Asgaroth “Trapped In The Depths Of Eve”

New Gotia 

8/10

Asgaroth have composed an awesomely magnificient album. This Catalan band so far had only released a MCD (titled “The Quest For Eldenhor”) and wasn’t very renowed, but this new album will bring them to the summit of black metal. Their music is full of melodies yet intense and fast, with fantastic instrumental parts and militar drummings and with a massive use of synths and keyboards. The album starts with a frightening, threating intro called “Cry The Way We Greet Our Fates” that leaves way to their nordic-styled black metal, plenty of Emperor, Arcturus influences. All songs are little jewels such as “The Dark Force” (that could perfectly fit in Satyricon’s “The Shadowthrone”), “Omens (Presagios)”, “Last Battle (Tower Of Doom)” (which appeared in their MCD), “The Choirs Of The Elemental Deities” (with that heavymetalloid guitar riff), “Lost In Natura” or “Prelude In Dusk”, the latter serving as preparation for the best song of the album, the excellent, superb, grandiose “Placious Echoes At Darkwoods You Greet… Silvering Moon Between My Shadows”. If you ignore the senseless songtitles, “Trapped…” could become one of the best albums of the year in the black metal scene worldwide.

Deeds Of Flesh “Inbreeding The Anthropophagi” (ESP)

Repulse Records 

6/10

Está bien ver que, a pesar de que el género brutal death no es la moda ahora mismo, aún hay bandas a las que esto no les importa una mierda y aún se dejan la sangre tocando su devastadora música, como los Deeds Of Flesh. Durante este CD de media hora el combo americano nos provee de un buen puñado de brutales y ahogantes “canciones” de puro Death Metal sin piedad, sin descanso, sin nada que pudiera rebajar la intensidad de esta masacre sónica. “Inbreeding The Anthropophagi” es un álbum realmente fuerte y poderoso, no apto para nenitas a les que les mola el gótico-doom-sinfónico avantgarde con orquestritas, voces angelicales y mierdas por el estilo (entre los que me encuentro yo mismo, he he he!) 🙂 Si aprecias tu concepción de la estética, no te acerques a este álbum, ya que es jodidamente desagradable y molesto. Sólo escucha los efectos sonoros de “Fly Shrine”, “End Of All” o “Gradually Melted” para comprobar lo repulsivo y lo repugnante que estos chicos pueden ser. No puedo destacar ninguna canción ya que todas suenan igual: como si tus oídos fueran perforados por el tridente de Satán!!!

Deeds Of Flesh “Inbreeding The Anthropophagi”

Repulse Records

6/10

Nice to see that, though the brutal death metal style is definetely not the mainstream trend in nowadays metal scene, there are bands which don’t give a fuck for this and still leave their blood on the rehearsing room playing this devastating genre, as Deeds Of Flesh do. Throughout this half-an-hour long CD the American combo provide a good bunch of brutal, suffocating death metal songs with no mercy, no piety, nothing that coould degrade the intensity of this sonic massacre. “Inbreeding The Anthropophagi” is a really strong and powerful album, not suitable for wimps who like symphonic gothic doom avantgarde music with orchestral arrengements and celestial female vocals. If you want to keep your conception of aesthetics, then do not listen to this CD, because it is fuckfully molest and disgusting. Just check the sound effects on “Fly Shrine”, “End Of All” or “Gradually Melted” to check how offensive and repulsive these guys can be. I can’t point out any song since they all feel the same: as if your ears were staked by Satan’s trident!!!

Am I Blood “Agitation” (ESP)

Nuclear Blast

7/10

Las bandas más grandes siempre generan después de su paso una série de grupos clónicos, algunos son buenos, algunos no tanto. Am I Blood son seguramente una banda del primer grupo. Este combo finlandés tocan lo que Metallica deberían haber sacado en vez de ese “load” (of shit) de hace dos años.

Am I Blood (antes conocidos como St. Mucus, monicker bajo el cual sacaron “Natural Mutation” y “Am I Blood”) nos proveen de buenos riffs thrasheros (el de “Day Will Be Executed” parece sacado del “Kill’Em All”), tempos y cambios de ritmo de clara escuela metalliquera y bien trabajadas melodías brillantemente producidas por Danne Bergstrand (Face Down, Meshuggah, Stuck Mojo…). Otras canciones como “Segregated Holocaust” o “Suffocated Love” tienen bellas melodías de guitarra acústica que sirven de receso entre el maelstrom de riffs y esa voz hetfieldiana (el cantante Janne Kerminen tiene la misma voz que Jaymz!!! A veces incluso creo estar escuchando al viejo cowboy en vez de a este chico que está detrás del micro sencillamente porque el anterior cantante Pasi dejó la banda para unirse a los Amorphis).

Los Metallica están más que muertos y Am I Blood son los herederos del trono. Desde la soleada, cálida y bella California hasta la glacial y oscura Finlandia, el thrash metal aún engendra sus pequeños monstruos metaleros…

Am I Blood “Agitation” (ENG)

Nuclear Blast

7/10

The greatest bands always spawn a massive breeding of clones behind; some are good, some are bad. Am I Blood is surely one of the former group. The Finnish outfit plays what Metallica should have released instead of that “load” (of shit) two years ago.

Am I Blood (formerly known as St. Mucus, monicker under which they released “Natural Mutation” and “Am I Blood”) provide good thrashy riffs (the one of “Day Will Be Executed” seems to be taken out from “Kill’Em All”), good Metallica-styled tempos and changes of rhythm and well-worked melodies brilliantly produced by Danne Bergstrand (Face Down, Meshuggah, Stuck Mojo…).

Other songs such as “Segregated Holocaust” or “Suffocated Love” have nice acustic guitar-based melodies that serve as a grateful break into their usual maelstrom of Hetfieldish riffs and vocals (Singer Janne Kerminen has the same voice as ex-mighty Jaymz! Sometimes I think I’m listening to the old Metal cowboy instead of this guy who is behind the mic just because former vocalist Pasi left the band to join Amorphis).

Metallica are more than dead and Am I Blood are the rightful inheritors of their throne. From the warm, sunny California to the cold, snowy Finland, thrash metal still breeds its evil…

Benediction “Grind Bastards” (ESP)

Nuclear Blast

4/10

Hace algún tiempo corría el rumor de que la banda se había separado, pero, como podéis ver, no era cierto ya que aquí está de nuevo la veterana banda inglesa con su nuevo CD. Desgraciadamente, después de escuchar el álbum supongo que las expectativas estaban por encima del resultado, ya que “Grind Bastard” es sólo otro clon de sus álbumes previos. Ni el buen guitarreo de “Magnicat”, ni las influencias hardcore que florecen en “Nervebomb” ni la buena técnica de la banda pueden darle a este álbum un digno valor. Sin duda las mejores canciones son “Deadfall” y “The Bodiless” (con un sorprendente riffeo a lo “Raining Blood”) y las versiones que hacen (falta de ideas suplida con versiones de otros?), una de Judas Priest (“Electric Eye”) y de Twisted Sister (“Destroyer”), pero eso no es suficiente como para conseguir un buen álbum de verdad. Los bastardos del grind han sacado otro típico CD de Benediction, así que puedes adivinar lo que encontrarás aquí. Los Benediction no han cambiado y probablemente nunca cambiarán, pero no estoy seguro de que esto sea un cumplido.

Benediction “Grind Bastards” (ENG)

Nuclear Blast

4/10

Some time ago there was that rumour that said the band has split-up. As you can see, it wasn’t true and the veteran English deathmetallers strike again with their new album. Unfortunately, after listening to their new CD I guess the expectations have been over the results, because “Grind Bastard” is just another copycat of their previous albums. Neither the awesome guitar work on “Magnicat”, the hardcore influences that flourish on “Neverbomb” nor the guys’ good skills with their instruments bring this album a worth appeal. Undoubtly the best songs are “Deadfall” and “The Bodiless” (with its astonishing “Raining Blood”-like guitar riffing) and the covers they perform (Judas Priest’s “Electric Eye” and Twisted Sister’s “Destroyer”), but this ain’t enough to achieve a good work. The grind bastards have released another typical Benediction album, so you can guess what you can find here. Benediction haven’t changed and probably will never change, but I don’t know whether this is a compliment.

Infamy – “The Blood Shall Flow” (ESP)

Qabalah Productions 

3/10

“Bodily Disembowelment”, “Onslaught Of Carnage”, “Cranial Implosion”, “Putrid Infestation”… ¿qué estilo de música dirías que toca un grupo con títulos de canciones así? Pop para quinceañeras? Avantgarde sinfónico?, World music? De ninguna manera, brutal death metal es lo que tocan estos angelinos. Su estilo es bastante lento y pesado, consiguiendo así una claustrofóbica atmósfera en la que te ahogan desde el principio con “The Maggots Are In Me” hasta la última “Cryptobiosis”.

Los miembros de la banda proceden de bandas locales de Los Angeles como Brainstorm, Entity o Preacher, pero su plausible experiencia no les ayuda mucho a etos chicos, porque su música es bastante aburrida. Dificilmente puedes distinguir qué canción es cuál dado que las voces, la música y la manera de tocar es sólo una, lo que aburre al oyente. Estoy seguro de que pueden hacer cosas mejores (técnica no les falta). Sólo para fanáticos del brutal death.

Infamy – “The Blood Shall Flow” (ENG)

 Qabalah Productions

3/10

“Bodily Disembowelment”, “Onslaught Of Carnage”, “Cranial Implosion”, “Putrid Infestation”… what kind of music would you guess a band with such song titles to play? Teen pop? Symphonic avantgarde? World music? No way… Brutal Death Metal is what these angelinos play. Their style is quite slow and heavy, achivieng by doing so a claustrophobic atmosphere in which you drown since the beginning with “The Maggots Are In Me” till the endy “Cryptobiosis”.

The band members come out of L.A. bands such as Brainstorm, Entity or Preacher, but their recognised experience seems not to help much the band since their music is quite boring. You can hardly distinguish which song is which song because the vocals, the music, the performance are one and only, what does the listener bore. I’m sure these guys can do something better than this CD that may uniquely suit to the taste of the most fanatics of brutal death.

Ever Eve “Stormbirds”

Nuclear Blast

9/10

After their succesful debut album “Seasons” and their tour with Finnish folkmetallers Amorphis, Ever Eve release now their second CD, another dose of exquisite gothic metal. If you liked their previous CD, telling you that this one goes in the same vein should be enough for you to understand that this is worth a while.

The songs are the result of metal riffs, precious piano tunes, gothic melodies, depressive inspiration and excellent arrengements, the latter by the grace of J.P. Genkel (Therion, Lacrimosa, Cradle Of Filth…),  who is the man behind the sound desk.

They can hardly hide their classic music and black metal (over all on singer Tom Sedotschenko’s voice) influences that are added to their music perfectly. Songs like “Fields Of Ashes”, the piano-performed “Spleen” (sang in French I THINK, yet I’m not sure for the promo CD I have does not provide the lyrics) or “A Part Of You” (with a flamenco-like guitar work) speak for themselves: This band has a very bright future forewards, believe me.