Steel Druhm summarizes his experiences on the recent 70000 Tons of Metal Cruise while downplaying and concealing crimes committed in international waters.
Groza
Harakiri for the Sky – Scorched Earth Review
“Harakiri for the Sky is one of those bands that is consistently very good but constantly eludes greatness. The Austrian duo’s grasp on melody is second to none, pairing yearning atmospheres with blackened aggression and meditative tempos, resolute in its muscular weight and melodic motifs without devolving into either jadedness nor frailty. While devoted to the style’s trademark slow-burning growth, they constantly avoid the pitfalls of the “post-black” descriptor, refusing to fall into the weak and twinkly shenanigans of their counterparts.” Pitfall Harakiri.
Groza – Nadir Review
“Germany’s Groza has always been that 3.0rn in my side. While other bands have toyed with greatness that sends my head for a loop, albums Unified in Void and The Redemptive End have hemorrhaged potential, only to squander it on safe compositions. Owing Mgła just as much for their namesake and as their subtle and interwoven melodic style, while likewise hinting post-black, Groza has been releasing pleasant melodic black metal since 2016.” The stakes: can non-problematic-Mgła innovate enough that we can stop using the problematic-Mgła comp?
Weltenbrandt – Transzendenz Schatten Romantik Review
“I eagerly tore open my very first promo, which informed me of several guest vocalist appearances from bands like Harakiri for the Sky and Ellende (among others). While I went in with few expectations for Weltenbrandt, they were slightly raised by virtue of association with such heavy hitters in the genre. Can Weltenbrandt reach the same level of quality and—perhaps more importantly—differentiate themselves from their peers?” Welts, brands, and expectations.
Groza – The Redemptive End Review
“I was tentative about taking this album. I was familiar with Groza’s debut Unified in Void from 2018, granting it a casual listen and making that “not bad” Obama Rage Comic face from 2012. If one peruses the Metallum profile of these Germans, you’ll be graced with the shocking sight of a whopping 0% average review score from three reviews. Why, you ask? Probably because — and maybe this is obvious given the act’s name and a certain Polish full-length debut — Groza sounds a hell of a lot like Mgła. That’s unfair, awarding no merit to an album simply because it imitates another. I mean, if fans cancelled every act that sounded like Transilvanian Hunger, we’d have no black metal left.” The end of influence?
Groza – Unified in Void Review
“I picked Groza from the promo bin for one simple reason: Mgla is a great fucking band, and Groza share their name with Mgla’s debut album. That’s not by accident, either. The promo blurb that accompanied Unified in Void was frank in its admission of Mgla influence, leaving me quite excited to hear what this German quartet had to offer.” Choose the form of the Destroyer.
