Honorable Mentions from the Abyss #18: Ruin Lust/Miscarriage/Kuroi Jukai/Depressor

Hey brutalbangers,

the new episode of "Honorable Mentions from the Abyss" is particularly extreme, not only because it is entirely focused on some of the last releases by the Sentient Ruin Laboratories (a label perfect for everyone into "ugly" but unconventional sonorities) but also because you are going to know very sick bands. So, forewarned is forearmed!

ENJOY THIS ARTICLE and BE DEAF BEFORE THE END OF THIS QUARANTINE!

Rose's quarantine playlist: let the music scream for you! #1

Let's face it: we're  going through a very tough moment of our lives. At present, our freedom is jeopardised, and this pandemic is damaging the entire world.
It's hard to stay positive (I'm quoting a band :P) but we can make it! How? I know it's hard, some of you are losing their hope... but (there is always a BUT in this imperfect world!) there are many ways to cope with this unpleasant scenario... and the first thing that comes to my mind is... MUSIC!
Ok, we can't go to a concert, see the bands playing, do the "pogo dance"! But we can definitely use our imagination and pretend to be part of a music event. So, let's use our lazy brains! :D

Defechate: released a single very fit for these hard times!

Hey brutal bangers,
the Italian death metal duo Defechate, in which there is on vocals/bass a certain Giuseppe "Tato" Tatangelo (already known on these pages for his militancy in bands like Glacial Fear and A Buried Existence), released recently on YouTube "Uomo ossidato" (Italian for "Oxidized Man"), a song taken from their upcoming debut full-lenght.

xQuarantenaxDeliriumx: a new HC punk project in the time of Coronavirus...

Hey brutal bangers,
this fukken quarantine, despite everything, is unleashing the creativeness of the people. For example, a new HC punk project (or band?) is born in Rome and its suburbs so to "break down the boredom in quarantine". And it isn't a case if its moniker is xQuarantenaxDeliriumx.

INTERVIEW TO AGRIPUNK! (WITH ANDREA)

“Animal liberation front, supporto ai movimenti di liberazione!” Movimenti - Intothebaobab

The idea of this interview was originally intended to give voice to an important Italian organisation that takes care of the animals’ rights and tries to give them support and dignity they deserve. It is important to underline they have the courage to operate in a backward country (let’s face it!), that do not care enough about animals’ living conditions.

I do really support their ideas and initiative and I also think that they give us hope for a prosperous future in which animals can have the dignity they deserve. Even though their contribution is a tiny beacon of hope in this doomsday scenario, we must take into account the fact that changes start with small step, and if we relate their work to the merciless environment in which they’re operating, we all agree that Agripunk is already a giant step forward!

During “Questa è Roma mica” fest, they were there, and the filthy punkmetaloihcsxe audience had the chance to taste their sophisticated and delicious cuisine!

I know one of their members since I was 15, so when Flavio told me that he’d make a report of the festival, I jumped at the opportunity to interview him in order to hear all the story from scratch!

Honorable Mentions from the Abyss #17: Pandemic/Iron Curtain/Aggressive Perfector/Savage Master

Hey brutal bangers,

in these Coronavirus times I'm working a lot for Timpani allo Spiedo 'zine. Hence, after some time from the last episode of "Honorable Mentions from the Abyss", I am going to present you today 4 bands belonging to the purest heavy metal with some speed and also thrash metal variations. Each of them deserves attention, so...

ENJOY THE ARTICLE and SUPPORT THE FOLLOWING BANDS!!!

Verano's Dogs - "Summoning the Hounds" (Metal Age Productions, 2018)

Band: Verano's Dogs
Title: Summoning the Hounds
Genre: Death/Grindcore
Time: 23.38 min
Release date: 15th June 2018
Vote: 85/100











And after many live reports about the Verano's Dogs and also after their inclusion in "Come on, burn my ears! #4", here you are the review about their debut album "Summoning the Hounds", that was released in 2018 only on CD version by a Slovakian label called Metal Age Productions. The Verano's Dogs have a very interesting moniker because, on a hand, the Campo Verano is a famous Roman cemetery and, on the other hand, the term "dogs" comes from their fascination towards all the different religions and ancient beliefs in which the dogs are the bringers of the dead in the afterworld. In addition, the band is composed of veterans of the extreme metal and also hardcore punk scene with past and/or current experiences in bands like Taste the Floor (Pompeo) and NIS (Ulderico) while Pablo (the original drummer of the band), now replaced by Valerio of Seventh Genocide's fame, plays in the thrashcore act Injury Broadcast. But now fuck all these infos and let's start to talk about "Summoning the Hounds", also because we need finally some fuckin' action!

Voidwatcher - "Voidwatcher I" (Self-released, 2020)

Band: Voidwatcher
Title: Voidwatcher I
Genre: Doom Metal with Thrash and Heavy Metal influences
Time: 19.24 min
Release date: 13th January 2020
Vote: 74/100












Lovecraft and heavy metal: the perfect wedding! This young band from Rome Caput Mundi, Voidwatcher, that I included in the third episode of “Come on, burn my ears!”, confirms again the success of this wedding with their debut EP "Voidwatcher I", that was self-released in the early days of this unlucky 2020. Be prepared for something really fit to celebrate the Ancient Ones!

Steinbock - "Till the Limit" (Art Gates Records, 2019)

Band: Steinbock
Title: Till the Limit
Genre: Heavy/Thrash Metal with Hard Rock influences
Time: 35.48 min
Release date: 1st November 2019
Vote: 79/100













Well well well, what do we have here? A band whose moniker means “capricorn” in German but whose nationality is Spanish. Plus, Steinbock played even two times in Rome during February 2020. I was supposed to see them at 360 when they played there on 21st February but, instead, I preferred to see the exhibition of Marta Rose with her absurd and experimental band Amikristi and the Bad Sisters (I remember I described them as a female version of the post-punk act DEVO) at the Largo Venue, attending a really fantastic night. But here the main theme is about Steinbock and their debut album “Till the Limit”, that I received in physical format directly from Art Gates Records, the label with the longest partnership with Timpani allo Spiedo ‘zine considering that we are collaborating with it since the now far 2012.

Sacrilege - "The Court of the Insane" (Pure Steel Records, 2019)

Band: Sacrilege
Title: The Court of the Insane
Genre: Heavy Metal/NWOBHM
Time: 55.12 min
Release date: 2nd August 2019
Vote: 82/100













Ladies and gentlemen, today I’ll talk you about a piece of NWOBHM history! In fact, today you have to read a nice review about Sacrilege, a quartet that, leaded since their foundation in 1982 by the singer/guitarplayer Bill Beadle (he is their only original member to be in their current line-up), was a part of the NWOBHM movement. But, as for many bands belonging to this movement, also Sacrilege faced an unlucky fate since they lasted for only 5 years between 1982 and 1987, managing in no ways to release a full-lenght album. Fortunately they were reformed in 2012 and, since then, they faced an incredible explosion of creativity because of 7 full-lenght albums released between 2011 and 2019 (yes, even though the band wasn't still officially reformed, it seem that they recorded two albums during the years 2009 and 2010). So, I received their last work, “The Court of the Insane”, through their Italian manager Valeria Campagnale, that runs also two heavy metal/hard rock websites called Rockers and Other Animals and Insane Voices Labyrinth. In return, she’ll review my ebook about proto-black metal entitled “Nel Segno del Marchio Nero”, that I released on 24th March 2019.

Frijgard - "Chapter Zero" (Art Gates Records, 2019)

Band: Frijgard

Title: Chapter Zero

Genre: Epic Heavy/Black Metal

Time: 48.33 min

Release date: 14th June 2019

Vote: 86/100

Some months ago I received a new physical pack from Art Gates Records. Among others, I found into that pack “Chapter Zero”, the third album by Frijgard, a very interesting band from the northern Switzerland whose moniker is a funny pun derived from Fricktal, the name of their region. In fact, reading from an interview on the Web (you can reach it through the following link: https://www.metalcentre.com/2019/11/frijgard-interview-with-sandro-vocal-bass/), “Frick” was the Swiss name’s variation for Frija, that is the wife of Odin. Instead, “-gard” is simply used in the Nordic mythology to indicate a world (i.e. Asgard). So, through this kind of moniker, one can imagine that Frijgard are into viking metal… but the reality is veeery different. Let’s see why and how!

Black Faith: Hyàkrisht left the band!

Hey brutal bangers,
bad news about the Italian black metal band Black Faith! In fact, Hyàkrisht, their drummer since 2009, recently left the band.

No Look City - "No Look City" (Self-released, 2020)

Band: No Look City
Title: Blindness
Genre: Hardcore Punk/Metalcore
Time: 10.38 min
Release date: 4th March 2020
Vote: 89/100













“What happened to the music and the message that I love?” H20 – What happened

Can 10 minutes shake up the entire hardcore punk scene? Sure they can! Cause what matters most is quality not quantity. To be honest I am that kind of person who likes old bands and who’s always questioning new stuff because, as H20’ve said in one song, I got the impression that over time, the true spirit of punk and hardcore got lost. And it’s all related: attitude, thoughts, messages to convey, and most important thing: priorities. That’s right, cause in punk there are a few things which are very important, such as the spirit, the attitude, the way of life. And often happens not to see these fundamental elements anymore in a hardcore band. And above all, it is rare to bring out an original sound!

Come on, burn my ears! #5

Hey brutal bangers,
finally here you are the new and fifth episode of "Come on, burn my ears!"... even though it was supposed to be published in February but, for various reasons, I managed to release it only now!

Cancer Clan/Desteufels - "Cancer Clan/Desteufels split" (7Degrees Records/Merciless Records, 2019)

Bands: Cancer Clan/Desteufels
Title: Cancer Clan/Desteufels
Genre: Grindcore/Crust Punk/D-Beat
Time: 25.13 min
Release date: 13th December 2019
Vote: 73/100

In these last days I worked very little for the ‘zine for various reasons, so I’m behind on the stuff I have to publish. In consequence of this, I must be a bit fast, for a while, with the new articles. One of them is the review of today that is about a split, released by 7Degrees Records and Merciless Records and that I received from Anubi Press, between two German bands belonging to the hardcore punk spectrum: Cancer Clan and Desteufels.

Sect Mark+Siege Stompers+Closed Speech+Mind/Knot+Causeffect (Rome, 15th February 2020)

Gruppi: Sect Mark+Siege Stompers+Closed Speech+Mind/Knot+Causeffect

Data: 15 febbraio 2020

Locale: CSOA Spartaco

Ingresso: 5 €

Eccovi finalmente il live report della serata (finita per me malissimo… poi vedrete perché!) Go! Fest che si è tenuta il 15 febbraio 2020, come al solito allo Spartaco, come da prassi per il suddetto collettivo. È stata una serata totalmente incentrata sull’hardcore punk, espresso in varie declinazioni pure molto diverse fra di loro, da parte di cinque gruppi uno meglio dell’altro.

Necrofili - "Immaculate Preconception" (Self-released, 2019)

Band: Necrofili
Title: Immaculate Preconception
Genre: Death/Thrash Metal
Time: 24.07 min
Release date: 12th April 2019
Vote: 70/100













When firstly Flavio asked me to review a death metal band, I was a bit skeptical, because it is true that I do like metal, even if I’m only recently deepening these genre. But I’m too curious to say no to seize the opportunity to delve into new genres and subgenres. So I’ve accepted the challenge and I tempted fate, like Ulysses’ voyage past the Pillars of Hercules!