A new installment of the monthly series where we explore recent metal releases currently in heavy rotation.
Magrudergrind – II
Six years. Six long years since Magrudergrind has graced us with a raging slab of some of the best grindcore around. But while 2016 has not been kind thus far to aging rock stars it has certainly given us hope for a banner year in the metal world and Magrudergrind’s return to the pit is one of many reasons why. If you’re looking for hardcore and crust punk tinged grind that’s played with an indelible fierceness that many of their contemporaries have trouble matching, then look no further than this crushing wave of sheer nastiness.
http://magrudergrind.bandcamp.com/
Sorizon – End of Entrapment
Southern California’s purveyors of “Radical Metal,” Sorizon return with five new tracks and an acoustic version of a previously released song. Mixing both clean, soaring vocals with those of the guttural variety the overall vibe on this record is really all over the map. From classic thrash and power metal to bits and pieces soaked in the blood of melodic death metal Sorizon certainly can not be accused of being copycats. Fans of acts as varied as Children of Bodom and Helloween should find plenty to enjoy on this release.
http://sorizon.bandcamp.com/
Wolvserpent – Aporia:Kala:Ananta
One track. 40 minutes. Idaho duo Wolvserpent return with a true monument to cinematic beauty within a metal frame. Mixing everything from ethereal soundscapes to elements of drone, neo-folk, black metal, doom, and just about everything else in between, Wolvserpent have delivered a soundtrack to one of the darkest and most thought-provoking films never made. An album’s worth of dynamic and inventive music culled into one continuous track.
http://wolvserpent.bandcamp.com/
Hemelbestormer – Aether
We tend to toss the term ‘epic’ around pretty nonchalantly these days. But if you are looking for an album that has the potential to truly embody the word epic, look no further than Belgium’s Hemelbestormer. Their name loosely translates to “sky stormer” and that’s exactly what this band does – they storm the heavens with a beautiful and pummeling blend of doom, black metal, and post-metal. Even in their most serene moments there is still an element of utter darkness that descends down upon you as if those heavens have opened and spit this band forth among the fallen stars. A truly powerful album from start to finish.
https://dmp666.bandcamp.com/album/aether
Orannsi Pazuzu – Värähtelijä
There may not be, in all brutal honesty, a band around today that is stretching and blending the definitions of as many sub-genres of metal music the way Finland’s Orannsi Pazuzu is currently. This album is as orchestral as it is psychedelic, as symphonic as it is blackened. Mixing blasphemous outbursts with sonic hallucinogenics to create a wholly unique, and sometimes oft-putting musical experience. Orannsi Pazuzu will once again rightly put their stamp all over various year end lists this year.
http://listen.20buckspin.com/album/v-r-htelij
The Metal Dad 