Angizia - Das Schachbrett des Trommelbuben Zacharias
This starts out with a pretty ridiculous “Art Rock” male/female vocal duet. Of course, I was expecting that to be an intro to the real music, but much to my horror, this piano-dominated female sung bullshit is the “real music.” How the fuck did these pretentious pieces of shit convince Napalm to sign them? Even the worst subhuman Pantera-wannabe poseurs still use guitars. Avoid this at all costs, unless you need a laugh and can easily steal a copy.
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Angel Dust - Bleed
What can be done to eliminate this continued pussification of the Metal genre through sissified Glam Fag “Metal”? Usually when I say that something sounds like Winger, I am making an exaggeration to exclaim my disgust, but this band really does sound like Winger!! If this is “Traditional Metal,” then so is Whitesnake.
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Andras - Sword of Revenge
God damn, now this is more fuckin’ like it! Everything about this Black Metal assault impresses me. From the heavy, thick production, to the Thrash and Death influences in the music, to the flawless execution, there’s hardly a second that’s less than awesome. Andras are expert players, and occasionally let you know it, but they use their skill to craft memorable songs, and never sacrifice intensity in favor of technicality. Man, I can even hear the basslines, and they’re good! Find this one at all costs.
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Ancient - The Halls of Eternity
This is Ancient’s fourth full-length album (they also have a 7-inch EP and a MCD to their credit as well) and this one sees the band returning to an almost entirely Norse line-up. The previous line-up had several American members but because of difficulties in having band members in two different countries, Aphaziel decided to recruit new members from his local scene. I don’t have Mad Grandiose Bloodfiends, so I can’t really comment on their progression but I can say that the songs are solid and are diverse enough to keep my attention. The riffs have more catchiness than previous efforts and the songs are much more memorable as a result. In terms of actual sound, this treads the line between the more Gothic style of Cradle of Filth and the more symphonic style of Emperor. Ancient has hints of both bands but really never sounds overly much like either. I’ve always considered this band one of the second tier of Black Metal bands and though they haven’t really moved up, they still retain their position while older, more established bands have fallen downwards in the rankings.
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Ancient - The Halls of Eternity
A Black Metal album with an Ambient intro! I’ve never heard of such a thing! You know, if you’re going to do something, at least do it right. Put some fuckin’ wind on there, make it sound evil! This intro sounds like the kind of “evil” to be found in a Disney movie. However, immediately following the inane intro, we have some standard, but not bad, mostly fast, new wave Black Metal, with a kind of Death Metal heavy production. It’s not exactly awe inspiring, but it does have its moments. It also has moments of sheer stupidity, such as most of the song “I, Madman.” And as usual, there’s a new female singer this time: Deadly Kristin. Whether or not she can sing is beside the point. What we all really want to know is how much does she charge for a blow job?
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Anal Cunt - It Just Gets Worse
Censoring a lyric sheet is gay. Furthermore, Anal Cunt is the musical equivalent of some asshole with 17 pounds of piercings in his face, and a tattoo of Jesus blowing a Nazi sheep on his forehead, running up to someone at a party and screaming “Look how offensive I am!” It’s really just a pathetic, desperate cry for any kind of attention, and worthy only of our pity. And, unfortunately for AC, this time it’s not even humorous.
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Amsvartner - Dreams
Taking elements of Thrash, Black and Death Metal, and fusing them into their own identity, with obvious technical skill, Amsvartner have created a memorable album of Extreme Metal.
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Amorbital - Invidia
The press release calls them “melodic brutal Death.” I didn’t know how you could be both melodic and brutal at once, but now I do. The clear production helps their cause, but this has got to be heard to be believed.
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Amon Amarth - The Avenger
Musically, this is intelligent (but not too technical), emotionally powerful, and moving. Mid paced Death with some illicitly speedy Doom feeling parts. Always heavy though. Plenty of vox variants, some good, others not so, but always engaging. The main vocal style isn’t my fave and gets a bit tired. But good nonetheless.
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