Zatokrev Archives - NO CLEAN SINGING

2025 – A YEAR IN REVIEW(S): THE CRITICAL TOP TEN

LISTMANIA 2025 6 Responses »

Dec 112025

(Andy Synn presents another detailed selection of 10 albums representing the absolute best of 2025)

In the words of the late, great Lieutenant Jean Rasczak… “this is for all you new people.”

Now the “Critical Top Ten” is not, and I need to stress not, a traditional “Top Ten”, in that it’s not ranked, nor is it actually intended to be the 10 “best” albums of the year (since, if we’re being realistic, that’s pretty much impossible to quantify, considering all the different factors that go into making all these different styles and sub-genres of Metal).

What it’s supposed to do, however, is provide a selection of 10 of the best releases of the year, drawn from my “Great” list (so if it wasn’t there then it’s not going to be here either… something which I try to clarify every year, even though I still get people complaining that [x] band isn’t mentioned despite the fact that, as I’ve stressed several times, if it wasn’t featured in my massive round-up over the last couple of days that means I didn’t get round to hearing it), that are designed to represent the impressive quality and creative variety of the scene over the last twelve months.

Again, it’s not comprehensive… obviously… and while I try to be as objective as possible in my selections (these aren’t my “favourite” albums of the year, those are coming tomorrow) I’m sure there’ll be lots of disagreements with my choices (in fact, looking at some of the comments we’ve already received, some of you are going to be very pleased, and a few of you are going to be very upset, but all of you should at least appreciate some of the surprises I have in store this year).

But I’ve found the best way to think about this article is as a sort of “time capsule” of the year… sure, there’s not room for everything, but when future generations look back on 2025 this should serve as an excellent snapshot of the year in Metal, across as many styles and sub-genres as I was able to squeeze into just 10 albums!

THINGS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED (BUT SHOULDN’T)

Album Reviews No Responses »

Oct 062025

(Andy Synn returns to regular posting today with an apology and an attempt to atone for his absence)

As you may have noticed, I missed a lot of stuff last month… mostly because I was very busy, first with my superb stag-do (“bachelor party” to those who don’t know what that means) which involved myself and my chosen band of brothers heading to Islay for a weekend full of whiskey (so much whiskey), and then my wonderful wedding (yes, that’s right, I’m a married man now) which also involved the extended NCS family coming to visit (which, of course, meant we spent most of the week before and after the event hanging out).

As a result I had very little time to actually sit down and listen to music, let alone write about it, and it’s really only thanks to the valiant efforts of DGR – who was smart enough to write a bunch of reviews in advance of him and Islander coming over – that we actually stayed active and afloat for much of September.

It won’t surprise you to learn then that my “short list” of albums to potentially write about this time around was much, much longer than usual, and even though I’ve tried to compensate for this by increasing the number of albums from 4 to 6, I still feel like I need to apologise to the likes of Cult Member, Nexion, Occulsed, Ordeals, Piece, and Yotuma for not having the time or space to include them (and an additional apology must also be extended to Hexrot, whose late-August release I honestly had every intention of reviewing).

SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: AMORPHIS, ZATOKREV, BARBAROUS, ACCURSED, NECHT, IN THE COMPANY OF SERPENTS, FER DE LANCE

Exceptions to the Rule, Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC No Responses »

Jun 072025

Amorphis – photo by Sam Jamsen

(written by Islander)

This is another Saturday column in which I decided to lure people with a “big name” at the start and then eventually expose people to names they might not know but should.

I could have included an even bigger collection of prominent names, because the past week also brought new music and/or new videos from Opeth, Paradise Lost, Dark Angel, Car Bomb, and Baest, to name a few. You can find those via the hyperlinks I included. But I wanted to have more time for lesser lights. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: ZATOKREV (FREDERYK ROTTER)

Interviews No Responses »

May 032018

(In this new interview Comrade Aleks poses questions to Frederyk Rotter, founding vocalist/guitarist of the Swiss band Zatokrev.)

Fourteen years ago Basel-based power-trio Zatokrev recorded their debut self-titled album. Frederyk Rotter (vocals, guitars), Marco Grementieri (bass), and Silvio Spadino (drums) brought forth a tensive, savage, and energetic blend of extreme doom and sludge. Over the years the band went through a series of metamorphoses, developing with each new record and enriching the sound with post- and some avant-garde influences.

Since April 13, a vinyl reissue of Zatokrev has been available for shipment via Plastic Head. It’s a good reason to talk with Frederyk about Zatokrev’s milestones, as he’s the only member left of the original lineup. Continue reading »

OUR LIST OF 2015’S MOST INFECTIOUS EXTREME METAL SONGS: (PART 19)

MOST INFECTIOUS SONGS-2015 3 Responses »

Feb 072016

As I explained at the outset of this list, I didn’t have it finished when I began it. I’ve been making it up as I go along, without any pre-set idea of how long it would be. But since we’re now a week into February of 2016, I’m forcing myself to bring it to an end by this time next week. It hasn’t been easy, but I spent hours yesterday going through my still-massive list of song candidates and I’ve now got things in place in my head — or at least these things.

Beginning today and continuing through next Sunday I’ll post three new songs for the list each day. Except for next Sunday’s installment, I know which three I’ll post each day. And at the end, I’ll still have many more songs I’d like to post. But all good things must come to an end, and so this exercise will, too.

For most of the installments in the series up to now, I’ve grouped the songs according to certain themes, usually some kind of genre similarity in the groupings. But for most of the remaining installments, I’m focusing on variety, and grouping the songs together in ways that I think make for interesting listening, moving from one song to the next. To see the other songs on the list up to this point, click this link.

ZATOKREV

This band is so damned good. I feel that they haven’t yet gotten the widespread and tumultuous celebration that they deserve. I picked a song from their last album (The Bat The Wheel And The Long Road To Nowhere) for the 2012 edition of this list, and I’ve picked one for 2015 as well, because 2015 brought us another great new Zatokrev album — Silk Spiders Underwater… Continue reading »

SHADES OF BLACK (PART 1): ZATOKREV, AMESTIGON, KNIFE OF MELQART, VAHÉVAHIAN

RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC, SHADES OF BLACK 3 Responses »

May 202015

I’ve accumulated an assortment of fine new songs and videos, some of which have black metal genes in their DNA. But there are other ingredients encoded within the genomes of each band, and the resulting musical expressions display considerable variety. There are enough tracks that I want to recommend that I’ve dividing this post into two parts. The second will come later today.

ZATOKREV

I suppose few listeners would apply the term “black metal” or even “blackened” to Zatokrev, and Zatokrev actually “refuse the void” in the lyrics of this first song rather than embrace it. But I’m including them in this collection anyway, because they are so damned good and because a heavy darkness emanates from their sound.

The Zatokrev song featured here is “Bleeding Island”. It comes from their new album Silk Spiders Underwater…, which was released on April 13 by Candlelight Records, and it’s the focus of the new music video you’re about to see. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: ZATOKREV, CRIMSON SWAN, HAMFERÐ, DEATHBLOW, KHROMA

Exceptions to the Rule, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 5 Responses »

Mar 212015

I’m about to enter the home stretch of the out-of-town project for my paying job that has been severely constricting my blog time. Four or five more days, and I’ll be done. Those remaining days are going to leave me with even less time to blog than I’ve had since the project started three weeks ago, so this morning I decided to carve out some time for one last round-up of new music before running the final gauntlet.

ZATOKREV

I discovered the Swiss band Zatokrev through their 2012 album The Bat, the Wheel and a Long Road to Nowhere, which turned out to be one of my favorite albums of that year. Their fourth album, Silk Spiders Underwater… is now finished and scheduled for released on April 13 by Candlelight Records. It is reported to be the first of a two-part conception and features artwork by Maks Loriot. Continue reading »

AN EISTNAFLUG REPORT: PART 2

Concert Reviews 7 Responses »

Aug 262014

Sólstafir’s Addi Tryggvason with Skálmöld at Eistnaflug

(Gemma Alexander is a Seattle-based writer and NCS fan who visited Iceland in the fall of 2012 during the Iceland Airwaves festival and was generous enough to send us interviews with such bands as Angist, Beneath, Kontinuum, Sólstafir, Gone Postal, and Skálmöld. In July of this year she returned to Iceland for the Eistnaflug metal and rock festival (“Eistnaflug” being Icelandic for “flying testicles”), and we are once again the beneficiary of her writing. Today we present Part 2 of a three-part report on the festival, illustrated with Gemma’s own photos. Visit her own excellent blog here and check out more of her reporting on the festival at KEXP’s web site. Part 1 of her report for us is here.)

The second day of Eistnaflug began at noon with sets from Pink Street Boys and Oni. I, on the other hand, began less ambitiously, arriving at the venue after 2 p.m. I don’t know anything about the first band, but was sorry to have missed the sludgy, Neskaupstaður-based Oni.

http://oniiceland.bandcamp.com/releases

The first band I saw on Friday was In the Company of Men. Billed as mathcore, the effect was individuals doing their own thing in the company of others. But they each went to eleven with it, and maybe my math isn’t very good.

https://www.facebook.com/InTheCompanyOfMen/timeline

I had heard that Morð (“murder” in Icelandic) was divisive in the local black metal community. In the event, I couldn’t really see what was so unorthodox. Was their corpse paint all wrong, or was it a slight tendency to slip into groove? Whether tr00 or transgressive, Morð put on a good show.

http://morth.bandcamp.com/ Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: DEVIN TOWNSEND, ZATOKREV, AUTOLATRY, AND SEEDS OF IBLIS

RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 10 Responses »

Jul 242013

I’m still in catch-up mode on new things I haven’t been able to write about over the last few days. So, despite the fact that I already posted one round-up today, here’s another one, collecting three recommended new videos and one new song. As usual, the music is quite diverse.

THE DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT

On October 27 of last year Devin Townsend put on a tour-de-force live musical retrospective at The Roundhouse in London, which he called “The Retinal Circus”. Our own Andy Synn was there and wrote an evocative review, which we illustrated with photos and video clips. The performance was recorded for later release on both DVD and Blu-ray (via InsideOut Music).

Almost one week ago, DT released a clip from the DVD, the performance of “Grace” that closed the show (but for the encore), but I missed it until this morning. If you’ve seen any of the video clips of the show that previously surfaced, then you know this was a visual extravaganza. But the DVD excerpt of “Grace” is a taste of the pro-shot, multi-cam rendition that the DVD will deliver, and it’s awesome.

I’ve loved this song from the first time I heard it, and I got chills all over again when it transitioned from Anneke Van Giersbergen’s opening vocals into the hevy. I got more chills later. Is it too emo for me to say that? Well fuck it, I’m just being honest. The video is next.

RUMBLINGS OF THE BEAST: BEHEMOTH, IMPIETY, ZATOKREV, AND DIABLERIE

Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 8 Responses »

May 312013

Normally I would have used the “Seen and Heard” label for this round-up of items I found yesterday while rooting through the interhole. But there’s something about these four items that suggested an alternate title . . . .

BEHEMOTH

Poland’s Behemoth have been busy recording their tenth full-length album — which is now projected for release by Metal Blade this coming fall — and yesterday the band announced that they’ve picked a name for it: The Satanist. Despite fame, some degree of fortune, and Nergal having survived multiple trips to court defending against charges brought under Poland’s laws against giving religious offense, Behemoth don’t fuckin’ back off, do they? Here’s a statement from Nergal that accompanied the news about the album title:

“It took us over two decades to come up with a title that…says it all. While our new songs artistically take surprisingly adventurous directions, our message stands steadfast—Proud and Radical. THE SATANIST stands for undying yearning for liberation and love for freedom in all aspects of life. Considering all our life experiences that often took dramatic curves I couldn’t think of more appropriate and fitting statement of who and where we are now.”

There will undoubtedly be a steady drumbeat of album updates from the band and Metal Blade over the summer. Undoubtedly we’ll post most of them here, too. Because, Behemoth! Continue reading »

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