Death is June- Horrifier : "Revelations of Gore"

 

Norway is not known for death metal, but these guys are trying to change that at least within the underground circles of the genre. Their grim take on the genre is not going to have them on tour with Amon Amarth anytime soon, but they are great at the dark sounds woven on the opening track. Bordering on death doom, with a faint hint of their homeland's black metal past haunting the blasting intensity. The emphasis is placed on speed in the first minute of "Human Butchery," then things grow more ghastly.

There is a rawness to the production on this album that adds to the band's charm as it harkens back to the earliest days of the genre. This can be heard in the darker throb of "The Ingestion."  There is also a hint of punk on the verses of "Rejoice, Oh Children of the Flesh" that goes into creepier dramatic passages as the song progresses. "Body Hoarder" is a more straightforward form of savagery, but it is at least deliberate more often than not. "Morbid Lust" eventually races its way to a darker place, but largely depends on speed.

The riffs to "the Final Oblation" carry a similar solemn shadow as Celtic Frost once did. Though not in the same way that Obituary draws influence from them. The last song is pretty much color by number early death metal, with an 80s thrash slant while still flirting with death doom. Overall, I really enjoyed this album. I will give it a 9; it comes out August 7th on Personal Records.

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Death is June -Deicide's "Serpents of the Light"

This album is where I began to lose interest in the band, as I thought they had grown too similar to the death metal norm. Going back to listen to this, I can hear where I got that impression, but the songwriting continued to improve, rather than just steamrolling you. Benton's vocals are more articulated, though the primary focus is on the lower growl. However, this does not mean they are not prone to bouts of blast beats before kinding thrashy grooves. There are bursts of the higher demonic  vocals jut not a flowing layer of them over top the lower growl;

"Blame it On God" is more of a hyper-aggressive speed fest, though his vocals are more deliberately placed, which helps the song's overall framework. By 1997, Scott Burns had obviously dialed in the death metal sound that is reflected in the overall sonic presentation of the album. The formula seems to kick into the song as fast as you can, then create more space on the verse, though "This is Hell We're In" . The vocals are almost sung on the chorus, perhaps taking notes from what Morbid Angel had found greater success with at this point in time. 

"I Am No One" is driven by a riff that kicks absolute ass. This dominates the previous songs so far. 'Slave to the Cross" is more like filler as it sounds like post-Vincent Morbid Angel. "Creatures of Habit" digs in harder, but is more straightforward. "Believe the Lie" feels more like who they are. "The Truth Above" starts off with a blast before it reins in the verse that reminds me of the title track from the first album. "Father Baker"  is more of a blunt for trauma, that buzzes with a thrash energy . I will give this album an 8.5, it would e interesting to see how it stacks up against other death metal from this time periods, it's a good album just not their best .

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Moonspell : "Far From God"

The opening track to the Portuguese band's newest album finds them dropping the metal altogether with a more organic rock sound, and the sung baritone vocals being the dominant. That said, it's also a great song, so I am not complaining about it. There is a more Sisters of Mercy-like bass line to the title track. Though the vocals try to capture more of a Peter Steele-like resonance.  Then things shift to a more Pink Floyd-like atmosphere on "Biblical" that reminds me of what Tiamat used to. This progressive connection takes things in a mroe rock direction. More distorted power chords hit, at first they are not more metal, until the band continues to turn the dial and there is an even more aggressive vocal apporach. 

"The Great Wolf in the Sky" finds the bass digging into create the backbone.   While a haunted longing floats over this song, it's not the catchiest thing they have done so far. There are growled vocal accents that the song builds into. They get credit for not doing this most predictably. "Your Promise of Light" is even darker, with the vocals taking on a lower whisper. This is effective at building tension as long as it's not something they default to. The growled vocals returned, but it's still not heavy enough to make it into one of the death metal month posts. 

While they are not part of the Peaceville scene, this could have come from that era, as it is a dreary style of dark ambient hard rock, which bands like Katatonia evolved into. "For the Love of Mortals" works off the melancholy vocal melody that is one of the album's catchier moments. "Our Freedom to Fall" is a doomier pace brand of downtrodden rock with crooned vocals that feels stronger than past releases. The harsher vocals are delivered with a little more power here. Though the music is more emotionally heavy than it is heavy metal. The last song employs an aggressive vocal approach that reminds me more of Tom Warrior's vocal style in Celtic Frost, yet the guitars do not seek to replicate that band's overt metal riffage. Instead, they drone on a more sorrowful chord progression. I will give this album a 9.5. Fans of dark European rock should give it a spin. Out July 3rd on Napalm Records.

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Choke Chain :"Decomposition"

 

This project comes from the Skinny Puppy school of industrial, which I can appreciate as it's dark. Haunted by drifting saples that pass through the background of the song, I had to minimize windows on my computer screen to see what was making the noise at times. The opening track creeps more than pounds, and drones on a uniform groove. The vocals are snarled behind a mask of distorted filters. They do not conform to standard vocal arrangements and are like machine elves scowling from the corner. The first two songs find them taking a similar apporach to the abstract narrative formed. The beats are meant to cause anxiety, not get the dance floor moving. This is endearing in and of itself as it takes me back to what I always felt wa true goth, not doing predictable dances but shuffling a smoke-filled club on a ton of drugs. 

Going into "Morgue," it was important to me that they switch it up rather than have multiple songs working on the same mood. The reality is "Morgues' is an ambient intro for "Life Ends" where the beat is dropped in an early 80s flavored industrial fashion. The vocals are more aggressive. However the do maintain the stream of consciousness approach, which in comparison to Skinny Puppy is not as dynamic as Oghr could make abstruse musings, but also bring it together to pack a hookier punch. This project proves the can also accomplish this on "Imprisoned". It is also the first song where the vocals are articulated in a manner that really gets their message across in a powerful way, making it the album's best so far. 

The last two songs are remixes of previous songs, the first being the MVTANT remix of the title track, which makes it more club-focused with a more grooving beat brought to the forefront. There is a similar approach to "Imprisoned." I felt some of the synths softened the harder impact of the original version,but I can understand why this was done to make it more goth club friendly in that regard, so it works for what it is. Overall, this is effective, and I enjoy the mood it creates. I will give it a 9.5, one of the year's most authentic industrial releases so far.Drops July 10th on Negative Grain.  

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Death is June - Balmora - "These Graven Halls"

Here is another album that blurs the lines between metal-core and death metal. I suspect these kinds of kids feel cooler by having a label for themselves that is not just death metal, since that has become, in some circles, like thinking of it as dad rock. The second song does have a more breakdown-style riff, which could be divisive among metal purists. But there is not a great deal of space between what they do and the Black Dahlia Murder. Though these guys are more melodic at times and might even care more about writing dynamic songs if we are judging them by the impressive "Ophelia."

"The Beautiful Writing " is faster and blasty in places with melancholic guitar harmonies racing around in some places.A lower death vocal counterbalances the higher snarl. A sung vocal refrain comes in, which might lean it more in the metalcore direction, though it feels like it's from the early 2000s. They throw some hooky riffs in for good measure. There is qa very technical element to what they do that feels like it should put them closer to At the Gates than the karate in the pit crowd.

Until the more symphonic passage of "Inheritance & Solitude," I thought it was still connected to "The Beautiful Writing," even though they do not let their songs sprawl out like that . There is one song later in the album that breaks the six-minute mark, but generally speaking, things are pretty concise, though at times experimental, yet always anchored in the heart of death metal that pulses from this album's sinister core. The more gurgled lows attached to what kids call the slam genre begin to surface here and there. What I like the most is that they are not afraid to break away from the pummelling to create melody and atmosphere, before taking off on a racing riff. 'Needles and Rags" drops this in one of the more unpredictable ways. 

"The Day You Died" has more of a bouncing hardcore cadance from the vocals, though the rest of the band is buzzing and blasting under it. The epic squeal of the guitar melodies is pretty metal. "Augustyne" is all over the place but somehow keeps it together. By the time we get to "Moonlit Hysteria' there is a more uniform quality cast over the songs, but they have left it varied for the bulk of the album. The six-minute Timor Mortis" is darker and one of the most memorable songs of the album. It finds them keeping things at a more deliberate pace. "NOV" closes the album with an odd turn as they go into a Ghostmane-like hip-hop feel, but run through a more hazzy lo-fi, which ends up in a shoegazey pop melody, that is not going to be for everyone and seems like a weird choice, but you can accuse them of playing it safe. I will round this up to a 9.5, as I appreciate the chances they take. 

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Death is June - Deicide's "Once Upon the Cross"

 

The band's third album finds them really dialing everything into its final form, and is some of the most classic death metal production to be commited to an album. It compliments there riffing, which opens the album with something equally brutal and catchy. However, when this album came out, the more mainstream vocal approach from Benton had me thinking they were becoming too much like other death metal bands, so it is good for me to listen back to get a better perspective, as even "Christ Denied," which I would not have called my favorite song when I first bought this album, is some tight-ass riffing. The vocals are more about where he places his voice than the layers of demon vocals. 

"When Satan Rules This World" is more streamlined, but it balances the brutality out. It is not as blistering fast, though there are passages where the double bass does pick up the pace. Lyrically, things are consistent with who they are without being over the top. Even when they speed up going into "Kill the Christian." The first song that feels like filler is "Trick or Betrayed," as it races to hell on a flurry of rabid drumming. Without a doubt, the best song on the album is "They are the Children of the Underworld," which runs off some amped up thrashing chugs. It certainly has the strongest chorus. 

They resort to some blasting for " Behind the Light Thou Shall Rise," which sounds the most like what they did on the "Legion" with the locked-in bass creating a machine-like rumble to streamroll. The vocal preformance is a little more obligatory and Cookie Monster. I forgot about "To Be Dead" as I must have not made it past "They Are the Children of the Underworld" most of the time. Like the previous song, it resorts to the approach used on "Legion". They close the album with "Confessional Rape" showing they were groundbreakers in the # MeToo movement. It coasts on the wave of the double bass, with the vocals having more purpose than in some songs. I will give this a 9.5 as the songwriting has matured for what would do down as one of the heaviest and best dialed in death metal albums.

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Death is June -100 Demons :" Embrace the Black Light"

 Not all metalcore is as bad as you assume it might be; in fact, some of it is much more metal than core, to the point that you can't tell the difference between something like the opening track from this band's album and the bulk of death metal that came out in the early 2000s. There is a more omnious punch to "Made For Nothing"; the vocals on this one are really the only things keeping this from being death metal, even then, the wall of double that comes crashing in is pretty impressive. "Through Seven Eternities" hammers even harder as they speed up coming out of the verse, before chugging their way into some headbanging riffage. 

"Meat For the Beast" is running off a Slayer-like drive. While their vocalist rides the riffs well with his gritty bark that sometimes comes clsoer to a growl, he is rather one-dimensional, but I did not notice until I was four songs in. It is also four songs in until they hit the first breakdown riff. "Nail it Shut" races more likea punk song, but that could also be said of Entombed. In the second half of the song, they lock into more of a groove. "Cold Wind of the Cross Roads' finds the vocals taking on more of a growl at first. The mean riff that is metal as fuck is what elevates this one. Sung vocals also show up here; they are counterbalanced by growls.

"Han Hammer" is blessed with some great riffs, which seems to be the common trait shared on this album. There is a super mean but simple riff that is the core of "Night Parade of 100 Demons".  Their drummer is getting it on "Foul," which works off a huge guitar sound. As a whole, this album benefits from immaculate production. "Werewolves at the Wall" starts off racing at you like At the Gates. The vocal trade-off on the chorus is more hardcore. "Return to Zero" carries a convincing menace as it finds a thrashing groove.The last song also follows a similar path. The album sounds great, the vocals are a little one dimensional is my only complaint but they have no shortage of ripping riffs to balance it out. I will give it a 9.5 , and see how it grows on me.

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