Where were all of these “Traditional Metal” bands five years ago? Anyway, to properly pull off this style, you really need a powerful singer, not a guy who more or less talks through the songs like this dude. Other than that, the music is great.

BAJ start things off with nine short tracks of brutal Hardcore, I guess I’ll call it. They like to incorporate different styles, though, sometimes unleashing a blast of furious speed or a Death growl, others slowing down to a noisy crawl. Hemlock on the other hand start things off with a freaked out revision of the venerable Iron Maiden intro to “Number of the Beast,” and then launch full speed into a couple very basic new-wave Black Metal cuts. The vocals are yelled in a old Punk/Hardcore way, though, which is an interesting idea, but not always executed flawlessly in this case. I appreciate the effort, though. Hopefully we’ll get to hear more from both of these inventive bands soon.

Majestic, atmospheric Black Metal. It’s played well, is fairly memorable, and there are many slower, haunting, passages.

This live disc isn’t full of all of the wannabe-gangsta-homie bullshit that has made about everybody wipe their ass with every post-Urban Discipline release by these guys. In fact, this has all of the good cuts from their 5-year-old first release on Roadrunner. This was recorded 100% live in Hamburg, Germany in early ‘97, with lots of crowd energy and stripped down, fast, and powerful renditions of everything (i.e. no gay homosexual dance remixes or other ulterior motives). I’m glad I didn’t throw this off of my 7 story balcony like I did all of their pot-leaf-emblazoned previous LPs - this is actually worth a listen.

100% Traditional Metal done right. Bewitched pay tribute to Judas Priest, Helloween, Venom and so on, but somehow never sound like they’re ripping them off. Maybe it’s the raspy vocals that help to give Bewitched their own sound. Whatever it is, it works. For fans of the “Classic Metal Sound” this is a Satan-worshipping, slut-fucking wet nightmare.

Now before you freak out, this is not the same band that’s on Osmose. Apparently these Chilean maniacs have been together since 1991, so you can’t exactly say they stole the name. Ironically, this Bewitched also play a retro form of Metal. It’s a cross of Traditional Metal and Thrash, with occasional Black Metal overtones, sometimes sounding like a more evil Candlemass. Their Mercyful Fate cover (“Black Funeral”) is hardly surprising. Unfortunately, the singer tries his best to imitate King’s range, proving once again that no matter how dead-on the music is, there is only one King Diamond. Other than that one tactical error to bring them down, I’m not sure if I’m more impressed with their musical ability, or the fact that they know when to show it off, and when to keep it reigned in.

I believe this is the second album for Belphegor, but I’m not sure they’re the same band I’m thinking of. Either way, this is a pretty heavy, brutal fucking album. These guys really know how to raise some Hell. Musically, this one reminds me of the legendary Altars of Madness album (if you don’t know who it’s by, fucking kill yourself now!!!) with a Black Metal singer doing the vocals. Unfortunately, while listening to this band, you can’t but compare it to Altars… because that’s almost exactly how it sounds. Belphegor is tight and they really shred, but they aren’t all that original in terms of sound. Fortunately for them, this style really works for them and if you like your Metal in the old Florida fashion, this is one to look for.

Below was described to me as a “solo project” and if one person is really doing everything, then this is even more impressive. This moody and intense Thrash has kind of Death-style growled vox buried in the background. The technical nature of this is sometimes a little too forced, as with the extended guitar solos, but the rest of it can’t be beaten.

Raw, fast, and intense Black Metal. Cool packaging, too.

[Metal Curse #11 had an additional loose page (“Last Second Additions”) inserted into the centerfold of the zine, featuring a bunch of even-shorter-than-usual “bonus” reviews of stuff that arrived after the deadline for that issue. This is one of those “Last Second Additions” reviews.]

I guess that Victory Records doesn’t have the patent on Hardcore. Barcode proves that with a vengeance, with every song on here. It’s Hardcore at its finest, with a little Metal injected sometimes. Plus a cover of the Twisted Sister, uhh, classic “We’re Not Gonna Take It.”

Raw Black Thrash. Very intense.

[Metal Curse #11 had an additional loose page (“Last Second Additions”) inserted into the centerfold of the zine, featuring a bunch of even-shorter-than-usual “bonus” reviews of stuff that arrived after the deadline for that issue. This is one of those “Last Second Additions” reviews.]

The title of this album means “The Lost City” in English, and if you’re like me, the translations are a welcome addition. Unfortunately, lyrics aren’t included. What is included, however, is a rather nice little piece about how great the Macedonian people were. If you’re Greek, you may want to pass on this album because the history lesson is pretty much anti-Greek, pro-Macedonian. We get a pretty detailed account of all the great Macedonian leaders, philosophers and achievements (most of which are credited to the Greeks) and a rather nice batch of pictures and information. Whether this info is correct is another story. I don’t know and I really couldn’t give a fat shit whether the Macedonians or the Greeks were the better bunch down in the Aegean Sea area. Musically, Baltak has stayed true to the formula created on Macedonian Darkness and Evil and still has that hyper-fast drum machine going. The riffs are catchy and the atmosphere of this album is very manic and aggressive to be sure. The only problem I can see with this release is the fact that a lot of the songs seem the same. Maybe adding some tempo changes or something would be an idea worth exploring. The whole album (all 8 tracks) blasts along at speeds only Immortal has dared before this.

This “Rasta Punk” isn’t horrible, but what’s the big deal?

[Metal Curse #11 had an additional loose page (“Last Second Additions”) inserted into the centerfold of the zine, featuring a bunch of even-shorter-than-usual “bonus” reviews of stuff that arrived after the deadline for that issue. This is one of those “Last Second Additions” reviews.]

This EP offers a taste of this band’s excellent dark Doom. The production is great (at least on my promo tape), as is the writing and playing.

Formerly known as Psycho Holiday, Art of Fear have a knack for “start-stop” style music. Their sound has changed very little from their last demo, In Your Mind. The production is very clear and well done. The vocalist has a wimpier Chuck Billy (Testament) sound, but it’s not bad. I just think that the clunky riffs are too trendy for these guys. They seem to have more potential than what’s on this disc.

The band formerly known as Apollyn [see their demo review] hasn’t really changed their style along with their name, but simply refined it. I was already impressed with their catchy (often sounding like early Unleashed) Satanic Death Metal, and this is somehow an improvement.

If not for the bursts of speed, I’d say that this keyboard-laden Death Metal, was actually Doom, but Demolish generally keep things moving too fast for that. It’s an interesting listening experience.

Pretty lame Alternative “Metal,” but at least they don’t sound like Korn, so there’s still hope that they might eventually get a singer with at least one partially functional ball.

Symphonic and energetic Black Metal.

[Metal Curse #11 had an additional loose page (“Last Second Additions”) inserted into the centerfold of the zine, featuring a bunch of even-shorter-than-usual “bonus” reviews of stuff that arrived after the deadline for that issue. This is one of those “Last Second Additions” reviews.]

Distorted vox, tough-guy “Hardcore.” Honestly there are a few good bits (they’re good musicians, for example), but not enough to really save this form the horrible vocals and the occasional bad riffs.