Album Review: "Ouroboric Stagnation" by Neurogenic

The vast majority of music is vocal based, meaning the melody and primary focus of a song can be found in the vocal track.  This is not necessarily true in heavy metal, where often the main feature is the guitar riff and the vocals are just another instrument, rather than the focal point of a tune.  This is especially the case in death metal where growled vocals are usually indecipherable, rarely contain melody and are utilized to create atmosphere and emphasis.  

Neurogenic’s album Ouroboric Stagnation is notable for the lack of attention placed on the vocals.  Vocalist Matteo Bazzanella’s tracks are so low in the mix, they seamlessly blend with the instrumental tracks.  Perhaps they are even a bit too low, but I understand the reason.  These tunes are entirely guitar driven, and the guitar tone is masterful.   

Album Review: "Enslaved" by Murder Made God

Enslaved

What if the Headless Horseman's horse didn't have a head?

That would be chaos!

My favorite comedian, Mitch Hedberg spoke those lines, though not quite as PG as that, on his posthumous album Do You Believe In Gosh?

There's a man that left us too soon. There were still a great many things that Hedberg had yet to teach us.

And you know, what if Spiderman shot hammocks instead of spider webs? Let's move on a bit toward some brutal death metal though.

In Metal Evolution David Vincent of Morbid Angel described death metal as being a lot of notes, a lot of abrasion, and more. Host, Sam Dunn, talked about how extreme metal, to most people sounds just like noise. Both he and Vincent had a very clear idea why Death Metal wasn't as popular as say, Power Metal, but what about metal that's heavier than death metal?

Album Review: "Formed In Disgust" by Atrocious Abnormality

Formed In Disgust

In the not too distant past, I spent five days near Charlotte, NC.

During that time, I had meals at a local diner and several chain restaurants.

Keeping in mind, i wasn't in Charlotte proper or really all that near it, though I did pass the Charlotte Race Track at least twice each day.

What I didn't see during my time there, besides good beer, was anything remotely resembling a music scene. Though I was told of this section of downtown that was where the night life could be found, should anyone be looking for it.

Its being over forty miles from where I was sitting at the time and my being in a rental car certainly kept this author from going out drinking in what seemed like a faraway place.

There seems to be a secret in North Carolina though.

Album Review: "And When the Sky Was Opened" by Serocs

And When the Sky Was Opened

Years ago, I was sitting in American Literature 1 with one of my best friends from high school, Lisa.

We were discussing how Morbid Angel was the heaviest god damned band in the world. Then we moved onto how just a few short years ago, Iron Maiden was as heavy as it got.

How in the world could it get heavier than, what we now today as, Tampa Bay Death Metal?

That's one of the things that routinely goes through my head when I'm listening to modern metal, because it is much heavier and much the same as their forebears, but also much different.

Serocs, the multinational death metal collective that recently picked up a Canadian as a full fledged member, is on the cusp of releasing their sophomore album that's lyrically and thematically cohesive.

Album Review: "Uncertain Process" by Prion

Uncertain Process

Death metal to me has always been the purest form of music.

If it's faked, it's terrible.

If the vocals are to cliched, it's terrible. (Yes the vocals do matter in death metal. I can't tell you how many albums I've heard with just awful death metal growls that I've just turned off.)

If you can't play your instruments at a high level, yeah, it's terrible.

On top of that, no death metal band is ever going to fill an arena in the United States, much less a large theater. It's all about the passion, the anger, and the desire to speak.

Today, we're reviewing the upcoming album by Argentina's Prion. This first album since their 2008 release. The physical CD will also come with a live DVD filmed last year in their home country.

Album Review: "Eradicating Terrestrial Species" by Incinerate

Eradicating Terrestrial Species

Life runs in cycles.

For a week I might eat salads, or Chinese food, or barely eat dinners.

Last night my daughter and I had mini corn dogs. That threw everything for a loop honestly.

On these pages for the last little while we have been grooving to music that has been well off of the beaten path. It's been some truly great music over the past month or so which has featured chip metal, and a bunch of other things I can't put into a genre...

So I decided I needed to bring this back to the basics and get back into something a little more expected, so let's check out some brutal technical death metal with a dash of grindcore...or something like that.

Incinerate is a bit of a transition with their principal songwriter having left the band, but refusing to go away, they've released their latest Eradicating Terrestrial Species and I'm here to tell you all about it.

Album Review: "Reign of Ungodly Creation" by Decimation

Reign of Ungodly Creation

Today we continue with albums that have been released that slipped through my fingers over the last couple months.

This Fall  has been one of the best I can remember for metal, and especially extreme metal.

Hell, this has been a great year for music all around. In this day and age where an album can be recorded for mere pennies and then distributed all over the world for less...

It honestly is a great day to be alive.

But, on today's album review. Decimation is a veteran band who've been at this for over 15 years. During that decade and a half, they have carved out their own brand of death metal.

Reign of Ungodly Creation is the follow up to 2010's Anthems of an Empyreal Dominion. They are quite literately loquacious aren't they?

Album Review: "Religious Apocalypse" by Bloodoaked

Religious Apocalypse

Months ago, I came across a Kickstarter campaign by a band with a record label and a recording contract.

Thinking about that, it was a bit confusing, but Bloodsoaked was trying something brand new. They'd worked out a deal with Comatose Records that by taking less money to record their new album, they would receive the rights to the masters of that album, and all previous works six months after the release of Religious Apocalypse.

Well that's pretty cool, so they would be able to make a little extra money for themselves and all that good stuff, except that wasn't the point.

Bloodsoaked isn't going to be selling this album or any of the previous, but they will be giving them away via download in the belief that they will be able to grow their fanbase by allowing the music to be heard by absolutely anyone who wants to hear it. When read this, I knew I was interested in what they were doing.

Album Review: "Resurrection Denied" by Devangelic

Resurrection Deined by Devangelic

This is about to get very brutal and a bit blasphemous, but as per our usual policy, lyrical content is kind of off limits because frankly, they do not matter to me all that much.

Even if a band is serious...it's still just a piece of art, so we judge the art based on its merits as an art form. I always see a song like a movie. Regardless of what it's about, it doesn't mean it is encouraging or supporting that theme...

Because after all, it's just making a movie.

This is the full length debut by Devangelic. They hail from Rome, Italy.

This is an all star group of sorts. Members of Devangelic are also from Putridity, Vulvectomy, and Coprophilliac. Honestly, none of those bands ring a bell for me and the names are um, interesting.

"For I Am Genocide" by Mass Infection

Mass Infection is a veteran death metal band from the most metal country in the whole damned world....

Greece.

Think about it. If your home country also housed a pantheon of gods that could destroyed just by tossing the heavenly equivalent of a javelin, you'd also grow up pretty angry...and that's not even mentioning the gods coming down to sire....

They originally formed in the town of Livadia in Central, Greece back in 2003. They immediately recorded a couple demos to begin getting their sound and shape together. In 2007, they released their debut album, and a follow up in 2009. Then, they went off the grid a little bit, but they have returned with For I Am Genocide.