As much as I usually oppose to pointless, endless, uninspired, unoriginal, lame intros, this time I’m expertly gagged by album opener Abiura (abjure). The incredibly dark, oppressing atmosphere this trailer breathes is a more than excellent introduction to what, in hindsight, turns out to be a dark wall of intense black metal. The mean vocals that express a clear and unambiguous message deepen the unsettling feeling that insurmountably creeps up on you. A perfect start, and one that gets a sequel in Suffocate in Oxygen. The pressing force this song unleashes on you, led by some seriously thunderous drums that dominate the mix quite severely, is overpowering. If its sheer power hadn’t kicked you back in the cage you originate from it would certainly blow you away. The string work effortlessly matches the drum’s musical destruction and violence and HHG’s mean sounding rasping vocals add even more insult to injury although the clean part seems a bit off. Despite claiming to be an apostate band, the lyrical theme, not just here but throughout the release, pretty much seems to evolve around the vile things we do, or rather think we are allowed to do, in the name of religion and, the other way around, what religion is capable of letting us do. So quite an accusation towards the unconditional belief in and submission to a deity. But that aside.

The overwhelming intensity and pressure this songs breathes is transferred to successor Source of Miracles that is equally oppressing, if not even more. The demonic growls that complete the unnerving intro to the song is amazing! The band seems to have traded some of their melodiousness for violence, pushing their tunes even more towards the darkest corners of the metal world. The, again, massive drum lines form the heavy frame that is, again, expertly filled by the guitars, bass and vocals. The unexpected break near the end is a bonus. Another behemoth of a song. Next up is Praelatorum pedophilia (don’t even go there…) which continues along the expected path Argesh has chosen to follow, although its overall feeling is one of slightly less darkness and oppression. Not that it can be called a point of rest to gather your crushed bones and recover, unless you call the undoubtedly derisive religious chant a point of rest, but still. A word of advice: grab your moment if you can, because Apocalypse 20.7-8-9, the next song, will hit you where it hurts with another unrelenting force of angry, vicious drums and ditto guitars and bass. Needless to see HHG’s guttural contribution perfectly underlines all this violence, regardless whether it’s his foul growls or his devote reciting of, among others, the judgment of Satan. Completely in style it ends with a bang. That marks the start of the album closer, The Elohim’s Mark. This is quite a different song compared to the previous four, proving the guys are capable of playing a different style as well, although the word different must be used loosely here as they never stray far from their black metal roots. In fact, this has just as many interfaces with black metal as all the other songs, they simply touch in different areas. The buildup of this song is almost majestic and it’s clear the dark atmosphere is abandoned for a bit. Regardless the different vibe this too is an awesome composition in which particularly HHG’s clean(er) vocals and more classic black metal rasp draw the attention. Here too the drums are quite prominent though and the guitars and bass get their fifteen minutes of fame just as much.

As the album closer fades out I’m left with a feeling of exhaustion, albeit one of the good kind. Argesh produced a huge, immersive, impressively intense wall of greatly composed sound that will drain all energy from you and exchange it for a feeling of total satisfaction in just thirty demanding minutes. In case you haven’t figured it out yet: I totally dig this! These guys are now on my high priority list of bands to keep an eye out for. Although five years is a long time for those that crave for more, I am certainly willing to endure that if that is needed to get an end result as impressive as Excommunica is. For now, however, this won’t be off my playlist for quite some time. Best consumed at high volume levels, this one will leave a lasting mark on your soul!

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Opener Dare starts rather relaxed, with a mellow guitar rhythm backed by a fitting rhythm section that resembles rock or even blues more than any type of metal. That however turns out to be rather misleading as the song builds towards showing its true colors, which takes a minute. Part of what follows bares quite a significant resemblance with Metallica in general and their front man James Hetfield’s vocals, complete with its peculiarities, in particular. Luckily this strong resemblance is short lived as the album’s second song, Bipolar Distress, though style-wise not all that different, clearly has a different vibe and character. Not that I don’t like Metallica or that Telma did a crappy job, not at all even. Objectively spoken it certainly is a good song though, I’m just not a big fan of tunes that come too close to other bands’ work, which is the case with this song. One of my many flaws I suppose, hehe.  

Anyway, versatility is the keyword here as Telma’s metal, perhaps as to be expected from a modern metal band, holds references to many styles of metal, rock and blues. Though the one more strikingly present than the other, they’re all there nevertheless, cast in fresh, solidly composed songs. The vocals tend to go along in the flow as Anthony’s voice ranges from clean and clear to the rasping sound of an old cigarette-addicted, whisky-drinking rocker. I personally like the latter the best, he seems more comfortable deploying that specific vocal character.

All in all Telma delivers a solid, fresh sounding debut album that consists of versatile modern metal that taps from a wide variety of different musical styles that are not limited to metal. Sometimes it’s a mere soundbit or a brief reference, sometimes the influences are more prominent. Either way they never dominate or upset the delicate balance. This shows the band have a certain maturity in their music and compositions that one would not expect from a band of their age. If I hadn’t known up front I would never have guessed the band only has been formed earlier this year. If they follow the expected path of growth they could grow into a sensation. Only time will tell, for now suffice it to say that this one is certainly worth paying some serious attention to.

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If anything they open the ball without hesitation. No dragging, pointless intro, no building towards a climax, no frills, The Way of Time is straight to the point, high quality symphonic metal from the first second onwards. This song ticks all the expected and known boxes linked to symphonic metal and then some. The beautifully orchestrated atmospheric, emotional intermezzo is a sweet bonus and the same can be said from the dueling vocalists that augment each other. Although both Marika’s and Alberto’s vocals are powerful and lively enough to lead a song on their own, the collaboration and interaction between the two lifts the overall quality significantly. Successor Edge of the Dream continues along the same lines even up to the atmospheric intermezzo, albeit with a slightly less heavy undertone.

Next up is Ancient Spirit and although in essence not overly different from the previous two songs its feel is completely different, proving Eternal Silence has more than one vein to tap from. The keys are more prominent and the sound is less dark. Heart of Lead, that starts as a power ballad and takes well over a minute to ignite, follows up on this after which the true power ballad Lonely marks the halfway point. The second half starts with Glide in the Air, a song that, with its intro that would fit any Nintendo game, throws me off track for the first thirty seconds. It then blooms into a full-blown metal song with some nice guitar work near the end. Then, with Rain and My Soul Sad Until Death, the band returns to their initial heavier, more dark style delivering two more symphonic songs that border power metal.

After all this there’s the soothing acoustic, orchestra-supported ballad Firefly that all or not intentionally serves as a moment of rest and reflection before closer and heavyweight Red Death Masquerade explodes in full force. This is undoubtedly the heaviest song on the album. The heavy, tight riffs accompanied by equally heavy drum and bass lines and a ditto orchestrated section pack a serious punch and the vocalists have no problem delivering a little extra weight to add to its overall heaviness. What a way to end a release!

So all things considered Timegate Anathema is an album that has been carefully composed and forged into an organic, highly entertaining and masterfully executed whole. Clearly Eternal Silence is well aware of what they are doing and what they are good at. They do not hesitate to deploy different styles, different velocities and different heaviness throughout the album and they seem to be comfortable with playing either of them. A superb release in my opinion and, to come back to the earlier claim, certainly for fans of Epica, Within Temptation, Sonata Arctica, Lacuna Coil, Evanescence. Having said that, despite the clearly audible influences of said bands, this one has an identity and personality of its own and is in no way a weak deduction or shameless copy of either of them. Highly recommended!

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After some soundscapes that create the impression of an army sailing in from the sea, opener Across the Waves fades in to develop into a great over nine minutes spanning song that is mainly based on a strong Viking metal backbone. The somewhat inciting rhythm definitely convinces, which also goes for Hæðenwulf’s harsh vocals. The added intermission with preceding bass line are the icing on the cake. My first encounter with Oscenrad turns out to be somewhat of a treat, hopefully the rest of the album will turn out to be just as nice. And sure enough, successor Beneath the Ancient Sky does not disappoint with its compelling, striking rhythm halfway through the song. Title song Beyond the Fells, the third consecutive composition that spans over nine minutes, sadly offers less excitement compared to its two predecessors as this is pretty much a run-of-the-mill Viking metal song. Still a good song, don’t get me wrong, but nothing too special. Next up is an odd duck in the pond, an acoustic instrumental piece called Seeress that has a nice rhythm and a somewhat soothing atmosphere. In no way in line with the previous tracks, but, also since I’m a big fan of variety, a welcome intermezzo nonetheless. One that is followed by Runes Ye Shall Find, a song in which Oscenrad picks up where he had left off and that has its highlight in the form of a nice double bass rhythm as the end of the song draws near. Then there’s only one more song left, the album’s conclusion, the epic 12-minute pinnacle Of wolf and Blood that once more displays the impressive skills and huge potential Oscenrad possesses. It’s a song with many, sometimes only subtly differing faces that packs all Oscenrad has to offer into one track.

Admittedly this is not a perfect album and in all honesty Oscenrad is neither particularly innovative nor shockingly groundbreaking, but both are irrelevant in my opinion. Why? Well, for starters I have yet to encounter perfection which I know will never happen anyway and secondly, why change a winning team? Doing what you excel in may be a safe path, but when executed with care it usually brings nothing but good, as is proven here. With Beyond the Fells Oscenrad delivers a more than solid and certainly above average Viking, pardon Anglo-Saxon metal album that will surely stand out in a sea of similar releases, especially considering it is a debut album we’re talking about here. The fact the entire production, composing, playing, recording, mixing and so on is the work of one man, Hæðenwulf, makes this an even more impressive release, although that is and should be far subordinate to the tunes of course. But even if that is left out of the equation, Beyond the Fells is an album that is more than worthy of your time and money, no matter if you are a fan of the genre or not. The solid compositions are well thought-out and executed with skill, maintaining a high standard where it comes to quality at all times. Do not hesitate to grab a copy when you have the chance, I’m sure you’ll find it to your liking, much as I did.

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Tales From Six Feet Under is a compilation of songs of her first year on Patreon, of which she already released a couple songs as singles to the wider audience. For those who expect a whole album of symphonic metal songs, Tales From Six Feet Under might be a little disappointing to you. Because although Charlotte’s well-known sound and vocals can clearly be heard, the album brings a lot of musical diversity in different genres. Charlotte’s creativity and musical talent really shines through. Every song on the album comes as a surprise and is vastly different from its predecessor. Apart from the aforementioned iconic Charlotte Wessels sound, there is no overarching description that does justice to the entire album. And this is a good thing. One of the surprising tracks is the Dutch song Afkicken. The song is very funky and has strong and feisty lyrics. It is easily one of my favorite tracks on the album, but the joy doesn’t stop here!

Superhuman and Victor, where you can still hear a hint of Delain hidden in there, although it’s very subtle, are both really strong songs with a powerful story. That might be one of the strongest points of Tales From Six Feet Under. Everything feels very personal and that shouldn’t be a surprise given the fact that Charlotte herself produced and wrote everything.

If the track list features such a diverse array of songs, then there can easily be one or two that you don’t like. For me those are New Mythology and Masterpiece. Those two are a little bit too poppy for my taste.

Cry Little Sister is a wonderful cover from the film classic The Lost Boys and Charlotte did an amazing job here. The Gothic nature of this song suits her roots very well if I may say so. Another pearl on the album is Lizzie. A strong duet with Arch Enemy singer Alissa White-Gluz which is the only ballad.

But now I want to talk about Soft Revolution, the last track on the album. This song to me is an anthem for everyone who is going to a tough time. And I think all of us can relate to it especially looking back on to the last one and a half years. It’s sort of like a We Are the Others 2.0 so to speak. It hits me every time I listen to it. What a beautiful song!

Guitar riffs, keyboards, additional vocals, Charlotte does everything herself. When listening to the album I realized that Charlotte again made an everlasting impression on me that’s not going away anytime soon. What I also realize is that due to her sheer creativity and uniqueness, it might have as well been unavoidable for her to eventually go on this path, one way or the other, even though not everything was planned. Because let’s be honest, it would’ve been an incredible shame for someone with such unbelievable talent, determination and versatility to be bound to a specific genre and leave the rest of her ideas untouched, right? The choice for Charlotte to use Patreon as a platform is a great one, but it is also good to know that she doesn’t forget the people that can’t support her with a monthly fee but still want to listen to this great music. I hope we can see a lot more of her creativity in the future.

Here you can read our earlier interview with Charlotte about Phantasma.

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Sanctus Spiritus opens with an organ-accompanied choir chant that wouldn’t be out of place in any Catholic mass before exploding into a full-blown symphonic power metal song that musically reminds me of bands like Epica and Powerwolf, with its massive, bombastic arrangements. The vocals that join in the fun after a few moments however, put me on a completely different track. His style and sound is almost identical to that of Sabaton’s lead roar Joakim Brodén, complete with the sometimes extremely rolling ‘r’. So Epica and Powerwolf meet Sabaton here, especially when the musical style of the latter becomes clearly audible when The Sword of Sorrow, the next song on the album, takes off. The deep, resonating roar from the opener has made way for a more shallow voice that still has quite some power to it, making the similarities with Mr. Brodén even more striking. And this mystery vocalist has at least one more trick up his sleeve, one he uses in song number three, Come With Us. This time he strikes a more raspy, throaty tone that feel to, at times, touch the outer borders of his vocal range and thus his capabilities, like in The Doom. Not a really big deal, as it still sounds good, but worth mentioning nevertheless. Throughout the entire album he alternates between these three styles, merging them into a hybrid whole.

As a rule any vocalist, regardless his or her quality and capability, is nothing without a group of equally qualified musicians. Obviously this rule applies to Apostolica as well. With their music having clear commonalities with a few of the leviathans of the power metal genre, it’s required they have an excellent line-up and I must say, they certainly meet the requirement. Guitars, bass, drums, they all are of an equally high level, effortlessly following the at times intricate path of the various songs making this a top-shelf power metal release. Haeretica Ecclesia offers the complete package with ingredients taken from the entire range that forms power metal. The most striking are the uproaring tunes that awaken your fighting spirit known from bands like, here we go again, Sabaton. They are abundantly present and form the core of the music, like in The Sword of Sorrow and Thanatos. However, there are quite a few references to the darker, more keyboard lead, symphonic orchestral power metal, which are smartly and subtly woven into the compositions. Examples of this can be found in Pollution Is My Name, Redemption and, much more subtle, Thanatos. To complete the package the guys of Apostolica have added a few very nice musical details, which increase the quality and value of the songs even more, like the incredible haunting intro of The Doom, the guitar work in Famine and the sweet collaboration between rhythm section and guitar in the solo in Come With Us to name a few.

So all in all it’s safe to say Apostolica’s Haeretica Ecclesia has turned out to be a qualitatively well above average power metal album. Is it particularly original or innovative? No, it isn’t. Is that a problem? No, it isn’t either. Look, I am all for innovative, one of a kind type of music, but that does not mean every single release has to be exactly that. Sometimes, often even, it’s much better to stick to what you are good at, simply because what you do is of great quality. This clearly is the case with this release. I have no idea who Apostolica are, but it’s a definite fact they full well know what they are doing and they are pretty good at it. This release brings you fifty minutes of unadulterated power metal in its purest form, tapping from the entire spectrum of the genre. Fans of the genre simply cannot afford missing out on this one, everyone else can consider this as a textbook example of how power metal should be composed and executed. Regardless who the four musicians actually are, in the end it’s the tunes that determine the judgment and success of an album. And that right there isn’t an issue here. At all. Get your hands on this one!

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The album kicks off in a true symphonic metal fashion with Heavens in War that has a keyboard riff riddled intro. From the moment the song ignites, when the vocals enter the equation, it sounds a little out of sync to me. It feels as if the rather irregular rhythm opposes the vocal lines, creating confusion, making it hard to stay focused. At least for me. It gets better as the song progresses, but the two never seem to catch up to each other. The next song is, where it comes to that, much better. The four minute long Fallen Angels has an amount of hooks and rhythm and speed changes that wouldn’t be out of place in any prog track, something that, in retrospect, is recurring throughout the album. A good display of what Mike is capable of composition wise, which apparently is considerable. The band, next to Mike and Bob consisting of Spectre on drums and Shadow on bass sounds as if they can easily keep up with the composing whims and fancies as they get plenty of opportunities to showcase their capabilities. Drums, guitars, bass, they all prove to have plenty of potential, which a little polishing could help come into full bloom. Keymaster Mike of course shows his best side as well with his sometimes wildly flailing keyboard riffs. Try Let Your Hatred Be on for size.

Apart from the early incongruity in the opening track, things are pretty solid vocal-wise as well. Not a small feat considering the six different vocalists, both male and female, the use of an entire choir and, to top it off, the duels between vocalists like in The Invocation. There’s quite a wide range of different voices, adding to the already intricate musical landscape that enfolds as The Book of Chaos progresses. Some of the vocals vaguely remind me of Bruce Dickinson, while the title song bares a great operatic duo, The Invocation houses a grunt-ish vocalist and The First Exorcism hosts a full blown black metal entity. Variety galore, just like in the tunes. As chaotic as that may sound and in theory is, the band manages to channel it all into manageable chunks that, combined, form an ever-changing musical landscape that never bores and, for by far the biggest part, keeps you highly entertained.

In conclusion I must say that, after a shaky start, The Book of Chaos turned out to be a nice, adventurous journey through the land of Mike’s musical preferences. With varyingly strong influences from power, symphonic, prog and a few other types of metal I’m comfortable saying that this very much resembles a metal opera, partly due to the use of a choir and the complicated, intricately drawn-out compositions. The wide range of vocal lines, which might not all be to your liking, add to this impression. Admittedly it’s not all perfectly fluent, if anything this diamond in the rough shows there is room for some growth, but the basics are most certainly there and above average, especially considering the fact this is actually the maiden release of this revived band. So despite a few minor points of criticism, quite normal when dealing with a pretty much new band, overall this is a release that more than deserves your time. And a band to keep your eye on for sure. A more than promising start in my opinion!

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The band’s first self-titled record was released in 2013, when Hladomrak was still a one-man band consisting only of founder and guitarist Evgenerator. In 2017 they followed up with Arctic Hysteria which was released with a full line-up. Now they give us Archaic Sacrifice, with a changed line-up. New blood Talon takes care of the lyrics and vocals, and Nils ‘Dominator’ Fjellström (ex-Dark Funeral, Nordjevel), takes care of the drums. The outfit is completed by Dipa on bass.

Not being familiar with the previous works of Hladomrak, I can only judge the current line-up and record. And I like what I hear. With 8 songs and a total runtime of 36:36, Archaic Sacrifice is not on the long side, but the riffing lends itself well to a shorter runtime. This is not a work of atmosphere or dreamy mysticism, but an onslaught of dark and brutal riffs. The guitar and drumming work on this record sometimes veers into death metal territory, rather than being a traditional black metal piece. And while I am a sucker for more epic, melodic, or folky influences in my black metal, this has won me over quite fast. The riffing never gets boring, and even though a lot of changes and riffs get thrown at you, still manages to have plenty of moments that stick with you.

The more technical, death metal-like riffing is well supported by a clean, polished and well produced sound. While again, I usually prefer a more natural sound, the fact that the songwriting and production fit together so well, makes this feel like a more coherent piece driven by a clear artistic vision.

In the end, whether you like Hladomrak’s latest work will be down to personal taste. I can see many oldschool black metal fans dismissing the modern style and production. I personally really like the complete package and will come back to this record quite a few in the future. Well done, gentlemen, well done!

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Opener Massive Drain immediately showcases what Inner Stream stands for with its melancholic feeling intro, followed by some textbook example power metal elements as the guitars, drums and bass start backing up the vocals. Inés has a very expressive voice which packs quite a punch if she so desires, but can be equally emotional or fierce at will, depending on what the tunes demand. Up until today I have never heard of her, which actually surprises me, because man, the lady can sing! However, saying the vocals are the only noteworthy aspect in Inner Stream’s songs would be unfair towards the other elements of their music, it’s safe to say they deliver a complete package of high quality in every aspect. The elements from electronic music, courtesy of Guillermo by the way, at times predominating while at other times subtly placed, are a great feature and certainly an addition to the overall atmosphere of the tunes.

In fact the songs have a wide array of surprising, beautiful details that sadly feel a bit underexposed due to the lack of time. Though Stain the Sea offers eleven songs, it only spans a little over 39 minutes, which on the one hand leaves me yearning for more, but at the same time gives me the feeling that I have not experienced everything as it was intended. That can of course be solved by simply playing this again, but that is not the same. Anyway, those details add a lot of depth to the songs and keep things exciting, which is not easy with this type of music, as it has been overly explored by many other bands, many of which are not capable of transcending mediocrity. Not Inner Stream though. A few, by yours truly highly appreciated examples are the old school heavy metal solo in the title track which is as amazing as it is surprising, the poppy parts in The Bridge that vaguely reminisce of T.A.T.U. in their heyday and the lovely keys in Fair War and Real. But honestly, this summary does not even scratch the surface, there is so much more to be found. I can only urge you to go and find it out for yourself, you won’t be disappointed.

If I had to describe my feeling towards Inner Stream’s debut release in one word it would probably be ‘amazed’. With Stain the Sea the band has managed to merge power with both emotion and fragility, creating an atmospheric piece that both mesmerizes and mystifies at times. If anything this is a very strong debut, both within the genre as in the heavier type of music in general. The capabilities of all band members are undisputed, Inner Stream looks like they have a great future ahead of them. They tick all the boxes and then some, provided you are not looking for the rawer, more extreme types of metal. Back-boned by strong compositions, skilled execution and a great production, Stain the Sea will bring you many pleasant hours as this is one you can keep on playing time and time again. The only point of criticism is, like stated earlier, the duration of the songs which gives me the feeling the abundance of intricate and refined details is not done full justice. If the songs would have been a bit more drawn out, so that the sometimes beautiful details have more time to sink in, this would certainly have been a serious contestant for the top spot in my year list. Nevertheless, success guaranteed, this one has still reached my list. Highly recommended, you simply cannot afford to miss out on this!

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Opener, title song and first single Crimson Gaze start in relative peace with a lingering rhythm lead by harsh vocals and underlined by a sweet bass line before opening up. Once fully unleashed the song consists of recurring pieces of melodic metal that vary in speed, enriched with a nice genre-defying solo. Add to that the alternation between the rougher pieces and the more soothing, acoustic sounding parts and this can surely be considered an interesting start of my journey into the unknown that CroworD was for me. It’s clear this is not your run of the mill raging death metal, the emphasis is emphatically on the carefully composed melodicism. Most of those aspects return in the next song, Isle of the Dead. In fact, the ingredients are basically the same, but the execution and their place in the composition vary, resulting in an interesting and different angle of view on the same concept with every single track. This in turn ensures a familiar, recognizable vibe and atmosphere in every song without repetition in any way. Death and the Maiden continues down the same path, but with closer Secession there’s a distinct difference as the speed goes up and with it the alternating, more relaxed pieces mostly disappear, although the closing tunes strongly contradict that.

All in all this is certainly a highly interesting piece of work that shows great promise for the upcoming new full-length album and sets the expectations equally high. Though called death metal, the roots certainly are there, the music CroworD serves us is very accessible and has plenty of hooks that will both attract and entertain a wide crowd of metal fans from almost every genre. For sure one you should try on for size. I’ll certainly check out their previous releases as well, as they have definitely piqued my interest.

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