SVARTSORG
'In Jenem Kalten Winter'

Austrian Black Metal newcomers Svartsorg do not fall far from a decent debut attempt, in fact 'In Jenem Kalten Winter' is tipped for best underground Black Metal album of 2011, not like conventional Black Metal which seeks fast and brutal music, Svartsorg sit in a mid-tempo basis but draw much more than bleak and cold atmosphere to their music, they indulge in a far more beautiful sound to cast the soul into the plundering wilderness of the Austrian Alps. Much like Iran's Aras, Svartsorg keep a decent beat with the drums and use the guitars to draft in the atmosphere whilst at the same time the keyboards and vocals bring the darkness in a cold, frostbitten form, enough to spine-chill. 'In Jenem Kalten Winter' is an essential album for any Black Metal fan, dark, raw, atmospherically powerful, Svartsorg have only just begun.

[8] RHYS STEVENSON

 CHAOS BEYOND
'Confessions Of A Twisted Mind'
TERRASOUND

Bringing the fury from extremity is Austria's latest Melodic Death / Metalcore exports Chaos Beyond with their debut full-length album 'Confessions Of A Twisted Mind', with a ravenous fury-laden composition system, this is Austria's young answer to England's The Dead Lay Waiting. Pummelling drum beats occur in all areas of the drum-kit and subsequently fall allegiance to a rad rally of riffs and vicious vocals so violent it validates the meaning of extreme music. It is ominously evident that Austrian Metal is getting heavier and heavier and Chaos Beyond is no exception, for the quintet from the capital Vienna, this is a journey waiting to develop and uncover truths about the 'Confessions Of A Twisted Mind'.

[10] RHYS STEVENSON

EMPATIC
'Gods Of Thousand Souls'
TERRASOUND

Maybe one of those albums that's good but disappointing, anyhow Poland's Empatic released their debut album 'Gods Of Thousand Souls' last year, whilst the music itself is good there lacks some originality or unique sound quality per se. Whilst the vocals are little of touch, the drums and guitars soon make up for that unfortunate loss with a constant stream of riffing, blast-beating and double bass drumming, all in all serving as an adequate cocktail for any metal fan to savour, but essentially this is one of those mono-type albums, still a good attempt, just don't expect anything original on it.

[6] RHYS STEVENSON

TRENDKILL METHOD
'Affective Arousal'
SONIC BLAST MEDIA

Freshly unleashed from the depths of Riga is Latvian Metalcore tinged Groove Metal quintet Trendkill Method, sounding similar to Lamb of God, these burly Baltic statesmen fuel an apocalyptic explosion of sound-destruction on all levels, furious vocals alleviating the rib-cage ripping riffs and brain-bulldozing beats on the drum, with a cascade of influences clearly resounding in their latest effort 'Affective Arousal', a true mesmerising blitz of danceable tracks and head-banging extremism. Trendkill Method are a band to watch out for as they tear the European underground apart.

[7.5] RHYS STEVENSON

RUDRA
'Brahmavidya: Immortal I'
SONIC BLAST MEDIA

Singaporean Metal legends Rudra return with the apocalyptic finale to the 'Brahmavidya' trilogy with a sleek and sensual disarray of Black Metal-coated Death Metal to dislodge any previous negativity received from fans and critics alike, pioneers of the 'Vedic Metal' movement, Rudra are one of those bands from the Asian continent that is tucked away and barely see's any light in the European theatres, essentially one of Asia's top bands alongside bands like ChthoniC, Dir En Grey, Demonic Resurrection, Nervecell and Tengkorak, but whilst the Singapore Metal scene itself is laden with bands in such a small country, Rudra expel the country-city icon that their homeland portrays for something far brutal, as such 'Brahmavidya: Immortal I' is to be seen as a turning point in the Asian Metal scene.

[8] RHYS STEVENSON

MOTOR MILITIA
'Cloaked In Darkness'

Within no doubt, the middle east's finest Thrash Metal band, Motör Militia return with their sophomore album 'Cloaked In Darkness' after seven years. The quintet from Bahrain take the music into their own stride, with sensational riffs encased with a Heavy Thrash Metal approach coming from the drums and whilst the vocals implement a slice of mental brutality, the overall album has a kick-ass spirit to it, so much to say for Slayer's monumental 'Reign In Blood' as being a classic, for Motor Militia have just redefined the meaning of 'classic', however situated in a country with only a few metal bands in current existence there lies no real competition, only from other Middle Eastern countries, even so Motor Militia are essentially flying the flag for the Bahraini Metal scene, 'Cloaked In Darkness' is an essential album for any Thrash or Global Metal fan, a true diamond-of-an-album found in one of the smallest Middle Eastern countries. Combining Arabic and English lyrics is just the beginning for Motor Militia, but for the Bahraini Metal scene, it is no longer 'Cloaked In Darkness'.

[8.5] RHYS STEVENSON

THE SILENT RAGE
'Harvester Of Souls'

Greek Melodic Power Metal quintet The Silent Rage unleash their second EP 'Harvester Of Souls' with a Sonata Arctica tone to it, with highly pitched vocals and a percussive beat, The Silent Rage take their Greek atmosphere and channel it into something greater than the acropolis and Ancient Greece, with a rally of riffs to savour any untamed hearing and a beat to keep those heads banging, The Silent Rage are truly in another level of Greek Metal, whilst the lyrical content or topic is unclear, they certainly know how to bring a fantasy-like presence to their music, merely scraping the barrel of darkness to encourage a feasible level of composition, essentially a force waiting to escape the boundaries of Southern Europe.

[8] RHYS STEVENSON

SMOULDERING IN FORGOTTEN
'I Devourer'

Another one of Bahrain's Metal titans, Smouldering In Forgotten unleashed the darker side to this island with their sophomore full-length album 'I Devourer' released last year, armed with a brutalizing slab of Black infused Death Metal this sextet are the natural Bahraini rivals to Polish veterans Behemoth. Earthquake-causing drumming enveloped by a torrential wave of flesh-shredding riffs and mind-crushing vocals all coalesce to deliver one of the Middle East's most brutal and evil releases to date, whilst the music provides the brutality, the atmosphere changes into a thunderous imagination of sand storms, camels and barren deserts and not just the haphazard mirage. Smouldering In Forgotten are truly the Middle East's heaviest Metal band, watch this country metal scene at all costs.

[8.5] RHYS STEVENSON

ABRIOSIS
'Tattered & Bound'
SHIT KNIFE

Canadian Technical Death Metal newcomers Abriosis fire up the sound-blasting cannons with their fearful debut album 'Tattered & Bound', covering an extreme level of brutality it comes with an introduction which coherently doubles up as a sound warning, this album is not for soft-hearing people or ones suspecting of a Disney-laden Death Metal release, far from it, Abriosis cultivate a sonic streak of hard-hitting blast-beats shrouding some of the sickest riffs that rivals the aftermath of downing bottles of syrup and lubricating the larynx for a powerful explosion of brutal growling. Whilst falling short of the complexity of mathcore, Abriosis make up for lost time signatures by crafting and shaping their own sound, one which defines them separate to all Canadian Tech Death bands, a sure band to keep an eye out for.

[8] RHYS STEVENSON