Nekus "Death Apophenia"

    Emerging once again from the dark subterranean depths of the German underworld, Nekus returns with an utterly monstrous sounding sophomore release titled, “Death Apophenia.” These shadowy death doom musicians conjure up some cataclysmic sounding tracks drenched in copious amounts of punishing reverb and ear shattering distortion on this new album. 

    After first hearing their debut album, ““Sepulchral Divination,” which Sentient Ruin released last year, I knew this band still had more to offer the extreme metal world. There is no denying this band’s monolithic death doom sound, which allows them to come up with extremely suffocating arrangements. Compared to some of the other current death doom acts that have left me underwhelmed after hearing the same riff structure repeated over and over again without much thought, I find Nekus constructs these surrealistic and profoundly haunting arrangements which takes you into the horrifying depths of a nightmarish musical realm. A their core, Nekus is an act that does not mess around, and you can hear in their songs a band reaching into the darkest depths of their fiendish artistic minds to craft some inhumanly brutal sounding music.   

    As with most death doom bands, Nekus does not write short two to three minute songs, but at the same time the band does not try to test the listener’s patience by cranking out twenty minute slabs of lackluster material. I think the songs actually flow together perfectly, and that is what makes this album a solid listen from start to finish. The opening track instantly captures your attention with the sounds of ritualistic drumming slow building-up to a malevolent riff accompanied by some gruesome vocals. “Cadaverous Periphery,” is a very dynamic piece of music and shows how Nekus can transition from a slow bone crushing style of extreme metal to a more thunderous sounding onslaught without sounding disorganized. I would say that the music is well procured and whoever did the recording for this album perfectly amplifies the band’s monstrous vision. On the track, “Noxious Furor,” I thought the band hammered out some unfathomably fearsome riffs, and the vocal parts added to the vile atmosphere which sort of evokes a primordial feel at times. 

    Songs like “Accursed Murmur” and “Unutterable Prophecies,” descend further down into the caverns of unspeakable madness and continue to send these deafening shockwaves through the speakers. The drummer compliments the brutal tribalistic energy by coming up with mesmerizing rhythms from behind the kit. During the the end of "Accursed Murmur" the drums echo over the other instruments like thousands of boulders crashing down during an rockslide. On the final song, “Erichthea,” the band once again traverses across these bombastic death doom musical  landscapes, but I would argue that Nekus comes up with even more profoundly loud spellbinding arrangements to conclude an album already full of constant aural punishment.  

    Although Nekus may not be baffling listeners with whacky technical arrangements, dressing up in clown suits and singing about aliens running a solar farm, I would argue that the atmospheres and arrangement featured on their sophomore release are unfathomably profound. “Death Apophenia," is a truly hellish offering in terms of unapologetic and sadistic sounding brutality. In the end, Nekus has proven to be yet another insanely creative extreme metal artist to be a part of the Sentient Ruin family, and I hope they continue to record more insidiously heavy death doom releases in the future. 

Check out the song "Accursed Murmur" below:

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp (Album comes out November 15th, 2024) :

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

Yellowcake "A Fragmented Truth"

 

The savage Arizona based d-beat/crust punk band, Yellowcake, continues to show beyond a doubt why they are one of the most sadistic sounding bands around with their new release, “A Fragmented Truth.” Following up their profoundly vicious debut release, "Can You See The Future,” the band dives even further down into the entropic sounding anarchistic punk abyss to unleash a punishing firestorm of distorted hostility. 

Right away, I would consider the songs on, “A Fragmented Truth,” to be even more intense, more antagonistic sounding and just down right deafening. "Can You See The Future,” in my opening had an extremely impactful sound, as well as captured the band’s ferocious nature perfectly. I felt as though on this release the band was a little bit more untamed at times and that allowed the feverish instrumental compositions to really buildup this overwhelmingly fearsome momentum. In terms of the vocals and how they were executed, I think the band’s singer once again delivered a strong performance, and from the first track you become instantly hooked by her undeniably confident presence when emphasizing lyrics. 

Once again, the band’s drummer hammers out some monstrously primitive rhythms from behind the kit to give songs like, “Maelstrom” and “Blood Soaked System,” an extra boost of raw aggression. Also, I thought the riffs on this new release ventured in some different directions at times, like on the song, “When Night Comes Around,” which had a slight crossover punk/thrash sound. On the fifth song, “Vinyl Chloride Rain,” the bass player and drummer slowly built-up the music with a catchy sounding jam that gets eventually washed away by an incinerating hardcore sounding onslaught. The singer injects a tremendous amount of rage while shouting out the lyrics over the chaotic soundscape, which I must say allows you to easily remember the title of the song. 

The last song, “Mind Scabbed Over,” happens to be the longest track on the release with a total run time of 3 minutes and 15 second. Yellowcake does not need an extensive amount of time to make an impact and that can be proven with their debut demo as well as these new songs. I thought, “Mind Scabbed Over,” was a crushing old school sounding hardcore offering that will appeal to wide range of ravenous punk fanatics. My only complaint is that I wish there were more songs and I look forward to the day Yellowcake compiles enough songs to make a full-length album. 

My final thoughts on this new Yellowcake release, “A Fragmented Truth,” are that the band shows no signs of stopping their fiendish push to offer up some blistering sounding hardcore/d-beat/crust punk tracks, while coming up with ways to hit the listener straight in the gut with a fistful of sonic devastation. Still, “Visage of the Flame,” is the best Yellowcake song to date in my opinion, but the songs on the new release definitely do not disappoint and I bet will be utterly insane to hear when performed live. I'm glad Yellowcake was able to still demonstrate that uncompromising mentality on this new release, as I do believe that their unrelenting mindset in terms of writing and recording material will really propel them as they fight their way into the future. 

Listen to "A Fragmented Truth" below via Felopunk's Youtube Channel :

Link to where you can buy/order the album :

https://totalpeace.bandcamp.com/album/a-fragmented-truth

Yellowcake Instagram: 

https://www.instagram.com/yellowcakephx/

Cemetery Filth “Senses of Detriment”

    After releasing their debut album four years ago, Cemetery Filth has re-emerged from the malevolent depths to unleash upon the metal world a brand new unfathomably decimating release titled, “Senses of Detriment." Picking up where they left off on their debut album, “Dominion,” an album that I consider to one of the most brutal and tenacious sounding recordings in recent years, the band continues to deliver a down right brutal brand of old school style death metal. 

    On this new EP, I can tell that the band wanted to push themselves in a more technical direction, while still maintaining that gruesome sounding old school death metal tone. Based out of Atlanta, GA, the band has had some new additions to the line-up with exception of vocalist/guitarist Maddie Kilpatrick who has been the foundation and primary driving force behind the band. I actually interviewed Maddie back when I hosted a hard rock and metal radio show in college, and I have really been impressed by the band’s continued growth over the years since that interview. With the new additions of Evie Austin on bass and Tristan Payne on drums, I really do believe that this new line-up really came together and recorded a strong release. 

    The EP features three new tracks, a new recording of the song “Cosmic Wraiths” which was first featured on the Unspeakable Axe split, “4 Doors to Death,” and a cover of Death’s “Vacant Planets.” On the new tracks I can hear the band pushing themselves in a more technical and dynamic sounding direction similar to that of bands like Atheist, Death and Pestilence. There are some unique and complex sounding riff structures, which gives the music a very entropic feel at times. I still find that Maddie’s voice and delivery captures the raw nature of old school death, thus allowing the music to give off that morbidly sinister vibe. “Intrepid Ways,” is very much a track that combines blistering technicality with a horrifying old school death metal sound and I thought that it was a great choice as the first track on this EP. The riffs really jump out at you as well as the bombastic drumming from Tristan who seems to be a beast behind the kit. The second track, “Cyclocognition” is another extremely warped sounding piece of extreme metal music that features some truly wicked sounding bass lines along with some diabolically savage riffs. 

    On the third track, “Senses of Detriment,” I thought the band did a tremendous job building up the intensity in the beginning of the track and by the middle of the song you become completely possessed by the insidiously deafening arrangements. Also, the lead guitar parts during the song were executed extremely well and did not go overboard with the shredding. I really liked getting to hear this new line-up tackle the song, “Cosmic Wraiths,” which I remember enjoying when I first heard the track on the, “4 Doors to Death,” split back in 2015. This line-up is unbelievably tight and the new recording really gives the song an extra hellacious sounding boost. As for the band’s cover of Death’s, “Vacant Planets,” I definitely think the song was an appropriate choice given the more ambitiously technical direction that Cemetery Filth seems to be exploring. I would also say that I liked how Maddie’s vocals sounded, because instead of trying to sound exactly like Chuck to where the track becomes another cheap and generic Death cover, Maddie’s style provides a refreshing take and adds a unique touch to the track. 

    In the end, if you are a fan of scorching old school death metal and want to hear some mind altering cuts of sickening technical brutality, I definitely think you need to check out, “Senses of Detriment.” I know a lot of bands are writing material similar and sometimes you feel as if there are more new metal bands compared to new metal fans, but I must say that Cemetery Filth not only puts thought and unrelenting passion into their recordings, but this is a band that continues to persevere by coming up with some down right killer sounding death metal music. After seeing this band put out some exceptional releases in the past, I look forward to the future of Cemetery Filth if this is the musical direction that the band plans on pursuing going forward. 

Check out the music video for "Cyclocognition" below:

Link to where you can order the album on CD and Vinyl:

https://rottedlife.bandcamp.com/album/senses-of-detriment

Cemetery Filth links:

https://linktr.ee/cemeteryfilth

Maudissez “Self-Titled Album”

    The debut self-titled album from French extreme metal monstrosity, Maudissez, is an unholy juggernaut of a release that unleashes such a malicious death doom/sludge sound that the Notre-Dame Catheral might collapse from the unfathomably devastating sonic force. 

    Recorded originally in 2023, Maudissez is teaming up with Sentient Ruin to make this album available for extreme metal enthusiasts all across the world to hear and purchase on vinyl. I am not surprised Maudissez is working with Sentient Ruin, because this band perfectly compliments the label’s diabolic extreme music ethos. Sentient Ruin is a label that prides itself on delivering some of the most unapologetic and sonically decimating underground acts from all around the globe, and Maudissez’s definitely delivers some inhumanly destructive compositions on this debut album. 

    In all honesty, there have been plenty of bands that have made heavy sounding music and have criticized the christian religion, however I will give Maudissez credit for crafting a very monstrous and surrealistic sounding arrangements to compliment their sacrilegious themes. There are some dissonant elements thrown in which creates these nightmare inducing atmospheres like on the opening song, “Fracture par Fracture.” The album’s opening track begins with a mighty barrage of deafening blast beats and savage riffs, but eventually slows down for a more ominous sounding arrangement. I actually liked the drumming throughout this album as the rhythms helped give the music a very sadistic and primordial vibe when needed.  

    For an album featuring only four tracks in total, the band meticulously explores the inhumanely brutal musical landscapes by conjuring up some extremely vivid sounding compositions. Some of the riffs on the second track, “Blessure par Blessure,” really stood when I first listened to the song, especially the one sludgy doom riff that kicks in the four minute mark. After listening to the dissonant and malevolent noises at the beginning of the song, I liked the transition to this hypnotic doom like riff section. Of course, the band goes back into the abyss of sheer mind shattering terror for the song’s finale, but I understand that they wanted to have a surrealistic sounding conclusion to an already insanely entropic piece of music. 

    The other two tracks, “Meurtrissure par Meurtrissure” and “Brûlure par Brûlure,” are very bombastic sounding as well, and without any doubt display a tremendous level of nihilistic brutality. “Brûlure par Brûlure,”is probably the song that stands out the most on this album, mainly due to the fact that the ending sounds like the Gates of Hell are opening and all the demons are coming through the gateway in search of human souls to defile. The eerie tempo, evil organ music and cries of agony in the background, really pain this vivid picture in your mind as you become engulfed by the apocalyptic noises coming at you from all different directions. 

    In the end, I must credit Maudissez for coming up with one uniquely profane extreme metal release, especially considering that this is their first album. The entire album is actually very well produced and the songwriting paints an utterly surreal and hellacious sounding story, even if I did get lost in those moments of gratuitous distorted chaos like on the second track. This is definitely an album worth checking out if you are fan of death doom, sludge metal or downright deafening music. Actually, I would really like to see Maudissez live, because the arrangements are so profoundly heavy that it would be amazing to see this up front and close. Although, I bet my ears would be ringing for days after seeing them live. Oh well, the experience would definitely be worth it! 

Check out the entire release below:

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

Pale Cremation “EP VII: Consume”

 

As humanity becomes grossly enslaved to social media and technological advancements start to replace humans with artificial intelligence, we are going to need acts like Pale Cremation to remind us of the potential dangers that shall await humanity as all those brilliant science fiction films and books from the past become our new reality. 

On this brand new Pale Cremation release, “EP VII: Consume,” we see Matt Lasserre who is the mastermind behind Pale Cremation continue to explore more science fiction related lyrical themes, while taking the doom metal sound and adding a plethora of other elements to give the music a very dynamic sound. The early years of Pale Cremation were very much grounded in the old school doom metal world, however, with each new release you could hear the sound evolving and exploring Matt’s other musical interests. I think what really stands out about, “EP VII: Consume,” is how the lyrical themes address some very relatable topics pertaining to our society’s relationship with technology and how the digital age has impacted our lives. 

For the drum parts, Matt enlisted the help of Anders Wienerholden who proved to be a very strong addition right from the get go by making a deafening impact on the first song, “Anxiety Hivemind.” Actually, when I started listening to this new release and heard that main riff on, “Anxiety Hivemind,” I was blown away by how utterly aggressive the music sounded. I could hear a little bit of the nasty sounding riffs from Pale Cremation’s 2021 release, “Masquerade In The Violet Theatre,” but somehow the new music takes on an even more vicious and bombastic sounding approach. Throughout the entire song Matt’s guitar playing and bass playing delivers one fatal punch to the ears and even transitions into more  progressive/industrial metal sounding directions to make the musical landscape feel very entropic. 

The second track, “Nightmare Emulator,” definitely compliments the album’s science fiction theme by incorporating these haunting cinematic electronic noises. Also, the machine like pounding guitar riffs and drum parts create this surrealistic like environment where you start to feel like your mind is being completely altered by the bursts of cataclysmic distortion. I thought the song was an extremely creative instrumental track, which demonstrated Matt's willingness to push the music in new directions. 

The final song, “Goodbye to Everything,” was a clever conclusion to this nightmarish exploration into the sinister digital world that looks to control our minds and make us consume mindless content to become complete slaves to the corporate masters. If you were to ask me about the new release's sound quality, I would say that this is one of the best sounding Pale Cremation releases to date, especially the guitar sound on each of the tracks which was HEAVY as all hell. Overall, I would highly recommend this album to anyone who is a fan of monstrous sounding jams along with some really eye opening science fiction themed lyrics. I have to give credit to Matt as he continues to come up with some killer sounding releases. I'd recommend getting the kids off of that TikTok crap and start making them listen to some Pale Cremation, that way humanity might have a chance at survival when the machines take over. 

Listen to the entire release below: 

Pale Cremation Bandcamp :

https://palecremation.bandcamp.com/album/ep-vii-consume

Hemotoxin “When Time Becomes Loss”

 

    Similar to most metal bands that have experienced triumphs, challenges and setbacks in their careers, Hemotoxin is an act that has been on a wild rollercoaster ride since the band’s formation back in 2010. From line-up changes to having their third full-length album come out right when the 2020 Pandemic was in full-swing and everyone was stuck at home due to lockdown orders, this Bay Area based band is no stranger when tasked with overcoming adversity. However, the band’s resilience and feverish work ethic, especially from that of founding member and primary driving force Michael Chavez, is why I would consider this newest release, “When Time Becomes Loss,” to be an extremely important album that fans have been highly anticipating.  

    “When Time Becomes Loss,” is the fourth full-length Hemotoxin studio album to date, and can really be described as solo endeavor for singer/guitarist Michael compared to the previous releases from the band. For this new album Michael enlisted the help of Scott Fuller (Annihilated, ex-Morbid Angel) to handle all the drum parts. I thought Scott did a tremendous job, because his style of drumming as well as his past experience, perfectly complimented the musical direction Michael was trying to accomplish with the new material. There are even a few guest solos featured on some of the songs with contributions from Tony Barhoum (Condition Critical), Andrew Lee (Ripped to Shreds) and Donnie Small (Laceration/Trecelence). 

    The album’s first song, “Morbid Reflection,” makes an impact right away by unleashing some hellacious guitar playing and ear-piecing harmonic sequels to usher forth one devastating composition. Everything sounds tight and on point in terms of the sound quality and the punishing rhythms coming from Scott Fuller from behind the kit. Also, I thought Michael’s vocals sounded utterly profound on the recording, which is also something that can be heard throughout the album. On the second track, you continue to hear this raw and bombastic energy being unleashed through the agonizing technical death/thrash riffs which Michael conjures up. The guest solo that Donnie Small from Laceration/Trecelence provides really adds to the song’s aggressive and dynamic sound, while even offering up some unbelievably ethereal sounding shredding. 

    On track number three, “Malediction,” I liked how the music at times took on a very old school thrash sound by relentlessly hammering out these chaotic sounding riffs that sort of reminded me of the early Hemotoxin releases. However, Michael proves to be a very omniscient extreme metal musician who experiments with a plethora of different tempos and time signatures, so there are these extremely clever transitions from raw intense sounding riffs to more mesmerizingly fluid technical solos. In all, the music features so many layers and on tracks like “Abstract Commands” and “Conscious Descent,” you find yourself becoming completely ensnared by the overpowering arrangements. On, “Conscious Descent,” Andrew Lee from Ripped to Shreds, a band that Michael also plays in, offers up a brilliant sounding solo which I thought really complimented Michael’s playing on the track as well, thus demonstrating the solid chemistry between these two players.  

    Lyrically, I have always felt that with each new Hemotoxin album the l songwriting has always evolved, and I can definitely hear that on this new album.  Michael's approach to writing lyrics reminds me a bit of how Chuck Schuldiner’s lyrics always seemed to dig deeper into more meaningful themes relating to human existence, unlike some bands that cannot seem to breakout of the whole, "Hail Satan and put Jesus in a blender," fixation. That is why without question I thought the best song off of this release was,“Reborn in Tragedy.” From the relatable lyrics that can resonate with so many listeners to the highly emotional driven guitar solo, this song was truly exceptional from start to finish. 

The final track on the album which happens to be the title track, “When Time Becomes Loss,” is another fearsome piece of death/thrash, yet also conveys a progressive sounding feel at times. To me this has always been one of Hemotoxin’s strengthens when comparing them to their peers, as the music always seems to reacher higher than just that of a straight forward dearth/thrash band. I really liked the lead guitar parts during this track as well as Tony Barhoum’s solo, which once again provided a nice transition from the heaviness of the main riff to a more calming progressive rock/metal section. 

    Overall, I cannot find much to complain about this album, as I strongly believe this is yet another step forward for Hemotoxin. Of course, I will admit that I do have some bias having watched this band over the years, but I will refrain from being like wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer and just blindly giving the album a seven star rating out of five stars. Hemotoxin’s “When Time Becomes Loss” may not be Kenny Omega vs. Kazuchika Okada at the Tokyo Dome, but in the end the album is an exceptional metal release that I was recorded by some extremely passionate and dedicated individuals. In my opinion, the songwriting and musicianship really stood out when listening to this album, and I think a lot of that can be attributed to the attention to detail from all those involved in the making of the album. My final thoughts are that this is an album that you need to check out if you are a fan of extreme metal music, as well as someone who appreciates dynamic musicianship from an act that continues to wave the flag for heavy metal music in the Bay Area/Contra Costa County. 

Check out the full album below via Pulverized Records Youtube Channel! 

Hemotoxin Bandcamp:

https://hemotoxin70.bandcamp.com/merch

Pulverized Records:

https://www.pulverised.net/

North “We Are, We Remain…”

    Polish black metal veterans, North, look to unleash a savage sounding black metal blizzard upon the extreme metal world with the release of their new EP. Titled, “We Are, We Remain…,” the upcoming release shall contain some new material, a re-recording of the classic song “Hymn to Winter,” as well as a cover of Bathory’s, “A Fine Day to Die.” 

    Along with fellow Polish black metal titans Graveland, Sacrilegium and Behemoth, North was part of that undeniably influential black metal scene which saw a plethora of killer releases coming from Poland. North’s 1998 release, “From the Dark Past,” is a truly vicious sounding black metal release featuring some utterly grim riffs and hauntingly ruthless vocal parts. Fans have waited since 2011 for new music from North, so there has been a fair amount of anticipation surrounding the release of this new EP, and I believe a lot of that has to do with North’s strong cult extreme music following. 

    Listening to the new material I can guarantee fans of merciless sounding black metal will not be disappointed. The riffs on some of the songs are down right scorching in terms of the distorted intensity which the band is able to conjure up. On the opening track, "Czas By Powstali / It's Time For Them Arise,” the band hammers out a deafening onslaught of pestilent guitar parts to create an ominous sounding atmosphere. Also, the vocals really standout on the song and are delivered with such an unapologetically savage black metal attitude. 

    The other two new tracks “Stulecia We Krwi / Centuries In Blood” and “Horda Duchów / Horde Of Ghosts,” are also a couple decimating pieces of black metal music with some death metal elements added as well. At times the riffs take on an unfathomable brutal sound, but then transition into a more frantic old school black metal style, which displays how talented this band is when coming up with destructive sounding arrangements. I thought the re-recorded version of, “Hymn to Winter,” was extremely impressive as well, because the band was able to maintain the song’s classic pagan black metal tone, but added an even more modern punch in terms of the production quality. I would even say that the drum sound on this new version of the song was very tight sounding and the drummer demonstrated a tremendous amount of talent from behind the kit by pounding out some intense rhythms. For their cover of Bathory’s, “A Fine Day to Die,” I thought they did a solid job covering a classic song which has been covered numerous times before by other black metal bands.  

    Overall, North’s new EP, “We Are, We Remain…,” is a malevolent black metal creation which maintains an old school black metal mentality in terms of the songwriting and the sound, while also adding some slight modern extreme metal touches. In recent years there have been some black metal bands that have made new albums and for some reason they sound egregiously overproduced and watered down. North’s utterly grim and brutally behemoth black metal sound seems to still be there, and I look forward to seeing if they can build off this album’s sound on future recordings as this is the type of extreme metal music that you desire to hear more of from bands. 

Link to where you can order the album :

https://www.pagan-records.com/pl/p/NORTH-We-Are%2C-We-Remain...-CD-PRE-ORDER/13742

North Facebook Page:

https://www.facebook.com/kingdominblood/