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INFECTED
DISARRAY
Promo
2001 (CD-R)
9:43min
This
3 song promo CD-R is just a little taste of things to come, cause
UK Grinders INFECTED DISARRAY will release their complete full length
debut “Disseminating Obscenity” on French Deadsun Records
in October 2001. All tracks on this promo are taken from that forthcoming
album and are nothing but e.x.t.r.e.m.e.!! The band is blasting
through their material with hysterical shrieky and deep low grunted
vocals, devastating and very brutal riffing and an overall hyperspeed
snare attack. As I’m basically not into Grindcore, this is nothing
I personally would freak out on, but from an objective point of
view this could be an interesting name to keep an eye on in the
future. Grindcore maniacs will certainly get a kick out of it. All
necessary further info on the band’s website at: http://www.infected.fsnet.co.uk
Frank
Stöver
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INFECTED
MALIGNITY
Demo
2005
(self-financed)
9:05min
This violent
four piece outfit delivers really damned good brutal, ferocious
killer Death Metal. INFECTED MALIGNITY are saluting from Tokyo and
puke out their first three song demo, simply entitled "Demo
2005". It's unbelievable that the band was just founded in
Sept. 2004 by three ex-members of DEFIANT MANNER
(Katsuyuki, Takuma & Yuuto... Keiichi completes the line-up) as their tracks can already compete (at least in my humble
opinion) with the top bands of this genre around this globe.
'Desperate Death', 'Revenge To Capitalism' and 'Cruel
Recollection' are excellent, very well executed hyper brutal US-styled Death Metal assaults which should please every fan of
fast and guttural stuff. Within the roughly nine minutes the band
blasts through the three tracks with merciless speed, at
the right moment adding some cool mid paced doublebass passages and
groovy rhythms before starting blasting again. The vocals are
deep and guttural but not so extreme into the frognoise
department. The production of the three rippers is excellent
if you consider that it is just a demo. There are many albums out
there which have a worse sound than this demo here. So I
can highly recommend it to all fans of DEEDS OF FLESH, DISGORGE
(US), GORGASM, DYING FETUS and others to check this Japanese horde
out. INFECTED MALIGNITY belongs to the top Japanese masters of
brutality next to VOMIT REMNANTS. Get in touch with them at infectedmalignity@hotmail.com
and visit their website for merchandise infos under http://sound.jp/infectedmalignity.
By the way: The band will also play at the TOKYO DEATHFEST on 30th
April 2005.
Michael
Oelschlegel
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INFECTING THE SOUL
Promotional Demo 2003
12:37min
The
nucleus of the Chicago based five piece INFECTING THE SOUL already
got together in the summer of 1992, but it obviously took them quite
a while to finally complete their ranks as this 3-song demo from
2003 seems to be their first musical sign of life ever since. But
anyway, it certainly is a nice little taste of their forthcoming
debut album "Of Divine Shadow Purity", which is about to
see the light of day in the not too distant future and which will
feature all these songs as well. Musically speaking INFECTING THE
SOUL is definitely not your typical oldschool Chicago Death / Thrash
style act, but a lot more inspired by melodic guitarwork / -
harmonies, kinda close to what the Swedish scene had been offering
over the last couple of years. But all those Gothenburg-style haters
among you should continue reading here nevertheless as INFECTING THE
SOUL managed to mix that with a rather thrashy type of songwriting
and a brutally growled vocal delivery - a combination which (in a
way) is already kinda unique again. Plus: their melodies never
really sound too happy or cheesy in any way, which is absolutely
fine with me! Their influences come from completely diverse acts
such as AT THE GATES, MONSTROSITY, SUFFOCATION or DIMMU BORGIR and
the result is definitely raw death-thrashing Metal! The members of
the band basically got together via the internet, have previously
been involved in several underground acts such as Avernus,
Afterlife, Neuro Toxin and Insides Out (just in case you wanna know)
and therefore sound really matured already, and the solid, crunchy
production of this demo fits their material pretty good. So, all in
all not bad at all, even though I personally mostly prefer an
overall more brutal musical approach. But: the demo is available FOR
FREE from the band's website www.infectingthesoul.com
so feel free to check them out. Snail mail contact: Infecting The
Soul, 3620 West 216 Place, Matteson, Illinois 60443, USA
Frank
Stöver
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INFERNAL
Infernal
(MCD)
(Crook'd Records)
13:09min
If you considered buying
this for the simple reason that INFERNAL is the new home of former
NASTY SAVAGE frontman "Nasty" Ronnie Galletti, think again.
This release is a slap in the face of every NASTY SAVAGE fan in the
first place, but also for Death Metal maniacs in general. This 3-tracker
(plus intro and outro) originally was a demo tape which original release
dates back to 1995 already. And the quality of the recording is nothing
more than that. I don't understand why such a brilliant vocalist as
Nasty Ronnie is wasting his talents for low grunted nonsense like
this. Musically INFERNAL is slightly technical, yet very average Death
Metal with a very poor executed vocal delivery of Mr. Galletti himself.
The only song worth a mention probably is 'Sardonic Mosaic',
as it features one of Ronnie's wellknown high screams and a short,
moody keyboard middle section. Poorly packaged (the inside artwork
was already used on MORBID ANGEL's "Covenant" disc)
and definitely not worth being released on compact disc. A full length
album is announced already, so let's wait for that.
Frank Stöver
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INFERNAL
Summon Forth The Beast (MCD)
(Hammerheart
Records)
15:35min
Already
the 2nd mini-CD from the men around Blackmoon, this time
as a taster for the upcoming album on Hammerheart in spring.
However, I think that this release is quite mediocre. Two own tracks
plus three coversongs in just a quarter of an hour do not really
justify that this is being bought. The own songs, however, remind me
of – surprise surprise – DARK FUNERAL, straightforward and
without compromises to the point. Nothing spectacular but as DARK
FUNERAL themselves will probably need until 2004 to bring out a new
album, this might interest those who need a daily dose of fast
Swedish Black Metal. I simply didn’t need any of their albums
after “The Secrets Of The Black Arts”, so I actually feel quite
untouched. The songs that INFERNAL wrote should be satisfactory to
fans. Then we have three coversongs, ‘Bleed For The Devil’ of
MORBID ANGEL, which seems to be quite accurate although a bit
straight for a MORBID ANGEL-song, but as I do not know the original
(and probably half the staff might wish to kill me for this) I am
not sure if INFERNAL (Alzazmon and Typhoon are ex-D.F. as well) are
able to make this a worthy cover. Following is VON’s ‘Devil
Pig’, which after all is the best song on this. And bearing in
mind the ‘Satanic Blood’-cover on “The Secrets Of…”
instead of looking for further INFERNAL-stuff I’d get my hand on
stuff from VON. A sheer brilliant song. And finally we have another
BATHORY-cover, this time their fan-anthem ‘Of Doom’. To be
honest, I think ‘Of Doom’ is besides the intro the least cover
worthy song on “Under The Sign Of The Black Mark” but I suspect
it is the only that remained uncovered until now. This song
nevertheless proves best that the production (done by INFERNAL what
I expect to be Alzazmon’s homestudio as he has engineered etc.) is
far from perfect and varying from song to song. This needs to be
risen for the full-length. All in all, I think only recommendable
for those who are caught completely by fast Swedish Black Metal, if
at all.
Nhashi
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INFERNAL CONJURATION
Tremendous Plague (Demo 2007)
(self-financed)
16:39min
A Mexican newcomer delivering us oldschool Death Metal mentioning
influences from bands as DEATH, AUTOPSY, PESTILENCE, MORGOTH, MORBID
ANGEL, IMMOLATION, SEPULTURA, DEICIDE, SADISTIC INTENT or GOREFEST.
Well, not the worst bands if you ask me. INFERNAL CONJURATION is a
Mexican Death Metal band which started in 2006 with their brand of
South American Death Metal. I was always a huge fan of South
American Death Metal, just take bands as SHUB NIGGURATH, THE CHASM,
MORTEM or NECROCCULTUS and you should know what I’m talking about.
INFERNAL CONJURATION surely don’t reinvent the wheel, but
especially considering the fact that this is their first demo I have
to admit that this recording impressed me quite a lot. None of these
South American Death Metal bands were technically skilled so much,
but even more important than their musicianship was to create a
certain atmosphere and that’s what I found here, too. Probably
INFERNAL CONJURATION still need another demo tape before recording a
first album, but talking for myself I will give them the time and
will follow this cool band and will see how they develop. To be
honest, it’s far more interesting and worth your money to support
a band like this than your average Death Metal recording you find in
every store. Get in touch with them directly this way and ask for
the price of “Tremendous Plague”: infernalconjuration@gmail.com
or www.myspace.com/infernalconjuration.
Thomas Ehrmann
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INFERNAL LEGION
Your Prayers Mean Nothing
(Moribund Records)
33:30min
Whereas most US Death Metal bands tend to go for the blasting,
utterly brutal direction INFERNAL LEGION's second album (their debut
on Moribund, "Angelicide" was self released in 2001)
represents a fascinating and absolutely convincing counterpoint.
Blending older MORBID ANGEL ("Blessed Are The Sick",
"Covenant" phase) with an individual sense of melodics,
moods and diverse tempos INFERNAL LEGION offer heavy, dark, epic and
surprisingly atmospheric Death Metal without sounding cheesy, but
they succeed to remain true to the oldschool! An album such as this
is pretty unusual today, it's dark, it's evil, it's capturing and
driving, despite the fact there is not a small amount of doomy or
mid-tempo passages, e.g. in 'Forest Of The Diseased' on it. Also,
opening with a really cool, yet simplistic instrumental that ends
with chiming church bells and a cool bass line, is something
different. As a fan of satanic or at least blasphemous lyrics and
imagery INFERNAL LEGION have another big plus for me, because with
the titletrack or songs like 'Inverted Crucifix', 'Christian
Genocide' they totally go into that direction. Vocal-wise mostly
traditional growls emerge Josh Smith's throat, but there are some
additional screams by guitarist Doug Stern as well. Musically an
interesting variety of up-tempo passages, double-bass driven
mid-tempo and really doomy sections is offered here, the songwriting
is inventive and surprising. Who associates Death Metal only with
speed might be wrong if he chooses to check this band out, but to me
"Your Prayers Mean Nothing" is one of the most fresh
sounding albums I heard in some time and it clearly shows that Death
Metal can have depth, a gripping atmosphere and does not always has
to emphasize brutality. "Your Prayers Mean Nothing" is
like a Death Metal album with Black Metal moods and intensity,
without sounding again like Swedish Black / Death, but has its own
identity and high quality to offer. The production is powerful and
not too clean, the layout unspectacular but effective and overall
this is a damn good album that has the little something at least I'm
always looking for. On www.infernallegion.com
you find some MP3s (also the entire "Angelicide" album
for free download! - Frank), on www.moribundcult.com
you'll find all required information regarding the label...
Stefan Franke
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INFERNÄL MÄJESTY
One Who Points To Death
(Galy Records)
46:33min
I've followed this Canadian act since their inception back in 1986
and have been one of the few that did enjoy their second album
"Unholier Than Thou" from 1998 - and in all honesty a lot
more than their overpraised debut. As a lot of you know it,
INFERNÄL MÄJESTY have started as a Thrash Metal act at a time when
Thrash was the big thing, "Unholier..." showed signs that
the band had decided to incorporate Death Metal elements in their
songwriting, well on this third effort it's a bit more obvious
particularly in the vocal department with Chris "Christifer"
Bailey's voice plus the addition of a few blast beats. This said,
don't expect - thanksfully - them to have fallen in the actual Death
Metal cauldron and have come out of it with the worst elements, no
fuckin' way! The majority of their trademarks are still here and in
top form i.e. that neverending rifferama which separates them from
the wannabees around. Holy shit, if somebody could give copies of
this to the old ladies (guitar team) from SLAYER and EXODUS, then
chances would finally exist to see those once godly acts returning
to their roots! Hallman and Terror capacities to come up with
intense / distinctive riffs most of the time are still intact and I
fuckin' love this. Now this is what I call art unlike those billions
of acts whose songs are just a bunch of mindless riffs put together
and whose songs are just interchangeable and plain boring.
Unfortunately not everything is perfect as a few tunes comes out as
being boring at worst, very average at best like the title track or
'Angels And Acid' but it always has been the problem with them as
they never managed to come up with a 100% winner. Also I could live
without some deathly singing parts but there's worse. So, as a whole,
a third solid album from a band that have never changed their style,
all power and respect to them. Thrash / Death Metal lies in bands
like INFERNÄL MÄJESTY because they truly know what a Metal song is
all about and that makes all the difference. This album will be soon
released by Black Lotus records from Greece for Europe.
Laurent Ramadier
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INFERNAL REVULSION
Devastate Under Hallucination
(Goregiastic Records)
37:07min
INFERNAL REVULSION are a Death Metal band hailing from Japan who have only released a self-financed single before this, their debut full-length for Goregiastic Records. These guys, like their fellow countryman VOMIT REMNANTS and INFECTED MALIGNITY, play US-styled
Death Metal in the vein of SUFFOCATION, PYREXIA, DYING FETUS (early) etc... The first track on the album,
'Leviathan' is a really good instrumental song (this seems to be a trend with some Death Metal albums lately…) with some nice leads in the middle of it that got my hopes up for the rest of the album. The next song starts and everything is alright until the vocals kick in. Now I know a lot of people complain about brutal
Death Metal vocals, but I happen to like them the vast majority of the time, and usually the more ridiculously low and guttural the better, but something about
this guy's voice grated at me. He has ultra-deep frog-vocals which are pretty high in the mix and kind of distracted me from the music, which is too bad because I actually enjoyed the songs. If the vocals don’t bother you then what you have here is some decent, albeit generic, brutal
Death Metal with a pretty uninspiring production. For those who care, the cover art, which was fantastic, was done by Tony Koehl (GUTTURAL SECRETE, ABYSMAL TORMENT, SEPTYCAL GORGE). You can find out more info and buy the
CD here: www.goregiasticrecords.com
Michael Kersten
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INFERNAL
VENGEANCE
Dual Mayhem
(Trinity
Records)
37:47min
Karl Beckmann’s (ex-MITHOTYN,
ex-INDUNGEON) new band is called INFERNAL VENGEANCE. With some
hesitation one might still call it Melodic Death/Thrash Metal,
especially when thinking of all those bands sounding like MAIDEN
with a singer who can’t sing considering themselves as Death Metal.
INFERNAL VENGEANCE are not that faceless as all those IN FLAMES
clones and to be quite honest, their music is rather hymnic but
dirty Heavy Metal with extreme vocals made for beer drinkers and
headbangers. To keep this short, “Dual Mayhem” is a well
balanced, rather slow album made to be played live. Each song has
its own vibes and, consequently, the album doesn’t get boring at
all. The only thing
that slightly annoys me is the somewhat embarassing intro for ‘By
The End Of The Day’: obviously a Viking captain holding a speech
just before the attack. They should have recorded that one in
Swedish, I think, because the Viking’s English sounds pretty bad (both
pronunciation and grammar). Apart from that, this is really good
stuff. www.infernalvengeance.com
Ramon
Claassen
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INFERNAL WAR
Redesekration – The Gospel Of Hatred And Apotheosis Of Genocide
(Agonia Records)
37:19min
This
Polish five piece gained themselves quite a lot of negative
attention already because of the fact that they used to come up with
a mini album entitled "Infernal SS" as well as songtitles like 'Jewhammer', 'Genocide Command' or 'Czarne Legiony
SS (Black Legions Of SS)'. Two members of the band (guitarist Triumphator and drummer
Stormblast) are also part of THUNDERBOLT, another Polish Black Metal
act, that had to deal with similar accusations when they started
out. Well, I'm not sure how serious they were in all this nor if
they were actually really involved in the NSBM scene... but at least
the guys were clever enough (?!) to set the record straight by now
by publishing the following statement on their
website: "INFERNAL WAR is the audial essence of pure inhuman
terror, a soundtrack to genocide. The band stands for the
extermination of weak and ignorant human masses, being neither a
political band nor a NSBM band. INFERNAL WAR supports wars,
genocides, murders and the total death of this beautiful modern
world... Hail Satan!" If they really had a NSBM past, this
certainly won't gain them many supporters in that movement any
longer. Decide for yourselves! On the musical side of things, their
most current full length "Redesekration - Gospel Of Hatred And
Apotheosis Of Genocide" is one of the strongest extreme Metal
releases I've heard in quite some time! Imagine the intensity of
"Panzer Division MARDUK", mixed with a SLAYER-esque guitar
department ("Hell Awaits" / "Reign In Blood"
period), some vintage MORBID ANGEL overtones here and there and the
raw into your face attitude of ANGEL CORPSE and you're already kinda
close. On top of that you'll be hearing a hateful, yet very
impressive voice and top notch musicianship (even the bass is often
audible)... and all that extremely professional and very powerful
produced (while the sound of the snare drum reminds me a bit on
"Infernal Overkill" by DESTRUCTION)! I wouldn't even label
these guys "Black Metal" (although they visually go for
this genre with all the corpsepaint and stuff) as their songwriting
incorporates too many Death and Thrash Metal ingredients. And the
icing on the cake is a killer duet between vocalist Warcrimer and
ANGEL CORPSE's Pete Helmkamp on the track 'Regime Of Terror'! What a
blast, absolutely amazing! Unfortunately the printing / layout of
the CD booklet / traycard turned out a bit too dark for my taste and
the chosen fonts are partly hardly readable. But except for that: a
helluva monster of an album! www.agoniarecords.com
Frank Stöver
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INFERNO
Uctivani Temne Zurivosti
(Undercover Records)
42:03min
Underground veterans INFERNO from the Czech Republic haunt us with the, let's say 25th release. Besides the band's countless split-releases, a handful of EPs, 2
demos and some live-outputs, "Uctivani Temne Zurivosti" is the 4th full-length album. I do not know all of INFERNO's operas, but the ones I know, I have enjoyed. And, "Uctivani Temne Zurivosti" is in my ears the best one of these maniacs. It incorporates somehow the atmosphere of MASTER'S HAMMER's and ROOT's early exhibits, especially regarding their high amount of vitality and delight in playing. INFERNO definitely has developed into one of the leading bands within the
Black / Death Metal underground since 1996. Any detailed descriptions are quite dispensable. An utterly strong, native metallic, sophisticated and varied masterpiece. Buy!
www.undercover-records.de
Andi Bauer
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INFERNOISE
Chainsaw’s Law
(Locomotive Records)
40:04min
Quite difficult to start the review of this Spanish band which is
presenting their official debut with “Chainsaw’s Law”.
INFERNOISE are musically far away from home and can be located on
the other side of the ocean right between the Bay Area Metal camp
and their American Heavy Metal brothers. Just imagine a wild bastard
of PANTERA and TESTAMENT and taking into account every single song
quite enjoyable. The problem is the similarity of the songs and
after listening to the complete album a certain feeling of
predictability is unavoidable. Maybe this sounds too hard because
the band is not playing 40 minutes of totally inspired extreme
Metal, especially if you keep in mind that they have traveled to
Finland to record “The Chainsaw’s Law” under the best possible
conditions (Sonic Pump Studios). It’s a debut and far away at the
horizon there is definitely light, but INFERNOISE need at least a
further release to fully use their given potential. www.infernoise.com,
www.locomotiverecords.com
Matthias Auch
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INFESTATION
Mass Immolation
(Lunasound Recording)
35:49min
Just
like Denmark's THORIUM these four (to me) previously unknown UK monsters
seem to worship the one and only DEICIDE quite immensely. But I couldn't
care less, cause their fourteen track debut "Mass Immolation"
is not only a lot more intense than THORIUM's "Ocean Of Blasphemy",
it's even far more brutal than the originators of this style. The
drum sound is a bit too clinical for my taste (especially the double
bass and snare) but INFESTATION mutilate themselves with so much velocity
through their material that all of a sudden it doesn't seem to matter
anymore. Tracks like 'Legions Of Death', 'Desecrate',
'Butcher Knife' and 'Infest' are not even reaching a
playing time of two minutes! Plug in and practice what you preach
seems to be their motto. Highly intense, yet incredibly tight executed
songwriting, razor sharp guitarwork and a voice straight from the
pits of hell. Their lyrical themes are (of course) also dealing with
the left hand path, but judging them by some of their songtitles ('Evil,
Evil', 'Black Pope', 'Book Of Lies'...) are a bit
too cliché for my taste, but what the fuck... All in all this is a
solid foundation destined not only to gain just a little attention,
but also to build a longer lasting career on. After all it's really
cool to see bands like INFESTATION (or also DESECRATION) coming from
the UK again.
Frank Stöver
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INFESTDEAD
/ DARKCIDE
Son Of The Darkside / Lord Of Evil (Split 7” EP)
(Ancient Enemy Records)
This
is a fine gem for all Dan Swanö fans that are collecting more or
less everything from him. This nicely packed 7” EP includes two
unreleased songs, one from each band, both recorded and offering the
perfect Unisound Studio sound. The INFESTDEAD song included here is
called 'Dead Earth' and was recorded back in autumn 1993 as written
on the inlay. This is Death Metal which you usually only can expect
from bands from the USA, very rhythm based with great and tight
riffs and long guitarsolos. The screams from Dread are cool as well
so all I can say that this side of the 7” EP is very good.
Everyone who knows their old CDs knows what I’m talking about. The
other side is DARKCIDE’s own and in my ears even better than the
INFESTDEAD-side, offering us the unreleased song 'Lord Of Evil'
recorded back in summer 1994. To be honest, I don’t know if
DARKCIDE have released something in the past as this band is totally
new to me. Dan Swanö is taking care of the (ultradeep) vocals,
guitars and bass, Day DiSyraah (PAN-THY-MONIUM fans might scream
while reading this name) is playing the guitars and keyboards and a
person called Raal Pauga is raping the drums. DARKCIDE can convince
with fast brutal Death Metal in the oldschool vein with great deep
vocals and some great keyboards here and there. Really refreshing,
awesome!!! This is Ancient Enemy Records’ first release, as far as
I know strictly limited to 333 copies and sells for 7 € which I
think is quite expensive for an approximately 8 minutes long record,
but all of us know that postage sucks everywhere and as this is
truly a collector’s item I think no real supporter won’t mind
this price. Not to forget that this is an official release in
agreement with Dan Swanö. From my point of view a label like
Ancient Enemy Records should be supported in any positive way as
this is surely a non-profit release and each single cent John is
earning with this one will be spend on his upcoming releases and the
names of the releases sound amazing: PHANTASMAGORIA, DEVOURMENT
(SWE, not the American ones) and, hell yes, MASTICATION!!! Support
this label and get in touch with John (john_aer@hotmail.com)
and check out www.myspace.com/ancient_enemy_records
for ordering infos and further details.
Thomas
Ehrmann
BACK
INFINITED HATE
Revel In Bloodshed
(Displeased Records)
37:50min
If you're following the happenings within the Death Metal
underground pretty carefully (which I am sure you do, otherwise you
wouldn't read this now), you will most certainly already be aware of
the fact that Holland's SINISTER have called the quits again. But
vocalist Rachel Kloosterwaard and guitarist Ron van de Polder, who
teamed up with HOUWITSER's (and also former SINISTER) drummer Aad Kloosterwaard
(who actually formed this "new" band in August 2003) are
already back in business with a new release, which musically isn't
too different from what SINISTER always stood for. I'm not exactly
sure what made them change the band's name into INFINITED HATE for
this (probably legal reasons or whatever), but it doesn't really
matter anyway, cause if you always enjoyed the uncompromising
straight ahead brutality of SINISTER, you most certainly will dig
"Revel In Bloodshed" in the same way. According to the
label's infosheet they always wanted to mix oldschool Death Metal
with the more brutal US style and weren't able to do so within
SINISTER, which I consider as bollocks. I mean, even though SINISTER
had been in existence pretty long, they'd never really played the
typical oldschool Death Metal and always had a far more brutal
approach, with several references to the US scene anyway. But what
the heck... The album features 10 songs, plus a very intense cover
of the old KREATOR classic 'Flag Of Hate', all in all it is lacking
a bit in variation, but is highly recommended anyway, in particular
to fans of SINISTER and brutal Death Metal in general. And as the
very cool artwork of Graal (BEHEMOTH, VADER etc.) also compliments
the visual side in a perfect manner, there's nothing really to
complain about here. For all further info check out the band's
website at www.infinitedhate.tk.
Label contact: www.displeasedrecords.com
Frank Stöver
BACK
INFINITED
HATE
Heaven Termination
(Displeased Records)
40:30min
INFINITED HATE – I must admit that I was not aware of the
existence of this act as a matter of fact. In any case – the name
bears a certain reminiscence of the essence HATE ETERNAL obviously
try to convey with their name. Talking about originality…!? Anyway
– let’s talk about the music which is of interest here. This is
the second official output of the band that features members of
SINISTER and ABORTED if I am not mistaken.
“Heaven Termination” was recorded at Excess Studios (PYAEMIA,
DISAVOWED…). The sound is ok, although a bit too mellow according
to my taste… too many basses, I need sustain you know. The
compositions you’ll find on this output are superb, that’s for
sure. Well, one can observe a lot of details, well-conceived riffs,
intricate and extremely solid craftsmanship in terms of guitars,
bass and drumming. The riffs remind me of post-"Spiritual
Healing" DEATH (with regard to the rather complex, warped
guitar-work), SLAYER, EXODUS (regarding the Thrash-inspired passages),
HATEBREED, DEFLESHED… (concerning the aggression). Again, the
compositional base, that is, the music itself is brilliant, full of
energy, ideas and inspiration. The only one thing I do not like
about this one are the vocals executed by SINISTER’s Rachel. I
know that people will be pissed off about this statement, but female
vocals in Death Metal are not my thing. The vocal-lines don’t give
additional kicks, do not provide aggression, do not get a grip on
you. But that is the only negative thing about this one really.
Otherwise a nice and solid piece of work. www.infinitedhate.tk.
F.
Cthulhu E.
BACK
INFINITUM OBSCURE
Internal Dark Force
(Utterly Somber Creations)
40:53min
The 9 song album follow up to the split with ANCIENT GODS, that does
indeed bear with it two songs from that outing: 'Storm Of Impious
Hatred' and 'Beyond A Dying Sun'. Unfortunately studio-wise
"Internal Dark Force" seems not as well produced for
INFINITUM OBSCURE as was witnessed on the aforementioned split CD.
Like if you were to throw a good sleeping blanket over your speakers
while this CD was spinning you would get the same end result. A true
shame as the amount of time put into this record, the well thought
out music, and the vocals far outweigh the lackluster production and
can at times
slip past your attention. Where a band of this caliber should have a
good hold of your ears and ought to be ripping the skin off your
face! Contact: Roberto Lizarraga at info@infinitumobscure.com
or www.infinitumobscure.com
Wes Rhodes
BACK
INFINITUM
OBSCURE
Obscuridad Eterna (7" EP)
(Blood Harvest Records)
09:26min
With YOTZ # 34 (“year of the zombie” - for those who don’t
know how Blood Harvest Records count their release) Blood Harvest
Records offers us a recording from February 2007 of Mexican based
Death Metal outfit INFINITUM OBSCURE. This band already released a
few other recordings of which their debut album “Internal Dark
Force” from 2006 might be their most known one. ‘Obscurity
Rises…’ makes the start as some kind of instrumental riff
lasting Metal-intro before the song flows directly into the blasting
drums of ‘Possessing The Fire’. INFINITUM OBSCURE’s brand of
Death Metal is of the faster kind of it with many blastbeats, but
also a huge dose of unusual Black Metal-guitar harmonies which suit
them very good. When I listened to ‘Possessing The Fire’ for the
first time I had to think of DISSECTION because of those guitar
riffs which are kinda unique for such a brutal form of Death Metal.
Well, DISSECTION and especially Jon Nödtveidt get praised then on
side B with a cover version of their classic ‘Son Of The
Mourning’ from their 7” EP “Into Infinite Obscurity” from
1991. All I can say is that “Oscuridad Eterna” is a must have
for all true underground supporter and INFINITUM OBSCURE another
name in the Death Metal world to keep an eye on. Available through www.bloodharvest.se.
Check out www.infinitumobscure.com
and www.myspace.com/infinitumobscure.
Thomas Ehrmann
BACK
INFINITUM OBSCURE
Sub Atris Caelis
(Blood Harvest Records / Deathgasm Records)
38:11min
Really a strong record this second full length "Sub Atris
Caelis" by the Mexican INFINITUM OBSCURE which is finally out!!
This band already displayed some vicious ancient Death Metal on the
split with ANCIENT GODS and their debut "Internal Dark
Force" from 2005 (released 2006) and luckily didn't change the
winning formula!! First thing that got my blood ran faster was the
kind of echoing production already presented on their former
effort(s) and with a better drumsound. It's like you're listening to
something from the first wave of Death Metal and despite its old
character really something fresh to hear these days. If you don't
have a clue (which I doubt) think of something unpolished,
untriggered and not too heavy like THE CHASM. Each song is dark and
obscure with an intense riffing massacre executed by genious Roberto
Lizarraga. Furthermore lots of breaks and tempo changes and a really
great atmosphere. The tension in each song is growing after each
break and will bring back forgotten moods that only true classics
are able to. Like on "Internal Dark Force" you'll
also find dark and compelling yet beautiful accoustic and classical
parts which make the darkness even more sinister. Everything just
fits right and so well done it's almost unbelievable! I think I've
said enough, you'd better hear it yourself! If you didn't got their
awesome debut (yet) but your playlist contains killers like
NECROPHOBIC, THE CHASM, HACAVITZ, SADISTIC INTENT and MORBID ANGEL
you should NOT pass this one! Get this helluva deathstorm as soon as
you can! Released through the great and dedicated Blood Harvest
Records and Deathgasm Records so there goes your last excuse!
Support this marvellous act in every possible way! www.infinitumobscure.com,
www.myspace.com/infinitumobscure. Label contact: www.deathgasm.com,
www.bloodharvest.se.
Michael Tak
BACK
INFINITY
The Birth Of Death
(Total Holocaust Records)
50:20min
One should not waste much time talking about the Swedish label's
name, fact is that there are no Nazis behind it and as far as I'm
concerned this rather tasteless, political un-correct moniker
does not bother me much. The last thing this album by Dutch
Black Metallers INFINITY would deserve would be getting shunned for
the label's badly selected name. "The Birth Of Death", the
band's second effort after the debut in 2003 "Nostalgia For The
Dark Age" is simply awesome and though completely unoriginal
among the best Black Metal albums I have heard lately. Fast oldschool
intensity, dark spirit and driving aggression alternate with moody
slower sections, epic acoustic guitar interruptions and result in an
absorbing journey into the glorious Black Metal past of the early to
mid 90s. A reason for INFINITY's close proximity to the ancient
ideals and musical elements of that time might be the drummer's
participation in FUNERAL WINDS, who represent the essence of oldschool
Black Metal as well, but who knows... On "The Birth Of Death"
the grim vocals, the uncompromising raw yet powerful production, the
versatile drumming, the skilful arranging of speed and atmosphere
coalesce in a true masterpiece of Black Metal offering everything a
dedicated Black Metal fan loves about this type of music. This album
is simply fantastic and beside the new ARMAGEDDA album "Ond
Spiritism" the one I'd personally recommend people looking for
new stuff in this crowded genre. Get it!!! Links of interest: http://www.geocities.com/infinity_blackmetal
and http://thr.cjb.net
Stefan Franke
BACK
INFINITY
The Arcane Wisdom Of Shadows
(Bloodred Horizon Records)
54:40min
The king is dead and his throne is completely deserted since the
almighty DISSECTION passed away. But there is still hope that one
day a band will come (sounds like a prophecy) which is in the
position to close the big gap between the Death & Black Metal
scene. In near future INFINITY could be claiming this throne as
their property. Their latest release via Bloodred Horizon is their
fourth album and even if the band is part of the Dutch scene for
twelve years “The Arcane Wisdom of Shadows” is my first contact
with them. The release starts furious with ‘From The Eternal Sea
He Rises’, a powerful song whose major trademark is the acoustic
guitar break within the song and also the follow up with a great
drum section is more than a good song. The first songs of “The
Arcane Wisdom Of Shadows” are showing very directly that INFINITY
are using the same weapons as the once named king but still with
enough own power and passion. Especially the effective (meaning
minimized) use of the acoustic guitar and some nice effects plus the
high technical level makes it a pleasure to listen to this release.
The last handful of songs before the album is closed with a great
cover of (not really a surprise) ‘Nights Blood` from DISSECTION
are showing some further influences from NAGLFAR up to DARK FUNERAL.
So a perfect release for the so called scene fetish’s but also an
interesting release for all newcomers. www.infinity-blackmetal.com,
www.bloodred-horizon-records.com
Matthias Auch
BACK
INFLICTION
Trails Of Obliteration
(Revenge Productions)
33:28min
Recorded back in 2002, this is not the new album by Texas-based
veterans Infliction,
but their first effort, for the first time professional pressed and
properly released by the strenuous Revenge Productions. Primarily
given around by the band itself on CD-R, “Trails Of
Obliteration” actually should be brought out on Hound’s TXDM
Underground Recs. but that failed when the label ceased finally. Now
you can grab it again thanks to Dani. Let’s switch to the music…
What we get here is typically early Texas-style Death Metal. And
that means not Devourment
rule the place, although some groovy, slamming riffs can definitely
be found here. Rather hints of Sintury,
Prophecy and even oldschool bands come to my mind while
listening to these eight songs. Infliction
can truly be attested that they have a broad approach to Death
Metal: flexible drum patterns, deep grunts as well as screams,
varied guitar work, good solos, even an acoustic interlude can be
recognized (in the 3rd track 'Disinhabit'). No “frog noise”
vocals, no blast beat contest from this five-piece, the focus lies
more on diversified brutal but unfortunately somewhat unspectacular
Death Metal. This also goes for the sound, ok but nothing
outstanding or breathatking. Somehow this CD seems indeed outdated,
not only because of the recording date, but this might be only my
personal impression. I like this better than their second album
“Denouncing The Flesh” though, and it is (was) a sought-after
item nevertheless. More info: www.infliction.us,
www.myspace.com/inflictionus
Steffen Ilm
BACK
INFUNERAL
Sepulchral Monument
(Iron Fist Productions)
33:06min
Sweden has a foothold in every kind of Metal now. They began with Metal, then Doom (CANDLEMASS), then Death Metal, Melodic Metal, and of course, Black
Metal - though not necessarily in that order. MARDUK will always remain Sweden's premier Black Metal band, but not the band to whom every Swedish band aspires to be (that would be ENTOMBED). INFUNERAL don't sound like they're trying to be
MARDUK - just a Black Metal band. This is perfectly acceptable. After all, constancy doesn't preclude a lack of quality. In fact, if the band knows what
its doing, it means quality. DISMEMBER, for instance, aren't original. However, they know what they're doing and they do it well. INFUNERAL does the same. They play decent Black Metal; nothing more, nothing less.
www.myspace.com/infuneral,
http://get.to/infuneral,
www.ironfistprod.se
Nat Shapiro
BACK
INGURGITATING OBLIVION
Cadence And Perspective In Desolation
(Demo)
27:04min
"Who the
hell are INGURGITATING OBLIVION", you might ask yourself.
Well, remember the crazy East Frisians OF TREES AND ORCHIDS? The
band changed their name as it didn't represent their stylistic
approach anymore. That is: brilliant technical Death Metal in the
vein of MORBID ANGEL and IMMOLATION. "Cadence..."
is their contribution to a split CD with Death Doomsters SENESCENCE
called "Harvest" which will be out soon. "Cadence..."
is supposed to be sent out to record companies or if you don't like
the style SENESCENCE are playing (approx. early MY DYING BRIDE), you
might get this CD-R as well from INGURGITATING and I really have to
urge you to get either the split or this very CD as long as you're
into brutal Death Metal: these guys kick some serious arse! The CD
starts off with an intro taken from an original Aleister Crowley
speech, very atmospheric, especially when the acoustic guitar joins
for a while. Then, a short intro called 'A Poet's Fingernails' (an
intro followed by an intro?! - Frank) makes you think of MORBID
ANGEL immediately - heavy and powerful as a rhino! 'Descent To The
Temple' and 'Nothingness' are tracks the way we know and love from
their days when they were still called OF TREES... - yet, their
skills have improved immensely, the tracks are both fast and verrry
heavy, long and there is this atmosphere of madness making me dizzy
and shiver. We even have guest vocalists again. This time, it's
Holger and Tim from SENESCENCE which means: pure aggression, no
female vocals (there are actually people who don't like that "Gothic"
touch)! These guest vocals remind me a lot of NILE: three different
sounding growlers plus, of course, guitarist's Florian's Black Metal
style singing. The last track, 'Slumbering In Relativity', is even
more straight and brutal than the rest (if you consider
INGURGITATING's technical approach), although they again didn't
manage to cut this one short (thank god! or Satan! or the band). For
the whole story take a look at the INGURGITATING studio report. If
you want madness and brutality: there is NO excuse for not ordering
this CD right now. In case you run a good label: get in touch! There
are no CD's I have listened to as often as this one and I think
until the new NILE or IMMOLATION CD is released, this will block my
player. And, mark my words: INGURGITATING OBLIVION are NO copycats
at all!
www.oftreesandorchids.de,
thought-cathedral@gmx.de
Ramon Claassen
BACK
INGURGITATING
OBLIVION / SENESCENCE
Harvest (Split CD)
(CD-R)
42:27min
I hope I
don’t have to introduce mighty INGURGITATING OBLIVION to Voices
readers? Wise people have been waiting for this split CD since I
wrote the studio report in 2001 (check it out!) and now it is
finally being released on CD-R. It contains the material of the
“Cadence And Perspective In Desolation” mini CD the band has
used for label application. So for the musical part of the
INGURGITATING stuff please take a look at the “Cadence...”
review. Over the last year it has received nothing but rave reviews
only sometimes criticizing the cheap production (hey, it’s not
that bad). For example, Götz Kühnemund (Rock Hard Germany) hailed
them as one of the best German underground Death Metal bands. The
concept of this split CD around Joel Peter Witkin’s picture is
also explained in the studio report, so what’s left to review is
the part Death Doomsters SENESCENCE from Oldenburg contribute to
this release. Unfortunately these 3 songs will be the last
SENESCENCE tracks ever as the band disbanded some time ago. Once
again they come up with strange chords and utmost madness. The first
2 tracks 'ReHc + SeRd -> He + Am' and 'Harvest' stick to more or
less traditional song structures, 'Harvest' is just one inch away
from insanity thanks to Marc Andree (OBSCENITY) and, above all,
Martin Rode (HERZKRANK). Finally, '011029 1907 – Apan' makes clear
why SENESCENCE might have disbanded: Nyarlathotim and Co. are
probably all locked away in the asylum! Only for the weirdest minds
among you. This release is so full of creativity it’ll surely blow
your minds, so what are you waiting for??? http://www.ingurgitating-oblivion.de/
Ramon Claassen
BACK
INGURGITATING OBLIVION
Poetry Of The Flesh (Promo CD-R)
(self-financed)
20:35min
Beware for the age of Cthulhu has come again! I have sensed his
thoughts, I have heard his voice and it's calling me (calling me)! A
choir of monks is singing for him and you can already hear his
tentacles playing the ancient seven-stringed electric guitar. Then
the other demons join the incantation with a short spell called 'Spiralling
Out Of This World' and soon the listener is caught. And when I SAY
incantation, I MEAN incantation. 'Spiralling...' draws you out of
this world for sure while the double bass nails you to the cross!
The new enchanter, voices contributor Ulrich Kreienbrink adds some
more ancient feeling than his fabulous predecessor and for a moment
I was looking for INGURGITATING's seemingly lost identity (yeah, I'm
fixed on singers a lot, sorry). But between those parallels to
MORBID ANGEL, IMMOLATION or INCANTATION that had been there before,
some demon was penetrating my mind, whispering: "Fuck you!
We're INGURGITATING OBLIVION". It has been some time since the
"Cadence..." demo but considering the line-up changes that
kept haunting the band, they didn't try to write masses of songs but
concentrated on quality instead, thanks for that! The second song, 'Veil
Of Perception', culminates in an extremely evil chorus, absolutely
in the old American vein - and these guys are from fucking Germany!
The title track shows the skills of the newly designed rhythm
section once again and those double-layered vocals drive me insane!
Shall I comment on F. Cthulhu E.'s leads a little? This demon
doesn't seem to have fingers on his 8 tentacles but 8 further
tentacles instead! On the other hand, he doesn't show off all the
time but supports the songs. Besides being a great tune (slow, deep
and hard, hargh hargh!), the last track, 'Deconstructed Creature',
offers some sickening lava riffs as well as furious speed and some
evil "ssssss" sounds - perfect ingredients for a Death
Metal meal à la carte! INGURGITATING OBLIVION 2004 is more compact
and therefore easier to handle on the surface. You'll be drawn into
the depths of their spheres without noticing and trapped forever!
Also, the production is more than just professional, it powerful,
transparent, very natural - I love it! Labels: listen up! For the
age of INGURGITATING OBLIVION has come! And as Voices readers are of
the smart kind, you'll order this CD-R right NOW! Stream to their
gigs we'll hopefully witness soon and in case you show up at the
Voices fest, be there early enough for these tormentors of martyred
souls. www.ingurgitating-oblivion.de
Ramon Claassen
BACK
INGURGITATING
OBLIVION
Voyage Towards Abhorrence
(Unmatched Brutality Records)
45:36min
Massive! What else can I say? I
wrote a long review about this impressive maelstrom of Death Metal
but somehow didn’t like my own writing any more. Why bore you with
my bollocks? Maybe in order to promote this wonderful piece of
darkness? Okay, you win. So the band finally got their record deal.
I already thought the record companies wouldn’t only be silly but
deaf as well. Fortunately, Unmatched Brutality Records were clever
enough to get a hold of these Germans. What you get on “Voyage
Towards Abhorrence” is almost all of the “Poetry Of The Flesh”
demo which most of you probably don’t know as it was sent out to
labels and zines exclusively. From “Poetry Of The Flesh” only
the track ‘Deconstructed Creature’ was kicked out for some
reason I don’t quite get while the other songs were re-recorded.
Impressive improvement especially in the vocal department: singer
Ulrich sounds quite a bit more to the point and highly passionate.
Another old one is ‘Nothingness’ from the “Cadence…” demo
being re-recorded with an almost completely different line-up. And
you can hear that: the song has been shortened and it’s played
considerably slower. Now it’s heavy as can be. Fucking scares the
shit out of me! Just like the intro ‘A Poet’s Fingernails’
from that very demo. Now ‘Towards The Flickering Light’ is
played a lot slower and therefore sounds much more impressive which
might also be due to the awesome production by Ulf Scheel (BANISHED
REALITY). So the only two new songs on “Voyage…” are a fairly
straight and in parts quite fast one called ‘Waters Of Rebirth’
which is gonna kick quite some arse in the clubs and a weird
incantation called ‘Imprecations’. Burning solos and goddamn
lava! In my opinion INGURGITATING have found just the right balance
between their dark, twisted and sort of sophisticated expression and
an easier accessible approach than in the past which seems to come
from a broader spectrum, especially concerning their speed. So check
‘em out live in Germany this Friday (June 24th) in Leer together
with JACK SLATER or at least next month (July 29th) in Osnabrück
opening for GOREROTTED in case you happen to be around! I guess
I’ll talk with the guys about the hidden track issue (which
actually makes the record approx. 5 minutes shorter) and a lot more
in the near future, I guess. In the meantime: go an’ get it! www.ingurgitating-oblivion.de
Ramon
Claassen
BACK
INHERIT
Of Sin, Suffering And Sorrow (Demo CD)
(self-financed)
12:47min
The material on offer on this demo CD was already recorded about a
year ago, but it's of such a timeless nature that it doesn't really
matter at all. INHERIT is a four-piece act from Brazil, musically
totally dediciated to oldschool thrashing Death Metal, with an
obvious love for vintage SLAYER. In all of the three songs on this
demo ('Grave Of Sinners', 'Passing Through Agony' and 'Whom The Gods
Love Dies Young') you're about to discover traces of the "Hell
Awaits" era of the masters of Thrash (best reflected in the
last one though). No matter if it's the
riffing intensity, the diverse drumming or the overall clever
structuring of the songs. Everything gets performed in a very
exciting and incredibly tight manner, so that it's a real pleasure
to listen to the tunes over and over again! But INHERIT are
nevertheless far away from being plain copycats. Their material
still has enough unique identity to convince the listener, and the
fact that Igor Noblat's vocals are a lot darker than Araya's is just
a little evidence for that. Unlike many other vocalists these days,
he's neither using the insane screaming type of voice, nor the clean
melodic or deep grunted Death style. What he delivers is just deep
and brutal without coming across unnatural sounding. The whole band
is obviously completely unimpressed by modern trends and instead
heavily rooted in the pure Metal underground, which is always fine
with me as long as the result still sounds so fresh as it does in
this case. HEADHUNTER D.C.'s Sérgio (who kindly sent us this
material) not only produced "Of Sin, Suffering And Sorrow",
he also created the INHERIT logo and along with Arnald Asmoodeeus (UNGODLY,
ex-MYSTIFIER) contributed guest vocals to the song 'Grave Of
Sinners'. And hey, this man is known for having a good taste, isn't
he? Just remember INCRUST... Unfortunately I'm not sure if the email
address printed on the cover is still working, but give it a try and
support these guys! They really deserve your attention! inherit_metal@hotmail.com
Frank Stöver
BACK
INHERIT DISEASE
Procreating An Apocalypse
(Unique Leader)
32:07min
Does anybody remember a webzine called “Teufelstomb”? Quite a funky ‘zine actually, run by a bunch of
Canadian gay-porn junkies pretending to be ultra-homophobic heterosexuals who managed to create an impressive amount of reviews with a vocabulary strictly limited to the holy trinity of ‘penis’, ‘anal’ and, of course, ‘gay’. The main focus lay on what most would label as
Death Metal and their motto read: brutal is not only a way of life, it’s also stupid! If only the guys in INHERIT DISEASE would have paid attention…
Obviously they didn’t and thus went to record just another piece of utterly boring and mind-numbing Death Metal that nobody asked for. Each and every note of this lame excuse of an album has been recorded at least 665-times by another hopeless bunch of trailer-park inhabitants that were instantly forgotten as will righteously happen to this one as well. Why do labels such as Unique Leader still get the chance to release completely superfluous records month after month after fucking month although I’m pretty sure that there is absolutely nobody interested or even purchasing? Where is the infamous self-regulating power of the free market when you need it?!? I don’t think the boneheads in INHERIT DISEASE have the answers, since they seem more concerned with vagina-dissections and mental ward gangbangs. Cool stuff, especially for bald-headed thirty-something’s...They really should look for another nice hobby instead of flogging the decaying corpse of Death Metal.
www.inheritdisease.com.
Available
here .
Torsten Gründig
BACK
INHUMAN
HATRED
Sickening Entertainment
(self-financed)
23:02min
Belgian band INHUMAN HATRED offer their first demo on CD (they call
it CDemo, a word that seems to be quite familiar in the Benelux I
suppose), after founding the band back in 1998. A couple of line-up
changes made continuous work quite hard, so this is, after a couple
of gigs, their first release. The band defines themselves as brutal
Death Metal, which I think is so far correct, probably with a few
mid-90s influences, especially from the other side of the Atlantic.
All six songs on this MCD are very very rhythmical, sometimes a bit
hectical, varying between midtempo and highspeed, which only
partially works – where I think that a song like ‘Infected By
The Exhumed’ is quite good, a song like the title-song or the
hectic ‘Immolation In Repulse And Desecration’ bore the hell out
of me and make me aware why I never appreciated that stuff back in
the 90s very much. It is now a matter of viewing it: for a first
demo, I think this is really okayish, sound is decent as well, while
if I bear in mind that the band is already existing for five years,
I think that there could have been much more. And another fact is
that it is not like there are no other bands playing this kind of
Death Metal. A bit of originality (if their aim is to stand out –
I know that there are bands who simply want to play the music they
like) wouldn’t hurt here. You can get an impression of the band by
downloading mp3-files from their homepage, and that might probably
be the best choice for persons into mid-90s US-American Death Metal
to check this out. For me, this is at the moment, still too average
and I doubt that I will listen to this very often again. http://inhumanhatred.deathmetal.be
Nhashi
BACK
INHUMATE
Growth
(Grind Your Soul Distribution)
32:07min
I'm not really a big fan of Grindcore, but still have to admit that
this scene deserves a lot of respect for being so incredibly active
throughout the years. All involved bands, labels, zines, distributors
etc. are probably far more honest in what they're doing than in any
other underground movement as they never had to sell their soul to
the mainstream devil. French INHUMATE is one of them. They are around
since 1990 already and ever since have released two demos, a bunch
of split tapes, appeared on several compilations and most recently
finished their third full length album "Growth",
which is a 17 track assault of mostly rather short songs somewhere
between brutal Death Metal and extreme Grindcore. Even though I usually
don't listen to this kind of music, it's more than obvious that they
exactly know what they're doing and that the incredible amount of
live shows that they have already played (a.o. with AGATHOCLES, CANNIBAL
CORPSE, CRYPTOPSY, IMMOLATION, NILE, VADER, SIX FEET UNDER and so
on) has turned them into pretty good musiciancs. "Growth"
is a fairly well produced yet very extreme release which furthermore
comes up with a very dedicated lyrical concept. This is already the
third part of the band's planned heptalogy, based on the concept of
life and the abolition of time. So, if you are on the lookout for
some really intense blasting brutality, make sure to give this guys
a listen. All further info at: http://www.inhumate.maxximum.org
Frank Stöver
BACK
INHUMATE
Life
(Grind Your Soul Distribution)
32:07min
Grindcore galore! French uncommercial veteran Grinders INHUMATE
(same line–up since 1994!) are back with part four of their
concept album series about life itself. This is my first in–depth
encounter with their music and I must say it turned out pretty cool!
Musically, the band delivers an almost classic brand of Grindcore
that owes more to NAPALM DEATH than CARCASS – so there is no gore
worship here. There are some slight influences of Crust Core in the
riffing and some Hardcore breakdowns are incorporated in the
songwriting, adding some groove to the music, but overall you get a
lot of great oldschool one–foot blasting as it is present in
TERRORIZER or BRUTAL TRUTH. Vocally, singer Fred does his best to
keep it variable, so you get everything from mid–range screaming,
deep growling, some Hardcore shouting (rather seldom) and
occassional pitch shifting gargle attacks. In general, they have an
approach which is rather similar to East European bands than to the
kind of Grind (it rhymes, hahaha) from Scandinavia. Furthermore
INHUMATE are totally anti-commercial which means that they have done
everything by themselves – thumbs up! Everything is played really
tight and straight to the point without losing control of the speed.
As I have heard from several people this is an inferno live on stage
which is also due to the performance of their vocalist… have a
look at the print on the CD and you know what he is doing to his
microphone. The packageing also looks fine (front cover painted by
Zig) and features a full colour booklet with all lyrics and some
live pics. The first 1000 copies come as a digipack so I suggest
that you act fast and contact their own distro to obtain a copy! You
will also find a small media section on the disc with a live video,
thankslist and additional information about INHUMATE. So, in case
you are into bands like the above mentioned NAPALM DEATH or BATHTUB
SHITTER and if you are a regular visitor of the FUCK THE COMMERCE or
the OBSCENE EXTREME this well-produced and convincing underground
record is an obvious choice. To purchase it contact their own 100%
Do-It-Yourself label and distro at: GRIND YOUR SOUL Distr, c/o
Yannick Giess, 4 rue de Remiremont, 67170 BRUMATH, France. Email: professeur.burp@wanadoo.fr.
Website: www.inhumate.com
Ulrich Kreienbrink
BACK
INHUME
In For The Kill
(Osmose Productions)
32:00min
I feel like I am
not the right person to review this, for the main reason I am not a
fan of Grindcore in the first place, and INHUME just play a pure
form of this genre. "In For The Kill" is the second full
length of this Dutch six-piece, and you can’t say they are up for
variety while listening to this 16 tracker. All the "songs"
sound exactly the same, so in the end be prepared to experience a
compact sonic barrage whose the efficiency I have serious doubts
about. To play an extreme form of music is OK, but you have to keep
a little space for variations, breaks and tempo or atmosphere
changes to maintain your listeners on alert. This is a tactic INHUME
chose to ignore while recording this, and this is too bad for both
them and us. The main flaw of this record is the vocals, they are so
outré that INHUME are constantly on the verge to become totally
ridiculous. Come on, coupling the sound of an angry Daffy Duck with
the distorted growl of a pig in agony (INHUME have two vocalists in
their ranks) is fun during a very short time lapse and become
annoying afterwards. I have no doubt INHUME will find their public
despite this jaded review, especially if you consider the excellent
sound quality of this record. It is just that they are a little too
much for my personal taste. Recommended only for fans of straight
ahead Grind. Contact: http://www.inhume.nl.
Edouard Vergriete
BACK
INHUME
Chaos, Dissection, Order
(Osmose Productions)
31:08min
For those of you not familiar with INHUME, they are a Grindcore band from the Netherlands with quite a few albums already underneath their belt. I am by no means an expert on
Grindcore but I know what I like and I like this. With this music I usually don’t hear much variety but this
CD actually varies the tempo a little bit from song to song, which is nice because it keeps the whole album
from sounding like a 30 minute blast beat. The production fits the music. It is a little muddy but I personally prefer it this way for this stuff, it adds to the atmosphere. I always pay close attention to the drumming and this guy gets the job done. He sounds more “straightforward” than “over the top”. I don’t know for sure but would guess that the vocals are processed on a lot of the songs. This is by no means a bad thing, it is par for the course with this music and I personally like the way they sound. To give you an idea they reminded me of the vox in
Squash Bowels (another good
Grindcore band). Bottom line, if you’re into this type of Metal then you won’t be disappointed. A solid offering. Aside from the music I also like the artwork on this album, it’s a little classier than normal. You can get info on them here:
www.inhume.nl
and buy the CD
here.
Michael Kersten
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INHUME
Moulding The Deformed
(War Anthem Records)
36:39min
Some things will
never change and one of these basis facts is that our dear Dutch
friends INHUME are a rotten bunch of Death / Grind fanatics. What
started over a decade ago with a split EP with their German brothers
BLOOD these days is completed with their latest creation “Moulding
The Deformed”. And without any kind of surprise album number four
is again a release for ‘mathematic’ freaks with 14 songs within
the strict time limit of 36 minutes. Don’t expect the unexpected
– INHUME are doing what they are born for and that means blowing
the brain out of every available victim. Especially the slightly
longer tracks – everything over 3 minutes – are the interesting
material on “Moulding The Deformed” (for example 'Cure For Life').The
majority of this release is offering the standard Grind / Death mélange
– played on a high technical level plus a supporting clean sound
and extreme cool cover – but nevertheless in no way essential.
INHUME are playing their kind of music without compromise and this
approach earns my respect even if the majority of the pure Death
Metal fans is looking for more varied noise! www.inhume.nl,
www.war-anthem.de
Matthias Auch
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INIMICAL
In The Thorned Fields Of The Dead
(Dark Vision Productions)
25:40min
Frank sent me this CD because I am
quite interested in the American Black Metal underground and bands
like the almighty BLACK WITCHERY, WIND OF THE BLACK MOUNTAINS,
THORNSPAWN or GRAND BELIAL’s KEY have released some incredible
good albums this year and easily crushed almost everything that
emerged from Norway or Sweden! So I thought INIMICAL might follow
the tradition of the bands I just mentioned, but unfortunately this
is not the case. The one-man-project plays an extremely raw and
hateful interpretation of the Scandinavian Black Metal-style and
sounds like a mixture of older GORGOROTH and the old EMPEROR demos,
so it might be interesting for the truest of the true out there, but
not for me. The MCD contains very fast, dark and possessed Black
Metal with a production like DARKTHRONE’s “Transylvanian
Hunger”, but the whole thing is not very original and that is what
I don’t like about it, besides the fact that INIMICAL use a
fucking drum computer. I simply can not imagine that this should be
a must-have for anyone except those Black Metal maniacs who wear
corpsepaint even during work. The info sheet that came with the CD
asked me to be fair and I think I am, when I tell you that I do not
like it, but you could, if you like very, very raw, very very
hateful and very very primitive northern Black Metal. For more
information, whatever contact the label: Dark Vision Productions,
P.O. Box 263, Ironwood, MI 49938, USA. Or check out the label’s
website:
http://darkvisionprod.mercurous.net,
Email:
darkvisionprod@planetwave.net
Stefan Franke
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INIQUITY
Grime
(Mighty Music)
45:55min
Except for a handful of bands, I wouldn't really consider myself a
big fan of the Danish underground scene. But at least INIQUITY has
always been a helluva cool exception. These guys constantly had the
guts to deliver first class, straight ahead brutal Death Metal (also
in times when the mainstream listener already stopped to care) and
easily managed to convince me with each of their releases. But that's
probably one of the reasons why I simply had to be a little
disappointed by their newest offering "Grime"… I
maybe expected a bit too much. Instead of coming up with the "ultimate
recipe for a milestone on the highway to hell…" (to quote
their label's info sheet here), they "just" came up with
another powerfully produced (in the typical high Jacob Hansen quality),
technically way above the average and generally very brutal record.
All in all very cool to listen to, but I miss a couple of standout
tracks and a bit more excitement in their writing formular, as everything
is kinda predictable straight from the start already. "Grime"
is INIQUITY's 4th release by now (including 1998's MCD
"The Hidden Lore") and in the old tradition of the
band, they once again had to do the recordings in a slightly different
line-up. This time guitarist Brian Eriksen was replaced by former
SACRIFICAL sixstringer Kraen Meier. Everything else basically stayed
the same, including the choice of another rather ugly cover. Seems
to be tradition for them as well…
Frank Stöver
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INIQUITY
Iniquity Bloody Iniquity
(Mighty Music)
70:28min
I'm
not quite sure if the Death Metal maniacs around the globe were
really awaiting a compilation album of Denmark's INIQUITY, but as
long as it's of this high quality I couldn't care less. Apart from
eight wellknown tracks, from their regular releases
("Serenadium", "The Hidden Lore", "Five
Across The Eyes" and "Grime"), there's a bunch of
other goodies included as well, turning this into a worthy purchase
nevertheless. 'Revel In Cremation' and 'Madman Of The Trade' both
originally appeared on the very cool "Revel In Cremation"
7" EP and are musically of a similar class as the material on
my personal fave INIQUITY album "Five Across The Eyes".
Totally brutal and straight forward Death Metal of the highest
technical level with deep guttural vocals. I really wonder though
for what the killer PESTILENCE cover 'Extreme Unction' was supposed
to be recorded for in the first place... Fact is, that INIQUITY have
come up with a totally shredding version of the "Malleus
Maleficarum" classic, which most of all convinces due to the
excellent, almost Van Drunen-like vocal performance. You really need
to check that out! 'Retorn' and 'Prophecy Of The Dying Watcher' both
have been taken from two different DieHard compilation albums, while
'Entangled' and 'Torn' are featured in old demo versions from 1993
and 1991 on here (back then still with additional keyboards!!). The
disc gets completed by a live version of 'Prophecy Of The Dying
Watcher' and a video (also recorded live) for 'The Bullet's Breath'.
A very amusing booklet with tons of funny photo collages and various
quotes from bandmembers and other people makes sure that you will
also be entertained visually while listening to the 70 minutes of
pure fuckin' mayhem. Great album, great band!!
Frank Stöver
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INKISITOR
Inkisitor
(Osmose Productions)
29:41min
Most Black Metal bands since the mid-90s have adopted as their modus operandi to offer only the affect of rawness, of evil. Still others imitate SADISTIK EXEKUTION and call themselves
Black / Thrash Metal, an utterly useless term unless applied to NIFELHEIM of course. INKISITOR is not quite so bad, but one would be hard pressed not to notice the tangible need for improvement. What they play isn't bad,
it's just rather ordinary; the sort of open chords underneath an icy fog. What Black Metal band hasn't done this before? I'm sorry to give such a cool looking band an average rating, but looking cool isn't everything. If it was, we would have a lot more classics to review.
www.inkisitor.cjb.net,
www.myspace.com/inkisitor,
www.osmoseproductions.com
Nat Shapiro
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IN MEMORIUM
From Misery…
Comes Darkness
(Moribund Records)
44:10min
It’s a bit sad that this album featuring ex - ABAZAGORATH vocalist
Nihilist was not released 10 years ago, since with the flood of
melodic, atmospheric Black / Death Metal releases back then it could
have competed easily, but recorded in 2002 and released just now in
2005 the US-based quintet sounds a little too dated and
unspectacular. What bugs me is that this piece of hauntingly dark,
at times drivingly fast and in the other moment sinister and doomy
Black / Death with some simple but tasteful use of keyboards is
executed really good. But still I feel IN MEMORIUM released an album
that does not really work today, performing traditional forms of
extreme Metal is excellent, but revoking the mid-90s melodic Black /
Death trend in Scandinavia is something that might only be
appreciated by totally fanatic worshippers of this style and is
probably doomed to fail trying to reach a bigger audience. IN
MEMORIUM seems like a band that is a result of a musician’s
passion to just do what he always wanted to and not giving a chicken
shit about the commercial value or level of innovation its
recordings have. It’s okay in every aspect in my opinion, though I
don’t feel the need to listen to that album again, since my
personal interest in this kind of music has completely vanished.
However, the aforementioned atmospheric Black / Death diehards out
there should maybe give this CD a chance. Visit www.moribundcult.com
and check out the sound files you’ll find there!
Stefan Franke
BACK
INMOST
DENSE
Unfold
(Soulwork Records)
39:50min
Magdeburg's
INMOST DENSE is another fine example of the healthiness of the current brutal
Death Metal underground in Germany these days. Their self financed debut album
"Unfold" is the band's follow up to 2002's promo CD "The
Consequences Of Choice And Dissonance" (a demo entitled
"Purified" was their first musical sign of life in early 2000) which
already gained them quite a lot of (obviously justified) positive feedback. Even
though they name bands, such as DEEDS OF FLESH, DISGORGE (US), DISGORGE (MEX),
CEPHALIC CARNAGE, CRYPTOPSY, CINERARY, FLESHGRIND, VILE, BRODEQUIN and DYING
FETUS as their main influences I would consider INMOST DENSE not as monotonous
as several of those just mentioned. Ok, they have a really deep growling yet
very convincing vocalist and often speed things up to the max, but generally
their songwriting is pretty varied, which I appreciate a lot! There's lots of
cool breaks, clever arrangements and a heavy-as-fuck production, which all does
a lot of justice to their material. So, if we should really need comparisons out
of the aforementioned list, I would say that VILE And DEEDS OF FLESH are closest
to what INMOST DENSE come up with. Musically all in all very promising, but
visually these guys still have to improve a lot, as neither the choice of colors
on their website (in ugly blue, urrgh...!) nor the strange looking packaging of
this CD knows to impress in the same way and could easily turn a lot of people
off (which would really be a shame). A band to keep an eye on! Make sure to
check out one of their songs in our mp3 section! The disc sells for
12,-Euro (ppd.) at the following address: INMOST DENSE, c/o Carsten Fenske, Am
Wasserturm 51, 39446 Löderburg, Germany, email: contact@inmostdense.de,
www.inmostdense.de
Frank Stöver
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INQUISIÇÃO
One More Battle
(Marquee Records)
63:08min
This 12 song album comes as a real good surprise I have to say right away! This Brazilian bunch started back in 1983 but they did go through several line up changes over their career and only managed to record some demo tapes... until mid 2006 when they finally entered a studio to capture the material they had been playing for years and now Marquee have released it. INQUISICAO can be described as a sort of RAINBOW on amphetamines for a good part and Sidney Sohn's keyboards bring a certain 70s texture to the songs that is really enjoyable. But the real star here is vocalist Silvio Mazzei who turns out to be an excellent Hard Rock / Heavy Metal singer - I mean you can't help but find a song like 'Insane Warrior' totally killer. Other than a certain resemblance to RAINBOW, there's hints of DEEP PURPLE, SCORPIONS ('Long Day Anxiety') and other Hard Rock monsters, not bad huh? The riffing is also very strong and is backed up by a rather impressive rhythm section. The only letdown is 'Survive' which had its verses based on a crappy staccato riff which simply goes nowhere - as usual. Let's hope it was only an accident and INQUISICAO won't do this again if they plan to do more albums! Apart from this "accident" this is really a highly recommended album if you like energetic / professional 70s / 80s Hard Rock / Heavy Metal! Fuck yeah!
www.inquisicao.com.br,
www.marquee.com.br
Laurent Ramadier
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INQUISITION
Invoking The Majestic Throne Of Satan
(Warhammer Records)
46:33min
In any case, this band from the USA is pure cult! How long have I
waited for this one? After their grandiose “Into The Infernal
Regions Of The Ancient Cult“ album the new masterpiece is finally
available. Ancient Black Metal hymns (no band sounds like them!),
impressive yet straight drum work and guitar riffs and the fantastic
voice of mastermind Dagon which isn’t comparable to any other
shouter in the entire underground scene! Indeed the sound and the
feeling of this cult can not be described in human words nor letters.
Ultra-fast blast parts change into great melody-bows, the sound is
again perfect and the visual aura of the album could not be done
better! This band in its feeling is unobtainable. For the first time
a band made true what its album title promises. I am speechless...
Watch out for the LP version out on Iron Pegasus Records!
Phil Jonas
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INQUISITION
Magnificent Glorification Of Lucifer
(No Colours Records)
51:05min
The US Black Metal horde’s third album is – as one could already
guess from the advance tracks on the “Unholy Inquisition Rites”
MCD – another masterpiece, uniting ritualistic blasphemous
atmosphere with crushing heaviness! Fast aggressive parts, dark and
pretty infectious melodies and Dagon’s typical sinister vocals
melt together into an absolutely unique interpretation of Black
Metal that might polarize, but nonetheless deserves to be called
exceptional in today’s extreme Metal scene. Fans of the duo will
definitely not be disappointed by the mighty yet raw sound and (un)godly
hymns like ‘Crush The Prophet’, ‘Impaled’, the title track
or ‘Eternal Loyalty’. Keeping the songs compact, the riffs
ingeniously primitive grooving and the drumming more powerful and
effective than ever before
turns “Magnificent
Glorification Of Lucifer”
into a dark
satanic maelstrom consuming everything in its path… I personally
consider INQUISITION’s newest strike a little more addictive and
variable than its predecessor and can only heartedly recommend it to
both people already worshipping the band and those “uninitiated”
to the cult of INQUISITION. I’d dare saying “must-have”!
Outstanding, charismatic album to which does not exist any
alternative. Short sound clip can be found at
www.no-colours-records.de
Stefan Franke
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INQUISITION
Nefarious Dismal Orations
(No Colours Records)
46:19min
Admittedly, I still think that INQUISITION is live better than on
disc, but once again the duo has unleashed a superb three-quarter of
an hour of ancient Black Metal. Blastbeats mixed with very melodious
doomy, sometimes even groovy parts and above all the very distinct
voice of Dagon, mastermind of this US/Colombian band. The complete
album has a very traditional and occult aura without being actually
comparable to neither the early Norwegian sound (with a few hints of
IMMORTAL as an exception to the rule) nor nowadays orthodox Black
Metal, and I am pretty sure that most of the band’s fans will grip
this immediately. And it should be listened to what it is – a
complete album because that is the only way how it can really be
digested. The album comes in four versions, which I find a bit odd,
but then everyone might be pleased that way. A Sample of ‘Infernal
Evocation Of Torment’ can be found here: www.no-colours-records.de,
http://pwp.netcabo.pt/0247963001/icon2/news.htm
Nhashi
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INRAGE
Built To Destroy
(Scarlet Records)
36:47min
Does anyone
still remember LOST SOULS from Sweden? These guys released two
albums a couple of years ago, one on Roadrunner and another on
Nuclear Blast before they decided to call it quits in 2000. Well, I
definitely never checked them out, but the label's info sheet
reveals that all of the INRAGE members used to be in LOST SOULS,
they only changed their name and started from zero again. Their new
album (or debut if you prefer) kicks off very promising - very well
produced (courtesy of the rather famous Underground Studio) and
extremely skilled performed, aggressive Thrash Metal with hints of
the 80's, but an Anselmo type vocalist. Unfortunately the band
doesn't manage to continue on with this quite interesting mixture
and pretty quickly switches over to NU Metal completely, which is
totally annoying and really turned me off immediately. So, whenever
I'm in the mood for "Built To Destroy" now, I certainly
put on Michael Schenker's record of the same name (yeah, I'm a wimp,
so what?!) instead of this pseudo aggressive bullshit.
Frank Stöver
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INRI
Hyper Bastard Breed
(Cold Blood Industries)
36:07min
Even though the
band's name immediately brings one of the classic SARCOFAGO albums
to mind, these five Dutch Death Metal maniacs are not necessarily
following the musical path of Wagner Antichrist and his unholy
cohorts. INRI, who originally started out as STIGMATHEIST in 1994 (their
one and only album "It All Ends Today" came out in
1998 on Voices Of Wonder), are a lot more infected by the more
current happenings within the underground, mentioning bands such as
THE CROWN, GOD DETHRONED and MALEVOLENT CREATION as some of their
major influences. And indeed - they really managed to deliver a
quite cool coctail out of that on their own: there's the thrashy
elements of THE CROWN, the Death Metal brutality of GOD DETHRONED
and the blasting intensity of MALEVOLENT CREATION. INRI's
songwriting, which sounds very matured already, is very straight
ahead, to the point, heavy and always extremely powerful. And when
it comes to the playing time of the songs, twelve out of fifteen
tracks are not even reaching the three minutes mark! While other
bands often tend to write way too long material, with too many
boring, unnecessary or repetitive parts, INRI simply succeeded in
reducing their tunes to the max, which is great! The excellent
production (courtesy of Franky's Recording Kitchen) compliments the
songs even more and turns the album into a quite refreshing debut
offering. INRI may not offer anything new or innovative, but who
gives a fuck, if the music turns out to be a lot of fun in the end,
nevertheless?
Frank Stöver
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INSANE
Wait And Pray
(Battle Cry Records)
33:29min
I discovered this band purely by accident. It happened that on a No
Colours Records sampler was featured one track of a band called
SLAVES, which blew me away because of its genuine 80s Thrash
atmosphere, very reminiscent of INFERNAL MAJESTY. My first
investigation lead me to a dead end, until a review of the Keep It
True IV festival made me see the light, referring to the Italian
band INSANE as formerly known as SLAVES. In no time, the INSANE
record was mine. Well, the layout tells a lot about the content. The
INSANE logo is written with the SLAYER logo fonts, a cheap horned
monster adorns the cover, and the musicians’ pictures on the back
have the same charm and hilarious value of what you can find on the
back cover of “Show No Mercy”: same eyeliner and spikes! I knew
at once that this Italian three piece was something special. Well, I
was yet lead to revise my first judgement, because the music on
offer, as good as it is actually, could disappoint in the long run.
Of course, the first song causes a serious headbanging session, but
once the initial jolt had made its effect, you are left with seven
other songs tailored on the same frame. Don’t get me wrong,
“Wait And Pray” is a damn good release, but I think INSANE
missed the point here by not allowing themselves to introduce some
variations within their compositions; this is precisely variations
and rhythm contrasts that made “Hell Awaits” and “None Shall
Defy” so interesting and still fresh today. The production duties
were held in Vancouver, and the sound on “Wait and Pray”, while
not being “retro” (because of its great and modern dynamic),
evokes the old times OK.
The musicians are faultless on this, and perfectly master
their instrument. Bassist / vocalist Dan Montironi shamelessly
borrows the (early) Tom Araya style, but here stops the comparisons
with SLAYER musically. One has to look rather at lesser known acts
like BLESSED DEATH and ANVIL BITCH to find an equivalent to INSANE.
On the contrary, INSANE lyrical “inspiration” comes directly
from legendary bands as POSSESSED (they even have a song called
‘The Exorcist’, not a cover though), SLAYER (again) and NASTY
SAVAGE. My advice to the band: they should concentrate next time on
the crafting of a more varied selection of songs, because they
can’t rely very long on their pseudo - SLAYER image. I am pretty
sure they can offer a real masterpiece; it is not yet the case with
“Wait And Pray”. And yes, I prefer the one and only SLAVES track
I heard, sorry!
Edouard Vergriete
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INSANITY
Sacrefixion (3 Song Promo CD-R)
(Black Lung Productions)
17:39min
Ahhhh, it feels so good to have these guys back in action after so
many years!! If you belong to the unfortunate species who are cursed
by the fact that you were born a little too late to still remember
these Californian Death / Thrashers make sure to check out Laurent's
review on the re-issue of their classic "Death After Death"
album (on top of this) for all further details. Everyone else
just needs to know that INSANITY are finally in the process of recording
a brand new album and this three song promo CD-R is a little taste
of things to come. The material featured on here ('Sacrefixion',
'Blind' and 'Mortification') still has the good old raging
feel to it and luckily isn't infected by any pseudo aggressive NU
Metal bullshit at all! This is pure aggressive stuff in the typical
INSANITY style and even features original drummer Bud Mills again
(which is certainly gonna please Laurent, haha!)! And even though
the guys probably won't manage to outdo their old classics, this is
still highly promising and it certainly blows away most of todays
releases. On my request INSANITY mainman Dave Gorsuch kindly sent
me the following info about their current situation: "These
are three of the first bunch of songs completed that we are doing
for a second full length release. They were done at the recording
studio I work at and I recorded, mixed and produced it myself with
the help of the other engineer at the studio who helped me on drum-basics
and on my vocals. We have 3 or 4 more songs to record with drums and
everything else, then we'll be done with the full CD. We will be looking
for a label or distribution company to help release it but we've just
started that process and there is more work to be done in the studio."
The band's line-up nowadays (besides Dave on guitar / vocals and Bud
on drums) consists of Scott Dodge on guitar and Lou Gilberto on bass
/ vocals. So, let's hope that an established company will finally
pick up these masters of brutality nowaydays and give them the massive
support and distribution that they already should've gotten back in
the 80's! Contact: INSANITY, c/o Black Lung Productions, 714 North
Claremont St. # 3, San Mateo, CA 94401, USA, www.blacklungproductions.com/insanity,
insanity@blacklungproductions.com
Frank Stöver
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INSANITY
Chronicles Of The Cursed (DoCD)
(AreaDeath Productions)
158:57min
Do I really still have to introduce California's INSANITY to the
VOICES readers? Oh well... These guys started out back in the mid
80s and quickly established themselves as a highly intense, deathly
Thrash Metal force. Musically they could almost be labeled as a
highspeed version of early POSSESSED yet with an even more
aggressive overall approach in their delivery. Unfortunately their
original guitarist / singer Joe De Zuniga died of a heart disease in
1987 and none of the bigger, more established labels at the time
picked them up, so that they weren't really able to catch up on the
attention that like-minded bands such as DARK ANGEL, POSSESSED,
EXODUS or SLAYER were already getting. As a result it took them no
less than nine long years to finally get their debut full length
"Death After Death" released through the small German
underground label MBR Records. Even though the album is totally
killer from start to finnish, it unfortunately only gained them cult
status... Probably first and foremost because of its poor
distribution, but also because of the fact that this type of music
was already considered dated by a lot of the younger kids who
worshipped the more brutal Death and grim Black Metal instead that
had flooded the scene in the meantime. But all this luckily couldn't
stop INSANITY, so that they are still going strong these days, with
guitarist Dave Gorsuch as the leading force behind them (he also
took over the vocals after Joe's death). So, apart from the original
"Death After Death" album there's already a couple more
INSANITY releases out in the meantime, but none of them was done
with so much dedication as "Chronicles Of The Cursed",
which just came out on China's AreaDeath Productions. The entire
release is strictly limited to 1000 copies and was manufactured in a
very deluxe way, almost like a real hardcover book, with an
additional high glossy jacket, while the two included CDs were
visually designed like vinyl records (you'll even recognize a
"Side A" and "Side B" on them, which is a damn
cool idea). So yeah, it all looks incredibly great! The book(let)'s
actual pages begin with a title- and content-page followed by liner
notes from EXHUMED's Matt Harvey and NAPALM DEATH's Barney, an
in-depth interview with INSANITY guitarist / vocalist Dave Gorsuch,
all the lyrics and a lot of cool pics... If you're furthermore able
to understand the Chinese language, you'll be pleased to hear that
all of the stuff in there got translated into Chinese as well.
There's also a very limited (!!) "Chronicles Of The
Cursed" die hard edition available (200 copies) that comes in a
great looking box and additionally includes an INSANITY patch, a
longsleeve-shirt and a button! My only little complain regarding the
packaging is the fact that there's no real tracklist and recording
details in the english written part... Maybe that was simply
forgotten (as it is in the Chinese part)?! Who knows... Anyway, that
ain't really a big deal, so let's have a look at the material
instead that is on both of the CDs. About 50% of it was already
featured on the "From The Grave" compilation CD that came
out via Parasitic Twin Productions in 2005... I'm talking about the
entire “Death After Death” album (except for 'In Memory', the
little Joe De Zuniga musical tribute piece), 4 remastered
8-track recordings (unfortunately 'Ultimate Death' from that same
session is missing here), as well as the 3 songs from the band's
classic ‘85 demo. But don't worry too much about that if you
should already own that compilation as there's no less than 22
additional tracks on this double CD that should easily please every
INSANITY maniac to the max! I won't go too much into details here,
which songs exactly you're gonna get, just let me tell you that
there's a couple of live songs from Berkeley ('86) and San Jose
('94), a 1989 demo (4 songs), the first recording of the 1985 demo
plus a bunch of early and late 1986 rehearsal songs. The sound
quality differs from good to average, but that should be obvious
anyway as we're mostly dealing with live-, rehearsal- and
demo-recordings here. As the original "Death After Death"
CD is out of print for a long time already, this is a good
opportunity to finally add that album with tons of additional
material to your collection! Essential! http://adp.areadeath.net/en/,
www.myspace.com/insanity,
www.blacklungproductions.com/insanity
Frank Stöver
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