Rock and metal have been in my existence for about 30 years and saw me go through a rapid weaning period that covered AC/DC, Maiden, Saxon, Whitesnake, Motorhead, etc from about 1982 to 1984 before shifting to thrash in the summer of 1984. At that point my only mission was to find the fastest, most violent music on the planet resulting checking out every genre in extreme music from death metal and grindcore to crust punk and hardcore all of which I still adore today and buy albums from and go see live. During the 80s I grew up in the infamous Bradford thrash scene, a time I still dearly miss such was the inventiveness and great camaraderie it held. I’m a bit of phase metaller, going from one style to another, through sheer investigation of finding something new, but always sticking with them all. I’m a total sucker for double bass and blast beats and always will be no matter what genre it comes from. I absolutely detest people that have joined the metal scene because it is trendy or their mates like it, likewise I detest people who are shallow and think this music is a fad of growing up. Most of us are extremely well educated and articulate individuals who prefer freedom of self expression than indoctrination by mass media organisations hell bent on artistic sterilisation. Much of my cash is spent on following metal and I wouldn’t change a thing about it because it is the best music scene in the world.
I must admit this album caught my eye due to the guest vocalists this Italian band has managed to gather for their third album. One wouldn’t necessarily associate Italy with black metal generally but in Darkend we have a band… Continue Reading →
Saturday 26th March 2016 Awaking on Saturday morning I was feeling distinctly unwell not completely down to my alcohol intake but it certainly contributed to it. With another day of extremity to behold later I decided that wandering about today… Continue Reading →
Friday 25th March 2016 Taking things at a more leisurely pace during Friday I spent more money on some newer albums from the excellent Katakomben record shop situated a few minutes from the hotel. Ploughing through their racks meant another… Continue Reading →
Thursday 24th March 2016 Nursing a slight hangover on Thursday morning I did my best to alleviate it with cups of tea and a bite to eat (which is unusual for me) but failed miserably to dissipate said hangover sensation…. Continue Reading →
Wednesday 23rd March 2016. I can’t believe a year has passed since my inaugural visit to this festival in 2015. Monitoring the band announcements over the year still gives me an air of excitement especially on the undercard slots which… Continue Reading →
Anyone who has experienced the joys of this Dutch bands grindcore will know that all their albums have a play on the titles of well established releases such as their debut “Clit ‘Em All”or the last full length “Cliteaten Back… Continue Reading →
Discounting the split released in 2012 this is Alastor’s third full length and some nine years since “Noble North” came out which gave me my first experience of this Austrian band. “Noble North” was a competent affair, offering melodic black… Continue Reading →
My initial enthusiasm for this band was due to the fact that I thought this was the grinding terror UK version of Chestburster only to find that this is the Finnish version. A quick listen online gave me enough to… Continue Reading →
Protector are one of those bands that skirted around on the fringes of thrash and the proto death scenes in the 1980s and like I said in my review of their “Reanimated Homunculus” back in 2013 Protector courted much underground… Continue Reading →
As labels feverishly search for the next big thing Napalm Records has placed Sweden’s Adept on their roster to add to their already eclectic roster of bands. With three albums out since 2004 this band sits very snugly in the… Continue Reading →
Most Australian bands with a black touch that have corrupted my ears in the last decade or so have been utterly barbaric, a sonic nightmare realised within perpetual aural terror. Atra Vetosus is headed by Josh Young who also has… Continue Reading →
Fourth album from this bunch of death purveyors from Sweden who offer a different twist to what you would normally expect from the worlds death metal hub by injecting punk and crust elements that make their songs urgent and a… Continue Reading →