There doesn’t seem to be a more readymade target or subject of discussion for metal musicians than religion. By their very nature, our religious institutions seek to control individuals and get them to conform to their way of thinking and their beliefs. If you know anything north of nothing about metalheads, conformity really isn’t our…
Combining great things can, when done right, lead to a wholly new experience out of the synthesis of multiple elements. Deathgrind, blackened thrash, slam…these all take pieces of different genres’ identities and meld them together to create something that is, hopefully, the best of both worlds. When everything has been done before, mashing your favorites up…
There’s something to be said for music that reflects the time it was recorded in. It’s more than readily apparent that, unfortunately, the current epoch isn’t the most optimistic of eras. Between the degradation of the natural world and the constant state of war the world of mankind feels compelled to never leave, chipper tunes…
Atmospheric black metal bands tend to be a dime a dozen. For every genuinely exciting release, there are five or six more littering release days that sound frustratingly similar. I’ve heard a couple this year already that just didn’t excite me in the least or do enough to differentiate themselves from other bands out there…
Storms are some of the most destructive forces in all of nature. They have the power to rend the very Earth that they rage over and wreak havoc upon anything and everything unfortunate enough to be within their path. For anyone raised in the Midwest, there’s a special sense of dread that lies in the…
Some bands come out the gate swinging with a legendary debut that just grabs you and makes you a diehard from the jump (for examples of that from this year, see Cryptic Hatred’s Nocturnal Sickness or Pillaging Villager’s self-titled debut). Other times, you hear what a band is putting out to start their career and you can…
Sylvaine’s latest release, Nova, is an exercise in transformation. The album hits listeners with a myriad of emotions throughout each track, and presents the listener with the trials of rebirth from the very beginning. The title track launches the album, and the ethereal vocals charm listener right from the start. The clean style conjures images of a folklore…