It’s weirdly fitting and totally not planned that we would be tackling the new record from Danish death mongers Deiquisitor mere days after the passage of legendary radio host Art Bell. His show became a breeding ground for conspiracy theories, Bigfoot hunts, and alien encounters and often kept lonely souls captivated long after the sun fell with these bizarre stories.

Now, Deiquisitor have returned with “Downfall of the Apostates,” a meaty, punishing second slab of death metal that focuses lyrically on occult sciences, conspiracies, and extraterrestrials, practically begging for members of Bell’s huge audience to pore over each ounce of this thing. For those only here to get their hearing further destroyed, fear not. The band—guitarist/vocalist Thomas FJ, bassist/backing vocalist Daniel A, drummer Henrik BC—devastates and punishes liberally over these nine tracks and just over 36 minutes of violence. The weirdness is just a bonus to what’s a pretty stellar collection of songs, and if you’re like me, you’ll be stunned by just how fast this thing blasts by. The band’s members have plied their trade with other notable groups such Blodfest, Offerkult, Wolfslair, Luciation, and a ton others, so they pretty well know what the fuck they’re doing. They prove it on this monster.

“Atom Synthesis” gets us started with a blistering charge that trudges and marches into the mud. Gurgly growls spread grossness while the band hits a thrashy bit that’s overwhelming physically, laying in shots until it ends abruptly. The title track arrives with riffs out to destroy everything in its wake, and that beastly assault continues its damage with growls crushing and a pace that breaks bones. Oddly, this brutal push is joined by an elegant melody that snakes just underneath before it’s swallowed up by chaos and pools of blood. “Faint Distorted Images” is violent off the bat, as the growls peels away the flesh, and the guitars light up, practically blinding you. The vocals are ugly and guttural, while the band settles into start/stop crushing that applies pressure right up to the end. “Tetrad of Lunar Eclipses” has blood-thick growls, delirious, dizzying guitar work, and drums that quake the earth. Your senses are just beaten in the entire time, with fiery soloing closing the door. “The Order of Pegasus Light” rips way, with growls hammering, and weird robotic glazes applied to other sections of the vocals. Again, the band feels like they’re trying to tear at your brain cables and drive you to absolute insanity.

“Metatron” works to crush the ground beneath it from the start, as the destruction will leave you grabbing the walls for support, and the crazed riffs just keep raining down with no end in sight. The guitars charge, while your brain’s impulses are rewired right down to the charging finish. “The Magnificence of” has a tempered start that lets the band develop the ambiance, and then it’s off to the fucking races. The vocals are grisly, while the riffs swagger with attitude, but then the final moments float off and explore space. “Planetary Devastation” has bizarre riffs that kind of reflect the carnage that preceded it, giving it something of a conceptual feel, and then the growls just get ugly. The song is volatile and keeps jarring your insides back and forth, and things finally end with a splitting attack that brings shivers. Closer “War on the Gods” feels like just that, as the song blasts, the growls swallow you whole, and disarming melodies arrive to try to add some class to the joint. The pace gets heavy and intoxicating, as things begin to shift and transform. The final minutes are situated in alien noise fields that stretch over everything, trying to erase your mind so you can’t grasp the uncovered truths you were allowed to witness. You’re left wondering how you get where you are right now. Strange.

As a longtime admirer of anything strange and alien, I was attracted to this record simply by the lyrical content alone. But digging into the musical substance of Deiquisitor’s massive second record “Downfall of the Apostates” revealed a world that was even more powerful than strange conspiracies. This record is a damn fine collection of classic death metal that just so happens to contain content that keeps most people up at night, either over fear or excitement.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/Deiquisitor

To buy the album, go here: http://www.darkdescentrecords.com/store/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.darkdescentrecords.com/

There aren’t a ton of death or black metal records focused on sex. That shouldn’t come as a huge surprise to anyone. The genres don’t really lend themselves that much to many areas of sexual behavior especially considering we’re usually immersed in darkness and pain (apart from childish misogynistic shit). But sex itself being a center point isn’t very common.

The bio materials accompanying Serum Dreg’s diabolical debut record “Lustful Vengeance” contain the motto “FORNICATE. ASPHYX. DEATH TO TRINITY.” That holds a potential hornet’s nest of meaning, but the music here focuses on the worship of sex, hedonism, and ritualistic insanity executed through traditional means. It’s fucking with a darker, more twisted purpose. This record is, as they also charge, blasphemic and grounded in hatred, music that warps and burns the psyche as well as the creators’ own selves. This is noise-marred madness, bleeding in and out of death and black metal pools and becoming one of the most bizarre metallic expressions in some time. Its members—Ad Infinitum (guitars, bass, keys, vocals) and Conjure of Plague (drums, vocals)—we know from other bands such as Ash Borer, Triumvir Foul, Urzeit, Adzalaan, Dagger Lust and others, and they’re firmly ensconced in the Vrasubatlat union of artists that all intermingle with each other and always find new ways to spew vile blackness. But Serum Dreg may be the most fucked up of all of them. Think about that for a second.

“Rotten Pillar/Lustful Vengeance” is the first of these six pieces of horror and sizzles in acid, while the militaristic drumming sets the pace, and weird howls float. Riffs arrive and devastate, while the howl of, “The time has come for you to die,” sends chills. The song then ignites and stampedes into hell, with wild cackles and clobbering leading toward “Edifice of Hatred,” which bludgeons right off the bat. The track is beastly horror, with thrashing sensibilities and raw growls. “Holy Disease” kicks off with a Celtic Frost-style riff and then a pace that aims to wreck lives. The riffs cause dizziness, while the vocals bathe in blood and other bodily fluids, and animalistic howls drape the cover over this bloody carcass.

“Death Ritual” is speedy as fuck and the shortest cut here at 1:56. The title is wailed repeatedly, almost ritualistically, while the skin-scraping screams and violent playing are relentless and evil. “Impure Ceremony” jackhammers you body and mind, while the vocals scrape and drag bruised flesh across rocks, and the tempo chugs and splatters. The track finally comes to a merciful end with a collection of riffs that try to take off your head. Closer “Blasphemic Black Death Noise” might as well stand as a band anthem as the riffs blister and growls decimate. The pace trudges hard, and then the band launches into a raw punk-informed explosion of riffs that bring unrest. The terror spills over into the final lap, where cosmic keys blend in and take over, dragging the song into defilement amid the stars.

Serum Dreg’s bloody, blistering sexual world is a place where you’re not going to find traditional means of pleasure and likely won’t escape without ample scarring both physically and mentally. “Lustful Vengeance” is a tough record to warm up to, and even after multiple visits, it remains a beast that tries to push you out of its circle. This is a dangerous, misery-inducing record, the most depraved 22:30 of metal you’re likely to hear all year.

To buy the album, go here: https://invictusproductions.net/shop/

Or here: https://vrasubatlat.bandcamp.com/album/vt-xviii-lustful-vengeance

For more on the label, go here: https://invictusproductions.net/

And here: https://vrasubatlat.bandcamp.com/

You know when you haven’t heard a person’s voice in a long time, and when you do again the feels you have all over the place? That’s how I felt when I heard the first words drop from Laurie Shanaman’s mouth the first time I tackled “The Unraveling,” the debut album from Ails.

For those unaware, Shanaman was the lead howler for legendary Bay Area black metal band Ludicra, who are one of the most influential groups of that style hailing from the United States. Their dissolution in 2011 after the release of their mighty final record “The Tenant” was a major blow to metal fans everywhere. Yet four years later, Shanaman and former Ludicra guitarist/vocalist Christy Cather decided they wanted to play music together again, and from that decision, Ails was born. Rounded out by guitarist Sam Abend (Abrupt, Desolation), bassist Jason Miller (Aequorea, 2084, One in the Chamber), and drummer Colby Byrn (Phantom Limbs), the band recorded this magnificent six-track effort that certainly has the Ludicra spirit but definitely stands on its own as something fresh and new. These songs cover topics ranging from heartache, despair, inner torment, and psychological and physical suffering, ensuring it’s not just the metallic elements that make this so heavy. The songs are devastating but also have melody that wraps around you heart (musically and vocally), and each of these chapters makes a lasting impression that sticks with you long after the music has stopped.

The record starts with “The Echoes Waned” that has guitars firing up right off the bat, and melodic singing leading into the heart of the track. Wrenching cries emerge, paired with fury and melody, though that later gives way to calm and acoustic passages, providing some breeze. Then the power kicks back in, taking us back to the verse structure that greeted us, with everything ending in serenity. “Dead Metaphors” runs 8:20 and has guitars stretching their reach and clean calls before the riffs begin to twist into a stormfront. The growls scars while the music thrashes away, and that cuts to bone, where the vocals go from clean to pained cries. A mesmerizing stretch resets your mind, while the back end mixes dark and light, with Shanaman shrieking over a bloodletting charge that fades before trickling into “A Spark of Life,” which has a jolting awakening. The riffs are dark and foreboding, while the growls shred muscle even as melodic waves are lapping. Carnage is achieved, as wild howls pave the way, and the melodies crash to earth, simmering in the song’s airy, key-dripping finish.

“Mare Weighs Down” chugs hard, with the leads drizzling, and harsh growls exploding out of that. Then, the band finds another level of devastation, as the shrieks get even harsher, the riffs swelter and burst, and the whole pace is an eruption. The final moments have riffs creating a tornado effect, while Shanaman’s voice reaches painfully into the night. “The Ruin” is the shortest track at 2:49, and it wastes zero time getting its point across. Thunderous drums spit splinters, while the guitars tangle, and the growls land like haymakers. That punishment never once laments, letting fresh bruises form as we move into the 9:36-long closer “Bitter Past.” Wouldn’t you know it, they saved their best riffs for last as this thing rips from its stance and seeks to maim everything in its path. The vocals are even more intimidating and punishing here, with the ambiance of the song getting uglier and your senses completely dominated. The pattern changes a bit, as singing and growling stampede together, and the final moments give the band a last chance to blow off all their fiery emotion, as the track burns out and leaves a trail of ash.

It’s great to have these two crucial members of Ludicra back in our lives, as well as the rest of Ails, who have made a monumental impact with their first record “The Unraveling.” The album already is one I’m tabbing for early best album honors at the end of the year, because as many times as I visit, I find new ways to be invigorated. This is a force metal needs right now, both musically and thematically, and it’s exciting to think about where they’ll go beyond this killer debut.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/Ails-1480944935537950/

To buy the album, go here: https://nowflensing.com/

For more on the label, go here: http://theflenser.com/

Dagger Lust

This is a site where we try to explain to people how certain metal albums and bands sound, and for the most part, we’re able to get that job done. You can decide if we’re any good at it. But there are those creations that can’t completely be conveyed with words because the mission is foolish and mostly impossible. Yet, here we go.

The Vrasubatlat family of bands make up an intertwined bunch, providing a voice for a community of like-minded musicians who need to release their various forms of depravity. Each band on the roster, be it Triumvir Foul, Utzala, Pissblood, or the two groups we address today unveil their own psychological and physiological unraveling in their art which, to put it gently, can keep many listeners at an arm’s length. This isn’t easy stuff to tackle, even for the gravest of ears, but those who do relate with the utter blackness still probably need time to adjust to what’s going on here.

We’ll start with Dagger Lust, a three-headed beast spearheaded by members of Ash Borer, Serum Dreg, Torture Rack, Witch Vomit, and others who combine for one of the most hideous visions of metal you’re bound to find. On their vile debut full-length “Siege Bondage Adverse to the Godhead,” the band creates utter filth, metal that sounds like it was bathed in an acid bath until only the bones remained, and then everything was violently put back together with slime and muck. Their punishing ways and complete lack of concern for anyone’s well-being is duly noted, and the corrosive fury splashed over these eight cuts and 24 minutes of insanity shows that these maulers—noisemaker/vocalist SVN, bassist/vocalist R, drummer/vocalist T—have nothing but ill will for any sense of sanctity and decency.

“Augury” starts the record as a short burst with demented noise and beastly growls before barreling into “Corroded Vein” and its noise-coated hell. Growls and choking howls mix with wasp nest-style guitars before everything ends in strangulated pain. “Black Blood in Mockery” is thrashy and marred, with warped guitars cutting strange paths and screams melting over a baffling noise field. A total assault on the senses comes from there, and it’s massive, with black soot jolting, and belchy growls sickening. “Perverse Divine” has noise echoing and weird hissing before a pained, bizarre assault arrives, and noise squalls build thick walls of interference. The track keeps grinding before coming to a machine-like end. “Capitulation” is a quick, but utterly brutal one built with deranged menace, destructive playing, and an off-kilter, blistering assault. “Antediluvian Battery” rains down drone filth, as barbaric shouts and growls add to the bloodshed, and the pace boils heavily. The track is smothering and adds tons of pressure to your chest, almost like you’re trapped beneath a planet. The title track closes with a hammering assault and monstrous torment, with a slow-mauling tempo and vomitus retching. Cosmic noise swelters and penetrates, as the song releases its clutches. This is a damaging experience that will crush your soul.

Adzalaan’s R

That leads us into Adzalaan, the black/death metal vessel of sole member R (yes, the same R from Dagger Lust) who certainly bathes in absolute hell and darkness but does so in more of a progressive manner as opposed to his other project we just discussed. On the banner’s debut full-length “Into Vermilion Mirrors, this eight-track, nearly 28-minute effort shows another side to R’s creativity, though you’re going to be disoriented and frightened if you go into this not expecting to be concussed by decibels and chaos. Multiple visits with this record are required just to explore each crevice and for your body and mind to be able to fully absorb what’s going on. Your mind may wander into dimensions beyond while experiencing this record, but you always be brought to center by the hammering power of this document.

“Haven to Flush” is an introductory track with a strange aura and even a movie-like start before noise spirals into “Succumb and Vanquish” and its strangely warm guitars that truck into ultra-violence and jackhammering riffs. Raspy growls stampede as the guitars swirl and confound, and the dark, bloody transmission cuts its way into bone. “False Cleansing” has strong, furious riffs that storm, and massive growls and hellish yells that mix to deliver the heinous message. The track then detonates and sends shrapnel flying, as the playing bruises your mind, and the flooding noise fades away. “Haven in Blood” is an interlude cut that has guitars soaring and oddly glimmering before the sounds wash away and make way for “Wretched Oaths Fall From the Wicked Tongues” and its dizzying, disorienting playing. The guitars slice while the growls shred, cool riffs leave frost, and misery-inducing growls rip away and leave bleeding holes. “Paralysis Euphoria” has haunting riffs and furnace-style growls that breathe fire. The track chugs and thrash as the soloing goes batshit wild, with the trudging smashing the earth, and a furious finish leaving bones powdered. Closer “Vermilion in Abstentia” has a speedy, reckless start that gnaws on flesh. Mangling violence and a massive pace crushes, while harsh growls bleed, the guitars send lightning bolts into hell, and a noise bed is where it all rests.

These two bands and records are not for those who require even a modicum of slickness to their music or tiny avenue toward accessibility. Dagger Lust and Adzalaan do not provide that, nor do these albums. This is profane, disgusting, damaging music that will leave your insides coated with acid and your comfort level permanently destroyed.

To buy either album, go here: http://vrasubatlat.bigcartel.com/

Or here: https://invictusproductions.net/shop/

Or here: http://store.fallenempirerecords.com/

For more on the label or either band, go here: https://vrasubatlat.bandcamp.com/

And here: https://invictusproductions.net/

And here: http://www.fallenempirerecords.com/

Not every band is a family. It’s funny sometimes to hear about groups that can’t even be in the same room together without coming to blows. Classic bands such as Van Halen and Dokken amassed tons of fans over the years despite their complete lack of personal functionality. So, when a band that does operate like a group of people who genuinely like each, it makes it that much harder when a member is lost.

We haven’t heard from wondrous metallic weirdos Wild Hunt in six years, and there are good reasons for that. Not only must it take some time to create their incredibly expansive creations, they also had to do so without guitarist Drew Cook, who passed away in 2015. That loss had a profound effect on the band, and that darkness spills into their mind-warping second album “Afterdream of the Reveller.” The band insists the album is not conceptual, but the effects of Cook’s passing, as well as depression and personal darkness, descent into madness, and the effect of personal loss are heavy themes on these thunderous eight songs. The creativity and manic aggression the band put into these songs is thick and ever-present, and as you travel though these adventures, you experience a taste of the madness that has warped the group the past few years. The music mostly was constructed by drummer/lead vocalist Harland Burkhardt and guitarist Greg Brace, though Cook contributed writing and some of his work is on four songs, so he’s even more woven into the record. Rounding out the lineup are guitarist/vocalist Jameson Kester (also of Void Omnia) and bassist Avinash Mittur, making for a whole new Wild Hunt that is here to rewrite their future.

“At Once the Vision and the Seer” opens the record with keys dripping, weirdness arriving, and dialog warbling before the thing opens in a death assault. The track is tricky and crushing, with prog fury sprinkled liberally, and shredding guitars tearing apart muscles. The back end is batshit crazy before it ends in as beastly a manner possible. “Odious Gamble” is up next and contains one of Cook’s final riffs. Guitars light up, as cool guitars emerge, and strangulated vocals make the track feel that much rougher. The track gets strange, as the playing reminds of early Mastodon, but then monstrous growling, smearing playing, a goddamn doom bell, and noise cloud end the display. “The Last Saeculum” has an acoustic start, adding calm, before the song gets a spacious push, and mysterious vocals punch you. The cosmic mysteriousness becomes overwhelming, as black chaos swarms, wild cries lead to a warped stretch, and a blinding solo works into the acoustic outro. “Choir of a Greater Sea” is my favorite song here, and it has a swelling, fast start, with a chorus rushing, the lead guitars jarring, and a black metal feel to the vocals. The growls get maniacal, while the pace dizzies, and then prog fires are agitated again. A weird ambiance envelopes all, while the sounds mystify, and it’s all washed away.

“Desiderium” is a quick, eerie interlude with creaky speaking and warbled singing, and it makes its way toward the title track that has a delirious, melodic burst out of the gates. Gurgly growls and rough-edged singing unite, as the base of the song is a heavy, emotional storm. The track blasts and lands punches, keeping your insides washing back and forth until a strikingly atmospheric end. “Nest of Flames” has noise rustling and spacey synth spreading, as creaky growls pelt the flesh, and a robotic-style transmission keeps your imagination working in overdrive. The guitars amp up the intensity about halfway through the track, sending the songs into air pockets, thick clouds, and a dreamy haze that pulls the song to its end. Closer “Palingenesia” is an immediate explosion, as savage energy and bludgeoning playing crumble your bones. The band heads into a heady, proggy section that becomes a strange, humid trip that eventually tears everything to shreds. The guitars explore, all kinds of colors splash into the mix, and the final dose of madness mixes into cosmic noise, with everything fading among the stars.

Wild Hunt’s incredible work continues with “Afterdream of the Reveller,” a record that unfortunately took a huge amount of personal pain in order to complete. It’s a great tribute to Cook and what he meant to his friends, and it’s an astonishing piece of work that sounds like nothing else out there. Take time, listen without distraction, and let this record lay waste to your mind.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/WILDHUNTBAND/

To buy the album, go here: https://vendetta-records.bandcamp.com/album/afterdream-of-the-reveller

For more on the label, go here: https://vendetta-records.bandcamp.com/

Photo by Saara Kujansuu

Finnish death metal is fairly legendary, right? Lots of huge bands you can rip right off your tongue from Demilich, Convulsed, Sentenced, and so many others have helped shape not only the scene in their country but the sub-genre around the world. The Nordic nation still has plenty to offer despite their already flowing well of riches, and Ghastly are one of the latest.

Now, with Ghastly, you’re not to expect straight-up death brutality. That’s certainly laced into the mix, but you also get some cosmic weirdness and psychedelic trauma to enhance their sound, which they further mold on their captivating second record “Death Velour.” These guys are committed to expanding the death formula beyond our terrain, pushing the imagination and the possibilities of what this sound can be. The songs are gnarly and alien sounding, and the seven tracks they offer up here continue to surprise over the record’s nicely served 37-minute run time. The band—vocalist Gassy Sam, guitarist/vocalist Jonny Urnripper, and multi-instrumentalist Ian J. D’Waters—can draw loose comparisons to artists such as the tragically fallen Morbus Chron, Execration, Horrendous, and even Voivod, but what they do here is totally their own and something fresh and invigorating.

“The Awakening” is ideally named as it feels like just that, a quick introductory instrumental constructed of keys, drums echoing, and strangeness that heads into “Death By Meditation” where riffs bend, and a blistering pace ignites. The vocals scrape while cool melodies wash over everything, turning the ambiance into a mesmerizing haze that holds on strong until the final notes drop. “Whispers Through the Aether” trudges and stomps, the harsh growls poke bloody holes, and the guitars catch fire. From there, the pace accelerates, with the growls doing cosmetic damage, and the band hitting a sci-fi-styled assault that keeps your head spinning and you gasping for air amid alien tentacles. The track ends in a final pit of metallic destruction. “The Magic of Severed Limbs” has a punishing, savage start, as the band aims to maim life and limb, and the growls threaten madness. Weird riffs swirl, while psychotic laughs barrel into the night, and then the guitars begin the tear at flesh again. The music bubbles, howls and bizarre shouts trick your mind, and the song spirals into hell.

“Velvet Blue” is punchy right from the start, with guitars caught on tornadic speed, and the band unleashing their most violent outburst of the entire record. The track is trudging and again does battle amid the stars before the track comes to a fire-breathing finish. “Violence for the Hell of It” is one of the best song titles of the year, and it delivers on its promise by landing blows and loosening teeth. The vocals crush bones, yet the guitars give off infectious atmosphere before everything shifts. The growls are gritty, synth creates a poisonous cloud, and the final minutes feel like an intergalactic battle fought galaxies away. Closer “Scarlet Woman” is the longest track at 9:14, and it takes its time setting the scene and feel. The initial flow is calm, as guitars drip, and the call of, “I saw her standing there,” pays off a visit from an apparition. The leads float before breaking apart, with drums getting menacing and thunderous, and melodies intertwining and gasping. Smothering crunching and gang wails follow, as the music boils, the guitars combine into a singular force, and the track seems to bleed blues and purples into the very river depicted in the stunning album art.

Bands such as Ghastly are keeping death metal exciting and pumping with interesting new colors of blood, and “Death Velour” is a strange, blistering trip into deep space. They’re heavy enough to satisfy those who require brutality, but they’re manic enough to draw those who want something challenging in their music to keep them invested. Ghastly do good by their country’s long tradition of death greatness as well as the overall sound they’re helping to grow into something weirder.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/ghastlydeathmetal

To buy the album, go here (LP): https://www.20buckspin.com/collections/new-items-1/products/ghastly-death-velour-lp

Or here (CD): https://www.20buckspin.com/collections/new-items-1/products/ghastly-death-velour-cd

For more on the label, go here: https://www.20buckspin.com/

Putting on a record that repays you with what feels like audio psychological torture might not seem like the most appealing thing to all people. But those who wish to dig as deeply as possible into death metal’s decaying corpse tend to like things on the deranged, damaged end, and there’s no such thing as music that is too sick and mangled.

Australian death metal shadows Grave Upheaval make the type of music that could conjure nightmares and strange spirits, and they dump more of their strangulated violence on a new sophomore record that, just like their 2013 debut, comes with no actual title. Over eight tracks dubbed with simple Roman numerals, the band—both members take just a dash as a name, though they play in other noteworthy groups including Portal, Impetuous Ritual, and Temple Nightside—twists your psyche and practically forces you to investigate a vision of real, actual hell, where souls are tortured, devoured, and digested for good. Their slowly sprawling, utterly drubbing brand of death metal has a tendency to bore its way into your mind and dig strange tributaries. Often, it feels like you’re being lulled into a trance, but giving into that mental state means you’re submitting to their deranged ways.

“II-I” starts the mission with noise rumbling lightly and the track taking its time to let the demons out of the basement. Eventually, raw growls emerge, while the ambiance feels grim and hopeless. The band overwhelms with its penetrating power, leading into the mouth of “II-II” and its burly riffs that aim to choke you. The drums demolish, and the scene feels like a never-ending tire fire, with smoke blanketing everything. Weird howls and unsettling whispers prick your skin, while the riffs pile on and take the track to its end. “II-III” is punishing from the start, with the band drubbing and deranged howls raining down. What sounds like a pained baby cries out into the night, as an intimidating blanket of drone is laid out, while the song crunches away. Cavernous growls echo, the drums splatter, and the song ends in a mud pit. “II-IV” begins with guitars melting and a trance bubbling up, while the growls stretch and slither, and haunting moans hint at nausea. The final moments clobber you into a weeping mess.

“II-V” has guitars churning and a relentless pace that add pressure to your chest. The track slows down and dumps malice, as the steam rises and wilts everything, and the words are delivered with pain. The track hisses and mauls, sickening your stomach and floating out after a final dose of speed. “II-VI” begins breaking bones while weird growls make your skin crawl. The band hits demolition mode, as the drums bash skulks, fucked-up wails bring a deep sense of unease, and final blasts do the last bit of damage. “II-VII” has guitars grinding as the pace pounds away, and the vocals bring another storm of eeriness. The droning death spreads its wings, while the growls get mean and nasty, the guitars chug in place over and over, and things eventually dissolve into mist. Closer “II-VIII” lets out a swarm of riffs that confound before the driving playing slowly chews at your nerves. The suffocating smoke builds all over before madness is unleashed in full, and the riffs smother everything in its way. The growls gurgle, every element pushes toward the ground, and the track eventually fades into the darkness.

Nothing in Grave Upheaval’s arsenal is ordinary or normal at all, and that lesson is learned over and over on their crushing second record. The entire run of this album feels like you’re being pushed to the test mentally, and breaking is to be expected. This isn’t a record to blare from your stupid truck windows or to give you a boost of adrenaline. It’s for examining your darkest pathways and accepting that terror and chaos is all around you.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Grave-Upheaval/131857073578133

To buy the album, go here: https://shop.nwnprod.com/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.nwnprod.com/

We try to open these pieces with introductory comparisons to life or politics or something that relates to the music in question we’re about to discuss. It gets tiring. I sat here for minutes before trying to think of a way to begin what I wanted to say. There are times when just jabbing at the heart of the matter works best, and so let’s do that.

There’s something great about a tried-and-true death metal record that doesn’t try to be something it’s not, doesn’t aim to start any new trends, and just wants to deliver the goods. That’s exactly what you get with “Devouring Mortality,” the punishing third record from California death metal crew Skeletal Remains. Reeking of the stench of the early ’90s (in a good way!), this trio rips out 11 songs packed into a perfectly portioned 44 minutes that scratch that deep itch for a really good, honest death metal display. That doesn’t mean it’s run of the mill by any means. It’s wickedly executed, mashing power generated by these three guys—vocalist/guitarist Chris Monroy, guitarist Adrian Obregon, bassist Adrius Marquez—who pour every ounce of precision and violence into this thing.

“Ripperology” starts the record thrashing away, with gnarly vocals chewing your skin, and the leads spraying. Atmosphere is injected, and eerie bells bring fear, while everything ends on manic cries and a blistering outburst. “Seismic Abyss” has a flurry of guitars and death chugging, as the howls are spat out, and the track delivers pain. The pace changes later, smearing its fury, while a blinding solo gets us to our blistering finish. “Catastrophic Retribution” is punchy and really has that ’90s sense to it. The vocals crush while the leads send blinding lights before things slow down and take on doomy sentiments. Then, of course, it speeds up and breaks necks over its final minutes. The title cut bursts with speed, with the vocals scraping and the leads having a nice vintage feel to them. “Torture Labyrinth” has a cool intro with alien guitars abound, and then the band starts delivering pain. The vocals are comprised of shrieks while the drums blister, and the guitars go off on an exploratory mission. “Grotesque Creation” opens with a great riff, the drums rumbling, and the tempo sprawling back and forth. The music swims through the madness, hitting some interesting curves before fading away.

“Parasitic Horrors” has vocals that come at you like shrapnel while the guitars twist your brain, and the tempo leaves bruising. The soloing is fluid and swelling, and then everything bursts, sending guts and bones everywhere. “Mortal Decimation” goes off the rails from the start, sending you into a panic attack as the swings start coming. Growls and piercing yells combine, while the playing then leaves you dizzy and reaching for walls to balance. The soloing then splatters, as an echo effect intensifies your confusion. “Lifeless Manifestation” provides a brief pull back, as it’s a short instrumental cut with demonic howls in the background, and it all spills into “Reanimating Pathogen.” There, confounding melodies arrive and twist your senses, while the vocals shred, and the guitars take over. Some interesting colors are added to the mix before the band rips away, dual leads glow, and we come to a crunchy crash landing. Closer “Internal Detestation” has a strong, riveting start while wildly howled vocals attack, and some insane solo work arrives. The guitars then intertwine, sending fire, and the track begins mashing before coming to a searing end.

You’ll find more futuristic stuff with other bands, but I doubt that bothers Skeletal Remains. This band does what it does very well, evidence of which can be found on “Devouring Mortality.” This is no-nonsense death played with some exploratory flourishes that always gives back ample amounts of power. There’s something to be said for consistency, and Skeletal Remains are packed with that.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/SkeletalRemainsDeathMetal/

To buy the album (North America), go here: http://www.darkdescentrecords.com/store

Or here: https://www.cmdistro.de/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.darkdescentrecords.com/

And here: http://www.centurymedia.com/

One would think any amalgamation of death and black metal should sound mentally unstable and absolutely savage. The beastly ambiance and complete disregard for one’s safety should be at the forefront, and anything polished and shiny should be tossed to the trash.

One dip into Our Place of Worship Is Silence’s new record “With Inexorable Suffering” will have you reeling in pain. It’s a pit of torment and punishment that, for some weird reason, you’ll feel like you rightfully deserve. So often, I get records that claim the death metal or black metal label, and don’t get me wrong, many are very good. Not often do I hear one that feels like I’m being chewed alive by a goddamn demon, but “With Inexorable Suffering” is one of them, and it feels like that every time I visit. The band—drummer/vocalist Tim, guitarist/bassist/vocalist Eric (and no, your Tim and Eric jokes aren’t funny)—bring unexplainable darkness on this album. These songs are urgent and in immeasurable danger, and each drop of this second album from this devastating duo feels like a punch in the gut, hammer to the temple. I want more death and black metal to feel this way. I laugh when people defend the assholes of the genre for making OK music with shock-tactic actions. Make me feel this in danger, and I’ll be willing to listen. This is scary.

“Artificial Purgatory” starts this black mass with riffs swirling, the track trudging violently, and gurgled yelling capping the ungodly transmission and pushing into “Chronicles of Annihilation.” There, the blunt assault gets under way right away, with maddening vocals that sound like they’re delivered from the mouth of hell. In fact, the vocals are the scariest part of this entire record. The track hits muck and insanity, as bestial growls erupt, and everything fades following a last bludgeoning. “The Blind Chimera and Its Death” splatters bodies, as the growls sicken, dense riffs bring on dizzying chaos, and an utterly terrifying display is laid out before you. The vocals turn demonic down the home stretch, while some melody manages to make singular bloody tributaries in thick pools of mud. “Labyrinth Disorientation” punches open and trucks toward you with plasma-soaked wheels. Deranged howls strike, while the soloing screams out and sends shivers. Mangled and crazed guitars rearrange your mental structure, while the back end feels like you’re watching someone get their guts ripped out alive.

“Defiance and Upheaval” lives up to its name, as a mucky assault breaks out, followed by guitars tearing your world apart, a nightmarish ambiance, and a murderous pace. Ferocious growls mix with animalistic shrieks, and all that barrels into “The Decay Maxim” that’s packed with devastation. Manic shrieks and twisted danger crash land into a mud pit, while gritty riffs and unhinged horrors drag the track to its gory finish. Closer “Lawlessness Will Abound” has guitars bending and a serious dose of weirdness as it begins. Your mind is driven to its limit, while the band pounds away with more and more layers of filth. A huge burst comes out of that (it startled me, as I wasn’t expecting it), with the playing confounding, crazed yells teaming with rabid growls, and the song slowly bleeding its last.

Our Place of Worship have crafted a record that doesn’t feel good, won’t elevate your useless testosterone, and won’t cradle your feelings. “With Inexorable Suffering” is a record that blasts your mind and soul and leaves you bleeding furiously. This is the danger and fire you’re supposed to feel dining on death and black metal. This is delivered in full-blazing panic and devastation.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/ourplaceofworshipissilence/

To buy the album, go here: http://translationlossrecords.bigcartel.com/

For more on the label, go here: https://www.facebook.com/TranslationLossRecords/

Like most kids my age, I spent a lot of my teen years watching old horror movies that I’d find at my local video stores. I went through the essentials such as the “Friday the 13^th,” “Halloween,” and “Nightmare on Elm Street” series, but I always found extra joy in the weird hidden gems on the shelf that looked like they were made for $100. A plus was the weird, synthy soundtracks that accompanied them and made what I was seeing feel that much spookier.

That chilling ambiance is what makes Delaware-based death mongers Scorched so fun for me. Not only do they splatter you with horrific tales and guttural death metal, but they surround them with quick interludes of frosty keyboards that makes the hair on your arms rise with fear. Their second full-length effort is due out later this year on 20 Buck Spin, but in the meantime, the label is refreshing two of their shorter works into “Excavation for Evisceration,” a single vinyl and digital display to give anyone new to the party an advance taste of the sickness. These 11 tracks and nearly 27 minutes of punishment are culled from their 2015 self-titled demo and their 2017 “Hymns From the Cellar” demo, and it packs these like-minded slabs into one convenient killing spree. The band—vocalist Matt Kapa, guitarists Steve Fuchs and Federico Dimarco (he just joined this year and didn’t play on these releases), bassist Andrew Benenati, and drummer Matt Izzi—pack their sound with smothering, driving death on tracks that don’t waste time getting to the point and leave you bruised and bleeding.

Side A kicks off with the “Hymns” demo, as “Enter the Cellar” greets you with noise and weird synth transmissions rising before we’re headlong into “Existence Dissolved.” Keys also drip in at first before burly death riffs crush souls, and the gurgling growls from Kapa pack more pain. The playing is grim and hammering before soloing catches fire and takes the song home. “Gruesome Procedure” is another interlude designed to turn your bloodstream into ice crystals, pushing you into “Altar of Desecration,” where riffs tangle and cut off your air supply. The pace is crunchy, and the growls are menacing, as we push into thrash and gloomy doom territory. Weird moans spill, as the track bleeds out.

The second side contains the self-titled 2015 demo and starts with “Emerging Decay” that lets the gates creak open toward “Fevered Souls” and its punishing leads and destructive power. The guitars ignite into utter fury, while shrieks and growls mix, the band smashes your bones, and wild howls spiral out in horror. “Caverns of Catharsis” blisters and chugs, as the growls bubble and flesh is ground in the gears. The track gets thrashy as hell, while the soloing explodes and brings the song to an abrupt end. “Tools of Murder” ensconces you in a synth fog and crawls toward “Fields of Famine” that grinds out its chaos slowly. The tempo then kicks into gear and mashes feelings, as the band punches in doors and unloads a mangling back end. “Fire Burial” is the final bizarre interlude before the final track “Scorched,” another in a long line of great tunes named after the band itself. Seething screams and meaty playing set the stage, while the whole thing splatters blood. Muddy growls face off with buzzing moans, spreading pestilence until the whole thing blows away.

If you’re heading to Migration Fest this summer, you’ll get a chance to see these guys on a larger stage, where they surely are going to bring some the tracks from “Excavation for Evisceration.” The band’s nasty, gnarly sound should please anyone who wants their death metal rotting and disease infested. This and what was on their 2016 debut full-length “Echoes of Dismemberment” should provide excellent hints at the annihilation that awaits us later this year.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/scorchedde

To buy the album, go here: https://www.20buckspin.com/collections/front/products/scorched-excavated-for-evisceration-lp

Or here: http://listen.20buckspin.com/album/excavated-for-evisceration

For more on the label, go here: https://www.20buckspin.com/