Author Andrew Doherty
A friend told me they thought that Fallujah had gone off the boil after “Dreamless” (2016). Well, I obviously didn’t think myself that after describing “Undying Light” (2019) as a “breathtaking experience of progressive heaviness”. What I hoped for here… Continue Reading →
This long-standing act now releases its twelfth album, along with other releases the theme is the human condition and the mistreatment of humans and animals alike. Musically I expected something unusual and experimental. The narrative “Incantation For The Different” rails… Continue Reading →
A prolific live band, self-styled blackened hardcore warriors Hexis here are releasing their third full-length album. Prepare for dark heaviness. The opening song “Letum” has a surprisingly pleasing flow. It’s a bit straight line, which seems to be the recurrent… Continue Reading →
The album title and, for those with a GCSE in Latin, the band title will give you the clues here. This is a renowned band in dark metal circles, having been plying its trade for almost 30 years. “How to… Continue Reading →
This is a debut EP from Miasmes who promise a bit of raw and dirty old school black metal. The fact that the lyrics are in French is immaterial as it’s a language that lends itself to black metal, not… Continue Reading →
Paraded as being “as subtle as a horny bull and equally gentle”, “The Sinking” is this groove metal band’s fifth album. They’ve done their time, having been in existence since 1999, releasing albums from 2005, and playing live at Wacken… Continue Reading →
An album influenced by 90s gothic metal with punk and black metal influences is on the table here. Hailing from Germany, this is the band’s second album release. A dark melodic flow greets us. The withering guitar chorus line sounds… Continue Reading →
Anything involving Davide Tiso promises to be interesting, challenging and disturbing and this always looked to be the same. When we start talking about one minute bursts and three minute nightmares exploring “themes of mental illness, psychological deviance, rage, gloom… Continue Reading →
It’s hard to see a new Soilwork album without feeling that you know what to expect. Not that I’m complaining, as I have all 11 albums they’ve released plus other bits. I expect melody, I expect aggression, I expect a… Continue Reading →
It all sounds very progressive to me. Dawnwalker comprises a number of musicians who help to create what they describe as “heavy, atmospheric and enigmatic”, while throwing in passing references to Opeth, Porcupine Tree, The Pineapple Thief, Pink Floyd, Ihsahn,… Continue Reading →
Seven years after formation, Coscradh bring a “grimy n’ gutted” sort of black death metal”. The title reflects an ecologically devastating event of 10,000 years ago and the onset of an ice age in the band’s native Ireland. Cold, cold… Continue Reading →
There’s a strong suggestion of a dark and sinister element in the artwork of this album, of which there is the added promise of psychedelic suggestions and different rhythmic elements. We enter the forest on a dark morning. The drum… Continue Reading →