Pseudogod – Deathwomb Catechesis

Pseudogod is a black/death metal band hailing from Russia who have been active since 2004. So far they have put out a demo, three splits (Including one with Blaze of Perdition, in 2009 a four-way split with; Teitanfyre, Ill Omened and Gehängter Jude in 2010 and a split with Morbisidad in 2011), a DVD of live material and a compilation album. “Deathwomb Catechesis) is their debut full length which has recently been released in April 2012.

Earlier in their career, Pseudogod displayed a musical approach similar to that of Teitanblood and Archgoat as well as obvious influences from the usual bestial black metal suspects; however, on “Deathwomb…” you can also hear shades of Angelcorpse-esque pummeling and the twisted riffage present in Morbid Angels’ early works. This added influence was most unexpected but certainly not unwelcome. Listen to the song “Malignant Spears” to hear what I’m talking about. On the other side of the coin; “Azazel” is a slow, brooding and almost ritualistic number that sounds more like what I expected to hear on this album… and then there’s “The Antichrist Victory”, which wouldn’t sound at all out of place on an Incantation record! These Russian extremists really have all their bases covered when it comes to appealing to fans of old-school black/death metal.

Pseudogod have blown me away with their debut and this would be my favourite album of 2012 so far. Don’t sleep on this one!

 5/5

ZOM - Demo

ZOM is a new three-piece death metal act from Ireland who released their first demo tape in December 2011 on the excellent Irish label Invictus Productions, it has since been repressed twice, with each repress featuring a different coloured cover art work.

ZOM’s music is total old-school death and black metal worship, taking obvious influences from bands such as; Morbid Angel, Possessed, Death, Archgoat, Blasphemy and early Sepultura with a few unique twists here and there to keep the listener interested. The vocals are deep echoing rasps, the riffage thrashy and blackened yet sticking to a death metal tone and moving at a furious pace, occasionally switching it up with some strategically placed grooves and hooks. Each track sounds deliciously obscure and old-school yet still somehow has a fresh aura about it and doesn’t feel like another case of “been there, done that, bought the shirt and bragged about it on the internet” stigma that tends to stick with a lot of death metal bands these days.

Fans of old-school death and war metal alike should be all over this tape. I’d especially recommend this demo to people who enjoyed the recent EP by Portland band Weregoat or the recent full length album by their peers Ritual Necromancy.

5/5

Buy this tape from Invictus Productions (if you're in Europe) or The Coffins Slave (official Australian distributor for Invictus releases!).

Shroud of the Heretic – Boiled to Death

Shroud of the Heretic is a three-piece (formally four, I belief [citation needed]) hailing from Portland, a city in the US which seems to be boiling over with underground metal talent right now, from the bestial sounds of Weregoat to the Portal-esque insanity of Ritual Necromancy to the sludgey doomy sounds of Aldebaren. Shroud of the Heretic play pure old-school death metal worship, mixing dense and doomey structures a la Cruciamentum and Vasaeleth with mid-paced chugging in the style of Danish death metallers Undergang.

The production on “Boiled to Death” is dense and soul crushing whilst remaining clear enough that you can hear everything without losing any atmosphere. Perfect for the bands style. The songs themselves crawl and plod along, rarely speeding up to more than a Bolt Thrower-influenced midtempo. The guitars are the main focus of the mix, with the vocals pushed back a little bit and the drums doing their thing in the background, just holding it all together and driving things along.

This six-track, 34 minute EP flows so well that it would be unfair to select stand-out tracks, so instead, I’ve decided to provide a youtube link to the title track: click here. If this doesn’t pique your interest, then nothing will, since, as I said; the whole EP flows together and has such a specific feeling and atmosphere that recommending individual tracks would be a waste of mine and your time.

So, to sum up my thoughts on “Boiled to Death” I will say this; fans of old-school filth-ridden death metal will absolutely love this and as for everybody else? Who fuckin’ cares?

4/5

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Zygoatsis - S.K.U.D. (Satanic Kultus - Unholy Desecration)

Zygoatsis is a black/death metal band from Thailand who has been going consistently since 2003. “S.K.U.D.” is their debut full length which has finally been released in August 2011 following a bunch of demos, splits and one EP. 

The sound Zygoatsis brings forth is a relentless barrage of black/death worship that reminds me of legendary bands such as Impiety and Angelcorpse, but with more of a death metal edge to it, perhaps a bit of primitive Morbid Angel worship? The guitar tones sit comfortable in between black and death metal and the riffs tend to also shift between styles whilst following more death metal song structures. You won’t find many guitar solos, and when you do, they’re generally buried deep within the mix. The vocals are commanding and powerful, even though Lord Sickness666 has a terrible grasp of the English language, which only serves to bring out the bands barbaric nature even moreso. Bass isn’t very audible, but it only seems to follow the riffs, anyway! The drumming is intense and high-up in the mix, charging the songs forth like a demon unleashed.

Shyaithan of the legendary Impiety makes an appearance on the tracks “Zygoatical Epidemic Assassination” and “Black-Forced Khaostorms” and you’ll be hard-pressed to find anything more evil sounding than these two songs. While on the subject; I should also add that if you buy the CD version of this album, you will be treated to a cover of Impiety’s anthem “Lords of Apokalypse”, which is executed brilliantly by Zygoatsis.
The production on “S.K.U.D.” is razor-sharp, similar to other intense war metal bands such as Revenge and the like. 

All in all, if you’re a fan of intense blasting barbarianism, Zygoatsis may just well be your new favourite band. Their music is warring black/death metal in its most pure and blasphemous form.

5/5

Demonic Slaughter – Dark Essence

Demonic Slaughter isn’t a band that I expected to hear anything new from in a while considering their latest full length “Revelations of Death” only came out late last year, but nonetheless, their very active and prolific label Hellthrasher Productions has now unleashed their next EP “Dark Essence” upon humanity.

When I first heard “Revelations of Death”, I had no clue what to expect, as it was the first time I’d even heard of Demonic Slaughter, but, I was rather impressed with their personal take on the traditional black metal formula. As on their last release, there is a lot more variety than your average 90’s style black metal band; you can expect the standard tremolo riffs, of course, but also doomy passages, extremely varied (for this style) vocals, weird noisy almost ambient tracks and a hell of a lot of catchiness to boot. The production is very clean for black metal, which may drive the kvlt kiddies away, but I think it suits the band fine and doesn’t serve to hinder the dark atmosphere.

Check out the tracks “Into the Unknown”, “Descending towards Oblivion” and “Blades of Decay” to get a good idea of whether or not Demonic Slaughter is your thing. Personally, I rather enjoy them and can’t really fault them for anything. They’ll never be my favourite black metal band, but they do make for a refreshing listen every now and then. I would also consider them a good band to introduce to black metal newcomers.

4/5

Vilifier - Rehearsal MMXI

Vilifier is a pack of drunken retards spread between Brisbane, Sydney and Darwin. They play old-school black/death metal in the vein of Profanatica and early Beherit. “Rehearsal MMXI” is their first and only release so far, but they’re working on two 7”s currently, which will be released on Supremacy through Intolerance and Iron Bonehead.

The production on this tape is very raw, adding extra elements to the dark atmosphere invoked by the music itself. The guitars and bass have a filthy tone similar to Profanatica, but not as low-end as Ledney and co. The drumming sounds pretty basic, but it does the job, and you can’t expect too much from a drummer who munches on hamburgers while playing.

All three tracks on the “Rehearsal MMXI” tape are good in their own way, each one stretching out to a length between four and five-and-a-half minutes, giving you plenty of time to soak in the filth. The short length of the demo is both good and bad, as it doesn’t really need to be any longer to make its’ point, but it also leaves me wanting more!

4/5

P.S. I have permission from the band to share a mediafire link to the demo on this page, so, feel free to download and check it out for yourself!

Urgrund - Urgrund

Urgrund is a black/thrash metal band from Melbourne who have been around since 1998 and releasing stuff on a pretty consistent basis since ’99. “Urgrund” is their fourth full length album.

Urgrund is a black/thrash metal band from Melbourne who have been around since 1998 and releasing stuff on a pretty consistent basis since ’99. “Urgrund” is their fourth full length album. The best way to describe Urgrund would be; similar to other established black/thrash acts such as Urn and Gospel of the Horns but with a more mid-tempo focused and “militant” sound, only speeding up where necessary. If there’s anything to be said about this band, it’s that they have always delivered catchy and memorable riffs throughout their well-written songs, rarely needing flashy effects or over-the-top technicality to drive their point home. The production on “Urgrund” is clear but with a punishing raw edge to it, allowing each song to stand on its own and reveal everything they have to offer.

My favourite tracks would be “Besieged Cities” and “Legion-Heirs”, but each song on the album is worth a listen. I don’t really have anything negative to say about “Urgrund”, it’s a solid album with good songs and great riffs. If you’re already a fan of the band, then you’d know what to expect going into this, seeing as Urgrund is an entity with its own distinctive sound, thus rendering this review useless. If you haven’t heard them before, then this self-titled effort is as good a place as any to start, and worthy of any underground metal nerds collection.

4.5/5