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<title><![CDATA[Arsonist Lodge - " Iänkaikkinen, pysyvä, muuttumaton pimeys " 2013 (Finland) / released by: Hammer Of Hate Records]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30900]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[When grown men (and women) paint their faces, sport inverted crosses and spent more time acquiring the right wardrobe than they do writing and rehearsing, I can’t help but crack a smile at the ridiculousness of the endeavour. Arsonist Lodge, who undoubtly admire the Norwegian churchburners of the ‘90s, are however a solid act within this genre. As you can probably guess this is another one-man project that evolved into a full-blown band at some point or another. The title of this album “Everlasting, constant, never-changing darkness” gives a good idea just how this record sounds. Once the intro has subsided the band break into that archetypical Finnish black metal sound, pioneered by acts such as Archgoat and Beherit. This is both the record’s selling point and its ultimate downfall, that familiarity. You’re either bound to hate or love it. In this case I just love it. There’s still plenty of cheese for the entire family to go around, but I suppose as far as black metal is concerned this isn’t too shabby. In fact, I like this and look forward to hearing the record again in the nearby future. Black metal usually has me running to the hills for all sorts of reasons, but this record is strangely appealing in its primitive bruteness and crude charm. There are still elements that are completely bonkers, don’t worry. ‘Prayer I’, a supposed Satanic prayer/invocation, is utterly hilarious in its misplaced seriousness and it is entirely impossible for me keep a straight face during that track and not descent into random fits of laughter. Then again, there are folks who actually take this genre seriously and place importance on being orthodox and all. You have whackjobs everywhere, because black metal elitists, specifically those who are into the ‘religious’ black metal subset, are but one step away from their Christian or otherwise religious fundamentalist counterparts. Black metal used to be simple, and straightforward. Arsonist Lodge reminds us of that – and for that I am thankful. <br>http://www.hammer-of-hate.com<br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 7]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Black Oath - " Ov Qliphoth and Darkness " 2013 (Italy) / released by: I Hate Records/Horror Records/SureShot]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30899]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[What a pleasant surprise. I’m not familiar with this band’s debut record from a couple of years ago, but if this record is any indication it is at least a curiosity worth seeking out. Italy has always had a knack for the theatrical, and this band is no different in that regard. Atmosphere, so often lacking in modern extreme metal albums, is something that oozes from every pore of this record. The horror atmosphere is conveyed through usage of sound effects, organs, monk chants and other spooky additions to the sound palette. The general song construction, flow and chord progressions suggest that Black Oath are familiar with Solitude Aeturnus’ first two records “Into the Depths Of Sorrow” and “Beyond the Crimson Horizon” – it is also rather unavoidable that they had a steady diet of Black Sabbath, whose colossal shadows looms over this record in about every imaginable way. The clean vocals aren’t exactly soaring in the way you’d expect of Robert Lowe or Messiah Marcolin. I suppose they are serviceable and get the points across the band had in mind when they wrote these songs. It’s not so much that this record aims to be the heaviest or most crushing release in its genre, but rather that it aims high with relatively simple means. It isn’t technical by any means, but it is rather clear early on that a lot of work and passion went into the crafting on this album. The guitars swirl and chug with emotional leads/solos to boot, the prominent bass playing is lively and exciting while the drums provide a steady rhythm and keep things moving forward. Overall, there is a whole lot worse out there in the underground, and if you like your doom traditional and without any death metal influences, Black Oath is band you might want to check out. Stuff like this comes along not often enough. This is something I can get behind.<br>http://www.ihate.se<br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 7]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Bulletbelt - " Down In the Cold Of the Grave " 2012 (New Zealand) / released by: Headless Horseman Records]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30898]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Every now and then as a reviewer you come across bands you just want to kick in the teeth. Not because their music isn’t good enough, or because they don’t master their instruments. No. Sometimes I just want to whack bands across the head and scream to them: “be more metal, goddammit”. Not that anybody ever listens to what I say or write. Bulletbelt is a side-project, or rather parallel band of Wellington, New Zealand based heavy metal outfit Red Dawn. I’ve never heard of either band before this release, so I’m not going to make comparisons between the two. Before being in any of those two bands, drummer Stephen Francis was in Karnage, whose guitarist Sam Totman would later make a name for himself in the rather overrated, vacuous power metal band DragonForce. Now before all you sexually confused and closeted homosexuals start sending me hatemails, I have no bones to pick with DragonForce, cos I don’t care about them. They are stupid, which is probably what attracted you to them in the first place. In a lot of ways this is stylistically similar to Virginia black/thrashers The Day Of the Beast, who have this particular niche cornered. The biggest difference is that The Day Of the Beast does this thing just plainly better, and has more interesting lyrical subjects to boot. New Zealand has better things to offer than this band. Unless Bulletbelt transforms itself into a more violent, aggressive and more ambitious unit by its next release, they will no doubt be overshadowed by regional acts that are just plainly better and hungry than they are. Now, I’m not going to wait for that to happen. I have better stuff to do. Hey! Look there, another record. I shall listen to what is in it and tell you whether it was better than this fluffy and inconsequential record. Then again, I just could watch “Bad Taste” as well...<br>http://www.facebook.com/HeadlessHorsemannz <br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 5]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Cadaver Disposal - " May All Be Dead " 2013 (Germany) / released by: Nihilistic Empire Records/New Music Distribution]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30897]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[I will never understand press leaflets, and I will never have any sympathy for the poor slobs who are forced to write those sorry wastes of paper. Not only are most press leaflets incoherent, self-aggrandizing non sequiturs of the highest order – a reviewer learns nothing from them, other than that the people who wrote them are utterly clueless tools. In the press leaflet the band is more than once compared to Tampa, Florida has-beens Six Feet Under as if it is some kind of achievement, or something to brag about. It’s death metal, but this platter of splatter is more influenced by Stockholm than by Florida or New York. It’s hard to believe than anybody these days would take Chris Barnes seriously, or consider him a worthy influence, but Cadaver Disposal mimic his grunting style in a frightening fashion. There seems to be some cognitive dissonance going on here on a number of levels. For example, the gore/splatter artwork doesn’t seem to fit the overall military and war-theme that the band has chosen as central subject. Not that it is particularly hard to do war oriented death metal right, conceptually – there are enough precedents. Just look at Bolt Thrower, Hail Of Bullets, Jungle Rot, Malevolent Creation or Warpath. At least for a while it appears former Belphegor live drummer Florian ‘Torturer’ Klein was involved with this band. He’s not involved with this recording, but it was worth pointing out. Aside from the disconnect between visuals and subject matter “May All Be Dead” is a good little death metal record. It goes through the expected twists and turns of the genre. It will not herald the return of a more pure death metal movement (that one never went away to begin with), but it is a nice little album that does exactly what you think it will – and that is reassuring. Odin knows we get far too less pure death metal around these parts, so these casketcrushers are more than welcome, and its good to hear this thing still being done once every blue moon.<br>http://www.nihilisticempire.com<br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 6]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Carpeduke - " Gothic Hell Ride " 2013 (Germany) / released by: Self-financed]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30896]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Oh please, I’m not nearly drunk enough to enjoy this. So, here’s a quick question for you all in the meantime. If an artist has released four albums independently up to this point, and there’s no label interest – wouldn’t it be sensible to pack things up and call it a day? Not that I have something against Carpeduke himself. No. Apparently this is the creative collaboration between one Steffen Herzog, a German rock singer renowned for his black humour and fluency in six languages and producer Ron Reid Gardner. Who? I know. I was scratching my head too. Am I supposed to know this guy? Anyway, “Gothic Hell Ride” is, as the title rather cleverly suggests, an album’s worth of pseudo-gothic, semi-industrial spooky alternative metallic rock that is equal parts Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie/White Zombie as it is latter-day Type O Negative and Sisters Of Mercy, at least vocally. Odin knows I like this stuff well enough when I’m in the right mindset, or feeling particularly forgiving. I could write an entire review lambasting how this is record is musically redundant and neigh on two decades late to a movement that was popular in the mainstream for all of five minutes. I’m not going to do that here. In 1995/96 this would have hit the alternative charts in a big way. Just saying. As patently ridiculous and utterly silly as this record is, I’m actually enjoying it in all its cheesy glory. Imagine how much better this thing sounds when you are drunk, or high on grass. Holy crap. Now that’s an idea for the weekend, isn’t it? A promo video was shot for the track ‘Vampyre’, and it has the subtlety and coherence of the average Jésus Franco or Jacinto Molina/Paul Naschy horror movie of the 1970s. The girl singer is hot and very saucy in it, though. So, let me close up this hastily written review by saying this. “Gothic Hell Ride” is funny, very funny. It’s not exactly the thing that stands up to close examination or intense scrutiny, but sometimes you just want to hear something as stupid and demented as this. I wouldn’t be surprised if this ended up being the soundtrack to some shot-on-video gothic flick or some backyard shoestring budget splatter production. Anyhow, I have been rambling incoherently enough now. I better close this up...<br>http://www.cdp-music.com<br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 7]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Chaos Invocation - " Black Mirror Hours " 2013 (Germany) / released by: World Terror Committee]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30895]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[There are things about black metal I’ll never understand. Such as the ridicule importance of band photos and all the evil posturing that goes on in them. Despite hailing from Germany this band Chaos Invocation certainly sounds Swedish. Most prominent influences seem to come from the usual sources such as Dark Funeral, Marduk and Setherial, although I’m told that there are shades of Watain in this band’s music at points as well. Singer Malte Langenbrinck was also in cult act Bethlehem and guitarist/backing vocalist A is also part of black metal combo Ave Maria. The band formed in 2004 and released its debut “In Bloodline With the Snake” in 2009 through World Terror Committee. For one thing this album seem to focus more on melody and atmosphere above senseless blasting and speed for speed’s sake. Which is actually pretty sweet when you think about it. It also helps that the vocals are varied and fitting of the moment, be it narrative, rasps, whispers, shrieks, monk chants or half shouts. Chaos Invocation actually understands the importance of a balanced production job, and while it is by no means polished – it is leagues better than the majority of underground hordes. I’m not going to lie and say that the visuals (the band photo, at any rate) of this album don’t crack me up because they absolutely do. I swear one of these guys actually looks like Sub-Zero from Mortal Kombat, and the other guy holding the skull wears a monk’s robe that could be stolen from Amando de Ossorio’s Blind Dead movies. Seriously, as far as cheese ball factor goes these guys are no match of Metal Blade era Ancient or those absolutely dreadful photoshoots Mystic Circle is known for. By Odin, I’m having a laugh at expense of these Germans because of those pictures alone. No matter how you turn it, “Black Mirror Hours” is a strong black metal album that I’m sure many of you will like. So, check it out.<br>http://www.w-t-c.org<br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 8]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Decayed - " The Ancient Brethren " 2012 (Portugal) / released by: BlackSeed Productions]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30894]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Moonspell may be the most popular export from Portugal as far as metal is concerned, but they certainly aren’t representative for the Lusitian metal scene. I don’t care what you scenesters, Hot Topic dwelling tweens and douchebag hipsters decide is hot this week, I will always defend Decayed.  “The Ancient Brethren” is this band’s ninth full-length release since forming in 1990, and while the line-ups may have changed, Decayed’s sound never strayed too much from the path of devastatingly heavy and utterly relentless death/black metal. Much like 2008’s “The Black Metal Flame” this record emphasizes the band’s death metal aspect more, and like that record there is a current of Australian war-metal and early European death metal that runs through out this record. Like many of the earlier black metal formations Decayed is ultimately a ripping thrash metal band with an occult paintjob. It also helps that bass guitar can be heard plucking and popping away. Most of the time the bassist is quite happy to just double the guitars, but it’s good that the bass guitar can be heard in the background. For one it is a naturally warm sounding production, retaining that organic crunch so often lost in today’s habitually flat and sterile sounding digital production jobs. If you, like me, are of the opinion that too much black – and death metal has descended in becoming a parody and caricature of itself, you’ll probably love this record a whole lot more. The early black (and death) metal bands didn’t care about who wrote the most difficult song, who had the most strings on their guitar or who could blast the fastest. No. They just wrote incredible songs and had no other ulterior motive but that one objective. Unfortunately, Decayed are a lone beacon in a sea of mediocrity, hero-worship and bedroom projects gone horribly and incredibly wrong. I don’t care what you faggots think about this record, or its production or anything else. This stuff rocks and it is leagues better than the latest signing of Sumerian Records, Sevared, Unique Leader, Victory Records or whatever stupid label is ‘in’ this week. Sometimes I wish you’d just leave me alone. Unless you are a pretty girl from Portugal, then I’d love to hear from you...<br>http://www.blackseedprod.com<br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 8]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Encorion - " Our Pagan Hearts Reborn " 2013 (Holland) / released by: Sleaszy Rider Records]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30893]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Generally speaking I have a very low tolerance for contemporary folk metal. Not because I hate the genre, far from it. I hate it mostly because what is released in the underground in this genre is uniformly terrible. I like cheese just as much as the next guy. Hell, I even enjoyed Kivimetsan Druidi when I catched them live a couple of years ago. There’s more to this genre than thinly veiled drinking songs. The fact of the matter is that for every Arbrynth or Ironwood there are at least a dozen Folkodia’s or Folkearth’s. One thing you learn pretty quickly in being critic is that there’s always somebody worse. Thought Sleipnir was awful, then listen to Llvme. You thought Krigivar was awful? Then I dare you to listen to Myrkvar. The Netherlands has never really had a shortage of interesting folk metal bands. Thronar did it all earlier than everyone else. Heidevolk are pretty much the face of this subgenre in terms of international visibility for the Dutch market. It’s a good thing many bands in this genre have decided to go heavier and more brutal again. The prominent violin and flute playing is integrated seamlessly and where many other bands would fall victim to polka rhythms and writing drinking songs, both are actually used in an intelligent, more authentic manner. Sure, both instruments are par for course in this genre, but Encorion use them to create a heroic and often incessantly dark atmosphere. Another notable thing is the bass-heaviness of the production. At long last the bass guitar can be heard again in metal productions, and that should be applauded. There was also a promotional video shot for the track ‘Spirit, We Are One’. Encorion is a promising addition to the scene, hopefully they are able to cultivate their sound and grow within the perimeters of their chosen genre.<br>http://www.sleaszyrider.com<br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 7]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Evangelist - " Doominicanes " 2013 (Poland) / released by: Doomentia Records/Code 7/Plastic Head Distribution/SureShot]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30892]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Ha yes, doom metal. That other genre I like to dabble in whenever I’m tired of listening stupid black metal and idiot underground death metal. Evangelist hails from Cracow, Poland and is one of these anonymous bands, which refuse to disclose information about who is part of their line-up. Most of the times there is good reason for that, as most anonymous bands aren’t very good. As every rule is defined by its exception, Evangelist is a wholly convincing and atmospheric doom metal band in tradition of long-standing genre monuments such as Candlemass, the more power metal inclined DoomSword, “The Forest Of Equilibrium” era Cathedral and the long suffering Texans of Solitude Aeturnus. I never heard of Evangelist prior to this record, but now having heard this second album of theirs, they could easily substitute for those revered Texans. Of course, given this band’s religious inclinations I’m bound to bring up that Evangelist (surprise) have a Christian concept running through out this record. Which isn’t surprising in the least since Poland is overwhelmingly Catholic and brought forth a number of Popes. ‘Blood Curse’ is inspired by Biblical tales, ‘Pain and Rapture’ is about the ravage of the Inquisition and ‘Militis Fedilis Deus’ is about the first Crusade, from the crusader’s point of view. I don’t need to tell you how tired I am of hearing the inane and often incoherent rambling of metal fans that throw me suggestions of which bands I should check out. It is true to say that you obviously heard this sort of thing before, and I won’t tell you otherwise. The thing is that Evangelist just is a lot better than most, and gifted artists should be supported. So, if you are a fan of traditional and epic-sounding doom metal, this is a record you would want to hear. In the absence of a new Solitude Aeturnus record, this is a perfect substitute and placeholder until the real product at long last arrives.<br>http://www.doomentia.com<br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 8]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Flagellant - " Maledictum " 2013 (Sweden) / released by: World Terror Committee]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.masterful-magazine.com/recenzja_result.php?wynik=detail&rodzaj=recenzje&id=30891]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Flagellant hail from Sweden and are the umpteenth band to replicate the sound made popular by Dark Funeral and Marduk. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, cos this record is pretty sweet taken on its own terms. It sounds somewhere between the blasting fury of mid-period Marduk and Dark Funeral with the crawling eerie mid-tempo sections you’d expect of a death metal band. The croaking vocals are reminiscent of Celtic Frost/Triptykon frontman Tom G. Warrior. At any point you expect the singer to go ‘ugh!!’. The croaked frog vocals, the eerie mid-tempo playing, the fleeting melodies, the minimal thumping bass lines and the laidback drumming all add to that ritualistic feeling many black metal fans always blabber on about. While this record isn’t exactly evil or hateful sounding, it at least sounds dark and gloomy, which is the least you can ask for in this genre. The guitar tone is crunchy, crisp while retaining tons of heaviness. The drum sound is organic and warm, and there’s a distinct difference between the toms, snares and kickdrums. The bass guitar can be heard clearly, and in a lot of ways this production job recalls “The Somberlain” by legendary metal act Dissection. The Celtic Frost leanings actually give this record the most of its charm. Other than that it is a fairly typical album for the genre. Somewhere in here there lies an even more potent and interesting sounding idea, hopefully Flagellant manage to channel it on their third album.<br>http://www.w-t-c.org<br><br> written by: Wouter / pts: 7]]></description>
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