GO WORSHIP “THE WORSHIP” BY TORTURE DIVISION

 Album Reviews, Free Shit, Metal News, SHORT BUT SWEET  6 Responses »
Jun 042013
 

Fuckin’ Torture Division have just released a new, free, three-song demo — The Worship — and it fuckin’ destroys, as pure Grade A undiluted death metal should.

For those who somehow remain ignorant about Torture Division, here’s a quick primer: The three members of the band – Lord K Philipson (guitar), Tobben Gustafsson (drums), and Jörgen Sandström (bass/vocals) — collectively have over 60 years of combined death metal experience, including membership in bands such as Grave, Entombed, Vicious Art, The Project Hate MCMXCIX, Vomitory, and God Among Insects.  In their words, “we know what we do, we love what we do and that we will keep on doing it until the end of days.”

They also have an unusual approach to recording and distributing their music. Their modus operandi is to release short demos and give them away for free. And today they made available The Worship as the latest installment in the series. It was again mixed and mastered by the masterful Dan Swanö, and is now available for download (along with a booklet) from his Unisound web site.

But first, you really need to read Torture Division’s introduction to The Worship, which is funny as shit. Plus, if you love what Torture Division are doing and how they’re doing it, as I do, then you need to throw them a donation to help finance the continuation of this fine demolition project. And to do both of those things, go HERE. Continue reading »

FREE SHIT: A KLONOSPHERE SAMPLER — AND A NEW LOUDBLAST SONG

 Free Shit, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  7 Responses »
May 282013
 

Thanks to a tip from KevinP, I learned this morning that the French label Klonosphere has recently released a free sampler of music from 18 different bands. I’m an enthusiastic fan of many of the bands on this compilation, including Hacride, Klone, Lokurah, Magoa, and Otargos, all of whom we’ve written about at NCS. I’m not familiar with other bands, but the chance to discover new music is one of the reasons why samplers like this one are worth having. And just based on the music I do know, this is a really diverse collection of sounds.

Many of the songs previously appeared on recent albums or EPs, and some are being released for the first time on this sampler — including exclusive demo versions of tracks that will appear on albums projected for release later this year. One of those advance demo tracks comes from a long-running French band named Loudblast who we last visited at NCS all the way back in April 2011 (here). I liked what I heard of them then, and so I was especially interested in the chance to check what they’re up to now.

They’ve released six studio albums to date, and based on the description of this new demo track, it appears their seventh is on the way. The new song is entitled “The Abstract God”, and it’s a beefy, malicious death metal monster that stomps, rips, roars, and wails like a tormented spirit. It’s prime headbang material, so loosen up your neck muscles and stream it right after the jump. Continue reading »

MISCELLANY NO. 55: SERPENT OMEGA, CREMATORIA, PUREFILTH, AND ASPHODEL

 Exceptions to the Rule, Free Shit, MISCELLANY  4 Responses »
May 262013
 

Many of you already know how this MISCELLANY game works, but for everyone else, here’s what it’s about: Using no rhyme or reason whatsoever, I pick bands whose music I’ve never heard (usually bands whose names I’ve never heard either), I listen to one recent track from each of them (though sometimes I cheat and listen to more than one), I write my impressions, and I stream the music for you so you can judge for yourselves.

Every other musical feature on this site, other than this one, involves metal that I or the other writers have heard in advance and want to recommend. MISCELLANY, on the other hand, is a shot in the dark. I don’t know what these selections will sound like. We’ll both find out together. Today’s bands are from all over: Serpent Omega (Sweden), Crematoria (Denmark), Purefilth (Ukraine), and Asphodel (Greece).

SERPENT OMEGA

I found out about this relatively new Swedish band via a Facebook recommendation from another band whose doings I follow. They’ve recently released a self-titled debut album via the Mordgrimm label, and it turns out that they have a female frontperson (Pia Högberg). I decided to check out their music in part because of that recommendation but mainly because I thought the new album’s cover art was cool. Continue reading »

NEW AND NOTABLE: COPROLITH, ORPHANED LAND, AND POWER TRIP

 Exceptions to the Rule, Free Shit, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  4 Responses »
May 222013
 

In this post I’ve collected a small group of new songs that I came across while wandering through the interhole over the last 24 hours.

COPROLITH

I’ve been keeping an eye on this Finnish band (pictured above) since hearing their 2012 EP Hate Infected. When I reviewed it, I characterized the music as “the military-industrial complex of the nether regions, an effective fusion of titanic death metal might and melodic black metal hooks” and compared the band to the likes of Behemoth and Hate. They now have a new album on the way entitled Death March, which will be released in the fall of this year by Violent Journey Records.

Yesterday they released a music video for one of the new songs, “Life=Disease”, which is now available digitally through Amazon and probably elsewhere. The song reminds me less of those Polish behemoths than Hate Infected. It has more of an old-school death metal flavor, with a bit of a charred crust. It hammers and howls forcefully, with teeth bared and claws raking. Continue reading »

UNDERDOGS IN THE UNDERGROUND: NOTABLE NEWCOMERS (Part 1)

 Album Reviews, Free Shit, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC, SHORT BUT SWEET  2 Responses »
May 212013
 

(NCS contributor Austin Weber returns with another two-part feature on underground bands. Today he reviews the latest releases from Boreworm (US) and Divine Realm (Canada).)

More and more bands are opting to go the label-free route, which has helped many to get their music out there, but unfortunately means they don’t have a PR campaign behind them like they would from a label. This series is dedicated to those kinds of bands. Part Two will come tomorrow, with a definitive prog focus.

Boreworm – Black Path 

When Scorned Deity came to my attention through a post here at NCS, I instantly mused to myself that hopefully a band of their caliber would be part of a thriving scene with other like-minded bands. Soon after, I heard about Boreworm, another bright young act from Michigan who confirmed that good things are happening there. Boreworm’s take on blackened death metal has all the fury of Hate Eternal but truly shines through because of their sad melodic flirtations and a knack for knowing when to break up the madness with slower passages.

The heaving darkness and bite of black metal emerges in layers throughout, with its appearence lending Black Path a uniquely sinister vibe. They also extend the influence to grimly make-over deathcore breakdowns with faster drumming or reverberating chords that give a lingering, atmospheric black metal feel. Continue reading »

IN DREAD RESPONSE

 Free Shit, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  3 Responses »
May 192013
 

In Dread Response are an excellent New Zealand metal band that we’ve mentioned a couple times in the past, but not recently — and it’s past time that we checked in with them again. TheMadIsraeli reviewed their debut album From the Oceanic Graves in August 2011 (here). We miserably failed to review their second full-length, Embers In the Spiritless Void, but our NZ blog sister Steph Metal did name that release as one of the 10 best 2011 metal albums from Down Under in a guest feature we published in January 2012. Here’s what Steph had to say about it:

Aggressive death metal with overarching melody and faultless musicianship, In Dread Response have been building a steady following in New Zealand since the release of their debut album in 2008. Songs like “Through Chasms” demonstrate their attention to details – lyrics that weave graven images in your mind, relentless double kick and layers of riffs that create drama and tension, and almost classical solos that deliver exactly what they promise.

Thanks to a tip from NCS supporter Booker, I’m pleased to tell you that as of yesterday In Dread Response made Embers available as a free download in a .zip file that also includes hi-res images of the entire CD album booklet (and it’s a feast for the eyes that includes paintings by the stupendous John Martin). But that’s not all . . . Continue reading »

FREE SHIT: A CENTURY MEDIA SAMPLER

 Free Shit, Metal News  4 Responses »
May 162013
 

I’m pretty sure this news came out earlier this week, but I completely missed it. Maybe you did, too.

The news is this: Century Media has compiled a free digital sampler of songs from the label’s artists. There are 40 bands represented on the compilation, with songs that are mostly from the bands’ latest albums. It’s a helluva list of bands, too — this sampler focuses on the more extreme end of the Century spectrum, with almost all the songs coming from bands who play varying flavors of death metal or black metal.

Rather than try to pick out a few representative bands, I’ll just include a screen shot of the entire list after the jump. Be aware that in order to get the free download, you have to give up an e-mail address, which will be used by Century Media and its partners to send you not only download info but also marketing messages (at least until you unsubscribe).

If you’re interested, go HERE to begin the download process. Continue reading »

FREE SHIT FROM DEMONHOOD PRODUCTIONS: “ENLIGHTENED DARKNESS”

 Free Shit, Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  6 Responses »
May 102013
 

Demonhood Productions, as I learned this morning, is a relatively new Norwegian label mainly focusing on underground black, death, and thrash metal. It was established in 2012 as “a cooperation” between Duplicate Records and Neseblod Records. As I also discovered only this morning, they released a compilation in March that’s a free download on Bandcamp. Entitled Enlightened Darkness, it consists of 14 tracks by 14 different bands.

I’m not familiar with all the bands on this comp, but the names I do know are impressive (and we’ve written about them here at NCS): Nekromantheon, Wormlust, and Cobolt 60. The compilation also includes a song by a Czech band named Cult of Fire that I’ve recently become interested in. In fact, that’s how I found this comp.

Last year Cult of Fire released their debut album Triumvirát through Demonhood; one of the tracks from that album is what’s included in this comp. However, Cult of Fire are now signed to the German label Iron Bonehead for release of their next album (which should be coming in 2013). This morning I saw that Iron Bonehead has started selling a Cult of Fire shirt called “Insane Dance of Kali”, and it’s so eye-catching that I promptly ordered it (here). This is what the shirt looks like (it comes in black and white): Continue reading »

FREE SHIT: SOCIOPATHIC SOUND’S LATEST MIXTAPE GOES BIG WITH 100 FREE SONGS

 Free Shit, Metal News  4 Responses »
May 082013
 

Sociopathic Sound started as a Philadelphia-based web project in June 2012, but it’s about to transition into a record label, with plans not only to sign bands for new releases but also to re-issue previous works on vinyl or as digitally remastered releases. Since opening the doors last year, Sociopathic Sound has also been compiling free mixtapes (with permission of the bands and labels whose songs have gone into the comps). As of today, the latest comp — Vol. 4 — has gone up on Bandcamp for streaming and download, and man, it’s a whopper.

The latest comp consists of 100 tracks by bands from all over the world — and all over the genre map of extreme music. In looking through the list, I recognize these bands with whom I’m at least somewhat familiar and whose music I already know I like (and we’ve written about many of these here at NCS):

Primitive Man, Nails, Slaves BC, Sidious, Acrassicauda, Polkadot Cadaver, Antropofago, Buckshot Facelift, Svart Crown, The Psyke Project, Interment, Cage, Enabler, Psychofagist, The Binary Code, Slash Dementia, Total Fucking Destruction, Psychotic Pulse, Xibalba, Vaulting, thedowngoing, and Sloth Herder

But of course one of the attractions of comps like this one is the chance to discover new bands — and there are a ton of them on this thing. My mind boggles at the effort it must have taken to assemble it. My mind is even more boggled by the news that Sociopathic Sound is already on the verge of releasing Volume 5! Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: HAGGIS AND BONG, NEKKAR, MADLEAF, AND DARKALL SLAVES

 Exceptions to the Rule, Free Shit, Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  10 Responses »
May 072013
 

I’m hoping everything in this post will tickle your fancy. It includes four quite diverse songs that I heard this morning. They’re nothing alike, but I thought they were all cool . . . and not the kind of thing you’re likely to come across elsewhere (at least not packaged together and hand-tied with a pink bow, like I’m doing for you).

HAGGIS AND BONG

Still one of the best metal band names ever. And still some of the most stirring bagpipe-injected metal you can find. Haggis and Bong come not from Scotland but from South Africa, and they’ve been a favorite topic of mine here at NCS dating all the way back to January 2010, when the band was just a duo of pipers and a drummer (you can find all of my blathering about them over the years via this link).

Since those early days they’ve expanded themselves into a genuine metal band — but one in which the pipes still play a prominent role — and today they’ve released a free single that’s their heaviest work yet. In addition to including some mosh-worthy distorted riffing and pounding rhythm work, “Battle Destroyer” incorporates the pipes in an unusual way — no jigs or reels this time. Check out the song after the jump and go download it here if you dig it as much as I do. Continue reading »

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