ISSUE # 1

And interviews with Necrot, Mortillery, Goat Torment, Borkr and

Trenchrot

E D I TORI AL
Blood is thicker than water… After years of absence it
was time to grab the old keyboard again and spawn our
thoughts and opinions about our beloved music upon
mankind. The days of Vampire Magazine / Archaic
Magazine were fun and got us acquainted with lots of
known and unknown bands. Some of you may remember
Vampire Magazine of our website or even the two
Xeroxed issues we published. For those who don’ t, some
brief history…Vampire Magazine started back in 1997 as
a fanzine and, as mentioned before, released two
Xeroxed issues which both sold out. As we got so many
articles for our third issue, we transformed into a
webzine. In those days, not really a common thing.
Many, many…. many reviews, interviews and all kind of
other articles later ( like 15. 000 to be more
precise! ) , I left and it all changed into Archaic
Magazine in the summer of 2 008. And 2 011 was the year
Archaic Magazine pulled the plug…After a couple of
years on hiatus but still checking the scene
frequently, I realized I’ ve been missing writing about
albums and interviewing bands. Especially the last
one. Maybe I could have asked to j oin a zine, but I
also realized I couldn’ t identify 100% with most of
the zines today. Being the nostalgic old fuck that I
am nowadays, I’ ve been missing the good old 1990s
fanzines with the illustrations and the D. I. Y.
attitude. So why not start one? Maybe there are some
more Metal adepts who enj oy such zines as well…
After seeking contact with some former crewmembers to
resurrect VM again, a bunch of them started writing
again at the end of 2 012 and this time VM-Underground
was born!
VM-Underground…Well, we have chosen to adopt the VM
thing again, because many people are still positive
about the work we did with Vampire Magazine in the
past. And we have chosen “Underground” because we
think many bands don’ t get the attention they deserve
because of the many releases by many labels that are
being send to zines with all kind of deadlines.
Although many of us still enj oy the tunes of the well-
known acts, we are not really interested in
interviewing as there already so many articles which
we will be published before our article will see the
light. Just to give you an example. As said, we are a
fanzine, so it’ s our view on an album or band. Don’ t
like it? There are many other zines who will support
the band or album. Don’ t bother to let us know that
you think we don’ t know squat about the band or style
they are playing, as we don' t waste our time to give a
I NFO FOR LABE LS , BAND S ,
You would like to have your music reviewed…
Sure, no problem. Still, we are calling the shots on
this one as it us our content on these pages. We don’ t
review everything ( if you read the reviews or
interviews, you can easily reckon our taste within the
realms of Metal) , but feel free to contact us first.
We don’ t work with deadlines as we are busy like hell
with our own private lives and j obs. And as we are a
fanzine, don’ t expect any professional j ournalism
towards your product. Oh well, you probably already
read some reviews to get the drift…we review
everything as a fan, it’ s our own humble opinion…
Still interested?
You aren’ t scared easily by our terms! So, you have an
offer we can’ t refuse? First of all, our intention is
not for you to send us albums, demos, tapes or vinyl,
so we have much free stuff in our collection. Keep it!
Sell it! If you are able to send us a link so we can
download it, or a link to your bandcamp page ( or any
other music site your band/label is using) so we can
listen to it, it is fine by us. No statements like “we
only review you when you send us the album” here!
I would like to see my band interviewed on your pages!
Don’ t contact us, we contact you!
reaction. We are doing this j ust for the fun of it.
We know that some of the articles or reviews are a
couple of months old or even older ( some even a year
old) , and yes. . . there are some layout flaws as well,
but let’ s call those things start up complications.
Our first intention is to make VM-Underground a
fanzine which will be released every quarter, so our
second issue will be much more up-to-date. And this is
something we didn' t have in the 1990s; follow our
Facebook page to be kept up to date on our activities.
We hope you will enj oy our new fanzine in a “trip-
down-memory-lane”-layout. We sure did enj oyed creating
it!
Ricardo
VM-Underground
GRATI TUD E
The Usual Suspects: Families & beloved ones.
Contributors. Old VM-crewmembers who we are in contact
with. Labels, distros and bands who already helped us
to create our first issue, and trusted us without any
" proof" if we were actually working on an issue. And
ofcourse, you. . . for reading this issue. And hopefully
we will see you back for the next one!
CONTACT
VM-Underground crew: Isaak, Martin, Stij n, Fredde and
Ricardo
Illustrations: Stij n
Contributions: Felix ( Reviews) , Marcin of Panzerfaust
Zine ( Under the Church interview) and Gabriel of
Nihilistic Holocaust Records ( Trenchrot interview)
Website: www. vm-underground. com
Mail: info@ vm-underground. com
Facebook: Yes, j ust visit our website to go to our FB-
page
CONTENTS
News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 04 Gravecrusher. . . . . . . . . . . . 4 4
Decomposed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 09 Mortillery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 7
Necrot. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Goat Torment. . . . . . . . . . . . 4 8
Evil Invaders. . . . . . . . . . . 12 OSSDM-Article. . . . . . . . . . . 50
Reviews. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Gama Bomb. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Funeral Whore. . . . . . . . . . . 35 Short Reviews. . . . . . . . . . . 57
Under The Church. . . . . . . . 36 Trenchrot. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Borkr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Obscure Infinity. . . . . . . . 63
Demo Reviews. . . . . . . . . . . . 4 0 Bleeding Gods. . . . . . . . . . . 66
D I S TROS AND CONTRI BUTORS
I see many ads in your zine…I would like to know…
If you have to pay for it? Hell no! It’ s quite
simple…if we like your release( s) , if we like your
passion/ideology towards the underground or generally,
we want to support you…we include your advert( s) . It’ s
as easy as that, but don’ t forget we must have space
for it and it has to fit in the layout of course.
Distros, pay attention!
No, we are not printed, but we do make test prints to
check out if everything looks well, if someone want to
print it. If you have a distro and still sell zines,
you are able to print our zine yourself and keep the
profit you make. We don’ t want a dime of it…j ust let
us know how many you have sold.
So you like to contribute?
We will listen to your offer. Don' t bore us with badly
written articles ( yes, we know, our English isn' t all
that either) , reviews with the phrase " I think it' s
cool" 4 times in it or when you' re listening to
( extreme) metal since 2 011. Sorry to be an Elite-
bastard! You have to reach our quality, at least ( face
it, the bar isn' t that high) . Well, you have quite
some pages on your screen or in your hands to figure
out if you are the right one to send some articles.
Feel free to contact us!
 NEWS
On 2 4 th of September cult dark metal band ROOT will
release a special anniversary recording. The release
marks an impressively long 2 5 years of band' s
existence in the metal scene and consists of exclusive
live material, recorded between 2 007 and 2 012 . While
the audio disc ( and LP version) features the full show
recorded at Melodka Music Club ( Brno, Czech Republic)
on 19th of November 2 011, the additional DVD includes
road documentaries full of backstage, bonus and
exclusive material as well as live songs filmed at
Hammer Open Air ( Lieto, Finland 2 012 ) , Noctis Fest
( Calgary, Canada 2 010) , Brutal Assault Festival
( Josefov, Czech Republic 2 007 +2 012 ) , No Mercy European
Tour 2 007 and a bunch of other shows. " Viginti Quinque
Annis In Scaena" will be available as digipack CD+DVD
and a double LP.
OUIJA, one of Spain' s most legendary Black Metal acts
( if not the most) , who released the classic album
" Riding Into the Funeral Paths" in ' 97 via Repulse
Records and reunited in ' 09 releasing the comeback EP
" Adversary" in late 2 010, have finished recordings for
their very long awaited 2 nd album entitled " Ave
Voluptatis Carnis" . The band, consisting on original
vocalist Midgard ( also in SPELLCRAFT) and original
guitarist Map together with also SPELLCRAFT' s members
Fulgur ( drums) & Murcilag ( guitar) who also recorded
the aforementioned EP, have replaced previous bass
player with new one called Hastur. Cover artwork was
done by great spanish artist Igor Mugerza who also did
the cover art for the latest SPELLCRAFT album. OUIJA' s
new album continues the band' s traditional style of
first class intense and aggressive Black Metal full of
killer riffs and melodies with varied and dynamic
structures, making of this album an enj oyable
experience and a fresh breath on this style full of so
many average and futile bands that j ust only care
about their fake image and boring simplistic songs.
" Ave Voluptatis Carnis" is scheduled for a November
release.
Horror Pain Gore Death Productions welcome Singapore' s
premiere Death Metal masters OSHIEGO to the label with
their sophomore album " The Great Architect Of
Nothing" . After almost a decade of their depraved
existence, the pinnacle of sonic violence and total
mayhem has arrived! Terrible certainty has arrived via
a nasty mix of brutal riffage and Middle-Eastern
stylings ala Melechesh and Nile, combined with an
original yet old school Death Metal approach. Eight
soul shattering original tracks of groovy, neck-
breaking riffs, bonecrushing subsonic bass and primal,
warlike exteme percussion plus a cover of Vomitory' s
' The Voyage' . A must have for fans of Absu, Behemoth,
Deicide, Demolition Hammer, Dismember, Exhorder,
Grave, Hypocrisy, Intestine Baalism, Krisiun,
Malevolent Creation, Morgoth, Obituary, Sepultura,
Vader and Vomitory. Beware as Oshiego plunges the
world into complete chaos and bedlam!
On October 01, 2 013 Iron Bonehead will release a vinyl
edition of ABYSSOUS ' debut demo " . . . Smouldering"
( originally released in 2 012 ) , remastered, with two
newly recorded, previously unreleased tracks and new
artwork by Misanthropic Art. Here' s the tracklist:
' Entering The Cave' , ' Abominations' , ' Burial Sea' ,
' Invocation' , ' Black Pyramid' , ' Profaning Intrusion
Of. . . ' , ' The Inverter' , ' Exanimation Rite' and
' Abscondence' .
After recently signing to Century Media Records for
their upcoming new studio album, DARK FUNERAL now
present you a series of stunning reissues of their
previous six albums which offer melodic yet blasting
satanic hymns in absolute perfection and were created
in close cooperation with the band. Furthermore, the
band is currently looking for a new vocalist, as
mastermind Lord Ahriman ( guitar) points out: "I'm
proud to announce that we are finally doing proper re­
issues of our classic albums through Century Media.
And to really spice things up, I have dug deep into my
personal photo archives to come up with some killer
photos/flyers, previously mostly unseen by the public
eye. These will be the definite versions of our
classic albums, especially the nice vinyls! Each album
also contains detailed liner notes and besides myself
Themgoroth, Dan Swanö & some other old friends that
were present at the time I formed the band contributed
to this. Unfortunately, I could not finish off these
re­issues with Blackmoon, who sadly passed away
earlier this year, but he was fully aware of them and
for "In The Sign..." and "The Secrets..." we at least
added a tribute page to commemorate him. We've just
ended our festival season with a killer show at
Germany's Summer Breeze festival. Now, my/our main
focus will be to resume writing the next masterpiece,
tentatively set for release in 2014. More news to
come...DARK FUNERAL is currently looking for a
permanent new vocalist ­ preferable from Scandinavia.
Serious applications can be sent to
vocalist@darkfuneral.se!" Remastered and expanded with
previously unseen photos, extensive liner notes by
Olivier " Zoltar" Badin ( Terrorizer / Iron Fist) , bonus
material and revamped layouts these albums are
essential for every black metal maniac out there!
Dead Beat Media in co-operation with Slaughterhouse
Records will release an old school Death Metal split
7 " EP from Holland' s WARMASTER and Malaysia' s
HUMILIATION. The EP features two new and exclusive
tracks from each band on white opaque vinyl with red
splatter. 500 copies will be pressed, with a free
download card for all purchases. A die hard edition
( featuring limited edition stickers for each band) and
a ' Krieg' edition ( with limited edition stickers as
well as a limited edition woven patch) will also be
available. The tracklist reads like this: WARMASTER
side: ' Mental Meltdown' , ' Generation Panzerfaust' ,
HUMILIATION side: ' Belligerent' , ' Pledge Of Invasion' .

On October 2 1st Century Media Records will release

" Transgressing The Afterlife - The Complete Recordings 1988-
2 002 " - an anthological release of ABRAMELIN, Australia' s once
greatest death metal band. ABRAMELIN were founded under the
moniker ACHERON in Melbourne in 1988. Within ten years ( 1990-
2 000) ABRAMELIN have released one demo, two EPs and two albums,
all of which have become highly sought-after rarities by now.
" Transgressing The Afterlife - The Complete Recordings 1988-
2 002 " now compiles the songs of all the band' s official
recordings as well as numerous unreleased tracks. The entire
audio material has been carefully remastered from original
sources whilst the band has contributed tons of unseen photos.
Andrew Haug has done a detailed interview with ABRAMELIN' s main
guys Simon Dower ( vocals) and Tim Aldridge ( guitars) , giving you
a deep insight into the band' s history as well as into the
Australian metal scene in general. " Transgressing The Afterlife
- The Complete Recordings 1988-2 002 " will be released as a 3CD
and 5LP, both with extensive booklets, reworked artworks, new
layouts and a total of 4 6 tracks of merciless Aussie Death Metal
with an overall playing time of more than 2 30 minutes! Watch out for the vinyl version which will be limited
worldwide to a one time pressing of only 1000 copies!

4
Iron Bonehead Records will also release the CRUCIFIER
compilation " Coffins Through Time. . . A Mourning In
Nazareth" as a double vinyl LP. It features
CRUCIFIER' s four demos " Humans Are Such Easy
Prey" ( ' 91) , " Crown Of Thorns" ( ' 92 ) , " Unparalleled
Maj esty" ( ' 93) and " By Disgrace Of God" ( ' 93) , as well
as the " Powerless Against" tape from ' 96 and the
" Trafficking With The Dead" split with NUNSLAUGHTER
from ' 99. The entire material was remastered by P.
Engel at Temple of Disharmony and comes with a 16-page
booklet, featuring extensive liner notes, old photos
and flyers as well as an A2 poster and Chris Moyen
cover art.
Spanish most legendary and pioneer Thrash Metal band
FUCK OFF is about to unleash their long awaited
comeback album! ! Just one year after their 1988 debut
album " Another Sacrifice" was re-issued, the band,
reformed in 2 010, will see their 3rd full length
" Smile As You Kill" released in September through
Xtreem Music. " Smile As You Kill" will contain 7 new
songs, a re-recording of 87 ' s " People in War" from
their very first 7 " EP and a cover of RAINBOW' s " Long
Live Rock & Roll" which was intented for a DIO tribute
album with spanish bands that was supposed to come out
in early 2 011. All this stuff has been written &
recorded during the last 2 -3 years with different
members but with original member Pep Casas ( guitars)
and new vocalist Albert as main basis of the album.
However, one of the songs ( " Gardens of Stone" ) was
entirely recorded by original vocalist Joe. The new
album follows the traditional style of the band, an
old fashioned Speed/ Thrash/ Heavy Metal totally
exempt from modern influences and clichés, being
recorded the 80' s way with analogic systems, but
counting with the mastering of swedish gurú Dan Swanö
who gave all the songs the heavy and powerful feeling
it needed. Cover artwork has been made by great greek
artist Gerasimos Kolokas. The album will be released
in mid-late September and it' s it' s a perfect dose for
all these lovers of true 80' s Speed/ Thrash that lost
the faith with all these new school and also old
classic bands that forgot their essence with these
super-clean, perfectly retouched and digitally
adultered recordings. FUCK OFF are here to show that
true old fashined Metal will never die! !
FDA Rekotz is really happy to publish the the 3 track
music cassette version of INCARCERATION' s “Sacrifice”
EP, limited to 100 stinky copies only !!!
INCARCERATION was formed 2 010 in Brazil and moved to
the north of Germany to spread the unholy plague
inspired by the fastest riffs of Nihilist, Repugnant,
Century Media Records is proud to announce the
first ever official " complete recordings"
release of TREBLINKA, one of most notorious
death / black metal bands of all times.
TREBLINKA were founded in 1987 by Johan
" Lucifer Hellslaughter" Edlund and Jörgen
" Juck the Ripper" Thullberg. During the band' s
short existence of only two years, TREBLINKA
have released two demo tapes and one 7 inch EP.
After the release of the last recording, the
now infamous " Severe Abominations" EP, the
band changed its name to TIAMAT and became one
of the biggest and most influential metal
bands of the 90ies. Ever since then the entire
TREBLINKA recordings have remained untouched
by the band, j ust being heavily exploited by
bootleggers all over the world. But constant
dripping finally wore the stone, so now the
time is due to announce the release of " Shrine
Of The Pentagram" , the first ever fully
authorized release of TREBLINKA since 1989.
" Shrine Of The Pentagram" will be released on
October 7 th, 2 013 as a Kingsize 3CD Mediabook,
a Deluxe 5LP box set with LP sized booklet as
well as digital download. Daniel Ekeroth,
author of " Swedish Death Metal" has done an
elaborate interview with Jörgen " Juck"
Thullberg and Stefan " Emetic" Lagergren
revealing many unknown details and a lot of entertaining side notes from the history of the band while Olivier
Badin ( writer for Terrorizer and Iron Fist) has interviewed Johan " Hellslaughter" Edlund for his view on the
importance and influence of TREBLINKA.
early Sepultura or Sadistic Intent. Classic necrotic
death metal straight to the bone with lyrics about
existence, suffering and death. Be fast, place your
order and catch this collectors item ! !
Death Metal pioneers MASTER opens the rotten coffin
for the band' s landmark 12 th full-length album „The
Witchhunt“, which is scheduled for September 2 7 th. on
CD and LP and released by F. D. A. Rekotz. Featuring 11
new stunning trax of rotten classic death metal,
catchy and varied in the American way, the classic way
death metal was meant to be. Thick, massive production
to demonstrate superb songwriting and musicianship.
MASTER is back in best shape since years and with “The
Witchhunt” they wrote another death metal milestone,
build their own monument to the next level. The album
comes with an fantastic artwork by ArtWars
Mediadesign.
Century Media is proud to announce the license of the
entire catalogue of France' s biggest death metal band
ever: MASSACRA! "After so many years, we finally
agreed to re­release our old material, our first demos
and our albums including some bonus and exclusive
stuff. To be honest, going revival is not our cup of
tea at all but we must admit that the Century Media
team has been so persistent and convinced us to
release something official, of high quality, enhanced
by some old stuff, original and personal..." The first
of various MASSACRA releases will be the demo
compilation " Day Of The Massacra" , which includes all
tracks of the three legendary demos " Legion Of
Torture" , " Final Holocaust" and " Nearer From Death" .
All tracks have been remastered at DMS by Ulf Horbelt
who is well known for his outstanding remastering
skills ( Morbid, Asphyx, Grave, Necropsy and many
more) . Nathaniel Colas did a great in-depth interview
with original MASSACRA guitarist Jean-Marc Tristani
and Thomas Westphal of the infamous Necromaniac Zine
( Germany) will create a killer artwork for the
release. " Day Of The Massacra" will be released as
standard CD Jewelcase ( on midprice! ) and standard LP
( with 180g vinyl and inlay) . The release date has been
set to November 4 th. From 2 013 onwards, the long sold
out albums " Final Holocaust" , " Enj oy The Violence" ,
" Signs Of The Decline" , " Sick" and " Humanize Human"
will be made available step by step. All five albums
will get the same treatment as the aforementioned demo
compilation: Remastered sound, bonus material,
unreleased and exclusive songs, liner notes, reworked
layouts, high quality cover artworks ( no cheap and
blurry scans) , rare photos and whatever else there is
a fan of real death metal could ask for.
5
One of the most widely respected names in the international metal underground,
Greece' s ZEMIAL make their long-awaited return to the full-length front with the
vast ' n' visual NYKTA. Seven years on from their last album, 2 006' s towering In
Monumentum, ZEMIAL' s highly anticipated NYKTA stylistically ranges the band' s
entire, 2 5-year history but with bold, new strokes entirely fitting with the
band' s ever-evolving lyricism. From gritty blackthrash to epic heavy metal, from
art-music experimentation to moments of prog-inflected psychedelia, from
soundscape ambience to realms completely uncategorizable and many mesmerizing
points in between, NYKTA displays ZEMIAL in all their austere, multihued glory:
masters of storytelling songcraft and adventurous instrumental acumen, honoring
tradition whilst defying boundaries all the same, their theatrical sweeps of sound
ably transporting the listener across space and time, to the very ends of the
cosmos and back. And while they may have began in the darkest, earliest days of
black metal, ZEMIAL have effortlessly developed into a many-tentacled force of
magick and dynamism; their sound now can only be accurately described as " ZEMIAL. "
Intentionally scheduled for release on October 31st - a time considered as the
beginning of the long night, a time during which the walls that separate the
worlds are thin and the Seven Sisters hang directly overhead - ZEMIAL' s NYKTA is a
j ourney like no other, wild and winding to the very end and warmly draped in
authentically analog production. Many will embark upon its path. . . but where will
you end up?
Although the long awaited comeback EP of US heaviest can still cut it. Led by
Death Metal legends ROTTREVORE was recorded back in guitarist and growler Rami Jämsä with original bass
March 2 011 and planned for a summer release through player Juha Telenius and newer recruits Kristian
Xtreem Music, the fact is that several problems made Kangasniemi ( guitar) and Rolle Markos ( drums) ,
it impossible until now. However, the band already CONVULSE spent the whole of August locked away in an
made available for listening these tracks on their old-fashioned analog studio, recording what was to
website, getting an astonishing reaction from fans become Evil Prevails. Rami Jämsä describes the album
worldwide. It is now, in August 2 013, when this 3-song as a “fascinating combination of old­school death
EP titled " Hung by the Eyesockets" , recorded & metal, lightning­fast thrashing parts, some blastbeats
produced by Erik Rutan at Mana Recording Studio in here and there, and even ultra­slow doom elements. The
Florida, will see the light on CD format, being CONVULSE of the year 2013 is heavier and meaner than
followed, a couple of months later, by a very special ever before. This album is a rebirth as much as it is
vinyl version. One of these problems that delayed this continuation of the old­school spirit.” Finland’ s
release was the cover artwork and after trying three foremost vinyl peddlers SVART RECORDS will release the
artists, the band decided to use the skills of Juanj o album on November 1st on CD, gatefold LP, and
Castellano who again proved to be one of the
most renowned artists in extreme Metal,
creating another sick piece of art. Originally
entitled " Blind Sided attack" , this EP changed
its name for " Hung by the Eyesockets" , so for
those who might think this is a different
release, don' t worry it' s the same one.
FDA Rekotz is proud to announce the signing of
german death metal undeads ARROGANZ . Their
latest, second album Kaos. Kult. Kreation gets
great response so far from every corner of the
rotten crypt. Blackened classic styled death
metal with an special sound, catchy but
independent, raw, brutal and murderous. Their
3rd. Album will be published in 2 014 . So watch
out for them and so long you can get their
latest album in our online Deathstore on CD or
Vinyl. In 2 008 ARROGANZ was born in the hell of
German city Cottbus. In August 2 010 the band
invaded Blacksmith Studios to record their
Debut-Album " Dark And Deathless" , which has
been released in April 2 011. To promote the
hate, ARROGANZ j oined the Death Infernal Tour
of Swedish Death Metal masters DEMONICAL in May
2 011. Intense rehearsals and sessions ended up
in the horror of „Kaos. Kult. Kreation“. In late
July ARROGANZ entered Blacksmith-Studios again,
to record this Death Metal blasphemy, which was
unleashed in early 2 013 on vinyl and CD.
Currently the band celebrating their live
rituals on different stages and writing new
songs for the upcoming album.
CONVULSE announce November 1st as the release
date for their new album, Evil Prevails, to be
released internationally by SVART RECORDS. Evil
Prevails will be released on CD, LP, and
digital formats, and follows CONVULSE‘ s
critically acclaimed comeback EP, Inner Evil,
released earlier this year by SVART. Finnish
death metal quartet CONVULSE are commonly known
as one of the most classic bands from the first
wave of Finnish death metal, with the debut
album World Without God being one of the most
collectible items of the era. But this past
January’ s comeback EP Inner Evil, recorded
after an 18-year break, proved that the group

6
digitally as well. The album cover is a striking new
painting by Luxi Lahtinen, the man responsible for
many a memorable piece of art in the early ’ 90s death
metal scene.
Deathstorm Records proudly announce the signing of
Italian black metallers KURGAALL that will release
their new, studio album entitled VOLUNTAS LUCIFERI on
October 31, 2 013; entirely produced by Algol from
FORGOTTEN TOMB & HIEMS and recorded in ELFO STUDIO.
After the highly acclaimed first full-length album
entitled SUMMI VERBI LUCIFER, KURGAALL soon became one
of the most solid Italian black metal icons mainly to
their maniacal black metal attitude and blood-drenched
live rituals. For the fans of true Swedish black
metal; a monumental statement of sharp, primitive, old
school and honest black metal.
Unholy Prophecies will release the new AVULSED 7 " EP
in October. This new EP will be titled “Revenant Wars”
and will include 2 songs. A new one called “Revenant
Wars” on Side A and a cover of NIHILIST’ s “Sentenced
To Death” on Side B. This material has been recorded
at the “La Casa Del Ruido” Studios in Coslada, Madrid
under the direction of Daniel Blanco. The mixing
duties were done by Javi Bastard ( GRAVEYARD,
TEITANBLOOD, ATARAXY, etc…) at his Moontower Studios
in Barcelona and the final mastering is going to be
done by Dan Swanö ( EDGE OF SANITY, BLOODBATH, ASPHYX,
etc…) at his Unisound Studio in Sweden. There will be
a total of 500 handnumbered copies on white wax and a
deep interview with Dave Rotten will be included as a
multiple page insert.
FOAD Records re stoked to announce that the official
re-issue of MONDOCANE ' s " Proj ect One" ( 1989) for the
first time ever on digipack CD. For those who still
aren’ t familiar to this Italian underground gem,
Mondocane was a late 80s hyper-thrashing combo formed
by half early Necrodeath and half Schizo “Main frame
collapse” era members to deliver 10 whiplashes of
rapid fire Thrash-core uniting the bands’ peculiar
style to a basic S. O. D. flavoured imprint. This
blasting Thrash mayhem has been entirely restored and
remastered at Toxic Basement Studios and
restyled/repackaged in an elegant digipack sleeve with
unreleased photos from the 1989 studio session. If you
are a fan of these two bands’ early outputs ( above all
Necrodeath‘ s “Fragments of insanity” and Schizo‘ s
“Main frame collapse“) and Ingo’ s corrosive vocal
delivery then look no further and enj oy the
Necroschizophrenia.
" III The Rommel Chronicles" began to take shape in the
second half of 2 012 when HAIL OF BULLETS started
writing songs for this third album, which sees the
band approaching things a bit differently lyric wise.
Instead of describing a certain campaign or theatre of
war, this album focuses on the military life, rise and
fall of German field marshal Erwin Rommel. Despite
fighting on the wrong side, Rommel was undeniably a
great strategist who was both feared and admired by
his enemies. Musically, " III The Rommel Chronicles"
recalls a bit of their debut album. The songs are
faster, more raw, more aggressive and direct than on
" On Divine Winds" which had a more epic, heroic feel.
Once again, production duties were handled by Ed Warby
and the album was mixed and mastered by Dan Swanö. A
new lyrical approach also necessitated a different
style of artwork, which was provided by Dutch artist
Erik Wij nands. Death Metal guru Dan Swanö about the
new HOB album: "Hail of Bullets return for their 3rd
album, armed to the teeth with a thunderous Death
Metal onslaught that combines the raw ferocity of the
1st album with the more expanded arrangements of the
2nd. A Death Metal masterpiece!"
Death Metal legends DEICIDE will release " In The Minds
Of Evil" this fall via Century Media Records. " Expect
a super-brutal blast to the cranium. Longtime fans
will pick up on nuances inspired from the almighty
Legion effort. " With drummer Steve Asheim adding,
" we' re going to get down and dirty this time around,
so expect the lyrics to be brutal. "
7
 S HORT NEWS
VAELK and ILLUNIS j ust released a split cassette.
Limited to 4 0 handnumbered copies in slipcase. Both
bands play Atmospheric Black Metal. 3 EUR ( +
shipping) . The bands are looking for a label to
release this record on vinyl. *** The Uddevalla
meisters of filthy deathrash SUICIDAL WINDS Winds have
agreed to release their uppcomming album “Chtonian
Sun” on To The Death Records “Chtonian Sun" due to be
released late 2 013. *** After a successful minitour
with PUTERAEON from Sweden we of REVEL IN FLESH are
proud to announce that the already promised Split EP
release of PUTERAEON & REVEL IN FLESH is finally on
the way to be unleashed soon. Expect new and
unreleased songmaterial of both bands! *** BlackDeath
Coven Records unleashed the A5 digi pack version of
the three way split between THORNSPAWN, VARATHRON and
BLACK ALTAR. Limited copies available. *** Catch the
storms of BLODARV' s past with “Soulcollector”,
“Mysteriis” & “Murder In the name of Satan” in a 3-
tape leather box including patch, poster, badge &
stickers. Released by Atramentum Productions in
regular and die-hard edition, regular edition limited
to 30 units, and die-hard edition to only 15 units.
*** VILLAINY has released tracklist for their debut
full-length album, " Villainy I" . The debut will
feature tracks like " Through Whispering Eyes" , " A
Journey Into An Enigma" and " I Wanna Split The World
In Two" . This is scheduled for release in
October/November on HELLDPROD [ LABEL & DISTRIBUTION] .
Artwork made by Szymon Siech @ ÜBERRETARD. *** FESTER
( Norway) are working on their new album. Working
titles for their next Epos. . Stories from the darkest
times in Norwegian history. A concept album with
" Norwegian executions in the 17 th century" as
baselines to the stories that are to be told. Some
tracktitles are " There are no shadows in the dark" ,
" " Under broken branches and withered leafs" and
" Release me from my chains" . *** Unspeakable Axe
Records will be releasing the split 7 " from
Australia' s SEWERCIDE and Italy' s Presumed Dead
( formerly known as Glory Hole) . Both bands play fast
and heavy death/thrash, with Sewercide skewing closer
to Demolition Hammer and Presumed Dead perhaps to
Massacra, Merciless, and early Morbid Angel. *** Dark
Descent Records had a slight delay on the new
MITOCHONDRION 7 " titled " Antinumerology. " Perfection
does not come without sacrifice. Two tracks, each
clocking in at over six minutes. Mitochondrion' s
twisted death metal is on full display in this brand
new EP. Cover art by the extremely talented, Richard
Friend. ( Loss, Father Befouled) . In both black and
white vinyl colours. Comes with a glue pocket, insert,
black inner sleeves and black reverse board printing. "
*** HANDFUL OF HATE is proud to celebrate the 2 0th
year of activity with the release of the new infamous
6th album " To Perdition" out on November the 12 th
( Code666 Rec. ) *** Mördwolf changed their name in
ULVMÖRD . Some of you may know there is another band
named Mördwolf from Albany, NY. They have the name
trademarked. After months of debate and research,
we' ve decided to change our name. We know it sucks to
do this, which is the main reason why we' ve waited so
long. *** Death/Thrashers IZEGRIM will release their
new album, " Congress Of The Insane" , via Listenable
Records in October. " Congress Of The Insane" will
contain 11 songs, including " Manifest Of A
Megalomaniac" , which features a guest appearance by
Sabina Classen from HOLY MOSES. *** IMPALED NAZARENE
is recording a 7 " ep " Die in Holland" which will be
released at Eindhoven Metal Meeting this December.
Brand new song " Die In Holland" and cover of The
Exploited classic " Let' s Start a War" ! *** BODYFARM
announces a new bassplayer: Harry van Breda. He will
replace Mathieu Westerveld, who has handled the bass
since the beginning has decided to leave the band
after 3 years. ***
8

As mentioned in my review…Autopsied
Swedish Death Metal. And I already know
most of the reactions out there are like
“oh, there are so many of those bands
around and such albums released these
days”…well, I won’ t argue there. It almost
seems there is an overkill and I have to
admit that not everything equals high
quality. Still, I think Decomposed
deserves your attention as their debut is
too good to ignore if you are into God
Macabre and Autopsy. The bandmember on the
other side is Jesper Ekstål, guitarist and
frontman of Decomposed and he will start
with a bit of history. . . (Ricardo)
It all started out in early 2 010, when I was writing
death metal with a focus on an aggressive, dark mood
and feeling. It was really supposed to be a studio
proj ect, but eventually it j ust grew into a band. We
all knew each other before the band started, we
studied at the same school at the time, and we had
been good friends for a while. So, it j ust kind of
happened you know.
You probably heard this many times, but did you know,
at the moment when you have chosen the Decomposed
name, of the existence of the UK based Decomposed and
their “Hope Finally Died. . . ” album? Ever considered to
change the name…or add something to it as there are
many bands with the moniker Decomposed?
There has not been that much of a complaint about the
name really. Of course we knew about the UK Decomposed
- and all the other bands with the same name - but the
thing is, the name was really spontaneous, I saw it on
the Repulsion - Horrified album and thought it would
be a fitting name. To be totally honest, we j ust did
not expect a band that has been split up for roughly
2 0 years to have any problem with this, and also since
most other active bands with the name Decomposed play
brutal/slam death or punk or whatever, we really don' t
see that it should cause too much confusion. The name
has become important for us at this point, and we
intend to keep it. And also, it' s not exactly like we
chose to call ourselves Slayer or Autopsy, you know.
If I j ust look at some pictures and if I’ m not
mistaken, you are all quite young (no offense) , why
have you chosen the unholy and deviant art of Old
School Swedish Death Metal?
We are indeed quite young, all of us are about 2 1
years old. As I stated above, it started out with me
composing the material, and the other guys j oined
later. I would first like to say that although I and
the other persons indeed have a liking of Swedish
death metal, it is not the biggest inspirational
source for our music, nor is it what any of us listens
the most to. But why did I choose to write this kind
of music? Simply because I had been playing very
technical kinds of music for most of my teenage years,
and I was in a period when I was simply fed up with
it. So I wanted to do something completely different,
something simple, with heavy focus on atmosphere and
" . . . we j ust did not expect a
band that has been split up for
roughly 20 years to have any
problem with this. . . it' s not
exactly like we chose to call
ourselves Slayer or Autopsy,
you know. "
feeling. And I always had somewhat of a liking for
that quality in music, but I j ust allowed it to take
over completely when composing. I think that is
something quite normal for many people. When you are a
teenager you want to play as fast as possible and push
yourself, but as one matures you realise that less can
indeed be so much more. I would say that music Is all
about feeling for me these days. If technicality is
used it should always be to enhance the song, and NOT
j ust for show. Very interesting things can be done
with music, but if one restricts oneself to viewing
upon it as a tool to demonstrate how fast one can
play, I think that those things can be completely
missed and overlooked. But whatever, everyone should
do what they think makes them happy, These words only
describe what decomposed have in mind when the music
is created. Besides Decomposed we do pretty regular
things: day j obs, studies, etc. We do not live under
any illusions that we could somehow make a living out
of this, and that has never been part of the plan.
Before your self titled debut, there was a demo called
" Stench of Death" . . .
The demo was recorded in a day at studio blast beat in
our home town Sundsvall. John Henriksson from “My Own
Grave” was the engineer. We really recorded pretty
much everything in j ust one take. It was like: get in,
play the songs, mix it, get out. I believe it took
something like 6 hours for 5 songs. The result was
pretty good I believe. The demo was mostly distributed
online for streaming. I remember that we did it for
ourselves really, we wanted to hear the songs with
real drums, vocals and all that. It was barely printed
as physical copies at all. About 30 of them maybe, I
don' t remember. We will probably make the demo tracks
available as free downloads or release them as bonus
tracks. Blood Harvest was the first among the few
labels who have contacted us, and they offered us a
good deal, and they have been great to work with so
far, so we are totally satisfied with them.
You' ve released your nice and solid debut, simply
called “Decomposed” last year. My favourite track of
the album is “Ceremonial Slaughter”, with that great
main riff. And you' ve got a great filthy growl as
well. Can you tell us more about the album itself and
all the little things around it?
Thank you. We recorded it at the same studio as the
demo, with the same engineer of course. We are very
much satisfied with the songs, the production is one
of a kind for me, and quite fitting for the material.
It does not sound like the regular HM-2 retro
production, and I am proud of that. The recording
process were not exactly as smooth as the demo, but it
was all right. We made the record in about 3 days
total I would say. The guitars were two tracks.
Unfortunately we were forced to re-record ALL the
guitars in a hurry due to technical problems, so
pretty much all the guitars you hear on the records
are one takes, start to finish, no editing. The vocals
sounded like shit originally, we had to re-record them
as well. I was experimenting too much with my voice,
doing high screams and yells, but it j ust did not work
out at all. But that was sorted out pretty fast. The
reactions we' ve heard have all been good, we' ve heard
kind words from many people. The artwork was done by
Necromantic Art, aka Jonathan Hultén from Tribulation
( “The Formulas of Death” is fucking AMAZING for the
record, I j ust had to mention that. ) . Why we went with
him is simple: he is a phenomenal artist. We contacted
him, sent him the demo tracks, and told him to do what
he wanted. And I must say, he totally nailed it. It
9
fits the album so well. I think he has a great vision - Possessed – Seven Churches: A total classic. I think
for art, and I really respect and admire his work. words are not needed here.
- Watain – Lawless Darkness: I love this album. It' s
I' ve heard the new Tribulation record, " The Formulas so deep, it' s like it has a life of it' s own. For each
of Death" , and I think it is already one of the time I listen to it, it feels richer. Can' t wait to
highlights of 2013! But back to our main victim: hear them outdo themselves again on the next album.
Decomposed. Who are your influences? In my review I - Portal – Swarth: CHAOS. It' s so full of dread and
mentioned God Macabre and Autopsy as the mix for the madness. Curing every last bit of sanity. Totally
Autopsied Swedish Death Metal you guys are playing. . . absurd, surreal.
I have to admit, God Macabre is really not an - Mayhem - De mysteriis dom sathanas: If someone would
influence at all. Autopsy though, of course. Although ask me for a musical representation of utter darkness,
I' m not a huge fan of them, I really respect their I would instantly recommend this album. It has been a
work, and they are most definitely an inspiration. The very important album to me for a long time. . .
inspiration in general is simply every and any form of - Tribulation – The Formulas of Death: Seems like
art I choose to enj oy. But of course, it is mainly I' ve stepped over the 5 albums limit here. I mentioned
music. And the musical influences are kind of varied. this one earlier in the interview, and I j ust have to
Everything from Mayhem, to Misfits, Portal, Burzum, elaborate. I j ust Heard this one for the first time
Possessed, Slayer, Metallica, Tom waits, Saint Vitus, recently, been listening to it like crazy ever since.
Black Sabbath, Repugnant, Watain, Jimi Hendrix, Judas Wow. . I' ve never been so utterly awestruck like this
Priest, and the list goes on to eternity, it really by any form of music for a LONG time. “Suspiria” and
does. As you can see it is mainly metal and rock most of all the last few minutes of the album is. . .
music. But I also do believe that inspiration can come I' m really at loss for words regarding this one. If
from within oneself, and I think that is an important anyone labels this as “old school” and nothing more,
thing to strive for when creating anything really. To it' s fucking beyond me. THIS is the most creative
add that little something to ones creation, to colour thing in extreme metal I' ve heard in years. So much
it with ones own “mark” maybe. To not j ust rip of respect and support to them!
other bands. I really think that is something we have
been able to achieve, maybe not to a huge extent, but And for the demos, as I said, never been huge on those
at least to some. It is something to value in art, really, so. . . Well. Here' s the ones I can think of.
according to my own humble opinion at least. - Graveless – Condemned to a Nameless Death: This one
is really something else. It' s such a different
Tell some of your experiences playing live. . . It seems atmosphere on this one. It sounds so big, cold, dark.
you are a Lemmy-adept, as shown in his stage attitude “Incantations of the Gate” is a massive song.
with the similar microphone stand. - Decapitation – Undead carnage: I really like this
We' ve made a few shows so far. The experiences have one. It stands out for some reason. . The title track
been mostly great. Some bad shows of course, but is awesome.
well. . shit happens, you know. We give everything at - Invidious – In Death ( yes, it' s an EP, but I j ust
the gigs. We play HARD and AGRESSIVE, no fucking have to mention it) : I' m especially a fan of the
holding back and playing it safe! We do not j ust stand vocals on this one. He sounds like a ferocious fucking
around with our faces buried in the fretboard, we let madman. The chorus on “Dead Salvation Spawn” is
the music j ust take over and let everything else go. deadly. I' m a fan of all the “uppsala death metal”
Although we do not play shows that often, we really bands, Degial' s debut album is a favourite of mine
value them. A lemmy adept? For sure, haha! I j ust too.
started doing that because, well. . . If one Is starting
out doing vocals and guitar in a band, who should he Let' s end the interview, shall we? Hope to hear from
decide to look like on stage? Lemmy from Motörhead of you soon with a second album!
course. No but seriously, I started doing it because Thank you for supporting Decomposed.
it looked cool, and I found it comfortable and it
became a habit. Motörhead rules. There' s no plans for
shows at the moment. But more shows will follow,
that' s certain.
And it seems there is already news on a second album?
The second album is done, we are rehearsing it at the
moment. As soon as we feel 100% ready we will enter
the studio ( probably the same one as last) and record
it. The direction is still death metal. I would say it
is kind of harder to name direct influences for this
record. While I could name drop certain albums and
artists as inspirational sources for the first album,
it is much harder for me to do on this one. So the
inspiration is not as conscious on this one maybe. .
Although I can' t give any exact or even relative date
for the release, it should not take too long for it to
be out. And it will most probably be out on Blood
Harvest this time too.
It seems to be you are all huge Old School Swedish
Death Metal fans, like myself. Why does this
particular style of Death Metal attracts you? Care to
share some of your favourite albums and demos?
These ones are though. I do not even know if I have 5
favourite demos. Oh well, let' s start with the albums.
I' ll give myself the freedom to not j ust limit myself
too Swedish bands, if that' s ok? And some black metal
also? ( I don' t really think the difference between
death and black metal are as vast as some make them
out to be, quite the opposite really. . . ) Good, let' s
see then. . .
- Repugnant – Epitome of Darkness: Amazing album. The
riffs, the vocals, the arrangements, the attitude,
fucking everything is so PERFECT with this album. If
you ask me I would say it is a pretty original album
too. The production is pretty good too. So glad I
managed to see them live on the last tour they did. . .

10
 What is the subj ect of your lyrics? Are they important
to you or j ust plain gore stuff j ust to have lyrics?
They re important as they` re part of it. The drums
guide the music. They talk about human fears and
society bad influence on the way we interact with each
other. They talk about hate infecting the world and
consuming our brains and souls while we consume each
other and consume the world.
I hear a lot of New York Death Metal in your sound and
song structures. It is massive like old Incantation
and Immolation. Do you agree? Are you influenced by
other bands as well? Or specific albums?
I don' t know about you, but besides of Autopsy, I get influenced by many bands, Immolation and
I also heard alot of NYDM (Immolation and Incantation are certainly 2 of them. I think making a
Incantation) influences in of demos and debut list of all the bands I get influenced by would be
albums released in 2012. While the masters pointless. I can tell you that the band that got me
themselves are alive and kickin' and recording into Death Metal is Death.
new stuff as well, there are some interesting
tunes among those new bands as well. And why
not support them? To me, NECROT is one of those " I only release analog for now,
interesting bands who made a fine debut tape
filled with dark Death Metal, the way you can we might do a VHS video release
probably expect after I revealed
influences. But before I give Luca Indrio the
the in the future. "
opportunity to introduce the band, I' m curious What are your expectations for Necrot in the future? I
why he left his home country, beautiful Italy, understand you are doing a small tour with Danish
and settle in the US? (Ricardo) Undergang soon?
The tour was awesome! We recently got back from it. We
Italy is crazy, I like it but if you want to make want to play and record music that we like, go on tour
music your life, there are better places to be. and have fun. Me, Chad and Sonny are really close,
this band is one of those that is a real pleasure to
Still. . . the food. . . oh well, Let' s talk Necrot! be part of.
The band started in April 2 011 in San Francisco. I met
Chad when my older band Acephalix played with his You' re quite active as you participate with other
older band Bruxers in Oakland. We started playing bands as well. Could you tell us more about your other
together soon after with the intention of playing bands and proj ects?
Death Metal and record some demo tapes. We want a band Vastum and Lawless are my current other bands. Vastum
that can produce lots of material and be on tour often is slower Death Metal with male/female vocals. Lawless
so we made Necrot. is what came out of my older band Acephalix breaking
up and it` s a fun proj ect. Also me Kyle and Dave have
Necrot seems to be been playing together for years now and things are
" Necro" and " Rot" easy and heavy.
merged together. Why
have you chosen for What is your relation with your label Blood Divine? Is
this original band it yours (or one of the bandmembers) ? It seems to be a
moniker? It isn' t tape-only label, which we of VM-Underground support.
even used in an album Blood Divine is me with the help of whoever wants to
or song title. help. I release my bands, bands that I like or I co-
Necrot means rotting release bands together with the band splitting the
every day, it` s what copies 50-50. It` s helpful for local Death Metal bands
we all do best. that want have sex with the underground to know where
to get some. Of course the music has to fit some
You' ve released your parameters to be part of Blood Divine. I only release
debut 2 track demo analog for now, we might do a VHS video release in the
tape in July future.
2012. . . And
recently. . . your EP Are there some interesting local (unsigned) bands our
" Into the Labyrinth" readers should check out?
We` re very satisfied Yes : Lawless, Scolex and Noia from Italy.
with all of it. Of
curse both our first Anything to add?
2 demos could sound Be free, love music.
better but they re
demos. Our first s/t
tape is the last
thing we recorded
with Jeff Davis
before he died and
it` s very special to us. " Into the Labyrinth" , our
second demo was really fun to record as me and Chad
were getting more used to play together. People are
into it. I can` t wait for our next one now that we
have a proper guitar player ( Sonny) on board we ll do
a big step forward. " Into the Labyrinth" has faster
songs compared to our first tape and people reaction
playing them live is really good. The punk influence
is even more than in the first tape but overall is a
darker album. Working with Greg at Earhammer in
Oakland was a positive experience, I like the drum
sound on Into the Labyrinth a lot and getting the
drums to sound good it takes some skills.

11
 Nostalgia…that’ s
the feeling that came up with me
when listening to Evil Invaders from
Belgium! Imagine, four guys with a retro look
straight from the mid 80’ s when bands as Iron
Maiden and Helloween only wore tight fitting
clothes on them, long hair was a must have for
metal musicians and passion for making metal
music were the key words. Four guys that
create excellent songs that would have stand
out back in the days . Yes, this band showed
with their EP “Evil Invaders” that
speed/thrash metal from the 80’ s also fits in
these modern times. VM Underground had a talk
with vocalist Joë Anus about their splendid
EP. (Fredde)

Hello, first of all, congratulations with your first EP since the beginning of Evil Invaders! Can you give a little
introduction of the band to our readers?
Thanks! ! Evil Invaders is a 4 -piece speed metal band from Belgium. The band was founded by myself in late 2 008 with a
complete different line-up. Over the years there were some line-up changes and in November 2 011 we finally reached our present
line-up: Joe ( guitar/vocals) , Sam ( guitar) , Alain ( bass guitar) and Senne ( drums) . We’ re mainly influenced by 80’ s metal in
general. Our music is most of the time a combination of thrash, speed and heavy metal. It contains a lot of aggression and
speed but we also have our melodic parts.

Because I don’ t have the lyrics from the EP, can you explain the songs in
your own words (theme) , or at least tell us more about the tracks on it?
There are 6 songs on this EP which are: 1. Victim Of Sacrifice, 2 . Driving Fast, 3.
Tortured By The Beast, 4 . Speed Invasion, 5. Alcoholic Maniac and last but certainly not
least number 6. Evil Invaders. Victim of sacrifice is about the ritual human sacrifices
the Aztecs performed back in the day. I actually wrote it as a reaction to all the insane
actions that people will be prepared to do to express their religious believes no matter
what the cost. I can’ t stand the way some people get brainwashed into doing such horrible
actions. Driving fast… well I guess the title speaks for itself! Fast and out of control!
Tortured by the beast is a song that you can approach from different views. You can see
the beast as the inner demons you have to deal with in your life or j ust drugs that make
you go crazy… In the lyrics I talk about the mirror of doom which is basically a
reference to meeting your inner self. Your bad side. The selfish inner instinct that j ust
wants to take over control. But you can also see it for example as the mirror you use to
sniff up your drugs. I think it’ s a song that can have sense in different directions. You
can decide for yourself. Speed invasion is j ust a straight forward instrumental axe
attack and alcoholic maniac is a song we wrote a while ago in a time when we were not
taking things too seriously and j ust wanted to party as much as possible, we didn’ t
really care about a lot back then. Hahaha! Finally Evil Invaders is a song about a
soldier who gets his orders and j ust follows them blindly until he realizes
that the actions he does aren’ t right. He’ s killing innocent people for
no reason. But it’ s too late, he’ s j ust a puppet in some madman’ s
sick game. There’ s no way back anymore and he
decides to take his own life.

The music you guys create is old school speed metal, more precisely in the way I think it should be made. In my
review of the EP “Evil Invaders” I refer to bands as Helloween and Abattoir, but the band I think you’ ve got the most
resemblance with is Agent Steel. Can you agree with my point of view or do you have another opinion about this? And can
you tell us why/why not you do/don’ t agree?
I’ ve met a lot of people who share this opinion. We’ re influenced by a lot of bands from the 80’ s and before. We
definitely don’ t want to copy 1 band in general. It’ s probably the combination of high vocals with the speed metal
guitar riffs that could make us sound a bit the same. But Agent Steel is definitely not our main influence haha. As I
said we get our influences from everything going from classic rock and blues rock to thrash metal and progressive
metal. We don’ t want to focus too much on one genre as an influence because combining different stuff is way more
interesting and fun to do.

You, Joë Anus (obviously a nickname) , stands

out on this EP from the first tone he sings because he has
a very high voice and it seems like he’ s singing the songs without any
effort…is this a born quality or have lots of singing lessons in the " . . . he realizes that the
past helped him to support this magnificent quality?
Thanks for the compliment haha. I can tell you I surely wasn’ t born
actions he does aren’ t
with the talent, it took me a lot of practice throughout the years to right. He’ s killing
reach the high notes and get the aggression without fucking up my voice.
When I founded the band, we were looking for a singer but it was so hard innocent people for no
to find one that I decided to do it myself. It took me a few years
before I started to take this singing seriously and in the beginning I reason. But it’ s too late,
was pretty bad and almost destroyed my voice haha. It’ s actually the
last 1 or 2 years that I’ m really focusing on the vocals. These days I he’ s j ust a puppet in some
consider myself becoming more of a singer than a guitar player
actually. But I always want to be able to combine the both of them.
madman’ s sick game. . . "
Because my passion for playing the guitar is j ust too big to put it
aside haha. I still want to improve a lot as a musician and especially
try to experiment with my voice as much as possible to know
where my limits are and to know how I can move them.
The EP is distributed
through the Empire Records label…was
this your first choice of label, or where
there different kind of labels that wanted
to release your music? And off course, how
does it feel to work with a “label” or
“distribution partner”?
We had other options too, but we chose
Empire because of the relaxed way he
works. It was too soon for us to work with
a label that would put us under pressure.
We talked a lot with the guy from empire
and found a way to work together. We aren’ t
really signed to empire though and I don’ t
know if we’ re going to sustain the
cooperation for the next release. It all
depends on what the future will bring and
how fast we evolve. It’ s really nice to feel
that people are interested in helping us to
distribute our music.
I’ m not sure if many Belgian metal fans know
Evil Invaders yet, but this EP surely will be
a great way to promote the band. Any plans
for playing shows outside Belgium, or hasn’ t
the opportunity come up yet to play abroad?
And if the fans would like to see your
perform soon, what are the next shows in
your agenda?
I’ m glad you like it. Throughout the
years, we’ ve played in Germany, Italy,
the Netherlands, France and a few weeks
ago we played the heavy metal espectros
festival in Spain. We’ re going on our
first tour in April. We’ ll hit Italy,
Austria and Germany. We’ re all really
excited to play abroad and meet new
people. The next shows we’ ve planned
are in Eindhoven where we’ ll be
supporting thrash legends Exumer and
a small Belgian club tour with
Ostrogoth. After that a few more
Belgian shows.
Every musician has the dream to
perform as support band on a main show
from a well-known band or musician in
the beginning of their career…what’ s
the favorite band/musician that Evil
Invaders would like to support in the
future? And off course I’ d like to know
why you choose this band/musician.
That’ s a pretty hard question… I think
supporting a band like Iron Maiden, Jon
Olivia or a band like OverKill would be
awesome. They seem like nice people to meet
in person and their music is great! They
still manage to play great live gigs after
all these years. It would be cool to meet
them in person and have a chat haha.
What do you hope the future brings for Evil
Invaders?
I j ust hope we can be able to play as many
gigs as possible and release some killer
albums. And that we can increase our skills
as musicians as much as possible. Touring
around the world with other cool upcoming
bands from our genre or as a support act
for a big band would be great! We j ust want I’ m a fan and love your
to have fun while writing the music that we EP and I’ m hunger for
like without worrying too much about the more, so I’ ve got to ask
future. Writing music for me is a great you the question…when
way to express what I feel like and I will Evil Invaders
found out that it also helps me to deal create their first full-length album?
with problems and move on. We will release our full length as soon as we think we’ re
ready for a full length. I think we all still want to improve
Alright, back to the EP now…the cover as musicians before we record the real deal. A debut album is
artwork is absolute magnificent and a big step for a band. And I don’ t want to release something
fits extremely well with the kind of of which I will look back at when I’ m older and think we
music you play…please tell us who draw could have done it better.
this masterpiece?
Mario Lopez from Guatemala made the How can people contact the band to book the band? (website
cover artwork! This guy is amazing. , mail, facebook, twitter, …)
He’ s really talented and as you j ust They j ust have to send a mail to our manager/booker Enzo
said, his style fits perfectly with our Marangelli. His email address is invaders. enzo@ gmail. com .
music. I’ d love to keep on working with
him in the future for the next releases. Any last words for our readers?
And I’ m really curious how the artwork First we’ d like to thank you for the interview! We really
will evolve in the future. appreciate your interest in the band. And thanks to everybody
who supports us and supported us throughout the years. We
really hope to meet all of you in person at the shows and
have some beers together! Haha.
Thanks for the interview and stay metal!
 RE VI E WS
Absu
The Sun Of Tiphareth
The Crypt
What can you s ay about ABSU? They are one of thras h
metal bands with only clas s ical albums on their
dis cography ( yes , even Abs u and Abz u are clas s ical for
me) . There are already many words written about the
' Sun Of Tiphareth' and I not going to do to that
either. This re-releas e from The Crypt is , as with
every releas e, dripping with quality. This box
contains three LP' s : the original s tudio album from
1 995 ; the s ame album but hen the alternate mix from
2 0 1 2 on the original s equence and the ins trumental
rehears al s es s ion from 1 993 of the before named album.
And this las t one is j us t a mas ter piece. The 2 0 1 2 mix
is a nice one, but for me it ads nothing more to the
greatnes s of this album. The ins trumental rehears al
from 1 993 on the other end is timeles s . I wis h that
there were more of this kind of recordings on vinyl.
The s ound quality on this rehears al is good and it
reveals all the mus ically details you want to hear.
For example, the vers ion of ' The Coming Of War' s ounds
much more primitive then on the actually s tudio album.
And if you have s een them live back then or j us t
recently, you can image how it was in the s tudio. I
think the magical impact of this ins trumental LP is
the fact that it is ins trumental. You don' t mis s the
voice and hys terical s creams from Pros criptor at all.
( Martin)
Abysme
Strange Rites
Hellthrasher Productions
I f metal would be math, it would be pos s ible that
Hellthras her Productions equals decent releas es , as
the debut of Abys me is a s olid releas e as well. The
label got enthus ias tic after hearing the “ 2 0 0 9” demo
and pers uades them to releas e their debut under their
banner. With an ex-Funerus member on guitar and vocals
( Brad Heiple participated on the demos and the
“ Fes tering Earth” debut as one of the founding
members ) , you wouldn’ t be s urpris ed that we are
dealing with 1 990 s Old School Death Metal. There are
two different mus ical faces of Abys me. The fas t riffs
are early 1 990 ’ s USDM while the s lower pas s ages are in
the “ Dis member playing Autops y” category. To give you
a more detailed des cription: let’ s pick Dis member’ s
track “ Me-God”, Autops y’ s “ Mental Funeral” and if you
think Fatalis t’ s “ The Depths of I nhumanity” was a fun
album to hear, let’ s throw that one in as well. I t’ s
nothing groundbreaking and Abys me will not be
headlining any huge tours s oon when you check the
local gigs lis t, s ame as Fatalis t who tried this
before. But as s aid before, “ Strange Rites ” is in fact
j us t another s olid album in the Hellthras her
Productions ranks . ( Ricardo)
Advent Sorrow
Before the Dimming Light [EP]
Self Released
Aus tralia, known for their aggres s ive, blunt and
exxxtreme metal with the likes of Sadis tik Exekution,
Bes tial Warlus t, Gos pel of the Horns , Des tröyer 666
and more recently I gnivomous , Mongrel' s Cros s and
I mpious Baptis m, who keep the banner flyin’ high with
pride. When it comes to s ymphonic black metal,
Aus tralia is n’ t the firs t country that pops into my
mind. Advent Sorrow s eems to be one of the few in this
genre. This young band from Perth certainly has a
s trong Dimmu Borgir vibe going on here, which can be
confirmed by the Dimmu Borgir cover on their promo in
2 0 1 1 . For example, the firs t two tracks , “ Before the
Dimming Light” and “ The Wraith in Silence” has the
bombas tic keyboard parts which can be heard on Dimmu
Borgir’ s “ Death Cult Armegeddon”. There are a lot of
pace changes , good s upporting rhythm riffs and even
s ome violins to give it a theatrical touch. Later on,
on their clos ing track “ Withered by her Curs e” there
are s ome fas t melodic tunes which are in the “ Enthrone
Darknes s Triumphant” vein. I f you as k me, this is the
flaw of this EP, as it is to much keyboard driven. For
ins tance the few s olos on this EP are keyboard ones .
The s ongs are well compos ed and the vocals are good
enough, only the balance between good memorable riffs
14
and the prominent role of the keyboard is a bit off. Alchemyst
Which is quite a s hame as this EP has definitely Nekromanteion
“ interes ting” written all over it. I will keep an eye Iron Bonehead Productions / Necroshine Records
on them how Advent Sorrow will evolve. Still, very From the vas t Thuringian fores tlands hail Alchemys t,
recommendable to give it a try if you like your black an occult oriented band that fus es the inheritance of
metal s ymphonic and bombas tic. ( Ricardo) the metallic pas t, from everything betwixt the raw,
unpolis hed icons of Venom, and the mes meriz ing
Aeon incantations of the s econd wave of black metal, into a
Aeons Black s lab of mys tical wors hip, all this emphas iz ed with
Metal Blade hints of necronomical primitive death metal and
The fourth full-length album s ince their s tart in 1 999 touches of Celtic Fros t-ridden melodies of
has been releas ed by Swedis h death metal band Aeon. I t doom. Des pite the obvious aforementioned ingredients ,
got the album title “ Aeons Black” and has a duration even up to the Tom Warrior-like ' Uh' s ' , Alchemys t
of approximately 5 1 minutes . I can be s hort about this prove thems elves able to re-animate the s ound
album…if you like the American death metal s tyle, like developed by the pioneers of antediluvian exxxtreme
Cannibal Corps e and old-s chool Deicide have unleas hed metal into s omething rather fres h. By alternating
at mankind, then “ Aeons Black” is definitely an unique merciles s brutality at daz z ling s peed with morbid
piece for you to have a lis ten at. Blas tbeats , vocals , melodies . A humble ode that indicates the vividnes s
riffs and guitar play are all executed in s peed modus and s tength of death, black and doom metal, ens uring
and on a high technical level that leaves nothing left the conquering of generations of metalheads to come.
of your eardrums . Tommy Dahls tröm has a great death I n all hones ty, I do not expect Alchemys t to be ahead
metal voice and the drum work from Arttu Malkki ( yes , of the pack, but thes e German warriors s eem
he has returned! ) is outs tanding. Not all s ongs are comfortable taking their place amids t other bands that
from great quality like for example “ The Voice of the do not franticallly cling to one s tyle, but blend the
Accus er”, but happily there are plenty of great tracks bes t of more worlds into an own s ound. Think of a band
to dis cover where the s ongwriting may be prais ed. My like Mortuary Drape, or perhaps more recent
favorites are “ I Wis h You Dead”, “ Garden of Sin” and Teitanblood. Overall the pace is rather low to
“ The Growing Hate” with an occult touch in them. This midtempo, with occas ional outburs ts of raging blas ts .
album is furious and brutal, s o people with heart All of this decorated with s trategically placed s ynth
problems mus t be aware! ( Fredde) parts . By not making their chants too long, Alchemys t
s ucceeds in holding the attention. Halfway the album,
After Oblivion the intermez z o ' Circle of Elements ' , laced with
Stamina acous tic guitars and Gregorian chants , acts as the eye
Metal on Metal Records of the s torm, afterwards building up to the epic grand
My firs t encounter with Bos nian After Oblivion was finale. An excellent album for lovers of the occult
their “ Vultures ” EP ( 2 0 1 0 ) . I was a little bit and fans of both whirling black metal and the
intrigued by it, due the fact not a lot of bands try brutality of death metal, and bands with an eye for
to play in the vein of later Death. Same goes with good melodies . ( Stij n)
their debut full-length “ Stamina”. I t’ s a mix of Death
during “ The Sound of Pers everance” concerning s ong Altar Of Oblivion
s tructure and vocal wis e ( a kind of thras hy and s light Grand Gesture Of Defiance
higher pitched than Chuck Schuldiner vocals ) . During Shadow Kingdom Records
“ Septic Mind” it’ s almos t like you could us e the One of the bigges t s urpris es of 2 0 0 9 was Denmarks
phras e “ Behold…the fles h…and the power it holds ” at Altar Of Oblivion. From out of the blue there was this
any moment. There is als o a bit of a Pes tilence really s winging doom/ heavy metal outfit that s prung
influence on the fas ter rhythms ( like on “ Horror out with their fres h mix of both genres , well-s ounding
Detox” of the “ Res urrection Macabre” album) and the up-beat rock and outs tanding vocal work. After their
underrated French progres s ive Death Metal band amaz ing debut ‘ Sinews Of Anguis h’ they are now back
Carcarias s . Als o the bas s s ound is quite in the Death with its follow-up ‘ Grand Ges ture of Defiance’ . I t can
( “ Human”) and Carcarias s ( “ Sideral Torment”) vein. As hones tly be s aid that the heavy/ doom metal blend
you can read, this is quite technical Death Metal has n’ t s pawned many interes ting bands the las t, s ay,
Extravaganz a! At the end I ’ m s till intrigued by the ten years . Both genres on their own s eem to have worn
s tyle of Death Metal played by After Oblivion, but the out anyway. But it s olely for bands like thes e that I
album does n’ t really s tick. The feeling that I rather s till keep an eye on the genres for I would’ ve hated
would like to hear more “ Symbolic” than “ The Sound of it to have mis s ed this out. Their s ublime epic heavy
Pers everance” could be one of the reas ons why it metal blends j us t perfectly with the more rocking kind
does n’ t s tick. The s kills are good enough, I will keep of doom, don’ t think Saint Vitus or Pentagram. Altar
an eye on them. ( Ricardo) of Oblivion takes it a tad fas ter and much more epic
Angantyr
Forvist
Northern Silence Productions
After all thes e years I ’ m s till curious when
certain bands releas e a new album, only my
curios ity is s hifting when the years went by.
1 5 Years ago the new Obituary, Cannibal Corps e,
Deicide and Emperor did the trick, nowadays
it’ s more the “ hidden” gems . Yes , hidden
between quotes becaus e Angantyr, Arckanum,
Drudkh or Necrophobic aren’ t really that
underground ( anymore) , s till they haven’ t
dis appoint me yet with a regular releas e s ince
their debut. Since I received “ Kampen
Forts ætter” back in 2 0 0 0 , multi-ins trumentalis t
Ynleborgaz mes meriz ed me with his traditional
Second Wave yet atmos pheric Black Metal
compos itions . I cons ider “ Sej r” and es pecially
“ Hævn” ( opening track is s tunning! ) as New
Millenium Black Metal Mas terpieces . I dare to
s ay that “ Forvis t” beholds every element to j oin the aforementioned albums . Once
again the riffs creating a high level of Nordic, Epic and I cy atmos phere which
makes every track a “ between 6 and 1 2 minutes ”-delight. Some artis ts are able to
write long epic tracks without being repetitious in a boring way. Bands like
Drudkh, Darkes trah and Angantyr are the mas ters of today in my book. Epic Nordic
Black Metal, Thy Name is Angantyr! ( Ricardo)

15
has more in common with early Oz z y Os bourne, Lamented res urrect Bane with new members there. ( Ricardo)
Souls , Count Raven, Sols tice and Dooms word. Mos t
attracting element of their s ound is their vocalis t Black Shadow
Mik Mentor who finds the perfect vocal balance between …Сквозь Чёрное Пламя Молоха…(" …Through the Dark Flame
older Danz ig, Wall of Sleep, Dooms word and Volbeat: of Moloch…" )
overly operatic, epic and above all s oulful. All has More Hate Productions
j us t been perfectly blend together, res ulting in a Black Shadow from Rus s ia is one of thos e bands that
very organic analog production that fits their 8 0 ’ s have releas ed quite s ome albums , even s ome are in my
s ound without ever s ounding dated. Definitely a mus t- pos s es s ion, but never got my attention to be hones t.
buy for fans of the aforementioned bands and the Maybe this time it will be different. With “ …Сквозь
genres in general. And… I f Volbeat would have real Чёрное Пламя Молоха…( " …Through the Dark Flame of
balls they s hould take thes e fellow countrymen out on Moloch…" ) ” they have releas ed their 8 th album s ince
tour and I am s ure the ‘ kids ’ will eat them right up. 2004, all s ung in their native language. Being
( Felix) promoted as intens e Black Metal with Swedis h melodic
guitar s tructures in the vein of Setherial, Lord
Bane Belial and Dis s ection, they rais e the bar quite high.
The Acausal Fire I mean, “ Nord”, “ Enter the Moonlight Gate” and “ The
Abyss Records Somberlain” are more than good releas es in my humble
I ’ m a huge fan of both Dis s ection’ s “ The Somberlain” opinion. Far more! Although the mentioned influences
and “ Storm of the Light’ s Bane” as I cons ider them are there, they can’ t reach the bar at any moment.
both as mas terpieces grande deluxe. So it is quite Therefore the riffs and s ongwriting aren’ t good
obvious I dig Thulcandra as well, it’ s no rocket enough. I t’ s a bit above average, not bad but to
s cience…And there is Bane from Serbia, another fine generic if you as k me. As mys elf, you probably already
bunch of gentlemen who have the ambition to create the own to many of thos e albums to get excited. ( Ricardo)
s ame unholy blend of Black and Death metal as Nödveidt
and co…Or Blackened Death Metal if yo will. The 2 0 1 0 Bombs of Hades
debut “ Chaos , Darknes s & Emptines s ” received pos itive The Serpent' s Redemption
critics and the Dis s ection label was already pres ent Pulverised Records
at that time, yet les s . After 3 s plits it’ s time for a The crus ty SweDeath Metal of Bombs of Hades has always
new album. Like Thulcandra, Bane is not s ucceeding in have been a love or hate thing for my ears . I really
matching Dis s ection’ s fines t hours , but that does n’ t enj oyed their “ Carnivores ” EP but got a bit
mean s quat if you as k me. “ The Acaus al Fire” has the dis appointed with their “ Chambers of A bominations ”
s ame interes ting ideas concerning riffs which made releas e. The debut full-length is a bit to “ n’ roll”,
Dis s ection famous and added a bit of Dark Funeral’ s or punkis h if you will, for me. I t couldn’ t grab my
“ Diabolis I nterium” fas ter riffs ( for example “ Hail full attention as it was too predictable. But I got
Murder”) in their s ound. To make it complete, Bane excited again after hearing the “ I nto the Eternal Pit
covered Dis s ection’ s “ Night’ s Blood” as clos ing hymn. of Fire” EP with the title s ong as good example. With
I nteres ting releas e, but it could be the las t one as “ The Serpent’ s Redemption” they embrace the punkis h
mas termind Panić moved to Canada and hopes to old School SweDeath n’ Roll label with both arms again.
Autopsy
The Headless Ritual
Peaceville Records
The return as a recording artis t of Autops y in recent years , was - for me, at leas t - s omething to really look
forward to. All of this led to the firs t full length releas e in 1 6 years , with Macabre Eternal in 2 0 1 1 . A mos t
impres s ive album, to s ay the leas t. I t catapulted Autops y s traight back to the centre of attention, a pos ition
well earned by morbid mas ter Chris Reifert and his fellow acolytes of gore.
Des pite being an adept of Autops y' s comeback album, s omewhere in the back of
my head, a lurking fear s tarted growing. What if this is it. . . will they be
able to hold on to the firm s tairway back up to the pantheon of death metal.
Almos t immediately after playing ' The Headles s Ritual' for the firs t time, I
was reas s ured. And after playing it more and more, for me pers onally, this is
even better than ' Macabre Eternal' . Going on a s lightly more adventurous tour,
Autops y blends all of the element that make this s uch a great band, into a
fres h new album. Firs t of all, I ' m glad Autops y again chos e not to overproduce
the album. I ' m getting s ick of thos e s lick, faceles s productions I hear
everyhwere nowadays . Autops y s hameles s ly opts for thinner guitars , a dark
s ound and untriggered drums . Once again, this piece of rotten meat called ' The
Headles s Ritual' offers s omething of every album that Autops y has releas ed
s ince the birth of death metal. The raw, unpolis hed blis tering madnes s of
' Severed Survival' , the morbid, as phyxiating melodies of ' Mental Funeral' , the
experiments of gore of ' Acts of the Uns peakable' and the s hift to the more
hardcore ridden s cabby crus t s ound of ' Shitfun' . What amaz es me the mos t is
that, des pite ins erting all thos e familiar elements , this album never, not
even once, s ounds outdated. Yes , it reminds me of thos e days of lore. No, it
does not have prog riffs , breakdowns , bla bla bla. I ' m
glad. Becaus e precis ely that would be the crap I do NOT
want to hear from Autops y. You can hear that the years of
recording and touring has had obvious pos itive effect on
the individual band members . Tighter, better guitar leads ,
all held together by the very recogniz able drum s ound of
Mr. Reifert hims elf. Jus t as recogniz able are his vocals ,
that range anywhere between a gurgling, guttural roar to
the horrified s hrieks of a maggot infes ted re-animated
corps e. From the firs t s econd, this mons ter of an album
grabs me by the neck, and everytime I ris k los ing
attention, it tightens it grip and pulls me s traight back
to bus ines s . The album holds its high level, j us t lis ten
to the amaz ing opener ' Slaughter at Beas t Hous e' , ' Mangled
Far Below' or the blis tering, frenetic ' When Hammer Meets
Bone' . I truly hope to s ee them live again s omewhere in
the near future, having become really curious how thes e
tracks will hold their ground live, inbedded between all
thos e other clas s icks . ' The Headles s Ritual' s eems to have
conquered its pos ition in my yearlis t for 2 0 1 3 . ( Stij n)

16
Plain and s traightforward. Abs olutely not bad in any from Cannibal Corps e. Each album name they’ ve us ed in
way, but it’ s not really appealing as well, s ometimes the pas t is a parody s uch as “ Clit ‘ em All”
a bit tedious in my humble opinion. I f you are into ( Metallica) , “ Scream Bloody Clit” ( Death) and “ The
Entombed’ s “ Wolverine Blues ” and Grave’ s “ Hating Life” Great Southern Clitkill” ( Pantera) , s o again they us ed
with an obvious wink towards Motörhead, you will be the s ame method which is kind of funny! What can you
enj oying this album more than I do. ( Ricardo) expect? Well, they haven’ t really re-created their
s elves , s o goregrind is s till on their menu. Straight
Borkr to the ( T-) bone( -s teak) death/ gore/ grind platter, a
Amber regurgitated voice with a decent s mell from the gutter
Sparrow Cross as it s hould be s ometimes s piced up with a pigs queal
The Ukrainian atmos pheric black metal s cene reached a in its own j uice ( yeah I know, you’ ve got to love it
land that is n’ t really common when talking about that hehe) and a rancid s ound added to it in a blis tering
s pecific s ubgenre; China. Although I ’ m familiar with drive garniture. Yes , if you like the cooking s kills
s ome of the black metal bands or one man proj ects from from Cliteater and you’ re not an adept of the food
the Middle Kingdom, for example Be Pers ecuted ( in the etiquette, then grab this new dis h with both hands and
Depres s ive vein) and Screaming Saviour ( more bombas tic s wallow like hell! As des s ert you can re-enter the
later Dimmu Borgir-like) , but I haven’ t heard a buffet and ruminate on tracks as “ The Rimm King”, “ O
Chines e band in the vein of Drudkh, Hate Fores t, She’ s Eleven”, “ Slimming Party at Kelly’ s and my
Nokturnal Mortem or Walknut. To be hones t, I really favorite “ Handy Handj ob Hannah”. I ns ane! ( Fredde)
find it hard to name bands who are in the s ame league
and aren’ t from Ukraine. I f you are a huge fan like Convulse
me, I can already guarantee you that you will have a Inner Evil [EP]
blas t with Borkr. And although I ’ m aware that it is Svart Records
quite a s tatement, I really have a s trong gut feeling I t s eems the reunion virus keeps on creating victims
that “ Amber” is a direct hit for everyone who is into all over the place. This time it’ s Finnis h Old School
this kind of black metal. The opening track Death Metal combo Convuls e who thought “ Let’ s take a
“ Earthfas t” is a great example to s trengthen this look what all the fuz z is about thos e old geez ers
s tatement of mine. The repeating riffs and melodies pickin’ up their ins truments again”. I s uppos e many of
and therefore long compos itions ( approx. 1 2 minutes ) you have their debut “ World Without God” on the
gives quite a Drukh’ s “ Es trangement” vibe during the s helves , which gain them a lot of notice in the
whole album. With the us e of all kind of nature underground. And when years go by, the reputation got
s amples , the Drudkh s tamp is even more vis ible. To bigger and bigger. Mos t even forget their s econd album
extend the s tay in the Nature-Department, Borkr s eems “ Reflections ”. After the birth of “ World Without God”
to be Old Nors e and means bark, which is the outermos t 2 2 years ago, 2 0 1 3 is the year they report for duty
layers of trees . And if I ’ m informed correctly, Drukh again, this time with 2 new tracks . I t’ s only human to
means " wood" in Sans krit, s o once again a s trong link. compare the tracks with the aforementioned clas s ick
The vocals could be more grim or more s orrow-like, but debut. Well, I think that would be the nemes is for
on the other hand mentioning it in this review is more Convuls e right now…their reputation made pos s ible by
like nagging to a blind guy that he los t his their debut. Original members Telenius ( bas s ) and
vis ibility. Totally us eles s ! The man behind Borkr, Jäms ä ( guitar and vokills ) created an Old School Death
called Borkr as well, certainly made a fantas tic debut Metal EP bas ed on s ome Doomy Death - Autops y pas s ages
and I would like to urge every fan of Ukrainian and emphas is on the groove part of mid tempo riffing.
atomos pheric black metal and es pecially Drudkh and With the track “ I nner Evil” it s ometimes feels a bit
Nokturnal Mortum, to check this one out as fas t as you unins pired…too eas y even. The Slayer’ s “ Raining Blood”
can. ( Ricardo) outro does n’ t help either. With “ God is Delus ion” the
variation of s peedy drums , polka-beats and fas ter
Cliteater riffs alongs ide the Doom/ Death ideas , is a more
Cliteaten back to Life pleas ant one to lis ten. Jäms ä low hoars e grunt is
War Anthem Records fitting more in this track and the us e of back-to-back
The guys from Cliteater out of the Netherlands pres ent s olos res ulting in a haunting twin-s olo in the end of
their fifth s tudio album titled “ Cliteaten Back to the s ong make it interes ting. As conclus ion I can only
Life” – parody on the album title “ Eaten Back to Life” s ay that one interes ting s ong is not enough to
Brutality
Ruins of Humans [EP]
Self Released
Am I the right pers on to s pend a few words on this 2 track EP? I cons ider “ Scream of Anguis h” and “ When the Sky
Turns Black” as top quality Death Metal albums and I have lis tened both albums endles s ly after I got them on
tape after tapetrading. The grunt of Scott Reigel, the great leads and s olos , the variation within the s ongs
its elf due the s trong rhythms , tracks like “ Cries of the Fors aken”…Yes , both
albums are true hidden gems in my book and both albums are s till played
regularly. But that does n’ t mean this will already be a pos itive review
becaus e the Brutality logo is on it. The las t effort to reform became a
dis appointment. We of Vampire Magaz ine interviewed them right away after the
breaking news and received ans wers which all have a pos itive vibe…
ofcours e…not long after all the pos itive words , Brutality dis banded once
again. So I felt free to be a
bit s keptical on the next
effort to revive. But fuckin’
bloody hell, I can’ t be more
wrong…”Ris e to Humans ”
beholds 2 tracks which are
totally 1 0 0 % Brutality. The
title track las t for 8
minutes , but they have
managed to make it a pleas ant
ride. The clas s ic “ Scream of
Anguis h”-lineup does n’ t let
the fan down for one s econd.
Every riff, vocal line, lead, drum pattern breathes Brutality!
On “ I rrevers ibly Broken” Jay Fernandez dis plays his ability to
create s tunning leads which gives Brutality s uch an advantage
towards a lot of other ( Old School) Death Metal bands . I ’ m
enthus ias tic about the “ new” Brutality, ravin’ even, can’ t
wait to hear a new full-length! ( Ricardo)

17
 Darkthrone
The Underground Resistance
Peaceville Records
The duo Fenriz and Culto will releas e
their s ixteenth full-length album
titled “ The Underground Res is tance” on
the Peaceville Records label. There’ s
plenty s tuff to s ay about this two-
headed band, becaus e in the beginning
their mus ic was more in the s tyle of
death/ black metal, and while the years
pas s ed, other mus ical influences
crawled into their s ys tem. Punk,
thras h, doom and heavy metal were
s ucked into the different albums from
thes e Norwegians . So yes , every album
has its own identity, its own s pecial
vibe and in my own opinion, each album
they’ ve created was s omething unique
and s urpris ing. Now “ The Underground Res is tance” again is an album where
they haven’ t avoid s ome experimental parts . This one definitely is the
mos t heavy metal album in their careers and it s ounds raw and old s chool. The vocals s ounds like they were
s tolen from one kind of demo by an old Britis h heavy metal band, and the firs t time I ’ ve lis tened to this
record, I thought I had to deal with a beginning band…luckily for me, I knew better! Each track blew me away and
each time I re-lis tened the album I was more and more charmed, s tunned, yes , even overwhelmed about the s kills
of thes e mus icians . Lis ten for example to “ Valkyrie” that nes tles immediately into your head becaus e of the
excellent chorus coupled with the uptempo riff. Track “ The ones you left behind” with the great melody s tuffed
into it, and where the vocals again are s ang into a fas t-paced way. This is one s ong that you can s ing along
from the beginning till the end. I n the middle of this s ong the vocals go in overdrive, becaus e I can’ t conclude
if it s ounds j us t ordinary fals e or j us t genial! As s aid before, all tracks have s omething about them, and when
lis tening to tracks as “ Les s er Men” and “ Leave No Cros s Unturned” ( the bes t s ong in my eyes , becaus e they were
able to combine thras h metal with s peed and heavy metal, but als o were able to make it s ound dark and melodic! ) ,
or the opener “ Dead Early” or the more black metal tinted one “ Come Warfare, the entire doom” you can’ t els e
then admit that Darkthrone again has s hifted their boundaries ! This album is brilliant and could be one of the
bes t albums of 2 0 1 3 according to me! Splendid album with great vocals , heavy riffs and can be des cribed as
mus ical art! ( Fredde)
convince me, I hope they can s hake off the high hopes delayed one, as it s hould be releas ed late 2 0 0 8 / early
created by their pas t and come back with a great full 2 0 0 9. But hell…here it is ! Nothing really fancy or
length this s ummer. ( Ricardo) modern in any way, j us t good old Thras h Metal in the
s pirit of the 1 98 0 s ! Quite influenced by the Teutonic
Corrosive Carcass Thras h s cene, there is als o s ome early Slayer ( “ Show
Composition of Flesh no Mercy”) , Merciles s ( “ The Awakening”) and Hypnos ia
Abyss Records in it for ya. And well played! I t’ s not all full s peed
The motto of the CC guys : “ Grab your ahead, there are s ome mid-tempo riffs in the Thras h
chains aw…Slaughter is ahead”. Well mothers around the hymns as well. I f Slayer’ s “ Evil has no Boundaries ”,
globe, aren’ t thes e guys boyfriend material for your Sodom’ s “ Blas phemer”, Des truction’ s “ Mad Butcher” and
daughters ? Don’ t be s cared if you receive a blood Kreator’ s “ Under the Guillotine” give you eargas ms ,
drenched package with a s evered head after a couple of Corrupt could be a nice band for you. Not a mus t have,
days …”Ah…they s eem nice, don’ t they? And they play in but certainly s omething you can add to your bas ket if
a band, Richard…is n’ t that lovely? ” were the words you have s ome money left. ( Ricardo)
that you can think off after opening the package and
you s tared into little Lis a’ s eyes …and now you Decomposed
unders tand the, at firs t innocent, remark “ Me? I ’ m a Decomposed
Butcher, Ma’ am. To be hones t I ’ m chopping all day Blood Harvest
long”…Enough us ing a s cript of a Horror flick, let’ s The Old School SweDeath s cene is booming like hell! I
talk Death Metal! Like Decompos ed ( try finding them don’ t complain though, as long quality prevails .
in the “ D”-area in the Reviews s ection) Corros ive Still, I would like to s ee a better dividing of the
Carcas s are having their fair s hare of Autops y in two s tyles you hear nowadays : The firs t 2 albums of
their Old School SweDeath Metal on their debut. Not Dis member ( a good mix of brutality and melody) vs .
only in riffs and the s ong s tructures in general, but SweDeath combined with Autops y. To many bands are
als o the s ound is like a combination of SweDeath and going with the Autops y s tyle, if you as k me. But thes e
the old USA s cene than mos t of the releas es lately. are j us t my two cents and not really meant as a
There is a reverb on the vocals and it is les s fuz z y, complaint, as bands like Decompos ed are really
yet it’ s s till filthy as hell. Fifty percent of the delivering the Autops iedSweDeath s tyle very well, with
s ongs are more midtempo with nice Dis member like leads the track “ Ceremonial Slaughter” as a pure highlight
like the clos ing track “ End of us All”. Others are becaus e of the returning main riff. The growl of
more fas t grinding and let’ s s ay more American as the Jes per Eks tål is as filthy as the rumours about Chris
duration is aproxx. 2 minutes . So let’ s throw the s ome Reiftert not taking bath for a year during a tour in
us ual s us pects like Nihilis t, Dis member and Entombed the 1 990 s . As mus ical influence I would rather name
along with Autops y and old Death and you have thes e the more doomy part of the Swedis h s cene: God Macabre.
fine gentleman. Father…Mother, lock up your daughters , The bes t you can do is lis ten to the album and then
Slaughter is ahead! ( Ricardo) look at photos of the band. I t’ s a collection of young
Deathbangers indeed, which makes me want to give them
Corrupt an extra pad on the back to congratulate them with
Slavestate Serenades this nice effort. At the end the s mall remark that all
Blood Harvest tracks of the “ Stench of Death” demo from 2 0 1 1 , is
At firs t I thought it would be a s ecret reunion or included on their debut as well. Support thes e guys
compilation of the Swedis h Death Metal band Corrupt, and while you’ re at it, s upport this fine underground
who releas ed one demo in 1 990 . Not that would be label as well! ( Ricardo)
groundbreaking news or a gift towards any SweDeath
follower, but after reading many articles about Decrepitaph
SweDeath, bandnames s tick in one’ s head. This Corrupt Forgotten Scriptures – The Collection
is from Sweden s till, but thes e guys play s ome catchy Selfmadegod Records
Old School Thras h Metal. This album s eems to be a Decrepitaph’ s drummer Elektrokutioner is the Rogga

18
Johans s on of the USA! Many bands ( Father Befouled,
Encoffination, Fes tered and tons of others ) and many
releas es ( Decrepitaph only has 1 6 releas es within 6
years ) are having his s ignature on it. Not a s trange
fact that Elektrokutioner and Rogga Johans s on have a
proj ect or two with each other as well. Within thos e
1 6 releas es there are a lot of vinyl releas es , which
mos t are s plits with bands like Eternal Sols tice,
Eroded, Anatomia and Father Befouled. Thanks to
Selfmadegod Records the Decrepitaph tracks of thos e
s plits , along with an unreleas ed rehears al track,
their own “ Res urrecting the Rotten” 7 ” and a live
track are combined on “ Forgotten Scriptures – The
Collection”. I f you are familiar with Decrepitaph you
know you get unpolis hed, mos tly midtempo Doom infus ed
Old School Death Metal. Hints of As phyx, Grave and his
other band Encoffination are the main dis h with
Decrepitaph, s erved on a primitive plate. Ofcours e the
s ound differs ( almos t) every track. Only for the fans
who are enj oying the early Death Metal movement.
( Ricardo)
Doomed
The Ancient Path
Self Released
An one-man ( Pierre Laube) Doom/ Death proj ect from
Germany which is more in the Doom camp than the Death
camp. No As phyx influences here but more Shape of
Des pair to name a band. The s luggis h riffs are as
Doom/ Death Metal as it can be but the big advantage to
keep this album interes ting are the melancholic
Katatonia leads that are heavily pres ent on “ The
Ancient Path”. A good us e of s orrowful melodies . And I
can’ t forget the low growls of Pierre which gives
Doomed a Bolt Thrower vibe. When you hear the s ong
“ Sun Eater”, you j us t expect to hear Pierre growl
“ Woooooorrrlllddd……EAAATTTTEEER”. An interes ting and
refined releas e but I ’ m als o quite curious about Type
O Negative’ s “ Wolf Moon” cover that was recorded for
this album, but got canceled of copyright problems . At
the end I ’ m s urpris ed by the quality, es pecially by
the leads / melodies , and I do unders tand why a label
like Solitude Productions picked this band up.
( Ricardo)
Dødsfall
Inn i Mørkets Kongedømme
Obscure Abhorrence
Dis appointed with the recent works of the Scandinavian
Black Metal bands who were leading the hordes of
darknes s in the 1 990 s ? Are you mis s ing the unholy fire
in the efforts of the bands who are playing Depres s ive
Black Metal? Maybe Døds fall can give you the right
s pirit again, as they are playing the Norwegian s tyle
as in the 1 990 s . The riffs are fierce but s till with
s ome melody, s ometimes reminding of Dimmu Borgir in
their debut years or I mmortal after “ Battles in the
North” ( lis ten to the firs t minute of “ Hylles t til
Døden”) . The pace of the riffs and drums differs from
midtempo to fas t within a s ong, which gives the needed
variation. As the experienced and international line-
up ( guitaris t from Mexico, vocalis t from Norway and s o
on. . . ) on this album have bands like Ancient,
Aeternus and I nfuneral ( among many others ) behind
their names , one can as s ume they know how to create
the riffs and s ongs that connects with the 1 990 s Black
Metal s cene. The production is n’ t quite the s ame as
the aforementioned era, as it is more clear and les s
grim. I f you are into old Gorgoroth, I mmortal, early
Dimmu Borgir and like s ome riffs of Darkthrone’ s
“ Ravis hing Grimnes s ”, you will do yours elf a favor to
check out “ I nn i Mørkets Kongedømme”. ( Ricardo)
Dragged into Sunlight
Widowmaker
Prosthetic Records
The follow up for “ Hatred for Mankind” titled
“ Widowmaker” from the band Dragged into Sunlight born
near the river Mers ey – Liverpool has been releas ed on
Pros thetic Records . Their firs t full-length was well
received by the media and mys elf, s o I was curious if
this new one als o was a great effort. “ Widowmaker”
cons is ts of three different parts , all over the
ten/ eleven minutes . The opener titled “ Part I ” is a
full ins trumental track with s ome s amples ins erted.
This track is build up well to create a s pecial
atmos phere where piano and guitars are the main
ins truments .
While the firs t track does n’ t really gladdens me, the
s econd part/ track is much better. I t’ s grues ome,
vivacious and filled with inner anger and the teamwork
of different ins truments s ound like a punching s ledge
hammer. Yes , this mus ic is dark and the final track
has more to come… I n “ Part I I I ” the vocals are even
more s inis ter and black, varied with s creaming vocals
that gives you the s hivers . The drums are imminent and
penetrating in this track, and the s ound changes
between peaceful arrangements and doomy parts . Als o on
this las t tracks there are s ome s amples to hear.
Summariz ed, “ Widowmaker” is in my opinion not as good
as their debut full-length, but Dragged into Sunlight
again has releas ed a decent effort in the blackened
death/ doom metal s cene. ( Fredde)
Drawn and Quartered
Feeding Hell' s Furnace
Nuclear Winter Records
I admit that I have all Moribund Cult releas es of
Drawn and Quartered on the s helf, but never really
given them a lot of s pins . Not that they don’ t des erve
it, but s ometimes certain bands or albums s lip through
the cracks for no reas on. Ah fuck, probably you have
one or two of s uch bands or albums as well. Yeah, I
bet you do…After hearing “ Feeding Hell’ s Furnace” I
can’ t only blame mys elf for not having picked their
former releas es more often. Some great ancient Death
Metal in the vein of the New York s cene ( I ncantation /
I mmolation…2 0 1 2 is quite the year of NYDM-influenced
albums ) although thes e guys are active s ince 1 993 , s o
no “ new-band-copy-cat” here. And thes e guys have s ome
fine leads , j us t lis ten to “ Lus tmörder”. I f you like
your Death Metal like a triple Es pres s o, Dark and
Mas s ive, you will bang your head on “ Feeding Hell’ s
Furnace”! ( Ricardo)
Embryo / Stigmata
Damnatory-Cacophony / Deceived Minds
The Crypt
This s plit LP contains two demo' s from extreme bands
from the dark Swedis h metal pas t. From thes e two
Embryo' s 1 991 demo ' Damnatory Cacophony' s ounds more
original in my opinion. But as founding member Mattias
Borgh s tates in in memory line' s ' . . . a great number
of people hated the demo. We never s ounded like the
typical Swedis h death metal bands , which was the norm
back then. ' . I never heard this demo before this album
came out, but and I can j us t agree with him. I f I had
the opportunity back then to hear this I would
probably s ay the s ame. I t is ok, but nothing s pecial.
But hearing this now in 2 0 1 3 it has s omething s pecial.
I t is not typical Swedis h death metal. Hearing the
third s ong of this demo ' Bible Of Hypocris y' , I j us t
get enthus ias tic about the changing rhythms . To give
s ome mus ical directions : think of a mixture of Cadaver
and Autops y, without the Swedis h s ound. And you like
to s creams or not. Stigmata on the other s ide is
pres ented with their ' Deceived Minds ' demo from 1 992 .
And this is Swedis h death metal in the vein of
Entombed and Dis member. After a typical nineties intro
the three tracks are noting but pure mid-tempo death
metal. I f I would had heard this in 1 992 , the
highlights of death metal were already there, this
would ended up in the big s taple of once played demos .
But nowadays , as with Embryo, it s ounds s o pure and
hones tly. And that is why I appreciate this releas e
from The Crypt: the nos talgic trip is there once you
put it on the turntable. ( Martin)
Eldrig
Urlagarne
Darker Than Black Records
Shame, s hame, s hame on me. This album was already
releas ed in late 2 0 1 2 and I completely mis s ed it,
des pite the fact that I loved its predeces s or
' Mys terion' . Although, predeces s or. . . there' s actually
quite a s tory to it. On Eldrig' s own blogs pot, he
explains that ' Urlagarne' was already compos ed and
recorded in 2 0 0 8 . He s uddenly felt the urge to record
an album, s omething s imilar had happened in 2 0 0 6 with
the recording of debut album ' Kali' . Apparently the
19
album ended up on a s helf, but finally was releas ed by
Darker than Black records , as a digipack limited to
5 0 0 . Eldrig ( of Fanis k fame) has opted for rather the
s ame framework as ' Kali' had: three long, intens e
s ongs followed by s hort interludes . The album is fully
ins trumental and its concept is fate, or des tiny.
Cons is ting of three parts , named after the three mos t
important nors e Norns , Urd ( Urğr) , Verthandi
( Verğandi) and Skuld, female beings that rule the
des tiny of men. ' Urd I ' opens with a rage and you can
hear that, des pite the fact that there are no vocals ,
Eldrig is trying to tell a s tory with his mus ic, more
by impres s ions made by the atmos phere of the mus ic. I t
has an undeniable heroic feel to it. The fas t hypnotic
black metal riffs take you along for a ride along a
s tarry s ky, to s how you the world at the z enith with
the icy beauty of melancholic twin guitar leads . The
interlude ' Urd II' reminds me of Bathory' s
' Hammerheart. ' Verthandi I ' has a s lightly more heavy
metal feel to it, the melody lines remind you of
s omeone coming at peace with his des tiny. ' Verthandi
I I ' is in the s ame vein as ' Urd I I ' . ' Skuld I ' is both
the mos t aggres s ive and the mos t epic s ong of the
album. The tremolo picked guitars , the thunderous
drums , the unearthly, s lightly dis s onant leads in the
middle. Yes . Very nice. I can imagine people will have
problems with the fact that this album is fully
ins trumental, and there will probably als o be people
who ignore this album due to the rightwing ideologies
of mr. Eldrig. However, the qualities of the mus ic and
of his abilities as a compos er are obvious , and people
into melodic, well s tructured yet non-s tandard black
metal s hould give this a go. ( Stij n)
Entrapment
The Obscurity Within. . .
Soulseller Records
As everyone will know by now, the Swedis h death metal
of the late eighties / early nineties , the s o called
Sunlight-s ound, is a huge influence to many bands
nowadays . I t' s undeniable that the dutch ens emble
Entrapment was als o influenced by bands from this era.
I mean, the overall s ound j us t s creams Nihilis t. Now,
I would be the las t pers on to complain about bands
s ounding this way. Nevertheles s , even I have to admit
that an overkill of bands s ounding the s ame way
inevitably makes it les s interes ting in the long run.
The good thing is : the really good bands s tick, no
matter what. And yes , Entrapment hold the quality to
dis tinguis h thems elves from the grey mas s of faceles s
Entombed-imitators . Firs t of all, the s ongs are
catchy, not too long. The s lightly fuz z y guitar s ound
caus es the melody lines to s ound almos t like an
impres s ion, crawling through your s kull like a
s erpent, and magnetiz ing its elf firmly to the back of
your s kull, to haunt your dreams for nights and
nights . Furthermore, it would not do them j us tice to
brand them s olely as Swedis h influenced. The album is
drenched in a thick crus tcore s ound, and Autops y
s hines through j us t as much. Overall, Entrapment keep
the pedal to the metal, with the groove roll known
from bands like Entombed and Dis member, s ometimes
cons cious ly s lowing s tuff down with broad, open
chords . A thing I really like about this album are the
s omewhat atypical guitar s olo' s . They have a rather
traditional, almos t blues y quality. The production is
very decent, could be a bit heavier, but at leas t
does n' t lean on the s tandard Bos s HM-2 s ound too much.
I truly hope Entrapment does n' t s ink in the great big
death metal s wamp, they des erve more and have proven
thems elves to be a kickas s live band as well. ( Stij n)
Eroded
Engravings of a Gruesome Epitaph
Konqueror Records
Old School Swedeath from beloved I taly! With brother
in arms Horrid and Undead Creep, Eroded adapted the
unholy buz z s aw s ound as their own. “ Engravings of a
Grues ome Epitaph” is actually their debut album, as
their former releas e, s imply called “ Eroded” and
releas ed in 2 0 0 9, is a compilation of their demos . To
make a bolt conclus ion, this took a while. And was it
worthwhile, you as k? Jus t a black/ white analys is : all
the ingredients for a releas e in this particular genre
is pres ent. The growl, the groovy riffs , the
pummelling drums , the production, nice leads , the
20

blueprints of Entombed’ s “ Left Hand Path”…Everything!
And although it s ounds a bit s trange as I am a fan,
but I ’ m glad the Autops y influence on this album is
not as much as on mos t of the old s chool death metal
albums that are releas ed lately. The potential of
thes e guys can be heard on “ Thous ands Cults of
Sterility”, which s tarts with a haunting lead that
takes you back a couple of decades . Overall the
midtempo riffs could have been more memorable
therefore I have the urge to give the verdict “ well
done, but not s tunning”. As with mos t Swedeath
releas es nowadays , it’ s fun to hear and abs olutely a
nice releas e. Unfortunately I j us t need a little bit
more than “ nice” to keep on pres s ing on the “ repeat”
button over and over again or recommend it as a “ mus t
have” towards a friend. ( Ricardo)
Evil Invaders
Evil Invaders [EP]
Self-Released
This Belgian band s tarted making mus ic in the year
2 0 0 7 in a town called Mol @ Belgium. With only one demo
on their bill, now in 2 0 1 3 their firs t EP is s elf-
releas ed and only the vinyl vers ion is dis tributed on
the Empire Records label. . After s earching for s ome
additional info about the band I ’ ve only noticed that
their s tyle of mus ic is found in the s peed metal
genre. And let that now happen to be one of my old-
time favorite genres in the metal s cene…
unfortunately, not one s ingle band was able to
convince me that the golden time with bands as
Helloween ( during their firs t years ) , Abattoir and
Agent Steel ( als o their early years ) could ever return
or be equaled. Well, after lis tening to this EP from
thes e Belgians I felt young again, becaus e they did
what no band has done s ince now in my opinion! The
reincarnation of s peed metal from the early 8 0 ’ s ! !
The vocals are very high, even a little more pure then
the voice from John Syriis ( I refer to the album
“ Uns toppable Force” from Agent Steel) , the tempo is
blis tering, the album cover from “ Evil I nvaders ” is
the reflection of the old s chool s peed metal s tyle,
and hell, I j us t can’ t get enough of this record. Even
the looks from the band members refers to the 8 0 ’ s … I f
you like fas t guitar play and s olo’ s , up tempo drums ,
a very high voice and the feeling of real s peed metal
this is a mus t have in your collection! Well, this EP
is very s trong and I can’ t wait until they write new
material to create a full-length album. Evil I nvaders
is pure gold, you can count on that! ! ( Fredde)
Evocation
Illusions of Grandeur
Century Media
After the res urrection of Evocation, the band is quite
active as this is already their fourth full length.
After 3 releas es on Cyclone Empire the band went to
Century Media who are focus s ing more and more towards
old geez ers death metal I like s o much. Not only the
demo compilation of Evocation and Gorement or the back
catalogue of Thanatos are quite s urpis ing, but als o
the s ignings of Eric Daniel’ s ( ex-As phyx) Grand
Supreme Blood Court, Morbus Chron, Vallenfyre and
Necrowretch can be des cribed as “ good tas te of death
metal”, which is normally a critical item by
underground puris ts when it comes to releas es from a
big s upreme label as Century Media. I f you are not
familiar with Evocation, I would like to advis e you to
give their demos a firs t s pin. Be it the “ Evoked From
Demonic Depths ” releas e from Century Media or the
compilation of Breath of Night. And then give
“ I llus ions of Grandeur” a s pin. Firs t of all, the
“ real” old s chool Swedis h Death Metal is almos t
vanis hed on “ I llus ions of Grandeur”. Ofcours e the
hints are s till there but Evocation became more a good
old Gothenburg s cene band when it comes to riffs and
melodies . The guitar s ound is s till death metal to the
bone, only les s crunchy. This trans formation already
began with their “ Dead Calm Chaos ” releas e back in
2 0 0 8 where At the Gates pops up regularly, but with
this one it is dead certain: don’ t expect old s chool
Swedis h death metal in the vein of Nihilis t, Carnage,
Dis member or Entombed. During “ Metus Odium” it is even
crys tal clear Evocation would be a great road partner
for Amon Amarth. The s ong writing is almos t an
identical! Therefore the gues t appearance of Jon Hegg
on “ I nto Submis s ion” is n’ t a s urpris ing one as well.
Still, I wis h that thes e veterans would be one of the
s tubborn bands who would s till play their death metal
the Swedis h way like 2 0 years ago like I nterment for
example. Although I may s ound a bit negative,
“ I llus ions of Grandeur“ is s till without any doubt a
fine death metal album that is enj oyable for everyone
who like a bit of melody in their death metal.
( Ricardo)
Father Befouled
Revulsion of Seraphic Grace
Dark Descent Records
I f you’ re a dis ciple of the underground realm, and
es pecially the Death Metal one, you probably heard or
read the name “ Father Befouled” more than once. Like
many others , Father Befouled took I ncantation’ s
“ Onward to Golgotha” as main influence and made it
their own. I n many mags or webz ines this would be a
huge negative remark as they wouldn’ t like to hear
s omething they already have heard before. Well, glad
I ’ m having mys elf a fanz ine, s o I can s ay without any
s hame that this is more than a s imple wors hip or
copycat, even it is n’ t original from the very firs t
tune. Ghoat’ s vokills are from the s eventh lair of
hell and the guitars are utter downtuned. Oppres s ive,
Dark and heavy doomed and blas phemed Death Metal. As
you can expect from a band in the vein of I ncantation,
Dead Congregation, I gnivomous or Encoffination. Worth
your attention if you have an album or two of the
aforementioned bands . ( Ricardo)
Fiends at Feast
Towards the Baphomet' s Throne
Horror Pain Gore Death Productions
Blackened Death Metal is the deal with Fiends at
Feas t’ s debut album, which is releas ed by Horror Pain
Gore Death Productions , who are known for s everal
s plits and s ingles by bands like Deceas ed, Coffins ,
Anatomia and Claws . This firs t full length is an
obvious continuation of their “ Shadows of Extinction”
EP which was releas ed in 2 0 1 1 . The mix of mid 1 990 ’ s
death metal with black metal pas s ages is quite on the
s urface, where hints of Gorgoroth, early Dis s ection
and Marduk ( the s lower parts ) rule the album. A mix of
s lower haunting tracks like “ Walls of Wors hip” and
fas ter black metal riffing like “ From Hell they Ris e”
gives the lis tener a tas te of both Death and Black
cuis ines . I n my opinion they s hould focus on the more
early Dis s ection or early I n Aeternum part ins tead of
betting on s everal hors es . The middle-part during
21
“ Hedons tic Heres y” is a great example of the Blackened Göatfukk
Death s cene of Sweden around 1 995 due the good riffs Procession of Forked Tongues
and s olo, unfortunately the minutes prior to that War Arts Productions / Luci Dist Productions
particular part is quite generic and boring. Which is Actually a band I expected to be from either Finland
the main problem with “ Towards the Baphomet’ s Throne”, of South America, j udging by the name and s tyle. But
only parts are interes ting, never a whole track. no, Göatfukk hail from Portugal. On their debut
( Ricardo) releas e, Göatfukk deliver a roaring combination of
nihilis tic primitive black metal and crus t/ punk. They
Gama Bomb once again demons trate that the line between black
The Terror Tapes metal and punk is often very thin, alternating
AFM Records powerchord s trumming guitars over d-beat drums with
Gama Bomb from Newry – Northern I reland has awaken dis s onant blas ting black riffs . I really dig this
from hibernation. After their las t releas e in 2 0 0 9 kinda s tuff, s traight forward, raw and mean. The
they not only managed to get a label deal with AFM production of this mini album ( almos t 2 2 minutes )
Records ins tead of Earache Records , they als o hit back really j us t adds to the fun. The guitars have the fat,
with a new full length album titled “ The Terror overdriven punkis h s ound ins tead of the us ual thin
Tapes ”. Twelve s ongs are recorded and when s earching black metal axes . They have that crude s ound without
this band on the internet they mos tly get referred to the total production ending in an indefinable chaos .
the thras h metal s tyle…s omething I don’ t totally agree The vocals vary between hellis h black metal s creams , a
with, becaus e in my opinion, Gama Bomb is a real s omewhat lower old s chool growl and howling s emi-clean
cros s ing between a band as Tankard and Municipal vocals . The bas s takes a prominent role, thundering
Was te. Yes , you read it right…a mix between s peed and can be heard very well, often not j us t s imply
thras h metal with a high humoris tic edge to it and doubling guitars , but adding s ome extra aggres s ion by
hyper cros s over mus ic. The voice from frontman Philly concentrating more on accents . The drums are falling
Byrne is s pecial becaus e he’ s got an unique accent and behind in the mix, which is on one hand a bit of a
vibe to it, and the coalition with the backing vocals s hame, becaus e they are chas ing the other mus icians
from Joe McGuigan fits great. I t s ometimes tends like a mean old drill s ergeant. On the other hand, the
towards a hardcore feeling, but it’ s not that lower drum volume adds to the intens e atmos phere of
dominant. No s ong gets over the 4 minutes and a halve, the mus ic. I f I had to s ummon up the mus ic, I gues s it
s o fas t and s hort tracks are mos tly on the tracklis t. would end up s omewhere between DarkThrone, I mpaled
I mentioned before that humor is a big as pects in Naz arene, Venom and Dis charge. The " Enter the Gates "
their lyrics , and als o their track names give me a big cover of Sweden' s Wolfpack ( the later Wolfbrigade)
s mile… Lis ten for example to “ Beverly Hills Robocop” only emphas iz es the crus tpunk roots . The lyrics are
and “ Terrors cope” ( with their magnificent guitar play s atanic/ anti-chris tian, both tongue-in-cheek ( " Drunk
of “ Sabre Dance” – well known in Ballet s ociety’ s ) . Slut 666" ) as s omewhat more s erious ( " The God That
Als o neck breaking tracks are audible s uch as “ Metal Never Was " ) . The band is at their bes t on higher
I diot”, opener “ The Wrong Stuff” and the fas t “ Legend s peeds , but the well dos ed s lower parts add the
of Speed”. Als o I ’ ve got to mention the extreme s hort neces s ary dynamics . One could criticiz e Göatfukk for
track ( 2 1 s ec) “ Shitting Yours elf to Live” which is not being the mos t original band in the world, and I
s ome kind of outs ider. “ The Terror Tapes ” will be would be the las t to claim that they are. But the
releas ed on 1 9th April 2 0 1 3 , s o when it’ s releas ed, mus ic is brought with quite a lot of conviction, and
you definitely got to give this one a try! ( Fredde) with a couple of beers down the throat, this gets me
going quite well. I f you' re into crude, raw, wicked
Funeral Whore
Stepped into Damnation
Chaos Records
Around s ince about 2 0 0 6, Funeral Whore has continued their old s chool death metal crus ade through various
demo' s , a compilation and a s plit right up to this full length, releas ed by the mexican Chaos Records . On their
Mys pace page, there' s a warning for people who like deathcore or polis hed, ultra-technical death metal, that
Funeral Whore is no band for them. Well, they s ure as hell aren' t lying.
Straight from opener ' Eternal Genocide' , Funeral Whore pound their way without
mercy. The guitar s ound reeks like an early 90 ' s Swedis h death metal demo,
with the drums relentles s ly dictating the pace. I f anyone would have told me
this was an unreleas ed 1 992 album by s ome Stockholm death metal band, I would
have believed him ( or her) right away. Fortunately, we don' t get bored with
blind copying of Grave of Dis member.
Through variation in pace, monotony is
s ent s traight to the deepes t tracts of
hell. ' Obidience' for example contains
rolling parts that s omewhat remind me of
the mighty early work of Bolt Thrower,
and throughout the album Benediction
comes to mind as well, every now and
then. No problem with that. I would als o
like to mention the lead guitar work by
Kellie. I ns tead of j us t cramping as many
notes into her leads as pos s ible, s he
opts for a more s low and atmos pheric
approach. Not was ting time on that s elf-indulging mumbo j umbo, her
melancholic leads remind me of that old time hero Eric Daniels of As phyx.
I f I have to name s ome points of critique: I would like s ome more
variation in the vocals . Roy' s vocals have a nice gurgle, are good to
follow, but for the res t, they don' t really do a lot for me. They s tay
s afely in the lower regions , where s ometimes you crave a little more
s creaming madnes s . Als o, not all of the s ongs are equally memorable. I t
s eems like s ometimes they need a little more focus on writing actual
s ongs , ins tead of j us t s ticking riffs to one another. Having s aid this ,
thes e are only minor points of critique. I find mys elf banging my head
along with the merciles s brutality of Funeral Whore, and after the eleven
s ongs , s atis faction is the feeling that dominates . I s ure hope Funeral
Whore will continue growing, and at the s ame time will not leave the bone
ridden path of old s chool death metal. Favorites : the atmos pheric title
track, the oldie ' The Bitch Died' with the cool s amples , and the s ometimes
Slayer-es que ' El Salvador Death Squad' . ( Stij n)

22
and blas phemous black metal and d-beat, it won' t hurt Grave and Unleas hed s hould keep the banner flying high
you to check this out. ( Stij n) when it comes to the lates t founders of the genre.
With “ Endles s Proces s ion of Souls ” Grave can be proud-
Grand Supreme Blood Court hearted that the banner is s till flying high.
Bow Down to the Blood Court ( Ricardo)
Century Media
You know, it would be eas y to s ay: hey, another death Graveyard
metalband with Martin van Drunen on vocals . But we The Altar of Sculpted Skulls [EP]
already have As phyx, and Hail of Bullets . Why do we Pulverised Records
need another one? Why not s tick with thos e two? I t' s This is the CD vers ion of the 1 2 ” vinyl releas e by
all true, you know. More Martin van Drunen. But if one Doomentia Records of 2011, otherwis e you would
j udges this band by that s tandard alone, one pas s es by probably think “ that lame fuck is reviewing s tuff that
one key factor, that in all hones ty, does not even is even been releas ed in 2 0 1 1 ”. No, no…this is the
gives you a chance to let it pas s : the proud return to Pulveris ed releas e of 2 0 1 2 . After a couple of s plits
doom/ death metal of Grand Judge Eric Daniels . The man and a promis ing debut ( “ One with the Dead” the EP
that gave the world Las t One on Earth. And the man who cons is ts of 4 new tracks and 2 re-recorded tracks , all
- for me - has the s tarring role on this album, in an in the vein of Old School SweDeath Metal the way it’ s
all-s tar line up. As us ual, van Drunen s hows us the meant to be. Although the ins trumental track “ Cult of
back of his throat. A little lower than in the old Shadows ” could be a bas tard child of Carnage and
days , but the characteris tic maniacal growls are ever As phyx with Metallica’ s “ The Call of Ktulu” on the
pres ent. Bob Bagchus takes a firm s tand, s lightly in background during the moment of cons ummating the
the background, but s olid like concrete in the bas e of marriage. So Carnage, early Entombed and early
the mus ic. Never was the fancies t of drummers , s o he Dis member is comin’ at ya! And during “ Deathcrowned”
plays out his bes t cards - s olidity and tightnes s - in you can hear that typical Cemetary’ s “ An Evil Shade of
a thundering rhythmic duet with HoB-fours tringer Theo Grey” guitar s ound. Forget that hyped Swedis h vers ion
van Eekelen. Alwin Z uur, who we know as bas s is t in of Graveyard, who are trying to regain the s pirit of
As phyx, is the brother in arms for Eric Daniels , 1 97 0 s rock. Spend your well-earned money to s ome
acting as a s olid counterpart and laying out a s olid Spanis h guys who are able to regain the s pirit of
foundation for Daniels ' trade mark: the mes meriz ing, 1 990 s Swedis h Death Metal! ( Ricardo)
melancholic guitar lines . Jus t as s oon as the ominous
bells of the intro flow into the ultraheavy guitars , Hatriot
it immediately s ounds familiar, well-known. I t' s like Heroes of Origin
the follow up to " Las t one on Earth" , delivered to us Massacre Records
by the very s ame people, with reinforcements . Becaus e Steve Z etro Souz a is back. And how! Exactly what one
des pite the individual talents , this album is at firs t would hope for, coming from a man with one of the mos t
and foremos t a team effort. Grand Supreme Blood Court recognis able vocals eighties thras h metal. I t’ s Z etro,
is a well-oiled machine, tight, des tructive, it’ s thras h, s o I ’ ll keep this s imple for thos e
merciles s . Without remors e, grenade after grenade is interes ted in the genre as well as this iconic
fired at the innocent lis tener. Relentles s rolling vocalis t. The good: Fierce, fas t, catchy, and
death metal are combined with effective doom pas s ages , perfectly executed. The bad: One of the wors t album
in both heavy palm muted poundings as well as open covers ever and a digital production which lacks a
chords that build a wall of s ound. The s ongs vary from truly organic flow, es pecially the drums . The album
s lightly more s traightforward, to a few in depth s ongs cons is ts of three s ongs from their earlier s elf-titled
that venture into more epic territories , s uch as demo, ‘ Blood Stained Wings ’ ( which was already
" Veredictum Sanguis " ( excellent s ong! ) , " Circus Of releas ed as a video in 2 0 1 2 ) and 6 new tracks . So
Mas s Torment" , which has an ominous ring to it due to thos e already familiar with Hatriot will find a nice
the whirling, almos t blackened riffs , that often balance of ‘ old’ and new tracks here. Don’ t expect
remind me of the Soulburn-album. And las t but not this album to come clos e to a Z etro-fronted clas s ic
leas t the ten minute mons ter " . . . And Thus The Billions like Fabulous Dis as ter in terms of everlas ting
Shall Burn" , s umming up all the trademarks of GSBC and compos itions but it s urely manages to s urpas s ‘ Tempo
featuring s ome amaz ing lead parts . Topping off the of the Damned’ ( the las t album Z etro made with Exodus )
album is the production by Dan Swanö. I ns tead of due to a more cons is tent flow of ferocity and higher
choos ing a faceles s modern s ound, this album has quite average pace. Although at firs t lis ten the album might
a unique production, that holds the balance between not be as catchy as material Z etro s ang on earlier in
the old s chool s mudgy filth and the more trans parent, his thras h metal career, the s ongs grow on you and s o
broad s ound of today. So, all in all, yes , there are a does their catchines s . There s urely will be a
lot of s imilarities with the other bands that feature cros s patch s omewhere on earth who’ d have preferred
Martin van Drunen, but again, this album holds too Z etro doing s ome melodic s tuff as well as for ins tance
many quality to be j udged by j us t that. Without ‘ Alone in the Dark’ on the The Legacy demo but that’ d
comparing it to other bands , this album s tands out for j us t be looking for an excus e to complain. Daddy Z etro
me, and is ( I think) the bes t that Eric Daniels and s hows he’ s s till pis s ed and brought along two of his
his men can give the world right now. Glad he' s back. s ons this time to s pread the family mes s age. ( I s aak)
Look out for this one, bes ides the cool limited
mediabook CD-releas e, it als o comes on black vinyl, Headhunter D. C.
and the cool white vinyl ( which I own) and red vinyl …In Unholy Mourning…
limited releas es . ( Stij n) Mutilation Records
I f there is one Old School Death Metal band from
Grave Braz il who des erves s ome prais e for their
Endless Procession of Souls determination, Headhunter D. C. will get a lot of votes
Century Media in the poll. I f you don’ t know them, this is no
I s it really neces s ary to write s omething about Grave? Sarcofago or Sepultura “ Morbid Vis ion” wors hip.
Although the Death Metal and s ound got a bit different Headhunter D. C. cons is ts of Death Metal veterans who
in the 1 990 s , they are releas ing decent albums again are able to combine the 1 990 s Death Metal with,
for 1 0 years . Nothing genre-breaking or the new “ I nto occas ionally, the s taccato riffs of bands like Vader
the Grave”, but s olid groovy Swedis h Death Metal. And and us es variation within their s ongs . Fas t riffs and
with thos e albums they keep the fan-bas e happy. With drums are alternated with s everal dark atmos pheric
“ Endles s Proces s ion of Souls ” they did it again; not a Doom parts like on the “ Curs ed be Thou” track. All in
genre-breaking album but a decent one which every all a nice mix of s ome Pos s es s ed, old Sinis ter, As phyx
Grave fan will enj oy. Quite eas y to write a Grave ( the Death/ Doom part) and after 2 5 years , Headhunter
review, hé? ! ? No s erious ly, I think this is their bes t D. C. . The leads and the traditional “ my throat is full
album s ince they re-entered the Arena o’ Old School of mucus ”-vocals of Serge Borges give this album a
Death Metal. The riffs are, as with the groove, nice edge as well. Sure, once again Headhunter D. C.
unmis takably Grave. The production is n’ t that gritty didn’ t releas e an album that will get noticed by the
and goes more towards a clean mix. With Dis member mas s es nor will it get them a big contract by one of
dis banded and Entombed s till in the ‘ n roll phas e, the big labels , therefore the album is nothing more or

23
les s than s olid. But I think the bigges t achievements
for thems elves is : The Death Cult is s till alive and
kickin’ ! ( Ricardo)
Khors
Wisdom of Centuries
Candlelight Records
Once again, Atmos pheric Black Metal from the Ukraine.
So once again curios ity all over the place. I always
cons idered Khors as a band who never achieved to write
an interes ting album with only killer tracks . There
were always compos itions on their previous albums that
made me us e the “ s kip” button, although s ome s ongs are
really great. When a new Khors album is being releas ed
I always hope they are able to write great s tuff for a
whole album, not only a combination of great tracks
and s ome s o-s o tracks . With “ Black Fores t' s Flaming
Eyes ” Khors s tarts with a s tunning Atmos pheric Black
Metal track after the intro, which you can expect from
Khors or the Ukraine s cene. Als o “ Only Time will Take
it Away” beholds the magic “ Epic”-element.
Unfortunately the tracks “ The Las t Leaves ” and “ Wis dom
of Centuries ” are again nothing more than above
average ( s till the leads are quite good) and got the
label “ fillers ”. I mys elf find this very regrettable
as Khors ’ reputation could be s o much more than what
it is right now and they des erve better. Maybe Khors
could s witch to be an “ EP-band” and that way only
releas e the killer tunes . ( Ricardo)
Krisiun
Arise from Blackness
Century Media
The Death Certifcate Campaign of Century Media is
quite a nice ges ture towards Old School Death Metal
fans around the world. All kind of re-releas es ,
s pecial vinyl editions and compilations of bands like
Gorement, Evocation, Thanatos , Morbid and Sentenced.
Or as they s ay “ Without Death Metal Century Media
s imply would not be the label that it is nowadays ”. No
arguing there! This time it is Kris iun with s ome pre-
“ Black Force Domain” recordings . I t’ s really fun to
hear the technical and ultrafas t chaotic Death Metal
again that made them noticed by the fans . Something I
truly mis s in their releas es nowadays . That typical
South American ( and es pecially Braz ilian) fury, a
s light ques tionable production, controlled chaos and
over the top riffs and leads . I gues s it is not a
s urpris e for you I s till enj oy “ Black Force Domain” a
lot till this very day. This compilation contains the
hard to find “ Unmerciful Order” EP ( 1 994 ) ( although
Century Media already releas ed s ome of thes e tracks on
the “ Bloods hed” EP back in 2 0 0 4 ) and the “ Curs e of the
Evil One” s plit with Violent Hate ( 1 993 ) . On the
“ Unmerciful Order” part you hear Kris iun taking the
s tep towards their “ Black Force Domain” album with
their fierce Death Metal. While on the “ Curs e of The
Evil One”-part you can hear the s tarting era of
Kris iun. Ofcours e the production is more muddy ( the
bas s is almos t drowning in the s ound) but the s ongs
are als o a tad les s interes ting. Still, a nice
document for Kris iun followers and fas t technical
Death Metal fans in general. ( Ricardo)
written, and that s omehow annoys me. Perhaps they’ re
not taking thems elves that s erious ly, but good lyrics
are als o a part of an album ; -) Otherwis e, this is an
excellent album, and will pleas e fans of old s chool
thras h/ s peed metal, but executed with an extra pus h on
the s peed pedal. Big applaus e als o for the cover
“ Agents of Steel” originally written by s peed metal
icons Agent Steel, a s ong created when John Cyriis
( brilliant high voice he had that man! ) ruled the
microphone! Born from the Bomb is worth it to lis ten
folks ! ( Fredde)
Lifeless
Godconstruct
F. D. A. Rekotz
The s econd full-length of thes e German s elf-called
Traditional Death Metal combo is a damn fine one! Yes ,
I already gave you the verdict at the beginning…almos t
like an old thriller novel where everybody knows the
butler did it. “ Godcons truct” is definitely
Traditional Death Metal of the early 1 990 s era and
without doubt thes e guys have an album or two of the
Swedis h s cene in their collections …probably Dis member
and Carnage. The s ong s tructures and the us e of
aggres s ive yet melodic riffs are es pecially the link
with Dis member. On “ Blood for the Gods ” they als o
throw in the more melodic s ide of Dis member like
during the end of their career. When the s peed
increas es I couldn’ t help to think of early Vomitory.
I don’ t know if it is done on purpos e, but it s eems
the tracklis t is divided in 3 parts , it s tarts all old
Swedis h Death Metal, with “ Blood on Gods ” the more
melodic s tuff kicks in and it ends with tracks which
has more groove. But that’ s j us t nitpicking as
“ Godcons truct” is a good album. ( Ricardo)
Lustre
They Awoke the Scent of Winter
De Tenebrarum Principio
Although I have heard s ome Lus tre compos itions in the
pas t, the band never gave me the kick in the as s to
lis ten attentively. Maybe this new full length will do
the trick. As mos t bands in the Atmos pheric / Ambient

Lich King
Born of the Bomb
Stormspell Records
Many thras h bands are born from the womb of the United
States . And while having a vis it at the internet, I ’ ve
found another band that caught my attention. Lich King
from Amhers t – Mas s achus etts has releas ed their fifth
album and is titled “ Born of the Bomb”. Ten kick-as s
s ongs are to be dis covered on the dis c, and it’ s s ome
kind of crumble between s peed, thras h and in s ome
parts cros s over metal mus ic. The s olos are flying
around your neck when pus hing the s tart button, the
drums are in thras hy overdrive and that accompanied
with the fas t voice from Tom Martin s ounds excellent.
Superb tracks were created on this album like for
example “ I n the End, Devas tation”, Axe Cop” ( with the
mighty comic book they’ ve created to promote the track
– vis it youtube to check it out) , “ Agnos ticis m” and
the end track “ Lich King I V ( Born of the Bomb) ”. Okay,
not everything is good becaus e the lyrics from track
“ We Came to Conquer” is s omewhat childis h, immature

24
 Master
The New Elite
Pulverised Records
Once again Mas ter unleas h an old s chool beas t with a high average pace, catchy chorus s es and Speckmann' s
lyrical s ocioeconomic evaluations . What els e is new? Well, firs t of all it' s a new Mas ter album s o you s hould
care and s econdly within the boundaries of the Specknivers e it is one of the bes t ones . Ever s ince achieving
the s olid ' new' line-up with Alex Nej ez chleba and Z denek Pradlovs ký, Mas ter
s eem to have a renewed vigour, energy and cohes ion. After warming up the fans
with the playfulnes s of the ' Spirit of the Wes t' album, es pecially the full
on death metal as s ault of ' Slaves to Society' and ' The Human Machine' was
more than a return to form for the grandfather of old s chool death metal. As
s oon as I heard the firs t online preview of ' Smile as you' re told' I knew I
had to get this album. I was not dis appointed. Even more than that, ' The New
Elite' has become one of my favorite Mas ter albums . Compared to their
previous record ' The Human Machine' the guitar tone has more definition, mos t
s ongs are even more to the point and compact but mos t importantly, this album
feels even more energetic and changes in pace s eem more natural. Take for
ins tance drummer Z denek Pradlovs ký. I f you didn' t pay clos e attention you
j us t wouldn' t notice how good this man actually is . The eas e, fines s e and
perfect timing of his performance almos t go by unnoticed s ince he never does
too much but if one lis tens clos ely it feels like we' re dealing with a Hoglan
of death metal. The s trength of The New Elite lies mos tly within the firs t 4
and las t 4 s ongs . After the regular d-beat laden ons laught of crus ty death
metal riffs and thras hbreaks on catchy openers ' The New Elite' and ' Ris e Up
and Fight' Paul& co increas e the pace even more on ' Remove the Knife' which
has s ome winks at black metal riffwis e but becaus e of Speckmann' s vocals and catchy chorus eas ily fit into
Mas ter territory. The s ong als o proved to be a real gem in the live environment. ' Smile as You' re Told' , as
s aid, is yet another highlight. The only downs ide on the album comes from the s low s ong ' Redirect the Evil'
which meanders j us t a bit too much and pick ups way too
late. But then there is ' New Reforms ' , which takes les s
than three minutes , includes blas t beats and one hell of a
chorus . ' Guide Yours elf' eas ily continues the s tyle, pace,
catchines s of the firs t four s ongs and ' Souls to Dis s uade'
throws a bas s intro and another blas t beat in the mix whereas
' Twis t of Fate' is s omething s pecial as the firs t half of
the s ong could' ve come s traight from Mas ter' s firs t albums
yet then s lows its pace, Paul takes the mic and drags us
towards the end of the album with a fas cinating monologue.
All in all, a more than worthy follow up to The Human
Machine and maybe even better. Fans of old who focus mos tly
on the firs t two albums and have been mis s ing out on Mas ter
thes e las t few years might be up for a s urpris e s eeing how
fres h ' The New Elite' s ounds , incorporating j us t enough new
elements over the years without los ing that bas ic Mas ter
s ound. Thos e of you who like ' Slaves to Society' and ' The
Human Machine' probably got your hands on The New Elite
already and if not, you could do s o blindly. ( I s aak)
Black Metal s cene, the us e of repetitive riffs of album) . At the end it’ s fair to s ay it was a fun
melodies are frequently pres ent, along with lis ten, but not a s tunning album. Still the rawnes s is
melancholic ambiance provided by a keyboard. Becaus e appealing…( Ricardo)
of the mellownes s of the ambiance and guitar rhythms ,
along with the “ s lither like a s nake…whis pering on the Malignancy
background”-vocals it almos t has a relaxing vibe. Eugenics
Something like thos e Fores t tunes with chirping birds Willowtip
and rippling brooks for mains tream people, this could Roger J. Beauj ard will ring a bell with mos t fans of
be s omething for s tres s ed out Black Metal adepts . A the brutal death metal s cene, becaus e the co-founder
“ Dunkelheit-res tful s tyle” if you will. With 4 tracks of Mortician had decided in 1 992 to form a s econd band
of approx. 1 0 minutes ( of which the las t two are named Malignancy in this mus ic s tyle. Already two
ins trumentals ) you get a lot of relaxation. Although full-length albums titled “ I ntrauterine Cannibalis m”
this could be read as a negative review, s trangely ( 1 999) and “ I nhuman Grotes queries ” ( 2 0 0 7 ) . were
enough this is n’ t that bad as it s eems . This is the releas ed, along with plenty demo’ s , EP’ s , s plits and
oppos ite of lo-fi Depres s ive Black Metal. Only you compilation. Both full-length albums s cored huge
have to be really in the mood for this . ( Ricardo) points in the media, s o now five years later the long
awaited new creation from thes e Americans has been
Macabra releas ed in October 2 0 1 2 on the Willowtip Records
Blood-Nurtured Nature label. The new dis c is born as “ Eugenics ” and from the
Metalhit. com beginning it grabs you with the balls ! When you put on
You know Mark Riddick? The illus tration guy who is the dis c, a true wall of death is unlocked and the
res pons ible for quite s ome awes ome gory and old s chool fas t and furious riffs , the intens e hyperblas ts ,
artwork and logos ? For thos e who are familiar with his hys teric rhythms and top-s peed guitar and drum play
illus trations only, he als o has been or is s till accompanied with aggres s ive bas s parts makes you get
active in a couple of bands . Macabra is one of them, an adrenaline s hot. Lis ten for example to “ Mons trous
of which he is res pons ible for all the ins truments . I ndifference” where the magnificent tempo-changes
And thanks to the internet and all kind of digital s hows the technical knowhow of this band. Only one
tools , the vocals of Adrien Weber ( Vociferian) ( I n the track s tarts off les s furious then the others , more
Craig Pillard in his I ncantation days -vein) are merged precis ely track “ Separatis ts ” with its calm s tart to
together with the Old s chool Death Metal s ongs of s lowly burs t out into a bomb with the rough voice of
Riddick. Unpolis hed and uncompromis ing Old School frontman Danny Nels on. Yes , brutal death metal in an
Death Metal. You really have to focus on “ Unpolis hed” old s chool j acket, who won’ t like this . Okay, with its
for this one, like the demos of the end 1 98 0 s . Think duration of 3 0 minutes this album is perfect to lis ten
of las t demo/ firs t full length of Autops y, Death and at, becaus e I ’ m s ure that one more s ong on this dis c
As phyx. The keyboard which is occas ionally us ed on would be that one too much if you know what I mean.
tracks like “ Hominal Peel Diggers ”, gives it a As phyx Great album s o have a lis ten to it! ( Fredde)
“ Embrace the Death” vibe ( like the intro on that great

25
 Mandatory
Ripped from the Tomb
Ablaze Productions
German Mandatory was founded becaus e of the member’ s
love for raw and s traightforward Death Metal in the
vein of the early 1 990 ’ s . Becaus e I ’ ve heard their
“ …Where they Bleed” EP and their “ Adrift Beyond”
album, I only can confirm the biography opening.
“ Ripped from the Tomb” is n’ t the s ucces s or of their
debut, but an unreleas ed recording of 2 0 0 3 . The death
metal is old s chool, very s traightforward with a
guitar s ound that res embles Cemetary’ s “ An Evil Shade
of Grey”. That typical love or hate “ s queaking” s ound.
To complete the old s chool j ourney, the vocals by
drummer/ vocalis t Stinne is a mixture of Martin van
Drunen ( blurted s omething in the mic in Pes tilence,
As phyx and Hail of Bullets ) and Marc Grewe ( Morgoth) .
At the end I dare to s ay the material pres ented on
“ Ripped from the Tomb” is a bit to s implis tic and
generic ( for example “ I n Torment” with a very s imple
chorus ) to completely enj oy it. Don’ t get me wrong, a
s imple riff can be very effective, but the 2 0 0 3
vers ion of Mandatory was n’ t quite capable in writing
s uch riffs . Still, we are almos t 1 0 years further s o
it is more important to keep an eye on their s econd
album. ( Ricardo)
Necrocurse
Grip of the Dead
Pulverised Records
The firs t full-length album from the Swedis h death
metal band Necrocurs e is a fact. I t took them 9 years
to come up with this album titled “ Grip of the Dead”
and will be releas ed 1 1 th March 2 0 1 3 on the
Pulveris ed Records label. With ex-members from bands
s uch as Nifelheim, Mas ticator and Runemagick there’ s
plenty of knowledge available to create a good album
in my opinion. Well, this album kicks off with an
intro that’ s not that s pecial, but the track
“ Necrocurs e” that immediately follows , s hows the
quality of this band. I t s tarts with a melodic guitar-
s olo accompanied with a frivolous drum riff, followed
by the s omewhat filthy/ threatening voice from vocalis t
Hellbutcher which I like. The s ound on this album is
nas ty and old s chool and there’ s a good flow between
the ins truments and the riffs they’ ve produced. This
definitely is a death metal album, but s ometimes there
are als o s ome thras h influence notable in their s ongs
( like example track “ I nfernal Rebellion” and “ Morbid
Maniacs ”) . Drummer Nicklas Rudolfs s on has delivered
great work on “ Grip of the Dead” and on each track his
contribution is important to decide if the s peed level
goes up or down. He s ometimes even tends towards a
more black metal s ound when lis tening real good.
Generally s aid, this album is mos tly filled with
uptempo tracks s uch as “ Speed to the Grave”, “ Ripping
Darknes s ” ( the only s ong where a real moment of peace
is ins erted) and “ Rotten in the Dark”. The mos t
pos itive as pects on this album for me are the fas t
guitar parts , the threatening and filthy voice and the
magnificent drums ! Any death metal fan will like this
one! ( Fredde)
Necrovation
Necrovation
Agonia Records
Necrovation from Sweden was hailed as one of thos e raw
Swedis h outs iders for the title “ Conquers of the
throne” in the “ new boys league” concerning Old School
Death Metal the las t couple of years . The previous
releas es were quite in the famous SweDeath s tyle, but
their s elf titled album has a lot of more American
influences . Some old Morbid Angel, Pos s es s ed and Death
in the region “ their firs t two albums ” have made their
entrance in the s ound of Necrovation. All this with
quite a Celtic Fros t-is h doom vibe, res ulting in a
dark, heavy and technically more varied album with an
emphas is on “ dark”. Good album, but I think it’ s not
an eas y album to get s ucked into for the maj ority.
( Ricardo)
Necroven
Worship of Humilation
Memento Mori
Mr. Reina has got quite a bus y year. After releas ing 2
tape demos in January en February, we now witnes s his
firs t full length called “ Wors hip of Humilation”,
releas ed by Spanis h label Memento Mori. I f you are
into modern s ounding death metal with a s parkle clear
production and a bit of a deathcore vocalis t, you will
s care the beej eebers with this one! Pitchblack old
s chool, mos tly midtempo and s ometimes a bit uptempo
( like “ Ancient Rites Conj uration”) , death metal with a
doom vibe, and poetically s poken by Reina’ s monotous
low growl. Nothing original can be heard on tracks
like “ Enclos ed in a Dead Soul Dimens ion” and
“ Malediction in Dormant Obs curity”, s till it’ s
performed quite convincing. The American influences of
I ncantation and Deteriorot are not s trange to mention
concerning the heavy midtempo Doom/ Death on “ Wors hip
of Humilation”. When the s peed fas teners , I hear the
Britis h s cene ( Bolt Thrower) and a bit of Avuls ed
during their “ Stabwound Orgas m”-era in the riffs .
Memento Mori has a thing or two with this kind of
death metal, as the band Ataraxy on their roos ter, is
a fine example as well. The album is clos ed with a
cover of Uncons ecrated, Spanis h ans wer to Swedis h
Death Metal, from their “ Slave to the Grave” EP. Fine
debut Mr. Reina! ( Ricardo)
Nocturnal Vomit
Cursed Relics
Kill Yourself Productions
I can already as s ure you…if you are into Old School
Death Metal but with a certain ancient atmos phere, I
have one of the 2 0 1 2 highlights for you! Nocturnal
Vomit managed to create an mandatory album in the vein
of 1 990 s good old As phyx/ Soulburn ( not only s ome riffs
could have eas ily been Eric Daniels -creations , there
are even Bob Bagchus like drum patterns ) , Pentacle
( the Wannes Gubbles / Martin van Drunen vocals ) and
Sadis tic I ntent. The way Nocturnal Vomit is
performing, the s ound and mus ic is almos t genuine.
Like they were one of the creators back in thos e days .
The edge of this album is the s light “ Greek Black
Metal” s ound that has been woven through on “ Curs ed
Relics ”, s o you als o hear a bit of Rotting Chris t’ s
“ Thy Mighty Contract” and Varathron’ s “ His Maj es ty at
the Swamp” in it. No, I can’ t come up with any
negative or even average remark. I f you as k me,
“ Curs ed Relics ” is an underground hidden gem which
s hould get a lot more attention! ( Ricardo)
Nucleator
Home is where War is
Human to Dust
I f you are a fairly new Thras h combo from Germany,
you’ re doomed to get the label “ Teutonic Thras h”
s lapped on yer as s and the Kreator, Sodom and
Des truction references will fly around all over the
place. And yes , they definitely have lis tened to s ome
good old late 1 98 0 s Kreator, Sodom and Des truction
during the proces s of writing s ongs . But they haven’ t
forgotten the US vers ion of Thras h as well as there
are s ome Slayer-like leads pres ent. Although there are
s ome fas t tracks on “ Home is where War is ” ( like
“ Endles s Nightmare”) the focus is mos tly on “ Groovy”
within Nucleator and the vocals are more a death metal
growl than the common Thras h ras ping ones . I cons ider
this above average as the groovy parts are quite
mediocre while the fas t parts are enj oyable. ( Ricardo)
Obscure Infinity
Putrefying Illusions
Obscure Domain Productions
What do we have here…Obs cure I nfinity from Germany
playing a vein of death metal of which I applaud the
fact that a “ new” band has the balls to do that.
Obs cure I nfinity dares to s torm the 1 990 ’ s Swedis h
Blackened Death Metal Throne. And may I add…quite
s ucces s ful! During the track “ Collecting a Dis as trous
Sun” one wanders through the era of Dis s ection’ s “ The
Somberlain” and Unanimated’ s “ I n the Fores t of the
Dreaming Dead” with a ditto production. Even the
vocals are mixed in the vein of Unanimated’ s Micke
Jans s on during their debut. Or j us t hear the s olo
during “ As cens ion-Kenos is ”, it’ s guaranteed a s troll
down memory lane. And there are three ins trumental
tracks which gives you a Dis s ection’ s “ I nto I nfinite
26
Obs curity” ( heeeey…wait a minute…) feeling. So is it a
total copy you as k? Well…they do tend to blend in s ome
s lower As phyx riffs ( without the typical As phyx s ound)
in the tracks or wink a bit at Darkthrone’ s “ Souls ide
Journey”. Als o the occas ionally twin s olos came
unexpected to be hones t. But if your reaction on all
that is “ Blegh! ”, you’ re reading the wrong z ine. As a
huge s ucker for this kind of death metal, I really
enj oyed every s econd of this album. I f you wors hip the
albums I mentioned as well, you do yours elf a huge
favour to get this one in your collection! ( Ricardo)
Paradise Lost
Tragic Idol
Century Media
A new Paradis e Los t, s omething I ’ m always curious
about. Every time when they s tart to write new
material, I read news items about the new s ongs are
going to s ound like a mixture of “ I con” and “ Draconian
Times ” and they are going back to the melancholy
atmos phere of thos e days . Although I ’ m a huge death
metal fan, I cons ider “ Draconian Times ” as their
fines t hour. So I bet you unders tand my curios ity. I
totally dig their firs t real “ comeback-to-the-glory-
days ” ( “ Paradis e Los t” is a try-out to my humble
opinion) , “ I n Requiem”, with outs tanding tracks like
“ Never for the Damned”, “ The Enemy” and my pers onal
favourite “ Fallen Children”. But I was a bit
dis appointed with “ Faith Divides Us - Death Unites
Us ”. So when thos e “ I con/ Draconian Times ” news items
popped up again, I was a bit s ceptical. But thanks to
the promotional tracks and videos on Youtube of
“ Crucify” and “ Hones ty in Death” my s ceptical attitude
became a lot more pos itive. After hearing the whole
album repeatedly, I can only conclude Paradis e Los t
made a great album. I t does n’ t have the impact of the
aforementioned 1 990 s albums , but hey…thos e were other
times . You can hear a lot of mid-carreer Paradis e Los t
on “ Tragic I dol”, s ome “ Shades of Gods ” kind of
typical Gregor Mackintos h leads , “ Draconian Times ”
atmos phere, “ I con” gloomy s low parts and s ometimes an
“ One Second” kind of compos ition. Even traditional
Doom Metal during the s ong “ To the Darknes s ” and a bit
of Sis ter of Mercy in the beginning of “ Worth Fighting
For” are pres ent. The typical Mackintos h leads and
Aedy rhythm riffs , for me the heart and aorta of
Paradis e Los t, are going really s trong on this album.
Although there are parts that Nick Holmes has a mellow
s inging moment here and there ( “ Fear of I mpending
Hell” or “ Tragic I dol”, the “ One Second”
compos itions ) , mos t of his vocals are powerful like on
“ I n Requiem”. Let’ s go to the j ury! Mis ter Gloom? Yes ,
a huge thumb up. Mis ter Doom? Als o! Mis s Dark?
Accepted! Mis ter Mis ery? Corners of the mouth down!
( Ricardo)
Philip Anselmo and Warbeast
War of the Gargantuas [Split]
Housecore Records
Yes , we’ ve got to deal with a s coop from Hous ecore
Records . I ndeed, the label created by Philip Ans elmo,
naturally know as frontman from Pantera and Down and
his s ide proj ects Superj oint Ritual, Chris t I nvers ion
and s ome others . A s plit EP with the firs t s olo mus ic
from P. Ans elmo its elf and two new tracks from American
thras hers Warbeas t. The EP titled “ War of the
Gargantuas ” kicks off with “ Conflict ( Nerve meets
bone) ” from Ans elmo which is a very aggres s ive s ong.
As he mentions in the lyrics : ‘ I ’ m a wounded animal…’ ,
he didn’ t lie, becaus e the opening s cream takes a bite
in your face to never let go, becaus e the entire track
the heavy pounding voice and s creeching riffs gets its
teeth deeper into your fles h. Second track titled
“ Birth of a Ps ycho” is material from Warbeas t, and
s hows in a way how a bands ’ s tyle s till can evolve
each moment. The intens e rhythm s ection s tands above
all, and their ins truments where raped when recording!
This track is fas t paced, intens e, uptempo and from
very high quality. Hous ecore Records has an eye for
upcoming talent, and this band definitely is a win for
the underground s cene. Third track “ Family, Friends ,
and As s ociates ” is a title where the mos t important
as pects in life are expres s ed according to mis ter
Ans elmo I as s ume. Again the deep/ low but energetic
voice from Ans elmo is the thread in this s ong.
I ns trumentally you continue get banged in a pos itive
way and you don’ t give a fuck if the next minute it
feels like they’ re fis ting you in a hard way. Yes , all
holes in your body gets mutilated with the aggres s ion
that drips of this s ong… The final track again is from
Warbeas t and is titled “ I t”. This track is in the s ame
s tyle as the other one on this EP, s o you again may
expect a thras hy s ong that s ounds furious , has the
needed filthy riffs in it and is played fas t to keep
headbanging. I f this is a little tas te from what we
can expect in 2 0 1 3 from both Ans elmo as Warbeas t, then
I ’ m ready for it! Are you? ? ? ( Fredde)
Purtenance
Sacrifice the King [EP]
Xtreem Music
Back in the early 1 990 s , 1 992 to be more precis e,
Purtenance is one of thos e bands in the Scandinavian
Death Metal s cene who made one album and dis appeared.
The album “ Member of I mmortal Damnation” has been
cons idered as an underground ( Finnis h) Old School
Death Metal clas s ick. After 2 0 years Purtenance is
back with s ome new material, and like 2 0 years ago,
they are being s upported by Dave Rotten ( back then by
Drowned Productions and this time Xtreem Mus ic) . I f
you are familiar with “ Member of I mmortal Damnation”,
forget that album when you are going to lis ten to
“ Sacrifice the King”, as there are s ome differences .
This EP does n’ t have the authentic s ound as their
debut and the Death Metal is more s traightforward and
les s “ Doom”, more Deicide like at s ome parts s ort of
s peak. Nothing wrong with Deicide, only the rhythm
riffs are a bit unins piring. New vocalis t Ville is n’ t
really an as s et as well. The leads are more in the
Doom/ Death Metal s tyle which makes the EP above
average. Maybe it would be a better idea to have
releas ed this with another band moniker, as the
reputation of their debut will keep on haunting them.
I f you as k me, not really a s ucces s ful comeback. . . I
expected more of this one. As they are working for a
2 0 1 3 releas e, I ’ ll keep my fingers cros s ed for that
one. ( Ricardo)
Putrevore
Macabre Kingdom
Xtreem Music
Who could expect this …Another Rogga releas e in this
is s ue! This time it is the proj ect Putrevore along
with übergutturalgrowler of Avuls ed; Dave Rotten.
Their debut “ Morphed from Deadbreath” got s ome
pos itive reviews des pite not being original at all as
the American s tyled dark and mas s ive death metal could
have been eas ily a 1 993 NYDM releas e. With “ Macabre
Kingdom” the formula has been unchanged as the wors hip
of early I mmolation and I ncantation combined with
Rottrevore’ s “ I niquitous ” bluntnes s , is what you get
for 35 devas tating minutes . Es pecially the low
guttural vocals of Dave Rotten, gives this album j us t
the extra edge when it comes to mas s ivenes s . Fans of
aforementioned bands s hould give this a s pin or two.
( Ricardo)
Putrified
Neurotic Necrotic
Hellthrasher Productions
A. Death of one man band Putrified from Sweden is
res pons ible for the demo with the title “ The Return of
Swedis h Old School Death Metal” back in 2 0 1 0 . With
s uch title I ’ m all ears and expected to be blown away,
but unfortunately I was n’ t quite convinced with the
demo and the debut full length ( “ Spawn of the Dead”)
as the vocals were a bit, let’ s s ay off target with
his growl. On the demo it has a reverb, which gives it
a “ playing the record backwards ”-feeling while on the
debut A. Death makes me believe he is exaggerating to
much while growling into the microphone. I t’ s a bit
over the top, almos t barking words if you will.
Bes ides that the s ongs were a bit too s implis tic like
“ Z ombie Pries t”. With “ Neurotic Necrotic” A. Death
tries me to convince me for the third time ( not
counting the “ Whorehous e Tales ” EP with covers of
Celtic Fros t and Mis fits ) . But als o this third
opportunity does n’ t go into my book of “ Old School
SweDeath Metal releas es : you have to hear thes e before
you die or s tarting to enj oy Job for a Cowboy” as the
27
s ound has been degraded to Demo-category and once Relics of Martyrs
again there is a kind of reverb on the vocals . The Scenes of Blood and Betrayal
guitar s ound is more muddy than fuz z y and the s ongs in Self-released
general lack aggres s ion and interes ting riffs . As you Relics of Martyrs has its roots in the land Jordan and
can read, not everything with the label “ Old School is active s ince 2 0 0 8 . Death/ thras h metal is the s tyle
SweDeath Metal” can get my approval. Although in they want to follow and with their – apparently a
general primitive riffs and ditto s ound can s till give concept album titled “ Scenes of Blood and Betrayal”,
me the s hivers , only not when the Putrified logo is the debut album this year is a fact. I haven’ t found
printed on it. ( Ricardo) any recordings about an earlier demo or s o, s o they
take a big gamble with throwing a full-length album in
Rattenfänger the s cene as appetiz er. Well, after lis tening to it
Epistolae Obscurorum Virorum I ’ m not that enthus ias tic about it. Okay, there are
Dark Essence Records s ome riffs in the album that are quite good, but
I ntrigued from the very firs t minute! Some members of generally s een I think this album needs more balls .
one of my favorite Black Metal bands , Drudkh, decided The vocals s witch between grunts and s creams ,
to make a Death Metal album. The top divis ion of the dis torted guitars are audible, the drums s ometimes
“ Ukraine Black Metal As s ociation” is pres ent on this have an oriental touch in it, but if you lis ten to the
one as the labels ( ex-) Hate Fores t, Blood of Kingu whole album, I had to conclude that it all s ounds
and As trofaes are flying all over the place! One could s omewhat average. The big fault in my opinion is the
expect s ome atmos pheric kind of Death Metal, but they bas s , becaus e they mus t give the bas s guitar a louder
decided to go traditional, plain and mos tly midtempo volume and let it take a bigger part in their s ongs .
Death Metal with lots of Doom parts . Still there are Adding more bas s in the mus ic will give their s ound
s ome keys are being us ed to create an atmos phere. I t’ s more dimens ion I gues s . To be hones t, there are not
not exactly the s ame, but the firs t two albums of that many bands from Jordan I gues s , and it’ s a good
Aeternus could create s uch atmos phere as well. For the firs t attempt, but for now it’ s j us t a band out of a
puris ts this is one fine album you don’ t really hear a doz en. One track s tands out in comparis on with the
lot thes e days . Mas termind Roman Saenko and co. mus t tracks and for me its “ Judas Between Us ”. Feel free to
have Hellhammer and Celtic Fros t in mind while give this releas e a try! ( Fredde)
compos ing thes e tracks . Hence the occas ionally “ Ugh! ”
in s ome of the Latin-written tracks . I do realiz e this Resurgency
is not for everyone due the mas s ivenes s , but if you False Enlightenment
enj oy s ome Hellhammer, Celtic Fros t, Winter ( mas s ive Hellthrasher Productions
Doom parts ) and Aeternus ( dark atmos phere) , Hellthras her Productions are having a good 2 0 1 2 , if
Rattenfänger can be an interes ting band for you to you as k me. Releas ing good albums from underground
follow. ( Ricardo) bands like Es carnium, Decaying, Ectovoid and this time
it’ s Greek Res urgency that enlightens me with s ome
Raventale good Old School Death Metal. This album is filled with
Transcendence references towards the 1 990 ’ s Dutch and American
BadMoodMan Music s cene. For example the s ong “ Ending the Beginning” and
Atmos pheric Black/ Doom metal from Ukraine. When the the title track has a huge Brutality riff in it during
words “ Black Metal” and “ Ukraine” are us ed in one their “ Screaming for Anguis h” days . With the firs t
s entence, I ’ m as curious as Family Guy’ s Quagmire when s olo of “ Hideous Premonition” the band is guilty as
he hears Lois it taking a bath. And that’ s very charged for the James Murphy influence during
curious for the ones who aren’ t familiar with Family Obituary’ s “ Caus e of Death” album. And j us t lis ten to
Guy. The atmos pheric black metal which made the the opening riff of “ Where Des pair Dominates ”…oh yes ,
Ukraine s cene s o unique is definitely pres ent, s till Gorefes t during the “ Mindlos s ” days with their
the “ Doom” part of Raventale creates a certain vibe “ Confes s ions of a Serial Killer” riff. Before you run
( riffs / leads ) that makes the whole album not typical to the dictionary to check if Res urgency is a s ynonym
Atmos pheric Black Metal in the vein of Drukh or for cheap-as s rip-off, I can as s ure you that it is all
Nokturnal Mortum. With “ Shine” Raventale kicks off played so full-hearted, that you rather think
with a more doom like compos ition ( riffs and grunt “ …. hey…nice! ” than “ well, that is j us t plain
vocals ) , where “ Room Winter” is a great atmos pheric Gorefes t”. Res urgency has delivered an interes ting
black metal track ( riffs and the typical black metal album filled with mind s ticking riffs , a haunting
vocals ) which is in the Ukraine s tyle. I f you are into atmos phere, good s olos and combining certain Old
both s tyles , Raventale could be interes ting for you as School Death Metal s cenes which makes “ Fals e
well. ( Ricardo) Enlightenment” a tempting whole. You can’ t go wrong
with this one. ( Ricardo)
Pyre
Ravenous Decease [EP]
Blood Harvest
“ AAAAARRRRGGGHHHHHHHHHH”…That’ s how Pyre
s tarts their death campaign with their
debut “ Ravenous Deceas e”. A very s imple
way to s tart an album, yet a very
effective one. The vocals are drenched
with the s tench of death, caus ing an
inhumane drift to s troll to the next
cemetery and feas t with the undead.
Really, it grabs you immediately if
you’ re into Old School Death Metal. So, I
j us t reviewed the firs t 5 s econds …Pyre
from Rus s ia plays Old School Death Metal
with quite a Swedis h s auce all over it,
completed with a ras ping impres s ion of
Martin van Drunen imitating L. G. Petrov
or Matti Kärki. The fas ter riffs along
with the drums have written “ Dis member” all over it, without s ounding like
a chees y knock-off. The riff driven track “ I ns anity” is my pers onal
favourite, as the main riff its elf is very memorable and the urge to pound
hard along with drummer Kannib Maledik is pres ent during the whole s ong. I
can imagine the drums kins are worn-out after this s ong. On “ Ravenous
Deceas e” the guys from Pyre are s howing a lot of potential as they are
able to create tracks that attract the lis tener from the firs t till the
las t s econd. Thes e guys are impres s ing the hell out of me! ( Ricardo)

28
 Revel in Flesh
Manifested Darkness
F. D. A. Rekotz
I f you chos e “ Revel in Fles h” as band name and have a
matching debut album called “ Deathevokation”, you
better not play any kind of Emo s cream s tuff! I f you
have read any other of my reviews , you probably be
s urpris ed when I s ay that I cons ider “ Deathevokation”
as a j us t above average album des pite of the fact it
is Swedis h Death Metal. Not bad, but the mid-tempo
riffs and s ongs are exchangeable and lack of memorable
s killed labor in my opinion. All the ingredients are
there, textbook s tuff. Still the vocals are more
s uited for US Death Metal than the Swedis h kind. The
guttural grunt is a bit too low; I rather expect thos e
typical Kärki or Petrov hoars e growl. I did hope
“ Manifes ted Darknes s ”, releas ed 1 3 months after the
debut, and had s ome progres s in thos e departments .
There are moments of improvement, like the main riff
of the title track its elf, only thos e improvements are
rare. It all s ounds a bit clinical and pale,
s trengthened by the drumcomputer like patterns . Maybe
my expectations are too high, or I have heard too much
Swedis h Death Metal the las t couple of months , but it
j us t mis s es “ s omething”. At the end, the Old School
Death Metal does n’ t match the s ame quality as the
beautiful artwork made by Cas tellano. Overall the
critics on Revel in Fles h are almos t beyond pos itive,
if I have to believe other publications . I mys elf
think it' s entertaining, but I ' ve heard better
concerning s ong compos ing the las t couple of years .
Unfortunately. ( Ricardo)
Revolting
Hymns of Ghastly Horror
F. D. A. Rekotz
The 4 th full-length within 4 years . I s Rogga Johans s on
with all his bands and proj ects even human? I f you
would s lit his throat. . . would there be blood s pilled
all over the place or would you hit an electronic fus e
and caus e malfunction? I f you are familiar with
Revolting, you already have a good idea about the
goods that are being delivered. Old School Death Metal
in the Swedis h vein and Horror bas ed lyrics and ditto
artwork. As with the previous releas es there are s ome
melodic guitar ideas in the later Dis member s tyle
( “ Prey to Katahdin”) , or Evocation during “ Dead Calm
Chaos ”…or Des ultory during “ Counting our Scars ”. All
this without s ounding anything like late At The Gates .
And ofcours e s traightforward death metal riffs which
made Unleas hed famous ( lis ten to the s tarting riff of
“ The Hatchet Murders ”) combined with Rogga’ s low
growl. A dis advantage of this album is the cons tant
us e of a “ howling” guitar during quite s ome tracks .
Completely us eles s and even annoying in my humble
opinion! Rogga even s tarts with it in “ Their Thoughts
can Kill! ”. Leave it or come up with a better lead. At
the end; decent album which meet the expectations ,
s till les s “ howling” guitars would increas e my
lis tening hours . ( Ricardo)
Sanctus
Music From Mars
Buried By Time and Dust
Sanctus was the obs cure NWOBHM band that was Marquis e
De Sade. On this album you will find the two demos
Sanctus recorded and two unreleas ed tracks from 1 98 3 .
Sanctus can bes t des cribed as Deep Purple goes occult
NWOBHM. And after almos t 3 0 years this s till s ounds
great for thos e who like this type of heavy metal with
progres s ive elements . The progres s ive elements are
coming mos tly from the keyboard. What I really do not
unders tand is why the track lis t is s o mes s ed up.
Lis tening to the whole album it s ounds more as one
piece, but this is not how it was s uppos ed to be.
Track 1 , 5 , 6 are from the 1 98 2 demo “ From Thy
Dis ciples ”; track 2 , 7 , 9 are from the 1 98 3 demo ' From
Gates Of Sorrow' while tracks 3 , 4 and 8 are unreleas ed
tracks from 1 98 3 . I j us t be s hort with this : this is
j us t a great releas e with a ugly cover that fits the
time period. I f a band releas es this kind of mus ic
nowadays it will experience the s ame thing as Sanctus
in the eighties : recognition an appreciation after
thirty years . ( Martin)
Satanic Threat
In to Hell
Hells Headbangers / Gloom Records
I received the album “ I n to Hell” from the hardcore
band Satanic Threat by members of Midnight ( 9) and
Nuns laughter from Cleveland, Ohio. They play a Satanic
tribute to 8 0 ' s hardcore and Minor Threat more
s pecifically. This albums was originally releas ed in
2 0 0 8 but now Hells Headbangers and Gloom Records have
collected the entire oeuvre from thes e guys , meaning
the 8 tracks from the original album and 8 live-tracks
recorded in their hometown Cleveland. By the way als o
the one and only gig they’ ve ever played. Becaus e of
its s ucces s , this re-is s ue couldn’ t s tay out… What can
you expect? Well, fas t paced s ongs , up tempo punkis h
drums and one hell of a s pecial voice. Without doubt a
good mix between Nuns laughter and Minor Threat, but
fans of bands like Uniform Choice and Youth of today
will als o dig this s tuff. Short s aid it’ s like I ’ ve
mentioned above, it’ s s ome kind of hardcore album, but
then with a devilis h outcome. Tracks as “ Guilty of
Hating Chris t”, “ Satanic Threat”, “ Small God, Big
Cros s ”, “ Curs ing at the Cros s ” ( one of my favorites )
and “ Don’ t follow him” underline their s tatement. I f
there’ s a God…well, then this album definitely is
dedicated to him! Good releas e, but I ’ ve to warn
you…if you lis ten to “ I n to Hell” s everal times in a
row, it los es its excitement in my opinion, so
carefully read the leaflet before us e. This one is
unique in its own way and I s urely dig it! ( Fredde)
Saturnus
Saturn In Ascension
Cyclone Empire
On that typical dooms pace thes e Danis h veterans in
melodic doom/ death have been working on their fourth
album. Over the years they have finally s aw the
recognition they always des erved. Six long years after
their ‘ Martyre’ -album ( 2 0 0 0 ) they managed to put the
band on the map definitively with their mos t maj es tic
work up to that point: ‘ Veronika Decides To Die’ . Not
only was this album the impuls e the band needed in
cas e not to drown in oblivion ( and great memories ) but
it als o came at the right point. The perfect z eitgeis t
s o to s ay, at this point the gothic-tinged melodic
doom/ death genre was the mos t booming and the album
hit the s cene as an ins tant hit with the opening s ong
as the s oundtrack of that era. I t was als o that time
when the band was able to play s ome s hows outs ide
Kopenhagen. But doom did s hine over the band, though
the album s hould’ ve opened doors to many pos s ibilities
the oppos ite happened. Bad luck and ques tionable
decis ions were made and the band was blown to bits and
pieces . Again the way back up had to be found and
again it took another s ix years before we s aw a new
Saturnus album. Something that we have clearly been
looking out for s o eagerly. Now we do have ‘ Saturn I n
As cens ion’ which is the firs t releas e for Germany
label Cyclone Empire, s o that means the firs t releas e
with a propper dis tribution ( and hopefully promotion) .
More changes are appearing in the line-up, as only
vocalis t Thomas AG Jens en and bas s is t Brian Hans en are
left of the clas s ic line-up, s o what can be expected?
After having heard the album a few times I can s ay
that fans can res t as s ured, the band didn’ t chance
that much mus ically ( at all) , but it did loos e s ome of
its initial glance to be hones t. Where the band us ed
to be really to the point and us ed all their mus ical
es pects to reach the highes t res ult pos s ible. They
s eem to be eas ily dis tracted and loos e focus which
res ults in s ongs that are overly long and lack
cohes ion. The bes t example is the third s ong ‘ A Lonely
Pas s age’ which is very much alike ‘ For My Demons ’ ( off
their 1 998 mini CD ‘ For The Loveles s Lonely Nights ’ )
but s uffers from s erious ly inferior lyrics ( “ I ’ m s o
tired…”) and the lack of propper s ongwriting. But
fortunately, there is much to feas t upon as well. Take
the maj es tic and catchy ‘ A Fathers Providence’ for
ins tance which is a clas s ic dancefloor tune ins tantly
and I ’ ll be damned if this would not end up as a
s tandard s ong on their s etlis ts . I t has all that’ s
typical Saturnus : heavy riffing, overly melodic piano
tunes and Thomas ’ trademark kind of wailing works bes t
at this s ong. Something that definitely needs to be
29
credited is the heavy and clear production of no-one
les s than legendary Flemming Ras mus s en ( know for his
works on albums like ‘ Ride The Lightning’ and ‘ Mas ter
of Puppets ’ and with bands like Morbid Angel,
Artillery and Blind Guardian) . He was able to give the
perfect balance in Saturnus ’ s ound, real heavy when
neces s ary but always with the focus on the details
which ends up in a rich and almos t organic s ound. I n
retros pect, when I happened to s ee one of the very
firs t s hows of the band right after the releas e of
‘ Veronika Decides To Die’ and s aw the band at its bes t
I s aw actually convinced they were up for s omething
much bigger. With their new album they have delivered
another great album of high quality gothic doom/ death
metal but it is not able to live up to the big
expections . I hoped they were able to take their own
blend of doom/ death metal to the next level, ins tead
of doing that they made a s tep s idewards and let s ome
of their peers , like Finnis h Swallow the Sun, pas s .
( Felix)
Sinful Eternity
Rituals for the Dead
Cvilminis
Why s tarting with a tormenting s ounds cape intro
clocking over 5 minutes ? Sure, more bands in the
Depres s ive/ Ambient Black Metal s cene are doing this ,
but what the deuce…Or the “ tormenting” part is the
clue here…Oh well, Depres s ive Black Metal from Hungary
this time, and it is a one-man proj ect as well. With
the “ gas ping for air”- Depres s ive Black Metal vocals
at the background of the mix, the atmos phere is quite
eerie. Ofcours e the keyboard atmos phere bits and
repeating riffs are pres ent as well, which are quite
common in this particular genre. Mus icwis e it’ s not
all bad, but not catchy either. Sinful Eternity is no
Coldworld, Anti, Deathrow or Elys ian Blaz e, it lacks
quality to recommend this to anyone who enj oys the mix
of Depres s ive and Ambient Black Metal. But I ’ m not the
bigges t fan of this genre becaus e of the many lo-fi
and mos tly therefore quality-lacking or decreas ing-
urge-to-lis ten releas es . I f you as k me, there are
better releas es in this genre, but if you are a fan
who likes to hear every releas e, feel free to give it
a try in your tape-deck. ( Ricardo)
Sinister
The Carnage Ending
Massacre Records
We Dutchmen are quite a s trange bunch to be hones t.
Where other people s upport their bands or local s cene
full hearted, the mos t of us are s ceptical towards our
own bands . They always have to give 1 1 0 % to convince
their own audience. Sinis ter is a good example of
this . One of the firs t bands who received quite s ome
notice acros s the s ea and I even remember that I s aw
an American movie with As phyx and Sinis ter s tickers on
the interior of a van. I ntentional or not, Sinis ter
was vis ible! But here in The Netherlands , big name or
not…you have to convince us every time again and
his tory does n’ t count. As s aid…a s trange bunch indeed.
The glory days of “ Cros s the Styx” and “ Diabolical
Summoning” are gone but las t original member left, Aad
Kloos terwaard, keeps the Sinis ter fire burning and
created the 6th album of the new millennium. I think
“ Afterburner” ( not the production) and “ The Silent
Howling” are decent albums , but I was n’ t quite fond of
their las t effort “ Legacy of As hes ”. Although it was
more back to the old Sinis ter s ound, it didn’ t grab me
as a whole. So, having s ome Dutch blood running
through my veins , I was a bit s ceptical towards “ The
Carnage Ending”. Having the whole current Abs urd
Univers e clan in Sinis ter and all the connections with
Aad’ s other bands like I nfinited Hate / Weapons to
Hunt and Supreme Pain, it’ s quite obvious thes e guys
don’ t have to introduce thems elves during the firs t
rehears al to create “ The Carnage Ending”. The mus ical
content of this album is n’ t s urpris ing, Death metal
with s ometimes s ome midtempo pas s ages in the American
vein. You will hear s ome Morbid Angel midtempo riffs
and s ome late 1 990 ’ s Malevolent Creation fas ter ones
along with the Death metal you were already familiar
with of Sinis ter. The vocal lines by Aad remembers me
of Scott Reigel on the firs t two albums of Brutality.
30
 Sorcery
Arrival at Six
Xtreem Music
And again, a res urrection by a
band who is cons idered as a
certain cult act becaus e of a
demo or album in the beginning
of the 1 990 s . Sorcery releas ed a
7 ” and the more known debut
“ Bloodchilling Tales ” and got
the nickname “ Laz ies t Band
Ever”. At the moment of releas e
not an album who got a lot of
recognition or notice becaus e of
the dis as trous deal with
Underground Records , but it
gained more publicity when it
was rereleas ed in mid-2 0 0 0 .
Adding the 1 4 lineup changes
during thos e years and you have
yours elf a painful beginning of
a career in Death Metal. After res tarting the band and two demos , Dave
Rotten of Xtreem Mus ic s igned them and claimed this is gonna be “ true
and pure Swedis h Death Metal. No imitations here. . . this is the real deal! ”. And I won’ t let you dwell in
des pair…it is ! Where the Purtenance “ Sacrifice the King” was a s light dis appointment, Xtreem Mus ic got even with
Sorcery. “ Arrival at Six” is without doubt a fine piece of Old School Swedis h Death Metal. The fierce s tart with
“ We Who Walk Among the Dead” is the perfect opener to celebrate the revival of the undead. I t has fas t parts , it
has a certain groove, midtempo part with a nice melody and Ola Malms tröm is like the King of Maggots and
everything Decompos ing with his filthy growl! The “ Dis member of the albums that got releas ed in 2 0 0 0 ”-vibe is
pres ent, but Skogs berg turned it up a notch with the mix of this album as the bas s is roaring like hell!
“ Arrival at Six” is more than a pleas ant comeback album. ( Ricardo)
No compromis es , plain Death metal! The bonus edition dogs . And here is their firs t EP containing only their
contains a s econd dis c with covers of Celtic Fros t, own originals , and it turns out Smas h Potator s till
Whiplas h, Mas s acre, Pos s es s ed and Bloodfeas t. “ The lacks a bit in the compos itional department to unleas h
Carnage Ending” does n’ t bring back the glory days , a fully convincing releas e. The boys can play, it all
s till this without doubt a s olid Death Metal album of s ounds dynamic, varied and es pecially the comical
which we Dutchmen can s ay “ …let us j us t enj oy this …”. cliché lyrics are hit and mis s all over in true
( Ricardo) cros s over tradition. As a whole, however, thes e guys
are not in the s ame league as thos e two other modern
Skinfather bands which they res emble mos t, namely Lich King and
Succession / Possession (7”) Municipal Was te. Nevertheles s quite an entertaining EP
Life and Death Records and es pecially the s elf-titled anthem Smas h Potater is
“ Skinfather. . . Larger than lies . . . Faithfucked here to s tay. ( I s aak)
believer. . . Us e your own eyes ! ”. I t’ s almos t impos s ible
not to connect Dis member with this American band, Sonne Adam
although choos ing a band moniker from a track of the Doctrines Of Dark Devotion [12”]
“ Mas s ive Killing Capacity” album would be more Imperium Productions
appropriate. Unfortunately Cas ket Garden was already BAM, in your face! ! Thes e new 1 2 ” EP of I s raeli Sonne
taken, s till Skinfather recorded the s ong as a cover. Adam is s ounding like it was recorded in England
Being des cribed as a Hardcore / Death Metal band, this s omewhere around 1 990 . This is how Paradis e Los t
has nothing to do with Deathcore, and to be hones t I s hould s ound and not that queerly pop s ounding s hit.
only hear s ome minor Hardcore influences in the But with this comparis on I do no right to what Sonne
vocals , as vocalis t Kurt Swens s on s ounds like a Adam pres ents on this album. They abs olutely have
hoars e Matti Kärki or L. G. Petrov who has been forced their own characteris tic s ound and way of comping
to grab the mic while having a cold. But if they tracks . Lis ten to the s ong with the s imply but damned
delete the “ hardcore” part in many publications , I right title ' The Day I Chos e to Rot' . This is pure
think no one would be us ing the term “ Hardcore” in any death doom you hardly hear thes e days . Another
way. That havin’ s aid, Skinfather plays the more mas terpiece is the las t track ' Olam Belehavoth' . I t
midtempo Swedis h Death Metal s tyle which can be heard s tarts with an hypnotis ing guitar riff and is pure
on the aforementioned “ Mas s ive Killing Capacity” and doom. But the lyrics of thes e track are fas cinating
Entombed’ s “ Wolverine Blues ”, but do play it les s ‘ n and obs cure biblical. I will follow his call. The
roll. Enj oyable? Sure. . . but for me it’ s all to groovy flames , a tes timony of glory. The temple remains on
to enj oy it for, let’ s s ay 60 minutes . Therefore I the blood-red s oil. Here he s tands before you, the
mis s too much of the fas ter parts or aggres s ivenes s bringer of death. I s rael and doom: a great combination
which the Dis member clas s ics “ Like an Everflowing and hopefully Sonne Adam will keep this eternal flame
Stream” or “ I ndecent and Obs cene” or Entombed’ s “ Left of death doom burning! ! ! ( Martin)
Hand Path” have. But that is pers onal, as thes e guys
do know how to play. I f you are into the groovy part Stranglion Rot
of the SweDeath s cene, you have to keep an eye on Rotten Heart of Evil
Skinfather! ( Ricardo) Fatal Judgement Records
Wow, didn’ t expect s uch an Old School Death Metal demo
Smash Potater s ound! Strangely enough, it is n’ t that pathetic as you
The EP [EP] would think. I t s ounds like a mix of Pos s es s ed’ s
Self-Released “ Seven Churches ” and Pes tilence’ s “ Malleus
Smas h Potater have been around s ince 2 0 1 0 and appeared Maleficarum”. Thin but nos talgic. Same goes for the
on my radar becaus e of an Exodus cover on their firs t mus ic its elf. Finnis h Stranglion Rot plays late 1 98 0 s
demo. Death Metal with a lot of thras h ideas . Some
A rather good and even fas ter vers ion vers ion with Pos s es s ed, Pes tilence and Death are among the
mediocre vocals comparable to the earlies t Lich King influences while the vocals are more in an early
releas es but nevertheles s very energetic performance Tiamat vein. On the other hand, a s ong like “ I mpaled”
by this young new band. On their next releas es , is j us t pure ‘ 8 0 s Thras h. Almos t like early Bathory.
bes ides their own original work, we could find more And s peaking of Bathory, I heard s ome “ s creaming”
covers of Tankard, M. O. D. and Suicidal Tendencies and s olos which gave a Bathory vibe as well. Res pons ible
s o it may be clear what' s ins piring thes e young for this ancient and outdated document is the unknown

31
 Thou Shalt Suffer
Into The Woods Of Belial
The Crypt
An es s ential part of the
Norwegian death metal
his tory is pres ented by
The Crypt. Thou Shalt
Suffer was one of the
firs t death metal bands
from Norway with I s hahn
and Samoth which became
well known with Emperor.
On this 2 -LP you get the
complete dis cography of
this band but not the
ambient album “ Somnium”.
This album is more a s olo proj ect of I s hahn and in my opinion has
mus ically nothing to do with the early material of TSS. I t s tarts with
the great demo “ I nto The Woods Of Belial”. Till today this s till has
that magical, bombas tic s ound. And if you want, you can hear s ome
typical riffs and arrangements that you can als o find on the early
Emperor recordings . After that you can enj oy the “ Open the Mys teries Of
Your Creation” EP. With thes e two recordings you have the important recordings of TSS. Als o added to this vinyl
releas e is the rehears al demo of “ I nto The Woods Of Belial”. For a rehears al it has more then a decent s ound. As
extra you als o find the rehears al “ Succumb To Ves tigia Terrent” rehears al and an pre-TSS rehears al from the band
Embryonic. And you know what the mos t interes ting part of all thes e recording are? I t was all recorded in 1 991 .
I n 1 997 this album was releas ed on CD by Samoth' s label Nocturnal Art and at that point this band was already
his tory, s ince Emperor became the black metal band of the nineties . ( Martin)
artis t Hietala, who is res pons ible for every mus ical a res ult it’ s more s hredding. Keep an eye on the
note on this debut as well as the whole decorative graveyards in your neighbourhood, their lus t will be
package. I t’ s fun to be s urpris ed and wander towards fulfilled…( Ricardo)
the era of which this mus ic and s ound was common.
Unfortunately when the s urpris e is gone I would rather Tormented
hear Bathory’ s “ Sacrifice” or Pes tilence “ Paras ite”, Death Awaits
which have a higher level than a track of “ Rotten Listenable Records
Heart of Evil”. Still, at the end I would like to Yes indeedio, I enj oyed the previous recording, the
s hake hands with Hietala and s how him my appreciation “ Graveyard Lus t” EP, a lot. Without the urge of being
for his attitude to releas e s omething old s chool with laz y, I could have eas ily copy and pas te that review
s uch s ound nowadays . ( Ricardo) for their s econd full length. I mprovement as mus icians
s o they are able to create s omething innovative and
Terrormight progres s ive? Maybe, but I ‘ m glad that they are not
A Moment [EP] s howing it on a Tormented dis c. Creating high quality
Show No Mercy Records Old School Swedis h Death Metal? Hell yeah! The s tench
Strange…a more modern s ounding Melodic Death Metal is coming at ya after the firs t riff of the track
album, yet I ’ m intrigued. Something that does n’ t occur “ Death Awaits ” which is evolving in a more midtempo
a lot within this genre as a lot of bands don’ t groovy track towards the end. Same goes with the
deliver the mus ical quality of the Melodic Death Metal Autops y minded “ To Spill her Blood”. 6 Minutes of mid
s cene back in the 1 990 s . The fact that I ’ m intrigued tempo riffs which aren’ t s pectacular, but very
probably has s omething to do with this Korean band effective. Als o the lyrics are made for the category
playing their Melodic Death Metal without any s creams “ s creamin’ along with your colleagues at work”, I
or –core like blending. A bit Swedis h in the late mean…”All I want is …To tear your fles h…to eat your
1 990 s ( Dark Tranquillity’ s “ Proj ector” or I n Flames s kin…to lick your bones ! ” is created for a growling
“ Whoracle”, but not really exact copies , let’ s s ay cleaning lady. Tormented is not betting on one hors e
influenced) , combined with lot of ( twin) guitar leads as “ Blood Orgy” is a fas t one and las ting for only 2
and a growl. I t gives me a I ntes tine Baalis m’ s and a half minutes . Funny is the homage towards
“ Banquet in Darknes s ” flas hback at s ome moments . Slayer’ s mas terpiece “ Chemical Warfare” in the track
Terrormight does n’ t match any of the bands or albums I “ Funeral Fire”. The vocal line and main riff during
mentioned, s till the s ongs are interes ting enough to the chorus are unmis takably 95 % the s ame. But I can’ t
make me want to follow the s teps of this band. A s ay it annoys me for one s econd. “ Death Awaits ” turned
s light critical remark would be the “ lead/ riff- out to be a very good album for any Old School Death
recycling” during the track “ A Moment”. Sometimes it’ s Metal fan out there who like their s ickened choice of
better to play a certain lead two times in a row mus ic authentic and crunchy. ( Ricardo)
ins tead of four times , j us t to keep the s ong flowing.
Still, I almos t deleted the remark caus e the s ong has Torture Killer
quite a fas t Dave Mus taine s olo at the end! Which is Phobia
always a treat and made me almos t forgot my critical Dynamic Arts Records
remark…almos t… ( Ricardo) Till the releas e of “ Phobia” I cons ider “ Swarm! ” as
Torture Killer’ s fines t hour. Not entirely becaus e of
Tormented the fact of the addiction of Chris Barnes ’ vokills ,
Graveyard Lust [EP] but more becaus e of the s light doomy UK s cene
War Anthem Records influences in a couple of s ongs . The leads in s ongs
After the debut full length “ Rotten Death” and the like “ Multiple Counts of Murder” and “ Forever Dead”
s plit with Bombs of Hades , Sweden’ s Tormented are back are giving that album an extra edge. After “ Swarm! ”
again with s ome filthy Old School Death Metal. As with this mid-tempo Death Metal combo releas ed “ Sewers ” and
their debut, Tormented is a fis t s traight in the face the EP “ I Chos e Death”, but didn’ t match “ Swarm! ”.
due the groove of Autops y and the filthines s of Death Another attempt with “ Phobia”…One thing is certain;
Breath. The ravis hing vocals of Dread ( ex-I nfes tead Torture Killer remains Torture Killer. The typical Six
( Des ecration of Chris t! ) and ex-Marduk ( the great Feet Under and Obituary groove ( es pecially the Allen
“ Dark Endles s ” album for example) ) fits perfectly and Wes t riffs ) are flying all over the place ( “ March of
guides the reek of decay pres ented on “ Graveyard Death”) and will pleas e the fans they already have.
Lus t”. I t evens s eems that the production is more Unfortunately the leads of “ Swarm! ” aren’ t pres ent on
obs cure than on their debut, as the guitars are more “ Phobia”. Torture Killer is all about Groovy Death
fuz z y and Dread’ s vocals s eems like he does the s ame Metal in the Six Feet Under / Obituary way and
on the debut, only this time with a little reverb. As probably wouldn’ t gain new fans who already know the

32
band. I f it is their s trength or weaknes s , that’ s up s ome Agnos tic Front or Blood for Blood than Unburied.
to you. ( Ricardo) Still, there are s ome 1 0 0 % Death Metal tracks on this
album like “ The Kidnapper” which is in the Cannibal
Toxic Holocaust Corps e ( fas t parts ) and Six Feet Under ( s lower parts )
From the Ashes of Nuclear Destruction vein. Although the artwork is top notch, the mus ic on
Relapse Records this dis c is dis appointing. ( Ricardo)
After the firs t compilation album from Toxic Holocaus t
titled “ Toxic Thras h Metal” in 2004 where the Vistery
tracklis t cons is ted out of s ome cover s ongs , now in Sinister Prophecy
2 0 1 3 the s econd compilation album from Joel Grind ( the Satanath Records
brain and inventor of Toxic Holocaus t) is a fact. Only After releas ing the debut “ Procreation of the Wicked”
now the tracklis t is filled with s ongs from TH its elf, in 2 0 1 1 , Alexey Kiz illo from Belarus only took a year
more precis ely from the full length albums “ Hell on to haunt human kind with a follow-up called “ Sinis ter
Earth”, “ An Overdos e of Death”, “ Evil Never Dies ” Prophecy”. With s uch a debut album title, you would
( where only 1 s ong is taken from titled “ 666”) and the expect s ome Celtic Fros t influenced s tuff. To make it
las t full album “ Conj ure and Command”. Twenty-two clear, according to mr. Kiz illo, Vis tery is influenced
tracks are audible, s o along with material from the by bands like Obituary, Cannibal Corps e and Six Feet
full lengths , als o s tuff from s ingles as “ Death Under, s o you can expect American 1 990 s Death Metal.
Mas ter”, “ Reaper’ s Grave” and “ Gravelord”, the s econd The Cannibal Corps e and Six Feet Under hints can be
demo from the band titled “ Critical Mas s ” and the found, but don’ t expect any catchy riffs or s ongs like
s plitalbums “ Don’ t burn the Witch…”, “ Outbreak of “ Skull Full of Maggots ”, “ Lycanthropy”, “ The Enemy
Evil” and the great EP “ Toxic Was te” ( created with I ns ide” or “ Addicted to Vaginal Skin”. I t’ s a bit too
Municipal Was te) is being us ed. Only “ A. T. O. M. I . C. ” generic to get all craz y about it as the riffs and
( here the vocals are more polis hed and don’ t s ound raw leads are s implis tic. At the end, nothing s ticks . A
unfortunately) is a very rare track becaus e that s ong typical album which I cons ider as an average one
comes from the Japanes e benefit album ( with the band becaus e of the fact I have heard it s o many times
Midnight) for the Red Cros s relief fund releas ed in before and more important: I ’ ve heard it a lot better.
2 0 1 1 . Overall s een, this compilation album is a very ( Ricardo)
great collection of 1 0 years ’ worth of Toxic Holocaus t
along with s ome rarities that where only available on Vulvectomy
vinyl. Two s ongs don’ t really cheer me up becaus e of Abusing Dismembered Beauties
its lack of quality and thos e are the ones taken from Sevared Records
the “ Reaper’ s Grave” s ingle titled “ Reaper’ s Grave” After their genial debut album “ Putres cent Clitoral
its elf and “ Death Brings Death”. For the res t, if you Fermentation” and the s omewhat les s album “ Pos t-
haven’ t heard mus ic from Toxic Holocaus t before, this Abortion Slut Fuck”, the I talians from Vulvectomy re-
is THE way to get to know this band. Big fans als o can entered the s tudio to plug their ins truments into the
buy this with their eyes clos ed, but they don’ t have s ys tem, place their fingers in pos ition and created a
to expect s omething they haven’ t heard before I gues s … true orgy of s icknes s with as outcome “ Abus ing
But it’ s a fine appetiz er before they releas e a new Dis membered Beauties ”. Thems elves call this album the
full length album! And the s ooner the better if I third chapter of s icknes s that contains 8 tracks of
could decide ( Fredde) pathological s lamming brutal death metal and they
s tate that a new vaginal bloodbath is ready for all of
Unburied you. And I totally agree with that s tatement, becaus e
Murder 101 after lis tening to this releas e, you can count on it
Selfmadegod Records that you will be blown away and you’ ll have a s mall
Mark Riddick has a wonderful 2 0 1 2 if you as k me. A lot feeling of naus ea afterwards ! I magine a room full of
of artwork j obs , the releas e of a book with artwork, gorgeous ladies , give them s ome ‘ medication’ s o their
galleries and when we look at mus ic you can mark the s ys tem gets fucked up, rip off their clothes and open
releas es of Macabra, Fetid Z ombie and Unburied. But to your toolbox to find your inner creation and then make
come clean right at the beginning, Unburied will never an album about this event. And s o Vulvectomy did, they
be the highlight of that s ummary. Des pite the “ Old s las hed and explored the fragile corps es and came up
School Death Metal to the bone”-attitude and tag, with tracks as “ Split-thickened vulvar s kin”,
Unburied have huge Hardcore drumrolls or riffs in it. “ Az oos permic I nfertility”, “ Deformed Tits Collection”
The vocals of Matt Pike are Hardcore-hoars e as well to and “ Orgas mic Sens ation Through Fecal I nges tion”. Fans
give s trengthen it. Nothing wrong with Hardcore, but from the band Cephalotrips y and lovers of brutal death
if I would like to lis ten to it, I would rather put on metal with a gore, s ick and dis gus ting twis t will have
Tribulation
The Formulas of Death
Invictus Productions
As Suicidal
Tendencies ’ Mike Muir
once s aid…”What the
Hell is going on
around here? ”. My
point exactly! The
highly acclaimed
predeces s or “ The
Horror” was filled
with cunning and
s traightforward Old
School Death Metal,
while “ The Formulas of
Death” has all kind of
( extreme) influences .
Be it ps ychedelic,
progres s ive, oriental,
Death Metal, Black Metal, Jaz z …but all in a s inis ter package with
“ Darknes s ” written all over it. What a s tartling album! I nteres ting
riffs and unexpected s werves within the s ongs which makes it an extraordinary j ourney. I was really caught by
s urpris e, es pecially due the fact I ’ m no fan of progres s ive acts like Opeth. The album is divers e with all thos e
influences , pace changes , riffs , leads and multiple layers . An intermez z o like the 4 th track ( “ Leila”, written
in Hebrew) gives the album the las t pus h towards “ divers ity”. Except for the ins trumental tracks , all s ongs are
between 6 and 1 3 minutes and of cons tant high level. Progres s ive Extreme Metal without being experimental or
avant-garde. Really an album you have to hear ins tead of reading about it. ( Ricardo)

33
a good time with this one! Not for people that are
Zombiefication
agains t mis ogynis tic content haha ( Fredde)
Reaper’ s Consecration [EP]
Chaos Records
Weapons to Hunt What the hell do you get if you have Dis member’ s
Blessed in Sin “ I ndecent & Obs cene” or Carnage’ s “ Recollections ” in
Vic Records one hand and Ques adillas in the other while s creamin’
I n 2 0 0 8 the Dutch old-s chool death/ thras h metal band
“ " ¡ Ándale! ¡ Ándale! ¡ Arriba! ¡ Arriba! " on the rhythm
I nfinited Hate changed their band name into Weapons to
of Entombed’ s “ Drowned”? What, to many s tereotypes ?
Hunt. While already have releas ed three full-length
Still, you get Swedis h Death Metal from Mexico
albums titled “ Revel in Bloods hed”, “ Heaven
pres ented by the grues ome twos ome, Mr. Hitch and Mr.
Termination” and “ Orches tra of Sicknes s ” under the old
Jacko, of Z ombiefication. Their debut “ Midnight
band name, now in November 2 0 1 2 they’ ll releas e a new
Stench” received s olid yet above average critics where
creation titled “ Bles s ed in Sin” As they probably
the fans of the genre des cribed the releas e as s olid
thought by thems elves : a new s tart begins with a new
and the ones who are looking for s omething
album. Well, this album is created by members who had
“ refres hing” cons ider it above average. Let’ s j us t s ay
or have a part in the Dutch metal band Sinis ter, which
that you can expect the s ame with “ Reaper’ s
is a good band in my opinion, s o I thought to mys elf,
Cons ecration”, as the core of their mus ical anguis h
what can go wrong with this album? And my s ens es were
remained unchanged. I t is the s ame SweDeath Metal with
right, “ Bles s ed in Sin” is a s tunning album! The rough
all the d-beat elements , crus hing guitars and ditto
voice from Aad Kloos terwaard is amaz ing and fits
production we all know s o well. Slight difference with
perfectly with the tracks on this album. All s ongs are
the debut, is the more uptempo attitude during the
a true hurricane and the high level never fades away.
s ongs where “ Midnight Stench” has more s lower riffs .
Great tempo changes are to be dis covered into track as
As with their debut, Z ombiefication did fail a bit to
“ The Smell of Victory” and Fals e Pos itive Sys tem”. The
capture my full attention without really knowing why
riffs from both drums ( from Paul Beltman) and guitars
mys elf. The feeling that things could be better qua
are a red line in this whole album and are executed in
catchy riffs and tempo changes will haunt my mind
fas t tempo, s ometimes filled with s ome melodic
while attentively lis tening to this record. Somehow it
elements in it ( “ Corps e Field” and “ Merciles s
is regrettable, on the other hand, I look forward to
I mpact”) . About the drums they are planning to have
the next through blood and intes tines draped mus ical
different s es s ion drummers on each albums they’ ll
debauchery of this s laughtering duo, whether they can
create in the future, but who knows , they might s tep
rival the Swedis h mas ters of s ordid death metal.
off this thought, becaus e the drums on this one are
( Ricardo)
awes ome! Straight forward and intens e death/ thras h
metal it is , where few experiments s uch as the clean
voice in track “ Merciles s I mpact” and the s creeching
guitar s olos in “ The Hell Room” are found. This one
definitely blow me away, s o check this one out!
( Fredde)

34
Funeral Whore is ways…
Roy: Crowd,
created with the organization, the
intention to make German mentality
death metal, the cannot be compared
traditional way. with Holland. The
Germans are
Old school death masters in what
metal, the way it they are doing in
supposed to be. death
everything
metal,
And to be honest, included. Could be
with such band an example for the
moniker you guys up here.
probably don' t What would you say
expect anything are your biggest
progressive, do influences?
you? After a good Roy: Early osdm
masters like
and organic live Dismember, Grave
performance I etc. The
bought their fascinating
debut album at brutality of life
itself also
their merchandise contributes during
stand which the writing of songs.
impressed me. Kellie and Roy had some Is there a certain concept behind your lyrics? Most
spare time to answer some songs seem to deal with death (logically) .
questions. (Stij n) Roy: The lyrics that I write are grotesque, realistic
and easy to understand for everybody. Who’ s waiting
For people who don' t know Funeral Whore yet, could you for extremely difficult high standard philosophies in
give us a short summary of the band' s history? death metal?
Kellie: We are a highly fanatic Old School Death Metal
band from the Netherlands. We play music like Grave, You seem to be quite critical of the more commercial
Asphyx and Entombed. . . We' ve released our debut album side of metal. Who or what annoys you the most?
" Step into Damnation" worldwide through Chaos Records Kellie: I j ust like the underground scene! ! !
Mexico in February 2 012 . We' re now searching for the Roy: I dislike a lot in the commercial movement.
big stages in- and outdoor all across Europe to spread
our music. Until now, the debut is received extremely Is there a difference between the reviews and
well in the scene. We have shared the stage for appreciation you receive in the Netherlands and in
example with Master, Houwitser, Six Feet Under, Hail other countries? How are most reactions?
of Bullets and numerous underground death metal bands. Kellie: No difference I think, I don’ t look at it in
In Germany we have played for example with Sadistic that way… The most reactions/reviews are great! ! !
Intent, Venenum, Escarnium, Burial Invocation,
Deathronation, Lifeless, Obscure Infinity, Sufferage, I read something about a split release with Obscure
Diabolical Imperium. Infinity from Germany, when can we expect this?
Roy: We are very busy in writing new songs for the 2 nd Kellie: I don’ t know when, first we’ re busy with our
album. We have much confidence in our new bassplayer new album… But yes, this split will be released! !
Robin, who reinforced the Funeral Whore death squad. Roy: Since our contacts grow we want to bring out
The next album will be skullcrushing! splits with all our brothers. This will happen in the
future, you can count on that.
How did you get in touch with Chaos Records?
Kellie: We were searching for a label to release a The full length " Step Into Damnation" contains some
split with an other band. Victor ( from Chaos Records) older demo songs, how is the writing of new material
sent us a contract almost immediately, but not for the coming along?
split we asked him for. He was really enthusiastic Roy: Excellent! The few points of critique are being
about our music and gave us a good deal! ! ! brought to attention to check if we make some
correction or if some points need to be changed. On
Are you satisfied with ' Step Into Damnation' ? And why our album for example, there are rarely mid tempo
(not) ? tracks. On the next asskicker there will be much more
Kellie: We’ re happy with the album, ofcourse there are diversity, without losing the typical Funeral Whore
always things to say about it, but we aren’ t aggression.
complaining.
Roy: Indeed, for a 2 day recording session it sounds How do you see the long term future for Funeral Whore?
brutally awesome, certainly if you keep in mind that Kellie: We hope to do European Tours and also do tours
this was our first time recording a full length album. outside of Europe! We want to play brutal shows on
festivals all over the world! We want to spread our
music everywhere! ! !
" Who’ s waiting for Roy: Man, we got so many shows to play and roads to
hit. . .
extremely difficult high
standard philosophies in Anything else you would like to add?
Kellie: Thanks for the support and this interview!
Death Metal?" Check us on www. facebook. com/FW. OldSchoolDeathMetal.
If you want to book us, buy our merchandise or j ust
get in contact with us you can send an e-mail to:
You play in Germany quite often, do you arrange those funeral_whore@ hotmail. com. Hope to see all of you in
shows yourself, or do you have a lot of contacts front of the stage or/and at the bar to drink a beer
there? with us!
Kellie: Yes, Germany is awesome to play a lot of Roy: Thanks for the interview. Hope to see you in the
shows! ! ! We’ ve a lot of contacts but I’ m also always pit, supporting osdm!
busy with arranging shows. So I think it’ s from both

35

Under the Guillotine… Urghh, sorry, no that was
Kreator’ s song… Under the Church – here is the
name of one of the best and most impressive
death metal bands around in Sweden these days.
For sure they’ ve impressed me A LOT with their
debut demo – j ust read my review on this blog
and you’ ll see exactly what I loved about them.
Obviously the fact that Under the Church has
some ex Nirvana 2002 members was one of the
maj or factors, which ignited the interest, but
even if they weren’ t and were more anonymous
musicians, I would still love this music… as it
is simply KILLER. Please read my interview with
Erik Qvick (drums) and Lars Henriksson (bass)
and support the band. I am now waiting for
their vinyl release, which is supposed to be
unleashed through Blood Harvest. 666! (Marcin)
Welcome Erik! I guess I should start with the
beginning, but I don’ t wanna ask you about the whole
history of Nirvana 2002, etc, because there’ s no point
in doing so. If I can only ask what did you feel, when
you played live with N2002 so many years after the
split up of this band? Would you ever expect that to
happen, after so many years?
Well, not really. When Daniel Ekeroth’ s book was
released we were asked to play at that release party
and that was actually the first gig we ever played. We
couldn’ t really say no to that gig, it was a
historical thing that we had to do. Shortly after that
Relapse contacted us again and wanted to do the
compilation album.
very, very good. . . There was of course the occasional
issue with the Nirvana name but otherwise great
response.
Nirvana 2002 certainly is considered as cult, classic
Swedish death metal band. How does it feel that
something you did as a youngster, something maybe not
completely serious back then, has gained such a
status? Would you ever expect that to happen and that
your songs will survive so many years and will be
cherished like a treasure 20 years later?
Of course it’ s great that something that we did so
long ago still is valid, but we never expected the
music to live on for such a long time.
You started a new band recently, Under the Church. I
must say that I feel a respect for you, that you’ re
not doing a demo under the Nirvana 2002 name, but
started something completely new… You know, it would
be damn easy to j ust do a couple of songs and call
them a new Nirvana 2002 demo. So, tell me why have you
decided to do it this way? And when this idea to do
Under the Church started?
Well, that’ s an easy one, it’ s because this is a new
band and we wanted to start from scratch, it would be
the easy way out to call ourselves N2 002 but that was
never ever an option, it would' ve been wrong on so
many levels to do that, we started to come up with new
ideas and songs in the summer of 2 012 and soon we had
a lot of new material, we had around ten tunes that we
worked on but we settled on these seven that we wanted
to finish for the first release.

" . . . it’ s because this is a new

band and we wanted to start
from scratch, it would be the
easy way out to call ourselves
Nirvana 2002 but that was never
ever an option, it would' ve
been wrong on so many levels to
do that"
How many gigs have you actually played after the
reunion of Nirvana 2002? How was the feedback on them
and especially when Relapse released the compilation
of the demos? I guess this was a good way to pay
tribute to this band but maybe also to bury it for
good, right? Finally I must say releasing a
compilation was more than killer decision, as those
old demos of yours were damn impossible to get
anywhere! What is the aim of Under the Church? I mean obviously
OK, it wasn’ t really a reunion. . . it was much more you wrote me it is a fun proj ect, mainly, but the
like a one off thing with the release party for things go quite fast and the feedback is enormous for
Daniel’ s book. We managed to squeeze out 5 gigs with it… I bet there will be many labels, which will start
N2 002 before we put the corpse back in the coffin. All fighting for Under the Church to have you in their
the gigs with N2 002 were a lot fun but each under very roster, because of the past, but also because the demo
different circumstances, the response was overall you released is so damn awesome… So, can it still be

36
treated as a fun proj ect or do you think Under the
Church will actually go further now and the full
length LP is also possible?
There wasn' t much planning or thought behind the band
at first, we j ust starting writing songs and it came
out this way. At the moment we are gearing up for a
12 " vinyl release on the Swedish label Blood Harvest
Records, it will be seven tunes of raw death metal
and then there is a lot of things happening in the
nearest future, possibly a full length early next
year.
You and Lars came up with three song demo… and well, I
feel like this is j ust an extremely good, old styled
death metal. I really like the feeling of this music,
the production, excellent riffs… Tell me, what was it
like to compose some new death metal tunes so many
years since you did that the last time? I understand
they are the first death metal songs you both wrote
since the early 90’ s?
Writing death metal has never been a problem for us
since we don’ t really know how to write anything
else. . . The first 10-12 tunes came naturally, so the
Writers Block should kick in soon we guess.
Was it easy for you to capture the feeling of
traditional death metal for you? For me your music
sounds very naturally and when I hear these songs I
have the same impression like when I listened to bands
like Death Breath, Maim or Bastard Priest, if you know
them at all… It is j ust something almost impossible to
describe… great music with amazing mood of old horror
movies… You know, “Haunted by Demons” is a possessing
song!
We don’ t really see it as traditional death metal or
" old school" , it’ s death metal, plain and simple as
that. " Haunted by Demons" turned out really well,
maybe we' re contradicting ourselves since that song is
”homage" in some ways. . . but let’ s j ust leave it at
that.
I think that musically Under the Church is a bit
different to Nirvana 2002; it is maybe more obscure
and filthy and more influenced by the old Autopsy,
Repulsion and such bands, plus it obviously also has a
strong dose of the crust / punk music. What would you
say are the most significant differences between both
bands?
Probably we still have the same influences as back
when we had N2 002 but maybe now they are a bit more
obvious? We think that there isn’ t really a difference
when it comes to the music since we write the same way
as we did back then, we j ust write tunes that we think
sound good. If anything we' re happy if
Under The Church doesn' t sound like
N2 002 since it' s a new band and riding
coattails isn' t really our thing.
S ure, I certainly think that Under the
Church doesn’ t sound like N2002, surely
not. Ha, I bet that releasing the demo
on a cassette, with simple, Xeroxed
cover and old type writer texts was
totally intentional! And it is so cool…
What was the purpose of doing so? A
pure nostalgia or it is j ust the only
way that the demos should be released –
on cassettes, not on CDr?
Well, it was less problems and more fun
doing a cassette than a proper CD, also
the format of a three track demo is
perfect. . . Also being broke made the
cover turned out the way it did, haha!
Hehe, I like it anyway! Mik Annetts did
the vocals on the demo and did them
really well… I’ ve never heard about the
dude and his previous activities, so
can you introduce the man a little? As
far as I know he’ s Australian, but he
played in some Icelandic bands before,
right?
Mik is from Australia and moved to
Iceland a few years ago, he was a part
of the early Aussie death metal scene.
I met him a few years ago and we decided to try him
out for the demo, he' s a really cool guy and he did
sing in some local band here in Reykj avik for
awhile. . . We j ust ran through the tunes 2 times in the
studio but the versions on the demo are all 1st takes,
he' s that good.
What is Under the Church up to next? You reside in
Reykj avik, if I’ m not mistaken, while Lars is still in
Sweden, so how usually the whole songwriting and
everything does look like? I guess it is not too
difficult to make the distant proj ects, thanks to the
internet and all the communication possibilities we
have nowadays, right?
These days it’ s not a problem having a band in two
different continents, we send song ideas back and
forth until we have written something that we are
satisfied with. We have something like 12 tunes almost
ready for the next recording so we' re quite efficient
these days.
I have no doubts that Daniel Ekeroth’ s music ignited
the whole interest in the old school Swedish death
metal. I wonder what do you think of this book and
what was it like when you played with Nirvana2002 on
the release party of “Swedish Death Metal”?
The book is really good and it did spark a lot of
interest at the time it came out and it was great
playing at the release party but I don' t think it was
the only reason that " old" death metal came back in
style. Since it was the first time that we played live
as N2 002 it was not like a reunion in that sense since
we never got the chance to play live when the band was
active, maybe that’ s the difference from N2 002 and
other bands from the same era. We didn’ t see it as a
reunion or a comeback thing when we played at the book
party, we j ust had to play in order to get to the
party ha, ha!
Do you listen to any of the new old styled death metal
bands at all, have any of them impressed you? I wonder
how much are you interested in the current death metal
underground; do you get a chance to listen to some of
these new demos and albums, do you maybe collect some
vinyls or CDs, or maybe it’ s actually the opposite and
in your every day you usually listen to something
completely different?
As far as death metal goes we pretty much listen to
the same stuff as in 1989, we don’ t really keep track
on what’ s hip these days, Autopsy still sounds killer
and the new Darkthrone is great, Tormented and Bombs
Of Hades are good and then Peter Stj ärnvind’ s new band
Black Trip is cool.
And finally, did you have the
chance to see live and hear new
albums from Autopsy already?!
We saw Autopsy at Maryland
Deathfest and they delivered the
goods alright! I haven’ t heard
the latest Autopsy but that one
track that Peaceville put up, but
it sounded really good.
Can I also ask how did it happen
you live in Iceland? I mean I
thought you’ re still in Sweden,
but meanwhile my tape came from
Iceland, so I suppose this is
where you live at the moment?
I moved there to work at the
music conservatory as a teacher
in 2 000 but Sweden is almost
always on my mind, especially the
months from September to May!
haha!
OK that would be all Erik, thanks
for your answers and all the best
for you and your band! ! ! !
We wanna thank you for taking
your time to do this interview
and your interest in our band,
expect more raw death metal from
us very soon.
37
All of a sudden I hear a track than got my
attention right away, from the very first
second, the very first riff. . . It was the track
" Earthfast" of Borkr' s debut album " Ambter" .
An album which is in the vein of the mighty
Drudkh which is enough to get the label
" interesting" in my book. At least I have to
check it out. If it is original or not, is an
item the purists will have on the online
messageboards. Frankly, I couldn' t care less,
I present thee the one-man proj ect
Borkr. . . (Ricardo)
Borkr started in 2 008, with the unpublished demo album “The
Autumnal”. I recorded several tracks of instrumental black
metal as the cold late autumn wind blew into my window,
very largely improvised, each of them features only one
guitar track recorded only one time. I planned to release
it back then but since it’ s a bit too rough and monotonous
later I decided to keep it all myself. Then I went back to
ËDÏËH and some other proj ects. In summer 2 011, shortly
after the recording of a new ËDÏËH album, I suddenly felt I
could record something more as the first formal Borkr album
to explore monotonous and raw metal with the strict theme
of nature. Yeah, the name is from the Old Norse word for
“Tree Bark”. It represents the nature aspect of the band
and also the wooden personality of both the hue of sound
and myself. I choose the old norse translation simply to
follow the trend ( every black metal band wants a “KVLT”
norsk name and I don’ t want to spoil the fun) so to speak.
And I like the spelling of the word. No real norsk cultural
worship here though.
And then " Amber" got released. Any interesting stories to
tell about the whole writing and recording process?
Nothing really interesting. I j ust have one or two main
motives to guide the rest guitar parts. There was few well-
prepared song writing and the recording of Amber was pretty
fast considering most of the album were improvised during
the recording. I recorded it, mixed it all by myself at my
“studio”, which I call " The Fantom Playground" . I think it
holds the moment of my feelings as I look back and I won’ t
comment on the quality of songs as long as they speak the
truth. Productionwise I’ m not very satisfied with the
result but I cannot improve it much anyway since I have
little skills, nor equipments of good quality or a
relatively professional environment. But it’ s ok for me and
generally it suits with the atmosphere of the songs I’ d
say. Speak of the artwork, it was a piece of landscape not
far from my place ( now completely destroyed by the loud and
modern humanity of our time) and I’ ve got inspirations from
it. As for reactions, they are positive overall not without
some split views about it either being amazing or
monotonous and criticisms regarding being unoriginal and
unfortunately, many less-musically oriented comments of
racial/political prej udices. The lyrics are about nature,
seasons, time, metaphors of nature and abstract feelings
inspired by nature. Nothing special. I think the most
important things here are the song title and the sounds ( I
hate the word MUSIC) . Lyrics are further explanations of
the title and sounds. I never write lyrics to fit the
sounds, I write them simply to explain things you don’ t get
from the titles/sounds. Lyrics are serious written only
for their contents but I don’ t care at all if they are fit
for a certain song to sing along with and they were not
well written to adapt to the song structures. So they are
not as important and they are not really supposed to guide
the sounds really. I don’ t really enj oy singing anyway. But
I managed them in most of my works for those who care.
" Yeah I guess you can even
say it’ s a Drudkh copycat
and I won’ t mind at all. I
may already displayed so many
Drudkh elements here and I
didn’ t mean to hide them from
the beginning. "
If I may be so blunt, the resemblances with Drudkh are
quite noticeable. From the first riff of “Earthfast” till
the logo and artwork (a bit like the trees on Drudkh’ s
“Forgotten Legends”) the name “Drudkh” is all over it. And
Drudkh means “Wood” in the Sanskrit language. Still, I
wouldn’ t qualify Borkr a rip-off in any way. What’ s your
opinion on the Drudkh connection? Are you influenced by
other bands as well?
Yeah I guess you can even say it’ s a Drudkh copycat and I
won’ t mind at all. I may already displayed so many Drudkh
elements here and I didn’ t mean to hide them from the
beginning. Drudkh is one of the very few bands that really
shaped my mind. In the creating of " Amber" I followed a
similar course of thinking as them ( not as brilliant and
profound though) so inevitably the result is drudkhish. I
don’ t mind to be like Drudkh or other bands as long as I
can convey my thoughts effectively. I mean, you walk by
your legs j ust like others and you don’ t walk by your hands
simply because it’ s unique. You should mind how to walk
effectively first . I do see the Drudkh connection, but I’ m
not troubled by it. I think I succeed the similar kind of
aura here in " Amber" with also a little, if not many,
flavors of my own. I’ m also influenced by many other
bands, consciously or not, as everything has its dark and
esoteric past. . .
What are your expectations for Borkr in the future?
I don’ t know. I love the beauty of accident and the wonder
of nature. I ruin my original plans quite often. . .
Could you tells us more about your other active Black
Metal/Ambient proj ect E. D. I. E. H. ? Why are you using
multiple bandnames like ËDÏËH, Ëdïëh and E. D. I. E. H. ? It
seems you’ re quite into composing long (6-23 minutes)
38
tracks, where do you get the inspiration from to compose
tracks with such duration? E. D. I. E. H. has been labeled as
Black Metal / Ambient, but when I hear “The Pain is
Seamless” of your latest “In Case the Wind Blow…” release I
would say that “Ambient” has been replaced by “Doom”. What
is your opinion? Quite an enj oyable track it is by the way…
It’ s my main proj ect. The name E. D. I. E. H. is a shortened
spelling of a phrase ( which I’ m not going to explain here) ,
and also the backward word “Heide”. Later I stripped of its
original meanings and made it ËDÏËH j ust as a name with no
more hidden messages in it. With this name I tried to make
the proj ect more unpronounceable and more hidden. I still
keep the alternative spelling E. D. I. E. H. because basically
it’ s the same name/same band. As for inspiration, I guess
it’ s about your belief in what you are doing. You have to
believe what you are creating/have created. And you have to
believe in them. It’ s not really inspiration, like some
sudden idea of entertainment. You have to really mean it. I
made short songs in the early years but recently I find out
I like long compositions more and more. I like the feel of
a song evolving slowly as the time goes on. . .
Every work of ËDÏËH is different. Raw black metal, acoustic
instrumental, ambience, dark metal/doom metal. . . the black
metal/ambient label is from the early years and I j ust
don’ t bother with changing it literally now. ËDÏËH is never
limited to certain genres since I’ m always changing my
mind from time to time. As for “The Pain is Seamless”, I’ m
glad you enj oy it.
Do you also have other musical ideas which you can’ t use
within Borkr or E. D. I. E. H. , which means you will create
another proj ect?
I’ m also doing an ambience/experimental/noise proj ect
under the name Hvstmod. I’ ve got enough proj ects to cover
most of themes I want to talk about so I’ m not planning
more. I still have other ideas sometimes though. I enj oy
them myself secretly and let them die themselves within my
heart and they don’ t have to see the light.
You have chosen to set-up your own label called Sparrow
Cross to release only your own proj ects. As stated on the
website: “Sparrow Cross is found to make sure all proj ects
involved here have the rights to express themselves
properly - to achieve the personally considered right
sounds and to use right words, right artworks and right
symbols(it' s always about the right one, not the beautiful
one if you do want to know my theory) ”. Are you afraid you
have to compromise if you have to work with another label?
Could you give us some more information about your opinion
on the fact that this is the best way to distribute and
promote your music. Also I noticed that a lot of your
material are being offered as a free download. Do you want
to get more noticed by distributing your music as free
mp3s?
Now I release everything on my own first, but any label
who’ s willing to re-release them is welcomed to release
them again, as I myself cannot afford a very large
quantity. I guess you have to sacrifice some ideological
thing in order to collaborate with other minds. It’ s
inevitable and it’ s not about who’ s fault it is. But I must
say all the labes I’ ve collaborated with are very open
minded and they provided considerable freedom to me. So
it’ s really about my selfish ambition about controlling
everything ( I like to choose the artworks, release date and
even the label logo all by my free will) . And with albums
being released under other labels together with other
bands’ releases about satanism, war and such I can never
claim my own views clearly. I’ d like to release under a
label that choose things by ideology, not by so-called
music. And with Sparrow Cross I can release whatever I
recorded regardless of other people’ s j udgement. This is
important as I do it not for profit but for devotion.
Actually I think you should always stick to real CDs, tapes
" I love Drudkh’ s early works.
Overwhelming. Sometimes I
wonder if those profound
emotions are really from
mortal souls. . . "
or vinyls with proper artworks. It’ s very important for me
to bind the aural and visual elements together to give the
listeners a whole picture about what the concept lies
behind a physical format of an album. At the beginning I
tried to provide my work at cost price because I’ m those
kind of people who are both arrogant and uncertain about
himself at the same time –the typical mindstate of a total
loser you’ d say – and I thought this way would be
reasonable given the possibility that my works might not be
so interesting to others. Later I found I cannot afford
this. So I began selling my releases as other labels do,
but I also included free mp3s to let people preview my
works before buying. It’ s a kind of j ustice for me, to let
the listeners decide if they really want to buy a copy
because of his appreciation for the work itself and not
because of some stupid collection value they usually think
those underground albums hold ( That’ s why my releases have
no catalog numbers) . And largely the mp3s are meant for
foreigners, since I don’ t sell my works outside China due
to difficulties of shipping and payments etc. ( I guess they
don’ t worth it anyway) .
Your opinion on the Chinese scene and Atmospheric Black
Metal in general?
I think ( Black) Metal is a western phenomenon and I used to
focus on those first-hand materials too much so I’ m not
very familiar with the Chinese scene I’ m afraid. I may hear
more Chinese names from the scene than you do but I
haven’ t checked most of their works. But I believe the
Chinese scene may be much stronger now than years ago when
I enj oyed Ritual Day, the first chinese black metal band I
tried back then ( you may have already heard them, they are
good! ) . And the mastermind behind Yn Gizarm and Zuriaake
does really cool stuffs. There must be more good new bands
that I still don’ t know. . . please check labels such as Pest
Productions and Dying Art Productions and a lot more. I
believe they release amazing albums of chinese underground
bands. I choose what feels right to me, be it atmospheric
black metal or not. I j ust don’ t specialize my interest in
Atmospheric Black Metal. I cannot remember a typical
Atmospheric Black Metal band being my favourite and,
according to my poor knowledge about the scene, it may be
getting flashier and very formalistic now. A lot of bands
that don’ t label them as Atmospheric Black Metal usually
have thicker auras without those cheap and shallow feelings
that can really seize your heart than those who do. I love
Drudkh’ s early works. Overwhelming. Sometimes I wonder if
those profound emotions are really from mortal souls. . .
and I used to love Paysage d’ Hiver a lot. And Nokturnal
Mortum’ s Мировоззрение is the most atomspheric work I
recently come across. Finally Empyrium, whose Songs of
Moors and Misty Fields dragged me out of pop and mainstream
rock music years ago and opened a complete new world for
me.
Anything to add?
Thanks for your interest in Borkr. And forgive me for my
blah of nonsense.
39
 D E MO RE VI E WS
Abicination
Demo II
Self Released
You have to be a moron if you think Demo II isn’ t
Abicination’ s second demo, still some bands have
fooled people before with such titles. But to stop the
confusion, this is indeed their second demo. A demo
filled with a bit old school-ish Death Metal,
Traditional Black Metal ( Mayhem) , but also some
dissonant Black Metal ideas that can be heard with
some French and German bands. Or Ondskapt and again
Mayhem ( “Chimera”) to name a few Scandinavian
examples. The track “Ruthless” begins with a great old
school Death Metal riff ( think of Death’ s “Leprosy”
album) and further on the dissonant Black Metal parts
kick in. And to be honest, there you have it! This
young band from Iceland, varies a lot of both styles
within a song. Or as they would like to call it
therselves: an unique mix of Black and Death Metal,
with an emphasis on the later. I wouldn’ t call it
uniqe, but I haven’ t heard a lot of bands like this
either. Fans of both styles should give this a listen
or two, I myself rather choose “Leprosy” anytime above
“Chimera”. ( Ricardo)
Amputory
Unclean
Self-Released
Amputory from Finland has returned with their second
demo. Having ex-members of bands like Aj attara and Am
I Blood ( once called as the new Metallica by Nuclear
Blast… that one backfired…) in the ranks you would
probably think these guys know a thing or two of
making music in general. More interesting is the link
with Pestigore, a Finnish Death Metal band of the
early 1990s era who released 4 demos. With Amputory
and especially “Unclean” these guys went Old School
Death Metal again, with a huge 1990s sauce all over
it. With bits of Obituary, early Six Feet Under, Bolt
Thrower and Carcass launches 3 tracks of
uncompromising Death Metal. When Amputory is speeding
up, the Carcass influence becomes more clear. I don’ t
think “Unclean” will get the labels in line to sign
them, but it’ s certainly a pleasant demo and pleasant
still after a couple of spins. ( Ricardo)
Apocryphal
Embrace of Death
Self-Released
A new band rises from the rotten environment of the US
and to be more precise, Phoenix, Arizona. This time it
is the Doom / Death Metal of Apocryphal who released
their first demo. Being influenced by the likes of
Cianide, Thergothon, Incantation and Disembowelment as
well as strong ale beer, some of you probably have the
imagination that this is putrid and dark as hell.
Well, not exactly. Overall the Old School Doom / Death
Metal is a bit too simplistic concerning the riffs.
This is possible and to be honest, common playing the
Doom card of the Death Metal deck, but not every band
can keep such riffs interesting. The production is
early 1990s like. Also it’ s very muddy, but not in the
good, sinister and massive way. The fast parts of
“Bane of Essence” is a good example of the below
average sound, as the riff isn’ t audible anymore. As
for now, Apocryphal is not close to any of their
influences yet. ( Ricardo)
Bleeding Gods
Bloody Symphony
Self-Released
I cherish my own Death Metal scene, the Dutch one. We
have a great “back-catalogue”, for such a small
country. Some albums in the discography of Gorefest,
Asphyx, Pestilence or Sinister are being considered as
classicks by many, and most enj oy the tunes of Eternal
Solstice, Mourning, Thanatos, God Dethroned,
Acrostichon and Pentacle as well. With some new blood
like Funeral Whore, Icons of Brutality, Bodyfarm and
Entrapment, the Dutch scene still delivers. And
Bleeding Gods can be the next one…after it was formed
by Ramon Ploeg ( ex-Houwitser) , he got help from old
acquaintances with quite some experience in Altar,
Sinister and Supreme Pain. I have heard some
preproduction ( j ust guitars and drumcomputer) excerpts
and it bear resemblance with some Dead Head riffs.
Can’ t say the same resemblance pops into my mind when
I hear the end product, although the rhythm guitars
and drums during the solo in the first track “Glorious
Relentless Destiny” still has that
“fuckin’ fastDeadHeadThrash! ! ! ” vibe. But above all,
it’ s straightforward Death Metal with lots of Thrash
references. The emphasis is on “straightforward” and
how the hell can I forget to mention the Slayer-alike
solos! On the other hand, didn’ t Slayer play Dead
Head-covers? It’ s a promising start and hopefully
these 4 tracks will get them somewhere. Yes, I cherish
the Dutch Death Metal scene! ( Ricardo)
Decay
Demo 2013
Self-Released
Old School Death Metal from Norway? Gimme Gimme Gimme!
This 3 track demo starts off with a familiar intro as
it has the starting part of Obituary’ s “Internal
Bleeding” all over it. After a while the instrumental
“Left Hand Path”-melody kicks in. Old School you say?
Hell yeah! When the real music begins it really has a
demo of the 1990s feeling. The bass almost snores and
drowns a bit in the sound, the grunt is totally 1990s,
sound changes a bit during the songs and the pounding
drums…well, they are being pound like hell! A link
with Repugnant isn’ t that crazy, if you ask me. At the
end of the second track “Reach From Beyond the Grave”
there is again a little wink towards the instrumental
part of Entombed’ s “Left Hand Path” and Bloodbath’ s
“Furnace Funeral”. Don’ t get me wrong, I love it! Are
we dealing with the newcomers of the year? I don’ t
think so, but we are dealing with a band who knows how
to play some putrid Old School Death Metal and
creating 2 good songs. Absolutely an enj oyable demo!
( Ricardo)
Disgraved
Demo 2013
Self-Released
It seems to be a trend, 2 track demos. Still, a nice
and easy way to get your band noticed. Especially new
bands with all the specialized websites like Bandcamp
nowadays. Disgraved is such a band. Unknown to me
before, but it seems this duo are from France and j ust
formed Disgraved. Although enj oying the nice nature of
France, members DM and Korwent have more sympathy
towards Scandinavia. Sweden to be more precise. The
sound is a bit dusty and at the beginning of “Untoten
Whermacht” I can’ t help it to have a “it’ s a bit thin”
thought as well. I do enj oy the use of two different
vocals ( low growl and a Pentacle- Wannes Gubbles-like
grunt) which is a nice variation. I do hope they find
a drummer with flesh, bones and a thirst for good
Belgium beers, as the drumcomputer does reduce the
quality of this demo in my opinion. The songs aren’ t
stunning but still decent and good enough to get some
underground labels interested. ( Ricardo)
Disinterred
Demo MMXXIII
Self-Released
Some get bored after hearing so many tunes of the same
genre. I can honestly say…not me. Well, not when it
comes to Old School Death Metal. Be it Swedish, the US
kind or European influenced, even the mediocre ones
mostly have a riff or two which you can label as
" aaah, interesting! " . That having said, Disinterred
from Belgium plays…yes, Old School Death Metal! Some
of the members play in Fungus Inc. and released two
albums which were received with mixed feelings by the
so called Metal press. And I’ m polite here. I hope
Kurt and Dimitri have more luck with Disinterred. I
really do hope, because beginning and ending a demo
with a Monty Python excerpt already has two thumbs up
in my book! Using the " Bring Out Your Dead" of Monthy
Python' s " Monty Python and the Holy Grail" is beyond
brilliance. When it comes to the Death Metal itself,
40
Swedish attitude ( Dismember, Entombed) mixed with some band Hod returns with a self-released demo titled “The
European ( UK, The Netherlands) scenes and hints of Uncreated demo”. Three tracks are audible, and I must
Autopsy ( beginning of “Once Bitten”) . You won’ t hear honestly say that in the beginning I wasn’ t really fan
something you haven’ t heard before, but it’ s all well of this band. But I’ m the one who perseveres and yes,
played and before you know it you’ re air-drumming I somewhat had to change my opinion after giving these
along with the D-beat of Disinterred. And all this on tracks the needed listening sessions. Okay, it’ s not
a good old tape. In my opinion and to be blunt, forget that this is an extremely talented band, because they
the other bands like Fungus Inc. , as Disinterred create music that everyone has heard before, but the
deserves 100% dedication. ( Ricardo) intensity of these Texans plays in their favor. From
the beginning till the end, this demo mauls up your
Exorcised ears and keeps on battering until the last tune of
Reflections of Horror “When the Ghouls Feed”. This demo won’ t really stand
Odmetnik out between other recent releases, but it’ s surely
The charming thing of this thrashy Old School Death worth to listen. ( Fredde)
Metal demo…it seems to be recorded with j ust a mic in
the rehearsalroom. Still, the tape has a more than Lucifericon
decent sound. So, how thrashy Old School are we The Occult Waters
talkin’ about? Let’ s say, end 1980’ s…begin 1990’ s and Self Released
all quite basic. The metal has variation as it has Lucifericon is a new band from the Tilburg and
faster Death/Thrash mixed with Death/Doom in the vein surroundings ( The Netherlands) and preforms death
of an early Asphyx. Throw in some Death’ s “Scream metal with some black metal influence. This demo is
Bloody Gore” and the Pestilence demos and you have the there first recording and it will be soon released on
influences on “Reflections of Horror”. Although I vinyl by Blood Harvest records. They also will release
enj oyed this demo, the riffs could have been better. the upcoming debut album of Lucifericon. The four
Maybe it is no surprise to you that these guys already tracks on this demo are all the vein of the old
have signed a contract with Razorback Recordings. death/black masters from the early nineties. It is
( Ricardo) played with passion and you can hear that they are
good skilled musicians with experience in bands like
Gravecrusher Destroyer 666, Pentacle and Malicious Dreams. The best
Mutilation Ritual songs are ' Moon Over Fading Statues' and ' Azazel' s
Stygian Shadow Productions Torch' . The first one because of the way the song is
Hell yeah! “A nice piano intro would be utter structured and some great riffing. The second one
bollocks…we play fuckin’ skull crushing Death Metal! ”. because of the great riffs but also the atmosphere of
Something like this could have happened if a friend of early nineties death metal. Think of early Immolation
the bandmembers would suggest a mellow intro as with thrash. And I really like the voice of the
opening. No, these zombie addicts want to get to singer. It gives that little extra that a band needs.
business right away with some putrid Old School Death So, this a big promise for the future of Dutch death
Metal. With a heavy Swedish buzzsaw sound Hungarian metal. ( Martin)
Gravecrusher doesn’ t even bother to hide their
influences. This 3-track demo, released on tape, is Mördwolf
all about the sound and hymns like good old Grave Demo 2012
( groove) , Excruciate ( faster riffs) and Demonical’ s Self-Released
first two albums ( concerning the more audible modern From the depths of… Minneapolis, Minnesota, Mördwolf
sound) . Add some Gorefest ( Mindloss-era) riffs as well is exposing their fondness of Old School Death Metal,
and you have a fuckin’ skull crushing Death Metal in particular the Swedish kind. Mördwolf is quite a
demo! And I have to say the Crematory ( the Swedish one new band, based on the experience of guitarist /
ofcourse) influenced logo and artwork, both made by vocalist Brian James Huebner, who is known for his
Mark Riddick, are the icing on the cake. ( Ricardo) work with Cold Colours. If you’ re into crunchy, crusty
Old School Swedish Death Metal with a bit ‘ n roll in
Hod it as well as guitar feedback, Mördwolf closes the
The Uncreated deal for you. With mostly up-tempo riffs ( except
Self Released closing track Immoral Blasphemies) these deathbangers
After one demo, one full length album and a split are firing 5 early 1990s hymns through your speakers.
album with the bands Ingurgitate, Locusta, Iniquitous, Ofcourse I can insert the common Entombed and
Demoniacal and Genuflection, the black/death metal Dismember influences here ( more Dismember than
Inverted Cross
Summoning the Dead
Boneyard Records
First of all, I don’ t really understand most of the online j ournalism bunch when it comes to reviewing and
supporting the underground scene. I rather review a legal digital demo so the band or underground label can
sell the tapes in stead of sending them for
a review, but according to the all the
online reviews off this demo, I have a
strange attitude. That havin’ said, Inverted
Cross has released their first demo in
alliance with Boneyard Records, a Swedish
underground label specialised in tapes. And
the demo is a nice one! With ( ex-) members of
Nominion and Eviscerated the demo contains
an intro and three tracks full of filthy old
school Swedish Death Metal. While hearing
the first riff of “In Darkness Dwell”, the
fist bangs along as it has strong
resemblance with Grotesque’ s “Blood runs on
the Altar”. A fine reference if you ask me!
Inverted Cross manages to create strong
composition of less than three minutes in
the vein of the aforementioned Grotesque,
Tribulation’ s “The Horror” combined with
some fast paced Merciless like riffs. The
end of “Summoning the Dead” is a bit slower
which gives a early Stockholm scene vibe. A kind of thing what Entombed ( “Left
Hand Path”) and Dismembmer ( “Dreaming in Red”) did. Recommended…filthy death metal
indeed, Sir! ( Ricardo)

41
Entombed by the way) , but I think you could already
figure that out yourself. After hearing the demo a
couple of times, I can’ t say I’ m convinced that we
will see Mördwolf releasing their debut on a quality
label very soon. Therefore most of the material on
this demo is not competitive with some of the debut
albums that I’ ve heard the last 12 months. And to be
honest, it has something to do with the vocal
performance. Although I applaud the John Tardy-ish end
of every lyrical line, the mix make it sound like a
superfluous vocal-effect or harmonizer. Mördwolf
deprive themselves with it as it takes away the
attention towards the fine riffs. Still I hope they
can create more tracks like “Before the Rot” and
perhaps it will work out eventually. Fingers crossed
for the next demo! ( Ricardo)
Mortuous
Demo 2012
Self Released
This relative new band has quite some experience in
their ranks, as the “Ex-Exhumed, Repulsion and
Dekapitator members” stickers can already be made for
their debut. No, that is a bit harsh as Mortuous
doesn’ t need that to sell their Old School Death
Metal. Old School American Death Metal with hints of
Old School SweDeath Metal that is…It’ s time to raise
the Dead! A lot of variation in the tracks of this
demo in which you can hear stuff like old Dismember
and Autopsy ( sound- and musicwise) , leads that are in
the vein of Paradise Lost but also James Murphy on
Obituary’ s “Cause of Death” comes to mind as well. The
low growl of vocalist Alex Tarvin-Kibler completes the
whole Old School picture here. Maybe it’ s not the most
intriguing demo of 2 012 , but it’ s definitely a catchy
one and it doesn’ t bore for one second after playing
this morbid creation three times in a row. For the
tape fanatics, Italian Unholy Domain released a
limited 100 copies of this fine piece. ( Ricardo)
Necrot
Necrot
Blood Divine / Extremely Rotten Records
Here they are again, 2 track tape demos with a black
and white illustration which serves as the cover. For
the ones who are yearning for those particular gadgets
with ditto “futuristic” design, it seems it’ s coming
all back. That doesn’ t mean you have to grow a mullet
again to enj oy this…Necrot from Oakland, Calfifornia
( although the main man Luca Indrio is from Italy) is
offering plain Death Metal. Dark Death Metal. Old
School muddy and heavy riffs in the Incantation /
Immolation vein with an early 1990s sound and the two
tracks are mid-tempo overall with some faster parts.
Not as spectacular as the latest Krypts album, to name
something in the same vein, but still a honest demo
with the right attitude. If you are into the
Incantation / Immolation style and have a dime left to
support the underground, why not spend it to Necrot?
( Ricardo)
Ominous
Death…The Beginning
Impious Desecration Records
Tape release, patches…Ominous from Finland, with ( ex-)
members of bands like Urn, Bestial Torture and
Behexen, certainly knows how to keep the nostalgic
flame burning! Although already formed in 2 009,
“Death…The Beginning” is their first demo released by
French Impious Desecration Records and is filled with,
as they call it, pure uncompromising Black Metal or
Destructive Black Metal even because of the additional
Death and Thrash Metal influences. The production is
quite clear and to me the Thrash influences are quite
present. This demo has an Australian vibe as bands
like Gospel of the Horns ( their “Eve of the Conqueror”
EP) or Deströyer 666 pops into my mind frequently.
Only semi mid/up-tempo. Along with the instrumental
“Crimson Flames” some Desaster can be added as well. I
don’ t expect this will be picked up by the masses who
are into filthy Black/Thrash as it is not as “Ominous”
42
as you expect from most Black/Thrash bands, but this filled with Old School Death Metal? Are spareribs
is still well music written en played demo. ( Ricardo) delicious…? Of course I am! Trenchrot, TrenchRot or
Trench Rot, still not sure which of those is the right
name, are driving their battle tanks from the USA and
Putrefact the members have previous experience in the Sludge
I Shall Die Upon This Putrefaction scene. Their new formed band is all about Old School
Self-Released Death Metal in the vein of Bolt Thrower, Asphyx and
Sometimes experience and passion for a certain genre some riffs as well as d-beat influences from the
is enough to form a band and release a great demo Swedish scene, without the famous sound. Bolt Thrower
within a year. Putrefact from Mexico, consisting of because of the groove and Asphyx ( “The Rack”) because
Disgorge, Hacavitz, Demonized and Impiety members, is of the slow doom parts like during “Trapped under
guilty on both charges and delivers their first demo Treats”. Vocal wise we have another Martin van Drunen
called “I Shall Die Upon This Putrefaction”. This worshipper in the house, but it fits the deranged
deadly three-member-combo claim the following about music perfectly, before we all get “copy-cat” bitchin’
their Death Metal: “Not Swedish, Not old school, Pure again. As they said themselves, Trenchrot is about 2
entrails! ”…still it’ s as Swedish and Old School when things: Play Death Metal and crush posers. Well,
The Swedish Chef of The Muppet Show would replace L. G. mission accomplished as it is a more than enj oyable
Petrov on “Left Hand Path”! This demo doesn’ t have the demo. And it seems I’ m not the only one, as they are
melodies of Dismember, but it’ s more in the vein of already signed by Unspeakable Axe Records ( a sub
the uptempo parts of Death Breath combined with the imprint of Dark Descent) for their debut full-length.
overall bluntness of Nihilist and two different kind Still, kudos towards Nihilistic Holocaust to keep the
of vocals ( deep growl and a rotten scream, both ancient flame of demotapes burning! ( Ricardo)
sounding like desperate souls in an abduction-
basement) . And the heavy and cavernous sound is spot
on! Support this band…Pure Entrails! ( Ricardo)
Shadowcraft
Principles of Chaos
Self-released
Shadowcraft from Greece have released 3 prior demos
which have slipped my attention to be honest. With
their 4 th demo “Principles of Chaos” these black souls
tried to get a record deal ( of which they recently
succeed by the way) by playing keyboard driven
Symphonic Black Metal. Or “Maj estic Black Metal” as
they label them there selves. Although I’ m a huge fan
of old Necromantia, Varathron and Deviser and I was a
bit hoping to hear some tunes in their vein,
Shadowcraft play the more melodic and symphonic Black
Metal that was more common in Norway during the mid en
end 1990s. If you think away the “cold atmosphere” of
Dimmu Borgir’ s “Stormblast”, Mactätus, Odium and
Obtained Enslavement ( pre-“The Shepherd and the Hounds
of Hell”) and add the more clean production of
Obtained Enslavement’ s “The Shepherd and the Hounds of
Hell”, you will have a musical direction of this demo.
If you like your Black Metal more grim, fierce or
bleak, Shadowcraft will not be your cup of tea.
Although I don’ t consider this demo as good as the
fine albums released by the aforementioned bands, this
is an adequate one. ( Ricardo)
Trenchrot
Dragged Down to Hell
Nihilistic Holocaust
I received a question from Gabriel of Nihilistic
Holocaust; if I’ m interested in reviewing a demo tape
Under The Church
Demo 2013
Self-Released
Disciples of Old School Death Metal Unite! Gather
around as songs of unholy praise will terrorize
the society! Under The Church will bring darkness
upon thee who will not follow the path of Old
School Death Metal…always wanted to dramatically
start a review like this. Still, every single
word is true. Under The Church is almost a
replica of an underground Swedish Death Metal
band in the “golden-era” of 1989-1992 . Does the
name Nirvana 2 002 still give you the shivers? Do
you know the “Disembodied Spirits” demo by heart?
Well, this is the new band of Erik Qvick ( drums
and guitars) and Lars Henriksson ( bass) and smack
me on the ass and call me Judy Jetson; Under The
Church is a nice continuation. Nice Continuation?
Let me not fool you with understatments which are
way off target. This demo is great! The spirit,
the attitude, the vibe, the groove, the riffs,
the rawness, the pounding drums…it’ s all there!
It’ s no Nirvana 2 002 , the 2 013 edition…especially
as Erik and Lars themselves try to keep Nirvana
2 002 out if it, but let’ s say they know damn well of what they’ re good at.
First Wave Old School Swedish Death Metal Galore! All with a raw production of
those days. Disciples of Old School Death Metal Unite! ( Ricardo)

43

Rising from the grave unleashes a morbid
embodiment of ancient old school death
metal darkness and death…spawned from the
fogs of Hungary! These guys know how to
make an entrance. But are the rotten hymns
as good as the aforementioned slogan?
Well…maybe even better. At first, I gave
Disguster the opportunity to introduce
this fine and exquisite orchestra…
(Ricardo)
Putrid greetings from the cemetery! Everything have
started in May 2 012 when we’ ve spoken together with
Disemboweler about that we know each other for 10
years but never played together in a band although we
have the same musical taste. We have j ust started to
write riffs and this Swedish influenced darkness has
born. We were and still the guitarists and we needed a
drummer and a vocalist for the complete desecration.
It was important to us that the members must be our
friends. We didn’ t want somebody who we don’ t know
well, plays good on his instrument but half years
later we realise that he is a complete asshole. So
we’ ve asked Revenger and Mutilator to j oin to our
horde. They are good friends of us and together we had
some drunken night. Revenger has used to play on the
bass too. The name of Gravecrusher idea came from me.
I’ ve j ust saw that somebody post a Moby Dick music
video on facebook which was entitled “Durván akár a
Vulkán” in English = “Roughly like the Vulcan” and
I’ ve j ust said to my girlfriend that it j ust an
idiotic title ( sorry for the Moby Dick fans but I
really don’ t like their new songs) like their other
song entitled “Lélekromboló Torpedó”, it’ s even sounds
stupid in english, “Soulcrusher Torpedo” and right
after I’ ve translated it I’ ve realised
that the Soulcrusher sounds fuckin’ great
for me! But there were bands with that
name and it wasn’ t as putrid as I wanted
and I’ ve remembered that another drunken
night back than with my friends we’ ve
talked about that there are a lot death
metal bands with Grave in their name like
Grave Desecration, Grave Miasma,
Graveless, Grave Upheaval and of course
Grave ect. And I’ ve created the name,
Gravecrusher. Everybody from the band
liked that idea. After it we’ ve started to
rehearsal for the demo and the songs came
really fast and easily.
Old school Death Metal all the way! I
would like to describe the demo as: “…the
sound and hymns like good old Grave
(groove) , Excruciate (faster riffs) and
Demonical’ s first two albums (concerning
the more audible modern sound) . Add some
Gorefest (Mindloss-era) riffs as well and
you have a fuckin’ skull crushing Death
Metal demo! ” Do you agree or do you guys
have another opinion concerning
influences? Although the sound has a bit
of the Swedish Buzzsaw sound, Gravecrusher
didn’ t copy it 100%. Which band or album
did you guys have in mind concerning the
sound of the demo?
I’ ve to agree with you because I’ ve
listening to these bands since years and
especially Grave’ s Into the Grave album
gives me a lot of influence! But we’ ve
influenced mainly by Unleashed first album
Where No Life Dwells. We didn’ t wanted to
do the record with Boss HM-2 , because with
Disemboweler we’ ve already play in a band
with Swedish Buzzsaw sound, it’ s
Necrosodomy, and we didn’ t want to create
a same band like that. The guitar sound
came out from the studio, thanks to Gábor
Vári who’ s done the recordings and the
mixing. The guitar sound recipe is:
Marshall 1960A cab, some kind of old
school Fender full tube combo with no
distortion on it and an ugly green Ibanez pedal. Maybe
Ibanez Tube Screamer I not really remember. And of
course the guitars. LTD F-2 005 for rhythm and B. C.
Rich Stealth Pro for solos. We didn’ t want to copy the
Unleashed’ s sound but that’ s truth that I’ ve shown to
Gábor Where No Life Dwells. The funny thing that
nobody says that would feel any Unleashed influence in
our songs but that was the biggest influence for us.
haha
" The funny thing that nobody
says that they would feel any
Unleashed influence in our
songs, but that was the biggest
influence for us. "
Speakin’ about the demo. . . Everything went well and how
are the reactions so far?
We’ ve recorded it in our hometown Szeged at Black Hole
Sound Studio with Gábor Vári in July 2 012 . It only
took 2 days to record and within 2 weeks Gábor
finished the mixing. It’ s a really professional
studio; it was comfortable to record the songs. There
were no rush and stress. About the reactions, they are
pretty great! A lot of people like our music. I never
thought that we’ ll have this big success! The demo has
sold out before the official release date. Of course
there were labels that had some copies left until
November 2 012 , but now I think only No Colours Records
has 1 or 2 copies left. Because of this demo I’ ve got
known some great maniacs around the world!
Stygian Shadows Productions released 99 copies of the
44
demo on tape. Why have you (or the
label) chosen for this kind of
limited release? Are you
considering a second pressing or
maybe a 7” release? Whe did you
decide to stream the demo on your
bandcamp homepage.
Stygian Shadows Productions choose
the 99 copies limitation because
we both didn’ t think that it will
be sold out this fast. We wanted
if it’ s possible to release this
demo also in a 7 ” format and
hopefully Rodrigo from Blood
Harvest Records will do it! But I
can’ t tell anything more about the
7” release yet. Yeah, we’ ve
decided to put the whole demo into
our bandcamp page because the big
interest about the band and
because of the early sold out.
Metal heads still wants to order
our demo around the world but it’ s
sold out and we wanted that to
anybody could listen to our demo
in high quality.
Can you tell us more about working and Crematory logos. I think he did a fuckin’ awesome
with underground artist Mark Riddick? Did you guys logo! ! If you look at the logo you’ ll definitely know
contact him with an idea or have you shown interest in what kind of ear destroying desecrations will hear!
one of his works which was for sale? How about the About the cover art, we’ ve sent him the lyrics of
logo, which has quite a Crematory (Swedish) Mutilation Ritual and give him free hand about what
resemblance…Will you guys contact him for the next he’ ll get from the lyrics. I think he did an awesome
release as well? j ob again, gives back the feeling of the late 80’ s,
I’ ve already known his works before I’ ve asked him to early 90’ s death metal demo tapes! Right before he
do a logo and cover art for us. In my opinion he is could finish the cover we’ ve sent him the track that
the best black&white artist in metal artwork scene! we recorded and he really liked it! He has already
When I’ ve contacted him it was a big surprise that he done the artwork of the full length Tyrant
has already known and also really likes my other band, Goatgaldrakona record and all I can say that’ s one of
Tyrant Goatgaldrakona. It was a big honour for me that the best artwork that I’ ve ever seen! We have contact
he likes what I’ m doing! For first he did this awesome to each other since June 2 012 . He’ s sent me his band
logo before he was able to listen to our music. The Macabra’ s new demo tape and I also sent him my other
funny thing that he didn’ t know that our music will be bands releases as well! He is a really awesome guy
influenced highly by Unleashed and he said that when with great attitude so we’ ll always want him to work
he draw us the logo he was inspired by the Unleashed

45
on our releases, if it’ s Tyrant Goatgaldrakona or
Gravecrusher!
The future plans. . . spit it out!
We’ ve already written 5 new songs for the full length
release and 3 more to go! Of course there will be some
new things like more mid placed tempos or more guitar
harmonies. Don’ t worry it won’ t be melodic! ! We’ ve
influenced again by Unleashed and Grave but some new
songs maybe sounds like Asphyx’ s The Rack or
Crematory’ s The Exordium and Wrath from the Unknown
era. We’ ll not down tune our guitars like Crematory
j ust to make things clear! We j ust wanted to create a
dark atmosphere like on those demos but we’ ll stay in
standard B tuning! Blood Harvest Records will release
our demo on 7 ”. And we have a new member who helped us
out in our first and yet only show on bass. He is our
full time bass player now and Revenger will do only
the vocals. We’ ve got a lot of offers from labels to
release our full length record and some offers to play
shows in Germany and Belgium. I hope everything will
go well and we can accomplish this shows, but the main
thing now is to finish the song writing process and summer. In summer we want to record our first full
enter the studio. We’ ll hit the same studio that where length. We want to re-record our two songs on the demo
we recorded our demo so you can expect the same and we want 6 or 7 new songs for it too. We’ ve already
quality of sound! We want to record it in April but completed 5 new songs for it! Also Blood Harvest
maybe it will only happen sometime in summer. After it records re-release our demo, Eternal Darkness in 7 ”
we’ ll ask Mark Riddick to do again an awesome cover version soon!
art for us!
Could you give us some insight in the Underground Old
You all have other bands/proj ect as well…bands like School Death Metal scene of Hungary? Or any other
Mörbid Carnage, Tyrant Goatgaldrakona and Necrosodomy. underground Old School Death Metal who is worth
Any news on them? checking in your opinion.
There is only news! haha! With Mörbid Carnage we’ ll go The underground scene in Hungary is starting to awake!
on tour in Romania next week! Also, our second album, I not really can say old school death metal bands but
Merciless Conquest has released in digipack format by there are bands that definitely should check out like
Metalhit Records in USA. There will be a European Limb for a Limb, Ahriman, Age of Agony, Svoid, Lepra,
release for it too. About Tyrant Goatgaldrakona our Kill with Hate, Kripta, Drünken Bastards, Hell
first full length record entitled Horns in the Dark Eternal, Grimness and Ghoulvore!
has been released also by Metalhit Records in ecopack
format and Blood Harvest Records will release it Welll, that' s it from our side. . . Thanks for taking
sometime in April in 12 ” vinyl format with different time to answer our questions!
artwork. Mark Riddick will do that too! With Thanks for the interview! ! Keep the underground alive!
Necrosodomy we’ re currently “on hold” mode until Metal ‘ til Death!

46
 2012 saw
the release of Canadian
thrashers Mortillery' s album Murder
Death Kill on Napalm Records. In a
scene flooded with thrashing
newcomers Mortillery stand out
with their refreshing female
vocals so we took it upon us
to ask Mortillery' s
frontwoman Cara a few
questions. (Isaak)

Let' s
talk about the album
Murder Death Kill first. Is the title inspired by a certain Sylvester Stallone movie or how else
did you come up with it and what' s the story about the album art?
Haha yes it is. When we started the band we had the bright idea that we would reference an 80' s movie in every song. . . . That
lasted for about 2 or 3 songs. Murder Death Kill was one of them. We' ve moved on since haha
Are you happy with the way the album turned out, choice of songs, performance and production? Which ones are your personal
favourites on the disc and why?
I am extremely happy with it! With everything! It' s strange because, in my experience, things usually do not go or turn out as
planned. Murder death kill sounds exactly how I imagined it in my head. My favorite songs on the album always change but I do
always like without weapons because its the only one that the lyrics hold sentimental value to me.
Who writes the songs, lyrics and how big is your part in composing the songs.
We all write our own parts and have input on what other band members write. I write most of the lyrics but
Alex G. writes some too.
Your vocals give me a feeling, reminiscent of Znowhite,
Sacrilege (UK) mostly. How are your thoughts on this and do Mortillery
you think you also add something contemporary to the mix? Muder Death Kill (vinyl-release)
Who are your main influences? Napalm Records
I' m not really sure what I add. It' s hard to say what you Now what' s there to tell about yet
think you sound like haha. I really like Kai Hansen and another newcomer in the retro
sabastian Bach. thrash community? How to separate
the wheat from the chaff when most
bands resort to cloning, like in
any retro scene. Fortunately there
are those that j ust add a little to
the mix to make ' em stand out.
Mortillery is such a group. The
Whereas a fair amount of other new bands seem to recycle debut album ' Murder Death Kill'
a lot of Tankard and Vio-Lence riffs, Mortillery' s guitar was originally released by Horror
riffs sound hugely inspired by the later works of D. R. I. Pain Gore Productions in 2 011 but
and even late eighties Gang Green. Do some of the members 2 012 sees Napalm Records releasing
have more of a punk background than metal or is it j ust it for the European market, not
the way the songs turn out? only on CD but various colours of
Alex Scott ( lead) is experienced in all styles of metal. vinyl as well. Despite the band
When we first met him he had some black metal songs and themselves mentioning Metallica,
lots of thrash riffs to share with us. Alex Gutierrez Anthrax and Helloween ( among others) as main influences, the easiest
( rhythm) had rockabilly and punk bands long before and most recognisable inspiration would be D. R. I on especially the
starting Mortillery. The thing is, is that we all agree first half of the album. Most riffs have that old crossover feeling
that thrash is the perfect mix between punk and metal. and technique, the 4 ofaKind approach with a bit of Gang Green' s
And the way the songs come out is how we' re comfortable OlderBudweiser thrown in. Add to this some extra Slayerisms and a more
playing. than an obvious touch of Razor to make the compositions a lot more
' metal' and there you go. It isn' t until the seventh song that the band
Which songs on MDK are the best indication of the show some extra depth in the songwriting department and some classic
musical direction Mortillery will be going on future heavy metal is thrown in the mix. The pretty unoriginal album art and
releases? seemingly uninspired song titles could make one think this' ll turn out
Dispided by blood, Voracious Undead and Countless being too generic and I assume some of you are thinking about skipping
Suicide the rest of this review but please, hold on. What makes the difference
here? Why should you check out this album instead of ' random Kreator
What are Mortillery' s plans for the future, how are copycat nr 7 14 from Italy' or one of those many sneakered teen-acts
sales going and can we expect a new album soon? mixing Vio-Lence with Tankard? The vocals. Cara McCutchen makes all
The plan is to tour as much as possible. we have our eyes the difference. I immediately had to think of Sacrilege' s ' Behind the
set on Europe and hope to make it there soon. We are Realms of Madness' and Znowhite' s ' Act of God' album. Yes, those
filming a music video for our new album in February. Our glorious days when heavy metal women owned swords, ate raw caribou,
new album will be released by Napalm Records early 2 013. drank more than the rest of the men, sang like a mixture of Tom Waits
and Joey Belladonna and would sacrifice you if you dared approach them
Last but not least, please after a show. At least, that was the impression you had as a kid. And
tell us why people should I love to keep the illusion alive. Miss McCutchen is a lady with looks
check out MDK if they AND balls. Comparable to contemporary vocalists such as Masha Scream
haven' t already done so! ( Arkona) or Tyrannizer ( Nocturnal) ? Neither really. Still the best
The more people that know comparison would be Nicole Lee and Tam Simpson with an extra bit of
about us, the more fun our growling here and there. The result is an up-tempo crossoverish one-
shows will be! ! ! Thrash dimensional thrash metal album with strong female vocals in true
with us! ! ! ! eighties tradition which would make Dawn Crosby and Debbie Gunn proud.
Guitar-wise I' m a spoiled old man and always crave for more inspired
material like Znowhite' s ' Act of God' or Holy Terror' s ' Mind Wars' .
But that' s j ust me, looking for something to complain. Unlike many of
these new retro bands that got shitty after j ust one album already,
I hope Mortillery can improve their already pretty enj oyable
steaming cup-o-thrash. ( Isaak)
Belgian Goat Torment suprised me in 2012 The Beast (Bestial Torment) and an one track EP (Into The
during their intens bestial gig supporting Mouth Of The Serpent) . Can you tell us something about the
writing process within the band? Who writes the songs, the
Bestial Raids and Proclamation. After hearing lyrics and how to you decide this it?
their split EP with The Beast and the recently For this 3 releases I wrote all the music, lyrics are done
released " Into The Mouth Of The Serpent" EP I by our previous bassplayer/singer KJ. Now I’ m doing
everything ( except for the drums) , and sometimes drummer S.
decided to do this small interview with is also coming up with some ideas on guitar, so the writing
founding member Kwel. Enj oy and buy their process is going quite fast. This summer we’ ve recorded our
upcoming debut album, goddamit! ! (Martin) debut album, which will be released by AMOR FATI
PRODUCTIONS.
Hello Kwel. Thanks for doing this interview with VM
Underground. Can you introduce Goat Torment and something Musically you remind me too the latest Beherit album. Are
about the meaning of the name? Did you got comment on the they an inspiration for the band or are there other bands
fact that is a band with the word goat in it? more inspiring? I can hear also some death metal influences
Hail! GOAT TORMENT was formed in 2 008 by myself and KJ. on the ‘ Bestial Torment’ EP. How did you came with the idea
with the intention to create of covering Demoncy’ s ‘ Impure
music as a weapon of mass Blessing’ for this EP instead
destruction and to annihilate of an own song?
everything which the so-called
society stand for. For a start, I " . . . You’ re tormented by the I really like Beherit, is
was supposed to play bass and KJ.
would handle the vocals. But we
Goat, abusing the weak and also of my favorite bands ,
and their last album is
didn’ t find a guitarist who
fitted the band ideology on a
tormenting the vulnerable" killer, but this album was
not an inspiration for me to
serious level, so I decided to write the music for Goat
handle the guitars and KJ. Torment. I get my
started to play bass. After some months we recruited inspiration from black and deathmetal bands, so its not
drummer Perversor and released a 4 -track demo tape. At surprising that you hear death metal influences. It always
that point we shared stages all over Europe with bands such has been the intention to release 1 song and a cover for
as Proclamation, Hell Militia, Enthroned, Black this split EP ( look at The Beast’ s part) . “Joined in
Crucifixion, … to name a few. Beginning 2 010, we had to Darkness” is a monumental album that’ s in my top 10, the
split ways with Perversor, due to musical differences, and ideology fits and I haven’ t seen that many bands doing a
a new burning entity was found. S. claimed the throne good Demoncy cover. I didn’ t wanted to release a crappy
behind the battery. The Death wielding Trinity of Goat whatever cover.
Torment was complete. New songs were written, gigs were
played and blood was shed. Exactly one year later we If I compare ‘ Into the Mouth Of the Serpent’ with the two
entered the infamous Blackout Multimedia Studio in Brussels tracks on ‘ Bestial Torment’ I notice that on ITMOTS the
to record 2 releases ( a 7 ” split EP with The Beast and structure is somehow different. More slow and the outro is
another 7 ” EP “Into The Mouth Of The Serpent”) Directly something that I didn’ t expected. Is this what we can
after the split was released, drummer S. and me decided to expect more in the future? And who is Valerie Ryman?
split ways with KJ. due to different This EP is about the grand Serpent Leviathan. We didn’ t
views about the future, and also
decided to go on as a duet recruiting
session members for live-shows. Of
course we got reactions because of we
have a name with ‘ goat’ in it. We are
not one in a dozen typical goat-fago
band. Yes we have some influences, but
we give it our own touch/feeling, and
this is coming back every time in the
songs. Goat Torment means , you’ re
tormented by the Goat, abusing the weak
and tormenting the vulnerable.
You’ re also active in several other
bands, among them Strij d from The
Netherlands. How do you combine these
bands and how do you do it with the
traveling for rehearsals?
The only other band that I’ m playing
now is Weltbrand from the Netherlands.
On some internet pages you can indeed
find that I also play in Striid. I have
to say, nobody ever rehearsed with that
band/proj ect Striid. As I’ m most of the
time very flexible I’ ve not such a big
problem with traveling.
Goat Torment has three releases out
till since their creation anno MMIX: a
demo (Death Worship) , a split EP with

48
 wanted to make alphabet of the Magi
something fast for which was invented by
this release, and the Theophrastus Bombastus
intro/outro fits to von Hohenheim ( also
the music and concept. known as Paracelsus)
Valerie Rysman is a in the 16th century.
good friend of mine, He used it to engrave
she’ s a well educated the names of angels on
teacher in classic talismans which he
guitar here in claimed could treat
Belgium, so I asked illnesses and provide
her to do the j ob for protection. It was
the acoustic part. probably influenced by
the various other
Where did you find the magical alphabets that
inspiration for lyrics were around at the
of ‘ Into The Mouth Of time and also by the
The Serpent’ ? And can Hebrew script.
you tell us something
about the artwork? Your name is Kwel,
We got the inspiration which is Dutch for
by a little text of affliction or
Archaelus Baron in tormenting? How does
Kindoms of Flame. The this name fit with you
artwork is an old personally. Is it
prayer, standing something you try to
between ruins, hailing achieve through your
the almighty music?
Leviathan, the great Right it is Dutch for
dragon of knowledge affliction or
that’ s rising out of the deep dark ocean. tormenting, I took this name because it was fitting to me
in the past, discovering new horizons, other dimensions, …
Live you are assisted by RSD XUL (ex-Funeral Winds) on but after some years you accept it and you find the right
bass. Is he j ust in for the live shows or is he a full balance between the dark and the light.
member?
He’ s j ust a live member. For the future there is an upcoming album on Amor Fati
Productions in January/February. How are the recordings
The first time I saw you guys live was with the tour of going? Can you reveal some of the titles of the tracks?
Bestial Raids and Proclamation. How was it to share the Like I said in some questions before, the Recordings are
stage with them? How do you prepare yourself for a gig? already finished since this summer, mastering is done by
It was great to share the stage with those maniacs, and its Patrick W. Engel ( TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY) . It will be
still great if we see each other again at some gigs. I’ m released on Tape, CD and Vinyl with tracks like: My Hands
taking my deep inner self to the outside, and spread it Reach Out, Dominande Tenebrae, King Of Locusts, Onwards To
around on stage. Judecca, . . It’ s not a concept album, lyrics are going about
differents things, with a titan global feeling, but with 1
In the letter A of Goat and under the logo of Goat Torment message, darkness is ruling over us and dominating us.
there are words written that I cannot read. Can you explain
them? Where does the character come from? Thanks for the interview Kwel. The last words are for Goat
“Ha Shaitan” is written in the letter “A”, which stand for Torment.
“The Opposer”, this is written in Hebrew. The alphabet we Thanks to all the maniacs who are supporting us so far, and
use for the letters under ' ORMEN' , between the 2 T' s is the Hail Satan!

49
Swedish Old School Death Metal, I dare to say my
favorite kind of Death Metal, but you probably noticed
that by reading my reviews…Ofcourse many other
pestiferous styles of Death Metal had thousands of
spins as well. Be it Morbid Angel, Deicide, Asphyx,
Bolt Thrower, Obituary, old Sepultura, Autopsy,
Cannibal Corpse…the list is almost never-ending.
Still, the Swedish kind has everything I’ m looking for
in a genre. Rawness, an own identity (although I have
to admit almost all “old” scenes (Florida, the Dutch
scene, the UK scene, New York…) had their own
identity) , the vocalist were recognizable because of
their vocal style, pace changes, brutal but still room
for melodies, the so-called buzz saw sound and so on.
Besides the usual suspects like Carnage, Nihilist,
Dismember, Entombed and Grave, the underrated hymns of
acts like Mega Slaughter, Interment, Utumno, Hetsheads Although 99% of the band members, who started
and Centinex found their way through my speakers as Evocation back in 1991 after being involved with all
well. Frequently. Although I enj oy a lot of Black kind of underground bands ( Decomposed, Morbid Death) ,
Metal acts as well, an average Old School Death Metal have pure Finnish blood in their veins, the Death
album can still be enj oyable, whilst an average Black Metal played was pure Swedish. First start, the band
Metal is mostly not worthy enough to hit the repeat moniker…Evocation wasn’ t chosen because of the
button. A Dismember or Entombed copycat can still make classick Carnage song, but of the fact guitarist Marko
me enthusiastic, despite I’ ve heard it all before and Palmén aka Marko Wacker was a huge Asphyx fan, and in
the fact they can’ t match the masters. When the Boss particular the debut album “The Rack”, which has the
HM-2 Heavy Metal pedal is maxed out and the first tune track “Evocation” on it. Being formed in 1991, you
is reaching my ears, I’ m practically sold. Alright, I could say they were a little bit too late to j ump on
exaggerating a bit, but it is close to the truth. The the bandwagon. At the end of February 1992 , Evocation
new underground bands not only embrace the sound, but went to the infamous Sunlight Studios of Tomas
also items as illustrated artwork to keep themselves Skogsberg to record their first demo “The Ancient
as close to the authentic acts as they can be. Not Gate” and released 500 copies. Within the underground
original to some, damn fine to me. (Ricardo) the demo got high praises and even Skoksberg himself
mentioned Evocation as “the best demo band I have
But hell, that’ s how I experience this
repugnant delight. A funny thing is
that the golden era lasts from 1988
till 1992 , still there are three books
written about that period of time. And
great books as well, may I add. I
admire the dedication and research by
Daniel Ekeroth ( “Swedish Death Metal”)
and Nicola Constantini ( “Encyclopedia
of Svensk Dödsmetall” and “The
Return…Of Svensk Dödsmetall) , and the
way they presented their work. Thanks
to their dedication, the main
characters of those days all helped
along, so the stories and facts of
those must-have documents are as
accurate as their memories.
Last year as well as this running year,
some compilations and rereleases of
Swedish Death Metal acts were thrown on
the market again. Let’ s take a look on
a couple of them, shall we.

50
recorded” at that time. Marko stated that he enj oy the
praise about the demo, but also mentioned it all
didn’ t reach the band back then and therefore not
knowing a lot of people enj oyed the demo. Not in the
last place because of the fact that they had some
problems with the writing part of the Metal scene back
then. For example a fanzine called Hymen ( made by the
Anders Jakobsen, former member of Nasum, Coldworker,
Masticate and Necrony) refused to review the demo
because it was recorded by Tomas Skogsberg. Maybe it
has something to do with the fact Jakobsen played with
Dan Swanö in Masticate, Evocation themselves said
there was animosity against recordings at Sunlight
Studios because of the many bands who went there for
recording their demos and albums. Overkill of bands
and recording within booming trends seem to be of all
times. It was Skoksberg himself who had a little talk
with Jakobsen to forget the Sunlight label and review
the demo anyway…Jakobsen capitulated and admitted he
loved the demo. But still, if someone has to be
persuaded to review a certain demo only because he is
refusing it because of the studio, it isn’ t hard to
imagine the guys of Evocation thought there were more
people who were biased before they even heard one
single tune. Still, there were some raving reviews as
well. German Voices from the Darkside described it as
“…if your faves include “Like an Everflowing Stream”,
“Left Hand Path” or “Where no Life Dwells”, this 4-
track cassette is a definte must! ”. Skogsberg also
wrote a letter of recommendation and promoted the band
to the maj or death metal labels at that time,
including Century Media, Nuclear Blast and Earache.
None of them stepped in, but Hervé of the mighty
Osmose Productions was excited about the demo. Drummer
Thomas Josefsson kept contact with Hervé and was
interested in releasing the debut full length. Knowing
history…it never came that far. September 1992 was the
month Evocation unleashed a second demo, simply called
“Promo92 ”, with Christian Saarinen ( most known for his
guitar work on Cemetary’ s “An Evil Shade of Grey”)
j oining the band as permanent bass player. The band
decided to contact another studio instead of recording
at Skogsberg’ s Sunlight. The reason was obvious; the
hour fee went up after the recording of the first
demo. They recorded the promo at a local studio, but
the band wasn’ t satisfied with the result, which was
meant for labels only. Still, labels like Black Mark,
Relapse, No Fashion, Roadrunner and again Osmose were
interested to sign Evocation. Despite the attention
the band split up in the end of 1993 due musical
differences.
The demos were already released as a sober compilation
( no liner notes, photos etc. ) by Breath of Night
Records back in 2 004 . Lord Akhenaten ( Judas Iscariot)
asked permission to release it as he was a big fan of
both demos and Swedish Death Metal in general. A lot
of things went wrong with the compilation. For example
the remastered version of the demos went missing and
it took 3 years to release the album. After a couple
of years the band ( prior of the release of the
comeback album “Tales from the Tomb”) was asked for
their opinion afterwards. The band wasn’ t totally
convinced of the compilation and already mentioned to
release the demos the right way…someday…
In 2 012 Evocation got a deal with Century Media and
probably mentioned the demos during the negotiations.
Let’ s be honest, huge label or not, these guys know
their way around with rereleases or “special”
releases. “Evoked from Demonic Depths - The Early
51
 Stockholm Death Metal and Gothenburg Death Metal,
which seems to be correct ( j ust listen to “Where The
Headstones Shine” or the start of “On a Journey to
Heaven”) . You can definitely hear the change of sound
as well. The rehearsal tracks are the same tracks of
the “Promo 1992 ” promo and easily to compare with the
definite result. The recording of the 1992 written
track “Genesis” is done in the 2 012 style of
Evocation. Comparing with an album like “Apocalyptic”,
this track would be a little too simplistic to fit in
the repertoire of the band at their next gig; still
the melodies are already in the vein of the Death
Metal they are playing in this moment. At the end you
also get 3 live videos of a gig in Gothenburg in 1992 .
If you have a soft spot for Swedish Death Metal, old
flyers, the remembrance of holding a demo tape and
like to consider those days as “the good old days”,
you have to check out this document filled with
history!

Years” has been released as an album with a 32 -page

booklet ( photos, flyers, liner-notes, song-by-song
comments etc. ) This time the two demos tapes " The
Ancient Gate" and " Promo 1992 " , are remastered. The
compilation has been completed with four unreleased
rehearsal tracks and the newly recorded track
" Genesis" ( written in 1992 , but never released
anywhere before) . The “Ancient Gate” demo can indeed
be described as the common, still very well played,
Swedish Death Metal you are used from those days, with
a little twist. The twist becomes clearer when you
hear the tracks of “Promo 1992 ”. The band themselves
describe the style as an interesting blend of

Some bands became famous, some bands are being

considered as hidden gems, some are forgotten…Gorement
definitely did not have gotten famous. Reason? Let’ s
say they reached the platform, looked to their left
and saw the back of the train which left a couple of
seconds ago. Or as bandmember Patrik Fernlund
( responsible for writing the music) would like to call
it: “Just another Swedish Death Metal band”. The
recognition came years after the band disbanded.
Gorement was formed in 1990 and rose from the ashes of
a Thrash metal band called Sanguinary, which was more
a coverband than a serious one. At the beginning the
band was influenced, beside the Swedish obvious ones,
by acts like Bolt Thrower, Pungent Stench,
Benediction, Carcass and Xysma. 1991, The first demo
“Human Relic” was recorded at Gorysound with Dan Swäno

52
 surprise as the played Carcass’ “Exhume to
Consume” live) , Death Metal combined with
some slow passages. The leads are a bit
different on this demo. They are leaning
towards the British Doom scene. The band
itself didn’ t really like the sound of the
guitars in the mix. They were disappointed
because of the lack of power. Fernlund do
point out the drum work of Mattias
Berglund. He mentioned the following: “The
most memorable thing from the recording
sessions must be the excellent double bass
drum work by Mattias on the track
“Obsequies of Mankind”. Great drumming! ”.
Also this time the band didn’ t use pitched
vocals. Jimmy Karlsson has a low growl of
his own, but the critics weren’ t really
convinced the first time, because they
thought the pitched vocals were suitable
for the brutal Death Metal Gorement was
playing. And another change was
unavoidable, Gorement got a new logo. The
new logo got drawn by a good friend of the
band and Fernlund even mentioned that it
behind the board with all the switches. Some claim has been used in a re-worked version of Bloodbath’ s
this demo sounds similar like a Swäno proj ect called logo. After releasing the demo, despite the bad
Incision. Beside 3 tracks of Old School Swedish Death receiving of it, the band got a letter from After
Metal, which are a little bit more brutal than the World who wanted to release something of Gorment on a
usual tunes you hear within this style ( this has also 7 ”. As the band already got a deal with Poserslaughter
to do with the low-pitched vocals) , it also contains ( Germany) for releasing new material as a 7 ”, the band
an intro by mr. Swäno himself. According to Fernlund, asked After World if they were interested to release
Swäno uses all kind of weird noises ( vacuum cleaner, the “Obsequies…” demo as a 7 ”. After World accepted
water running down a sink) to create the intro. the proposal and a 7 ” version of the demo got
Fernlund admitted that the main song, “Human Relic”, released. . I mentioned the deal with
was based on Benediction’ s “Artefacted Irreligion” Poserslaughter…once again Gorement contacted Dan Swäno
track of At riffing. He also said the following: to record two new songs in 1992 . The band felt obliged
“Looking back, I definitely identify the early to record something special after the negative remarks
Gorement days with that song”. Although Gorement had a of their second demo. The change of the sound and
vocalist in their ranks ( Micke Bergström) , the band especially the music in general was most noticeable
wasn’ t happy with his effort on “Darkness of the with this 7 ”. The brutal gore part got replaced by a
Death”, so Fernlund decided to take over the vocal more doom like Death Metal. Acoustic guitars,
duties. At the end, everyone wasn’ t satisfied in keyboards ( all written by Swäno within no time) ,
general about Bergström vocal qualities and kicked him atmospheric bits, UK scene…Gorement changed. The band
out of Gorement. The demo was well received but also was very satisfied with this 7 ”, as it represented the
got negative remarks about the logo as it is almost an sound the band wanted to play those days. Still, the
exact copy of the old Gorefest logo. About that issue guitar sound wasn’ t all that ( again) . Fernlund thought
Fernlund responded: “The logo is very similar to Swäno was concentrating on getting the noise level
Gorefest’ s logo. Yes, I know…The name looks similar
but has definitely not the same meaning. Our name is a
mix of “Gore” and “Torment”. Gorefest means something
completely different. People should think about the
meaning not the similarity before they say their
opinion”. Also there was a “little thing” about the
artwork. Gorement used ( a part of) the same artwork as
Morbid Angel’ s “Blessed are the Sick”. Although
Fernlund said it was embarrassing, he is pretty sure
“Blessed are the Sick” was released after “Human
Relic”. He even got a big further, as he stated that
Morbid Angel are Hexenhaus rip-offs as Hexenhaus
already used it for their debut album. After releasing
the demo, the band didn’ t really approve the pitched
vocals ( for the statistic freaks out there, the band
used a Yamaha Rex 50 for the recordings) and reckoned
they should use a different approach for their next
recordings. Strangely enough, the critics and fans
were very positive about the pitched vocals, because
of its brutality. And the next recording would be the
“Obsequies…” demo, also recorded in 1991. A new kid in
town! Jimmy Karlsson took over the microphone from the
kicked out Micke Bergström. But before recording the
second demo, Gorement went back to Dan Swäno to re-
record the vocals of two tracks of the “Human Relic”
demo. The intention was to release a 7 ” with those
tracks by a Mexican label. Unfortunately the rumours
are the label was an unreliable one. And if that
wasn’ t the only crap shitting down on Gorement; the
recordings got lost. I’ m aware this is the second band
I’ m talkin’ about of which the recordings went
missing. It’ s not like this happened on a daily basis,
dear reader…But back to the second demo “Obsequies…”.
Once again Dan Swäno ( or better yet is alter ego Day
Di Syraah) was responsible for the intro. This time
the vacuum cleaner wasn’ t abused, as it was a short
instrumental part. After that, it was Swedish Death
Metal, the brutal way. Fast, almost grinding ( not a

53
down, instead of getting them a
stunning guitar sound. It seems to
be a critical item in Gorement’ s
career; choosing artwork. For the
" Into Shadows” 7 ” the work of
Caspar David Friedrich
“Klosterfriedhof im Schnee” was
printed on the front. Although
they are not the first one ( a
Death/Thrash band called Abhorrent
from Norway already released a
demo with that artwork in 1990, I
think they were the first one.
Still, it was a drawn one of the
original artwork) , but I’ m pretty
damn sure Goddefied and Mythic
followed in 1993 and even many
more after that ( among them Manes,
Mystifier and Regnum) . Forget
about artwork…the 7 ” got well
received and Gorement got noticed
with their change of style. The
got a label contract even! Crypta
Records from Germany signed the
band for their debut album which
got released in 1994 . “The Ending
Quest” was the first recording not
recorded by Dan Swäno in his
Gorysound studio, but in the Delta
Studio in Germany which was known
for the first two recordings of
Accept. At that moment the band
thought they made the right
decision…but everything took a U-
turn. The producer wasn’ t
interested about the recording
sessions and the band couldn’ t
ventilate their ideas towards the
producer. Gorement had a female
vocalist and a string quartet in
mind to enhance the “doom & gloom”
part in their music. All got promo tape in 1995, the last recording of Gorement,
turned down and keyboards replaced the original ideas. which has a more traditional Doom Metal vibe than a
Still, Fernlund said it was a good thing maybe, Swedish Death Metal one ( j ust listen to “Garden of
because the recordings would be to pretentions. He Delight”) . 1996 was the end of Gorement…the end of
also, once again, mentioned the great drum work of “j ust another Swedish Death Metal band”, but not an
Mattias Berglund. After recording the band felt that ordinary one. After asking to describe Gorement,
“The Ending Quest” was a typical debut album, a 50/50 Fernlund answered: "Swedish answer to Bol Thrower and
mix of old songs and newly written songs. Still, early Paradise Lost from the cryptic realms of
according to Berglund the debut is “a nice piece of darkened anxiety and grief".
shit in the Swedish Death Metal history and a great
fuckin’ memory in our live to take to the grave! ” After years of silence Fernlund got interviewed about
Sadly to say Gorment got ripped off by Crypta Records Gorement and got a lot of responses. Positive ones.
which lead to the department of drummer Berglund. The About Gorement. Something he didn’ t really expected
other band members continued and recorded a 3-track but it got him triggered to release every recording of
Gorement properly. In 2 004 Fernlund and Necroharmonic
Records agreed to do business and released the
compilation “Darkness of Dead” along with liner notes
and some old photos.
In 2 012 Century Media thought it was a swell idea to
release every single tune of Gorement as an item on
their “Death Certificate” Campaign. It has been
released as a 2 CD as well as a 2 LP. The difference
with the Necroharmonic release is the addition of 7
unreleased tracks. Besides that this release has the
whole 1995 promo ( Necroharmonic release has only 1
track of the promo) , Century Media also added 5 live
tracks which are recorded in 1991. Only 3 tracks of
them are of their demo days, the other two are covers
of Pungent Stench and Carcass. Ofcourse the artwork
contains all kind of old photos, an old interview and
all kind of recording details. There are some online
discussions about this compilation, as there are some
flaws on it. The most disturbing on is the Microsoft
Windows- alert sound during the additional live
recording of the Carcass cover “Exhume to Consume”.
Also the sound between the two compilations is
different, as the Necroharmonic compilation is more
genuine towards the original sound than the Century
Media one. Still, it’ s a huge history document and
worth your money!

54
After a silence of about 4 years, the guys
from Gama Bomb are back with a new studio
album titled “The Terror Tapes”. VM-
Underground felt this was the opportunity to
give Joe McGuigan some questions to chew
on…and this is what he came up with! After
reading his answers, I know this man could
became a soul mate, because he’ s fan of the
Belgian beers and I also have an aversion of
natural flavor crisps…but off course the most
interesting stuff is about the band itself.
Check it out! (Fredde)
Hello, how are you guys doing?
Great, looking forward to go to Holland next week to slam
Duvel beers into my face. This is our first show playing
the new stuff so should be cool.
he wanted to and had accomplished all his goals with Gama
bomb so he wanted to settle down.
If I scroll the internet, and look for information about
Gama Bomb one thing always comes back…it’ s a thrash band.
But in my review I didn’ t really agree with that statement.
In my opinion you’ re a mixture between thrash like a band
as Tankard (with the needed winks in it) and the
hyperactive crossover from a band like Municipal Waste.
Okay, you’ ve got your own identity, but you’ re not j ust a
normal thrash metal band. Can you agree with that or do you
have a total other opinion about it? In what style would
you place Gama Bomb?
Yeah I’ ve always thought our sound had 3 main influences;
German thrash bands ( Sodom, Tankard and Living Death) , the
LA metal scene ( Agent steel, Megadeth, Dark angel) and a
more Irish punky sound ( Stiff Little Fingers, Undertones)
so yeah I’ d agree there is some crossover in our sound.
We’ re fans of bay area thrash but it’ s not really an
influence on the band’ s music.

The fourth full length album “The Terror Tapes” will be

released the 19th April 2013…excited guys?
Yea we can’ t wait, it’ s been a while since our last LP so
were looking forward to proof that we’ re not changing with
the times and that old age hasn' t reduced our need for
speed.
Before this album will see the light, on 26th of March
there was already a single released titled
“Terrorscope”…it’ s not very common anymore that bands
create single as entrée before the main dish as I can think
of. Can you tell us who’ s idea it was, why you try to
trigger the fans, and some explanation about it… (I read it
was offered as free download?)
Yes the single is available as a free download from AFM and
terrorizer. com, we knew that Gama bomb fans were chomping
at the bit for some new material, so we thought a single
would be a great idea -plus we’ ve never done a video before
so it was a cool excuse to have some laughs.
Since this new album and the previous one (“Tales from the
Grave in Space”) there’ s been a gap of four years. I heard
that lots of things has happened meanwhile…for example a
new label. Did you think it was time to move on and
therefore signed a deal with another label or was this j ust
coincidence?
Yeah we weren’ t very happy with Earache records, our
relationship had broken down, so we looked at some other
labels and AFM was the best fit for us. Obviously we
appreciate the work Earache have done to get us to this
point, but we’ re much happier on AFM.
In comparison with the previous album there’ s also a new
band member in the team. Can you tell us something more I mentioned thrash and crossover in my earlier question…but
about him, give us more information about the one he sometimes also a hardcore vibe is audible…especially when
replaced and its reason (Graham) , and especially what his vocalist Byrne gets back-up from the background vocals. Did
addition to the band is. you tried to create a hardcore feeling to it by throwing
Yeah our new guitarist is John Roache, he has played in vocals together, or has this j ust happened randomly? It can
numerous hardcore and death metal bands in Ireland and also be that I’ m totally wrong about that feeling haha
filled in for us when Domo ( lead guitar) inj ured his hand. No, my voice has always been a more gruff complement to
He’ s a great lead player too so we’ re incorporating lots Phillys, so i think it works well. But I don’ t think the
more duel lead guitar stuff this time around. So he stepped backing vocals on this album are particularly different too
in for Luke at the start of this year. Luke has been in the on any of our other LP’ s. One song " Metal Idiot" has a lot
band from day one, so it was hard to even think about more of a punk influence than the others so maybe you’ re
replacing him, but i think he had toured in all the places getting that buzz form that song.
Many song titles (vb: “Beverly Hills Robocop”, “Metal
" I think there are lots of thrash Idiot”) give me a smile on my face because I’ m curious of
bands out there who have what it’ s really about, and because it sounds funny…I’ ve
heard “The Terror Tapes” on digital version, so I haven’ t
terrible, self-obsessed , preachy got the lyrics at hand, can you tell our readers something
more about the songs?
lyrics" Lyrically? Well we’ ve always done our own thing lyrically,
despite lots of people not getting the idea behind it. I
think there are lots of thrash bands out there who have
terrible, self-obsessed , preachy lyrics. I hate that, we' d

55
rather tell a cool story than tell people what to eat for
breakfast.
In track “Terrorscope” you’ ve inserted your own version of
“Sabre Dance”…how did you come up with that idea? Perhaps
you guys have a crush for ballet ; -) For your information:
I loved it!
Yeah, Domo our guitar player is a fan of the classics, so
when we were drunkenly demoing the songs, he came up with
the saber dance bit. We thought it was so ridiculous that
it had to go in it. Any Gama bomb fan will know Domo likes
to seeks in lots of references from films or pop culture
into his solos, this is no exception.
immediately (sort of way how you make a link with it) :
Cradle of Filth - Scott Atkins. He’ s our producer and
produces their LP’ s too.
Chuck Schuldiner- Agent steel. he was a big Agent Steel fan
back in the days
AC/DC - flat caps. I love Brian Johnson , he’ s an amazing
singer
Techno music - funny. I’ m not so serious than I can’ t have
a laugh about that sort of stuff.
Belgian Beer - amazing, best beer in the world. ( you can
count on that haha)
Favorite food - enchiladas, i love Mexican food
Justin Bieber - sad, any artist who doesn’ t come from the
ground up is going to have a mighty fall
Many bands these days create DVD’ s…any plans in that
direction soon?
Yea maybe we' ll do a document of the next world tour, catch
all our stupid drunken activity' s, and maybe some songs
too/
Where will we be able to see Gama Bomb performing on
festivals this year?
We’ re actually touring thru quite a lot of the festival
season. We’ re in Europe with Artillery thru May, in the UK
in June and July and in America in August , so we don’ t have
a lot of time for festivals this year. I think next year
we' ll be doing a lot more.
Okay, thanks for the response…any last word for our
readers?
Come check us out on the road in May with Artillery, and
download our new single. Keep watching Mad Max 2 and never
buy natural flavor crisps, they suck ; -) Thanks for the
interview! !

How’ s the metal scene in Northern Ireland…any band(s) we

should pay attention to in your opinion? Or isn’ t there
much to discover from good bands there (except for Gama
Bomb) ?
Northern Ireland is quite an insular scene, so there are
some cool bands, I’ m not too sure if your readers will have
heard of them though. I play in a crossover thrash band
called Visceral attack, it’ s a lot more punky and
aggressive than Gama bomb. Aside from those guys I can’ t
think of any really cool thrash bands from Northern
Ireland. Rabid bitch of the north are quite cool.
!
I’ m always curious about the bands or musicians where other
bands are fan of…can you tell us which bands attract you
the most and why?
In terms of metal some of my favorites are: Flotsam and
Jetsam, Dio, Nuclear Assault, Blue Oyster Cult and Dokken.
Outside of metal I like: Bob Dylan, Tears for Fears, Chic
etc. I guess I’ m attracted to bands in metal that have
great songwriting and know what they’ re doing. I think a
good metal song is like a good pop song, it has to grab you
and be easy to sing along to.
I’ ve noticed there’ s not really an official site from Gama
Bomb, only twitter, facebook and youtube-clips…is this
something you’ ll work on in the future, or don’ t you have
the urge to have a own official site? If people for example
want to check out your tour schedule…where can they find
it?
We’ re in the process of sorting out our website at the
moment, in the mean time you can get all our relevant info
on Facebook
I’ d like to have some kind of mind game with you…I mention
a word, and you answer with something that comes to mind

56
 S HORT RE VI E WS
Backyard Mortuary
Lure of the Occult
Self Released
Let’ s see…the logo and artwork are giving away the
intentions of this rather unknown band. Indeed they
do! Australian Backyard Mortuary thought it would be a
good idea to play some morbid old school Death Metal
the way they did in the beginning of the 1990s.
Started back in 2 002 these Aussies released 2 demos
and after 10 years the debut is upon us. Lots of pace
changes with ranges from some slower old school Death
Metal ( I won’ t mention Autopsy again) to the faster US
Death metal of the begin 1990s. So “Lure of the
Occult” cannot be compared with the more organized
blackened chaos bands from Australia like Abominator,
Bestial Warlust or Sadistik Exekution. Especially
hints of Autopsy ( ah fuck…) , early Death and sometimes
Cannibal Corpse’ s “Eaten Back to Life” are present
which they have combined with some fine leads. An
enj oyable debut! ( Ricardo)
Blasphemophager
Final Atomic Torments [EP]
Blasphemous Art Productions
These three track EP is for the time being the least
recording of these Italians maniacs ans is released
espacially fot the Nuclear War Now! III fest The band
is unfortunately currently on hold for a couple of
years. They present three songs on this limited EP 500
pieces) . On the A-side you find ' Devastating
Radioactive Torments' , which was recorded in Portland
during their American tour in 2 010. The B-side contains
' Atomic Infested Carnage' recorded in Berlin 2 007 .
Both live tracks do truly represent the live chaos of
this band. The last song is the cover of Profanatica' s
' Final hour Of Christ' with the producer M. Maranz,
who did their great “. . . for Chaos, Obscurity and
Desolation. . . ” album. That' s all I have to say. If you
get the chance then j ust buy this. ( Martin)
Blood of Seklusion
Caustic Deathpath to Hell
Butchered Records / Sevared Records
A bit surprised to hear the debut “Caustic Deathpath
to Hell” of Italian Blood of Seklusion. When I read
the name Sevared Records I rather expect a more US
brutal death metal or Death/Grind than this more old
school Death metal orientated release. Blood of
Seklusion released one demo ( good old tape release! )
and featured on a split before thse two labels j oined
forces to release the debut album. Multiple growls,
old school riffs with sometimes a Malevolent Creation
or Divine Empire like groove, nice screamin’ leads and
quite some effective mid-paced and faster ideas within
the songs…That’ s what you are getting with " Caustic
Deathpath to Hell”. If you are missing the death metal
releases of the mid 1990s from the US, the old school
fast ones which were still brutal ( Malevolent
Creation, Monstrosity) …It won’ t kill you if you listen
to a couple of Blood of Seklusion tunes. ( Ricardo)
Bodyfarm
Malevolence
Cyclone Empire
Although “Bodyfarm” could be a nice topic for series
like CSI or Law & Order, this time it’ s Old School
Death Metal spawning from my home country: The
Netherlands. In 2 010 they released an EP simply called
“Bodyfarm” which didn’ t got the response the band
probably expected. So it was up to them to come back
with a vengeance…and a kick ass album. With
“Malevolence” they deliver a debut with one
instrumental intro, 8 tracks of their own and one
Massacre cover with Kam Lee on vocals. Considering the
overall midtempo Death Metal combined with chopping
rhythms, I would slab them the “1990s American Death
Metal vs. Bolt Thrower with tremolo crushing Slayer
solos” label on their assess. Sure, the guys of
Bodyfarm didn’ t discovered a new fungus that could
cure sweaty feet, but at the end this is j ust well
played old fashioned Death Metal. ( Ricardo)
Carcariass
Hell and Torment
Great Dane Records
French Technical Death Metal band Carcariass is a
special band in my books. They were the first band who
have send their material ( their debut “Hell on Earth”)
to Vampire Magazine back in 1997 and was featured in
our first xeroxed issue with a review and interview.
So yes, maybe I’ m already a bit biased with my
verdict. This compilation contains the re-mastered
versions of the “Ancestral War” demo, their debut
“Hell on Earth” and their second album “Sideral
Torment”. As said the Death Metal is technical but not
for the sake of being technical. Creating songs is
still their core business with fine riffs, strong
leads and an audible Steve DiGiorgio like bass sound.
If you are into later Death, it doesn’ t hurt one bit
to give this a try. In my humble opinion, Carcariass
never got the attention they deserve. ( Ricardo)
Cardiac Arrest
Vortex of Violence
Ibex Moon Records
The fourth album of Cardiac Arrest is decent. Nothing
more and nothing less. The old school death metal in
the “Autopsy meets English scene” vein drenched with
some old grinding attitude like Repulsion and Napalm
Death, will please the Cardiac Arrest fans they
already have. The title track displays the whole
package described above and adding the dual growl and
scream to enhance the description. If you are not
convinced of their releases already, you will not be
converted by “Vortex of Violence”. Decent. Nothing
more, nothing less. ( Ricardo)
Ceremonium
Dreams we have Written
Weird Truth Productions
The EP and the two full length albums of these US
doomy Deathsquad didn’ t really found their way towards
my album collection. Still, the name was familiar due
their presence on a couple of compilations. With
“Dreams we have written” you have all official
releases at one time, including their demo and
compilation tracks. At first you hear old school death
metal with a huge doom vibe in the vein of Incantation
and demo-era Paradise Lost. Later on it is getting
slight faster which is more like the old Finnish death
metal scene. And don’ t forget the Darkthrone cover
“Cromlech”, which fits perfectly. Conclusion: this
compilation is quite worthwhile to check out.
( Ricardo)
Coffin Texts
The Tomb of Infinite Ritual
Dark Descent Records
15 years ago, I’ ve read the name “Coffin Texts” many
times in the American fanzines as well as the more
bigger zines like Sounds of Death. Many times they
were linked with the many tribute albums released by
Dwell Records ( the adverts were flying all over the
place in those zines) , but also with their well-
received debut album “Gods of Creation, Death and
Afterlife”. And here they are again with their second
album, 12 years after their debut. The Morbid Angel
lifeline is as obvious as meat on a BBQ, with the Nile
parts as the Garlic sauce. A nice addition is the
certain Carcass pre-Heartwork melodies and song
structures. For example the track “Final
Transformation” is filled with those! And when
vocalist Robert Cardenas started his Jeff Walker
impression I was sold. Good album! ( Ricardo)
Degial
Death' s Striking Wings
Sepulchral Voice Records
If you are familiar with Degial’ s demo “Awakening from
Darkness”, you will be bit surprised with “Death’ s
Striking Wings”. The music changed from Old School
Swedish Death Metal towards a more Morbid Angel
approach, although the sound is still filthy and raw.
I bet these guys had “Altars of Madness” blasting
57
through the speakers in their cars while driving to
the studio. On “Swarming” there is also a little bit
of Possessed for you. Alright, throw in some Slayer-
like solos and you have a Death Metal j uggernaut in
your hands. Not enj oying Morbid Angel’ s latest efforts
and yearning for the old days…you can’ t go wrong with
“Death’ s Striking Wings”! ( Ricardo)
Desaster
The Arts of Destruction
Metal Blade
A new album by German finest Blackend-Medieval-
Thrashers Desaster, is always something to look
forward to. And the guys keep everything logic and
simple as “The Arts of Destruction” goes on where
“Satan’ s Soldiers Syndicate” left off in 2 007 . Still
Desaster go even more back time with this album as you
can hear a “Hellfire’ s Dominion” and “Tyrants of the
Netherworld” vibe here and there. Just listen to
“Possessed And Defiled’ as it has “Hellfire’ s
Dominion” written all over it. A nice feature is the
bonus track on the vinyl release: Cancer’ s “Cancer
Fuckin’ Cancer. Once again a Desaster release you can
buy blindfolded! ( Ricardo)
Desecresy
The Doom Skeptron
Xtreem Music
After the demise of Slugathor, Grönqvist and Nurmi
have given live to Desecresy. As I enj oyed their debut
“Arches of Entopy”, I was curious about their next
Doom/Death Metal album. And again, “The Doom Skeptron”
is living proof of the quality the Finnish Death Metal
scene delivered in the past and still delivers till
this very day. The Doom/Death metal is massive in the
vein of Incantation, slow Ashpyx/Bolt Thrower and some
of the old Finnish scene like Funebre and Abhorrence.
The atmosphere has been made by eerie and dreary
guitar tunes during the songs. “The Doom Skeptron” is
a good successor! ( Ricardo)
Entrails
Raging Death
Metal Blade
Swedish Entrails are releasing their 3th full length
since 2 010 and the first time by Metal Blade. And like
the previous albums, “Raging Death” is filled with
cadaverous Swedish Death Metal. No, it still doesn’ t
bore me one bit! “Raging Death” has no surprises.
Swedish Death Metal in the Dismember/Entombed vein,
which has a certain Gorefest groove as well ( j ust
listen to “Bloodhammer”) . As said, no surprised, but
very well performed, which is enough for me to keep
pushing the repeat button more than once. With the
closing track “Cemetary Horrors” Entrails has a huge
wink towards the Entombed classick “Left Hand Path”.
It is almost a blood stained altar for the second
instrumental part of one of the best OSSDM-hymns ever!
A nice addition is the “Dark Endless” cover,
originally by Marduk, which was on the same titled
debut album. As a fan of “Dark Endless” I can only
approve this decision! Good choice! Without doubt a
solid buy for everyone who is into Old School Death
Metal. ( Ricardo)
Goat Torment
Into the Mouth Of The Serpent
Bleak Bone Mortualia / Goatkult
Symphonies
This EP by Goat Torment will let your
ears bleed. There is one track on this
EP, simply divided in ' Part 1' and ' Part
2 ' . Goat Torment' s music is best to
describe as dark death metal with fast
blasting parts. Think of the last
Beherit album and you will know what I
mean. The EP comes in a 3-panels foldout
cover and a 14 ” x 14 ” poster of the
front cover. Limited to 350 copies, of
which the first 100 also come with a
patch. More of the blasphemous
background of Goat Torment you can read
in the interview. ( Martin)
Icons of Brutality
Between Glory and Despair
Cyclone Empire
After putting Absorbed ( also worshipping
the Swedish sound between 1998 and 2 002 )
to rest, there weren’ t a lot of Dutch
bands who play like the Swedish Masters.
From out of nowhere, Icons of Brutality
from report for duty. Towards the
release of “Between Glory and Despair”
they have put some trailers on YouTube,
but an official is not present in their
discography. The band starts enraged
with “Just Let Them Burn” and prove
within seconds they have listened to
certain “Brutal Icons” themselves. Old
Dismember meets Bolt Thrower repeating
groove is the recapitulation of “Between
Glory and Despair”. The extra edge on
this album is the sound of the leads as
well as the leads themselves. It has a
kind of haze effect in the mix.
Unexpected but effective! The link with
old Dismember can be heard on “Battalion
666” as a vocal harmonizer has been used
like on Dismember’ s “Defective Decay”. A
more than fine debut! ( Ricardo)
Incantation
Vanquish in Vengeance
Listenable Records
Aaah, The Masters themselves! Within one
58
of my reviews, I have mentioned that I heard a lot of
typical Incantation or Immolation influences in a
bunch of releases lately. Not a bad thing at all as
these Death Metal Veterans haven’ t released a single
disappointing album. And I’ m not the only one with
this opinion, believe you me! And I can already tell
you, “Vanquish in Vengeance” is once again a quality
album on the shelf. Everything you can and will expect
from an Incantation release, is on “Vanquish in
Vengeance”. The murky Death/Doom, the faster passages,
the guttural vokills of John McEntee, groovy drumming
by Kyle Severn and all this based on a massive rhythm.
The 6 years of waiting for a new album was worthwhile.
Classick Incantation! ( Ricardo)
Kråke
Conquering Death
Indie Recordings
With one demo ( released back in 2 008) under their
belt, Norway’ s Kråke signed a deal with Indie
Recordings, famous for signing acts from Norway, and
this collaboration resulted in their debut album
“Conquering Death”. The ranks of Kråke doesn’ t consist
of many well-known bandmembers as they gained
experience in bands like Hellnight, Sorgsvart and
Gravemachine. But ofcourse that isn’ t really
important, it’ s all about the music, right? So let’ s
talk music; Kråke plays mostly midtempo Symphonic
Black Metal with a clear and modern production, almost
mellow and easy-listening even. It’ s too much
“background music” in my opinion. Can’ t say the guys
of Kråke are bad musicians or composing horrible
songs, but it misses the so-called ( un) holy fire. If
you choose the more slower and easy access kind of
arrangements by Dimmu Borgir and Old Man’ s Child,
you’ re probably the audience Kråke is aiming at.
( Ricardo)
Krypts
Unending Degradation
Dark Descent Records / Me Saco Un Oj o Records
Finnish Death Metal, a rich history but also a bright
future. There are a lot of ( demo) bands who are
releasing all kind of Death Metal at the moment. After
1 demo and 1 EP released by quality and unfortunately
now defunct Detest Records, Dark Descent took Krypts
on their rooster. Especially the demo was very well
received and their debut “Unending Degradation” is far
more than decent as well. Ofcourse the Incantation
sauce has been used frequently ( music and vocal wise) ,
but Krypts also managed to use some of their own
native heritage: adding a haunting atmosphere by
guitar leads. A nice asset. Do you enj oy heavy, murky,
dwelling Old School Death Metal? Krypts from Finland
is right up your alley! ( Ricardo)
Malfeitor
Dum Morior Orior
Hellthrasher Productions
With members who played or still play in Blood
Mortized, Excruciate, Mastication, Exhumed and
Morpheus in the ranks, we aren’ t talkin’ about boy
scouts here. Still this is no typical Old School
SweDeath Metal release as there are some twists
( brutal in the American way) which aren’ t really
common for the famous genre, but the growl, the D-Beat
groove and fuzzy sound keep the connection strong with
Old School SweDeath. Just listen to “Rolling with
Corpses”, it all starts as a Grave/Entombed riff
driven track and in the middle there is a certain
brutal twist you don’ t expect after the aforementioned
riff. Is this a terrible thing? On the contrary! “Dum
Morior Orior” is a good Old School Death Metal album,
no doubt about that. ( Ricardo)
Mordbrand
Kolumbarium [7”]
Deathgasm Records
The fine gents of Swedish Mordbrand seems to be on
this earth for EP’ s and splits only. If you don’ t know
them, Mordbrand has Per Broder of God Macabre /
Macabre End on vocals and are playing Swedish Death
Metal all day long. Not like most colleagues of the
same music style, Mordbrand has more Doom and Darkness
in their tunes. Hence the splits with bands like Evoke
and Bombs of Hades. Maybe not that strange concerning
the God Macabre link. “Let Them Consume” has that kind
of Doom passage which I’ m referring to. It all starts
like what you can expect from an Old School Swedish
Death Metal band, but after a couple of minutes it all
get gloomy and slow. But it totally fits in and
enhance the dark atmosphere. On “Let Them Slumber” the
guest vocals of Craft’ s Nox are givin’ the dark
atmosphere a little push as well. Horror. Dark.
Mordbrand! ( Ricardo)
Naglfar
Terras
Century Media
Every metalhead who has a little interest in the more
melodic blend of Death and Black Metal, knows the name
Naglfar. Although I’ m more a fan of “Vittra” and
“Diabolical” than “Pariah or “Harvest”, all because of
the nostalgia and timeframe when those albums were
released, it’ s still a common fact that these guys
always deliver a solid album ( well, maybe “Sheol”
wasn’ t really well received) , and they did it once
again. Everything you expect from Naglfar is present.
It sounds familiar, it sounds like it’ s made by pure
pro’ s, it sounds like Naglfar. “Terras” is not the
best album of their career, but if you are a Naglfar
follower or a melodic black metal fan in general, it’ s
worth your money. ( Ricardo)
Necrowretch
Putrid Death Sorcery
Century Media Records
I bet there are some underground adepts who will bash
the album, only because it has been released by a
maj or label like Century Media. Grow up you fuckers!
Necrowretch deserves your attention if you’ re into Old
School Death Metal of the late 1980s, no matter which
label releases it. A lot of thrash influences are on
this debut album, which were common in those days.
Also the vocals are more in the Merciless vein than a
putrid grunt. On the title track the screams are in
the Black Metal vein as well, Burzum to be more
precise. Without implying you will hear any
Scandinavian Second Wave Black Metal on “Putrid Death
Sorcery”. So a combination of Merciless “The
Awakening” and Death’ s “Scream Bloody Gore”, all done
with a ditto sound and attitude. Lovin’ it and face
it, you ears can listen to much worse! ( Ricardo)
Nowen
Essence of Fear
Violent Journey Records
Although Nowen already have released some stuff, the
band isn’ t really one of the most famous bands from
Finland. Musicwise I would say that “Essence of Fear”
is a mix of Scandinavian Melodic Death Metal and the
technical side of Detonation ( The Netherlands) . The
Thrash riffs has a bit of more modern sounding Thrash
vibe like Destruction nowadays or The Haunted on “One
Kill Wonder”. The pace changes and the progressive
Death ( think “Human”) or Carcariass-like bass touches
gives a little bit extra. A decent and well played
album by Nowen! ( Ricardo)
Revocation
Teratogenesis [EP]
Scion Audio Visual
The technical death metal/thrash band Revocation from
Boston –US, this year released their new EP titled
“Teratogenesis”. Five songs are recorded and are from
exceptional quality. Fans of shredding guitar work,
up-tempo riffs and blast beats combined with breaks
that are inserted in the right place on the tracks
will enj oy this stuff. The best performance on this EP
is definitely from guitarist David Davidson, because
he’ s the one that’ s responsible for the shredding and
melodic parts on this disc. Also a big applause for
the drum parts in track “Spurn the Outstretched Hand”,
the number one song on this great EP. ( Fredde)
Unleashed
Odalheim
Nuclear Blast
Unleashed is like peanutbutter. Maybe not your first
choice, but never disappointing. The 11th album of the
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true Vikings of Death Metal is beyond a good asset of
their discography. The riffs are mostly more uptempo
than on “As Yggdrasil Trembles”, which I categorise as
an advantage as their best songs are mostly uptempo.
The riffs during the choruses of “White Christ” and
“By Celtic and British Shores” ( along with Churchill-
like lyrics…”We shall never surrender”) are great
examples of the well-known Unleashed-mark. During some
riffs you can’ t deny the Black Metal vibe that is
present like on the opening track “Fimbulwinter”. The
typical Unleashed sound and song writing along with
Hedlund’ s charismatic vocals are obvious, but be
honest…you don’ t want it any other way! ( Ricardo)
Venus Star
Wild Grains & Turningheads [EP]
Maybe it is the nostalgia talkin’ , or maybe it
is j ust a fact for those whose enthusiasm
reaches the maximum after experiencing the
whole package…but I’ m one of those old geezers
who enj oy a demo tape very much and has
sympathy towards those who are releasing them
with booklet and everything. Be it a band or
label. Far better than a blank CDR or something
like that. Ofcourse, the music presented on the
tape must be of high quality as well, otherwise
it is j ust another useless rotten tape.
Fortunately, Trenchrot is worth every dime.
Thanks to Gabriel of Nihilistic Holocaust label
& zine who did this interview, all the credits
are for him! We of VM-Underground j ust tag
along and parasite on his work… (Ricardo)
TrenchRot is a Philadelphia band concerned with
writing intense, poser-crushing death metal. We are
Steve J ( Vocals/Guitar) , Brooks ( Guitar) , Steve G
( Bass) and Justin ( Drums) .
Ricardo: Intense Posercrushing Death Metal you say…Did
you miss something in the (Old School) Death Metal
scene nowadays which you got the urge to step in and
crush some posers? Starting Trenchrot is a reaction to
“something” in your neighborhood? Youth playing
deathcore and thinkin’ that’ s real Death Metal for
example?
TrenchRot is a direct reaction to what American Death
Metal has started to sound like. The band was formed
to play intense, angry death metal the way the old
masters played. Here in Philadelphia, there’ s only a
small death metal scene, and nothing that quite sounds
like what TrenchRot wanted to do. Before the band
wrote a single note of music, we had a very clear idea
of our sound. In fact, there’ s a very limited number
of bands in the States that are doing old-school death
metal, especially with a European influence, so it was
not difficult for us to set ourselves apart. Our
sound is a direct response to those posers who cut
their hair, grow their beards and learn sweep
arpeggios and weak blast beats instead of writing
urgent, evil metal.
Kuunpalvelus
The fourth release in 2 012 for Venus Star multi-
instrumentalist Atvar, who has some other bands and
proj ects as well. It seems Finland has more hours than
2 4 hours a day and told nobody about it. “Wild Grains
& Turningheads” is a murky and primitive Black/Death
EP with down tuned and distorted mid tempo guitars.
The track “Lesser Numbers ( for the Fleer) ” could be a
midtempo with Polka drumbeat-like Mortician song, only
with a demo sound. While “Nighteater” has a gloomy yet
Black Metal repeating melody ( it has a kind of siren-
call feeling) line on the background which gives that
particular song a nice edge. This is not for every
Death/Black Metal fan as it quite obscure, but I did
not have one moment to skip a track, but concerning
duration; I do think an EP is long enough. ( Ricardo)
Gabriel: Your first demo " Dragged down to hell" was
released on digital format in January 2013. How are
the reactions of the metal crowd? Are you satisfied
with the comments you could have gathered? Was there
also a limited CDr pressing, or it was only digital?
Brooks: It’ s hard to actually gauge the reactions of
the metal crowd, since our music hasn’ t spread much
outside a few hundred people according to our online
plays. All the feedback we have received so far has
been positive, and we will welcome criticism, albeit
not by some fan of poser tech-death. We only released
the demo online because it was more important for us
to get the music out to as many people as possible,
and giving it away online was the most direct way for
us to do that. Playing live is very difficult for us
due to our work schedules, so there would be very
little reason for us to make a CDr pressing.
Gabriel: Even if your songs are quite straight to the
point, you seem to enj oy tracks with a certain sense
of composition (Chorus, verse, bridge, or something) ,
and with a touch of melody. . . For you is Death metal
something to release aggression, brutality, morbidity,
or is there a bit more?
Brooks: In keeping with the stricture of our bands’
goal, it would do us no good to over-think writing
death metal. Songs should be unhinged and intense, but
still remain “songs, ” not some random assemblage of
slam riffs and arpeggios.
Steve: I think that death metal should always have a
sense of urgency and we always have this in mind while
writing. We obviously aren' t trying to break any new
ground with TrenchRot, but we always want there to be
momentum in our songs that will make you bang your
head which is exactly what the old masters did. I feel
as though a lot of newer bands j ust mash riffs
together and play as fast as possible. It' s totally
aimless and you can' t bang your head to it, so what is
the point?
" TrenchRot is a direct reaction
to what American Death Metal
has started to sound like"
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Gabriel: In my ears, your music mostly sounds
influenced by old European Death metal, you doesn' t
seem to convey too many American elements (I could
think about a bit of MASTER sometimes (But it' s more
for some kind of " bluesy" feeling than music in
itself) and also one riff reminds me of DEATH
" Leprosy" ) . . . So I would rather quote names such as
PESTILENCE, ASPHYX, DISMEMBER, maybe CARNAGE and a bit
of BOLT THROWER. . . Would you like to add, or delete, a
few names from the list?
Brooks: Without being very explicit, you have pretty
much got the right idea about where our music comes
from. We are fans of all kinds of metal…
Steve: Yeah, we definitely are going for a more old
school European sound. However, I' d say that Autopsy,
old Death and Obituary are American bands that
definitely play a big part in what we do, but you more
or less hit the nail on the head.
Ricardo: Being influenced by the European Death Metal
style, could you tell us what attracts you in that
certain style? Be it the English, Dutch, Swedish or
Finnish one…
I don’ t think anyone will ever accuse TrenchRot of
being very original; with one listen it’ s very obvious
who our influences are. It’ s clear we have an
inclination for the Swedish style of death, and
there’ s a big Bolt Thrower influence ( and there’ s a
reason that they are the only “English” band we cite. )
Obviously, we dabble in the Finnish Death/Doom tempos,
and some people are able to pick out our subtle hints
at the swamp-like American inclination. We play what
we think is the most distilled variety of Death Metal,
no frills.
Gabriel: Your music contains some kind of vibes and
" hot" energies that let me imagine you are all in your
30' s, because the younger peoples generally don' t have
the same way of creating old styled death metal. . . Is
this all about beer, whisky, or being " old" ?
Brooks: Our bands’ ages average in the late 2 0’ s, but
our spirits are with the old masters. Our energy could
come from a combination of beer, whiskey, some illegal
substances and our level of maturity. We remain a
little j aded at the state of younger musicians playing
death metal.
Gabriel: Your vocalist has scorched screams that occur
to really remind of Martin Van Drunen by moments, it' s
really cool. I imagine it might not be common to hear
an American Death metal band with such kind of vocals!
It is screaming without mercy! ! ! What are his favorite
epochs from the " screaming carreer" of Van Drunen? The
PESTILENCE days, the old ASPHYX days, or maybe the
newer ASPHYX records? (Or even perhaps the COMECON
album, if it was available in Usa)
Steve: The first day I heard Asphyx' s " The Rack" years
ago was the day Martin Van Drunen became my favorite
vocalist in death metal. I love everything the dude
has done, but the Asphyx stuff will always hold a very
special place in my heart.
" Truthfully, it’ s more like a
historical fiction, that allows
us to elaborate on our
ridiculous themes of madness,
torture, and death. . . "
Gabriel: The topic of war seems to be something
important for the band. Your song titles " Trapped
Under Treads" and " Dragged down to hell" lead my mind
to this subj ect, and your band name also does. Could
you develop a bit the story behind each 3 songs?
Brooks: War is solid subj ect matter for death metal,
as it is both inspiring and disgusting. There is an
underlying theme between our songs and our artwork,
and perhaps a historical fiction that the lyrics are
written, but we are not a “concept band. ” The band
writes the lyrics togetherso reading the lyrics and
looking at the art really communicate all we have to
say about our subj ect matter.
Ricardo: As mentioned in the previous question, war is
the main topic in your lyrics. Do the bandmembers have
a certain interest in this topic in general? Watching
all kind of documentaries on tv channels like the
History Channel? Are items like the Massacre of Babi
Jar, the assault by Van Stauffenberg, the Seoul
National University Hospital Massacre during the
Korean War or even the activities of a M4 Sherman Tank
during WWII, inspiration for lyrics of a Trenchrot
song (without writing a concept album about a certain
war) ? Or is it difficult to write lyrics, and
therefore a song, on historical facts?
It seems like we get asked about our “war” themes
pretty often. To make it more clear, we write our
lyrics in the context of war, but not really with any
historical facts. Truthfully, it’ s more like a
historical fiction, that allows us to elaborate on our
ridiculous themes of madness, torture, and death.
We’ re not really big history buffs like Hail of
Bullets or Bolt Thrower, but we find the horrors of
war inspirational. If you read the lyrics of the
demo, you’ ll see lots of WWI and WWII references, but
that’ s j ust about where it ends. It really j ust gives
a lyrical and musical atmosphere, which we can place
the traditional topics of death metal in. That, and
tanks are awesome.
Gabriel: You signed a deal for a future album with
Unspeakable Axe records. . . Do you already have new
songs in stock, and how will it sound compared to the
demo?
Brooks: Unspeakable Axe will release our full length
on CD; we hope to secure a label for vinyl as well,
since we are a band of vinyl enthusiasts. We are well
into writing, and should be recording somewhat soon.
The songs are a continuation of what we originally set
out to do, though we’ re constantly trying to improve
with each song in speed and aggression. There will, of
course, be the slow, doom numbers as well.
Ricardo: How did you get in contact with Unspeakable
Axe Records? They seem to have high hopes for
Trenchrot, describing the band as “a bruising
j uggernaut of war-themed Death Metal in the European
Style”. For how many albums have you signed to them?
Why did you signed with them? Were there other labels
interested?
Unspeakable Axe was the only label we sent our demo
to, we weren’ t concerned with shopping our material to
some big label. We were fans of Dark Descent Records,
and the idea of working with an upstart label that was
really focused on old-school thrash and death appealed
to us. We don’ t have a contract or anything signed,
it’ s simply an agreement that they will release our
full length on CD, and we’ ll also be looking for a
label to do vinyl ( we are a band of vinyl
enthusiasts. ) We couldn’ t be happier with our
arrangement, and there’ s some pretty cool stuff coming
out from both Unspeakable Axe and Dark Descent.
TrenchRot don’ t have any long-term goals, we are happy
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to j ust put out music, and see what happens with it.
We would have released a full length with or without
label support, but having that support definitely
makes our j ob a little easier.
" It was very important to us
when we started this band that
we not place any high
aspirations on it. We j ust
wanted to crank out a demo and
see what happened. "
Gabriel: I didn' t find much infos about TRENCHROT on
the Internet, so could you tell us more about the past
and present activities of the musicians? What are your
current other proj ects, metal or not, musical or
not. . .
Steve: I' m in a speed metal band called Infiltrator
which I also play guitar and do vocals for. Brooks and
I are also in a band called Crypt Sermon which is doom
metal ala Solitude Aeturnus/ Candlemass with touches
of heavy metal. We are currently having our demo
mastered, so it should be up online here in the next
few weeks.
Gabriel: How is the metal scene in Philadelphia/
Pennsylvania? Some cool bands to quote and advice to
the readers? Are there kinds of metal that dominate
your local scenes, or is it generally a bit of
everything?
Brooks: Philadelphia’ s metal scene can be pretty
insular, and musicians can often find themselves
playing in multiple bands that may share a bill on any
given show. The punk scene is big here, ranging from
crust punk and D-beat to peace punk.
There is not much of a death metal scene in Philly,
and certainly none in the traditional style. There is
an abundance of black metal bands, and pseudo-
spiritual, beardo doom. However, Philly is fortunate
to be a large enough city that some cool international
tours come through.
Ricardo: What are your expectations for Trenchrot in
the future? Will touring be an option for you guys
concerning your j obs?
It was very important to us when we started this band
that we not place any high aspirations on it. We j ust
wanted to crank out a demo and see what happened.
It’ s a lot of fun for us, but our work schedules
prevent us from doing anything like a State-side tour
any time soon. A couple of us have been in touring
bands before, and it was very difficult to manage the
time for that and the daily grind, since we have
careers. When you’ re a new band in the US you really
have to “pay-your-dues” on a DIY level, which isn’ t
really an option for us right now. That said, given
the correct opportunity, we would be really excited to
play live at a fest or something.
Gabriel: It' s time for a playlist! Which metal albums
were played the most often in the musicians' players
the last months?
Brooks: A brief list of music we listen to while
taking drinking and smoking breaks during practice
would include Hypnosia, Bloodbath, High Spirits,
Unleashed, Morbid Angel. . .
Steve: This past week it' s been a lot of the
following: Necrophobic, Saxon, Riot, Destroyer 666 and
Desaster.
Gabriel: You can tell us more about a subj ect you
wish, and conclude the interview. The demo tape can be
ordered at http: //nihilistic. voila. net. METAL ON
METAL, BONES ON BONES, BRAINS ON BRAINS.
Thanks for taking the time and supporting real death
metal! http: //trenchrotdeathmetal. bandcamp. com
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 Obscure Infinity! Things started when Jules and me
talked about starting a band. It took a long time
until we really focused this idea. This was in late
2 006. Short after this the first line up was recruited
in early 2 007 and from this point we wrote own songs
and rehearsed them. When we had enough songs together
we decided to record a demo. This demo entitled “Into
The Depths Of Infinity” was recorded in spring 2 008
with the help of a friend of us ( Nils from the Black
Metal band Weird Fate) . All of our material until now
was recorded by him at his Klangkerker Studios. After
that we released our first album “Dawn Of Winter” and
then a split single together with the italian band
Profanal. Our releases got mostly very positive
reactions. That´ s cool and shows that people more and
more are into this raw sound of Death Metal. Meanwhile
the line up has changed a little bit. We have a new
guitar player ( Sascha) and a new drummer ( T. ) . And
yes. . . the band name is stolen by the Grave song,
haha. . .
You‘ ve stated the following about starting the band:
“We had a clear vision how the music should sound like
right from the beginning. We wanted to create (as I
Getting my interest is as difficult as it said before) authentic music, that is strong and
brutal, but also has a deep atmosphere in it. We don´t
is easy. A certain riff, sound or musical wanted to play modern Death Metal. Instead of this we
influence can get my attention at once. wanted to create something, that is darker and much
All this happened when I heard the track more mystically”. Which were your musical influences
“Collecting a Disastrous Sun” which took to create the Death Metal you had in mind back then?
And while listening to “Putrefying Illusions”…do you
me back to the Dissection’ s “The think that you have succeed?
Somberlain” and Unanimated’ s “In the Haha, right. . . that´ s what I stated. I don´ t like
Forest of the Dreaming Dead” days. Enough modern sounding Death Metal. Nothing against bands who
playing this style, it´ s j ust not my bottle of beer,
to convince me to send some questions to haha. The musical influences consist out of so many
Germany and Stefan was so kind to answer bands. There are the scandinavian bands like
them…(Ricardo) Unleashed, Grave, Dismember, Entombed, Dissection,
Wombbath, Abhorrence and early Amorphis, Demigod,
Hi Ricardo and thank you for your interest into early Sentenced, Convulse and so on. Then there are

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american bands like Death, Autopsy, Morbid Angel, It seems you were planning a split release with
Deicide and Incantation. Not to forget bands like Funeral Whore? On CD this time…any news on that one?
Benediction, Bolt Thrower, Gorguts, Morgoth, Pungent Yes, we also plan to do a split with Funeral Whore. I
Stench, Disharmonic Orchestra, Asphyx and early think it will also be a 7 ” vinyl. We allready recorded
Pestilence. Celtic Frost, Bathory, Sodom and Protector three new songs this month. Two new songs and “Maniac
had also an influence to us. And then there are great Destroyer”, a song from our demo. All three songs
Hard Rock bands like Scorpions, Rainbow and so on that sound really great and we are totally satisfied with
influenced especially the solo parts. There are simply the result. Our new drummer T. is a beast! ! ! Haha, you
to many bands that influenced us to name them all. I´ m can expect total Death Metal mayhem from our new
satisfied with “Putrefying Illusions” but as a songs!
songwriter you allways search for the perfect song or
the perfect album. If you reached that goal the
j ourney has to have an end. I don´ t feel so and so my
search moves on.
You' ve released your killer second album, “Putrefying
Illusions” last year, released by Obscure Domain
Records. Can you tell us more about it to our readers?
And especially the artwork by Caspar David Friedrich
" Kreuz und Kathedrale im Gebirge" . Why have you chosen
this artwork??
We recorded it at Klangkerker Studios, once more with
the help of our friend Nils from Weird Fate, who also
did the mix. The recording process was j ust very
relaxed. The album was mastered at Necromorbus Studio
in Sweden. And yeah, we like the sound. It sounds old,
thin and crappy. . . with other words: PERFECT, haha. . . if
anyone cries about the sound, go on listening to your
Pop records and don´ t bother us. The reactions were
very positive so far. Some people don´ t like the sound
but that´ s ok for us. . . read the lines above you
Poppers. For the cover: We j ust like the work of
Caspar David Friedrich and the painting j ust suited
perfect to us. In May the album will be released on
vinyl by F. D. A. Rekotz! It will be limited to 500
copies, 4 00 in black and 100 in clear vinyl!

" . . . “Soulside Journey” is the

best Darkthrone album in my
opinion. "
You grabbed me by the throat with “Collecting a
Disastrous Sun”, my first acquaintance with your
second album. The Swedish Blackened Death Metal of the
1990s (Dissection, Unanimated etc. ) is so clearly
present, it almost like you were one of those
bands. . . Even the mix of the vokills sounds like Micke
Jansson (Unanimated) on “In The Forest of the Dreaming
Dead”. Really spot on! Also I hear some Asphyx and
Darkthrone’ s “Soulside Journey” in the music. Do you
agree? Were you aiming for that particular 1990s vibe?
By the way, great solos! Totally benefits the
atmosphere on the album!
Yeah, we wanted the songs to sound old. And hell yeah,
we achieved that goal. I think that in this song our
slight Black Metal influences are a little bit more
evident than in the other songs. On “Dawn Of Winter”
there is with the last song “Transmitting Life To
Darkness” also a tune with more Black Metal feeling
than the other songs on the record. I like “In The
Forest Of The Dreaming Dead” of Unanimated but I
wouldn´ t name them as an influence to us. But with the
other bands I´ m ok and you´ re right: “Soulside
Journey” is the best Darkthrone album in my opinion.
After the release of “Putrefying Illusions”, you
released a split 7” with country mates Deathronation
on Whispers of Death and Iron Bonehead Productions. It
seems the track “Absurd Existence” has been recorded
at the same time as the track of the 7” split with
Profanal, back in 2010. I’ ve read that this split
should be released early 2012, what went wrong?
The split with Deathronation is released since a
couple of weeks now. As we recorded the song for the
split with Profanal in 2 010 we recorded a second song,
too. This song was “Absurd Existence” which we now
took for the split with Deathronation. We played a
little tour with them in 2 011 and so it was a cool
idea to do a split release together. The reasons for
the delay are simple: We had to wait for Deathronation
to record their song. That´ s all.
After 2 releases by Obscure Domain Records, you have
signed a deal with F. D. A. Rekotz. Were you satisfied
with the work of Hacker and co. ? What do you expect of
F. D. A. Rekotz, do you think they can “bring” you guys
further than Obscure Domain Records? Are you already
working on new material for the debut release on your
new label? Same musical direction as on “Putrefying
Illusions”?
We were satisfied with Obscure Domain. We really like
Hacker and Sönke but we wanted to try something new.
They are a really small label and that´ s the reason
why they can´ t do much of promotional stuff. Rico of
F. D. A. do a great j ob with his label and I think the
signing with his label means a big step forward for
us. We are allready working on new songs. We hope to
record them at the end of the year. The musical
direction will be the same like on “Putrefying
Illusions” but we now sound different with the new
line up and that´ s good. . .
" Did I say that???
Haha. . . perhaps I had a bad day
when saying this. "
You’ ve said in an interview before: “I recognize that
too many people without the real passion infiltrate
the metal scene. So these guys and girls are more a
sort of all style listeners in a negative way. They
turn the point of view from an open minded
enthusiastic and interested listener to a randomly
behaviour without any devotion into music if you know
what I mean. ” What kind of passion do you miss? Can
you also venture your vision on the reason behind the
lack of that passion? To easy access to the music as
you don’ t really have to do any effort to get your
hands on something? Is it more a lifestyle instead of
a “way of life” for them? Can you tell us more about
your opinion?
Did I say that??? Haha. . . perhaps I had a bad day when

64
saying this. Today I look at things differently. There
are so many great bands and people who support this
kind of music, no matter if they j ust listening,
organizate gigs or doing awesome fan zines ( like
Mystical Music or Necromaniac Zine) . Why should I
waste my time any longer with bothering about people
without attitude or passion for this music?
The guys of Obscure Infinity are all huge Old School
Death Metal fans. Care to share some of your favourite
albums and demos?
I love Death Metal the traditional way. . . no matter if
it´ s from Sweden, Finland, Germany, Great Britain, the
USA or any other country. Every style has its very own
charme. I can´ t pick only 5 albums out of my all time
favourites. . . so I better tell you my favourite albums,
that were released shortly or in the last years:
Charon – Sulphur Seraph
Tribulation – The Horror
Revel In Flesh – Manifested Darkness
Sulphur Aeon – Swallowed By The Ocean´ s Tide
Krypts – Unending Degradation
Favourite Demos of the last time:
Ascended – The Art Of Necromancy
Slaugtherday – Cosmic Horror
Morbus Chron – Splendour Of Disease
Resurgency – Dark Revival
Disma – The Vault Of Membros
I nearly forgot to put Skeletal Remains on the top
album list! ! ! Their “Beyond The flesh” album really
blew my mind last year! ! !
Well, I' m out of my questions, anything to add?
Thank you for doing this interview with us! We know to
appreciate the support! Germany has many cool Death
Metal bands to offer, so check out the following
bands: Charon, Hatespawn, Sulphur Aeon, Revel In
Flesh, Wound, Dehuman Reign, Chapel Of Disease,
Deserted Fear, Reckless Manslaughter and Lifeless! As
I said before our second album “Putrefying Illusions”
will be released May 2 4 th by F. D. A. Rekotz! Get your
copy! ! !

65
 One of the advantages of the internet, is the fact that bands can share their raw mixes of
songs they are composing or rehearsing. For the artists to check out some opinions, for
their followers it' s always a nice thing to hear something new. Ramon of Bleeding Gods did
the same, sharing some raw mixes of some thrashy straightforward Death Metal. And it was
indeed interesting enough to let him introduce his new band. . . (Stij n)
So, when did it start to itch again, after you left Houwitser?
After I left Houwitser in March 2 011, it started to itch again pretty seriously around July. I had some more time left
for fun stuff and I had some riffs lying around at home. After I had started working those out, the idea rose to start
up something new again.
Why did you switch from bass guitar to guitars?
Well, I have always played ( rhythm) guitars. When Houwitser reestablished in 2 007 , all they needed were a bass player
and a drummer. I found drummer Marco ( de Groot, ed. ) right away, because I had been friends with him for years, and it
seemed like a new challenge for me to switch to bass, without playing guitar on bass. Ofcourse I always continued to
play guitar at home, but it gathered a bit more dust in the past 5, 5 years.
You told me about a concept behind Bleeding Gods, could you explain it? And will it come back in the artwork?
Yes, that' s right. . . at least that goes for this album. Maybe other concepts will come up for next albums, it' s a
possibility. As far as the band name goes, you can guess it will deal with ' bleeding gods' . For now, with this
concept, we want a few gods from different religions and ages wage war with and against eachother. It' s actually
impossible, but it seemed special to us. For example, Mayans, ancient Egyptian gods and Greek gods are involved. . .
together and against one another. Ofcourse this will be represented in the artwork. The concept of the artwork is
ready as well.
How did you get the line up together?
I' ve known all the band members for quite some time. I' ve met most of them over the years, on the road with
Houwitser. When I posted on Facebook that I was starting up something again, I received a lot of e-mails from
interested musicians. Among them was Erwin ( Harreman, ed. ) , who I knew from Supreme Pain. He wasn' t all too busy
anymore, and Erwin wanted to do something active again. I met Arnold ( Oudemiddendorp, ed. ) somewhere in 2 007 /08 with
one of the Houwitser gigs. I' d known him from Altar and Devious. He was so enthusiastic, that I asked him for
Bleeding Gods. Bart ( van Wallenburg, ed. ) I knew from the rehearsal room and ofcourse Sinister in the old days. He
also was interested immediately when he heard my plans and the first home made demo. Last but not least I asked
Edwin ( van den Eeden, ed. ) to j oin. I also knew him from Sinister, and he also wanted to do something active again
after his departure from Sinister.
How do you write the material? Is it really your baby, or do all the band members have equal influence?
Yes and no. I' ve made the basis of all songs and guitar riffs at home with EZDrummer. That' s how twelve basic demo-
songs were written. I' ve e-mailed a few of them to Erwin, who added a second guitar part and some leads to it at
home. Ofcourse everyone has influence on the songs. At rehearsals, everyone does his own thing to fill in the songs
as good and strong as possible. It' s an advantage that we have a founding everyone agrees with. Arnold will work on
putting together the vocal lines and lyrics with Erwin. Because of the concept that we have, a lot of research will
have to be done in history books and the internet.
How would you describe the music?
Best would be as death metal, but with a thrashy and heavy edge to it. There are also some clean and classic guitar
parts here and there. I think it' s hard to label it, and we don' t really
want to. As long as it is - and stays - groovy, heavy and
' headbangable' . And a bit catchy maybe. In my opinion, that' s no problem,
because it means the music is recognizable and sticks in people' s heads.
I hope, haha.
I understand there are plans to record a demo, how is that coming along?
(Recording is already finished at the moment of the publishing of this
interview -Ed. )
Yes, that' s right. There will be a demo for a couple of interested record
labels. It probably won' t be for sale, since the demo songs will
ultimately end up on the album. The tracks will probably be shared on
the social media ( www. facebook. com/BleedingGods) and the website. So
it' s really a promotional demo. As close to album/studio quality as
possible. The recordings are ( hopefully) planned for February/March. At
the moment our rehearsals are concentrated fully on the demo tracks.
Putting the dots on the I' s for the recording. Then hopefully to the
studio later this year to record the debut album.
How many songs will end up on the demo?
The demo will contain four songs. The reason for that is that the
songs are quite different in style, compared to eachother. That way one
gets a more general impression of what Bleeding Gods stands for.
What would you like to achieve with Bleeding Gods in 2013?
At least release the debut album. Preferrably through a label, or else
self financed. And play as much as possible in the club scene. We' re
probably too late for most festivals and tours because the album isn' t
there yet. So hopefully all of that will happen in 2 014 .
Anything else to add?
Yes, thanks for the interview, and ofcourse everyone should like our
Facebook-page. ( www. facebook. com/BleedingGods)
Cheerz! Stay tuned and brutal!