LA CORRIVEAU 'Soul Possession' When Quebec Thrash maniacs La Corriveau spewed out their first offering 'Soul Possession', it became clear that they base their lyrics around dark topics pertaining to murder and religion. Interestingly their band name derives from the legendary Marie-Josephte Corriveau, famously known as a "husband" killer during the 18th century. Quite apt for this band that perform Thrash Metal with modern influences such as the breakdown and growling vocals found in Hardcore, so this could be Thrashcore reborn. Their debut album 'Soul Possession' comes with a feast of juicy riffs, rotten vocals and a fruity atmosphere, much in the sound of Evile and Biohazard meshed together, but one thing that remains a fact is that La Corriveau will be a popular band amongst the modern metal fan, without any doubt whatsoever a band to keep an eye out on. [8] RHYS STEVENSON ALL THIS FILTH '11 Past' Sometimes it can be risky to release a debut album without an EP or demo before it; sometimes it pays off, on this occasion it pays off. Enter All This Filth, the Perth quartet with more balls than a bull with huge cojones and on marijuana, that said the album '11 Past' has a downfall on the twanging on the bass guitar being a little sloppy on parts of the album, but an overall view is that it's a bare minimum two minutes of negativity, for songs like 'fatal mistake' have that bass error on it but the rest of the song is a monumental piece of musicianship, as is the album itself. Fusing Groove elements to Deathrash Metal in the style of Lamb of God-cross-Nervecell, All This Filth produce a mouth-watering debut and are clearly set up to make tracks; shame about the bass though, might need more cowbell. [8.5] RHYS STEVENSON SIDHE 'She Is A Witch' Production could be better, the sound level as soon as the album kicks in is below powerful, so a little advice to listeners, turn it up a bit, that's better. Coming onto the critical part of the debut album 'She Is A Witch' by Italian Gothic Doomsters Sidhe, the vocals are a little bland and whilst the music itself gives a decent enough bleak atmosphere to draw in the Doom Metal feeling and the melodies coming in slow and smooth from the drums, the guitars however tend to strike anything close to Gothic Metal, shame about the vocals (but they are droned out from time to time by the guitars and so become hard to hear), however it is a fair attempt at a good start and with proper tweaking could vastly improve. [5] RHYS STEVENSON GRRIZLI MADAMS 'sntntn' ZALOZBA RADIA STUDENT Slovenian trio Grrizli Madams have re-united and come back as a Stoner Metal band to unleash their furious debut album 'sntntn'. Formed in 2003 as a Thrash Metal machine, the trio have changed their tune and come back with a rather instrumental release, fact being it is instrumental. Falling under the sort of easy-listening bracket and ideally giving the listener a change of sound every minute or so, from delinquent melodies to full on Heavy Metal, this is an album that's worth a listen to by any metal fan, let alone the fact its just under forty minutes of instrumental music, it will be interested to see where the guys go on from here. [7] RHYS STEVENSON DEAR SINNER
'Dark To Light' If bringing symphonies into the infrastructure of Gothic Metal was daunting enough it certainly was not for Thailand's Dear Sinner. The quintet comprising of two females and three males, conjure up a magical, majestic and totally operatic style to the genre dominated by Within Temptation and Epica, of who both can be related to the band's first EP 'Dark To Light'. Harmonious vocals become entranced by the versatility and extreme composition of both the drums and guitars as Dear Sinner take the listener on a journey across the lands of South-East Asia, over the countryside and into the beauties found in their homeland. For the Thai quintet this is a valiant effort and is sure to turn a few heads across the Global Metal scene. It will be interesting to see how they get from here to their next release and how the Thai Metal scene will react to their progress, but more so how the band are gracefully flying the flag for the Thai Metal scene so high. [8] RHYS STEVENSON
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LYCANTHIA 'Oligarchy' Full of melodramatic music and outrageous darkness is what is best to describe Lycanthia's sophomore album 'Oligarchy' as, but the only downside is that there is really too much going on, for example the harsh male vocals on top of the female high vocals doesn't sound good, and maybe alternating the vocals would. The music itself is fairly good for a Doom-laden Metal album but still the guitars lack any real presence, ironically giving it an even more raw presentation, even though the drums and the keyboards steal the show. However no matter what the negative parts of the album are, the good points are that it is very dark, gothic and beyond extreme, something which lacks in some bands these days. [6.5] RHYS STEVENSON ILLUMINATA 'A World So Cold' NAPALM RECORDS Making their return with their second album is Austrian Melodic Power / Gothic group Illuminata, the three male and three female ensemble bring to the masses 'A World So Cold' released in 2011. This sees the sextet signed to Napalm Records and also brings their delightful and majestic sounds to the table once more, epic symphonies, luscious vocals and powerful music come together to take the listener on a magical journey through the wispy clouds and wintry mountains of the Austrian alps as Illuminata lead the way and deliver an absolute epic in the tune of Within Temptation and Lacuna Coil, but what is missing is the one and only fact, this album is too short, it is that good. [10] RHYS STEVENSON THE NINE TREASURES '十丈铜嘴 Arvan Ald Guulin Hunshoor' MORT PRODUCTIONS Simply put, this could be Chinese Metal album of the year, because '十丈铜嘴 Arvan Ald Guulin Hunshoor' not only has lyrics sung in Mongolian, features Chinese Folk music mixed with Heavy Metal or because it's the debut album by The Nine Treasures, but because the absolute originality is parallel. Hailing from Inner Mongolia, The Nine Treasures weave together a myriad of musical instruments to effectively deliver a piece of music that makes most Oriental Metal bands obsolete and what makes The Nine Treasures so special is that they've only been around two years, released their debut and are signed to a major Chinese label, in fact they've only started, next stop Loud Park? [10] RHYS STEVENSON TERMINAL LOST (天幕落) '卷贰 凤凰山' MORT PRODUCTIONS Darkness falls over Shanghai as Terminal Lost return with their second slab of evil Melodic Black Metal in the form of '卷贰 凤凰山', the quintet bring the darker side of the Chinese Metal scene to the masses and blasts wide open the doors for black wolves to charge forward at the speed of the drums, whilst ravens swoop down as the riffs drop and the Oriental sounds deliver a soul-soothing and soul-crushing dual blow, this is an album full of many influences to keep any listener occupied and so it will be interesting to see where Terminal Lost go on from here, whether to more Oriental sounds, darker atmospheres or harder music. [8.5] RHYS STEVENSON SIGH
'Infidel Art / Hail Horror Hail' MORT PRODUCTIONS So way, way back in 1995, Sigh the Black Metal / Avant Garde Metal lords of Japan, released their sophomore album as a follow up to 1993's 'Scorn Defeat', 'Infidel Art' sees more melancholy develop from the band who at this point were a trio. Mixing the darkness of the Japanese history with the bleak and cold atmosphere found in traditional Black Metal, this album delivers a cross between extreme music and the oriental sounds of Japan, now one felt that the film The Grudge was eerie enough, but when an album like this comes out of the dark to haunt your hearing, it would seem wrong to put it as a stereotypical black metal album, for here is a band who undoubtedly changed the course of Japanese Metal forever. Moving onto 1997 and Sigh turn up a notch by bringing in darker imagery and a far more cold, bitter and evil atmosphere into their third release 'Hail Horror Hail', which in turn reveals itself to be a rather sensational and unnerving album. Full of the Avant Garde Metal style in the music parts and Black Metal vocals cover the rest of the album with the bleak and eerie atmosphere warranted by the album from the first song to the very last song, Sigh take the listener on a journey of mystery, myth and total legendary proportions with this release and as they now at present have nine albums in their 23 year career, Sigh are now Japanese Metal legends. P.S. Global Metal Apocalypse does not support or encourage the NSBM movement, nor do we condone it, we purely look at it as a Black Metal genre and focus purely on the music itself. FEUERNACHT 'Kamps Macht Frei' ONE PEOPLE ONE STRUGGLE The debut from the Austrian NSBM machine known as Feuernacht does not go without any compromise, singing entirely in their native German language, the band drag out from the darkness the most gruesome and evil types of Black Metal, the National Socialist kind. Whilst most will hate on the album, the music deals justice in that it delivers a cleverly structured slice of classic Black Metal. Fast-drumming on top of raw vocals that are so raw, it makes blood-red meat look pathetic. With a morbid, cold and damp atmosphere being drawn into the affray, this release could be the peak of the movement and as such, without any argument, a release worthy on anyone's shelves. Grim, black and practically old-school, 'Kamps Macht Frei' is the signature tune of Feuernacht. [7.5] RHYS STEVENSON MOSHPIT 'We Carry The Heart' ONE PEOPLE ONE STRUGGLE Let's face it, the 2012 offering by German Metalcore mob Moshpit is poised to smack the hell out of the cloned Metalcore bands that scatter the earth's surface these days. Their 2012 album 'We Carry The Heart' is a perfect example of how Metalcore 'should' be done. Brutal breakdowns, neck-slashing riffs and gut-rotting vocals accelerate the monstrosity that is Moshpit. Signed to OPOS Records, Moshpit are one hell of a promising band and are sure to smash their way through the German Metal scene like a dozen horses charging into battle, this, is, the, sh*t! [8] RHYS STEVENSON WARSENAL '2012 Demo' Give the lads due and praise, well after all Canada's Speed / Thrash Metal crackpots Warsenal make their debut on the scene with their 2012 demo. Regretfully quality is near appalling, but there again it makes you turn the volume up past 13, and then you'll find that this release has close links to the likes of Slayer and Anthrax. For the trio from the French-speaking region of Quebec, this could be the first step to bring back the old glorified sounds of 80's Speed and Trash Metal. Fast percussive beats, shredding riffs and slick vocals, Warsenal maybe become the war arsenal. [5] RHYS STEVENSON NIGHTCREEPERS 'Alpha' Gallantly wielding their swords, strapping together their barrels and priming their arrows, is French Pagan Folk Metallers Nightcreepers with their majestic sophomore album 'Alpha'. This sextet create an upbeat yet traditional sound with the usage of keyboards and a finely-tuned accordion to mix the classic French music sound with the harsh brutality of the Metal music infrastructure. It is not often that you come across bands similar to that of Arkona, Primordial or Cruachan; minus the Celtic Metal influence, or so one thinks. However, Nightcreepers are sure to storm the European lands, turn heads and most importantly sport that upcoming, needed label signing (and one could see them on a label like Nuclear Blast someday). [9] RHYS STEVENSON RISE OF AVERNUS
'Rise Of Avernus The debut EP by Australian quintet Rise Of Avernus does not go without it's drawbacks, it's too short. The EP kicks off the melodramatic and dark atmosphere through the delinquent sounds of the keyboard and the raw riffs of the guitar intertwining with the deep and depressive vocals, all of which bring together a real dank release. For the Progressive Gothic Doomsters, this is a great attempt on the first hurdle and it would seem that they have much more to offer in the next few releases. With clear-cut influences from Opeth, Paradise Lost and Candlemass, this is one EP to please any Doom Metal fan. [7] RHYS STEVENSON THOUGHTS OF REJECTION 'Thoughts Of Rejection' A face-punching, spine-cracking and soul destroying attempt comes from Austria's Thoughts Of Rejection and their self-titled debut album. The quintet weave together a riff-after-riff rampage with the very essence of Death/Thrash covered Metalcore for which devours the final sound into a million shards of glass, with each second bringing a delightful cut to the chase and the 'thoughts of rejection' eventually begin to slice through the listener's sense of hearing. Truth resides here and this effort will not fall far short of getting attention, rest assured this band has got more to offer. [7] RHYS STEVENSON OKERA 'A Beautiful Dystopia' Australian Melodic Death / Doom Metal quartet make their debut album jump and trip a bit, 'A Beautiful Dystopia' has all the flavourings of the traditional sounds from the stated genre's, but the atmosphere lacks in ambience and despair and thus results in a rather upbeat version. Hark, nonetheless Okera make a good attempt at their first release and is sure to bring out future promising sounds, but for now there is work to be done, perhaps the surfing needs to be cut down and spent more time absorbing the outside atmosphere during the BBQ season, or better still taking in the dark side of Australia, of which would become 'A Beautiful Dystopia'. [6] RHYS STEVENSON BELAKOR 'Of Breath & Bone' ROCKSTAR RECORDS Third strike lucky and coming out of the gates is Australia's Belakor and their third outing, 'Of Breath & Bone' sees the Melodic Progressive Death maniacs delve into the deepest sphincters of hell to deliver a face-smacking punch of evil music. With the riffs emanating the classic Scar Symmetry progressive gist and the vocals taken on the form of Unleashed, this is a truly remarkable effort. Without any remorse, Belakor produce music similar to that of Scar Symmetry, In Flames and Marionette, a classic Gothenburg sound escape and with this effort, the next step is global domination for the Victoria quintet; could easily be Australian Metal album of the year. [8] RHYS STEVENSON TEMPLE 'Structures In Chaos' NON SERVIAM RECORDS Blasting the barriers of sound is Dutch Brutal Death cowboys Temple and their emphatic debut album 'Structures In Chaos', this god-smiting release brings together the sounds of early Behemoth with Hail of Bullets-style vocals. It's sensational speed, riff intricacy and gut-rotten vocals devour the listener into a state of phantasmagoria via exploding the surrounding area with the sound of pounding beats, harmonious guitars and the overall sense that Temple, of whom are a trio, are in fact a mass army, ready to deliver the most brutal and sickening Death Metal in through 'Structures In Chaos'. [7.5] RHYS STEVENSON AKOMA
'The Other Side' If Carlsberg did prophecies, it would probably be the prophecy in the world, and this pretty much sums up Akoma's sophomore EP 'The Other Side'. Striking comparisons can be found between the heavenly vocals of Within Temptation; only made even more heavenly by Tanya and the thunderous drumming and riffing by three talented musicians, altogether producing one of the finest Danish Metal bands in years. 'The Other Side' takes the listener to a land of majestic adventures, harmonic rivers and waterfalls and changes the atmosphere into the realm of the beauty and the beast. Sounds like phantom of the opera, plays like godly music, concludes as the potential for being Danish release of the year, why aren't they signed? [10] RHYS STEVENSON LAHANNYA 'Dystopia' KABUKI A bit of a reprisal comes into play with Lahannya's latest offering 'Dystopia', the multi-national quartet deliver a Gothic-twisted emphasis on the whole Alternative Metal division, with joyous melodies and erotic vocals coalescing together to shed new light on the sounds of modern music. Long gone are the days of London being a reputed Gothic area but the music continues to flourish and rule the night and with Lahannya firmly now set in stone and on the road to achieve much more, nothing will stop this foursome from reviving the old roots of Gothic/Alternative music. 'Dystopia' is for fans of Evanescence, The Cyan Velvet Project, Velcra and Domina Noctis. [7.5] RHYS STEVENSON BELLIGERENT INTENT 'Seven Are They' Perhaps this could be a signature soundtrack to a world war two film, or it could be something dark that's lurking in Australia's backyard; a dead body perhaps? But whatever fans can make of Belligerent Intent's debut album 'Seven Are They', it is guaranteed a smacking of rough and grizzly Black / Death Metal. Blistering drums are perhaps the best section of the band's debut, but as an overall production it can be easily linked to other bands such as The Furor or Behemoth. Next thing we will know is that there is a sharp rise of hearing loss in the Melbourne area, or it could be the screeching of the Melbourne Formula 1 Grand Prix (we think). [8] RHYS STEVENSON KLYNT 'Of Klynt & Man' Hard to make anything of this one, well technically that's a lie, this is Austrian quintet Klynt and their debut release 'Of Klynt & Man', now when claiming to be Power / Thrash Metal, it would be assumed to be fast, with melodic vocals and heavy vocals in tandem, however what Klynt have done have gone the opposite, heavy vocals, melodic music and medium pace. Like the fable of Midas, Klynt are on that path but are a fair distance away from making any epic sounds as-of-yet, but with this release under their belt, it can only get better for the lads, one band to keep an eye out for. [7] RHYS STEVENSON WHITECHAPEL 'Whitechapel' METAL BLADE Within the myriad and factory-processed Deathcore bands that seem to have come out of nowhere, lies a diamond amongst the fakes and it is this diamond that is in fact Whitechapel. The American juggernauts assault the fourth outing in sensational style, with a breakdown after blastbeat smack-in-the-face reception, the self-titled album by the heavy-weight titans is a clear sign of how Deathcore 'should be done'. This without a doubt has to be the best album they have ever released and will prove a real hard act to follow on from. For fans of Resist The Thought and The Black Dahlia Murder amongst many other elite Deathcore acts. [8] RHYS STEVENSON CATACOMBS
'Catacombs' Somewhat easy to compare when speaking of Catacombs, the closest you can pinhole them to is Wintersun, minus the chill factor. However, Australia's Catacombs and their debut self-titled EP is not without any deviations; subtle breakdowns emerge here and there whilst retaining the melodic overture found on 'The Fallen'. Sure it's not a 100% production and generally no first release is, but the Melbourne lads do have a sense of musical direction and with this EP under wraps, they could break into the international scene, with hints of Amon Amarth and the slow Melodic doom-feel in the shadows, Catacombs are a decent band with a decent release. [7] RHYS STEVENSON VARIOUS ARTISTS
'Siege Of Armada Sampler Vol3' SIEGE OF ARMADA The third sampler volume from Siege Of Armada Records does not come without a sheer warning, this is not for pussies, this is prime Metal and is here to slaughter anyone who opposes the majestic brutal force. Forged by the numerous blacksmiths of insanely mental music, the sampler has drums blazing, riffs erupting more brutal than any volcanic explosion and a variety of vocals that make any Christian choir monotonous. With bands like Boris The Blade giving a punch-in-the-head style Deathcore-cross-Death Metal production, Awaken Demons serving up some crunchy-Metalcore that's sharp enough to slit anyone's throats with the immense feeling of justice and The Breathing Process cursing anyone who dare bespoke Metal as a s*** music genre, you get the sense and feeling Siege Of Armada Records is out to punish any cretin or human being who is stuck-up enough to diss the genre of Metal music. But for Metal fans, aye this is a sampler worth downloading, enough for you to spend over an hour delving in and out of it is wide array of different Metal styles and bands, even if it was released in 2011, it has the embodiment of a decade in its shadows. [10] RHYS STEVENSON MOTHERPIG 'Nojev Let' BEYOND THE SUN / ZERO BUDGET PRODS Bosnian Heavy Metal / Hard Rock trio Motherpig make their 2011 release all sweet and essentially unique, only that they sing in their national language, either Croatian, Bosnian or Serbian, anyone's guess (apart from those who know their languages). None the less this is a release that has a lot of potential for the band, especially when the Bosnian Metal scene is not well known, with some Motorhead influences clearly detectable in the vocals and more punk in the musical style, these three Bosnians are crafting something new and different, something refreshing and something to keep the old traditions alive, [7] RHYS STEVENSON INFEST 'Everlasting Genocide' ZERO BUDGET PRODS. Speeding out of the pits and into pole position is maniac Death / Thrash Metal crackpots Infest of who has created a belter regarding their third album 'Everlasting Genocide'. Kicking off its a bit slow but it soon picks up and justifies itself as a late starter, the Serbian four-piece go all-out insane on this release with neck-breaking thrash tearing away at the flesh of humanity and death metal making anyone crap themselves. Fast and furious is an understatement when talking about Infest, whipping up a storm of epic proportions leaving the listener in a state of utter confusion on what just happened, listen at your peril. [7] RHYS STEVENSON PUS 'Pus' UNIVERSAL TONGUE The ultimate pun, thick as sludge, or so it should be. Welsh Sludge Metal / Crust stalwarts Pus release what can only be described as indescribable, it is exactly that. Pus with their self-titled EP bring out nothing but raw riffs, bizarre drumming points and vocals that one would only describe as pointless screaming. True to the word that the drumming is percussive, but even that does not rescue the EP from utter humiliation, some could even dub it 'watered down screamo', but that's getting hasty, but it certainly is not music, some will argue, but opinions are always there, the listener shall decide. [2.5] RHYS STEVENSON 77 'High Decibels' LISTENABLE It just seems apparent that Spanish Hard Rock / Heavy Metal quartet 77 are the exact copy of Australian rock legends AC/DC, there lies nothing really new with their release 'High Decibels', it goes without saying there is hardly any differences. Whilst the classic Hard Rock sound echoes all around with the drums providing a timed beat and the guitars whipping out charismatic riffs, the vocals are pretty much stolen from Brian Johnson, there is nothing spectacular to highlight only the fact they are playing the standard sounds of Hard Rock, kudos for them to keep the tradition alive though. [4] RHYS STEVENSON ELECTRIC MARY
'Electric Mary III' LISTENABLE The sophomore album from Australian Hard Rock / Stoner Metal posse Electric Mary is a funked-up piece of music creativity, whilst the closest sound influence is perhaps Guns 'N' Roses and Motorhead, the solo's on this release are so magically technical it makes Australian rock look impossible to play, but Electric Mary are one of those bands who take a pinch of everything and this is found on their 2011 album 'Electric Mary III', funnily enough its one of those releases listeners could associate car racing and bar brawls with, talk about punch up, fist up and throw down. [7] RHYS STEVENSON CONNATURAL TERROR 'Lunacy Frenzy' PSYCHO LUNACY SOUNDS Arising from the grassy plains of Põlva in Estonia is Death Metal duo Connatural Terror and their disturbingly wretched debut EP 'Lunacy Frenzy', whilst the overall production is great, the vocal dynamics could be easily improved, however the music itself offers a two or three stroke battering and by jove is the double bass heavy. Although not exactly the greatest releases to start with, the effort in this is clearly felt with the vocals, what sets this duo apart from the rest of the Death Metal gathering, the level of precision in the vocals is paramount, almost explicitly morbid. [6.5] RHYS STEVENSON AMORAL 'Beneath' IMPERIAL CASSETTE / THE END Armed with the absolutely talented Ari Koivunen (Finland's Idol 2007 winner) on vocal duties, Finnish Power Metal (and Death Metal) machine Amoral make their warmed-welcome return with their fifth album 'Beneath', this brings a storm of blizzardous drumming along with some of the most epic riffs ever heard by the band and of course utilising the magic that the Finnish Power Metal vocalists seem to muster, none the less Amoral know what sound they want to create, one of epic dynamic sounds and endless neck-breaking Metal music, 'Beneath' is for fans of Sonata Arctica, Shade Empire and Children Of Bodom; with the release now out it has to be Finnish Metal album of the year. [10] RHYS STEVENSON IN LEAGUE 'Where The Silence Is Easy' Australia sees a new boy band on the block, this time it is In League with their debut album 'Where The Silence Is Easy', the Post-Hardcore sextet immerse the listener with gravitational-pulling riffs and brain-shredding drumming, all supported by some of the most melodic vocals heard from Australia. Sounding similar to that of Enter Shikari (minus the trance) and Rise Against, In League are sure to gain global attention from media and fans alike, 'Where The Silence Is Easy' is an exceptionally powerful release and with the attitude and musical direction displayed on this release, there is nothing to stop this furious blazing wildfire of six lads to dominate the globe. [8] RHYS STEVENSON ESSENZA 'Devils Breath' BIG MUD Totally unethical and despairingly common, Essenza's third album released in 2009 is nothing more than a standard Heavy Metal release, no enthusiasm or drive to make it entertaining, as if the guitars just rusted up or the drummers lost the groove. The only good thing about it is the fact they've tried to make another album, but with this effort they may as well want to re-record it and make it 10x better, whilst the album does offer some glimmer of hopes here and there, listeners may disobey their Metal traits for once and listen to Justin Bieber, back to square one for the Italian trio. [2] RHYS STEVENSON MITIGATE
'Welcome To Our World' Austrian Symphonic / Melodic Death Metal trio Mitigate make their debut album 'Welcome To Our World' sound out with axes raised high in view of the masses. Much goes by the basic drumming but more attention is drawn to the vocals of which give two contrasting feelings, one of majestic feeling and the other of being slaughtered, whilst conventionally the music has some progressive elements to it - especially in the symphonies, but even so the latter is a just reflection of 'Dimmu Borgir-like' symphonic metal. Mitigate for who they are, have created a separate sound regardless of the common drum sounds, rest assured it can only get better. [6] RHYS STEVENSON GMN - Vol57 - Synarchy, The Apocryphal Order, Krv, Behold Thy End / Our Fallen, Heaven The Axe21/12/2011 _ SYNARCHY 'Tear Up The World' TUTL Returning with their highly-anticipated second album is Faroese Melodic Thrash belters Synarchy, their second album 'Tear Up The World' unleashes more torrential downpours of sensational riffs, unassailable drumming and valiant vocals, powerful enough to make any Viking run away scared. Coming from a small Metal scene, Synarchy are due to be the next big Faroese Metal export after Tyr and essentially are laying down the way for fellow countrymen to follow in their footsteps. With 'Tear Up The World' at the hands of the masses, there is no stopping now for the quintet of Tórshavn, as they 'Tear Up The World' and fly the flag for the Faroese Metal scene; without a doubt Faroese Metal album of the year. [10] RHYS STEVENSON THE APOCRYPHAL ORDER 'The Apocryphal Order' TUTL Smashing through the inlets and cliffs of the Faroe Islands is the new-born band The Apocryphal Order with their debut self-titled EP, with its no nonsense slaughtering sound of rapid drumming, bone-crushing riffs and unearthly vocals, this quartet from Tórshavn unleash pure hell in four tracks, with a delicate balance of Death Metal growls with the music itself bearing the forefront for the Thrash Metal half. Unlike your generic Death / Thrash signature sound, this Faroese lot score each note to perfection and use the timing extremely well, sounding like a cross of Unleashed and modern Scandinavian Thrash Metal, The Apocryphal Order is taking the next step to becoming the darkest force in the Faroe Islands. [8] RHYS STEVENSON _ KRV 'Ograma' NORTHERN HORDE / ZERO BUDGET PRODS 'Ograma' is Krv's fourth and ultimately last album, in its post-humours state it includes the 5 track EP 'U Kamenom Grobu', this is a fitting way to end the Bosnian Black Metal band's eight year life. Soothingly dark and raw, the 10 track album (and 5 track EP) offer a disturbing yet intricate way of performing Black Metal in your native tongue, essentially this band give a rather ethical approach to their music, regretfully they are no longer active but will be revered to as an underground band in the Bosnian Metal scene. [6] RHYS STEVENSON _BEHOLD THY END & OUR FALLEN 'Behold Thy End & Our Fallen' Two New Zealand Death Metal / Deathcore underground maniacs come crashing together to unleash a split of murderous proportions, with Behold Thy End cooking up a ferocious assault of blasphemous Death Metal in its sickest and most vile form whilst Our Fallen deliver a face-smacking slaughter of gritty Deathcore. Whilst Our Fallen sadly is on hiatus, Behold Thy End seems to still be active, just. None the less this split is one enough to explode any party into overdrive and make the fireworks seem more like petty popping candy. Without a doubt this is the heaviest release from the New Zealand Metal scene this year and one full of potential for both bands, just don’t count on any compromise. [8] + [9] RHYS STEVENSON _ HEAVEN THE AXE
'Sex, Chugs & Rock 'N' Roll' Sexiness’, sleek and extremely riot grrrl, this is Australia's bad boys and girl band Heaven The Axe who utilise an erotic style of Hard Rock / Heavy Metal, this comes with their eccentric debut album 'Sex, Chugs & Rock 'N' Roll', full of the AC/DC rock spirit and Iron Maiden music composure, none the less don’t be fooled by the hot-chick-in-a-band cliché, Phoebe Pinnock means business with her devilish vocals and heavenly attitude, all of which backed by four exceptionally talented musicians gives Heaven The Axe the motive to take the world by storm. Australian rock and roll will never be the same again, without a doubt Australian Metal album of the year 2011. [9] RHYS STEVENSON FOURTH AUTUMN 'Mock The Weak' RISING Deep from within the Welsh valleys arises a Black / Death metal band of four musicians of whom come together to unleash their debut album 'Mock The Weak'. Fourth Autumn are ready to unleash the darkness onto the masses in fierce style, whilst not exactly sounding similar to that of Polish titans Behemoth, the clear swinging-beat of Black Metal emphasises the extreme mentality of the quartet and yet manages to stab the atmosphere with insanity and spectacular intricacy, none the less this is a beacon of hope for the Welsh Metal scene which seems to of late been dominated by the common genre of Metalcore, or any 'core' genre. Fourth Autumn are set to take the UK Metal scene by storm and show how evil the dragons of the west really can be. [8.5] RHYS STEVENSON FROM THE DEPTH 'Back To Life' RISING Adventure and magical sorcery come to mind with the Italian Power Metal ensemble From The Depth's debut album 'Back To Life', with a constant stream of majestic keyboard strokes to add a level of discovery to the affray, uniquely this is a band who somehow mix European Power Metal; with its neck-breaking pace and decibel-smashing solos, with the embodiment of Disney magic, one would assume they had just come from a fairy tale with the gallant feel in their music. 'Back To Life' is surely a solid reminder that the Italian's are passionate about fast and powerful metal and From The Depth is no exception, without a doubt power metal album of the year 2011. [10] RHYS STEVENSON VINTERBLOT 'Nether Collapse' RISING Uprising Italian Viking / Death Metal quintet Vinterblot make the first move with their debut album 'Nether Collapse' being released next year, it sees the new signing of Rising Records unleash a horrid and eccentric mix of cutting-edge Death Metal and Viking Metal melodies / lyrics. How odd it is that a band from a country with no Viking relation whatsoever, manages to deliver the same level of brutality as per se Tyr from the Faroe Islands. With an armament of ten tracks to batter your brains and mosh your body to, Vinterblot are only just getting started and are far from shying away just yet, the journey for them has just begun. [8] RHYS STEVENSON _4 ARM 'Submission For Liberty' RISING 2011 saw Australia's 4 Arm release their third album in absolute... what the? It would seem that the Groove Metal, crossed with Thrash Metal and Metalcore went AWOL. Whilst the attempt is there, the tunes are near out of sync, the Metalcore style vocals are not there, and whilst this is a poser copy of Lamb Of God, the guitars only offer little light for this quartet. With most of the songs sounding similar in more ways than one and with no sense of change of tune, this may be a shooting in the foot for the Australian band. [3.5] RHYS STEVENSON THE SULLEN ROUTE
'Apocalyclinic' SOLITUDE PRODS. Typical Russian Doom / Death Metal, none the less The Sullen Route offer their version of the common sound and nationality combination with their second album in two years, 'Apocalyclinic' delivers a reasonably paced period of depressing yet neatly organised Doom Metal. But just like most Doom / Death Metal bands, the music is slow, heavy and full of depressive dark atmosphere, but take hats off to the Russian quintet for keeping the old style alive, almost certainly one of those releases that even when you're drunk out of your mind, it still captivates somehow. [6] RHYS STEVENSON |
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