Daniel's Forum Replies

I've just passed this one Andi.

I've just passed this one Andi.

I've passed this one Andi as the release now qualifies.

The second example of stoner metal to hit the streets also came from the "Black Sabbath" album in the very popular "N.I.B.".

It's absolutely baffling that people continue to tag this song as heavy metal because it sounds absolutely nothing like it to me. The wah-wah bass intro from Geezer Butler leads us into a song that's built on a groovy stoner stomp of a main riff with Butler continuing to utilize his wah-wah throughout the song. There's an obvious psychedelic feel to this song which is clearly heavily influenced by Jimi Hendrix. This is particularly evident in Iommi's trills, phrasing & ab lib as well as his doubled guitar solos which are layered over some lovely, warm progressive work from the rhythm section. It all sounds so late 60's to me which makes it a stellar weed-smoking track (trust me on this, I know from a wealth of first-hand experience). This is certainly not doom metal or heavy metal. With its bass-heavy production job, "N.I.B." feels so comfortable with a stoner tag but it was actually a pretty close call as to whether I went with stoner metal or stoner rock. At the end of the day it was really only the pronounced rhythmic component to the main riff that gives it the additional head-banging potential required to get it over the line for metal qualification.

OK, so you'll be relieved to hear that there's not gonna be any surprises to kick this journey off. Black Sabbath's signature title track was unquestionably the earliest example of a doom metal track. No, not heavy metal. Genuine doom metal. Well.... what's known as traditional doom metal on some other websites to be fair. Let's take a look at why, shall we?

The low tempos, crushingly heavy main riff & phenomenally dark atmosphere of the first four & a half minutes of this classic metal anthem justify a doom metal tag without any case for challenging. The remainder of the song sees that tag moving more into the traditional doom metal space than the pure doom metal one with the more up-tempo section from 4:37-5:15 clearly being the source of inspiration for Iron Maiden's signature heavy metal gallop & the final one-minute crescendo being a complete heavy psych workout. This was obviously doom metal's origin as far as I'm concerned.

I apologize if I was a bit blunt there Rex. What I meant was that the thread is not intended to discuss the differences between stoner metal & traditional doom metal at length. I only raised that topic as people have a bad habit of mistagging a lot of the early stoner metal material as traditional doom metal or heavy metal simply because the stoner metal genre wasn't yet defined so I wanted to clarify any misunderstandings around the meaning of those terms from the offset. The real intention of this thread (& several others to come) is to showcase the results of many months of research from myself on the earliest roots of metal & I wanted us to get stuck into that instead of dwelling on the traditional doom metal vs stoner metal argument. Ben & I have always intended Metal Academy to be educational & to challenge the accepted consensus on metal-related topics so this is a part of trying to expand on that idea while giving us a greater point of difference.

This morning's track is Scorpions' "He's a Woman - She's a Man" which is a clear heavy metal song in my opinion:

Thanks for clarifying Rex but you're kinda hijacking the intended direction of the thread here so I'm just gonna move on.

The almost unanimous consensus in the world of metal is that Black Sabbath's title song was the first genuine metal song ever written & there's no reason to dispute that but whether it was the first genuine metal song ever RELEASED is another thing altogether. You see, Black Sabbath's self-titled album was originally released on 13th February 1970 but most people probably aren't aware that there was a 7" single released prior to the album's release date in "Evil Woman" which hit the shelves more than a month earlier on 9th January 1970. The A side features a hard rock cover version of Crow's "Evil Woman, Don't Play Your Games With Me" which could never be mistaken for a metal tune & would appear on the English version of the "Black Sabbath" album. The B side "Wicked World" (an original track which would appear in place of "Evil Woman" on the US version of "Black Sabbath") was another story altogether though & represents the true beginning of metal music in my opinion (at least from a proper recorded release perspective).

When taken holistically "Wicked World" is still more rock than it is metal but the main verse riff has clear ties to metal & is significant enough in how the song plays out to justify a dual tagging in my opinion. I mean, it's the clear centrepiece & focal point & is the element that generally springs to mind when you think about "Wicked World", isn't it? Let's take a look at the track in more detail:

"Wicked World" begins in pure blues rock territory for most of the first minute with pentatonic blues licks & a jazzy swing beat.

Things change significantly at 1:05 though when the doomy verse riff arrives which is still built on blues rock concepts borrowed from tracks like Cream's "Sunshine Of My Love". The thing that differentiates this riff from the blues rock crowd though is the introduction of palm-muted, bottom-string chugging at 1:05 which immediately put things into metal territory. I'm guessing that the inspiration for that came from Led Zeppelin's "Communication Breakdown" although Sabbath's version is much heavier given the darker tone & the doomier feel.

Then at 2:15 we see the introduction of a psychedelic arpeggio section.

At 2:56 Tony Iommi launches into an unaccompanied hard rock solo which is highly reminiscent of Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love".

The eerie feedback of the outro once again feels like psychedelic rock.

So, we have blues rock, metal & psychedelic rock all thrown in together which immediately points to the two genres discussed earlier in the thread. The song is far too bluesy to be tagged as heavy metal & it's not consistently doomy enough to be classed as doom metal either with the heavy metal chugging in the main riff giving it a more up-tempo rhythmic feel. That leaves a stoner rock/metal tag as the best fit given that it covers all of the elements on display & the verse riff possesses that druggy sway that's so commonly associated with stoner. This makes "Wicked World" not only the earliest example of the stoner metal genre but also the earliest metal song to receive a proper release.

I have to disagree with a few of those comments Rex:

The length of a track has no impact on whether you're listening to a doom metal song or not as far as I'm concerned. You can easily have a three-minute doom track as the genre is all about tempo & atmosphere rather than length. The same goes for any other metal subgenre too actually, even progressive metal. Music is about sound & atmosphere. Not duration.

Traditional doom metal is a form of doom metal that's diluted with late 60's & 1970's hard rock, blues rock, heavy psych &/or heavy metal influence & sometimes the use of faster tempos during parts of a given track. This is because the doom metal sound first appeared during a time when metal was still very much in its development so there was more of an anything goes approach. I wouldn't say that it's exclusively about a heavy metal component (despite what RYM may tell you) although many of the early trad doom albums have genuine heavy metal tracks included which muddies the waters further.

Stoner metal doesn't have to be "fuzzy". It does generally have to have a thick, bass-heavy tone similar to doom metal though which is where the links to doom come in as stoner bands often sound like a doom band from an aesthetic point of view, even if the riffs aren't always slow. One of the things that a lot of metalheads miss with stoner metal is that it's just as much about the groovy riffs as it is the psychedelia too. There is definitely a trademark curvy stoner riff style that is immediately identifiable & dictates that a track is stoner metal even if there's no fuzz or psychedelia whatsoever. If you want an example then play Ben a stoner metal track & wait for him to cringe. That's simply his reaction to stoner metal riffs as he has very little tolerance for them.

Anyway... a lot of this will become much clearer as this thread progresses (as well as another couple that I'm planning to start for some other genres/subgenres).

Just checked out the 1978 "Oh, što te volim, joj" debut album from Boznian outfit Vatreni poljubac. I found that there were a few genuine metal tracks included but it was significantly more hard rock than it is metal so it didn't qualify for inclusion here.

Maybe if it were a little shorter (not that it wasn't already perfect), it would've dethroned Karma as my top spiritual jazz album, or even In a Silent Way for my top jazz album period.

Quoted Rexorcist

For the record, "In A Silent Way" is my favourite release of all time for any genre... period.

Hhhmmmm.... this sounds very exciting given how much I enjoyed Darkthrone's last album "Astral Fortress". I'd suggest that I shall be partaking in this one at some point.

The brand new "Ghosthouse in the Nightmare City" E.P. from New York industrial metallers Uniform hit the streets yesterday. I really dug their 2020 "Shame" album but haven't tried out anything else they've done to date so this might be an opportunity for me.

Here's my newly adjusted Top Ten Teutonic Thrash Metal Releases of All Time list that now includes Protector's "A Shedding of Skin" at the expense of Destruction's "Release From Agony":

01. Kreator - "Pleasure To Kill" (1986)

02. Kreator - "Flag Of Hate" E.P. (1986)

03. Kreator - "Coma Of Souls" (1990)

04. Kreator - "Extreme Aggression" (1989)

05. Protector - "A Shedding of Skin" (1991)

06. Exumer - "Rising Of The Sea" (1987)

07. Sodom - "Better Off Dead" (1990)

08. Sodom - "Persecution Mania" (1987)

09. Sodom - "Agent Orange" (1989)

10. Kreator - "Live Kreation" (2003)

https://metal.academy/lists/single/93

Here's my review:

The 1994 debut album "The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" from super-popular English symphonic black metal phenomenon Cradle of Filth is an interesting one for me personally, mainly because it sits fairly obviously in a stylistic space that I generally steer well clear of yet it somehow managed to slip under my radar & make an impact on my life nonetheless. You see, I was already an obsessive tape trader at the time when it first arrived so I was aware of Cradle of Filth through their 1992/93 demo tapes "Orgiastic Pleasures Foul" & "Total Fucking Darkness", both which showcased a much stronger death metal component. Neither were very good though to be fair but when "The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" hit the shelves it presented itself in a shroud of romantic gothicism that left an eighteen-year old me salivating at the potential it held. The images of the band that were floating around only added to my fascination & I found myself parting with my hard-earned cash for the CD well before the masses had gotten onboard the raging, out-of-control Cradle of Filth train. The front cover was so beautiful with its gloriously curvy & gothic moniker that I also found myself purchasing a t-shirt that sported the cover artwork so I'd invested quite a bit in the band without really understanding what the music was gonna do for me. When I finally came to grips with the album as a piece of art though, it didn't really grab me as much as I'd hoped, despite being a generally enjoyable listen. Cradle of Filth would go on to become bigger & bigger with each successive release but, after 1996's "Dusk and Her Embrace" sophomore record, I would find myself moving further & further away from them from a creative perspective, even if I'd inevitably give many of their future releases a listen in order to satisfy the obsessive completist in me. I have to admit though, it's been decades since I last listened to "The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" now & I'm fairly interested to see how it's held up (or if it even does anything for me at all) in more modern times.

"The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" dropped at a time when the black metal scene was just about to explode onto the global stage following two years of immense drama & controversy in Norway. The more significant & commercialized overseas metal media (Kerrang, Metal Hammer, etc.) had now gotten wind of the events (not to mention the quality of the music) & were now splashing it across their magazine covers in an attempt to cash in on the mania so when Cradle of Filth popped up with the most theatrical sound & image the world had yet seen to the time it gave the media a brand new crossover hero that could draw in a lucrative new audience that would touch on places that the imposing Norwegian bands had not been capable of. The overly romantic vampiric images would become a major drawcard for young females & goths which, of course, would bring with it a procession of horny young dudes like me. Trust me... I'm not complaining at all because I had some wonderful times with some pretty hot goth chicks when Neuropath was just finding its feet in the Sydney metal scene & I doubt I would have had that opportunity if not for Cradle of Filth so thank you very much Cradle but I'm digressing a bit now so let's get start digging into the actual music now, shall we?

I remember heading into my first listen to "The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" with great eagerness given just how much the imagery appealed to my young obsession with old gothic novels but also recall being slightly disappointed on first listen. The album certainly didn't sound anything like Bathory, Burzum or Darkthrone. This was a much cleaner & more accessible sounding form of black metal than I was used to &, looking back on it now, you can see that it was highly influential in that regard with a plethora of other more commercially successful black metal acts following suit in the years to come. I wasn't so sure I was a fan of the idea personally but I'd just forked out on not only the CD but also a t-shirt so I needed to get my money's worth. I'd give the album a whole bunch of listens over the next few weeks & would find that there was more to it than I'd first thought with it eventually digging its vampiric teeth into me, admittedly not quite deep enough to see it becoming something that I'd feel the urge to return to regularly in the future.

It's interesting to listen to the album now with more educated & mature ears because it's enabled me to pick up on some things that I may not have previously. Firstly, "The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" is generally tagged as a melodic black metal release but I have to admit that I don't see it personally. There's not much in the way of guitar harmonies here with most of the riffs being structured in a more standard black metal configuration. The use of keyboards is significant but not enough to justify the symphonic black metal label that Cradle of Filth would become synonymous with over the years either. To my ears, Cradle of Filth's debut album is best positioned next to gothic black metal bands like Opera IX, Graveworm & Theatres des Vampires because the gothic elements are really very significant in the overall feel & aesthetic of the music & imagery. I was genuinely surprised by just how big a role My Dying Bride has played in the direction of the album too because there are a whole bunch of references to them here, particularly in the slower sections which are some of the stronger parts of the album in my opinion. The appearance of Anathema/The Blood Divine front man Darren White on a song or two was also welcome, particularly given my Anathema obsession at the time. Sure, we have a lot of standard black metal riffs on offer here but Cradle of Filth also stretch the boundaries of the genre a little further with some movements breaking out of the confines of the strict black metal model to explore more creative & atmospheric terrains with some of the most effective tracks on "The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" not even being metal at all. In fact, my favourite piece on the record is surprisingly one of the neoclassical darkwave tracks in "One Final Graven Kiss" while my other highlight is a short ambient work by the name of "In Secret Love We Drown" so there's more to this record than meets the eye.

There are a few things that bother me about "The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" however. Dani Filth's screechy vocals aren't the most appealing you'll find in black metal & I've never thought he was all that special to be honest. The keyboards of Benjamin Ryan (The Blood Divine) can cross over the border into cheesy territory on occasion too & do ruin a few of the riffs. The guitar solos of axemen Paul Allender & Paul Ryan (both of The Blood Divine) aren't very special & strangely sit way further back in the mix than they should too. In fact, the guitars in general should be a little further towards the front of the mix with the keyboards being much more prominent. The rhythm section of bassist Robin Graves & legendary drummer Nicholas Barker (Twilight of the Gods/Ancient/Atrocity/Brujeria/Dimmu Borgir/Lock Up/Old Man's Child/Sadistic Intent/Shining/Testament) are the real drawcards here though with Graves' basslines representing arguably the most rewarding component of the album for me personally. Barker's blast-beat sections are quite simple but are generally very effective in providing Cradle of Filth with their more brutal side.

The thirteen-song tracklisting is actually pretty consistent with only the final track "Summer Dying Fast" leaving me cold after several listens. None of the proper metal songs seem to me to be particularly classic though & it's this limitation as much as anything else that sees "The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" not making as indelible a mark on me as it did on many of my peers. As I previously mentioned, the highlight tracks tend to be the interludes for me personally with the better black metal songs never quite reaching the top rung. The best section of the album is undoubtedly the three-track run of "To Eve the Art of Witchcraft" into the doomy "Of Mist and Midnight Skies" into the gorgeous ambience of "In Secret Love We Drown". The rest of the metal songs tend to draw a "Yeah... not bad" response from me more than a "Fuck yeah!" to be honest.

So look, "The Principles of Evil Made Flesh" isn't a bad black metal release overall. There are certainly those kvlt elitists that will want to bring it down because of what it represents & I have to admit that I can see their point but it also brought something new & exciting to a scene that was no doubt taking itself a little too seriously at the time & it should be commended for that. The influence that it had as a gateway release for many people is nothing to scoff at either &, contrary to what many metalheads may think, we need those records in order to sustain our scene.

3.5/5

Today's track is Scorpions' "Your Light" which I'd suggest is hard rock:

I investigated the "Rehearsal (1978)" recordings from Los Angeles four-piece Tyrant this week & found that the thirteen-song demo more than qualifies as metal. Tyrant would famously change their moniker to Saint Vitus shortly afterwards (which was very a good move given the twenty-four other Tyrant's listed on Metal Archives) but I'd suggest that this is actually a genuine traditional doom metal release with hints at stoner metal & heavy metal. These recordings would later appear in identical format on the "Demo 1979" release (pictured below):

This morning's track is Scorpions' "The Sails of Charon" which certainly has shredding metallic lead guitar work but the riffs ultimately still tie it to hard rock:

If any of our The North members haven't seen this amazing documentary on Norwegian black metal then I'd strongly urge you to rectify that situation as it's essential viewing.

Sadus - "A Vision of Misery" (1992)

Californian thrash metallers Sadus became a pretty big deal for a teenage me after I discovered their 1988 debut album "Illusions" through an Albums Of The Year list that was published by legendary metal record store & promoter Metal For Melbourne some time in 1989. I was only fairly fresh to thrash at the time, having only cottoned onto Metallica in late 1988 through their classic fourth album "...And Justice For All", but my initial dealings with Slayer had seen something raw & primal explode inside of me shortly afterwards & I was now on the lookout for ever more vicious releases. Sadus' "Illusions" certainly ticked that box even if it may have been more of an attempt to emulate Slayer than it was genuine competition for them. 1990's "Swallowed in Black" sophomore album saw Sadus upping the ante on the technicality & creativity at the expense of a little bit of raw intensity & I found that I actually preferred their more complex sound. A muddy guitar tone didn't help their cause but once got word of the release of Sadus' 1992 third album "A Vision Of Misery" I immediately made a visit to the record store to pick up a copy on cassette. Since that time, I've always felt that "A Vision Of Misery" was Sadus' strongest record which doesn't seem to be that common a position amongst fans so I thought I'd give it a more detailed viewing in order to see if those are still my true feelings.

Sadus' third full-length was their most technical to the time with the individual band members all being at the peak of their powers. The rhythm section of fretless bass virtuoso Steve DiGiorgio (Charred Walls of the Damned/Terra Odium/Testament/Artension/Control Denied/Death/Dragonlord/Ephel Duath/James Murphy/Sebastian Bach/Soen/Autopsy) & drummer Jon Allen (Dragonlord/Testament) in particular play an absolute blinder with DiGiorgio confidently reiterating why he's still my favourite metal bass player all of time. The riffs of guitar duo Darren Travis & Rob Moore are very classy, often even hinting at a more progressive approach, while Travis' trademark raspy vocal delivery is as aggressive & screamy as we'd come to expect from him. Bill Metoyer's production job is definitely worth mentioning though as it's a little unusual & seems to have been tailored to highlight the rhythm section with the guitars being a touch less in-your-face than I would have liked. It seems to work though, perhaps on the strength of DiGiorgio's amazing performance alone.

The tracklisting kicks off in stunning fashion with opener "Through the Eyes of Greed" being an outstanding example of the technical thrash metal subgenre. The band weren't done yet though as you'll find a number of other classics scattered across the album. "Machines" & "Echoes of Forever" are utterly brilliant & challenge "Good Rid'nz" from "Swallowed In Black" for Sadus' best work to the time. "Facelift" is also a favourte of mine & when you consider that there are no real lulls on this record you can see why I've awarded it such a high score. As much as I love Sadus' earlier work (including their excellent 1989 "Death To Posers" demo), "A Vision of Misery" simply takes me to another level & I consider it to sit amongst the best couple of releases to come out of the tech thrash subgenre overall. I honestly can't see too many Atheist, Coroner & Ripping Corpse fans not foaming at the mouth over this material so "A Vision of Misery" should be considered to be essential listening for any self-respecting member of The Pit.

4.5/5

Here's my adjusted Top Ten Technical Thrash Releases of All Time list with "A Vision of Misery" now overtaking "Swallowed in Black" to sit just behind Coroner who maintains the number one position:

01. Coroner – “Mental Vortex” (1991)

02. Sadus – “A Vision Of Misery” (1992)

03. Sadus - "Swallowed in Black" (1990)

04. Coroner – “No More Color” (1989)

05. Hellwitch - "Syzygial Miscreancy" (1990)

06. Cryptic Shift – “Visitations From Enceladus” (2020)

07. Ripping Corpse - "Dreaming With The Dead" (1991)

08. KAT - "Bastard" (1992)

09. Obliveon - "From This Day Forward" (1990)

10. Toxik – “World Circus” (1987)

https://metal.academy/lists/single/173

Unholy Redeemer - "A Fever to Dethrone All Kings" demo (2023)

This three-song demo CD is the latest release from my death metal band Neuropath's record label Sphere of Apparition Records & I was pleasantly surprised to receive a copy in the mail last week. Unholy Redeemer are an international collaboration project that draws together Danish vocalist Jens Pedersen (Cerekloth/Undergang) with two of my fellow Aussies in former Encabulos guitarist Steven Hull (i.e. the man behind the excellent "Devoured Death" zine which will include an interview with me in their next issue) & the very experienced Jarro Raphael of Nocturnal Graves/Cerekloth/Deströyer 666/Destruktor/Hobbs Angel of Death fame. You can expect to hear some well-executed, meat-&-potatoes, old-school death metal with a doomy atmosphere & some dark, cavernous vocals from Pedersen which I really dig. Don't expect anything terribly original from this release as that's simply not the intention but if you live for the grimy graveyard vibe of bands like Incantation then you won't be disappointed, particularly by closer "Halo of Flies" which is comfortably the highlight of the release. I enjoyed "A Fever to Dethrone All Kings" while I was listening to it but I can't see myself returning to it in the future as it simply doesn't present anything to differentiate itself from the pack.

3.5/5

Infester - "Darkness Unveiled" demo (1992)

I recently revisited the highly praised 1994 "To the Depths, in Degradation" album from Seattle death metallers Infester (a side project of goregrind outfit Meat Shits & more notably sporting drummer Dario Derna of Krohm/Ritual Chamber/Abazagorath/Drawn & Quartered/Evoken/Funebrarum fame) but found it to be pretty flat really. Infester's 1992 demo tape "Darkness Unveiled" seems to offer me a little more appeal these days although it's hardly essential. Think Incantation & Imprecation meets some of the less brutal early Suffocation material & you won't be far off the mark. There's a single of the same name that includes two of the four demo tracks floating around too & it's probably a touch more consistent than the demo due to the omission of the fairly weak "Afterbirth, the Meal"

3.5/5

Today's track is Scorpions' "The Riot of Your Time" which I regard as being hard rock:

Also, I checked out the 1978 single-track "Outer Space" demo tape from Swedish heavy metal outfit Spitfire this morning & was surprised to discover that it's close enough to traditional doom metal to justify being tagged that way.

Fixed.

Sinister - "Cross The Styx" (1992)

Not many people would know this but Dutch death metal outfit Sinister were a huge influence on me & my song-writing for my own death metal band Neuropath back in the early-to-mid 1990's. I've always been a sucker for the more brutal end of death metal & Sinister's debut album "Cross The Styx" came along at just the right time as it found me hungrily seeking out anything I could find in that space, fairly fresh from my discovery of artists like Suffocation & Cannibal Corpse in the previous couple of years. Sinister would no doubt go on to produce stronger albums than "Cross The Styx" in the near future but their first-up effort has never failed to excite me nonetheless as it possesses a rawer underground edge that will always appeal to an old tape trader like myself.

"Cross The Styx" is a full-throttle, no-holds-barred deathfest that was produced by a band that clearly owned a strong understanding of extreme metal. It's relentless in its attack on the listeners senses but, much like Cannibal Corpse, never quite crosses the line into what we now know as the brutal death metal subgenre. Their riffs are more catchy, the vocals are more monstrous & aggressive than they are consciously deep & gutteral & you shouldn't expect to hear any slam breakdowns either. Instead, I'd suggest that Sinister always had a lot more in common with bands like Deicide, Malevolent Creation & Monstrosity than they did Suffocation & Cryptopsy & that suits me just fine too (despite my obvious emotional attachment to the brutal death metal genre).

The musicianship on display isn't overly clinical although one gets the impression that the production job has as much to do with that as the chops of the instrumentalists because the performances sound pretty decent in isolation but when they're layered over the top of each other they tend to sound they're just managing to hold things together. The riffs are excellent though & when combined with some of the most powerful blast beats around you get a pretty imposing brand of death metal. The tracklisting is seriously consistent too with the whole 39-minute duration sitting at a very solid level. The thing that's lacking (& what differentiates "Cross The Styx" from its more classic follow-up "Diabolical Summoning") is the fact that only "Compulsory Resignation" manages to achieve the elite level. One gets the feeling that the material had more potential than that but perhaps the band was simply not quite ready to fill those shoes just yet.

"Cross The Styx" is a wonderful example of a committed & capable bunch of death metal fans creating a record that they'd really want to listen to themselves &, for that reason, it was always gonna appeal to someone like myself. The album made a significant impact on me from my first teenage listen & I recall there being a few months where I found myself consistently drawn back to it, perhaps more than the album's quality justifies too. I guess Sinister & I were simply reading from the same hymn book at that point. While 1993's "Diabolical Summoning" is clearly my favourite Sinister record & I've always had a lot of love for 1995's "Hate" (in fact, I used to wear a "Hate" t-shirt while performing on stage with Neuropath quite a lot), there's no doubt that "Cross The Styx" is a worthy additional to not only your death metal collection but also to the trio of essential releases from these Dutch death metal stalwarts.

4/5

Grave - "You'll Never See..." (1992)

My introduction to Swedish death metallers Grave came through their 1991 debut album "Into The Grave" back in the early 1990's but, while I certainly found it to be an enjoyable listen, I don't think it's ever been a record that I felt like returning to all that often, potentially because there are simply better examples of the classic Swedish BOSS HM-2 pedal-driven death metal sound out there. Grave's 1992 sophomore album was a different story though. Neuropath vocalist Mark Wangmann tossed me a dubbed cassette version of it in early 1993 &, even though Grave hadn't altered their sound all that much from "Into The Grave", they'd completed some notable improvements all the same & I immediately found it to be a little more addicitve. "You'll Never See..." would go on to receive regular spins from me that year & I still regard it as Grave's best album to this day. Strangely though... no Metal Academy rating from me as yet. Let's see what we can about that, shall we?

The most obvious differentiator between Grave's first two albums is the overall professionalism of the package. The self-produced record certainly possesses that classic Sunlight Studios sound although it's a touch cleaner than many of its competitors & never at the expense of being crushingly heavy. I think this approach has worked an absolute treat &, when combined with some improved levels of musicianship, it enables Grave to sound like a well-oiled machine. Some may view the simplicity of the riff & song structures as a negative but I find that there's a catchiness to the song-writing & an energy in the performances that enables the band to overcome the basic compositional work. The ultra-deep death growls of front man Jorgen Sandstrom are the clear focal point of "You'll Never See..." which can only be a good thing as he does a stellar job of his chosen craft. The use of those bouncy 1-2 beats that Ben & I have always struggled with a bit is still evident but it can be forgiven when I find myself mouthing the words & humming the riffs.

The tracklisting is very consistent with no weak songs included amongst the eight on offer. The album is a touch top heavy though with the majority of the best material residing on the A side. The outstanding "Morbid Way To Die" is the only genuine classic in my opinion but I also find the title track, "Obsessed" & blasphemous closer "Christ(in)sanity" to be excellent examples of the Swedish death metal sound. The lack of much creative ingenuity was always gonna prevent "You'll Never See..." from threatening the upper echilons of the genre but it's a damn fine meat-&-potatoes death metal release nonetheless & won't leave any Dismember, Entombed or Bloodbath fans disappointed. In fact, I'd go so far as to suggest that it's still Grave's best album to this day.

4/5

Sorry mate. Let's go with "Blood In My Eye (Holy Human)" instead.

Here are the feature releases nomination recipients for June:

THE FALLEN: Sonny, Daniel, Ben

THE GATEWAY: Andi, Saxy

THE GUARDIANS: Daniel, Xephyr

THE HORDE: Sonny, Ben, Daniel

THE INFINITE: Andi, Xephyr, Saxy

THE NORTH: Ben, Xephyr, Daniel, Sonny

THE PIT: Daniel, Ben, Sonny

THE REVOLUTION: Andi, Daniel

THE SPHERE: Daniel, Andi

Oh, sorry mate. I thought I checked that one. I'll change it to "Your Blessened" instead Sonny.

Ben will need to answer your question as I have no idea what is required there.

Godflesh – “Slateman” (from “Slateman” single, 1991)

Circuit Circuit – “I Dream The World Awake” (from “Body Songs” E.P., 2023)

Heavens Gate – “Flashes” (from “Livin’ In Hysteria”, 1991) [Speed metal]

Devastation – “Forsaken Hatred” (from “Idolatry”, 1991) [Thrash metal]

Exodus – “Feeding Time At The Zoo” (from “Force of Habit”, 1992) [Thrash metal]

Testament – “Agony” (from “The Ritual”, 1992) [Thrash metal]

Kreator – “Karmic Wheel” (from “Renewal”, 1992) [Thrash metal]

Running Wild – “Whirlwind” (from “Pile of Skulls”, 1992) [Speed metal]

Trha – “Danë‡i” (from “Av◊ëlajnt◊ë£ hinnem nihre”, 2023)

Hellripper – “Mester Stoor Worm” (from “Warlocks Grim & Withered Hags”, 2023)

Kostnateni – “Nevolnost je vše, čím jsem (Nausea Is All I Am)” (from “Upal”, 2023)

Running Wild - "Sinister Eyes" (from "Pile of Skulls", 1992)

Infectious Grooves – “Infectious Grooves” (from “The Plague That Makes Your Booty Move… It’s The Infectious Grooves”, 1991)

Melvins – “Boris” (from “Bullhead”, 1991)

Slumber – “Fallout” (from “Fallout”, 2008)

Autopsy – “In The Grip Of Winter” (from “Retribution For The Dead” E.P., 1991)

Confessor – “Endtime” (from “Confessor” E.P., 1992)

Neuropath – “Rectal Pulpation” (from “Nefarious Vivisection” demo, 1995)

Sadistik Exekution – “Cautness Darling Blood” (from “The Magus”, 1991)

The Crown – “Devil Gate Ride” (from “Deathrace King”, 2000)

Balmora – “A Dagger To The Heart Of Finality” (from “With Thorns of Glass & Petals of Grief” E.P., 2023)

Dying Fetus – “Enlighten Through Agony” (from “Make Them Beg For Death”, 2023)

Stortregn – “Cold Void” (from “Finitude”, 2023)

PainKIller – “Skinned” (from “Buried Secrets”, 1991)

Gorephilia – “Devotion Upon The Worm” (from “In The Eye Of Nothing”, 2020)

Massacra – “Atrocious Crimes” (from “Enjoy The Violence”, 1991)

Grave – “Deformed” (from “Into The Grave”, 1991)

This morning's track is Scorpions' "I've Got To Be Free" which I regard as being hard rock:

May 2024

01. Dragonforce - "Astro Warrior Anthem" (from "Warp Speed Warriors", 2024)

02. Running Wild - "Rolling Wheels" (from "Blazon Stone", 1991)

03. Moonlight Sorcery - "The Moonlit Dance of the Twisted Jester's Blood-Soaked Rituals" (from "Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle", 2023)

04. Ryujin - "Saigo No Hoshi" (from "Saigo No Hoshi", 2024) [Submitted by shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

05. Marty Friedman - "Angel" (from "Scenes", 1992)

06. Vinnie Moore - "Deep Sea" (from "Meltdown", 1991)

07. Lucifer's Friend - "Ride The Sky" (from "Lucifer's Friend", 1970)

08. Deep Purple - "Hard Lovin' Man" (from "In Rock", 1970)

09. Heavens Gate - "The Neverending Fire" (from "Livin' In Hysteria", 1991)

10. Lucifer - "Fallen Angel" (from "Lucifer V", 2024)

11. Anthrax - "Parasite" (from "Attack of the Killer B's", 1991) 

12. Bruce Dickinson - "Eternity Has Failed" (from "The Mandrake Project", 2024)

13. Yngwie Malmsteen - "Leviathan" (from "Fire & Ice", 1992)

14. Testament - "So Many Lies" (from "The Ritual", 1992)

15. Skid Row - "Slave To The Grind" (from "Slave To The Grind", 1991)

16. Ария - "Не хочешь, не верь мне" (from "Кровь за кровь", 1991)

17. Iced Earth - "Angels Holocaust" (from "Night of the Stormrider", 1991)

18. Sodom - "Resurrection" (from "Better Off Dead", 1990) [Submitted by Daniel]

19. Exodus - "Architect of Pain" (from "Force of Habit", 1992)

20. Ozzy Osbourne - "I Don't Wanna Change The World" (from "No More Tears", 1991)

21. Sonata Arctica - "First in Line" (from "Clear Cold Beyond", 2024)

22. Savage Oath - "Wings of Vengeance" (from "Divine Battle", 2024)

23. Judas Priest - "Panic Attack" (from "Invincible Shield", 2024)

May 2024

01. Afterbirth – “Hovering Human Head Drones” (from “In But Not Of”, 2023) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

02. Imperial Triumphant – “Lower World” (from “Vile Luxury”, 2018)

03. Eucharist – “Mirrorworlds” (from “Mirrorworlds”, 1997)

04. StarGazer – “Old Tea” (from “A Merging To The Boundless”, 2014) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

05. Edge of Sanity – “Hell Is Where The Heart Is” (from “Infernal”, 1997)

06. Pungent Stench – “Splatterday Nightfever” (from “Been Caught Buttering”, 1991) [Submitted by Daniel]

07. Morgoth – “Cursed” (from “Cursed”, 1991) [Submitted by Daniel]

08. Entombed – “Crawl” (from “Crawl” E.P., 1991) [Submitted by Daniel]

09. Slimelord – “Gut-Brain Axis” (from “Chytridiomycosis Relinquished”, 2024) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

10. Massacre – “Succubus” (from “From Beyond”, 1991) [Submitted by Daniel]

11. Neuropath – “Vulgar Rebirth” (from “Nefarious Vivisection” demo, 1995) [Submitted by Daniel]

12. Gorguts – “Inoculated Life” (from “Considered Dead”, 1991) [Submitted by Daniel]

13. Celestial Sanctuary – “Yearn For The Rot” (from “Soul Diminished”, 2021) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

14. Magefa – “Amputated By Force” (from “New Era Of Darkness”, 2019) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

15. Deconsekrated – “The Axiom” (from “The Hidden Paths” E.P., 2020) [Submitted by Sonny]

16. Napalm Death – “Mass Appeal Madness” (from “Mass Appeal Madness” E.P., 1991) [Submitted by Daniel]

17. Sketetal Remains – “Unmerciful” (from “Fragments of the Ageless”, 2024) [Submitted by Sonny]

18. Mortician – “Mortician” (from “Hacked Up For Barbecue”, 1996) [Submitted by Sonny]

19. Coffins – “Domains of Black Miasma” (from “Sinister Oath”, 2024) [Submitted by Sonny]

20. ZOMBIESHARK! – “Loxosceles on the Isosceles” (from “Die Laughing.”, 2024)

21. Septage – “Intolerant Spree of Infesting Forms (Septic Worship)” (from “Septic Worship (Intolerant Spree of Infesting Forms), 2024)

22. Gadget – “Remote” (from “Remote”, 2004)

23. Nightmarer – “Skinner” (from “Cacophony of Terror”, 2018)

24. Defaced Creation – “Baptised in Fire” (from “Serenity in Chaos”, 1999)

25. Kraanium – “Rock Filled Orifice” (from “Chronicles of Perversion”, 2015)

26. Kuroi Jukai – “II” (from “Kuroi Jukai”, 2015)

27. Ultra Vomit – “Une souris verte” (from “M. Patate”, 2004)

28. Vulvodynia – “Raped, Pillaged & Gutted” (from “Finis Omnium Ignorantiam”, 2015)

29. Coldworker – “The Crawl Inside Me Uninvited” (from “The Contaminated Void”, 2006)

30. Hour of Penance – “The Ravenous Herald” (from “Devotion”, 2024) [Submitted by Sonny]

This morning's track is Scorpions' "We Burn The Sky" which I regard as being hard rock:

This morning's track is Scorpions' "Steamrock Fever" which I'd suggest sits somewhere between heavy metal & hard rock, just enough to qualify as metal though:

Do ya reckon a young Iron Maiden might have heard the guitar harmonies at the start of this early Scorpions progressive rock epic while they were still deciding on what they might sound like? Check out the way the bass guitar is used underneath too. Totally Maiden!

There are quite a few references to Cannibal Corpse's 1990 debut album "Eaten Back To Life" to be found on Monstrosity's 1992 "Imperial Doom" record but perhaps none more obvious than this one. Check out the ringing power chord section at 1:06 in "A Skull Full Of Maggots" & compare it with the very similar part that starts at "1:30" in "Final Cremation" with both parts heralding a half-time movement with a similar feel. It's only a short section but I feel that it was clearly borrowed given that there are many other references to Cannibal Corpse's debut scattered across the tracklisting. It just feels so similar & has me doing a double-take every time I hear it.

Today's track is Riot's "This Is What I Get" which I regard as being hard rock:

This closes out the "Rock City" album with just the one track receiving a metal tag from me in the early US power metal number "Warrior". The rest of the tracklisting sits in either the hard rock or glam metal (Note: not a metal subgenre) space which consolidates my long-term feelings that Riot weren't a metal band until the 1980's. Tomorrow we'll be starting to take a look at our last 1977 release in Scorpions' classic "Taken by Force" album so please feel free to join in on what promises to be a fairly controversial exercise.

Monstrosity - "Imperial Doom" (1992)

I was lucky enough to come across Florida death metallers Monstrosity very early on in their recording career with their 1992 debut album "Imperial Doom" making a significant impact on me during the early 1990's. I believe I discovered them through the inclusion of their video clip for "Final Cremation" on the Nuclear Blast video compilation "Death... Is Just the Beginning" & was impressed enough to want to chase down their full-length as soon as it was released. "Imperial Doom" would go on to become quite influential on me & my own band Neuropath & I've subsequently followed Monstrosity through the rest of their career. I've always thought of them as one of the leaders of the second tier in the death metal hierarchy to be honest with "Imperial Doom" being one of their stronger releases. Let's take a deeper look at the album & what it brought to the table.

"Imperial Doom" showcases the maturity of the early 1990's death metal scene very well with new bands now being influenced by genuine death metal releases rather than classic 80's thrash records. It offers quite a sophisticated sound for such a young band but doesn't try to reinvent the wheel, instead making a confident play at existing ideas & concepts. The Dan Seagrave cover art is attractive enough to draw your interest (although I'd argue that its pinkish tones don't sit amongst his finest work) while the Morrisound Studios production job of Jim Morris presents the band in a highly professional packaging. One thing you'll pick up upon very early on in is that Monstrosity were a serious metal band too. They all clearly knew their way around their chosen instruments & obviously weren't looking to become the next flash in the pan. On the evidence here, they weren't likely to become that either as "Imperial Doom" is a classy affair that's very much a celebration of the death metal genre made by death metal fanatics specifically for a death metal fanbase so I think it's fair to say that a record like this one was always gonna appeal to me personally. I guess I can simply relate to Monstrosity on a deeper level because they so clearly share my early influences & grew up listening to the same records as I did with Morbid Angel's "Altars of Madness", Malevolent Creation's "The Ten Commandments" & the Cannibal Corpse's "Eaten Back To Life" all being clear sources of inspiration.

"Imperial Doom" is a conventional death metal record that presents the listener with everything they'd normally expect from a Florida release. The drumming of Lee Harrison (Hellwitch/Malevolent Creation/Terrorizer) is capable without ever feeling clinical. His blast-beat techniques were very clearly influenced by Morbid Angel's Pete Sandoval although he doesn't over-use them, instead preferring to draw upon them to in order to add impact at key moments which works really well. The basslines of Mark Van Erp (Cynic/Malevolent Creation/Solstice) are easily identifiable in the mix & showcase a level of musicality that's not all that common in this style of music while the riffs & solos of guitarists Jon Rubin (Malevolent Creation) & Jason Gobel (Cynic/Gordian Knot/Portal) all exude a level of sophistication & understanding that's quite surprising for a debut release of the time. But I'm sure it'll come as no surprise that it's current Cannibal Corpse vocalist George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher (Corpsegrinder/Paths of Possession/Serpentine Dominion) that steals the show with his ultra-masculine delivery being very much the epitome of the death metal front man. In fact, I'd suggest that George comes off as being a little less one-dimensional here with his stock tone being a touch less blunt & bludgeoning as well as slightly more deathly. He tosses in his signature higher pitched screams at times & they generally work very well too so I'd suggest that he really kinda drives Monstrosity through their first studio outing with a no-fuss attitude that simply gets it done in an efficient & highly presentable fashion.

The nine-song tracklisting is completely without blemish, kicking off with one of the stronger & more brutal inclusions in the impressive title track. It's closely followed by possibly the weakest number on the album in "Definitive Inquisition" but it's not a bad track as such & things pick up significantly from there. The other highlights are "Ceremonial Void" (which featured on Nuclear Blast's "Death ... Is Just the Beginning II" compilation CD at around this time) & the more controlled & atmospheric closer "Darkest Dream" which is my personal favourite but is strangely overlooked by most fans, perhaps because it's the slowest inclusion on the album. The rest of the songs are all very solid examples of early 90's Florida death metal that can hold their own against all but the most elite artists in the genre but I think that "Imperial Doom" might have needed a couple more genuine classics in order to have me reaching for my more premium ratings. There's no doubt that it was a very solid effort for a debut record though & I can't see too many Cannibal Corpse, Malevolent Creation or Sinister fans not lapping it up. Monstrosity's next couple of albums were also excellent & the trio of releases combine to represent Monstrosity's peak period. While I may see "Imperial Doom" may be the weaker of the three after this revisit, it's only by a small margin with 1996's "Millennium" perhaps being my preferred Monstrosity album these days.

4/5

P.S. This revisit has left me wondering whether George might have copped the odd light-hearted jab from his Cannibal Corpse band mates once he joined the band because there are many clear references to "Eaten Back To Life" to be found on "Imperial Doom" with a couple bordering on plagiarism. Admittedly, "Imperial Doom" is a much stronger record though.

The brand new fourteenth album "Pro Xristoy" from Greek melodic black metallers Rotting Christ is due for release on 24th May. I think it's fair to say that they've been a little bit hit & miss for me over the years with their last couple of records not doing much for me really. Still... I can't deny my affection for their stronger material like 1994's "Non serviam" sophomore album so I'll no doubt continue on with the ritual of checking out each successive release from them. They were brilliant when I saw them play live many years ago too. 

Here's the cover artwork for the new Ufomammut album "Hidden" that Sonny mentioned above. I strangely haven't kept in contact with these guys for the last decade or so after being a big fan of them up until that point I regard records like 2010's "Eve" & their "Supernaturals - Record One" collaboration album with Lento as being genuine classics so it's been more of an oversight than anything intentional. I really should find the time to catch up a bit though. Boy, they were awesome when I saw them live at Hellfest 2012 too.

US doom metallers Pallbearer have their brand new fifth album "Mind Burns Alive" hitting the shelves on 17th May & I know Sonny will be all over this one. I quite liked their 2012 debut album "Sorrow & Extinction" but can't say that I've investigated anything they've done since. Perhaps now is the time.

San Diego slam death metallers Pathology have a new album coming out on 17th May. It's entitled "Unholy Descent" & is their twelfth full-length thus far. Their last two records have been pretty decent so I will no doubt be partaking in some of this stuff too. Who knows? Maybe it'll be a fucking banger like their 2012 classic "The Time of Great Purification".

US doom/death solo act Tzompantli has his sophomore album coming out on 17th May. It's entitled "Beating the Drums of Ancestral Force" & I'll definitely be checking it out after really enjoying his 2022 debut album "Tlazcaltiliztli" when we featured it here a while back.