Author Frank Allain
In 2010, seemingly out of nowhere, an enigmatic Canadian trio by the intriguing name of Finnr’s Cane released a record called ‘Wanderlust’. It was an album redolent with the hues of late autumn, cold, melancholic and reflective yet shot through… Continue Reading →
Something that has become increasingly apparent to me as I have aged is the importance of ‘form’ within the realms of extreme metal. By that I mean, the accolades that can be showered upon something almost of a direct result… Continue Reading →
Three years have passed since this enigmatic Canadian trio released their sublime debut opus ‘Wanderlust’ and, with winter closing in, the timing feels perfect for them to unveil this, their sophomore opus. And what a wonderful, wintry record it is… Continue Reading →
Nuke ‘em all, eh? Yes, very clever, see what you did there chaps. Despite the impressive cover art, there’s a distinct whiff of almost deliberate meatheadedness wafting from this latest effort from Germany’s very own Darkmoon Warrior. The album title… Continue Reading →
Now THIS is how you do an Epic Metal album. There has been a simmering sense of anticipation surrounding this Bavarian 5-piece for a good few years now – 2010’s ‘The Golden Bough’ and their Pnakotic Demos certainly caused something… Continue Reading →
‘Black ‘n’ blues’ apparently is how Glorior Belli choose to pitch themselves these days. With this, their fifth album, the Frenchmen seem to have truly left behind the orthodox/Watain rip-off (delete as you see fit) associations that beset their debut… Continue Reading →
One of the joys of music writing is to be blown away by an act you were previously completely unaware of – it doesn’t happen all that often but when it does, it somehow vindicates all the hours of trudging through… Continue Reading →
Ulver’s 1996 album ‘Kveldsanger’ has a lot to answer for if you ask me. By the mid-nineties, the concept of black metal bands adding delicate acoustic interludes or introductions to their albums was nothing new, artists quickly cottoning onto the… Continue Reading →
Not the catchiest of names or titles I’ll grant you but one I would urge you to remember as if there’s any justice, you’ll be hearing it a lot more over the next 12-18 months. I was introduced to this… Continue Reading →
Some big words from Relapse on the latest release from this US-based duo here, Wolvserpent’s compositions apparently ‘gracefully wend their way through the valleys of death, drone, black metal, doom and chamber music and arrive triumphantly on foreign shores… to… Continue Reading →
These are currently good times for death metal. The sinister churn of occult acts such as Necros Christos and Grave Miasma are sending shivers down people’s spines, the ultra-tech boys such as Origin strive for ever-faster ways of damaging their… Continue Reading →
A quick perusal of the ever-trusty Metal Archives suggests that Daniel Cichos (a.k.a. Avenger a.k.a. Mr Front Beast) is a busy boy indeed. As well as the sole protagonist behind this prolific entity (which has 12 splits, 6 EPs and… Continue Reading →