At long last, legendary black metallers Denial of God return
with a special mini-album titled The Shapeless Mass! Set to be jointly
released by Osmose Productions and Hells
Headbangers on June 28th, The Shapeless Mass will be the
long-running band’s first new recording since 2012’s Death and the
Beyond. To say that it’s highly anticipated and very long overdue would be
quite the understatement!
By now, Denial of God should
need little introduction. Since that fateful year of 1991, the brothers Azter
and Ustumallagam have perfected an idiosyncratic style of black metal that’s
positively drenched in the supernatural and remains firm in their conviction of
more classicist-styled songwriting. In fact, “black metal” might even be a
misnomer; rather, BLACK HORROR METAL would be more
accurate.
Nevertheless, as the years have gone on and they wisely parcel
out their releases, each Denial of God record is special,
and The Shapeless Mass is no exception. Arguably the band’s most
violent and intense recording, The Shapeless Mass takes the listener
down many horrific paths – and epic ones, too, as the four-song mini-album
totals 26 minutes! First up is “The Shapeless Mass,” which will also feature on
their upcoming third album, The Hallow Mass, and here tells the legend
of the Golem of Prague. Next is “The Statues Are Watching,” re-recording of the
title track from the 1995 debut vinyl 7″, now played with the power of the
by-now-classic lineup of Ustumallagam, Azter, and Galheim but still remaining
frighteningly close in spirit and feel to the original version. Honoring their
roots, the band also deliver a reverential cover of Bathory’s “Call From the
Grave,” but far more surprising is the cover of Exuma’s “Mama Loi, Papa Loi”:
unusual, yes, but it still makes sense in the dark world of Denial of
God and has been very much made their own here.
Now, only the
wait remains for The Hallow Mass – even more epic horror awaits! First
track from The Shapeless Mass to be revealed shortly. Preorder info can
be found HERE and HERE. Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for Denial of God’s The Shapeless
Mass 1. The Shapeless
Mass 2. The Statues Are Watching 3. Call From The Grave [Bathory
cover] 4. Mama Loi, Papa Loi [Exuma cover]
Today, Hells Headbangers announces May 31st as the international release date for Evil Angel‘s long-awaited second album, Unholy Evil Metal, on CD, vinyl LP, and cassette tape formats.
Formed during the dark days of 1998 in Lahti, Finland, Evil Angel finally burst upon the international metal underground in 2002 with the Dark Forces of Hell demo. For the next number of years, the band would continue to perfect its outbreak-of-evil style of blackthrashing metal across more demos, splits, and the aptly titled Metal Onslaught EP. That last-named record was crucial in pointing the direction forward for Evil Angel: each new recording brought them down into deeper depths of primitivism whilst underlining their connection to the unyielding strength of true METAL.
The culmination of this devolution/refinement came in the form of Evil Angel‘s even-more-aptly titled debut album, Unholy Fight for Metal. Here, the quintet stoked the ancient hellfires of early South American darkness, recalling the bestial rush/crush of early Sarcofago, Vulcano, and Sepultura while simultaneously upping the pure metal catchiness of their attack. The album became something of a mini-classic in the underground upon its release in 2007. The band followed it up a year later with a split 7″ with Spawn of Satan via Hells Headbangers and then quietly went on hiatus.
At long last, however, Evil Angel return with nearly the same lineup, ready to reclaim their throne and continue that unholy fight with their long-awaited second album, Unholy Evil Metal. Once again aptly titled, Unholy Evil Metal lays it all on the line about what Evil Angel are all about: UNHOLY EVIL METAL! Picking up exactly where they left off with Unholy Fight for Metal, the all-new Unholy Evil Metal dials back the bestiality a bit but roughens up true, old heavy metal with unapologetic ugliness – and of course, evil. In fact, just a cursory reading of some of the album’s song titles – “Bestial Necromancer,” “Nuclear Hammer,” “Sacrificial Slaughter,” and “Christ Decays” among them – spells in no uncertain terms how unholy (and EVIL) Evil Angel‘s metal is.
Some bands break up or go on hiatus, only to return as hollowed shells of what they once were. In the case of Evil Angel, being buried by time and dust only made them more resolute: Unholy Evil Metal lives again, more virile and vicious than ever! Feel the first thrust of that virile viciousness with the new track “Necro Black Mass” here:
Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for Evil Angel’s Unholy Evil
Metal 1. Necro Black Mass 2. Christ Decays 3.
UGH! 4. Nuclear Hammer 5. Legions of Armageddon 6. Sacrificial
Slaughter 7. Bestial Necromancer 8. Crawling From The Grave 9. Ritual
Sacrifice
Swedish black metallers Murg stream the entirety of their highly anticipated third album, Strävan. Released internationally on April 26th via Nordvis Produktion, hear Murg‘s Strävan in its entirety here:
Strävan – “striving”or “endeavor” – is the third album of the anonymous Swedish black metal duo Murg. Strävan finalizes the trilogy begun in 2015 with the debut album Varg och Björn (“Wolf and bear”) and was continued with Gudatall (“Godpine”). Here in this final chapter, humankind as we know it, with all our flaws and perversions, no longer exists: a new form is created, a perfect beast born to sacrifice itself to end the entire universe. Strävan is the long audial march to the altar of cosmic destruction.
Murg‘s pitch-black metal is driven by slow-paced, churning riffs imbued with stoic darkness and aggressive pride, sinister and somber meandering throughout its eight tracks. Similar to the terse song titles, Murg works with a musical sparseness: tightly-knit structures without frills or special effects, straight to the bone but never simplistic or predictable. A noble and inhuman “fare thee well” to creation, towering and defiant in its uncompromising delivery.
Murg hail from the rural mining areas of Bergslagen, Sweden. Their harsh sound is affected by the deep, rocky forests of their native Bergslagen and the abandoned, centuries-old mines that are scattered among them. That, in combination with a misanthropic and deeply ecological ideology, makes up the foundation of Murg. Their first release, Varg och Björn, established that foundation with a concept album that conveyed the notion of humankind’s total uselessness and its cyclical attempts – and constant failure – at achieving co-existence with anything on this earth. Civilization is a myth that foreshadows the one and true god: Nature, and the parasitical humans has long since used their right to exist. The punishment is death, and Nature will be the executioner.
Order info for the CD version can be found HERE while the order info for the LP version can be found HERE.
Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for
Murg’s Strävan 1. Ur Myren 2.
Strävan 3. Berget 4. Renhet 5. Korpen 6. Tre Stenar 7.
Altaret 8. Stjärnan
Chaos Black Metallers REVENGE are
kicking off their European tour with Polish metal cult Mgła this Sunday, April
28 in Berlin. The ‘Vision – Discipline – Contempt Conquest’ tour will hit
Germany, Switzerland, Austria, the Netherlands, Poland, France and Belgium
before the final curtain in Oberhausen (DE) on May 17.
Supporting acts
are Deus Mortem (April 28 – May 6) and Doombringer (May 8 – May 17). All tour
dates can be found below.
REVENGE With Mgła and Deus Mortem * or Doombringer + 28 Apr 19 Berlin (DE) Columbia Theater * 29 Apr 19 Erfurt (DE) From Hell * 30 Apr 19 Zwickau (DE) Seilerstrasse * 01 May 19 Munich (DE) Backstage * 02 May 19 Aarburg (CH) Musigburg * 03 May 19 Vienna (AT) Grelle Forelle * 04 May 19 Nürnberg (DE) Matrixx * 05 May 19 Tilburg (NL) Netherlands Deathfest * 06 May 19 Kassel (DE) Goldgrube * 08 May 19 Poznan (PL) U Bazyla + 09 May 19 Gdansk (PL) B90 + 10 May 19 Warsaw (PL) Porgresja + 11 May 19 Wroclaw (PL) Zaklete Rewiry + 12 May 19 Mörlenbach-Weiher (DE) Live Music Hall + 13 May 19 Colmar (DE) Le Grillen + 14 May 19 Lyon (FR) CCO + 15 May 19 Paris (FR) Petit Bain + 16 May 19 De Kreun (BE) Kortrijk + 17 May 19 Resonanzwerk (DE) Oberhausen + REVENGE have recently released their EP ‘Deceiver.Diseased.Miasmic’.
The song “Deceiver Futile” can be streamed here:
REVENGE have
unveiled the artwork and tracklist of Deceiver.Diseased.Miasmic. Both can be
found below.
It’s been a few years since REVENGE
stormed the black metal scene with latest full length
‘Behold.Total.Rejection’ (2015). Now, the Canadian extreme metallers have
returned with two new songs. The upcoming EP ‘Deceiver.Diseased.Miasmic’
represents a new chapter in the band’s nihilistic and hateful mission against
the world.
REVENGE was founded by vocalist and drummer
J. Read continuing in the vein of his previous outfit and war metal instigators
CONQUEROR in the year 2000. The Canadians have since delivered some of the most
severe and brutal music the metal underground has ever produced. Simply put:
they are one of the most extreme bands in existence.
With each release,
J. Read has pushed the limits further. The two early EPs ‘Attack.Blood.Revenge’
(2001) and ‘Superion.Command.Destroy’ (2002) were followed by first full-length
‘Triumph.Genocide.Antichrist’ (2003). Each release was either greeted by stunned
enthusiasm or sheer hatred by critics and fans alike. There was never any room
for middle ground with punishing albums such as ‘Victory.Intolerance.Mastery’
(2004), ‘Infiltration.Downfall.Death’ (2008), ‘Scum.Collapse.Eradication’
(2011), and ‘Behold.Total.Rejection’ (2015).
Immersed in a thick layer
of sonic muck, the beastly grunts and spiteful screams, the crusty guitar sound
and the assaulting drums drown out any pretense of accessibility and affability.
‘Deceiver.Diseased.Miasmic’ emanates a grubby atmosphere, pushing the limits
even further than on previous efforts.
For those dreading the coming
holiday season, REVENGE has made the ultimate soundtrack for
the most wonderful time of the year.
Recording Line-up:
J.Read: Nuke Chants / Doom Hammers V: Session Chaos/ Low end
Annihilation
Today, Iron Bonehead Productions sets August 2nd as the
international release date for The Rite‘s striking debut
mini-album, The Brocken Fires, on CD and 12″ vinyl
format.
The Rite was brought into existence during the
autumn 2017 when A.Th (Black Oath) and Ustumallagam (Denial Of God) joined
forces to create a band playing morbid black metal exclusively praising complete
and utmost darkness. Influences range from iconic bands such as Mercyful Fate,
Death SS, Celtic Frost, Samael, Goatlord, Ripper etc, and the music walks a
twisted balance between slow, dreary parts and fast, merciless
attacks.
The five-track mini-album The Brocken Fires was
finished in August 2018 and originally released on cassette by Unholy Domain
Records in October 2018. Now, on August 2nd, 2019 will the mini-album be
released by Iron Bonehead on CD and 12″ vinyl formats. Both a
summation of The Rite‘s aesthetic so far and also pointing the
way forward, The Brocken Fires is a commanding introduction to this
international entity.
In July 2019, The Rite will
perform their debut show at Denmark’s own Metal Magic Festival. For that
occasion, the band will release the very limited promo tape The First
Sin that will only be available at that event and feature two good-sounding
rehearsal tracks from the upcoming, as-yet-untitled debut album. The recording
for said album is scheduled for autumn 2019.
In the meantime, hear the
new track “A Pact With Hell”
Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for The Rite’s The Brocken
Fires 1. Prayer to
Satan 2. A Pact With Hell 3. The Brocken Fires 4. Heed the Devil’s
Call 5. Acid Orgy [Goatlord cover]
THE RITE
lineup Ustumallagam – vocals A.th – bass Gabriel –
guitar Priest G – drums
“With their latest offering, the band ascends to new heights while staying true to their roots with a tight and aggressive eight-song collection of blackest damnation.” — Bryan Coffey, Indy Metal Vault
Swedish black metal duo MURDRYCK’s sophomore album, Födelsen, is nearing its release date. The album is due for release under the banner of Leviaphonic Records (CD, cassette and digital) on May 01st, and Growls From The Underground will later take care of the vinyl release. The band have unleashed the first single “Sea Spirit of the Night” worldwide to give the listeners the first taste of this album.
After offering two singles, “Sea Spirit of the Night” and “Födelsen”, Murdryck are previewing the third single “Black Plague Eclipse” via Indy Metal Vault.
The guitarist Skärseld’s thought on the track:
“Black Plague Eclipse is one of the heaviest songs on the album with doom-laden guitars and interspersed with dramatic melody. The intro is intentionally thunderous and, for the first time, we experimented with an off-beat chorus section. The interlude is also new for us bringing in an almost progressive/dark ambient mid-section with clean guitars and subtle background effects. The lyrics describe a desolate, post-apocalypse scene rather than try to tell a story.”
Created with GIMP
MURDRYCK entered the black-metal fold in 2014 upon reshaping from a dark-ambient sound into a fast paced, aggressive guitar-oriented band.
The 2015 EP “As The Moon Bleeds…”, picked by Zero Tolerance Magazine as the “Self-Release of the Month”, catapulted the Swedish based three-piece to international exposure. The debut album, “Antologi MMXV”, came out a year later via Black Lion Records and received acclamation from both the listeners and the critiques alike despite the lack of strong promotional activities.
Murdryck begin 2019 with preparations for their follow-up album, Födelsen, scheduled for release on 1st May 2019 through Leviaphonic Records (CD, cassette and digital) and Growls From The Underground (vinyl). With many line-up changes affecting the band since inception, Murdryck have delivered a confident and aggressive album that takes their music to another level than seen on their debut release while still retaining their identity. “Födelsen” embodies a much heavier sound and offers a more sinister environment that was unexploited in the band’s previous outputs.
FENRIZ introduces the track “There really isn’t just ONE song that can represent this album, THE HARDSHIP OF THE SCOTS was my song and although we also wanted one of Ted’s songs to preview the album Ted took one for the team and we chose my song! His songs are somewhat faster with more black metal in them but still has slow thrash and doom, my song here seems to start with an INVASION OF YOUR PRIVACY RATT-ERA riff or perhaps one from THE ULTIMATE SIN by Ozzy Osbourne but when I had bicycled my guitar from the Bombshelter and sat down on the porch to strum it, the fact is that (as far as I remember) this entire THE HARDSHIP OF THE SCOTS track was done in an hour and I remember texting Ted about it. Ted had just been around to collect loads of vinyl I was giving to him. Anyway, so as usual I didn’t have an elaborate scheme as to what the riffs where coming from, but like last album’s preview song I can tell you what it sounds like to me. This doesn’t mean I was inspired by what it sounds like, ok? So riff nr two has both normal doom and some evil death/black notes in the second part. Then there’s the break to make the song more linear (old 80s underground trick I used on the last album and this album) and then a riff emerges which I guess I would like to sound like that awesome break riff in an INFERNÖ track called thrash metal dogs of hell. 1:50 out in that track is one of my fave slow thrash metal riffs EVER and it kind of reminds me of first Exodus too. But my riff kinda went even slower and may remind more of a Celtic Frost tempo. I think it’s a splendid break and riff anyway and suddenly while I was playing my guitar, I came up with this final riff part which is not as primitive as we are used to but rather sounds like some more epic 20-year-old ENSLAVED or something. Anyway, that’s what it sounds like to me NOW but when I was making it, I was just jamming my guitar on the porch after having bicycled it home. SNAKES!!”
“The Hardship Of The Scots” is being launched ahead of release of OLD STAR to give fans a taster of what’s to come with their highly anticipated new studio album OLD STAR on May 31st on Peaceville. The legendary Norwegian longstanding partnership of Fenriz and Ted “Nocturno Culto” Skjellum, return with Old Star, their first studio album since 2016’s hugely popular Arctic Thunder. With a mastery and endless dedication to the art of the riff, they cut through 6 new epic tracks, taking in the best of the old school of heavy & extreme metal plus a large dose of doom-laden riffing, & channelling it through the grime of the underground.
Fenriz enthuses «Old star – again we are here with THE RIFFS! A while after our previous ARCTIC THUNDER album it became apparent that we would continue in that same style, BLACK OLD HEAVY METAL with slow thrash, classic doom and slow death metal.As many have focussed on the 70s sound over the last 20 years, the mix on our new album has ended up being more 80s than ever. The songs are more metal than ever! Ted’s songs have alot of black metal in them, faster and slower but also doomier parts and reocurring parts. My songs are more linear written, it’s an ancient 80s underground trick, with breaks, all slow heavy or slow thrash, classic doom or slow death.» He continues «All in all it is our most 80s album so far and our most metal one to date with drum sound typical for the 80s USA/German market and damned lyrics, which are all written by me. We feel that OLD STAR is the big brother of ARCTIC THUNDER. More solid and with even better riffs.»
Old Star was recorded at the band’s Necrohell 2 Studios, with engineering and production duties carried out by vocalist/guitarist Nocturno Culto, complemented with a perfectly organic mix courtesy of Sanford Parker (Voivod) at Hypercube Studios, & mastered once more by Jack Control at Enormous Door. The stellar cover artistry comes courtesy of Chadwick St John, titled “The Shepherd of the Deep”. Over the course of 30 years, Norway’s Darkthrone has become a staple of the global black metal genre, forging a legacy as one of the most renowned and influential bands in its illustrious & often infamous history. In the formative years following their 1987 inception, Darkthrone initially started with a strong concoction of thrash & then death/doom metal experimentation, with broader musical influences spanning from the 60s to the 80s, before the debut album Soulside Journey was unleashed in 1991. Never ones to follow convention or stand still even then, the band soon embraced a much darker, more primitive form of expression with the now iconic second album A Blaze in the Northern Sky, & the rest became history.
Available formats, each comes with handwritten lyrics in the booklet or insert: CD Black 180g vinyl LP Ltd Edition 180g purple vinyl LP Ltd Edition 180g green vinyl LP (exclusively available at the Peaceville store) Ltd Edition 180g orange vinyl LP Ltd Edition 7” vinyl box set – Old Star is presented on 3 coloured 7” (black, white, clear vinyl) (exclusively available at the Peaceville store) Cassette (exclusively available at the Peaceville store) Digital album (pre-orders receives “The Hardship Of The Scots” as an instant download)
Darkthrone are: Gylve ‘Fenriz’ Nagell – drums, song writing, lyrics Ted ‘Nocturno Culto’ Skjellum – strings & vocals, song writing
Forged in 2008, New Zealand’s HERESIARCH is one of the most dominant forces of the current black/death metal underworld. The Wellington based malicious quartet has most recently crossed the threshold of an unprecedented level by bringing forth their debut LP, Death Ordinance. However, it will be inappropriate to glorify them solely based on the excellence of that album. Krucyator Productions offer the compilation CD Incursions —collecting all the materials that Heresiarch spawned prior to their 2017’s full length. All the tracks were newly mastered for this compilation album by Luke Finlay at Primal Mastering Studio to have an overall coherent sounding.
Presented in sequential order, the compilation starts with the numbers from 2011’s ruinous demo, Obsecrating the Global Holocaust. Having two originals and one Bathory tribute (Equimanthorn), this demo helped Heresiarch to create a strong buzz in the underground. The following six tracks are taken from the celebrated EP Hammer of Intransigencethe, originally came out a few months after the demo. The final three tracks are borrowed from their 2014’s manifestation, Wælwulf.
Incursions is the representation of Heresiarch’s relentless savagery. Available on CD via Krucyator Productions from April 22nd. .
Today, Iron Bonehead Productions sets July 19th as the international release date for Cult of Extinction‘s striking debut album, Ritual in the Absolute Absence of Light, on CD and vinyl LP formats.
The devastating force known as Cult of Extinction was evoked from the abyss in 2017 by sole member Void. Influenced by bands like Revenge, Blasphemy, and Proclamation, the goal was to create a merciless onslaught of pitch-black war metal with a mystical and eerie atmosphere. In 2018, the first demo Black Nuclear Magick Attack was released via Sentient Ruins and Atavism Records. Here, the songs were driven by a fascination with the infinite chaos of the cosmos and Void’s attempt to capture its destructive essence.
And indeed, with Ritual in the Absolute Absence of Light does Cult of Extinction accomplish that lofty goal. Utterly CRUSHING in its sonic excesses, uniquely, there exists a paradoxically ethereal feel across the album’s eight-song/33-minute span. It’s a savagely twisted disconnect that truly puts Cult of Extinction in a league of its own: undeniably “war metal” by definition, no longer is Void totally tethered to those aforementioned influences and instead creates a multi-dimensional maelstrom of inexorable might. Also of note are the hauntingly stretched-out lead-guitar parts, further exploring that ethereal-onto-crushing aspect. Consequently, the lyrics across Ritual in the Absolute Absence of Light are inspired by the dark forces of nature and propagate a total war against light.
Behold the triumph of darkness! Behold Cult of Extinction‘s Ritual in the Absolute Absence of Light! The first absolute ritual can be found with the new track “Emanated From the Cosmic Darkness” here:
Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for Cult of Extinction’s Ritual in
the Absolute Absence of Light 1. Sacred
Glorification of Pandemic Barbarity 2. Anti-Monad Black Hole Bomb 3. Blood
of the Theurg 4. Inverted Henosis 5. Possessed by A Servant of Iblis 6.
Emanated from the Cosmic Darkness 7. The Descent 8. Ritual in the Absolute
Absence of Light
Indianapolis death metallers Obscene are entering Earth Analog Studios during the first weekend of June to begin recording their debut album, to be released later this year through the care of Blood Harvest Records. This is a highly anticipated release which follows up their Blood Harvest-released debut demo, Sermon to the Snake, which surged with a sinister stateliness of pure and total death metal classicism.
Carl Byers (ex-Coffinworm), who also handled the production of Sermon to the Snake, will be engineering and mixing under the Clandestine Arts banner. Mastering will be done by Damian Herring (Horrendous) at Subterranean Watchtower Studios. And last but not least, a piece of masterful artwork has already been provided by cult artist Mark Riddick. Keep your eyes peeled!
All in all, Obscene and Blood Harvest Records are excited to have a kickass record coming your way after the summer! In the meantime, check out the Blood Harvest-released version of the aforementioned Sermon to the SnakeHERE at the label’s Bandcamp.
