bad rep deathcore has gained. The more brutal bands Carnifex and Job for a Cowboy have taken their brutal aggression from Whitechapel's earlier albums that in turn have some Suffocation influence...

Recently, however, the extreme aggression in their sound became much less. Their usual deathcore is still around in Our Endless War and Mark of the Blade, but those albums marked the beginning of the band's more progressive djenty side, especially in the latter album. Longtime fans hated this softer direction, especially they go far into clean singing. Personally, though I like the more melodic clean moments, it's the djenty side (which I normally like) that's in the wrong. It's too over-the-top and experimental for the band's standards. 3 years later, the band fix everything with The Valley. It's more progressive yet the heavier riffing is brought back to form. An excellent balance!

Starting this journey is "When a Demon Defiles a Witch", in which they continue to shine with their usual deathcore at its d*mn heaviest here! Right after the short acoustic intro is when you experience the fast aggression of the drums and guitars. And there's more of that chaos to come... "Forgiveness Is Weakness" returns to more of the band's earlier sound. "Brimstone" takes on the band's more groove-ish side. Power ballad "Hickory Creek" is definitely different, the first song by the band to be entirely clean-sung.

"Black Bear" is more of a groove/nu metal-ish track a bit like Korn in the riffing. However, it's so catchy, unlike in the previous two albums that didn't mix right. "We Are One" once again throws back to the classic sound, with some incredible soloing. "The Other Side" has more of that groove.

"Third Depth" can switch from clean to heavy without being too abrupt. You can also hear the bass sounding more audible and muddy in a nice way. It's a beautiful heavy sludge-ish tune that has put the deathcore sound to a halt. The sludge continues in "Lovelace" while keeping the deathcore fury. "Doom Woods" isn't the band's first rodeo when it comes to 6-minute epics. This time, it's a doomy deathcore track similar to what The Acacia Strain were going for that year. Could've been more fulfilling though...

At last, the solid production is back on! Mark Lewis, who has produced albums by bands like Trivium, helped the band bring back the earlier greatness. It's like the sound of the previous two albums has been enhanced and mixed with their earlier days. The old and new are combined in The Valley, bringing the band's glory back to their fans' lives!

Favorites: "When a Demon Defiles a Witch", "Forgiveness Is Weakness", "Hickory Creek", "We Are One", "Third Depth"