Stygian Obsession/Form Is Void/Pacific Threnodies/2018 CD Review

  Stygian  Obsession  are  a  band  from  the  United  States  that  plays  a  very  old  school  and  atmospheric  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review of  their  album  "Form  is  Void"  which  will  be  released  in  2018  by  Pacific  Threnodies.

  Atmospheric  soundscapes  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  a  few  seconds  later  which  leads  to  a  heavier  direction  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  bring  in a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  as  well  as  being  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  and  the  riffs  also  mix  in a  great  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies.

  Atmospheric  and  heavy  parts  mix  together  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  while t he  solos  and  leads  are  also  done  in a  very  dark  yet  melodic  fashion  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  as  well a s  the  music  also  bringing  in  a  touch  of  black  metal  at  times.

  Stygian  Obsession  plays  a  musical  style  that  goes  back  to  the  more  darker  side  of  death  and  doom  metal  from  the  early  90's  while  also  mixing  in  an  atmospheric  edge,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  old  school  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  ritualistic  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Stygian  Obsession  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  and  atmospheric  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres, you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Deep  In  The  Bonds  Of  Darkness"  and  "All That  Are  In  The  Graves  Shall  Hear  His  Voice".  8  out  of  10.

Hamferd/Tamsins Likam/Metal Blade Records/2018 Full Length Review

  Hamferd  are  a  band  from  the  Faroe  Islands  that  plays  an  atmospheric  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "Tamsins  Likam"  which  will  be  released  in  2018  by  Metal  Blade  Records.

  Acoustic  guitars  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  melodic vocals  a  few  seconds  later  while  the  heavy  guitar  riffs  takes  the  music  into  more  of  a  doom  metal  direction  as  well  as  introducing  death  metal  growls  onto  the  recording  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  When guitar  solos  and  leads  are utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  while  most  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  some  songs  also  bringing  in  clean vocals  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  small  amount  of  black  metal  elements  can  be  heard  as  well  as  having  acoustic  guitars  also  return  on  some  of  the  later  tracks  and  they  also  give  the  songs  a  more  progressive  feeling,  a  decent  amount  of  melody  can  be  heard  in  the  guitar  riffing  and  the  music  also  speeds  up  briefly  and  also  adds  in  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats.

  Hamferd  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  atmospheric  doom  and  melodic  death  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Faroese  language  and  cover  a  concept  involving  the  history  and  folklore  of  their  culture.

  In  my  opinion  Hamferd  are  a  very  great  sounding  atmospheric  and  progressive  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Stygd"  and  "Vapn  I  Anda".  8  out  of  10.

Ocean Of Grief/Nightfall's Lament/Rain Without End Records/2018 CD Review

  Ocean  Of  Grief  are  a  band  from  Greece  that  plays  a  very  atmospheric  and  melodic  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "Nightfall's  Lament"  which  will  be  released  in  2018  by  Rain  Without  End  Records.

  Atmospheric  keyboards  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  depressive  yet  melodic  guitar  leads  a  few  seconds  later  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  death  metal  growls  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  bringing  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  you  can  also  hear  a  lot  of  doom  metal  elements  in  the  slower  sections  of  the  songs.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on t he  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  clean  guitars  are  also  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording  along  with  most  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in length  and  all  of t he  songs  stick  to  a  very  slow  direction  as  well  as  updating  the  90's  doom/death  style  with  a  more  melodic  and  modern  approach.

  Ocean  Of  Grief  plays  a  musical  style t hat  takes  atmospheric  doom  metal  and  mixes  it  with  melodic  death  metal  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  sorrow,  loneliness  and  depression  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Ocean  Of  Grief  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  and  atmospheric  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "In  Bleakness"  "Painting  My  Sorrow"  and  "The  Release  Of  The  Soul".  8  out  of  10. 

Bestialord Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Bestialord is a metal band from Wichita, Kansas.  We originally started as a recording project and evolved into a band.  We've all been in various other projects over the years.  Chris and I previously worked together in a band called Sanctus Infernum.



2.Recently you have released your first album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

Our style is sort of a hybrid.  The foundation is Doom, however there is a good portion of  Death and Thrash in the mix as well.  We take more of an old school approach to things, both musically and sonically.



3.You refer to your music as being 'occult horror doom metal', can you tell us a little bit more about this term?

It's really just an overarching term to describe our sound and style.  We weren't sure how to describe ourselves because we didn't feel like we fit well into a specific genre.



4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

H.P. Lovecraft is a major influence on this album.  I've always been fascinated with his work.  Other songs are inspired by Pinhead from Hellraiser, witchcraft, revenge, and Ingrid Pitt's portrayal of Carmilla Karnstein in The Vampire Lovers.  I'm a big fan of the old Hammer films.



5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Bestialord'?

It's open to interpretation, you can relate it to any number of things.  Cthulhu certainly comes to mind.  We had a another name for the project originally but as time went on we became less happy with it.  All of us submitted ideas for a new name and two of us had names that included "Bestial", but we didn't like the other half of either name.  I was just looking at "Bestial" on paper and out of nowhere wrote "ord" on the end.  Everyone liked it so we went with it.


6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

We haven't played any shows yet.  We began as a recording project, thus writing and recording have been our primary focus to this point.



7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

We're looking at that now.  There are a few things that need to be worked out but I'm sure we'll do some shows down the road.




8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of doom and death metal?

We've had very limited feedback to this point but what we've received thus far has been very positive.




9.Are any of the band members currently involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?

No, we're all dialed into this project at present..



10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We'll always be a mixture of styles and influences.  The music for this album came together very organically.  We didn't have a preconceived direction, we just went with what felt right.  The music more or less wrote itself to a great extent. I guess we'll just go where the music takes us.



11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Collectively we've been influenced by a pretty wide variety of bands and styles.  Black Sabbath, Mercyful Fate, Celtic Frost, Manilla Road, Morbid Angel, Death, and Candlemass would probably be the mainstays.  Nowadays we still listen a lot of classic metal from various genres, however we're always looking for new stuff as well.  There are a lot of great new bands coming out all the time in every genre of metal.



12.What are some of your non musical interests?

Obviously we're all fans of horror movies and literature.  We're also sports fans as well, primarily baseball, football, and MMA.



13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Thank you for the interview and support, very much appreciated.  We'd also like to thank Alexsey at Satanath Records and David at Cimmerian Shade Recordings, they've been absolutely great to work with.  Cheers!\m/!

Drift Into Black/Shadow People/2017 EP Review

  Drift  Into  Black  are  a  solo  project  from  New  York  with  a  member  from  Grey Skies  Fallen  that  plays  a  mixture  of experimental,  dark  rock  and  atmospheric  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  self  released  2017  ep  "Shadow  People".

   Tragic  sounding  keyboards  start  off  the  ep  along  with  some  clean  vocals  a  few  seconds  later  while  the  melodic  riffing  also  takes  the music  into  more  of  a  heavier  musical  direction  along  with  some  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  as  well  as  capturing  the  heaviness  of  doom  metal.

  At  times  the  music  gets  very  atmospheric  while  the  music  also  brings  in  elements  of  dark  rock  as  well  as  some  depressive  melodies  along  with  the  music  also  bringing  in  influences  and  when  guitar  leads  are  utilized  they are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  and  after  awhile  growls  and  screams  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording,  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  slow  musical  direction  and  as  the  ep  progresses  a  brief  use  of stringed  instruments  can  also  be  heard.

  Drift  Into  Black  takes  experimental,  dark  rock  and  atmospheric  doom  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  his  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released   recording  while t he  lyrics  cover  dark  and  depressive  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Drift  Into Black  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  experimental,  dark  rock  and  atmospheric  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  f 

Ataraxy/Where All Hope Fades/Dark Descent Records/2018 CD Review

  Ataraxy  are  a  band  from  Spain  that  plays  an  old  school  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "When  All  Hope  Fades"  which  will  be  released  in  2018  by  Dark  Descent  Records.

  A  very  dark,  melodic  and  heavy  doom  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  some  clean  playing  also  being  added  into  certain  sections  of  some  of  the  tracks  along  with  some  of  the  songs  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Vocals  are  mostly  deep  death  metal  growls  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  dark  yet  melodic  fashion  along  with  the  music  also  being  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  as  well  as  spoken  word  parts  also  being  used  briefly  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  decent  mount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  as  the  album  progresses  atmospheric  synths  and  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  Ataraxy  plays  a  style  of  doom/death  metal  that  goes  back  to  the  early  90's  while  also  having  its  atmospheric  moments,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  darkness  and  death  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Ataraxy  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Matter  Lost  In  Time"  and  "The  Blackness  OF  Eternal  Night".  8  out  of  10.  

Malformity/The Rapturous Unraveling/Boris Records/2017 EP Review

  Malformity  are  a  band  from  Atlanta,  Georgia  that  plays  an  old  school  form  of  death  metal  with  elements  of  thrash,  grindcore  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  ep  "The  Rapturous  Unraveling"  which  will  be  released  in  2018  by Boris  Records.

  A  very  fast,  dark  and  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  death  metal  growls  as  well as  a  few  screams  and  the  music  is  also  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  and  the  faster  sections  mix  in  elements  of  grindcore  which  gives  the  songs  more  brutality.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  the  riffs  also  bringing  in  a  gear  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  while  the  slower  sections  of  the  songs a re  heavily  influenced  by  doom  metal  as  well  as  the  solos  and  leads  remaining  true  to  an  old  school  style  and  elements  of thrash  are  also  used  at  times,  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  Malformity  plays  a  style  of  death  metal  that  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  while  the  thrash,  grindcore  and  doom  metal  elements  makes  the  music  stand  out  a  bit  more,  the  production  sounds  very  old  school  while  the  lyrics  cover  death  and  apocalyptic  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Malformity  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  death  metal  band  with  elements  of  thrash,  grindcore  and  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Raptorous  Damnation".  8  out  of  10.