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Author Chris Davison

I've been a metal fan since before I can remember anything else, more or less. My dad was always playing Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden and AC/DC, so you can probably blame whatever crap score I have just awarded your terrible demo band indirectly to him. I spent my teenage years obsessing about thrash metal, before obsessing about all metal from that point onwards until now. I started reviewing music when Doug McClure was still trying to find the Land That Time Forgot, and in that time I have single handedly listened to every album ever released from Russia and the Baltic States. I live in a rural idyll, and so I don't get to gigs all that often, and thus you can always find me at Bloodstock clutching a flagon of rot-gut cider and smelling like a recently exhumed corpse, making the most of seeing a) other metal fans and b) metal bands. I once got poked in the eye by Lee Dorrian, and Fast Eddie Clarke told me he was still great. I also pulled Lesley Crowther's hair; The rest is just rumour.

Ashen – Ritual of Ash (Bitter Loss Records)

It’s not all that often that I get to listen to Australian Extreme bands, but it turns out that antipodean four piece hail from Perth, and incredibly have only been together since 2020. I say incredibly, because this is a… Continue Reading →

Leper Colony – Leper Colony (Transcending Obscurity)

1985-1988 were really important years in the development of extreme metal. For a while, the terms now used in relatively precise terms by lovers of our brands of noise were relatively interchangeable. I can recall Megadeth proudly calling themselves “state… Continue Reading →

Arkham Witch – Swords Against Death (Metal-On-Metal Records)

The fourth release from the truer-than-true metal warriors from Keighley. It’s fair to say that I am a big fan of Arkham Witch (and The Lamp of Thoth before them), and I think every one of their releases has been… Continue Reading →

Mythosphere – Pathological (Cruz Del Sur)

There were a number of reasons why I really wanted to get hold of this debut album from Maryland doom / true metal outfit Mythosphere. Not only do they feature an ex-member of cult classic band Fates Warning on guitar… Continue Reading →

Doomocracy – Unorthodox (No Remorse Records)

Epic Doom, what is it good for? Absolutely everything, of course. I do love me a nice slab of epic doom, being a huge fan of Candlemass, Solitude Aeturnus, Solstice…the list goes on. So, when Doomocracy were advertised as being… Continue Reading →

Exhumed – To The Dead (Relapse)

Incredible really to think that the fetid gentlemen from Exhumed have been plying their wares since 1990. Since that time, of course, they’ve had a lot of line-up changes, including members past and present from bands like Impaled, Intronaut and… Continue Reading →

Ripped to Shreds – Jubian (Relapse)

Alright, hands up, I hadn’t heard of Ripped to Shreds. Turns out the four piece of Californian-based extremists are making waves in the scene, and that Jubian is their third full length album since 2018. All of which really makes… Continue Reading →

Blodhemn – Sverger Hemn (Dark Essence Records)

Black metal and I have a tricky relationship. On the one hand, I like quite a bit of the output of the bigger “names” in the scene, especially the classic era of Norwegian Black Metal and some of the Black… Continue Reading →

Strangle Wire – Shaped by Human Frailty (Grindscene Records)

So, in all the years that I have been reviewing alongside thee editor (which, fact-fans, is probably longer than many of our readers have been alive, in a slightly depressing moment of clarity), I don’t believe that I have ever… Continue Reading →

Spiritus Mortis – The Great Seal (Svart Records)

The great Finnish doom band Spiritus Mortis has been in existence since 1987, and ever since that time have been plugging away producing quality classic slow metal. I last encountered the lads with their superb 2016 album, “The Year is… Continue Reading →

Consumption – Necrotic Lust (Hammerheart)

Let me paint a picture for you. You, your hombres, friends – or to use the parlance of our times – “crew” are reposing at a festival, gig or public gathering of your choice. The conversation starts to drift to… Continue Reading →

Doldrey – Celestial Deconstruction (Pulverised Records)

So, a few things made me want to review this album. The first was that the band were described as “proto-death metal”. Now me, I’m a sucker for primitive aggression, so that was enticing. The second thing was that Doldrey… Continue Reading →

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