Nocturnal Damnation – Sadogoat Warmageddon Command – Demo 2011

I love the feeling when I get my hands on a new band’s debut demo. Nothing can describe the excitement of finding some undiscovered band while they’re still in the early stages of their career.



Nocturnal Damnation are a 2-piece black/death “war” metal band from South Korea with a sound that can be likened to bands such as Proclamation, Archgoat, Sadistik Exekution, Nuclear Desecration and of course, the mighty Blasphemy!

The 3-track CD starts off with some no bullshit bestial chaos with the song “Satanic War Metal”. The first thing you notice is the vocals, which are deep and sound as if a demon from Hell itself has taken over the microphone. The instruments themselves actually seem to meld together and assault your ears as a single entity, although special mention must be made to the guitar, as it sounds great and sticks out a bit in the mix.

“The Almighty Sathanas” begins with a siren going off in the background before a chugging aggressive riff assaults your ears like a gattling gun blast. This song is pure brutality and evil thrown in your face. I’d go as far to say this was my favourite off the demo.

The third and final track “Apocalyptic Nuclear War” once again starts off fast and furious. This is the most varied song on this release, in my opinion. A great way to finish things off and leave you hungry for more!

5/5 Total Goat Worship.

Interview with Pat McCauley (Head On Collision, Lucifer D. Larynx and the Satanic Grind Dogs of Death)

Pat McCauley is a bit of a "veteran" of the St. Louis metal and punk scenes, having been playing in bands since 1985. He's also a pretty cool dude. We talked shit for a while, here's the results.



Wayde:
Hey Pat! How are you doing today? Seeing as you’ve been around the block a few times in your local metal/punk scene, lets start the interview off with a brief history of yourself, what bands you have played in, how you got started playing music and all that junk.

Pat:
I started playing in punk and metal bands in 1985, right after my 12th birthday. I just started playing guitar and most of the bands were total garbage, but you gotta start somewhere. I always wanted to play some extreme metal, especially thrash and grind. A drummer was always a huge problem, as far as that goes. I played in a lot of punk bands in the meantime. A lot of these bands had serious intentions, but the only "shows" we ever did were parties in someone's backyard or basement. Even then, most of them were just "small parties."

I started going to shows here in the St. Louis area in 1986 as well. My first show was D.R.I. on their "Dealing With It" tour. They played the entire first two albums, as well as the E.P. It was fucking amazing. I started digging on the local HC/Punk scene around here, which was small, but definitely bigger than the metal scene here, which has always been rather small. I discovered bands like Big Fucking Deal, Laffinstock, Whoppers Taste Good, Total Control and several others (those were my favorites). I saw Slayer on the Reign in Blood tour with Overkill. I saw Anacrusis open for C.O.C. on their "Technocracy" tour. Anacrusis hadn't even released "Suffering Hour" yet! Many great shows! I went to shows at a little dive called "The Bernard Pub" sometimes 4 days a week. Now you're lucky to get me out of the house! HA!

So, after several years of dicking around and trying to form bands with my friends, when I was 20 (1993), I took out an advertisement in a local musician paper called "Spotlight Magazine" stating I would like to form or join some kind of punk or metal band. I listed bands of several different genres, whether it be punk/hc/grind/industrial metal/doom/etc. I wanted anything at the time, as I hadn't even played an official show at that particular time or released an "official demo." Anything but a cover band!

I tried out for several bands at that time. One band was a metal band that was particularly good, but they wanted me on bass. I don't care for the bass too much. Not enough to join a band, anyway. I eventually hooked up with some crazy mother fuckers in a band called "Very Metal." I ended up playing with Very Metal for 8 years. With various members, we released two 7 Inch E.P's and 2 full length CD's, before calling it a day in May of 2002 because the band couldn't pull itself together to tour with D.R.I. for a month with a nightly guarantee! 8 years of that shit will drive ya nuts!

I planned on taking a year or two off, but the bassist talked me into us still doing something. I wasn't too keen on it, but I did it anyway, with the intention of finding something else. A couple months later, the ol' meth addicted drummer stumbled back into the picture, this time only with a drinking problem. We tried out several singers and guitarists, with the intention of forming a "thrash metal" band or a "Motorhead-ish" type band. About a year later, 2004 sometime, we became Head On Collision. We released the "Arise from the Wreckage" demo in May of 2005. After a huge line up change in 2006, with only me remaining, we once again signed a contract with Beer City. In late May of 2008 "Ritual Sacrifice" was released. We toured a ton, but parted ways in December of 2009. We had been working on a new full length for over a year, but as of December of 2009, we hadn't even finished recording the drums. It just wasn't happening for several reasons.

So now, since December of 2009, I've been taking that year or two off I wanted to take in 2002. I had no choice, actually. I had to have two back surgeries, as well as other "life altering occurrences" that made me just say "FUCK IT!"

In 1996 or so I started working on Lucifer D. Larynx and the Satanic Grind Dogs of Death with my pal Joe. We released a couple demos, a bunch of compilation appearances and a 4 Way Split 7 Inch with Dahmer, The Kill and Needful Things in 2001 on the Australian label, Dry Retch. Last year, I guess due to the internet, people suddenly started showing interest in us, swapping our demos and what not. A California label, Must Play Fast Records got in touch with Joe about releasing the old stuff. Said he'd been trying to hunt us down forever. Other small labels are wanting to release stuff as well. As of May, 2009, I started putting together new songs. I know have about 60 songs, which I started recording a couple weeks ago.

That brings us up to snuff. How's that for brief? HA!



Wayde:
Well that was nice and detailed! Thanks for all the info!
Let’s move onto what you're doing currently, I understand you are working towards "resurrecting" Head On Collision and Lucifer D. Larynx. What are your current/future plans for these two bands? Who is in the new HOC line up?

Pat:
There are currently no H.O.C. members. I'm just getting back in a position to do that again, but at the same time, I don't really want to rush into it. While I love doing H.O.C., it got to a point where it wasn't very enjoyable. I'm not just going to pick up the first guy on a bar stool that says he can go on tour this time. Playing ability will come first and foremost. If I can get 3 great musicians that are willing to play in Head On Collision and tour and all that, then I will do it. Otherwise, I'm not sure I see a point in doing it, to be honest. That goes for any "live band," as a matter of fact. I really don't need to waste my time playing with people if their goals aren't ambitious. Lucifer D. Larynx never really "stopped" or anything. The other "main guy," Joe had to move to another state for work/family and while we planned on doing more stuff, we never had the time. I told Joe I was going to write a ton of new tunes and start recording them as soon as I was able to upgrade my recording gear, which I just did. I started recording what is about 60 songs on March 24th. As of today I have my first rhythm guitar track done on 47 of those songs. I'm definitely getting my chops back after a year of not being able to play much in 2010. It's quite fast. I can't wait to see where these songs go. It's quite a large project.





Wayde:
Sounds like you're off to a great (re)start! Keep up the good work my good man.
Let’s take a quick trip into the past. What have you previously released with both bands? And where/how (if possible) can people purchase these releases?

Pat:
Lucifer D. Larynx released our first demo, "More Evil Than Your Fat Naked Mother" in 1997 (I believe) and the second demo, "Sex, Drugs, Booze, Grind" in 1998. These cassettes are LONG out of print. A batch of those songs ended up on the "Wrong Side of the Tracks" 4 Way Split with Dahmer, The Kill and Needful Things on Dry Retch Records (Australia) in 2001. We had a few other releases planned at that time, but they never happened. We were supposed to appear on a Carcass Tribute compilation that never happened either. Joe got busy with family and I got busy with H.O.C., so we were quiet for the next 8 or so years! Must Play Fast Records released out of California released our "Self Titled 7 Inch" in October of 2010. It is songs from both demos and other songs from different recording sessions. There are still about 30 songs from that era that never saw proper release! Must Play Fast will be releasing them sometime in the future and we're looking for other labels interested in putting this stuff out as well! You can get copies of the self titled 7 Inch from me (through Paypal or snail mail/money order) or Must Play Fast Records.

Head On Collision has only released the "Arise from the Wreckage" demo and the "Ritual Sacrifice" full length on Beer City Records. Another full length was fully written and I have a handful of new ideas as well.

VERY METAL self released the "6 Melodies of Mayhem" 7 Inch in May of 1996. Beer City Records released the "Banned in St. Louis" 7 Inch in September of 1996. We also released the "8 Songs For You Drinking Pleasure" and "D.F.F. (Drink, Fight, Fuck) demos that same year. These releases were sloppy, chaotic, drunken punk/hardcore. Several line up changes later, we released the "Life's Too Short" and "Hit and Run" full lengths on Beer City Records. These releases show cased an upgraded sound. It was the same Very Metal sound from the past, only now the musicians involved could actually play their instruments. "Life's Too Short" is long out of print, but I do believe Beer City Records still has copies of "Hit and Run" available.

Wayde:
What would you say have been your biggest influences musically? What goes into writing a LDL or HOC song? What do you listen to day-to-day?

Pat:
My biggest influences musically are The Accused, Kiss, Black Sabbath, The Exploited, Razor, Sodom, early Slayer, early Napalm Death, Carcass, Terrorizer, Deep Purple, the first 3 Celtic Frost albums, Legion of the Damned, The Ventures, Master and tons more of these musical varieties. All these bands are an influence on anything I write, one way or another, although nothing inspires song writing for me more than a bad day, week, month or year!



Day to day changes. I tend to latch onto a band and listen to them so much that I memorize their songs or albums note for note, then I get burnt out and can't listen to em for a while. Right now, as I record new Lucifer D. Larynx songs I'm listening to a lot of late 60's and 70's hard rock, psych rock, prog rock, proto metal, aggressive rock...DAD Rock... whatever the hell you need to call it. The stuff that was considered "underground music" in that era. Basically staying away from the grind and thrash so I don't accidentally borrow too many riffs. HA! I always gravitate towards music of an aggressive and atonal nature no matter what kind of music. Even as a kid, I would prefer the "other songs on the album," more-so than the "hits."



When writing a song, I tend to just "go with it." I write best when I have some drums to write with. For instance, all the Lucifer D. Larynx songs... the drums are written first, which is totally ass-backwards! The drums are written, structured and recorded first. I then write the guitar riffs to fit the beats, fills, accents and structures. I don't know why, but if I'm going through a "riff dry spell," I can always count on this to snap me out of it. I sometimes apply the same method to H.O.C., although I tend to take one riff and develop it into several riffs and restructure things before recording anything. I guess you could say a lot more thought and effort goes into H.O.C.'s music. Both are great. H.O.C. is rewarding after you write a killer, well-thought out song and Lucifer D. Larynx is a lot of fun for its "controlled, yet spontaneous" music.

Wayde:
If I recall correctly, Lucifer D. Larynx has an unreleased 7" recorded and ready titled "Boiled to Death". What can fans expect from this EP? Are there any clues as to when it will be released, or what label may be putting it out?

Pat:
We actually have two 7 inches worth of material ready to go of material that was recorded from 1998-2001 that we'd really like to see come up. One of them will be the "Boiled to Death" 7 Inch. The 7 Inch will be 9 Tracks of over the top grindcore which will have artwork from none other than Tommy of "The Accused." His "Splatter Art" suits Lucifer D. well. He drawn some other stuff for us as well, but the "Boiled To Death" artwork is fucking disturbing! I sent you a copy of this stuff, right? How would you describe it? Now I'm interviewing you!



I know "Must Play Fast" wants to do another 7 Inch in the near future, but I'm not quite sure when that is. I'd like to get as many releases out as soon as possible, so we're hitting up other labels and bands and trying to stir something up. We’ve just started getting it out there, so nothing to report at the moment.

Wayde:
I’d describe it as chaotic, fast and straightforward grindcore with a killer sense of humour chucked into the mix! Very fun stuff, indeed.
What’s the metal and punk scene like in and around St. Louis? Are there any particular bands myself and anyone who reads this should keep a listen out for?

Pat:
Man, I'm not really the guy to ask right now. I haven't been around much in the last year and a half. Bands in St. Louis tend to have a short shelf life. The only band I really hear mentioned from a couple years ago now and then is Cross Examination, although I really have no idea what they're up to these days. If you like Municipal Waste type stuff, maybe give em a try. Anacrusis is currently back together and re-recorded a bunch of their earlier material. I'd recommend anyone try and track down the 1st Whoppers Taste Good 7 Inch from like 1988, as well as the old Laffinstock demos from the same time. Harkonin was pretty awesome Black Metal as well. Not sure if they're still around or not. Terra Caput Mundi play speed metal. Thorhammer play thrash metal. That's about all I'm aware of at the moment

Wayde:
Cool man, Thorhammer are awesome!
What are some memorable and/or funny experiences from your musical career? And what are some of the high and low points you have experienced during your time as a musician?

Pat:
The high points for me is meeting new people and talking about music. I love hearing about music history in whatever particular town we are playing. I've had the pleasure of playing with many great bands. The first Very Metal full length coming out and going on tour was a pretty killer moment. I remember the whole band being extremely happy with the results of the recording and songs. Getting a lot of positive feedback on the H.O.C. demo was pretty fantastic at the time.

Funny? Well let's see. One time after a show we drank some nasty draft beer and ate some super greasy pizza at some hole in the wall. Later that night while driving to the next town I unleashed some deadly gases and made the drummer barf. I fell on my face at a highway rest area while pissing with my pants down. Fell on a Cactus right on the palms of my hands in Arizona.



The low points are when the enthusiastic and gung ho bandmate suddenly turns jaded and negative. It's always the beginning of the end. It's so typical that at this point i pretty much see it coming. It happens! That's worse than any expensive mechanical problem on tour, stolen instruments or whatever else I've stumbled into. The broken promises that continuously happen with shitty promoters, booking agents and shit talkers is always the most annoying and low thing to deal with as a musician, in my opinion.

Thorhammer is really good. Me and Kyle (guitar/vocals) were supposed to get H.O.C. off the ground again at some point, but I'm not sure if that's gonna happen or not. It would be awesome! In addition to be the great riff writer he is in Thorhammer, he's also an incredible drummer!

Wayde:
Agreed, Kyle is great in Thorhammer and has a major passion for thrash metal and would be a great fit if you ever do get HOC off the ground again!
Well, it seems like you’ve certainly had your fair share of ups and downs throughout your career! What advice would you give to any young up and coming heavy metal and punk musicians out there?

Pat:
Don't make shitty music. The world is already full of shitty music. Haha. Honestly, I don't know. I hate people barking out advice to me, so I'm not going to bark advice to anyone else! I'm under-qualified!

Wayde:
Can't say I blame ya there mate!
Before we wrap this up, first off I'd like to thank you for wasting so much of your precious time to do this interview! Any last words for myself and/or the readers?

Pat:
Yes! Thanks for the interview! I love talking about myself more than anything else, so it definitely wasn't a waste of time! I hope your readers check out Lucifer D. Larynx and Head On Collision. I have material from both bands available, so get in touch!

Nexwomb – Militant Heretic Aggression

Nexwomb are a three-piece from Portland, Oregon in the USA who play an old-school brand of black/death metal similar to bands such as Blasphemy and Proclamation with some OSDM (think Incantation and the like) and even a small amount of thrash (think “brutal” thrash such as Protector) in the mix to keep things interesting. “Militant Heretic Aggression” is their debut demo tape.



The opening title track begins with eerie bells chiming and an odd siren type sound which leads straight into some fast and aggressive death metal with early 90’s black metal vocals and the odd death metal grunt here and there. The guitar and bass sound is murky and distorted, as is the norm for this style of metal and the drumming is spot on.

“Chaostorms (Summon the Gods of War)” is up next. It starts with a slow and ominous intro leading into some straightforward old-school aggression! Catchy riffs and sick vocals are the main focus on this track.

Track 3 “Maelstrom of Abyssic Purification” is a more mid-paced style offering. Some excellent “chugging” riffs and drumming in this one. This is probably the best track of the demo, in my opinion. They do the mid-paced “chugging” sound very well.

“Apocryptagion” opens up with some eerie chants leading into a lightning fast riffing. The pace doesn’t let up at all here and this is a straight headbanger of a song! No complaints on my part!

All in all, this four-track demo is a killer debut and I really look forward to hearing more from these blokes in the future.

4/5 LISTEN, ALL YOU UP AND COMING BANDS OUT THERE! If you want to make an impression with your first demo, THIS is how you do it!

Blaspherian - Infernal Warriors of Death

Blaspherian are a four-piece death metal outfit from Houston, Texas who formed back in 2004 and have recently put out their debut full length after numerous demo, EP and split releases. Upon listening to “Infernal Warriors of Death”, you can tell that these guys have been working hard to hone their craft, as it shines through in their unique brand of “new-old-school death metal”.

What you can expect from this release is a mix of early Swedish DM, Bolt Thrower, Immolation and Incantation worship along with Blaspherians’ own unique elements that sets them apart from other bands within their genre. The guitar tone is dark, rich, muddy and crushing, perfect for the music this band plays. The bass is quite subtle, but fits in just right and aids the guitar in creating a dank, murky atmosphere. The vocals are one of the highlights here, as they’re evil as fuck, yet easy to understand. I don’t really know anything about drumming, but the drums do the job very well.

The songs here go from mid-paced chugging to blasted sections to sparse doomy segments. Quite varied, but still on the same course for the most part. I like to describe it as “original yet true to its roots”. The title track would have to be the stand out track, as it’s the most varied with its old-school chugging riffs and descending melodies.

All in all, for those of you out there looking for some good old fashion death metal but need a break from the classics, this should do the job just fine. It’s a great release which doesn’t get boring. The production is also worth a mention for being a great fit with the old-school DM sound.

4.5/5 Good old American death metal, played the way it should be played!

Blasphemophagher - …For Chaos, Obscurity and Desolation…

Blasphemophagher are an Italian-based 3-piece unit specializing in intense bestial warfare with touches of grindcore and thrash metal. These guys are one of the most intense metal bands I’ve ever heard and are definitely NOT for wimps and posers!

This squad of wild nuclear warmongers have been around since 2002 and have put out a VERY respectable catalogue of splits, demos, an EP and a full length. As well as two recently released compilations. “…For Chaos, Obscurity and Desolation…” is their second full length, released in January of 2010.

There are so many elements going into this barbaric assault it’s almost ridiculous! Upon listening, I can hear elements of Bathory, Blasphemy, Bestial Warlust, Napalm Death, and Repulsion, as well as thrash metal influences in some of the riffs. This is a beast that doesn’t know how to play nice!

After a short intro, “Descending into Extermination” kicks you in the gut and throws you across the room with it’s warlike fury. Sick vocals that reek of old-school grinding death metal, badass riffs that don’t let you catch your breath as you bang your head like a maniac, fast as hell drumming that drives things along at fleshripping speeds are what’s on offer here, and it’s the same with every track! This is one release that constantly pummels you until there is nothing left to pummel.

This is a very consistent release (as is everything they’ve put out) that will not disappoint the listener. Unholy, brutal (I usually try to refrain from using that word, but it definitely fits these guys), fast, aggressive, evil and drunk as hell are words I would use to describe the sound.

If you can enjoy one song on here, then you’ll enjoy the rest of the album, so skip on over to youtube and check out one of the tracks. While not the most varied album out there, it doesn’t need to be. Why would one bother trying to expand their musical soundscape when they don’t have to? These guys know what they want to achieve with their sound, and they do it damn well. Every song is stellar, they stand out from the crowd of generic “black/death” metal bands out there and do their own thing their own fuckin’ way.

I’m not going to pick a stand-out track, because I don’t want to, and neither do I find it necessary on a release such as this.

This style of music is not for the weak. If you are a false do not entry.

5/5 Nothing beats consistency. One of the best albums of 2010.

Teratornis Interview

Well, earlier today I reviewed their EP, then a few hours later their frontman got in touch with me about an interview we'd been planning to do. So here it is folks, my interview with James "Maddog" O'Lewis the mighty thrash metal behemoth!



Wayde:
G'day James, how's it going this arvo? Let’s start things off with a bit of background on Teratornis. Who's in the band? How long have you been at it? What style you guys play? And any other relevant info for the readers out there who may not have heard of you guys yet.

James:
Not too bad thanks Wayde. Cheers for giving us the oppurtunity for an interview!
Teratornis has been gonig for a few years now, started back in high school just playing playing covers and after we left school we got more serious and started writing our own shit.

Our first real line up was Jackson on drums, Sean on Bass, TT on guitar, me on guitar and we had a singer. Played one gig with this lineup but our sound was changing to more heavier thrashy sound and we decided to ditch the singer and I took over on vocals as well as playing guitar. This has been the lineup for a bit over a year now and things are starting to come along with our debut EP "Back From Extinction" under our belt and some decent shows coming up in the future. So the lineup now is:

James - Guitar/Vocals
TT - Guitar/Backing Vocals
Sean - Bass
Stone Cold Jackson - Drums

We are all mates out of the band anyway so we take the piss a fair bit and that keeps it fun.

Wayde:
How would you describe your sound to someone who hasn't heard the band before? What influences and elements go into making a Teratornis song?

James:
Pretty much straight forward thrash with some technical and progressive thrash influences thrown in. We are influenced by a heap of stuff, some outside of thrash too. When I’m making a song I usually listen to one band a shitload and then get inspired to write a song. I’m a big Coroner and tech thrash fan so I like to throw in some tricky riffs and song structures to keep the listener guessing, makes it a bit more interesting that way haha. The bands we all listen to and influence our sound the most are Destruction, Coroner, Sodom, Sepultura, and Kreator to name a few.



Wayde:
Classic influences right there mate!
Tell us a bit about your recently released EP "Back From Extinction". Where was it recorded? What went into the recording and writing process? How long did it take? etc etc.

James:
Will do. We wrote the songs a while before we went into recording, because it was our first recording we just did it when we were ready, Even though it took us long enough to finally record a release! haha. Recording took place at LA Studio in Wetherill Park, Sydney. We recorded the EP with jENK, who has recorded heaps of other Aussie metal bands and knows what he's doing that’s for sure. We were in there for about 7 days in total, which cost a lot more than we expected, and with no label backing or anything we were pretty poor after it all. Had some difficulty recording some parts of our songs that are odd time signatures because we just play them by feel so setting up the click track for those parts was a nightmare! But we are happy with the recording and feel it does us some justice for the hard work we put in.

Wayde:
It's good to know you're happy with the finished product, I think it turned out great!
I understand that recently you guys had to pull out from playing a show because your drummer had surgery. What was/is wrong with him? How has his recovery process been?

James:
Yeah we were looking forward to that gig too haha! Jackson our drummer has Crohns disease and it makes his intestines swell up which is fucking painful.
The night of our EP launch he was in alot of pain, was lying in the car while the other bands were on, then he spewed and somehow he played the tightest set he's every played!

His condition was only getting worse so his doctor reccommended he get surgury asap and that happened to be on day before the gig we had to pull out of. We tried to get a replacement drummer but there wasnt enough time to properly learn the songs and practice etc. The surgery went well and he's been healing up pretty well, he tells me hes itching to get back behind the kit and jam, so hopefully hes well enough soon! Our next gig is on the 29th of April and he should be back behind the kit for that.

Wayde:
It's good to hear he's doing well, I wish him a speedy recovery.
While on the subject of gigging, what bands have you shared the stage with and what has your overall experience been playing with these bands? Where is your favourite place to play a show?

James:
Cheers mate ill let him know.
Some notable bands we’ve shared the stage with are Hellbringer and Rampage. Always fun playing with them and its great to play with other Thrash bands. One of the most fun shows we’ve played was at the Lansdowne with Rampage and Hellbringer and there were stage divers and people were pulling the monitors and throwing the mic stands into the crowd, don’t see that much these days around here so it was great to see it during our set.

I’m putting on a gig in May with Hellbringer, Kill For Satan, Teratornis and Rampage so we are looking forward to playing this as it should be a killer gig!



Wayde:
Hellbringer and Rampage are great bands! You don't get many old-school shows like that anymore, do ya?

Have you or any of the other guys been involved with any other musical projects, metal or otherwise? If so what are/were they?

James:
Agreed, sadly there arent many all thrash lineups anymore, but hopefully there will be a few more in the future.

Teratornis is the first band for all of us im pretty sure. TT plays other guitar styles apart from metal such as jazz and he plays at cafes sometimes for some extra cash.

Wayde:
What are your thoughts on the whole "neo-thrash" thing and the "thrash is back!" attitude a lot of kids are into these days? Do you think it's a positive or negative movement for thrash metal? What newer thrash bands do you like listening to?

James:
To be honest thrash never went away totally. There were still bands sticking to their roots and releasing solid thrash in the late 90s/ early 00s. One band that released an awesome album in this era was Hypnosia from Sweden, fucking killer band.

I guess the neo-thrash scene is both positive and negative. A positive movement for the thrash scene because it is getting more people into it which makes a bigger audience for us newer bands to appeal to. But there will always be people who hate new thrash and despise kids in Municipal Waste flip caps.

I do like some of the newer thrash bands in the "neo-thrash" scene but there is heaps of great old school thrash coming out of Europe that is worth a listen such as Hellish Crossfire, Ketzer, Cruel Force to name a few.

Wayde:
Well, it seems we share a similar yet slightly varied opinion on that subject! The fact that it never went away is what makes me dislike a lot of the newer bands and fans with their attitude. I prefer to support bands such as you guys who make the music for the love of it, not to fit in with their local "scene".

What do you think of the current state of Australia's metal "scene"? And what Aussie bands are you into?

James:
There are some killer Aussie bands, that’s for sure, but then there is some shit as well in my opinion. I can't really say much about the scene in the 80s and 90s because I wasn’t involved in it then but from what I’ve heard it was better than what it is today. But instead of just complaining about how shit their local scene is and not doing anything about it like some people do, we are doing what we can to try and put on some good quality gigs and show that there is still life in the Sydney scene in particular.

Some Aussie bands I enjoy are Destroyer 666, Armoured Angel, Assaulter, Kill For Satan, Hellbringer and Innsmouth to name a few.

Wayde:
What are some memorable and/or funny experiences from your musical "career" so far that you would like to share?

James:
Our most memorable one so far would be the whole recording process of our EP. Learned a lot during it and hopefully next recording we will be more prepared haha.

Our first interstate show was early this year in January and it was cool to play to a new crowd and see new people getting into our music.

A funny experience was going to the abandoned tram museum in Glebe to get band photos. We had to climb in through a roof and while we were in there it started pissing down so getting out was a messy experience, good fun though and we got some rad photos out of it.

Wayde:
So what's next for Teratornis now that your EP has finally been put out? Any plans for future gigs? Merchandise? Are you working on new material yet?

James:
Got a few gigs coming up in the coming months. May 13th we are playing at Total Desaster at the Valve with Hellbringer, Kill For Satan and Rampage. A week later we are playing in Canberra with Hellbringer and Kill For Satan again. Then we are heading to Newcastle for the first time in June.

We have just put out our first run of Teratornis t shirts, and I have been working on new songs for the upcoming gigs. They are a bit different to the songs on the EP but they still have the Teratornis sound, that’s for sure. When we have enough material for an album we will head back into the studio, but that will be a year off I’d say.

Wayde:
Cool man, I wish you guys the best of luck with everything coming up!

I’d like to thank you for doing this interview, it’s been great. Is there anything else you’d like to share with myself and/or the readers?

James:
Cheers man and thanks for the interview.
Teratornis is back from extinction so be sure to catch us at a gig in the future!

Neil Wonnells' Metalmouth Online Heavy Metal Radio Station

Neil Wonnell is a radio DJ from America who has been active in radio since the late 80's. He has worked on an off for various stations within the Chicago area over the years since then.

Recently, due to a desire for more creative control over his shows, he has made the move to online broadcasting. His show is a fun and energetic mix of old and new thrash and heavy metal mania!

I'm not usually a radio fan, but this guy has a pretty cool thing going on here and I'd definitely recommend checking out his show.

Neil Wonnell's Metalmouth @ Reverbnation

Learnin' things about dem compooters!

OK so recently I've taken the time to learn a few more things about this site and a few others to make this site more convenient and an all 'round better experience for you folks. Here's a brief rundown of what I've been up to:

I've put up an extra search bar because a lot of people don't realize there's a small one at the very top of the page (hell, even I forget about that one!).

I've made it easier for you to subscribe to the zine for e-mail updates. Both this and the new search bar can be found above the chat box.

Chucked up a photo of my ugly mug for ya to drool over!

I've also taken the time to make a Facebook page for the site, so any of you facebookers out there should head on over and Like it!

Hell, while your at it, feel free to add my personal page, I'll answer any questions about the site and am open to suggestions for newer releases to review.

There's also now a page up for my band Goat Spire, we should hopefully be starting things off soon, but don't get ya hopes up, we're lazy bastards!

There will probably be more updates similar to this when I learn/do more. Stay tuned!

Teratornis – Back From Extinction

Many of you who read this site may or may not know that I really despise this “new wave of thrash” thing going on, due to the heavy amount of clone bands popping up all over the place. I don’t mind if you play old-school sounding thrash metal but please do not go around acting like Paul Baloff and thinking you’re awesome because “thrash is back, WOOOOOOOOOO!!!”, it’s just very annoying and immature. I do, however, give my total support to the bands out there who take the time to put together some enjoyable songs and not copy everything that everyone else is doing. These non-sheep bands are what give me hope for thrash metal. Teratornis are one of these bands.

Teratornis are a 4-piece from Sydney, Australia, who play thrash (well, duh!), and they do a pretty fuckin’ good job at it. There’s plenty of obvious influences to be heard on this CD (mainly Coroner and Destruction, who are clearly the team favourites here. And of course, all the usual suspects, Big 4, German trio, etc etc) but I wouldn’t call these guys a “throwback tribute to the glory days of thrash” type band, as they actually have something cool going on here and don’t sound like just another group of wannabes who wish it was the 80’s all over again.



The EP kicks off with an absolute smasher of a track titled “Rise From the Tombs”. It’s the kind of track you want at the start of a thrash release, it catches your attention and wakes you up for what’s to come. Fast and catchy riffs combined with gruff vocals, gang choruses and fast drumming are all there, hell, there’s even a killer drum/guitar solo section. This song ticks all the boxes required to make a classic thrash tune. If you’re not headbanging by the end of this then there’s something wrong with ya!

The second song “Notomellis” again gets down to business pretty quickly. It’s all about the riffs here, which are technical yet melodic, catchy and not wanky or boring in the slightest amount. These young fellas are damn good at their instruments, and it really shows in this song. Definitely one for the Coroner fans!

Now for the obligatory self-titled song that most thrash bands have! “Teratornis” doesn’t fuck around, the boys are straight away in your face with a thrash attack on this track. It’s all about the good old fashion no-bullshit intensity! This song is about a pre-historic giant bird (a Teratornis) coming “back from extinction” and wrecking all kinds of havoc. This is a good friendly violent fun song, and probably the most straightforward one on the EP. I’d have to say this is my favourite song from this release, too.

“Catacalysmic Destruction” is the closing (and longest) track. It starts off with a sample intro with some guy talking about nuclear war, which leads into some mid-paced chugging building into faster riffs and an intense tale of death, carnage and destruction following a nuclear holocaust. Funnily enough given the title, Destruction influences are all over this one! Plenty of variety abounds throughout “Catcalysmic Destruction”.

In summary, this is a damn good effort at playing some solid thrash without sounding stale or generic. Yes there a plenty of band comparisons to be made, but then again, thrash metal is not about reinventing the wheel anymore. Chuck this in the player, grab a beer and go nuts!

5/5

BUY IT: www.thecoffinsslave.com

Or directly from the band on facebook

Sanguis Imperem/Nocturnal Blood – Imperial Impurity

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Double Dose of Doom Cult

Seeing as Diocletian and Witchrist (two killer bands from New Zealand) both released an album last year and they also share a few members, I’ve decided to review them both in this “special”. Prepare your orifices for a double dose of DOOM CULT!

Witchrist - Beheaded Ouroboros


Imagine, if you will, “Realm of Chaos” era Bolt Thrower having a jam with “Onward to Golgotha” era Incantation after listening to some militant black metal records (Blasphemy, Conqueror, Revenge and the like). This is evil and dark old-school death metal, not for the faint hearted.

“Beheaded Ouroboros” is one of those albums that you don’t usually “get” right away on the first listen, however, this is one album definitely worth taking the time to get into. It may take a few listens, but soon enough it will possess you with old-school bestial brutality and a hauntingly crushing atmosphere. However, I would not call this a “challenging listen” either, if you’re a fan of old school DM, you will enjoy it regardless.

It all starts off with some odd chanting and a bit of slow and crushing doomy type death metal that prepares you for things to come. A dark atmosphere and crushing riffs are the order of the day here. The production on this album fits the atmosphere that Witchrist aim to achieve perfectly, it’s not extremely raw but it’s certainly not clean, it keeps everything drenched in an aura of darkness and impurity.

The guitar sound is murky, distorted and down-tuned, as is the bass. The drum sound is great and goes from slow doomy dirges to blast beats whenever necessary, I’m not sure what else to say about it but don’t expect clicky triggered bullshit. The vocals sound like a mad man entombed in a deep dungeon. Basically, this release sounds as if it was recorded in a tomb, which is a good thing!

My personal favourite track here would have to be “Temple of War”. I’m not sure why, so don’t ask, there’s just something about this song that stands out for me. Every track is great and keeps up to a certain standard that the band has clearly set for themselves, though.

All in all, this is a completely solid release that proves to any naysayers that there is hope for death metal yet. For fans of: Teitanblood, Diocletian, Blasphemy, Archgoat, Proclamation, Incantation, Profanatica and Bolt Thrower.

5/5 one of my favourite releases of 2010.

BUY IT: www.thecoffinsslave.com



Diocletian – War of All Against All



If I were to say there exists such a thing as “forward thinking war metal”, you would probably think I’d lost my marbles! Unless, of course, you had already come face to face with the foul creature that is Diocletian.

“War of All Against All” is a unique record in every sense of the word. Try to picture in your minds’ ear, members of Blasphemy and members of “Sworn to the Dark” era Watain forming a band together and you’ll get some idea of where I’m going here. Intense chaotic madness transcends into melodic and atmospheric soundscapes all within the same song.

The production on this release fits the music perfectly and I have no qualms about it whatsoever. The guitar/bass sound is thick and crushing, whilst the vocals are inhuman and the drums flow perfectly with the different sections. Everything fits in together just right.

I can’t say much for stand-out tracks, as this is an album that you really need to experience in full, preferably with headphones on and in a quite and secluded place. It IS “war metal”, but it’s unlike anything you’ve heard before.

There isn’t much more to be said about this release, as it can’t truly be described with words typed on a screen. If you are a fan of black/death metal, but wish to hear something completely different at the same time, give this a go!

5/5

BUY IT: www.thecoffinsslave.com