I was awfully mean to this UK Metalcore outfit back in 2008 when I reviewed their sophomore outing Ruin. Not that I didn’t have my reasons. A) I’m a dick. I’m impatient and miserable people tend to say miserable things. B) In those days, Ray used to shoot me up with horse tranquilizer and grapefruit juice, then lock me up in a room in his basement with 300 records to review and a wolverine high on biker meth for several days. C) The album was flat-out boring as fuck. I hadn’t paid much attention to the band until 2010’s “Day in Day Out” single from The Here and Now — an album unanimously chastised for its more commercial direction. I didn’t hate the song —at least it was an actual song— and jumped at the chance to take on Daybreaker. It was surprising to learn that the album debuted at #28 on the Top Heatseekers chart in the US (and even more surprising to learn that only means 1200 copies sold — fucking pirates.) Well, I’m pleased to report that these young Brits have earned that position with album #5. By far their most cohesive and focused work to date, finally striking the perfect balance of their aggressive, technical, and somewhat scattered Mathcore beginnings and their softer, more accessible Post-Punk side. So much of Daybreaker reminds me of Define the Great Line-era Underoath (a band so stellar even I have to look the other way on their beliefs). Explosive moments of tension and release collide with pure passion, as complex song structures and bare-knuckled simplicity battle for supremacy. Vocalist Sam Carter executes his harsh scream/radio-ready clean voice combo quite admirably, spouting socio-political and religious lyrics from an atheistic point of view. Elsewhere, “These Colours Don’t Run” sounds like Shai Hulud and Parkway Drive in a bar fight, while their buddy Oli Sykes (Bring Me the Horizon) returns the guest vocal favor on “Even If You Win, You’re Still a Rat” (a cut that wouldn’t have sounded too terribly out of place on There Is a Hell…). The band has achieved a remarkable equilibrium of abrasive and emotive elements, resulting in an album with no real filler. And while I’d wager their approach is a bit too lightweight and modern to win over the denim-vested hearts of the Death/Thrash community, I believe they’ve made a record that will silence their critics and satisfy fans new and old. Consider me officially the former.

This is a re-release of Virgin Steele’s 1993 album with expanded liner notes and a second CD of bonus materials, not a new album. Why Steamhammer chose to re-release this particular record is a mystery because most fans of Virgin Steele consider this the band’s worst album. It’s easy to see why. This is Butt Rock from beginning to end. The singer thinks he’s the bastard son of David Lee Roth and David Coverdale (Whitesnake) and the rest of the band is trying desperately to make White Lion and Europe sound heavy. Life Among the Ruins is so limp-wristed that it makes Shout at the Devil by Motley Crue sound like Master of Puppets-era Metallica in comparison. Hell, I think Vixen might even be heavier. Songs like “Sex Religion Machine” and “Too Hot to Handle” sound like desperate attempts for attention. It’s like somebody told the members of Virgin Steele that writing shitty songs like this would get them chicks, but nobody told them that they were five years too late and that the party was already over. This is an album that Virgin Steele should be trying to bury, not promote. Life Among the Ruins is down there with Pantera’s long out-of-print early albums (the ones prior to Cowboys from Hell when they were wearing make-up and had big poofy hair) in terms of being shamefully bad. Fans of Poison and Warrant might enjoy this record, but if you prefer anything heavier or more Metal, avoid this like the plague. There are far better albums out there. In fact, there are far better Virgin Steele albums out there, too.

Nachtmystium is a band that I haven’t followed too closely for a number of years. I had some of the earlier stuff, but I’d stopped listening to them prior to the “love it or hate it” Black Meddle albums (Assassins and Addicts). Listening to Silencing Machine, it’s easy to tell that they’ve progressed beyond the basic Darkthrone/Burzum worship of the early days. For one thing, this is a very well produced album. The sound here is very clear and every instrument is given its space. When listening to Silencing Machine, I noticed that there are two distinct parts to it. The first half of this album is straight-forward Black Metal with some experimentation. It’s nothing wild and crazy. It pretty much sticks within the bounds of what most fans think of as being “acceptably Black Metal.” The second half of this album is where the weird stuff comes in. After “Decimation, Annihilation” starts, the songs get far more experimental. There is still a strong Black Metal element, but the outside influences are more prominent. The songs range from Industrial sounding stuff to Metal with Gothic or Ambient influences. The experimentation never turns into the kind of oddball shit that you get from bands like Ulver or D.H.G. (formerly known as Dodheimsgard). It may sound strange, but if you looked underneath the weirdness, you can still find a solid Black Metal core. It never degenerates into experimentation for the sake of experimentation. If you’re open-minded about your music, Nachtmystium stretches the boundaries of Black Metal, but on Silencing Machine at least, they don’t stray too far from the reservation.

This two-song single was released just prior to Silencing Machine, and is composed of one original track and one cover song. The original track, “As Made,” is very Industrial sounding. It still has strong Black Metal roots, but the mechanized drumming and the repetitive guitar-work plants this song more in the Nine Inch Nails side of Industrial. Compared to the material on Silencing Machine, this is very raw and aggressive. The material on the album is far more polished than this. The rougher production adds to the abrasiveness of the song, so although it isn’t as clean, it’s still effective. While “As Made” is very raw and aggressive, the other song is not. Song number two is a cover of Joy Division’s “The Eternal.” You go from harsh and abrasive to slower and mellow. Face it, you’re never going to hear Joy Division described as “brutal” or “aggressive” by anyone with intact hearing. It’s quite a contrast. The songs are both well performed but the starkness of the differences between the two makes reviewing this very hard. On one hand, this is a very diverse release. On the other hand, there are only two songs here. The fact that they sound so radically different from each other makes this EP sound inconsistent. This could have easily been two different bands. If you told me that this was a split-EP featuring Nachtmystium and some Goth Metal band, I would have totally believed it. While musically good, the lack of consistency brings this down for me. If there was a common thread between the two songs, this would have been a stronger release. This was just too schizophrenic.

The latest album from Deiphago can best be described as a fist to the face. This album sucker-punches you immediately after the intro and then proceeds to beat the shit out of you until the outro starts. Musically, this is a Black Metal wall of sound that is one part Blasphemy, one part Sarcofago and one part all-out chaos. The thing about Satan Alpha Omega is that it is unrelenting and out of control to the point where all semblance of structure disintegrates. Deiphago exemplifies everything that it means to be Black Grind. If you worship at the altar of the Ross Bay Gods, you’ll eat this up like a fat kid chews through a box of donuts. I’m honestly surprised that this album wasn’t released by Nuclear War Now! Records. This is right up their alley. My issue with this LP isn’t that Deiphago doesn’t kick enough ass. Quite the contrary. This record is one long ass-kicking. My problem with it is that, for the most part, this sounds like ten different versions of the same song. The drumming is repetitive and monotonous, which stands to reason. Everything here, with the exception of the intro and outro tracks, is set to Warp Ten speeds. You can only play a blast beat so many ways. The guitars sound like low rumbling noises instead of musical instruments. If there are actual riffs being played, I can’t tell what they are. Everything is a giant ball of distortion, blasting drums and caustic vocals. Satan Alpha Omega is the Black Metal equivalent of getting stuffed head first into a giant industrial-strength shredding machine. It’s as ugly as sin, as brutal as a dismemberment and as out of control as a prison riot. If you like bands like Conquerer, Black Witchery, Revenge or Impiety, all of this is giving you a giant erection that can only be satisfied by purchasing and listening to this album. At full blast. If you want a well written and well produced Metal record, this isn’t it. If you want your face torn off, Satan Alpha Omega will do just that.

From a marketing standpoint, this UK outfit —not to be confused with Nordic retro-Doomsters Devil (no “the”)— had me intrigued from the start. With a moniker so simple it begs an explanation, and the alluring cover art (a mysterious cloaked figure in red just begging to bargain for my soul), a morbid curiosity was forged almost immediately. However, upon seeing Candlelight’s ad for this self-titled debut, my interest lessened somewhat. If doing this for so long has taught me anything, it’s how to decipher label bullshit. Allow me to decode the following description for you: “The Devil is not a typical Metal band {they don’t have a vocalist}. Combining Heavy Metal with select historical, political, and conspiracy-laden oracles {they use a lot of samples}, the anonymous masked and cloaked musicians {they didn’t get permission to use said samples} present a cinematic soundscape {keyboards} that is sure to strike the fancy of the curious {Metalheads are suckers for masks}.” Okay, I cheated. I listened to it beforehand. But you get the drift. Truth is, these shrouded blokes do play a very haunting, atmospheric brand of laid back, Doomy-paced, synth-driven Gothic Metal with occasionally extra-meaty guitars that summon a brutish Death Metal vibe. So much so, I can’t help but wonder how much more staying power this would have with the addition of vocals — be they abrasive or clean, or both. Instead the band uses samples to drive the songs, with each track’s compiled soundbites focusing on various concepts. Topics include aliens (“Universe”), 9/11 being an inside job (“World of Sorrow”), JFK’s assassination (“Devil & Mankind”), World War III (“Extinction Level Event”), and secret societies (“Illuminati”), among others. I think it’s safe to call The Devil the inaugural NWOHCM (New Wave of History Channel Metal) act. Aside from the 29-minute single-drone outro (just what every InstruMetal LP needs), this does make for a truly captivating, edge-of-your-seat novelty listen the first few times around. Unfortunately there just isn’t a ton of replay value beyond that. Songs that double as mini-documentaries are doomed to become reruns quickly. In summary, I am but mildly amused by the one with horns.

This album has gone beyond the mantra of “Other Bands Play, Manowar KILLS!” As each epic production is released by these guys it just appears to get better and better. Eric Adams has one of the best vocal styles I’ve ever laid my ears on, and Joey DeMaio is, well, a diabolical force to be reckoned with. I have to admit, I wasn’t instantly hooked on this album as much as I was with Gods of War. I guess because I knew Gods was going to be rich in Norse mythology and storytelling of prolific proportions, so I was biased from the start. But, The Lord of Steel does not disappoint. I especially appreciate the transition from “Born in a Grave” to “Righteous Glory.” Pure epic Metal and a throwback to a well-orchestrated ballad that includes a touch of the Norse mythos in the lyrics. My only wish is that they performed more in the states. Watching them via YouTube has saddened me to no end. All of the great shows they produce are overseas, but at least we have the video to appreciate the pure power that is Manowar. Anyway, back to Lord of Steel. Yes, this album is very well produced and holds to the high standard of anything that Manowar puts their hands on. Yes, it’s full of grand lyrical illusion. And finally, it’s Metal, through and through, it’s Metal…’nuff said.

Grave Digger is back with a teaser for their upcoming full-length album. This six-song affair showcases one of their new songs (“Home at Last”), two non-album tracks and three live songs. If you’re a fan of Grave Digger already, this isn’t anything you haven’t heard before. They have the same Thrashy Power Metal sound that you’ve come to expect from them. If you love Power Metal, this is one of the genre’s notable bands. The title track is the best one here, with the two other studio cuts following not far behind in quality. The live songs are hit or miss. Though they were recorded at Wacken (and also appear on The Clans Are Still Marching, so they are not exclusive to this release), it sounds as though things were touched up in the studio. The guitars and keyboards sound far too perfect for a live recording. The only parts that don’t sound touched up were the audience and the lead vocal track. Frankly, I think that the vocals should have been fixed too, because they aren’t very good. Chris Boltendahl isn’t so bad on “Ballad of a Hangman,” but “Heavy Metal Breakdown” sounds terrible. If my memory is correct, “Heavy Metal Breakdown” was the last song on their regular set, so it explains why his voice is totally shot by then. If you’ve never heard this band before, Home at Last is a fair introduction to how they sound now, both live and in the studio. If you’re already a fan, you really have to be hardcore about getting everything they’ve ever produced, because only the two non-album tracks (“Rage of the Savage Beast” and “Metal Will Never Die”) are exclusive to this EP. With the title track being the obvious standout, my personal opinion is that this isn’t worth chasing down just for those two songs. For your dollar, the full-length album would be a better investment.

This is not a new album by Croatia’s Wolfenhords. The Flame of Pagan War is a compilation of songs from Wolves of the New Beginning, Pathway to Lunar Utopia, Slavonic Alliance and various demo tracks. That being said, the quality ranges from fairly good to absolutely fucking awful. Naturally, the fucking awful sounding stuff comes first. If you can survive the first half of this album, the second half is actually pretty good. The songs are definitely better in quality and sound once you get to track nine. The first half of this compilation is raw, primitive Black Metal in the style of old Graveland and Darkthrone. The second half has more of a Black Thrash feel, and the production is definitely better and the playing is tighter. One thing to note about Wolfenhords is that ideologically, the band is NSBM (National Socialist Black Metal, also known as “that Nazi shit”). They aren’t as blatant as some (such as Pantheon or Thor’s Hammer), but it doesn’t take a genius to figure out where their political loyalties lie. This would also explain why their sound is so rough, particularly on their earlier recordings. A lot of bands in this genre are enamored with that whole “kvlt” sound where Burzum (particularly the first three releases) and old Graveland loom large as influences. As you can tell by the fact that things get better on the more recent material, they’ve evolved beyond the underproduced and raw Black Metal style to a more Thrash influenced sound (German Thrash, naturally) with clearer sound and tighter playing. If you’ve recently come upon this band’s music and you want to check out how their older material sounded, this is a good indicator of where they were and how they evolved. The older albums are likely out of print so this may be the only way you’ll be able to hear that stuff.