U.K. Metal

Unmother – State Dependent Memory Review

By Tyme on February 24, 2026 in Reviews, Black Metal, Post-Metal, 17 comments

“Independent U.K. undergrounder’s, Unmother, have been holding a mirror up to urban dystopian dehumanization since forming in 2019. Their 2021 debut, Lay Down the Sun, garnered significant underground acclaim that, according to the promo kit, established Unmother “as a restless and forward-thinking presence within the scene.” Foregoing the nature-scapes and mythological motifs of other post-black metal outfits, Unmother draws inspiration from the streets and, with their sophomore effort, State Dependent Memory, examines “urban isolation, inner dislocation, and moral decline, reflecting a world formed by concrete environments and social erosion.”” Rough parenting.

Cancer – Inverted World Review

By Steel Druhm on April 24, 2025 in Reviews, Death Metal, 58 comments

No one lists Cancer as their favorite death metal band. That’s because even in their heyday, they were pretty average. Early 90s platters like To the Gory End and Death Shall Rise were mildly enjoyable for their primitive, meatheaded approach, sitting at the crossroads of thrash and primordial death along with other bands of that era like Morbid Saint, Protector, and Incubus. 1993s The Sins of Mankind had a more proggy bent that cribbed notes from what Death was doing on Spiritual Healing and Human, and it had its moments. Yet none of these releases were formative or “Must Hear” records either then or now. Stop the spread.

Million Moons – I May Be Some Time Review

By Iceberg on July 10, 2024 in Reviews, Djent, Instrumental Metal, Post-Metal, 26 comments

““I am just going outside and may be some time.” These were Lawrence Oates’ last words as he walked into the wild of Antarctica, crippled by frostbite and looking, purportedly, to alleviate his doomed team of the burden of his body. I May Be Some Time, the sophomore album from U.K. trio Million Moons tells the tale of the Terra Nova polar expedition through synth-heavy instrumental post-metal. Relating a story in the absence of lyrics brings with it its own difficulties, but the band had success before; 2022’s A Gap In The Clouds dealt with the chronic progression of dementia, and similarly was a wordless endeavor. Can Million Moons capture the indomitable courage and harrowing despair of the fated explorers on I May Be Some Time, or will this album ultimately perish in the icy wilderness?” Ice, ice, maybe.

Cryptworm – Oozing Radioactive Vomition Review

By Steel Druhm on December 13, 2023 in Reviews, Death Metal, 24 comments

“Cryptworm’s 2022 Spewing Mephitic Putridity debut completely satisfied my shameful desires for a death metal album sounding like someone vomiting gut slime and mega-maggots for 33 minutes. It was repulsive, obnoxious, stupid, and fun. It was also really heavy, borrowing key chapters from Autopsy and early Carcass. I go back to it regularly, so the UK-based blokes did something right. Now hot on the heels of this grisly triumph, we get a brand new splatter platter called Ooozing Radioactive Vomition.” The Worm has (re)turned.

Left Cross – Upon Desecrated Altars Review

By El Cuervo on November 9, 2023 in Reviews, Blackened Death Metal, 40 comments

“War metal is always appealing to me. War flows from, and results in, the worst of humanity and therefore provides a fertile breeding ground for the darkness and heaviness inherent to metal music. The two feed off each other. What surprised me about Left Cross, and the reason for this review, was their provenance. Richmond is one of the wealthiest and most pleasant parts of the UK. Hardly a fitting backdrop for a metal subgenre characterized by brutal heaviness. However, after beginning this process I was distressed to learn that Left Cross hail from Richmond, Virginia.” The war next door.

Efraah Enhsikaah – One Thousand Vultures Waiting to be Fed Review

By El Cuervo on October 30, 2023 in Reviews, Black Metal, 13 comments

“Efraah Enhsikaah. The unpronounceable one-person black metal band without much of any social media presence. My black metal one-sheet bingo card was satisfied for One Thousand Vultures Waiting to be Fed in just 2 sentences. 1000 Vultures will sound familiar to those already close to black metal. The typical features of tremolo-picked guitars, raw guitar tones, and raspy, uncomfortable vocals are present and correct. The exception is blast-beating drums that are surprisingly infrequent due to the record’s mid-pace compared with other blackened bands.” Birds ov a kvlt.

Sylosis – A Sign of Things To Come Review

By El Cuervo on September 22, 2023 in Reviews, Metalcore, Thrash Metal, 68 comments

“The existence of Sylosis roughly tracks my own experience with non-mainstream metal, running from 2008’s Conclusion of an Age to 2020’s Cycle of Suffering. The band lost me somewhere in the middle as I was diving into the more extreme sub-genres of metal’s sewer, despite my favorable comments on 2015’s Dormant Heart, no doubt induced by a bout of regional favoritism given that they hail from the same bit of the UK as yours truly. Cycle of Suffering represented a roaring return, comfortably my favorite of their albums and comfortably my second favorite album from 2020. Sylosis are one of Britain’s most exciting and energetic bands but how can A Sign of Things to Come hope to match their prior incredible success?” Modern problems.

Evile – The Unknown Review

By Steel Druhm on July 13, 2023 in Reviews, Thrash Metal, 46 comments

“As a die-hard Metallica fan in my teens, I worshipped their first 4 albums mightily, and since Evile’s entire existence seemed to be based on mining the best of Metallica’s early days for inspiration, it seemed they would be easy to love.” Well knowns and Unknowns.

Hellripper – Warlocks Grim & Withered Hags Review

By El Cuervo on February 13, 2023 in Reviews, Black Metal, Speed Metal, Thrash Metal, 40 comments

“In a crowded market of goat suppliers in the metal scene, Scotland’s Hellripper stands above the mob. Their infectious blend of speed/thrash/black metal offered me a lifeline back into a thrash scene that was boring me in the 2010s. 2020’s The Affair of the Poisons was a typically rambunctious affair and very comfortably hit my year-end list. But I have most recently been experiencing the company of Warlocks Grim & Withered Hags which reaches even further north towards Orkney, an archipelago north of the Scottish mainland.” Put a goat in your moat.

Elderseer – Drown in the Shallowness Review

By Steel Druhm on February 3, 2023 in Reviews, Doom Metal, 50 comments

“There seems to be a wellspring of gothic doom in the promo hopper in early 2023, and I’m okay with that. Coming off a heated love affair with Tribunal, I eagerly scooped up the debut by U.K. doomsters, Elderseer and hoped for a similar love connection. Their full-length debut adopts a style in the vein of My Dying Bride, Celestial Season, and early Paradise Lost, with long, winding songs telling tales of great misery and woe. And at a mammoth 68-minute runtime, Drown in the Shallowness delivers more than your fair share of sadcakes and grief biscuits.” Seer me MMXXIII.