CRYXUS – Rise 2012

now!

Industrial/Electronic Rock project created by Producer/Composer team Josh Carlton & Daniel Apple. With heavy influence from Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails), Marilyn Manson, and Maynard Keenan (Tool) this debut album is sure to leave a haunting impression.

(more…)

ARSENITE – Ashes of The Declined 2012

now!

The release date for the Swedish metal band Arsenite’s debut album “Ashes of the Declined” has now been announced for November 1st.The album will be released through Sliptrick Records, with artwork handled by artist Andrej Bartulovic.

(more…)

THE SINNER SAINTS – THE OTHER TOMORROW 2012

now!

The Sinner Saints are a fresh new band from Atlanta, Georgia that proudly display their southern roots on their debut album The Other Tomorrow. However I don’t mean Molly Hatchet type southern rock, instead these guys are like Black Stone Cherry or a rootsier Hair Of The Dog.
The whole southern influenced modern rock is displayed right from the start during the album’s debut single “Stone Dead Drunk”, a straight-forward boot-stomper that shows The Sinner Saints at their best. Following right behind is “Long Way To Go”, a similar sounding number that is carried along by a cool guitar riff. “Murder In A Dress” could be the band’s most accessible song — it’s not their best work but changes tempo throughout and has a few different sounds going on. Ending the disc is “Ain’t It Tragic”, a heavy War Babies type rocker that closes the disc on a high note.

(more…)

RAGDOLL – Here Today (2012)

Sometimes you get that feeling that you are hearing something that could be rather important. Something that could just explode.
After hearing RAGDOLL’s “Here Today” I am absolutely convinced that this band from Perth, Western Australia, is destined for great things.

This melodic rock, eighties-influenced hard rock band have a sound which belongs to big arenas. Indeed it’s hard to believe this is an independent release.
Every track here is a winner; it’s as simple as that.

(more…)

SOLDIERFIELD – BURY THE ONES WE LOVE 2012

now!

Soldierfield is a relatively young band, formed only in 2011, but not without some experienced players from the UK metal scene. These include Leigh Oates (Order Of Voices, Rise To Addiction) on vocals, Andy Trott and Steve Wray (Rise To Addiction, BLAZE), and Jeff Singer (Paradise Lost, BLAZE, Kill II This, China Beach) on drums. Their debut EP, Bury the Ones We Love offers five tracks, a prelude to a full-length album in 2013. (more…)

Salma Gandhi – The Quest For Nonsense Never Ends 2012

now!

From the folks at Transubstans Records/Record Heaven comes the Swedish instrumental band called Salma Gandhi. Not content to swim in the retro hard rock, metal, and doom waters that so many other acts from Sweden seem to be doing these days, the oddly named Salma Gandhi instead have created quirky intrumental pieces that touch on jazz, pop, prog, blues, punk, and stoner elements.

Many of the tracks here are fun to listen to, and have a unique sound, especially “Mulholland Mustard In The Custard”, “Paranoid Cow On A Mushroom Lawn” (love these songs titles!), and the epic post-rock/psychedelia of “Santa Da Luna Pa Ruskie”. The dark & spooky “Dr. Steveroll I Presume” has a spacey, jazzy, psychedelic feel to it that is quite appealing, but you are almost left waiting for the band to really break out with something earthshattering, which they rarely do.

(more…)

Whyzdom – Blind? 2012

now!

Just when you think the Dutch have mastered Symphonic metal, the French band Whyzdom is crashing on the scene with their orchestral arrangements and heavy melodies.  After having gone through temporary vocalists to fill a void, they finally secured the services of Elvyne Lorient for full-time duty.  Her soothing and enchanting vocal style softens the crushing riffs and provides an equal balance between the heavy and the not-so-heavy melodies.  The new album Blind? has 11 songs and packs over an hour of Symphonic metal that should appeal greatly to fans of the metal subgenre.

(more…)

KILL RITUAL – The Serpentine Ritual 2012

now!

American thrashers KILL RITUAL signed a deal with SCARLET RECORDS, which will be held October 30 release of their debut album “The Serpentine Ritual”. It was recorded in the studios of Fang and Fossil Sound, a sound engineer was guitarist Steve Rice. Mixing and mastering had Andy La Rocque of KING DIAMOND, has recorded a guest solo on the track “Coat Of Blood”. Rice: “So KILL RITUAL’s debut will be released on physical media efforts Scarlet Records. This catalog label tons of great teams and great distribution throughout world, so that we can cover so many metal maniacs as possible. Prepare to thrash out of San Francisco!

(more…)

Francesco Marras – Black Sheep 2012

now!

Usually a guitarist who choose to jump on a solo project can take two roads. The first is to realize an album that sees the vocal parts assigned to a number of guests, the second one is to realize an album closely instrumental.
This second path is the one that usually scares me more because the risk of being faced with an album “all technical and little soul” for me is always very high, especially if we add to this an artist proviente a “musical territory” in which the shredder are the masters. Needless to say the record that I am in his hands and called Black Sheep by Francesco Marras along this second path, and also the roots of Francesco Marras’ Sardinian artist and mastermind behind the Screaming Shadow and Black Demons, are rooted in power metal.

(more…)

KHAØS – Rising 2012

now!

KHAØS, the Swiss/American band featuring Chandler Mogel (OUTLOUD) on vocals, Mark Rossi (TRIBAL) on guitar, N I c Angileri (JORN) on bass and Trevor Franklin (ELIS) on drums, will release its debut EP, “Rising”, worldwide on all digital platforms on October 29 via MarkRossi Records.
KHAØS was formed in June 2012 around the idea of making music without any kind of compromises. The band name itself reveals the main musical target: to let creativity, musicality and energy flow, destroying barriers and breaking through obstacles. Music itself is the centerpiece of this work. Four people, four cities, five stories.

(more…)