ACID RAIN
'Shallow Paradise'

Returning with their third album is Argentina's Progressive Metal novices Acid Rain, 'Shallow Paradise' features a cleverly weaved sound of high falsetto vocals, fast drumming and melodic atmospheric music. This marks a turning point in their nine year career, a milestone of bridging Progressive Metal with classical, melodic and Power Metal elements. A truly remarkable work of lust, sleaze and pure South American musicianship, Acid Rain are certain to cause a storm in the underground and with this album under their belt, all that's left is to ask for more.

[8] RHYS STEVENSON

BETRAYING THE MARTYRS
'Breathe New Life'
'LISTENABLE'

French massacre mob Betraying The Martyrs unleash intense chaos with their heavy-TNT album 'Breathe New Life', a ballistic mix of insane riffs, breakdowns and cataclysmic drumming encased by gritty and clean vocals. With a fist-punching atmospheric blast-out as the basic focal point on this album, this really is a hearing-aid murderer. Betraying The Martyrs are vastly becoming the next big band from France and definitely one of the latest heaviest bands from the French Metal scene,; watch this band at all costs.

RHYS STEVENSON [8]

DERELICT EARTH
'And So Fell The Last Leaves...'

One of genre debating here, for France's one-man project Derelict Earth has Death Metal vocals, with near Black Metal (or if you're lucky to hear it) drumming and well out of sync guitar playing, whilst the atmosphere on the 2011 album 'And So Fell The Last Leaves...' is one of nature, little depression and solitude, the overall product could be a bit more enthusiastic, without hitting crudeness, the album seems to be whacked together without any constant patterns, almost as anything will do. But a decent attempt in the end, hopefully the third album will be a shade better.

[4.5] RHYS STEVENSON

ERADIKAL INSANE
'The Dementia Process'

For the new boys of Marseille, their debut EP 'The Dementia Process' is one carrying a health and safety warning, for the brutality and extreme heaviness in terms of the breakdowns and painful riffs ex-cruciate any pain with your hearing to its maximum level. The French Death Metal / Metalcore quintet blast themselves with enough explosive to demolish any recording studio in ten seconds. Whilst the overall production carries a powerful presence, the true essence lies not with croissants or Marseille football club, but rather with the cranial-crushing of brutal metal in its extreme form. Eradikal Insane is a band to watch in the French metal scene, a real promising act.

[8.5] RHYS STEVENSON

EXISTANCE
'Existance'

Hailing from France is Heavy Metal quartet Existance with their debut self-titled album, whilst they play Heavy Metal it is not as emphatic as Iron Maiden, even so whilst this is a decent listen, it is not one of those that would be renowned for anything new or unique. However for the crew from Clermont-de-l'Oise, this is just the beginning, the only way is up. Overall this is not a disappointing album but it's not an exciting one either, a few tweaks are needed here and there.

[5] RHYS STEVENSON

MODUS DELICTI
'Nobody'
COMATOSE

Promising Italian Brutal Death Grindsters Modus Delicti unleash a torrent of hell with their debut album 'Nobody' with a slice of extreme vocals and drums to compliment the near-gone guitars. Whilst the album itself offers a piece of bizarre music, the overall product is a mass combination of noisy vocals and furious musical compositions which together rival the very essence of musical creativity. 'Nobody' although nothing new is one of those albums that is still good however.

[7] RHYS STEVENSON

ANTROPOFAGUS / PUTRIDITY / PRION / INFECTED FLESH / MASS INFECTION
'Split Torso Trauma'
COMATOSE

Combining all forms of flesh from sickening Spain, icky Italy, aortic Argentina and gory Greece is some of the Brutal Death Metal underground storm-troopers, although it has a variety of bands on song, the general sound is there, so more so like a 5-band split compilation rather than a split, essentially a split for which caters for all various extreme tastes of Death Metal in its entirety. Full on mind-blowing sonic beats of pure drumming, outrageous riffs and vicious vocals, this is practically all that can be said about this release.

[8 - across the board]

FACE OF OBLIVION
'The Embers Of Man'
COMATOSE

Apocalyptic American Death Metal mob Face Of Oblivion unleash insanity and brutality in all demoralizing forms to cause unsightly chaos on all levels of extremity. With their debut full-length album 'The Embers Of Man' the motion of sickening vocals and down-tuned guitars electrify the barely noticed drumming compositions exerted by this quintet, overall this album is a mystifying array of mindless torture, cursing mass murdering and fearless anguish, 'The Embers Of Man' is seemingly apt to be dubbed the goriest album of 2011.

[8] RHYS STEVENSON

I CHAOS
'The Human Repellent'
RITF

Dutch Brutal Death Metal newcomers I Chaos quickly become a powerful force striving in the underground with their ear-shattering debut album 'The Human Repellent', whisking together a heavy punch of bone-crushing drumming and flesh-ripping riffs amongst gut-gurgling vocals, I Chaos is to become the next extreme act from the land of windmills and flowers, make no mistake this quartet mean violent business and should be taken with a pinch of precise warning, this music is not for soft metal listeners, I Chaos is 'The Human Repellent'.

[8.5] RHYS STEVENSON

ABINCHOVA
'Versteckte Pfade'

Valiantly galloping over the Swiss Alps and around the beautiful Matterhorn is Swiss Melodic Death / Folk Metal septet Abinchova, whilst not as heavy or folk-orientated as fellow countrymen Eluveitie, Abinchova instead implement their native sound via the lovely sound of violins and so devise their own sound. Sort of traditional folk meets the modern sound of metal in this twisted debut album named 'Versteckte Pfade' (roughly translated as hidden path), but with this in their arsenal, Abinchova are a band just waiting to explode into the wider Metal scene.

[8] RHYS STEVENSON