Low Moments "Picked Dead Last in the Dodgeball Game of Life"

    I know, some of you are questioning why Rob “The Metal Guy” is reviewing a non-hard rock/heavy metal album. I can just imagine a kvlt black metal badass seeing this and calling me a poser from their mom’s basement while eating a Hot Pocket. However, I thinking that it should be know that I listen a variety of different artists and even though this blog is called the Rock and Metal Temple, I am always willing to review and promote artists that I believe people should check out.  

    For many year I have been a fan of new wave, synth wave and dark wave, anything with "wave" attached to the end, so when the opportunity came upon to review this new release from the band, Low Moments, I thought here is a great opportunity to breakaway from what I usually review. Plus, with an album cover as hilariously clever as, “Picked Dead Last in the Dodgeball Game of Life,” you know that this is an album worth checking out. All the songs on this album actually have pretty amusing titles, but the music is very unique and very diverse. You do hear a lot of catchy synth pop arrangements, as well as some gloomy new wave elements. Also, the songs are rather short in terms of length, which I found refreshing to hear and helped the album flow from start to Finnish without much issue. 

    What stood out the most was how a song could be extremely catchy and full of brilliant sounds, yet contain some very interesting lyrics. I mean, the song titles alone are sheer genius and capture the type of personality I want from a band looking to experiment with a variety of styles and sounds. “Asthmatic Around Ladies,” is one song that I found to be extremely entertaining and it actually features some really creative sounding bass parts. Being a huge fan of New Order I always like hearing those sharp sounding bass parts to inject some extra moodiness to the overall sound. On the song, “Always Outside the In-Joke,” the music brings you into this very vibrant sounding world, which is also met by the singers very sad and solemn voice. 

    The album contains a handful of very short instrumental jams, some of which I would definitely like to hear expanded and incorporated into future material. I mean, the synth arrangements and melodies can be extremely addictive sounding at times, but then some of them can sound like samples from a cheesy 80’s TV show about detectives in Miami shooting at drug dealers who are supposed to be from a foreign country yet look like they have fake spray tans and talk with painfully phony accents. One instrumental track that I really enjoyed was, “When Your Song Title Are Better Than Your Songs,” because the title one again highlights into this band’s sarcastic sense of humor. I could even have seen this song with its trippy 80's sounding guitar riff being used as the theme music for a movie that blends together the worlds of John Waters and John Hughes. I would have loved to have seen a Divine meets the Breakfast Club film, or Divine as the lead role in Uncle Buck. 

    “But No, For Real, I’m Good at Nunchucks,” was one track that all humor aside really caught my attention. Even though the song is not very long you are presented with this rush of creative ideas and the punky sounding riff towards the end provided an extra touch of 80's sounding adrenaline rushing attitude. Low Moments may like to come off as a humorous act at times with their songs titles, but the musicianship is no joke and the quality of the recordings is very impressive for the most part. 

    Throughout the entire album I cannot say that I was offended, or completely disturbed by anything, so if anyone wanted to hear some classic sounding synth pop music to reminded them of the 80’s instead of that obnoxious Netflix show about Russians, a girl with supernatural powers exactly like Carrie and monsters practically stolen from the first Resident Evil film, then I highly recommend listening to this album. Low Moments is definitely the band to be playing right now as you cruise around in your Delorean drinking your New Coke and making all the young kids in your neighborhood think you are going through a midlife crisis. 

Check out the video for "Asthmatic Around Ladies" : 

Low Moments : 

https://lowmoments.bandcamp.com/

Denali "Debut EP"

    I’ve encountered a fair amount of death doom bands over my years of reviewing albums, unfortunately the promos tend to be misleading and the bands end up sounding like sloppy death metal bands that could not comprehend how to compose tolerable piece of music due to the amount of cheap beer that they drank while recording. In the case of Denali, I must say that I was extremely impressed by how this up and coming death doom band went about recording their debut EP. 

    This group of musicians from the UK hammer out some monolith sized sounding arrangements, while also taking the extra effort to incorporate some very dynamic sounding concepts. Even though this is their first release, the band features members from established acts such as Countless Skies and Everest Queen. I personally really enjoyed the most recent Countless Skies album, so when I saw that this band featured members from Countless Skies, I definitely wanted to give the EP a listen. I feel as though these musicians are able to effectively apply their talents by composing instrumental arrangements that do not settle for the basic extreme metal sound by experimenting with a variety of tones and tempos. 

    I think that the first track, “Catafalque,” is a great introduction, yet gives only a glimpse of what this band is able to create. At first the song begins with a very solemn sounding tone, but then becomes consumed by this aggressive death doom onslaught. One of my favorite parts during the song was when the guitarist came up with this solo where the notes rang out majestically over the calming atmosphere. I have always been a fan of artists that incorporate atmospheric elements into their music, so I really liked how the band incorporated some tranquil sounding guitar concepts to contrast with the heavier distorted guitar riffs. 

    As I stated earlier, the first track was really just the beginning of what was to come on the rest of this three song EP. On the second track, “Beneath the Waves,” the band dives further into their creative mindset by constructing a very long and thunderous sounding piece of music. The drumming during the song really caught my attention as well as the mesmerizing chord arrangements. This song was truly astonishing in terms of the amount of raw emotion that seemed to emanate from my speakers. If this band was to release a full-length album after this EP, this style of songwriting is what I would love to hear more of, especially the dynamic guitar arrangements. 

    The final song, “Deathless,” is another powerful sounding track and I thought that the song served as a solid conclusion. After listening to these three tracks, I noticed that the lyrics and instrumental concepts are all delivered with such precise and professional sounding execution. As much as I do enjoy this EP, I feel as though this band is just getting started. When they eventually make a full-length album, I hope to hear more of this confident creativity that places such emphasis on making powerful and triumphant sounding recordings. 

    In the end, Denali is an act that I would definitely recommend checking out if you are looking for an heavy, yet also very calming sounding release. These artists are not looking to write another generic death doom album, which was refreshing to hear for once and I thought the musicianship allowed them to push the musical boundaries at times. Sometimes I find it rather unfortunate that we live in a world where bands that can inspire and write such captivating music do not get the recognition they deserve. Hopefully though a band like Denali will catch the ears of people within the global metal community and if they continue to write music like this, I predict that they will gain a strong and loyal following. 

Check out the song "Beneath the Waves" below: 

Denali Bandcamp:

https://denalidoom.bandcamp.com/

Interview with the Label Sentient Ruin Laboratories

Back in 2014, not too long after I started running this blog, I received a comment on an article from someone who said that they ran an independent metal/punk label and that they were looking to see if they could send me promos for possible review. Years later I can tell you that I am still receiving promos from Sentient Ruin and I have discovered a massive amount of abhorrent and inhumanly brutal artists thanks to the label. In my many years of doing album reviews for this blog along with my time writing for other online publications, I have never come across a label that puts so much time and effort into promoting their artists. Not only do the albums sound amazing, but the vinyls and cassettes always look 100% professional. This is not just some label that will take your album, wrap it up in a garbage bag, and then completely rip you off by not promoting the album. When I receive a promo from Sentient Ruin I am instantly hooked by the description of the band, as well as the overall knowledge that the owner has for extreme metal music. After years of covering Sentient Ruin bands, I decided that the time had come to interview the owner of this merciless underground extreme music label from the Bay Area. So here it is everyone, an interview with the owner of Sentient Ruin...

Hello, thank you for taking the time to answer these questions. After all these years of covering bands released through Sentient Ruin I really wanted to give the readers more insight into the label and discuss some of the really decimating releases that you have in the works coming out this year. To begin, what was your original plan when you started Sentient Ruin and what were some of your early goals when the label first began?

Thanks to you for the interest. I've been a music fan/collector/musician/consumer for most of my life, at a serious level even since before adolescence. Later I became very interested in underground punk/metal via bands like Napalm Death, Godflesh, Voivod, Killing Joke, etc. At the same time I began to follow closely at first labels like Earache and Relapse, and then more underground labels like Aurora Borealis, Cold Meat Industries, Cold Spring, Osmose, HydreaHead, Nuclear War Now, etc. I observed the packaging and arworks/layouts of records I would buy closely, and always elaborated on what I would have done better or different. Around the mid 00s I began to think more seriously of all I would do and the kinds of bands I'd release if I had a label and the thought never left my head.

Over the years Sentient Ruin has worked with a plethora of underground extreme music artists from all around the globe and that is what I find makes the label really stand out. How would you compare Sentient Ruin to other extreme music labels? What do you feel has contributed to the labels success when pertaining to establishing a strong and loyal following?

I've always been inspired by things, but I never really cared for imitating anyone. As I said previously, admiration and respect for many labels would make me think that I too wanted to start a label, but more as in how I would do it differently, if I had a label. I don't know if Sentient Ruin qualifies as "successful", but I try to release stuff that I like. Stuff that I would buy as well as a simple music fan. Since I like anything from goth to post-punk, to noise rock and hardcore punk to dark ambient and avantagarde all the way to harsh noise and bestial metal, you can likely see all this stuff coming out on the label and everything in between. I think SR somewhat sits in its own corner for that: we just don't stick to any genre, which could make the label seem aimless and chaotic, yet all the bands have a visible connecting thread: darkness.

Something I’ve noticed when reviewing bands from Sentient Ruin is that the albums from top to bottom are typically extremely well produced. Very few Sentient Ruin artists record an album to where there are only a couple good tracks and then the rest are filler. Who are some of the artists you have really enjoyed working over the years? What are some of your favorite releases that you have put out?

I think like any or most labels I just try to release stuff that is good, that is strong, feels complete and that gives the listener a full satisfying experience and not just a listen. Something worth their money, time, and which they can chew on and spend time with. Perhaps it's for this reason you feel the records are good back to back. I am indeed not a huge fan of lo-fi music in general, aside from some very sparse exceptions, and I tend to avoid splits, 7"s, EPs etc in favor of full-lengths which give a more exhaustive experience. I like recordings that sound full, dense and overbearing. I am happy you think that because that's what we're (hopefully) striving for. I enjoy working with all our bands, picking favorites is very hard. I'll say to anyone discovering SR for the first time could check out Rotting Sky's "Sedation", Pseudocommando's "A Home Beneath the Floodboards", Cryptae's "Nightmare Traversal", or DSKNT's "Vacuum Gamma Noise Transition" if you wanna know what this label is about.

Besides running the label you are also very much involved in creating music and have been involved in numerous bands/extreme metal projects. I wanted to know how long you have been playing in bands and what influenced you when you were growing up?

Been in bands non stop since the mid 00s. Just as I'd collect and buy records, I'd also go to as many shows as I could. Just as buying records made me think how it would be cool to release them myself one day, seeing bands on stage made think it would also be cool to be on the stage one day.

One of my favorite bands that has released albums through Sentient Ruin is Abstracter. I actually reviewed the band’s first album, “Tomb of Feathers,” for another music website when I was first starting out doing reviews and articles. I was wondering if you could talk about the band's most recent release, “Abominion.” I feel as though it was one of the most profound releases to come out last year in my opinion and I was impressed by the work you did with the different vinyl variants. How do you feel about that album when comparing it to previous Abstracter releases? Also, what inspired you to create some of the variants for the vinyl such as the limited edition “radioactive” vinyl, which I definitely made sure to order?

The album sounded so massive it sounded like it needed something equally grandiose for the packaging. The band put such work in recording it that I felt like complementing that with equally ambitious and enveloping packaging. The album is Abstracter's best and it shows a band that is constantly growing and exploring and pushing to not repeat themselves. The lyrics and concept paired with the monumental music create a dense and enveloping experience, so we all agreed it should also be given appropriate visual expression to complete the opera and close the concept circle. It all came naturally. We did the glow in the dark variant because the band on this album touches the concept of nuclear energy, and also to stimulate people to listen to it in the dark. The purple/red variant was done as a symbolism for blood and pollution and also cause it just married the black and white artwork nicely.

2020 was sure a challenging and frustrating year for a lot of people, but I wanted to commend you for being sort of an inspiring entity during that whole year, especially when dealing with a global pandemic. Even with everything going on during that year, you released a ton of great releases from so many bands like Diabolic Oath, Dearth, Deadlight Sanctuary, 6th Circle and Ceremonial Bloodbath. What albums stood out to you during that year and what were some of the challenges you faced as a business dealing with the global pandemic? 

The ones you mentioned are good example stand outs. The main challenge was vinyl turnaround times becoming dismal and prices rising for basically everything. And things are fucking FAR from back to normal. They are actually the furthest from normal now than they were in 2020.... So I will say this now to anyone reading: support the underground now more than ever, because we're all struggling and scraping by right now.

Over the years what have been some challenges you have faced when running the label? Have you had to deal with difficult artists, or do you have strong relationships with most of the bands you work with, and if so what would you attribute to the strong bonds you share with the artists on the label?

Thankfully I have a wonderful relationship with all my bands. Something I feel very lucky about and which really means a lot to me. I consider every one of them friends. Challenges are many and the more the label grows and has to maintain and lose, the more the challenges. Some main challenges over the years have been: distributing our stuff well globally, keeping releases affordable to everyone while putting a lot of work and quality in them and not cutting corners, finding a way to find the time and energies, and just staying motivated and focused in something that can be very stressful and tiring.

There is another band I thought I should talk about given the band’s well deserved continued success and recognition amongst the metal community in recent years. Necrot, an undeniably fearsome Bay Area death metal trio, has worked with Sentient Ruin in the past on cassette releases for some of their albums. Actually, “Labyrinth” was an album I covered for the blog when you were releasing the cassette version back in 2016. What has it been like working with the band on those cassette releases? Do you have a favorite Necrot album?

Necrot are an awesome band. I've known those guys from far before the label existed. I was a roomate with Luca a long time and we probably just worked on stuff together for fun cause we know each other so well. We're all friends and that's what got us collaborating on stuff. Members have their own label now and they work with bigger labels for their releases because after years of hard work and ass kicking music they've gotten to a place where they just need and deserve more infrastructure and visibility. I'm very happy I got to be a part of their music in the earlier days and proud of them for where they have gotten. I was a fan then and I am a fan now, and always will be one. They are probably the one band I have seen more times play live in my life and I still try to see them play live whenever I can. 

Looking ahead, 2022 is already shaping up to be another crushing year for the label with some utterly devastating releases coming out. For example, the new Black Fucking Cancer album, which might be one of the sickest looking vinyl formats I have ever seen in my life. What releases are you most excited for this year? Would you say that 2022 will see more new Sentient Ruin releases compared to previous years, or about the same?

I don't' think there will be more because we already release the max we humanly can. The BFC one is certainly a highlight, as well as the debut Exaltation album, the new Golgothan Remains album, new Assumption, debut Anticreation album, debut Ash Prison, debut Vile Ritual and something from Uranium that will ruin people's lives.

I do not know if you are aware of this, but you hold the record currently for the most wins in the Label of the Year category for my yearly award special I do for the blog. The reason is that every year you seem to be the one label that I find releases some of the most outstanding extreme metal artists. What advice would you give young independent label owners who are just starting out? Do think independent extreme music labels have more opportunities now to grow as diehard fans continue to want physical formats like vinyl?

Didn't know this, that's awesome. To anyone starting I say: this is a painful life choice. So you have to be ok with a lot of time alone, a lot of work, a lot of repetitive, tedious work, a lot of financial rollercoasters. I also suggest not chasing trends or caring for that stuff because someone else already monopolizes those. Those are one of those things that are the first to be capitalized on by others. I actually suggest just doing things differently, as basic as that sounds. While I would never discourage anyone from starting a label, I don't think it's something for everyone, there is a degree of masochism going into it which very few people can find enjoyable. There are also obvious temporal and context challenges to face right now. Bandcamp and the rise of laptops and home recording have created an insane influx of bands and of people releasing music or looking for labels, and for this reason a lot of the music out there creates an anesthetizing feeling of conformation and uniformity and of everything sounding already done and heard before, and in massive quantities where it becomes kind of cumbersome to pick which bands and releases to work with.

Well, I just want to say thank you again for doing this interview. I really appreciate all the work you do to promote extreme metal music. I’ve been introduced to a significant amount of bands over the years now thanks to Sentient Ruin and I look forward to hearing more hellacious releases from the label!

Cheers!    

Sentient Ruin Website:

http://sentientruin.com/ 

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

Sentient Ruin Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/SentientRuin

Black Fucking Cancer "Procreate Inverse"

    When Sentient Ruin announced the upcoming release for Black Fucking Cancer’s sophomore full-length album, “Procreate Inverse,” the response from fans expressing how much they were looking forward to the new album was astounding. These black metal musicians from San Jose, CA have proven with past recordings to be true masters of the malevolent arts, and this new album is yet another blasphemous offering to lay upon the extreme metal altar. 

    I was first introduced to the band when I reviewed the split they did with the black/doom metal band Gloam, which was a brutal and hellish sounding release that I definitely made sure to add to my collection. This band is not about pushing a whacky political ideology, or infusing indie rock elements into their music to be unique and win over the hearts of hipsters who ride around on those stupid electric scooters. When you listen Black Fucking Cancer for the first time you hear a band that is looking to completely annihilate all that stands in their way by unleashing a blitzkrieg of raw abhorrent sounding black metal. 

    “Procreate Inverse,” from top to bottom features some vicious guitar work and even more decimating drum parts. I was probably most impressed by the drumming on this album, because the drummer provides a fearsome onslaught of blast beats and crushing aggression from behind the kit. The first song, “Excursus,” sets the tone by creating this haunting occult like world where you feel as if you are entering a demonic realm where your soul is torn into thousands of pieces and your ears are overcome by a firestorm of bone crushing guitar parts. Also, the band’s vocalist does a tremendous job delivering this gruesome and hateful sounding attitude when presenting the band’s malevolent lyrics. 

    Another point to raise about Black Fucking Cancer is that they are not afraid to arrange some longer tracks, so the band is constantly throwing around different tempos and compositions, while still staying true to their sinister vision. “Obscene Lusting Dagger,” which is around twelve minutes dives into a very chaotic sounding world and comes rushing at you like a horde of grotesque demons crawling out of the abyss looking to slaughter all that stand in their path. During the song the guitarist incorporates some evil sounding lead guitar parts into the overall mix, which I thought added to the already deranged sounding musical landscape.  

    As the album progresses and the band continues to unleash more deafening instrumental ideas as well as venomous vocals parts to paint an unfathomable picture of nightmarish devastation. The album’s longest song, “Procreate Inverse,”is a sixteen minute exploration into a savage wasteland of inhuman brutality. Throughout the song the band constructs a plethora of agonizing arrangements fueled by this insidious energy dragging you deeper into a pitch black void of distorted cataclysmic horror. 

    “Procreate Inverse,” is not just another stereotypical corpse paint wearing gimmicky black metal worship album, but an unbelievably hellacious creation conjured up by a group of dedicated extreme metal musicians. Black Fucking Cancer is not looking to win over the mainstream metal community with an album to get them on the cover of some elitist publication. In the end, Black Fucking Cancer’s punishing approach to writing music is what makes them stand out from the rest. I highly recommend fans of extreme music give this album a listen, because music like this is what you should be blasting through your speakers! 

Check out the song "Serpentious Flames" below :

Link to Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

Moonlight Haze "Animus"

    I used to review a fair amount of power metal bands for this blog, but as of recent I have just not heard a band that has really grabbed me within the world of power metal. Most of the time when I receive a promo for a new power metal band I cannot make it through the first couple tracks without getting a headache from the gimmicky redundant sounding compositions. In the case of Moonlight Haze I can honestly say that this band really hooked me from the beginning and the overall quality of musicianship on their new album, “Animus,” is extremely impressive. 

    This group from Northern Italy really captures a lot of qualities that I tend to enjoy from iconic power metal and symphonic metal bands such as Helloween, Rhapsody, Blind Guardian, Epica and Nightwish. Also, I have to point out how the band does not get carried away with over the top compositions that sounded painfully over produced. For example, the lead guitar playing is extremely fluid sounding and the solos on this release really hooked me, because the lead guitarist never tries to go overboard with pointless shredding to where you feel like the music is being hijacked by some dude trying to show off. Plus, the vocals on this album are phenomenal and the band’s singer Chiara Tricarico has an amazing vocal range. 

    Out of the album’s eleven tracks, I found myself listening with great interest on each song and I believe that fans of power metal and symphonic metal will really be impressed by the band’s tight sound. The first track on the album, “The Nothing,” is a solid opening piece of music and contains a very calming yet uplifting main driving rhythm. The band hammers out some catchy guitar riffs while injecting epic sounding vocal parts to create a very cinematic sounding environment. The second track, “It’s Insane,” is probably the primary reason why this band peaked my interest after I first listened to the album. The chorus section is truly inspiring and Chiara’s vocal delivery adds such fiery and passionate emotion into the track. Also, the guitar solo during the song is a great example of how a player is able to take you away for a bit by exploring some mesmerizing scales, and is then able skillfully return to the main riff.

    As the album progresses from song to song you start to notice how the band is able to lay down some crushing riffs, yet they are always able to transition so smoothly to these mighty melodic chorus sections. On the song,“Kintsugi,” I was impressed by how the arrangements complimented Chiara’s vocals, especially how the music flowed with this graceful synergy. Songs like, “Animus” and “The Thief and the Moon,” glide through these grandiose sounding musical landscapes featuring a fair amount of inspiring lyrics that I believe listeners can relate to, especially during these difficult times in our world. 

    Very similar to the band Rhapsody, one of my all time favorite power/symphonic metal bands, Moonlight Haze pays great attention to detail on each composition and one can tell that the band takes pride in their craft. The song, “We’ll Be Free,” was another epic sounding song that captures one’s imagination as Chiara completely unleashes a mighty rush of emotion during the chorus section. Plus, the drumming is very tight sounding and establishes a thunderous rhythmic backbone for the guitars to come screaming in like mighty eagles soaring over majestic misty mountains. 

    Moonlight Haze, “Animus,” is a modern power and symphonic metal gem that I really hope people check out once it is released through Scarlett Records on March 18th, 2022. The band is able to write such powerful sounding music, while also not getting carried away with ridiculously sloppy instrumental arrangements that end up turning into a saturated symphonic sounding mess. I believe balance and consistency is what separates Moonlight Haze from a fair amount of other up and coming power metal bands. In the end, Moonlight Haze displays a certain level of confidence which can be heard throughout their music, so if you are fan of this type of music and you don’t listen to this album, then you must be insane. Definitely an album you don't want to miss! 

Check out the video for the song "It's Insane" below : 

Moonlight Haze FB Page:

https://www.facebook.com/Moonlighthazeband/

Moonlight Haze Bandcamp:

https://moonlighthaze.bandcamp.com/

Eric Wagner "In the Lonely Light of Mourning"

 

    Even though he may not have played in a band that sold millions of records and had chart-topping hit singles, Eric Wagner was a truly amazing singer and all around a genuine person. Best known as the lead singer of the iconic doom metal band, Trouble, Eric Wagner sang on such classic doom metal releases as, “Psalm 9,” “The Skull” and “Run to the Light.” After departing from Trouble Eric continued to record music and was involved in countless other projects over the years. 

    Last year when Eric passed away fans like myself were really hit hard by the news, especially since his music spoke to people on a very deep level. When the news came out that the label, Cruz Del Sur, was going to posthumously release Eric’s solo album in March of 2022, fans really appreciated the opportunity to hear what Eric was working on just before his passing. “In The Lonely Light of Mourning,” is honestly one of the most powerful releases I have ever heard in my life, and Eric is able to say goodbye to all his fans with an album that combines years of wisdom coming from a man who did what he enjoyed most until his final days. 

    The origins of this solo album can be traced around 2017 when Eric and Dave Snyder (former Trouble/current Blackfinger drummer) started working together on some ideas that would eventually become, “In the Lonely Light of Mourning.” The album also features a handful of other musicians, most of whom had worked with Eric in the past. I believe what listeners will notice right away about this album is that the musicianship sounds very tight and the compositions are extremely well recorded. From top to bottom, the overall solid sounding production allows the music to flow with a tremendous synergy. 

    Each of eight tracks on this album explores very similar lyrical concepts that Eric explored during his time in Trouble along with his other groups. “Rest In Place” and “Maybe Tomorrow” are two very thought provoking tracks featuring some extremely catchy yet also very haunting sounding riffs. One of my favorites off of the album, “If You Lost Is All,” takes listeners on this gloomy journey with some very melancholy sounding string arrangements to accompany the song’s very somber tone. The song makes you put a lot of concepts about life into perspective, and the lyrics are written with such honest and reflective artistic expression. 

    The album also features some really juggernaut sized doom riffs like on, “Strain Theory,” which opens up the gates and unleashes a flurry of titanic sounding doom. I believe Eric had a great mind for writing music, because he was able to take listeners on this profound emotional joyride with his lyrics, while also capturing listeners’ imaginations with those catchy classic hard rock and heavy metal arrangements. On the album’s final song, “Wish You Well,” I really enjoyed the song’s tempo, which reminded a lot of classic Trouble songs. Plus, Eric offers up a very strong chorus section with the lyrics, “If you are in heaven, or in hell, either way, I wish you well.” The lyrics are not overly complicated, but the words create a vivid and enlightened message of being able to let go and move on from certain feelings. 

    After listening to this album a fair amount of times before I started writing this review, I came to the conclusion that even though Eric is no longer with us, his impact and contributions will never be forgotten. “In the Lonely Light of Mourning,” was written and recorded in such a manner that I believe a lot of rock and metal fans will take notice. Eric along with all the other musicians who worked on this album did an amazing job crafting these songs. Again, Eric Wagner might not have gained the same fame and notoriety within the rock and metal world as some other singers, however his music will always be remembered by those who cherished and respected his musical contributions. 

Check out the song "Maybe Tomorrow" below : 

Places where you can purchase the album :

https://ericwagner.bandcamp.com/

and

http://www.cruzdelsurmusic.com/store/

MÆNTRA "Kundalini"

    For anyone looking for a brutal release that explores human consciousness and looks to transcend the mental barriers of human existence, I believe MÆNTRA has you covered with the release of their debut full-length album, “Kundalini.” The band explores the musical boundaries of death metal and industrial metal, while also incorporating a plethora of other mesmerizing sounds to guide you on this one of a kind extreme sounding spiritual journey. 

    The band consists of drummer Adam Houmam (Cartilage, Ghoul, Ion, Terrorizer L.A.), guitarist/vocalist Rudy Pina, bassist/vocalist Paul Ryan (Origin) and keyboardist Martin Boynton (Short Fuse). The album is rather fascinating with each track on the album exploring one of the seven chakras. One would not typically connect extreme sounding brutality with euphoric enlightenment, but I do believe that is what makes this album so unique. Also, the musicianship really stood out when I first started listening to the album, and I find that the band composes their arrangements with tremendous precision. The album flows with a tremendous synergy which helps bring together all these different sounds and compositions. 

    To begin the first track off of the album, “Muladhara,” the band provides these calming atmospheric noises that eventually get completely decimated by intense blast beats and mind crushing riffs. Throughout the song there are a lot of dynamic arraignments along with very frantic sounding industrial elements in the background. At first I was a bit taken back, but eventually I started to become more and more intrigued as the music evolved. 

    On the second track, “Svadhisthana,” the band continues to traverse across these unconventional musical landscapes, while at the same time creating a monumental avalanche of inhuman distorted sounding entropy. The band’s approach does have you questioning the direction of the music at times, however the unpredictable nature of the band’s arrangements definitely has you engaged and drifting through this unpredictable void of mind altering chaos. The brutal complex technical rhythms on songs like, “Manipura” and “Vishuddha,” sounds almost otherworldly, which actually perfectly compliments the haunting celestial keyboard parts.

    Overall, I cannot find too much to complain about this album and I believe that MÆNTRA is an extremely talented up and coming band. The caliber of musicianship along with the album’s production quality sounded very impressive compared to a fair amount of modern death metal bands that I have come across. Unlike some extreme metal artists that have this tendency to hastily throw a pile of messy sounding arrangements together, MÆNTRA really understands who to make everything sound tight and flow from beginning to end. If you want an extreme metal experience to open your mind to achieve inner enlightenment, then this album is definitely worth checking out. 

Check out the song "Svadhisthana" below : 

Link to the band's Bandcamp:

https://maentr3.bandcamp.com/track/svadhisthana

Link to the band's Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/maentr3