Siaskel - "Haruwen Airen" (Signal Rex Productions, 2016)

Band: Siaskel
Title: Haruwen Airen
Genre: Black/Death metal
Year: 18th November 2016
Time: 40 min
Rating: 73/100











As we know, black metal is a very particular and unique genre. Specifically, many black metal bands prefer to sing through their own national language than every kind of popular music. In other cases, some bands are so set to the roots of their own land to sing in very unusual languages. Ultimately, these linguistic experiments are relatively frequent: to name a few, the Spanish Ostots, being Basque, sing in Basque; instead, Wóddréa Mylenstede, a mysterious English entity, sing even in Old English, which is, in practice, a dead language. It's like to say that black metal has a (fantastic) educational purpose because, in these cases, it's able to bring again to light strange languages that aren't the now ultra-abused modern English. But then, there is also the band that we'll talk about today: Siaskel, a Chilean quintet founded in 2003 which, releasing their debut album only in 2014, sing in Ona Language, that is the idiom of a group of Native Americans called Selk'nam lived in the far South of Latin America between Argentina and Chile, before to be extinct during the last 40 years of the previous century due to the death of its last survivors (in fact, the Selk'nam were brutally exterminated, a common fate for many others indigenous tribes). But now Siaskel have honored again the memory of Selk'nam through their second album "Haruwen Airen", originally self-released on January 2016 before to be re-released on cassette by the US label Graceless Recordings (February 2016) and on CD by the Portuguese label Signal Rex Productions (November 2016).

The Ominous Circle - "Appaling Ascension" (Osmose Productions, 2017)

Band: The Ominous Circle
Title: Appaling Ascension
Genre: Death/Doom metal
Year: 27th January 2017
Time: 51 min
Rating: 90/100













For the 4th consecutive review, Portugal continues to be the protagonist on these raw pages! But this time we'll not talk about a black metal band, although about a young death metal quintet with the veiled faces: The Ominous Circle. Emerged from the most impenetrable darkness during 2014, The Ominous Circle, evidently, have completely skipped the classic demo phase to spew directly forth their debut album "Appaling Ascension", released only 2 days ago through the strong French label Osmose Productions. And let me say already that this is a very terrific album produced by a band with a lot to express!

Black Cilice - "Nocturnal Mysticism" (Iron Bonehead Productions, 2016)

Band: Black Cilice
Title: Nocturnal Mysticism
Genre: Black Metal
Year: 16th December 2016
Time: 15 min
Rating: 69/100












You can read my review (in Italian) about the third album "Mysteries" through the following link:

http://www.heavymetalwebzine.it/2015/05/23/black-cilice-mysteries-2015/

Our journey into the most tumultous Portuguese black metal continues (and ends, for now) with a name very notorious to the fanatics of the genre: Black Cilice. Totally mysterious entity emerged maybe from the Beyond, Black Cilice has released a 7'' EP in vinyl intitled "Nocturnal Mysticism" at the end of 2016, so continuing its unholy alliance with Iron Bonehead Productions after the release in 2015 of its third album "Mysteries" through the aforementioned label.

Irae/Moribund - "Our Worship to Epidemic Suicide and Death of the World" (War Arts Productions, 2016)

Bands: Irae/Moribund
Title: Our Worship to Epidemic Suicide and Death of the World
Genre: Black Metal
Year: 2nd December 2016
Time: 29 min
Rating: 68/100












Another split-tape released by War Arts Productions and another journey into the abyssic depths of the rawest Portuguese black metal. But this time there is only one band from Portugal, that is Irae, because the another one, Moribund, comes from the sunny California (USA). So, here you are a split titled "Our Worship to Epidemic Suicide and Death of the World" that offers 3 tracks per band, and each of them is conceived to want dead same listeners, as you can see reading the promo sheet of this tape.

Ruach Raah/Wømb - "Perpetual Commitment to Death" (Purodium Rekords/War Arts Productions, 2016)

Bands: Ruach Raah/Wømb

Title: Perpetual Commitment to Death

Genre: Crust Punkish Black Metal

Year: 15th November 2016
Time: 17 min
Rating: 65/100

 

 

 

                                                                                               You can read my other reviews about Ruach Raah through the following links:

http://www.heavymetalwebzine.it/2016/03/11/ruach-raah-hate-fanaticism-2015/

http://www.heavymetalwebzine.it/2016/06/22/ruach-raah-ordem-satanica-tradicao-decadente-2016/

Ultimately Portugal is becoming the true cradle of the sickest black metal due to bands like Black Cilice, Morte Incandescente, Mons Veneris, Candelabrum and many others. So, today this zine will enter the ultra-misanthropic realm of this scene to talk you about an all Portuguese split-cassette titled “Perpetual Commitment to Death”, where there are the infamous gestures of two young bands: Ruach Raah, of which I adored their fantastic debut album named “Hate Fanaticism” (2015); and Wømb, a mysterious duo (or, at least, it looks so) with a discography comprised of only demos and splits. So, here you are this feral production released by Purodium Rekords in unholy cooperation with War Arts Productions, both Portuguese labels!

Verberis - "Vexamen" (Iron Bonehead Productions, 2016)

Band: Verberis
Title: Vexamen
Genre: Black/Death metal
Year: 2016
Time: 59 min
Rating: 83/100












You can read my review about the "Vastitas" EP through the following link:

http://www.heavymetalwebzine.it/2014/07/07/verberis-vastitas-2014/

Still I remember when I listened “Vastitas”, the 2014 EP of Verberis, a New Zealand very interesting band with completely unknown identities, like it’s the norm for many today extreme metal bands. Well, now Verberis are back with a new production titled “Vexamen” (Iron Bonehead Productions, 21st October 2016) for which they have preferred to unveil their faces for their very first promo pics, also if keeping substantially secret their own real identities to the mere mortals. So, expect an album able to go beyond the premises of “Vastitas” for a musicality now more unpredictable and darker than before.

Reverber - "Immortals" (Self-released, 2016)

Band: Reverber
Title: Immortals
Genre: Thrash metal
Year: 2016
Time: 51 min
Rating: 84/100

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The inclusion of Reverber into this ‘zine has a very curious story: some months ago, their singer/guitarist Marco Serafini posted a request on the FB group “True Metalheads de Roma” (managed by me) because he was in searching of some ‘zines available to give a voice to the underground metal bands. Obviously, I replied naming the two ‘zines in which I involved, heavymetalwebzine.it and, naturally, Timpani allo Spiedo ‘zine! Et voilà, today I’ll talk you about the fantastic debut album of Reverber, “Immortals”, self-released on 19^th March of 2016 directly from Rome Caput Mundi after a tormented story started in the now far 2007 counting, in addition to the aforementioned album, only the “Serial Killer Metal” 2010's demo followed by a temporary disbandment.

Draugsól - "Volaða Land" (Signal Rex Productions, 2017)

Band: Draugsól
Title: Volaða Land
Genre: Black metal
Year: 2017
Time: 37 min
Rating: 91/100












Iceland is something miracolous! In fact, it is relatively isolated from the rest of Europe and has mostly uninhabited due to its very strong volcanic activity, so this insular Nation is comprised only of 321.000 inhabitants circa. Despite of all this, the Icelandic National football team, during the 2016’s Europeans Cup, reached the quarter finals after playing very well against great teams. And don’t forget that Iceland has even a good popular music tradition since the success of the dark post-punkers KUKL in the early ‘80s. But do you know that one of the first proto-black metal bands was Icelandic? Oh yeah, guys, I’m talking about the mysterious Flames of Hell, a trio maker of the legendary “Fire and Steel” (1987), an album of a visionary black metal like few others characterized by a totally demented singer.

Fortunately, the Icelandic black metal has not stood to those 3 madmen because it has gone even further creating also music of an excellent quality, as shown today by a band like Draugsól. This band comes from the capital city Reykjavík but, to speak the truth, any biographic information about these 3 guys is unknown. Anyway, their debut album “Volaða Land” will be released on vinyl by Signal Rex Productions (an excellent Portuguese black metal label a bit experimental) around 13^th January 2017. Said frankly, the metallic 2017 has started with the better fireworks!

Venefixion - "Armorican Deathrites" (Iron Bonehead Productions, 2016)

Band: Venefixion
Title: Armorican Deathrites
Genre: Death/Thrash metal with Black metal elements
Year: 2016
Time: 12 min
Rating: 77/100











You can read my review about "Defixio" through the following link:

http://www.heavymetalwebzine.it/2016/03/12/venefixion-defixio-2015/

Be prepared for the next times to an overdose of French death metal because there will be a lot of blasphemous laughs with the new releases of Venefixion and Ritualization and also with the upcoming debut album of Skelethal. Today we starts with Venefixion, yet reviewed enthusiastically by me in occasion of their 2015’s demo “Defixio” when they were still a trio just to be considered  already like one of my favorite new bands of death metal. Now they are a quartet due to the addition of the guitarist J. Obscene with which Venefixion have recently released their very first EP via Iron Bonehead Prod: “Armorican Deathrites”. Needless to say, this new production by Venefixion is a devastating punch directly into the soul of the listeners leaving good hopes for the future of this band.

Dripping Sin - "Crimson Lies" (Self-released, 2016)

Band: Dripping Sin
Title: Crimson Lies
Genre: Thrash'n'Roll with Stoner influences
Year: 2016
Time: 13 min
Rating: 69/100











Though your favorite ‘zine (or, at least, I hope so…) is always in search of the most extreme metal bands of this fuckin’ world, this time it’ll talk about a band with a “softer” sound. So, today it’s the turn of Dripping Sin, a Calabrian quartet founded during the Summer of 2012 by the singer/bassist Giando Sestito and the guitarist Tommaso Mellace to play a kind of raw thrash metal influenced by Venom and Sodom. Hence, after the very aggressive and dark EP “Sorceress of Evil” released in 2014, here you are again Dripping Sin with another self-released EP, this time titled “Crimson Lies” (12th March 2016) which shows a very different approach citing influences that ranges from rock’n’roll to punk/HC through stoner. Now see how the band has changed its own sound.

Abomination - "Abomination" (Nuclear Blast, 1990; Doomentia Records, 2016)

Band: Abomination
Title: Abomination
Genre: Death/Thrash metal
Year: 1990 (2016's reissue)
Time: 41 min
Rating: 73/100












Paul Speckmann and the death metal music…you can say they are the same thing. In fact, Paul is one of the main icons of the entire death metal movement not only because he is the leader of the veterans Master but also because he lives death metal even since 1984 when he founded Deathstrike in a period where this genre hadn’t still well-precise borders. But, after Deathstrike, Paul founded other projects devoted completely to death metal so to range from the ephemeral Funeral Bitch to the long-lived Master through Abomination.

Among these death metal bands guided by Paul Speckmann, just Abomination have a crucial importance. They were a trio born in 1987 with a line-up initially consisted of the drummer Aaron Nickeas and the guitarist Mike Schaffer of Impulse Manslaughter (very soon substituted by the late lamented Dean Chioles). Achieved a contract with the German label Nuclear Blast after two demos, Abomination released their homonymous debut album on CD in 1990. And now the Czech label Doomentia Records has recently reissued “Abomination” on a vinyl version since his long collaboration with the same Paul Speckmann, that currently lives just in Czech Repubblic.

INTERVIEW WITH SADOKIST (SADIST STALKER)!!!

Ladies and gentlemen,
some days ago I contacted via FaceBook these Finnish demons called Sadokist to unveil some their black metal secrets. And now you are facing the result of this contact, so enjoy the following interview to Sadist Stalker, leader and singer of Sadokist!

ProFanatism - "Hereticon" (Under the Sign of Garazel Productions/Putrid Cult, 2016)

Band: ProFanatism
Title: Hereticon
Genre: Black metal
Year: 2016
Time: 36 min
Rating: 77/100












Do you have spent a good New Year’s Day? Yes? No? Anyway, this ‘zine begins this fuckin’ new year in the best possible way with an overdose of black metal. From Poland with hateful love comes from ProFanatism, a duo born in 2012 which, after an handful of demos and a split, have released on CD, some months ago, its debut album “Hereticon” by the compatriots Under the Sign of Garazel Productions and Putrid Cult with the addition of a tape version of the album edited by Total War, another compatriot label. All these patriotic collaborations for a black metal album that is very interesting and rich of curious skills.