“It’s been a long five years since we’ve had an album from this Norwegian foursome. Which is probably a good thing, considering their last few releases haven’t been their best by a long shot. Basically, since 2011’s V, the band has struggled to retain their days-of-yore sound while trying to expand on it and deliver something fresh. Having left Season of Mist and returned to Indie Recordings, now is the time to drop something new and exciting.” Vreid and weep.
“Seeing an album described as “blackened death metal” almost always gets my juices flowing. The problem with that tag, however, is that it can mean anything from weird avant-garde blackened dissodeath (yuck) to Christcrushing necronuclear Blasphemy-worshipping goat metal (fukk yeah!!). But Bloodred are neither of those things. This German band is technically a duo but is really more like the solo project of vocalist, guitarist, and bassist Ron Merz, who’s been enlisting the talents of drummer Joris Nijenhuis (ex-Atrocity, ex-Leaves’ Eyes) since the band’s first releases back in the mid-2010s. I admittedly hadn’t heard of these guys when I saw their name crop up in our promo bin, but I decided to give their back catalog a whirl when I saw Amon Amarth was tagged as a similar artist on Encyclopedia Metallum. MOAR blood for the Blood Gods?
“1914 has never shied away from the ugliness of war and death. Since Where Fear and Weapons Meet was released in 2021, the Ukrainian outfit has witnessed the horrors of that ugliness on their own soil. On Viribus Unitis, the quintet from Lviv maintains the poise and brutality of earlier material while imbuing their latest opus with deft poignancy.” War is always Hell.
“If you’re like me, then your experience with German industrial metal largely revolves around Rammstein, the fun, if not inconsistent, institution that still somehow sells out arenas worldwide with their patented brand of simple riffs, simpler grooves, and deep-voiced German monotone “singing.” If you’re also like me, then listening to Rammstein became a lot less appealing when allegations surrounding frontman Til Lindemann arose, tainting my ability to enjoy the band. Thankfully, Germany is nothing if not efficient, and for every aging industrial Goliath there’s a newer, sleeker unit revving up on the assembly line. Erdling is one such machine, and they’ve been honing their brand of Neue Deutsche Härte since 2014.” Teutonic terrors.
“How do you grieve? Do you cry? Do you seek comfort in familiar places? Perhaps you bury yourself in busy work, hobbies, or your career. However you grieve, it is a deeply personal and taxing process. I suspect, though, that many reading this blog turn to music. And thusly grounded, I introduce Ancient Torment’s debut, Follow the Echo of Curses.” This reviewer wants to make you cry.
“Månegarm has never stopped. With the impending release of Edsvuren (Oathbound or Sworn), their thirteenth full-length and fifth since signing with Napalm Records, this Swedish trio stands as one of the last standard-bearers of this once-ferocious scene.” Mixed metaphors. Long paragraphs. This is Angry Metal Guy!
“One of the most amusing stories in metal lore is how every single member of influential Swedish death metal act Nihilist left because they didn’t want to work with Johnny Hedlund any longer. These wayward musicians then formed Entombed, leaving Hedlund to his own devices to create Unleashed and chart his own course into Swedish metal history. That course often involved tales of Viking raids and drunken toasting to the Norse Gods, beating Amon Amarth to those now well-worn tropes by some 5 years.” With Wotan in your ride.
“The first time I gave Ordo Diabolicum, the third album from international outfit Aran Angmar, a full listen, I was in the car, ruing an upcoming 12-hour day at work. The sun beat down with mockery, telling me I should be at the beach. The skyline shimmered in radiant beauty, while the birds sang songs about how every day was a day off when you’re unemployed. Suddenly, the absolute bejeebus was scared out of me as an ambulance went screaming by, sirens blasting and throttle abused to such a melodic cacophony that I watched in atypical enthrallment as it careened between the traffic ahead and disappeared behind the second star to the right. Glancing down, I noticed the name of the song escorting the ambulance towards its destination: “Chariots of Death.”” Death rides a freeway into glory.
Here’s an exciting double review of Warduna’s latest release, Birna. Prepare your unworthy tenderloins for the Valkyries, poser!
“You know, I’m rather proud of the impact we have at AMG. Bands we spotlight see a measurable increase in sales and engagement, even when the review did not come with enthusiastic recommendations. We’re receiving more and more promos directly from bands with a request for review, many of them unsigned. It takes balls to do that, and I think that deserves reward. The reward is brutal, uncompromising honesty. I’ve decided to focus on these promos more this year, and first in line is The Embracing Light of Rarohenga, the debut from German melodeath outfit Aeon of Awareness.” Well armed, unsigned.
