Ascension Monuments Media is proud to announce the first of several new releases from acclaimed black metal output LEVIATHAN, dubbed The First Sublevel Of Suicide and due out Dec. 1.
Featuring roughly 40 minutes of ferocious, abrasive and manically depressing negativity, The First Sublevel Of Suicide was entirely recorded by multi-instrumentalist Wrest on a four-track analog recorder between 2002 and 2003 to serve as demos for Leviathan’s 2003 full-length debut, The Tenth Sublevel Of Suicide. This is the first time that the full demo has been made available straight from Wrest’s vaults. The First Sublevel of Suicide is mastered by Ken Sorceron (Abigail Williams / ex-Lord Mantis).
“V tracks mixed directly from the withered cassette tapes from a failing analog IV trakk cassette recording device… the initial conjurings of where the entity,The Xth Sub-Level of Suicide’s spirit lies…” – Wrest
As Brave Words, Bloody Knuckles originally described in 2003, the tracks are “some of the most intimidating, disturbing, and mesmerizing black metal the scene has spawned over the last few years.” Metal Injection calls the 2003 album to be “essential black metal listening” and says the album is an “exercise in excruciating pain.” The lo-fi demos only add a darker and more sinister atmosphere.
Release dates: CD / Digital – December 1st, 2017 | LP – February, 2018
Track listing is as follows:
1. Scenic Solitude & Leprosy
2. The Bitter Emblem of Dissolve
3. He Whom The Shadows Move Towards
4. Mine Molten Armor
5. The Idiot Sun
Pre-orders are now available worldwide via Ascension Monuments Media HERE
Bestial Invasion are one of the best new Technical Thrash bands to come out of Europe. Today I spoke with band leader and mastermind Metal Priest on thrash metal, being in a metal band in Eastern Europe and our mutual love of German legends Destruction!
* Congrats on the new album Contra Omnes – how did you approach writing this album compared to your previous releases?
Hello! Many thanks for congratulations! This album was created and
recorded in a completely different way than any other, which I either
worked on. On this album, I decided to remove any frames of style and
create what my heart desires. I wanted to create something special and
unique, like we did it. Many worked on the concept and lyrics, which
was missing the last album. For me it was a fantastic experience!
* If I recall correctly half the band do not live in the Ukraine – how easy is it to get together to work on the songs?
Now the situation has changed a little, now only one member of the
group lives in Ukraine, I moved to live in Hungary since November.
This does not prevent us from working on new songs. We even in this
mode we assholes many other groups in which all participants from one
city and regularly rehearse. We release releases every year.
Fate divided us and under some circumstances I moved to live in the city of Sumy
* You are not originally from Sumy are you? How did you end up there?
I come from the city of Zhitomir, earlier I was the creator and
bass player of another successful thrash band Violent Omen, with which
we released 3 albums. But fate divided us and under some circumstances
I moved to live in the city of Sumy and created there a new group
Bestial Invasion where we started our journey. I do not want to return
to this city anymore …
* Sumy is in the North East correct? Are you closer to Russia or Belarus? I presume you have a good relationship with the Russians since V. Zadiev is from there?? The reason I ask is I know some Ukrainians do not have a good relationship with Russians
That’s right! But this issue has a share of provocation, so I do
not particularly want to answer it. We are fine.
The city itself was musically dead at that time
* Is there much of a metal scene in Sumy? Do you have many International metal bands tour your region?
I lived there for almost 2 years and we were the only band that did
something and developed on the metal scene. The city itself was
musically dead at that time, but I do not know how it is now. Before
moving to Sumy, I did not know any metal bands, although I am quite
familiar with metal with the price of Ukraine
* How often do you play concerts? Are they easy to organize? Have you done much touring in the few years the band has been together?
The group only gave 4 concerts and all of them were in 2015
and in the old composition. We get a lot of offers about concerts,
even from the USA, but for us it’s very unprofitable and
uncomfortable, we prefer to be more of a studio group, we are more
comfortable.
* How affordable are recording studios in the Ukraine? I know many bands in the USA try to record at home or in their rehearsal studio on a computer to save money – is this the same for you guys?
Not really, since it costs a lot of money for Ukraine. Young groups
can not spend such amounts for their hobbies, so many make their own
records, which of course sound bad. Americans are so poor that they
can not afford a studio? ahahahaha
Schmier knows our group, the former guitarist of theirs Harry for us even recorded a guest solo on the first album
* With a name like Bestial Invasion I presume you are a big Destruction fan – when did you first hear destruction and were they one of the first Thrash bands you ever heard?
Destruction is my favorite German band. Schmier knows our group, the
former guitarist of theirs Harry for us even recorded a guest solo on
the first album and we did a cover on Thrash Attack, so for us this
group is important
* What plans do you have for Bestial Invasion for 2018?
From the beginning of 2018 we will continue to compose a new
album, and if everything will be fine, then we will write it in the
fall. Many ideas, but so far they are in the stage of incarnation. The
label promised to re-release our releases on the record as well, so
we’ll see everything !!!
* Are there any countries or festivals you would like to play?
It’s certainly Wacken and any other European festivals, time will
tell, maybe we’ll visit them someday
* Any final words?
Thank you for your attention! Read the code of the great Caligula
!!! Remember Death is only way !!!
Note: Metal priest asked me to tidy up his English for this interview – I have left 99% of it as is – since 1) It’s pretty damn good and 2) I think by me editing it some of the intent / meaning may be lost.
CLOAK are unleashing a music video for the track “The Hunger”, which is taken from the bands freshly released full-length, ‘To Venomous Depths’, which is out since November 10th.
CLOAK comment: “‘The Hunger’ symbolizes a hunt that begins, when one enters the untamed darkness and ventures far away from the security of light. This song is dedicated to those, who are not just attracted to the nightside, but those who are bound to it.”
CLOAK commented about their album: “To us, music is art and art is magic. It is transformative and primal in ways that cannot be simply explained. When we began writing ‘To Venomous Depths’, we knew that we were on to something special; something powerful and fervent. The further we dove into the creative process, the further we ventured into the lowest parts of our consciousness and the highest points of our souls so that every last bit of ourselves bled out into our music. Where we ended up is something that cannot be summarized, it can only be felt. We welcome the listener to join us in that feeling in the hopes that it destroys and revives you just as it has done to us.”
The Artwork of ‘To Venomous Depths’ has been created by Adrian Baxter and can be viewed below.
Track-list
1. To Venomous Depths / Where No Light Shines (7:53)
2. Within the Timeless Black (6:56)
3. The Hunger (6:10)
4. Beyond the Veil (6:42)
5. Death Posture (4:06)
6. In the Darkness, the Path (6:33)
7. Forever Burned (6:12)
8. Passage (2:47)
9. Deep Red (10:05)
Total playing time: 57:24
Atlanta, Georgia in the Deep South of the USA is probably not among the cities named as first suspects for a black metal influenced rock band to emerge. Yet there at the crossing of two old American railroad lines, CLOAK was conceived in the year 2013.
Their debut full-length, ‘To Venomous Depths’ is simply a perfect amalgamation of Nordic black metal with catchy hooks and melodic rock. And while the Americans are not claiming to be reinventing the wheel, their outstanding song-writing is catapulting this album to the top.
CLOAK have named DISSECTION, DEEP PURPLE, and FIELDS OF THE NEPHILIM as main influences, but their harsh yet groove-fuelled sound has invited critics to draw comparisons with such acts as TRIBULATION, WATAIN, and YOUNG AND IN THE WAY.
After spending two years in the rehearsal room carefully preparing their material, CLOAK released a first sign of life in the shape of ‘Demo 2015’, which created an audible buzz in the US underground.
A two-track, self-titled EP followed in 2016, gaining the Americans worldwide attention and critical acclaim. In their short time of existence, CLOAK have already shared stages with renowned acts such as WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM, WINDHAND, INTER ARMA, SATAN, and TAAKE.
It will not take CLOAK long to capture your interest, but with each new spin ‘To Venomous Depths’ will reveal new details that make their discovery worthwhile. There are no fillers on this debut album, just hits. Let’s rock this cool darkness!
Today, we are streaming Wrath of Darkness, a special split album between Wrathprayer and Force of Darkness. Set for international release on November 15th via Nuclear War Now! Productions, hear Wrathprayer and Force of Darkness’ Wrath of Darkness in its entirety exclusively HERE.
Chile’s storied history within the greater context of the South American black/death metal underground is extended with Wrath of Darkness, a joint LP from two of the country’s most respected current bands, Wrathprayer and Force of Darkness. Whereas most releases of this type are generally regarded as “splits,” owing to the separate nature of each band’s contribution, Wrath of Darkness is instead aptly considered a whole work, given the close-knit alliance between the two bands. Each individual element – including the music itself, art direction, and overall thematic concept – was deliberately developed in a collaborative effort involving both entities with the singular goal of producing the most cohesive release possible. The result of this endeavor, hereby released under the proud banner of Nuclear War Now!, is one that clearly validates the several years of work required for its realization.
Although Wrathprayer and Force of Darkness differ to a noticeable extent in the details of the composition and execution of their music, they are clearly united in that their styles are most firmly rooted in the black metal subgenre. On the one hand, Wrathprayer blends the foreboding nature of black metal with an oppressive, suffocating aura more commonly associated with death metal. Force of Darkness, on the other hand, peppers its interpretation of black metal with an impressive array of razor-sharp, blisteringly-precise riffs that tend to resemble the most evil variants of thrash.
Force of Darkness
The individual contributions by both bands are perfectly bookended and bound by the intro, “Inhaling Wrath,” performed by Wrathprayer, and the outro, “Exhaling Darkness,” performed by Force of Darkness. The five intervening tracks – two by Wrathprayer and three by Force of Darkness – are emblematic of two bands at the creative apex of their existence. Highlighting Wrathprayer’s side of the record is “De Profundis,” which opens with a chorus of desperate cries from the depths of the fiery pit and is then quickly consumed by a swirling maelstrom of aural ire. Force of Darkness then inherits this storm and multiplies it, culminating in “The Order,” a near-seven-minute opus that lays waste to any semblance of meagerness that may have somehow withstood the previous assaults.
With the whole of this work greater than the mere sum of its parts, Wrathprayer and Force of Darkness effectively redefine the notion of the split release and instead revive the more noble ideal of true collaboration, in service of darkness and wrath.
Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for Wrath of Darkness
1. Intro – Inhaling Wrath
2. Tria Serpentis
3. De Profundis
4. Wall of Fire
5. Nunc Scio Tenebris Lux
6. The Order
7. Outro – Exhaling Darkness
tracks 1-3: Wrathprayer
tracks 4-7: Force of Darkness
Today, total doom upstarts Nupraptor premiere the new track “Burning the Believers”
The track hails from the band’s surprise debut album, The Heresiarch, set for international release on December 15th via Shadow Kingdom Records for the CD and cassette tape formats; the vinyl version shall be released on January 12th, 2018.
Curiously named, Nupraptor is the solo project of White Hornet mastermind Matt St. Ours, who’s been itching to record some pure ‘n’ powerful doom metal for a while now. And that’s exactly what you get with The Heresiarch: the purest DOOM, powerful as it comes, downtrodden and desolate to the bitter end. Hailing the old European gods of traditional doom, Nupraptor crafts seven slumbering beasts of majestic misery within a mystical continuum of 51 minutes, starting with a “Black Mass” and on “Through the Smoke” before “Burning the Believers” “Before the Eyes of God,” and at last “Wasting Away” before “The Fall of Christ.” Verily, St. Ours crafts music for the grave and the graveyard, his haunting vocals heralding the onset of long nights wrapped in the fog’s embrace, languorous and lonely. Or, more accurately, you simply cannot craft doom metal of such a beautifully barren hue without having LIVED it – and dying for it. Behold The Heresiarch, for it has arrived as Nupraptor!
The previously revealed “Through the Smoke” and “The Fall of Christ” can be heard HERE at Shadow Kingdom’s Bandcamp, where all three formats of the album can be preordered.
Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for Nupraptor’s The Heresiarch
1. Black Mass
2. Through The Smoke
3. Burning The Believers
4. The Heresiarch
5. Before the Eyes of God
6. Wasting Away
7. The Fall Of Christ
In just one week, BENIGHTED will embark on a great adventure by touring parts of Asia and India. The French death grind maniacs will perform in Dubai, India, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
Vocalist Julien Truchan comments on behalf of the band: “Hey fellows! It’s time for BENIGHTED: to bring the ‘Necrobreed’ madness to the East! We are stoked to announce our very first tour in Asia and India to be starting soon this November! We can hardly wait to see you all at our shows and discover how crazy your mosh-pits are in India, Dubaï, Indonesia, Malysia, and Vietnam… Stay sick and see you on tour!”
BENIGHTED Asia
17 Nov 17 Dubai (AE) Rocky´s Cafe Regent Hotel
18 Nov 17 Delhi (IN) The People & Co
19 Nov 17 Guwahati (IN) O2
21 Nov 17 Imphal (IN) YAC Ground Yaiskul
24 Nov 17 Itanagar (IN) Nyokum Lapang
26 Nov 17 Hanoi (VN) Hanoi Rock City
27 Nov 17 Saigon (VN) La Fenétre Soleil
28 Nov 17 Singapore (SG) SLED Productions x Decline
30 Nov 17 Kuala Lumpur (MY) Playspace LIVE Damansara
BENIGHTED will be touring in support of their latest album ‘Necrobreed’, which was released on February 17th. Artwork and track-list can be viewed below.
01. Hush Little Baby
02. Reptilian
03. Psychosilencer
04. Forgive Me Father
05. Leatherface
06. Der Doppelgaenger
07. Necrobreed
08. Monsters Make Monsters
09. Cum With Disgust
10. Versipellis
11. Reeks Of Darkened Zoopsia
12. Mass Grave
Madness reigns! BENIGHTED deliver the radical soundtrack to these savage times. With their new full-length ‘Necrobreed’, the French sidestep the steadily growing complexity of their previous albums ‘Asylum Cave’ (2011) and ‘Carnivore Sublime’ (2014) by recalibrating their sound along their roots.
‘Necrobreed’ is the result of modern violence combined with an undercurrent of old school feeling. BENIGHTED keep their grinding influences but classic death metal clearly shows through the fabric. Those insane pig squeals are backed-up by massive growling. Crushing riffing and nuclear drumming meet subtle melodies and hidden hooks are fuelling the fury.
BENIGHTED were spawned by members from French Death and Black metal bands DISHUMANIZED, DARKNESS FIRE, and OSGILIATH, who joined forces in 1998 for a more brutal, heavy and modern way of expression. When their first self-produced and self-titled full-length hit the streets in 2000, it immediately had a strong impact. This turned a side-project into a main act. A fast-growing fan base was built by a string of acclaimed albums: ‘Psychose’ (2002), ‘Insane Cephalic Production’ (2004), ‘Identisick’ (2006), and ‘Icon’ (2007) were all enthusiastically received.
On the live front, BENIGHTED quickly started to capture audiences with sweat driver performances that bulldozer any resistance mercilessly aside. This allowed the French to climb up the ladder fast and soon came invitations to all major European festivals including Neurotic Death Fest, Hellfest, Wacken, Brutal Assault, Summer Breeze, and Inferno Festival among many more.
BENIGHTED recorded ‘Necrobreed’ once again in Germany’s Kohlekeller Studio in continuation of a very successful relationship. The other constant with these brutal death addicts is an album concept that comes based on a theme revolving around the abysmal potential of the human psyche. This time vocalist (and caretaker in a mental asylum) Julien Truchan penned lyrics dealing with a man, who is stitching dead animals to his abdomen. On feeling the warmth of his infected flesh, the schizophrenic “gives birth” to the carcass and places it in his house as the result of a severe childhood trauma involving a dead cat.
‘Necrobreed’ gives an extreme musical voice to the madness lurking within. Let your mind be shaken by BENIGHTED. In case of side effects, please see a doctor.
Current line-up
Julien Truchan: vocals
Emmanuel Dalle: guitars
Romain Goulon: drums
Pierre Arnoux: bass, backing vocals
Fack: guitars
Guest appearances
Asphodel (Chenille): vocals on “Hush Little Baby ”
Trevor Strnad (The Black Dahlia Murder): vocals on”Forgive Me Father”
Arno (Black Bomb A): vocals on “Cum With Disgust”
Today, NWOBHM cult Robespierre reveal the new track “Dwelling in the Shadows.” The track hails from the band’s LONG-awaited debut album, Garden of Hell, which will see release in the new year via Shadow Kingdom Records on CD and vinyl LP formats.
A cult name among NWOBHM diehards, Robespierre were actually active during the original NWOBHM movement, recording two demos in 1983 that remained unreleased or circulated only among close contacts. Those two demos were released in 2011 as the Die You Heathen, Die! compilation, introducing the Liverpool band to a whole new generation lusting for vintage heavy metal sounds. However, Robespierre never recorded a proper debut album – until now!
Indeed sounding like nearly four decades haven’t passed, Garden of Hell brims with that musky ‘n’ musty scent of classic NWOBHM: traditional and totally METAL songwriting, with hooks piled high and no small amount of grit. And like a few of their original NWOBHM contemporaries, Robespierre are keen on dipping into doom – like, really DOOMED-OUT doom that plods like tombstones slowly falling over and enveloping the listener in an ancient haze. Similarly, the band’s forward momentum is brisk but never too aggressive, in exchange exuding a rare sense of class and allowing the subtle textures of their endless hooks to sparkle in the night. Above all, Garden of Hell is aptly titled: for all the raucous rockin’ going on, there’s an ever-present atmosphere of supernatural horror dusting nearly every note.
A Robespierre album has been a long time coming, but no better time than now than to step into the Garden of Hell!
Release date and preorder info to be announced shortly.
Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for Robespierre’s Garden of Hell
1. Punish Oppressors
2. Mare of Steel
3. Dwelling in the Shadows
4. Feed the Fire
5. The Black Mirror
6. Men of Violence
7. Dagon Rises
8. Fear
9. Welcome to the Cult
10. I am a Flower (In the Garden of Hell)
Osmose Productions is very proud to announce the signing of Russian black metal band Veter Daemonaz!
A statement from the band’s I.S.M. reads: “From the very foundation, Osmose Productions has been a place for the most powerful metal music acts, many of which influenced us as people and musicians. Therefore, we are particularly grateful for the opportunity to spread the Word under its banners.”
The first release will be a reissue of the the mini-album Trivmph issued as a limited-edition MCD/MLP. The band will start recording their debut album during December/January.
official VETER DAEMONAZ biography
The Russian black metal band Veter Daemonaz, which was founded in St. Petersburg in the winter of 2009, initially started as the solo project of I.S.M. Since the very beginning, lyrical themes circled around Satanism, devil worship, death, and anti-Christianity.
In 2010, I.S.M. began to write down the first demo consisting of three compositions, sustained in stylistics of a crude, aggressive black metal with truly garage sound. Due to certain circumstances, the demo-CD MMX became available only in 2013, and was strictly limited to 101 copies. At the beginning of the same year, I.S.M. began to work on material for a first studio work.
In 2014, Veter Daemonaz became a trio: the bass player A. and drummer R. joined the band. In the summer of 2015 at Gravity Records studio, they started to work on a first split album, Vade Retro Sonnenlicht. The release was published by Nomos Dei Productions in 2016.
In the spring of 2016, the band released a single “Voice~Key,” and for the first time performed live. January 2017 marked the release of a minion dedicated to the Lightbringer and called Trivmph. And in February, R. and A. left the band; their places were taken by N. and R.X.
The next plans of Veter Daemonaz include the release of a debut full-length album named Muse of the Damned. It shall be released under the auspices of Osmose Productions.
MORE INFO: www.facebook.com/veterdaemonaz www.veterdaemonaz.bandcamp.com
As part of an onslaught of new short-length assaults, on February 16th, 2018, Blood Harvest Records is proud to present Shambles’ Primitive Death Trance on digipack CD and 12″ vinyl formats.
Shambles hail from Thailand, and formed in 1997. Over the past 20 years, they’ve undergone an evolution from brutal grindcore to witching black metal to doomed-out death metal. They’ve accomplished all this across a handful of demos and splits, but at last, in 2016, they delivered their Realm of Darkness Shrine debut album, where the current Shambles aesthetic has been nailed down cold. Indeed, it’s as cold as the coffin, for their latest Primitive Death Trance EP delivers four absolutely DEAD tracks of absolutely gutted, doom-retching DEATH. Barbaric and stripped bare and yet subtly spiced with a hypnotic thrust that eventually overwhelms the senses, Primitive Death Trance is aptly fucking titled.
Death, doom, and the beyond: Shambles take you there with their Primitive Death Trance. This recording is a precursor to the band’s new album for Blood Harvest, which should see release sometime next year. In the meantime, hear the new track “Daemon”
Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for Shambles’ Primitive Death Trance
1. Daemon
2. Dismal Pantheons
3. Illusion Of The Void
4. Primitive Death Trance
Iron Bonehead Productions sets March 9th, 2018 as the international release date for a special mini-album from Germany’s Horn, entitled Retrograd, on CD and 12″ vinyl formats.
Riding high on the critical acclaim afforded its seventh album, Turm Am Hang – released in early 2017 on vinyl LP by Iron Bonehead – the one-man Horn returns with a six-song/27-minute strike of pure pagan epicness. Since 2002, mainman Nerrath has been steadily perfecting a classicist, almost-medieval style of black metal bound to pagan roots. Staunchly solitary to the present day, the initial drive behind Horn was to create nature-themed black metal, focusing on the relation of man and nature in a regional context. The band’s old material, being mainly concerned with detailed descriptions of nature and incorporating rather upbeat, folk-influenced riffing, has made way for more sinister themes and soundscapes over the years. What has remained throughout the course of seven studio albums is the distinct “Horn sound,” featuring siren-like lead guitars, classic black metal-styled vocals as well as clean chorals, and a serious folkloristic approach far from the jolly drunken Viking tunes celebrated these days.
But, with the momentous release of Turm Am Hang, Horn entered a new, intensely poignant period, where the Feldpost material was carried ever forward by with clean and harsh vocals taking turns in conveying largely mid-tempo songs that stirred both raging bloodlust solemn pride. In many ways, the brand-new Retrograd mini-album serves as an ancillary chapter to Turm Am Hang, stylistically set within the same, uniquely Horn landscape and expanding upon the thematics and textures of that towering album. Although comparatively shorter in length, Retrograd is no less vast and no less epic, emitting a widescreen, wanderlusting splendor that’s especially magical given its tight ‘n’ truncated runtime. It’s Horn through and through, mightier and more majestic than ever, and once again breathes fresh air into the ancient spirit of the ’90s, and likewise further cements Iron Bonehead’s grounding in (and continued support of) black metal’s distant past, whether it be Nocternity, Kawir, Front Beast, Disharmony, Blood Tyrant, Runespell, Ithaqua, Naudiz, or the almighty Moonblood. Taste the German steel of Horn’s Retrograd!
Swords drawn, feel the first slash ‘n’ parry of Retrograd with its title track
