Cryptae "Capsule"

    For their second full-length album Dutch experimental death metal maniacs, Cryptae, return with yet another sanity shredding release. From schizophrenic sounding arrangements to raw inhuman brutality, the band holds nothing back with this new album.

    Titled, “Capsule,” the album is a truly unconventional exploration into the endless possibilities of where extreme metal can go by savagely twisting compositions to construct an unpredictable musical landscape. The band is working with Sentient Ruin yet again, which should come as no surprise given that Sentient Ruin put out Cryptae’s debut album, “Nightmare Traversal.” Actually, I thought that the band’s debut album was a unfathomable sounding release that took death metal into these nightmarish directions with influences ranging from old school death metal to black metal to industrial. One aspect that seems to never change about this band is that they are always willing to take a brutal sounding composition and mess around with different elements to craft an unbelievably surreal and unorthodox sounding piece of music. 

    Out of the nine tracks on this album, I strongly believe listeners will either find themselves bewitched by this albums erratic brutal sound, or they will question how people could compose such agonizing arrangements. I personally like the harsh sounding vocal parts that compliment the punishing riffs and almost otherworldly compositions. On the opening track,”Pearl,” you sort of are introduced to this haunting sounding electronic environment that gets completely decimated by this primitive assault of gruesome brutality. The drums come thunderously crashing down like buildings collapsing after a violent explosion. 

    After surviving the merciless torment from the first track, you’ll find that the music becomes even more sporadic sounding as well as ventures into some very unique directions, especially pertaining to the ominous industrial noises that the band incorporates. “Trench” and “Deluge,” are a couple tracks that feature some extremely blistering guitar parts along with these utterly intense drum parts. You feel caught in this blizzard of sinister distortion and there is just no escaping the hazardous soundscape which begins to take over your mind. 

    Similar to how I felt about Cryptae’s debut album, this release is a solid example of how to experiment with death metal, yet not jump completely off the rails that then ends up spending like train wreck of a release. Yes, there are some moments where the industrial sounds leave me stretching my head wondering where the hell this band is going, but then all of a sudden they come charging back with a monstrous onslaught of savage riffs. The song “Salt,” was a perfect example of how this band was able to experiment with these eerie sounds that reminded me of something straight out of a suspenseful science fiction film, however they were still able to hammer out a killer main riff to keep you fully engaged. 

    There are some modern extreme metal bands that record albums which blatantly mirror previous bands and end up becoming forgettable after one listen. In the case of Cryptae, this band has you listening from start to finish even if you do not full grasp what is happening at the beginning of this album. I will admit that this style and approach is not for everyone, but if you are a fan of extreme metal which pushes the boundaries while maintaining a brutal mindset, then this album is highly worth checking out.

Check out the song "Pearl" below: 

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp (Album releases November 18th) :

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/album/capsule

Apostasy "Death Return"

    Sadistic Chilean thrashers, Apostasy, have proven over the years to be an extremely fearsome force. The band’s third full-length album, “Death Return,” is yet another example of how this band continues to offer listeners utterly sinister thrash riffs, while also capturing that pure evil sounding 80s thrash sound. 

    “Death Return,” is actually the band’s first new full-length album in 35 years, which is why this album perfectly conveys that old school style of raw and merciless sounding thrash metal. If you are a thrash fanatic who desires some bone crushing riffs that conjure up hellish sounding atmospheres, then this album is going to hook you right away. Working with Sentient Ruin on the vinyl release of this album, Apostasy will once again inspire thrash fans across the globe to crank up the volume and begin ritualistically moshing to the band’s wicked sounding tracks. 

    From the ominous sounding introduction, to the face ripping guitar riffs, to the hellish vocals, this album is a true thrash metal beast. The opening song, “Death Return,” has that intense and aggressive sound which reminded me of Slayer, Kreator, Morbid Saint and early Sepultura. Apostasy really unleashes a flurry of adrenaline pumping rhythms and each composition delivers that relentless thrash metal attitude. Songs such as, “Son of Hate”  and “Deceased in Funeral,” contain some monstrous palm muted galloping riffs that sound like horses thunderously charging into battle.

    I think the band’s raw and very straightforward old school thrash sound is extremely well captured on this release. They do not go off course by trying to mess around with complex time signatures, nor do they incorporate jazz influences into their arrangements. For example, “The Great Apostasy - The Night,” is a brutal onslaught where the drums and guitar come bursting through the musical landscape unleashing unholy devastation. There is definitely no shortage when pertaining to the amount of headbanging riffs on this album, and thrash fans will be constantly moshing around when listening to these songs. Put on a song like, “Praise Darkness,” which is not a very long track, but the overall tone is truly diabolical sounding and perfectly sets up anticipation for the final song, “Obey the Antichrist.” Out of all the tracks off of the album, “Obey the Antichrist,” is my favorite with its menacing thrash metal energy as well as the song’s insidious chord progressions. 

    “Death Return,” is one agonizing assault of old school thrash metal worship and Apostasy is definitely a band that I would highly recommend checking out. With this album you know what you are getting, so do not worry about any experimental surprises coming from these musicians. Their passion for extreme music is undeniable along with their respect for the genre. Over the years some metal bands have fallen victim to horrible trends that have led to some extremely dismal sounding albums. Fortunately Apostasy has not been influenced by any of that nonsense, which is why I highly recommend giving this album a listen. 

Check out the full album below: 

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/album/death-return

Apostasty Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/apostasych/

Rigorous Institution "Cainsmarsh"

    As the world blindly marches towards an abysmal looking future, Rigorous Institution offers listeners a very eye opening and utterly haunting debut full-length release that serves as a warning for the possible dystopian future of which is to come if humanity continues to spiral downwards. Titled, “Cainsmarsh,” the band’s debut album features a plethora of strikingly sinister sounds with its mixture of crust punk, primitive heavy metal and ambient influences. 

    Teaming with Sentient Ruin Laboratories, these Portland, OR based musicians are definitely aiming to make an impact with the release of this album. From top to bottom, the production and the creative approach to how this album was recorded stood out right when I started listening. I will admit that at first I was taken back by the band’s sound, especially when pertaining to the singers spoken word style of delivering the lyrics. However, as I continued to listen to the album I started to really respect how this band's sound goes against what some extreme music fans might expect. You can hear influences likes Killing Joke, Amebix, Motörhead, Hellhammer and Venom, but in the end the band does a tremendous job crafting their own unique sound throughout the album. 

    Instead of opening the album with a massive bludgeoning of riffs, the band instead begins the release with a classical acoustic guitar piece. Yes, I was a bit surprised as well by this moved, but in the end I thought that the composition was executed extremely well and created this calm environment which fades away as the next song brings you into a more frantic sounding realm. Track number two, “Fever (City),” is a whirlwind of chaotic sounds and heart pounding primitive rhythms. The vocalist narrates a nightmarish tale with a gruff vocal delivery that reminded a lot of Lemmy. Also, each word vividly grabs your attention due to the harsh emphasis that is injected into each lyric. Overall, the band is extremely tight in terms of how well the instruments come together to create this overwhelming musical landscape. 

    The album’s title track, "Cainsmarsh," continues with more deafening apocalyptic riffs, although I felt that the music became even more bombastic sounding and started to really intensify at times. One area on this album that stood out was the keyboard arrangements. The band's keyboardist is very creative and I enjoyed the ominous atmospheres that added to music’s surrealistic horror like presentation. For example, “Nuclear Horses,” is one track where the keyboards add that extra layer of spectral sounding malevolence to compliment the tribalistic sounding drums and cataclysmic riffs. As I stated before, the album has a very horrifying surrealistic and ambient presentation at times, which can definitely be heard on a track such as, “The Terror.” Honestly, this is something you’d expect to hear in a psychological horror film, but I also like how the track does not sound gimmicky and maintains that serious level of surrealistic horror. 

    Speaking of horror, the two tracks on this release which I think do an amazing job tackling issues that society deals with currently and really shows the dark side of mankind are, “Laughter” and “Criminal Betrayers.” I believe, “Criminal Betrayers,” captures the thought provoking essence of Killing Joke that I have always admired, while also taking on that fierce crust punk attitude which can be heard from Amebix. Also, the bass playing provides a thunderous amount of raw aggression to fuel the singer’s disgusted tone as he unforgivingly shouts out in anger over the punishing instrumental compositions. In the end though, my favorite song on the album is the second to last track, “Earthride.” If you are a fan of music that takes you on a hellish sounding rollercoaster of distorted devastation with killer sounding bass parts, then you shall find yourself relishing in this track’s fiendish sounding devastation from start to finish.

    There are a lot bands that write albums where the tracks are just sort of thrown together without any purpose and then you forget about them after listening, which is why I think Rigorous Institution left such an impact on me with, “Cainsmarsh.” Once you start listening to this album you cannot pull yourself away from the raw artistic expression. Can mankind correct its failures? Are we doomed to a desolate future? I do not know the answers to those questions, however I hope that Rigorous Institution's prophetic like warnings on this album wake people up to maybe think about the answers to those questions, otherwise humanity will eventually be rendered obsolete. 

Check out the full release below: 

Rigorous Institution Bandcamp: 

https://rigorous-institution.bandcamp.com/

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp: 

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

Yellowcake "Can You See the Future?"

    From a pandemic to now the threat of nuclear war, the world is completely falling apart and chaos seems to be lurking around every corner. Sometimes you ask yourself, “Is there even going to be a future?” I think that is what caught my attention right away when I came upon this new EP titled, “Can You See the Future,” from the Arizona based hardcore punk outfit Yellowcake. This band comes along at the right time to offer listeners a blistering hardcore punk release.  

    Yellowcake’s sound and presentation is not over the top and the band does not write cryptic dribble to impress scholarly minds. The band’s raw aggression is perfectly recorded on each track, while also maintaining that savagely destructive hardcore punk mindset. On each track you find yourself listening with great interest as the bombastic arrangements come crashing out of your speakers like an explosion from a neutron bomb. 

    Musically, the band plays with a fiendish energy which can be heard on every riff throughout the EP. The band’s drummer adds a massive amount of pulverizing d-beat rhythms, and the first song, “Can You See the Future,” is an unbelievably loud onslaught that hits you right in the face. Along with the tight sounding instrumental arrangements, I really liked the vocal delivery by the band's singer. There is relentless passion, raw anger and honest artistic expression behind every lyric. For example, the screams on the song, “Eradicated Peace,” are extremely haunting and perfectly compliment the frantic guitar riffs. 

    Another track which features some utterly vicious sounding riffs is, “Indiscriminate Shelling.” During the opening of the song the band unleashes a merciless attack by coming up with a hellish galloping style riff. One again, the singer provides simple and straightforward lyrics to emphasize the song’s profound message. On the following track, “Visage of the Flame,” I was extremely impressed by how the band came up with such a scorching piece of music. For some reason the singer’s vocal delivery during the song reminded me of Penelope Houston the singer from classic SF punk rockers, The Avengers. There is this inner ferocity that comes bursting out and infuses itself with the vividly distorted sounding chaos. 

    Although the EP is not very long, which is pretty typical for hardcore punk music, the band proves to be more than capable of getting their point across and laying down some deafening tracks. If you are fan of punishing hardcore punk that strikes without any remorse, then you need to check out this EP. The future does look pretty bleak right now, however, I hope Yellowcake is able to put out another monstrous release before the skies turn to ash and those of us who survive have to walk around wearing hazmat suits. 

Check out the full EP below: 

Link to Yellowcake's Bandcamp:

https://yellowcakephx.bandcamp.com/releases

Project Pain "Faster Disaster"

    Project Pain deals out a maniacal thrash metal onslaught with the release of their fourth full-length album, “Faster Disaster.” Hailing from the Netherlands, these metal musicians really capture the true unapologetic nature of 80’s thrash metal. 

    I have reviewed every single full-length album from Project Pain to date, so for me this fourth album was definitely something I wanted to listen to right away. Ever since their first album, "I Have Sinned," the band’s passion for thrash metal and extreme music has always stood out. Over the years the band continues to improve and refine their skills with each new release, and “Faster Disaster” is without question another step forwarded into a more aggressive and fearsome sounding direction. 

    The album starts out with an utterly intense shockwave of distorted destruction and aggressively pulls you into the band’s chaotic sounding world of extreme sounding punishment. On the first song, “Val Kapot,” the band unleashes a barbaric beatdown by hammering out some savage riffs which reminded me a lot of old school thrash bands like Exodus, Testament, Heathen and Vio-lence. The second track,”Mean Metal Machine,” is also very intense, but takes on more of a classic speed metal sound at times by coming up with some very catchy riffs. I think the start of this album is extremely impressive and hooks you right away. Tracks like, “Army From Hell” and “Submerged,” are pure hellacious pieces of thrash metal with massive amounts of brutal sounding energy. 

    One track that really stands out on this album is, “Presto vs Metal,” which is an instrumental track. The Neo-classical meets thrash metal style is amazing and the song features some exceptional guitar work. I really like the overall arrangement, especially how the music confidently flows from beginning to end. This is a song that I can see appealing to a wide range of metal fans, and the track really shows how talented these musicians are in terms of skill level. 

    After, “Presto vs Metal,” the band sort of plays it safe by sticking with their old school thrash approach. I would not say that the music becomes painfully repetitive, however, the band definitely does not stray away from the old school thrash metal formula very often. For me though, I still believe that the fierce guitar riffs and pulverizing drum parts do a great job injecting raw energy into the songs, thus you cannot simply ignore this band’s feverish thrash metal passion. For example, “Fields of Death,” is one track that I felt had some thunderous guitar riffs to grab your attention and whip you up into a constant headbanging frenzy. You can definitely count on this band to keep firing on all cylinders until the very end of the album. 

    In the end, I would say that Project Pain’s, “Faster Disaster,” is another step forward for this band in terms of sound quality and overall brutal aggression. The band is not trying to reinvent the heavy metal wheel and they tend to not experiment with the traditional thrash metal formula, so if you are looking for a band that honors and stays true to the thrash metal ethos, then this band is highly recommended for you. Honestly, as the world becomes one massive disaster of completely insanity, we’ll need band’s like Project Pain to help get us through all the chaos.

Check out the video for the song "Mean Metal Machine" below: 

Project Pain Bandcamp:

https://projectpain.bandcamp.com/album/faster-disaster

Sonic Flower "Me and My Bellbottom Blues"

   Turn up the volume and kick out the jams motherfuckers! Sonic Flower’s new full-length album, “Me and My Bellbottom Blues,” is one HEAVY psychedelic doom experience featuring plenty of tasty sounding riffs and killer bluesy 70’s hard rock inspired jams. 

   Based out of Japan, the band formed around 2001 as a Church of Misery side project. One can definitely hear the similarities between this band and Church of Misery, however, I would say that Sonic Flower's sound incorporates more bluesy hard rock elements. In my opinion, this new album really captures that groovy hard rock attitude, which takes you back to when bands would turn up the volume on their amps and crank out some hard rocking riffs. Throughout the entire album the band seems truly locked into these solid sounding compositions that flow with a very confident heavy and groovy energy. 

   Out of the seven tracks on the album, I find that thanks in large part to the strong production and really catchy sounding arrangements, listeners will not be disappointed when listening to this release. The first song, “Swineherd,” is one hard hitting psychedelic hard rock experience containing some really addictive guitar parts. The lead guitar playing reminds me of something straight out of the 60’s/70’s hard rock scene with that killer tone which makes the notes come vibrantly flowing out of the speakers. Other tracks like, “Love Like Rubber” and “Black Sheep,” are also very powerful sounding songs, especially when pertaining to the bass and drum playing. If you are fan of mighty sounding rhythms that allow for the guitar to explore these trippy thunderous landscape with an endless amount of distorted freedom, then you will find yourself really digging the songs on this album. 

   One song that I really liked which took on a very old school bluesy rock sound by coming up with a very clever blues rock inspired guitar intro was, “Quicksand Planet.” I believe the band did an excellent job arranging the song, and the vocal performance really caught my attention. I thought throughout the entire album the singer did a tremendous job in terms of his delivery and how his vocals complimented the compositions. Overall, the musicianship is so tight that the album may not come across as something new to the world of rock and metal, but the band's passion and fearsome drive definitely wins you over from start to finish. 

   For anyone looking for a groovy hard rock release with some mesmerizing bluesy riffs, then “Me and My Bellbottom Blues,” is an album that I highly recommend. I need to give a huge shoutout to Yukito Okazaki for mixing this album, because he did such an amazing job capturing the band’s profound heavy rocking energy on each track. With so many bands complicating their releases by doing way too much and losing sight of what makes a killer hard rock album, I really hope people take the time to check out what Sonic Flower is doing, because this style of music perfectly captures the true raw essence of rock and roll. 

Check out the full release below : 

Heavy Psych Sounds Records :

https://heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/sonic-flower-me-and-my-bellbottom-blues

Sonic Flower Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064023401214