Mid-month Metal Masterpiece
Mid-month Metal Masterpiece 64: Deathslayer – Cry of the Swords (1984)
I’ve discussed this many times before on this feature, but elitist metalhead snobs LOVE finding bands like Deathslayer. This New York based group recorded two demos in the early 80s and then just kind of disappeared. But, thanks to a song of theirs ending up on a “New York Metal – 84” compilation LP, and thanks…
Read MoreMid-month Metal Masterpiece 63: Abhorer – Zygotical Sabbatory Anabapt (1996)
Zygotical Sabbatory Anabapt is one of those albums that tends to get overlooked because it came about 6 years too late. By 1996, this kind of first wave black death stuff wasn’t exactly wowing people the way Blasphemy’s Blood Upon the Altar did. Of course, Abhorer was no simple Blasphemy clone, their own album, “Rumpus…
Read MoreMid-month Metal Masterpiece 62: Xasthur – Nocturnal Poisoning (2002)
I may joke about Xasthur making the same album over and over again, and that may also be entirely true, but, regardless of whether or not Malefic (the sole creative force behind Xasthur) “Vivaldis” things or not, Xasthur is easily one of my favorite black metal bands of the last fifteen years. And, like the…
Read MoreMid-month Metal Masterpiece 61: Midnight – Satanic Royalty (2011)
I don’t think it’s fair to heap abuse onto Midnight for being unoriginal. Sure, they might all be card carrying members of the Venom fan club, but Midnight’s music, and infectious energy, is really quite unique: a nasty mix of first wave black metal, speed metal, and NWOBHM that will absolutely delight you if booze,…
Read MoreMid-month Metal Masterpiece 60: Hic Iacet – Hedonist of the Death
I really don’t listen to all that much death metal anymore, but when I do, it sounds like Spain’s Hic Iacet. Atmospheric, simplistic, and, above all, EEEEVIL as fuck, Hic Iacet’s debut demo really deserves all the hype that it created. Sure, maybe by 2011 this kind of stuff isn’t exactly breaking new unhallowed ground,…
Read MoreMid-month Metal Masterpiece 59: Kampfar – Mellom Skogkledde Aaser (1997)
Kampfar is one of those second wave Norwegian black metal bands that I thought I was totally over. The kind of stuff that I listen to and think “yeah, this kind of sounds like Immortal, or whatever second wave mainstay they are trying to sound like, not bad, but nothing I care to listen to.”…
Read MoreMid-month Metal Masterpiece 58: W.A.S.P. – W.A.S.P. (1984)
Any metalhead worth their salt will tell you that Glam music is SO NOT METAL. However, no metalhead worth their salt would ever suggest that W.A.S.P. should “leave the hall,” despite W.A.S.P.’s sketchy generic classification which usually lists them as a “hard rock” influenced metal band–at best. Still, no amount of make-up and album cover…
Read MoreMid-month Metal Masterpiece 57: Blasphemy – Blood upon the Altar (1989)
1989 was a pretty brutal year for extreme metal. Grindcore and death metal had finally used the knowledge culled from a decade of metal malevolence to produce some of the filthiest recordings in the history of music. However, none were quite as filthy, quite as brutal, and quite jaw-droppingly evil as Blasphemy’s debut demo Blood…
Read MoreMid-month Metal Masterpiece 56: Inquisition – Invoking the Majestic Throne of Satan (2002)
Inquisition is one of those 3rd (4th?) wave black metal bands from the early 2000s that I missed during my half decade break from discovering new music. Not that they were going to be able to stay off my radar for all that long–after all, their unique approach to black metal really makes them stand…
Read MoreMid-month Metal Masterpiece 55: Sortilège – Sortilège (1983)
Though France is known for its filthy black metal, you don’t hear as much about more traditional French “heavy metal” bands. Still, they are out there, and Sortilège is one of the earliest and still the best. Today, I will talk about their legendary debut self-titled EP, one hell of a slab of Gallic heavy metal!…
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