Episoder
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Molly Kent from stoner metal upstarts Omenbringer joins the show prior to the band’s headlining performance at Exit/In in Nashville!
Excerpts from the Omenbringer track "Stir The Cauldron" (Thicc Darkness, 2024) used with permission from the artist.
Check out Omenbringer’s music at https://www.youtube.com/@omenbringerband
Purchase music and merchandise from Omenbringer at https://omenbringer.bandcamp.com/
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The Great Metal Debate Podcast:
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CONTACT
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The Metal Debate podcast is back with another amazing album review... this time talking the latest from US power metallers Niviane titled "Queen Of Phantoms" (2025).
QUOTES
"Overall this is one I enjoyed… I’m keeping this one in my playlist rotation, and I’d go see them play live in a heartbeat if they were to have a gig within a day’s drive."
Check out Niviane’s music at https://www.youtube.com/@NivianeMetal
Purchase music and merchandise from Niviane at https://www.niviane.com
SOCIAL LINKS:
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The Great Metal Debate Podcast:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-great-metal-debate-podcast/id1037874814
https://soundcloud.com/thegreatmetaldebate
Podcast intro music by CONTRA; intro voice by Greg Kyle (RIP).
CONTACT
Business email: [email protected] -
Manglende episoder?
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The podcast is back with another amazing Metal Debate album review... Xander checks out the new one from blackened heavy metal outfit Nite titled "Cult Of The Serpent Sun" (Season Of Mist, 2025).
QUOTES
"I'll give this one a high score, mainly because it's a perfect match to their two previous records. All together this makes a nearly flawless trilogy… Chances are high that I'll have this one on constant rotation over the next 10 months especially when it comes out."
Check out Nite’s music at https://www.youtube.com/@seasonofmist
Purchase music and merchandise from Nite at https://nitemetal.com/
SOCIAL LINKS:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/metaldebate/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegreatmetaldebate/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/metaldebate/
The Great Metal Debate Podcast:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-great-metal-debate-podcast/id1037874814
https://soundcloud.com/thegreatmetaldebate
Podcast intro music by CONTRA; intro voice by Greg Kyle (RIP).
CONTACT
Business email: [email protected] -
In this interview Xander is joined by the guys in Malignancy before their show at The Brass Mug in Tampa!
Excerpts from the Malignancy track "Existential Dread" (2024) used with permission from the artist.
Check out Malignancy's music at https://www.youtube.com/@MalignancyNY
Purchase music and merchandise from Malignancy at https://malignancy.bandcamp.com/music
SOCIAL LINKS:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/metaldebate/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegreatmetaldebate/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/metaldebate/
The Great Metal Debate Podcast:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-great-metal-debate-podcast/id1037874814
https://soundcloud.com/thegreatmetaldebate
CONTACT
Business email: [email protected] -
The Metal Debate podcast is back with another amazing album review... this time Xander talks the debut from Swiss melodeath unit Atlas Ashes "New World" (2025).
QUOTES
"I’m mostly impressed by this album… Nicholas and Nathan’s guitar playing is absolutely gorgeous, Yann’s drumming is skillful without a never-ending barrage of blast beats, Lorick’s bass has an even flow in the mix. The overall studio quality is impeccable for being produced independently."
Check out Atlas Ashes’ music at https://www.youtube.com/@AtlasAshesBand
Purchase music and merchandise from Atlas Ashes at https://atlasashes.bandcamp.com/
SOCIAL LINKS:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/metaldebate/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegreatmetaldebate/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/metaldebate/
The Great Metal Debate Podcast:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-great-metal-debate-podcast/id1037874814
https://soundcloud.com/thegreatmetaldebate
Podcast intro music by CONTRA; intro voice by Greg Kyle (RIP).
CONTACT
Business email: [email protected] -
The Metal Debate podcast is back with another amazing album review... in this one Xander breaks down the new one from doom/death collective Clouds titled "Desprins" (2025).
QUOTES
"If you’re a fan of Decembre Noir, Frowning and Ahab you will absolutely adore this album along with everything else this band has ever done... I don’t like just handing away perfect 10/10 ratings like its Halloween candy, especially this early in the year. But for Clouds, I’m going to make an exception. This Desprins album has completely blown me away."
Check out Clouds' music at https://www.youtube.com/@UCEByuBmN2Vi7aXN4i8CJZCA
Purchase music and merchandise from Clouds at https://cloudsofficial.bandcamp.com/album/desprins
SOCIAL LINKS:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/metaldebate/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegreatmetaldebate/
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The Great Metal Debate Podcast:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-great-metal-debate-podcast/id1037874814
https://soundcloud.com/thegreatmetaldebate
Podcast intro music by CONTRA; intro voice by Greg Kyle (RIP).
CONTACT
Business email: [email protected] -
The podcast returns with another amazing Metal Debate album review. This time Gomthog takes on the new one from The Halo Effect titled "March Of The Unheard" (Nuclear Blast, 2025).
Intro music by CONTRA; intro voice by Greg Kyle (RIP). -
Xander checks in with the guys in Oinkliteration prior to their show in December 2024.
Excerpts from the Oinkliteration track "Hog Tied" used with permission from the artist. -
Victor and Chris from Canadian metallers Lutharo join the show during their tour stop in Chicago to discuss their latest album and upcoming European tour!
Excerpts from the Lutharo track "Reaper's Call" (Chasing Euphoria, 2024) used with permission from the artist. -
The Metal Debate podcast closes out the year with Xander and Gomthog counting down their top 20 metal albums of 2024.
Intro music by CONTRA. The track "Clown King" by Odious (Clown King, 2024) used with permission from the artist; the track "Rankarumpu" (Rankarumpu, 2024) by Korpiklaani used courtesy Austin Griswold / Secret Service PR. -
Welcome back to The Great Metal Debate podcast for another amazing metal album review. Today we’re looking at the new one by UK symphonic power metal crew Fellowship with their second full-length album “The Skies Above Eternity” released by Scarlet Records.
Fellowship is a band that appeared on the scene just a few years ago and immediately received a lot of positive perception by power metal fans, so much so that it makes me question if I missed something. I have heard their 2022 debut “The Sabrelight Chronicles” maybe once, and for whatever reason didn’t find it worth revisiting. But Fellowship has definitely blown up and made a name for themselves in the genre, including appearing on the bills of Epic Fest in Denmark and Mad With Power Fest in the US.
I’ll go ahead and somewhat telegraph my conclusions out of the gate: based on this album at least, I think folks who are sky-high about Fellowship should tamp down the enthusiasm, but certainly any haters need to reevaluate their take because there’s a lot to appreciate as well.
First, singer Matthew Corry’s voice is both powerful and pleasant, and he impresses with his ability to manage against the symphonic mix with the strength of his diaphragm. Other than one misplaced falsetto on track one, he hits all the notes and conveys genuine emotion in his tone. That said, one of the problems I have with Fellowship’s approach overall is that there isn’t enough contrast provided between his saccharine-sweet singing and the rest of the music. I really noticed this in the few places where the instrumentation dropping out entirely as on “World End Slowly” and there was at least the contrast with silence. If you are going to have a metal band with vocals that are so slick and sugary – basically a singing style that would be at home in adult contemporary rock – you really, really need something with a touch more rawness for contrast.
Musically – and I’ve hinted at this earlier – the guitars don't crunch as much as I would like throughout. It’s not so much that I need the distortion up front in the mix but that, again, the contrast with the vocals would be helpful. That said, the guitarwork is effective and I appreciated the subtle infusion of neoclassical playing in places. Bass guitar is present throughout the album and often noticeable, as are keys. There is a lot of keyboard and vocal layering happening, and Fellowship makes judicious use of effects like bells and various other symphonic instrument sounds. The orchestration generally is solid, although not so impressive as to merit the inclusion of the final track referenced previously. Callum Tuffin's drumming on the album is outstanding and a key element of the album’s overall vitality.
As far as the overall aesthetic, the mood created by Fellowship’s is consistently uplifting, victorious, and frankly, happy. It evokes a fantasy atmosphere – almost Tolkien-esque, which I guess shouldn’t be a surprise given the band’s logo font – with gorgeous sound and adventurous, melodic structures. I wouldn’t say that what Fellowship does here is innovative overall, but there is a freshness to the execution and some creative takes. While there are no overt references to Christianity, if one didn’t know better they would be forgiven for thinking this was a white metal album along the lines of Lightmare or Theocracy.
“The Skies Above Eternity” is too much sunshine and rainbows for my taste. If I have one suggestion for Fellowship going forward it would be to mix in just a couple of darker, moodier tracks on the next album. Not simply for their own sake, but because the comparison would make the band’s lighter songs shine even brighter!
Fellowship’s “The Skies Above Eternity” is released by Scarlet Records on November 22nd. You can purchase the new album via ScarlettRecords.com, Bandcamp, and other places you find quality metal music. -
Welcome metalheads to another episode of the great metal debate podcast. It's Xander with another back to back album review. Today, I'm probably going to be giggling a lot during this because we're talking about a parody band. Yes that's right, good old fashion spoof comedy. This band is called Dimmu Bongir which is making fun of the popular symphonic black metal band Dimmu Borgir. This is their brand new album titled Dark Medieval Hash which is making fun of Satyricon's debut album Dark Medieval Times. The black and white album cover even looks similar.
Before I go any further, I have to point out that this band actually is from Norway. That is the one thing about this band that isn't a joke. Also, this band is basically the modern black metal equivalent of the band Cannabis Corpse. Those of you who don't know, Cannabis Corpse is a parody death metal band that makes their own original music but just takes small jabs at other classic old school death metal bands by changing around song and album titles to fit marijuana themes.
The same is happening here, only its black metal and the music isn't exactly original. I just discovered this band the other day thanks to the YouTube algorithm bringing me to their music video for "A Witch is Stoned".
"Bongens kammer del 1" is a two and a half minute instrumental intro track which is clearly a parody title for Dimmu Borgir's instrumental "Sorgens kammer del 1" even if I personally am more familiar with the song Sorgens kammer del 2". Ah, ok I'm looking at the track list. The final track on this album is "Bongens kammer del 2". Makes sense.
I'm not really sure what "Du som røyker brunt" is supposed to be a spoof of but next we have the album title track followed by "Deathkush" which is a jab at Mayhem's "Deathcrush".
"I troldskogen fyrer weed" is a parody of "Troldskog Faren Vild" by Ulver. I had to YouTube the first part of the song title to see what popped up because I'm honestly unfamiliar with Ulver.
However I also have no idea what "Pipens Åpenbaring" and "Tåkeleggelse og røketrang" ... Look, I'm not fuckin Norwiegen here, I have no idea how to read or pronounce this shit. I don't know what they are supposed to be spoofs of. But the idea is still funny.
I assume the word "Pipens" has to do with smoking because it sounds like the word pipe.
Honestly, if I didn't know this was meant to be a comedy band, I would've never known. The music and vocals both sound great albeit nothing groundbreaking.
I'm going to keep this review short since I know this band isn't meant to be taken seriously. As I already mentioned, it isn't bad but it's completely unoriginal. I'll give it a 6 out of 10.
Their music is available on all streaming platforms but their physical media is completely sold out on their bandcamp page. I'm not sure if they have plans to do reprints of their "Hvis pipen tar oss" debut that has a colorized parody album cover of "For All Tid". But I don't currently see hard copies of Dark Medieval Hash or shirts available for sale.
If you're really interested in showing your support for these Norwegian "Weird Al" Yankovics, feel free to contact them on Facebook and ask them about their merch. -
Today, we have a death metal band straight from the bay area of Oakland, California. I'm talking about Wroht with their 2nd full-length album Dissolution.
So without further ado, let's dive into this new album. Kicking things off we have the song "Blood Prison". One thing that I've already noticed about this new record is that it seems to be a compilation of all the singles that this band has been periodically releasing since February.
While I had already heard all of these on the Cycle of Torment EP, it was worth listening again as there have been a few additions to make it a full-length. This means "Blood Prison" is new to me. One thing that I love about this band is how they sorta capture the same magic as the early days of Bloodbath.
Ivan Peric's vocal style is very similar to a young Mikael Åkerfeldt. Yes, this is definitely a good thing. I think many old Bloodbath fans like myself and even some Opeth fans would heavily enjoy Wroht. Normally during one of these album reviews, I would discuss every single track but we're a little behind on the podcast and I have so many albums to get through before the end of the month. So I'm gonna have to cut it short again and only talk about the new songs released on the 18th.
Another new song to me on this full-length is "The Sweet Taste of Venom". I've always liked song titles that are the first lyrics of the song. As I listen closer to the rhythm of the guitar riffs I find myself slightly reminded of Kataklysm. It's cool how Wroht has masterfully caught the vocal essence of Swedish death metal but have blended the groovy melodies of our Canadian neighbors up north. This mix feels like they have created something new.
While we're still comparing this United States death metal with Swedish acts, I'm also kinda picking up some of the catchy vibes from a band like Entrails. I also enjoy how Paul Olsen's bass riffs stand out during the break points of this song. There were a few other songs where the studio mixing allowed listeners like myself to really hear the reverberating bass lines. As someone who has dabbled with the bass guitar myself, I truly appreciate that.
Lastly we have the album title track "Dissolution". It begins with Christian's absolutely insane blast beats. I honestly think this band has saved the best for last because once again, Paul's bass playing is a standout.
Just like with the rest of the album and the Worship Rot debut before it, Joey and Justin play their guitars wonderfully together. Ivan's vocals are just as ferocious as ever. The softer musical moments are soothing and it's the crushing harsh comebacks that are almost deathcore in nature with the chug riffs. I love how there's a "blegh" shortly before a nice shredding guitar solo.
I'll also say that this song is very long, yet you'll enjoy every second of it. Coming from someone who enjoys funeral doom, I'm no stranger to tracks that exceed 12 minutes.
This is definitely one of the better underground death metal albums I have heard all year and that's saying something because I have already listened to over 350 metal albums this year. Not even exaggerating. I'll have to go back and do a recount before Gomthog and I's end of the year podcast episode but it's definitely more than what I heard last year.
If I were to give Dissolution a rating, I would give it a solid 9/10. It's truly fantastic! If you would like to show your support for Wroht, their music is available on most streaming platforms. -
Welcome back metalheads to a brand new episode of The Great Metal Debate podcast. Its Xander back with a new album review. Today I will be talking about the Nashville based thrash metal band called Dead Alive and this is their sophomore record titled The Madness of Dr. Ludvig Von Brainmatter.
The intro track sets the black and white monster movie vibe. That sort of retro feel is most likely what they were going for. That mad scientist and Frankenstein type of classic horror. This of course leads us into our first track "Exhumed"
I love how the vocals for this song are a screeching whisper style. Halfway through the song we get a chug guitar riff that will definitely cause involuntary head banging. The next track "Re-Agent", its accompanied by a very well made music video so you should go give it a watch if you haven't already. The pacing of the music in this one has a slower tune but that does not subtract quality at all.
If you want a fast thrash metal track, look no further than "Flip The Switch". The bass line played by Dedmen Walken is groovy and it perfectly eases you into this rager of a song. While I was listening to this album in my car the other day I was shouting along to the course. The words "Flip The Switch" will not only get stuck in your head but the non-course parts of the song will remind you a lot of old school Overkill.
After that memorable track we have my personal favorite song on this album "Volt". I like this one a lot because it leans heavily into the death trash subgenre. It is without a doubt the fastest song on the record. Deadbeat did a fantastic job pounding away on drums for not just this song but nearly every song on this album.
In fact, his abilities really shine on "No Signs of Life" as well. Once again I'm impressed by his drumming skills.
"Hollow Man" ... Oh you know what? I actually almost bought that movie the other day from a used DVD store. I'm kicking myself for not but maybe I'll swing by later and dammit, I'm getting off the subject again. Yes, this next song has the same title of that old 2000 flick but I'm unsure if the lyrics have anything to do with the film. The lyrics aren't provided on metal-archives at this time.
One song that I think would be awesome played live is "Fear ... Conditioned". The rhythm of it will get people's heads nodding for sure!
The song "Gone Mad" surely doesn't disappoint either but after that one, we get the longest song on The Madness of Dr. Ludvig Von Brainmatter titled "From Beyond". The runtime clocks in at just over six and a half minutes. Definitely lengthy for a thrash metal track but as a Kreator fan, it doesn't bother me.
Lastly we have "Live Wire" which serves as the perfect closer to this album. Remember how I said this album had a Frankenstein feel to it? Well this one begins with a mad scientist shouting "it's alive". As it should. Electrical shock is essential for reanimating corpses in a castle laboratory. The music itself has a mid-80s thrash metal that is reminiscent of Nuclear Assault.
My final thoughts on this album is that it's very solid. Anyone who knows me personally knows that I'm usually quite picky when it comes to thrash metal. But when it comes to this independent release, I feel like their gimmick is useful in the way that it helps them stand out. Of course they are all very talented musicians too.
I'll give my buddy and the rest of his band a 7.5 out of 10. The drawback for me is the studio production. Having listened to this album four times in a row, I can tell you that the sound doesn't seem to be as crystal clear as it should. I'm not sure if that was a creative choice to make the recording sound old and less polished. If they were going for the analog/listening to this through a cassette tape on an old boom box then cool. I personally like the sharper and cleaner sound of modernized digital. But I'm sure there are many thrash heads out there who will dig this great album even more than I did. -
Nervosa frontperson Prika Amaral joins the show in this interview recorded in Nashville prior to the band's performance at The End!
Excerpts from the Nervosa track "Behind The Wall" (Jailbreak, 2023) used with permission from the artist. -
Welcome back to The Great Metal Debate podcast. Today we will be focusing on a black metal band called Kanonenfieber with their second full-length studio album Die Urkatasthophe.
Admittedly I didn't jump on Kanonenfieber for their Menschenmühle debut, and when I did I was blown away. I loved how this band had melodic riffs but still managed to keep the semi-raw sound yet still be catchy.
I have grown tired of the obligatory intro tracks for every fucking metal band in existence but I actually kinda like "Grossmachtfantasie" because it just kinda fits. The first single they released for this new record was titled "Panzerhenker" and it completely flew under my radar. But then I listened to it and was thoroughly impressed. I loved the repeating word "Deutschland" in the lyrics, especially since it has triple vocal layering between the lead vocalist and the backing vocals from both guitar players. Another nice touch was the reverse breakdown towards the conclusion of this track where all the instruments temporarily cease from blasting away so the vocal lead can have a whispering segment.
"Sturmtrupp" begins with guitar chugging with marching drum beat but you hear an actual war whistle in the background before the song picks up its speed. The entire song is groovy and is undoubtedly a real head bobber. "Der Maulwurf" was the 2nd music video. There's undeniably a rhythm to the melodic sounding chorus that seems like it's being yelled in your face. I love how the song ends with a gun cocking sound followed by a gunshot.
The next track "Lviv zu Lemberg" opens with another radio transmission before throwing you head first into the bullet storm that is this band's music. There's a slow break in here but it swings back with a vengeance to roar your ears off. Moving on we have "Waffenbrüder" which was released a while back with a lyrical video that I never got around to seeing. Nothing really stands out much about this one aside from the wonderful guitar melody towards the middle. Nevertheless, it's bad ass much like the rest of this band's work. The next track which is titled "Gott mit der Kavallerie". I love how you hear not just gunfire but war horses too. One complaint that I have about this one is that it seemed longer due to its somewhat repetitious structure.
"Panzerhenker" was another one of the earliest singles released for this new album and for good reason. This one fucking rocks! It sounds aggressive and there's even a funeral doomy section halfway through this song where the guitars have a soft whine to them while the vocalist preforms these slow deep growls. Definitely my favorite part. Its cool how "Ritter der Lüfte" opens with the sound of an old bomber airplane engine. I love how you also hear the planes flying overhead periodically during this song. "Verdun" is a short intermission track where you hear a German soldier speaking in his native tongue loud and clear with the faint sounds of bombs being dropped in the distance. All the while there's a somber guitar tone being plucked to help add to the background noise.
I won't even try to pronounce the name of this song but its the long A word. "Ausblutungsschlacht" Nothing too outstanding about this one. Its a little lengthy with a five and a half minute runtime. I like the piano at the end of this track. Too bad it’s short lived. The final track on this incredible album titled "Als die Waffen kamen" is presented to us in the form of acoustic guitar and clean singing. It may not be considered metal but its certainly a nice little pallet cleanser.
This album is definitely an improvement from the debut. I wish they would have done a callback to the machine fire drum beat that was used in the song "Grabenlieder". It would've been so cool if they did that again but for a bit longer. I'm going to give this one a 8.5/10 rating. Support Kanonenfieber by purchasing merch from their Bandcamp page. You can also listen to their music on all streaming platforms. -
Welcome to another episode of The Great Metal Debate podcast, talking about the Dutch blackened death metal band God Dethroned with their 12th studio album The Judas Paradox. While this band certainly has its slight black metal vibes, I've always seen them as more of a melodic death metal band. Their guitar riffs have always been calm and groovy.
Two years ago, God Dethroned announced they had switched record labels to sign with Rising Phoenix Music for their next full-length. Fast forward to about two months ago when they released another new song titled "Rat Kingdom". This time around I became very excited because the new song seemed to be leagues superior to the previous single they dropped two years ago. The 2nd single released happens to be both the album title track and the first song on the album. I gotta mention the use of choir in the mix. It's a fantastic addition and sounds completely new.
"The Hanged Man" is a song that kicks some serious ass with its Deicide vibes. The layered vocals make it sound extra demonic and it even reminds me of the song "Conquered By Sodom". There's also an old school sounding guitar solo on this one. It's one of the shorter songs but it's definitely a standout.
Moving on we have an interlude track labeled as "Black Heart" which is only 51 seconds long. It's a dissonant choir practicing their vowels with church bells ringing. But it leads straight into that song that I mentioned earlier called "Asmodeus".
This time I really paid attention to this song so I could absorb every note being played. I wanted to really study this one to see if my opinion of this song would change. The results? When I compared this album version of the track to the music video, there weren't any changes made in the sound mixing. It still sounded like the one and only stale track this band has ever made. It felt soulless compared to every banger this band has produced in the past 27 years. I guess a dud was bound to happen sooner or later, although it did sound better than I remembered. Maybe because this time I had a clear head.
"Kashmir Princess" is another song where I remember the riff. As monotonous as it was, I was slightly reminded of one of their earlier works. Not saying that Dave Meester had recycled any riffs but I did get the "Rusty Nails" feeling, albeit, not as heavy.
The next track really picks up the pace again to the God Dethroned we all wanted. "Hubris Anorexia" begins with three long screams that are layered in succession. It's here where I have to give both Henri and Dave credit for their winding guitar efforts. Dave also continues to show off his skills as a shredder in "The Eye of Providence".
"Hailing Death" is another banger that will make you shout "Hailing Death" every time they say it throughout the song's first minute. This one has another gorgeous guitar riff at the halfway point of the track. Too bad it doesn't last long. It does make a very brief return towards the end of the song which fits as a neat little outro.
"Broken Bloodlines" wastes absolutely no time going hard and fast from the first fucking second! The speed of the guitar chugs are aggressively heavy and will make any Taylor Swift fan's head explode.
And finally we come to the last song on the album "War Machine". When I saw this song title, I automatically assumed it was a Black Sabbath cover but then I thought, wait a minute, Six Feet Under already did a cover of that. As I listened to this song, I figured out right away that this is an original song by God Dethroned that simply has a name that has been used before. The song is okay, but not their best work. I feel like "Hailing Death" should've been the last track because it had the audio fade out at the end. I feel like it would've worked a lot better.
So what's the verdict? God Dethroned has never had a bad album and The Judas Paradox isn't their first. It is not a disappointment by any means. I'm going to rate The Judas Paradox a 7.5/10. -
The podcast is joined by frontman Shaughnessy McDaniel of power metal upstarts Siege Perilous to talk the band's new EP "Creation's Call" the evening before their performance at the inaugural Mile High Power Fest!
Credits: excerpts from the Siege Perilous track "Brothers Of The Five" (Creation's Call, 2024) used with permission from the artist. -
Welcome back metal heads to another album review here on The Great Metal Debate podcast. Today we will be talking about a German black metal band called Eisregen with their ... Holy dog shit! This is the band's 16th full-length studio album? What the fuck? How come I'm just now finding out about these guys. Ohhhh, that's why. Its because its their first album to be released through Napalm Records. Gotcha.
But damn, these guys have been busier than a one armed machinist. According to Metal-Archives, they have consistently released new music roughly once or per year or once every two years since 1995. In 1998 they released both their debut AND their second album.
I have heard from Gomthog that these guys are controversial in their home country. I'm not sure what for but their band bio says that they have been banned in their own country and aren't allowed to play certain songs live. People under the age of 16 aren't allowed to buy their physical media from entertainment stores.
For now, lets focus on their newest full-length titled Abart. Not to do a completely half-assed job on this review but I've decided that I'm not going to try to pronounce any of the song titles or names of the band members. Sure, it might be lazy but I received the press release for this album a full week in advance and here we are a few days past the release date of August 16th, so I kinda need to hurry the fuck up.
My cause for the delay? I was busy with another review. A review that will never see the light of day. I was gonna do one for the new Mushroomhead album before I realized that it was just me rambling on about my personal nostalgia for the old material only to give Call The Devil a 5/10. There, you got two reviews in one! Looks like y'all got more than you bargained for.
Back to Eisregen, the only reason I got the promo from something on Napalm Records is because the distribution for the American copies were being released through Massacre Records. Lucky me.
I have another extremely hot take so you might want to get your oven mitts on. Many people would call me a poser for being a Rammstein fanboy but ... I love the industrial metal phase that the black metal band Samael went through during the mid-2000s. I think it's Samael's best work. I know, I know, gather your torches and pitchforks to run me out of the metal community. I don't give a shit.
What does that have to do with Eisregen? Eisregen sounds like Samael's 2004 masterpiece Reign of Light album raw dogged it with Rammstein's 2003 masterpiece Sehnsucht. Eisregen has that harsh flavor of German dialect. The band's native language spoils the listener with the continuous rolling tongue accent.
Okay, I lied. I'll pronounce this one for you. The opening track "Am Abgrund" had a music video that was dropped a few weeks ago and its how I discovered this band in the first place. I thoroughly enjoyed the combination of the sandpaper voice over the calming piano keys.
The entire album mixes the traditional black metal style with softer moments. The fusion of polar opposites give off the perfect blend of a musical Yen and Yang. That's what the overall structure provides, a balance that is easy listening. At least in my personal opinion, I find this 1 hour and 2 minute composition to be flawless. I have zero critiques which means only one thing.
Eisregen - Abart is the only album I have reviewed all year that I award a 10/10 rating. It's fucking fantastic! What this band lacks in melodic guitar riffs, it more than compensates with plenty of symphonies.
Eisregen's music is not on bandcamp and I have no clue where to obtain physical merch but their music is on all other streaming platforms. If you liked this review, be sure to like and subscribe to our platforms and share our links everywhere. -
Xander checks in with extreme metal aficionados Dead Reckoning at their performance in Tampa FL as they tour the US in support of their newest album "Red".
Excerpts from the Dead Reckoning track "Break Me" (Red, 2024) used with permission from the artist. - Vis mere
