January 05, 2024

Here’s a little bit of feedback from two of the bands that you voted for in our BEST OF 2023 poll. CRUCIAMENTUM vocalist / guitarist Dan Lowndes was totally blown away by the fact, that their new album “Obsidian Refractions” made it straight to number one: “That’s awesome, it’s a real honor to receive such a high accolade from you. I’ve been following the zine for as long as I can remember. We all really appreciate it, thank you!” Pat Ranieri, guitarist / vocalist of HELLWITCH, was also very happy about the fact that their new album “Annihilational Intercention” made it to number seven in the poll: “Woooooww! Thanks for sharing this with me! I’m honored that so many of my contemporaries like the new album!!!”

On March 22, 2024 Wolves Of Hades will release “Nocturnal Will”, the fourth full length from Swedish Black Metal / Crust four-piece DÖDSRIT, on CD, vinyl LP and cassette tape formats. It will feature the following tracks: ‘Irjala’, ‘Nocturnal Fire’, ‘Ember And Ash’, ‘Utmed Gyllbergens Stig’, ‘As Death Comes Reaping’ and ‘Celestial Will’. The cover artwork was created by Burney. You can already stream ‘Nocturnal Fire’ over here. More about DÖDSRIT at www.facebook.com/dodsrit

Finnish Black Metallers NOCTURNAL SORCERY have just revealed the track ‘Beyond Salvation’ at this location. It will be featured on the band’s upcoming sophomore full length “Captive In The Breath Of Life”, which will be released on February 09, 2024 via Kvlt. The previously revealed ‘Redemption At Daybreak’ can still be checked out over here. The complete tracklist of “Captive In The Breath Of Life” reads like this: ‘The Dark Secret’, ‘Oath At Mt. Hermon’, ‘Cry Of The Wounded Heaven’, ‘Captive In The Breath Of Life’, ‘Spectral Force’, ‘Beyond Salvation’, ‘Joyless Dance In The Shadow’, ‘Redemption At Daybreak’, ‘Damned By The Law Of The Stars’, ‘Lucifer’s Shade’ and ‘Along The Path Of Fire’. www.kvlt.fi

Portland, Oregon based Death Metallers PETRIFICATION will release their sophomore full length “Sever Sacred Light” via Svart Records on February 09, 2024. The album’s second single ‘Sepulchral Lesions’ can now be streamed at this location. More about PETRIFICATION at www.facebook.com/petrificationdm

Polish DEFYING will release their new album “Wadera” on February 23, 2024 via the Italian label These Hands Melt on CD and digitally. It was recorded and produced by Tomasz Semeniuk in 2022, mixed and mastered by Filip Halucha at Heinrich House Studio (AZARATH, BEHEMOTH, ENTROPIA, OBSCURE SPHINX) and the cover artwork was created by Pawel Siemaszko. “Wadera” is a concept album inspired by the Polish horror film “The Wolf” (1983) and the short story “Wadera” (1977) by Jerzy Gieraltowski. Here’s the complete tracklist: ‘Tempus Infaustum’, ‘…Miast Cichać Szemrają…’, ‘The Fugue’, ‘Incomprehensibly Woken’, ‘The Acquaintance Shade’, ‘The Lurking Spectres’, ‘Cremaberis Igne Aeternoi’, ‘Reluctant To The Grave’, ‘Misbegotten’ and ‘Quietus’. You can already watch a video for ‘Tempus Infaustum’ over here. All additional band information you will find at www.facebook.com/defyingpoland

Brazilian Death Metallers ESCARNIUM have just released a lyric video for a brand new track, entitled ‘The Pyrocene’s Might’, at this location. It was recorded by Sergej Dukart at Walswerk Tonstudio in Germany and Reinaldo Jr. at RMS Studio in Brazil and mixed and mastered by Sergej Dukart. ‘The Pyrocene’s Might’ will be featured on the upcoming, fourth ESCARNIUM full length in a re-recorded version. www.facebook.com/escarnium

Swedish / US Death Metallers RIBSPREADER have just released a lyric video for ‘Further Into Decay’ over here. The song will be featured on their upcoming tenth full length “Reap Humanity”, which will be released on January 16, 2024 via Xtreem Music on CD and digital formats. You can still listen to the album’s first advance single ‘A Fleshless Gathering’ at this location. The full “Reap Humanity” tracklist reads as follows: ‘The Skeletal Towers’, ‘A Fleshless Gathering’, ‘Reap Humanity’, ‘Count Damnation’, ‘As The Ghouls Are Summoned’, ‘Like Breeding Vermin’, ‘Further Into Decay’, ‘Human Fodder’ and ‘Shrouded In Despair’. More about RIBSPREADER at: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100044948155884