 Birmingham's doom frontrunners Alunah return with a consuming fifth album "Violet Hour" this October 11th on Heavy Psych Sounds, streaming in full exclusively via Metal Insider. This new album sees the energy of Alunah's dark, doom-tinged hard rock being cranked up with the arrival of guitarist Dean Ashton (Diamond Head) alongside the lush vocals of Siân Greenaway and rhythmic foundation of Dan Burchmore and Jake Mason. Recorded at the historic Welsh Foel Studio and produced by Chris Fielding (Conan, Electric Wizard, Primordial), these eight tracks display a searing combination of melodies, riffs and focused writing. Darkened your world with ‘Violet Hour’ HERE The band tells more about the album: "The time is here to release our new LP “Violet Hour”. This album represents a period of focused creativity and we are proud to now share it with the world. Having it released on Heavy Psych Sounds Records also makes this a very special time for Alunah.” Alunah - "Violet Hour" - out October 11th on Heavy Psych Sounds - Pre-order here
With their roots dating back to 2006 in "Sabbath City" of the UK and an evolution that has grown over four previous albums and numerous European tours and festival dates, the momentum now picks up the pace. A UK summer tour with The Obsessed and an appearance at this year's prestigious Damnation Festival have just been confirmed with many more live dates as well as album tunes to follow soon! Alunah is: Siân Greenaway - Vocals Daniel Burchmore - Bass Jake Mason - Drums Dean Ashton - Guitar Bandcamp HPS website HPS Facebook HPS Bandcamp
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 Québecois Black Metal elite Ossuaire stream the entirety of their highly anticipated second album, Derniers Chants, at Decibel magazine's website. Set for international release on October 15th via Sepulchral Productions, hear Ossuaire's Derniers Chants in its entirety exclusively HERE. A mere six months after the release of their first, widely acclaimed album through Sepulchral Productions, Ossuaire is already back at it, with the stunning conclusion to their two-album concept on the downfall of Christianity. Derniers Chants features the characteristic vengeful-yet-melodic riffing that has helped the band quickly rise among the well-established Québec scene while also developing a more epic side, such as on the spectacular album closer. Another must for fans of the Québec black metal scene!
In the lead-up to its international release this weekend and their album-release show in Montreal, hear Ossuaire's Derniers Chants in its entirety exclusively HERE, courtesy of Decibel, North America's only monthly metal magazine. Pre-order for the album can be found HERE. www.facebook.com/ossuaire.qc www.sepulchralproductions.com www.facebook.com/sepulchral.prods  Chilean black/death cult Xul Ov Kvlten stream the entirety of their highly anticipated second album, Entropic Increase From The Omega Aeon, at heavily trafficked web-portal NoCleanSinging.com. Set for international release today via Aeternitas Tenebrarum Music Foundation (ATMF) on CD format, stream Xul Ov Kvlten's Entropic Increase From The Omega Aeon in its entirety HERE. Xul Ov Kvlten are ready to get further exposure via ATMF after the totally underground and strictly limited debut album, Nitimur in Vetitum, where they proved their dedication to the darkest and vilest form of black/death metal. The Chilean combo is now evoking morbidity and chaos, throwing in their cauldron of sound both Inquisition's macabre feeling and early Emperor's obscure choruses, in order to glorify the dark lord beyond any sort of modern compromise. On its long-awaited day of release in physical format, stream Entropic Increase From The Omega Aeon in its entirety HERE, courtesy of NoCleanSinging.com. Order info can be found HERE.
 Swedish sludge band Pyramido are now streaming the entirety of their new album "Fem" in full via Ghost Cult Magazine. The album will be released tomorrow via The Sign Records. Listen to the album in full here: http://ghostcultmag.com/exclusive-album-stream-pyramido-fem/  Pyramido was formed in the southern Swedish city of Malmö in 2006. Five different individuals getting together, sharing a common passion for heavy, distorted and slowed down music... Suddenly these people seem to be getting together every week. Songs are starting to take shape and these five are slowly transforming into one musical being. With a new name, Pyramido, they are now a band with dreams of touring and releasing music. Since then this collective of friends has released four full-length records, a number of EPs, and played every dark and damp squat of Europe you might imagine. In the early days of Pyramido’s existence, the band played a generic take on sludge/doom metal with influences too obvious to mention. Over the years, Pyramido has steadily evolved, eventually becoming the more diverse and not so anxious -- the band you see today. This transformation started to show on the bands third record, Saga, making a more permanent mark on the 2016 follow up, Vatten, on which the influences from the band members' combined passion for music of all kind started to make its way into Pyramido’s rusty soundscape. The brand new album, entitled simply Fem, which is Swedish for the number five, was recorded and mixed during the fall of 2018, with engineer John Rönnerblad. Written over the course of a few years, Pyramido has taken the time to let the new material breathe and evolve naturally, not being afraid to try new tempos, melodies, and ideas sometimes foreign to the genre. Drawing inspiration from the delicate melodic figures of dreamy 90’s indie rock, the folky fuzz of vintage Swedish psychedelia, and the bittersweet harmonies of Henrik Berggren and Broder Daniel. Then imagine these influences being suffocated by the impact of the heaviness and aggression that is Pyramido, leaving only about a few percent of them passably breathing. The result is a somewhat heavy-hearted and melodic sludge metal/hardcore attack, once perfectly described as "…a warm hug rather than a punch in the face." With Pyramido you won’t get the usual macho, congregating-at-a-sacrificial-altar- doing-bonghits-with-Satan-while-worshipping-riffs-and-watching-vintage-biker-flicks-bullshit-shtick that is commonly represented when describing this kind of music. What you will get though is honest, soulful, yet aggressive and crushingly heavy music with strong roots in DIY culture and lyrics dealing with the struggles of everyday life and a desperate hope for social change.  Chilean metal elite Slaughtbbath stream the entirety of their long-awaited second album, Alchemical Warfare, at heavily trafficked web-portal NoCleanSinging.com. Set for international release on September 6th via Hells Headbangers, hear Slaughtbbath's Alchemical Warfare in its entirety exclusively HERE. For a decade and a half now, Slaughtbbath have prolifically pursued a fierce 'n' fiery vision of total black/death METAL. With a rich yet uniformly exemplary discography, this power-trio have laid waste to the underground across a myriad demos, splits, EPs, and 2013's now-classic debut album, Hail to Fire. Allied with Hells Headbangers since 2016, a split 7" with Grave Desecrator followed that summer, with September 2017 seeing the release of the Contempt, War and Damnation compilation, which precluded the band's first-ever North American tour alongside fellow Chilean labelmates Communion. Slaughtbbath have kept quiet since then, studiously brewing the firestorm that is Alchemical Warfare. A consolidation of the band's beyond-considerable strengths as well as an extension of them, Alchemical Warfare was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Pablo Clares at DM6 studio in Santiago, Chile during 2017/2018. Here, Slaughtbbath are at the peak of their powers, pulsing with both bestiality and burliness alike, and yet exhibiting a nuanced songwriting nous that is second to none. Their sulphurous maelstrom is a veritable meat-grinder of South American darkness lo these past four decades, both reverent of the past whilst forging an even-darker future, and Alchemical Warfare finds the band hitting a fever pitch, its nine-song/36-minute runtime both succinct and satisfying. Each track invokes utter possession - a hypnotic diabolism, perhaps, in spite of the often-frantic tempos - but Slaughtbbath possess the prolific experience to convey that diabolism in a dynamic manner. If anything, Alchemical Warfare is the band's best-produced record to date, and a survey of its song titles suitably convey the occultic austerity within: the title track, naturally, as well as the closing trifecta of "Amulets of Carnage," "Celestial Overthrow," and "Ascension to the Dragon's Throne," as well as the ever-epic "Rejoined Into Chaos."
However, especially at this point in time and the career high-point that is Alchemical Warfare, it is important to underline the unique differences in Slaughtbbath makeup. For one, the band hail from San Vicente de Tagua Tagua, a small countryside town with no scene at all, whereas most Chilean bands hail from the bigger cities; in fact, early on, Slaughtbbath were branded "rural black metal" when they played live. Secondly and relatedly, they've not once ever strived to "sound South American," much less do there exist any other Chilean bands doing a similar thing musically or lyrically. Lastly and perhaps most importantly, Slaughtbbath have maintained a solid line-up and kept up constant activity - both on record and on the live front - all these years while most bands disappear, fade, change members, come back, or form new bands with the same line-up to fit into the new trend. The Slaughtbbath name is thus iron-fisted, inexorable, and immaculate With more eyes than ever on the Chilean black/death scene, it's high time that the leaders separate themselves from the followers. Slaughtbbath firmly and furiously take the torch and lead the way forward with Alchemical Warfare. Get fully burned exclusively HERE, courtesy of NoCleanSinging.com. Pre-order info can be found at Hells Headbangers' Bandcamp HERE. www.facebook.com/slaughtbbath www.hellsheadbangers.com www.facebook.com/hellsheadbangers  Australian black metal band Hope Drone are streaming the entirety of their new album Void Lustre via Decibel. The album is set out now. Take a listen here: https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2019/08/29/full-album-stream-hope-drone-void-lustre/  Not from dark Norway, as you might expect from this kind of music, but from sunny Australia, the quartet Hope Drone will release their third album Void Lustre on August 30th 2019. In 2012 the band gave their first sign of life with the digital single "From Mimas To Phoebe". The following year, the self-titled debut was released on OSCL (Australia) and Moment Of Collapse. In their Australian homeland, the band played from now on as a solid support for Deathwish or Relapse bands. Consequently, their second album "Cloak Of Ash" (2015) was also released on Relapse. With this album, the band finally managed to establish themselves at the top of the league of modern post-black metal bands. For their third album "Void Lustre", the quartet took a little more time. The five songs consistently continue the band‘s path. Nothing is rushed here. Slowly and deliberately, atmosphere and tension build up and then end in a blast-beat thunderstorm. The sound is not strictly bound to (black metal) conventions and oscillates between ambient, post-rock, drone and post-hardcore and sludge elements. "Void Lustre“ is not a blind rage, but a thoroughly breathtaking and intense album. If you are looking for a related band, you will find them at Deafheaven and Wolves In The Throne Room, but Altar Of Plagues and Downfall Of Gaia are also mentioned here. Hope Drone is: Chris Rowden (Guitar, Vocals) Karl Hartwig (Guitar, Noise) Aaron Pickersgill (Bass) Francis Keil (Drums) https://www.instagram.com/hopedroneband Greek Black Metallers Synteleia stream Hells Headbangers debut at "Decibel" magazine's website28/8/2019  Greek black metal classicists Synteleia stream the entirety of their striking debut album, Ending of the Unknown Path, at Decibel magazine's website. Set for international release on August 30th via Hells Headbangers, hear Synteleia's Ending of the Unknown Path in its entirety exclusively HERE. Although a relatively new band, Synteleia breathe the breath of the ancients and maintain an authentically classic Hellenic black metal style. Naturally, the influence of the Greek "Big Three" (Rotting Christ, Varathron, Necromantia) looms large, but also within the Synteleia sound can one detect traces of early Septic Flesh, Thou Art Lord, and Nightfall. Above all, despite being grounded in the early '90s, Synteleia exhibit a vital fire and freshness of approach which makes Ending of the Unknown Path truly timeless. Synteleia was founded in 2015 by guitarist Drakon Hesperion and vocalist Nyctelios. Being devoted followers of the Greek black metal scene for more than 20 years, they started composing original stuff, heavily influenced by the pioneers of the scene - Rotting Christ, Varathron, Horrified, Necromantia, Thou Art Lord, and more. With the addition of Septis (bass/keys) and the assistance of Amdusias and Oort (also members of the Greek death metal band Plague), in June 2016, Synteleia entered the studio to record their first demo, Astral Blasphemies. In January 2017, the band made its debut appearance at the Extreme Assault II Festival at Modu club, Athens. In the summer of 2017, followed by a change in line-up, Cronios joined the band as the lead guitarist, and with the assistance of Nick "Yngve" on drums, the band started rehearsing for the Under the Pagan Moon Fest, taking place at Gagarin club, Athens, on November 4th, 2017, together with Kawir and Horn.
The recordings for the debut album, Ending of the Unknown Path, started in December 2017 and went until late summer 2018. During the recordings, Synteleia appeared at the Horns Up III Festival at Trikala and Black Death Holocaust Night at Remedy club, Athens. The band’s latest live performance has been at the Lords of the Void Festival at Temple club, Athens, on October 26th, 2018, with Varathron and Disharmony. A statement from the band reads: "Synteleia are proud to announce Hells Headbangers Records to be our rightful partner, regarding the release of our debut album. We feel obligated to stay true to our ideals and beliefs, and cooperating with a genuine underground label that fully understands and supports our old-school Hellenic black metal aesthetics, taste, and philosophy feels the best way to repay all those who have entrusted us with their support and confidence. We are honoured to be a member of HHR's unholy legions." Indeed, old-school Hellenic black metal aesthetics are alive and well with Synteleia as they take you to the Ending of the Unknown Path! The full path is laid before you exclusively HERE, courtesy of Decibel, North America's only monthly metal magazine. Pre-order info can be found HERE at Hells Headbangers' Bandcamp. www.facebook.com/synteleia www.hellsheadbangers.com www.facebook.com/hellsheadbangers  Finnish speed metal cult Excuse stream the entirety of their highly anticipated debut album, Prophets From the Occultic Cosmos, at heavily trafficked web-portal CVLTNation.com. Set for international release on August 2nd via Shadow Kingdom Records, hear Excuse's Prophets From the Occultic Cosmos in its entirety exclusively HERE. One of Finland's hottest newcomers, Excuse began to make a name for themselves with their EP Goddess Injustice. Released to critical acclaim in 2016 by Shadow Kingdom, Goddess Injustice largely introduced the fierce foursome to the international metal underground - with a nuclear-powered bang! A finely honed missile of speed metal majesty, Excuse's sound on that EP in many ways recalled the classic Canadian gods Sacrifice and Razor, but there were hints of greater glories to come. And at last, they've arrived with the presciently titled Prophets From the Occultic Cosmos. Whereas Goddess Injustice suggested some darkly melodic leanings, Excuse's first full-length expands that arsenal considerably. Here, the six songs comprising Prophets From the Occultic Cosmos stretch out to epic lengths - one even hitting double digits, the climactic 10-minute closer "Watchtower of the Trans-Dimensional Pathway" - and take the listener on a wild, winding ride. The evil 'n' sleazy surge on which Excuse made their name still exists, but has now been tuned into a wholly more dynamic beast, able to reflect haunting moodiness and spacey horror alike. Suitably, co-guitarist Oskar Lindström's vocals have a conspicuous amount of echo placed upon them, suggesting the inter-dimensional struggles of a narrator literally lost in space. Likewise, fellow guitarist Anselmi Ahopalo's leads take centre stage here and weave an almost storytelling aspect, much in the way that classic heavy metal songwriting should, evoking both triumph and tragedy but remaining equally hummable throughout. Completing the totality is album's production, which locates the perfect balance between grit and gleam.
So many young bands blow their proverbial wad during the demo/EP days and peter out by the time their debut album comes. Not so for Excuse, who have been able to transform their earlier youthful energy into enviably advanced maturity with Prophets From the Occultic Cosmos. Behold these Prophets' coming! The full herald of that coming can be heard exclusively HERE, courtesy of CVLTNation.com. Preorder info can be found HERE at Shadow Kingdom's Bandcamp. www.facebook.com/excuseofficial www.shadowkingdomrecords.com www.facebook.com/shadowkingdomrecords Brazilian Extreme Metal veterans Holocausto stream new album via "Legacy" magazine's website23/7/2019  War metal pioneers Holocausto stream the entirety of their highly anticipated sixth album, Diário de Guerra, at Legacy magazine's website. Set for international release on July 31st via Nuclear War Now! Productions, hear Holocausto's Diário de Guerra in its entirety exclusively HERE. Holocausto were among the very first extreme metal bands to form in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, a city now recognized for spawning one of the most crucial regional styles of extreme metal. Along with Sepultura, Sarcófago, Mutilator, and a handful of other bands, Holocausto played a particularly sinister-sounding strain of deathrash (or deathcore, as they used to call it in 1987), which, owing to the evil edge it exhibited, is now regarded as an early expression of the then-emerging black metal movement. Holocausto was arguably the most primal of the group, with reckless riffs balanced on the brink of abandon, held together by sheer feral intensity. Holocausto stood out from their peers due to the band’s fascination with themes related to the atrocities of war and a sound perfectly suited to the subject matter. After releasing their classic debut full-length, Campo de Extermínio, Holocausto’s sound changed drastically. Led by Rodrigo Führer, and no longer playing the same frenzied and primitive style, Holocausto shifted toward a conventional thrash metal sound for its sophomore album before veering into more polished, technical, and even industrial-influenced metal in the early 1990s. Holocausto’s output since that time has been sporadic, but through the years, Campo de Extermínio has retained its power, assuming a rightful place in the canon of Brazilian extreme metal. In 2016, the original Warfare Noise line-up of the band reunited to resurrect its old sound for the unanticipated and superb War Metal Massacre album. Last year’s Guerra Total demo, featuring the same line-up as Campo de Extermínio, was nothing short of astonishing. Holocausto proved that it is possible for a band to reclaim the youthful intensity of its earlier recordings after straying far from the original sound, a feat that almost no band has successfully accomplished.
With Diário de Guerra, Holocausto has arguably produced the finest Brazilian deathcore / black metal album in about 30 years. It is a vengeful and violent exploration of human horror. The raw, razor-wire sound of Valério Exterminator’s guitar is wound around the pummelling fury of the bass and drums, delivered by Anderson Guerrilheiro (Insulter) and Armando Nuclear Soldier (Insulter, Mutilator, and Sarcófago). The album is relentless, each riff a savage outburst, each song an unyielding attack. Directing the assault are the vocals of Rodrigo Führer, whose snarling, dictatorial growls accentuate the band’s misanthropic tendencies. In keeping with the classic Holocausto sound, the songs here are unrestrained, and, at times, appear to be capable of flying off the rails, but the band always manages to harness the chaos and cacophony in a way that is quintessentially Brazilian. For any fans of the early Brazilian pioneers, Diário de Guerra will sound almost like an unearthed lost recording from that era featuring all the hallmarks that defined the genre. Hear all of it for yourself exclusively HERE, courtesy of Legacy, Germany's premier extreme metal authority. www.facebook.com/Holocaustowarmetaloficial-286356221705593 www.nwnprod.com www.facebook.com/pages/Nuclear-War-Now-Productions/114864651994141  Black metal band Gates to the Morning are now streaming the entirety of their debut album Return To Earth via Metal Injection. The album will be released this Friday. The band commented:- "After a long wait we are very proud to finally release our debut full-length Return To Earth. It is a 14 track concept album that lyrically and conceptually deals with the challenges and triumphs, pitfalls and mountaintops of a journey of enlightenment. I am proud of all the musicians who played on this record and of all the different sounds and moods we were able to capture, it is an exciting beginning to the band looking ahead to a very creatively active future." Listen to the album in full here: https://metalinjection.net/av/new-music/gates-to-the-mornings-new-album-return-to-earth-is-a-jazzy-metal-masterpiece Gates To The Morning are a New Jersey post black metal band driven by the singular vision of Sean Meyers. Having started as a bedroom black metal project whilst still attending Montclair State University for Jazz Performance, Meyers started to collect material in 2016 for what would become the bands debut, Return To Earth. Pulling from a myriad set of influences, ranging from Opeth to Art Blakey by way of Tool, Gates To The Morning have rapidly refined a sound that is wholly their own and speaks to a dark unreality. Full of bombastic imagery and transcendent choruses, Gates To The Morning is finally taking form. With his jazz background balanced with a long history in the infamous New Jersey DIY scene, Meyers hoped to create something powerful and thoughtful with Return To Earth. Fully invested in his work, he found himself recording drums at Backroom Studios with Kevin Antreassian of The Dillinger Escape Plan and then collaborating with friends to finish the studio process both at Backroom Studios and in various home setups. It was during this process that he chose to embrace the ethereal vocals of Meg Moyer for the project in addition to his own, further growing the bands sonic palette. The end result, and consequent live band, features performances from a variety of players, ranging from childhood friends to fellow jazz musicians. Return To Earth is a concept album with lyrics orbiting around the twin concepts of challenge and triumphs, the pitfalls and mountaintops found on a journey of awakening and enlightenment. This opening ululation is powerful and deeply emotional, hinting at much more to come from these Garden State musicians. After years of deliberation and struggle their unique sound has finally come together. Gates To The Morning are plotting their first live shows around the release of Return To Earth and are steeling themselves for the stage. Tracklisting: 01 King Obscure 02 Terra Incognita 03 Surveying Forgotten Landscapes 04 My Star 05 Crossing The Abyss 06 Freezing the Sundials 07 Chapel Perilous 08 Crestfallen 09 Haunting The Third Chamber 10 Chasing Shadows 11 Two Winters 12 Steadfast 13 Rekindled 14 Return to Earth https://gatestothemorning.bandcamp.com/releases https://www.facebook.com/gatestothemorning/ |
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