"Six Bands You May Not Know, But Should" - July 16th, 2020 Edition

1. Somniate (Pilsen, Czechia, EUR)

Album: The Meyrinkian Slumber

Release Date: June 30th, 2020 (Lavadome Productions)

Genre: Black Metal/Blackened Hardcore

Contemporaries: Calligram, Gehenna, Tides Cult, Serpent Herder

Often straddling the boundary between black metal and blackened hardcore are Pilsen, Czechia’s newfledged quintet Somniate, whose freshman full-length The Meyrinkian Slumber hit the streets late last month. Arriving without so much as a demo or an EP released prior to The Meyrinkian Slumber, Somniate have gone straight for the jugular by putting out this satisfying, six-track debut. While mostly possessing the musical feel and shape of black metal, it is the variety of vocal stylings that gives the cacophony its core-like edge, and more importantly, its own unique flavor. An agreeable and pleasurable listen, even despite the hardcore leanings. Rating: 87 / 100 (B+)

2. Northern Crown (Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA)

Album: In a Pallid Shadow

Release Date: July 3rd, 2020 (Independent)

Genre: Classic/Psychedelic Doom

Contemporaries: Candlemass, Saint Vitus, Taiwaz, Hex A.D.

Bringing the classic feel and majestic habitude of influences such as Deep Purple, Dio, and Candlemass are Florida’s unsigned diamonds in the rough, Northern Crown. Formed in 2013, Northern Crown have recently released their third independent full-length, In a Pallid Shadow, but unless you live somewhere in the Southeast U.S., this fact may have slipped your grasp. But no matter! That’s what Hated One’s “Six Bands” is here for! Specializing in lengthy, epic compositions of psychedelically charged doom, Northern Crown’s In a Pallid Shadow is a sturdy, five track effort that is well worth checking out if you’re at all into the first generation doom sound. Rating: 84 / 100 (B)

3. Saints of Death (Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN)

Album: Ascend to the Throne EP

Release Date: July 10th, 2020 (Head Rattle Productions)

Genre: Blackened Death n’ Groove

Contemporaries: Lamb of God, Degenerate, Fate Unburied, Extraction Point

Containing seven tracks (with an intro) that clock in at around twenty-six minutes are the killer blackened death n’ groove tunes from Vancouver’s Saints of Death that comprise their sophomore EP, Ascend to the Throne, available now from Head Rattle Productions. Although listed as a full-length on some sites out there, seeing as a thirty minute minimum length of play is the usual qualifier for “full-length” status, this recording doesn’t quite make it, but honestly, when the release is replete with this much relatable music, does it really matter? Part death, part groove, and all black metal in imagery and corpse paint, Saints of Death have cooked up a superb blend of multiple influences to create their own batch of metal deliciousness that should be palatable to a great variety of heads. Excellent work. Rating: 97 / 100 (A+)

4. Lantern (Kuopio, Finland, EUR)

Album: Dimensions

Release Date: July 10th, 2020 (Dark Descent Records)

Genre: Blackened Death

Contemporaries: Venomous Skeleton, Gatecreeper, Ritual Dictates, Vastum

Kuopio, Finland’s Lantern may have formed in 2007, yet this blackened death outfit from the glacier-pocked north have remained underground for most of their existence. But with the release of their third full-length album, Dimensions, obscurity for Lantern may become something of a historical footnote. Stygian, menacing, and morose, the six arrangements of Dimensions weave a wicked web of woe through mesmeric repetition and controlled tumultuousness. Although a little let down in the production’s punch and output, Lantern’s Dimensions is still an estimable, praiseworthy addition to this collection of fine acts and albums and should net these Finnish veterans some well-earned new fans. Rating: 85 / 100 (B)

5. Skeleton (Austin, Texas, USA)

Album: Skeleton

Release Date: July 10th, 2020 (20 Buck Spin)

Genre: Blackened Thrash/Black n’ Roll

Contemporaries: Venom A.D., Midnight, Hellripper, All Hell

While certainly not scoring any points in the name originality column, Austin, Texas’s Skeleton more than make up for the banality of their moniker with loads of original, phenomenal black n’ roll satisfaction on their eponymous debut full-length, Skeleton, out now on 20 Buck Spin. Providing even more credence to the horror punk, black n’ roll movement, Skeleton’s distinct take on this emergent subgenre is exemplary. Vicious, addictive, and growing more enjoyable with each passing track, Skeleton’s debut is some hot, hot shit, so get it in your ears ASAP! Rating: 94 / 100 (A)

6. Eremit (Osnabrück, Germany, EUR)

Album: Desert of Ghouls EP

Release Date: July 17th, 2020 (Transcending Obscurity Records)

Genre: Doom/Sludge

Contemporaries: Yob, Indian, Pale Horseman, Shogun

If you’ve been searching high and low for another excellent, sludgy doom act who purvey ample gobs of chewy riffage to masticate, then Germany’s Eremit have got what you need! Overloaded with fuzz, rife with ebbs and flows, and heavier than a cement truck on full, this potent trio from Osnabrück have returned with a new EP, Desert of Ghouls, to follow up their striking (and aptly titled) 2018 debut full-length, Carrier of Weight; and although Desert of Ghouls contains only two tracks, one must remember we are talking full-on doomed sludge here, and that equates to two songs comprising well over twenty minutes of music. Both “Beheading the Innumerous” and “City of Râsh-il-nûm” are remarkably strong compositions that captivate and bewitch listeners through sheer dynamics and an uncompromising commitment to their genre. Consequently, if Eremit isn’t on your radar, it is time to right that wrong. Like now. Rating: 95 / 100 (A)

Thank you for reading another edition of “Six Bands” from Hated One Metal Reviews & Interviews. Be sure to go and support the bands if you’re dug anything you’ve read or heard here today, and stay safe out there, friends and neighbors!\m/

"6 Bands You May Not Know, But Should" - July 6th, 2020 Edition

1. Dismalimerence (Chicago, Illinois, USA)

Album: Tome: 1

Release Date: June 26th, 2020 (Transcending Records)

Genre: Atmospheric/Post Black

Contemporaries: Vukari, L’Homme Absurde, Fluisteraars, Sleeping Ancient, Gloosh

Making a name for themselves lately in the Chicago metal underground are Dismalimerence, whose debut full-length Tome: 1 is available now from Transcending Records. Ethereal, introspective, chilling, and alluring, this collection of eight spellbinding tunes ranges from sprawling, epic compositions to short, creatively charged bursts, but across all of Tome: 1, one thing that never changes is the overwhelming exploration of atmospheric dynamics and their interplays with modern, melodic black metal. Overall, Tome: 1 is a stunningly satisfying debut from Dismalimerence, and this act is certainly one to keep an eye and an ear on as they move forward!

2. Inexorum (Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA)

Album: Moonlit Navigation

Release Date: June 26th, 2020 (Gilead Media)

Genre: Melodic Blackened Death

Contemporaries: Wolfheart, Aspherium, Battlesword, Abeyance, Everdying

Only two years formed and already becoming prolific, Minnesota’s Inexorum craft a unique blend of death and black metals with a folky melodicism to excellent effect on their sophomore full-length, Moonlit Navigation, out now via Gilead Media. Never wholly death or black or melodic or folk, the music of Inexorum exists in all four of these realms simultaneously, and it is wonderful to behold. Moonlit Navigation’s choicest cuts include the title-track, “Moonlit Navigation”, the punishing-yet-pleasing “Chains of Loss”, and the swirling mellifluousness of “Signal Fires” (Hated One’s fave). This is one of those albums that seems to get better every time you listen to it, so get on it posthaste!

3. Sickening Horror (Athens, Greece, EUR)

Album: Chaos Revamped

Release Date: June 29th, 2020 (Pathologically Explicit Records)

Genre: Technical/Progressive Death

Contemporaries: Demilich, Roman Ring, Sutrah, Shadow in the Darkness

Taking their sweet time between almost every release since their inception way back in 2002, Greece’s technical/progressive death mainstays Sickening Horror have returned with their fourth full-length, Chaos Revamped. Although prolific isn’t a word most would use to describe this death quartet from Athens, the music they put out is quality, and that’s what counts. Nothing about this album screams that it is overly special in any way, but then again, nothing about this album screams that it is overly underwhelming, either. To summate, Chaos Revamped by Sickening Horror is simply a good listen. ‘Nuff said.

4. Enshadowed (Athens, Greece, EUR)

Album: Stare into the Abyss

Release Date: June 30th, 2020 (Odium Records)

Genre: Modern Black

Contemporaries: Empire of the Moon, Katavasia, Aegrus, Avslut

Not new, no, but still underground is the psychedelically spun black metal of another Athens act, Enshadowed. Originally formed in 1998, this Greek trio has always embraced the methodology of mesmerizing their audiences with a swirling cauldron of melodic mayhem, and on their fourth full-length (and first album in seven years), Stare into the Abyss, this approach has been taken to the absolute hilt. With plenty of sweeping, hypnotic blasts full of tuneful black metal, Enshadowed have indeed invoked the abyss for all to stare into and despair... Not a bad way to spend a warm, summer’s evening, eh?

5. Torrefy (Victoria, British Columbia, CAN)

Album: Life is Bad

Release Date: July 1st, 2020 (Independent)

Genre: Blackened Thrash/Speed

Contemporaries: Dismemberment, Black Pestilence, Beyond Deth, Primeval Mass

Reaching for the heavens are Victoria, British Columbia’s Torrefy, who’s third full studio effort, Life is Bad, has just been independently released. A little overambitious in scope and execution, unfortunately, Torrefy’s Life is Bad suffers from “Too Much of a Good Thing Can Be a Bad Thing” in that while, yes, even blackened thrash acts are allowed the room to experiment with longer compositions, but including seven thrash tracks that are longer than six minutes all on the same album? Hmmm... seeing as most thrash albums are full of three-to-five minute long songs, with maybe one or two longer cuts sprinkled in for effect, attempting to listen to over an hour’s worth of epically long thrash tracks can be a little unnerving - especially when just the opener is over nine minutes. Still, Torrefy show a lot of promise. Next time, though, it would be nice to see them reign it in a little more, as the modern attention span of most people can only be measured in nanoseconds, and extremely long blackened thrash song after extremely blackened long thrash song can often cause brains to tune out; and that's a pity because there's some real talent here. A solid - if still lengthy - album.

6. Ignea (Kyiv, Ukraine, EUR)

Album: The Realms of Fire and Death

Release Date: July 3rd, 2020 (Kadabra Music)

Genre: Progressive/Melodic Metal

Contemporaries: BTBAM, Isle of the Cross, Apotheus, Black Passage

Hailing from Ukraine, Ignea are one sweet surprise. Amorphous and groovy in dynamics and delivery, digitally charged, and filled to the brim with the beautifully unpretentious cleans and viciously potent growls of vocalist Helle Bogdanova is the Kyiv quintet’s sophomore full-length, The Realms of Fire and Death. Well-known in their own corner of the globe, but still relatively unheard of here in North America, the release of The Realms of Fire and Death should change all of that, and quickly, for this album is nothing but astounding song after astounding song. Possessing all the qualities that major labels look for, Hated One promises that the strength of The Realms of Fire and Death will be the catalyst to Ignea's soon-to-be meteoric rise.

Thank you for reading, for listening, for supporting this site and the bands, and for staying safe, healthy, and most importantly, metal! \m/

"Six Bands You May Not Know, But Should" June 30th, 2020 Edition

1. Valdrin (Cincinnati, Ohio, USA)

Album: Effigy of Nightmares

Release Date: June 12th, 2020 (Blood Harvest Records)

Genre: Melodic Black

Contemporaries: Naglfar, Dark Fortress, Hecate Enthroned, Vananidr

Returning with their hauntingly canorous methodology for a third full-length effort, Cincinnati’s Valdrin weave a monstrous web of old-school echo together with a modern melodicism, dissonance, and clarity of production to fantastic effect upon Effigy of Nightmares. Chillingly cold in structure but surprisingly warm in execution and delivery, Valdrin’s Effigy of Nightmares is six ominous arrangements laid out brilliantly, both in order and in effect. The strongest numbers? The first single, “Red Burning Candles of Hatred”, and the epic closer, “Down the Oubliette of Maelstrom”.

2. The Rite (Denmark/Italy, EUR)

Album: Liturgy of the Black

Release Date: June 19th, 2020 (Iron Bonehead Productions)

Genre: Modern Black

Contemporaries: Venom A.D., Denial of God, Funerary Bell, Master’s Hammer

First blasting upon the scene in 2018 with their debut EP, The Brocken Fires, the international black metal collaboration known as The Rite blew many a mind with their back-to-basics, almost doom-like approach to the black metal genre. And now, here amidst the plague and social upheaval that is the month of June in the year 2020 of the Common Era, The Rite have offered up their inaugural full-length mass, Liturgy of the Black, for all to devour and consume. Infernally dark and devilishly decadent, Liturgy of the Black is a stunning release worthy of all praise and adulation, and is unequivocally one of the best releases of the year, in any genre.

3. Serocs (Guadalajara, Jalisco, MEXICO)

Album: Vore EP

Release Date: June 26th, 2020 (Everlasting Spew Records)

Genre: Extreme Technical Death

Contemporaries: Cryptopsy, Soreption, Unfathomable Ruination, Carrion Vael

Prolific and punishing, Mexico’s Serocs aren’t the newest act on the block by any stretch, but since becoming an internationally dispersed venture in 2012, not only has the quantity of releases from this extreme technical terror increased exponentially, so too has the quality of each subsequent release. Still building renown, though, Serocs should get another big boost of listeners on the strength of their latest EP, Vore, out now via Everlasting Spew Records. Containing five wickedly sinister new cuts and a couple demo versions of some pre-2012 material, this mini-LP is chock full of killer music from start to finish. Don’t sleep on this sensational EP!

4. VoidCeremony (Ramona, California, USA)

Album: Entropic Reflections Continuum: Dimensional Unravel

Release Date: June 26th, 2020 (20 Buck Spin)

Genre: Progressive/Blackened Death

Contemporaries: Obscura, Gigan, Warforged, Xoth

Ramona, California’s VoidCeremony have been honing their progressively blackened and discordant craft since 2013, but until now, only EP’s had been issued from this eclectic quartet. All that changed this past weekend, however, with the official release of Entropic Reflections Continuum: Dimensional Unravel – VoidCeremony’s debut full-length – on 20 Buck Spin. Part Obscura/Beyond Creation, part Gigan, and all uniquely its own, the music of Entropic Releflections Continuum is remarkably hypnotizing, addictive, and receives full marks for individuality and creativeness.

5. Pessimist (Weil am Rhein, Germany, EUR)

Album: Holdout

Release Date: June 26th, 2020 (MDD Records)

Genre: Classic Thrash

Contemporaries: Kreator, Havok, Warbringer, Destruction

Classically executed German thrash metal: Just saying those words automatically invokes visions of legends like Kreator and Destruction, of course, but remember when an up-and-coming act named Pessimist was also vying for their own position in the pantheon of German thrash gods? Hated One Metal Reviews remembers... and so it is then that the long-awaited return of one of thrash metal’s greatest prospects has come to pass! That’s right, ladies and germs, Pessimist is back! Featuring an all new lineup built around original vocalist Michael “TZ” Schweitzer, Pessimist’s first release in seven years, Holdout, is now available worldwide from MDD Records; and the wait has been well worth it. Featuring nine ripping new cuts, Holdout is without a doubt one of the standout thrash releases of 2020. Welcome back, Pessimist!

6. Varus (Bamberg, Germany, EUR)

Album: A New Dawn

Release Date: June 27th, 2020 (Independent)

Genre: Folk/Symphonic Death

Contemporaries: Ensiferum, Moonsorrow, Suidakra, Sometimes We Make Music

Following the Ensiferum playbook step by step is Bamberg, Germany’s folk/symphonic death metal newcomers, Varus, whose sophomore full-length, A New Dawn, just dropped independently over this past weekend. Remarkably similar to their obvious main influence, Varus set themselves apart from their idol by infusing elements of their own Germanic heritage into their titles, lyrics, and dress. Hell, even their name is a reference to the Roman general whose defeat in the Teutoburg Forest at the hands of the Germanic tribes prompted Rome to never again attempt to conquer the “barbaric hordes” of what is now modern day central and northern Germany. Musically, though, Varus compliments that of their idols nicely, and is another solid addition to the rolls of symphonic folk metal’s finest. A good listen overall.

Thank you for reading, listening, and supporting these phenomenal artists in any way you can, and stay metal. Always. \m/