Metal playlists from the underground
Arizona metal merchants Landmine Marathon hammer out a potent death metal meets grindcore jamboree on the quintet’s most recent effort, the eight-track RUSTED EYES AWAKE. Taking cues from beloved acts of 1990’s extreme metal, this squad lovingly pays homage to the likes of Carcass, Napalm Death, and Bolt Thrower on menacing cuts such as “Certain […]
Sinewy streams of unrelenting funeral doom come courtesy of veteran UK unit Esoteric via their latest offering, a two-disc, over 100 minute affair entitled THE MANIACAL VALE. Adorned with a twisted sense of ambience and an eerie aura that creeps into your head and takes control, this ambitious endeavor’s hypnotic waves of dissonance resonate with […]
By Peter O’Brien Rust In Peace is a pinnacle album not only in the history of Megadeth, but also the speed/thrash metal genre. Certainly a musical achievement for the band, it is a near-flawless album often ranked in the top five of its genre and number one among fans in their discography. It is also […]
Chickenfoot, the supergroup concoction of legendary hard rock frontman Sammy Hagar, guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani, Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony, and Red Hot Chili Peppers’ drummer Chad Smith offer an eleven track self-titled debut that confirms a recent speculative statement — It is now truth that “Satch” is the best guitarist to play alongside Hagar […]
Newbie UK metal mavens Sylosis employ a myriad of modern touches to their latest offering, a disc heavily steeped in thrash metal’s golden era of double-barrel ambushes. CONCLUSION OF AN AGE blends the musicality of Trivium, Strapping Young Lad, Shadows Fall, and Megadeth with a bevy of blistering Exodus-esque solos (“Stained Humanity”), volatile vocals (“Withered”) […]
Necroblaspheme delivers a vicious barrage of muscular death metal intensity and foreboding doom metal juxtaposing on the nine-track DESTINATION: NULLE PART. Chock full of slamming grooves (“Sorry for Us”) and brazen flashes of technicality within a well-structured metallic paradigm (“Descent’s Genesis”), this French outfit’s off-kilter atmosphere stems from the ferocious flurry of tempo changes and […]
Swedish metal squad Closer aren’t ashamed to wear influences on their sleeves, as A DARKER SIDE OF SALVATION purposely plays like an amalgamation of Soilwork and later-day In Flames with dabs of Scar Symmetry and The Haunted strewn in (“Chaos Internal”). Despite this 10-track release containing its fair share of cringe-worthy similarities to the aforementioned […]
By Peter O’Brien The marquee hanging over the sidewalk on 42nd Street proudly reads in bold, red, capital letters “BUCKETHEAD.” To the average pedestrian walking down the street the sign has about as much meaning or appeal as a disappointing sideshow outcast, but for those in the know the sign is a beacon attracting a […]
Sticking to their roots, Greek black metal troupe Naer Mataron unfurl an expected mix of blast beat mayhem, evil vocal croaks and shrieks, and wrath-inducing tremolo-picked guitars on their most recent album PRAETORIANS. This 11-track release maintains the authentic black metal template to a fault, retaining the genre’s trademark rawness sans any progressive tendencies. Making […]