I haven't been focusing on the grind and power-violence side of things recently and I feel awfully bad about that, especially when a band like POPULATION REDUCTION exists. Goddamn, do these Bay Area grinders know how to shred. Basically, take the best bits of early grind (Napalm Death, Carcass, Extreme Noise Terror...the usual suspects) and throw in some Capitalist Casualties and a pinch of riffing from Nuclear Assault and you get these guys. The cool thing is that the band is only made up of two people: Dr. X on drums and vocals and Peter Svoboda on guitar and vocals. They do have bass tracks in their studio record, Each Birth a New Disaster, so I wonder what they sound like live. I first heard these guys on their split 10" with the mighty Abscess and was way impressed. Quality stuff here!
It appears that Hooded Menace's highly-talented multi-instrumentalist Lasse Pyykkö is in every kick-ass Finnish death metal bands these days, and PHLEGETHON is no exception. No sirree. In fact, this is one of Lasse's earliest bands (dating back to 1988), which explains why he can't do wrong in the death metal realm.
Basically, what we have here is pure fucking death metal, just the way all of us real death-freaks like it: organic, raw and putrid as fuck. I mean, look at the band name. The band's latest offering, a discography disc entitled Drifting in the Crypt, is the perfect gateway into Lasse's sick history and it even includes the group's latest demo track, "Circle of the Hybrid Statues," which shows the band still going strong with fresh ideas. This is worth checking out!
A little thrash ain't gonna hurt no one...right? Australia's HELLBRINGER deliver thrash metal of the highest order, in which they successfully encompass all styles (Bay Area, East Coast, German, etc.) into one. The band, formerly known as Forgery, go from Destruction (outfitted with Schmier-like shrieks) on "The Rapture" to some East Coast, Demolition Hammer-ish style on "The Hammer" to all-out South American on "The Banished". Old-school Sepultura fans take note. To further add to their credibility, their debut EP was mixed by none other than Harris Johns. This guy has mixed Coroner, Exumer, Kreator...you know, the thrash greats. If those 3 tracks mean anything, we might see a potential re-revitalization of thrash metal - with these guys sitting on top. Yep, L.A.'s pretty much run its course.
Oh, and I love how they don't have a logo yet.
EDIT: Josh of Hellbringer has informed me that the EP is still under the Forgery name. Just a little heads up!
And here we have yet another band from Germany: the blackened thrash metal horde INFERNÄL DEATH! If you like bands like Old, Nifelheim, Trench Hell or, of course, Venom, you'll feel right at home (or hell) with these guys. They've a tape out, Gods of Chaos, which you can get on the band's MySpace or Hell's Headbangers Records.
Here's something I don't see very often here in New York City...
My friend Mike from Inhuman has been DJ-ing at Lucky 13 Bar in Park Slope, Brooklyn every Wednesday night as part of the Garage Days event. He spins the best old-school hardcore, death metal, heavy metal, punk, etc. and Johny of Brooklyn-based Candiria will be tending the bar. Next week's installment will feature the go-go dancers that Lucky 13's famous for so I suggest you attend this!
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The Teutonic bastard child of early Anthrax and Blood Feast, Germany's ELIMINATOR is a no-joke thrash metal beast that sounds more like they're from New Jersey than Nordrhein-Westfalen. Speed is the name of the game with these guys and the vocals are the tried-and-true style of the harsh thrash style (think Possessed or, again, Blood Feast). Their demo, Violence and Death, is out now. Get it!
Finally! Germany's OLD finally gets a place here! As their name suggests, these dudes play a very ancient and sinister style of speed metal in the vein of early Bathory, Celtic Frost, Sodom and Destruction... you get the idea.
I was first introduced to them by my friend Anton a while back and these guys totally blew me away. If I can recall, Old were the first band in this style that I really liked. Anyway, much thanks to Anton!
Anyone know what's going on with these dudes? They've been keeping silent for months and the Metal Archives listed them as "On Hold". Interestingly enough, it appears that 2 of the guys play in Nocturnal now (!), another fine German thrash band. Great, but... we need more Old!
The fathers of death metal: POSSESSED! It's awesome to see Jeff at it again, and though it's only him, he has Sadistic Intent backing him. I ain't complaining, that's for sure.
Demonical - I first stumbled upon these guys after learning that they will be playing at Germany's Party.San Open Air Festival. I've heard of all the bands on that announcement but them, so I checked them out. All I can say is, wow, pretty much the only band now that can mix old-school Swedish Death Metal feeling with modern production! These guys are aggressive, ruthless, heavy, and make memorable songs... what's there to hate? If only every death metal band these days that can learn from them. I immediately passed these guys on to some friends and they're as hooked as I am. That has to say something. I ordered their latest (and second) album, Hellsworn, through Hell's Headbangers to cut import costs a bit. I still need the first one, Servants Of The Unlight, but it's not as good as their latest. I'm guessing it's for the (better) line-up and that these guys know how to progress. This band truly has it all!
Killer - These guys were passed on to me by a friend of mine who I believe discovered while in Europe. I remember it clearly: I was over at his place and he said, check out this band from Belgium called Killer. They worship Motörhead. Frankly, any band that worships Motörhead is good in my book. The album he gave me was Shock Wave, and if you like your heavy metal done right, look no further. I'm not exactly sure as to what else I should add about Killer other than they're great. You can order their CDs through Mausoleum Records, though it's a bit pricey. If you can find their LPs second hand (like I did, at a record fair here), grab 'em. If not, definitely order some CDs.
Dark Angel - Ok, these guys aren't the most "underground" band but they are definitely INSANELY overlooked. When one speaks about the Bay Area thrash scene, especially the second wave when the music got even more aggressive, Dark Angel is hardly mentioned. There's the first Testament album, Sadus, Exodus' first, and even Possessed (again, a shame). Well, let me reintroduce Dark Angel. A band so fast and insane that you just can't help but punch people in the face. I don't know what to say about these guys. Gene Hoglan on drums. Not convinced? Then get out. Just listen to Darkness Descends because that will make everything clearer.
Agent Steel - Let's be real here: Agent Steel is the Bret Hart of speed metal. They're the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be. They are the excellence in executing speed metal. The early German scene is great, but Agent Steel's better. John Cyriis resembles a true front man. Here's a man who was an extremely talented singer, songwriter, and a true character. No one knows his true history. Some say he's actually an alien. Whatever the case may be, they will never be the same without him. I'm sure they don't suck now, but there will always be one John Cyriis. The first 2 albums and EP will always be highly regarded by me, and surprisingly, they're a bit hard to find. I lucked out, to say the least, to own them on LP (thanks Slipped Disc). Anyway, get into these guys!
I woke up this morning sore as hell from carrying around a crate full of records, but it was damn worth it. Thanks to Tooth and Ryan for hookin' it up! If you haven't heard already, they're in a sick old-school heavy metal band called Natur. I wish they can play their own music on their own show. That would be something.
As for me, it was an experience DJ-ing for the first time. I got some pretty good feedback and allow me to use this post as a doorway to check out some of the bands I played. "Pick your poison" is the phrase but I say, "fuck it - pick 'em all!" You'll find some new bands, not-so-new bands, and everything in between.
*****
Ketzer - this is a band that Tooth was raving about when I played them, and he has every reason for it. These German youngsters play an insane style of blackened thrash metal that is as sinister as their debut album's artwork. You can get Satan's Boundaries Unchained on Kneel Before The Master's Throne's distro. If you're into Nifelheim or early-1349, you'll dig these guys.
Midnight - Here's a band from a few of Ohio's black rock n' rollers. Basically, these guys play 100% pure blackened rock/metal in the vein of Venom and Motörhead with some punk-feeling splashed on top. I blind-purchased their great EP Farewell To Hell a while back and it's still being spun around here. You can find it on Nuclear War Now! Productions' distro.
Skitsystem - Sweden's finest crust band! They broke up a while ago but thankfully reformed and will play shows again. Whew! These guys were the first crust band that I listened to back in like '05 and there was no turning back. Tomas Lindberg from At The Gates/Disfear and Adrian Erlandsson of At The Gates was in the initial line-up but have long since quit. These guys are as brutal as ever and you can get their albums at Havoc Records.
Ulysses Siren - These fucking guys! For those of you not aware of the glory that is Ulysses Siren, let me give you a heads up. These Bay Area thrashers only released 2 demos in their entire career and lasted for maybe 2 or 3 years total. Relentless Records just put them out in one package called Above The Ashes. You can get the super-limited vinyl version at The Omega Order. Do you like your trash fast? Look no further.
Just a few moments ago, I was informed that New York City's very own Black Anvil just got announced as the opening band for Norway's kings of northern darkness: Immortal. I've been following Black Anvil for quite some time now, and I'm more than happy for them for landing this gig.
For those of you who don't know these guys, let me fill you in. Black Anvil was formed after the demise of Deathcycle, and saw bassist/vocalist PD and guitarist GWB II get heavier and heavier from their Kill Your Idol days. If you know any of those 2 bands, don't expect Black Anvil to sound like them. Instead, expect a full-on blackened thrash attack with hardcore (think Cro-Mags) influences tastefully peppered in. That's a fact most idiotic journalists in the metal "underground" twist.
Listen to Time Insults Insults The Mind and you'll see what I'm talking about. There are Dissection-like passages, Celtic Frost tendencies and a good chunk of Motörhead-worshiping within their music. Stand out cuts with said things are "LTHLTK", "Margin For Terror" and "Ten Talons Deep".
Relapse Records just signed these guys and the album should be easily available at every independent record store. The LP version is on Monumentum Records and I'm pretty sure it's limited.
Finally, if you're from around New York, you've probably seen a flyer or two with them on it. They'll play any show that's heavy and they've recently finished a tour with Marduk on both coasts. With their upcoming album Triumvirate finished, expect them to play a lot more shows. The next confirmed gig for them is at the Scion Rock Fest in Ohio with Cannibal Corpse, Voivod, D.R.I., and a shitload of other bands and at S.M.B. Fest with NYHC stalwarts Merauder and Ringworm in Brooklyn on May 29. You know where I'll be.
Ok... this is big news: new Death Breath track! It's unmixed, but if they released this as-is, I'm pretty sure no one would know. For those of you who listen to this band, you know what I mean.
The song is called "Obsessed By Sodomy" - and it's a fast one. The guitars have noticeably more distortion and I can't help but assume the track is a tribute to Sodom(as in, Obsessed By Cruelty...?). Whatever the case may be, it's still a fucking awesome song. Can't wait for the new LP!
For all of you people in the New York City metro area:
3 sick shows coming at ya this week. Tomorrow will be Jersey City's old-school grind/death poser-killing machine Grind Bastard at the Lit Lounge in the East Village. Tuesday will hold a pretty good blend of old-school thrash, metallic NYHC, and psych-filled hardcore with Total Social Suicide, Inhuman, and Iron Age (respectively). Finally, on Saturday, get yer fix of (even more) grind and power-violence at the Union Pool in Brooklyn for Misery Index and Magrudergrind, with zombified thrash/death practitioners Mutant Supremacy kicking things off. It's gonna be quite the week, so get off your ass and come down to these ragers!
Check out flyers (none for the Grind Bastard and Magrudergrind shows) and links below.
This is a band that I've been raving about for a while now. Germany's Violent Force sticks out of the thrash scene over there in that they do not possess the early black metal vibe like the early Kreator, Sodom and Destruction releases. I guess this is why them and Tankard never got that same "recognition" as the "Big 3"? Whatever the case may be, those of us in the know have another band that we can all worship and glorify. Violent Force are truly a gem.
After much search for their sole album, Malevolent Assault Of Tomorrow, I finally got it a few weeks ago through The Omega Order. Don't check there now, though. It seems that I've purchased the last copy and when a product is "on order" with them, it never comes. Sad, but true.
With that bullshit out of the way, let me discuss this album briefly. Basically, it's another "classic cult" album that's reissued by Metal Mind Productions of Poland and thank goodness for that. Violent Force's brand of thrash is more in tune with the way thrash first started out as in America - which was super punk and super Motörhead-like. The album's opener, "Dead City", could easily be a G.B.H. song had I not known any better. "Sign Of Evil" has a nice speed metal (sorta like Running Wild) edge to it while "S.D.I." shows the band's more "proper" early-German sound (which was all about SPEED!). The guitarist/vocalist, who's name is for some odd reason Lemmy, has what I believe is the ideal thrash vocals and I can put him up there with Paul Baloff of (duh) Exodus. It's harsh, but clean, and not in a James Hetfield-circa-1984 way (nothing against him, of course).
Violent Force performing "Dead City" in the 1986 German film Verlierer
All and all, a fine slab of Teutonic thrash attack. Not much is known about these guys today. Their official website is in German and their official MySpace hints that they are still active, though I don't see any hard proof. Well, whatever - just get this fucking album.
Violent Force's official website is over here and their MySpace is over here. I hope you know German.
Leave it to fuckin' Darkthrone to back up their beliefs with amazing songs!!!
According to the latest update on the Darkthrone blog, Fenriz has mentioned that a brand new track, entitled "Eyes Burst At Dawn", is now available. You can find the link via his blog above.
What can I say about this? It's awesome, of course! It's a bit different from the last 2 albums, F.O.A.D. and Dark Thrones And Black Flags in that it's much more traditional heavy metal in the sense of guitar melodies and the last riff - which sounds quite triumphant. I mean, I can get all pretentious and technical (not really, which is why I'd be pretentious) by making up all of these adjectives to describe how much I like the song... but I won't. Listen to it and we can discuss it.
Their new album, Circle The Wagons, can NOT come any sooner! All info for it can be found through the link on Darkthrone's blog.
*****
Be sure to check out Banished Force who Fenriz mentioned! I'm listening to them now and I must say, these guys must like Forbidden quite a whole lot. I never would have guessed that they're from Germany. Well done, kiddos!
Well, well, well... what do we have here? Well, we have another fine band from Sweden and the one I'm gonna focus on now is Tribulation. These guys are in a very interesting state of affairs over yonder in Scandinavia, much like how bands like Bonded By Blood and Warbringer are over here in the States. The "interesting state of affairs" that I'm referring to is the "sudden resurgence" of the bands' respective scenes/genres. Over here, we have the thrash "revival" where many journalists (in some cases) lump any young band that sounds/looks thrash as "thrash revival" and the same rules apply in Scandinavia with death metal. Thus is the sad truth about the industry "know-it-all's"...
Tribulation are not, in any way, shape, or form, a "revival" band! There! I said it! So what are they then? A death metal band. I would also say they have some pretty strong thrash influences as well, which seems logical since the band evolved from Hazard. Again, I must reiterate the fact that these guys don't sound "retro" and even though they are from the same country that spew forth Entombed and Dismember, they have nothing in common with their Heavy Metal Pedal countrymen.
One good listen to the band's debut LP, The Horror, will make you aware of this fact. There's no shortage of speed here. There's also no shortage of insane riffs! I'm actually gonna stop right here and direct you over to MetalKult's review of the album. Why? I don't like to repeat myself.
I will, however, repeat one point that was touched upon in that review: the artwork. Holy. Shit. Two words, when put together, that means... you know - something awesome. Guitarists Adam Zaars and Jonathan Hultén apparently aren't just skilled at their instrument. They actually have their own art/design firm called Necromantic Art and if you're looking for something brutal for your band or whatever, be sure to get in touch with them (details below).
Another interesting thing about these guys are their other bands. Bassist/vocalist Johannes Andersson and Hultén are in another (excellent) death metal band called Stench and Zaars is in the traditional heavy/speed metal band Enforcer. Without giving too much away in this particular post about Tribulation: if you like either genre, you're most likely enjoy gonna both bands.
If you want to know more about Tribulation (though you probably won't since this band is pretty mysterious), head over to their MySpace. For Necromantic Art, check out their official homepage for contact info.
For the CD version of The Horror, go to Pulverised Records' webstore. For the super-awesome vinyl version, head on over to Blood Harvest's webstore. While you're there, you can also find their great 7" EP, Putrid Rebirth. Check out Detest Records for the EP as well.
*****
One last thing about the band: if you're in Germany around early-mid August, be sure to attend Party.San Open Air! Tribulation will be playing alongside the best of the best in the realm of death and black metal! More coverage on this later...
It's pretty exciting to be writing the first real post for Morbid Rupture. I think that the atmosphere is just right: sitting in a pretty brisk room with one of the biggest blizzards to hit New York City in a long time. Actually, it's the perfect scenario to introduce (or re-introduce) New Jersey's Annunaki. I bet some of you are wondering, "what does Annunaki have to do with blizzards?"
Three years ago, I saw this band open for Immortal at B.B. King's to a sold-out audience. They went on right before the Blizzard Beasts themselves and I can assure you that the crowd was getting restless. However, when Annunaki went on, everyone there ate 'em up. They were that great. People still talk about that particular performance and they definitely won a number of new fans. This was one of them.
Annunaki put out their debut album, Throne of the Annunaki, in 2007 on the band's own Militia Records - a sign that this band is the real deal. Their sound can be best described as "death-thrash", with a hint of black metal. My personal favorite on the disc, "Blunt Scalpel Extraction", sums up the band quite well. Vocalist Tony Stanziano's raspy growls remind me a bit of the legendary Tomas "Tompa" Lindberg's (At the Gates, Lock Up, Disfear) and the riffs and solos brought to the table by John Blicharz are top-notch. The man can rip solos that puts the entire ESP roster to shame and can knock riffs that are, most importantly, cold, heavy and memorable - at the same time! On the other end of the sonic spectrum, cuts like "Dysphoria Delirium" and "Torture" display the band's fine ability to play a great blend of black and death metal while the title track and "March of the Militia Dead" shows the band's excellent execution of the two aforementioned styles thrown into a thrash metal tornado. Prepare to have your head BANGED!
In terms of production, they really pulled out all the stops. Throne of the Annunaki was tracked at the famous Trax East Studio and mastered by the even more famous Alan Douches. Expect the sound to be pretty clean-cut and modern, but don't worry: THE RIFFS BACK IT UP! The only complaint that I have is the length of the album, which clocks in at a little over 50 minutes. The tracks on their own stand out and shouldn't be seen as filler in any way. However, when everything is put together, it might feel like it drags on at first listen. I guess this is something to weed out the amateurs from the start. I typically like my thrash records to be a bit shorter, but every time I come back to Throne of the Annunaki I can hum back the melodies and it feels like I'm returning to familiar territory. If an album can do that to you, you know something is right.
Of course, for all of you underground freaks out there, you might recognize the drummer's name: the one and only Kevin Kuzma of the cult thrash metal legends Blood Feast. Yes, he is back and thank goodness for it. As you might have suspected, he took part in the founding of Annuanki alongside bassist Karl Odenwalder and John after the breakup of their previous band Lament.
Since that hot summer night playing with Immortal (ironic?), the band has played with countless bands legendary in their own right. To drop a few names: the Swedish Panzer Division Marduk, tech-thrash titans Believer, legendary Floridian brutes Vital Remains, masters of death from the Czech Republic-via-Chicago Master, Finnish black metal horde Horna and Norway's hellish 1349, just to name a few. Talk about impressive.
So where can you purchase this intense slab of brutality? Where can you listen to some tracks? Check the links below. After all is said and done, this band is the real fuckin' deal.
