 ANCKORA 'Открой мне дверь' (Open The Door For Me) LIFE MUSIC Russian Cyber Metal bands are always promising, not only do they lash together electrodes of industrial music along with synthesizers and the beautiful dark side of the Russian language, but bands like Anckora make it sexy time. Deep in the cold and bitter backstreets of downtown Moscow, Anckora emerge with their new album 'Открой мне дверь' (Open The Door For Me), showing a shift from Symphonic Gothic Metal to Electro 'Cyber' Metal, whilst continuing to mix their mother tongue with the musical shift. 'Открой мне дверь' (Open The Door For Me) is one for those who love the futuristic elements of electronic trance and the harsh bitter sounds of industrial laden with brutal metal foundations that compute this release as one of Russia's most exciting releases this year. Download This: "Врата рая" For Fans of: Nine Inch Nails, Breach The Void, The Kovenant, Gothminister [8] RHYS STEVENSON  NOTHING MORE TO EAT 'Nothing More To Eat' For a quick 25 minute outburst of Death Metal and Grindcore, look no further than Finnish band Nothing More To Eat and their delicious self titled release, featuring a whole host of humorous and totally bonkers songs, this is extreme comedy central like never before. 'Nothing More To Eat' gleams with fourteen tracks of outrageous lyrics and barmy music, the two when together sum up as a frenzy like production. Sure this is nothing as grandeur as fellow countrymen Deathbound, but this isn't Brutal Death Metal either, this is simply fast music with heavy vocals that crushes and destroys anything that opposes it, devouring the senses until there quite literally is 'Nothing More To Eat'. Download This: "Death From Below" For Fans of: Deathbound, Fitcage, Goresoerd, Tengkorak. [7] RHYS STEVENSON  BODRAGAZ 'Symphony' Eighteen years down the road and Colorado's Bodragaz have still got the power, their seventh full length 'Symphony' ironically does deliver symphonic-like Progressive Metal. However unlike most albums in this genre, 'Symphony' does not feature any whopping 7 minute plus songs, whether that is a good or bad thing remains debatable, but what is hard to debate is the level of excellence shown on this release, if this was a bird of prey it would be a peregrine falcon, swooping down each symphonic element as it glides over the sensational riffs, pecks at the electric vocals unleashed on this release and watches over the drums as all elements come together and deliver a spectacular release. 'Symphony' is an album that will appeal to almost any Progressive Metal fan and is sure to become a legend in the state of Colorado, if not beyond. Download This: "I Found You" For Fans of: Dream Theater, The Devin Townsend Project, Myrath [8] RHYS STEVENSON  FALL OF PANTHEON 'The Shadow Envelops All' Easily one of Denmark's most promising extreme metal acts to emerge out of the abyss in the last few years, the five Danes wield together a sound that will get bands like Hail of Bullets (NL) wetting their pants, this sound resonates on their second 'The Shadow Envelops All' from which belts out drum sequences at a blistering pace whilst the riffs shred metal like bullets that are fired from an AK-47 and the vocals emit a brutal force that is reported to have swayed the Øresund Bridge so much that engineers are worried that anymore brutal force and it will collapse, perhaps then it will be made out of Lego or perhaps Fall Of Pantheon will make the Swedish Death metal scene shudder in fear. This year music belongs to Denmark, they already won the Eurovision and now they might as well have one best underground unsigned Death Metal band of the year. Download This: "Inner Dystopia" For Fans of: By The Patient, Narakam, Scarab, Unleashed [9] RHYS STEVENSON  TENOCHTITLAN 'Сотворение Мира' BADMOODMAN Usually when singing about topics that are not related to the country you are from it is always less authentic, such is the case of Tenochtitlan of whom delves into the past histories of the Mayan, Aztec and Inca civilizations. Whilst the Russian lot are expanding their horizons beyond paganism and bard folk numbers, it is more so worrying that they decided to sing in Russian about South American people, who knows they may be cursing? Even so considering 'Сотворение Мира' is the band's fourth major outing, the integrity of it's existence is considerably questionable; this is about the release in general that seems to at one point offer something different and on the other copy every other Doom Metal band wallowing in the snow-laden lands of the Russian Federation. Tenochtitlan's 'Сотворение Мира' may be a unique journey, but it's a bumpy one sadly. Download This: "Sokol I Zmej" [6] RHYS STEVENSON  SKARTHIA 'Retaliate' If the NHS wasn't screwed, it is now. Tracing back all those whiplash cases has left doctors pointing at the same cause, the ground-cracking sound of Skarthia and their apocalyptic powerhouse 'Retaliate'. Spewing out a plethora of cosmic elements that merge together to form a musical combustion of melodic angelic vocals, murderous riffs, solid drumming sequences and gut wrenching male vocals. 'Retaliate' from start to finish unleashes a whitewash torrent of groove-laden melodic death metal that would make bands like Devildriver perk ears up. Skarthia may be relatively new on the block, but the sound is their own and with Bloodstock in their sights, there is no reason why they should not go through. The time has come for Skarthia to 'Retaliate' against the over produced 'core' scene in England, if you want cranial corrupting music and slit-throat vocals then Skarthia is for you, if you don't then you don't know true metal. Download This: "Drill" For Fans of: Devildriver, The Agonist, Lamb Of God, Machine Head. [8.5] RHYS STEVENSON  NATHICANA '2012 Demo' London in the last year or so has renewed itself as a breeding ground for some top notch bands, joining this fresh wave of grit is Nathicana, a West London force that produces enough brutality to sink a thousand ships, let alone cause havoc for those traveling towards Uxbridge due to the sensational force exerted on the band's premier demo. The '2012 Demo' purges out a raw and bitter sound that eclipses the earliest days of Behemoth whilst adding an experimental stance to the formula, pretty much like a Subway where you put what you want on it and what you want is a delicious slice of extremity, with Nathicana you get that and much more. Make no mistake, Nathicana are a force to be reckoned with and as 2013 opens new doors, who knows what this band will do next. Download This: "Entity" [8] RHYS STEVENSON  ABSKE FIDES 'Abske Fides' SOLITUDE PRODS Suicide is perhaps an understatement after hearing this offering by Brazil's Abske Fides, their self titled debut comes nine years after their formation and it most probably will take that time for listeners to regain their lives. Seriously, what is here is on one hand a decent effort but on the other hand a total calamity that could drive listeners to enjoy opera. Not much else can be said about this release except if you're looking for eccentric and outstanding Doom Metal, look elsewhere; ideally the underground because 'Abske Fides' is worse than the Black Plague. But if you're up for listening to music that can only be worse than listening to flatulence on low audio wave, then go right ahead. [3] RHYS STEVENSON  ETERNAL HELCARAXE 'Against All Odds' ABYSS Marking their debut album release last year and tenth anniversary this year, Ireland's Eternal Helcaraxe show a thing or two with their thunderous sound found on 'Against All Odds', unrelenting Black Metal slices and bleeds the atmosphere as if torture was a passionate hobby, or at the very least the soundtrack to the wishful film Saw 8. 'Against All Odds' features eight songs that are authenticated to unleash a battering of convincing Black Metal, whilst inevitably justifying why Eternal Helcaraxe ride alongside bands like Cruachan as masters of True Irish Black Metal. Whilst not being as pronounce as one would have hoped for, the band outperform the expectations on level of brutality and 'Against All Odds' sum up a masterpiece that will power them forward even more. Download This: "We Assist Death" For Fans of: Cruachan, Winterfylleth, Hecate Enthroned [8] RHYS STEVENSON  HI-GH
'Loud Frequences On Planet Jupiter' LA RIOT SURVIVOR Spunk usually is associated with the white, sticky stuff that Rammstein spurt out when rubbing their microphones on stage too much, however in Italy it refers to the music genre that HI-GH have dreamed up. Abbreviated for Speed Metal and Punk, the four-piece from Rome deliver justice on their debut demo 'Loud Frequences On Planet Jupiter' released last year. Furiously paced drums power the rest of the band forward at a hundred M.P.H, whilst the overall sound is raw and gritty the satisfaction is well out of reach. Sure it is a classic 'flip the bird' release aimed at politics and rioting, but the overall productiono is one left to be desired, but that is what makes it great. 'Loud Frequences On Planet Jupiter' and HI-GH do not conform to rules and instead smash out a sound that will make you soil your pants. Download This: "You're Going Down" For Fans of: The Sex Pistols, Motorhead, The Ramones, Judas Priest [7] RHYS STEVENSON
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 ONDFØDT 'I' Finnish Raw Black Metal duo Ondfødt make their first move by delivering their premier EP simply entitled 'I', from the start the explosion of bitterly raw riffs gets the music well and truly underway, whilst the drums and vocals alongside the riffs conjure up a cold and bleak atmosphere. Sure it is another one of those releases that sounds like every other Raw Black Metal release but in fact there is a major difference, this is there own unique sound and what one means by that is that it is very heard to pinpoint what influences are exactly involved. However, 'I' does prime itself up as a feasible debut and shall allow the duo to build upon this shriekingly epic release. Just don't expect any mercy from this lot, there is no mercy in this music. Download This: "Verlden Er Min Slakteri' [8] RHYS STEVENSON  DAGOBA 'Post Mortem Nihil Est' EARMUSIC It might as well be accepted that France is going through its own metal revolution and it is fair to say that when bands like Dagoba release total chaotic hell through their music, the result is a mass brawl amongst many fans alike. Simply put, the band wielded radioactive metal to deliver their post-apocalyptic album 'Post Mortem Nihil Est', producing a futile and technological music revolution as to say the groove elements resonate within the similar sounds of Pantera, whilst the industrial elements spit out the total envisage one would want to hear from the modern metal era. What 'Post Mortem Nihil Est' has that defines Dagoba as perhaps a leader in the French metal scene is the constant brutality that explodes at every algorithmic riff and technical drumming pattern. When songs like 'Kiss Me Kraken' spew out a sound that eclipses the very industrialist sound behind lords like Rob Zombie, it is insurmountably evident that Dagoba have delivered what can be persevered as not only their best album to date, but more so potentially French Metal album of the year. 'Post Mortem Nihil Est' is out 14th June via earMUSIC For fans of: Pantera, Breach The Void, Rob Zombie, Noein, The Defiled [9] RHYS STEVENSON  TIME GRID 'Life' Emerging from the Swiss and French border is the joint effort between six musicians under the moniker Time Grid and combining female and male vocals with two keyboards the rest that is expected, it is almost an advanced and updated version of Il Divo. However the debut album 'Life' features more than operatic style progressive metal, the male vocals at times are on the same par as Michael Crawford and so as a result the song 'Me' may as well be put in the same ball park as the Phantom of The Opera and that means to say that 'Life' is a myriad of different elements coming together to explode as one and shed a sound that can be likened to bands like Nightwish, Therio, Avantasia and those along the lines of the Neo-Classical, Symphonic and Operatic Metal styles. Thus 'Life' is an album that shall gain attention as a promising debut by this international group. Download This: 'Me' [8.5] RHYS STEVENSON  UBUREN 'Sons of the Dying Gods' The soundtrack of gregarious darkness and evil has surfaced in the form of the debut release by Norway's Viking / Black metal trio Uburen. 'Sons of the Dying Gods' bleeds out traditional ass-tight riffs and shrieking vocals that would make wolf sex sound like silence, lets face it Uburen are amongst the same string of Norwegian BM bands but with an additional twist, besides the obvious Folk Metal elements inserted here and there, the overall sound is one that should gain considerable attention as the band do it their own way and not to any conventional playing style. But there again it is likely some extreme metal fans will find a riff taken here and there but will acknowledge that 'Sons of the Dying Gods' is a great release to launch your band's career from. Download This: "Sea Of Deceit' [8] RHYS STEVENSON  LARCENY 'My Fall' SAOR How can it be that a band develops an angelic, soft-flowing atmosphere through the use of keyboard melodies and heavenly female vocals, and as a result can be compared to the elegant flow and sound of a stream or a gushing river? Whilst imploding it with harsh brutal vocals that would make any Alpine wolf run a mile at the shear power the vocals create. Simple, the sophomore album by Germany's Larceny, 'My Fall' is a total epic release, not just from the intertwining vocal arranages but from the sincere precision placed on each element that makes each song uniquely different in their own rights and the album a musical masterpiece, from this release it is evident that Larceny deserve a lot more to come there way and are sure to make tracks in the year ahead as listeners come round to grasp what could be German Metal album of the year. Download This: "Love! You! Dead!" [10] RHYS STEVENSON  RULE 'Rule' There are too many bands doing the same or similar thing these-days and Massachusetts' Rule does not escape this trap, the Hard Rock / Heavy Metal outfit conjures up their debut EP and it just about sounds similar to every band trying to emanate the bygone sound, even if the solo's deal the release justice the whole EP sounds too much like other releases, on the other hand it offers fans and music listeners another chance to experience that all essential Iron Maiden-esque, 80's rock and metal sound. But be warned, there is nothing too unique here except the band provides their own twist on the music style, shame it's already been done before. Overall expect no compromising riffs or set ways through the music, just ballsy ballistic rock 'n' roll / Heavy metal. Download This: "Clining To Life" [6] RHYS STEVENSON  JEWISH JUICE 'Fourth Reich' The awaited debut by Italy's darkest metal band has finally dropped last year, 'Fourth Reich' by the NSBM trio Jewish Juice wallows once again in the National Socialist and Anti-Semetic lyrical garden and plucks out six tracks that will strike fear in any listener. Underlying the political and fascist propaganda is a solid Black Metal sound, with mid-paced to full on raw atmospheric music that leaves a bitter aftertaste in the mouths of the listener whilst corroding their senses for a long time. For the open-minded this is a unique insight into the minds of those favoring right-wing ideologies and grim thoughts that otherwise on a purely social level would be spat out upon. No remorse, this is a decent and well crafted release that should not be taken as being literal as the music itself does more talking than the band's ideology. Download This: "Stalingrad" [8] RHYS STEVENSON  TRUE 'Riders of Doom' Brazil's promising lads True have become true to themselves (pun intended), by releasing their debut album 'Riders of Doom' from the depths of the Amazonian rainforest, this Death / Thrash armada assault encases the silent atmosphere surrounding the listener and results in total Armageddon. What is sensational about this album is that it carries on their signature sound of dropping speed suddenly to almost narrowly escaping a Metalcore breakdown as seen on the song 'Forget In Hatred', but with a rallying of insanely paced drumming acting as the leader for the rest of the band to follow by, it is credible to acknowledge that True are one of Brazil's greatest underground metal bands going around, in fact they are the 'Riders of Doom'. Download This: "Obliteration" [7.5] RHYS STEVENSON  THRASHMANIACS 'Demoshhh - Pit' DEMENCIAL Bolivian Metal is one scene that is not really promoted enough and yet when bands like Thrashmaniacs release their first ever compilation it begs the question if this band can lead the frontline to guide their scene forward. 'Demoshhh - Pit' is a seven track compilation that takes the best songs the Thrash Metal quartet has ever done, sure to the international scene it would be hard to decipher seeing as they sing in Spanish, but add a cultural value to it and you have got a release that every fan of Slayer and Evile would be immensely entranced by. 'Demoshhh - Pit' is a roller-coaster ride through neck-breaking riffs, Teutonic drumming and explosive vocals, simply put this release is a must have for Thrashers everywhere. Download This: "3:15 (Instrumental)" [8.5] RHYS STEVENSON  MIDGAR
'Sombras Del Mañana' Spanish metal of late seems to be doing rather well and in 2012 one album that changed the face of Progressive Metal in this region came to life, 'Sombras Del Mañana' by Madrid-based sextet Midgar nucleated over the metal scene like a torrent of bulls hyped on crack running through the narrow streets of the fabled capital city, even more so think of 'Sombras Del Mañana' as a delicious paella, with spicy riffs, juicy beats and fresh vocals and then think of the entire package as elegant as the local flamenco class, in fact this album may as well be a damn good soundtrack to either a Spanish adventure film or elaborate dancing. It is fueled up to the top with eccentricity beyond anyone's imagination and as 2013 offers the band a new adventure, Midgar are sure to catch the eye of many. Download This: "Grítale Al Cielo" [9] RHYS STEVENSON  INCINERY 'Dawn Of War' So 2011 saw the first record outing by Nottinghamshire Thrash newbies Incinery, not a perfect start it would seem as their debut EP exhibits the standard Thrash Metal sound that most bands in this music style seem to employ, sure 'Dawn Of War' spits fire and acts as a sentimental starting block to this quintet's career, but there is much improvement to be considered, but as far as the first attempt goes it is a decent enough effort and will surely be advanced on when the band release new material. However 'Dawn Of War' will appeal to those who devote their lives to the 80's Thrash Metal sound and especially fans of Slayer and Kreator, as for Incinery the time has come to face the 'Dawn Of War' as they battle for British Thrash Metal survival. Download This: "Life of Hate" [7] RHYS STEVENSON  DENIED 'Let Them Burn' SLIPTRICK What a better way to mark the tenth anniversary of your band by releasing the third album in your musical career and that is exactly what Swedish Thrashers Denied have done, sticking together Heavy Metal epic numbers with tunes of agile brutality together and leaving the album finishing on a note that warrants much more from this five-piece. 'Let Them Burn' shifts gears across the ten tracks that drive this album, perhaps it's coincidental that ten tracks are for the ten years this band has been around, but if the last song title is anything to go by then the band has issues, ironically the song 'In Hell' sums up the release to the very last note, simply put 'Let Them Burn' is a juicy and explosive burst of Heavy Metal vocals and slaying Thrash Metal music. Download This: "In Hell" 'Let Them Burn' is out now via Sliptrick Records [8] RHYS STEVENSON  ZEITGEIST 'Zeitgeist' SELF-RELEASED Paraguay isn't usually a country that spews out Melodic Gothic Metal, it usually focuses on more aggressive styles of metal, so when in 2010 the premier self-titled demo by quartet Zeitgeist dropped, it unleashed a new wave of sound amongst the underground of this South American country. Ascending on every song and delivering a powerful atmospheric presence, there is much melancholy as there is lusciousness on this release, it filters out the weaker elements and accentuates the very essence missing from the metal scene, a vocalist with utmost harmonic vocals. Zeitgeist are sure to push boundaries in the future ahead but for now they remain as one of Paraguay's hidden gems, awaiting discovery by many alike. Download This: "The Blame" [8] RHYS STEVENSON  TRICK OR TREAT "Rabbits Hill Part. 1" VALERY In the year of the band's 10th anniversary, the Italian Power Metal ensemble Trick or Treat deliver a right treat in the form of their third album "Rabbits Hill Part. 1", it showers the atmosphere with emphatic vocals, slaloming solos and rapturous riffs that decapitate all that stand in its way. The vocals themselves carry that adventurous feel and although not on same par as Sonata Arctica, they offer a unique style, quite like the music as it weaves in folk elements on 'The Tale Of Rowsby Woof', but what sets the band aside mostly is the lyrical themes, rather an elaborated metal form of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, the five-piece deliver a range of themes that any mad march hare would hop to. Download This: "Wrong Turn" [8] RHYS STEVENSON  EXALT CYCLE 'Revelations' VALERY From what could be put down as a mixture of Dead By April, Avenged Sevenfold and Mudvayne, Italian slickers Exalt Cycle find no fault in the system to crack but instead crack open an album that quite simply is a revelation, 'Revelations' spews out the very musical core of modern metal as it laces together industrial elements with a heavy progressive / metalcore sound, or perhaps that could be ones senses playing tricks via the Exalt Cycle, but one thing for certain is these lads have got the sound to take themselves to newer heights and are sure to push for european domination this year. Download This: "A New Day" [7.5] RHYS STEVENSON  TYSTNADEN 'Anima' VALERY Italy was born for delivering any band that plays Gothic Metal and so when the third album by Italian sextet Tystnaden comes to life, it delivers an astounding blast of Gothic-laden Melodic Death Metal fronted by the awe-inspiring Laura De Luca. What these musicians have done is more than make an album, they have made a new sound come to life and dragging influences from bands like In Flames, Slipknot and Dark Tranquility, Tystnaden are vastly becoming one of Italy's hidden gems as 'Anima' explodes in sensational fashion with heavenly vocals, spine-chilling atmospheric backdrops courtesy of the keyboard and of course sharp slicing sounds coming combined from the elegant savageness of the guitars and drums, but as everything starts entwining, the only two things thats wrong with this album is that it is simply too good to be true and its not long enough, listeners will beg for more and are unlikely to find fault, simply divine. Download This: "Mindrama" [9] RHYS STEVENSON  PROJECT46 'Doa A Quem Doer' SELF-RELEASED How many times does it take to fully conclude that 'Doa A Quem Doer' is a brain-smashing face belter? One. Back in 2011 the debut album by Brazilian bulldozing Metalcore maniacs Project46 slays through the mass-produced music genre and installs their own stance on the music genre, illuminating killer technical riffs and setting up complex breakdowns, if anything this is what could be dubbed as matrix-core, a sound that embellishes the Metalcore sound in the center with technical, melodic and hardcore influences padding out the nooks and crannies and yet the album of which is entirely in Portuguese, still weeps and bleeds toxic contagious elements that warrants a health warning to be slapped on it. Project46 are taking Metalcore to newer levels and are sure to become a huge metal export in the years ahead. Download This: "Impunidade" [10] RHYS STEVENSON  SECRET SIGNS 'For A Lifetime' CASKET MUSIC There aren't many Gothic Metal bands from Spain that manage to get a decent sound going, unfortunately there aren't many bands like Secret Signs going around, dropping their debut album 'For A Lifetime' last year, the quintet immerse the emotional feelings of darkened despair with their atmospheric style of ambient Gothic metal. However the drawback is the male vocals, they crush the album the wrong way and at times leave it meaningless, by leaving out the deep vocals it would sound better, but apart from that the album strikes out as a decent enough effort to really kick start the band, besides the solo on 'voices from the afterlife' is one of epic bizarreness as it starts awfully but finishes gracefully, so whilst the overall album is great there are parts that should not be there. Download This: "Battle For The Darkness" [6.5] RHYS STEVENSON  DISTAINED 'Between Nowhere And Goodbye' + 'Hereditas' 2010 saw the second EP by Finnish Melodic Metal ensemble Distained drop, 'Between Nowhere And Goodbye' carries the same vocals experienced on bands like H.I.M., Poisonblack and many of Finland's Gothic Metal catalogue, but don't let that fool you as the EP displays why the home nation is notorius for its love of rock and metal music as here proven by Distained. This is a sound that should get the labels attention, in fact it's surprising to why the lads aren't signed yet as 'Between Nowhere And Goodbye' clearly demonstrates a solid outburst of modern melodic metal that is worthy of paying attention to. Moving onto the 2012 EP release 'Hereditas', what comes now is a more solidified sound and a greater prominent level of precision that seems to kink out the cracks from the previous EP and ends up cleaning out the old and putting in the new, but whilst 'Hereditas' is the better of the two, the major fact behind Distained is that they are simply one of a kind and are sure to battle forward to become favourites amongst European rock and metal fans. Download These: "Drown In Gray" and "Someone Else's Song" [7] + [8] RHYS STEVENSON  AL-NAMROOD / DHUL-QARNAYN / AYYUR
'Narcotized' SALUTE What we have hear is a split between three of the most underground metal bands from Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Bahrain respectively, the 'Narcotized' split kicks off with 'Barzakh' by Saudi Arabian Black Metal trio Al-Namrood and as the song delivers a chilling sound to be embraced, the key result of the song is that it warrants repetitious plays as it is simply is a divine way to start a three-way split. Al-Namrood certainly know how to create their own unique sound and by doing so develop a very atmospheric style, but that is soon forgotten as Dhul-Qarnayn come into the affray with their song 'Suqoot Allah' as it explodes in pummeling fashion, as for the long-gone one man project is without any doubt a raw black metal sounding production on its own accord, but as Bahrain's underground metal scene shows, nothing lasts and as the song comes to a close, Tunisian Black Metal duo Ayyur do the honors of closing up the split with two songs 'The Queen Of Awres (Narcotized Version)' and 'Proud Slave', both of which spew out the very essence of what makes Black Metal, Black Metal. Simple yet basic drumming is all that's needed to setup this elegant dark act and as the very note sounds out, it is worth saying this is a truly Arabic Black Metal release. You can buy the release from: http://saluterecords.blogspot.co.uk/ [8] + [7.5] + [8] RHYS STEVENSON |
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